Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi waits to meet Yang Jiechi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China's (CPC) Central Committee, at the Presidential House in Naypyidaw on September 1, 2020. (Photo by Thet AUNG / POOL / AFP) (Photo by THET AUNG/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Parked cars with open bonnets blocked roads in Yangon yesterday in the latest twist to protests against the military takeover of Myanmar.

The gridlock was part of a campaign coordinated on social media, using the slogan car, dont break down reported Frontier Myanmar, as protesters encouraged civil servants to strike and join the growing civil disobedience movement against the junta.

Myanmar witnessed some of its largest pro-democracy protests since the February 1 military coup yesterday, as hundreds of thousands marched peacefully to reject the armys assertion that the public supported its overthrow of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The rallies in the capital Naypyitaw, and in Yangon and Mandalay, came a day after the detained Ms Suu Kyi was handed new charges under the National Disaster Management Law, in a court hearing kept secret from her lawyer.

The protests were billed as a show of force against a claim by Brigadier General Zaw Min Tun, an army spokesman, that 40 million of the 53 million population supported the militarys action.

A giant banner reading We will never kneel down under the military boots was draped over a bridge in Yangon.

Hundreds also outside the citys United Nations headquarters, urging the international community to take action against the military regime.

Tom Andrews, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said he feared the potential for violence was growing.

Although yesterdays protests were peaceful, there are concerns about a military with a history of brutal crackdowns.

I have reports of soldiers being transported into Yangon from outlying regions. In the past, such troop movements preceded killings, disappearances and detentions on a mass scale, said Mr Andrews.

When will the generals notice that their escalating war is building stronger opposition at home even as the civil disobedience movement builds greater admiration and support in nations throughout the world? Probably when its too late.

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Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
STAMFORD  Nestle Waters North America, the Stamford-based producer of bottled-water brands including Poland Spring, will be sold to two investment firms in a $4.3 billion deal that is not expected to affect the companys local operation.

Parent company Nestle agreed to sell the business to One Rock Capital Partners and Metropoulos & Co., the parties announced late Tuesday. As one of the largest beverage companies in North America, the Nestle Waters portfolio includes the regional water brands Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ozarka, Ice Mountain, Zephyrhills and Arrowhead, as well as the Pure Life and Splash lines.

Nestles Perrier, S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna international premium-water brands are not part of the sale agreement.

Nestle Waters ranked as the 13th-largest employer in Stamford with 610 local employees in the third quarter of 2020, according to the Stamford Office of Economic Development.

At this time, we are unaware of any expected changes in regard to where we operate today, a Nestle Waters spokesperson told Hearst Connecticut Media. We will be operating largely business as usual.

Tony Lee, managing partner of One Rock, said in a statement,Nestle Waters North America's iconic brands have earned the trust and preference of consumers everywhere due to an uncompromising commitment to quality. We are excited to further this commitment and build upon the market leadership of the business alongside the Company's talented management team.

The deal is expected to be completed in the spring. At that point, Dean Metropoulos, founder of his family-owned investment firm, will become the company's chairman and interim CEO. A press release from One Rock and Metropoulos about the deal described him as an industry veteran with a successful 40-year track record of transforming scores of companies and reinvigorating numerous food and beverage brands, including Hostess Brands and Pabst Brewing Co.

I am pleased to have the opportunity to lead NWNA as it enters the next phase of evolution, Metropoulos said in a statement. "This is an important inflection point for the business as it transitions to an independent company, and I look forward to collaborating with One Rock and NWNA's management team to deliver unparalleled value to our customers.

Vevey, Switzerland-headquartered Nestle had signaled that it would go in a new direction when it announced last June that it would explore strategic options for the majority of the Nestle Waters business.

We continue to transform our global waters business to best position it for long-term profitable growth, Nestle CEO Mark Schneider said in a statement. This sale enables us to create a more focused business around our international premium brands, local natural mineral waters and high-quality healthy hydration products. We will also boost our innovation and business development efforts to capture emerging consumer trends, such as functional water.

Nestle Waters is headquartered at 900 Long Ridge Road in Stamford. The company employs about 7,000 in the U.S., and more than 230 in Canada.

It runs 27 production facilities across North America and operates the direct-to-consumer and office beverage-delivery service ReadyRefresh.

We are thrilled to partner with Dean, a highly accomplished investor and operator with proven success reimagining brands and businesses around the world, to lead NWNA, One Rock Partner Kimberly Reed said in a statement. As a private company, the business is expected to have greater resources and flexibility to drive continued growth, strengthen its existing operations, and execute on its mission to deliver healthy hydration to consumers.

pschott@stamfordadvocate.com; Twitter: @paulschott
VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - NexGen Energy Ltd. ("NexGen" or the "Company") (TSX: NXE) (NYSE: NXE) is pleased to announce that the registered holders of the entire US$120 million aggregate principal amount of Convertible Debentures (or, the "Indentures") have provided notice to NexGen and the indenture trustee that they have elected to convert into common shares of NexGen ("Common Shares") pursuant to the terms of the trust indentures governing the Indentures. The registered holders of the Indentures are affiliates of CEF Holdings Limited and its shareholders ("CEF"). The Indentures consist of US$60 million aggregate principal amount of 7.5% unsecured convertible debentures issued by the Company in 2016 (the "2016 Debentures") and the US$60 million aggregate principal amount of 7.5% unsecured convertible debentures issued by the Company in 2017 (the "2017 Debentures") both due to mature on July 22, 2022.

Leigh Curyer, Chief Executive Officer, commented: "We are very pleased CEF have elected to convert the Indentures early totalling US$120 million into equity. The structure of the 2016/2017 Indentures have been extremely effective from a financing and strategic perspective which has facilitated NexGen's development of the Rook I Project in an optimal manner and sets the stage for NexGen to be a significant producer of clean energy fuel."

Conversion

Under the terms, the Indentures are convertible into Common Shares based on the conversion price of US$2.3261 for the 2016, and US$2.6919 the 2017 Debentures. On settlement of the conversion, CEF will move from 8.7% to ~18.7% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares of NexGen Energy Ltd.

Other Activities

As at the date of this announcement and post settlement of the debenture conversion, the Company has cash-on-hand of ~$55 million ;

; The Company is in the final stages of completing the Rook I Feasibility Study with results scheduled to be released imminently.

About NexGen

NexGen is a British Columbia corporation with a focus on the acquisition, exploration and development of Canadian uranium projects. NexGen has a highly experienced team of uranium industry professionals with a successful track record in the discovery of uranium deposits and in developing projects through discovery to production. NexGen owns a portfolio of prospective uranium exploration assets in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada, including a 100% interest in Rook I, location of the Arrow Deposit discovered in February 2014 which is in development.

SEC Standards

Estimates of mineralization and other technical information included or referenced in this news release have been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. The definitions of Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves used in NI 43-101 differ from the definitions in SEC Industry Guide 7. Under SEC Industry Guide 7 standards, a "final" or "bankable" feasibility study is required to report Reserves, the three-year historical average price is used in any Reserve or cash flow analysis to designate Reserves and the primary environmental analysis or report must be filed with the appropriate governmental authority. As a result, the Reserves reported by the Company in accordance with NI 43-101 may not qualify as "Reserves" under SEC standards. In addition, the terms "Mineral Resource", "Measured Mineral Resource", "Indicated Mineral Resource" and "Inferred Mineral Resource" are defined in and required to be disclosed by NI 43-101; however, these terms are not defined terms under SEC Industry Guide 7 and normally are not permitted to be used in reports and registration statements filed with the SEC. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted into Reserves. "Inferred Mineral Resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence, and great uncertainty as to their economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an Inferred Mineral Resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian securities laws, estimates of Inferred Mineral Resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, except in rare cases. Additionally, disclosure of "contained pounds" in a Resource is permitted disclosure under Canadian securities laws; however, the SEC normally only permits issuers to report mineralization that does not constitute "Reserves" by SEC standards as in place tonnage and grade without reference to unit measurements. Accordingly, information contained or referenced in this news release containing descriptions of the Company's mineral deposits may not be comparable to similar information made public by U.S. companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of United States federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

Forward-Looking Information

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward looking information in this press release includes, but is not limited to, statements regarding settlement of the conversion of the Debentures and the CEF Group's continued support and commitment to the Company.

Forward-looking information and statements are based on the then current expectations, beliefs, assumptions, estimates and forecasts about NexGen's business and the industry and markets in which it operates. Forward-looking information and statements are made based upon numerous assumptions, including among others, that the proposed transaction will be completed, the results of planned exploration activities are as anticipated, the price of uranium, the cost of planned exploration activities, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms, that third party contractors, equipment, supplies and governmental and other approvals required to conduct NexGen's planned exploration activities will be available on reasonable terms and in a timely manner and that general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner. Although the assumptions made by the Company in providing forward looking information or making forward looking statements are considered reasonable by management at the time, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be accurate.

Forward-looking information and statements also involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual results, performances and achievements of NexGen to differ materially from any projections of results, performances and achievements of NexGen expressed or implied by such forward-looking information or statements, including, among others, negative operating cash flow and dependence on third party financing, uncertainty of the availability of additional financing, the risk that pending assay results will not confirm previously announced preliminary results, imprecision of Mineral Resource Estimates, the appeal of alternate sources of energy and sustained low uranium prices, aboriginal title and consultation issues, exploration risks, reliance upon key management and other personnel, deficiencies in the Company's title to its properties, uninsurable risks, failure to manage conflicts of interest, failure to obtain or maintain required permits and licenses, changes in laws, regulations and policy, competition for resources and financing, and other factors discussed or referred to in the Company's Annual Information Form dated March 11, 2020 under "Risk Factors".

Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended.

There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.

SOURCE NexGen Energy Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.nexgenenergy.ca/


A health worker closes the gate behind him in December as he goes in the front entrance of McKinney Place long-term care home in Oliver.
A text exchange between a Liberal staffer and alleged rape victim Brittany Higgins has cast doubt over claims the prime minister's office was left in the dark over the matter.

Ms Higgins allegedly received a text message from a fellow Liberal staffer on April 3, 2019 - within a fortnight of the alleged rape.

In the text the Liberal staffer said he had spoken directly with a member of Mr Morrison's staff, according to The Australian.

The alleged text exchange between Brittany Higgins and a Liberal staffer. PMO stands for 'prime minister's office'

Brittany Higgins (pictured above) and Prime Minister Scott Morrison are seen together at a Liberal Party event several years ago

There are further claims the Prime Minister's Office is briefing reporters in an apparent attempt to smear Ms Higgins' current partner, a former public servant

'Spoke to PMO (Prime Minister's Office). He was mortified to hear about it and how things have been handled,' the text reads.

'He's going to discuss with COS (Chief of Staff) - no one else. I flagged need for councillor (sic) and desire to be closer to home during election.'

When the matter was raised in parliament in Canberra on Thursday, Mr Morrison maintained he only found about the alleged rape last Friday.

Ms Higgins' claimed three of the prime minister's staff members were already aware of the incident before last week.

Representatives from the Australian Federal Police have confirmed one of their senior staff met Senator Linda Reynolds and her then chief of staff on April 4, 2019 in relation to the matter.

Ms Higgins was 24-years-old and working as a ministerial media adviser to Defence Minister Ms Reynolds when she alleges she was raped by a senior Liberal staff member after a night out in March 2019.

The AFP were chasing up allegations of sexual assault in the minister's office from an alleged incident on March 23.

Senator Linda Reynolds (pictured above) has been accused of being elusive when it comes to questions surrounding Ms Higgins' alleged rape

Brittany Higgins was 24-years-old when she was allegedly sexually assaulted by a male colleague after a night out

She has since suggested the Prime Minister's office is briefing reporters in an apparent attempt to smear her current partner, a former public servant.

Ms Higgins said if the claims are true, it 'speaks to the systematic problems of this place' - and it needs to stop.

'I knew personally that when I decided to put my name and face to this there would be repercussions for me. But I think it's unfair if they are starting to try and take this out on loved ones,' Ms Higgins told Guardian Australia.

'It silences people and I think it's gross.'

The Liberal staffer accused of raping Ms Higgins has since checked himself into hospital.

The staffer - who hasn't been charged or investigated by police - reportedly left his home on Sydney's north shore on Wednesday evening to seek psychiatric care.

During a tearful interview with The Project on Monday, Ms Higgins claimed that her alleged attacker had landed 'a good job' in Sydney and 'just kind of got to keep going.'

Daily Mail Australia understands he now works for a major multinational company.

Ms Higgins said she did not go public with her allegations at the time over fears it could end her career.

Ms Higgins decided not to pursue a police complaint at the time because she felt pressure that doing so would affect her employment. She has since resigned from her job in government and plans to reinstate the police complaint

The prime minister said he only learned of the rape allegation this week and on Tuesday publicly scolded Ms Reynolds in parliament for not informing him about the issue at the time.

Since the story broke on Monday, Ms Higgins said she only learned key details about the night after they were reported by the media as the events were investigated.

She said she was unaware security let her into Ms Reynolds' suite and checked on multiple times and found her in a state of undress.

Ms Higgins said she also did not know that they debated over whether to call an ambulance, or that an internal review was launched into how the matter was handled at the time.

'I have only been made aware of key elements of my own sexual assault as a result of coming forward with my story,' she said.

'The continued victim-blaming rhetoric by the Prime Minister is personally very distressing to me and countless other survivors.'

She claimed she was not allowed see the CCTV footage from the evening and was 'continually made me feel as if my ongoing employment would be jeopardised if I proceeded and further with the matter'.

'The government has questions to answer for their own conduct.'

Ms Higgins did not clarify exactly what Mr Morrison said that she believed to be victim blaming.

Among the new pieces of information was that another top minister left a voicemail for Ms Higgins telling her the situation was 'under control' and to 'sleep tight'.

'Brittany, it's Michaelia. Just checking up on you - you looked absolutely gorgeous on Saturday,' she said in the 30 second-long message obtained by news.com.au.

'I really hope you had a lovely time at the Federal Council. Hoping everything is OK.

'Look, Daniel has got everything under control. I promise you. And just remember. We are with you every step of the way. OK? Sleep tight. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.'
LOS ANGELESIn the latest victory for Section 230  the 1996 law that protects free speech on the internet  a California state appeals court has ruled that the social media platform Twitter has the right to ban users from the platform for violating its policies over the content of their tweets. The court ruled that Section 230, which protects platforms from legal liability over the content of user posts, also allows those platforms to remove those posts or even terminate user accounts if they violate the sites policies.

Section 230 has withstood numerous court challenges in the past several years, leading to repeated attempts by Congress to weaken or eliminate it. The law is of particular importance to the adult industry, which often comes under attack from would-be censors, and without Section 230 protections risks being removed from internet service providers, hosting services and platforms.

The latest ruling was handed down January 22 by the California First District Court of Appeal, in a 2019 lawsuit brought by feminist writer Meghan Murphy, founder of the site Feminist Current. Twitter had removed several of Murphys tweets for violating its policies against hate speech. In the tweets, Murphy referred to a transgender woman  a political activist with whom Murphy was engaged in a feud  as male and a man.

In one tweet, she asked How are transwomen not men? What is the difference between a man and a transwoman?

When Twitters removed of her anti-transgender tweets, Murphy responded by tweeting dircetly at Twitter management, writing, This is fucking bullshit @twitter. Im not allowed to say that men arent women or ask questions about the notion of transgenderism at all anymore? That a multi billion dollar company is censoring BASIC FACTS and silencing people who ask questions about this dogma is INSANE . . . .

Twitter finally suspended Murphys account on a permanent basis after she posted tweets accusing a transgender woman of attempting to extort money from beauty salons that refused to perform a Brazlian waxing procedure on her, because she had male genitals.

Murphy responded with a lawsuit accusing Twitter of breach of contract and unfair business competition. In its own reply to her suit, Twitter claims that Section 230 gave it the right to ban users from the platform.

In its January opinion, the court held that Twitter was, in fact, protected by Section 230 on all three conditions required for immunity from liability under the law. First, the court said, Twitter met the definition of an interactive computer service, which is the category to which Section 230 applies.

Second, the court cited previous cases in which courts ruled that typical publisher behavior, such as decisions about which content to include or not include on its site, is immune from lawsuits. And finally, the court said, Murphys posts were information provided by another information content provider, not by Twitter itself  and Twitter was allowed to remove them with full protection from Section 230.

Murphy claimed that Section 230s protections did not apply, because Twitter had broken a contractual promise to her. But the court rejected that claim, too, saying that Twitters stated policy of allowing everyone the power to create and share ideas and information instantly without barriers, was not, in fact, a promise that the site would not remove posts that violated its policies.

Because Murphy has not alleged Twitter ever made a specific representation directly to her or others that they would not remove content from their platform or deny access to their accounts, but rather expressly reserved the right to remove content, including content they determine is harassing or intolerable, and suspend or terminate accounts for any or no reason in its terms of service, Murphy cannot plead reasonable reliance on the alleged promises as a matter of law, write Associate Justice Sandra L. Margulies, in the courts decision.

Photo By Photo Mix / Pixabay
Looking to sink your teeth into some well-written nonfiction next month? From biographies and memoirs to investigative reporting and self-help guides, these are some of the best nonfiction books coming out in March 2021.

The Songpo bookstore in China in 2021 | Teng Zhizhong/VCG via Getty Images

The Soul of a Woman by Isabel Allende

Chilean writer Isabel Allende is best-known for her many novels, like City of the Beasts and The House of the Spirits. The New York Times bestselling authors upcoming memoir, The Soul of a Woman, is one of the most-anticipated nonfiction books of 2021.

In this searing look at Allendes girlhood being raised by a single mother, her three marriages, and her experiences as part of the second-wave feminist movement in the 1960s, she digs deep into what it means to claim her voice as a woman.

Coming in 2021 from McSweeneys: Spilt Milk by Courtney Zoffness (@czoffrun). We cant wait for you to read this one. Cover art by Eleanor Taylor.https://t.co/IciUy6FCDb pic.twitter.com/p6A6SAWWvH  Timothy McSweeney (@mcsweeneys) December 18, 2020

Spilt Milk: Memoirs by Courtney Zoffness

Spilt Milk: Memoirs, an essay collection by Courtney Zoffness, has already garnered effusive praise from early critics. Zoffness, a recipient of the Sunday Times Short Story Award and an Emerging Writers Fellowship from the Center for Fiction, explores mental health and the shadow side of motherhood in these fiercely funny pieces.

RELATED: The 9 Most-Anticipated YA Novels of 2021

Dusk, Night, Dawn: On Revival and Courage by Anne Lamott

Anne Lamott is the author of a number of wildly popular books about writing, creativity, spiritual growth, and personal discovery  like Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. In her newest nonfiction book, Dusk, Night, Dawn: On Revival and Courage, she breaks down big-picture issues like marriage, social unrest, and collective trauma into her characteristic bite-sized pieces (and never asks readers to bite off more than they can chew).

Me & @drewfhinshaw spent 3 months on 3 continents reporting this opus. Its the best piece of journalism Ive ever been involved in. https://t.co/Wf9UjU98y6  Joe Parkinson (@JoeWSJ) December 22, 2017

Bring Back Our Girls: The Untold Story of the Global Search for Nigerias Missing Schoolgirls by Joe Parkinson and Drew Hinshaw

In Bring Back Our Girls: The Untold Story of the Global Search for Nigerias Missing Schoolgirls, investigative journalists Joe Parkinson and Drew Hinshaw present an in-depth story of the mission to rescue 276 Nigerian students who were abducted by a group of religious extremists. The search spawned the global #BringBackOurGirls movement, supported by celebrities and prominent political figures like Michelle Obama, on social media in 2014.

The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson

Walter Isaacson has penned bestselling biographies of greats like Albert Einstein, Steve Jobs, Ben Franklin, and Leonardo da Vinci. This time, he returns to tell the life story of Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna, who developed CRISPR with her team of researchers, in The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race.

Less than 3 weeks until pub date! I HAD A MISCARRIAGE coming soon pic.twitter.com/mL7PPhd4o2  Jessica Zucker, PhD (@DrZucker) February 17, 2021

RELATED: The 9 Most-Anticipated Romance Novels of 2021

I Had a Miscarriage: A Memoir, a Movement by Jessica Zucker

In recent years, public figures like Meghan Markle, Carrie Underwood, and Chrissy Teigen have come forward about their experiences of pregnancy loss. Psychologist Jessica Zucker, Ph.D., writes about her own miscarriage, and the phenomenon of women becoming more open than ever about their experiences with losing wanted pregnancies, in I Had a Miscarriage: A Memoir, a Movement.

Remember by Lisa Genova

Why do you remember your most excruciatingly embarrassing moments, but not where you left your keys? Why do Alzheimers patients often recall intricate details from their childhood, but not what they ate for lunch? Harvard-trained neuroscientist and New York Times bestselling novelist Lisa Genova answers all your questions about the science of memory in Remember.

I spent time signing copies of my memoir, The Beauty of Living Twice, for booksellers.

Signed copies of The Beauty of Living Twice are available from @BNBuzz, @booksamillion, and select Indie bookstores, while supplies last. #TheBeautyLivingTwice https://t.co/WDuFrrFjFS pic.twitter.com/UFRZLkTeTu  Sharon Stone (@sharonstone) February 15, 2021

The Beauty of Living Twice by Sharon Stone

In The Beauty of Living Twice, Golden Globe- and Emmy Award-winning actor and human rights activist Sharon Stone writes about her path to healing and recovery in the aftermath of her massive stroke in 2001, as well as the abuse she experienced as a child. The memoir by the Basic Instinct star will also be released as an audiobook, read by Stone herself.

Girlhood by Melissa Febos

Essayist, memoirist, and literary critic Melissa Febos digs deeply into her own history to explore what it means to be a girl in her newest book, Girlhood. From the moment her body started changing during puberty to basing her worth on romantic relationships in her teens, Febos delves into the politics of girlhood from a social, cultural, and personal perspective.

Everybody Fights: So Why Not Get Better at It? by Kim and Penn Holderness

Parents Kim and Penn Holderness are known for their family-friendly musical parodies and comedy skits on their YouTube channel, The Holderness Family.

The social media influencers are now coming out with a funny, irreverent how-to guide on everyones least favorite part of marriage  arguments. Everybody Fights: So Why Not Get Better at It? provides a lighthearted but informative set of tools to have under your belt the next time you and your spouse cant agree on something.
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El Castillo cave, Spain - the red dots in the center of this image are the oldest cave art known for Europe and were made almost 42,000 years ago. The red ochre handprints are a common motif  and are suggested to represent the use of an ancient form of sunscreen. Credit: Paul Pettitt, Gobierno de Cantabria

The temporary breakdown of Earth's magnetic field 42,000 years ago sparked major climate shifts that led to global environmental change and mass extinctions, a new international study co-led by UNSW Sydney and the South Australian Museum shows.

This dramatic turning point in Earth's historylaced with electrical storms, widespread auroras, and cosmic radiationwas triggered by the reversal of Earth's magnetic poles and changing solar winds.

The researchers dubbed this danger period the 'Adams Transitional Geomagnetic Event', or 'Adams Event' for shorta tribute to science fiction writer Douglas Adams, who wrote in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy that '42' was the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

The findings are published today in Science.

"For the first time ever, we have been able to precisely date the timing and environmental impacts of the last magnetic pole switch," says Chris Turney, a professor at UNSW Science and co-lead author of the study.

"The findings were made possible with ancient New Zealand kauri trees, which have been preserved in sediments for over 40,000 years.

"Using the ancient trees we could measure, and date, the spike in atmospheric radiocarbon levels caused by the collapse of Earth's magnetic field."

While scientists already knew the magnetic poles temporarily flipped around 41-42,000 years ago (known as the 'Laschamps Excursion'), they didn't know exactly how it impacted life on Earthif at all.

The temporary breakdown of Earths magnetic field 42,000 years ago sparked major climate shifts that led to global environmental change and mass extinctions. Credit: UNSW Sydney

But the researchers were able to create a detailed timescale of how Earth's atmosphere changed over this time by analysing rings on the ancient kauri trees.

"The kauri trees are like the Rosetta Stone, helping us tie together records of environmental change in caves, ice cores and peat bogs around the world," says co-lead Professor Alan Cooper, Honorary Researcher at the South Australian Museum.

The researchers compared the newly-created timescale with records from sites across the Pacific and used it in global climate modelling, finding that the growth of ice sheets and glaciers over North America and large shifts in major wind belts and tropical storm systems could be traced back to the Adams Event.

One of their first clues was that megafauna across mainland Australia and Tasmania went through simultaneous extinctions 42,000 years ago.

"This had never seemed right, because it was long after Aboriginal people arrived, but around the same time that the Australian environment shifted to the current arid state," says Prof. Cooper.

The paper suggests that the Adams Event could explain a lot of other evolutionary mysteries, like the extinction of Neandertals and the sudden widespread appearance of figurative art in caves around the world.

"It's the most surprising and important discovery I've ever been involved in," says Prof. Cooper.

The perfect (cosmic) storm

The magnetic north polethat is, the direction a compass needle points todoesn't have a fixed location. It usually wobbles close to the North Pole (the northern-most point of Earth's axis) over time due to dynamic movements within the Earth's core, just like the magnetic south pole.

Using an ancient kauri tree log from Ngawha, New Zealand, scientists have dated the timing and environmental impacts of the last magnetic pole switch. Credit: Nelson Parker (nelsonskaihukauri.co.nz)

Sometimes, for reasons that aren't clear, the magnetic poles' movements can be more drastic. Around 41,000-42,000 years ago they swapped places entirely.

"The Laschamps Excursion was the last time the magnetic poles flipped," says Prof. Turney. "They swapped places for about 800 years before changing their minds and swapping back again."

Until now, scientific research has focused on changes that happened while the magnetic poles were reversed, when the magnetic field was weakened to about 28 percent of its present-day strength.

But according to the team's findings, the most dramatic part was the lead-up to the reversal, when the poles were migrating across the Earth.

"Earth's magnetic field dropped to only 0-6 percent strength during the Adams Event," says Prof. Turney.

"We essentially had no magnetic field at allour cosmic radiation shield was totally gone."

During the magnetic field breakdown, the Sun experienced several 'Grand Solar Minima' (GSM), long-term periods of quiet solar activity.

Even though a GSM means less activity on the Sun's surface, the weakening of its magnetic field can mean more space weatherlike solar flares and galactic cosmic rayscould head Earth's way.

"Unfiltered radiation from space ripped apart air particles in Earth's atmosphere, separating electrons and emitting lighta process called ionisation," says Prof. Turney.

"The ionised air 'fried' the Ozone layer, triggering a ripple of climate change across the globe."

Into the caves

Dazzling light shows would have been frequent in the sky during the Adams Event.

Aurora borealis and aurora australis, also known as the northern and southern lights, are caused by solar winds hitting the Earth's atmosphere.

Usually confined to the polar northern and southern parts of the globe, the colourful sights would have been widespread during the breakdown of Earth's magnetic field.

"Early humans around the world would have seen amazing auroras, shimmering veils and sheets across the sky," says Prof. Cooper.

Ionised airwhich is a great conductor for electricitywould have also increased the frequency of electrical storms.

"It must have seemed like the end of days," says Prof. Cooper.

The researchers theorise that the dramatic environmental changes may have caused early humans to seek more shelter. This could explain the sudden appearance of cave art around the world roughly 42,000 years ago.

"We think that the sharp increases in UV levels, particularly during solar flares, would suddenly make caves very valuable shelters," says Prof. Cooper. "The common cave art motif of red ochre handprints may signal it was being used as sunscreen, a technique still used today by some groups.

"The amazing images created in the caves during this time have been preserved, while other art out in open areas has since eroded, making it appear that art suddenly starts 42,000 years ago."

Uncovering ancient clues

These findings come two years after a particularly important ancient kauri tree was uncovered at Ngawha, Northland.

The massive treewith a trunk spanning over two and a half metreswas alive during the Laschamps.

"Like other entombed kauri logs, the wood of the Ngawha tree is so well preserved that the bark is still attached," says UNSW's Dr. Jonathan Palmer, a specialist in dating tree-rings (dendrochronology). Dr. Palmer studied cross sections of the trees at UNSW Science's Chronos 14Carbon-Cycle Facility.

Using radiocarbon datinga technique to date ancient relics or eventsthe team tracked the changes in radiocarbon levels during the magnetic pole reversal. This data was charted alongside the trees' annual growth rings, which acts as an accurate, natural timestamp.

The new timescale helped reveal the picture of this dramatic period in Earth's history. The team were able to reconstruct the chain of environmental and extinction events using climate modelling.

"The more we looked at the data, the more everything pointed to 42," says Prof. Turney. "It was uncanny.

"Douglas Adams was clearly on to something, after all."

An accelerant like no other

While the magnetic poles often wander, some scientists are concerned about the current rapid movement of the north magnetic pole across the Northern Hemisphere.

"This speedalongside the weakening of Earth's magnetic field by around nine percent in the past 170 yearscould indicate an upcoming reversal," says Prof. Cooper.

"If a similar event happened today, the consequences would be huge for modern society. Incoming cosmic radiation would destroy our electric power grids and satellite networks."

Prof. Turney says the human-induced climate crisis is catastrophic enough without throwing major solar changes or a pole reversal in the mix.

"Our atmosphere is already filled with carbon at levels never seen by humanity before," he says. "A magnetic pole reversal or extreme change in Sun activity would be unprecedented climate change accelerants.

"We urgently need to get carbon emissions down before such a random event happens again."

Explore further The first Australian evidence of a major shift in Earth's magnetic poles may help researchers predict the next

More information: A. Cooper at South Australian Museum in Adelaide, SA, Australia el al., "A global environmental crisis 42,000 years ago," Science (2021). Journal information: Science A. Cooper at South Australian Museum in Adelaide, SA, Australia el al., "A global environmental crisis 42,000 years ago,"(2021). science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi  1126/science.abb8677
EDITORS NOTE: NJ Cannabis Insider is hosting a two-day business and networking conference March 9-10, featuring some of the states most prominent industry leaders. Tickets are limited.

A top New Jersey lawmaker has ended a weeks-long effort to compromise with Gov. Phil Murphy on underage penalties for marijuana use, saying again the governor should sign legal marijuana bills that passed late last year.

That could mean an end for the current push to launch a legal marijuana industry and to end arrests for possession, an endeavor that has already included several months of policy debate and has the support of 2.7 million voters. The proposed plan was the latest of several attempts  and the last one before a deadline on the bills.

Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-Union, on Wednesday canceled a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on a bill addressing underage penalties and said he would abandon the effort due to a lack of support.

The plan was to impose fines and warnings for those under 21 caught with marijuana. In return, Murphy would sign two bills  one to launch a legal marijuana industry and another to halt arrests.

Underage penalties, all of those issues are explained in the original bills, Scutari said. All avenues to clarify it any further are exhausted.

Lawmakers had fast tracked the bill for passage this week and planned to vote on it Friday. That day also marks the deadline for the governor to act on the legislation.

Murphy has said he cannot sign the bill without uniform, civil penalties in place for underage use.

Murphy could also conditionally veto the bills and send them back to the Legislature, where lawmakers could vote to accept the changes. But Scutari said he did not think there would be enough senators willing to do that.

Im hopeful that theyll do the right thing and sign, Scutari said.

A spokesperson from Murphys office declined to comment on the update.

The two bills on his desk conflict each other. The legalization bill makes underage possession a disorderly persons offense similar to alcohol, but the decriminalization bill does away with all penalties.

New Jersey voters said yes to legalizing marijuana by a wide margin. But that didnt lead to change overnight. Instead, the vote gave lawmakers a mandate to get to work on bills to overhaul marijuana prohibition.

They did so two months ago. The bills have sat on Murphys desk since.

The deadline can be moved, but an Assembly voting session, now scheduled for Friday, would trigger it. And after weeks of talks, a few more days could be unlikely to move the bill forward in the Senate.

The Assembly has already moved its quorum by two weeks to give lawmakers more time to work out a compromise that will get Murphys signature on the bills. It was not immediately clear Wednesday afternoon if the Assembly would further extend the deadline.

Assemblyman Jamel Holley, D-Union, who sponsored the legalization bill, said in a statement the lower chamber had the votes to legalize marijuana for two years.

In the November election, a large majority of New Jerseyans demanded relief, he said. Our Governor promised this would be done in his first 100 days, we are now in his fourth year. State lawmakers in the Senate are mandated to follow the will of the people. Today, they failed again.

The Black Legislative Caucus opposed an initial cleanup bill, saying they believed police would disproportionately target Black and brown youth in enforcing fines.

But the newer plan offered lower fines and several protections for young people. Activists, attorneys and religious leaders testified on the bill Monday and gave their general support to the effort. It would have levied fines of $50 on those ages 18 to 20 caught with marijuana and escalating warnings for juveniles.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Amanda Hoover may be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj.
Investigations editor

Larry Parnass, investigations editor, joined The Eagle in 2016 from the Daily Hampshire Gazette, where he was editor in chief. His freelance work has appeared in the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Hartford Courant and CommonWealth Magazine.
Editors note: This part of a series of profiles on cannabis brokers, in which Insurance Journal explores why and how these folks got into the business, the ups and downs of insuring cannabis, as well as a few tips for those interested in a little professional development.

Alan Devey, a cannabis focused producer out of Lockton Chicago, lives in the rarified and risky air of insuring publicly traded cannabis companies.

Devey works with several publicly traded cannabis companies. His client base represents companies traded on both Canadian exchanges and U.S. exchanges and he specializes in vertically integrated operators.

Devey is coming up on 10 years in the insurance business, having worked for Aon, a boutique brokerage, and finally Lockton, where hes been since 2016. For the past three years, hes made his focus the cannabis industry.

Devey spoke with Insurance Journal about his experience as a cannabis broker.

Insurance Journal: Why did you get in the cannabis and insurance space?

Devey: I got into the cannabis industry because I recognized that companies in the cannabis industry were looking for risk management partners who were not only creative and proactive but also have the necessary size and leverage in the marketplace to create new solutions and solve problems that cannabis companies face in the current insurance, regulatory and legal landscape in which they deal.

Being the largest, privately held broker allows us to invest in our clients and associates and over the past three years we have built a team of 20-plus associates with expertise specific to cannabis across multiple lines of coverage, working to create new analytics, benchmarking and coverage solutions for our clients.

Insurance Journal: Has this been a good financial decision so far?

Devey: Getting into cannabis has been a large investment of time and money and energy. The proof that this investment has been well worth it is represented by the incredible companies from across both the U.S. and Canada that have chosen us as their trusted advisor over the past several years.

Insurance Journal: Whats the hardest thing about the cannabis industry to deal with?

Devey: Ease of doing business. If you were to work with a pencil manufacturer, you could gather the appropriate information and share with the market. In the cannabis world, you will need to complete several sets of redundant applications from all carriers to make sure your submission is recognized. This takes a lot of time and energy and gives your client or prospect insurance fatigue.

Additionally, carriers make a lot of assumptions, so it is important to set up meetings with the underwriters to make sure they are aware of everything your client does, and more importantly, what they dont do.

Insurance Journal: What insurance product is the most difficult to obtain for your cannabis industry clients? Why?

Devey: On a global basis, when values are high enough, it is very difficult to find coverage for stock/inventory coverage. Additionally, directors and officers insurance continues to remain a problem from both a pricing and capacity standpoint.

Insurance Journal: What two or three tips do you have for brokers entering the business of insuring cannabis?

Devey: Understanding the language, legislation, and landscape of the market is key. As is knowing who the players are, how certain legislation will impact your business.

Equally as important, understanding carrier appetites and underwriting guidelines. Find a unique problem in the industry and focus on finding a solution, this is a great way to add value and really make a difference in a very challenging industry.

Topics Agencies Cannabis Lockton

The Minister was waiting on the platform to catch a train to Kolkata at around 10 pm when he was attacked

Baharampur: West Bengal minister Jakir Hossain was seriously injured after unidentified attackers hurled bombs at him in Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad district on Wednesday night, police said.

At least two other persons who were with him were also injured in the incident.

Hossain, the minister of state for labour, was waiting at platform no 2 of the station to catch a train to Kolkata at around 10 pm when he was attacked, a senior police officer of West Bengal Police told PTI.

The MLA of Jangipur in Murshidabad district and the two other injured persons were taken to Jangipur Sub- divisional Hospital, he said.

Assembly election is due in West Bengal in April-May this year.
By Swati Pandey and Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Dozens of Australian companies, charities and information providers reacted with anger on Thursday after being shut down by Facebook, imploring the social media giant to restore their pages as calls for users to delete the platform grew.

Australians were blocked from accessing news in their Facebook feeds after an escalation of the proposed media bargaining code which would require the company and Google to reach commercial deals with news outlets whose links drive traffic to their platforms.

But several charities and pages of official health, meteorology and emergency services were also blocked, along with smaller, niche content providers.

Foodbank Australia, one of the many charities caught in the crossfire, said Facebook's response was "unacceptable".

"Hours matter when you have nothing to eat. SORT THIS OUT!" CEO Brianna Casey tweeted.

Save the Children CEO Paul Ronalds said the charity had come to rely on the platform to communicate with supporters and members.

"We also use Facebook as an important fundraising tool to reach generous supporters who want to support the worlds most vulnerable children," he said. "Every minute that our page is down is another minute our message isnt getting out about the needs of children."

Facebook had restored the government services pages by afternoon, but there were still small businesses and community groups who were left venting, with #facebooknewsban and #DeleteFacebook trending on microblogging site Twitter.

Rachel Chappell who founded a Sydney-based community group 'North Shore Mums' nine years ago woke up to see her Facebook page with its 35,000 followers disappear.

Were a mums website. We are small and niche. This is not fair, said Chappell, who built up a small business for mothers, writing about family-friendly cafes and pets for the local community, and attracting advertising.

Story continues

"I think they are just bullies. They are shooting themselves in the foot. I spend my A$20,000 marketing budget to promote our content with Facebook, said Chappell. The move had completely shaken her, but it was too soon to say what she would do with her marketing plans, she added.

Facebook's reach in Australia is powerful. It has more than 11 million users in a population of 25 million and takes in about 24% of the country's advertising spend, according to the competition regulator.

A Facebook representative in Australia did not reply to a request for comment on the situation. A later Facebook statement said the ban should not affect government pages but "as the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition".

"CUTE CATS AND CONSPIRACIES"

Some organisations posted social media messages directing followers to other platforms including Twitter and Facebook-owned Instagram.

Journalist Jelisa Apps said many rural areas and country towns relied on their local paper's Facebook pages as physical copies were stripped back over the years. Other social media platforms were not as widely used, she said.

"I've just checked my hometown's newspaper page. It's gone. This is a real shame. An undervalued audience having their news further limited," Apps said on Twitter.

Peter Lewis, director of the Australia Institute's Centre for Responsible Technology said Facebook's decision would make it a weaker social network.

Facebook "is destroying its social licence to operate," Lewis said.

"Without fact-based news to anchor it, Facebook will become little more than a cute cats and conspiracy theories (page)," he added.

"If Facebook determines to treat Australians with such contempt, Australians should respond by ending its use of Facebook and using alternate ways to connect online."

(Reporting by Swati Pandey and Kirsty Needham; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
PORTLAND  Eleven months into the coronavirus pandemic, Superintendent of Schools Charles E. Britton finally was able to report some good news about the virus.

The towns positivity rate for infections has plummeted over the past weeks, Britton told the Board of Education.

On Jan. 14, coming out of the end-of-the-year holiday celebrations, the coronavirus positivity rate was 70 cases per 100,000 people.

Jeff Mill / Hearst Connecticut Media file

As of Tuesday, that rate had dropped to 19.2 cases per 100,000 people, he said.

This is remarkable, a clearly pleased Britton said. Its shocking to me how fast these numbers have dropped.

In those four weeks, Portland went from having the highest positivity rate of the six communities served by the Chatham Health District to the lowest, Britton said.

This is impressive work  and a significant drop, he told board members who were taking part in the Zoom meeting.

In comparison, Colchester was at 34 cases per 100,000 people, while East Hampton was at 24 cases per 100,000 people.

The average positivity rate among the six towns in the health district was 26 cases per 100,000 people, he said.

Middlesex County is 31.4 (cases per 100,000 people) and for the state its 36.1 per 100,000, Britton said. So, across the state, our number is looking really good.

Britton acknowledged public health officials are concerned about variants  mutations of the virus coming from the United Kingdom and South Africa.

So, those variants are a potential dark cloud on the horizon, Britton told the board.

Of cases in schools, Britton said, There have been seven instances in the schools where people have tested positive in the past month.

The tally includes students, teachers and staff, he said.

The total number who are quarantining as a result is 21 persons, Britton said.

The school system resumed in-school teaching in all grades on Feb. 1.

Our reopening has gone well, Britton said, adding, Im delighted to have our kids back.

jmill@middletownpress.com

Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 20:51:38|Editor: huaxia

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JAKARTA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A total of 1,163 international travellers including Indonesians who arrived in the country from December 2020 to February 17, 2021, were confirmed positive for COVID-19, according to the Health Ministry on Thursday.

An official of the ministry's Directorate General of Disease Prevention and Control, Benget Saragih, said that 822 of the visitors were found positive for COVID-19 based on the results of the polymerase chain reaction tests upon arrival in Indonesia, and 341 others were verified positive during the mandatory five-day quarantine.

Of the 1,163, mostly (121 people) are foreigners coming from India, Qatar, Japan, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian nationals infected with COVID-19 among the international arrivals are mostly from Saudi Arabia. Enditem
This story was updated with comment provided by Tony Daunt

Unsubstantiated or disproven claims that dead people voted stem in part from outdated and inaccurate voter registration rolls.

The issue arose prior to the November presidential election when Tony Daunt, a conservative activist and director of the Michigan Freedom Fund, filed a lawsuit in June claiming the voter rolls were sloppy and neglected by Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and at least 16 county clerks across the state.

Daunt, who was appointed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer as a Republican member of the Board of Canvassers in January, on Tuesday agreed to dismiss the lawsuit. He claims victory, pointing to a recent announcement by Bensons office that it plans to remove 177,000 outdated registrants from the voter files but maintains the lawsuit was legitimate.

He said its unfortunate that Benson had to be prodded through litigation to fulfill her duty to keep an accurate voter registration file.

State officials arent conceding Daunts allegations of improper maintenance.

It was clear when the suit was filed in June of last year when federal law barred most voter-list maintenance, that this was a press release masquerading as a lawsuit filed to undermine public confidence in the integrity of our elections, Benson said. The suit prompted no action from us. As we have said publicly all along, strong voter registration rates and accurate voter rolls are good for democracy. And we have continued taking steps to responsibly maintain the states voter list since my first day in office by joining the Electronic Registration Information Center, proposing bipartisan legislation to give clerks more tools to update registrations, mailing absentee voting applications to all registered voters and now using that mailing to carry out the largest and most transparent list cleanup in a decade.

The window for voter roll maintenance was tight this year due to federal elections in March, August and November and laws that bar maintenance within 90 days of a federal election. Following the election, Benson released a list of 177,000 registrations slated for removal from the rolls because its believed the voters moved to another state or mail to their registered addresses was returned as undeliverable.

Local election clerks are further helping to clean up the rolls by sending verification letters to residents registered in other states or for whom absentee ballot applications, which were mailed to all 8.1 million registered voters, couldnt be delivered, the SOS said.

All registered voters are listed in the Qualified Voter File, which is maintained by the SOS and updated with the help of local clerks.

Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, revived unfounded claims of dead voters casting ballots during a radio interview this week but conceded that any discrepancies or possible fraud didnt flip election results.

Shirkey didnt provide evidence that votes were cast under the names of dead people, but the SOS has been debunking similar claims since November.

The Department of State has a process to reject ballots of deceased voters, even if the voter cast an absentee ballot and then died before Election Day. On some occasions, databases may show a ballot received from a living voter born on Jan. 1, 1900, but that date is used as a placeholder date in some cases.

Daunts lawsuit explored publicly available voter rolls and alleged impossibly high voter registration numbers across the state.

The lawsuit said: According to the bipartisan Carter-Baker Commission, registration lists lie at the root of most problems encountered in U.S. elections. Inaccurate voter rolls that contain ineligible, duplicate, fictional, or deceased voters invite fraud. While election fraud is difficult to measure ... it occurs.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel called Daunts claims yet another example of a speculative claim and baseless allegations made during the 2020 election that ultimately proved unsustainable.

Detroit faced a similar lawsuit last year over claims that its rolls included duplicate and dead voters. That case was also dismissed after Detroit Clerk Janet Winfrey provided proof that the rolls had been updated and purged.

Local clerks have expressed some concern over difficulties in streamlining maintenance between their offices and state officials and inaccuracies that may lead to integrity questions

Lansing Clerk Chris Swope last week issued a list of election reform proposals, including recommendations that the SOS automate the removal of deceased voters using county death records and bi-annually purge the list of voters who have completed the rigorous, multi-step cancellation countdown process.

Voters are removed from the rolls if they become inactive, meaning they fail to vote in six consecutive elections, and fail to respond to verification mailings.

Daunt contends county clerks would like greater control over the voter rolls and said some of that is because the Secretary of State has been delinquent.

Swope said his office has identified and is currently awaiting the purge of nearly 3,000 voters that have been identified for removal from the official state registration rolls.

Even if a voter is erroneously removed from the rolls, Michigan law allows for same-day registration.

More on MLive:

Lawsuit claims voter rolls are sloppy

Shirkey claims dead people voted

Daunt named to Board of Canvassers

Conservative Christian, prominent businessman, polarizing politician. Who is Mike Shirkey?

U.S. Capitol insurrection was a hoax, Michigan Senate leader says in video

Progressive women lawmakers call on Mike Shirkey to step down from Senate leadership role

Election hearings are back as lawmakers look to clear up confusion, initiate reform
This 'Read the Label' looks at hand sanitizers; in particular, BYBIs Clean Hands Moisturizing Antibacterial Spray, which reportedly only uses natural, vegan and cruelty-free ingredients as a way to be a part of the 'clean' beauty movement.

Featured: Certified 'True': Green Virtues in Beauty, Part II

BYBI founders Elsie and Dominika started in 2015 with an online blog, Clean Beauty Insiders." This platform focused on natural beauty, product reviews and industry news. The site became popular, particularly in the UK due to its "clean" beauty focus, and three years later, Elsie and Dominika ventured into cosmetic science and began formulating their own cosmetics brandBYBI (By Beauty Insiders).

BYBI is a skin care brand that focuses on "clean" beauty, using 100% natural, vegan and cruelty-free ingredients. The brand claims that this product is a 65% alcohol, vegan sanitizing spray to moisturize, soothe and calm dry hands while reducing levels of bacteria. The spray application makes it convenient to use while ingredients such as propanediol work to hydrate rough hands and counterbalance any drying effects of the alcohol.

High levels of glycerin attract moisture to the skin, leaving hands soft and smooth but not sticky. A blend of calming lavender and green tea helps to reduce redness, soothe inflammation and nourish dry hands that have been over-washed. The lavender also leaves a subtle and pleasant scent.

To use the product, it is recommended to be sprayed liberally and regularly onto the front and back of hands, covering the entire surface area. Then, allow it to dry fully, with no need to rinse.

The ingredients below in bold are ones that I believe are strongly contributing to the product's performance and claims.

Ingredients: Alcohol Denat., Aqua, Propanediol, Glycerin, Xylitylglucoside, Anhydroxylitol, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil, Linalool, Xylitol, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract, Lactic Acid, Geraniol, Isoeugenol.

Editor's note: While the "Read the Label" series provides an overview of the ingredients cosmetic manufacturers use and their related claims, without use levels or access to clinical studies, the author is drawing conclusions based on speculationalbeit from training, formulating experience and, in some instances, evidence in the literature. The following is offered for your consideration and further verification.

Alcohol Denat.

Denatured alcohol is ethanol that has been chemically denatured with additives to prevent consumption by giving it a foul taste and by making consumers feel nauseous. Both denatured and undenatured alcohol work effectively in sanitizers to kill bacteria but by using an undenatured grade, besides risk of consumption, cosmetic products are subject to additional taxes. Because of this, consumers will most commonly find denatured grades used.

Related: Comparatively Speaking: Cleaning, Sanitizing, Disinfecting and Sterilizing

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that for an effective hand sanitizer to kill bacteria, the alcohol content must be more than 60%. This product claims 65% denat. alcohol. Other benefits of using alcohol in formulations are for its quick-drying effects, hence why it is often used in the bases of fragrances and for its cooling properties, ideal for after-shave products.

Propanediol

In this product, this ingredient is a corn-derived, natural, colorless solvent. It can also be produced synthetically but the brand claims the natural grade is used here. Propanediol is a humectant that draws moisture into the skin and will help prevent the sanitizer from drying out in its packaging.

Propanediol has preservative-boosting properties, which means in some cases, formulators can lower the percentage of preservatives used in products and still achieve safe results. In this product's case, the alcohol will prevent bacterial growth.

Glycerin

This is a cost-effective humectant that supports long-lasting skin hydration claims when used at more than 5%. High levels of glycerin can add stickiness to a product but this can be reduced by adding other materials such as propanediol and alcohol.

Xylitylglucoside, Anhydroxylitol, Xylitol

Using high levels of alcohol in sanitizers can by drying for the skin but these powerful humectants help to keep hands moisturized and smooth after use. Xylitol is commonly used in oral care and is naturally derived, typically from fruits and vegetables (commonly corn, starch or sugar cane) and provides a sweet taste while reducing plaque formation. It also is safe for ingestion; the human body actually produces 5-10 g of it daily.

Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Oil

Lavender essential oil is commonly extracted via steam distillation from the purple flowers to produce its iconic, calming fragrance. This method produces high yields of lavender essential oil. Lavandula angustifolia is known as "true lavender" and is a premium-grade with high quality. There is also Lavandula latifolia, which is a premium-grade with medium quality and Lavandula hybrida, which as the name suggests is a hybrid grade of true and aspic lavender.

Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract

This powerful antioxidant contains green tea catechins. It helps with skin repair by reducing free radical damage and has other anti-aging benefits, too. It can additionally help to reduce the appearance of redness.

Bonus Benefits

What I like about this product is that BYBI has a recycle scheme where you can send back empty packaging and the brand will sterilize and reuse it again. The company also has donated 3,000 units of this sanitizer spray to NHS staff, key workers and beauty bank charities across the UK.

You can buy this sanitizer through BYBIs website for 5.50 for 30 mL ($8 for 1.1 fl oz) or through other beauty retailers.

Source: BYBI



Disclaimer: This article was produced in the UK and therefore the INCI listing and INCI names comply with European labeling requirements.
Washington: Senior Republican politicians have sought to blame failing wind turbines for the massive blackouts in Texas that have left millions of people without power for days in freezing temperatures.

The states electric grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), has said that renewable energy sources partially failed but that thermal sources such as coal, gas and nuclear energy lost almost twice as much power during the snowstorm.

Brett Saint rests inside a Gallery Furniture store which opened as a shelter for those in need of food, water and heat in Houston. Credit:AP

As of Thursday (AEDT) morning, 3.4 million people were still without power in Texas as temperatures remained as low as minus 4 degrees Celsius in cities such as Dallas. Such low temperatures are extremely rare in the southern state, which has a population of almost 30 million.

A woman and an eight-year-old girl in Houston died of carbon monoxide poisoning after a car was left running in a garage to help generate heat, according to Houston police.
MONTREAL, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - RankWorks (www.RankWorks.com), a digital marketing agency and industry leader in web design and digital marketing, is pleased to announce that it will officially be accepting Bitcoin payments from clients in order to run digital marketing campaigns. This will make RankWorks one of the first digital marketing agencies to accept Bitcoin payments to fund Google Ads campaigns in the US and Canada.

With the number of Blockchain wallet users worldwide increasing at a significant rate, Bitcoin leads in value and market size compared to other cryptocurrencies. With the business communities taking notice of this new monetary asset class, RankWorks decision to accept Bitcoin as a form of digital currency payment comes at a time when digital transformation is expanding across all levels of different industries and markets.

According to Chris Keirl, President & CEO of RankWorks, "there is a big demand from our client base to accept payments in Bitcoin. Since a lot of our clients have eCommerce websites that accept payments in cryptocurrency, the decision to adopt Bitcoin as an option to fund digital marketing campaigns was an easy one."

RankWorks has developed its digital marketing strategy to include Pay Per Click (PPC), Social Media management (SMM), and Influencer Marketing by connecting its proprietary advertising platform to a variety of different social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and Pinterest.

"It's our belief that as long as the demand remains strong in digital advertising, new payment technology options will evolve to suit the needs of our clients. It is our goal as a company to provide our client base with an effective solution to move their business online and market their products and services to mass audiences. By accepting Bitcoin as a form of payment, it will open up new opportunities to grow the RankWorks brand into new markets," says Dan Alper, Director of Marketing & Brand Development.

RankWorks makes it easy for companies to get online and market their products and services to mass audiences. By leveraging the power of the internet, RankWorks provides affordable agency level website design and digital advertising solutions to companies that are located in the US and Canada. RankWorks innovation in digital ad serving technology allows it to reach and target online shoppers on a variety of different search engines and social media platforms.

For more information about RankWorks please visit www.RankWorks.com.

SOURCE RankWorks

Related Links

https://rankworks.com


Guinea expects to receive more than 11,000 Ebola vaccines this weekend, with more to follow, and vaccinations could start as soon as Monday, a health ministry official and the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

The 11,000 doses are being prepared in Geneva and over 8,600 more doses will be shipped from the United States to battle the outbreak, which Guinea declared over the weekend, WHO regional director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti told a news conference.

Guinea has recorded three confirmed and four probable cases of Ebola, including five deaths. Six of the cases were in the southeast, while one is being treated in the capital Conakry, which he travelled more than 900 km (559 miles) to from the southeast. "Once the vaccines are here in Guinea on Sunday, the vaccination campaign can start from Monday," said Mohamed Lamine Yansane, a senior adviser to Guinea's health minister.

Health authorities hope to halt resurgences of the disease this month in Guinea and in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The two outbreaks are unrelated. They are aiming to prevent a repeat of the 2013-16 outbreak in West Africa that killed more than 11,300 people, mostly in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, making it the deadliest on record.

Since then, vaccines and new treatments have greatly strengthened officials' ability to respond to the virus, which can cause severe bleeding and organ failure and is spread through contact with body fluids. "We think it's not likely at all that we will have a similar situation in Guinea and the neighbouring West African countries as happened in the past because capacities have been built up," Moeti said.

Guinea is also dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic but has been spared a steep second wave like other West African countries and has ample capacity to vaccinate against both diseases, Lansane said. The WHO has already asked six West African countries to be alert for possible Ebola infections after Guinea reported new cases.

UK variant not seen increasing Covid severity, transmission in India: NCDC

Malaysia reports 2,712 new corona cases

Sri Lanka cancels Imran Khan's address to Sri Lankan parliament
Aberdeen Emerging Markets Investment Co Ltd - closed-end investment company - Outperforms benchmark in financial year ended October 31, posting a net asset value total return per share of 8.9% compared to the 8.2% return of its benchmark, the MSCI Emerging Markets Net Total Return Index in sterling terms. NAV per share as at October 31 was 698.29 pence, up from 663.28p the year before.

Chair Mark Hadsley-Chaplin notes that: "Fund selection contributed strongly to the outperformance during the year, with notable contributions from certain funds invested in China and South Korea. The same was also true in Eastern Europe. However, within these regions, the portfolio's underweight exposure to China and Taiwan, and overweight exposure to Russia and Columbia, detracted from an asset allocation point of view."

Increases dividend per share to 22.00p from 21.00p the prior year.

In terms of outlook, the chair says: "On the whole, emerging markets have been less impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic than most commentators feared at the outset, and there is evidence to suggest that emerging market economies will recover faster than developed markets and emerge less indebted. The recent weakening of the US dollar provides a welcome tailwind for emerging market currencies, which should result in more interest from investors in emerging markets in the years ahead than they have received in the recent past.

"The board continues to believe that the company's approach of investing through a portfolio of specialist funds, often at a discount to NAV, provides an attractive means for investors to benefit from these positive short term developments as well as capturing the longer term opportunities presented by this diverse asset class."

Current stock price: 750.00p

Year-to-date change: up 6.8%

By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
On Wednesday, the strike by the nearly 60,000 municipal teachers in Sao Paulo ended its first week. The return of students to the classrooms, scheduled for Monday, was answered by educators with the expansion of the strike, bypassing the unions efforts to sabotage their struggle.

A survey by rank-and-file teachers on WhatsApp groups indicates that the strike has spread to hundreds of schools in the city, preventing many of them from reopening. Another 530 municipal schools had the resumption of classes postponed due to the lack of a minimum number of cleaning personnel, exposing the precarious conditions of the educational system and the incompetence of the Sao Paulo City Hall administration.

Teachers striking against pension cuts march in Sao Paulo last year.

The efforts of Mayor Bruno Covas of the Brazilian Social Democracy Party (PSDB) to reopen Sao Paulos municipal schools is part of a dirty propaganda campaign coordinated between the corporate media, the state government of Joao Doria (also from PSDB), and Brazils fascistic president Jair Bolsonaro. Together, they seek to shatter the widely held conviction that reopening schools will give a deadly boost to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In Sao Paulo and throughout Brazil, the spread of the pandemic is catastrophic. The country has topped 240,000 deaths from COVID-19, and for almost a month has maintained a terrible average of over a thousand deaths a day. The state of Sao Paulo has been registering increasing numbers of infections and accounts for 56,700 of these deaths, 398 of them reported on Tuesday.

The threat posed by the reopening of schools is underscored by the circulation of new, more infectious variants of the coronavirus in Sao Paulo. The state has already confirmed 25 cases of the P.1 variant of COVID-19, originally discovered in Amazonas, 16 of them through community transmission. Most of these cases occurred in Araraquara, a city of 238,339 inhabitants in the countryside of Sao Paulo, which on Tuesday went into health care collapse, one day after enacting a lockdown.

Studies show that this new variant has spread rapidly among the population of Manaus, with its percentage detected in tests jumping from 52.2 percent of cases to 85.4 percent in less than a month. This is a serious warning of the consequences of the criminal herd immunity policy promoted by the ruling class all over Brazil.

This policy, which aims to preserve capitalist profits at the expense of millions of lives, is being directly confronted by the struggle of educators in Sao Paulo to keep classrooms closed. As the president of the capitalist educational think tank Todos Pela Educacao stated, the reopening of schools is seen by the bourgeoisie as the pillar of support for economic recovery, that is, a necessary measure to force as many workers as possible into insecure workplaces. Sao Paulo is regarded as the spearhead of the reopening campaign throughout Brazil.

The logic of development of this movement, which is imposed by the very nature of the COVID-19 spread, is toward the unification of the struggle of educators across state borders and with all sections of the working class to promote a general strike that closes every school and all non-essential economic activities in the country in order to stop the pandemic.

This program has broad support among educators all over Brazil, who in several states are organizing strikes against the reopening of schools. It is, on the other hand, fiercely opposed by the National Confederation of Education Workers (CNTE), the trade union federations, and local unions, which are persistently acting to break the teachers struggle in Sao Paulo and isolate it from their colleagues across the country. Last Friday, the APEOESP leadership, composed of the Workers Party (PT), the Maoist Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB), and the pseudo-left Socialism and Freedom Party (PSOL), ended the strike of Sao Paulo state teachers against the will of education workers. This criminal political maneuver was staged ahead of the return to classes in the municipal schools, preventing the powerful unification of the strikes of Sao Paulo state and municipal educators.

The aim of the APEOESP to artificially divide state and municipal educators, when there are a large number of teachers who work double shifts teaching in both school systems, was openly expressed by union leaders, who claimed during the last online union assembly that the two systems have different realities. These efforts to isolate workers are supported by the unions officially representing municipal educators, the main one being the SINPEEM.

Throughout 2020, the municipal educators unions met behind closed doors with the mayor and his representatives in a so-called Emergency Educational Crisis Committee. A note by the SINPEEM made it clear that at a meeting on August 18 they once again discussed the return of face-to-face classes. Throughout this period, workers were left in the dark and prevented by the unions from preparing a counteroffensive against the governments criminal plans.

There is a widespread understanding among teachers that the unions only called the strike after strong opposition had grown among rank-and-file workers, threatening to spiral out of control. The World Socialist Web Site reported in early February that teachers were discussing on social media calling a strike immediately, independent of the union.

On the eve of the return of in-person planning activities, the SINPEEM and other unions that make up the Forum of Entities Representing Municipal Education Professionals of Sao Paulo declared a strike. This decision was based not on a vote by the rank and file, but on an anti-democratic clause imposed by the union leadership that gives it the power to decide to call a strike during the pandemic period. It also guarantees it the power to end the strike without consulting the workers.

Despite having decreed a strike, the unions have made absolutely no effort to carry it out. They didnt call any kind of assembly, not even a meeting of union delegates elected at the schools. They didnt picket school entrances, or campaign for the movement. The growth of the strike in the Sao Paulo municipal schools happened independently of the union and in opposition to its deliberate boycott.

The anti-democratic orientation adopted by educational trade unions against the interests of the workers has been developing over decades. In the last two years, teachers all over Brazil joined a massive strike movement against the generalized attacks on public education, and particularly on workers pensions. This movement was systematically isolated and betrayed by the unions. In Sao Paulo, the state and municipal teachers had their struggle once again divided, and the SINPEEM and APEOESP broke their strikes anti-democratically.

The lack of credibility of these organizations among educators can hardly be overestimated. However, workers have yet to draw the fundamental conclusions from their experiences. Most importantly, that it is necessary to break politically with the bureaucratic control of the unions and establish independent organizations, democratically elected by the rank and file.

A major impediment to the development of this struggle within the working class is the role played by the pseudo-left organizations, which work to deflect the growing opposition among workers with the impotent program of reforming the unions.

In recent weeks, political factions such as the Morenoites of the Resistencia tendency, which operates within the PSOL, have completely exposed themselves before the teachers as the main opponents of their struggle to stop the reopening of schools in Sao Paulo. In a division of labor to disorient the working class, the Morenoites of the Revolutionary Workers Movement (MRT), associated with the Trotskyist Fraction (FT) and the editors of the Esquerda Diario website, have taken a supposedly critical position toward the maneuvers of the trade unions, but one which leads to the same dead end.

In a February 13 article in Esquerda Diario, the Morenoites declared their surprise at the treacherous position adopted by the APEOESP, which means maintaining the strike only in appearance, but in practice returning to face-to-face work in the schools. According to the article, it is unbelievable that the policy of the largest union in Latin America is just a facade. In response, they demand the creation of a political pole unifying the opposition to pressure the majority leadership of APEOESP. This means unifying with the same factions that supported the unbelievable betrayal against the workers in the first place.

Based on this same bankrupt policy of pressuring both the union and the factions of the pseudo-left, MRT militants joined the factions of the so-called opposition in the SINPEEM and staged a demonstration in front of this union, with banners demanding that the union leadership call a meeting of its members.

Unlike the MRT, the Brazilian Socialist Equality Group (SEG) found the APEOESPs betrayal not unbelievable, but rather entirely predictable. The articles published by the WSWS insistently warned workers of the criminal maneuvers being prepared by these political forces. The same policy of staging a facade opposition to the reopening of schools, while in practice repressing the workers struggle, is being adopted by unions worldwide.

The SEG fought to connect educators in Sao Paulo with their colleagues in Chicago, who through a politically independent rank-and-file committee were posing real opposition to the treacherous policy of the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU), which in its essential aspects was identical to the one promoted by the APEOESP, SINPEEM and other Brazilian unions.

There is a radical difference between the revolutionary internationalist political principles for which the Brazilian SEG fights, and the reactionary maneuvers of the the MRT Morenoites and similar tendencies.

The Morenoites base their politics on a nationalist outlook, subordinating their politics to the bourgeois national state and an absolute rejection of the independent political mobilization of the working class. A series of articles published in Esquerda Diario on January 28 and February 4 by the MRTs traditional national leader, Gilson Dantas, has made its petty-bourgeois opportunist foundations very clear.

Dantas states categorically: Our country lives a reality of low class struggle. According to him, after thirty-five years of some democratic stabilityan historical recordthe great expectation of the working class, above all harried by the union bureaucracy, is that of a way out through the vote. At this moment this is the maximum that the masses aspire to, their political imagination still does not go through ruptures: the fetish of democracy reigns. That is the concrete reality.

The development of the struggle of the Sao Paulo teachers in opposition to the deliberate sabotage of the unions comes into direct collision with this reactionary petty-bourgeois perspective of the MRT. Desperate, they rush to ensure that workers remain harried by the union bureaucracy.

In opposition to this perspective, the Trotskyists of the Brazilian Socialist Equality Group (SEG) place the struggle of Brazilian educators in the context of the global resurgence of the class struggle, to which it offers a unified strategy of international socialist revolution in solidarity with the International Committee of the Fourth International (CIQI).
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The Union Cabinet on Wednesday cleared the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) with Mauritius, providing an institutional mechanism to encourage and improve trade between the two countries. The decision is part of the preparatory work for External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankars upcoming visit to Mauritius.

The India-Mauritius CECPA will be the first trade agreement to be signed by India with a country in Africa. The pact is a limited agreement which will cover Trade in Goods, Rules of Origin, Trade in Services, Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) measures, Dispute Settlement, Movement of Natural Persons, Telecom, Financial services, Customs Procedures and cooperation in other areas.

The CECPA between India and Mauritius covers 310 export items for India, including food stuff and beverages (80 lines), agricultural products (25 lines), textile and textile articles (27 lines), base metals and articles thereof (32 lines), electrical and electronic items (13 lines), plastics and chemicals (20 lines), wood and articles thereof (15 lines), and others. Mauritius will benefit from preferential market access into India for its 615 products, including frozen fish, specialty sugar, biscuits, fresh fruits, juices, mineral water, beer, alcoholic drinks, soaps, bags, medical and surgical equipment, and apparel.

As regards trade in services, Indian service providers will have access to around 115 sub-sectors from the 11 broad service sectors such as professional services, computer-related services, research & development, other business services, telecommunication, construction, distribution, education, environmental, financial, tourism and travel-related, recreational, yoga, audio-visual services, and transport services.

Draft Blue Economy Policy: suggestions are invited till Feb 27

RBI allows residents to make remittances to IFSCs under LRS

Adel Singh: The Strategy Developer for Datar Security Service Group
BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - French stocks were moving higher on Thursday as investors reacted to mixed earnings reports and awaited the ECB's monetary policy meeting minutes. The benchmark CAC 40 rose 11 points, or 0.2 percent, to 5,776 after declining 0.4 percent in the previous session. Planemaker Airbus tumbled 3.3 percent after it posted a full-year operating loss of 510 million euros and withheld a divided. Similarly, telecom company Orange slumped 5 percent after reporting a fall in annual profit. Power group EDF gave up 2.7 percent after reporting a fall in profit for 2020. Grocery giant Carrefour advanced 1.7 percent after saying its like-for-like sales growth in 2020 was the best in the last 20 years. Bouygues gained 1.5 percent. The construction and media conglomerate said it expects its 2022 current operating profit to return to the same level of 2019. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.

UVF leader Stephen 'Mackers' Matthews is one of three men arrested over a UVF "show of strength" in east Belfast earlier this month, the Belfast Telegraph understands.

The trio, aged 58, 56 and 34, were detained on Wednesday on suspicion of terrorism and other related offences over an incident that saw dozens of men with their faces covered walking through Pitt Park, just off the Newtownards Road.

Footage shared on social media showed PSNI officers observing the scene before the crowd dispersed.

It is understood the gathering was linked to an internal row within the terror gang and the arrival of police prevented an attack on a home.

Security sources told Sunday Life last week that leading loyalist Matthews, who denies links to any criminality, was one of the men in the crowd.

The newspaper reported that the gang's target was another loyalist, William McCaughey, who publicly criticised the east Belfast UVF last summer in an online video. Mr McCaughey is not suspected of involvement in any criminality.

Expand Close PSNI searches in Dee street area of east Belfast. / Facebook

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Loyalist activist Jamie Bryson told the Belfast Telegraph on Wednesday night: "Regardless of who has been arrested, everyone is entitled to privacy until they are charged."

During the incident on February 2 several residents had to seek shelter in the nearby Ballymac Friendship Centre, which runs training schemes and delivers food parcels and meals for the elderly and vulnerable, as well as housing a loyalist museum.

The centre closed following the gathering due to "threats being made to members of staff and volunteers".

At a subsequent meeting of the Policing Board, PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne was questioned by Sinn Fein's Gerry Kelly over the incident.

The MLA put it to Mr Byrne that, from watching footage of the incident, there did not appear to be an "appropriate response" from his officers.

Mr Byrne replied: "What you see on a short burst of film isn't always the whole story.

"I have to accept the imagery hasn't done us any favours... this was a fast-time and spontaneous response to what had been shown on social media.



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"We are the people that police east Belfast.

"We have stepped up resources, we will work with the community to see can we identify people.

"There is no place for thuggery and intimidation and we want to keep these people on the back foot while we remain on the front foot."

On Wednesday detectives from the PSNI's Criminal Investigation Branch and Paramilitary Crime Task Force also conducted a number of searches in east Belfast and Lisburn in relation to their probe.

Detective Chief Superintendent John McVea said: "Our investigation into the gathering at Pitt Park and activities linked to east Belfast UVF is continuing at pace and today's arrests were conducted under the Terrorism Act.

"We continue to gather and examine all available evidence in order to determine who was in Pitt Park on February 2, 2021 and I would appeal to anyone in the community who has information or footage regarding the incident, or criminality in the area, to contact the police."

The PSNI said: "We do not comment on named individuals and no inference should be drawn from this."

US President Joe Biden on Wednesday spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the first time since taking over the White House on January 20. The call comes following weeks of rumours suggesting Biden was ignoring the Israeli Prime Minister by not speaking to him while he talked to other leaders from around the world. Last week, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki assured that it was not an "intentional diss" as being suggested in some reports and the President will soon speak to Netanyahu.

I spoke today with @IsraeliPM Netanyahu and affirmed the United States steadfast commitment to our ally Israels security. Our teams are in constant touch to strengthen U.S.-Israel strategic cooperation on all regional security issues, including Iran.  President Biden (@POTUS) February 17, 2021

Read: Biden's Medicare Pick Would Be 1st Black Woman To Hold Post

Biden emphasises support for Abraham Accord

During his call on Wednesday, Biden affirmed Washington's "commitment" to Israels security and promised to strengthen all aspects of the US-Israel partnership, including strong defence cooperation between the two nations. Biden pressed on building up strong strategic cooperation on all regional security issues, including Iran, which is a long-time foe of both US and Israel. Biden also emphasised his support for the recent normalisation of relations between Israel in other Arab countries, which were brokered by the previous administration of Donald Trump.

Read: Joe Biden To 'recalibrate' Relations With Saudi Arabia Downgrading Crown Prince

The US President further underscored the importance of the advancement of peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, who have been fighting for the past several decades over disputed borders. During the phone call, Biden also praised Netanyahu's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and the country's pace of administering vaccines.

Read: Biden Reframes Goal On Reopening Of Elementary Schools

Biden had received a congratulatory call from Netanyahu after the former won the US Presidential election last November. However, rumours started to spread in Tel Aviv and Washington that Biden is snubbing Netanyahu as the US President missed the Israeli Prime Minister while he spoke to leaders of other US allies in the first few weeks of assuming office. Meanwhile, Biden's Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan had already spoken to their Israeli counterparts last month.

Read: US Asserts President Biden Is 'not Ignoring' Israeli PM Netanyahu And Will Call Him Soon


Changes to import rules post-Brexit have forced Northern Ireland to cancel orders for 100,000 trees from England, Wales and Scotland.

But under the Brexit agreement, trees from the EU are still allowed in.

The rules  that came into force on January 1 as part of the Northern Ireland protocol  states plants cannot be imported into Northern Ireland if they have soil on their roots, or have been grown in soil.

This in effect makes it impossible to export trees there.

Another problem stems from a list of plants and trees the EU prohibits being imported from third countries  which now includes the UK  to limit diseases and pests spreading.

The rules  that came into force on January 1 as part of the Northern Ireland protocol  states plants cannot be imported into Northern Ireland if they have soil on their roots, or have been grown in soil (file image)

This list includes oaks, alder, birch and privet hedges.

The ban comes as Northern Ireland has embarked on an ambitious programme to plant more than 18million saplings in the next ten years.

The Woodland Trust in the country has cancelled an order for 22,000 trees, which were earmarked for schools and communities as part of a greening project.

Gregor Fulton an estate manager at the Trust told The Guardian: Its a disaster. Theyre just stopping any exports from mainland UK.

'We cant get any trees over from any of the nurseries that we would usually deal with over there.

Scotland-based Alba Trees, one of the biggest suppliers in Britain, selling around 250,000 trees a year to Northern Ireland, says it has also been hit.

The Woodland Trust in the country has cancelled an order for 22,000 trees, which were earmarked for schools and communities as part of a greening project (file image)

Chief executive Craig Turner said: At a stroke Brexit has taken away a huge chunk of our business.

'We turned down an order of 70,000 oaks a couple of weeks ago because we cant ship them.

Belfast City Council, which was planning to plant a million trees, confirmed it had a delivery of 300 large specimen trees from a supplier in England delayed.

The Department for the Environment said it was looking to get plant health rules changed to allow exports again.
Vials of coronavirus vaccine and a medical syringe are seen in front of a displayed Pfizer logo, on Oct. 31, 2020. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

Pfizer Study Deals New Blow to South Africas Vaccine Hopes

JOHANNESBURGScientists will meet on Thursday to advise South Africas government on its next steps after a study suggested the dominant local coronavirus variant may reduce antibody protection from Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine by two-thirds.

The laboratory study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, dealt a new blow to the country hardest-hit by the pandemic on the African continent.

The government and its advisers must weigh whether to wait for vaccines that might be more effective against the more infectious 501Y.V2 variant, or try to vaccinate people quickly to avert further infections and deaths.

South Africa had been counting on the Pfizer shot, developed with German partner BioNTech, to step up its vaccination program after administering the first Johnson & Johnson (J&J) doses on Wednesday.

Mary Williams receives an injection of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine at the mass vaccination center in Newcastle Upon Tyne, England, on Jan. 11, 2021. (Scott Heppell/AP Photo)

Earlier this month, it placed AstraZeneca vaccinations on hold because of interim data showing its jab offered minimal protection against mild to moderate illness from the 501Y.V2 variant first identified late last year.

Officials are more confident about the J&J shot because it was shown to be effective in preventing severe illness in the local leg of a large global trial.

The detailed laboratory study published on Wednesday took into account all key mutations of the 501Y.V2 variant. A paper published in late January assessed the impact of only three key mutations of the variant on the Pfizer vaccine.

Scientists said that because the new studys findings come from a laboratory, it is not easy to extrapolate what they might mean for the shots efficacy in the real world.

Our scientists will be meeting to discuss it [the study] and they will advise the minister, health ministry spokesman Popo Maja said.

A woman opens her mouth for a health worker to collect a sample for CCP virus testing during the screening and testing campaign at Lenasia South, south Johannesburg, South Africa, on April 21, 2020. (Themba Hadebe/AP Photo)

Barry Schoub, a professor and chair of the Ministerial Advisory Committee on vaccines, said the committee would discuss the study alongside information on other COVID-19 vaccines.

Asked to comment on the findings, he said, The Pfizer vaccine is enormously effective at 95 percent, so even if there is quite a significant reduction there still will be quite a bit of remnant efficacy left.

It is very likely that it will protect to a reasonable extent, certainly against severe illness and mild to moderate to some extent, he said.

Strong Enough

Richard Mihigo, an immunization official at the World Health Organizations Africa office, told a news conference the antibody response to the variant in the Pfizer study was strong enough.

Linda-Gail Bekker, co-lead investigator of the South African arm of J&Js global trial, said she would recommend rolling out the Pfizer vaccine but monitoring it in the same way as the J&J shot, which is being administered in an implementation study targeting up to 500,000 health workers to further test it in the field.

A health worker displays a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at Robert Ballanger hospital in Aulnay-sous-Bois, north of Paris on Jan. 6, 2021. (Christophe Archambault/Pool Photo via AP)

We should make sure we do see the effectiveness we [are] hoping for, she told Reuters.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Wednesday South Africa was expecting 500,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine initially and about 7 million doses by June.

A spokesman for regulator SAHPRA said Pfizers registration application was under review and declined further comment.

South Africa, with nearly 1.5 million cases and about 48,500 deaths, has recorded almost half the COVID-19 fatalities and over a third of confirmed infections in Africa. It lagged richer Western nations in launching its immunization campaign.

The government plans to vaccinate 40 million peopletwo-thirds of the population.

Luckily there are a range of vaccines available and what we will do is work with the national authorities to understand the implications of this [study] and see what they need to do, the WHOs Africa director, Matshidiso Moeti, said.

By Alexander Winning and Wendell Roelf

The loss of the Conservative Party's endorsement could be a major blow to Katko's reelection hopes in 2022. He received 21,062 votes on the Conservative line in 2020. He has been endorsed by the party in each of his congressional elections.

But there is another factor GOP and Conservative party leaders will consider: redistricting. With New York expected to lose at least one congressional seat in 2022, it's possible that Katko's district could look dramatically different.

That may change which county committees consider whether to endorse him, but it won't alter opinions of his votes within the Conservative Party. Kassar said that he's heard from members of the party's executive committee in other parts of the state who are disappointed with Katko's vote. Katko was the only New York Republican  and the only member backed by the state Conservative Party  to vote for impeachment.

"He is in trouble, but I do intend to keep on talking with him," Kassar said. "I don't know how he really makes amends on this vote, but I do feel that since he is endorsed by the party he continues to be someone that should take what the party's views are, continue to take them seriously and hopefully act on them simply because he continues to carry that endorsement."
In a bit of a paradox, 2020 may well go down as the most important year in the history of legal cannabis, which started with most legal U.S. state markets (either medical or recreational) designating cannabis as an "essential" business at the start of the pandemic. From there, the overall marketplace continued to gather additional momentum and go on to set sales records in almost every single legal marketplace.

"The strong market performance taking place during the worst pandemic in modern history signifies a shift in the collective zeitgeist of consumers towards cannabis. Cannabis usage has become more and more socially acceptable which is primarily being driven by legal cannabis becoming increasingly easy to access by a greater percentage of the North American population", said Praetorian Global's Founder, Chairman and CEO Jacob Pasternack.

Binske now has access to over 89.4 million consumers in North America, continuing its trajectory as one of the fastest growing and widely distributed cannabis brands in the world. This marks the 16th licensing deal that Praetorian Global is party to and is particularly notable due to the depth of the Binske product suite. While most U.S. brands crossing over into the Canadian market are single product brands, Binske has over 100 SKU's in its portfolio centered around the primary product categories of flower, vapes, extracts and edibles.

The Canadian cannabis market, fueled by a population of 37 million people, is projected to generate over $7 billion dollars annually by 2026. The landmark agreement between Praetorian and CannaPiece has an estimated retail value of over $50M (CAD). The companies plan to roll out the first tranche of products in Q2 2021 and have the full suite of award-winning products available to Canadian consumers by the summer of 2021.

"Binske focuses on earning and most importantly retaining consumer trust by enhancing the cannabis experience through strict product efficacy, constant innovation and overall product quality. We have put significant time and resources into developing a nucleus of consumer patronage in the U.S. markets and will now strategically take that same level of dedication towards consumer experience to the Canadian market," continued Jacob Pasternack.

"It has been an exciting journey working with the Binske team to bring and introduce their brand experience to the Canadian market and we are very eager to see their products on the shelves," said Eric Akbar, President for CannaPiece

"Introduction of established US brands is the natural progression of market maturity in Canada and CannaPiece Corp., as a contract manufacturer, is here to pave the path forward," he continued.

"CannaPiece has a dynamic and sophisticated executive team, with state-of-the-art facilities, and understands as well as appreciates the attention-to-detail that we have put into crafting Binske. Our ideal licensing partners understand the brand's ethos, and work diligently with us to bring the full portfolio of products and brand experience to each and every new territory," says Alex Pasternack, executive vice president at Binske. "Partner-selection is paramount for us, so naturally we feel incredibly excited to have CannaPiece license and produce our suite of products in Canada."

About Praetorian Global

Founded by Chairman and CEO Jacob Pasternack in 2015, Denver-based Praetorian Global, holds interests in THC and CBD-related brands throughout the U.S. Privately held Praetorian Global is the parent company for Binske, (the "e" is silent as in "smoke"). Because of its distinct intellectual property model and best-in-class product lines, Binske is party to 16 licensing deals in the U.S. states and Canada, making Binske the most widely distributed cannabis brand in North America. Lauded for its proprietary strains, craft ingredients, and best-in-class packaging, Binske products have earned multiple awards, including Leafly's Best Edibles, Best Concentrates and Best Overall Company. Binske has been covered in publications such as Forbes, Yahoo Finance, Benzinga, Marjiuana Business Magazine, Bloomberg, Ad Weekly, The New Times, and Cheddar TV. Binske is a registered trademark of Praetorian Global.

http://binske.com

https://twitter.com/binskebrands

https://instagram.com/binske

ABOUT CANNAPIECE CORP.

Headquartered in Pickering, Ontario, CannaPiece Corp. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CannaPiece Group Inc., a Canadian based, vertically integrated cannabis company. CannaPiece Corp. is a contract manufacturer of cannabis and hemp products and provides the industry with services and products to cover gaps in the supply chain. CannaPiece offers a complete selection of high-quality services ranging from R&D, product development, third-party processing, packaging, large-scale extraction, production of edibles, topicals and concentrates as well as white-labeled products to the Canadian market.

Media Contact:

Alex Pasternack

Binske

[email protected]

SOURCE Binske
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New Delhi: A recent development in Athens is believed to bring a paradigm shift in shaping the geopolitics of the Mediterranean and the Gulf regions. On 11th February, the meeting of the Philia Forum (meaning Friendship Forum in Greek) took place in Athens. The platform brought together six countries, represented by their Foreign Ministers and included Greece, Cyprus, Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian participated in the meeting through video conferencing as an observer.

The meeting was opened by the address of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis who explained that it was important for Greece to establish the forum as it is located in the middle of two geographical arcs  a horizontal arc connecting Portugal and the Persian Gulf as well as a vertical arc connecting Europe with Africa. He further stated that through the forum, Greece's ambition is to be a bridge between the Eastern Mediterranean and the Gulf.

Greek Prime Minister said, It is natural for Greece to suggest this pioneering form of cooperation. However, the multidimensional challenges in our wider neighbourhood also require it. Further, he urged about following international and maritime laws and independence and territorial integrity for all countries without foreign interference.

During the forum, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias commented, What unites us all today is the condemnation of illegal acts and the condemnation of irrational acts that undermine peace and security... Our goal is to create a bulwark against threats, violence, extremism, intolerance and distortion of religion.

Geopolitical experts focusing on the region believe that through the statement, Dendias made a reference to Turkey's aggression in the region as a consequence of Erdogans attempts to fulfil his Caliphate desires. They also argued that the creation of such a platform would be important in ensuring that NATO reduces its dependence on Turkey and does not get blackmailed by it. Further, it might also play a dominant role in checking the movement and deployment of Turkish mercenaries in Syria, Iraq, Libya, Cyprus, and the East Mediterranean.

Another diplomatic expert argued that through the creation of such a platform, Greece has made a smart and crucial move as it has been able to bring together the European and Arab world, especially the countries troubled by President Erdogans expansionist and extremist agenda. The important strategic location of Greece has certainly acted in its favour.

However, it should not be missed that the creation of the forum shall also lead to a huge setback for the revenue generation programme of Erdogan by threatening and bullying countries located in the Mediterranean. The country which is already going through a massive economic crisis has been overburdened by the expenses incurring on implementation of Erdogans Caliphate programme in Turkey as well as across the world, spent mostly on funding mercenaries and sponsoring covert operations. The creation of such a forum would be detrimental to the ambition of Turkey to generate revenue from high seas by resorting to an aggressive posture.

The expert also underlined another significant aspect of the forum by stressing that this also needs to be seen as institutionalisation of a security alliance to ensure free and open Mediterranean and Gulf. He elaborated that the concerning development of oil exploration by Turkey that led to the Eastern Mediterranean crisis and the scuttling of peace and tranquillity in the region has brought together these countries to collectively address these issues.

The forum could also be seen as a super-organisation  somewhat as a combination of energy-centric organisation East Mediterranean Gas Forum as well as maritime security coalition the Red Sea Alliance.

A couple of social media influencers have highlighted that a social media campaign was launched in Greece and Cyprus for the inclusion of India, Syria and France as full-time members of the forum to jointly tackle the threats of aggression and radicalisation posed by Turkey. France has already joined the meeting and observers believe that it would soon join it as a full-time member. Similarly, Syria is also considering the possibilities of joining the alliance. .

Greece has been expressing its wishes to cooperate on military and maritime security fronts. Observers highlighted that some kind of commotion searing the Philia Forum has started to take place in the Indian policy circles as well.

Given the brazen anti-India moves made by Turkey and the unanimous support given to Pakistani government and terrorists sponsored by it, India might very soon start working on assessing the possibilities of joining the Forum.

Several countries in the region have been expressing their desire to collaborate with India on the maritime front. However, these demands intensified after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the heads of Greece, Cyprus and Armenia on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September 2019. The leaders of the three countries, through their statements, have been expressing optimism to cooperate with India in fighting the Caliphate project.

Citing above references, observers have argued that India, in all probability, could join the forum. The only thing that one would need to see is whether India joins it as a full-time member or just as an observer.

The statements made by the Foreign Ministers of member nations in a joint press conference underline the urgency of constituting the forum as a response to the threat posed by the causative agent. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry stated that the objective of the forum was to balance relationships in order to achieve stability, counter the emerging crisis, and ensure that resources are efficiently utilised. He also expressed that Egypt was eager to strengthen its ties with Cyprus and Greece and without making a direct mention, he attacked the expansion of foreign forces in Arab territories.

Cypriot Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides, on similar lines, stressed that the platform sought collaboration on issues related to the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and Gulf region.

Similarly, UAE Minister Reem Al-Hashimy argued, the intensification of challenges and crises in the region demands cooperation and coordination to wisely establish a basis for development, security and peace.

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal Bin Farhan made the most powerful comment and stated that the focus of the forum was on the national sovereignty of states and their independence according to international laws and treaties denouncing intervention in other countries affairs.

Referring to international law, UN Security Council Resolutions and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the forum members also urged the UN Security Council members to ensure strict implementation of all relevant UN principles to guarantee peaceful solutions in settling conflicts and ensuring peace in the region.

The deliberations that took place in the forum, as well as its very constitution, has certainly disgruntled Turkey. As soon as the joint press conference was organised by the members of the forum, Turkish Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hami Aksoy issued a press statement that read, It is not possible for any forum not including Turkey, the key country in its region, and Turkish Cypriots, to constitute an effective and successful mechanism of cooperation and friendship with regard to the challenges in the region.

The Spokesperson then argued that the idea of the forum undermines the EU's efforts in the context of the Union for the region and blamed Greece and Cyprus as their act threatens peace and stability in the region.

However, contrary to Turkey's claims, statements made by the Greek Prime Minister as well as the Foreign Minister highlight that it was due to its own apprehensions and the fear of facing the members of the forum that Turkey chose not to join it. During the opening speech, Greek Prime Minister had commented  Our initiative is open to all, without turning against anyone. A similar argument was also made by the Greek Foreign Minister who argued that the forum did not want to exclude any country and welcomed any country that wanted peace.

Experts believe that in order to fulfil the Caliphate aspirations, Erdogan is in a hurry to expand his presence in the region and also wants to dethrone Saudi Arabia as the leader of the Muslim Ummah. The desperation of Erdogan and uncalculated moves made by him has gained him more foes than friends as countries all over the world are rising up to his aggression and it is believed that the handful of countries aligning with Turkey, including Pakistan and Malaysia, would also face the heat of such global coalitions. They further believe that in case India joins the forum, it can collectively counter the Caliphate project as well as radicalisation at large, by side-lining both the countries from the global fraternity.
Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova, Belarusian journalists working for the Polish television channel Belsat accused of coordinating mass protests in 2020 by broadcasting live reports, embrace inside a defendants' cage during a court hearing in Minsk, Belarus, on Feb. 18, 2021. (Stringer/Reuters)

Two Journalists Jailed for 2 Years in Belarus for Filming Protests

KYIVA Belarusian court sentenced two Belarusian journalists from Poland-based TV news channel Belsat who filmed protests against President Alexander Lukashenko to two years in prison on Feb. 18.

Katsiaryna Andreyeva, 27, and Darya Chultsova, 23, were detained in an apartment in November from where they had been filming protests taking place over the death of a protester who was killed several days earlier.

Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova, Belarusian journalists working for the Polish television channel Belsat accused of coordinating mass protests in 2020 by broadcasting live reports, stand inside a defendants cage during a court hearing in Minsk, Belarus, on Feb. 18, 2021. (Stringer/Reuters)

Both women pleaded not guilty after being accused of orchestrating the demonstrations by filming them.

The two journalists appeared in a cage at the hearing on Feb. 18, hugging and making V for victory signs. Their lawyer said they would appeal the verdict.

Just look at Darya and Katsiarynastrong, smiling, and saying goodbyes to their loved ones through bars. Lukashenka cant break us, exiled opposition figure Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya wrote on Twitter.

Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova stand inside a defendants cage during a court hearing in Minsk on Feb. 18, 2021. (Stringer/Reuters)

Neighboring Lithuania, where Tsikhanouskaya is based, urged Minsk to end a spiral of repression while Poland said Belarus should end its persecution of journalists.

More than 33,000 people have been detained in a violent crackdown on protests against Lukashenkos rule following a contested election last August that his opponents say was rigged to extend his rule. He has been in office since 1994.

The crackdown prompted Western countries to impose new sanctions on Minsk. Lukashenko has refused to step down, buttressed by support from Moscow, which sees Belarus as a buffer state against the European Union and NATO.

Every time I went to work, I risked my health and life, Andreyeva had said in a statement earlier. I managed to hide from rubber bullets, explosions of stun grenades, blows from truncheons. My colleagues were much less fortunate.

I have everything: youth, a job that I love, fame and, most importantly, a clear conscience.

The journalists were filming protests after the death of 31-year-old Roman Bondarenko, who died in the hospital in November after what protesters say was a severe beating by security forces. The interior ministry denied responsibility.

Polish President Andrzej Duda instructed Polish diplomats in Minsk to convey to the Belarusian government his opposition to the repression of freedom of speech and civil rights. He called for it to stop and for an amnesty for detainees, presidential aide Krzysztof Szczerski said.

Lukashenko has mixed promises of reform with a renewed crackdown this week that saw police raiding the homes of journalists and rights activists and one of Lukashenkos main electoral opponents put on trial for corruption.

A separate trial begins on Feb. 19 of a journalist from the local outlet TUT.BY who contradicted the governments assertion that Bondarenko had been drunk at the time of his death.

The Belsat TV channel specializes in news from Belarus and employs mostly Belarusian citizens.

By Matthias Williams
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UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

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Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

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Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

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People stand in line for COVID-19 testing at a temporary screening station set up in an industrial complex in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. Yonhap



By Bahk Eun-ji



Over 100 workers have been infected with COVID-19 at a plastic manufacturing plant located in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, putting the health authorities on high alert over another large infection cluster.



According to the Namyangju city government, Thursday, 123 people linked to the plant in the city's Jingwan Industrial Complex, about 40 kilometers from Seoul, have been diagnosed with the coronavirus.



Of them, 119 are workers at the factory, three are family members of the workers, and one is an employee at another factory there. Among the 119, 110 are migrant workers from 17 countries, and most of them have lived as well as dined together at the company dormitory.



All workers at the plant were tested following an employee from Cambodia testing positive at a hospital in central Seoul last Saturday after developing a fever.





South Korea makes final check on vaccine deployment plan in mock drill COVID-19 cases fall back in 500s; infections at workplaces on rise New COVID-19 cases over 600 for 2nd day Fears of community transmission have grown as many of the foreign employees had social gatherings outside of the plant during last week's Lunar New Year holiday.



In addition, two migrant workers at the plant have not returned to work since the holiday  the health authorities are trying to locate them.



The factory has been temporarily closed, while 1,200 people working at other factories in the industrial complex have been tested.



"The mass infection took place as they worked together in close proximity in a small space, and some did not wear face masks properly. Additionally, the migrant workers shared a dorm," Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said in a virus response meeting Thursday.



He said the government would conduct pre-emptive intensive inspections on workplaces and plants where workers are in close proximity to each other and where there are many foreign employees.



"We will continue to publicize quarantine rules to foreign workers through support centers for them, communities of foreign residents, and 16 embassies in Seoul for countries where migrant workers come from to Korea under the Employment Permit System (EPS)," Kwon said.



The Gyeonggi Province Government also said it has been looking into the detailed travel routes of the infected workers and others in the area who may have come into contact with them.



Along with the factory-related cases, the country's daily new virus cases stayed over 600 for a second consecutive day, with 621 confirmed infections for Wednesday, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).





The poppy, a symbol of those lost in battle since World War I, has come to denote remembrance and resiliency.

For the Musikfest 2021 official artwork and poster, artist Mandy Martin put poppies front and center to convey rebirth.

Martin conceptualized the work prior to COVID-19, Musikfest parent ArtsQuest says, but the symbolism took on new meaning as she worked on the piece during the isolation of the pandemic.

The Musikfest poster conveys a sense of hope and light, Martin said in a news release Tuesday from ArtsQuest unveiling her piece ahead of this years 38th Musikfest. We have all been through a lot in the past year, and poppies remind us that new growth often arises after times of hardship.

I wanted the viewer to anticipate a time of renewal and joy as we come together for the festival this year.

Planning for the annual festival in Bethlehem continues even as the coronavirus continues to impact daily life. Last years edition was forced to go virtual in response to the dangers the virus poses to those gathering together.

Martins poppies pop out in front of the Bethlehem landscape. Alongside, daisies spin magical music notes into the air, she said. The technique she used involves splashing fluid acrylic paints to create one layer, then applying heavy-bodied acrylics to generate texture and draw in the viewer, according to an ArtsQuest video about her Musikfest piece.

Martin is a member of ArtsQuests Banana Factory Artist Collective. ArtsQuests creative lead, Juliann Masenheimer, oversaw the development of this and the past three Musikfest posters.

When I started this project with Mandy last winter, our focus was on the revival of Bethlehem through the years, Masenheimer said in the ArtsQuest release. Her poppies immediately drew my eye as our focus so they could represent the growth of both our city and our festival.

Little did we know March 2020 would come around and we would be in a pandemic, but Mandys art and talent became all the more pertinent to the task. I love the healing the poster represents from the past to the present, and hopefully the future.

Mandy Martin, an artist based in Sellersville, Bucks County, stands with the painting she created for ArtsQuest as the poster and official artwork of the 38th annual Musikfest, scheduled Aug. 6-15, 2021, in Bethlehem.Courtesy photo | For lehighvalle

Martin lives in Sellersville, Bucks County, with her husband and two teenage children. She enjoys practicing yoga and gathers inspiration while taking long walks with her dog, she told lehighvalleylive.com. Most afternoons she spends in her home studio, creating paintings on canvas.

When the pandemic is over, Martin cant wait to dine out with friends, travel, and to hear live music again.

Martin, whose work has also been exhibited at the New Hope Art Center in New Hope near her home and the Annmarie Arts Center in Solomon, Maryland, admits in the ArtsQuest news release to having gone through a period of growth and rebirth herself as she watched the painting darken with her own thoughts and feelings as the pandemic progressed. She says she had to remind herself that hope still lives, and must be depicted through light in her artwork.

The painting was started in the early spring of 2020; it went through a really dark period in June. Like everyone, I was affected by the uncertainty of the pandemic, and at the same time my eyes were opened to the reality of systemic racism in our society, said Martin. I had to find some inspiration to lift my spirits and bring a sense of hope to the painting, so I actually listened to live recordings from music festivals while I painted. It reminded me of how good music is for communities and how the arts can bring us together, and I tried to capture that magic in the painting.

ArtsQuest says that with safety a top priority, and following all federal, state and local guidelines, Musikfest 2021 will take place Aug. 6-15. While planning is underway, the nonprofit is looking for input from self-described Musikfest Super Fans to help create the best possible festival. Musikfest Super Fans can identify themselves by filling out the form at musikfest.org/superfan until Friday. Feb. 19, for a chance to participate in exclusive surveys, conversations and focus groups.

Learn more about Martins work at her website, mandymartinart.com, and on Instagram and Facebook.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
The NIA has arrested a terrorist harbourer and logistics provider, who helped two terrorists of Pakistan-based terror group Hizbul Mujahideen, following the snatching of a service rifle from the escort in-charge of Kishtwar District Magistrate in 2019, an official said. Taraq Hussain Giri of Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar was arrested on February 17, the NIA spokesperson said.

The case was initially registered on March 8, 2019, under sections of the RPC, the Arms Act and the UA(P)Act relating to snatching of service weapon from escort in-charge of Kishtwar DM. The NIA re-registered the case in November 2019 and took over the investigation.

Giri was arrested for harbouring and providing logistical support to Hizbul terrorists -- Osama Bin Javed and Haroon Abbas Wani in March 2019 after the militants snatched the service rifle from the escort in-charge, the NIA official said. This incident of weapon snatching was one of the four incidents of terror acts committed by Hizbul terrorists from November 2018 to September 2019, the official said.

The accused was produced before a special NIA court in Jammu and taken on police remand for five days for further examination, the NIA official added.
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To receive this recognition for the 6th consecutive year is a tremendous accomplishment. I would like to thank our clients and employees for their dedication and commitment.

GeBBS Healthcare Solutions, Inc., (ChrysCapital portfolio company), a leading provider of Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) Solutions for Healthcare Providers and Payers, announced that it had been named for the sixth year in a row to the IAOP Global 100 Outsourcing List, an annual listing of the worlds best outsourcing service providers. GeBBS was judged in four categories: Delivery Excellence, Top Innovation, Customer References, and Corporate Social Responsibility.

The 2021 Global Outsourcing 100 recognizes the world's best outsourcing service providers and advisors. This list is based on applications received and judging is based on a rigorous scoring methodology that includes review by an independent panel of IAOP customer members with extensive experience in selecting outsourcing service providers and advisors for their organizations.

"Now, more than ever, outsourcing end-users need to be able to easily identify and select the right company for their outsourcing needs," said Debi Hamill, IAOP CEO. "It is great recognition being named to The Global Outsourcing 100. Given the strong, global competition, GeBBS Healthcare Solutions should be proud of achieving excellence in the field."

Our inclusion in this prestigious list underscores GeBBS ability to consistently provide innovative solutions to our clients and helping them increase revenue, reduce costs and improve compliance, commented Milind Godbole, CEO & Managing Director of GeBBS Healthcare Solutions. To receive this recognition for the 6th consecutive year is a tremendous accomplishment. I would like to thank our clients and employees for their dedication and commitment.

About IAOP

IAOP is the global association that brings together customers, providers, and advisors in a collaborative, knowledge-based environment that promotes professional and organizational development, recognition, certification, and excellence to improve business service models and outcomes. Our members and affiliates worldwide are digging deep at IAOP conferences, learning at IAOP chapter meetings, getting trained and certified at IAOP courses and workshops, and connecting through IAOP social media, all with one goal: better business results. Whether you are a customer, provider or advisor, new to collaborative business models like outsourcing, or you are an experienced professional, IAOP connects you and your organization to our growing global community and to the resources you need to get the results your company deserves and demands. For more information and how you can become involved, visit http://www.IAOP.org.

The Global Outsourcing 100 and its sub-lists are essential references for companies seeking new and expanded relationships with the best companies in the industry. The lists include companies from around the world that provide the full spectrum of outsourcing services  not just information technology and business process outsourcing, but also facility services, real estate and capital asset management, manufacturing and logistics. They include not only todays leaders but tomorrows rising stars. To help ensure participation by a broad cross-section of the industry, The Global Outsourcing 100 list includes larger established global firms, referred to as 'Leaders,' smaller, faster-growing firms with less than $50 million per year in revenue and/or fewer than 5,000 employees, referred to as 'Rising Stars,' as well as Advisors, regardless of size. Companies are first organized by Leader, Rising Star or Advisor criteria, then evaluated based on the four judging categories. The final list is composed of the top-scoring companies, regardless of type.

About GeBBS

GeBBS Healthcare Solutions is a KLAS rated leading provider of Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) services and Risk Adjustment solutions. GeBBS innovative technology, combined with over 9,500-strong global workforce, helps clients improve financial performance, adhere to compliance, and enhance the patient experience. Headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, GeBBS is backed by ChrysCapital, one of the premier private equity funds based out of India. GeBBS has won numerous accolades for its medical coding outsourcing and medical billing outsourcing, including being ranked in Modern Healthcares Top 10 Largest RCM Firms, Black Book Market Researchs Top 20 RCM Outsourcing Services, and Inc. 5000s fastest growing private companies in the U.S. For more information, please visit http://www.gebbs.com.

For more information contact:

Tyler Cowart

310-953-4444 ext. 214

tyler.cowart@gebbs.com
A South Korean expert was found dead at a company in Hai Duong Province, which is Vietnams current coronavirus hotbed, on Thursday.

The expert in question was identified as Lee Gwang Suk, 70 years old.

His body was discovered on the second floor of the building for experts of PNG Vietnam Co. Ltd. in Cam Thuong Ward, Hai Duong City, which is the capital of Hai Duong Province.

The corpse was found by Quach Thi Hong Hanh, a 37-year-old cleaner at the company.

Police have isolated the scene while investigating the cause of death.

Relevant agencies have also taken a sample from Lee for COVID-19 testing.

Vietnam has recorded 2,329 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday morning, with 1,580 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

A total of 737 local infections have been detected in 13 provinces and cities since January 27.

Among them, 557 cases have been logged in Hai Duong Province.

On February 13, a Japanese expert of Mitsui & Co. Vietnam Ltd. Hanoi Branch was found dead at Somerset West Point Hanoi and posthumously tested positive for the novel coronavirus on February 14.

At least two people who had had contact with the expert have been confirmed as COVID-19 patients in the capital so far.

Vietnam has closed its borders to foreign visitors since March last year and only allowed entry to certain people like international experts and diplomats who will be quarantined upon arrival.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
On the Market

Homes for Sale in New York and New Jersey

This weeks properties include a four-bedroom in Roslyn, N.Y., and a five-bedroom in Little Falls, N.J.

On the Market in the New York Region 20 Photos View Slide Show  Adam Macchia for The New York Times

Jill P. Capuzzo and
On the occasion of Shree Panchami, a devotee of Lord Jagannath has donated specially designed gold and silver ornaments, worth over Rs 2.33 crore, for the trinity of the 12th century shrine, Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) in Puri said. Weighing over 8 kg, the ornaments are made of gold (4.858 kg worth over Rs 2.30 crore) and silver (3.876 kg valued at Rs 2.91 lakh) and will be used during special rituals.

A representative of the devotee met the SJTA chief administrator Krishan Kumar and handed over the ornaments at the temple office in the presence of some management committee members and other officials on Tuesday. "The devotee has requested not to reveal his identity as he does not want publicity," Kumar said.

The gold jewellery included 'Jhoba' (middle part of the idol), 'Srimukha' (face) and 'Padma' (lotus) for the three deities - Lord Balabhadra, Devi Subhadra and Lord Jagannath. The ornaments include 40 'Srimukha Padma' and two 'Jhoba' for Lord Balabhadra, 53 'Srimukha Padma' and two 'Jhoba' for Lord Jagannath and two 'Tadaki' and two 'Jhoba' for Devi Subhadra.

The ornaments were kept in the treasury of the temple office amid tight security. The temple administration will later hand over the jewellery to the 'Bhandara Mekapa' (temple treasurer). Earlier, a devotee from Bhubaneswar had donated 'Surjya' (Sun) and 'Chandra' (Moon) ornaments for the deities of the Srimandir.

On January 10, a devotee had donated gold ornaments weighing over 300 gm.
Besides poaching the Congress MLAs, the BJP has also used NR Congress and AIADMK, in its mission to storm the Congress citadel

Traditionally a Congress bastion, the former French colony has suddenly become the cynosure of the BJPs eyes since the party in power at the Centre is piqued over its inability to make inroads into South India. (Photo: Twitter @CMPuducherry)

Chennai: The proposed visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Puducherry on February 25, the series of defections from the Congress and the sudden sacking of former lieutenant-governor Kiran Bedi are all clear signals that the BJP is desperately planning to capture power in the tiny Union territory.

Traditionally a Congress bastion, the former French colony has suddenly become the cynosure of the BJPs eyes since the party in power at the Centre is piqued over its inability to make inroads into South India.

The first step that the BJP took in Puducherry towards achieving its plan to storm into the political scene, where it had no presence at all otherwise -- its local leader V. Saminathan polled just 1,509 votes in Lawspet constituency -- was to appoint Kiran Bedi.

On her part, Bedi began operations by first taking a confrontationist course against the Congress government, headed by V. Narayanasamy, and then nominating three MLAs, including Saminathan, to the UTs Assembly in 2017.

Though that backdoor entry of three MLAs into the House created a storm in Puducherry, it was finally approved by the Supreme Court and the three nominees continue to hold office. The next thing that Ms Bedi did was to start poaching from the Congress.

A minister in the V. Narayansamy Cabinet, A. Namassivayam, and his acolyte Theepainthan switched loyalties to the BJP after resigning their seats as MLAs in January, which was followed by two other MLAs resigning on Tuesday, Malladi Krishna Rao from Yanam (an enclave in Andhra Pradesh), and A. Johnkumar.

Having created such a crisis for the Congress government, the BJP, along with its allies AIADMK and NR Congress, have started putting pressure on Tamilisai Soundararajan, the Telangana governor who has been given additional charge of Puducherry, even before she has taken charge as acting lieutenant-governor, to oust the government that has just a few months more in office.

Besides poaching the Congress MLAs, the BJP has also used its allies, the NR Congress and AIADMK, in its mission to storm the Congress citadel. The DMK, ostensibly an ally of the Congress, also has ideas of capturing the Union territory on its own for various reasons.

But it is the BJP that has seemingly bigger plans. Even the sudden removal of Bedi appears to have been done to improve the image of the party among the people since the lieutenant-governor had become unpopular among several sections of people.

The chief minister, Narayansamy, had been campaigning against Bedi -- he and his party colleagues had even sat on a fast in front of Raj Nivas -- accusing her of being a stumbling block in the implementation of welfare schemes.

The BJP may have plans to bring in a new lieutenant-governor who would be able to win over the hearts of the people and also use its allies for the time being to capture power. It may project Namassivayam, who is popular locally, as its chief ministerial candidate.

Namassivayam, in any case, has a track record of party hopping. He started with the DMK, then went to MDMK, then to the TMC started by P. Kannan and thus landed in the Congress as the TMC merged with it.

As a leader with chief ministerial aspirations, Namassivayam was hopeful of realising his dream in 2016, but Narayanasamy came out of the blue and took away his chances. The BJP might have assured him that it can help him to become the chief minister.

Namassivayam and Theepainthan, incidentally, joined the BJP by travelling all the way to New Delhi and meeting top saffron leaders like Amit Shah and J.P. Nadda.
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Unicore Investment (Unicore  https://unicorecap.com/) recently announced that it had entered into the VPP market through an Austin-based subsidiary, America Energy. Both America Energy and Unicore will work in cooperation with utility companies in the region, adding resiliency to the whole, while also placing the VPP as part of Unicore's unique energy and real estate investment portfolio. VPPs are a new but rapidly growing concept related to the centralized cloud-based distribution of clean, renewable power from a collection of disparate sources  distributed energy resources (DER)  that can include wind farms, solar parks, and combined-heat-and-power plants, among others. Unicore Investment is well placed to help this new concept take hold in the U.S., having established this initial investment while simultaneously positioning itself to become a future VPP financier in Africa and the developing world.

VPP VPP

"VPP is already a growing industry in Europe (e.g. Scotland and Germany), and it represents the future of clean power generation and distribution," said Unicore Founder, Herve Ime. "In addition to big providers, VPPs allow private individuals to enter the network with local renewable sources of energy (home-based solar, batteries, etc.) to become part of a growing chain of stable, decentralized energy solutions. This has all sorts of practical applications that we're just now beginning to explore for both cities and rural areas  from the ability to efficiently shift energy to places that need it most, based on peak times, to almost eliminating power-outage emergencies altogether. And that's not just a pipedream. When a region's energy comes from a collective VPP, rather than the traditional, outdated model of a single-plant power source, residential areas and businesses are no longer completely reliant upon the security and integrity of that one plant. Power can come from anywhere, allowing accidents and outages to be far more easily mitigated. VPPs are also a major source of untapped investor potential  since they can be traded on the energy market. Now is the time to begin investing in this industry. It's not just energy-market speculation any longer  VPPs are a reality."

For more information on VPPs or other Unicore investments, visit them online.

About Unicore Investment: A Global Investment Firm

Unicore Investment has a focused portfolio of residential and commercial real estate ventures, renewable energy, infrastructure, and blockchain technology. With its recent entry into the global VPP market, the company's geographic and financial reach continues to grow through strategic and secure partnerships in both the U.S. and the developing world  providing one-of-a-kind investment opportunities for its clients. Learn more at: www.UnicoreCap.com.

Media Contact:

Rose Rodriguez

Communication Director

Unicore Investment

[email protected]

Global office: 1-(855)-629-3888

[email protected]

SOURCE Unicore Investment
Heartwarming videos and photos show the moment when a one-year-old girl was rescued and reunited with her parents in Florida after the SUV she was sleeping in was stolen on Tuesday.

Bodycam footage from the Hillsborough County Sheriff Office shows deputies locating the Volkswagen Tiguan SUV that went missing along with Tinnley Sage West just a few hours after she had been abducted in Valrico.

Deputies can be seen responding to the St. Andrews Methodist Church in Brandon, roughly three miles from the area where Tinnley and the SUV were taken from.

Bodycam footage from the Hillsborough County Sheriff Office shows deputies locating the Volkswagen Tiguan SUV and Tinnley Sage West

Tinnley would be reunited with her parents in an emotional moment captured by local outlets and by the sheriff's department

Footage shows the responding deputy making sure that the little one is not injured, remarking how thrilled he was to find her.

Tinnley would be reunited with her parents in an emotional moment captured by local outlets and by the sheriff's department.

The sheriff's department had issued an Amber Alert for Tinnley on Tuesday, with authorities reporting that she and the SUV were last seen at around 3pm on the 2600 block of Green Valley Street in Valrico.

'Don't let me find you,' the father said, directed to the suspect of the robbery and the kidnapping

Sheriff Chad Chronister said that the infant's mother had been unloading stuff from her car for her mother-in-law when the suspect jumped into action and stole the vehicle

Soon after, the department released videos of the man they believed was responsible for stealing the vehicle and for kidnapping the child.

Sheriff Chad Chronister said that the infant's mother had been unloading stuff from her car for her mother-in-law when the suspect jumped into action and stole the vehicle.

'All it takes is less than a minute for someone to steal your car,' he said during a press conference. 'Don't leave it running.

The department released videos of the man they believed was responsible for stealing the vehicle and for kidnapping the child

The sheriff's department had issued an Amber Alert for Tinnley on Tuesday, with authorities reporting that she and the SUV were last seen at around 3pm on the 2600 block of Green Valley Street in Valrico

'I know we don't want to wake up our children when they are sleeping, we want them to rest, but don't leave your car running. Never leave your car running.'

And while the girl's parents were ecstatic for the positive reunion, Tinnley's father had a bold declaration to the suspect.

'Don't let me find you,' the father declared, WTSP reports.
Brent crude prices gained 1.56% to settle at US$64.34 a barrel as frigid Texas temperatures curtailed production in the largest US producing state.

Spot gold was down 1.2% at US$1,773.72 per ounce, having hit its lowest since Novovember 30 at $1,768.60 earlier.

S&P/ASX 200 (INDEXASX:XJO) has reclaimed ground over the morning session to be up 0.26% to 6902.8 by about 1.45 pm despite a weak lead from Wall Street.

New data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed employment increased by 29,100 people (0.2%) to 12,939,900 people in January 2021 compared to December 2020.

Full-time jobs rose by 59,000 while part-time roles dropped 29,800. The unemployment rate fell to 6.4% from 6.6%.

Outperformers

ANZ Bank ( ) gained 3.37% after revealing unaudited statutory profit after tax for the first quarter of $1.6 billion, up from a quarterly average of $773 million the first half of last year.

( ) was up 2.4% after declaring a first half net profit after tax (NPAT) of US$1.8 billion, up 44% on strength in its immunoglobulin business and a change in its distribution model in China.

Top gainers

Todays top gainers on the ASX include ( ) (+14.49%), ( ) (+10.34%), ( ) (+26.09%) and ( ) (+9.09%).

Proactive news headlines:

Infinity Lithium raises A$15 million in strongly supported placement to advance Europe supply strategy

( ) ( ) has raised A$15 million through a strongly supported placement and will issue more than 79.47 million shares at A$0.19 per share to advance the San Jose Lithium Project in Spain and its integrated supply strategy in Europe.

Bellevue Gold set to generate strong profits, robust free cashflows with namesake project expected to be ranked among Australias top 25 gold mines

s ( ) (OTCMKTS:BELGF) stage one feasibility study has found that its Bellevue Gold Project in Western Australia is expected to be ranked amongst Australias top-25 gold mines based upon annual production.

s strongly supported $5.5 million placement set to fast-track iron ore projects

( ) (FRA:B4T) has received firm commitments for its $5.5 million placement via the issue of around 123.4 million shares at $0.045 per share to sophisticated and professional investors (before costs of raising).

AVZ Minerals drills 173 metres at 1.63% lithium and 1,134ppm tin from Roche Dure pit floor of Manono Project

( ) (OTCMKTS:AZZVF) (FRA:3A2) has received further strong results from mineral resource drilling at Manono Lithium and Tin Project in the Democratic Republic of Congo with 172 metres at 1.63% lithium and 1,134ppm tin returned from the pit floor 'wedge' at Roche Dure.

Strategic Elements developing Sensor Fusion stack to integrate into autonomous robotic security vehicles

( ) has started developing a Sensor Fusion stack for integration into a new generation of autonomous robotic security vehicles that will make them more intuitive and more responsive to their environment.

Marvel Gold drilling confirms southeast extension at Tabakorole Gold Project

's ( ) (OTCMKTS:GRXMF) (FRA:GR2) results from the first eight holes of a resource expansion drill program at the Tabakorole Gold Project in southern Mali has confirmed an extension to the southeast.

Lithium Australias field trial demonstrates successful update of micronutrients from spent alkaline batteries

( ) ( ) (FRA:3MW) and its 90%-owned subsidiary Envirostream Australia Pty Ltds field testing of fertiliser blends containing manganese micronutrients derived from spent alkaline batteries recycled by Envirostream have demonstrated successful uptake of these micronutrients in a field setting.

Nanoveu higher on enhancing antiviral technology with new products and outdoor testing

( ) has enhanced the reputation of its antiviral technology with the release of new products and successful environmental testing leading to a lift in share price today.
An artist's impression of the Cygnus X-1 system. A stellar-mass black hole orbits with a companion star located 7,200 light years from Earth. Credit: International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research.

New observations of the first black hole ever detected have led astronomers to question what they know about the Universe's most mysterious objects.

Published today in the journal Science, the research shows the system known as Cygnus X-1 contains the most massive stellar-mass black hole ever detected without the use of gravitational waves.

Cygnus X-1 is one of the closest black holes to Earth. It was discovered in 1964 when a pair of Geiger counters were carried on board a sub-orbital rocket launched from New Mexico.

The object was the focus of a famous scientific wager between physicists Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne, with Hawking betting in 1974 that it was not a black hole. Hawking conceded the bet in 1990.

In this latest work, an international team of astronomers used the Very Long Baseline Arraya continent-sized radio telescope made up of 10 dishes spread across the United Statestogether with a clever technique to measure distances in space.

"If we can view the same object from different locations, we can calculate its distance away from us by measuring how far the object appears to move relative to the background," said lead researcher, Professor James Miller-Jones from Curtin University and the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR).

An animation showing the Cygnus X-1 system, consisting of a black hole in orbit with a giant star. Recent observations by radio telescopes have found the system is 20 per cent further away than previously thought, implying the black hole is 21 times the mass of the Sun, making it the most massive stellar-mass black hole ever detected without the use of gravitational waves. Credit: International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research.

"If you hold your finger out in front of your eyes and view it with one eye at a time, you'll notice your finger appears to jump from one spot to another. It's exactly the same principle."

"Over six days we observed a full orbit of the black hole and used observations taken of the same system with the same telescope array in 2011," Professor Miller-Jones said. "This method and our new measurements show the system is further away than previously thought, with a black hole that's significantly more massive."

Co-author Professor Ilya Mandel from Monash University and the ARC Centre of Excellence in Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav) said the black hole is so massive it's actually challenging how astronomers thought they formed.

"Stars lose mass to their surrounding environment through stellar winds that blow away from their surface. But to make a black hole this heavy, we need to dial down the amount of mass that bright stars lose during their lifetimes" he said.

"The black hole in the Cygnus X-1 system began life as a star approximately 60 times the mass of the Sun and collapsed tens of thousands of years ago," he said. "Incredibly, it's orbiting its companion stara supergiantevery five and a half days at just one-fifth of the distance between the Earth and the Sun.

"These new observations tell us the black hole is more than 20 times the mass of our Suna 50 percent increase on previous estimates."

Astronomers observed the Cygnus X-1 system from different angles using the orbit of the Earth around the Sun to measure the perceived movement of the system against the background stars. This allowed them to refine the distance to the system and therefore the mass of the black hole. Credit: International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research.

Xueshan Zhao is a co-author on the paper and a Ph.D. candidate studying at the National Astronomical Observatoriespart of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NAOC) in Beijing.

"Using the updated measurements for the black hole's mass and its distance away from Earth, I was able to confirm that Cygnus X-1 is spinning incredibly quicklyvery close to the speed of light and faster than any other black hole found to date," she said.

"I'm at the beginning of my research career, so being a part of an international team and helping to refine the properties of the first black hole ever discovered has been a great opportunity."

Next year, the world's biggest radio telescopethe Square Kilometre Array (SKA)will begin construction in Australia and South Africa.

"Studying black holes is like shining a light on the Universe's best kept secretit's a challenging but exciting area of research," Professor Miller-Jones said.

"As the next generation of telescopes comes online, their improved sensitivity reveals the Universe in increasingly more detail, leveraging decades of effort invested by scientists and research teams around the world to better understand the cosmos and the exotic and extreme objects that exist.

"It's a great time to be an astronomer."

Explore further Hungriest of black holes among the most massive in the universe

More information: J. Miller-Jones el al., "Cygnus X-1 contains a 21-solar mass black hole - implications for massive star winds," Science (2021). J. Miller-Jones el al., "Cygnus X-1 contains a 21-solar mass black hole - implications for massive star winds,"(2021). science.sciencemag.org/lookup/  1126/science.abb3363 Companion Papers: "Reestimating the Spin Parameter of the Black Hole in Cygnus X-1," published in The Astrophysical Journal on February 18th, 2021. "Wind mass-loss rates of stripped stars inferred from Cygnus X-1," published in The Astrophysical Journal on February 18th, 2021. Journal information: Astrophysical Journal , Science

Provided by International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research
Several charities have hit out at Dublin City Council for removing tents and personal items belonging to homeless people from areas of the capital in recent weeks.

And they have also questioned why members of An Garda Siochana have assisted in at least one operation.

Pictures have emerged of a garda with a tent in his hand, about to place it in a rubbish lorry, while other images show gardai escorting council workers.

"On January 28, 2021, gardai attached to Store Street garda station received a request from Dublin Regional Homeless Executive (DRHE) to assist in an operation involving a number of homelessness outreach organisations and Dublin City Council," a Garda spokesperson told the Sunday World.

"Homelessness outreach organisations present engaged with all rough sleepers and advised of hostel availability and all were offered and provided with accommodation."

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Bur Cllr Anthony Flynn of the Inner City Helping Homeless charity stressed that gardai should not be involved in such operations and has complained to the local Chief Superintendent.

"These people are technically being evicted from city centre streets with the help of gardai, which should not be the case," he said.

Cllr Flynn added that he had been informed several more tents were removed on Friday morning from the Henry Street area by council workers.

When contacted, a spokesperson for Dublin City Council admitted they have removed tents in recent days - this follows a major story in the Sunday World recently about the growing number of homeless people and tents in the city centre.

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"There were seven empty tents removed from the banks of the Grand Canal on Friday," said a spokesperson. "Six of the occupants of these tents have recently moved to temporary accommodation with another occupant moving to a permanent social housing tenancy.

"The people involved are now accessing health and addiction supports, as appropriate."

But Cllr Flynn begs to differ. "Unfortunately, this isn't what was seen on the ground," he insists. "Many were offered accommodation, but refused the same due to poor standards in emergency accommodation.

"This isn't the way we should be responding. Dispersal and displacement should not be the method. Intense housing first is the model required here."

He said the council is getting "embarrassed" the public are seeing the problem of homelessness now "more and more in their face with a litter of tents which has made it into basically tent city".

Michael McAdam (78) has been a volunteer with the homeless charity Ocras Eire for 16 years.

"They are after destroying these people, they are after taking all their personal possessions away, tents, sleeping bag, everything they own they took it away," he said.

"They think they are after solving the homeless situation? They are after making it worse."

James, a homeless man from Offaly, reveals all his belongings were lost when his tent and the items in it were removed recently from near Smithfield museum.

"They took my tent and everything in it, even my mother's picture," he said.
About ERCOT

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) manages the flow of electric power to more than 26 million Texas customers -- representing about 90 percent of the states electric load. As the independent system operator for the region, ERCOT schedules power on an electric grid that connects more than 46,500 miles of transmission lines and 680+ generation units. It also performs financial settlement for the competitive wholesale bulk-power market and administers retail switching for nearly 8 million premises in competitive choice areas.

ERCOT is a membership-based 501(c)(4) nonprofit corporation, governed by a board of directors and subject to oversight by the Public Utility Commission of Texas and the Texas Legislature. Its members include consumers, cooperatives, generators, power marketers, retail electric providers, investor-owned electric utilities, transmission and distribution providers and municipally owned electric utilities.

*From ERCOT website.

When environmentalist and researcher Sean McDonagh left Ireland to live with a tribal group in the Philippines in the late 1960s, he told his mother he would call her once a month. He would travel seven hours by bus to the only place on the island where you could make an international call.

After a few minutes the line, which he would pay about 5 a minute for, would break, and off he would travel up the mountain again. We could never imagine such a feat to make a phone call nowadays.

Since then, Sean has written 12 books on everything from climate change to biodiversity and is now focusing on the area of AI, or artificial technology.

Playing Monopoly

You have extraordinarily large companies in the world at the moment, Facebook, Google, Twitter, and theyre ruthless. They have extraordinary control and they're not well regulated. These companies get about 80% of all the advertising that is done, Sean says over the phone from his home in Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

They are monopolies. Traditionally, good democracies would break up monopolies, like the oil monopoly at the beginning of the 20th century, yet Google still knows more about you than anyone else in the world.

Hes not wrong. My mind races as he explains all of the ways the four billion phones in the world track our lives: online browsing habits, shopping, cookie requests, and old competition surveys.

I think of the 2000 photos on my phone that all have locations attached. The Find My iPhone app, that every Apple user is expected to install. Credit cards, fitness trackers, Netflix. All of these know your location and habits and that data is split between few entities.

There are great things about AI but there are problems. Behind all of this, the race to automation is actually moving out jobs, Sean says.

LOSING JOBS: Robots, Ethics, and the Future of Jobs is available in bookstores now

The future of jobs

His recently released book Robots, Ethics and the Future of Jobs looks into this particular topic in stunning detail.

From retail workers losing employment to online delivery sites such as Amazon and farm laborers being pushed out by automated machinery, to self-checkouts taking over for those working in food shops, there is an endless stream of technology taking over for human workers.

As Sean points out, A human can only pick fruit for maybe seven hours a day, a machine can do it for 24 hours. He says that the trend will continue to be seen in every sector including banking, finance, medicine, and even teaching.

Within twenty years, 60% to 75% of the transport industry will be automated. There are cars and trucks right now that dont need drivers. Its not just blue-collar workers that will lose their jobs though, workers in every single area of life will be impacted.

"In the world that is emerging only 50% of people have jobs. If you want to be sure of a job, study cybersecurity.

Sean says that the pandemic has significantly sped up the race to automation, with Google doing more work on its algorithms in the last six months of lockdown last year than they had in the previous two to three years. Its a frightening thought when you take into account what engineer Gordan Moore predicted in 1965.

Moore's law tells us that we double our digital capacity every three to four years. Youre talking about our digital capacity from the beginning of the 1960s up to 2020, thats going to be doubled in three years, Sean says.

In particular, it's believed that third-world economies are the most at risk of losing out in the race to automation. Many countries whose economies rely on shipping items to the Western world will suffer as algorithms and 3D printing allow for products and devices to be made at home. Sean looks at a timely item as an example.

During the pandemic, we were looking for ventilators and instead of shipping them in, a Google company said they were going to produce them locally with an algorithm, he says. Thats a huge change. It is a good thing, but it will have a catastrophic impact on third world economies. Its just beginning but its going to have an enormous impact.

ROBO RACE: Sean McDonagh has extensively studied the affects of technology on humanity

Stricter regulation

To combat all of this, Sean says that we need to look to our governments to more strictly regulate monopolies. He also supports the idea of a universal income to promote entrepreneurship as jobs continue to get taken over by robots.

We need political action and stricter regulation. Fines dont bother them, he says, referring to billion-dollar machines like Facebook. What they dont want is to be regulated like other industries. We cant allow the economy to drive it all. We need people who understand the political dimension, the social dimension, and the ethical dimension of this.

Unless we face it, it will overwhelm us. We need to actually address the problems and not allow these extraordinary companies to drive it on their terms. Everyone will lose if they do.

All of this said, Sean does like to focus on the good that technology has brought to the world too, from the marvels of modern medicine to the lower impact on the environment that comes with avoiding overseas shipments.

He even called an old friend in the Philippines for free over Whatsapp the other day from the comfort of his home - no buses or two-day long trips required.

Robots, Ethics, and the Future of Jobs (19.95) is available to buy in bookstores now
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Burma Myanmar Journalists Leave Jobs in Face of Military Regime Restrictions on Media Freedom

Myanmar Journalists in Yangon participate the nationwide anti-coup demonstration against the military rule. / Lynn Hset Aung

Yangon-Eleven members of the Myanmar Press Council and more than a dozen journalists at The Myanmar Times have left their jobs in the face of new restrictions by the military regime that threaten media freedom.

On Feb. 13, the military-run Ministry of Information (MOI) issued directives to Myanmars Press Council, a media adjudication body that investigates and settles press disputes, urging the media to report ethically and avoid instigating public unrest.

The directives quickly went viral online.

The directives stated that some newspapers, weeklies and online media wrongly use regime for the juntas governing body, the State Administrative Council (SAC), which was constitutionally formed by the military.

So, journalists and media are informed not to use regime or junta for the SAC, which is [acting in accordance with] the State of Emergency provision; and not to instigate public unrest while following media ethics on reporting, the directives state.

In response, eleven members of the Myanmar Press Council announced Wednesday that they have resigned from the council because the military is trying to prescribe laws restricting media freedom.

U Myint Kyaw, joint secretary of the council, said that after the coup the council has been facing difficulties in its efforts to protect journalists who have been detained, arrested and beaten in recent days.

It is not easy to protect the journalists despite [the fact that] we are the council members. It is not good for us and media. This is why, we resigned from the council, said U Myint Kyaw.

At The Myanmar Times more than a dozen journalists  including several of the newsrooms leading editors  left their jobs after facing what they viewed as censorship by the management team.

The move came on Tuesday after the newspapers management forced one of its journalists to attend a press conference held by the military regime, despite the fact that all newsroom staff members had decided to boycott the press conference.

Most of Myanmars media boycotted the press conference

The Myanmar Times is the one of the oldest privately owned and operated English-language newspapers in Myanmar. It publishes under Myanmar Consolidated Media, the business established by U Sonny Swe and Ross Dunkley at the start of 2000

In 2014, Myanmar tycoon U Thein Tun bought the business and is now running the daily newspaper in both Burmese and English versions.

Editors and journalist told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that they have been interfered with in their daily reporting and have been instructed to use the terms specified by the Ministry of Information recognizing military rule since the coup.

Reporters said that the management level of the media outlet has banned the use of the term coup, telling them to use the term power transfer instead.

In addition, when mentioning the militarys chief position, the terms the coup leader and the leader of military have been banned in reporting. Reporters are asked to refer to Senior General Min Aung Hlaing as the chair of State Administrative Council (SAC).

One of the newsrooms leading editors (who asked not to be named) told The Irrawaddy that after the military coup, management asked the newsroom to use the terms approved by the military regime in its reporting.

Newsroom staff members have also been told to avoid the reporting about public opposition to the military coup as much as they can.

During this circumstance, we have to help people know more about the current situations. Our reporting will be meaningless if we dont report about the current crisis and our word usages are being replaced with weak ones, said an editor who has been working for The Myanmar Times for more than ten years.

We would feel ashamed as journalists if we continue working under such kinds of (censorship), said the editor, concerning her resignation.

Another newsroom editor, who also has more than ten years working experience, said that ownership has shown it stands on the side of the military regime.

Asked about her decision to resign, she said, The main reason is the different stands [taken by] the journalist and The Myanmar Times.

According to the reporters, five of the newsrooms leading editors, nine reporters and three video journalists have announced their resignations so far.

Another journalist who worked for The Myanmar Times for years said that while the legitimacy of the coup is still controversial, management insists on following the instructions of the information ministry.

As a private media, we wanted to stand independently, he said after his resignation.

When contacted by The Irrawaddy, Chief Operating Officer U Wai Lin of the Myanmar Times denied the accusation of censorship in the newsroom.

We just asked them to comply with the instructions of Ministry of Information and to be neutral as a media, he said.
"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world," said Nelson Mandela. Alison Flynn relies on this principle every day.

The Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences at the University of Ottawa leads the Flynn Research Group, a team of researchers who study learning at the postsecondary level, in chemistry and across disciplines. They mobilize research findings to create learning tools as open education resources, with a goal of better equipping and empowering learners.

Dr. Flynn's work in the field of chemistry education -- the study of all aspects of teaching and learning chemistry - has not gone unnoticed.

She recently received the 2021 Chemical Institute of Canada Award for Chemistry Education, an award "presented as a mark of recognition to a person who has made an outstanding contribution in Canada to education at the post-secondary level in the field of chemistry or chemical engineering". She agreed to answer our questions.

1- What does the 2021 Chemical Institute of Canada Award for Chemistry Education mean to you?

"This award in an incredible honour! It represents the support of students, colleagues, friends, and family and our many hours of discussions, failed attempts, successes, and fun. The award's name immediately conjures up the images of educators from whom I've learned so much."

2- Can you explain your research in chemistry education?

"In a time when information and misinformation are abundant, we are studying how students learn and use core principles in chemistry, so that they are equipped to apply their knowledge in other areas and continue to learn.

We study how students interpret chemistry concepts, through their scientific reasoning with evidence, mental models, and how they connect chemistry with the broader world. Our research is closely connected with practice, in the hopes that our findings can help improve curricula and courses, in an evidence-informed fashion.

In another branch of our research we study students' learning skills in any discipline, and the effects of empowering students with greater learning skills on their ability to learn in other contexts and on their stress.

We all need to continue to learn throughout our lives, and we are passionate about equitably equipping students with those lifelong learning skills."

3- On your Twitter profile, we can read this statement about you: "Striving to help improve education, especially in STEM (...)'' Why is it important to you and what are your guiding principles?

"Each of us needs STEM knowledge and skills for our everyday lives. I love thinking about how we might improve education to better equip and empower learners with the knowledge and skills to keep learning.

I strive to be unrelentingly curious, constantly asking questions and wondering how we might do things better or differently, learning from colleagues and friends, and learning from students.

Finally, my work seeks to improve equity, diversity, and inclusion in STEM. Many students face barriers in education and career progression, and there are systemic barriers that we can remove or change. Creating and using Open Education Resources are ways to reduce barriers to access, as well as building more inclusive courses."

4- The COVID-19 pandemic has changed teaching methods. Professors and students had to quickly adapt to remote teaching and online learning. On May 18, 2020, you co-authored a book entitled: "Remote teaching: a practical guide with tools, tips, and techniques." Why did you decide to create this guide?

"Dr. Jeremy Kerr and I saw that colleagues were needing to quickly and radically use teaching methods that were new to most.

We also saw major issues with equity arising: students (and colleagues!) with poor internet connections, having to work while at school, in different time zones, isolated, or in poor health. We wanted to create a simple and accessible resource that drew from the best research on online teaching and learning. We also brought in two graduate student co-authors for an analogous guide for teaching assistants. Meredith Allen and Alisha Szozda brought essential knowledge and lived experiences to that guide.

As we made resources for our own courses, we also made versions that colleagues could adapt for their own contexts."

5- What are your best tips for teachers and professors?

"Consider what the most important things are for students to learn in your course, how students will learn those things, and how you and they will know when they have learned them (assessment).

Design your course by combining those ideas with principles of inclusion and kindness. It's okay if it's not perfect--is there such a thing?"

###
Kerrville, TX (78028)

Today

Cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 81F. Winds SSE at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Cloudy in the evening with scattered thunderstorms developing after midnight. Low near 65F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.

If you landed in Australia from Mars and tried to understand which way our political winds were blowing you would end up confused. Riddle me this, as the old comics at the Tivoli used to say.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has a majority of one on the floor of the House, no majority in the Senate and a fresh scandal tainting his government almost every day. He is argumentatively dismissive of attempts by the media to hold his government to the standards they claim to govern by. He is personally hostile to and even occasionally contemptuous of any individual journalists who attempt to pierce the protective skin. Sound familiar?

Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

His capacity to present himself as invulnerable while also running a leaking ship and regularly putting his foot in his mouth reminds me of Jeff Kennett. Kennetts spin through the 1990s presented a facade of impregnable power, but as he learned it was fragile and the balloon inevitably popped. There are signs that history is repeating.

Greg Hunt should be embarrassed and apologise for his clumsy attempt to decorate government COVID ads with partisan Liberal branding but instead tried to label his inquisitor  the ABCs Michael Rowland, the most even-handed of interviewers  as some sort of leftist stooge for daring to ask legitimate and compelling questions.
In Kien Giang province (Photo: baodautu.vn)

Kien Giang - The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang has set its sights on pulling in 60-100 million USD worth of FDI over the next five years, according to Vice Chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee Nguyen Duc Chin.

It will focus its efforts on fulfilling plans on medium-term public investment and socio-economic development in 2021-2025, striving to attract 40 to 50 FDI projects with registered investment of 60-100 million USD in total, Chin said.

It aims for local social investment to reach 48 trillion VND (2.07 billion USD) this year.

The province has been accelerating communications campaigns on its strengths, potential, and investment incentives to attract both domestic and foreign investors.

Priority is being given to numerous areas, including road infrastructure; river ports; sea ports; electricity; water supply; solid waste treatment; renewable energy; infrastructure development in industrial parks and clusters; fishing, aquaculture and fish processing; intensive farming and industrial agriculture; supporting industries; tourism; services; education; and high-quality healthcare.

It also wants to attract large-scale projects with advanced technologies in high-tech agriculture and food processing.

Cooperation with ministries and government agencies will be stepped up to take part in investment promotion events in major partners such as the Republic of Korea, Japan, Singapore, and the US, as well as those who are members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

The province will also increase dialogue with local businesses and investors to help them tackle any difficulties and create an open and fair business climate.

Kien Giang is calling for investment in 144 projects in priority fields. It has to date granted in-principle approval and investment licenses to 49 projects with total investment of 22.66 trillion VND.

The Mekong Delta province welcomed 206 projects during the 2016-20 period, including 22 foreign projects with nearly 133 trillion VND in total capital.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Continuing its streak of low numbers of single-day coronavirus cases, India reported 12,881 new infections in the last 24 hours, even as its overall tally mounted to 1,09,50,201, health officials said on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said there were 101 more Covid-19 fatalities, taking the overall death toll to 1,56,014.

For over a month, the country has recorded less than 15,000 new infections daily. Besides, the daily Covid death toll has been treading below the 200-mark for more than a month now.

The health ministry officials told on Tuesday that the average daily new infections for the last 15 days were oscillating between 9,000 to 12,000 while the deaths between 78 to 120.

On February 9, India had reported 9,110 new cases, the lowest this year so far. Last year, the lowest 9,633 cases were recorded on June 3.

As per the Ministry's data, there are 1,37,342 active cases at present after 11,987 patients were discharged in a day. Till now, 1,06,56,845 persons have been discharged so far.

The recovery rate has increased to 97.32 per cent, while the fatality rate is down to 1.42 per cent.

The ministry also informed that 7,26,562 samples were tested on Wednesday. The cumulative tests done by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) so far stands at 20,87,03,791 Meanwhile, more than 9 million (94,22,228) doses of corona vaccine doses have been administered in India since the drive began on January 16 after approval for 'Covishield' and 'Covaxin'.

As per the Union Health Ministry, India has become the fastest nation in terms of the vaccine doses administered in the country, even though many countries had launched their vaccination campaigns earlier than her.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
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Small news and lifestyle websites are urging the government to resolve a dispute with Facebook amid fears the social media giants decision to ban news from its platform in Australia will have fatal consequences for their operations.

Facebook announced on Thursday (AEDT) it had withdrawn all news articles from its platform after being unable to convince the government to change parts of a proposed code that would force it into commercial arrangements with news organisations.

Small news outlets are fearful for their future. Credit:Wolter Peeters

The decision affected major news websites such as The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, the ABC and News Corps The Australian and The Daily Telegraph. Dozens of major health, corporate, sporting and charity pages, including those operated by government health departments in three states, were also affected.

But smaller news publishers, many of which arent eligible for payments under the proposed laws and rely heavily on Facebook for their audiences, were hit particularly hard by the move.
Richardson, Texas, city worker Kaleb Love breaks ice on a frozen fountain on Feb. 16. (LM Otero / Associated Press)

During the decade Ive lived in Texas, Ive become accustomed to extreme weather. Ive covered hurricanes, floods, droughts, tornadoes and wildfires. Ive worked through snow in Houston, hail even, filing stories from my car. I bought an all-wheel-drive SUV, stockpiled disaster supplies, created contingency plans in case we lost water, electricity and cellphone service.

Im far from a prepper  the doomsday folks who build solar-fueled bunkers to live off the grid and stock them with enough food to survive for months. But I have learned from their post-apocalyptic websites. My husband, an eternal optimist from Texas, calls me a worst-case-scenario thinker.

But the winter storm and associated power outages that paralyzed Texas and a wide swath of the country this week exceeded even my worst expectations.

We live in central Houstons Third Ward, where we and our neighbors prepared. The countys chief executive had warned it could be as bad as a Category 5 hurricane, and many of us who survived Hurricane Harvey in 2017  a Category 4  knew what that meant.

We stocked up on staples, filled bathtubs with water and shared texts with neighbors as they gassed up generators and moved cars from under tree limbs that might break. And we went further than hurricane prep, wrapping water pipes with added insulation because, unlike the Northeast, where Im from, many Texas pipes can ice up and burst if temperatures dip below freezing.

Officials told us to expect rolling power outages, so when we first lost power in our area Monday morning, no one panicked. We pulled out candles, flashlights, head lamps, and battery- and solar-powered radios. Our gas stovetop still worked, and if worse came to worst, in true Texas style, we could grill barbecued chicken my husband had frozen. As our next-door neighbors generator hummed, we stuck a cooler in the backyard to store the contents of our refrigerator. My husband brought a spare can opener, cooler, flashlights, rock salt for the sidewalk, two buckets of water and a portable charging station to an elderly neighbor across the street. We all settled in to essentially camp in our houses.

Story continues

As temperatures dipped, the blackouts persisted. My husband fretted over the pipes, stuck thermometers in the attic and garage and kept checking them. Late Monday, he shut off the water to prevent the pipes from bursting. When I awoke Tuesday wearing three coats, a wool sweater and long underwear, it was so cold I could see my breath. Our two schnauzers shivered even after we wrapped them in blankets. My father in South Florida called to check on me and apologize for enjoying 80-degree weather in one of the few states spared by the polar vortex. My sister texted to say my 7-year-old niece in Minneapolis, where theyre accustomed to subzero temperatures, wanted to send me a blanket.

Times staff writer Molly Hennessy-Fiske, her husband and their dog are bundled up against the cold in their powerless Houston home. (Molly Hennessy-Fiske / Los Angeles Times)

Texas is full of bizarre sights this week. As we hunkered down, I saw photos posted on Twitter of icicles on ceiling fans and taps inside Texas homes, of Galveston beaches and palm trees blanketed with snow. Relatives in the Dallas suburbs sent a video of my nephew throwing snowballs. I scrolled through photos of volunteers rescuing thousands of cold-stunned sea turtles  including endangered Kemp's ridley turtles  in their cars on South Padre Island.

We could have moved to a hotel. But Id seen people post on Twitter that theyd done that only to lose power there, too. I had friends who moved several times, apartment-hopping as outages spread. Even some of the Houston warming shelters had to close after losing power. Our Texas relatives were all in similar straits.

My mother and her wife, in the Houston suburbs, had lost water, then power as I was talking to them on the phone. Moments later, my mom's cellphone cut out. (I called her back, and she's fine, although still without power late Wednesday.) My in-laws in rural east Texas also lost power, as did a cousin at Texas A&M and relatives in the Rio Grande Valley. My sister-in-laws family in the Dallas suburbs still had power but were snowed in. Cellphone service started to get spotty everywhere.

We considered crashing with relatives. My parents had their first COVID-19 vaccines, but I still worried about giving them the virus, since I had just traveled to the border last week for work. So we decided to stay put.

Our next-door neighbor let us use her generator to charge my laptop. We plugged an inverter into our car cigarette lighter to recharge our phones and run the coffee grinder. We used our gas range to make chili the Texas way, without beans. We felt lucky to have our neighbors, our shelter and our health.

We could hear a steady stream of sirens heading toward nearby Texas Medical Center. In Houston alone, hundreds of people have been hospitalized with storm-related illnesses. At least 20 have died nationwide, including two in Houston who were found outside during the storm. I talked by phone to a single mom worried she might have to feed her son cat food, a father whose pipes burst and ruined his stove, and a man evicted before the storm who was staying at a friends place without heat.

At about 3 a.m. Wednesday, my husband awoke to see a neighbors front porch light was on. We had power! For the next few hours, as the house warmed to a toasty 70 degrees and the dogs emerged from their blankets, we took advantage of what we assumed would be a brief reprieve to make a cappuccino, charge our devices and back up batteries. We also tried not to plug too much else in, hoping to conserve for those still without power. By then, Houston  like many other storm-struck cities  was advising people to boil tap water, so we didnt bother turning our water back on. And sure enough, within a couple of hours, the power went out again.

As I write this Wednesday night, Texas leaders have offered no timeline for when these outages will end. We're still without power and water. My husband's on the phone with his parents out in the country, brainstorming ways they can stay warm. The dogs are back under their blankets, flashlights and candles on the tables. The neighbors generator is humming again, and I'm about to go ask if I can recharge my laptop, which is down to 15% power. And I still hear sirens.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
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Airbus is also pushing to negotiate a cease-fire soon in its yearslong trade dispute with U.S. rival Boeing, amid hopes that the Biden Administration will be more amenable than Trumps government to a deal. The dispute has led to billions of dollars in tit-for-tat cross-Atlantic tariffs on planes, cheese, wine, video games and other products.
Indian Army briefs envoys visiting J&K on role of Pak in running terror factories

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Srinagar, Feb 18: Senior Indian army officials on Thursday briefed envoys from 24 countries visiting Jammu and Kashmir about the role of the Pakistani army in running terror factories across the Line of Control by organising training camps, officials said.

The envoys, including from member states of the European Union (EU), Brazil, Malaysia, were also briefed about the role of the Pakistani army in helping terrorist infiltrate into India, infiltration patterns and use of drones by Pakistan to airdrop weapons meant for terrorists, they said.

Foreign envoys visit J&K to assess situation

Use of tunnels for pushing terrorists into India, especially in the Samba sector of Jammu and Kashmir, was highlighted by the army, which also gave a detailed presentation about the weapons, bearing markings of the Pakistani army, seized from various militants.

Tunnels were being used following a drop in the number of terrorists sneaking into India from across the Line of Control (LoC) due to heightened vigil and changed tactics in the army's counter-infiltration grid, the officials said.

On the situation in the Kashmir Valley, the army officials highlighted Wednesday evening's incident when a son of a prominent eatery owner was shot and critically wounded by terrorists at his shop in a high-security area of the city.

This was a part of the terrorists' game plan to silence either moderate voices in Kashmir or those who refused to follow their diktat, they said.

The army also gave a detailed briefing on how internet-warfare was used by Pakistani establishments to brainwash youngsters through social media platforms.

Coming to the situation post the abrogation of the special status of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and its bifurcation into union territories of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir in 2019, the army officials said there has been no loss of life due to the action of security forces.

There has been a marked decrease in law and order problems and incidents of stone pelting have seen a sharp decline, the army officials told the visiting envoys, and also shared their experience during the recent District Development Council (DDC) elections, which were conducted successfully.

Besides terrorism and the situation along the LoC, the officials informed the envoys about the assistance being provided to people living in far-flung areas. They were also informed about the tourism sector in the Kashmir Valley and achievements of the Kashmiri people in various fields.

The envoys from the EU, France, Malaysia, Brazil, Italy, Finland, Bangladesh, Cuba, Chile, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Senegal, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Ireland, Ghana, Estonia, Bolivia, Malawi, Eritrea and Ivory Coast arrived here on Wednesday amid heightened security arrangements in the city and elsewhere in the Valley.

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February 17, 2021





Whether you intend to raise profits, expand your operations, or shelter your business from economic uncertainty, entrepreneurs must focus continuous efforts towards growing their business on an ongoing basis. There are tons of ways to grow your business, although not all of them are accommodating to a tight budget. While business growth takes time, money, and of course, strategy, these top tips will help your prompt growth on a tight budget effectively.







Reconsider Your Marketing Plan

Marketing is vital for all types of businesses functioning in every industry. While marketing can cost you a small fortune, outsourcing your marketing needs to an SEO agency can massively reduce your expenses. What's more, outsourcing to an agency will also give you direct access to industry experts for a fraction of the costs of employing an in-house team of creatives. To find the best SEO agencies for your business, you can click here to compare top options.

Outsource, Don't Employ

One of the most cost-effective methods of encouraging business growth without raising your expenses too much is to outsource services. Marketing is not the only service your business can benefit from, as you can consider HR services, payroll and accounting services, courier services, and even manufacturing services. However, when growing your business through the benefits of outsourcing, it is vital to evaluate which services will give your company the highest return on investment and which will benefit workflow and efficiency the most. Your outsourcing needs will also be dependent on your business's specifics. Although some services are standard and beneficial to all businesses, such as marketing and sales, others may not offer your benefit at all.

Reduce Expenses

Reducing business expenses is not always straightforward, although you will find room for reduction by focusing on your high costs, such as premises, suppliers, and others. However, even reducing smaller costs will have a notable impact on cash flow and growth. Therefore, even going paperless and reducing office supply wastage can help your business grow. When it comes to lowering high costs, smaller premises or office space will free up a lot of capital for your business.

Expand Your Customer Base

There are a few practical ways to expand your customer base without having to part with a fortune. Gathering reviews and referrals from your existing customers is one of the best ways to develop this area of your business. You can collect referrals and reviews by adding a feedback form to your website and offering rewards to loyal customers. Offering rewards to customers for referrals can also be cost-effective as you can offer small discounts, points, or even the occasional free gift. This effort will also strengthen customer loyalty and expand your business's number of brand-loyal buyers significantly.

Improve Cash Flow

Cash flow problems are often behind the failure of many businesses. Your business's size will not determine its cash flow, as even large enterprises have been known to experience cash flow problems that ultimately force a company's closure. You won't have to spend a cent to focus on improving cash flow, although you will need to know where to start. Making decisions such as finding cheaper suppliers, improving inventory, leasing instead of buying, conducting credit checks on customers, and forming a buying cooperative are all able to improve cash flow.

Form Relationships With Other Businesses

Forming relationships with other businesses will help you create buzz, discover a new audience, and enhance your revenue. You can form strategic partnerships that could send valuable traffic to your business website, or you could form partnerships that refer customers directly to you. When building strategic alliances with other businesses, it is vital to determine how the partnership can benefit your business. In some cases, it is plausible to partner with competitors, while other times, it's best to partner with companies that are not competitors but functioning within the same industry. However, you can partner with multiple businesses.

While there are tons of ways to grow your business without investing a large fortune to achieve notable results, it is essential to analyze each change you are considering before implementing it carefully. As an entrepreneur, you already know that you need to be money-savvy where possible. Whether you decide to expand through outsourcing, move your workforce to a remote work environment, or focus your energy on improving cash flow, it is vital to implement changes gradually to avoid overwhelming yourself and your team with too many changes. Implementing business growth gradually with precise adjustments will offer stable results over a more extended period.
Kolkata, Feb 18 : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has pointed out towards a "conspiracy" behind the bomb attack in West Bengal's Murshidabad district that left her Labour Minister Jakir Hossain seriously injured.

Without taking names of any particular party or individual, Banerjee levelled allegation that some people were "pressurising" Hossain to join their party. The West Bengal government on Thursday also handed over the investigation into the attack to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Banerjee held even the Indian Railways responsible for the incident since it took place on its premises as crude bombs were hurled on Hossain by unidentified people on Wednesday night while he was walking towards Nimtita Railway station in Murshidabad to board a train for Kolkata.

"Railways are to be blamed for the blast at Murshidabad where Minister Jakir Hossain was injured. It was a planned conspiracy to kill him. Not a responsibility of State government, Railways and Centre are to be blamed," Banerjee said.

The Chief Minister's statement came after she along with senior Trinamool Congress leaders went to the state-run SSKM hospital here to inquire about the health of the Minister. Hossain was shifted to the SSKM Hospital on Thursday morning and admitted to the Trauma Care Unit where a medical board has been formed to look into his health condition.

Hossain suffered injuries in one hand and a leg but his condition was said to be stable, and doctors stated that he is out of danger. The Minister was waiting at platform number 2 of the station to catch the train to Kolkata at around 10 p.m. when the attack took place.

At least two other persons, who were with the Trinamool Congress MLA of Jangipur, were also injured in the incident that comes during the build-up to the Assembly elections in the state due in April-May this year.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
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My family visited San Franciscos Chinatown on Sunday, where Didi and Gege raced around the gorgeous dragon and phoenix play structures at the newly renovated Willie Woo Woo Wong Playground.

We also tracked down the two Lunar New Year ox statues in the vicinity  look for them around the city!  and shopped for dim sum treats while tiny firecrackers popped and crackled in the distance.

We wanted to show support for this beloved neighborhood after recent attacks on Asian Americans in the Bay Area. The same weekend, rallies in San Francisco and Oakland condemned the violence and called for community-centered solutions.

Multiethnic aid efforts quickly sprang up in support of the cause, including a GoFundMe campaign  spearheaded by Eda Yu, a half-Chinese, half-Indonesian journalist, and her partner, Myles Thompson, a Black designer  that raised more than $150,000, which will be divided evenly between several organizations in the Bay Area and elsewhere.

Other grassroots efforts include another GoFundMe to underwrite private armed security in Oakland Chinatown, as well as numerous volunteer escorts and foot patrols.

In Oakland, Asian Health Services is the fiscal sponsor for a fund supporting individuals and families of those affected, as well as for a pilot Chinatown Ambassador program  a holistic effort that will include mental health, wellness and de-escalation techniques to reduce and prevent conflicts  all to help the community feel safe and secure.

The Oakland Chinatown Coalition  which includes merchants, service and community-based organizations, and churches  is also working on more long-term efforts after the immediate urgency ends.

Beyond these efforts, Ive been thinking about how we also must examine systems of power and systems of oppression that have pitted Black and Asian communities against each other.

In 1966, sociologist William Petersen wrote an article for the New York Times Magazine titled Success Story: Japanese American Style. Not long after, U.S. News & World Report published Success Story for One Minority Group in the United States.

Both articles noted how these communities overcame discrimination; more pieces followed that credited Asian Americans success to their family structure, Confucian values and work ethic.

It was fascinating  but disturbing and not entirely surprising  to learn that the model-minority myth was also born out of the Cold War. If the U.S. was to win the global propaganda battle with the Soviet Union, it had to prove that democracy was superior and that poor countries should follow their lead.

Though flattering to Asian Americans at first glance, the articles had a sinister motive, asking If Asian Americans are making it in this country, why cant Blacks? It was a false equivalency, claiming that the discrimination Asian Americans faced was identical to that of slavery, segregation and police brutality.

In The Souls of Black Folk, scholar W.E.B. Du Bois asked African Americans, How does it feel to be a problem? That is to say, to have your body, your children, your people maligned  racially profiled by law enforcement in the pursuit of suspects.

Statistically speaking, Asian Americans have higher educational levels, higher incomes and lower rates of unemployment compared with other groups. But thats only in the aggregate. The blanket category masks the vast differences among Asian subgroups in their history, language, education, socioeconomic level, immigration status, disabilities and other elements of identity.

In a viral TED talk, Nigerian novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie explained the danger of a single story. The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story. It robs people of dignity. It makes our recognition of our equal humanity difficult. It emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar.

Out of this time of strife and suffering, lets write our next story  together.

Vanessa Hua is the author of A River of Stars. Her column appears Fridays in Datebook. Email: datebook@sfchronicle.com
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New Delhi, Feb 18 : Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry on Thursday ordered a floor test to be conducted in the state's Assembly on February 22.

As per a press release, the LG noted that with the disqualification of one member and resignation of four members of the Legislative Assembly, the strength of the Assembly stands altered with the party in power, the Congress-led alliance with Chief Minister V. Narayanasami having 14 MLAS and the Opposition led by N. Rangasamy also having support of 14 MLAS.

The LG's direction comes after the Leader of the Opposition in Puducherry N. Rangasamy met the Lt Governor on Wednesday and again today.

As per the press release, Rangasamy apprised the Lt Governor of the situation in the state after the resignation of four MLAs and the disqualification of one MLA.

"They averred that the present government has been reduced to a minority and lost its legitimacy to continue. The delegation made a request that the present Government needs to prove the majority in the floor of the Assembly," the release said.

The Puducherry Lt Governor ordered that the single agenda for the assembly session on February 22 will be to verify if the incumbent Chief Minister continues to enjoy the confidence of the house. The entire proceedings of the session will be videographed and it shall conclude by 5 pm on February 22.
Facebook is taking money from China to promote Communist propaganda which denies atrocities against the Uyghur Muslims, an investigation has revealed.

The Silicon Valley behemoth pocketed Beijing's cash to promote articles which downplayed what Washington has called a genocide in Xinjiang, according to The Press Gazette.

China Daily and CGTN  the state-backed TV channel recently banned in the UK  have paid Mark Zuckerberg's firm just a few hundred dollars a time to promote posts to millions of users.

It comes as Facebook, worth 560 billion, was today accused of going to war with democracy as it banned Australians from sharing and accessing news on its website after Sydney threatened to force it to pay media companies for using their content.

Facebook charged China Daily less than $400 to beam this post to a million users. It accuses Western media and politicians of 'lies' and 'disinformation' about the Uighur Muslims

Two more adverts boosted on Facebook by China Daily for small fees to downplay concerns about Xinjiang. These adverts were later removed by Facebook but not before they reached millions of users

President Xi Jiping reportedly ordered officials in Xinjiang to respond to a 2014 terror attack in the province 'with absolutely no mercy.' US officials claim the insurgency has been used as an excuse to commit genocide

As Facebook withholds money from Australian media with one hand, so they take it from Chinese media firms with the other and beam Communist falsities to millions of people around the world.

They charged just $400 for China Daily, Beijing's propaganda newspaper and website, to promote an article in October which accused Western countries of 'lies' and 'disinformation.'

Facebook's advertising analytics website shows the advert was mainly targeted at young men in Nepal which borders Xinjiang.

It shows clips of Western commentators discussing the plight of the Uyghurs and says: 'Politicians, think tanks and the media work together to align narratives that drive public discussion and pervade the public consciousness often with malevolent intent'.

In another China Daily-sponsored video, it calls reports on the internment camps in Xinjiang 'completely false' and 'straight from the manual of Western media tricks.'

An investigation by The Press Gazette uncovered how another China Daily post said: 'The tale of an oppressed Xinjiang is a myth Western media refuse to give up.'

CGTN, which was taken off air in Britain earlier this month after the watchdog found it in breach of licensing rules on impartiality, paid Facebook to advertise a post which promoted 'vocational training centres' in Xinjiang.

Facebook's most 'liked' news pages Five out of six of the most 'liked' news pages on Facebook are Chinese, with close ties to the government in Beijing. Facebook is banned in China, meaning they are purely promoting content to foreigners or Chinese living abroad. CGTN: 114 million China Daily: 103 million China Xinhua News: 88 million People's Daily, China: 86 million BBC News: 53 million CCTV: 49 million Source: Social Blade Advertisement

Beijing has repeatedly denied that it is attempting to rid the province of its ethnic culture, saying instead that the internment camps are for 're-education.'

It is estimated that more than a million Uyghurs have been taken to the secretive camps where human rights groups say they are banned from practising Islam, indoctrinated with Communism and women are raped and sterilised.

The policy came after a 2014 terror attack by separatists in the province.

Leaked dossiers reportedly showed that President Xi Jinping ordered officials there to respond 'with absolutely no mercy.'

Critics say the government has used the insurgency as an excuse to commit atrocities against the Uyghurs.

The US government in January said that China's actions there amounted to genocide, an accusation Beijing dismissed as 'lies and absurd allegations.'

In some of the news stories highlighted above from China Daily and CGTN, Facebook stopped running the adverts on the grounds that they failed to declare that they had a political bent  in breach of the tech giant's rules.

But many of the adverts ran for several days before this was realised, allowing the propaganda to permeate across computer and mobile phone screens across the globe.

Despite Facebook being blocked in China, state-run news outlets like CGTN, China Daily, China Xinhua News, the People's Daily and CCTV, use the social media site to promote their content.

They are among five of the six most liked news pages in the world on Facebook, with BBC News ranking fifth.

Many of their posts appear innocuous, showing off China's Great Wall or its native panda bears, but others are blatantly political.

In January 2019, CGTN paid less than $100 for a post quoting a Malaysian diplomat who said: 'What we saw during the visit was opposite to some Western media reports, and Xinjiang is seeking an effective way to counter extremism and terrorism.'

A post by China Daily which claimed a Reuters report about the Muslims in Xinjiang was 'fake'

Screenshots from a documentary by China Daily which was promoted on Facebook for a fee. It aimed to paint the internment camps in Xinjiang in a positive light

A 'sanitation worker' describes how she 'loves' working in Kuitun, a city in northern Xijiang

In April 2019, China Daily paid $100 to target one million Facebook users with a video which showed Mexicans clambering over the border fence into the United States.

The month before was a story about 'catastrophic' flooding of farmlands in Nebraska, with images of cattle carcasses piled high.

The advert was taken down, but not before it reached hundreds of thousands of users at a cost of just $100.

As Beijing came under increasing pressure from Washington over their Uighur internment camps last month, its media outlets ramped up posts denying there was anything wrong in Xinjiang.

On January 26, it paid Facebook to boost a post which railed against an Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) report that found evidence of 380 camps in Xinjiang.

The advertised documentary said: 'China Daily visited the alleged "camps" in the Australian think tank ASPI's reports on Xinjiang and found its data, analysis and conclusions are completely false.'

It claims that one of the camps uncovered by ASPI was 'simply a detention centre - not unlike thousands of such penal institutions you can find anywhere in the world. But ASPI chooses to call it a camp. It's a rebranding exercise straight from the manual of Western media tricks'.

A news article which quotes the foreign minister ripping into the Trump White House was boosted in August for a cost of $100

A post which China Daily paid $100 for in 2019 to highlight chaos on the US border with Mexico

In March 2019, there was a story about 'catastrophic' flooding of farmlands in Nebraska, showing images of cattle carcasses piled high. The advert was taken down, but not before it reached hundreds of thousands of users at a cost of just $100.

Another sponsored post said: 'Is forced labor taking place in Xinjiang? China Daily interviewed more than 50 workers in factories across Xinjiang. Watch to learn what we uncovered.'

A third by China Daily claimed: 'Western media reports on China's #Xinjiang often fail to present the real story. Instead, they incite disinformation by resorting to manipulative editing, citing unfounded reports and appealing to biases, a China Daily special investigation uncovers.'

The video seeks to discredit a New York Times investigation which found the Communist Party was trying to mould Xinjiang's minorities into loyal comrades for cheap labour.

It also slams BBC reporting and calls coverage by Reuters and the Associated Press 'fake.'

The Press Gazette uncovered these three sponsored posts in Facebook's analytics library on January 29. They have since been deleted.

It is understood that these adverts were removed from the records because they were not classified as political.

Records of non-political adverts disappear from the library when the advertiser pauses or stops running them.

Last month, CGTN paid $200-299 to promote an editorial which argued 'Western media distorts #Xinjiang boarding schools'.

Also in January, they paid less than $500 to boost an article titled: 'What is the real condition in boarding schools in Xinjiang? What changes have these schools brought to local students? CGTN's Cui Hui'ao talked to some of the boarders at Shenta Middle School. #Xinjiang.'

Facebook took down both of the CGTN posts but not before they reached 400,000 and one million users respectively.

A post which promoted President Xi Jinping's leading the fight against coronavirus

An article by Xinhua News Agency was promoted for $100. It describes the close ties between China and Bill Gates

Imran Ahmed, chief executive of the Centre for Countering Hate, told The Press Gazette that 'it is beyond disgusting that Facebook is taking money to promote Chinese state propaganda.'

He added: 'It's preposterous for them to claim they hadn't seen that five of their six most liked news pages were driving division and whitewashing atrocities. No one will believe they hadn't noticed.'

A Facebook spokesman told MailOnline: 'As part of our ongoing efforts to provide greater transparency around advertising, Facebook does not allow political ads to run without a disclaimer providing more information about who is running them.

'In this case, we disapproved a number of the ads shared with us for failing to declare they were political in nature, which meant they were not allowed to run on our platform.

'We want to help people better understand whos behind the news they see on Facebook.

'That is why we also announced last year our plan to label media outlets that are wholly or partially under the editorial control of their government as part of our wider ads transparency efforts, and will continue to roll this out to more publishers.'
BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- China has been making continuous progress in the satellite navigation and positioning industry with significant moves and industrial applications in more diversified fields.

The following facts and figures offer a glimpse of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) and China's latest moves to boost the sector:

-- China has recently released six documents detailing technical requirements and test methods for key or basic civilian products using the BDS-3, according to the China Satellite Navigation Office.

Technical requirements and test methods were drafted for chip, integrated chip, antenna, receiver board and navigation module products, as well as other key BDS-3 products that are used in civilian applications.

-- China has released four new national technical standards for the BDS-3, a major move forward in standardizing and ensuring the development and industrial application of the BDS through drafting national standards.

The four newly-released technical standards are for fields of the data format, map application, ground-based augmentation system and atomic clock of the BDS.

-- China's Xi'an Satellite Control Center has completed a health check of 52 in-orbit BeiDou satellites ahead of the Spring Festival holiday, the Chinese Lunar New Year.

This is the center's first comprehensive operation management examination of all BeiDou satellites since the completion of the BDS-3 system for global users. With the help of a self-developed satellite health assessment system, the staff at the center analyzed key data of the satellites from July 1 to Dec. 31, 2020.

-- China officially commissioned the BDS on July 31, opening the new BDS-3 system to global users.

Along with positioning, navigation and timing services, the BDS-3 system can provide a variety of value-added services like global search and rescue assistance, short message communication, ground-based and satellite-based augmentation, as well as precise point positioning.

-- China's satellite navigation and positioning industry gained a total output value of 345 billion yuan (about 53.4 billion U.S. dollars) in 2019. The figure is expected to reach 400 billion yuan in 2020.

The BDS has provided comprehensive services for sectors such as transport, public security, disaster relief, agriculture, forestry and urban governance.

-- The BDS has helped improve the efficiency of the country's agriculture and forestry industries, both of which are labor-intensive. Roughly 45,000 pieces of BDS-based automatic agricultural machinery are working nationwide, cutting labor costs by 50 percent.

-- Technologies based on the BDS and its integration with other global navigation satellite systems are strengthening China's capabilities in monitoring and providing early warnings for geological disasters.

-- The BDS and related technologies have been extensively applied in all major fields in China's transportation sector, such as key transportation process monitoring, highway infrastructure safety monitoring, port high-precision real-time positioning and dispatching monitoring.
Lake Tahoe is beginning to clamp down on vacation rentals. By the end of 2021, the region will have fewer short-term rentals overall and stricter rule-enforcement on those that remain, including properties on Airbnb and Vrbo.

The most significant change to the rental landscape is occurring in South Lake Tahoe, where approximately 1,400 short-term rentals will be whittled down to 400, concentrated in the citys downtown tourism area, by years end. Other popular locations, including Truckee and parts of the lakes west shore, have recently taken steps to regulate vacation rentals and rein in issues associated with them, such as noise, litter and parking problems.

Its part of a region-wide reckoning for an industry that, fueled by the proliferation of rentals on Airbnb and Vrbo, many locals say has transformed their quiet communities into year-round party zones for out-of-towners.

Every other house is an Airbnb now, says Jan Jones, a 30-year resident of Tahoe City. Its out of control.

Lakeside lodges around the international ski and sun destination have long been vacation homes belonging to wealthy second-homeowners. But with the advent of easy-to-use online booking marketplaces, homes that may have once been occupied sporadically are now rented year-round.

Its like living next to a bunch of hotels, Jones says. She says she understands the appeal to distant owners of making a buck off of their vacant properties. Still, she says, for full-time residents, Its a drag.

The effort to regulate short-term rentals, which are defined as units rented for 30 or fewer days at a time, isnt new; for the past three years, Tahoe communities on the California side of the lake have been instituting rules to assuage the mounting tensions between locals and tourists and lay the groundwork for future regulations.

South Lake Tahoe, home to about 22,000 residents, has taken the most aggressive approach, one that started in 2018 after voters approved Measure T. The law froze new permits and permit renewals for hosting short-term rentals in residential areas.

But when the coronavirus pandemic hit, remote-working urbanites decamped to the mountains, blowing up Tahoes housing market and underscoring the urgency of the situation. Officials in Placer County and Truckee rolled out new procedures for rentals as the region swelled with tourists over the summer.

In eastern Placer, which covers a 50-mile expanse of unincorporated territory on the western side of Tahoe, the county launched its first short-term rental permit program in January 2020. The county created a database of the areas 3,500 rental properties with details on how many occupants and vehicles are allowed at each one  useful information for enforcement officers responding to neighborhood complaints.

Code officers in Placer have had difficulty reaching out-of-town homeowners when complaints and violations occur. The new program requires that each property lists a contact who lives nearby and is available at any time to respond to issues within 60 minutes. It could be a professional property manager or a trustworthy neighbor.

We allow reports of violations to be addressed by these local contacts, said Jayme Paine, Placer County supervising code compliance officer. After an hour, if they dont, thats when our enforcement team steps in.

Paine said her team has grown in response to the needs of the program. There soon will be two full-time compliance officers, supported by local police officers on neighborhood patrols, plus two administrators responsible for managing the program.

The way the program is set up, we have a high level of compliance among homeowners, Paine said. With the local contacts, we have been able to cut down the number of citations weve had to issue.

After a summer boom, Truckee approved a new ordinance modeled on Placer Countys program.

Before the pandemic, we had a very laissez-faire approach to short-term rentals, said Nicole Casey, Truckees finance manager. Property owners have until March 31 to apply for a permit to operate for the remainder of 2021. Casey called it a first step toward regulating vacation rentals, with more developments to follow next year.

A lot of our full-time residents were feeling the strain of having those extra people here, Casey said. The people arent the problem, but street congestion and a constant party atmosphere wears on full-time residents. Noise, litter and illegal parking are the most common complaints Tahoe officials receive.

Theres an obvious downside to some of the regulations: Local governments depend on rentals as a key source of tax dollars to help fund public services ranging from infrastructure maintenance to law enforcement. Tahoe officials have the tough task of balancing demands from millions of tourists with the needs of tens of thousands of year-round residents.

As South Lake Tahoe phases out 1,000 short-term rentals this year, its transient occupancy tax revenue will surely take a significant hit.

People will stay somewhere besides the city, said Maureen Stuhlman, South Lake Tahoes code enforcement investigator. Its a great revenue loss.

In a statement, Airbnb regional policy lead Matt Middlebrook pointed out that vacation rentals have long been a fixture of Tahoe and its tourism economy.

As community leaders begin to deliberate short-term rental rules, we are committed to working with them to achieve common sense policies that protect the benefits of home sharing and preserve quality of life for local residents, he wrote in an email to The Chronicle.

Jessica Christian / The Chronicle 2020

A new South Lake Tahoe ordinance, enacted in December, will allow up to 200 permits for residents to rent out individual rooms in their homes (rather than entire properties) once statewide pandemic restrictions ease up. Up to six guests will be allowed at once, and owners must be onsite and available to handle any issues that arise.

And though there will be more enforcement on noise complaints in Placer, the main goal is not limiting tourist activities but heading off issues before neighbors become enraged. Paine said the county isnt mounting a zero-tolerance approach.

If its a family on a deck with noise traveling to neighbors homes, and its a first complaint, thats probably a warning, she said. If its a big party on Friday or Saturday night and its still going on after we leave, theyll get a citation.

Despite the stringent new rules in South Lake Tahoe, Stulhman expects that not everyone will comply, at least in these early days.

There will still be people renting underground, she said.

Gregory Thomas is The San Francisco Chronicles editor of lifestyle & outdoors. Email: gthomas@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @GregRThomas
SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Julia Chinyere Oparah, the provost and dean of the faculty at Mills College and a scholar in the field of ethnic studies, has been named provost and vice president of academic affairs at the University of San Francisco. Rev. Paul J. Fitzgerald, S.J., president of USF, made the announcement today.

A professor of ethnic studies at Mills, Oparah served as a member of the faculty for almost 20 years before being named provost and dean of the faculty in 2017. She will begin her work at USF on July 12, succeeding Tyrone H. Cannon, who has served as interim provost since February 2020.

"Our community has identified a leader in higher education with extraordinary scholarly, administrative, and service credentials to lead USF as provost," said Fr. Fitzgerald. "I am delighted to welcome Provost Oparah and her family to USF, and I look forward to working with her as a partner in mission while we continue to build on the planning and implementation that has taken place across campus during this challenging year of the COVID-19 pandemic."

"Provost Oparah rose to the top of a deep and distinguished pool of candidates," said USF's Interim Provost Cannon, who chaired the search committee. "In both her scholarship and administrative decisions, she has exhibited a deep commitment to collaboration and partnership, gender and racial equity, global social justice, and the transformative power of education."

"I am both deeply honored and excited to serve the USF community as its next provost," Oparah said. "I have long admired USF's commitment to equity and social justice, and consider USF's distinctive Jesuit educational principles  particularly cura personalis, care of the whole person  as central to what USF does so well in educating students who will, as the university promises, 'change the world from here'."

As Mills' provost, Oparah led all dimensions of the college's academic, research, scholarly, and creative programs. Major initiatives during her tenure included the development and implementation of the Mills Promise Program , supporting students' transition to college; establishing guaranteed pathways for transfers; the first fully online master's degree, in educational leadership; and the joint UC Berkeley-Mills engineering program. She worked with deans and department heads to diversify revenue streams through new graduate programs; reached untapped markets through online program development; improved retention through a signature undergraduate experience; co-led the transgender initiative, which led to Mills becoming the first women's college to adopt a trans-inclusive admissions policy; and increased the proportion of Black and Latinx students by introducing new programs in health equity, socially responsible business administration, communication, and critical education studies. She also worked to support the Indigenous community by establishing the American Indian Initiative to support recruitment efforts and introducing the first Native American Elder-in-Residence to the faculty.

Before arriving at Mills, Oparah worked in nonprofit administration, taught within the University of California system, and served as Canada research chair in social justice at the University of Toronto. Widely published, her work includes Global Lockdown: Race, Gender and the Prison-Industrial Complex, which explores globalization, gender, and mass incarceration; and Birthing Justice: Black Women, Pregnancy, and Childbirth, a key text in midwifery, reproductive health, and women's studies classrooms.

Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, raised in the south of England, and with roots in southeast Nigeria, she earned doctoral and master's degrees (in sociology and race and ethnic studies, respectively) at the University of Warwick. She also holds master's and bachelor's degrees in modern and medieval languages and literature from University of Cambridge.

About the University of San Francisco

The University of San Francisco is a private, Jesuit Catholic university that reflects the diversity, optimism, and opportunities of the city that surrounds it. USF offers more than 230 undergraduate, graduate, professional, and certificate programs in the arts and sciences, business, law, education, and nursing and health professions. At USF, each course is an intimate learning community in which top professors encourage students to turn learning into positive action, so the students graduate equipped to do well in the world  and inspired to change it for the better. For more information, visit usfca.edu .

SOURCE University of San Francisco

Related Links

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New Delhi:

No concrete evidence has emerged to conclude that the 39 Indians abducted from Mosul in Iraq three years back have been killed, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said Wednesday and asserted that she "will not commit the sin" of declaring them dead without any proof.

In a forceful statement in the Lok Sabha, Swaraj rejected allegations that she misled the country on the issue and said the government will continue its efforts to trace them until getting evidence of their death.

"We will continue our efforts to trace them till the time we get evidence that they are dead, as declaring dead them without proof will be a sin and I will not commit that sin," Swaraj said.

"This file will not close till there is proof that the 39 Indians are dead," she said, adding Vietnam still looks for soldiers who went missing or believed to be killed in the Vietnam war. Even the US still looks for soldiers who went missing in World War II.

Her strong assertion on the issue came two days after Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari said here that there is no "substantial evidence" on whether the Indians are alive or dead and confirmed that the prison at Badush, their last known location, has been demolished by terror group ISIS.

However, the Congress appeared to be not satisfied with her statement as its leader Mallikarjun Kharge said, "we will give a notice to discuss foreign affairs and then we will see what you (Swaraj) had said in 2014."

Kharge stated this after Speaker Sumitra Mahajan disallowed any questions on Swaraj's statement.

Also Read: Govt has never misled anyone on missing 39 Indians in Mosul: Sushma

Earlier, the external affairs minister, referring to a statement she made in Lok Sabha in November 2014, said whatever she did in the case was with consent of the House.

Swaraj on July 16, based on information gathered by her junior minister VK Singh during his recent visit to Iraq, had stated that Badush jail in northwest Mosul was the last known location of the Indians.

In her statement today, she said she never said that the Indians were in the jail and that as per information, they were taken to Badush in early 2016.

"The Iraqi foreign minister said 'we do not have concrete information whether they are alive or not. He never said they are dead. He told me that in Iraq it is said that wait is worse than death," Swaraj said.

The Iraqi foreign minister also had said that ISIS had seized control of Badush jail and it was demolished.

Swaraj said she told her Iraqi counterpart that she will not accept anything on the issue without "proof" and requested him to continue search for them.

The external affairs minister cited an example of the Congress government declaring a soldier martyr in 1971 war and after 45 years, it was found that he was in a jail in Pakistan.

"If someone feels they are dead, then you are free to go to the families. But if the anyone of them (Indians) comes back, then it will be your responsibility. Similarly, their families are free to carry out ardas (rituals) but it will be their responsibility if someone comes back," Swaraj said.

Referring to demolition of the Badush jail, she said she had suggested to the Iraqi foreign minister to look for the jail warden and find out from him details about the Indians. She said even list of prisoners will help.

Also Read: Iraq searching missing Indians, EAM to raise issue in bilateral talks

"Our questions are like if the jail was demolished, then were the Indians there and whether the inmates were killed. If they were killed, where are the bodies...Is there any blood trail," she said.

Swaraj said she met the family members of the abducted Indians, mostly from Punjab, for 12 times and had told them that there was no proof to conclude that the Indians were dead.

The external affairs minister said she had never misled Parliament or the families of the abducted Indians.

"I have never misled. I want to ask the opposition what benefit will I get by misleading. What benefit my government get by misleading the people on the issue," she asked.

Swaraj said one person Harjit Masih, who was also abducted along with the 39 Indians but had managed to flee from captivity, had said the Indians were killed but six sources had told the government that they are alive.

"There were contradictions in Masih's version. That is why I told our embassy to find out details about them," she said.

Mentioning about her earlier statement, Swaraj said, "I had said that one person said the 39 Indians were killed while six sources said otherwise. I had asked should I go ahead believing the six sources. I had said then that I do not have proof of their being alive," she said.

The government, Swaraj said, has been in touch with countries of the region including Turkey which can help India in the case.

Also Read: Iraq: No clue of missing 39 Indians in Mosul

India had requested Iraq to locate the 39 missing Indians, mostly from Punjab, after Iraqi forces recaptured Mosul from ISIS.

Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh was also sent to Iraq days after the Iraqi prime minister announced victory in the fight to recapture Mosul from ISIS.

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[February 18, 2021] InVita Healthcare Technologies Appoints Todd Abner as Business Development Director for Blood and Plasma

BALTIMORE, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- InVita Healthcare Technologies, a leading software technology provider for complex medical environments, is pleased to announce Todd Abner as the company's new Business Development Director for Blood and Plasma. Abner brings to InVita nearly 30 years of experience in blood and plasma center operations. Prior to joining InVita, Abner held leadership roles in blood centers across the nation, including vice president of recruiting for Versiti and vice president of donor recruitment for Oklahoma Blood Institute. Before that, Abner served in director roles for the American Red Cross, BloodCenter of Wisconsin, and Carter BloodCare. He was also the 2014-2015 President of the Association of Donor Recruitment Professionals (ADRP). "Todd Abner brings a unique balance of donor recruitmet expertise and strong business development track record to InVita," said Todd Collins, President and CEO of InVita Healthcare Technologies. "Todd Abner's strong reputation in the industry and depth of knowledge in blood and plasma operations will enable us to more broadly meet the needs of blood centers and hospital blood banks across the country. We are excited to welcome Todd to our team."



Abner received his bachelor's degree in Management from the University of Mount Union in Alliance, Ohio, and is currently pursuing a master's in Executive Leadership from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. He will support InVita's Blood and Plasma product line that manages hospital order entry and inventory (HemaControl), donor recruitment and engagement (HemaConnect), mobile drives and collections staffing (HemaCollect), product QC (HemaComplyLab), and equipment maintenance (HemaComplyEquipment Manager). Watch this video to learn more about InVita products. About InVita Healthcare Technologies | InVitaHealth.com

InVita provides healthcare technologies for complex medical environments. Its solutions optimize supply chain performance and visibility for blood, plasma, tissue, implants, and beyond. All for increased compliance, greater cost control, and improved patient safety. InVita has offices in Baltimore, MD, Jacksonville, FL, Chicago and Lake Zurich, IL.

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/invita-healthcare-technologies-appoints-todd-abner-as-business-development-director-for-blood-and-plasma-301230880.html SOURCE InVita Healthcare Technologies

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MAJ warns of potential seafarer shortages if crew change crisis isnt resolved

The global crew change crisis could lead to a shortage of seafarers if exhausted crew choose to leave the shipping industry rather than risk another long period trapped at sea, warns the Maritime Authority of Jamaica (MAJ).

Rear Admiral (retired) Peter Brady, MAJ Director General, advised of the potential danger to the shipping industry if there is a mass exodus of crews from their seagoing jobs to take up shore-based employment which gives them more time with their families.



If seafarers are not available to operate the ships, those vessels will simply lay alongside idle. Does the world need that now?, he challenged, warning that the shipping industry needs to demonstrate to world leaders the vital role crew play in the supply chain.



Condemning the global ignorance  or is it apathy concerning the economic value of trade by sea to the world economy, he said: There is an absolute need to urgently inform, educate, and sensitize both business leaders and consumers across the world as to the important role shipping plays in delivering 90% of global trade.



Then we must emphasize the stark fact that those ships are staffed by persons who need to be rotated promptly at the end of their contracted shift at sea and returned to their homes and families for the sake of their mental and physical health. Doing this is essential for the safe operation of ships, thereby protecting lives and the environment as well.



He advised that now is the time to speak to a wider audience: "I believe we need to now take the conversation to another level, to speak with the merchants, to speak with the financiers, the bankers, all the people who control the financial aspect of global trade.



With many countries focused on protecting their populations from the Covid-19 pandemic, borders have been closed and travel restrictions put in place. These have severely impacted the ability of ship operators to carry out crew changes when seafarers have reached the end of their contracted time at sea. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has urged nations to classify seafarers as essential workers in order to facilitate their smooth transit on shore, but so far only about 55 countries have done this.



Admiral Brady, who chaired the IMOs Standard of Training and Watchkeeping (STW) Sub-committee - now Human Element, Training and Watchkeeping (HTW) Sub-committee  for ten years, and is currently Jamaicas chief technical delegate to the IMO, believes shipping industry leaders and legislators should come together to discuss the situation before crisis point is reached. He said: It seems that it is time for another global summit to include the United Nations, its relevant agencies such as the IMO, International Labour Organization, industry bodies such as the International Chamber of Shipping, and even the International Civil Aviation Organization. It should not be a talk shop but one which pledges to set goals for the industry and then sends a compelling document to the global financial institutions to indicate the impact on global trade if seafarers are not available to crew ships.



He continued: What if the prevalence and malaise of this pandemic continue to cause uncertainty for the physical and mental health of seafarers, without some visible measures that recognize their special role in keeping the global economy viable? And they opt for not returning to sea? Lets get somewhat granular. If 5% of the principal carriers of global goods, commodities and energy are pulled out of service because of crewing shortages, in real terms, how would that impact the global economy? What if numbers are more, stark, and a total of 10% of the seafarers do not return to sea and renew their Seafarers Employment Agreements (SEA)? Can the world survive that now?




Melrose Mayor Paul Brodeur felt honor-bound to make the pitch while he had Sen. Elizabeth Warrens attention.

The next (COVID-19) aid package really needs no-strings attached relief for cities, towns and states, particularly around lost revenue, Brodeur, a former state representative who has served in Melroses executive seat since 2019, told Warren during a virtual town hall Wednesday night. It really is critical ... to bounce back.

Warren responded by doubling down on Brodeurs pitch. The Massachusetts progressive argued that state and local aid  dropped from a previous relief bill after months of haggling between Democrats and Republicans  was critical to helping the U.S. overcome the pandemics economic fallout, including layoffs and increased poverty and hunger.

The Biden administration is pressing for more than $300 billion in state and local assistance, which the president and progressives argue will help more first responders and educators and other municipal workers keep their jobs.

Municipal governments have seen a range of tax revenues plummet during the crisis, with more people forced to stay home and more businesses shuttered or earning less money. But Republicans have consistently balked at most calls for new funding.

Warren cited the more than 1 million Americans whove been laid off by state and local governments throughout the pandemic. If we can put money in, those layoffs dont have to happen, she said.

Its also about the services you need to provide, Warren said in response to Brodeur. Just because revenue is going down with businesses struggling combined with a lack of state tax revenue, that doesnt mean demands for services have gone down; in fact, theyve gone up during the public health and economic crises, Warren said.

The influx of cash proposed in President Joe Bidens $1.9 trillion rescue plan would help town officials like Brodeur provide services and be a good partner in public health, so you can make sure those who most need help get the help they need. You have to have resources, Warren said.

The federal government is the one that can step in, she added. Frankly, its the federal government that can print money in hard times, keep things going and raise those tax revenues later on to pay it back. Thats why we need to be supporting our local governments.

Republican lawmakers, she said, have put a stick in the ground and said they will not move. They dont want a single penny going to state and local government.

Claiming her point was practical, not political, Warren said the GOP line of thinking makes no sense from economic, public health or human point of view.

The senator said she was optimistic that with the Democrats in effective control of Congress as well as the White House, they could push through a package that included significant state and local aid. The entire Massachusetts delegation has called for stimulus packages to include municipal aid.

Democrats are advancing the bill through the annual budget reconciliation process, which requires only a majority vote; in other words, it wont need Republican support. With the Senate split evenly 50-50, Vice President Kamala Harris could cast the deciding vote in early March, though Biden and other Democrats may have to persuade some moderates to support the overall package despite concerns over the national deficit.

Lawmakers are hustling to complete a package by March 14 because thats when enhanced jobless aid expires for millions of Americans.

In addition to stimulus checks of $1,400 for Americans earning up to $75,000, the $1.9 trillion aid bill includes hundreds of billions of dollars for vaccine distribution and to help reopen schools, $35 billion to help local governments boost small businesses and a $25 billion restaurant grant program.

The package also includes a proposal from Rep. Richard Neals office to expand the child tax credit, extends unemployment benefits through Aug. 29 and increases the weekly supplemental jobless aid to $400.

Related Content:
Some 37 children under the age of 12 were hospitalised with Covid-19 in the last fortnight. Stock image

PARENTS are urged to be aware of symptoms as dozens of children have been hospitalised with a Covid-related illness since the start of the pandemic.

At least 32 children have been treated for PIMS, a Covid-19 related disease, by Childrens Health Ireland (CHI) since the start of the pandemic.

PIMS or Paediatric Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome is an inflammatory disease that can appear in children weeks after they have had Covid-19.

Children typically present with a persistent fever, rash, red eyes (conjunctivitis), and often with abdominal symptoms, in particular crampy abdominal pain and diarrhoea.

Read More

According to CHI, the severity of PIMS can vary, and some children require very little support.

Other children have more severe disease with inflammation of the heart muscles and the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart. These patients require more intensive support including medications to suppress the inflammation, control temperature and support the patients heart and blood pressure.

A CHI spokesperson told Independent.ie: Since the start of the pandemic there have been 32 children, known to CHI, who fit this description (of PIMS).

All of these children have recovered and a small number remain as in-patients receiving treatment and have plans for discharge soon.

The advice comes as a grandmother who feared her five-year-old grandson would die after becoming seriously ill with PIMS, yesterday warned parents across Ireland to be aware of symptoms.

Tommy ONeill (5) from Clondalkin, Dublin, became severely ill after complaining of a belly ache on Thursday.

Bernie Brennan said: He went from having a stomach ache and a high temperature to being in ICU at Crumlin.

I was worried he was going to die and all I was able to do was stand outside the hospital, crying in the rain.

Tommy is never sick, hes a healthy little child and I, and no one I have spoken to, has ever heard of PIMS, the Covid-19 related disease, hes been diagnosed with.

I need every single parent across Ireland, every grandparent, aunt, uncle and teacher, to know about it because this is a serious disease.

CHI has advised parents and guardians whose child is displaying the symptoms to go to their local emergency department.

Some of these cases resemble a previously described medical condition known as Kawasaki disease which shares many of the same features, the CHI spokeswoman added.

CHI said PIMS the disease is temporally associated with COVID-19 (PIMS-TS) and described it as a hyper-inflammatory syndrome that has been described in children occurring in the aftermath of either exposure to/infection with COVID-19.

PIMS is described on the HSE's website as: A very small number of children who have Covid-19 have needed hospital treatment for an inflammatory syndrome called paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS).

"PIMS is a life-threatening disorder caused by an unusual response to an infection by your body's immune system. It is similar to Kawasaki disease or toxic shock syndrome and is very rare.

"We don't know if these children developed PIMS because they have Covid-19. It is too early to tell if there is a link.

The website adds: Children who now need hospital treatment for PIMS are being tested for the virus. This is a precaution."

Up to 100 children a week in the UK are hospitalised with PIMS, according to the Imperical College Healthcare NHS Trust.
The level of dedication The Learning Liaisons offers to teachers strongly aligns with Teachers of Tomorrow's core values. "The distinguishing factor about what we do at The Learning Liaisons is that we provide teachers with what they deserve  support," said Dr. Jason Ampel, CEO and Founder of The Learning Liaisons.

As The Learning Liaisons joins Teachers of Tomorrow, teachers across the nation can expect a broader selection of preparation for certification exams  all available through Teachers of Tomorrow.

About The Learning Liaisons

The Learning Liaisons was founded in 2014 and provides teachers the knowledge, skill, and attitude they deserve to pass their state teacher and leader certification exams through interactive video courses and workshops. The Company employs highly-qualified individuals to help teachers understand and apply concepts to scenarios to successfully pass exams. Nearly 8,000 teachers have found success working with The Learning Liaisons.

About Teachers of Tomorrow

Teachers of Tomorrow is a Portfolio Company of Gauge Capital. The Company's program addresses the growing teacher shortage by enabling non-traditional candidates with undergraduate degrees to attain certification. Teachers of Tomorrow's mission is to develop confident educators who believe in the potential of every student and has helped more than 70,000 teachers reach the classroom.

About Gauge Capital

Gauge Capital is a private equity firm that partners with founders, managers, and equity stakeholders of successful middle market companies to maximize their potential. Gauge focuses on investing in growing services and technology-enabled companies in the healthcare, business, and consumer sectors. Gauge was named to Inc Magazine's 2020 Top 50 Founder-Friendly Private Equity firms, a list that showcases 50 firms that have had the most success supporting founder-led companies. For more information, contact Andrew Peix, Principal and Director of Business Development at [email protected].

Media Contact:

Shelby Baker

832-512-6733

[email protected]

SOURCE Teachers of Tomorrow

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New Delhi: Companies in India are expected to dole out an average increment of 7.3 percent to employees this year amid faster-than-expected economic recovery and revival in business and consumer confidence, according to a survey.

The first phase of the 2021 Workforce and Increment Trends Survey by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP (DTTILLP) also said the average increment this year will be higher than 4.4 percent seen in 2020 but lower than 8.6 percent given by companies in 2019.

As many as 92 percent companies that participated in the survey plan to give an increment in 2021 compared to only 60 percent last year.

The survey, launched in December 2020 as a B2B India-specific survey, covered around 400 organisations spread across seven sectors and 25 sub-sectors.

"Average increment for companies in India is expected to go up to 7.3 percent from 4.4 percent in 2020. This 7.3 percent projected increment is lower than the 8.6 percent average increment in 2019.

"The increase in increment budgets is in line with the faster-than-expected economic recovery, revival in business and consumer confidence, and early signs of improving corporate profitability," it said.

As per the findings, 20 percent companies plan to give a double-digit increment this year compared to only 12 percent in 2020.

Out of the 60 percent companies that gave an increment in 2020, a third of them did that through off-cycle increments.

Among the companies that did not give an increment in 2020, "only about 30 percent plan to compensate employees for the previous year through higher increments and/or bonuses," it added.

The survey further said the life sciences and information technology (IT) sectors are expected to give the highest increments whereas the manufacturing and services sectors continue to offer relatively lower salary increases.

"Life sciences is the only sector that will be able to match its 2019 increment levels. For others, average increment in 2021 is expected to be lower than 2019.

"Only digital and e-commerce companies are expected to offer double-digit average increments in 2021. Increments are likely to be the lowest in hospitality, real estate, infrastructure, and renewable energy companies," it added.

Anandorup Ghose, partner at DTTILLP, said COVID-19 has made year-on-year analysis tricky as 2020 has been an anomaly, making 2019 a better year for comparison.

Average India 2021 increment of 7.3 percent is still considerably lower than 8.6 percent in 2019. While business activity is rebounding quickly, organisations are managing compensation budgets responsibly considering their affordability and sustainability of fixed cost increases, Ghose noted.

According to him, post March 2020, most companies decided either not to offer increments or defer them until they get more clarity and around 25 percent companies even extended a pay cut to their senior management.

"... At an all-India level, voluntary attrition reduced from 14.4 percent in 2019 to 12.1 percent in 2020, involuntary attrition (layoffs, restructuring, etc.) increased from 3.1 percent in 2019 to about 4 percent in 2020. Involuntary attrition increased the most in the IT and services sectors, whereas voluntary attrition reduced across sectors," it added.

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Among priorities for 2021, most organisations identified greater adoption of technology in HR, employee wellness, and continued investment

in learning and development as the top three focus areas.

Google on Wednesday said it would invest $15 million (around Rs 109 crore) to support small and micro enterprises in India in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This investment is a part of Google's $75 million commitment to help small businesses outside of the US.

"In India, we will invest $15 million to support small and micro enterprises across the country and are in discussions with local partners," the company said in a statement.

When the coronavirus pandemic hit last year, the American tech company had announced a $200 million investment fund as part of its more than $800 million commitment to support small businesses.

"Google has had a special relationship with small businesses around the world, helping them scale, innovate and reach new customers. With today's announcement, we're proud to help them meet a new challenge, accessing capital needed to recover and build resiliency for the future," the company said.

Google is working with non-government partners who have a record of providing resources to businesses that are generally overlooked by traditional lenders.

Last year, Google's CEO Sundar Pichai had announced a Google for India digitisation fund through which the company would invest Rs 75,000 crore over the next five to seven years to help India go digital.

"We will do this through a mix of equity investment, partnerships and an operational infrastructure ecosystem in India. This is a reflection of our confidence in the future of India and its digital economy," Pichai was quoted as saying.

Also read: CAIT calls for ban on Amazon in India after news report

Also read: Promoters inject Rs 2,021 crore in IndusInd Bank via conversion of warrants
[February 18, 2021] Solo.io Announces General Availability of Gloo Mesh Enterprise, Delivering a "Command Center" for Service Mesh Management

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Solo.io , the modern API infrastructure company delivering application networking from the edge to service mesh, today announced the general availability (GA) of Gloo Mesh Enterprise, an enterprise-grade, Kubernetes-native solution for service mesh management. Gloo Mesh Enterprise provides organizations with a comprehensive and simplified experience for service mesh management based on Istio, the industry standard service mesh, and Envoy, the de-facto industry sidecar proxy data plane.

We have worked to anticipate, address and exceed our customers demands and requests when it comes to service mesh and cloud native technologies, said Idit Levine, founder and CEO, Solo.io. The proof is in the numbers  and in this case, we had more than 2,000 requests to take part in our Gloo Mesh Enterprise beta program, more than 800 stars on Github during Preview and nearly 400 active participants in our beta program Slack channel. Gloo Mesh is designed to support enterprise users throughout the process of service mesh adoption. Enterprises who take their first steps with Istio enjoy comprehensive support and guidance from Solo.io, as well as tools to ease onboarding and to guarantee Istio FIPS compliance. As the organizations service mesh evolves, Gloo Mesh provides tools for supporting developers and operators, as well as enhanced security and observability. With Gloo Mesh, enterprise users can extend and tailor Istio to their special needs with WebAssembly modules. For organizations with complex environments across a growing number of clusters, clouds and regions, Gloo Mesh Enterprise includes new features that provide centralized management and control, enhanced security, comprehensive observability and enterprise-grade service and support. Application developers and operators are increasingly embracing Istio and have made it the market-leading service mesh for managing modern, service-based applications, said Louis Ryan, principal engineer at Google and Istio leader and founder. Solo.io has been an active and influential contributor to Istio and WebAssembly, and this is an impressive achievement towards bringing Istio to the enterprise. As more companies embrace Gloo Mesh and Gloo Mesh Enterprise, Solo.io has increased its commitment to innovation and to providing customers with exceptional guidance, education and support. To further advance its investments in these areas, Solo.io is announcing the appointment of Lin Sun as its Director of Open-Source. Sun brings a wealth of Istio-related expertise to Solo.io; she has worked on Istio service mesh since 2017 and serves on the Istio technical oversight committee. Previously, she served on the Istio steering committee for three years and was a senior technical staff member and master inventor at IBM for 15+ yars. She is the author of "Istio Explained" and has more than 200 patents to her name. Sun has worked on container and cloud native technologies  from Docker and Kubernetes to service mesh  since 2014.



This appointment is another step in our continued commitment to providing enterprises the products and services they need to transition to modern application architectures, said Idit Levine. Lin brings incredible technical knowledge and understanding of what organizations need to be successful with cloud native technologies and application networking from the edge to service mesh. Solo.io's technological vision, speed of innovation, market presence and contributions to the

cloud native communities are what attracted me to the company," said Lin Sun. "I see tremendous adoption of Istio in organizations I talk to and I look forward to joining forces with industry luminaries Idit Levine and Christian Posta on Istio-related projects, making it easier for all enterprises to adopt, apply and use.

For more details about Gloo Mesh Enterprise features, please read our technical blog post . You can also check out the website , documentation and the public Github . To request a free trial of Gloo Mesh Enterprise, click here . Join Us at SoloCon and IstioCon

Learn more about Gloo Mesh, Gloo Edge and more at Solo.ios recently announced SoloCon 2021. SoloCon is an engaging, interactive event featuring industry speakers, informative sessions and hands-on workshops, set for March 23-25, 2021. Attendees will also have the opportunity to engage with experts, learn from their peers, network with other attendees and attend hands-on workshops. Register today at www.solo.io/solocon/ . Solo.io is excited to be participating in the inaugural IstioCon , an event designed to connect community members across the globe with Istio and the Istio ecosystem. The company is honored to have one customer journey talk, four sessions and a workshop accepted for the conference. Also, Lin Sun will be speaking during IstioCon's opening and closing keynote sessions as the program co-chair. Register and watch our IstioCon sessions, outlined here , next week. Resources Solo.io Website



Solo.io on Twitter



Solo.io on LinkedIn About Solo.io Solo.io, the modern service connectivity company, delivers API infrastructure from the edge to service mesh, helping enterprises adopt, secure, and operate innovative cloud native technologies. APIs drive microservices and cloud native technologies, forming the foundation for developers, partners and customers to interact with application services quickly, effectively, and securely. Solo.io brings developer and operations tooling to manage and federate security and traffic control and tie together the integration points to enable and observe the application network. Founded in 2017 in Cambridge, MA, Solo.io is backed by Redpoint Ventures and True Ventures. For more information, visit https://www.solo.io/ or follow @soloio_inc. Media Contact Danielle Salvato-Earl

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Amit Shah arrived in Bengal to flag off the 5th phase of the Parivarthan Yatra. The Yatra would cover all the 294 constituencies in West Bengal. The battle heat intensifies in West Bengal ahead of the upcoming polls and clashes between BJP and TMC has reached its height.

As the battle heat intensifies in West Bengal ahead of the upcoming polls and clashes between BJP and TMC has reached its height, Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrived in Kolkata for a visit to the state. The Assembly polls are slated to be held later this year. During his Kolkata tour, he will visit Bharat Sevashram Sangha and Kapil Muni Ashram. Later, he will flag-off BJPs Poribortan Yatra and hold a roadshow from Kali Mandir to SBI, Kakdwip branch, and South 24 Parganas.

He is also scheduled to visit Aurobindo Bhawan in the evening. Shah had earlier arrived in the state on February 11. The tenure of the Trinamool Congress government led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal will come to an end on May 30, 2020. Amit Shah arrived in Bengal to flag off the 5th phase of the Parivarthan Yatra. The Yatra would cover all the 294 constituencies in West Bengal. It was flagged off by BJP President JP Nadda on Feb 6 from Nawadeep in Nadia district.

Meanwhile, the investigation is underway at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad where State Minister Jakir Hossain got injured after unidentified people hurled a bomb at him yesterday. West Bengal CID has taken over the investigation of the case. Around 26 TMC workers including Jakir Hossain were injured; 14 of them are in critical condition.

West Bengal: Investigation underway at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad where state minister Jakir Hossain got injured after unidentified people hurled a bomb at him yesterday. West Bengal CID has taken over the investigation of the case. pic.twitter.com/hOk1nyCvV6  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

Around 26 of our people, incl Jakir Hossain, were injured; 14 of them serious. Police investigation is on, CM said that CID, STF & CIF have joined in. I hope Railway will help them. On behalf of the party, we want that culprits be arrested & brought to court: WB Min Firhad Hakim pic.twitter.com/2sZfHzhRUn  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

West Bengal: Union Home Minister Amit Shah offers prayers at Bharat Sevashram Sangha at Rash Behari Avenue pic.twitter.com/tYyQkPAIFc  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

#WATCH: WB Minister Jakir Hossain injured after unidentified persons hurled a bomb at him at Nimtita railway station, Murshidabad y'day. Murshidabad Medical College Superintendent says that he's stable & out of danger, one hand & leg injured. (Amateur video, source unconfirmed) pic.twitter.com/ih7DLHAWLq  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

Congress and the Left held their first meeting the Indian Secular Front (ISF), recently floated by influential minority leader Abbas Siddique over seat-sharing for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly polls.
EDITORS NOTE: NJ Cannabis Insider is hosting a two-day business and networking conference March 9-10, featuring some of the states most prominent industry leaders. Tickets are limited.

The state can resume its review of nearly 150 medical marijuana license applications that have sat untouched for more than a year, thanks to a ruling from a state appellate court Thursday.

The court ruled against all but one medical marijuana license applicant rejected by the Department of Health in 2019. It upheld the departments denial of seven other applications.

The case, which consolidated eight applicants rejected in an initial review, halted the expansion of New Jerseys strained medical marijuana program in late 2019 when the court granted a stay in the process. Now, with the stay lifted, the Health Department can reopen its review of 146 applications the state put on hold and resume the process of issuing as many as 24 new licenses.

No matter the ruling, these paused applicants were always going to see victory in a decision that gets the process restarted and inches them closer to attaining a license.

The new licenses will not only ease burdens to medical marijuana for the states 100,000 registered patients, but also set New Jersey up for the 21 and older marijuana market. Medically-licensed facilities are slated to get the first shot at selling to the public.

But they will likely take months to a year to open, even after the health department makes its final decisions.

The applicants sued in late 2019 and claimed the Health Department wrongly rejected them during a first round of cuts because reviewers could not open corrupt PDF files.

But the court decision noted applicants were given clear instructions about deadlines, and that the department even held a webinar to help them prepare for submission.

Others sued over the denials based on a lack of local approval to operate in the town and argued that the letters they submitted did constitute approval.

In its decision published Thursday, the appellate court sided only with ZY Labs, which included three letters of support from prominent Hillside community members, but not a letter directly from the municipality. The court remanded the application to the Health Department for further consideration after saying the letters constituted community approval under the department guidance.

This was a significant victory for ZY Labs, said Lee Vartan, an attorney that represented the applicant. ZY Labs is confident in the strength of its application and looks forward to being awarded a license to cultivate medical marijuana in the central region.

Others are not celebrating.

We are disappointed in the Courts decision as it anachronistically relied on an agency investigation occurring after the disqualification decision  confirming the decision, itself, was baseless, Joshua Bauchner, an attorney who represented several of the appellants, said in a statement. Nevertheless, we remain hopeful that the [state Health Department] will finally adhere to its mandate to serve New Jerseys ever growing medical marijuana patient population without further delay.

Another attorney in the case, Craig Provorny, said the health department conducted an insufficient investigation into the technical problem and maintains his client was wrongfully rejected.

Community Wellness of New Jersey is very disappointed in the decision, he said. Community Wellness is a 100% minority-owned business that is the type of operation you would think the state would like to participate in this program. We believe the appellate division ignored the facts about the system crashing, and other mismanagement on behalf of the Department of Health.

A spokesperson for the Health Department declined to comment for this story.

Its not the first time the health department has faced legal challenges to its licensing process. Another group of rejected applicants sued over a 2018 licensing round, arguing the scoring methods for selecting six license winners lacked a clear methodology.

A court ruled in November that the Health Department must change its unreasonable system for awarding licenses and offer more transparency going forward.

But this ruling largely favors the Health Departments review process. Bill Caruso, an attorney and managing director for Archer Public Affairs and a founding member of New Jersey United for Marijuana Reform, hailed the decision as a win for the health department and said it helps to clarify rules for future rounds of licensing.

I think this is great win for the state, and it upholds the states review and regulatory requirements that they have put in place, therefore breaking gridlock he said.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Amanda Hoover may be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj.
New Delhi: Disha Ravi, the climate activist from Bengaluru who was arrested for her alleged role in sharing a 'toolkit' related to farmers protest, moved the Delhi High Court on Thursday seeking directions to Delhi police to restrain them from leaking any case-related probe materials to the media.

The petition filed by the 21-year-old also seeks to restrain the media from publishing the contents or extracts of any alleged private chats, including WhatsApp.

Delhi Police had arrested Ravi, Mumbai lawyer Nikita Jacob and Pune engineer Shantanu Muluk in a case related to the 'toolkit Google doc' which was accidently tweeted and later deleted by aswedish climate activist Greta Thunberg which urged for support for the farmers movement.

According to Delhi Police, Disha Ravi is one of the editors of the google document and have alleged that she is key conspirator in the "formulation and dissemination" of the toolkit.

"She (Disha Ravi) was the one who shared the Toolkit Doc with Greta Thunberg. She started a WhatsApp Group and collaborated to make the Toolkit document," the police said in a statement.

They have also accused her of collaborating with pro-Khalistani Poetic Justice Foundation to spread "disaffection against the Indian State".

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Global demand for dural graft is expected to grow significantly, owing to rising burden of neurosurgical diseases leading to increasing cranial and spinal duraplasty, and rapid technological advancements in dural graft products.

Moreover, increasing global neurosurgical workforce, extensive clinical research, and increasing demand for CNS dural repair are responsible for increasing the adoption of dural graft products.

Planning Forward? Access Sample Of Dural Graft Market Report! https://www.persistencemarketresearch.co/samples/25285

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For instance, in 2004, the World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that, there were 33,193 neurosurgeons worldwide, including trainees. Whereas, in 2015, this number rose to approximately 49,940 neurosurgeons, with a 4% total growth, worldwide.

Persistence Market Research predicts that, the global dural graft market will exhibit a 6% CAGR during the forecast period (2019-2029).

Key Takeaways of Dural Graft Market Study

By product type, synthetic dural graft along with xenogeneic dural graft are expected to gain traction during the forecast period.

Technological advancements in material science of dural graft products in North America and Europe are expected to contribute to the significant dominance of these regions during the forecast period.

Brain and spine tumor applications are expected to hold more than 50% share in the global dural graft market.

share in the global dural graft market. Synthetic polymer material is expected to gain significant traction and experience 2X demand by 2029.

demand by 2029. Leading dural graft manufacturing companies are partnering with innovative product developers and specialized distributors to strengthen their market position.

Rising healthcare expenditure and increasing neurosurgeon workforce density in East Asia are expected to offer significant opportunities for market growth.

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Increasing scientific evidence from industry-led clinical trials and technological advancements in dural graft products are expected to support the significant adoption of synthetic nanofibrous dural grafts. says a PMR analyst.

Brain and Spinal Tumor Application Dominating Dural Graft Market

Prevalence of CNS tumors due to neurological conditions is growing rapidly. Chiari malformation and spinal cord tumor-related neurosurgical procedures requiring dural grafts for surgeries are becoming more frequent. Growing risk of such neurological conditions demands neurosurgical procedures along with duraplasty for effective and safe treatment outcomes.

For instance, in 2018, more than 50% of dural grafts were used in cranial and spine tumor operations. This high proportion is estimated to continue in the future.

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Persistence Market Research offers a unique perspective and actionable insights on the dural graft market in its latest study, presenting historical demand assessment from 2014-2018 and projections for 2019-2029, on the basis of product type (xenogeneic dural graft, synthetic dural graft, autologous dural graft, and allogeneic dural graft), application (brain and spine tumor, traumatic brain and spine injury, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) accumulation, cerebrovascular accident, epilepsy, and others), material (bovine pericardium, autologous pericardium, synthetic polymers, ligamentum nuchae, and others), and end user (hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, trauma centers, and clinics), across seven key regions.

Explore Extensive Coverage of Persistence Market Research Life Sciences & Transformational Health Landscape

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Silhouettes of mobile users are seen next to a screen projection of Facebook logo in this picture illustration taken March 28, 2018. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

Facebooks Australia News Ban Hits State Governments, Health Departments, and Weather Services

The Facebook pages of Australias Queensland, South Australia, ACT Health, the WA Fire and Emergency Services, and the Bureau of Meteorology have been blocked after the social media giant banned Australians from sharing news.

The pages were blocked as Facebook followed through on its threat to restrict Australians from sharing news on its platform in response to a proposed media bargaining code.

The pages, which provide crucial government health and weather information and alerts, were blacked out on Thursday morning.

A Queensland government spokesman told AAP the matter will be investigated and Facebook will be contacted.

Facebook has restricted Queensland Healths Facebook page in its move to restrict sharing Australian news on its platform. (The Epoch Times)

Comment has been sought from the South Australian and West Australian governments.

AAP journalist Benita Kolovos wrote on Twitter: The pages of governments, MPs, health departments, the Bureau of Meterology, numerous womens shelters and even TV programs and radio stations are affected. Like I said, totally cool and normal of them.

The pages of governments, MPs, health departments, the Bureau of Meterology, numerous womens shelters and even TV programs and radio stations are affected. Like I said, totally cool and normal of them.  Benita Kolovos (@benitakolovos) February 17, 2021

More than 600,000 people follow the Queensland Health page and more than 307,000 follow the SA Health page.

Almost 52,000 people follow the ACT Health Facebook page while the WA Fire and Emergency Services page is followed by more than 301,000 people.

The Bureau of Meteorology page provides weather updates and severe weather and flood alerts to more than 909,000 users.

No other government health or emergency service pages appear to have been blocked.

Australian users and publishers are restricted from sharing or viewing domestic and international news after Facebook followed through on threatened action in response to the governments proposed media bargaining code.

By Marty Silk. Epoch Times writer Caden Pearson contributed to this article.
Exxon Mobil on Wednesday said it has shut down manufacturing units across its Baytown refining and petrochemical complex area due to freezing weather conditions, coupled with the curtailment of natural gas supplies throughout Texas.

HOUSTON CHRONICLE: What went wrong with the Texas power grid?

Natural gas is the feed stock for Exxon's chemical operations in Baytown. The refinery has the capability to process up to 584,000 barrels of crude oil per day, according to Exxons website.

Any units that remain in operation are dedicated to exporting electricity back into the grid or to generating the power necessary to keep our people, the community and units safe, said Exxon Mobil spokesman Todd Spitler.

Exxon is exporting more than 200 megawatts back to the grid, which is enough electricity to power approximately 100,000 homes, according to Spitler.
Trosien will host 22 sessions from March 2021-January 2022, covering topics from Customer Service during Covid, to Successful Selling Strategies. Participants will also have an opportunity to be involved in Ask Me Anything sessions and co-hosted industry round tables, where Trosien will discuss innovative marketing strategies and fresh leasing perspectives. Throughout the series, Zumper will complement Lisa's experience with extensive research and data on rental search behaviors.

"I'm delighted to team up with Zumper to provide essential education to our industry through the Leasing A to Zumper series," said Lisa Trosien, co-founder of Apartment All Stars.

"We are thrilled to support our multifamily partners with an opportunity to learn from one of the industry's most well-respected experts," said Natalie Cariola, Zumper's Chief Sales Officer. "Lisa has been leading innovation in the industry for the last 25 years, and as an authority on the subject, is a terrific resource for our multifamily partners."

For more information on the series, please visit: http://multifamily.zumper.com/lisa-trosien-webinar-series

About Zumper: Zumper aims to make renting an apartment as easy as booking a hotel. With over 14 million visits every month, Zumper's free online and mobile rental search marketplace has become the largest of any startup in the industry. Headquartered in San Francisco, Zumper has 200 employees across the U.S. and acquired PadMapper in 2016. The company has raised over $140 million in funding from investors including e.ventures, Greycroft, Dawn Capital, Kleiner Perkins, Goodwater Capital, Axel Springer, Stereo Capital, the Blackstone Group, Breyer Capital, Foxhaven Asset Management, Andreessen Horowitz, Greylock, NEA, CrunchFund, xfund, Divco West, MMC Technology Ventures, Scott Cook, and the DeWilde Family Trust. Learn more at Zumper.com or email [email protected].

Interested in joining the Zumper team? Check out open positions here.

About Lisa Trosien: Lisa Trosien is a highly-respected multifamily speaker, author, and consultant with over 25 years of industry experience. Not only is she one of the most sought-after trainers in multifamily, Lisa frequently headlines industry events and has been featured in everything from Multifamily Executive to the Wall Street Journal. Learn more at www.apartmentexpert.com

SOURCE Zumper

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Certified organically grown high-THC Sativa strain

Grown in living soil and enriched with maple syrup from Quebec

Developed based on consumer feedback and careful genetic analysis

TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. ("TGOD" or the "Company") (TSX: TGOD) (US: TGODF), a leading producer of premium certified organically grown cannabis, is pleased to announce the addition of Organic Sugar Bush to its portfolio of premium strains.

"When planning TGOD's premium portfolio, I wanted a special strain with a unique Canadian twist, a differentiated product that would appeal to Canadian users," commented David Bernard-Perron, TGOD's Vice President of Growing Operations. "Organic Sugar Bush promises to be a Canadian-favourite with its unique terpene profile loaded with sweetness amplified by enriching the living soil it grows in with maple syrup from Quebec."

TGOD's Organic Sugar Bush, a high-THC Sativa variety, was developed based on feedback from consumers and presents the top characteristics Canadian cannabis users look for when purchasing premium dried flower  a THC level higher than 20%, large buds, certified organically grown, and balanced humidity to preserve its terpenes and trichomes. The fruit of careful in-house genetic analysis and certified organically grown in living soil, Organic Sugar Bush gets its name from Quebec's maple forests  the source of the maple syrup used to nurture the soil it grows in.

Careful Genetic Analysis

TGOD's grow team analysed a myriad of strains before selecting Organic Sugar Bush, a strain it perfected by developing a unique cultivation method which includes the addition of maple syrup from Quebec to its proprietary living soil. The result, a full-bodied strain packed with aroma  bringing with it a fruity, sweet scent reminiscent of ripe melon and passion fruit. The plant features bright green leaves, tiny peach pistils, and large buds that are soft and sticky to the touch.

The launch of Organic Sugar Bush is the continuation of TGOD's plans to introduce innovative strains as part of its premium portfolio.

About The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd.

The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (TSX: TGOD) (USOTC: TGODF) is a premium certified organically grown cannabis company focused on the health and wellness market. Its organic cannabis is cultivated in living soil, as nature intended. The Company is committed to cultivating a better tomorrow by producing its products responsibly, with less waste and impact on the environment. Its two Canadian facilities have been built to LEED certification standards and its products are sold in recyclable packaging. In Canada, TGOD sells dried flower and oil, and recently launched a series of nextgeneration cannabis products such as hash, vapes, organic teas and dissolvable powders. Through its European subsidiary, HemPoland, the Company also distributes premium hemp CBD oil and CBD-infused topicals in Europe. By leveraging science and technology, TGOD harnesses the power of nature from seed to sale.

TGOD's Common Shares and warrants issued under the indentures dated November 1, 2017, December 19, 2019, June 12, 2020, October 23, 2020 and December 10, 2020 trade on the TSX under the symbol "TGOD", "TGOD.WT", "TGOD.WS", "TGOD.WR","TGOD.WA" and "TGOD.WB", respectively, and TGODF trades in the US on the OTCQX. For more information on The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd., please visit www.tgod.ca .

Cautionary Statements

This news release includes statements containing certain "forwardlooking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law ("forwardlooking statements"). Forward looking statements in this release include, but are not limited to, statements about future product launches, statements about the potency of specific cannabis strains, statements about the availability of specific products and statements about the future demand for organic products. Forwardlooking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "should", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Various assumptions were used in drawing the conclusions or making the projections contained in the forwardlooking statements throughout this news release. Forwardlooking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties (including market conditions) and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forwardlooking statements, including those risk factors described in the Company's most recently filed Annual Information Form available on SEDAR. The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.

Neither the TSX nor the TSX's Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of Toronto Stock Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd.

Related Links

www.tgod.ca


Rashmi Samant , who created history by being elected the president of the Oxford University Student Union (SU), has stepped down after the emergence of her old social media posts that were declared "racist" and "insensitive".

The posts, some from 2017, included a photo of her visit to Malaysia with the caption Ching Chang".

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

Though Samant claimed the phrase translated from Mandarin to eat the plants" and was a joke about her being unable to find any vegetarian food at the temple, Chinese students said the term was a reverse Google Translation not used by native Mandarin speakers.

One of her captions was a play of words about the holocaust with a photo at the Berlin Holocaust Memorial.

Issuing an apology about the same, Samant contended this was an attempt at punning on words that was hampered by the fact that she is a non-native English student" and that she wouldnt even dare to be insensitive".

However, Jewish students have accused her of being insensitive".

Samant was also accused of transphobia as she wrote women, transwomen and men" in one of the posts, thus separating women from transwomen.

The Oxford Campaign for Racial Awareness and Equality (CRAE) has condemned her actions.

Samant has released an open letter of apology after the furore. "Regrettably, I alienated people within our wonderful student community to the extent that they deem me unfit to be the leader they rightfully deserve. I sincerely apologise to every student who has been hurt by my actions or words and seek a chance to gain your trust in me again," she wrote.

The Oxford University Chinese Society (OUCS) responded to Samants initial apology by saying: Regrettably, we have not yet heard anything directly from Rashmi Samant. Her long-overdue public apology does not seem sincere to the OUCS. In her apology letter, Rashmi seems to be avoiding addressing her mistakes directly, and it does not show her taking responsibility for her insensitivity to race or ignorance towards the trans-community. We cannot see Rashmi as the SU president we rightfully deserve or trust."

The Oxford Student Union Sabbatical Officers issued a statement to apologise for the hurt and discomfort caused by the actions of the president-elect" and said: Oxford SU has a no tolerance policy towards discrimination. Racism, transphobia, and anti-Semitism have no place in our organisation."

A by-election will now be held to choose a new student union president.





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SYDNEY, Australia  A digitally savvy nation woke up Thursday to a shock on Facebook: The news was gone.

The social media giant had decided to block journalism in Australia rather than pay the companies that produce it under legislation now before Parliament, angering a country of arguers who had grown used to Facebook as a regular forum for politics or culture.

And then Australians discovered it wasnt just those staples that were missing. Pages for state health departments and emergency services were also wiped clean. The Bureau of Meteorology, providing weather data in the middle of fire season  blank. An opposition candidate running for office in Western Australia, just a few weeks from an election  every message, gone.

Even pages for nonprofits providing information to domestic violence victims fell into the Facebook dragnet, along with those for organizations that work with the poor and vulnerable.
Mumbai, Feb 18 : The key Indian equity indices traded on a flat note on Thursday morning amid a largely choppy trade session, after opening in the green.

Around 10.10 a.m., Sensex was trading flat at 51,702.57, lower by just 1.26 points from previous close of 51,703.83.

It opened at the intraday high of 51,903.96 and recorded a low of 51,652.67 points.

The Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange was trading at 15,222.25, lower by just 13.35 points or 0.09 per cent from its previous close.

Manish Hathiramani, technical analyst with Deen Dayal Investments said: "The markets have been a tad nervous since yesterday. The key support to watch out for is 15,100 and until we do not close below this level, traders can accumulate long positions at the current juncture and keep a stop below the support level of 15,100. 15,500 can be a potential target." Healthy buying was witnessed in metal, oil and gas and energy stocks, while finance, banking and telecom stocks were under selling pressure.

The top gainers on the Sensex were ONGC, Power Grid and Asian Paints and the major losers were ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra.
The Supreme Court has overruled former President John Mahamas application for review of its earlier decision not to compel the Chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC), Madam Jean Mensa to testify.



Mahama, the petitioner in the ongoing election petition requested that the apex Court review its February 11 decision which indicated that simply put, we are not convinced and will not yield to the invitation being extended to us by counsel of the petitioner to order the respondents to enter the witness box to be cross-examined accordingly we hereby overrule the objection raised by the counsel for the petitioner against the decision of the respondents declining to adduce evidence in this petition".



According to the lead counsel of the petitioner, Tsatsu Tsikata, said the Court made fundamental errors of law and that those errors had occasioned a miscarriage of justice against me (the Petitioner).



However, after hearing arguments from all parties during today's hearing, the 9-member panel dismissed the application.



The panel of 7 judges was reconstituted to 9 because it was a review hearing.



The ruling which was delivered by the Chief Justice said the review application has failed.



Stay of Proceeding



Meanwhile, the application to stay proceeding filed by the petitioner is now moot.



It may be recalled that lawyer Tsatsu Tsikata filed two new applications at the Supreme Court after the motion to reopen their case was dismissed: application to stay proceeding and application for review.



According to the Chief Justice, the stay of proceeding application has been struck out because it was pending the application for review and that has been dismissed.



The hearing has been adjourned to Monday 22rd February 2021.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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The NHS has unveiled a 'blueprint' to improve coronavirus vaccine uptake among ethnic minority groups.

Local faith and community leaders will team up with doctors to host online virtual events where they will answer questions and address concerns people have about the jabs.

They will also distribute leaflets in 20 different languages  including Arabic, Punjabi and Hindi  to reach those who do not speak English fluently or can't be targeted through traditional methods.

Number 10's Counter Disinformation Unit will ramp up its efforts and work with social media companies to tackle anti-vaxx misinformation online. Bogus claims that the jabs contain animal products or interfere with fertility have been widely distributed on platforms including WhatsApp, YouTube and Facebook.

BAME people who have already received their first dose could also be recruited to give testimonies and encourage friends and family to get the vaccine.

Figures have shown that a significant number health and social care workers from black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) backgrounds have been reluctant to get the jab.

Research this week suggested white NHS staff are almost twice as likely as black medics to get the Covid vaccine.

A lack of trust in Government is thought to be one of the main reasons behind their hesitancy, numerous surveys have suggested. Minorities face a higher risk of having a severe bout of Covid or dying, several studies have shown.

The NHS has launched a programme to encourage everyone from BAME groups to get the vaccine. Pictured is grand mufti Zubair Butt getting his first dose at Whetley Medical Centre in Bradford

Dr Nikki Kanani said the plan will fight the 'dual epidemics' of coronavirus and misinformation. She has appeared at Downing street press conferences throughout the pandemic

WHAT IS THE 'NHS BLUEPRINT'? The NHS 'blueprint' for fighting the dual epidemics of Covid and disinformation includes the following: Healthcare workers sent into communities to talk directly to those with concerns over jabs;

Faith and community leaders to hold virtual events with NHS staff on the jabs to counter mis-information;

Leaflets to be distributed in 20 languages;

Social media companies and the Counter Disinformation Unit to root out and remove anti-vaccine content online. Advertisement

The 'blueprint' to tackle the 'dual epidemics' of the virus and disinformation against vaccines was unveiled by primary care leader Dr Nikki Kanani, who has appeared at Downing Street press briefings throughout the pandemic.

'We must keep spreading the word to those next in line that this vaccine is safe and effective for all, regardless of ethnicity, race, religion or background,' she said.

'We are tailoring information we share to specific communities, including through translations into 20 languages, and were reminding people that no foetal or animal products are used in the vaccine.

'And over the coming months I want to harness the full force and power of personal, trusted relationships, by supporting people who have already been vaccinated to encourage their friends and family to do likewise.

'And my colleagues and I will continue to rebut fake health advice, like the inaccurate claim that vaccine has an impact on fertility, or that you have to prove your address to get your dose.

'As well as tackling hesitancy head-on, we are working with social media firms and the Counter Disinformation Unit to report inaccurate and harmful content and stop the flow of misleading content at source.'

Dr Kanani also works as a GP in south west London.

The NHS has also been setting up vaccination centres in mosques, churches, temples and community centres to encourage everyone to get the jab.

Boris Johnson has also joined the campaign after visiting a vaccination centre in a Muslim community building in Yorkshire.

It comes after a study on vaccine uptake among NHS staff at University of Leicester NHS trust showed white employees were almost twice as likely to get the vaccine as black members of staff.

The figures prompted experts to warn that jab hesitancy among health workers could undermine the national roll-out.

It comes after a study found black staff were almost half as likely to get the jab as their white employees at University of Leicester Hospitals NHS trust

It also showed doctors - which have the highest proportion of BAME staff at the trust - were least likely to get the jab after being offered an appointment. Experts immediately called on ministers to identify the reasons for the 'huge disparities'

Only 64 per cent of staff at the trust had taken up the offer to get their first dose by February 3, a study showed.

While uptake was 71 per cent in white medics, the highest of any group, it plunged to half this level in black staff. This was despite research showing BAME groups are at higher risk of serious illness and death if they catch the virus.

It was also lower among South Asians, where only 60 per cent had received their first dose.

Doctors at the trust  the only occupation with a majority of BAME employees  were also least likely to get the jab, after only 57 per cent turned up to appointments.

And under-30s were less likely to get the jab than their older colleagues, which experts feared could be down to perceptions they are not at high risk from the virus.

Professor Kamlesh Khunti, a SAGE member who led the study, urged ministers to identify the reasons for the 'huge disparities' between groups.

'As well as all the other public health interventions, such as social distancing, hand hygiene, face coverings, and test and trace, vaccination is crucial if were going to get out of this pandemic,' he said.

'And this risk is not only to themselves and their families but to patients as well. Its crucial we get uptake in healthcare workers as high as possible.'
LAS VEGAS, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In 2013 Cleveland Police Officer Anthony Espada helped find three girls who had been missing for 10 years. In We Found Them (published by Archway Publishing), he takes a look back at the difficult path that made him a hero. It is a story of hope, survival and resilience.

In this autobiography, Espada recounts his journey to being a cop beginning his childhood and struggles growing up in New York City and Cleveland, Ohio. He shares his experience serving the Marine Corps for nearly a decade, including seeing combat. Espada goes on to cover his 25-year career working for the city of Cleveland as a police officer. On May 6, 2013, a call came in that would change his life forever. Someone claiming to be Amanda Berry, a woman who had been missing for 10 years, was requesting help at 2210 Seymour Avenue. When Espada and his partner responded to the call, they confirmed Amanda Berry was there, along with two other women. Because of the rescue, the author and the entire Cleveland Police Department received international attention.

Theres always hope in finding missing persons, Espada says. He hopes that his book will help readers to understand As far as police officers, we are human beings and not robots.

We Found Them is available for purchase online at the Archway link above, at Barnes & Noble and on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/We-Found-Them-Anthony-Espada/dp/1665701498.

We Found Them

By Anthony Espada

Softcover | 6 x 9 in | 82 pages | ISBN 9781665701495

E-Book | 82 pages | 9781665701501

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Anthony Espadas is an eight-year Marine Corps combat veteran who retired from the Cleveland Police Department in Ohio after 25 years of service. During his police service, he was one of the primary officers involved in the rescue of three missing young women in Cleveland on May 6, 2013, which became a worldwide news event. He now resides with his family in the Southwest region of the United States.





Simon & Schuster, a company with nearly ninety years of publishing experience, has teamed up with Author Solutions, LLC, the worldwide leader in self-publishing, to create Archway Publishing. With unique resources to support books of all kind, Archway Publishing offers a specialized approach to help every author reach his or her desired audience. For more information, visit archwaypublishing.com or call 844-669-3957.

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Native American women and girls know their heritage puts them at risk. They tell each other to take care. They all know it is easy for someone to take them and kill them and get away with it.

Preyed upon by attackers, rapists and killers familiar with the empty reaches of reservations, the patchwork of jurisdictions, the disregard of some and the silence of others, they are in danger just for being a Native woman or girl.

The statistics are grim.

A report from the National Institute of Justice found that more than four out of five Native American women have experienced violence in their lives. In 2016, the Centers for Disease Control reported that homicide is the third leading cause of death among Native American women between the ages of 10 and 24. The Department of Justice has reported Native American women are 10 times more likely to be murdered than other Americans.

On the 1.3-million-acre Yakama Reservation, women have passed down stories from as far back as the mid-1800s of rape and murder by miners, by soldiers, by other outsiders. The passage of time does not diminish the terror of these assaults, which continue today.

No one knows exactly how many Native girls and women have gone missing on or near the Yakama reservation.
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Russia now has an armed Predator-type UAV called Orion, a one-ton UAV with a 200 kg payload and 24-hour endurance. In 2018 an armed version (Orion-E) was revealed but it did not actually fire a Hellfire-type missile until the end of 2020. The Russian missile is the S-5Kor, which is similar to the American APKWS, a smaller laser guided missile that replaces of supplements Hellfire on many helicopters and fighter-bombers.

Orion was revealed in 2017 but did not officially enter service until late 2019 and did not actually combat zones until early 2020. The main reason for the delays was unreliable engines. That delayed availability for several years and apparently that engine problem is not entirely solved yet.

APKWS is a 70mm laser guided missile that entered service in 2012. APKWS weighs 13.6 kg (30 pounds) with a 2.7 kg (six pound) warhead and a range of about six kilometers. Helicopters carry APKWS 70mm rockets in seven rocket pods already used for unguided rockets. That pod can be rewired to fire the APKWS, which are preferable to the larger (45 kg) Hellfire because the smaller warhead allows the APKWS to be fired against targets that are very close to civilians or friendly troops. Since APKWS are smaller and lighter, more can be carried. Hellfire has been around since 1984 with over 130,000 produced so far and most of them used in combat or training.

The Russian version of APKWS is a guided version of their 5 kg (11 pound) S-5 unguided rocket. S-5Kor, the guided version, first appeared in 2000 but was not very reliable and it took more than a decade to fix that. The range of the laser guided S-5Kor is up to 7 kilometers. Larger unguided rockets, like the 80mm, 15.2kg S-8Kor have a range of up to eight kilometers and the still larger 130mm, 70 kg S-13Kor has a range of nine kilometers. All three are much more accurate at shorter (3 to 5 kilometers) ranges.

Russia did create a laser guided missile similar to the Hellfire. The Vikhr (9K121/AT-16) laser guided missile is a 45 kg (99 pound) Vikhr is similar to the American Hellfire but did not show up until 1990. Vikhr's guidance is the less effective than the Hellfire and APKWS laser homing system that simply homes in on laser light reflected off a target. Vickhr sales have been slow, in part because another Russian manufacturer had a similar missile Ataka V using more reliable SACLOS (radio controlled) guidance. While Vikhr is similar in size and function to Hellfire, it uses a less effective laser beam riding guidance system that depends on the pilot being able to see the target. That means daytime range is 10 kilometers but only half that at night. Vikhr has a 10 kg (22 pound) warhead. It is primarily used on navy Ka-50/52 helicopters and army Su-25 ground attack aircraft.

Russia is apparently obtaining Hellfire type laser guidance tech from Turkey, who has their version of Predator, the locally designed and built Bayraktar. Entering service in 2014, Bayraktar is a 650 kg (1,433 pounds) aircraft with a 55 kg (110 pound) payload and an endurance of 24 hours. In 2016 Bayraktar TB2 was equipped to carry two 22.5 kg (50 pound) Turkish designed Mam-L laser-guided missiles. With a range of 8 kilometers, the Mam-l weighs half as much as the American Hellfire and is light enough for Bayraktar TB2 to carry two of them. These are used regularly against PKK separatists in Turkey and Islamic terrorists and rebel groups in Syria as well and more recently against Armenian and Libyan forces. Before using a laser guided missile, the Orion used 50 kg KAB-50 TV or laser guided glide bombs which were unpowered and could glide to targets as far as 30 kilometers distant. The U.S. Air Force introduced this tech during the 1970s as the Paveway bomb. Russia may be building their own version of Mam-L, which Ukraine already did in 2019 when it ordered Bayraktar TB2s armed with Mam-L.

In mid-2020 a larger version of Orion called Orion 2 was revealed in mock-up form. This five-ton UAV is similar to the American Reaper, which made its first flight in 2001 and entered service in 2007. Orion-2 is not expected to make its first flight until 2023.

Russia is somewhat embarrassed that China and Turkey and have made more progress catching up with the Americans, who followed the lead of the Israelis in the 1990s to get the Predator into service. Israel is still a leader in UAV technology and Russia already builds some older and smaller Israeli UAVs under license. This is another reason why Russia cooperates with Israel in Syria and other defense matters.
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New Delhi, Feb 18 : Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that central government is giving utmost priority to the welfare of farmers, migrant workers and consumers and the Union Budget 2021 takes care of the people who are at the bottom of the pyramid.

While addressing a press conference here, Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Railways and Commerce & Industry Piyush Goyal said this budget has special provisions for the poor, farmers and migrant workers, those who provided support to the nation in difficult times.

He said the budget of 2021-22 under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi expresses the confidence of India and all set to spread a new wave of "Atma Nirbharta" across the globe.

Goyal said, "Union Budget 2021 touches the life of common man. The budget takes care of the poor who is at bottom of the pyramid. This budget instils a new hope for new India." The Food Minister said that MSP payment to the farmers remained at an all time high during 2020-2021 as Rs. 75000 cr were paid as MSP for wheat procured in the last season benefiting 43.46 lakhs farmers while Rs 1.72 lakh crore were paid as MSP for paddy to 1.54 crore farmers.

Stressing on digitisation and modernisation in PDS, the Minister said that procurement and distribution is being done in the most transparent manner.

Goyal applauded the efforts of the both Departments under Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution during Covid-19. He expressed his happiness that the departments successfully implemented schemes for distribution of free foodgrains to NFSA beneficiaries and Stranded Migrant labourers during this period.

Mentioning the implementation of Consumer Protection Act- 2019, he said that this act has replaced the 33 year old act and it significantly strengthens the rights of consumers and have several new features including simplification of complaints filing, dispute adjudication process & alternate dispute resolution mechanism.

Goyal said that under this act the sale of adulterated and spurious goods will be strictly acted upon and this act provides regulation for the unfair trade practices in e-commerce.

He said that the allocation for sugar industry significantly increased to about 6,000 crore and the government has allowed to export 60 lakh tone of sugar and Rs 6 per kg as subsidy is directly paid in the account of sugar cane farmers. The diversion of excess sugar and utilization of foodgrains to ethanol for blending with petrol will help in timely payment to sugarcane farmers and increase income of farmers and also to make India self-reliant in petroleum sector, he added.

Goyal said that the One Nation One Ration Card scheme is a big success and presently, an average of about 1.5 Crore portability transactions (both inter-State and intra-State transactions) are being recorded every month. He further informed that integration of remaining 4 States/UT (Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi and West Bengal is targeted up to March 31, 2021. But it will depend upon the technical readiness of the States/UTs in terms of availability of ePoS devices and operationalisation of biometric authentication of beneficiaries. The department is continuously coordinating with these State/UT Governments, said the Minister.
Yesli Vega (C), Coles District Supervisor, and local resident Jim Giragosian (R) hold the resolution condemning forced organ harvesting in China, at the Prince William County government building, Va., on Feb. 16, 2021. (Sherry Dong/The Epoch Times)

Third Virginia County Passes Resolution to Condemn Chinas Organ Transplant Abuses

Another Virginia county has adopted a resolution to curb organ transplant tourism to China, making it the third one since January to take a stance against Beijings forced organ harvesting practices.

Its a travesty and completely unacceptable, said Yesli Vega, supervisor for Coles district in Prince William County, who initiated the effort.

Allegations that the Chinese regime has been mass-killing prisoners of conscience and extracting their organs for transplant first emerged in 2006, when whistleblowers approached The Epoch Times to expose the issue.

It has since drawn international attention, with a London-based peoples tribunal in 2019 concluding that such practices have been committed for years throughout China on a significant scale. Imprisoned adherents of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice that has been subjected to brutal persecution for the past two decades, remained the principal victims for the abuse, the tribunal found, calling the actions indicative of the crime of genocide.

We need to take action. There has to be consequences to whats happening, said Vega in an Epoch Times interview. This is clearly a violation of the law. And its an inhumane act thats happening and needs to stop.

Passed on Feb. 16, the measure aims to educate the countys roughly 460,000 residents about the risks of traveling to China for organ transplants so that they dont become unintentional accomplices of the illicit act. It came after around 100 local citizens highlighted the issue in a petition to the countys board of supervisors, the resolution stated.

The atrocity, Vega said, calls for everyone to speak up and hold the Chinese regime accountable. We cant turn a blind eye or pretend like we cant hear whats happening, she said.

Falun Gong consists of moral teachings based on three core principles, truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance, along with five sets of gentle exercises. It had an estimated 70-100 million adherents in the late 1990s before the communist regime launched a campaign in 1999 to eradicate the practice.

Local resident Linh Pham, a Falun Gong practitioner, applauded the action in a speech at the Feb. 16 board meeting. She said that the resolution was necessary to stop more human rights abuses, given the limited media coverage on the issue.

A number of Falun Gong survivors of persecution who settled in Virginia have related stories of torture and being subjected to medical procedures for organ matching while in prisonblood tests, X-rays, and sonogramsindicating they were being treated as potential organ donors, Pham said.

Harvesting the organs of Falun Gong practitioners has set a precedent in China. If it remains unchallenged, the CCP may well use it to suppress and persecute other groups, which will cost even more innocent lives, she said.

Jim Giragosian, a Falun Gong practitioner, speaks at a meeting of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors in Woodbridge, Va., on Feb. 16, 2021. (Sherry Dong/The Epoch Times)

Jim Giragosian, who lives on the west side of the county and also a Falun Gong adherent, said that the Chinese regime has gotten away with unconscionable human rights violations through extensive influence operations targeting every facet of American society.

The Chinese Communist Party is targeting the most vulnerable members of our communitiesthe terminally illby telling them that if they come to China, they dont have to wait months or years for an organ transplant, he said. They just dont tell us where the organs are coming from.

Giragosian added that Americans have seen unprecedented calls for justice for all people around the country and around the world. The resolution is one step closer to achieving inclusiveness, to help bring justice to all people, including Falun Gong practitioners in China, he said.

Several county residents present at the session also voiced their support for the boards action.

Harvesting organs and doing things like that are a great evil, and we have to crush that evil, said Barbara Dodge, who had years of experience working at the American Red Cross.

George Dodge, a retired U.S. army colonel, at the Prince William County government building in Woodbridge, Va., on Feb. 16, 2021. (Sherry Dong/The Epoch Times)

Her husband, retired U.S. army colonel George Dodge, said he has heard about the persecution of Falun Gong for years. He described the forced organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners as very tragic.

They really are not a threat to the Chinese government, he said in an interview. They are a peaceful people. They are not doing anything threatening to the government, the government should leave them alone.

Sherry Dong contributed to this report.

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament Ararat Mirzoyan received today Ambassador of Iran to Armenia Abbas Zohouri, the Armenian Parliament told Armenpress.

During the meeting Speaker Mirzoyan said he views Iran as a friendly country and reliable partner. Touching upon the Artsakh conflict, the Speaker said after the November 9 trilateral statement on the ceasefire it is necessary to implement the agreements reached. As a priority he mentioned the exchange of the prisoners of war with all for all principle. Mirzoyan added that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict cannot be considered as completely resolved because the status of Nagorno Karabakh  the right to self-determination of the Artsakh-Armenians has not been solved under the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmanship format. He said Iran cannot refrain from expressing position on the Artsakh issue, taking into account also the active involvement of other regional countries for the benefit of the Azerbaijani side both at the hostilities stage and afterwards.

The Ambassador stated that the Iranian side welcomes the agreement on the ceasefire in Artsakh and reaffirmed the opinion of the Iranian Foreign Minister according to which the return of the prisoners of war should be quickly solved.

At the meeting the officials also discussed a number of issues relating to further boosting the inter-parliamentary ties, the economic relations and conducting joint economic activity in Armenias Syunik province.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 17)  Local authorities are now looking into possible violations by the police during an operation conducted in Cebu City to rescue 19 Lumad children who were allegedly kidnapped and abused.

The Commission on Human Rights said an initial probe was conducted on Feb. 15, while a follow-up investigation is ongoing regarding the police operation that also led to the arrest of seven people at a University of San Carlos retreat house in Talamban, Cebu City.

The political beliefs or ideology of those arrested, also called rescued, does not matter to the commission, CHR Central Visayas chief investigator Leo Villarino said. "What we are concerned about are the (possible) human rights violations that were committed during the arrest or the so-called rescue of the minors in the retreat house.

Villarino said there was evidence that chaos and traumatizing events transpired during the police procedure.

He said they are also looking into whether those arrested were accorded their constitutional rights, including the right to be informed of their arrest and whether they were allowed to see their lawyers.

Villarino said he hopes the lawyers will cooperate with the probe since it will also clear them of any wrongdoing. The University of San Carlos will also be investigated due to allegations of accommodating the children without their parents consent, he added.

Meanwhile, the seven arrested are currently detained at Camp Sergio Osmena in Cebu City where they underwent inquest proceedings on Wednesday.

These are Chad Errol Booc, Roshelle Mae Porcadilla, Benito Bay-ao, Segundo Milong, Jomar Benag, Esmelito Oribawan, and Moddie Mansimuy-at.

National Union of Peoples Lawyers spokesperson King Anthony Perez, who is also representing the accused, said they have filed a manifestation today. Charges against the seven will be filed in Davao City.

Police said they will file kidnapping and serious illegal detention charges, violations of the Anti-Human Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003, and violations of Anti Child Abuse Law against those arrested.

PNP Central Visayas chief BGen. Ronnie Montejo said the minors were rescued upon the request of their parents who have not seen them since 2019. The police also claimed that the children were being taught communist ideals and principles.

READ: 19 Lumad children rescued from alleged kidnapping by militant group  PNP

The Society of the Divine Word Philippines, which manages the school, denied the allegations and said no rescue was needed since the retreat house is being used for the childrens welfare and well-being.

RELATED: Lawmakers seek probe into supposed police 'rescue' of Lumad students in Cebu
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 06:57:57|Editor: huaxia

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BOGOTA, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Colombia launched a mass vaccination campaign against the COVID-19 pandemic on Wednesday, applying the first dose to a nurse working in an intensive care unit (ICU).

Colombian President Ivan Duque, Vice President Marta Lucia Ramirez and Minister of Health and Social Protection Fernando Ruiz were on hand for the application of the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

"Today, a new chapter begins in the defeat of this pandemic. This chapter begins with widespread, safe, effective and free vaccination nationwide," said Duque.

The first stage of the National Vaccination Plan includes the immunization of healthcare workers and those over 80 years of age.

On Saturday, the first batch of vaccines developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac is expected to arrive in Colombia, said Duque.

Colombia has registered 2,202,598 confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection and 57,949 deaths from the disease as of Tuesday, according to the Ministry of Health. Enditem
The 9th and the first after the end of the Karabakh war, the trilateral meeting of Azerbaijani, Turkish and Georgian foreign ministers Jeyhun Bayramov, Mevlut Cavusoglu and David Zalkaliani, which was planned for tomorrow in Baku, has been postponed.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and his Georgian counterpart David Zalkaliani were expected to visit Azerbaijan for this meeting on Feb.18 and Feb.19, respectively.



According to the Turkish foreign ministry, Cavusoglu planned to meet with his Azerbaijani counterpart and will be received by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.



"During the meetings, relations between the three countries and developments on regional issues and steps that can be taken to improve cooperation at the strategic partnership level will be discussed in both bilateral and trilateral formats," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.



Zalkaliani's arrival in Baku was also scheduled for today, the Georgian Foreign Ministry clarified that he planned to hold talks with Jeyhun Bayramov. The ministry noted that the trilateral format is a successful mechanism for regional cooperation.
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RanD Pitts grew up in Boston, where he said he was one of the first Black students to ever be bused to a predominately white school. Little did he know hed be making history in New Jersey one day.

The 62-year-old business owner stands as one of several local trailblazers honored in Downtown Somervilles Black History Month exhibit, located on Division Street.

The mural, 75 feet in length, opened last week depicting African American heroes, both past and present. From abolitionists like Frederick Douglass to authors like New Jerseys own Toni Morrison, it tells the story of pioneers in the fight for racial equality. Its sort of like a pop-up museum, and its free to the public.

Notably, the mural recognizes local history makers and Black business owners who have made an impact in the borough and the surrounding area like Pitts, who has owned Evolve clothing store (originally a paging company) since 1994.

I think its the first time anything like this has been done in Somerville... Pitts said. Im glad to be a part of it.

The Downtown Somerville Alliance put together the exhibit, which comes months after racial tensions rocked the U.S., following the high-profile deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and a host of others in 2020.

A 75-foot Black history exhibit is unveiled on Division Street in Somerville on Feb. 10.John Jones | For NJ Advance Media

The local history aspect is an important focus after Somerville hosted 11 rallies last year in solidarity with racial justice movements, organizers said.

We see Black history as something thats happened in the past, you know, and theres a disconnect. People dont feel connected to it, said Downtown Somerville Alliance Executive Director Natalie Pineiro. And I think its really important to recognize the local Black trailblazers because these are people that are still here.

The exhibit has made the rounds on social media and has garnered positive feedback. Piniero said she spent more than 40 hours printing and designing the mural using Photoshop.

It was incredible to see not just the amount of people that showed up, but you know, the diversity of the people that showed up (to George Floyd rallies last year). And it really helped us better understand that this is something that the community wanted, Pineiro said.

We have to continue to find new and innovative ways to have the same conversation, Pineiro said.

Natalie Piniero, executive director of the Downtown Somerville Alliance, designed the borough's 2021 Black History Month exhibit.

One of the most famous Somerville residents honored is Paul Robeson, the late artist, athlete and political activist who graduated from Somerville High School and was outspoken about social issues of his day. George Hoffman, the boroughs first Black councilman, and former New England Patriots running back Jonathan Williams made the list, as well as a half dozen other history makers.

Some residents told NJ Advance Media they are proud of the exhibit, which organizers said cost around $10,000.

Weve got to celebrate everybodys accomplishments, said Susan Anczarki, who has lived in Somerville for a year and spent about 10 minutes checking out the exhibit.

Ive been telling people about it, friends in the area and family.

For Pitts, who has also served on the boroughs council and as police commissioner since 2018, the exhibit represents a commitment in town to celebrate history that may not always be taught in schools.

To see this type of recognition, and you know, its been kind of buried for years, he said. There have been certain things done to celebrate Black history ... but to really put it out there the way it is here on Division Street is just outstanding.

The exhibit continues through March 5.

Tennyson Donyea may be reached at tcoleman@njadvancemedia.com.
HUMBOLDT COUNTY, Calif.  Health officials announced Thursday they have identified a never-before-seen COVID-19 variant in Humboldt County.

Public Health officials said current evidence suggests it was contained to a single outbreak and there is no sign it has spread to the broader community. The new variant was traced to an outbreak at the Granada Rehabilitation and Wellness Facility in Eureka, said health officials.

"In late January, Humboldt County Public Health said they submitted dozens of samples from individuals who tested positive for COVID-19 at the Granada Rehabilitation and Wellness Facility, along with dozens of random samples from the Humboldt County Public Health Lab (PHL), for routine genomic surveillance. Genomic sequencing of the samples was conducted by Chan Zuckerberg Biohub (CZ Biohub), a nonprofit medical research organization that has been responsible for about 45% of the genomic surveillance in California."

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Senior Biosecurity Fellow at CZ Biohub Dr. Patrick Ayscue said, Mutation is a natural feature of viruses, so it is not unexpected that we will see variants occasionally arise in outbreaks. Dr. Ayscue went on to say, What is pretty remarkable here is Humboldt County Public Health was in a position to identify a new and potentially dangerous variant, contain it and successfully stop it before it had the opportunity to spread more broadly. Its really a credit to the hard work of local public health and their partners."

Health officials said they have been collaborating with CZ Biohub since June 2020, and the nonprofit has sequenced more than 650 samples from Humboldt County, accounting for approximately 22% of total cases.

PHL Laboratory Manager Dr. Jeremy Corrigan said, After we package and send the samples, our teams work together to analyze the sequencing data and identify any variants of concern. Sequencing also provides a measure of quality control because we can monitor for mutations that could impact the effectiveness of the PCR test we utilize, referring to the polymerase chain reaction test used by the PHL. Dr. Corrigan noted that these kinds of partnerships are a great opportunity to leverage expertise and resources to better understand local COVID-19 conditions.

Health officials are urging residents to continue wearing a mask when in public, continue socially distancing, and washing your hands regularly.
Biltmore Square by MG Developer MG Developer is a Coral Gables-based property developer bringing some of the citys most sophisticated residences through an exclusive enclave known as Biltmore Square.

Haute Residence is pleased to welcome Biltmore Square to the exclusive Haute Developer Network of the world's most exclusive properties.

Founded in 2015 by Alirio Torrealba, MG Developer is a Coral Gables-based property developer bringing some of the citys most sophisticated residences through an exclusive enclave known as Biltmore Square.

Located on Anderson Road and Valencia Avenue, Biltmore Square includes four of the citys newest luxury developments that bring the community within walking distance of Downtown Coral Gables, yet secluded enough to enjoy the areas beloved tree canopies and distinct atmosphere. Comprised of the 32-unit Biltmore Parc, the award-winning nine-unit Beatrice Row, the five-unit Althea Row (coming 2021) and the 10-unit Biltmore Row (coming 2022), MG Developers Biltmore Square community is a modern addition to the classic charm of Coral Gables that honors its past while developing its future.

Its most recent project, Beatrice Row, is a Georgian style row of grand three-story townhomes spanning the entire block, similar to the elegant English terrace or row housing. Designed by Coral Gables architect Maria de la Guardia, Beatrice Rows detailed design even won the Institute of Classical Architecture & Arts 2019 Addison Mizner Award for Florida and the Grand Caribbean. With stunning bronze-finished balconies, indigenous Caribbean limestone and Coralina stone arches, Beatrice Row brings the best of world architecture right into Coral Gables.

Althea Row and Biltmore Row are soon to follow suit, completing the Biltmore Square community once developed. With Colonial Revival architecture, the three-story luxury townhouses of Althea Row are a nod to the design style that celebrates high-end European living. Featuring elegant coral stone, exterior copper lanterns and private loggias, Althea Row brings a creative take on coastal living to the City Beautiful.

Finally, topping off Biltmore Square is the anticipated Biltmore Row. With its own charm and unique character, the three-story townhouses are the final component of the masterpiece that is Biltmore Square.

Punctuated by Balboa Plaza and its signature piece resembling an oversized outdoor sofa made of oolite stone titled A Midsummer Nights Dream, Biltmore Square is the ultimate living experience that encapsulates the best of Coral Gables.

Visit Biltmore Square's Haute Developer profile: https://www.hauteresidence.com/hr50_slider/biltmore-square/

Visit Biltmore Square's website: http://biltmoresquare.miami/

ABOUT HAUTE RESIDENCE

Haute Residence is a luxe digital platform for real estate and interior design connoisseurs. As a leading real estate, design, and architectural platform, Haute Residence connects affluent readers with the most powerful and renowned agents, developers, and designers. The elite, expert-curated platform offers the latest in real estate and design news, showcasing the worlds most extraordinary residences and projects on the market.

ABOUT HAUTE DEVELOPER

Haute Developer is an exclusively curated platform featuring world-renowned developers. The 360-degree service, including digital, print and social, encompasses every stage of the luxury branding process. Haute Developer members connect with Haute Media Groups affluent UHNW readership and global broker network.

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CHICOPEE  Nearly two weeks after 11-year-old Aiden Blanchard went for a walk and never returned to his home in Willimansett, friends and community members gathered to show their support for his family and to continue to hope and pray the sixth-grader comes home safely.

The vigil, which drew about 30 people, was held on Wednesday at the Medina Street Boat Launch, where Chicopee, State and Environmental police continue to focus search efforts to find Aiden, who was last seen at about 11:30 a.m. Feb. 5.

We just lost our father eight months ago, said Josh Blanchard, 36, Aidens brother. Everything just seems like a steamroller. The best thing we can do is keep hope alive.

His younger brother suffers from asthma, and it would be uncharacteristic for him to walk as far as the boat ramp, but the investigation has led police to that area, Blanchard said.

It is not knowing that is the worst, he said.

In a message to his little brother, Blanchard said on video, We love you and we want you to come back. No ones angry and we all miss you.

Aiden is a student at Edward J. Bellamy Middle School and previously attended Gen. John J. Stefanik School from kindergarten through fifth grade. His two youngest siblings are fifth-graders at the school and he has three older brothers, Josh Blanchard said.

He loves attention and he loves to make people laugh, he said. He just brightens up the room.

Aidens mother, Michelle Blanchard, spoke briefly, thanking people for their support and police for their efforts.

Family friend Nichole Chretien thanked people in the community for their support, whether they have been searching the neighborhood in the hopes of finding Aiden or any evidence that will help police locate him, or bringing meals to his mother and younger brother and sister.

When Aiden was reported missing, Chicopee police and firefighters, with the help of South Hadley firefighters and state police, searched the Connecticut River and surrounding area until well after dark. Since then searches of the Chicopee and Connecticut rivers and the surrounding area have been conducted with boats, drones, State Police Air Wing helicopter and police dogs. The State Police Dive Team has also been searching the water, said spokesman David Procopio.

Searches have stretched to the Connecticut line and are continuing any time weather conditions are favorable. On Wednesday, police returned to the two rivers and their banks searching with a K-9 unit, the dive team, by boat and with the helicopter, he said.

Todays search did not locate any evidence related to Aidens disappearance. The operation remains focused on locating Aiden, or any evidence showing his direction of travel or whereabouts, Procopio said.

Aiden is about 5 feet tall, weighs about 100 pounds and has brown hair and blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a red ski jacket and black ski pants.

All evidence known thus far suggests Aiden was alone and near the river when he went missing. Aiden was last known to be in the area of the Medina Street boat ramp. Based on the information currently known to detectives, no foul play is suspected at this time. All leads continue to be investigated by Chicopee Police detectives and the State Police Detective Unit for Hampden County, Procopio said.

Police also continue to ask any residents who saw Aiden after about 11 a.m. Feb. 5 to contact them. Willimansett residents, especially those who live around Old Field Road, are also asked to check any footage of surveillance cameras to see if he was picked up on video any time after he disappeared. Some newer evidence shows he may have been in back of the WWLP-22 broadcast station sometime that day.

Anyone who has information that may help locate Aiden, or who believes they may have seen him, should immediately call 911, Chicopee Police at 413-594-1639, or the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST, he said.

The vigil was organized by Daniel Leatherwood, who said he lives in the community, saw the Blanchard family struggling and wanted to show community support to help them.

Today is hope and prayers for Aiden and to show him the light so he can come home, he said. We have the whole community here so he knows he is not alone.
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday suggested boosting collaboration among countries of South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region, which could include special visa arrangements for medical professionals and a regional air ambulance service, to counter future pandemic-like challenges.

Speaking at the start of a workshop organised by India among countries of the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation and the Indian Ocean Region, considered within Indias traditional sphere of influence, Modi said countries in the region had worked closely since the outbreak of the pandemic last year to restrict the spread of the disease and deaths to among the lowest in the world. In the deployment of vaccines too, countries in the region should similarly work together, the prime minister said.

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Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, and Seychelles are among the countries invited for the workshop, a person familiar with the matter said. India's health secretary Rajesh Bhushan is to chair the event. Each participating country has been invited to name two officials to attend the event  a senior health ministry official and another who heads the technical team in charge of covid-19 management, the person said.

Given the close cooperation among countries in the region Modi suggested "creating a special visa scheme for our doctors and nurses so that they can travel quickly within our region during health emergencies on the requirement of the receiving country."

Can our civil aviation ministries coordinate a regional air ambulance agreement for medial contingencies?" the prime minister said. He also floated the idea of creating a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying data about the efficacy of covid-19 vaccines among the people of these countries. A regional network for promoting technology assisted epidemiology for preventing future pandemics was another proposal that the prime minister put forward.

Making a strong pitch for regional solidarity, Modi said, If we focus on all that unites us, our region can overcome not only the present pandemic but also our other challenges too," pointing to poverty, natural disasters and climate change.

"If the 21st century is to be the Asian century, it cannot be without greater integration among the countries of South Asia and Indian Ocean island countries," he added.

Previously too, New Delhi had conducted training for officials from some countries for the administering covid-19 vaccines. Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Myanmar, Morocco, Oman and Seychelles were among the countries whose officials were trained in the safe administration of vaccines, waste management, training of health staff, monitoring of possible adverse reactions to the inoculation, and monitoring and supervision.

India has sent vaccines to some 25 countries -- as gifts and as exports -- so far. According to the Indian foreign ministry, India has supplied a total of 229.7 lakh doses of covid-19 vaccine to the global community so far.

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[February 18, 2021] Puppet Announces 2020 Channel Partner Excellence Awards

Key channel partners recognized for delivering innovative solutions to handle the most complex enterprise problems

PORTLAND, Ore., Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Puppet, the industry standard for infrastructure automation, today announced the winners of its Channel Partners of the Year Awards. These awards honor key partners who continue to deliver on customer excellence and innovative solutions. Each award winner has provided deep technical knowledge and expertise in building solutions around cloud migration, DevOps acceleration, and security and compliance needs at scale. The partners we recognize today demonstrate the ability to address some of the more sophisticated needs of complex enterprises, said Paul Heywood, Chief Revenue Officer of Puppet. We thank our partners for their work with Puppet and continued commitment to providing solutions to drive digital transformation initiatives.



Puppet recognized three partners globally including: AHEAD, Inc. - 2020 Partner of the Year AMER

AHEAD is consistently a committed partner to Puppet. They understand the value that the Puppet product can bring to their customers, and believe the company is a strategic player in driving their $2 billion in annual revenue. The breadth of the customer relationship and exertise they offer is what made AHEAD Puppets 2020 partner of the year for America.



bitbone - 2020 Partner of the Year EMEA

bitbone's partnering journey with Puppet goes from strength to strength. Theyve been a key Service Delivery Partner over the past two years. bitbones combination of security and automation expertise helped Puppet bring newer solutions and products like Puppet Remediate successfully to market. Fujitsu - 2020 Partner of the Year APAC

Fujitsu is a key partner in expanding Puppets continued growth and has worked hand in hand with the company to bring creative and powerful automation solutions to the Financial Services clients in Singapore. The teams will continue to invest in this relationship as more security and compliance demands evolve, with automation playing a leading role in solving these complex challenges.

If you are curious to learn more about Puppets partners or become a partner of Puppet, please head here . Additional Resources Learn more about Puppet

Follow Puppet on Twitter and LinkedIn

and Read our blog

About Puppet

Puppet makes infrastructure actionable, scalable and intelligent. From the data center to the cloud, Puppet helps enterprises modernize and manage their infrastructure to deliver innovation and efficiency through continuous automation. More than 40,000 organizations  including more than 80 percent of the Global 5000  have benefited from Puppets open source and commercial solutions to ensure business continuity, optimize costs, boost compliance and ensure security  all while accelerating the adoption of DevOps practices and delivery of self-service. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Puppet is a privately held company with offices in London, Belfast, Singapore, and Sydney. Learn more at puppet.com.

Media Contact pr@puppet.com

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A state prison inmate who claims he accidentally drank human blood in the jails cafeteria has had his lawsuit over the incident at least temporarily revived by a state appeals court.

The problem, Judge Mary P. Murray wrote in the Superior Courts opinion, is that its hard to tell why Sean Burkes suit was dismissed in the first place.

Burke, who is serving time for a 1990 murder in Philadelphia, claims he was exposed to the blood after another prisoner who was working in the kitchen of the state prison at Rockview cut himself on a chipped cup.

The other inmates blood contaminated cups and serving trays used by himself and other inmates, Burke contended in the suit he filed in Centre County Court. He lodged that product liability complaint against the maker of the chipped cup.

Burke, 52, claims his unintentional exposure to the other prisoners blood caused him psychological injuries and emotional harm. He appealed to Murrays court after county Judge Jonathan D. Grine dismissed his suit in a three-page order.

The reason for that dismissal is too vague to let it stand, Murray found. At no point does (Grine) explain why (he) dismissed the complaint, Murray wrote. We emphasize it is not this courts role to guess why the trial court granted preliminary objections.

So, she overturned the dismissal and sent the case back to Grine for further clarification.

Murray did, however, agree with the county judges refusal of Burkes request for a review of the medical records of the prisoner who cut himself. She concluded there was no need for such an examination since Burke tested negative for communicable diseases after the blood incident.

The individual (who cut himself) has a strong privacy right in his records, and (Grine) did not abuse (his) discretion in declining to violate that right, Murray wrote.

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A jealous ex who stabbed his glamorous former girlfriend to death after seeing her on a Tinder date with another man was today convicted of her murder.

Cruise line worker Cristina Ortiz-Lozano, 28, was killed in a 'frenzied' attack after being followed home by spurned lover Abdelaziz El Yechioui Ourzat.

Ourzat, 30, was caught on CCTV 'hiding in the shadows' outside a pub his ex had visited with receptionist Vincente Breso-Biosca, whom she met on the popular dating app.

Today, a jury took just five hours and 36 minutes to find Ourzat guilty of killing his childhood sweetheart.

Ourzat, who is of Moroccan descent, kept his head bowed as the verdict was read out at Winchester Crown Court, Hants.

Mr Breso-Biosca previously told the court that when Ortiz-Lozano spotted her former boyfriend watching them her face changed 'drastically' and she seemed scared like 'somebody terrified of an animal'.

Cristina Ortiz-Lozano was killed in a 'frenzied' attack by spurned lover Abdelaziz El Yechioui Ourzat, the night she went out with another man she met through the popular dating app

Ourzat, pictured on CCTV, stalked his former girlfriend while she was out on a Tinder date

She then immediately asked her date if they could leave the bar in Southampton, Hants, on September 21, 2019.

On the way back to her Southampton home she explained that she had seen her 'abusive' ex-boyfriend and that he wasn't allowed near her due to his bail conditions.

However, Ourzat stalked the couple home before following her inside and stabbing her 23 times with a kitchen knife while her date waited outside.

Frightened Mr Breso-Biosca told neighbours to 'call the police and somebody help me because he's going to kill her'.

Giving evidence, he said: 'I ran to the door, I kicked the door down and ran inside the house. She was laying on the floor on her back. He was on top of her with one hand on her throat.

'As soon as I got to the door of the kitchen he grabbed the knife with his other hand.

The jury was told that Ourzat had been caught on CCTV 'hiding in the shadows' outside a pub where Miss Ortiz-Lozano had gone with a man she had met on the popular dating app

'He was kneeling on top of her. He had her under full submission. He was trying to choke her or hold her down. She was already gone.'

Jurors heard that the couple met at school in Spain and had been together for about 12 years before Miss Ortiz-Lozano dumped Ourzat when he was arrested for drink driving in August 2019.

At the time, they were living together in Southampton and she was working for the Norwegian Cruise Line. Mr Ourzat was a baggage handler for Port Skills at the city docks.

When Spaniard Miss Ortiz-Lozano told Ourzat to leave, he went on a rampage around the house, damaging the bedroom and bathroom they shared, ripping light fixtures and radiators out of the walls, the jury was told.

He was arrested for criminal damage and then allegedly breached his bail by sending her emails in which he called her a 'b****' and a 'wh**e'.

On her Tinder date with Mr Breso-Biosca, a month after she split with her ex, Miss Ortiz-Lozano visited Sprinkles ice cream parlour and the Giddy Bridge pub.

Cristina Rodriguez-Lopez, Miss Ortiz-Lozano's friend and house mate, was asleep but was awoken by 'loud voices' and heard Mr Ourzat screaming Miss Ortiz-Lozano's name 'as if he was calling her back'.

There were three Airbnb guests staying at the house and one of them had pushed their wooden bed up against the door in fear, the court heard.

Chilling CCTV images which were shown to the jury at Winchester Crown Court reveal how Ourzat stalked his Cristina while she was on a date shortly before he stabbed her to death

Ourzat stalked his victim all the way to her home in Southampton before stabbing her 23 times in her kitchen with a knife, the court heard

Alan Mach, a neighbour who lived opposite Miss Ortiz-Lozano who rushed to the scene, said the kitchen floor was covered in blood.

Mr Mach said Ourzat gave him a look that 'wasn't normal', adding: 'There was madness in his eyes.'

Miss Ortiz-Lozano suffered stab wounds to her chest, neck and abdomen and had 'defensive' wounds on her arms, 'where she raised her arms in front of her body in an attempt to protect her torso and her neck'.

Ourzat, who initially told police he was stabbed first by Miss Ortiz-Lozano and was on anti-depressants, denied murdering his victim, instead claiming he was only guilty of manslaughter by diminished responsibility.

However, jurors today convicted him of murder following the two week trial.

Ourzat, who appeared virtually from HMP Winchester due a Covid-19 scare, will be sentenced at a later date.

The defendant has appeared in the dock at Winchester Crown Court during his trial, but Judge Jane Miller Miller QC said two prison staff have tested positive for coronavirus so he is being kept there.

Judge Miller WC thanked the jury and invited them to the sentencing hearing.
How it's doing

As the likes of BP and Shell pursue diversified investments into renewable and sustainable energy assets, AIM-quoted small-cap ( ) is similarly making a pivot.

Scirocco - formerly Solo Oil, an investor in early-stage exploration and small scale production in the UK and Tanzania - today told investors that it had expanded its investment strategy, screening opportunities in the energy transition space.

At the same time, Scirocco strengthened its team with the appointment of Muir Miller to the board, bringing valuable experience of the renewable energy sector into the company.

Miller was previously managing director of Peel Energy which developed and sold 121mln worth of renewable assets, clearing around 61mln of cash profits. He will non-executive director and will chair a new Sustainability Committee at Scirocco.

Muir has a proven track record of strategic direction, business plan execution and successful delivery of low carbon assets, so we will benefit from his considerable experience as we progress our strategy within this area, said Alastair Ferguson, Scirocco chairman.

Muir will head up our newly established Sustainability Committee that will be responsible for developing an effective ESG strategy that supports our growth ambitions."

Sciroccos growth ambitions envisages a company with an asset base with an enterprise value of 150mln generating 20mln of cash flow per year.

The company is already advancing its plans, with advanced talks underway for its first transaction in sustainable energy.

Scirocco highlighted that the subject of the possible deal is an energy generation asset.

Presently, the company progressing due diligence.

Commenting on Sciroccos evolving investment strategy, Ferguson added: Both the energy and capital markets have changed considerably since this board set its original strategy around European Energy almost two years ago.

The combination of an abundance of compelling opportunities and wider investor appetite in the low-carbon space with an improved risk-reward ratio has resulted in us increasingly focusing our business development in this area.

We are presently screening a pipeline of opportunities around which we believe we can grow the business and deliver sustainable shareholder value underpinned by steady cash flow, reliable dividends, and a positive ESG story.

Assets

Kiliwani North - Solo has an 8.4% stake in the Kiliwani North field which, in 2016, gave the company its first production generated revenue.

After around 2 years of operation, Kiliwanis single well has just gone through an upgrade programme and is yet to come back onstream.

Ruvuma - Solo also owns 25% of Ruvuma, an expansive and high potential area in Tanzania that hosts the Ntorya gas field development project.

Scirocco also owns an interest in AIM-quoted Helium One which is a non-energy, non-carbon gas exploration play.

Helium One is advancing the exploration of the Rukwa project in Tanzania which could, in time, prove to be one of the worlds largest primary, natural sources of helium  which is a critical component in high-tech medical equipment such as MRI.

What management says
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Restaurants will no longer be allowed to sell pre-packaged meals through arrangements with supermarkets and other outlets, as Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley definitively closed this loophole yesterday.

Rowley said this would not be allowed to continue, as it defeats the purpose of the public health regulations. Restaurants and street food vendors were among those businesses ordered to close to limit the movement of people and curb the spread of Covid-19.
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Astana process guarantors have condemned Israeli attacks on Syrian soil and the looting of Syrian oil, writes The Syria Times.

The guarantor states of the Astana peace process renew their strong commitment to Syrias sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity, and stress the need for cooperation to completely eliminate terrorist organizations.

In the final statement of the 15th International Meeting on Syria within the Astana process held in Russias Sochi, the guarantor states rejected attempts to create new facts on the ground under the pretext of fighting terrorism. They also rejected the looting of Syrian oil whose revenues should go to the Syrian people.

They underlined their commitment to achieving progress in the political settlement process led by Syria and reaffirmed their support for the committee tasked with discussing the Syrian constitution.

The final statement emphasized the guarantor states rejection of the unilateral coercive measures imposed on Syria, which contradict the principles of international law and the UN Charter, particularly in light of the coronavirus crisis.

The statement condemned the continuous Israeli attacks on Syrian territories, which violate international laws and pose a serious threat to security and stability in the region.

The statement called on the international community to provide humanitarian aid to those in need without discrimination, politicization, and preconditions, and to contribute actively to the reconstruction process in Syria.

According to the statement, the 16th International Meeting on Syria within the Astana process will be held in the Kazakh capital of Nur-Sultan, mid-2021.

Sousan

The Syrian Arab Republic delegation, headed by Assistant Foreign Minister Ayman Sousan, held a meeting with the Iranian delegation, headed by Senior Aide of the Iranian Foreign Minister for Special Political Affairs Ali Asghar Khaji, in the framework of the 15th International Meeting on Syria within the Astana process, held in the Russian city of Sochi.

Both sides affirmed the international communitys responsibility to prevent certain Western countries from imposing unilateral coercive measures, in addition to ensuring that humanitarian aid not be politicized and inhibiting the access of aid to terrorist organizations.

Earlier, Sousan met a Russian delegation, headed by the Russian Presidents Special Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentiev, during which both sides agreed on the importance of continuing the work in the framework of the Astana process.

Sousan had also met the UN Secretary-General Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen to discuss the situation in Syria.

Sousan slammed Turkey for protecting terrorists in Syria.

He underlined the necessity of the Turkish regimes abidance by the agreements signed with the Russian side for eliminating the terrorist organizations and ending the abnormal situation in the de-escalation zone in Idleb.

During a press conference in Sochi, Sousan said, the Turkish regime protects the terrorist organizations in a blatant violation of all the international laws and conventions, by cutting off water to the city of Hassakeh over 18 times, and sometimes, for more than a month. These events amount to the level of war crimes.

Sousan added, Syria rejects any foreign interference in the work of the committee discussing the constitution which is owned and led by Syria.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.

Local environmental genomic adaptation to cold temperatures was found in the Siberian (or Amur) tigers, the northernmost tigers found in the Russian Far East. Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Despite being one of the world's most charismatic species, tigers face uncertain futures primarily due to habitat fragmentation, human-wildlife conflict and poaching. As global tiger populations decline, so does their genetic diversity. But until now it's been unclear how the animals' dwindling numbers are affecting them at the genetic level.

To find out, researchers at Stanford University, the National Centre for Biological Sciences, India, and various zoological parks and NGOs sequenced 65 genomes from four of the surviving tiger subspecies. Their findings confirmed that strong genetic differences exist between different tiger subspecies but showed, surprisingly, that these differences emerged relatively recently, as Earth underwent a major climatic shift and our own species grew increasingly dominant.

The research, detailed in a new paper published this week in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, shows how genomics can help guide conservation efforts toward wild tigers and other species, said study co-leader Elizabeth Hadly, the Paul S. and Billie Achilles Professor in Environmental Biology in the School of Humanities and Sciences.

"The increasing dominance of humans across the world means that our understanding of which attributes of species and populations are best suited to the Anthropocene becomes ever more important," said Hadly, referring to the proposed geological epoch marked by significant human impact on the environment.

"Some populations are well adapted to a future dominated by humans and our new climates and others are not, so any type of management of species should be informed by what we can glean from their genomes," added Hadly, who is also a senior fellow at the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. "Conservation genomics is far from a perfect science, but this tiger study hints at the power of adequate sampling across both the species range and its genome."

The study reveals that the world's existing tiger subspecies began exhibiting signs of dramatic and recent contractions starting only around 20,000 years agoa period that coincided with both the global transition out of the Pleistocene Ice Age and the rise of human dominance in Asia. Each subspecies of tiger the team studied showed unique genomic signatures as a consequence of their increasing isolation from one another.

For example, local environmental genomic adaptation to cold temperatures was found in the Siberian (or Amur) tigers, the northernmost tigers found in the Russian Far East. These adaptations were absent in the other tiger subpopulations studied. Tigers from Sumatra, meanwhile, showed evidence of adaptations for body size regulation, which could help explain their overall smaller size. Despite these adaptations, tigers from these populations have low genetic diversity, suggesting that if populations continue to decline, genetic rescue may need to be considered.

One form that rescue might take is through the mating of different tiger subspecies together as a way of increasing their genetic diversity and protecting against the ill effects of inbreeding. Inbreeding occurs when populations are so small and isolated from other populations that related individuals breed with each other. Over time, this leads to lower genomic diversity and to the emergence of recessive diseases, physical deformities and fertility problems that often result in behavioral, health and population declines. Although increasing genetic diversity is one goal, another might be to select for inherited traits that confer higher survival in a changing world.

Even Bengal tigers from India, which comprise about 70 percent of the world's wild tigers and exhibit relatively high genomic diversity compared to other subspecies, showed signs of inbreeding in some populations, the study concluded.

"Some Bengal tiger populations are essentially small islands surrounded by an inhospitable sea of humanity. These tigers cannot disperse and so have only their close relatives to choose as mates," Hadly said.

While many studies investigating endangered species using genomics sequences from a single or just a few individuals, this work reiterates that individuals are not likely to be representative of a population or species status. Further work investigating the consequences of potential inbreeding and diversity declines across the subspecies are needed.

"As genomics has become available to conservation, it is apparent that collaborative studies to investigate the diversity within species are critical," said study first author Ellie Armstrong, a Stanford Ph.D. student in Hadly's lab. "Inferences made from single genomes, while excellent additions to our knowledge of diversity in general, cannot be extrapolated to entire species, especially when using captive animals to infer adaptation to complex habitat change."

Explore further Diverse gene pool critical for tigers' survival

More information: Recent evolutionary history of tigers highlights contrasting roles of genetic drift and selection Molecular Biology and Evolution, doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msab032 Journal information: Molecular Biology and Evolution Recent evolutionary history of tigers highlights contrasting roles of genetic drift and selection
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Last month, Chinas Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Mauritius came into effect. Mauritius is the first African country with whom China has signed an FTA. This agreement is significant not only for Chinas trade relations with Africa but also for its implications on the geopolitics of the Indian Ocean. Traditionally, Mauritius is considered as India's key Indian Ocean partner and therefore, the FTA and consequently growing Chinese role has implications for India's influence in the region.

It is well-known that China is the largest trading partner of Africa and in 2019, bilateral trade between China and Africa stood at $ 192 billion. Angola, South Africa, Nigeria, Egypt and the Republic of Congo are some of the major trading partners of China in Africa. It is expected that Chinas FTA with Mauritius will prove crucial in further opening African markets for China. For Mauritius, China is the largest trading partner and the trade balance is heavily skewed in favour of the latter. Mauritius hopes to attract greater Chinese investment through the FTA. For Chinese firms, Mauritius can act as a gateway to Africa.

Read: India hosting meet on Covid-19 management; Pakistan, 8 other nations invited

Meanwhile, African countries are building a single market through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which also came into effect last month. It is likely to create a single market of 1.2 billion people with a combined market worth of $ 3 trillion. Chinas role as Africas foremost trading partner and easier access to the market facilitated by the FTA with Mauritius is likely to further boost Chinas trade ties with Africa.

China is also a key member of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which brings 15 major economies of the Indo-Pacific region together. RCEP is already among the largest trading blocs in the world. Taken together, these two trading arrangements are bookending the Indian Ocean as RCEP covers the Eastern Indian Ocean and, AfCFTA covers the Western Indian Ocean. China enjoys robust trading relationships with Africa as well as RCEP countries and consequently, is likely to loom large over the trading dynamics of the Indian Ocean which will further enhance its geopolitical weight.

Importance of Mauritius to China

Chinas choice of Mauritius for signing the FTA is also significant as the tiny Indian Ocean country does not produce anything significant but is located in a geostrategically valuable location. Mauritius, a country with a population of 1.3 million, lies at the crossroad of Asia, Africa and the Middle East. It is known as a hub of financial services and is more well-known as a tax haven. Based on this, it can be inferred that, for China, reasons for signing the FTA are not necessarily found in the trading potential of this economically rich and politically stable country but in other factors like geographic location.

Also Read | Govt clears signing of India-Mauritius free trade pact; over 300 domestic items to get concessional market access

Over the years, China has built strong ties with the neighbours of Mauritius such as Seychelles and Madagascar to the South and Sri Lanka to the north. China is also an observer in the Indian Ocean Commission, a group of five island countries in the South-West Indian Ocean. For Chinas international trade, the region around Mauritius is critical as a foothold in Mauritius could facilitate monitoring of shipping lanes that crisscross the Indian Ocean. China has opened a military base in Djibouti in 2017 and the Chinese Navy pays regular visits to the littoral and island countries of the Indian Ocean to conduct defence diplomacy. Therefore, Chinas strategic interests in the Indian Ocean and geoeconomic realities are coming together in the maritime space around Mauritius.

For China, Mauritius is an interesting choice also because of the geostrategic influences that run through this country. Mauritius was once a British colony and since the 1970s, hosts one of the largest American military bases in the world, Diego Garcia. Over the years, Diego Garcia has played a major role in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and ensured a firm American foothold in the Indian Ocean. In fact, it is indispensable to the American military strategy towards the Indian Ocean.

However, Diego Garcia is located in the Chagos archipelago and Mauritius claims sovereignty over the archipelago. Mauritius, Britain and the US are locked in a dispute, especially since 2016, over the Mauritian claims of sovereignty on the Chagos archipelago. Sensing the firm stance of the Mauritian government, Britain and America sought Indias help to resolve this issue since the latter enjoys close relations with Mauritius.

Indian interests in Mauritius

India and Mauritius share cultural affinities and there exists a large presence of Indians in Mauritius dating back to the colonial times. However, despite this, India cannot take its influence in Mauritius for granted. Mauritius is smartly leveraging its geostrategic location and is playing major powers against each other. Other Indian Ocean states like Seychelles, Sri Lanka and the Maldives are also adept at playing this game. Although India is building dual-use infrastructure (naval jetty and airstrip) on the Agalega island of Mauritius and is a major defence partner, China remains the largest trading partner of Mauritius.

In this evolving geopolitical scenario, the China-Mauritius FTA has become operational. Whether it will benefit Mauritius or not remains to be seen. In the meantime, the growing challenge of China in the Indian Ocean will continue to pose difficult questions for other major powers.

(Sankalp Gurjar is a Research Fellow with the Indian Council of World Affairs, New Delhi. Views are personal)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the authors own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.
This article appears in the February 19, 2021 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

Message from the Biden Administration

Nuclear War Is a Real Possibility

[Print version of this article]

Translated from her lead article in the German weekly, Neue Solidaritat, No. 6, February 11, 2021. Subheads and embedded links have been added.

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White House/Adam Schultz

Feb. 6Relations with America will not be easy for yet some time to come. Given the various strategy papers against Russia and China as well as statements by leading military officers, President Bidens announcement in his first foreign policy speech that America is Back, sounds like an undisguised threat. Under his leadership, he said, the days of the United States rolling over when faced with Russias aggressive actions are over, and Chinas aggressive, coercive actions will be countered. The title of his speech was Americas Place in the World, and according to Biden, that place is everywhere in the world. Governments as well as responsible citizens throughout the world need to begin reflecting without delay on how they will respond to the statements of political intent heard in the context of Bidens taking office.

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U.S. Navy

The most shocking statements came from Admiral Charles A. Richard, the commander of the U.S. Strategic Command, who wrote in the February issue of the U.S. Naval Institutes Proceedings:

There is a real possibility that a regional crisis with Russia or China could escalate quickly to a conflict involving nuclear weapons, if they perceived a conventional loss would threaten the regime or state. Consequently, the U.S. military must shift its principal assumption from nuclear employment is not possible to nuclear employment is a very real possibility.

It should be clear that Admiral Richard is talking here about World War III, which would likely mean the annihilation of mankind. Indeed, as MIT nuclear arms expert Theodore Postol, among others, has repeatedly and convincingly argued, the crucial difference between conventional and nuclear weapons is that a nuclear war does not remain limited. But NATOs utopian faction believes, on the contrary, that a limited nuclear war could be won. And what regional conflicts might be considered? A conflict on the Russian border because of the Aegis-based missile defense systems in Poland and Romania? Or over Eastern Ukraine, with Europe becoming the theater of war? A conflict between Israel and Iran, or an escalation of tensions around Taiwan?

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UN/Jean-Marc Ferere

Atlantic Council Calls for Coup Against Xi Jinping

Admiral Richards outrageous remarks must be considered against the backdrop of several different strategic papers and doctrines, the most perfidious one being a document released by the Atlantic Council on January 28. The document is signed Anonymous, who is a former senior government official with deep expertise and experience dealing with China, according to the description given in the Foreword by Frederick Kempe, the head of the Atlantic Council. The 85-page paper, described as one of the most important the Council has ever published, is titled The Longer Telegram: Toward a New American China Strategy, in explicit reference to the 1946 Long Telegram document, also published anonymously at the time by George Kennan, in which he called for a containment policy against the Soviet Union.

This new anonymous author openly calls for a coup against President Xi Jinping and his inner circle in order to replace him with opposition leaders from within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Since overthrowing the entire Communist Party with its 91 million members has little chance of succeeding, he says, U.S. strategy must remain laser focused on Xi Jinping and aim to split the CCP leadership, where senior party members disagree with Xis policy direction and his endless demands for absolute loyalty. One should help those circles in the CCP leadership come to power who, unlike Xi Jinping, do not want to implement their own Chinese model of an international order but will submit to the U.S.-dominated world order.

Xi, according to Anonymous, intends to project Chinas authoritarian system throughout the world, and no longer poses a problem just for the U.S.-led liberal international order and U.S. primacy, but a serious problem for the entire democratic world.

Now, lets just try a mental exercise. How would the German government react if a leading Russian think tank were to publish a study calling for the overthrow of Chancellor Merkel and her inner circle with laser-like precision, in order to help a faction in the CDU to take power that would be subordinate to Moscows interests, while at the same time the commander of strategic weapons was saying that a nuclear war is likely? There would be an unprecedented uproar in all of Germany! It should surprise no one that the editor-in-chief of Chinas Global Times, Hu Xijin, responded to Admiral Richards article with a call for China to build a nuclear arsenal of 1,000 nuclear weapons in order to make Chinas second-strike capability credible.

Chinas Successful Economic Model a Threat

Both in the Atlantic Council document and in the official paper of the U.S. State Departments Office of Policy Planning titled The Elements of the Chinese Challenge, it is clear that it is the success of the Chinese economic model and the speed of its technological innovation that are considered the threat to American domination of the world. Not only was it a miscalculation to assume that Chinas integration into the world market by joining the WTO would automatically lead to its adopting the Western neo-liberal model of democracy, the State Department paper says, but China also built its own Marxist-Leninist model into an authoritarian state, dominated by the partys extreme interpretation of Chinese nationalism. In addition, it goes on, China is determined to bring about a national rejuvenation culminating in the transformation of the international order.

We cannot comment here, of course, on all of the extremely hostile accusations contained in the two papers, that of the State Department also being 72 pages long. In summary, it can be said that virtually all the charges alleged against Chinas policy are a projection of their own policies and intentions. No attempt is made to understand China from the standpoint of its 5,000-year history and culture, nor is there any acknowledgment of what an enormous civilizational achievement it was for China to lift 850 million people out of extreme poverty in recent decades. From this perspective, of course, the Silk Road Initiative is not regarded as an economic policy that allows developing countries to overcome their underdevelopment for the first time ever, but as the proof of Chinas hegemonic intentions.

Given the National Security Agencys total surveillance of not only its own population, but that of the entire world since September 11, 2001, and the censorship of even the sitting U.S. President Trump by the TV networks and the IT giants of Silicon Valley, it takes a very special kind of optics to accuse China of spying on and monitoring its citizens. The reality is that digitization in China has allowed for highly efficient contact tracing in the coronavirus pandemic, and that the social credit system has overwhelming popular support because the rewarding of positive behavior for society also benefits each individual.

What both papers have in common is that their authors reinterpret absolutely everything about Chinese culture, which for thousands of years has placed the interest of the common good above that of the individual, and which flows from a deep-seated need for the harmonious development of alland they turn it into an enemy image of the Wests order.

Neo-Liberal Establishment Fears Loss of Supremacy

It is not the Chinese Communist Party that is seeking world supremacy, but rather the neo-liberal establishment of the unipolar world order that fears it will lose its supremacy and has moved miles away from the universal principles on which America was founded and which it claims to represent. And what the Biden Administration thinks of respect for the sovereignty of other countries is obvious in its opposition to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project.

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CC/Micha Siergiejevicz

Incidentally, the hoopla surrounding Vladimir Putins alleged poisoning of Alexei Navalny, who is supported by Western intelligence agencies, serves the same purpose of setting into motion a color revolution, and thereby creating an opposition within Putins inner circle that could be used to remove him from office.

All responsible and thinking people are called upon to contribute through their mobilization to preventing the governments of Europe from being drawn further into the announced campaign against China and Russia. Chancellor Merkel, in her speech to the online event of the World Economic Forum, correctly emphasized her rejection of any bloc formation between the U.S. and China, in which Europe would then have to choose sides, and stated that the hour of multilateralism had come.

In light of Admiral Richards dangerous statements, European countries must not only explicitly distance themselves from such a policy, they must also withdraw from NATO and seek a security architecture that reflects the interests of their populations. Europes survival is at stake.

zepp-larouche@eir.de
A Sinn Fein councillor has been criticised for organising a commemoration tonight for an IRA bomber from Wexford who died on a terror mission in England.

Edward OBrien (21), of Gorey, was killed instantly when a bomb he was ferrying detonated on a double-decker bus in Londons theatre district in 1996.

The explosion in Aldwych wrecked the vehicle and injured the driver and some passengers, along with car drivers and pedestrians nearby. A fellow Irishman aboard, not connected to Mr OBrien, suffered a fractured skull. It was never established what was the ultimate target for Mr OBriens 4kg Semtex device, whose detonation was heard five miles away.

It came nine days after the IRA announced the end of a ceasefire with a massive bomb that devastated London docklands.

Fionntan O Suilleabhain, Sinn Fein councillor for Gorey and a teacher at a local gaelscoil, has promoted a Sinn Fein online commemoration to mark 25 years since Mr OBriens death. Online notices name him as a member of Oglaigh na hEireann, the Irish language name for the Defence Forces of the State, but one appropriated by the Provisional IRA. Independent Senator Gerard Craughwell told Independent.ie: The time has come for Sinn Fein to decide whether they are a constitutional political party or supporters of terrorism.

Mr O Suilleabhain did not respond to attempts to contact him, while Sinn Fein did not provide any comment when asked for its views on the matter.

Mr Craughwell said: There are many who see Sinn Fein winning the next election, and credit where credit is due, they have some very talented people.

However they need now to discipline their supporters.

We do not need or want to commemorate bombers, kidnappers, bank robbers and the people who murdered our gardai and Defence Forces.

Mr Craughwell was reacting to online promotional material to m ark the 25th anniversary of the death of Volunteer OBrien, apparently issued in the name of Mr O Suilleabhain, a local teacher.

Wexford Sinn Fein TD Johnny Mythen, the first party representative for the county since 1918, was also not available for comment about the commemoration.

But Mr Craughwell said it was high time for Mary Lou McDonald to take her party out from under the shadows of the so-called Army Council.

Consigning the violent past to history would give those talented people she has their opportunity to grow politically, said the senator, who is a former member of the

British armed forces.

As long as I see posts or notices like the one commemorating a member of the Provisional IRA, I will do all I can to prevent Sinn Fein succeeding anywhere, Mr Craughwell added.


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But COVID-19 hasnt gone away, and neither has Staged. The second series of the BBC comedy is now streaming on the ABCs iview platform just six months after the first, but thankfully its not a straightforward rehash. Tennant and Sheen are still connecting via their laptops, but as the first scene makes clear theyre now publicly taking credit for the success of a scripted show titled Staged . The first season is no longer a behind-the-scenes experience, but an actual production planned and broadcast. That sound you can hear is your meta-meter going off.

When we turned off the Wi-Fi on the fictionalised and self-isolating versions of leading British actors David Tennant and Michael Sheen in Staged last September, the two pals has been roused from their stay-at-home inertia and rampant self-doubt by a frank motivational speech courtesy of Dame Judi Dench  sweary bits and all. Britain was still shut down, but the duo were ready to act up, ending a show that deftly mixed the excruciating with the empathetic on a resilient note. It was, seemingly, mission accomplished.

Should this about-face work? Probably not. Shifting the foundations of the series could easily diminish sympathies  the melancholy undertow that surged through the first season of Staged always had an authenticity that matched the times. But what wins out is giving a new perspective to the outlooks of Tennant and Sheen. The discombobulated Scot and thorny Welshman have had a win  which makes the next round of comeuppance and compromise all the more enjoyable.

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Its not long until the legendary Michael Palin is cheerfully eviscerating their work, beginning with their self-congratulatory back and forth and swiftly escalating to a misplaced reliance on improvisation and the fact that theyre, well, just not funny; you can see Tennants resolve unravel in mere seconds. Their outlook is only tested further when the news arrives that an American network wants to remake Staged, complete with the supporting cast, but not the two stars. Theyre not famous enough in the States, which in these ego-stroked environs is a crushing blow.

In real life  or is that really real life  a lot of actors must have like Staged, because the famous names come thick and fast across the eight episodes of the new season. A few play roles, such as an on-the-money Whoopi Goldberg as a Hollywood agent, but most are versions of themselves. In the third episode fellow British actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost do an online script reading in character as Tennant and Sheen, with the sidelined duo offering live feedback. It is mortifying, but also illustrative  Tennant and Sheens united front collapses as soon as Pegg and Frost admit they both want to play the now delighted Sheen because the character of Tennant is tepid.

The shows creator, Simon Evans, continues to pay a bumbling version of himself, now ensconced in Los Angeles with the new production, but the sharpest insight continues to come from Tennants wife Georgia and Sheens partner Anna Lundberg, who have little time for the foibles of their lesser halves.
A shooting Wednesday afternoon near a busy transit station in Philadelphia left eight people wounded, including a 71-year-old man who was listed in critical condition and a teenage girl, according to police.

The shooting occurred shortly before 3 p.m. at Broad Street and Olney Avenue, a busy area near SEPTAs Olney Transportation Center, a bus and subway stop along Broad Street, authorities said.

Six of the wounded were listed in stable condition at an area hospital, according to police. A seventh victim - a 71-year-old man - was shot multiple times and listed in critical condition. The youngest victim was a 17-year-old girl, who suffered a gunshot wound to her arm, police said. Responding officers rushed one of the victims to the hospital. Other victims with non life-threatening injuries were identified as men ages 21, 22, 53, 70 and a 36-year-old woman.

Two weapons were recovered at the scene and one person was in custody, according to an update from the police departments public affairs office. Officers initially located seven people wounded at the scene, and an eighth victim from the shooting - a 48-year-old man - later walked to a nearby hospital suffering from a graze wound to his stomach, police said.

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said he was beyond sickened by the mass shooting.

Todays mass shooting near the Olney Transportation Center, in broad daylight, is yet another tragic example of the vicious, outrageous, and unacceptable gun violence epidemic thats threatening the lives and safety of our fellow Philadelphians, the mayor said in a statement Wednesday night.

As police continue to investigate, we remain committed to making our streets safer for all of us, he added. We are actively working to adjust and update strategies in the Philadelphia Roadmap for Safer Communities to address the rise in violence and other challenges caused by the pandemic.

Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw told reporters investigators were seeking surveillance footage and looking for witnesses. A possible motive for the attack was not immediately clear.

Its very brazen, Outlaw said at a news conference. There were multiple casings found, around 18 casings, and we are still trying to determine if they all came from the same firearm.

@PPDCommish says because of the time day this happened and location, theyre asking anyone who saw anything to come forward @6abc https://t.co/neqUSC6xy7 pic.twitter.com/3EIC4H6AAj  Christie Ileto (@Christie_Ileto) February 17, 2021

Gun violence has surged to record levels in Philadelphia, according to law enforcement statistics. As of Tuesday, police reported 71 homicides in the city this year, a 48 percent increase over the same period last year.

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Patna, Feb 18 : In support of Rail Roko call given by farmer leaders, opposition parties in Bihar organised massive protests at several places in the state on Thursday to disrupt train services.

The Jan Adhikar Party (JAP) led by Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav and his supporters spearheaded the Rail Roko protests in Bihar. Yadav himself was involved in a protest at Patna's Sachiwalay halt. Along with his supporters, he stopped a passenger train at the halt and did not allow it allow it to pass.

JAP leaders assembled at the railway track at 10.30 am, much before the 12 noon call given by farmer leaders for the four-hour Rail Roko Andolan stir. Several trains are running late owing to the protests. The Railway administration has also cancelled some trains.

During the protests, Ranjan said: "We are standing in solidarity with the farmers. Our agitation will continue until the Centre rolls back the three farms bills." The supporters of JAP also come out in large numbers at the Arrah railway station and stopped the Rajgir New Delhi Shramjivi Express train. They blocked the way by sleeping on the railway track. RJD supporters, too, came to the Bihar Sharif railway station and blocked the passenger trains heading towards Patna.

Reports of protests are coming from many places in Bihar. Protesters have blocked the main railway track connecting Delhi with Kolkata and Delhi with Guwahati.

Meanwhile, the state government deployed 20,000 police personnel at various districts in the state.

The police personnel detained JAP, RJD and Congress supporters for their alleged involvement in stopping trains.

Trains such as the Amritsar Darbhanga express and the Amritsar Darbhanga Special were cancelled by railway authorities.
Commodity prices have been on the rise since late in the 3rd quarter of 2020. Signs that the global economy would rebound faster than anyone thought possible, in the early phase, has spurred purchases of critical components in the modern economy. I have discussed the reasons for this in a couple of OilPrice articles recently.

In this article, How High Will Oil Prices Go This Year?, I discussed the impact the decline in drilling in shale plays was having on crude stocks, and resulting trend higher in prices.

In the second article, How Much Higher Can Oil Prices Go This Year, the concept of Backwardation taking control of the oil market was the principal thesis of that article. In this scenario traders pull oil from storage to sell now, as opposed to storing for better prices in the future.

Now we will tie this into the thesis proposed in an article last year near the absolute depths of the crash, about the start of a new commodities Super-Cycle. Now, going on six-months later, we are starting to see some evidence of the thesis put forward in that article that an inflection point was approaching that would shorten the time between the peaks and valleys of the multi-year cycle.

Related Video: Texas Deep Freeze Takes 1.2 Million BPD of Crude Offline

For example, precious and strategic metals have gone through the roof this year, figuratively speaking, and may have more room to run. The chart of the VanEck Vectors Rare Earth and Strategic Metals ETF, (NYSE:REMX) below shows how key metals have responded to the perception of a resurgent economy for 2021. You cant build the battery for a Tesla, (NYSE:TSLA) or any other Electric Vehicle-EV without these metals.

Google Finance

Conspicuous also, has been oils rise over this time period and captured in the Energy Select Sector SPDR fund, (NYSE:XLE). There are a multitude of reasons for the sharp turnaround in commodities and oil in particular, as noted in the chart below. Supercycles can be defined by their relatively low frequency and long duration, once they begin. Not every downturn in the business cycle becomes a depression. Similarly supercycles do not result from every upswing in commodity prices. Whats different about this push is the thrust of this article.

A new Commodity Super-Cycle?

Last fall in the article on the possible initiation of a new commodity Super-Cycle I hit on several themes that in addition to a fall in oil inventories and a vaccine for Covid might provide the trigger for a demand driven rise in commodity prices.

India is growing by leaps and bounds

The first was the emerging industrialization of India. Mass industrialization of a region or economy is closely associated with the initiation of a super-cycle. This was documented in a 2013 book, From boom to bust: a typology of real commodity prices in the long run, by David Jacks, and quoted in a recent Reuters article. Jacks, an economic historian wrote that:

Supercycles have usually emerged from the consumption rather than the production side of the market. Previous supercycles were driven by the industrialisation and urbanisation of the United States and First World War, the reindustrialisation of Europe and Japan after World War Two and Chinas industrialisation and urbanisation in the 2000s.

Related: Oil Prices Soar As U.S. Oil Production Plunges 30%



In the referenced tome, Jacks noted: These are demand-driven episodes closely linked to historical episodes of mass industrialization and urbanization which interact with acute capacity constraints in many product categories  in particular, energy, metals, and minerals  in order to generate above-trend real commodity prices for years, if not decades, on end.

Spurred on by its surging population- soon to surpass Chinas, its high literacy rate, and growing middle-class that will comprise 68% of the country by 2030, Indias economy is forecast to grow 11.5% in 2021. This growth will take energy in the form of oil and LNG.

The energy transition is underway and needs capital

I documented that a tremendous amount of infrastructure spending would be required to replace aging roads, bridges, dams, even whole sections of cities themselves that were in need of renewal. One area in which I provided no discussion, was the transition that is underway from petroleum based energy to renewable forms-solar, wind, hydro, and biomass for transportation purposes.

This was an omission on my part, as it is now becoming obvious with the demand for industrial metals and rare earths to support the increasing electrification ofnearly everything. But, transportation in particular will entail a tremendous increase in infrastructure to support the increasing number of EVs that will be displacing ICE vehicles in the coming decades.

We have passed the Rubicon in this phase of the energy transition. EVs crowding out and replacing internal combustion engine cars is no longer a far-fetched dreamers notion. It is real. And, its happening at a rate that only reached full realization this year.

Driven by government edict and popular demand more and more manufacturers of Internal Combustion Engine-ICE, vehicles are committing to EV only fleets in the next 10-15 years. Joining Tesla, NYSE:TSLA) in the EV only category will be General Motors, (NYSE:GM), by 2035. Other major brands going all electric in the near future are Mercedes Benz, as well as BMW. Other car manufacturers will be sure to join this chorus.

The charging infrastructure support explosion of EVs is expanding rapidly as well, and soon worries about where will a 200-300 mile recharge come from and how long will it take, will recede from the popular mindset.

Whats notable about this transition to electrification is that many of the large players are legacy oil companies like, Shell, NYSE: RDS.A), RDS.B), BP, (NYSE:BP), and Equinor, (NYSE: EQNR) are leading the charge. Capital is being diverted away from oil exploration projects to renewable energy projects. Both Shell and BP have told investors that they have reached peak oil as a portion of their portfolios. This is having the effect of stranding oil assets that might have been developed had capital been available.

As the majors daily production declines, the oil that is available will become more valuable, and drive prices higher. An odd juxtaposition for these energy companies, which a few years earlier would have ramped up spending to capitalize on higher prices.

Stimulus

One thing that will share the spotlight with Covid when the histories of the 2020 are written, will be the incredible amount of stimulus thats been unleashed upon the world. Trillions upon trillions of dollars have been authorized by global governments to combat the deleterious effects of the Covid virus.

Massive stimulus is a strong harbinger of commodity super-cycles. Investment house, Goldman Sachs, (NYSE:GS) is on record as floating the notion of a stimulus led commodity boom similar to the Brazil, Russia, India, China-BRIC, boom of the early 2000s. Goldman is quoted in the linked article as saying-

Going green, Goldman Sachs contends, has the potential to create a capex cycle on par with the emerging markets-driven cycle of the 2000s.

Your takeaway

Time will tell if the coming commodity boom in metals and oil turns into a genuine super-cycle, or just a temporary upturn as the world adjusts unevenly to the new green revolution.

One thing that is absolutely certain is that this transition to going to take a lot of energy, including energy from petroleum sources, just when they are starting to shrink.

Relative scarcity will drive petroleum-based energy prices higher for the foreseeable future.

By David Messler for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
If youre suffering from anxiety or depression, youre not alone. COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on peoples personal and professional lives since late 2019. The combination of record unemployment, economic turmoil, and social isolation has strained even the most resilient individuals. One tool people are using to help with anxiety and depression is CBD oil.

However, finding the best CBD oil for anxiety can be an overwhelming task, considering how many products there are to choose from. To help you find the best CBD oil, weve researched the top brands on the market. We evaluated each CBD company based on their hemp source, potency, type of extracts, flavors, and price.

Here are the best CBD oil brands for anxiety, depression, and stress.

Top 5 Best CBD Oil for Anxiety and Depression 2021

#1 Fab CBD Oil: Best Overall

Few companies have distinguished themselves in the fast-growing CBD industry. Fab CBD is the exception to the rule. It offers premium full-spectrum cannabinoid blends that may be helpful for anyone suffering from anxiety or depression.

Oil tinctures are among the most popular products at Fab CBD. They come in four sizes, ranging from 300mg to 2,400mg, so you can find the potency that matches your needs. The tinctures come in five flavors, berry, mint, citrus, natural, and vanilla.

The products support a healthy and active lifestyle. The mixture of cannabinoids may aid in muscle recovery and stress alleviation. A regular dose may also improve your sense of calmness and focus without the psychoactive effects because full-spectrum CBD from hemp has less than 0.3 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main compound in cannabis that produces a high sensation.

Fab CBD mixes fractionated coconut oil into some of its health and wellness products. The oil helps skin appear firm and lush when mixed into topical creams and lotions. The coconut oil also facilitates improved absorption, so your body can more readily take in cannabinoids.

Fab CBD makes a point to provide transparency and quality at every stage of the production process. It sources all its hemp from Colorado and uses third-party laboratory testing for quality assurance. If one of its products doesnt perform up to your expectations, you can return it for your money back, guaranteed.

Fab CBD has earned recent press coverage in Forbes, LA Weekly, and Business Insider. While it opened its doors only in 2017, the young company serves as a high-water mark for the CBD industry. Competitors that want to evaluate themselves against the best full-spectrum products should use Fab as a measuring stick.

Organically grown Colorado hemp

Third-party lab tested

Tinctures, gummies, creams, and vape pens

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#2 CBDistillery: Best CBD Oil for Stress

CBDistillery has made a splash on the national stage. The company has earned press in the New York Times, USA Today, and Forbes for its premium CBD oil. It offers reliable, all-American products that are affordable on any budget.

CBDistillery puts its Colorado-grown hemp through a battery of tests before making it available to the public. None of the items contains more than 0.3 percent THC, meeting the federal definition of legal hemp.

You can select from a range of tinctures, softgels, gummies, and topical creams. The website includes product descriptions detailing the ingredients and hemp sources for each item. Theres also information about the product benefits and how to use them.

CBDistillery has some of the best CBD oil for anxiety because of its unparalleled variety. It offers full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, and isolate. The company even offers tinctures with cannabigerol and cannabinol, mildly psychoactive compounds that are similar to THC.

New users can sign up for a CBDistillery subscription and save 20 percent on every purchase. Youll also secure free shipping inside the United States. If the CBD oil doesnt live up to your expectations, you can return it within 60 days for a complete refund.

Tinctures, softgels, topicals, and edibles

Full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, and isolates

High-potency compared to other brands

Great for relaxation, stress, and sleep

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#3 Royal CBD: Full-Spectrum CBD Oil for Panic Attacks

If youre in search of the best full-spectrum CBD, youve come to the right place. Royal CBD has made a name for itself with premium CBD products and a range of potency selections. The company has even won industry awards for its high-quality offerings.

Royal CBD has some of the best CBD oil for those wanting to try it for anxiety because it uses only the best hemp. Each hemp plant comes from a sustainable farm in Colorado that follows organic farming practices. Royal CBD also uses carbon dioxide extraction to break down the hemp plant without chemical byproducts.

Tinctures come in four sizes: 250mg, 500mg, 1,000mg, and 2,500mg. The full-spectrum products have a mixture of cannabinoids, terpenes, and THC that may deliver a synergy of relief and calmness. Note that all Royal CBD items contain less than 0.3 percent THC, meaning you are unlikely to feel psychoactive effects.

You can find much more than tinctures at Royal CBD. The website features lab-tested gummies, softgels, and vape pens. Consider trying CBD dog treats if you have a four-legged friend suffering from anxiety or depression.

Loyal users can sign up for the Royal CBD rewards program. It gives you points for actions like subscribing to the email newsletter and liking social media posts. You can redeem those rewards for Royal CBD prizes and products.

Royal CBD does everything right when it comes to making high-quality CBD. It uses U.S.-grown hemp, organic farming practices, and third-party labs for independent testing. The company even offers free shipping on all orders and a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee.

Lab-tested for potency and purity

25mg of CBD per serving for capsules and gummies

Discounts for monthly subscription

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#4 Joy Organics: High Quality Broad-Spectrum CBD for Depression

Joy Smith started using CBD oil to treat her insomnia and anxiety issues. The anxiolytic effects of CBD won her over, but Smith struggled to find consistently high-quality products. In 2018, she decided to do it herself and opened Joy Organics.

The company has a dynamic selection of full-spectrum products. It uses proprietary farming and extraction methods to guarantee THC-free products. The key is Joy Organic's filtering and sieving, which separates the THC from the rest of the cannabinoids.

Joy Organics uses Colorado-grown hemp that's third-party tested for safety and quality. The rigorous standards ensure that you receive the maximum return on your investment. It's also why Joy Organics has some of the best CBD oil for anxiety and depression.

You can find broad-spectrum tinctures, softgels, gummies, and topicals on the company's website. Joy Organics is among the few places that add artificial flavors, such as mint and lemon, to its oil. If you prefer a natural taste and smell, you can opt for the plain variety.

Joy Organics uses advanced techniques to deliver premium CBD products. Its nanotechnology improves CBD absorption into the bloodstream, while the carbon extraction removes THC and possible carcinogens. According to Alexa.com, Joy Organics ranks as the No. 1 source for THC-free broad-spectrum products.

Full- and broad-spectrum CBD tinctures

Choose your own potency: 15, 30, or 45mg per serving

Great-tasting flavors

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#5 Cheef Botanicals: Top-Rated CBD Products for Anxiety

A few years ago, a group of hemp aficionados and advocates got together in California. They wanted to establish a new and reliable way for people to get anxiety and depression relief through THC-free products. The result of that meeting: Cheef Botanicals.

Cheef Botanicals uses a network for Colorado-based farmers to source and manufacture its products. The company has strict quality control and implements organic techniques at every stage. Cheef Botanicals also has items tested by third-party labs for quality and accuracy.

Cheef Botanicals stands out for its combination of high quality and affordable pricing. It offers CBD flowers in bulk, including internationally acclaimed strains like Northern Lights, Sour Lifter, Goliath, and Cherry Wine. You can purchase up to a pound of a specific option if you fall in love with it.

The company makes its botanical extracts from all-natural ingredients. You'll never find artificial dyes or flavors in the oil tinctures, concentrates, or capsules. It reflects the company's commitment to cruelty-free manufacturing.

Cheef Botanicals fills a void in health-conscious plant-based medicine. Its motto is to bring back balance to its customers lives one drop at a time. The unique lineup of natural lab-tested hemp products comes with a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee and free shipping to all 50 states.

Amazing variety of CBD products

CBD flowers, vapes, edibles, capsules, pre-rolls, tinctures, and more

Fast, free shipping on all products

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How Does CBD Oil Work for Anxiety and Depression?

To understand how CBD oil works, we need to take a trip inside the human body. While CBD products can influence a range of bodily systems, we're going to focus on serotonin receptors, also known as 5-HT receptors. You can find them spread throughout the nervous system.

Serotonin receptors control the levels of multiple neurotransmitters, such as norepinephrine, dopamine, and glutamate. These substances influence your mood and biological functions, including your anxiety and cognitive processes.

It is thought that CBD may alter the frequency and number of neurotransmitters your body releases. Researchers dont fully understand the process but users take different types of CBD to try to alleviate anxiety and depression based on this interaction. The effects are similar whether you use broad-spectrum or full-spectrum CBD oil.

CBD is thought to activate 5-HT1A serotonin receptors, stimulating the release of serotonin. The neurotransmitter, occasionally called the happy molecule, serves as an anti-anxiety aid and antidepressant. It can elevate your mood while curbing anxiety symptoms.

Pure CBD has a stronger effect than full-spectrum or broad-spectrum CBD oil. It contains cannabidiolic acid (CBDA), an untreated form of CBD, that comes from cannabis.

Things to Consider Before Buying a CBD Oil for Anxiety

Hemp Source

The hemp source says a lot about its quality. Look for CBD oils from reputable growers who follow legal agricultural guidelines. The last thing you want is to have an adverse reaction because the hemp extract contained pesticides, herbicides, and other harmful chemicals.

Check a companys website to find out where it procures its hemp. Montana is the foremost hemp source in the United States, growing 44,910 acres-worth in 2019. Other well-established states include Colorado, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Oregon.

Type of Extracts

Hundreds of CBD extracts exist, so finding the best one for your anxiety or depression can be challenging. Taking the time to research ingredients can make all the difference in your experience. That starts by understanding what distinguishes CBD oil from hemp seed oil.

Both products come from the hemp plant. The difference is that hemp oil, from the seed, doesn't contain cannabidiol, while CBD oil, from the leaves, features various cannabinoids. The CBD concentration depends on the type of extract, with broad-spectrum CBD being THC-free and full-spectrum CBD having trace amounts.

One of the most significant benefits of full-spectrum CBD is that cannabinoids work together to create an entourage effect. The theory is that all aspects of the hemp plant working in unison are more effective than taking them separately. Broad-spectrum CBD offers more narrowly tailored relief for specific depression and anxiety symptoms.

Potency

Always check the potency before trying cannabidiol. A pure isolate delivers a massive boost all at once compared with full-spectrum CBD oil because the cannabidiol is more concentrated. Companies typically include mg of CBD per serving on the label to indicate potency.

Always start with small doses, roughly 5-10mg per serving or dose, before graduating to higher potencies. Its essential to understand the effects of the cannabis plant and how it influences your body and your quality of life. Theres no harm in having too little CBD in your nervous system, which cant be said of the inverse scenario.

Third-Party Lab Testing

Third-party lab testing is the unsung hero of the CBD industry. It offers an independent and unbiased review of various products before companies release them to the market. Researchers evaluate the contents and their risks, promising that customers get safe and reliable help with anxiety and depression.

Take a moment to read the lab report before buying CBD oil. Legitimate manufacturers will post the paperwork on their websites. Third-party labs detail the quality, potency, and contaminants found in the product. The product will have the title of lab tested or lab approved if it meets the appropriate standards.

Company Reputation

A companys reputation matters. You should feel confident in a products quality because the CBD oil producer does business the right way. Many organizations offer a 100 percent satisfaction guarantee to show their commitment and belief in their products.

One way to check a company's reputation is by reading customer reviews. Sites like Google Reviews and Yelp provide a glimpse behind the curtain at the user experience. You can get valuable insights into a product's value and effectiveness before making a purchase.

Taste

You have two options when it comes to taste: flavored and unflavored. Unflavored is the more straightforward of the two. Natural CBD oils and hemp extracts taste earthy and musky, regardless of CBD or THC concentrations.

You might prefer a product with flavoring if you plan on mixing it with your food or drinks. Some manufacturers add a touch of lime, coconut, or berry juice for a delectable finish. Even a small dose of flavoring can make CBD oil significantly more palatable.

Types of Anxiety Disorders that CBD May Alleviate

Social Anxiety

Social anxiety can happen anywhere and anytime. Everyday interactions can leave people feeling self-conscious and distraught. The best CBD oils may work as a coping mechanism so that users can overcome these anxiety-inducing situations.

In the simplest terms, social anxiety occurs when individuals overthink or overreact to a situation. CBD may calm the brain and its reactions to overwhelming stimuli. The CBD oil may mitigate some of the discomfort and cognitive impairment that hinders victims.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

Cannabidiol may help people manage the symptoms associated with PTSD. This mental health condition can lead to anxiety, depression, and insomnia. The best CBD oils may have therapeutic benefits that minimize the burden of reliving traumatic events.

Studies have foundthat drugs that influence the endocannabinoid system can alleviate PTSD symptoms. Thats because the endocannabinoid system contains neurotransmitters responsible for memory and anxiety. Hemp oil may also affect the hippocampus and amygdala, reducing hyperactivity in the brain.

Phobias

According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, 19 million Americans suffer from specific phobias. Anxiety disorders prevent individuals from living normal lives. CBD products may relax the nervous system so that triggers dont cause anxiety issues.

Choosing the right CBD product depends on your phobia. For instance, you might have a fear of snakes, but its challenging to know when youll encounter one. A fast-acting vape pen allows you to use cannabidiol for potential immediate relief. If you have social anxiety that occurs throughout the day, you might consider using long-lasting full-spectrum CBD oils or topical creams.

Panic Attacks

Panic attacks put your body on high alert. Your heart starts pounding, your breath gets shallow, and your hands begin sweating. CBD for anxiety may allow you to regain control during these trying moments.

CBD oil may counteract your bodys fight-or-flight response. It may tamp down the surge of adrenaline flowing through your bloodstream and relax your muscles. Panic attacks are an anxiety disorder that may be most easily treated with cannabidiol.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

Generalized anxiety disorder presents a long-term challenge for millions of people. The mental health condition leaves individuals feeling restless, irritable, and easily fatigued. A full-spectrum CBD oil may help with anxiety symptoms and restore life to normal.

Researchon CBD oils for anxiety disorders is still in its infancy. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has confirmed that cannabidiol can lower stress in rats. Studies foundthat CBD products reduced rats heart rates and behavioral anxiety levels.

How to Use CBD Oil for Anxiety

Theres no one best way to use cannabis oil. Thats part of the beauty of the product. It is as diverse as the people who use it. You can eat, drink, and smoke it and even apply it as a topical cream.

You can ingest CBD oil for potential relief of anxiety and depression in three ways: orally, sublingually, and topically. Orally involves adding CBD products to your food or beverage before consuming it. Your body needs time to break down the compounds, so it takes 15 minutes to two hours to feel the full effects.

Sublingual cannabidiol requires you to put the hemp extract under your tongue. Its slightly faster than oral ingestion because more of the cannabidiol compounds go directly into your bloodstream. The sublingual process can work in as few as five minutes.

Topical CBD treatments are more common for aches and pains than depression. People can spread cream with full-spectrum CBD oil across afflicted areas and let the solution dissolve. Once the cannabidiol gets through the outer layer of skin, you may experience the anti-anxiety and anti-depression benefits. If you live in a region in which oral CBD is illegal, the topical option might work for you.

Different Types of CBD Oil Products

Tinctures

Tinctures are the most popular way to consume cannabidiol for anxiety and depression. The vials contain concentrated CBD mixed with a fat-soluble cannabinoid extract. Use the dropper to add a few drops to your food or under your tongue.

People use tinctures when they want to treat anxiety issues immediately. The liver doesnt have to metabolize the cannabidiol; instead, the body can absorb it directly into the bloodstream. You may start to feel the benefits in five to 15 minutes.

Capsules

Capsules are the easiest and most convenient way to consume cannabis oil. Manufacturers place the cannabidiol or full-spectrum hemp in a small, fat-soluble pill case. Pop the wellness product when its convenient. Capsules make it simple to monitor how much hemp extract youre consuming. Every pill has the same amount and potency. The uniformity allows you to ramp up your intake gradually.

Vape

Vaping has been around only since 2003, but its recently become a popular way to ingest CBD. The process involves heating CBD concentrates until the cannabinoids evaporate. You can inhale the vapor and wait two to five minutes for it to interact with your endocannabinoid system.

Many people use vaping as an alternative to smoking. It doesnt require combustion, so theres a lower risk of consuming carcinogens or tar. However, you should proceed with caution if you have respiratory or lung problems. Both vaping and smoking are damaging to the lungs, whether you have lung problems or not.

Topical Creams

CBD manufacturers incorporate cannabidiol into various health and wellness products, including topical creams. All you have to do is rub the lotion into your skin. Once your body absorbs it, the CBD may influence your endocannabinoid system and alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders.

Topical creams are optimal if you have some time on your hands. They take at least 15 minutes to kick in and may provide up to six hours of relief. Note that topical creams tend to have less cannabidiol per serving than other cannabidiol products.

Gummies

Gummies are essentially CBD capsules but in food form. Cannabis oil manufacturers infuse the cannabidiol into a gummy, providing users with a fun and convenient way to potentially treat anxiety issues. You can also find foods with full-spectrum hemp and CBD, such as brownies, cereals, and chocolates.

People in search of immediate reprieve from anxiety disorders should consider something other than gummies. The body has to digest and metabolize the food before it can absorb the CBD into the bloodstream. Even high-quality CBD takes two hours to achieve full effect in a gummy.

How Much CBD Oil Should You Take for Anxiety?

Theres no one-size-fits-all answer for how much CBD oil someone should take. First, everyone is different. A 150-pound person needs significantly less CBD to achieve the same potential benefits as someone twice that weight.

Its also important to consider the CBD oils composition. A product like full-spectrum cannabidiol contains a wide range of compounds that can yield a stronger effect than its broad-spectrum counterpart. Similarly, CBD isolate is a form of pure cannabidiol and delivers the strongest pound-for-pound results, so you should take a relatively small dose.

As a rule of thumb, you start by taking 5-10mg of cannabidiol per serving. If youre not sure how much that is, check the label. Manufacturers label their CBD products to show how much cannabidiol is in a single serving.

If you experience the desired benefits from one serving, great. Continue to use that amount regularly. If you dont feel the full effects, gradually increase the dosage. Make sure to use an incremental approach to avoid taking too much at one time.

Does CBD Oil Have Any Side Effects?

Every drug has potential side effects. You might experience an adverse reaction after taking something as benign as Vitamin C or iron. The same applies to cannabidiol.

An overwhelming majority of the side effects associated with cannabidiol are minor. They are so mild, in fact, that you might not notice them at all. Some common risks include:

Dry mouth

Diarrhea

Fatigue

Sleepiness

Reduced appetite

It doesnt take a rocket scientist to realize that the benefits of CBD oils can far outweigh the cons. The compound offers a tangible way to potentially grapple with a range of anxiety issues and depressive conditions. One significant risk is if you mix CBD oils with other drugs.

CBD reacts primarily with the endocannabinoid system but can also engage with other drugs in your body. Don't take CBD oils for anxiety if you're pregnant, breastfeeding, or on blood thinners. If you have any questions about using CBD with certain medications, be sure to contact a medical professional.

Final Thoughts on Using CBD Oil for Anxiety and Depression

Anxiety and depression are among the most common causes of disability. Severe episodes can prevent people from doing even the simplest tasks. Many people suffering from anxiety and depression are trying CBD oil as a potential treatment for many conditions, from manic depression to anxiety disorders.

CBD oil potentially offers a safe and effective solution to treat anxiety and depression. While you shouldnt rely strictly on cannabis products to cope, cannabidiol may be a useful way to regain your well-being in conjunction with mental health counseling. Some of the brands leading the charge to provide CBD oil for anxiety and depression include Royal CBD, Joy Organics, and Cheef Botanicals.

Make sure to talk with your primary care physician or a mental health professional before using CBD oil. They understand your condition and can assist you in finding a product that matches your needs and preferences. Even a few doses of full-spectrum CBD per day may make an enormous difference in your mental well-being over the long run.
Unions and principals warn the government is pushing the new curriculum into classrooms too soon, risking poor-quality syllabuses, under-prepared teachers and short-changed students.

But the head of the curriculum authority has defended the ambitious timetable, saying there is a moral imperative for students to be taught the upgraded courses as soon as possible.

The proposal to streamline and reduce ambiguity in the states syllabuses was made when a two-year review of the NSW curriculum was finalised last June. The reviews chair, Professor Geoff Masters, suggested a 10-year timeframe.

Paul Martin addresses the Heralds Schools Summit at the International Convention Centre Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

But the government has reduced that to four, with the first of the new syllabuses - kindergarten to year 2 English and maths - to be taught in classrooms from next year.
Mass-testing will mean some pupils won't go back to school until April, teachers have warned, as Boris Johnson faces a growing backlash over plans to reopen classrooms on March 8.

An academy chief is leading calls for a staggered return for pupils, insisting a secondary school with around 2,000 students would likely have to invite one year group back each week to carry out testing on such a scale.

Even if it did begin early next month as the Prime Minister proposes, such a process would not realistically be completed until the week of April 19, education bosses claim.

The comments by Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis multi-academy trust which runs more than 50 schools nationwide, comes as Mr Johnson is facing opposition to his plan for widespread, simultaneous returns from teaching unions and Matt Hancock.

Mr Chalke told the Telegraph: 'You need a waiting area, a testing area, a holding area, an administrative area and an isolation area for people who test positive.

'You need to have someone in charge of it all, someone to assist with the testing, someone in charge of the collation of the data, someone in charge of the hosting area, someone in charge of waste disposal, someone to oversee the isolation area  it is quite an operation.'

He added that schools would become 'a medical centre' if more than one year group was being brought in for testing at the same time.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will unveil his lockdown exit strategy on Monday next week

The PM has said he wants schools in England to reopen on March 8 but the details are still unclear

Some unions are calling for a phased return to the classroom. It has also been claimed that Matt Hancock wants to see a phased return

The Prime Minister has repeatedly said the Government will target March 8 to reopen schools across England.

But it is still unclear exactly how the reopening will work, with the PM due to unveil his lockdown exit roadmap on Monday.

The PM is said to want to see all pupils return on the same day but some union bosses are adamant there should be a phased return to classrooms, with the Health Secretary also said to be advocating a cautious approach.

It came amid reports that the Government could ask parents to take responsibility for testing their children regularly for coronavirus during term-time, sparking an immediate backlash from some unions.

The Telegraph reported schools could test secondary school pupils upon their initial return but that responsibility could then shift to parents to administer rapid lateral flow tests twice a week.

Sources told MailOnline that Mr Johnson wants all primary and secondary school pupils to return to classrooms on March 8.

However, the National Education Union has made clear it wants to see a phased return.

Sources also claimed that Mr Hancock is pushing for a gradual return to the classroom. Allies of the Health Secretary rejected the suggestion.

Mr Johnson has repeatedly stressed that the return of schools is the Government's top priority when it comes to easing lockdown.

He has faced calls from Tory MPs to speed up the reopening of classrooms but he has refused to accelerate his plans.

Speaking on February 3, the PM said that March 8 was a 'sensible date' and he intended to 'stick' to that approach.

On February 15 he stressed no decisions had yet been taken on the exact detail of the return to classrooms, amid claims there could be a staggered approach, adding 'though clearly schools on March 8 has for a long time been a priority of the Government and of families up and down the country'.

Dr Mary Bousted, the joint general secretary of the NEU, tweeted this morning: 'Today's React 1 COVID survey results make the strongest case for a phased re-opening of schools to full pupil intakes.

'A 'big bang' reopening on 8th March, with the current high rates of infection and hospitalisation, would jeopardise full and sustained school reopening.'

Imperial College London's React study, which tested more than 85,000 people in England between February 4 and 13, suggested coronavirus infections have dropped to just one in 200 people.

Prevalence fell substantially across all age groups with the highest prevalence among 18 to 24 year olds at 0.89%, and those aged five to 12 years at 0.86%.

Meanwhile, Public Health England figures showed coronavirus cases among 10-19 year olds in England have plummeted to levels not seen since September  before the second wave spiralled out of control.

The figures showed 86.2 cases for every 100,000 people in that age group were diagnosed in the week ending February 14. For comparison, the rate was 127.2 the week before.

It is the lowest coronavirus infection rate for 10-19 year olds since the seven-day spell ending September 20 last year.

The Government plans to use mass-testing to ensure a safe reopening of schools.

Reports today suggested that parents could be asked to administer the tests at home rather than teachers or volunteers being asked to administer them at schools.

The country's largest surveillance testing study has found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January  the prevalence fell from 1.36 per cent to 0.44 per cent

The data shows that prevalence fell across all age groups, but research now suggests the virus is now spreading the most among primary school children and young people. Experts warn that reopening schools would need to be done 'carefully' in light of the study data, which shows Covid is most prevalent among five- to twelve-year-olds and those aged 18 to 24

Some unions had previously called for home testing kits to be supplied in order to avoid schools being turned into 'field hospitals'.

But responding to the prospect of parents having to do the tests, Dr Bousted said: 'I think again that is fraught with difficulty as well because I think there's been a big parental reaction to the notion that they've got to swab their children up their noses or down their throats.

'And of course lots of parents probably will not want to know if their child has got Covid because they will be asymptomatic and that has implications for them being able to work.'

Many in the education sector believe a phased return for secondary school pupils is likely.

Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: 'It's accepted that secondary school pupils might have to return in a slightly staggered way because of the logistics of mass testing.

'If they come back into the classroom all at the same time, they would have to be taken out of class for the tests to take place by which time they will have already mixed.'

President Joe Biden has an unexpected opening to cut deals with red states to expand Medicaid, raising the prospect that the new administration could extend health protections to millions of uninsured Americans and reach a goal that has eluded Democrats for a decade.

The opportunity emerges as the COVID-19 pandemic saps state budgets and strains safety nets. That may help break the Medicaid deadlock in some of the 12 states that have rejected federal funding made available by the Affordable Care Act, health officials, patient advocates and political observers say.

Any breakthrough will require a delicate political balancing act. New Medicaid compromises could leave some states with safety-net programs that, while covering more people, dont insure as many as Democrats would like. Any expansion deals would also need to allow Republican state officials to tell their constituents they didnt simply accept the 2010 health law, often called Obamacare.

See also: Most Alabamians support Medicaid expansion

Getting all the remaining states to embrace the Medicaid expansion is not going to happen overnight, said Matt Salo, executive director of the nonpartisan National Association of Medicaid Directors. But there are significant opportunities for the Biden administration to meet many of them halfway.

Key to these potential compromises will likely be federal signoff on conservative versions of Medicaid expansion, such as limits on who qualifies for the program or more federal funding, which congressional Democrats have proposed in the latest COVID-19 relief bill.

But any deals would bring the country closer to fulfilling the promise of the 2010 law, a pillar of Bidens agenda, and begin to reverse Trump administration efforts to weaken public programs, which swelled the ranks of the uninsured.

A new administration with a focus on coverage can make a difference in how these states proceed, said Cindy Mann, who oversaw Medicaid in the Obama administration and now consults extensively with states at the law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips.

Medicaid, the half-century-old health insurance program for the poor and people with disabilities, and the related Childrens Health Insurance Program cover more than 70 million Americans, including nearly half the nations children.

Enrollment surged following enactment of the health law, which provides hundreds of billions of dollars to states to expand eligibility to low-income, working-age adults.

However, enlarging the government safety net has long been anathema to most Republicans, many of whom fear that federal programs will inevitably impose higher costs on states.

And although the GOPs decadelong campaign to repeal and replace it has largely collapsed, hostility to the health law remains high among Republican voters.

That makes it perilous for politicians to embrace any part of it, said Republican pollster Bill McInturff, a partner at Public Opinion Strategies. A lot of Republican state legislators are sitting in core red districts, looking over their shoulders at a primary challenge, he said.

Many conservatives have called instead for federal Medicaid block grants that cap how much federal money goes to states in exchange for giving states more leeway to decide whom they cover and what benefits their programs offer.

Many Democrats and patient advocates fear block grants will restrict access to care. But just before leaving office, the Trump administration gave Tennessee permission to experiment with such an approach.

Its a frustrating place to be, said Tom Banning, the longtime head of the Texas Academy of Family Physicians, which has labored to persuade the states Republican leaders to drop their opposition to expanding Medicaid. Despite COVID and despite all the attention on health and disparities, we see almost no movement on this issue.

Some 1.5 million low-income Texans are shut out of Medicaid because the state has resisted expansion, according to estimates by KFF. (KHN is an editorially independent program of KFF.)

An additional 800,000 people are locked out in Florida, which has also blocked expansion.

Two million more are caught in the 10 remaining holdouts: Alabama, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Advocates of Medicaid expansion, which is broadly popular with voters, believe they may be able to break through in a handful of these states that allow ballot initiatives, including Mississippi and South Dakota.

Since 2018, voters in Idaho, Nebraska, Utah, Oklahoma and Missouri have backed initiatives to expand Medicaid eligibility, effectively circumventing Republican political leaders.

The work that weve done around the country shows that no matter where people live  red state or blue state  there is overwhelming support for expanding access to health care, said Kelly Hall, policy director of the Fairness Project, a nonprofit advocacy group that has helped organize the Medicaid measures.

But most of the holdout states, including Texas, dont allow citizens to put initiatives on the ballot without legislative approval.

And although Florida has an initiative process, mounting a ballot campaign there is challenging, as political advertising is expensive. Unlike in many states, Floridas leading hospital association hasnt backed expansion.

Another route for expansion: compromises that could win over skeptical Republican state leaders and still get the green light from the Biden administration.

The Obama administration approved conservative Medicaid expansion in Arkansas, which funneled enrollees into the commercial insurance market, and in Indiana, which forced enrollees to pay more for their medical care.

Money is a major focus of current talks in several states, according to health officials, advocates and others involved in efforts across the country.

The health law at first fully funded Medicaid expansion with federal money, but after the first three years, states had to begin paying part of the tab. Now, states must come up with 10% of the cost of expansion.

Even that small share is a challenge for states, many of which are reeling from the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, said David Becker, a health economist at the University of Alabama-Birmingham who has assisted efforts to expand Medicaid in that state.

The question is: Where do we get the money? Becker said, noting that some Republicans may be open to expanding Medicaid if the federal government pays the full cost of the expansion, at least for a year or two.

Other efforts to find ways to offset state costs are underway in Kansas and North Carolina, which have Democratic governors whose expansion plans have been blocked by Republican state legislators. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly this month proposed using money from the sale and taxation of medical marijuana.

Some Democrats in Congress are pushing to revise the health law to provide full federal funding to states that expand Medicaid now. Separately, in the stimulus bill unveiled last week, House Democrats proposed an additional boost in total Medicaid aid to states that expand.

Other Republicans have signaled interest in partly expanding Medicaid, opening the program to people making up to 100% of the federal poverty level, or about $12,900, rather than 138%, or $17,800, as the law stipulated.

The Obama administration rejected this approach, but the idea has gained traction in several states, including Georgia.

Its unclear what kind of compromises the new administration may consider, as Biden has yet to even nominate someone to oversee the Medicaid program.

Some Democrats say its time to give up the search for middle ground with Republicans on Medicaid.

A better strategy, they say, is a new government insurance plan, or public option, for people in non-expansion states, a strategy Biden endorsed on the campaign trail.

Democrats can no longer countenance millions of Americans living in poverty without insurance, said Chris Jennings, a Democratic health care strategist who worked in the White House under Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama and served on Bidens transition team.

This is why the Biden public option or other new ways to secure affordable, meaningful care should become the order of the day for people living in states like Florida and Texas.



(Kaiser Health News (KHN) is a national health policy news service. It is an editorially independent program of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation which is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.)

(c)2021 Kaiser Health News

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC


A 29-year-old man has been charged with a terrorism related offence after a search by police investigating the South East Antrim UDA.

The man is charged with possession of articles connected with the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism, contrary to section 57(1) of the Terrorism Act 2000.

He is due to appear before Belfast Magistrates Court on Thursday.

The charges follow a search of a property in the Erskine Park area of Ballyclare on February 16.

The search was part of an operation targeting suspected criminality linked to the South East Antrim UDA.

As is usual procedure all charges will be reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.
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Korean Air will join a UNICEF program to deliver coronavirus vaccines around the world. The Korean flag carrier signed a memorandum of understanding with UNICEF on Tuesday, a spokesman said.

UNICEF handles the distribution of vaccines under the COVAX Facility, a global initiative led by the WHO for equitable distribution among poorer countries. It plans to deliver vaccines to 145 countries in the first half of this year.

UNICEF has picked 16 airlines from around the world for the delivery program.

Women are a rarity at the highest level of economic policy-making in Britain.

There has still never been a female Chancellor, although Labour's current shadow Anneliese Dodds would like to change that. And the current group in the top jobs at the Bank of England are an old boys club.

So it is hugely fascinating that Italian-born, American-educated University College London big thinker Mariana Mazzucato, 52, has risen above the crowd as one of the most agile thinkers on post-Brexit, post-Covid Britain.

Reach for the stars: Economist Mariana Mazzucato (pictured) says we need the same level of boldness that sent astronauts to the moon to tackle the many problems Britain is facing

Not for her the micro shifts in policy we have so far seen from Boris Johnson's government.

The imposing and vivacious mother of four, who presides over a raucous dining table in her North London home, is a powerful advocate for policymakers with vision.

She recommends courage among decision makers to define big missions and then empower every part of government and the private-sector firms used for procurement to reach for the stars.

Mazzucato's top example of what missions can achieve, and the fantastic value created by spin-offs, is Nasa in the United States and the Apollo space programme.

A chart in her new book Mission Economy: A Moonshot Guide To Changing Capitalism details the dozens of spin-offs from the moonshot, including camera phones, wireless headsets, laptops, CT scans and less obviously high-tech stuff such as baby formula and memory foam mattresses.

If the goals are broad enough, resources uninhibited and the genius of enterprise is on the same wavelength as the core agency then anything becomes possible.

Married to a film producer husband, she tells me over Zoom 'we bring life to the dinner table by making the work-life balance fun, so the kids are really nice because they feel sorry for you'.

Her answer to the huge future challenges for Britain, from climate change to pandemics, is 'to develop capabilities in the public sector which currently don't exist'.

'So that's why I begin with Covid and the massive failures which is basically a public sector failure. But also a private sector failure,' she argues.

Giant leap: Astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin were the astronauts on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon

Britain needs to be ready for the next pandemics (all these 'God forbid viruses') and a carbon neutral economy. In her view, in order to rise to these challenges effectively, the UK needs 'ambitious, innovative, dynamic approaches 'not static public private partnerships'.

'I do not try to glorify the public sector but make a warning call, like, key guys get your fricking act together.'

An example of state and private sector getting it right, in her view, in the age of coronavirus is the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine. 'It did much more than Pfizer to make sure the influential property rights are governed and the price of the goods reflects the public investment.

In the US pre-Covid Uncle Sam put $40billion a year into drug innovation and somehow let the prices get out of control and the patents abused.'

In contrast, AZ created a more 'symbiotic' role with Oxford and government whereas Pfizer was more 'parasitic'.

The mistake sometimes made about Mazzucato is that she is some kind of big-state socialist and this is how she ended up alongside Nobel-prize winning economist Joseph Stiglitz on an economic advisory panel to Jeremy Corbyn.

In the leftist euphoria which followed the 2017 election, the former Labour politician looked like he might be a credible vote winner.

Mazzucato quickly recognised that there was no real role as a Corbyn adviser and resigned after two months.

'The actual people pulling the strings were Seumas Milne and others. I felt like well, if you want to do your own thing, do it.

Too little: Mazzucato wants a change from the small steps taken by Boris Johnson's government

But don't do it in my name,' she tells me. After this brief flirtation with the wrong sort of politician, she is keen to point out that she has worked closely with the Tories, advising Greg Clark, among others, on his industrial strategy when he occupied the constantly changing role of Business Secretary.

At a moment when Britain's new Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng  the fourth person to hold the office in four years  is thinking about a new tech and industrial strategy, Mazzucato has some advice.

In her view it needs two components: a horizontal policy based around 'productivity, skills, research and education that always has to happen'.

The other component is vertical. She rejects Britain's past failed efforts to pick winners, or focusing on particular sectors or technologies in favour of dealing with the big problems which all sectors across the economy are going to have.

'So if you think about climate change I can't think of almost any sector that wouldn't be involved: nutrition, transport, digital  they're all going to be part of that.'

She argues that Arm Holdings, Britain's biggest tech company, was created because of a core mission.

The BBC set out to improve digital literacy and, with the help of Cambridge scientists, came up with the Acorn computer, which was scaled up to become Arm. Mazzucato's passion for the really big mission is in her DNA and a product of her upbringing.

Her Italian scientist father moved the family to the United States to pursue his still unfulfilled lifetime work of nuclear fusion at Princeton.

Even though she is an Italian, with a top role as Professor in the Economics of Innovation at UCL, her American schooling comes through in her speech.

H ER sentences are peppered with asides and there is a fondness for the 'you know' interjections which are such a feature of American TV dialogue.

After an undergraduate degree at Tufts in Boston she went onto New York's New School for Social Research for her PhD.

Her economic thinking is strongly influenced by Britain's John Maynard Keynes  currently right back in fashion in an age of fiscal laxity  and the Austrian economist Joseph Schumpeter who feared that capitalism could self-destruct.

She has her own take on this, arguing, as this paper often has, that 'financialisation of the economy is a bad thing'.

'It means that profits are being siphoned out to finance, insurance, real estate.'

She is particularly critical of overseas takeovers that 'often come from foreign public institutions'. She regards this as 'hypocritical' in that 'we hear all this talk in the UK of needing more private sector and less state, then we sell if off to foreign states.'

As Britain relies on French government-controlled EDF to build our nuclear power stations and Deutsche Bahn runs many of our UK trains and London buses, it is hard to disagree.

Mission Economy: A Moonshot Guide to Changing Capitalism by Mariana Mazzucato, published by Allen Lane 20.00.
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New Delhi, Feb 18 : CII has asked the government to allow companies to vaccinate their employees and family members for Covid 19.

CII asked the government to consider industry participation in ramping up the vaccination programme.

"It is suggested that for ensuring faster rollout and for providing confidence to workers at the workplace, business enterprises could be permitted to vaccinate their employees and immediate family members. Enterprises could also assist in the vaccine rollout for surrounding communities on a CSR basis as well," it said.

It is estimated that such a programme could benefit an additional 100 million workers in the formal sector and local communities by providing access to the vaccine. While contributing to the Government's program, Industry would fully comply with all the guidelines instituted by the Government.

CII also suggested that private providers, with appropriate checks and balances, be allowed to vaccinate and support the Government to both utilize the available vaccines as well as amplify the number of vaccinations with all necessary norms and compliances.

The exercise will allow the Government to reach its identified target priority groups quicker, which will be critical for getting the workforce back to work and the economy back on track.

As all vaccines have a finite period of longevity and the matter of possible expiry of many of these vaccines is of national concern, it is recommended that all stakeholders must contribute in a manner that all vaccines available in the country are well utilised and well in time.

"By opening the vaccination process to private sector, the large cohort of those willing to take the vaccines would enable full utilization of the vaccines within the expiry period," CII said.

"Industry can supplement and contribute to the Government's program with appropriate checks and balances, throughout the envisaged three phases, so as to further reach out the vaccine to those sections of the population who can contribute to the economic revival of the country," stated T.V. Narendran, President Designate Chairman of CII's Vaccine Task Force.

Taking cognizance of the fact that the second phase of inoculating those over 50 years will be a particularly challenging task, with requirements for significantly increased vaccinating sites and vaccinators, CII has come out with three key recommendations.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
KYIV. Feb 18 (Interfax-Ukraine)  Experts of the aesthetic medicine market initiate the creation of a national certification commission for the industry and the development of medical care protocols for the main complications that may arise during aesthetic procedures.

As coordinator of IMCAS Academy Alert system, Doctor Igor Rudenko said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Wednesday, the initiative is aimed at creating a platform that will guarantee the safety of patients who use the services of aesthetic medicine.

"We have a catastrophic, close to collapse, situation in aesthetic medicine. It lies in the field of safety. A global powerful system for combating complications IMCAS Alert has been created in the world. It will unite top doctors who help with very unpleasant cases. The system selects and certifies doctors, drugs and techniques, making a safety assessment," he said.

In turn, Chairman of the Global Age Management Alliance Evgeniy Shagov said that the initiative group has created a community where specialists can get advice from colleagues both in Ukraine and abroad.

"Our task is to help our clients and patients how a concrete doctor can not only carry out a certain procedure, but also deal with possible complications, and say which are safe and which are not," he said.

According to Shagov, the initiative will be implemented according to a model that is successfully working in the United States, by creating a public organization (Board Certification  BC), which will "test and confirm the knowledge of doctors who have received a medical degree."

"Having a diploma obtained 30 years ago is not equal to knowledge of the real state of affairs in the market. The BC Association will validate doctors from year to year for the adequacy of their knowledge to their profile. In Ukraine, there is no BC in any specialization, neither cardiology, nor neurology, nor in dentistry and cosmetology. Our task is to borrow the successful experience of the United States to create the same BC system in the category of aesthetic medicine," he said.

Shagov said that within a year, the initiative group plans a campaign to certify specialists in the aesthetic medicine market, as well as create a protocol for the doctor's actions in the event of certain complications in cosmetology.

"Of 3,000 cosmetologists in Kyiv, there will probably be no more than 600 certified doctors. We must separate them from those who work at home in the kitchen, having learned the procedures using videos from YouTube," he said.

For her part, President of the Certification Commission of the Initiative Inha Andrashko said that the aesthetic medicine market "is divided into white, gray and black and not only them. There is an intermediate link  "doctors" who work at home, without a license, and this is a rather serious problem and damage to the market, eroding confidence in the medical profession."

"The topic of complications excites both doctors and patients. From 2015 to 2018, there were more than 30 cases of blindness or partial loss of vision that arose as complications during procedures to correct the nasolabial fold or wrinkles between the eyebrows. One of our tasks is to create guidelines for treatment of complications after contouring plasty with injections, "she said.

For her part, the founder and chief of the Cycle clinic (Odesa), the developer of an interdisciplinary approach to aesthetic medicine, Dr. Svitlana Larkina said that in the absence of modern protocols, the number of complications from aesthetic medicine procedures increases.

"If everything was done correctly, according to the protocol, by a competent specialist, then such problems can be solved. Initiatives such as IMCAS Alert will allow avoiding complications, working out procedure protocols and minimizing complications," she said.
[February 18, 2021] DC BLOX Expands its Birmingham, AL Data Center Adding 1MW of Power

DC BLOX, a provider of interconnected multi-tenant data centers that deliver the infrastructure and connectivity essential to power today's digital business, announces the expansion of its Birmingham, AL data center. This expansion includes 1 MW of power capacity in response to growing customer demand, and completes the full build out of its first data hall. The expansion is expected to be ready for service in May of 2021. The 1 MW of additional critical load, an amount sufficient to power nearly 1000 homes, is supplied by redundant feeds to each customer cabinet with dual UPS (universal power supply) and diesel generator backup systems. The Birmingham expansion also adds 135 tons of cooling capabilities, all in adherence to Tier III data center design standards. The DC BLOX facility, highly secure, provides customers a 100% power availability guarantee. DC BLOX designs and builds its data centers in smaller, growing cities across the Southeast utilizing a modular approach that allows the data center to meet local needs while enabling scalability driven by market demand. Future expansions will include the development of additional data halls to accommodate increasing capacity needs. DC BLOX's Birmingham facility enables access to a private, redundant, carrier-grade connectivity ecosystem that interconnects DC BLOX sites throughout the Southeast while enabling customers' connectivity to on-premises data centers, remote disaster recovery sites, and public cloud providers. Purpose-built to meet regional market demands, the DC BLOX Birmingham facility is the only multi-tenant data center in the state of Alabama that holds Uptime Institute's Tier III Certification for Design and Certification of Constructed Facility. During the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses have recognized the value of a data center partner that can offer a reliable facility for their IT infrastructure, while minimizing the need for company staff to be on-site.



"DC BLOX is pleased with the growing demand for our Birmingham data center. Alabama businesses and government entities are taking advantage of our reliable facilities and are benefiting from outsourcing the management of their critical infrastructure, which is proving even more valuable during the pandemic," comments Mark Masi, Chief Operating Officer of DC BLOX. The Birmingham Data Center expansion illustrates DC BLOX's commitment to bringing top tier data center facilities to cities like Huntsville, Chattanooga, Greenville and other underserved markets providing local companies with the core infrastructure needed to digitally transform their businesses.

To learn more about DC BLOX, please visit www.dcblox.com. About DC BLOX DC BLOX owns and operates interconnected multi-tenant data centers that deliver the infrastructure and connectivity essential to power today's digital business. DC BLOX's private network fabric and robust connectivity ecosystem enable access to built-in carriers, Internet exchanges, public cloud providers, and DC BLOX data centers to businesses across the Southeast. DC BLOX's data centers are located in Atlanta, GA; Birmingham, AL; Huntsville, AL; Chattanooga, TN; and soon in Greenville, SC. For more information, please visit www.dcblox.com, call +1. 877.590.1684, and connect with DC BLOX on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005029/en/

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By K. Sathya Narayanan

(Reuters) - Indian rice exports gained momentum this week after an additional port was opened in the country's biggest rice-handling facility, potentially easing congestion.

Waiting periods at the Kakinada Anchorage Port had reached up to four weeks, compared with about a week normally, because of congestion at the port.

"From Saturday we have started using Kakinada deepwater port," said B.V. Krishna Rao, president of the Rice Exporters Association of India, adding that this will reduce waiting times and accelerate overall exports.

Rao said that exporters' resulting savings in demurrage fees could be passed on to farmers and overseas buyers.

India's 5% broken parboiled variety of rice eased to $395-$401 a tonne from last week's multi-year high of $402-$408.

Thailand's 5% broken rice narrowed to $540-$560 a tonne on Thursday, still near 10-month highs.

"There's muted demand and less supply in the country. There's not much demand from overseas either because our prices are higher than competitors'," one Bangkok-based trader said.

Vietnam's 5% broken rice fell to $505-$510 a tonne on Thursday as harvests in the Mekong Delta gathered pace, down from $510-$515 before the Lunar New Year holiday.

Traders said they are buying more rice from farmers in expectation of rising demand from importers, pushing domestic prices of un-husked paddy to a 10-year high of between 6,200 and 7,000 dong per kg.

Productivity of the winter-spring crop in the Mekong is relatively high, they added.

Domestic prices in Bangladesh rose by 35% in 2020 amid low supply and increased demand during the pandemic, according to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization.

The government has initiated imports of 2 million tonnes of rice and also lowered import duty on rice from 65.5% to 25%.

(Reporting by Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai, Khanh Vu in Hanoi, Patpicha Tanakasempipat in Bangkok and Ruma Paul in Dhaka; Editing by David Goodman)


Palestinian Ambassador to Vietnam Saadi Salama has been with Vietnam for 40 years.

He speaks Vietnamese like a Vietnamese native and has attended the Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) four times (5th, 7th, 11th, 13th). Through each Party Congress, he has witnessed Vietnams rapid change and development.

Palestinian Ambassador to Vietnam Saadi Salama.

Not many foreign diplomats have attended up to four Congresses of the CPV like you. What's your impression of those Congresses?

I was a student who studied in Vietnam from 1980 to 1984. In 1982, Vietnam held the 5th Party Congress, and the Palestinian delegation was invited to attend. I contributed a small part to the success of the Palestinian delegation to Vietnam at that time.

The 5th Party Congress was very important because it took place when Vietnam was under economic embargo. The Congress attracted the solidarity and strong support of brotherly parties and the national liberation movement in the world.

Leaders from many countries came to Vietnam to attend the event, such as the representative of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Mr. Heydar Aliyev, who was later President of Azerbaijan; Mr. Kaysone Phomvihane of Laos; Mr. Heng Samrin of Cambodia and others...

I then returned to Vietnam as Deputy Ambassador. I had the opportunity to attend the 7th Party Congress (1991), when Mr. Do Muoi was elected the General Secretary. Vietnam passed important decisions related to the future, especially innovation policies when Vietnam saw complicated changes in the world.

Leaving Vietnam in 1992 to work in Laos, I still observed Vietnam with a passion for a country where I used to live, study and work.

Fate brought me back to Vietnam at the end of 2009. As the Palestinian Ambassador, I had the opportunity to attend the 11th Party Congress. At that time, the whole world was facing an economic and financial crisis. Vietnam intelligently handled difficulties faced by both the region and the world.

To that end, there were many things that Vietnam accomplished. Firstly, it made and implemented policies associated with the actual development of the country. Secondly, national unity. Thirdly, Vietnamese people always look forward to the future, to common development.

At all Party Congresses, I have noticed that Vietnam's foreign policy is independent. Vietnam is not a member of any coalition. Vietnam expands relations with other countries on the principle of not using force or threatening to use force, but using peaceful means to settle disagreements and to cooperate for mutual benefits.

Those principles of Vietnam have received support from many countries around the world. Therefore, Vietnams prestige and position on the worlds political map have been strengthened. I think it is necessary to continue to maintain such a foreign policy.

You have witnessed Vietnams development during the 35-year reform process. Can you comment on the change of our country during this period?

I could write a book about this. I came to Vietnam when the country was at its most difficult time. In the 1980s, when I came to Hanoi, I found the city to be very beautiful and peaceful, but the peoples life was hard. All Vietnamese people were the same at that time. Men all wore khaki pants with a white shirt. Women wore black silk pants with a shirt and a conical hat.

Everyone rode a bicycle, went to work from morning and carried with them a food container. People lacked medicine when they were sick and they had a shortage of rice. International students like us at that time even had a better living condition than many Vietnamese leaders, because we were given a lot of priorities.

Yet, Vietnam now ranks second in the world for rice exports and is among the leading exporters of seafood and agricultural products such as coffee, cashew nuts...

In 1980, the tallest buildings in Hanoi were no more than 5 floors, but now Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have some of the tallest buildings in Southeast Asia.

Within 35 years of Doi Moi, Vietnam has achieved these successes. Compared with other countries where I have lived and worked, it is a success.

The 13th Party Congress took place recently. What are you interested in the most?

I'm different from other Ambassadors in Vietnam who are interested in personnel. In principle, personnel always play an important role in determining Vietnam's path but I think this is not an important issue. Because so far, no matter who leads Vietnam, the interests of the nation are unified.

Regardless of who leads the country, Vietnam still maintains a foreign policy of promoting relations with other countries, expanding international relations for mutual benefit.

The world is in an unstable situation, with unpredictable level of danger. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam's GDP increased by nearly 3% while the major countries of Europe and Americas did not have a single point of growth. The production and commodities of Vietnam continue to ensure demand for domestic consumption as well as for export, and workers still have a job.

As a friend of Vietnam, I am always proud of my decision to come to Vietnam to study. I want to send messages to international friends and Palestine about a promising and thriving Vietnam.

Thanh Nam
The fact that Sgt. Jose Joey Sepulveda is still alive is nothing short of a miracle, Balcones Heights Police Chief John Jahanara said.

On Feb. 3, Sepulveda was shot while investigating reports of a burglary in progress at the SOL Apartments, 6945 W Interstate 10, Jahanara said.

Before he was shot, the 18-year-veteran of the force approached two men who maintenance workers thought they recognized from burglaries that occurred at the complex, the chief said.

The brothers, whom police identified later as brothers Wilfredo and Sijifredo Montemayor, were flippant with Sepulveda, 49, so he drew his stun gun and ordered them out of the vehicle, court records state.

On ExpressNews.com: A deep dive into 120 executions reveals the erratic ways Texas, the US deals justice

Wilfredo Montemayor allegedly fired a shot at Sepulveda from the back seat less than 5 feet away. The sergeant was hit just as he spun around to retreat, police said.

The bullet went through his chin, his collarbone, and became lodged in the back of his shoulder, Jahanara said. As Sepulveda raised his arms to shield himself, a second shot grazed his arm.

His partner, Officer Edgard Ortiz, exchanged shots with the men before they fled. He then dragged Sepulveda to a police-issued Chevrolet Tahoe and applied a tourniquet before rushing him to Methodist Hospital Texsan.

After he was stabilized, Sepulveda was taken to San Antonio Military Medical Center, where he underwent surgery. On Feb. 7, he awoke after one last procedure.

The chief informed him that both brothers had since been arrested, one in Mexico and the other in San Antonio.

On ExpressNews.com: Talks begin over new contract for San Antonio police amid calls for reform, upcoming vote on bargaining rights

It's just a miracle, Jahanara said, recalling that Sepulveda had lost a lot of blood. Hospital staff have told the chief that time was of the essence.

On the night of Feb. 11, Sepulveda was released from SAMMC.

The chief said he was still trying to figure out how many awards he can submit for Ortiz, who happened to be working ahead of his scheduled evening shift. Ortiz, who has been with the department for more than a year, also has five years of experience as an EMT.

Joey might not be alive today if we had waited for EMS to arrive and transport him, he said.

The brothers remain in the Bexar County Jail on charges of attempted capital murder of a police officer with bail set at $1,000,000 for Wilfredo Montemayor, and $500,000 for Sijifredo Montemayor.
Protesters chant slogans during a rally against a new national security law in Hong Kong on July 1, 2020. (Dale De La Rey/AFP via Getty Images)

Ottawa Must End Contract With Visa Application Company Linked to CCP, Committee Hears

The federal government should cancel its contract with a visa application company that has links to Beijing to prevent the personal data of Hong Kongers trying to flee the city from falling into the hands of the communist regime, a parliamentary committee heard on Feb. 17.

Hong Kong activists and experts testified before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration about their concerns over Ottawa contracting out its visa applications processing to VFS Global, a company known to have close ties with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). One of its subcontractors in China serves as the municipal governments public security bureau and police department in Beijing.

This is a worrying situation and the Canadian government should take prompt measures to ensure that people who are facing political suppression, their information will not fall into the hands of the Chinese Communist Party and result in secondary harms to them, said activist Nathan Law, who fled Hong Kong and now lives in the UK.

VFS Global, which processes visa applications for Canada in 83 countries, is majority owned by EQT VII (No. 1) Limited Partnership.

Based on a filing with the UKs corporate registry, Edinburgh-based EQT VII is a limited partner with Chengdong Investment Corp., which in turn is a subsidiary of China Investment Corporation, a Chinese state-owned investment fund with over US$1-trillion in assets. Another investor of EQT VII is Eight Finance Investment Co. Ltd., which is owned by the Exchange Fund, the primary investment arm of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.

Beijing Shuangxiong Foreign Service Company, a subcontractor of VFS Global which operates the Canadian visa application centre in Chinas capital, is owned by the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, according to a Globe and Mail report.

Exiled Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Nathan Law speaks via the internet during a press conference at Taiwans Parliament in Taipei on Jan. 8, 2021. (Sam Yeh/AFP via Getty Images)

Law told the committee that whenever the CCP needs any information, it can get it from these companies because there is no concept of keeping information private. If necessary, the regime will resort to blackmailing, collusion, or financial incentives to get what it wants.

Joey Siu, a Hong Kong-American student activist and associate with advocacy group Hong Kong Watch, said the risks posed by visa application centres such as VFS Global will hinder people from coming to Canada to seek asylum or for other purposes.

I believe a lot of activists or protesters or even random everyday citizens in China would be afraid to apply because that will mean that their information would be collected by the Chinese Communist Party, and that also means that the Chinese Communist Party would be aware that they are planning to leave the country, and that is very dangerous Siu said.

She added that the risks not only fall on Hong Kongers and Chinese citizens, but also anyone who intends to apply for a visa to visit Canada, because their personal data will obviously be obtained by the CCP.

CSIS director David Vigneault holds a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on July 16, 2020. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

The reach of CCPs pervasive surveillance and espionage goes far beyond dissidents and borders. In a speech to the Centre for International Governance Innovation on Feb. 9, Canadian Security Intelligence Service Director David Vigneault said Beijing has been collecting sensitive data on people around the globe.

In 2020, global news sources revealed that Zhenhua Data Technology, which primarily serves Chinas military and intelligence services, had been gathering sensitive data on 2.4 million individuals for several years, Vigneault said.

Approximately 20 percent of this data was not publicly available and likely accessed via cyberespionage.

In addition, the CCP has been stealing critical technology, including from Canada, particularly in the sectors of biopharma, health, artificial intelligence, aerospace, ocean technology, and quantum computing, Vigneault said.

Communist China is using all elements of state power to carry out activities that are a direct threat to our national security and sovereignty, he said.

In terms of how CCP-affiliated companies are able to bid competitively to win federal contracts that pose serious security threats to Canada, Charles Burton, senior fellow at the Centre for Advancing Canadas Interests Abroad at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, told the committee its because the regime offers the companies subsidies and expects other benefits in terms of their overall career path.

Theres no question about this. So you know, weve already got it clear that Huawei could facilitate espionage and kill switches in telecommunications. We know that Nuctech would be a disaster to be running our embassy control at the exit, and VFS is clearly transferring information, Burton said.

We need to stop that contract as soon as possible, he added.

The idea that subcontracting out cheaper is a good idea for immigration is a false economy. We need to have this based on Canadians, protecting the data through Canadian servers and Canadian diplomatic facilities, as opposed to allowing the Beijing police to gather this data for God knows what sort of use.

Asked what he would say to the federal government if it offers the standard response that all safety measures are in place.

Laughable, Burton replied.
As Senator Ted Cruz prepared to fly back to Texas from Cancun, he released a statement explaining why he left his home state while millions of its citizens sat at homes without powers as an Arctic blast ravaged the state.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said he daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

TWITTER GAFFES: As Ted Cruz flies to Cancun, another hypocritical tweet comes back to haunt

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

A throng of media awaited Cruz as he arrived at the Cancun International Airport to fly back home Thursday. He can expect the same when he lands back in Houston.

RELATED: Viral photo points to Sen. Ted Cruz going to Cancun amid winter storm

Here is Cruz's full statement on his Cancun trip:

"This has been an infuriating week for Texans. The greatest state in the greatest country in the world has been without power. We have food lines, gas lines and people sleeping at the neighbors' houses. Our homes are freezing and our lights are out. Like millions of Texans, our family lost heat and power too.

"With school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends. Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon. My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas. We want our power back, our water on and homes warm. My team and I will continue using all our resources to keep Texans informed and safe."
Kim Il, 27, one of three North Korean computer programmers charged with attempting to steal $1.3 billion via cyber attacks, is seen on a Federal Bureau of Investigation wanted notice released on Feb. 17, 2021.

Updated at 12:35 p.m. ET on 2021-02-18

The United States has charged three North Korean military intelligence operatives with attempting the cybertheft of $1.3 billion from banks and cryptocurrency companies around the world, including South and Southeast Asia, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Wednesday.

The conspirators hacked into the computers of victims to steal data and money, and further the strategic and financial interests of the North Korean regime and its leader, Kim Jong Un, U.S. justice officials said.

Jon Chang Hyok, 31, Kim Il, 27, and Park Jin Hyok, 36, also stole around $100 million from Bangladeshs central bank in 2016, said a Dec. 8, 2020 federal indictment in California that was unsealed on Wednesday.

The hackers attempted to steal or extort more than $1.3 billion from victims in cyber-enabled heists and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cash-outs from banks, cyber-enabled heists from cryptocurrency companies, and cyber-enabled extortion schemes, the indictment said.

The hackers hacked and defrauded victims around the world - including in Bangladesh, Malta, Mexico, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Slovenia, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, Central America, and Africa - as well as in the United States and, specifically, the Central District of California, the indictment said.

Of the three accused, Park Jin Hyok had been previously charged in an indictment unsealed in 2018.

Todays unsealed indictment expands upon the FBIs 2018 charges for the unprecedented cyberattacks conducted by the North Korean regime, Paul Abbate, deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, said in a statement.

While the conspiracy was in operation, the three North Korean hackers, who were working at units of the countrys Reconnaissance General Bureau, traveled to and worked from other countries, including China and Russia, the indictment said. The bureau, a military intelligence agency headquartered in Pyongyang, comprised multiple units, according to the court document.

The North Korean hackers successful thefts in South and Southeast Asia were from institutions in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Taiwan and Vietnam, according to a copy of the indictment.

About 2 million euros (U.S. $ 2.4 million) was fraudulently transferred by the hackers from a Vietnamese bank to accounts in Bulgaria and Slovenia in December 2015, the indictment said.

Taiwans Far Eastern International Bank became a target of the North Korean hackers in October 2017. About $60 million was transferred by the hackers from this Taipei-based bank to accounts in Sri Lanka, Cambodia and the United States.

The indictment said that on Feb. 4, 2016, the North Korean hackers attempted to conduct fraudulent wire transfers worth about $951 million from Bangladesh Bank, the countrys central bank, and succeeded in fraudulent wire transfers of $81 million to bank accounts in the Philippines and $20 million to a bank account in Sri Lanka.

The $20 million transfer was immediately detected and returned to Bangladesh Bank's account at Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

In Indonesia, the North Korean hackers fraudulently transferred cryptocurrency, valued at approximately $24.9 million from a cryptocurrency exchange based in Jakarta in September 2018, the indictment said.

In a plan to create a digital token called Marine Chain Token, which would allow investors to purchase fractional ownership interests in marine shipping vessels, the hackers also tried to receive approval from the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong to trade the Marine Chain Token as a security.

While the hackers didnt steal from institutions in Cambodia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand, they did transfer funds to accounts there, creating at least one bilateral controversy.

Bangladeshi bank heist

Bangladesh sued the Philippines in February 2019, saying bankers there conspired with the North Korean hackers in the theft of the $81 million, which was stolen from Bangladesh Bank and wire transferred to a Philippine bank.

The lawsuit said Makati-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) of the Philippines along with eight of its officers conspired with casino operators, Chinese citizens and the hackers to rob Bangladesh Bank funds kept in an account at the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank in New York.

To pull off the heist, the North Korean hackers aligned with co-conspirators in the Philippines, most importantly, RCBC. ... The conspirators used RCBCs New York City correspondent accounts to receive the fraudulent transfers from the New York Fed, said the Bangladesh government complaint filed in New York.

The techniques used by the North Korean hackers differed vastly from, say, the infamous American bank robber John Dillingers methods, and Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers of the Justice Departments National Security Division described the contrast.

As laid out in todays indictment, North Koreas operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of cryptocurrency instead of sacks of cash, are the worlds leading bank robbers, Demers said in a statement.

An earlier version of this story incorrectly implied that the indictment unsealed Wednesday revealed the extent of the Bangladesh Bank heist for the first time.
The Karnataka government has imposed restrictions on travel on those coming from Kerala. This comes after two clusters were reported in Bengaluru . The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is on its toes after 42 students from nursing college in RT Nagar and 103 residents of an apartment in Bommanhalli tested positive. The state has made an RT-PCR negative certificate mandatory for anyone coming from Kerala.

All those arriving from Kerala and checking into hotels, resorts, hostels, homestays, dormitories, etc. shall compulsorily produce a negative RT-PCR certificate that is not older than 72 hours. Owners of the above-mentioned places should ensure that the occupants produce a negative RT-PCR certificate," read the latest circular from the Karnataka government.

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

The state government has also made an RT-PCR test for international travellers, who have visited or transited through Brazil or South Africa during their journey, mandatory upon arrival at Bengaluru airport.

"In view of new variants of SARS-COV-2 identified in Brazil and South Africa, it is mandatory that international travellers who have visited or transited through Brazil or South Africa, irrespective of their negative RT-PCR test before boarding the flight, should additionally undergo RT-PCR testing at Bengaluru airport," said Health and Family Welfare Services commissioner in a statement.

"Those who test positive shall undergo institutional quarantine for 14 days and the positive sample shall be sent to NIMHANS for genome sequencing. They shall be discharged after two consecutive negative testings through RT-PCR, done 24 hours apart," the statement added.

"Here are the latest travel guidelines for passengers arriving from Brazil and South Africa," Bengaluru airport said in a tweet.

The circular also informed that those who test negative upon arrival shall be in-home quarantine for 14 days and a follow-up RT-PCR shall be conducted on the seventh day.

Meanwhile, Karnataka on Wednesday reported 378 new Covid-19 cases and three deaths, taking the infection count to 9,46,454 and the toll to 12,276, the health department said. At present, there are 5,698 active cases in the state.

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NEW YORK, Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Bernstein Liebhard, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of Penumbra, Inc. ("Penumbra" or the "Company") (NYSE: PEN) from August 3, 2020 through December 15, 2020 (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit filed in the United States District for the Northern District of California alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

If you purchased Penumbra securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Penumbra Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Matthew E. Guarnero toll free at (877) 779-1414 or [email protected].

The complaint alleges that during the Class Period defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: (1) that the Jet 7 Xtra Flex had known design defects that made it unsafe for its normal use; (2) that Penumbra did not adequately address the risk of the Jet 7 Xtra Flex causing serious injury and deaths, which had in fact already occurred; (3) that the Jet 7 Xtra Flex was likely to be recalled due to its safety issues; and (4) as a result, Penumbra's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

On December 8, 2020, Quintessential Capital Management ("QCM") published a report questioning the validity and independence of the scientific research supporting the Jet 7 Xtra Flex's safety, and accused the Company of using a fake author to publish studies regarding the purported safety and efficacy of its products.

In response, Penumbra's stock price fell by 9%, $224.02 per share on December 7, 2020, to $204.70 per share on December 8, 2020, a decline of $19.95 per share.

On December 15, 2020, after the markets closed, the Company issued a press release announcing that it was issuing an "urgent" recall of the Jet 7 Xtra Flex because the catheter "may become susceptible to distal tip damage during use" which could lead to injury or death. On a conference call held the same day, the Company's CEO acknowledged that the product's design "ma[de] the catheter susceptible to failure in certain scenarios" and that the Company's "steps to ensure the safe use of the product...were not able to fully address the risks."

In response, Penumbra's stock price fell by 7%, from $188.82 per share on December 15, 2020 to $174.98 per share on December 16, 2020, a decline of $13.84 per share.

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 16, 2021. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.

If you purchased Penumbra securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit https://www.bernlieb.com/cases/penumbrainc-pen-shareholder-class-action-lawsuit-fraud-stock-345/apply/ or contact Matthew E. Guarnero toll free at (877) 779-1414 or [email protected].

Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List" thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for ten consecutive years.

ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.  2021 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. The lawyer responsible for this advertisement in the State of Connecticut is Michael S. Bigin. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

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(Nikkei Asia)  Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor will make an official entry into Thailand, Southeast Asias largest car market, this year with a focus on electrified cars to break the stranglehold of Japanese brands, which together hold nearly 90% of the market share.

Executives of the company met Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha on Monday and told him that Thailand will be an important production base and export hub for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations region, local media reported.

Great Wall has been preparing to enter the Thai market after purchasing a car manufacturing plant in Rayong Province, southeast of Bangkok, from General Motors, which decided in February 2020 to scale back its operations in the Asia-Pacific region. The deal was completed in September, marking the end of GMs presence in the kingdom.

This latest market entry follows SAIC Motors launch of MG brand cars in Thailand several years ago through a joint venture with the leading Thai conglomerate, Charoen Pokphand Group. This Sino-Thai auto alliance will also be a competitor with Great Wall.

Great Wall will make efforts to offer best-in-class products and services to Thai people and heighten market standards to increase the potential of the Thai automotive industry, Narong Sritalayon, managing director of Great Wall Motor Thailand, said during a virtual news conference earlier this month.

At a virtual news conference, Great Wall Motor announced that it will launch four models in Thailand this year, including the Haval H6 sport utility vehicle. (Photo courtesy of the company)

Based in Hebei province, Great Wall is listed on the Hong Kong and Shanghai stock exchanges, with sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks as its main products. Its annual sales volume hit an all-time high of 1.11 million units in 2020.

The company has announced that it will launch four models this year in Thailand, including the Haval H6 sport utility vehicle and the Ora Good Cat compact electric car. The release dates and prices have not yet been disclosed.

The Haval H6 is a successful SUV that has sold more than 6 million units in China and other countries, according to the company.

Ora Good Cat will be the first fully electric vehicle that Great Wall will launch in Thailand. It will set a new standard as a high-quality, technology-packed car with appealing retro futurism design for Thai people, the automaker said in a statement.

In the past few years, consumer interest in electrified vehicles has been growing in Thailand, and hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles are gradually taking root.

Great Walls strategy is to differentiate itself from existing manufacturers by focusing more on electrified vehicles. It plans to launch a total of nine models in three years. Its lineup will breathe new life into Thailands automobile scene with technology and performance that redefine driving enjoyment and value for money towards the future, the automaker said.

That meshes with the Thai governments policy of pushing Thailand toward becoming the EV hub of ASEAN by 2030. The country aims to have EVs make up 30% of the 2.5 million units expected to be produced in 2030.

Standing in Great Walls way are the Japanese brands, led by Toyota Motor, that have built up a very strong foothold in many ASEAN countries. In the Thai market, which shrank by 21% to about 790,000 units in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, non-Japanese cars accounted for only 12% of the total.

The SAIC-CP alliance sold about 28,000 MG brand vehicles in 2020, 6.8% more than the previous year, a notable performance amid a difficult sales environment.

Kasikorn Banks research arm, Kasikorn Research Center, has forecast that the Thai auto market will revive only gradually, expecting sales to grow by 7-11% to between 825,000 and 855,000 units in 2021. Great Walls entry will create new competition in a market that is still in the midst of recovery.

This article was originally published by Nikkei Asia

Contact editor Yang Ge (geyang@caixin.com)

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The other prisoner in the video calling out the demands is understood to be Kinahan cartel associate Graham Gardiner

The Prison Service has launched an investigation after footage emerged of an inmate with a belt around his neck being treated like a dog in front of other prisoners.

The footage shows the inmate with the belt placed around him to imitate a dog lead before being commanded to sit and play dead.

The other prisoner in the video calling out the demands is understood to be Kinahan cartel associate Graham Gardiner. The Cabra man, who has his face partially covered in the clip, is currently serving a nine-year prison term for firearms offences.

During the 33-second video, recorded in Mountjoy Prison, he says: Here, this is my dog (name) yeah. Give me the paw. Speak. Play dead.

He also picks up a remote control and throws it on the bed, telling the inmate to fetch and he responds to the instructions.

During the video other inmates can be heard laughing in the background.

The Irish Prison Service (IPS) has confirmed that it is aware of the video and is carrying out inquiries in relation to it.

Gardai have also been notified, an IPS spokeswoman said.

The Irish Prison Service does not comment on individual prisoner cases. The Prison Service can confirm an investigation into an incident involving two prisoners in Mountjoy Prison is ongoing. An Garda Siochana have been notified, the spokeswoman added.

It is understood the video was recorded within the last six months in a cell within the prison.

The cell of Gardiner was searched over the weekend in relation to a separate video which circulated online.

However, nothing of evidential value was discovered when prison officials carried out the raid.

In that clip, Gardiner is seen dancing with another inmate while a third man encourages them to dance.

One source said: Gardiner is connected to serious criminals and the inmate being treated like a dog is only a low-level offender.

He wasnt exactly asked to put the belt around his neck and act like a dog for everyone elses amusement.

The fact that other prisoners were present laughing and goading him as it went on made matters worse.

In May last year, Gardiner was imprisoned for nine years for possession of a deadly cache of firearms. He was caught holding two machine guns, three revolvers, two silencers and 107 rounds of various ammunition in the boot of a car.

Detective Garda Ronan Doolan told the court that Gardiner was wearing a bulletproof vest and carrying the mass card of an individual previously shot dead when gardai approached him in November 2016.

Gardiner was speaking to the occupants of a Ford Focus van that had been under surveillance.

Nothing was found in this vehicle, although a hidden compartment was discovered. The weapons haul was later found in a car linked to a key Gardiner had on him.
Under Dr. Arbuckle's leadership, MemorialCare  with over 200 sites of care and more than 12,000 employees -- has experienced unprecedented growth and is considered an industry leader in evidence-based medicine, value-based provider networks, and innovative partnerships. He is past chair of California Hospital Association, March of Dimes-California and Integrated Healthcare Association.

"We are fortunate to have a visionary leader like Barry Arbuckle with a sustained record of success in delivering quality healthcare leading our organization," said HLC president Mary R. Grealy. "What he has built at MemorialCare aligns with our objectives  bringing greater value to the healthcare system, utilizing data to advance quality and cost-efficiency, and strengthening population health while meeting the needs of underserved communities."

The coalition of chief executives from all American healthcare disciplines is the exclusive forum for U.S. healthcare leaders to jointly develop policies, plans and programs to achieve their vision of a 21st century healthcare system that makes affordable high-quality care accessible to all Americans. HLC membershospitals, academic health centers, health plans, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, laboratories, biotech firms, information technology companies, health product distributors, post-acute and home care providersadvocate for measures to increase quality and efficiency of healthcare through a patient-centered approach.

"It's an honor to chair Healthcare Leadership Council with priorities in providing access to health coverage for the uninsured, accelerating growth of health information technology, and reforming healthcare payment systems to incentivize quality and positive patient outcomes," says Dr. Arbuckle. "Its goals also include improving patient safety, addressing healthcare's workforce shortage, and developing patient privacy rules to protect confidentiality while enabling necessary information flow to health professionals and medical researchers."

Among HLC's prestigious members are Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, Aetna, a CVS Company, Anthem, Mount Sinai Health System, NewYork-Presbyterian, Johnson & Johnson, Bristol Myers Squibb, AmerisourceBergen, Amgen, Merck, Ascension, Baxter, Biogen, Pfizer, Texas Health Resources, Cardinal Health, LabCorp, Epic, Genentech, McKesson, Medtronic, SSM Health, Change Healthcare, Stryker, Teladoc Health and several others.

MemorialCare's 200+ care locations include leading hospitalsLong Beach Medical Center, Miller Children's & Women's Hospital Long Beach, Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills and Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley; MemorialCare Medical Group and Greater Newport Physicians; MemorialCare Research and numerous outpatient health, imaging, surgery, urgent care, physical therapy, breast health and dialysis centers throughout Orange and Los Angeles counties. Accolades include Best Health System, Best Workplaces, Top 50 U.S. Hospitals, Top 50 Cardiovascular Hospitals, 10 Largest Children's Hospitals, 100 Best Hospitals Spine and Prostate Surgeries, Best of Orange County and Long Beach Hospitals and Medical Groups, U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals and "high performing" in 31 clinical categories, Newsweek Top 100 Hospitals and Best Maternity Hospitals and more. Visit memorialcare.org.

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Veterans who experienced the combination of low depression, high social support, and high psychological resilience as they left military service were most likely to report high well-being a year later.

Neither demographic and military characteristics nor trauma history emerged as strong predictors of veterans' well-being when considered in the context of other factors. Although most predictors were similar for women and men, depression was a stronger predictor of women's well-being.

Every year, more than 200,000 U.S. service members transition out of the military. Although most military veterans can be expected to successfully navigate this transition, a substantial number of individuals struggle to adapt to post-military life.

In an effort to identify the combination of background factors that best predict U.S. military veterans' post-military well-being the researchers sampled more than 7,100 veterans.

Neither demographic and military characteristics nor traumatic life experiences emerged as important predictors of veterans' well-being in the context of other factors, suggesting that their impact on veterans' well-being is likely carried through other factors addressed in the study.

Instead, researchers found that those who reported the combination of high depression, low social support, and low psychological resilience shortly as they leave service were the most likely to report poor well-being a year later.

"These findings support the value of screening for these risk factors and intervening with veterans who report this combination of factors at the time they leave military service to reduce veterans' risk of poor post-military well-being," explained corresponding author Dawne S. Vogt, Ph.D., a research scientist in the Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD at VA Boston Healthcare System and professor of psychiatry at Boston University School of Medicine.

Although prior research has examined the role that depression, social support, and psychological resilience play in U.S. veterans' post-military mental health and functioning, this study provides new insight into how these factors work together to impact veterans' well-being.

"The fact that the worst well-being was reported by veterans with high depression and low social support underscores the particularly important role that the combination of these two factors are likely to play in veterans' post-military well-being. Moreover, the finding that higher psychological resilience moderated the impact of depression on veterans' well-being suggests that those individuals who are most resilient may be better able to cope with depression when it is experienced," added Vogt.

New Delhi: United Nations chief Antonio Guterres expressed concern over lack of availability of vaccines in several countries around the world.

Calling the distribution of coronavirus vaccines "widely uneven and unfair", Guterres said that only 10 countries have administered 75 per cent of all vaccinations, He called for a global effort to get all people in every nation inoculated as soon as possible.

While addressing a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council, Guterres said that 130 countries have not received a single dose of vaccine.

"At this critical moment, vaccine equity is the biggest moral test before the global community," he said.

The UN chief demanded an urgent 'Global Vaccination Plan' to bring together those with the power to ensure fair vaccine distribution to ensure all people in every nation get inoculated.

The UN chief urged the leading G20 members to form an emergency task force to bring together "the pharmaceutical companies and key industry and logistics actors".

"To better understand this pandemic and prepare for the next one, all countries must make available all data from the earliest days of any outbreak. And going forward, all countries should participate in a transparent and robust process for preventing and responding to health emergencies, Guterres was quoted as saying by ANI.

Meanwhile, India has provided several lakh doses of coronavirus to a number of countries including Bhutan, Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, the UAE, Brazil, Morocco, Bahrain, Oman, Egypt, Algeria, Kuwait and South Africa.

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Diversity & Inclusion

5 Keys to a More Student-Equity-Centric Future in Higher Ed

A new white paper out of the University of Utah's Sorenson Impact Center outlines five ways to move higher education toward a student-equity-centric future. The Center, an academic "think-and-do tank" focused on solving problems through data and innovation, convened students, researchers, practitioners and institutional leaders to identify key issues in higher ed through the lens of student equity. The effort is part of the Center's MAPS Project, the same initiative that recently created a data dashboard tracking the impact of COVID-19 on higher ed.

"Student-equity-centric" was defined as the practice of putting equitable outcomes for students at the center of decision-making. The concept of equity can apply to an individual student's experience, an institution's practices and policies, and the broader population's access to opportunities, resources and outcomes, the report noted. The paper offered five essentials for making higher ed more student-equity-centric:

1) "Student-equity-centric decision-making in higher education requires integrated quantitative and qualitative data that are contextualized with diverse student perspectives, well beyond what currently practiced." Current data analysis often overlooks the "lived experiences" of students, the report asserted  particularly those of historically marginalized groups.

2) "Student-equity-centric institutions employ an assets-based view of students and demonstrate authenticity, transparency and accountability, especially in times of crisis." Students want institutions to be transparent about how decisions are made  both in times of transition and during business as usual, the report said.

3) "Student-equity-centric institutions will design for post-traditional students as the new norm, rather than the exception." The report highlighted the diversity of today's college students, who have "complex lives and interact with higher education across a longer, more modular timeline than previous generations."

4) "Student-equity-centric institutions build cross-institution and cross-industry collaborations, as adaptive or proactive responses, to serve students' dynamic needs." Rather than focusing on recruitment strategies and competitive advantage, colleges and universities should "consider how to elevate student success across institutions and make it easier for students to navigate the system of higher education as a whole," the report said.

5) "The Covid-19 pandemic has underscored the role of institutions of higher education as anchor institutions that provide critical health, transportation and economic support, despite uncertainty around public investment in higher education." The report pointed out that the pandemic has revealed (and exacerbated) numerous prerequisites for student success in higher education: access to healthy food, high-quality child care, affordable healthcare, high-speed internet, reliable transportation, quiet study space, safe housing, mental health supports, social and professional networks, and other resources. Supporting those needs is imperative to preserve equitable access to higher education.

The full report, "Five Themes for Centering Student Equity," is available on the Sorenson Impact Center site.
Indian Navy said on Thursday that it is not participating in the two-day naval exercise dubbed "Iran-Russia Maritime Security Belt 2021" in the northern part of the Indian Ocean.

"The news reports regarding Indian Navy participating in Iran-Russia Maritime exercise is incorrect," the force clarified.

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

Reports had earlier claimed that the Indian Navy has joined a drill alongside forces and vessels from the navy divisions of both the Iranian army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and the Russian Navy.

Meanwhile, Hossein Khanzadi, commander of the Iranian Navy, has said that the Chinese Navy will also be participating in the exercise.

The drill will cover an area of 17,000 square kilometres (6,500 square miles). It will include shooting at sea and air targets and liberating hijacked ships, as well as search and rescue and anti-piracy operations, Al Jazeera reported.

"It means that global arrogance which until today dominated the region must realise that it needs to leave it," Khanzadi was quoted as saying by the Iranian Army's website.

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The Sri Lankan Parliament has cancelled the planned address of Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan during his upcoming two-day visit to the island nation. The address was scheduled for February 24.

Pakistan received a major lash back from Sri Lanka in an interesting turn of events. Earlier Sri Lankas Speaker Mahinda Abeywardena addressed a political gathering a week ago informing that Paks PM Imran Khan would address the Parliament during his two-day visit starting February 22. The address was scheduled for February 24. However, the Sri Lankan Parliament on Thursday has cancelled the planned address of Prime Minister Imran Khan during his upcoming visit.

As per sources, many speculate this as a move by the Sri Lankan government to maintain cordial ties with India. It was being speculated that Khan would raise the Kashmir issue during his speech which would upset the Modi govt. Imran Khan is scheduled to travel to Colombo on a two-day trip from February 22. Khan will also meet Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and attend an investors conference.

Imrans speech was added at the request of the Pakistan government. According to the island countrys media reports, Sri Lanka has cited different reasons for the cancellation of Khans address. One prominent daily quoted Secretary Jayanath Colombage as having said that Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena had requested for cancellation on the pretext of COVID-19. However, unnamed sources cited there were elements within the Sri Lankan government, who did not want the speech to take place as they feared that doing so could further harm ties with India.

Another speculation doing the rounds is that the Sri Lankan government was concerned about Khan speaking about the rights of Muslims in Sri Lanka, who have faced abuses at the hands of the Buddhist majority, rising anti-Muslim sentiments, and biased government actions.
The incoming chief executive of an NHS trust was at the centre of a probe today amid claims he faked his masters law degree.

Mason Fitzgerald said he held a Master of Laws (LLM) from the University of Georgia in the US in annual reports submitted to parliament.

But the university has since claimed Mr Fitzgerald never graduated.

The Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust (NSFT), which is currently in special measures, revealed a review has begun and Mr Fitzgerald told the BBC he could not comment while the inquiry was ongoing.

Mason Fitzgerald claimed he held a Master of Laws (LLM) from the University of Georgia (pictured) in the US in annual reports submitted to parliament

Mr Fitzgerald, currently the NSFT deputy chief executive, said: 'There is an ongoing review, and it is therefore not appropriate for me to make a public statement.'

Three annual reports submitted by NSFT, a mental health trust, and the East London Foundation Trust, where Mr Fitzgerald previously held the position of director of corporate affairs and director of planning and performance, featured the degree qualification.

Mr Fitzgerald (pictured) is currently the NSFT deputy chief executive

And Roy Lilley, a former NHS trust chairman, described the situation as 'very embarrassing', adding that the audit trail must be followed to find out what went wrong. 'The assumption is that somebody has not checked,' he added.

Meanwhile the family of Doreen Livermore, who died after she was attacked at a care home aged 89, said it was 'a scandal' the incoming chief executive's degree was under question.

After Mrs Livermore's death the trust's culture was questioned when a PR manager boasted of having 'got away with' minimal media coverage.

Her son Roy Livermore, from Snettisham in Norfolk, said: 'In a situation like this, where the [chief executive] is going to be responsible for a huge number of people throughout Norfolk, it's a scandal really.'

Mr Fitzgerald is due to take up the leadership role in April, when he will be overseeing a budget of around 260million.

In a joint statement, the Norfolk and Suffolk and East London NHS Foundation Trusts said: 'An independent review of the concerns raised is being conducted and it would be inappropriate to comment further until that is concluded.'

Reference to a degree at the University of Georgia was included on Mr Fitzgerald's LinkedIn profile as well as a paper submitted to a healthcare journal by the East London Foundation Trust, where he worked before joining the NSFT in 2019.

The family of Doreen Livermore (pictured), who died after she was attacked at a care home aged 89, said it was 'a scandal' the incoming chief executive's degree was under question

The university revealed Mr Fitzgerald attended from 1999 until Spring of 2000, but did not graduate. It said he was on the law school graduate program for two semesters.

Mr Fitzgerald's Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree was confirmed by the University of Canterbury in New Zealand.

And a filing on the New York Office of Court Administration confirmed he registered as an attorney there in 2001. The University of Georgia was then listed as his law school.

The NSFT is rated as 'requires improvement' by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

In January the watchdog said the trust's failure to manage risks led to patients self-harming and waiting too long for assessment.

It was the first mental health trust to be placed into special measures in 2015.

After Mrs Livermore's (pictured with her great-grandson Michael) death the trust's culture was questioned when a PR manager boasted of having 'got away with' minimal media coverage

The NSFT, deemed the worst-performing NHS trust in the country, has been mired in controversy recently.

In September the NSFT revealed a letter discharging 300 young people from its waiting list at the start of the pandemic was not a mistake.

The trust had apologised and claimed the letters 'should not have been sent' before blaming 'human error'. But it later switched tact and Dr Sarah Maxwell, clinical director of children and young people's services at NSFT, said the letter was a 'decision' that had been taken by the trust.
Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Generally sunny despite a few afternoon clouds. High 68F. NNE winds shifting to WSW at 10 to 15 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies early will become overcast later during the night. Low 53F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph.
[February 18, 2021] How A Californian Donut Made It All The Way To Muscat, Oman - Introducing 3rd Street Donuts Shop!

Muscat, Oman, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Weve got the scoop on where you can find the perfect, soft and fluffy donut thatll leave you wanting more-- but youll have to fly and meet us in Muscat. Introducing 3rd Street Donuts -- a shop with an innovative take on the traditional American donut joint that carries over 120 flavors of donuts, featuring its signature in-house recipe originally created in none other than Los Angeles, California.

The shop made its debut in 2018, not long after Mundhir al Alawi returned to Oman from living in the United States. During his few years in California, Alawi frequently visited local shops in Los Angeles that carried unique donut flavors at odds to those found at a typical franchise chain. He fell in love with the fluffiness of the donuts, specifically those from the family-owned shops, and decided he wanted to create the perfect Los Angeles donut recipe for a potential business opportunity back home. He wanted to produce a donut that was soft and moist (and fluffy, of course), but not overwhelmingly sweet. Shortly after brainstorming, he hired an American pastry chef and joined a collaboration with a Californian bakery to bring the secret donut recipe to life-- a recipe that combined the highest quality of products fom both the United States and Oman to create the signature feature of 3rd Street Donuts.





The ingredients are imported from Los Angeles through the Free Trade Agreement, which allows the transportation of goods without the incurrence of internationally imposed taxes or duty costs. Due to the shops commitment to higher quality elements and its dire authenticity to the Los Angeles donut, competitors using local goods tend to fall short in comparison.



The shop sells an average of 2,000 donuts a day. Business has continued to boom since the businesss opening nearly four years ago. Today, customers can come in and choose from a range of 40-50 donuts flavors a day, as well as over a dozen options of artisanal coffees to accompany the sweet treat. The shop also prides itself on delivering exceptional customer service, which plays an essential part in the businesss overall success.

3rd Street Donuts currently has three branches, but plans to expand to countries further along the Middle East by the end of the year. So far, prospective countries include Qatar, Dubai, and Saudi Arabia. The business also plans to expand through future franchising opportunities on a more global spectrum. For more information on franchising, please visit www.3sdonuts.com.

Someday, once the shops have finished conquering the Middle East, and perhaps the rest of the world, Alawi believes hed like to compete for the best donut recipe in Los Angeles. Hes confident 3rd Street might take the cake. Or in this case, the donut.



Media Details

Company: 3rd Street Donuts

Name: Mundhir al Alawi

Email: sales@3sdonuts.com

Website: https://www.3sdonuts.com Attachment 3rd Street Donuts Shop



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Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire as photos of him in an airport and a plane showing him flying to Cancun during the Arctic blast which has crippled his home state and especially his hometown of Houston, surfaced on Twitter.

The photos went viral late Wednesday night and Cruz sent out an official statement explaining the trip Thursday afternoon.

OPINION: Ted Cruz's tweets about California blackouts look really dumb right now

Earlier Thursday, Fox News confirmed Cruz took a trip to Cancun, saying "a Republican source told Fox News that the allegations Cruz was traveling to the Mexican city are true."

"The photos speak for themselves," the source told Fox News.

The Associated Press also confirmed the Cancun trip, reporting Cruz "went with his family for a long-planned trip to Cancun and was expected to return immediately, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations."

According to ABC News' verification producer Erin Calabrese, Cruz contacted Houston Police and requested assistance upon his arrival at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said his daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said in a statement released before he boarded a flight back home to Houston.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Twitter user Juan Gomez shared the first photo of Cruz with his baggage at a United Airlines gate, adding "Well Senator Cruz is flying to Cancun while millions of Texans do not have electricity #Priorities #ThanksforNothingSenator."

Former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted that he confirmed Cruz "and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before." His tweet included a photo of Cruz inside a plane. It's unclear how Shuster confirmed the story.

Keith Edwards - who was an advisor to Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff and worked with the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group - tweeted other photos of Cruz at the airport. He said the photos were sent to him by passengers on the same flight as Cruz.

Beto O'Rourke, who lost the Senate race to Cruz in 2018, appeared on MSNBC on Wednesday night and took a shot at Cruz, when talking about holding politicians accountable for their actions, including "the junior Senator from the state of Texas, who I understand is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve."

Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, tweeted: Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?"
 Notable new press report on accounts of recent federal execution particulars | Main | "'My Bewildering Brain Toils in Vain': Traumatic Brain Injury, the Criminal Trial Process, and the Case of Lisa Montgomery" 

February 17, 2021

The Sentencing Project releases "No End in Sight: Americas Enduring Reliance on Life Imprisonment"

The Sentencing Project has done remarkable work in recent years tracking (and advocating against) the growth of life and functional life sentences in the United States. This great work continues with the release today of this big report authored by Ashley Nellis titled "No End in Sight: Americas Enduring Reliance on Life Imprisonment." The whole 46-page report is worth a close read for anyone concerned about extreme punishments and mass incarceration, and here the start of the report's initial "Findings and Recommendations" section:

Before Americas era of mass incarceration took hold in the early 1970s, the number of individuals in prison was less than 200,000. Today, its 1.4 million; and more than 200,000 people are serving life sentences  one out of every seven in prison. More people are sentenced to life in prison in America than there were people in prison serving any sentence in 1970.

Nearly five times the number of people are now serving life sentences in the United States as were in 1984, a rate of growth that has outpaced even the sharp expansion of the overall prison population during this period. The now commonplace use of life imprisonment contradicts research on effective public safety strategies, exacerbates already extreme racial injustices in the criminal justice system, and exemplifies the egregious consequences of mass incarceration.

In 2020, The Sentencing Project obtained official corrections data from all states and the Federal Bureau of Prisons to produce our 5th national census on life imprisonment.

KEY FINDINGS

 One in 7 people in U.S. prisons is serving a life sentence, either life without parole (LWOP), life with parole (LWP) or virtual life (50 years or more), totaling 203,865 people;

 The number of people serving life without parole  the most extreme type of life sentence  is higher than ever before, a 66% increase since our first census in 2003;

 29 states had more people serving life in 2020 than just four years earlier;

 30% of lifers are 55 years old or more, amounting to more than 61,417 people;

 3,972 people serving life sentences have been convicted for a drug-related offense and 38% of these are in the federal prison system;

 More than two-thirds of those serving life sentences are people of color;

 One in 5 Black men in prison is serving a life sentence;

 Latinx individuals comprise 16% of those serving life sentences;

 One of every 15 women in prison is serving life;

 Women serving LWOP increased 43%, compared to a 29% increase among men, between 2008 and 2020;

 The population serving LWOP for crimes committed as youth is down 45% from its peak in 2016;

 8,600 people nationwide are serving parole-eligible life or virtual life sentences for crimes committed as minors.

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The city of Pasadena says residents should boil tap water used for consumption or making ice.

The extreme temperatures caused the city of Houstons Southeast Water Purification Plant, which provides water to Pasadena, to experience low water pressure.
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By Anuron Kumar Mitra BENGALURU (Reuters) - India's Bharat Biotech is in the process of filing regulatory documents for approval of its COVID-19 vaccine, COVAXIN, in more than 40 countries, the company told Reuters late on Wednesday. "We have submitted our documentation in Brazil and other countries and await their approval. We plan to export several million doses to Brazil," the company said in an emailed statement. "Pricing of COVAXIN for international markets will be based upon supply timelines, purchase commitments and procurement volumes," it ...
SYDNEY KAMLAGER DOVE  THE RIGHT WOMAN, THE RIGHT TIME, AND THE RIGHT CANDIDATE FOR THE CALIFORNIA STATE SENATE

The Los Angeles Sentinel proudly endorses Sydney Kamlager-Dove

Californias 30th Senate

VOTE Tuesday March 2, 2021

Former State Senator and now Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell has left Sacramento. While her ascension to the Board of Supervisors has pleased so many of her supporters, it has left a crucial vacancy in the halls of the State Capitol. Not only for a Senator to represent the 30th Senate District with one of the most racially and economically diverse districts in the state, Mitchells vacancy also leaves the entire State of California with no African American woman in the California Senate and currently, State Senator Steve Bradford is the only African American Senator representing the entire state. To most, this disparity is obviously unacceptable; State Assembly member Sydney Kamlager-Dove is looking to fill the void in the special election called by Governor Gavin Newsom to fill the seat vacated by Mitchell.

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Assembly member Kamlager-Dove is no newcomer to the 30th Senate District. Prior to her election to represent the 54th Assembly District, she served as then Senator Holly Mitchells District Director for over six years. Based on this experience, she identifies with the dynamics of the district and its residents. Kamlager-Doves familiarity with the senate district is not her only value her quest for the Senate, she has been one of the most successful and active assembly members working in Sacramento. With her proven track record, her steady increase of followers feel strongly she can be equally, if not more effective, in the Senate.

As the State representative for the 54th District, Representative Kamlager-Dove has proven to be an effective and powerful force in the halls of Sacramento. She has been an unapologetic voice for the justice reform bill that completely restructured how Black and Brown people are tethered to the probation dept., and she continues to hold those on probation accountable, and has made probation sentencing lengths far shorter.

She also helped passed legislation which allowed community-based organizations to respond to 911 calls when non-violent and mental issues were involved rather than police. This visionary legislation was introduced before George Floyd was murdered and before the nation picked up the mantle of racial reckoning or the movement to defund the police.

While Sydney Kamlager-Dove has carved out a space as a fighter for the rights of those less fortunate and who have served time in the criminal justice system. Like most elected officials, her last year has been filled, and sometimes overwhelmed, in the fight with the life-altering challenges surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

She has worked diligently to ensure that her district and all of South Los Angeles isnt forgotten and that we get our fair share of the resources that California is providing.

Some of those resources she has managed to bring to her district and South Los Angeles and poor and underserved communities throughout California include:

Securing over $1 Billion for the state to purchase bankrupt hospitals and re-opened them to ensure there were enough beds available for those infect by the virus.

Secured an additional $1 billion dollars for Project Home Key and Project Room Key to help house the homeless during the surge of the pandemic.

Passed a statewide eviction moratorium relief bill that prevented families affected by COVID-19 who could not pay their rent or mortgages from being evicted.

Helped raise the funds to purchase over 100,000 pieces of PPE equipment to give to our health care and front-line workers at the beginning of COVID-19 when the state was struggling to provide adequate supplies for front-line and health care workers from the federal government.

Created a partnership with SEIU, Biz Fed and the LA County delegation to insure we were able to secure PPE equipment to grocery workers and other front-line workers to ensure that every possible precaution was taken to keep people safe.

Helped pass legislation to deposit over $50nm into the I-Bank which is the states institution to ensure that small businesses that couldnt get PPP funds, could get money from states to help them stay afloat.

She has been one of the loudest voices in Sacramento to ensure Black and Brown communities, that are highly infected and disproportionately devastated by the virus, are receiving and continue to secure an adequate share of resources into our community including testing services and now vaccinations.

She is also working diligently to get schools reopened. But she does not want to just reopen schools, but reopen schools in a way that is safe, and taking into consideration how the process can be implemented the right way and in a safe way for teachers and students.

Sydney considers Mitchell a close friend and mentor; she feels she has a great partnership with Holly Mitchell, which she hopes will allow her to make an almost seamless transition into the seat.

But she says there is still a lot of work to be done in the district. She says that she must keep fighting for those parts of her district that have not been getting their fair share of the resources from the state, receive the resources from the state; the fact that being a representative in the Senate will allow her to be a more effective leader in securing those desperately needed resources. She wants to make sure that all parts of the district feel connected to each other. I want to connect the east and the west parts and the south parts and the north parts of the district. I want to have an opportunity to bring everyone together in a way that neighborhood and community member can all feel a part of the entire district, stated Kamlager-Dove

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This idea of bringing diverse groups of people together is not new to Sydney. She has been one of the most effective leaders in uniting forces that often agree and serve different agendas together like few legislatures have been able to do. She has been applauded by labor, by business and by community based non-profit organizations throughout her district; three groups that often themselves at odds on various issues throughout the state. When asked how she has been able to forge these alliances when so many others have not, she simply explains, I have family members who are members of labor unions. Being members of labor, has afforded my family the opportunity to have health care, to be able to provide a home and housing for them and their families, but I have also worked in the non-profit service delivery business, so I understand the issues and challenges that face that industry and I am married to a small business owner and support business. I understand all of these issues and I try and approach all of them with honesty and an understanding of how we can move forward for the betterment of everyone.

Dove also says she has an understanding that Black people are not a monolithic group and have influenced the world of business. We are entrepreneurs, we are union members, artist, doctors, teachers, janitors, environmentalist, and animal lovers. What Sydney knows is that everyone wants a better quality of life for ourselves, and our families, and that is the job of those in public service.

While serving in the legislature and while on the campaign trail, Sydney Kamlager-Dove has had the opportunity to do what she says she does best, listen. I have spoken to those in the district and I hear their voices. They know that they are being heard. Theyve said to me that nobody comes to talk to [them] and no one cares about [their] concerns. But [Im] different [I] show up and listen, and not beholding to outside interest, and that is the representative that I want to be, the representative that I am and that is the representative that I will continue if elected to the Senate.

When asked what message Assemblymember Sydney Kamlager-Dove wants to share with the voters of Senate District 30 she says: I am going to represent your voice in Sacramento, because I am going to continue to engage with you, learn from you and work with you on the issues that you care about. I am about building consensus and Im also about fighting for whats right. I am unafraid and unabashed and unapologetic. I am true to the values that this district represents. I am not afraid to roll up my sleeves, get my feet wet or get my hands dirty. I am not afraid to keep fighting for the people of this district. That is Who I am!

It is because of this tenacity that her commitment to serve the community and those who are often overlooked and underserved, that the Los Angeles Watts Times and Bakewell Media proudly endorse Sydney Kamlager-Dove for election as the next African American woman to be elected to the California State Senates 30th District.

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MOSCOW  In a ruling that reflected the broader crackdown on dissent by President Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, a court in Belarus on Thursday sentenced two young journalists to two years in prison for reporting from a demonstration against his rule.

A district court in the capital, Minsk, ruled that the journalists  Catarina Andreeva, 27, and Darja Chulcova, 23  incited unrest by reporting for the Polish television channel Belsat through a video stream from a protest rally.

The court said that by doing so, the journalists had attracted more people to the rally, creating more work for law enforcement and obstructing public transport.

The journalists said they were doing their job of informing the public.

Every day I risked my life and health to do my job, Ms. Andreeva told the court on Wednesday. In the end, she said, she could take comfort from the knowledge that her conscience is clean.
Tirupati, Feb 19 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday announced a tenfold hike in the state government's cash reward to defence forces gallantry award winners.

"The cash award for winners of Param Vir Chakra and Ashoka Chakra, who are now getting Rs 10 lakh will be increased to Rs 1 crore," he said.

Similarly, the state incentive for Maha Vir Chakra and Kirti Chakra has been hiked from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 80 lakh.

Vir Chakra and Shaurya Chakra award winners' cash reward has been hiked from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 60 lakh.

"The kin of all armed forces personnel from the state who lay down their lives in the line of duty will be given Rs 50 lakhs," he said.

Reddy visited the home of 1971 war hero, Major Gen. C. Venugopal (retd) and felicitated him as a living legend.

Later, at the police parade grounds in the temple town, the CM honoured J. Chinatalli, widow of Naik J. Sanyasi for his role in the 1971 war.

He also received the Swarnim Vijay Mashal, the flame of victory, to commemorate the golden jubilee celebrations of Swarnim Vijay Varsh to mark the 1971 India-Pakistan war.
Posted Thursday, February 18, 2021 9:14 am

A Washington Youth Suicide Review Team (WYSRT) is one step closer to reality after legislators passed substitute HB 1354 out of committee in a 11-2 vote.

Rep. Gina Mosbrucker, D-Goldendale, the prime sponsor of the bill, saw the bill introduced into committee Feb. 1.

Rep. Mosbruckers bill would establish the WYSRT to review the circumstances related to suicides occurring among youth up to age 24.

The team would review medical records, conduct voluntary home interviews with parents and utilize other strategies to discover if any common factors exist among young people who commit suicide.

The goal of the bill is to literally lay out every suicide case under 24 in the state of Washington during 2020, Mosbrucker said. And to figure out whats the nexus because kids are struggling  far more than they used to.

After collaborating with advocacy groups and concerned citizens, a substitute bill was introduced and passed out of committee on Feb. 15.

Changes to the bill focused on increasing privacy protections around medical records and other documents.

The substitute bill also requires the team to increase the range of youth for possible review to 25 and adds a review of access to lethal means to their analysis.

According to Rep. Mosbrucker, the addition of access to lethal means alongside autopsy reports and other review strategies are extremely important for suicide prevention.

Rep. Lillian Ortiz-Self, D-Mukilteo, said the Washington Legislative Youth Advisory Council was in strong support of the substitute bill, but asked that youth be included in the review team.

Very clearly, they just said, This is about us and we need to have a voice, Rep. Ortiz-Self said.

However, finding a youth tied to the issue who wants to participate is going to be difficult, according to Rep. Mosbrucker.

(SHB 1354) says that we can add an additional member and it will be voted on by the team, Rep. Mosbrucker said. We dont want to re-trigger (anyone), so thats my only concern ... But we want to make sure their voice is heard.

Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, said he thought some Republicans might have concerns about the cost of the program.

Mosbrucker said her team is working on revising costs and expects to present an acceptable proposal when the bill gets to the House Appropriations Committee.



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UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

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Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

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Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

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Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

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Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
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To enable its customers to physically register for their National Identification Number (NIN) and link it to their SIMs without hassles or payment, Nigerias customer-friendly telecommunications company, 9mobile, has begun NIN enrollment in select Experience Centres across the country.

The centres where customers can register effortlessly and free of any charges include the 43, Adeola Odeku, Victoria Island; 31, Marina Road, Marina and 23 Road by 402 junction, Festac Town, all in Lagos. The two Abuja Experience Centres are 8, Kikuyu close, off Aminu Kano, and Plot 1774, Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent, both in Wuse 2.

With this development, subscribers do not need to queue endlessly for their NIN registration or expose themselves to the risk of the ongoing pandemic.

Commenting on the development, Chief Commercial Officer, 9mobile, Stjepan Udovicic said the telco was concerned about the large number of people clustering at NIMC Centres. He added that the Company is happy to be of assistance to its esteemed subscribers and Nigerians in general.

As Nigerias customer-centric telco, we understand the pressures Nigerians are going through in trying to obtain a valid NIN and link it to their SIMs and the possible exposure to Covid-19 in the process. So, we took this opportunity to collaborate with regulators in making the exercise easier and safer for our customers, Mr Udovicic said.

He assured customers that the operator is always ready to go the extra mile and that the free physical registration at the designated centres will follow all COVID-19 protocols.

Mr Udovicic further disclosed that more 9mobile Experience Centres would commence NIN enrollment soonest.

Recall that 9mobile was first to launch an Intelligent Portal for Instant Verification at the beginning of the NIN registration exercise. The Online Self-Service NIN update portal is live on the 9mobile website. It enables subscribers to verify and update their NINs instantly.
[February 18, 2021] SCALE AI announces five projects and $16.6 million in investments in artificial intelligence

MONTREAL, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - With five projects, totalling $16.6 million in investments announced today by SCALE AI, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) integration movement continues apace. From quality control to the optimization of transportation assets to diagnostic tools for truck maintenance, each of these projects demonstrates the infinite diversity of AI applications. With a direct contribution of $6.68 million, including $4.04 million from the Government of Canada and $2.64 million from the Government of Quebec, SCALE AI is once again playing its role as a lever to scale up the deployment of AI in Canadian companies. The Honourable Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada's Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, said, "The artificial intelligence sector is a driver of long-term growth, providing Canadians with high-quality and well-paying jobs. Through projects like those announced today, Scale AI is playing a key role in supporting Canada's AI sector and enabling companies to be competitive on a global scale." Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister of Economy and Innovation, affirms: "Artificial intelligence has the potential to transform how Quebec businesses develop. We have the good fortune, in Quebec, to be able to rely on a solid ecosystem made up of world renowned researchers in this key sector. This is why we will continue to support companies, such as Scale IA, to set up business here, companies that improve the cohesiveness and competitiveness of our champions in this field." Julien Billot, CEO of SCALE AI, pointed out, "Some people thought that the pandemic would slow down AI projects and investments. After the first few weeks, to the contrary, there was a sense of urgency to act. Companies wanted to become more efficient quickly and to be able to emerge stronger from this crisis. By supporting strategic investments in their modernization, SCALE AI plays its role as a lever and accelerator to contribute to the success of companies from herein AI and in all sectors." Helene Desmarais, Co-Chair of the SCALE AI Board of Directors, added, "Each cohort of projects reflects the organizations' needs in all sectors for concrete AI applications. The understanding of AI's capabilities to find solutions to concrete and specific supply chain issues has taken an incredible leap forward. This is encouraging, for companies that are accelerating the process of integrating AI to boost their productivity and competitiveness, but also for Canada's growing AI ecosystem as a whole. " Five projects representing investments of $16.6 million







? AI-powered pricing Partners: Couche-Tard, Thirdbridge, Ivado Labs SCALE AI's investment: $2.3 million Total investment: $5.7 million The project will aim to optimize pricing based on consumer demand and behaviour. The solution will also integrate the responses of competitors and market conditions. Alex Miller, Executive Vice President Commercial Optimization: "Analytical capability and speed of action are at the heart of our ability to meet consumer expectations to maintain our market position. Artificial intelligence enables us to improve our performance based on reliable data. It's a win-win situation for us, as well as for our customers." ? Improving the supply chain for truck maintenance Partners: Trimac Transportations, Preteckt, Universite McGill SCALE AI's investment: $1.4 million Total investment: $5 million This project aims to design a suite of algorithms that can predict what would otherwise be unexpected truck breakdowns and their root causes. These algorithms will make use of data generated during normal truck operations, particularly related to the engine, brake and tire subsystems. Ken Trickey, Director of Innovation and Integration, Trimac Transportation: "Unexpected truck breakdowns have significant impacts on our operations and customer service. Beyond repair costs, managing transport reorganization and delays requires time and energy that bring no added value to our customers." Sasha Kucharczyk, COO and Co-Founder, Preteckt: "Preteckt is excited to develop new diagnostic tools which will enable more relevant and precise maintenance operations which will limit unexpected breakdowns and further improve the reliability of trucks while reducing operating costs." ? Extending an order's life cycle through AI Partners: Bell Business Market, Inmind Technologies, Maxa AI, MSI, Loblaws Group, Ausenco Engineering Canada SCALE AI's investment: $1.2 million Total investment: $2.4 million Bell Business Markets (BBM) offers a wide range of communications technologies for Canadian businesses, including broadband fibre connectivity. To meet market expectations, the project aims to reduce installation time for new fibre connections by accelerating several steps in the supply chain with artificial intelligence solutions. Ariel Quintin, VP, Sales & Service Transformation, BBM: "Bell is one of the largest investors in research and development in Canada and we are proud to partner with Scale AI to facilitate access to the best connectivity technologies for Canadian businesses. " Jeremie Farret, VP Advanced Analytics and AI at Inmind Technologies: "Inmind is pleased to put its expertise in AI and its hardware acceleration solution Mind in a Box to the benefit of this innovative collaborative project, which will be of great benefit to the Canadian economy.? ? Optimization of transportation assets Partners: Ray-Mont, Argus Transport SCALE AI's investment: $0.9 million Total investment: $1.8 million The Ares.AI project aims at developing a decision support system based on Artificial Intelligence for the optimization of Ray-Mont Logistics' transport assets. Transport assets include a fleet of trucks, drivers, chassis and rails. Road transportation planning will allow Ray-Mont and its partners, such as Argus Transport, to reduce expenses, eliminate bottlenecks, reduce empty runs and improve asset utilization. In terms of rail transportation, the project is expected to minimize switch changes, car movements and operational delays related to rail management at Ray-Mont terminals and at its railway partners. Luke Mireault, Vice-President and Chief Innovation Officer: "Ray-Mont has always believed in innovation and cutting-edge technologies to distinguish itself. It was natural for us to embark on artificial intelligence projects. We hope to leverage our data to develop solutions that will improve our efficiency and customer satisfaction." ? Demand forecasts for spare parts Partners: Bombardier, Traxxall SCALE AI's investment: $0.8 million Total investment: $1.7 million Research and development project partners are using AI models to better predict the demand for spare parts for aircraft maintenance. This will reduce the risk of supply shocks and will benefit suppliers and customers alike all along the supply chain. Jean-Christophe Gallagher, Executive Vice President, Services and Support and Corporate Strategy at Bombardier: "We want to improve the accuracy of our algorithms to work even more effectively and efficiently. This project fits well with our long-term vision of becoming a pillar of artificial intelligence in the aeronautics field." Scott Henderson, CEO, TRAXXALL: "Contributing our accurate and high-quality data on hundreds of Bombardier aircraft validates our vision. Our important contribution supports our partners in developing leading 'real world' AI applications."

About SCALE AI (scaleai.ca) As Canada's AI supercluster, SCALE AI acts as an investment and innovation hub that accelerates the rapid adoption and integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and contributes to the development of a world-class Canadian AI ecosystem. Based in Montreal, funded by the federal government and the Quebec government, SCALE AI has nearly 120 industry partners, research institutes and other players in the AI field. It develops programs aimed at supporting investment projects of companies that implement real-world applications in AI, the emergence of future Canadian flagships in the sector, as well as the development of a skilled workforce. SOURCE Scale AI

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The Central Government has issued new guidelines for international travellers amid the spread of the new mutant strains of coronavirus emerging from different countries.

The new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) will come into effect from 23.59 hours on Monday till further orders.

The number of people who have tested positive for the new strain of Covid-19 in the country has climbed to 187, health and family welfare ministry officials have said.

Attention Passengers!

To reduce the risk of importation of mutant strains of SARS-CoV-2, SOP for International Passengers arriving in India have been updated in supersession of all guidelines on the subject since 2 Aug20. The new SOP will be in effect on 23:59 hrs on 22nd Feb,21 pic.twitter.com/YoGFkitP2t  MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) February 17, 2021

Here are the new guidelines

1. As part of the civil aviation ministry's updated guidelines for international passengers coming to India, all international fliers except the ones coming on flights originating from the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East will have to submit a self-declaration form on the Air Suvidha portal before their scheduled travel.

2. International passengers will also have to upload a negative Covid-19 RT-PCR report with exception of those traveling to India in the exigency of death in the family. For seeking exemption, the travelling entity will have to apply to the online portal www.newdelhiairport.in at least 72 hours before boarding.

The test should have been conducted within 72 hours prior to the journey and each passenger will also have to submit a declaration with respect to the authenticity of the report.

3. At the time of boarding the flight, only asymptomatic travellers will be allowed to board after the thermal screening.

4. International travellers arriving through seaports/land ports will also have to undergo the same protocol, however, the facility for online registration is not available for such passengers at the moment.

5. All such clauses shall be applicable to travellers coming/transiting from flights originating in the UK, Europe and the Middle East except for clauses on testing, quarantine and isolation.

6. For those who have to take connecting flights, airlines should keep the passengers informed about the need for the transit time of a minimum 6-8 hours at the entry airport (in India) for the required testing and other procedures while booking the tickets for connecting flights.

7. Airlines should identify the international travellers arriving from/transiting through the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa (during past 14 days) and segregate them in-flight or while disembarking to facilitate the authorities to follow the due protocol in respect of these travellers.

8. All travellers arriving from/transiting through flights originating in the United Kingdom, Europe or Middle East shall be mandatorily subjected to self-paid confirmatory molecular tests on arrival at the Indian airports concerned (port of entry).

9. The state-wise passenger manifest of the flights originating from Europe and Middle East and landing at Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai airports in India for the said period shall be conveyed by the Bureau of Immigration to State Government/Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme.

10. International travellers on a short stay (of less than 14 days) and who have tested negative and remain symptom free, shall undergo all the procedures as above and shall be permitted to leave India under proper intimation to their District/State health authorities, subject to them fulfilling the requirement of the airlines and destination country.

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A man believed to be trying to defect from North Korea was found by soldiers in the South after having swum for six hours and crawled through a drain pipe.

The man, in his 20s, swam across the maritime border between the two nations before crawling through the pipe located beneath a barbed-wire fence, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The man was initially spotted around 4.20am on Tuesday as he passed a military checkpoint, but it took soldiers a further three hours to locate him, according to the JoongAng newspaper.

A diving suit and fins were found on a beach in Goseong, Gangwon, where the man came to shore after his swim and his footprints were located two miles south of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

A detachable metal helmet, often used by fishermen in North Korea, was also found on the beach.

The JCS said the man had been picked up multiple times on surveillance cameras and that security barriers inside the pipe he had crawled through had not been secured sufficiently.

The military had previously claimed that security measures had been tightened for drain pipes in the border region to help deal with potential defectors.

The man was found in an area south of the DMZ in which civilians are not allowed to travel without a military permit and the South Korean military acknowledged its failure to act more quickly to capture the man.

Suh Wook, the defence minister, apologised for the security failure and vowed to take measures to prevent similar incidents in future.

'Our military did not take appropriate actions, although the man had been detected in its surveillance system several times since coming ashore,' the military said, according to The New York Times.

In a statement, the military also confirmed they would be conducting an investigation into how the man swam across the maritime border during the winter and would be taking follow-up measures.

It comes four months after a former gymnast also defected from North Korea by reportedly leaping over the border fence.

A man in his 20s has been captured in South Korea after swimming for six hours and crawling through a drain pipe to reportedly defect from North Korea (file image of South Korean guard post in the Demilitarized Zone in South Korea on June 18, 2020)

On November 3, the man in his 20s entered the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea shortly after 7pm local time.

He was captured by South Korean border guards 14 hours later and his motivations for crossing have been under investigation ever since.

There have been more than 33,000 defections from North Korea since famine struck the country in the 1990s, with most cases making their way through China in the hopes of reaching a South Korean embassy in another country.

The majority are civilians although more than 700 members of the North Korean military have also defected since 1998, according to South Korea's Ministry of Unification.
Credit: Bucknell University/FFI

The future of globally important wildlifeincluding endangered chimpanzees and pangolinslooks a little brighter after over 17,000 hectares of severely threatened forest habitat in an ecologically unique region of South Sudan were granted formal protection.

The regazettement of Bangangai Game Reserve will ensure that this unhailed haven of biodiversity is brought under more effective management at what is a crucial juncture for the country's impressive but imperiled natural wonders.

A decade has elapsed since Fauna & Flora International (FFI) accepted an invitation to help kick-start conservation in the newly declared Republic of South Sudan. Given our proven track record of operating in crisis and conflict zones, we were never likely to decline such an opportunity.

FFI has been a constant presence in South Sudan since 2011. Focusing our efforts on the comparatively stable region of Western Equatoria, we have been working closely with communities, government officials and Wildlife Service staff to address priorities such as training, provision of equipment and the development of basic infrastructure, which in turn has laid the foundations for a program of biological monitoring and protected area management.

Half a century of political turbulence has devastated lives, livelihoods and wildlife across much of what is now South Sudan, but large swathes of 'protected' forestand the wealth of species they harborhave escaped much of the damage inflicted by the long years of conflict.

Africas newest protected area, Bangangai Game Reserve. Credit: Nicolas Tubbs/FFI

Refuge for rarities

Bangangai Game Reserve, situated in the extreme south-west of the country on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo, is among the areas to have emerged relatively unscathed, but in common with many of the biologically rich landscapes benefiting from nominal protection, it has endured decades of neglect, and its wildlife is in urgent need of conservation attention.

With sterling support from Rainforest Trust, FFI has been engaged in a broad spectrum of conservation activities designed to reconcile the respective needs of people and wildlife in the area and engineer an outcome that will secure long-term benefits for both.

By virtue of its position within the belt of tropical forest that lies along the fault line between the two biogeographically separate regions of Central and East Africa, Bangangai boasts a bewildering array of biodiversity.

Camera-trapping surveys conducted in collaboration with Bucknell University and the South Sudanese government have already revealed that Bangangai is a vital stronghold for pangolins and numerous primate species including the endangered eastern chimpanzee and, intriguingly, a rare form of red colobus monkey. Other threatened species captured on camera include antelopes such as the bongo and charismatic carnivores such as the African golden cat.

Rare glimpse of the elusive and endangered giant pangolin. Credit: Bucknell University/FFI

This unique assemblage of plants and animals is under tremendous pressure from illegal resource extraction in the shape of poaching, hunting and other unsustainable subsistence activities from logging to slash-and-burn agriculture, much of it driven by extreme poverty and food insecurity.

Nevertheless, FFI has already witnessed genuine commitment to conservation and support for sustainable resource use on the part of local communities, even in the face of recurring problems such as crop damage inflicted by wildlife.

Community-led conservation

As part of our efforts to mitigate these threats, we are not only supporting and equipping Wildlife Service staff, but also training so-called Community Wildlife Ambassadors, selected with the help of local chiefs. Drawn from the communities surrounding Bangangai, these individuals join regular patrols engaged in law enforcement, monitoring and reporting.

Crucially, these patrol units include women and a significant number of young people, thereby ensuring that traditionally disenfranchised sections of society are engaged in the protection of their natural resourcesand rewarded for their efforts, not just financially but in terms of improved status and self-esteem.

A magnificent male bongo caught on camera. Credit: Bucknell University/FFI

At the request of the community members themselves, the original reserve has been enlarged to include an additional strip of land beyond the Biki River, and the extended boundary has now been officially demarcated, and agreed by all parties including the local chiefs.

Benoit Morkel, who is leading FFI's landscape conservation program in Western Equatoria, hailed this landmark achievement as a seminal moment for the region: "The regazettement of Bangangai is a significant milestone when considering South Sudan's turbulent history and the little protection these incredible wildlife areas were previously afforded. It is encouraging to receive this formal recognition and increasing support from the government and local communities."

FFI has embarked on a consultation process that will pave the way for the establishment of a Community Conserved Area, hopefully in the near future, which will operate as a buffer zone around the newly redesignated reserve.

Operating against a backdrop of mistrust and conflict at the national level, FFI has succeeded in creating an inclusive model of protected area management that brings together government and community interests, supporting the development of resilient livelihood activities and enhancing social cohesion while simultaneously safeguarding South Sudan's incredibly rich wildlife.

Explore further Mystery monkey: Rare red colobus caught on camera in South Sudan
The BJP leaders are seeking more structural changes to the party office as part of preparations for a final onslaught against the TRS for the 2023 Assembly elections. (Photo:DC/ Surenderreddy Singireddy)

Hyderabad: The BJP has added a new weapon in its arsenal in their fight against the TRS  good fortune that follows after ensuring compliance with Vaastu. The saffron party has decided to overhaul its office Vaastu set-up.

So strong is the belief that only Vaastu now lies between it and winning power in the state, that the party has urged seniors leaders to change the entrance of the office and correct several other defects in the layout of the office and make it compliant with Vaastu shastra.

After discussing with key leaders, BJP state president Bandi Sanjay Kumar has decided to go ahead with the changes to the architectural and interiors setup of the state BJP office.

BJPs current strategy is to continue its winning momentum, further strengthen the party rapidly in Telangana and make a successful bid for coming to power in next assembly elections. The party got trounced in the last Assembly elections and won a lone assembly seat out of 119 seats.

After the Assembly elections, the partys previous president Dr K. Laxman too had pinned the defeat to structural defects in the state office building. At the time too, key leaders consulted prominent Vaastu pandits to suggest changes and alterations to the construction inside the office.

Jayahshankkaar, a prominent numerologist in Hyderabad, said that changes in Vastu will yield success, good health and prosperity, not only at the level of a residence, a party office, but also of cities, a state, or even an entire country.

Indian people believe in Karma. But it is not a matter of belief but a science of the universe. Whether people believe it or not, Karma plays out in life. It is a mathematically precise science, even if our understanding of it is partial, he said.

"Those people who believe in Vastu can get their properties, be it residence or office, checked by a qualified pundit, who can make right suggestions to remove the doshas (errors). The result shows and an impact is felt immediately, be it in personal life or the success of a political party," Jayahshankkaar added.

Several party offices have had their Vastu changed after they faced a defeat in elections. But after changing the Vastu of party offices and residences of leaders, they got good results.

Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao believes in Vastu and based on advise by Vastu Pandit Suddala Sudhakhar Teja, he had his properties corrected. Former chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu got both his house and party office corrected for Vastu while in hibernation for a decade and returned to power for a stint as Chief Minister in AP.

Based on the directions of Vaastu pandits, the BJP party demolished the restrooms which were located at a non-suitable place and made other minor repairs on some windows and doors. After these changes, the BJP not only came to power across the country but also increased its stature in Telangana, won four Lok Sabha seats in the 2019 elections and put paid to TRS supremos plans to drive his car to Delhi.

Party leaders strongly believe that those results were partly possible because of Vaastu changes.

After the Lok Sabha elections, with the good Vaastu intact, the BJP won the Dubbaka by-poll and fared exceptionally well in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal elections. In GHMC elections the party rose to 47 corporators from the four existing divisions it held.

Bandi Sanjay, after taking charge as president of the state party unit, has given Vaastu of the party office due importance. The main door at the entrance of the office was closed permanently on recommendations of Vaastu experts. All leaders now, as per Vaastu directives, enter the office from a side door, which is northwards side of the building.

After changing the main entrance, the past president was elevated to the prestigious post of national president of the party OBC Morcha.

President Bandi Sanjay also changed his seating directions, as opposed to how Dr Laxman used to sit. The entrance to the office cellar was closed and a wall was built to block entry to the cellar. A wall, which is at Eshanyam (eastwards) was also slightly changed. The BJP offices main door was almost closed. It is opened only sometimes when a large number of activists turn up at come.

It was actually after these changes that Bandi Sanjay made history, leading his party to a win in Dubbaka and a stellar performance in GHMC.

Party leaders are now convinced that powered by several factors like riding on a winning momentum, continuing anti-TRS sentiment in the state, a pro-BJP wave and good Vaastu, the party will win both the MLC elections as well as the Nagarjunasagar by-poll.

The lotus party leaders are seeking more structural changes to the party office as part of preparations for a final onslaught against the TRS for the 2023 Assembly elections.

A couple has revealed how they transformed a delivery van into their very own home on wheels, giving up the daily grind to travel the globe.

Mariepier Bastien, 31, and Dominic Faucher, 33, from Quebec, Canada have always lived something of a nomadic lifestyle, spending at least two months abroad each year in Airbnbs, campers, and hostels.

But vacations weren't enough, and the couple soon craved a more permanent escape from their 9 to 5 life  so in June of 2020, they bought a van for $23,500 and got to work renovating it, with a little help from their dads.

Dream life: A couple has revealed how they transformed a delivery van into their very own home on wheels, giving up the daily grind to travel the globe

On the go: Mariepier Bastien, 31, and Dominic Faucher, 33, from Quebec, Canada have always lived something of a nomadic lifestyle

Putting in the work: The couple soon craved a more permanent escape from their 9 to 5 life

Purchase: In June of 2020, they bought a van for $23,500 and got to work renovating it

Wanderlust: Before the pandemic, the pair had done quite a bit of traveling and liked to go at their own speed

Before the pandemic, the pair had done quite a bit of traveling and liked to go at their own speed.

'In 2016, we travelled to Iceland and we had rented a campervan for two weeks to tour around the island,' Mariepier, a part-time teacher at University of Ottawa, told Jam Press.

'We fell in love with the lifestyle and the idea of carrying our belongings with us, stopping whenever and being able to discover new lands.

So the couple bought a 2014 Ram Promaster 136'' Highroof, which was previously used as a delivery truck, from a local dealership, and set about renovating their new home, which took them over 300 hours.

Mariepier said: 'We completed the conversion with the tremendous help of both our dads, who, despite being very handy, actually had no experience in van conversions but somehow nailed it.

'The difference between building a van and a house is that every square foot matters in such a tiny space,' she went on.

They bought a 2014 Ram Promaster 136'' Highroof for $23,500 and got to work renovating it, with a little help from their dads

'Once we were set on the layout and on the components, it was go time: lots of trial and error, building and rebuilding. We used to compare it to making a 5,000-piece puzzle'

Not cheap: Overall, the couple spent $45,000 on the van and renovations

'Building the van with our dads was such a nice experience. We would wake up, eat breakfast together and head to the garage to work on the van'

'We spent a lot of time reading blogs and watching videos of people converting their vans'

'Therefore, we needed to plan multiple functions for every cabinet and it requires a bit more thinking.

'We also needed to make everything resistant to temperature variations, which required even more thinking.

'Once we were set on the layout and on the components, it was go time: lots of trial and error, building and rebuilding. We used to compare it to making a 5,000-piece puzzle.'

The transformation wasn't without some difficulties, and the couple admits they had 'no idea' where to start when it came to fitting electricity, insulation, and flooring, among other things.

And so they got some help from their respective parents.

They said: 'We spent a lot of time reading blogs and watching videos of people converting their vans.

'Building the van with our dads was such a nice experience. We would wake up, eat breakfast together and head to the garage to work on the van.

Looks nice! The finished product includes space to eat, sleep, and relax

Fans: Mariepier and Dominic's favorite thing about their new home is the color scheme, which makes it feel very cosy and creates a lot of light

Homey: They made sure to make it comfortable, not just practical

Switcheroo! The small place has some convertible functions likes this

Advice: For anyone else thinking of converting their own van into a home, they advise trying out 'van life' first

'Don't compare your build or yourself to others,' they added

'Again, there are many ways to convert a van and be honest to yourself and what you want to live and experience'

'At lunch, the moms would make dinner and we'd all stop to enjoy this time together. They were (and still are) extremely happy and proud to have taken part in this journey with us.'

All in all, the entire project cost them $45,000, including the initial $23,500 for the van.

Mariepier and Dominic's favorite thing about their new home is the color scheme, which makes it feel very cosy and creates a lot of light.

Since they finished, they've been able to travel across North America, visiting Quebec, Ontario, Alberta, Colorado New Mexico, and more.

For anyone else thinking of converting their own van into a home, they advise trying out 'van life' first.

'It is the only way to figure out what you truly need,' Mariepier said. 'There are hundreds of layouts, which are all very different and so experiencing van life in various models is the only way to determine what youll truly need.

'Also, don't compare your build or yourself to others,' they added. 'Again, there are many ways to convert a van and be honest to yourself and what you want to live and experience.'
New York, Feb 19 : Democrats introduced on Thursday a comprehensive immigration reform bill that wants to allow more permanent immigrant status or green cards for professional Indians, who have the longest wait for immigration, and cut their wait times.

The bill introduced by Senator Bob Menendez and House of Representatives member Linda Sanchez seeks to remove the annual limits on green cards for each country, a measure that would allow more immigration from India.

The bill also tries to help children of those on H1-B professional employment visas who would have become ineligible for green cards if they reach 21 years before their parents qualify for immigration. They would be allowed to continue with H1-B visas.

Under current regulations, the children lose their right to remain in the US when they turn 21 years if their parents are still waiting for green cards.

Spouses of H1-B workers would also be allowed to work, a provision that former President Donald Trump tried to revoke.

Sanchez said in a statement that the reforms would grow "our economy by making changes to the employment-based immigration system, eliminating per-country caps, making it easier for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) advanced degree holders from US universities to stay, improving access to green cards for workers in lower-wage industries, and giving dependents of H-1B holders work authorisation, and preventing children of H-1B holders from aging out of the system".

It would also "create a pilot program to stimulate regional economic development and (it) incentivises higher wages for non-immigrant, high-skilled visas to prevent unfair competition with American workers,aA she added.

The wage provision would set higher minimum wages for H1-B workers on par with prevailing local wages for comparable jobs.

Another category of Indians who would benefit are relatives of immigrants. They would be allowed into the US to join their families while they await their green cards.

Introducing the bill, Menendez said, "We have an economic and moral imperative to pass big, bold and inclusive immigration reform that leaves no one behind." The bill will try to fulfill President Joe Biden's election promises on immigration.

The main elements that the Menendez-Sanchez bill wants to fulfil are about giving immigrant status to about 850,000 children who were brought to the country illegally and to legalise an estimate 11 million illegal immigrants.

The children under the category are known as "Dreamers" for their pursuit of the American Dream.

According to one of Biden's manifesto, 500,000 illegal immigrants from Indians and many Dreamers would benefit if the bill passes.

Illegal immigrants in the country would have an eight-year process to get citizenship.

A similar amnesty during Republican President Ronald Reagan's administration in the 1980s legalised about 3.5 million illegal immigrants.

The Menendez-Sanchez bill as it stands has a difficult path to enactments mainly because it would require at least ten Republicans to vote for it in the Senate to get the 60 votes needed to pass. Republicans oppose the bill mainly because while providing an amnesty for illegal immigrants it does not include strict measures to enforce immigration laws.

Acknowledging the difficulty in getting the bill through, Menendez said in January that he was under no "illusion" and "passing immigration reform through the Senate particularly is a Herculean task." Biden's Spokesperson Jan Psaki said that the bill was a starting point and could be modified through bipartisan negotiations. "We are willing to have the conversations in the weeks ahead," she said.

A way out of the Senate imbroglio would be to break it up and treat some elements of the bill as part of the budget, which would require only a simple majority under what is known as the reconciliation process.

Biden appeared to be open to the strategy.

According to the State Department, Indians with advanced degrees whose immigration applications were approved in 2009 and skilled workers and professionals whose applications were okayed in 2010 are still waiting for their green cards because each country regardless of size are allowed only 26,000 green cards each year, except for Canada and Mexico.

Those wait times are only for those who applications are already approved, and it could run to centuries for those in the immigration queue.

Republican Senator Mike Lee has said that the wait times for Indian professionals stuck in the "awful, hellish green card backlog" because their applications are awaiting approval the wait is 195 years and could go up to 450 years in ten years without reforms.

According to the think tank Cato Institute 200,000 Indian professionals in the green card pipeline would die of old age before their turn.

Because of the country limits and the way the cards allocated across different categories, family members of Indian immigrants also have long waits: Since approval in 2014 for unmarried adult children of citizens; since 2015 for unmarried adult children of green card holders, and since 2005 or siblings of citizens.

Previously a bill dealing with only the professionals that would have helped Indians was passed in 2019 in the House, but a matching bill co-sponsored by Kamala Harris, who was then a senator and is now vice president, did not clear the Senate.

Last year, a similar bill was passed by the Senate but stalled in the House.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter at @arulouis)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi: E Sreedharan, also dubbed as the 'Metro man' will joining the BJP just months ahead of the state assembly polls in Kerala.

The man credited for changing the face of public transport in India will formally join BJP during the scheduled Vijaya Yathra which will be led by state BJP chief K Surendran. The 'yatra' will commence from Sunday.

The 88-year-old is likely to contest the Kerala election, which is likely to be held in May.

Sreedharan retired as chief of the Delhi Metro in 2011. He was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2001 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2008.
MEDFORD, Ore.  Asante has a name for its new cancer center following a $5 million donation  the largest in the medical provider's history  from local philanthropists.

The 80,000 square-foot Heimann Cancer Center, named after Mary and Dick Heimann, has been under development since at least 2019. Asante says that construction is currently underway, and the new building is slated to open in early 2022.

For the community that we love, we wanted to do something that will leave a legacy, said Dick Heimann, co-founder and vice chairman-emeritus of Lithia Motors. The services and conveniences will provide excellence in medical care within this facility and will have a tremendous impact on so many people.

Asante said that the Heimann Cancer Center will join Spears Cancer Center in Grants Pass as part of the "Asante Regional Cancer Institute," an effort to put outpatient cancer services under one roof in each region. This includes imaging, radiation, chemotherapy, lab tests and doctor consultations, and supportive services.

When we saw the regional cancer center plans and the possibilities for this community, it was really important for us to be able to make a gift and inspire others. Its going to be a very special place, said Mary Heimann.

Our hope is that this becomes the second largest gift in Asantes history, inspiring others to make an even bigger gift to make AsanteForward a success, said Dick Heimann.

Part of the Heimanns' donation will also go toward a pediatric cancer clinic to help children facing cancer, what Asante calls "the new childrens hospital-within-a-hospital" in the patient pavilion under construction at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center.

Donor generosity through AsanteForward ensures these all-important expansion projects can continue. This historic gift is a testament to the communitys devotion to helping each another particularly the 2,000 people diagnosed with cancer in Southern Oregon every year, said Floyd Harmon, Executive Director, Asante Foundation. Were grateful for the Heimanns leadership and advocacy for people with cancer and their families.

Asante said that its campaign to raise money for the new cancer center has now passed $25 million out of a total goal of $50 million.

An investigation into how antibodies in breastmilk can protect babies and young children from COVID-19 will be the focus of a new project by The University of Western Australia, funded by the State Government to tackle health challenges associated with the virus.

The findings will inform breastfeeding recommendations for best infant care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The research team, from UWAs School of Molecular Sciences, was awarded $223,000 through the Future Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Fund Focus Grant Program to investigate the activity of antibodies in protecting children from COVID-19 in the worlds largest, long-term human milk study.

Lead researcher, Professor Valerie Verhasselt, Larssen-Rosenquist Chair in Human Lactology at UWA, said with human milk recommended as the sole source of infant nutrition, it was important to understand whether it could protect infants from COVID-19 and how.

While we are currently 99.99 per cent sure we can say that a child cannot get COVID-19 through breast milk, there is still much research to be done to reveal the capability of human milk to prevent COVID-19 infections." Professor Valerie Verhasselt, Lead researcher, Larssen-Rosenquist Chair in Human Lactology at UWA

The team will analyse 500 milk samples from 25 COVID-19 infected and 25 non-infected mothers collected at 10 time points from delivery.

Using this unique resource, they aim to further establish the protective properties of human milk against the COVID-19 infection.

Importantly, they will address current gaps in knowledge, including how maternal COVID-19 infection influences the protective effect of breastmilk and how important maternal antibodies are to protect the child from infection.

Professor Verhasselt said that filling these gaps of knowledge was essential to providing the scientific evidence needed for appropriate breastfeeding guidance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

She said the study would also reveal the importance of prolonged breastfeeding to prevent infection and disease in children as well as to prevent community transmission by asymptomatic children.

We expect this knowledge will be critical to inform vaccination strategies, including the need to vaccinate lactating mothers for the best approach to prevent COVID-19 in children. It may also lead to the development of new therapeutics, such as milk-derived antibodies, to prevent severe disease in at-risk populations. Professor Valerie Verhasselt

The research was established in collaboration with Dr Juan M Rodriguez, Complutense University of Madrid, who provided access to the long-term milk cohort and Dr Allison Imrie, UWA, to address the virus neutralizing properties of human milk antibodies.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has unveiled a "major new campaign to promote a return to central London's hospitality, retail and cultural districts".

Five million pounds' investment will aim to welcome both tourists and Londoners back into the capital  all in a safe and sustainable way. Khan believes "the safe reopening of Central London will be fundamental to the long-term future prosperity of the capital."

According to proposals, major events will showcase central London's public spaces and cultural riches  more information on what events to expect is to be revealed.

Within a report created alongside London School of Economics, it was highlighted that "there is particular concern regarding the future of London's arts and cultural sectors and the retail sector" and that major economic support is necessary to safeguard areas like the West End.

The Mayor has also allocated 2.3 million for a Culture at Risk fund to help some of London's most imperilled creative and night-time businesses.

Bernard Donoghue, director at ALVA (Association of Leading Visitor Attractions) said: "We warmly welcome this announcement of significant support for the recovery of London's visitor economy. Tourism is one of London's largest and most economically significant sectors, and we need our cultural attractions, theatres, pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels to reopen safely and sustainably to welcome back domestic and inbound visitors.

"We have worked closely with the Mayor and backed all of his asks of Government for the right policy and financial support, so we are delighted that he's investing in making London more welcoming, more open and more sustainable than ever before."

Cultural figures have made calls for the UK government to spearhead similar schemes in areas across the UK  to help provide sustainable and safe increases in footfall as the vaccine drive continues and case numbers, hopefully, come down.

Last year, Khan warned that London faced an "existential threat" due to the ongoing effects of the pandemic.
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Imphal, Feb 18 : The indefinite agitation launched by editors and journalists in Manipur on Sunday to protest the grenade attack on a leading newspaper's office in Imphal on Saturday was called off on Thursday and the publication of newspapers and telecast of television channels would resume from Friday.

The All Manipur Working Journalists Union (AMWJU) and Editors Guild Manipur (EGM) in an emergency meeting on Thursday decided to call off their stir after Chief Minister N. Biren Singh gave an assurance to provide security to media organisations.

The joint meeting of AMWJU and EGM condemned the fact that the militant outfits concerned failed to make any clarification on the grenade attack in the media office.

"The meeting also decided not to publish any Press Releases of any extremist outfits which have been issuing different versions on certain issues," a spokesman of the agitating Journalists said.

A Chinese-made grenade was hurled at the office of 'Poknapham' newspaper in the heart of Imphal on Saturday evening, but fortunately it did not detonate.

The police have not yet made any headway in the ongoing probe, while no extremist outfit has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Condemning the attack, Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on Tuesday announced that the state government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the attack.

There have been bomb attacks on some newspaper offices in Imphal in the past, triggering protracted protests from the media community. In some cases, editors and journalists went on strike for weeks.

A total of 32 newspapers, mostly vernacular, are published daily from Manipur and there are several cable-based television channels.
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Agthia Group, a leading regional food and beverages company, said that its Board of Directors has approved the acquisition of a majority stake in Nabil Foods after receiving certain key regulatory approvals.



Nabil Foods is one of the leading regional producers of frozen and chilled processed protein products distributed in more than 20 markets.



Following receipt of further regulatory approvals, Agthias Board of Directors agreed it will now call for a General Assembly where shareholders will vote on the acquisition of Nabil Foods. This transaction would mark Agthias first entry into the processed protein industry through a well-established brand with a successful track record of over 75 years.



Alan Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Agthia Group, said: Todays Board meeting and calling for a General Assembly in due course are important milestones in the acquisition of Nabil Foods  a significant transaction that will place Agthia at the forefront of a fast-growing industry, expand its product portfolio and cement its position as a leading regional FMCG player.



This acquisition will be a key part of Agthias growth plans, providing us with presence in Jordan for the first time while contributing to a stronger financial profile, wider regional access, enlarged asset base, and enhanced financial performance and profitability.



Following the receipt of shareholder and remaining regulatory approvals, Agthia would acquire an 80% stake in Nabil Foods, including a 60% stake acquired from ADQ, one of the regions largest holding companies, in exchange for a convertible instrument as well as a further 20% stake acquired from Ideal Holding Limited in exchange for cash. The fixed price at which the convertible instrument will convert into shares in Agthia is AED5.50 per share, implying an equity value of AED394 million for a 60% stake in Nabil Foods.



Nabil Foods has a processing capacity of 43,000 tons per year and 600 individual product lines distributed in more than 20 local and international markets, which will enable Agthia to expand its product offering and immediately access new revenue streams.



The acquisition is expected to drive tangible short- and long-term value for all stakeholders, with cost and revenue synergy opportunities and cross-market distribution throughout the region.  TradeArabia News Service
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

For years, poverty fighters in Philadelphia have preached the importance of business joining government to help those in need.

Di Bruno Bros., the Philadelphia-based food purveyor, has embraced the idea.

Its not just a City Hall problem but a Main Street problem, said Bill Mignucci, president of Di Bruno Bros. Business and government have to come together. We want to be part of a movement.

Over the last two years, the company has partnered with Project HOME, the Philadelphia nonprofit that combats homelessness, by stocking products created by formerly homeless people now living at the agency, such as candles.

Their latest collaboration is a larger, more directed effort to highlight the people being helped by Project HOME: a kiosk of goods made, packaged, or curated by individuals who were once homeless. It includes a larger variety of candles, along with mugs featuring resident art, and other products bearing Project HOME logos. It stands in an outdoor tent at the Di Bruno Bros. Italian Market site, available Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

Thats considered a soft opening by Mignucci, who wants to help Project HOME increase the number of kiosks to numerous retail spots throughout the city.

Were here to build a sustainable model that gets replicated in other places, said Mignucci. They would be managed, inventoried, and maintained by Project HOME residents, and, with luck, take in around $100,000 a year for the agency.

Di Bruno Bros. stores have stocked Project HOME objects on shelves during the holidays in 2019 and last year, including Sister Marys Sinfully Delicious Cranberry Sauce, based on a family recipe from Project HOMEs executive director, Sister Mary Scullion.

Project HOME sold $30,000 in products during the 2019 holiday season in Di Bruno Bros. stores, on the food companys website, and on the agencys website, Project HOMEmade.org, agency figures show. Last year, the agency made $40,000. The agency also sells goods in its Fairmount store, Project HOME Thrift.

Proceeds go to the formerly homeless Project HOME artisans who have known chaos, whove been disconnected from the grid, and have bedded down in the weather on Philadelphia hardscape, their lives not so much lived as endured.

The kiosks are small steps, but important to Mignucci, whos tried to become a student of local poverty.

It perplexes me, he said, in a city with so much history and success, that we dont seem to get much traction and momentum against poverty.

I love Philadelphia and Im troubled and frustrated and embarrassed that we lead Americas biggest cities in the poverty rate. Its not something Im very proud of. The business community has to take some responsibility for poverty, and I want to be a resource.

Conscious consumerism

Project HOME is hoping to be a part of the growing trend known as conscious consumerism  when buying practices are driven by a commitment to make positive social impact.

Conscious consumerism is in the forefront of peoples minds, said Nic Watson, director of social enterprise for Project HOME. Were trying to get our products and name out there to make it easy for people in Philadelphia to buy them and support ending homelessness to make our city better.

Watson, who has an MBA from New York University and once worked as a line producer on the pilot of the Food Network TV program Chopped, said the goal is to make Project HOME a ubiquitous brand in the city:

We want you to be able to walk into a high-end gift store and get a Project HOME gift for a friend that supports us.

Watson said his current pipe dream is to place Project HOME merchandise in Whole Foods stores. Stay tuned, he advised.

Along with raising funds, social enterprise work at Project HOME is meant to springboard residents into real jobs. Around 17 of 31 Project HOME resident artisans have gotten into competitive jobs after making candles and doing other projects between 2018 and 2019, Watson said.

The agency also makes some money through its Project HOME Books, an online business that sells donated books.

Because of the pandemic, not all agency activities can carry on as usual. That makes things tough for Kai Oceans, 31, a Project HOME resident and sales associate whos currently the only candlemaker working. Oceans created 500 candles since COVID-19 hit, but doesnt tire of getting the Project HOME name out into the world.

Oceans, who grew up in Germantown and lived for a time in a West Philadelphia homeless shelter, is on a mission.

No matter what a person has gone through and what they look like, Oceans said, they have value. And anyone is capable of overcoming adversity.

Right now, Oceans is pushing a new candle called Love Unites Us. Its not about romance, Oceans said, but the message of Dr. Martin Luther King  how love unites us as a community, and a world.

Project HOME describes the scent as smooth and sweet, with spicy notes.

But, Oceans promised, if you buy the candle (for $28), Youll become a direct part of our mission. Our core message is that everyone has value.

And you could become part of someones success story.
US Vice President and her family will uphold the highest ethical standards, her spokesperson said, asserting that it is the policy of the that her name should not be used in connection with any commercial activity.

The statement comes following media reports that the has asked Meena Harris, niece of the vice president, to stop "using her aunt to boost her brand".

The Vice President and her family will uphold the highest ethical standards and it is the White House's policy that the Vice President's name should not be used in connection with any commercial activities that could reasonably be understood to imply an endorsement or support, Sabrina Singh, Deputy Press Secretary to the Vice President, told PTI.

According to Los Angeles Times, the has asked Meena not to build her brand by using the name of the US Vice President.

After and Harris won the election, the transition team's ethics lawyers told Meena that she could no longer produce clothing or write new books with her aunt's name or likeness, an unnamed White House official was quoted as saying by the daily.

According to the daily, the White House official said Vice President Aunty sweatshirts, Harris-themed swimsuits and other products previously sold, were not allowed under the current rules.

Meena did not respond to a question sent through a social media platform.

After became the Vice President of the United States of America, her niece has been in several news reports.

The @meena problem goes global wrote Politico last week. The news report accused Meena Harris of wading into India's internal

Her (Meena's) series of posts have helped provoke a backlash from the Indian government and some of its supporters, adding an unexpected wrinkle to India-US relations, just as Biden is seeking to engage with the country's leaders, Politico reported.

The White House, however, has described such tweets as expression of views of a private citizen.

What is happening in India is terrifying, Meena had written in one of her latest tweets on India as she retweeted a news story about the arrest of climate activist Disha Ravi.

In recent weeks, there has been a sudden spurt in India-specific tweets by Meena. She has also come out in open in support of farmers protesting against the recently enacted agricultural laws and arrest of individuals related to it.

According to informed sources, the White House believes that her tweets are unlikely to have any impact on India-US relationship, to which the Biden administration gives top priority.

(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.)
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Allergies to cow's milk are the most common cause of fatal reactions in children and is 'increasingly' affecting adults, a new study has found.

While the numbers are small, cow's milk was responsible for 26% of food allergy deaths in school-aged children, experts said.

It comes as research found that admissions to hospital for severe food allergies have tripled over the last 20 years.

But the number of deaths from food-related anaphylaxis - severe allergic reactions - have reduced.

The research, published in The BMJ, examined hospital admissions in the UK over a 20 year period.

Allergies to cow's milk are the most common cause of fatal reactions in children and is 'increasingly' affecting adults, a new study has found

Experts from Imperial College London's National Heart and Lung Institute studied data from 1998 to 2018.

During this time 101,891 people were admitted to hospitals around the UK for severe allergic reactions.

Of these, 30,700 were due to food allergies.

From the start of the study the rate of people in the population admitted to hospital for anaphylaxis caused by food increased from 1.23 per 100,000 people in the community to 4.04 by 2018.

The largest increase was seen among children under the age of 15, the authors found.

This rose from 2.1 admissions out of every 100,000 people to 9.2 per 100,000 people.

The authors found that 152 deaths were attributed to a severe allergic reaction triggered by food.

But the proportion of deaths decreased over time from 0.7% to 0.19%

Nuts were responsible for 46% of these deaths.

But the authors said cow's milk was responsible for 26% of deaths in children and 5% in adults, despite allergy to cow's milk being uncommon in older children and adults.

Cow's milk was responsible for 17 of 66 deaths in school-aged children.

'Since 1992 a downward trend has occurred in the proportion of deaths due to peanut or tree nut, but deaths due to cow's milk exposure have increased,' they wrote.

'We observed a concerning increase in fatalities due to cow's milk, which is now the most common cause of fatal food anaphylaxis in children in the UK.'

Meanwhile the authors point to increased prescriptions of adrenaline auto-injector pens - which help treat severe allergic reactions.

Over the study time period, prescriptions for adrenaline auto-injectors increased by 336%.

But they said that the impact of the increase is 'unclear'.

Reacting to the Imperial College study, Tanya Ednan-Laperouse (pictured with husband Nadim), co-founder of the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, called for a national register of anaphylaxis deaths

'Hospital admissions for food induced anaphylaxis have increased from 1998 to 2018, however the case fatality rate has decreased,' the authors wrote.

'In school-aged children, cow's milk is now the most common single cause of fatal anaphylaxis.'

They added: 'Most young children with allergy to cow's milk will outgrow their allergy; however, in those with persisting allergy, cow's milk is responsible for more than a quarter of deaths caused by food anaphylaxis.'

Reacting to the Imperial College study, Tanya Ednan-Laperouse, co-founder of the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, called for a national register of anaphylaxis deaths.

'We are deeply concerned that deaths caused by severe food allergic reactions are being significantly under-reported.

'This study highlights the urgent need for a national register of deaths by anaphylaxis.

'We have recently attended the inquests of Owen Carey, Ruben Bousquet and Shante Turay Thomas  all entirely preventable deaths.

'As in the inquest of our daughter Natasha, we have witnessed at first hand the miscoding by pathologists of deaths caused by severe food allergic reactions.

'It is symptomatic of the Rubik's Cube approach to allergen safety in this country.

'Only with a national register can the true picture of the allergy crisis be seen and the voices of those crying out for action, including clinicians as well as families, be properly heard.'

Professor Sir Stephen Holgate, Professor of Immunopharmacology at Southampton University and a trustee of the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, said that while the analysis was welcomes, a three-fold increase in hospital admissions caused by food allergies over the last two decades was only part of the problem .

'The lack of allergy specialists means that anaphylaxis is being underdiagnosed and underfollowed up; hence anaphylactic deaths, all of which are preventable,' he said.

'This study only looked at UK hospital admissions and we know that many people who experience a severe food allergy will be treated as an outpatient in A&E.

'Therefore, the true toll of severe and life-threatening food allergies in the UK is likely to be much higher especially since anaphylaxis masquerades as other clinical conditions such as asthma, angioedema and urticaria (hives).

'It is imperative that we understand the full scale of food allergies in the UK so that those with a food allergy can get the care they need to prevent unnecessary anaphylaxis and deaths.

'The introduction of a national register of anaphylaxis fatalities would provide this essential information.'
To the caller who said name something that Trump did wrong, I will give you just two and you cant get more despicable than this. One, he separated infants and preschoolers from their parents. There are still 2,000 children separated from their parents and they will probably never be reunited. Secondly, the COVID virus is a hoax. Guess what? That was a half a million deaths ago.

Frackville



Keep going, Allen Coady. Your letter was not only the best, but so refreshing. If there were more people like you in our country, the country wouldnt be in such turmoil. You know the real answer and that is Jesus. God bless you and your family.

Frackville



The Democrats have the mainstream media in their back pockets. We see daily videos of the Capitol riots, yet not video of the other riots in Democratic cities. The Democratic Party should be listed as a terrorist organization.

Hegins



I would like to thank God and blessings to our Barnesville angels for always cleaning snow-covered drive. They truly are a blessing and they never take a thing for whatever they do. I love them and they are the best angels ever.

Barnesville



The Democrats no longer have Trump to deal with since he is no longer in Washington and yet they still cant get him out of their minds. President Trump really got under their skin. I guess because he made all that he did look so easy. To him, it was easy because he knew business inside and out. He did a lot for all Americans to make their financial lives better.

Pottsville



The time will be arriving shortly when most all Americans give Joe Biden a vote of no-confidence. Then we impeach Joe Biden for dereliction of duties and let him retreat and retire to his Delaware bunker for good.

Pine Grove
LYNDHURST, Ohio, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As a woman, youre expected to juggle so many things, from work to family to unrealistic body image expectations, but no one seems to tell you to prioritize your own health. I wanted to create a guide to help women make their health a priority, Cheryl Agranovich, RN, BSN, MPH states.

A Womens Health Survival Guide: Helping You Become Your Best Self (published by Archway Publishing) is a self-improvement guide that provides women with the tools they need to prioritize their own health every day, enabling them to better achieve their goals. In this book, Agranovich begins with the importance of developing a foundation of good health and builds from there. Here, she teaches women how to create their health team, take charge of their health by being their own health warrior, implement practical and effective ways to improve their daily health habits with emphasis on hydration, nutrition, fitness and sleep, as well as finding their passion, sexual health and financial health.

This book will appeal to all women no matter her current size or race. It offers knowledge that I have learned from my own health journey, as well as what I have learned getting my degrees and working with thousands of clients on behavioral change, Agranovich says. It is also a workbook that is customized specifically for the reader as they work through their particular areas of interest.

A Womens Health Survival Guide: Helping You Become Your Best Self aims for readers to be inspired to take care of themselves and to start taking the steps needed toward a healthier quality of life. All proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to help young women in need succeed by funding health education scholarships. For more details about this book, please visit https://www.archwaypublishing.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/782330-a-womens-health-survival-guide

A Womens Health Survival Guide: Helping You Become Your Best Self

By Cheryl Agranovich, RN, BSN, MPH

Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 196 pages | ISBN 9781480894020

Softcover | 6 x 9in | 196 pages | ISBN 9781480894006

E-Book | 196 pages | ISBN 9781480894013

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Cheryl Agranovich, RN, BSN, MPH, launched her healthcare journey working in an emergency room, yet her interest shifted to preventive health care; her career path followed. As an entrepreneur passionate about health and well-being, she founded two health companies that have helped thousands of people improve their health. Both companies were successfully sold. Agranovich shares her expertise by presenting on a national level, addressing health and well-being topics with a targeted focus on womens health.

Simon & Schuster, a company with nearly ninety years of publishing experience, has teamed up with Author Solutions, LLC, the worldwide leader in self-publishing, to create Archway Publishing. With unique resources to support books of all kind, Archway Publishing offers a specialized approach to help every author reach his or her desired audience. For more information, visit archwaypublishing.com or call 844-669-3957.

Attachment

Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday that the military alliance will only leave when security conditions allow, as a deadline for withdrawing troops set out in a peace deal with the Taliban nears.

has just under 10,000 troops in the war-ravaged country helping to train and advise the Afghan security forces. Most of them are not U.S. forces, but the allies could not continue the operation if American transport, logistics and other support are withdrawn.

President Joe Biden is reviewing his predecessor's 2020 deal with the Taliban, which includes a May 1 deadline for a final U.S. troop withdrawal. In Washington, calls are mounting for the U.S. to delay the final exit or renegotiate the deal to allow the presence of a smaller, intelligence-based American force.

Violence is spiking and culprits include the Taliban, the Islamic State group, warlords and criminal gangs.

Our presence in is conditions based, and Taliban has to meet their commitments, Stoltenberg told reporters after chairing a meeting of NATO defense ministers, including new U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

The main issue is that Taliban has to reduce violence, Taliban has to negotiate in good faith and Taliban has to stop supporting terrorist groups like Al Qaeda, Stoltenberg said.

We will only leave when the time is right and the focus now is how we can we support the peace talks, he said, referring to slow-moving negotiations between the Taliban and the Kabul government, which began last year in Qatar.

None of the 30 NATO member governments has publicly argued that security conditions are right for a withdrawal, and several allies would probably support a longer stay if the U.S. requests it.

The defense ministers are due to discuss more broadly on Thursday. But with the U.S. review ongoing it's unlikely that any firm decision on the future of NATO's operation will be made. That could come when foreign ministers next meet, in mid-March.

NATO took control of security operations in Afghanistan in 2003, two years after a U.S.-led coalition ousted the Taliban for harboring former Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. It's the military alliance's longest, costliest, and most ambitious operation ever.

(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.)

[February 18, 2021] PPG, PPG Foundation Invested $13 Million in Communities Worldwide In 2020

PPG (NYSE:PPG) and the PPG Foundation today announced an investment of $13 million in 2020 to address the needs of local communities in the U.S. and internationally. The funding supported initiatives focused on education, COVID-19 relief, social justice and employee engagement. "As the world faced the COVID-19 pandemic, racial injustice, economic hardships and other challenges throughout 2020, our company's purpose to 'protect and beautify the world' guided our actions in serving our local communities and neighbors," said Malesia Dunn, executive director, PPG Foundation and corporate global social responsibility. Highlights of 2020 community engagement commitments by PPG and the PPG Foundation include: $4.5+ million to COVID-19 relief efforts. From Feeding America in the U.S. to the Chinese Red Cross Federation, PPG partnered with more than 150 leading humanitarian and community-based organizations to fund more than $1.1 million in local recovery efforts. The company also provided more than 5.1 million meals* to food insecure families; donated $1.9 million in masks, personal protective equipment and other in-kind supplies; and helped schools and other institutions transition to remote instruction. Continuing these efforts in 2021, the PPG Foundation made an initial $100,000 donation to Rise Against Hunger to support global food insecurity relief. See a full list of 2020 partners here.

From Feeding America in the U.S. to the Chinese Red Cross Federation, PPG partnered with more than 150 leading humanitarian and community-based organizations to fund more than $1.1 million in local recovery efforts. The company also provided more than 5.1 million meals* to food insecure families; donated $1.9 million in masks, personal protective equipment and other in-kind supplies; and helped schools and other institutions transition to remote instruction. Continuing these efforts in 2021, the PPG Foundation made an initial $100,000 donation to Rise Against Hunger to support global food insecurity relief. See a full list of 2020 partners here. $5.2 million to help grow next-generation STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) leaders. From partnering with the Boys & Girls Club of Western Pa. to facilitating mentorship programs with Junior Achievement in Brazil, PPG funding helped community partners adapt to remote formats and supported opportunities for STEM discovery and advanced learning, including $940,000 in student scholarships.

From partnering with the Boys & Girls Club of Western Pa. to facilitating mentorship programs with Junior Achievement in Brazil, PPG funding helped community partners adapt to remote formats and supported opportunities for STEM discovery and advanced learning, including $940,000 in student scholarships. 50% of PPG Foundation giving targeted diverse communities. The PPG Foundation continued its support of STEM programs that provide educational pathways for Black communities, people of color and other historically underrepresented populations in the U.S. In early 2021, PPG committed $20 million by 2025 in this area. PPG's global COLORFUL COMMUNITIES program celebrated its five-year anniversary in 2020 and marked the completion of 330 projects. Since the program's inception, more than 17,400 employee and community volunteers have brought color and brightness to community assets in 42 countries, impacting more than 6.7 million people. Despite a reduced number of Colorful Communities projects in 2020 due to the global pandemic, PPG-sponsored research revealed color can improve classroom experiences for teachers and students. The research provided inspiration for a variety of Colorful Communities projects completed under health and safety guidelines in 2020, including:



Zhangjiagang White Cloud Primary School in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu Province, China: PPG employee volunteers united to restore a dance studio, reading room and exterior wall to beautify the school's environment for more than 1,200 students.

IC Carducci Vochieri in Alessandria, Italy: Alongside community partners, PPG volunteers reinvigorated a local middle school and provided a fresh start to more than 600 students returning to their classrooms amid the pandemic.

Three learning environments in Uruguay and Brazil: Volunteers transformed classrooms with brightness and color, marking a safe return to the Colorful Communities program in Latin America.

program in Latin America. Richmond Heights Middle School, Miami: PPG leaders and volunteers from across the globe picked up their paint brushes in early 2020 to provide a colorful revitalization for the school and its 500 students. As various parts of the world faced natural disasters or unforeseen hardships in 2020, PPG and the PPG Foundation also established and supported community rebuilding programs. The response to impacted communities included partnerships with the United Way of Southwestern Louisiana - Hurricane Laura Fund for emergency hurricane recovery programs and the Australian Red Cross following the catastrophic brushfires. "While our Colorful Communities projects and global charitable giving may have looked different than in past years due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and other challenges, our funding resources and the efforts of our committed employee volunteers continued to brighten schools and communities, spark passion for science and help those facing hardships," said Dunn. "At a time when so much has changed, we remained focused on creating happier, healthier, more united communities and supporting our most vulnerable neighbors."

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional information regarding community engagement efforts by PPG and the PPG Foundation in 2020, visit our online newsroom at news.ppg.com/2020communityengagement. PPG's global community engagement efforts and the PPG Foundation aim to bring color and brightness to PPG communities around the world. We invested $13 million in 2020, supporting hundreds of organizations across more than 30 countries. By investing in educational opportunities, we help grow today's skilled workforce and develop tomorrow's innovators in fields related to coatings and manufacturing. Plus, we empower PPG employees to multiply their impact for causes that are important to them by supporting their volunteer efforts and charitable giving. Learn more at communities.ppg.com. PPG: WE PROTECT AND BEAUTIFY THE WORLD At PPG (NYSE:PPG), we work every day to develop and deliver the paints, coatings and materials that our customers have trusted for more than 135 years. Through dedication and creativity, we solve our customers' biggest challenges, collaborating closely to find the right path forward. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, we operate and innovate in more than 70 countries and reported net sales of $13.8 billion in 2020. We serve customers in construction, consumer products, industrial and transportation markets and aftermarkets. To learn more, visit www.ppg.com. We protect and beautify the world is a trademark and Colorful Communities and the PPG Logo are registered trademarks of PPG Industries Ohio, Inc. *According to Feeding America, every $1 dollar donated is approximately the equivalent of 10 meals. CATEGORY Community Affairs View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005735/en/

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A 27-year-old New Jersey man was killed after his car struck the back of a tractor-trailer parked on the shoulder of Interstate 287 in Bernards early Wednesday, authorities said.

Brandon Acquaire, 27, of Bedminster, was driving southbound near milepost 25.7 at around 12:30 a.m. when the crash took place, State Police said.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The were no passengers in Acquaires car and the truck driver was not hurt.

The crash remains under investigation.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JGoldmanNJ.

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Donegal civil servants are hoping to benefit from a new planned working hub for northern civil servants in Derry.

Finance Minister Conor Murphy yesterday announced plans for a number of new civil service regional hubs.

The first Connect2 hubs are expected to open in Ballykelly and Downpatrick in the spring.

They will only become operational when appropriate in line with Health advice and Health Protection Regulations.

There are plans for additional hubs in Ballymena, Craigavon, Omagh, and the Antrim/Newtownabbey area next year.

Projects in Derry, Enniskillen, Newry and the Bangor/Newtownards area are planned for 2023.

The hubs will provide flexible working opportunities for civil servants on the northern side of the border.

Conor Dowds, Co-Chair of the Cross-Border Workers Coalition (CBWC), said they welcomed the Connect2 project.

"The creation of these regional hubs will give civil service staff more flexible working arrangements and illustrates a growing trend towards remote work accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

"For those living outside Belfast, the opportunity of blended working arrangements, where you can work from home one day and go to a co-working space on another, will be very attractive.

However, due to restrictive personal tax liability rules in the Republic of Ireland, cross-border workers who live in the Republic and work in NI will be left behind and unable to gain the significant benefits of blended working arrangements.

"If a Donegal-based civil servant, for example, attends a regional hub in Derry four days a week, but works from home on a Friday, under current RoI legislation he/she could be taxed twice on their income.

Mr Dowds said for these regional hubs to fully accommodate the new normal of post-pandemic working practices, the 'restrictive personal tax laws' in the Republic must change.

"On Wednesday 16 February we sent a letter requesting to meet with Irish Finance Minister Donohoe to examine current remote working tax legislation in the Republic.

"We now ask Finance Minister Murphy to work with his southern counterpart to ensure that cross-border workers are not left behind in this welcome project.

New Delhi/Islamabad, Feb 18 : In an unusual move, Pakistan on Thursday supported Prime Minister Narendra Modi's five proposals on making South Asia a Covid-19 free region.

Official sources told IANS that at the health secretary-level SAARC virtual workshop held on the management of Covid-19, where Pakistan was invited, there was a complete consensus on Prime Minister Modi's ideas.

In his address to the SAARC officials earlier on Thursday, Modi had made a strong pitch for regional cooperation in combating Covid-19. He had proposed the member countries to consider creating a special visa scheme for regional doctors and nurses so that they can travel quickly within the region during health emergencies on the request of the receiving countries.

He also recommended the civil aviation ministries of the member countries to coordinate a regional air ambulance agreement for medical contingencies. His third suggestion for the SAARC was to create a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying the data for the effectiveness of Covid-19 vaccines among the region's population.

Modi also suggested the creation of a regional network for promoting technology-driven epidemiology for preventing future pandemics. Lastly, he proposed that the SAARC members should go beyond Covid-19 and share their successful public health policies and schemes with each other.

"From India, Ayushman Bharat and Jan Aarogya schemes may be useful case studies for our friends in the region. Such collaborations can become the pathway for greater regional cooperation among us in other areas too," the Prime Minister said in his address.

"After all, we share so many common challenges -- climate change, natural disasters, poverty, illiteracy, and social and gender imbalances -- but we also share the power of centuries old cultural and people to people linkages," he added.

Modi further said, "If we focus on all that unites us, our region can overcome not only the present pandemic, but our other challenges too. If the 21st century is to be the Asian century, it cannot be without greater integration among the countries of South Asia and the Indian Ocean island countries. The spirit of regional solidarity that you have shown during the pandemic has proven that such integration is possible." Official sources said that all the SAARC countries, including Pakistan, supported Modi's five proposals and offered to hold a structured discussion for regional cooperation on his proposals to take them forward.

All of them agreed that there is a need for such cooperation on regional basis for fighting pandemics. Also, all the countries (except Pakistan which has not received vaccines) thanked India and the Prime Minister for Covid-19 vaccine supplies.

SAARC is a grouping of South Asian countries including India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Pakistan's support to Prime Minister's proposals assume significance in view of the fact that Islamabad-New Delhi relations have deteriorated badly since 2016.

As a result, India had stayed away from the SAARC till last year when Modi took the initiative to bring the forum together through a virtual summit over the coronavirus pandemic. While Islamabad refused to participate, Modi had proposed the creation of an emergency fund to fight the pandemic at the time.

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Trainee primary school teachers are being asked to pay 650 to attend a virtual 'Gaeltacht experience' for two weeks.

The Gaeltacht placement is mandatory for student teachers and pre-pandemic, it cost 750 for food, boarding and an immersive language experience in an Irish speaking area.

Students have now written to the Department of Education questioning this year's 650 charge, considering they will be experiencing the Gaeltacht from within their own homes due to Covid-19 restrictions.

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Some trainee teachers are afforded State-supported grants for the Gaeltacht experience, but those who attend Hibernia College, a private teacher training company which provides blended learning, cannot avail of grants.

Around 1,750 Hibernia students are impacted, with 800 due to qualify in 2021 and around 950 in 2022.

Student teachers attend the course for a two-week block each year but, as they missed out due to Covid-19 restrictions last year, some will have to complete four weeks of the online Gaeltacht this summer, meaning they could be paying up to 1,300.

In a letter to students sent yesterday, Hibernia College founder and president Dr Sean Rowland said: "In early January, it was brought to our attention that the proposed fee for the two-week online programme would be in the region of 650 and that all students from State colleges would receive a re-instated student grant to cover this cost.

"We were acutely aware that this fee would cause huge stress and anxiety for many students and their families and we have consistently lobbied the Department of Education since last November asking for consideration for the grant for our students.

"As an online provider with 20 years' experience in delivering courses online, we were anticipating a much lower fee for online course provision. We find it most unusual that the Department of Education and Comhchoiste Naisiunta na gColaisti Samhraidh (CONCOS) agreed to an average price being set across the Gaeltacht providers, which is binding on our students.

Hibernia College says it was not consulted in advance of this price being set.

Dr Rowland said the college will continue to lobby for the Gaeltacht grant to be provided for its students.

Clara McDonald, a representative for trainee teachers at Hibernia, told Independent.ie: This charge is not justifiable as we will be learning from home and not getting the usual experience of going to a Gaeltacht region and speaking with locals.

"Some of the students at Hibernia have young families and cant afford this. We will have to use our own wifi and will be in our own homes so I dont understand the 650 charge when we wont be getting the same experience.

Ms McDonald wrote to Education Minister Norma Foley and Higher Education Minister Simon Harris urging them to allow students to receive the grant.

"The high cost of this course and lack of funding is now a daunting and immediate concern, in an already stressful time where many of us ourselves are unemployed, unable to claim the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) as we are deemed full-time students and unable to undertake substitute teaching as schools are currently closed.

"As students of a private college, we find ourselves excluded not only from the Gaeltacht grant, but also all other State-funded grants."

Students have also started a petition asking for legislation on Gaeltacht fees to be amended. So far it has received more than 4,000 signatures.
Health Minister Greg Hunt and health experts warn conspiracy theories and misinformation could thrive on Facebook following the social media giants irresponsible and dangerous ban on Australian media content just days out from the nations COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Mr Hunt said he was deeply and profoundly concerned by Facebooks decision, which affected the pages of some state and territory health departments as well as hospitals and health charities, blocking access to vital health, COVID and vaccine-related public information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says theres a risk vaccine misinformation could spread. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

There is a risk that if you cannot have accurate information, that those who wish to promulgate falsehoods and fictions can do so without a response, he said.

Australian Medical Association president Dr Omar Khorshid said blocking news organisations and health pages at such a critical time was a huge issue.
Airazat Kazaryan and colleagues describe the unfortunate rise in COVID-19 cases in Armenia during the recent Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. However, Azerbaijani scientists Samir Babayev, Sabina Hajiyeva, Leyla Baghirzada, Sait Ashina and Tural Alekberli in the world-renowned medical journal, the Lancet, argue that this Comment is an attempt to politicise scientific data via misrepresentation of COVID-19 statistics, distortion of facts, and omission of important historical context.

The leading causes of the worldwide increase in COVID-19 cases since early September, 2020, include colder weather and lower humidity, a shift from outdoor to indoor gatherings, and reopening of businesses and schools. Although a military conflict could worsen the pandemic, the sharp rise in the number of daily reported COVID-19 cases predated the recent exacerbation of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Such a rise was reported in Georgia, a country that neighbours Azerbaijan and Armenia and is uninvolved in the conflict. The most recent fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces started on Sept 27, 2020, and ended on Nov 10, 2020.

The scientists seek to clarify some of the claims made by Kazaryan and colleagues regarding the history of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Nagorno-Karabakh is an internationally recognised territory of Azerbaijan, occupied and, we would argue, ethnically cleansed by Armenian forces in flagrant violation of international law. Since the conflict's beginning in the late 1980s, more than a million ethnic Azerbaijanis have fled their homes, causing an enormous humanitarian catastrophe. Despite nearly 30 years of negotiations involving international intermediaries, a peace agreement has not been achieved. Four UN Security Council resolutions, adopted in 1993 (822, 853, 874, 884), demand immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the Armenian occupying forces from all Azerbaijan regions. To this day, they remain unfulfilled.

Kazaryan and colleagues mention multiple civilian deaths on the Armenian side during recent hostilities. However, they fail to note that Armenia's attacks on remote, densely populated cities and villages of Azerbaijan led to 414 civilian injuries and 94 deaths. Additionally, the Armed Forces of Armenia used heavy artillery, banned cluster munitions, and long-range rockets in these attacks. The Azerbaijani scientists welcome the ceasefire signed by Armenia and Azerbaijan leaders on Nov 9, 2020, which resulted in the cessation of hostilities, restoration of international law, and the beginning of Armenian troops withdrawal from occupied lands.

As health-care professionals, all scientists are united by universally recognised human rights and belief in the value of human life. The politicisation of science with ethnocentric views undermines the positive effect of science on our lives. It is imperative that we all seek to promote peace and prevent military conflict without using science for political gain. "We declare no competing interests", the Azerbaijani scientists conclude.
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Coronavirus infection rates have plummeted by more than two thirds since January, new figures show in proof that lockdown is working even against the fast-spreading Kent variant of the virus.

The country's largest surveillance testing study yesterday found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January.

Results from the REACT study, led by Imperial College London and commissioned by the Government, revealed 0.51 per cent of the population had the virus between February 4 and February 13, down from 1.57 per cent.

The testing of 85,400 people during this time revealed the R rate  the average number of those infected by each person with the virus  was estimated to be 0.7, meaning the epidemic is shrinking. The figures revealed a 'marked drop' in prevalence compared to last month, and a 'reassuring level of decline'.

The positive news will no doubt pile more pressure on Boris Johnson - who was last night facing a growing clamour for the speedier lifting of lockdown.

Amid fears that Covid restrictions might last for months, business chiefs and MPs demanded an accelerated timeframe to save firms from collapse. Also warning of the social cost of lockdown, they cited the vaccine roll-out success and significant falls in deaths and infections.

The vaccine rollout has helped slash the number of deaths and infections, but the PM is being regularly reminded of the social cost of lockdown, amid fears firms unable to open under current restrictions will soon collapse.

The Prime Minister appeared to confirm a cautious timetable yesterday, saying he would take a 'prudent' approach and suggesting that pubs and restaurants would be among the last places to reopen.

The data shows that prevalence fell across all age groups, but research now suggests the virus is now spreading the most among primary school children and young people. Experts warn that reopening schools would need to be done 'carefully' in light of the study data, which shows Covid is most prevalent among five- to twelve-year-olds and those aged 18 to 24.

The relatively high number of children still attending school could be behind the high frequency in young people, it was suggested, the Guardian reports.

The country's largest surveillance testing study has found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January  the prevalence fell from 1.36 per cent to 0.44 per cent

The data shows that prevalence fell across all age groups, but research now suggests the virus is now spreading the most among primary school children and young people. Experts warn that reopening schools would need to be done 'carefully' in light of the study data, which shows Covid is most prevalent among five- to twelve-year-olds and those aged 18 to 24

The R rate of the virus  the number of people infected by each person with coronavirus  is now at its lowest point in more than six months, the Imperial College estimates suggest, at 0.72, meaning the outbreak is shrinking

The proportion of people infected with the virus, also known as the prevalence, has come down in all regions of England in the past six weeks, the study found. Darker areas have more people testing positive for coronavirus  the map on the left represents mid-January, and the map on the right mid-February

Covid cases are now spreading fastest among primary school children and young adults Coronavirus is now spreading the most among primary school children and young people, according to the results of the surveillance study. The data  from Imperial College London's REACT study  showed that prevalence fell across all age groups. But Covid is now most prevalent among five- to twelve-year-olds and those aged 18 to 24, with around 0.85 per cent of everyone swabbed in those age groups testing positive. For comparison, the rate was around 0.3 per cent for the over-65s. Experts warn that reopening schools would need to be done 'carefully' in light of the study data. The relatively high number of children still attending school could be behind the high frequency in young people, it was suggested, the Guardian reports. Advertisement

In other developments:

738 deaths were reported yesterday, down from 1,001 last Wednesday. Daily cases fell below 13,000;

An expert said no outbreaks had been linked to crowded beaches and it was unlikely the virus would surge when schools go back;

A survey showed one in four firms would lay off staff unless furlough was extended;

MPs warned that many nightclubs and music venues would not survive without government help;

The UK will be the first country to deliberately infect volunteers with coronavirus to find better vaccines and treatments;

Boris Johnson was said to be planning a testing blitz with kits sent to millions of homes and businesses;

Record numbers have applied to study nursing after being inspired by the NHS;

Scientists behind the research said what they found was 'better than expected' and that the outbreak in Britain was not comparable to where it was in late September as the second wave began to pick up steam.

On what the findings  among the most promising that have been published so far during the second wave  meant for easing lockdown, author of the study Professor Paul Elliott said: 'It's really encouraging news  we think lockdown is having an effect.

'But the actual prevalence is still very high. We're only back where we were in September and, clearly, we want to be back where we were in August.

'There is a delicate balance. Nobody wants to be in lockdown and we all want to be in a situation where we can go more about our daily business.

'But on the other hand we do need to get levels down to where pressure is taken off hospitals. We can take a lot of encouragement from the decline we're seeing, but we're not out of the woods yet.'

Separate data published yesterday presented worrying signs that a steep decline in Britain's coronavirus cases could be starting to level off, with the ZOE and King's College symptom-tracking app suggesting the number of people reporting symptoms of Covid has started rising again in Scotland and Northern Ireland, as well as Yorkshire, the North East and the East Midlands in England.

Researchers behind that surveillance study said infections are 'starting to trend up again' and called it a 'hitch', given that almost every other key metric shows that Britain's second wave of infections is firmly in retreat.

The REACT study is carried out by swab-testing tens of thousands of random members of the public, regardless of whether they have Covid symptoms or not, and working out what proportion of them are positive.

This then allows the scientists to extrapolate and work out how many people in the country as a whole would be likely to test positive.

Prevalence of the virus had come down in all regions of England, the study found  most steeply in London and the South East  but the decline appears to have slowed in some parts of the country such as the South West and North East, where it may even be rising

The percentage of people testing positive in random spot checks has plummeted across England. The grey bar shows positive tests in January, the orange bar February

South African variant was in Britain in October, top scientist says The South African variant of coronavirus was in Britain in October but was missed by scientists, a top Government expert says. Addressing Parliament's Science and Technology Committee, Professor Sir John Bell revealed that while the UK had been good at sequencing strains - it was not as good at identifying them. 'In all honesty we did a lot of sequencing but we weren't that great at identifying the variants when they were there,' he said. 'The South African variant had been fumbling around in the database since about October, November before we actually spotted it.' Scientists are concerned by the variant because it contains the mutation E484K, which makes vaccines less effective. But studies show that those who get their jabs before they catch the variant are still protected from serious illness and death. Mass testing has been carried out in several postcodes in response to cases of the variant, in an attempt to snuff them out before an outbreak takes off. Advertisement

The study's previous round of data, which covered January 6 to 22, estimated the R number to be 0.98 and one in 64 people to have been infected with the virus.

At the time scientists weren't sure whether lockdown was going to work well against the Kent variant, which studies suggest is significantly more transmissible than older versions of the virus.

Professor Elliott said: 'I think it is very reassuring that, despite the greater transmissibility of that variant, we are seeing this reduction.'

The team said the evidence suggested that the decline in infections was happening at a similar pace to the first lockdown in the spring of 2020, although its first data wasn't collected until May, by which time cases had plummeted already.

Official NHS Test and Trace data shows cases are falling rapidly, too, with the number of people testing positive last week  92,399  down 28 per cent from 128,504 the week before, with even that week significantly lower than the 400,640 people who tested positive in the first week of January.

Hospital chiefs and SAGE scientists have warned the Prime Minister that there must be fewer than 1,000 coronavirus cases being diagnosed each day before the third national lockdown can be eased.

The REACT study found levels of infection are being halved every 14.6 days. If the rate continues, the UK can expect to reach 1,000 cases a day by the second week of April.

Which areas have seen the sharpest rise in Covid cases in the past week? Department of Health data compares the change in the infection rate per 100,000 people from February 11, the latest date available, to a week earlier. Area Torridge Exeter East Ayrshire Lincoln Copeland Powys Newark, Sherwood West Lindsey East Devon Perth, Kincross % (infection rate) +133.5% (44.3) +89.1% (67.7) +83.1% (283.6) +36.3% (120.8) +34.4% (240.5) +28.1% (257.3) +25% (115) +24.1% (67) +15.8% (72.4) +15.5% (217.3) Advertisement

Results also revealed prevalence has fallen in all nine regions of England with all areas except the north east having an R rate below one.

Coronavirus cases have also fallen throughout all age groups but are still highest in 18-24 and 5-12-year-olds according to the pre-print study, which has not yet been peer-reviewed.

Steven Riley, professor of infectious disease dynamics at Imperial College London said: 'The two highest prevalence age groups are younger school aged children and young adults.

'There are many different observations and data sets that now agree that probably schools being open does increase the R a little bit - we're not sure exactly how much it does.

'But my sense is...schools are the highest priority for reopening. I think there will be a very delicate trade-off.'

Professor Riley said their data shows no evidence of the impact of vaccinations yet, but they will 'know more' when further results come in later this month.

It comes as another scientist claimed the UK should 'unlock earlier' as long as the decisions were being 'driven by data'.

Mark Woolhouse, a professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh, told a Science and Technology Committee yesterday that data is pointing to 'earlier unlocking'.

'I completely agree that we don't want to be overly focused on dates, not at all,' he said. 'We want to be focused on data. But the point I'd make about that is the data are going really well.

'The vaccination rollout is, I think, exceeding most people's expectations, it's going very well.

'The transmission blocking potential is key.

'But so, of course, is its actual ability to protect against death and disease, and to keep people out of hospital, and those numbers are looking really good.

'My conclusion from that is: If you're driven by the data and not by dates, right now, you should be looking at earlier unlocking.'
Monoclonal antibodies are created in a lab and function like naturally occurring antibodies, fighting infections before they spread. Studies show that when monoclonal antibodies are given intravenously to high-risk people diagnosed early with COVID-19, it can prevent them from experiencing severe symptoms that lead to hospitalizations.

"COVID-19 is a horrible illness, but I trusted the doctors and nurses," said Vega. "I started monoclonal antibodies and my symptoms never got worse. I never needed to go to the hospital."

Today more than 470 patients like Vega have benefited from Montefiore's monoclonal antibody program, 93 percent of whom avoided worsening symptoms that would have required a visit to the hospital.

"Longstanding inequities and chronic disease have led to high COVID-19 infection rates and significant risk of death in our borough," said Dr. Priya Nori, director of the Antibiotic Stewardship Program, an infectious disease specialist at Montefiore Health System, and associate professor of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. "Now Bronx residents have a safe, evidence-based treatment that stops COVID-19 in its tracks and is preventing severe illness."

In December, Dr. Nori's team began treating patients in Montefiore's Bronx emergency departments with monoclonal antibodies, which are developed by pharmaceutical companies and authorized by the Food and Drug Administration. Since then, Montefiore opened an infusion clinic  now the main location for this therapy  and is partnering with local nursing homes to treat their residents.

People who qualify for monoclonal antibodies have a high-risk of severe COVID-19, including people aged 65 or older, and illnesses like chronic kidney disease, diabetes, hypertension, coronary artery disease, obesity and COPD. People who are immunocompromised due to diseases such as cancer, lupus or sickle cell anemia, or organ transplant recipients, are also candidates for treatment. Pregnant women and high-risk patients under age 21 may also qualify.

The monoclonal antibody treatment is given using IV therapy, administered through a vein in the arm, for about an hour. Patients are evaluated by a nurse practitioner and then monitored for any allergic reactions, which are extremely rare. The appointment takes about three hours to complete; afterward patients receive a follow-up phone visit. Less than two weeks later, a telehealth appointment is completed with an infectious disease doctor who reviews recovery and symptoms.

"Patients come in with fear of COVID-19 and leave with hope because of this treatment," said Susan Sakalian, Oncology Certified Nurse at Montefiore Medical Center. "It is a huge step forward from where we were in March 2020. The infusions keep people from needing emergency care, and that's an invaluable resource for our patients and their families."

For more information about the monoclonal antibodies treatment, please visit covid19.montefiore.org/monoclonal-antibody-therapy-montefiore#main-content.

About Montefiore Health System

Montefiore Health System is one of New York's premier academic health systems and is a recognized leader in providing exceptional quality and personalized, accountable care to approximately three million people in communities across the Bronx, Westchester and the Hudson Valley. It is comprised of 10 hospitals, including the Children's Hospital at Montefiore, Burke Rehabilitation Hospital and more than 200 outpatient ambulatory care sites. The advanced clinical and translational research at its medical school, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, directly informs patient care and improves outcomes. From the Montefiore-Einstein Centers of Excellence in cancer, cardiology and vascular care, pediatrics, and transplantation, to its preeminent school-based health program, Montefiore is a fully integrated healthcare delivery system providing coordinated, comprehensive care to patients and their families. For more information please visit www.montefiore.org . Follow us on Twitter and view us on Facebook and YouTube .



About Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Albert Einstein College of Medicine is one of the nation's premier centers for research, medical education and clinical investigation. During the 2020-21 academic year, Einstein is home to 721 M.D. students, 178 Ph.D . students, 109 students in the combined M.D./Ph.D. program , and 265 postdoctoral research fellows . The College of Medicine has more than 1,900 full-time faculty members located on the main campus and at its clinical affiliates . In 2020, Einstein received more than $197 million in awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This includes the funding of major research centers at Einstein in aging, intellectual development disorders, diabetes, cancer, clinical and translational research, liver disease, and AIDS. Other areas where the College of Medicine is concentrating its efforts include developmental brain research, neuroscience, cardiac disease, and initiatives to reduce and eliminate ethnic and racial health disparities. Its partnership with Montefiore , the University Hospital and academic medical center for Einstein, advances clinical and translational research to accelerate the pace at which new discoveries become the treatments and therapies that benefit patients. Einstein runs one of the largest residency and fellowship training programs in the medical and dental professions in the United States through Montefiore and an affiliation network involving hospitals and medical centers in the Bronx, Brooklyn and on Long Island. For more information, please visit www.einstein.yu.edu , read our blog , follow us on Twitter , like us on Facebook , and view us on YouTube .

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Members of the Michigan House of Representatives will be attending ethics training as part of an ongoing push for more government transparency by Michigan House Speaker Jason Wentworth.

Michigan House Republicans will complete a two-hour training Thursday with Jennifer Belveal, a Detroit-based attorney with the firm Foley and Lardner who specializes in legal ethics, government investigations and white-collar crimes. House Democrats are also expected to complete a separate, similar training session.

The effort is intended to bring lawmakers up to speed on appropriate conduct in interactions with lobbyists and constituents, set clear expectations for ethical government operations and start the momentum for ethics and transparency-related legislation, Wentworth, R-Clare, said in a Wednesday interview with MLive.

Just like people on the outside are held to certain things, we have to be held to a certain standard in the Legislature, too, he said. For me, its about that expectation level setting right out of the gate, and then ensuring that we set a stage for starting to rebuild that trust of the people of our state.

New Michigan House Speaker names ethics reform as top priority

Wentworth staked out ethics reform as the House Republicans top policy priority for the current session early on, introducing a joint resolution that would require a two-thirds vote on any bill taken up after November general elections in even years. Known as lame duck, this period often results in long session days and dozens of bills flying through the House and Senate with little time for review.

The first bill introduced in the House this session from House Speaker Pro Tempore Pamela Hornberger, R-Chesterfield Township, would prohibit state lawmakers from voting on bills that could personally benefit them, their families or any entities in which they have a stake. The bill, House 4001, specifically states a member of the legislature could not vote on legislation if they have a personal or professional interest in the measure.

Its not the first time lawmakers have tried reforming Michigans bottom-of-the-barrel government transparency laws. Michigan is one of the only states in the country that doesnt subject its Legislature or governors office to the Freedom of Information Act and doesnt require lawmakers to disclose potential financial conflicts of interest.

This time around, Wentworth said hes throwing the full weight of the caucus behind government transparency initiatives. Earlier this week, he testified to his resolution in the House Elections and Ethics Committee, and he said Wednesday more legislation is coming that will build off of previous proposals to improve ethics and transparency in government while addressing new topics, like ending the revolving door of former lawmakers becoming lobbyists as soon as theyre out of office.

This is not something Im just going to let go by the wayside, he said. This is going to be a continual focus for me until we get this to the governors desk.

Legislation aimed at improving government transparency, including a plan to subject the governors office to the Freedom of Information Act and create a separate system for the public to request legislative documents, have previously seen significant support in the House, but have petered out in the Senate.

Asked about government transparency legislation in a press conference following the governors State of the State address last month, Senate Majority Leader Shirkey, R-Clarklake, reiterated concerns about requiring financial disclosures for senators and representatives, calling it unnecessary.

We already have rules in place for eliminating conflicts of interest, and I havent had anybody show me where those rules were spoiled or breached in my tenure, frankly, he said.

Wentworth said he believes most lawmakers do a good job of maintaining distance in areas where they may have a conflict. But having accountability measures in place would help prove that to Michigan residents and give them more reason to trust their government, he said. While hes open to changes that could help alleviate concerns of some lawmakers, he said he plans on throwing his full weight behind it to get substantial changes through.

I think that the public expects the transparency, he said. When they find out that they cant FOIA the administration or they cant look at what were doing or have that access, its concerning to a lot of our constituents.

In a statement, House Democratic Leader Donna Lasinksi, D-Scio Township, said ethics training has been a longtime practice of the Democratic caucus. While training is a good start, she said actions speak louder than words, criticizing Republicans for not holding lawmakers who questioned the legitimacy of election results accountable.

House Democrats support having a strong House ethics policy with real teeth that holds lawmakers accountable for violating their constitutional oaths and for undermining the very democracy theyve pledged to uphold, she said.

Related coverage:

50 states of financial disclosure: How Michigan stacks up

Is 2019 the year Michigan officials can agree to open their records to the public?
Mumbai, Feb 18 : Bollywood actor Rahul Roy, who suffered a brain stroke last November, is undergoing music therapy as part of his treatment, with his sister Priyanka is helping him with the therapy. On Thursday, the actor took to Instagram to share the news with fans.

In a video he posted, Rahul sings the sargam along with sister Priyanka, or Pia.

"Good evening my lovely fans. I hope you all are loving my recovery videos which I am sharing with you. Brain stroke recovery takes a lot of effort and lot many things to take care. My speech got affected and my main work is towards speaking properly again. This is Music Therapy a method in speech therapy wherein my sister @priyankaroy_pia works on opening and strengthening my vocal cords which would take time. It takes a lot of time and effort. Soon you would see me talk to you all. Keep checking this space as I am coming up with #priyankaandrahulroychallenge soon. Let's trend to make our health better. Love you all, Rahul Roy," he wrote.

The actor suffered a brain stroke while shooting for his film "LAC: Live The Battle" in Kargil in the last week of November. Soon after his brain stroke attack in Kargil, Rahul was brought to Mumbai and admitted to Nanavati Hospital. He was later was shifted to a private hospital in Mira Road, from where he was discharged on January 7.
Bhubaneswar, Feb 18 : The opposition members of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress on Thursday staged a walkout during Odisha Governor Prof Ganeshi Lal's address marking the beginning of the Budget session of the state Assembly.

As soon as the Governor started his address, the Congress MLAs created uproar in the House over the border dispute with Andhra Pradesh and later staged a walkout.

The BJP MLAs also walked out of the House over irregularities in paddy procurement in different mandis, deteriorating law and order situation and border dispute.

The BJP MLAs also protested in the House over farmers' plight after the Governor's address. Speaker Surya Narayan Patro adjourned the house till Friday.

Highlighting different progressive works, Governor Prof Ganeshi Lal said the state government is fully committed to develop all regions of the state and empower all sections of the people.

"Despite the severe impact of Covid-19 on revenue, the state has been able to achieve positive growth in its own revenue, which is an indication of recovery in economic activities in the state," said the Governor.

He said the state government has been able to collect its revenue amounting to Rs 38,760 crore by the end of January, 2021, which is about 7.3 per cent more than the collection during the corresponding period of the previous year.

He said the overall law and order situation in the state remained peaceful during 2020 while police successfully handled the Covid-19 situation.

49 police personnel have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty during Covid-19, he added.

"My government has been able to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic very effectively, which resulted in containing the spread of the virus, creating proper medical facilities for treatment of the affected and saving precious human lives," said the Governor.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) speaks at the weekly news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, on Dec. 3, 2020. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

House GOP Leaders Urge Biden to Back Trump-Era Measure on Beijings Confucius Institutes

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and other senior GOP representatives on Wednesday urged President Joe Biden to resubmit the previously proposed rule regarding Confucius Institute reporting without delay to forge solutions in the face of CCP threats to U.S. education and research integrity.

Addressing the generational threat of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is a preeminent national security concern for the United States, McCarthy said in the statement.

Among the multitude of threats we face stemming from China, the CCPs abuse of Americas academic system to steal sensitive research and technology, limit free expression, and propagandize our students is of particular concern.

Confucius Institutes bill themselves as places to learn Mandarin, study Chinese culture, and land a scholarship. Theyre funded and largely staffed by Hanban, a nonprofit that claims to be non-governmental, but is in fact directly controlled by the CCP from Beijing, according to a report by the Senate homeland security committees investigations subcommittee (pdf).

Among the multitude of threats we face stemming from China, the #CCPs abuse of Americas academic system to steal sensitive research and technology, limit free expression, and propagandize our students is of particular concern.    pic.twitter.com/lp4EDNx7bt  House Homeland GOP (@HomelandGOP) February 17, 2021

McCarthy referred to the rule submitted by the Trump administration to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Dec. 31, 2020.

Under the rule, colleges and K12 schools would need to disclose their financial ties to Confucius Institutes (CIs) and affiliated Confucius Classrooms.

McCarthy pointed out that currently, CIs operate in at least 60 colleges and about 500 Confucius Classrooms in grade schools and high schools across the nation.

In 2009, a CCP Politburo standing committee member and ideology czar said that the CCPs CIs are an important part of Chinas overseas propaganda set-up, McCarthy added.

China wants to infiltrate every part of American life with its communist propaganda, McCarthy wrote on Twitter. We must stop them.

The Confucius Institute Building on the Troy University Campus in Alabama, on March 16, 2018. (Kreeder13 via Wikimedia Commons)

Immigration Customs and Enforcement confirmed to Fox News that the rule was withdrawn on Jan. 26.

However, Ned Price, spokesperson of the Department of State, said in a press conference on Feb. 11 that the Trump administration never had its rule submitted to the Federal Register because the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) had yet to complete its review of the draft rule.

Price said the withdrawal happened because of a widespread regulatory freeze instituted by the Biden administration on Inauguration Day.

Price pointed out that the CIs would still be treated as a foreign mission of the China regime. [T]hat stands, he said.

Nevertheless, the Republican lawmakers want the Biden administration to urgently back the previous administrations efforts to protect the integrity of the U.S. academic system and make its first step towards acknowledging that the CCP threat ultimately derives from hostility to our core democratic values and attempts to legitimize its own authoritarian system, which is rooted in Marxist-Leninist doctrine.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) had written a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Feb. 11 asking why the rule was withdrawn.

U.S. Government agencies, including within the Intelligence Community, have clearly asserted that the communist Chinese government uses Confucius Institutes embedded in our academic institutions as a propaganda tool within the United States, Grassley said in the letter (pdf). Accordingly, withdrawing the rule is cause for serious concern and weakens our ability to detect and deter foreign influence efforts by the communist Chinese government.

The White House didnt respond to The Epoch Times request for further comment by press time.

There has been a global pushback against the CCPs CIs, most notably in Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. In 2013, McMaster University in Canada became the first university in North America to close its CI.

The National Association of Scholars (NAS), an education advocacy group, reported that 64 CIs have closed or are in the processing of closing as of Feb. 17.

Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), and Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.) co-signed the statement.

Frank Fang, Cathy He, and Petr Svab contributed to this report.
So much for Thursdays introduction to the new transparent Crown - the company that recognises its past mistakes and wants to engage with its stakeholders. Its hour-long media briefing was a blast from the past.

This column can only provide a recorded account of Crowns briefing on its loss-making first half. I was uninvited from attending - given each of the few news organisations able to dial into the teleconference were allowed only one participant. Commentators such as myself didnt make the cut.

It seems there was an attendance miscommunication, according to Crowns public relations representative.

Helen Coonans contribution to Crowns media briefing felt more like a political election speech. Credit:Louie Douvis

Anyone that read the damning report from the Crown inquiry would be familiar with the companys form on communications - executives didnt talk to each other and most board members were clueless to what was going on inside the company.

He was the Ulster-born unsung hero of the American Revolution and one of its most important spies.

And while you may not have heard of Hercules Mulligan, it is a name you will be hearing a lot more of in the future if you visit the north coast.

The Irish-American tailor and spy during the American War of Independence is set to be honoured by Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council.

Members of the council's leisure and development committee voted to recognise him in future heritage trails.

The late spy was born in Coleraine on September 15, 1740, to Hugh and Sarah Mulligan, and emigrated to north America with his family in 1746.

Mulligan later attended King's College (now Columbia University) in New York city.

After graduating from the institution, he worked as a clerk for his father's accounting business before opening a tailoring and haberdashery business that catered to wealthy British officers in the city's loyalist stronghold.

Later, Mulligan was not only an incredibly influential mentor to Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of the US, but also twice saved the life of George Washington while working as a spy against the British.

He also became a founding father of the New York Manumission Society, an early American organisation founded to promote the abolition of slavery.

Historian Dr Eamon Phoenix said that while the tailor appeared to be a good supporter of British rule, he was in fact something of a rebel.

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"British officers regularly visited his shop at the beginning of the War of Independence and they never hesitated to discuss troop movements when he was fitting them with new uniforms," he added.

"He became a first-class listening post for British intelligence and made regular reports to George Washington.

"Historians believe Mulligan's information was vital for the ultimate success of Washington's army in the fight for American independence.

"As a result, when Washington, the first US president, returned to New York in triumph, he acknowledged the services of Mulligan to the American cause and hailed him as an astounding patriot and a true friend of liberty."

Dr Phoenix added that, according to legend, Mulligan, along with a fellow Irish man named Bill Mooney, toppled a statue of King George III in New York in July 1776.

"The statue was melted down to make 40,000 bullets for Washington's troops," he explained.

Mulligan, a father of eight, died in 1825 and is buried close to Alexander Hamilton in the Trinity Churchyard in Manhattan.

His story was essentially unknown around the world until it was highlighted in the hit Broadway musical Hamilton.

The motion to recognise Mulligan was put forward by the council's Alliance Alderman Yvonne Boyle.

She originally called for the council to make an application to the Ulster History Circle for a blue or commemorative plaque, or for the council to erect one itself at Coleraine Town Hall.

However, the Ulster History Circle is currently closed to applications and will not be accepting any more for at least two years.

Given that the cost of any plaque would have been in excess of 1,200, councillors instead agreed to find a way of recognising Mulligan through future heritage trails.

Alderman Boyle said she was "delighted" with the outcome.

"Alan McClarty, the son of the late East Londonderry MLA David McClarty, had asked me if I would try to get some recognition for Hercules Mulligan," she explained.

"The council's committee has now voted to agree that heritage and tourism staff work to recognise Mulligan locally as part of future heritage trails.

"Although we are in a pandemic, arts and heritage are still important so we have something to look forward to."

Alan McClarty added: "Hercules Mulligan was an American hero and rightly takes his place with the founding fathers.

"He was born in Coleraine, so it is only right that we celebrate him."
Bill Gates has given plenty of advice about how to live a successful life or lead a successful business. The high bar that the Microsoft co-founder sets daily is not impossible to reach.

It will, however, require developing and practicing some new habits. Paving your own road to success means dreaming less and doing more of what Gates himself has done while becoming the world's fourth-richest person.

Here are four things that clearly separate the doers from the dreamers:

1. Doers cultivate their curiosity.

In 2019, Gates spoke to students, parents, and alumni at his high school alma mater in Seattle. One question posed to Gates is especially noteworthy for the next working generation: "What are the skills today's students need to know to thrive in the world of 2030 and 2040?"

Gates answered: "For the curious learner, these are the best of times, because your ability to constantly refresh your knowledge with either podcasts or lectures that are online is better than ever."

Gates stressed the critical importance of curiosity as a framework for acquiring knowledge. A growth mindset as the foundation and drive to stay curious and keep learning, said Gates, will help prepare future workers for the immense changes that will take place.

Gates has maintained an incredible appetite for curiosity and learning new things over the years. In an interview with The New York Times, Gates said he reads up to 50 books each year: "It's one of the chief ways that I learn, and has been since I was a kid."

Not only is curiosity key to the learning process, but it's also great for overall life satisfaction, according to science. Several research studies suggest curious people have better relationships, connect better, and enjoy socializing more. In fact, other people are more easily attracted and feel socially closer to individuals that display curiosity.

2. Doers empower those they lead.

As the CEO of Microsoft, Gates once expressed an ideology now in demand in people-centered work cultures: "As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others."

One thing remains more true now than ever: Good leaders set themselves apart by effectively influencing and empowering their human workers in a time of crisis. They do it by responding daily to the challenges facing their people and doing whatever it takes to protect employees or the business.

It is being mindful of the mental health needs of employees and their families as social isolation, economic hardships, and other uncertainties of life weigh on people in unique ways.

This is how great leaders courageously shine with heroic displays of empathy and compassion when other human beings are down. It's also the type of leader we will need in a post-pandemic economy, as we recover and move on.

3. Doers delegate their weaknesses.

Another type of mindset required to build your own success is something that can be a benefit to every busy professional: Learn to delegate better.

Gates admits delegating didn't come easy to him in the early days of Microsoft. He knew his obsession with programming wasn't sustainable if the company was to scale, so he had to consciously trust other people's ability to write software.

As Microsoft grew, so did his management responsibilities. Gates soon realized that he had to learn to delegate his weaknesses--like managing the people side of the business--to other people's strengths.

If your responsibilities have outgrown your capacity to handle them, the first pillar to successful delegation is to have a great team around you who can handle the task. And two-way trust must be established for anyone to feel comfortable delegating and sharing responsibilities.

4. Doers focus on the things that matter the most.

Gates is also quick to acknowledge his close pal Warren Buffett as a teacher whose wisdom has made a huge impact on his life. Acknowledging one of Buffett's greatest strengths, Gates gives Buffett full credit for one basic life lesson that has led to his own success:

"No matter how much money you have, you can't buy more time," writes Gates. "There are only 24 hours in everyone's day. Warren has a keen sense of this. He doesn't let his calendar get filled up with useless meetings."

This takes focusing intently on what is essential for you and your business, and blocking out distracting ideas, information, and opinions. The question to always ask in the course of your day is: "Is this important right now?"

To truly understand how valuable your time is, start by assessing your meetings. Useless meetings are certainly one obstacle in the path of being focused and making the most of your day.
SPRINGFIELD  The City Council recently delayed accepting a $1 million youth and gang violence prevention grant with some members saying they want more details on how the money is spent and whether the programs are effective.

Tracye Whitfield, chairwoman of the councils Finance Committee, said this week she is looking for specifics and data on spending and outcomes from the Police Department and its partner organizations. She said she will invite representatives of the grant recipients to future subcommittee meetings to discuss their programs.

My ultimate goal is to eliminate gun and gang violence in the city, Whitfield said. If we are getting funds to combat this crisis, we need to be 100 percent sure that the awarded funds are used appropriately for its purpose and we are getting lasting results that we can see.

The city was awarded $1,062,975 for 2021 under the states Charles E. Shannon Community Safety Initiative grant. The grants, funding programs targeting youth and young adults, are awarded annually to cities across the state.

The grant includes $337,203 for the Police Department, with the majority of that earmarked for overtime pay, city officials said.

Police spokesman Ryan Walsh said the overtime is used so that police officers can proactively deter illegal activity in high crime areas while not taking our squad away from handling the 9-1-1 calls in all our neighborhoods across the city.

Every organization that applied for a share of the grant was approved, Walsh said.

The state has already approved this; the councils role is to accept the money, not allocate it, Walsh said.

If declined, the 75% of the grant that goes to community organizations ranging from the Springfield YMCAs and YWCA to the Boys and Girls Club cannot be distributed. Walsh said many of those agencies rely on those funds to survive.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said the grant plays a pivotal role in proactively balancing C3 Community policing, anti-gang, gun and drug suppression, while also supporting non-profit prevention opportunities and efforts for the betterment of our neighborhoods. He cautioned against sending any negative message to the state, as other communities would scoop it up.

Shannon funds, once approved, must be used during the calendar year, Walsh said.

Councilors have not threatened to decline the grant funds.

Some councilors said they have asked before and are asking again for the city to reach out to other community groups that may wish to participate in the outreach and anti-gang efforts.

The Shannon Grant partnership selection process and data on outcomes has lacked transparency for many years, Whitfield said.

The council is also looking for information about how the funds were spent last year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and how the participants define at-risk youth, Whitfield said.

Councilor Timothy Allen said questions about the strategies and results have been ongoing for years, as youth violence continues to be a problem in Springfield.

Lindsay Hackett, the citys deputy chief administrative finance officer, said during a recent Finance Committee meeting that there are very specific requirements for the organizations including reports which are absolutely provided.

There are 11 community groups set to receive funding when the grant is approved, including one new organization in 2021: The Salvation Army, $89,506; the YWCA, $69,244; the YMCA, $59,600; the Greater New life Christian Center, 69,459; the Boys and Girls Club on Acorn Street., 70,000; and the Boys and Girls Club on Carew Street, $70,000; the Springfield Parks and Recreation Department, $65,921; the Martin Luther King Jr. Community and Family Services, $65,000; the New North Citizens Council, $70,000; the South End Community Center, $61,780.

The new organization is listed as Mission One, at $35,000. Information about the group was not immediately available.

Walsh said that in the last three months of 2020, Springfield officers on Shannon grant details seized 27 illegally possessed firearms, and one of the officers arrested someone on a warrant.

On another Shannon grant detail, officers arrested a person with three guns who was a suspect at the time and later charged in a Hartford homicide, Walsh said.

Whitfield said she raised issues about increasing transparency and bringing viable alternatives last fall, yet nothing changed.

Whitfield said she is also seeking similar details about the Safe and Successful Youth Initiative Grant program in Springfield.
The NSW government says it will be forced to delay funding to bushfire-affected communities if it is made to release documents detailing the first round of a $177 million bushfire relief scheme.

The upper house on Wednesday night passed a motion ordering the government to produce papers outlining how it chose bushfire-affected regions to receive fast-track funding under a state and federal program last year. Most of the funding was given to Coalition-held seats.

Upper house Greens MP and chairman of the Public Accountability Committee David Shoebridge. Credit:Kate Geraghty

Deputy Premier and Minister Responsible for Disaster Recovery John Barilaro recently defended the scheme at a parliamentary inquiry, saying areas that missed out did not meet the criteria.

Greens MP David Shoebridge said the government needed to be transparent about why projects in bushfire-hit areas such as the Blue Mountains were rejected.
NYICFF 2021 "If youre seeking a madcap adventure to take you out of your pandemic routine...the Festival is an opportunity to discover worlds beyond your four walls.

NYICFF announced its feature film slate and jury for its 2021 edition, March 5-14. For the first time in its 24 years, the Oscar-qualifying film festival for children and teens will take place completely online, making its groundbreaking programming available to families across the United States. Passes go on sale to members on February 19, and to the general public on February 26 at http://www.nyicff.org.

The 2021 feature film slate offers a direct reflection of the Festivals mission to present films that highlight examples of both the myriad cultures and the shared humanity that comprise the world its audience lives in. This years selection places a particular focus on young people who connect with the past to shape their futures. NYICFF 2021 will take place online, allowing busy families to watch at their own convenience.

Were a little heartbroken that we cant physically be with our audience this year, seeing their reaction to each film and engaging directly with them in the conversations that the films inspire, said NYICFF Executive Director Nina Guralnick. At the same time, I couldnt think of a more vital moment to connect kids and families across the country with meaningful programming.

In this challenging cultural moment, young people are hungry for a sense of connectionto their histories, to each other, and to possibilityacross races and cultures, said Director of Programming Maria Christina Villasenor. The 14 feature programs in NYICFFs 2021 slate provide a crucial connection for young audiences via deeply talented filmmakers who honor the intelligence of kids and families and capture their stories with nuance, thoughtfulness, and joyful promise.

As in years past, NYICFF 2021 features a wide range of films spanning topics and continents: from a magical realist family drama in the Curacao countryside (Bulado; International Premiere) and a land battle in the Mohawk Nation of Quebec (Beans) to time traveling 12-year-olds 70 years apart (The Fantastic Journey of Margot and Marguerite; North American Premiere) and an ecowarrior cat spirit (The Legend of Hei; World Premiere English Dub). The slate of bold new narratives, animated films, and true-to-life stories celebrates the intricacies and importance of representation and cultural identity.

Weve always felt a responsibility to present our programming to young audiences as a path to mutual understanding, to a heightened awareness of the world beyond their experience, and a deeper exploration of their own identity, said Guralnick. And we truly have something for everyoneif youre seeking a madcap adventure to take you out of your pandemic routine or you want an entry point to a larger family discussion on race and identity, the Festival is an opportunity to discover worlds beyond your four walls.

The Festival will welcome Karen Rupert Toliver (2020 Oscar-winning producer, Hair Love and EVP Creative Sony Pictures Animation) as a first-time jury member along with returning members Sofia Coppola, Geena Davis, Madeline di Nonno, Jorge Gutierrez, Matthew Modine, Mark Osborne, Ira Sachs, Uma Thurman, and Nora Twomey. Feature filmmakers returning to the Festival to share their newest work include Steve Box (Moominvalley: The Hobgoblin Trilogy), Remi Chaye (Calamity), and Max Lang and Daniel Snaddon (The Snail and the Whale, Zog & the Flying Doctors).

In addition to the slate of feature films, NYICFF returns with seven all-new short film programs full of the artful, charming, surprising, and important films it is renowned for curating from around the globe.

Select programs will be accompanied by Q&A conversations with filmmakers for audiences of all ages, fostering lively, thought-provoking engagement and conversation.

FEATURE FILM SLATE

BEANS

CANADA

Tracey Deer, 2020, 92 min.

Ages 14+

In the summer of 1990, Beans, a sweet and studious twelve-year-old Mohawk girl, is suddenly forced to grow up fast and become her own kind of warrior when a land occupation battle creates a fierce stand-off between her indigenous community and the government. Torn between innocent childhood and reckless adolescence, she struggles to build her own identity amidst the chaos of the uprising and the injustice of a world that sees her as different even in her own land. Will she succumb to the pressures of a society intent on bringing her down? Or will she rise up to assert her strength and character?

THE BEARS FAMOUS INVASION

FRANCE, ITALY

Lorenzo Mattotti, 2019, 82 min

Ages 10+

French with English Subtitles

Based on the Italian book and beautifully animated in warm Meditteranean colors and bold shapes, this feature from Cannes is a whimsical allegory. Our narrators, an old storyteller and his young apprentice, the delightful Almeria, frame this wondrous tale of the great bear king Leonce and his clan. To find his lost son Tonino and food to survive the winter, he leads them down from the mountains and into the world of humans. The bears and humans exist together in peace  for a time.

BULADO

NETHERLANDS, CURACAOINTERNATIONAL PREMIERE

Eche Janga, 2020, 86 min

Ages 11+

Papiamento and Dutch with English Subtitles

Headstrong Kenza lives with her father Ouira and grandfather Weljo on a beautifully situated plot of land that doubles as a car wrecking yard on the coast of Curacao. Father and son are opposites: Ouira is a no-nonsense police officer with an eye toward the future, while Weljo finds meaning in the past through the spirituality of his African ancestors and the islands native inhabitants. Meanwhile, 11-year-old Kenza seeks to find her own place, and identity. Her search takes flight as she gravitates toward the mystical traditions of her grandfather.

CALAMITY

FRANCE, DENMARK

Remi Chaye, 2020, 85 min.

French with English subtitles

Ages 8+

Its 1863 and 12-year-old Martha Jane and her family are headed West across the United States in search of a better life. After her father is hurt in a serious accident, she takes charge of her siblings and learns to drive the family wagon. Utterly practical and bold, Martha Jane trades her constricting skirts for the ease of boys breeches and never looks back. Her unconventional style and brazenness don't sit well with the pioneer community, and when the leader of the convoy wrongly accuses her of theft, she must run away to find proof of her innocence. In the Wild, she discovers herself and a world which shapes her into the mythical and mysterious Calamity Jane.

CURTAIN UP!

US

Hui Tong & Kelly Ng, 2019, 69 min.

English; additional dialogue in Mandarin with English subtitles

AGES 8+

All energy and opinion, 5th grader William seems excited to burst beyond his constraints, while his classmate Charlotte, a measured thinker, admits that sometimes it's easier to be scared than happy. But both students adore their theater class and are set to have a transformative final year of elementary school. This award-winning documentary follows a 5th grade class at PS 124 in New York City's Chinatown as they prepare for a big musical production of "Frozen Kids" and begin to discover their identities. Behind the scenes, nervous excitement and flubbed lines goofiness brushes up against stereotypes, family expectations, and post-graduation uncertainties. Through rehearsing for this American favorite, the young actors grapple with their Asian roots. Will they have to let something go?

JACKIE & OOPJEN

NETHERLANDSNEW YORK PREMIERE

Annemarie van de Mond, 2020, 90 min.

Dutch with English subtitles

Ages 8+

Twelve-year-old Jackie has made Amsterdams world famous Rijksmuseum her second home since her mother is always busy at her job there. As Jackie wanders the museum after hours, Oopjen Coppit, the woman depicted in Rembrandts famous 1634 painting, suddenly steps out of the canvas and into the middle of the gallery. Used to keeping her cool and problem solving, Jackie instantly decides to take Oopjen under her wing and help her search for her missing sister. Oopjen, a woman from the Golden Age, finds the 21st century to be a big adventure while Jackie finally finds a true friend.

THE FANTASTIC JOURNEY OF MARGOT AND MARGUERITE

FRANCEUS PREMIERE

Pierre Core, 2020, 89 min.

French with English subtitles

Ages 10+

Marguerite and Margot have a lot in common: both are 12 years old and missing their fathers. The one big difference? One lives in 1942, the other in 2020. Or at least thats the case until the discovery of a magical trunk in an attic that sends them traveling through time. Margot and Marguerite have something else in common: their father is no longer there, one vanished during World War II, the other is not living at home. With 70 years apart, theyre embarking in a wild adventure to find their present, explore history and their families memories, and not least of all manage the transition to becoming teens!

THE LEGEND OF HEI

CHINANORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE/WORLD PREMIERE English-language Version

MTJJ Mutou, 2019, 101 min.

Ages 9 +

With an inky black coat, adorable mewl, and eyes as big as saucers, Xiao Hei is the cutest feline around. But dont let his good looks fool you, hes more than just a cat. When he meets up with a motley band of spiritscreatures and human-like beings with superhuman powersHei finds that he, too, is a spirit and shapeshifts from cat to kid form. His new friends train and challenge him in the warrior spirit arts, with the pressing goal of saving their beloved forest from developers destroying it in this lushly rendered tale. Evoking Studio Ghiblis ecological fables, The Legend of Hei is a winsome combination of heart, soul, fantasy, and an extraordinary adventure.

MAGIC LIGHT CELEBRATION: ZOG AND THE FLYING DOCTORS + THE SNAIL AND THE WHALE

UK, SOUTH AFRICA

Total program run time: 51 min

Ages 3+

ZOG & THE FLYING DOCTORS

NEW YORK PREMIERE

Sean Mullen, 2020, 24 min.

The winner of audience awards at NYICFF year after year, Magic Light Pictures gets a full spotlight this year as we feature their newest film and fulfill our audiences countless requests for an encore of The Snail and The Whale. ZOG and the Flying Doctors picks up where Zog left off, as Princess Pearl achieves her dreams of being a doctor. Together with Zog the dragon and Sir Gadabout, the flying trio criss-cross the kingdom giving vaccinations to creatures of all stripes. But Pearls uncle, the orange-faced King, is doubtful and disapproving and ends up sick. Will he learn to trust in Pearl and science, and rethink what it means to be royal?

THE SNAIL AND THE WHALE

Max Lang & Daniel Snaddon, 2019, 27 min.

When a tiny snail (charmingly voiced by Sally Hawkins) longs to see the world, it hitches a ride on a great big, grey-blue humpback whale. Together they go on an amazing, gloriously animated journey, past icebergs and volcanoes, sharks and penguins, and marvel at the vast wonders of the world, and size seems like strength to the snail. But when the whale is beached in a bay, it's the tiny snail who just might save the day.

MOOMINVALLEY: THE HOBGOBLIN TRILOGY

FINLAND/UKNORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

Steve Box, 2019, 66 min.

Ages 5+

Moominmania is back at NYICFF with another exclusive installment of Tove Janssons beloved characters come to life. The Moomin Hobgoblin Trilogy brings thrills and delight right from the start as Moomintroll finds a magical hat with some surprising properties. Next, Moominmamma turns her attention to the sweet and secretive tiny visitors Thingumy & Bob, and finally a mysterious precious gem sends the town into a tizzy.

MY DAD IS A HEEL WRESTLER

JAPAN

Kyohei Fujimura, 2018, 110 min.

Japanese with English subtitles

Ages 9+

9-year-old Shotas dad was a star top-tier pro wrestler until age and injuries dropped him to the kitschy B-league of wrestling. Shota believes his dad is still number one, until one day he makes the shocking discovery that his father is not a hero wrestler but Cockroach, the heel, or villain, everyone loves to hate. Can Shotas father take off his mask and learn that there are more important things than saving face? Can Shota learn that real heroes dont always don the guise we think? Find out in this heart-warming, body-slamming, smile-inducing tale that lights up the ring.

NAHUEL AND THE MAGIC BOOK

CHILE, BRAZILNORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE

German Acuna, 2019, 99 min.

Spanish with English subtitles

Ages 8+

Life in Nahuel's seaside town revolves around the ocean, which makes his fear of water a challenge. What's worse, he can't help his fisherman father on his boat. One day, Nahuel finds a magical book, the Levisterio, that seems to offer a solution to this problem. But a dark sorcerer is after the book and captures Nahuels father to set a trap. Guided by Fresia, a shaman's daughter, Nahuel journeys to rescue his father and find courage from within.

RAYA AND THE LAST DRAGON

US

Don Hall & Carlos Lopez Estrada, 2021

Rated PG

Walt Disney Animation Studios Raya and the Last Dragon travels to the fantasy world of Kumandra, where humans and dragons lived together long ago in harmony. But when an evil force threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, that same evil has returned and its up to a lone warrior, Raya, to track down the legendary last dragon to restore the fractured land and its divided people. However, along her journey, shell learn that itll take more than a dragon to save the worldits going to take trust and teamwork as well.

SISTERS: THE SUMMER WE FOUND OUR SUPERPOWERS

NORWAYNEW YORK PREMIERE

Silje Salomonsen & Arild stin Ommundsen, 2020, 77 min.

Norwegian with English subtitles

Ages 7+

Vega, 9, and her wild sister Billie, 5, are going on an overnight outdoor hike in the lush Norwegian woods. The trip is full of exciting climbs, silly jokes, and happy trekking until Dad pulls one acrobatic stunt too many, falling into a cave and injuring his leg badly. Unable to move, he asks Vega and Billie to get help. Anxiously retracing their steps, they know that everything depends on them now, as Vega tries to keep them focused on the goal despite setbacks, surprises, and Billies many distractions. They bravely face their fears, discover their superpowers, and find strength in their sisterhood.

Dyllan Kettule (pictured) died from two shotgun wounds outside his girlfriend's unit block in Canley Vale, south-west of Sydney in 2014

The family of a 19-year-old boy shot dead by an unknown assailant has implored NSW police to keep investigating his murder.

Dyllan Kettule died from two shotgun wounds outside his girlfriend's unit block in Canley Vale, south-west of Sydney in 2014.

Following a social barbecue in the early hours of January 26, his friends began leaving to go home.

Mr Kettule's girlfriend accompanied by friends began to walk his dog Trigger and he was seen walking in her direction.

Suddenly an unidentified person fired shots, the NSW Coroners Court heard on Thursday.

He fell to the ground with friends trying to assist him but he could not be revived.

The talented rugby league player had been accepted into the Sydney Roosters early development squad after moving from New Zealand to Australia with his family.

Coroner Derek Lee acknowledged another tragedy the family was facing after the loss of Dyllan's older brother Amar Kettule who was shot dead on a Fairfield street on January 10.

Police are seen at the crime scene where Dyllan Kettule was shot on January 26, 2014

Dyllan's family asked NSW Police to continue investigating their son's death after losing their other son Amar

A statement read on behalf of the family said they were left with open wounds and memories that haunt their lives with no one held responsible.

'We feel like the case has disintegrated just like his corpse.

'We don't want to give up until this is solved ... we just want justice.'

The family said they were angry and frustrated that other murders had been investigated and resolved but nobody had been held responsible for this crime.

Detective Senior Constable Brenton Sommerville has been leading the investigation into Mr Kettule's death.

He described the dedicated strikeforce of five officers who conducted a full-scale police operation including taking 58 statements from witnesses of the incident.

About 32 detectives were assigned at various times to the case while 180 statements were obtained and CCTV footage was viewed from 30 locations.

But the court heard that while the investigation had been lengthy and thorough, it was hampered by limited evidence.

Mr Lee recommended the case be referred to the unsolved homicide unit for further investigation.

He stars in the big screen comedy Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar with Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo.

And despite being a famous hunk thanks to his Fifty Shades films, Jamie Dornan has admitted he struggled to rip off his own shirt during filming of a hilarious scene.

In fact, he told Vulture, it took several takes for him to nail it.

Not ripped: Jamie Dornan has admitted he struggled to rip off his own shirt during filming of a hilarious scene in the comedy Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar and needed several takes

'The embarrassing thing was half the time I couldnt even rip it!' Dornan, 38, confessed.

'I asked the costumer to cut it at the top so it would be easier to rip it, but I guess they didnt cut the bottom, so for the first take I was really confident at the beginning, and then I got like a second in and got stuck at the bottom, so I was sort trying to hop out of it in a pathetic way.'

The Irish actor went on: 'But then we did two or three more takes where they cut the bottom so I could actually make it work.'

Needed help: 'The embarrassing thing was half the time I couldnt even rip it!' Dornan, 38, confessed to Vulture. 'But then we did two or three more takes where they cut the bottom so I could actually make it work'

For laughs: In Barb And Star, Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo play best friends who travel from their small Midwestern town to Vista Del Mar in Florida where they find themselves embroiled in a plot to kill everyone there

In Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar, Wiig and Mumolo play best friends who travel from their small Midwestern town to Vista Del Mar in Florida for their first vacation.

Once there, they find themselves embroiled unwittingly in a villainous plot to kill everyone there.

The movie, co-written by Wiig and Mumolo who got an Oscar nomination for their script for 2011's Bridesmaids, became available on premium video on demand last Friday.

And Dornan says he's hoping there'll be a sequel and that he'll be called back for it.

He told Variety on Monday: 'I was like, if this hits and people like it, theres an appetite I think theyve definitely knocked around a few titles, lets put it that way. '

'So listen, if they want to go again, and they want me to be involved, it would be the easiest "yes" of my life.'

Loved it: The Irish actor said he's game for a sequel to the film which became available on premium video on demand last Friday. 'If they want to go again, and they want me to be involved, it would be the easiest "yes" of my life,' he told Variety on Monday

Dornan said he'd always wanted to make a comedy but is usually overlooked for such projects due to his more brooding on screen persona shored up by his role as Christian Grey in the Fifty Shades trilogy and as a serial killer in TV's The Fall.

'All my slate is very dramatic and very dark,' he acknowledged, 'And I love doing that.'

'But theres this other side of me that has always wanted to release a version of myself and let something go out of myself that is probably closer to me.'
His lawyer released the statement on behalf of the client.

Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, who fled to Russia after mass riots in February 2014, has once again called the Revolution of Dignity a "coup d'etat."

Yanukovych's lawyer, Vitaliy Serdyuk, on Wednesday shared his client's statement on Facebook in response to a resolution passed by the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, on February 17, 2021.

"Today, the Verkhovna Rada has passed a resolution on the so-called 'Revolution of Dignity,' in reality  an armed coup d'etat in 2014. This controversial move is once again splitting Ukrainian society, dividing it into winners and losers," Yanukovych said in the statement.

"The Maidan [Independence Square in Kyiv] events are called 'a milestone moment of building the Ukrainian state, promoting the national idea of freedom.' Taking into account the events of the last seven years in the history of Ukraine, such wording sounds like mockery," the ex-president added, noting the Maidan continues to split the country after the seven years.

Read alsoRada makes another step toward convicting high profile criminals in absentiaHe believes over 10 million Ukrainians have left abroad, seeking a better life, while "the criminals are free or even in power."

According to Yanukovych, foreigners dictate their conditions to the Ukrainian authorities.

In his statement, Yanukovych also mentioned Russia-occupied Crimea and the war in Donbas, the east of Ukraine. However, in his opinion, it is not Russia that is to blame for this, but "it is the Maidan, or rather its leaders, namely Oleksandr Turchynov, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, and Petro Poroshenko." The fugitive president added they "must face the most severe punishment."

On February 17, 2021, the Verkhovna Rada passed a resolution designating the Revolution of Dignity as a milestone event in the history of the Ukrainian state that represents the national idea of freedom.

Maidan shootings: Background

On February 18-20, 2014, nearly a hundred protesters were shot dead on the Maidan Square downtown Kyiv.

After the shootings, Yanukovych fled to Russia, taking out the "acquired" property and money by trucks from his Mezhyhiria residence.

Former Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, as well as law enforcers who were involved in the killings of the protesters, also left for Russia.

The investigation into the killings of protesters is still underway.

Reporting by UNIAN
Former state Sen. Benjamin Downing raised more than $100,000 in the week after announcing his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for governor.

GSFI Finalizes Payoff of Convertible Promissory Note to EMA Financial, LLC

Brooklyn, New York--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Green Stream Holdings Inc. (OTC Pink: GSFI) ("the Company") (http://www.GreenRainSolar.com ), an emerging leader in the solar utility and finance space, announces today, the Convertible Promissory Note of Green Stream Holdings Inc. in favor of EMA Financial, LLC dated November 5, 2020, in the amount of $100,000.00 has been prepaid.

On February 18, 2021, the Company made the payment of $133,775.35 as full and final payment of the Promissory Note which included all principal, interest and any prepayment fees associated with this Promissory Note.

The transaction has been detailed accordingly in the Company's 8-k filed earlier today.

Green Stream Holdings, Inc. is actively pursuing settlement, retirement and/or payoff of all remaining debt in the Company and anticipates the elimination of all convertible debt by end of Q2 2021 in preparation for application to OTCQB Venture Market. The OTCQB Venture Market is for early-stage and developing U.S. and international companies. To be eligible, companies must be current in their reporting and undergo an annual verification and management certification process.

As previously announced, the Company is no longer working with Manhattan Transfer, and has moved its business to Olde Monmouth Stock Transfer Co. (http://www.oldemonmouth.com) for enhanced reliability, shareholder accessibility and overall transaction efficiency.

Olde Monmouth Stock Transfer is a Full-Service Transfer Agency offering a wide variety of services from traditional Transfer/Registrar functions to more advanced Proxy and Escrow transactions.

With 20 years in the Stock Transfer business, Olde Monmouth has the knowledge and experience to meet the demands of the most sophisticated Public Companies while providing the prompt and responsive service that you would expect from a small family owned and operated business.

Olde Monmouth Stock Transfer Co is located at 200 Memorial Pkwy Atlantic Highlands, NJ 07716 and can be reached at 732.872.2727

Shareholders may contact Old Monmouth for any and all relevant inquiries.

Shareholders-visit greenrainsolar.com. where you can view Green Stream's news, filings and even a live Level 2 stream, along with other company information.





GSFI Company Proposal



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/6720/74857_6542d017249d6b2b_002full.jpg

About Green Stream Finance, Inc.:

Green Stream Finance, Inc., a Wyoming-based corporation with satellite offices in Malibu, CA and New York, NY, is focused on exploiting currently unmet markets in the solar energy space, and is currently licensed in California, Nevada, Arizona, Washington, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Colorado, Hawaii, and Canada. The Company's next-generation solar greenhouses constructed and managed by Green Rain Solar, LLC, a Nevada-based division, utilize proprietary greenhouse technology and trademarked design developed by world-renowned architect Mr. Antony Morali. The Company is currently targeting high-growth solar market segments for its advanced solar greenhouse and advanced solar battery products. The Company has a growing footprint in the significantly underserved solar market in New York City where it is targeting 50,000 to 100,000 square feet of rooftop space for the installation of its solar panels. Green Stream is looking to forge key partnership with major investment groups, brokers, and private investors in order to capitalize on a variety of unique investment opportunities in the commercial solar energy markets. The Company is dedicated to becoming a major player in this critical space. Through its innovative solar product offerings and industry partnerships, the Company is well-positioned to become a significant player in the solar space.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and is subject to the safe harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. That includes the possibility that the business outlined in this press release cannot be concluded for some reason. That could be as a result of technical, installation, permitting or other problems that were not anticipated. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Green Stream Finance, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein. Except for any obligation under the U.S. federal securities laws, Green Stream Finance, Inc. undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

For All Inquiries Contact:

president@greenstreamfinance.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74857
IONIA COUNTY, MI  A 66-year-old Ionia woman was found dead Thursday, Feb. 18, after a fire destroyed her home.

The victims name was not immediately released.

The fire was reported at 6:54 a.m. in the 2200 block of Kellogg Road, between East Parmeter and Cooper roads, Ionia County Department of Public Safety reported.

While police officers and firefighters were responding, they were told that the homeowner was still inside. The house was engulfed in flames upon rescuers arrival. They could not enter the home because of heavy fire.

The victim was later found dead in the home.

Ionia Department of Public Safety and the state fire marshal are investigating the cause of the fire.

Several area fire departments responded to the fire.

Read more:

Pfizer workers, past and present, cheer on vaccine maker ahead of President Bidens Portage visit

Man flees police twice, caught after footprints in snow led officers to house

Portage couple found dead were stable and dedicated people, brother says
Facebook on Wednesday blocked people in Australia from posting news stories on its website, a drastic escalation in the battle over whether tech giants should pay publishers when their stories show up in search results or on social media.

Google took the opposite approach. The company struck deals in recent days with Australia's major publishing companies, including on Wednesday with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, to pay for some of their news content. The deal came in exchange for avoiding the most stringent parts of a new law in Australia, walking back its own threat from last month to shut down its search engine in the country.

The Facebook ban blocks posts from any Australian publisher from being seen anywhere in the world, and blocks all users in Australia from seeing any news content, even from non-Australian publishers. The move apparently caught up some government websites that posted information about emergencies, fires and weather.

The reaction in Australia was severe. "Facebook needs to think very carefully about what this means for its reputation and standing," Australian Communications Minister Paul Fletcher told the country's public broadcaster. "They're effectively saying 'on our platform there will not be any information from organizations that employ paid journalists.'"

Facebook had less to lose than Google - which had threatened to completely shut down its search engine in the country - by escalating the fight further, Johan Lidberg, a media professor at Monash University in Melbourne, said in an email.

"Google also appears to be more in tune with what the community wants and seems to take social responsibility somewhat more seriously than Facebook," he said. "There will now appear a void where professional credible journalism used to be on Facebook and this void could be populated with misinformation and conspiracy theorists."

Google's deal with News Corp is part of its News Showcase product, which lets publishers choose which of their stories are promoted on special sections of Google's apps and search pages. But the arrangementsfall short of applying to news stories catalogued by Google and linked to in regular search results, the most popular way people currently come to news stories online - and something the proposed law would have required if Google didn't strike the deals.

Stories from the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, the Sunday Times and other News Corp publications from the United Kingdom and Australia will show up in special panels on the Google News app, on the search home screen on mobile phones and on Google News on desktop computers. The deal does not include Fox News, Google spokeswoman Maggie Shiels said. It covers a limited number of countries, including Australia, the U.K., France and Germany. The companies are in discussions to expand the program to the United States, Shiels said.

Google has struck similar deals with Reuters and regional news companies in the countries where it's operational, including with another major Australian publisher on Sunday. The companies won't say how much the deals are worth, but Google has set aside $1 billion for such deals worldwide over the next three years.

Google is the latest tech giant to come around to the idea of beginning to pay for some news. Apple strikes deals with publishers who participate in its Apple News Plus service. Facebook also pays certain publishers for posting stories on its dedicated Facebook News tab, which isn't available in Australia.

Facebook had threatened to block news from its site if the government went ahead with the new law, but the negotiations about the details in the bill are still ongoing, with the government making some tweaks last weekend. Those were not enough to placate Facebook.

The legislation "seeks to penalize Facebook for content it didn't take or ask for," William Easton, Facebook's Managing Director in Australia & New Zealand, said in a blog post. Unlike Google, which scrapes news sites and puts links to stories in search results, publishers willingly choose to post news on Facebook to win traffic, Easton said.

"We were prepared to launch Facebook News in Australia and significantly increase our investments with local publishers, however, we were only prepared to do this with the right rules in place," Easton, the Facebook executive, said. "We will now prioritize investments to other countries."

Google's deal with News Corp was especially notable given how the news publisher has lobbied against the tech giant in recent years. In the United States, it has pushed state and federal regulators to make changes in the digital advertising industry, which Google dominates and which is a key source of revenue for both companies. Google has raised concerns about a former News Corp consultant helping advise Texas on its antitrust lawsuit against the search giant.

News Corp is Australia's biggest newspaper publisher and has been a driving force in lobbying for the new legislation. In a news release, News Corp called the deal a "historic" success that would lead to "significant" payments to the company.

"For many years, we were accused of tilting at tech windmills," said News Corp CEO Robert Thomson. "But what was a solitary campaign, a quixotic quest, has become a movement, and both journalism and society will be enhanced."

Despite making the publisher deals, Google said it is still officially opposed to the law, which passed in Australia's House and moved onto the Senate on Wednesday.

The biggest sticking point for Google is that the new law would apply to links to news articles in general search results. Throughout its two-decade history, the company has steadfastly refused to pay the websites it links to, saying that it must be an impartial librarian of the Internet and that the concept of a free and open Web would break down if it was forced to start paying.

"The law would unfairly require unknown payments for simply showing links to news businesses, while giving, to a favored few, special previews of search ranking," Kent Walker, Google's top global policy executive, said in a Feb. 11 blog post. "Those aren't workable solutions and would fundamentally change the Internet."

News Showcase is Google's attempt to sidestep that problem, by creating a separate product that looks and feels different from search results. It's part of a broader trend at Google of moving away from traditional blue links and adding more curated content, some of it paid for, in search results.

Google's deals with news publishers show the law is working, even before it's officially been enacted, Josh Frydenberg, Australia's treasurer and a senior member of the government's cabinet, told reporters Wednesday. "None of these deals would be happening if we didn't have the legislation before the Parliament," Frydenberg said. " . . . This world-leading mandatory code is bringing the parties to the table and is helping to pave a way forward where news media businesses are getting paid for generating original journalistic content."

Hours later, Facebook announced its ban on news sharing.

"This morning, I had a constructive discussion with Mark Zuckerberg from #Facebook," Frydenberg said on Twitter. "He raised a few remaining issues with the Government's news media bargaining code and we agreed to continue our conversation to try to find a pathway forward."
DUBAI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 18th Feb, 2021) The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF) has expanded its portfolio of knowledge publications in 2020, issuing several publications across various knowledge disciplines via its A Book in Minutes initiative and the Dubai International Programme for Writing.

The Foundation also made millions of publications available to the public through its ground-breaking Digital Knowledge Hub platform, in an effort to widen the scope of knowledge production and dissemination in the UAE and the world, all while promoting a culture of digital reading among communities, and supporting Arabic online content.

The Dubai International Programme for Writing carried on with its activities and training workshops in 2020 despite the international COVID-19 crisis, expanding its reach to additional Arab countries through videoconferencing platforms. This, in turn, led to an uptick in the number of books and publications written by participants in the Programme, including short stories, translations, childrens books, and young adult literature.

A total of 23 new titles were produced and will be made available through the Digital Knowledge Hub, bringing the total number of publications issued by the Programme since its inception to more than 107, where the investigative article writing workshop alone can count 73 participants in total. The Programme welcomed 50 participants at its workshops in 2020  prominent authors who benefitted from these sessions to hone their skills.

MBRF made sure all of its publications were available on the Digital Knowledge Hub platform, especially at a time when people were confined to their homes by the precautionary and preventative measures implemented to curb the COVID-19 outbreak. The Invest in Knowledge initiative, rolled out at the time, made available more than 2.6 million digital items of content covering all knowledge disciplines and appealing to every segment of the community.

"The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation has launched several projects over the years to spearhead the production and dissemination of knowledge, and promote reading and culture in the community," said MBRFs CEO Jamal bin Huwaireb. "These projects have seen an exponential rise in demand this past year driven by the global restrictions enacted to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, including social distancing, which led to people staying in their homes for longer periods of time.

Many people went searching for reliable sources of knowledge, easily accessible from anywhere and at any time. MBRFs Digital Knowledge Hub provided just that, offering users high-quality and diverse publications."

"Since the beginning of the pandemic, there has been a remarkable increase in demand for digital reading, specifically through our Digital Knowledge Hub platform," bin Huwaireb added. "The number of users on the platform jumped to 252,466 in 2020, up from 182,124 in 2019, reflecting public appetite for digital knowledge resources that allow them to easily access knowledge through a modern online platform, in line with the requirements of our time."

The Foundation will continue to work on enriching the platform with additional productions and publications, in an effort to establish the Digital Knowledge Hub as the premier digital reading destination for readers in the UAE and across the region.

For its part, the Book in Minutes initiative published 24 summaries of books in 2020, also providing them though the Digital Knowledge Hub platform. These included books in various disciplines, such as education, health and the environment, the modern family, future foresight, entrepreneurship , artificial intelligence, and self-development. This brings the total number of publications issued by the initiative to 225 titles by the end of 2020.

Meanwhile, Wamadat and Flashes magazines, issued by MBRF, continued to provide readers with the latest and most-discussed global discoveries, particularly those related to AI, space, literacy efforts, and the eradication of infectious diseases. They covered all developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic and international efforts to mitigate its economic, social, and health impact. The two magazines also covered topics on advanced technologies and data, and their impact on sustainable and community development. The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation offered the magazines for free to the public via the Digital Knowledge Hub platform.
CenterPoint Properties purchased a 601,261-square-foot industrial building on 31 acres at 3507 Pasadena Freeway in Pasadena near the Port of Houston. The building is served by Union Pacific, BNSF and Kansas City Southern via the Port Terminal Railroad Association. It has a 32-foot clear-height, 62 dock-high and 21 rail doors, outside storage and trailer parking.

The asset aligns extremely well with CenterPoints national port investment strategy, Rives Nolen, CenterPoints senior vice president for investments said in an announcement.

Rusty Tamlyn, Trent Agnew and Charles Strauss of JLL Capital Markets brokered the transaction between CenterPoint and Link Logistics Real Estate.

Prior to the acquisition, CenterPoints Houston portfolio totaled 5.94 million square feet across 37 properties. The company is not affiliated with Houstons CenterPoint Energy.

Sealy & Co. acquired a fully-leased 663,821-square-foot distribution warehouse at 8800 CityPark Loop in northeast Houston. The facility, on more than 40 acres near Loop 610 at McCarty Drive, has access to two Union Pacific rail intermodal yards and more than 200 trailer parking spaces. Scott Sealy Jr. and Jason Gandy of Sealy worked with Tom Lynch and Faron Wiley of CBRE to acquire the property from First Industrial Real Estate Trust.

PCCP provided an $86.3 million senior loan to Madera Residential for the acquisition and renovation of the 620-unit Domain and Lofts at CityCentre apartments at 811 Town and Country Blvd. The property is 94 percent leased. Domain is in one building with 370 units and Lofts has two residential buildings totaling 250 units. The ground floor retail is not part of the acquisition. Madera Residential owns and manages 14,000 units in Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth.

MLG Capital acquired the Heights at Harpers Preserve, a 328-unit apartment complex at 17116 Harpers Trace in Conroe. Built in 2017, the property is in the Harpers Preserve master-planned community. Based in Brookfield, Wis., MLG has invested in nine Houston area properties totaling about 2,600 units.

The Bascom Group acquired the 350-unit Cantera at Towne Lake Apartments at 17807 Lakecrest View Drive in Cypress. Built in 2006, the complex is in the Towne Lake community developed by Caldwell Cos. Brian Eisendrath, Annie Rice and Samantha Jay with CBRE Capital Markets sourced the Freddie Mac senior loan debt financing. David Mitchell with Newmark was the broker. James DArgenio and Chang Liu sourced and managed the acquisition for Irvine, Calif.-based Bascom.

Allied Orion Group has been chosen to manage Los Prados Apartments, a 264-unit apartment community at 125 Dyna Drive in north Houston. The property is owned by GenWealth Capital Group.

Power Manufacturing signed a long-term headquarters lease for 105,300 square feet at West Sam Houston Business Park, 10111 Houston Oaks Drive. Jason Gibbons and Chase Tucker of Finial Group assisted Power Manufacturing, which will occupy both buildings in the park.

Brookfield Properties formed a partnership with Enwave Energy Corp. to provide cooling services to its recently renovated Houston Center complex. Enwave, an affiliate of Brookfield Asset Management, operates a district cooling network in downtown Houston, including commercial office buildings, retail businesses, schools, hotels, theaters and a ballpark. By replacing outdated systems and improving efficiencies through incorporating Houston Center in Enwaves network, the partnership will result in less water and energy usage, according to Brookfield. Houston Center consists of LyondellBasell Tower, 2 Houston Center, Fulbright Tower, 4 Houston Center and The Shops at Houston Center.

katherine.feser@chron.com

twitter.com/kfeser
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Stoli Group, the leading global ultra-premium spirits and wines company, today announced the addition of industry leader, Harry Bigelow, to head up North America. Bigelow joins Stoli after an illustrious career with leading consumer brand companies such as Diageo, Guinness USA, Red Bull, Pepsico, and E&J Gallo. Further enhancing the North American team will be Mark Iveson, Sales Director West, who joins Stoli from Diageo. Rhian Chodak, Managing Director, Western Europe, joins from Upfield and will strengthen Stoli European operations.

"The word is out that Stoli is primed for accelerated growth and as a result, we are attracting the top talent that will propel the brand for years to come. We've recently strengthened marketing, operations, and performance management/supply chain capabilities. Now as we turn to business management and sales, we are thrilled to have Bigelow, Iveson and Chodak on board," commented Damian McKinney, Global CEO of Stoli Group. "Bigelow's reputation precedes him as a transformational leader. And, Iveson & Chodak have the insurgent mindset that will support our growth."

An inspirational and results driven executive with a consistent performance record of growing consumer driven businesses and building high performance teams, Harry Bigelow will bring experience and insight of having served as President, National Accounts at Diageo, Vice President-General Manager of Red Bull North America, and President and CEO, Marley Beverage Company. His breadth and depth of experience is unparalleled and includes knowledge of retail channels, brand marketing, U.S. distribution and national customers.

"Of course, I was attracted to Stoli's legendary brand, but McKinney's global leadership, and the teams he put in place, solidified my interest," commented Bigelow. "I am thrilled to be a part of the Stoli legacy and to do my part in the transformation."

Mark Iveson has an outstanding track record of boosting consumer brands and developing people. With over 25 years of experience, Iveson has held sales, people management and national account roles at leading brands including Diageo, Gallo, and a Red Bull Energy drink distributor where he managed over $60+ million in annual sales. Most recently, Iveson spent 15 years at Diageo and held roles in business strategy, sales, and people management. A top performer, Iveson, embraces change and innovation to foster communication, drive sales and build distribution channels.

As a transformational leader, Rhian Chodak has a proven track record of unconditional business delivery and an unparalleled ability to build and lead elite teams through fast-paced and challenging environments. Chodak brings a wealth of knowledge and insight of the UK & Ireland consumer branded market to her position, having spent the past 10 years working across sales, strategic category management and operational leadership positions. She joins Stoli from a global multi-billion revenue consumer branded business, Upfield, where she served as UK & Ireland Sales Director. Chodak's razor sharp focus, pace & entrepreneurial drive will strengthen Stoli's European operations.

About Stoli  Group

Stoli Group was established in 2013 and is responsible for the production, management, and distribution of SPI's global spirits portfolio. Mainly known for the Stolichnaya Vodka brand, Stoli Group has expanded its portfolio in recent years to appeal to premium on-premise and more sophisticated global consumers. Signature brands are: Stoli Vodka, Elit Vodka, Bayou Rum, Kentucky Owl, Villa One, Gator Bite Rum Liquers, Cenote Tequila, Kah Tequila and Se Busca Mezcal. With a presence across a network of more than 176 markets, Stoli Group works with a passionate team of 200 distributors around the world. Headquartered in Luxembourg, Stoli has production facilities in Russia, Latvia, Spain, Italy, Mexico, Argentina, and the United States some of which are steeped in history as early as the 1900s. For more information, visit stoli-group.com .

Contact: Machie Madden/Maureen Landers

[email protected]

[email protected]

SOURCE Stoli Group
For a decade, they were the indivisible duo who drove the quest for Scotlands independence, steering their party  and themselves  to power along the way.

But in politics few friendships are forever, and that of Scotlands first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, and her predecessor and mentor, Alex Salmond, has not aged well  to the point that its breakdown is now threatening the independence movement just when its prospects seemed brightest.

The two giants of the Scottish National Party are locked in a bitter feud over the handling of accusations against Mr. Salmond that culminated in 2020, when he was tried on more than a dozen charges of sexual assault and found not guilty on all counts.

So vicious is the rift that some believe the fate of Scotlands 314-year union with England could rest on a dispute about what Ms. Sturgeon knew when about the accusations, and whether she has told the truth.

Trucks of Duy Tan Plastics seen at a factory. Photo courtesy of Duy Tan Plastics.

A subsidiary of Thai conglomerate SCG Group is set to buy a 70 percent stake in Vietnams Duy Tan Plastics.

SCG Packaging Public Company Ltd (SCGP) said in a statement the deal, whose value it did not disclose, is expected to be completed in mid-2021.

Duy Tan is Vietnams largest producer of rigid plastic packaging products such as shampoo and food containers, of which it sells 80 percent locally and exports the rest to the U.S. and some other countries.

It also makes plastic housewares products and has a total annual capacity of 116,000 tons. Last year it earned revenues of VND4.7 trillion ($204 million).

The investment in Duy Tan is part of SCGPs expansion across Southeast Asia. It has 43 packaging plants in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.

It plans to invest 10 billion baht ($333 million) in its Vietnamese packaging solutions business.

Chief executive Wichan Jitpukdee said the company has consistently been increasing its investment in Vietnam, achieving revenue growth of more than 10 percent a year.

In December, it acquired a 94 percent stake in Bien Hoa Packaging, a producer of corrugated paper and offset laminated packaging.

In 2015, it had invested in Tin Thanh Packing Joint Stock Company, one of the five largest flexible packaging producers in Vietnam.

In 2009, it had established Vina Kraft Paper in Binh Duong Province to produce 500,000 tons of packaging paper annually.

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Inadequacy of vaccines to combat increasing rare infectious diseases in livestock and companion animals is the key driving factor aiding the growth of the autogenous vaccines market .

Autogenous vaccines are an efficient alternative to antibiotics that control and prevent infectious diseases. Improvements in animal health, decreased animal suffering, efficient food production, and reduction in the need for antibiotics are boosting the adoption of autogenous vaccines in the livestock industry.

Strategizing The Moves For The Next Decade? See Through Sample Of Autogenous Vaccines Market Report! https://www.persistencemarketresearch.co/samples/29491

Company Profiles

Newport Laboratories, Inc.

Elanco Animal Health

Ceva (Ceva Biovac)

Cambridge Technologies

Hygieia Biological Laboratories

Dyntec s. r. o

Phibro Animal Health Corporation

Huvepharma, Inc.

Deltamune

AniCon Labor GmbH

ACE Laboratory Services (Apiam Animal Health)

Increasing animal care spending and research & development activities in the veterinary biologics sector further favours the growth of the autogenous vaccines market.

The global autogenous vaccines market was valued at US$ 428 Mn in 2018, and is expected to witness a CAGR of 4.4% over the forecast period (20192029).

Key Takeaways of Autogenous Vaccines Market Study

Bacterial strain type contributes more than 3/4 share in the autogenous vaccines market, owing to increasing rare bacterial infections among livestock and companion animals.

Veterinary hospitals account for half of the value share in the global autogenous vaccines market, attributed to increase in the number of veterinary hospitals and rising government funding for animal healthcare.

Increasing research activities in the veterinary medicine & biologics industry in the United States and rising animal healthcare expenditure have contributed to the dominance of North America in the global autogenous vaccines market.

Attributed to growing awareness regarding zoonotic diseases and increasing funding for animal disease eradication, China, Brazil, and India are expected to offer notable growth opportunities for the autogenous vaccines market.

Starting With The New Decade On A Diligent Note In The Autogenous Vaccines Market? https://www.persistencemarketresearch.co/methodology/29491

Unavailability of licensed vaccines for bacterial and viral infections in animals has directed the focus of several small & large manufactures to invest in the manufacturing of autogenous vaccines, thereby propelling the growth of the autogenous vaccines market, says a PMR analyst.

Product Portfolio Expansion through Partnerships - Key Strategy of Leading Autogenous Vaccine Manufacturers

Autogenous vaccine manufacturers are focusing on product portfolio expansion through partnerships with and acquisition of small veterinary biologics manufactures.

For example, in 2018, Huvepharma acquired AgriLabs, to expand its presence in the U.S. and speed up the commercialization of biologic products for animal health. The acquisition included AgriLabs's custom vaccines business.

Moreover, in 2017, Pharmgate and Cambridge Technologies entered into a strategic alliance to provide commercial, autogenous, and prescription vaccine solutions to veterinarians.

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More Valuable Insights on Autogenous Vaccines Market

Persistence Market Research offers a unique perspective and actionable insights on autogenous vaccines in its latest study, presenting historical demand assessment from 20142018 and projections for 20192029, on the basis of strain type (bacterial strain and virus strain), and end user (veterinary clinics, veterinary hospitals, and veterinary research institutes), across seven major regions.

Explore Extensive Coverage of Persistence Market Research Life Sciences & Transformational Health Landscape

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UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
UN officials are appealing for urgent international aid to Yemen as famine looms and thousands of civilians flee a Houthi offensive on the oil-rich city of Marib.

The Iran-aligned Houthi rebel group, which controls the capital, Sanaa, and much of the war-torn country, is pressing ahead with a renewed offensive on the government-held city of Marib. According to the UN, at least four missiles have landed in the city in the last 10 days, killing at least three civilians.

The attack on Marib must stop, the UN special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, told the UN Security Council on Thursday.

It puts millions of civilians at risk, especially with the fighting reaching camps for internally displaced persons," he said. "The quest for territorial gain by force threatens the prospects of the peace process.

The fighting comes as Yemen inches closer to what the UN warns would be the worst famine the world has seen in decades. More than 16 million Yemenis are going hungry, 5 million of whom are just one step away from famine, the UN says.

During a briefing to the 15-member council Thursday, UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock warned that the fighting in Marib threatens to send hundreds of thousands of people again running for their lives at a time when everyone should be doing everything possible to stop famine.

To stave off a famine in Yemen, Lowcock called on international donors to up their contributions. The current funding shortfall has forced the UN to close many of its water, sanitation and health facilities across Yemen, which even before the war was considered the Arab worlds poorest country.

Lowcock said UN humanitarian operations in Yemen require at least $4 billion to stay afloat this year, more than double of what was received in 2020 but roughly what was received in 2019, the last year UN "assessments confirmed famine-like conditions." He called on countries to pledge generously at an upcoming virtual fundraiser, which will be hosted by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Switzerland and Sweden on March 1.

The Houthi offensive on Marib comes as the Biden administrations formal revocation of the groups terrorist designation took effect this week. Humanitarian groups had warned the Trump administrations decision to blacklist the Houthis could complicate the delivery of live-saving aid.

Yemen is descriubed by the UN as the worlds worst humanitarian crisis. More than 80% of the population  over 24 million people  rely on humanitarian assistance to survive.

Earlier this month, the Biden administration ended support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, but pledged to defend the kingdom from Houthi threats. The Iran-aligned rebels have in recent weeks stepped up their cross-border attacks targeting Saudi Arabia.

In a statement Tuesday, the State Department called on the Houthis to halt their military operations, warning their latest assault on Marib is the action of a group not committed to peace or to ending the war afflicting the people of Yemen.

The Saudi-led coalition said Wednesday that it hsd downed two explosives-laden drones launched in the direction of civilian areas in southern Saudi Arabia. Last week, the rebels claimed responsibility for a drone attack targeting the kingdom that came as the new US special envoy for Yemen, Timothy Lenderking, visited with officials in Riyadh.
Relieved investors sent construction contractor Costain higher after it drew a line under a problematic project.

The company has reached a final settlement with the Welsh government after a dispute about a road that winds through the Brecon Beacons, which Costain began work on back in 2015.

The two sides had been arguing about who should foot the bill for a large wall put up as part of rebuilding the A465.

Costain has reached a final settlement with the Welsh government after a longrunning dispute about work on a road that winds through the Brecon Beacons

Last year an arbitrator ruled the responsibility and extra costs associated with the retaining wall, which hadn't been budgeted for and was part of the reason the project came in late and over budget, lay with the company.

Costain said the amount it has agreed is in line with the 45million it had put aside for the payment.

The final work is expected to be finished in September, leaving it free to focus on other work such as HS2 and the construction of London's new supersewer, the Thames Tideway Tunnel.

Stock Watch - Genedrive Diagnostics minnow Genedrive rallied after it sent the first shipments of its Covid tests to the US. Manchester-based Genedrive has developed a PCR  polymerase chain reaction  test that delivers a quick result without needing to be sent to a lab. It has a distribution agreement with Beckman Coulter Life Sciences, which will now focus on selling the kits in the US. Shares rose 10 per cent, or 13p, to 143p  and have already tripled in value so far this year.

Shares rose 1.2 per cent, or 0.7p, to 59.7p. Plus500 also advanced after it unveiled more stellar results.

Like all trading platforms, business boomed in 2020 as retail investors flocked to its site and tried to make a quick buck on turbulent markets during the Covid crisis.

There were 82m customer trades placed last year  up from 35m in 2019  in what it described as 'unprecedented levels of platform usage'.

Whether this will happen again in 2021 is less certain now that markets are broadly recovering as vaccinations are rolled out.

Nevertheless, bumper quarter after bumper quarter in 2020 led to a 175pc increase in full-year profits to 380million, as turnover rose by 629million.

It is now plotting 21.6million in special dividends and 18million in share buybacks. Plus500 closed 2.6 per cent higher, up 36p, at 1415p.

But the same could not be said for fellow investing platform Hargreaves Lansdown, which was the biggest faller on the FTSE 100 as the City digested founder Peter Hargreaves' latest giant share sale.

Self-made billionaire and Brexit-backer Hargreaves revealed on Tuesday he had cashed in a 300million stake, or around a sixth of his holding.

That dragged Hargreaves' shares 6.9 per cent lower, down 113.5p, to 1539.5p. The company's drop also weighed on the wider Footsie, which fell 0.6 per cent, or 37.96 points, to 6710.9, shrugging off yet another day of rallies among big mining and resources companies.

The FTSE 250 also experienced a mid-week dip, dropping 1.3 per cent, or 266.88 points, to 21,149.49.

On the mid-cap index, interdealer broker TP Icap completed a 310million rights issue to fund its takeover of US group Liquidnet, which will catapult it into the share trading market.

TP Icap rose 3.9 per cent, or 8p, to 211.6p, after reporting it has received acceptances for 221.5m new shares priced at 140p each.

Elsewhere, TI Fluid Systems was shaken by the news that long-time boss William Kozyra will step down as president and chief executive towards the end of the year.

His successor Hans Dieltjens will kick off the transition period by joining next month as chief operating officer.

Kozyra joined in 2008 at the height of the financial crisis and steered it through its float in 2017. News of his retirement sent shares 2.3 per cent lower, down 6.35p, to 275p.

Mattress maker Eve Sleep's market value soared after it unveiled a partnership with CBD (cannabidiol, an active ingredient in cannabis) group Sana Lifestyle to produce a range of oil drops that can help people relax.

Shares in Eve Sleep jumped 56.1 per cent, or 2.58p, to 7.18p.
Dr Ronan Glynn and Prof Philip Nolan (left) at the Covid-19 update at the Department of Health. Photo: Colin Keegan/Collins

Follow all of the updates on Nphet's latest Covid briefing here

8.45pm

Dr Gylnn also addressed the fact that despite the WHO and European Medical Agency saying that over 65s can take the AstraZeneca vaccine, it was deemed that they should be given other vaccines just in case as they have proven to be more effective.

He defended this decision saying: There is no vaccine sitting in stock in this country.

Dr Henry also added to the topic, saying: You make the decision based on the evidence you have now.

Dr Nolan similarly said that: "There is a choice of giving them [over 65s] a vaccine that has higher efficacy.

8.40pm

Dr Glynn said that Nphets largest lever in terms of preventing the spread of the virus remains the public and their work to keep community cases down.

He adds that everyone should optimise their levels of vitamin D, but says the international evidence does not currently suggest that high levels of the vitamin helps prevent contracting Covid-19.

Furthermore, he adds that Nphet are calling for retrospective contact tracing, but he acknowledges the health service is already under an immense amount of pressure.

8.30pm

When asked whether it would be possible to open schools while putting further restrictions elsewhere, Dr Glynn said: The simple answer to that is no.

Were hopeful that the reopening will be a success and that it wont impact dramatically on case numbers, he said. We are still improving, week on week, albeit the speed of that improvement has slowed down.

He explained that Nphets concern had less to do with the schools reopening and more societys reaction to the news, and whether people will lower their guard as a result.

Dr Nolan also noted that the vast majority of hospitalisaitons due to the Covid-19 vaccine are caused by allergic reactions.

8.20pm

Chief Clinical Officer of the HSE Dr Colm Henry reminded people that rapid access services for cancer services have remained open, after a dropoff in people attending them.

When it comes to reopening other healthcare services, he said that when the time comes, theyre not the same services as theyll be different due to Covid-19. Its giving the assurance to patients that theyre safe places to come to.

8.10pm

The government plans to update their Living with Covid plan, and Nphet plans on submitting a paper in regards to this update according to Dr Glynn. He said that theyve taken into account lessons learned from past experiences.

8pm

Chief Executive of the Health Products Regulatory Authority Dr Lorraine Nolan commented on some of the side effects of the Covid-19 vaccines, listing the most common ones as dizziness, headaches, tiredness, as well as itching from the injection site.

She notes that side effects are sometimes heightened after the second dose, particularly for younger people. She added that there have been cases of facial paralysis, but it doesnt to date suggest there is an increased rate.

[There] are no safety concerns regarding the use of any vaccines, she said, while reminding people that any reported suspected side effects of the vaccine cannot be definitely said to be caused by the vaccine.

Chief Clinical Officer of the HSE Dr Colm Henry also noted that the fall weve seen in Covid-19 cases right now has to do with a decrease in community transmission more than an increase in people vaccinated.

7.50pm

Prof Nolan said people should be encouraged that the reproduction number remains so low, and urges the public to continue to avoid mixing.

If we can keep the reproduction number between 0.7 to 0.9 over the coming weeks wed expect to see 400 to 500 cases by the start of March, he said.

7.40pm

Professor Philip Nolan pointed out the slow decline of the virus, saying its most likely due to the British mutation of the virus being more infectious than previous strains.

Its reasonable to assume thats the new variant, which has a high attack rate, which will lead to a high infection rate.

Nine out of 10 of Covid-19 cases now are from the new variant. However, Prof Nolan added that the suppression strategy is working, and the reproduction rate is less than one.

He also said that it appears the country has moved past the peak of deaths, although its important to keep in mind there might be a backlog of deaths.
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A sprawling cyber-attack that compromised popular software created by Texas-based SolarWinds Corp. was executed from within the U.S., a top White House official said, though the government believes Russia was responsible.

The federal investigation of the hack will take several months, said in a briefing for reporters on Wednesday.

As of today, nine federal agencies and about 100 private-sector companies were compromised, Neuberger said. She didnt identify them and said the government hasnt ruled out the possibility of further victims.

She said the government believes its still at the beginning stages of understanding the scope and scale of the attack, which was publicly disclosed in December but was likely executed months earlier. The hackers launched the hack from inside the United States which further made it difficult for the U.S. government to observe their activity, she said.

Neuberger is leading the U.S. response to the SolarWinds attack. The Texas-based companys software is used by several government agencies and Fortune 500 companies.

As many as 18,000 SolarWindss customers received malicious code through updates to the software, though far fewer are believed to have been targeted for further intrusions by the hackers. The targets included the federal departments of State, Treasury, Homeland Security, Commerce and Energy, including its nuclear weapons agency. The hackers used other methods to infiltrate networks besides SolarWinds, U.S. officials have said.

Many of the private sector compromises are technology companies, including networks of companies whose products could be used to launch additional intrusions, Neuberger said.

President Joe Biden said in a Feb. 4 speech at the State Department that the U.S. has elevated the status of cyber issues within our government.

The U.S. will not hesitate to raise the cost on Russia for the Kremlins aggressive behavior, including cyber-attacks, Biden said in the address

Copyright 2021 Bloomberg.
A Kilkenny researcher is part of a ground-breaking new project that has been awarded 4.4 million in EU funding to develop a living brain implant that senses and treats an impending epilepsy seizure.

Dr Deirdre Kilbane, who resides in Kilkenny City, is a senior research fellow at Waterford Institute of Technologys Telecommunications Software & Systems Group (TSSG) and a member of the new PRIME project, which is working on an innovative diagnostic-therapeutic treatment for sufferers of epilepsy and other neurological diseases that will implant engineered biological cells in the brain to act as bio-computers to treat and suppress impending seizures.

PRIME will see the Waterford team collaborate with six other partners, including FutureNeuro, the SFI Research Centre for chronic and rare neurological disease hosted at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences. The project was awarded funding of 4.4m under the EUs Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) programme, making it the first ever FET programme project awarded to an Irish Institute of Technology.

Winning this funding is a significant result for TSSG and will allow the PRIME research team, which also includes Dr. Sasitharan Balasubramaniam, Frances Cleary and Dr. Hamdan Awan, to build on their expertise in molecular communications and computing by applying it to future generation bio-implantables. The FET programme, funded under the EUs research and innovation initiative, Horizon 2020, invests in transformative research and innovation with a high potential impact on technology to benefit our economy and society.

The Waterford-based research aims to provide a diagnostic-therapeutic treatment for epilepsy and other neurological diseases by developing technology that could suppress chronic and recurring seizures, allowing epilepsy sufferers to perform jobs that some are currently restricted from doing, such as driving heavy goods vehicles, flying a plane or working near open water or at heights.

During the four-year project, which commenced on 1st February, the research team will capitalise on a significant breakthrough discovery by FutureNeuro collaborators Professor Jochen Prehn and Professor David Henshall, who discovered that increases in transfer RNA (tRNA) fragments  a type of molecule found in the blood of epilepsy sufferers - precede seizure onset in some patients. By understanding the role of tRNA in predicting seizure onset, the multidisciplinary team will aim to develop a biological brain implant that will detect spikes in tRNA and then respond with a seizure-suppressing treatment.

Unlike previous implanted devices to treat neurological diseases, which offered ways to interrupt seizures in drug-resistant epilepsy patients only after they began, the pioneering treatment developed at TSSG holds the potential to transform the lives of epilepsy sufferers, to the point where they wont even be aware that they were in danger of having a seizure.

Use of engineered biological cells in the revolutionary technology means the implanted device wont have any electronic-based components that require an energy supply, as was often the case with earlier brain implants made from non-organic material. The implants to be developed by the PRIME team can also be personalised, using Artificial Intelligence, to accommodate the different types and levels of seizures experienced by individual epilepsy patients.

Dr. Deirdre Kilbane commented:

Imagine a life without seizures. PRIME aims to achieve this by developing a brain implant that prevents seizures in patients who suffer from neurological disorders.

Dr. Sasitharan Balasubramaniam, Director of Research in TSSG and PRIME project co-ordinator said:

The initial focus of the research team will be the detection and treatment of epilepsy, though the project does offer the potential to also treat other neurodegenerative disorders, including Parkinsons Disease and certain types of cancer, going forward.

The multi-disciplinary project will see the Waterford team join forces with researchers at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, the University of Ferrara in Italy, the University of Aarhus in Denmark, Tampere University in Finland and private companies EPOS-Iasis Research and Development Ltd in Cyprus and Omiics AS in Denmark.

David Henshall, Director of FutureNeuro and Professor of Molecular Physiology and Neuroscience at the RCSI, added:

The PRIME project represents the very best of FutureNeuro research, taking a discovery in patients and working with cutting-edge teams in Ireland and abroad to develop what could be a transformative new technology to provide better seizures control."
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PHOENIX, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Arizona Natural Remedies, Inc. ("ANR" or "the Company"), an affiliate of Vireo Health International, Inc. (CNSX: VREO,OTCQX: VREOF), today announced that the Company has completed a major expansion of its cultivation and processing facility south of Tucson, AZ. The expansion features a nine-acre shade house that the Company expects to increase ANR's output capacity of cannabis flower by at least fivefold.

The Company broke ground on the planned expansion last summer, before residents in Arizona voted to legalize adult-use cannabis. With adult-use cannabis now legal in the state and a significantly expanded cultivation site, ANR is well positioned to produce significantly more cannabis flower to meet growing adult-use consumer demand at both its dispensary located at 22041 North 23rd Avenue in Phoenix and through wholesale channels.

"Our expansion in Arizona represents another strategic investment to drive growth in one of our core markets," said Founder and CEO Dr. Kyle Kingsley. "With the rapid legalization of adult-use cannabis, the state is facing a potential shortage of cannabis flower. Our expanded facilities and additional growing acreage will create a real opportunity for Vireo Health in Arizona. We expect the expansion to drive significant growth in our wholesale business and increased sales at our now adult-use eligible dispensary in Phoenix. We are also currently planning an incremental 9-acre shade house in addition to the current facility."

The Company expects that the expanded facility will create up to 45 new jobs this year. The nine-acre expansion makes the Arizona facility the largest cultivation site in Vireo Health's five core markets.

ANR also recently announced that it has also offering the option of medical cannabis home delivery to its customers in the Phoenix area. The Company's full line of cannabis products will be available for delivery to medical cannabis patients in Phoenix. For more information about ANR or to learn about local delivery options, please visit: https://visitgreengoods.com/phoenix/.

About Vireo Health International, Inc.

Vireo Health International, Inc. is a physician-led cannabis company focused on bringing the best of technology, science, and engineering to the cannabis industry. Vireo manufactures proprietary, branded cannabis products in environmentally friendly facilities, state-of-the-art cultivation sites and distributes its products through its growing network of Green Goods and other retail locations and third-party dispensaries. Vireo's team of more than 400 employees, led by scientists, engineers, and cultivation experts, is focused on efficiency and the creation of best-in-class products, while driving scientific innovation within the cannabis industry and developing meaningful intellectual property. Today, Vireo is licensed to grow and/or process cannabis in nine markets and operates 15 dispensaries nationwide. Vireo holds additional retail licenses in four markets. For more information about Vireo Health, please visit www.vireohealth.com.

Media Inquiries

Albe Zakes

Vice President, Corporate Communications

[email protected]

(267) 221-4800

Investor Inquiries

Sam Gibbons

Vice President, Investor Relations

[email protected]

(612) 314-8995

SOURCE Vireo Health International, Inc.

Related Links

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heads of easyJet, Tui, Virgin Atlantic, Jet2 and Loganair have urged Boris Johnson to take a 'can-do attitude to letting Brits go abroad this summer

Airline chiefs yesterday urged Boris Johnson to take a 'can-do attitude' to letting Britons go on holiday abroad this summer.

They said the country was desperate for a break after nearly a year of restrictions and asked the prime minister to put international travel on his roadmap out of lockdown.

They called for a tiered approach linked to vaccine roll-out which would gradually see travel restrictions such as quarantine fall away for travel to low-risk countries.

They also backed 'vaccine passports' and said they should exempt the inoculated from both pre-flight testing and quarantine.

The move came as Greece's tourism minister said talks were under way with UK officials, offering a ray of hope for Mediterranean holidays this summer.

Harry Theoharis said discussions about a return to a 'semi-normal summer' would touch on the use of vaccine passports.

Airline chiefs yesterday urged Boris Johnson to take a 'can-do attitude' to letting Britons go on holiday abroad this summer. They said the country was desperate for a break after nearly a year of restrictions and asked the prime minister to put international travel on his roadmap out of lockdown. Pictured: Grounded planes at Manchester Airport [File photo]

Spain, the Canary Islands and Cyprus have also expressed interest in such documents to get their tourism industries back in action.

In a group press conference yesterday the heads of easyJet, Tui, Virgin Atlantic, Jet2 and Loganair said failure to include international travel in Mr Johnson's plan for easing lockdown  to be announced on Monday  would be devastating for Britons pinning their hopes on a summer getaway, and the uncertainty could destroy tens of thousands more jobs.

David Burling, CEO of TUI's airline business, said: 'What we need from the Government more than anything is a can-do attitude. We recognise the difficulties and the need to balance the risk.'

He called for a tiered system that would let people go abroad 'after what quite honestly has been quite a miserable year for most people'.

'You cannot underestimate how much planning and looking forward to that summer holiday is critical for people,' he added.

The pandemic has cost around 100,000 aviation-related jobs so far and British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, TUI and Ryanair have collectively published pre-tax losses of more than 5billion [File photo]

Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2.com, said: 'We're a huge provider of jobs and a huge contributor to the national tax take. It makes no sense for an industry of this scale not to be included.'

The CEOs said the quarantine system should end first. Currently all arrivals in England must quarantine for ten days, at a hotel if they have been in a high-risk 'red list' country and at home for other destinations. In Scotland, everyone must go to a hotel.

The pandemic has cost around 100,000 aviation-related jobs so far and British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, TUI and Ryanair have collectively published pre-tax losses of more than 5billion.

A new action group of more than 500 UK travel firms called Save Our Summer launched a campaign earlier this week warning up to a further 2.5million jobs are at risk.

VisitBritain also expects the fall in incoming tourism to lead to a 23billion drop in revenue this year against the 2019 figure.
LONDON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Federation of St Kitts and Nevis is one of the most beautiful and lively countries on the planet. However, the tropical islands' rainforests and diverse wildlife are not the only things that make it so desirable. Thousands of doctors worldwide have gotten their degrees from a medical school in St Kitts and Nevis. As a thriving region for medical tourism and several highly accredited offshore medical institutions, St Kitts and Nevis helps opens doors for Indian students looking to practice medicine in countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and India.

The University of Medicine and Health Sciences (UMHS) is located in Basseterre, St Kitts and confers upon its graduates the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. Since March 2011, students at UMHS have participated in residency matches every year by being placed into various specialities across the US and Canada. The institution is recognised by the Accreditation Board of St Kitts and Nevis, an agency listed in the FAIMER Directory of Organisations, and the Accreditation Commission on Colleges of Medicine, an international body listed by the National Committee on Foreign Medical Education and Accreditation, part of the US Department of Education.

The Medical University of the Americas is also a popular option for Indian students looking to study medicine. The school consists of small class sizes to provide a more intimate learning experience. Students receive one-on-one support from instructors as they learn basic sciences and fundamentals. Even during clinical rotations, students can get ongoing personal support. Since 2001, roughly 88 percent of all graduates secured a spot in residency programs in the US and Canada. Approximately 99 percent of graduates also passed Step 1 of the USMLE on their first attempt.

Another one of the country's most prestigious higher education institutions is the Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. Certified by the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education, it attracts many US students or those wishing to start a career there. Moreover, "the islands' peaceful and healthy lifestyle convince Indian families to send their children to university in St Kitts and Nevis," says Paul Singh, the Director of a London based legal advisory.

Furthermore, the islands' prioritised safety mandate by Prime Minister Timothy Harris declared it as a "winning" nation in a study by 4,000 scientists. Recently, the Prime Minister said, "St Kitts and Nevis at this time [has] no community spread, no cluster spread and no deaths."

The Sustainable Growth Fund option of the country's Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Programme sponsors much of St Kitts and Nevis's healthcare infrastructure. CBI also funded the Poverty Alleviation Programme during the lockdown, which provided low-income households with a monthly stipend to say afloat.

As the first country to implement citizenship by investment, St Kitts and Nevis is recognised as the industry's Platinum Standard. The fund option remains the fastest route to St Kitts and Nevis citizenship, whereby applicants can make a one-off contribution of $150,000 for a family of up to four under an extended limited time offer. Once approved, citizens of St Kitts and Nevis can travel visa-free or visa-on-arrival to 156 destinations.

Second citizenship in St Kitts and Nevis would also result in a hassle-free application process to any of the above-mentioned academic institutions and a smoother process when obtaining visas to the US and Canada to pursue medicine. As a Commonwealth nation, St Kitts and Nevis citizenship can also aid in a streamlined student life experience in the UK.

[email protected], www.csglobalpartners.com



SOURCE CS Global Partners
A person uses a smartphone to look at the Facebook page of Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen in Phnom Penh, in a file photo.

A decree establishing a national internet gateway that can control and monitor online activity in Cambodia is likely to seriously restrict freedom of expression in the country, journalists said Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Hun Sen signed an order to launch a National Internet Gatewaysimilar to Chinas complex network of blocks, filters, and human censorship known as the Great Firewallwhich will regulate all online traffic in the interest of protecting national security and maintaining social order.

The gateway will provide authorities with measures to prevent and disconnect all network connections that affect national income, security, social order, morality, culture, traditions and customs, the decree said.

Internet service providers will be given a year to connect to the gateway, or else face suspension of their operating licenses and the freezing of bank accounts, although no date was announced for its launch. Users will be required to provide their true identities, according to the decree.

Nop Vy, executive director of the Cambodian Journalists Alliance, told RFAs Khmer Service that the decree includes broad language that can be used to restrict basic freedoms, including the freedom of expression. He noted that in the past, authorities have arrested people for allegedly violating public order and national traditions.

We want to raise these concerns to review and debate or suspend the implementation of the decree establishing the gateway, he said.

We want a wide-ranging discussion to investigate the value of the decree to the general public.

President of the Cambodian Center for Independent Media, Ith Sothoeut, said that the decree appears to restrict freedom of expression online because all internet traffic in and out of Cambodia will be forced to pass through a gate controlled by the government.

Therefore, he said, the government can control all internet traffic, including any information that is critical of how it runs the country.

The decree is very broad and powerful, he said. We have seen in the past that the nature of law enforcement was often indistinguishable between the executive, legislative, and the judicial branches, and this is a concern.

Once the decree is fully implemented, it could further threaten the peoples right to freedom of expression.

Similar internet controls

China has stepped in to wield significant influence in Cambodia as relations between Phnom Penh and Western governments have waned amid concerns over the countrys human rights situation and political environment.

It was not immediately clear whether Cambodias government had sought assistance from Beijing on how to implement similar controls on its own internet traffic. China ranked at the bottom of a list of 65 countries in the world assessed by the U.S.-based non-profit Freedom House in its Freedom on the Net 2020 report published in October.

Ministry of Information spokesman Meas Sophorn would not comment on the decree Wednesday and referred RFA to the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. Several calls to Meas Po, a spokesman for the Ministry of Posts, went unanswered.

Reuters news agency cited government spokesperson Phay Siphan as saying there was no order to the internet in Cambodia and that the decree was less intrusive than regulations in the U.S. and Britain.

Statistics from the Telecommunications Regulator of Cambodia show that, as of August 2020, the number of internet users in the country had reached nearly 15.3 million, or almost 93 percent of the population of 16.5 million. The government has granted licenses to 38 internet service providers.

Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Samean Yun. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
On February 13, Patently Apple posted a report titled "Sales of iPhone's Erupt in Mainland China in January with Astounding Growth that's Spilling into February." Today there's additional proof that the momentum for the 5G iPhone 12 is growing. It's being reported this morning in Taiwan that the Hon Hai Group encouraged Chinese factory employees to stay behind during the Lunar New Year. The Zhengzhou factory at present has more than 150,000 that stayed behind, accounting for more than 70%, in response to the strong demand for the 5G iPhone12 market. These employees are from Henan, Shanxi, Hubei, Shaanxi, Anhui provinces.

Foxconns Zhengzhou plant rewarded employees who stayed behind during the Chinese New Year. Zhang Zhanwu, deputy general manager of Foxconns Zhengzhou Science and Technology Park, pointed out that the maximum bonus for employees who stayed behind could be RMB 3,600 (US$560). In addition to Zhengzhou, Foxconn, including Shenzhen, Taiyuan and other places, also has many employees staying behind for the New Year.

The Zhengzhou and Shenzhen plants are the two major production bases of Hon Hai Group for assembling Apple iPhone devices in China, and more specifically, the 5G version of iPhone 12. Industry sources pointed out that orders for the 5G version of the iPhone-related business group are now full.

The Lunar New Year began on February 12 with celebrations running for 15 days.
Wetherspoon bosses have confirmed The Black Boy pub in Wales will keep its name - despite activists saying it has 'racist connotations'.

The Black Boy in Newtown, Powys, dates back to the 17th century and was named after chimney sweeps who would emerge from local properties covered in soot.

Pub regulars have also claimed the name came from a nickname given to King Charles II by his mother due to his dark hair and complexion.

Wetherspoon's decision comes after pub chain Greene King announced it would rename two pubs in Suffolk and another in Berkshire all called The Black Boy in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement.

The Blacks Head in Wirksworth, Derbyshire, is also in the firing line - despite locals insisting the name comes from a bottle of ginger beer.

The Black Boy in Shinfield, Berkshire - which dates back to the 16th century - had various theories about where its name came from, including soot-covered coal miners and the nickname given to King Charles II.

Wetherspoon bosses have confirmed The Black Boy (pictured) in Wales will keep its name to preserve its history - despite activists saying the name has 'racist connotations'

The Black Boy in Newtown, Powys, (pictured) dates back to the 17th century and was named after chimney sweeps who would emerge from local properties covered in soot

Wetherspoon's decision comes after pub chain Greene King announced it would rename two pubs in Suffolk and another in Berkshire all called The Black Boy in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement (a protest in London this summer, pictured)

Bury St Edmunds' pub with the same name dates back to 1683 and historians believe its current signage was a references the former King - who was restored as the monarch in 1660 following the period of Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth.

The 17th century monarch is said to have been nicknamed 'Black Boy' by his mother, Henrietta Maria of France, due to his dark hair and complexion.

The Black Boy in Sudbury also dates back to the 1500s.

Across England and Wales, there are at least 25 different pubs called The Black Boy, or similar.

But the name has come under fire from anti-racism campaigners amid protests by the Black Lives Matter movement in the UK.

Greene King pub regulars were left outraged at the proposed name changes - but patrons of The Black Boy in Newtown are relived their beloved local will keep its title.

Punters in Newtown backed Wetherspoon's decision to keep the name - and urged activists to 'leave it alone'.

The Greene King has vowed to rename its pubs called The Black Boy (one in Bury St Edmunds, pictured) over fears the name has 'racist' connotations - sparking outrage among locals

Two pubs in Suffolk (The Black Boy in Shinfield, pictured) and another in Berkshire all called The Black Boy are set to get new names in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, the pub chain has revealed

The Black Boy in Sudbury also dates back to the 1500s. Across England and Wales, there are at least 25 different pubs called The Black Boy, or similar

One pub visitor said: 'I was always told that the name Black Boy was so called because it was after the small lads they sent up the chimneys.

The possible royal origins of 'The Black Boy' pub name Across England and Wales there are at least 25 different pubs called 'The Black Boy', or similar. Though the name is thought to have a number of origins, including the soot darkened faces of chimney sweeps, it is often thought to be a reference to King Charles II. King Charles II The monarch, who ruled England, Scotland and Ireland from 1660 until his death, aged 54, in 1665, was nicknamed 'Black Boy' by his mother, Henrietta Maria of France, due to his dark hair and complexion. He was restored as the monarch in 1660 after his father Charles I was executed and the traditional monarchy system removed in 1649 in place of Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth following the English Civil War. Charles II's nickname was taken up by those who supported his attempts to restore the monarchy, who labelled themselves 'The Black Boys', and it is believed a number of pubs changed their name to The Black Boy as a show of allegiance. Other suggestions for the name's origins including the misspelling of a nautical navigation marker, a 'buoy'. Advertisement

'Leave the name alone.'

Another criticised calls to change the pubs' names across the country, saying: 'We are being forced to delete anything that some sensitive soul finds the need to get upset about these days.'

A Wetherspoon spokesman said: 'The pub in Newtown is called the Black Boy, which we believe is the historic name for a chimney sweep. There was a 17th century pub of this name on the same site.'

Wetherspoon carried out a 1.5m makeover after buying the pub in 2014.

A public vote on changing the name was conducted last year - but locals overwhelmingly voted for it to remain The Black Boy for the foreseeable future.

The spokesman added: 'To date, we haven't received any complaints regarding the name, but will keep matters under review.'

Following Greene King's decision to rename its pubs last month, locals took to social media to vent their frustration.

Kieran Fishwick said people calling for the change to the pub's name in Bury St Edmunds should 'stop getting angry over something that happened over 100 years ago'.

He added: 'Martin Luther King knew he couldn't change his family's past but he knew he could secure a future for the future children of the world.

'We need to be focusing on more important racial problems in society, not the name of a pub.'

Local historian Martyn Taylor said The Black Boy in Bury St Edmunds was first established in 1683 and its signage has changed many times throughout history.

He told Suffolk News that while it was once a 'non-PC sign of natives surrounding a large pot with its obvious connotation' - it now depicts King Charles II.

He said: 'Slavery is an abhorrent thing but we can't change history.'

Meanwhile in Shinfield, furious locals took to Facebook to vent their frustration.

Anita Matthews said: 'For goodness sake, it's been The Black Boy for years and has always been known as that.

'This world has gone PC mad. What's an alternative "The Neutral Person"? Doesn't exactly flow off the tongue!'

Daniel Risby added: 'World has gone mad. I'm fairly sure it's name comes from a race horse or something like that.

'Absolutely no need to rename it. It's nothing to do with race.'

Phil Beckett also suggested its origins come from a race horse, writing: 'It's named after a racehorse with a black coat, for goodness sake! It's a mad world.'

Meanwhile in Shinfield, furious locals took to Facebook to vent their frustration at the pub name change

Manu Dhaumya added: 'It doesn't offend anyone. No one cares what it's called. I just want to have a nice cold pint and a medium rare steak And that's it.'

Greene King came under fire last year for its own links to slavery - with owners pledging to make donations to 'benefit the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic community'.

The pub chain was founded in 1799 by Benjamin Greene - who was one of 47,000 people who benefited from a policy of compensating slave owners when Britain abolished slavery in 1833.

He received the equivalent of 500,000 in today's money after giving up his claim to three West Indies plantations.

'The Black Boy' or similarly named pubs across England and Wales Here is a list of The Black Boy or similarly named pubs MailOnline could find in England and Wales: The Black Boy - Winchester, Hants Blackboys Inn - Blackboys, East Sussex Black Boy - Sevenoaks, Kent The Black Boy - Sidcup, London The Black Boy - St Albans, Herts The Black Boy - Oxford, Oxfordshire Black Boys Inn - Maidenhead, Berkshire The Black Boy - Swansea, Wales The Black Boy - Solihull, West Midlands The Black Boy - Bewdley, West Midlands The Black Boy Inn - Bridnorth, West Midlands The Black Boy - Newtown, Wales Black Boy Inn - Caernarfon, Wales The Black Boy Inn - Hungarton, Leicestershire The Black Boys - Aylsham, Norfolk The Black Boy - Weeley, Essex The Black Boy - Nether Heage, Derbyshire The Black Boy - Manchester The Black Boy - Retford, Nottinghamshire Ye Olde Black Boy - Hull, East Riding Blackie Boy - Newcastle Advertisement

Greene King's chief executive Nick Mackenzie said the company would update its website - which does not mention its historical ties to slavery - and apologised for the company's role in the evil and inhumane practice.

Managers of The Black Boy pubs who face name changes have agreed that the move is the right one.

Mark Eames, who runs The Black Boy in Bury St Edmunds, said: 'Now is the right time to make this change and I look forward to the new name continuing to reflect the heritage and history of this pub which has been a part of Bury St Edmunds for hundreds of years.'

Katie Martin, of the Black Boy in Sudbury, said: 'I'm happy to work alongside Greene King to proactively eradicate racism.

'I'm keen to work with the people of Sudbury to choose a new name for this great pub and hotel that does not attract the same concern and questions as the current name.

'As a society, we need to work together to be fully inclusive in all aspects of life and business and I feel a change of name would help make sure everyone feels included and welcome when they visit my historical pub and hotel.'

Greene King is to hold an online public vote so communities can pick a new name for the pubs from a list of suggestions.

The decision to change the name follows consultation with stakeholders and researching the pubs' histories.

Nick Mackenzie, Greene King CEO, said while the origins of the name 'is obscure, there is a perception that it is linked with racism'.

He acknowledged the move 'will attract a range of views'.

Greene King said that while the pub name The Black Boy exists throughout the country, 'there is not a consensus on its origins and many of those consulted felt the name to be offensive and discriminatory'.

Mr Mackenzie said: 'It is important to acknowledge our history but just as important to work proactively to eradicate racism in our society today.

'We have looked at pub deeds, consulted with colleagues and while the origins of this pub name is obscure what is clear is that there is a perception that it is linked with racism today and we want to make this positive change for the better.

'We know this is a decision that will attract a range of views and we're conscious of the history and heritage of pub names.

'We've thought long and hard and feel this is the right thing to do as it is incredibly important to us that our pubs are warm and welcoming places for everyone as we continue on our journey to become a truly anti-racist organisation.

'We're keen to involve local people in this project and look forward to working with them to choose a new and inclusive name for these pubs so they remain at the heart of communities.'
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Credit Monitoring and Credit Protection has been a part of society since the introduction of credit and debit cards. Credit monitoring services aid in protecting oneself from the dangers of credit fraud and theft protection. The process of credit monitoring involves notifying the card owner of potential fraud. This is especially helpful during times when the card goes missing or is stolen.

Credit monitoring services are provided by several credit monitoring bureaus. In addition to credit monitoring, they also provide identity protection services. The team at Theft Protection Experts aim to find the most secure portals through which one will receive protection for their identity as well as credit card protection. They help to compile a list of the various credit monitoring and protection services on the basis of their ranking. The experts scan through various reviews in order to find the most satisfactory option. They always work to provide an unbiased review in order to gain the most credibility.

Theft Protection Experts has listed IdenityIQ and Identity Guard as the best credit monitoring & credit protection providers for 2021.

IdentityIQ:

IdentityIQ has been around for approximately 25 years and has provided identity security to an ever increasing user base. IdentityIQ is a part of a larger security company, IDIQ. This company has also been a contributor to internet security and credit protection. This company is exclusive to the United States of America and will therefore specialize in the US-based credit system.

IdentityIQ offers its services to the individuals that enroll themselves in particular plans. There are four plans available at IdentityIQ. The most expensive plan is the Secure Max which is priced at $29.99. The cheapest plan comes in at $6.99 and is known as the Secure plan. All the plans function on a monthly basis.

The secure plan provided by IdentityIQ possesses the most basic features. It includes a large sum of $1 million in reimbursement for stolen funds. In addition to this, one will also receive daily credit monitoring from a bureau. An individual can obtain security on the dark web to prevent one's information from being collected unlawfully. One can also claim coverage for lawyers in case of identity fraud, minimal personal compensation, alerts regarding the social security number and assistance in the times when one loses their wallet. The plan also offers reports on one's bank accounts and control over junk mail and do-not-call lists. The plan includes a tool for identity restoration which is exclusive to the US.

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In between the two extremes, IdentityIQ also offers two more affordable plans. The Secure Plus Plan and the Secure Pro Plan. These plans possess the same features as that of the Secure base plan but also include a few extra features. The Secure Plus of IdentityIQ plan involves the provision for one to receive the change of address notification as well as an annual three-bureau report on one's credit card activities and scores. This plan will cost one $9.99 on a monthly basis.

The Secure Pro plan is a culmination of both the base Secure and Plus plans. In addition to this, it also includes advanced credit monitoring services. These services will notify one about changes in the credit score and neighborhood crime reports. The three-bureau credit reports and scores will occur twice a year with this plan. The price of this plan is $19.99 per month.

The Secure Max is an all-encompassing plan that provides its clients with the utmost credit card protection services. The additional features that come with this plan is a family protection agreement of $25,000 in identity theft insurance and fraud restoration services. It comes with a credit score tracker and simulation creator. The identity fraud restoration service comes with the services of a lawyer as well. The three-bureau report and credit scores will now be monthly. The most significant feature of this plan is the free inclusion of one's family members in the coverage against identity theft.

More about IdentityIQ Plans on their official website: Here

The million-dollar identity theft coverage is applicable to the person who loses money after the interference of an unauthorized party. The interference refers to the transfer of funds from an account. The coverage will help to take care of the legal fees and fixed wages for a maximum of five weeks as well. And all of this will not be under the strain of taxation.

A few shortcomings regarding IdentityIQ are few. One cannot access the IdentityIQ services through an app. In addition to this, there is no provision for protection on social media through tracking as well as the lack of a computer antivirus. The absence of the social media tracking feature means that one will not be able to find out if there are impersonators on any of the apps.

The process of creating an IdentityIQ account is fairly simple. The first step requires an individual to select a plan. Upon selecting a plan one would have to create an account using basic personal information. IdentityIQ will then ask one to disclose their financial information like credit card number and more in order to monitor the credit card activities. The other function of disclosing this information is to conduct reports and obtain credit scores.

The customer service team at IdentityIQ caters slowly to the US customer base and is present in the US as well. The team is available for around 12 hours (7 am to 7 pm) on weekdays. The individuals working for the customer service will contact the account holder regarding certain notifications. In order to contact customer service, one can call 877-875-IDIQ.

IdentityIQ does not provide an entirely free trial period. After paying a fee of $1 one will be able to try out its services for around a week. This is very unusual for credit monitoring companies as all its competitors provide free credit monitoring services for a week to a month.

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Identity Guard

Identity Guard uses third party intelligence collection technology to collect information about potential identity threats. The artificial intelligence technology comes from IBM's Watson system. This system works to gather information regarding threats and frauds. It is known to be one of the fastest technologies in notifying individuals about incoming security infringements. In fact, it can also occur in real time. Clients of Identity Guard will receive credit monitoring from the three major bureaus that are Equifax, Transunion and Experian. However, this is only available for the Total and Ultra Plan clients.

The main feature of this credit monitoring service is the partnership that it has with the Watson Computing system. This system possesses cognitive skills that can map out payment behaviors to protect an individual from identity theft. In a sense, the system can track digital activity which refers to the digital transactions that one carries out. After doing so, one will receive real time protection from phishing websites. The main working principle of this Identity Guard is that the artificial intelligence technology scans through hundreds of articles and posts on social media. After scanning one will receive a notification whether or not there is an infiltration of one's privacy online by fraud websites. Therefore, this system acts as an anti-virus in addition to a credit protection company.

More about Identity Guard and its plans on the official website here

Identity Guard is cheaper in comparison to other credit risk monitors like IdentityIQ. The Identity Guard provides a total of three plans. These plans can cater to an individual or a family. The basic pack is known as the Value Plan which is also the cheapest. The price of this plan is around $7.50 for each month. However, unlike other companies, it does not provide free coverage to family members. The family plan that comes with the Value Plan costs $12.50. This plan includes a standard identity protection feature in addition to a few features of credit monitoring services.

The Artificial Intelligence, Watson, works towards creating a safe browsing environment for their clients. This is possible through the real time scanning of mails, social media posts and public articles. This aids in protecting an individual during online shopping and net banking. One will receive a case manager to provide their clients with an additional helping hand. Credit monitoring services and monthly credit score evaluation is not available with this plan. In addition to this, the plan does not provide address monitoring services and alerts about tax deductions.

Identity Guard offers the Total Plan. This Plan possesses an advanced identity theft protection. The plan also includes a three-bureau monitoring of credit card activities and an evaluation of one's credit score. This evaluation occurs monthly. The price of the Total Plan is $16.67 for a single user. The family plan is around $25. Identity Guard does not collect one's financial information on one particular server. This decreases the chances of one's information being stolen from their databases.

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The most expensive and comprehensive plan is the Ultra Plan. Identity Guard provides all the features of the other two plans in addition to a few advancements. The additional features include, three bureau reports a year. They also monitor one's credit and debit cards, criminal offences and home title monitoring. In addition to this, it also aims to create a detailed account of one's investments and retirement funds (401K) by monitoring them.

The price of this plan is $33 each month for a family. It costs $25 each month for an individual.

Identity Guard also comes with an app. This app can be downloaded from any app store. It sends out notifications regarding a website that may be infiltrating one's privacy, vulnerable transactions online and other credit protection services.

The most significant features of this Experian credit monitoring company is that Watson can provide one protection even on the dark web. It is optimized for financial protection on the internet. In addition to this, one will receive a monthly evaluation of credit scores through Transunion data that one provides to the company. They can notify an individual when a person uses their Social Security number to obtain tax refunds. But more importantly, protection with Identity Guard goes beyond just transactions. It also involves protection on social media. This is rarely seen in the plans provided by other credit monitoring companies.

Unlike other companies, Identity Guard allows one to pay an annual fee instead of monthly. The process of opening an account involves choosing a plan that is suitable for either an individual or a family. Then one can create an account. Finally, information like one's social security number, date of birth and account numbers will be given. The website makes this process very streamlined. In addition to this, one could log in to their account on the app as well.

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The above process is only the enrollment into a plan. After this, one will create a watchlist. The names of websites on this list will be watched closely. One will also receive a risk monitor. Alerts will be given in real time. And the final step includes the restoration of one's identity. This restoration involves reimbursing the full fund or partial fund lost.

Identity Guard also has a customer service that is available at odd hours as well. From Monday to Friday, one can avail the help of a service team from 8 in the morning to 11 at night. However, they are only available from 9 in the morning to 6 in the evenings on Saturday. In addition to this, one can make an inquiry either on the website or the app. After doing so, one will receive the assistance of a service team within a day or two.

There is no possibility of participating in a trial period for free. However, the company does allow one to retain their funds in case they want to give up a subscription. Therefore, there is no possibility of availing free credit monitoring services for a short time.

Credit Monitoring is an essential service provided by these companies. It could potentially save a person thousands of dollars or their savings. According to sources, identity theft can affect 16 million Americans annually and cause devastating results. Identity Theft is one of the first steps of credit card fraud.

The other problems that come with resolving this issue are that an inordinate number of hours is spent determining the extent of the damage that was caused. In addition to this, one would have to find out where the fraud took place.

The requirement of hiring identity theft protection goes beyond just credit fraud. In fact, credit fraud is one of the many benefits that come with becoming a subscriber. Another aspect of identity theft involves someone stealing a person's identity and adding more information in order to create a new identity. This is known as synthetic identity theft. The other form involves the identity theft that occurs with kids. A fraudster will use the identity of the child to create a new identity.

More about Identity Guard and its plans on the official website here

Regarding financial frauds, one can also lose control over their account. This means that another person has access to the funds and could carry out several transactions. Fraud activities can also take place with a new account. This is when a fraudster opens an account in another person's name. This type of crime is especially hard to detect as one will not be able to prove their innocence very easily.

The final type of fraud is the Tax Fraud. This fraud occurs when a person files for a tax refund using another person's account. Therefore, an innocent will not lose their tax refund but also be under the IRS scanner for fraud activities. The IRS could initiate a probe imploring the individual to show proof of all earned wages.

The most sure fire way of preventing these occurrences is to run credit reports. The credit reports include reports about one's credit activities through the databases present in Experian, TransUnion and Equifax.

The basis of credit monitoring involves finding any changes in credit card information. These changes can either be voluntary or knowledgeable changes by the account holder or changes by a fraudster. All alterations will be reflected in the credit report. At both these credit monitoring companies above, one will receive an expert team that will review a few inconsistencies. These inconsistencies include changes in address, change in personal information, new accounts and others.

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Eighteen new domestically-transmitted coronavirus infections were recorded in Vietnams hotbed, Hai Duong Province, on Thursday, bringing the provinces tally to 575 cases logged since late last month.

Fifteen of the infections had been quarantined because of their close contact with infected patients, the Ministry of Health said in a daily update.

The remainder were detected through community screening.

The health ministry announced 25 recovered patients on Thurday.

Vietnam has confirmed 2,347 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday night, with 1,605 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the ministrys data.

A total of 755 community-based infections have been registered in 13 provinces and cities since January 28, when Vietnam confirmed a new coronavirus wave after having gone nearly two months without detecting any local case.

Among them, 575 patients have been logged in Hai Duong Province, where extensive social distancing is in place to stall transmission.

Sixty were recorded in Quang Ninh Province, 27 in Gia Lai Province, 35 in Hanoi, five in Bac Ninh Province, two in Bac Giang Province, 36 in Ho Chi Minh City, two in Hoa Binh Province, one in Ha Giang Province, three in Dien Bien Province, six in Binh Duong Province, one in Hai Phong, and two in Hung Yen Province.

Health authorities have said the virus has been contained in all but Hai Duong.

However, they kept insisting on everyone staying vigilant against the pathogen.

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ROME, FEB 18 - The Vatican has taken a hard line against employees who refuse to be vaccinated for COVID-19. According to a decree by Cardinal Giuseppe Bertello, the President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State, employees who refuse the vaccine "without proven health reasons" faces penalties that can include "the interruption of the working relationship". (ANSA).
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A man who stole more than $27,000 from three credit unions by planting skimming devices on ATM machines to obtain at least 354 bank account numbers and cash from unsuspecting victims was sentenced Wednesday to three and a half years in federal prison.

Gabriel Tigmarau, 50, obtained at least 289 account numbers from Rivermark Community Credit Union in Newberg, more than 25 numbers from Unitus Community Credit Union and at least 40 card numbers from the IBEW Federal Credit Union in Portland, according to federal prosecutors.

Tigmarau had pleaded guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.

He also was ordered to pay $27,493 in restitution.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Quinn Harrington described Tigmaraus crimes as deliberate and repeated fraud.

Tigmarau and a co-defendant, Ciprian Simion, 35, stole customers names, bank account numbers and personal identification numbers from the ATMs, encoded that information on counterfeit ATM cards and then withdrew as much cash as possible from others accounts, according to Harrington.

Portland police arrested Tigmarau on April 27, 2019, after he and Simion were caught tampering with an ATM at the IBEW Credit Union in Portland, according to the prosecutor.

Gabriel Tigmarau, 50, and a co-defendant, Ciprian Simion, 35, stole customers names, bank account numbers and personal identification numbers from the ATMs, encoded that information on counterfeit ATM cards and then withdrew as much cash as possible from others accounts, according to a federal prosecutor.

Aggravated identity theft brings a mandatory two-year sentence that must run consecutive to the sentence of any other convicted offense.

Tigmaraus defense lawyer Noel Grefenson urged U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon to sentence his client to time served, arguing that he had accepted responsibility. He also noted Tigmarau, who doesnt speak English, suffers from cardiac arrythmia and sleep apnea and has a history of heart surgery, making his confinement at the federal prison in Sheridan difficult.

I feel very sorry for everything, Tigmarau told the judge through a Romanian interpreter. He said hes eager to return to his native homeland and is not feeling up to strength in custody. I apologize. Please forgive me, please have mercy.

The judge shaved three months off a three year and nine month sentence that the federal prosecutor had sought, citing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.

Tigmaraus co-defendant Simion has also pleaded guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft and is set to be sentenced Feb. 24.

-- Maxine Bernstein

Email at mbernstein@oregonian.com; 503-221-8212

Follow on Twitter @maxoregonian
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Quarantine and international border workers and aged care home residents will start receiving COVID-19 vaccinations in Western Australia from Monday.

However, vaccination will not be mandatory for quarantine workers, according to WA Premier Mark McGowan.

One of the first vials of the AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured at Sequiris/CSL in Melbourne.

The first 5000 doses are set to arrive on Sunday, with 3900 to be administered by the WA government and the other 1100 to be distributed by the federal government to disability and aged care centres.

Mr McGowan said he would not get a vaccine himself yet because he did not want one when a front-line worker needed it more.
Parler CEO: Twitter, Facebook View Parler as Threat to Their Business

New Parler CEO Mark Meckler said that the allegations that his social media platform was used to coordinate riots during the Jan. 6 Capitol breach are primarily a political hit job, explaining that Big Tech firms view Parler as a business threat.

Meckler cited a Forbes report that pushed back against claims from Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg others saying that Parler was used heavily during the Capitol breach. The Forbes article cited data from the Program on Extremism at the George Washington University, finding that charging documents related to the Capitol breach mention Facebook 73 times, YouTube is mentioned 24 times, Facebook-owned Instagram is mentioned 20 times, and Parler is mentioned eight times.

If you look at the actual numbers, there was barely a blip on Parler, Meckler told The Epoch Times, adding: It was Facebook. It was YouTube, it was Twitter. Thats where the bad activity was taking place, for the most part.

I think this was a political hit. And I actually think it was a business hit. I think there are two things, Meckler remarked. They were trying to stifle free speech, I think they dont like the idea that people can go online and say whatever they want to say, as long as its legal. They just theyre opposed to that philosophy. The second is, I think, a business threat, our model is entirely different than the other social media platforms.

Parler, in comparison to Facebook and Google, he said, is not monetizing the data of our users, and we dont use algorithms  where theyre forcing content into your feed.

On Parler, which was taken down by Amazon Web Services last month, the content youre going to get is the content you want, youre only going to get content from the people that you sign up to follow, Meckler said. And so I think this allows users to curate their own content. And I think thats a real threat to people like Facebook and Twitter and Google.

Amazons rationale for taking down Parler from his hosting service was that the firm failed to moderate content that it described as harmful. Parler later filed a lawsuit against the Seattle-based tech giant, arguing that it breached its contract, violated antitrust laws, and said Amazon took action against it in favor of Twitterwhich also uses Amazon Web Services.

Parler also faces an investigation from the House Oversight Committee, which in late January sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray to look into allegations of social media platform Parlers involvement related to the violence on Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol. Former Parler CEO John Matze, when he was still CEO, asserted that Oversight Committees move was politically motivated.

Comeback

Earlier this week, the company announced that its website is back online. While a number of people wrote on Twitter and elsewhere that they couldnt access the site or that it was slow, Meckler said its coming back despite glitches and hiccups.

Theres about 21 million users out there, they can all log on, they can see their accounts exactly as they were before. Theyre going to be following all the same people they were following. We wanted to make sure that that worked and was stable. Before we open it up sometime next week, well open it up for folks who want to add accounts to Parler. So be ready for that I think we should expect another graphic, he added.

Meckler was named as the Henderson, Nevada-based firms CEO after John Matze was let go. Matze said earlier this month that there were disagreements within the firm about how to handle former President Donald Trump.
Police in Ho Chi Minh City have arrested a man for setting fire to a tenanted room with his girlfriend and her daughter inside over jealousy.

A source close to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper confirmed on Thursday that officers in Cu Chi District had taken into custody N.D.T., 37, for murder.

T. has been transferred to the municipal Department of Public Security for further investigation.

According to preliminary information, T. lived with a woman named A. as a couple at a rented room on Provincial Highway No. 15 in Tan Thanh Dong Commune, Cu Chi District. They also lived with A.s daughter.

They recently had repeated arguments due to T.s jealousy.

On the early morning of February 15, T. locked the room from the outside while his girlfriend and her daughter were still inside.

The man then set the room ablaze with gasoline and left the place.

Local residents were eventually able to break open the door and rescue the two victims.

They were rushed to the hospital with severe burns.

A. was then transferred to Cho Ray Hospital in District 5, while her daughter was taken to Childrens Hospital 1 in District 10 for further treatment.

T. later turned himself in to police officers in Cu Chi District.

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(Photo : Screenshot From Company Central YouTube) Verizon Stock Climbs 5%: Bullish after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Stake in Company

The shares of the popular Verizon Communications or VZ via the NYSE has climbed up as high as 5% this Wednesday shortly after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway or BRK.A BRK.B has just disclosed the company's new stake in Verizon. Warren Buffett's popular investment holding company has just filed its very own quarterly form 13F report that shows that it now holds over a whoppoing 146.7 million shares. As of 12:45PM EST, the shares went bullish reaching a 4.6% high.

Who owns the most shares of Verizon?

Just a few months ago, when Berkshire Hathaway had just filed its previous 13F, it actually noted that the regulatory filing had omitted some actually confidential information just after getting certain permission coming from the SEC or Securities and Exchange Commission. The agency can reportedly allow the institutional investors to be able to file confidentially if the whole disclosure has the potential to actually move the market and an investor would still be in the process of accumulating this particular position.

As of the moment, the Vanguard Group is still the owner of the most Verizon shares with a whopping 7.43% stake in the company with a whopping 307,502,472 shares in total according to Money.CNN. Buffett is most widely followed by a number of investors around the world. The market closely watching his activities, particularly when it all boils down to his brand new established positions, would be quite common.

What is the current dividend for Verizon stock?

The confidential filing triggered some considerable speculation during the recent months and investors are now aware that the popular telecommunications company was actually one of the picks. Berkshire Hathaway also reportedly filed an amended 13F for the upcoming Q3 which actually unveiled all of the confidential information. It was noted by Verizon that Buffett was actually buying stakes in the giant oil Chevron and also consulting firm Marsh & McLennan during the previous Q3.

Berkshire Hathaway was reportedly holding a whopping 58.3 million Verizon shares during the end of Q3. This means that the company had bought around a whopping 88.4 million shares just during the Q4 period. According to the story by Fool.com, it seems like Verizon really fits the type of value stock that Warren Buffett prefers. Big Red trades done at low valuation while also providing a generous 4.6% dividend yield that is funded by consistent cash flows fits the profile of Warren Buffett.

Read Also: Trading for a Living: Psychology

Is Verizon good stock to buy?

The investment legends as well as Motley Fool co-founders Tom and David Gardner had just reportedly revealed what their top 10 best stocks are for investors as of the moment. Verizon, however, wasn't really one of them. According to them, they think there are 10 other stocks considered as better buys than Verizon.

Related Article: Jeff Bezos Regains World's Richest Man Title: 10 Things You Don't Know About Him

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Urian Buenconsejo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.


Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Concern is growing about the spread of false information about vaccines. But should we consider criminalising people who deliberately spread false informationor could this do more harm than good? Two experts debate the issue in The BMJ.

On ethical grounds, deliberate intent to spread malicious vaccine disinformation that could result in preventable deaths should be considered criminal, argues Professor Melinda Mills at the University of Oxford.

She points out that a majority (70-83%) of Americans and Europeans use the internet to find health information, often on social media, and that over 65% of YouTube's content about vaccines seems to be about discouraging their use, focusing on autism, adverse reactions, or false ingredients.

And a recent UK study found that users who relied on social media for their information, particularly YouTube, were significantly less willing to be vaccinated.

However, Mills acknowledges that criminalisation is not straightforward.

For example, laws against spreading fake news and health disinformation have been passed in France, Germany, Malaysia, Russia, and Singapore, but social media companies have argued they are not publishers and have minimal responsibility to vet posts, although they have agreed to conduct some editorial decisions and fact checking.

And early evaluation of the German law showed that social media companies were risk averse, curtailing freedom of expression and censoring legitimate material.

"We need to decide whether social media companies are publishers, and we need legislation to guide them to adjust algorithms and determine to what extent information should be balanced and fact checked, with users directed to accurate sources," she writes.

For instance, certification systems could gauge content accuracy in terms of traceable sources, explicit conflicts of interest, ethical compliance, and revenue reporting.

"The government, scientists, and health authorities also need to take responsibility ... offering content as engaging as their misinformation counterparts and allowing dialogue," she adds.

But Mills believes that criminalising people who intentionally hurt others through false information should also be considered. "The freedom to debate, and allow the public to raise legitimate vaccine concerns to fill the knowledge void, should not extend to causing malicious harm," she concludes.

There is no denying that the world would be a better place without misinformation, or that it would be in the public interest for anti-vaccination misinformation not to exist. But criminalising it could make it grow even stronger, argues Jonas Sivela at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare.

He acknowledges that civil liberties, including freedom of speech, can and should be restricted in certain casesfor example, when it comes to inciting lawless activities and violence. But he believes that anti-vaccination misinformation is not such a case.

Vaccine hesitancy is affected not only by anti-vaccination lobbying or misinformation but also by the convenience of vaccination services and public complacency, he explains. Criminalising anti-vaccine misinformation seems a strong response but does not deal with these issues.

We must also acknowledge that there are legitimate concerns about vaccines that should be allowed to be voiced, he argues. "Failing to consider or answer people's worries, and instead suffocating relevant discussion, would only result in an increased lack of confidence in the long runand an increase in misinformation."

Instead of criminalising communication, other technical solutions for tackling misinformation have proved successful, such as efforts by Facebook and Twitter to deal with false claims through fact checking and labelling misinformation, he adds.

What's more, trust in authorities, governments, and the healthcare system is key when it comes to ensuring high vaccine acceptance, he says. "The only way to sustainably reduce misinformation about vaccinationand to strengthen vaccine confidence and acceptance in the long runis to increase trust in these institutions and authorities in different countries," he concludes.

Explore further Twitter to start removing COVID-19 vaccine misinformation

More information: Should spreading anti-vaccine misinformation be criminalised? www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n272 Should spreading anti-vaccine misinformation be criminalised? DOI: 10.1136/bmj.n272

Sri Lanka on Wednesday cancelled Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's address to its Parliament during his official visit to the island nation. According to sources, the decision has been taken because of concerns that Imran Khan could rake up the Kashmir issue. Imran Khan has a habit of parroting lies on the Kashmir issue whenever he is presented with a global platform, especially since the Indian Government's decision to scrap Article 370 in the former state of Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019.

ANI has quoted a Sri Lankan newspaper saying that the move may also have been an effort to ensure Imran Khan isn't granted parity with Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had addressed the country's Parliament in 2015.

Imran's address to SL Parliament cancelled

According to a report in Colombo Gazette, Sergeant-at-Arms of Parliament, Narendra Fernando said that the Foreign Ministry had informed Parliament that the Pakistan Prime Ministers visit to Sri Lanka will go ahead as scheduled. Imran Khan will arrive in Sri Lanka on February 22 on a 2-day official state visit.

Khan, who will be the first head of state to visit the country since the Covid-19 pandemic, is to hold talks with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena during the visit, the report said.

Last week, Imran Khan welcomed Sri Lankas assurance on the burial of Muslim Coronavirus victims. Khan tweeted welcoming Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksas assurance given in Parliament that Muslims will be allowed to bury those who died from the Coronavirus.

READ | Harish Salve bats for international tribunal to regulate social media; urges India to lead

READ | Crude bombs hurled at West Bengal Minister Jakir Hossain; several injured

Imran Khan's visit, scheduled a months after External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankars three-day visit to Colombo, will coincide with the early days of the 46th UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva. Jaishankar visited Colombo over three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Sri Lankan counterpart Mahinda Rajapaksa held a virtual summit during which the two sides agreed to further expand ties in a range of areas such as anti-terror cooperation, maritime security and trade and investment.

Last year, India had slammed Pakistan for politicising a humanitarian issue by raking up the Kashmir matter at a video conference between SAARC leaders held with an aim to chalk out a joint strategy to fight the Coronavirus pandemic. "Pakistan sent their Health Minister who was uncomfortable in speaking. He was given a slip. It's a churlish approach. This is a humanitarian issue and Pakistan tried to politicise the humanitarian issue," news agency PTI quoted the government sources as saying.

READ | Harish Salve speaks to Arnab Goswami on foreign meddling, toolkit plot & action on terror

READ | Harish Salve attacks lobby for pre-judging judiciary's stance, calls for end to binaryism

On the eve of the one-year anniversary of the murder of Hannah Clarke and her three children in Brisbane, the charity founded by her parents had its Facebook page disabled when it was caught up in the social media giants ban on Australian news content.

Hannahs parents, Sue and Lloyd, spoke at the Camp Hill park renamed Hannahs Place ahead of the anniversary, saying they had taken small steps to get through the past year.

They have cherished the Facebook Memories that feature pictures of Hannah and her children - Aaliyah, 6, Laianah, 4, and Trey, 3 and old messages on Hannahs phone.

On Friday, the Clarke family will go to Hannahs favourite spot on the Gold Coast, the place they took what would become their final pictures.
Ive got to say I loved it when Joe Biden described Donald Trump as the former guy.

This was at a CNN town hall, and Biden was pursuing his goal of changing the subject from  his predecessor. Part of the strategy seems to be avoiding his actual name.

Excellent agenda. Sitting in disgraced, double-impeached political purgatory, Trump has been trying to retrain the world to refer to him as the 45th president during his unwelcome retirement. (If you are lucky enough to get a mass email from him, the return address will be 45 office.) How cool would it be if he had to sit in front of the TV listening to people talk about the former guy?

D.J.T. = T.F.G.

Bidens current mission is to make the world focus on his $1.9 trillion plan for a coronavirus comeback. Its currently in the House, where the Democratic majority is expected to pass it readily, once the poor bill makes its way through all the subcommittee chairs who want a little poke at it. But sometime in March itll be in the hands of Senator Chuck Schumer, whose majority consists entirely of Kamala Harris breaking tie votes.

Hey, thats entertainment. Schumer is not necessarily the most exciting politician on the planet, but he works like a demon. Ive known him since the 1980s, when he was in the House and he was one of the very few members of Congress who had both young children and a full-time working spouse.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. (SMBC Group), announced today that it will adopt Allganizes AI technology to improve operational efficiency and bring greater value to their customers.

SMBC Group is the first Japanese financial institution to offer such an integrated AI system to customers. The Group operates in over 40 countries and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. (SMBC Group) is the 12th biggest bank in the world by total assets. To maintain and try to grow their large market share, they need to constantly innovate and are at the forefront of emerging technologies.

One way they are doing this is to improve efficiency and streamline the customer experience with Allganizes technologies. Allganize combines robotic automation with Natural Language Processing to automatically answer and route customers requests in real-time. This gives agents more time to focus on higher value issues and increase customer satisfaction. The first step in executing SMBC Groups vision in transforming its business operations is integrating Allganizes technologies into Sumitomo Mitsui Card Company and SMBC Nikko Securities.

"Allganize is honored to partner with such a forward thinking and innovative organization," Changsu Lee, Founder and CEO of Allganize. This represents a significant step in our commitment to providing seamless, efficient, and stress-free customer support as well as business automation across the world through AI.

Allganizes technologies are the result of extensive research, product design based on customer feedback and an experienced team focused on developing high impact AI solutions. They are built with the goal of increasing productivity in every aspect of business operations. Allganize is trusted and chosen by companies around the world with enterprise customers spanning the USA, Japan, and South Korea across multiple industries, including financial services, insurance, e-commerce, consumer products, consulting, human resource and government agencies.

Allganizes solutions include:



Alli AnswerBot - an AI-driven multilingual chatbot that is capable of extracting answers from unstructured data in company knowledge bases to answer customer questions and give them instant solutions.

Cognitive Search - uses artificial intelligence to find the most relevant answers to natural-language questions directly from documents without curated databases. It is also capable of automatically generating questions and answers from unstructured data.

For more information about Allganizes technology, schedule a demo today: https://calendly.com/biz-us/30min

About SMBC Group

Headquartered in Tokyo and with a 400-year history, SMBC Group offers a diverse range of financial services, including banking, leasing, securities, credit cards, and consumer finance. The Group has more than 130 offices and 85,000 employees worldwide in nearly 40 countries. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. (SMFG) is the holding company of SMBC Group, which is one of the three largest banking groups in Japan. SMFG's shares trade on the Tokyo, Nagoya, and New York stock exchanges. As of June 30, 2020, its total assets were $2.10 trillion.

Visit https://www.smbcgroup.com/ to learn more.

About Allganize

Allganizes AI technology allows enterprises to automate answering questions from a myriad of unstructured text documents. It empowers customer support representatives, speeds up resolution time, enhances cross-platform search experience, and extracts named entities from contracts for underwriters and agents. Unlike other AI providers, Allganizes technology does not require manual data tagging, making it faster and easier to implement while providing best-in-class results and accuracy. Allganizes Answer Bot and Cognitive Search can automatically resolve 50~80% of customers questions and free up agents time to handle four to five times the volume of high priority issues.

Visit https://allganize.ai to learn more.

New Delhi:

In a heart-wrenching incident, a stray dog tried to feed on the body of a newborn baby girl in Mandya, reports said. The incident took place on Wednesday near Mandya Institute of medical sciences (MIMS) in Mangalore.



The incident has astonished passersby who saw the dog running with the infant in its mouth. They pelted the dog with stones, cornered it and snatched away the baby from its mouth. People have taken new born baby to MIMS, but the infant was dead.



As the news disseminate, people jostled the hospital premises. District Health Officer (DHO) Dr Mohan and medical superintendent of MIMS Dr Hanumanta also rushed to the hospital. After that police were informed. Officers inspected records in maternity wards and enquired about details of new born baby.

In a CCTV footage doctors have found that the baby was stillborn, and belonged to a lady Rizvan. The baby reportedly died in the womb, and after the delivery corpse of the baby was handover to her husband, Saimulla. But the father instead of doing the funeral, he reportedly threw the body into a heap of garbage. From there Stray dogs have taken the infant body and tried to feed on them. Police have taken Samiulla into custody.
Help India!

Sami Ahmad, TwoCircles.net

Patna: Urdu is the second official language of Bihar. However, the plight of the language is such that its out of the government offices and schools in the state.

Support TwoCircles



Bihar Urdu Academy, a governmental organization formed in 1972 to promote the use of Urdu language within the state, has had no regular secretary for the last seven years. Another body looking after the promotion of Urdu in the state Urdu Advisory Board has no chairman for the last two years. The Government-run Urdu Library has no librarian, and the grants have been stopped. The aid for Urdu authors has been stopped.

With the New Education Policys three-language formula, the future of Urdu  a language of pre-eminence in the Indian subcontinent, seems bleak.

To counter the downward trend of the language in Bihar, an organization Imarat-e-Shariah, Bihar-Jharkhand and Odisha, which is a prominent Muslim religious organization has started a campaign for the promotion and protection of Urdu along with its campaign for education. On February 14, Imarat organized a special advisory meeting of nearly a hundred Urdu lovers from across the state.

According to Maulana Mohammad Shibli al Qasmi, the Bihar government had announced to appoint Urdu teachers in all government schools but the education department has just trashed it with a new order. The new order says Urdu teachers will be appointed to only those schools which have at least 40 Urdu students. The order effectively means that if a school has 39 Urdu students, it would have no Urdu teacher. Earlier, the number of required students was 10 and Urdu was taught as a compulsory subject in government schools for those students who enrol their mother tongue as Urdu. The number-hurdle has created a crisis for learning and teaching Urdu in the state.

Urdu is the mother tongue of all Muslim students in Bihar. According to the Census 2011, Muslims constitute 14 per cent of the total 10.4 crores population in Bihar.

A source told TwoCircles.net, the Muslim population ranges from 4 per cent in Lakhisarai to 68 per cent in Kishanganj.

The plight of Urdu can be calculated both at the level of students and teachers.

As per an estimate, Bihar should have appointed 77000 Urdu teachers in the same number of schools (Primary and Secondary) as per the announcement of the chief minister Nitish Kumar, but since 2005, the government has appointed just thirty thousand Urdu teachers.

Seven years ago, the Bihar government conducted a special Urdu teacher eligibility test for the vacant 27000 posts but only 5310 aspirants were declared successful. According to Maulana Shibli, it was due to the faulty examination process that caused this depreciation. Finally, after much deliberation, this number was raised to 16881. However, almost twelve thousand aspirants were deprived of a fair result.

Interestingly, out of the 27000 vacant posts even the many among the 16881 successful candidates have not been appointed as there were not enough seats available in the roster prepared for the purpose.

Maulana Shibli told TwoCircles.net that due to the deliberate design of the officials in Muslim majority districts of Kishanganj, Katihar and Purnia, less number of seats were provided in the roster of those districts.

This resulted in a situation of fewer candidates for more seats and fewer seats for more candidates, he added.

Plight same in Urdu medium schools

In schools where Urdu is only a subject (like Hindi or English medium schools), the situation of Urdu can be explained by a mismatch between demand, need and government apathy. However, the case with Urdu medium schools of Bihar is somewhat similar.

Bihar is reported to have 2597 Urdu medium government schools (16382 is the national number). The government of Bihar has adopted a policy of merging schools with less number of students with those schools having more number of students. As a result, Urdu medium schools are bound to suffer more as it is most probable that they would be merged with a Hindi medium school, further hampering the Urdu language.

Ameer Shariat, Imarat-e-Shariah Maulana Mohammad Wali Rahmani apprehends something more serious at a policy level. Talking to TwoCircles.net, Rahmani says that the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 of India may prove a death knell for Urdu not only in Bihar but entire North India, where it is mostly spoken. Urdu has no mention in NEP even though Urdu is the medium of conversation for most of North India, which is unduly called Hindi, he says.

Maulana Rahmani is of the view that the talk of teaching in ones mother tongue is good but the problem lies in the three language formula.

According to NEP 2020, Wherever possible, the medium of instruction until at least Grade 5, but preferably till Grade 8 and beyond, will be the home language/mother-tongue/local language/regional language. Thereafter, the home/local language shall continue to be taught as a language wherever possible.

Maulana Rahmani says that this option from mother-tongue/local language/regional language would affect Urdu questioning who would be the authority to decide between mother tongue and local/regional language? English is an international language and Hindi being the official language leave just one option, he says.

The pertinent question is that if Maithili is the regional language of Darbhanga, what would happen to the Urdu students?

Maulana Rahmani says that NEP does not mention articles 29 and 30 of the Indian Constitution which is related to the cultural and educational rights of minorities.

As Urdu is the second official language of Bihar, the state is required to appoint Urdu-to-Hindi translators.

In 2018, the Bihar government sanctioned to appoint 1765 Urdu translators. In 2019, the vacancy for the posts of 404 Urdu translators, 1204 Assistant Urdu translators, 119 Senior Urdu translators and 38 Translation Officers were advertised but the process of appointment is still not complete.

Senior journalist and editor Rehan Ghani told TwoCircles.net that, of late government advertisements for Urdu newspapers are not being provided in the Urdu language.

Afzal Hussain of Siwan, Bihar is associated with educational upliftment of Muslim students. Today our new generation drinks Rooh Afza but doesnt know what that means or many of them dont know how it is written, he says.

Hussain rues that the general attitude of supposedly Urdu speaking people is quite disappointing as even Urdu teachers dont buy Urdu newspapers. If Urdu speaking population starts caring for it, the government would be forced to think about that, he says adding, In my days, Urdu and Persian was considered an unavoidable subject but nowadays it is out of school syllabus.

Hussain says that if an Urdu teacher retires or gets transferred the post in the concerned school is abolished. This is the area where the government needs to pay attention, he says.

Hussain is hopeful that initiatives like started by Imarat-e-Shariah would help to better the condition of Urdu in Bihar.

Salahuddin Mohammad Farhad from Nalanda is a senior officer with Life Insurance Corporation of India. Urdu was the main language in Bihar of British India. Even in independent India, Urdu continued to be leading. In the registry office, sale and purchase documents used to be recorded in Urdu. Students used to read and write every subject in Urdu, he said.

Farhad elaborates with his example. I had written all the subject papers in Urdu duri matriculation examination. There were subscribers of Urdu newspapers and magazines in almost every village which has now become a thing of the past. Now Urdu appears to be losing ground. The use of the Urdu script is not prevalent. The death of Urdu appears to be imminent, he said.

Farhad says that both the government and Urdu readers are responsible for this. On one hand the government is withdrawing its support to Urdu with time and on the other hand, Urdu readers are leaving the use of Urdu. Urdu readers have a long list of complaints and demands but they do not do what is needed to be done. In Urdu schools, teachers who get a job to impart education in Urdu dont do that. They teach in Hindi and students read and write in Hindi. Pass-outs of Urdu primary and middle schools do not know read and write Urdu. They cannot read and write anything in Urdu script, rues Farhad.

Sohrab Khan of Gaya is an HR consultant. He says that till late nineties Urdu was reflected in government offices and schools. We had boards in Urdu, nameplates of officers in Urdu. There were translators to read and translate Urdu applications. Now, no translators are deputed at the DM office for peripheral works and Urdu speaking people too dont give their application in Urdu fearing the fate of that, says Sohrab, adding, Urdu Urdu newspapers are being run by non-Urdu speaking people.
Mill Valley job site Glassdoor wants to shed light on what different kinds of people think of their companies, benefits and leadership.

Anonymous ratings on the websites public company profiles will now show what people from diverse backgrounds think about their companies, employer cultures and perks with new rating features that will appear when a certain number of employees opt to share their demographic information while rating a company.

The ratings will factor in the opinions from workers of different races, genders and sexual orientations, as well as from veterans, parents and the disabled. The information they provide will be displayed on a companys Glassdoor profile, with the option to filter by demographic.

It follows overall diversity and inclusion ratings becoming available last year on Glassdoors company profiles, along with job seekers being able to voluntarily share their demographic data.

The company has collected anonymous information through that effort from 187,000 employees at more than 3,300 companies since the fall, with corporate giants like Amazon, Target, Starbucks and AT&T among the companies where employees shared the most data.

Companies can also publish their diversity goals and statistics on their profiles.

The ratings aim to increase transparency around diversity and inclusion at companies, along with giving job applicants more information about what companies are the best fits for them, according to Glassdoor CEO Christian Sutherland-Wong.

People tend to do bad things in dark corners, not in broad daylight, Sutherland-Wong said. We want to shine a light on how companies are doing when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion.

He said discussion on Glassdoor about issues of racial justice spiked after the killing of George Floyd, an unarmed Black man, at the hands of police last May. A host of companies, particularly in tech, made bold statements at the time about their commitments to diversity and issues of social and racial justice while many continue to struggle with increasing the diversity of their workforces.

It will be great to see if they turn those statements into action, Sutherland-Wong said.

Companies, particularly in the tech industry, have seen intense pressure from the public and their workforces to take a stand on issues of racial justice following the huge protests over Floyds killing.

Internal debates about culture and politics have led some executives to take steps to curtail charged discussions at work.

After Floyds killing, employees at San Francisco cryptocurrency exchange company Coinbase demanded the company take a public stance on issues around diversity and social justice similar to statements made by other tech companies. Company CEO Brian Armstrong refused in an online post, opting instead to ban political discourse at work, leading some employees to leave the company as a result.

Earlier this year a group of Google employees formed a union in part to pressure the company over issues of equality, and thousands of employees and academics signed a letter that protested the companys firing of prominent AI researcher Timnit Gebru, a Black woman.

A survey from last year run by Glassdoor and Harris Poll found that diversity in the workforce is important for 3 out of 4 employees and job seekers.

The increasing importance of diversity efforts at work and increased transparency mean employers are going to be called out, if their employees are unhappy, said Lisa Frydenlund, a human resources expert and knowledge adviser at the Society for Human Resources Management.

California state law is also changing when it comes to pay disparities at work.

Last year Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation aimed at closing the pay gap for women and people of color. That law sets a deadline of March 31 for private companies with more than 100 employees to submit a report breaking out how much they pay employees by race, ethnicity and sex, to the state Department of Fair Employment & Housing.

That information will not be made public, but the DFEH could use the findings to bring lawsuits naming companies.

The new transparency will also be a window into how different employees working at small and midsize companies see their workplaces. Thats important, since many smaller companies cant afford to hire dedicated diversity and inclusion officers and may not have strong programs in place, Frydenlund, the HR expert, said.

Glassdoors economic research arm also announced a preliminary study showing that Black employees satisfaction at work generally differed from employees from other backgrounds, according to ratings on the site.

Job satisfaction for Black employees was lower at 21 of the 28 companies included in the survey, with one of the notable exceptions being the Cupertino computer giant Apple, which averaged a higher rating among employees who self-identified as Black or African American.

While the ratings system is still new, Sutherland-Wong said he was hopeful that the insights will help employees speak up and companies listen.

Its hard for an employer to get a good read on how different groups are feeling about their company, he said. We believe transparency will drive positive change.

Chase DiFeliciantonio is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: chase.difeliciantonio@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ChaseDiFelice
Zimbabwe health minister and Vice President Constantino Chiwenga became the first candidate of the Covid-19 vaccine that arrived in Zimbabwe on Monday.

Thronged by reporters, health workers, and other government officials at Wilkins Hospital in Harare, Chiwenga went through various stages of the vaccination process leading to the final shot in the arm.

Thursday marked the first day of the vaccination process, beginning with health care workers, police, and other high-risk groups.

The government announced that it plans to vaccinate 10-million people.
Press Release

February 18, 2021 Transcript of Senator Nancy Binay's interview on ANC's HEADSTART (hosted by Karen Davila) Senator Nancy Binay-Angeles (SNBA): Karen, can I just make a slight correction, yung inapprove namin on Monday is not on the indemnification but it's more of sa procurement and administration of COVID19 vaccines. Part lang ang indemnification doon, but the focus of the bill is more on the procurement of the LGUs of the vaccine. Karen Davila (Q): Let's start with that. Yung procurement of the LGUs. As of now, for the LGUs to procure, it's under a tripartite setup. SNBA: In the bill, it will still be the same setup. Ang request kasi ng mga LGUs sa amin is nagkakaroon sila ng problema sa procurement process. Number one, di kasi pinapayagan ang advance payments under existing rules. So with this bill, may power na yung LGUs to make advance payments. Alam naman natin na isa ito sa requirements for us, for the LGUs, to secure the vaccines. Q: Bukod po doon, what about this P500 million fund na nasa bill? SNBA: Well we already included a portion for indemnification kasi apparently a lot of pharma companies ay naghahanap ng vaccine indemnification. But the bill that I filed, kumbaga ito moving forward e. It will not only cover COVID 19 vaccines but also immunization program of the country. Q: This 500 million pesos, paano ito? Yung pondo na ito for those na apektado or may side effects? SNBA: Yes. Doon sa mga magkakaroon ng adverse effects sa vaccines, may P500 million fund that can be used to treat or compensate those na nagkaroon ng adverse effects. Q: Where will you get the money to fund this senator? SNBA: We will get for the mean time sa existing budget natin, but there is also a proposition na baka puwedeng through Philhealth magkaroon din ng indemnification program. Q: What is the current status even for vaccine procurement? Were we able to already source itong 70 unprogrammed funds that congress set aside? SNBA: During the deliberation yesterday, ang sagot ng mga finance managers apparently is money is not a problem. I think ADB and World Bank is already helping us with the vaccine procurement so I think yun na ang magiging source nila for the P70 billion and we did the math, yung LGUs and the private companies, more or less ang laki na ng portion na sasagutin nila sa vaccine procurement. We also have that COVAX facility na 15 percent ang sasagutin nila doon sa pangangailangan natin. Q: Are you satisfied with how the government handled negotiations with the WHO-COVAX facility? For example the indemnity clause, some are asking bakit ngayon lang? SNBA: We also have the same question, Karen. Kasi, if you remember we had the committee on the whole hearing and that clause was never discussed. In fact paulit-ulit nilang sinasabi na... Ah ang una nilang sinabi kung bakit nadelay ang COVAX facility... we need to build an infrastructure. Then, finally, nagawa na yung infrastructure, tumaas nanaman yung expectation na dadating na. Sinabi dadating na Feb 15 or February this week... tapos bigla na lang meron nanaman panibagong requirement na kelangan ng indemnification provision so nadelay na naman yung delivery sa COVAX facility. So yesterday, lahat din kami nagulat because another update sa COVAX facility. Kasi, WHO promised that they will give 20% doon sa need natin. Then, apparently, kahapon 15% na lang then magbabayad pa tayo ng $80 million. Question: So where do you think the problem lie senator? SNBA: Unang una kasi, Karen, we only have term sheets at the moment wala pa tayong supply agreement na pinipirmahan. So, habang wala pa tayo noong supply agreement, the delivery of the vaccine will always be a question. Kaya ng apaulit-ulit kong sinasabi na at this point, ang sigurado lang is hindi sigurado kung kailan darating ang bakuna. Q: In an interview I had with Sec. Galvez, sinabi niya na that one of the problems is that under the law, we cannot pay in advance. Is that correct? SNBA: Isa yun sa sinasabi nila, pero kami naman sa Kongreso, we have proven ourselves na kapag may hiniling ang Executive department we deliver. You can see that when we passed the Bayanihan 1 and 2. Yung FIST. Anything that will help us recover from the pandemic, mabilis pa sa alas-singko kami magtratrabaho. Q: So, dapat hiningi ng Executive na yung downpayments should be allowed early on? SNBA: Yes, in fact maybe when we were discussing the budget last year, they could have already told us na may ganoong requirement and we could've done a special provision for that. Q: Ang dating ba sa inyo ay naghahabol tayo? SNBA: I think Karen, from day one, when we had this problem lagi tayong reactionary. At this point, hindi tayo makahabol sa pag-solve dito sa problema natin sa COVID 19. Q: Itong 15% na lang ang delivery ng WHO instead of 20%, gaano kalaki ang apektado dito? SNBA: I am not sure but I think that's 20 million shots. Or 20 million of the population yung iba-vaccinate nila na at 20%. Q: Did WHO say na 15% na lang ang ide-deliver nila or ihahabol nila yung 5%? SNBA: The statement from Sec. Galvez yesterday was 15% na lang, and we have to pay $84 million for I think the remaining 5 percent. So, hindi na sya 100% free. Q: So we are paying $84 million for the remaining 5% if we want the 20% vaccinated? SNBA: Yun ang pagkakaintindi ko. Maybe when we continue our deliberations on Monday, we can discuss this further on the floor. Q: In terms of the vaccine rollout senator, what is your biggest concern? SNBA: Number one yung vaccine. Nakakailang araw na tayo na practice pero wala pa rin yung bakuna and they can't give us a definite date when it is coming. Well, naririnig namin yung Sinovac there is 600,000 coming, pero ang problema with that vaccine is that wala pa syang EUA coming ffom FDA. And para sa akin, hindi rin naman tama na madaliin natin ang FDA sa trabaho nila just because padating na itong Sinovac vaccine. Q: Just recently also, the WHO recommended Astra Zeneca as good for all ages, yet Joey Concepcion said recently that Astra Zeneca can no longer make additional vaccines. Where does that leave the Philippines? SNBA: I think that it is clear that we will be having Sinovac at Novovax. But I think yung Novovax hindi pa ata sya nag-aapply for EUA, at hindi pa tapos ang clinical trials niya. So, at the moment, yun ang lumalabas na mga brands na siguradong darating. Q: So, Pfizer, Astra Zeneca, Moderna, you believe will only arrive in small batches either from WHO or Moderna from the private sector. SNBA: Astra Zeneca thru the private sector because the government did not procure Astra Zeneca. At the moment they are only in talks with Sinovac and Novovax. Moderna ata they are not talking to them dahil medyo mahal ata ang Moderna. Q: So what else can be done at this point? SNBA: Maybe we should ask Vietnam how they are doing it. From what I've read, hindi sila umaasa sa vaccination program to start the economy. Di ba yung figures nila nagkaroon sila ng growth last year. It's really about addressing the basic protocols in curbing the virus. Baka may pagkukulang doon. Q: You said Day-1 pa lang reactionary tayo makahabol. We should ask Vietnam how they're doing it. We've seen a 9.5 percent in the economy, Sen. Nancy. The IATF, I mean no less than NEDA Sec. Karl Chua is already suggesting ways to reopen the economy. Let's start with something basic, okay. The opening of movie theaters. I know napakaliit nito in the bigger picture. But let's start with something like that then move on to something bigger. SNBA: 'Yon na nga, eh. Nakakatawa, and then, parang Karen, nagiging problema din there's no communication. The mayors have been complaining, the LGUs have been complaining, they're not being consulted by the IATF when it comes to implementing certain guidelines, at pasok na nga dito iyong pagbubukas ng movie-houses. And para sa akin din, Karen, kahit siguro buksan nila iyan, mukhang wala namang, I don't think people will go and watch movies. Ang call nga ngayon is to open up the transport sector because at the moment, ang mga jeepney drivers natin majority of them hindi pa nakakapasok. So, how do we expect the labor force to go to work if wala silang transportation? Question: So you are calling for the opening of the transport sector already? SNBA: Yes. Kasi ang naririnig ko ang suggestion lang nila is to allow bigger capacity for our transport, for different types of transportation. Ang call ko, is to allow more public transportation sa ating mga kalsada ngayon kasi nga iyong mga jeepney drivers natin, hanggang ngayon majority of them hindi kumikita. Q: Other than the transport sector, Metro Manila is still on GCQ. How do you believe does this affect the economy as a whole? SNBA: Well, syempre alam naman natin ang center of commerce in our country is basically in NCR. So, for as long as the numbers are still going up, I think ang pagiging kampante that they would be safe when they go out mukhang wala pa. Q: Now in terms of face-to-face classes opening, this has been, well the president is now open to choose certain areas with face-to-face classes. This is quite interesting because I've been hearing different points of view about it. Where do you stand with face-to-face classes? SNBA: Ako, Karen, I agree that we can already have face-to-face classes. But kailangan doon lang siya sa mga LGU na kung puwede halos close to zero ang cases of Covid. And then it will not be the same classroom setup. Sabi ko nga baka pwede gawin siya sa covered court, kung saan baka 10 lang or 15 students lang will attend classes maybe for once a week. Basta mga ganoong variations when it comes to implementation. I am not agreeing to a face-to-face setup during the old normal, eh. We need to find a new way of doing face-to-face classes because I believe ang mga students natin are really suffering. In fact, 'di ba ang laki na ng problema natin sa education, the numbers are not favorable. And then we had this "no classes" so I'm sure when we do again ang mga tests sa malamang mas bumaba pa ang quality of our education system. Q: I'm curious, Sen., clearly it's not a one-size-fits-all. Should private schools start first? Private schools have a smaller class size compared to our public schools. Should private schools take the lead? We have some schools with 15 in a class, 20 in a class? SNBA: I don't know doon sa private schools, kasi Karen iyong mga private schools naka-shift sila sa online classes, eh. Like ako, iyong mga anak ko, which how I wish everybody would also have the same setup, they go to class every day, they see their classmates every day, they see their teacher. So ang kulang na lang is ang physical presence, physical contact, but you know the setup is the same, they do PE class together while doing Zoom sessions. So, nandoon pa rin. But in our public schools, walang ganoong capability. Q: So, in public schools naniniwala kayo na there has to be already some semblance of kids seeing each other at least in a different kind of setup, may variation. It's also I guess for mental health. SNBA: Yes, and then, iba pa rin if the teacher is there teaching the students, 'di ba? Kasi at the moment they have these learning modules tapos kani-kaniyang ano sila. Kaya nga ang dami ding I think the pressure doon sa mga parents to relearn concepts ay mahirap din, so iba talaga kapag nandiyan iyong guro sa harap ng mga estudyante. Q: So, there's face-to-face classes, the question of are movie-houses really the issue, what other way would you want to see the economy reopen? SNBA: Ako kasi siguro, Karen, for as long as there's already trust and confidence doon sa response natin sa pandemic, it will follow, eh. It will follow that more people will patronize, more people will start going out. Kasi ngayon hindi naman porke't pinapayagan na ng IATF magbukas ang certain segments of our economy, they patronize. Kasi nga 'di ba the fear is still there. Kung alam natin na everything is in place, iyong response we have enough hospital beds in case magkaroon ng surge, I guess the economy will really start opening up. Q: Do we need another stimulus package? Compared to other Asian countries, it's been said the Philippines has had a very small stimulus package in restarting the economy, and pending in the House Committee of Economic Affairs is Bayanihan 3. So in the Lower House, they've set aside P420 billion. Malacanang has said at one point, I think it was Sec. Harry Roque who said, some said that you don't need a Bayanihan 3 but I could be corrected on this. Do you believe we need Bayanihan 3? SNBA: Well, siguro. But kami kasi Karen, alam mo iyong Bayanihan 1 and 2, ang naging problema niyan, implementation. It was very slow. In fact, iyong Bayanihan 2 --we had a hearing the other day sa Committee on Agriculture-- may fund na it was just released last month. So hindi quick, hindi ganoon kabilis ang paggamit ng pondo, and isang ahensiya lang iyan ha. I think sa ibang agency medyo slow din ang pag-release nila ng pondo. Q: So it's not the money, it's the implementation on how to release the funds? SNBA: Yes, parang at the moment, we are still underspending, Karen. Remember iyong 2020 budget, we can still use it for 2021. And then there's the 2021 budget, and then mayroong Bayanihan 2 pa. So I think in terms of funding it's there, it's just the utilization mukhang nagkakaroon ng problema. Q: So why are we still underspending? Where is the problem? SNBA: That is the biggest question. Baklt hindi, in fact paulit-ulit sa mga hearings namin, we've always asked the Executive na "bilisan n'yo ang pag-release ng pondo." Q: If Bayanihan 3 gets to the Senate, what area do you believe needs support, or more funding? SNBA: Number 1, syempre, I think ang hardest-hit ngayon is the tourism sector, eh. So isa 'yan sa nakikita ko na kailangan nating tulungan. Q: Anything you'd like to add? I think the big one is really, well, in terms of the indemnity clause, Sen. Nancy, well the Philippine government's already signed it so technically the government can't sue Pfizer and AstraZeneca when they come in and there are side effects. Just holistically speaking, what do you want to see that the IATF, the vaccine team do to fast-track everything? I mean clearly they are doing their best but what do you want to see them do? SNBA: Well, ako, I want to see that supply agreement signed already. Because if we have that document, it will really guarantee that the vaccines are already coming. So for me, the need to have that signed is very urgent. Q: On that note, Sen. Nancy Binay, thank you so much for your time this morning. I really appreciate it, thank you. You stay strong, and God bless you. SNBA: Thank you, and stay safe, everybody. Q: On another note, Sen. Nancy, magpapabakuna ba kayo? SNBA: Yes, magpapabakuna ako. But I don't think I am in the priority list, alam naman natin there's a shortage of the vaccine, so I'd rather give it to the health-workers. I am willing to sacrifice, be locked up in my house, basta maibigay sa mga kababayan natin na talagang mas nangangailangan ng bakuna. Q: So kumbaga you're willing to wait it out. Are you particular with the type of vaccine that you will get? SNBA: Well, Karen, I have this fear of injections, so at the moment I'd rather get the Johnson&Johnson kasi nga single dose lang siya. Q: I see. So you have a fear of injections, you're going to wait for the single dose vaccine. SNBA: Yes. Actually I'm always asked if I'm willing to do it in public. Yeah I'm willing to do it in public, kaso lang baka iyong makakakita sa akin baka mas matakot because I really have the fear. Q: I didn't know you had that fear. But now we know. So it's actually not the brand, you just want it in single dose? SNBA: Yes. Q: That's just what you're particular about. Single dose, that's it. Okay. Well, Sen. Nancy, thank you for sharing that. SNBA: Talagang sobrang takot na takot ako. Q: Thank you so much, Sen. Nancy Binay.

Delaware County Democrats are growing up  and dealing with growing pains.

For years, their goal was simple but elusive: Beat the Republicans. They often struggled to even recruit candidates in a county controlled by the GOP since the Civil War. But demographic changes, suburban political realignment, and Donald Trumps presidency eventually overwhelmed Republicans. Democrats went from holding zero seats on the county council to all five in just a few years. Joe Biden won 63% of the vote last year.

Now Democrats are trying to forge an identity as the party in power in the states fifth most populous county. And theyre confronting internal divisions in the process, according to interviews with a dozen people involved in local Democratic politics.

After the presidential election, some Democrats say this years lower-profile races actually pose a bigger test for the party: Does it want to be a progressive, reform-oriented organization? Is there room for transactional politics that rewards loyalty to the party? Or would that lead to the rise of Philadelphia-style politics and make the Delco Democrats a different version of the GOP machine they toppled?

Democrats are in a transition phase where we can no longer be about what we are against. We really have to define what were for, said County Councilmember Christine Reuther. I genuinely believe that transparency, and good government focused on providing service, is something that were for.

The next sign of the partys direction comes Thursday, when the roughly 1,000 activists who make up the Delaware County Democratic Committee will endorse candidates for local office. The most closely watched campaign is also the most obscure: the race for Common Pleas Court. Three candidates are seen as having a shot to win the May primary for two vacancies on the bench.

The Democrat who appears to have the broadest support is Tinu Moss, an attorney and former Yeadon borough manager. Her supporters include a coalition of building trades unions, progressives, and others. Supporters say Moss, who is Black, is well-qualified and would bring needed diversity to the mostly white and male bench.

The two other leading contenders are Deborah Krull, a former Media borough councilmember and current district court judge for seven years, and Raymond Santarelli, a longtime Springfield Democratic chair. Santarelli is general counsel at the Delaware River Port Authority, which operates bridges and the PATCO train. Attorney Jacquie Jones is also running.

 READ MORE: Democrats had a brutal 2020 in Pennsylvania besides Biden. Now theyre charting a path forward.

Krulls backers say that, as a sitting judge, shes the most qualified. But some of them worry that wont be enough to stop Santarelli, who has support from influential building trades unions, including Philadelphias powerful electricians union. Santarelli has ties to the unions leader, John J. Dougherty, who is set to stand trial this year on federal embezzlement and bribery charges. Dougherty has pleaded not guilty.

Santarellis supporters praise his legal skills and reject suggestions that hes associated with a political machine.

Ray is eminently qualified to be a judge, said Ryan Boyer, head of the Laborers District Council. I see Ray as a party loyalist who put his work in with the party and deserves strong consideration.

Boyer, who is Black, added, And I dont think he should be punished for  what Im hearing and I dont like is, Oh, hes a white male. 

The political jockeying comes as Democrats continue to push a governing agenda that, like in state and local governments across the country, was disrupted last year by the pandemic.

Council last month opened a wellness center in Yeadon, which will serve as a mass vaccination site. Officials say its an early step toward fulfilling their campaign pledge of establishing a county health department. Democrats are also moving toward deprivatizing the George W. Hill Correctional Facility.

Delaware County was for decades a Republican stronghold like other Philadelphia suburbs. Santarelli was one of longtime local Democratic chair Cliff Wilsons top allies.

Now Santarellis supporters say he deserves credit for building the party.

Ray Santarelli and I have had a lot of breakfasts over the years, talking about the party, said State Sen. John Kane, who was the longtime head of Plumbers Local 690, a major party benefactor and the rare building trades union that supported Democrats while they were out of power.

He said his decision to support Santarelli is a no brainer.

Its all about relationships to me, Kane said. You help me, I help you.

But some dont have fond memories of the partys old guard, which they saw as more interested in serving as loyal opposition to Republicans than winning elections. Wilson stepped down in 2010, when the party elected David Landau, an attorney at Duane Morris, as chairman. Four years later, Santarelli unsuccessfully challenged Landau for the chairmanship.

By then, demographic changes made Delaware County friendlier terrain for Democrats. As in other Philadelphia suburbs, the county has become more racially diverse, better-educated, and younger.

Registered Democrats surpassed Republicans in 2015, the same year Democrat Leanne Krueger won a special election to the state House. In 2017, Democrats won two Council seats. As the party tasted success, rivalries surfaced, especially in the 2018 congressional primary.

 READ MORE: The Philadelphia suburbs were the key to Joe Bidens Pennsylvania victory. Here are the numbers.

The state Supreme Court had thrown out the old congressional map. Under the new map, all of Delaware County fits in the 5th District, which also includes South Philadelphia. Delaware County Democrats were excited to send one of their own to Congress. But Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, led by Dougherty, spent hundreds of thousands of dollars backing Rich Lazer, a South Philadelphian and aide to Mayor Jim Kenney.

Landau clashed with Local 98, and the infighting spilled into public view.

In the end, Swarthmore lawyer Mary Gay Scanlon won the primary and the seat. But Landaus handling of the episode prompted Kane, the plumbers union leader, to challenge him for the party chairmanship.

Democrats settled on a compromise leader: longtime activist Colleen Guiney. But scars from the 2018 fight remain.

Local 98, now engulfed in legal troubles, has endorsed Santarelli. Hes also getting support from the Laborers District Council, the union led by Boyer, who until this month was chairman of the Delaware River Port Authority, where Santarelli works.

Some Democrats worry that nominating a candidate with those personal connections could damage the partys reformist brand. Santarellis campaign said thats unfair.

This last-minute and desperate attempt to shift focus away from Rays contributions to the community, the Democratic Party, and the legal profession is far from the promotion of reform and progressive ideals, the campaign said. It pointed to endorsements from dozens of Democratic activists and groups like the Delaware County Black Caucus PAC.

Santarelli has a long-standing reputation for integrity and high-quality legal work over twenty-five years, representing both private clients and government entities, the campaign said.

Dougherty and Local 98 declined to comment. Other Democrats, such as State Rep. Jennifer OMara, have touted support from the union.

 READ MORE: Ticket-splitting voters in Bucks County show its the most competitive Philly suburb

Reuther, the county councilmember, said Krull is the most qualified candidate.

Theres a lot of long-standing personal ties and loyalties that understandably lead to a lot of the support other candidates like Ray Santarelli have, Reuther said. Im going to cast my first vote for [Krull] without apology.

Some Democrats said the bigger concern is the precedent this election could set for future races.

It is in some ways not really fair to Ray, said one longtime party activist, who spoke on condition of anonymity to candidly discuss internal party politics. He does have qualifications. Theres a concern about that model, about what comes next.

Krueger, whose 2015 special election is seen as foundational to the partys current success, said competitive primaries are healthy for the party.

A couple years ago I had to work really, really hard to recruit one Democrat to run for one of these seats. Now I think primaries are here to stay, she said. The reason theyre here to stay is because the Democratic energy is so strong. And because we dont have someone in a backroom deciding who the candidates will be  whose turn it is to move forward.
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SASKATOON, Saskatchewan, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cameco (TSX: CCO; NYSE: CCJ) received notice that the Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed Canada Revenue Agencys (CRA) application for leave to appeal the June 26, 2020 decision of the Federal Court of Appeal. The dismissal means that the dispute for the 2003, 2005 and 2006 tax years is fully and finally resolved in Camecos favour.

We are pleased that the Supreme Court of Canada has rejected CRAs appeal request. Its another win for Cameco in this long-running tax dispute, said Cameco president and CEO Tim Gitzel. We have consistently followed the rules and complied with both the letter and intent of the law. This was confirmed unequivocally through the court process, and we are happy to have these three tax years concluded in our favour.

In September 2018, the Tax Court of Canada ruled that Camecos marketing and trading structure involving foreign subsidiaries, as well as the related transfer pricing methodology used for certain intercompany uranium sales and purchasing agreements, were in full compliance with Canadian law for the tax years in question. CRA appealed this decision to the Federal Court of Appeal, which in June 2020 again ruled definitively in Camecos favour and upheld the Tax Courts finding. CRA sought leave to appeal the Court of Appeals decision to the Supreme Court. Today the Supreme Court denied that request.

Cameco expects to receive a refund of $5.5 million plus interest for amounts paid on previous reassessments issued by CRA for 2003, 2005 and 2006, as well as the $10.25 million in legal fees and up to $17.9 million in disbursements for costs awarded to us by the Tax Court and the Court of Appeal in previous rulings. The timing of receipt of these payments is uncertain.

It has been incredibly disheartening for us, as a Canadian company, to have an agency of our federal government continue to pursue a flawed argument for 13 years, even after receiving two court decisions completely in our favour during that time, Gitzel said. In the meantime, we have had to navigate through a period of challenging global markets and the unprecedented economic upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic with the uncertainty caused by this tax dispute significantly impeding our ability to maneuver. To say it has been unfair to our employees and the many other stakeholders who count on our company would be an understatement.

The court rulings pertain to the 2003, 2005 and 2006 tax years. Given the strength of the decisions handed down, Cameco is confident the courts would reject any attempt by CRA to utilize the same or similar positions and arguments for the other tax years currently in dispute (2007 through 2014).

This entire saga has gone on far too long, Gitzel said. We will be asking CRA to accept the clear and decisive rulings the courts have delivered and apply them to subsequent tax years so that we can focus on managing our business for the benefit of all our stakeholders. If CRA feels the laws arent written the way they want, its clear they need to make the case to government to change those laws moving forward rather than unfairly dragging Canadian businesses through long and costly legal processes.

CRA continues to hold approximately $785 million in cash and letters of credit that Cameco has been required to pay or otherwise secure for the 2007 through 2014 reassessments issued, tying up a significant portion of the companys financial capacity. Cameco believes CRA should return the full amount of this cash and security, given the overwhelming clarity of the court decisions received to date.

We will not be in a position to determine the definitive outcome of this dispute for any tax year other than 2003, 2005 and 2006 until such time as all reassessments have been issued advancing CRAs arguments and a final resolution is reached for that tax year.

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Cameco is one of the largest global providers of the uranium fuel needed to energize a clean-air world. Our competitive position is based on our controlling ownership of the worlds largest high-grade reserves and low-cost operations. Utilities around the world rely on our nuclear fuel products to generate power in safe, reliable, carbon-free nuclear reactors. Our shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges. Our head office is in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Statements

This news release includes statements and information about our expectations for the future, which we refer to as forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is based on our current views, which can change significantly, and actual results and events may be significantly different from what we currently expect. Examples of forward-looking information in this news release include our expectations regarding receiving refunds, and payments for legal fees and other costs, from CRA; our confidence that the courts would reject any attempt by CRA to utilize the same or similar positions and arguments for subsequent tax years; our intention to ask CRA to accept the rulings the courts have delivered and apply them to subsequent tax years; and our belief that CRA should return the full amount of cash and security that has been paid or otherwise secured by Cameco. Material risks that could lead to different results include the risk that we will not receive the expected refunds and payments from CRA; the risk that courts may accept the same, similar or different positions and arguments advanced by CRA to reach decisions that are adverse to us for other tax years; the risk that CRA will not accept the court rulings for the years that have been resolved in Camecos favour and agree that they should apply to subsequent tax years; and the risk that CRA will not return all or substantially all of the cash and security that has been paid or otherwise secured by Cameco in a timely manner, or at all. In presenting this forward-looking information, we have made assumptions which may prove incorrect about our entitlement and ability to receive the expected refunds and payments from CRA; that courts will reach consistent decisions for subsequent tax years that are based on similar positions and arguments; and that CRA will not successfully advance different positions and arguments that may lead to a different outcome for other tax years. Please also refer to our most recent annual MD&A, which includes a discussion of other material risks that could cause actual results to differ significantly from our current expectations, and other assumptions that we make in presenting forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is designed to help you understand managements current views of our near-term and longer-term prospects, and it may not be appropriate for other purposes. We will not necessarily update this information unless we are required to by securities laws.

Investor inquiries:

Rachelle Girard

306-956-6403

rachelle_girard@cameco.com

Media inquiries:

Jeff Hryhoriw

306-385-5221

jeff_hryhoriw@cameco.com
Demonstrators against Myanmars military takeover returned to the streets on Thursday after a night of armed intimidation by security forces in the countrys second biggest city.

The police rampage in an area of Mandalay where state railway workers are housed showed the conflict between protesters and the new military government is increasingly focused on the businesses and government institutions that sustain the economy.

State railway workers had called a strike on Sunday, joining a loosely organised Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) that was initiated by medical workers and is the backbone of the resistance to the February 1 coup that removed the elected civilian government.

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One labour activist who did not wish to be named said: Many workers and citizens of Myanmar believe that CDM is very effective for making the junta fail.

Thats why health, education, transportation, different government departments and banks employees are participating in CDM together.

The railway strike has received support from ordinary citizens who have placed themselves on tracks to stop trains the military have commandeered.

The efforts by Mandalay residents to block a railway line on Wednesday apparently triggered the retaliation that night.

Less than an hour after the 8pm start of the nightly curfew, gunshots were heard as more than two dozen men in police uniforms, shields and helmets, marched in tight formation by the railway workers housing.

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Numerous videos posted on social media showed flashes as shots were heard, and some were shown shooting slingshots and throwing rocks at buildings. Calls of left, right, left, right could be heard along with shouts of shoot, shoot.

Several reports included photos of people with small wounds, with claims they were caused by rubber bullets. Some unconfirmed reports said several railway workers had been arrested.

The junta has said it took over  preventing parliament from convening and detaining the nations elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and others  because the November election was tainted by voting irregularities.

It replaced the election commission that affirmed Ms Suu Kyis party won by a landslide and says it will hold a new election in a years time.

The Biden government in America has imposed new US sanctions on Myanmar because of the coup, and the United Nations and other countrys governments have called for Ms Suu Kyis elected government to be restored.

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Opponents of the coup are also urging foreign businesses to cut their ties to Myanmar operations they believe benefit the military.

About 200 people demonstrated on Thursday near Kanbauk, in the south of the country, outside premises involved in a major pipeline operation that pumps gas from offshore fields for export.

The demonstrators moved between the premises of Total of France, PTTEP of Thailand and Petronas of Malaysia and later joined with a larger anti-coup demonstration in Kanbauk.

Extracting industries, such as gas and oil drilling and jade mining, are key sources of foreign revenue for Myanmar. Rights campaigners

have appealed to foreign companies involved in those industries to stop paying revenue to the new military government.

Street protests continued in other cities. In Yangon, some tried to hinder security forces by abandoning cars in streets. But small groups of men, including several dressed in Buddhist monks robes, attacked several drivers and their vehicles, smashing windshields in some cases.

On Wednesday night, the military for the fourth day in a row, ordered an internet blackout, almost entirely blocking online access from 1am to 9am.


Bodies with gunshot wounds lay in the streets for days in Ethiopia's holiest city. At night, residents listened in horror as hyenas fed on the corpses of people they knew. But they were forbidden from burying their dead by the invading Eritrean soldiers.

Those memories haunt a deacon at the country's most sacred Ethiopian Orthodox church in Axum, where local faithful believe the ancient Ark of the Covenant is housed. As Ethiopia's Tigray region slowly resumes telephone service after three months of conflict, the deacon and other witnesses gave The Associated Press a detailed account of what might be its deadliest massacre.

For weeks, rumors circulated that something ghastly had occurred at the Church of St. Mary of Zion in late November, with estimates of several hundred people killed. But with Tigray cut off from the world and journalists blocked from entering, little could be verified as Ethiopian and allied fighters pursued the Tigray region's fugitive leaders.

The deacon, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he remains in Axum, said he helped count the bodies _ or what was left after hyenas fed. He gathered victims' identity cards and assisted with burials in mass graves.

He believes some 800 people were killed that weekend at the church and around the city, and that thousands in Axum have died in all. The killing continues: On the day he spoke to the AP last week he said he had buried three people.

``If we go to the rural areas, the situation is much worse,'' the deacon said.

The atrocities of the Tigray conflict have occurred in the shadows. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 for making peace with neighboring Eritrea, announced the fighting as the world focused on the U.S. election. He accused Tigray's regional forces, whose leaders dominated Ethiopia for nearly three decades before he took office, of attacking the Ethiopian military. Tigray's leaders called it self-defense after months of tensions.

While the world clamors for access to Tigray to investigate suspected atrocities on all sides and deliver aid to millions of hungry people, the prime minister has rejected outside ``interference.'' He declared victory in late November and said no civilians had been killed. His government denies the presence of thousands of soldiers from Eritrea, long an enemy of the Tigray leaders.

Ethiopia's narrative, however, has crumbled as witnesses like the deacon emerge. The official overseeing Tigray's state of emergency, Redwan Hussein, didn't respond to questions.

Axum, with its ancient ruins and churches, holds major significance for the Ethiopian Orthodox faithful, who believe that the Ark of the Covenant, built to hold the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments, is located there.

``If you attack Axum, you attack first of all the identity of Orthodox Tigrayans but also of all Ethiopian Orthodox Christians,'' said Wolbert Smidt, an ethnohistorian who specializes in the region. ``Axum itself is regarded as a church in the local tradition, `Axum Zion.'''

In a normal year, thousands of people would have gathered at the Zion church in late November to celebrate the day Ethiopians believe the Ark of the Covenant was brought there after it disappeared from Jerusalem in ancient times.

Instead, the church had become a refuge for people who fled the fighting elsewhere in Tigray. They sheltered there as worship services were underway two days before the anniversary.

Eritrean and Ethiopian soldiers had arrived in Axum more than a week earlier, with heavy bombardment. But on Nov. 28 the Eritrean soldiers returned in force to hunt down members of the local militia who had mobilized against them in Axum and nearby communities.

The deacon recalled soldiers bursting into the church, cornering and dragging out worshippers and shooting at those who fled.

``I escaped by chance with a priest,'' he said. ``As we entered the street, we could hear gunfire all over.'' They kept running, stumbling over the dead and wounded along with others trying to find places to hide.

Most of the hundreds of victims were killed that day, he said, but the shooting and looting continued the following day.

``They started to kill people who were moving from church to home or home to home, simply because they were on the street,'' another witness, visiting university lecturer Getu Mak, told the AP. ``It was a horrible act to see.'' He watched the fighting from his hotel room, then ventured out as it eased.

``On every corner, almost, there was a body,'' he said. ``People were crying in every home.''

Another witness, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation, said soldiers killed a man at his home near the Zion church. ``How can I tell you? So many dead,'' said the man, who has since escaped to the Tigray capital, Mekele.

After the killings in Axum came an uneasy period with soldiers roaming the streets and families searching for loved ones. At night, hyenas descended from nearby hills.

The city began to smell of death as some bodies went untouched for days.

``I saw a horse cart carrying around 20 bodies to the church, but Eritrean soldiers stopped them and told people to throw them back on the street,'' said Getu, the university lecturer.

Finally, when the soldiers left the city to pursue other fighters, residents mobilized to bury the bodies, the deacon said.

``We could not do a formal burial,'' he said. ``We buried them en masse'' in graves near the Zion church and others.

Some of the dead were among the hundreds of thousands of people in Tigray displaced by the conflict and not known to Axum residents. Their identity cards were collected in churches, where they await the discovery of loved ones.

The deacon said residents believe the Eritrean soldiers were taking revenge for the two-decade border war between Ethiopia and Eritrea that played out nearby and ended after Abiy became prime minister. Some of the soldiers told residents they had been instructed to kill people as young as 12, he said.

Another witness, a 39-year-old who gave only his first name, Mhretab, and escaped weeks ago to the United States, asserted that Ethiopian federal police did nothing to rein in the Eritrean soldiers.

``I said to them, 'Listen, you're Ethiopian, they're destroying Ethiopian cities. How is this possible?? Mhretab recalled.

''They said, `What can we do? This shouldn't have happened from the beginning. This is from above,''' indicating that it had been decided by senior officials, he said.

He said he ferried bodies to a mass grave by the Zion church and estimated that he saw 300 to 400 there.

The deacon believes that the Eritrean soldiers, in their hunt for Tigray fighters, have killed thousands more people in villages outside Axum. ``When they fight and lose, they take revenge on the farmers and kill everyone they can find,'' he said. ``This is what we've seen in the past three months.''

Getu echoed that belief, citing his uncle, who survived such a rural confrontation.

The deacon has not gone to the villages outside Axum. His work remains with his church, where services continue even as he says the Tigray conflict is as fierce as ever.

``We're also protecting the church,'' he said. ``Even now, I'm talking to you from there. We are not armed. What we do is mostly watching. And, of course, praying that God protects us.''

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CLEVELAND, Ohio - The Ohio Department of Health on Wednesday night reported 1,294 additional COVID-19 deaths to nursing home patients in its first update of long-term-care facility cases since beginning to correct its botched reporting that had omitted thousands of deaths from Ohios overall total.

The newly reported long-term facility deaths brings the total since the start of the coronavirus to 7,245, or 44% of the 16,513 coronavirus deaths reported in Ohio.

The health department said that among the 1,294 deaths included in Wednesdays weekly nursing home report, 1,150 were from the reconciliation process with Centers for Disease Control records that has resulted in Ohio adding more than 4,000 deaths so far, most from outside of nursing homes.

That corrective work is not yet complete. The health department said it has reconciled its previous reports with records from the CDC through December.

A week ago, on Feb. 7, the long-term-care facilities had accounted for 50% of Ohios COVID-19 deaths. That fell to 44% with the Wednesday report, based largely on the corrections.

Separately, the health department reported 992 current cases involving nursing home patients and 705 involving nursing home staff across the state. Current cases are defined as those active during the seven-day period ending Tuesday.

The case numbers have dropped dramatically since vaccinations began in mid-December. The patient case count was reported at 5,155 in mid-December, dropping to 3,785 by Jan. 6 and then to 1,176 a week ago.

The state began tracking nursing home cases by facility on April 15. There have been 47,990 patient cases and 33,658 staff cases since then.

The health department each Wednesday releases updates on deaths by county and cases by facility for the long-term care centers. Facility-by-facility case details can be found below. No information is released regarding the number of deaths by facility.

This weeks report listed 6,876 deaths for cases since April 15. Separately, the department has said another 369 patient deaths pre-date the start of the more detailed tracking on April 15.

Among the deaths since April 15, Franklin and Cuyahoga counties have the most, 551 each, followed by Summit County with 516.

Below is a list of case totals by facility. If you are having trouble viewing the list, use this link instead.

Rich Exner, data analysis editor for cleveland.com, writes about numbers on a variety of topics. Follow on Twitter @RichExner. See other data-related stories at cleveland.com/datacentral.

Previous stories

See new coronavirus case counts for each Ohio ZIP code amid sharply falling numbers

6 graphs to illustrate Ohio coronavirus trends for vaccines, hospitalizations, deaths and cases: mid-February update

Ohios corrected coronavirus death data unmasks how grim December was for COVID-19

Close to 72% of Cuyahoga County residents live within a mile of a vaccination site
- Capital will accelerate growth of workforce and development of world's first commercial space station

- NASA selected Axiom to begin attaching its privately developed space station modules to the International Space Station as early as 2024

- Axiom recently revealed the first-ever private astronaut ISS crew, launching in January 2022

HOUSTON, Feb. 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Axiom Space, Inc., which is developing the world's first commercial space station, has raised $130M in Series B funding. The round was led by C5 Capital and includes TQS Advisors, Declaration Partners (the investment firm backed by David M. Rubenstein), Moelis Dynasty Investments, Washington University in St. Louis, The Venture Collective, Aidenlair Capital, Hemisphere Ventures, and Starbridge Venture Capital.

The new financing will accelerate the growth of Axiom's workforce and construction of its privately developed space station. The Axiom Station will serve as the central pillar of a thriving network of commerce in Earth's orbit  a linchpin of a space economy that Bank of America and Morgan Stanley both project could be valued at more than $1 trillion in the next few decades.

"Axiom Space is a force in the space sector, and it will become a centerpiece of the C5 Capital portfolio and enhance our vision for a secure global future," said C5 operating partner Rob Meyerson, who will join the Axiom Board of Directors. "The Axiom Station will be the infrastructure upon which we will build many new businesses in space, and it will serve as the foundation for future exploration missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond."

Recent Milestones

In January 2020 , NASA selected Axiom to begin attaching its own space station modules to the International Space Station (ISS) as early as 2024, marking the company as a primary driver of NASA's broad strategy to commercialize LEO. While in its assembly phase, Axiom Station will increase the current usable and habitable volume on ISS and provide expanded research opportunities. By late 2028, Axiom Station will be ready to detach when the ISS is decommissioned and operate independently as its privately owned successor.

, NASA selected Axiom to begin attaching its own space station modules to the International Space Station (ISS) as early as 2024, marking the company as a primary driver of NASA's broad strategy to commercialize LEO. While in its assembly phase, Axiom Station will increase the current usable and habitable volume on ISS and provide expanded research opportunities. By late 2028, Axiom Station will be ready to detach when the ISS is decommissioned and operate independently as its privately owned successor. In January 2021 , Axiom  also the commercial space industry's full-service ISS mission provider  revealed its historic first private astronaut crew. Planned to fly to the ISS no earlier than January 2022 , the crew of Axiom Mission 1 (Ax-1) intend to promote their philanthropic endeavors and conduct scientific research on behalf of organizations they support.

"Axiom Space was founded on the knowledge that commercial infrastructure and innovation in space would offer unique ways to improve life on Earth," said Axiom co-founder and executive chairman Kam Ghaffarian, who provided the company's seed funding through his family office, IBX. "Axiom's sole-selection by NASA to connect to ISS and ability to leverage its key revenue lines are evidence of the company's expertise and a business model that is set up to optimize across a variety of commercial on-orbit opportunities. This highly successful round is a pivotal moment for on-orbit commerce and its implications for our civilization's potential are far-reaching."

Ghaffarian founded and led Stinger Ghaffarian Technologies, which rose to become NASA's second-largest engineering services contractor before being acquired by KBR in 2018. Axiom President & CEO Michael Suffredini was NASA's ISS Program Manager from 2005 to 2015.

"We are proud to partner with Axiom's exceptional management team, who built, led, and visited the International Space Station on behalf of NASA and its partners," Brian Stern, a Partner at Declaration Partners, said. "The next-generation space station we are building today will be a key means of conducting space-based research, manufacturing, communication, and travel for decades to come."

About Axiom Space

Axiom Space was founded in 2016 with the vision of a thriving home in space that benefits every human, everywhere. While building and attaching its commercial modules to the International Space Station to one day form the world's first privately funded commercial space station, Axiom provides universal access to the ISS today by conducting crewed missions for national and private astronauts as well as research and manufacturing customers. More information about Axiom can be found at www.axiomspace.com.

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Second City, the storied comedy theater, which for more than half a century has helped define American humor, was sold to a private equity group on Thursday, the company said in a statement. The group, ZMC, run by Strauss Zelnick, invests in media entities; Zelnick is also the chief executive of Take-Two Interactive Software, the video game conglomerate behind Grand Theft Auto.

It is the first time Second City, which is based in Chicago and has outposts in Hollywood and Toronto, has changed ownership since the 1980s, when Andrew Alexander, a producer and former head of the Toronto location, took over as co-owner and chief executive. Since it opened in 1959, Second City has helped ignite the careers of Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert and Keegan Michael-Key. Pre-pandemic, it was almost certainly the largest live comedy business in the nation, with more than 700 full- and part-time employees, and an Actors Equity stage contract. The sale price was not disclosed but was estimated at around $50 million, according to The Financial Times.

In the statement, Steve Johnston, the president of Second City (also known as The Second City), said, We are thrilled to work with ZMC as we continue to transform the company into an equitable and thriving environment while delivering world-class comedy to our audiences.

The move comes as Second City is grappling with a business drop-off caused by pandemic shutdowns. It curtailed its in-person shows, tours, classes and corporate workshops  a big part of its business  though the theater aimed to rebound with online comedy and digital content. When Alexander announced that he was looking for buyers last October, he said it was time for a new generation with fresh ideas to take the company to the next level.
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The Prince of Wales was today seen for the first time since his father Prince Philip was admitted to hospital - appearing in a video message to urge ethnic minorities to ignore fake news and get their Covid jabs.

Prince Charles, 72, who along with the Duchess of Cornwall, 73, has had his first coronavirus jab, told of his concern about the 'variable uptake' among black and Asian Britons.

He made the comments in keynote address at a British Asian Trust's (BAT) webinar: 'Covid-19 Vaccine - Facts for the BAME Community' - as his father spent his third day at London's King Edward VII hospital after falling ill.

After his address, the BAT aired the preview of an advert featuring celebrities including the comedians Romesh Ranganathan and Meera Syal. The clip was then broadcast on TV on Thursday evening.

Prince Philip, 99, who walked into the building unaided, is believed to be in 'good spirits'. His condition is not coronavirus-related and the royal has already had a Covid jab together with the Queen on January 9.

Prince Charles and Camilla visiting a vaccination centre in Birmingham yesterday with Health Secretary Matt Hancock. Charles' father Philip today remains in hospital

Philip, like the Queen, has already had his Covid jab and his condition is not coronavirus related. He is seen inspecting wedding anniversary cards with the Queen in November 2020

Speaking today, Charles, royal founding patron of the British Asian Trust, said: 'Recently I fear we have reached a most sobering milestone in this seemingly interminable campaign as we marked the tragic loss of 100,000 souls.

Star-studded advert that previwed after Charles' address After Charles' address today, the British Asian Trust aired the preview of a star-studded advert urging people from ethnic minority communities to get the Covid vaccine. Organisers described the 'TV roadblock' - across ITV, Channel 4, Five and multiple Sky channels - as 'unprecedented'. The BBC charter prevents it from taking part in campaigns, so it did not join the other broadcasters in showing the 3.5minute clip at 9.56pm. But it discussed vaccine hesitancy in its programmes throughout the day, giving an estimated total audience reach of 10million people. The coming together of all the major commercial channels and the BBC will be a first in British media history, campaigners say. The independently produced film features celebrities, including Adil Ray, Denise Lewis, David Olusoga, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Meera Syal, Romesh Ranganathan, Shobna Gulati, Beverley Knight and Moeen Ali. Actor and broadcaster Adil Ray, who has led the campaign, said: 'We are in unprecedented times and the fact remains this pandemic disproportionately affects people from ethnic minority communities. 'It's heartening to see all the major broadcasters come together in an equally unprecedented television broadcast at this crucial time - an indication of how serious this situation is. 'We must all engage and encourage one another to do the right thing. The message is simple; take the vaccine, save lives.' Advertisement

'It is clear that the virus has affected all parts of the country, and all parts of society.

'But it is also clear that there are particular challenges faced in particular sections of our society, especially in some ethnic minority communities.

'What saddens me even further is to hear that those challenges are being made even worse by the variable uptake of the vaccines, which finally offers a way out of the suffering of the past year.'

Charles continued: 'The production of the vaccines in such an incredibly short time scale must rank as one of the greatest scientific achievements of our time.

'It has been the result of tremendous international cooperation, generous financial investment by nations and private companies and represents an unprecedented and super human effort by our medical experts.

'Therefore it is surely a tragedy that the benefits of such an extraordinary achievement should not be experienced by everybody.

'Which is why I am so very grateful for all those who have come together here today to help ensure people of whatever background are enabled to take up the vaccine.'

The Duchess of Cornwall told yesterday how she 'leapt for joy' after she and Charles received their Covid jabs last week.

As over 70-year-olds, the couple are in the fourth priority group for the rollout of the jabs.

It comes as Prince Philip spent his third day in hospital today, as royal sources revealed the 'sprightly' Duke was seen 'in very good humour' before his admission.

He was last night kept at the private King Edward VII's Hospital in Marylebone for a second night of rest and observation after a 'short period' of feeling unwell.

Philip reportedly remains in 'good spirits' and is said to have walked unaided into the hospital on Tuesday. The move is said to be a 'precautionary measure'.

The Queen, who yesterday carried on with her royal duties as she spoke by telephone to the First Sea Lord, Admiral Tony Radakin, about the work of the Royal Navy, has remained at Windsor Castle.

It was announced on January 9 that both the Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen had received their first doses of the vaccine, because their age put them in one of the high-risk categories.

Speaking today, Charles, who is royal founding patron of the British Asian Trust, told an online session about his concerns about low vaccine uptake in some ethnic minority groups

King Edward VII Hospital in Marylebone, where the Duke was taken as a 'precautionary measure' on the advice of his doctor

The Duke of Edinburgh reportedly remains in 'good spirits' and is said to have walked unaided into the hospital (where security staff are pictured)

Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed if they have received their second jab, which boosts immunity and is supposed to be administered 12 weeks later - although some Britons have received their second shots sooner.

Prince Charles' vaccine address 'Recently I fear we have reached a most sobering milestone in this seemingly interminable campaign as we marked the tragic loss of 100,000 souls. 'It is clear that the virus has affected all parts of the country, and all parts of society. 'But it is also clear that there are particular challenges faced in particular sections of our society, especially in some ethnic minority communities. 'What saddens me even further is to hear that those challenges are being made even worse by the variable uptake of the vaccines, which finally offers a way out of the suffering of the past year.' Charles continued: 'The production of the vaccines in such an incredibly short time scale must rank as one of the greatest scientific achievements of our time. 'It has been the result of tremendous international cooperation, generous financial investment by nations and private companies and represents an unprecedented and super human effort by our medical experts. 'Therefore it is surely a tragedy that the benefits of such an extraordinary achievement should not be experienced by everybody. 'Which is why I am so very grateful for all those who have come together here today to help ensure people of whatever background are enabled to take up the vaccine.' Advertisement

Of the 15,940,972 who have received jabs, 558,577 have had their second dose - while it was revealed a further 315,797 people had theirs yesterday.

The video message, starring Adil Ray, Beverley Knight, Romesh Ranganathan and Denise Lewis, was played simultaneously on ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5, STV and a number of Sky channels on Thursday at 9.56pm.

The BBC, whose charter prevents it from airing the campaign video, featured information relating to the video throughout the day.

The video begins with the words: 'If you could save someone's life would you?'

TV presenter Ray, singer Knight, comedian Ranganathan and former athlete Lewis are joined by a number of other famous faces in the video.

Historian David Olusoga, England cricketer Moeen Ali, writer Konnie Huq, actor Sanjeev Bhaskar and actress Meera Syal also feature.

In the video, Lewis said: 'It is very, very rare for vaccines to have a long-term side effect, but what we do know is that Covid-19's long-term implications are deadly.'

In a rebuke to a conspiracy theory about the vaccine, Ranganathan said: 'There's no chip or tracker in the vaccine to keep watching where you go.

'Your mobile phone actually does a much better job of that.'

Olusoga added: 'You may not always trust what you hear and what you see, but you can trust the vaccine.'

More than 15 million people in the UK have received a coronavirus jab.

Ray said in a statement: 'We are in unprecedented times and the fact remains this pandemic disproportionately effects people from ethnic minority communities.

'It's heartening to see all the major broadcasters come together in an equally unprecedented television broadcast at this crucial time. An indication of how serious this situation is.

'We must all engage and encourage one another to do the right thing.

'The message is simple; take the vaccine, save lives.'

During yesterday's visit to a Birmingham vaccination centre, the couple met with front line health and care workers administering and receiving the Covid-19 vaccine

Royal biographer Penny Junor joked that doctors and nurses at the private hospital probably 'would not want' the Duke of Edinburgh on their shift as he gets 'irritated' by people making a fuss of him.

There has been concern in Government at the rate of vaccine uptake among some communities - including some ethnic minorities.

Professor Stephen Powis, the national medical director of NHS England, said that he urges everyone who gets a letter to get the vaccine without hesitation.

He said officials have been working with faith groups and local community leaders to encourage everybody to come forward.

'Don't hesitate at all. These vaccines are safe, they're effective against Covid, they'll protect you, they'll protect your loved ones, and of course they'll help get society back to normal again,' he said.

The Government has been urged to prioritise vaccinating ethnic minority groups after research showed that people of South Asian background have continued to experience disproportionately high Covid-19 death rates.

Research published recently showed that Bangladeshi and Pakistani people have experienced an 'alarming' higher risk of dying with coronavirus throughout both waves of the pandemic, compared to British white people.

The authors said people from South Asian groups are more likely to live in deprived areas and in large, multigenerational households. A higher proportion of Pakistani and Bangladeshi men work as taxi drivers, shopkeepers and proprietors than any other ethnic background - occupations with a higher risk of exposure to coronavirus.

Prince Charles and his eldest son, Prince William, both contracted coronavirus during the first wave of the pandemic.

Charles was described as having mild symptoms and lost his sense of taste and smell for a period, while it was reported William was hit 'pretty hard' by the virus.
The UK's first national lockdown from March 2020 and its immediate aftermath saw a massive shift in consumer habits that was initially mandated but then lingered as shops and restaurants opened but risks from the virus remained.

A new study from the universities of Cambridge and Newcastle used data from the ONS to compare retail, hospitality and online sales in the UK between March and August 2020 with average figures for the same months for the years 2010-2019.

Researchers took an approach normally used to estimate cumulative excess deaths to try and measure the impact of the COVID-19 shock on sales of UK retailers and restaurants.

They say their economic models suggest that shops predominantly selling food, such as supermarkets, saw a 5-10% bump in sales in lockdown, adding up to an additional 4 billion in earnings over "business as usual" expectations.

This is "consistent with large-scale stockpiling", they say, as people prepared for an indefinite future of home-cooked meals.

With many shops shut and people stuck indoors, online sales experienced a major boost, peaking at around a third higher than business-as-usual estimates during the first lockdown - an increase that amounts to an additional 4 billion.

Non-food high street shops, those selling everything from books to clothes, saw sales evaporate during the first lockdown when they had to shut, costing around 20 billion in turnover. Sales returned to normal once national lockdown lifted.

The shortfall for bars, pubs and restaurants was "dramatic", say researchers, with the first UK lockdown causing sales to fall as much as 90% below the business-as-usual level, equating to around a 25 billion revenue loss.

Hospitality sales saw some recovery post-lockdown, as government schemes such as 'Eat Out to Help Out' kicked in, but were still 25% below estimated business-as-usual revenues by the end of summer.

Writing in the journal Global Food Security, researchers say they found no evidence of a post-lockdown fall in food-shop sales as people used up their stockpiles, or an "overshoot" on the high street due to "pent-up demand" during lockdown.

"Lockdown restrictions led to behavior changes in consumers and retailers that caused huge fluctuations in sales," said Dr Shaun Larcom from the University of Cambridge, who co-authored the study with his Cambridge colleague Dr Po-Wen She and Dr Luca Panzone from the Newcastle University.

"Shopping frequency dramatically reduced, and footfall vanished from many commercial areas, with people going online or using local outlets within residential areas when they had to shop."

"Consequences of lockdown, such as long queues outside supermarkets, led to 'forced experimentation'. Consumers had to explore new purchasing methods," said Larcom, from Cambridge's Department of Land Economy.

"Many people shopped online for the first time. They also bought directly from wholesalers or even farms, and trialed different types of home cooking. When people are forced to experiment, it can lead to behavior changes that last well beyond the life of a crisis."

The researcher say that, while online sales peaked during lockdown, they remained above pre-lockdown levels in August 2020, which they suggest may be early signs of a more permanent "structural change" in shopping habits.

Recent media reports suggest that the UK Treasury is considering a one-off tax for online retailers who saw profits boosted by the lockdowns.

Understanding the monetary impact of the pandemic is important to gauge the magnitude of the damage, and can help government design policies to assist these sectors. Food services and non-food retailers lost a huge share of their yearly business, compared to food stores and online retailers that actually gained from lockdown. One-size-fits-all policy approaches across retail won't work." Dr Luca Panzone, University of Newcastle
(Newser)  Kroger is closing two more stores, this time in Seattle, rather than providing workers with hazard pay. A law that went into effect this month in the city requires grocery stores of a certain size to pay workers an extra $4 per hour amid the COVID-19 pandemic, CNN reports. As a result, the grocery store chain has decided to close two of its Quality Food Center (QFC) stores in April, the Washington Post reports. QFC says in a statement that operating costs have increased during the pandemic, and the stores in question were consistently losing money. "Unfortunately, Seattle City Council didn't consider that grocery storeseven in a pandemicoperate on razor-thin profit margins in a very competitive landscape," the statement says. Hazard pay would make it "impossible to operate a financially sustainable business."

story continues below

Hazard pay measures are increasing, especially along the West Coast, and Kroger already announced it would close a Ralph's and a Food 4 Less in Long Beach, Calif., in response to a similar measure. Kroger, which paid an extra $2 per hour in hazard pay in the early stages of the pandemic but stopped that practice in May, says it has already invested $1.5 billion on worker pay and safety measures. But many grocery store chains have profited amid the pandemic, the Seattle Times reports. Kroger's profits doubled from $1.3 billion to $2.6 billion during the first three quarters of 2020 compared to the first three quarters of 2019, even after accounting for the cost of hazard pay and safety measures. "Kroger has literally made billions in pandemic profits off the sacrifices of grocery workers in Seattle and across the country," the president of a union that represents many Kroger workers says. "Krogers action today not only threatens these workers, but it also threatens the local food supply." (Read more Kroger stories.)
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LONDON (Reuters) - England's third national COVID-19 lockdown is helping to reduce infections, a study found on Thursday, but the prevalence of cases remains high as Prime Minister Boris Johnson eyes a cautious route to re-opening the economy.

Johnson is due to set out a roadmap out of the lockdown, which began on January 5, on Monday, and has said that it will be a cautious and prudent approach.

The study, known as REACT-1 and led by researchers at Imperial College London, found that national prevalence was two thirds lower between Feb 4 and 13 than it had been in the previous survey that covered Jan 6-22.

"It's really encouraging news. We do think that lockdown is having an effect. We've seen this quite rapid decline now between January and this month," Paul Elliott, director of the programme at Imperial, told reporters.

"But... the actual prevalence is still very high. We're only back where we were in September."

The latest figures showed that 51 per 10,000 people were infected, down from 157 per 10,000 in the January survey, and that it is taking 15 days for infections to halve.

Prevalence fell across all age groups, dropping from 0.93% to 0.30% among the over 65s, although the researchers said they did not have evidence that this was being driven by the vaccine rollout, which has been targeted at older groups.

REACT-1 is one of England's largest and most closely watched prevalence surveys, and the researchers issued the interim results in a pre-print that had not been peer-reviewed.

Health minister Matt Hancock said that the findings were an encouraging sign that lockdown was working.

"While the trends we've observed are good news, we need to all work to keep infections down by sticking to the measures," he said.

(Reporting by Alistair Smout; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
A man accused of murdering his wife by lighting her on fire had previously threatened to kill her in a way that nobody could tell, and followed through on that threat, a prosecutor has told a jury.

Kulwinder Singh, 42, is on trial in the NSW Supreme Court accused of killing Parwinder Kaur, 32, at their Rouse Hill home in Sydneys north-west on the afternoon of December 2, 2013. He has pleaded not guilty.

Kulwinder Singh (left) is accused of murdering Parwinder Kaur (right) by lighting her on fire.

On Thursday, in an opening statement, Crown prosecutor Philip Hogan said a neighbour heard a loud, bloodcurdling scream just after 2pm and looked out the window to see Ms Kaur engulfed in flames and screaming for help.

Ms Kaur sustained severe burns and was taken to hospital, where she later died.
The mysterious death of a brilliant young Italian doctor has taken a dark new twist with claims that he was murdered by the Sicilian Mafia.

Attilio Manca (34), was found dead at his home in Viterbo, central Italy, in 2004, supposedly of a heroin overdose.

Monica Mileti, his friend, was convicted of administering the dose and jailed for five years, but on Tuesday an appeals court in Rome acquitted her of any involvement in the urologists death.

Suspicions have turned instead to Cosa Nostra, Sicilys Mafia network.

Fabio Repici, a lawyer representing the victims parents, said they had always suspected their son was murdered.

Several pentiti  Mafia informers  claimed Dr Manca, originally from Sicily, had been compelled to travel to Marseille months before his death to treat Bernardo Provenzano, a notorious Cosa Nostra chief, who was in hiding and suffering from prostate cancer.

Bernie the Tractor  so called for his propensity to mow down rivals  evaded capture for a record 43 years before his arrest in 2006. He died in 2016 in a prison hospital, aged 83.

Five informers reportedly told judicial authorities the doctor was murdered to keep secret Provenzanos whereabouts.

There were inconsistencies in the overdose theory  Dr Manca was left-handed, yet needle marks were found in his left arm.

Nor were there any fingerprints found on the syringes that delivered the fatal overdose.

Giulia Sarti, an Italian MP on the parliamentary justice commission, which scrutinised the case, said: The whole overdose theory is false and has now collapsed. Attilio Manca was never drugged or committed suicide; he was a victim of the Mafia.

Angela Manca, the victims mother, told Corriere della Sera newspaper: We want truth and justice. We cant allow the memory of my son to be besmirched in such a horrible way.

Provenzano was born in Corleone, the Sicilian town synonymous with Cosa Nostra which gave its name to the fictional family in the Godfather films.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
Rinaldo Nazzaro, 47, the founder of The Base, a neo-Nazi terrorist organization, once worked for the Department of Homeland Security, it has been reported

The 47-year-old American founder of a neo-Nazi terrorist organization who is currently living in Russia was once employed by the Department of Homeland Security, the federal agency confirmed on Wednesday.

Rinaldo Nazzaro, the founder and leader of The Base, reportedly posted letters of appreciation from DHS and the Pentagon complimenting him for his job performance.

He is thought to have worked in intelligence analysis at DHS and in terrorism training for the military.

One letter that has Marine Corps letterhead praised Nazzaro for helping to kill 13 targeted insurgents.

The three undated letters included one from DHS as well as two that featured official Marine Corps letterhead, according to Vice.

I can confirm that Rinaldo Nazzaro worked at DHS from 2004 to 2006, a spokesperson for DHS told Vice.

DHS has not commented on the authenticity of the letter, which Nazzaro posted on the social media site Telegram, a platform that is thought to be popular among far-right extremists.

'Your outstanding service has been greatly appreciated,' says the DHS letter that Nazzaro is said to have received from his then-boss.

'All the best in the future - I will miss you.'

Nazzaro posted a letter showing official DHS letterhead. The letter praises Nazzaro's work performance. He is also reported to have posted similar glowing letters from the Pentagon

DailyMail.com has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment. The image above shows DHS headquarters in Washington, DC

The same letter also contains a handwritten note which read: 'Thanks for all the personal work you did to make DHS/Intelligence Analysis [...] as good as they were. You did a superb job.'

Nazzaro also received glowing letters from the United States Marine Corps.

One of them reportedly read: 'Furthermore, your targets led to an assessed 13 enemy killed in action.

'Your performance as an intelligence professional reflects an impressive understanding of the insurgency in Afghanistan and tireless devotion to duty.'

DailyMail.com has sought comment from DHS and the Pentagon.

Nazzaro's past work for sensitive government agencies in the field of national security underscores a problem facing policymakers - how to identity and root out extremists in the armed forces and security services.

Newly confirmed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told senators last month that the Pentagon's job is to 'keep America safe from our enemies. But we can't do that if some of those enemies lie within our own ranks.'

Austin is not the first secretary to grapple with the problem. Racism has long been an undercurrent in the military.

While leaders insist only a small minority hold extremist views, there have been persistent incidents of racial hatred and, more subtly, a history of implicit bias in what is a predominantly white institution.

Based on 2018 data, roughly two-thirds of the militarys enlisted corps is white and about 17 per cent is black, but the minority percentage declines as rank increases.

An image of The Base ringleader 'Norman Spear' (left) is seen alongside a 1994 image of 'Ron Nazzaro' in the Villanova student newspaper (right). In January of last year, The Guardian revealed Nazzaro, who has used several aliases online, as the leader of The Base

The US population overall is about three-quarters white and 13 per cent black, according to Census Bureau statistics.

The Base is considered a white supremacist terrorist organization that was founded in 2018 in Washington State, according to the Southern Povery Law Center.

The organization believes society should be pushed to collapse so a white ethnostate can arise out of the ruins, the SPLC said.

Unlike other extremist groups, it's not focused on promulgating propaganda  instead the group aims to bring together highly skilled members to train them for acts of violence.

Nazzaro, who identity as the head of The Base was revealed in January of last year by The Guardian, was heard on secret recordings indicating that he hoped to recruit trained members of western militaries to his organization.

'We want things to accelerate, we want things to get worse in the United States,' Nazzaro is heard saying in tapes obtained by the SPLC.

Memebers of the Base are seen posing for a photo with their faces obscured. The Base is considered a white supremacist terrorist organization that was founded in 2018 in Washington State

'And from that point by virtue of the chaos that ensues, that would naturally present some opportunities for us  law and order starts breaking down, power vacuums start emerging...for those who are organized and ready, to take advantage of those.'

Last year, federal authorities arrested three alleged members of The Base in Georgia for planning to kill an antifa couple.

Michael Helterbrand of Dalton, 25; Jacob Kaderli of Dacula, 19; Luke Lane of Silver Creek, 21 face charges of conspiring to kill members of a militant anti-fascist group and participation in a criminal gang.

An analysis of information in charging documents by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution revealed the group's 'regional training camp' a few miles south of downtown Rome, Georgia.

An undercover law enforcement agent visited the 105-acre property in Silver Creek to participate in training with the group, according to an affidavit.

According to the affidavit, members of The Base used the compound 'to prepare for the 'Boogaloo,' a term used by members of The Base to describe the collapse of the United States and subsequent race war.'

Three other suspected neo-Nazis, who are also members of that group, were arrested in January of last year - just days before they were believed to be headed to a pro-gun rally in Virginia where they were alleged to have plotted a violent provocation.

A screen capture from a video posted to the group's chatroom shows members conducting drills at a recent 'hate camp'. The organization believes society should be pushed to collapse so a white ethnostate can arise out of the ruins, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center

US citizens Brian Lemley, 33, and William Bilbrough, 19, as well as Canadian Patrik Jordan Mathews, 27, were all charged with felony firearms violations.

Last September, Vice reported that Nazzaro was paid by the Pentagon to work with US special forces on counterterrorism initiatives.

The news site reported that Nazzaro was employed by the Department of Defense in 2014 as a contractor assigned to work with Special Operations Command (SOCOM).

SOCOM is a secretive organization with the US military which is normally assigned to target Islamic jihadists groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS.

Nazzaro advised special forces officers on military training and counterterrorism in the MIddle East in 2014, according to Vice.

In May 2019, Nazzaro reportedly told other members of The Base in encrypted chats online that he did multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan over five years.

He said he was a targeteer and a contractor during his military service. Nazzaro also posted a photo of himself in what appears to be Baghdad, according to Vice.

Luke Austin Lane, 22, Jacob Kaderli, 19, and Michael Helterbrand, 25, (left to right) were arrested in Georgia in January 2020 on charges of conspiracy to commit murder and participation in a criminal gang. They allegedly plotted to assassinate an antifa couple

Last June, the BBC reported that Nazzaro was directing operations for The Base from his apartment in St. Petersburg, Russia.

He reportedly moved to Russia after marrying a Russian woman that he met in New York City.

The BBC also reported that Nazzaro was once employed as an analyst for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Nazzaro, a native of northern New Jersey, is considered an unlikely candidate to have turned to extremism given that he attended a prestigious Roman Catholic prep school before enrolling at Villanova University in Philadelphia.

According to NorthJersey.com, Nazzaro was on track to graduate from Villanova with a degree in philosophy, but he left the school before finishing his studies in 1994. The reason he left early is unclear.

Nazzaro now goes by aliases on social media, where he appears as Norman Spear or Roman Wolf.

Thomas Paine (17371809) produced publications that helped shape the course of both the American and French Revolutions including Common Sense, The Crisis, The Rights of Man, and The Age of Reason. (Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

What Would Thomas Paine Have Said Today?

Commentary

Men who look upon themselves born to reign, and others to obey, soon grow insolent; selected from the rest of mankind their minds are early poisoned by importance; and the world they act in differs so materially from the world at large, that they have but little opportunity of knowing its true interests, and when they succeed to the government are frequently the most ignorant and unfit of any throughout the dominions.Thomas Paine (17371809), Common Sense

One afternoon, I fell asleep watching CNN. Then I woke and started watching Fox News. I fell asleep again, and as I slumbered, I remembered Thomas Paine. I asked myself, what would he have said or what would he have written, if he were alive today?

I suspect he may have written the following essay:

Youre an American, born and raised. And if youre not, youre a citizen. The Founding Fathers are your heroes. So are Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King Jr.

But more and more, youve seen the police defunded, politicians and mayors supporting well-funded rioters, and youve read about financial corruption at the municipal, state, and federal level. You despair at the words diversity, multiculturalism, and equity, the code words of the new tyrants.

You want your country back, and you despair that traditional politics cant do that for you. What to do?

One answer is to take one example from a range of institutional recommendations and experiments that left-leaning Western development experts have tried out in the developing world to develop, strengthen, and empower local communities and apply them to your own local, probably suburban, and uniquely American situation.

Let me outline how some of this kind of thinking and practice may help householders and members of neighborhoods to take back control of their lives, while the institutions around them are collapsing, or even persecuting them for their constitutionally based values and beliefs.

Problems or Visions

In the developing world, community development doesnt succeed when you get together and outline problems and their solutions. Individuals dont succeed doing this, nor do communities. Problems are infinite. And, resources are always limited.

The Appreciative Inquiry method and movement brings people together in an open, participatory yet disciplined way to vision what kind of future they want and how they can access the resources to get there.

So, lets say an Appreciative Inquiry has been carried out by Americans who have children in school and who believe in the Constitution, Western civilization, the rule of law, and the Great Books and Conversation of those dead white males whom we revere, and that they want to pass this worldview to their children.

Lets say that at the end of the process, the vision includes education, security, health, banking, community communication, employment, food, voluntarism, and governance and legal action.

These are some of the issues that I imagine would come up in a proper Appreciative Inquiry from citizens and parents of children in U.S. towns and cities who want the Constitution to truly live. Given the fact that most public institutions are corrupted or have been infiltrated by the left, one must start somewhere, and with a sector and an institution that you can control. So, one starts with a school.

Education: Primary, Secondary, and College

Schools are where the cultural Marxists deliberately alienate children from the values and worldview of their parents. Theyre winning the curriculum battle. And so, if you dont take control of your school, youve already lost your child to political correctness and gender confusion. Theyll also be taught to hate the West and accept the now-received wisdom that all white men and women, past and present, were and are racist.

Therefore, families must band together to start and run their own school. What is a school? A good church basement, a few motivated and well-paid teachers, and lots of volunteer work from the families of the students. Ah, but everyone will fight over the curriculum. Wont they? No.

And so, the criteria for school membership (remember its private) must be an endorsement of the Constitution and the school mandate that reflects it. If you dont agree, dont send your children there, and if you change your mind, the school can ask you to take your child out. But wont this lead to unfairness?

No. If members believe in the Constitution, theyll want the kind of education that the Founding Fathers received. Philosopher and educator Mortimer Adler has clearly outlined what this is in a modern setting in his book Paideia. His is a simple but well-thought-out formula, and a few schools have implemented the program.

Add to this a Great Books-based three-year undergraduate degree from a local college (you can start your own) and costs come down, while the quality of education goes up. All other alternatives are forms of political correctness.

But a school is also an institution, and it can provide its members with goods and services that the wider society may be failing to provide, or which does so on condition of endorsement of political correctness.

So, lets explore just some of the areas that a school can help in taking back your country and Constitution. Here are some. No doubt therell be people who come with creative additions.

Everyone Wants Security

What do you do if you cant trust the police? You must organize your own security. The model is Neighborhood Watch, plus. Thats to say, homeowners and neighborhoods must organize their own security. But this may not be possible if your neighbor wants to defund the police. So, you can create a school security network where families of a student pay for extra protection.

There are private security companies that can help you. They can also participate with the school for a price. They can be contracted by the school members. At best, they can also liaise with a local police force on behalf of registered families so that theres a three-way channel of communication and participationfrom the citizen to their security service provider and then to the police and back down.

It goes without saying that citizens must organize to monitor crime in their area, monitor arrests, and ensure fair sentencing and make sure criminals dont return to their communities after incarcerationa difficult issue. Thats more challenging but not insurmountable.

Everyday Health

The U.S. health insurance system is designed to make the payee the holder of risk. You get diagnosed with a disease. You need serious medical intervention. You pay through the nose. Your insurance company then tries to find ways of not paying you back.

You go bankrupt. Yes, bankruptcy to pay medical bills is one of the prime factors in familial economic collapse in the United States. And then theres the Dartmouth Report, which demonstrates that the number of medical interventions rises with the density of doctors in an area, meaning doctors recommend procedures to make money and not to help people live healthy lives.

So, you need a local clinic (or better still a health center, a term thats straight out of the leftists playbook). It needs to be funded by your school. It needs some nurses, some doctors, and some lab and testing equipment to deal with the common ailments of our time for students and their families.

It must be supported by group funding, but it need not be part of traditional insurance. Group insurance may go back to its primitive origins. You pay in, and when someone gets really ill it helps them.

A health center can actually provide you with information and lectures on healthy eating and living! Fancy that.

Money Thats Safe

Banks cant be trusted. So, you need to open your own bank. The model shouldnt be commercial. It should serve the people who invest in it. The credit union is a proven way of banking, helping people save and not setting up punitive mortgages. In the province of Ontario alone, credit unions move billions of dollars each year.

Everyone knows that banks and big government are in it together to disadvantage the consumer. Just remember the crisis of 200708. The evidence is overwhelming.

It may even be possible to link the credit union to holdings in gold, a kind of localized return to the gold standard.

Communication and Community

This kind of voluntary, networked community of parents and families of students can have its own websites and its own radio station, which provides interactive communication from like-minded members and their families. Its your digital town hall/PTA, and it should provide healthy commentary on music, film, TV, books, magazines, and what to or not to watch, and why.

Employment

Yes, therell always be inequalities of result. But for those who are unemployed, they need all the networks and assistance of their school association to get them back on track, as they need their own social worker for those families who are just not making ends meet or who have special needs.

If youre unemployed or underemployed, the parents of the children who go to the same school as your children will be better motivated to help if they can. Its in their interest to do so.

Food Co-ops

This is a time-proven movement on the left that succeeds at times, but needs to be applied to a new form of community development. It substantially reduces costs. Its a no-brainer. All families with children at the school should have access and volunteer.

Voluntarism at Every Level

The above institutions should provide a wealth of opportunities for adult volunteers, and the school should provide opportunities for non-political or more precisely depoliticized volunteering for teenagers. People need to reconnect with nature, and Boy Scouts and Girl Guides (you can make up your own names) need to be reconstituted, according to the values that were in place in these organizations before they were overtaken by political correctness. This can be done locally.

I know of no place in the United States where these kinds of initiatives are bundled and managed by parents, in the way proposed here, using a private school as an institution to bring back American values.

Monitoring and Governance

We are surrounded by institutions that are supposed to help uspolice, school boards, local government, banks, etc.but theyre broken. They must be monitored, and when found wanting, sued. A legal fund needs to be established to do so. Yes, theres a litigious side to American life, and this is where it belongs.

At the same time, dont be surprised if one or any number of these kinds of institutions or their representatives comes after you and sues your school for institutionalized racism or lack of equity. As Smokey the Bear used to say in the 50s, Be prepared!

Were living in an age of pernicious lawfare. You wont be left alone and will need a defense fund or pro bono lawyers to act on your behalf.

Conclusion

The goal described here is quite simple: to reconstitute America from the community level by making of a school, a community. The left has destroyed most institutions in this country. Thats tediously well-documented.

The right is far too preoccupied with pointing out how wrong the left is. The leftists are laughing at them (literally all the way to the bank or a government-funded program) for theyre abrogating our parental and constitutional authority from the first day of school, right through college and graduate school. Is it not time for the right to adopt the successful techniques of the left and apply them to our immediate needs?

Heres what Paine had to say: If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace.

I recommend we listen.

Geoffrey Clarfield is an anthropologist-at-large who has spent 20 years traveling, living, and working in East Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Riga, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :Latvia on Thursday said it would ban entry to a Russian tv host after he called Hitler a "very brave man" while disparaging Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.

"The glorification of Nazism in any form is unacceptable to Latvia," Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics wrote on Twitter.

Vladimir Solovyov, known as a Kremlin propagandist, is on a list of 35 people whom Navalny's team has urged the European Union to sanction.

Hitler "was personally a very brave man", Solovyov could be heard saying in a live broadcast.

"Unlike this codpiece Fuhrer (Navalny), he (Hitler) did not get out of army service.

He fought honourably in the First World War," Solovyov said.

Navalny, an opposition leader who is in jail on various charges, has also been accused of defaming a 94-year-old World War II veteran in a suit that could bring additional penalties.

The campaigner referred to the veteran and others who appeared in a pro-Kremlin video as "traitors".

Latvia and the other Baltic states of Estonia and Lithuania, which were once ruled by Moscow and are now all members of the EU and the eurozone, have been highly critical of Russia over Navalny's detention and a crackdown on protests.
Amazon kept up a cat-and-mouse game with the Indian regulators for years, secret documents uncovered by news agency Reuters have shown. The retail giant allegedly pulled a veil over, inter alia, its preferential treatment towards a cabal of few dozen sellers, undermining the interest of lakhs of other sellers associated with it. This was achieved while dodging several e-commerce regulations rolled out in the country, the documents suggest.

Certain 'secret/not for disclosure' details reflect that 33 Amazon sellers, out of its over four lakh sellers, accounted for one-third of the value of all goods sold on the company's website. Other company documents show that two other sellers - merchants in which Amazon had indirect equity stake - held around 35 per cent of the platform's sales revenue in early 2019.

Simply put, 35 sellers, out of more than four lakh merchants affiliated with Amazon India's website, in early 2019 accounted for around two-thirds of sales happening on the platform.

ALSO READ: Amazon documents disclose secret strategy to dodge India regulators

This goes against Amazon's public message that it works to uplift small businesses in India. This also corroborates allegations by small retailers that Amazon favours certain major sellers and violates federal regulations.

The two retailers, in which Amazon had indirect equity stake, are Cloudtail and Appario. These sellers, referred to as Special Merchants in Amazon documents, were formed to circumvent e-commerce regulations in India, as per the report.

Amazon reportedly entered a joint venture with Infosys co-founder NR Narayana Murthy, which was used to create Cloudtail in 2014. While Amazon maintained that it did extend the same privileges to Cloudtail as any other seller, company documents show that it was deeply engaged in its expansion.

"The Special Merchant (SM) was launched in Aug-14 and we helped SM quickly ramp up and gain scale through Q4," stated an Amazon India report, dated February 23, 2015, quoted by Reuters. "Launch, stabilise, grow Special Merchant; make it profitable."

ALSO READ: 'Modi is not an intellectual': Amazon's description of PM in internal documents

Amazon had plans to ensure Cloudtail accounted for 40 per cent of Amazon.in sales. To this end, the report reveals, Amazon helped Cloudtail "acquire key relationships' with major tech companies, including Apple, Microsoft and OnePlus.

While India's e-commerce rules prohibited retail platforms from holding inventories, internal company documents show that Amazon was effectively treating Cloudtail's inventory as its own around 2016. To comply with a 25 per cent cap on sales by a single seller, Amazon moved the procurement of some mobile phone brands Cloudtail was offering to Amazon Wholesale, a wholesale business-to-business operation in India which did not fall under the foreign investment restrictions. Amazon Wholesale then supplied these products to "certain" sellers, who in turn sold them on Amazon.in, according to a 2016 internal global regulatory update.

In 2017, Amazon came up with another special merchant - Appario - created under a joint venture with an entity backed by the family of Ashok Patni, a pioneer in the Indian IT outsourcing sector.

In December 2018, Modi government restricted vendors in which marketplaces, such as Amazon, have an equity interest from selling products on these marketplaces to check deep discounting practices. The new limits forced Amazon to restructure its relationships with Cloudtail and Appario, the two special merchants in which it held indirect stakes. The two then accounted for around 35 per cent of Amazon's online sales, the Reuters report said.

ALSO READ: How Amazon used Cloudtail, Appario to snowball its India sales

On February 1, 2019, thousands of products offered by Cloudtail and Appario were removed from Amazon's website in accordance with new rules. They were reinstated days later were back as Amazon reduced its equity stake in the parent companies of the two sellers. This maneuver, the company believed, made it compliant with the new rules, Reuters reported.

Amazon refuted this report, maintaining that it has always complied with the Indian regulations.

"Amazon remains compliant with all Indian laws. In the last several years, there have been number of changes in regulations governing the marketplaces and Amazon has, on each occasion taken rapid action to ensure compliance. The story therefore seems to have outdated information and does not show any non-compliance," an Amazon spokesperson stated.

In the meantime, we continue to focus on delivering first class service to India's consumers, and helping India's manufacturers and SMBs reach customers across India and around the world, the spokesperson further added.

ALSO READ: 'Outdated info, no non-compliance': Amazon trashes claims of dodging Indian rules
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  A prime suspect in the 2019 killing of four policemen in Negros Oriental was killed in a clash with operatives early Thursday in Mandaluyong City.

The Philippine National Police identified the suspect as Ryan Manguilimutan, also known as "James" and "Ka Ignacio."

PNP chief Gen. Debold Sinas said Manguilimutan was recruited by a rebel group in 2013.

The PNP said the suspect and six other members of the rebel group intercepted and brutally murdered the four police officers from the Regional Mobile Force Battalion 7, who were gathering information in Barangay Mabato in Ayungon town last July 2019.

The suspects took the victims' firearms and personal belongings.

Authorities retrieved during Thursday's operation one pistol which was issued to one of the slain cops, ammunition, and a brown sling bag containing Manguilimutan's belongings, among others.
SALEM, Ore.  Governor Kate Brown said on Thursday that in-person learning has more than doubled since December, and "most" Oregon elementary school students will be in classrooms by the end of April.

Eight weeks ago, I directed the Oregon Department of Education and the Oregon Health Authority to put more schools on track to return students to in-person instruction, with a focus on our youngest learners," Governor Brown said in a statement. "Since then, thanks to the incredible work of our superintendents, school board members, educators, parents, and community members, Oregon has more than doubled the number of students learning in-person, to 116,749."

By March, Brown said, more districts plan to have elementary school students on hybrid instruction  including the state's second-largest district, Salem-Keizer, which includes more than 17,000 elementary students. Brown anticipated that most Oregon elementary students would be in classrooms again by the end of April.

I am thrilled to see so many of Oregons school districts and teachers working hard to help return our children to the most effective learning environment: in-person, personalized education," Brown continued. "Now, middle and high school students must get the same chance, so that all students have the opportunity to benefit from in-person instruction, regardless of the community in which they live."

RELATED: Medford students return to the classroom

Brown said that the state is using $500 million in federal funding to bolster safety measures in schools and purchase PPE for students and staff. According to her, all educators who want the COVID-19 vaccine "will soon be fully vaccinated."

It's difficult to know for certain how many educators have already received at least their first doses. As of February 17, the state reported that 707,241 doses of a vaccine had been administered throughout the state, with 205,901 people fully vaccinated.

Members of Phase 1a were first to be eligible for the vaccine under Oregon's plan  a group estimated at roughly 400,000 people. Educators and childcare workers officially became eligible on January 25, and the group includes roughly 152,000 people.

The science is clear: with proper health and safety protocols in place, there is very little risk of COVID-19 transmission in schools," Brown said, citing the latest CDC guidelines released last week. "As districts implement the more than 160 health and safety protocols outlined in Oregons Ready Schools, Safe Learners guidance, we can reopen our school buildings in a way that protects students, staff, and our communities."

When I made my announcement in December, many thought in-person elementary was far beyond reach," Brown continued. "At the height of our winter surge, COVID-19 case counts were high and hospital capacity was threatened. Since then, thanks to the smart choices of Oregonians, our case rates, hospitalizations, and deaths from COVID-19 have steadily declined, and even our largest school districts, including in the tri-county area, today meet or exceed Oregons advisory school metrics for hybrid in-person instruction.

Our students only grow up once. We cannot let the school year end with the class of 2021 never having set foot in Oregon high schools. I know that some have had their doubts. But we can do this, by continuing to work together. It is within our power to provide every Oregon student the opportunity for in-person instruction this school year.
Ford said Thursday it's recalling certain vehicles related to Takata airbag and rear suspension issues.

According to the auto manufacturer, used vehicles may have Takata safety issues for the following vehicles:

2004-11 Ford Ranger,

2005-14 Ford Mustang,

2006 Ford GT,

2008-12 Ford Fusion,

2009-11 Mercury Milan,

2010-12 Lincoln MKZ,

2007-10 Ford Edge and

2007-10 Lincoln MKX vehicles.

"At the request of the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Ford is issuing a safety recall for all 153,107 of these vehicles, notifying owners that they can visit their dealer for an inspection and, if necessary, an airbag inflator replacement," the company said.

The company also issued a safety recall for over 1,600 2021 Ford Bronco Sport vehicles. The issues is tied to rear suspension modules that may not be fully secured, affecting stability and potentially increasing risks, the company said.

Ford said it's unaware of any accidents or injuries related to either recall.

Dealers can assist drivers. Click here for more information.


GREENMAN, the Dublin-based property investment firm, is progressing with its acquisition plans as it has done a 46 million deal for seven new grocery retail outlets being developed by Schroder Holding GmbH, a German property developer. The framework agreement will secure the rights for the Irish firm to acquire the standalone outlets.

Located in strong catchment areas in eastern Germany, the supermarket properties are all pre-let to retail chain EDEKA on 15-year leases and are set to be delivered between 2021 and 2023.

James McEvoy, head of acquisitions at Greenman, (GMO) said: This latest agreement is a key part of our strategy to strengthen and maintain our investment pipeline
German audio brand Sennheiser has announced it is looking for a new partner who can buy its consumer audio business (headphones and soundbars).

A partnership for the Consumer business will enable Sennheiser to place its focus and resources on strengthening its Pro Audio, Business Communications and Neumann business units, the company said in a statement late on Tuesday.

The company has four business units in total: Pro Audio, Business Communications, Neumann and Consumer Electronics.

"In all of these areas, we see great potential for growth. At the same time, they are characterised by different customer groups, customer requirements, product life cycles and market dynamics," said Andreas Sennheiser, Co-CEO of Sennheiser.

"To be best able to exploit the potential in each of these markets, we are concentrating our own resources on the three business areas in the Professional division and are looking for a strong partner to invest in our Consumer business," Daniel informed.

India is among Sennheiser's top 10 markets globally and the second largest market in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region after China.

Sennheiser had record sales in 2019 at 393 million euros before the slump in the market.

More recently, headphone sales haven't been as good and the company cut 650 jobs worldwide.

The headphone market and the soundbar business in Consumer Electronics offer great growth potential - despite a highly dynamic market and strong competitive pressure, the company said, adding that this is especially the case for the true wireless headphone market.

"These are the strengths that we want to work with a partner to build upon," Daniel said.

Samsung has begun rolling out their latest One UI 3.1 update to the Galaxy S20 and Note 20 series, and with it, they are bringing a few features that were launched with the S21 series. These include an improved Single Take, improved touch autofocus and auto-exposure controller, multi-mic recording, a Eye Comfort Shield mode and more.

The One UI 3.1 update primarily brings new camera features to Samsungs flagship lineup of smartphones that were released in 2020. Their Single Take feature has improved to work faster and better than before.

Samsung added an Object Eraser tool that can help removing distracting elements in a photo and produce a cleaner image. Using it as simple as tapping an area containing the object you want to remove and the editor will select the object within and erase it.

The auto-exposure controller has been updated to give users more control over the setting. Tapping on an area to focus will now bring up a horizontal slider, which can be used to edit the brightness of the shot before it is taken. Adjusting the slider can be done by swiping left or right anywhere on the screen.

The Galaxy S21 series introduced a feature called Multi-mic recording, where the phone could record audio from multiple sources when using Pro Mode, which can include the front mic, rear mic of the smartphone and maybe a connected Bluetooth device such as TWS earphones. This feature is now coming to these compatible smartphones with One UI 3.1.

The Eye Comfort Shield has been updated with the ability to automatically change the amount of Blue light on screen depending on the time of the day.

One UI 3.1 also will provide users with an option to delete the location metadata in images before sharing, which can improve their privacy.

These new updates in One UI 3.1 will be rolling out starting today to the Galaxy S20, Galaxy S20+, Galaxy S20 Ultra, Galaxy S20 FE, Galaxy Note20, Galaxy Note20 Ultra, Galaxy Z Fold2 and Galaxy Z Flip.
The posture of the mouse is detected by the system and run in an experimental protocol. Credit: J. F. Schweihoff et al. / Communications Biology

Every behavior of an animal is based on the interaction of many nerve cells in the brain, which form a close-meshed web called a neuronal network. However, what happens in the neuronal networks during particular behaviors is not easy for researchers to studythey have to describe the sequences of recurring postures and link them directly to the neuronal processes. Researchers at the University of Bonn have now presented a new method that is expected to improve this. DeepLabStream is the name of the system that uses artificial intelligence to estimate the posture and behavioral expressions of mice in real time and can respond to them immediately. Light beams are used to label and even influence specific neuronal populations in the brain in order to determine the causality between the neuronal networks and the observed behavior. The study has been published in the journal Communications Biology.

Until now, researchers only had limited and costly methods available for behavioral experiments to detect and control behavior. "With the help of AI-assisted animal body posture recognition developed in previous years, it has recently become possible to determine the temporal and spatial sequence of movements more precisely," explains study leader Dr. Martin Schwarz of the Institute of Experimental Epileptology and Cognition Research (EECR) at University Hospital Bonn. He is a member of the Transdisciplinary Research Area (TRA) "Life and Health" at the University of Bonn, which is one of six inter-faculty alliances in which researchers from different disciplines come together to work on future-relevant research topics at the University of Excellence. One of the TRA's main topics is to support research at the nexus point of biomedicine and artificial intelligence.

Observing moving mice

To test the method known as DeepLabStream (DLStream), the researchers observed freely moving mice in a box. The mice were conditioned using DLStream to move to a corner of the box within a set period of time when viewing a specific image to collect a reward. Cameras captured the animals' movements, and the system automatically created logs of the movements.

In another experiment, the scientists demonstrated a special feature of the new system: Depending on the head tilt, the researchers were able to label the corresponding neuronal networks. To do this, they used certain proteins that were only activated in the brain at specific head inclinations when exposed to light and color-coded the underlying neuronal networks. The protein system is called Cal-Light. If the corresponding head-tilt-dependent neuronal networks were not activated, a corresponding marker failed to appear, which clarified the causal relationship. "We were able to show that, for the first time, active neuronal circuits can be permanently labeled and subsequently manipulated during selected behavioral episodes using this method," says Jens Schweihoff, who conducted the study as part of his doctoral thesis at University Hospital Bonn.

Visual representation of workflow in DLStream. Initially, an experimental protocol is designed using a sequence of modules (puzzle pieces) and a trained DLC network is integrated into DLStream. Afterward, DLStream provides three different outputs for every experiment. 1. Experiments can be monitored on a live stream. 2. The experimental protocol is run based on posture detection 3. Recorded video and experimental data are exported after the experiment is done. Credit: J. F. Schweihoff et al. / Communications Biology

Real-time behavior detection

Until now, a limiting factor in the applicability of Cal-Light was that complex behavioral episodes could not be accurately detected in real time. The new method DLStream now has a temporal resolution in the millisecond range. "Since DLStream enables real-time behavior detection, the available range of applications for the Cal-Light method is significantly expanded, which makes it possible to conduct automated, behavior-dependent manipulation during ongoing experiments," says Jens Schweihoff. "We believe that using this combination of methods, researchers can now better study the causal relationships between behavior and the underlying neuronal networks."

The method has so far been tested in behavioral experiments on mice, but the researchers expect that it can be applied to other animals in the future without restrictions.

The researchers believe that the new method can significantly increase the reproducibility and effectiveness of experiments, since the important behavioral parameters, for example the position, speed and posture of the experimental animal, can be calculated with high temporal resolution and accuracy. This significantly reduces the variability, i.e., the difference in measured parameters, between individual experiments.

The software is now accessible to researchers worldwide via an open-source platform, which should enable them to conduct and automate a wide range of behavioral experiments with AI support.

Explore further Researchers find a way to increase spatial resolution in brain activity visualization

More information: Jens F. Schweihoff et al. DeepLabStream enables closed-loop behavioral experiments using deep learning-based markerless, real-time posture detection, Communications Biology (2021). Journal information: Communications Biology Jens F. Schweihoff et al. DeepLabStream enables closed-loop behavioral experiments using deep learning-based markerless, real-time posture detection,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-01654-9
Facebooks actions today were racist. They must immediately remove all bans and put more thought into their future political actions, said Nerita Waight, the services chief executive. Aboriginal people are always sacrificed in these political battles and all sides should feel great shame and guarantee to ensure the voices of Aboriginal people and marginalised groups are properly involved in the future. The Human Rights Law Centre, which is based in Melbourne, slammed Facebooks actions. For years Facebook has made huge profits by amplifying conspiracy theories and disinformation. Now its blocking access to vital information for an entire country in the middle of a pandemic, said Daniel Webb, the centres legal director. Amplifying falsehoods and suppressing facts is poison for democracy.

Facebook must lift its news blackout. And our government and big digital platforms must urgently deal with the issue of disinformation online. Liberty Victoria echoed the sentiment. Its preposterous that Facebook has left in place accounts which share false information or conspiracy theories, while blocking vital health, government and emergency service sites, the organisation said in a statement. Bambi Gordon, chief executive of Neighbourhood Watch Victoria, woke on Thursday morning to discover all her organisations posts vanished. It went down pretty much first thing. No warning from Facebook. We certainly did not believe, as we are not a media organisation, it would have anything to do with us, she said.

We have lost the main Facebook page for Neighbourhood Watch Victoria. We have noticed a lot of our smaller groups, associated with a suburb or town, are still there. But were not sure they are going to remain. And we cannot get any information from Facebook so we can start to plan for what the new social media landscape is going to look like. We have got approximately 130,000 followers across all our Facebook pages. We use it to connect neighbours, connect communities, make sure people can talk to each other. Thats not going to be easily or quickly replaced. It definitely is a safety and crime prevention issue.

The Victoria Police Blue Ribbon Foundation was also affected by the change, its posts remaining wiped as of 5pm Thursday. Were not a news site  we post tribute memorials to fallen Victorian police officers, said the foundations community engagement manager Jenny Davis. Its a vital communication tool for us, and for a lot of charities  and I believe there are a lot of charities caught up in this. Melbourne-based Save the Children Australia also saw its page, with about 160,000 supporters, goafety regulator tells Uber Eats and HungryPanda to shape up after deaths down. Every minute that our page is down is another minute our message isnt getting out about the needs of children, said chief executive Paul Ronalds. Belinda Caldwell, chief executive of Eating Disorders Victoria, said she had no idea why we were caught up in the whole thing. Some algorithm is glitching, I guess. This is a key means of communication for our community. We had lots of stuff on it. We post links to resources, let people know whats happening. Facebook is absolutely one of our key social media platforms. The AFLs Facebook page appears unaffected, but the AFL Womens page has had its posts removed.

Melbournes Royal Childrens Hospital, St Vincents Hospital and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have all been stripped of their content. A St Vincents Health Australia spokesman said it was extremely concerning to discover the Melbourne hospital had been blocked, particularly with Australia on the eve of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. We hope this situation can be rectified very shortly, the organisation said. Facebook pages for the Burnet Institute and the Medical Journal of Australia, as well as literary journals Overland and Meanjin, all remained down on Thursday evening. In an emailed statement, Burnet director and chief executive Professor Brendan Crabb said: Any sudden change to quality health information flow at any time, but most especially in the midst of a health crisis, is deeply unethical and damaging. It should be met with the sustained contempt it deserves.

Loading The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, which is doing key research on COVID-19, also saw its Facebook page stripped of posts. Facebook shutting down information sharing on health and medical research pages is incredibly troubling, particularly now during a pandemic, said institute director Sharon Lewin. We hope Facebook will review organisations like the Doherty Institutes presence on the platform as ours, and many others affected by this, play a crucial role in distributing trusted, evidence-driven information, Professor Lewin said. We need to increase access to trusted information sources, not take it away.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the bans needed to be lifted straight away. I am deeply and profoundly concerned that Facebook would block access to health, COVID or vaccine-related vital public information. This must be addressed immediately, he said. Australian Medical Association president Dr Omar Khorshid said blocking news organisations and health pages was a huge issue just days out from the start of the national vaccination program. Dr Khorshid said Facebook was using its market power to bully the Australian government, and in doing so putting the health of Australians at risk. Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley demanded the return of health-based news reports.

This is not a time for credible, reliable information to be taken away from the community, he said. Were going to need those systems of engagements on all platforms particularly as we move into vaccinations. Loading Anything that removes credible and reliable information sources in the midst of a global pandemic is beyond regrettable and needs to be fixed. Facebook blamed the government for its wide-ranging bans. In a statement it said that, as the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted.
02/18/2021

Photo (c) Evgenia Parajanian - Getty Images Researchers on Wednesday urged delaying the second dose of Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine, citing data suggesting the first dose is highly protective against the virus.

In a letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Canada-based researchers Danuta Skowronski and Gaston De Serres said the drugmakers vaccine was 92.6 percent effective after just the first dose.

The researchers, who drew the finding from an analysis of documents submitted by Pfizer to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), said delaying the second dose could help stretch the vaccine supply and ensure that high-priority groups get at least one dose as soon as possible.

With such a highly protective first dose, the benefits derived from a scarce supply of vaccine could be maximized by deferring second doses until all priority group members are offered at least one dose, the authors said.

Pfizer says interval testing needed

Skowronski and De Serres added that there may be uncertainty about the duration of protection with a single dose, but its clear that having people get a second dose within a month after the first provides little added benefit in the short term.

Given the current vaccine shortage, postponement of the second dose is a matter of national security that, if ignored, will certainly result in thousands of Covid-19related hospitalizations and deaths this winter in the United States  hospitalizations and deaths that would have been prevented with a first dose of vaccine, the researchers said.

Pfizer, in response to the letter, said that alternative dosing schedules havent been evaluated yet. The company said that its ultimately up to health authorities to decide whether to change the guidance.

"We at Pfizer believe that it is critical for health authorities to conduct surveillance on implemented alternative dosing schedules to ensure that vaccines provide the maximum possible protection," the company said.

Currently, the second dose of Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine is authorized to be administered 21 days after the first shot.
First published in The Sydney Morning Herald on February 19, 1986

The Sydney architect Mr Harry Seidler has accused the National Trust of "absurd misuse" of its powers, because it is insisting on the retention of a historic house which he says stands "like a shag on a rock" at Milsons Point.

Historic Camden Villa and the Milsons Point construction site. Credit:Ted Golding

Mr Seidler said the only remains of the house, Camden Villa in Glen Street, were four stone walls. The exterior had been removed, and the roof was not the original.

Retention of the old house would mean that high-rise towers in a new development would have to be built on the street alignment, causing "intense environmental congestion in the area", he contended.
[February 17, 2021] Dathena Inducted Into the Elite Accreditation@SGD Program by Singapore's Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA)

SINGAPORE, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dathena, a deep-tech company delivering AI-driven data security and privacy solutions for the global modern digital workplace, joins the select list of companies to earn the Accreditation@SGD awarded by Singapore's Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).



The Accreditation@SG Digital (Accreditation@SGD) program was launched in 2014 to accelerate the growth of promising tech companies in Singapore by credentialing them for substantial public- and private-sector projects. To achieve accreditation, companies undergo a thorough financial, commercial and technological evaluation. The program has helped position pioneering companies as qualified contenders to government agencies and large enterprises throughout Singapore. More than S$630 million worth of project opportunities have been created for accredited companies. Christopher Muffat, Founder and CEO of Dathena, said:



"We are honoured and humbled to receive this prestigius accreditation by the IMDA, which shows Singapore's dedication to building a world-class data privacy and security ecosystem. This accreditation is testament to Dathena's continuous commitment to meeting the growing and pressing data-protection needs of organizations around the globe with our proprietary AI-driven solutions. We look forward to partnering with IMDA to create a world where data is safe for everyone, every organization, every day."



Since Dathena's launch in 2016, top-tier organizations across industries including financial services, aerospace, defence, e-commerce and digital services have greatly reduced information security risk while achieving operational excellence with Dathena's cutting-edge suite of products. Edwin Low, Director of Innovation & Tech Ecosystem, Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore said:

"We are pleased to welcome Dathena to be part of the Accreditation@SG Digital program. We see great potential in their AI-driven platform, which has the capability to identify and classify sensitive data from structured and unstructured data sets. This will help government agencies and enterprises to protect data - the new currency of an increasingly data-driven world." About Dathena: Dathena is a deep-tech company that brings a new paradigm to data privacy and security solutions. In a world of ever-growing information, regulation and consumer privacy expectations, enterprises around the globe rely on Dathena to identify, classify and control their sensitive data, reduce risks and enhance the data protection framework. Leveraging the power of modern AI technologies, Dathena delivers breakthrough, petabyte-scale solutions with unprecedented accuracy, efficiency and speed that build consumer trust in a digital world and ensure the "privacy and data security protection journey." Founded in 2016, with offices in Singapore, Geneva, Paris and New York City, Dathena employs more than 100 people, including the world's top data scientists and information risk experts. For more information, go to http://www.dathena.io/. SOURCE Dathena

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New Delhi: The government has issued a fresh set of travel guidelines as two new, highly more infectious strains of Covid -- the South African and the Brazilian strains -- have been detected in India. The new rules apply to all incoming international passengers except those from the UK, Europe and the Middle East, the health ministry has said.

On Tuesday, the Health Ministry said four people were detected with the South Africa variant of SARS-CoV-2 and one tested positive for the Brazil variant, a first for India. The number of people who have tested positive for the UK variant in the country has climbed to 187, officials added.

In a tweet, the health ministry said: "Attention Passengers! All incoming international travellers (except travellers coming on flights originating from UK, Europe and the Middle East) should make sure that they follow the guidelines issued by @MoHFW_India".

Attention Passengers!

To reduce the risk of importation of mutant strains of SARS-CoV-2, SOP for International Passengers arriving in India have been updated in supersession of all guidelines on the subject since 2 Aug20. The new SOP will be in effect on 23:59 hrs on 22nd Feb,21 pic.twitter.com/YoGFkitP2t  MoCA_GoI (@MoCA_GoI) February 17, 2021

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

The guidelines issued by the Centre for international arrivals:

1) From 23 February, the passengers will have to submit a self-declaration form (SDF) for Covid-19 on the online Air Suvidha portal before the scheduled travel.

2) While filling SDF the passengers will need to select whether they plan to disembark at the arrival airport or take further flights to reach their final destination in India.

3) All international travellers coming/transiting from flights originating from the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East will be required to declare their travel history of the past 14 days.

4) Passengers from the UK, Europe and the Middle East, will be mandatorily subjected to self-paid confirmatory molecular tests on arrival at the Indian airports concerned, the guidelines stated.

5) The government said that keeping in mind the testing requirements for passengers from UK, Brazil and South Africa, who have to take connecting flights, airlines should keep the passengers informed about the need for the transit time of a minimum of 6-8 hours at the entry airport (in India) while booking the tickets for connecting flights.

6) The airlines will need to identify the international travellers arriving from the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa (during past 14 days) and segregate them in-flight or while disembarking to facilitate the authorities to follow the due protocol in respect of these travellers.

7) Travellers from Brazil, South Africa and the United Kingdom, testing positive (either at the airport or subsequently during home quarantine period or their contacts who turn positive) will be isolated in an institutional isolation facility in a separate (isolation) unit coordinated by the respective state health authorities.

8) At the time of boarding the flight, only asymptomatic travellers will be allowed to board after the thermal screening.

9) International travellers arriving through seaports/land ports will also have to undergo the same protocol, except that facility for online registration is not available for such passengers currently, as per the civil aviation ministry guidelines.

10) India is following point-of-entry procedures for identifying international travellers, particularly at-risk travellers to India through a multi-pronged strategy of thermal screening and testing.

The government has suspended international scheduled flights till February 28. Overseas flights to and from India are currently operated as per air bubble agreements with various countries.













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athenahealth is a network-enabled services company that offers medical records, revenue cycle, patient engagement, care coordination and population health services for hospital and ambulatory clients

On the marketplace, HealthLynked can provide new solutions to established problems, using AI and machine learning in order to provide personalized medical recommendations and optimize care coordination

Corp ( ) has announced a partnership with athenahealth Inc via that companys marketplace program.

athenahealth is a network-enabled services company that offers medical records, revenue cycle, patient engagement, care coordination and population health services for hospital and ambulatory clients, noted.

As part of the athenahealth Marketplace, the newly integrated HealthLynked application is now available to athenahealth's network of 120,000 healthcare providers, the company added. The application offers patient check in via mobile device, care management, care coordination and seamless sharing of medical records among multiple healthcare providers through the HealthLynked Network.

"HealthLynked delivers a valuable service that empowers patients and providers to more efficiently share medical information and coordinate care management, HealthLynked CEO Michael Dent said in a statement.

The platform's suite of tools allows patients to receive a copy of their medical records after their visit and to easily share this information with their other healthcare providers from their mobile device. Patients now have access to all their medical records and can easily share this information among their current doctors or with a new healthcare provider immediately without the typical delay in record transfer that can take days or weeks."

On the marketplace, HealthLynked can provide new solutions to established problems, using AI and machine learning in order to provide personalized medical recommendations and optimize care coordination, the company said.

Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow him on Twitter @andrew_kessel
The remains of missing teenager, Alexis Murphy (pictured), have been found more than seven years after her disappearance in 2013 when she was last seen in Virginia

The remains of a missing teenager have been found more than seven years after her disappearance in 2013 when she was last seen at a gas station in Virginia.

The Nelson County Sheriffs Office said on social media that the remains of Alexis Murphy were located on December 3 on private property along US 29 in Lovingston near Stagebridge Road.

According to the sheriff's office, they received positive identification of the remains as those of Murphy on February 5.

Police have not yet said what led them to the teen's remains and a DailyMail.com request for comment Thursday afternoon was not immediately returned.

Authorities said they delayed the release of information to the public out of respect for Murphy's family.

'With careful consideration for Alexis' family being paramount, notification to the community was delayed to allow them time to grieve and make proper arrangements,' the sheriff's office said in a press release.

The family has asked for privacy at this time, but they did release a statement to the sheriff's office.

'Our family is so grateful for the continuing love, support and prayers for Alexis and our family over the past 7 years. While we have been grieving the loss of Alexis since 2013, we remained hopeful that she would be found alive and well,' the statement reads.

'Alexis was the fashionista, athlete and joker of our family; we were blessed to have loved her for 17 years and her memory will continue to live on through us all.

'Our family would like to extend a heartfelt thanks and sincere gratitude to the citizens of Nelson County, the FBI, the Virginia State Police, the Nelson County Sheriff's Office and all of the search and rescue teams for your commitment and unwavering support to find Alexis. You all kept the promise made in 2013, to bring Alexis home!'

Randy Allen Taylor (right), 55, was convicted in 2014 of first-degree murder in commission of an abduction and abduction with intent to defile in Murphy's (left) abduction and sentenced to two life terms

'During this time, we ask that you continue to lift our family up in prayer and in the words of Alexis, "Keep Hope Alive",' the family wrote.

Murphy, who was 17 at the time of her disappearance, was last seen at the Liberty gas station in Lovingston and reported missing on August 3, 2013. The gas station is nearly 6 miles from where her remains were found.

She was on her way to get her hair done for a school picture when she was abducted.

Local, state and federal law enforcement pursued multiple leads and conducted numerous searches, at the time, in an effort to locate Murphy.

The searches continued periodically since her disappearance in 2013, with law enforcement expanding the search area each time.

Randy Allen Taylor, 55, was convicted in 2014 of first-degree murder in commission of an abduction and abduction with intent to defile in Murphy's abduction and sentenced to two life terms.

Surveillance video from the gas station showed Murphys vehicle following Taylors truck.

Investigators later found strands of Murphy's hair, her mobile phone, an earring and a human fingernail in his mobile home.

Murphys car was found several days after her disappearance in a parking lot of a movie theater in Albemarle County.

Taylor maintained his innocence but did not testify at trial.
DALLAS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BenefitMall , the leading provider of next-generation broker services, today announced it has established a new integration with Employee Navigator's powerful Benefits Administration solution for brokers in the Mid-Atlantic market.

This new integration will eliminate manually inputting client data into the carrier systems. The solution accurately syncs the client's employee demographics and enrollment data in real time.

"At BenefitMall, we are constantly seeking opportunities to bring new solutions and technologies to our brokers that can simplify administrative tasks and allow them to focus on caring for their clients," said Robert Poli, Mid-Atlantic market director of BenefitMall. "We are excited to roll out this new integration with Employee Navigator for the Mid-Atlantic market that will help brokers eliminate errors that are bound to occur with manual data entries."

With this integration, clients can utilize the power of Employee Navigator by quickly enrolling new hires, comparing and selecting plans, and managing contribution levels. By syncing to BenefitMall, the client receives consolidated billing and administrative support and the simplicity of one invoice and one service team, as well as data integration to carriers. This modernized approach to HR is managed through a centralized HR management console and access to reporting and configuration tools.

"We're excited to deepen our relationship with BenefitMall," said Employee Navigator CEO, George Reese. "Our organizations are both focused on delivering brokers seamless technology solutions and this integration will ultimately result in brokers and employers spending less time on manual administration."

Employee Navigator's Benefits Administration solution is available today to BenefitMall's brokers and their clients in the Mid-Atlantic market only.

About BenefitMall

Headquartered in Dallas, BenefitMall partners with a network of 20,000 Brokers to deliver employee benefits to more than 140,000 small and medium-sized businesses. As the largest general agency, BenefitMall leverages innovative technology backed by human expertise to provide the fastest, easiest, and most trusted benefits selling experience for carriers, brokers, and their clients.

Owned by Management and The Carlyle Group, BenefitMall also operates HealthCareExchange.com, the leading online community for health care reform and compliance. More information is available at www.benefitmall.com.

About Employee Navigator

Employee Navigator is a rapidly growing benefits, compliance, and HR software provider. The company currently works with more than 2,000 industry-leading brokers nationwide, providing benefits administration and HR products to over 50,000 companies and 10 million employees and dependents.

Employee Navigator has also been named a Top Workplace by the Washington Post in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. For more information, visit www.employeenavigator.com

SOURCE BenefitMall

Related Links

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Construction has kept going on French cinemas even as the pandemic has delayed launches of Hollywood blockbusters

The coronavirus pandemic might not seem like the obvious time to build new movie theatres, but in cine-mad France, it will take more than a virus to dampen passions for the big screen.

The town of Romorantin, deep in the Loire Valley south of Paris, has a population of 17,000 -- which by French standards, makes it ripe for a new multiplex cinema.

On a recent morning, forklifts were whirling as workers rushed to complete the five-screen theatre by the end of March.

It is not the only one. France saw 22 new cinemas open their doors in 2020, despite theatres being unable to operate for much of the year.

Several more are under construction or being renovated.

France, the birthplace of moving pictures, has almost always had the highest cinema attendance in Europe.

Even though attendance was down two-thirds last year thanks to 23 weeks of closures and the cancellation of many Hollywood blockbusters, the country weathered the disruption better than most -- in part because it could still rely on its prolific, homegrown movie industry.

France is also known for its network of tiny independent cinemas dotted across its villages and small towns.

Some are beautifully quaint -- but struggling to attract the next popcorn-guzzling generation.

The new multi-million-euro Cine Sologne complex in Romorantin is being built in an out-of-town car park, and replaces the old Palais in its medieval centre, which attracted some 70,000 spectators a year but lacked the technology and comfort needed to rival home cinema offerings.

"We have to attract people who want to go to the cinema, but look at these small, local theatres and think, 'No thanks'," said Cedric Aubry, head of the construction firm.

He specialises in bringing shiny new complexes to remote locations not considered worthwhile by the major chains.

This is his fourth cinema construction since the pandemic began, and he says the model is working, with similar remote projects in places like Meuse and Yonne as much as tripling local attendance.

Story continues

- 'Lifeline' -

For a town like Romorantin, still reeling from the closure of a car plant and devastating floods over the past couple of decades, such projects are indispensable, said mayor Jeanny Lorgeoux.

"It's a crucial lifeline for a small town," he told AFP. "It's a social link with others, between generations, and an economic boost."

Since the factories disappeared from this region, cinemas have become a rare place where the remnants of the working class rub shoulders with the Loire Valley's "chateau and hunting" set.

Aubry agrees, and raises the "gilets jaunes" protests that spread across rural France in 2018 and 2019.

"The message was that people felt abandoned out in the provinces. It's a modest response, but clearly among the 2,000 cinemas of France, many are in dire need of renovation and transformation.

"The cinema is often, especially in small towns, the last important cultural place that still appeals to all people," said Aubry -- and it helps to have five screens that can show the latest Fast and Furious alongside an existential drama starring Isabelle Huppert.

As for the pandemic? "That's no reason to give up," he said.

Far from it: "This crisis has only reinforced how much we miss being around other people."

fbe/er/jz/rbu
The short version: Itll be pretty much the same procedure it was before the shutdowns enacted to save money and be safer amid COVID-19 spread. The key element is that those wanting to visit, beginning March 1 at Brookfield and March 5 at Lincoln Park, need to get timed-entry tickets in advance via their websites.
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DENVER, Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- "As we head into 2021, the ERP landscape has changed, and it continues to evolve. We do see certain trends that can help our clients be better prepared for the year ahead. We want you to succeed, and in that spirit, here is our forecast for where we believe ERP is headed in 2021."  An ERP Forecast for 2021

This optimism for the future defines how Shawn Windle and ERP Advisors Group view Enterprise Resource Planning in 2021.

EAG

On Wednesday, Feb. 17, ERP Advisors Group published their annual overview on ERP trends for 2021 at erpadvisorsgroup.com/erp-topics. The report includes a review of lessons learned from 2020, an ERP forecast for 2021, and alternative ERP vendors to watch in 2021.

Shawn Windle is the Founder and Managing Principal of ERP Advisors Group, and he sat down for a video call to discuss ERP trends for 2021.

"We think 2021 will be the year of best-of-breed ERPs, with more and more industry-specific solutions," said Windle. "Most organizations know they need an ERP in 2021, with working from home specifically, with the continued movement to the cloud and automated processes."

The report includes:

Lessons Learned from 2020

An ERP Forecast for 2021

Alternative ERP Vendors to Watch in 2021

Highlights:

How the ERP industry responded in 2020

Tips for selecting and purchasing ERP software in 2021

Will we see a return to normal?

How alternative vendors are evolving and getting more adoption by proving themselves in the market

ERP Advisors Group became one of the world's most trusted enterprise software advisory firms by providing expert client-side guidance and technical oversight with unparalleled transparency, including requirements confirmation, guide testing efforts, change management and mitigations, and cutover planning.

Meet the independent ERP Consultants of ERP Advisors Group

Media Contact:

Shaun Orthmann

720-542-7801

[email protected]

Related Images

2021-erp-trends.jpg

2021 ERP trends

Related Links

The New Rules of ERP Implementation Success

The Ultimate Guide to ERP Selection

SOURCE EAG
The Holiday Inn coronavirus cluster grew to 22 cases on Friday, with one person admitted to intensive care.

The Department of Health said the patient was in a stable condition in hospital on Friday, but did not reveal their age, gender or how the person was linked to the Holiday Inn outbreak.

The three new locally acquired cases of coronavirus reported on Friday have been traced back to a familys stay at the quarantine hotel at Melbourne Airport.

Health Minister Martin Foley said the three tested positive for COVID-19 on Thursday. One of the parents and their child had quarantined at the hotel in early February after returning from overseas.

Friday February 19: Victoria has recorded three new locally acquired cases of COVID-19 from a family who isolated at home during their infectious period.

The pair were housed on the third floor the Holiday Inn, the same level as a man is his 30s who used a nebuliser and who health authorities believe is the index case of the outbreak.

Mr Foley said the entire family had registered numerous negative tests between February 10 and 12 and had already been isolating before returning a positive result to their day-11 test at a drive-through site.

All have been quarantining at home during their infectious periods, he said.

Victorian COVID-19 response commander Jeroen Weimar said the number of primary close contacts related to the Holiday Inn outbreak had now topped 3500.

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However, Mr Weimar said health authorities had cleared about 500 of the 1507 primary contacts associated with the Grand Hyatt outbreak.

Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said close contacts needed to remain vigilant.

This isnt over yet  all known contacts of cases or exposure sites need to stay in quarantine for the full 14 days to wrap this up, Professor Sutton said via Twitter.

Victoria Police on Friday revealed that 62 fines were handed out for breaches during the states five-day lockdown, which ended on Wednesday.

A 50-year-old St Albans man was also arrested and charged after operating his gym Campbellfield gym during lockdown on Tuesday. He will appear at court at a later date.

A spokesperson for the force said compliance was overall good during the circuit-breaker and the fines issued were only for the most blatant or deliberate breaches.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd said Victorian authorities were working to make sure all contacts of the three new cases found on Friday were traced.

Obviously, the Victorian authorities will be acting very swiftly to make sure that all the contacts of these people have been followed up and are also in isolation and arranging to get tested, Professor Kidd told ABC radio.

No new cases were reported in hotel quarantine on Friday, while half-a-dozen testing sites closed due to high temperatures.

Mr Weimar urged people in several Melbourne suburbs to be on the lookout for symptoms after several unexpected wastewater detections were picked up in surveillance sites.

Those locations are Wantirna South and Boronia, which includes Bayswater, Ferntree Gully, Knoxfield and Tremont; Carrum Downs and Langwarrin, including Skye; and St Kilda East and Caulfield North, including parts of Caulfield, Balaclava and Elsternwick, Mr Weimar said.

Weve been talking about over a number of weeks now weve again stepped up the granularity of our wastewater sampling across the metropolitan area.

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Although we have no obvious connections between the new locations that are flagged up and any known positive cases, we are therefore asking people in a couple of areas to be prepared and be vigilant for any potential symptoms they may have.

Several testing sites across Melbourne were forced to close early due to the heat. Locations included Dandenong, Greensborough and Pakenham.

Testing sites closed due to heat Monash Health - Carroll Lane, Dandenong - Drive Through, Dandenong

Banyule Community Health - Greensborough

Monash Health - IYU Recreation Reserve, Pakenham

Darebin Arts Centre, Preston

Wyndham City Council Civic Centre, Werribee

Shorten Reserve Car Park, West Footscray

Mr Weimar said that although the wastewater detections were unexpected, he was not excessively worried.

If youre in those catchment areas, and feel you have any reason to be concerned about any symptoms you might be showing, no matter how slight, we really would ask you to come and get tested today, Mr Weimar said.

We see these detections coming up. At this point in time, its an isolated set of detections, so were not excessively worried.

COVID-19 vaccination plan

Front-line coronavirus workers who are most likely to come into contact with the virus are first in line to be vaccinated under the federal COVID-19 vaccination plan.

Trained health professionals will administer doses of the Pfizer vaccine to hotel quarantine and health hotel workers, airport and port workers, high-risk front-line health staff and public sector residential aged care staff and residents from Monday.

Mr Foley said the state governments priority was supporting the Commonwealth project to ensure the vaccine was deployed as quickly and safely possible.

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Whether they work in hotel quarantine, at the airport, or a specialist COVID ward  we need to keep Victorians most at risk of infection safe, while they continue to keep Victorians safe, he said.

Following the arrival of the vaccine, health hubs will deliver the jabs at dedicated sites throughout the state, including hospitals and quarantine hotels. There will also be a site at Melbourne Airport and mobile outreach teams.

Moomba cancellation reversed

Melbourne lord mayor Sally Capp said on Thursday that reduced crowd numbers due to COVID-19 restrictions led her to make the incredibly difficult decision to cancel the festival for the first time in its 66-year history.

But the decision to cancel the event was overturned on Friday and the festival is set to proceed with a revised program designed to meet COVID-19 safety requirements.

We have been working closely overnight with the events industry and the Victorian government to ensure we can deliver a reimagined Moomba 2.0, the lord mayor said.

Before the backflip, Major Events Minister Martin Pakula said he had expressed his disappointment to Cr Capp and got the sense the council would change course.

The council made the call to not go ahead with this years festival despite the Chief Health Officer having approved a COVID-safe plan for the yearly event, Mr Pakula said.

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Front-line COVID-19 staff went unpaid for weeks

The Department of Health has admitted that front-line COVID-19 staff were not paid in the weeks leading up to the latest lockdown.

The department said the pay issue arose after the recruitment of an additional 204 employees to respond to the border permit exemptions and increased call volumes associated with the NSW and Queensland border closures.

When the Department of Health became aware that a number of staff working in the border permit team had not received payment, they acted quickly and arranged for off-line payments to be made to the majority of staff, a spokesman said.

The department said the issue in no way impacted the states response to the pandemic.

Whitten Oval could become COVID vaccination hub

Whitten Oval has been touted as a possible location for Melbournes first mass coronavirus vaccination hub under a proposal that would mean the sports stadium in the citys west hosting thousands of Victorians for immunisation.

Medical groups recently visited the West Footscray oval, home to AFL club the Western Bulldogs, finding it had optimum air flow and was close to health services, making it an ideal location for a vaccination centre.

Mukesh Haikerwal, of the Australian Medical Association, who is leading discussions about setting up the hub, estimated the stadium could allow for about 450 people to be vaccinated per hour.

His highly successful coronavirus respiratory clinic in Altona North, also in the western suburbs, will soon be converted into a vaccine clinic, with a plan to vaccinate 16 people an hour.

With Rachel Clun, Melissa Cunningham, Rachael Dexter

plans to increase in the coming months, reversing a recent production cut, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing advisers to the country.

The worlds largest oil exporter surprised oil markets last month when it said it would unilaterally slash 1 million barrels a day of crude production in February and March in an effort to raise prices.

is expected to announce its plans when a coalition of meets next month, according to the WSJ report, adding that the output rise won't kick in until April.

But Saudi Arabian Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Wednesday that it was too early to declare victory against the Covid-19 virus and that must remain "extremely cautious".

"We are in a much better place than we were a year ago, but I must warn, once again, against complacency. The uncertainty is very high, and we have to be extremely cautious," he told an energy industry event.

The stronger price environment has put more attention on OPEC+, which groups OPEC, Russia and allied producers. It meets to set policy on March 4.

OPEC+ are likely to ease curbs on supply after April given a recovery in prices, OPEC+ sources told Reuters.

"We believe that OPEC+ will likely take a more conservative approach, and ease output more modestly," said ING analyst Warren Patterson.

US oil inventory data from the American Petroleum Institute and the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will be released on Wednesday and Thursday respectively, a one-day delay for each after this week's US holiday.

Analysts polled by Reuters estimated, on average, that crude stocks fell 2.2 million barrels in the week to February 12.

According to the WSJ report, the planned Saudi move to restore supplies isnt expected to immediately spark large output increases from other big producers, analysts say, given the kingdom is acknowledged to have carried the biggest burden in reducing production.

However, analysts do expect compliance with output curbs among producers to be increasingly loose as the recovery gains momentum, says the news article.

Saudis move to reopen the spigots, while the rest of the group keeps them tight, comes as global demand for oil is expected to recover in the coming months.
An international body representing arenas has launched a four-point plan for the safe return of live music and sport events.

Live events have been cancelled across the world amid strict public health measures introduced by governments trying to curb the spread of Covid-19.

The Arena Resilience Alliance (ARA) has launched its manifesto, outlining the next steps for the safe return of live events across Europe.

The plan was unveiled on Thursday at the end of its second virtual conference, #AGameofTwoHalves: The Return Leg.

A Game of Two Halves: The Return Leg The Arena Resilience Alliance (ARA)  a special purpose initiative, created by the European Arenas Association (EAA)  hosts its second virtual conference, #AGameofTwoHalves: The Return Leg on Thursday 18 February.Top names from the worlds of live music and sport will come together with key EU decision-makers for the event, which will follow an ambitious live music experiment organised by the Rockhal arena which takes place in Luxembourg this week. Behind the scenes content and insights from the Rockhal test concerts will be screened as part of the conference, offering an opportunity to reflect on the lessons learned and next steps and helping to frame the discussion around what still needs to be done. The ARA will also launch its manifesto, outlining the next steps required to build towards the safe return of live events across Europe Posted by European Arenas Association on Thursday, February 18, 2021

It proposes the creation of an advisory body to guide and instruct for an effective return of live events.

It also suggests:

 A hub for return and change, using the ARAs network of large-capacity arenas across Europe.

 Adapting for the future of live events, including the development of new environmentally sustainable and digital practices.

 A safe and sustainable post-Covid-19 ecosystem, with safer, greener and more efficient environments.

The ARA said the Rationale for a Resilient Return manifesto has been prepared for a critical moment for the events industry, and the key elements of Europes cultural identity must be preserved by bringing back live music and sport.

We must bring the different parts of the ecosystem together to create safer, greener and more efficient environments where European citizens can meet to relax, socialise and enjoy themselves, it added.

Robert Fitzpatrick (Odyssey Trust/PA)

ARA co-founder Robert Fitzpatrick, chief executive of the Odyssey Trust, which owns the SSE Arena in Belfast, said the manifesto will be an important tool in preparation for the return of live events while working to protect the health of communities and the sustainability of the industry.

The event followed a live music experiment organised by the Rockhal arena in Luxembourg last week.

A series of five live shows took place from February 10-14 with audiences limited to 100 each night, allocated seats and social distancing controls.

Full results from the experiment are expected in around two weeks

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Olivier Toth, chief executive of Rockhal, said the gigs were an important and positive step forward in testing the safety measures we can employ to support our back to business strategies.

The ARAs virtual conference was delivered in partnership with IQ Magazine.

The event is available to watch again on the EAA YouTube channel and Facebook page.

A spokesperson for the UKs Government said: As the Prime Minister has said, we want this lockdown to be the last  which is why we will seek to ease restrictions in a way that is cautious, but irreversible.

We are working hard to get audiences back as soon as it is safe to do so, and we will publish our road map on Monday after carefully reviewing the impact of current restrictions and the vaccine programme on infections, hospital admissions and deaths.

No decisions have been made yet.
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In total, 132 children under the age of five have been hospitalised with coronavirus. Stock image

THIRTY-SEVEN children under the age of 12 were hospitalised with Covid-19 in the last two weeks, new HSE figures show.

In the 0-4 age group, 19 children were hospitalised with the virus. In the 5-12 age group, 18 were hospitalised.

These figures related to the two-week period of February 2 until February 15. In this fortnight, there was a total of 579 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the 0-4 age group and 905 in the 5-12 year age group.

In the 13-18 year age group, there were 17 hospitalisations with 995 cases in total.

None of these were admitted to ICU, with the youngest patient admitted to ICU in the 25-34 years age group.

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This was the age group with the highest number of cases, with 2,074 confirmed throughout the country.

The age group with the largest hospitalisations was the 75-84 age group, with 213 hospitalisations and 558 cases in total.

In total, since the pandemic began, 132 children under the age of five and 130 children and teenagers from the age of five to 14 have been hospitalised with coronavirus.

The age group with the largest number of hospitalisations from Covid-19 since March 2020 is those over the age of 65, with 6,635 people admitted to hospital.

Speaking yesterday, HSE CEO Paul Reid said hospitalisations and ICU numbers have fallen below the peak of the first wave in 2020, but cautioned that the downward slope out of this is proving to be much slower than we would all like.

Mr Reid said the news was cause for good hope.

Yesterday, Ireland crossed the grim milestone of 4,000 Covid-19 related deaths.

There were 57 further coronavirus-related deaths and 650 new cases of the virus, the Department of Health confirmed.

Thirty-four of these deaths occurred in February, 21 in January, 1 in December and 1 in November.

The median age of those who died was 82 years and the age range was 52-99 years.

Some 211,751 people have tested positive for the virus in total within the State.

Dr Ronan Glynn, Deputy Chief Medical Officer said yesterday that one in three household contacts are now testing positive for Covid-19, which is due to the B117 UK variant, which now accounts for 90pc of all new cases.

Although we have made great progress, the situation remains precarious, he said.

This underlines the need for people to exercise caution in households and other settings. In particular, people should isolate immediately on experiencing any symptoms and contact their GP.
Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday (February 17) revealed that Armaan Jain's connection to the alleged money laundering case will be investigated by the agency. The Lekar Hum Deewana Dil actor was questioned for an hour by the ED officials at the Mumbai office.

For the unversed, Armaan Jain is Kareena Kapoor Khan and Karisma Kapoor's cousin, as well as son of Reema Jain - sister of Late Rishi Kapoor and Randhir Kapoor.

An ANI report quoted an ED official saying, "We will now investigate Jain's financial transaction in connection with the money laundering case." The actor was summoned for the second time on Wednesday after he failed to show up last week for questioning in the case against private security firm TOPS group

About Armaan's visit, the report revealed that the actor was seen avoiding the media while exiting the venue. According to reports, Armaan's residence in Mumbai's Altamount road area, was raided on February 9, 2021, in connection to the money laundering case. The raid lasted for about two and a half hours .

The news broke out on the same day as Armaan's uncle and actor-filmmaker Rajiv Kapoor passed away. While Armaan's mother, Reema Jain was allowed to visit the family after finding out about the veteran actor's death, Jain and his wife were not allowed to visit the funeral home until after the raid was over.

Reports revealed that the money laundering case has the agency investigating Jain's close friend Vihang Sarnaik, son of Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik. Armaan's name cropped up when ED was investigating Vihang for the same case also known as Tops Group case by the agency.

ALSO READ: Armaan Jain Fails To Appear Before ED In Alleged Money Laundering Case

ALSO READ: Ranbir Kapoor's Cousin Armaan Jain Summoned By ED Again In Money Laundering Case
In an incident that is absolutely hard to believe, Nobel Laureate-activist Malala Yousafzai has been threatened on Twitter recently.

The Pakistani militant alleged to be responsible for shooting Nobel Laureate-activist in the head back in 2012 has threatened her life once again.

 Reuters

The tweet has now been deleted but it was reportedly shared by former Pakistani Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan and it said, "Come back home, we have a score to settle".



Malala herself couldn't believe how this person managed to even escape prison, let alone threatening people on a public platform.

This is the ex-spokesperson of Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan who claims responsibility for the attack on me and many innocent people. He is now threatening people on social media. How did he escape @OfficialDGISPR @ImranKhanPTI? https://t.co/1RDdZaxprs  Malala (@Malala) February 16, 2021

People are in disbelief that how was someone like Ehsanullah Ehsan even allowed to have an account on Twitter in the first place.

The good thing is that the account in question is currently suspended, but that doesn't mean he's not going to pop up online again.

Ehsan was allegedly not only behind Malala's attack, but also the one who orchestrated the deadly Peshawar Army school terror attack in 2014.

He reportedly escaped prison last February and announced it on Twitter and then in an audio message sent to Pakistani media earlier this month.

While people are absolutely shocked, they are sending Malala all their best.

The fact that he is able to tweet and threat you on a public platform is failure enough of the security forces. Stay strong and brave x  Zay (@RanoGeneral) February 16, 2021

Stay safe and strong @Malala, you are a symbol of courage and bravery this dog can't harm you. https://t.co/LeSpB4Ys2k  Hamid Khan (@HamidKhan5022) February 17, 2021

I think it is not fake. He comes up with almost same username after every suspension.  Prem Rathi (PAK) (@PremRathee) February 16, 2021

What should the world no 1 agency do...

offcourse we did blunders but it does not mean that the world no 1 agency just trace these fake accounts instead to pulfil there responsibilitoes ..Malala is not patriot pakistani nor pashthoon.....she was just watching the dreams of USA  Saboor Khan Kakar (@SaboorKhanKakr) February 16, 2021

Hmm.Well.Uhh.
The Parthenon Marbles: The Parthenon Marbles - popularly named the Elgin Marbles after the7th Earl of Elgin, the man who took them from Greece - are a collection of classical Greek marble sculptures, inscriptions and architectural members that were mostly created by Phidias and his assistants.

The Earl of Elgin, Thomas Bruce, removed the Parthenon Marble pieces from the Acropolis in Athens while serving as the British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire from 1799 to 1803.

In 1801, the Earl claimed to have obtained a permit from the Ottoman authorities to remove pieces from the Parthenon.

As the Acropolis was still an Ottoman military fort, Elgin required permission to enter the site.

His agents subsequently removed half of the surviving sculptures, as well as architectural members and sculpture from the Propylaea and Erechtheum.

The Parthenon Marbles - popularly named the Elgin Marbles after the7th Earl of Elgin, the man who took them from Greece - are a collection of classical Greek marble sculptures, inscriptions and architectural members that were mostly created by Phidias and his assistants

The excavation and removal was completed in 1812 at a personal cost of around 70,000.

The sculptures were shipped to Britain, but in Greece, the Scots aristocrat was accused of looting and vandalism.

They were bought by the British Government in 1816 and placed in the British Museum. They still stand on view in the purpose-built Duveen Gallery.

Greece has sought their return from the British Museum through the years, to no avail.

The authenticity of Elgin's permit to remove the sculptures from the Parthenon has been widely disputed, especially as the original document has been lost. Many claim it was not legal.

However, others argue that since the Ottomans had controlled Athens since 1460, their claims to the artefacts were legal and recognisable.

The Benin Bronzes: In 1897, a British naval expedition was raised to avenge the deaths of nine officers killed during a trade dispute between the king of Benin and Britain. Britain sent a force of 500 men to destroy what was then the Kingdom of Benin, which is in modern-day Nigeria.

After ten days of fierce fighting, the British burnt down the palace and looted the royal treasures: delicate ivory carvings and magnificent copper alloy sculptures and plaques - now known as the Benin Bronzes.

After the sacking of Benin, the bronzes were taken by the British to pay for the expedition.

n 1897, a British naval expedition was raised to avenge the deaths of nine officers killed during a trade dispute between the king of Benin and Britain. Britain sent a force of 500 men to destroy what was then the Kingdom of Benin, which is in modern-day Nigeria. After the sacking of Benin, the bronzes were taken by the British to pay for the expedition

One of them, a bronze cockerel, ended up being a permanent fixture in the dining hall at Jesus College, Cambridge.

Many people have campaigned for the cockerel to be returned over the years and in November last year, Cambridge University agreed to return it to Nigeria.



One campaigner was BBC historian David Olusoga who said The British Museum should have a 'Supermarket Sweep' where countries have two minutes to take back their artefacts.

Rosetta Stone: One of the most famous objects in the British Museum, the Rosetta Stone is a broken part of a bigger stone slab.

Dating from 196 BC, there is a decree written on it which was issued in Memphis, Egypt, by the King Ptolemy V Epiphanes during the Ptolemaic dynasty. The decree is written three times, in hieroglyphics, Demotic and Ancient Greek.

It is thought to have been found by accident in Egypt in 1799 by Napoleon's army while digging the foundations of an addition to a fort near the town of Rashid (Rosetta) in the Nile Delta.

When Napoleon was defeated, the Treaty of Alexandria in 1801 meant the stone became British property, along with other things the French had found. It was shipped to England, arriving in Portsmouth in February 1802.

One of the most famous objects in the British Museum, the Rosetta Stone is a broken part of a bigger stone slab from Ancient Egypt

Hoa Hakananai'a: The four-ton, 7ft 10in Easter Island statue is regarded as one of the most spiritually important of the Chilean island's 900 famous stone monoliths, or moai.

Each of the figures is said to embody tribal leaders or deified ancestors.

It was taken from the island, which lies in the Pacific more than 2,100 miles off the coast of Chile, in 1868 by Commodore Richard Powell, captain of HMS Topaze, who gave it to Queen Victoria.

She donated it in 1869 to the British Museum, where it now stands at the entrance to Wellcome Trust Gallery.

But Easter Island's indigenous community, the Rapa Nui, want Britain to give back the spiritually 'unique' effigy.

Governor Tarita Alarcon Rapu found the sight of the artefact so emotional that she burst into tears as she begged the museum to return it.
Russia has brokered an unusual prisoner swap that saw Syria release an Israeli woman who crossed into the country on Thursday, Israeli officials say.

The big picture: The two weeks leading up to the deal involved a call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the capture of two Syrian shepherds by Israel as bargaining chips, and the refusal of a Syrian prisoner to leave prison as part of the deal.

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The backstory: An Israeli woman in her 20s crossed into Syria two weeks ago via the Golan Heights, entered a village and began speaking with local people.

Someone apparently alerted the Syrian military that an Israeli had wandered into the village, because she was arrested and taken for questioning by Syrian intelligence officers.

The Syrians initially suspected that she was a spy, as did Israeli officials who heard an Israeli woman had been captured. But it soon became clear that she was a civilian.

The Syrians notified Russian forces in Syria, who informed the Israelis of the full situation. At that point the Israelis made clear that they viewed this as a humanitarian issue and asked the Russians to facilitate a deal.

The Syrians quickly agreed to the idea of a prisoner exchange, but the process was dragged out over two weeks due to a series of complications.

The Russians initially tried to broaden the discussions, asking Israel to restrain its airstrikes in Syria on the grounds that they make it more difficult to transport humanitarian aid. In addition to Netanyahu's call with Putin, the Israeli defense and foreign ministers also spoke to their Russian counterparts.

A deal was eventually reached: Israel would release two Syrians convicted of terrorism-related offenses and provide Syria with COVID-19 aid.

On Wednesday, Israeli national security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat traveled to Moscow, where the Israeli woman had already been taken. An Israeli doctor deemed her in good health and ready to travel.

But then there was a snag. One of the prisoners said he would rather remain in an Israeli prison for the 14 years left in his term than be deported to Syria, the Israeli officials say.

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However, Israeli soldiers had already been sent to the buffer zone between Israel and Syria in search of bargaining chips. They had waited for two shepherds to cross into an Israeli enclave and captured them.

Syria ultimately agreed to swap the Israeli woman for the shepherds. They were released on Thursday, and a jet departed from Israel to bring the woman home.

Behind the scenes: The incident was kept under a strict gag order for the past two weeks due to concerns that any press reports could sabotage the deal.

On Tuesday, the Israeli Cabinet convened urgently under a veil of secrecy. The ministers themselves didnt know what it was about until they arrived at the Prime Ministers office and were asked to sign nondisclosure forms.

The Israeli military censor banned Israeli media from reporting any details about the Cabinet meeting beyond the fact that it took place, leading to speculation across the country about what had happened.

Between the lines: It's still unclear what led the Israeli citizen to cross the border.

Israeli officials say she had studied Arabic and was previously stopped trying to cross the border fence into Gaza.

She seems like a person in need of adventure," an Israeli official told me.

What's next: She's expected to be interrogated by Israeli security services upon her return to assess why she traveled to Syria.

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Malawi will reopen schools on Monday (Feb 22), five weeks after President Lazarus Chakwera suspended classes due to a surge in COVID-19 cases. Malawi's Presidential Task-Force on COVID-19 determined it is safe to resume classes after a drop in the rate of infection.

Co-Chairperson of the Presidential Task-Force on COVID-19 Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda said in a televised address Wednesday night the infection rate is at 16%, down from 30% in January, when classes were suspended.

She said, Actually what we wanted is that once we reopen the schools our children should be safe because we know that when we were closing the schools, some teachers were COVID-19 positive and were on quarantine. So we wanted to give them enough time to recover.

However, Kandodo Chiponda, who is also minister of health, said some schools will require students to produce COVID-19-negative certificates to be allowed into class.

She asked parents to comply with such a requirement, saying the government has enough COVID-19 test kits in all public hospitals in the country.

She said, I would like to ask schools with such a requirement not to suspend learners with positive COVID-19 results but reverse their places and give them enough time to recover.

Critics say the decision to resume classes has been rushed and many schools, especially in rural areas, are not ready to reopen.

They say unmet requirements include on-the-campus water sources for hand washing and enough classrooms for proper social distancing when learning.

But Education Minister Agness Nyalonje says everything is set and that the ministry has allocated about $6 milion for the reopening of schools.

Nyalonje said part of the money will be used to drill 400 boreholes in primary schools and 240 in secondary schools to improve sanitation.

My ministry has made money [available] directly to schools through zonal accounts for them to procure soaps, to procure masks, to procure buckets where buckets need replacing, to make sure that when schools open, these things are in place, she said.

She said the challenge is to find tents for additional classrooms in highly congested schools.

Because it so happens that globally, the scramble for tents is very, very high but we are very advanced to get tents and we are hopeful that we will find tents and probably within a week, said Nyalonje.

Nyalonje also said the government has recruited 2,275 auxiliary teachers to ease pressure on permanent teachers.

The Income Tax Department has seized 15.09 crore cash from trustees involved in medical admissions scam in Bengaluru and other parts. The search operations were conducted on 9 major trusts which are registered in Bengaluru and Mangaluru and at 56 different locations across Karnataka and Kerala.

The trustees accepted a total of 402.78 crore as the illegal capitation fees to manipulate the online medical admission process. This has not been disclosed to the IT department, the ministry of finance said in a statement.

The scam involved tweaking the selection process to the medical colleges through National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) examination. The persons involved in this scam were the trustees, key personnel running the medical colleges, agents/brokers and some students who topped the NEET exams.

The students who scored high ranks in the exam take part in the state counseling while they have no intention to join the said colleges as they have secured admissions or likely to get admission elsewhere, the statement read. Once they have bagged the seat, they withdraw from the admission process which leaves the seats available to the college management, it added.

The management then makes the seats available for the 'stray vacancies round', a round in which the remaining vacant seats are open in a college after mop-up round. "In this Round, the seats are filled by the college management by admitting less meritorious candidates (Low rank in NEET) after collecting huge sums as capitation fee/donations in cash which are illegal under the Karnataka Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Capitation Fee) Act,1984. The capitation fee/ Donations are collected through a network of brokers/ agents employed by the key persons/Trustees of these medical colleges," the ministry said in the statement.

The search operation revealed that the details of cash received from students/brokers for admission in these colleges for many years were found. They evidence was found in the form of notebooks, hand written diaries, excel sheets.

"It was also observed that the management, faculty, staff, meritorious students and brokers are working in close nexus to manipulate the online admission process. Also, there is evidence indicating that one of the medical colleges have some sort of package arrangement" for passing management quota students in written examination and viva voce for fixed sum ranging from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh," the statement read.

Further, there is evidence which prima facie suggests that the cash money accepted by manipulating the online admission process in these colleges has been diverted for non-charitable purpose by the Trustees which is clearly in violation of Sec 12AA of the Income-tax Act, 1961, the ministry said in the statement. "Apart from this, evidence has been found regarding large number of investments made in immovable properties with huge cash component attracting provisions of section 69 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. One of the colleges has diversified into the business of timber/plywood industries where evidence regarding under invoicing has also been found," it added.

In addition to the seizure of cash, searches have resulted in seizing gold jewellery of 81 Kg (valued at Rs. 30 crore), 50 carat diamonds and 40 kg of silver articles.

The products have been found from the residential premises of the trustees and are prime facie, unexplained, the ministry said. Evidence of undisclosed foreign assets of Rs. 2.39 crore in Ghana has also been found apart from evidence of huge investments in 35 Luxury cars in benami names, it added.

Further investigation is in progress.

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(Sicagen), a leading integrated, value-added solutions provider for infrastructure, industrial packaging, and speciality chemicals, and, received the annual performance award from Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers Limited (RCF), a Miniratna PSU. The recognition acknowledges Sicagens excellent and timely services and product support provided to RCF during 2020.Sicagen provides product support for the Woodward Governors installed on various turbines at RCFs Trombay and Thal sites in Maharashtra. The scope of Sicagens services includes periodic overhauling, repair and calibration, emergency field service support, sales and upgrades., said, The performance award from RCF, one of Indias Miniratna PSU, is testimony to our teams commitment to ensure customer delight even during trying times. I congratulate the team at Sicagen for their dedication, determination and diligence. Im confident that they will continue to raise the bar and set new benchmarks for performance and customer services.Sicagen has been a Woodward Authorised Facility since 1990. As an authorised centre, the company serves as an AISF, reseller, and Sub-RTR of PM Controls India. Sicagen oversees the sales, servicing, maintenance, and repair of Woodward Engine & Turbine Controls and Retrofits. A trained workforce, genuine spares and a Woodward test bench ensure quality repair and service. Besides Woodward, Sicagen is also in partnerships with other international market leaders such as Norgren, Eaton and Danfoss.
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla held a "productive" meeting with Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov on Thursday during which the two sides exchanged views on a number of issues concerning regional and global security.

Shringla, who arrived in Moscow on his first foreign trip this year, also briefed Ryabkov about India's priorities during its BRICS chairmanship in 2021.

"FS @harshvshringla had a productive meeting with Deputy Foreign Minister H.E. Mr Sergey Ryabkov during which the two sides exchanged views on a number of issues concerning regional and global security," the Indian embassy here tweeted.

Read: Chinese army sends troops, equipment back to depth areas near Pangong lake

India assumed the rotating Chairmanship of five-nation BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) in 2021. This is the third BRICS Presidency for India since its inception (after 2012 and 2016).

On Wednesday, Shringla had "fruitful and productive" meetings with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov during which they discussed bilateral issues as well as regional and global issues of mutual interest. The two sides also discussed ways to further strengthen the bilateral Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.

Shringla also paid floral tributes at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in the premises of the Indian embassy on Thursday.

Earlier in the day, Shringla exchanged views with leading Russian academics and strategic thinkers on the India-Russia relationship in view of the fast-changing geopolitical landscape.

Shringla highlighted the unique nature of India's close and trust-based partnership with Russia, as he called for greater interaction among the think tanks and strategic affairs analysts of the two nations in line with their strong comprehensive bilateral cooperation.

Also read: India, China cannot have 'normal' relationship if there is 'transgression' in border areas: Shringla

"Foreign Secretary @harshvshringla called for greater interaction among the think tanks and strategic affairs analysts of #India and #Russia in line with our strong comprehensive bilateral cooperation," the Indian embassy tweeted.

"Foreign Secretary @harshvshringla exchanged views with leading Russian academics and strategic thinkers on #India-#Russia relationship in view of the fast-changing geopolitical landscape. FS highlighted the unique nature of our close and trust-based partnership with Russia," the mission said.

Speaking at the Russian Diplomatic Academy on Wednesday, Shringla said: "I had excellent meetings at the Russian Foreign Ministry, with Mr Morgulov, where we reviewed our bilateral relations, including forthcoming high-level exchanges."

Read: LAC stand-off: Disengagement process going on in Pangong Tso areas as per plan, claims report

"We also discussed India-Russia cooperation in multilateral forums and exchanged views on issues of regional and international importance," he said.

During Shringla's meeting with Foreign Minister Lavrov, he conveyed greetings of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

"I just called on Mr Lavrov and it was an opportunity to listen to him. He spoke on Russia India relations, that it is very close, very special, very privileged, and strategic, so these were his words and for me, this was very instructive to listen to a personality like him.

"Given the significance, we attach to the India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership, it is only fitting that Moscow is the destination for my first visit abroad in2021," he said.

In his address to the budding diplomats of the Diplomatic Academy, the foreign secretary emphasised that a multipolar world and multipolar Asia are not possible without India and Russia.

Shringlas two-day official visit will add momentum to the India-Russia special and privileged strategic partnership and exchange views on topical issues of regional and international importance. The trip is also expected to lay the groundwork regarding the high-level bilateral visits planned for this year.
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NEWBURGH, N.Y., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Rhinebeck Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: RBKB), the holding company of Rhinebeck Bank, has received all required regulatory approvals to continue its expansion in Orange County with the opening of a new branch at 456 Broadway in the city of Newburgh this spring.

The new branch, located in the commercial heart of Newburgh, will provide individuals, families, and businesses with a full complement of banking and lending services. Rhinebeck Asset Management, a division of Rhinebeck Bank, will provide a variety of personal and business financial planning services from their office at this new branch location.

"We believe in the city of Newburgh and in our ability to contribute to the success of residents and commercial entities throughout Orange County," said Rhinebeck Bank President and CEO Michael J. Quinn. "We'll work closely with municipal and business leaders to promote Newburgh, as we already have with our support of the Newburgh Creative Neighborhood, and to pursue smart, sustained growth in both residential and commercial markets."

In the spring of 2018, Rhinebeck Bank enhanced the efforts of Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress' Newburgh Creative Neighborhood through the creation of a $3 million loan fund. In January 2021, Rhinebeck Bank's Board of Directors increased the fund to $4 million. This fund secures term loans, including commercial express loans, equipment and vehicle purchases, leasehold improvements and real estate transactions under favorable pricing, advance rates and terms to the prospective borrowers in the Newburgh Creative Neighborhood.

"Opening in Newburgh will provide local businesses the opportunity to establish a relationship with a true community bank that is as committed to the City of Newburgh as they are," noted Senior Vice President, Commercial Lending Director Philip Bronzi. "Our Newburgh Creative Neighborhood Loan Fund has been instrumental in the revitalization of several Newburgh businesses and properties and we look forward to continuing that investment in Newburgh and supporting businesses there."

Story continues

Vince Aurigemma, Vice President, Residential Lending, highlighted the opportunity the Bank will offer those in the area looking to buy a home. "Home ownership is a foundation of building a secure financial future. Having a presence in the city of Newburgh will give residents access to our years of experience and the tools necessary to achieve their homeownership dreams."

City of Newburgh Mayor Torrance Harvey said, "We are all thrilled to have Rhinebeck Bank open a branch in our great city. The services and benefits this will bring to our residents and business community is exponential. The teamwork that went into this project, and the desire and willingness of our partner to open up shop in Newburgh speaks volumes to their commitment to our community."

"Rhinebeck Bank has a long and accomplished history of helping people and businesses flourish," said City Manager Joseph Donat. "They go above and beyond to be a true community partner and the City of Newburgh could not be happier to have them open a branch location in the heart of our downtown corridor. This is a fabulous way to kick off the new year, and will undoubtedly lay the groundwork for a fruitful future for our city, and its residents and business owners alike."

The new branch will be led by Branch Manager Mario Jimenez and Branch Team Leader Sergio Valentin. Diane Passaro, Vice President  Orange County Market Manager, an Orange County banking and lending veteran who joined Rhinebeck Bank last year, will oversee Newburgh branch operations and continue to facilitate new opportunities for growth in Orange County going forward.

The Newburgh branch will be the fourth Rhinebeck Bank location in Orange County, joining the villages of Goshen, Monroe and Warwick. Rhinebeck Asset Management is headquartered in Montgomery.

"We're excited to expand our presence in Orange County," said Mark Malone, Senior Vice President, Retail Banking. "Our Newburgh team is experienced, familiar with and connected to the city, and will be an active, visible presence in the community."

About Rhinebeck Bank

For more than 160 years, Rhinebeck Bank has been an integral part of the area's economic growth and a driving force for commerce along the Hudson River. Rhinebeck Bank takes pride in being personally involved in local businesses, communities, and charitable organizations. Its ability to be responsive to the needs of their customers and community has led to continued growth. For more information about Rhinebeck Bank or any of its products or services, please visit www.RhinebeckBank.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

The statements contained herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements (as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) based on management's current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on Rhinebeck Bancorp. Such statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and are generally beyond the control of Rhinebeck Bancorp. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting Rhinebeck Bancorp will be the same as those anticipated by management. These statements are evidenced by terms such as "anticipate," "estimate," "should," "expect," "believe," "intend," and similar expressions. Although these statements reflect management's good faith beliefs and projections, they are not guarantees of future performance and they may not prove true. These projections involve risk and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those addressed in the forward-looking statements. Readers should not place under reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. For a discussion of these risks and uncertainties, see the section of the periodic reports filed by Rhinebeck Bancorp with the Securities and Exchange Commission entitled "Risk Factors." We specifically disclaim any obligation to update any factors or to publicly announce the result of revisions to any of the forward-looking statements included herein to reflect future events or developments.

Investor Contact

Michael J. Quinn, President and Chief Executive Officer, Rhinebeck Bank

(845) 790-1501

Cision

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SOURCE Rhinebeck Bancorp, Inc.
Redefine is trying to take plant-based products to the next level by giving diners the same sensory experience as eating prime beef. Last week, another Israeli startup, Aleph Farms Ltd., unveiled the worlds first slaughter-free ribeye steak. Barcelona-based Novameat Tech plans to start selling 3D-printed vegan meat to restaurants in Europe this year as it raises funds for a production scale-up, CEO Giuseppe Scionti said.
The pandemic has accelerated trends that providers of workforce management services have been talking about for many years, says Liz DeVito, Associate Director and ALM Intelligence Pacesetter Research Analyst.

New research from ALM Intelligence finds the coronavirus pandemic has triggered unprecedented levels of demand for workforce management services across all segments of the professional services market. In its first-ever Pacesetters report on workforce management, ALM Intelligence examines the strategies and service offerings of 19 providers identified as Market Leaders by the ALM Pacesetter Advisory Council. The report, ALM Intelligence Pacesetter Research: Workforce Management Services 2021-2022, assesses these firms for their ability to deliver client impact in todays challenging business environment.

The pandemic has accelerated trends that providers of workforce management services have been talking about for many years, says Liz DeVito, Associate Director and ALM Intelligence Pacesetter Research Analyst. The context has shifted somewhat by placing new priorities on growing revenue in a locked down economy and sustaining productivity in a remote work environment, however, providers also are focusing clients on the long-term need to build a stronger foundation for innovation and resilience in the face of continued uncertainty.

Research Highlights:



The market for workforce management (WFM) services is diverse with a spectrum of providers across the professional services landscape catering to a broad array of client needs

New providers are entering the market with services and solutions for managing pandemic-related workforce challenges, e.g., contact tracing tools and employee well-being programs

Providers designated as ALM Intelligence Pacesetters treat workforce management as a transformation lever and place a larger emphasis on building digitally-enabled workforce programs through the lens of the employee experience

Law firms are inching their way up the transformation value chain as they combine data analytics with technology to automate many employment matters, saving clients both time and money

ALM Intelligence evaluates providers abilities to bring the full advantage of their extended organization, innovation capability, service delivery model, and brand eminence to create impact and value for clients. Pacesetter Research evaluated the workforce management capabilities of 19 professional services providers for this research, including Accenture, AIRINC, Aon, Bain & Company, Baker McKenzie, Buck, EY, IBM, Jackson Lewis, Korn Ferry, Littler Mendelson, Mercer, North Highland, Ogletree Deakins, ManpowerGroup Talent Solutions, PwC, Trianz, Willis Towers Watson and Workforce Insight. Within this cohort, four ALM Pacesetters in Workforce Services Management were identified: EY, Korn Ferry, ManpowerGroup Talent Solutions and PwC.

ALM Intelligence Pacesetter Research provides independent, objective research to providers and buyers of professional services, coupled with practical insights that inform the decision-making process for strategic planning and procurement professionals.

For more information or to obtain the full versions of the ALM Intelligence Pacesetter Research series, visit: https://www.alm.com/intelligence/pacesetter-research/ or contact our Strategic Accounts Manager, James Doyle at JDoyle@alm.com.

About ALM Intelligence

ALM Intelligence provides proprietary data, analysis, tools, and knowledge that empower our clients to succeed. The product suite arms professionals with self-service solutions that translate ALMs vast data repository and market research into competitive insights that drive impactful business decisions. The depth of ALM Intelligences expertise across the benefits, insurance, consulting, and legal industries provide a broad spectrum of actionable intelligence to facilitate and execute strategy. Visit http://www.alm.com/intelligence for more information.

About ALM Media, LLC

ALM, an information and intelligence company, provides customers with critical news, data, analysis, marketing solutions, and events to successfully manage the business of law. ALM serves a community of over 6 million business professionals seeking to discover, connect, and compete in highly complex industries. Please visit http://www.alm.com for more information, and visit http://www.alm.com/events/ to learn about our upcoming events. Please follow us on Twitter at @ALMMedia.
Overview of how CellChat can convert "molecular language" of cells into the translation that is interpretable by researchers. Credit: Suoqin Jin, Qing Nie & Maksim Plikus / UCI

An interdisciplinary team of biologists and mathematicians at the University of California, Irvine has developed a new tool to help decipher the language cells use to communicate with one another.

In a paper published today in Nature Communications, the researchers introduce CellChat, a computational platform that enables the decoding of signaling molecules that transmit information and commands between the cells that come together to form biological tissues and even entire organs.

"To properly understand why cells do certain things, and to predict their future actions, we need to be able to listen to what they are saying to one another; mathematical and machine learning tools enable the translation of such messages," said co-senior author Qing Nie, UCI Chancellor's Professor of mathematics and developmental & cell biology.

"Just like in our world, where we are constantly bombarded with information, all cells experience a lot of molecular words coming at them simultaneously," added co-senior author Maksim Plikus, UCI professor of developmental & cell biology, "What they choose to do is dependent on this steady flow of molecular information and on what words and sentences are being heard the loudest."

To use CellChat to translate molecular messages between cells, researchers feed in a single-cell gene expression, and out comes a detailed report on signaling communication features of a given tissue or organ.

"For each distinct group of cells, CellChat shows what significant signals are being sent to their neighbors and what signals they have the ability to receive," Plikus said. "As an interpreter of cellular language, CellChat provides scientists with a valuable insight into signaling patterns that guide function of the entire organ."

In developing CellChat, the researchers in UCI's NSF-Simons Center for Multiscale Cell Fate Researchincluding postdoctoral fellows Suoqin Jin, Christian F. Guerrero-Juarez, Raul Ramos and Lihua Zhangborrowed heavily from machine learning tools and social network theory, which allows the platform to predict a higher level meaning of cellular language and identify contextual similarities that are otherwise not obvious. It breaks down the immense complexity of cellular communication patterns.

Cells produce modifier molecules to add emphasis to a certain command, transforming "do this" to "do this now." CellChat automatically calibrates the strength of signaling communication between cells by considering all significantly present modifier molecules. As a result, its translation becomes more nuanced and helps to minimize inaccuracies that plague other similar yet less sophisticated computational tools.

Beyond the purely fundamental research enterprise of interpreting these biological messages, Nie said CellChat can also be used to compare communication networks in different states of an organ, such as sickness and health. Calling it a "Google Translator for the lexicon of cells," Nie said one of tool's most significant capabilities is that it can be used to uncover molecular drivers in a broad spectrum of maladies including cancer and autoimmune disorders.

"In our paper, we showcase the power of CellChat using atopic dermatitis, a human skin condition, but the tool can be used on any tissue with the same success," Plikus added.

Explore further Researchers use deep learning to identify gene regulation at single-cell level
The move was swiftly criticized by news producers, politicians and human rights advocates, particularly as it became clear that official health pages, emergency safety warnings and welfare networks had all been scrubbed from the site along with news.

"Facebook was wrong, Facebook's actions were unnecessary, they were heavy-handed, and they will damage its reputation here in Australia," Treasurer Josh Frydenberg told a televised news conference.

Frydenberg said Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg gave no warning of the news shutdown when the pair spoke over the weekend about looming laws that will force both Facebook and search engine giant Google to pay local publishers for content.

The two men had a subsequent conversation on Thursday morning which was "constructive," Frydenberg said, adding they discussed what he called "differing interpretations" about how the new Media Bargaining Code would work.

Video Transcript

JOSH FRYDENBERG: In respect to Facebook's actions today, Facebook was wrong. Facebook's actions were unnecessary. They were heavy-handed, and they will damage its reputation here in Australia. Their decision to block Australians' access to government sites, be they about support through the pandemic, mental health, emergency services, the Bureau of Meteorology, were completely unrelated to the media code, which is yet to pass through the Senate. But what today's events do confirm for all Australians is the immense market power of these media digital giants. These digital giants loom very, very large in our economy and on the digital landscape.

- The fact that there are organizations like state health departments, fire and emergency services, and so on who have had their Facebook pages blocked, that's a public safety issue. I've spoken to Facebook this morning and said the government expects them to restore those pages as quickly as possible.
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This is loyalist killer Michael Stone - pictured for the first time since being freed from jail - enjoying a seaside walk.

The security-conscious Milltown Cemetery bomber was seen putting on a bulletproof vest after arriving. He then embraced his wife Karan before the pair, arm in arm, walked the seafront with their dog.

Stone (65), who appeared to have a security tag on his left arm, was dressed in jeans, trainers, a black T-shirt and flat cap.

Before he and his wife headed off for their stroll, Stone put on a coat and - mindful of the Covid-19 pandemic - a Union flag-themed face mask.

He was also seen walking with the aid of a crutch.



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They are the first pictures to emerge since Stone was controversially released on parole last month.

The killer, who was not due for release until 2024, was freed on January 26.

The move infuriated victims, who have taken a legal challenge over the decision by parole commissioners.

An onlooker said Stone appeared relaxed as he strolled along the seafront, enjoying this week's sunnier weather.

One of Northern Ireland's most notorious terrorists, Stone was jailed for life following a gun and grenade attack at Milltown Cemetery.



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He attacked the funerals of IRA members, shooting and lobbing grenades into the crowd in March 1988.

Mourners had been attending the joint funerals of three IRA members, Daniel McCann, Sean Savage and Mairead Farrell, who were shot dead by the SAS in Gibraltar.

Stone's attack killed three people - civilians Thomas McErlean (20) and John Murray (26), and 30-year-old IRA man Kevin Brady.

After his arrest, he admitted to three other murders, including killing Catholic milkman Patrick Brady (36) in south Belfast in 1984.

He also admitted the killings of joiner Kevin McPolin in Lisburn in 1985 and bread delivery driver Dermot Hackett near Drumquin in Co Tyrone two years later.



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Stone was released in 2000 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.

However, he was sent back to jail in 2006 after an attempt to murder Sinn Fein leaders Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness at Stormont.

He entered Parliament Buildings armed with explosives, knives and an axe, but bizarrely claimed the episode was an act of performance art.

He was told in 2013 that he must serve the rest of the 30-year tariff on his life sentence.

Stone, a father of nine, married his third wife Karan in a ceremony at Maghaberry Prison in 2016.

Last November the Court of Appeal overturned a decision that he must remain behind bars until 2024, with judges ruling that the six years he spent out on licence should count towards the 30-year tariff.

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It infuriated relatives, with Deborah McGuinness, the sister of Milltown victim Mr McErlean, saying she was afraid Stone would approach her family.

She has launched a judicial review into the lawfulness of the decision to free him, with parole commissioners ordered to disclose the reasons.

Since his release, Stone has been keeping a low profile, with these photographs marking his first public sighting in years.
Amsterdam, February 16: The Dutch Court of Justice on Tuesday directed the government to immediately lift the curfew imposed as a COVID-19 preventive measure in the Netherlands. The court observed that the lockdown was not legitimate as the law under under which the curfew was imposed gave the government special power to take such action without prior discussion. Since the said curfew was discussed beforehand, it losses its legitimacy under the law. Dutch Govt to Impose Night Curfew, Flight Ban From UK, South Africa and South America to Curb the Spread of COVID-19.

Also Read | 'India is Playing Central Role in Global Vaccination', Says PM Narendra Modi: Live Breaking News Headlines Update on February 16, 2021

The curfew is based on a law for emergency situations, where there is no time for debate with parliament, the court in the Hague reportedly said.There was no such pressing need in this case. Far-reaching measures such as these need to be based on proper laws, the Dutch Court of Justice added, as reported by the Reuters. New Variant of Coronavirus Detected in UK, Netherlands and Belgium Suspend Flights From Britain; All You Need to Know.

The court was hearing a case against the curfew by an ant-lockdown group called Virus Truth Foundation. In its petition the group reportedly argued that the government did not make it clear as to why it was necessary to impose curfew at this phase of coronavirus pandemic, as the infection rate in Netherlands has been dropping.

Also Read | Mumbai to go Under Lockdown Again? 'People Must Take Precautions Else We'd Head Towards Another Lockdown', Says Mayor Kishori Pednekar

Netherlands imposed curfew between 9 PM to 4 AM on January 23 as a preventive measure against COVID-19 outbreak, which was extended till March 3 in a review meeting last week. So far, the country has reported a total confirmed cases of 1,029,284 and the death toll stands at 14,816.
Medtronic, the medical device manufacturer, received authorization last year from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Stuart Goldstein, MD, director of the Center for Acute Care Nephrology at Cincinnati Children's, was a clinical consultant in developing the device.

"Previously available technology performing CRRT procedures was not optimal  largely because dialysis machines available in the U.S. are designed for adults and can potentially expose critically ill infants to many risks," Goldstein said. "This new system is designed specifically for these patients, which enables increased precision of neonatal CRRT treatment and reduces these risks."

One of the first patients to use the CARPEDIEM machine is newborn Brenden Hooper of Lawrenceburg, Ky. Since birth, he's been on dialysis to rid his body of toxins, waste, and fluids due to kidney failure. At 2 months old, Brenden faced a life-threatening situation when the machines at his home hospital couldn't support him after he developed a severe infection in his abdomen. Doctors in Kentucky reached out to Cincinnati Children's after Brenden's body was overloading with fluid, putting his heart and other organs at risk.

"His eyes were completely shut, and he couldn't open them because there was so much fluid," said Kayla Hooper, Brenden's mom. "We didn't recognize him when we first saw him."

When Brenden arrived by medical helicopter at Cincinnati Children's, the CARPEDIEM machine was able to safely remove the excess fluid and get his infection under control.

"This machine saved Brenden's life," Goldstein said. "When Brenden came here, he was probably close to twice his true weight with fluid overload and over a period of a week or so we were able to slowly and safely remove that fluid."

Brenden is now doing better and returned to a normal weight. He's back at his home hospital to continue care.

"We're super grateful," Hooper said. "This could have been fatal for him."

Unique Features

CARPEDIEM's unique features help prevent damaging fluid balance errors in several ways:

The novel blood pump technology features a smaller rotor, which allows for lower blood flow and less risk of blood clots. Scales are accurate within 1 gram per hour, and the slower blood flow helps stabilize babies.

CARPEDIEM filters are half as small as those of other CRRT machines that have larger circuit volume. Saline can be used to prime the CARPEDIEM circuit, thus avoiding blood transfusions.

Physicians and care teams at Cincinnati Children's have received training to use this new device and are carefully tracking patient experiences.

"When you have new technology like this and you implement it for the first time, there's a lot of questions and anxiety," said Jolyn Morgan, DNP, Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner at Cincinnati Children's. "The nurses and physicians and everybody at the medical center that worked with the device did an incredible, incredible job."

The hospital has three machines and expects to use CARPEDIEM for 10 to 15 patients a year, typically for a treatment course of seven to 14 days.

"This is the first true advancement in acute dialysis technology in over 20 years," Goldstein said. "Our hope is that we can now treat acute kidney problems in critically ill infants before they lead to permanent damage."

Evolution of CARPEDIEM

An Italian physician, Dr. Claudio Ronco, originally designed the technology and used CARPEDIEM on his first patient in 2014. He consulted Dr. Goldstein on care of the patient, and they co-authored a paper featuring the first successful human case in The Lancet medical journal.

CARPEDIEM is made in Italy, and its original manufacturer was Bellco. The technology is currently owned by Medtronic.

Goldstein worked with both manufacturers to obtain approval from the FDA in April 2020.

SOURCE Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 16:58:27|Editor: huaxia

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TASHKENT -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday that Uzbekistan's large support package was timely and well-targeted, though the COVID-19 pandemic has had "a marked, but so far relatively short-lived, adverse impact" on the country's economy.

The Uzbek authorities' strong policy reaction led to the country being among the few countries that showed positive overall economic growth in 2020, at a rate of 1.6 percent, the IMF said in a statement following a three-week remote mission in Uzbekistan. (Uzbekistan-IMF-COVID-19)

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BEIJING -- China's express delivery sector processed 660 million parcels during the week-long Spring Festival holiday starting Feb. 11, surging 260 percent over the same period last year, said the State Post Bureau.

More than 1 million couriers were on duty to ensure the efficiency of services, according to the bureau. (China-Courier service-Spring festival)

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LUANDA -- Angolan President Joao Lourenco on Wednesday iterated his government's commitment to establish and consolidate a society featuring the rule of law and a market economy.

Lourenco made the remarks at the opening of the 44th session of the board of governors of the International Fund for Agricultural Development held via videoconference. (Angola-Market economy)

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CHICAGO -- Chicago Board of Trade agricultural futures closed mixed on Wednesday, with corn rising slightly and wheat and soybean dropping.

The most active corn contract for March delivery rose 0.75 cent, or 0.14 percent, to settle at 5.53 dollars per bushel. May wheat plunged 13.5 cents, or 2.04 percent, to settle at 6.48 dollars per bushel. March soybean fell one cent, or 0.07 percent, to close at 13.8375 dollars per bushel. (US-Agricultural futures)

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ROME -- The coronavirus pandemic is changing the way Italian wine is sold, and analysts say it is unlikely to go back to the way it was once the virus is less of a threat.

Restaurants and bars -- normally the top domestic market for Italian wine -- have either been shuttered or been open for business for a dramatically limited period for most of the last year, starting when Italy became the first European country to declare a national coronavirus lockdown. (Italy-Wine industry) Enditem
Global Risk Partners (GRP) has entered into an agreement to acquire the UK Networks business of Marsh, the global insurance broker and risk adviser.

Terms of the transaction, which is subject to regulatory approval, were not disclosed. Completion is expected by the second quarter of 2021.

The Networks business comprises Marsh ProBroker, Bluefin Network and Purple Partnership. The acquisition also includes Marsh Connections, Marsh Labyrinth and Broker2Broker (B2B), part of Marshs wider UK networks business, which provide brokers with access to a range of products and facilities.

Mike Bruce, GRPs group CEO, hailed the transaction as a great leap forward for GRP, with the group now placing or influencing well over 1.6 billion of GWP, and cementing our position as one of the UKs leading retail commercial broking providers.

Upon completion, Marshs UK Networks team will move across to GRP. David Hopwood, head of the UK Networks business, will join the GRP executive and continue to head up the business under new ownership.

The new single brand will be Hedron, which will be launched officially following completion.

This is a growth story. There wont be any redundancies. Instead, we want to increase penetration of the Marsh Networks panel, build out the membership base, engage with our strategic insurer partners for the benefit of members and bring new products and services to the network  including through our MGA and healthcare businesses, said Bruce.

He explained that an important part of the GRP proposition will be to offer M&A facilities to network members wishing to sell their businesses. GRP has a highly experienced acquisitions team, and we are keen to provide that service to brokers looking to create value from their lifes work. With some brokers looking for an exit in light of potential tax changes, the impact of Brexit and further compliance challenges, we are here to help, Bruce continued.

Bruce said he had previously worked with David Hopwood while both were at Bluefin. David and I go back many years and Im a big admirer of what he has achieved to date at Marsh and previously at Bluefin. He and his team will be a key asset for GRP, and we intend to continue the work he has started, building a single brand and proposition for the Network.

Hopwood, head of Marshs UK Networks business, commented: We are very excited to be taking our members on this next step, where we believe we can capitalise on our firm foundations to generate accelerated growth and success for our 256 members and around 400 trading partners.

Following completion, the new GRP networks division will continue with previously announced plans to transform the network into a single proposition under the new Hedron brand.

As part of the transaction, some colleagues in Marsh Commercials London Markets Business (LMB) team, led by Bob Peterson, will also transfer to GRP. Peterson will continue to lead the team which will become part of Lonmar, GRPs Lloyds and London markets division. The LMBs Placement team, which supports Marsh Commercials branches, will remain with Marsh.

Commenting on the transaction, Chris Lay, CEO of Marsh, UK & Ireland, said: I am pleased that GRP is to become the new custodian for our UK Networks business. Mike Bruce and his team understand the broking business and market environment our members operate in and will ensure that our Networks colleagues and the Network members can continue to thrive. We have a very strong position in the SME segment, and we are excited about the organic growth opportunities in our Marsh Commercial business. This transaction will enable us to increase our investment and focus on the core Marsh Commercial offering to the UK SME market.

Andrew Frey, partner at Searchlight Capital Partners, which acquired GRP in 2020, said: This is just the kind of bold move we expected when we invested in GRP. The addition of Marshs UK Networks business to GRPs business portfolio will enable their members to derive the considerable benefits that come with being part of our group. I am confident that all parties will achieve significant value from this acquisition.

Source: Global Risk Partners (GRP)

Topics Mergers
Pune, Feb 18 : Bank of Maharashtra (BoM) has entered into a strategic partnership with Vayana Network, India's largest supply chain financing (SCF) platform to offer financial support to the MSME sector.

Through this association, the Bank of Maharashtra will provide short term credit to meet funding requirements of dealers/vendors of reputed corporates through "Mahabank Channel Financing Scheme" launched by the bank, through Vayana Network's expertise in this segment.

Under the partnership, Vayana Network will provide its SCF solutions to Bank of Maharashtra, supported by Vayana's technology and service expertise. The SCF solutions will include vendor and dealer financing programmes across the bank's network of over 1,870 branches across the country.

Vayana Network's proprietary tech platform will help to digitise the transactions of SCF, while the market services will help to increase penetration in the under-served MSME segment.

A.S. Rajeev, MD & CEO of Bank of Maharashtra, said: "Bank of Maharashtra is proud to announce the launch of its Channel Financing solution for MSMEs in partnership with Vayana Network, India's leading Supply Chain Finance platform. We believe in the power of partnerships, and hence have tied up with leading Fintechs to launch innovative digital offerings. Through this partnership with Vayana, we look forward to offer a fully digital financing experience to our MSME customers, suppliers and distributors of leading corporates." "We look forward to adding a robust portfolio within our MSME business through Channel Financing Scheme," Hemant Tamta, Executive Director of BoM, said.
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Washington: Senior Republican politicians have sought to blame failing wind turbines for the massive blackouts in Texas that have left millions of people without power for days in freezing temperatures.

The states electric grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), has said that renewable energy sources partially failed but that thermal sources such as coal, gas and nuclear energy lost almost twice as much power during the snowstorm.

Brett Saint rests inside a Gallery Furniture store which opened as a shelter for those in need of food, water and heat in Houston. Credit:AP

As of Thursday (AEDT) morning, 3.4 million people were still without power in Texas as temperatures remained as low as minus 4 degrees Celsius in cities such as Dallas. Such low temperatures are extremely rare in the southern state, which has a population of almost 30 million.

A woman and an eight-year-old girl in Houston died of carbon monoxide poisoning after a car was left running in a garage to help generate heat, according to Houston police.
The political scandal surrounding COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents was once a relatively straightforward matter. State lawmakers and others asked Gov. Andrew Cuomo to release more data. His administration said they needed time to fulfill the request. The impasse lasted for months until state Attorney General Letitia James released a scathing report three weeks ago on the states handling of nursing home deaths  and things have only gotten more complicated from there.

There are now several subplots to the growing maelstrom surrounding the governors handling of COVID-19 deaths. Federal investigators have launched an investigation. Democratic lawmakers are in revolt. The national media is turning on him after nearly a year of mostly positive coverage. Political foes like New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz are scoring as many political points as they can at the expense of the three-term governor.

City & State has a breakdown of what all these different threads mean on the day after the release of a transcript detailing a conversation last week between top Cuomo staffers and state lawmakers, the governors subsequent attacks on Assembly Member Ron Kim and news that federal prosecutors are investigating the governor.

What does the transcript show?

Cuomo aides said all sorts of interesting things about the states response to COVID-19 during their Feb. 10 Zoom conversation with state lawmakers, but only one section suggests the administration was withholding information about nursing home deaths. We werent sure if what we were going to give to the Department of Justice or what we give to you guys ... was going to be used against us, Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa said. Yet, her comments could be read in two ways. One way could mean that members of the administration were intentionally withholding data from the DOJ. Or, maybe they were just afraid of Twitter attacks from then-President Donald Trump? The Associated Press reports that some career prosecutors with the DOJ were also feeling queasy about why Trump pushed the agency to request information from the Cuomo administration about nursing home deaths.

So what are federal investigators doing now?

It remains unclear just how big of a connection there is between the DOJ requests for information from last summer and an investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of New York that was first revealed by the Times Union on Wednesday. It remains unclear though what potential crimes investigators might be considering. The probe by the U.S. attorneys office in the Eastern District of New York is apparently in its early stages and is focusing on the work of some of the senior members of the governors task force, the Times Union wrote, citing an anonymous source. Why is Eastern District of New York, based in Brooklyn, getting involved? One reason is that the acting head of the Southern District of New York, which covers Manhattan and areas to its north, is DeRosas mother-in-law Audrey Strauss.

How are state lawmakers reacting to Cuomos attacks on Assembly Member Ron Kim?

Assembly Member Ron Kim, a Queens Democrat, spent much of Thursday morning making media appearances the day after Cuomo attacked his integrity during a conference call with reporters. Cuomo has said that he could bite his tongue no longer after months of criticisms by Kim, so he called him up last weekend. The governor said he was only trying to get Kim to correct comments made to the New York Post while Kim said the governor threatened his career and physical safety. A wave of supportive statements from Democratic colleagues and other progressive notables following Cuomos comments to the press.

What are the legislative leaders up to?

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins appear to be balancing outrage among the members with their needs to maintain a working relationship with the governor as the state budget process continues. Democratic members of the state Senate though have been making moves behind the scenes to rescind Cuomos emergency powers next week. That would add additional pressure on Heastie. Some members of his conference appear cool to the Senates idea of establishing a 10-member commission to approve future emergency orders by the governor. It hardly helps the speakers position that some political observers are now comparing the conciliatory statement that he issued after Cuomos Wednesday attack on Kim to the reaction that former Speaker Sheldon Silver had when former Gov. Eliot Spitzer went after Assembly Member Bill Magnarelli.

Wait, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is in on this action?

The Texas lawmaker and his GOP colleagues are aiming to kill two birds with one stone by calling for President Joe Bidens attorney general nominee, Merrick Garland, to commit to investigating Cuomos handling of nursing home deaths. He is hardly the only one who is looking to nationalize the scandal. State Republican Party Chair Nick Langworthy  who spent much of late 2020 and early 2021 encouraging efforts by then-President Donald Trump to overturn the results of the presidential election  scheduled two press conferences Wednesday outside the Albany and Rochester offices of U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who does not appear to be eager to comment on the matter. The growing outrage in conservative media is even giving longtime Western New York GOP operative Michael Caputo a second chance at political relevance after he left the Trump administration last year following a controversial Facebook rant.
President Emmanuel Macron announced new investment to bolster Frances cyber security defenses after two hospitals were struck by ransomware and the national security agency linked a large cyber attack spanning three years to Russian hackers.

The government is earmarking around 500 million euros ($602 million) to help companies and public authorities boost their cyber defenses, an official in the presidents office said Wednesday.

Macrons goal is to triple the annual sales of French cyber-security companies to 25 billion euros in 2025 from 7.3 billion euros in 2019, and double the number of jobs in the sector by 2025.

The French leader will speak with officials at the two hospitals recently struck by hackers  in Villefranche-sur-Saone in central France and in Dax in the south west  on Thursday morning. While medical facilities have been targeted more often since the COVID pandemic began, according to watchdog ANSSI, a French official said the country wasnt suffering more than others.

Earlier this week, ANSSI said that an attack similar to one used by Russian military hackers breached software firm Centeron, which counts Airbus SE, Orange SA and Electricite de France SA as its customers, in a campaign that began in late 2017 and continued into 2020. The company said the vulnerability may have been in an old, open-source version of its product, and not the software sold to corporations.

A French official at the ministry of foreign affairs on Wednesday described the campaign as irresponsible and an assault on the countrys sovereignty. France is taking a position of responsible caution in terms of public attribution, the official said, declining to name the source of the attack and adding that dialog with Russia is necessary on this matter.

Russia has dismissed the suggestion it was involved.

Copyright 2021 Bloomberg.

Topics Cyber France

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 22:19:31|Editor: huaxia

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China's Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou leaves her residence for the extradition hearing in Vancouver, Canada, Jan. 20, 2020. (Photo by Harrison Ha/Xinhua)

BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- China has expressed its firm opposition to the so-called Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention issued by Canada and some other countries on Feb. 15, and lodged stern representations with the Canadian side, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.

"If Canada really opposes 'arbitrary detention,' it should act on its words and immediately release Meng Wanzhou and allow her to return to China safe and sound," spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a daily press briefing.

Canada gathered a number of countries to issue the so-called Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention and deliberately arranged relevant personnel to accuse China of the "arbitrary detention" of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. This is a thief shouting "stop thief," confusing right from wrong, Hua said.

Hua pointed out that Meng Wanzhou has been arbitrarily detained by Canada for two years despite violating no Canadian laws, which clearly shows that Canada has arbitrarily arrested and detained foreign citizens.

"The so-called declaration is more like Canada's confession acknowledging its mistakes in the Meng Wanzhou case," she said, adding that Canada portrayed itself as upholding the rule of law while acting as an accomplice of the United States in arbitrarily detaining Chinese citizens, which is "despicable and hypocritical."

Hua also refuted Canada's claims that it was supported by relevant countries, saying that some countries were coaxed by Canada and have since withdrawn from the joint declaration, and some listed in the joint declaration said they were not informed about their inclusion.

As to the cases of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, they were prosecuted for suspected crimes undermining China's national security. China's judicial organs are handling the cases independently in accordance with the law, and the lawful rights of the two men have been guaranteed, she said.

Noting that the incident of Meng Wanzhou and the cases of the two Canadian citizens are completely different and bunching them together is an ill-intentioned distortion of the facts, Hua said Canada's attempt at "microphone diplomacy" is doomed to fail and will only end in Canada hurting itself. 
Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

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Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
She's been living it up in Dubai amid the coronavirus crisis.

And Kaz Crossley looked sensational in a slew of bikini snaps that she shared from her 'work trip' via Instagram on Thursday.

The former Love Island star, 27, put her peachy posterior on display as she posed in a white thong bikini that left very little to the imagination.

Wow! Love Island's Kaz Crossley showed off her VERY peachy posterior while posing in a white thong bikini during her Dubai 'work' trip in snaps she shared via Instagram on Thursday

Kaz's bandeau bikini top was tied with multiple strings which complemented her very revealing bottoms as she took a dip in the ocean.

Her ombre locks were styled into glamorous waves that cascaded over her back, and she kept her accessories simple by wearing a gold chain necklace and a watch.

While she was not frolicking in the ocean, Kaz donned a blue satin shirt that she teamed with mesh trousers for a chic beach look.

Despite recent controversy surrounding influencers being in Dubai amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Kaz wore a delighted expression on her face.

Beach babe: Kaz's bandeau bikini top showed a glimpse of her cleavage and was tied with multiple strings to complement her very revealing bikini bottoms

Stylish: While she was not frolicking in the ocean, Kaz donned a blue satin shirt that she teamed with mesh trousers for a chic beach look

Earlier this month, Dubai forced all of its pubs and bars to close after a surge in Covid-19 cases at the influencer-packed destination since the start of the New Year.

The sheikhdom also ordered restaurants and cafes to close by 1am, as well as instituted crowd limits on cinemas, hotels, shopping centres and other destinations.

The move will come as a blow for British influencers such as Kaz, who remained in the country after a travel ban was introduced last Friday.

Enjoying herself: Despite recent controversy surrounding influencers being in Dubai amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Kaz continues to be living it up in the city

Since Britain's third national lockdown began last month, reality stars have been pictured sunning themselves in the Gulf state, but insist they are out there to work.

Laura Anderson, Molly-Mae Hague, Maura Higgins, Amber Davies, Georgia Harrison and Kady McDermott were among those to jet off before the third national lockdown.

Celebrities who have uploaded photos which appear to show them in Dubai in recent weeks include The Only Way Is Essex's James Lock and Yazmin Oukhellou.

Changes: Earlier this month, Dubai forced all of its pubs and bars to close after a surge in Covid-19 cases at the influencer-packed destination since the start of the New Year

The decision comes after Dubai insisted recently that 'we can confidently say the current situation is under control'.

While the restrictions likely will affect Dubai's vital tourism sector, countries already have taken a hard line on travel to the emirate.

The United Kingdom, a major tourism source for the UAE, already has stopped flights to the country over concerns about coronavirus variants there.

Dubai also urged the public to report those violating coronavirus rules to the police.
By Devjyot Ghoshal and Suchitra Mohanty

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Lawyers for a 22-year-old Indian activist charged with sedition said she was arrested illegally in southern India and produced at a New Delhi court without prior notice to her family or counsel, according to legal documents filed on Thursday.

Disha Ravi, an environmental activist who is part of an organisation founded by climate change crusader Greta Thunberg, was arrested by Delhi Police on Saturday for allegedly creating and sharing an online document that stoked violence last month at the months-long farmers' protests around Delhi.

Sedition can be punished with a life sentence and Ravi's arrest has kicked off a fire storm of criticism against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government for using heavy-handed tactics to counter the farmers' agitation.

Tens of thousands of farmers have been camped on the outskirts of Delhi since late last year, protesting against three farm laws enacted by the Modi government.

On Thursday afternoon, groups of farmers and their supporters sat on railway tracks across the country to stall train movement for a few hours as part of the continuing campaign.

Although largely peaceful, the agitation was marred by violence on Jan. 26 when some protesters entered the capital, stormed the historic Red Fort complex and clashed with police.

Delhi Police has alleged that a document authored by Ravi and two others, with the backing of supporters of a separatist group, contained plans for widening the protests and fomenting violence. The police have said the document was shared with Thunberg, who has voiced support for the farmers' protests.

Ravi, who was arrested at her home in the southern city of Bengaluru, is currently in police custody. Her next court appearance is on Friday.

"The police did not obtain any transit remand, nor did they permit the petitioner to consult with a lawyer," a petition by Ravi's lawyers filed at a Delhi court on Thursday said, referring to legal permission required to move an accused from one location to another.

Story continues

She was produced at a New Delhi court on Sunday that remanded her to police custody.

"Surprisingly, there was significant media coverage of the petitioner's remand hearing and the media seemed to have more knowledge about the time and venue of the petitioner's production than her lawyers," it said.

A Delhi Police spokesman said they were waiting for instructions from the court to reply to the allegations levelled by Ravi's lawyers.

(Additional reporting by Saurabh Sharma in LUCKNOW, Jatindra Dash in BHUBANESWAR, Danish Siddiqui in SONEPAT and Mayank Bhardwaj in NEW DELHI; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

BARRY COUNTY, MI  A Barry County man has been arrested in womans beating and shooting death.

Andrew John-Lawrence Lafey, 21, of Nashville, Michigan, is charged with open murder and felony firearms in the womans death.

Her name has not been released.

Barry County sheriffs deputies on Wednesday, Feb. 17, responded to a report of an assault or slaying near a home on Guy Road in Maple Grove Township. Police found the victims body covered in snow.

Police soon arrested the suspect.

Lafey was arraigned Thursday morning by Barry County District Judge Michael Schipper who set bond at $500,000, Prosecutor Julie Nakfoor-Pratt said in a statement.

She said that the victim was beaten and shot the day before her body was found.

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105-year-old playhouse reopening after being closed since March
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Minister of Economy of Armenia Vahan Kerobyan has offered his condolences over the death of former minister of agriculture Sergo Karapetyan, the ministry said.

With a deep sorrow I have learnt about the death of former minister of agriculture Sergo Karapetyan.

On behalf of the ministry staff and myself personally I express my sincere condolences to Sergo Karapetyans family, relatives and colleagues.

At this difficult moment of loss please accept my condolences and support, the ministers condolence letter reads.

Former minister of agriculture Sergo Karapetyan died on February 18 from COVID-19 complications at the age of 72.

He has served as agriculture minister from 2010 to 2016.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
800,000+ first dose vaccines given out in Wales as second doses start being distributed more widely

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Feb 18th, 2021

More than 807,000 people across Wales have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine which is over 30% of the adult population.

This week has also seen the start of second dose vaccines being more widely administered to those who were vaccinated at the start of December.

At the time of writing 12,988 people have now received their second dose after a huge jump in the rollout, with 5,700 doses given out in the last 24 hour window alone as the process steps up.

Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has so far administered 189,524 vaccines, of which 30,508 have been in Wrexham.





Figures for the rest of the region include Anglesey: 21,991, Gwynedd: 32,046, Conwy: 36,715, Denbighshire: 28,585, Flintshire: 34,698 and other: 4,981.

Data released by the health board also provides an update on the percentage given (or declined) 1st dose amongst each of the groups vaccinated so far.

Although the majority of categories exceed over 80%, the amount of vaccines administered are the lowest amongst care home staff.

Residents in Older Persons Care Homes: 85%

Staff working in Older Persons Care Homes: 73%

All those aged 80 years and over: 92%

Frontline healthcare workers: 94%

Frontline social care workers: 83%

All those aged 75  79 years: 91%

All those aged 70  74 years: 89%

All those aged under 16-69 yrs who are clinically extremely vulnerable: 80%

Figures for the whole of Wales can be found below:

Wales, along with the rest of the UK, has seen a drop in the number of vaccines being administered this week.

Speaking on Monday Health Minister Vaughan Gething said that there are planned vaccine shortage supplies, which are expected to last for the next two weeks.

He said: We expect when we get back into March were going to see a return to increased levels of vaccination supply available to us.

That will mean we will be able to stand up all of those arrangements, as well, theyve been making greater use of local pharmacy as well, because weve yet to maximise our ability and our capacity to to deliver vaccinations across Wales.

So we can go even faster if we have the supply in place and if we have the certainty of the future supply, thats why the next two weeks are not something that I think people should be overly concerned about, youll still see tens of thousands of people vaccinated each week, but will then return to an even more significant upswing after that.

Again, thats why we can have some confidence, I think that well get to everyone in groups one to nine by the end of April, if supply lines remain as we expect.
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The cyberattack has been ongoing for several days already.

A powerful distributed denial-of-service attack has been reported on the official website of the Security Service of Ukraine, as per the agency press service chief, Artem Dehtiarenko.

The SBU website is operating with certain technical interruptions, struggling to repel the attack that has been lasting for the past few days, Dehtiarenko told Ukrayinska Pravda.

"It is obvious that it's connected with the latest pro-active efforts by the Service toward protecting national interests and countering Russia, which has been waging its hybrid war against Ukraine, including in the information domain," the official reported.

Read alsoTransnational hacker group exposed in Ukraine (Photos)SBU cyber experts have scrambled to get the website up and running as quickly as possible.

SBU: Latest

Reporting by UNIAN
Chicago based impact investment management company Creation Investments Capital has announced the opening of its first India office in Bangalore. The Bangalore office is aimed at helping the firm manage its growing portfolio of Indian companies.

With this announcement, the firm also launched its maiden debt fund in India. The fund focuses exclusively on providing debt financing to non-bank financial companies serving the Indian population in areas such as micro-lending, affordable housing, vehicle loans, small- and medium-enterprise lending (SMEs), and education finance.

Currently, Creation's portfolio companies serve more than 23 million entrepreneurs in India. The office in Bengaluru will help manage the firm's growing portfolio of Indian companies that provide capital to those living at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Over the past 10 years, the firm has invested more than $300 million in multiple Indian companies specializing in microfinance, SMEs, fintech, payments, agri-warehousing and finance and other businesses seeking to alleviate living conditions for underprivileged people.

The company has also appointed financial industry veteran Remika Agarwal as Vice President and Country Head for India. Agarwal plans to hire up to two associates in 2021 to help manage the firm's growing portfolio of Indian companies that provide capital to those living at the bottom of the economic pyramid.

Patrick Fisher, founder and managing partner, Creation Investments, said, "We are delighted to welcome Remika to Creation and are excited to open our India office after building a strong presence in the country. Our efforts have helped Indian families and businesses by supporting companies that provide crucial capital needs. We aim to expand and accelerate our investments in the world's second most populous country through our first debt fund and other initiatives."

India is Creation's single largest destination for impact investments in companies providing access to capital to unbanked and underbanked families and businesses.
Trial Set for McCracken Man in Child Porn Case

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - A McCracken County man facing child porn charges will go to trial in April.The McCracken County Circuit Court Clerk says Russell Farmer appeared before judge Tony Kitchen Friday. Kitchen set Farmer's trial for April 8 at 9 a.m.Farmer was arrested on July 27 after investigators say they discovered Farmer distributing prepubescent child sexual abuse material online.He's charged with 20 counts of possession of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor, eight counts of distribution of matter portraying a sexual performance by a minor and one count of promoting a sexual act by a minor under 16 years old.
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
YARDLEY, Pa., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Crown Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) has been identified as a global leader for its actions and strategies to reduce emissions and manage climate risks in its supply chain. CDP, a leading global environmental impact non-profit organization, has awarded Crown a Supplier Engagement Rating (SER) of A as part of its annual climate change assessment of companies globally. This rating earns Crown a spot on the 2020 Supplier Engagement Leaderboard and puts the Company in the top 7% of 8,033 companies assessed by CDP.

The SER provides a rating for how effectively companies engage their suppliers on climate change. CDP assessed performance on supplier engagement using a company's response to select questions on governance, targets, Scope 3 emissions and value chain engagement in the CDP Climate Change 2020 questionnaire.

Climate Action is one of five central pillars of action under Crown's Twentyby30 sustainability strategy. As part of its commitments in this area, the Company has pledged to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) from its supply chain (Scope 3) by 16% by 2030 from a 2019 baseline. To achieve this goal, Crown is joining together with suppliers to reduce the GHG footprint of materials (focused on steel and aluminum, coatings and varnishes) and its capital goods, therefore streamlining downstream logistics, distribution and transportation and reducing fuel consumption and mileage.

"Climate change is the most significant risk of our time," stated John Rost, Ph.D., Vice President, Global Sustainability and Regulatory Affairs at Crown. "Corporate action to reduce GHG emissions will have a meaningful impact on the fight against climate change, but no company can do it alone. Data from CDP shows that a company's supply chain emissions are over 11.4 times greater than its direct emissions on average, so it is critical that we look at ways we can work with our suppliers around the world to advance our collective progress. For the last several years, we have been working hard to increase our activity and transparency when it comes to supplier engagement. This recognition from CDP demonstrates that we have taken notable strides toward that objective."

Crown's inclusion on the 2020 CDP Supplier Engagement Leaderboard is the latest recognition for the Company's sustainability efforts. In October 2020, Crown was named as one of the 100 most sustainably managed companies in the world by The Wall Street Journal. Crown was also included in the publication's list of the 10 best companies at managing environmental risk and was the only U.S.-based company on the list. Sustainalytics, the environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings provider, ranked Crown as the number one low-risk organization of 48 reviewed companies operating in the metal and glass packaging sector in 2020. Crown placed in the top 1.4% of scores within Sustainalytics' total research universe of more than 12,500 companies.

About Crown Holdings, Inc.

Crown Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, is a leading global supplier of rigid packaging products to consumer marketing companies, as well as transit and protective packaging products, equipment and services to a broad range of end markets. World headquarters are located in Yardley, Pennsylvania. For more information, visit www.crowncork.com.

For more information, contact [email protected].

For editorial inquiries: Mallory Schindler, Account Supervisor, FINN Partners; Tel: (212) 529-2634; Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Crown Holdings, Inc.
NORTHWOOD, Iowa - Just months into office, U.S. Representative Ashley Hinson is staying busy, criss-crossing Iowa's 1st District and meeting with constituents.

On Wednesday, Hinson toured ADA Enterprises, speaking with employees and learning about challenges caused by the pandemic, including workforce issues.

"They have an immigrant working here who is from England, and has faced a lot of challenges in coming here, very expensive. You talk about the policies we're working on, a lot of questions about COVID-19 and how we're going to recover. Their shipping costs have gone way up, their steel costs have gone way up. You look at what that's doing to bottom lines at businesses."

The stop at ADA is one of many during her cross-district tour. She says the feedback that's been provided at each stop is valuable.

"I'm their representative, and that's how it should be, it's someone that advocates for them. That's why these tours are important because I get that real world experience on the ground, and that real world feedback."

Hinson also spoke with employees at Fox River Mills in Osage and Upper Iowa Beef in Lime Springs.
Whisper, Indias leading feminine care brand has come together with UNESCO in a breakthrough partnership to raise awareness and educate girls on Menstrual Hygiene Management under its flagship programme #KeepGirlsInSchool. In an effort to help young girls achieve their full potential, the movement begins with shedding light on the impact of 2.3 Crore girls dropping out of school - leading to 2.3 Crore unfulfilled dreams - due to lack of period education and protection.

To bring to light the struggles of young girls as they reach puberty, Whisper and UNESCO, released a heartwarming film under the #KeepGirlsInSchool movement. The film takes viewers on a journey bringing to life the playful innocence of a schoolgirl with boundless dreams, an open-book imagination, and a spirit brimming with confidence. The film goes on to illustrate how these dreams come to a grinding halt for many girls across the country due to the lack of period education and protection. It further underscores the importance of empowering young girls to achieve their full potential and not let periods get in the way of 2.3 Crore dreams. The campaign seeks to drive a positive change through the collective efforts of multi-stakeholder initiatives and influential voices to ensure that every girl can complete her school education and fulfill her dreams. Urging people to be the agents of change and join the movement by making a mindful choice as every purchase* of Whisper pads helps #KeepGirlsInSchool

Studies have shown that even today, 71% of adolescent girls in India remain unaware of menstruation till they get their first period. Adding to the challenges, as per UNESCO, the global pandemic has impacted 74 crore* schoolgirls, and could severely affect their return to school. Thus, Whisper and UNESCO believe that when supported with education, these young girls are empowered to reach their full potential, achieve their dreams and make a positive difference in the world as strong women.

Last year, Whisper launched the #KeepGirlsInSchool movement, mobilizing support across touchpoints which impacted over 40 Lakh school girls and drove awareness among 2.5 Crore people in India.

Sharing her thoughts on the movement, Chetna Soni, Senior Director & Category Head, P&G Indian Subcontinent, Feminine Care, said, Whisper believes in empowering girls and women to unleash their confidence and ensure that nothing comes in the way of achieving their dreams. With this mission, we continue to challenge the barriers surrounding menstrual hygiene through education and multi-stakeholder engagement to advocate for change. Our latest campaign under #KeepGirlsInSchool seeks to drive awareness around the impact of girls dropping out of school so nothing can come in the way of girls fulfilling their dreams and achieving their full potential. We believe we all have a role to play to widen the impact. We are joining hands with expert organization- UNESCO, along with our own action as well as that of consumers to make a change

Chetna further added, Since the past 30 years Whisper has worked at the grassroots level to raise awareness about menstrual hygiene. Weve educated more than 4 Crore girls on periods and their hygienic management through our Mother Daughter menstrual hygiene awareness program. We are committed to empowering girls with puberty education and quality protection and pledge to impact another 2.5 Crore girls over the next three years.

Emphasizing UNESCOs commitment to right to Education, Eric Falt, Director and UNESCO Representative to Bhutan, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka, said, During puberty and the start of menstruation, a girls confidence and self-esteem can be affected in many different ways, sometimes even leading to her dropping out of school. UNESCO and Whisper are on a mission to change that. The #KeepGirlsInSchool initiative builds on our strong commitment to ensuring everyones fundamental right to education. Investing in girls education is an investment for society as a whole.

Speaking about the campaign Rajdeepak Das, CEO & Chief Creative Officer  South Asia, Leo Burnett, said Every year not only 2.3 crore girls drop out of school in India because of lack of period education it also means the country loses talented doctors, engineers, teachers or nurses because period comes in the way of their future. Our campaign this year, Whisper Keep Girls in School not only advocates awareness but also encourages everyone to join our efforts and help make a difference in the lives of these girls. Narrated through a poignant story of a girl and how we can help her achieve her dreams of becoming a doctor, we hope that our campaign will mobilize everyone and help us #KeepGirlsInSchool.

Whisper, hand-in-hand with UNESCO, stands strong as a force for female good to improve the lives of young girls and achieve 100% menstrual hygiene adoption in India.

Disclaimer: *1 out of 5 girls drop out of school forever due to lack of period products & education. **For every 1 pack of Whisper Ultra Clean, Ultra Soft Airfresh, Bindazzz Nights sold in the month of 1st Feb- 8th Mar'2021, Whisper will provide menstrual hygiene education and pads to 1 girl. For more details visit https://whisper.co.in/en-in/school-education

Agency  Leo Burnett India

Creative:

Chief Creative Officer: Rajdeepak Das

Executive Creative Director: Sonal Chhajerh

Associate Creative Directors: Prateek Dhas, Dipayan Purkayastha

Art Directors: Twinkle Gandhi, Akshaya Deshpande

Account Management:

Executive Vice President: Maninder Bali

Brand Services Director: Andrea DSouza

Brand Services Associate: Aparajita Deshpande

Account Planning:

Associate Vice President: Noor Samra

Brand Strategy Director: Anjali Kamat

Production:

Production house: Opticus Inc

Director: Sandya Daisy Sundaram

Executive Producer: Sharan Thomas

Producer: Sanjay Shetty

DOP: Arnab Gayan
"Chris' deep well of creative knowledge and dedication to putting relationships at the center of his work aligns with the values and expertise needed to perform forward-leaning and transformative work," said Russ Rommelfanger, co-founder and chief creative officer at Envoy.

Envoy, an end-to-end digital consultancy that accelerates growth through connected customer experiences, today announced Chris DAmico has joined the company as executive creative director. In his new role, Chris is responsible for leading creative services and delivering innovative work, elevated design and powerful storytelling. Joining Envoy at a pivotal moment in the companys history, he will also help the business drive growth amid a period of significant digital disruption.

Todays brands want a partner that leads with empathy and insight, knows their business inside and out and delivers modern, impactful, and innovative creative -- everything the Envoy team embodies, said Chris DAmico, executive creative director at Envoy. For this reason, I knew this was the exact role, opportunity and team that I have been looking for. Im excited to bring value to the company through a fresh creative lens and strategic mindset.

DAmico brings to Envoy nearly two decades of creative leadership and brand engagement experience. Previously, he worked at agencies including Hill Holliday, FCB and Deutsch where he led creative for brands such as Dunkin Donuts, Taco Bell, Expedia and Mitsubishi.

What sets Envoy apart, in a sea of digital consultancies, is the meaningful, strategic partnerships we build with our customers. Chris' deep well of creative knowledge and dedication to putting relationships at the center of his work aligns with the values and expertise needed to perform forward-leaning and transformative work," said Russ Rommelfanger, co-founder and chief creative officer at Envoy. "We're fortunate to welcome someone of Chris caliber to the team and are already seeing his complimentary skillset impact our ability to help customers accelerate and sustain profitable growth through impactful experiences."

About Envoy

Envoy is an end-to-end digital consultancy that helps organizations accelerate growth through connected customer experiences. Trusted by iconic brands and tomorrows category leaders, Envoys multidisciplinary team of strategists, designers, and technologists deliver unprecedented levels of impact through brand building, ecommerce and digital products. Headquartered in Irvine, California with offices in San Diego and Chicago, Envoy transforms experiences for clients such as T-Mobile, VIZIO, Arlo, Nike and Diageo. To learn more visit Envoys website and follow the team on LinkedIn.
DC Lawmaker Pushes for Takedown of Capitol Fencing, Calls for More Modern Protection

A Democratic congresswoman is pushing to have the fencing that remains up around the U.S. Capitol taken down, arguing that authorities can protect the area with more modern solutions.

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) last week introduced a new act that would prohibit the installation of permanent fencing on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol complex, in part to respond to U.S. Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittmans call for a permanent perimeter fence.

Im perfectly aware that security officials think that there is some need for the fencing in the near term, and I have understood that theres been a concern that it should go several months longer than I had anticipated. Im sure that thats based on intelligence, Norton told The Epoch Times.

But my aim, and the aim of my bill, is to make sure that the nations capital does not look like an authoritarian regime, but that the openness of the capital, which is one of the hallmarks of the capital, is not ruined because we failed to do our job on Jan. 6.

Protesters breached the Capitol that day, interrupting a joint session of Congress. The law enforcement preparation and response to the breach has drawn intense scrutiny and is being probed by lawmakers. Additionally, the Capitol Police head and the House and Senate sergeant-at-arms resigned due to concerns about the events that day.

Norton isnt the only member of Congress to push for the fences removal. Forty-two Republicans asked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) earlier this month to call for removal of the barbed wire fence, as well as sending National Guard troops home.

In particular, we are concerned with recent reports that the fencing surrounding the Capitol may become permanent, they wrote.

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 21, 2020. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Then-Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy told reporters on Jan. 7 that the seven-foot-tall non-scalable fence would remain in place for at least 30 days.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, said late last month that city officials will not accept extra troops or permanent fencing as a long-term fixture in D.C.

When the time is right, the fencing around the White House and U.S. Capitol, just like the plywood weve seen on our businesses for too long, will be taken down.

A spokeswoman for the mayor referred a request for comment to the Capitol Police. That agency, the House sergeant-at-arms, and Pelosis office didnt immediately respond to requests by The Epoch Times for comment.

Norton has argued that the fencing has affected the quality of life for nearby residents, preventing them, for instance, from using the Capitol grounds to sled after the recent snowfall. She told Pittman and other Capitol Police Board members in a recent letter that permanent fencing would send the wrong message to the nation and the world, by transforming our democracy from one that is accessible and of the people to one that is exclusive and fearful of its citizens.

President Joe Bidens administration halted construction of the wall at the southern border shortly after he took office, as Biden asserted the wall wasnt necessary.

Norton told The Epoch Times that the decision was made because of the kind of state-of-the-art measures now available. If were not going to use a fence at the border, why should we use a fence at the Capitol?

One way to bolster security without a fence is to increase intelligence gathering, the congresswoman said.

A woman walks past a razor-wire-topped security fence outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Feb. 10, 2021. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

Were able now to find out what people are thinking and doing through the devices that they use, she said. And those are available to intelligence officials, as well.

On the Senate floor, she told colleagues that permanent fencing is a form of security theaterit would make the Capitol look safe but mask the lack of state-of-the-art security measures that could actually prevent attacks in the future.

Most Democrats, she believes, also want the fencing to come down, potentially setting up a bipartisan effort.

Curtis Kalin, a spokesman for Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.), told The Epoch Times via email that the congressman certainly agrees with the premise that the Capitol should not have permanent fencing, though he declined to comment on Nortons bill specifically.

For now, the legislation is a tool in the event that Pittman keeps pushing forward with the attempt to make the fencing permanent.

It didnt take a bill to put it up, Norton said. And we can take it down, in my judgment, without a bill. But in case it doesnt come down without a bill, then I have a bill to make sure it comes down.
The research concludes with a brief discussion that revolves around five key lessons learned, as shown in this figure Credit: Andalusian Research Institute in Data Science and Computational Intelligence (DaSCI) University of Granada

Scientists from the Andalusian Research Institute in Data Science and Computational Intelligence, or DaSCI (University of Granada), together with the private company Ferrovial and the Spanish Royal Academy of Engineering (RAI), have conducted a study to analyze how engineering and technological solutions strongly linked to artificial intelligence (AI) can positively contribute to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations (UN).

To protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all people, the UN established these 17 SDGs as part of its 2030 Agenda, which constitute a paradigm shift for companies and governments in the design of new business models and public policies based on sustainability. Governments, the private sector, and civil society all play an important role in achieving the goals.

The project, entitled "Engineering as a Facilitator of SDGs: Artificial intelligence and disruptive digital technologies", began in March 2020, focusing specifically on the study of AI and digital technologies and how these might be applied to further progress toward the 17 SDGs. The research is organized into three facets that broadly correspond to (i) an introduction to AI and digital technologies, (ii) analysis of their application to the SDGs, and (iii) recommendations for action that can help develop projects and support the achievement of associated goals. As part of this research, the authors reviewed the specialized scientific literature, including over a thousand bibliographical references relevant to the 169 targets that have been set to achieve the SDGs.

This work makes an important contribution to our understanding of the analytical capacity of engineeringunder the umbrella of AI and digitalisation in support of the SDGsand to addressing the challenges faced by the world economy and society in the 21st Century. It also provides insights into the three dimensions that characterize sustainability: the economic (including the different areas of life and economic and technological development); the social (including social development and equality); and the environmental (including resources and the environment).

One of the conclusions of this work is that data constitute the common element on which AI and digital technologies are based. Here, it is important to highlight the need for data that are unified, accessible, and open, as this supports the development of projects designed to address many of the global challenges. Governments and companies must converge toward this objective by generating and sharing data that allow them to successfully take on projects and design solutions to address the SDGs.

The researchers point out that it is imperative to strengthen the links between science and engineering, industry and governments, to reinforce dialog and expand the different avenues toward achieving high-quality data.

Global targets

"The SDGs set targets to be achieved at the global level, but not all countries and regions of the world are currently in the same position in this race to achieve them. So the application of AI and digital technologies must obviously be adapted to the situation of each country and targeted at the most pressing SDGs," the authors explain.

Digital technologies are advancing at a rapid pace, which means it is important to look for alternative ways to measure the achievement of the SDGsways that are adapted to this accelerated pace of progress and the emergence of new digital paradigms. This is especially important given the current world scenario caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has undoubtedly had a profound impact on all dimensions of the SDGs, far beyond the strictly health-related aspect.

AI and digital technologies are fundamental tools for traveling the path we have to navigate during this decade, as we carry heavy moral and ethical responsibility toward today's world. Working toward the 17 SDGs is both a great opportunity and a major challenge.

A new book about the study, featuring original illustrations by Pablo Garcia-Moral, is now available, which explores the latest thinking on this issue from those involved in the project. It was written by a team of 16 authors, coordinated by Rosana Montes (UGR), Francisco Herrera (UGR and RAI), Javier Perez de Vargas (RAI), and Rosario Marchena (Ferrovial).
The High Court has overturned planning consent for a huge wind farm off the Norfolk coast after a resident took legal action against the government over the impact on the landscape.

Mr Justice Holgate ruled ministers were wrong to give the go-ahead to the Norfolk Vanguard scheme, describing it as one of the largest offshore wind farm projects in the world.

The decision was made after one man took matters into his own hands and fought the move by the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Department.

Raymond Pearce, who lives near Reepham, had raised concerns about the effects the development would have on the landscape and the view.

He argued that ministers had not taken 'cumulative impacts' into account and had given 'inadequate' reasons for not doing that.

The High Court has overturned planning consent for a huge wind farm off the Norfolk coast after a resident took legal action against the government over the impact on the landscape. Pictured: Scroby Sands offshore wind farm in Norfolk in 2008

Raymond Pearce, who lives near Reepham, had raised concerns about the effects the development would have on the landscape and the view

Much of the opposition centred around the need to dig a cable trench across the countryside - from Happisburgh to Necton - so the wind farm could connect to the National Grid

Mr Justice Holgate, who considered arguments at a High Court hearing in January, ruled in Mr Pearce's favour on Thursday.

The judge said regulations had been breached as a result of a failure to evaluate available information relating to 'cumulative impacts'.

Ministers had disputed Mr Pearce's claim.

Development consent had been granted in July 2020, when Alok Sharma was business secretary, the judge heard.

Mr Justice Holgate said the Vanguard development was closely related to a second wind farm project called Norfolk Boreas.

He said the development proposed at Necton, around 40 miles from the coast, had attracted 'substantial objections'.

Much of the opposition centred around the need to dig a cable trench across the countryside - from Happisburgh to Necton - so the wind farm could connect to the National Grid.

Mr Pearce was one of those to voice concerns, given the trenches would pass within just 60ft of his house.

Mr Justice Holgate said he had considered whether ministers were obliged to take the 'cumulative impacts at Necton into account' when determining the Vanguard application and whether reasons given for not taking those cumulative impacts into account were 'legally inadequate'.

On the morning of Jan. 6, the Brennan Center for Justice published a cogent essay entitled Refuting the myth of voter fraud yet again, which was a reminder that Donald Trumps spurious allegations about a stolen election were not just unsubstantiated  they are flat out false, and have been repeatedly and definitely debunked.

Trump didnt get the memo, so hours later, he tried to take the Capitol by triggering a mob with the same monstrous lie.

It may have seemed like America dodged a bullet, but the greatest danger is still to come: That same lie is now Republican doctrine, because the fabulists left behind to patch together Trumps party  led by the 43 Senators who voted to acquit him Saturday  are using it to strangle voting rights and democracy itself.

Thats the conclusion of a new study from The Brennan Center, which has looked at every state Legislature and found that 33 have introduced a whopping 165 bills that would restrict voting access in 2021 alone.

Generally, they limit mail-in ballot access, impose tougher ID requirements, inhibit successful registration policies, and enable aggressive voter-roll purges  all part of a coordinated voter suppression operation, as voting rights attorney Mark Elias calls it.

Some of the bills introduced in the battleground states are farcical. In Georgia, they want to ban drop boxes. In Pennsylvania, they want to roll back a mail-in ballot expansion that was passed just two years ago. In most cases, they are partisan proposals from Republicans who cite a need to restore integrity in our voting system because of voter confusion and frustration  leaving out the part that this consternation was created by Trump himself.

Georgia's Gwinnett county elections board's chairwoman, Alice OLenick, demanded that state lawmakers change election laws to give Republicans "a shot at winning."



We demand she resigns.



cc: @fairfightaction pic.twitter.com/2mXRjZylp9  The Lincoln Project (@ProjectLincoln) January 19, 2021

New Jersey is not untouched by the Trump detritus. Our lawmakers have introduced eight bills that restrict voting rights, according to the Brennan Center, though most lack the necessary juice in a Democratic-dominant Legislature. One bill requires mail-in voters to reapply for ballots every year. Another repeals our Motor Voter Law. Another mandates voter ID. Because fraud.

Just to recap: In response to historic voter turnout in the 2020 election  the most secure in American history, according to the US Department of Homeland Security  the party that is being rejected in growing numbers by minorities, women, and suburbanites have decided again to make it as hard as possible for Americans to vote. Americans of color, in particular.

We are seeing a backlash, the Brennan study author, Eliza Sweren-Becker, told Vox. Rather than going out and trying to persuade voters, were seeing legislators trying to shrink the electorate in order to ensure job security for themselves.

And to think, its all based on a lie.

This is Trumps favorite ploy, a misinformation tactic that Jonathan Rauch of the Atlantic calls conspiracy bootstrapping: Generally, if you lie repeatedly  and then spread it on your TV network, your social media feed, and from the lips of your congressional allies  you cite the prevalence of that lie as evidence that it must be true. Ultimately, it is used as justification for fixing the phantom threat.

It is a reminder that we must never take free and fair elections for granted, and that much is riding on getting two bills through Congress this term. One is the For The People Act (HR-1), which would enhance and guarantee voter access. Another is the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which restores protections against discrimination that were gutted by the Roberts Court.

Even as some elected officials believe they should be able to retain office by inciting riots, most Americans still believe that encouraging more people to participate in elections is a better idea.

The Feckless 43 who voted to acquit Trump may disagree, and they have chosen to promote the lie that will be used in dozens of statehouses to suppress our most cherished right. It is a sad turn of history: Given the chance to drive a stake through Trumps lie, they chose democracy as their victim. It must fail.

The Republican plan for 2021 is to change voting laws to make it harder for black people to vote. It is that simple. @JoyAnnReid @thereidout @DemocracyDocket pic.twitter.com/ajkS10S8AT  Marc E. Elias (@marceelias) February 18, 2021

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A campaign group has cast further doubt on the idea of a 'Boris Bridge' or 'Burrow' connecting Northern Ireland to Scotland.

The UK and Ireland Nuclear Free Local Authorities (NFLA) said it would be a "real challenge" to develop either project, particularly if built in an area of the Irish Sea called Beaufort's Dyke, where tonnes of surplus munitions from two world wars and radioactive waste are dumped.

A 21-mile bridge from here to Scotland was proposed by Boris Johnson in 2018, with a price tag of around 20bn - and was widely derided at the time.

But with the UK leaving the European Union in January, discussions on how to keep the union together have gathered pace.

Costing about half the price of a 'Boris Bridge', rail industry leaders have mooted building a tunnel from Larne to Stranraer.

The High Speed Rail Group (HSRG) proposed the plans in its submission to a Government review led by Sir Peter Hendy and an interim report is expected in the coming weeks.

But the NFLA has voiced fresh concerns, referring to a recent report that noted Beaufort's Dyke is a busy "choke point" in the Irish Sea, with ferries, commercial fishing trawlers and oil tankers passing through it frequently.

They said some nuclear waste and munitions in the area may have been "short dumped", meaning there is uncertainty as to the volume and type of munitions and waste deposited, which could lie outside the dyke.

Explosions caused by degrading munitions occur "relatively frequently", it said. According to the group, at least one of those explosions generated force equal to 5.5 tonnes of TNT.

SDLP councillor Karen McKevitt, the NFLA All-Ireland Sustainable Energy Forum co-chair, said: "NFLA has reservations with any development of a bridge or rail tunnel between Northern Ireland and Scotland due to the amount of hazardous chemicals, munitions and radioactive waste that was dumped for decades in the Beaufort's Dyke area between both nations.

"Such dumping should never have taken place, but it was commonplace in how we dealt with radioactive materials in the past. As such it makes it particularly difficult to create a transport link now and we express our caution over this project."

NFLA Scotland Forum Convener, SNP Councillor Feargal Dalton, added: "Whilst new connections between Scotland and Ireland are welcome, they have to take account the considerable health and safety issues that exist within the Beaufort's Dyke area.

"A dumping ground for decades, it is also an area of considerable activity for UK nuclear submarines. There have already been a number of 'near misses' between such submarines and commercial shipping; as well as snagging the nets of many small fishing vessels.

"Is it really feasible to develop a bridge or a tunnel in such circumstances? We are sceptical and would argue the budget for it would have to be very large indeed."

NFLA said Beaufort's Dyke is used for UK nuclear submarine training exercises, noting there is "major risk of conflict" between using the area for such exercises and its heavy use by fishing vessels and oil, gas and container cargo ships.

Last summer it emerged that a nuclear-powered Royal Navy submarine had a near-miss with a Belfast to Cairnryan passenger ferry in the area.

Regarding the potential of a tunnel, report author Tim Deere-Jones said it should not be compared to the Channel Tunnel, which is 75 metres below the seabed and 115m below sea level.

The sea bed canyon achieves maximum depths of around 300m, so the tunnel would have to be at least 375m below sea level. Engineering works for such a project would be "considerably more costly and technically difficult [than the Channel Tunnel]", Mr Deer-Jones said. The proximity of a tunnel to explosions in the area "is also a matter of considerable concern", he added.

A link to Scotland has been welcomed by DUP MP Ian Paisley, who said: "I think this would be very beneficial economically and a huge infrastructural opportunity."
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(Bloomberg) -- Its nearly two months since turbulence erupted around China Huarong Asset Management Co.At the end of March, its 4% perpetual dollar bond was trading at 102 cents on the dollar as investors figured the January execution of former chairman Lai Xiaomin for bribery put a line under past wayward behavior. But the failure of the company to release 2020 results by a March 31 deadline, and a subsequent report by mainland media Caixin that the firm will restructure, sparked weeks of turmoil. The same bond is now at 57 cents.The heart of the matter is whether the central government will rescue a state-owned company thats integral to the smooth running of the financial system. While there are signs Beijing wants to ensure China Huarong can repay its debts on time, uncertainty prevails.Heres a look at the key events for China Huarong:May 28The company has wired funds to repay $978 million of notes maturing within the following week, according to Bloomberg News, the biggest bond payment since the 2020 results delay.May 27Liang Qiang, who currently heads another bad-debt manager, is on track to become president of China Huarong, reports Bloomberg News.May 24China Huarong dollar bonds climb after the managing editor of Caixin Media wrote in an opinion piece that the asset manager is nowhere near defaulting on its more than $20 billion of offshore notes.May 21Some of China Huarongs thinly traded onshore bonds slump after having held up better than the companys dollar-denominated notes, signaling broadening concern about the firms financial health.May 18China Huarong has transferred funds to repay a $300 million note maturing May 20, Bloomberg News reports, the first dollar bond to come due since the delayed 2020 results. Prices for the firms dollar bonds slump earlier in the day after the New York Times reports China is planning an overhaul that would inflict significant losses on both domestic and foreign China Huarong bondholders.May 17The company has reached funding agreements with state-owned banks to ensure it can repay debt through at least the end of August, by which time China Huarong aims to have completed its 2020 financial statements, according to a Bloomberg News report. That as at least two of its onshore bonds see big price declines in recent days, worrying some investors.May 13The firm says its prepared to make future bond payments and has seen no change in the level of government support, seeking to ease investor concerns after a local media report that regulators balked at China Hurarongs restructuring plan.May 6The company says it transferred funds to pay five offshore bond coupons due the following day, its latest move to meet debt obligations amid persistent doubts about its financial health.April 30China Huarong breaks its silence, with an executive telling media it is prepared to make its bond payments and state backing remains intact. The official also says the weeks rating downgrades have no factual basis and are too pessimistic.April 29Moodys Investor Service downgrades China Huarong by one notch to Baa1, adding the firm remains on watch for further downgrade. The cut reflects the companys weakened funding ability due to market volatility and increased uncertainty over its future, according to the statement.April 27China Huarong units repay bonds maturing that day. The S$600 million ($450 million) bond was repaid with funds provided by Chinas biggest state-owned bank, according to a Bloomberg News report.April 26Fitch Ratings downgrades China Huarong by three notches to BBB while dropping the companys perpetual bonds into junk territory. The lack of transparency over government support for the firm may hamper its ability to refinance debt in offshore markets, Fitch said.April 25China Huarong says it wont meet an April 30 deadline to file its 2020 report with Hong Kongs stock exchange because auditors needed more time to finalize a transaction the company first flagged on April 1. Securities and asset-management units said in the days before that they wouldnt release 2020 results by months end.April 22The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission asks lenders to extend China Huarongs upcoming loans by at least six months, according to REDD, citing two bankers from large Chinese commercial lenders.April 21China is considering a plan that would see its central bank assume more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) of China Huarong assets to help clean up the firms balance sheet, according to a Bloomberg News report. Peer China Cinda Asset Management Co. was said to be planning the sale of perpetual bonds in the second quarter.April 20China Huarongs key offshore financing unit says it returned to profitability in the first quarter and laid a solid foundation for transformation. Reorg Research reports that regulators are considering options including a debt restructuring of the unit, China Huarong International Holdings Ltd.April 19Huarong Securities Co. says it wired funds to repay a 2.5 billion yuan local note.April 16The CBIRC says China Huarongs operations are normal and that the firm has ample liquidity. These are the first official comments about the companys troubles. Reuters reports Chinese banks have been asked not to withhold loans to Huarong.April 13Fitch and Moodys both put the company on watch for downgrade. The finance ministry, which owns a majority of Huarong, is considering the transfer of its stake to a unit of the countrys sovereign wealth fund, Bloomberg News reports. Chinese officials signal they want failing local government financing vehicles to restructure or go bust if debts cant be repaid.April 9China Huarong says it has been making debt payments on time and its operations are normal. Bloomberg News reports the company intends to keep Huarong International as part of a potential overhaul that would avoid the need of a debt restructuring or government recapitalization. S&P Global Ratings puts China Huarongs credit ratings on watch for possible downgrade.April 8China Huarong is preparing to offload non-core and loss-making units as part of a broad plan to revive profitability that would avoid the need for a debt restructuring or government recapitalization, Bloomberg News reports.April 6Selling gains steam in China Huarongs dollar bonds, following a holiday in China. Huarong Securities says there has been no major change to its operations, in response to a price plunge for its 3 billion yuan local bond.April 1China Huarong announces a delay in releasing 2020 results, saying its auditor is unable to finalize a transaction. Stock trading is suspended and spreads jump on the firms dollar bonds while China Huarong tells investors its business is running as usual. Caixin reports the company submitted restructuring and other major reform plans to government officials and shareholders.More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.2021 Bloomberg L.P.
The Troutdale Airport is an asset, not a liability (Port of Portland looking at alternative uses or sale of major assets to further new shared prosperity initiative, Feb. 14). A lot of airplanes are based at the airport, and many are owned directly or indirectly by local businesses. If the Port studied the economic impact these companies have, it would be millions of local dollars. These companies need and hire local workers. The eastside location is ideal for hands-on vocational training for good-paying jobs. Training is needed for potential nearby workers who were moved out of Albina into the Gresham area. Nearby Mount Hood Community College can oversee a training campus the Port could build on airport land that would coexist with the aviation training and maintenance activities. If the Ports mission is to create economic opportunities, what better way than to use an existing location to create and make available a trained work force?

Jim Theda, Vancouver
ING announced today that it will leave the Czech Republic retail banking market by the end of 2021. The decision to withdraw from this market was taken in light of economic headwinds and limited customer growth potential.



ING will continue its Wholesale Banking activities in the Czech Republic, which remains an integral part of the WB EMEA network.

ING has been present in the Czech retail banking market for more than 20 years, offering savings accounts and mutual funds. It currently serves around 375,000 retail customers.



To ensure these customers can continue to meet their banking needs, ING has reached an agreement with Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic to offer them a preferential rate to move their savings and investments (subject to regulatory approval).



We continuously evaluate our activities, including assessing whether they are likely to achieve the preferred scale in their market within a reasonable time frame. In this context we have decided to exit the Czech retail market, sharpening the focus of our business portfolio, said Aris Bogdaneris, member of INGs Management Board Banking and head of Challengers & Growth Markets.



We are confident that our customers are well -served by the attractive offer from Raiffeisenbank, which has a proven customer-centric and digital track record, he said.



ING continuously evaluate its activities, including assessing whether they are likely to achieve the preferred scale in their market within a reasonable time frame. In this context it was decided to withdraw from the Czech retail market, sharpening the focus of its business portfolio.

Related stories
ROME, NY -- New York State Police in Marcy arrested a Rome man for allegedly going to his ex-girlfriend's home, and choking her.

Police say while inside her home, 40-year-old Christopher Hildenbrandt grabbed his ex-girlfriend by the throat as she tried to run out of the house.

Hildenbrandt is charged with burglary, criminal contempt and criminal obstruction of breathing.

He was processed and transported to Oneida County Jail for centralized arraignment.
(This story has been updated to correct information about a motion to intervene.)

FLINT, MI -- Two judges involved in civil lawsuits filed by residents over the citys water crisis have ordered a Flint attorney to mail court-approved retractions to nearly 300 individuals who were sent misleading and incorrect information by his office regarding a proposed $641-million proposed settlement of the cases.

U.S. District Court Judge Judith Levy and Genesee Circuit Court Judge Joseph Farah issued the joint order Thursday, Feb. 18, two weeks after Levy ordered attorney Loyst Fletcher Jr. to stop sharing misinformation about the settlement.

Levys Feb. 5 ruling came after other attorneys involved in the settlement requested a temporary restraining order and asked the court to forbid Fletcher from communicating with residents who are already represented by other attorneys in the settlement.

Thursdays order directs Fletcher to file a draft letter with the court for approval before mailing the new retraction and corrective communication to 298 individuals he initially sent information to, including a form letter they could mail to Levy, which she said contained multiple inaccurate statements.

The form letter tells Levy the individuals are residents of Flint who have no medical records to indicate they were harmed by Flint water and have no proof of any damage to their property. It says they intend to opt out of the settlement agreement and requests 2 percent relief as filed by my attorney Loyst Fletcher Jr.

This letter is rife with material misrepresentations ..., the new order says. Individuals who sent the Federal Court this letter may falsely believe that they have submitted their official opt-out, when they have not in fact done so. This misrepresentation is particularly egregious because it could detrimentally impact some individuals abilities to pursue significant legal claims in the future.

The order says every sentence that Mr. Fletcher encouraged these individuals to state to the Federal Court are either unverified, incorrect, misleading, or improper and says Fletcher likely violated the Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct by, for his own pecuniary gain, improperly soliciting various individuals who had already retained other attorneys.

A retainer agreement included in the original mailings also contains an illegally excessive contingency fee provision in likely violation of the Michigan Court Rules and the Michigan Rules of Professional Conduct, the order says.

MLive-The Flint Journal could not immediately reach Fletcher for comment on the order Thursday.

During the Feb. 5 hearing, Fletcher said he contacted 200 or more residents by mail after they called his law office, upset that the proposed settlement agreement does not provide enough money for adults and does not allow them to receive direct refunds for water bills they paid after the citys water source was switched from Lake Huron to the Flint River and back to Lake Huron again.

The $641-million proposed settlement agreement between attorneys for Flint residents and the state of Michigan, city of Flint, McLaren Regional Medical Center and Rowe Professional Services sets aside nearly 80 percent of proceeds for children who were 17 or younger when they were first exposed to Flint River water in parts of 2014 and 2015.

Fletcher represents a group of residents in Genesee Circuit Court cases that allege unjust enrichment against the city of Flint based on the residents payment of water bills during the citys water crisis.

He filed a motion to intervene in the federal court cases, which Levy denied, and on Feb. 9, he filed a notice of appeal of that order with the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Flint attorney criticized other attorneys involved in the water settlement who have recruited clients by hosting community meetings, offering free fried chicken and barbecued ribs, comparing the practice to Blacks being lured onto slaves ships in Africa.

Read more on MLive:

Judge orders Flint attorney to stop spreading very misleading water settlement information

Judge gives preliminary OK to $641 million Flint water crisis settlement

11 takeaways from judges preliminary OK of Flint water crisis settlement
CenterPoint Energy said Wednesday the utility is unable to tell residents when their electricity may be turned off or restored, but warned customers to prepare to live without reliable power until the weekend.

The electricity provider for greater Houston said it would continue its strategy, announced Tuesday, of rotating long-term outages to give customers who have been in the dark a chance to heat their homes, thaw pipes and charge devices. CenterPoint will not, however, be able to give customers any warning as to when those power shifts may occur, Senior Vice President for Regulatory Affairs Jason Ryan said.

Everybody has a lot that they can take away from this event, and we always look for continuous ways to improve, Ryan said. But the reality remains the same, which is, in this unprecedented event with this much generation off, youre using blunt instruments not precise ones.

With freezing temperatures predicted for a fourth consecutive night, more than 1.1 million CenterPoint customers were without power at 5 p.m. Wednesday  almost half of the total outages in Texas.

CenterPoints distribution system is prepared to restore power, but Texas power plants are simply not producing enough electricity to meet demand, Ryan said. The state grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, since late Sunday has directed distributors to reduce loads by shutting off customers.

ERCOT said Wednesday it could not estimate when the blackouts will end.

Wednesday evening, CenterPoint announced ERCOT was reporting "additional power generation capacity" and said its staff were preparing to re-energize portions of the electric system that have been without power. The utilitys officials asked customers with electricity and natural gas service to conserve both resources until midnight to help more neighbors get back onto the grid.

Ryan said the grid operator has been opaque about its directives for CenterPoint, which have thwarted the utilitys plans to bring more customers online. The executive said the power supply still is too low for CenterPoint to safely implement brief, rotating blackouts of 15 minutes to an hour to ensure no one group of customers bears the brunt of the outages.

Its improvised plan to spread outages around has had only limited success as some customers who lost power early Monday have yet to have service restored. Others complained of finally getting power after more than 24 hours only to lose it again an hour or two later.

Juan Sorto, a civic leader in northeast Houston, said he and many of his neighbors lost power around 2 a.m. Monday and still had not regained it Wednesday night.

That the working-class area roughly centered around Mesa at Tidwell had been left for days without heat or an open grocery store anywhere nearby, harvesting rainwater to flush toilets, felt like only the latest slight, he said.

Numerous residents in the area have not recovered from devastating flooding from nearby Halls Bayou during Hurricane Harvey, and the blue tarps on many neighbors roofs were there even before that 2017 storm.

Sorto and his extended family members, who have roots in El Salvador, have wondered aloud whether they really are better off in America.

We expect this from our governments back home. We just cant believe its happening here, he said. With the pandemic and everything, I mean, if Im going to be living under this kind of system, I might as well go back to El Salvador where the weather is 70 degrees and I can go the beach. Anything is better than this crap.

CenterPoints system has 1,800 circuits, each of which have between 1,000 and 8,000 customers.

The utility has cut power to customers by shutting off some of the individual circuits at its discretion, said Jason Hulbert, the utilitys manager of high voltage planning. All circuits are eligible for disconnection except those that power public safety infrastructure, such as hospitals and police stations.

The circuits include residential and commercial customers, which explains why a homeowner without power may be frustrated to see a school lit up overnight.

We dont organize them by community, neighborhood or street, Hulbert said. Its a geographically dispersed methodology.

The utility has grouped the circuits into three blocks, per ERCOT rules, that can provide a 25 percent emergency load reduction if needed.

Unlike utilities in California, which pre-plan for rolling blackouts by dividing customers into sectors, CenterPoint has no such plan. Ryan said the company has no way to notify customers when they may be targeted with a blackout that in turn helps others get power back.

Shutting off whole circuits, he said, is far from an optimal way to manage blackouts.

Our system is not built for this scenario, in terms of rolling outages with very little generation online, Ryan said. So, its not an ideal operational scenario.

Keith Stapleton, spokesman for Sam Houston Electric Cooperative, which supplies electricity across 10 counties northeast of Houston, including parts of Montgomery, Liberty and San Jacinto, said all electric delivery entities goal is to rotate whatever blackouts are necessary, but the process is not like to flipping a switch; it can take a few hours to bring a circuit back online.

Weve got linemen up and down that circuit and as its energized they will begin to put the fuses back up so the entire circuit is not brought on all at once, Stapleton said. This ensures it doesnt go right back out again.

Unsafe roads prevented more SHEC staff from reaching the necessary infrastructure, he said, preventing the cooperative from effectively rotating outages early in the storm. Another hurdle was that many homes on the rural providers network are not physically connected to each power plant that serves the system.

You cant deliver power if you dont have a path to get it there, Stapleton said.

SHEC shed 28,000 customers from the grid but by Tuesday evening had only about 1,700 customers without power and by Wednesday evening only a few hundred, some due to damaged lines.

Southeast Harris County resident Lorena Durrant said she thought CenterPoint could improve its communication with customers. Without power since Monday, she has been left to rely on neighborhood scuttlebutt and speculation on Twitter about when service will be restored.

It would help me if I knew ahead of time if wed have five hours with the power back, and everybody could take a nice, warm shower, Durrant said. It would help if they reached out in some way.

Sandra Sota stood in line with dozens of other End End shoppers outside La Michoacana Meat Market, angry downtown had power while her Eastwood-area home did not.

She left to find the essentials: meat and tortillas. Water was also at the top of her list because her home was without that, too.

This is Texas. This is a big city, she said. "It's unbelievable."

Back in northeast Houston, Sorto worried that the outages would fall evenly on all the citys residents but that the recovery would be hardest for his neighbors, just as with Harvey.

Most of the people here cannot afford $2,000 to replace a roof, he said. Do you think once the pipes thaw out and they burst theyre going to be able to replace that, as well? If you live in a community such as this one where the majority are African American, Hispanic, Latino, immigrants  this is our reality.

Nicole Hensley contributed reporting.

zach.despart@chron.com

mike.morris@chron.com
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SAN FRANCISCO  For months, Facebook and Google have been locked in a stare-down with news publishers and lawmakers in Australia.

At the heart of the fight is whether the tech giants should pay news organizations for the news articles that are shared on their networks. Under a proposed law from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, both Google and Facebook would be required to negotiate with media publishers and compensate them for the content that appears on their sites.

Facebook and Google have fought hard to prevent the Australian law  which is expected to pass this week or next  from forcing their hands. But on Wednesday, the two companies sharply diverged on how to head off that regulatory future.

Google began the day by unveiling a three-year global agreement with Rupert Murdochs News Corp to pay for the publishers news content, one of several such deals it has announced recently where it appears to be effectively capitulating to publishers demands. Hours later, Facebook took the opposite tack and said it would restrict people and publishers from sharing or viewing news links in Australia, in a move that was effective immediately.

FLINT, MI  A virtual diversity and inclusion workshop geared towards helping local employers build more inclusive environments for its employees is set to take place next week.

The Diversity & Inclusion Workshop being hosted by the Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce is scheduled for 9 a.m.-11 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 24.

Diversity, equity and inclusion, also known as DEI, is an important topic for business and organizational leaders throughout Flint, Genesee County and beyond.

The workshop is intended to help local employers in ensuring that DEI is treated as a top priority in the workplace.

The event will make the business case for implementing DEI efforts in the workplace. Attendees will learn how to build more inclusive environments where employees are able to thrive as their authentic selves.

Attendees will also learn to check and control their implicit biases and effectively facilitate critical conversations, according to a Flint & Genesee Chamber of Commerce press release.

The two-hour training will be led by Graci Harkema, who specializes in diversity, inclusion and implicit bias training and talent management within Fortune 500, small businesses and nonprofit organizations.

The owner of Graci LLC, Harkema was recognized as a 2015 and 2020 40 Under Forty Business Leader of West Michigan and named a 2020 honoree of 200 Most Powerful Business Leaders of West Michigan by the Grand Rapids Business Journal.

I know what it feels like to work in environments where I couldnt be my authentic self, which presented barriers towards me reaching my potential, Harkema said. Research shows that team performance increases by 50 percent when everyone feels included. This workshop will provide a safe space for participants to learn how to create a more inclusive and equitable work environment.

The training is $40 per attendee, with discounted rates available for teams of five or more. Workplaces are bound to see a greater organizational impact if they have multiple employees participate. That way, they will have a common knowledge around the subject and be better prepared to continue that discussion internally, according to Brianna Mosier, director of Organizational Development at the Flint & Genesee Chamber.

We want to help businesses and organizations maximize their internal efforts in developing inclusive and equitable workplaces, Mosier said. At the same time, we hope to see a positive, external effect on our community as we have more and more businesses and organizations adopt this mindset.

This isnt the only professional development opportunity to be hosted by the Flint & Genesee Chamber this spring.

The organization will also host Leading from Every Level, which begins March 2 and runs through April 13. The four-part virtual series is designed to help attendees find their influence and adopt daily leadership practices, regardless of role, title or seniority.

To learn more or to register for these training opportunities, visit here.

Related news:

Experts share tips on how businesses in Genesee County will survive COVID-19 restrictions this winter

Kamala Harris visits Flint businesses affected by COVID-19 pandemic

Grants up to $10,000 are available for some businesses in Genesee County impacted by COVID-19

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Bengaluru, Feb 19 : The Karnataka cabinet on Thursday decided to present the annual budget for the year 2021-22 on March 8 and prior to that it will also convene two-day special session on One Nation One Election also, Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Basavaraj Bommai said here.

After the cabinet meeting, Bommai told reporters that the Budget will be tabled on March 8 and the budget session will go on till March end.

He added that the session will commence on March 4 and there would be a debate on "One Nation, One Election" till March 5.

Apart from this, in a bid to win over farmers, Yediyurappa headed cabinet also decided to amend relevant sections of the Karnataka Money Lenders Act, to enhance punishment from six months to one year for first time offenders and two years and above for repeated offence. aceWe have come across a lot of cases regarding money lenders harassing the poor and farmers. We need to deal with iron fist. Therefore the cabinet decided to increase the quantum of fine from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000, he explained.

Boammai added that Karnataka given its approval to increase Suvarna Arogya Scheme (Golden Health scheme) which was aimed at providing financial assistance to those who are infected with Covid-19 virus.

"As many as 1.35 lakh patients were treated in government as well as private hospitals till January 11 and we are expecting some more might be treated till March, the quantum of Covid fund rose from 620 crore to Rs 700 crore," he explained The state government has decided to upgrade eight maternal child hospitals and two general hospitals for which Rs 199 crore sanctioned under the National Health Mission.

During the meeting, Bommai said that the cabinet gave its nod for road construction under the Phase-3 of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana at an estimated cost of Rs 1,848.95 crore.

"Under this scheme, 2,201.74 km road laying work will be taken up in the rural areas of the state," he explained.

The state government also resolved to increase the compensation to land owners giving up their land for industrial projects.

"We have decided to increase land component from existing 40 per cent to 45 per cent who lose their land for projects," he said.


Libyans marked the 10th anniversary of their 2011 uprising on Wednesday. The uprising led to the overthrow and death of longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi. Many hope the recently named caretaker government will unite the nation as it leads the country through elections in December.

Celebrations began late on Tuesday in the capital, Tripoli, where people gathered on the citys main square. The area had been cleaned and photos and signs marking the anniversary hung from the buildings.

Hassan Wanis leads the governments General Authority on Culture. He said celebrations and other events were planned in the three main areas of Libya: Tripolitania in the west, Cyrenaica in the east, and Fezzan in the southwest.

All people are ready to celebratein order to unify the country, he said.

The uprising was known as the Arab Spring. Following the overthrow of the governments in Tunisia and Egypt, Libyans took to the streets 10 years ago to demand democratic and economic reforms.

Since then, Libya has fallen into chaos, along with Yemen and Syria. Islamic militants and armed groups operate in the country, stealing and trafficking in humans.

Hisham al-Windi was among the first fighters to enter Gadhafis palace in 2011. There, he found Gadhafis hat, which he wore during a television interview. He became famous as the face of Libyas uprising. He spoke to Reuters news agency Wednesday.

People say to me: you took part in this disaster. How do you like it now? Well of course I dont. But it doesnt mean you have to choose between Gadhafi and chaos. Revolution is a process. We must build a new Libya that we deserve, he said.

For the past several years, the oil-rich country has had two governments: a U.N.-backed, but weak government in Tripoli and an eastern-based government backed by General Khalifa Hifter. Each is aided by foreign governments. The city of Tripoli is mostly split up in areas controlled by different armed groups.

There have been destructive and violent events.

The most recent was in April 2019. Hifter, who is backed by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russia, launched an attack to capture Tripoli. His campaign failed after Turkey increased its military support for the Tripoli government with hundreds of troops and thousands of mercenaries.

The United Nations led months of talks that resulted in an agreement in October. The deal ended the fighting and required the withdrawal of all fighters within three months. It also required the acceptance of a U.N. arms ban.

Most of the requirements of the deal have not been met.

The talks also established the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum. It met earlier this month and named the caretaker government to lead the country through elections on December 24 of this year.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made separate phone calls to leaders of the caretaker government. He told them of the importance of holding the elections and accepting the requirements of the deal, including the removal of all foreign soldiers from Libya. The U.N. says there are around 20,000 such fighters in the country.

Amnesty International released a report to mark the anniversary. It called for arresting and charging individuals involved in war crimes and human rights abuses of the last ten years.

Those responsible for the violence and human rights abuses must be brought to justice or the suffering of civilians will continue, said Diana Eltahawy, a local Amnesty official.

She added that the caretaker government must make sure that those who are suspected of crimes are not given positions in the new government.

In the past several years, Libya has become a major transportation point for migrants fleeing the war and poverty of Africa and the Middle East. Human trafficking organizations have grown very large as desperate migrants try to leave by the Mediterranean Sea. Thousands have died, while others have ended up in crowded and dangerous detention centers.

I'm Caty Weaver. And Im Susan Shand.

The Associate Press reported on this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

_______________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

chaos  n. a state in which behavior and events are not controlled by anything

interview - n. a meeting at which people talk to each other in order to ask questions and get information

deserve - v. used to say that someone or something should or should not have or be given something

mercenary  n. a soldier who will fight for any group or country that hires him

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Germany's Thyssenkrupp has ended talks for selling its steel unit to Liberty Steel, focusing on restructuring the unit on its own, the company said.

Thyssenkrupp said the decision was made after no agreement could be found with Liberty, S&P Global Platts reported.

We opened the door for negotiations, but in the end our ideas about the corporate value and the structure of the transaction were far apart," CEO Klaus Keysberg said in a statement.

In the press note, Thyssenkrupp said it would now continue to drive forward a "sustainable position" for steel on its own.

Liberty Steel submitted an updated, non-binding offer to Thyssenkrupp to acquire Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe earlier this year and Keysberg said in a press call last week that Liberty was the only sale partner considered. Keysberg however did stress then that a "stand-alone" solution for the steel unit was still being discussed where Thyssenkrupp would split off the unit.

This was the second attempt to merge Thyssenkrupp's steel unit following the collapse of merger talks in 2019 with Tata Steel Europe. Tata Steel Europe meanwhile also had a second attempt to merge its steel unit, but potential partner, Swedish steelmaker SSAB, called off the talks earlier this year.

The news of the Thyssenkrupp-Liberty talks collapse is likely to further stir market chatter regarding if the European steel industry will see other constellations or possible mergers. Market sources told S&P Global Platts that SSAB might be a better fit for Thyssenkrupp than Liberty, based on customer markets and products.

Thyssenkrupp's steel unit started to make profit again in late 2020 following rapid rises in flat steel prices. The daily Platts HRC assessment remains at a 13-year high, having increased more than Eur330/mt since summer 2020. The assessment stood at Eur730/mt EXW Ruhr February17. -- Tradearabia News Service

Google, today, officially rolled out the first Android 12 Developer Preview. Even though a majority of the devices on the market are yet to receive Android 11, Google has rolled out Android 12 for developers to give some to work on bug fixes and improvements for their apps. Google changed the Android release cycle from March to February last year with the Android 11 release.

Google did away with the Android naming scheme two years ago, opting for a number system in place of its popular desserts-based naming system. Todays release falls in line with the number system, making todays release the Android 12. Android 12 brings in a lot of features, some of which are inspired by iOS 14. Google still hasnt confirmed all the features in its blog post, but based on whats written, these are the features one can expect. All the features will be confirmed once developers get their hands-on with the update.

iOS 14 Inspired Privacy Features

Taking inspiration for iOS 14, Android 12 integrates a number of privacy-focused features. Like iOS 14, Android 12 shows a pill in the status bar when the camera and microphone are being accessed. Tapping on it will tell the user which app accessed them most recently.

Android 12 also brings in a dedicated Privacy page to settings. This settings page makes it easier for users to completely block the camera, microphone, and location on the device. It also has a new permission manager in which youll be able to see what apps are accessing which permissions and youll be able to enable/disable them.

Improved UI Based on New Material Design

Google announced the first iteration of its Material Design design language way back in 2014. Todays release marks the introduction of Material Design 3.0. It brings a significant update to Androids design language. Notably, Android 12 changes the shade of the notification tray. Google says the new notification shade is more modern, easier to use, and more functional.

Theres also a Silky Home option in the settings which makes the UI easy to use with one hand. It looks a lot inspired by Samsungs One UI (shown above). Google has also integrated scrolling screenshots in Android 12.

New Media Formats

Google is integrating support for more media formats in its latest update. Most notably, it has HEVC transcoding. Android 12 will even allow apps to work with the new format, even if its not supported natively. The latest update also brings support for 24-stream spatial audio. It also supports a new AVIF image format which can store higher quality images at lower sizes compared to formats like JPG and PNG.

Haptic Effects From Audio

Developers can now add haptics to their in-app audio, making the user experience richer. Google says that apps can also generate haptic feedback derived from an audio session using the phones vibrator.

Face Orientation based Auto Rotation

Its pretty fussy when you have to click that small full-screen button on the video player apps. Android 12 fixes this by integrating face orientation-based auto rotation. This feature will auto-rotate the contents on the screen based on your faces orientation.

Android Developer Previews are generally pretty unstable for daily usage, and Google does note that todays release is only for developers. Unlike the earlier Android preview builds, todays Android 12 developer preview can only be manually downloaded and flashed. Google has released a simplified flashing tool for this update. It can be downloaded here.

The Android 12 Developer Preview is available to download for Google Pixel devices including Pixel 5, Pixel 4, Pixel 4a, Pixel 3, and Pixel 3a. Android 12 developer preview factory images, for all the supported Pixel devices, can be downloaded here.

[Via Android Developers Blog
Alberta Pastor Charged with Breaking COVID-19 Restrictions Refuses Bail Conditions

A pastor of an Edmonton church remains in custody after being charged with breaking Albertas COVID-19 rules and continuing to refuse compliance with his bail conditions.

Pastor James Coates of Edmontons GraceLife church has been defying public health orders for weeks and holding services that provincial officials say violate COVID-19 restrictions on maximum gathering capacity, masking, and social distancing.

Weve been consistent in our approach of escalated levels of enforcement with Pastor Coates, and we were hopeful to resolve this issue in a different manner, Parkland RCMP Insp. Mike Lokken said in a statement.

The pastors actions and the subsequent effects those actions could have on the health and safety of citizens dictated our response.

Alberta public health measures have ordered faith services to be limited to 15 percent of normal capacity and with mandatory mask use.

According to a public statement, GraceLife church had changed to livestreaming services to abide by government regulations when COVID-19 first emerged. It reopened to Sunday services in June 2020, after the initial public health emergency ended.

In December 2020, GraceLife was fined $1,200 for hosting more people than the 15 percent limit, and was issued a closure order in January 2021. When the church continued Sunday gatherings, Coates was charged with one count of breaking the Public Health Act on Feb. 7, 2021, and was later released.

After the RCMP and Alberta Health Services attended the service on Feb. 14 and found that Coates has continued to defy his release conditions, he was charged a second time.

On Feb. 16, Coates turned himself in to the Parkland RCMP and remains in custody.

Following a bail hearing before a justice of the peace, Coates was to be released (Tuesday) on conditions, the RCMP news release said. He remained in custody overnight after refusing to agree to those conditions. This morning in Stony Plain provincial court he continued to refuse to agree with those conditions.

Coates is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 24.

GraceLife church said in its statement that many Albertans became afraid and were convinced of the efficacy of government lockdowns for two reasons: misinformation and fearmongering.

The media has so pounded the COVID-19 drum since the pandemic began, almost exclusively emphasizing caseload and deaths, that people are fearful. So fearful, in fact, they have been convinced that yielding up their civil liberties to the government is in their best interests.

Coates said in his sermon on Feb. 14 that governments exist only as instruments of God and must follow Gods plan, which includes unfettered freedom of worship.

He said when governments fail to follow Gods plan, churches have a duty to challenge and push them back onto the proper path.

We must call government to its God-ordained duty, Coates told the congregation.

With files from The Canadian Press


Foreign Minister Marise Payne was curiously reticent to confirm Nick Greiners appointment as Australias consul-general to New York. The former federal president of the Liberal Party and NSW premier actually touched down in New York earlier this month and was promptly installed at the consul-generals residence.

Mitch Fifield and Nick Greiner. Credit:John Shakespeare

Have been here 10 days and at Beekman [Place], Greiner happily told CBD on Thursday morning. Beekman Place is the consul-generals rather enviable home on Manhattans East Side with views of the East River and home to more than a dozen ambassadorial and government residences. Heck, even the digs of Australias newly appointed ambassador to New York Mitch Fifield sit across the corridor from Greiners.

Hopefully Fifield was apprised of Greiners arrival. Finally, Paynes office was prepared to confirm his arrival on Thursday afternoon, praising him for his extensive and diverse experience as ideal to promote Australias strengths as a natural trade and investment partner to Big Apple business leaders.

Greiner cant get started soon enough given he was initially expected to be Stateside by October and in time for the US election. But February is better than never. Just ask News Corps supposedly New York-bound global head of innovation Damian Eales. Almost 10 months after his announcement to the job in News Corps Big Apple HQ, Eales remains in Sydneys Birchgrove.
On the first day back after the holiday, a Shandong mill raised its tender for heavy scrap by 50 yuan per tonne on Thursday to 3,050 ($472) yuan per tonne delivered, excluding value-added tax, a trader in eastern China said.Chinese bid prices for bulk imports of heavy recycled material (HS) supplied from Japan also increased on Thursday.Fastmarkets daily price assessment for steel scrap, heavy recycled steel materials, cfr China was $465-470 per tonne on Thursday, up $5 per tonne from the previous assessment on February 10 - prior to the Chinese New Year break - of $460-465 per tonne cfr.Two Chinese mill sources said that bids for Japanese HS were at $450-460 per tonne cfr China on Wednesday, but trading sources said that buyers would be willing to go up to $465-470 per tonne cfr.The previous deals heard into China before the new year break were for HS material from South Korea at $460-465 per tonne cfr A Japanese scrapyard source said the bid price from China was "aggressive" given it is higher than the fresh bid price given by South Korea, where a large steelmaker launched a public tender for Japan HS at 44,500 ($420) per tonne fob on Tuesday. That would work out to around $435-440 per tonne cfr after adding freight costs.Although bids from China have increased, Japanese offer prices have increased even more sharply in recent days.Offers from Japan were heard at $490 per tonne cfr on Thursday, but many sellers are unwilling to name a price currently given the rising steel scrap markets across Asia.We have received very few offers from Japanese suppliers - they are watching to see how the market changes, a trader in Japan said.And while some Chinese mills raised their bids to replenish inventories, there was also some trepidation on the Chinese buyer side.People are watching Chinas domestic changes, so no price negotiations [are likely to] take place [on Thursday], an steelmaker source in eastern China told Fastmarkets.The Chinese steel markets, meanwhile, were buoyed on Thursday by the release of positive financial data, with the futures market and physical steel prices both pushing higher.Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) domestic, ex-whs eastern China was 4,450-4,480 yuan ($688-693) per tonne on Thursday, up by 170-180 per tonne from February 5.
San Francisco, Feb 18 : Software development platform OutSystems has announced a $150 million capital raise, co-led by Abdiel Capital and Tiger Global, at $9.5 billion.

Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, OutSystems said on Wednesday that the funding will be used to expand investments in its R&D and go-to-market-strategy.

The company was founded founded in Portugal in 2001 to give every organisation the power to innovate through software.

The company said that the latest funding is a recognition of the success of that singular focus and the transformative impact on its rapidly expanding global customer base.

Using the OutSystems platform, businesses of all sizes can develop, deploy and manage critical apps at speed -- whether it's for transforming customer experiences, delivering workplace innovation, automating processes, or modernising core systems.

"Developers are a scarce resource in business today, and the complexities of traditional software development exacerbate the challenges most organisations face when tackling their digital transformation agenda," Paulo Rosado, CEO and Founder of OutSystems, said in a statement.

"By fundamentally changing the way software is built, OutSystems makes it possible for every organization to compete, innovate and grow with the developers they already have." This investment follows a year that saw OutSystems momentum and scaling continue, with customers in 87 countries, more than 1,300 employees worldwide, and partnerships with 350 partners including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Deloitte, and Infosys.
[February 18, 2021] Rogers Corporation Announces Retirement of Chief Financial Officer Rogers Corporation (News - Alert) (NYSE:ROG) announced today that Michael M. Ludwig, Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, intends to retire from the Company in 2021. Mr. Ludwig has not given notice of a specific retirement date and he intends to continue in his role until his successor is appointed. The process to identify a successor will begin immediately. "I want to thank Mike for his leadership and his many contributions to Rogers," commented Bruce D. Hoechner, Rogers' President and CEO. "Mike has been a trusted strategic partner, helping to drive significant improvements in profitability and cash flow, while maintaining a focus on growth. We appreciate Mike continuing to drive Rogers' strategic priorities forward and facilitating a seamless transition to his successor." About Rogers Corporation Rogers Corporation (NYSE:ROG) is a global leader in engineered materials to power, protect, and connect our world. With more than 180 years of materials science experience, Rogers delivers high-performance solutions that enable the company's growth drivers -- advanced connectivity and advanced mobility applications, as well as other echnologies where reliability is critical. Rogers delivers Power Electronics Solutions for energy-efficient motor drives, e-Mobility and renewable energy; Elastomeric Material Solutions for sealing, vibration management and impact protection in mobile devices, transportation interiors, industrial equipment and performance apparel; and Advanced Connectivity Solutions for wireless infrastructure, automotive safety and radar systems. Headquartered in Arizona (USA), Rogers operates manufacturing facilities in the United States, China, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, and South Korea, with joint ventures and sales offices worldwide. Safe Harbor Statement This release contains forward-looking statements, which may concern our plans, objectives, outlook, goals, strategies, future events, future net sales or performance, capital expenditures, financing needs, future restructuring, plans or intentions relating to expansions, business trends and other information that is not historical information. All forward-looking statements are based upon information available to us on the date of this release and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside of our control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Risks that could cause such results to differ include: our ability to attract and retain management and skilled technical personnel; employee benefit costs and other risks applicable to our business. For additional information about the risks, uncertainties and other factors that may affect our business, please see our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Forms 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Rogers Corporation assumes no responsibility to update any forward-looking statements contained herein except as required by law. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005927/en/

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(Natural News) State Sen. Tom Kading, a Republican, has introduced legislation in North Dakota that would instruct the attorney general to review the constitutionality of each and every executive order signed by Joe Biden.

Since Biden is not a real president anyway, none of his EOs are valid right out of the gate. North Dakota is taking a slightly different approach, though, challenging Bidens EOs on constitutional grounds since they far exceed the jurisdiction of the executive branch.

House Bill 1164 enumerates that EOs relating to the following issues are slated for nullification:

 Pandemics or other health emergencies

 The regulation of natural resources, including coal and oil

 The regulation of the agriculture industry

 The use of land

 The regulation of the financial sector as it relates to environmental, social, or governance standards

 The regulation of the constitutional right to keep and bear arms

Bidens cancelation of the Keystone XL pipeline, his federal mask mandate, and other EOs that fall into these categories all have the potential to get axed under HB1164.

Legislators in North Dakota are also proposing legislation that would allow censored citizens to sue Big Tech for violating their free speech rights.

States always have the right to fight back against federal tyranny

A related bill from State Rep. Sebastian Ertelt, also a Republican, would likewise nullify all unconstitutional legislation coming out of the federal legislative branch.

House Bill 1282 would create a Committee on Neutralization of Federal Laws, the job of which would be to make recommendations about which federal laws or regulations should be deemed unconstitutional.

Any federal law or recommendation recommended for nullification would be sent to the North Dakota legislature, which would then have to pass a concurrent resolution deciding whether or not to nullify it.

Following a committee recommendation, and until any resolution is passed, all state, county, and local agencies throughout North Dakota would be prohibited from enforcing the contested law or regulation.

The Constitution is the law of the land, not Bidens EOs

As it currently stands, both HB 1164 and HB 1282 are likely to become law. North Dakota Republicans control the Senate 40 to 7, and the House 80 to 14. Chances are both will pass mostly along party lines.

South Dakota has similar legislation, known as HB 1194, in place to review the constitutionality of all presidential executive orders. Like the proposed North Dakota legislation, South Dakotas bill lists the aforementioned six issues as points of contention.

In South Dakota, the state Senate is controlled 32 to 3 by Republicans, who also control the House, 62 to 8.

The United States Constitutions Supremacy Clause enjoins each state to follow laws that are constitutionally sound and only on issues that the Constitution granted purview to the federal government to determine, reports National File.

If the federal government  be it the Executive, Legislative, or the Judicial Branch  acts unconstitutionally, the individual states have a right to ignore the transgressing edict.

It was the late Alexander Hamilton who codified this ethic in Federalist No. 33. Even though Hamilton favored a strong central government, he recognized that individual states have every right to reject and ignore federal laws and edicts that violate the U.S. Constitution.

Many states should do the same, wrote one National File commenter. Not only is Beijing Biden issuing one unconstitutional, and nation-wrecking, order after another, hes not even a legitimate president.

He doesnt even know what he is signing! wrote another. I wish during his EO signings someone would ask him to explain what the EO he is signing at the moment is  he has NO IDEA! Having Xiden sign EOs is just like the communist Democrats helping the aged to vote.

More related news about states fighting with the federal government can be found at Tyranny.news.

Sources for this article include:

NationalFile.com

NaturalNews.com
WASHINGTON -- Congresswoman Lisa McClain has created an agriculture advisory council to help serve as farmer's voices for Michigan's 10th district, and plenty of Upper Thumb farmers are taking part.

Of the eight members that are on the council, five run farms in either Huron, Tuscola, or Sanilac counties.

"Agriculture is a major industry in Michigan's Thumb, and there's no one who knows the issues our farmers are dealing with day to day better than the farmers," McClain said in a statement. "I look forward to routinely meeting with my new Agriculture Advisory Council to stay in tune with the issues impacting our farmers to ensure that they are represented well in Washington."

Rita Herford, of Gentner-Bischer Farms in Minden City that grows sugar beets, dry beans, wheat, corn, and rye, was requested to be part of this group in the past week, as she said McClain does not have an agricultural background, so she wants to learn more about the industry and input from the farmers.

"She's looking for local farmers to talk about issues and give her direct information on policy," Herford said. "We're going to meet regularly to talk about issues that affect farming."

This is the first time Herford has been directly involved with a member of Congress this way, having previously served on the Huron County Farm Bureau Board and the Michigan Farm Produce Insurance Authority Board. Herford also said the Michigan Farm Bureau helped McClain find the names of farmers she believed would be interested.

Clint Hagen is part of Atwater Farms in Ubly where he grows sugar beets, white wheat, and beans with his brothers. He also runs Hempure Farms, the largest hemp growing operation in the state.

Hagen received a phone call about being part of this board a few weeks ago before all the members were announced last week. He said the process of forming the board transpired quickly.

"She was looking for equal representation in the agriculture industry," Hagen said, noting the wide range of crops grown among the farmers picked along with dairy and beef cattle farmers.

Hagen said the group would meet quarterly on issues affecting farmers, either positive or negative.

Carl Bednarski resides in Tuscola County and grows sugar beets, corn, white wheat, and dry beans. He also serves as president of the Michigan Farm Bureau.

Mike Noll raises dairy cattle and grows dry beans, soybeans, corn, white wheat, alfalfa, and sugar beets in Sanilac County.

Matt Frostic lives in Sanilac County and raises beef cattle and grows sugar beets, corn, soybeans, and dry beans.

The other three council members are Kip Siegler, who runs a dairy farm but also grows hay, corn, wheat, and soybeans in Lapeer County, Larry Decock who runs a greenhouse and melon farm in Macomb County, and Charlie Lewis who raises beef cattle and grows corn, soybeans, sugar beets, and wheat in St. Clair County.
A retired Jersey City police officer who helped pave the way for Black officers in the department died in a two-alarm fire Thursday.

Dorothy Bellinger, 84, was found in a second floor bedroom when firefighters responded to the two-story home at 270 Clerk Street at 10:45 a.m. and were met with heavy fire and smoke conditions on the second floor. She was pronounced dead at 11:44 a.m.

A fire captain suffered minor injuries in the blaze, which is the second fatal home fire in the city in the past nine days. On Feb. 10, a fire at 470 Martin Luther King Drive killed an 11-year-old girl and her 8-month-old brother.

The Hudson County Prosecutors Office declined to name the victim until an examination by the state Regional Medical Examiners Office, but a source with knowledge of the incident confirmed the woman is Bellinger.

Bellinger, who was born and raised in Jersey City and attended Lincoln High School, joined the police department in 1963 and retired in 2000. It is believed that she was one of the first Black women on the force, after Catherine Lucille Wallace joined the department in 1951

In 2016, when she turned 80, Bellinger was honored for her 37 years of service by both the Jersey City City Council and Hudson County freeholders with resolutions and proclamations.

The proclamation approved by the Hudson County commissioners in 2016 called Bellinger a phenomenal woman in every sense of the word, a woman of faith, generosity, service, conviction, courage, care, charisma, fashion, compassion, advisor, herbalist, healer and an advocate for children. Dorothy is the proud daughter of Ousy and Katie Benjamin Allen (deceased), fourth generation immigrant from the West Indies. She is a native of Chill Town, born and raised in Jersey City, New Jersey, the middle child of six siblings.

Bellinger served as a Lafayette Ward F committee person and was the 2016 grand marshal of the Jersey City West Indian Caribbean American Carnival Parade, according to a 2016 Hudson Reporter profile.

The injured Jersey City fire captain was taken to the Jersey City Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries.

The origin and cause of the fire is under investigation. It was declared under control at 11:38 a.m.
Authorities treated 3,182 square km of eroded soil in east China's Anhui Province during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020).

The area affected by soil erosion dropped by 408.13 square km last year, down by 3.3 percent compared with 2015, according to data from the Anhui provincial department of water resources.

The decrease was partly attributed to the stepped-up construction of the country's key soil and water conservation projects. The water conservancy development fund investment from the central government reached 960 million yuan (about 148.7 million U.S. dollars) over the past five years, accounting for 48 percent of the province's total investment in the respect.

Anhui plans to tackle soil erosion in an area of 530 square km this year, said local authorities.





Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 22:35:06|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- China always believes that the United States' return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is the only correct way to break the Iran nuclear deadlock, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.

Spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks at a press briefing when asked to comment on relevant reports on the Iran nuclear issue.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Tuesday that Iran informed the agency on Monday it would stop implementing voluntary transparency measures under the Iran nuclear deal from Feb. 23. It includes the Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement and the Additional Protocol. According to the agency, Iran also listed seven other relevant measures to be stopped. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi will likely visit Iran on Saturday to seek a mutually acceptable solution that would allow the agency to continue the necessary verification.

Noting that the Iran nuclear issue is at a critical stage with the coexistence of opportunities and challenges, Hua called on all parties to strengthen their sense of urgency. She urged working together to implement the consensus from last December's foreign ministers' meeting and push for the unconditional return of the U.S. to the JCPOA as early as possible and lift all sanctions against Iran. Iran, meanwhile, should resume its full implementation of the JCPOA.

China calls on all parties to maintain calm and restraint, refrain from actions that aggravate tensions, and leave room for diplomatic efforts, she said.

"China supports the IAEA and Iran in handling safeguard issues through dialogue and consultation, and hopes that all relevant parties can play a constructive role in this regard," Hua said. Enditem
The wedding reception of KPCC (Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee) President DK Shivakumar's daughter Aishwarya was indeed a starry affair. The big fat reception was held at one of Bengaluru's hotels on February 18, 2021. The reception was held post a grand wedding ceremony on February 14, coinciding with Valentine's Day. Aishwarya has tied the knot with Amartya Sen, son of Cafe Coffee Day founder late VG Siddhartha and grandson of BJP leader SM Krishna.

Actor Shiva Rajkumar also graced the event. The versatile actor made a casual yet classy appearance and looked uber-cool as he aced the salt and pepper look. The actor picked a casual blue shirt with matching trousers. As the fans and followers of the actor await the release of his massive film Bhajarangi 2, the picture from the wedding reception has now made a huge buzz on social media.

Talking about the reception, prominent leaders including former AICC (All India Congress Committee) president Rahul Gandhi, AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi, Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot, Puducherry CM V Narayanasamy, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mallikarjun Kharge, Karthik Chidambaram, Karnataka ministers Ramesh Jarkiholi and R Shankar were among the many eminent guests for the evening. Notably, the reception was live-streamed on social media.

Coming back to Shiva Rajkumar, the actor's Bhajarangi 2 is expected to release in May 2021. The motion poster of the film titled 'The Slayer of Kiraki Dynasty' was released on February 10. The intriguing poster and never seen before avatar of the actor impressed many. The fantasy action film directed by A Harsha has Bhavana Menon as the leading lady. Backed by Jayanna and Bogendra under their banner Jayanna Combines, the film is a sequel to Rajkumar's Bhajarangi, which released in 2013. Shruthi and Saurav Lokesh are playing key roles in the highly anticipated film.

Also Read: Dhruva Sarja's Pogaru Makers Unhappy With Rashmika Mandanna? Here's The Truth!

Also Read: Meghana Raj Shares Big Update On Chiranjeevi Sarja's Rajamarthanda; Dhruva Sarja Dubs For His Late Brother
President Dr Arif Alvi Thursday expressed condolence over death of Ali Sadpara and other two climbers, who were declared dead, after they went missing on February 5, during their winter K2 expedition

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :President Dr Arif Alvi Thursday expressed condolence over death of Ali Sadpara and other two climbers, who were declared dead, after they went missing on February 5, during their winter K2 expedition.

The president prayed for peace of the departed soul of a "courageous" son of the soil who "battled nature with strength, fortitude and heroism.

" He also conveyed his condolences to the families of Iceland's John Snorri Sigur jnsson and Chile's Juan Pablo Mohr Prieto, and the citizens of their respective countries.

All three climbers were officially declared dead on Thursday in a press conference attended by the families of the climbers in Skardu. Gilgit-Baltistan Tourism Minister Raja Nasir Ali Khan and Ali Sadpara's son, Sajid Sadpara, were also present there.

The three climbers were last seen on February 5 near the Bottleneck on K2 as they attempted to reach the summit of the Savage Mountain.
Japan and the United States agreed to extend an agreement on how much Toyko pays for the upkeep of US military bases on its soil for another year as they continue talks on a new pact.

Japans Minister of Foreign Affairs Toshimitsu Motegi made the announcement on Wednesday.

The current five-year arrangement was set to end after March 2021, but will now run through March of 2022 with Japan set to pay about $1.9bn through that period. Both governments are expected to sign the agreement soon, the Kyodo news agency reported.

The agreement comes after former President Donald Trump had reportedly upped the pressure on Tokyo to quadruple its payments for US troops to $8bn.

The campaign was part of Trumps wider effort to press allies to increase their defence spending, with the former president saying the agreement with Tokyo was one-sided.

There are currently about 55,000 US troops stationed in Japan. That includes the US Navys Seventh Fleet and its permanently forward deployed carrier strike group, as well as the Third Marine Expeditionary Force.

Under so-called host nation support, countries hosting US military installations shoulder some of the costs for training, labour and logistics.

In addition to defending key ally Japan, the US military units use the archipelago as a base for operations in the wider Asia-Pacific region where US military power has sought to act as a counterbalance to Chinas growing influence.

BEUC files an E.U. complaint against TikTok, claiming that the app fails to protect its young users and breaches consumers' rights. The consumer-rights group, which acts as the European Consumer Organization, said to file a complaint against the app on Tuesday, Feb. 16.

Also Read: Clubhouse Security: Experts Find Chinese Connection, Possibly Leaking Data; Update Coming Soon

According to Business Insider's latest report, BEUC said that TikTok is misleading the users regarding how it processes their personal data. If this is true, the popular social media application is infringing the European law since it is preventing young audiences from making informed decisions about their data under E.U. data rules and regulations.

"Given a large proportion of its users are children, this becomes even more concerning and dangerous," said BEUC's senior legal officer David Martin via Business Insider.

"We're concerned they're not respecting EU law on the consumer rights part but also we've found a lot of concerning around data protection rights and privacy," he added.

Why BEUC accuses TikTok

Tech Crunch reported that BEUC claimed that TikTok is failing from protecting children, which is the app's major user, from potentially harmful content and hidden advertising materials on its platform. The consumer-rights organization stated that users are triggered to join in branded hashtag challenges.

When they participate in these trends, they can encourage to create the content of specific brands or products. Aside from this, BEUC also claimed that TikTok also fails to conduct due diligence when it comes to protecting its young users from the platform's inappropriate content. This includes videos promoting suggestive content which are a few scrolls away.

If you are using TikTok, you also notice that advertisements usually appear when you keep scrolling in the app.

TikTok allegedly tracking people's smartphones

Aside from failing to protect children from ads, BEUC also claims that TikTok can spy or track people's smartphones just by opening the app. Hannah Smethurst, a Scottish data protection researcher, said that since it can track users' personal data, TikTok's method is an alarming one.

She added that an app need falls within one of the other six legal bases within the General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR before it can process personal data and sending personalized ads.

For more news updates about TikTok and other popular social media platforms, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: SHAREit Could Completely Leak Your Personal Info! Experts Claim Its Security Bugs Are Still Unpatched

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Written by: Giuliano de Leon.

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Nissan will lift recent investments in its British plant to more than 1 billion pounds ($1.4 billion) in the next few years as it rolls out greener technology, the company said as it showcased its latest Qashqai car on Thursday. The Japanese carmaker decided in 2016 to build the vehicle in Britain in what was seen as a key vote of confidence just months after the Brexit referendum raised uncertainty over its trading relationship with the European Union. On Christmas Eve last year London and Brussels struck an agreement that allows for tariff-free trade as long as local ...
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California tourism leaders outlined some high-level damages to the states travel economy stemming from the coronavirus pandemic to industry leaders Thursday morning.

They reported that about 518,000 leisure and hospitality workers lost their jobs, and tourist spending tanked by $86 billion in 2020, erasing a decade of growth, said James Bermingham, board chair of Visit California, the states tourism bureau, addressing an industry forum via Zoom. In 2019, the sprawling industry, which covers venues ranging from state parks to movie theaters, supported about 1.2 million jobs and generated $145 billion in visitor spending.

Bermingham also noted that state and local tourism-related hotel and sales taxes plunged from $12.2 billion in 2019 to $5.9 billion last year.

This is a long-term threat, Bermingham said. With coronavirus continuing to plague the industry, we do not expect visitor spending to return to 2019 levels until 2024.

The latest figures come from an economic analysis due out in May and paint a grim portrait of the pandemics massive impact on California, which had been the countrys most robust tourism economy from 2009 to 2019.

In the past year, travel to the state has cratered, residents continue to grapple with the deadly virus and the reports flow in of an exodus of residents to other states and Bay Area counties. Amid those rapid changes, Visit California is confronting the broader effect of negative publicity on the states reputation resulting from wildfires ravaging the landscape, the astronomical cost of living and tech companies relocating to tax-friendlier states.

Has California lost its luster? Does the world believe it has? Caroline Beteta, president and CEO of Visit California, said during the digital forum.

Last year, Beteta observed that leakage of prospective California tourists  people who opted to travel instead to states with more lax COVID-19 restrictions  cost the state $2 billion in spending.

It was an economic dagger, she said.

The bureau has been calling on Californians to help the state recover by traveling and recreating locally. (The states current travel advisory urges people not to travel more than 120 miles from home.)

To drive home the point, actor Kevin Costner appeared in a prerecorded video message at the forum.

To live here is to understand why people have never stopped coming, he said. I know its been a tough and tragic year. Its affected all of us.

Keep dreaming because  if you rebuild it, they will come.

Gregory Thomas is The Chronicles editor of lifestyle & outdoors. Email: gthomas@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @GregRThomas
congress.gov via Getty ImagesBY: ADIA ROBINSON, ABC NEWS

(WASHINGTON)  Maryland Democrat Rep. Jamie Raskin, the lead House manager for President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial, said on ABC News' "Powerhouse Politics" podcast Wednesday that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment could still be used to bar the former president from running for future office.

A constitutional law professor for 25 years, Raskin told ABC News Political Director Rick Klein that Trump was precisely who that part of the amendment covers.

"Donald Trump is right in, you know, the bullseye middle of that group," he said, referencing how the lawmakers at the end of the Civil War intended for it to be used. "And so, he really does fulfill exactly the constitutional prohibition there.

Section 3 of the 14th Amendment bars any public official who swore an oath to protect the Constitution from holding office if they "engaged in insurrection or rebellion" against it or gave "aid or comfort to the enemies thereof."

Raskin said how the amendment would be enforced remains to be seen.

"Presumably, it could be done both affirmatively and defensively," he said. "People -- you know if he tried to run for office again -- people could try to stop him in the states. It also conceivably could be an affirmative statement by state legislators, by Congress, by other institutions.

"So we'd have to figure it out and do some more research about all of that, but the point is that the constitutional purpose is clear, to keep people exactly like Donald Trump and other traitors to the union from holding public office," he added.

The Senate acquitted Trump for the second time Saturday after he was charged with "incitement of insurrection" for his actions leading up to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Seven Republicans joined Democrats to vote to convict Trump, but they fell short of the 67 votes needed to convict the former president.

On Monday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that Congress would establish an independent commission to investigate the Jan. 6 riot, similar to one established after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Raskin told the "Powerhouse Politics" podcast that he supports a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection. It should be either nonpartisan or bipartisan in nature, he said, and it should "definitely" have subpoena power.

"It should aim at the truth of both the events of (Jan. 6), and then also the causes of it and the continuing dangers that the republic experiences from this kind of, you know, this kind of assault on our democratic institutions," he said.

"Of course they should be able to get the testimony of the president and the White House chief of staff and other people involved," Raskin added. "What does it mean to have public office and not to subject yourself to public accountability? I mean that -- the whole idea is absurd."

While Raskin said managers got the evidence they wanted in the trial, he slammed Trump for not testifying.

"Everybody should focus on the fact that he doesn't want to testify," Raskin said. "Now here he is on Jan. 6 telling his most rabid followers that they have to show strength, because they're never going to be able to take back the country with weakness. They gotta go -- they have to show strength and they've got to go fight like hell. He won't even come and testify."

"You know, what a snowflake he is. He can't even stand up with the people that he counseled into a violent insurrection against the union and these people are facing hundreds -- or I haven't added up all the cases yet -- maybe 1,000s of years in prison," he added. "And he won't even come and speak for them."

Raskin said it was "meaningful information" that Trump was still saying that he won the election in a recent interview with Fox News but that it was not surprising.

"The big lie was the underlying premise of the violent insurrection and attack on the Capitol and it was the underlying premise of the president's absurd defense that he mounted at the impeachment trial," he said. "And it continues to be the premise of Donald Trump's political career and movement, such as it is."

Copyright  2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
The captain of a scuba diving boat that burned and sank off the California coast, killing 34 people, pleaded not guilty this week to manslaughter charges.

Jerry Boylan was arraigned in federal court in Los Angeles on 34 counts of seamans manslaughter. Each count carries a potential 10-year prison term.

Prosecutors say Boylan failed to follow safety rules before the fire broke out Sept. 2, 2019, on the Conception and led to one of the deadliest maritime disasters in recent U.S. history.

Boylan was accused of misconduct, negligence and inattention by failing to train his crew, conduct fire drills and have a roving night watchman on the boat when the fire ignited.

Boylan, 67, was indicted in December and surrendered for booking Tuesday morning. He was held in lockup and appeared in court by video. He was expected to be released later on a $250,000 bond.

The rare federal charges against Boylan were brought under a pre-Civil War law designed to hold steamboat captains and crew responsible for maritime disasters that were much more frequent at the time.

Boylan and four other crew members, who had all been sleeping, escaped from the fiery boat after the captain made a panicked mayday call.

Boylan spoke very little during the short hearing, responding to Magistrate Judge Jean Rosenbluths questions with not guilty and short answers.

All 33 passengers and one crew member died in the bunkroom below deck, some wearing shoes that led to speculation they were trying to escape. Officials said they were trapped by flames that blocked a stairwell and a small hatch that were the only exits. All died of smoke inhalation, according to coroners reports.

Family members of Charles McIlvain and Justin Dignam watched the proceeding on video from a separate courtroom. Rosenbluth apologized they couldnt be in same courtroom but said she recognized their presence at the hearing.

Were here today to honor his memory and to represent the families of all 34 victims, Kathleen McIlvain said outside court after the short hearing. We hope this is the beginning of the journey to find justice for our loved ones.

Federal safety investigators blamed the owners of the vessel, Truth Aquatics Inc., for a lack of oversight, though they have not been charged with a crime.

Truth Aquatics has sued in federal court under a provision in maritime law to avoid payouts to the families of the victims. The families of 32 victims have filed claims against boat owners Glen and Dana Fritzler and the company.

Related:

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics California
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / New To The Street will broadcast Show 152 this Saturday 2/20 at 6 PM EST on Bloomberg and Sunday at 930AM EST on NEWSMAX T.V., The show will feature Doctor Seth Lederman, President, and co-founder of Tonix Pharma, a research-driven biotechnology company. Tonix is working on a 1 shot vaccine for COVID and expecting to commence safety testing this year. Doctor Seth explains that people should wear masks even after vaccination as they can still spread and get the infection.

Also featured are:

Nextech AR with CEO and Founder Evan Gappelberg on the release of their airshow app, which brings holograms into your home. Nextech is a pure-play augmented reality company.

Paypolitan with CEO and Founder Nils Tharandt Ortiz talking about its (EPAN) coin starting to trade their IEO on Bitforex Feb 18 today.

"The Paypolitan EPAN token had an excellent performance of +87.2% the last 7 days, it even outperformed Ether! Listing our EPAN token on BitForex, one of the largest Hong Kong-based exchanges, will allow us to attract more Asian and institutional investors," stated Paypolitan CEO Nils Tharandt Ortiz

Pawtocol with CEO and Founder Karim Quazzani speaking about their search engine and biodegradable pet toys. "We want our pets to eat healthily, and now it's time for them to play healthy, and with our partner Nova Milan we are proud to be producing a line of plant-based accessories and toys for the ethical pet parent," says Karim Quazzani, CEO of Pawtocol.



"The unsung heroes of the pet world are the animal shelters and rescues," says Karim Quazzani, CEO of Pawtocol. "By using the HeyDogi search engine, users will be able to donate their proceeds earned from a search to these great people. It's a win-win."

About Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding Corp.

Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding Corp. (Tonix) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering and developing innovative and proprietary new therapeutics that address the needs of patients. We focus on developing small molecules and biologics to treat CNS (pain, neurology, psychiatry, addiction) and immunological (vaccines, immunosuppression, oncology, autoimmune disease) conditions.

Our mission is to improve the lives of patients by identifying, researching, and developing promising therapies which have the potential to address needs not currently fulfilled by existing products.

About Nextech AR

Nextech is one of the leaders in the rapidly growing augmented reality market, which is estimated to grow from USD $10.7B in 2019 and projected to reach USD$72.7B by 2024, according to Markets & Markets Research; it is expected to

grow at a CAGR of 46.6% from 2019 to 2024.

The company is pursuing four verticals:



Virtual Experience Platform (VXP): An advanced Augmented Reality and Video Learning Experience Platform for Events, is a SaaS video platform that integrates interactive video, artificial intelligence, and augmented reality in one secure platform to allow enterprises the ability to create the world's most engaging virtual event management and learning experiences. Automated closed captions and translations to over 64 languages. According to Grandview Research, the global virtual events market in 2020 is $90B and expected to reach more than $400B by 2027, growing at a 23% CAGR. With Nextech's VXP platform having augmented reality, AI, end-to-end encryption, and built-in language translation for 64 languages, the company is well-positioned to rapidly take market share as the growth accelerates globally.

ARitize For eCommerce: The company launched its SaaS platform for webAR in eCommerce early in 2019. Nextech has a 'full funnel' end-to-end eCommerce solution for the AR industry, including its ARitize360 app for 3D product capture, 3D/AR ads, its ARitize white label app, its 'Try it On' technology for online apparel, 3D and 360-degree product views, and 'one-click buy.'

ARitize 3D/AR Advertising Platform: Launched in Q1 2020 the ad platform will be the industry's first end-to-end solution whereby the company will leverage its 3D asset creation into 3D/AR ads. In 2019, according to IDC, global advertising spend will be about $725 billion.

ARitize Hollywood Studios: The studio is in development producing immersive content using 360 videos and augmented reality as the primary display platform.

To learn more, please follow us on Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Facebook, or visit our website.

On behalf of the Board of Nextech AR Solutions Corp.

"Evan Gappelberg"

CEO and Director

For further information, please contact:

Evan Gappelberg

Chief Executive Officer

info@Nextechar.com

About Pawtocol

PAWTOCOL, CEO and f\Founder Karim Quazzani will discuss how the company has aligned itself with ESG principles by being - Environmentally and Socially responsible, with inclusive and transparent Governance - the backbone of Blockchain - while showing users how to use their pet's data to not just help other pets and pet parents, but to earn income as well.

Telegram: https://t.me/pawtocol Twitter: https://twitter.com/pawtocol Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Pawtocol/ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqDegf8dpZU6fx7VQI0yQOg YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqDegf8dpZU6fx7VQI0yQOg

Team@pawtocol.com

About Paypolitan PayPolitan - all-in-one payment solution paypolitan.io

The Paypolitan platform will use blockchain technology, smart contracts, and open banking APIs to provide a next-gen billing solution that meets the needs of modern payment systems for businesses and customers. In order to distribute our solution and drive locked liquidity, we also focus on white label solutions.

FMW Media Contact:

Bryan Johnson

+1 (631) 766-7462

Bryan@NewToTheStreet.com SOURCE: FMW Media Works Corp

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630644/New-to-The-Street-Broadcasting-Saturday-220-6PM-EST-on-Bloomberg-Television-and-NEWSMAX-Sunday-930AM-EST
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DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackmer, part of PSG, a Dover (NYSE: DOV) company, and a global leader in specialty pumps and reciprocating compressor technologies, is pleased to announce the launch of the Blackmer+ mobile app. The new app, which is available to download for free on iOS and Android-powered smartphones and tablets, is designed to help save time and money by offering users support and assistance with efficient maintenance management for Blackmer pumps and compressors.

"More than ever, customers are looking to lower operational costs and improve process efficiency. Timely maintenance on pumps and compressors can have a huge impact on achieving this goal," said Kyle Hicks, Product Manager, Blackmer. "Not only does the new Blackmer+ app put all the information users need about their Blackmer pumps and compressors right at their fingertips, but it also makes taking care of Blackmer products as easy as a click of a button. This is just another example of how Blackmer is dedicated to providing our customers with the leading-edge productivity tools they need to enhance and simplify their operations."

The new app from Blackmer features an intuitive user interface and easily accessible dashboards that provide instant access to pump information. Users will be able to:

Register any Blackmer pump or compressor with one-click by simply scanning or entering a serial number.

Connect to Blackmer factory support directly for all product information and questions.

Manage maintenance intervals for Blackmer equipment with calendar and email reminders.

Access Blackmer product documentation, including IOMs, part lists, specifications, performance curves, and more.

Create personalized notes for all Blackmer equipment.

To learn more about the Blackmer+ app, please go to blackmer.com/blackmer+. For more information on Blackmer, please go to blackmer.com. For more information on PSG, please go to psgdover.com.

About Blackmer:

Blackmer is the leading global provider of innovative and high-quality positive displacement, regenerative turbine and centrifugal pump, and reciprocating compressor technologies for the transfer of liquids and gasses. For more than a century, the Blackmer name has stood for unparalleled product performance, superior services and support, well-timed innovation and a commitment to total customer satisfaction. Supported by a worldwide network of distributors and original equipment manufacturers, Blackmer pumps and compressors are used in a multitude of applications in the Process, Energy and Military & Marine markets. Blackmer, headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, is part of PSG, a Dover company. For more information on Blackmer, please go to blackmer.com.

About PSG:

PSG is a global pump and dispensing solution expert and leading manufacturer of pumps, systems and related flow-control technology for the safe and efficient transfer of critical and valuable fluids and materials. Headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, USA, PSG is comprised of several world-class brands, including Abaque, All-Flo, Almatec, Blackmer, Ebsray, EnviroGear, Griswold, Hydro Systems, Mouvex, Neptune, Quattroflow and Wilden. PSG products are manufactured on three continents, North America, Europe and Asia, in state-of-the-art facilities that practice lean manufacturing and are ISO-certified. PSG is part of the Pumps and Process Solutions segment of Dover Corporation. For additional information on PSG, please visit psgdover.com. PSG: Where Innovation Flows.

About Dover:

Dover is a diversified global manufacturer and solutions provider with annual revenue of approximately $7 billion. We deliver innovative equipment and components, consumable supplies, aftermarket parts, software and digital solutions, and support services through five operating segments: Engineered Products, Fueling Solutions, Imaging & Identification, Pumps & Process Solutions and Refrigeration & Food Equipment. Dover combines global scale, operational agility, world-class engineering capability and customer intimacy to lead the markets we serve. Recognized for our entrepreneurial approach for over 60 years, our team of over 23,000 employees takes an ownership mindset, collaborating with customers to redefine what's possible. Headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois, Dover trades on the New York Stock Exchange under "DOV." Additional information is available at dovercorporation.com.

PSG Contact:

Mark Pyk

(616) 475-9330

[email protected]



Dover Media Contact:

Adrian Sakowicz, VP, Communications

(630) 743-5039

[email protected]



Dover Investor Contact:

Andrey Galiuk, VP, Corporate Development and Investor Relations

(630) 743-5131

[email protected]

SOURCE Dover

Related Links

http://www.dovercorporation.com


Experts say the human body is now ready to act against the antigen that the vaccine is providing (AP)

Hyderabad: The second dose of Covid- 19 vaccine will see more adverse effects as the first jab is now reacting in the body by making the immune system respond.

The second dose is more reactogenic than the first, as it will induce the body to create an antibody response, medical experts say. Dr K.K. Aggarwal, president of the confederation of medical associations in Asia and Oceania, says, The infectious diseases society of America has said the second dose will lead to common sideeffects of pain, fatigue, head ache and muscle pain. These will occur within the first three days but will be resolved quickly.

Beneficiaries will recover and they must not panic. They may consult the centre from where the dose was taken. The second-dose-effect is based on the bodys antibody response. The first vaccine did not create too much of a reaction but in the second dose there will be more of side-effects.

Experts say the human body is now ready to act against the antigen that the vaccine is providing. This is an inflammatory response from the body. These are termed as normal side effects of the vaccine. Dr Mustufa Afzal, senior infectious disease specialist at Care Hospitals explains, Not everyone will have reactions. In some, the response will be controlled.

Allergic and anaphylaxis reactions in India are low. According to a report by the ministry of health and family welfare, 34 persons from various parts of the country were hospitalised after the first dose. Of them, 21 were discharged and 11 died as per figures till February 13.

Total deaths after vaccination were 27 till this date and reports are being scrutinised by drug control authorities. Worldwide data also shows anaphylaxis to the vaccine is five per million, meaning it is not as common as was previously expected.

Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter.
Farmers' organisations will hold a nationwide 'rail roko' program for 4 hours on Thursday as they continue their protest against the central farm laws.

Jagtar Singh Bajwa, spokesperson of the Kisan Andolan Committee, Ghazipur border said they will carry out a peaceful protest during the 'Rail Roko' program on February 18 from 12 noon to 4 pm.

We will offer refreshments to the passengers to avoid inconvenience, he said.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) has called for a peaceful protest, expecting to get support for the program from across the country.

"Appeal to everyone for a peaceful protest in nationwide 'Rail Roko' program on February 18 from 12 noon to 4 pm," it said.

The SKM demanded that the government should resolve the farmers' issues immediately without any further delay.

"Samyukt Kisan Morcha took note of the high-level meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of JP Nadda with elected party leaders and others from Haryana, UP, Punjab and Rajasthan, along with Cabinet and other Ministers like Amit Shah, Narendra Singh Tomar, Sanjeev Baliyan and others," read a release by Darshan Pal of the SKM.

"It is clear that instead of resolving the ongoing struggle's demands, BJP is trying its best to counter and destroy it. SKM condemns this attitude of the ruling party and demands that the government resolve the farmers' issues immediately without any further delay. SKM vows that it will intensify the struggle and mobilise more farmers in its support," it said.

The SKM also condemned an alleged attack by Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) "goons" on a peaceful protest organised by the All India Krishak Khet Majdoor Sangathan in Muzaffarpur on Wednesday.

In view of the protest, Railways has deployed 20 additional companies of the Railway Protection Special Force across the country with a focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Farmers have been protesting at the different borders of the capital since November last year, against the three newly enacted farm laws - Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

(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.)
New Delhi: Ahead of the Quad foreign minister meeting later today (February 18), the Pentagon has said that ties with India is critical and a priority. Calling ties with India, "a very important bilateral relationship" Pentagon Spokesman John Kirby said,"India is a critical partner especially when you consider all the challenges in the Indo Pacific region" and US Defence secretary is "prioritizing this relationship, wants to see continuing to grow and develop and to get stronger."

US defence secretary Lloyd Austin and Indian Defence minister Rajnath Singh spoke to each other last month with a reaffirmation on Indo Pacific vision. When it comes to defence relationship, there has been increased engagement including signing of operational pacts like COMCASA, LEMOA. Bilateral exercises held annually include Malabar, Cope-India (Air Force), Yudh Abhyas (Army) and Vajra Prahar (Special Forces).

The 3rd Quad foreign minister meeting is scheduled to take place today at 5.30 pm IST and will see the participation of the U.S. State Secretary Blinken, Japan FM Motegi Toshimitsu, Australian FM Marise Payne and EAM Dr S. Jaishankar.

The ministry of external affairs in a release said, "The Ministers will exchange views on regional and global issues especially practical areas of cooperation towards maintaining a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region."

While today's meeting will be virtual, the last meeting happened physically in Japan on 6th October. The first meeting of Quad FMs took place on 26th September 2019 on the sidelines of the UNGA session in New York. Last year also saw covid plus meetings taking place on how to deal with covid pandemic at the foreign secretary-level.

Ned Price, Department Spokesperson on the Quad meet said, "this discussion with the Quad foreign ministers, is critical to advancing our shared goals of a free and open Indo-Pacific and rising to the defining challenges of our time, including coordinating our efforts on COVID-19 response as well as climate change."

All the 4 Quad countries issued releases on the Quad meet with a key mention on "Indo Pacific" in the releases. The meet comes within a month of Biden Presidency and shows a continuous focus of Washington from previous Trump Admin on Indo-Pacific and Quad. In fact, in response to a question, Pentagon spokesperson said, "US defence secretary will absolutely " support a gathering of Quad countries.

Live TV
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London, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :Liberty Steel Group said Thursday that the door is still "open" for the potential purchase of the steel activities of troubled German industrial giant Thyssenkrupp.

The news came one day after Thyssenkrupp had declared that it was no longer considering selling its steel unit to Liberty, which is owned by Indian-British billionaire Sanjeev Gupta.

"Discussions have been suspended at this stage due to differences in pricing expectations -- however we are keeping the door open," a Liberty spokesperson said, noting the announcement from Thyssenkrupp.

"Liberty remains confident that it has put forward the only long term sustainable plan for Thyssenkrupp's steel business and we will continue to engage to seek to eliminate the valuation gap in due course." The brief statement came after Thyssenkrupp ended talks with Liberty on Wednesday, declaring that the two sides were too far apart on corporate value and the structure of the transaction.

The German titan indicated it would instead hold on to the steel unit, saying it would focus efforts on addressing "the consequences of the corona pandemic and to make steel sustainably profitable and thus future-proof." Thyssenkrupp, in the throes of a painful restructuring, had received an offer from Britain's Liberty Steel last October but had not formally responded to it before Wednesday's statement.

The Essen-based group has long been looking for a solution for its Steel Europe arm, which has been battered by years of cheap Chinese competition and oversupply.

However, steel demand has risen in recent months thanks to pent-up demand following Covid-19 lockdowns, which closed factories and disrupted supply chains worldwide.
Anthony Williams, 70, told police he 'literally choked the living daylights' out of his wife Ruth, 67, at their home in Cwmbran, south Wales, on the morning of March 28 last year, after he 'snapped' following a period of feeling depressed and anxious

A pensioner who strangled his wife days into the first UK lockdown has been sentenced to five years in jail.

Anthony Williams, 70, told police he 'literally choked the living daylights' out of his wife Ruth, 67, at their home in Cwmbran, south Wales, on the morning of March 28 last year, after he 'snapped' following a period of feeling depressed and anxious.

Williams was cleared of murder on Monday following a trial in which a psychologist argued his anxiety 'was heightened' because of lockdown, which impaired his ability to exercise self-control.

On Thursday he appeared for sentencing at Swansea Crown Court after admitting manslaughter by reason of diminished responsibility.

Judge Paul Thomas said it was a 'tragic case on several levels', but in his view Williams's mental state was 'severely affected at the time'.

Judge Thomas said: 'The overwhelming greatest tragedy here is a lady of 67 who had so much to live for, had her life ended by an act of great violence at the hands, literally, of a man she loved for very nearly 50 years.'

Williams told police he had suffered sleepless nights in the run-up to the attack due to 'trivial' fears, including that he would run out of money.

Williams was cleared of murder on Monday following a trial in which a psychologist argued his anxiety 'was heightened' because of lockdown, which impaired his ability to exercise self-control. Pictured: Ruth

In interviews read to the jury, Williams agreed with detectives that he was responsible for the killing of his wife of 46 years, telling them he 'snapped' while in bed.

He said he began strangling after she told him to 'get over it' when he expressed his concerns.

He said he chased his wife downstairs and again grabbed her by her throat as she tried to unlock the front door to escape, saying he found himself 'throttling her to death'.

Mrs Williams was found slumped in the couple's porch with a pair of keys in her hand.

She was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead, having suffered haemorrhaging in her eyes, face and mouth which were consistent with strangulation, as well as five neck fractures.

In interviews read to the jury, Williams agreed with detectives that he was responsible for the killing of his wife of 46 years (pictured), telling them he 'snapped' while in bed

Her cause of death was given as pressure to the neck, with a pathologist saying the lack of a ligature mark did not rule out use of a 'soft' dressing gown cord found at their home.

Williams was arrested on suspicion of murder at the scene and told officers: 'I am sorry, I just snapped, I am sorry.'

The couple's daughter, Emma Williams, 40, told the court her parents spent '90% of their time together', were 'not argumentative people', and she had never heard either of them even 'raise their voice' to each other.

Ms Williams said: 'My dad's a gentle giant. He wouldn't hurt a fly.'

But she said Williams had shown signs of strange behaviour from January 2020, including claiming he was going to lose the couple's home and becoming 'obsessed' with turning off lights and heating to save money.

But she said the couple had savings of around 148,000, as well as 18,000 in their current account in the days before lockdown was announced.

Ms Williams said her father was watching news reports on the global pandemic 'all the time' and believed 'no-one's ever leaving the house again'.

Williams did not give evidence at his trial, but he told police interviewers he had worried about being unable to buy new shoes and the inability to hire someone to fix tiles on his roof if they came loose.

He also said he had found lockdown 'really, really hard' just five days into the UK-wide restrictions, felt 'depressed' and was worried the couple would run out of cash because banks were shut.

Judge Paul Thomas said it was a 'tragic case on several levels', but in his view Williams's mental state was 'severely affected at the time'

He said he had coped 'not very well' in the 18 months since his retirement from Cwmbran's Just Rollers factory, saying the couple 'didn't have much of a social life'.

But he described his wife as being 'happy' since her own retirement from an Asda store four years earlier, despite herself being diagnosed with depression.

Psychologist Dr Alison Witts told the trial Williams's anxiety and depressive illness were 'heightened' by the tough coronavirus measures imposed on the UK days earlier and impaired his ability to exercise self-control.

Dr Witts said Williams's factory job had been 'one of his main coping mechanisms' for his 'neurotic disposition', but when he retired he 'lost all structure and sense of purpose'.

But another psychologist, Dr Damian Gamble, said Williams had no documented history of suffering a depressive illness and had 'no psychiatric defences' available to him, saying he believed Williams 'knew what he was doing at the time'.

The discussion of a parliamentary report critical of Egypts Minister of State for Information Osama Heikal was postponed by MPs on Sunday based on a request by the minister for time to prepare a response.

House of Representatives Speaker Hanafi Gibali told MPs in a plenary morning meeting on Sunday that he has received a request from Heikal asking that the discussion of the Media and Culture Committees report, which was critical of his performance, be postponed for some time.

Minister Heikal said he needs some time to prepare complete and detailed responses to the reports critical points and so we will not be able to discuss the report today, said Gibali.

I hope that you approve that the discussion of the report be postponed to the next plenary meetings.

Egypts parliament was scheduled on Sunday to discuss an eight-page report which directed scathing attacks against Heikal, accusing him of poor performance and financial wrongdoing.

The report, prepared by the Houses Media and Culture Committee, recommended that the information ministry be scrapped because it is redundant and a waste of public money. But, it is up to state officials to give a final say on this issue, said the report.

Tamer Abdel-Qader, secretary-general of the Media and Culture Ministry, told Ahram Online that the committee concluded that the information ministry should be cancelled because it by no means has any roles to play.

The constitution states that three independent institutions shall be the ones who take charge of regulating the media sector and these are the National Press Organisation, the National Media Organisation, and the Supreme Council for Media and Press Regulation, said Abdel-Qader, adding that the Supreme Administrative Court ruled in 2013 that the information ministry be cancelled.

The report said Heikals policy statement, delivered before parliament on 19 January, was rejected because Heikal failed to achieve the objectives of his ministry and that he violated a number of financial and administrative regulations.

The report said the fact that Heikal works also as chairman of the Egyptian Media Production City (EMPC) is a constitutional and legal offence. This [chairmanship of the] EMPC goes against Article 166 of the constitution and Article 79 of the joint-stock companies law, said the report, adding that the information ministrys budget cost EGP 12 million over the last six months.

MPs agree that it is unconstitutional and illegal for Heikal to work both as information minister and chairman of the EMPC and so, he should pay back all the money he obtained from the two posts, said Abdel-Qader.

The report also said that a number of public announcements made by Minister Heikal have inflicted a lot of political damage to the states reputation and image.

The ministers aggressive statements against Egyptian journalists and media people in terms of accusing them of poor performance were exploited by hostile television channels  broadcasting from Qatar and Turkey  to attack the Egyptian state, said the report.

The report also added that Heikal made another bad announcement when he claimed that Ethiopian media excelled over the Egyptian one in its coverage of the GERD negotiations in Washington last year.



Heikal is the only cabinet minister which received ferocious attacks from MPs, leading many to believe that he will be fired in any expected cabinet re-shuffle. He was named Minister of State for Information in December 2019.

The other 27 cabinet ministers which have so far delivered policy statements before parliament have received complimentary reports from committees.

Short link:


This maladroit fact-based cyberthriller begins at a branch of the San Francisco Public Library in 2013. As Ross W. Ulbricht  the founder of an online marketplace called Silk Road, where illegal drugs were bought and sold  the actor Nick Robinson lays out, in voiceover, some bold anti-authoritarian sentiment. He mentions the insurmountable barrier between the world as it is and the world as I want it, and how his project was about taking back our liberty.

The movie than flashes back several years. At an Austin, Texas, bar, Ross flexes his pickup chops on Julia (Alexandra Shipp). You wanna dance? he asks. No one else is, she observes. Exactly, he replies. Heavy, man.
Netflix will be producing new sets of top-tier content this 2021. Aside from other English series, various shows and drama adaptations from K-dramaland will be kicking off on Netflix. From romance, action, comedy, or drama, international fans are all waiting to see more of these contents.

That's why, we are going to give you some of the most exciting and fresh korean drama series that are coming on the famous international streaming site, Netflix!

"Sisyphus: The Myth" - (February 17, 2021)

"#Alive "actress Park Shin Hye will be teaming up for a new exciting action drama with actor Jo Seung Woo. Viewers were already in awe to see various elements and magnificent production set up during its pilot episode.

Look out for Park Shin Hye's cute interaction with the world's most loved and one of the biggest K-Pop boy groups, BTS. They will be having a special appearance in one of its episodes!

"Hello, Me!" - (February 17, 2021)

New romance fantasy-drama "Hello, Me!" starring actress Choi Kang Hee and "Mission Possible" actor Kim Young Kwang will give a new blend of love and humor in the eyes of the audience. The first episode of this series already aired last Wednesday (Feb 17), and people can't help but to wait and continue watching the next episode!

Watch out for the special appearances of the "Born Again" stars Lee Soo Hyuk and Jang Ki Young!

"Vincenzo" - (February 20, 2021)

Song Joong Ki will be returning on the small screen as Vincenzo Cassano, an Italian lawyer who wants nothing but to seek justice and take down all the villains who cannot be punished by the court of law. Joining him are beautiful actress Jeon Yeo Bin and Taecyeon of 2PM.

"Love Alarm Season 2" - (March 12, 2021)

A big comeback for the cast of the much-awaited romantic drama "Love Alarm"! The love story of Kim Jojo, Hwang Sun Oh, and Lee Hye Yeong will continue this coming new season. After announcing on their official social media accounts last Valentine's day (Netflix Korea), fans of this series were all excited to meet the "Love Alarm" cast!

Also Read; Netflix Original Series 'Love Alarm 2' Starring Song Kang, Kim So Hyun and Jung Ga Ram Finally Unveiled Its Showing Date

"Undercover" - (Date of Release TBA)

This upcoming Netflix original series will be directed by Kim Jin Min, who is also known as the director of the suspense series "Extracurricular." "Undercover" will tell the story of Yoon Ji Woo, a loving daughter who is in search of justice and of those people who are involved in her father's death. She is a member of an organized crime ring that goes undercover to penetrate the police. Yoon Jo woo's character will be portrayed by "The World of the Married" actress Han So Hee.

Opposite to her is "Itaewon Class'' actor Ahn Bo Hyun, who will be playing the role of Jeon Pil Do, a police detective in the Drug Investigation Unit. Joining them also is actor Park Hee Soon who is expected to play the boss of the largest drug group in Korea.

Are you all excited to watch these lists of new and upcoming Korean dramas? Let us know in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at Kdramastars.

Kdramastars owns this article.

Written by Shai Collins.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday challenged Union Home Minister Amit Shah to contest an election against her nephew Abhishek Banerjee and then think of fighting her. Addressing a party rally in Pailan in the South 24 Parganas district, CM Banerjee hit out at Shah over his 'Didi-Bhaipo' jibes.

The West Bengal CM said that Abhishek could have taken the easy route of being an MP by choosing to be a Rajya Sabha member but he fought the Lok Sabha election and got the people's mandate. "Day and night they are talking about Didi-Bhatija. I challenge Amit Shah, contest against Abhishek Banerjee first and then me," she said, amid a loud cheer from supporters.

BJP leaders, including Shah, have often accused CM Banerjee of dynasty politics, alleging that her 'Bhaipo' or nephew has received preferential treatment and will eventually be made the chief minister of the state. She also challenged the home minister to get her into politics and toil to hold public offices.

CM Banerjee exuded confidence that her party will break all records of past elections in the state, get most of the votes and win the highest number of seats in the upcoming polls. "TMC will break all records, get most of the votes and win the highest number of seats in West Bengal election," said the CM.

Meanwhile, amid chants of "Jai Shri Ram", Shah on Thursday held a roadshow at Kakdwip in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal where assembly election is due in April-May. Standing atop a decorated lorry with state BJP chief Dilip Ghosh and others, Shah waved to the crowd that gathered along the 1 km stretch between Smashan Kali Mandir to SBI more in Kakdwip.

People also watched the procession from rooftops and balconies and they were seen shooting videos of it with their mobile phones. The streets were lined with the BJP's flags and bunting as the cavalcade inched forward through the narrow and crowded street.

Waving party flags, BJP supporters shouted "Jai Shri Ram", "Narendra Modi zindabad" and "Amit Shah zindabad". The South 24 Parganas district has 31 assembly segments and is considered to be a stronghold of the ruling Trinamool Congress.
Nepal approved on Thursday the emergency use of a Covid-19 vaccine developed by an affiliate of Chinas Sinopharm, a government official said, the second vaccine cleared after AstraZeneca's product.

The move paves the way for China to donate 500,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine to the Himalayan nation, which last month received one million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine free of charge from its other big neighbour India.

Nepal will also buy the AstraZeneca vaccine from India.

"Conditional permission has been granted to the Chinese vaccine for its emergency use in Nepal," said Santosh K.C, a senior official in the Department of Drug Administration.

Read | Researchers urge delay in administering Pfizer vaccine's second dose, cite strong data

Nepal launched its immunisation drive on Jan. 27 beginning with medical workers, and plans to eventually cover 72 per cent of the South Asian country's 30 million people.

Health and Population Minister Hridayesh Tripathi told Reuters Nepal would soon buy two million doses of the AstraZeneca shot, made by the Serum Institute of India, for $4 each, the same price that Bangladesh is paying.

"We have received a good price  we must not miss this opportunity to purchase it, Tripathi said.

Authorities say Nepal is also expecting vaccines from alliances backed by the World Health Organisation which distribute shots to poorer countries.

Also Read | South African Covid-19 variant could significantly reduce vaccine protection, says Pfizer

Two other vaccines  Russia's Sputnik V and one made by Indias Bharat Biotech - are waiting to be cleared by the government.

In recent years, China and India have jockeyed for influence in Nepal and poured millions of dollars into aid and investment in infrastructure.

But demand for vaccines in the country with poor health infrastructure has offered India, the world's biggest vaccine maker, a way to claw back ground. India has donated or sold Covid-19 shots to two dozen countries.

Nepal has reported 273,070 Covid-19 cases and 2,055 deaths.

While the National Pension System (NPS) has a robust architecture, there are demand supply loopholes in the system and it also lacks flexibility, an essential component for the sector, as per findings of a discussion session held by

The National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) held a workshop on investor education and protection with financial regulators, focussed on the

The workshop was attended by domain experts from PFRDA, finance ministry, economic institutions and other stakeholders.

Even as has a robust architecture, there is a gap between demand and supply side in the Indian pensions market, said in a release on Thursday, citing the key takeaways from the discussion.

It requires more innovation in financial products and needs to be customised depending upon the target population, it added.

"Flexibility is an essential component, which is currently missing in the structure and measures like promoting compulsory contribution to the NPS is necessary," it said.

Removal of withdrawal restrictions can enhance participation. Also, funds need to have a diverse investment portfolio like option of investing in international and equity markets, said the economic think-tank.

Citing a recent survey conducted by the National Centre for Financial Education (NCFE) on financial literacy and inclusion, its CEO Satyajit Dwivedi said around 20 per cent of the respondents felt there was no need for pension while 18 per cent were not aware about pension.

"This amounts to over one third of the population that is not investing in pension plans, which is such a critical need for ensuring the financial safety for any individual," Dwivedi said during the discussion.

Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Chairman Supratim Bandyopadhyay highlighted that the customer base of NPS grew at a fast pace of nearly 35 per cent in terms of assets within the past year.

Among other findings of the workshop, said there is a need to bring various pension funds, currently having different regulators, under a unified regulatory framework.

Investors need to be educated not merely about wealth creation, but also about the sustainability of income in the old age. More studies are required to bring behavioural changes in the investors, and communication to investors needs to be more personalised, it said.

"Presently there is a debate around the costs associated with the distribution agents, which could be addressed by selling products directly to the end consumers.

"For this, existing digital platforms can be used to open a pension account, and investors must be protected with metrics like risk and suitability analysis at the time of onboarding," it added.

Madnesh Kumar Mishra, joint secretary (pensions), Department of Financial Services, said PFRDA will shortly release the second phase of its subscribers' education programme.

To make the NPS more robust, the NPS Trust needs to be separated from the PFRDA. Several amendments have been proposed and presented to the cabinet for consideration, he said.

Further, research suggests that by 2030-35, the government employees' contribution to pension funds will be around Rs 35 lakh crore, Mishra noted.

This makes the canvas of the Indian pension system huge, and funds can be used for both providing a social security net and contributing towards infrastructure development, he added.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Minister of State and local TD, Frank Feighan TD has warmly welcomed the announcement by the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh OBrien TD, Minister of State with responsibility for Local Government and Planning, Peter Burke TD, and Minister of State for Heritage and Electoral Reform Malcolm Noonan of allocations and targets under the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme for Social Housing which includes:

- An initial allocation of 35m for the retrofitting of 1,293 homes;

- The balance of funding (10m) will then be allocated to LAs who demonstrate an ability to complete additional work and spend their full allocation in 2021;

- The Programme for Government (PfG) commits to retrofitting 500,000 homes to a B2/Cost Optimal Equivalent BER standard by 2030. It is expected that approximately 36,500 of those with be local authority owned homes.

Leitrim Co Council will receive 243,656 to retrofit 9 houses in their stock. The Programme for Government 2020 set challenging and ambitious targets over the next ten years aimed at Irelands objective of reducing its carbon emissions by more than half. In response to this commitment the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting programme has been revised and enhanced for 2021, homes retrofitted under this programme will benefit householders in many ways, they will be warmer, easier to heat and more comfortable homes, it will enhance air quality in the home and for those currently using oil or gas they will see savings on energy bills.

This revised programme will see a significant upscaling - from a shallow to deeper retrofit - on what has been completed by local authorities in previous years and will target 2,400 social homes in total for upgrade works in 2021.

Retrofitting homes is a highly labour-intensive sector and can create high-quality, sustainable jobs in local communities throughout the country, and has the capacity to play an important role in our economic recovery.

Since the original scheme began in 2013 over 73,500 local authority homes have undergone energy efficiency works, but this was, for the most part, wall and attic insulation works.

This revised programme focuses on a much deeper retrofitting, ensuring that the fabric of the home is upgraded, and an energy efficient heating system is provided concluded Minister Feighan.
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Presume earlier order by centre made in consultation with state government extending Chief secretary''s tenure for threestate government extending Chief secretary's tenure for three months from June 1, stands: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

`Shocked and stunned by unilateral order' recalling Chief Secretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCHSecretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCH JRC

Mamata writes to Modi; requests rescinding orders recalling WB Chief Secretary to Delhi. Chief Secretary to Delhi.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  A long-duration winter storm that began earlier Thursday is expected to continue to hit Staten Island with intermittent precipitation through most of Friday.

A National Weather Service winter weather advisory is in effect until 7 p.m. on Friday warning of potentially slippery road conditions.

Heres what you need to know for the evening commute:

STATEN ISLAND FERRY ON MODIFIED SCHEDULE

The Staten Island Ferry is operating on a modified schedule during the Thursday evening commute, according to the city Department of Transportation (DOT).

Service will run every 20 minutes for the evening rush, the DOT said, reminding riders to practice social distancing and wear a mask at all times when traveling on the ferry.

SPEED RESTRICTIONS ON PORT AUTHORITY BRIDGES

There are speed restrictions on the Goethals and Bayonne bridges and the Outerbridge Crossing Thursday, according to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Due to adverse weather, a 35-mph speed restriction is in effect in both directions of each span.

Additionally, the shared-use paths on the Bayonne and Goethals bridges are currently closed for pedestrians and bicyclists.

MTA: BUS DELAYS IN EFFECT

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is advising Staten Islanders to expect longer waits on all local and express buses operating on the borough due to the winter storm.

Were running as many buses as we can with the operators we have available, said the MTA.

The Staten Island Railway is operating under normal weekday service to meet the Staten Island Ferry, according to the MTA.


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The report of the Ayo Salami panel of inquiry is immaterial to President Muhammadu Buharis power to appoint a new chair for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Presidency has said.

Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant, Media, and Publicity to the President, stated this in a reaction to a PREMIUM TIMES report on how some lawyers and activists faulted the Presidents non-disclosure of the report of Salami panel prior to his Tuesdays nomination of a new substantive chair for the anti-graft agency.

Probe

Last year, the Salami panel probed corruption allegations including diversion of recovered assets levelled by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, against EFCC and its officials under the leadership of Ibrahim Magu, as the acting chair of the commission.

But while the public was waiting for the panels report submitted to Mr Buhari in November to be released to the public, the presidency announced on Tuesday that the President had sent the name of the head of Lagos zonal office of the EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa, to the Senate for confirmation as the substantive chair of the Nigerias foremost anti-corruption agency.

Commentators interviewed by this newspaper on Wednesday argued that Mr Buhari ought to have made the Salami panels report public before appointing a new substantive chair of the anti-graft agency.

They argued that it smacked of lack of public accountability for the President to nominate a substantive chair for the commission without the public first being aware of those who were indicted or exonerated by the panel.

Buharis power not dependent on report

Mr Shehu, asked by our reporter to respond to the comments on the proprietary of Mr Buharis action, stated the Salamis report had nothing to do with the power of the President to appoint a new EFCC chair.

The power to appoint the Chairman of EFCC is not dependent on the report of the inquiry or any other report. Procedurally and administratively, it is independent of the report. The report of the investigation panel is a different ball game, Mr Shehu stated, in a message sent to PREMIUM TIMES.

He added, the provisions of the Constitution clearly empowered the President to appoint persons to hold offices and act in that capacity and to remove such persons.

The EFCC act requires Senate approval and that is what the President is seeking.

White Paper to be issued on Salami panels report

Meanwhile, Mr Shehu, said the office the Presidents Chief of Staff, Ibrahim Gambari, and the AGF, Mr Malami, were already working towards issuing a White Paper on the report of the Mr Salami-led Judicial Commission of Inquiry.

There is going to be a White Paper on the report of the Justice Salami Judicial Commission of Inquiry and the responsibility for doing that is with the office of the Chief of Staff, Professor Gambari. That is being done with the supervision of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Mr Shehu stated.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks in the Manhattan borough of New York City on Oct. 12, 2020. (Carlo Allegri/Reuters)

CNN Reinstates Rule Prohibiting Chris Cuomo from Covering Brother, Gov. Andrew Cuomo: Report

A CNN representative told The Washington Post that the network has reimposed a rule prohibiting anchor Chris Cuomo from covering his brother, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, reversing a temporary suspension of the rule thats meant to guard against conflicts of interest.

The early months of the pandemic crisis were an extraordinary time. We felt that Chris speaking with his brother about the challenges of what millions of American families were struggling with was of significant human interest, CNN told the publication, defending the numerous interviews Chris Cuomo conducted with his brother.

As a result, we made an exception to a rule that we have had in place since 2013 which prevents Chris from interviewing and covering his brother, and that rule remains in place today, the spokesperson said.

The issue of potential conflict of interest in CNNs coverage of Gov. Cuomo has come to the fore as his administration is facing increasing scrutiny over its handling of New Yorks nursing home COVID-19-related death data and a since-rescinded March 25 executive order that may have contributed to the number of fatalities.

In what has been widely characterized in media reports as a cover-up, the Cuomo administration rejected a legislative request for a comprehensive COVID-19-related nursing home death tally in August because the Cuomo administration feared the figures would be used against us by federal prosecutors, said Melissa DeRosa, the secretary to the governor, according to an audio recording of a conference call obtained by the New York Post.

At the time, the Department of Justice (DOJ) was probing nursing home deaths in four states, including New York. DeRosa issued a statement on Friday in which she disputed the characterization that the data had been withheld to foil federal investigators.

I was explaining that when we received the DOJ inquiry, we needed to temporarily set aside the legislatures request to deal with the federal request first. We informed the houses of this at the time, DeRosa said, according to WGRZ.

We were comprehensive and transparent in our responses to the DOJ, and then had to immediately focus our resources on the second wave and vaccine rollout. As I said on a call with legislators, we could not fulfill their request as quickly as anyone would have liked. But we are committed to being better partners going forward as we share the same goal of keeping New Yorkers as healthy as possible during the pandemic.

Allegations of a cover-up to thwart a DOJ probe have led to calls for Cuomos impeachment.

The controversy over the Cuomo administrations handling of nursing home death numbers has not been mentioned on Chris Cuomos show on CNN, although it has been covered on others, including Sundays State of the Union, with host Jake Tapper also taking aim at the controversial March 25 directive that essentially ordered nursing homes to admit COVID-19 patients.

So Gov. Cuomo, who has declined to appear on this show despite dozens of requests over the past year, including this past week, made a bad decision that may have cost lives, Tapper said. And then his administration hid that data from the public.

The March 25 directivesubsequently reversed in Mayessentially prohibited nursing home operators from refusing to accept residents even if they tested positive for COVID-19.

No resident shall be denied readmission or admission to a nursing home solely based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19, the order said.

Under the order, if hospital staff determined residents were medically stable, nursing homes were prohibited from requiring that the patient be tested for COVID-19 prior to admission or readmission. Experts warned at the time that the order would lead to a surge in COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes.

Cuomos new order, issued in May, required hospitals to keep elderly COVID-19 patients until a negative test was confirmed or move them to another state-run facility that wasnt a nursing home.

Cuomo has repeatedly rejected links between the since-repealed policy and the thousands of nursing home deaths in the state. Last year, the Cuomo administration flatly denied the allegations.

Admission policies to nursing homes were not a significant factor in nursing home fatalities. And data suggests that nursing home quality is not a factor in mortality from COVID, New York State Health Commissioner Howard Zucker said.

A state Department of Health study (pdf) essentially corroborated this stance, concluding that it was infected nursing home staff that fanned the spread.

This study highlighted a critically important fact that the overwhelming majority of hospital patients sent back into nursing homes were not only medically stable, they were no longer contagious, and that 81 percent of the nursing homes receiving COVID patients from New Yorks hospitals already had the virus, said Michael Dowling, CEO of Northwell Health, in a release.

However, questions have been raised about the reliability and impartiality of the study, and a number of lawmakers have called for a probe.

Meanwhile, Harvard University health care policy professor David Grabowski told NBC New York in August last year that he believes the March 25 directive exacerbated the outbreak in nursing homes but was probably not the main factor.

Did the policy increase fatalities in the state? Grabowski said of the executive order. It probably did. I just dont think it was the primary driver.

Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
Jeffery L. Bineham graduated from Roseburg High School in 1976 and is a professor in the Communication Studies Department at St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
Italy extradites alleged murderer absconding for 20 years to Russia

 flickr.com / Vaughan Leiberum

15:43 18/02/2021

MOSCOW, February 18 (RAPSI)  Moris Dzhugashvili (Boris Tsiklauri), who had fled from investigation after committing a grave crime more than 20 years ago, was extradited from Italy to Russia, the press service of the Prosecutor Generals Office reported.

The man stands charged with murder. He tried to evade criminal responsibility, changed his name and surname from Moris Dzhugashvili to Boris Tsiklauri that was established by law enforcement, the statement reads.

Investigators believe the murder was committed by the defendant in the summer of 1999.

He was arrested in Italys Bologna.




New Delhi: Realty major DLF's rental arm DCCDL has completed the acquisition of the entire 52 per cent stake of US-based Hines in a premium commercial project in Gurugram for 780 crore.

In December, DLF had informed that its joint venture firm DLF Cyber City Developers Ltd (DCCDL) entered into a securities purchase agreement with funds managed by Hines for acquisition of their stake in Fairleaf Real Estate, which owns and operates 'One Horizon Center'. "DCCDL has completed the acquisition of this 51.8 per cent stake at a consideration of 779.40 crore and consequently Fairleaf has become a wholly-owned subsidiary of DCCDL with effect from today i.e. February 18, 2021", DLF said in a regulatory filing. Hines had nearly 52 per cent stake in the One Horizon Centre while the rest was with the DCCDL.

The DCCDL exercised the first right of refusal to acquire Hines' stake. The DCCDL is a joint venture firm of DLF and Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC. DLF holds 66.66 per cent stake in the DCCDL while GIC has the rest. The commercial tower 'One Horizon Center' has a leasable area of about 8,13,000 square feet, mainly high-end Grade A office spaces along with complementary retail space.

The acquisition is subject to customary conditions to closure and is expected to be consummated in the next quarter. DLF's MD-Rental Business Sriram Khattar had said the company acquired complete ownership of this asset at a right price. "We will fund this acquisition from internal accruals and bank loans," he had said. Khattar had said the company would get an additional annual rental income of 150-160 crore after this deal gets concluded.

Market sources said the deal has been struck at a total enterprise value of 2,000 crore, while the project had a debt of around 500 crore. Post acquisition, the DCCDL platform will have about 34 million sq ft of operational rental portfolio. DCCDL had reported a 15 per cent rise in its rental income last fiscal at 3,006 crore on strong demand for quality office and retail spaces. DLF and Hines entered into their first joint venture in 2008 to develop One Horizon Center in DLF-5 Gurugram, Haryana.

They formed another joint venture in March last year to develop an office project in Gurugram on 11.76 acre land parcel bought by DLF for nearly 1,500 crore through e-auction conducted by the Haryana government in February 2018. DLF had sold 33 per cent stake in this commercial project to Hines, for around 650 crore. Meanwhile, DLF had in December 2017 entered into a joint venture with GIC when DLF promoters sold their entire 40 per cent stake in DCCDL for nearly 12,000 crore. This deal included sale of 33.34 per cent stake in the DCCDL to GIC for about 9,000 crore and buyback of remaining shares worth about 3,000 crore by the DCCDL.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

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By Matthias Williams

KYIV (Reuters) - A Belarusian court on Thursday jailed a pair of journalists for two years on charges of orchestrating protests against President Alexander Lukashenko, while Washington imposed visa restrictions on 43 Belarusian officials it accused of undermining democracy.

Belarusians Katsiaryna Andreyeva, 27, and Darya Chultsova, 23, were detained in November in an apartment they had been using as a vantage point to film demonstrations over the death of a protester killed several days earlier.

Both women, who were working for Belsat, a Warsaw-based satellite TV channel that provides Belarussians with an alternative to state-run television, pleaded not guilty. They appeared in a cage at Thursday's hearing, hugging and making "V"-for-victory signs. Their lawyer said they would appeal.

Asked about Thursday's verdict, Belarusian Information Minister Igor Lutsky said the court would not have made its ruling unless it was justified.

More than 33,000 people have been detained in a violent crackdown on protests against Lukashenko's rule following a contested August election his opponents say was rigged. He has been in office since 1994.

In Washington later on Thursday, the United States announced visa restrictions on 43 Belarusians, including law enforcement officials it accused of detaining and abusing peaceful demonstrators. Also targeted were judges and prosecutors allegedly involved in sentencing protesters and journalists.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was alarmed by Lukashenko's violent crackdown on protesters, activists and journalists.

"We stand with the brave people of Belarus and support their right to free and fair elections," he said in a statement.

Neighbouring Lithuania, where Tsikhanouskaya is based, urged Minsk to end a "spiral of repression". Poland said it would have "very serious consequences".

The European Union's foreign affairs spokesman, Peter Stano, condemned the "shameful crackdown on media".

Story continues

Exiled opposition figure Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya praised the spirit of the two journalists, writing in a tweet: "Just look at Darya and Katsiaryna  strong, smiling, and saying goodbyes to their loved ones through bars. Lukashenka can't break us."

RENEWED CRACKDOWN

The crackdown prompted new Western sanctions. Lukashenko has refused to step down, buttressed by support from Moscow, which sees Belarus as a buffer against the European Union and NATO.

In a statement earlier, Andreyeva said she had risked her health and life for her work.

"I managed to hide from rubber bullets, explosions of stun grenades, blows from truncheons. My colleagues were much less fortunate," she said. "I have everything: youth, a job that I love, fame and, most importantly, a clear conscience."

The journalists were filming protests after the death of 31-year-old Roman Bondarenko, who died in hospital in November after what protesters say was a severe beating by security forces. The interior ministry denied responsibility.

Lukashenko has mixed promises of reform with a renewed crackdown this week that saw police raiding the homes of journalists and rights activists and one of Lukashenko's main electoral opponents put on trial for corruption.

A separate trial begins on Friday of a journalist from the local outlet TUT.BY who contradicted the government's assertion that Bondarenko had been drunk at the time of his death.

(Reporting by Matthias Williams; Additional reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko in Warsaw, Robin Emmott in Brussels, Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber in Moscow and David Brunnstrom, Daphne Psaledakis and Jonathan Landay in Washington; Writing by Matthias Williams and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Angus MacSwan, Peter Graff and Peter Cooney)
DETROIT  A Detroit man was on the run for three years before the U.S. Marshal Service recently found him hiding in a wall at a relatives home.

Willie Wright was charged in 2017 for stealing from downtown Detroit businesses; he was sentenced to seven to 20 years in prison before he fled, WXYZ Detroit reports. In 2018, he was on Detroits Most Wanted list. That year, he was arrested in Indiana and should have been extradited to Wayne County but an administrative error resulted in his release.

Wright was in the wind until a tip alerted the Marshals that he had returned to Detroits east side. Deputies saw Wright enter a family members home and eventually searched for him there  three times, the TV station reports. The first and second searches were unsuccessful. During the third search, a deputy noticed a suspicious wall in the bathroom; Wright was behind that wall and surrendered to deputies when they breached it.

The Wayne County Prosecutors Office could slap Wright with additional charges, the report said. His family could also be charged with harboring a fugitive.

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A new baby has been born to the L pod family of southern resident killer whales, scientists reported.

Ken Balcomb, founding director of the Center for Whale Research, confirmed the birth Wednesday.

The mother is L86, and the sex of the baby, L125, is not yet known.

After word that the J, K, and L pods were in Haro Strait, near San Juan Island, the center dispatched two boats with field researchers, where they encountered and photographed the new calf.

"It is nicely filled out and appears to be a nice young perfectly normal little calf," said David Ellifrit, the center's photo identification expert.

The baby's size and shape are typical of a calf in good condition. It is so young  just a few weeks old  that it still has fetal folds showing on its skin.

This is the first calf born into L pod since January 2019.

Other calves born to the southern residents also were seen Wednesday: J57 and J58, both born in 2020, looked to be doing well.

The birth is a bright spot for L86, who also was the mother of L112, killed by blunt-force trauma in 2012, Balcomb said.

She had another calf, L120, that was born and died in 2014. Her third calf, L106 was born in 2005 and is still swimming near his mother today, Balcomb said.

The southern residents are endangered, so every baby counts.

The newest birth brings the population to 75 in total. The first complete count of southern resident killer whales, which took place in 1974, found 71 whales.

L86, nicknamed Surprise!, was born in 1991.

"It's just wonderful to see a new birth this early in the year; it's pretty exciting," said Deborah Giles, researcher with the University of Washington's Center for Conservation Biology. "It gives you hope for the other ones."

Another orca, J46, also known as Star, was very visibly pregnant last fall but she lost the calf, according to Holly Fearnbach, marine mammal research director at SR3, a science research nonprofit based in Seattle.

Fearnbach and John Durban, senior scientist with Southall Environment Associates, photographed her on multiple occasions using a drone and from their research documented that she was no longer pregnant in December.

The southern residents lose about two-thirds of their pregnancies, according to research led by Sam Wasser at the Center for Conservation Biology. The losses were linked in the research to nutritional stress.

The southern residents face at least three known threats to their survival: noise and disturbance by ships and boats, pollutants, and lack of food, especially chinook salmon, their preferred prey.

___

(c)2021 The Seattle Times

Visit The Seattle Times at www.seattletimes.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama

Todd McShay, ESPN.com: No, I dont think the Dolphins are drafting another quarterback. I do think they will draft a high-impact player here to give Tua Tagovailoa support. Smith, who caught 83 passes from Tagovailoa over three years at Alabama, is the real deal. He is quick off the line, excellent on vertical shots and able to haul in anything thrown in his direction.

JaMarr Chase, WR, LSU

Eddie Brown, The San Diego Union-Tribune: Its scary that a 10-win team with such a good coach and plenty of young talent also has four picks in the top 50. The Dolphins are desperate for wide receivers who can get open. A lot of people are forgetting how good Chase actually was during the Tigers national title run. The 2019 Biletnikoff Award winner opted out this season because of COVID.

Penei Sewell, OT, Oregon

WalterFootball.com: The Dolphins need to protect Tua Tagovailoa to aid his development. They spent a first-round pick on a tackle last year, but that was a later selection in the opening frame, and Austin Jackson doesnt project as an elite player. Penei Sewell was so good as a sophomore, he received a second-place Heisman vote.

Micah Parsons, LB, Penn State

Nick Klopsis, Newsday: The Dolphins are in a very good spot this offseason: Tua Tagovailoa showed great promise as a starter, the defense was solid in all areas and there arent many key players set to leave in free agency. That leaves them in position to go best player available at the top of the draft. Micah Parsons opted out of the 2020 season, but hes a versatile linebacker who can do anything asked of him.

Rashawn Slater, OT, Northwestern

Bryan Fischer, AthlonSports.com: The chatter about Miami moving on from Tua Tagovailoa remains just that, chatter. It makes far more sense to keep building around their young QB to give him every chance to succeed. As a result, Slater can slide in at tackle opposite Austin Jackson to give the team some franchise-building blocks up front and fix a long-neglected area of need.

Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State

Anthony Treash, ProFootballFocus.com: Its not that I dont have faith in Tua Tagovailoa becoming a great franchise quarterback; I just think that Justin Fields has a better chance of becoming one. First off, Fields is a better prospect than Tua was coming out. And considering that Tua still has a lot to prove after this season, this should be an easy choice.
Shilpa Medicare slumped 10.88% to Rs 380.25 after the company received an Import Alert from the United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA), pursuant to its inspection of Unit 4 of the company's Telangana facility.

The inspection was conducted from February 13 - 20 and February 24-25, 2020. Three products have been exempted from the Import Alert - azacitidine for injection, cyclophosphamide capsules and erlotinib tablets.

In October 2020, the company had received a warning letter from the US drug regulator for its Jadcherla, Telangana facility.

Shilpa Medicare is a global brand in manufacturing and supplying of affordable API and formulation globally in different regulated markets.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
ALBANY, N.Y., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Over the past few decades, endoscopic vein harvesting (EVH) techniques have gained preference over incision-based open vein harvesting in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) operations among cardiac surgeons. The growing demand in the endoscopic vessel harvesting systems market is driven by the numerous benefits these systems have to the patient population. The popularity is attributed to numerous benefits most notably less risk of postoperative complications and less painful incision, and low wound complications.

Though both saphenous veins and radial arteries are used in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedures, saphenous veins have become the most clinically-used conduit. Ease of harvesting and availability, and the remarkable versatility of the harvesting process underscores the growing popularity.

Request for Analysis of COVID-19 Impact on Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting Systems Market  https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/covid19.php

Availability of alternatives and the growing shift toward catheter-based therapies in CABG and peripheral arterial disease (PAD) have restrained the growth potential in the endoscopic vessel harvesting systems market. This has the revenues to expand at tepid CAGR during 2019 to 2027. The valuation was pegged at ~US$ 370 Mn in 2018.

Key Findings in Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting Systems Market

Growing number of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) procedures supports demand

The growing adoption of saphenous vein-graft harvesting in CABG is a key trend in the endoscopic vessel harvesting systems market. The segment has gained popularity over the years. Growing role of CABG in cardiac care is imparting momentum to the growth of market. The acceptance of safe and reliable vein harvesting in EVH has bolstered the demand for endoscopic vessel harvesting systems. The shift from open tunnel harvesting toward closed tunnel harvesting is due to the proposition of shorter hospital stay.

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Technology Advancements in Visualization Systems Spurs Growth Momentum

The advent of alternative surgical and non-surgical procedures for coronary artery diseases, such as catheter-based procedures and medications has put a stiff competition to the adoption of endoscopic vessel harvesting systems. This has led to reduction in demand in the market. To overcome the sluggish growth, medical device manufacturers are leaning on constant technological advancements in visualization systems. Thus, research and development investments in this direction have boosted the growth of the endoscopic vessel harvesting systems market. The growing morbidity of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in some of the developed nations is a key factor propelling the popularity of non-invasive grafting procedures. An example is North America, where the increasing CVD burden has boosted technological advancements in EVH. The growing prevalence of chronic cardiac conditions in elderly population has also encouraged the creation of new avenues for players in the endoscopic vessel harvesting systems market. Growing number of studies over the years have supported high patient satisfaction in EVH techniques over open tunnel harvesting.

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Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting Systems Market: Key Driving Factors and Promising Avenues

Rise in CVD morbidity and mortality has intensified the attention toward better surgical outcomes in cardiac care. For instance, heart attacks and stroke have led to high mortality in patient population. Per a statistics in a recent report by the American Heart Association, primary-cause sudden cardiac death (SCD) mortality was 18835 in the U.S. in 2017

Rise in geriatric population is a favorable factor for the demand, since elderly population have numerous major comorbidities of CVD.

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Endoscopic Vessel Harvesting Systems Market: Key Players

The endoscopic vessel harvesting systems market is characterized by industry participants to engage continuously in new products development, mergers and acquisitions, deals and collaborations in order to consolidate their positions or shares through the forecast period. Some of the well-entrenched players in the market are:

Med Europe S.r.l.

KARL STORZ SE & Co. KG

& Co. KG Saphena Medical, Inc.

Terumo Corporation

LivaNova PLC

Getinge AB

Explore Transparency Market Research's award-winning coverage of the global Healthcare Industry:

Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Market: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/coronary-artery-bypass-grafts-market.html

Peripheral Arterial Disease Market: https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/peripheral-arterial-disease-market.html

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UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas


Scientists discovered the effects of sea-level changes in genomes of Caribbean and Pacific crocodiles which are springy animals from a genealogy that has endured for over 200 million years. Crocodiles, skilled swimmers can travel long distances and sustain themselves in fresh and marine environments. But they cannot meander far on land.

According to a recent study from researchers at McGill University, the Crocodylus Acutus, which are American Crocodiles that can be found in the Caribbean and Pacific coasts of the Neotropics, landed in the Pacific before Panama came into existence.

The formation of land in Panama modified global ocean circulation, joined North and South America to establish the Caribbean sea. This led to widespread mixing of species on the planet and separation in seas. Mammals from North America living on lands such as mammoths, camels, and horses entered South America, and strange animals like sloths, opossums, and armadillos from South America entered North America.

The Great American Exchange

This event is popularly known as the Great American Exchange. The contrary happened in the sea, where new species of clams, fishes, and corals evolved in the separated Caribbean and Pacific waters.

A group of McGill and Panamanian researchers asked a question: How far are the Caribbean and Pacific populations from each other, and does it equate to the geological record? As suspected by the researchers, American crocodiles residing on the Pacific coast should have swerved genetically enough from Caribbean populations to become rare species.

Jose Avila-Cervantes, a new Ph.D. graduate of McGill University under the guardianship of Professor Hans Larson, said "We thought we would detect significant genetic differences between Pacific and Caribbean crocodile populations that were isolated for the past 3 million years."

ALSO READ: Stoned to Death: Visitors Kill Helpless Crocodile Inside Tunisia Zoo

Capturing and Taking Blood Samples Of Crocodiles

Avila-Cervantes captured and took blood samples of crocodiles from various population living on the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Panama. He sequenced their genomes and used the genetic differences to estimate how much gene flow and evolutionary diversity existed between populations. With this knowledge, the team found out that crocodile populations living on both coasts have been separated for about 100,000 years.

Professor Larsson, Director of the Redpath Museum at McGill said, "This time of separation is a mismatch from the 3 million years we were expecting, but it matched the last interglacial period of the Ice Age."

Glacial and interglacial cycles in the Ice age spot periods of peak polar glaciations disbanded by relatively warm times which caused the sea level to rise over 100 meters globally compared to recent levels.

Coastal Movement

Avila-Cervantes reconstructed what Panama would have looked like during the warm periods of the Ice age and these peak colds.

"It amazed us to see that during the warm interglacial periods, most of Panama was underwater with the coasts detached by small rivers, brackish lagoons, and slim stretches of land.

These are the grounds that made people think crocodiles were able to pass from coast to coast freely and explain why their oldest genetic signature of separation corresponds with this time.

"This is one of the first studies to expose Ice Age glaciation-interglaciation cycles with the evolution of a tropical organism." Avila-Cervantes says.

RELATED ARTICLES: Crocodiles Are Recovering in the Everglades

For more news, update, about crocodiles and similar stories don't forget to follow Nature World News!
What makes kakapo so unique?

Kakapo are unusual creatures for many reasons. They are the heaviest living species of parrot in the world, weighing up to four kilogrammes.

They are also the only living species of parrot that cannot fly. Instead, they have strong legs for travelling several kilometres a day. They are also excellent climbers and can leap off tall trees, using their wings for balance.

As an island species, they originally had few avian predators which hunted during the day. Kakapo evolved forest coloured plumage for camouflage and, when faced with a threat, they freeze, making it difficult for predators to spot them from above.

Kakapo are nocturnal, which is how they got their name: it means 'night parrot' in Maori.

Andrew Digby, a conservation biologist at the Department of Conservation in New Zealand, says, 'Kakapo don't come across like birds - they're more like mammals, maybe like badgers.

'Our team have been working with the same individual birds for over 40 years, which is really special.

'Kakapo have definite personalities which you get to see when you work with them regularly. We know which ones we'll have to chase because they often run, and which ones are noisy and may shout at you a lot. Some are really friendly and will approach you.'
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The delivery of the Philippines' initial COVID-19 vaccine doses has been delayed due to different issues faced by manufacturers, officials said Thursday.

During a virtual briefing, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the 600,000 doses of Sinovacs CoronaVac vaccine from China are still subject to the issuance of emergency use authorization.

I have received information that unless the EUA is delivered today, baka pati po yung delivery sa (February) 23rd ay maantala [perhaps even the expected delivery on February 23rd might be delayed], Roque said, noting that the Chinese vaccine maker still has to make arrangements for the doses shipment.

No vaccine will be entering Philippines without any authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. stressed.

While Western drugmakers Pfizer and AstraZeneca have already secured EUAs in the past months, they still face delays in rollouts, he added.

The government has already handed the required indemnification agreement to both manufacturers, but Galvez said officials were caught off-guard when Pfizer at the last minute asked for a bilateral agreement on their indemnification clause.

Para po sa kaalaman ng lahat, nung unang negotiation po namin, hindi po yan hinihingi ng Pfizer, just only now. Kaya medyo nabigla kami, he said, noting that American firm Johnson & Johnson was the only entity that earlier sought a strict indemnification clause.

[Translation: For everyones knowledge, during our initial negotiations, Pfizer wasnt asking for it, only now. Thats why we were quite caught offguard.]

Galvez explained there are two sets of indemnification agreements for the Philippines: a general one with the World Health Organization-led COVAX facility, which is set to roll out doses for member countries; and specific indemnification clauses with Pfizer and AstraZeneca. For AstraZeneca, this was already part of its tripartite agreement with the country, he added.

He said the lawyers of Pfizer are different from those of the COVAX facility, and they rarely communicate with each other, adding to the delay.

For Astrazeneca, the vaccine czar says the complication lies in global manufacturing.

Yung nakausap natin, itong manufacturing nito, Thailand. Yung sa COVAX na magpp-produce sa atin is South Korea. Yun ang medyo may complications, kasi iba yung AstraZeneca South Korea na nagh-handle, iba rin itong andito sa Thailand, he explained.

[Translation: The party were talking to directly has its manufacturing in Thailand. The production for COVAX (facility) intended for us is in South Korea. These present slight complications, because different entities are handling AstraZeneca in South Korea and Thailand.]

In a separate briefing, WHO Representative to the Philippines Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe said AstraZeneca has vaccine supplies, although they are not earmarked for the Philippines. But he said the country may be able to access some of the doses provided it meets the requirements both of COVAX and AstraZeneca in South Korea.

What is important is the Philippines yesterday submitted the indemnification agreement, import license, and EUA [for] AstraZeneca, said Abeyasinghe.

The government hopes to inoculate priority sectors by the first quarter of 2021, with a full public rollout slated beginning third quarter. Around 50 to 70 million Filipinos are eyed to get vaccinated by year-end.
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The governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, has said not all bandits who terrorise parts of the state and other neighbouring states are criminals.

The governor stated this on Thursday after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He explained that most of the bandits take up arms due to the injustice meted on them by some members of the society.

Hundreds of persons have been killed or kidnapped by the bandits in Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Niger, Kaduna and Nasarawa States in recent years.

Contrary to the claims by the governor, there have been suspicions that the criminality is a fallout of the artisanal mining of gold, lead and other mineral resources in those areas.

Despite the attacks on innocent citizens, Mr Matawalle has repeatedly called on the federal government to grant amnesty to repentant bandits.

Injustice on bandits

While explaining the reasons for the attacks, Mr Matawalle said those saddled with the responsibility of protecting the community sometimes rustle their cattle and destroy their livelihood.

He said since they have nobody to speak to, they resort to violence.

Not all of them are criminals. If you investigate what is happening, and what made them to take the laws into their hands, some of them, sometimes were cheated by so-called the vigilante group.

They normally go to their settlements and destroy property and take their animals. They did not have anyone to speak with, so sometimes, they go for revenge. When the vigilante group attacks them, they go for reprisals. That is exactly what happened, the governor said.

He also indicted the military, whom he said contribute to the problems in the villages.

Some of them are living in settlements close to villages or towns. When there are military operations, the military will go and destroy their property and animals. They are angry with such actions sometimes. If you are talking to them, you can understand where they are coming from and their problems, Mr Matawalle said.

It is important for us as leaders to sit down with them and understand what is the genesis. You cant just conclude that this person is a criminal. You have to listen to him. What led him to go into such activities?

It is not all Fulanis that are criminals. Some are good citizens, but due to some circumstances, they subscribed to such criminality but when we had the information, we called their leaders and sat with them, they told us their grudges and we sorted out the way the communities and the Fulanis can resolve their issues without any serious crisis.

He said he believes the problem will be put to an end if governors can follow in his footsteps.

In my state, I am constructing RUGA for them, like a settlement that can contain some of them because sincerely speaking, if we allow them going around from one place to another, we cannot find a solution to this issue.

So the only thing the governors should do and we are discussing that is to contain them in one place. Like a Fulani from Zamfara should not migrate to another neighbouring state. How are we going to do that? This is something that needs a lot of resources because you will have to create something that can engage them.

You have to provide social amenities for them. Like the RUGA that we are doing, we have many amenities like school, hospital, veterinary clinic, market and even mini stadium.

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If we allow them to migrate from one place to another, that is where the problem is. I believe that very soon, the Nigeria Governors Forum will discuss that so that we can be able to know what action all the governors should take to contain them in one place, the governor stated.
New Zealand will give out free sanitary products to schoolgirls around the country, an initiative aimed to combat 'period poverty' among the disadvantaged.

The scheme, announced by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Thursday, follows a successful pilot programme launched around the middle of last year.

Starting from June, the new initiative will cost the government NZ$25 million (13 million) through to 2024.

New Zealand will distribute free sanitary products in schools to combat 'period poverty' among the disadvantaged, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday

Ardern said research showed about one in 12 young people skipped school because they did not have access to period products.

'Young people should not miss out on their education because of something that is a normal part of life for half the population,' Ardern said.

'Providing free period products at school is one way the government can directly address poverty, help increase school attendance, and make a positive impact on children's wellbeing.'

She said the programme, which begins in June and will cost NZ$25 million (13 million) over three years, followed last year's successful pilot scheme which provided free period products to about 3,200 young people in 15 schools.

The announcement by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern (pictured on February 5) on Thursday follows a successful pilot programme launched around the middle of last year

Ardern said participants in the pilot showed increased engagement at school and improved educational outcomes.

Period poverty occurs when women and girls lack the money for tampons, pads or menstrual cups, or medication for cramps.

Globally, campaigners say the issue has a direct effect on girls' education, with a knock-on impact on work opportunities, thus deepening gender inequality.

Scotland last year became the first country in the world to provide universal access to free period products.

Last month, free sanitary products were made available to all schools and colleges in England as part of a drive to stamp out period poverty.

The move will mean that no schoolgirl should be forced to miss lessons because she is on her period.

The Department for Education also hopes the change will help break down the stigma surrounding menstruation.
PITTSBURGH, Feb. 18, 2021 - A child's first influenza infection shapes their immunity to future airborne flu viruses--including emerging pandemic strains. But not all flu strains spur the same initial immune defense, according to new findings published today by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine virologists in the journal PLOS Pathogens.

"These results are relevant right now to the COVID-19 pandemic," said senior author Seema Lakdawala, Ph.D., assistant professor of microbiology and molecular genetics at Pitt. "They may explain age-based distributions of SARS-CoV-2 disease severity and susceptibility.

"Having flu once does not make you immune to all future influenza viruses," she said. "Nor does having had the original SARS virus in 2003 or any of the 'common cold' coronaviruses in circulation necessarily mean you can't get infected with SARS-CoV-2. But your susceptibility to infection might be different than someone who has never encountered a coronavirus."

Lakdawala and her colleagues devised an experiment using ferrets--which previous studies have shown have a similar susceptibility and immune response to flu as humans--and mimicked real-world, human conditions. The experiment was designed to test the concept of "The Original Antigenic Sin," which is when a person's first exposure to a pathogen imprints on their immunity to all future infections.

This phenomenon is seen in the populations affected by previous flu epidemics and pandemics. For example, the 2009 H1N1 flu pandemic disproportionately affected people ages 5 to 24, suggesting that older people had been exposed to a previous strain of flu that gave them lasting immunity, protecting them from the newer strain.

In the ferret experiment, the scientists infected different groups of ferrets who had never had the flu with one of two different strains of influenza--seasonal H3N2 flu or the 2009 pandemic H1N1 flu--and waited three months to allow the immune system to calm down and develop a more mature immunity to whichever strain they were exposed to.

Next, the ferrets with H3N2 immunity were exposed to ferrets contagious with H1N1 virus, and the ferrets with H1N1 immunity were exposed to ferrets contagious with H3N2 virus.

The scientists mimicked human workdays and weekends, comingling the contagious ferrets with their peers for 8 hours per day over five-day periods--much the way humans who work in cubicles would mix--or continuously over two days, similar to a family weekend.

The ferrets with previous H1N1 infection had protection against airborne transmission of H3N2 flu from a contagious peer. But ferrets with previous H3N2 infection didn't have the same level of protection against H1N1 and got infected at the same rate as an animal without prior immunity.

"This was really surprising," said Lakdawala. "Our immunity can shape how susceptible we are to subsequent infections, but that is not uniform. We have long ignored that not every strain of a virus is going to transmit through a population in the same way. That's important to understand when preparing for future pandemics."

The experiment did not reveal why the ferrets with previous H1N1 infection were protected against H3N2, nor why prior H3N2 infection didn't block H1N1. But the scientists did find that the immunity was not due to neutralizing antibodies, which are antibodies acquired following vaccination or infection that specifically target and neutralize a defined pathogen. This finding indicates the immunity was likely driven by the adaptive immune response--meaning that the previous H1N1 infection primed the immune system to be on the lookout for H3N2 and quickly eliminate it.

Future study is needed to reveal the precise immunological mechanism underlying such an immune response, but Lakdawala said that doesn't mean public health authorities should wait to put the findings into action, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding the different ways that infections affect people based on prior exposure could be leveraged to target age-based interventions or vaccination programs.

###

Additional authors on this study include Valerie Le Sage, Ph.D., Jennifer E. Jones, Ph.D., Karen A. Kormuth, Ph.D., Eric Nturibi, Gabriella H. Padovani, Andrea J. French, Annika J. Avery, Richard Manivanh, Ph.D., Elizabeth E. McGrady, and Amar Bhagwat, all of Pitt; William J. Fitzsimmons and Adam S. Lauring, M.D., Ph.D., both of the University of Michigan; and Claudia P. Arevalo and Scott E. Hensley, Ph.D., of the University of Pennsylvania.

This research was supported by National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases grants HHSN272201400007C, 1R01AI139063-01A1, 1R01AI113047, and HHSN272201400005C; the American Lung Association, the Charles E. Kaufman Foundation and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund.

To read this release online or share it, visit https:/ / www. upmc. com/ media/ news/ 021821-lakdawala-fluantigenicsin [when embargo lifts].

About the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

As one of the nation's leading academic centers for biomedical research, the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine integrates advanced technology with basic science across a broad range of disciplines in a continuous quest to harness the power of new knowledge and improve the human condition. Driven mainly by the School of Medicine and its affiliates, Pitt has ranked among the top 10 recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health since 1998. In rankings recently released by the National Science Foundation, Pitt ranked fifth among all American universities in total federal science and engineering research and development support.

Likewise, the School of Medicine is equally committed to advancing the quality and strength of its medical and graduate education programs, for which it is recognized as an innovative leader, and to training highly skilled, compassionate clinicians and creative scientists well-equipped to engage in world-class research. The School of Medicine is the academic partner of UPMC, which has collaborated with the University to raise the standard of medical excellence in Pittsburgh and to position health care as a driving force behind the region's economy. For more information about the School of Medicine, see http://www. medschool. pitt. edu .

http://www. upmc. com/ media

Contact: Allison Hydzik

Office: 412-647-9975

Mobile: 412-559-2431

E-mail: HydzikAM@upmc.edu

Contact: Erin Hare

Mobile: 412-738-1097

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BERLIN (dpa-AFX) - German auto giant Daimler AG (DDAIF.PK) Thursday reported that its fiscal 2020 net profit attributable to the shareholders amounted to 3.6 billion euros, higher than last year's 2.4 billion euros. Earnings per share increased to 3.39 euros from prior year's 2.22 euros.



EBIT increased 53 percent to 6.6 billion euros from 4.3 billion euros a year ago with strong performances across all divisions. Adjusted EBIT, reflecting the underlying business, was 8.6 billion euros, compared to 10.3 billion euros a year ago.



The company said its financial results for 2020 were significantly better than expected amid COVID-19 challenges.



Revenue was 154.3 billion euros, down 11 percent from 172.7 billion euros last year.



Total unit sales of passenger cars and commercial vehicles decreased 15 percent to 2.84 million units from last year's 3.34 million units.



Further, the company said its Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose a dividend of 1.35 euros per share at the Annual General Meeting on March 31, compared to prior year's 0.90 euro.



Looking ahead, Daimler Group said it expects sales, revenues and EBIT in 2021 to be significantly above the prior-year's level. Although bottlenecks in the semiconductor industry will impact sales mainly in the first quarter it is currently anticipated that lost production volume can be compensated for by the end of the year.



Daimler assumes that the global economy will recover strongly in 2021.



Regarding the planned spin-off of Daimler Truck and its listing, the company said a significant majority stake in Daimler Truck will be distributed to Daimler shareholders. The transaction and the listing on the Frankfurt stock exchange is expected to be completed before year-end 2021.



In addition, it is also Daimler's intention to rename itself as Mercedes-Benz at the appropriate time.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

DAIMLER-Aktie komplett kostenlos handeln - auf Smartbroker.de
Using smartphones to display a digital version of some form of official ID is not a new concept. Google added support for digital drivers licences via the new Identity Credential API in Android 11. With the arrival of vaccines earlier this year, many apps have now emerged that show whether a person has had the vaccine shot. Apple is now setting strict rules regarding submissions to the App Store - only health authorities can offer apps showing proof of vaccination.

Apps purporting to provide a form of Digital Health Passport, such as the British company VST Enterprises (VSTE) and their V-Health Passport are meant to be used to identify those who are healthy enough to travel, or have the required vaccination. However, there is also the possibility of unscrupulous app developers uploading misleading or copycat apps that may compromise users data and privacy

Also read: Facebook expands efforts to tackle false claims about Covid-19, vaccines

With the recent release of COVID-19 vaccines, weve seen an increase in apps that generate health passes used to enter buildings and access in-person services based on testing and vaccination records. To ensure these apps responsibly handle sensitive data and provide reliable functionality, they must be submitted by developers working with entities recognized by public health authorities, Apple said on its developer blog on Tuesday.

The company stated that it was locking down the ability to submit apps to only the developers who met the criteria mentioned above - these could vary from test kit manufacturers, laboratories, or healthcare providers. The company also said it would accept apps that were submitted directly by any government, medical and other credentialed institutions.

Read more: Google Maps, Search will soon show Covid-19 vaccine locations

Last year, Apple had announced it would also restrict the apps submitted to the store related to COVID-19 information, to developers from recognised entities like government organizations, health-focused NGOs, companies deeply credentialed in health issues, and medical or educational institutions. The company had also stated that entertainment or game apps with COVID-19 as their theme would not be allowed on the store.
By Moses Ndhaye

Government has completed construction of four industrial park power sub-stations that will supply stable electricity to Namanve, Mukono, Luzira and Iganga industrial parks.

The project is implemented by the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) at a cost of $ 100m dollars.

The head of communication at the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited, Pamela Byomuganda says this will provide adequate transmission capacity to enable provision of reliable quality and adequate power supply to Small, Medium and Large Scale Industries in the respective industries.

Government came up with this project after several investors complained that the electricity which was being distributed to the infrastructure was not able to meet the power demands for the growing industrial parks.
While most people have hunkered down at home through the COVID-19 pandemic, some members of the wealthy set have fled their shut-down cities for far-flung destinations, and they're sparing no expense, according to a report from Bloomberg News.

Jack Ezon, founder of Embark Beyond, told Bloomberg the luxury getaways he's planning for clients  including those on the West Coast who are escaping to Arizona and Mexico  average about $70,000 a month, with most people booking two- to four-month stays.

Californians in particular jetted to sunny locales with their laptops in tow when Gov. Newsom issued the regional stay-at-home order in mid-December.

Leigh Rowan, founder of S.F.-based Savanti Travel, told SFGATE most of his Bay Area clients have private jets, and he's helping them temporarily move to beach destinations. Rowan said Miami; Puerto Vallarta, Punta Mita and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; and Costa Rica are especially popular.

"If youre going to shelter in place, you might as well be somewhere thats steps from the ocean," said Rowan, adding that he knows of a small Bay Area start-up company that moved its staff to a house on the beach in Costa Rica during the pandemic.

Rowan's clients are temporarily relocating to vacation destinations for longer periods than he has seen previously, and they're bringing their work and business with them.

"Right now, you cant meet with a client right now at Coupa Cafe in Palo Alto," he said. "The Battery in San Francisco is closed. All of these typical venture capital hangouts are closed. The reality is people arent fleeing California. Theyre conducting their business elsewhere during the pandemic. One of our clients is in Florida for February and meeting people on the balcony on his suite. Instead of people flying to New York to do meetings, theyre just doing them in Miami. Instead of having their ski week in Park City, theyre doing it in Punta Mia. You can easily have a meeting on a beach with 25 people."

(Editor's note: While normal indoor operations and activities may not be happening at the Battery and Coupa, outdoor dining is available.)

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention discourages travel, and many destinations have strict guidelines for visitors. Hawaii, for example, requires visitors have a negative test 72 hours before departure or quarantine for 10 days upon arrival.

But flying may not be too unsafe. Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found transmission risks of COVID-19 during airline flights are very low, below other routine activities such as grocery shopping or going out to dinner, when using face coverings and taking other safety precautions.

Some San Francisco clients, Rowan said, are renting places closer to home in Napa.

"Theres a depression that they have walking through downtown San Francisco and seeing all their old haunts closed," he said. "If Im going to feel depressed, let me go do it somewhere new like St. Helena."

Rowan's clients are spending anywhere from $30,000 a month on a four-bedroom place with a chef and staff in Costa Rica, to $1,000 a night in Miami, to $500 to $600 night in Punta Mita.

He said no one has said yet that they don't want to come back when the state reopens.

"No one is abandoning the bay," he said. "Its not about saying 'screw you' to leaving California. Everyone is very bullish about the bay coming back and returning home."
On Thursday, the Massachusetts COVID-19 vaccination website that allows residents to book appointments crashed, leaving many residents upset. Some of them went to social media to express their concerns.

Massachusetts. Home to MIT, Harvard, and world-class internet startups. This is our vaccine appointment website at one point this morning, Dr. John Grohol, founder of Psych Central, tweeted with a photo of the crashed website.

The website typically updates on Thursdays at 8 a.m. with new appointments. About a million more Massachusetts residents were eligible to start booking appointments this week.

Gov. Charlie Baker announced Wednesday that the state will enter priority group 2 of Phase 2 of the vaccine rollout on Thursday, Feb. 18.

Residents 65 years and older, individuals with at least two comorbidities that make them high risk for COVID-19 and/or residents and staff of low income and affordable senior housing can now receive the vaccine.

But as residents were unable to load the website, many expressed disappointment.

See below for more reactions.

Massachusetts. Home to MIT, Harvard, and world-class internet startups.



This is our vaccine appointment website at one point this morning.#coronavirus #covid19 pic.twitter.com/augjqscGsC  Dr. John Grohol (@DocJohnG) February 18, 2021

Live update from the vaccine quest in Massachusetts for my 72 year old father with a high risk cardiac condition... pic.twitter.com/Rzgo8YMLQb  A work in progress (@CapriciousNest) February 18, 2021

Absolute colossal failure of the @MassGov #COVID19Vaccine website; constant crashes, application failures, appointments that get lost mid-way through registration. Surely, someone in the @MassGovernor Baker Administration could have foreseen this. Totally unacceptable. pic.twitter.com/sdtNPxG0TJ  Kaelon (@Kaelon) February 18, 2021

Which will be harder to secure? Phish 4.0 tickets when they come back or a vaccine in Massachusetts? Asking for a friend pic.twitter.com/1NWGAdBYcf  Josh Karpf (@jkarpf) February 18, 2021

Massachusetts vaccine rollout -- How it started / How it's going pic.twitter.com/vGv9fKRjoe  Gordon Arnold (@garnold360) February 18, 2021

Good to see that the same amount of care has been put into the Massachusetts vaccine website as Walmarts PS5 launch.  Geo Michas (@GeoMichas) February 18, 2021

Just like Gov. Baker promised, things are already looking good at the Massachusetts vaccine registration website this morning pic.twitter.com/BoM4HEdP58  F Ls A  (@FrankRamblings) February 18, 2021

Over 65 in MA can get a vaccine today, but you cant bc the site crashed already. Good job Baker, failed again.  Richard (@Richard65722687) February 18, 2021

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 20:10:43|Editor: huaxia

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KATHMANDU, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Community Homestay Network Nepal, which works as a liaison between travellers and communities, has won award for its unique contribution to sustainable and responsible tourism in the Sustainable Development Goals Global Startup Competition organized by the United Nations specialized agency World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

Community Homestay Network Nepal is among 25 winners out of the 10,000 competitors submitting proposals highlighting their contribution to UN sustainable development goals through tourism.

In a UNWTO statement issued Thursday, Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said, "The winners show the power of new ideas for transforming our sector."

"By embracing innovation, we can realize this potential and build a better future for people and the planet through tourism. I congratulate them all and look forward to seeing these startups grow and deliver positive change," he said.

Since launching its business in 2017, Community Homestay Network Nepal has been supporting homestays in Nepal by connecting them with international tourists.

"There are international tourists who want to experience authentic Nepal hospitality and food while the homestays in Nepal are waiting to host them," network chief Shiva Dhakal told Xinhua Thursday. "We connect both the parties."

Dhakal said Nepal's tourism industry is concentrated in the national capital Kathmandu and Pokhara and Chitwan areas despite a huge potential in other parts of the country.

He said his network has helped expand the tourism business in Nepal while supporting the local communities that run homestays. The network has also provided various hospitality and hygiene trainings for homestay operators.

Currently, the network has 24 homestays from different areas of the Himalayan nation under it, and has planned to take in 76 others in the next few years.

"The UNWTO award is a huge recognition for us," Dhakal said. "It has re-energized us to work in the sector."

The startup winners in the UN-sponsored competition are expected to be given expert support and backing for further growth, according to him. Enditem
(Newser)  If Tennessee lawmakers move ahead with erecting a statue of Dolly Parton at the state Capitol, they'll be defying the wishes of the entertainer herself. In a statement Thursday, the 75-year-old Parton asked lawmakers to scrap the plan, at least for now, reports NBC News. Parton, a Tennessee native, wrote that she is "honored and humbled" by the idea. But "given all that is going on in the world, I don't think putting me on a pedestal is appropriate at this time." Parton didn't rule out the idea down the road, however. "Somewhere down the road several years from now or perhaps after I'm gone if you still feel I deserve it, then I'm certain I will stand proud in our great State Capitol as a grateful Tennessean."

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Lawmakers on a House committee are scheduled to consider a bill Tuesday put forth by state Rep. John Windle, per the Tennessean. But it appears that Windle isn't about to ditch his legislation, which calls for the establishment of a "Dolly Parton fund" to pay for the statue. "I certainly respect her wishes, but I'm gonna give her fans a chance to change her mind," he tells the newspaper. "Because she's wrong. She does deserve this." (The idea to honor Parton at the state Capitol in Nashville arose during discussion about the removal of a bust of a Confederate general.)
Sen. Ted Cruz's controversial flight to Cancun Wednesday night sparked outrage and calls to resign as millions of Texans were left without power and water in an historic Arctic freeze.

Cruz explained his decision as "wanting to be a good dad," as his daughters asked to go on a trip with their friends.
"Affordable assisted living is the biggest secret in the country." -- AMC President and CEO Steve Beck

"We are excited about future opportunities for growth and that optimism begins with reaching an agreement with Gardant to assume management of these two fine communities," Beck said. "We have strengthened and solidified our internal resources and capabilities, including adding sales and operating platforms, to manage affordable independent and assisting living communities effectively. Gardant has been a good partner to aid us through the transition."

Beck added, "Affordable assisted living is the biggest secret in the country. Our residents are provided with quality round-the-clock services that help them to maintain their independence by assisting with their activities of daily living. We look forward to continuing to provide that level of service at HSL of Indianapolis and New Albany."

Hellenic Senior Living of Indianapolis is located at 8601 S. Shelby Street, Indianapolis, IN 46227. Hellenic Senior Living of New Albany is located at 2632 Grant Line Road, New Albany, IN 47150.

Both communities opened in February 2018 and each one is a 125-unit community located on four acres. They offer seniors of all incomes residential apartment-home living with the availability of personal assistance, medication administration and a variety of convenience and support services, such as meals, housekeeping, laundry, socialization, and transportation.

About AMC

AHEPA Affordable Housing Management Company (AMC) is a mission-driven, nationwide provider of affordable independent senior living and affordable assisted living communities. It has developed and manages 91 affordable independent senior living communities in 20 states that are administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's 202 program.

AMC, through its subsidiaries, Hellenic Senior Living, Inc., and Hellenic Management Company, owns four affordable assisted living communities (AALFs) with 532 units located in Indiana.

AMC is a subsidiary of AHEPA National Housing Corporation (ANHC) and is based in Fishers, Ind.

SOURCE AHEPA Affordable Housing Management Company

Related Links

http://www.ahepamgmt.com


India has started issuing medical visas and is planning to soon restart E-Tourist Visas, Union health minister Harsh Vardhan said on Thursday. The move is in a bid to boost medical tourism in India that remained hard hit due to covid-19 pandemic.

The union health minister said that the advancements in Indias healthcare facilities have led to a spike of medical tourism in India. India has always been a popular tourist destination, but over the last few years, it has also emerged as a leading destination for medical tourism. Advancements in our vast and vibrant healthcare industry has made it comparable with the best in the world," said Harsh Vardhan.

Our education system that has been producing world-class doctors, nurses and paramedical staff is well recognized across the globe. Often called the pharmacy of the world, India is also one of the largest manufacturers of pharmaceuticals and supplies a large portion of vaccines across the globe," said the health minister adding that these strengths and capabilities have contributed to India emerging as a crucial place as far as medical tourism is concerned.

"To encourage the medical tourism further, we have already started issuing medical visas and are planning to soon restart E-Tourist Visas as well as scheduled international flights," said the minister.

Over the last decade, India has grown to become a sought-after destination for medical value travel and holds the fifth position among 41 major destinations across the globe. India was experiencing 22-25% growth in medical tourism and the industry was expected to reach USD 9 billion by 2020 before covid-19 pandemic. Indian hospitals provide high quality healthcare facilities at highly competitive prices- one fifth to one tenth of costs in other countries, according to various reports.

India has already started vaccinating its population against covid-19 since January 16th,, 2021. The exercise, the government said, will create herd immunity in the population with which the pandemic will be controlled. The economic activities have already resumed but after the pandemic is effectively is controlled, the economy can heal and get a reboot. India has already vaccinated over 98.5 lakh healthcare workers and frontline workers as on Thursday.

The covid-19 cases though continue to rise but the pandemic seems receding if numbers are considered. The Daily Positivity Rate has also seen a constant decline in last 7 days. From 1.89% on 1st February 2021, it has dropped to 1.69% as of today, the union health ministry data shows.

Sixteen States/UTs have not reported any covid-19 deaths in the last 24 hours. These are Delhi, Odisha, J&K (UT), Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Lakshadweep, Manipur, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Ladakh (UT), Nagaland, Mizoram, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Tripura, Daman & Diu & Dadar & Nagar Haveli, Arunachal Pradesh.

At least 12,881 new daily cases have been recorded in the last 24 hours and 86.61% of the new cases are from 6 States, according to the union health ministry. Kerala continues to report the highest daily new cases at 4,892. It is followed by Maharashtra with 4,787, while Tamil Nadu reported 454 new cases. 101 fatalities have been recorded in the last 24 hours. Five States account for 76.24% of the new deaths. Maharashtra saw the maximum casualties (40). Kerala follows with 16 daily deaths and Punjab with 10, the government said. Kerala and Maharashtra alone account for 75% of new cases, 72% of new recovered cases and 55% of new deaths.

The total tally of covid-19 cases on Thursday climbed to 1,09,60,766 and the toll mounted to 1,56,104.

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Spanish police arrested some 50 people overnight following a second night of clashes over the jailing of a rapper for a string of tweets insulting police and the monarchy.

Angry demonstrations first erupted on Tuesday night in Catalonia after police detained Pablo Hasel, 32, who was holed up in a university in that region to avoid going to jail in a controversial free speech case.

And the protests swelled on Wednesday with hundreds gathering under a heavy police presence in Madrid's Puerta del Sol square and calling for his release, later hurling bottles at police, who charged at them in clashes lasting several hours, AFP journalists said.

Police said at least 15 people were arrested, but were due to issue an update on Thursday morning, while the city's emergency services said 55 people were injured, among them 35 police officers.

In Barcelona, demonstrators lobbed objects at police and set barricades ablaze, with police firing foam rounds and charging at the protesters.

Across Catalonia, the Mossos d'Esquadra regional police said 31 people were arrested, including 10 in Barcelona, 14 in Lerida, where Hasel was arrested, five in the northern city of Girona and 2 in Tarragona.

Medics said eight people were slightly injured.

At least 15 people had been arrested on Tuesday night in protests in several Catalan cities in which more than 30 people were injured, among them 19 police officers, officials said.

Hasel missed a Friday deadline to turn himself in and begin serving a nine-month jail term handed down in 2018.

At issue is a series of tweets calling former king Juan Carlos I a mafia boss and accusing police of torturing and killing demonstrators and migrants.

Hasel is known for his hard-left views, but his case has become a cause celebre among campaigners, who say that prosecuting him is a dangerous assault on free speech.

His sentence caused outrage in Spain, with stars, including the film-maker Pedro Almodovar and the Hollywood actor Javier Bardem, expressing support for his cause.

Amnesty International denounced the move saying jailing the rapper for song lyrics and tweets was "unjust and disproportionate".

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Silent Hill Composer Teases That His Next Project is 'The One You're Hoping to Hear About'
WOMANS BEST FRIENDS As a longtime correspondent for CBS, Martha Teichner has covered some of the worlds biggest news events, including the Persian Gulf war, the election of Nelson Mandela and the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School. In her first book, When Harry Met Minnie, she tells a story that happened closer to home.

On July 23, 2016, Teichner and her bull terrier, Minnie, were at the farmers market in Manhattans Union Square when she ran into a friend who told her about another bull terrier, Harry, who was in need of a new home; his owner was dying of cancer and desperate to secure a stable future for her pup. Teichner agreed to meet the pair, setting into motion the unexpected friendship and canine romance she chronicles in her memoir, which recently appeared on the hardcover nonfiction list.

Its a little story in a big city, Teichner said in a phone interview while cuddling with Girly, her latest in a long line of occasionally problematic, deeply beloved bull terriers. So often people think of New York as an anonymous place. But being willing to look around and see the possibility of reaching across the divide between yourself and other people is a wonderful thing. It can happen anywhere, not just this city.

In their early meetings, Teichner recalled, Minnie completely ignored Harry and he was only interested in the treats in Teichners pocket. But by the third or fourth time Harry came to visit, the pair had warmed up to each other. Teichner said, To see the dogs start to play, to see them lying on the floor side by side, with their paws intertwined, the physical comfort between them  thats when I realized this was a love story. They adored each other. They spoke telepathic dog language.
The co-developer of STRmix  sophisticated forensic software used to resolve mixed DNA profiles previously thought to be too complex to interpret  has been awarded the Public Service Medal as part of 2021s Australia Day Honors.

Dr. Duncan A. Taylor of Forensic Science SA (FSSA) was honored by Australias Governor-General, David Hurley, for his role in developing STRmix and for outstanding public service to forensic DNA statistics. The Australia Day Honors annually recognize and reward positive contributions made by Australian citizens.

Since its introduction in 2012, STRmix has been used to interpret DNA evidence in more than 220,000 cases worldwide. That number includes numerous U.S. court cases and more than 80 successful admissibility hearings.

Developed by Dr. Taylor, along with John Buckleton, DSc, FRSNZ, and Jo-Anne Bright of the New Zealand Institute of Environmental Science and Research (ESR), STRmix has proven to be highly effective in producing usable, interpretable, and admissible DNA results in a wide range of criminal cases. It has also been instrumental in helping to solve cold cases in which evidence originally was dismissed as inconclusive and in exonerating individuals who have been wrongly associated as the source of crime scene evidence.

As one of the foremost international experts in forensic DNA statistics, Dr. Taylor  has been vital to achieving appropriate justice outcomes through expert DNA evidence in some of South Australias most compelling criminal cases in recent times, noted Governor-General Hurley in honoring Dr. Taylor.

STRmix is currently being used in 59 federal, state, and local forensic laboratories in the U.S., including the FBI and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). Internationally, all nine state and territory forensic labs in Australia and New Zealand, as well as 14 labs in other countries including England, Scotland, Ireland, Finland, Denmark, and Canada, now use STRmix.

A new version of STRmix, STRmix Version 2.8, was launched late last year following nearly a year of extensive development and testing. STRmix v2.8 features a top-down approach that allows users to set the number of major contributors to a mixed DNA profile in which there is interest, and then obtain the LR only for those contributors. This approach enables users to tackle more complex profiles faster. The new version of STRmix also contains improved modelling and memory usage.

The team that created STRmix also recently launched two other products: an update of DBLR, an application used with STRmix that allows users to undertake superfast database searches, visualize the value of their DNA mixture evidence, and carry out mixture to mixture matches, now allowing kinship analysis; and FaSTR DNA, expert forensic software that rapidly analyzes raw DNA data generated by genetic analyzers and standard profiling kits and assigns a number of contributors (NoC) estimate.

Together, STRmix, FaSTR DNA, and DBLR complete the full workflow from analysis to interpretation and database matching. For more information, visit http://www.strmix.com.
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. The European Commission announced on February 18 3 million in humanitarian aid to assist those affected by the recent large scale hostilities in and around Nagorno-Karabakh, including a significant number of displaced people. Since the beginning of the hostilities in September 2020, the EU has mobilised a total of 6.9 million in humanitarian assistance, ARMENPRESS was informed from the press service of the EU Delegation to Armenia.

Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarcic, said: "Following the cessation of hostilities, the humanitarian crisis in the region remains dire and is currently exacerbated by the harsh winter and the coronavirus pandemic. The EU is stepping up its support for the conflict-affected population in and around Nagorno-Karabakh. It will help provide emergency supplies to those most in need.

The newly announced emergency support will help EU humanitarian partners to deliver food, shelter, winter items and other basic needs, as well as essential health services and psychosocial support to the affected population. All EU humanitarian funding is provided in line with the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence.

The recent military confrontation between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which raged unabated for six weeks, has caused casualties, damages and displacement. The fighting pushed hundreds of thousands to flee their homes for safety. Houses and public infrastructure such as schools, health system, roads, utilities and communication networks, were badly damaged. Alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law include the targeting of civilian infrastructure and use of banned cluster munitions.

Despite the ceasefire agreement struck between Armenia and Azerbaijan on 9 November 2020, the humanitarian situation remains of concern. The coronavirus pandemic and cold temperature further worsen the situation. The EU is in close contact with humanitarian partners and other stakeholders on the ground to support the coordination of the humanitarian response.
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Syracuse, N.Y.  Less than two weeks into its spring semester, Syracuse University is already warning students it may have to halt in-person classes again because of Covid-19.

SU has reported 35 new positive Covid-19 cases since Saturday. If that number rises to 100 on or before Feb. 26, SU will have to suspend in-person classes for at least two weeks as required by the state Health Department.

SU closed classrooms during the fall semester on Nov. 11, two weeks earlier than scheduled because of a wave of Covid cases.

To our students who continue to host and attend large parties and ignore public health guidelines, I dont know what more anyone can tell you, SU Chancellor Kent Syverud said today in a message to students. Your actions put your health and the health of others at risk. Your actions put the semester for the entire campus at risk. Your actions put the Central New York community at risk. And your actions put your status here on campus at risk.

The warning comes after a rash of off-campus parties began fueling new Covid cases. SU student-athletes hosted an off-campus party Saturday night attended by more than 50 people not wearing face masks. SU suspended the Sigma Chi fraternity for hosting an off-campus party last week. That event and two other off-campus parties last week have been identified as the source of many of the new Covid cases.

No matter who you are  a member of the Greek community, a student-athlete or anyone else  if you break the rules, discipline will follow, Syverud said.

SU has said students who lease apartments or houses where big parties are held will face sanctions. It has also said students who attend the parties could be disciplined.

James T. Mulder covers health and higher education. Have a news tip? Contact him at (315) 470-2245 or jmulder@syracuse.com
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:23:06|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's decision to pull BBC World News off the air countrywide is legitimate and reasonable, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said here on Thursday.

Hua made the remarks when asked to comment on British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab's claim that the decision by China's National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) to ban the Britain-based BBC World News broadcaster was "an unacceptable curtailing of media freedom."

She said that an investigation by the NRTA found that China-related reports made by BBC World News seriously violated China's radio and television regulations and the regulations on overseas satellite channels on China's mainland, and violated broadcasting rules on accuracy and impartiality, undermining China's national interests and ethnic unity, and failing to meet the requirements for overseas channels to broadcast on China's mainland.

As such, BBC World News is not allowed to continue its service on China's mainland, and the NRTA will not accept its broadcast application this year, the spokesperson said.

Hua emphasized that for some time the BBC has repeatedly produced and broadcast fake news with strong ideological prejudice against China, and spread false information on issues related to Hong Kong and Xinjiang, as well as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, the decision of Britain's communications regulator Ofcom to revoke the license of CGTN to broadcast in Britain represents the political repression on the Chinese media, she said, adding that as an international professional media organization, CGTN strictly abides by British laws and regulations and the professional ethics of journalism, and adheres to the principles of objectivity, fairness, truthfulness and accuracy in news reporting. CGTN is internationally recognized for its professionalism.

However, in February 2020, Ofcom suddenly initiated an investigation procedure to revoke the license of CGTN in Britain on the grounds of its ultimate control and its political attributes. During the investigation, CGTN fully cooperated with Ofcom and sought to solve the problem in a constructive manner, she said.

However, Ofcom repeatedly rejected the Chinese proposal and decided on Feb. 4 to arbitrarily revoke the license of CGTN English News Channel in Britain. Hua said that the facts have proved that Britain's move was an act of political suppression based on strong ideological prejudice.

She stressed that it has fully exposed the hypocrisy of the British side, as on the one hand, the British side flouts the freedom of the press, and on the other hand, it keeps dragging the political attributes of the media into the spotlight.

Noting that China has always welcomed foreign journalists, including the British media, to report in China, and facilitated their work and life in China, Hua said what China opposes is ideological prejudice against China, concocting fake news, and behaviors that violate journalistic ethics.

"China urges Britain to immediately stop political manipulation and correct its mistakes. China reserves the right to make further legitimate and necessary responses," she added. Enditem
Employers have been called on to respect the rights of workers and allow them to enjoy public holidays or pay for extra hours in lieu of them.



Mr Fuseini Alhassan, Northern Regional Labour Officer, who made the call, emphasised that Domestic workers also have rights and responsibilities, and employers need to allow them to also enjoy public holidays, and if their work is necessary and they have to work on public holidays, then, they must be paid for the extra hours.



Making a presentation on the Domestic Workers Regulation at a training workshop in Tamale for employers on the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 189 and C190.



The training was to educate about 55 employers drawn from the Northern Region on the new ILO Convention C190 and the Domestic Workers Regulation to enable them to contribute towards the campaign for the Ghana Government to ratify the ILO C190.



It also formed part of the Zero Violence project being implemented in partnership with Frontline Aids and ActionAid United Kingdom (UK) and ActionAid Ghana with funding from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the UK Government.



The project seeks to promote access to decent work and increase the awareness of employers and employees on the ILO Convention C190, and the Domestic Workers Regulation to ensure cordiality at workplaces.



The Domestic Workers Regulation (Legislative Instrument LI 2408), which was passed in June 2020, is in line with ILO C189, which seeks to address issues of domestic workers so that they will have their freedoms, and also to check on child labour while C190, which was adopted in 2019, and yet to be ratified by the Ghanaian Government, deals with issues of violence and harassment at workplaces.



Mr Alhassan said the domestic workers' sector was dominated by vulnerable people, whose rights were sometimes, trampled upon by their employers, hence, the Domestic Workers Regulation (LI2408) to streamline the sector for benefit of all.



He said domestic workers had rights and responsibilities and called on employers to respect the provisions of the Domestic Workers Regulation by giving contracts of employment to domestic workers, which would spell out their conditions of service to safeguard their rights.



Mr Bibariwiah Godwin Fuoh, Tamale Metropolitan Labour Officer, who made a presentation on ILO C190, advised employers to take the provisions of the ILO C190 seriously to avoid issues of violence and harassment at workplaces.



Mr Cosmos Alhassan, Chairman of Hoteliers Association, Northern Region, lauded the training, saying, it would ensure peace at workplaces, which was necessary for improved productivity and earnings for workers and employers.



Madam Alia Mumuni, Project Officer at ActionAid Ghana, Northern Region Team, commended participants for their active participation during the training, saying, their assurances to respect the provisions of the ILO C190 and Domestic Workers Regulation were refreshing.



Meanwhile, similar training will be organised for selected employees in the region.







Source: GNA









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Lackawanna County tenants struggling to pay back rent and utilities because of the coronavirus pandemic will soon be able to apply for assistance as part of $6.2 million in federal funding the county received.

The emergency rental assistance program will cover the back rent and/or utilities incurred any time after March 13, said Eileen Wilson, housing resources coordinator for Lackawanna Countys Department of Human Services, which is administering the program.

Details are still being worked out, but Wilson said the program may cover the full amount of money owed, depending on individual circumstances and funding availability. Tenants also can seek help for rent and utilities going forward, receiving up to 12 months of assistance, with a potential to receive an additional three months under certain conditions.

The funding is part of $25 billion Congress allocated for rental assistance under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. Pennsylvania received $847.7 million. Nineteen counties, including Lackawanna and Luzerne, received direct allocations from the U.S. Treasury Department. The state Department of Human Services will distribute money to other counties, including Bradford, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne and Wyoming.

The funding is a lifeline for tenants who have fallen behind and now face insurmountable debt, said Lori Molloy, executive director of North Penn Legal Services, a nonprofit agency that provides legal services to low-income residents.

Landlords have been banned from evicting tenants for nonpayment of rent under state and federal moratoriums that have been extended several times. The moratorium does not wipe out their debt.

The evictions are being delayed, but that does not mean they dont owe rent, Molloy said. When you fall behind in rent, its really hard to catch up.

Wilson said county officials were deeply concerned they would see an avalanche of evictions when the most recent moratorium issued in September by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expires March 31.

Without this funding, we did not know how we were going to prevent that, Wilson said.

The program is open to residents with income of 80% or less of the median income for the area in which they live. In Lackawanna County, that ranges from $40,150 for a single person to $75,750 for a family of eight.

Applicants must also attest that they are at risk of becoming homeless because they became unemployed, suffered a reduction in income or incurred significant expense because of COVID-19. Landlords can apply on behalf of tenants as long as the tenant is advised of the application.

Wilson said Lackawanna County expects to have an online application available on the Department of Human Services website on March 1. Its also working with several local agencies to accept paper applications, but those agreements have not yet been finalized.

The rental assistance program is the second one to be offered. Earlier this year, the county distributed funds offered under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES).

That program was highly criticized for shortcomings that dissuaded tenants and/or landlords from applying. Among the key issues was that it limited rental assistance to $750. Landlords were required to accept that amount, even if the rent was higher. That led many to forgo the program entirely.

Molloy said the application process was also onerous, requiring tenants to provide documentation of their income loss that was often difficult to obtain. The revamped program has no limit on the amount of rent and simplifies the application process, she said.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP)  The United Arab Emirates is dismantling parts of a military base it runs in the East African nation of Eritrea after it pulled back from the grinding war in nearby Yemen, satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press show.

The UAE built a port and expanded an airstrip in Assab beginning in September 2015, using the facility as a base to ferry heavy weaponry and Sudanese troops into Yemen as it fought alongside a Saudi-led coalition against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels there.

But the country once praised as Little Sparta by former U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis appears to have found the limits of its military expansion in Yemen's stalemate conflict, experts say. After it withdrew troops from the conflict, the satellite photos show it began shipping off equipment and tearing down even newly built structures.

"The Emiratis are paring back their strategic ambitions and are pulling out of places where they had presences, said Ryan Bohl, an analyst at the Texas-based private intelligence firm Stratfor. Having that hard-power deployment exposed them to more risk than the Emiratis are now willing to tolerate.

Emirati officials did not respond to questions from the AP. Eritrea, which gave a 30-year lease to the Emiratis for the base, similarly did not respond to questions sent to its embassy in Washington.

The UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, poured millions of dollars into improving the facility at Assab, only some 70 kilometers (40 miles) from Yemen. It dredged a port and improved the dusty airstrip's roughly 3,500-meter (11,500-foot) runway to allow for heavy support aircraft.

The Emiratis also built barracks, aircraft canopies and fencing across the 9-square-kilometer (3.5-square-mile) facility initially built in the 1930s by colonial power Italy.

Over time, the UAE stationed Leclerc battle tanks, G6 self-propelled howitzers and BMP-3 amphibious fighting vehicles at the airport, according to United Nations experts. Those types of heavy weapons have been seen on Yemeni battlefields. Attack helicopters, drones and other aircraft have been seen on its runways.

Story continues

Barracks on the base housed Emirati and Yemeni troops, as well as Sudanese forces filmed disembarking in Yemen's port city of Aden. Records show the ship carrying them, the SWIFT-1, traveled back and forth to Assab. The vessel later came under attack by Houthi forces in 2016 and the Emirati government asserted it carried humanitarian aid, a claim for which U.N. experts later described themselves as being unconvinced of its veracity.

The base also aided wounded soldiers by housing one of the best field surgical hospitals anywhere in the Middle East," said Michael Knights, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy who has studied the Assab base.

As Yemen's war dragged on, the Emiratis also used the base for holding prisoners as the Saudi-led coalition faced increasing international pressure over detainee abuse and airstrikes killing civilians. The UAE announced in the summer of 2019 it had begun withdrawing its troops from the war, which still rages today.

Theres only so far that they can punch above their weight, which they do militarily and economically, said Alex Almeida, a security analyst at Horizon Client Access who has studied Assab. Once they figured out Yemen wasnt worth it for them, they decided, Were going to end it, and they ended it pretty suddenly.

Satellite pictures from Planet Labs Inc., analyzed by the AP, show that decision appears to extend to Assab as well.

In June 2019, around the time the Emiratis made their withdrawal announcement, workers apparently razed structures believed to be barracks alongside the port, the satellite images show. Workers gathered neat rows of materiel just north of the port, apparently waiting to be shipped off.

In early January of this year, another photo showed what appeared to be vehicles and other equipment being loaded onto a waiting cargo ship. By Feb. 5, the ship and that equipment were gone.

The deconstruction included newly built canopies along a new tarmac near the facilities' runway as well. In the Feb. 5 images, another set of canopies that analysts earlier linked to the drones being flown out of the base had been dismantled as well. The UAE has used Chinese-made armed drones in the Yemen war to kill leaders among the Houthi rebels.

Destruction of the drone hangars come after rebels in Ethiopia's Tigray region in November alleged that Emirati drones from Assab had been used against their positions. The UAE hasn't commented on the allegation for which the rebels offered no evidence.

The U.N.-backed government in Libya also has alleged the UAE has flown weapons through Assab on its way there. U.N. experts have accused the UAE among other nations of funneling weapons into Libya amid its yearslong civil war.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian-registered Antonov An-124 cargo plane flew several flights in late January back and forth to the Emirati city of Al Ain from Assab, according to flight data from FlightRadar24.com.

That aircraft, once linked to the Emirati military, now flies for an Ukrainian-Emirati company called Maximus Air. The firm did not return a request for comment left at its Abu Dhabi office.

Despite the dismantling work, Emirati attack helicopters still have been seen at the base. It remains a strategically important point as well, sitting just off the crucial Bab el-Mandeb strait connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

But the UAE may face more-pressing concerns. Since 2019, tensions between the U.S. and Iran have seen a series of escalating incidents, including attacks on ships off the Emirates. Those threats closer to home may take precedence over an expanded military footprint abroad.

I think what Little Sparta is doing is to keep its powder dry for whatever it needs to do next, Knights said.

___

Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
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The two respondents in the 2020 presidential election petition (Electoral Commission and President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo) have filed their closing addresses.



That is in conformity with an order by Supreme Court for the parties to simultaneously file written addresses on or before Wednesday [February 17, 2021].



However, the legal team for the petitioner, former President John Dramani Mahama is yet to file their written address as ordered by the court.



This follows checks by Graphic Online at the Registry of the Supreme Court.



Stay of proceedings



The petitioner has rather filed a review application challenging the ruling of the court, dated February 11, this year, which overruled an objection by the lawyer for the petitioner, Mr Tsatsu Tsikata, against the decision of the Electoral Commission (EC) not to adduce evidence.



He has also filed an application for stay of proceedings, and urging the court to put the petition on hold until the final determination of the review application.



Former President Mahama, argues in his stay of proceedings application that he would suffer greatly if the petition, including the order to file closing addresses, is not put on hold until his review application is determined.



For us to have to file closing addresses when there is a pending issue to be determined in the review application about whether or not my lawyers will cross-examine the Chairperson of the first respondent will cause irreplaceable harm to the conduct of my case, he argued.







Source: graphiconline.com









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President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has held a meeting with representatives of the Permanent Delegation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Office of the President.

During the meeting, Maria Mezentseva, the Head of the Ukrainian Delegation to the PACE and an MP from the Servant of the People faction, said that the last visit of the Ukrainian delegation was very productive. According to her, the main achievement was the appeal of the powers of the delegation of the Russian Federation to the PACE due to the provided facts of violations taking place not only in Ukraine, but also in other countries, the presidents press service reports.

Mezentseva conveyed greetings to Zelensky from Secretary General of the Council of Europe Marija Pejcinovic Buric and stressed that the Secretary General of the Council of Europe is going to visit Ukraine.

She also said that the invitation to the Crimean Platform was welcomed by many strategic partners and international friends of Ukraine, including the Baltic States, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Denmark, Sweden, Germany and many others.

In turn, Zelensky noted that Ukraine is re-launching the competition for the election of a judge to the European Court of Human Rights according to the rules of the European institutions, and shortly our country will be represented in the ECHR by a highly qualified judge with international experience.

As reported by Ukrinform, Maria Mezentseva, an MP from the Servant of the People faction, was elected as new head of the Permanent Delegation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to the PACE.

Prior to that, the Permanent Delegation of the Verkhovna Rada to the PACE had been headed by a representative of the Servant of the People party, Elizaveta Yasko.
A House committee has passed a bill that would end a governors authority to fill the offices of state treasurer and insurance commissioner if those posts become vacant in the middle of a term.

The legislation provides that a convention of delegates belonging to the departing officials party decide, through a secret ballot vote, who fills a vacancy. The House Elections Committee on Feb. 16 passed the bill 8-2. It now goes to the full House.

The move comes about two months after Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly named her 2018 running mate, former Lt. Gov. Lynn Rogers, as state treasurer. Kellys appointment was to fill a vacancy left by Republican Kansas Rep. Jake LaTurner, who was elected to the U.S. House in November.

The Kansas Republican Party had tweeted shortly after the announcement that Kellys appointment was a partisan attack on democracy because voters elected a GOP treasurer in 2018.

In a hearing last month, Mike Kuckelman, the Kansas Republican Party Chairman, said many voters vote along party lines and so an appointment by party delegates would better reflect voter intent. Overland Park Democratic Rep. Brett Parker argued that the governor was elected by Kansans.

The committee rejected efforts by Democrats to instead hold special elections to fill vacancies for the offices.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Kansas
What happens when Australia takes something it does really well and sells it to the world? International education is a success story of this kind. Our universities are among the best on the planet, and each year students arrive from more than 150 countries. Even in the midst of COVID, international education is Australias fourth largest export, and Victorias largest. To have built such a successful export industry in a few decades should be cause for celebrationand yet too often this success is viewed with suspicion, if not outright hostility. Nowhere is this more true than when it comes to students from China.

Foreign students make up 13 per cent of Australias university enrolments. Credit:Glenn Hunt

According to recent research by Innovative Research Universities, in 2019 we had 133,000 Chinese students in Australia, comprising 13 per cent of total University enrolments, and just under a third31 per centof our total education exports. Certainly, this is a big chunk of the education we provide to overseas students. But are we over-exposed and how does education compare with other Australian exports?

The latest trade figures (June 2020) show that China accounts for 48.8 per cent of all Australias traded goods exports. Thats a much higher share than higher education (31 per cent). Our agricultural and fishing industries sell 32 per cent of their exports to China. So, education is a tiny bit less reliant on China than agriculture. What about mining? The Commonwealth Government regularly points out the importance of the mining sector to Australias economy. Well, mining sells just on half (much higher for iron ore) of its product to China. So, the education sector is significantly less exposed to China than mining.

If our education sector is to be criticised for selling too much to China, then the resources and agricultural sectors should be criticised even more. And yet mining and agriculture are rightly celebrated as success stories in Australias engagement with global markets.
In the wake of the global race to reduce emissions, EU countries are struggling to implement a coherent policy approach or to align their actions with the high-minded rhetoric. While Denmark is banning offshore oil and gas leases in its quest to cease production in the Danish sector of the North Sea by 2050, it has also granted passage through its offshore waters for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. A pipeline that is reportedly back on track to annually transport over 50 billion cubic feet of gas from Russia to Germany. In France, Engie has halted its gas imports from the U.S. but is heavily involved in the Nord Stream 2 project. Meanwhile, Romania is installing an underwater pipeline in the EUs portion of the Black Sea to transport gas to its shore. Such a division between policies and actions within the EU could threaten to undermine the message of the Paris Accord.

EU and Global Oil

Despite being the largest oil producer in the EU, Denmarks decision to cease production will have a limited impact on global oil markets as the country only produced 103,000 barrels per day (kbpd) in 2019. This output falls well short of even just Germanys oil consumption, which came in at 2.4 million barrels per day (mbpd) in 2019, per the EIA. Simply put, all 27 members of the EU, in a best-case scenario, would have to produce 100 kbpd (mirroring Denmarks oil production) to meet Germanys oil demand. And in this scenario, only 3.0 kbpd would be available for the remaining EU countries. Furthermore, 71% of the worlds oil is produced by 10 non-EU countries, which accounted for a total output of 71.73 mbpd in 2019, per the EIA.

Related Video: Texas Deep Freeze Takes 1.2 Million BPD of Crude Offline

Russias Piped Gas and U.S. LNG

Nord Stream 2, arguably the most geopolitically sensitive energy project in modern history, looks to be nearing completion with Rolf Muetzenich, a German politician, remarking that Germany is prepared for a hard confrontation to defend its interests in the project that will increase gas supplies from Russia. Meanwhile, Engie, a French company, is providing financial backing for the project. Engie was also pursuing the importation of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) from the U.S., but France decided to cancel that project, terminating a 20-year deal valued at $7 billion. If France had not canceled said project, it would have made the country a promoter of fracking. This is due to the fact that in 2019, Texas - where much of the fracking in the U.S. occurs - was the No. 1 natural gas producing state in the country.

EU Pursuing Offshore in the Black Sea

In 2019, Romania, via the Black Sea Oil and Gas company, made a Final Investment Decision of $400 million for the Midia Gas Development, located in Romanias offshore waters in the Black Sea. The project is expected to reach first production by 2021. Following the pipelines inauguration Ludovic Orban, the countrys Prime Minister, remarked Today we mark one of Romanias most important strides forward in developing its Black Sea natural gas resourcesit also marks an important step toward achieving energy security for Europe. Thus, Romania and Germany are both installing underwater pipelines to ensure gas is transported to their respective shores: the former will do so by obtaining gas that derives from its territorial waters, while the latter will import from a non-EU country by way of Russia. To add to the complexity, the EU is now looking to enforce investment restrictions for gas projects.

The Energy Transition Continuum

The path towards decarbonization is not entirely aligned in the EU, as different countries are all approaching the issue with differing degrees of urgency. Some countries have voiced policy support but continue to lean heavily on oil and gas with their actions. The actions of Germany, France and Romania could well impact the message and effectiveness of the Paris Accord. Without a concentrated and centralized effort which focuses on action rather than words, the EU is going to fall well short of its Net Zero ambitions.

NOTE: The article refers to 2019 data at certain points, as updated data for 2020 is not presently available.

By Fernando C. Hernandez

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Sylvia Moir was appointed interim chief of the Napa Police Department by a unanimous City Council vote Tuesday and will assume the role this coming Monday.

Moir, who was chief of the El Cerrito Police Department from 2010-16, will lead the department while the city recruits a permanent chief, a process expected to take six to seven months, city officials said.

"I am humbled and grateful to serve the City of Napa Police Department and the community while they search for a permanent chief to fill the role," Moir said. "I am equally confident that my enthusiasm and experience in municipal policing will support and advance the service that the men and women of the Napa Police Department provide as they safeguard the community."

Moir, a California native and a veteran of 30 years in law enforcement, left El Cerrito in 2016 to become police chief in Tempe, Arizona, from 2016 until her retirement in 2020.

Copyright  2021 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Addressing the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) Technology and Leadership (NLT) event on Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while commending the role played by IT sector, exhorted them to help achieve the country greater heights.

Making India a global software hub The PM drawing attention to the fact that India's IT industry had made deep impact world over but could not benefit from the country's huge domestic market. "Our experts were leading and contributing in providing services and solutions to the whole world but IT industry could not get the benefit of India's huge domestic market. Due to this, the digital divide in India increased." Stating that Government has changed this approach.

"The government is trying to get the tech Industry out of the shackles with unnecessary regulations. The National Digital Communication Policy was one such big effort, which was formulated to make India a Global Software Product Hub." Mentioning the Other Service Provider (OSP) guidelines, he said, "this made it easier for you to work in new situations, your work has to face the least hindrance. Even today, more than 90 percent people are working from their homes, some from their native villages." He said the inclusion of IT in the 12 champion service sectors will also benefit the sector.

Liberalised mapping policy Continuing in the same vein, the PM pointed at the recent policy reform of opening the map and geo-spatial data from regulation. Describing it as an important step, he said, "This is a step that is tune with the theme of this forum -- 'Shaping the future towards a better normal'. This is a step that strengthens the broader mission of self-reliant India, not just the IT industry. I recall this issue being raised on different forums." Confident India

PM said this step indeed displayed the confidence of the nation in terms of security. "Earlier it was thought that if these things were opened, then security will be a problem. Today India is full of confidence, we are seeing it on the border. It is indicative that India is confident even after making these decisions, and, that we will be able to keep the country safe." IT praised for efforts during Covid-19

Tracing India's progress in knowledge domain, Modi said there was a time when the country was dependent on foreign vaccines and today Corona vaccines are being supplied to several countries. "India's knowledge science, our technology has not only proved itself, but has also evolved itself. The IT industry of India has also done wonders in this too. When the chips were down, your code kept things running. When the whole country was confined within the walls of the house, then you were running the industry smooth from home." Highlighting IT sector's achievement, PM said when every sector was affected, "you achieved a growth of two per cent. Even when there were fears of de-growth, India's IT industry added another $ 4 billion to its revenue. It is truly commendable. The IT industry has proved why it is a strong pillar of India's development by giving millions of new jobs." Empowering the people

Referring to Digital India in particular, the PM said digital technology has empowered the common Indian, connecting them to the government. "Today, data has been democratized and last mile service delivery has also come into effect. Today, hundreds of government services are being delivered online. Effective use of technology in governance has brought great relief to the poor and middle class with convenience as well as weeding out corruption." Stating that in the last four years, India had moved from being a heavily cash dependent society to a less cash society, Modi averred that this had resulted in "the sources of black money becoming less." Transparency in procurement

The PM said digital technology is being used in procurement too. "Procurement is being done through the Government e-marketplace, GeM, with complete transparency. Most government tenders are called online. Geo-tagging of every project, whether it is projects related to our infrastructure or homes of the poor, is being done so that they can be completed on time. Homes in the villages are being mapped with drones, the human interface is being reduced in cases related to tax as the faceless system is being developed." Giving credit to technology, he observed, "By giving an accurate and transparent system to the common people through technology, minimum government, maximum governance is being implemented." (This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)


Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has announced plans to guarantee free speech at UK universities. The government is creating the legal framework for state intervention on the campuses, to protect right-wing reactionaries and silence protest.

Williamsons proposals include placing a free speech condition on universities which want to access public funding, allowing the Office for Students (OfS) to fine institutions which breach the condition, appointing a free speech champion to investigate alleged breaches and recommend redress, and allowing academics, students or visiting speakers to sue for compensation where they claim to have had their free speech infringed.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson (credit: Wikimedia Commons-Kuhlmann/ MSC)

The requirements will also apply directly to student unions, which the government is looking at bringing under the remit of the OfS instead of the Charity Commission.

The announcement follows a letter sent by Williamson to the outgoing and incoming heads of the OfS, Sir Michael Barber and Lord Wharton of Yarm. Under the heading Specific priorities, the education secretary criticised Barber for failing to intervene aggressively enough on the campuses and called on Wharton to do more:

[T]o date there has been little regulatory action taken by the OfS in relation to potential breaches of the registration conditions relating to freedom of speech and academic freedom I intend to publish a policy paper on free speech and academic freedom in the near future and I would like the OfS to continue to work closely with the Department to deliver this shared agenda and ensure our work is closely aligned. I would also like it to take more active and visible action to challenge concerning incidents that are reported to it or which it becomes aware of, as well as to share information with providers about best practice for protecting free speech beyond the minimum legal requirements.

Wharton is a Tory peer who was given the OfS position despite lacking any experience in the higher education sector.

Williamsons free speech proposals are taken almost word-for-word from a report by the right-wing Policy Exchange thinktank last summer, Academic freedom in the UK: Protecting viewpoint diversity. The report called for a Director for Academic Freedom, an academic freedom clause, for the OfS to be willing to exercise its existing powers to fine HEPs [higher education providers] for alleged breaches of academic freedom and for student unions to be subject to the same regulations.

Tom Simpson, a professor at Oxford University and an associate fellow at the Policy Exchange, welcomed Williamsons proposals, before asserting that a very online culture allows the views of a minority to exert disproportionate influence on administrators, and to exert a chilling effect on other academics.

The World Socialist Web Site described the Policy Exchange report as a manifesto for a political alliance of the Tory government and its social Darwinist periphery, the libertarian right, and the most right-wing sections of the Labour Party. It argues for a combined intervention into both academia and student politics on campus to suppress left-wing protest and give free rein to far-right ideologues.

That the right feel able to posture as defenders of democratic rights is thanks to the role played by the pseudo-left and identity politics on campus. A similar report by the right-wing Adam Smith Institute (ASI) states, Student unions are perceived as ineffective by students, lack democratic legitimacy, and undermine freedom of association and expression Only one-in-ten students actively participate in student union elections.

This much is true. But contrary to the ASIs self-serving claims, it is a result of the right-wing climatethe scramble of the affluent middle class for personal advance based on assertions of identitywhich dominates official campus politics.

Identity politics has nothing to do with socialist politics, which seeks to unify the working class, allied with the best elements of student youth, in a struggle not for individual or sectional advantage but for social equality. Rooted in irrationalist and reactionary postmodern philosophy, identity politics is opposed to the Enlightenment, and above all Marxism, and is advanced by the pseudo-left to obscure the fundamental division in societyclass.

Lacking popular support or democratic principles, the identity politicians have utilised the practice of no platforming inherited from the 1970s. The tactic gained broader sympathy among students several decades ago because it targeted fascists and the far-right. Even then, it had dangerous political implications in that it was often linked to appeals for proscriptions and bans by the state and other institutions when history has shown repeatedly that measures nominally introduced against the right are then routinely deployed against the left.

The lurch to the right by the petty-bourgeois layers that find a home either in the Labour Party apparatus, various identity-based groups and campaigns, and in the pseudo-left groups, has exposed more clearly the reactionary implications of no-platforming.

By far the most outrageous case is the attempted blacklisting of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, on grounds of the Swedish states concocted sexual assault investigation. In 2012, George Galloway was banned by the National Union of Students on the grounds of being a rape denier for defending Assange. In 2015, Cambridge Students Union attempted to ban Assange from speaking on campus, and Sheffield Students Union tried the same in 2016. Both efforts were overturned by popular opposition.

Campus identity politics assumes its most absurd dimensions in the conflict between different identity groups. In 2016, a National Union of Students LGBT representative at Canterbury University refused to speak alongside gay rights advocate Peter Tatchell, accusing him of being racist and transphobic. In 2015, the student unions womens officer at Cardiff University led a petition of 3,000 students to bar feminist campaigner Germaine Greer from speaking, again for her transphobic views. In 2015, feminist Julie Bindel was barred from speaking at Manchester University students union, which claimed her presence could incite hatred towards and exclusion of our trans students. Bristol University students union voted for a blanket ban on trans-exclusionary radical feminists, most prominently Greer, in 2018. Last year, Oxford historian of class and gender relations Selina Todd was no-platformed by the Oxford International Womens Festival after being labelled a transphobe.

This is a reactionary, anti-democratic mess. The de facto drawing of a line between someone like Tatchell and members of the far-right is hysterical nonsense and has repulsed large sections of the population, opening the door to government intervention on the campuses, which will be used to invite in the real fascistic right.

Under the protection of the governments new free speech requirements, student protests of the kind which challenged social Darwinist pseudoscientist Noah Carl being awarded a prestigious research fellowship at Cambridge University will be suppressed. Academics like Oxfords Nigel Biggar, who specialises in apologias for the crimes of the British Empire, will be allowed to get on with their mission of creating a right-wing counter-spiral in academia.

The fascists Tommy Robinson and Stephen Bannon, French National Rally leader Marine Le Pen and Alternative for Germany spokesperson Alice Weidel have previously been invited to speak at the Oxford Union, all provoking significant opposition that would now be punished as an attack on free speech. Such invites of despised far-right figures will be encouraged at campuses across the country, led by so-called free speech societies set up by darling of the Tory right and anti-lockdown campaigner Toby Young. Young was the Tories first pick to lead the OfS before his attendance at a secret eugenics conference was exposed in the London Student.

Toby Young in 2011 (credit: creative commons)

Events in Germany provide a sharp warning. On February 3, seventy German academics founded the Network for Academic Freedom with the declared mission of rehabilitating discredited Professor Jorg Baberowskia leading academic voice of right-wing extremismto promote other far-right voices and demonise students who voice opposition to the relativisation of the crimes of German imperialism, in particular of the Third Reich.

The hypocrisy of the British governments claim to be acting in defence of free speech is on display in Williamsons letter to the OfS heads. Two subheadings below Free Speech and Academic Freedom is Antisemitism, under which the education secretary asks the OfS to help force higher education institutions to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism. The IHRA definition provides a mechanism to attack free speech regarding opposition to Israel and the ethnic-nationalist ideology of Zionism. It has been used to justify the mass purge of left-wing Labour members and the cancellation of pro-Palestinian events.

The UK government is also proceeding with a review of left-wing extremism aimed at criminalising huge swathes of the left. It will target far-Left fringe groups accused of hijacking important causes and mainstream cultural activitythat is, seeking to advocate their political views. The outcome of this review will build upon the surveillance of students already in place under the Prevent scheme supposedly targeting radicalisation by Islamist groups.

The International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE) unequivocally oppose the governments attempt to regulate political life on campus. State intervention must be opposed and political disputes fought out democratically among students, including, as an urgent question, how to oppose the sharp turn to the right being carried out by the ruling class.
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Market Reports on Saudi Arabia Provides the Trending Market Research Report on Saudi Arabia Elevator & Escalator Market By Type (Elevator, Escalator and Moving Walkways), By Service (Maintenance & Repair, New Installation and Modernization), By Elevator Technology (Traction, Hydraulic and Machine Room-Less Traction), By End-User (Residential, Commercial, Institutional, Infrastructural and Others), By Elevator Door Type (Automatic and Manual), By Region, Competition, Forecast & Opportunities, 2025 under Heavy Industry category. The Saudi Arabia Elevator & Escalator Market is projected to exhibit highest growth rate over report offers a collection of superior market research, market analysis, and competitive intelligence and industry reports.

Saudi Arabia Elevator & Escalator Market was valued USD 1049.87 Million in 2019 and is forecast to grow at CAGR of 6.86% in value terms, to reach USD 1340.09 Million by 2025. Booming construction sector, increasing number of high-rise building projects and rapid infrastructure development are the key factors driving Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market. Under its Vision 2030 program, Saudi Arabia is trying to diversify its economy from oil to non-oil-based and therefore, working on developing tourism & corporate hubs in the country, which in turn is expected to increase the number of buildings, thereby boosting the demand for elevator and excavator during the forecast period. As the investments for travel & tourism and smart infrastructure are increasing, elevator and excavator market is likely to grow in the coming years in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market is segmented based on type, service, elevator technology, end-user, elevator door type, and region. Based on type, the market can be segmented into elevator, escalator and moving walkways. The elevator segment accounted for share of 88.32% in 2019 and is anticipated to continue dominance until 2025 owing to their widespread use in various end user industries. Based on elevator technology, the market can be fragmented into traction, hydraulic and machine room-less traction. The machine room-less traction segment grabbed the largest market share in 2019 and is also expected to grow at the fastest pace during forecast period on account of their higher efficiency and smoother ride.

Request a free sample copy of Saudi Arabia Elevator & Escalator Market Report @ http://www.marketreportsonsaudiarabia.com/marketreports/sample/reports/2308681

Regionally, Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market has been segmented into Riyadh, Makkah, and Easter Province. Among these regions, Riyadh is expected to dominate the countrys elevator & escalator market majorly due booming construction sector in the region.

Major players operating in Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market include Otis Elevator Company Saudi Arabia Limited, Schindler Olayan Elevators Co. Ltd, ThyssenKrupp Elevator Saudi Limited, Mitsubishi Electric Saudi Ltd., Gulf Elevator & Escalator Company Ltd., Khaled Juffali Elevator & Escalator Co., KONE Saudi Arabia, Orona Elevator Co. KSA, Fujitec Saudi Arabia Co., Ltd., Hyundai Elevator Saudi Arabia, among others.

Years considered for this report:

Historical Years: 2015 - 2018

Base Year: 2019

Estimated Year: 2020

Forecast Period: 2021 - 2025

Objective of the Study:

 To analyze and forecast the market size of Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market.

 To classify and forecast Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market based on type, service, elevator technology, end use, elevator door type, and regional distribution.

 To identify drivers and challenges for Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market.

 To examine competitive developments such as expansions, new product launches, mergers & acquisitions, etc., in Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market.

 To identify and analyze the profile of leading players operating in Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market.

Our Research performed both primary as well as exhaustive secondary research for this study. Initially, Our Research sourced a list of elevator and escalator manufacturers and suppliers across the globe. Subsequently, Our Research conducted primary research surveys with the identified companies. While interviewing, the respondents were also enquired about their competitors. Through this technique, Our Research could include the service providers which could not be identified due to the limitations of secondary research. Our Research analyzed the service providers, distribution channels and presence of all major players across the globe.

Our Research calculated the market size of Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market using a bottom-up approach, wherein data for various end-user segments was recorded and forecast for the future years. Our Research sourced these values from the industry experts and company representatives and externally validated through analyzing historical data for getting an appropriate, overall market size. Various secondary sources such as company websites, news articles, press releases, company annual reports, investor presentations and financial reports were also studied by Our Research.

Key Target Audience:

 Elevator & escalator manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and other stakeholders

 Government bodies such as regulating authorities and policy makers

 Organizations, forums and alliances related to elevator & escalator

 Market research and consulting firms

The study is useful in providing answers to several critical questions that are important for the industry stakeholders such as service providers, suppliers and partners, etc., besides allowing them in strategizing investments and capitalizing on market opportunities.

Report Scope:

In this report, Saudi Arabia elevator & escalator market has been segmented into following categories, in addition to the industry trends which have also been detailed below:

 Market, By Type:

o Elevator

o Escalator

o Moving Walkways

 Market, By Service:

o Maintenance & Repair

o New Installation

o Modernization

 Market, By Elevator Technology:

o Traction

o Hydraulic

o Machine Room-Less Traction

 Market, By End User:

o Residential

o Commercial

o Institutional

o Infrastructural

o Others

 Market, By Elevator Door Type:

o Automatic

o Manual

 Regions:

o Riyadh

o Makkah

o Eastern Province

o Rest of Saudi Arabia

Competitive Landscape

Company Profiles: Detailed analysis of the major companies present in Saudi Arabia Elevator & Escalator.

Available Customizations:

With the given market data, Our Research offers customizations according to a companys specific needs. The following customization options are available for the report:

Company Information

 Detailed analysis and profiling of additional market players (up to five).

Browse our full report with Table of Contents: http://www.marketreportsonsaudiarabia.com/marketreports/saudi-arabia-elevator-escalator-market-by-type-elevator-escalator-and-moving-walkways-by-service-maintenance-re/2308681

About Us

Market Reports on Saudi Arabia provides you with an in-depth industry reports focusing on various economic, political and operational risk environment, complemented by detailed sector analysis. We have an exhaustive coverage on variety of industries  ranging from energy and chemicals to transportation, communications, constructions and mining to Food and Beverage and education. Our collection includes over 2000 up-to-date reports all researched, analysed and published by top-notch international research firms.

Contact us at:

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Despite the numerous initiatives that the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) has launched to support the private sector, especially the small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the manufacturing sector, the enterprises are still struggling to access the finances that the initiatives provide, especially amid the current pandemic crisis.

This find was published in a policy paper issued by the Alternative Policy Solutions, a public policy research project at the American University in Cairo (AUC).

According to the paper, limited or lack of access to finances is the major obstacle that SMEs face, which impacts their employment growth and sustainability, while they are considered as the key engine in employments in the Egyptian market.

Access to finance from banks remains marginal among SMEs, particularly among those in the manufacturing sector. The impact of the CBEs initiatives on employment generation therefor remains questionable, said the paper.

The paper noted that Egypt has witnessed a sluggish growth of SMEs since the 1990s. Thus, the private sector has been unable to absorb the labour supply and provide decent jobs in a context of a continuous public sector employment decline, which contributed to converting precarious work into a norm.

The paper set a number of short-term and long-term actions that could help SMEs access the required finances for their businesses, especially with the current pandemic crisis.

The paper said that governments should start to evaluate all SME programmes that aim at facilitating access to finance.

It also said that the development of quantitative data on loans directed to SMEs to assess the efectiveness of these initiatives is imperative to understand the attitudes of banks and SMEs towards these initiatives. The data will also help assess the factors determining whether banks disburse SMEs' loans, and whether SMEs apply for such loans.

The paper called for designing specific financing programmes better-targeted towards SMEs, including loan programmes as well as creating a collateral registry, improving the regulatory environment, and adopting quick measures for liquidation to encourage banks to lend against moveable assets.

Moreover, with the CBE funding initiatives approaching their end, it is highly recommended that the government starts piloting a partial credit fund guarantee programme that  if appropriately designed and rigorously monitored and evaluated  could spur a leap in access to fnance, growth and sustainability among small frms, the paper noted.

It added that these efforts could be combined with promoting non-banking services and providing financing programmes alongside the banking system.

Short link:


VietNamNet would like to introduce an article by Prof. Nguyen Thien Nhan, Head of the HCM City National Assembly delegation.

Illustrative photo

On December 31, 2019, China told the world about the first cases of respiratory infections caused by a strange virus. Seventy days later, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced a global epidemic on March 11, 2020.

At that time, there were 1,488,405 infected people worldwide, 66,715 patients were being treated in medical facilities, and 4,635 people had died of Covid-19 in 117 countries and territories.

Since then, the pandemic has affected over 200 countries. The number of infected people had hit more than 108 million as of February 13, 2021. The number of people under treatment has increased, reaching 25.4 million by February 13, 2021. The death toll was 2.347 million (an average of 311 deaths per 1 million people) by February 13, 2021.

When the World Health Organization announced the global epidemic (March 11, 2020), only 9 of every 1 million people were being treated. This can be considered the threshold to distinguish between a world that has an epidemic (under 10 people under treatment for every 1 million people) and a global pandemic (over 10 people under treatment for every 1 million people).

On October 17, 2020, this rate was 1,166 people under treatment per 1 million people, and the rate was 3,380 people per 1 million people on January 30, 2021, 116 and 338 times higher than the rate on the day the pandemic was announced, respectively.

The question is: When will the level of global infection, measured in terms of the number of people under treatment at healthcare facilities, fall to less than 10 people per 1 million people, as the rate recorded before March 11, 2020?

Optimistically, it can be estimated that since the outbreak on March 11, 2020 to its first peak on November 30, 2020 is 325 days, and the time to reduce to the level of less than 10 infected people per 1 million people is also about 325 days.

That means perhaps at the end of 2021 or early 2022, the world will no longer have a pandemic, but small-scaled outbreaks in some countries will continue.

Countries and territories have experienced different waves of infection

1. Israel has experienced four Covid-19 waves

With a population of 8.5 million people, the safety threshold for Israel is no more than 85 people under treatment (less than 10 cases per 1 million people). So far, Israel has experienced four Covid waves.

When the first wave reached its peak on April 15, 2020 in this country, 9,800 people were under treatment, 115 times higher than the safety threshold.

Anti-epidemic measures were proven to be effective as the number of new cases and patients under treatment gradually decreased. However, on May 31, 2020, 1,974 people were being treated, 23 times more than the safety threshold.

After the preventive measures were loosened, infection increased again. By July 27, 2020, the second wave peaked with 36,378 people under treatment, 428 times over the safety threshold.

Israel once again tightened preventive measures so the number of people under treatment fell to 20,305, but it was 238 times higher than the threshold of safety.

Preventive measures were loosened again and the third wave broke out. By October 1, 2020, up to 72,400 patients were treated in hospitals.

After that, the number of people treated at healthcare facilities decreased to 8,274 people on November 18, 2020. Preventive measures were again loosened, and the 4th wave broke out, with 84,484 patients under treatment on February 5, 2021.

Comment: Israel is a country with modern science and technology, and its GDP per capita is more than $42,800 (nearly 15 times more than that of Vietnam). But the early relaxation of preventive measures when the level of infection in the community did not reach the safe level (less than 10 people under treatment per 1 million people) caused another outbreak.

2. Hong Kong has experienced four Covid-19 waves

With a population of 7.5 million, Hong Kong's epidemic safety threshold is less than 75 people being treated in hospitals. So far, Hong Kong has experienced four waves.

After the first wave of infections peaked on April 9, 2020 with 677 infected people under treatment at hospitals (9 times over the safety threshold), tightened preventive measures helped reduce the number of new cases and the number of people requiring treatment at hospital. By May 9, 2020, Hong Kong reached the safety threshold (with 74 people under treatment at hospitals, lower than the threshold of 75 people) and by May 18, 2020, only 27 people were being treated.

However, looser preventive measures led to the second outbreak, with the peak recorded on August 2, 2020 - 1,519 people under treatment at hospitals. And then the third and the fourth waves came. Currently, the number of people being treated is more than 400 people, five times higher than the threshold of safety.

Lesson: Hong Kong is a territory with GDP per capita of more than $49,300 (17 times higher than that of Vietnam). The strict control of the epidemic helped reduce the epidemic to below the safety level (10 patients treated at hospitals per 1 million people). However, preventive measures should not be loosened because the outbreak can return anytime.

3. Japan has gone through three epidemic waves

With a population of 126.4 million people, Japan's safety threshold is no more than 1,264 people being treated in hospitals. To date, this country has experienced three waves of infection.

After the first wave peaked on April 29, 2020 with 11,114 people under treatment (8.8 times over the safety threshold), Japan imposed strict preventive measures. This helped reduce the number of new cases and the number of patients treated at hospitals. By June 5, 2020, Japan reached the epidemic safety threshold (1,185 people treated at hospitals).

However, easing preventive measures made the epidemic break out again, with the second wave reaching its peak on August 12, 2020 with 14,263 patients treated at hospitals.

After the number of people in treatment decreased to 5,147 (4 times over the safety threshold), Japan loosed preventive measures and this resulted in the third outbreak, with 72,061 people treated at hospitals on January 19, 2021, 57 times more than the safety threshold. Currently, 26,953 people are under treatment at hospitals, 21 times higher than the safety threshold.

Lesson: Japan is a developed country, with GDP per capita of more than $40,800 (14 times more than that of Vietnam).

After the first wave of infections, Japan reached the level of safety, but loosening the epidemic prevention measures subsequently triggered the second and third outbreaks.

4. Thailand has experienced three waves of infection

Thailand's population is 69.78 million, so the safety thre shold is no more than 698 infected people being treated in hospitals. So far, Thailand has experienced three waves of infection.

After the first wave of infections peaked on April 9, 2020 with 1,451 people on treatment (twice the safe limit of 698 people), tightened preventive measures helped reduce the number of new cases and the number of people treated in medical facilities to 655 people by April 21, 2020.

From April 21, 2020 to December 19, 2020, for nearly 8 months (241 days), Thailand successfully maintained the number of patients under treatment at hospitals under 698. It is considered to be successful in controlling the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, after easing epidemic control measures on December 17, 2020 and along with the return of foreign workers, on December 20, 2020 the number of people receiving treatment at hospitals increased to 806, exceeding the safety threshold and after only 17 days, it skyrocketed to 4,847 people, seven times over the safety threshold.

Thailand again tightened epidemic controls and it helped reduce the number of patients under treatment to 2,704 on January 16, 2021. However, the number rose to 7,158 people on February 2, 2021, 10 times more than the safety threshold.

Lesson: Thailand maintained epidemic safety for eight consecutive months (more than 240 days), but loosening the preventive measures and control of immigrants can cause an outbreak again.

Three waves of Covid-19 in Vietnam

With a population of 97 million, the epidemic safety threshold in Vietnam is 970 people treated in medical facilities. After the first wave (March - April 2020), and the second wave (July - September 2020), Vietnam has entered the third wave (January - March 2021).

During the past year, from January 23, 2020, the number of people receiving Covid-19 treatment in Vietnam was always lower than the safety threshold of 970 people. The first wave of infections peaked on April 2, 2020, with 158 people under treatment.

The second wave of infections peaked on August 17, 2020, with 492 people treated at hospitals. The third wave started on January 27, 2021. By February 13, 2021, 631 people were being treated at hospitals, according to Worldometer.

If the safety threshold of less than 10 people treated at hospitals per 1 million people is applied to some provinces and cities in Vietnam in the 2nd and 3rd wave of infection, some localities are considered to have epidemics.

The outbreak in the central city of Da Nang began on July 27, 2020 with 14 people treated in hospitals. On August 14, 2020, the epidemic reached the peak with 280 patients treated in hospitals. Thus, Da Nang was considered to have a Covid-19 outbreak even though the country did not have one.

As of August 29, 2020, Da Nang had no new cases of Covid-19, but 159 people were still being treated in hospitals, 14 times more than the safety threshold. Therefore, the city was still in an epidemic situation. On September 23, 2020, when all patients were discharged from the citys hospitals, Da Nang was confirmed to no longer have an outbreak.

In the ongoing third wave of Covid-19, Hai Duong is the epidemic center.

With a population of 1.9 million, Hai Duong's safety threshold is 19 people treated in hospitals. On January 27, 2021, the first case was discovered in the province and after only one day, 72 locally-transmitted cases were recorded. A total of 77 people were treated at hospitals, four times higher than the safety threshold.

As of February 14, 2021, the number of people treated in hospitals was 418, 22 times higher than the safety threshold. At present, after 20 days, it is unclear when the epidemic in Hai Duong will reach its peak.

Based on the current situation, it is estimated that by February 18, 2021, the number of people under treatment will increase by no fewer than 60 people, raising the total number of patients treated at medical facilities to about 480 people, 25 times more than the safe threshold.

In Da Nang, the epidemic ended after 59 days. For the case of Hai Duong, it is predicted that the epidemic will end after at least 60 days or at the end of March 2021. At that time, the number of patients treated in hospitals will not exceed 19.

So far, Covid-19 has spread to 13 provinces and cities in Vietnam but except for Hai Duong, the number of patients under treatment at hospitals in these provinces and cities is still at the safety level.

Therefore, the end of the third wave of Covid-19 in Vietnam mainly depends on when the epidemic in Hai Duong ends.

Prof. Nguyen Thien Nhan

Resilience helps Vietnam overcome year of COVID-19 Though COVID-19 has sent the global economy into one of its worst recessions ever, Vietnam posted GDP growth of 2.91 percent in 2020 thanks to its solid control of outbreaks and timely support to both enterprises and local people.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:17:36|Editor: huaxia

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CAIRO, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi reaffirmed his country's keenness to support the Libyan people in formulating the mechanisms for governing the war-torn country, the presidential office said in a statement.

Sisi made the remarks during his meeting with visiting Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah who was voted as the new Libyan prime minister, which was also attended by Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Director of General Intelligence Service Abbas Kamel.

For his part, Dbeibah said the Libyan government and people look forward to establishing a comprehensive partnership with Egypt and learning from its inspiring experience with regards to the economic reform, and restoring peace and security.

Libya has been experiencing a civil war since the ouster and killing of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The situation escalated in 2014, splitting power between two rival governments: the UN-backed Government of National Accord based in the capital Tripoli and one in the northeastern city of Tobruk allied with east-based military commander Khalifa Haftar.

On Feb. 5, members of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum elected a new prime minister and a new presidency council during a voting session in Geneva.

This is Dbeibah's first foreign visit since the election. Enditem
If you thought that after years of talking the talk on good government, Democrats could be counted on to run redistricting fairly now that theyre in charge of state government, well, you thought wrong.

Weve given Republicans their well-deserved share of criticism over the years when it comes to redistricting shenanigans. Perhaps the worst was the outright lie that the entire Senate GOP majority told in 2010 when they publicly promised that, if reelected, they would see to it that the very next redistricting process would be handled independently. A promise they broke immediately after being reelected.

Now, Democrats are showing that Republicans hardly have a lock on manipulating the process of drawing state legislative and congressional district maps.

Lawmakers and Gov. Andrew Cuomo came up with a bipartisan plan in 2014 for a so-called independent redistricting commission, one that was so full of holes we called it a sham. Nonetheless, a majority of voters approved the constitutional amendment necessary to make it happen.

And here we are in 2021, on the verge of the first redistricting to be done under that new process, and its fully living down to our expectations.

Republican legislative leaders got the ball rolling last year by putting politically connected people on the 10-member commission, easily getting around language in the law intended to keep out the obvious partisan cronies by finding people who had been out of public and political office for more than the statutory three years.

Then Democrats, now fully in control of the Legislature, last year proposed to amend that presumably excellent 2014 constitutional amendment. They say theyre just looking to take out language that Republicans insisted on that would give them an inordinate say in how legislative lines would be drawn even if they were in the minority. Good-government groups say the new change, which would need second legislative passage this year and final approval by voters, would make it far too easy for Democrats to manipulate the lines.

On top of that, the commission has been begging for money for months so it can get up to speed on preparing to review 2020 census results, draw proposed new maps, hold public hearings around the state, and deliver the final maps to the Legislature. The Cuomo administration came through, finally, with $1 million, but insisted for convoluted legal reasons on routing the money through the SUNY Research Foundation, which is taking a 10 percent cut. Another $250,000 is being held back for legal costs. So after the salaries and benefits of the two co-executive directors are covered, theres pretty much zero left for the commissions actual work.

This is not the independent process voters signed up for.

Its too late to get a whole new, truly independent process passed in time for the upcoming redistricting. But the governor and Legislature should be working on a more credible process, subject to less manipulation, for the 2030 census. As for this one, they can at least ensure that the commission has the funding to do a fair, thorough and reasonably independent job. That is, to do what voters were promised. You know, for a change.
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It's being reported this afternoon that Apple Inc has added a security feature across its operating systems to battle hacks into its devices that rely on incoming iMessages.

The 'BlastDoor' feature processes incoming iMessage traffic and only passes on safe data to the rest of an Apple devices operating system, company officials said in a briefing.

While largely invisible to users, BlastDoor is present on iOS 14, the most recent version of Apples iPhone operating system, and systems for all its other devices, company officials said.

Apple held the briefing around the release of its annual security guide for cybersecurity researchers.

The latest update included new details on how many security features long found in iPhones are being brought over to Apples Mac computer line, which in November began to integrate custom-designed processor chips after more than a decade of relying on Intel Corp processors. For more, read the full Reuters report.
In the midst of rising global concern over China's military expansionism, India and three other member nations of the on Thursday vowed to uphold a rules-based international order underpinned by respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty, freedom of navigation and peaceful resolution of disputes.

At a virtual meeting, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne and Japan's Toshimitsu Motegi reiterated their common vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific.

The ministers deliberated on a host of issues including the recent developments in Myanmar, the coronavirus pandemic, climate change and furthering cooperation in areas such as maritime security, supply chain resilience and counter-terrorism, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

During the discussion on recent developments in Myanmar, the upholding of rule of law and the democratic transition was reiterated by India, the ministry said.

"The ministers emphasised their commitment to upholding a rules-based international order, underpinned by respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty, rule of law, transparency, freedom of navigation in the international seas and peaceful resolution of disputes," it said.

The meeting took place in the backdrop of China's aggressive military behaviour in South China Sea and along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

The evolving situation in the Indo-Pacific region in the wake of China's growing military assertiveness has become a major talking point among leading global powers. The US has been favouring making a security architecture to check China's growing assertiveness.

The MEA in its release on '3rd India-Australia-Japan-USA Ministerial Meeting' said,"it was noted that the Indo-Pacific concept had gathered growing international support, including in Europe."



"Their productive exchange of views on regional issues included a reiteration of their common vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region, with clear support for ASEAN cohesion and centrality," the ministry said.

The 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a key stakeholder in the Indo-Pacific region.

The minister discussed ongoing efforts to combat the pandemic, including vaccination programmes, and expressed their commitment to cooperate in addressing this challenge, enhancing access to affordable vaccines, medicines and medical equipment.

They also recognised and appreciated India's efforts at providing vaccines to 74 countries, the ministry said.

It was the third ministerial meeting of Quad member countries and the first after the Joe Biden administration took charge in Washington.

The MEA said the ministers highlighted their shared attributes as political democracies, market economies and pluralistic societies and recognised that the changes underway in the world makes a strong case for their countries working closely together.

"It was important for the international community that the direction of changes remains positive and beneficial to all," the MEA said.

Noting that regular Quad consultations hold value, the ministers agreed to continue these useful discussions, the ministry added.

The foreign ministers of the Quad member nations met in Tokyo on October 6 and reaffirmed their collective vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific.

The foreign minister of the four countries held their first meeting under the 'Quad' framework in New York in September 2019.

In November 2017, India, Japan, the US and Australia gave shape to the long-pending proposal of setting up the Quad to develop a new strategy to keep the criticl sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence.

(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.)
SAN ANTONIO, TX and CALGARY, AB / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / (TSXV:NGY)(OTC PINK:EMBYF) (the "Company" or "Nexera") an existing producer of oil and gas in South Texas is pleased to announce that it plans to form a new wholly owned subsidiary, Nexera Energy Services, Inc., to engage in plugging inactive oil wells. The Company has secured and owns all the required equipment, and has the expertise, including qualified employees, to engage in the plugging of inactive and orphaned wells throughout the State of Texas.

Nexera Energy Services will work with local landowners, government and regulatory agencies, and academic institutions and experts, to remediate the abandoned and orphaned well issue, one well at a time, starting with plugging three inactive wells on its own leases.

Oil well plugging throughout Texas costs between $8,000 - $140,000 per well, and Nexera believes there is significant margin to cover costs and profit from this new business unit. Nexera operates with a deep understanding of the geology of South Texas, and has existing employees and subcontractors active in the area, making this new business a natural fit.

"Using our existing talent and expertise, we are able to effectively support a new business using the equipment we own to provide plugging services, not only for our own operations but also to those we work with in Texas. Nexera Energy Services creates a new line of revenue for the Company" stated Shelby Beattie, CEO of Nexera, who continued, "We feel a deep sense of responsibility for the land on which we work as it supports our families and the community. This much needed service will work toward improving and reclaiming lands and leases throughout the State of Texas where we live."

About Nexera Energy Inc.

Nexera Energy Inc. (TSX Venture: NGY) is an energy company with oil producing properties in Southwest Texas. Nexera is the owner and operator of the Lavernia, Wooden Horse, and Stockdale Horizon Projects. Additionally, the Company owns and operates various working interests in the HugoCellR, Hagco, Alliance, and MarPat partnerships. The Company also owns 75% of Production Resources Inc., a South Texas oil company.

For further information, please contact:

Nexera Energy Inc. President, Shelby D. Beattie

telephone at (403) 262-6000

Email: info@ebyinc.com

www.nexeraenergy.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Nexera Energy Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630438/Nexera-to-Launch-New-Subsidiary-to-Plug-Inactive-Wells-in-Texas
Niger State Governor Abubakar Bello has expressed support for the call by the Senate on President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency on security in Nigeria.

Mr Bello spoke with State House correspondents on Wednesday evening after a closed-door meeting with the president at the State House, Abuja.

He said the call by the lawmakers had become imperative so as to address security challenges being experienced in some parts of the country.

At the moment, if you look at what is happening, we are having security challenges in almost all parts of the country, so yes theres a need to install some form of emergency on security matters across the board.

So yes, I think the Senate acted in good faith. Something definitely needs to be done.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the agenda of Mr Bellos meeting with the president was not made known to journalists.

NAN, however, gathered that the governor was in the State House to update the president on the security situation in his state where some staff and students of Government Science Secondary School (GSSS), Kagara, in Rafi council area of the state were abducted by gunmen on Wednesday morning.

The president had earlier, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, condemned the abduction and dispatched a team of top security officials to the state to coordinate the rescue operation in the state.

Mr Buhari also expressed sadness over the killing of one of the students by the kidnappers, vowing not to relent until normalcy is restored in the security situation in the country.

Mr Bello thanked President Buhari for swiftly ordering actions on the GSSS Kagara school kidnap.

The governor said he had requested more security personnel and equipment to fast-track results in the rescue operation in the state.

I came in this evening to thank Mr President for his quick response to the plight of Nigerlites, following two serious kidnap incidents.

At the same time we rubbed minds on what we think should be done so that we find an everlasting solution to the situation and Mr President has confirmed to me that this matter will be given proper attention.

Well continue engaging the service chiefs and the federal so that we can guide and advise them on what we think should be done. So I think it was a wonderful meeting, he said.

To be honest, Im very convinced by what Mr President told me and I feel Ive seen the presence of the military in Kagara. I was there earlier today, and I also request for some additional personnel and equipment, which I believe will be granted any moment from now.

Right now, our immediate priority is to get the kidnapped victims released, after that I think we must have a long lasting solution to the farmers/herders conflicts, he added.

NAN reports that Mr Buhari, on Wednesday, ordered security forces to ensure the immediate and safe return of all the captives.

He condemned the abduction as a cowardly attack.

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The president directed the armed forces and police to ensure the immediate and safe return of all the captives, and dispatched service chiefs to Niger to coordinate the rescue operation.

The delegation was also mandated to meet with state officials, community leaders, as well as parents and staff of the school.

Our prayers are with families of the victims of this attack, he said.

(NAN)

Recent winter storms that knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of Oregon residents have also caused damage to power lines along Interstate 5 between the Brooks and Canby exits.

Portland General Electric crews will need to close the freeway to repair damaged transmission lines that extend over travel lanes. PGE will, with the help of the Oregon Department of Transportation, close the freeway in both directions 11 p.m. Thursday-3 a.m. Friday, Feb. 18-19. from the Brooks/Gervais exit just north of Salem to the Canby/Hubbard exit just south of Wilsonville. For the safety of workers and travelers, no through traffic will be allowed.

Map of closure and detour for Interstate 5 PGE work.Courtesy of ODOT

ODOT expects early lane closures, in preparation for the full closure, to begin around 9:30 p.m. Thursday with all lanes closed by 11 p.m. The first I-5 lanes are scheduled to re-open by 3 a.m. Friday with all lanes open again by 4:30 a.m., according to a recent release.

The immediate detour is between OR 99E in Brooks and OR 551 near the Aurora Airport. During the closure, all southbound traffic will leave the freeway at exit 282, Canby/Hubbard. Northbound traffic will leave the freeway at exit 263, Brooks.

Travelers should expect delays as the main detour passes through Hubbard, Woodburn and other smaller communities before rejoining the freeway. Residents in these towns report many traffic signals are still out from the recent storm, especially in Hubbard and near the Aurora Airport.

This closure is one of many throughout the state due to storm damage. Travelers should anticipate closures and delays as crews work on repairs. Check your route before traveling and visit TripCheck.com or call 5-1-1 for current conditions.

For the latest commuting updates follow us on Twitter: @trafficportland
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:35:46|Editor: huaxia

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A healthcare worker prepares for the injection of a Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine, at a hospital in Harare, Zimbabwe, on Feb. 18, 2021. The Zimbabwean government on Thursday started to roll out its COVID-19 inoculation program following the arrival of the first consignment of the Sinopharm vaccines donated by the Chinese government. (Photo by Shaun Jusa/Xinhua)

By Tafara Mugwara, Zhang Yuliang

HARARE, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Zimbabwean government on Thursday started to roll out its COVID-19 inoculation program following the arrival of the first consignment of the Sinopharm vaccines donated by the Chinese government.

Zimbabwe received 200,000 vaccines from China on Monday, joining a handful of other African countries that have received vaccines so far.

Vice President Constantino Chiwenga who doubles as health minister became the first citizen to receive a Sinopharm jab, kicking off the vaccination drive that aims to inoculate at least 10 million of the country's 16 million citizens to achieve herd immunity.

His deputy John Mangwiro and other officials from the health ministry also joined a group of frontline health workers at Wilkins Hospital in Harare to receive their shots as part of the government's efforts to encourage people to take the vaccine.

Speaking after receiving the jab, Chiwenga urged Zimbabweans to have confidence in the vaccines.

"My ministry conducted all scientific processes to ascertain the efficacy of the Sinopharm vaccine which was confirmed to be 79 percent.

"I have received the COVID-19 vaccine jab together with my deputy minister and my staff, therefore I urge all Zimbabweans to be vaccinated at their nearest health center," said he said.

He urged Zimbabweans to continue observing COVID-19 preventative measures.

Violet Badze, acting matron at Beatrice Infectious Hospital in Harare, who was the first medical worker to receive the vaccine, expressed confidence in the country's vaccine drive.

Michael Chideme, one of the first Zimbabweans to receive the jab, said being amongst the first people to be inoculated was a huge relief.

"I am actually feeling relieved because I have taken a decision to protect my health, so I am happy I have done it, and I am happy to come and take the second dose after 28 days," he said.

The first batch of the 200,000 Sinopharm doses was distributed across medical centers in the country's 10 provinces, and nationwide distribution will commence next Monday.

Zimbabwe also purchased 600,000 Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine doses from China, which are expected to arrive in the country in March.

The country is also in advanced negotiations to acquire the Sputnik V vaccine from Russia.

In addition, more vaccines are being sourced from the World Health Organization-backed Covax scheme, which aims to ensure their equitable distribution of vaccines globally.

The vaccination will be done in three phases, starting with frontline workers at high risk, followed by those with chronic illnesses, the elderly, and the prison population.

The second phase will target lecturers, schools staff population and other staff at medium risk, while the final stage will see the inoculation of the general public.

A resurgence of COVID-19 spiked in January, but the number of daily recorded new cases has significantly dropped in recent weeks.

The country has so far recorded 35,423 positive cases and 1,418 deaths. Enditem
Attila Nemecz

Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator

Beaufort County Community College

5337 U.S. Highway 264 East

Washington, N.C. 27889

Ph : 252-940-6387

: 252-940-6387 Cell : 252-940-8672

: 252-940-8672 attila.nemecz@beaufortccc.edu

The Beaufort County Community College Foundation is proud to announce the following scholarship recipients for the Spring 2021 semester. Eight-week, online Late Start classes start on March 8, and they are still open for registration. Before applying for scholarships, all applicants must complete a FAFSA. The Financial Aid Office will hold two virtual sessions to help students complete their FAFSA on Tuesday, February 16 from 9:00 AM11:00 AM and Thursday, February 18 from 2:00 PM4:00 PM., 22, received the BCCC Board of Trustees Scholarship. The Chocowinity resident is working toward an Associate in Arts. Banks attended Calvary Baptist Church School, and he plans attend East Carolina University to earn a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health. He is the husband of Stephen Peed. He currently works as a seasonal sales associate at Belk.BCCC Trustee scholarship established in 1998 by the Board of Trustees is awarded to a fulltime student enrolled in a curriculum program. Recipient must be in good academic standing, show academic promise and demonstrate financial need. Students should have a minimum GPA of 3.0., 30, received the Lucy Burgess Scholarship. The Winterville resident is working toward her Associate Degree in Nursing. She attended South Central High School and holds a Practical Nursing Degree from BCCC. She plans to earn her Bachelor of Science in Nursing.Established in 1996 as a memorial to Lucy W. Burgess, a former resident of Beaufort County and long-term employee of the NC Department of Social Services, this annual scholarship is awarded to a student with academic promise. The recipient must have some work experience, be committed to getting an education, and have a GPA of 2.5 or higher., 30, received the Tayloe's Hospital Pharmacy Medical Scholarship. The Edenton resident is working toward her Diploma in Practical Nursing. She attended John A. Holmes High School. The mother of one plans to work as a hospice nurse.Tayloe's Hospital Pharmacy Medical Scholarships are awarded annually to students pursuing a career in the medical field. Tayloe's Hospital Pharmacy is now known as O'Neal's Pharmacy. Qualifying students will have a 2.5 GPA or greater and must be a resident of Beaufort, Hyde, Martin, Tyrrell or Washington County. Student must demonstrate financial need., 20, received the Frances M. Barnes Trust Scholarship. The Williamston resident is a nursing student. Hall attended Bear Grass Charter School. She is the daughter of Rick and Beth Hall of Williamston. She plans to earn her Bachelor of Science in Nursing.Frances M. Barnes Trust scholarships are awarded to Martin County curriculum and continuing educations attending BCCC who intend to reside and work in Martin County upon course completion. Students must meet respective scholarship guidelines for the curriculum or continuing education program of study, show satisfactory academic progress and demonstrate financial need., 36, received the Gordon Hoffman Scholarship. The Winterville resident is part of the basic law enforcement training program. King attended D.H. Conley High School and holds an Associate in Applied Science in Criminal Justice and an Associate in Applied Science in Business Administration. The father of two is the son of Charlene King of Winterville. He plans to work as a deputy sheriff in Pitt County.Created from the sale of land donated to the foundation by Dr. Gordon Hoffman, this scholarship is awarded to a law enforcement officer seeking to further his or her education with a degree in criminal justice. Prior to his retirement in 2003, Dr. Hoffman was the director of BCCC's basic law enforcement training (BLET) program., 18, received the David Lee Jr. and the BCCC Staff Association Scholarships. The Washington resident is part of the automotive systems technology program. Spencer attended Northside High School, and he plans to work as a diesel mechanic. He is the son of Katrina Barrow and Hendrick Ebron of Washington. He currently runs his own business, Spencer Pressure Washing Solutions.Established in 2007, two scholarships are provided annually to assist students during the fall and spring semesters. One student will be selected from the automotive program and second student from the business program. Students must have and maintain a 2.5 GPA and must not receive any other financial assistance.To receive the BCCC Staff Association Scholarship, students must be enrolled in a technical, vocational or college transfer program, a resident in the state of North Carolina, a full-time student and have completed 12 semester credit hours toward their degree. A student needs to have a minimum of a 2.5 GPA and have excellence in their academic performance., 27, received the Kathy & Glenn Simpson Scholarship. The Winterville resident is working toward an Associate Degree in Nursing. The daughter of Felicia Wardrick, she attended South Central High School, holds a Bachelor of Arts in Public Health and a Master of Health Administration. She currently works as an assistant resident care coordinator at Spring Arbor of Greenville.Established in 2018, this scholarship is awarded to a qualified and deserving student enrolled in a curriculum program that demonstrates academic promise and financial need. Students are required to have a minimum GPA of 2.5 and be enrolled a minimum of six credit hours., 27, received the Allen & Dorothy Taylor and WoodmenLife Scholarships. The Washington resident is working toward an Associate Degree in Nursing. Woolard attended Washington High School, and she plans work as a registered nurse and further her education as a nurse. She is the daughter of Jeff and Sherry Woolard of Washington.Sam Taylor established this scholarship in memory of his parents, Dorothy and Allen Taylor. Scholarships are given to second year nursing RN students who are Beaufort County natives who intent to stay and work in Beaufort County and plan to continue their education at an accredit university towards a BS degree. Students must demonstrate financial need.Established in 2016, WoodmenLife scholarships are awarded to students residing in Beaufort County who demonstrate financial need and strong academic promise. Scholarships are awarded annually for fall and spring semesters.
The corruption trial of Malaysia's scandal-plagued former first lady will proceed after a judge ruled Thursday that prosecutors had presented sufficient evidence to make a case, boosting efforts to bring her to justice.

Rosmah Mansor will now present her defence in the next stage of the case, and told the Kuala Lumpur High Court she will take the stand to testify.

Notorious for her overseas shopping trips and vast collection of handbags, she became a lightning rod for public anger as the government of prime minister Najib Razak was engulfed by graft allegations.

Her husband's long-ruling coalition suffered a shock election defeat in 2018 in large part due to claims he and his officials plundered billions of dollars from the 1MDB sovereign wealth fund.

Both the former leader and his wife were hit with multiple charges over the looting of the investment vehicle, and last year Najib was handed a 12-year jail term after being convicted in a 1MDB-linked trial.

Rosmah's first trial does not, however, centre on 1MDB, but on allegations she received bribes linked to a government project.

Prosecutors allege she pocketed 6.5 million ringgit ($1.6 million) for helping a company secure the project to provide solar power generators to schools on the Malaysian part of Borneo island.

The 69-year-old is also accused of soliciting a further 187.5 million ringgit. She faces three counts of corruption in the trial, which began a year ago, and denies all charges against her.

Prosecutors recently wrapped up their case, and judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan ruled they had "credible evidence to prove every element of the offences" under the three charges.

"I therefore call on the accused to enter her defence," he said. If the judge thought the case was too weak, she would have been acquitted.

Defence lawyer Jagjit Singh said Rosmah was "upset and distressed, and we had to comfort her.

"The defence team feels saddened. The (judge) has not given the reasons for his decision."

Story continues

The defence stage of the trial will begin in June.

Najib, who is free on bail as he appeals his conviction, turned up at court to show support for his wife.

The couple's lavish lifestyles came to symbolise the perceived rot in Malaysia's ruling elite.

Following the 2018 election, police discovered valuables -- including cash, jewellery and luxury handbags -- worth up to $273 million in properties linked to them.

jsm-sr/fox
Facebook has banned its own page from social media during its war on Australian news.

The tech giant announced on Thursday that it would bar the site's 13 million monthly Australian users from reading and sharing local and international news on its platform in response to the proposed Media Bargaining law.

The law would force tech companies like Facebook and Google to negotiate with news providers to feature their content, but its own social media page has been caught in the firing line.

Along with government health pages, rescue services and every reputable news outlet's Facebook pages, the multi billion-dollar company's social media page was also void of all content on Thursday morning.

Facebook has banned its own page from social media (pictured) during its war on Australian news

The page, which was previously brimming with content about Facebook's latest news and achievements, simply read: 'No posts yet.'

One Twitter user said: 'Makes it harder to complain, I guess.'

'What happens when you roll out a content filter without really testing it,' someone else wrote.

The official Facebook social media page joins thousands of others that also appear blank for Australians.

Emergency services that provide Australians with news about Covid-19, bushfires and where to go for domestic violence help are among the vital Facebook pages which have been scrapped by the foreign-owned social media giant.

The official Facebook page, which was previously brimming with content about the tech giant's latest news and achievements, simply read: 'No posts yet' (Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg pictured)

Even the Bureau of Meteorology's Facebook page has been pulled, along with crucial health information pages from the Queensland, South Australian and ACT governments have been removed by the foreign Big Tech company.

Westpac and Careflight's official rescue helicopter pages have also been blocked.

South Australian Health Minister Stephen Wade said Facebook's move to restrict vital public health information during a global pandemic 'was absolutely unacceptable'.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions - whose members represent two million workers across the country - can also no longer be accessed via Facebook.

A screenshot shows a notification from Facebook that explains a news article cannot be shared

Secretary of the Australian Council of Trade Unions Sally McManus hit out at Facebook on Twitter after discovering the Big Tech company had blocked access to content from Australian Unions

Bizarrely, posts from the AFL Women's Facebook page have been taken down but those on the men's page are unaffected.

Even domestic violence charities pages have been blocked from the site.

The Australian Director of Human Rights Watch Elaine Pearson said the sudden news ban was ' an alarming and dangerous turn of events'.

'It's not only news sites, but health department pages that share essential Covid-19 updates, emergency services and small Indigenous community pages are affected,' she wrote on Twitter.

'Cutting off access to vital information to an entire country in the dead of night is unconscionable.'

A Facebook spokesperson admitted some pages were removed by accident.

'Government pages should not be impacted by today's announcement,' they said.

1800Respect - the national domestic violence and sexual assault helpline - has also been banned by Facebook

'The actions we're taking are focused on restricting publishers and people in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content.

'As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law drafted ... We will reverse any pages that are inadvertently impacted.'

The tech giant has also come under fire for allowing pages run by the likes of China's communist regime to post unabated, while stopping millions of Australians from accessing reliable and informative news.

For example, while pages supporting the Iranian regime and mass detention of protesters in Myanmar can post propaganda, locals Down Under can no longer access life-saving news about bushfires and Covid alerts.

Those in favour of the Media Bargaining law say the rules are needed to 'protect public interest journalism' by making sure outlets are paid for content social media and search engine users read and share.

But industry giants Google and Facebook strongly oppose the rule, arguing that it does not fully comprehend the relationship between tech companies and news outlets.

The decision means Daily Mail Australia's nearly five million followers can no longer access our news content on Facebook

The law 'fundamentally misunderstands' the relationship between tech platforms and publishers, Facebook said, adding that it has helped Australian publishers earn about $407million last year through referrals.

The move has already been slammed as 'very worrying' by journalists and media experts, who fear the lack of proper, verified news will help spread false information online.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg appeared to have been blindsided by the decision.

'This morning, I had a constructive discussion with Mark Zuckerberg from Facebook,' he tweeted on Thursday morning in the wake of the news.

'He raised a few remaining issues with the Government's news media bargaining code and we agreed to continue our conversation to try to find a pathway forward,' Mr Frydenberg tweeted.


Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
- The head mounted display market is expected to display considerable growth on the back of the rising popularity of lightweight wearable technologies around the world

- Transparency Market Research (TMR) projects the global head mounted display market to expand at a CAGR of 22.3 percent across the assessment period of 2019-2027

ALBANY, N.Y., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Advancements in wearable technologies are at an all-time high. The increasing demand from the consumers for modern and technologically-advanced wearables will bring tremendous growth opportunities during the assessment period of 2019-2027. Features such as high resolution and 3D viewing invite substantial growth opportunities for the head mounted display market.

A head mounted display is used for projecting a virtual environment in the wearer's eye. It has a small display optic in the front. The growing adoption of eyewear types that offers information about the surrounding without disturbing the normal view will lay a red carpet of growth across the head mounted display market.

Transparency Market Research has a team of efficient researchers and experts. They have analyzed every growth aspect of the head mounted display market closely. After a thorough analysis, the Transparency Market Research (TMR) experts predict that the global head mounted display market will record a CAGR of 22.3 percent during the tenure of 2019-2027. The global head mounted display market is prognosticated to reach a valuation of US$ 46,530.7 mn by the end of the forecast period. The head mounted display market was US$ 9,275.4 mn in 2019 in terms of value.

The expanding popularity of head mounted displays will help in increasing the growth rate exponentially. Furthermore, the rising influence of augmented reality (AR) and other similar technologies will prove fruitful for the growth. Even if the head mounted technology is in its nascent stages, the growth projection is very strong, further increasing the growth prospects of the head mounted display market.

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Escalating Demand from the Defense Sector to Harness Growth

The growing demand for head mounted displays in the defense sector will help the global head mounted display market to incur extensive growth. The heightening use of these displays for security purposes will invite exponential growth opportunities. Target tracking and top-quality night vision are some of the prominent requirements of the military. As head mounted displays fulfill these requirements seamlessly, the demand for these displays is increasing at a rapid rate.

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The escalating use of technologies like augmented reality (AR) across numerous applications is on a rise. The heightening utilization of AR in applications across manufacturing, logistics, warehouses, assembly, and others will prove to be promising growth generators for the head mounted display market. More applications in various sectors are being rapidly added, further increasing the growth aspects of the head mounted display market.

Explore 119 pages of superlative research, current market scenario, and extensive geographical projections. Gain insights into the Head Mounted Display Market (Helmet Mounted Display, Wearable Computing Glasses) - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2019 - 2027 at https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/head-mounted-displays.html

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Large firms and conglomerates are looking for ripe investments across the head mounted display market. The heightening popularity of head mounted displays among a considerable populace seems bright enough for the investors to invest in this sector. Hence, the infusion of extensive investments across many players will attract substantial growth prospects for the head mounted display market.

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Extended Reality [XR] Market - The global extended reality (XR) market is expected to grow at a staggering CAGR of 45% during the assessment period. The market growth is driven by a range of factors, including increasing smartphone penetration, rising demand for digital environments, growing popularity of augmented reality and virtual reality technologies, and its applicability across various end-use industries.

Intelligent Virtual Assistant Market - The intelligent virtual assistant market is expected to register a CAGR of 33% between 2020 and 2030. The market is projected to be driven by increasing scope of advancement in multicore and artificial intelligence technology for the consumer electronics sector across the globe.

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Protoje, Buju Banton, and Spragga Benz are among the Jamaicans waiting with bated breath, as Accompong Town Maroons in the hills of St. Elizabeth go to the polls today, to elect, possibly, a new chief to represent them for the next five years.

The three Rastafarians have thrown their full support behind apparent front-runner Richard Currie, Protojes friend and Munroe College schoolmate, in a political race which, from all indications, sees the University of Technology graduate on the verge of ousting current leader Colonel Ferron Williams.

Williams is vying for a third term, but it appears young and not so young Maroons have decided against returning Williams as colonel, according to Accompong News. Others in contention for the post of leader are, former colonel Meridie Rowe, Sheldon Wallace and Robert Cawley.

Several weeks ago, Protoje visited the community in his Range Rover, to show his support to Richard, escorted by a throng of bike riders from the community. Currie also posted pictures of himself and Protoje greeting each other as well as posing community members.

Its amazing when friends come through, always representing for #truths, #rights, #justice my brother @protoje, respect for showing the Maroon people love soon link again #nyankipongPikkibu, Currie captioned the post.

Unlike his stance last year about not voicing dubplates for politicians, Protoje, who grew up in St. Elizabeth, also voiced a campaign dubplate for Currie, who describes himself using lyrics from his Royalty track and Blood Money, a track which laid on criticism of corrupt politicians and businessmen in Jamaica.

Currie and his contenders have contended that the current chief is politically compromised as he had got too close to the Jamaican Government and had departed from cultural traditions, according to a Gleaner newspaper article. In the dub plate seemingly aimed at Williams, which was used on Curries campaign trial and in his social media advertisements, Protoje sings in his intro:

In life Currie a royalty

Currie seh wi meck it in life

An a we seh Currie fi colonel

He then belts out lyrics interpolated from Blood Money:

Mi naw watch no face naw meck no pardin

A Currie fi colonel pon Thursday morning

Some likkle people weh yuh si dem applaudin

Yuh can ask anybaddy weh dem get dem startin

a nuff a dem waan some altercation

Fi win election an wi nuh guh no station

Wi neva si no cell, wi nuh guh no court house

An a Thursday evening wi a vote some bwoy out

Buju Banton, who has declared himself a Maroon descendant of freedom fighters of Moore Town in Jamaicas east, also provided video clips endorsing Currie to be leader.

I want to say over the years Maroons have sufferedthe elders have failed so we call upon the youthsvote and vote Richie curry for Maroon Colonel, Buju said.

On Ash Wednesday, Spragga Benz posted a copy of Curries manifesto on his Instagram page and urged Maroons to throw their full support behind him.

Richard Currie the new Maroon Colonel It is the beginning of a new dayWe will it into being. #moor #mooroon #maroon #sovereign #bornfree #rasta, spragga wrote.

Spragga also added in a subsequent post:

To each and every single registered voter in the #Maroon election . do not cast away your vote for mere hand outs and false promises. Do not lose your potential to grow as a unified people. #maroons do not need hand-outs! We are a wealthy people! All we need is a leader with competence for the job! #voterichardcurrie, Spragga said.

Among the plans outlined by Currie for Accompong, are the defence of the Cockpit country from encroachers who want to mine the area for bauxite and the creation of a smart city in the landlocked Maroon state. The young Maroon, who says he is confident of victory, said that he was committed to preserving the freedoms wrested by his Maroon ancestors in the 1738 peace treaty inked with the British more than 280 years ago.

We have a colonel who is caught in a Jamaica Labour Party Area Four Council meeting in his green shirt. That is an embarrassment to the Maroon culture and to the Maroon sovereignty, Curry told The Gleaner.

According to the Gleaner newspaper article, whilst Williams challengers, have branded the chief a failure, he has insisted that Accompong Town has undergone modernisation, with investments in housing, water, transport, roads, and Internet service and said he had no doubt that he would be elected.

Accompong Town is a landlocked expanse in Jamaicas Cockpit Country. It is named after its founder Accompong, brother of Quao, Cuffy, Cudjoe, and Nanny, the leader and founder of Nanny Town, who were well trained soldiers from the Ashanti area of West Africa.

They had the British militia and slave masters in Jamaica their mercy in a guerilla warfare, for centuries until 1738, when, after being beaten into submission, the British soldiers yielded and made their way to the hills of Accompong where the Maroons had settled, to beg their chief Colonel Cudjoe for peace.

Hostilities were formally ended via a treaty between the two groups in 1739, signed under British Governor Edward Trelawny. It granted Cudjoes Maroons 1500 acres of land between their strongholds of Cudjoes Town (Trelawny Town) and Accompong in the Cockpits.
ANDERSON COUNTY, SR 61 Bridge over Norfolk Southern Railway and Market Street in Clinton: SR 61 East is reduced to one lane through this bridge repair project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, changing conditions, lane shifts, and use extreme caution through this area.

ANDERSON COUNTY, US 25/SR 9 Bridge over Clinch River between SR 61 and Carden Farm Drive: SR 9 northbound is reduced to one lane approaching the bridge as crews continue work in this area. Motorists should be alert for workers present, changing conditions, lane shifts, and use extreme caution through this bridge construction project.

ANDERSON COUNTY, US 25/SR 9 at SR 170: Motorists should be alert for workers present, changing conditions, possible lane closures and use extreme caution through this intersection construction project.

BLOUNT COUNTY, US 129 North and South between SR 35 Hall Road and Tyson Boulevard: Motorists should be alert for workers present, possible lane closures and brief stoppages of traffic through this roadway construction project. For project information, go to https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/projects-region-1/sr-115-alcoa-highway-hall-road-to-tyson-blvd.html

BLOUNT COUNTY, SR 335 Hunt Road between Ambrose Street and Ramsay Street: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures at various times as crews install utilities through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present directing traffic and use extreme caution through this area.

BLOUNT COUNTY, SR 33 between Foothills Mall Drive and Henry Street: Motorists should be alert for possible nightly lane closures between the hours of 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning through this intersection improvement construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, changed conditions and use extreme caution through this area.

BLOUNT COUNTY, US 321 between Jones Avenue and Lamar Street: Motorists should be alert for possible daily lane closures as crews perform roadside work through this project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed traffic, and use extreme caution through this area.

CAMPBELL COUNTY, I-75 North and South between Mile Markers 135 and 142: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures between the hours of 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning through this project. Motorists should be alert for slowed or stopped traffic, expect potential delays and use extreme caution through this area.

CAMPBELL COUNTY, I-75 North near Mile Marker 143: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures between the hours of 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning on Sundays through Thursdays through this project. Motorists should be alert for slowed or stopped traffic, expect potential delays and use extreme caution through this area.

CAMPBELL COUNTY, SR 63 between Myers Lane and Frontier Road/Woodson Lane: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures between the hours of 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and/or 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for slowed or stopped traffic, expect potential delays and use extreme caution through this area.

CARTER COUNTY, US 19E/SR 37 Bridge over the Doe River and Riverview Road: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures through this bridge repair project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed traffic, and use extreme caution in this area.

CLAIBORNE COUNTY, SR 63 between Old Town Creek and US 25E/SR 32: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, expect delays and use extreme caution through this area.

HAMBLEN COUNTY, SR 34 near Commerce Blvd.: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed traffic, and use extreme caution in this area.

HAMBLEN COUNTY, SR 160 near Commerce Blvd.: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed traffic, and use extreme caution in this area.

JOHNSON COUNTY, SR 167 at Log Mile 7.5: Motorists should be alert for single lane roadway with temporary traffic signal through this slide repair project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed traffic, and use extreme caution in this area.

KNOX COUNTY, I-275 South near I-40: On Sunday, February 21, 2021, motorists should be alert for possible lane closures between the hours of 6 a.m. and 3 p.m. as crews perform overhead sign maintenance. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed or stopped traffic, and use extreme caution in this area.

KNOX COUNTY, Various Interstates through Knoxville: On Thursday, February 18, 2021, and Monday, February 22, 2021 through Thursday, February 25, 2021, motorists should be alert for possible mobile lane closures between the hours of 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning as crews perform roadway maintenance activities. Motorists should be alert for workers present, slowed or stopped traffic, and use extreme caution in this area.

KNOX COUNTY, US 11W/SR 1 Rutledge Pike Bridge over Norfolk Southern Railroad near Harris Road: Motorists should be alert for lane shifts and changing traffic patterns through this bridge repair project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, expect potential delays, and use caution through this area.

KNOX COUNTY, US 129/SR 115 Alcoa Highway between Topside Road and Maloney Road: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures and lane shifts as crews perform work through this project. Motorists should be alert for new traffic patterns. Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduce speed and use extreme caution through this area. For project information, go to https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/projects-region-1/sr-115-alcoa-highway-little-river-to-maloney.html

KNOX COUNTY, US 129/SR 115 Alcoa Highway between Maloney Road and Woodson Drive: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures and lane shifts as crews perform work through this project. Motorists should be alert for new traffic patterns. Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduce speed and use extreme caution through this area. For project information, go to https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/projects-region-1/sr-115-alcoa-highway-maloney-to-woodson.html

KNOX COUNTY, US 441 Broadway Viaduct between Jackson Avenue and Fifth Avenue: US 441 Broadway Viaduct over Norfolk Southern Railroad in downtown Knoxville is closed for bridge replacement. The Broadway Viaduct will be closed to all traffic for the duration of the project. During the closure, Broadway will be closed from the intersection of Oak Avenue, Worlds Fair Park, and Jackson Avenue to just north of the Depot Avenue intersection. Depot Avenue will also be closed. These closures will ensure the safety of workers and motorists as crews demolish the old bridge and reconstruct the new bridge. Primary and Local Detour Routes around the bridge closure will be in place. For detour routes and project information, go to https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/projects-region-1/broadway-viaduct.html

KNOX COUNTY, US 441/SR 71 Chapman Highway between Highland View Drive and Burnett Lane: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures daily between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers and equipment present, expect potential delays, and use extreme caution through this area. For project information, go to https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/projects-region-1/chapman-highway-evans-to-burnett.html

KNOX COUNTY, SR 162 Pellissippi Parkway West between I-40 and Lovell Road: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduced speeds, expect possible delays, and use caution through this area.

KNOX COUNTY, SR 162 Pellissippi Parkway West at Hardin Valley Road: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduced speeds, expect possible delays, and use caution through this area.

KNOX COUNTY, SR 332 Concord Road between Turkey Creek Road and Northshore: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures daily between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. and new traffic patterns through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, expect potential delays, and use extreme caution through this area. For project information, go to https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/projects-region-1/sr-332-proposed-widening.html

LOUDON COUNTY, I-40 East between Mile Markers 364 and 365: Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduced speeds, closed shoulders and use extreme caution through this slope stabilization project.

ROANE COUNTY, I-40 West between Mile Markers 340 and 344: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures at various times through this slope stabilization project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduced speeds, lane shifts, and use extreme caution through this area.

SCOTT COUNTY, US 27/SR 29 between Industrial Lane and Second Avenue: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, expect possible delays, and use caution through this area.

SEVIER/JEFFERSON COUNTY, I-40 East between Mile Markers 407 and 412: On Monday, February 22, 2021 through Friday, February 26, 2021, motorists should be alert for possible nightly lane closures between the hours of 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. the following morning as crews perform work through this I.T.S. expansion project. Motorist should be alert for workers present, slowed or stopped traffic, expect potential delays and use extreme caution through this area.

SEVIER COUNTY, SR 71 between US 411 and Macon Lane: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures daily between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers and equipment present, expect potential delays, and use extreme caution through this area.

SEVIER COUNTY, SR 73 between Nell Rose Lane and Pitman School Road: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures daily between the hours of 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. as crews perform roadside geotechnical work through this area. Motorists should be alert for workers and equipment present, expect potential delays, and use extreme caution through this area.

UNICOI COUNTY, SR 36 between Log Miles 2.5 and 5.3: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures, workers present, expect potential delays, and use extreme caution through

this slope stabilization project.

WASHINGTON COUNTY, I-26 East and West between Mile Markers 16 and 18: Motorists should be alert for possible nightly lane closures between the hours of 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for slowed or stopped traffic, expect delays, and use extreme caution approaching this area.

WASHINGTON COUNTY, SR 93 between Davis Road and Fire Hall Road: Motorists should be alert for possible temporary lane closures through this construction project. Motorists should be alert for workers present, reduced speeds, and use caution through this area.

WASHINGTON COUNTY, SR 354 Boones Creek Road at I-26: Motorists should be alert for possible lane closures between the hours of 7 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning through this construction project. Lake Park Drive will be closed and detoured at the intersection with SR 354 as construction continues in this area. Motorists should follow signed detour. Motorists should be alert for workers present, expect delays and use extreme caution through this area.

For information on statewide interstate construction motorists can access the Tennessee Department of Transportation SmartWay website at https://smartway.tn.gov/traffic

TDOT is now on Twitter. For up to the minute traffic information in Knoxville and the Tri-Cities follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/knoxville511. For statewide travel information follow www.twitter.com/TN511
ALBANY, N.Y.  The Democratic leaders of the New York State Senate are moving to strip Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of unilateral emergency powers granted during the pandemic, setting up a remarkable rebuke for the governor from members of his own party.

The Senates measures, which could be voted on as soon as next week, underscore the deepening division between Mr. Cuomo and state lawmakers since the governor admitted to intentionally withholding critical data on virus-related deaths from the Legislature.

The moves came even as it emerged that the F.B.I. and the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York had opened an inquiry into the Cuomo administrations handling of nursing homes during the pandemic. It was not known whether the inquiry, which was confirmed by three people familiar with the matter, was focused on Mr. Cuomo or any individual, only that it was in its earliest stages.

The inquiry was another clear indication of how the climate has shifted dramatically for Mr. Cuomo since March, when he emerged as a prominent voice in the health crisis, using his daily briefings and invocations of his family to inform and calm a nation of viewers who turned to him as the virus began to spread. Now, much of that good will has evaporated.
From flybys to orbiters and landers, more than 40 missions have been launched to Mars to explore different aspects of the red planet which has long tickled the imagination of astronomers and space explorers.

The recent detection of plumes of methane in the northern hemisphere of Mars is of great interest because of its potential biological origin, though other explanations may also be possible. This is what generates a lot of interest in the planet.

Methane (CH4) is an organic molecule present in gaseous form in the Earth's atmosphere. More than 90 per cent of methane on the Earth is produced by living organisms.

February has been an important month with regard to Mars as missions to the planet from the US, China and UAE this month are at different stages.

As NASA gears up for the landing of its rover -- the 'Perseverance' -- to Jezero Crater, a place that planetary scientists think could be ideal to find preserved signs of life from several billion years ago, if life ever did arise on Mars, eight countries have undertaken missions to explore the planet.

Chinese mission Tianwen 1 was launched on July 23, 2020. After making a trip of seven months, it arrived in the Martian orbit on February 10. The lander is expected to land somewhere in the Utopia Planitia region, currently scheduled for May 2021.

The UAE's 'Hope' mission also entered the Mars orbit earlier this month. It's also the UAE's first interplanetary mission.

Just like exploration of the Moon, the then USSR was the first to send a mission to Mars. According to the European Space Agency (ESA) database, Marsnik 1 was launched on October 10 1960. A flyby mission, it did not reach the Earth's Orbit.

From 1960 - 62, the USSR launched five missions to Mars --- Marsnik 1, Marsnik 2, Sputnik 22, Mars 1 and Sputnik 24.

It was on November 5, 1964 that the US launched 'Mariner 3'. A flyby mission, the launcher shroud failed to jettison.

During the peak of the Cold War in the 1960s, the two superpowers fiercely competed with each other in this area. From 1960-69, the two countries launched 12 missions to Mars four by the US and eight by the USSR.

The two countries launched nearly 25 missions from 1960-1989.

It was only on July 3, 1998 that a new entrant launched any mission to explore Mars, when Japan launched the 'Nozomi' mission. It failed to enter orbit and flew by Mars on December 14, 2003 at a distance of 1,000 km. No data was returned.

In 2003, the European Space Agency and the UK Space Agency embarked on a mission to Mars. Launched in June 2003, a 'Beagle 2' lander was carried to Mars by 'Mars Express orbiter'.

The orbiter and lander arrived on December 25, 2003. Beagle 2 was successfully released but no further contact was made and the lander was declared lost.

In January 2015, the UK Space Agency announced that the lander had been identified in images from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The images appeared to show the lander partially deployed on the surface.

The last decade saw China making rapid strides in the area of space exploration. Joint launch of Russian Phobos lander and sample return mission and Yinghuo-1, a Chinese Mars orbiter took place on November 8, 2011.

The Phobos-Grunt/Yinghuo-1 spacecraft did not perform its scheduled burn to begin its trajectory to Mars and could not leave Earth's orbit. It re-entered Earth's atmosphere on January 15, 2012, said the NASA database on Mars missions.

India is one of the few nations to carry out a successful in its first attempt.

The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) was launched on November 23, 2013. Pegged to be one of the cheapest missions to Mars -- at around USD 74 million --, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said the journey to Mars was cheaper than an auto ride.

(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.)
You cant say Australia wasnt warned. Last September, Facebook responded to its plan to make tech giants pay for news content with a threat, or perhaps a promise: if the current draft becomes law, we will be forced to ban all Australian news from our service.

That has not happened, but the House of Representatives did approve the Bill on Wednesday. That seems to have been enough for Facebook, which hit the nuclear button in the small hours of Australias morning.

Facebooks move seemingly contradicts chief executive Mark Zuckerbergs stated mission to connect the world and increase free expression. Credit:Bloomberg

As of that time, Australian news publishers are banned from posting on Facebook and users across the world will be prevented from sharing their links and posts. Whats more, Australian users will be unable to share any news at all, no matter its origin - assuming that Facebooks automated filters function correctly. Instagram will not be affected.

It is a radical piece of brinkmanship, with little precedent in the companys 17-year history. It contradicts chief executive Mark Zuckerbergs stated mission to connect the world and increase free expression. It also cuts against the companys historical pattern of maximising the content on its service, even when that causes trouble.
Authorities in the northern Mexican border state of Nuevo Leon arrested six people Wednesday for allegedly trafficking fake COVID-19 vaccines at a clinic that was temporarily shut down.

'You don't play around with health, and in these moments of pandemic, nobody should be profiteering,' said Public Safety Secretary Rosa Icela Rodriguez.

Assistant Health Secretary Hugo Lopez-Gatell said that the fakes were presented as Pfizer vaccines, which are only available in Mexico through government vaccination teams.

He said the suspects had offered the vaccines for sale for the equivalent of around $2,000 per dose.

Telemundo reported that as many as 80 people were jabbed with the alleged fake vaccine.

The Spine Clinic, located in Monterrey, a city in the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo Leon, was shut down this week after federal health officials discovered that fake COVID-19 vaccines were being trafficked at the facility and sold to patients

File photo shows a healthcare worker at a military base in New Mexico receiving a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine

The Health Department said the fake Pfizer vaccines were being offered for sale at a health clinic known as 'Spine Clinic by Imperio' in a suburb of the northern city of Monterrey.

Nuevo Leon Health Secretary, Manuel de la O Cavazos, said that they received anonymous reports from several patients who visited the facility and were given different prices for the bogus vaccines, ranging from $546 to 1,230 per dose.

Inspectors raided Spine Clinic and discovered empty ice boxes that did not contain dry packs but were used to store vials similar to ones that are normally filled with the vaccine doses.

De la O Cavazos raised concerns with what the facility may have been injecting into the patients who were expecting all along to be vaccinated.

'It worries me enormously because I don't know if people are being given water, they are being given a solution that can harm their health,' he said. 'They can be given the Pfizer vaccine, but it could have already lost its concentration and that the patient may have an adverse reaction to the severe vaccine. They can convulse or experience encephalomyelitis.'

A woman gets her shot of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at the Magdalena Contreras borough of Mexico City, on Tuesday. Mexico is currently in the second phase of the vaccine rollout and is only applying the shot to people over the age of 60

Nurse Ana Arteaga gives a shot of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine to 78-year-old Esther Canales at a rural home in the Mexico City borough of Cuajimalpa on Thursday. Earlier this week, Mexico City government officials warned residents in Cuajimalpa of a fake WhatsApp chain message that claimed that there were additional vaccine shots available at a local center

Mexico's Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard speaks after the arrival of a batch of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines at Benito Juarez International Airport on Tuesday. Mexico is third in the globe with 177,061 confirmed coronavirus deaths

Law enforcement analysts have long worried that criminal gangs in Mexico could seek to steal, hijack or counterfeit much-desired vaccines or medications during the pandemic.

There have been hijackings or thefts of medicines and oxygen, but this is the first instance of criminal activity related to vaccines.

On Tuesday, the Mexico City government issued a warning to residents after discovering a WhatsApp chain message which claims that leftovers vaccines were available for any person over age 60 at a facility in the borough of Cuajimalpa.

A medical team climbs uneven worn steps up a hillside to reach a home in the Mexico City rural town of San Lorenzo Acopilco and administer a shot of the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine on Thursday

According to data from John Hopkins University, Mexico had reported 177,061 confirmed coronavirus deaths, the third-highest total in the world as of Thursday morning. The country has registered 2,013,563 cases.

Mexico's Defense Secretary, General Luis Cresencio Sandoval, announced Wednesday he had tested positive for COVID-19. Sandoval said he would isolate at home and continue working while receiving treatment.

So far in the pandemic, 991 migrants in Mexico have been infected with the coronavirus and 49 have died of COVID-19. Most migrants in Mexico come from, or through, Central America. A total of 3,684 Mexican migrants have died of COVID-19 through January 18, almost all of them in the United States.

Mexico in December became the first country in Latin American to offer the vaccine and has administered over 1 million coronavirus vaccines, but has not yet fully vaccinated its 750,000 front-line health care workers.

However, many government vaccination teams began this week taking photographs of the elderly people who got their first vaccinations; combined with the fact the people had to show their voter ID cards to get the vaccines, the photographs drew criticism in a country where such practices have been used to pressure voters in the past.

Lopez-Gatell said the vaccination teams should not take such photographs, and that people were within their rights to refuse to have their pictures taken.

Mexico is slated to received a shipment of 7.4 million of the Russian Sputnik V coronavirus vaccines between February and April. The Sputnik V vaccine was 91.6% effective in preventing people from developing COVID-19, according to studies.

The Pfizer vaccine, which was the first one applied in Mexico, has an effectiveness of 95%. In the meantime, the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has been proven to be 94.1% effective against the virus.

Mexico is currently in the second phase of the vaccination process, tending to those over the age of 60. The third phase will cover people between the ages of 50 to 59 from April to May, and the following phase will take place from May until June targeting those who fall between the ages of 40 to 49.

A fifth and final phase will start in June and last until March 2022, in which the rest of the population will be eligible to receive the vaccine.
AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ntirety, the most trusted provider of hybrid managed services for highly secure multi-cloud solutions, announces the formation of its newest business unit, Ntirety Enterprise, and the promotion of John Faulkner to President. The guiding focus of the Ntirety Enterprise business unit is Comprehensive Compliant Security  a must for businesses in the current environment. This new focus will help Ntirety to continue to grow in a constantly shifting economic landscape while expanding Ntirety's reach to benefit companies through unhindered growth that comprehensive security can bring.

"As a company, we have a sense of responsibility to help other businesses operate with fewer risks. The booming digital transformation comes with risks that make services like Ntirety's comprehensive security solutions essential for enterprises, and therefore, it was just as essential for Ntirety Enterprise to be formed to rise to that need," said Emil Sayegh, CEO of Ntirety.

With a vision to "help businesses move forward with less risk," Ntirety Enterprise encompasses four main components  the required foundations to ensure successful customer experiences that include Comprehensive Security, 100% Channel focus, Employee Development, and unfettered Customer Success.

In addition to the formation of the Ntirety Enterprise business unit, the Company is pleased to announce the promotion of John Faulkner to be the president of that business unit. Mr. Faulkner has been with Ntirety as CFO since 2016. He will continue to serve as CFO in addition to his new role. Before joining Ntirety, Mr. Faulkner was a finance leader for some of the most revered organizations in the world, including Dell and Ernst & Young, among others.

"John Faulkner has been invaluable for Ntirety since joining the company nearly five years ago. He is a revered professional in his field and has worked with some of the most recognizable companies throughout the globe. We are thrilled that he will not only remain in his role as Chief Financial Officer but will also be taking on the role of President," said Emil Sayegh, CEO of Ntirety.

Cybercrimes have increased by over 600% during the pandemic with the average cost of data breaches topping $3.86 million. Despite the many challenges of the pandemic that have overwhelmed resources and increased the need for online services, Ntirety Enterprise continues to provide the highest quality customer service across all sectors of healthcare, manufacturing, FinTech, and SaaS applications.

ABOUT NTIRETY

Ntirety is the only Managed Solutions Provider for multi-cloud solutions with guaranteed business outcomes focused on Compliant Security. Our solutions enable a future-ready, agile enterprise backed by the industry's first and only Guidance Level Agreements (GLAs): actionable insights that improve mission-critical application availability, performance, compliant security, and cost. Our engineers in North America, Europe, and Asia deliver solutions that shift tactical Enterprise IT operations to business transformation for thousands of global customers. With eight data centers around the world, and high-level competencies with AWS, Azure, and GCP. Ntirety also ensures strict compliance to PCI, HITRUST, HIPAA, FERPA, and GDPR guidelines and regulations. For more information, visit www.ntirety.com .

SOURCE Ntirety

Related Links

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Off-trade and at-home gin trends to watch

Charlotte Gibbon, GB head of marketing at Diageo brand Gordon's, explains how the gin market is well placed to take advantage of increasing off-trade activity.

Charlotte Gibbon Gordon's

How are Diageos off-trade gin sales performing at the moment? Obviously, its been a hard 12 months for the on-trade, but is off-trade picking up the slack?

There is no denying that the past year has been incredibly challenging for the hospitality industry. But with more people spending time at home, there have been opportunities for the off-trade to help customers create great moments that emulate out-of-home experiences.

People are drawn towards brands they have a strong association with, and buy products for taste and quality reassurances. As the UKs favourite gin brand, Gordons has been performing particularly well. Since March 2020, gin variants have contributed +29.5 million worth of value sales vs YA, with Gordons accounting for 78 per cent of this growth. Furthermore, Tanqueray London Dry has been growing its share +16 per cent in the off-trade vs YA. It is amazing to work with such great brands that capture the interest of consumers year-on-year.

Have there been any off-trade sales trends that have surprised you in the past year?

Convenience has played a major part in decision making for some time; people want drinks that are easy to recreate at home without sacrificing on quality. Of course, this isnt necessarily surprising but is key to note. The RTD (ready-to-drink) category is continuing to grow in popularity and is now slightly ahead of the current off-trade BWS (beers, wines and spirits) market at 22.5 per cent. Weve already seen many gin brands respond to this opportunity with the introduction of RTD ranges  new innovations such as Gordons Pink Martini (5% ABV) are not only convenient options for consumers, but encourage further exploration of the category.

The increase in demand for premium-quality drinks has also meant weve seen a rise in demand for Tanqueray London Dry. Known for its botanical notes of juniper, the distinctive flavour profile of Tanqueray London Dry means it can be easily used as a base to create simple serves. Its a spirit that can be enjoyed at home, simply with a quality mixer and a fresh garnish to complement its flavour profile.

Premium gin brands have also capitalised on the ever-growing RTD trend. For example, in April, Tanqueray London Dry is set to introduce two brand new ready-to-drink (RTD) 250ml can formats for Tanqueray London Dry Gin and Tanqueray Flor de Sevilla Distilled Gin (6.5% ABV) providing consumers with an easy-to-transport and convenient new way to enjoy quality mixed drinks.

Why does gin make a good option for at-home drinking experiences?

Gin is a very versatile liquid and forms the base of many popular drinks. A classic G&T is an example of a simple serve that does not need to be complicated to be high quality. People can experiment by using a range of classic tonics, or infused mixers to add a unique twist to a classic serve. In warmer months, gin-based Spritz serves can be popular as they are easy to make and a great way to elevate the at-home occasion. A gin-based cocktail can be kept simple for those looking to enjoy an uncomplicated yet great-tasting serve, or dialled up to create a more premium experience.

Pink gin has been one of the driving forces behind the categorys growth  it has been a trend popular amongst young-adult drinkers and encourages exploration of the wider category. This has been led by products such as Gordons Premium Pink Gin (37.5% ABV) which was the biggest spirits launch in the last decade. Since then, exploration within the category has continued, with an increased interest in new flavour profiles such as citrus, evident with the introduction of products such as Gordons Sicilian Lemon (37.5% ABV).

There is still more growth potential through innovation. People can now try different serves and personalise their G&T based on taste preferences. Most recently, Tanqueray introduced Tanqueray Blackcurrant Royale, the newest addition to the premium gins portfolio and an extension of the brands commitment to introducing rich and exciting new choices to the market.

Will the at-home trend last post-Covid? If so, how may it adjust once the on-trade reopens?

The Big Night In occasion has been a key trend for some time, so we can expect this to continue, especially as people have found innovative ways to create great moments at home. People have missed social gatherings with family and friends, so even though theyll be a desire to return to the on-trade, at-home occasions and entertaining will still remain prevalent.

Gordons now has an alcohol-free option in its stable  where do you see the no and low trend going? How do Diageos gin brands plan to respond to it?

The no and low alcohol category has been building momentum for a while and awareness has grown significantly. It is now worth 150m RSV in the UK off-trade. Social occasions are becoming increasingly diverse to cater for those who choose not to drink alcohol as well as those who do.

Were committed to providing consumers with choice to suit a range of different occasions and we dont think people should have to miss out on the flavour or experience when choosing an alcohol-free drink. We very recently launched Gordons 0.0%, an alcohol-free alternative, and this is already the top-selling no and low spirit in the off-trade.

The no and low category is still in its infancy, so leveraging well-known brands such as Gordons is key to driving trial. We want those choosing to drink an alcohol-free alternative to have confidence that they are enjoying a product that is of high quality and will suit the occasion perfectly.

(Figures according to Nielsen and Kantar data.)

18 February 2021
Belsat TV journalists Katerina Andreyeva (R) and Daria Chultsova, who were detained in November while reporting on anti-government protests, flash the V-sign from a defendants' cage during their trial in Minsk, February 18, 2021. / Credit: STRINGER/AFP/Getty

A court in Belarus handed two local journalists two-year prison sentences on Thursday for their live coverage of an anti-government rally in the capital Minsk late last year. Katerina Andreeva, 27, and Daria Chultsova, 23, who both work for Poland-based television network Belsat, were convicted of fomenting protest with their live-streamed coverage of a demonstration against Belarus' autocratic President Alexander Lukashenko.

Belarus strongman says he's "survived" foreign "blitzkrieg"

They were found guilty of "organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order" while doing their live-stream coverage of an unauthorized demonstration last November, the Belarus Association of Journalists said. The two women both pleaded not guilty and dismissed the charges as trumped-up political persecution. Belarusian authorities have launched a series of criminal investigations targeting opposition activists and journalists following the months-long protests over Lukashenko's claimed landslide victory in an August presidential election. The official election results were condemned by many in Belarus and the West as a mockery of democracy.

Belarus authorities responded to the protests with a mass crackdown, resulting in the deaths of at least four protesters, thousands of arrests and hundreds of people being severely beaten in custody. Andreeva and Chultsova were arrested inside an apartment in central Minsk from which they were covering a mass rally outside in memory of 31-year-old activist Roman Bondarenko. He was beaten by masked men who had been tearing down opposition symbols posted on the streets, and he later died in a hospital after being detained by police. The investigation into Andreeva's and Chultsova's actions concluded that they helped cause a disruption of public transport.

"They committed this crime with the help of phones, wearing the 'Press' vests," the prosecutor said in court, according to the Belsat network. "I showed those events in the Square of Change in a live broadcast on Belsat TV, which resulted in my being locked up under a fabricated and preposterous charge," Andreeva told the court. She and Chultsova hugged and smiled inside a defendants' cage in the Minsk courtroom.

Story continues

Belsat TV journalists Katerina Andreeva (R) and Daria Chultsova, who were detained in November while reporting on anti-government protests, embrace in a defendant's cage during their trial in Minsk on February 18, 2021. / Credit: STRINGER/AFP/Getty

Belarus human rights groups have labeled the journalists political prisoners. The International Federation of Journalists, along with the European Federation of Journalists, condemned the Thursday ruling in a statement saying the women had been, "sentenced to two years in prison for doing their job."

"Today's verdict is a clear attack on press freedom and we all stand together against this mockery of justice," IFJ President Younes Mjahed said in a statement. "This conviction is intended to intimidate the entire profession, to criminalize journalism. The repressive drift of dictator Lukashenko's regime requires a rapid and firm reaction from the international community."

The leader of Belarus' political opposition, Sviatlana Tikhanovskaya, who's currently living in exile in Europe, also criticized the ruling and praised the two journalists' bravery.

Journalists Darya Chultsova and Katsiaryna Andreyeva were sentenced to 2 years in prison for a live stream from Bandarenka's memorial in Nov.Just look at Darya and Katsiaryna  strong, smiling, and saying goodbyes to their loved ones through bars. Lukashenka can't break us. pic.twitter.com/nVk0u883Ia

 Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya (@Tsihanouskaya) February 18, 2021

"Just look at Darya and Katsiaryna  strong, smiling, and saying goodbyes to their loved ones through bars," said Tikhanovskaya in a tweet. "Lukashenka can't break us." Earlier this week another Belarus court started hearing the case against leading opposition member Viktor Babariko, who was arrested in June before he could challenge Lukashenko's 26-year rule in the presidential election. He faces up to 15 years in prison on bribery charges. Lukashenko, who rode out the protests last year thanks largely to the backing of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has said he's planning to draft a new constitution, but he hasn't given any indication whether he might step down. Opposition leaders have dismissed his promises for constitutional reform and say he must leave office.

Lukashenko and Putin are scheduled to meet in Russia on Monday.

Sneak peek: The Deliveryman Murders

Meet the Challah Back Girls: Sisters use their love of baking to support social justice groups

Ava DuVernay talks inclusion initiative in Hollywood, "Queen Sugar," and remembering Cicely Tyson
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[February 18, 2021] Eureka College to Launch Cybersecurity Bootcamp with Cybint

EUREKA, Ill., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Eureka College is partnering with global cybersecurity education leader Cybint to launch the forthcoming remote Cybersecurity Bootcamp. The Cybersecurity Bootcamp at Eureka College is an accredited cybersecurity training program designed to successfully prepare people with little or no background in IT for entry level jobs in cybersecurity, a highly in-demand and lucrative career path. "In the state of Illinois, there are over 17,000 cybersecurity job openings across all sectors," Eureka College Provost Dr. Ann Fulop said. "Eureka College's cybersecurity bootcamp will prepare the workforce to help meet this need. For people who want to change careers or begin a career, this program is for them." The Bootcamp, which will launch this summer, will provide participants with intensive training to help them transition into entry-level positions in cybersecurity, while leveraging existing relationships with large companies, such as Boeing and Caterpillar. The Cybint Bootcamp is structured to future-proof workers with the knowledge they need to expand their horizons and become cybersecurity professionals. The collaboration with Eureka College is te second partnership with an educational institution in Illinois.



"We're excited to partner with Eureka College," says Roy Zur, Founder and CEO of Cybint. "Between this partnership and the existing relationships with companies that are eager to expand their cyber teams, we are making a real impact locally and beyond. This is rewarding on many levels for all of us, as we will strengthen the careers and collective livelihoods of all participants within the communities." For more information about the Eureka College Cybersecurity Bootcamp, powered by Cybint, visit www.eureka.edu/cybersecurity.

If you have questions about the training program, contact Eureka College Assistant Director of Continuing Education and Transfer Enrollment Katelyn McDougall at kmcdougall@eureka.edu or call 309-467-6344. About Cybint Cybint is a global cyber education company with a commitment to reskilling the workforce and upskilling the industry in cybersecurity. With innovative and leading-edge education and training solutions, Cybint tackles cybersecurity's two greatest threats: the talent shortage and the skills gap. The Cybint team is comprised of military cyber experts, industry professionals, and educators united under the vision of creating a safer digital world through education, training, and collaboration. For more information, visit www.cybintsolutions.com About Eureka College Located in Eureka, Illinois, and chartered in 1855, Eureka College cultivates excellence in learning, service and leadership while providing students uniquely personalized and custom educational opportunities. Originally founded by abolitionist members of Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Eureka College holds the unique distinction of being the first college in Illinois and only the third in the nation to admit men and women on an equal basis. The College, which is located on nearly 70 wooded acres in central Illinois, is the smallest of only 24 colleges and universities to ever award a bachelor's degree to a future President of the United States. For more information, visit: https://www.eureka.edu/ View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/eureka-college-to-launch-cybersecurity-bootcamp-with-cybint-301230392.html SOURCE Cybint

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The Catholic Bishop of Sydney says the City of Sydney council showed little sensitivity to people of faith by promoting and hosting a Live N Queer concert by Heaps Gay on the forecourt of St Marys Cathedral but the council says they consulted the church and no objections were made.

The chaotic queer variety show featuring some of the loudest and queerest acts to come out of 2020 is set to be staged this weekend as part of the pop-up outdoor concert series Sunset Piazza running from January 28 to March 21.

Heaps Gay Loud N Queer TV are due to perform on the weekend despite objections from some Catholics.

The Summer in the City program, funded by the NSW Government in association with the City of Sydney, promotes and helps stage live performances spanning pop, cabaret, comedy, hip-hop, indie rock and opera at Cathedral Square, which is in front of St Marys Cathedral and opposite Hyde Park.

The Heaps Gay show was promoted using the distinctive Cathedral spires which Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP objected to on Facebook.
A recent study revealed an AI model could conduct a forecast to determine what animals will be the next hosts of the new coronavirus. Researchers noted that the study will revolve around predicting the outbreaks and discovering them before developing in a particular location.

AI's Power To Predict The Animal That Can Possibly Carry The Next Coronavirus

According to the lead author of the study, Maya Wardeh, the tool was beneficial to the coronavirus study since the said virus is known to enter different hosts, including animals and humans.

The capability of COVID-19 to jump from one subject to another was originally coined to the origin of the bats. It was observed that what causes the emergence of the new diseases was the shifting ability of it to transfer quickly to a new organism. Furthermore, this gave the researchers a freeway to better understand how animals and humans interact with the virus that started in Wuhan, China.

The algorithm used in the study relies on a machine learning process called "DeepWalk," which focuses on making predictions of the association of the LncRNA-disease and the biological target. It will lead to the questions that will figure out what species could be a coronavirus host, type of coronavirus has inhibited a particular species, and species could be carrying an unknown coronavirus strain.

Regarding the study, the authors considered the association of 879 mammal animals with 411 types of coronaviruses. For instance, the Asian palm civet from South and Southeast Asia could be a potent host of 32 types of coronaviruses. The bat, which was believed to be the first known host of the virus, was able to carry 68 coronaviruses, given that it is a horseshoe bat.

Read Also: COVID-19 Can Cause Sperm Damage, Infertility, Study Says

Moreover, even the domestic cat could be a carrier of numerous coronaviruses. Even a European rabbit and the hedgehog were seen to be a possible host of the viruses, Health Exec reported.

It was revealed that the current findings indicated that the shifting of the coronavirus from one species to another was 11 times more powerful compared to the past interactions. It was also found out that the possibility of being infected was 40 times when it comes to mammals because they could carry over four types of coronaviruses.

For the co-leader of the study, Marcus Blagrove, the results will help the researchers since the new coronavirus has already undergone various transformations. In some cases, recombination of other coronaviruses with SARS-CoV-2 happens, so the infection becomes much higher in humans.

Limitations Of The Study

Researchers said that the study still needs further evaluation as it only relies on limited data. Several future types of research will be carried out in the next studies. According to them, the recent testing on other mammal species yielded several predictions that could help identify the next possible hosts.

You can read the full study entitled "Predicting mammalian hosts in which novel coronaviruses can be generated" at Nature.com.

Related Article: Pet Cats, Dogs May Need COVID-19 Vaccine, New Study Suggests

This article is owned by Tech Times.

Written by Joen Coronel

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Dublin, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Text-to-Speech Market with COVID-19 Impact Analysis by Offering (Software, Services), Vertical (Enterprise, Consumer Electronics, Education, Retail), Deployment, Language, Organization Size, Voice Type, and Geography - Forecast 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global text-to-speech market was valued at USD 2 billion in 2020 and is estimated to reach USD 5 billion by 2026, registering a CAGR of 14.6% during the forecast period.

The rising demand for handheld devices, increased government spending on education for differently-abled, the dependence of the growing elderly population on technology, and the rising number of people with different learning disabilities or learning styles are factors driving the growth of the text-to-speech market. However, the lack of prosody and pronunciation of naturally occurring speech may restrain the growth of the market during the review period.

Large Enterprises are the leading adopters of text-to-speech software and services in 2020

Large enterprises are the leading adopters of text-to-speech software and services with the increasing need for speech recognition, virtual assistants, and chatbots. Hence, large enterprises accounted for significant share in 2020. SMEs have been gradually recognizing the importance of text-to-speech solutions and have started deploying them to enhance customer experience and gain a leading edge in the market. Owing to the availability of cost-effective cloud solutions, text-to-speech software and services are expected to witness a prominent growth rate among SMEs during the forecast period.

English and Mandarin Chinese, by language in the text-to-speech market, will hold the highest and second-highest share in the coming years

The demand for English and Mandarin Chinese languages in text-to-speech software tends to increase as roughly 1.1 billion or 15% of the global population can speak English followed by Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, and Spanish. The English language holds a major share of the text-to-speech market in 2020 while the market for Spanish is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period of 2021-2026.

APAC is attributed to grow at the highest CAGR in the text-to-speech market during the forecast period

APAC is witnessing increased traction for speech recognition solutions integrated with text-to-speech due to growing penetration of AI, analytics, and IoT devices in the region. This is creating a favorable market environment, and the region is witnessing rising adoption of voice-activated technology in the Asian markets, such as India, China, Indonesia, Australia, Japan, and Singapore. The countries are developing various favorable policies to increase AI penetration among enterprises for improving industry performance and customer experience.

This has proliferated the use of Intelligent Virtual Assistant (IVA), chatbots, and smart speakers in the daily activities of people. In Japan and China, text-to-speech systems have been deployed at airports and ATMs. Other countries, such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and Malaysia, are looking forward to integrating new technologies into their businesses.

The market is dominated by Nuance Communication (US), Microsoft Corporation (US), IBM Corporation (US), Google, Inc. (US) and Amazon.com (US).

Key Topics Covered:



1 Introduction

2 Research Methodology

3 Executive Summary

4 Premium Insights

4.1 Market Opportunities in Text-To-Speech Market

4.2 Market Analysis, by Language

4.3 Market Analysis, by Vertical

4.4 Market Analysis, by Voice Type

4.5 Market Share, by Region



5 Market Overview

5.1 Introduction

5.2 Market Dynamics

5.2.1 Drivers

5.2.1.1 Rising Preference for Handheld Devices

5.2.1.2 Increased Government Spending on Education of Differently-Abled Students

5.2.1.3 Dependence of Growing Elderly Population on Technology

5.2.1.4 Increasing Number of People with Different Learning Disabilities

5.2.2 Restraints

5.2.2.1 Complexity in Generating Prosody and Pronunciation of Naturally Occurring Speech

5.2.3 Opportunities

5.2.3.1 Seamless Communication Between Human Beings and Robots

5.2.3.2 Growing Artificial Intelligence Market

5.2.3.3 Text-To-Speech Solutions for Temporarily and Permanently Disabled Students

5.2.3.4 Growing Inclination Toward Cloud-Based Deployment Mode

5.2.4 Challenges

5.2.4.1 Creation of a Generic Acoustic Database That Covers Language Variations

5.2.4.2 Slow Network Speed in a Few Regions Limits Adoption of Cloud-Based Text-To-Speech Services

5.3 Supply Chain Analysis

5.3.1 Core Industry Segments

5.3.1.1 Research and Product Development

5.3.1.2 Manufacturers

5.3.1.3 System Integrators

5.3.1.4 End-users

5.4 Ecosystem

5.5 Porter's Five Forces AnalysisTable 2 Impact of Each Force on Market

5.6 Pricing Analysis

5.7 Patents Analysis

5.8 Trade Analysis

5.9 Technology Trends

5.9.1 Adoption of Text-To-Speech Solutions by People with Listening Disabilities or Listening Fatigue

5.9.2 Role of AI in Text-To-Speech Market

5.10 Regulatory Implications

5.10.1 Americans with Disabilities Act

5.10.2 Office of Communications

5.10.3 Polish Civil Code

5.10.4 Federal Communications Commission

5.10.5 General Data Protection Regulation

5.11 Impact of COVID-19 on Market

5.11.1 Pre-COVID-19

5.11.2 Post-COVID-19

5.11.3 Vertical Impact

5.11.4 Regional Impact

5.12 Use Cases

6 Text-To-Speech Market, by Offering

6.1 Introduction

6.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

6.2 Software

6.2.1 Growing Inclination Toward Voice-Based Technology to Surge Demand for Text-To-Speech Software

6.3 Services

6.3.1 Software-as-a-Service

6.3.1.1 SaaS Market is Expected to Grow Five Times Faster Than On-Premises Software Market

6.3.2 Support, Implementation & Consulting

6.3.2.1 Technicalities Involved in Implementing Text-To-Speech and Growing Deployment of Text-To-Speech Software to Boost Demand for Support Services

7 Text-To-Speech Market, by Deployment Mode

7.1 Introduction

7.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

7.2 On Premises

7.2.1 Data-Sensitive Organizations are Preferring On-Premises Deployment Mode for Text-To-Speech Software

7.3 Cloud Based

7.3.1 Cost-Effectiveness and Scalability to Boost Adoption of Cloud-Based Text-To-Speech Software



8 Text-To-Speech Market, by Voice Type

8.1 Introduction

8.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

8.2 Neural and Custom Voice

8.2.1 Ability to Create Unique Custom Voice Persona and Synthesis of Lifelike Voices is Driving Adoption of Neural Voice Systems

8.3 Non-Neural

8.3.1 Non-Neural Voices are Comparatively Lower in Price But Have Significant Contribution to Text-To-Speech Market



9 Text-To-Speech Market, by Organization Size

9.1 Introduction

9.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

9.2 Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

9.2.1 Availability of Cloud-Based Cost-Effective Solutions to Fuel Adoption of Text-To-Speech Technology in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

9.3 Large Enterprises

9.3.1 Increasing Use of Advanced Technologies to Boost Adoption of Text-To-Speech in Large Enterprises



10 Text-To-Speech Market, by Language

10.1 Introduction

10.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

10.2 English

10.3 Mandarin Chinese

10.4 Hindi

10.4.1 Key Players Include Hindi into Their Availability of Custom/Standard Voices

10.5 Arabic

10.6 Spanish



11 Text-To-Speech Market, by Vertical

11.1 Introduction

11.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

11.2 Consumer Electronics

11.2.1 Increased Demand for Smartphones and Televisions for Partially Sighted People to Propel Market Growth

11.3 Automotive & Transportation

11.3.1 Text-To-Speech is Expected to Become Commodity Feature in Cars in Near Future

11.4 Healthcare & Life Sciences

11.4.1 Growing Regulatory Requirements and Need for Documentation to Fuel Adoption of Text-To-Speech in Healthcare

11.5 Education

11.5.1 Text-To-Speech Can Act as Assistant Tool for Visually Impaired or People with Disabilities (Dyslexic Readers)

11.6 Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance

11.6.1 Rising Need for Automated Customer Services and Query Resolver to Fuel Adoption of Text-To-Speech in BFSI Vertical

11.7 Retail

11.7.1 Need to Deliver Real-Time Customer Experience Driving Adoption of Text-To-Speech Solutions in Retail and E-Commerce

11.8 Enterprises

11.8.1 The Enterprise Vertical Holds High Growth Potential for Text-To-Speech Technology by Improving Business Performance and Effectiveness

11.9 Travel and Hospitality

11.9.1 Rising Competition Among Players to Drive Adoption of Text-To-Speech in Travel and Hospitality Sector



12 Text-To-Speech Market, by Region

12.1 Introduction

12.1.1 COVID-19 Impact Analysis

13 Competitive Landscape

14 Company Profiles

14.1 Introduction

Key Players

14.2.1 Nuance Communications

14.2.2 Microsoft Corporation

14.2.3 Amazon.com Inc.

14.2.4 Google

14.2.5 IBM

14.2.6 Sensory Inc.

14.2.7 Readspeaker

14.2.8 LumenVox LLC

14.2.9 Acapela Group

14.2.10 CereProc

14.2.11 Speech Enabled Software Technologies (SESTEK)

14.2.12 iFlytek

14.3 Other Company Profiles

14.3.1 TextSpeak

14.3.2 Nextup Technologies

14.3.3 iSpeech

14.3.4 Nexmo Inc.

14.3.5 Baidu, Inc.

14.3.6 Facebook Research

14.3.7 Govivace

14.3.8 GL Communications

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/s24sm5


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Colorados judicial branch will neither confirm nor deny whether it has any additional records on the allegation that a Court of Appeals judge negotiated an agreement with a law clerk to prevent the clerk from disclosing sexual harassment claims, citing a provision of its rules that requires confidentiality for all investigations it conducts into sexual harassment claims against judges.

Terri Morrison, the legal counsel for Colorados Judicial Department, denied a records request from The Gazette seeking details about the alleged release agreement, which was one of nearly two dozen misconduct allegations listed in a recent memo The Gazette and The Denver Post obtained.

Without confirming or denying the factual assumptions in your request, any record responsive to your request necessarily would be required to be withheld, she said, citing a portion of the court systems rules for governing public access to information and records.

The section she cited states that a records custodian must deny public inspection of any records of sexual harassment complaints and investigations, whether or not such records are maintained as part of a personnel file.

Disclosure of all or a part of any records of sexual harassment complaints and investigations to the person in interest is permissible to the extent that the disclosure can be made without permitting the identification, as a result of the disclosure, of any individual involved, the section further states.

That section also states that harassment complaints and any investigation into those complaints can be made public by a a person of interest when such record supports the contention that a publicly reported, written, printed or spoken allegation of sexual harassment against such a person is false.

Jeffrey Roberts, executive director of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, said details about the release agreement should be made public.

"The fact that there appears there was a settlement, which involved compensation to this law clerk, it's hard to see how that fits the definition of a sexual harassment complaint or investigation into such a complaint," Roberts said. "There could be details in this agreement that would have to be redacted, but the fact of the agreement and the exchange of money or payment of money, that would seem to be something that would not be covered by that rule."

He added: "The public needs to know if this happened. If the allegation is true that there was a negotiated agreement to protect a Court of Appeals judge, that has to come out at some point."

Last week, the alleged release agreement between the law clerk and the Appeals Court judge was mentioned in a memo that became public detailing nearly two dozen instances of misconduct involving judges and court administrators. The memo stated that the release agreement was negotiated to settle allegations of harassment, and that the settlement preserved the judges chances for potential selection to the Colorado Supreme Court.

Supreme Court invites investigation into Colorado judicial branch Were disappointed and absolutely heartbroken by this situation, and nobody wants these investigations to go forward more than I do, said Chief Justice Brian D. Boatright.

The memo contained no further details about the settlement and did not reveal whether any money was paid as part of the settlement or detail any names involved in the settlement.

The release agreement was one of nearly two dozen instances of misconduct involving judges and administrators in the court system. The memo also states that Mindy Masias, the former chief of staff to the Colorado Supreme Court, was told to destroy an anonymous complaint alleging sexism and harassment by a former chief justice of the Colorado Supreme Court, who also was not identified.

The memo further alleged that two lower court judges were promoted to chief judge status in their judicial districts despite sending pornographic emails on their judicial emails and details instances involving court administrators, including one who allegedly was having sex with his staff.

The Colorado Supreme Court made the memo public after The Denver Post reported its existence. Christopher Ryan, Colorados former state court administrator, told The Post he took the memo to Nathan Ben Coats, who at that time was chief justice of the Colorado Supreme Court.

Ryan alleges that Coats agreed with Ryans suggestion that they give Masias a sole source training contract worth up to $2.72 million to prevent her from filing a lawsuit that would make the misconduct detailed in the memo public.

The Colorado Supreme Court has denied that the contract, which later was terminated, was given to Masias to keep her allegations from becoming public. Brian Boatright, the current chief justice of the Colorado Supreme Court, announced this week that he will have the governor, Legislature and Colorado Attorney Generals Office convene a panel that will select an independent counsel to investigate the allegations in the memo and release the results of that investigation to the public.

A month into the Covid-19 immunisation drive, as many as 21 states and Union Territories (UTs) have not administered a single shot of Covaxin from Bharat Biotech, according to data. While some states like Chhattisgarh have opted not to use the Covaxin doses allotted to them, most UTs and northeastern states have not been allotted the vaccine by the Centre.

For those that have used Covaxin, the rate of usage is much lower compared to the number of Covishield vaccines used. Gujarat administered the maximum number of Covaxin shots in the first round  106,043 doses were given to ...
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Buckhaven Capital Corp. (TSXV: BKH.P) ("Buckhaven") is pleased to announce that further to its news release of February 12, 2021, 1254688 B.C. Ltd. ("125") has closed a brokered private placement of 13,657,000 subscription receipts (the "Subscription Receipts") at a price of $1.00 per Subscription Receipt for gross proceeds of $13,657,000 (the "Financing"). Sprott Capital Partners L.P. ("Sprott" or the "Agent") acted as the agent in connection with the Financing. The Financing was completed in connection with Buckhaven's proposed "Qualifying Transaction" (previously announced on August 18, 2020, November 3, 2020 and February 12, 2021) with 125 (the "Transaction") pursuant to the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange").

Each Subscription Receipt shall automatically convert to one common share of 125 (each, an "Underlying Share"), upon the delivery by the Corporation and Sprott to Capital Transfer Agency ULC (the "Escrow Agent") of a release notice signed by each of 125 and Sprott (the "Release Notice") confirming the satisfaction of certain conditions (collectively, the "Escrow Release Conditions"), which will include, among other things, that all conditions precedent to the closing of the Transaction have been satisfied or waived including the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals.

The gross proceeds from the Financing less 50% of Sprott's commission and all of its expenses were placed into escrow with the Escrow Agent.

In the event that the Escrow Agent does not receive the Release Notice prior to 5:00 pm. (Toronto time) on March 30, 2021 (the "Release Deadline"), or if prior to such time, 125 advises Sprott or announces to the public that it does not intend to satisfy the Escrow Release Conditions, the Subscription Receipts shall be null and void and the Escrow Agent will disburse the escrowed funds together with interest to the subscribers and 125 will make up any shortfall between the amount of the escrowed funds and the original subscription price.

If the Escrow Release Conditions are satisfied on or before the Release Deadline, the escrowed funds will be released to 125 less the other one-half of the Agent's commission. Following release to 125, it is anticipated that the net proceeds of the Financing will be used for operational, exploration and generative activities on the San Bartolome silver operation and for general corporate purposes.

Upon the satisfaction of the Escrow Release Conditions and following a consolidation of Buckhaven's outstanding common shares on a 1.5-for-1 basis ("Consolidation"), each Underlying Share will be exchanged for one post-Consolidation common share of Buckhaven ("Common Share"). Upon completion of the Transaction, all Common Shares will be freely tradeable, subject to any escrow restrictions, which may be imposed by the Exchange.

Additional Information

All information contained in this press release with respect to Buckhaven and 125 was supplied by the respective parties, for inclusion herein, and each party and its directors and officers have relied on the other party for any information concerning the other party.

Additional terms of the Transaction were previously disclosed in the press releases of Buckhaven and 125 dated August 18, 2020, November 3, 2020, and February 12, 2021 and are available on Buckhaven's SEDAR profile at wwww.sedar.com.

For further information:

Buckhaven Capital Corp.

Bob Buchan, Director

(416) 274 -7333

1254688 BC Ltd.

Fraser Buchan, Director

(416) 473-4099

Reader Advisory - Cautionary Statements

Completion of the Transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including but not limited to, Exchange acceptance and if applicable pursuant to Exchange requirements, majority of the minority shareholder approval. Where applicable, the Transaction cannot close until the required shareholder approval is obtained. There can be no assurance that the Transaction will be completed as proposed or at all.

The TSX Venture Exchange Inc. has in no way passed upon the merits of the proposed Transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release may contain forward-looking information, such as statements regarding the completion of the Transaction, the satisfaction of the Escrow Release Conditions and the conditions to closing, the use of the proceeds from the Financing, and future plans and objectives of Buckhaven. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results, and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Buckhaven's expectations include the failure to satisfy the conditions to completion of the Transaction set forth above and other risks detailed from time to time in the filings made by Buckhaven pursuant to applicable Canadian securities laws.

The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking statements herein may prove to be incorrect. Events or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of Buckhaven. As a result, Buckhaven cannot guarantee that the Transaction will be completed on the terms and within the time disclosed herein or at all. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect, and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and Buckhaven will update or revise publicly any of the included forward-looking statements as expressly required by Canadian securities law.

/NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES/

THIS NEWS RELEASE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AN OFFER TO SELL OR A SOLICITATION OF AN OFFER TO BUY ANY OF THE SECURITIES IN THE UNITED STATES. THE SECURITIES HAVE NOT BEEN AND WILL NOT BE REGISTERED UNDER THE UNITED STATES SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE "U.S. SECURITIES ACT") OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED OR SOLD WITHIN THE UNITED STATES OR TO, OR FOR THE ACCOUNT OR BENEFIT OF, U.S. PERSONS UNLESS REGISTERED UNDER THE U.S. SECURITIES ACT AND APPLICABLE STATE SECURITIES LAWS OR AN EXEMPTION FROM SUCH REGISTRATION IS AVAILABLE. "UNITED STATES" AND "U.S. PERSON" ARE AS DEFINED IN REGULATION S UNDER THE U.S. SECURITIES ACT.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74851
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As you probably know by now, in the year 2020  during which Joe Biden was elected as President of the United States  it has been reported that 39,695,315 guns were legally purchased in the United States, which is a full 40 percent more than were bought in 2019. You should also be aware that in the month of January, during while Biden took the Presidential Oath and became the most powerful man in the world, gun sales continued to skyrocket, with 4,137,480 legal sales in the most prolific month ever recorded.

Better put, the American people last month submitted two types of photo ID, as well as their fingerprints, to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System and purchased an average of 133,467 firearms for each day in January.

Can you imagine a nation buying that many of anything each and every day for the last month?

The firearms industry tells us the most legal sales in 2020 were to the liberal types, many who have screamed for stiffer gun laws in the past. The next groups most easily identified were the millennials (those born between 1982 and 2004), females both married and single, and people of color.

No one knows exactly how many firearms are owned in the United States, but in a nation of 328.24 million, the best estimates now believe there are about 340 million. We know from the census that over 40 percent of the households in America are armed but there is little data known about outlaw guns (those sold on the streets) or the nations 22 million illegal aliens.

But we do know over $38 billion (with a b) is wired to Mexican families every year through the Bank of Mexico. (In early May the Mexican president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, thanked our migrant countrymen for sending record remittances in this difficult period (COVID), calling them living heroes.)

When Biden was running for President, he repeatedly said he would address gun control during his First 100 Days in office but with the gun industry forecast for 50 million more legal firearms to be sold this year, how would you predict the Democrats chances. Personally, I think it is absolutely ludicrous.

On Valentines Day, the president  being spurred by the crazies, mind you  said in a speech 

We will take action to end our epidemic of gun violence and make our schools and communities safer. Today, I am calling on Congress to enact common sense gun law reforms, including requiring background checks on all gun sales, banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, and eliminating immunity for gun manufacturers who knowingly put weapons of war on our streets. We owe it to all those weve lost and to all those left behind to grieve to make a change. The time to act is now.

About three weeks before Bidens vacant words  there is still no legislation pending in Washington  a very smart man who I am thinking knows more about firearms than anyone now in government, wrote a very factual opinion piece that appeared in the Epoch Times (www.epochtimes.com). The article written by John R. Lott was first generated byRealClearWire, an informational media site overseen by RealClearFoundation.com). John Lott is the founder and former president of the Crime Prevention Research Center in Washington, D.C.

* * *

THE FLAWED THINKING BEHIND BIDENS GUN CONTROL BILL

(Note this article appeared in the Op-Ed section of The Epoch Times on February 5, 2021  nine days prior to President Bidens Valentines Day speech.)

By John R. Lott

(Before the November election, President Donald Trump warned)  The coming years will decide the survival of our Second Amendment. ( The amendment reads: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed.

Trump was right.

During the 2020 campaign, Joe Biden promised a long list of gun control regulations. There is a reason that Michael Bloomberg spent $125 million helping Biden in Florida and something over $600 million nationally in the general election.

The agenda includes: classifying many semi-automatic rifles and magazines holding more than 10 bullets as Class 3 weapons (which can require nine months or more for approval and a $200 fee), national gun licensing, red flag laws that let judges take away peoples guns without a hearing, background checks on the private transfer of guns, and bans on some semi-automatic firearms that happen to look like military weapons.

The first gun control bill that Biden will push in his first 100 days would make gun makers and sellers civilly liable for misuse of guns they sell. That means people could sue manufacturers whenever a crime, accident, or suicide occurs with a gun. We arent talking about cases where there was a product liability issue or where laws are violated, such as selling a gun without a valid background check. While it isnt stated, the goal is to put the gun makers out of business.

Can you imagine what would happen to the car or other products if similar rules were to apply? Some 4.5 million Americans are injured each year in car accidents, and 40,000 die. When accidents occurred because a driver wasnt paying attention or was driving recklessly, it makes no sense to sue Ford for lost wages, medical costs, and pain and suffering. Criminals also frequently use cars when they commit crimes. Why should car companies be liable for that?

Computers are used to plan crimes, hack into private servers, and steal intellectual property. If Apple were held liable, it would very quickly be drowning in lawsuits. If the company even survived, its products would become much more expensive in order to cover the new legal fees.

Guns arent any different. Far less than 1 percent of guns are ever used in crimes, suicides, or accidents, and when they are, its virtually always the result of the users actions. Many other products, such as motorcycles, have much higher probabilities of causing harm. The death rate per motorcycle is 0.05 percent; the death rate for guns is 0.008 percent. The latter includes murder, accidental deaths, and suicides. Guns are also used defensively about 2 million times in the average year, according to the FBI. Will government reward gun makers when their products are used to save lives?

My own research has found that increased gun ownership is associated with less crime, not more. Poor people in the highest crime areas benefit the most from owning guns, and gun maker liability would be sure to make guns unaffordable for these individuals.

Police are important to fighting crime, but people cant rely on them for protection. Officers virtually always arrive at the scene of a crime after the perpetrator has fled. Police know this. When a 2016 survey by the National Association of Chiefs of Police asked 15,000 chiefs and sheriffs if law-abiding citizens should be able to buy guns for self-defense, 88 percent answered yes. PoliceOne surveyed its 450,000 members, and 77 percent answered that legally armed citizens are extremely or very important to reducing crime rates.

If high-profile Democrat politicians really believe that guns produce no benefits, they ought to ask their bodyguards to disarm. These politicians would disarm poor people, and at the same time would never enter their neighborhoods without armed guards.

Gun control advocates claim that the gun makers are responsible for any harm from their weapons because they specifically cater to the criminal market with low prices, easy concealability, corrosion resistance, accurate firing, and high firepower. Lightweight, compact firearms may appeal to criminals, but they also make life easier for the 19.5 million Americans who carry concealed handguns. Women are most likely to prefer smaller, lightweight guns.

Many Democrats also try to blame gun makers for accidental deaths that they claim are foreseeable. Supposedly, manufacturers arent doing enough to make their guns child-proof.

Nationwide in 2018, 30 children under 5, and 54 under 15, died from accidental gun deaths. But with 120 million people owning 300 million guns, accidental deaths from guns are far less foreseeable than from many other products. Gun owners must also be very responsible, or such accidents would be much more frequent.

By contrast, nearly 100 children under 5 drown in bathtubs each year. Another 350 drown in pools. Should bathtub and pool makers be sued for the harm their products cause? What about bicycle makers for kids killed in accidents? Biden and Democrats want to ban guns. And if they abolish the Senate filibuster, as they keep threatening, they could do it.

* * *

John R. Lott Jr. is the former president of the Crime Prevention Research Center and the author of Dumbing Down the Courts: How Politics Keeps the Smartest Judges Off the Bench.

royexum@aol.com

(@ChaudhryMAli88)

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Guatemalan Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo discussed migration by phone, the US State Department said in a statement.

"Secretary Antony J. Blinken spoke with Guatemalan Foreign Minister Pedro Brolo today. Secretary Blinken emphasized the U.S. commitment to addressing the structural problems that trigger irregular migration - endemic corruption and impunity, lack of economic opportunity, and insecurity - and our countries' shared interest in ensuring a safe, orderly, and humane approach to migration," State Department spokesperson Ned price said.

"The two leaders discussed the importance of securing an independent judiciary, through an open and transparent process, including by designating impartial candidates in the upcoming selection of Constitutional Court magistrates. Secretary Blinken also raised the need to improve democratic governance, promote respect for human rights, and root out high-level corruption in order to advance our shared goal of a more secure and prosperous Guatemala," Price said.
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SPRINGFIELD  Former House Speaker Michael J. Madigan, 78, announced Thursday he will step down from the state House of Representatives after 50 years in office.

I leave office at peace with my decision and proud of the many contributions Ive made to the state of Illinois, and I do so knowing Ive made a difference, Madigan wrote in a lengthy emailed statement.

His initial statement said he plans to retire by the end of the month, but by the end of Thursday the letter he submitted to the clerk of the Illinois House said his resignation was effective immediately, a spokesperson confirmed. His current term, which he won in November, would have ended in January 2023.

Madigan, who was the longest serving state House speaker in the country, failed to earn enough support to win another term as speaker, resulting in the election last month of Speaker Emanuel Chris Welch.

Madigans support within the Democratic caucus began to fracture after federal prosecutors revealed last July that utility giant Commonwealth Edison admitted its executives were bribing associates of Madigan in a yearslong scheme in order to ensure legislation favorable to the company.

Although he has not been charged and he denies wrongdoing, Madigan was forced on the defensive after Republican lawmakers launched a special committee to investigate his involvement in the scheme. That committee ended with a partisan finding that Madigan did not commit conduct unbecoming of a lawmaker.

Its no secret that I have been the target of vicious attacks by people who sought to diminish my many achievements lifting up the working people of Illinois. The fact is, my motivation for holding elected office has never wavered. I have been resolute in my dedication to public service and integrity, always acting in the interest of the people of Illinois, Madigan said in the statement.

U.S. Reps. Mike Bost, R-Murphysboro, Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, Darin LaHood, R-Peoria and Mary Miller, R-Oakland, issued a following joint statement saying Madigan has been the constant force in state government during Illinois steadying decline over the past two decades.

Because of Madigans failed leadership, Illinois families have been voting with their feet and leaving our state in droves, they said. While Madigan may no longer be steering state government, the consequences of his agenda and poor policy choices will be felt for generations to come.

Madigan, who was raised in the Clearing neighborhood on Chicagos southwest side, is a graduate of Notre Dame University and Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

In 1969, just two years after graduating law school, Madigan was elected the Democratic committeeman for the citys 13th ward, and slated as a delegate to the 1970 Constitutional Convention. In 1970, he was first elected to represent the 22nd district, which covers a portion of the southwest side of Chicago.

He was first elected Speaker of the House in 1983 and served, for all but two years, until January 2021. In 1998, he was elected to serve as Democratic Party chair, a post he continues to hold.

His term as party chair ends in March 2022. A spokesperson for Madigan did not comment on his plans for that role.

During his five decades in the General Assembly, Madigan has overseen significant legislative achievements that include the passage of a same-sex marriage law and raising the minimum wage to $15 by 2025.

Welch, D-Hillside, said in a written statement that he appreciates Madigans contributions and wishes him well.

Under him, weve had strong, sustained Democratic leadership in Springfield. We legalized same-sex marriage, abolished the death penalty and solidified abortion rights. Illinois also became the first state in the Midwest to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour. These laws gave underserved populations a new sense of hope, Welch said.

Now we must build on that with a new generation of leadership focused on racial and gender equity in all dimensions, improving government transparency, and leading with the kind of conviction, compassion and cooperation expected by our constituents.

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The $7.2bn takeover of GW Pharma has defined what success looks like for cannabis companies on this side of the Atlantic.

GWs Home Office licence award, allowing it to grow commercial quantities of high-THC cannabis, coupled with a scientific breakthrough created a blockbuster drug for epilepsy, which ultimately resulted in significant returns for long-term investors.

That a UK company can sensibly, methodically and profitably carve out a niche in medicinal cannabis provides inspiration for the next generation of entrepreneurs looking to build new medical or pharmaceutical businesses.

Two things have happened to change the landscape for would-be growers, retailers and the end-user here in Britain. They are legislation and financial regulation.

The drug was finally legalised for medical purposes in 2018, and specialist doctors are learning to become more familiar in writing cannabis prescriptions for some of the 1.4 million people in the UK that consume cannabis on a weekly basis to help alleviate a wide range of ailments.

FCA green light

However, it took until September last year for the Financial Conduct Authority to catch up with the change in sentiment.

The City watchdog decreed that UK-based medicinal cannabis companies could list their shares publicly  partially clearing up a grey area around the Proceeds of Crime Act.

As a result, the logjam of businesses waiting to float on the London Stock Exchange has begun to break.

is one of those companies that now have a clear path to the market and is on a pre-IPO fundraising round from which it hopes to bring in 5mln.

The cash will be used for continued capital investment in facility expansion as well as ongoing working capital costs. The intention is to float the business on the LSE later this year.

Analysts see the European market developing in a more regimented and organised way than North America, which is complicated in extremis by the addition of recreational use of cannabis to the mix.

Not helping this already dysfunctional market is federal illegality of the drug in the US (despite the almost wholesale legalisation at the state level).

And adding to the sense of confusion is the role of the Canadian equity markets in funding growers and retailers.

Of course, the wild west-style green gold rush has gone from boom to bust on the other side of the Atlantic.

Europe is the focus

Luckily, s target markets are on this side of the Pond. It wants to plant its flag in the UK, Germany (the continents most advanced medical cannabis market), Italy, Spain, Portugal and Denmark.

It currently has 75,000 square feet of growing capacity under glass on the island of Jersey with the ability to expand to 636,000 square-feet across its two sites.

The plan is to develop as a low-cost grower, wholesaler and distributor of traditional flower before building a vertically integrated operation.

s strategy is then to move into extraction, formulation, manufacturing and branded products.

It has overcome a significant barrier to entry by landing only the second ever Home Office-sanctioned THC licence (the first was granted to GW 22 years ago).

Meanwhile, the award of EU good manufacturing practice (GMP) accreditation by the medicines regulator will provide another competitive advantage.

The location, Jersey, where it has the islands only commercial cannabis licence, has a number of commercial upsides.

Among them are the existing agriculture industry, proximity to the UK and European markets and the climate.

Low-cost operator

expects to be one of the lowest-cost operators in the world because of the Goldilocks weather conditions of the British Crown Dependency, which receives over 2,400 hours of sunshine a year.

It should be noted the company has carried out several dry runs for cultivation through 2020 by growing hemp from which CBD can be extracted.

The half-cousin of weed, hemp lacks the psychoactive chemical THC that makes users feel high, but in most other respects is identical to farm.

The plan going forward is to switch to THC production and ramp-up to full phase-one capacity by this time next year, which would see it producing 6,500kg of flower annually.

The first shipment, meanwhile, could be ready within three months of planting.

A potential US100bn market

Cannabis Advisory, an investor and adviser of early-stage cannabis companies, believes the global industry could grow to over US$100bn of annual revenues in the next three to four years from US$20bn currently.

Helping drive that expansion will be the rise of the European producers, distributors and retailers.

Ultimately, Chrystal reckons cannabis could become as big as the drink and tobacco sectors.

What that means at a more granular level is todays start-ups could very quickly become tomorrows multinationals.

You only have to look at the rise of likes of Canopy Growth and Tilray to realise this can happen  even if the business model is likely to differ between Europe and North America.

First mover advantage

There are multiple, multi-billion-dollar valued cannabis companies in Canada and the US.

On that basis, first movers in Europe, which has twice the population of North America, have the potential to do very well as do the shareholders, insiders at Northern Leaf point out.

The early signs are promising for the business, which has a clear path to significant revenue generation and early profitability, and it sits in a strong position to become a leading cannabis player in Europe.

Clear blue water has been put between it and potential competition by securing that all-important Home Office-sanctioned licence, with GMP accreditation for its greenhouse facilities also in the works.

All this, and the sunshine climate of Jersey, underlines Northern Leafs potential ahead of its listing on the LSE where recent the listing of MGC Pharma ( ) and Kanabo ( ) have has impressive public market debuts.

For further information on Northern Leaf and its pre-IPO round, please contact:

Northern Leaf - katie.sheltoninnes@northern-leaf.com

Cannabis Advisory  NL@chrystalcapital.com
PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has urged his Zanu PF party to bury the Nelson Chamisa-led MDC Alliance by wresting all urban councils from the opposition and reclaim its former dominance in the country by winning the 2023 elections at all costs.

Addressing the first politburo meeting of the year at the Zanu PF headquarters in Harare yesterday, Mnangagwa attacked MDC Alliance, which he said should be voted out of all local councils because it had failed to deliver basic services.

It has become obvious to all our people that the opposition-led councils have failed to deliver services to our people, we must vote them out of these councils, Mnangagwa said.

Our people have suffered long enough and we must deliver a better quality of services by taking over these councils.

Mnangagwa made the call while addressing a gathering that exceeded 30 people in violation of the lockdown restrictions he put in place since the start of the year.

On Monday, Mnangagwa extended the lockdown measures by another two weeks and extended the ban on all social gatherings with the exception of funerals where only 30 mourners will be permitted.

Mnangagwas remarks came at a time his government is being accused by the MDC Alliance of using State apparatus, especially the Special Anti-Corruption Unit in the Presidents Office to sabotage the operations of opposition-run local councils.

Currently, the Harare City Council is operating without a town clerk, mayor or deputy after most of the top council officials were arrested and suspended from office for alleged corruption. Council has failed to convene full council meetings after the recall of councillors by the MDC-T, a move observers say has Zanu PF footprints.

Zanu PF has been performing well in rural constituencies during the last elections, but has failed to regain control of urban areas since the formation of the MDC in 1999.

The opposition has also been struggling to make inroads into rural constituencies due to intimidation by war veterans most of whom have benefited from Zanu PFs patronage system such as the land reform programme.

Since Mnangagwa took over Zanu PF leadership in November 2017 coup, he has shown greater determination to destroy Chamisa, who nearly edged him out in the controversial 2018 general elections. His party has been accused of destabilising the operations of opposition-led councils through Local Government minister July Moyo to justify the appointment of caretaker commissions to run the local authorities so as to destroy the MDC Alliance stranglehold on power.

Zanu PF has accused the MDC Alliance of shady deals involving land to finance its operations, an allegation the opposition party denies.

Mnangagwa urged his party to work towards reclaiming urban support while claiming that Zanu PF was moving the nation towards economic prosperity as the opposition is consigned to the dustbins of politics.

In all that we do, let us remain focused towards a resounding victory in 2023 elections and reclaim dominance in all the countrys provinces including urban areas, Mnangagwa said.

The President told his party that it should stop playing to the gallery by running to the media with internal party matters. We will not be deterred or distracted by sideshows and divisive elements, Mnangagwa said.

However, MDC Alliance deputy spokesperson Clifford Hlatywayo said Mnangagwa was to blame for the poor performance of local authorities as they did not exist in a vacuum.

The performance of local authorities is subject to the performance of the national economy. Mnangagwa has failed to run the country and it is him who should go, Hlatywayo said.

Right now, Harare for two consecutive years, has been working without a budget after the minister refused to approve. Mnangagwas government has taken money for roads realised through vehicle licensing from councils. How are councils going to repair the roads?

On water, government, thorough the Zimbabwe National Water Authority has the mandate to construct water sources and as of water treatment, it is not the MDCs fault that they have monopolised the production of water treatment chemicals, which has made it difficult for councils. Newsday
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The U.S. Small Business Administration said that new SBA borrowers between now and the end of September will get three months of payment relief--up to $9,000 per month--instead of six months. The move is due to budgetary constraints, according to the SBA announcement. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act allocated $3.5 billion for these payments, which the SBA believes will not cover six months of payments.

Limiting growth incentives is not sound economic policy, and in the next federal stimulus bill, Congress should add funds to this program. We must create stimulus and incentives for companies to invest, hire, and grow. To put the $3.5 billion budget into context, the second round of the PPP budget is $284 billion and $125.8 billion has been used so far.

The Paycheck Protection Program is helping struggling businesses get over the hump of Covid-19, and this is critical. And also not enough. We must also help emerging and growing businesses expand.
If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email us

We also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom.
Faced with difficult decisions: Physicians must repeatedly assess the risk that people with diseases such as COVID-19 could die. In the future, the Covews algorithm could support them. It is intended to help ensure that treatment can be adjusted in time. Credit: patrikslezak

Estimating the risk of patients dying is arguably one of the most difficult and stressful challenges physicians face. This has been especially true in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic, with doctors around the world repeatedly confronted with difficult decisions. In the best of cases, they have been able to adjust treatments and save lives. In the worst case scenario, however, physicians have to allocate scarce beds and life-saving machines in intensive care units. An international team led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent System has now developed an algorithm and trained it with machine learning methods to help medical professionals with mortality predictions. The algorithm can also be trained to predict mortality risk for other diseases, and thus support physicians in decision-making processes.

While hospital physicians collect a wealth of medical data on their patients, even specialists are often unable to predict whether an illness will lead to a person's death until it is too late to save them. With COVID-19, for instance, advanced age and pre-existing conditions are relevant risk factors for serious disease, but by no means are they the only risks. Oxygen saturation, white blood cell count, and creatinine levels also play a role in health outcomes. "With these parameters, even experienced physicians cannot recognize clear patterns that would allow them to make predictions about mortality risk early enough to adjust treatment accordingly," says Stefan Bauer, research group leader at the Max Planck Institute for intelligent Systems in Tubingen. By recognizing patterns in data, machine learning can provide valuable support.

An international team led by Stefan Bauer of the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems and Patrick Schwab, formerly of Roche, thus developed an algorithm and trained it to predict individual mortality risk for patients with COVID-19 by drawing on the data of thousands of patients around the world. They call the algorithm Covews, which is short for "COVID-19 Early Warning System." In addition to Max Planck scientists from Tubingen and Roche, researchers from Harvard University, Harvard Medical School, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Tubingen University Hospital, and Winterthur Cantonal hospital also contributed to the research project. Their paper "Real-time prediction of COVID-19-realted mortality risk using electronic health records" was published today in Nature Communications.

Predictions with 95 percent sensitivity and nearly 70 percent specificity

Drawing on medical data, Covews can reliably predict a patient's risk of dying up to eight days in advance with a sensitivity of more than 95 percent. This means that in 95 out of 100 cases, the algorithm can detect whether a patient will die unless preventative measures are taken. At the same time, Covews works with a specificity of just under 70 percent for a prediction eight days in advance, meaning that in about 70 out of 100 cases in which death is predicted, the patients ultimately die. In other words, the algorithm sounds a false alarm in only 30 out of 100 cases and is significantly better for shorter time horizons. The algorithm can also be trained to make less sensitive, but more specific predictions. "But detecting all people with a high mortality risk, if possible, is more important than incorrectly predicting a high risk in some," says Stefan Bauer. When the latter occurs, special therapeutic measures could be taken in more patients than necessary to avert presumed death.

To develop and especially to train Covews, the researchers used 33,000 anonymized data records from a cohort called Optum, which tracks patients in various hospitals in the United States. They fed the algorithm information about how several routinely collected patient health parameters evolved over the course of the disease, and whether or not the person died from COVID-19. As a result, Covews learned to identify patterns in the data sets that indicated a high risk of mortality. The international team then tested how accurately Covews estimated this risk on about 14,000 other data sets from the Optum cohort. "However, our algorithm not only predicts mortality risk with a high degree of certainty with data sets from this cohort, but also with data from other hospitals," says Stefan Bauer. The researchers showed this by testing Covews on data from the TriNetX global health network, which includes about 5,000 patients with positive COVID tests in the U.S., Australia, India, and Malaysia. In these test cases in many different hospitals and regions around the world, Covews also predicted mortality risk very sensitively and specifically.

Treatment decisions must always remain in doctors' hands

Although Covews makes reliable predictions, it will likely take quite some time before it is used in practice. "It often takes several years before such new techniques are used in everyday clinical practice," says Stefan Bauer. This is partly because at many hospitals, the available data are not sufficiently structured, making the development of suitable software based on the algorithm particularly challenging. In any case, by making Covews freely available on the internet, the researchers are laying the groundwork for putting the algorithm into practice quickly. Not only could it be used for COVID-19 patients; with the right training, it could also predict mortality risk for other diseases.

Like most predictions using machine learning methods, Covews' predictions are derived from correlations rather than causal relationships. Correlations can be purely statistical, meaning they are not causal. Bauer's team also points out a limitation of Covews' calculations: it is possible that the algorithm predicts treatment discontinuation rather than mortality. In that case, the predictions would not be based on medical facts alone." Medical considerations are not the only factors that play a role in the decision to discontinue treatment," says Stefan Bauer. Religious, cultural or personal attitudes can also lead people to stop undergoing treatment. For example, people may generally reject artificial respiration or refuse to accept life-saving measures out of fear of the long-term consequences of an illness. What's more, family members or friends often have a say in such decisions. "Doctors must thus always decide on treatment measures," says Stefan Bauer. "However, our algorithm can provide insights that people can't derive from the data, and that can help with medical decisions."

Explore further Geisinger researchers find AI can predict death risk

More information: Patrick Schwab et al. Real-time prediction of COVID-19 related mortality using electronic health records, Nature Communications (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications Patrick Schwab et al. Real-time prediction of COVID-19 related mortality using electronic health records,(2021). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-20816-7
HARTFORD  A member of the Latin Kings gang operating out of the Hartford area was sentenced this week to more than seven years in prison on drug and gun charges, according to federal prosecutors.

Judge Kari A. Dooley sentenced Jason Hood Figueroa, 31, to 87 months in prison during a video conference hearing on Wednesday due to the ongoing pandemic. Dooley also sentenced Figueroas prison term to be followed by three years of supervised release.

On Nov. 23, 2020, Figueroa  also known as Hoodie  pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of crack and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

The charges against Figueroa stemmed from an investigation launched by the FBIs Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and Hartford police into the trafficking of drugs and associated violence in the citys South End by alleged members and associates of the Almighty Latin Kings Nation, authorities said.

In December 2019, investigators learned that Figueroa, a member of the Latin Kings, was selling crack cocaine and he had several guns at his Franklin Avenue residence, officials said. From December 2019 through March 2020, law enforcement made six controlled buys of crack from Figueroa, authorities said.

Authorities said Figueroa was shot in the face on Bond Street on March 23, 2020.

As Figueroa recovered from the shooting in the hospital, investigators served a search warrant at his Franklin Avenue residence on April 8, 2020. Authorities said they seized eight guns, several rounds of ammunition and assorted gun paraphernalia.

One of the guns was able to fire shotgun shells and another was a ghost gun with a laser sight, while four other firearms recovered were found to have been reported stolen, according to authorities.

Law enforcement took Figueroa into custody on April 23, 2020. He has been detained since his arrest.

While incarcerated, authorities said, Figueroa was recorded on a prison call discussing retaliation for being shot last March.

Figueroas criminal history includes two state felony gun convictions.
The federal officials measuring the New Orleans Police Department's progress on its sweeping nine-year-old reform agreement dealt a blow Wednesday to City Hall's arguments that the force has fulfilled its goals. They said improvements in key areas are still lagging.

The Police Department has lingering issues with properly supervising, evaluating and promoting officers, the consent decree monitors wrote in their annual report. Problems have also persisted when it comes to following rules meant to safeguard against bias-free searches and arrests, they added.

While the coronavirus pandemic and an unusually active 2020 hurricane season challenged the police and City Hall over the past year, they do not justify the  ongoing noncompliance with many aspects of the consent decree intended to ensure the delivery of constitutional policing to the New Orleans community, the 47-page report said.

The report indicated that the Police Department continues inching closer to fulfilling all of the 492 directives in its consent decree with the U.S. Justice Department. City officials signed the agreement in 2012, in the wake of deadly police violence after Hurricane Katrina and other misdeeds.

Despite the progress, the federal monitors aren't in agreement with City Hall officials who maintain that the Police Department has lived up to its end of the bargain.

Wednesdays report came two months after the city's attorneys filed formal notice telling the Justice Department that the Police Department was in compliance. That notice marked the first step toward asking U.S. District Judge Susie Morgan, who appointed the monitors, to end or narrow federal oversight of an agency that a 2011 Justice Department investigation found was trampling over the citizenrys civil rights.

Morgan has not ruled on City Hall's request. Ending the agreement would save New Orleans a monthly cost of $115,000 for the monitors, along with giving Mayor LaToya Cantrell an important achievement for her re-election campaign this year.

The monitors credited the Police Department for disbanding its proactive patrols this summer following a harsh report that those so-called task forces were poorly supervised and violating numerous policies. They also said the department quickly crafted policies governing the use of tear gas, after the chemical irritant was used against Black Lives Matter protesters near the Crescent City Connection on June 3.

Nonetheless, the consent decrees requirements are intended to prevent events like these from occurring in the first place, and to give the public confidence such events will not occur, said the monitor team, led by Jonathan Aronie.

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In response, the Police Department said the monitors' annual report "does not provide an accurate assessment of the progress that has been made." The agency said it had reached full compliance in three key areas this year: the way it runs recruitment, the training academy and the division that investigates officer misconduct complaints.

We remain committed to sustaining reforms that have already been implemented, said Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson, who added that his department's changes are now studied nationally.

As it has done before, the monitoring team on Wednesday praised the Police Department's progress on implementing the consent decree. The agreement prompted the department to enact use-of-force restrictions and transparency mandates that protesters in many other cities are still taking to the streets to demand.

The monitors also acknowledged the obstacles that New Orleans has faced over the past year. A December 2019 cyberattack hobbled many of City Hall's critical information technology systems. The coronavirus pandemic placed the Police Department on the front lines of the most urgent public health crisis in a century. And five tropical storms or hurricanes hit Louisiana, including Hurricane Zeta, a top-end Category 2 storm that struck New Orleans directly, causing widespread power outages and damaging homes.

Still, the monitors said the police work handling those emergencies would not have been compromised by having supervisors follow procedures and policies to evaluate officers job performances. Yet there were unacceptably low levels of compliance with those evaluation procedures, the monitors said.

A December audit found only 23% of sampled performance evaluations measured whether an officer engaged in safe policing practices, and only 37% measured an officers decision-making skills, the monitors said. Meanwhile, supervisors visited scenes to which they were required to report just 63% of the time, auditors learned.

The monitors also cited issues with following rules meant to ensure that stops, searches and arrests are constitutional. For example, an audit showed only 65% of officers written reports matched video recordings from their body-worn cameras, with the discrepancies ranging from minor errors to inaccurate descriptions of the types of searches that occurred.

Constitutional searches are essential to achieving bias-free policing, a principle that lies at the very heart of the consent decree, the monitors said.

Likewise, the Police Department has known since the consent decrees signing that it needed to overhaul its promotions system, the monitoring team said. But the monitoring team said it didnt receive an acceptable draft plan for how to do that until mid-December.

New Orleans officials said that delay resulted from needing to craft a new promotions process for both the Police and Fire departments simultaneously, according to the monitors. But the monitors still said it was concerning how long it took to deliver a draft plan.

"Today, in many respects, the NOPD is a changed agency from its post-Katrina nadir, the monitors wrote. The monitoring team is proud of the strides the department has made and is hopeful the city and NOPD now complete the job they started."
A New York man was gravely injured after being punched twice in the head outside a Hazleton convenience store Saturday morning.

And, after the knockout the assailant stomped on his head three times while he was unconscious, say Hazleton police.

The assault was captured on video surveillance and assisted police in identifying the attacker as Joshua H. Keziah, 32, Berwick, who has a letter A tattooed on his forehead, court papers say.

Keziah was apprehended Tuesday with assistance from the United States Marshals Fugitive Task Force and Briar Creek Twp. police, who executed a search warrant at his home. He was taken into custody without incident for a felony count of aggravated assault.

Magisterial District Judge Joseph Zola, Hazleton, denied Keziah bail due to the severity of injuries inflicted on the victim and he was brought to Luzerne County Correctional Facility, Wilkes-Barre, where he awaits a preliminary hearing. Hazleton police also charged him in a domestic violence case with felonies for strangulation and aggravated assault and a misdemeanor for reckless endangerment.

Zola denied him bail in that case, too.

According to arrest papers:

Police were called to the shopping plaza at 1003 N. Vine St., near West 22nd Street, around 9:30 a.m. for an unresponsive man. Patrol officers found Frantz J. Orcel, 38, unconscious and bleeding from the head and face. He was taken by ambulance to a hospital.

Video surveillance from a store showed the men arguing outside. That altercation escalated when Orcel put his hands on Keziahs chest. Keziah hit Orcel one time each on both sides of Orcels face, in what police described as a boxers knockout punch.

Orcel collapsed to the pavement and didnt move as Keziah stomped on his head three times. Keziah then moved Orcels arm but it fell limp on his unconscious body. Before leaving, Keziah appears to take a picture of a gravely injured Orcel and then walks south through the parking lot.

The victim, who was released on unsecured bail from jail the day prior for two assault cases pending in Luzerne County Court, was taken to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Hazleton, according to court papers and dockets. Both of those assault cases were investigated by Hazleton police and have April trial dates.

Medical staff at the hospital told police Orcels injuries indicated that he had irreparable brain damage and brain swelling that compromised his breathing and heartbeat. His prognosis at that time showed he wasnt expected to survive.

The assault on Orcel wasnt the only altercation Hazleton police accused Keziah of. That same morning, they said he assaulted a woman during a domestic violence incident, grabbing her by the throat, they said.
This article is part of the Free Speech Project, a collaboration between Future Tense and the Tech, Law, & Security Program at American University Washington College of Law that examines the ways technology is influencing how we think about speech.

Parler, the (until recently) fast-growing social network popular on the far right, re-emerged on Monday after about a month of dormancy. Now users who egged on the insurrection and violence during the Jan. 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol are flocking back to the platform, tooincluding the leader of the Proud Boys and a user who has been charged with threatening members of Congress.

Parler came under heavy scrutiny from the press, law enforcement, and researchers during the presidential transition as election-related misinformation and calls for violence proliferated on the site. Users spread lies about voter fraud and encouraged the insurrectionists who stormed Congress. GPS data (gathered by a hacker through legal means) showed that some members of the platform had even breached the Capitol themselves. Amid the controversy, Parler was hesitant to step up its moderation, and continued to market itself as a neutral town square in contrast to Twitter and Facebook, which had booted President Donald Trump after he incited the riot as well as members of the QAnon conspiracy theory.

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On Jan. 10, Amazon removed Parler from its cloud services for failing to moderate violent content on the network. John Matze, a co-founder of Parler, claimed earlier this month that he was fired as CEO by conservative donor Rebekah Mercer, who controls the companys board, after pushing for the platform to crack down on domestic terrorists and violence. Mark Meckler, founder of the Tea Party Patriots group, is serving as the interim CEO. Parler was without a cloud host until this week, when the California-based cloud services company SkySilk swooped in to get the platform back online.

Parler has claimed it will monitor violent content on its rebooted site with human and A.I. moderators and will hide posts that attack someone based on sex, sexual orientation, race, or religion with a trolling filter. Users can still click through the filter to view the content, however. SkySilk CEO Kevin Matossian has framed his companys decision to now host Parler as a move to promote free speech.

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An examination of the newly restored Parler reveals that its still a home for accounts that cheered on the Capitol riot. These include Immortal Noble Beard, a self-proclaimed 4th degree Proud Boy and verified user on Parler. On Jan. 6, the account sent out dozens of posts encouraging the rioters that were seen tens of thousands of times. Hang these motherfuckers on the capitol lawn, one post read. DO NOT GO HOME. WE ARE ON THE CUSP OF SAVING THE CONSTITUTION. Stay on the grounds patriots, he wrote in another. He also posted that gaining access to state capitol buildings would be a success and called on rioters to find the traitors and get the rope. Despite multiple reports about his violent rhetoric, the Immortal Noble Beard was back on the platform on Monday, celebrating the return of Parler with a post reading, Tfw the left does everything they can to shut us up and the heroes behind the scenes @parler get the site back up and running so free speech can still live in this world. His posts from Jan 6., however, are not available; Parler wiped everything users posted prior to Monday. The Immortal Noble Beard hasnt sent out any violent posts since then.

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Another verified account belonging to Enrique Tarrio, chairman of the far-right group the Proud Boys, is also back on Parler. A judge banned Tarrio from D.C. before the riot occurred. As the violence was engulfing the Capitol, however, he wrote posts like Dont fucking leave and This is no longer Washington DC This is the City of The People of the United States of America! Come and Take it! He also posted a picture of the QAnon Shaman in the Senate Chamber with the caption Hero. Proud Of Your Boy! and another picture of lawmakers crouching bellow their seats in the House gallery with the caption When the people fear the government, there is tyranny When the government fears the people There is liberty. Tarrios first post after the return of Parler read, We are ALL inevitable. Hands are back on our weapons Lets put in some work!

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An account that participated in potentially law-breaking activity has re-emerged as well. On Jan. 14, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia charged a 58-year-old Texas man named Troy Anthony Smocks in connection with making threats on Parler about the Capitol riot. The threats included that he and others would return to the U.S. Capitol on January 19, 2021, carrying weapons and massing in numbers so large that no army could match them, a press release about the charge read. Smocks threatened that he and others would hunt these cowards down like the Traitors that each of them are, specifically threatening RINOS, Dems, and Tech Execs. The threats issued by Smocks were viewed by other social media users tens of thousands of times. The U.S. attorney also alleged that Smocks used the handle @Colonel007 to send the threats. That account remains on Parler, though it has been set to private.

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Smaller accounts that were cheerleading the insurrectionists are also back online. When will you #wakeupamerica, a user with the handle Rapperjizzle408 posted a couple days after the riot according to Fortune. Your words are no longer saving shit #civilwar is #necessary now! The account is still on the platform but set to private. A user with the handle The Inka Matrix posted around the same time, The only medicine for traitors and Marxists [is] death. The Inka Matrixs account is also back, but the user is now mostly just sending out posts trashing Parler and encouraging followers to instead go to Gab, another free speech social network that is popular among white supremacists. And another QAnon-affiliated account operating under the handle CM_Patriot wrote during the riot, Shut them down Mr. President, try them, hang or shoot them publicly, the traitors, thieves, and perverts who have taken our great, blessed, country hostage. The first post the account sent out on Monday read, good to see Parler again.

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Parler did not respond to Slates requests for comment on these accounts.

Parler originally went down after services it relied on to operate pulled their business. Before Amazon Web Services cut it off, the network was booted from Apple and Googles app stores. Web-infrastructure services like AWS and Cloudflare dont typically participate in content moderation actions, though it can happen in some extreme situations, as was the case with the notorious imageboard 8chan. SkySilk is well aware that Parler has received an aggressive response from those who believe their platform has been used as a safe haven for some bad actors, Matossian, SkySilks CEO, told NPR. Let me be clear, SkySilk does not advocate nor condone hate, rather, it advocates the right to private judgment and rejects the role of being the judge, jury, and executioner.

Matossian also said he believes that Parler is taking the necessary steps to monitor content.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
Tamil Nadu: Coast Guard rescues five fishermen off Karaikal

February 18,2021 | Source: The Hindu

The Indian Coast Guard Region (East) on Wednesday rescued five fishermen in distress at sea after their boat was stranded 205 nautical miles east of Porto Nova, Karaikal coast, due to an engine breakdown. The Andaman and Nicobar-registered fishing boat, Madhana Sea Foods , was reported to be in distress. A sea-air coordinated rescue operation was swiftly launched. A Coast Guard Dornier aircraft was launched and ICGS Annie Besant sailed from Chennai to undertake a search and rescue operation. Additionally, the International Safety Net was activated to alert passing merchant vessels in the area about the stranded vessel, a Defence press release said. The ICG aircraft located the vessel and ICGS Annie Besant undertook damage control to arrest flooding in the engine room of the boat and towed the boat to safety.

 2021, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD.
(@FahadShabbir)

Greece and the United States are discussing possible changes to the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement (MDCA), expected to be approved this fall, Greek Foreign Ministry spokesperson Alexandros Papaioannou told reporters at a briefing

ATHENS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) Greece and the United States are discussing possible changes to the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement (MDCA), expected to be approved this fall, Greek Foreign Ministry spokesperson Alexandros Papaioannou told reporters at a briefing.

"Amendments are under discussion with the US side, negotiations are still ongoing, foreign ministers are also involved in the discussion. We hope that negotiations will be over in the nearest future and the deal will be signed this fall during a personal meeting," Papaioannou said in response to a question concerning the new agreement on US military bases.

The spokesperson did not share any further details of the deal, stating that it concerns only the two negotiating sides and should not be made public. As for a personal visit by Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias to Washington, it is not on the agenda at the moment due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.

Papaioannou also added that modern US military bases are not the same as during the Cold War and operate within a different framework.

Athens signed the MDCA with Washington in October 2019. The agreement enables the US to use facilities in Larissa, Stefanovikio and Alexandroupoli, expand its Souda Bay naval base and use any military facility on the Greek territory with the government's approval. Prior to signing the MDCA, the US operated only one military base in Greece Souda Bay in Crete, one of Greece's largest islands.

In his address to the parliament in October 2020, Dendias notified of the government's intentions to expand the defense agreement or sign a new one with the US. This was later confirmed by Greek Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos in his interview with the Proto Thema newspaper on February 1, where he said that Greece and the US were already preparing amendments to the MDCA.

According to the media, the US proposed extending the agreement for five years. Currently, it must be renewed every year by the parliament. In addition, the two countries discuss possibilities for opening three more US military bases in Greece in Kavala, on the island of Karpathos and on the island of Skyros.

Minister of Education Sorin Cimpeanu on Wednesday discussed with the representatives of the trade unions in the field, during a meeting organized at the Government by Prime Minister Florin Citu, about the salaries of the education staff, the need to urgently vaccinate the education staff and the measures meant to reform the education system through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, according to AGERPRES.

"The Government representatives underscored that funding and reform of the education system is a priority and all measures to be taken are in line with the common interest in solving chronic problems in the education system. The Prime Minister showed he is ready for a constructive dialogue in order to identify the best solutions adjusted to the existing realities, in response to the multiple problems existing in the education system," showed a press release of the Ministry of Education.

Among the conclusions of the discussions are: understanding the importance of a motivating salary in the education system, including through differentiation based on performance criteria, as well as through other salary rights (bonuses or vouchers); the need to speed up the vaccination process of the educational staff; the percentage of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan allocated to education will certainly be higher than 3pct, according to the needs and importance of education reform.
H-E-Bs in San Marcos will reduce their store hours due to inclement weather. The stores will close at 7 p.m. on Feb. 14-15.
Kolkata, Feb 18 (UNI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday visited State Minister Jakir Hossain, who was undergoing treatment at SSKM Hospital, while the state government handed over the investigation to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Hossain was seriously injured after unidentified people hurled bomb at him at Nimtita in Murshidabad district last night.

At least 26 people sustained injuries in the bomb attack at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad.

All the 12 of the 26 patients, who were critical, are being shifted to SSKM Hospital in Kolkata.

Eight injured, including Hossain, have already been admitted, while four others are on their way.

The condition of the Minister is reportedly stable now. He is conscious and has suffered skin, tissue and bone injuries.

Meanwhile, the state CID takes over the case where the state Minister got injured and investigation is underway at Nimtita railway station.

The Minister along with his party workers was waiting at platform no 2 of the station to take train to Kolkata at around 10 pm last night when he was attacked.

Hossain suffered serious injuries on his leg and at least two other persons who were with him also injured in the attack after unidentified attackers hurled crude bombs at him.

According to eyewitness, Hossain sustained severe injuries on his left limbs.

Among the TMC party workers who are injured, some may even need amputation, said a doctor.

While there have been instances of MLAs being targeted and killed this is the first occasion in recent times that a Minister of the State government has been attacked publicly in the state.

Hossain, who was earlier in the Congress joined the TMC and won the Jangipur assembly seat in 2016.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal condemned the attack and said, "I condemn the dastardly bomb attack at Nimtita Railway Station in West Bengal. My prayers are for the quick recovery of the injured."

Trinamool Congress Murshidabad district president Abu Taher Khan said Hossain was rushed to the Jangipur government hospital and after initial treatment, he was shifted to a Kolkata hospital.

Khan accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of carrying out the attack.

However, BJP state president Dilip Ghosh dismissed the allegation saying Murshidabad has become a haven for criminals.

The minister could be a victim of infighting in the TMC prior to the assembly polls, he said.

Congress state president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Hossain is a very honest and hardworking businessman who worked hard to establish his career.

"I have heard of infighting in the TMC. Only a police investigation can unearth the truth. I demand a thorough probe and arrest of the culprits, he added.

UNI BM AND
The great Rush Limbaugh is gone. Even though its been inevitable for a year, it is still shocking. Rush was a true original and had a supersonic career by any measure you can think of. In addition to the obvious, he launched the careers of Sean Hannity and Mark Levin, and inspired dozens of others. He impacted elections, notably the midterm thrashing Democrats received in 1994. He first saved AM radio, then saved FM radio. That is not an overstatement. He almost saved Donald Trumps second term, which would have been a spectacular swan song.

Rush is awarded the Medal of Freedom (YouTube screengrab)

Now we have Joe Biden, the cancel culture, and pod casts. Who knows if America or radio will ever be saved? Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, what many American Thinker readers surely remember -- but which some new readers probably do not realize -- is that this website had an extraordinary relationship with The Rush Limbaugh Show for a number of years. This was primarily during some very important events in our nation's history, including the run up to the 2008 Obama-McCain Election, the rise of Sarah Palin, Obamas first term, the Obamacare debate, the rise of the Tea Party movement, and the beginning of the 2011 Primary Season to name a few.

During part of that time, American Thinker was arguably the most quoted website in Rushs lineup. Editor in Chief Thomas Lifson has some insight into why and how that started, and it is part of a remarkable series of events that led to a second and even more exceptional behind the scenes relationship between Rushs show and American Thinker.

I was blessed to be very involved in the second part of that relationship, but make no mistake, it was Lifson engineering that first relationship that brought me to American Thinker in the first place. For those who dont know, Thomas Lifson is well connected and well regarded far beyond what his under the radar public profile would indicate. Ill let him decide whether to ever expand on that or not. The fact is, he gained the trust of someone who worked with Rush, and with that, numerous American Thinker authors rode that trust and got quoted to 20 million people, many of whom came on over to AT on the web as a result.

From Rushlimbaugh.com 2009

Theres nothing quite like being featured on Rushs show. Nothing. His show is center court of conservative thought.

I wanted to be part of that, and after being too involved in business for 15 years and letting my political writing go dormant, it was Rushs regular use of American Thinker articles that prompted me to start writing again and to submit to AT in the first place. You see, I had this silly notion that Rush might relate to my style of humor, aggressive counterintuitive use of analogy and my confident, er, arrogant style. The problem was, I knew this about Rush after listening since 1988 -- but Rush didnt know a damned thing about Edmund.

So Thomas, I admit it. I looked at AT as my ticket to Rushs Show. Guilty as charged. But you knew that.

It took a while to gain Lifsons trust, which was rather insulting to me at the time, but I understand the reason for it. Finally, on March 14th, 2008, Lifson let an article of mine slip by, into the blog section. Thank goodness Rushs prep assistant didnt let it slip by. The piece was based on my theory that Jeremiah Wright was a valid campaign issue in 2008 because Obama had specifically chosen him as pastor to burnish his black street cred, which was nonexistent after years in Hawaii, Kansas and Harvard. Rushs opening monologue of that day featured the piece.

That led to Fox News Sunday talking about Rush Limbaughs black street cred theory a few days later. Thanks to the amazing reach and impact of Rush, American Thinker was impacting the national conversation. Only El Rushbo could deliver that kind of influence.

For three more amazing years, numerous American Thinker authors got that thrill of being cited by Rush for their work. This also set in motion an amazing series of back channel events regarding the ties between El Rushbo and AT, a channel that I was hip deep in into March 2011.

At an appropriate time, perhaps Thomas Lifson will allow me to share some more of this little-known story. As for today, we toast the amazing Rush Limbaugh, mourn his death, celebrate his Salvation, and recognize his profound impact on this nation and conservatives everywhere. I am humbled and honored to have been part of the American Thinker story, and a tiny part of the Rush Limbaugh story, since 2008.

Edmund Wright is a long-time contributor to American Thinker, Breitbart, Newsmax, Talk Radio Network, and yes, The Rush Limbaugh Show. He is also author of numerous political books.
A study of over 1,700 U.S. young people exposed to four major hurricanes found that just a few of them reported chronic stress, and the trajectories among most youth reflected recovery or low-decreasing post-traumatic stress (PTS) symptoms, according to research recently published in JAMA Network Open.

Titled "Trajectories of Post-traumatic Stress in Youths After Natural Disasters," the inquiry, conducted from August 2017 to August 2020, combined data from four studies of youths ages six to 16 who attended schools near the respective destructive paths of Hurricanes Andrew (1992), Charley (2004), Ike (2005) and Katrina (2008), from three to 26 months following the disasters. Fifty-four percent of the subjects were female, and 46 percent identified as White non-Hispanic.

Utilizing the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Indexes developed by the University of California, Los Angeles to assess PTS, and latent class growth analyses to evaluate the participants' symptom trajectories and associated factors, 10 percent registered as "chronic," while 23 percent were considered "recovery," 33 percent were classified as "moderate-stable," and 34 percent were "low-decreasing." Female and younger youths among the subjects tended to experience more severe PTS symptom trajectories.

The findings also suggest that youth with "chronic" or "moderate-stable" trajectories may benefit from post-disaster intervention.

"These findings may guide policy makers to effectively implement `stepped care' after a disaster, where the most effective yet least resourced intensive treatment is delivered to youths first, and escalating services are only implemented as clinically required," said lead author Betty S. Lai, Ph.D., the Buehler Sesquicentennial Assistant Professor Chair in the Department of Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology at Boston College's Lynch School of Education and Human Development. "The results also highlight the need for health surveillance systems after disasters, since many youths reported elevated PTS symptoms."

###

In addition to Lai, study co-authors were Annette M. LaGreca, Ph.D. (University of Miami); Ahnalee Brincks, Ph.D. (Michigan State University); Courtney A. Colgan, M.A. (Boston College); Michelle P. D'Amico, M.P.H. (Georgia State University); Sarah Lowe, Ph.D. (Yale); and Mary Lou Kelley, Ph.D. (Louisiana State University).
Union Agriculture Minister



on Thursday said the Centre is still willing to talk to the farmers protesting against the three farm laws.

Addressing a press conference here, he said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said in Parliament that the government is willing to discuss the three acts clause-by- clause.

"We are regularly in touch with the protesting farmers. The Government of India is ready to discuss the acts clause- by-clause," Tomar said.

When asked specifically if the centre is still willing to talk to the agitating farmers, who have been on borders of Delhi for nearly three months, the minister replied in affirmative.

He, however, did comment on when the talks are likely to resume between the two sides.

Tomar also informed the media that the budget for the next fiscal has proposed a number of schemes for the welfare of the farming community of the country.

After the 10th round of talks in January end in which the centre proposed to keep the new agri laws in abeyance for 1.5 years, which was not accepted by the agitating farmers, no further talks have taken place between the two sides.

Farmers leaders are insisting on repeal of the three farm laws and observed countrywide "rail Roko" stir during the day in support of their demands.

With the expected to go to polls in March-April this year in which the opposition parties are all set to make farmers agitation an election issue, Tomar was in the poll- bound state to count virtues of the new agri legislations to the cultivators.

(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.)

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Martha Kalifatidis may be shy around the paparazzi.

But the Married At First Sight star, 32, turned plenty of heads on Wednesday as she picked up a take-away meal in Sydney's Bondi Beach.

Martha appeared to go braless in a flimsy white singlet as she sashayed down the street carrying a laptop and iced coffee.

Nipping out! Married At First Sight star Martha Kalifatidis (right, with a friend) turned plenty of heads on Wednesday as she picked up a take-away meal in Sydney's Bondi Beach

She covered up her shapely pins in a pair of baggy black trackpants, and concealed her gaze behind acetate sunglasses.

The redhead, who has previously compared herself to Kim Kardashian, appeared to show her support for Kim's husband Kanye West by wearing $500 Yeezy slides.

She completed her look with a black Louis Vuitton handbag worth about $5,000.

Turning heads: The influencer, 32, appeared to go braless in a flimsy white singlet as she sashayed down the street carrying a laptop and iced coffee

The former makeup artist picked up two soups and a container of mashed potato from the restaurant, before jumping into a car and driving to a home in Randwick.

Martha made headlines earlier this week when she complained about being photographed by the paparazzi.

During an interview with Shameless, she said that living in Bondi Beach - Sydney's paparazzi hotspot - means she's always looking over her shoulder.

Expensive taste! She completed her look with a Louis Vuitton handbag worth about $5,000

However, her attitude is rather perplexing given that major Hollywood stars such as Hugh Jackman have been able to cultivate a friendly and professional relationship with photographers in Bondi over the years.

'I hate being papped more than anything,' she confessed.

'Do you want to know how many times I've actually swam in the beach? Because there are paps there, a very limited amount of times.'

Martha went on to complain about a recent paparazzi set which she said made her look like a 'swamp monster'. In reality, she looked perfectly fine.

'I hate it more than anything': In a recent chat with the Shameless podcast, Martha revealed her least favourite thing about being famous is 'getting papped' in public
Remittances transferred to HCM City last year reached a record US$6.1 billion, an increase of 12 per cent year on year.

The amount of overseas remittances to Viet Nam has increased significantly, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.  Photo tuoitre.vn

According to the deputy director of the HCM City branch of the State Bank of Viet Nam, Nguyen Hoang Minh, the figure was much higher than expected US$5.5 billion, especially considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Remittance companies said the amount increased as the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday approached. Since many Vietnamese overseas could not return for the holiday, they chose to send remittances.

The deputy general director of Dong A Remittance Company, Vu Thanh Trung, said the remittance rate in January reached over US$150 million.

The main overseas remittance markets of Viet Nam remain the US, Australia and Canada. Some remittances also come from labour export markets such as Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia and South Korea.

Representatives of some remittance companies said that several countries have recently tightened control of money transfer abroad, making it challenging for the companies to attract remittances to Viet Nam.

Customers familiar with remittances prefer to continue to receive cash in foreign currencies. However, due to the pandemic, it is now more convenient to receive money via bank accounts, and customers are thus encouraged to use this method.

Recently, MoneyGram International, Inc., a global company focusing on cross-border remittance transfers and peer-to-peer (P2P) payments, began working with Visa, an electronic payment technology company, to deploy fast P2P money transfer in Viet Nam.

Customers now can use the MoneyGram website or mobile applications to immediately transfer money to Visa cardholders in Viet Nam.

Visa requires banks that help pay remittances to process the transaction within a maximum of 30 minutes after accepting the transaction.

Customers can transfer up to $2,500 per transaction and $10,000 per day. From now until the end of June 30, customers can make international transactions from abroad to domestic Visa debit cards free of charge.

According to the World Bank, the total amount of global remittances last year fell by 7 per cent. Of the total, remittances to Viet Nam were estimated at about $15.7 billion. Viet Nam was listed among the top 10 countries receiving the most remittances.  VNS
Astronomers from the Gaia Data Processing and Analysis Consortium have made public the first part of the third major data release from the European Space Agencys Gaia spacecraft. The findings, published or being reviewed in a series of papers in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, accurately mapped the position of 1,811,709,771 stars in our Milky Way galaxy, including the distances from Earth and relative motions of 1,467,744,818 of those stars.

Artists conception of the Gaia spacecraft as it maps the Milky Way. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab; background: ESO/S. Brunier

In short, the Gaia mission has provided the best map of the Milky Way to date, a tool which will be used in every field of astronomy. The spacecraft has provided both a trove of data that will be studied for years, as well numerous jumping off points for further research.

The specific findings of this data release were to explore the edge of the Milky Way, measure shifts in the Solar Systems orbit around the center of the galaxy, provide an updated census of nearby stars, and further characterize the two satellite galaxies of the Milky Way, the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. The third release also improves the accuracy and precision of the measurements over the second release.

Gaia was designed by the European Space Agency (ESA) and is operated by a team of more than 2,500 people from 15 countries. It launched on December 19, 2013 from the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana and sits at the Earth-Sun Lagrange point 2, a point behind Earth from the perspective of the Sun where the gravitational forces of the two bodies are canceled out. This creates a very stable location for a space-based observatory to do precision work, a requirement for Gaia.

The orbit has the added benefit of minimizing fuel usage. The spacecraft is expected to run out of propellant to adjust itself as needed in late 2025, the effective end to its mission.

The latest Gaia release maps almost double the 1 billion stars of the missions original goal, roughly 1 percent of all stars in our galaxy. To do this, Gaia was designed to be able to pinpoint object that are 400,000 times fainter than can be seen with the human eye. To make their measurements as accurate as possible, researchers made at least 70 observations of presumed stars before including them in their data.

A visual summary of Gaias Early Data Release 3. Credit: ESA; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO

The mission is the successor to the ESA Hipparcos mission, which operated from 1989 to 1993. The spacecraft name is an acronym (HIgh Precision PARallax COllecting Satellite) but also a reference to Hipparchus of Nicaea, the ancient Greek astronomer who is credited with founding trigonometry and incidentally discovering the precession, or change, in Earths spin axis. Hipparcos was the first satellite dedicated to the field of astrometry, the accurate measurement of the position and motion of astronomical objects. The final Hipparcos Catalogue was published in 1997 and contained positions and distances for more than 118,200 stars.

Gaia was first proposed during the last year of the Hipparcos mission, given that a follow-up study would be necessary to further probe the Milky Way. It took another 13 years before the project was finally authorized, and another seven before it was built and launched. Overall, the mission has, during the 15 years since it was approved, cost about 740 million, one-fiftieth of the current annual military budget of Germany alone.

To understand the importance of mapping the Milky Way today, an analogy can be made to the importance of mapping Earth over the course of hundreds of years. Exploratory voyages such as those undertaken by Ferdinand Magellan (15191522) and James Cook (17681799) revolutionized the understanding of Earth, bringing distant civilizations closer together. Today, highly accurate maps of our planet from orbiting satellites provide invaluable knowledge about the past, present and future of our home world.

Similarly, the difficult but seemingly mundane task of mapping stars provides a wealth of knowledge from the physical signatures that hide in such data. There are three main characteristics of a star, position, distance and color, from which these signatures emerge.

The future position of nearly 75,000 stars cataloged by Gaia are shown here in three different views. Credit: ESA/Gaia/DPAC; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO; S. Payne-Wardenaar, S. Jordan, C. Reyle and Smart et al. (2020)

The position and color of a star are in principle relatively easy to record. If one can overcome the blurring effects of Earths atmosphere on a telescope and keep the temperature and gravitational forces on the optics constant, all of which are achieved by putting a telescope in space, one can get extraordinarily precise measurements of stellar positions. Gaia was designed to overcome terrestrial limitations, and in doing so has produced its latest map of more than 1.8 billion stars.

In the same vein, a spectrometer, which finds the colors of light (the wavelengths) being emitted from a given object, is much more accurate when boosted above Earths atmosphere on a satellite. Once the wavelengths of light being emitted are known, one can derive a stars temperature and mass. Of the 1.8 billion stars it mapped, Gaia measured the brightness in red and blue light of more than 1.5 billion.

Distance and motion are much harder to calculate given how far away these stars are. Astronomers use the parallax method, measuring the change in the position of astronomical objects as compared to their background when Earth is on opposite sides of its orbit around the Sun. By observing these minuscule shifts, and employing the trigonometry of Hipparchus, one can determine the distance to an object without needing to travel interstellar distances. (This effect can be observed by holding up a finder against a static background, and using first one eye, then the other.)

This process is further complicated by the fact that every celestial body is always in motion, and as such there is no such thing as a truly static background. To compensate, the spacecraft also collected light from 1.6 million extragalactic sources to provide multiple absolute frames of reference, using very bright and distant objects known as quasars. In doing so, Gaia found the distances from Earth and motion through the Milky Way of more than 1.4 billion of the stars it mapped.

As an added benefit, this map of quasars is the largest ever produced. Quasars are a form of active galactic nuclei in which much of their energy is generated from the accretion of matter by supermassive black holes in their centers. Because so much of their energy is emitted in such a small area, they serve as very pinpoint distant beacons to calibrate any mapping scale. The quasar data published in the third data release, three times the amount from the second data release, is being used to study these supremely energetic objects.

Quasars aside, with the position, distance and temperature of a star, a great deal of physics and astronomy can be done, the most important of which is calibrating what is known as the cosmic distance ladder.

The position and color of every star imaged by Gaia were used to create this map of the entire sky. The galactic center is in the middle of the image, with the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds below the galactic plane. Credit: ESA/Gaia/DPAC; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO; A. Moitinho

There are many methods one can use to estimate the distances to certain objects. Parallax is the only known direct method, and thus the basis for all other measurements. Other indirect measurements generally look for ways to infer the absolute brightness of a star, compare that to the apparent brightness, or magnitude, as seen from Earth, and then derive a distance. RR Lyrae variables and Cepheid variables, for example, are stars which periodically change brightness, and have a well defined relationship between their luminosity and how often their brightness changes. Type Ia supernovae are the result of white dwarf stars accreting matter up to a very specific mass, then exploding with known intrinsic luminosity in a spectacular event that can be seen across the cosmos.

Because the brightness of the variable stars and type 1a supernovae can be known without knowing the distance to these stars, they are known as standard candles. The term was coined by astronomer Henrietta Swan Leavitt for all astronomical objects that have a known intrinsic brightness, from which the distance to them can be determined.

Another method is to use the different wavelengths of light emitted from a star to estimate its mass, age and composition, which in turn can be used to estimate a given stars actual brightness. This method is most often used on the Hyades cluster, which appears in the constellation Taurus. The Hyades are a group of about 100 stars, all gravitationally bound to each other and with roughly the same age, place of origin and chemical composition. Thus astronomers can use the light from each individual star to estimate the distance to the cluster as a whole, which has been calculated to be about 153 light years away.

And since the Hyades are the closest cluster to Earth, they have long been a target for parallax measurements, though the uncertainty in those measurements was very high. Such errors were reduced to 6 percent by Hipparcos and reduced by a further two orders of magnitude by Gaia, confirming that the Hyades are 153 light years away.

This video is a three-dimensional view of the Hyades cluster using information from the missions second data release from the ESAs Gaia satellite. Credit: ESA/Gaia/DPAC; CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO

Such correlations form the rungs of the cosmic distance ladder. The light from Cepheid variables in a distant galaxy can be compared to the light from a type Ia supernova in that same galaxy. A type Ia supernova in a closer galaxy can be compared to the light from RR Lyrae stars in that second galaxy. And RR Lyrae stars in the Milky Way can be compared to the Hyades, or perhaps directly measured by parallax.

Thus, distances across the cosmos are known if the parallax to nearby stars can be measured. In that sense, the Gaia spacecraft is not just a tool to map the Milky Way galaxy, as impressive as that is: it also provides a new and immensely improved baseline for mapping the entire Universe.

Such a map is necessary for many fields of research in astrophysics and cosmology. Cepheid variables, for example, are not just one way to measure distances to galaxies, they are also used to measure the speed at which galaxies are moving apart from each other. Detailed knowledge of the distance and temperature of so many stars provides a better understanding of the history of the Milky Way, which in turn informs our knowledge of how stars and galaxies everywhere evolve.

Gaia also measured the bending of starlight of thousands of stars that passed, from the spacecrafts perspective, behind the Sun. Like Arthur Eddington in 1919, astronomers used Gaia to test Albert Einsteins general theory of relativity. Gaias observations have again confirmed that general relativity correctly describes the structure of spacetime.

There have been many other achievements of the Gaia mission: measuring the orbits and inclinations of extrasolar planets, revealing that stars are being pulled from the Small Magellanic Cloud to the Large Magellanic Cloud, showing the orbits of nearby stars around the galaxy, uncovering the origin of the warped shape of the Milky Way, and finding which stars were born at the same time and place, even after they have been flung out to different parts of the galaxy, just to name a few. The curious reader is greatly encouraged to explore the full spectrum of what the Gaia team has studied.
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New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Election Commission on Thursday announced bypolls to one Karnataka Legislative Council seat on March 15.

The seat fell vacant after the death of Karnataka Legislative Council Deputy Chairperson S.L. Dharme Gowda (64), who was found dead near a railway track at Gunasagara in Kadur taluk in December last year.

The Commission announced to conduct polling in the constituency on March 15 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The results will be declared after counting of votes on the same day at 5 p.m.

Gowda, who is suspected of committing suicide, passed away on December 28 last year. He was elected as an MLA from the Birur Assembly constituency the term of which was supposed to expire on June 17, 2024.

The Commision also announced other measures to be adopted during the election process under which notification for the polls will be declared on February 25, last date of filinbg nomination will be March 4, scrutiny of nominations will be done on March 5 and the last date for withdrawal of candidatures will be on March 8.

Broad guidelines will be followed during the entire election process for all persons and every person shall wear face masks during every election related activity, the Commission said.

"Thermal scanning of all persons will be conducted at all the entry points. Sanitisers will also be made available at all locations. Social distancing shall be maintained as per the Covid-19 guidelines of the state government and the Ministry of Home Affairs," the poll panel said.

The Chief Secretary of Karnataka has been directed to depute a senior officer from the state to ensure that the extant instructions regarding Covid-19 containment measures are complied with while making arrangements for conducting the election, the Commission added.
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With a flash of recognition, Bogi, a 5-year-old Belgian Malinois, wagged her tail upon seeing her former handler, and knew she was home for good.

Bogi, a retired military dog, was reunited Feb. 16 with her original handler and trainer, Sgt. Angela Cardone of the U.S. Marine Corps at Queen Kapiolani Hotel in Waikiki, thanks to efforts by the nonprofit.

Bogi had been working in Iwakuni, Japan, since the age of 2, where she was trained by Cardone as a narcotics detection dog. They spent about two years working together until Cardone was re-assigned to Honolulu last summer.

This month, Bogi was medically retired due to a broken bone in her neck which prevents her from working or wearing a collar.

After more than a year apart, they were joyfully reunited, and Bogi's new home is now in Honolulu.

American Humane's military program helps cover travel costs and the logistics of reuniting a retired military dog with its former handler for formal adoptiona sometimes expensive and complicated process with a lot of paperwork.

The military adopts out retired dogs, preferably to their former handler, according to Dr. Lesa Staubus, chief veterinary officer of American Humane, but sometimes they are geographically so far apart it can cost a lot.

With the Washington, D.C., nonprofit's help, Bogi flew more than 4, 000 miles across the ocean to reunite with Cardone.

"We do it because we care about animals, " said Staubus, , "but we also do it because we care about our service members and the importance of the human animal bond."

Bogi is still young, and in good health, according to Staubus, and has plenty of years ahead of her as a pet.

Cardone, 22, was still in half disbelief that she would actually get to take Bogi home.

She planned to take Bogi to the pet store to get treats, to grab a puppuccino and eventually introduce her to Oahu's beaches, dog parks and hiking trails.

When it came to doing her job for the military, Bogi was always good, she said, but now she can play.

"I've been looking forward to this, " she said. "She's the sweetest dog you'll ever meet."

This article is written by Nina Wu from The Honolulu Star-Advertiser and was legally licensed via the Tribune Content Agency through the Industry Dive publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
What were looking for are really the patterns and textures where we have a hard time explaining how that could have formed without the influence of life, Katie Stack Morgan, a deputy project scientist at JPL, said before the rovers launch last July atop United Launch Alliances Atlas V rocket. Our bar is high for the identification of a sign of life on another planet, as it should be, because we dont want to make that discovery lightly. But at the same time  I think we also have to open our minds to the possibilities of what life would look like on another planet.
A 33-year-old Bridgeport man has been arrested and accused of selling a pistol to a man who was shot in his Sylvan Beach home, according to New York State Police.

Brian D. Streeter was charged with third-degree criminal sale of a firearm, third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of a firearm and unlawful possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device, police said.

Streeter sold a 9mm P80 pistol with a 30-round magazine to 42-year-old Todd Estes for $600, who was then shot by another man in his home on Feb. 2, police said.

Estes was charged by police for having the gun last week.

The incident happened in the early morning hours during an argument between Estes and Nicholas Damanski, 35. During the argument, Damanski shot Estes in the chest.

Damanski was arrested and charged Feb. 2.

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A 38-year-old man accused of a fatal shooting in New Hampshire has been caught in Massachusetts, authorities said Wednesday.

Timothy Johnson, who is facing a charge of second-degree murder in connection with the Feb. 13 death of Jean Lascelle in Manchester, New Hampshire, was arrested at 12:39 p.m. Wednesday in Framingham, according to the office of New Hampshire Deputy Attorney General Jane E. Young.

Johnson is slated to appear in Framingham District Court on Thursday to face local charges of receiving a stolen motor vehicle, possession of burglarious instruments, unlicensed driving and being a fugitive from justice, Youngs office said in a statement.

Lascelle was shot outside of 351 Chestnut St. in Manchester. On Monday, authorities had asked for the publics help to locate Johnson, saying he was considered to be armed and dangerous.

The United States Marshals and the Framingham Police Department in Massachusetts assisted the Manchester Police Department and the New Hampshire Attorney Generals Office in the investigation and in locating Johnson.
PHOENIX, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Premier Trust, Inc., in its trustee capacity for sophisticated trust services for High-Net-Worth (HNW) clients, today announced it will expand its business development team and number of trust officers and administrators in response to surging demand for intergenerational asset protection and personal trust services. These moves will enhance service to the financial professionals across the wealth management space who are exploring trust services for their clients. Premier Trust is a subsidiary of Advisor Group, the nation's largest network of independent wealth management firms.

Last year, Premier Trust's account originations increased by 39%. The company facilitated nine times as many clients in December 2020 than in the same month in 2019, as clients opened 450 new trusts in the last month of the year. This demand was primarily due to anticipated changes to federal tax codes and expected shifts in regulatory priorities under the Biden Administration that may affect intergenerational wealth planning.

Mark Dreschler, President, CEO and Co-Founder of Premier Trust, said, "Our growth as a provider of trust services for HNW individuals, families and their financial advisors is predicated on a conflict-free approach to finding the right solution for each client situation. As changes in wealth management regulation and tax policy continue to drive a surge in demand for our services, Premier Trust's goal is to provide financial advisors and attorneys around the country with the exceptional level of service that established our leadership in this industry over the past 20 years."

Advisor Group President, Products & Platforms Matthew Schlueter said, "By focusing solely on the administration of trusts versus competing against financial advisors for asset management or wealth management services, Premier Trust provides incredible value to financial advisors throughout the wealth management space. Premier Trust, as an 'advisor friendly trustee,' assists financial professionals to better understand this vital tool as part of their clients' long-term planning."

Allison Pratt, EVP National Sales & Consulting at Advisor Group, added, "Asset management is becoming commoditized. Our financial professionals continue to expand the set of services they provide to their clients to create more comprehensive, advice-centered businesses. The ability to leverage a firm like Premier Trust as an extension of Advisor Group's advanced sales support is a game changer for us."

About Premier Trust, Inc.

Premier Trust is a Nevada chartered trust company providing independent administrative trustee services to clients across the nation seeking to benefit from Nevada's favorable trust, corporate, asset protection and tax laws. Premier Trust administers trusts, and does not manage investments or provide legal advice. For more information, please visit https://premiertrust.com/.

About Advisor Group

Advisor Group, Inc. is the nation's largest network of independent wealth management firms, serving approximately 11,100 financial professionals and overseeing over $450 billion in client assets. The firm is mission-driven to support the strategic role that advisors can play in the lives of their clients. Cultivating a spirit of entrepreneurship and independence, Advisor Group champions the enduring value of financial professionals and is committed to being in their corner every step of the way. For more information visit https://www.advisorgroup.com.

Securities and investment advisory services are offered through the firms: FSC Securities Corporation, Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., SagePoint Financial, Inc., Triad Advisors, LLC, and Woodbury Financial Services, Inc., broker-dealers, registered investment advisers, and members of FINRA and SIPC. Securities are offered through Securities America, Inc., a broker-dealer and member of FINRA and SIPC. Advisory services are offered through Arbor Point Advisors, LLC, Ladenburg Thalmann Asset Management, Inc., Securities America Advisors, Inc., and Triad Hybrid Solutions, LLC, registered investment advisers. Advisory programs offered by FSC Securities Corporation, Royal Alliance Associates, Inc., SagePoint Financial, Inc., and Woodbury Financial Services, Inc., are sponsored by VISION2020 Wealth Management Corp., an affiliated registered investment adviser. Advisor Group, Inc. is an affiliate of these firms. 20 E. Thomas Rd., Ste. 2000, Phoenix, AZ, 85012. 866.481.0379.

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The Iranian Army Ground Forces missile unit is testing a smart missile with a range of 300 km, Commander of the Iranian Army Ground Force Brigadier General Kiomars Heidari said on February 14 to Fars news agency. This mid-range missile is being tested to assess its precision-striking power, he added.

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The Iranian Army Ground Force on February 14 test-fired its new smart missile with the range of 300km. (Picture source: FNA)

This missile benefits from smart, self-relying pinpointing capabilities and is ready to defend the borders of Iran in different weather conditions, General Heidari said. He underlined the capability of the Army Ground Force to make artillery, rocket launchers and rockets, and said: "We try to make our weapons in this area, firstly smart, secondly automatic, and thirdly with increasingly pin-pointing power.

Last January, the Iranian Army Ground Force for the first time tested the countrys new indigenous electro-optic system, Jalal, during the Eqtedar (Might) 99 wargames along the Makran coasts on the Northern rims of the Sea of Oman, Fars reports. The Army Ground Force tested the electro-optic system in real combat conditions against hypothetical enemy targets. The system, which has been designed and built by experts in the Army Ground Force, can transmit images taken in pitch dark to all remote control and command centers. It can also combine radar and optical data.
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Some Farmers in the northern parts of the country say they will keenly monitor the Vetting Proceedings on Friday when the Minister-Designate for Food and Agriculture, Hon. Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto appears before the House.



The farmers say due to the COVID-19 restrictions which makes it impossible for them to appear in person to give moral support to the nominee, they will spend their time behind their television and radio sets to watch proceedings.



Hon. Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto will on Friday take his turn to appear before Vetting Committee following his renomination as the Minister-Designate for Food and Agriculture.



With many crediting him for reviving Ghana's agricultural sector which until 2017 was in comatose, through the highly successful Planting for Food and Jobs initiative, some beneficiaries in the Upper East, Upper West and the other Northern Regions say they are solidly behind the nominee, expressing optimism that he will sail through the vetting process with ease.



"We are fully confident that our father, 'Dr. Planting for Food and Jobs' will pass the vetting on Friday; he has performed creditably well and we farmers are waiting anxiously for him to come and continue his good works" Alaska Kantong, a member of the Farmer Friends Forum in the Upper West Region stated.



He said the various interventions which were spearheaded by Hon. Dr Afriyie Akoto had improved the lots of many Ghanaian farmers, particularly those in the northern parts of the country whose economic mainstay is farming.



He noted that the group took the news of the renomination of Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto with so much excitement and expressed their appreciation to the President, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo, for the wise decision.



"Initially we were thinking the President would move him to another Ministry but when the news came out that he was returning to the Agric Ministry, we were all very happy," He said.



Mr Alaska Kantong said it was for this reason that he and other members of the Forum in the northern regions of Ghana have resolved to spend their time on Friday at home to watch the vetting process.



"We would have travelled all the way to Accra to give him moral support but unfortunately because of the COVID-19 and the President's directives on mass gathering we cannot do that"

Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Japanese tennis star Osaka Naomi has beaten Serena Williams in two straight sets to advance to the women's singles final at the Australian Open.

Osaka, currently ranked 3rd in the world, faced Williams in the semifinals in Melbourne on Thursday.

Osaka got off to a shaky start, handing a break to the 11th-ranked Williams. But after losing the first two games, Osaka took control with her powerful strokes. She won five games in a row to finally grab the set 6-3.

Osaka maintained her momentum in the second set with her serves and backhands, clinching the set 6-4.

Osaka's 2-0 victory ended William's bid to win another Grand Slam title. She currently holds the record of 23 career Grand Slam titles.

Osaka said she was really nervous and scared at the beginning and made a lot of unforced errors. But she said she decided to have fun because there was a crowd inside the arena.

Spectators were allowed back in from Thursday, after a coronavirus lockdown for Melbourne was lifted the previous day.

Osaka said it's always an honor to play Williams and that she "didn't want to go out really bad." She said she just wanted to do her best.

Osaka will be playing in her second Australian Open final on Saturday. She won the title in 2019.
A Valentine's Day trip landed an Albertville man in the Limestone County jail on charges of traveling to meet a child for sex.

Court records show 21-year-old Mateo Bartone Virves is being held on $40,000 bond.

Athens police arrested him Feb. 14 for trying to meet a 14-year-old Athens girl for sex.
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Greece is poised to reopen borders to arrivals from Russia and several other countries, with the announcement of details and timetables expected within the next two weeks, Tez Tour Greece CEO Dimitris Charitidis told Sputnik on Thursday

ATHENS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) Greece is poised to reopen borders to arrivals from Russia and several other countries, with the announcement of details and timetables expected within the next two weeks, Tez Tour Greece CEO Dimitris Charitidis told Sputnik on Thursday.

"According to the information from the Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourism Organisation, the [Greek authorities] will announce the reopening of borders in the next 10 to 14 days. Naturally, Russia will be among the countries for which Greece will be open," Charitidis said.

With regard to arrivals from Russia, Charitidis said that "all the restrictions will likely be lifted before Easter, which is celebrated on May 2 this year.

"

When borders reopen, Greece will be letting in 500 Russian visitors per week, making the entry conditional upon either a proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test, according to the executive.

Greece does not want to wait until the reopening decision goes through at the European level, which is why it is discussing the lift of travel restrictions with Russia and other countries, such as Israel and the United Kingdom, bilaterally, Charitidis said.

In 2019, around 800,000 Russians visited Greece. Charitidis' expectation is that this number will reach at least 450,000 this year.
Wilkins Hospital in Harare had a flurry of activity Thursday, as Vice President and Health Minister Constantino Chiwenga arrived with his security detail and other government officials to receive the first Covid 19 shot. A shipment of 200K doses of the Sinopharm Vaccine arrived from China on Monday.
Amaravati, Feb 18 : Andhra Pradesh opposition leader and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) national general secretary Nara Lokesh on Thursday alleged that the arrests of some party leaders prove the cowardice of Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.

"The illegal arrests of TDP leaders is synonymous with Reddy's cowardly acts. Because of the fear of defeat in panchayat elections, TDP leaders are being illegally arrested and put behind bars," alleged Lokesh.

The TDP general secretary made these allegations in the light of the alleged arrest of former Denduluru MLA and firebrand TDP leader Chintamaneni Prabhakar.

Calling Prabhakar's arrest illegal, Lokesh condemned the development.

Demanding his immediate release, Lokesh alleged that a dispute occurred between two parties at B. Singavaram but a false case was filed against a person who was not present there.

He warned that some policemen are allegedly behaving like they are wearing Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) uniform and issued a warning to them that they will reap the consequence.

Meanwhile, he referred to the just concluded third phase panchayat elections in the southern state and alleged that the YSRCP cadres have turned it into a battle.

However, he claimed that TDP weathered all those alleged atrocities to win the polls and called that TDP aligned candidates who won the election in these alleged trying conditions as a aBahubali' each.

"Though TDP cadres won fewer victories in the face of Reddy's power and the spectator role played by officials, these are the real victories," claimed Lokesh. Eom/267 words
The Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium will host the citys first 24-hour, walk-up vaccination site Friday through Saturday afternoon at Temple Universitys Liacouras Center.

On a first-come, first-serve basis, Philadelphians who qualify under the citys 1B vaccination category, and who live in zip codes identified by the organization as hardest hit by the coronavirus, can visit the site from noon Friday, Feb. 19, through noon Saturday, Feb. 20, to receive a dose.

Philadelphians ages 75 and up may get vaccinated regardless of their zip code. All other residents must be in the 1B category and must bring an ID or other form of documentation, such as a cable or utility bill, verifying their residency in the following zip codes: 19131, 19151, 19139, 19104, 19143, 19142, 19153, 19145, 19146, 19123, 19121, 19132, 19140, 19144, 19119, 19138, 19126, 19141, 19150, 19124.

Attendees must also bring a form of identification or documentation showing they fall under the 1B category. This includes: first responders, employees and residents of long-term care facilities, food distribution and preparation employees, public transit personnel, child-care providers, teachers, and people with high-risk medical conditions. It also includes employees in high-volume retail and manufacturing.

Most vaccines administered are expected to be first doses, and appointments for second doses will be scheduled on site.

The weather is expected to drop below freezing by the evening, so the consortium founder, Dr. Ala Stanford, said residents should plan accordingly and dress warm. If youre not a cold-weather person, I dont suggest you come out, she said.

She encouraged residents to come during the off-hours if possible to avoid long lines and said that since we will be here late and after work, take the extra effort to bring an elderly or disabled person who needs a ride.

Stanford said there will be multiple lines to divide residents  including one for people receiving a second dose, one for individuals ages 75 and up, another for people in the preregistered group, and one for people who need information in a non-English language. People who preregistered with the consortium should print out their email confirmation, or have it available to show on their phones.

This will be the first overnight clinic and walk-up clinic in the city, as all other vaccination sites are by appointment only. The Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium, a physicians group, has been running testing sites in Black communities for nearly a year and has focused on bringing racial equity to the vaccination process, too

When African Americans have represented more than 50% of deaths from COVID, I think we need to do better, and thats what Im focused on and have been from the beginning, Stanford said.

Stanford said that if the site is successful this weekend, the organization will host more, maybe as often as once a month. She said she hopes that by mid-March, once the group finishes vaccinating all of its preregistered members, it would operate all clinics on a walk-up basis.

I just am trying really hard to keep the vaccine in the city and in the communities where its spread the most, she said.

Stanford said they are specifically vaccinating the 1B group because hospitals and pharmacies have already received vaccines dedicated for people in the 1A group.

Philadelphia has seen vast racial disparities among the vaccine rollout thus far. While more than 40% of Philadelphians are Black, they have received about 20% of the more than 156,000 doses administered in the city, though that number has steadily improved. White people have received about 56% of the citys doses.

Locally and nationally, Black Americans are more likely to be hospitalized and die of COVID-19. But more than 50% of the Black community is skeptical of the vaccine, according to a recent Pew Research Center study, partially due to a legacy of mistreatment by the medical profession.

Last week, the Black Doctors COVID-19 Consortium instituted stricter measures, like requiring proof of residency and medical condition, at its clinics after people who were not at an increased risk of serious illness or death or who didnt live in the communities where the clinics are opening were showing up.

Allowing a walk-up clinic like this one helps us hit our three guiding principles for vaccination: Getting the vaccine out as fast as possible, saving the most lives, and racial equity, said Matt Rankin, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. We have more work to do, but this is one way we are making progress in those areas.

Staff writers Jason Laughlin and Aubrey Whalen contributed to this article.
On Monday, Feeding America and Food Banks Canada both revealed that Ryan Reynolds, 44, and Blake Lively, 33, pledged $500,000 to each organization in support of their COVID-19 response funds.

This is the second time the married couple have donated. The two actors had donated $500,000 to both of these organizations when the coronavirus pandemic began in early last year.

In early 2020, Reynolds posted messages on several social media platforms saying, Covid-19 has brutally impacted older adults and low income families. Blake and I are donating $1 million to be split between FEEDING AMERICA and FOOD BANKS CANADA.

If you can give, these orgs need our help, he continued. Take care of your bodies and hearts. Leave room for joy. Call someone whos isolated and might need connection.

Monday, in a statement released by Feeding America, Reynolds and Lively said, We know the struggles so many of our neighbors faced last year are not over, and we are grateful for the opportunity to help facilitate the important work of food banks across the US and Canada to be able to provide nourishing meals to people in need.

Food Banks Canada also expressed their gratitude for the recent donation saying because the two stars donated, it helped kickstart its COVID-19 response funds.

The organization also said, It was an act that inspired so many Canadians to donate to their local food banks and show their support to their neighbours during these critical times. They ended their tweet by saying You continue to be not only our favourite Canadian, but also our favourite superhero (sorry, Hugh Jackman).

The Deadpool star couldnt resist with a witty response later that day:

Never apologize to Hugh Jackman.  Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) February 16, 2021

It is well-known that Reynolds and actor Hugh Jackman have an ongoing gag in the way of a fake feud going back many years and Food Banks Canada couldnt help stoking the comedic fire.

According to data from Feeding America:

The projected number of food insecure people in 2020 is 50.4 million people, including 17 million children. That is more than 13 million more people suffering from food insecurity now than in 2018.

In its own post on Monday, Feeding America thanked the two stars for being our hunger-fighting dream team:

Thank you, @VancityReynolds and @blakelively

for being our hunger-fighting dream team! Your second $500k gift will make a big difference for people across the country.  pic.twitter.com/QywDAKHXCy  Feeding America (@FeedingAmerica) February 15, 2021

Read more:
By Yang Zhongjie

Foreign media reported that the Biden administration is mending its relation with European allies, which has been seriously boggled by his immediate predecessor, through intensified military cooperation, which may exert significant impacts on the regional security situation.

Biden administration makes constant peace overtures.

According to foreign media reports, the Biden administration has mainly improved US relations with European allies in three ways.

The US actively prepares for the NATO Summit. NATOs press office issued a statement saying that NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg talked with US President Biden over the phone on January 26 and the two leaders agreed to jointly prepare for this years NATO Summit, Russian news agency Sputnik reported on January 27. Stoltenberg congratulated Biden on his election, which he said began a new chapter in the development of the trans-Atlantic Alliance.

The US halts troop withdrawal from Germany. Speaking February 4 at the State Department about the new administrations foreign policy, President Biden said the planned troop pullout from Germany would be halted until Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin does a review of Americas troop presence around the globe. Austin, he said, will ensure that our military footprint is appropriately aligned with our foreign policy and national security priorities.

AP reported that US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin recently spoke by phone with his German counterpart Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, thanking Berlin for taking American troops and hinting that the US might reconsider Trumps order to pull troops from Germany. German officials hoped the Biden administration would cancel the planned troop withdrawal. It is learned that the Pentagon is reviewing their troops global presence to decide which troops should stay in Germany and which should be deployed elsewhere.

The US vows to provide military assistance to Ukraine. The US Department Spokesperson Ned Price released a statement on February 1 saying that Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke by phone with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Kuleba that day, during which he pledged to continue robust economic and military assistance to Ukraine, said a report by Sputnik on February 1. Kuleba responded that the United States can count on Ukraine as a reliable partner in the Black Sea region and in Central Europe, and the two countries have agreed to build a more ambitious strategic partnership.

Biden administration stages high-profile muscle-flexing.

Apart from mending the relationship with European allies, Washington is also highlighting its military presence in Europe in the following ways.

The US deploys military deterrent assets in Norway. The British website Janes Defense Weekly reported that the United States European Command announced on February 2 to deploy B-1B Lancer bombers in Norway for the first time. The Expeditionary Bomb Squadron of B-1B Lancer and 200 service members make the final preparations before flying from Dyess AFB, Texas to rland Air Force Station in central Norway.

Though the number of bombers and mission details are not disclosed, the US is committed to assisting its European allies in realizing their military goals by deploying various American aircraft and troops to their airbases, said the United States European Command.

The US ships held joint exercises with Ukraine Navy. Sputnik reported on February 1 the Ukrainian navys press office claimed that day that a Ukrainian tactical fleet was conducting joint exercises with American ships in the Black Sea. US media also reported on January 31 that US Navys destroyer USS Donald Cook arrived in the Black Sea on January 30 for joint exercises with NATO allies.

The US is calling for strengthening weapon deployment in Europe. According to the Stars and Stripes report, several US military officials called for deploying more long-range artillery and other advanced weapons and equipment in Europe to facilitate engagement with the enemy in case of major conflicts on the European continent. Christopher G. Cavoli, commander of U.S. Army Europe and Africa, said in public recently that the service needs a new Theater Fires Command in the European theater, including more long-range artilleries and a multidomain task force integrating cyber, electronic warfare, and space capabilities. US Army said it planned to deploy a multidomain task force in Europe later this year to counter the enemys advanced defense system and ensure free operations of US troops.

Ice-breaking can be hard.

The America first policy forced during Trumps term has sown discord within NATO and undermined the US-EU relation. The Biden administration, for its own strategic interests, is working hard to mend the partnership recently, but the military relationship between the two sides is strewn with uncertainties.

On the one hand, the allies give the cold shoulder to US peace overtures. The deep rift between the US and Europe has existed and been widened over a long time. After Biden gave his first speech on foreign policy, French President Macron said the relationship within NATO is getting abnormal because the member states, under the protection of the American army, are losing the ability of self-defense. He also pointed out those European countries being forced to buy American weapons is a failing option for both the buyer and the seller. Its foreseeable that the US-EU military relation will meet plenty of pits and bumps from now on, and it wont be easy for the Biden administration to align their interests any time soon.

On the other hand, the rival is vigilant. While the European allies are disappointed, Russia has always been vigilant about Americas military moves in Europe, especially in countries around itself. Although the two big powers on February 3 extended the New START for five years, Washington has kept deploying conventional military forces in Europe. Dmitry Peskov, Press Secretary for the President of Russia, said Moscow doesnt pose a threat to any party, but it will not turn a blind eye to activities that may hurt Russias interests. Americas military buildup in Europe is bound to incur strong reactions from Moscow, and that may lead to a new round of regional turbulence.
WAU, South Sudan, Feb. 18 -- A UN delegation for the investigation of joint military-police operation capability inspected the 11th Chinese peacekeeping engineer contingent to South Sudan (Wau) on February 15.

The delegates listened to the report on the work of the Chinese peacekeeping engineer contingent and learned about their joint military-police operation capabilities, and then assessed their corresponding defensive and supportive capabilities.

In addition, the delegation conducted on-site inspections of the barrack infrastructures such as the ammunition, equipment and vehicle depots of the contingent, and then carried out a random check on the training items such as oil refilling of the transport vehicles.

The delegates extended New Year blessings to the Chinese peacekeepers, acknowledged the Chinese peacekeepers efforts, and said that the Chinese peacekeepers excellent performance under the current pandemic is truly worthy of acclaim.
A single jab of COVID-19 vaccine appears to be highly effective, which could allow better use of scarce supplies and see more people immunized, federal and Quebec health officials said Thursday.

A woman checks out a jobs advertisement sign during the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto on April 29, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

A single jab of COVID-19 vaccine appears to be highly effective, which could allow better use of scarce supplies and see more people immunized, federal and Quebec health officials said Thursday.

Health authorities in Ottawa said experts were looking at whether one shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine could be almost as good as the recommended two.

Canada's deputy chief public health officer, Dr. Howard Njoo, called the data in a new Canadian-authored study compelling.

Writing in the New England Journal of Medicine, two doctors say U.S. data indicate the vaccine to be 92 per cent effective against COVID-19 two weeks after just one dose. Original data suggested a first dose offered about 52 per cent protection.

Co-author Dr. Gaston De Serres, with the Institut national de sante publique du Quebec, said preliminary data show a single dose given to health-care workers and long-term care residents in the province had been 80 per cent effective within two or three weeks.

De Serres and Dr. Danuta Skowronski, with the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, said delaying second doses could allow more of the most vulnerable to be protected by giving them at least one shot.

To stretch its supplies, New Brunswick said residents at lower risk for severe disease will now wait up to three months for a second vaccine dose so as many others as possible can get their first.

"This is not a perfect approach but action is required," said Dr. Jennifer Russell, the province's chief medical officer of health.

Across Canada, COVID-19 has killed 21,435 people out of 834,000 infections. Almost 33,000 people are currently infected, according to federal data.

Ontario reported another 44 pandemic-related deaths to bring its total to 6,773 and Quebec saw 10 more fatalities, bringing its total to 10,268.

"It is important to remember that the vast majority of Canadians remain susceptible to COVID-19," the Public Health Agency of Canada said.

The misery inflicted by the pandemic, beyond its rising death count, was highlighted Thursday by a report showing record-setting job losses in the country's largest province last year, with young people hit hardest.

Ontario's fiscal watchdog said 355,000 jobs disappeared, while another 765,000 people had work hours cut. Youth unemployment jumped to 22 per cent.

The Canadian Labour Congress, noting many people were still out of work and facing an end to emergency benefits, called on Ottawa to provide extra weeks of aid beyond the maximum 26. Latest federal data show the Canada Recovery Benefit paid out $9.88 billion in the $500-a-week aid to more than 1.7 million people in the past four months.

Despite mounting casualties, new cases of COVID-19 have plunged in recent weeks, prompting eased restrictions in many areas.

Alberta Health Minister Tyler Shandro said it may be safe to lift more restrictions soon as the numbers trend downward. The province announced 415 new infections Thursday.

However, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe issued a recommendation that residents travelling outside the province get tested twice for COVID-19 to prevent more contagious variants from taking hold there.

In British Columbia, health officials reminded residents to follow public health orders and restrictions after a rise in cases from earlier this week. The province reported 617 new cases on Thursday after recording 348 cases between Sunday and Monday.

In a joint statement, provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix said much of the uptick in cases has been in the Lower Mainland and in the province's northern region.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said his province was considering a plea from two hot spots  Toronto and Peel Region  to stay locked down for two more weeks.

In Newfoundland and Labrador, where a stubborn outbreak of coronavirus disease has hit the capital region, the mayor of a fly-in community expressed shock after a still unconfirmed case in his village.

Mayor Barry Andersen of Makkovik on Labrador's north coast said the case appeared to be related to medical travel to St. John's. Save for a few scattered cases, Labrador health officials have so far managed to keep the virus out of the region.

Makkovik was one of the first places in the province to receive the Moderna vaccine and about 75 per cent of residents have received two doses.

In Manitoba, those able to receive their shots can now access proof of vaccination to carry with them. The information can be printed from a government website while the province works toward more formal vaccination cards like in British Columbia.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault, meanwhile, said his government would compensate soon-to-reopen movie theatres barred from selling popcorn and other snacks as an anti-pandemic measure.

 With files from Mia Rabson and Jordan Press in Ottawa, Jacob Serebrin in Montreal, Sarah Smellie in St. John's, N.L., Holly McKenzie-Sutter in Toronto and Kevin Bissett in Fredericton.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
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Lagos, Feb 18 : The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has called for the "immediate and unconditional" release of the kids believed to be abducted by gunmen in north-central Nigeria.

At least one student was killed, and 42 people, including 27 students, were abducted by gunmen in an attack on a public school on Wednesday morning in the Niger state, the Xinhua news reported on Thursday.

In a statement, Peter Hawkins, representative for UNICEF Nigeria, strongly condemned the attack and called for the children's safe return to their families.

"UNICEF is deeply concerned about these reported acts of violence. Attacks on schools are a violation of children's rights. Children should feel safe at home and school at all times -- and parents should not need to worry for the safety of their children when they send them off to school in the morning," Hawkins said.

"We acknowledge the efforts being taken by the government of Nigeria for the safe return of any missing children," he added.
[February 18, 2021] Grant Thornton expands oil and gas restructuring services

Grant Thornton (News - Alert) LLP is expanding its restructuring-services offerings for oil and gas by hiring Loretta Cross and John Baumgartner. Based in Houston, Cross and Baumgartner join as managing directors who will be part of the firm's Strategy and Transactions practice. "Loretta and John possess tremendous restructuring experience with deep roots in the oil and gas industry," said Paul Melville, national managing principal of Corporate Finance and head of the Restructuring practice at Grant Thornton. "Their extensive consulting acumen along with the restructuring team under their leadership will allow Grant Thornton to assist its oil and gas clients who are facing stress, distress and litigation - doing so at a time of great strain for oil and gas companies contending with the impact of COVID-19 and an increasing focus on alternative energy." Cross has more than 40 years of strategic, operational and financial consulting experience. She has served as a business advisor in some of the nation's largest energy bankruptcies and restructurings - and has provided expert testimony on issues ranging from accounting practices to valuation issues. Cross rejoins Grant Thornton after more than seven years in the Restructuring group and Energy practice at a large consulting firm. During her first stint at Grant Thornton, she served as the national managing partner of the firm's Corporate Advisory and Restructuring Services practice and was the Houston office Energy leader for Advisory Services. Cross is a certified insolvency and restructuring advisor (CIRA) and holds her certification in distressed business valuation (CDBV). She has received multiple awards, including being named to the Who's Who in Energy list by the ouston Business Journal and being named a YWCA Outstanding Woman in Energy. Cross received a bachelor's degree in accounting from the University of Texas at Austin.



Baumgartner rejoins Grant Thornton with nearly 20 years of experience providing restructuring and solvency-related services. He specializes in financial restructuring, operational turnaround, energy consulting, litigation, valuation, forensic accounting and creditor representations. He has advised trustees and debtors in the energy field, including oil and gas, power and utilities, retail gas marketing, retail power marketing and midstream energy companies. Baumgartner previously served as a managing director in the Restructuring group and Energy practice at a large consulting firm. Earlier in his career, Baumgartner served as a director in Grant Thornton's Corporate Advisory and Restructuring Services practice. Baumgartner is a CIRA and holds his CDBV. He is a published author on oil and gas bankruptcies and received the Turnaround Management Association's 2019 Turnaround and Transaction of the Year Award for Mid-Size Company Turnaround of the Year. Baumgartner received a master's of business administration degree from Rice University's Jones Graduate School of Business and a bachelor's degree in economics from Rhodes College.

To learn more about Grant Thornton's restructuring services and energy offerings, visit: www.grantthornton.com/restructuring-and-turnaround. About Grant Thornton LLP

Founded in Chicago in 1924, Grant Thornton LLP (Grant Thornton) is the U.S. member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd, one of the world's leading organizations of independent audit, tax and advisory firms. Grant Thornton, which has revenues of $1.92 billion and operates more than 50 offices, works with a broad range of dynamic publicly and privately held companies, government agencies, financial institutions, and civic and religious organizations. "Grant Thornton" refers to Grant Thornton LLP, the U.S. member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd (GTIL). GTIL and the member firms are not a worldwide partnership. Services are delivered by the member firms. GTIL and its member firms are not agents of, and do not obligate, one another and are not liable for one another's acts or omissions. Please see grantthornton.com for further details. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005700/en/

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Regulatory News:

Advicenne (Euronext: ADVIC) (Paris:ADVIC) (BSE:ADVIC) provides an update on the overall progress of the Company.

In Europe, with the recent positive CHMP Opinion for our lead medicine ADV7103-Sibnayal, Advicenne should receive the EMA Marketing Authorization (MAA) for Sibnayal soon. The company is currently pursuing discussions with several partners for its commercialization in most countries of the European Community.

Meanwhile the clinical program in cystinuria in the EU is progressing. In spite of the hurdles encountered due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, the submission for Marketing Authorization is expected by late 2022.

Advicenne has been able to maintain a satisfactory level of activity, and the team has been doing a great job in all the aspects of the Sibnayal pre-launch, from market access to manufacturing and securement of the supply chain

In the US, Advicenne Inc, Advicenne's US affiliate, has made significant progress in building a team of highly qualified professionals. The pivotal Phase III ARENA trial of ADV7103 for distal Renal Tubular Acidosis (dRTA) is resuming. The submission for Marketing Authorization is expected in late 2022.

Meanwhile the launch of Ozalin by Primex under an exclusive license is progressing. Advicenne is confident in the continuous positive execution of the 40 million licensing deal signed in 2016.

Focus and streamlining, as well as effective cost management are practices put in place by the Company during these difficult times. The Company was able to secure 4.3 million of non-dilutive financing through a PGE (French state guaranteed loan) at the end of 2020.

Thanks to the positive evolution of the company a number of financing options are now open to secure the development of the Company in the mid term.

With the recent appointment of Peter Meeus as Chief Executive Officer of Advicenne (effective February 15, 2021), the Company will continue to develop strategies and operations to increase its footprint on rare kidney diseases.

"I am very pleased with the progress of the Company in the past year. Important milestones have been met, setting the ground for our new incoming CEO Peter Meeus whose great business experience in the industry will serve Advicenne extremely well to bring the company to its next stage of growth", said Dr. David Horn Solomon, Chairman of the Board of Directors.

"It gives me great pleasure to join Advicenne at this pivotal moment for the Company with the imminent launches of Sibnayal in dRTA in Europe. dRTA is a rare debilitating condition, leading to numerous complications such as softening of bones, kidney stones, and renal dysfunction. Sibnayal will be the first and only label-approved drug providing 24 hour coverage with just two doses, thus providing significant clinical outcome as well as an improved quality of life. Being able to address cystinuria as well, strengthens my belief that Advicenne can make a strong difference for patients. Sibnayal has a very strong profile and clearly fills an unmet need. It will be particularly useful in children: its low intake frequency, tastelessness and positive tolerance profile will ensure better compliance", said Peter Meeus, newly appointed Chief Executive Officer.

"I have been honored to lead Advicenne for almost a year. With the positive CHMP opinion as well as with the strong development of our clinical strategy, I am proud of what the team have realized", said Dr. Andre Ulmann, who now will continue in the company as Chief Medical Officer

About dRTA

Distal renal tubular acidosis dRTA is an orphan disease characterized by a failure in the renal excretion of acids generated through metabolism and for which there is no approved treatment. The excess of acid thus accumulated in the blood leads to an imbalance in pH (acidosis) as well as multiple other complications such as growth retardation and rickets (a disease affecting bone development) in children, and a series of metabolic disorders such as low potassium levels, elevated calcium in the urine resulting in kidney stones, the formation of calcium deposits in the kidneys (calcinosis) as well as possible kidney failure.

Whether genetic or acquired as a consequence of an immune disease, dRTA affects an estimated 30,000 patients in Europe and approximately 20,000 in the United States.

About Advicenne

Advicenne (Euronext: ADVIC) is a pharmaceutical company founded in 2007, specializing in the development of innovative treatments in Nephrology. Its lead drug candidate is currently in late-stage clinical trials for two kidney diseases: the renal tubular acidosis and cystinuria. ADV7103 has been granted orphan drug designation by the European Commission in the treatment of both conditions and has just received a positive CHMP opinion for the treatment of dRTA.

Headquartered in Paris, Advicenne has been listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange since 2017 and was cross-listed on the Euronext Brussels stock exchange in 2019.

For additional information see: https://advicenne.com/

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005796/en/

Contacts:

Advicenne

David H. Solomon, Chairman

Peter Meeus, CEO

+33 (0)4 66 05 54 20

Email: investors@advicenne.com

Financial Communications

NewCap

Dusan Oresansky Emmanuel Huynh

+33 (0)1 44 71 94 92

Press Relations

NewCap

Nicolas Merigeau

+33 (0)1 44 71 94 98

Email: advicenne@newcap.eu

Arts Council Napa Valley (ACNV) has announced the Napa County finals for the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Contest, a virtual competition premiering on Feb. 25.

Poetry Out Loud, presented in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, is a national program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry, both classic and contemporary, through memorization, performance and competition.

Quality journalism doesn't happen without your help Support local news coverage and the people who report it by subscribing to the Napa Valley Register.

Since the program began in 2005, more than 4 million students across the country have participated in Poetry Out Loud. Since the programs inception, Arts Council Napa Valley has facilitated the Napa County program, with last years county winner, Vintage High School Senior, Malia Cruz, winning the state award for original poetry.

On Feb. 25, Arts Council Napa Valley will present eight Napa County students in a virtual production of the county finals. Produced by Lucky Penny Productions, the virtual contest will include 16 poems recited by students and will announce the Napa County Poetry Out Loud winner and runner-up. The winner will receive a $200 scholarship and the runner-up will receive a $100 scholarship.
According to an exclusive report in the Murdoch medias Australian newspaper yesterday, the federal Liberal-National government last December secretly blocked a number of university research grants because they allegedly represented a China-linked national security threat.

This development, only made known by a leak to the corporate media two months after the grants were overturned, is bound up with the US-instigated confrontation with China, now being intensified by the Biden administration.

Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison (AP/Kiyoshi Ota)

It also marks a further step in the governments political censorship of research at universities, and their integration into preparations for a potentially catastrophic military conflict with China in order to reassert US dominance over the Indo-Pacific region and internationally.

The Australian reported: Top scientists at Australian universities have been denied lucrative taxpayer-funded research grants on national security grounds, as the federal government cracks down on projects that could hand military or economic advantage to foreign adversaries.

The Australian can reveal that, in the first decision of its kind, five applicants for Australian Research Council (ARC) grants were blocked from receiving funding of up to $500,000 a year on the orders of former education minister Dan Tehan.

Tehan reportedly refused approval after Australian intelligence agencies, such as the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), subjected 18 ARC grant applications to additional checks.

The move came amid an escalating anti-China scare campaign, spearheaded by the same agencies, the media and the entire political establishment, including the Labor Party and Greens, featuring unsubstantiated allegations of Chinese interference and recruitment of dozens of academics.

Contrary to the Australians report, Tehans black-banning of five grants was not the first such arbitrary exercise of the ministerial power to do so.

In November 2018, it was belatedly revealed that the government had surreptitiously vetoed 11 ARC grants, without notifying the public, or even the research teams involved. One of the projects was a study of the social impact of the 2017 closure of the General Motors plant at Elizabeth in northern Adelaide, which destroyed thousands of jobs at the factory and related auto industries.

Like all ARC-recommended grants, the five recently rejected applications went through a rigorous and intensely competitive process to assess their scientific significance. Every year, hundreds of proposals are submitted to the ARC and each is assigned two assessorsrelevant expertsthen sent to up to six reviewers, who provide ratings.

One of the overturned ARC grants involved advanced wireless communications research, with applications in radar and satellite systems. Another focused on nanotechnology advances for miniaturised optical systems, including autonomous vehicles and robots. The other three involved hi-tech lasers, next-generation electricity networks and cutting-edge fuel cell technology.

The government declined to identify the scientists whose applications had been rejected, but the Australian insinuated that they were linked to a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Thousand Talents Program.

The Australian claimed credit for revealing last August that dozens of leading scientists at major universities across the country had been recruited to this program, prompting an inquiry by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security into national security risks affecting the Australian higher education and research sector.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton fast-tracked the inquiry, issuing its terms of reference last November, and requesting a report by this July. The terms of reference demand that all universities and other research facilities demonstrate their capacity to identify and respond to risks to Australias national security, such as foreign interference and undisclosed foreign influence.

The composition of this committee underscores the bipartisan character of the witch hunt. Currently chaired by Liberal Party Senator James Paterson and deputy chaired by the Labor Partys Anthony Byrne, the committee consists of six government members of parliament and five from Labor.

ASIOs submission to the inquiry indicated the importance of the university and research sector for war preparations. Their work leads to the development of proprietary and other sensitive information critical to the development of new technologies, medicines, techniques and practices that are fundamental to the future of Australias economy, military capabilities and security, ASIO said.

Without providing any evidence, ASIO issued several provocative claims, including that researchers and their families have been threatened, coerced or intimidated by actors seeking to have their sensitive research provided to a foreign state and some universities have been threatened through financial coercion should critical research continue.

China was not named explicitly, but it was clearly being accused of serious crimes.

One of the instigators of the inquiry is the government-funded Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI). Alex Joske, a former ASPI analyst, told the inquiry that his research suggested CCP talent recruitment activity could be associated with as much as $280 million in grant fraud over the past two decades.

Joske said he had identified 325 members of CCP talent programs in Australian research institutions, including in all leading universities and the governments Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).

Previous such claims by Joske, published by ASPI, have been based on flawed evidence, such as the number of Chinese academics and their international colleagues who are publishing articles in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Joske also contributed to Silent Invasion, a 2018 book by Greens-associated academic Clive Hamilton that claimed that a war against China was needed to prevent Australia from being taken over by Beijing.

In its submission to the inquiry, Universities Australia, representing the 39 public universities, pledged to keep collaborating with the government and the intelligence apparatus. The university chiefs said they already were working closely with the government and government agencies on the Defence Trade Controls Act and a University Foreign Interference Taskforce.

Increasingly starved of funding by successive governments, the university managements promised to continue to build on such successes in partnership with government to further strengthen their resilience to foreign interference.

Under the Defence Trade Controls Act, introduced by the last federal Labor Party government in 2012, people face up to 10 years imprisonment for publishing or otherwise disseminating information about research covered by the governments Defence and Strategic Goods List or the Defense Trade Cooperation Treaty between Australia and the US.

University managements have also tied their institutions into joint research with US universities on priority projects under the Pentagons Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative, which the Australian government joined in 2017.

Universities in Australia, as in the US and internationally, are becoming integral components of military networks preparing for high-tech warfare. This includes the Lockheed Martin research centre at the University of Melbourne.

The National Tertiary Education Union, which covers university workers, is also complicit in the creeping militarisation of universities. For example, in August 2019, in response to a review of the Defence Trade Controls Act, the union issued a media release calling for a balance between Australias defence and/or national security concerns and academic freedom.

Such promotion of national security is part of a broader anti-China drumbeat. In 2018, the Liberal-National government and the opposition Labor Party jointly pushed through parliament foreign interference laws designed to crack down, above all, on anti-war dissent and anyone linked to China.

Last December, unprecedented legislation was passed to give the government sweeping powers to prohibit any agreement with China signed by a state, territory or local government, or a public university, and Chinese investment is now effectively banned across most of the economy.

These moves further demonstrate that the government is placing Australia on the front line of Washingtons plans for war to prevent China from challenging the global hegemony established by US imperialism after World War II.
A mystery caller has provided police with crucial information into the whereabouts of a missing mother who was allegedly murdered by her boyfriend.

The caller anonymously contacted Crime Stoppers on Friday morning with details of the location of Ju 'Kelly' Zhang, police said.

Ms Zhang was last seen in a pink nightgown and slippers at her home on Winchester Avenue in Epping, in Melbourne, at 5.30pm on February 1.

Her partner Joon 'Sam' Seong Tan, 35, was charged with one count of murder after being arrested at Melbourne airport on February 10.

The caller anonymously contacted Crime Stoppers on Friday morning with details of the location of Ju 'Kelly' Zhang (pictured)

Police have already searched an area of Darebin Creek Reserve as part of their investigation

Police had been searching for the body of Ms Zhang when the mystery call came in.

Detectives have urged the anonymous caller to come forward and call back with any further information.

Police have already searched an area of Darebin Creek Reserve as part of their investigation.

They scoured the area, combing through rugged bushland, but it remains unclear whether any evidence was located.

Tan appeared in Melbourne Magistrates Court last Friday, where police asked for more time to prepare a brief of evidence, reported the Herald Sun.

'There's some 3500 hours of CCTV footage,' Mr Roper said.

He also informed the court that several text messages needed to be translated from Mandarin before the case can proceed.

The plasterer appeared via video link wearing a grey sweater, black glasses and a blue face mask.

Lawyer Greg Hughan told the court his client only speaks 'limited' English.

Tan previously told detectives Ms Zhang left her eight-year-old son at home when she went for a walk with no shoes on.

'At the time the 33-year-old went missing, she was believed to be wearing a pink nightgown and possibly pink slippers,' Victoria Police said.

Ms Zhang's partner Joon 'Sam' Seong Tan, 35, was charged with one count of murder after being arrested at Melbourne airport on February 10

Police are looking for a black 2008 Mazda CX9 station wagon with the registration WKE 850

Tan told police he was with Ms Zhang and her son on the day she disappeared, and claimed she went for a walk and didn't come back.

Police urged neighbours to check their CCTV footage from the afternoon she disappeared.

They are specifically looking for footage of a white Toyota Land Cruiser and a black 2008 Mazda CX9 station wagon, with registration WKE 850.

Both vehicles are believed to have travelled near Ms Zhang's home sometime between 4pm last Monday and 8am last Tuesday.

Investigators said Ms Zhang's disappearance was 'extremely out of character'.

Just hours before she disappeared, Ms Zhang made a post on social media that included a video of her cooking with her eight-year-old son.

Tan was remanded to reappear in court for a committal mention on July 16.
Parents, teachers, and students using Google Classroom and Google Meet for their distance learning have some key changes in store: an improved means to upload pictures of homework, Meet transcripts, a mute all feature, and an end to Googles unlimited storage policy. Even the name is changing.

What was once referred to as Googles G Suite for Education is now being renamed Google Workspace for Education. The basic tierwith Classroom, Meet, Gmail, Calendar, Sheets, Drive, Docs, and morewill remain free, but will now be referred to as Google Workspace for Fundamentals. There are also paid options: Google Workspace for Education Standard, Google Workspace for Education Plus, and something called The Teaching and Learning Upgradea labyrinth of names and prices that education admins will need to study and budget for.

A change that may affect admins and students alike, however, is that Google is eliminating its traditionally unlimited storage policy. A storage data cap like the one Google implemented for consumers in November will be implemented in July, 2022, Google said, and will affect new customers signing up in 2022 as well. In all, Google will give schools and universities 100TB of cloud storage shared across all users, with the option to pay for more.

Otherwise, Google plans to add about 50 features or so to Meet, Classroom, and other Workspace apps over the coming months. Here are some of the most important.

Google A new end call control is being added to Google Meet.

Forty new Chromebooks on the way

You probably dont know that Chrome OS is actually the second most popular OS on laptops. Chromebook sales jumped by 86 percent last year, according to Strategy Analytics, and in 2020 the 14.9-percent market share of Chrome OS easily topped that of MacOS, with its 8.7-percent share.

Google says forty new Chromebooks designed for education are en route. Its not clear when all these Chromebooks will ship, but Google maintains a site for those who want to study at home using Chromebooks, featuring Google and its partners.

Classroom-organized Meet meetings will have a roster

One of the ways that people have tried to prevent Zoombombing and other unwanted guests in video calls is with meeting lobbies, PIN codes, and more. Googles unique solution is to tie Meet to Google Classroom, so that only those participants who match a list of approved class members will be allowed to joinand not before the teacher. Each teacher will be a meeting host, able to control the meeting. These features will arrive later this year, Google said.

If a breakout room is needed, teachers will be able to set them up ahead of time, too. This feature arrives in the next few weeks, Google said.

Meet: Mute-all controls for teachers

By control the meeting, Google also means shushing unruly kids. A teacher may not be able to silence a classroom instantly in real life, but Meet will include that feature in the next few weeks. Meet also will allow teachers a control to end meetings for all participants, including breakout rooms, a feature that isnt in Meet quite yet. The end- meetings control will arrive soon, Google said.

Google Mute all controls are coming to Google Meet.

Meet: Emoji reactions for students

While the new Meet controls may not allow students to speak, theyll still be able to express themselves. Microsoft Teams added Live Reactions in 2020, and Meet is doing the same. Beginning in August, students will be able to float emoji responses as the class progresses.

Google

Meet: Better pictures of homework due

One of the issues that some students have is that they prefer to do their work on paper, not on a screen. Microsofts own Office app can scan in documents as PDFs, and the related Microsoft Lens app can even do the same with handwriting. Google Meet will add similar capabilities later this year. Google says that it will upgrade its Google Classroom app for Android to make it easier to submit photos. Students will be able to combine photos into a single document, crop or rotate images, and adjust lighting, Google said.

Meet: Transcripts are coming

Google; which already boasts the ability to transcribe your speech in Android, is now bringing that capability to Meet. Googles not saying much beyond the fact that transcripts will arrive later this year, but they will be sharable and include the ability to be stored for future reference.

ChromeOS: Screen recording is coming

In March, Google is adding a screen recorder to Chrome OS, that will allow users to automatically record what they're doing on screen and later play it back for other users.

Family Link can now manage school accounts, too

Screen time is screen time, and kids who are doing schoolwork still need to get out from in front of the screen. Google plans to add controls to Family Link, its management program, to allow parents to tie their child's school screen time to their personal account,.

Meet: More low-bandwidth optimizations are coming

One of the challenges families have faced is home bandwidth. What used to be sufficient for browsing, streaming, and gaming is stretched thin by the demands for online classrooms and workshared among the entire family at once. Google said its already worked to help optimize Meet for low-bandwidth connections, and more improvements are on the way.

Google Teachers will be able to track class participation with a new administrative tool.

Update: This story was updated at 5 PM with additional details.
Hyderabad: The Ramagundam police in Telangana has arrested three accused in connection with a lawyer couple's murder. Lawyer couple - Gattu Waman Rao and his wife PV Nagamani - were brutally hacked to death on a highway in full public view on Wednesday near a petrol bunk on the main road of Kalvacharla v/o Ramagiri zone in Godavarikhani sub-division of Peddapalli district under Ramagundam Commissionerate.

The deceased - Gattu Vaman Rao and Nagmani - who hailed from Hyderabad attended a function at the court in Manthani and were returning when they were waylaid and hacked to death.

The three accused arrested by the police are Kunta Srinivas, Chiranjeevi and Kumar. According to police, the lawyer couple had some feud with Kunta Srinivas regarding a temple construction as they all hailed from the same village.

As per the complaint of Gattu Kishan Rao, deceased Waman Rao's father, crime no. 21/2021 U / s 302, 341,120-B r / w 34 IPC, an FIR was issued.

The police task force sent some of its men to check on the information that the accused were in the Wankidi Chandrapur area on the Telangana-Maharashtra border. While they were travelling in a black Brezza car, the police task force intercepted them, arrested them and produced them before the investigating officer ACP Godavarikhani.

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South Dakota's Republican attorney general has been charged with misdemeanor careless driving five months after he struck and killed a man with his car - after initially telling police he hit a deer - last September, authorities said Thursday.

Jason Ravnsborg is also facing misdemeanor charges of operating a motor vehicle while using a mobile electronic device and veering out of his lane, Emily Sovell, deputy Hyde County state's attorney, announced five months after Joseph Boever, 55, died. Authorities said he was not on his phone at the time of the crash.

Each charge is punishable by up to 30 days in jail and/or a $500 fine, Sovell said.

Sovell said the evidence didn't support more serious felony charges such as vehicular homicide or manslaughter. She noted that nothing showed Ravnsborg was intoxicated at the time of the crash. She also said that to prove manslaughter, the state would have had to show that Ravnsborg 'consciously and unjustifiably' disregarded a substantial risk.

South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg (left) mowed down 55-year-old Jason Boever (right) with his car near Highmore last September. He was finally charged five months later

The Ford Taurus that Ravnsborg was driving the night he killed Boever had a huge hole in the windshield of the passengers side is pictured

Ravnsborg has said he is confident he did not commit a crime, and that he was not drinking before the crash. He provided a blood sample and handed over his electronic devices to investigators. A toxicology report from a sample taken roughly 15 hours after the crash showed no alcohol in Ravnsborg's system.

Boever's family has questioned Ravnsborg's account, and expressed frustration at the five-month wait to hear whether he would face charges.

Beadle County State's Attorney Michael Moore, who helped with the case, said the Boever family had been told of the decision beforehand.

'They obviously don't like our decision in this case, but as we all know, victims don't make this decision,' Moore said. Later, pressed by a reporter, Moore added: 'I don't feel good about it, but it's the right decision.'

Victor Nemec, left, and Nick Nemec pose outside Nick Nemec's home in Holabird, S.D., Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. Boever cousins and family have been frustrated at the time it has taken for prosecutors to decide whether to charge Ravnsborg

Tire tracks are seen on the side of US Highway 14 near the area where Ranvsborg struck Boever as he drove home from a Republican fundraiser in September

Witnesses at the fundraiser have vouched for the attorney general that they didn't see him drinking alcohol and that he did not seem 'impaired in any way shape or form' Pictured: Ravnsborg sitting near the stage at Rooster's Bar and Grill in Redfield on the night of the crash

Ravnsborg, who was elected to his first term in 2018, initially told authorities he thought he had struck a deer or another large animal as he drove home to Pierre from a Republican fundraiser late on Sept. 12.

Ravnsborg called 911 that night and told a dispatcher that he hit 'something' and that 'it was in the middle of the road.' When the dispatcher asked if it could have been a deer, Ravnsborg initially said, 'I have no idea' before adding, 'It could be.'

Boever's relatives believe he was walking toward his truck that had crashed earlier that evening.

Ravnsborg initially told a county sheriff dispatched to the crash site on U.S. Highway 14 near Highmore in central South Dakota that he thought he struck a deer.

He said he returned to the scene the next morning and discovered he had struck a man.

Ravnsborg released a full statement regarding the events of that fateful night in October

Crash investigators said in November that Ravnsborg was distracted when he veered onto the shoulder of the highway where Boever was walking. But prosecutors took months more to make a charging decision in the crash, launching an investigation that considered cellphone GPS data, video footage from along Ravnsborg's route and DNA evidence.

Boevers cousin Nick Nemec said in the fall he was not surprised to hear that Ravnsborg was distracted and drove onto the shoulder of the road.

Nemec said he visited the crash site numerous times and 'you dont have to be a rocket scientist' to figure out what happened.

'I think the attorney general should be charged at the very least with distracted driving,' Nemec said. 'If he was distracted, then youre getting into the territory of involuntary manslaughter. I think that would be an appropriate charge.'

A crash reconstruction expert from Wyoming and the North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation assisted the South Dakota Highway Patrol in the investigation. Such accidents would ordinarily be investigated by the South Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, which answers to the attorney generals office. The other agencies took on the investigation to avoid a conflict of interest.

South Dakota law requires pedestrians to walk on the side of the road facing oncoming traffic when walking near highways like the one where the crash occurred.
The spokesperson for embattled Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, is taking on a new role in Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessels office.

Amber McCann, currently the deputy chief of staff and press secretary for Shirkey, will become special projects director for Nessel, the Attorney Generals Office confirmed Thursday. McCann, who has not yet commented publicly on the move, starts in the new role March 8.

Related: Michigans Mike Shirkey problem is not going away

I am happy to confirm that the Department of Attorney General has hired Amber McCann as Special Projects Director in our Office of Public Information & Education, pending her background check, Attorney General Communications Director Kelly Rossman-McKinney said in a statement. Ms. McCann has a reputation as a tireless worker and consummate professional and Attorney General Nessel is eager for her to continue serving the people of our state.

McCanns departure, first reported by Crains Detroit Business, indicates a significant shift for the longtime Republican staffer, who has served as the spokesperson for the last three Republican Senate Majority Leaders  Shirkey and former leaders Arlan Meekhof and Randy Richardville.

The move comes amid ongoing criticism of Shirkeys recent inflammatory comments about the election, the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, many of which were captured in a video recording shared by the Hillsdale County Republican Party.

Shirkey used the word hoax to describe the attack on the U.S. Capitol building, although he later said he was referring to the fact that while Trump should have acted sooner and more forcibly on Jan. 6, he did not cause the attack.

An initial apology from Shirkeys office was quickly obscured by his remark to Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist the next morning, captured by a hot mic on the Senate floor: I frankly dont take back any of the points I was trying to make. Some of the words I chose I do regret.

In an interview this week with Jackson radio station WKHM, Shirkey claimed too many dead people voted, a statement he provided no additional evidence for and one that has been debunked repeatedly by election officials. He also doubled down on his use of the word spanked in reference to Whitmer, claiming the word is a routinely-used term in our lexicon and noting hes had firsthand experience over this past week with a regular spanking by the media.

Related coverage:

Michigans Mike Shirkey problem is not going away

The bats**t crazy jab, religious freedom, attack ads and leaked recordings  this is the Mike Shirkey timeline

Conservative Christian, prominent businessman, polarizing politician. Who is Mike Shirkey?

U.S. Capitol insurrection was a hoax, Michigan Senate leader says in video

Progressive women lawmakers call on Mike Shirkey to step down from Senate leadership role

Dead people voted, Shirkey claims, despite debunking from Michigan election officials

Such immaturity: What Michigan leaders are saying after GOP senators Capitol hoax comment

Michigan Democratic Party calls on Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey to resign
Cherokee artist Julie Thornton-Brison is starting a podcast called The WaterSpider Chronicles that will focus on the Cherokee Nation. COURTESY
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UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

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Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

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Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

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Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

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After Ms. Rowan described the incident to Gerald Bruce Lee, a Black lawyer who had encouraged her to attend the event, he organized a group of Black attorneys to send a protest letter to the bar. The bar expressed deep sorrow over what it called a mistake by an old man, The Post said. The offending lawyer said he would apologize.

The incident helped spur the formation of a new bar group, the Northern Virginia Black Attorneys Association, said Mr. Lee, who went on to hold state and federal judgeships. We realized we needed to unite and to support each other and to be our own voice, he said.

Ms. Rowan died at 82 on Oct. 31 at a hospital in Arlington, Va. Her husband, Harold W. Gossett II, a retired F.B.I. agent and her only survivor, said the cause was Covid-19.

Her death was not initially announced because she had not wanted a funeral, said Mr. Gossett, who had also contracted the coronavirus and was hospitalized with his wife. After he recovered, he said, he concluded that she would not have objected to his discussing her life  and her record as a trail blazer.

In 1971, Ms. Rowan, then 32, joined the prestigious U.S. attorneys office for the Southern District of New York, making her the first Black female prosecutor there, according to a front-page article heralding her appointment in The New York Amsterdam News, one of the oldest Black-owned newspapers in the country. The article said she would be one of two women serving in the offices criminal division.
Vaccine Nationalism Is a Multilateral, Neocolonial Failure

In the coming months, vaccine nationalism is likely to compound COVID-19 economic damage and penalize more lives. It reflects the utter failure of multilateralism. It is old colonialism in a new disguise.

After mid-January, WHO chief Dr Tedros warned that, due to unequal COVID-19 vaccine policies, "the world is on the brink of a catastrophic moral failure and the price of this failure will be paid with lives and livelihoods in the world's poorest countries.

And yet, in contrast, The Economist reported it was Asian governments that are needlessly hampering vaccination drives, due to their nationalism and geopolitics.

The simple reality is that by mid-January almost 40 million vaccine doses had been given in nearly 50 rich-income economies, whereas one poor nation had only 25 doses. As a result, 9 out of 10 people in poor countries are set to miss out on COVID-19 vaccine in 2021, according to Oxfam.

Exorbitant economic and human costs of unilateralism

Last year, the pandemic relief efforts soared to an estimated $20 trillion, according to Bank of America. That is likely to unleash a series of debt crises in the future.

Thanks to misguided COVID-19 unipolarity, particularly by the Trump administration, the outcome has been historical economic and human damage. Despite the worst recorded global contraction, more than 110 million pandemic cases and over 2.5 million deaths, more will follow.

What has dramatically compounded the pandemic crisis has been the failure of the major advanced economies to implement the WHOs multilateral preparedness plan.

Before fall 2020, that plan represented barely 0.01% of the worlds cumulative output loss, as measured by the costs of the global contraction. By shunning multilateral cooperation, developed countries chose exorbitant costs that will penalize both them but particularly the poorest economies.

Usually, neocolonialism is defined as the use of economic, political, cultural, or other pressures to control or influence other countries, especially former dependencies. Vaccine nationalism is a case in point.

Recently, Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte accused the European Union (EU) of holding up supplies of COVID-19 vaccines: This is a fight among the highest bidders, who can pay first. Actually, he has a point. And its not just the EU that has been hoarding vaccines.

On the basis of public records, governments in high-income economies, representing barely 16% of the global population, have struck pre-orders covering at least 42 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines. According to a just-released report by Lancet, these countries have secured at least 70% of doses available in 2021 of five leading vaccine candidates, on the basis of known deals (Figure).

High-income countries have bought most of COVID-19 vaccines for 2021

Major economies representing Have bought up to 70% of

less than 16% of world population COVID-19 vaccines

Source: Data from Lancet

Multilateralism is moral, safer and cheaper

By late November 2020, Canada and the US had already pre-ordered up 8-9 doses of vaccines per person. The UK, Australia and the EU followed in the footprints with 5-6 doses per person. That contributes to higher prices, which hurts all countries, but particularly the poorest ones.

What we need is multilateral cooperation across all differences. Heres why: It is moral, safer, and cheaper.

Multilateral cooperation is moral. Its the right thing to do. And it reduces the current gap between high-income economies rhetoric and the devastating realities in the poorer economies, which may have adverse political repercussions over time.

Multilateral cooperation is safer. During global pandemics, we are only as safe as our weakest links. Like its precursors from the Black Death to the Spanish Flu, COVID-19 is democratic. Ultimately, it will spare no one. However, if containment involves all nations, it will minimize cases, deaths, and potentially fatal mutations.

Multilateral cooperation is cheaper. Due to vaccine nationalism, vaccines are still distributed too slowly, remain in short supply and mainly reserved for high-income economies. Recent research suggests that up to 49% of the global economic costs of the pandemic in 2021 could be borne by the advanced economies, even if they achieve universal vaccination in their own countries.

Undermined living standards, and a lost decade

Unsurprisingly, the pandemic has drastically boosted inequality. If it is allowed to increase after the crisis, this will have a profound long-term impact on poverty levels, according to World Bank.

If all countries Gini indices increases by just two percentage points annually, the worst-case scenario would result in global growth contraction of 8%. That would mean that over 500 million more people would be living on less than $5.50 a day still in 2030 (compared with a scenario with no increase in inequality).

As a result, global poverty levels would soar higher than they were prior to the pandemic still in 2030.

Last August, I released a COVID-19 report that reflected similar outcomes: years of lost progress, undermined living standards in all economies, lost decades in poorest countries, increasing domestic divisions, and elevated famines and conflicts in failed states.

New variants, new long-term challenges

Thanks to the failure of multilateral cooperation, the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths is now far, far higher than initially anticipated. In turn, the greater spread of the global pandemic has ensured a greater number of mutations.

Most of these mutations tend to be benign, but huge numbers contribute to rising probability of adverse outcomes. In recent months, new variants of the original virus have been spotted in different countries  UK, Brazil, South Africa, US - and seem to cause major changes in the way the pathogen acts, including its contagiousness.

Scientists in the U.K. had been watching the B.1.1.7 variant for some time before announcing in December that it might be at least 50% more transmissible than the original form. Moreover, scientists are concerned about another mutation in South Africa in which a genetic change may help the virus evade the immune system and vaccines. Similar concerns involve new variants in Brazil and the US.

The longer the crisis lingers, the greater remains the probability for potentially malignant outcomes.

With more than a hundred million infected people (and the real number may be substantially higher) creating antibodies against the virus, still other versions are likelier to emerge that could evade the immune system, reinfect even recovered persons and then become more widespread in a population.

That would represent still another outcome of the failure of multilateralism.

Dr. Dan Steinbock is the founder of Difference Group and has served at the India, China and America Institute (US), Shanghai Institute for International Studies (China) and the EU Center (Singapore). For more, see http://www.differencegroup.net/

 2021 Copyright Dan Steinbock - All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer: The above is a matter of opinion provided for general information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice. Information and analysis above are derived from sources and utilising methods believed to be reliable, but we cannot accept responsibility for any losses you may incur as a result of this analysis. Individuals should consult with their personal financial advisors.

Dan Steinbock Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




The Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly on Sept. 30, 2020. (The Canadian Press/Paul Daly)

Concerns Abound in Newfoundland and Labrador Election Disrupted by COVID Surge

The interruption in Newfoundland and Labradors election amid a COVID-19 surge has raised concerns about the implications for the democratic process and possible impact on voter turnout.

If the voter turnout is exceptionally low as a result of the pandemic, then democracy isnt served, says Chris Collins, a former New Brunswick politician and a principal with Aurora Strategy Group in Atlantic Canada.

Newfoundland and Labradors chief electoral officer cancelled in-person voting the night before the in-person polls were set to open on Feb. 13 as public health officials introduced provincewide lockdown measures. The province is now relying exclusively on mail-in ballots.

The NDP and Progressive Conservatives have been trying to hold an all-party meeting with chief electoral officer Bruce Chaulk to discuss the complexities of a mail-in vote, but they say so far their request has been denied. The governing Liberals have said theres concern that a closed-door meeting with Chaulk and the parties would jeopardize the perception of the chief electoral officers political neutrality.

There is a crisis right now in our democratic system because there is not roughly equal access to the right to vote, Tory leader Ches Crosbie told The Canadian Press.

There are also suggestions that the election could face legal challenges as uncertainties abound, such as regarding when votes will be counted. NDP president Kyle Rees told The Canadian Press that a legal challenge seems to be the direction this is trending.

The provincial election was called by Liberal Premier Andrew Furey on Jan. 15, a move that was contested by the opposition.

After a surge in COVID-19 cases, Chaulk on Feb. 11 postponed in-person voting to a later date in some areas of the province. By the next day, as health authorities extended lockdown orders, he suspended in-person voting entirely for all 40 electoral districts in the province and shifted the election to mail-in voting.

Then on Feb. 14, he extended the deadline for requesting a mail-in ballot from Feb. 15 to Feb. 19, also extending the deadline for ballots to be received by officials from March 1 to March 5.

Chaulk didnt respond to a request for comment by press time.

The Liberals won the 2019 election and held 19 of the provinces 40 seats heading into this years election, leaving the PCs with 15 seats, the NDP with 3, and independents with 3. Furey took over the Liberal leadership on Aug. 3, 2020, following Premier Dwight Balls resignation in February, and was sworn in as premier on Aug. 19, 2020.

Under provincial laws, a premier who rises to power under such circumstances must call an election within a year. The legislature offered to extend this time yo October 2021, following vaccine rollout, but the Liberals refused.

Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, believes the timing will hurt the Liberals.

There was no need for an election at this time. The government had not been defeated and the opposition parties opposed having an election. I expect the opposition parties to gain at the Liberals expense. This election may turn out to be a gift for the [Progressive] Conservatives, Wiseman said in an interview.

It will be interesting to see how many people vote, whether turnout is lower than it was in the last election, he said.

Collins, a three-term Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick representing Moncton, says the provincial Liberals have done a good job and doesnt think the election controversies will hurt their chances.

People in Newfoundland will realize that the timing has been very unfortunate, he told The Epoch Times.

With files from The Canadian Press
Rashmi Samant, who made history as the first Indian woman to be elected President of the Oxford Student Union (SU), has resigned from the post just days later amid controversy surrounding some of her past remarks and references.

Some of Samant's old social media posts had emerged, which were branded as racist and insensitive.

These included a holocaust reference on a post during a visit to the Berlin Holocaust Memorial in Germany in 2017 and an Instagram caption on a picture of herself in Malaysia that read Ching Chang, which upset Chinese students.

The 22-year-old also attracted criticism for a campaign post caption that separated women and trans women, with the Oxford LGBTQ+ campaign calling for her resignation.

In an open letter published in the student newspaper Cherwell' earlier this week, Samant said: Though the recent developments might make it hard for you to believe the sincerity of my apologies, it deeply pained me to note that I have lost the trust that the student community reposed in me with their votes and belief in my manifesto owing to my mistakes.

Regrettably, I alienated people within our wonderful student community to the extent that they deem me unfit to be the leader they rightfully deserve," she said.

"I sincerely apologise to every student who has been hurt by my actions or words and seek a chance to gain your trust in me again, she added.

However, the row continued to escalate and she found her position as President-elect untenable and stepped down.

In light of the recent events surrounding my election to the Presidency of the Oxford SU, I believe it is best for me to step down from the role. It has been an honour to be your President-elect, she said in a statement on Facebook on Tuesday, later published in The Oxford Student'.

A by-election will now need to be held to elect a new president, with nominations re-opened, which means the fresh election will not be limited to just the previously unsuccessful candidates.

The current 2020-21 officers of the Student Union said they sincerely apologise for the hurt and discomfort caused by the actions of the President-elect.

Oxford SU has a no-tolerance policy towards discrimination. Racism, transphobia, and antisemitism have no place in our organisation, their statement read.

Samant, from Udupi in Karnataka, has since left for India to be with her family amid deep regret and many of her social media accounts have since been deleted.

Last week, the graduate student reading for an MSc in energy systems at Linacre College at Oxford University, scored a landslide win in the Oxford Student Union election.

The Manipal Institute of Technology student's Indian roots were referenced in her manifesto as she highlighted the need for greater decolonisation and inclusivity on campus in the Oxford Student Union leadership election for the 2021-22 term.

(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.)
Madison County Health Department facilitated an appointment-only clinic Wednesday at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

SIUE constituents spent the afternoon making their way to the on-campus fitness center to receive the Moderna vaccine, courtesy of SIUE Health Service and Madison County.

Amanda Pruitt, Madison County Health Department and I coordinated todays clinic hosting faculty, staff and students receiving their second shot of the Moderna vaccine. The recipients were in the 1A group. The clinic also provided a limited number of 1B recipients their first shot. The county provided the Moderna vaccine as they hold all vaccine supply, Riane Greenwalt, director of health service, said.

Participants remained socially distanced during the process, and waited in the vaccination area at least 15 minutes after receiving the shot in case of any adverse reaction.
Bengaluru, Feb 18 : Barring a few stray incidents of stone pelting on moving trains, the nationwide 'Rail Roko' call given by the farmers on Thursday evoked lukewarm response in Karnataka with the police detaining farmer leaders across the BJP ruled state, stopping them from entering the railway station premises.

The ongoing farmers' protest on the borders of Delhi against the three Central farm laws has been going on for over three months now. The farmers have held 11 rounds of talks with the Centre, but they have failed to break the deadlock with the farmers sticking to their main demand of repealing the three farm laws.

On Thursday, the Karnataka police detained several farmer leaders from outside the railway stations in Bengaluru, Belagavi, Raichur, Hubballi and Kalaburgi districts. Even as the farmer leaders gathered in front of various railway stations in the state, the police prevented them from entering the station premises by putting up barricades.

Several farmer leaders, including state president of the Confederation of Farmers' Associations, Kuruburu Shanthakumar, were detained along with their supporters from outside the Yeshwantpur railway station in Bengaluru after Shanthakumar declared that farmers had gathered there in support of the protesting farmers in Delhi.

"We will support them in their endeavour," he said before being detained by the police.

Although there were reports from other parts of the state where farmers tried to break the police security ring in front of various railway stations, they were eventually overpowered by the police.

"When we arrived at the railway station, we were not allowed to demonstrate by the police. Why should we wait for the police to give us permission when the 'Rail Roko' was nationally announced by the farmers' unions," a farmer leader at Raichur railway station said.

Meanwhile, there were reports about stray incidents of stone pelting on moving trains from some parts of the state. One such incident was officially reported near the Kengeri railway station on the outskirts of Bengaluru.

However, the authorities are tightlipped on the matter, stating that it is yet not known if the protesters were behind the incident, or some anti-social elements were involved.

The Bengaluru railway police have registered a case and investigation is underway.
NewQuest Properties

Bath & Body Works leased 4,000 square feet in the Grand at Aliana, a development of NewQuest Properties at West Grand Parkway South and West Airport Boulevard in Richmond. Josh Friedlander and David Meyers of NewQuest Properties represented the landlord. Mike Wheeler of Streetwise Retail Advisors represented the Bath & Body Works, which is targeting an April opening. Additionally, Chicken Kitchen leased 1,400 square feet for a location to open this year and Joint Chiropractic leased 1,050 square feet to open in 2022. Brad Kilbride of Lee & Associates represented Chicken Kitchen. Jim Pappas represented Joint Chiropractic. Michaels, Ross Dress for Less and Ulta are preparing to open in March. More than half of the planned 400,000 square feet at Grand at Aliana has been built or is under construction.

Sun & Soil Plant Parlor will debut in Building 1 at M-K-T Heights, at 600 N. Shepherd Drive, during the first quarter. The shop will help customers appreciate, curate and select the right houseplants for their space. M-K-T is a trail-oriented mixed-use development of Triten Real Estate Partners, Radom Capital and Long Wharf Capital. Other new health and wellness tenants include Union Studio Yoga, Go Easy, a Dallas-based self-care outpost for women, and Treadwell, a mens grooming and wellness provider.
February 17th, 2021

Two steps forward for Astek: the technology consulting group expands into the Netherlands and Belgium through the acquisition of Immune-IT

The Astek Group announces today the acquisition of the Dutch company Immune-IT, a specialist in IT services, testing and digital transformation, thereby establishing a presence in both the Netherlands and Belgium.

This transaction is part of an active international development strategy and consolidation of its sector positions. This acquisition will enable Astek to strengthen its offering in this key Western European region.

The Group has now more than 100 employees in the Netherlands, spread over offices in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and 's-Hertogenbosch, and 30 employees in Belgium in Aalst, for a turnover of 13 million euros.

Astek will therefore be able to meet the expectations of its international clients in Belgium and the Netherlands and will offer to Immune-IT's clients the possibility of relying on a network of around fifty agencies spread over 18 countries on 5 continents. Astek is therefore also beginning its gradual establishment in Northern Europe, one of its strategic objectives over the next two years.

 We are very pleased to be part of Astek's ambitious growth project and to be its flagship in the Netherlands and Belgium. We are convinced that the significant commercial synergies between France and the Belgium and Dutch markets, with our combined skills, will enable us to offer global support to our customers and thus accelerate our development  said Marc Boesveldt CEO of Immune-IT.

Julien Gavaldon, Chairman of the Board of the Astek Group, said:  The acquisition of Immune-IT contributes in the international development of the Astek Group, allowing us to establish a position in both the Netherlands and Belgium. Immune-IT teams have been working with their numerous customers for more than 15 years and have recognised knowhow in IT and digital services. We are delighted to welcome them in the Group. 

Thanks to its policy of targeted acquisition combined with double-digit organic growth (mainly internationally), Astek Group will achieve 500 million in revenue by 2024.

About Astek

Founded in France in 1988, Astek is a global player in technology consulting, present on all 5 continents. Drawing on its expertise in numerous industrial and tertiary sectors, it supports its international clients in the intelligent deployment of their products and services and implementation of their digital transformation.

Since its creation, the Group has based its development on a strong entrepreneurship and innovation culture, and on the support and skills development of its 5,000 employees who are committed every day to promote the complementarity between digital technologies and complex engineering systems. The Group expects to achieve a turnover of more than 320 million euros in 2021. https://astekgroup.fr/

About Immune-IT

Founded in 2006, Immune-IT is based in 's-Hertogenbosch , Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Aalst in the Netherlands and Belgium. Immune-IT has more than 130 employees providing their expertise to numerous customers in the financial and public sector such as Rabobank, Waternet , Aegon, Argenta, bpost, Eurail, Eneco and De Nederlandsche Bank. Immune-IT expects to achieve a turnover of 13 million euros in 2021. https://immune.it/

Press contact

Claire Doligez) and Charlotte Le Barbier)

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Princess Eugenie is 'doing really well' after giving birth to her baby boy 'via C-section due to her previous spinal surgery for scoliosis', a source told People magazine.

The daughter of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson welcomed her first child with husband Jack Brooksbank on February 9 at London's Portland Hospital. The couple were pictured leaving the hospital three days later on February 12.

According to the insider, who claimed to have spoken to the royal, Eugenie, 30, sounded 'very content' and said the baby is 'a complete dream'.

Due to Covid-19 lockdown restrictions, the Duke and Duchess of York are yet to meet their first grandchild, the source added.

Princess Eugenie is 'doing really well' after giving birth to her baby boy 'via C-section due to her previous spinal surgery for scoliosis', a royal source told People magazine (pictured leaving hospital last week)

The princess was born with scoliosis and has since been vocal about her experience, including showing off the scar from surgery to correct the condition on her wedding day. She often shares pictures on her social media showing the scars and encourages others to do the same.

Eugenie underwent surgery on her spine at the age of 12 so titanium could be added to repair the curvature which scoliosis had caused. The People source claimed she gave birth via C-section as a result, but the Palace refused to comment when approached by FEMAIL.

A cesarean section is not necessary for most women with scoliosis; Dr. Mary Jane Minkin, a board-certified OB/GYN at Yale University School of Medicine, told People that pregnant women with a history of scoliosis surgery are evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

If the placement of the metal rods means an epidural isn't possible, the mother-to-be and doctor will come up with alternative anesthesia options.

According to the source who claimed to have spoken to the royal, Eugenie, 30, sounded 'very content' and said the baby is 'a complete dream'

The new arrival weighed 8lbs 1oz and the couple broke with tradition by immediately sharing a black and white photo to Eugenie's Instagram of their baby boy, showing them holding his tiny hand

Eugenie and tequila boss Jack are believed to be residing at Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, where the couple spent time before Christmas after being loaned the home by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who now live in the US. It was understood that Eugenie and her cousin Harry reached a 'private agreement' over Frogmore Cottage though it is not known how long it will last.

The couple's permanent home is Ivy Cottage at Kensington Palace, but they spent lockdown at Fergie and Prince Andrew's home on the Queen's Windsor estate.

Their baby is the Queen and Prince Philip's ninth great-grandchild and eleventh-in-line to the throne, but will not have a royal title; only the grandchildren of the monarch are automatically entitled to one.

Speaking to Vanity Fair's Katie Nicholl, a source recently revealed: 'Eugenie knows that a title can be a curse as well as a blessing and she and Jack want their child to live an ordinary life and eventually work to earn a living.'

The princess was born with scoliosis and has since been vocal about her experience, including showing off the scar from surgery to correct the condition on her wedding day

Princess Eugenie and Jack's son is the Queen and Prince Philip's ninth great-grandchild and eleventh-in-line to the throne, but will not have a royal title

The new arrival weighed 8lbs 1oz and the couple broke with tradition by immediately sharing a black and white photo to Eugenie's Instagram of their baby boy, showing them holding his tiny hand.

Proud new mother Eugenie followed the post with three blue hearts after welcoming her son at the luxury private hospital where Meghan also gave birth to her one-year-old son, Archie.

The Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Duke of York, Sarah Ferguson and Mr and Mrs George Brooksbank were delighted at the news, Buckingham Palace announced, adding that 'Her Royal Highness and her child are both doing well'.

The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital (RNOH) charity, which treated Princess Eugenie for the rare condition of scoliosis when she was 12, also wrote: 'Congratulations to our Patron, HRH Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank on the birth of their baby boy. We are so delighted for you both and would like to wish you all the very best'.

The new mother is currently on maternity leave from her job as a director at Mayfair art gallery Hausery & Wirth, while Jack works for tequila brand Casamigos.
The Supreme Court-appointed panel on the new farm laws on Thursday said it held consultations with top officials of the ministries of agriculture, food processing industries and consumer affairs on the legislations against which farmers have been protesting at Delhi's borders for nearly three months now.

This is the ninth meeting the panel has held so far. The three-member committee is holding consultations with stakeholders both online and in person.

In a statement, the committee said it held in-person interaction with the Agriculture Secretary, Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) Chairman, Additional Secretary and Joint Secretary in the Consumer Affairs Department as well as cooperative NABARD Director.

The NABARD Chairman and Deputy Managing Director, Small Farmers' Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC) Managing Director, Food Corporation of India (FCI) Advisor, Food Processing Industries Secretary and Horticultural Board Managing Director attended the meeting through video conference, it said.

The committee members requested the participating officers to give their views on the three farm laws. "All the participating officers gave their detailed views and suggestions...," the statement said.

The had on January 12 stayed the implementation of the three contentious farm laws for two months and asked the committee to submit a report within two months after consulting the stakeholders.

Thousands of farmers, especially from Punjab, Haryana and parts of Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at Delhi's borders for nearly three months now seeking repeal of the new legislations, introduced by the last year, saying they are pro-corporate and could weaken the mandi system.

Eleven rounds of the talks between the and 41 protesting farmer unions have so far remained deadlocked. The government has offered concessions including suspension of the legislations for 18 months, which the unions have rejected.

(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.)
We are in contact with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and other federal agencies to understand the logistical challenges and if there is anything Illinois can do to expedite getting vaccine, officials stated.

This evening, after a seven-month journey through space, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, a scientific laboratory the size of a 4x4, will make its final descent to the Red Planet to begin a search for ancient life.

Perseverance is the first rover to be sent to Mars with the explicit objective of searching for traces of past microbial life, as opposed to extant life currently on the planet. To do this, the rover will select scientifically interesting Martian rock and soil samples to reconstruct the surface environment of Mars billions of years ago when it is believed that life could have existed.

Museum scientists Prof Caroline Smith and Dr Keyron Hickman-Lewis form part of the NASA Mars 2020 Science Team and will help to make decisions about sampling and analysis throughout the course of the mission. This will involve close collaboration with international partners such as UK Space Agency and the European Space Agency based at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxfordshire, where the Museum will be opening a new science and digitisation centre in 2026.

Prof Caroline Smith, Head of Earth Sciences Collections at the Museum and member of the NASA Mars team says: The Perseverance rover has been specifically designed to search for evidence of ancient life on Mars and with its ability to collect interesting samples for potential return to Earth gives us the best chance thus far to finally answer that big question of Was there life on Mars?  this would be one of the most significant scientific discoveries in history

After the nail-biting seven minutes of terror, a prolonged lapse in communication between the rover and the team back on Earth caused by the rover ionising the area around it as it prepares to land, Perseverance will land at Jezero crater. Jezero is a 28-mile-wide depression containing diverse sediments of an ancient river delta and presents the most opportune environment in which past life could have been preserved.

Perseverance is the biggest and most advanced vehicle ever sent to land on another planet. Its apparatus, or payload, is geared to search for the chemical building blocks of life such as organic molecules and traces of microbial fossils, while reconstructing the Red Planet's geological history.

To gather samples, the rover will drill 7cm into the rocks on the planets surface, before sealing the samples in special tubes to be stored on the rover. When the rover reaches a suitable location, the tubes will be placed on the planets surface to be collected by a future retrieval mission planned for the early 2030s. This is the first mission to plan a return element which means that, for the first time ever, scientists will be able to select specific samples from Mars and later study them in labs here on Earth.

Prof Caroline Smith will be studying the mineralogy and geochemistry of the different rocks found at Jezero crater and is involved with planning how the samples will be curated upon their arrival on Earth. Dr Keyron Hickman-Lewis, who is funded by UK Space Agency, will be studying the environments reflected by the sedimentary rocks found at Jezero crater and their potential to preserve ancient microbial life within.

Dr Keyron Hickman-Lewis says, Jezero crater provides a splendid window into the early history of Mars, when the planet may have hosted a biosphere. Traces of this biosphere, which was likely microbial, may be challenging to identify and so we will rely upon the rovers instruments to help us make decisions as to where and what we should sample. Once returned to Earth, this unique set of samples will give us a deep understanding of the geology of Mars.

Prof Caroline Smith says, This is the culmination of years of intensive effort from thousands of scientists and engineers at NASA and around the world. We are so excited to reach this milestone in the mission, to see Perseverance land on Mars and start exploring the different rocks and geological features with the onboard cameras and scientific instruments.

The rover also carries the Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, which will fly short distances from the rover and marks the first attempt at powered, controlled flight on another planet. A successful test of the helicopter could lead to more flying probes to survey the landscapes of other planets.

Also on board is a small piece of Martian meteorite that was discovered in Oman in 1999 and soon became a part of the Museums world-leading Collection. The meteorite, referred to as Sayh al Uhamiyr 008 or SaU 008, will now return to Mars where it will be used as part of a calibration target for SHERLOC, a high precision laser instrument on the rover that is used to analyse the chemistry and mineralogy of rock samples.

ENDS

Notes for editors



Media contact: Tel: (0)779 969 0151 Email: press@nhm.ac.uk



Images: Available here.

Footage and interviews: Available here.

About the Natural History Museum:



The Natural History Museum is both a world-leading science research centre and the most-visited natural history museum in Europe. With a vision of a future in which both people and the planet thrive, it is uniquely positioned to be a powerful champion for balancing humanitys needs with those of the natural world.



It is custodian of one of the worlds most important scientific collections comprising over 80 million specimens. The scale of this collection enables researchers from all over the world to document how species have and continue to respond to environmental changes - which is vital in helping predict what might happen in the future and informing future policies and plans to help the planet.



The Museums 300 scientists continue to represent one of the largest groups in the world studying and enabling research into every aspect of the natural world. Their science is contributing critical data to help the global fight to save the future of the planet from the major threats of climate change and biodiversity loss through to finding solutions such as the sustainable extraction of natural resources.



The Museum uses its enormous global reach and influence to meet its mission to create advocates for the planet - to inform, inspire and empower everyone to make a difference for nature. We welcome over five million visitors each year; our digital output reaches hundreds of thousands of people in over 200 countries each month and our touring exhibitions have been seen by around 30 million people in the last 10 years.


Jeong Eun-bo, South Korea's top negotiator in defense cost-sharing talks with the United States, holds video talks with his U.S. counterpart, Donna Welton, at the foreign ministry in Seoul, Feb. 5. Courtesy of Ministry of Foreign Affairs



By Jung Da-min



Expectations are rising in diplomatic circles that Seoul and Washington will soon reach an agreement in their long-stalemated defense cost-sharing talks.



These are based on the fact that the new U.S. President Joe Biden has pledged to strengthen their alliance and resolve related issues, including defense costs, and that the U.S. and Japan reached an agreement over their cost-sharing deal, Wednesday.



Two weeks after Biden's inauguration, a meeting for the 11th Special Measures Agreement (SMA) negotiations between Seoul and Washington was held, Feb. 5.



Since late 2019, the allies have held many SMA meetings on the upkeep of 28,500 American troops stationed here for a new deal that would have been applied starting 2020. But they have yet to reach an agreement, as former U.S. President Donald Trump demanded an excessive increase in Seoul's share, which the South Korean government said it could not accept. Seoul, instead, offered up to a 13 percent rise.



Amid repeated breakdowns of the meetings, the USFK, in January 2020, issued a prior warning of a potential furlough of about 9,000 Korean employees of the United States Forces Korea (USFK). The furlough took place from April 1 to mid-June last year, and was ended by a temporary arrangement between Seoul and Washington that allowed for the South Korean government to create a special fund to pay the furloughed Korean employees.



As the temporary arrangement ended late last year, however, there is a possibility that Korean USFK employees could again go on a furlough starting this April, with the U.S. side managing to cover their wages until March.



However, unlike the early 2020 situation, the USFK has not issued such notice of a furlough so far this year.



"We have not issued furlough notices at this time," the USFK said in a statement to media in early February, commenting on the matter. "The U.S. and Republic of Korea governments are currently engaged in earnest negotiations toward a new, comprehensive Special Measures Agreement that will strengthen the alliance, support the stable stationing of U.S. troops on the Korean Peninsula, and remove the near-term threat of furloughs."



The USFK and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have both said they could not comment on the ongoing negotiations, but added the leadership of the countries was committed to working out a comprehensive deal.



"The two sides share the need to make a deal as soon as possible based on the importance of the alliance," a ministry official told reporters.





U.S. army soldiers take part in a U.S.-South Korea joint exercise near the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province, in this April 8, 2016 photo. Reuters-Yonhap
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The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) on Thursday

approved Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine for use in Nigeria.

The Director-General of the agency, Mojisola Adeyeye, a professor, gave the go ahead for the use of the vaccine at a news conference in Abuja.

She said that the NAFDAC Vaccine Committee commenced expedited review immediately the agency received the Oxford AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine dossier from Serum Institute of India on Feb. 10.

She explained that members of the committee worked assiduously to review the vaccine as planned,

noting that the recommendation for the emergency use authorisation was based on rigorous scientific consideration.

The NAFDAC boss noted that the vaccine can be stored at two to eight-degree centigrade temperature.

The active substance is manufactured and controlled by Serum Institute of India Private Limited (SIIPL). A GMP certificate and manufacturing licence issued by the India National Regulatory Authority (NRA) has been presented and found to be authentic and valid.

The multidose (2 dose or 10 dose) vial is stored at 2 to 8 degree centigrade, one dose (0.5Ml) contains 5 x10) virus particle. On availability stability, the applicant has proposed a drug product shelf life of six months.

On vaccine safety from the phases two and three conducted, COVISHIELD was found safe and well-tolerated in adults above 18 years of age.

Mrs Adeyeye said the focus was to use holistic approach for effective immunisation, including delivery of the vaccines and monitoring of any adverse

effects.

She added that the multi-stakeholders technical working group had been meeting to address different issues, noting that the agency would use its recently launched Med Safety App for Active Pharmacovigilance of the vaccine.

The director general, who added that NAFDAC would collaborate with sister agencies on the task ahead, explained that the App is free and can be downloaded by healthcare workers to monitor Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR).

She said three additional vaccines were currently undergoing evaluation, but the evaluation on AstraZeneca shows that the vaccine is effective against the UK variant of the virus, which has been reported in Nigeria.

According to her, the South African variant has not been reported in Nigeria and that the agency has over 30 herbal medicines undergoing review for listing.

The Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine, also known as ChAdOx1 nCoV-`9, or AZD1222, is a viral vector vaccine. Scientists used an adenovirus, originally derived from chimpanzees, and modified it with the aim of training the immune system to mount a strong response against SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19).

Nigeria is expected to get the first batch of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Bird tips: Look for an immigrant, a nomad and a harbinger of spring at your feeder
Kinzinger makes Time100 Next list of emerging leaders: Fellow Republican and Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, no stranger to publicly criticizing Trump, penned the tribute to the Illinois congressman in Time magazine, writing in part: Over the past few months, Congressman Adam Kinzinger has stood up for the truth when it was most challenging and least convenient. In the wake of the insurrection at the Capitol in January, Adam was the first Republican member of Congress to step forward and call for the removal of President Trump from office via the 25th Amendment. In standing up for what he believed was right, Adam proved the measure of his courage.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated multiple development projects in Assam on Thursday via video conferencing. He said to reduce the geographical and cultural gaps the double engine government of Centre and Assam has made an effort and the physical and cultural integrity of the entire North East including Assam has been strengthened over the years. Distance between will be Assam and Meghalaya will be only 19-20 km, he added. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal were also present at the event.

"In the past few years, the double engine government of Centre and Assam made an effort to reduce the geographical and cultural gaps of this entire region. Distance between Assam and Meghalaya is around 250 kms by road. In the future, it will only be 19-20 kms. This bridge will also prove to be significant for the international movement of traffic to other nations," said PM Modi at the foundation stone laying ceremony of a bridge between Dhubri, Assam and Phulbari, Meghalaya.

The programme aimed at providing seamless connectivity to the eastern parts of India and includes various development activities for the people living around River Brahmaputra and River Barak.

READ | PM Modi: 'World Was Concerned About India Over COVID-19 But Now Takes Inspiration From Us'

Prime Minister said that the work related to the connectivity on the Brahmaputra should have been done earlier. Because of this, connectivity in Assam and North East remained a challenge. With the blessings of Mahabahu Brahmaputra, now rapid work is being done in this direction

          ,                                :    pic.twitter.com/N66P5FoSUX  ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) February 18, 2021

PM Modi stated, "Mahabahu Brahmaputra program has been started today to enrich the gift that many rivers have received in Assam including the Brahmaputra and Barak. This program will strengthen water connectivity across the region through the waters of the Brahmaputra".

READ | PM Modi To Address NASSCOM Webinar Concerning Effective Implementation Of Budget 2021-22

PM added that now Assam's development is also a priority, efforts are being made day and night for this. Steps have been taken one by one to reestablish multi-modal connectivity of Assam in the last 5 years.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said through this bridge Assam and Meghalaya will have a direct connection with West Bengal.

"Assam and Meghalaya will have a direct connection with West Bengal through this bridge. The 55 km-long road construction from Serampore in West Bengal to Dhubri, Assam will begin this October. It will save the distance and time needed to travel to Bhutan and Bangladesh," said Gadkari.

READ | Owaisi Frowns Upon Pangong Tso Disengagement Plan; Accuses PM Modi Of Giving Up Leverage

Dhubri Phulbari Bridge

The bridge is supposed to be built with a total cost of approximately Rs 4,997 crores and will meet the long-standing demand of the people from Assam & Meghalaya who were depending on ferry services to travel between the two banks of the river. The proposed Dhubri Phulbari Bridge will be located on NH-127B, originating from Srirampur on NH-27 (East-West Corridor), and terminating at Nongstoin on NH-106 in Meghalaya. It will connect Dhubri in Assam to Phulbari, Tura, Rongram and Rongjeng in Meghalaya. PM Modi launched projects worth Rs 3,231 cr in Assam.

READ | PM Modi To Visit Kerala And Tamil Nadu On February 14 As Countdown To Elections Winds Down

(With ANI Inputs)
'Ashes to Go': Ash Wednesday observances altered as COVID-19, snow create difficulties

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Amid ongoing concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic and a major snowstorm, churches throughout the United States and overseas have made changes in how they are distributing ashes on Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent.

Though the idea of receiving the Lenten rite on the go is not new and has been practiced in previous years, it is being done in various fashions this year as churches once again had to consider ways to distribute ashes in a safe manner that does not risk the spread of coronavirus.

The imposition of ashes on the forehead in the sign of a cross is practiced in the Catholic and liturgical Protestant churches.

As the ashes are imposed, they are often accompanied by the phrase, spoken by a pastor or priest: "Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return." The phrase is taken from God's words to Adam in Genesis 3:19.

Ash Wednesday sets in motion the penitential season of Lent, which lasts for 40 days leading up to Easter.

Nationwide, pastors have been brainstorming how to perform the ritual while abiding by social-distancing guidelines.

"Across the country, pastors have been sharing how to do this safely," said Rev. John Nelson of Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Hopkins, approximately 10 miles west of Minneapolis, in a Tuesday interview with The Minneapolis Star-Tribune.

"It's everything from having a few people come into church at scheduled times to mailing out ashes to people in their homes," he said, adding that the administering of ashes is "a very personal religious ritual that is difficult to do virtually."

Another Lutheran congregation, Gustavus Adolphus in St. Paul, is planning a drive-in worship service in the parking lot. Masked pastors will minister the rite from car to car, using a long cotton swab, to be thrown away after every use. Ashes will be applied either on the forehead or the tops of hands, based on the recipient's preferences.

"This at least gives us an opportunity to be together," said senior pastor John Hierlinger, "albeit in cars in our parking lot."

Churches in central New York are also administering drive-thru ashes or supplying them for people to take home.

Alan Rudnick, the pastor of DeWitt Community Church, said it is important to maintain the tradition even though the process is different this year.

When we have drive-thru communion, or we have drive-thru events like this at our church, you should just see peoples faces light up, [and] the smiles on their faces. Were able to pray with people. They can stay in their cars. They feel safe. We feel safe and try to keep a sense of continuity for our faith, he told Syracuse-based outlet Localsyr.com Wednesday.

For the second year in a row, the Episcopal Diocese of Washington is offering "ashes to go" at various locations throughout the metropolitan area.

In Ireland, where current coronavirus restrictions require all church services to be held virtually, a Catholic priest from County Donegal, Father Brian Brady, made batches of "takeaway ashes" for parishioners to administer from home.

According to reports, the priest teamed up with a shop in the town of Clonmany to offer the ashes in sauce containers.

"It's a new experience formed to have people wanting to talk to me," Brady told BBC Radio Ulster.

"There's been a lot of attention, and people want more ashes but can't get them."

In some parts of the world, the cornavirus is not the only thing making Ash Wednesday difficult.

As an uncharacteristic winter storm in Texas that has caused millions to lose power, San Antonio Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller granted Catholics a dispensation from fasting on Ash Wednesday. According to an announcement, he will allow ashes to be given at the end of the masses this weekend if churchgoers cannot receive them on Wednesday.

Many churches are canceling or reducing the number of liturgies they are offering out of concern for the safety of their parishioners in these dangerous conditions, the announcement reads. Many facilities are also without power, and roads are still closed in some areas. Driving conditions remain difficult with ice and snow.
Galveston, TX (77553)

Today

Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 83F. Winds ESE at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 77F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph.


Ex-Social Worker's Case Bound Over to Grand Jury

By West Kentucky Star Staff





GRAVES COUNTY - The case against a former social worker arrested earlier this month following allegations of inappropriate contact with a juvenile will be heard by a grand jury.A Graves County judge on Wednesday found probable cause against 27-year-old Brittany White and bound her case over to a grand jury.On Feb. 4, Kentucky State Police received a report alleging inappropriate contact between White, of Murray, and a juvenile. Over the course of the investigation, more allegations were made concerning inappropriate contact between White and the juvenile. On Feb. 11 White was arrested and lodged in the Graves County Jail.White is charged with unlawful transaction with a minor first degree, illegal sex act under 16-years-old, two counts of third degree rape, three counts of third-degree unlawful transaction with a minor, prohibited use of an electronic communication system to procure a minor, intimidating a participant in legal process, and three counts of distribution of obscene matter to a minor.
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has stepped up its hiring efforts for both freshers and lateral hires in the country and expects the number of new recruits in the March quarter to be "more than ever before", India Chairman and Managing Director Rajesh Nambiar said.

The US-based company, which has over two lakh employees in India, expects to hire more than 23,000 fresh graduates this year in the country.

"India has always been and will continue to be a very important part of what we do in At nearly 2,04,500, our India headcount at the end of 2020 was Cognizant's highest ever in the country. We continue to be one of the top recruiters of high-quality engineering, science, management and other talent in India," Nambiar told PTI.

He added that the company hired more than 17,000 fresh graduates from campuses in calendar year 2020, and expects to hire over 23,000 fresh graduates in 2021 - 35 per cent more than in 2020.

"Our campus commitment is all about us skilling up and these campus hires will complement our lateral hires. In fact, we're on track to bring in more new hires in Q1 of 2021 than ever before as we ramp our hiring capacity to accommodate our growth plans for 2021 and beyond. India will continue to be one of our key hubs for talent acquisition," Nambiar said.

He noted that the company continues to heavily reskill and upskill its employees.

"We reskilled more than 1.3 lakh employees in digital skills in the last 18 months alone. In addition, we have also been running one of the industry's most scalable internship programs. Last year, we got 5,000 for internship within Cognizant," he said.

This year, the programme is being expanded to accommodate 10,000 interns, he added.

There are reports that the company has set up a USD 30-million "retention fund" to hold back top performers and digitally-skilled employees.

While Nambiar did not comment on the development, he said the market for skilled digital talent is intensely competitive, creating demand-supply imbalances for certain skills.

"In key digital areas, there are more open positions than qualified persons to fill those positions. We are therefore heavily focused on maintaining a competitive and appealing employee environment where every person is inspired to achieve, driven to perform, and rewarded for their contributions," he said.

Nambiar stated that a vital aspect of this is sustained investment in engaging high-performing talent, enhancing pay-for-performance approach, and reinforcing the career path opportunities created by growing momentum.

"Given our strategic, operational and commercial progress, and a strengthening demand environment, we have entered 2021 with great confidence and are 100 per cent focused on attracting and retaining the right talent. We aim for our employees to feel motivated, engaged, and empowered to do their best work through careers they find meaningful," he said.

Cognizant had seen its December 2020 quarter revenue decline 2.3 per cent to USD 4.18 billion from the year-ago period, while the topline was marginally lower for full-year 2020 at USD 16.65 billion.

However, the company had exuded confidence about growth in 2021 on the back of a strengthening demand environment.

(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.)
Shares is the leading weekly publication for retail investors. It is packed with investment ideas, news and educational material to help build and run portfolios and get more from your money.

Shares puts on free Investor Events throughout the year across the country. They provide an opportunity for investors to learn more about companies on the stock market and hear from a range of investment experts including fund managers and Shares journalists.
The COVID-19 vaccination process began in nine clinics and hospitals in the Colombian capital on Thursday.

At the moment Bogota has only 12,500 doses of the 28,600 vaccines it requires to immunize front-line healthcare personnel, the priority group in Colombia for the first stage of a vaccination plan that began on Wednesday in the country.

The doses are from the pharmaceutical company Pfizer, the first to arrive in Colombia last Monday in a shipment of 50,000 vaccines.

The government has agreements to receive 68 million vaccines from pharmaceutical companies AstraZeneca, Moderna, Sinovac, Pfizer, Janssen and Covax, the platform of the World Health Organization that seeks equitable access to vaccines.

The Colombian government is aiming to vaccinate more than 30 million people this year, out of a population of about 50 million but vaccines have been slow to arrive.

Colombia has reported 2.2 million infections since the pandemic began, and 58,134 deaths.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
In this Jan.22, 2019 file photo, cables are plugged into a device by Cyber Test Systems at the Cybersecurity Conference in Lille, northern France. French President Emmanuel Macron is unveiling on Thursday a plan to better arm public facilities and private companies against cybercriminals as ransomware attacks struck two hospitals earlier this month, amid an upsurge of similar attacks in the country. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler, File)

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday unveiled a plan to better arm public facilities and private companies against cybercriminals following ransomware attacks at two hospitals this month and an upsurge of similar cyber assaults in France.

The attacks at the hospitals in Dax and Villefranche-sur-Saone prompted the transfer of some patients to other facilities as the French health care system is under pressure from the coronavirus pandemic.

Macron discussed the attacks with officials and workers from both hospitals, saying the incident "shows how the threat is very serious, sometimes vital."

"We are learning about these new attacks, some coming from states as part of new conflicts between nations, others coming from mafias," the French leader said during a videoconference. Some attacks have "criminal" or "lucrative" motives, others are used to "destabilize" countries, he added.

Macron referred to a massive hack of U.S. federal agencies last year and to the stealing of vaccine documents from the European Medicine Agency in November.

He stressed the need for international cooperation among police and criminal justice agencies after Ukrainian authorities said they had crippled a ransomware gang known as Egregor earlier this month following a joint action by the United States, France and Ukraine.

Macron's office said the government will earmark about 500 million euros ($603 million) to help boost cyberdefense systems in the public and private sector.

The National Cybersecurity Agency of France (ANSSI) reported that ransomware attacks surged 255% in 2020 compared to the previous year. All sectors and geographical areas of the country were included, but the increase particularly concerns the health care sector, the education system, local authorities and digital service providers, ANSSI said.

French President Emmanuel Macron gestures during a national cybersecurity strategy meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Thursday, Feb.18, 2021. French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday unveiled a plan to better arm public facilities and private companies against cybercriminals following ransomware attacks at two hospitals this month and an upsurge of similar cyber assaults in France. (Ludovic Marin, Pool via AP)

During ransomware attacks, cybercriminals infect computer networks with malware that scrambles data until victims pay a ransom.

The hospital in Villefranche-sur-Saone, located north of the city of Lyon, said its phone system went down during a cyberattack on Monday that forced a preemptive shutoff of the internet service and other networks to keep the ransomware from spreading.

The hospital also had to postpone surgeries planned for the following day. but said patient safety was preserved.

The Dax hospital in southwestern France reported a similar attack last week. Without phones and computers working, health care workers had to use pen and paper for record keeping.

The French cybersecurity agency is helping to investigate the attacks.

ANSSI said Monday that an attack similar to one used by Russian hackers targeted software distributed by the French company Centreon, resulting in the breach of "several French entities" from late 2017 to 2020.

"This campaign bears several similarities with previous campaigns attributed to the intrusion set named Sandworm," ANSSI said in a statement Monday.

Sandworm is a Russian military hacking group t hat U.S. officials and cybersecurity researchers blame for the most damaging cyberattacks to date, including the June 2017 NotPetya attack that targeted businesses that operate in Ukraine. It caused at least $10 billion in damage globally, most notably to the Danish shipping multinational Maersk.

Sandworm is also accused of trying to interfere in France's 2017 election in a hack-and-leak operation, in trying to sabotage the opening ceremonies of the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea and in triggering power outages in Ukraine in December 2015 and December 2016.

Explore further French cyber agency reveals suspected Russian hacks

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Opsealog, a French company specialising in performance management for the marine logistics sector, has secured a contract with Adnoc Logistics & Services.

The firm will apply its cutting-edge performance management solution Marinsights to Adnoc Logistics & Services' offshore fleet.

Following the successful results of a proof-of-concept trial with 11 vessels, Adnoc Logistics & Services has signed a multi-year contract with Opsealog to deploy its Marinsights service in a fleet of 70 offshore supply vessels in its Middle East operations, including PSVs (Platform Supply Vessel), AHTSs (Anchor Handling Tug Supply) and FSIVs (fast support intervention vessels).

Marinsights is a performance management tool that monitors and optimises marine offshore operations, bringing together data integration and visualisation with Opsealogs consultancy support, delivering fuel, emissions and cost savings, and improved fleet utilisation.

During the five-month trial period with Opsealog starting in May 2020, Adnoc Logistics & Services achieved an impressive 12% reduction in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, representing 572 cu m of fuel and 1519 TEQ of CO2.

Adnoc Logistics & Services provides support to Abu Dhabi Oil and Gass supply chain, including operations monitoring and fleet performance optimisation. With Marinsights, Adnoc Logistics & Services' can now unify data collection and implement a service that gives it a 360-degree vision of operations, enabling them to benefit from effective data integration, processing, and visualisation.

Arnaud Dianoux, Managing Director of Opsealog, said: "We're delighted to be working with Adnoc Logistics & Services. Our trailblazing data integration and analysis tools, combined with the expert support of our inhouse team, will enable Adnoc Logistics & Services to unlock new efficiencies, cut costs and reduce its GHG emissions across its fleet.

Our proof-of-concept trial with Adnoc Logistics & Services confirmed the verifiable difference that good data management can achieve. Our technology enables the offshore sector to leverage new efficiencies from digital solutions, including reduced fuel consumption and better control of other operational costs, all of which helps to protect their margins.

At a time when the defining challenge facing the energy and maritime sectors is decarbonisation, Opsealog's data insights are also helping clients to improve their environmental performance and significantly reduce their carbon footprint. Our team's extensive vessel design knowledge will enable us to benchmark operational behaviours, new technologies, and become the go-to contact for a range of critical issues, including propulsion transition, energy efficiency projects, and fleet utilisation, as well as supporting during the tender process.

Opsealog tracks 470 vessels worldwide with clients across the global energy sector, spanning energy majors, national oil companies, regional operators and affiliates, to improve their marine logistics operations. To date, Opsealog has helped to deliver 80,000+ tonnes of CO2 savings, as well as supporting compliance with MARPOL's Waste Management and Fresh Water Production regulations. -- Tradearabia News Service

The Chinese ship Tan Suo 2, which recently conducted a scientific research expedition in contested waters in the South China Sea.

A Chinese government scientific research ship has completed an expedition in South China Sea waters disputed by Hanoi and Beijing, according to Chinese state media and data from a ship-tracking platform.

The Tan Suo 2 left the Chinese port of Sanya on Feb. 2, sailing to waters west of the Paracel Islands  roughly 140 nautical miles off the coast of Da Nang in Vietnam  where Chinese state media says it collected biological samples, tested submersibles and carried other such research until Feb. 9.

The ships voyage into Vietnams claimed exclusive economic zone is just the latest such research expedition by China, which claims most of the South China Sea for itself despite competing claims from six other Asian governments, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. While Indonesia does not regard itself as party to the South China Sea dispute, Beijing claims historic rights to parts of that sea overlapping Indonesias exclusive economic zone.

On Wednesday, a U.S. warship, the USS Russell, conducted a so-called freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) in the Spratly islands, an area contested by China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan, the U.S. 7th Fleet said in a statement.

Notwithstanding the disputes over maritime and territorial claims, Chinese research ships have consistently carried out research in the South China Sea and beyond  searching for natural resources, mapping the seabed, testing new technologies and conducting other types of scientific inquiry. At times, Chinas research activities have drawn ire from neighboring countries.

For instance, in January the Jia Geng  a ship owned and managed by Xiamen University  operated in Philippine waters without permission from the Philippine government, the Inquirer reported.

And in December 2020, Indonesia discovered a likely Chinese unmanned underwater vehicle near Selayar Island, which may have been collecting data to aid Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) Navy submarines.

Coverage of the recent expedition by the Tan Suo 2 in Chinese state media indicates that the ship belongs to the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Deep-sea Science and Engineering, a state-run research organization. Records reviewed by BenarNews confirm that this institute owns and manages the Tan Suo 2.

Automatic identification system (AIS) data reveals the Tan Suo 2 operating in waters disputed by China and Vietnam between Feb. 2 and Feb. 9. [Data from MarineTraffic; analysis and annotation by BenarNews.]

The Tan Suo 2 reportedly carried a 60-person team from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Deep Sea Warrior manned submersible.

Over the course of the expedition, the researchers completed nine dives where they collected deep-sea biological, sedimentary and water samples which will be used to build a South China Sea deep-sea biological resource bank and study how organisms adapt to the deep-sea environment, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

The researchers also carried out the first joint operation involving the Deep Sea Warrior and the Luling mobile multi-site submersible, the report said.

The Vietnamese government has not publicly commented on the Tan Suo 2s recent expedition, which took place in an area that both China and Vietnam claim as part of their exclusive economic zones.

Coastal states have the right to regulate, authorize and conduct scientific research in their exclusive economic zones, which typically extend up to 200 nautical miles from a countrys territorial sea baseline, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Over the past year, the Tan Suo 2 repeatedly has operated in the South China Sea and has ventured into the waters of the Pacific Ocean as well.

For example, the ship sailed down to an area southeast of the Paracel Islands in July 2020. And it finished at least four additional excursions into the South China Sea between the start of August and mid-October.

In December 2020, the Tan Suo 2 completed a 57-day expedition to the Mariana Trench. During this voyage, the ship deployed the Deep Sea Warrior for 32 dives where it collected a range of different biological and sedimentary samples, Xinhua reported.
UPDATE: Northampton Co. states top COVID hotspot as Valley records 56K cases

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported an increase of 3,345 new cases of coronavirus across the state on Thursday. In addition to the new cases, there were also 94 newly reported deaths.

With Thursdays increase in numbers, Pennsylvania now has a total count of 905,995 cases of COVID-19 since the first one was reported in the state on March 6. The newly reported deaths bring the states death toll to 23,413 total coronavirus-related deaths.

Wednesdays COVID-19 vaccine dose mishap notwithstanding, the state continues to distribute its limited supply of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines around the state. On Thursday, the number of vaccinations distributed was 1,832,638.

Winter weather exacerbating problems

With now over 1.8 million vaccines distributed, Pennsylvania is still slowly chugging along at a slower rate than many would like, but given its limited supply of vaccine doses received from the federal government, its the situation the state is stuck with.

So far, 1,832,638 total doses of the two available vaccines have been distributed to Pennsylvania residents in Phase 1A, which is estimated to have 4 million people eligible  467,115 residents have received both injections, while 898,408 residents have received the first dose.

(Cant see the map? Click here.)

Because of the winter weather hitting the United States, including Pennsylvania, vaccine shipments are seeing significant delays. Lindsey Mauldin of the Pennsylvania Department of Health said in a briefing on Thursday that both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccine facilities were seeing shipping delays. Moderna didnt ship on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, while Pfizer didnt ship any doses on Monday and only limited supplies on Tuesday and Wednesday.

This compounds heavily on the already-slow process hitting a major speed bump this week. On Wednesday, the Department of Health said that providers distributed roughly 200,000 Moderna vaccines that were meant to be second doses as first doses over the last month and a half.

The Pfizer vaccine supply was unaffected by the mishap, but anyone with a Moderna vaccine scheduled could be on the receiving end of appointment delays. Due to the shortage of Modernas vaccine in the state, more than 100,000 residents scheduled to receive the Moderna vaccine might have appointments pushed back.

Mauldin said that the department is still assessing the weather-related delay and working with the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency to determine how the delayed shipments will affect Pennsylvanias 67 counties, and communication with those counties and their providers is ongoing.

Coronavirus in Pa.

Pennsylvania became the eighth state to cross 900,000 total COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking 24 days to reach the mark after crossing 800,000 cases, but the new case rate is slowing down. The states seven-day rolling average is currently at 3,104 new cases. Continuing at that average would likely take Pennsylvania another month to amass the next 100,000 cases, bringing it to one million total COVID-19 cases. However, its likely that milestone takes even longer to reach  the states rolling average has dropped by more than 1,500 cases in two weeks.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

With 94 new deaths, the states seven day death average dropped to 79 per day. Given the reporting delay over the weekend that resulted in low death numbers at the beginning of the week, its not totally clear how much of the states slowing death rate is due to slow reporting and how much is a legitimate downtrend. Sunday through Tuesday saw daily reports of 24, 23 and seven new deaths, respectively, only for Wednesday to shoot up to 193 reported deaths. However, Pennsylvania was averaging 146 deaths per day at the start of February, so while Thursdays average might be somewhat artificially low, the states new death numbers are still likely decreasing in frequency.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

Coronavirus in the Lehigh Valley

The Lehigh Valley reported 239 new cases of COVID-19 on Thursday  96 new cases were reported in Lehigh County, while 143 new cases came from Northampton County. The regions case count jumped to 55,806 total cases. There are 29,969 cases in Lehigh County, which will likely reach the 30,000-case mark on Friday, becoming the ninth county in the state to do so. Northampton County has 25,837 total cases.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

There were eight new deaths reported in the region as well. Lehigh County had three new deaths, bringing its toll to 742, while Northampton County reported five new deaths to bring its toll to 623. The Lehigh Valleys combined death toll is now at 1,365.

The Lehigh Valleys two hospital networks will both have a number of vaccine appointments affected by the Moderna shortage. Lehigh Valley Health Network said that it will reschedule about 1,500 appointments set for Friday. St. Lukes University Health Network is expected to reschedule appointments as well, but didnt pinpoint exactly how many. To date, Lehigh County has distributed 78,627 total vaccinations  24,717 residents have received both doses, while 29,193 have received their first dose. Northampton County has distributed 64,745 vaccine doses  19,057 residents have received both doses, and 26,631 have received their first dose.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Connor Lagore may be reached at clagore@njadvancemedia.com.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) resident representative in Nigeria, Ari Aisen, has said the use of cryptocurrencies is a major concern to central banks in most countries not only in Nigeria alone.

The IMF official made this remark on Wednesday during a virtual briefing on the recently published 2020 Article IV IMF Staff Report for Nigeria.

He said central banks in most countries are greatly worried about the kind of activities cryptocurrencies are used to promote and how best such can be monitored.

Mr Aisen also stated that some cryptocurrency transactions could be used for money laundering and drug trafficking.

This aligns with the Central Bank of Nigerias reasons for ordering the closure of all cryptocurrency related-accounts in the country.

The apex bank had on February 5 ordered Nigerian banks to close all cryptocurrency-related accounts. It also barred financial institutions from facilitating cryptocurrency payments in the country.

In another statement issued afterwards, the CBN explained why it banned cryptocurrency-related transactions in the country, claiming the digital currency is used for money laundering and terrorism.

The ban sparked controversies with fears that it might affect fintechs, and its rising potentials to the Nigerian economy might be lost because Nigeria is the worlds second-biggest user of virtual currencies like bitcoins.

Mr Aisen said many central banks around the world have taken similar policy decisions as the CBN.

The issue with some of the cryptocurrencies is that perhaps some care should be taken about their activities. The use of cryptocurrencies is a concern, he said.

The official said that is why some central banks, not only in Nigeria, have these concerns about what kind of the activities these crypto currencies are put into and how best to monitor those activities.

Some of them may be illegal activities and may be related to money laundering, even drugs or other illegal things. It is natural that the monetary authorities will be concerned about how best to supervise and increase their oversight regarding the use of crypto currencies, he said.

Mr Aisen said the CBN is thinking closely about its trade-offs and is trying to design the best policy in the interest of the payment system and the sustainability of the financial sector.

The IMF official called for the unification of foreign exchange rates, so as to make the management of foreign exchanges (forex) more transparent.

Speaking about forex scarcity, Mr Aisen explained that there has been some level of scarcity of foreign exchange out there and it would be useful to unify rates to allow it fluctuate and to make forex more accessible to those who needed them.

However, he stated that the Nigerias Debt or Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio has not reached a level of overt concern.

However, he urged the government to ensure that debt and GDP ratios are not allowed to reach a level that would make it unsustainable.

It is important to manage borrowed funds properly for the economic benefits of the nation, he said.

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An American-born activist imprisoned by the Syrian Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) has been released, the group announced today.

HTS arrested Bilal Abdul Kareem in August amid a crackdown on activists and aid workers perceived as critical to its activities and policies in Idlib province, Syrias last remaining Arab opposition enclave.

Born Darrell Lamont Phelps, Abdul Kareem has been in Syria documenting the war from the ground since at least 2014. He has met with al-Qaeda-linked figures in the past and sued the US government in 2017 on suspicion he was on a top-secret kill list approved by the White House.

HTS public relations arm announced Wednesday that Abdul Kareem had been released on an appeal for amnesty, as long as the activists release conditions, which are connected with public matters and his military activity, are followed.

The Islamist group did not specify the conditions but accused Abdul Kareem of working with groups that violate public security, incitement against the local authorities, spreading lies and conducting interviews with personalities wanted by the judiciary of HTS.

Prisoners advocate and activist Moazzam Begg, who is in contact with Abdul Kareem, posted a photo of the freed American alongside British aid worker Tauqir Sharif, an aid worker from the United Kingdom arrested in June by HTS militants.

Abdul Kareem publicly interviewed Sharifs wife shortly prior to his arrest in August, bringing to light allegations that the British aid worker had been tortured in HTS custody.

The American activists stepson said in a video message in August that his stepfather was pulled into a car by armed men outside a mosque in the Syrian town of Atmeh.

The leader of HTS, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, has been working to rebrand himself, including in an interview with US-based PBS news earlier this month. Golani, who founded al-Qaedas defunct Syria franchise, Jabhat al-Nusra, has led a purge against Islamist extremist rivals in Idlib in recent years.

The United States has killed a number of al-Qaeda-linked figures in drone strikes in northwest Syria in recent years, some tied to HTS more extreme rival, Huras al-Din.
Head of Senate's Cultural Affairs Committee Viorel Badea believes that, in order to better understand Brancusi's work, one needs to also understand and "to deeply feel the dimension of the Romanian people's eternity."

"Constantin Brancusi's work can be best understood if one understands and deeply feels the dimension of the Romanian people's eternity and I refer here, especially, to folk art. The essence, sincerity and simplicity of forms represent the spiritual landmarks of Brancusi's works. But the artist from Pestisani, the one who took the path of exile, like many of his fellow artists nowadays, never forgot what inspired him - the simplicity, cleanliness and sincerity of the Romanian peasant," Senator Viorel Badea told AGERPRES.

In his opinion, Brancusi's work is more relevant today than ever because "it urges us to protect the traditions and spiritual values of the Romanian people."

"We have a duty towards Brancusi not to lose what defines us and distinguishes us as a nation. In a world where everything seems to be uniformly banal under the spectre of consumerism, Brancusi invites us to contemplate his works, which stand out through the elegance of the form and the sensitive use of the materials, having as conceptual coordinate the profound simplicity of the Romanian folk art," underscored Viorel Badea.

February 19 marks the 145th anniversary of the birth of the great Romanian sculptor.

By the Law No. 305/2015, the Parliament declared February 19 as "The Brancusi Day."
This past week America has been treated to some chilly weather. Records were broken across what Rush Limbaugh described as the fruited plains.

Kansas City broke a record low temperature set in 1936. Colorado Springs broke an 1895 record on Valentines Day. Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio also broke cold temperature records. Fort Collins broke a 121-year-old record.

Beyond America, the current Grand Solar Minimum is intensifying and so is winter, cooling the entire Northern Hemisphere.

Record cold and snow has buffeted much of the Northern Hemisphere of late: from northern Asia, to the majority of Europe, to practically ALL of North America  the NH is suffering a truly historic winter of 2020/21 as the Grand Solar Minimum intensifies.

I could go on, but you get the picture. It was a heckuva cold weekend.

YouTube screen grab

At one time, extreme weather was blamed on global warming, but who could, with a straight face, attribute record setting cold temperatures to a warming planet? Conveniently the narrative changed a few years ago, just like the First Amendment also conveniently changed.

Last summer, riots and protests were peaceful assembly, and in early January, peaceful assembly changed to insurrection. Warming can be cooling and vice versa, under fluid definitions that change based on political circumstances.

Aside from Mother Nature, NASA is also raining on the global warming parade. Agency scientist Martin Mlynczak notes that sunspot activity on the surface of the sun has dropped so low that our outer atmosphere is losing heat energy, and that If trends continue, it could soon set a Space Age record for cold.

The scientist was quick to point out that, there was no relationship between temperatures in space and that on earth. Perhaps, or perhaps not. Scientists from the WHO also told us in January 2020 that there was no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus. Dr Anthony Fauci last March told us theres no reason to be walking around with a mask.

Welcome to science  educated guesses based on the best knowledge at the time, hopefully without influence from politics or popular culture.

Does the sun have an influence on global temperatures? Yes, according to NOAA. Four factors affect global temperatures - carbon dioxide levels, volcanic eruptions, Pacific El Nino patterns and perhaps most important, the suns activity.

Carbon dioxide, despite representing only 0.04 percent of the atmosphere, is believed to contribute to global warming. Whats not clear is whether rising CO2 levels are a cause or effect of rising temperatures. Perhaps other factors warm the planet, and a warmer ocean is releasing CO2 into the atmosphere, bubbling out of the water, and may be associated with warmer temperatures, but as an effect rather than the cause.

Solar activity influences temperatures on Earth. One example is the Maunder Minimum, between 1645 and 1715 when sunspots were virtually nonexistent and the planet experienced a Little Ice Age. During the 12th and 13th centuries, solar activity was high, and Europe enjoyed a mild climate.

The climate changes; thats not a revelation. From CBS News, 55 million years ago the Arctic was once a lot like Miami, with an average temperature of 74 degrees, alligator ancestors and palm trees. This was long before airplanes and SUVs. If fact it was long before humans existed, with homo sapiens only 200,000 to 300,000 years old.

Previous ice ages came and went, millions of years ago, through naturally occurring cooling and warming cycles. Far more recently, only 20,000 years ago, mile thick ice covered most of Canada and the northern contiguous United States, but the climate warmed and the ice melted, without help from Al Gore or Greta.

Also overlooked are the benefits of higher carbon dioxide levels and warmer temperatures on Earth, the greening of the planet as I described previously. CO2 is plant food, and along with water, sunlight, and warm temperatures, promote photosynthesis. Dry and cool climates, adding more CO2 and warmer temperatures, may become fertile, supporting plant life to feed humans and animals.

CO2 fertilization led to an 11 percent increase in foliage cover from 1982 to 2010 across many arid regions of the world. Advocates for the poor and disenfranchised should be cheering any warming as cooling would lead to global starvation and misery.

Given that the Earth is 4.5 billion years old, and in the space of 50 years, we have gone from global cooling alarmism in the 1970s to the global warming warnings of the past decade, it seems we are a bit presumptuous assuming present observations are relevant in the far longer scheme of global climate and temperatures.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, The climate system is a coupled non-linear chaotic system, and therefore the long-term prediction of future climate states is not possible. Meaning we can predict the weeks weather, but not the climate decades or centuries into the future.

Yet the media and ruling classes are pushing a narrative, exemplified by this headline from National Geographic, Why cold weather doesnt mean climate change is fake. Neither does warm weather, hurricanes, or tornados. The climate has and always will be changing.

Instead of tapdancing in order to lump frigid temperatures with man-made global warming, there should be a discussion of the geopolitical ramifications of Americas energy policy. Despite the desire of the current administration to go green, practicalities make this a nonstarter.

Ask Germany. Its millions of solar panels are covered in ice and are useless, as are its 30,000 wind turbines, frozen and not generating any electricity. Germany may these days be longing for coal or nuclear-powered plants providing electricity, on demand, regardless of the weather outside.

Ice storms in Texas froze half the wind generating capacity, knocking out power and sending electricity prices through the roof. Wind accounts for 23 percent of Texas electricity. Suppose under Biden that figure jumps to 75 or 90 percent?

4 million Texans lost power during this recent freeze, a time when they needed it the most. How many Texans died due to Green New Deal power sources being frozen shut?

As a delicious irony, helicopters are being used to deice frozen wind turbine blades, using about 100 times as much energy to deice compared to energy saved from using the windmills for power. Not such a green new deal.

If President Biden makes good on his promise to end fossil fuel, leaving us dependent on hostile foreign countries and weather dependent alternative green sources for our energy needs, along with the current lowest solar activity in over 200 years, we may be in for a long cold winter. Biden wasnt kidding when he warned of a dark winter. Bundle up.

Brian C Joondeph is a physician and writer. He is on sabbatical from social media.
First Responders Encourage Vaccinations in Black Community

An online conference organized by Ethnics Media Services (EMS) and LA County COVID-19 Joint Information Center gathered doctors from the LA County Department of Public Health (Public Health), in that each doctor shared extensive data as well as a quality perspective.

The online conference was hosted by Contributing Editor at Ethnic Media Services, Pilar Marrero, and guest speakers: Public Health Director of Integrative Medicine, Dr. Eloisa Gonzalez, Public Health Director of Primary Care Clinical Quality Dr. Karen Kim, and Public Health Director of Hubert Humphrey Comprehensive Health Center Dr. Raymond Perry.

Webhost, Pilar Marrero, stated One, the vaccine is free, safe, and effective; two, the county is committed to ensuring every resident who wants itgets vaccinated; three, LA County is working to increase supplies of the vaccine from state and local partnersthat being the major challenge to date.

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LA County has administered 1,345,949 doses and cleared 298,875 second doses. According to Dr. Eloisa Gonzalez, As our vaccination program continues, we are looking at strategies that improve access to vaccine for people who are older with limited mobility. We are organizing mobile teams to bring vaccinations directly to senior centers in our hardest hit communities.

Vaccinations are currently available to health care workers, staff and long-term residents at healthcare facilities, and senior citizensages 65 and up. The groups to be vaccinated were determined at the federal level, then proclaimed on a state level, while all countys implement the vaccinations roll out. Governor Gavin Newsom indicated the next wave of vaccinations will be for education and childcare workers, food and agriculture workers, and emergency servicescategorized as Phase 1B: Tier 1.

Dr. Gonzalez began an informative PowerPoint regarding pandemic data, she said As of February 15, the average number of new cases is around 4,500, which is a 70 percent decrease since the peak we experienced in early Januarywhen reported an average over 15,000 cases per day. Despite the decrease in numbers, Gonzalez said, Our optimism around this decrease is cautious It is encouraging to see these numbers go down, and grateful to everyone whose careful actions are making this possible. However, our hospitals are still very crowded, and we still have limited ICU capacity.

Over the past week, the state has averaged 8,000 new cases with over 300 new deaths per day. Experts say the true number of people infected is unknown while the current projections are only estimations, possibly much higher than official data indicates.

LA County Department of Health Services (DHS) expect to reduce numbers through patient outreachaccording to Dr. Karen Kim, Our strategy includes call center staff calling patients and target groups directly by phone to offer the vaccine and schedule [appointments], we are also using automated robocalls for high volume outreach.

In Americas history, vaccinations have saved millions of lives, such as, the polio vaccine (IPV)developed by Virologist Jonas Salk; according to the CDC, Since 1988, more than 18 million people can walk today who would otherwise have been paralyzed, and 1.5 million childhood deaths have been averted thanks to the polio vaccine. As well as the smallpox vaccine of the late 1700s; the worlds first vaccine, the work of Edward Jenner and later developments. In Jenners time, the disease killed around 10 percent of the population, and rising to 20 percent in towns and cities.

Nevertheless, humanity is again faced with crisis, in which requires a united movement for vaccination. American Politicians and Physicians have devised sound planning for Americans citizens, in which case we are expected to proceed government plans in great faith.

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Despite the mass majority of physicians encouraging people to get vaccinated, somehow, a sense of hesitancy surrounds the vaccine. Hesitancy in the ethnic communities; in particularly, the Black and Brown communities that I serve at my Humphrey Clinic, said Dr. Raymond Perry, Black and Latino communities, nationally; as well as here in Los Angeles, have disproportionately been impacted by COVID-19. There have been more cases of COVID-19 and more deaths from COVID-19 in these communities; yet these are also the communities that may have more hesitance about the vaccine.

Dr. Kim noted, These numbers change day-to-day depending on who come through our vaccination sessions, but for the few weeks of data that we haveit shows that were vaccinating about 60 percent Latino, about 10 percent Black, 10 percent Asian, about 15 percent Mixed or other.

Whether its Pfizers or Modernas vaccine, both FDA approved; based on official reports, nearly 200 million COVID19 vaccine doses had been administered worldwide (such as, CN 40,000,000 vaccinated, U.S. 37,000,000, U.K. 15,000,000).

Both vaccines are COVID-19 messenger-ribonucleic acid (mRNA) vaccines, with slightly different in ingredients; Pfizers containing: lipids, salts, and sugars, and Modernas containing: lipids, acetic acid, Acid Stabilizers, salts, and sugars.

Based on Hackensack Meridian Health reports, Its critical to note that the mRNA vaccines never enter the nucleus of the cell, where our DNA is stored. After injection, the mRNA from the vaccine is released into the cytoplasm of the cells. Once the viral protein is made and on the surface of the cell, mRNA is broken down and the body permanently gets rid of it, therefore making it impossible to change our DNA.

Dr. Raymond Perry noted that As a healthcare worker, I was able to get my first does in December and second does in January, and I feel great, I feel protected! I know that I need to still wear a mask, wash my hands, and follow social distancing guidelines. But I feel like Im doing my part to protect myself and also to protect my family, my friends, my co-workers and my patients.

To register to receive vaccination go to VaccinateLACounty.com; VacunateLosAngeles.com; or to learn more information go to covid19.la.county.gov and dhs.lacounty.gov.
Mumbai: Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole on Thursday threatened Bollywood celebrities, including superstars Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar, and questioned their silence over rising petrol prices across the country.

Patole threatened that these Bollywood celebrities, who had tweeted about high fuel prices during the Congress-led UPA regime, were quiet now. Stars such as Bachchan and Kumar had tweeted when the price of petrol rose to Rs 70 per litre, Patole said while addressing a press conference here.

"But now the price is nearly Rs 100 per litre. Why are they quiet? Don't they have the courage to speak against the dictatorial Narendra Modi government," Patole, who had had a brief stint with the BJP before returning to the Congress party, said.

"The UPA government functioned democratically, hence they could criticise it," he further said.

Attacking these Bollywood stars, Patole asked, Are you under Modi govt's pressure? Those who don't speak up for people who buy tickets to watch them, their movies won't be watched in Maharashtra nor will shooting take place. This isn't a threat. It's about democracy and you're public idols and hold accountability.

Are you under Modi govt's pressure? Those who don't speak up for people who buy tickets to watch them, their movies won't be watched in Maharashtra nor will shooting take place. This isn't a threat. It's about democracy & you're public idols and hold accountability: Nana Patole https://t.co/SefqdyeHqW  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

Fuel prices should be reduced to give relief to the common people, he added. Besides high petrol and diesel prices, the price of LPG cylinder too has gone up to Rs 800, Patole noted.

"Due to the coronavirus pandemic, people are facing a lot of hardship. Since international crude prices have come down, petrol should have cost Rs 35 per litre and diesel Rs 25 per litre," he said.

Patole warned that the state Congress will launch a protest if the fuel price hike is not rolled back, he warned.

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A Sydney woman heard a 'loud blood-curdling' scream before seeing her neighbour engulfed in flames and her husband behind her, his murder trial has been told.

Kulwinder Singh poured petrol on his wife before setting her alight after arguing over money, prosecutor Philip Hogan alleged to the jury in the crown opening address on Thursday.

But Singh's barrister, Margaret Cunneen SC, said Parwinder Kaur poured the petrol and set herself on fire to create a 'drama', confident the blaze would be put out.

A Sydney woman heard a 'loud blood-curdling' scream before seeing her neighbour (pictured right) engulfed in flames and her husband (pictured left) behind her, his murder trial has been told

Kulwinder Singh poured petrol on his wife (pictured) before setting her alight after arguing over money, prosecutor Philip Hogan alleged to the jury in the crown opening address on Thursday

'The crown case has no merit and Mr Singh is an entirely innocent man,' she told the NSW Supreme Court jury.

Singh, 42, has pleaded not guilty to murdering his 32-year-old wife on December 2, 2013, at their Rouse Hill home.

Mr Hogan said about 10 minutes before the neighbour heard the scream Ms Kaur called triple-zero.

In the call played to the jury, she gave her address then said 'my husband nearly killed me' before the operator asked: 'What did he do to you?'

But there was no answer and the call was terminated.

The prosecutor said scientific evidence indicated there was a period of some minutes between the petrol being poured on Ms Kaur and it being set alight.

The Crown contended Singh set his wife on fire due to money and financial disputes including his requests for her to contribute to the mortgage and his unhappiness at her giving funds to her student brother.

On a visit to India, Singh allegedly told his sister-in-law that if his wife wanted a divorce he would not agree, saying 'we kill people and nobody can find out'.

Singh, 42 (pictured left), has pleaded not guilty to murdering his 32-year-old wife (pictured right) on December 2, 2013, at their Rouse Hill home

The Crown contended Singh (pictured) set his wife on fire due to money and financial disputes including his requests for her to contribute to the mortgage and his unhappiness at her giving funds to her student brother

'You will hear from members of Parwinder's family that in the days before her death she told them she wanted to get a divorce,' Mr Hogan said.

When police arrived at the home, Singh said he had told his wife if she wasn't going to contribute money he was going to live at his mother's house.

'He said she got upset,' Mr Hogan said.

Singh said he was upstairs in the bedroom packing some clothes when he heard his wife screaming.

He ran downstairs and saw her on the driveway on fire.

But Mr Hogan contended Singh had poured petrol on his wife in the laundry and then used a cigarette lighter found on the floor.

Ms Cunneen alleged Ms Kaur tragically died after perhaps becoming frustrated about various matters and deciding to 'create a drama and to set fire to herself when she was confident it would soon be put out'.

'There is simply no forensic evidence that supports the crown case,' she said.

'It all points to the only other possibility that, for her own reasons, she set herself on fire.'

Singh (pictured) said he was upstairs in the bedroom packing some clothes when he heard his wife screaming

Ten of her fingerprints were found on the petrol tin, but none of her husband's and only her fingerprint was found on the lighter as well as only her DNA.

'There was not a skerrick of petrol' on his shirt, trousers or sandals although petrol traces were found on the laundry floor, she said.

Ms Kaur had very long hair, but this was unsinged despite most of her body being terribly burned.

'The defence case is she had protected her hair with a towel and neither her face nor her scalp were burned.'

Ms Kaur ended a phone call with her brother shortly before she rang triple zero, only saying her husband was asking about money again, Ms Cunneen said.

The trial continues before Justice Natalie Adams.
A day after the Congress government in Puducherry lost its majority with another ruling party legislator resigning on Tuesday, reducing the numbers of the party-led alliance to 14 in the assembly with an effective strength of 28, 14 Opposition leaders (BJP+ AIADMK+ All-India NR Congress) visited the Raj Bhavan on Wednesday.

Puducherry Congress collapse

They submitted a letter to the Lieutenant-Governor and Secretary in charge demanding a floor test in the assembly and said that Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan who has been given the additional charge of Puducherry is aware of the development.

The resignation by John Kumar, who became the fourth legislator to quit the assembly since last month, reduced the numbers of the Congress-DMK alliance to 14 in the assembly with an effective strength of 28, prompting calls by the opposition for the resignation of Chief Minister V Narayanasamy.

The strength of the Congress in the assembly has decreased to ten including the Speaker. Its ally DMK has three members and an independent also supports the government. The simple majority in the assembly with the reduced strength is 15 and the opposition also has 14 MLAs in the 33-member House.

The party position in the assembly as of Tuesday: Congress (10), DMK (3), All-India NR Congress (7), AIADMK (4), BJP (3)(all nominated and have voting rights) and one independent. Four Congress MLAs have resigned while one member had been disqualified, as per news agency PTI.

The Congress collapse comes at a time when Rahul Gandhi will be campaigning in Puducherry and Tamil Nadu for four days over the next fortnight.

READ | Tikait to take stir to Bengal; SKM ditches Punjab Mahapanchayats for Feb 18 'Rail Roko'

READ | Nepal's foreign minister responds on 'BJP to expand abroad' claim; lodges formal objection

Kiran Bedi removed as Puducherry LG

Meanwhile, in a surprise development late on Tuesday, the Rashtrapati Bhavan announced that Kiran Bedi, who faced several protests by the ruling Congress against her style of functioning, will cease to hold the office of Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry, just a week after Narayanasamy petitioned President Ram Nath Kovind, urging him to recall her. Expectedly, CM Narayanasamy hailed the replacement of Bedi, saying it "marks a victory for the rights of the people".

Pleased to Receive - The Warrant of Appointment to discharge functions of #LieutenantGovernor of Puducherry from The Hon'ble President of India . Handed over by the Resident Commissioner of #Puducherry at Raj Bhavan Hyderabad today. pic.twitter.com/n1HPDBQyt7  Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan (@DrTamilisaiGuv) February 17, 2021

Outgoing Lt Governor of Puducherry Kiran Bedi on Wednesday said whatever work done was a sacred duty fulfilling her constitutional and moral responsibilities. A day after she was removed as the Lt Governor of the Union Territory, the former IPS officer thanked the Centre for a lifetime experience in serving Puducherry.

Thank all those who were a part my journey as Lt Governor of Puducherry

The People of Puducherry and all the Public officials.  pic.twitter.com/ckvwJ694qq  Kiran Bedi (@thekiranbedi) February 17, 2021

READ | Ranvir Shorey tests positive for COVID-19; actor currently in quarantine amid good wishes

READ | Republic Bangla launches tagline Kotha Hobey Chokhe Chokh Rekhe

(With PTI inputs)
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We are always very excited to bring our compassion-based approach to Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services to new communities. We are grateful for the warm welcome we have received by the community in Morris County,

Today, Autism Learning Partners (ALP) announces the company is ready to launch autism therapy services for children in the state of New Jersey. New Jersey faces an unusually high rate of autism when compared to the national average. Nationally, 1 in 54 children is diagnosed with autism. In the state of New Jersey however, 1 in 32 children are diagnosed with autism.

ALP is committed to bringing compassionate, research-based care to New Jersey.

ALP will station their flagship location in Morris County. ALP hopes that its centralized location in Morris County, with additional administrative locations, will allow them to serve the largest population possible. In close proximity to some of the most populous areas of New Jersey, ALP will have the capability to serve the surrounding counties of Essex, Passaic, Union, Bergen, and Hudson.

We are always very excited to bring our compassion-based approach to Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) services to new communities. Through our partnership with families, pediatricians, and other care providers, we learn how to best care for families and persons with autism in their communities. We are grateful for the warm welcome we have received by the community in Morris County, said Gina T. Chang, Ph.D., BCBA-D, CEO of ALP.

As a national provider of ABA therapy for over 30 years, ALP is well equipped as an industry leader to serve families and schools of New Jersey. With their vast network of diagnostic partnerships and ever-growing list of accepted insurances, ALP prides themselves on their ability to create personalized programs for the unique needs of each child they serve. ALP believes that a tailored, comprehensive care plan with a dedicated clinical team allows children and their family units to experience the most progress possible.

To learn more about Autism Learning Partners and its services, please visit AutismLearningPartners.com.
The Indian diaspora which celebrates its 176th Indian Arrival Day in Trinidad and Tobago is not an abstract entity, but one that flowers the socio-economic and cultural growth and development of our peoples.

It remains a proud moment for all of uspoliticians, sociologists, economists, civic, religious and cultural leadersin world history.
[February 18, 2021] MetroNet's George Kemp Appointed Indiana 811 Chairman

MetroNet Vice President of Safety and Quality Assurance George Kemp has been named Chairman of Indiana 811, the state's Call Before You Dig safety initiative. Kemp has served on the Indiana 811 board of directors since 2018, when he was first appointed representing the telecommunications sector. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005975/en/ George Kemp, MetroNet Vice President of Safety and Quality Assurance (Photo: Business Wire) "I am humbled and honored to serve as Chairman of such an important organization," said Kemp of his nomination. "I appreciate the opportunity to continue serving my local community as the Chairman of the Indiana 811 Board of Directors and I look forward to using the role to improve the utility industry for homeowners, construction businesses and owners of underground infrastructure across the state." MetroNet Inc. executives say the latest nomination is part of the company's longstanding commitment to safety within the industry. In September, MetroNet associate Chuck Muller was named to the Board of Directors of Ohio's 811 organization. "Along with MetroNet's commitment to providing very high-speed fiber broadband services to communities, and as stong supporters and members of Indiana 811, we are dedicated to ensuring public safety and reducing the number of damage incidents statewide," said MetroNet President John Cinelli. "We are thrilled to have another of MetroNet's talented associates serving in this important role. With George's expertise and experience, he will excel as the Chairman of the Indiana 811 Board of Directors, and we are excited to see his continued positive impact on the state of Indiana."



Founded in 1981, Indiana 811 is a free statewide system designed to save time, money, costly lawsuits, and dramatically reduce accidental damage to underground utilities. The non-profit corporation is comprised of nearly 25 industry leaders from a variety of utility companies throughout the state of Indiana and provides coordination and notification services for homeowners, construction officials, utilities and owners of underground infrastructure. MetroNet values the safety of their team members and communities. Visit MetroNetinc.com/safety for more information on MetroNet's dedication to safety and quality assurance.

For more information about Indiana 811, visit https://indiana811.org. About MetroNet: MetroNet is a 100% Fiber Optic Company headquartered in Evansville, Indiana. The customer-focused company provides cutting-edge fiber optic communication services, including high-speed Fiber Internet, full-featured Fiber Phone (News - Alert) , and Fiber IPTV with a wide variety of programming. MetroNet started in 2005 with one fiber optic network in Greencastle, Indiana, and has since grown to serving and constructing networks in more than 100 communities across Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Florida, and North Carolina. MetroNet is committed to bringing state-of-the-art telecommunication services to communities - services that are comparable or superior to those offered in large metropolitan areas. MetroNet has been named in the top 50 small and medium companies on Glassdoor and has been honored with a Glassdoor Employees' Choice Award recognizing MetroNet among the Best Places to Work in 2020. For more information visit www.MetroNetinc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005975/en/

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Indonesian police are investigating the strange case of a 25-year-old woman who claims that she gave birth just an hour after a gust of wind got her pregnant.

The young woman, identified as Siti Zainah, ahs become the subject of widespread ridicule in Indonesia after claiming to have been impregnated by a gust of wind, on February 10. Furthermore, Zainah added that she gave birth to a baby girl just an hour after the alleged impregnation. According to several Indonesian news outlets, the 25-year-old was relaxing at home in Cianjur, West Java, with her first child, when she felt the wind enter her body. A few minutes later, she went into labor.

After Zuhr prayer, I was lying face down on my stomach, then suddenly I felt wind enter through my vagina, Siti allegedly said. A moment later, my stomach ballooned, then it shrank back to normal. Then it grew again.

Her stomach allegedly started growing about 15 minutes after the mysterious gust of wind, and as she started feeling pain in her stomach, she realized something wasnt right, so she asked a relative to take her to the Cidaun Community Health Center. Doctors there told her that she had a baby in her womb, and that it was ready to come out

I was shocked, Siti Zainah said. I was shocked that my stomach could immediately get pregnant and that I was giving birth to a baby.



Sitis explanation stunned everyone and word of her miraculous pregnancy spread like wildfire, so when she came home, there was a crowd waiting to see her and her baby daughter. Police also visited the woman and asked her questions about the pregnancy, after her gust of wind explanation made national news headlines in Indonesia.

Eman Sulaeman, Head of Cidaun Health Center, said that Sitis explanation of her pregnancy was impossible, from a medical perspective. However, she didnt accuse the young woman of lying. Instead, he said that this was likely a case of cryptic pregnancy, in which the mother didnt realize that she was pregnant and only found out when it was time to give birth.

Sulaeman added that cryptic pregnancy can be caused by the shape of certain organs, or a history of birth control use.

Interestingly, this isnt the first such case in Indonesia. In fact, just last year, a 30-year-old woman named Heni Huraeni made news headlines in her country for claiming that she gave birth just one hour after experiencing pregnancy symptoms.
Candice Swanepoel put her dazzling figure on display once again as she shared two new images to Instagram on Thursday.

The 32-year-old model from South Africa looked slender and toned in a skimpy bikini that consisted of a triangle top and string briefs with ties around her waist.

'Walk the walk in this sustainable digital printed eco-set in upcycled nylon. tap the pic to shop our new onda print,' it said in the caption while adding a hashtag for Candice's company Tropic Of C.

Wild look: Candice Swanepoel put her dazzling figure on display once again as she shared two new images to Instagram on Thursday

For her second photo she was sitting in the sand with her face toward the camera.

'For the babes that call the beach home, our sustainability efforts put the earth first by using upcycled materials and digital printers to save water,' she said.

On her Tropic Of C Instagram account, the beauty posed in a nude bikini that left little to the imagination.

The mother-of-two looked slender and toned in the suit which was strapless and had a soft tie in front.

Eco minded: For her second photo she was sitting in the sand with her face toward the camera. 'For the babes that call the beach home. our sustainability efforts put the earth first by using upcycled materials and digital printers to save water,' she said

'Stay golden. the cha cha top in gold tap the pic to shop,' the cover girl wrote in her caption with the hashtag for 'inspired by the female form.'

In another cover worthy image she said, 'The lew - the cha cha top + the C bottom in gold .' The bottoms have very thin strings keep the briefs on the model's body.

And in yet another fun post the catwalk queen stated: 'The cha cha is our ruffle edge bandeau top with adjustable front tie in a metallic lurex fabric. pair it with our C bottom.'

A good look: She started 2021 off with a bang by sharing several new pinup images to social media. On her Tropic Of C Instagram account, the South African born beauty posed in a nude bikini that left little to the imagination

Golden glow: 'Stay golden. the cha cha top in gold tap the pic to shop,' the cover girl wrote in her caption with the hashtag for 'inspired by the female form'

The company has been doing well since it launched two years ago: 'Tropic Of C is influenced by nature. inspired by the female form, an eco lifestyle brand crafted with love and respect for mother nature.'

In December she was seen on a beach dotted with mature palm trees.

The siren said in her caption her suits were 'earthly delights.'

The supermodel had her long blonde hair worn down in soft beach waves.

The cover girl had on neutral toned makeup with a beige pout and a deep south-of-the-border tan that glowed.

The star was in a string bikini with the straps riding high on her hips and the triangle top fitting just so.

'Earthy delights. eco essentials are back in stock in an earthy hue. tap the pic to shop our new driftwood color trend in the equator top, luna bottom and praia bottom,' the catwalk princess said in her caption.

She also remarked that she was 'inspired by nature.'

Candice said they are careful with their materials. 'Our garments are designed to last and manufactured with integrity.

'We source the highest quality fabrics to ensure our swimsuits are ultra-durable and maintain their shape. focusing on timelessness not trends, our pieces have staying power. as a direct-to-consumer brand, we cut out the middleman so we can offer fair pricing for incredible quality.

This comes after the beauty gushed about her love for her homeland, South Africa.

'Africa. A distant and intimidating land to many, untouchable in its vastness, wild to its core, where weakness flounders and strength essential for survival,' said the mother of two.

Her little ones: The import has two children, Ariel and Anaca, with her former partner Hermann Nicoli whom she was with from 2005 until 2018

Swanepoel first launched the swimwear line in 2018 after appearing in campaigns for many other brands including Tom Ford, Givenchy, and Ralph Lauren, among others.

After walking for the brand for three years, the supermodel was named a Victoria's Secret Angel in 2010 and was featured on the cover of the lingerie line's swim catalog in 2013.

She has also walked the runway for various fashion houses including Chanel, Dolce and Gabbana, and Versace.

The import has two children, Ariel and Anaca, with her former partner Hermann Nicoli whom she was with from 2005 until 2018.


The Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, has threatened to withdraw all teachers services in the affected states of the federation due to insecu...





The Nigeria Union of Teachers, NUT, has threatened to withdraw all teachers services in the affected states of the federation due to insecurity in the country.

NUT in a statement tagged: Terrorist Attack on Schools and Abduction of Students/Teachers One Incident Too Many, signed by its General Secretary, Dr Mike Ike Ene, advised the federal government to adopt a different approach in tackling insecurity in the country.

The Union expressed worries over the increasing state of insecurity in Nigeria, stressing that schools are fast becoming a danger spot for bandits and other criminal elements in Nigeria.

NUT said this as they condemned the abduction of students and teachers of Government Science Secondary School, Kagara, in Niger State by bandits.

The union demanded a state of emergency be declared on security, adding that the current approach being deployed by security agencies was not yielding any meaningful fruit.

We call on the Federal Government to as a matter of urgency declare a state of emergency on the security situation in the country.

We must warn that if the security situation in our schools and colleges is not guaranteed, the NUT will not hesitate to withdraw the services of all teachers in the affected states of the federation.

NUT opined that the current strategy deployed by security agencies has fallen short of expectation considering that the Kagara abduction has just occurred while the nation is yet to fully contend with the December, 2020 abduction of students in Government Science Secondary School Kankara Katsina state.

The union demanded that the government deploys its full weight of our nations security agencies to ensure the safe return of kidnapped students and teachers.

Furthermore steps must be taken to eliminate all forms of security threats to our schools.

Such criminal elements have no place in a civilized society such as Nigeria.

We wish to reiterate that teaching and learning can only be guaranteed in a safety and secured atmosphere, the statement added.

NUT advised state governors to use part of their security voters to employ alternate security services to complement existing security agencies in policing schools in the state.
Medical marijuana workers now have priority access to the coronavirus vaccine, under revised California guidelines.

The states Department of Public Health recently appeared to allow some medicinal cannabis workers into the top slot  known as 1a  of vaccination priorities.

That would put them on par with frontline health care workers and nursing home staff and residents.

However, the guidance was contradictory. Cannabis industry employees are included in Phase1a for medicinal cannabis and Phase 1b Food and Agriculture for growing, production, storage, transport and distribution, the document says. In the next sentence, though, the guidance seems to place medicinal cannabis workers also in the lower tier. Medical cannabis workers should be accommodated as necessary in Phase 1b, Tier 1, by nature of their designations in eligible essential workforce classifications.

Many counties are currently vaccinating people in the Phase 1b, Tier 1 group  which also includes those 65 and older  but not all groups deemed eligible by the state are necessarily included by individual counties, due to vaccine shortages.

The San Francisco COVID Command Center said its primary focus right now is to vaccinate the 65 and older population as they represent just 15 percent of the population but over 83 percent of all deaths, but did not say whether cannabis workers would be excluded from the top tier of the vaccination rollout.

San Mateo County said it was following the state guidelines. None of the other Bay Area counties immediately responded Wednesday to inquiries about whether they would prioritize medical cannabis workers in their vaccine plans.

In response to The Chronicles inquiry about the updated rules, the California Department of Public Health appeared to explain that medicinal marijuana workers were likely to be accommodated in Phase 1b, Tier 1, since many workers in Phase 1a are already vaccinated.

Cannabis businesses said that some dispensaries see hundreds of patients every day, many of whom are elderly and immune compromised  those most likely to become severely sick if they are infected with the coronavirus.

Over the course of the last nine months, industry workers have been providing essential medicine to thousands of Californians every day, a group of more than 20 cannabis businesses said in a letter to the state health department in January. Despite numerous health and safety measures instituted at great expense by employers, this work has been done with inherent risk.

The CDPHs updated guidance also included veterinary services employees in Phase 1b, Tier 1.

Michael Williams is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: michael.williams@sfchronicle.com or Twitter @michaeldamianw.
The internet is changing. The outcome of the recent spat between the Centre and Twitter is one among many instances which may alter the future of the world wide web. The open web, now a mere shadow of its former self, is often dubbed as the splinternet. Mint decodes.

What is a splinternet and its core principle?

A fusion of the words split" and internet", the splinternet is a fragmented version of the world wide web with national identities. The reasons for this split include global politics, national security, religion and more. In its original form, the internet transcended borders and allowed people unfettered access to virtually everything, while the splinternet limits citizens access to data, forces businesses to keep data within borders, and even changes how they operate within a state. Splinternet is often defined as the balkanization of the net, as nations try to preserve their sovereign identities and economic interests.

Are there different versions of intranet?

The best-known example is Chinas Great Firewall, a mash-up of a real firewall and government policies, which limits access to data and is heavily surveilled by the state itself. Another example is Kwangmyong, the internet in North Korea, where access to data is not only regulated and limited, but people have to seek special permission to even use it. Irans National Information Network is another example, while Russia found a way to wean the country off the global internet in 2019, and instead run an intranet". A fully national internet could almost negate VPNs, which are used to access data unavailable within a country.

View Full Image living offline

Where does India stand on internet censorship ?

In its letter to WhatsApp about its new ToS, the Centre invoked the upcoming Personal Data Protection Bill and said consent is a key aspect of regulations enshrined in the bill. The recent spat with Twitter will impact how intermediaries function in India, and what people can and cannot say online. Indias policies are mostly driven by nationalism, say experts.

How does splinternet affect the consumer?

For the consumer, the splinternets biggest impact is in limiting access to information . For instance, in partially complying with the governments recent blocking order, Twitter stopped some accounts from being visible within India. Rules and policies also lead to rise in costs of businesses, and may force some to move out of the country altogether. India has also gone after encryption protocols used by apps like WhatsApp in the past, which can potentially impact users privacy and increase government surveillance.

Is the splinternet good for democracies?

Strictly speaking, no. But its also a necessity. For instance, when India banned TikTok, it led to growth of homegrown platforms like Moj, Josh and Roposo, many of whom also raised funds on back of this new growth. Additionally, keeping data within the borders does give the government more power to regulate platforms and has real repercussion on national security issues. But while firms might gain from Indias rules now, they will have to deal with the consequences when they try to enter foreign markets.

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Investigations editor

Larry Parnass, investigations editor, joined The Eagle in 2016 from the Daily Hampshire Gazette, where he was editor in chief. His freelance work has appeared in the Washington Post, Boston Globe, Hartford Courant and CommonWealth Magazine.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance did not make a final decision on whether or when to withdraw troops out of Afghanistan during a virtual meeting on February 18.

The meeting came as the Biden administration is reviewing a U.S.-Taliban deal to determine if the militant group is meeting its commitments, including reaching a cease-fire and engaging in meaningful negotiations with the Afghan government.

Under the deal, all foreign forces are to leave Afghanistan by May in exchange for security guarantees from the militant group such as severing ties with Al-Qaeda.

Despite the launch of peace talks between Afghan and Taliban negotiators in Qatar in September, violence in Afghanistan has soared, raising concerns about NATO troops withdrawing too early and potentially allowing the insurgents to claim victory.

"At this stage, we have made no final decision on the future of our presence," Stoltenberg said after a video meeting with NATO defense ministers. "As the May 1 deadline is approaching, NATO allies will continue to closely consult and coordinate in the coming weeks.

Ahead of the virtual meeting, German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said peace talks had not made sufficient progress to allow a full withdrawal.

"This means we will have to prepare for a changing security situation and a rising threat to both international troops and our own soldiers," Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a statement on February 17.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on February 18 discussed with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani the ongoing review of U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, the State Department said.

Blinken told Ghani that the United States is committed to a peace deal that includes "a just and durable political settlement and permanent and comprehensive cease-fire," according to the statement from State Department spokesman Ned Price.

Soaring Taliban attacks in Afghanistan have prompted members of the U.S. Congress and international rights groups to call for a postponement to the withdrawal agreed under former President Donald Trump.

On February 18, two professors at Kabul University were killed when a bomb attached to their vehicle went off in the capital.

"We are faced with many dilemmas, and there are no easy options," Stoltenberg said. "If we stay beyond the first of May, we risk more violence, more attacks against our own troops ... But if we leave, then we will also risk that the gains that we have made are lost."

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin promised to consult with allies and partners on the way forward, Stoltenberg added.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP
[February 18, 2021] Kern County Selects Emergency Rental Assistance Software from Yardi

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Housing Authority of the County of Kern, headquartered in Bakersfield, Calif., will implement Yardi's Rent Relief cloud-based software to support its Emergency Rental Assistance program. As an administrator of federal stimulus funds directed towards helping households and landlords recover from the economic impacts of COVID-19, Kern expects to disburse millions in funds over the coming months. The emergency rental assistance program is designed to prevent loss of housing by supplementing rent payment for households impacted by the pandemic and by helping landlords keep current with mortgage payments. Kern County weighed the merits of several software providers before selecting Yardi. <>"Centralizing emergency rental assistance onto an end-to-end, single platform that tracks everything from initial application to executing payments will make us more efficient and enable us to operate with complete transparency. Yardi has a documented history of processing millions of monthly financial transactions as well as creating cloud-based interfaces for end users and housing staff. I expect Rent Relief will leverage that experience for the benefit of our community and staff," said Stephen Pelz , executive director of the Kern County Housing Authority.



Rent Relief powered by Yardi is a new solution that leverages decades of technology development and client support. Rent Relief offers portals for households to submit applications for assistance including easy upload of supporting documentation. Kern County housing staff will be able to log on to view and process applications, disburse funds to renters and landlords and easily produce the data for state and federal oversight offices. "Yardi is committed to help agencies keep renters housed as we endure the pandemic. We have nearly four decades of experience developing this type of full-service technology," said Chris Voss, vice president of affordable housing at Yardi.

Learn more by visiting RentRelief.com or attend an upcoming webinar. State and local housing agencies seeking to expedite and streamline emergency rental assistance programs can contact Yardi at (800) 866-1144 to set up a demonstration. About Yardi Yardi develops and supports industry-leading investment and property management software for all types and sizes of real estate companies. Established in 1984, Yardi is based in Santa Barbara, California, and serves clients worldwide. For more information on how Yardi is Energized for Tomorrow, visit yardi.com . View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/kern-county-selects-emergency-rental-assistance-software-from-yardi-301231109.html SOURCE Yardi

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A teenager has been hospitalised after being stabbed multiple times in an 'absolutely horrifying' attack.

The 17-year-old was assaulted in the western Sydney suburb of Blacktown in New South Wales on Thursday afternoon.

A CareFlight Helicopter and three ambulance crews found the boy had wounds to his torso and arm near Richmond Road in Blacktown at around 4.30pm.

A teenager has been hospitalised after being stabbed multiple times in an 'absolutely horrifying' attack. Pictured: NSW Police have established a crime scene

The 17-year-old was assaulted in the western Sydney suburb of Blacktown in New South Wales on Thursday afternoon. Pictured: The victim was treated by paramedics at the scene

'Violent incidents like this are absolutely horrifying especially when it involves someone so young,' NSW Ambulance Inspector Craig Hall said.

'The big concern is that while injuries like this may not look substantial on the surface, there can be more significant damage done at a deeper level.'

The teenager is in a serious condition at Westmead Hospital, reported news.com.au.

The victim was attended to at the scene by paramedics before being transported to hospital.

Police officers Blacktown Police Area Command have established a crime scene but no one has been arrested.
Since classic trucks are very much in high demand these days, their increasing popularity means there are a lot of interesting options on the market right now. Chevys C/K series is, of course, one of the usual suspects, especially when shopping for something that will make the owner stand out in a crowd.No need to trust us by hard on the last comment; just check out some of the latest C10s we dug up for our Truck Month feature. For example, if looking to impress Sylvester James Pussycat, Sr. and Tweety fans, a very yellow example will certainly do the trick. Or, perhaps youre one of those people searching for the best possible excuse to celebrate Fourth of July all year long  no worries, because we got you covered on that as well.Now, heres a pristine example of a C10 truck that might be just right for anyone that loves a fresh vegetable or fruit any time of day. Its dressed up in a stylish Candy Apple Red paint job and comes with lots of chrome trimming, including on the bumpers. The clean exterior lines are rarely interrupted by anything else, but its certainly worth mentioning the American Racing alloy wheels will easily give out the right hint that were not dealing with an ordinary C10.Actually, this custom truck is ready for both work (plastic bed cover says all) and lots of play. As such, it comes with a neat Big-Block surprise under the hood in the form of a massive Chevy 454ci (7.4-liter) V8 engine thats mated to a Turbo 400 (TH400) three-speed automatic transmission, and its probably very willing to shred some rear tire if given the occasion.Its also going to be heard from afar thanks to the exhaust headers for the dual pipes, while the interior is matched by Candy Apple Red-painted door panels, dashboard, and roof. The cloth Burgundy bench completes the picture, and this truck thats almost at 50,000 miles (80,000 km) on the odometer makes for a very tempting proposition with its $30k asking price
CLEVELAND, Ohio  A Lakewood woman died and two others were injured in a wrong-way crash along the Shoreway near the Edgewater exit, Cleveland police said.

Charmain Woods, 50, died, and the driver of the other vehicle involved in the crash and a 14-year-old passenger suffered injuries, Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said.

The crash happened about 2:40 p.m. Wednesday when Woods drove westbound in the eastbound lane of the highway and crashed her Nissan Murano into a Ford Explorer, Ciaccia said.

The driver of the Explorer, an unidentified 49-year-old man, suffered what police described as severe injuries. His condition was not immediately available Thursday afternoon. The teenager in the mans SUV suffered a broken leg and a broken arm.

Paramedics took Woods to MetroHealth Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. Emergency workers also took the 49-year-old man to MetroHealth for treatment.

The crash remains under investigation.

A Texas mayor is under fire after posting that 'only the strong will survive and the weak will perish' in a since-deleted Facebook post amid statewide power outages and freezing temperatures during this week's arctic storm.

Tim Boyd claimed that he had already resigned as mayor of Colorado City by the time his controversial message appeared on social media earlier this week:

"No one owes you or your family anything; nor is it the local governments responsibility to support you during trying times like this! Sink or swim, its your choice! The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING! Im sick and tired of people looking for a damn hand out! If you dont have electricity you step up and come up with a game plan to keep your family warm and safe. If you have no water you deal with out and think outside of the box to survive and supply water to your family. If you were sitting at home in the cold because you have no power and are sitting there waiting for someone to come rescue you because your lazy is direct result of your raising! Only the strong will survive and the week will perish. Folks, God Has given us the tools to support ourselves in times like this. This is sadly a product of a socialist government where they feed people to believe that the FEW work and others will become dependent for handouts. Am I sorry that you have been dealing without electricity and water; yes! But Ill be damned if Im going to provide for anyone that is capable of doing it themselves! We have lost sight of those in need and those that take advantage of the system and mesh them into one group!! Bottom line, quit crying and looking for a handout! Get off your ass and take care of your own family!

Bottom line - DONT BE A PART OF A PROBLEM, BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION!"

Some of the small town's 4,000 residents reportedly called the mayor's office looking for help or assistance. Others turned to a Facebook community group for Mitchell County to ask whether local officials planned to open warming shelters on Monday.

By then, millions of Texans had gone without electricity or running water for a full 24 hours. And weather forecasts predicted below-freezing temperatures in the near future.

Boyd posted his now-viral response on Tuesday morning. Backlash was swift as his comments garnered national attention.

In a follow-up Facebook post hours later, Boyd attempted to clarify that his previous statement:

"I ask that you each understand I never meant to speak for the city of Colorado City or Mitchell county! I was speaking as a citizen as I am NOT THE MAYOR anymore. I apologize for the wording and ask that you please not harass myself or my family anymore!"

He added that his wife had reportedly been laid off from her job as a result of the incident, and that he'd tendered his resignation. Boyd also indicated that he 'had not signed up to run for mayor again' by the election deadline, Feb. 12.

Boyd remains listed as of Colorado City, according to the town's official website, coloradocitytexas.org.
Passengers arriving from the US could soon be added to the UK's 'red list' of countries as officials consider the risk of new variants from the two countries.

British officials will this week decide if those arriving from the US should isolate for ten days in one of the 16 quarantine hotels approved by the Government in an effort to stop the mutant variants from spreading.

Placing the US on the UK's red list would essentially ban all American citizens from entering Britain.

British government guidelines state you cannot enter the UK if you've been in or through a country on the banned travel list in the last 10 days, unless you're British, Irish or have the right to live in the UK.

Spain and the US could be added to the UK's 'red list' of countries as officials at the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) consider the safety risks. Pictured: Passengers arriving at Heathrow Airport

Britain has banned flights from all red list countries, so passengers must take connecting flights, mixing with passengers from countries not on the list.

It comes after an analysis carried out by the World Health Organization found dozens of countries where the highly infectious South African and Brazilian variants had been found were not on the Government's high-risk list.

They included Austria, Denmark, France, Greece, Japan, Kenya, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada and the United States.

A Government source told The Daily Telegraph: 'The US and Spain are on the list so it means some of the bigger markets will be considered by officials as part of the discussions before being put to ministers.

'It will be based on evidence from the Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC).'

It comes after airports were told this week that the list of high-risk countries would 'get longer before it got shorter', The Daily Telegraph reports.

If the US is added to the UK's red list, all Brits returning home will have to spend 10 days quarantined in a government-approved hotel at an initial cost of 1,750 ($2,430) under a scheme that came into force on Monday - or face a 10,000 fine ($13,900).

If the US is added to the UK's 'red list' of countries, it will mean that all American arrivals to England must book a quarantine hotel and spend 10 days quarantining. Pictured: A man sits at a window of the Radisson Blu hotel at Heathrow Airport in London on February 17, where travelers are undertaking mandatory hotel quarantine

Upon arrival, travelers must show Border Force evidence of a negative PCR or antigen test result taken within three days of leaving the previous country. If no proof of a negative test result is provided, travelers could be fined 500 ($695).

Quarantining guests are then tested on days two and eight using PCR tests self-administered in their own rooms.

They can leave after they have received a negative result and quarantined for 10 days.

Meanwhile, guests who test positive on the second occasion will have to pay 1,200 ($1,600) to extend their stay for an extra eight nights at 152 ($211) per day.
GENEVA - Less than one month from the 10th anniversary of conflict and crisis in Syria, the UN Commission of Inquiry on Thursday appealed for a relaunch of international efforts to put an end to the conflict and put the country on a path to peace and justice.



In a 20-page report, the 33rd since the crisis began, the three members of the Commission of Inquiry on violations of human rights in Syria recalled that in the past 10 years the warring parties have committed heinous of violations of international humanitarian and human rights law perpetrated against the civilian population in Syria.



"Such acts are likely to constitute crimes against humanity, war crimes and other international crimes, including genocide," they said.



"Parties to this conflict have benefitted from the selective intervention and woeful negligence of the international community," said Commission Chair Paulo Pinheiro in a statement, denouncing "a decade of death, denial, and destruction".

It is far past time to finally put Syrians first  and expend every effort to support a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the conflict," Pinheiro added.



Since the start of its work, the Commission has compiled confidential lists of alleged perpetrators of violations and crimes, which are regularly updated to aid future criminal investigations.



Thus far, the Commission has gathered information on more than 3,200 alleged individual perpetrators from all parties in the conflict.

The report also highlighted positive developments, such as the start of 60 investigations in third State national jurisdictions, drawing on information gathered by the Commission.



The report said innovative solutions must be pursued to also address the broader justice needs of Syrians, and called for a permanent ceasefire endorsed by the Security Council.



The Commissions report will be presented next month at the 46th session of the UN Human Rights Council.
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(Newser)  The crews on a pair of French military jets that flew over the village of Le Castelleton on low-altitude training flights Wednesday afternoon might want to keep training. The Rafale aircraft were so low that one caught power lines, the BBC reports, cutting off electricity to the village. The mayor was driving along when he heard the roar of the first jet. "It went so low that it made a hell of a din. I then looked up and saw the second aircraft," Benoit Gouin said. He thought it must have gone under the power lines.

story continues below

Just down the road, he found sections of a severed power line hanging. "One of the planes hit the line and cut it," the mayor said. Gouin called emergency services and the utility. The downed lines sparked a fire that was quickly put out. No one was hurt, and power was restored in about three hours. The jets returned to their nearby base, per the BBC. Calling the accident "extremely rare," an air force spokesman said an investigation has begun. (Read more France stories.)
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 18:24:52|Editor: huaxia

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TBILISI -- Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia announced his resignation on Thursday.

Gakharia said in a statement that he decided to step down because he could not reach an agreement with the ruling party over the arrest warrant issued against Nika Melia, a parliament member and head of the United National Movement opposition party. (Georgia-Prime Minister-Resign)

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MOGADISHU -- Somali military said it had killed 20 al-Shabab fighters in an operation in the southern region of Lower Shabelle on Wednesday, a military officer confirmed on Thursday.

Odawa Yusuf Rage, commander of Somali National Army said the operation was conducted along the road linking Janale and Qoryoley towns and the army inflicted casualties on the militants. (Somali-National Army-Killed-Al-Shabab)

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TEHRAN -- At least 40 people were injured in a 5.6-magnitude earthquake that shook Sisakht city in Iran's western Kohgiluye va Boyerahmad province Wednesday night, the ISNA news agency reported.

The quake has caused a lot of damage to buildings, structures as well as roads in the city, and cut off the electricity and water network, the report said. (Iran-Injured-Earthquake)

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LAGOS -- Nigeria's security forces said that they are working to rescue students abducted on Wednesday morning in the north-central part of the country.

In an attack on the Government Science College, a boarding school in Kagara town of Niger State, one student was killed and 42 others -- 27 students, three school staff and their 12 family members -- were abducted by gunmen. (Nigeria-Students-Abducted) Enditem
The headmaster of a 20,340-a-year private school in an exclusive Surrey town has been found dead in the woods after being arrested on suspicion of sexual assault.

The body of William 'Willie' Murdock, 60, who had led Danes Hill School in Oxshott for nearly 15 years, was discovered in local woodland on February 10.

Just five days earlier on February 5, an allegation of sexual assault on an adult victim carried out on January 29 in Oxshott was made against Mr Murdock to Surrey Police.

Detectives said there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of father-of-three Mr Murdock, who had taught at the school for more than 35 years.

The school said his death had 'come as a shock to us all' but insisted that the allegations against him did not concern children or any child safeguarding matter.

The body of William 'Willie' Murdock (above), 60, who had been the headmaster of Danes Hill School in Oxshott, Surrey, for nearly 15 years, was discovered in local woodland on February 10

Parents learned of his death and the investigation in a letter sent out earlier this week, with one telling The Sun: 'How on earth do you explain this to the children?

'It's left the whole school community stunned and many parents are seriously considering taking their kids out and putting them in another school.'

The headmaster, who started at the school as a Latin teacher, was a keen shooter and horse rider and bred dogs, according to the newspaper.

Mr Murdock, who became acting headmaster in April 2006 before taking on the role permanently in January 2007, had been suspended after the allegation was made.

Oxshott, which has an average house value of 2million, is home to numerous celebrities such as Andy Murray and his wife Kim, and Jamie and Louise Redknapp.

A statement from Danes Hill School on its website said: 'We are sorry to confirm that Willie Murdock, died last week.

'He had been a part of the Danes Hill community for over 36 years, both as a teacher and Headmaster, so the news of his death comes as a shock to us all.'

The school added that deputy headmaster Rob Andrews has stepped into acting headmaster, with director of studies Sonal Chatrath as acting deputy headmistress.

Danes Hill School is a 20,340-a-year private school in the exclusive Surrey town of Oxshott

A school spokesman told MailOnline today: 'The safety and well-being of everyone in the school community is of paramount importance to us.

'In the week prior to his death the school received allegations concerning Mr Murdock. These did not concern children or any child safeguarding matter.

'In line with its policies and procedures, the school started an investigation and reported the matter to the relevant authorities. Mr Murdock was suspended from his role and the police launched a criminal investigation into the allegations.

'Mr Murdock died before the police had concluded their investigation. That investigation has now been superseded by a coroners inquest. In light of this, and the need to protect the privacy of those concerned, we are not in a position to provide further detail. This has been a tragic matter for all concerned.

'The governors are giving careful consideration to what further actions should be taken. Meanwhile our thoughts are with the Murdock family and those involved and we would ask that you respect their privacy at this difficult time.'

A Surrey Police spokesman said: 'We were called at around 8.45pm on February 10 to woodland, in Oxshott, following the discovery of a man's body. The body of the man, who is in his 60s, was found at a location in Woodlands Lane.

'The investigation into his death remains ongoing, but it is not believed that there are any suspicious circumstances or third party involvement at this stage.'

For confidential support in the UK call the Samaritans on 116123, visit a local Samaritans branch or click here for details
Business is also feeling the bite from the Texas winter storm, with a number of chipmakers forced to suspend production.

Why it matters: Even a brief shutdown of chip production in Texas could exacerbate the global chip shortage that's already reducing production of everything from cars to computers.

Stay on top of the latest market trends and economic insights with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free

Driving the news:

Samsung Semiconductor said it has "gradually halted its operations" in Austin after being ordered to do so by local power utilities.

NXP Semiconductor, which makes chips for cars, among other uses, has also halted production at two Austin-area plants at the insistence of local utilities.

What they're saying: Once power comes back, Samsung plans to resume production immediately, while NXP will do an impact assessment and determine when it can come fully back online, company representatives told Axios.

Meanwhile: The chip industry has been pushing Congress to fully fund federal investment in the U.S. chip industry that recent defense legislation authorized.

A variety of business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and auto and medical device trade associations, are signing onto a letter being sent today to President Biden to back this federal investment.

The U.S. once accounted for 37% of global chip production but has seen its share fall to 12% as of last year.

Go deeper:

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(CNN)  Joe Ligon, believed to be the oldest and longest-serving juvenile lifer in the United States, has been released from a Pennsylvania prison after spending nearly seven decades behind bars.

Ligon was incarcerated in February 1953 at the age of 15, given a mandatory life sentence after pleading guilty to charges stemming from a robbery and stabbing spree in Philadelphia with four other teenage boys. The crime left six people wounded and two people -- identified by the Philadelphia Inquirer as Charles Pitts and Jackson Hamm -- dead.

"I got caught up, in terms of being in the streets," Ligon told CNN after his release last week.

While a so-called degree of guilt hearing found Ligon guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, and Ligon admitted to stabbing at least one of the eight people stabbed that day, his attorney Bradley Bridge told CNN that his client maintains he never killed anyone.

"The child that committed those crimes back in 1953 no longer exists. The person that came out of prison in 2021 is 83 years old, has grown, changed, and is no longer a threat," Bridge said. "He has amply repaid society for the damage and harm that he did. And now, it's appropriate that he spends the last years of his life in freedom."

"I'm a grownup now," Ligon said. "I'm not a kid anymore. Not only am I a grown man, I'm an old man and getting older every day."

Ligon's road to release has been a long one.

In the 1970s, Ligon and his accomplices were granted the option of clemency from Pennsylvania's governor. While two of the men chose to accept the offer, clemency meant being on parole, which Ligon rejected.

Rejecting parole

He turned down another offer of parole in 2017, after a ruling by the US Supreme Court made him eligible.

A year before, in 2016, the court had decided that Miller v. Alabama, a 2012 case in which mandatory juvenile life sentences without the prospect of parole were deemed unlawful, should be applied retroactively. The decision effectively resentenced Ligon to 35 years to life, and made him eligible for parole since he had been in prison for over 60 years.

But Ligon rejected the offer again, stating parole would not grant him the freedom he desired after decades in prison.

"The state parole board presumably would have released him but on condition that he would be under their supervision for the rest of his life," Bridge said. "He chose not to seek parole under those terms."

Bridge, who has represented Ligon for 15 years now, ultimately argued that a mandatory life sentence for a crime Ligon committed as a juvenile was unconstitutional. After a failed hearing at the Pennsylvania intermediate appellate court, Bridge managed to bring the case to the federal court and won the issue in November 2020, which ultimately granted Ligon freedom under his own terms in 2021.

Now that Ligon is out of prison, his work reentering society has begun.

John Pace, a former inmate and current reentry coordinator for the Philadelphia-based Youth Sentencing & Reentry Project (YSRP), said he's been working with Ligon to help him land on his feet.

Pace was only 17 years old when he, himself, was incarcerated for mugging and assaulting a man. He spent the next 31 years imprisoned. After being released, Pace said he felt a sort of sickness after suddenly being exposed to his new reality.

Entering a new world

"You're in a prison environment where there's not a lot of stimulation. You're not allowed to have contact with people. Your interactions are very limited. And so, there's not a lot of stimulation," said Pace. "So now you come out of prison, and just imagine all this, you can do what you want now. And what do you do with that?"

Bridge, Pace and several others have been working with Ligon to weather the shock of entering a new world.

This included finding Ligon housing via domiciliary care, where he has been living with a Philadelphia family that has played a role in assisting in the reentry process.

"There will always be people who think Joe should be in jail for the rest of his life," Pace said. "Joe has control over how he demonstrates who he is today, and he hopes that's enough to help other people realize how he's trying to help other people use better judgment."

Ligon said he wanted others to learn from his experience.

"I'm really looking forward to pleasing people and help people the way they're helping me," Ligon said, adding, "meeting some of the younger generation, with some of the older generation, and some of the reporters ... to share some of my story."

Asked what it was like to be back in the world a day and a half after his release, Ligon had this to say:

"Beautiful," he said. "Beautiful."

This story was first published on CNN.com 'After 68 years in prison, America's oldest juvenile lifer was released'

The Army will soon release a new training manual as it scales back its strategy of high-intensity training cycles to prepare for combat training center rotations -- and instead focuses on small-unit readiness.

Scheduled for release this spring, the updated version of FM 7-0 seeks to simplify leaders' approach to training. It comes on the heels of an action plan Army leaders introduced in October that puts fewer training demands on units preparing for rotations at combat training centers, such as the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, and the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana.

Army leaders acknowledged that transitioning from a long string of combat rotations in Iraq and Afghanistan to intense training cycle rotations wore down the force and neglected small-unit training.

Read Next: Almost One-Third of US Troops Are Refusing COVID Vaccines, Officials Say

The new FM 7-0, the first update since 2016, is designed to take a "back to basics" approach to training, Bill Bronson, a doctrine writer at the Army's Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and author of the new manual, told Military.com.

"The idea was, 'Let's make this more simple,' because we have had a force that has been engaged in rotations for the past 15 or 20 years, so now we are trying to get back to some fundamentals," said Bronson, a retired Army lieutenant colonel. "So, the idea was to create this manual that created a framework that is easy to read, simple to understand and pretty straightforward to implement."

Gen. Paul Funk II, head of Training and Doctrine Command, announced the updated manual's rollout Tuesday and said that it will help officers and sergeants use a training management cycle to set priorities.

Bronson described the training management cycle as a tool that leaders can use to decide the "most important things that I need to train my soldiers on."

But the manual doesn't dictate what units need to train on; that is left up to the commander, based on the unit's strengths and weaknesses, he said.

The problem is that many commanders have trouble prioritizing training, Bronson said.

"I have run into a lot of commanders who think they need to train everything," he explained. "A commander has got to sit down and think about his past training, he's got to think about his future training, he's got to think about the training mission, he's got to worry about resources and the time available, and that is a tough question for a commander to deal with."

Army leaders said in October that the service plans to eliminate the requirement to conduct brigade and battalion live-fire exercises and field training exercises prior to a combat training center rotation.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville said the intent is to give time back to small-unit leaders to strengthen unit cohesiveness.

"At the bottom of all units is the individual soldier, crews, small teams, platoons, squads and that is the framework that I think FM 7-0 really talks to," Bronson said. "It's not about just what the brigade needs to do because the brigade is only as successful as those individual soldiers, squads and platoons can be."

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.

Related: Army Focus on Combat Training Center Rotations 'Unsustainable,' General Says
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Kabul, Oct 7 (IANS) Afghanistan has reported 62 new Covid-19 cases, while two fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,469, health officials said. Image Source: IANS News

Kabul : , Feb 18 (IANS) The World Bank has approved $97.5 million in grant for Afghanistan to combat the impact of Covid-19 pandemic and droughts in the war-torn Asian country, the World Bank office in Afghanistan said in a statement reaching here on Thursday.

The grant approved from the International Development Association (IDA) is to provide regular and predictable cash support to drought- and coronavirus-affected Afghans as well as to improve food and nutrition security, the statement said.

According to the statement, the grant will also help build early drought warning and response systems in the country, the Xinhua news agency reported.

"This new financial assistance will help the Government of Afghanistan lessen drought impacts that have displaced millions of Afghans and pushed them into poverty. The project's support to Afghan rural households will contribute to overall poverty reduction and economic recovery," said Henry Kerali, World Bank country director for Afghanistan.

Afghanistan reported its first Covid-19 case in February last year. The Public Health Ministry data released Thursday showed 55,557 confirmed cases of Covid-19 with 2,430 deaths in the country.
BETTENDORF, IA / ACCESSWIRE / February 17, 2021 / Quality Control Restoration is a Quad Cities based full-service construction company that offers services such as residential roofing, commercial roofing, roof repair, roof replacement, storm damage repair, new construction, roof coatings, TPO/EPDM, modified bitumen, siding, and insurance claims. Customers can find out more about the company on its website at https://qualitycontrolrestoration.com.

The company is offering its roofing service to customers ahead of the wet, rainy spring and early summer weather. Winter brings piles of snow and puddles that can take their toll on all kinds of roofs. To be prepared for the spring weather, a thorough and complete roof inspection is recommended. Moderate temperatures allow for the contractors to work faster. A simple visual inspection from ground level is not enough as one can't spot damage to eaves or the flashing. The best course of action is to hire a trusted roofer who is experienced and knows where to look. Quality Control Restoration says that it is the best option for roofing in Quad Cities.

The roofing contractor in Quad Cities recommends taking precautions to make sure the roof is healthy for the expected rain during springtime. A great preliminary measure is to spray the roof with water and inspect it for any obvious leaks beforehand. Another precaution to take is to keep the gutters clean to prevent water build-up and to allow it to drain itself. Lack of ventilation can create dry rot. Dry rot can cause the roof to sag leading to brittle shingles that can crack and leak. Thankfully, there is a solution to dry rot that involves the installation of a ridge vent. Roof boots can also be a source of leaks. Faulty shingles that are not held down properly can also lead to leaks. The valleys or ridges where two slopes of the roof meet can also be susceptible to leaks. Customers can find out more about the company's residential roofing services at https://qualitycontrolrestoration.com/residential.

The Quad Cities roofing contractor also offers roof installation services for new constructions or complete overhauls. To prepare for a roof installation, the homeowners or the roofing contractor needs to first prevent damage to the yard around the house. Any plants or trees near the roof should be covered with an awning. Since the roofing can cause the walls of the house to shake, any items hanging on the walls should be taken down. The family should be alerted to stay away from the roofing area while the work is underway. The homeowner should make sure to pick the best materials within their budget. They should consult the Homeowners Association for any rules or regulations to be followed. The roofer should be vetted based on experience and references. A good place to check is by going through the online reviews for the business.

The Quad Cities roofing service offered by Quality Control Restoration is supported by full manufacturer warranties and a 10-year workmanship warranty. It also offers free, no pressure, no-obligation assessments, that gives the customer the power to make the right decision for them. The company has been rated as A+ by the Better Business Bureau. The business has a combined 111 years of experience in the storm restoration industry. Commercial property owners can find out more about the company's commercial roofing services at https://qualitycontrolrestoration.com/commercial.

When asked about the company's philosophy, Larry Anderson says, "We are proud to serve the Quad Cities area and answer all of its roofing needs. We have been doing this for a long time. We have seen it all and handled it all. Our top priorities when we attempt any job are sustainability, safety, and quality. We are able to handle jobs of all sizes, and we make sure the work is completed to your specifications. We have garnered a great reputation for providing quality work at a reasonable price. Contact us today to get your free roof assessment and you can find out why our customers love us."

They can be contacted at the phone number (833) 563-7663 or at the email address info@qualitycontrolrestoration.com for further inquires and a free roof assessment.

###

For more information about Quality Control Restoration, LLC, contact the company here:



Quality Control Restoration, LLC

Larry Anderson

(833) 563-7663

larry@qualitycontrolrestoration.com

2395 Tech Drive, Suite 8

Bettendorf, Iowa 52722

SOURCE: Quality Control Restoration, LLC

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630447/Quality-Control-Restoration-Is-Offering-Roofing-Repair-Construction-Services-In-The-Quad-Cities-Area
Even so, the characters disconnection from each other also tends to disconnect them from the viewer, making the films transatlantic crossing aboard the Queen Mary 2 a long and languorous affair.

Gene Siskels old baseline for a movie worth watching - that it be more interesting than a documentary of the same actors having lunch - becomes a higher hurdle to clear the more seasoned and stellar the cast.

Meryl Streep is the headline, Candice Bergen is getting the Oscar buzz and Dianne Wiest makes the cast a real embarrassment of riches. And yet Steven Soderberghs shipbound, partly improvised microbudget drama feels a bit at sea.

Streep plays novelist Alice Hughes, a vain, manipulative woman with streaks of obliviousness and insecurity. Unable to fly, shes taking the boat to Britain so she can accept a literary award in person. Shes also taking nephew Tyler (Lucas Hedges) as a general dogsbody, and her old college friends, Roberta and Susan (Bergen and Wiest), who she hasnt seen for many years. Not invited is Alices agent, Karen (Gemma Chan), who nonetheless sneaks aboard, hoping to get her bosses an update on Alices latest novel.

If the stowaway plot seems farcical, well, Let Them All Talk is ostensibly a comedy-drama. Not that its terribly funny. Perhaps thered be more laughs if Soderbergh had commissioned a more traditional script from celebrated short-story writer Deborah Eisenberg (Soderbergh had Eisenberg flesh out and structure his premise for the film and had her aboard the ship to advise the actors, but the actors improvised much of the dialogue).

Meryl Streep and Lucas Hedges in Let Them All Talk. Credit:Foxtel

The elephant in the stateroom is that Roberta blames Alice for ruining her life by using her, barely disguised, as a character in a book. Not that theyre going to have it out immediately. Roberta, who is miserable in her job selling lingerie in a department store, takes spiteful enjoyment in declining Alices invitations to spend time together and instead focuses on trying to charm wealthy men. Susan, who works as an advocate for women in prison, is bemused by them both, and Wiest is essentially relegated to being a foil for the others.

Bergens performance is frequently delicious, Streep is wonderful in the way that she creates and reacts in her opaquely pinched character, and Soderbergh clearly enjoys the grand architecture of the ship. But its hard to shake the feeling that it would have better if there was a script to stick to.
Manitoba's most-senior citizens can get in line for a COVID-19 injection next week as the province begins to expand its criteria for immunization with more doses expected to arrive in the province.

Manitoba's most-senior citizens can get in line for a COVID-19 injection next week as the province begins to expand its criteria for immunization with more doses expected to arrive in the province.

Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead for the COVID-19 vaccine implementation task force, said all Manitobans who are 95 years of age or older will be able to book an appointment for a shot at their nearest vaccination clinic by phone next week.

"We dont normally give a weeks heads-up before opening up eligibility because we do worry that its going to create some confusion about when people become eligible," Reimer said. "But for Manitobans over 95, many of them are going to require additional considerations, additional assistance, and likely are not checking the website to find out when theyre eligible.

"So we just wanted to give that extra week to be able to work on all of those logistics."

MIKE DEAL / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead for the COVID-19 vaccine implementation task force.

Offering immunizations to the most-senior Manitobans represents the first step toward vaccinating members of the public. The province estimates about 5,000 residents are in that age category.

"I know this is something that many Manitobans are looking forward to for themselves and their loved ones," Reimer said.

Currently, the province is providing vaccines to select health-care workers and other people it has prioritized based on their place of employment or their work with COVID-19 specimens and cases. Leadership with the First Nations Pandemic Response Co-ordination Team has developed separate eligibility criteria for Indigenous people and communities.

Reimer said the province expects to receive a total of 74,880 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine by the end of March.

We dont normally give a weeks heads-up before opening up eligibility because we do worry that its going to create some confusion about when people become eligible. But for Manitobans over 95, many of them are going to require additional considerations, additional assistance, and likely are not checking the website to find out when theyre eligible."  Dr. Joss Reimer

Vaccine-eligibility criteria has been expanded to include community services workers in "congregate group care" settings such as homeless shelters, family violence shelters, emergency placement shelters and second-stage housing.

Corrections officers and employees of congregate-living facilities (born on or before Dec. 31, 1955), are also eligible. Staff who provide direct care to people in Community Living disABILITY Services or the child and family services sector also qualify (Manitoba Families will contact workers directly).

With the expanded criteria, the province has also made the phone number to book COVID-19 vaccine appointments public.

Dont call... yet As more Manitobans become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, the province has made the phone number to book appointments public. Eligible residents can call 1-844-626-8222 (1-844-MAN-VACC). However, provincial officials are asking the public to carefully review eligibility criteria before calling. Manitoba has not yet opened up vaccinations to the general public. click to read more As more Manitobans become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, the province has made the phone number to book appointments public. Eligible residents can call 1-844-626-8222 (1-844-MAN-VACC). However, provincial officials are asking the public to carefully review eligibility criteria before calling. Manitoba has not yet opened up vaccinations to the general public. Only select health-care workers, and individuals the province has prioritized for vaccines based on their place of employment or work with COVID-19 specimens and cases can currently book appointments. However, beginning next week, Manitobans 95 years of age and older will become eligible, Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead for the vaccine implementation task force said. The vaccinations will take place at the super-site clinics in the future. She is asking eligible seniors and their families to wait until next week when she formally announces their eligibility to call the vaccine line. We wanted to give some time for their families, for some of our community groups, for some of the facilities where these folks live to start working with them, to start working with us, on how best to get these folks to the clinics, how best to book their appointment, once they are eligible, she said. A complete list of eligible Manitobans is available at manitoba.ca. Close

Reimer asked Manitobans to be patient and call the booking line only if they meet the eligibility criteria listed on the provincial governments website. An online booking system is also in the works and is expected to go live by April.

Reimer said she will announce when the province is ready to take appointments for people 95 and older.

"The last time that our phone number was unintentionally made public, we received hundreds of thousands of phone calls," she said. "So I am asking Manitobans, please do not call until youre eligible."

On Friday, immunization teams will be heading into select supportive housing, hospitals and assisted-living facilities  which have been prioritized as part of the provinces vaccine rollout  in Winnipeg and Brandon.

Reimer explained the province has developed a prioritized list of all congregate-living facilities in the province (roughly 1,400 such places with nearly 23,000 people) based on age of the residents, health status, ability to follow public-health guidance and income.

First up in Winnipeg, injections will be administered at Lions Supportive Housing (Friday), Residence Despins Supportive Housing (Monday), Victoria General Hospital (Tuesday), Arlington Haus (Wednesday), Grace General Hospital and Assiniboine Links (Feb. 25) and Dakota House Homestead, Devonshire House I Homestead and Devonshire House II Homestead (Feb. 26).

The last time that our phone number was unintentionally made public, we received hundreds of thousands of phone calls,. So I am asking Manitobans, please do not call until youre eligible.  Dr. Joss Reimer

A total of 21 supportive housing and seniors homes in Brandon have also been prioritized.

An alphabetical list of all congregate-living facilities selected for visits by immunization teams has been made public but does not indicate which facilities are considered high, moderate or low priority.

On Monday, the National Advisory Committee on Immunization updated its guidance for vaccine prioritization to include "adults in racialized and marginalized" communities and front-line essential workers who cannot work virtually to be vaccinated in the second stage of the rollout. Adults under 60 years old with an underlying health condition that puts them at high risk of COVID-19 should be prioritized in Stage 3, NACI said.

Inmates have to wait Provincial jails have been designated as medium priority facilities for COVID-19 immunization, public-health officials clarified Wednesday, after a draft planning document listed Brandon Correctional Centre as being at the top of the list. click to read more Provincial jails have been designated as medium priority facilities for COVID-19 immunization, public-health officials clarified Wednesday, after a draft planning document listed Brandon Correctional Centre as being at the top of the list. Dr. Joss Reimer, medical lead for the vaccine implementation task force, said inmates at jails will be prioritized as part of the provinces effort to immunize residents of congregate-living facilities but will come after people living in higher-priority sites, such as supportive housing and assisted living. The people putting together the schedule did what we would expect in most circumstances, Reimer said. Public-health staff were going to that facility on that day and so they felt it would make sense to do the immunizations at the same time. But the COVID vaccine is not a typical public-health service. And so we have to allocate vaccine based on what the science is telling us and based on our assessment of risk. Close

At present, the province has not prioritized people with underlying health conditions, essential workers or adults from racialized communities disproportionately affected by the disease for advance access to vaccines.

"We have tables in Manitoba that are looking at both of these groups, and we will be taking NACI into consideration at those tables. At this time, no decisions have been made," Reimer said.

"We also know that racialized groups face many systemic barriers. We are committed to consulting and working with community groups and other key stakeholders to address those barriers to accessing the vaccine."

Reimer said the vaccine task force is meeting with a medical advisory table to identify the highest risk conditions for people who need hospitalization or are admitted to intensive care.

"If we do go that way, we want to make sure that we are still following the science, and that we are expanding to who we know is highest risk," she said. "And some of those may be surprising, some of them not so much."

A list of such conditions is being compiled, she said. Provincial data on the impacts and risk of COVID-19 on racialized communities has yet to be released.

danielle.dasilva@freepress.mb.ca
The services offered by Crimson Cup reduced my fear of opening a coffee shop by myself. Crimson Cup lowered my risk by bringing so much experience to the table. I have saved so much time and money with their input."

Whenever Piketon resident Jennifer Chandler travels for work or pleasure, she seeks out a local, independent coffee shop. With her opening of The Village Brew Coffee House, she hopes to wake up the local community  much like her own senses perk up with the first sip of coffee.

I love the experience of enjoying a good pour over or a fantastically flavored espresso-based drink in a cool location, often in an old, restored building in the middle of a downtown, she said.

Through The Village Brew Coffee House, I want to bring this experience to my hometown, she added. My goal is to serve terrific coffee to a community that deserves the very best!

She chose the former Piketon Elementary School on Second Street, now known as The Square at Piketon, as the location. I had visited so many independent coffee houses in super cool spaces and thought this was perfect!

In addition to opening The Village Brew, Chandler serves on the Piketon Village Council and works as an independent project management consultant on development and environmental projects.

Despite her love for coffee, she lacked experience. My grandfather owned a restaurant, and my dad owned a grocery store, so you could say food service is in my blood. But I needed to learn specialty coffee from the grounds up.

After exploring competing coffee consultants, she turned to nationally renowned roaster Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea to learn how to open and run a successful coffee house in her local community.

She began by buying the book, Seven Steps to Success: A Common-Sense Guide to Succeed in Specialty Coffee by Crimson Cup Founder and President Greg Ubert. He first published the book in 2002 to help his then-struggling coffee house customers improve their profitability.

Were honored that Jennifer chose Crimson Cup as her coffee partner, said Crimson Cup Founder and President Greg Ubert. Were excited to help her achieve her vision for The Village Brew and to support her growth and success in the coming years.

Now in its second printing, Uberts book is the foundation for Crimson Cups 7 Steps to Success coffee franchise alternative program.

Because were not a franchise, customers like Jennifer are free to achieve their unique vision of a local coffee house that meets the needs of their community, Ubert said. They dont have to go it alone, but they still call the shots!

Over 150 entrepreneurs in 30 states have used this proven system to start independent coffee shops in their local communities.

Last year  despite challenging conditions during the pandemic -- the award-winning coffee roaster helped 19 entrepreneurs open new and thriving local coffee shops.

From writing a strong coffee shop business plan, to choosing equipment, designing the shops layout and much more, Crimson Cup guides new coffee shop owners from initial concept through opening day and beyond.

Chandler said she was impressed by the book, the products that came with it, and the responsiveness of her 7 Steps consultants.

The services offered by Crimson Cup reduced my fear of opening a coffee shop by myself, she said. Crimson Cup lowered my risk by bringing so much experience to the table.

She especially appreciated Steps 2 and 3, which focus on choosing the right equipment and laying it out efficiently.

Not knowing what I would need to run this business, I was especially grateful for the help with the layout and placement of everything within the space.

They have gone out of the way to take care of me throughout the process and increase my understanding of the coffee business.

Her customers rave about the coffee, which is roasted by Crimson Cup.

I keep hearing its the best coffee they have ever had, she said. People who have said they dont drink coffee are now in here three or four days a week!

Over the past five years, the Columbus, Ohio roaster has won several national coffee awards  including a 2020 Good Food Award, which recognizes the best tasting, most responsibly sourced coffees in the United States.

Chandler said that while coffee is The Village Brews focus, her goal of bringing something unique to the community doesnt end there.

At The Village Brew Coffee House, we provide opportunities for youth entrepreneurs to launch small businesses, a platform for talented local artisans to sell their creations, and a place for socially conscious enterprises, community groups, nonprofits, and local charities to grow.

After talking to other independent coffee house owners, Chandler advises prospective owners to start with Crimson Cup.

Begin by reading the 7 Steps book and then sign the agreements with Scott Fullerton, she said. I have saved so much time and money with their input.

The 7 Steps program includes hands-on training in the customers own coffee shop in the week leading up to opening. A Crimson Cup consultant returns to the shop to ensure a successful grand opening, which The Village Brew plans to hold on March 30.

Crimson Cup takes care of the people they supply, and the drinks are amazing! Chandler concluded. The technical support and customer experience have been fantastic.

The Village Brew Coffee House is now open six days a week at 425 East 2nd Street in Piketon, Ohio. Regular hours are 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 12 pm. on Saturday. To keep up with events and announcements, follow the stores Facebook Page.

About Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea

Columbus, Ohio coffee roaster Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea is a 2020 Good Food Award winner, 2019 Golden Bean Champion for Small Franchise/Chain Roaster and Roast magazines 2016 Macro Roaster of the Year. Since 1991, Crimson Cup has roasted sustainably sourced craft coffee for consumers and wholesale coffee customers.

Through its 7 Steps to Success coffee franchise alternative program, the company teaches entrepreneurs to run independent coffee houses in their local communities. By developing a coffee shop business plan, entrepreneurs gain insight into how much it costs to open a coffee shop.

Crimson Cup also supports life-enriching projects through its Friend2Farmer initiatives, promoting the education, health, sustainability and economic growth of small-plot coffee farmers and their communities.

Crimson Cup coffee is available through over 350 independent coffee houses, grocers, college and universities, restaurants and food service operations across 30 states, Guam and Bangladesh. The company also operates several Crimson Cup Coffee Houses and a new Crimson retail flagship store. To learn more, visit crimsoncup.com, or follow the company on Facebook and Instagram.
One of the pet villains of this site, Kathryn Wylde of the New York City Partnership (now apparently calling herself Kathy to seem more of a woman of the people) has returned to her highest and best use: saying things on behalf of the rich and Big Finance that theyre too circumspect to say themselves. As well see shortly, Wylde is doing her official water-carrying for the preservation of the standing of the well-off by launching an alert opposing New York State plans to raise taxes to shore up the citys shaky finances.

Wylde has a history of telling howlers to defend the funders of her business lobby, as a quick gander through our archives show. Recall that we supported Eliot Spitzers run for New York City Controller, since that would put him in charge of the citys pension system, where he would be ideally positioned to take on the way private equity grifts at investor (and ultimately taxpayer) expense. Of course Wylde was not happy about the idea. From a 2013 post:

The amusing part is that the Spitzer enemies list on Wall Street alone is enough to curry votes for him. The almost cartoonish defender of the 1%, Kathryn Wylde of the New York Partnership, claimed that the comptrollers required, in the words of the Times, intense collaboration and diplomacy with the mayors office, the business community and municipal labor unions. Translation: a lapdog.

Matt Stoller did a longer-form takedown of Wylde in 2011, with the centerpiece her advocacy of selling the US out to China (this is no exaggeration). From his preamble:

A brief shellack of Wyldes substantive assertion, that lots of big corporations moved their headquarters out of New York City in the 1970s due to taxes. Help me. Anyone old enough to remember those years will recall first, that urban centers were universally in disfavor due to crime and underinvestment, which was made worse by the stagflation of the 1970s weakening tax receipts. New York City was in particularly bad shape on both the crime and the infrastructure decay fronts. The graffiti-covered subway trains, where women were at risk of having necklaces yanked off their necks, were a visible symbol of the citys fallen state. Second, the 1970s were an era of corporate mergers, not as frenzied as the 60s, but busy enough that Morgan Stanley pioneered the hostile takeover.

By Greg David (gdavid@thecity.nyc). Originally published by THE CITY on February 17, 2021

The citys big-business leaders say they find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place.

The rock is the suggestion from leaders in Albany that the only way to stem momentum for an income tax increase on the wealthy is for the citys leading CEOs to go public with threats to move thousands of jobs. CEOs see this as impossible: It would anger their employees and might set off the very exodus they are seeking to avoid.

The hard place is seeing a tax hike go through, which, they argue, would have the same effect.

I was here in the 1970s when we lost 800,000 people and half our Fortune 500 companies, Kathy Wylde, CEO of the Partnership for New York City told THE CITY. We face a similar threat today.

The latest salvo from the Partnership, issued in an alert sent out Wednesday, argues that federal aid in the Biden administration pandemic assistance plan likely to be approved by Congress soon provides more than enough money to solve the states budget problems  at least in the short term.

The alert also notes that city and state tax revenues continue to exceed projections. And it calls any increase punitive, designed to penalize people who supposedly got richer during the pandemic. That could threaten New Yorks long-term health, business leaders and Gov. Andrew Cuomo say, since the top 1% of taxpayers pay more than 40% of all the income taxes collected in the state.

State Senator Robert Jackson (D-Manhattan) speaks at a vigil in Inwood for several homeless people who were stabbed on the subway, Feb. 15, 2021. Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY

The Partnership alert came on a day when a bill was introduced in Albany to hike taxes on individuals making more than $300,000 a year. Previous proposals had been targeted at those making at least $1 million. Supporters of the latest proposal include Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris (D-Queens), city Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and the Working Families Party.

Someone making $50,000 and someone making $1 million should not pay nearly the same tax rate, as they do now, State Sen. Robert Jackson (D-Manhattan) told The Associated Press.

Some supporters say that the higher taxes are needed to help shore up the state budget at a time when many New Yorkers are grappling with job, food and housing instability while Wall Street is strong. Others, like Invest in Our New York, want to use the money for a major expansion of the state budget.

Swoon Over Miami

The current language in the $1.9 trillion Biden aid package contains more than $50 billion for New York, according to a letter House Speaker Nancy Pelosi sent members of the New York Congressional delegation. Included is $12.6 billion for the state, $10.6 billion for local governments, almost $9 billion for transit, $12.3 billion for education and $3 billion for Medicaid.

Cuomo has said $15 billion would solve the states budget problem for this year and allow for an expansion of programs for the fiscal year that begins April 1. Mayor Bill de Blasios executive budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 is balanced without any of the aid.

Meanwhile, revenues continue to outpace estimates: Data from the state comptroller released this week showed state tax receipts for the first 10 months of the fiscal year are $1.7 billion higher than anticipated by the governors budget office last month  an estimate that already had been revised upward.

All state tax receipts in January totaled $11.4 billion, which actually exceeded last years take by $550.5 million.

The threat that rich New Yorkers and the companies they run would flee has been spotlighted in recent headlines with an eye on Florida.

Join Us in Miami! Love, Masters of the Universe in The New York Times detailed how Silicon Valley tech founders and Wall Street titans have moved south. The Wall Street Journals Low Taxes and High Temperatures Lure Finance Firms to Miami talked about two major private equity firms opening offices in the Sunshine State.

Anecdotes of the richest New Yorkers moving to Florida, which has no state income tax, abound, including a CNBC piece headlined, Leaving New York: High Earners in Finance and Tech Explain Why They Left the Worlds Greatest City.

The New York Stock Exchange has publicly said it may move if a proposed stock transfer tax is revived.

Looking at it from an employers perspective, we have a situation where we have a lot of employees working outside the city, there are a number of companies in New York that are portable like investment firms that could pick up and move somewhere else, said Steven Swartz, CEO of the Manhattan-headquartered media company Hearst and co-chair of the Partnership. It is important from a business and city and state perspective on welcoming all the people back and showing them we want them to come back.

Other Options

The Citizens Budget Commission agrees with the Partnership on the sharply improved financial picture and the risks of a tax hike.

The fiscal reality is that we are in good enough shape in the short and medium term, we have other options and we do not need to raise taxes, said CBC President Andrew Rein. And raising taxes can hurt our economy.

The CBC recently said that the states budget could be balanced without a tax increase by borrowing for capital projects that are currently paid from the operating budget and reducing what it has long argued is wasteful economic development spending.

Construction workers in an empty Midtown office, Sept. 1, 2020.

It said the amounts saved  about $2 billion over each of the next three fiscal years and another $1 billion in 2025  equal the total raised from both an income tax increase and delaying middle class tax cuts scheduled for next fiscal year.

The state needs to use the federal aid to restructure its budget because the economic recovery here is expected to be much weaker than in the rest of the country, Rein said.

Swartz said while this is not the time to raise taxes, when the long-term revenue outlook is clearer business, labor, community leaders and government officials should come to a consensus on whether more money is needed.

Changing Political Tide

Democrats gained a super-majority in the state Senate last November to go with one in the Assembly, meaning the party can override a veto from Cuomo. The governors budget proposal included an income tax increase, only if federal aid is insufficient.

Even moderate Democrats, especially in the suburbs, fear a primary challenge from progressives, which drives them to support a tax increase, Wylde said. In addition, legislators dont believe companies will leave, leading to whispered suggestions from Albany power brokers that CEOs publicly say they are considering moving out.

It would be a terrible thing for companies to start threatening to leave, she said. It will upset their employees and it will create the potential for momentum that makes an exodus inevitable.

A spokesperson for the state budget office said the Cuomo administration did not want anyone to threaten to leave New York.

The Partnership rightly points out that the issue is getting New Yorkers to return after leaving at the height of the pandemics toll on the city, said the spokesperson, Freeman Klopott. Weve said from the start that tax increases wont be necessary if the federal government provides $15 billion in funding, following through on its promises to provide funding that offsets devastating revenue losses caused by the pandemic.

Others think going public makes sense.

You speak up and then what? You get criticized on Twitter? Theres a protest in front of your apartment or even your beach house? So what? asked former Bloomberg administration aide Bradley Tusk, whose consulting firm is now advising mayoral candidate Andrew Yang.

The fact that business leaders are paralyzed by such intangible fears is a good reminder of how politically impotent the business community is in the first place, he added.

This story was originally published by THE CITY, an independent, nonprofit news organization dedicated to hard-hitting reporting that serves the people of New York.


Ivanka Trump has told Republican Senator Marco Rubio that she won't challenge him for his Florida Senate seat in next year's GOP primary.

The former first daughter is living in Miami with her husband Jared Kushner and their three children. There has been speculation she will launch a political career of her own after serving for four years in her father's White House.

Florida would be the likely location given her residency there. Her father, former President Donald Trump, is also a residence of the state, living at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach.

Rubio is up for re-election in 2022 and a challenge from the former president's daughter could have torn apart the party as it struggles to determine how the Trump family will fit into the GOP.

But Ivanka reached out to Rubio to tell him she won't challenge him, a source close to her and his office separately told DailyMail.com.

Ivanka Trump praised Rubio as 'good personal friend,' in a statement to Dailymail.com.

'Marco has been a tremendous advocate for working families, a good person friend and I know he will continue to drive meaningful progress on issues we both care deeply about,' she said.

She and the senator are discussing holding an event together in Florida in the next few months on their expansion of the Child Tax Credit, an issue she worked on when she served as a White House adviser.

'Marco and Ivanka did speak a few weeks ago. Ivanka offered her support for Marcos reelection and they had a great talk,' Nick Iacovella, a spokesman for Rubio, told DailyMail.com.

'We are discussing a joint event to highlight Marco and Ivankas successful push to expand the Child Tax Credit,' he added.

Ivanka Trump has told Republican Senator Marco Rubio that she won't challenge him for his Florida Senate seat in next year's GOP primary

Senator Marco Rubio is up for election in 2022; he and Ivanka Trump may do an event together in Florida

An appearance by Rubio and Trump together would be seen as her endorsement of the two-term senator, who is favored to win re-election.

The New York Times first reported the two's conversation.

Ivanka Trump's decision comes as her sister-in-law Lara Trump, has been mulling a Senate bid in her native North Carolina.

Lara Trump, who lives in New York with husband Eric Trump and their two children, has been mulling running for retiring Republican Senator Richard Burr's seat.

Burr was censured by the North Carolina Republican Party for voting to President Trump's second impeachment, agreeing Trump did 'incite an insurrection' with the January 6th MAGA riot on Capitol Hill.

Trump ally and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham told Fox News over the weekend that Burr's vote basically assured that if Lara were to launch a bid, she would earn the Republican nomination in the state.

'My friend Richard Burr just made Lara Trump almost the certain nominee for the Senate seat in North Carolina to replace him if she runs,' Graham told Fox on Sunday.

Republicans are struggling what to do with Trump family in the wake of the Capitol Hill riot. Many are furious with President Trump for stirring up his supporters with his false claim he won the 2020 election.

Ivanka Trump is living in Miami with her husband and three children

Lara Trump and Donald Trump Jr are also said to be mulling bids for public office

But Trump also received 74 million votes and has vowed to be a force in the Republican Party going forward. His supporters could play a huge role in determining the party's nominees in various primary contests.

In addition to Ivanka Trump and Lara Trump, Donald Trump Jr., who became a huge party fundraiser and popular surrogate on the campaign stump, is said to be mulling a run for public office.

Panasonic AI-driven cameras empower an expanding vision of new uses

Imagine a world where video cameras are not just watching and reporting for security, but have an even wider positive impact on our lives. Imagine that cameras control street and building lights, as people come and go, that traffic jams are predicted and vehicles are automatically rerouted, and more tills are opened, just before a queue starts to form. Cameras with AI capabilities Cameras in stores can show us how we might look in the latest outfit as we browse. Thats the vision from Panasonic about current and future uses for their cameras that provide artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities at the edge. Panasonic feels that these types of intelligent camera applications are also the basis for automation and introduction of Industry 4.0, in which processes are automated, monitored and controlled by AI-driven systems. 4K network security cameras The companys i-PRO AI-capable camera line can install and run up to three AI-driven video analytic applications Panasonics 4K network security cameras have built-in AI capabilities suitable for this next generation of intelligent applications in business and society. The companys i-PRO AI-capable camera line can install and run up to three AI-driven video analytic applications. The AI engine is directly embedded into the camera, thus reducing costs and Panasonics image quality ensures the accuracy of the analytics outcome. FacePRO facial recognition technology Panasonic began advancing AI technology on the server side with FacePRO, the in-house facial recognition application, which uses AI deep learning capabilities. Moving ahead, they transitioned their knowledge of AI from the server side to the edge, introducing i-PRO security cameras with built-in AI capabilities last summer, alongside their own in-house analytics. Moreover, in line with the Panasonic approach to focus more on collaboration with specialist AI software developers, a partnership with Italian software company, A.I. Tech followed in September, with a range of intelligent applications, partially based on deep learning. Additional collaborations are already in place with more than 10 other developers, across the European Union, working on more future applications. i-PRO AI-capable security cameras Open systems are an important part of Panasonics current approach. The companys i-PRO AI-capable cameras are an open platform and designed for third-party application development, therefore, applications can be built or tailored to the needs of an individual customer. Panasonic use to be a company that developed everything in-house, including all the analytics and applications. However, now we have turned around our strategy by making our i-PRO security cameras open to integrate applications and analytics from third-party companies, says Gerard Figols, Head of Security Solutions at Panasonic Business Europe. Flexible and adapting to specific customer needs This new approach allows the company to be more flexible and adaptable to customers needs. At the same time, we can be quicker and much more tailored to the market trend, said Gerard Figols. He adds, For example, in the retail space, enabling retailers to enhance the customer experience, in smart cities for traffic monitoring and smart parking, and by event organisers and transport hubs to monitor and ensure safety. Edge-based analytics offer multiple benefits over server-based systems Edge-based analytics Edge-based analytics offer multiple benefits over server-based systems. On one hand, there are monetary benefits - a cost reduction results from the decreased amount of more powerful hardware required on the server side to process the data, on top of reduction in the infrastructure costs, as not all the full video stream needs to be sent for analysis, we can work solely with the metadata. On the other hand, there are also advantages of flexibility, as well as reliability. Each camera can have its own individual analytic setup and in case of any issue on the communication or server side, the camera can keep running the analysis at the edge, thereby making sure the CCTV system is still fully operational. Most importantly, systems can keep the same high level of accuracy. Explosion of AI camera applications We can compare the explosion of AI camera applications to the way we experienced it for smartphone applications" We can compare the explosion of AI camera applications to the way we experienced it for smartphone applications, said Gerard Figols, adding However, it doesnt mean the hardware is not important anymore, as I believe its more important than ever. Working with poor picture quality or if the hardware is not reliable, and works 24/7, software cannot run or deliver the outcome it has been designed for. As hardware specialists, Figols believes that Panasonic seeks to focus on what they do best - Building long-lasting, open network cameras, which are capable of capturing the highest quality images that are required for the latest AI applications, while software developers can concentrate on bringing specialist applications to the market. Same as for smartphones, AI applications will proliferate based on market demand and succeed or fail, based on the value that they deliver. Facial recognition, privacy protection and cross line technologies Panasonic has been in the forefront in developing essential AI applications for CCTV, such as facial recognition, privacy protection and cross line. However, with the market developing so rapidly and the potential applications of AI-driven camera systems being so varied and widespread, Panasonic quickly realised that the future of their network cameras was going to be in open systems, which allow specialist developers and their customers to use their sector expertise to develop their own applications for specific vertical market applications, while using i-PRO hardware. Metadata for detection and recognition Regarding privacy, consider that the use of AI in cameras is about generating metadata for the detection and recognition of patterns, rather than identifying individual identities. However, there are legitimate privacy concerns, but I firmly believe that attitudes will change quickly when people see the incredible benefits that this technology can deliver, said Gerard Figols, adding I hope that we will be able to redefine our view of cameras and AI, not just as insurance, but as life advancing and enhancing. i-PRO AI Privacy Guard One of the AI applications that Panasonic developed was i-PRO AI Privacy Guard Seeking to understand and appreciate privacy concerns, one of the AI applications that Panasonic developed was i-PRO AI Privacy Guard that generates data without capturing individual identities, following European privacy regulations that are among the strictest in the world. Gerard Fogils said, The combination of artificial intelligence and the latest generation open camera technology will change the worlds perceptions from Big Brother to Big Benefits. New applications will emerge as the existing generation of cameras is updated to the new open and intelligent next generation devices, and the existing role of the security camera will also continue. Future scope of AI and cameras He adds, Not just relying on the security cameras for evidence when things have gone wrong, end users will increasingly be able to use AI and the cameras with much higher accuracy to prevent false alarms and in a proactive way to prevent incidents." Gerard Figols concludes, That could be monitoring and alerting when health and safety guidelines are being breached or spotting and flagging patterns of suspicious behaviour before incidents occur.
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[February 18, 2021] Biocom California Appoints New Members to Board of Directors and Board of Governors

Biocom California, the association representing the California life science industry, today announced that Enoch Kariuki, PharmD, chief financial officer of VelosBio, Bernard Parker, managing director of Caligen Bio, LLC, and Eric Dube, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of Travere Therapeutics, have been added to its board of directors, and Sabrina Martucci Johnson, president and chief executive officer of Dare Biosciences, was appointed as the board's vice chair of industry. Biocom also added Natalie Hosea, Ph.D., site head and head of DMPK at Takeda California, to its board of governors to replace David Weitz, former head of Takeda California. Concurrent with other updates to its boards, Biocom California announced that Richard Pascoe, president and chief executive officer of Histogen, was elected to the role of chairman of the board of directors and Carin Canale-Theakston, chief executive officer of Canale Communications, was re-elected as the board of directors' vice chair. "California's life science industry has truly shown the world its value over the past tumultuous year, which is reflected in our new board members: a talented, diverse group of people who have each contributed to the state's leadership and will ensure that Biocom California will continue to meet the always-evolving needs of our members," said Joe Panetta, president and CEO of Biocom California. "I look forward to adding these new voices to our governance structure and am confident that their perspective will guide our strategic programs creatively and capably." Dr. Kariuki served as the chief financial officer at VelosBio, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that was acquired by Merck & Co., in a deal announced in November 2020. He also serves on the board of directors for Imago Biosciences. He has over a decade of experience in healthcare strategy, life sciences investment banking, venture capital and business development. Mr. Parker is managing director at Caligen Bio, LLC, a healthcare advisory and consulting company. He is a biopharmaceuticals senior executive with more than 20 years of corporate strategy, commercialization, corporate development, portfolio/product strategy and international enterprise leadership experience. Mr. Parker has held influential leadership positions at various companies, including roles based in the US, Switzerland and Germany spanning a range of drug modalities, therapeutic areas and indications, including genetically-defined rare diseases/orphan disorders. Dr. Dube is the president, chief executive officer and a director of Travere Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to identify, develop and deliver life-changing therapies to people living with rare disease. At Travere Therapeutics, he oversees a global team dedicated to advancing the company's promising pipeline featuring innovative product candidates for rare kidney, liver and metabolic disorders. With leadership experience across the United States, Europe and Japan, Dr. Dube draws upon significant expertise in managing commercial, operations, market access, medical and business development functions. He leads with a commitment to patients, integrating their perspective into all aspects of the company's operations. Ms. Johnson founded Dare Biosciences, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to the advancement of innovative products for women's health, and crrently serves as its president and chief executive officer. She began her career in the biotechnology industry as a research scientist, and before founding Dare, she held COO, CFO, and commercial roles in the biotech and life science industry. She currently serves on industry and non-profit boards in addition to Dare and Biocom California.



Dr. Hosea currently leads the Takeda California research facility as well as the department of drug metabolism & pharmacokinetics (DMPK) at the San Diego site. She also leads the development DMPK team in Takeda's Boston site since 2017, focusing on the drug discovery and development of both small molecule and biological therapeutics in neuroscience and gastrointestinal disease areas from new target through registration and life cycle management. About Biocom

Biocom California is the leader and advocate for California's life science sector. We work on behalf of more than 1,300 members to drive public policy, build an enviable network of industry leaders, create access to capital, introduce cutting-edge STEM education programs, and create robust value-driven purchasing programs.

Founded in 1995 in San Diego, Biocom California provides the strongest public voice to research institutions and companies that fuel the local and state-wide economy. Our goal is simple: to help our members produce novel solutions that improve the human condition. In addition to our San Diego headquarters, Biocom operates core offices in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, satellite offices in Washington, D.C. and Tokyo, and has a continuous staff presence in Sacramento. Our broad membership benefits apply to biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device, genomics and diagnostics companies of all sizes, as well as to research universities and institutes, clinical research organizations, investors and service providers. For more information on Biocom California, please visit our website at www.biocom.org. Connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter (News - Alert) (@BIOCOMCA). View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005332/en/

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New Delhi: Fuel prices have seen rate hike for the 10th consecutive day on Thursday, with petrol prices breaching Rs 100-mark in Rajasthan.

Though in the past, petrol price crossed Rs 100 in Rajasthan's Sriganganagar, however this is for the first time that regular petrol crossed the physiological mark in Rajasthan.

Petrol in Delhi stand at Rs 89.88/litre, an increase of 34 paise and diesel prices stand at Rs 80.27/litre, an increase by 32 paise.

Here is looking at the price difference of diesel and petrol in four metro cities on February 18, 2021.

City Petrol Diesel Delhi 89.88 80.27 Mumbai 96.32 87.32 Chennai 91.98 85.31 Kolkata 91.11 83.86

Meanwhile Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas & Steel, Dharmendra Pradhan, participating in the 11th IEA-IEF-OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks held virtually appealed to the oil-producing countries to have a rethink on continuing and increasing production cuts. He reiterated that in the collective interests of both producing and consuming countries, prices should be reasonable and responsible.

The price-sensitive Indian consumers are getting adversely affected by rising petroleum product prices. It also affects demand growth, which could potentially impact the delicate aspirational economic growth trajectory not just in India but in other developing countries as well. He added that India remains dedicated and committed about evolving a sustainable energy future for all, and in this regard, will leverage all available energy resources.
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An irregular sleep schedule can increase a person's risk of depression over the long term as much as getting fewer hours of sleep overall, or staying up late most nights, a new study suggests.

Even when it comes to just their mood the next day, people whose waking time varies from day to day may find themselves in as much of a foul mood as those who stayed up extra late the night before, or got up extra early that morning, the study shows.

The study, conducted by a team from Michigan Medicine, the University of Michigan's academic medical center, uses data from direct measurements of the sleep and mood of more than 2,100 early-career physicians over one year. It's published in npj Digital Medicine.

The interns, as they are called in their first year of residency training after medical school, all experienced the long intense work days and irregular work schedules that are the hallmark of this time in medical training. Those factors, changing from day to day, altered their ability to have regular sleep schedules.

The new paper is based on data gathered by tracking the interns' sleep and other activity through commercial devices worn on their wrists, and asking them to report their daily mood on a smartphone app and take quarterly tests for signs of depression.

Those whose devices showed they had variable sleep schedules were more likely to score higher on standardized depression symptom questionnaires, and to have lower daily mood ratings. Those who regularly stayed up late, or got the fewest hours of sleep, also scored higher on depression symptoms and lower on daily mood. The findings add to what's already known about the association between sleep, daily mood and long-term risk of depression.

"The advanced wearable technology allows us to study the behavioral and physiological factors of mental health, including sleep, at a much larger scale and more accurately than before, opening up an exciting field for us to explore," says Yu Fang, M.S.E., lead author of the new paper and a research specialist at the Michigan Neuroscience Institute. "Our findings aim not only to guide self-management on sleep habits but also to inform institutional scheduling structures."

Fang is part of the team from the Intern Health Study, led by Srijan Sen, M.D., Ph.D., that has been studying the mood and depression risk of first-year medical residents for more than a decade. The study collected an average of two weeks of data from before the doctors' intern years began, and an average of nearly four months of monitoring through their intern year.

For the new paper, the team worked with Cathy Goldstein, M.D., M.S., an associate professor of neurology and physician in the Sleep Disorders Center at Michigan Medicine.

She notes that wearable devices that estimate sleep are now being used by millions of people, including the Fitbit devices used in the study, other activity trackers, and smart watches.

"These devices, for the first time, allow us to record sleep over extensive time periods without effort on behalf of the user," says Goldstein. "We still have questions surrounding the accuracy of the sleep predictions consumer trackers make, though initial work suggests similar performance to clinical and research grade actigraphy devices which are cleared by the FDA."

Sen, who holds the Eisenberg Professorship in Depression and Neurosciences and is a professor of neuroscience and psychiatry, notes that the new findings build on what his team's work has already shown about high risk of depression among new physicians, and other underlying factors that as associated with a heightened risk.

"These findings highlight sleep consistency as an underappreciated factor to target in depression and wellness," he says. "The work also underscores the potential of wearable devices in understanding important constructs relevant to health that we previously could not study at scale."

The team notes that the relatively young group of people in the studywith an average age of 27, and holding both college and medical degreesare not representative of the broader population. However, because all of them experience similar workloads and schedules, they are a good group to test hypotheses in. The researchers hope that other groups will study other populations using similar devices and approaches, to see if the findings about variation in sleep schedule hold up for them.

Fang, for instance, notes that the parents of young children might be another important group to study. "I also wish my 1-year-old could learn about these findings and only wake me up at 8:21 a.m. every day," she jokes.

More information: npj Digital Medicine, DOI: 10.1038/s41746-021-00400-z
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Red Light Holland Corp. (CSE: TRIP) ("Red Light Holland" or the "Company"), an Ontario-based corporation engaged in the production, growth and sale of a premium brand of magic truffles to the legal, recreational market within the Netherlands, is pleased to announce that it has been receipted for its final short form prospectus (the "Prospectus") filed with the securities commissions or similar authorities in the Qualifying Jurisdictions (as defined herein). Pursuant to the underwriting agreement between the Company and Eight Capital (the "Underwriter"), the Underwriter has agreed to purchase 23,000,000 units of the Company (the "Units"), on a "bought deal" basis, at a price per Unit of CAD$0.44 (the "Issue Price") for gross proceeds of CAD $10,120,000 (the "Offering").

The Company has also granted the Underwriter an over-allotment option to purchase up to an additional 15% of the Units at the Issue Price, exercisable in whole or in part, at any time on or prior to the date that is 30 days following the closing of the Offering. If this option is exercised in full, approximately $1,500,000 of additional proceeds will be raised pursuant to the Offering and the aggregate proceeds of the Offering will be approximately $11,600,000.

Each Unit will be comprised of one common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one Common Share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each Warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at an exercise price of $0.70, for a period of 36 months following the closing of the Offering. If the daily volume weighted average trading price of the Common Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange for any 10 consecutive days equals or exceeds $1.52, the Company may, upon providing written notice to the holders of the Warrants, accelerate the expiry date of the Warrants to the date that is 30 days following the date of such written notice.

The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Offering for operational expansion, business development, business acquisitions, and working capital and general corporate purposes.

The closing date of the Offering is scheduled to be on or about February 24, 2021 and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the applicable securities regulatory authorities. There can be no assurance as to whether or when the Offering will be completed.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and applicable state securities laws.

The Prospectus containing important information relating to these securities has been filed with the securities commissions or similar authorities in the provinces of Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia (the "Qualifying Jurisdictions"). A copy of the Prospectus can be obtained under the Company's corporate profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

About Red Light Holland Corp.

The Company is an Ontario-based corporation positioning itself to engage in the production, growth and sale (through existing Smart Shops operators and an advanced e-commerce platform) of a premium brand of magic truffles to the legal, recreational market within the Netherlands, in accordance with the highest standards, in compliance with all applicable laws.

For additional information on the Company:

Todd Shapiro

Chief Executive Officer

Tel: 647-204-7129

Email: todd@redlighttruffles.com

Website: https://redlighttruffles.com/

Forward-Looking Statements

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains "forward-looking statements", including with respect to the closing of the Offering, the potential exercise of the over-allotment option, and the proposed use of proceeds. Wherever possible, words such as "may", "would", "could", "should", "will", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "expect", "intend", "estimate", "potential for" and similar expressions have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations of the Company's management for future growth, results of operations, performance and business prospects and opportunities and involve significant known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, without limitation, those listed in the annual information form of the Company dated January 11, 2021, the Prospectus and the other filings made by the Company with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities (which may be viewed at www.sedar.com). Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results, performance or achievements may vary materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. These factors should be considered carefully, and prospective investors should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to revise forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by law.

NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74827
New York, Feb 18 : The South African variant of Covid-19 may significantly reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, as per a laboratory study, the pharmaceutical companies said. However, human trials are still to be conducted in this regard.

According to the study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, although the results indicated a reduction in neutralisation of virus with all the South African variant spike glycoprotein mutations, the vaccine was still able to neutralise the virus.

This finding is consistent with recent reports of the neutralisation of variant SARS-CoV-2 or corresponding pseudoviruses by convalescent or post-immunisation sera, the companies said in a statement on Wednesday.

Pfizer and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) investigated the full set of South African variant (also known as B.1.351 lineage) spike mutations.

To this aim, three genetically engineered recombinant viruses were produced. One virus had the full set of spike glycoprotein mutations found in the South African variant and the other two had subsets of these mutations.

The viruses were tested against a panel of sera from 15 participants in the previously reported Phase 3 trial who had been immunised with the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine.

Pfizer-BioNTech said they are taking the necessary steps, making the right investments, and engaging in the appropriate conversations with regulators to be in a position to develop and seek authorisation for an updated mRNA vaccine or booster once a strain that significantly reduces the protection from the vaccine is identified, the company said.

Pfizer-BioNTech are currently evaluating neutralisation of SARS-CoV-2 with the Brazilian strain spike mutations, as well as mutations from other emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants, and they continue to conduct studies to monitor the vaccine's real-world effectiveness.

The pharmaceutical companies believe that the flexibility of BioNTech's proprietary mRNA vaccine platform is well suited to develop new vaccine variants, if required.
Bridgerton star Rege-Jean Page enjoyed a night out in New York on Tuesday evening as he prepares for his eagerly anticipated hosting role on Saturday Night Live.

The actor, 31, has become a household name thanks to his starring role as eligible bachelor Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, in the hugely popular Netflix romp.

And he was centre of attention while out with his SNL colleagues as they attended a routine dinner on Midtown's 46th street.

Here he comes: Bridgerton star Rege-Jean Page enjoyed a night out in New York on Tuesday evening as he prepares for his eagerly anticipated hosting role on Saturday Night Live

Accompanied by SNL producer Lindsay Shookus, Page was seen emerging from a local diner with his increasingly familiar features hidden behind a protective face covering.

The actor looked typically stylish, opting for a smart houndstooth coat over a blue T-shirt and knitted grey cardigan.

He added to his look with a pair of black skinny jeans, while leather shoes rounded things off.

Stepping out: The actor was out with his SNL co-stars, among them show producer Lindsay Shookus (pictured), as they attended a routine dinner on Midtown's 46th street

Make way: Page was seen emerging from a local diner with his increasingly familiar features hidden behind a protective face covering

In good company: Paige and Shookus were accompanied by SNL writer Colin Jost (L) and producer Lorne Michaels (R)

Page and Shookus were accompanied by SNL writer Colin Jost and producer Lorne Michaels as they made their way onto the street.

The actor is currently nominated for a SAG Award and a NAACP Image Award while he has also been speculated as a future James Bond.

He made his first TV appearance in 2004, but has only in recent years hit the big time  first in the US mini-series Roots, then in the American legal drama For The People.

Looking good: The actor looked typically stylish, opting for a smart houndstooth coat over a blue T-shirt and knitted grey cardi

Finishing touches: He added to his look with a pair of black skinny jeans, while leather shoes rounded things off

It comes after Bridgerton was officially renewed by Netflix for series 2 after weeks of speculation.

The second season will focus on Anthony Bridgerton's (Jonathan Bailey) quest to find a wife after his turbulent love life was played out in the first series.

Bridgerton follows the self-titled family and how their lives are turned upside-down by the revelations of the illusive and anonymous Lady Whistledown in London.

Netflix confirmed the news in a tongue-in-cheek statement penned as mysterious show lead Lady Whistledown.

They also shared the news on Twitter and YouTube with a montage of best clips from series one.

Popular: The actor has become a household name thanks to his starring role as eligible bachelor Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings, in hugely popular Netflix romp Bridgerton

A statement read: 'The ton are abuzz with the latest gossip, and so it is my honour to impart to you: Bridgerton shall officially return for a second season. I do hope you have stored a bottle of ratafia for this most delightful occasion.

'This author has been reliably informed that Lord Anthony Bridgerton intends to dominate the social season. I will have my pen to report on any and all of his romantic activities.

'However, gentle reader, before you set the comments section alight with requests for more sordid details, know that I am disinclined to report on the particulars at this time. Patience, after all, is a virtue. Yours Truly, Lady Whistledown.'
LANE COUNTY, Ore -- Lane County is postponing a mass booster clinic that was scheduled to happen between Saturday and Tuesday.

This comes after winter weather at Modernas facility in Tennessee delayed shipments of thousands of vaccine doses that were scheduled to arrive in Oregon this week.

About 6,700 people were scheduled to receive their second shot at the clinic. Health officials said they are contacting anyone affected by the change to reschedule appointments for the following weekend.

Lane County Public Health still plans to give out more than 2,000 shots to people over the age of 75 and more than 500 educators at separate clinics this weekend.

Lane County has also been making steady progress vaccinating educators.

According to health officials, 99% of educators have been offered the first shot. Mainly coaches and referees still need their first doses.

Because it took about three weeks to give educators their first shots, it should take roughly three more to give out second shots, Lane County Public Health spokesman Jason Davis said.

"The people that are getting the vaccine are very happy about it," Lowell School District's Superintendent Johnie Matthews said. "It has been a very smooth process thanks to the help of the Springfield school district, Bethel School District, and 4J school district."
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After the previous physical Quad meeting in Tokyo in October, then US secretary of state Mike Pompeo had blasted China publicly for exploitation, corruption, and coercion in the South (China Sea) , East China Sea, the Mekong, the Himalayas and the Taiwan Straits.  ANI

New Delhi: In a sharp and glaring contrast to the earlier Trump administration, the United States under the new Joe Biden presidency on Thursday publicly omitted any criticism or even mention of China in its statement after the foreign ministers of the four Quad nations -- the United States, Japan, Australia and India -- held their third meeting in a virtual format on Thursday. It may be recalled that after the previous physical Quad meeting in Tokyo in October, then US secretary of state Mike Pompeo had blasted China publicly for exploitation, corruption, and coercion in the South (China Sea) , East China Sea, the Mekong, the Himalayas and the Taiwan Straits. But a statement issued late Thursday evening by the US state department on the Quad meeting made no mention of China. The Quad is an arrangement that aims to preserve a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific region.

Instead, the US state department said that the four ministers discussed countering disinformation, counterterrorism, maritime security, the urgent need to restore the democratically elected government in Burma (Myanmar) and the priority of strengthening democratic resilience in the broader region.

New Delhi, meanwhile, said in a separate statement that the recent developments in Myanmar (where a military coup took place earlier this month) was discussed at the meeting, with India reiterating the upholding of rule of law and the democratic transition.

The meeting was attended by US secretary of state Antony Blinken, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar, Australian foreign minister Marise Payne and Japanese foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, where a productive exchange of views on regional issues took place, New Delhi said. The four Quad nations emphasised the commitment to upholding a rules-based international order underpinned by respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty, rule of law, transparency, freedom of navigation in international seas and peaceful resolution of disputes, the New Delhi statement added, in what is seen by observers as the usual veiled indication towards China.

Highlighting their shared attributes as political democracies, market economies and pluralistic societies, the four Quad nations reiterated their common vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region, with clear support for Asean cohesion and centrality and noted that the Indo-Pacific concept gathered growing international support, including in Europe, New Delhi added.

The US state department said: The ministers discussed Quadrilateral cooperation on the Covid-19 response and recovery and climate change and committed to working together to address these global challenges The participants reaffirmed their mutual support for Asean centrality. They reiterated their commitment to the Quad meeting at least annually at the ministerial level and on a regular basis at senior and working levels to strengthen cooperation on advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific region, including support for freedom of navigation and territorial integrity.

In its statement, the MEA sai:, The ministers ... recognised that the changes underway in the world makes a strong case for their countries working closely together. It was important for the international community that the direction of changes remains positive and beneficial to all  The ministers discussed ongoing efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic, including vaccination programmes. They expressed their commitment to cooperate in addressing this challenge, enhancing access to affordable vaccines, medicines and medical equipment. Indias efforts at providing vaccines to 74 countries was recognised and appreciated.
New Delhi:

According to Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), alteration of genes in a human embryo has been used for the first time in the United States. The research led by Shoukhrat Mitalipov, head of OHSU's Center for Embryonic Cell and Gene Therapy has said the whole process involves a technology known as CRISPR that has opened up a new gate in genetic medicine because of its ability to modify genes swiftly and efficiently.

CRISPR works as a type of molecular scissors that can selectively trim away unwanted parts of the genome, and replace it with new stretches of DNA.Scientists in China have published identical studies with mixed result.

The OHSU research is believed to broken new ground both in the number of embryos experimented upon and by demonstrating it is possible to safely and efficiently.

Also Read: Vaginal ring in women that can prevent HIV is risk-free, says study

Some countries precluded the practice as it could be used to create so-called designer babies.

According to OHSU spokesperson Eric Robinson, the result of the peer-reviewed study are expected to be published soon in a scientific journal.

In December 2015, scientists and ethicists at an international meeting held at the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) in Washington said it would be "irresponsible" to use gene editing technology in human embryos for therapeutic purposes, such as to correct genetic diseases, until safety and efficacy issues are resolved.

But earlier this year, NAS and the National Academy of Medicine said scientific advances make gene editing in human reproductive cells "a realistic possibility that deserves serious consideration."

(Inputs from Reuters)
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Amid speculations of the Indian government and UK-based Cairn Energy going ahead with further legal proceedings regarding the retrospective tax liability, Cairn CEO Simon Thomson on Thursday met Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey.

Speaking to reporters post the meeting, the CEO described the meeting as "constructive" and the dialogue is "ongoing".

Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) P.C. Mody and other tax officials also wre present at the meeting.

In December, Cairn Energy won an international arbitration case against the Indian government which claimed Rs 10,247 crore in past taxes over internal reorganisation of Cairn's India business.

The tribunal in the Netherlands awarded damages of $1.2 billion towards Cairn along with interest and costs, payable by the government.

Cairn Energy had, in 2010-11, sold Cairn India to Vedanta. Post the merger of Cairn India and Vedanta in April 2017, the UK firm's shareholding in Cairn India was replaced by a shareholding of about 5 per cent in Vedanta issued together with preference shares.

Along with attaching its shares in Vedanta, the Tax Department seized dividends of around Rs 1,140 crore due to it from the shareholdings and set off a Rs 1,590 crore tax refund against the demand.

In 2015, Cairn initiated an international arbitration to challenge retrospective taxation.

The meeting comes at a time when the government was expected to challenge the arbitration tribunal's award as it has done in the matter involving Vodafone Group Plc.

The Indian government has challenged in the Singapore High Court an international arbitration tribunal's verdict that overturned its demand for Rs 22,100 crore in back taxes from Vodafone Group Plc.

Recently, Minister of State for Finance, Anurag Thakur told the Parliament that the order passed in Cairn Group's case is under consideration of the government.
A dogs nose could hold the key to detecting the most lethal type of prostate cancer, scientists have said.

Results from a study involving Milton Keynes-based charity Medical Detection Dogs could lead to the development of a more sensitive and specific prostate cancer diagnostic method beyond the blood test which is currently used, researchers said.

They hope the work can be replicated in a bigger study and eventually result in the production of a robotic nose perhaps in the form of a smartphone app.

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Dr Claire Guest, co-founder and chief scientific officer of Medical Detection Dogs, said the publication of the study is extremely exciting.

She said: What we now need to find out is whether or not the dogs ability to discriminate and detect the very fast-growing, dangerous forms of prostate cancer through this non-invasive and rapid, reliable test could go on to saving millions of lives around the world.

The Duchess of Cornwall, who is patron of Medical Detection Dogs, was impressed in October by a demonstration where Labradors, trained to sniff out Covid-19, were put through their paces in the real-life environment of Paddington station.

For the latest research scientists, knowing already that dogs can accurately sniff out early prostate and other cancers, focused on which elements of scent the animals were detecting and how they were processing the information.

The study, published in the PLOS One Journal, involved four-year-old Labrador Florin and Midas, a seven-year-old Vizsla, who were trained to detect prostate cancer in urine samples.

Researchers combined three approaches  the dogs sense of smell, artificial intelligence-assisted chemical analysis, and microbial analysis of urine samples.

The dogs showed 71% sensitivity  the rate at which they correctly identified positive samples  and 70-76% specificity  the rate at which they correctly ignored negative samples including those with other diseases, when detecting the most lethal form of prostate cancer.

They also correctly identified when 73% of blinded patient samples did not have the disease.

Researchers said the results compare favourably to the most commonly used prostate cancer test, the PSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test.

This study showed that a dogs nose could hold the key to an urgently needed, more accurate, and non-invasive method of early prostate cancer diagnosis Dr Claire Guest

Dr Guest led the study, which also involved Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Johns Hopkins University and was supported by a Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) research sponsorship.

She said: This study showed that a dogs nose could hold the key to an urgently needed, more accurate, and non-invasive method of early prostate cancer diagnosis.

Specialist-trained cancer detection dogs Florin and Midas detected extremely aggressive prostate cancers quickly and accurately from urine samples, even discriminating these against urine from patients that had other diseases of the prostate.

This additional information could support the PSA (test) and would provide earlier, non-invasive, sensitive detection of clinically aggressive prostate cancers that would most benefit from early diagnosis, simply from a urine sample.

This has enormous potential and in time the ability of the dogs nose could be translated to an electronic device.

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Dr Andreas Mershin, a physicist and research scientist at MIT, and study co-author, said a machine nose for prostate cancer should be completely scalable to other diseases.

He said: Imagine a day when smartphones can send an alert for potentially being at risk for highly aggressive prostate cancer, years before a doctor notices a rise in PSA levels.

The incredible work of these dogs is critical as we advance this programme to develop an improved method of early prostate cancer diagnosis.

Jonathan Simons, PCF president and CEO, and study co-author, said the results could now lead to the future development of a more sensitive and specific prostate cancer diagnostic beyond the current PSA test.

He said larger scale studies are being planned to develop a robotic nose, if you will, that may ultimately take the form of a smartphone app of the future.
Chad Howard Vanhulzen View Photo

Sonora, CA  A Sonora man that met a woman on an online dating site is now accused of her rape, kidnapping, and trying to intimidate her not to speak to detectives.

The call came into Tuolumne County Sheriffs dispatch last Thursday afternoon, reporting a potential sexual assault that had just occurred. Sheriffs spokesperson Nicco Sandelin tells Clarke Broadcasting, With the information provided by the reporting person, our office was able to locate the victim with GPS tracking. She was in the Longeway Road area of Sonora.

When detectives contacted the 19-year-old woman, 45-year-old Chad Howard Vanhulzen of Sonora, was with her. During questioning, Sandelin says investigators learned that the victim and Vanhulzen had reportedly met on a dating website just a few days prior. However, he did not know the name of the site. Sandelin added that they had only met in person for the first time the evening before the incident.

Subsequently, Vanhulzen was arrested for several felony sex crimes, kidnapping, false imprisonment, and attempting to dissuade a victim from reporting. His bail was set at $150,000. Sandelin relayed that due to the ongoing nature of the investigation and case sensitive details, no further information can be released at this time.


Three days after the Texas power system collapsed, the states grid manager has restored little additional power and could provide no estimate on how long millions will remain without electricity and heat.

Unprepared for the persistent, unseasonable cold, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, is now at the mercy of power generators  still in the throes of a deep freeze and with repairs needed to damaged equipment  unsure when they will be able to thaw their equipment out.

Pressed at a Wednesday news conference for a timeline to restore electricity flow, Bill Magness, ERCOTs president and chief executive, said, Thats what were working on. Thats the top priority. Thats what we want to see done as quickly as possible.

As criticism of ERCOTs preparation mounted  a similar event a decade ago led to calls for power generators to upgrade their equipment to be prepared for the next such winter storm  Magness said he was focusing first on the task at hand.

The priority for us now, whatever the future holds, the priority for us now is to get the power back on, he said. The assessment of how we did I think is something that can be done after we get the power back on.

ERCOT was able to restore power to an estimated 1.6 million homes Wednesday as moderating temperatures reduced demand. Some 2.2 million Texas customers were still without power Wednesday night, according to outage-tracking website PowerOutage.US.

In Houston, the utility CenterPoint Energy was able to reduce the number of customers without power to fewer than 1 million Wednesday night, down from 1.4 million Wednesday morning.

Bringing back power generation has been slowed by repairs to frozen pipes, broken lines another equipment needed to run the plants, experts said. Natural gas shortages have also affected power generation. Freezing temperatures in Texas shale plays have contributed to a plunge in production of as much as 7 billion cubic feet per day, according to Bloomberg and S&P Global Platts.

Power plants werent ready for the blow when it hit just after midnight Monday. About 46,000 megawatts of generation came offline, ERCOT said, more than half of the grids 82,000 megawatts of normal capacity.

The state began the week with about 14,000 megawatts of power generation already offline for routine maintenance, said Joshua Rhodes, an energy researcher at the University of Texas at Austin. The Arctic blast that hit overnight Monday knocked another 32,000 megawatts out of commission.

Of the total generation knocked offline, about 18,000 megawatts was generated by wind, with 28,000 megawatts by thermal sources, predominantly natural gas.

Water plays an important role in natural gas plants, Rhodes said, so if the water freezes they cant operate.

It would be like running your car without coolant, he said. It would overheat and it would break.

Repairing infrastructure is not a quick fix, said Ed Hirs, an energy fellow in the Department of Economics at the University of Houston.

This equipment cant be switched on rapidly, Hirs said. If plants have frozen pipes and broken lines that interrupt the gas, water or turbine flow, those are industrial repairs. This is not something where you can call upstairs and have someone come fix it overnight.

Hirs said the state should have learned a lesson from blackouts a decade ago, when frigid temperatures also knocked out power generators.

The 2011 debacle gave everybody in the legislature, the state, the PUC and ERCOT, the road map to fix things and they did not follow it, said Hirs.

Julie Cohn, an energy historian affiliated with Rice University and the University of Houston, said, however, that the severity of the storm was beyond what planners would have expected.

Weve never had a storm like this, she said. This weather event is something thats really outside historical data for ERCOT.

Sitll, said Rhodes of UT Austin, so many generators falling offline was troubling.

Thats definitely something we have to fix, he said. We cant allow that to happen. Weve got to weatherize better.

ERCOT operates outside of federal regulation because its reach does not extend beyond state lines, and both Gov. Greg Abbott and former Gov. Rick Perry have been outspoken about keeping federal regulators out of the system.

On Wednesday, Perry suggested that going days without power is a sacrifice Texans should be willing to make if it means keeping federal oversight out of the states power grid.

That is a ridiculous statement, Hirs said. No one is going to hold a gun to your head and make you join federal regulation.

Ultimately, Hirs said, the Texas power grid issue is not political.

This is not an issue of red or blue, Hirs said. This is an issue of smart or stupid.
Libyans on Wednesday marked the 10th anniversary of their 2011 uprising that led to the overthrow and killing of longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi.

Many have their eyes on a recently appointed government tasked with leading Libya through elections later this year, with hopes of unifying the divided nation.

Celebrations began late on Tuesday in the capital, Tripoli, where people gathered in the city's main square amid tight security.

Key streets and squares had been cleaned and decorated with banners and photos marking the anniversary.

There were also celebrations in the eastern city of Benghazi, once known as the birthplace of Libya's 2011 uprising.

Holding Libyan flags, a few people gathered in the city's square despite a wave of cold weather that hit the country this week.

Libyans took to the streets 10 years ago, shortly after protests led to the overthrow of Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and Egypt's Hosni Mubarak, in what became known as the Arab Spring.

Libya has become one of the most intractable conflicts, along with Yemen and Syria, left over from the 2011 uprisings.

In the years that followed Gadhafis ouster, the North African country has descended into chaos and has become a haven for Islamic militants and armed groups that survive on looting and human trafficking.

The oil-rich country has for the past several years been split between rival administrations: a U.N.-backed, but weak government in Tripoli - a city largely controlled by an array of armed factions - and an eastern-based government backed by strongman Gen. Khalifa Hifter.

Each is backed by foreign governments.

There have been devastating bouts of violence.

The latest began in April 2019, when Hifter, who is backed by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russia, launched an offensive seeking to capture Tripoli.

His campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support for the Tripoli administration with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

Months of U.N.-led talks resulted in a deal in October that ended hostilities and called for the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries in three months and adherence to a U.N. arms embargo, provisions which have not been met.

The talks also established a Libyan Political Dialogue Forum, that earlier this month appointed an interim government - a three-member Presidential Council and a prime minister - to lead the country through elections, scheduled for Dec. 24.

The interim government includes Mohammad Younes Menfi, a Libyan diplomat from the countrys east who hails from the tribe of anti-colonial hero Omar al-Mukhtar, as chairman of Libyas Presidential Council.

Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah, a pragmatic, well-connected businessman from the western city of Misrata, was appointed prime minister.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
A desperate Dublin dad speaks out for the first time tonight about how he is being held against his will in China.

Businessman and father of four, Richard OHalloran, has been unable to leave the country since he travelled there in February 2019.

Richard, from Foxrock, had travelled to China to resolve a dispute between his employer and Chinese authorities but has since been detained.

Mr O'Halloran works for the aircraft leasing company, China International Aviation Leasing Service (CALS Ireland).

The Dublin man has not been accused of any wrongdoing and has assisted the Chinese in their prosecution of Min Jiedong, the owner of the Dublin firm.

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Jiedong has been jailed for defrauding Chinese investors in a fundraising scheme used to buy an aircraft now leased to a Finnish airline.

Mr OHalloran joined the company after the scheme and two years after his detention his family say they are concerned for his physical and mental health. He has already been hospitalised on two occasions with serious medical issues.

In an exclusive interview with RTEs Prime Time, he tells journalist Yvonne Murray that: It's very difficult to explain to a five-year-old, now seven, that Daddy's not coming home.

Im a very hands-on father and literally within the blink of an eye thats all gone. Its very difficult for me to process but for the children it's devastating. It's very difficult to explain to a five-year-old, now seven, that Daddy's not coming home for your birthday, your communion, your confirmation or Christmas.

There is no reason for me to be stuck here, he adds. I should be allowed to return home to continue running the Irish entity and returning money to China as I said I will do.

I think its a lack of trust, a breakdown in communication somewhere. I think the judges presiding over the enforcement side of this particular case now are... struggling with the complexities as they perceive it for this transaction.

He continues: My hope is that the Chinese authorities see sense and see that the commercial solution that we are putting forward is the most viable way forward. Its the best solution for everybody.

The full interview with Richard OHalloran will be broadcast on Prime Time, Thursday night at 9.35pm on RTE One.
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The Louisiana State Police have identified the motorcyclist killed early Sunday morning in an hit-and-run crash in Reserve as Gerard Milton, 48, of LaPlace.

Investigators are still trying to identify the driver of a 2016 Nissan Altima who hit Milton's bike before fleeing, said Trooper Monroe Dillon, a State Police spokesman.

Motorcyclist killed in hit and run near Reserve, Louisiana Sunday morning A motorcyclist was killed in the early hours of Sunday morning by a hit-and-run driver on the Airline Highway near Reserve in St. John the Bap

The crash occurred about 3:20 a.m. on Airline Highway near the intersection of East 22nd Street (map). Milton was driving northbound on a 2008 Yamaha motorcycle, according to Dillon.

The Altima was also headed north on Airline, but the driver was speeding, according to authorities. The person behind the wheel of the car rear-ended the motorcycle and Milton was thrown from the bike, Dillon said.

Milton suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver of the Altima abandoned the vehicle and ran. State Police investigators are asking for the public's help in identifying the driver of the Altima.

Anyone with information about the crash is asked to call State Police Troop B at 504-471-2775. The public can also call Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111 or toll-free at 1-877-903-7867. Callers do not have to give their names or testify and can earn a reward of up to $2,500 for information that leads to an indictment.
UK and Irish scientists are researching new ways to develop oat varieties that are both climate-resistant and have a higher nutritional value.

The Healthy Oats project will work with farmers to promote the health, economic and environmental benefits of growing oats  a crop which is ideally suited to the climate of both countries.

Scientists will test the resilience and performance of different varieties under reduced and targeted input tillage systems.

They will work to identify varieties that have a combination of enhanced performance under low inputs and superior nutritional and health benefits.

Project leader at University College Dublin, Professor Fiona Doohan said oats were culturally and historically a very important part of both Irish and UK agriculture.

"There is renewed awareness of their health benefits and the potential of farm-to-fork strategies to deliver innovative, healthy and nutritionally enhanced oat products. "

Consumer demand for oats is increasing with the demand for healthier products, with firms capitalising on new opportunities in food categories including cereal bars, breads and drinks.

The higher protein and oil content of oats mean that they have very high nutritional value and, in addition, are an effective replacement for imported soya.

Leading the research at Aberystwyth University, Professor John Doonan said: Oats grow very well in Wales and Ireland and new products will provide the opportunity to increase both production and add value to a traditional crop.

"We will be working with colleagues on both sides of the Irish Sea to increase awareness and understanding of the potential of this crop.
GBP/AUD Exchange Rate Dollar Heads Higher as UK Covid-19 Cases Fall by Two-Thirds in a Month

The Pound to Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) exchange rate rose by 0.2% today following reports that Englands Covid-19 infections have fallen by two-thirds in a month. The pairing is currently fluctuating around AU$1.79.

As a result, GBP investors are becoming more hopeful about the UKs economy after Downing Street hinted at easing lockdowns with a view to being irreversible.

Mark Woolhouse, the professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh, was also confident, commenting:

I think we do have reasons to be more confident that we can move out of lockdown swifter than we could have done out of the first one.

Allies of Chancellor Rishi Sunak have also hinted that he could be outlining a March budget and further Covid-19 support package.

However, Sunak is reported to be backing a lockdown that avoids the problems of stop-and-start, saying that this would be better for the nations economic recovery going forward.

Covid-19 vaccine optimism has also lifted business confidence to a five-year high, according to the ICAEW.

Michael Izza, the chief executive at ICAEW said that 2020 was an unparalleled struggle for business, but added in a more upbeat tone:

Rising confidence among businesses is an encouraging sign of things to come and a predicted growth in employment is good news for people who have lost their jobs over the past year.

Australian Dollar (AUD) Exchange Rates Struggle on Lacklustre Risk Appetite

The Australian Dollar struggled today because of lacklustre risk appetite fuelling demand for safe-haven currencies like the US Dollar instead.

Today also saw the release of Januarys Australia Employment Change data which fell below forecasts from 50 thousand to 29.1 thousand.

However, Australias Unemployment Rate improved in January, sinking from 6.6% to 6.4%.

Su-Lin Ong, head of Australian economic and fixed-income strategy at Royal Bank of Canada, commented:

Australia has recouped almost all the jobs lost in April/May 2020 at the depths of the recession and nationwide lockdown. While the unemployment rate remains higher, it is heading in the right direction.

Australian Dollar investors will also be awaiting todays release of the flash Australian Commonwealth Bank Services and Manufacturing PMI.

If this offers an improving outlook for Australias economy, however, then we could see the AUD/GBP exchange rate head higher.

GBP/AUD Exchange Rate Forecast: UK Services PMI in Focus

Australian Dollar traders will be looking ahead to tomorrows release of the flash Australian Retail Sales data.

If this confirms forecasts and rises by 0.2%, then we would see the Aussie head higher.

However, the AUD/GBP exchange rate will remain sensitive to Covid-19 developments and risk-sentiment.

As a result, we could see AUD head higher if Europes Covid-19 vaccine rollout speeds up or coronavirus cases continue to drop.

Pound investors will be focusing on tomorrows release of the latest Markit Services PMI for February.

Any signs of the UKs largest sector improving would boost the Pound to Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) exchange rate.

We could also see Sterling head higher if the Government reveals further plans to ease lockdown restrictions in the months ahead.
Chandigarh: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday hailed the Congress party's spectacular victory in the state municipal polls as not just a validation of his government's "development-oriented policies and programmes but also a total rejection of the anti-people actions" of the major opposition parties- Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the BJP.



Congratulating Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar, as well as all MLAs, members and workers of the party, for the sweeping victory in the civic polls, the results of which were declared on Wednesday, the Chief Minister said the people of the state had clearly and unequivocally denounced the divisive, undemocratic, unconstitutional and regressive agendas of the three parties.

"The first major polls to be held in Punjab since the enactment of the draconian Farm Laws had also underscored people's angst with the BJP, which was responsible for the anti-farmer legislation with the active support of its former ally, the SAD, and the collusion of ruling AAP in Delhi," Singh said, according to a release by the Chief minister's Office.

With the SAD, the AAP and the BJP not even a close second to the Congress and trailing even independent candidates in some wards, the pro-governance and pro-progress verdict of the urban voters of Punjab was a clear endorsement of their negation of their loathsome political ideologies, said the Chief Minister.

The drumming that SAD, BJP and AAP have received in these civic polls is just the tip of the iceberg, and all three are set to be wiped out of Punjab's political arena, and subsequently from the nation's political landscape, in the months ahead, he added.

In the final count, the Congress had won 1199 of the 1815 wards (municipal councils) and 281 of the 350 municipal corporation seats, with SAD trailing at 289 and 33, BJP at 38 and 20, and AAP at 57 and nine, while the remaining went largely to independents and BSP (K) and CPI winning in 13 and 12 wards respectively. The swing in favour of the Congress in comparison with the 2015 municipal corporation elections in Bathinda, Hoshiarpur, Moga and Pathankot districts is manifest in the fact that from 11 seats back then, the party's tally has improved to a whopping 149 now. Similarly, in the wards, from 356 in 2015, the Congress score now has gone up to 1,480.
OTTAWA - The federal government is working with Indigenous leaders and the provincial and territorial health authorities to prepare mass COVID-19 immunization programs in First Nations, Metis and Inuit communities, Indigenous Services Marc Miller says.

Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller pauses before responding to a question during a news conference in Ottawa on Feb. 10, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - The federal government is working with Indigenous leaders and the provincial and territorial health authorities to prepare mass COVID-19 immunization programs in First Nations, Metis and Inuit communities, Indigenous Services Marc Miller says.

The effort is a race against "scary" variants of the virus that causes the illness, he said in a Wednesday news conference in Ottawa.

Miller said Ontario and British Columbia have already decided to prioritize Indigenous Peoples in vaccination and other provinces should follow, in keeping with the latest guidance from a national advisory committee on immunizations.

"It's a remaining challenge that we'll be working at the trilateral tables, in particular with provinces," he said.

He said vaccinations have started in 400 Indigenous communities, with more than 83,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered as of Tuesday.

Miller said vaccines have been delivered to about 25 per cent of the adult population in First Nations, Inuit and territorial communities, a rate that is six times higher than that for the general population in Canada.

The new recommendations from the National Advisory Committee on Immunization prioritize racialized adults in groups disproportionately affected by the pandemic ahead of some older non-racialized people.

The committee recommended in its new guidance Monday that all adults in Indigenous communities receive COVID-19 shots in the second stage of the immunization campaign this spring.

Miller said following these recommendations presents some logistical challenges, including identifying racialized communities in urban centres.

"What the science is saying is get those vaccines to those people because they're the vulnerable ones, they're the most susceptible of getting COVID," he said.

Vaccinating the most vulnerable people will eventually prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus variants.

"The more people that get COVID, the more variants are created," he said.

Miller said the federal government is ready to support the provinces logistically to ensure the prioritized populations get vaccines quickly.

Miller said he's very concerned about the possibility of COVID-19 variant outbreaks in First Nations.

"The variants are scary," he said.

Several socio-economic factors, including crowded living conditions in First Nations communities, make new COVID-19 variants more threatening to these communities than others, Miller said.

"(It's) very hard to isolate in a house when you have several generations, and a total of 15 or 20 people," he said. "That's the reality and number of communities that currently have outbreaks."

"We've asked Indigenous communities to do things like repurposing gyms, repurposing schools, (to create) isolation tents."

He said his department has been working with the Department of National Defence to deploy early warning systems and pre-position equipment in Indigenous communities.

"We move slower than COVID, and that's just the reality," he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 17, 2021.



This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.
ATLANTA, GA / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Findit, Inc. (OTC PINK:FDIT) owner of Findit.com, a full-service social networking platform that provides online marketing campaigns and tools for members to increase brand awareness through content creation and sharing, resulting in indexing in search engines is highlighting: RateForce, Johnny Wooten, and US Air Purifiers.

In today's release, Findit will be highlighting three featured members that utilize Findit marketing campaigns. Each of these members on Findit has a recurring monthly marketing campaign with Findit that helps improve their overall web presence through search and social media. Findit offers a full suite of marketing services to each of these clients, from content creation to social sharing to video production and more to heighten their overall online presence, aiding them in reaching the audience that is looking for them throughout the web.

Our first featured member is RateForce. RateForce started its journey in 2014 with a mission to help deliver a better way to buy insurance. They serve auto insurance quotes from all over the country so that drivers can compare insurance quotes and buy insurance online at any time. South Carolina residents can find the cheapest auto insurance rates that have the comprehensive coverage that they need by conducting online comparison. RateForce helps you compare insurance rates seamlessly by providing quotes from all the top insurance agencies in the country as well as local and regional insurance providers online with no need for long-form submission. As part of their marketing campaign with Findit, a URL has been set up for RateForce utilizing Findit's Claim Your Name feature, targeting auto insurance rates in South Carolina. In addition to content created on Findit, several videos are currently in production for RateForce, highlighting the services they provide for South Carolina residents. While RateForce offers insurance rates to residents across the US, their campaign will initially focus on South Carolina and content created on Findit for RateForce will focus on this state.

Follow RateForce on Findit

findit.com/best-south-carolina-car-insurance-quotes

Our second featured member is Johnny Wooten. Johnny Wooten is an auto detailing and car care products store that operates the website johnnywooten.com and is open to the public at their Winston Salem location. Individual car lovers, commercial auto spas and independent detailers can purchase high quality, competitively priced auto detailing products from Johnny Wooten in person or online to baby their car, truck or SUV. Johnny Wooten is committed to exceptional customer service and wants you to be happy with your purchase, offering worry free returns and exchanges. Their products are perfect for commercial auto detailing shops, too. Findit has produced several videos for Johnny Wooten during their campaign to assist with improving their online presence. Videos are used in content created on Findit and the video in this release is one that was produced for Johnny Wooten.

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findit.com/car-care-products

Our final featured member is US Air Purifiers. US Air Purifiers LLC is a USA based small business that is family owned by a female (WOSB) and a disabled, retired veteran. Their 5 Star Customer Rating and A+ BBB review among other certificates originate from their basic business philosophy, the backbone of their company: "Treat each and every customer the way we want to be treated". They have a wide range of residential and commercial air purifiers to meet your air cleaning needs. From air purifiers that purify the air in a single room to the entire home, customers can shop by brand, size, filter type, use, and price. They also have a great selection of silent air purifiers for living spaces, bedrooms, nurseries and home offices. Customers who need assistance with selecting the right purifier for their needs can call US Air Purifiers at 888-231-1463.

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A Tibetan protester serving a 21-year prison term for sharing news of Tibetan protests with foreign news media died this month in a hospital in Lhasa after being transferred from his prison in critical condition, Tibetan sources and rights groups say.

Kunchok Jinpa, aged 51 and a resident of Driru (in Chinese, Biru) county in Tibets Nagchu (Naqu) municipality, had vanished in custody after being detained on Nov. 8, 2013, and died on Feb. 6, three months after being admitted to hospital suffering from paralysis and a brain hemorrhage, according to local sources.

Jinpa had gone to live and study in exile in India in 1989 and returned to Tibet in 1998 to work as a tour guide, and was widely respected in his community, sources told RFAs Tibetan Service.

Following Kunchok Jinpas return to Driru from India, he made a huge impact on Tibetans living inside Tibet by providing guidance and advice on the need for unity and education to preserve Tibetan identity, Yarthara former Driru resident now living in Indiasaid.

People adored and trusted him immensely.

Kunchok Jinpas death [at the hands of China] is a clear picture of the cost of disclosing true information from inside Tibet to the outside world, Yarthar said.

After Jinpa was detained in 2013, Tibetans living in India faced an almost complete shutdown of news coming from Driru, a member of Tibets India-based parliament in exile named Ngawang Tharpa said, adding, Many of us have had hardly any communication at all with our people there for six or seven years.

Kunchok Jinpa was a very important source for us, and he was a very brave man, Tharpa said.

Also speaking to RFA, a close friend in Tibet said that Jinpa had often performed long-life prayer rituals for exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, including once by prostrating himself along the length of a trip made from Driru to Tibet's regional capital Lhasa, hundreds of miles away.

"And in a display of support for the Dalai Lama's call to end the use of animal skins in Tibet, he encouraged others to stop using animal skins for clothes," the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"He also refused to hoist the Chinese national flag on the roof of his house," he said, adding that since Jinpa had once lived in India, he was "aware of many things" and had often helped and guided Tibetans wanting to go there.

"And since he was educated himself, he considered education and economic empowerment to be the younger generation's most important requirements for living a decent life."

'Just the latest case'

One of hundreds detained in Driru protests in October 2013 against Chinese orders that Tibetans fly Chinas national flag from their homes, Jinpa was also suspected of supplying information to outside media sources on a Tibetan protest against mining on a sacred mountain, New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a Feb. 16 statement.

Kunchok Jinpas death is yet another grim case of a wrongfully imprisoned Tibetan dying from mistreatment, said HRW China director Sophie Richardson. Chinese authorities responsible for arbitrary detention, torture or ill-treatment, and the death of people in their custody should be held accountable.

This is just the latest case of a Tibetan dying after being imprisoned for daring to defy the occupying Chinese government, added John Jones, Campaigns Manager at London-based Free Tibet, in a Feb. 17 statement. Jones noted that news of the death of a young Tibetan monk detained for taking part in a peaceful protest had only recently been smuggled out of Tibet.

Tenzin Nyima, 19, was detained in August 2020 after distributing leaflets and shouting slogans calling for Tibetan independence, and died in January in Sichuans Dartsedo (Kangding) county of injuries sustained from beatings and torture in a Chinese prison, sources told RFA in an earlier report.

Of the estimated thousand Tibetans detained by Chinese authorities in Driru since 2013, the whereabouts of around 600 are still unknown, Pema Gyala researcher at the Dharamsala, India-based Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracytold RFA.

The Chinese government over the years has imprisoned many Tibetans like Kunchok Jinpa on false allegations, and many have reportedly died due to torture in the prisons, Gyal said.

U.S. promises support for Tibet

In a statement Wednesday, a U.S. State Department spokesman said "The United States stands with the many Tibetans oppressed and imprisoned by the [Peoples Republic of China] for the peaceful exercise of their human rights.

We urge PRC authorities to respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the department said, adding that the U.S. will work with its partners and allies to press Beijing to engage in direct dialogue with exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama or his representatives to resolve differences.

The United States supports meaningful autonomy for Tibetans, the State Department said.

A formerly independent nation, Tibet was invaded and incorporated into China by force nearly 70 years ago, and the Dalai Lama and thousands of his followers fled into exile in India and other countries around the world following a failed 1959 national uprising against Chinese rule.

Chinese authorities maintain a tight grip on the region, restricting Tibetans political activities and peaceful expression of cultural and religious identity, and subjecting Tibetans to persecution, torture, imprisonment, and extrajudicial killings.

Reported by Lobsang Gelek and Lobsang Choephel for RFAs Tibetan Service. Translated by Tenzin Dickyi. Written in English by Richard Finney.
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Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free

We are living through a period that has stirred our collective national conscience about racial injustices and democratic literacy. This February, as we celebrate African American History Month, it feels especially important to honor and celebrate Black lives and the many contributions of African Americans to our society and culture.

At A&M-San Antonio, were in the midst of our month-long celebration, launched by a panel discussion and on-campus portrait exhibit, Living in My Skin, by former A&M System Regent and acclaimed San Antonio artist Lionel Sosa. The exhibit was accompanied by a panel discussion featuring Mr. Sosa and his collaborators who posed for portraits, as they shared their experiences living as Black men in San Antonio. Its clear that Sosas poignant art pieces and his inspiration opened an emotional space that Brandon Logan suggests, made us susceptible to listening, and learning about the lived experiences of men of color. I gained a deeper appreciation of the personal investment of time and deliberate actions that it takes to create an anti-racist society.

With the increased focus on combating racial and social injustices that have grown out of the events of 2020, its more important than ever for colleges and universities to offer experiences and encourage conversations that help us value diversity and recognize our own roles in advancing equity and inclusion. These values drive what we do at A&M-San Antonio. In 2017, I established the Presidents Commission on Equity (PCOE) to recognize the diversity within diversity, and to further our collective efforts towards a more inclusive society.

The work of creating an equitable environment is complex and challenging, and weve learned that representation matters. Our students, employees, and community members need to see themselves in every facet of the University community  among the student body, the faculty, and the staff. We embrace heritage months like African American History Month because they provide teachable moments and opportunities to engage in outwardly visible celebrations about the lives and contributions of those who, historically speaking, may have been overlooked.

The pandemic has uncovered the good, the bad, the still unknown, and unfortunately, the glaring inequities in our society. We see that in the disproportionate effects on health and economic security in communities of color. The Black community  and in particular, Black men  has been hit especially hard. A recent study by APM Research Lab found that COVID-19 is 2.1 times more likely to kill Black Americans than White Americans, and that within the Black community, men are affected at higher rates than women. Access to health care, the industry in which one works, financial flexibility, and educational levels all affect individuals success in fighting COVID-19, and we know those are also areas of inequity for communities of color.

Of course, as a university president, Im also looking at the effects of the pandemic on educational attainment. A recent article in the Harvard Gazette discusses the challenges facing Black students during the COVID-19 pandemic. We know a higher number of Black students will drop-out during this time. Students of color already battle preexisting challenges of inequities in finances and access to health care. Add the coronavirus, and you have a recipe for academic derailment.

For so many community members of color, the importance of making it to college is life-changing and disrupts intergenerational cycles of poverty. We know a college degree can change lives and ultimately communities, but it will remain out of reach for many if we are not vigilant. We have to do better, and as I lead our university into its next chapter of growth, that responsibility is top of mind.

We have virtual, hybrid, and in-person events celebrating African American History planned for the entire month of February listed on our A&M-SA website. As you explore your possibilities for 2021, please know that the A&M-San Antonio campus remains open. I invite you to join us for a virtual or scheduled in-person tour and discover what the University has to offer you. Check out www.tamusa.edu for updates and happenings on our campus. You can always find me on Instagram at @jagprezmatson or Twitter at @PrezMatson.

Cynthia Teniente-Matson, Ed.D, is president of Texas A&M University San Antonio.
Rep. Lauren Boebert displays her guns during a Zoom meeting with the House Natural Resources Committee (Screengrab via Twitter)

Rep. Lauren Boebert proved she was either desperately seeking publicity or an exceptionally unsafe gun owner during a remote meeting of the House Natural Resources Committee.

Prior to the meeting, which was held over Zoom, Ms Boebert appears to have haphazardly piled a number of guns, including pistols and military-style rifles, on a shelf behind her so that the weapons would be clearly visible during her meeting.

The guns are laid across books and butt up against knick-knacks on Ms Boebert's shelf.

Naturally, the image attracted the attention of politicians and reporters who were watching the meeting.

Rep. Katie Porter issued a tounge-in-cheek response to Ms Boebert's weird display.

"I always thought my dirty dishes piled up and accumulating bacteria were the most dangerous thing in a Zoom background," she wrote, including some emojis that looked worried. She also included the hashtag, #SafeStorage.

Rep. Jared Huffman, a Democrat who is also a member of the committee, was more direct in his response to Ms Boebert's stunt.

"If somebody wants to have a shrine to their gun fetish as a Zoom backdrop in their private life, they can do that. But this is our hearing room and at some point we will get past the Covid epidemic and we'll all start showing up in person and our safety and our ability to conduct business civilly, without feelings threatened, is a relevant consideration," he said.

RoomRater, a Twitter account offering unsolicited opinions on the rooms of prominent individuals participating in remote interviews and meetings, gave Ms Boebert a 0/10 and criticised her for improperly storing her weapons.

"Unsafe gun storage is no laughing matter. Is this Fascist fraulein really the best Colorado's 3rd CD can do? 0/10," the account tweeted.

Ms Boebert replied by saying the guns were not being stored, insinuating they were loaded and prepared to fire.

"Who says this is storage? These are ready for use," she said.

Story continues

Ms Boebert has practically built her persona on trolling liberals with guns.

The congresswoman was a co-owner of Shooters Grill, a gun-themed restaurant in the appropriately named Rifle, Colorado. Her restaurant was cited by the Garfield County Public Health Department for allowing dine-in service during coronavirus lock downs and was blamed for making 80 people sick at a rodeo.

Ms Boebert also claimed she would carry her personal firearm with her to Congress. Later, Rep. Steve Cohen accused her of giving tours of the US Capitol to her constituents - who she admitted to Congress were among those gathered outside the building on 6 January - in the days before the insurrection.

We saw Boebert taking a group of people for a tour sometime after the 3rd and before the 6th.  Now whether these people were people that were involved in the insurrection or not, I do not know. he told CNN.

Ms Bobert called the claims "false" and "slanderous."

In the days following the insurrection, Congressmembers were required to pass through metal detectors before entering the Capitol. Ms Boebert set the detector off and refused to comply with US Capitol police officers who responded to the breach.

She was eventually allowed to enter the chambers, but may face a $5,000 fine for ignoring Capitol security rules.

Some of Ms Boebert's colleagues, like Democrat Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, said they objected to her carrying her weapons to the chambers, and that she and other congressmembers do not "feel safe around other members of Congress."

Read More

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Congresswoman Lauren Boebert was in stand-off on Capitol Hill after refusing bag search

Lauren Boebert is a fool: Lawmakers point fingers at QAnon Congresswoman after she tweeted Pelosis location during Capitol riots
President Donald Trump waves as he boards Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Jan. 20, 2021. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

Trump Says Too Early to Say Whether Hes Running in 2024

Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday would not confirm whether he would run for president again in 2024, saying that it was too early to make such a decision on his political future.

Its too early to say but I see a lot of great polls out there, thats for sure, Trump told Newsmaxs Greg Kelly who put forward the question during his show.

We have tremendous support. I wont say yet but we have tremendous support and Im looking at poll numbers that are through the roof.

Im the only guy who gets impeached and my numbers go up, he added.

You Wouldnt Want to Follow Rush

The former president has been keeping a low profile since leaving office a month ago. But he broke his media silence on Wednesday to honor his friend, radio host Rush Limbaugh, who passed away earlier in the day at the age of 70 after a battle with lung cancer. Trump made an appearance on several television talk shows.

We lost a great one today, Trump said of Limbaugh. Rush was just a unique character, and a great friend to all of us. So, we lost a really great gentleman today.

Trump also dismissed suggestions from Kelly about replacing Limbaugh on the radio, saying that his friend would be a hard one to replace.

You wouldnt want to follow Rush. Its the old story, you get somebody like that, you dont want to follow them, because some things just cant be done. He was unique, Trump said.

The former president also reflected on his time being the nations leader, saying that he did miss being president.

Well, I do. And were all set to make a deal with Iran. It would have been a great deal. I see the deal theyre talking about, its a disaster. Were pulling out of the Middle East, almost entirely, which weve almost done, anyway. And were bringing a lot of soldiers home, a lot of our great soldiers are coming home. Weve spent a fortune protecting other countries, he said.

Everything was happening  great, and then we had a disgusting, frankly a very dishonest election.

Social Media

When asked about returning to social media, Trump told Kelly that he had no plans to return to Twitter. The social media platform had permanently suspended Trumps account amid a campaign to increase its policing of harmful voices on its platform. The company justified its censorship by claiming that the president had violated its Glorification of Violence Policy after he posted a message urging protesters to remain peaceful and leave the Capitol. The Trump campaigns Twitter account was also removed by the platform.

Twitters enforcement actions have been criticized for allegedly targeting more conservative personalities and voices. The banning of Trump sparked an exodus of users from the platform.

Ill tell you, its not the same. If you look at whats going on with Twitter, I understand that its become very boring and millions of people are leaving, Trump said.

Trump said that he has not yet returned to social media because he wanted to be somewhat quiet, adding that he was negotiating with a number of people about his social media plans.
The ministers of health, information and security said the infection rate has gone up in February after nine people died and 100 new cases were reported on Tuesday, signalling the resurgence of the deadly virus, the Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday.

Mogadishu, Feb 18 (IANS) The Somali government has banned public gatherings and called on non-essential workers to work from home amid rising cases of Covid-19 in the country.

Fawziya Abikar Nur, Minister of Health and Human Services said 15 people died in less than 48 hours in Martini Hospital and another 50 have been admitted to government hospitals, indicating that the risk of the disease has increased.

Nur said samples collected from patients have been sent abroad for analysis to confirm if a new Covid-19 variant has been in Somalia.

She said her ministry was cooperating with the World Health Organization (WHO) on the Covid-19 tests to determine whether there is a new strain.

"The Covid-19 vaccine would be available, which would play a key role in controlling it," said Nur.

She called on Somalis across the country to remain vigilant and follow health guidelines to help curb the potential spread of the virus.

The Horn of Africa nation has so far confirmed 5,273 Covid-19 cases, 163 deaths and 3,750 recoveries as of Tuesday.

Hassan Jimare, the Security Minister, said the government has a responsibility to protect its citizens and thus the latest directives are based on medical advice because of the current situation in the country.

He said the security forces have been directed to implement the directives to ensure that no gathering is allowed across the country.

--IANS

int/rs
RioTinto will hand investors the largest dividend in its 148-year history as it cashes in on a mining bonanza.

The company will pay out 6.5billion, equal to 400p per share, after a surge in the price of steelmaking ingredient iron ore boosted profits by more than a third.

Iron ore rose in value by almost 85 per cent last year, climbing above $175 a tonne, as demand rocketed from China's steel industry. The country has been stockpiling the commodity as it plans to unleash a post-Covid economic boom.

Mining boom: Rio Tinto will pay out 6.5bn, equal to 400p per share, after a surge in the price of steelmaking ingredient iron ore boosted profits by more than a third

Rio's bumper payout came a day after fellow FTSE 100 miners BHP and Glencore promised to hand investors huge sums  3.7billion and 1.2billion respectively  after they too benefited from rising commodity prices.

The results have added to growing speculation that the market is entering another 'supercycle' that will see the prices of commodities soar.

A construction boom in China, economic stimulus in the US, the green revolution and lower stocks of commodities are all forecast to bolster prices for years to come.

Rio's 2020 profits rose by almost 40 per cent to 11.1billion. Its strong financial performance comes as it tries to rebuild its reputation after a blunder last May, when it blew up two 46,000-year-old Aboriginal caves in Australia to expand a lucrative mines.

The blasts at the Juukan Gorge were legal and had been planned for years but triggered international outcry, an Australian parliamentary inquiry and a review of heritage laws.

Within months its chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques and two other bosses were forced to resign.

Jacques was replaced in December by former finance boss Jakob Stausholm, who described 2020 as a 'year of extremes'.

Stausholm said the blasts had been a 'dark day for Rio' and that he recently visited the gorge and met the local Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people, whose sites were destroyed.

Rio's payout came a day after fellow FTSE 100 miners BHP and Glencore promised to hand investors huge sums  3.7bn and 1.2bn respectively

Stausholm said: 'It has been an extraordinary year  our successful response to the pandemic and strong safety performance were overshadowed by the tragic events at the Juukan Gorge, which should never have happened.'

He added that the financial performance made bolstering the payout an obvious move, adding: 'We earned a lot of money last year.

'We are down to now less than $1billion of net debt. So it's difficult to argue that we should hold back on dividends.'

Of the 400p investors will receive, about 67p is a special payout. It is the most lucrative in Rio's history since it was formed in 1873 when investors purchased land on the Rio Tinto  or 'red river'  in southern Spain.

The site was mined by the Greeks and Romans and it became the world's top copper producer.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Tyler Broda said: '[This is] another example of strong payouts on offer in the sector and the likely ability, and intent for this to continue, especially as iron ore prices stay elevated, should help to underpin share prices.'

Rio has set new emissions targets as it aims to reach net zero emissions from shipping products by 2050 and invest in lower carbon technologies. Its shares fell 0.4 per cent, or 25p, to 6235p.
Ruling MLAs who met here on Thursday night after Chief Minister V Narayanasamy was directed to prove his majority in the assembly on February 22 did not take any decision on the future course of action and resolved to meet agains a day ahead of the trust vote.

Emerging from the inconclusive meeting held at his residence, Narayanasamy contended that the three nominated MLAs (all BJP) in the union territory assembly do not have rights to vote on a confidence motion and the opposition strength was only 11 and not 14 as maintained by them.

He charged the BJP with intensifying its design to topple the government, which has been hit by resignations of four party MLAs, including two ministers since last month.

The MLAs' meeting was held hours after Lt Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan directed the summoning of the assembly on February 22 for the "single agenda namely whether the government of the incumbent Chief Minister continues to enjoy the confidence of the House."



In the 33-member assembly with an effective strength of 28, the has ten members, including Speaker, while its alliance partner DMK has three and lone independent from Mahe region also supports it. The opposition parties also have 14 members, including the three nominated.

Narayanasamy toldreporters that the MLAs' meeting did not take any decision. "The meeting of the Congress MLAs will be held again on November 21," he added.

He said that as far as he was concerned the nominated MLAs do not have right to vote on a confidence motion and he would consult legalexperts on the issue.

"The strength of the opposition is only 11 and not 14 as claimed by them.... We would consult the legal experts," the beleaguered chief minister said.

Narayanasamy said he would also consult the legislators of the ally DMK and alsothe lone independent MLA from Mahe.

(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.)
External Affairs S. Jaishankar is to participate on Thursday in a virtual ministerial meeting of the Quad, according to the State Department.

The discussions between Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Foreign Ministers Marise Payne of Australia and Toshimitsu Motegi Japan "is critical to advancing our shared goals of free and open Indo-Pacific and rising to the defining challenges of our time", State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said on Wednesday.

He said that "coordinating our efforts like Covid-19 response, as well as climate change", will also figure in their discussions, he said.

This meeting and another scheduled to Thursday between Blinken, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian makes "clear that the United States values, our alliances and work with our partners and friends around the world to pursue common interests across the world", Price added.

President Joe Biden has reiterated the US commitment to developing the Indo-Pacific as a bulwark against China's growing aggressiveness in the region.

The region became the focus of US strategic interest under former President Donald Trump who brought the threat from China to the countries in the region and to Washington's global interests to the fore.

The was revived in 2017 as the US pushed cooperation among the regional democracies to meet the China challenge.

Price mentioning cooperation in Covid-19 response and climate change indicates an interest in solidifying the as a group with a broader regional agenda.

India is already providing Covid-19 vaccines to countries in the Indo-Pacific region.

At a separate briefing at the Pentagon, Defence Department Spokesperson John Kirby also emphasised the importance the US gave to defence ties with India.

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin considers India "a critical partner, especially when you consider all the challenges in the Indo-Pacific region. And what I can tell you, plainly is that the Secretary is prioritising this relationship wants to see it continue to grow and develop and to get stronger", he said.

Biden has made China the principal adversary of America, saying earlier this month that Washington will "take on directly the challenges posed".

Later during a call he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, "agreed to continuing close cooperation to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific, including support for freedom of navigation, territorial integrity, and a stronger regional architecture through the Quad", the White House said.

Since Biden assumed the presidency, officials the two countries dealing with defence and foreign policy have discussed the Indo-Pacific cooperation in phone conversations.

Blinken and Jaishanker have held two phone conversations.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austing, and Security Advisers Ajit Doval of India and Jake Sullivan of the US have also talked.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter at @arulouis)

--IANS

al/rt

(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.)
Today in Pa. Daily Podcast | Feb. 18, 2021

State officials announced that thousands of people have been administered what were meant to be second doses of the COVID-19 vaccine as first doses. Police reported that seven people were shot by a SEPTA station in Philadelphia. The Attorney Generals Office and the Department of Industry & Labor revealed that the state paid at least $2.5 million in fraudulent jobless benefits claims. And, just to end things on a positive note, two Pittsburgh women who were united by one act of kindness get the chance to speak to each other at last.

Those are the stories we cover in the latest episode of Today in Pa, a daily weekday podcast from PennLive.com and hosted by Claudia Dimuro. Today in Pa is dedicated to sharing the most important and interesting stories pertaining to Pennsylvania that lets you know, indeed, whats happening today in Pa.

Todays episode refers to the following articles:

If you enjoy Today in Pa, consider leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on Amazon. Reviews help others find the show and, besides, wed like to know what you think about the program, too.
Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office in Ukraine and in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) Heidi Grau believes that the implementation of the Minsk agreements requires additional efforts and the political will of the parties.

Grau said this after the regular meetings of the TCG and its Working Groups held through video conferencing on February 17, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"A few days ago, on February 12, six years elapsed from the signing of the Package of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements, which, together with the Minsk Protocol and the Minsk Memorandum, constitute the single political framework for the peaceful resolution of the conflict in eastern Ukraine," she said.

Participants of the TCG meetings pledged commitment to the Minsk agreements. "Nevertheless, additional efforts and the political will of the sides are still required for their implementation," Grau noted.

Measures to Strengthen the Ceasefire have contributed to a significant reduction of the kinetic activity in the conflict zone, although recently an increase in the number of ceasefire violations has been recorded. This was the subject of discussion at the meeting of the Security Working Group.

The Political Working Group addressed issues related to the implementation of the tasking given by the TCG to develop a draft action plan in full compliance with the Minsk agreements. "I call on the Working Group members to demonstrate political will for compromise and make mutual concessions to bring their positions closer," the ambassador said.

The Humanitarian Working Group focused on removing obstacles to the opening and proper functioning of the entry-exit crossing points (EECPs) near Zolote and Shchastia of the Luhansk region. During the Working Group's discussions, issues of the mutual release and exchange of conflict-related detainees were also duly considered.

Participants in the Economic Working Group debated current questions of water supplies across the contact line as well as the provision of mobile communications by Vodafone-Ukraine in certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine. A possible international inspection of the storage sites of radioactive materials in the occupied Donbas was also discussed.

ish
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The Chinese government's debt to the country now stands at more than 800 billion amid its aggressive moves in the West Philippine Sea, a lawmaker claimed on Thursday.

In a statement, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said China's debt has now ballooned to over 800 billion in marine losses due to its continuous "adventurism" in the maritime region, despite an arbitral tribunal favoring the Philippines in a case against Chinas claims to virtually all of the South China Sea.

READ: PH wins maritime arbitration case vs. China

"Time to pay up. Dati nang umayaw ang Chinese Embassy nang naningil tayo ng mahigit sa 200 billion dahil sa paninira ng Tsina sa WPS mula 2013. Pero ngayon, umabot na sa higit 800 bilyon ang halaga ng paninira nila sa ating likas-yaman, kaya patuloy ang ating pangangalampag," she said.

[Translation: The Chinese Embassy refused to pay when we charged China more than 200 billion for destroying resources at WPS since 2013. But now, the cost of damage to our natural resources has reached more than 800 billion, so we will continue to pressure them.]

Based on data from the international journal Ecosystem Services last year, Hontiveros said some 231 billion worth of coral reefs were ruined in a span of seven years. The value per coral reef, she noted, was estimated at 16 million. Both Panatag and Spratlys have 1,850 hectares of reef ecosystems, which "have been damaged" by China, she added.

READ: Satellite images show China construction on West PH Sea reef amid pandemic

Citing a report from investigative journalist Jarius Bondoc, Hontiveros said a total of 644 billion worth of fish catch has been looted since 2014.

"He arrived at the number by multiplying the 1.2 million tons of fish that are usually caught by Chinese vessels in Zamora and Panganiban reefs annually, with Seafdecs estimated value per ton of fish catch in the South China Sea at 76,710," the senator said.

Hontiveros earlier filed Senate Resolution 369 to demand that China pay the 200 billion worth of reparations, which could be used in the country's fight against COVID-19 . She said the amount should be updated now to include the recent computations.

Aside from demanding payment, Hontiveros said the Philippine government should act on China's continued harassment of Filipino fishermen.

"Lets not allow China to get away with this," she said.
MEXICO CITY  The Mexican government said on Thursday that it was working to reverse an order from Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas to restrict natural gas exports, part of that states effort to resolve widespread power outages that have left millions of Texans without electricity in the middle of a deadly winter storm.

Mr. Abbotts order has heightened tensions between the two countries, with top Mexican officials protesting the governors decision to cut off gas supplies just as Mexico works to resolve its own mass power outages as a result of the frigid weather.

We are doing our diplomatic work so that this doesnt happen, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador of Mexico said at a news conference on Thursday, referring to Mr. Abbotts order. This wouldnt just affect Mexico  it would also affect other states in the Union.

Governor Abbott on Wednesday ordered Texas producers who were exporting natural gas out of state to instead sell to in-state power generators until Feb. 21.
Wind turbines generate about 10% of the electricity that Texas uses in winter. Yet, when record low temperatures paralyzed the state this week, Gov. Greg Abbott unleashed a tornado of obfuscation, attributing the problem to frozen wind turbines.

He was contradicted by his own state energy department, which noted that while some wind turbines did indeed freeze and stop producing, the real problem was that conventional power plants and related infrastructure were not winterized, as they are in the north. Gas pipelines froze. Generating stations shut down for lack of fuel or because they werent configured to operate in the cold.

That even extended to renewable energy. The same wind turbines that froze in Texas work all year long in Scandinavia, Greenland, Pennsylvania and the Upper Midwest, where producers prepare for cold weather.

That irresponsibility, in turn, falls to the Texas government. The states power grid is separate from others in the region, because politicians did not want to subject it to the federal regulation that comes with interstate power transmission. Thus, it could not import power from other areas.

Texas has a Wild West market design based only on short-run prices, Matt Breidert, an energy portfolio manager at a firm called Ecofin, told The Washington Post. The system is designed for cheap power prices rather than reliability.

Tuesday in Houston, the wholesale price of a megawatt hour of electricity was $9,000, rather than $22 that was the average price a week ago.

Texas, where a secession bill always is proposed in the state Legislature, needs to get itself some socialized power  not just for a warm and fuzzy feeling but for actual warmth.
EIR LEAD EDITORIAL FOR THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2021

Perseverance Nears Landing on Mars; Science and Cooperation Needed on Earth

Feb. 17 , 2021 (EIRNS)The projected Feb. 18 landing on Mars of the U.S. rover Perseverance was previewed at a NASA press conference Feb. 16, where the spokesman said, The spacecraft is focused, the team is focused, and we are all ready to go for landing. The target site is in the Jezero Crater, an ancient delta on the Martian surface. This will be the third major Mars feat in 12 days, with the U.A.E. Hope taking up orbit on Feb. 9, and Chinas Tianwen-1 taking up orbit on Feb. 10.

The significance of Percyas engineers like to call itwas stressed to the media at the press conference by NASA Associate Administrator for Science Thomas Zurbuchen, who said, Whether its on the Red Planet, or here at home on our blue marble, science can bring us together and create solutions to challenges that seem impossible.

Among the challenges we face is the dramatic, deadly failure, under predictable peak storm conditions, of U.S. and Mexican power systems all across the south-central region of the North American continent, where an extended area of 14 U.S. and 26 Mexican states have millions of residents and extensive economic activity experiencing partial or complete blackouts. Ground zero ironically, is the energy state of Texas, where millions of residents have been without electricity for over 36 hours, and enterprises from petrochemicals to Permian shale basin drilling are stalled. In Mexico, over 3 million people continue to have rolling blackouts, after the first round of 4.7 million people had a sudden power outage Feb. 15.

The frigid storm itself, of course, causes big trouble, but the electricity failures are not a natural disaster. The damage and hardship come from the successful implementation for decades of more and more green low-technology energy generation from vast wind farms and solar installations, whichas the coal state billboards like to advertise, wont produce power When the Wind Dont Blow and the Sun Dont Shine. The turbines on the huge wind farms are either shut down preemptively, or iced up and motionless. Plus, there are the additional problems coming from the limited natural gas transport and generation systems. Nuclear power in this region has been suppressed for a half-century, and no new plants are under construction. The still extant coal plants have saved the day as much as possible.

Look at the vast dimensions of the years of green madness to date. The High Plains farm states have been turned into the national American Wind Corridor, which has now failed dramatically. Iowa is the leading state in the nation for share of its power coming from wind42%. Next in line is Kansas, with 36% from wind. Relatively few people live here in the farm belt. But in Texas, with a population of 29 million, the wind corridor installations account for 10% of the states power, and this was the failure factor to literally put over 4 million people freezing in the dark, slamming Houston and other major cities.

The wind barons T. Boone Pickens, Warren Buffett, and others have had a field day degrading the energy grid of the United States. In Texas, Pickens et al. put in the largest wind installations in the nation (28,840 MW). In Iowa (second largest, 10,200 MW), Buffett pledged, after his Berkshire Hathaway bought out Mid-American Energy Holdings in 1999, to make Iowa the first in the country for its power base to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030, through alternative energy. Buffett cancelled a nuclear power project that MidAmerican had previously planned.

However, these evil billionaires, and the debacle we now see in North America are only a foretaste of what allowing the Green Deal to continue internationally will mean. Green Finance now aims to go in for the kill, and shut down more energy, food, and all means of life. The message of the winter storms and the power failure is for us to force a change of course. It is past time to extinguish the Green Deal madness, and internationally to collaborate on the science and infrastructure to support mankind. Begin with health care infrastructure the world over.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Feb. 16 denounced the wind and solar so-called renewables. He said, This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America. Many state legislatorsunlike the madness in Congress in Washington, D.C.are likewise up for seeing the light.

It is urgent to get out everywhere the new Special Report: The Great Leap Backward: LaRouche Exposes the Green New Deal.

The LaRouche Organization will hold an international roundtable discussion on Feb. 27 bearing on this, including the dangers from worsening geopolitical confrontation. The invitation will be available tomorrow. The working title of the roundtable is, Winter Storms Smash Reset Utopia; Great Power Cooperation Instead of War.
COLUMBIA, Md., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- After six months, more than 300 million miles and seven precarious minutes, NASA's spacecraft Mars 2020 and the rover Perseverance will have landed on Mars. And USRA scientists are part of a team supporting this ambitious endeavor.

The geology of Jezero shows that it was once a lake filled with liquid water. The points where the rivers flowed into Jezero left deposits of sand and mud, and scientists have evidence that there is a channel where water flowed out of the lake. The delta, the lake bottom and the lake's shorelines all had an environment that could have supported ancient microbial life.

Mars 2020 will be the first Mars mission to collect approximately 35 samples of drilled cores of rock and soil. Each drill core will be deposited into a hermetically sealed sterile tube. These tubes will be dropped onto Mars' surface at select locations for eventual retrieval and return to Earth. The samples might be retrieved and returned to Earth on follow-on missions, likely in the next decade and analyzed in the most advanced laboratories to search for evidence of ancient microbial life on Mars.

Perseverance carries seven instruments on board. Two Universities Space Research Association scientists Dr. German Martinez and Dr. Allan Treiman serve as Co- Investigators for instruments.

Dr. Martinez is a Co-Investigator for the Mars Environmental Dynamics Analyzer (MEDA) which is a set of sensors that will provide measurements of temperature, wind speed and direction, pressure, relative humidity, and dust size and shape. The principal investigator is Jose Rodriguez-Manfredi, Centro de Astrobiologia, Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial, Spain. Dr. Allan Trieman is a Co-Investigator for the Planetary Instrument for Xray Lithochemistry (PIXL) and the Principal investigator is Abigail Allwood, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.

Dr. Martinez and his colleagues focus on MEDA which is the weather station onboard Perseverance. It includes six instruments with a twofold objective: (1) to assess the effect of airborne dust on the operation of surface systems and human health by characterizing the size and morphology of dust, and (2) to improve predictability of forecasting models by measuring surface weather conditions around the clock. Both objectives are intimately related to future human exploration of the Red Planet. One of MEDA's instrument is the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS), the first in-situ Martian infrared (IR) radiometer including upward- and downward-looking channels. TIRS will measure the downward and upward long wave (LW) thermal IR radiation at the surface, the reflected short wave (SW) solar radiation at the surface, the surface brightness temperature, and the air temperature at ~40 m altitude. TIRS will allow the first in-situ quantification of the surface energy budget on Mars. This is key in preparation for the human exploration of Mars because it contributes to improvements in the predictive capabilities of numerical models. TIRS measurements will allow the determination of key geophysical properties of the terrain.

As Co-investigator, Dr. Treiman is supporting the team on the Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry (PIXL) onboard Perseverance. PIXL is an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer, designed to measure abundances of chemical elements in rocks at sub-mm, and producing maps of the element abundances.

To make the maps, PIXL produces a beam of X-rays and focuses it into a ~100 micrometer spot on the target rock or soil, and then collects and analyzing X-rays fluoresced from the targets. To support these X-ray images, PIXL has a 4-color camera that will image and document the sites. These maps of element abundances that will help determine which rocks are the best candidates for return to Earth, and which textures and minerals could indicate signs of ancient microbial life.

The types of data PIXL will collect from rocks in Jezero Crater on Mars are the same that Dr. Treiman has been collecting from Mars meteorites found on Earth his entire career. Treiman will apply his work on Mars meteorites (and other rocks) directly to the PIXL data to help understand how the Jezero Crater rocks formed, and what they mean for the larger questions of Mars' history and potential for life.

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance has the most sophisticated payload ever sent to the surface of another planet. Along with 23 cameras, Perseverance carries a small helicopter in her belly named Ingenuity, which aims to be the first robotic flight on Mars. This helicopter will test a new capability (flying on Mars) for the first time, opening doors for future flying vehicles capable of accessing terrains difficult to reach by rovers and providing reconnaissance for future human settlers.

Additional Resources: https://mars.nasa.gov/resources/25045/science-instruments-on-nasas-perseverance-mars-rover/

About USRA

Founded in 1969, under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences at the request of the U.S. Government, the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) is a nonprofit corporation chartered to advance space-related science, technology and engineering. USRA operates scientific institutes and facilities, and conducts other major research and educational programs, under Federal funding. USRA engages the university community and employs in-house scientific leadership, innovative research and development, and project management expertise. More information about USRA is available at www.usra.edu.

PR Contact:

Suraiya Farukhi, Ph.D.

[email protected]

443-812-6945 (cell)

SOURCE Universities Space Research Association

Related Links

http://www.usra.edu


TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Pelangio Exploration Inc. (TSXV:PX)(OTC PINK:PGXPF) ("Pelangio" or the "Company") is pleased to announce additional significant assay results with values up to 1325 parts per billion ("ppb") (1.325 g/t) gold ("Au") from an infill soil sampling program completed on its Dankran Project in Ghana during January 2021. The latest results further define the gold-in-soil anomalies at the northern end of the property, now sufficiently delineated for drill testing. The program also added to the anomalies in the south west which will be refined with further infill soil sampling. Additionally, prospecting identified a significant trend of artisanal hard-rock workings extending from the historic Obuom Mine into the Dankran property. Exploration of this trend is prioritized for the upcoming 2,500 meter ("m") drill program. Preparations for drilling are under way.

Highlights of the Dankran Infill Soil Sampling and Prospecting Programs

Infill soil sampling refined previously identified gold anomalism in the northern end of the property

Additional gold-in-soil anomalism identified in the broader spaced sampling to the southwest to be followed up with further infill soil sampling

Prospecting identified a series of historic and recent artisanal hard rock workings extending from the historic Obuom Mine into the northern end of the property

Soil sampling, mapping and prospecting programs are being extended to the east to cover this trend of workings and generate additional targets for the upcoming drill program

Ingrid Hibbard, President and CEO commented, "We are pleased that our Dankran property, which we just acquired in November, continues to provide significant assay results from the soil program, including 1.325 g/t gold. As well, these results provided targets for our initial drill program of 2500m to begin shortly. The program of prospecting, mapping and soil sampling is ongoing to develop additional targets to the east and southwest, focused initially on the newly identified eastern trend. We anticipate the next phase of work to consist of significant reverse circulation and diamond drilling to follow up on the results of the current program and test newly developed targets."

Details of the Dankran Exploration Programs

The Dankran property is a 34.65 square kilometer ("km") Prospecting License optioned by Pelangio Exploration from BNT Resources Ghana Ltd. in November 2020 and is contiguous to the northeastern corner of Pelangio's Obuasi project. The Dankran property is adjacent to and on strike with the historic Obuom Mine which produced 29,000 ounces of gold ("Au") at an average grade of 16 g/t Au from underground workings in the 1930's. The property covers nearly seven km of strike of highly prospective geology and regional structures along the western flank of the Ashanti Belt, 20 km to the northeast of AngloGold Ashanti's tier one Obuasi Mine.

In December 2020, an initial soil sampling program was completed on the Dankran property consisting of 1,126 samples. This program delivered 10 significant gold-in-soil anomalies as reported by Pelangio Exploration on January 28, 2021.

In order to better define these soil anomalies for drill testing, a program of infill sampling was conducted in January 2021, with 467 soil samples collected at 80m spacing in the north to 160m spacing to the southwest. Assays have been received for all but 26 samples, with additional highly anomalous values reported up to 1,325 ppb Au. Refer to Figure 1.

Further infill soil sampling is planned to refine the anomalies in the southwest, while the northern anomalies are now drill ready. A Reverse Circulation ("RC") drill program is being mobilized to evaluate several of the stronger anomalies which extend for up to 1,250m from the Obuom Small Scale Mining Permit boundary southwest into the Dankran Property. Refer to Figure 2.

During the January infill soil sampling program, a concurrent mapping and prospecting program was undertaken to locate sites of small-scale artisanal hard rock mining activity extending from the historic Obuom Mine into the northern end of the Dankran property. A series of small, historic and current mining sites were identified on the Obuom Small Scale Mining Permit area striking south-southwest into Dankran, consisting of hand-dug vertical shafts accessing quartz vein material at depth. Assays from limited grab sampling at these mining sites have not yet been returned, and geological exposures and mapping conducted to date are insufficient to determine the widths of potential mineralization. This trend of artisanal mining activity lies along the very eastern limit of the current soil sampling. In light of this new information, our soil sampling program has been extended east to cover the strike extension of artisanal mine workings to refine this target area, for drill testing in the 2,500 m program.

Future work at Dankran will consist of further RC and diamond drilling programs to follow up results from the upcoming maiden RC drilling program at the northern end of the property, as warranted by results. Efforts will also be ongoing to develop additional targets for drill testing elsewhere on the Dankran property, particularly the strong areas of anomalism emerging from work to date in the southwestern part of the property. Geophysical surveys are not currently planned, however at some stage either or both aerial and ground geophysics may be necessary to aid the exploration for mineralization that is not so evident in the soil geochemistry. However, soil geochemistry, mapping and prospecting efforts to date have been highly successful in identifying a number of compelling targets for ongoing drill testing.

Methodology, Quality Assurance/Quality Control

Samples were collected from 0.50 to 0.75m deep hand-dug pits at 80m intervals along lines spaced 80 to 320m apart. Predetermined sample positions were located by a hand-held GPS with a horizontal accuracy of approximately 5m. A sample was obtained at each designated sample site regardless of the regolith material present. Predominantly residual soils were sampled, but where covered, alluvium and artisanal mining disturbed material was also occasionally sampled. Samples weighing approximately 2 to 3 kg each were submitted to the Intertek Minerals Limited laboratory in Tarkwa, Ghana, and were dried and pulverized with > 85% of the sample passing 75?m or better. A 1 kg subsample was riffle split from the processed sample and analyzed for gold by way of a 12-hour cyanide leach bottle roll using Leachwell with an AAS finish and a lower detection limit of 0.01 ppm Au. Where repeat assays were performed on samples by the laboratory, the mean of the two assays was used for plotting the results.

QA/QC samples were inserted into the sample stream at a rate of one in ten samples. The QA/QC results were within acceptable limits. The laboratory also performed their own internal QA/QC checks, which were found to be acceptable.

Qualified Person

Mr. Kevin Thomson, P.Geo. (Ontario), is a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Thomson approved the technical data disclosed in this release.

About Pelangio

Pelangio acquires and explores world-class land packages on strategic gold belts in Ghana, West Africa and Canada. In Ghana, the Company is exploring its two 100% owned camp-sized properties: the 100 km2 Manfo property, the site of seven near-surface gold discoveries, and the 284 km2 Obuasi property, located four km on strike and adjacent to AngloGold Ashanti's prolific high-grade Obuasi Mine, as well as its Dankran property located adjacent to its Obuasi property. In Canada, the Company is currently focused in Ontario on its Grenfell property, located 10 km from Kirkland Lake, at its Dome West property, situated some 800 meters from the Dome Mine in Timmins and is advancing its Hailstone property in Saskatchewan. See www.pelangio.com for further detail.

For additional information, please visit our website at www.pelangio.com, or contact:

Ingrid Hibbard, President and CEO

Tel: 905-336-3828

Toll-free: 1-877-746-1632

Email: info@pelangio.com

Figure 1: Dankran Soil Sampling Results To-date



Figure 2: Contoured Soil Sampling Results for Northern Dankran



Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements herein may contain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements or information appear in a number of places and can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate" or "believes" or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information include statements regarding the Company's strategy of acquiring large land packages in areas of sizeable gold mineralization, and the Company's ability to complete the planned exploration programs. With respect to forward-looking statements and information contained herein, we have made numerous assumptions, including assumptions about the state of the equity markets. Such forward-looking statements and information are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statement or information. Such risks include the changes in equity markets, share price volatility, volatility of global and local economic climate, gold price volatility, political developments in Ghana, and Canada, increases in costs, exchange rate fluctuations, speculative nature of gold exploration, including the risk that favourable exploration results may not be obtained, delays due to COVID-19 safety protocols, and other risks involved in the gold exploration industry. See the Company's annual and quarterly financial statements and management's discussion and analysis for additional information on risks and uncertainties relating to the forward-looking statement and information. There can be no assurance that a forward-looking statement or information referenced herein will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements or information. Also, many of the factors are beyond the control of the Company. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward- looking statements or information. We undertake no obligation to reissue or update any forward-looking statements or information except as required by law. All forward-looking statements and information herein are qualified by this cautionary statement.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Pelangio Exploration Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630449/Pelangio-Exploration-Identifies-New-Trend-and-Prepares-for-Drilling-at-Dankran-Project-Ghana
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Sen. Ted Cruz is being called out for flying to Cancun while his constituents are freezing, without power and water.

A viral photo of someone who looks a lot like Cruz boarding a flight to Mexico circulated on Twitter Wednesday evening. FOX News journalist Chad Pergram tweeted around 9 a.m. Wednesday that his colleague Paul Steinhauser confirmed Cruz traveled to Cancun. According to Pergram's GOP Source, "the photos speak for themselves."

However, Cruz's office has not confirmed, according to multiple CNN reporters. The Associated Press reported Cruz traveled to Cancun for a long-planned family trip but was expected to return immediately.

See the photo below for yourself:

READ ALSO: Sen. Ted Cruz has no defense after old tweets mocking California power outages resurface

Many Texans are criticizing the leader for leaving his state during an unprecedented wintery storm that has left millions suffering. San Antonio native and U.S. Congressman Joaquin Castro even chimed in on the matter.

"Please don't spread misinformation. Ted Cruz flew to Cancun," Castro tweeted in response to someone who said he flew to Acapulco.

READ ALSO: Twitter calls out Stephen King for 'shameful' tweet about Texas' winter crisis

Sports journalist Jemele Hill also tweeted about Cruz, writing that he should take a private jet the next time he wants to "slink away" to Cancun.

"Pro tip for Ted Cruz: Next time you want to slink away to Cancun while millions of your constituents are without heat, water and basic necessities, rent a private jet my guy. Last minute usage of frequent flyer miles will get you caught every time," Hill tweeted.

Cruz going to Cancun left him not only trending on Twitter but also Mexicans, which puzzled many.

"How Ted Cruz escaping to Cancun, Mexico when he don't even like Mexicans. Math ain't matching." @itsafronomics tweeted.

How many gray Come and Take It masks can there be, really?

Priscilla Aguirre is a general assignment reporter for MySA.com | priscilla.aguirre@express-news.net | @CillaAguirre

Etta Duncan spent Monday and Tuesday nights in her apartment alone, with no lights, no heat and no running water.

By Wednesday morning, as she waited in her buildings lobby for a city bus to take her and some of her neighbors to a hotel downtown, she had practically run out of food and her chronic lung condition was making it difficult to breathe.

Its been two nights of terror, said Duncan, 75. Im cold  freezing. I just want to go somewhere thats warm and where I can eat.

Duncan is one of about 200 elderly or disabled residents at the Fair Avenue Apartments, which is owned by the San Antonio Housing Authority and has been without consistent electricity and water since Monday morning, a result of the winter storm that has kept millions of Texans in the dark.

By Tuesday, all 99 of SAHAs properties around San Antonio were having electricity and water outages to some degree, and the city started offering hotel rooms downtown to the neediest SAHA tenants  those who are elderly or disabled and have endured the longest power outages, some more than 24 hours straight.

SAHA staff called residents and knocked on doors at the Fair Avenue Apartments, Col. George Cisneros Apartments, Lewis Chatham Apartments, Wheatley Park Senior Living and the Blanco Apartments to let them know about the hotel rooms available.

On ExpressNews.com: Temperature is back above freezing - but snow is back in the forecast

But many opted to stay with family or in their own apartments, even without reliable power or water. The five apartment complexes collectively have several hundred units, but by midafternoon Wednesday, only about 80 residents had chosen to make the temporary move.

For the most part, many residents are wanting to shelter in place, said Mike Reyes, SAHA spokesman. They insisted on not going. We were surprised.

Yet for Duncan and others, the offer of a hotel was too good to pass up.

Oh man, its been rough, said Mark Hatton, 59, a Fair Avenue resident whose wife was able to stay with family members at a house with electricity Tuesday night. We need a break from this. We need to get out of here.

The power had come back at Fair Avenue by Wednesday morning, but it lasted only a few hours. About a dozen residents skeptical that the heat would stay on for very long packed the lobby around noon, waiting for a bus that would take them to the hotel.

Some were in wheelchairs, some used canes or walkers or leaned against a wall for support. One man who decided he would stay in his apartment walked through to offer his neighbors cigarettes. A couple of residents went outside to collect snow from the ground using buckets or mugs, hoping to be able to melt it to flush their toilets.

The bus was an hour late. There was confusion about where it was actually going, and there was no one around from SAHA to answer questions. A maintenance worker told increasingly frustrated residents that he thought the bus was going to a Super 8 motel. Others thought it was headed for the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, where the city set up an overnight warming center for San Antonians without power.

On ExpressNews.com: 'We're wearing jackets and scarves inside our house': Temperatures plunge as thousands without heat

For several residents, the thought of going to the convention center scared them more than staying in their cold, dark apartments. Hatton said he did not want his wife, who has arthritis, sleeping on a cot. Wayne Sosa, 68, another resident waiting for a hotel room, called the convention center corona alley, though city officials have said safety protocols like social distancing are being enforced.

Reyes said tenants would continue to be taken to the hotel until it reached capacity, a figure city officials were still trying to determine Wednesday afternoon. If additional tenants wanted somewhere warm to stay, they would be taken to the convention center.

Some Fair Avenue residents were angered by the fact that SAHA and the city had not come to check on them or offer help earlier.

They didnt think about the senior citizens and the handicapped the way theyre supposed to do, said Louis Medeiros, 73, who is staying in his apartment to take care of his dog and pet birds. The management knew about it, but they wasnt fast enough to take care of us.

Hatton, while frustrated, was more understanding.

They was affected by the cold too  management, their families, he said. Whats happening is devastating, even for the SAHA people.

Reyes said the logistics of working with the city to secure hotel rooms and buses while checking on older and disabled residents at 36 properties was difficult and time consuming.

It was a logistical feat to try to get connected to our staff via phone, via email, he said. Were doing all we can, but this is affecting everyone.

Throughout the power outages, residents have been checking on and taking care of one another, Hatton said.

Were neighbors, man, he said. We stick around and we stick together to help each other. We do that for real.

Tuesday night, as the first hotel-bound bus arrived, Hatton and others went door to door, making sure their neighbors knew about the option. Medeiros offered to take care of his neighbors dog while he stayed in the hotel.

Duncan tightly gripped her overnight bag with her medicine and oxygen pump as she looked out the window, waiting for the bus.

I dont really know whats happening, she said. But Im glad to go somewhere thats warm.

andy.picon@hearst.com | Twitter: @andpicon
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UAB President Ray Watts tonight issued a statement condemning a tweet by archaeology professor Sarah Parcak saying conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh should have suffered until his last breath.

When a terrible piece of scum who caused immeasurable harm to millions dies, there is no sympathy, Parcak tweeted. Only a desire that they suffered until their last breath.

Watts condemned the tweet saying: UAB is disgusted and extremely troubled that Sarah Parcak would tweet something so unprofessional and blindly inhumane and cruel. Her poor judgment is completely counter to our shared values as an institution that include integrity and respect. She absolutely does not speak for our university, and we are reviewing the matter.

See also: Alabama GOP chief blasts Parcaks antics

It appears Parcak has deleted the tweet and efforts to reach her for comment were not immediately successful.

Limbaugh died today after a battle with lung cancer. He was 70.

His death prompted a wave of responses from political leaders in Alabama and the nation.

In September, UAB condemned another series of tweets from Parcak following the death of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

When Parcak tweeted Ginsburg was stronger than any M*GA f*ckstick bootlicker could ever dream of -- a reference to former President Trumps supporters -- UAB replied that her tweets reflect poor judgment and do not represent the opinions of our university.

Parcak is an Egyptian archaeology expert at UAB and a professor at the universitys Department of Anthropology who used space satellites to discover the street plan of an ancient Egyptian city.

Howard Koplowitz contributed to this report.

The Georgia Department of Public Health received notice from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that due to the temperature, all Pfizer and Moderna vaccines that would have arrived in the beginning of this week were kept back by the suppliers.

EDWARDSVILLE  An Alton man has been charged with armed robbery and home invasion after a November robbery in the 800 block of Ridge Street.

Antonio M. Evans, 26, was charged Dec. 2 with armed robbery and home invasion, both Class X felonies. The charges were sealed until Wednesday, Feb. 17, because Evans was not in custody.

The case was presented by the Alton Police Department.

According to court documents, on Nov. 17 Evans, allegedly armed with a silver handgun, entered a home in the 800 block of Ridge Street in Alton while at least one person was there and stole $3,000 in cash.

Bail was set at $500,000.

Other felony charges filed Feb. 17 by the Madison County States Attorneys Office include:

 Rudy J. Hampton, 44, of Granite City, was charged with unlawful failure to register as a sex offender (second subsequent offense), a Class 2 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 16 Hampton allegedly failed to register with the Granite City Police Department. According to the Illinois State Police sex offender registry, Hampton is non-compliant and has multiple convictions for failure to register as a sex offender. Bail was set at $50,000.

 Heather M. Turner, 25, of Granite City, was charged with offenses relating to motor vehicles, a Class 2 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 12 Turner allegedly was found to be in possession of a stolen 2014 Chevrolet Impala. Bail was set at $50,000.

 Michael S. Hill, 23, of Alton, was charged with offenses relating to motor vehicles, a Class 2 felony. The case was presented by the Metro East Auto Theft Task Force. On Feb. 11 Hill allegedly was found to be in possession of a stolen 2019 Nissan Versa. Bail was set at $50,000.

 Roscoe D. Friese Jr., 34, of Granite City, was charged with aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 11 Friese allegedly fled from a Granite City police officer, reaching speeds of more than 21 miles above the posted limit. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Derek R. Campbell, 30, of Granite City, was charged with aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer, a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 15 Campbell allegedly fled from a Granite City police officer, reaching speeds of more than 21 miles above the posted limit. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Travis L. Quigley, 32, of Wood River, was charged with retail theft over $300, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Wood River Police Department. On Feb. 12 Quigley allegedly took miscellaneous merchandise valued at more than $300 from the Wood River Walmart, 610 Wesley Drive. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Joshua R. Lewis, 31, of Granite City, was charged with possession of anothers debit card, a Class 4 felony; and unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 10 Lewis allegedly was found to be in possession of another persons debit card with the intent to defraud, and also had less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Phillip K.D. Morgan-McCardy, 25, of Godfrey, was charged with retail theft under $300 (second subsequent offense), a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Madison County Sheriffs Department. On Feb. 12 Morgan-McCardy allegedly took miscellaneous merchandise valued at less than $300 from the Godfrey Walmart, 6660 Godfrey Road. It was noted he had a 2018 conviction for theft out of Madison County. Bail was set at $20,000.

 Charles E. Haney Jr., 50, of Collinsville, was charged with retail theft under $300 (second subsequent offense), a Class 4 felony. The case was presented by the Collinsville Police Department. On Feb. 13 Haney allegedly took miscellaneous merchandise valued at less than $300 from the Collinsville Walmart, 1040 Collinsville Crossing. It was noted he had a prior conviction out of Madison County for theft in 2016. Bail was set at $10,000.
OCEAN CITY, N.J. (AP)  Ocean City, New Jersey is officially a dry town.

In 1879, four Methodist ministers established a Christian seaside resort here with a permanent ban on the manufacture and sale of alcohol  a prohibition that remains to this day.

But numerous times a year, Ocean City is among the the wettest dry towns youll ever see.

The city of more than 11,000 year-round residents that calls itself Americas Greatest Family Resort and draws throngs of vacationers from Philadelphia and its suburbs is dealing with the costs of sea level rise, both monetarily and in disruptions to daily life.

From 2014 through 2025, the city will have spent more than $87 million on flood control and drainage projects  costs that require borrowing money to be paid off over many years.

But thats only part of the price of living amid rising sea levels. Since 1995, Suzanne Hornicks family has lost three cars to floods that inundate the streets  and many vehicles parked on them.

Every year it gets worse, more frequent and deeper flooding, she said. There are times we cant get in or out of our houses. We have to arrange doctor appointments and grocery shopping around tides. Its part of living here.

None of this is unique to Ocean City. Its a common refrain among coastal residents around the country who find themselves living nearer to the water than they once did. And its expensive.

In December, Floridas Monroe County, with its low-lying keys, estimated it would take $1.8 billion to raise just half the roads that need it. They are considering a special property tax assessment of up to $5,000 a year for 30 years to help pay for it. So-called sunny-day flooding caused by rising tides is common in and around Miami.

Boston thinks it will need $2.4 billion over the next few decades to stay dry. Charleston, South Carolina calculated it needs at least $2 billion in drainage projects. And federal engineers have recommended a $1.4 billion sea wall to protect just part of Norfolk, Virginias coast.

Nationwide, the Center for Climate Integrity and Resilient Analytics predicts it will cost $400 billion over the next 20 years to protect vulnerable coastal communities in 22 states.

A barrier island with the ocean on one side and the Great Egg Harbor Bay on the other, Ocean City has been dealing with flooding for years.

But it recently intensified an island-wide effort to improve drainage. That includes laying more drain pipes, building additional pumping stations, elevating roadways and sidewalks, and repairing bulkheads.

The latest five-year plan will cost $25 million for six projects, making flooding an annual expense that has to be budgeted, like road salt or police overtime.

It has to be done, said Mayor Jay Gillian. You cant wait on this. If you do, it winds up costing the taxpayers double and triple.

And some remedies are spurring additional costs. Frequent replenishment by the federal government of the ocean beaches, so vital to attracting millions of visitors annually, has created an unexpected expense for a local fishing club whose pier once jutted over the water.

Now, with wider beaches, the pier is often high and dry. Club members recently agreed to spend $500,000 to extend it over the water again.

Baked into these costs is a realization: risings seas and more frequent flooding from climate change are here to stay.

We are in the business of flood mitigation, not flood elimination, said George Savastano, Ocean Citys business administrator. When the tides come up high enough, and the storms are strong enough, were going to flood, no matter what we do.

When the streets are flooded, vehicles sometimes kick up wakes that slam water into house foundations and into garages. Lawns and landscaping saturated by salt water flooding die.

Last year, Albert Grimes had to wade through water up to his knees four times to get into and out of his house.

Resident Jake DeVries says a good pair of hip waders is a must to live in his section of town, along with faithful checking of tide charts whenever a storm is forecast. That way hell know when its time to move his car to the grocery parking lot on higher ground.

When a storms coming, liquor stores on the mainland just over the bridges that lead to Ocean City are bustling, as the dry town stocks up for what could be several days indoors.

Robert Jackson, who moved to Ocean City a year ago, said flood waters have lapped at his front doorstep probably 14 times already.

Were completely trapped at any given moment, he said. There was water at least three feet deep at least a half-dozen times this summer.

Tom Herrington, associate director of the Urban Coast Institute at Monmouth University, studied the impact of sea rise and flooding on one of the two main routes into Ocean City, Roosevelt Boulevard. The roadway currently floods about 24 times a year, he said. By 2050, however, Herrington predicts it will flood 100 to 125 times annually.

With climate change, global sea levels are rising about an inch (2.5 centimeters) every eight years, according to Rutgers University researchers. They predict seas off New Jersey will rise 1.4 feet (0.4 meters) by 2050.

Groundwater is so close to the surface in Ocean City that tides alone can cause sunny day flooding in parts of the city. The land also is slowly settling, like it is in many flood-prone coastal areas.

As seas continue to rise, the question arises: when would it be more prudent to simply stop fighting the inevitable, and pull back from the most vulnerable parts of the coast?

But here as in many coastal resorts, officials and residents tend to agree the land is simply worth too much to abandon. Ocean Citys land and buildings are worth $12 billion.

You cant do a managed retreat here, said Suzanne Hornick, whose family lost three cars. Never going to happen. People are just not going to let this place disappear into the sea. Theyll continue to dredge the bay and put more sand on the beach. Its just going to become a more expensive proposition each year.

About the photo: This Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021 photo shows Ocean City, N.J. The city is dealing with the costs of rising sea levels, both in monetary terms and the disruption that recurring flooding brings. The ocean surrounds the barrier island on one side and a bay on the other. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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BCC Offering Phlebotomy Technician Certificate

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Berkshire Community College (BCC) is offering its Phlebotomy Technician Certificate (PTC) this spring, with classes starting on March 2, 2021.

The non-credit program provides hybrid (classroom and online) instruction, laboratory simulation, and clinical site placement to train phlebotomy technicians.

Phlebotomists or phlebotomy technicians primarily draw blood, which is then used for different kinds of medical laboratory testing. Because all blood samples look the same, phlebotomists must carefully identify and label the sample they have drawn and enter it into a database.

Based on the data provided by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of phlebotomists is projected to grow 17 percent from 2019 to 2029 which is much higher than the average 5 percent growth rate for all other occupations. Blood analysis remains an essential function in medical laboratories and hospitals. Demand for phlebotomists will remain high as doctors and other healthcare professionals require bloodwork for analysis and diagnosis.

Potential pathways at BCC for those who complete the PTC certificate program are the following: Physical Therapist Assistant (A.S.); Respiratory Care (A.S.); Nursing (A.S.); Health Science Option (A.S.); Biological Science (A.A.); Biotechnology (A.A.). Clinical experience acquired through working as a phlebotomist can be the first step in a health care career.

The program includes topics specifically related to phlebotomy, such as human body systems, obtaining and handling blood specimens, laboratory tests, blood collection equipment, safety and preparedness, infection control, venipuncture, dermal (capillary) puncture, special phlebotomy procedures, and other related skills. The program prepares participants to earn a Phlebotomy Technician Certification (CPT) from the National Healthcareer Association (NHA).
London: The Australian government has rejected pleas by its diplomats and consular staff for access to coronavirus vaccines even though they are working in some of the worlds hardest-hit countries.

The decision has caused anger at embassies and put Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade officials under pressure to explain why at least 1000 employees posted abroad have been overlooked in Australias vaccine rollout.

Several have already fallen ill with COVID-19 and many are working in high-risk environments like airports while coordinating repatriation flights for stranded Australians.

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade secretary Frances Adamson and Foreign Minister Marise Payne. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

Some Defence personnel are expected to return to Australia over the coming months to receive the jab after being prioritised early in the rollout alongside the elderly and critical and high-risk workers including police and firefighters.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 15:02:24|Editor: huaxia

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An officer gestures a car to stop for ID checking at the border between Portugal and Spain, on Feb. 16, 2021. Spain and Portugal extended police checks along their internal land border until March 1 in a bid to control the spread of new coronavirus variants. (Photo by Gustavo Valiente/Xinhua)



Two Uyghur high school students who were sent to pick cotton as part of a forced labor scheme in northwest Chinas Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) died last autumn in a dormitory fire, according to official sources in the region, where forced labor practices have sparked an increasing global outcry.

RFAs Uyghur Service recently learned that 16-year-old Nabijan Rozi of Bulaqsu (in Chinese, Bulakesu) township, in Kashgar (Kashi) prefectures Kona Sheher (Shufu) county, and another boy died in an early morning blaze that engulfed the building they and 30 of their classmates had been sleeping in after being sent to neighboring Aksu (Akesu) prefecture to harvest cotton in October.

According to Rozis relative, who formerly lived in nearby Toqquzaq (Tuokezhake) town and requested anonymity for fear of reprisal, the young mans body was secretly buried by officials who sought to downplay the incident and avoid public anger over their negligence.

In October of last year, a relative of mine in Toqquzaq burned [to death], said the relative, who was unable to provide any details about the other boy killed in the fire. Hed been sent to Aksu to pick cottona 16-year-old boy.

Rozi, who was among more than 2,000 students sent to Aksu as part of the forced labor program, was the son of Rozi Tohti and a resident of the No. 2 neighborhood of the No. 14 hamlet of Bulakesus Qarabagh village.

The relative said that Rozis older brother, Abdukahar, had also been sent to Aksu to pick cotton and is reportedly alive, although it was unclear whether he was among the students injured in the blaze. They said the boys father is currently detained in one of the XUARs vast network of internment camps, where authorities are believed to have held up to 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities since early 2017.

[Nabijan Rozi] didnt have anyone else, because his dad isnt [at home], only his mom is left, the relative said. His mother is jobless; she doesnt have anything else.

They said Rozis father was never informed of his sons death and that after his mother was notified, four individuals from the Bureau of Education, Womens Union, and United Front acted as companions to the family for approximately one week, where they did ideological work to control the familys response and ensure that the news did not spread widely.

The news that came to us, we got it  at the end of November. His father went in [to the camps] at the end of 2017  Its clear that he doesnt know. I think theres no way for [the family] to notify him, the relative said.

Downplaying the fire

RFA contacted a stability officer in Toqquzaq who initially claimed to have no knowledge of the situation, but after being confronted with several details about the case, clarified that he knew about what had happened but had nothing further to share.

I heard there was such an incident, but I dont know the details, the officer said.

Based on a tip from the stability officer, RFA called the head of a school in Toqquzaq who said the boys who died were students from a high school in Bulaqsu.

RFA also spoke with a teacher that helped with rescue efforts on the day of the fire who confirmed that two students died and four were seriously injured in the incident, which he said occurred close to 3:00 a.m.

According to the teacher, nearby personnel saw smoke coming out from the building where Rozi and other students were sleeping. Rescuers pulled a total of six people, including two who had already died, from the fire, he said.

We were there on the scene, he said. First, we pulled the two [deceased] out. By the time they put the fire out, [four] injured people had also been pulled out, in addition to the two.

The teacher said he had been brought from Kashgar to pick cotton along with the students and had done so multiple times over the last year and a half.

A security chief of a village in Bulaqsu township told RFA that two or three thousand students from [Kona Sheher] county took part in the cotton harvesting in Aksu and that there were 32 of them in the building that caught fire.

Other sources indicated authorities had been working to deal with the incident in a quiet manner. They said authorities charged with investigating the fire declared it a natural disaster, while on-site personnel, who had been responsible for safety measures in the structure where the children were sleeping, have reportedly not been questioned.

Although details of the incident were reported to a number of relevant bureaucrats and Party members in Toqquzaq, including in Rozis village, the parents of the students who had been sent to Aksu were not notified at the time.

One village cadre suggested that the authorities silence was motivated by their knowledge that parents were already upset about their children being sent off to labor in Aksu. They were reportedly worried that this incident would become material for negative propaganda if they were to notify the public of the incident and subsequent deaths.

When asked whether Rozis family members had been at his funeral, the cadre said they had not been, and confirmed that the boy had been buried by local officials.

A village leader, who declined to be named, confirmed that residents were angered over the forced labor program and suggested that news of the fire would only inflame existing tensions.

The people on the local level, the parents of the students, have long had opinions about the politics [of this cotton-picking program], he said. The farmers are not happy about this.

Farmers pick cotton in a field in Hami, in China's Xinjiang region, Oct. 14, 2018. AFP

Forced labor scheme

Reporting by RFA over the past several years has shown that forced cotton harvesting, long a feature of life for school-aged children from southern Xinjiang, is still in practice.

As male heads of household began to disappear in the early days of the mass internment campaign, authorities in some locales began forcing women and children to pick cotton as a way of making up for lost wages.

In at least some cases, local officials have tried to portray these workers as volunteers.

Reports suggest that amid increasing international scrutiny, authorities in the XUAR have begun to send detainees to work at factories as part of an effort to label internment camps vocational centers, although those held in the facilities regularly toil under forced or coerced labor conditions.

On Thursday, the U.S. House of Representatives reintroduced the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which was passed by the House in March last year, but never brought to the floor by the Senate, and would block imports from the region unless proof can be shown that they are not linked to forced labor.

The bill would authorize U.S. President Joe Biden to slap sanctions on officials deemed responsible for forced labor in the XUAR and require financial disclosures by U.S. companies about their ties to related Chinese firms. Passing the act would create a rebuttable presumption requiring companies to prove that goods imported from the XUAR are not made with forced labor.

In December, a report by the Washington-based Center for Global Policy noted that the XUAR produces 85 percent of Chinas and 20 percent of the worlds cotton, potentially affecting all supply chains that involve Xinjiang cotton as a raw material. In February last year, an Australian think tank revealed a list of 82 global brands that sourced from factories in China that used workers from the region under conditions that strongly suggest forced labor.

Last month, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a Withhold Release Order (WRO) to detain all cotton products and tomatoes from the XUAR at the countrys ports of entry, saying that the agency had identified indicators of forced labor including debt bondage, restriction of movement, isolation, intimidation and threats, withholding of wages, and abusive living and working conditions.

But on Thursday, Washington-based conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation published a report saying that the U.S. needs to do more to counter what it termed state-sponsored forced labor that has seen the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) profit from its exploitation of the Uyghurs.

Among its recommendations to the Biden administration were for the U.S. to take stronger action to block goods produced with forced labor in the XUAR from entering its markets, as well as implement a tailored rebuttable presumption and expand WROs to combat CCP human rights violations.

Urging Biden to step up pressure on forced labor and other abuses in the XUAR and other parts of China, a group of 24 global human rights organizations and activists wrote an open letter to the U.S. president Wednesday urging a focus on Chinese abuses.

The scope and scale of human rights violations committed by the Chinese government inside and outside the country require a fundamental shift; many of the tools previously employed are no longer relevant or sufficiently robust, they wrote.

The rights defenders urged maintaining and increasing sanctions, saying Washington should target key government officials, state-run agencies, and companies, including state or military-operated businesses, credibly alleged to have committed serious human rights abuses, and seek legal accountability under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Act.

Reported by Shohret Hoshur for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by the Uyghur Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
The World Health Organization said that it will be sending more than 11,000 Ebola vaccinations to the West African nation of Guinea in upcoming days. This comes after the head of Guineas health agency on February 14 announced that the country is declaring an Ebola epidemic with seven cases confirmed in the West African country nation. On Thursday, February 18, WHO regional director for Africa Dr. Matshidiso Moeti said that 11,000 Ebola vaccines are being prepared in Geneva and are expected to arrive in Guinea over the weekend. Also, 8,600 doses will be shipped from the United States.

: "We expect to have more than 100 national & international experts on the ground by the end of the month. 30 vaccination experts have already been mobilized locally are ready to deploy as soon as the #Ebola vaccines arrive in the country." - Dr @MoetiTshidi  WHO African Region (@WHOAFRO) February 18, 2021

Moeti said, Thirty vaccination experts have already been mobilized locally and are ready to deploy as soon as Ebola vaccines arrive in the country. She added, The sub-region is on high alert and surveillance in neighboring countries is ongoing. Our collective, quick action is crucial to avert an uncontrolled spread of Ebola amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has already pushed health workers and health facilities to the edge.

Ebola outbreak in South Africa

The WHO has warned six African countries to be on high alert for Ebola infections. The United Nations also announced that it is releasing $15 million from its emergency relief fund to help Guinea and Congo. On February 7, Congo announced four cases of Ebola in the eastern part of the country. This is the first outbreak since the year 2020. Also, over 8,000 Ebola vaccine doses are available in Congo and a vaccination campaign began in Butembo on Monday.

Read: Guinea Declares Ebola Epidemic After At Least Four Deaths And Seven Cases

: "The vaccination of people at high risk was officially launched in Butembo on Monday... The quick roll-out of vaccines is a testament to the enormous local capacity built in the previous outbreaks by @WHO & partners." - Dr @MoetiTshidi  WHO African Region (@WHOAFRO) February 18, 2021

WHO African Region also tweeted about the Ebola outbreak. The WHO said that the staff is already on the ground supporting surveillance, infection prevention, and community engagement. The UN agency also said that it is supporting Guinea to procure the Ebola vaccine which has proven instrumental in controlling outbreaks in the DRC. Moreover, WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also tweeted that the organisation has activated all levels to coordinate support, including access to the Ebola vaccine.

Read: Guinea: 3 Dead, 5 Hospitalised As Ebola Virus Resurges, Experts Concerned

#Guinea has many years of experience battling #Ebola, with skilled incident managers and vaccinators who trained #DRC colleagues. Government is taking action. One of the first steps will be ensuring community understands the risks and will join in response. Their role is crucial. https://t.co/ObbcsLGT8b  Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) February 14, 2021

The Ebola virus was first identified in the 1970s in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. The latest outbreak occurred between 2013 and 2016, which was declared an epidemic by the World Health Organization (WHO). The outbreak primarily affected Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea, which posted a combined death toll of 11,308. The disease was also detected in the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, and the United States, where at least 1 person died.

Read: WHO: 13 Mideast Nations Have All 3 Coronavirus Variants Cases; Situation critical

Also Read: US To Pay $200 Million Membership Fees 'withheld By Trump' In WHO Obligations

(Image Credits: UNICEF/AP)
Identifying which treatment is effective in severely ill patients can be difficult as they undergo multiple interventions. Credit: Olga Kononenko/Unsplash

Two anti-inflammatory drugstocilizumab and sarilumabas well as steroids, have been identified as potential life-saving coronavirus treatments thanks to a trial set up in the wake of the 2009 swine flu pandemic that mirrors the way that people receive multiple treatments while in intensive care.

When the H1N1 swine flu outbreak hit in 2009 it caused typical flu symptoms, but severe cases led to pneumonia and lung failure.

Doctors were unsure which treatments would work, but steroids, which dampen down inflammation, seemed like a good bet. Clinicians in intensive care units decided to set up a trial to see if steroids helped patients severely ill with swine flu.

But this proved impossible. "The pandemic came and went and we missed an opportunity to test whether even a simple intervention like steroids worked or not," said Professor Alistair Nichol, ICU doctor in St Vincent's University Hospital in Dublin, Ireland, who worked in an Australian hospital during the 2009 pandemic.

"There was a peak in intensive care unit (ICU) transmissions and some clinicians got frustrated in trying to set up a drug trial (that never happened)," recalled Dr. Lennie Derde, an intensive care doctor at UMC Utrecht in the Netherlands.

That pandemic killed tens of thousands of people, but ICU clinicians expected worse in the future. "This one was moderately bad," recalled ICU physician Professor Steve Webb at the Royal Perth Hospital in Australia, 'but if we had a really bad one, we were just woefully unfit to be able to do drug trials." So ICU clinicians came together to be better prepared. "Nobody doubted there would be a next time," said Prof. Nichol.

Community-acquired pneumonia

Typically, a viral pandemic begins with a spike in unusual pneumonia cases in ICUs.

In March 2020, patients flooded ICUs with SARS-CoV-2 infections. This time, some ICU clinicians were ready from the get-go. A number of coronavirus patients were quickly recruited into an existing clinical trial calledREMAP-CAP, set up in the wake of the 2009 swine flu outbreak, to test which drugs worked on their pneumonia.

It was 'set up in peacetime," explained Prof. Nichol, 'so as to be ready for wartime if a pandemic was to arrive."

"We were able to flick the switch to include pandemic patients," said Dr. Derde. "That is why we were able to include our first patient on the 9th of March."

The trial tests various drugsrather than the usual one or twofor community-acquired pneumonia, with all the regulatory and ethical approvals in place. Itwas set up by a project called PREPARE for patients suffering from severe community-acquired pneumonia caused by bacteria or viruses, which kills about one in five people with it in ICU, although the figures can be much higher.

Results on steroids from the trial contributed to the World Health Organisation recommending them for COVID-19 patients in September 2020. By then, REMAP-CAP, which now involves about 300 hospitals, was testing lots of interventions (it currently has 31).

Doing this sets it apart from a traditional randomised controlled trial, which is the gold standard to prove whether a drug is effective or not. Patients are usually given either one or two drugs or a placebo, and then outcomes are compared. REMAP-CAP is differentand more flexiblein that it tests many types of treatments at the same time. One patient can receive multiple interventions, which is not unusual for someone severely ill. A regimen of treatments is 'much more in line with your typical clinical treatment," said Dr. Derde, who is the European coordinator of the trial.

The clinical trial design means that 'we can analyse the interactions between drugs, which is a huge advantage in a pandemic," she said.

"A single COVID patient can be randomised for up to eight separate aspects of their treatment," said Prof. Webb. "We're obviously learning much more quickly, because we're testing so many different things simultaneously." A patient is enrolled in one treatment 'domain," and then is randomly assigned to one of a handful of interventions in that domain.

The 12 different 'domains' of treatment include anti-coagulation treatments, anti-inflammatory drugs, and immune modulating drugs. "One patient might be involved in six or seven different domains of the trial," said Prof. Nichol. In fact, this better reflects how a patient with COVID-19 is treated in hospital, according to the doctors.

Monoclonal

A big resultpresented in a pre-print study, so not yet peer reviewedis that two monoclonal antibodies (tocilizumab and sarilumab) reduced death from COVID-19 in severely ill patients, and time spent in ICU. Those benefits seem to be on top of those from steroids, says Prof. Webb.

Tocilizumab and sarilumab block a chemical signal called interleukin-6 (IL-6), which stokes inflammation. In severe COVID-19, the inflammatory response of a patient's immune system begins to damage body tissue, in friendly fire, while attacking the virus. There was therefore good reason to think the drugs might be effective.

Indeed, once a new disease turns up, and its mechanisms are reported, an array of medications will be considered by physicians. But they do not know which ones work. The results for COVID-19, explains Prof. Webb, 'was quite a scattergun approach of clinicians using repurposed medicines."

Sometimes, as in the case of the malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, a small study and lots of hype persuades some that an old drug is worth a try. But it requires a large clinical trial, such as REMAP-CAP, which involves 6,000 patients, to show whether that drug is safe and effective. Physicians can now prescribe the IL-6 blockers and steroids with greater confidence, while hydroxychloroquine is left on the shelf.

Indeed, finding that a drug does not work, or causes a negative effect, can be equally beneficial. "The anti-virals and the anti-coagulants have not just been ineffective, but may result in worse outcomes for patients," said Prof. Webb, about recent preliminary findings. "It is just as important to identify treatments that are harmful."

It is difficult for a physician to know whether a drug is helping or hindering their patients. "For an individual doctor at a patient's bedside, it can be hard to tease out if giving someone something helped or if they would have gotten better anyway," explained Prof. Nichol. Severely ill patients usually receive multiple interventions, which makes knowing which treatment was effective tougher.

Combinations

The REMAP-CAP trial was created to be multifactorial, meaning that the effects of many different treatment combinations on patients can show up in the data. Bayesian statistics, which applies probabilities to statistical problems, makes sense of all the data to answer crucial questions, such as when a treatment reaches a positive result, or if it is shown not to work, or if there are positive interactions between drugs. Such a strategy with multiple treatments had been used for cancer, but never a global ICU study.

At the heart of these trials is a simple fact: it is impossible to guess which treatments will work. Small studies can be biased and inconclusive, which is why large randomised trials are needed.

"Years ago, I used to think that there were things that definitely would work, and then they didn't," said Prof. Webb. "I've been doing clinical trials for so long now that the only thing I am confident of is that, when you do trials, you will get surprises."

Dr. Derde praises the European Union's actions in 2014 'because they funded the European part of what is now REMAP-CAP, with the vision that they needed to set up an infrastructure for pandemic research." Other funders around the world, from Australia to New Zealand to Canada and the US, subsequently joined the effort.

REMAP-CAP is an international effort now, with 300 hospitals taking part in about 20 countries, testing out 31 different interventions. The trial will continue to prove which treatments work in severely ill COVID-19 patients. As the virus surges in many countries and until the vaccine rollout can control the pandemic, proven drugs are needed to save lives.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
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Where We Go from Here

A month into a tumultuous start of a new year, a new year following the most chaotic year in America that any living person can remember, I am seeing signs that the work in the streets and in our hospitals and at our voting booths far and wide, are saying even in states no one thought we would have captured after 2016, that even though we have been hit hard on so many fronts, its our front line that is now advancing for the greater good. It is divisiveness and hate that must retreat; it is science that will now confront COVID-19. And it is Americans of color who overcame at the polls to deliver the House, the Senate and the Presidency.

Contentious as it was, more Americans voted in the 2020 election than in any other election in 120 years. And look at what we did together.

An historic start

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We elected the first Black, female, Asian Vice President in Kamala Harris.

We elected in a historic runoff election, the first Black Senator from Georgia in more than a decade in Reverend Raphael Warnock. Rev. Warnock, the pastor of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church  where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once was pastor  has dedicated his life to service and ministry. And we tipped the U.S. senate for hard working men and women by also delivering his fellow Georgian Jon Ossoff.

Out west, Wyoming elected their first female senator; Missouri sent its first Black Congressperson to DC; Delaware elected its first transgender Senator.

The voters of New Mexico became the first state to send a delegation to the House of Representatives made up entirely of women of color. And this 117th Congress is the most diverse in our countrys history just as President Joe Bidens cabinet promises to be.

So, for me, 2021 is about hope and about working for a better life for all and a better nation together as we rise from the terrible test that 2020 has been. It is about recommitting to one another and to good works to help our brothers and sisters in need. And even before we voted for inclusion, we were already making good trouble. White, Black and Brown nationwide took to the streets this past spring and summer to ask our nation  to demand of our nation  that we address the systematic racism that has plagued this country since its founding. That has torn the very fabric of our country and created so much pain and loss. With one voice, all were saying: Please, at long last, fix this.

Our path is clear

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It is time to think not of ourselves, not of what divides us, not of our differences, but of our common good. It is time once again to remember that there is much, much more that unites us than divides us. Those that would seek to divide us, do not want us to see this truth. But it is here and it is powerful. And we must embrace it. We must together reform policies and institutions and thinking where injustice resides and restore people to the status of neighbors, not opponents.

The great UAW president Walter Reuther, who was a close friend and supporter of Dr. Martin Luther King summed it up like this: There is no greater calling than to serve your fellow man. There is no greater contribution than to help the weak. There is no greater satisfaction than to have done it well.

President John F. Kennedy famously put it just a bit differently. Ask not what your country can do for you  ask what you can do for your county.

With those words, he inspired a generation of Americans.

So, this is our time. It is time for our generation. Our historic moment. There are Americans who need our help. COVID has ravished us as nothing we have ever experienced. But here too I see hope ahead. I see President Biden moving quickly to put battling COVID front and center and to put good practices and science and the federal government back in the drivers seat. I see us recommitting to our better angels, to help fellow Americans who are suffering and struggling.

In this vein we must also support our veterans. Those brave men and women who make the greatest sacrifice to protect all of us and our great nation. And we must participate in this democracy of ours, just like we saw in this past election.

We must stand strong and united against bigotry and hatred and heed the call we saw this past year as hundreds of thousands of Americans took to the streets to demand a fundamental change.

So, there is real work ahead, but I believe we are up to the task. Let us meet 2021 head on and with Solidarity. We are more than ready to bring our A game.

Are you all in?
A 17-year-old boy was also arrested Wednesday morning, identified by police as the person who carjacked two people on the West Side. He is charged with vehicular hijacking in an attacks Nov. 20 in the 1500 block of South Spaulding Avenue, in the Lawndale neighborhood, and Dec. 7 in the 3900 block of West Monroe Street, in East Garfield Park.
Published on:

18 February 2021



Free Trade Agreements can have an impact on workers' rights Free Trade Agreements can have an impact on workers' rights

The EU believes trade can work for all, claiming that labour provisions in its Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) ensure that economic growth and high labour standards go hand-in-hand. Yet whether these actually make a difference to workers is strongly contested.

Drawing upon extensive original research, including over 200 interviews with key actors across the EU and its trading partners, the book, Free Trade Agreements and Global Labour Governance, considers the effectiveness of this approach and explores how meaningful trade agreements are in practice when it comes to workers rights.

Limited labour provisions

The EU claims that the potentially negative impacts of FTAs on workers, and working conditions in partner countries, through increased competition, is countered by labour standards in its Trade and Development (TSD) Chapters, however this research tells a different story.

According to the findings, the labour provisions of the EUs agreements with countries such as South Korea and Moldova were limited. The researchers found that such agreements were lacking when it came to labour standards, with the most pressing workplace concerns being exacerbated by the agreements commercial provisions.

Professor Adrian Smith, Professor of Human Geography at Queen Mary, and lead author of the book said: A crucial aspect of the research involved understanding the increasing role that global supply chains play in the process of trade-labour governance. Labour provisions in trade agreements will need to tackle the complex and inter-twined nature of the commercial pressures in global supply chains if they are ever to make meaningful in-roads into maintaining and improving international labour standards.

Professor Liam Campling, Professor of International Business and Development at Queen Mary and co-author of the book said: We spent three years researching this question in relation to EU trading partners, including Guyana, Moldova and South Korea, and we found that both the design and implementation of TSD chapters are wanting.

Not only are they the only element of EU FTAs where a full dispute settlement mechanism with teeth does not apply, they often fail to protect the most vulnerable workers and the EU tends to be very reluctant to act to trigger an investigation.

Implications for the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement

The research also has implications for the recent EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement signed at the end of last year. The EU maintains that the UK should not engage in unfair labour competition however one concern has been that the UK may diverge from EU labour standards norms, particularly in light on the recession facing countries in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The EU claims that TSD chapters discourages partners from engaging in a race to bottom and using deregulation of labour standards to compete. On the one hand, recent proceedings initiated by the EU against South Korea for abuse of labour rights - the first of its kind in an EU FTA - suggests that this will be an issue which is closely monitored. On the other hand, a dispute settlement finding in January 2021 produced an ambiguous result, making it hard for the EU to leverage labour reforms in South Korea. Professor Campling added: This puts a dampener on domestic UK constituencies looking to the EU to counter calls from within the Conservative front bench to roll back labour standards and working conditions.

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Police have launched a murder investigation after a Romanian minicab driver was stabbed to death by one of his passengers in North London.

The body of Gabriel Bringye, 37, who was planning his wedding for later this year, was found in his vehicle outside a school in Tottenham last night.

Detectives believe he was murdered by a customer who had fled by the time police arrived. Friends say nothing was stolen and they believe Mr Bringye was either the victim of a targeted attack or had been in an argument with his customer.

A bus driver parked opposite Mr Bringye's private cab alerted the police, and an air ambulance was called but he was pronounced dead at the scene 40 minutes later.

The incident sparked Scotland Yard's 15th murder investigation of the year so far in London. Mr Bringye was originally from Romania but had been in the UK for 13 years and had worked as a minicab driver in London since 2015.

The body of Gabriel Bringye (pictured), 37, who was planning his wedding for later this year, was found in his vehicle outside a school in Tottenham, North London, last night

His sister has given police details of his last pickup which was an address in Tottenham .

The fare was ordered through the Bolt mobile app in which customers can book a private hire cab in the same way they use the Gett taxi app.

A friend paid tribute to Mr Bringye, who lived in Leyton, East London, and said he was excited about getting married to his fiancee Mara later this year.

They said: 'The wedding plans had been put on hold due to Covid but Gabriel was hopeful him and Mara could marry this year.

Police have launched a murder investigation after Mr Bringye was stabbed to death by one of his passengers in Tottenham, North London

'It's an awful tragedy. He was the nicest, most gentle human being you could meet. He wouldn't harm a fly. We are all in shock.

'We don't know if he perhaps got into an argument with a passenger and was stabbed because of that. I can't believe why anyone would want to hurt him.

'He didn't have children himself but he doted on his sister's children. He was a great uncle and very close to his brother and sister, who lived near him.

'We don't know many details yet, he was working last night and was killed just after he had picked up a fare apparently.

'The police were called by someone who had been on a bus parked opposite the murder scene.'

Mr Bringye lived with Mara at a terraced home in Tottenham. She was too upset to talk this morning.

However, another friend told MailOnline: 'We believe he was stabbed by a customer during a trip on the Bolt app.

'The attacker did not take anything from him and it happened in a low traffic area, leaving the impression that the attacker maybe prepared everything in advance.

'Gabriel's sister managed to get into his Bolt account and the last journey had not yet closed so she could see the pick-up address which was in N17, near to where the murder took place.

'Gabriel's car had been left right in front of the gate at Ferry Lane Primary School.'

The driver's car had been left right in front of the gate at Ferry Lane Primary School, seen today

Homicide detectives from the Metropolitan Police's Specialist Crime are leading the investigation. A post mortem is due to be carried out. There have been no arrests.

A spokesman for the Met said: 'Police were called to Jarrow Road, N17 at 19:21hrs on Wednesday, 17 February after concerns were raised about an injured man who was unresponsive inside a vehicle at the location.

'Officers attended with paramedics from the London Ambulance Service and the London Air Ambulance.

'The man - believed to be in his 30s - was found with an injury consistent with having been stabbed.'
On Thursday, just after noon Pacific Time, the Perseverance Rover is scheduled to plunge through the Martian atmosphere. It should reach speeds of over 12,000 mph before slowing down with the aid of a parachute, and landing in the Jezero Crater. Once there, it will embark on one of the most ambitious missions in the history of NASA's Mars exploration program: drilling, analyzing, and, eventually, on a future mission, returning samples of Martian rock and soil to Earth.

The samples collected on this mission will be returned to Earth for further analysis around 2030.

"The stakes are always high when you're dealing with space robotics," said Chris Thayer, President and CEO of Motiv Space Systems, "but that's doubly true when a mission a decade in the future is depending on your mission's success today."

At 7 feet long, the Perseverance's primary robotic arm is the largest, most visible component built for the rover by Motiv and delivered to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). During the mission, the arm will allow the rover to drill through Martian rocks to collect core samples, operate scientific instruments that will take images and perform analysis of the Martian surface, and deposit samples in the rover's chassis.

While the other systems provided by Motiv aren't as large or visible, they're equally critical in allowing the rover to complete its mission.

The rover's Mastcam-Z cameras, featuring focus and zoom mechanisms developed by Motiv Space Systems, will bring depth and color to the images collected by the rover during its mission, allowing vivid HD video to be sent back to Earth.

A filter wheel developed by Motiv for the same Mastcam-Z instrument allows scientists to select from 8 optical elements, each designed to filter a specific wavelength of light to allow for important scientific observations.

Finally, a revolutionary force torque sensor developed by Motiv exclusively for the rover will allow the Perseverance's robotic arm to get valuable real-time feedback as it drills for, collects, and manipulates samples on the Martian surface.

"During its mission," said Thayer, "the Perseverance Rover will be able to do things no previous Mars rover could do, thanks to the unique technology it has onboard."

"As valuable as the scientific insights we gain this in the coming weeks from the rover are likely to be, I expect to pale in comparison to what we can learn about Mars once we get the samples back on earth."

If all goes according to plan, the Perseverance Rover should be in operation on the surface of the planet for at least one Mars year, equivalent to 687 days here on Earth. In the meantime, Motiv is already collaborating with NASA's JPL on another project, a robotic arm that can operate in the coldest reaches of space, like the dark side of our own moon, or even on the surface of our solar system's icy moons.

"While Perseverance is going to work on Mars," said Thayer, "our teams are already working on robotics that will be deployed with NASA and private space missions in years to come."

About Motiv Space Systems

Headquartered in Pasadena, California, Motiv Space Systems takes pride in designing both ground and space-rated robotic solutions for a range of application demands. As the respected team who provided the robotic arm for NASA's JPL Mars 2020 Perseverance rover, Motiv Space Systems leverages technologies from both Earth and space to offer cost-effective solutions for robotics in a variety of industries. Their newly launched xLink Space-Rated Modular Robotic Arm System is highly capable and has a profoundly flexible architecture, redefining the market for space-rated robotic arms in terms of both cost and capabilities.

Contact: Tom McCarthy, VP of Business Development , [email protected]

SOURCE Motiv Space Systems
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White House coronavirus adviser Andy Slavitt appeared stumped on Wednesday when asked to explain why California and Florida, which had very different methods of combating COVID-19, have similar trends in COVID-19 cases and deaths.

Slavitt told MSNBC that the virus was still very unpredictable and 'a little bit beyond our explanation.'

In California, a little more than 8.5% of the population has been infected; in Florida, it's a little less.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has put some of the strictest measures in place to combat the coronavirus pandemic - while Florida's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has done nearly the opposite.

But both states saw massive post-holiday surges in infections, hospitalizations and deaths, raising questions over whether lockdowns were worthwhile.

Earlier in the pandemic, stay-at-home orders were linked over and over again to lower transmission and death rates, indicating they did work, especially at a time of uncertainty about how to combat the spread.

But now that measures like making and social distancing are more widely used, lockdowns like Newsom's, which some called 'draconian,' may have outlived their utility.

Biden's adviser struggled to spell out specific reasons that Florida's lax approach wasn't just as effective, saying: 'What we do know is that the more careful people are, the more they mask and social distance, and the quicker we vaccinate, the quicker it goes away and the less it spreads,' Slavitt said.

Andy Slavitt, right, appeared stumped on Wednesday when asked to explain why California and Florida have similar coronavirus trends

Florida's daily cases rose to nearly 750 per one million people during its January peak (left). Cases in California actually climbed higher this winter, to nearly 1,000 per one million people at the height of its post-holiday surge (right)

At the height of its post-holiday surge in early January, Florida saw an average of 744 new cases per one million people, according to COVID Tracking Project data.

By mid-January its daily hospitalizations had risen to an average of 360 patients per million residents and deaths spiked to about 11 per million people in Florida.

Things were worse in California, where the average number of new daily infections peaked at just shy of 1,000 per million people on January 12.

Hospitalizations reached more than 570 per million residents and average daily deaths reached 18 per million.

'This is a virus that continues to surprise us. It's very hard to predict. And all around the country, we've got to continue to do a better job, and I think we are, but we're done yet,' he said.

The trend in deaths followed, with about 11 per million Floridians dying a day at the very height of the January surge (left). In California (right), per capita deaths increased to 18 per million people per day (on average)

Newsom's orders have shut down schools and businesses, even outdoor dining at times, throughout the state, imposing regional and limited state-at-home orders that were recently lifted.

His orders have prohibited private gatherings of any size, closed sector operations except for critical infrastructure and retail, and required 100% masking.

DeSantis initially took similar measures to Newsom but quickly lifted statewide restrictions on businesses, allowing bars and restaurants to open at full capacity, and even prohibiting law enforcement from fining people.

Both states have shown similar COVID-19 trends despite dramatic policy differences.

Maskless tourists party in Miami on January 3 as the Florida governor has eased restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic

Restaurants in the Beverly Hills area built temporary areas for outside dining as the California eased orders restricting dining outdoors

California has reported a total of 3.5million COVID-19 cases in total while Florida has reported more than 1.82 million, data from Johns Hopkins University shows.

That means the total number of cases as a percentage of the population is about 8.8% in California and 8.3% in Florida.

But the earlier phases of the pandemic told a different story. Cases, hospitalizations and deaths per million people in Florida all rose to at least double the rates seen in California during the summer surges in each state.

During the summer, FLoridians were pictured partying on beaches and frequenting bars maskless, while Californians were forced to stay home and once-bustling stores and streets turned to ghost towns.

Some public health experts think it might have paid off in the short term this summer, but six months later the case and death tolls are similar, but Florida still has no mask order while California has been under one since June.

A new variable has entered the equation now. More infectious coronavirus variants have come to and emerged in the US. Already, California and Florida have more cases of variants than any other states in the nation.

Slavitt noted that new emerging variants make COVID-19 harder to predict, saying: 'We don't know what role they play.'

His comments come as a new study from The New York Times shows that about 512,000 more people have died since March than would have in a normal year - or about 20 percent higher than normal.

That's even when considering deaths that fall outside of ones classified as tied to the coronavirus - meaning more people have died overall, not just from the virus.

Out of Californians who tested positive for COVID-19, about 1.35% have died, while about 1.57% died in Florida, according to Johns Hopkins University.

The states' numbers remain similar even accounting for population differences and density.

California has about 252.74 residents per square mile while there are 405.45 residents per square mile in Florida, according to Statista.

An analysis of mortality data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by the The New York Times shows that death rates were higher in the United States during the pandemic - even among deaths not credited to COVID-19.

Deaths nationwide were 20 percent higher than normal from March 15, 2020, to Jan. 30, 2021, The New York Times reported.

Deaths that fall into the gap between in the gap between the' observed and normal numbers' are referred to as 'excess deaths' by epidemiologists, according to the National Center for Health Statistics.

Public health scientists use these statistical methods to measure the impact of catastrophic events and these deaths could represent misclassified COVID-19 deaths or even deaths indirectly related to the pandemic, according to the CDC.

States that have shown the lowest deaths above normal include: Hawaii at 1%, Maine at 7% and Washington State at 9%.

States that have shown the highest deaths above normal include: New Jersey at 33%, Arizona at 32%, and Louisiana at 25%, according to the data. Alabama, California, Illinois, South Dakota and New Mexico all had 24% higher death rates than normal.

New York City, 60% above average, and New York State, 25% above average, were counted separately.
Eric Eddings, a former Gimlet employee who co-hosted the podcast The Nod, tweeted on Tuesday that Reply All, and specifically Mr. Vogt and Ms. Pinnamaneni, had contributed to a near identical toxic dynamic at Gimlet as the one they described in their series about Bon Appetit.

To me, it felt disingenuous to frame this story in that way, as if they had not participated in something similar, Mr. Eddings said in an interview on Thursday.

Mr. Vogt, 35, said on Twitter that he had deeply failed as an ally when employees unionized and that he apologized to everyone whom he had disappointed. I should have reflected on what it meant to not be on the same side of a movement largely led by young producers of color at my company, he said. I was a baby and a jerk about it in myriad ways.

He said he had asked permission to step away from the show and was taking time to think and to listen.

In her apology, Ms. Pinnamaneni said her conduct around diversity and union organization efforts was ill-informed, ignorant and hurtful. She said on Twitter, I did not pay enough attention to the people of color with less power at Gimlet and I should have used my power to support and elevate them further.
Keith Gill, one of the most influential voices that pushed GameStop on the WallStreetBets Reddit forum, was hit with a lawsuit that accused him of misrepresenting himself as an amateur investor and profiting by artificially inflating the price of the stock.

The proposed class action against Gill, who adopted the YouTube nickname Roaring Kitty, was filed on Tuesday in federal court in Massachusetts. The suit said Gill was actually a licensed securities professional who manipulated the market to profit himself. Gill touted GameStop shares through an extensive social media presence on Youtube, Twitter and Reddit, where he used a more profane alias.

Gills deceitful and manipulative conduct not only violated numerous industry regulations and rules, but also various securities laws by undermining the integrity of the market for GameStop shares, the suit said. He caused enormous losses not only to those who bought option contracts, but also to those who fell for Gills act and bought GameStop stock during the market frenzy at greatly inflated prices.

Keith Gill with his Roaring Kitty YouTube channel had become a central figure in last months sharemarket frenzy. Credit:YouTube

The suit was filed by the securities class action firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro on behalf of Christian Iovin of Washington state and similarly situated individuals. Iovin sold $US200,000 ($257,986) worth of call options on GameStop shares when the stock was below $US100. The stock quickly eclipsed $US400 a share, forcing him to buy the calls back at elevated prices.
After a six-month journey from Earth, the Mars Perseverance rover landed safely on the red planet just before 1 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on Thursday, February 18. It will be NASA's most sophisticated scientific rover sent to Mars, landing in a region that scientists believe is promising to discover signs of ancient life on the planet.

Shortly after landing the vehicle beamed back its first images from the surface.

NASA-TV

"This will be the first time that we have peered in great detail into a past habitable environment, both with the tools on the rover and the samples when they come back," explained Ken Farley, the Perseverance project lead scientist in a pre-landing press conference.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA broadcast Perseverance's landing on its online television channel, NASA TV on Thursday, with live coverage and commentary.

"Well be able to show you in real-time what's going on and show ourselves as well," explained Allen Chen, a systems engineer in the Entry, Descent, and Landing Systems and Advanced Technologies Group at Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

After the first low-resolution images just after landing, it will take several hours for satellites orbiting Mars to be in the right position to beam back to Earth the first high-resolution images of the landing site.

After lining up the rover's transmission antenna with Earth and a few weeks of tests to ensure all the rover equipment is working, it will move out to its first location to dig up the planet's soil and take rock samples, most likely in the summer.

The Jezero Crater was chosen in particular for Perseverance because scientists have determined that the location has a high chance to discover the remnants of life.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

"Jezero is a fascinating scientific location. Its got great craters. Its got rock fields, sand dunes," explained Mars 2020 Deputy Project Manager Matt Wallace. "All of those things are interesting for the science community."

A delta feature, most likely created by water when it flowed on the surface of Mars 3.5 billion years ago, could include mud deposits, which would be a prime location to find the remains of organic microbial life. Nearby, there are likely volcanic rocks that will also help explain the red planet's geological history and its past and current climate.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

To help it explore the Martian surface, Perseverance is equipped with seven different instruments. They include a subsurface radar, panoramic zoom cameras, a laser micro-imager, an ultraviolet spectrometer, an X-ray spectrometer to help detect elements on rock samples, a weather station, and a device called MOXIE, which will produce oxygen from Mars' atmosphere, which is mostly carbon dioxide.

The rover will also deploy an experimental helicopter to attempt the first powered flight on Mars.

Perseverance will save promising soil and rock samples that a future mission will return to Earth for more analysis. The rover's mission is expected to last for at least two (Earth) years.

Although the vehicle landing was handled autonomously by the lander itself, NASA provided real-time flight data (albeit with a slight delay because of the red planet's distance) of what is happening thanks to a data transmission link through the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter satellite circling the Mars. The satellite link relayed data, at a speed of 8 kilobits per second, to Earth.

"Thats about half the speed of old-school dial-up if you remember that," explained Chen. "But that will allow us to see a lot of different things of what the vehicle is doing."

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Despite the limited data transmission speed, NASA provided a lot of information about the landing using a virtual heads-up display of Perseverance's landing on the broadcast, including the speed of the lander during its descent, its altitude, and even how much fuel the lander has.

Perseverance builds on the technology first used on NASA's Curiosity mission to Mars in 2012 to safely land the rover on the surface.

During its 'EDL' (short for Entry, Descent, and Landing), the lander contacted the Martian atmosphere traveling about 12,000 mph. It first depended on the lander's heat shield to protect it and help decelerate its speed, while thrusters on the back of the vehicle helped steer it to the proposed landing site in the Jezero Crater.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

When the lander slowed to about 1,000 mph, it deployed a 70-foot diameter parachute, further slowing the lander down to about 160 mph.

Even after the parachute was deployed, it was still descend at a speed toward the Martian surface that is too fast to safely land.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

At this point, the heat shield detached from the lander, exposing the rover and its attached jet pack and retro rockets.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

The rocket-power jet pack and the rover jump out from the back shell of the lander, and the retro rockets further slowed the descent of the rover. Simultaneously, onboard cameras, part of a new terrain navigation system unique to Perseverance, will determine a safe landing spot.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

About 70 feet above the surface, the rover separated from the jet pack and was lowered to the surface using a sky crane device. The crane is expected to gently land the rover on the surface at a little less than 2 mph.

NASA/JPL-Caltech

Once the landing was complete, the jet pack will flew away to a safe distance from the rover.

Besides live coverage of the landing on the NASA TV Public Channel and the agencys website, you can view it on the NASA App, YouTube, Twitter, or Facebook landing.
In times of peril, many people may seek comfort in their faith. The COVID-19 pandemic is no different. It has been divisive on physical, social and political fronts, but still the Athens LGBTQ community have found support and unity in their churches.
After the meeting, Smith said he went to the restroom, and as he was washing his hands, a Republican colleague  whom he didnt identify  started calling him a bully and a coward and making threats. Smith said he ignored him at first, but then the Republican representative followed him out of the restroom and down the hall into the chambers.
[February 18, 2021] Canadian company AK Motor International Corporation presents the Maple Majestic brand of automobiles

TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - Canadians in Ontario, know February as Auto Show season. Conspicuously absent this year, the Auto Show has been a symbol of the Canadian Auto Industry's strength since 1974. With the Auto Show's cancellation due to the pandemic, there is an eerie quiet felt throughout the industry. It is amidst the lockdown of 2021 that Canada's own AK Motor International Corporation presents its new brand of Canadian automobiles; Maple Majestic. Arising from AK Motor's Project CANU (Canadian Automotive New Utilities), Maple Majestic is a symbol of hope for a very different sort of auto industry in the aftermath of the pandemic. There is a great deal of significance in a name like Maple Majestic. The "Maple" leaf is a symbol of Canada's warmth and friendliness towards all cultures, and "Majestic" is a reference to Canada's status as a Constitutional Monarchy, and the majesty of this beautiful land. According to AK Motor founder Arkadiusz Kaminski, "Maple Majestic is intended to be Canada's flagship brand of automobiles on the world stage. It will be a world class automobile or it will not be". The Maple Majestic design represents a significant departure from other EVs. Many electric vehicles remain woefully ill-prepared for harsh climates. This in turn translates to lower sales in relatively cold regions of the world. As befits an EV from Canada, this key challenge is Maple Majestic's calling. While AK Motor has a multi-brand / multi-model vision, the first Maple Majestic EV is intended to be a world leader in Climate Friendly Driving. Yes, this is a double-entendre. Maple Majestic will be as friendly to the environment as it will be friendly to drive in difficult environments. The past decade has seen unprecedented development in key electric driveline components from batteries, to inverters, to electric motors. AK Motor recognizes these elements as becoming commodity components, and while they remain important, AK Motor chooses to focus on other areas of innovation. In particular, 2 key areas will be extreme weather driving dynamics and occupant hospitality. Climate Friendly Driving does not necessarily mean an SUV. In fact, the opposite is true. The frontal projection of an SUV always means increased drag on account of its height, which impacts fuel efficiency, and the accompanying top-heaviness impacts cornering stability. Be that as it may, AK Motor recognizes the market's preference for SUVs and the Maple Majestic concept will offer the best of both worlds. A key feature of the vehicle will be an adjustable ride height suspension with a target of up to 150mm ride height travel. This means a variabl ground clearance from a sporty 140mm up to 290mm in some conditions that may involve heavy snow. The overall height will vary from 1440mm up to 1590mm which enters the territory of some mid-size SUVs. Both front and rear axles have an identical track width which makes it easier to drive through snow. Perhaps the most striking visual feature will be the extended wheelbase at 3100mm. Chamfered corners allow for excellent urban driving and parking maneuverability. There is a strong packaging logic to the extended wheelbase which not only aids in straight-line stability in adverse weather conditions, while improving rear passenger comfort, but also allows for potentially larger batteries in the floor. It is envisioned that the vehicle may accommodate different battery sizes depending on the owner's geographical location and expected driving habits. AK Motor has also considered provisions for a hybrid version of the Maple Majestic EV. The space ahead of the rear axle can potentially house a small Internal Combustion Engine intended as occasional back-up power generation. The hybrid solution remains valid in areas of the world where the potential of overloading the power grid is real. A great deal of consideration went into the aerodynamic shape of the vehicle not just from the front, but also from the sides. The curved profile of the glasswork, as well as the uncluttered roof is intended to allow the vehicle to handle crosswinds exceptionally well. According to founder Arkadiusz Kaminski, "We didn't invent the electric car, but we are here to make it civilized. Maple Majestic shouldn't be thought of as a sedan but rather more of a super car with four doors. The fact that the concept has super car proportions doesn't hurt either, but it all stems from a thorough rethinking of EV packaging."



As the acceptance of Electric Vehicles accelerates around the globe, AK Motor is one of the pioneers of leveraging external sources for the engineering and parts supply of its automotive projects. AK Motor considers its automotive systems as module packages which are outsourced to external suppliers. All key electrical components including batteries, inverters and motors are becoming readily available as commodity items. What's more, all the components necessary to develop and manufacture a complete automobile are becoming readily available locally in Canada, where the abundance of raw materials and natural resources is matched by the Canadian government's willingness to build batteries locally. The Province of Ontario, with it's close proximity to the heart of America's auto industry in Michigan is the home of Canada's auto industry where everything that an automotive start-up OEM may need is readily available. The Windsor-Oshawa industrial corridor is comprised of several hundred companies that form a fully integrated parts supply chain. AK Motor, with the aim of becoming Canada's first modern automotive OEM, is ideally positioned in this area, also known as the Golden Horseshoe. The abundant local parts supply, inherited from Canada's legacy strategy as a service provider to foreign OEM's is matched by a local tech sector, which is a world leader in the development of autonomous vehicle technologies. The federal and provincial governments add a level of stability that ensures Ontario is one of the best places in the world to invest in. Vehicles manufactured in Canada are consistently ranked at the highest level of quality and workmanship. The only way to add more stability to Ontario's auto industry is to start a local OEM for the global market and AK Motor's Maple Majestic brand aims to do just that. "Canadians have accepted that electric cars are the future. Maple Majestic is an opportunity for Canada to not just embrace the technology but to also play an active role in bringing electric vehicles to the world market. It's an opportunity for Canada to contribute rather than just consume. Our business model is ideally matched to Canada's auto industry, ensuring that existing stakeholders will have a part to play in Maple Majestic's future. Leveraging Canada's parts suppliers and technological developers decreases investment risks in our project dramatically. It is literally in the best interests of Canada's parts suppliers to support this initiative. It is time for Climate Friendly Driving. It is time for Maple Majestic." -Arkadiusz Kaminski, Chief Executive Officer, AK Motor International Corporation

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAAwub6lbD8 Maple Majestic Target Specifications:

Length: 4704mm (185.2") Height: 1440mm (56.7") Width: 2004mm (78.9") Wheelbase 3100mm (122.1") Track 1685mm (66.3") Min. Ground Clearance: 140mm (5.5") Target Ride Height Adjustment 150 mm (5.9") Tires: 275/35R21 Website: www.MapleMajestic.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/CANU.MapleMajestic

Twitter: @MapleMajestic SOURCE AK Motor International Corporation

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A team led by researchers from the Yale School of Public Health has found how the B.1.1.7 variant of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), first found in the United Kingdom, made its way into several states in the United States. While the coronavirus pandemic has affected almost every country worldwide, the United States currently leads with over 27.8 million reported infections and the highest number of global deaths exceedingly over 2.4 million.

Kirsten St. George, Nathan D. Grubaugh and colleagues say that regardless of increased travel restrictions and increased coronavirus testing, the United States underreported genomic sequencing of potential new variants from confirmed positive COVID-19 cases. Because the United States sequenced only approximately 0.13% of COVID-19 cases, it was initially difficult to detect when the B.1.1.7 variant first emerged in America.

The sequencing capacity is highly variable across the country, and our travel data helps to identify regions disproportionately underreporting cases of B.1.1.7 and where it would be prudent to immediately prioritize variant surveillance, write the authors.

The study Early introductions and community transmission of SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.1.7 in the United States is available as a preprint on the medRxiv* server, while the article undergoes peer review.

Tracking down the virus

The researchers used a combination of October 2020 flight records from the United Kingdom into all United States airports and SARS-CoV-2 genomic sequencing to detect the origins of the B.1.1.7 variant in the U.S. They reasoned this time period was chosen because not only was it the most recent data available, but it also overlapped with the time the B.1.1.7 variant was initially thought to have been spreading all over the United Kingdom.

According to the CDCs early February report, 33 states have confirmed 541 B.1.1.7 cases in the United States. However, the authors reason the low genomic surveillance may not represent the true extent of the variants spread. They instead analyzed the number of reported cases from December 2020 to January 2021 with the percent of SARS-CoV-2 clinical samples taken.

Identification of regions at risk for importation of B.1.1.7 and at risk for underreporting B.1.1.7. A. Number of passengers inbound from the United Kingdom for the top 15 airports in October 2020 (labeled dots; size and color scaling with population, see legend) are shown on a map of the continental United States (grey). B. Bar plot represents the percentage of cases in each state during Dec 2020 and Jan 2021 (bottom x-axis; sourced from https://covidtracking.com/data ) that have sequences uploaded to GISAID.org (accessed on Feb 4, 2021). Bars are colored according to region (legend, top right). The number of B.1.1.7 sequences for each state (top x-axis; black dots) was determined by the Pangolin lineage assignment in the GSIAID.org metadata. C-D. Total number of passengers arriving from the UK in October 2020 to each state in the continental US is plotted against the number of SARS-CoV-2 (C) or B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 (D) sequences available on GISAID.org. Points are colored according to region (legend from panel B). The data used to create this figure are listed in Data S1.

Strong evidence of variant spread first originating in New York

Low genomic surveillance was reported from December to January, with only 0.1% of COVID-19 cases sequenced and made available to researchers. A total of 26 states had less than 0.1% case sequences, and at the time of preprint publication, 14 states had not submitted any genomic sequence related to B.1.1.7.

A high number of B.1.1.7 strains were found in New York, California, and Florida. The sequencing coincides with the large number of incoming international flights from the United Kingdom into these states airports.

Multiple introductions, domestic spread, and community transmission of B.1.1.7 SARS-CoV-2 in the United States. A. Maximum likelihood phylogeny of B.1.1.7, including representative genomes from the US, Europe, other global locations. B. Highlights of singletons and clades representing direct introductions of B.1.1.7 from Europe, into distinct regions of the US, based on the same phylogenetic tree shown in (A). A list of the Europe to US transitions can be found in Data S1. C-E. Time-informed maximum likelihood phylogeny of distinct B.1.1.7 clades showing instances of domestic spread (C,E) and/or community transmission within New York (C), Connecticut (C), Michigan (C,D), and Illinois (E). The list of SARS-CoV-2 sequences used in this study and author acknowledgments can be found in Data S2.

Of all three, the researchers concluded that New York most likely was the central hub for incoming B.1.1.7 variants, which later spread to other states. The New York-New Jersey area had a record of 14,317 passengers to and from the United Kingdom. These results correspond with the first COVID-19 case with the new variant detected in New Yorks Saratoga County on December 24, 2020.

As the B.1.1.7 variant remained undetected, the researchers suggest sustained community transmission likely occurred in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Illinois starting January 2021.

Thus, increasing surveillance for B.1.1.7 and other variants through sequencing and more conventional methods must be made a high priority, write the researchers.

Strong possibility of B.1.17 variant in other states

While the researchers sequenced most B.1.1.7 variants in New York, the researchers say underreporting may have contributed to undetected cases in other states. Their results showed Texas, Illinois, and New Jersey had more than 2,500 people flying in from the United Kingdom. Yet, all three states had 0.05% or less of sequenced cases. The authors suggest a strong possibility that the spread of the new strain is increasing in other states.

In places like New Jersey, Illinois, and Texas, however, if SARS-CoV-2 genomic surveillance could be increased, it might determine if B.1.1.7 cases are disproportionately underreported as compared to New York and California, write the researchers.

More genomic surveillance needed for future research

Given the limited travel data and low genomic surveillance, the researchers say its too small of a sample to represent the entire spread of this variant in the United States. Additionally, they could not evaluate the rate of transmission across different regions and assumed community spread was high. In reality, local conditions and behaviors play an important role for B.1.1.7 establishment, and could explain why cases are low in some states.

With the rising spread of the new variants, the research team suggests increasing genomic surveillance is a high-priority task needed to mitigate the viruss spread.

*Important Notice

medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information.
Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help

House Bill 133 aims to extend Medicaid coverage to eligible new mothers. The House version of the bill calls for a one-year extension, whereas the Senate version calls for a six-month extension. Advocates say the bill could reduce the states maternal mortality rate. Currently, the state offers Medicaid for two months after giving birth. Should Texas extend Medicaid for eligible new mothers for six months or one year?

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Do you shop at Fred Meyer? If so then you probably do what you can to save money on groceries. However, if you arent making use of the price match guarantee at Fred Meyer, then youre not doing all that you can. Learn all about how the guarantee works so that you can always get the best price

What Is Fred Meyer?

Fred Meyer is a large grocery store that also sells a wide range of other items. Fred Meyer stores often sell items for the home, clothing and jewelry, electronics, sporting goods, and more. Youll often find additional services inside the store such as a bank, a pharmacy, and restaurant food. If youre familiar with Walmart or Target stores that have grocery stores inside of them then youll have a sense of what a Fred Meyer store might be like.

Originally founded in the 1930s in Portland, Oregon, its a store youll find in West Coast America. Fred Meyer actually merged with Kroger in the late 1990s. However, stores in Oregon kept the well-known Fred Meyer brand name. Additionally, youll find Fred Meyer stores in Alaska, California, Idaho, and Washington State. If you live in another state then youll want to look for Kroger stores instead.

Is There a Fred Meyer Price Match Guarantee?

Yes, you can take advantage of the Fred Meyer price match guarantee. If youre not familiar with this benefit, its when a store offers to match any lower price that you find in another store. In other words, the store guarantees that theyll give you the lowest price on any item that they sell. Therefore, if you find a lower price on the exact same item in a different store, then Fred Meyer will honor that price by matching it.

Does Fred Meyer Offer Price Matching for Every Item in the Store?

Fred Meyer is a huge store. They offer a wide range of different items. Therefore, youll need to know exactly how this applies when it comes to price matching.

No, they do not offer price matching for every item in their store. In contrast, they offer limited price matching. You can expect them to honor price matching in their clothing department, home department, and home electronics sections.

They do not offer price matching in other areas of the store. Therefore, you wont be able to take advantage of price matching on any of the following items:

Books, magazines, and greeting cards

Cleaning supplies including laundry and paper products

Fuel center products and services

Groceries including candy and adult beverages

Health and beauty department products

Jewelry

Natural choices

Pet food and supplies

Pharmacy items

Seasonal merchandise

Tobacco

Other Important Exclusions You Need to Know

Obviously, this is a huge exclusion. And its not the only restriction on the Fred Meyer Price Match Guarantee. Here are some other key exclusions that you need to know:

The Fred Meyer Price Match Guarantee does not include the following items:

Door-busters or other special hours only sales prices

Items advertised by another store without listing a specific price (listed as BOGO, percent off, or dollars off only)

Products shipped / sold by third-party website sellers such as Amazon or eBay; note that you can still get some price matching on Amazon and other sites so see details below in the section on how to get the guarantee

Customer-only or member-only prices at other stores

Instant rebates

Promotional codes

Voice-only sales

Deals where you get a free item with your purchase

Minimum purchase required items

Products sold through outlet stores or warehouse stores

Raincheck sales

Pricing errors

Items that are out of stock, limited in quantity, on clearance, discontinued, and/or refurbished

Additionally, Fred Meyers does not match prices on items during the following dates: Thanksgiving calendar week through the following calendar week.

How to Get the Fred Meyer Price Match Guarantee

Okay, so there are a lot of exclusions and limitations on the Fred Meyer Price Match Guarantee. Nevertheless, you can definitely take advantage of the guarantee to save money. In fact, if youre careful about doing shopping comparisons in advance, then you can always make sure to get the lowest price on any item you purchase from the clothing, home, and electronics section of the store.

Shop with a List

Therefore, you should always shop with a list at Fred Meyer. Make sure that you know what you want to get. Be specific; you need to make sure that you know the exact item including brand and size if you want to do some comparison shopping.

Comparison Shop Before You Go

If at all possible, do your price comparisons online before you go to the store. Its the easiest way to do your comparison shopping. Youll save time and energy as compared to going to a variety of different stores. Simply go online and look for the item that you want at a variety of stores that are comparable to Fred Meyer.

Fred Meyer will match the lowest price at any local competitor that has a physical store within 20 miles of a Fred Meyer store. They will also match the lowest price at the following online stores with two caveats:

As long as they are not shipped / sold by a third party seller on the site They ship to an address within 20 miles radius of a Fred Meyer store

Amazon

AutoZone

Bass Pro

Bed Bath and Beyond

Best Buy

Barnes and Noble

Cabelas

Dicks Sporting Goods

Gamestop

Home Depot

JCPenney

Joann

Kmart

Kohls

Lowes

Macys

Michaels

Newegg

Office Depot

Sears

Staples

Target

Walgreens

Walmart

Wayfair

Therefore, do comparison shopping at these stores to find a lower price than the Fred Meyer price on apparel, home, and electronics goods.

How to Request the Lower Price at Fred Meyer

You have found a lower price at another store. Therefore, youre ready to take advantage of the Fred Meyer Price Match Guarantee. Now what?

Bring proof of the lower price to the Fred Meyer store. You can bring a print advertisement or pull the price up on your mobile phone. Make sure that whatever you bring shows the price as well as the date. After all, you only get the price match if the other store currently offers that lower price.

Show that proof to a Fred Meyer employee. You can show it to the cashier. Alternatively, you can show it to the person at the customer service desk or to an associate in the apparel, home, or home electronics section of the store where youre requesting the deal.

Fred Meyer Also Matches Their Own Lowest Prices Within 30 Days

If you go to a Fred Meyer store and make a purchase, then save your receipt. If you notice that the same item goes on sale for a lower price within 30 days of your purchase, pull out that receipt. Fred Meyer will give you the lower price when you ask.

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The coronavirus vaccine is so coveted in the US that two women in Florida went to extremes on Wednesday to get inoculated: they dressed as if they were elderly, health officials said.

The women, both younger than 45, wore bonnets, gloves and glasses to disguise themselves as older than 65, the cut-off age to be prioritised to get the coronavirus vaccine in Orlando, according to Raul Pino, the director of the health department in Orange County. He attributed the deception to growing interest in the vaccine, giving the example of the women while explaining how high demand was in the area.

Two women were caught trying to pass as elderly to be able to get their second COVID-19 vaccine. Credit:Virginia Star

This is the hottest commodity that is out there right now so we have to be very careful, Pino said on Thursday.

The geriatric guise is the latest instance of people trying to jump the queue to get vaccinated from the deadly virus. Last month, authorities identified a wealthy Canadian couple who had posed as locals in a remote Indigenous community to take doses meant for elders. An Indiana health department issued a warning earlier this month against what they called a substantial lack of morality after people had lied to vaccination site workers about their addresses, jobs and ages.

The Florida womens costumes may have succeeded before - both had the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention card indicating they had received their first doses. Pino said he did not know how they could have been previously vaccinated, but on Wednesday workers at the site at the Orange County Convention Centre caught on.

Once the staff at the site noticed the discrepancy with their birthdays listed on their driver licences, the women, 44 and 34, were referred to deputies, who issued trespass warnings against them, the Orange County Sheriffs Office said.

The women, whom The Washington Post is not identifying because they have not been charged, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday evening.

They did not get their second shot, and security at the site was heightened in the wake of the incident, said Kent Donahue, a spokesman for the health department.

Pino said there had been a few cases of people trying to trick health workers into getting vaccinated, including a man who had the same name as his elderly father.

As we are engaged in this process trying to move quickly, some people could squeeze in, so its probably higher than we suspect, he said of the number of people who might lie to get vaccinated.

Asked if it was frustrating to him that the two women skipped the queue, Pino said it wasnt up to him to determine who should be next in line, referring to the prioritisation scale set up by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican.

Our job as a health department is to vaccinate as many people as possible, Pino said.

DeSantis was criticised this week after he unveiled a pop-up clinic offering vaccines in an affluent, mostly white neighbourhood of Manatee County, Florida.

The state has been allocated 3.4 million doses and administered more than 2.5 million first doses, according to data compiled by the Post.

Orange County has vaccinated more than 200,000 people, Pino said, adding that the county is increasing its capacity to keep up with desire in the community.

Its great to see that demand, he said. We havent had any lack of willing arms to get vaccinated... we have people faking to be old to get vaccinated.
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Tens of millions of Americans in the Northeast are under winter weather advisories as Winter Storm Viola threatens to dump up to ten inches of snow on New York City, which has already seen double its regular snowfall with 34 inches this year.

The National Weather Service (NWS) winter weather advisories are in effect from Thursday morning until early Friday evening due to a 'major' winter storm impacting an area stretching from Virginia up to the Northeast with dangerous, icy buildups and heavy snowfall.

'The swath of heaviest snowfall is forecast to occur from the Appalachians of Virginia and West Virginia to northern Maryland and southern Pennsylvania,' the NWS said, warning of treacherous travel conditions.

According to AccuWeather, New York City is predicted to be in the heart of the snowstorm with between 3 to 5 inches of snow by Thursday night.

An additional 1 to 3 inches of snow is possible Thursday night into Friday morning. Manhattan could possibly see 6 to 10 inches of snow by the time the storm moves out of the area.

Forecasters said that New York City has received nearly twice its normal seasonal snowfall with nearly 33.8 inches compared to the usual 17.1 inches from December 1 to February 17. New York's snowiest winter was between 1995-1996 with 75.6 inches.

Snow is expected to fall at rates of 1-2 inches per hour through the midday hours of Thursday along the Interstate-95 corridor of the mid-Atlantic.

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Millions of Americans in the Northeast are under winter weather advisories as another round of snow and ice could leave hundreds of thousands in the dark through the end of the week

New York City is predicted to be in the heart of the snowstorm with between 3 to 5 inches of snow by Thursday night

This satellite image shows Winter Storm Viola impacting the Northeast on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: While the first part of the double-barreled storm had passed over parts of New York and New Jersey by Thursday afternoon, forecasters warned that more is predicted to come. Times Square is seen during snowfall on Thursday morning

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: The second part of the storm is forecast to hit the region Thursday evening, forecasters warned. A New Yorker is seen riding a bike in the snow on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: 'Another wave of precipitation looks likely this evening, which could bring an additional burst of snow and sleet for central and eastern Pennsylvania, southern New York, New Jersey and Maryland,' AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Courtney Travis said. New Yorkers are seen crossing a street in Times Square Thursday morning

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: A food truck sits in Manhattan's Times Square as snowfall hit the area Thursday morning

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: City workers are seen walking through snow Thursday morning in Manhattan

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: A woman is seen carrying her dog as they walked in the snow in Manhattan Thursday morning

AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Dombek said: 'Regardless if precipitation evolves to an icy mix or even rain in some coastal areas, it is going to snow very hard during the first part of the storm from late Wednesday night to Thursday midday from just northwest of Washington, DC, to Philadelphia and New York City.'

The new snow storm prompted the shutdown of two vaccination sites in New York City, one in Queens and another on Staten Island.

And while the first part of the double-barreled storm had passed over parts of New York and New Jersey by Thursday afternoon, forecasters warned that more is predicted to come.

The second part of the storm is forecast to hit the region Thursday evening. 'Another wave of precipitation looks likely this evening, which could bring an additional burst of snow and sleet for central and eastern Pennsylvania, southern New York, New Jersey and Maryland,' AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Courtney Travis said.

'Roads could still be quite slick and any motorists should use caution if they have to be out tonight,' Travis added.

The storm will continue to climb up the Northeast coast through Providence, Rhode Island, and Boston.

About 6 to 12 inches is expected to fall from northeastern West Virginia through central Massachusetts and possibly New Hampshire.

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: Snowfall began in New York City early Thursday morning. A New Yorker is seen walking in Bushwick, Brooklyn

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: A woman was seen wrapped up tightly Thursday morning as she walked through fresh snow that had started falling early

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: New York City workers are seen treating sidewalks in Bushwick, Brooklyn, on Thursday morning

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Snow is seen falling in Manhattan's Central Park on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: New Yorkers walk through Central Park amid a snow storm on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Snowfall in Central Park, Manhattan, as Winter Storm Viola hit the area on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: A city employee drives a truck with a snow plow near Central Park on Thursday

Snow in February: How 2021 stacks up against previous years in NYC February 2021 is the snowiest February in five years for New York City. The Big Apple needs another 3.7 inches for February 2021 to get into the top 10 snowiest Februaries and 6.5 inches to get into the top 5 Februaries. 1. 2009 - 37 inches of snow 2. 2013 - 29 inches of snow 3. 2005 - 27 inches of snow 4. 2002 - 26 inches of snow 5. 2021 - 20 inches of snow and counting 6. 2004 - 16 inches of snow 7. 2014 - 14 inches of snow 8. 2012 - 12 inches of snow Advertisement

So far, more than six inches has been reported in King of Prussia, in suburban Philadelphia. Parts of Maryland and West Virginia have also reported five inches of snowfall.

According to AccuWeather, Philadelphia has recorded 19.7 inches of snow as of February 17 compared to the normal amount of 15.4 inches.

Hollywood, Maryland, is covered in a coating of ice after an extended period of freezing rain, forecasters said.

Meanwhile, power outages in Texas dropped to just over 500,000 on Thursday morning for the first time in four days, but many people remained without electricity or safe drinking water after winter storms wreaked havoc on the state's power grid and utilities.

This week's extreme weather has been blamed for the deaths of more than 30 people, some of whom perished while struggling to keep warm inside their homes.

In the Houston area, one family succumbed to carbon monoxide from car exhaust in their garage. A grandmother and three children died when flames escaped the fireplace they were using to keep warm.

In Texas, about 560,000 homes and businesses were still without electricity Thursday morning, down from about 3 million the day before.

But Texas' grid manager, under fire for its response to the winter storm, has warned that the outages could fluctuate during hours of peak energy demand.

Adding to the misery, the snowy weather has jeopardized drinking water systems throughout the state.

Texas officials ordered 7 million people - a quarter of the population of the nations second-largest state - to boil tap water before drinking it following days of record low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and froze pipes.

In Austin, some hospitals faced a loss in water pressure and in some cases, heat.

'Because this is a state-wide emergency situation that is also impacting other hospitals within the Austin area, no one hospital currently has the capacity to accept transport of a large number of patients,' St. David's South Austin Medical Center CEO David Huffstutler said in a statement.

Water pressure has fallen across the state because lines have frozen, and many residents are leaving faucets dripping in hopes of preventing pipes from freezing, said Toby Baker, executive director of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: New Yorkers were seen out and about Thursday morning as snow started to fall in the city

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: A woman is seen crossing the street in Brooklyn, New York, Thursday morning as snow started to fall

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: New Yorkers are seen preparing for an early morning commute in Brooklyn on Thursday

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: Snow from Winter Storm Viola started to come down Thursday morning as forecasters predict up to 10 inches of snow in the Big Apple by Friday evening

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: A New Yorker is seen riding a bike in Brooklyn as the snow started to fall Thursday morning

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: Snow started falling early Thursday morning in New York City (Williamsburg, Brooklyn, pictured)

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: A New Yorker is seen crossing a street in snow-covered Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on Thursday morning

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: A delivery person is seen pushing a cart full of packages through the snow on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Snow falls on Thursday in the Big Apple where up to 10 inches of snow has been forecast

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: The East River is shrouded in heavy snow clouds as seen from Williamsburg, Brooklyn on Thursday

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK: A man shovels snow off the sidewalk in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on Thursday

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Robert John Burck, better known as the Naked Cowboy, is seen as snow falls in Times Square, Manhattan, during a winter storm on Thursday

Texas Gov Greg Abbott urged residents to shut off water to their homes, if possible, to prevent more busted pipes and preserve pressure in municipal systems.

Weather-related outages have been particularly stubborn in Oregon, where some customers have been without power for almost a week.

A Portland supermarket without power threw perishable food into dumpsters, leading to a clash between scavengers and police.

The damage to the power system was the worst in 40 years, said Maria Pope, CEO of Portland General Electric.

At the peak of the storm, more than 350,000 customers in the Portland area were in the dark.

More than 100,000 customers remained without power Thursday in Oregon.

'These are the most dangerous conditions we've ever seen in the history of PGE,' said Dale Goodman, director of utility operations, who declined to predict when all customers would have power restored.

Utilities from Minnesota to Texas have implemented rolling blackouts to ease the burden on strained power grids.

The Southwest Power Pool, a group of utilities covering 14 states, said the blackouts were 'a last resort to preserve the reliability of the electric system as a whole.'

Parts of Pennsylvania and New York are forecast to receive between 5-8 inches of snow and maybe more depending of the weather system

New York, Boston, Philadelphia and other states in the Northeast region will continue to see snow throughout the day on Friday

The probability of ice accumulating is highest in parts of Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, DC

Snow will continue to fall in New York, Boston and Philadelphia through Thursday night (depicted)

WASHINGTON, DC: Cars drive slowly on an icy road through Rock Creek Park in the Woodley Park neighborhood of Washington, DC, on Thursday

WASHINGTON, DC: Trucks clear ice and snow off the William Howard Taft Bridge in the Woodley Park neighborhood of DC, on Thursday

WASHINGTON, DC: City workers spread chemical salt on an icy sidewalk in the Woodley Park neighborhood of Washington, DC, on Thursday

WASHINGTON, DC: A member of the National Park Service clears snow and ice from the White House as winter weather falls in DC on Thursday

RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY: Tiara Maysonet, 26, looks at her vehicle after she lost control of it on East Pierrepont Avenue in Rutherford, New Jersey, on Thursday. Maysonet said she was driving as slow as she could before hitting a mound of ice and snow

CINCINNATI, OHIO: Jeff Fields salts the sidewalk outside Somm Wine Bar in East Price Hill on Thursday in Cincinnati, Ohio

In Little Rock, Arkansas, 15 inches of snow was on the ground Thursday after back-to-back storms, tying a record for snow depth set in 1918, the National Weather Service said.

The weather also disrupted water systems in several Southern cities, including in New Orleans and Shreveport, Louisiana, where city fire trucks delivered water to several hospitals, and bottled water was being brought in for patients and staff, Shreveport television station KSLA reported.

Louisiana Gov John Bel Edwards sought a presidential emergency declaration Wednesday evening, seeking federal money and supplies in response to extended power outages in his state.

Power was cut to a New Orleans facility that pumps drinking water from the Mississippi River. A spokeswoman for the Sewerage and Water Board said on-site generators were used until electricity was restored.

In the southwest Louisiana city of Lake Charles, Mayor Nic Hunter said Wednesday that water reserves remained low and local hospitals were faced with the possibility they might have to transfer patients to other areas.

Coast-to-coast, Accuweather founder and CEO, Dr Joel N. Myers estimates that the total damage and economic loss caused by the winter storms to be between $45 and $50billion.
CSL chief executive Paul Perreault has warned the outlook for plasma collections remains challenging for the biotech giant, damping investor hopes for a profit upgrade after first-half earnings jumped 44 per cent.

The companys shares opened up 5 per cent on Thursday, running as high as $295.30 early in the day after the countrys local COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer posted a net profit of $US1.8 billion ($2.3 billion) for the six months to December 31. Sales rose 15 per cent to $US5.7 billion in the half.

Strong demand for CSLs flagship immune deficiency treatment Hizentra increased revenue at pharmaceutical division CSL Behring by 9 per cent to $US4.3 billion. Yet the companys vaccine producer Seqirus was the standout performer, with sales up 38 per cent to $US1.4 billion amid global demand for seasonal influenza vaccines in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company said in a statement to the ASX.

The CSL facility in Melbourne is manufacturing Oxford-AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine. Credit:Getty

But Mr Perreault cautioned that despite being an exceptional result in tough market conditions, the numbers were more complicated than they first appeared.
The app, available on Apple and Android devices, communicates with users in easy-to-understand, conversational language. It is available continuously and responds in real-time.

The Medical Brain meets strict data privacy and confidentiality standards to securely screen employees based on symptoms, potential exposure and test results so they can safely access their workplaces and the community to provide essential services. A badge is issued for safe facility access.

These capabilities are especially important for the thousands of mission-driven ACS employees who work tirelessly with children and families in their homes and communities.

"Since the beginning of the pandemic, healthPrecision has been deeply invested in using our advanced AI applications to keep people safe now and in the long term," said Eyal Ephrat, MD, CEO and cofounder of healthPrecision. "We are thrilled to partner with ACS to protect some of the most essential workers right here in New York City: the public servants who are risking their own health - and their families' health - to care for vulnerable infants, children, and youth who need extra support during this trying time."

"The health and safety of staff, and the children and families we serve, is our top priority and we've continued to put protocols in place to help our staff carry out their mission safely during the pandemic. The launch of the new COVID-19 Medical Brain app is just one more way we're working to protect and support ACS staff during this challenging time," said Commissioner David A. Hansell.

About New York Administration for Children's Services

The Administration for Children's Services (ACS) protects and promotes the safety and wellbeing of New York City's children and families by providing child welfare, juvenile justice, and early care and education services. ACS seeks to recruit Youth Development Specialists (YDS) to provide safe and secure supervision and care to at-risk youth who are placed in secure juvenile detention by the court.

About healthPrecision: healthPrecision is committed to breakthrough changes in healthcare and population well-being through innovative technology that helps people improve their health long-term. healthPrecision's team of 70+ physicians and nurses, data science specialists, and medical engineers combine their skills to create leading decision support systems for the industry and serve our healthcare heroes in the midst of this crisis.

For more information contact healthPrecision at:

[email protected]

772-486-5868

Visit healthPrecision's website to learn about their Medical Brain.

https://medicalbrain.com

ACS

[email protected]

https://www1.nyc.gov/site/acs/index.page

Contact:

[email protected]

Visit healthPrecision's website to learn about their Medical Brain

https://medicalbrain.com

SOURCE healthPrecision
By John W. Bartlett

The past year has shone a spotlight on many deep and enduring inequalities in our nation. As we begin to design and invest in Americas post-COVID19 economy, a need that deserves particular attention is access to transportation.

Today, where you live and how much money you have, among other factors, determine how easy it is to get to jobs, shopping, education, and other destinations. More than the last three recessions, the recession caused by the pandemic has significantly affected those among us who earn the least. This is because most of the jobs being lost are those in the service industry  retail, hospitality, custodial, and other jobs that simply cant be done from home.

The workers we applaud as essential may begin and end their long and difficult days with a difficult transit journey between work and home. In some locations, if you dont drive or cant afford a car, your travel options are limited. Taking a train or bus  or multiple trains and buses to reach distant destinations  can be extremely challenging. For my constituents in places like the City of Passaic, which has the lowest household car ownership rate (43%) of any New Jersey municipality, that leaves a lot of residents without good options to access work or school. Even when they can access economic opportunity, they pay a tax in time and effort just to get where they need to go.

As we continue to struggle through the pandemic, we must also acknowledge the transportation challenges it has created. Drastically reduced transit ridership around the country has led to decreased revenue and, in some cases, service cuts. New Jersey has not reduced bus or rail service, and should not, as such cutbacks would hurt our most vulnerable populations. If we focus only on the transit systems bottom line, our reflex will be to raise rates and cut service. But we really need to do the opposite: make the investments that will enable all New Jerseyans not just to recover but to thrive.

As Passaic Countys representative on the North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA), Ive been working on these issues for eight years. Each year, the NJTPA oversees the investment of more than $2 billion in 13 counties from the Jersey Shore to the New York border.

Now, $2 billion may sound like a lot, but about three-quarters of that goes to maintaining the current transportation system  repairing bridges, repaving roads, and replacing and fixing buses and rail cars. The remaining quarter can go to filling gaps in the system and meeting needs for improved transportation access.

These investments are guided by a long-range transportation plan, which the NJTPA is updating this year. Public input is an integral part of drafting these plans, and your involvement can help us create a more accessible transportation system.

The events of the past year have given the NJTPA a renewed focus on addressing transportation equity. We have been reminded that past decisions are at the root of much inequality in transportation, including policies and investments that isolated and discriminated against minority communities. The NJTPAs next long-range plan, Plan 2050: Transportation, People, Opportunity, will make policy recommendations, envision new efforts, and detail transportation investments in our region over the next 30 years.

Transportation is all about access. A transportation system thats too dependent on driving fails people who dont have cars, as well as the elderly, the young, and people with disabilities. Transportation inequities ripple through all facets of peoples lives. For example, when we talk about our urban cores as food deserts, lacking affordable and healthy grocery options, were identifying a nutrition challenge but also a transit problem. Likewise, its Patersons status as a labor surplus area  a place with more employable residents than jobs  that makes it so important for us to create more train and rapid bus connections to places like Hackensack and Newark.

Transit investments drive economic development better than tax incentives and other more conspicuous forms of business support. They also provide a broader positive impact, even in unexpected ways: Building ramps for people in wheelchairs, for example, has helped people pushing strollers and pulling luggage, too.

For over half a century, we have judged our transportation infrastructure based on how quickly and efficiently we move cars on highways. Thats the wrong question. We should be judging the system as a whole on the access it provides to all its potential users. Increasing mass transit capacity, and making it safer and easier to walk and bicycle, equates to better access for all; it also reduces demand for automobiles, thus reducing traffic along with the economic and environmental repercussions of car dependence.

With that changed focus, now its time to plan our way to mid-century and identify the investments New Jersey communities need most as it shapes Plan 2050.

Passaic County Commissioner John W. Bartlett serves as first vice-chair of the New Jersey Transportation Planning Authority.

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Heres how to submit an op-ed or Letter to the Editor. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow us on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and on Facebook at NJ.com Opinion. Get the latest news updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
There is a significant excess of deaths over births: 100 to 48.

Ukraine's population in 2020 decreased by 314,100, amounting as of January 1, 2021, to 41,588,000, the State Statistics Service of Ukraine reported.

In 2020, a total of 293,457 births were recorded in Ukraine against 308,817 in the previous year, as per the State Statistics Service.

Over the past year, the natural population decline was recorded at 323,378 people, while in 2019 the natural decline amounted to 272,297.

The number of those who moved to Ukraine in 2020 exceeded the number of those who left the country by 9,316. In 2019, this figure was 21,512.

The State Statistics Service has also noted a significant excess of deaths over births, or "natural decrease": 100 to 48.

Read alsoNational census in Ukraine postponed over coronavirus pandemic  mediaThe calculation covers all regions of Ukraine, except for the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.

Data on the natural and migration movement of the population takes no account of the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, and the city of Sevastopol.

As UNIAN reported earlier citing the stats agency, Ukraine's population in January-November 2020 decreased by 272,500 and as of December 1, 2020, stood at 41,630,000.

Reporting by UNIAN
COVID: Centre announces additional benefits under EPFO, ESIC schemes 30 May 2021 | 11:41 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) The Ministry of Labour and Employment on Sunday announced additional benefits for workers through ESIC and EPFO schemes to address the fear and anxiety of workers about well-being of their family members due to increase in incidences of death due to COVID-19 pandemic. see more..

Old Goa and Panjim to be soon connected through ferry & cruise: Mandavia 30 May 2021 | 10:31 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) The Minister of State for Ports, Shipping & Waterways Mansukh Mandaviya, while inaugurating the second floating jetty at Old Goa virtually on the occasion of Goa statehood day on Sunday, announced that Panjim and Old Goa will be connected by ferry and cruise services. see more..

ICG ships continue its efforts to control the fire onboard MV X-Press Pearl off Colombo 30 May 2021 | 10:25 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Sunday said that its ships have been is working tirelessly to extinguish the massive fire onboard container vessel MV X-Press Pearl off Colombo in Sri Lankan water. see more..

Emergency medical ICU unit installed in Indian Navy ALH helicopter 30 May 2021 | 9:41 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) With an aim to evacuate the critical patients in bad weather, the the Indian Navy on Sunday said that a Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) has been installed onboard ALH Mk III helicopter from INAS 323 at INS Hansa by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). see more..
The Company's NAV increased by 0.1% during the month of January (in Sterling terms with dividends reinvested).



Despite much of the world remaining in a state of lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, the year started with a flavour of optimism in global equity markets as investors focused on the potential for a vaccine-driven economic restart. This narrative was somewhat derailed towards the end of the month as it became clear that there was a divergence in the vaccine roll out in different countries. Against this backdrop, the MSCI AC World Index fell by 0.6%. In Europe, the vaccine roll-out, or lack of it, dominated the headlines. The UK and the US remain in the lead with Europe lagging behind and tensions escalated at the end of the month over vaccine supplies.



President Joe Biden was inaugurated in mid January and cyclical stocks were buoyed as the market digested the $1.9 trillion stimulus package proposed by the new President. Within the conventional energy sector, we have seen a moratorium on new drilling permits and potential question marks around federal land and future drilling on federal land. This will likely further constrain US shale growth. Elsewhere, President Biden has scrapped the Keystone XL permit. Despite continued concerns on the demand side for oil, offsetting this on the supply side, Saudi Arabia has planned to unilaterally cut production in February and March by an additional million barrels per day. This is keeping the oil market tight. For reference, oil continues to trade in backwardation. Against this backdrop, oil prices rose, with Brent and WTI (West Texas Intermediate) increasing by 7.9% and 8.4%, ending the month at $55/bbl and $52/bbl respectively.



The energy transition space benefitted from expectations of supportive policies and from China's greater than expected wind and solar installations reported for 2020. The Chinese National Energy Administration (NEA) announced 72GW of wind generation capacity and 48GW of solar capacity installed, a total of 120GW. Market expectations differed widely but typically were for around half the capacity for wind power installations. Within clean transportation, electric vehicle (EV) sales for 2020 totalled 3.2m units, 43% higher than for 2019, despite the negative impact from COVID-19 related restrictions on total vehicle sales.



Within the mining sub-sector, tougher COVID-related restrictions in China stoked concern around economic activity in the country and in turn, its commodity demand. Mined commodity performance was varied, with iron ore (62% fe) and gold prices down 0.9% and 2.1% respectively, but the copper price up 1.5%. Turning to the companies, 2020 production results were announced during the month and, in general, they were in line with expectations, with relatively limited COVID-19 related disruptions. Investors are now looking ahead to the February earnings reporting season in which we are expecting to see strong financial results and continued focus on returning capital to shareholders.



All data points in US Dollar terms unless otherwise specified. Commodity price moves sourced from Thomson Reuters Datastream.



18 February 2021
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First Texans lost their power. Now, theyre losing their potable water.

After enduring multiple days of freezing temperatures and Texans dripping faucets to prevent frozen pipes from bursting, cities across the state warned residents on Wednesday that water levels are dangerously low and may be unsafe to drink. Theyre asking Texans to boil tap water for drinking, cooking, brushing their teeth and for making ice  as residents have been struggling to maintain power and heat while an unprecedented winter storm whips across the state. Activities such as showering and doing laundry are safe, but cities under water boil notices are asking people to conserve water if at all possible.

THE NEXT FEW DAYS: Millions of Houstonians will remain powerless in days to come, Houston city officials say

Approximately 420 public water systems in 120 Texas counties have reported disruptions in service, affecting more than 8 million people, according to a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality spokesperson, as of Wednesday afternoon.

Water pressure is very low. Please do not run water to keep pipes from bursting, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner tweeted Wednesday morning. Turn off water if pipes have burst. Please contact us if you dont know how to turn off water. Be conservative on water usage today. It is needed for hospitals and fires.

Austin Mayor Steve Adler on Wednesday afternoon acknowledged that dripping faucets was the correct guidance earlier this week, but now its in peoples best interest to shift gears and conserve water. The city is also calling for volunteers who can help transport people from their homes to warming centers.

At a Wednesday press conference, Toby Baker, TCEQ executive director, said water quality issues were related to the lack of electricity, frozen and broken water lines, and people dripping faucets so much that it was causing water lower pressure. Baker also said it will take testing to demonstrate that the water is safe before boil notices can be lifted. There are only 135 labs in the state that do that sampling, he said, which means the boil notices could linger.

Its not clear when water supplies will be replenished, but energy constraints often have impact on the water system because the water system requires energy for treatment and pumping, said Michael Webber, an energy resources professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

But because freezing temperatures are expected to persist throughout the week, bursting pipes could still be a risk, Webber said.

That temperatures will drop below freezing again introduces the risk that water will freeze in pipes which can block the flow of water or damage the pipes, Webber said.

The loss of drinking water is a devastating blow to Texans who are still suffering from power losses in freezing temperatures.

Madie Leon Riley, a Pflugerville resident who has been without water since Monday morning, said she doesnt know when her faucet will be able to turn back on again  or when her toilet will be able to flush without melting top snow in it to keep water flow moving. Her mother and husband, who are currently living with her, are also boiling snow as back-up drinking water.

No grocery stores are open in our area so theres no chance for restock even if you are one of the very few with a car that can make it the miles it would take to get water, Riley, a 27-year-old writer, told The Texas Tribune.

One Fort Worth resident reported a small pencil-width stream of water at their house. A Houston-area woman who lives near the Medical Center got water back for about an hour yesterday after, but said it was brown and undrinkable. A resident in San Antonio said their water froze even after running their taps.

On Tuesday, more than 200,000 residents of northern Fort Worth, as well as people in Keller, Southlake, Roanoke and other nearby communities were told to boil their water as power outages affected water treatment plants, the Dallas Morning News reported.

On the same day, several Houston-area municipalities, including the Pearland, Katy and Greatwood-Sugarland areas, have also issued the same instructions to their customers, the Houston Chronicle reported.

By mid-day Wednesday, Austin water was encouraging residents in southern parts of the city to boil water before drinking it  but maintained theres not detected contaminants in the water we are providing.

#AustinWater is asking customers in southwest #Austin and Lost Creek neighborhood to boil their water prior to using it for drinking or cooking, until further notice, Austin Water tweeted. This boil water notice is currently in specific areas and is a precautionary measure to ensure the health and safety of our customers.
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The severe winter weather that knocked out power to much of San Antonio also disrupted water service citywide as the San Antonio Water System issued a precautionary boil water notice to all customers Wednesday when pressure dropped to potentially hazardous levels.

Steve Clouse, senior vice president and chief operating officer at SAWS, said water pressure throughout the system worsened Wednesday as pipes on private property began to thaw out, crack and spring leaks after days of below freezing temperatures.

Compounding the problem: Several pump stations throughout San Antonio were turned off in an effort to reduce electrical use as CPS Energy dealt with widespread power outages, some that have lasted days.

As the situation continued to decline, as we worked with CPS, requests were made that we would go offline, Clouse told City Council. We coordinated with them on that.

Even today, most of our larger facilities are in and off cycle, Clouse said. There were people who were freezing. We thought that was the best response.

The boil water notice urging residents to use boiled or bottled water for drinking, cooking and some hygiene purposes is the first sign of what is likely to emerge as the next phase in the winter storm crisis.

SAWS officials said most residents throughout San Antonio had either no water or low pressure, though it was hard to pin down the exact number.

Tens of thousands of residents are still without electricity, making it difficult, if not impossible, to boil water.

SAWS officials said the dropping pressure was the result of increased demand, bursting pipes across the city  though no city-owned water lines had broken  and equipment failures at water distribution facilities.

They said most water outages were concentrated in the outer areas of Bexar County, while residents inside Loop 410 were, for the most part, experiencing low water pressure.

Clouse, who had a pipe burst in his own home, warned that the situation could get worse before it gets better.

As these pipes in these homes continue to thaw, we will see more and more of what we call demand on the system, Clouse said. As those leaks start showing up, its very likely that we wont be able to keep up.

Some city leaders on Wednesday criticized SAWS officials for not being better prepared. They asked what could be done to make sure residents have access to clean drinking water, suggesting the opening of temporary water distribution stations throughout the city.

The conversation that were having right now is too late, District 2 Councilwoman Jada Andrews Sullivan said. We should have had an action plan set up, not waited to see what happened.

SAWS officials acknowledged that the water utility could improve its response. They are meeting with executives of H-E-B and Coca-Cola about the potential for the water distribution stations. Bottled water is growing scarce in San Antonio as the weather crisis continues; H-E-B has limited the number a customer can purchase.

On ExpressNews.com: Sen. Ted Cruz pins controversial Cancun flight on 'wanting to be a good dad' amid calls to resign

What we are under is probably a once in a generation, once in a lifetime kind of storm, Robert Puente, SAWS president and CEO, told City Council. As with any emergency, it is a learning process. We will use this particular emergency to reevaluate what worked and what did not.

Puente emphasized that the water boil advisory was a precautionary measure.

However, Clouse later acknowledged that water pressure in some parts of Bexar County had dipped below 20 pounds per square inch  the required minimum established by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality that prompts a mandatory notice.

Clouse said the utility was able to improve water pressure in the areas that had dropped below 20 pounds per square inch.

As of Wednesday evening, most areas in San Antonio were between 20 and 30 pounds psi, Clouse said. He said the utility decided to issue a boil water notice countywide  rather than just targeting certain areas  in an effort to avoid confusion.

The boil notice is a precautionary measure to make sure that our customers have safe drinking water, said Jelynne LeBlanc Burley, chairwoman of the SAWS Board of Trustees. So if you have normal water pressure, you likely dont have to worry about boiling it.

Specifically, SAWS is advising customers to boil water rigorously for two minutes before drinking.

Alternatively, people who dont have electrical power to boil water can disinfect using 1/8 teaspoon of household bleach per gallon of water. Shake or mix well and let it sit for 30 minutes before consuming.

Feeling the effect

Even before the boil-water notice was issued, residents throughout San Antonio were feeling the hardships of water outages and low pressure.

Brian Benavidez and his fiance, Erika Espinosa, stopped getting water in their Denver Heights home around noon Monday.

At first, the couple thought their pipes were frozen even though they had left their faucets dripping to prevent freezing.

When the dripping stopped, they went outside to check. Benavidez and Espinosa noticed that their neighbors also were outside. It turned out their water had gone out at the same time, leading the couple to believe that SAWS had turned off water in their area.

When Benavidez tried calling SAWS to report the outage, he was on hold for several minutes before the call was dropped. He also reached out to SAWS on Facebook and Twitter, to no avail.

On ExpressNews.com: '2 nights of terror' - San Antonio Housing Authority residents weather cold, dark

Benavidez said hes been frustrated that the water utility has passed off responsibility for problems with water service. He said the utility should acknowledge when pumping stations have lost power rather than asking homeowners if their pipes are frozen or broken.

Im confident that we dont have frozen pipes, if all of my neighbors are walking out at the exact same time, Benavidez said. The utility needs to explain it better.

Puente, in the City Council meeting, acknowledged that SAWS could have done a better job of communicating. He said many customer service representatives work at home and lost internet service. He said its been difficult to quickly respond to customers.

However, Clouse said that it is possible for a group of homes all to have frozen pipes at the same time.

A lot of people think, I dont have water, my neighbor doesnt have water, it must be a SAWS issue, Clouse said. A lot of homes in one area can have frozen pipes.

For many families, the low water pressure and water outages werent just a mere inconvenience  it was a health and safety concern.

Christina Gonzalez, 38, has several autoimmune disorders that leave her with pain throughout her body. Many times, she takes baths with epsom salt to relieve her symptoms.

For several days, her home on the South Side  not far from Loop 410 and Moursund Boulevard  had low water pressure, which prevented her from taking baths and bathing her four children. Those problems were compounded by power outages.

On Sunday, she was able to give her children showers at home, but then the pressure continued to plummet. For three days, she went without.

Finally, on Wednesday, she decided to go to a friends house so her children could take showers.

We cant shower. We cant do dishes. We cant cook, Gonzalez said. We cant do anything at this point.

eeaton@express-news.net

4WD

kW

Saying that Nissan has a lot riding on the third-generation Qashqai (also known as the Rogue Sport in the U.S.) might be the understatement of the year as far as the Japanese automaker is concerned. The company was careful not to mess up the successful recipe and decided the guidelines should include an elegant design, enhanced packaging and efficient powertrain combinations, as well as the all-important elevated quality.It's going to be a while before we have the chance to see in person if Nissan held its promises, as the Japanese automaker hasnt even announced an exact date for starting deliveries. So for now, lets focus on the novelties from a distance. As far as the design is concerned, the third Qashqai is an easy pick among its predecessors, thanks to Nissan's European Design Studio in London bringing an even edgier styling than before.More importantly, the crossover has updated dimensions that bring even more space inside. It's 35-mm (1.37-in) longer, 32-mm (1.25-in) wider, and 25-mm (1-in) taller, while the wheelbase has grown by 20 mm (0.8 inches). Also, for the first time ever, customers will be offered the choice of equipping the CUV with 20-inch alloy wheels.Eleven body colors are available for the exterior, along with five dual-tone combinations for a dash of luxury, while on the inside, the Qashqai is all about connectivity and comfort. Theres a bigger nine-inch NissanConnect touchscreen with higher resolution and a brand new 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster working in tandem with a 10.8-inch Head-Up Display (HUD).Just about every smartphone-related gizmo is also available, including Android Auto, wireless CarPlay, 3D maps with live navigation, as well as Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa device compatibility. As far as creature comforts are concerned, theres a powered hands-free tailgate, an additional 50 liters (1.76 cu ft) of luggage space in the trunk, and more space for the front and rear passengers. Under the hood , the compact crossover will feature Nissans 1.3 DiG-T mild-hybrid gasoline engine sporting 138 or 156 horsepower, with the high-end version optionally available with a new Xtronic gearbox and. The company is also premiering e-Power in Europe, the setup we already saw on the all-new Note that was presented at home in Japan.On this occasion, though, were seeing a thorough upgrade from the 1.2-liter gasoline engine charging the battery to a 1.5-liter mill thats good for 154 horsepower. The electric motor is also more powerful, jumping to 140(187 hp) and 330 Nm (243 lb-ft). For now, its only available as a two-wheel drive version, unlike the Note e-Power AWD
Disclaimer: This bit of writing is humour (the quality of being amusing or comic, especially as expressed in literature or speech) and therefore, it need not be taken seriously.

The name of Gandhi occurs once or twice in the writing but he is not the butt of any joke. My respect for him is no less than any other person on this planet. The joke is on me, poor voter. I do not intend to mock, insult, ridicule, deride, or make fun of or otherwise show in poor light any person dead, living, or yet unborn. I respect the rights of human beings. I uphold the rights of animals as well. In short I give no offence; I am not capable of giving any offence. It is not my purpose to cast any aspersion on any religion, superstition, fad, fashion, trend, custom, movement, hair style, style of dress, or rail against any ideology, philosophy, scientific theory, and hypothesis. I have firm faith in democracy, I am not an enemy of Marxism; capitalism does not bother me because I do not bother capitalism.

I am a meat-eater but if prohibited, I will make do with vegetables. I love my occasional single malt but when restrained by law I seek solace in the Rubaiyyats of Omar Khayyam, reading them aloud to myself to recreate the pleasures of the fabled elixir. I believe in universal peace and love yet I am not unduly affected if Syria is bombed or there is calm in Crimea. I live in peaceful co-existence with crime syndicates, corporate fraudsters, buccaneering bureaucrats, hoarders, adulterers. I pay lip service to the poor and am keen to mingle with those who are my better off. I pay my taxes, I cast my vote. I am a helpless citizen who babbles in his helplessness, hoping to reach some other kindred spirit.

I have tried to make my purpose clear in writing this piece, to the best of my ability, and yet if I manage to convey something else, at the very outset, I tender unreservedly, and without any hesitation, an unqualified apology to my would-be tormentors, to my trolls, rabble rousers, hecklers, friends who do not give a tosh for my views, foes who think it is all crap and faceless jokers who always have another point of view.

- The humorous bit begins from here. (Statutory warning: Adult Content)

Usually unreliable sources tell me that an independent members bill to make celibacy mandatory for all Indians, irrespective of their age and gender is under the consideration of an august body. It proposes to ban sex for people of all ages, save and except for the purposes of procreation, and for people above eighty, for the purposes of recreation.

Those who have had a peek at the draft tell me that it is one of the most progressive documents, free from any bias of caste, community or gender, free from any traces of misogyny and patriarchy.

The objective states that prohibition, (in certain states, but hopefully every other state will follow), ban on the consumption of beef and cow slaughter (exceptions are some states for electoral purpose), reflect the commitment of the Indian state to follow Gandhian edicts. With the legislation of celibacy, the dream of universal Brahmcharya will be fulfilled. And what better occasion than to pay this tribute to the Father of the Nation than in the year of his centenary celebration; the political consensus suggests that they are all agreed that the cumulative economic effect of these moves will automatically reduce every Indian into wearing only loin cloth, the dress sanctified by Gandhi Jee.

Many a law maker who were at a loss as what to ban next jumped with joy when this bill was tabled and there was much warmth and hugging across the party lines.

What use is power if you do not have the power to prohibit or dictate or interfere with the life of a billion people and more in the most intrusive way? a lawmaker told me. He even boasted that if a law was made today, prohibiting certain bodily functions, you could do precious little. You would have gone to hell in a hand cart by the time remedy was available by way of a court order.

I dared not dare him. What they do  and what they are capable of doing  was fresh in my mind.

- Humorous bit ends.

JAI HIND

India Today magazine once referred to Manoje Nath, a 1973-batch IPS officer, as being fiercely independent, honest, and upright. Besides his numerous official reports on various issues exposing corruption in the bureaucracy in Bihar, Nath is also a writer extraordinaire expressing his thoughts on subjects ranging from science fiction to the effects of globalization. His sense of humor was evident through his extremely popular series named "Gulliver in Patiliputra" and "Modest Proposals" that were published in the local newspapers.
SEATTLE, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Pipe17 , the connected infrastructure company for e-commerce, today announced the closing of an $8M round of funding led by GLP Capital Partners, the U.S.-based investment arm of GLP, the leading investor in logistics infrastructure and technology in the world. Participating investors include current and former C-suite leaders of e-commerce pioneers such as AllBirds, Amazon, Shopify and others. The funding follows strong customer and partner progress and will be used to accelerate go-to market efforts and expand the team to meet the rapid rise in demand.

"As strategic investors in e-commerce logistics, we are very familiar with the startups operating in this space," said Alan Yang, Chief Executive Officer of GLP Capital Partners. "We invested in Pipe17 because of the outstanding team, their track record and their unique vision for solving one of the biggest pain points for e-commerce merchants."

Connecting all the Pieces for E-commerce Merchants

Pipe17 provides a cloud-based service that connects merchant e-commerce businesses with an expanding set of e-commerce platforms, marketplaces, fulfillment centers, financial systems, and SaaS applications to form end-to-end automated operations. Pipe17 works in conjunction with merchant's existing systems, including ERPs like NetSuite, to provide control and visibility at every step of the fulfillment cycle, manage order and inventory flows and easily add and make changes to vendor services. Pipe17's no-code approach is fast and easy to set up and requires no administration.

"Pipe17 is the backbone of our e-commerce operations," said Matt Pierce, e-commerce manager at RipNDip, a Los Angeles based clothing brand, available in over 1,000 stores, that saw their e-commerce business double in the last year. "It makes it easier for us to expand into new channels and fulfill more error-free orders on time. At our recent Black Friday sales event, we received 4,500 e-commerce orders within a couple of hours, in addition to our wholesale and retail orders. In the past, this would have been like a storm hitting us, with limited visibility into the state of our orders and inventory. Thanks to Pipe17, we were able to process all of our orders without a problem."

Operations Pain - A Symptom of Growth

The e-commerce market has taken off in the past year with 2020 US sales growing 42% to $861B. Underscoring the tremendous opportunity available for e-commerce merchants, a recent report from McKinsey & Co., revealed that nearly a decade's worth of growth occurred in the last 12 months. While selling channels and marketplaces have continued to proliferate and prosper, the core operations of e-commerce have struggled to keep up, becoming an impediment to growth for merchants and their partners.

"This unprecedented growth in e-commerce coupled with the pandemic means that merchants small and large are left with increasing operational challenge" said Mo Afshar, CEO Pipe17, "With online spending now making up more than 20% of retail spending and more than 1.3 million e-commerce businesses in the U.S., merchants know they need to become more effective and more efficient to get their share of the demand."

Afshar believes empowering the growing class of Direct-to-Consumer merchants requires addressing the need for more intelligent technologies that let merchants easily connect all the platforms and applications they rely on - including their financial or ERP systems - into automated workflows. "Solutions shouldn't be this complicated. Most of the merchants we speak with don't have IT staff and are frustrated with their technology service providers" he added. "Our no-code approach, opens up new possibilities for growing their businesses."

The company also announced today that they have seen unprecedented client demand and growth, as well as an enthusiastic reception from the market, working with companies such as Death Wish Coffee, Tivic Health, GoChirp, and St Frank to automate their operations.

About Pipe17

Connect. See. Act. Pipe17 connects merchant e-commerce businesses with an expanding set of marketplaces, fulfillment centers, financial systems, and SaaS applications to form end-to-end automated operations. Merchants get control and visibility at every step of the fulfillment cycle, can manage order and inventory flows and easily add and make changes to vendor services. Pipe17's no-code approach is fast and easy to set up and administer. Iconic brands like Death Wish Coffee, RipNDip and Tivic Health rely on Pipe17 to create end-to-end automated operations. Learn more at www.pipe17.com

SOURCE Pipe17
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- In 2020, SAIC Motor, the Chinese largest automaker, and its subsidiaries make significant headway in the development of premium EV brand, mobility service, retailing business, financing progress, new technologies and hydrogen energy.



We hereby selected some noteworthy stories for you reviewing SAIC's experience last year.

SAIC Motor' s auto sales drop 10.22% in 2020

SAIC Motor announced its full-year sales dipped 10.22% from a year ago to 5,600,482 units last year. Despite the decrease, the company was honored the No.1 Chinese automaker by annual sales for the fifth year in a row.

SAIC Motor said its new energy vehicle (NEV) sales soared 77.8% over a year ago to around 320,000 units in 2020. Moreover, the sales of overseas markets amounted to 390,000 units (+11.3% YoY), 60% of which were from NEVs.

SAIC's mobility service brand Xiangdao Chuxing bags over 300 mln yuan in Series A round

Xiangdao Chuxing, SAIC Motor's mobility service brand, announced on Dec. 18 it has closed its Series A round with over 300 million yuan ($45,846,330) raised from Alibaba Group and CATL.

The two investors and Xiangdao Chuxing will carry out in-depth collaboration on autonomous driving, new energy vehicle (NEV) and data technologies.

At the same time, the two-year-old brand announced it has completed the deployment of a full-scenario smart mobility services, which encompass ride-hailing and taxi services as well as car rental services to both private users and companies.

SAIC Motor announces launch of premium BEV brand Zhiji Motor

SAIC Motor and the government of Pudong New Area formed a strategic cooperation on Nov. 26 for the joint development of Zhiji Motor, a fire new premium intelligent all-electric vehicle brand, the automaker announced via its WeChat account.

The project was launched at Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park in Pudong New Area at the same time, and has to-date raised over 10 billion yuan ($1.523 billion) in its initial round of financing.

SAIC Motor, Alibaba to team up on new retail business

SAIC Motor and the e-commerce giant Alibaba Group entered into a cooperation agreement on November 8 to jointly boost the digital transition for automotive retail business, the automaker announced via its WeChat account.

As part of the cooperation, SAIC Motor would join the 10-billion-yuan subsidy program launched by Tmall, Alibaba's B2C online retail platform, so as to provide substantial subsidies for buyers of such brands as Volkswagen, Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac.

SAIC VW's EV-only plant starts official production

On October 27, the ID.4 X, ID. family's first model mass-produced by SAIC Volkswagen (SAIC VW), rolled off the production line at the joint venture's EV-focused plant in Anting, Shanghai, signifying that Volkswagen Group's first factory dedicated to producing e-cars based on MEB (modular electric drive matrix) platform formally starts production.

SAIC VW broke ground on the Anting EV factory in October 2018 and kicked off pre-production about one year later. With a planned annual capacity of 300,000 vehicles, the EV-only plant involves a total investment of 17 billion yuan ($2,542,892,300).

SAIC Motor secures 50 bln yuan credit line from the Export-Import Bank of China

SAIC Motor said it signed an agreement on September 1 with the Export-Import Bank of China for a credit line worth 50 billion yuan ($7.315 billion), which was expected to effectively strengthen SAIC Motor's global comprehensive competitiveness, according to a posting on SAIC Motor's WeChat account.

According to the agreement, SAIC Motor and the Export-Import Bank of China would carry out strategic cooperation focusing on the finance service demands about SAIC's complete vehicle, auto parts, mobility service, automobile finance, international operations as well as the industrial big data and the AI domains.

SAIC Motor's software unit dubbed Z-ONE

"Z-ONE", the name of SAIC Motor's software subsidiary, was officially unveiled on July 21. The announcement came after local media outlets exposed several months ago that the automaker was building its own software hub and recruiting relevant talents.

The newly-unveiled branch will primarily work on the development of intelligent driving engineering, software architecture, underlying software platform and data factory. To be specific, the products and services will contain SOA (service-oriented architecture) software platform, the new-generation centralized electronic architecture, the computing chips, the platform of automobile big data, the edge AI applications, the intelligent cockpit system, the data as well as the cybersecurity.

SAIC Motor to acquire 28.92% stake in CAR Inc. for mobility service development

SAIC Motor announced on July 2 that its wholly-owned subsidiary SAIC Motor HK Investment Limited (SAIC HK) plans to acquire not fewer than 613,377,424 shares in CAR Inc., a Hong Kong-listed mobility service provider, from the latter's two substantial shareholders.

Specifically, SAIC HK intends to acquire not more than 442,656,855 shares in CAR Inc. at a price of HK$3.10 per share from UCAR Limited, UCAR Service Limited and UCAR Technology Inc. (collectively, the UCAR Sellers) for a maximum total consideration of HK$1,372,236,250.50, according to CAR Inc., citing an offer letter signed on July 2 by SAIC HK, the UCAR Sellers and UCAR Inc., a substantial shareholder of CAR Inc.

SAIC's RMB500 million worth of fuel cell project launched in Jiading

Shanghai Hydrogen Propulsion Technology Co., Ltd. (SHPT), a subsidiary of SAIC Motor, launched on March 16 a new fuel cell project at Jiading District in Shanghai, which is expected to help SAIC Motor speed up the industrialization of fuel cell-related products.

Under the project, the company plans to build at Jiading Hydrogen Park a fuel cell-focused base that is available for R&D, administration business, product test & verification, pilot scale production, and supply of hydrogen energy with RMB500 million to be invested, according to a post on SHPT's WeChat account.

SAIC-GM-Wuling builds China's first logistics route for autonomous vehicles

SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW), General Motors' light-vehicle joint venture with China's SAIC Motor, announced on March 5 it has launched a logistics route specifically designed for autonomous vehicles, the first-of-its kind one in China.

The operation of the significant route is supported by both self-driving logistics cars and a cloud-based smart management system. According to the automaker, the vehicles deployed are NEVs offered by Baojun EV. The level 4 autonomous driving system installed in the car can perceive and monitor its surroundings in real time with the accuracy down to a few centimeters. Besides, the cloud-based management system offers services like remote control and data analysis, so as to enhance the management efficiency and driving safety.

SAIC-GM-Wuling rolls out first self-made face masks

SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co.,Ltd. (SGMW), a joint venture formed by General Motors and two Chinese partners, announced on Feb. 13 its first batch of home-made face masks has rolled off the production line.

It took us only three days to roll out the first masks from putting forward this idea, said the automaker.

SGMW claimed on Feb. 6 via social media it would team up with its suppliers to produce masks, one of urgently needed medical supplies for fighting against novel coronavirus, by refitting its existing assembly lines.
The Court, while posting the matter to March 1, issued notices to the state government asking it to file a status report on the investigation. (PTI)

Hyderabad: Reacting to the brutal killing of the advocate couple, Gattu Vaman Rao and P.V. Nagamani, as grave and a most unfortunate incident, the Telangana High Court on Thursday took up a suo moto case.

The court issued notices to principal secretary, Telangana State Home, the Director-General of Police, the Ramagundam Police Commissioner and other police authorities concerned, right down from top officials to the station house officer (SHO) of Ramagiri police station, in which jurisdiction the double murder took place.

Police authorities were directed by to submit a status report of investigation, with all information, before the High Court on March 1. The court further directed the police to collect each and every piece of evidence thoroughly and to preserve them.

Characterising the incident as blatancy in Telangana, and terming it unforgivable, Chief Justice Hima Kohli cautioned police authorities and the state government to take stern action immediately.

If faith in the rule of law is shaken, then there is much that needs to be done to repose faith in the administration. So, immediately start action to ensure no violator of law is spared. Do it in a time bound manner. The credibility of the state rests on how effectively you act. No one should forget that we are all governed by rule of law, Chief Justice Kohli said.

Condemning the murder, the HC Bench observed that lawyers, who work to help others from unruly activities and raise voice against the unlawful, are themselves being targeted by the uncivilized. It was unfortunate what happened to them.

Further, the court directed that the incident should be investigated adequately and properly. All material evidence should be preserved properly. Forensic evidence must be collected scientifically and a cogent and cohesive status report on the gruesome issue should be filed, the Advocate-General, representing the state government, was instructed.

CJ Kohli stressed that video clippings of the murder, which were circulating on social media, must be authenticated forensically, and if found not to have been tampered and original, they should be preserved as crucial evidence against the culprits.

The CJ also told the police to scientifically examine and preserve video clips of the voice of advocate Vaman Rao, after he was stabbed and other statements made before he died.

Justice Bollam Vijasen Reddy asked the Advocate General of Telangana to make attempts to take passengers, who were traveling in two RTC buses, which were there at the place of the incident, as eyewitnesses.

Passengers watched the attack and recorded videos. Police can try to take them as witnesses by tracing the passengers. Culprits should be punished, Justice Reddy said.

Advocate General BS Prasad, after taking notes of the series of directions issued, assured the Court that the police would thoroughly conduct an investigation and ensure perpetrators are brought to book.

A senior Turkish minister has rekindled accusations of US involvement in the 2016 coup attempt in Turkey even as Ankara is trying to mollify Washington over its purchase of Russian missiles and avoid more sanctions under President Joe Biden. Fence-mending remains a distant goal with the Turkish public still largely convinced that Washington was behind the putsch.

Rogue officers accused of having links to US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, an ally-turned-foe of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, commandeered warplanes and tanks July 15, 2016, in a bid to topple the government. Some 250 people were killed and more than 2,000 wounded before the government suppressed the uprising the following day. Squabbles over the coup, coupled with US support for Syrian Kurdish militias seen as terrorists by Ankara, opened a major rift between the two NATO allies, leading Turkey to move closer to Russia. Ankara has repeatedly criticized Washington for failing to extradite Gulen, having designated his extensive network of followers as a terrorist group, known by the acronym FETO.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu rekindled the spat in early February, just as Ankara was making overtures to the Biden administration, which is expected to be tougher on Turkey than its predecessor. Its plain as day that America was behind the July 15 coup attempt. FETO carried it out at their behest, Soylu told Hurriyet. Since I became interior minister [in September 2016], Ive seen FETO's presence wherever America is influential, he said.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price promptly rejected Soylus allegations as wholly false. Such unfounded and irresponsible claims of US responsibility for events in Turkey are inconsistent with Turkeys status as a NATO ally and strategic partner of the United States, he said.

Despite the American denials, public opinion polls show that a majority of Turks remains convinced that the United States had a hand in the 2016 putsch and earlier military coups in Turkey. Mehmet Ali Kulat, head of the research and consultancy company MAK, told Al-Monitor that 70% of respondents believed so in the companys December survey on the issue. The rate had shot up to 81% in September 2016 after the coup and has fluctuated between 67% and 73% since then, he said.

According to Kulat, Turkish officials and the Turkish media are not the only influences shaping such perceptions. Having witnessed US interventions in the name of bringing democracy to the Middle East, the Turkish people see the perpetrators of coups as subcontractors and the United States as the real culprit, he said. That Gulen and some of his senior cohorts continue to reside in the United States and under US protection has only reinforced such perceptions, he added.

Onur Oymen, a former Turkish ambassador to NATO and a former parliament member, said that controversies over the US role in regime changes and military coups in other countries have swayed Turkish perceptions. He gave as an example the memoir of retired Gen. Wesley Clark, who recounts how a US general told him of plans to take out seven countries in five years in the wake of 9/11, in addition to accounts by former US officials indicating that Washington knew in advance of the 1960 coup in Turkey and tacitly welcomed the one in 1980.

According to Oymen, some in Washington were apparently unhappy that the 2016 coup attempt failed. This, of course, does not mean that the United States orchestrated or directed the putsch. One cannot make such conclusions without hard evidence. What matters for us are the official statements, he said, recalling that then-President Barack Obama denied any US involvement and Biden, then vice president, visited Ankara in a show of solidarity the following month, apologizing for not coming earlier.

Oymen also recalled that Biden, in an interview before his election as president, described Erdogan as an autocrat and advocated support for the opposition in Turkey to take on and defeat Erdogan but not by a coup, but by the electoral process. According to Oymen, People hear those things on television and few in the world would believe anyone who says that big states would not do such things.

Huseyin Bagci, a professor of international relations at Ankaras Middle East Technical University, said the Turkish public believes what Soylu says, no matter what the truth might be. I dont think that this perception will change in the foreseeable future, he told Al-Monitor. Nevertheless, reversing perceptions is not impossible, he said, recalling how former President Bill Clinton won the Turkish public over with his visit after a devastating earthquake in 1999, including the memorable moment when he held a baby that pulled and twisted his nose.

Washingtons failure to extradite Gulen continues to nourish negative perceptions in Turkey, Bagci said, suggesting that Soylus remarks were intentionally timed. It seems that Turkey made a move on the chessboard, telling [Biden], You hold responsibility. You were part of the Obama administration, so lets negotiate this. I think it was a good move in this context. Then, 54 senators criticized Turkey [in a letter to Biden]. Such mutual countermoves could well lead to negotiations, he said.

According to Unal Cevikoz, a former Turkish ambassador and now a senior member of the main opposition Republican Peoples Party, the governments control of the media has made it easy to nourish the perception that Washington orchestrated the 2016 putsch, atop the multiple crises in bilateral ties. Both sides have erred, he said.
She returned to Instagram earlier this month after taking a six-week social media break to recoup from her now infamous fake Spanish heritage scandal.

And Hilaria Baldwin continued on her path to normalcy on Thursday as she shared a heartfelt post to commemorate the 10 year anniversary of meeting her husband Alec.

'We met each other 10 years ago today...it started off in a restaurant on an unseasonably warm night...' began the 37-year-old yoga instructor, who shared a sweet snapshot of herself and the 62-year-old actor with her following.

Celebrating: Hilaria Baldwin continued on her path to normalcy post-scandal on Thursday as she shared a heartfelt tribute to Instagram to commemorate the 10 year anniversary of meeting her husband Alec

'...now, 5 million children in, its snowing and we are laying on Carmens floor, covered in her dolls, waiting+watching for the Mars Rover landing

'...ps: hes converting 152cm to inches-who even knows why,' concluded Hilaria, who continued to give her 879,000 followers a glimpse at life in the Baldwin household on her Instagram Story.

She uploaded a photo of herself and Alec lying on the floor of their living room and smiling for the camera as their daughter Carmen, seven, erupted in laughter between them.

Another showed the mother-daughter duo staring into the camera, while resting their faces in their hands, with Hilaria writing: 'Watching the rover like...'

Smiley: She also uploaded a photo of herself and Alec lying on the floor of their living room and smiling for the camera as their daughter Carmen, seven, erupted in laughter between them

Bored: Another showed the mother-daughter duo staring into the camera, while resting their faces in their hands, with Hilaria writing: 'Watching the rover like...'

To close out the family oriented Instagram Story, the Boston-born stunner shared a snap of Carmen cradling her newborn brother Eduardo in her lap with the caption: 'Our crowd is growing'

Hilaria and Alec, who have been married since 2012, welcomed their fifth child together, son Eduardo, in September of last year, with the yoga guru documenting her growing baby bump all the way up until her water broke.

Despite being an open book on social media with the daily workings of her life at home with Alec and their five young children, Hilaria was exposed late last year for seemingly misrepresenting her 'Spanish' heritage for over a decade.

Growing crowd: To close out the family oriented Instagram Story, the Boston-born stunner shared a snap of Carmen cradling her newborn brother Eduardo in her lap with the caption: 'Our crowd is growing'

After the scandal broke, Hilaria decided to virtually disappear from social media towards the latter end of December, with her return to Instagram taking place on February 5.

She further cemented her return by flooding her followers timelines with Valentine's Day related posts on Sunday, including a black-and-white snap of herself and her husband lying down and cuddling.

In her caption, Hilaria thanked the SNL star for being her 'rock' during 'challenging' times, while joking that Alec is also a 'pain in the [a**]'.

'Through the amazing times, the challenging ones, all the many memories and tiny people we have made in between, thank you for being my rock, my courage, my joy, and my forever valentine,' she wrote.

Family outing: Hilaria made her first return to Instagram since apologizing earlier this month for her Spanish heritage controversy as she and Alec took their kids to a beach

'Ok...this was so mushy and I cant help but be me: you are my pain in the [a**] too. I love you.'

The gushing post comes just a few weeks after it was revealed that the couple were living in separate houses in the Hamptons - with actor Alec revealing that he was quarantining away from his family while commuting into New York City for work.

Alec was staying in a rented house in Amagansett - an upmarket neighborhood that is located around a mile away from his East Hamptons estate, where his wife and children have been staying since she was first accused of faking her European background.

A source told Page Six that he rented a second home in the Hamptons so that he can quarantine away from his family while he continues to travel into the city for work.

It is unclear whether he is still using the property - however a second post shared by Hilaria over the weekend would suggest that Alec has returned to his East Hamptons estate to live with his wife and children once again.

Letting loose: Hilaria set the sped-up clip to electronic dance music as they had a 'Baldwinito dance party'

After sharing her heartfelt tribute to her husband, Hilaria also shared a funny video of the couple dancing in the snow with their five children, using the Spanish diminutive of their name - Baldwinito - while joking that Alec was trying to copy their son's moves.

'We had a Valentines Day freezing Baldwinito dance party on the beach...Alec is trying to learn Romeos moves,' she wrote alongside the clip, which saw the SNL star wearing a face mask - perhaps an indication that he is still commuting into the city and is taking extra precautions as a result.

Hilaria - who went mask-free - kept warm in a long dark green puffer coat with black leggings and brown cowboy boots.

Hilaria held her youngest son, Eduardo, while Alec danced around with two of the older boys.

Helping out: Hilaria held her youngest son, Eduardo, while Alec danced around with two of the older boys

Following her late-December departure from Instagram, Hilaria returned to the social media site on February 5, sharing a portrait of the whole family lying on the floor while addressing the controversy over her misrepresenting herself as a Spanish woman.

'Ive spent the last month listening, reflecting, and asking myself how I can learn and grow,' she began her caption.

'My parents raised my brother and me with two cultures, American and Spanish, and I feel a true sense of belonging to both. The way Ive spoken about myself and my deep connection to two cultures could have been better explained  I should have been more clear and I'm sorry,' she continued.

'I'm proud of the way I was raised, and were raising our children to share the same love and respect for both. Being vulnerable and pushing ourselves to learn and grow is what we've built our community on, and I hope to get back to the supportive and kind environment weve built together.'

Setting the record straight: Hilaria returned to Instagram on February 5 to apologize and address the controversy over her misrepresenting herself as a Spanish woman

Following the February 5 post, Hilaria began posting cute photos of her children, and Alec has also appeared with them, but her Valentine's Day posts were her first appearances on Instagram since her apology.

The original heritage controversy began shortly after Amy Schumer poked fun at an Instagram post from Hilaria in which she held her baby son Eduardo while showing off her unbelievably trim post-baby body.

But Hilaria's reaction video, which featured a suspiciously spotty 'Spanish' accent that seemed to disappear at times, led social media sleuths to uncover that she had been born in Boston, not Majorca, as had been listed online in some places.

Escalated quickly: The original heritage controversy began shortly after Amy Schumer poked fun at an Instagram post from Hilaria in which she held her baby son Eduardo while showing off her trim post-baby body

Long distance: On Saturday, Hilaria posted humorous photos to her Insta Stories of herself FaceTiming with Alec while he was in New York City to film his True Crime series Dr. Death

Complicated: The actor had to wash some clothes, but he needed some expert help from his wife to figure out the high-tech washing machine

On Saturday, Hilaria posted some humorous photos to her Instagram Stories of herself FaceTiming with Alec while he was in New York City to film his True Crime series Dr. Death.

The actor had to wash some clothes, but he needed some expert help from his wife to figure out the high-tech washing machine.

'I took these photos to document for myself me teaching Alec how to use the washing machine etc while he was in the city working...' she wrote.

'As you can imagine: teaching Alec Baldwin to wash his clothes is as epic as you can imagine.'

Heartbreaking: 'Eduardo felt my pain,' she joked in a closeup of the tot crying as his dad failed to wash his clothes

Success! But eventually Alec figured out how to get his laundry cleaned

One photo showed a closeup of her husband just missing the correct button, which she was 'trying to get him to press.'

'Eduardo felt my pain,' she joked in a closeup of the tot crying.

But eventually Alec figured out how to get his laundry cleaned.

'Even Alec realized how... um... yeah...' Hilaria wrote, adding a cartoon speech bubble at the bottom reading, 'just press the right [cursing emoji] button, honey.'
Jammu and Kashmir Police and Indian Army in Srinagar briefed the 24-member delegation of foreign envoys about the security arrangements in the valley. The police also informed about their initiatives in sports, employment opportunities, community engagements, counter-radicalization, how police tackled the Covid-19 situation, infiltration pattern, Pakistan's role, atrocities of Baramulla in 1948 and the Indian Army's role in making terrorists surrender.

J-K Police and Indian Army briefed foreign envoys

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anantnag Sandeep Chaudhary told the diplomats, "Community engagements, counter-radicalisation, the police initiatives in sports, employment opportunities, counselling, and community bond schemes for potential terrorist recruits. Superintendent of Police (SP) East Srinagar, Sheema Nabi said, How police dealt with challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining a balance between addressing people's problems and enforcing COVID-19 restrictions. Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) reached out to local people, addressed their issues, and got their cooperation. Human touch and outreach helped the JKP to deal with unprecedented challenges."

Several other issues were discussed in the meeting including the situations after the abrogation of Article 370- no loss of life in Special Forces' actions, peacefully conducted District Development Council (DDC) elections, initiatives of citizen connect, development of Army Goodwill schools, tourism, achievements of Kashmiri people and others. The police also told the delegates that the valley has also marked the reduction in the stone-pelting incidents.

Also Read: Foreign Diplomats Visit J&K: Budgams DDC Chairman Says, 'discussions On UT's Development'

Also Read: Delegation Of 24 Foreign Envoys Arrives In J&K For 2-day Visit; Interacts With Locals

The 24-member delegation of foreign envoys are on a 2-day visit

Diplomats also visited the stalls of Horticulture and other departments set up in the degree college. Representatives were welcomed here in a traditional manner. The team, which has come on a two-day tour, will leave for Jammu after meeting the officers of the army and police, where they will also meet the Lieutenant Governor. The team includes diplomats from 20 European and African countries. This is the first visit by foreign diplomats to Jammu and Kashmir since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A delegation of envoys from across the world reached Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday to assess the development work and the security situation in the union territory, especially after the successful completion of the District Development Council (DDC) elections. Nazir Ahmad Khan, the DDC Chairman of Budgam district on Wednesday stated that the issues of development were discussed with the group of 24 foreign envoys. After the abrogation of Article 370, the foreign guests have visited the valley for the fourth time. The delegation consists mainly of foreign diplomats from African, Middle-East and European countries. Foreign diplomats from Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Cote dIvoire, Ghana, Tajikistan, Estonia, Finland, France, Senegal, Malaysia, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Kyrgyzstan and the European Union visited the valley.

Also Read: PM Modi All Praise For IT Industry Delivering 2% Growth Despite Covid; Speaks At NASSCOM

Also Read: PM Modi: 'World Was Concerned About India Over COVID-19 But Now Takes Inspiration From Us'
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Union Health Ministry announced that 3,17,190 people, including healthcare and frontline workers, were vaccinated on Thursday across all states and Union Territories, taking the total close to the 10 million mark.

According to the ministry, the overall vaccination figure has reached 98,46,523. Of them, 66,99,567 beneficiaries are healthcare workers and 31,46,956 are frontline workers.

Meanwhile, 4,64,932 beneficiaries have received their second jab so far and attained full immunisation against Covid-19 provided under the nationwide vaccination drive. The administration of the second jab was started in the country on February 13.

The ministry noted that the highest participation in the vaccination drive on Thursday was in Uttar Pradesh with 89,026 inoculations followed by Maharashtra (23,714), Bihar (20,666), Jammu and Kashmir (19,285), Odisha (18,486), Karnataka (15,237), Tamil Nadu (13,780), Andhra Pradesh (13,649), West Bengal (12,669), and Chhattisgarh (10,606).

Meanwhile, the number of hospitalisations after the immunisation have reached 40. Of them, 24 have been discharged after the treatment, three are still under treatment, while 13 deaths have also been reported, as per the data shared by the ministry. However, it clarified that there is "no case of serious/severe AEFI/death attributable to vaccination till date".

The ministry also said that two new events of hospitalisation have been reported in the last 24 hours. The events include a case of convulsions and anaphylaxis from West Bengal. "Condition of both the cases are stable," it added.

"The percentage of hospitalisation against vaccination is 0.0004 per cent," it noted.

The vaccination of the healthcare workers started on January 16 while the frontline workers started receiving the vaccine shots from February 2.
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ZeroNorth opens office in Greece to further support maritime digitalisation

International expansion of Danish technology company to strengthen presence in key shipping market.

Maritime technology company ZeroNorth has announced it has opened a new office in Piraeus, Greece, to further its aim to support more ship owners and operators to digitalise and decarbonise their operations. The new office is an important expansion for ZeroNorth and signifies the role of Greek shipping to the organisations digitalisation objectives and commercial strategy. The operation will act as a beacon to reflect the unique needs and characteristics of the worlds largest national fleet, as well as help it profitably navigate to a more digitalised and decarbonised mode of business. ZeroNorth Greece provides the company with a direct link to one of shippings most important regions. The move will enable greater engagement with Greek tramp shipping operators and allow them to have first-hand experience with ZeroNorths vessel optimisation software, Optimise. The Piraeus office will be headed up by Panayotis Bachtis, who joins ZeroNorth as the General Manager for ZeroNorth Greece. Bachtis comes from a family with deep roots in shipping. He has occupied various positions around the technical and commercial operation of a ship. For the greatest part of his career, he has been working closely with Greek shipping companies, providing solutions to optimise bunker procurement and mitigate the risk from oil price fluctuations. He therefore brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in the planning and execution of fuel management strategies, as well as deep insight and a strong network in the local market. Speaking on the expansion, Sren Meyer, CEO, ZeroNorth said: We are extremely excited to open our Greek office, giving us a presence in shippings largest ownership market. At a time when more of shipping is embracing digitalisation with increasing pace, we think it is important to support Greek owners and operators to optimise their operations and profitably decarbonise. This move means that we can work closely with Greek tramp shipping market leaders to explore how Optimise can generate increased revenue and reduced emissions. I am confident that Greeces vibrant and close-knit maritime community will immediately understand our vision of digitalising shipping for the climate and join with us in our efforts to create more economically and environmentally sustainable operations. Panayotis Bachtis, General Manager, ZeroNorth added: It is an honour to be able to join ZeroNorth at this significant time for the company  and the industry. Shipping is entering a new digital era that is set to see exponential growth over the coming months and years. As a dynamic tech company in this space, ZeroNorths growth trajectory has been immense over the last year. I look forward to our Greek operation matching this pace and sharing the benefits of Optimise with more owners and operators. ZeroNorths Optimise provides insight into vessel performance and determines the optimal speed of each vessel to optimise bunker spend. It monitors the entire fleet and alerts the operators if a vessel should change speed. This is done by interpreting multiple data points such as weather, draught, market rates, price and emitted CO2  all of which are turned into concrete action. ZeroNorth currently has around 1,500 vessels using the software today. The organisation sees the potential to increase the number of vessels on the platform to 6,000 over the next five years.




Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations continue dropping in Pennsylvania.

The Pennsylvania Department of Health reported 3,345 new positive cases of COVID-19 Thursday, raising the statewide total to 905,995. The department reported 2,124 COVID-19 patients are being treated in hospitals.

The numbers reflect a substantial drop from earlier this winter. Several weeks ago, new infections were topping 10,000 on a daily basis and more than 6,300 COVID-19 patients were hospitalized at one point.

The health department reported 94 new deaths Thursday. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 23,413 deaths have been tied to COVID-19.

The state has administered more than 1.8 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccines, according to health department data. The state said 1,365,523 people have been given their first dose of the vaccines, while 467,115 have been given both doses and are fully vaccinated. State figures dont include the city of Philadelphia, which is handling its own vaccine distribution.

Still, many continue to struggle to get the vaccines. The demand for the vaccine continues to far outweigh the supply, Acting Pennsylvania Health Secretary Alison Beam has said. About 4 million people are eligible for the vaccine in the initial phase of the rollout.

The vaccine rollout, already criticized by many for its slow pace, took more hits Wednesday when health officials said some second doses of the Moderna vaccine were mistakenly distributed as first doses. The issue could affect more than 100,000 people, Beam said.

Because of the error, Beam said up to 60,000 people could have to reschedule appointments, and up to 55,000 others might be delayed in getting their initial doses. The issue did not affect Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine distribution, Beam said.

Earlier this week, Gov. Tom Wolfs administration said the percentage of positive tests for COVID-19 has dropped to 8%, down from a high of about 16% in December. There are 51 counties now seeing substantial spread of COVID-19. Throughout much of December and January, all 67 counties in Pennsylvania were seeing high levels of transmission.

Most of those who contract the coronavirus suffer relatively mild symptoms and some dont get sick at all. But health officials say the virus poses risks to everyone, particularly senior citizens and those with health complications.

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People wait in line at a COVID-19 vaccination site at Santa Ana College in Santa Ana, Calif., on Feb. 17, 2021. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

COVID-19 Vaccination Site Opens in Santa Ana

Orange County opened its third vaccination point of distribution (POD) at Santa Ana City College on Feb 17.

The latest POD is smaller than the countys super sites and can administer up to 1,000 doses per day.

It really is incredible news that we have as much vaccine now coming into Santa Ana, because for a while, as recent as a couple of weeks ago, it was a different story, Santa Ana Mayor Vicente Sarmiento said at a city council meeting on Feb. 16.

The PODs goal is to provide at least 240 vaccinations per hour. The POD at Soka University exceeded 300 vaccinations per hour.

The vaccine site is located at 1530 W 17th Street. It will operate Tuesday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Vaccines are available by appointment only. For those with American Disabilities Association placards, there is a drive-through vaccination site at the POD.

Supervisor Andrew Do said bringing a POD to Santa Ana, which has one of the highest COVID-19 infection rates in the county, was the right thing to do.

He said the site served as a continuation of the Orange County Board of Supervisors Latino Health Equity Initiative, which started last June.

Addressing barriers that may impede peoples access to testing and vaccines, especially in low equity communities, is the reason why we came up with the Latino Health Equity Initiative very early in the pandemic, Do said in a statement. The Santa Ana College site is a tangible example of the county and Board of Supervisors delivering on our focus on equity in vaccine distribution.

The first and second super POD sites opened at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, and Soka University in Aliso Viejo.

The state is currently in Phase 1A of the vaccination process. All individuals 65 and older are eligible, along with health care workers and long-term care residents.

Eligible individuals in Orange County can register for an appointment to receive the vaccine at Othena.com.

As of Feb. 8, there have been 376,735 vaccine doses administered, according to the Orange County Health Care Agency.

The incredible work that has gone into these first few weeks of vaccine distribution is admirable, Supervisor Doug Chaffee said in a statement. We continue to communicate with residents who are anxious to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, and we encourage patience as we work to improve the infrastructure and communication in dispensing our limited supply of vaccine to eligible individuals.

Santa Anas COVID-19 Prevalence

University of CaliforniaIrvine (UCI) recently conducted a random sampling of Santa Ana residents for COVID-19 antibodies and found that out of 3,218 individuals, 852 (27 percent) tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies.

Santa Anas prevalence is significantly higher than Orange Countys overall antibody positivity rate of 12 percent, according to Santa Anas city manager Kristine Ridge.

The study found that Hispanics had the highest prevalence of the antibodies, among others.

In Santa Ana, Hispanics are at least 2.24 times more likely to have had the virus than non-Hispanics.

Aliso Viejos Super POD Praised by Local Officials

Rep. Michelle Steel (CA-48) toured Soka Universitys Super POD site on Feb. 16 and called on governments to speed up the distribution of vaccines.

The volunteers at the Soka University Super POD are doing outstanding work and Im grateful for their time and dedication to our community, Steel said in a statement. Orange County has made good progress vaccinating our most vulnerable populations, but both the federal and local government should be prioritizing vaccine delivery so that all Californians can be protected. Increasing the availability of vaccines will allow Orange County residents to get back to work, visit at-risk relatives and get our businesses back up and running again.

Mission Hospitals COVID-19 Cases Decline

Mission Hospital has recently seen a significant decrease in activity among virus patients, the Lake Forest council reported at its regularly scheduled city council meeting on Feb. 17.

The city attributes this to the arrival of the vaccine, following local guidelines, and the local geography being relatively spread out compared to the rest of the county.

Mission Hospital vaccinates 400 to 500 people per day.

The hospital also reported that more than 90 percent of its medical staff have been vaccinated.
Pep Guardiola insists in-form midfielder Ilkay Gundogan should be fit for Manchester City's game at Arsenal on Sunday after the midfielder missed their win at Everton.

Gundogan, who has scored four goals in his last two league games against Tottenham and Liverpool, missed the 3-1 win at Goodison Park on Wednesday night with a slight groin injury.

City boss Guardiola revealed that the German's absence from Wednesday's matchday squad was precautionary and he looks set to return at the Emirates Stadium this weekend.

Pep Guardiola said Ilkay Gundogan should be fit for Manchester City's game against Arsenal on Sunday; he missed City's win at Everton on Wednesday night with a groin injury

'He [Gundogan] is much, much better,' Guardiola told the City club website after Wednesday's win, their 17th straight victory in all competitions.

'It is not a big issue, but to avoid risk today, we have given him a few more days to recover.

'But for Arsenal and Borussia Monchengladbach he should be ready.

'Of course Gundo is exceptional. We spoke about that. If you want to win titles and finals we need the whole squad.'

City face Borussia Monchengladbach next Wednesday in their Champions League last-16 first leg tie and will be boosted by the news of Gundogan's fitness.

Kevin De Bruyne also made his long-awaited return from injury for City on Wednesday night

Playmaker Kevin De Bruyne also made his long-awaited return from injury on Wednesday night, as an 80th-minute substitute for Raheem Sterling.

Gundogan, meanwhile, is the most in-form player in the Premier League, having scored 11 goals in his last 12 league games.

City stretched their lead at the top of the table to 10 points as goals from Phil Foden, Riyad Mahrez and Bernardo Silva secured all three points against the Toffees.
WASHINGTON  The U.S. Capitol Police are investigating two incidents related to the new metal detectors set up outside the House chamber: one involving a member of Congress potentially assaulting a police officer and the other involving a lawmaker trying to bring a gun onto the House floor.

HuffPost personally observed both incidents over the last month, and Capitol Police called this reporter in on Wednesday for an interview about both altercations.

On Jan. 12, the night of the first votes after the U.S. Capitol insurrection and the decision to put magnetometers outside the House chamber, HuffPost observed Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho) roughly push his way past an officer who was operating the metal detectors. The best way to describe what Fulcher did was he manhandled the officer, a Black woman who was significantly smaller than the congressman.

Congressional staffers pass through a metal detector and security screening as they enter the House chamber, measures put into place after the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. (Photo: J. Scott Applewhite/Associated Press)

Fulcher set off the magnetometer that night, and the officer inadvertently seemed to get in his way as he tried to rush past her. But what started as one of those dances you do with someone when you both zig and zag as you try to get around each other, ended as a physical interaction. Fulcher grabbed the officer with both hands and pushed past her roughly.

Fulcher did not appear to be trying to injure the officer, but the incident was nonetheless jarring and out of the ordinary.

That night, HuffPost tried to ask the officer some questions about the skirmish, but she didnt want to talk to the press. We did, however, observe that she appeared to be shaken from the interaction.

Police told HuffPost they were investigating the matter.

Capitol Police were also investigating an incident that occurred on Jan. 21, when Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) tried to bring a gun onto the House floor. HuffPost also observed and publicly reported on that incident and was a material witness to Harris trying to get another member who had just left the floor to hold his gun for him while Harris voted.

Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho), left, and Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) have come under scrutiny for incidents at the metal detectors that have been installed near the entrance to the House Floor. (Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Images)

Harris went through the magnetometer that day, set off the machine and then complied with a search with a metal detector wand. The police officer conducting the search located a gun on Harriss side and had a hushed conversation with the congressman. Harris quickly turned back to the elevators, stood around for a moment in a small vestibule outside of the elevator banks and had another quiet conversation with a member. Harriss comments were not audible, but HuffPost heard Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.) reply, I dont have a license for that.

A Capitol official later confirmed that Harris was carrying a gun.

HuffPost never saw the gun. On Wednesday, the police seemed to be interested in the fact that Harris gun was concealed, based on the line of their questioning. Members are allowed to carry firearms on the Capitol campus, but are not allowed to carry them onto the House floor, and the District of Columbia requires a special permit for the concealed carry of firearms.

The two detectives told HuffPost that no charges had been filed in either case, but both were active investigations.

HuffPost has reached to both Fulchers and Harriss office for comment.

HuffPost did not file a police report after either incident, and our account is not the basis of either investigation.

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Impeachment Over, Congress Shifts Focus To Security Failures

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

TORONTO - The Toronto Black Film Festival is hosting a panel discussion series with a title that speaks to a pervasive problem in the industry: Show Me the Money.

A scene from "Dope is Death" is shown in this undated handout photo. The Toronto Black Film Festival is hosting a panel discussion series with a title that speaks to a pervasive problem in the industry: Show Me the Money. Amid a racial reckoning sparked by the police killing of George Floyd last May, it seems awareness is heightened, and arts organizations are paying attention to systemic racism and barriers facing Black creators in Canada's film and TV industry, says festival president and founder Fabienne Colas. But money isn't flowing throughout the entire ecosystem, and there's still a lack of representation onscreen and in leadership positions behind the scenes, Colas adds. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Toronto Black Film Festival

TORONTO - The Toronto Black Film Festival is hosting a panel discussion series with a title that speaks to a pervasive problem in the industry: Show Me the Money.

Amid a racial reckoning sparked by the police killing of George Floyd last May, it seems awareness is heightened, and arts organizations are paying attention to systemic racism and barriers facing Black creators in Canada's film and TV industry, says festival president and founder Fabienne Colas.

But money isn't flowing throughout the entire ecosystem, and there's still a lack of representation onscreen and in leadership positions behind the scenes, Colas adds.

That needs to change soon, because as the clock ticks, "tons of white people are making decisions on what's going to be funded to go onscreen next year, and in two years," she says.

"Billions of dollars are going through this industry, and tens of millions of dollars are being distributed through our public funders, and they don't necessarily go to Black producers and Black filmmakers. That's the problem," says Colas.

As Colas's festival, which runs online through Sunday, and other screen projects help mark Black History Month in Canada, those in the country's arts world say the past year has been a critical one in terms of institutions responding to the calling out of racism, tokenism and microaggressions.

Several organizations have announced funding for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Colour) creators in Canada in the past year. Last summer, for instance, Telefilm Canada pledged $100,000 a year towards the creation of a Black Screen Office, and Bell Media partnered with the grassroots organization BIPOC TV & Film.

But "the Canadian screen world has a long way to go," says Amanda Parris, a CBC TV and Radio host, writer, and playwright behind the monodrama "The Death News," which is part of the new CBC Gem anthology series "21 Black Futures" from CBC Arts and Obsidian Theatre in Toronto.

"I feel like Canada is decades behind when it comes to representation onscreen of Black stories by Black creators," Parris says. "It's really depressing. And I think being so close to the United States and to the United Kingdom and seeing the things that are emerging there, it's hard to imagine when the time will come when Canada will see similar stories."

Parris points to director Steve McQueen's recent "Small Axe" anthology series of five films for the BBC and Amazon Prime Video, which tells the story of Londons West Indian community.

"It really hit home because there's such a huge Caribbean diaspora that lives here in Canada that has yet to see their historical stories told with the level of production, deep nuance of storytelling, the kind of budget that he clearly had," says Parris.

Parris was born in the U.K. and felt a connection to the material but also "a certain level of sadness" at the idea that such programming may not be possible here for a while, she says.

"I'm so reticent to have faith in a lot of the promises that have been made by so many of the networks. I'm not sure if they're going to feel a fire under them when the protests die down and when things get quieter in the same way."

If Canada wants to have a vibrant screen industry, it needs to give everyone access to the same resources, says Colas.

"Because otherwise, you're going to have white films that are really well done, and then you're going to have, what  Black films very low budget?" she says. "It doesn't make sense. So we need great, well-funded film across the board."

Colas, who also founded film festivals in cities including Halifax and Montreal, says the Toronto instalment that's in its ninth edition still doesn't have all the support it needs from the industry. But several new partners have come onboard this year. She also sits on various diversity committees and says "things are moving in the right direction."

Parris says she's encouraged by several projects underway in Canada, including the upcoming CBC series "The Porter," about railway workers in the historically Black Montreal community of Little Burgundy in the 1920s. Director Charles Officer, who helmed Parris's "The Death News," is working on the series along with several other Black creators.

Then there's the CBC News prime-time show "Canada Tonight with Ginella Massa" and the new YouTube news program The Brandon Gonez Show," launched in January by the titular Toronto broadcaster, who left CP24 to launch the project.

Parris says Gonez as well as The Black Academy, recently launched by Toronto actor-brothers Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, are among several examples of a shift "away from a lot of these mainstream institutions to Black folks being like, 'What can we build ourselves?'"

Anderson says he thinks change is happening, with even major Canadian broadcasters acknowledging a lack of diversity in their ranks, for instance.

But "it needs to happen faster," he adds, noting The Black Academy is still looking for more funding besides that offered by the Canada Media Fund, as it builds its own award show and programming.

"All these speeches and throne speeches and mandates and black squares and hashtags  I think we've got to put the money on the table, put the money where your mouth is," says Anderson. "Putting a social post just is not enough."

In the theatre world, there's also "a very heightened, almost panicked awareness of the lack of diversity and the lack of Black representation," says Obsidian Theatre artistic director Mumbi Tindyebwa Otu, who conceived the idea for "21 Black Futures."

Tindyebwa Otu says that conversation needs to extend beyond the faces seen onstage to those backstage and in the board rooms, so theatre companies don't burden any single individual working within a historically white institution to speak for the whole race.

The "21 Black Futures" series, she says, is "almost like a catalogue of an example of who's out there and saying, 'Look at their work, see what they have to say, listen to their stories and contact these individuals,' so that there's never an excuse in the future of 'I have no idea who to reach out to or who to connect to' in the future.'"

Black History Month gives institutions a convenient opportunity to think of funding and programming for four weeks out of the year, but the big shift is in realizing that "Black people are living these lives all year round," says Tindyebwa Otu.

"Good for you for becoming more aware, but this is an investment, this is our daily lives, this is not a moment, this is our reality."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
A bar in Ohio is in hot water with locals after a Facebook event circulated advertising a 'Going to prison party' for a woman involved in a drunk driving incident that left two teenage girls seriously injured.

Ohio residents tagged Rick Tavern and Grille in Fairfield after an event called 'Sending Samantha off to Prison' began circulating on the social media platform for the Sunday party.

Samantha Harvey, 51, is currently awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to a May 6, 2020, crash in Fairfield that left Savannah Schlueter and Caila Nagel critically injured.

She is scheduled to be sentenced for the crash on March 3 and has posted a series of social media posts related to her impending sentencing.

Ohio residents tagged Rick Tavern and Grille in Fairfield after an event called 'Sending Samantha off to Prison' began circulating

Samantha Harvey, 51, is currently awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to a May 6, 2020, crash in Fairfield that left Savannah Schlueter (right) and Caila Nagel (left) critically injured

Harvey and another woman were listed as hosts for the party, which was slated to begin at 2pm on Sunday. At least 17 people marked themselves as going, according to a grab of the event that a woman shared with the bar when calling them out for hosting the event.

'Please tell me your not allowing this to actually happen at your establishment?,' asked Skye Truett.

Harvey and another woman were listed as hosts for the party, which was slated to begin at 2pm on Sunday. At least 17 people marked themselves as going

'It's absolutely disgusting to have a 'party' for a woman who is going to prison for almost killing two teenagers. She was drunk and high AND left the scene!'

Truett's comment prompted a response from the bar, which then took to their own Facebook page to release a statement.

'Some of you may have have heard that we are hosting a 'Going to prison party' for someone that caused an alcohol related accident that resulted in someone being permanently paralyzed,' Rick Tavern and Grille said in a statement on Tuesday.

'We DO NOT condone this behavior! Our hearts go out to all that have been affected by this tragedy. This event has been CANCELLED. We were not involved in any way with this accident.

They added: 'However, we are currently looking into options for holding a fundraiser to benefit those involved. Please keep these girls and their families in your hearts and in your prayers.'

Locals shared the event page with the bar when asking them if they would allow the event to transpire

Rick Tavern and Grille in Fairfield released a statement on Tuesday saying that the event was cancelled

Candy Schuleter, Samantha's mother, told WKRC that while she was glad the event was cancelled, it did initially feel like a slap in the face.

'She could have took these girls' lives, and I just don't think you should take that lightly, ever. I feel like she has a disregard for the consequences and the hurt that she caused,' Candy said.

Savannah is overcoming a traumatic brain injury and dozen of broken bones, according to Candy. She said her daughter's recovery has been miraculous.

Schlueter has an upcoming surgery scheduled for her rotator cuff while Nagel's family has made a GoFundMe for her medical bills

Nagel has been left wheelchair bound after the incident

The mother continued: 'I hope she takes that time to learn from it and doesn't get behind the wheel again in that state and maybe take somebody's life the next time.'

Candy shared that Savannah has an upcoming surgery for her rotator cuff scheduled for March.

A GoFundMe has been made for Caila, who is wheelchair bound.
SABA:---The Executive Council and the Saba Business Association (SBA) are again seeking attention for the shortcomings in the commercial banking facilities for Saba residents and businesses. The Executive Council on Monday, February 15 sent a letter to Minister of Finance Wopke Hoekstra, accompanied by the SBA letter.

The SBA earlier this month sent a letter to the Executive Council to express concerns about the deteriorating banking services on Saba. The SBA pointed out that having only one bank on the island, the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), has created poor service and unnecessarily high banking costs for Saba businesses.

According to the SBA, the RBC Bank has restricted regular banking services via the tellers, forcing the business sector to resort to online banking which involves high fees. Some of the services that are no longer available through the tellers at the RBC bank include cash deposits and making a wire transfer. Depositing cash at the ATM machine often presents a problem with the machine at times being out of order for weeks.

The closure of the Windward Islands Bank (WIB) branch on Saba and the fact that no deposits can be made at the WIB ATM means that WIB customers have to travel to St. Maarten to do their banking. The latter poses a problem during the current pandemic with the travel restrictions and mandatory quarantining.

SBA reiterated that a second, on-island banking service is needed. This bank needs to be able to handle all banking services and utilize modern features such as low-cost methods to make wire transfers, to provide merchant services and online banking services at affordable rates.

In the letter to Minister Hoekstra, the Executive Council pointed out that it was unable to answer SBAs questions, and therefore appealed to the Minister to assist. Since the closure of the WIB branch on Saba a few years ago, the local government has been seeking attention for the precarious banking facilities. The SBA letter gives a clear overview of the current shortcomings. Because the ATM of the RBC is regularly out of service for prolonged periods, we decided to keep the WIB ATM open at our expense. The costs to keep the WIB ATM open are an additional budgetary burden for Saba.

A copy of the SBA letter has been sent to State Secretary of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations Raymond Knops, the Dutch Central Bank and the Second Chamber.
Visitors to Japan plunge 98.3 per cent in January after entry ban

After non-resident foreign nationals were banned from entering the country, visitors to Japan fell as much as 98.3 per cent in January from a year earlier.It was the 16th straight month of international tourism declining. Sequentially, this is a drop for the first time in 8 months as easing of restrictions in the past few months led to an uptick. In January, visitors from Vietnam made up almost half of the arrivals at 20,000, down 60.3 per cent. Many technical interns from the country entered Japan before the government suspended the entry of all nonr-esident foreign nationals in mid-January. Those from China came second, totaling 10,200, down 98.9 per cent, followed by 2,500 from South Korea, down 99.2 per cent. Read here

Let's look at the global statistics Global infections: 109,924,637 Global deaths: 2,430,511 Nations with most cases: US (27,826,813), India (10,950,201), Brazil (9,978,747), United Kingdom (4,083,092), Russia (4,066,164). Source: John Hopkins Research Center

Asia's racing against time as variants spread

Developing vaccines without sidestepping established scientific practices in less than a year was a miracle. Many thought that the vaccines breakthrough would mark the beginning of the end of the pandemic. Contrary to that, countries across the world, particulary in Asia, are finding it tough to keep pace with the virus. The longer the virus is allowed to spread, the more room it has to create more variants, putting vaccination efforts in peril. In this context, countries are racing against time to inoculate people faster, but with limited supplies and various logistical problems, the pace has been slow barring few Western countries. From the scientific problem in trials, the vaccinations have now turned into a more logistical problem after the rollout. Read here

What it takes to volunteer for human challenge trials

Birtian has approved human challenge trials, a first in the world, that will require healthy volunteers to expose themselves to tiny virus in a controlled environment. One of the trial participant Alastair Fraser-Urquhart will be infected with the virus through a nasal spray or dropper, and then will be placed in bio containment for about 17 days to ensure he does not infect others. Even though he signed up 'instantly' and thinks this process helps speed up vaccine development, his family are certainly not thrilled. While participants are not paid for the trial, they will receive about 4000 pounds as compensation. Read here

Taiwan accuses China of blocking efforts to buy vaccines

Taiwan was among the few countries that contained the virus early and successfully, much to the envy of the rest of the world. But when it comes to vaccinations it is lagging behind. Recently, the country has blamed China for blocking the deal to buy vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNtech. The health minister of Taiwan said the country had almost secured a deal for 5 million vaccine doses with BioNtech, but something changed the last minute. "There was some political pressure," he added without naming China. China claims Taiwan as a part of it and expects all the other international organizations to recognise the same. Read here
Bernard Lown, an eminent cardiologist who forged a dual legacy in medicine and world affairs, pioneering lifesaving treatments for heart attacks and co-founding an international group of physicians that won a Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to end the nuclear arms race, died Feb. 16 at his home in Chestnut Hill, Mass. He was 99.

He had congestive heart failure, said a granddaughter, Ariel Lown Lewiton, adding that her grandfather oversaw his own medical treatment.

A Jewish immigrant from Lithuania, Dr. Lown came to the United States before the outbreak of World War II and taught himself English by memorizing the pages of a dictionary.

He ascended the ranks of medicine and academia to become a professor of cardiology at the Harvard School of Public Health, a senior physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, and founder of a cardiovascular clinic in Chestnut Hill that bears his name.

He was credited with helping lead major advances in care for cardiac patients. Among them, in the early 1960s, was the development of a defibrillator that used direct current to reestablish a normal heartbeat when an arrhythmia occurs.

The device - the paddles often wielded in television medical dramas - quickly entered widespread use and led to more advanced implantable cardioverter-defibrillators placed inside the chest.

In addition, Lown helped demonstrate the utility of the drug lidocaine for cardiac patients and showed that nitrous oxide, popularly known as laughing gas, could be used to relieve pain caused by heart attacks and improve outcomes by lessening a patient's anxiety and therefore his or her heart rate and blood pressure.

Lown had observed the promise of laughing gas at a hospital in Moscow during a U.S.-American health exchange in 1968.

"When I walked into the hospital's coronary care unit, I couldn't get over the fact that there were little tanks of nitrous oxide gas near every patient's bed," Lown told the New York Times.

The exchange was neither the beginning nor the end of Lown's long commitment to international cooperation between physicians during the Cold War. Profoundly disturbed by the threat of nuclear war, he saw an opportunity - and responsibility - for doctors on both sides of the Iron Curtain to oppose nuclear armament.

"Look, here's the problem," Lown recalled writing to Yevgeniy Chazov, a Soviet cardiologist he knew, in the late 1970s. "You and I have been concerned with the issue of sudden death. Sudden cardiac death is not what's threatening us, but sudden nuclear death. You and I have got to get together."

In 1980, Lown and Chazov - along with Jim Muller, Eric Chivian and Herbert Abrams of the United States and Mikhail Kuzin and Leonid Ilyin of the Soviet Union - founded the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW).

The doctors quickly attracted attention. They implored the United States and the Soviet Union to cease nuclear testing and to reject the first use of nuclear weapons in the broader goal of ending the arms race.

By 1985, the group counted 135,000 members in 40 countries, among them 28,000 in the United States and 60,000 in the Soviet Union. That year, the group won the Nobel Peace Prize for having "performed a considerable service to mankind by spreading authoritative information and by creating an awareness of the catastrophic consequences of atomic warfare."

Lown and Chazov traveled to Norway to collect the honor.

"We are both cardiologists and usually speak about the heart," Lown said in his Nobel speech. "Today, we speak from the heart."

Chazov's involvement sparked a minor furor: He was a member of his country's Communist Party Central Committee, had served as personal physician to high-ranking Soviet leaders, and had publicly criticized Andrei Sakharov, the Soviet physicist and dissident who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1975.

Some American observers regarded the physicians' group as politically and geopolitically naive, unwittingly offering the Soviets a moral victory.

But Lown and his colleagues were insistent.

"We physicians who shepherd human life from birth to death have a moral imperative to resist with all our being the drift toward the brink," he said in the Nobel speech. "The threatened inhabitants on this fragile planet must speak out for those generations yet unborn, for posterity has no lobby with politicians."

Lown was born Boruch Latz on June 7, 1921, in Utena, Lithuania, where a grandfather was a rabbi. The eldest of four children, he grew up in a middle-class family that operated a mill, among other business interests that they relinquished in 1935 when they fled to the United States amid encroaching anti-Semitism.

The family ultimately joined an uncle of Lown's who had come to the United States at the turn of the century. His daughter, Louise Lown, would become Lown's wife.

Bernard Lown - as he became known in his new American home - spent his adolescence in Maine, where his father and uncle worked in the shoe manufacturing trade. He received a bachelor's degree in zoology from the University of Maine in 1942 and a medical degree from Johns Hopkins University in 1945.

Lown was briefly kicked out of medical school when, in an early display of his commitment to social justice, he intentionally mislabeled blood bank samples from Black and White donors. His purpose was to demonstrate the absurdity of the blood bank's segregationist policies.

Lown became interested in the dangers of nuclear armament in the late 1950s and early 1960s. In an interview with the Miami Herald, he recalled telling himself, "Lown, you have copped out for far too long."

He helped establish the organization Physicians for Social Responsibility and spurred medical research on the effects of nuclear weapons in an effort that culminating in the founding of the IPPNW.

In addition to that organization, Lown helped found SatelLife, a nonprofit organization that seeks to use technology and communications to improve health care in poor countries.

In his medical practice, Lown advocated a holistic, humanistic approach that he described in a book, "The Lost Art of Healing" (1996). He was also the author of a memoir, "Prescription for Survival: A Doctor's Journey to End Nuclear Madness" (2008).

Lown's wife died in 2019. Survivors include three children, Fredric Lown of Brookline, Mass., Anne Lown of Manhattan and Naomi Lown of Arlington, Mass.; five grandchildren; and a great-grandson.

Lown labored for years over purposeful, sustained collaboration between the Cold War superpowers. But the day before the Nobel ceremony in 1985, he found himself thrust by coincidence into what a Washington Post correspondent described as an "impromptu display of East-West cooperation."

He and Chazov were speaking at a news conference in Oslo when a Soviet television journalist collapsed from cardiac arrest. The two doctors tore off their coats and rushed to his side, performing chest compressions. When an ambulance arrived, the crew used a defibrillator to shock the patient's heart, and then delivered an injection of lidocaine.

"Suddenly I looked up to the heavens and said, 'Somebody up there is intervening to make a point, a parable,' " Lown told the Syracuse Post-Standard in 1988. It was a parable about "what is relevant is life - not worrying about ideology, about politics, about whether he is a commie or a capitalist."
The Delhi Transport department has started trial of contactless ticketing system in all the through the 'Chartr' app, officials said on Thursday.

The trial of contactless ticketing was launched first in cluster and then in a few Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) buses, amid the COVID-19 pandemic last year.

The decision to extend the trial to all the over 3,700 was taken in meetings of the Task Force constituted for the purpose by Delhi Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot, said a senior Transport officer.

The trial of contactless ticketing through the app was launched in 29 in September 2020. It was further extended to cover a total of 128 buses.

The trial has started in all the buses in some DTC depots and will gradually cover all the depots in coming days, said the officer.

"Preparations for the full fledge trial has been completed and stickers of Quick Response (QR) codes have been pasted in the buses that can be scanned to buy the tickets," he said.

With the trial beginning in the buses, training of the staff on how to use the app has also started at the regional offices. Besides the tickets, passes can now also be obtained through the contactless mode, officials said.

The 'Chartr' app can be downloaded from Google Playstore for getting tickets without physical contact with the bus conductors.

The app can be used to buy the tickets through feeding fare or destination in it. Payments could be made through different digital modes.

(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.)
New Delhi: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) spokesperson Rakesh Tikait on Thursday (February 18) said the farm movement would be extended to West Bengal in the coming days as farmers are not able to sell their crops at Minimum Support Price (MSP).

When asked if the farmers' agitation will be extended to West Bengal, Tikait told ANI, "Yes. Their crops are not being sold on MSP. We have got nothing to do with elections. We will talk to the farmers there."

Tikit reportedly said that Bengal is near the sea and the farmers there involved in fish farming are a troubled lot, adding that imports are increasing there while many fishermen have lost their lives in Bengal.

He said they are planning to go to West Bengal not because it is a poll-bound state, but to further spread awareness about the farmers` issue, according to IANS. Tikait said that a Mahapanchayat will be held in West Bengal in the coming days.

The `Rail Roko Andolan` would take place on Thursday from 12 pm to 4 pm across the country, he said, adding that people from their villages would be taking part in the `Rail Roko Andolan` today.

The `Rail Roko Andolan` has been announced by the Sanyukt Kisan Morcha. Tikait told IANS that the Centre was not permitting many trains to ply for the last eight months despite the fact that many other restrictions had been removed by the Centre.

Live TV

Meanwhile, fearing that the ongoing farmers` agitation will adversely affect the party in 40 Lok Sabha seats spread across Western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan, the top BJP leadership has gone into a hurdle to find a way out to reach out to the Jat community predominant in these regions.

Anticipating that the Jats may drift away from the party, the BJP top leadership called a high-level meeting on Tuesday in which Union Home Minister Amit Shah was also present along with MPs, MLAs, and leaders from Western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan.

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar and Minister of State for Agriculture Sanjeeb Balyan, a Jat leader from Western Uttar Pradesh, was also present in the meeting held at the party headquarters in New Delhi.

Amid the concerns and the party`s plan to reach out to the farmers, especially the Jats, Union minister Sanjeev Balyan has put up a brave face, saying there are no immediate polls and the party is thinking only about the farmers` concerns.

Notably, farmers from different states, particularly from Punjab, Haryana, and Western Uttar Pradesh, have been protesting on the borders of the national capital for nearly three months now, demanding that the three Central farm laws are repealed and legal guarantee for MSP on their produce be ensured.
A Harrisburg man whose family said he was himself a victim of physical and sexual abuse as a child was sentenced to state prison Wednesday for molesting a girl over a seven-year span.

Dauphin County Judge William T. Tully imposed that 2 - to 5-year jail term on 25-year-old Khalil Ausberry under a plea deal. Ausberry pleaded guilty to multiple sex offenses in November.

Investigators said Ausberry molested the girl starting when she was 7 years old. He was arrested in late 2017. Ausberry was 14 when he started molesting the girl and 21 when the abuse ceased, Chief Deputy District Attorney Jennifer Gettle said.

She said the abuse was discovered via letters sent between Ausberry and the girl when Ausberry was in prison on an unrelated conviction.

Gettle said the girl at first told investigators she thought it was unfair to prosecute Ausberry. However, in a statement the prosecutor read to Tully on Wednesday, the victim told Ausberry, I feel as though you deserve seven years in prison because you hurt meBut I forgive you.

Sharon Jones, who helped raise Ausberry, was called to give a statement by defense attorney Anthony McBeth. Jones said that at a young age Ausberry suffered both physical and sexual abuse at the hands of other relatives. He has been a victim, too, Jones said.

Ausberrys aunt, Linda Thomas, said she believes he needs psychiatric care, not imprisonment. Tully said such treatment will be available to Ausberry in the state prison system.

Gettle called the case a prime example of the sad cycle where children who are sexually abused often become abusers themselves. Hopefully, at some point that cycle can be broken, Tully said.

The judge ordered Ausberry to spend 4 years on probation after his prison term. Ausberry also will have to register with state police as a sex offender for life, Gettle said.
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February 18, 2021 by Linda Gallagher

Category: Administrative and Elected Officials



This blog post discusses the importance of the roles and responsibilities of elected and appointed officials working together in local governments, and it specifically targets the legislative and executive branches.

Policy Making and Policy Implementation

Effective local government depends on a balance of the powers of policy making and policy implementation. Just as our federal government is designed with three co-equal branches of government  the legislative (Congress), executive (Presidential), and judicial (federal courts) branches  the authority of local governments depends upon separation of powers. This blog examines the interactions between two branches of local government  the legislative and the executive  but does not cover the third branch of local government, municipal and district courts.

Councils and commissions make policies. Mayors, city managers, county executives, and other public executives implement these policies. In cities and towns, mayors or city managers essentially serve as chief executive officers (CEOs). For counties, some have elected county executives while others have boards of county commissioners (BOCCs) that not only set policies but also have responsibility for policy implementation. Some counties have independently elected department heads. County commissioners may also delegate executive authority to staff. Special purpose district boards serve combined legislative and executive roles as established in the statutes providing specific powers and authorities to these public districts. Typically, a special purpose board appoints an executive director or general manager to run the district.

Mayors, City Managers, and Other Executives

Executive branch responsibilities include making appointments that are subject to council or commission confirmation; hiring, supervising, and terminating deputies and other staff; managing budgets; handling public records; and administering contracts. Mayors in cities with a mayor-council form of government are in charge of the administration of city government and all city interests. RCW 35A.12.100 provides, in relevant part:

The mayor shall be the chief executive and administrative officer of the city, in charge of all departments and employees, with authority to designate assistants and department heads. The mayor may appoint and remove a chief administrative officer or assistant administrative officer, if so provided by ordinance or charter. He or she shall see that all laws and ordinances are faithfully enforced and that law and order is maintained in the city, and shall have general supervision of the administration of city government and all city interests.

Under RCW 35A.13.080(2), in code cities with the council-manager form of government, the city managers are responsible for all day-to-day operations of the city including:

[t]o appoint and remove at any time all department heads, officers, and employees of the code city, except members of the council, and subject to the provisions of any applicable law, rule, or regulation relating to civil service.

In code cities with city managers, RCW 35A.13.120 essentially prohibits city council interference with city administration except for the purpose of inquiry through the city manager. Even when one councilmember has been selected as chair or mayor, this person remains a councilmember and part of the legislative branch of the city government, not the executive branch. Under RCW 35A.13.030, the role of a mayor in a city with a council-manager form of government is, in addition to serving as the chair of council meetings, essentially ceremonial.

Mayors, county executives, city managers, and staff do not make policy decisions, though they do have strong influence on the policymaking process and its resultant decisions. For example, they propose budgets, provide data and support related to proposed policies, and make policy recommendations to councils as well as receiving feedback and suggestions from these legislative bodies. This process works best when the executive and legislative branches work together with effective communication, trust, and collaboration.

Councilmembers, Commissioners, and Other Legislators

Councilmembers and commissioners are authorized and required to make policy. Councils and commissions make policy by passing legislation during public meetings pursuant to the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA), chapter 42.30 RCW.

Legislative powers of cities and counties include budgeting and the appropriation of funds, authorization of payments, contracting for public works, drafting of procurement policies for other purchases and services, building and maintenance of agency facilities, and making and enforcing civil and criminal ordinances and resolutions that are not in conflict with state law. The Growth Management Act (GMA) planning process provides a long-term basis for planning, zoning, and budgeting for public projects through plan elements such as the Transportation Improvement Plan and Capital Improvement Plan, both of which have a six-year cycle.

For special purpose districts, the authorizing statutes for each type of district set forth the specific powers and duties of the districts through their legislative bodies, usually commissioners and directors.

Conclusion

So, whos the boss in local government? Well, it depends, and the roles may have some overlap. For day-to-day operations and policy implementation in towns and cities, the mayor or city manager is the boss and leads the agency, all under the guidance of legislation put forth by the town or city council. Counties may have elected or appointed executives overseeing day-to-day operations. Special purpose districts also have executive directors or general managers who are in charge.

For legislation, including policy making and budgets, the legislative/governing body as a whole could be considered the boss. Ultimately, local elected officials are responsible to the people of their jurisdictions. Successful local government officials understand their respective roles and work together for the benefit of their communities.

MRSC Resources

Below are additional resources on local government roles and responsibilities.

MRSC is a private nonprofit organization serving local governments in Washington State. Eligible government agencies in Washington State may use our free, one-on-one Ask MRSC service to get answers to legal, policy, or financial questions.

CLEVELAND, Ohio - This weeks Five for Friday entry comes courtesy of Andria Derstine, Director of the Allen Memorial Art Museum (87 North Main St., Oberlin).

Derstine has been overseeing the museum since 2012, serving prior to that as a museum curator. While the museum is currently open only to Oberlin College students and faculty participating in the schools Covid testing program, a number of virtual offerings are available to the public. These include Tea, Time, and Taste: Thoughts on Tea Bowls at the AMAM at 3 p.m. today and In the Galleries: The Goddess Shield at 3 p.m. on March 4. Presentations will be available on the museums Facebook and Vimeo pages. The museum is also hosting a webinar The Cause of Art is the Cause of the People at 3 p.m. March 18. Derstine will host an audience Q&A after the presentation. Advance registration required.

See more upcoming events at the Allen Memorial Art Museum by visiting amam.oberlin.edu/events or take a virtual peek at the museum.

Interested in being considered for a future Five for Friday feature? E-mail mrose@cleveland.com

Each week we survey a notable Northeast Ohioan about where they like to eat in Greater Cleveland. Here are Derstines Five for Friday choices:

1. Whats your favorite local restaurant and why?

There are many wonderful places to eat in Oberlin, but Id say my favorite is ThiNi Thai (18 Carpenter Ct., Oberlin), run by the co-owners of The Feve (30 S. Main St., Oberlin), another excellent local eatery. It features Northern Thai dishes served up by Chef Aon, whom the owners met some years ago in Chiang Mai. He moved to Oberlin to start the restaurant with them, and is now thrilling palates with his authentic, flavorful food. I love the Fried Rice with Gai Yaang, an amazingly tender chicken, marinated and grilled over a sustainably-grown rambutan fruitwood charcoal imported from Chiang Mai. Its complemented by yellow curry and vegetables, and deliciously transports you to warmer climes.

2. Whats your favorite local restaurant for takeout and why?

The Hotel at Oberlin (10 E. College Street) has a terrific restaurant, called 1833 (the year that both the town and Oberlin College were founded). They feature locally-sourced ingredients and offer great takeout, including tasty deviled eggs and plentiful eggplant gratin. Im also a big fan of Steel Magnolia (65 E. College Street, Oberlin), which just opened in January, featuring Chef Shontaes spectacular southern cuisine, including jerk chicken, fried catfish, mac and cheese, and collards and kale.

3. Whats your favorite dish/meal to prepare at home?

Italian pastas are among my favorites. One recipe I always come back to in winter is orecchiette with sauteed broccoli rabe and sausage  thats comfort food, for me. I also like to make penne in a light salmon cream sauce with chives, and rigatoni with spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, and feta. In the summer, fresh basil, tomatoes, and mozzarella, enlivened by black olives, make a super-easy and elegant pasta, or are wonderful on their own, as an insalata Caprese. A fairly elaborate salade Nicoise is also a summer go-to.

4. Whats your favorite cooking/food show or cookbook?

If I could only have one cookbook for the rest of my life, it would be The Splendid Table, by Lynne Rossetto Kasper. Its an amazing feat, presenting the cuisine of Emilia-Romagna and its historical context, written with wit and deep knowledge of the subject  and every recipe is a winner. Fortunately, though, Im allowed more than one cookbook, and many of the others on my shelves are from the triumvirate of Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, and Lidia Bastianich. I love shows featuring all three of them, but my current favorite cooking show is Diane Kochilass My Greek Table. Ive been very fortunate to have spent a lot of time in Greece, Italy, and France, and the cookbooks and shows of all these amazing chefs take me back to those happy times.

5. Favorite drink or dessert youve ever had in Northeast Ohio?

I love the Negroni at 1833, and the Kaffir Lime Collins at ThiNi Thai, but my favorite places for both drinks and dessert are farther afield from Oberlin: Chez Francois (555 Main St.) in Vermilion and both Astoria Cafe and Market (5417 Detroit Ave.) and Edwins (13101 Shaker Square) in Cleveland. All three have superb wine lists, and I prefer wine to cocktails. I dont have a sweet tooth so am not a big dessert eater, but the Bananas Foster at Edwins is a treat, and I love the restaurants mission of empowering workers for success.

Bonus question: Is there a particular piece of food-related artwork at the museum that you enjoy (or think would be of interest to future guests)?

We have a lot of food-related art at the Allen; one work that leaps to mind is Severin Roesens Still Life with Fruit, painted around 1865. Its presently featured in our curator Alexandra Letvins thought-provoking installation How can Museum Labels be Antiracist?, which asks viewers to think in new ways about the values encoded in works of art  even ones as seemingly straightforward as an abundance of fruit.
Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Its nearly two months since turbulence erupted around China Huarong Asset Management Co.At the end of March, its 4% perpetual dollar bond was trading at 102 cents on the dollar as investors figured the January execution of former chairman Lai Xiaomin for bribery put a line under past wayward behavior. But the failure of the company to release 2020 results by a March 31 deadline, and a subsequent report by mainland media Caixin that the firm will restructure, sparked weeks of turmoil. The same bond is now at 57 cents.The heart of the matter is whether the central government will rescue a state-owned company thats integral to the smooth running of the financial system. While there are signs Beijing wants to ensure China Huarong can repay its debts on time, uncertainty prevails.Heres a look at the key events for China Huarong:May 28The company has wired funds to repay $978 million of notes maturing within the following week, according to Bloomberg News, the biggest bond payment since the 2020 results delay.May 27Liang Qiang, who currently heads another bad-debt manager, is on track to become president of China Huarong, reports Bloomberg News.May 24China Huarong dollar bonds climb after the managing editor of Caixin Media wrote in an opinion piece that the asset manager is nowhere near defaulting on its more than $20 billion of offshore notes.May 21Some of China Huarongs thinly traded onshore bonds slump after having held up better than the companys dollar-denominated notes, signaling broadening concern about the firms financial health.May 18China Huarong has transferred funds to repay a $300 million note maturing May 20, Bloomberg News reports, the first dollar bond to come due since the delayed 2020 results. Prices for the firms dollar bonds slump earlier in the day after the New York Times reports China is planning an overhaul that would inflict significant losses on both domestic and foreign China Huarong bondholders.May 17The company has reached funding agreements with state-owned banks to ensure it can repay debt through at least the end of August, by which time China Huarong aims to have completed its 2020 financial statements, according to a Bloomberg News report. That as at least two of its onshore bonds see big price declines in recent days, worrying some investors.May 13The firm says its prepared to make future bond payments and has seen no change in the level of government support, seeking to ease investor concerns after a local media report that regulators balked at China Hurarongs restructuring plan.May 6The company says it transferred funds to pay five offshore bond coupons due the following day, its latest move to meet debt obligations amid persistent doubts about its financial health.April 30China Huarong breaks its silence, with an executive telling media it is prepared to make its bond payments and state backing remains intact. The official also says the weeks rating downgrades have no factual basis and are too pessimistic.April 29Moodys Investor Service downgrades China Huarong by one notch to Baa1, adding the firm remains on watch for further downgrade. The cut reflects the companys weakened funding ability due to market volatility and increased uncertainty over its future, according to the statement.April 27China Huarong units repay bonds maturing that day. The S$600 million ($450 million) bond was repaid with funds provided by Chinas biggest state-owned bank, according to a Bloomberg News report.April 26Fitch Ratings downgrades China Huarong by three notches to BBB while dropping the companys perpetual bonds into junk territory. The lack of transparency over government support for the firm may hamper its ability to refinance debt in offshore markets, Fitch said.April 25China Huarong says it wont meet an April 30 deadline to file its 2020 report with Hong Kongs stock exchange because auditors needed more time to finalize a transaction the company first flagged on April 1. Securities and asset-management units said in the days before that they wouldnt release 2020 results by months end.April 22The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission asks lenders to extend China Huarongs upcoming loans by at least six months, according to REDD, citing two bankers from large Chinese commercial lenders.April 21China is considering a plan that would see its central bank assume more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) of China Huarong assets to help clean up the firms balance sheet, according to a Bloomberg News report. Peer China Cinda Asset Management Co. was said to be planning the sale of perpetual bonds in the second quarter.April 20China Huarongs key offshore financing unit says it returned to profitability in the first quarter and laid a solid foundation for transformation. Reorg Research reports that regulators are considering options including a debt restructuring of the unit, China Huarong International Holdings Ltd.April 19Huarong Securities Co. says it wired funds to repay a 2.5 billion yuan local note.April 16The CBIRC says China Huarongs operations are normal and that the firm has ample liquidity. These are the first official comments about the companys troubles. Reuters reports Chinese banks have been asked not to withhold loans to Huarong.April 13Fitch and Moodys both put the company on watch for downgrade. The finance ministry, which owns a majority of Huarong, is considering the transfer of its stake to a unit of the countrys sovereign wealth fund, Bloomberg News reports. Chinese officials signal they want failing local government financing vehicles to restructure or go bust if debts cant be repaid.April 9China Huarong says it has been making debt payments on time and its operations are normal. Bloomberg News reports the company intends to keep Huarong International as part of a potential overhaul that would avoid the need of a debt restructuring or government recapitalization. S&P Global Ratings puts China Huarongs credit ratings on watch for possible downgrade.April 8China Huarong is preparing to offload non-core and loss-making units as part of a broad plan to revive profitability that would avoid the need for a debt restructuring or government recapitalization, Bloomberg News reports.April 6Selling gains steam in China Huarongs dollar bonds, following a holiday in China. Huarong Securities says there has been no major change to its operations, in response to a price plunge for its 3 billion yuan local bond.April 1China Huarong announces a delay in releasing 2020 results, saying its auditor is unable to finalize a transaction. Stock trading is suspended and spreads jump on the firms dollar bonds while China Huarong tells investors its business is running as usual. Caixin reports the company submitted restructuring and other major reform plans to government officials and shareholders.More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.2021 Bloomberg L.P.

DETROIT  The White House has postponed President Joe Biden's trip to Michigan, delaying his tour of a Pfizer facility in Portage until Friday, according to sources familiar with the visit.

Inclement weather was expected in the Washington, D.C., area on Thursday. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning and had predicted 3 to 6 inches of snow.

The visit underscores the importance of COVID-19 vaccines to the state, country and Biden's tenure. The safe and quick distribution of effective vaccines means a possible return to normalcy and an economic rebound.

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden speaks at a rally at Belle Isle Casino in Detroit, Mich. on Oct. 31, 2020, which former President Barack Obama also attended.

The White House had not released details on the visit as of Wednesday afternoon. The president typically takes a few questions from the media during such visits, but it was unclear whether he would announce any new policy or plan.

Biden has called on Congress to pass his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 plan, which includes additional funding for vaccinations along with $1,400 stimulus checks for people who earn below a certain income threshold.

The timing of Biden's trip Friday was unknown. The trip is his second to the Midwest this week, after a CNN town hall Tuesday in Milwaukee.

Pfizer, which teamed up with German-based biotechnology company BioNTech, created one of the two coronavirus vaccines now approved for emergency use in the United States. The company is manufacturing the vaccine at its plant in Portage, as well as sites in Chesterfield, Missouri, and Andover, Massachusetts.

The southwestern Michigan plant, just south of Kalamazoo, is the companys biggest manufacturing site and covers 1,300 acres. It is where the company finishes producing its COVID-19 vaccine, fills the vials and prepares them for shipment.

Pfizer, which is headquartered in New York, invested more than $150 million in capital to advance its COVID-19 vaccine program at the site and hired 400 additional workers for the plant whose jobs are focused on coronavirus vaccine production, inspection and packaging.

Story continues

More: Beaumont cancels 1,884 COVID-19 vaccine appointments due to supply shortage

More: First COVID-19 vaccines leave Pfizer's facility in Kalamazoo

Chaz Calitri, the companys vice president of sterile injectables, told the Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, in an interview last year that the $150 million investment was used to build high-speed vial-filling lines at the plant to allow Pfizer to mass-produce the vaccine.

"We're going fast and furious to scale up," Calitri said. "We have depth of technical knowledge and experience here, which is one of the reasons why Kalamazoo is one of the key manufacturing sites.

Calitri told USA TODAY this month that the company was on track to cut the amount of time it takes to make a batch of vaccine in half  from 110 days to 60 days as it continues to streamline production.

Since December, 28.4 million doses of Pfizers COVID-19 vaccine have been injected into the arms of Americans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was vague Wednesday on whether she planned to join the president.

"There aren't a lot of details to share officially about the president's visit tomorrow, but I'm really glad that he's coming," Whitmer said.

"We've got a good relationship, so I anticipate that as I learn more we'll be able to share that with you."

She said one of the state's proudest moments last year was watching trucks full of vaccine leaving the Pfizer facility.

"The partnership that we have had with the Biden administration is refreshing. I am just glad that the president is prioritizing vaccine rollouts, the purchase of and dissemination of vaccines, ramping it up every single week since he's taken office and for the foreseeable future."

Contact Dave Boucher at dboucher@freepress.com or 313-938-4591. Follow him on Twitter @Dave_Boucher1.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Joe Biden postpones visit to Pfizer facility in Portage until Friday
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Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
Minister of Education Tarek Shawki this week announced the details of the first and second semester exams during the Covid-19 pandemic. Regarding the first semesters final exams, Shawki said students of KG1 until grade three will not sit for any exams, according to the new educational system.

The minister pointed out in a video-conference that students from grade four to eight will sit for one comprehensive exam immediately after the vacation that would include all subjects in one paper. Grade four students, according to the ministerial decree, will take their collective exam on 28 February, whereas grade five until eight will take their collective exam respectively from 1-4 March.

Students of grades nine and 12 will sit for their finals at the end of the academic year when they will be examined on the whole curriculum. They will sit for their exams on paper on the school grounds. In normal circumstances, these same students would sit for an exam at the end of each term.

Meanwhile, grade 12 students will take their exams at schools but electronically. Grade 12 students will take their finals at the beginning of July due to the pandemic and the ministry will not cancel any parts of their curriculum, Shawki said.

The ministerial decree stipulated that students in grade 10 and 11 will be sitting for their exams from 27 February to 9 March. Both grades will take their exams respectively on different days in order to avoid overcrowding. The second semester in all schools will start on 10 March.

Regarding the final exams of the second semester, Shawki said students of grade four to grade eight will sit for monthly collective exams at their schools by the end of March, April and May. The average grades of these collective exams will be considered the second semesters final grade for each student. Grade 10 and 11 students will take online monthly exams in March, April and May at home.

The minister pointed out that parents who are worried about allowing their children to return to school have the option of postponing the current academic year to the next.

The new exam format had students and parents confused. Noura Ahmed, a mother of a seventh grader, believes that the ministers plans for the exams are nothing but an extra burden on families and their children. This is catastrophic, Ahmed said. What if my son is not able to answer one of the questions? Does he fail the subject? she asked. In their comprehensive exams, students will be answering one question on each subject.

Mohamed Gharib, a grade eight student, believes the new system is very difficult and unfair. Studying all the curriculum and getting tested on it at one go is very confusing, arguei.

Reda Hegazi, deputy to the minister of education and technical education, said students will not have to pass every single section, but have to pass the exam collectively. There will be no grades; its either pass or fail, Hegazi said.

According to Hegazi, if students have been studying regularly since December when classes stopped, they will have no problem.

Mohamed Ibrahim, an Arabic teacher, said students should not worry because the exam samples he had seen were easy. Ibrahim said the minister had to resort to this measure as parents and students misused the research system that was adopted last year. According to Ibrahim, students were supposed to learn how to conduct research and instead they paid money to buy someone to do it for them.

Although Ibrahim believes that this years exam system is acceptable, he said its problem was that students lacked training on it. Students should be trained on this collective exam in order to be able to pass it, Ibrahim said.

Noha Sami, an accountant whose daughter is in grade 11, said she was upset with the ministers decree because the girl will have to go to school for several days in order to take her exams, thus increasing the risk of getting Covid-19. Younger students will sit for their exams for only one day in all subjects. Why didnt the minister apply the same system to grades 10 and 11? Are our kids not as important as the young ones, Sami asked.

Hegazi insisted that all safety and precautionary measures will be adopted by schools for grades 10 and 11 students and that there was no need for concern. It is difficult to set a comprehensive exam for the older students because their curriculum is very long and sophisticated. We want our students to study properly and take their exams properly to be fairly graded as the marks of those two grades is considered part of their overall grade which will enable them to join university, Hegazi said.

The cabinets supreme committee responsible for managing the coronavirus crisis announced on 13 February the extension of the mid-year break by a week for both schools and universities due to the pandemic. Accordingly, the vacation will end on 26 February instead of 20 February.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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As millions of Texas residents suffer in the miserable conditions, questions remain about who is responsible for leaving the state so vulnerable. Omar Villafranca offers a reality check on why this is happening.

Video Transcript

- As Texans suffer, politicians and power industry officials are blaming each other for the failure. But they are not yet able to say how long this will last. Omar Villafranca is in Dallas with a reality check on why these outages are happening. Omar, good morning.

OMAR VILLAFRANCA: Good morning. We're actually standing outside of a Dallas power substation, and you may be able to hear-- that sweet humming sound is actually power coming from the grid. It's working. Texas has its own grid. It is not federally managed. It's managed by the state and a non-profit group called ERCOT.

Well now, those two groups are playing the blame game, trying to figure out why they could not keep the lights on for Texans.

GREG ABBOTT: Every source of power that the state of Texas has has been compromised.

OMAR VILLAFRANCA: Texas Governor Greg Abbott is leaving no one out when it comes to the state's energy failures.

GREG ABBOTT: Whether it be renewable power, such as wind or solar, but also as I mentioned today, access to coal generated power, access to gas generated power, also have been compromised.

OMAR VILLAFRANCA: For context, in 2020, wind and solar energy were responsible for roughly 25% of the state's electricity generation throughout the year. That, compared to natural gas, coal, and nuclear power, which combined for roughly 69%.

ED HIRS: The natural gas generators are the ones that we were all counting on to provide the electricity. Some coal plants were supposed to fire up also, and they didn't answer the bell either.

OMAR VILLAFRANCA: Even if wind was a major source, the reason behind that failure is much of the equipment has not been winterized, which can include using heaters and insulated pipes. That's something places like Minnesota do, and their wind turbines don't shut down in the cold.

Story continues

After a 2011 winter storm in Texas crippled power, a report recommended winterizing power sources. According to Hirs, the recommendations were not followed.

ED HIRS: The warnings have been there for years, and Governor Abbott has done nothing. Before that, Governor Perry did nothing. This was a train wreck on the way to happening 10 years ago.

OMAR VILLAFRANCA: Governor Abbott once again blamed ERCOT, the Grid Manager. But the ERCOT CEO told me that they had to go to the blackouts, otherwise the whole grid could have collapsed. Now, we actually tried to talk to Governor Abbott and two power generating executives, but they either did not want to talk to us, or we didn't hear back from them. Tony?

- Omar, an education for all of us and where our power comes from. Thank you very much.
An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.6 shook southwest Iran near the town of Sisakht late on February 17, with at least 40 people injured, Iranian media reported.

Iranian state TV quoted an official in the region as saying, "People in Sisakht and the town of Yasuj left their homes in panic. Water and electricity have been cut off in Sisakht."

"Rescue teams and ambulances have been dispatched to the area. So far, 10 people have been injured," the official added.

Sisakht, a farming area with a population of around 6,000 people, is about 500 kilometers south of the capital, Tehran.

State news agency IRNA said the temblor struck at a depth of 10 kilometers at around at 10 p.m.

IRNA added that there were no immediate reports of fatalities, but the Fars news agency reported that at least two of the injured were in critical condition.

Regional officials also reported heavy rain in the region and said many people were suffering in extreme cold weather.

Iran sits on top of major tectonic plates and experiences frequent seismic activity.

A 7.3-magnitude quake in the western province of Kermanshah killed 620 people in November 2017.

In 2003, a 6.6-magnitude quake destroyed the ancient mud-brick city of Bam in Irans southeast, killing at least 31,000 people.

Iran's deadliest was a 7.4-magnitude quake in 1990 that killed 40,000 people, injured 300,000 others, and left half a million homeless in the countrys north.

Based on reporting by RFE/RLs Radio Farda, Reuters, IRNA, and AP
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The Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs has commenced screening of the immediate past service chiefs as ambassadors.

The nominees are being screened for the position of non-career ambassadors.

They are the former Chief of Defence Staff, Gabriel Olonisakin; former Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai; former Chief of Air Staff, Ibok Ibas; and former Chief of Naval Staff, Abubakar Sadique.

The screening exercise commenced a few minutes past noon and is underway.

The chairman of the panel, Muhammed Bulkachuwa, is presiding over the screening.

The screening comes barely two weeks after they were nominated by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The presidents media aide, Femi Adesina, had, on February 4, announced that the president had forwarded the ex-service chiefs names to the Senate for confirmation as non-career ambassadors. This was barely a week after they resigned from service and their replacements announced.

Their appointment has been trailed by condemnation, with many Nigerians saying that the presidents decision was aimed at shielding the former military officials from possible prosecution, especially by the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Many allegations have been levelled before the military chiefs including the 2015 massacre of more than 350 members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), violent attacks on members of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), last Octobers shooting and of innocent Nigerians who took part in the #EndSARS protest at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, the extrajudicial killings in Oyigbo, an Igbo settlement in Rivers State, among others.

Some foreign affairs experts have called on the national assembly and even countries where they will be posted, to reject them as ambassadors.
The ruthless sharp chopping axe which is always hovering at the government enclave on Tuesday landed and cut short the illustrious career of Commissioner of Prisons, Colonel Silas Motlalekgosi from the civil service.

Motlalekgosi was axed from his luxurious position this week and the bearer of the bad news was his boss, the Minister of Defence, Justice and Security, Kagiso Mmusi. In an interview Wednesday, Motlalekgosi said Mmusi called him to his office Tuesday morning and gave him his dismissal letter which pronounced that his services end with immediate effect since the appointing authority in President Dr. Mokgweetsi Masisi has decided to retire him with immediate effect.

Permanent Secretary to the President Elias Magosi signed the letter, which also specified that his deputy has been appointed to act in his position. It was unfortunate that save for stating that I have to leave with immediate effect, the letter did not explain issues like when should I have vacated the official residence, said a dejected Motlalekgosi. He added, I however asked the Acting Commissioner to ask our principals on my behalf because even if I had a house obviously it must be rented out and as such I will need to give the occupant sufficient notice to vacate.

The now former prisons boss says as much as he had wanted to know the reasons for being early retired with immediate effect he did not see the need for Minister Mmusi to furnish him with the reasons as the appointing authority (the President) has the right to appoint and un-appoint someone from office. He however described his relationship with Masisi as great, saying that he worked well together with the appointing authority. Motlalekgosi, the man credited for reshaping and improving conditions of service at the Botswana Prisons Service (BPS) did not have an easy walk on the park after being seconded to BPS for two (2) years in October 2008 by President Ian Khama from Botswana Defence Force where he was serving as Artillery Brigade Commander.

His mandate was to find ways in which BPS could restructure and re-energise. He took over from Commissioner Herman Kau, who had retired the previous year becoming the second soldier of the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) to head the prison warders. The other is the retired Brigadier Justice Bando Sebolao, who served from 1996 to 1998 after government had realised that there was a vacuum with the prisons management. In a press conference during his early days at prisons he described prison as a microcosm of mankind which should be a shared responsibility with all the stakeholders.

Subsequent to coming up with the recommendation on what ought to be done at the BPS, Motlalekgosi was made to retire at BDF in order to take over the Commissioners post on full time basis. The then Minister of Labour and Home Affairs, Lethogonolo Peter Siele appointed him to the position as he felt that he was better placed to address the issues that he identified.

Among his achievements was advocating for Parliament to pass the Ministry of Defence and Justice Budget proposal which included the procurement of radio equipment known as phone jammers. The equipment tracks mobile calls by handsets smuggled inside Prisons for use by inmates usually to organise gangs and drug deals and to harass crime victims and witnesses outside prisons. Motlalekgosi holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Public Administration from Lacrosse University in Louisiana, USA and a Certificate in Principles of Management from UB.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Indian Navy did not participate in the two-day maritime exercise of Iran and Russia in the Indian Ocean Region, said the Indian Navy on Thursday. The naval exercise of Iran and Russia known as Iran-Russia Maritime Security Belt 2021 started on February 16.

"Reports that Indian Navy is participating in the drill are incorrect. We never joined the exercise," the Indian Navy said.

Two days ago in Tehran, Admiral Gholamreza Tahani, the spokesperson of the drill, had made an announcement that the Indian Navy had also requested and joined the exercise with a select group of vessels.

Admiral Tahani had also stated that the exercise with Russia is so flexible that not only one other country, but several others could join in later if they wish to do so.

The naval exercise took place in the northern part of the Indian Ocean. The drill covered an area of 17,000 sq km. It included the air targets, shooting at sea, liberating the hijacked ships, as well as the rescue and search and anti-piracy operations.

In 2019, Iran, Russia and China held similar naval exercise. Two days ago in Tehran, Iran's Navy Chief Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi hailed India as one of the powerful naval forces in the region and stated that Indian Navy is joining the exercise.

Khanzadi also said that China, which took part in a joint naval exercise with Iran and Russia in December 2019, will join the manoeuvres after Chinese New Year's celebrations.

The Iran Navy Chief made the statement even as India and China have been engaged in a 10-month-long standoff at borders.

Further growing military cooperation between Iran and Russia comes at a sensitive time with Tehran and Washington locked in a stalemate. Tensions between the two countries continue to simmer with both sides beefing up military presence in the Persian Gulf.

STERLING HEIGHTS, MI - Chicago meets Michigan at the states first Portillos restaurant opening on March 16, 2021 at 10:30 a.m. in Sterling Heights. Check out our video tour at the bottom of this story.

The 7,900 square-foot restaurant is off of Hall Road at 14425 Lakeside Circle at Lakeside Mall. The interior decor is all about showcasing Michigans auto and music roots with various vintage signs and historic trinkets. Theres even a 1931 Model T hanging above where patrons dine.

Its focus-centric on the auto industry here in Detroit, said Jeff Deppe, Portillos Director of New Restaurant Operations. We have many photos and many different tins from the local area focused on Detroit. A lot of these things are authentic and are not prints. The restaurants are decorated specific to the local community.

The restaurant is off of Hall Rd., which has a high volume of traffic. Some in the community worry Portillos, which tends to have customers lined up both inside and outside at all times of the day, will create even more traffic. Deppe says you shouldnt worry as the restaurant is an expert on keeping people moving.

Were professionals at managing our lots and getting people on and off. We have a good drive-thru Q here. Our lot itself is going to be very drive-thru friendly. We have a nice, long runway coming up through the drive, a nice double lane on the backside and then youll be able to exit out right to the access road and get out through the mall. It should work pretty seamlessly.

RELATED: Chicago couple brings authentic Italian beef sandwiches to Metro Detroit food stand

Besides its famous Chicago-style Italian beef sandwiches, Portillos serves Chicago-style hot dogs, char-grilled burgers, cheese fries, salads, Italian sausages and more. Its also famous for its chocolate cake and chocolate cake milkshakes. Michael Portillo tells MLive that Michiganders are going to love the food.

My father started this in 1963 with just a 6x12 trailer and no knowledge of how to do it, said Portillo, whose father founded Portillos. Be ready to be wowed and know that our Italian beef is slow-cooked, thin-sliced, marinated in its natural juices and in a blend of Italian spices. Its made with just the right amount of beef, gravy and its put on fresh baked French bread.

NOW HIRING

Portillos is looking to fill a variety of hourly and shift leader positions. Interested applicants can click here to apply or apply in-person at Portillos in Sterling Heights restaurant. Open interviews take place Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

DRIVE-THRU ONLY... FOR NOW

The restaurant will operate as drive-thru only until Michigans 25% indoor restaurant capacity limit increases to at least 50% due to COVID. Currently, that restriction is in effect through March 29.

Typically, the 25%, given how busy we are, once weve established the line, weve almost reached our capacity and youve got to manage the tables and keep them apart, said Deppe. Once we hit 50%, we can allow people to sit down, keep them social distanced and maintain the line. Safety has to be a priority at this point.

VIDEO TOUR:

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The controversial hitmaker Willy Paul has reportedly taken legal action against a woman claiming to be pregnant by him.

The Liar hitmaker filed a report against the young female fan identified as Ruth at the Central police station on Monday, Word Is reports. Willy Paul is accusing the girl of defamation after she claimed she got pregnant after a steamy night with the musician.

The girl reportedly spoke to the Star newspaper tabloid saying she was arrested and later released.

The arrest started as a set-up. I was told to go for an Interview in one of the leading TV stations for a lifestyle show. I trusted them, so when I went for shooting at TRM, thats where I was arrested, Word Is quotes Ruth.

The girl said she was held for at least eight hours but later released for unknown reasons.

Willy Paul was not with the police, he came later at the station. They wanted cash bail, I didnt have money, so I dont know why I was released because it got to a point I was released, she said.

Willy Paul on his part said the woman came clean and named those who pushed her to tarnish his brand.

At the station, the girl mentioned everyone that sent her to ruin my name. It is some upcoming producers, he said.
After getting death threat, Jakir Hossain had named two TMC supporters in complaint

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: A war of words has broken out in political circles following a bomb attack on West Bengal labour minister, Jakir Hossain.

Reacting to the incident, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that this was part of a conspiracy. She said that some people were pressurising him to join their party. She also held the Indian Railways responsible for the incident.

Some were pressurising him, it is part of a conspiracy: Mamata on bomb attack on minister

While, the war of words continue, one must recollect that Hossain had in December 2017 filed a complaint against two cattle smugglers who had threatened to kill him. The two cattle smugglers named in the complaint by Hossain were Trinamul supporters.

He began getting the death threats because he was vocal against smuggling of cattle, firearms, sugar and salt across the the border to Bangladesh.

Rail Roko: Protesting farmers sit on tracks in Punjab, Haryana; officials stop trains at stations

Officials aware of the probe say that they cannot rule out an internal feud. It could also be due to the rivalry with the CPI (M). It may be recalled that during a lathicharge carried out by the West Bengal police on CPI cadres last one of the protesters had tied leading to tensions in the area.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal Government handed over the probe to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). Hossain was seriously injured after unidentified attackers hurled a crude bomb at him at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad district on Wednesday night. At least two other persons, who were with the Trinamool Congress MLA of Jangipur, were also injured in the incident which occurred ahead of the assembly election in the state due in April-May this year.

Explained: Who is Princess Latifa, why is she jailed by her billionaire father in Dubai?

Hossain was brought to the SSKM Hospital here on Thursday morning and admitted to the Trauma Care Unit, state minister Firhad Hakim said, adding that a medical board has been formed to look into his health condition. "The investigation has been handed over to the CID.

A team of forensic experts have visited the spot this morning," a senior police officer said. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and senior TMC leaders went to the state-run hospital here to inquire about his health. "Hossain is presently admitted to the Trauma Care Unit.

A medical board is looking after his health. He is stable now and has injuries in his fingers and foot," Hakim said. Hossain, the minister of state for labour, was waiting at platform no 2 of the station to catch a train to Kolkata at around 10 pm on Wednesday when he was attacked, the officer said.

"The incident shows that West Bengal is not safe even for ministers. The government has failed to control the law and order," state BJP president Dilip Ghosh said. Meanwhile, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari's rally was attacked by unknown miscreants in Beleghata area of north Kolkata on Wednesday.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 14:55 [IST]
Horw, Switzerland -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/18/2021 -- FRAMES Magazine has proudly announced the launch of an exciting new photography app called the FRAMES Photography App. The app will be available on iOS and Android platforms for the smartphone users worldwide, and it is a carefully curated, inspiring, and elegant application that covers all genres of photography. To introduce this project to the world, the creators of this project have recently launched a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter, and they are welcoming generous support and backing.



"I am extremely grateful to our magazine readers for the enormously warm and encouraging welcome, and great feedback for our magazine." Said Tomasz Trzebiatowski, the founder and Editor-in-Chief of FRAMES Magazine, while introducing this project to the Kickstarter community. According to Tomasz, the app will be based on an inspiring, overwhelming, and unique concept of content creation. The most amazing fact about the FRAMES App is that it will be free of charge for both to download and to use, without any hidden costs.



The Kickstarter Campaign is located on the web at: www.kickstarter.com/projects/frames/frames-excellent-photography-in-your-pocket and backers from around the world can support the launch of this app by making generous pledges and donations. Moreover, the goal of this Kickstarter campaign is to raise a sum of CHF 14,000 and FRAMES Magazine is offering a wide range of rewards for the backers with worldwide shipping. Furthermore, more details are available on the Kickstarter campaign page of the project.



About FRAMES Magazine

FRAMES Magazine is a rapidly rising publication with Swiss origin. Followed by the success of the second edition of their printed magazine, the team of FRAMES has proudly announced the launch of a remarkable new smartphone app called FRAMES. The team of FRAMES Magazine is currently raising funds and support for this upcoming app on Kickstarter, and they are welcoming contributions.



Contact:



Contact Person: Tomasz Trzebiatowski

Company: FRAMES Magazine

City: Horw

Country: Switzerland

Email: tomasz@readframes.com

Website: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/frames/frames-excellent-photography-in-your-pocket
You left Patagonia abruptly last year. What happened?

I had been having a conversation with the Chouinards in 2019 about transitioning out because, honestly, I felt like I had accomplished everything that I wanted to accomplish as a leader. I felt like I had learned everything that I wanted to from Yvon. A lot of C.E.O.s stay a little too long at the fair. I think its good for companies to have new leadership.

When the company made the announcement, it was essentially effective immediately, and there was no immediate successor named. Thats pretty unconventional corporate governance.

Yvon doesnt do anything in a conventional manner. Hes not going to follow the optics of public companies. We had just gotten through the hump of everything that was going on with Covid. The business declined. We were going through a process of really looking at what the future would look like. And the reality is it made more sense to have the new leadership lead, and take forward that process. That was a mutual decision. At some point, the student has to leave the master.

When you left, did you consider other C.E.O. jobs?

Some amazing C.E.O. opportunities came to me, but they were in retail brands and other companies that I felt like were more contributing to our environmental problems and not solving them. When I think of what I want to devote myself to in the next decade, it comes to answering this question: How do we use business as a force for good, instead of evil and greed? To create jobs, to give people satisfaction that theyre helping the world, and not hurting it?

The reality is I feel like Im just entering a different stage in my life. In the Vedic system, there are four stages of human life. The first is the student, the second is the householder and the third is retirement. The Sanskrit word for the third is actually vanaprastha, which means going into the forest. The idea is that during this stage of your life, you hand over your day-to-day responsibilities to the next generation and become an adviser and a teacher. Im literally living in a rainforest, so its more than a metaphor in my case.

With the benefit of hindsight, is there anything you would have done differently at Patagonia during the early months of the pandemic?

I dont feel like I wouldve done anything differently. We were dealing with something that was totally unknown. And I feel like we dealt with it the best way we possibly could. I think Covid taught the world were kind of all interconnected. Our businesses have to be resilient. Our supply chains have to be flexible and innovative and adaptable.
The Nagol is Back! VTOs guide to this years Nagol, plus where to stay and play in south, central and north Pentecost.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on February 18, 2021

2021/02/18

At the invitation of the governments of Qatar, Uganda, Zambia and Kuwait, Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee will pay official visits to the four countries from February 19 to 23.

During his visits, Director Yang will have in-depth exchanges of views with the four countries on issues such as bilateral relations, regional situation, international landscape and global governance. We hope the visits will serve to implement the important consensus President Xi Jinping reached with the four countries' leaders, consolidate friendship, promote coordination of development strategies, and deepen cooperation in various areas including the BRI. We stand ready to work with these countries to make greater efforts towards and contribution to upholding multilateralism and regional and international security and stability and to building a community with a shared future for mankind.

CCTV: We noticed State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended a virtual UN Security Council Ministerial Open Briefing on COVID-19 Vaccine Issue yesterday, where Secretary-General Guterres said "vaccine equity is the biggest moral test before the global community." He also proposed that the G20 establish an emergency task force to prepare a global vaccination plan. Do you have any comment? Also, China has been providing vaccines to other countries even during the Spring Festival holiday. I wonder if you have any comment on that, too?

Hua Chunying: China applauds Secretary-General Guterres' proposal of a global vaccination plan, and supports the Secretary-General's efforts to realize vaccine equity and accessibility. Under the current circumstances, China holds an open attitude to any proposal conducive to the realization of fair vaccine distribution, and we are ready to keep in contact and coordination with all sides.

As State Councilor Wang Yi noted at the UN Security Council Ministerial Open Briefing on COVID-19 Vaccine Issue yesterday, there is no principle more important than putting people first, and no other consideration that is given higher priority to than putting people's lives first. As a country that always honors its commitments, China has been acting on President Xi's important pledge to make vaccines a global public good that contributes to vaccine accessibility and affordability in developing countries.

China was among the first to join the WHO-sponsored Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator initiative. We actively cooperate with 10-plus countries on vaccine R&D involving over 100,000 volunteers of more than 100 nationalities. China has joined and supported COVAX. At the request of the WHO, China has decided to provide 10 million doses of Chinese-made vaccines to meet the urgent demand of developing countries. China has given vaccine assistance to 53 developing countries. We support companies in exporting vaccines to countries that are in urgent need, have certified Chinese vaccines, and authorized their emergency use. We have exported and are exporting vaccine doses to 22 countries. In the meantime, by leveraging the strength of our industrial chains, China supports and assists others in manufacturing vaccine products in China or their own countries in a bid to boost global production capacity. China also decides to participate in the UN's Group of Friends initiative to donate COVID-19 vaccines to UN peacekeepers.

As you said and as many noticed, during the Spring Festival holiday, our provision and aid of vaccines to others continued as always. Chinese COVID-19 doses were delivered to Zimbabwe, Turkey, Peru, Morocco, Senegal, Hungary and the UAE, altogether seven countries. Leaders of Hungary and other countries welcomed the vaccines at the airport and expressed gratitude for China's provision and assistance.

With the efforts of governments, businesses and scientists of various countries, the R&D and production of COVID-19 vaccines are at a record-breaking pace, but there's still deficit in production capacity and distribution that needs to be addressed quickly. We believe the world should come together to reject vaccine nationalism, promote fair and equitable distribution of vaccines, and in particular, make them accessible and affordable for developing countries, including those caught in conflicts.

In carrying out international cooperation on COVID-19 vaccines, China seeks to make the vaccines truly a global public good. We will continue cooperating with all sides in such areas as vaccines and epidemic prevention and control, and making our contributions to fostering a global community of health for all and to the final victory of the global fight against COVID-19.

Beijing Youth Daily: The Arab public view China more favorably, according to a recent survey conducted by the Arab Barometer research network. The survey polled citizens in Algeria and other five countries in the Middle East. China's foreign policy also enjoys more popularity, as shown by opinion polls. Why do you think is China so popular in the Arab world?

Hua Chunying: I'm delighted to see the survey, which, I believe, reflects the considerable public support for China-Arab friendship.

Though geographically distant, China and the Arab countries are close at heart. The ancient Silk Road bore witness to our booming trade. We've fought by each other's side for national independence and liberation. We helped and supported each other in our respective national development causes. China-Arab cooperation stands as a shining example for mutual understanding and common development between developing countries. China has provided a lot of anti-epidemic supplies to the Arab states to help them deal with the sudden onslaught of COVID-19, sent medical teams to eight Arab countries and held more than 40 video conferences of experts. Since last year, vaccine cooperation between China and Egypt, the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco have been making smooth progress. Standing together with mutual support, China and the Arab world conducted exemplary cooperation in supply assistance, information-sharing and vaccines R&D, which stands as vivid manifestations of our commitment to standing by each other through good times and bad.

To answer your question about why China's foreign policy enjoys more popularity in the Arab states, I believe it is because the Chinese side adheres to the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, mutual respect and win-win cooperation for mutual benefit. We firmly believe that all countries are equal, regardless of their sizes or strengths, and we support the efforts made by the Arab states in upholding their national sovereignty and national dignity. We trust each other totally because we've been treating each other with nothing but sincerity and we've been sharing weal and woe along the way. Such invaluable trust does not come with a price tag. In the future, China and our Arab brothers will continue to support each other's national development and rejuvenation efforts, advance cooperation in epidemic control and other fields, and contributing more positive energy to safeguarding multilateralism and international fairness and justice while benefiting the Chinese and Arab people.

Bloomberg: Critics say that China has been fueling a global arms race in military drones. They say that China has less constraints in terms of which customer they can sell the drones to, and how those customers may deploy those drones, this is in comparison with the United States. I'd like to ask what the foreign ministry's comment is on the view that China is fueling global arms race in military drones?

Hua Chunying: Such allegation is totally baseless and unjustifiable. China always pursues a national defense policy that is defensive in nature. We have no intention of engaging in any form of arms race with any other country. In terms of military articles export, the Chinese government adopts a responsible and prudent attitude and strictly follows the three principles for arms export: it should be conducive to the legitimate self-defense capability of the recipient country; it should not undermine peace, security and stability of the region concerned and the world as a whole; and it should not be used to interfere in the internal affairs of the recipient country. In particular, China does not sell weapons to non-state entities or individuals, which marks a substantive difference from the practices of the Untied States and a few others.

Global Times: According to reports, the IAEA said on February 16 that Iran informed it on February 15 that the country will stop implementing voluntary transparency measures under the JCPOA as of 23 February, including the Additional Protocol. It also listed seven other "transparency measures" that Iran plans to stop implementing. AP also reported that IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi will visit Tehran on Saturday for discussions "to find a mutually agreeable solution for the IAEA to continue essential verification activities in the country." Do you have any comment?

Hua Chunying: Currently the Iranian nuclear issue is at a critical stage with both opportunities and challenges. China holds that the return of the United States to the JCPOA is the only correct approach to resolve the impasse on this issue. All parties should act with greater urgency, work together to implement consensus reached at the foreign ministers' meeting last December, and push for the unconditional return of the United States to the JCPOA as soon as possible and the lifting of all sanctions on Iran. On its part, Iran should resume full compliance with the JCPOA. In the meantime, we call on all sides to remain calm and exercise restraint, avoid taking actions that will escalate the situation and reserve space for diplomatic efforts.

China supports the IAEA and Iran in properly handling issues related to safeguards through dialogue and consultation. We hope all parties will play a constructive role in this regard.

Shenzhen TV: According to a Eurostat report released on February 15, China surpassed the United States and became the EU's biggest trading partner, registering total trade of 586 billion. What's China's comment on this?

Hua Chunying: It's great news for both sides.

The year 2020 saw China-EU economic and trade ties growing stronger against the COVID-19 pandemic which was wreaking havoc all over the world and driving the world economy into deep recession. China has become the EU's biggest trading partner. Over 60 percent of EU companies in China are ready to increase investment, according to the latest survey by the EU Chamber of Commerce in China, demonstrating great resilience, vitality and prospects of China-EU trade and economic cooperation.

At the end of last year, President Xi Jinping and European leaders jointly announced the conclusion of negotiations on a China-EU investment agreement, elevating China-EU relations and practical cooperation to a new level. For mutual investment, the agreement means wider market access, better business environment, stronger institutional guarantee and brighter prospect of cooperation.

As China is working to foster a new development paradigm, we will offer more market opportunities and broader cooperation space for Europe and the world. We are ready to continue joining hands with the EU to work for the early ratification and implementation of the investment agreement, deliver early benefits to Chinese and EU companies, jointly foster an open environment for trade and investment, and contribute both sides' strengths to upholding multilateralism and economic recovery.

De Telegraaf: In Myanmar, the anti-China sentiment is growing because of rumors that Beijing supports the military in a political change. People have been protesting in front of the Chinese embassy in Yangon, demanding that Beijing stop supporting Myanmar's military and have called for boycotting Chinese goods. Do you have any comment? Is China concerned about the safety of Chinese people living in Myanmar?

Hua Chunying: You question actually contains the answer, which is, these are rumors. Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Chen Hai already rebuked such rumors in an interview and elaborated on China's principled position. Today I would like to take this opportunity to once again state solemnly that the rumors circulating online are completely false and their aim is to sabotage friendly ties between China and Myanmar.

As to the situation in Myanmar, we've repeatedly stated our position. China is Myanmar's good neighbor having friendly ties with both the National League for Democracy (NLD) and the military. The current situation is not something we wish to see. We hope that parties in Myanmar will put the aspiration and interests of the people first, properly handle differences through dialogue within the constitutional and legal framework and safeguard political and social stability.

Chinese businesses and citizens in Myanmar have contributed to the country's development and China-Myanmar cooperation and friendship. We hope relevant sides in Myanmar will take effective measures to guarantee their safety.

Asahi Shimbun: Yoshiro Mori resigned as the president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee following sexist comments, and Seiko Hashimoto was named as the new president. Do you have any comment on that?

Hua Chunying: I think the personnel change concerning the president of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee is Japan's internal affair, and I won't comment on that. We hope and believe that with Japan's efforts, we will see a successful, safe, and smooth Tokyo Olympic Games. We also stand ready to have close cooperation with Japan to make this happen.

China Daily: According to reports, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab speaking about the WHO mission to China said that "We do share concerns that they get full cooperation and they get the answers they need," adding that he hopes to see full cooperation from China. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said "It is imperative that this report be independent," and called on China to "make available its data from the earliest days of the outbreak". Would you like to respond to this?

Hua Chunying: I'm sure you've noted the response from WHO experts and researchers involved. They said clearly that the report claiming "Chinese scientists refused to share raw data that might bring the world closer to understanding the origins of the coronavirus pandemic" was not their experience in China. They expressed disappointment in seeing their colleagues "selectively misquoted" by the Western media outlet and cried shame on it.

Certain Western politicians keep talking about an "independent" report, but I think we all agree being independent doesn't mean bowing to the Western approach towards China based on presumption of guilt. An independent report with science-based conclusions can only come from a fact-based mission with respect for science. You mentioned a call for China to have full cooperation with WHO experts. That is exactly what China has been doing. The WHO mission to China is part of the global origin-tracing scientific cooperation. Upholding the meticulous spirit of science and sticking strictly to facts, the WHO experts and their Chinese colleagues overcame difficulties brought by the pandemic and had their first face-to-face exchange in a candid, in-depth and friendly manner. Members of the WHO mission spoke highly of the high degree of collaboration from the Chinese side, saying that they were granted full access to every place they asked to see, everyone they wanted to meet, and felt their Chinese colleagues' candor and trustworthiness, obtained important new data and learned more about possible transmission routes of the virus. Here we see the science-based professional attitude. In contrast, the remarks by certain politicians you mentioned are just fresh examples of political interference in science.

As we've pointed out repeatedly, there have been more reports worldwide on the coronavirus appearing in various places around the world in the latter half of 2019. I want to cite research by French scientists, published recently in the European Journal of Epidemiology, which suggests that SARS-CoV-2 infection may have occurred as early as November 2019 in France. The findings are based on retrospective studies. A research-lead professor said that "these results suggest that, from November to December, the rate of contamination in the French population is already of the order of one case per thousand." These cases did not appear in clusters in any particular regions but sporadically spread over France. Another expert also raised the question whether SARS-CoV-2 was already present in France in September 2019.

Another well-known fact is that back in June and July 2019, American media started to write reports on the Fort Detrick Biological Base. In July 2019, there were reports on the unexplained outbreaks of respiratory disease in northern Virginia and on the subsequent EVALI outbreaks in Wisconsin. Also in July, the US CDC issued a "cease and desist order" to halt most research at Fort Detrick. By the end of July 2019, two retirement communities near the base experienced unexplained pneumonia outbreaks. The US CDC refused to release critical information regarding the base's closure for "national security reasons". In September 2019, vaping-related lung illness cases doubled in Maryland where Fort Detrick is based.

In March 2020, the US CDC director acknowledged openly that some flu patients in the autumn of 2019 may have been misdiagnosed and actually had coronavirus. There are also reports showing that blood samples from December 2019 tested positive for antibodies against the virus.

These are reported by American media. People are curious whether the US will make public relevant raw data, offer the WHO its unreserved and full cooperation, and invite WHO experts on an independent origin-tracing mission in the country?

As experts point out, the global origin-tracing work would not be bound to any location and may evolve geographically as evidence is generated and science-based hypotheses evolve. In an open and transparent manner, China has conducted a very thorough, professional, science-based study with the WHO experts. We hope that when science leads origin-tracing work to other locations, relevant countries will also be cooperative in an active and science-based manner, take part in the global origin-tracing work, conduct exchanges and share study results, and fulfill their due responsibilities and duties in the global efforts against the pandemic and in the building of a community of health for mankind.

CCTV: Soon after Ofcom announced that it would revoke CGTN's license to broadcast in the UK, China's National Radio and Television Administration banned BBC World News from broadcasting in China, and BBC's request to broadcast for another year will not be accepted. Media say this is China's countermeasure against the British side. UK Foreign Secretary Raab called this "an unacceptable curtailing of media freedom." What's your comment on this?

Hua Chunying: The National Radio and Television Administration has announced its decision. It has found that the contents of BBC World News' China-related reports are in serious violation of the Regulations on Broadcasting and Television and the Measures for the Administration of Landing of Foreign Satellite Television Channels, and inconsistent with authenticity and justice that journalism should promote. They undermine China's national interests and solidarity among ethnic groups. As such, BBC World News doesn't meet the criteria for a foreign television channel to broadcast in China. The National Radio and Television Administration banned BBC World News from broadcasting in China, and BBC's request to broadcast for another year will not be accepted.

I'd like to stress the following three points.

First, as you see, BBC has repeatedly produced and broadcast fake news with strong ideological bias against China, and spread disinformation on Xinjiang, Hong Kong and the COVID-19 pandemic to smear and attack China.

Since 2019, on Hong Kong-related matters, BBC has been neglecting the rioters' violent behaviors and accusing Hong Kong police of brutality that allegedly brought more violent protests. On Xinjiang, based only on several non-photorealistic satellite images and reports written by anti-China personnel, BBC journalists stationed in Beijing made "lies of the century" to slander Xinjiang. On the pandemic, BBC even used a counter-terrorism drill video as "proof" of China's violence in epidemic prevention.

Second, the UK's decision to revoke the license of CGTN to broadcast in the country is political oppression.

As China repeatedly stressed, as an international, professional media agency, CGTN has strictly observed British laws, regulations, professional ethics, and the principles of objectivity, impartiality, authenticity and accuracy when broadcasting in Britain. With its internationally recognized professionalism, CGTN has had good cooperation with the UK over the past 18 years of broadcasting. Its operation conforms to the law of communication and has played a positive role in enhancing mutual understanding and cultural and people-to-people exchanges between the Chinese and British people. Nevertheless, in February 2020, Ofcom suddenly cited CGTN's "editorial control" and "political nature" and started investigation of revoking its English-language satellite news channel in the UK. Although the allegations are groundless, CGTN still cooperated fully with Ofcom to meet all its demands and sought to resolve the problem in a constructive manner, demonstrating great sincerity.

However, to our indignation, Ofcom has time and again negated the Chinese side's proposals and blatantly revoked CGTN's license on February 4 this year. As facts have proven, this was never about any technical problems. It has all along been political oppression out of strong ideological bias.

Third, it is very hypocritical for the UK to preach press freedom on the one hand while making a fuss of a media agency's political nature on the other.

It must be pointed out that when you give your opinion on a media agency, the most important thing you need to consider is whether its reports are consistent with professional ethics, objectivity and impartiality. China is a country under the CPC leadership. It was so when China and the UK established diplomatic relations, and it was so when CGTN began broadcasting in Britain. The British people didn't cut their ties with the Chinese people because of the CPC leadership, the British companies didn't stop doing business with Chinese ones because of the CPC leadership, and the British government didn't give up cooperating with China on major regional and international issues because of the CPC leadership. What makes it a problem now in the media sector?

The UK claims to champion press freedom on the one hand while launching political oppression against CGTN and obstructing its broadcasting on the other. The UK indulges British media in making fake news on the one hand while making a fuss of CGTN's nature on the other. The UK on the one hand boasts about objectivity and impartiality, while on the other makes political maneuvers and its media take stances and choose angles in reporting all based on ideology, sometimes even fabricating fake news. It is blatant double standard out of typical political motives.

China has been open to, welcoming and providing convenience for foreign journalists covering news in China, including those with British media agencies. What we oppose is ideological bias against China, fake news in the name of press freedom, and behaviors that breach professional ethics. As we made clear when Ofcom revoked CGTN's license, we reserve the right to make necessary reactions to safeguard Chinese media's legitimate rights and interests.

Lastly I'd like to stress that it is entirely reasonable and legal for China to make legitimate responses after the UK flagrantly oppressed CGTN. We urge the UK to immediately stop making political maneuvers and correct its mistakes. China reserves the right to make further legitimate and necessary reactions.

The Paper: Canada launched the Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations on February 15 and claimed to have the endorsement of many countries as well as the EU. Head of the Human Rights Watch accused China of arbitrarily detaining Canadian citizens Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor at the launch. I wonder if you have a comment?

Hua Chunying: The Canadian side issued the so-called Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention with some other countries, and deliberately staged the accusation of "arbitrary detention" in China concerning the cases of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. Like a thief posing as judge, it is distorting facts driven typically by a guilty conscience. We deplore and reject this and has lodged stern representations with the Canadian side.

It must be pointed out that Ms. Meng Wanzhou has been arbitrarily detained for over two years despite the fact that she hasn't violated any Canadian law. This is a most accurate illustration of arbitrary arrest or detention of foreign nationals. The Declaration looks rather like Canada's confession in the Meng Wanzhou case. On the one hand, the Canadian side claims that it upholds the rule of law, but on the other hand, it acts as an accomplice of the US in detaining a Chinese citizen. How hypocritical and despicable! If it truly opposes arbitrary detention, then it's time to match words with actions, release Ms. Meng without further delay and ensure her safe return to China.

Canada claims to have the backing of some countries, but that is purely a victory in fantasy. To our knowledge, some countries had been coaxed by Canada and later retracted their endorsement. Some unwary "founding endorsers" didn't even know they were put on the list!

As to the cases of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, China has made clear its position on many occasions. They have been prosecuted for suspected crimes undermining China's national security. China's judicial organs handle the cases independently in accordance with law and fully guarantee their lawful rights. In fact, China stands firmly opposed to arbitrary detention through concrete deeds. It has signed over 500 multilateral treaties and has been actively fulfilling its obligations under the 26 international human rights conventions it has joined. The Canadian side tries to draw parallels between the Meng Wanzhou case and the cases of the two Canadian nationals in an attempt to confuse right and wrong with ulterior motives. It is seeking to resort to megaphone diplomacy and gang up on China. This hasn't worked in the past, and will never work in the future. The rock it's lifting will end up hitting its own foot.

China Review News: The Associated Press reported that an investigation it had conducted in collaboration with the Atlantic Council found "China launched what may be its first global digital disinformation campaign" "to seed and spread stories suggesting the U.S. created COVID-19 as a bioweapon". It also claims that "The number of Chinese diplomatic accounts on Twitter has more than tripled since mid-2019, while on Facebook they've more than doubled". I wonder if you have any comment on this?

Hua Chunying: The word "may" sticks out in your question. I've no idea how the investigation was conducted. But what is disinformation and who is really spreading it? As we have seen, since COVID-19 broke out, social media in the West including the United States has been awash with conspiracy theories about the virus. Some U.S. officials, members of Congress, media and institutions have been seeding and spreading a large amount of disinformation against China without producing any evidence. In total disregard of basic facts, they blatantly malign and smear China, or proceed with biased presumption of guilt. I'll give you a simple example. They have been spreading such rumors and lies as "the virus was leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology" even after such claims have been openly dismissed by almost all leading scientists and disease control experts in the world. We can all see this clearly.

Turning to the number of Twitter users, I wonder if they have also looked into the number of foreign media and diplomats using WeChat or Weibo? Why cannot Chinese people use Twitter or Facebook when foreigners can use Chinese social media platforms? We are just adding an extra channel to share information and communicate with people in other countries.

The fundamental reason for this sort of hype-up is that some in the West including the US don't want to hear the objective true voice from China on the issue of origin-tracing. They fear that once more people get to know the facts and truth, they can no longer spread disinformation or monopolize information and mislead the public at will.

AFP: The US announced it would be renewing its quad alliance with Australia, India and Japan. Do you have any comment on this? Secondly, the head of Taiwan's health department Chen Shih-chung said in a radio interview that a deal to acquire five million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine failed at the last minute due to what he believed was political pressure. Do you have any comment?

Hua Chunying: On your first question, peace and development is the mainstream of our era. It is our hope that cooperation between relevant countries will be open, inclusive and win-win, benefit the world and regional peace and stability and act as a force for good, instead of being used to target any specific country. Only this will receive support.

On your second question, the central government of China always attaches great importance to the health and well-being of our compatriots in the Taiwan region. We are always ready to provide necessary assistance to their fight against the virus. The DPP authorities should stop using the pandemic as an excuse to serve their political manipulation and hyping purposes, and do something real to promote the health and well-being of the people in the Taiwan region.

RIA Novosti: Earlier this week, Russia's special presidential representative for Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov said in an interview that the new international meeting to promote the Afghan crisis settlement could be held by the end of the month in the Russian capital. He also said that he hopes that China will take part in this meeting, because this issue will be very difficult to resolve without China's participation. I'd like to know if China will participate in this meeting. If so, who will represent China?

Hua Chunying: Afghanistan's peace and reconciliation process has reached a crucial juncture. If Afghanistan wants to embrace peace and stability at an early date, support and assistance from the international community is indispensable. China attaches great importance to the role of multilateral mechanisms on the Afghan issue, and constantly maintains contact with relevant sides on meetings and consultations.

Follow-up: Do you mean that China will take part in the meeting, but it just hasn't decided who will represent China at the meeting?

Hua Chunying: China attaches great importance to the role of multilateral mechanisms on the Afghan issue. We are in constant communication with relevant sides on meetings and consultations. As for who will represent China, at what level or in which format, I do not have exact information at this moment. I will keep you updated once I get specific information.

TASS: Yesterday NATO's Secretary-General said that NATO's strategic concept requires update. According to him, it does not take into account the rise of China and the deterioration of relations with Russia. The videoconference of the NATO defense ministers is conducted this week. One of the main issues on the agenda is development of a new strategic concept of the alliance where Russia and China will be proclaimed NATO's major adversaries. Do you have any comments on this?

Hua Chunying: The remarks reveal a Cold-War mentality. China is committed to peaceful development and win-win cooperation, a common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security concept, and a defense strategy that is defensive in nature. China upholds world peace and international order and have contributed its share to world peace and development. Our development also brings opportunities for the world. We will continue to move forward on the correct path of peace and cooperation. We hope NATO will look at China's development in an objective, positive and open light and do more things conducive to maintaining regional and international security and stability. Cold-War mentality has no future.

PTI: It's over a week since China has announced the disengagement process at the Pangong Lake area along its border with India. How do you see the disengagement process going on? Can you give an update on this?

Hua Chunying: Based on the consensus reached by the Chinese and Indian sides in rounds of consultations through diplomatic and military channels, frontline troops of both sides in the Pangong Lake area started on February 10 to organize disengagement in a synchronized and planned manner. To my knowledge, things are progressing smoothly in general. We hope both sides will continue to move towards each other, strictly comply with the consensus reached and agreements signed, and ensure the smooth completion of the disengagement process.

Follow-up: When is it going to be completed, this particular disengagement process? Perhaps you can update us a little later if you don't have it.

Hua Chunying: As I just said, to my knowledge, things are progressing smoothly in general. We hope both sides will continue to move towards each other and ensure the smooth completion of the disengagement process. As for further details, I don't have any at the moment and refer you to the military.
The Pennsylvania Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee is holding a meeting at 7:30pm EST Thursday night, Feb. 18, to discuss the unfolding struggle in Philadelphia and mobilize opposition to the deadly reopening of schools. Register now and share this link with your coworkers to build the committee!

The School District of Philadelphia (SDP) announced yesterday it was pushing back its reopening of schools for in-person instruction from February 22 to March 1. The district had originally planned for a phased reopening to begin next Monday, beginning with 9,000 kindergarten through second grade students.

District Superintendent William Hite told a press conference, I believe we all agree on reopening schools. The dispute has been how can we do that safely, and the district needs to address that. Feigning concern for the mental and educational well-being of children, he continued, our youngest students are falling further behind, without providing a shred of evidence to back up this claim.

Teachers protesting last week against Philadelphia school board plan to reopen. (Source: Facebook/PFT)

The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT) union issued a perfunctory statement in response, saying it is the right decision and that the PFT will work with the district to reopen schools based on the fraudulent claim that buildings can be made safe by adding a box fan for adequate ventilation.

The delay is the third time that school reopenings have been postponed this semester in the city, which has been virtual-only since last March, because of the overwhelming opposition from rank-and-file teachers. They compelled the union to call a job action on February 8, a previous return date, with teachers continuing to hold classes remotely.

However, the PFT supports plans to reopen schools in the midst of the pandemic. Both the union and the district have endorsed the politically motivated rewrite of school guidelines by the Biden administration's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which allows for schools to reopen "at any level of community transmission," falsely claiming that schools reopenings can be safe.

Hite has paraded his own scientist out into the public forum to hurl unscientific platitudes at the public. Susan E. Coffin, a Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) physician and infectious disease specialist, said, It is possible to have an in-person education during this period, suggesting only that children and staff should stay home if theyre feeling illa precaution which would not affect asymptomatic infections, as the vast majority of infections among children are.

Union President Jerry Jordan signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the school district last fall as a framework for reopening the city's schools. The agreement provides for disputes over safety measures to be resolved by an "independent" mediator, in discussions which take place behind closed doors and are not subject to the memberships approval. In reality, this is a framework for the union to collude with the school district to beat back the opposition of teachers.

The decision to push back reopening is an indication that both the PFT and the school district recognize they need more time to bring the opposition of teachers under control. For now, wary of further inflaming opposition, city officials are not moving openly against teachers. In a press conference Tuesday, before the delay had been announced, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney ruled out disciplinary action against teachers who refused to return to classrooms.

"Weve all been through a lot within the last year, and everybody is scared, everybody is stressed," Kenney said. "And youre more likely to add to that stress by disciplining people. I dont think that gets us anywhere and maybe forebodes a longer term problem with managing staff personnel." Last Sunday, several dozen teachers and parents staged a Valentine's Day demonstration outside of Kenney's house, demanding that schools remain closed.

However, this measured approach can change rapidly. This is because the reopening of schools is a central strategic goal of the entire ruling class, who see as critical the reopening of workplaces and dismantling all remaining limitations on economic activity. While it is deeply unpopular among teachers and the working class, it enjoys unanimous bipartisan support, and the Biden administration has identified reopening schools by April as its top priority.

Philadelphia teachers must learn the lessons of the Chicago teachers struggle, where the union and Mayor Lori Lightfoot used delays to string out teachers and lull them into a false sense of security. On the eve of lockouts and near-certain strike action, the union then announced a deal which accepted all of Lightfoot's demands, and forced it through last week within 48 hours.

Teachers cannot allow the PFT-SDP conspiracy to go unchallenged! To mobilize their co-workers and their supporters in the working class, teachers should join the Pennsylvania Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee, which is completely independent of the pro-corporate trade unions, and was formed last year in opposition to unsafe school reopenings.

The Pennsylvania committee is part of a rapidly growing network of committees throughout the United States and worldwide, which fights to mobilize workers independently to fight for a shutdown of schools and nonessential industry to contain the pandemic and defeat the "herd immunity" policies of the capitalist class.

The announcement of a delay received pushback from the City Council in a committee session later that day. The council has been meeting remotely, not in person, for months. David Rubin, director of CHOPs PolicyLab, double-downed on reopening, which he said can be done quite safely. Against mounting evidence about the truth of these claims from parents, he said they were greatly encouraged by the evidence that even large districts like New York City had very infrequent transmission.

New York City, however, is the worst-impacted city in America, with nearly 700,000 confirmed cases and over 25,000 deaths. According to New York's own figures, there have been over 15,000 confirmed cases in the city's schools since September 14. Since that time, the district has closed school buildings for 24 hours 588 times and for longer periods 1,543 times. This is in spite of the fact that the political establishment in that city, led by Democratic Mayor Bill De Blasio and Governor Andrew Cuomo, are also furiously pushing to reopen schools.

City Council members expressed their unanimous support for reopening schools as quickly as possible. Council member Helen Gym, the Children and Youth Committee Chair, said, the [t]op priority is reopening schools promptly and safely and the reasoning behind the public hearing is to have a respectful engagement with people who have diverse perspectives." After Hites remarks, Council member Maria Quinones Sanchez said, We all are committed to a common goal.

The mayor is currently dangling the opportunity to get vaccinated as an incentive for educators to return to schools. However, children have no timetable to be inoculated, and the vaccination rollout has been moving at a snails pace at best, with all teachers not expected to be vaccinated until April or May.

LUSAKA, Zambia, Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Government of Zambia and African Parks have signed a Memorandum of Understanding which will see the implementation of a Priority Support Plan for the protection of Kafue National Park. Signed on Thursday 4th February, the Priority Support Plan will increase technical and financial support for Kafue worth US$3 million over a period of 12 months.

Minister of Tourism and Arts Honourable, Hon. Ronald K. Chitotela, said the MoU would help Zambia to realize the potential of the Kafue National Park which is Zambia's prime tourist destination and an internationally renowned wildlife sanctuary.

"It is essential that we invest in the protection of our wildlife and enhance the infrastructure for tourism. Having worked together for 18 years, we believe that African Parks is a partner who can help us to actualize the park's potential in contributing to the economy and the wellbeing of our people," the Minister said.

The Priority Support Plan will see the collaboration between Department of National Parks and Wildlife (DNPW) and African Parks implement activities in key priority areas over the ensuing 12 months, while the parties negotiate for a long-term agreement. The primary objectives include improving critical infrastructure, supporting the DNPW's law enforcement efforts and conducting conservation baseline studies.

African Parks' CEO Peter Fearnhead said "Kafue National Park is one of Africa's best known protected areas and one of the ten largest on the African continent. We look forward to supporting the Zambian Government's vision to conserve this extremely precious resource and to optimise its long-term social, economic and ecological benefits".

Kafue National Park is situated in the world's largest transfrontier conservation area, the Kavango Zambezi (KAZA TFCA), which straddles the boundaries of five countries, forming one cross-border ecosystem the size of France. Kafue's Priority Support Plan will be funded through Dutch Postcode Lottery's dreamfund grant, a 16.9 million Euro contribution awarded to the World Wide Fund for Nature, African Parks and Peace Parks Foundation to assist KAZA partner states in securing the TFCA through integrated initiatives.

Kafue is Zambia's largest wildlife sanctuary, covering 22,400km2 of intact savannah and a network of water channels dominated by the Kafue River. It represents one of the last expansive tracts of the iconic Zambezian ecoregion, providing a singular opportunity to conserve significant populations of savannah wildlife, including elephants, large predators and 21 species of antelope  the highest diversity of antelope on the continent.

Related Links

african-parks.org



SOURCE African Parks
SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- USAA is announcing updates to its SafePilot telematics program, including new policy discounts up to 30% for safe driving behaviors and up to 10% for new auto policyholders signing up for the program. These new discounts are available in Texas, Ohio and Arizona.

This follows the recent news that SafePilot grew over 200% in 2020, and that nearly half of the new policyholders in the four states where SafePilot is available opt-in to the program.

"SafePilot promotes safe driving behaviors, and as a benefit of safe driving, our members who utilize the program are seeing significant policy discounts," said Randy Termeer, USAA SVP and GM Auto Insurance.

"We have long advocated for safe driving and are committed to facilitating our members' financial security, and so we are thrilled to announce these increased discounts," said Jim Syring, USAA P&C President.

Current SafePilot users in Texas, Ohio and Arizona will receive the new discount of up to 30% upon auto policy renewal.

SafePilot is currently available in Texas, Ohio, Arizona and Virginia, with plans to launch in the majority of states throughout 2021 to accommodate growing demand.

To learn more about SafePilot, visit usaa.com/insurance/safedriving.

About USAA

Founded in 1922 by a group of military officers, USAA is among the leading providers of insurance, banking and investment and retirement solutions to nearly 13 million members of the U.S. military, veterans who have honorably served and their families. Headquartered in San Antonio, Tex., USAA has offices in seven U.S. cities and three overseas locations and employs more than 35,000 people worldwide. Each year, the company contributes to national and local nonprofits in support of military families and communities where employees live and work. For more information about USAA, follow us on Facebook or Twitter (@USAA), or visit usaa.com.

Contact: USAA Media Relations

[email protected]

210-498-0940

USAA on Twitter: @usaa

SOURCE USAA

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The President of the Culture Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, Iulian Bulai, states that the great sculptor Constantin Brancusi must be viewed not only through his works, but also through the philosophy that inspired them and it is never too late to appreciate his creations and make them known to the public today.

"145 years after the birth of Constantin Brancusi, I believe that we must look at the great Romanian sculptor not only through his works, but also through the philosophy that inspired them and after which he guided his life and creation. Brancusi's creations are part of our fundamental values. And it is never too late to appreciate, contextualize and make them known to the public today, reinterpreting the classic messages and presenting them in a contemporary light," Iulian Bulai told AGERPRES.

In his opinion, Brancusi's words should guide our values.

"Brancusi said that 'simplicity is the essential part of complicated things.' Let these be the words that guide our actions and values," Bulai points out.

February 19 marks the 145th anniversary of the great Romanian sculptor's birth.

By Law 305/2015, the Parliament declared February 19 as "Brancusi Day".

The secret medals of a CIA spy who managed to smuggle a Soviet MiG fighter jet into the US during the Cold War have been put up for action after they were hidden in a picture frame for decades.

CIA officer Jim Fees masterminded the covert acquisition of the MiG-23MS Flogger fighter jet in September 1977 when he was the Cairo station chief.

The Russian fighter jet was loaded onto a US cargo plane in the dead of night and flown to the US after Fees negotiated the deal with President Anwar Sadat's Egyptian government.

Egypt was in the process of changing sides in the Cold War after Sadat became president, and was becoming increasingly aligned with the US after throwing Soviet military advisers out of the country.

Because of the classified nature of his role in the Cold War, his awards could not be publicly acknowledged and so Fees hid them in special picture frames in his home in Hasselt, Belgium. The medals have now been sold in Britain for 22,000.

Fees, before arriving in Cairo in 1974, had been briefed by US Air Force Chiefs about the Soviet material that they most wanted to acquire - and the MiG-23 was at the top of the list.

The secret medals of a CIA spy who managed to smuggle a Soviet MiG fighter jet into the US during the Cold War have been put up for action after they were hidden in a picture frame (pictured) for decades

Because of the classified nature of his role in the Cold War, his awards (right) could not be publicly acknowledged and so Fees hid them in special picture frames (left) in his home in Hasselt, Belgium. The medals have now been sold in Britain for 22,000

The secret medals of a CIA spy Jim Fees who managed to smuggle a Soviet MiG fighter jet into the US during the Cold War have been put up for action after they were hidden in a picture frame for decades. Pictured: Jim Fees (right) with George Bush Senior (left)

CIA officer Jim Fees masterminded the covert acquisition of the MiG-23MS Flogger fighter jet (pictured) in September 1977 when he was the Cairo station chief

The fighter jet had an advanced radar and fire control system which allowed it to fire missiles at targets beyond visual range.

The US Air Force wanted to acquire the Soviet fighter jet so that they could learn the capabilities of its adversary. It would allow fighter pilots to acquire realistic combat training against the then state-of-the-art Soviet technology.

In the 1970s, Egypt's relationship with the Soviet Union had become strained - the Egyptian President Anwar Sadat had removed their presence in Egypt in 1971.

The Soviet Union had provided the Egyptian Air Force with MiGs since the mid-1950s and before they were ordered out of the country, they had given Egypt MiG-23 fighter jets.

Fees, whose mission was top-secret, took advantage of the weakened relationship and spent three years building relations with Egypt's leaders to try and acquire the MiG fighter jet.

Without the Soviet Union to keep their MiGs in service, Egypt turned to the US.

It was Fees's stubbornness that eventually led to him convincing President Sadat to sell a MiG-23 to the US.

The US Air Force wanted to acquire the Soviet fighter jet (pictured) so that they could learn the capabilities of its adversary. It would allow fighter pilots to acquire realistic combat training against the then state-of-the-art Soviet technology

And on 21 September 1977, his mission was complete as Fees handed over the US Air Force its most sought after Soviet prize. Pictured: The MiG-23MS

It was Fees's (right) stubbornness that eventually led to him convincing President Sumat to sell a MiG-23 to the US

Due to the sensitive nature of the mission and his work, his awards were kept secret. Pictured: Jim Fees pictured in Moscow

And on 21 September 1977, his mission was complete as Fees handed over the US Air Force its most sought after Soviet prize.

Due to the sensitive nature of the mission and his work, his awards were kept secret.

Fees, who became US President Ronald Reagan's personal terrorism adviser in later life, had hidden the medals in specially made picture frames which hung on his living room wall.

The frames, which included a picture of the Middle East alongside the medals, were sold by his daughter who lives in England.

She had no one to pass them on to so she wanted her father's achievements not to be forgotten.

The medals had been expected to sell for 3,000 but sparked a bidding war when they went under the hammer with London auctioneers Dix Noonan Webb.

They were eventually bought for 22,000 by a London collector of spy memorabilia.

Fees, who became US President Ronald Reagan's personal terrorism adviser in later life, had hidden the medals in specially made picture frames which hung on his living room wall

The frames, which included the medals, were sold by his daughter who lives in England

Christopher Mellor-Hill, of Dix Noonan Webb, said: 'The medals awarded to Fees by the CIA highlight the amazing stories of those undercover operatives involved in espionage at the height of 'The Cold War' and on the frontline in such places as the Middle East.

'His acquisition of a Russian MiG-23 fighter plane for the US Air Force to understand and learn to combat with was an early highlight to his amazing career in which he also helped pave the way for Egypt to move out of Russia's shadow into a much more pro-American position in the 1970s and '80s.

'When we talk of war heroes, he is one but as an agent of the Cold War, the era of great spying and espionage war games between the communist East and pro capitalist West as typified in that other great TV drama series Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy with Sir Alec Guinness.

'On looking at each of the hung pictures, one would be no wiser of their inside content unless they were opened up to reveal the CIA medals and citations.'

Some of the pictures hung in the living room were of scenes from the Middle East

But behind every picture there were the secret awards and medals given to Fees during his service

Mr Fees joined the CIA in 1957 and went on to become one of its greatest intelligence officers.

He served undercover for most of the Cold War in Africa, Europe and the Middle East from the late 1950s through to the 1980s.

He impersonated a humanitarian relief worker to go undercover in Yemen and conducted top secret missions to rescue American hostages in Lebanon.

He was awarded the US Distinguished Intelligence Medal for 'outstanding services and achievements of a distinctly exceptional nature' and two Intelligence Medals of Merit.

In later years, he was chairman of an international trading group and wrote spy novels.

He died at his home in Hasselt, Belgium, in 2017.
"Billions of people around the world live under constant assault from diseases like malaria, shigella, hookworm, tuberculosis, and Lassa fever, yet Wall Street and Silicon Valley typically pay little attention to these widespread challenges," said Glenn Rockman, managing partner at Adjuvant Capital. "As viruses like Ebola, Zika, and SARS-CoV-2 have clearly demonstrated, wealthy countries are vulnerable to these pathogens as well. Our new fund will finance cutting-edge research so we are better prepared for threats old and new alike, with the ultimate goal of saving or improving millions of lives by bringing urgently-needed drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, and medical devices to market."

Adjuvant has already backed 14 companies developing technologies for high-impact indications ranging from rare conditions, such as melioidosis, to widespread global emergencies, such as COVID-19. Each Adjuvant investment includes binding commitments to make any successfully commercialized products broadly accessible to underserved populations in low- and middle-income countries.

Diverse Coalition of Investors Committed to Global Health

To finance these ambitious goals, Adjuvant has assembled a unique coalition of conventional and catalytic investors, many of whom are also contributing scientific advice and emerging markets expertise. These investorswhich include traditional asset managers, multinational biopharmaceutical companies, development finance institutions, and some of the world's largest foundationsall hope their balance sheets can increasingly support the march toward a safer, healthier, more equitable global community.

"A wide array of private, public and philanthropic partners have come together to help ensure the most promising health technologies and services are available to people most in need," said Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. "There is an important role for investment capital to play in stimulating innovation and making markets work for the poor, so that everyone has the chance to live a healthy, productive life."

In addition to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Adjuvant's investors include Anthos Fund & Asset Management, Beacon Pointe Advisors, CDC Group, the Children's Investment Fund Foundation, Dalio Philanthropies, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, ELMA Investments Ltd., the Ford Foundation, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Global Health Investment Corporation (with funding from the Government of Germany through KfW), Laerdal Million Lives Fund, Merck, Novartis, RockCreek, Sonanz, and The Sorenson Impact Foundation, among others.

Lutz Hegemann, Group Head for Corporate Affairs & Global Health at Novartis, noted that: "As a company focused on science-based innovation to address some of society's most challenging healthcare issues, we are pleased to invest in Adjuvant Capital as part of our holistic global health strategy. Novartis is committed to systematically integrating access strategies into how we research, develop, and deliver our new medicines to as many people as possible. Our investment in Adjuvant Capital complements these efforts, which we can only achieve through collaborations across sectors and industries."

"Merck's investment in Adjuvant's new fund demonstrates our commitment to impact investing as a creative and sustainable approach to improve healthcare for underserved populations globally. We are pleased to join the team at Adjuvant and the other partners and investors who share a common goal to advance promising scientific platforms to improve global health," said Julie Louise Gerberding, MD, MPH, Executive Vice President and Chief Patient Officer, Strategic Communications, Global Public Policy and Population Health at Merck.

Deploying Capital at a Rapid Pace, with a Rich Pipeline of New Opportunities

Highlights from Adjuvant's young portfolio include several companies poised to develop new solutions for rabies, yellow fever, group B streptococcus, non-hormonal contraception, chikungunya, herpes, respiratory syncytial virus, HIV, and COVID-19. Although based in the U.S., Adjuvant pursues the most promising technologies and talent globally, with investments in Nigeria, Bangladesh, and China, in addition to collaborations in India and Western Europe. Recent financings include:

New York -based Codagenix, which is using computational biology to "rationally design" vaccines for intractable public health challenges;

-based Codagenix, which is using computational biology to "rationally design" vaccines for intractable public health challenges; California -based ChromaCode, which is leveraging machine-learning and artificial intelligence to significantly increase the throughput of existing molecular diagnostic equipment;

-based ChromaCode, which is leveraging machine-learning and artificial intelligence to significantly increase the throughput of existing molecular diagnostic equipment; Lagos -based 54gene, which is using pan-African genetic data to drive discoveries in drug and vaccine development; and,

-based 54gene, which is using pan-African genetic data to drive discoveries in drug and vaccine development; and, Beijing -based Yisheng Biopharma, which is addressing chronic supply issues in the rabies vaccine market.

"Accelerating the widespread availability of emerging public health innovations is a smart business decision that has the potential to benefit millions of people, especially women and girls, in low-income countries," said Jenny Yip, managing partner at Adjuvant Capital. "We firmly believe that our investment model represents an innovative way to benefit both our investors and society at large."

Why Adjuvant's Investors Committed to this Fund:

Compiled here is a collection of quotes from select investors describing why they invested in Adjuvant's debut fund. With remarkable consistency, these investors express a shared vision for reducing health inequities by championing solutions for the most burdensome and the most neglected challenges, with the goal of bringing better health care to all by making affordable, effective solutions more widely accessible.

***

"Anthos Fund & Asset Management is proud and excited to be part of Adjuvant's new $300 million Global Health Technology Fund at a time when global health is a top priority for the world. The impressive management team and diverse group of Limited Partners are completely aligned on scaling and measuring impact while achieving a compelling financial return. We look forward to starting the journey together with Adjuvant bringing global health solutions to those who need it most."

 Dimple Sahni // Managing Director Impact Funds Portfolios // Anthos Fund & Asset Management

***

"Beacon Pointe Advisors is pleased to partner with Adjuvant Capital to provide our clients the opportunity to invest alongside renown mission-driven organizations in an effort to achieve a positive impact on global health with concurrent prospects of strong financial returns."

 Michael Dow // Chief Investment Officer // Beacon Pointe Advisors

***

"Access to healthcare for all is a fundamental part of CDC's mission. As a development finance institution, we have an important role to play in helping to deliver this using our patient capital. COVID-19 has shone a light on the need to strengthen healthcare ecosystems across the globe, and especially in developing countries. Investing in Adjuvant Capital is a crucial part of this journey; investing in world-class, tech-backed healthcare solutions will help bring vital medication to those who need it most."

 Nick O'Donohoe // Chief Executive Officer // CDC Group

***

"The Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) is proud to have been an early investor in Adjuvant's debut fund. Our belief in its strategy of backing new, innovative and price appropriate solutions to neglected diseases  which tend to disproportionately impact people in low and middle income countries (LMICs)  is today more relevant than ever. The Fund's strategy strongly aligns with our own belief in promoting health equity for the most economically disadvantaged, particularly children and women in LMICs. Adjuvant's impressive management team have been able to build a mission-aligned portfolio at significant pace, that is eminently scalable on both impact and return measures, which is the essence of impact investing."

 Imraan Mohammed // Head of Impact Investing // The Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF)

***

"We were very excited to encounter and ultimately invest with Adjuvant based on our efforts at the foundation to find investments that advance our core mission objectives in medical research and healthcare, while earning attractive returns to support our future grantmaking. Adjuvant's strategy offers promise to achieve those goals and so far they are delivering."

 Jeffrey Heil // Chief Investment Officer // Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

***

"There is a misconception that impact investing requires financial return concessions. We have long believed the opposite can be true, where mission-driven investment strategies can outperform traditional benchmarks, especially when a nuanced understanding of both the investment's clinical potential and the market into which the investment will be exploited are fully understood and carefully considered as part of one's due diligence. We hope Adjuvant will demonstrate that interventions creating tangible, long-lasting health benefits for all are not incompatible with traditional financial return objectives."

 Thomas McPartland // Chief Executive Officer // The ELMA Philanthropies Services (U.S.) Inc. and member of the Board of ELMA Investments, Ltd.

***

"We are excited to partner with Adjuvant Capital to provide greater access to promising health technologies across the Global South. This is a much-needed step towards reducing inequality in all its forms and will provide critical medical solutions for millions of people worldwide."

 Roy Swan // Director, Mission Investments // Ford Foundation

***

"The Global Health Investment Corporation, with the generous support of funding provided by the Government of Germany through KfW Development Bank, is pleased to support Adjuvant's new fund, which builds upon the impact investment model pioneered by the Global Health Investment Fund, and seeks to identify products and technologies that will improve global health and generate sustainable financial returns."

 Labeeb M. Abboud // Chairman // Global Health Investment Corporation

***

"At this critical time, bringing together the private sector, innovation, and new technologies, means having the ability to change the course of global health and save lives. IFC is excited to invest in Adjuvant's new fund, working together in emerging markets to create quality, accessible health care for all."

 Stephanie von Friedeburg // Interim Managing Director and Executive Vice President, and Chief Operating Officer // IFC, a member of the World Bank Group

***

"We are excited to support Adjuvant Capital as one of a select group of major investments that advance the MacArthur Foundation's Catalytic Capital Consortium initiative. Adjuvant is tackling some of the world's most pressing global health challenges, while also attracting conventional investors that are new to global health investing through a powerful, blended finance structure fueled by catalytic capital."

 Debra Schwartz // Managing Director, Impact Investments // John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

***

"Our mission is to invest in globally scalable technologies with the potential to meaningfully impact mortality by improving healthcare access, quality and outcomes for all populations regardless of demographics or geography. Adjuvant's investment thesis is perfectly aligned with these goals, and we are very bullish about the opportunity to save lives by financing the development of new and improved public health tools."

 Jeff Trost // Managing Partner // Laerdal Million Lives Fund

***

"RockCreek shares the mission with Adjuvant to develop novel global health solutions and deliver these technologies equitably- including the COVID-19 crisis. RockCreek looks forward to continuing this journey with Adjuvant motivated by our mutual belief in bringing vaccines, drugs and devices to underserved communities globally."

 Afsaneh Mashayekhi Beschloss // Founder and CEO // RockCreek

***

"Sonanz was founded with the belief that there is enormous untapped investment opportunity in essential sectorssuch as healthcare, financial services, agriculture and environmental technologiesacross growth markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Adjuvant is a natural partner for us in our healthcare vertical, and we share their conviction in the unseen value in this sector."

 Andreas Nilsson // Founder & Managing Director // Sonanz

***

"We are excited to partner with Adjuvant Capital to continue their efforts to fund innovative solutions to neglected, high burden infectious diseases, as well as women's and child health issues. The Adjuvant team has the potential to generate strong returns for investors, while funding game-changing healthcare solutions that have the potential to drive substantial social impact. Adjuvant's commitment to democratizing access to quality healthcare and investing in health equity is something we are incredibly proud to be a part of."

 Jim Sorenson // Founder // The Sorenson Impact Foundation

***

About Adjuvant Capital

Headquartered in New York, with offices in San Francisco and Zurich, Adjuvant is a global life sciences investment company built to accelerate the development of new technologies for the world's most pressing public health challenges. Backed by prominent healthcare and emerging market investors, Adjuvant draws upon its global network of scientists, public health experts, biopharmaceutical industry veterans, and development finance professionals to identify new investment opportunities. Adjuvant invests in companies developing promising new vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and medical devices targeting high-burden infectious diseases, maternal and child health, antimicrobial resistance, and malnutrition, with a commitment to make these interventions accessible to those who need them most in low- and middle-income countries. For more information, visit adjuvantcapital.com .

IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES

This document is for information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, an offer or solicitation with respect to the purchase or sale of any security, including an interest in any investment fund managed by Adjuvant. Interests in any such fund are not registered with any regulatory authority, are offered pursuant to exemptions from such registration, and are offered exclusively to certain qualifying investors pursuant to applicable fund offering documents. The testimonials included in this document are provided by persons invested with Adjuvant Capital who have agreed to provide commentary and are not directly or indirectly compensated by Adjuvant Capital for doing so.

SOURCE Adjuvant Capital
A woman who stabbed another in the face during a group attack in east Belfast was jailed for 14 months yesterday

A woman who stabbed another in the face during a group attack in east Belfast was jailed for 14 months on Wednesday.

Leanne Baxter, from Antrim Road in the city, admitted a wounding charge at Belfast Crown Court.

Branding Baxter as the "prime mover" in the attack, Judge Stephen Fowler QC said the incident justified a custodial sentence.

The 35-year-old and two younger women were arrested after the injured party was assaulted and stabbed in her home and again in the street as she tried to flee.

Police were alerted to the attack in Bendigo Street at around 11pm on October 25, 2019, and when they arrived they found the victim.

A blood-stained knife was discovered and the injured woman named her attackers as Baxter and two others. The trio were arrested a short time later at Lanyon Place, where Baxter discarded the victim's phone in bushes.

The victim was taken to hospital where she was treated for slash wounds to her face and a puncture wound to her chest.

She said Baxter and the two others called at her house around 10pm, and that Baxter had pinned her against the wall and punched her.

She said one of the younger women then pulled her to the ground, and that all three started attacking her.

Baxter lifted a knife from the kitchen and stabbed her in the face.

When the woman tried to call police on her mobile the phone was taken by one of the younger women. She managed to flee the house but was attacked again by Baxter.

Judge Fowler said this part of the incident was captured on CCTV and showed Baxter "carrying out a sustained attack in the street with a stabbing and slashing motion".

Following her arrest Baxter said she had been drinking alcohol but claimed she would not have attacked the other woman. She said she had no memory of the incident or having the phone.

When shown the CCTV footage Baxter accepted her behaviour, but said she couldn't remember doing it. She also apologised for her actions.

The two younger women, one of whom has learning difficulties, have already been sentenced for the roles they played in the violent incident.

Judge Fowler said Baxter carried out a persistent attack using a knife while under the influence of drink and drugs, which left her victim with significant facial wounds.

Saying he had taken into consideration both Baxter's remorse and her criminal record, which included previous assaults, Judge Fowler imposed the 14-month sentence and said: "Due to the seriousness of the case, I do not consider there are circumstances that would justify me suspending the sentence."
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Serbia: new orthodox patriarch is metropolitan Porfirije Elected by Holy Synod to replace Irinej

(ANSAmed) - BELGRADE, FEBRUARY 18 - The metropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana, Porfirije, is the new patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, said Serbian state news agency Tanjug.



It said he was elected by the Holy Synod, which had gathered on Thursday morning in the orthodox cathedral of St. Sava in Belgrade to choose the successor of Patriarch Irinej, who died 20 November due to the coronavirus.



According to the tradition of the Serbian Orthodox Church, the name of the new patriarch was drawn at random by a monk that chose between three envelopes with the names of the three candidates that received the most votes from the 36 members of the Synod.



The other two were the bishop of Backa, Irinej, and the bishop of Banja Luka, Jefrem.



Porfirije (Peric), elected 46th patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church, is one of the youngest bishops of the Serbian Church, born 22 July 1961.



After his primary and secondary education, he graduated with a degree in orthodox theology in 1986.



One year prior, he changed his original name, Prvoslav, to the monastic Porfirije.



According to his official biography, he was ordained a monk by his spiritual father, Irinej Bulovic, at the monastery of Visoki Decani, in Kosovo.



After finishing his studies, at the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity in Musutiste, he was ordained a hieromonk by the then-bishop of Raska and Prizren, and then by the patriarch Pavle.



In its meeting on 24 May 2014, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church elected him metropolitan of Zagreb and Ljubljana.



According to some, metropolitan Porfirije doesn't have a very hard position on Kosovo's independence, as do many other orthodox bishops, which could favour a solution to the long-standing dispute between Belgrade and Pristina.



Thus far, in fact, the Serbian Orthodox Church, which is very conservative and traditional, has shown itself to be inflexible in rejecting Kosovo's independence, considered an integral part of Serbian territory and the cradle of the culture and spirituality of orthodox Serbia.(ANSAmed).




Oman Medical Specialty Board (OMSB) has signed cooperation programme with the World Health Organization (WHO) aiming to promote fields of health, education and research in the Sultanate.



The programme; a strategic partnership between OMSB and WHO, also aims at sharing knowledge between the two parties in medial learning, conducting workshops and specialized training courses to upgrade medical learning in different OMSB medical specialties, reported Oman News Agency (ONA).



The programme, which seeks to develop educational contents to cope with the international online learning, was signed by Dr Hilal Ali al-Sabti, OMSB Executive President and Dr John Jabbour, WHO Representative in Oman.  TradeArabia News Service




Nation fighting COVID-19 with all its strength: PM Narendra Modi at Mann ki Baat

PM Modi to address Combined Commanders Conference in March

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: Prime Minister, Narendra Modi will review the China and Pakistan situation during the combined commanders' conference in the first week of Marc h.

The conference will be held in Kevadia, Gujarat with all top commanders off the Army, Navy and IAF.

The meeting comes in the backdrop of a disengagement process taking place along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh.

Amidst transgression, India-China cannot have normal relations: Shringla

During the meeting, the PM will address the conference. PM Modi is also likely to give directions to the armed forces to be prepared to meet challenges.

Meanwhile, Chinese soldiers have begun vacating Finger 4 on the northern bank of Pangong Lake. The Chinese troops are dismantling shelters and removing other structures and this is taking place as per the disengagement exercise along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh.

There is a good chance that the process will be completed at the north and south banks of the Pangong Lake by Friday, sources tell OneIndia.

There is rapid movement of Chinese heavy vehicles beyond Finger 8, satellite images have shown.

While armoured elements like battle tanks and armoured personnel carriers are being withdrawn from friction points in the south bank of Pangong Tso, troops are being pulled back from the north bank areas, sources said.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 8:52 [IST]

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 Close Anyone involved in Alex Salmond conspiracy should be sacked, MSP says

In a committee hearing which has now concluded, former first minister Alex Salmond called on senior members of the Scottish government and the SNP, including Nicola Sturgeons husband, to resign over allegations they conspired against him.

The list of those he said should consider their position included the Scottish governments permanent secretary, its chief law officer, Peter Murrell, the chief executive of the SNP who is married to the current first minister, and Ms Sturgeons ministers chief of staff.

He stopped short of calling on his successor to stand down, saying it was not for me to decide if Ms Sturgeon had breached the ministerial code and should be disciplined as such.

Mr Salmond appeared before the Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints as part of the Holyrood inquiry into the unlawful investigation of sexual harassment claims made against him.

He was acquitted of 13 charges of sexual assault in a criminal trial and awarded a 512,250 payout after successfully challenging the lawfulness of the government investigation.
BAE Systems has delivered the first command variant of the Marine Corps' amphibious combat vehicle, which is designed to help leaders to track and maneuver units engaged in battle.

The amphibious combat vehicle-command, or ACV-C, is one of two variants BAE is delivering to the Marines under a 2020 full-rate production contract worth nearly $185 million. Like the ACV personnel carrier, or ACV-P, the command variant is an eight-wheeled armored vehicle equipped with a 700-horsepower engine.

But the command variant will also be equipped with the "highest levels of communications" equipment to help commanders understand the battlefield and maneuver their forces, according to a release BAE put out Thursday.

Read Next: Less Combat Center Focus, More Small-Unit Skills: Army to Release New Training Manual

"This ACV's base design for payload makes it a uniquely adaptable platform for the integration of numerous mission capability sets," John Swift, director of amphibious programs at BAE Systems, said in the release. "The delivery of the first ACV-C for testing is significant as it provides Marines with advanced operational control for defeating adversaries."

The Marine Corps selected BAE Systems in 2018 to build the ACV as a replacement for its outdated amphibious assault vehicle, or AAV, which is also built by BAE.

An AAV was involved in a fatal accident off the coast of California last summer that killed eight Marines and a sailor after the vehicle sank on its way back to a ship.

The ACV-C features multiple workstations where Marine leaders can access independent communications networks while moving across the battlefield, the release states.

"Marines will be able to quickly receive and analyze data, coordinate battlefield functions, and transmit information to provide terminal mission control rapidly from the mobile protected ACV-C," Swift said in the release.

The ACV platform was designed to adapt to different mission needs such as a 30mm cannon variant, which is currently under contract for design and development, according to the release. A recovery variant is also in the planning stage.

-- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com.

Related: Marines' New Amphibious Combat Vehicles Set to Begin Full-Rate Production

Ashley Greene looked every inch the doting wife as she cozied up to her husband Paul Khoury, who she first started dating all the way back in 2013.

Even after nearly three years of marriage, the 33-year-old Twilight star was unable to keep her hands off her man, 28, while out on a sushi run in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

After picking up their order as he waited by their car, she greeted Khoury by wrapping one arm around his waist and the other on his shoulder.

Sushi run: Ashley Greene looked every inch the doting wife as she cozied up to her husband Paul Khoury, who she first started dating all the way back in 2013

During their interaction, however, he appeared glued to his phone, until she stood right by his side and they began chatting.

For their outing, she rocked a furry sweater, light-wash jeans with a frayed hemline and beige slides.

Her freshly blow-dried locks looked perfectly straightened as she sauntered across the parking lot with her wallet in her hand.

Affectionate: Even after nearly three years of marriage, the 33-year-old Twilight star was unable to keep her hands off her man, 28, on a sushi run

Sweet: After picking up their order as he waited by their car, she greeted Khoury by wrapping one arm around his waist and the other on his shoulder

Busy: During their interaction, however, he appeared glued to his phone, until she stood right by his side and they began chatting

Meanwhile, Khoury bundled up in a fleece jacket, grey beanie and sweatpants.

Unlike Greene, who kept her mouth and nose covered at all times, the Australian and Lebanese TV personality did not wear a face mask.

Last week, she took to her Instagram to share her grief after losing her beloved pet.

Casual figure: For their outing, she rocked a furry sweater, light-wash jeans with a frayed hemline and beige slides

Ashley posted a gallery of beautiful pictures of her black and brown pooch Indy to mark her passing.

A few of the shots saw Ashley and her husband, Khoury, interacting with the sweet animal.

An especially charming image showed the actress reclining on the couch with a bowl of popcorn, as Indy looked lovingly up into her eyes.

'My sweet little girl, Indy. You gave us more unconditional love and joy than I ever thought possible and I'm forever grateful,' Ashley wrote in the caption.

Risky: Unlike Greene, who kept her mouth and nose covered at all times, the Australian and Lebanese TV personality her husband did not wear a face mask

Comfortable: Meanwhile, Khoury bundled up in a fleece jacket, grey beanie and sweatpants

'Although there is a hole in my heart right now, that only time can heal, knowing you're at peace now gives me comfort. Heaven gained a very special angel. Thank you for being our girl.

Fellow celebs, such as Ashley's former Twilight costar Kellan Lutz, chimed in in the comments with their sympathies.

'Dang so sorry for your loss!' Kellan wrote. 'You guys gave Indy the best life ever!'

Devastating loss : 'There is a hole in my heart right now' she wrote about losing her beloved dog last week
A woman who was beheaded by her own mentally unstable daughter admitted her biggest fear was that the young woman would wind up in jail.

Jessica Camilleri is now facing 25 years behind bars after she was found guilty of manslaughter for the brutal death of her mother, Rita, in July 2019.

The 27-year-old pleaded not guilty to murder on mental health grounds after admitting to stabbing her mum 200 times in a fit of rage.

The duo were inside their St Clair home in Sydney's west when Ms Camilleri reportedly told Jessica her increasingly erratic behaviour would land her in a mental health institution.

Jessica then stabbed her mum with seven knives - some of which snapped in the frenzied attack - before delivering her decapitated head to a neighbour.

Sources close to the family say the 25-year-old had grown increasingly unstable in the years prior to the attack and worked closely with disability support services most of her life.

Ms Camilleri (pictured) was babysitting her other daughter's four-year-old son at the time of her death

As well as suffering from an intellectual disability which made her 'child-like, naive and narcissistic,' Jessica was on the autism spectrum and diagnosed with intermittent explosive disorder.

The condition is a behavioral disorder characterised by explosive outbursts of rage and violence.

While still attending a local high school as a teenager, she lashed out at a fellow student and physically assaulted her, a woman employed to support Jessica at the time claimed.

Jessica reported she suffered relentless bullying in the classroom and during school, and thought her peer was laughing at her prior to the incident, the source said.

After the incident, the school and Jessica's family mutually decided it would be best for her to finish her education at the local TAFE.

But the violent episode was repeated later on in the community, when Jessica set upon a stranger in the parking lot at her local shopping centre.

Jessica Camilleri, 25, (pictured) was charged with murder after allegedly beheading her mum Rita Camilleri, 57. She was found not guilty on the grounds of her severe mental illness

Two days before her mum's grisly death, Jessica was seen having a sweet interaction with her on Facebook after she updated her profile photo (above)

'It's not clear what sparked the outburst, but she attacked the woman,' the source explained.

When she got home, she calmly recounted the story to her mother and support workers, explaining that she 'ripped chunks of the woman's hair from her head and held it up in her hand.'

But, like in the newly released audio recording of her emergency services call after her mother's death, Jessica appeared more preoccupied with irrelevant details than of her own actions.

'She was furious that a man (who came to the woman's defence) was shouting and spitting in her face,' the source explained.

'Even as she was holding chunks of this woman's scalp, Jess was more concerned that this man could have hurt her and was spitting on her as he spoke.'

The source, who worked with the Camilleri family briefly during their many years requiring support services, said the incident left the family matriarch reeling.

Jessica, 25, allegedly carried her head down the road before leaving it in a neighbour's front yard

Jessica's family struggled to deal with her profound mental health issues, including bipolar disorder, severe paranoia and anxiety but her mother Rita (pictured) always stood by her

'Rita loved her daughter very much, and Jess loved Rita too. There were never any signs of aggression toward her mother, but Rita was so worried she'd wind up in jail,' the woman explained.

She said Jessica had been dealt with under the Mental Health Act in court several times in the past, but her behaviours became more erratic as time went on.

On another occasion, Jessica assaulted a case worker from a job support agency who was employed to help her find suitable work.

Ms Camilleri's relationship with her husband - and Jessica's father - suffered as a result of her determination to care for Jessica and eventually the couple separated.

Jessica and her mother lived alone in the family home, though Ms Camilleri was often visited by her other daughter, Kristi Torrisi, and her young grandson, who has been described as 'the light of her life'.

But the little boy had only recently been allowed to stay in the home without his mum's supervision, because Ms Torrisi had previously been concerned about Jessica's behaviours.

Her daughter Jessica, 25, (pictured) carried her head down the road before leaving it in a neighbour's front yard. She had been charged with murder but a jury ruled she was not guilty

On Saturday July 20, 2019, Jessica and her mother got into a heated argument about her behaviour, and Ms Camilleri warned that she would be institutionalised.

The argument sent Jessica into a 'fit of rage' which left her 'seeing red' as she dragged her mother through the house and stabbed her some 200 times with seven kitchen knives.

Some of the knives snapped in the attack, and Jessica admitted she didn't stop stabbing until she had taken off her mother's head.

Ms Torrisi's four-year-old boy was at the home at the time of the brutal incident and suffered a minor injury.

Jessica asked her neighbour to come and retrieve the little boy from inside the house, which he refused.

While drenched in blood she asked police at the scene if doctors could work 'miracles' and 'sew her head back on?'

Forensic police pictured at the scene of Rita Camilleri's St Clair home in July 2019

Ms Torrisi told the NSW Supreme Court on Wednesday she would 'never forgive Jessica' for what she put her family through.

'My mother was taken from me ... she was killed and butchered like she was nothing - all because of a fit of rage,' Ms Torrisi told reporters gathered outside court.

'I can never forgive nor forget a single thing about that evening, she was aware of the help (we had given her), all of which she continued to refuse because she preferred the attention it was her own choices in refusing the help which led her here.'

The family home was sold in June 2020, 11 months after the incident, and made a profit of $120,000.

Jessica is due to be sentenced in March. She faces a maximum of 25 years behind bars.
Slamming Facebook for blocking content from trusted science and health organisation during the Covid-19 pandemic, Australias peak bodies representing scientific expertise called the move irresponsible and dangerous.

Facebook moved on Thursday to block users in Australia from sharing or viewing news content on its platform, a measure it said was needed in the face of new laws making digital giants like Facebook and Google pay news outlets for their content.

But the move has caused alarm over restrictions to public access to key information, especially around the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing bushfire hazards, while many non-news organisations have been blocked as well.

In a joint statement, Science Technology Australia, the Australian Academy of Science, and the Australian Science Media Centre said that the move to block content from science organisations risked denying the public access to important scientific and health information.

For Facebook to block access to the feeds of trusted science and health organisations in Australia during a pandemic and bushfire season is irresponsible and dangerous, said Misha Schubert, the CEO of Science & Technology Australia, a body representing more than 80,000 scientists and technologists.

At a time when the company is taking steps to tackle misinformation on its platform, its concerning it has chosen to silence some of this nations leading scientific voices.

The timing could not be worse, said Julie Leask, professor at the school of nursing at the University of Sydney. Three days before our Covid-19 vaccine rollout, Australians using Facebook as their primary source of news can no longer get access to credible information about vaccination from news organisations and some government and public health organisation pages, Ms Leask was quoted as saying by the Financial Times.

Facebooks decision comes in response to the countrys proposed Media Bargaining Law. While the ban was meant only to target Australian news publishers, several key pages run by government health agencies, including SA Health and Queensland Health were also hit, drawing a fierce backlash.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said he was profoundly shocked that health organisations such as Bowel Cancer Australia and the Kids Cancer Project had been affected by the move.

The fact that the Kids Cancer Project could be affected, is, frankly a disgrace. Facebook should fix it and they should address that immediately, Mr Hunt told the Guardian.

Dr Susannah Eliott, CEO of the Australian Science Media Centre said: We are very concerned about the impact of this action on the quality of information reaching the public.

Facebook is used by many non-news organisations to distribute evidence-based information to the public on critical issues such as vaccines, pandemics, climate change and extreme weather events, said Dr Eliott. Social media platforms have a responsibility to enable the sharing of accurate information on these key topics and not increase the prominence of misinformation.

A Facebook spokesperson said in a statement that the blocks on non-news organisations had been a mistake.

The actions were taking are focused on restricting publishers and people in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content, she said.

As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted. However, we will reverse any pages that are inadvertently impacted.

As of Thursday evening local time, however, it was unclear if any of the pages had been restored.

Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook.

Matthew Bruno writes from Brattleboro. The opinions expressed by columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of the Brattleboro Reformer.
Twitter Suspends Journalist Paul Sperry: They Can Silence Anybody

Twitter suspended journalist Paul Sperry on Wednesday, he confirmed to news outlets.

When trying to access his account, the typical account suspended  Twitter suspends accounts which violate the Twitter Rules message appears.

Sperry, who had tens of thousands of followers, told The Gateway Pundit that there were no warnings from Twitter before it suspended his account.

No rules were broken They just dont like my content because of their politics. Theyre trying to claim Im a robot when of course they know better. Tyrants. This is the second time Ive been harassed since Trump was banned, Sperry said, referring to the suspension of former President Donald Trumps account last month.

They are trying to push me off their platform and silence my voice through harassment. If they can harass and silence a professional journalist, they can silence anybody, he warned.

The Epoch Times reached out to Twitter for comment.

It came after the San Francisco-based company suspended Project Veritas, alleging that the watchdog group violated its rules on sharing private information.

The tweet in question arose when asking for comment from Facebooks VP of Integrity about censorship, Project Veritas said on its Telegram channel. Project Veritas is appealing this decision, as no privacy was violated.

Before that, Twitter suspended the account of MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell as well as his company account. Last month, lawyers Lin Wood, Sidney Powell, and retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn all saw their accounts get banned.

In a leaked video in January, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey suggested that more bans will be handed down following Trumps suspension.

This is going to be much bigger than just one account, and its going to go on for much longer than just this day, this week, and the next few weeks, and its going to go on beyond the inauguration, Dorsey said last month. And we have to expect that and we have to be ready for that.

Separately, Twitter CFO Ned Segal stipulated that Twitter will not allow Trump back on its platformeven if he decides to run for president again.

The way our policies work, when youre removed from the platform, youre removed from the platform, he said, adding: Whether youre a commentator, youre a CFO, or you are a former or current public official. Remember, our policies are designed to make sure that people are not inciting violence, and if anybody does that, we have to remove them from the service and our policies dont allow people to come back.
Al Jasoor, the exclusive supplier of the Rabdan 8x8 Infantry Fighting Vehicle, has announced its collaboration with Raytheon Emirates and Raytheon Intelligence & Space (RI&S) to embed a High-Energy Laser Weapon System onto Al Jasoors signature Rabdan 8x8 platform.

Earth, a leading facilitator of state-of-the-art R&D, engineering, and technology integration, and sister entity of Al Jasoor within Edge, is responsible for the seamless integration of the Rabdan vehicle with the advanced laser system.

Announced ahead of the International Defence Exhibition and Conference (Idex) 2021 which takes place at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre between February 21 and 25, the integrated vehicle is on display as part of the broader Edge stand.

The next generation Rabdan 8x8 armoured fighting vehicle is an advanced, mission-ready platform built to meet a range of versatile objectives. Highly mobile on land and water, Rabdan is available in several configurations and can be equipped with different levels of armour protection to ensure tactical and technical advantages.

Raytheons High Energy Laser Weapon System is powered by technologies that use photons, or particles of light, to carry out military missions. The cutting-edge product uses an advanced electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor, to detect, identify and track multiple threats, primarily from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Once targeted, the system is designed to rapidly and precisely engage, and neutralise, the non-cooperating UAV.

One of the decisive advantages of Raytheons laser systems are their unmatched precision. In addition, connected to an adequate power source, they demonstrate "infinite magazine depth," or a virtually unlimited supply of ammunition. Complementing their pinpoint accuracy, lasers represent a low-cost-per-shot option, making them an ideal solution for low-cost threats, such as those posed by drones.

As an additional feature that reinforces its suitability for the Rabdan amphibious vehicle, the laser weapon system boasts high survivability, while providing 360-degree coverage in a rugged package that can be scaled to accommodate the demands of the mission.

As a sister entity of Al Jasoor in the Platforms and Systems cluster within Edge, Earth brings its world-class technology integration capabilities to the partnership, ensuring all subsystems function as one cohesive unit. The laser systems open architecture allows for seamless installation across military platforms. This will enable Earth to leverage its engineering excellence with flexibility to address dynamic tactical requirements with high-performance and reliable mission-ready solutions.

Speaking on the occasion, Fahad Al Absi, CEO, Al Jasoor, said: We are extremely proud of our collaboration with Raytheon Emirates and our proactive synergies with our sister entity, Earth. The High Energy Laser Weapon System is one of the most advanced in the market for counter-UAV capabilities. As drone incursions become increasingly widespread, Al Jasoor is committed to delivering a vehicle that caters to the operational requirements of armed forces across the world.

For his part, Alan Davis, CEO of Raytheon Emirates, said: With drones presenting both opportunities and challenges, we at Raytheon Emirates are honoured to be collaborating with Al Jasoor and Earth to equip the Rabdan armoured vehicle with counter-UAV capabilities that provides an effective and safe approach to identifying and negating potential threats.

Jamal Al Mheiri, CEO, Earth, said: Earth is delighted to deliver its leading-edge capabilities in technology integration to support the collaborating between Raytheon Emirates and Al Jasoor, and we look forward to witnessing the interoperability benefits of this relationship.

Al Jasoor works relentlessly to meet the nations diverse armoured vehicle requirements, with a strong vision for manufacturing land platforms in order to address the future needs of the UAEs domestic and export markets. The company is committed to harnessing advanced technologies to remain adaptable and progressive within the fast-evolving landscape of conflict.

Al Jasoor is part of the Platforms & Systems cluster within Edge, an advanced technology group for defence and beyond that ranks among the top 25 military suppliers in the world. -- Tradearabia News Service
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The Indian High Commission here has rejected Sri Lankan energy minister's claim that the deal between the two countries on the 99 World War II-era Trincomalee oil tanks leased to the has been scrapped.

In a statement, the mission said, "there is no truth in reports in some sections of the media that the understanding between India and on jointly developing and operating the Upper Tank Farm at Trincomalee has been scrapped."



Energy Minister Udaya Gammanpila announced on Wednesday that will re-acquire 99 World War II-era oil storage tanks leased to IOC in the eastern port district of Trincomalee.

Gammanpila told a gathering at the Colombo north suburb of Kolonnawa that talks with the Indian High Commissioner in Colombo on this issue concluded last Sunday.

"I am happy to state that the Indian High Commissioner was very flexible at the talks. He ignored the conditions mentioned in the agreement signed in 2017 in order to be helpful to us," Gammanpila said, referring to his discussions with High Commissioner Gopal Baglay.

The Indian mission said that these reports did not correctly portray remarks made by the minister of energy at an event on February 17, 2021. The minister has himself clarified the matter in detail today through a press briefing.

As indicated in the minister's briefing also, the two governments have consulted each other to explore mutually acceptable modalities for jointly developing and operating the facility in accordance with existing bilateral understandings, including the MoU of 2017, it said.

India looks forward to formal discussions on the matter, and expeditious implementation of their outcome to mutual benefit," the statement said.

Gammanpila, while clarifying his comments, on Thursday told reporters that tanks will be operated under a government controlled entity jointly with an Indian partnership.

The Trincomalee Harbour is one of the deepest natural harbours in the world. It was developed by the British during World War II.

These tanks will have the capacity to offer bunkering facilities to the ships sailing in close proximity to Trincomalee, according to reports.

Sri Lanka in 2003 had leased out 99 oil tanks to the IOC for 30 years for an annual payment of USD 100,000.

The IOC was also given one third share of the Sri Lankan government entity, Petroleum Storage Limited. However, the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) trade unions had been pressing for the takeover of the tanks.

Initially, the CPC wanted to develop 25 of the tanks by investing USD 25-30 million. The CPC maintains that it will allow them to strengthen their oil storage and distribution in the north and eastern provinces while allowing stock maintenance to suffice 2-3 months.

(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.)
[February 18, 2021]

Blackboard Congratulates NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Mars Perseverance Landing

RESTON, Va., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- On Thursday, Blackboard Inc., a leading global EdTech software and solutions company, saluted the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) on the successful landing of the Perseverance rover on Mars. The rover touched down after a six month, 125 million mile journey from Earth.

The JPL Mars team uses Blackboard Learn SaaS to create and deliver training activities for multi-disciplinary teams. Those learning interactions span from On-the-Job Training (OJT) and Subject Matter Expert (SME) communities ofinterest to courseware on how to "drive" the rover on the Martian surface.







The partnership began in 2017 when JPL implemented Blackboard's leading learning management system (LMS), Blackboard Learn, to deliver learning activities. JPL built a comprehensive online learning ecosystem where Blackboard Learn serves as a platform for structured knowledge exchange in an asynchronous environment. The Laboratory has established role-based communities of practice within Blackboard's LMS, where senior technical experts serve as mentors and exchange ideas with colleagues who share a common area of technical expertise.

"Blackboard is humbled to support these amazing achievements by NASA," said Bryna Dash, Vice President of North America Government at Blackboard. "We cannot wait to see what NASA is able to discover about Mars, and then teach others through their incredibly strong learning programs."

Contact: Phil Johnson

Phil.Johnson@blackboard.com

202-741-4218

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/blackboard-congratulates-nasas-jet-propulsion-laboratory-on-mars-perseverance-landing-301231310.html

SOURCE Blackboard Inc.
Bolt taxi service (formerly Taxify) starts working in Chernihiv, the company's press service said on Thursday.

It is noted that in order to book a ride, the user needs to download and install the Bolt app on a smartphone, then indicate the destination and select the car category. One can pay for the ride either in cash or with a bank card by connecting it to the mobile app. Apple Pay may be also used as a payment method.

"Bolt is the first international taxi service that launches its services in Chernihiv," Chief Operating Officer of Bolt in Ukraine Serhiy Pavlyk said.

In Ukraine, Bolt's taxi services are available in Kyiv, Lviv, Kharkiv, Odesa, Dnipro, Zaporizhia, Dnipro, Vinnitsa, Poltava, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kryvy Rih and Chernihiv.

Bolt is the leading European transport platform founded by Markus Villig in 2013. Its investors are the multinational automotive corporation Daimler, the Chinese conglomerate Didi Chuxing, the European fund Korelya Capital, and co-founder of the London-based online money transfer service TransferWise Taavet Hinrikus.
Two whistlers might struggle to understand each other, particularly during their first encounters  and need to ask each other to repeat sentences  like strangers who speak the same language with different accents. But after whistling together for a while, their communication becomes as easy as if speaking Spanish, Mr. Correa said.

As is the case in many languages, whether whistled or not, there is a generation gap on La Gomera.

Ciro Mesa Niebla, a 46-year-old farmer, said he struggled to whistle with a younger generation trained at school because, he said, Im a mountain guy who learned at home to whistle the words our family used to farm, but I dont have the vocabulary of these kids who learn salon whistling, which is a bit too fancy for me.

Some older residents have also stopped whistling because of tooth problems. Mr. Marquez continues to whistle with his dentures, but its not as easy and as loud as when I could press my finger onto my real teeth, he said.

With its distinct geography, its easy to see why whistling came into use on the Canaries; on most of the islands, deep ravines run from high peaks and plateaus down to the ocean, and plenty of time and effort are required to travel even a short distance overland. Whistling developed as a good alternative way to deliver a message, with its sound carrying farther than shouting  as much as two miles across some canyons and with favorable wind conditions.

Older residents on La Gomera recall how Silbo was used as a warning language, particularly when a police patrol was spotted searching for contraband. In a recent fictional movie, The Whistlers, Silbo is used by gangsters as their secret code language.
The U.S. ambassador to Russia, John Sullivan, has rejected Moscow's assertion that last year's nerve-agent poisoning of opposition politician Aleksei Navalny and protests prompted by his recent jailing is a strictly internal Russian affair.



In an interview with Current Time on February 16 via video link from Moscow, Sullivan said the "United States has no interest in fomenting dispute within Russia or encouraging protests."



The envoy also criticized the targeting of media organizations inside Russia, including RFE/RL, under the country's controversial "foreign agent" law, saying the United States is considering an "appropriate" response.



A Moscow court on February 2 found Navalny, 44, guilty of violating the terms of his parole while in Germany, where he was recovering from nerve-agent poisoning that he and supporters say was ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin.



The Kremlin has denied any role in the poisoning.



Navalny's suspended sentence was related to an embezzlement case that he has called politically motivated. The court converted the sentence to 3 1/2 years in prison. Given credit for time already spent in detention, the Kremlin critic would have to serve two years and eight months behind bars, the court said.



The court's ruling triggered international condemnation and protests across Russia that were violently dispersed by security forces.

More than 10,000 people were rounded up by police during rallies in more than 100 Russian cities and towns on January 23 and January 31. Many of Navalny's political aides and allies were detained, fined, or placed under house arrest for violating sanitary and epidemiological safety precautions during a pandemic.



Moscow has remained defiant about Western criticism over its jailing of the opposition politician and the crackdown on his supporters, calling it foreign interference in its internal affairs.

During his interview with Current Time, Sullivan noted that "first, the use of a chemical weapon -- which is yet to be explained; a banned chemical weapon prohibited by a treaty to which Russia is a party -- that is not a domestic legal issue."



"Second, even the case itself that has been continued against Navalny last month -- that caused his arrest -- is something that the European Court of Human Rights [ECHR] has found an invalid basis for any further judicial action against Navalny. This is a court to which Russia is a party, so I don't see this as a domestic political issue," the U.S. ambassador said.

On February 16, the Strasbourg-based ECHR called for the "immediate" release of Navalny, a demand rejected by the Kremlin as "unlawful" and "inadmissible" meddling in Russia's affairs.

'An Important Fundamental Right'



In an interview last week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov denounced what he called a broader course "coordinated by the entire collective West, which goes beyond mere deterrence of Russia and evolves into an aggressive deterrence of Russia."



"They don't like us because we have our own idea of what's going on in the world," he said.



Sullivan said he and the United States will continue voicing support for the "fundamental right for people [in any country] to be allowed to express their opinions and to petition the government for redress, and to gather peacefully, to assemble peacefully."



"It is something that is guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution and something that we believe is an important fundamental right for all individuals," he added.



In the United States, a bipartisan group of senators has introduced legislation to impose fresh targeted sanctions on Russian officials found to be complicit in Navalny's poisoning.

The European Union and Britain have already imposed travel bans and asset freezes against senior Russian officials believed to be responsible for the "attempted assassination."



Sullivan's interview with Current Time also touched upon the "foreign agent" law, which rights group say has been used by Russian authorities to silence dissent and muzzle organizations that have a diverging view from the authorities.



Russian regulators have hit RFE/RL, one of three foreign news organizations to be labeled as a "foreign agent," with a series of fines in recent weeks.

Last month, a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers called for new sanctions against Moscow if the Kremlin moves to enforce the fines.



"I think this is an issue that is under intense scrutiny back home in Washington about how media entities are being treated here in Russia, and I think you will see an appropriate response by the U.S. government to that," Sullivan said.

'Kafkaesque' Amendments



First passed in 2012 and expanded several times since, the "foreign agent" law gives authorities the power to brand nongovernmental organizations, human rights groups, and news media deemed to receive foreign funding for political activity as "foreign agents."



The law subjects these organizations to bureaucratic scrutiny and spot checks and requires them to attach the "foreign agent" label to their publications. They must also report on their spending and funding.



Among other things, the law requires certain news organizations that receive foreign funding to label content inside Russia as being produced by a "foreign agent."



"More than objectionable, [the law] is a real disservice to the Russian people, to the extent that media entities like Radio Free Europe or Radio Liberty are burdened by these laws, by -- for example -- the disclaimer requirements which interfere with content, and subsequent fines which are going to impose reportedly large financial penalties on a media organization that is not controlled by the U.S. government," Sullivan said.



On February 16, the Russian Duma, the parliament's lower house, passed what Reporters Without Borders called "Kafkaesque" amendments to the "foreign agents" law.



The "nonsensical and incomprehensible" amendments, which include heavier fines, aim to intimidate journalists and get them to censor themselves, the Paris-based media freedom watchdog said in a statement.

Based on an interview conducted by Current Time's Yegor Maksimov
By Ryck Suydam

Ever hit a deer while driving? Ever see a deer carcass on the side of the road? Because you live in New Jersey, the answer to that question is most likely yes. Unfortunately, the state has done little to address a decades-long crisis that continues to grow exponentially year after year. It is time for legislators in Trenton to change that.

A recent survey of New Jersey Farm Bureau members found that more than 50% of the farmers attributed most of their yearly crop loss to the out-of-control white-tailed deer overpopulation in New Jersey. Farmers indicated they have had to abandon growing on certain fields or completely stop planting specific commodities because of the damage caused by deer. The result is a devastating economic loss of nearly $15 million in high-value agricultural crops in New Jersey.

The Rutgers University School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and Raritan Valley Community College have found that New Jerseys deer overpopulation has ravaged our forests, including trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants and seed banks. The unchecked deer population causes excessive landscape damage, lack of forest regeneration, and an increased spread of invasive species.

Deer are also a huge threat on roadways throughout New Jersey. While accidents occur all year long at various hours, the rate of incidents goes up during the rut, or deer mating season which occurs in October and November each year. New Jersey saw 5,271 crashes from October-December 2018, equivalent to one deer crash every 25 minutes, said Robert Sinclair, AAA Northeast spokesman, citing the most recent data available. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, deer are the No. 1 animal to be involved in animal loss claims, eclipsing all other animal types.

To place the deer overpopulation into context, an infrared drone study of eight counties in New Jersey conducted by ecosystem services firm Steward Green found deer densities of up to 112 per square mile. The scientifically accepted density to sustain a healthy deer population is 5  15 deer per square mile.

Members of the New Jersey Farm Bureau, along with nationally recognized biologists, agriculturalists, conservationists, local health departments and community organizations, agree that the deer overpopulation problem must be addressed through fact-based legislation that follows the science. Only then can real mitigation efforts begin to tackle the emergency.

The New Jersey Farm Bureau recognizes that the deer overpopulation issue is fraught with personal beliefs and passionate arguments from individuals and interest groups, some of which proffer non-scientific and economically unfeasible population mitigation methods. While we respect varied points of view on the subject, science-based efforts must be the basis for remedial action. It is time for New Jersey to follow the leadership of states like New York and land stewards like Duke Farms in Hillsborough, which have succeeded in better controlling overabundant deer populations.

The New Jersey Farm Bureau is imploring legislative leadership to make deer overpopulation an immediate priority. Together, we will explore proven methods to bring the deer overpopulation in our state back into balance by enacting meaningful legislation that protects both our residents and New Jerseys famed agricultural industry.

The first step is to discuss the deer emergency with all stakeholders. The New Jersey Farm Bureau will be a vital participant and propose a series of recommendations that we believe will accomplish meaningful change, as long as all parties remain open-minded, listen to one another, and find solutions that work. The destruction caused by deer overpopulation will not go away without intervention in our state. The time to act is now.

Ryck Suydam is the president of the New Jersey Farm Bureau.

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Heres how to submit an op-ed or Letter to the Editor. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow us on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and on Facebook at NJ.com Opinion. Get the latest news updates right in your inbox. Subscribe to NJ.coms newsletters.
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
You have chosen your Top 5 favourite buildings in Louth.

We issued the callout over the last few weeks for readers to nominate their favourite buildings in the county and you responded in your droves.

We handed the long list of 50 over to you, the voting public, last week in our online poll on dundalkdemocrat.ie.

Thousands of you voted but just five buildings could make it through to appear on our shortlist.

The shortlist will now be inspected and debated by our panel of experts before a winner is announced in next week's paper.

The five shortlisted buildings, as voted by you, are:

ST NICHOLAS CHURCH

Known locally as The Green Church, owing to its green copper spire, St Nicholas Church was originally built in the 13th century with major restorations undertaken in 1707.



LILY FINNEGANS

One of the most famous pubs in the land, Lily Finnegan's represents the Cooley peninsula on the shortlist. Built more than 185 years ago, the whitewashed pub is beloved and was even visited by then Vice President, now President of the United States, Joe Biden back in 2016.

CASTLE ROCHE

Castle Roche was built in 1236 AD by Lady Rohesia de Verdun who allegedly had the architect thrown from the infamous 'murder window' when he asked for her hand in marriage.

ST JOSEPH'S REDEMPTORIST CHURCH

The Redemptorists arrived in Dundalk in 1876, but didn't construct this church until 1892. It was built from granite and with the interior featuring stunning coloured marble

ST PATRICK'S CATHEDRAL

The imposing St Patrick's Cathedral was built during the great famine when work stopped a number of times. It was in use from 1842 but not fully completed until 1847
The logo of the social network Facebook on a broken screen of a mobile phone on May 16, 2018. (Joel Saget/AFP via Getty Images)

Facebooks Australia News Ban Justifies More Big Tech Regulation: Expert

According to Chris Cooper, executive director at Reset Australia, Facebooks decision to pull news content from Australia justifies the need for better regulation around Big Tech.

This is the biggest argument that could be made for better regulation around these platforms to mitigate the harms these  reckless decisions have on our democracy, Cooper told Sky News.

Facebook pulling news and recklessly removing Australians access to reliable news sources beyond just news sites during a pandemic and the rollout of a vaccine  just highlights [what] little regard Facebook has for the Australian people, he said. Facebook is essentially spitting the dummy after being asked to meaningfully participate in regulatory negotiations.

Major news outlets including the Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, and The Epoch Times, awoke on Thursday to find the tech giant had implemented an outright ban across their Facebook pages.

However, a swathe of non-media related Facebook pages were caught in the crossfire with websites for the Queensland Health Department, the Bureau of Meteorology, and members of Parliament also finding their pages banned.

While non-profit organisations such as 1800 Respect and the Australian Trade Union (ACTU) also saw their pages targeted.

Facebook has restricted Queensland Healths Facebook page in its move to restrict sharing Australian news on its platform. (The Epoch Times)

So @Facebook has blocked access to our website. We are not a news organisation. Australian workers can not now find out about their rights at work via @Facebook. This is disgraceful & needs to be reversed immediately pic.twitter.com/588Qf1JbuD  Sally McManus (@sallymcmanus) February 17, 2021

Independent Senator Rex Patrick remarked on Twitter that Facebook has done a rare thing and managed to unite both sides of the political aisle.

.@Facebook has done a rare thing this morning  they have united the Federal Parliament. #auspol https://t.co/LcVmKnQwJW  Rex Patrick (@Senator_Patrick) February 18, 2021

The ban comes as Facebook follows through on a threat to remove news content in response to the Morrison governments impending News Media Bargaining Code.

The Code legislates a framework where eligible Australian news outlets can enter negotiations with Google and Facebook to pay for their content.

However, despite initial resistance, Google soon came to the table and has spent the last week signing off deals with major media organisations.

Facebook remained quiet until this morning when it initiated the ban.

Google did work with the government to find a workable solution  Facebook are much more clumsy in that approach and also refuse to take any regulatory action against them, Cooper said.

And so they will just pull the plug rather than engaging meaningfully even if the consultation is really about whats best for their users, the Australian people.
Hotter and more humid weather could make much of East Africa unsuitable for certain livestock production and highlights the need for accelerated adaptation in the sector

New research published in Nature Food warns that heat stress in animals caused by rising temperatures and humidity will occur more frequently and for longer periods, impacting milk and meat productivity for dairy cattle, beef cattle, sheep, goat, pigs and poultry across East Africa.

Analysis of historical data from 1981-2010 shows that livestock have already been progressively subjected to heat stress conditions. According to projections, this is set to worsen significantly, with severe implications for livestock unable to cope with the extra heat.

Authors warn that 4-19% of current meat and milk production occurs in areas where dangerous heat stress conditions are likely to increase in frequency from 2071-2100. If climate conditions persist at their current accelerated rate, elevated levels of heat stress could make much of East Africa unsuitable for exotic pig, poultry and dairy cattle production unless direct and immediate action is taken.

Using limited available data and current climate projections, researchers say that dairy production is expected to be hit hardest in South Sudan, Southern parts of Eritrea, and eastern and northwestern parts of Kenya. In Uganda, heat stress conditions are already prevalent in parts of the country, requiring collective action to sustain and protect the pig sector there.

Urgent planning and investment required

Klaus Butterbach-Bahl at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe (KIT), which analyzed the climate data, said: "This paper is an alarm bell for policymakers and anyone involved in livestock in the tropical region.

"In East Africa, where protein consumption is already low, this could worsen the food and nutrition security situation."

At the Alliance of Bioversity International and International Center for Tropical Agriculture, livestock expert An Notenbaert said: "We knew that climate change would bring problems for animals, yet we were surprised about the magnitude of change.

"Climate change mitigation and adaptation measures absolutely need to be factored into decisions and strategies for livestock production."

Breed animals, enact measures to help animals cope

According to the authors, well-targeted and evidence-based climate adaptation will enable livestock production to continue and expand across East Africa. This includes identifying and making available productive animal breeds that are adapted to local conditions, particularly heat.

Countries like Rwanda and Kenya have moved towards using exotic breeds to meet the growing demand for milk in their countries. "Holstein Friesians, a popular imported breed, are not indigenous to Africa. Although they produce more milk than local breeds, they do not cope well with heat," said Notenbaert. "To make livestock production more environmentally efficient, we need breeds that can cope with rising temperatures while at the same time produce more meat and milk."

In addition to breeding, countries need to look to other mitigation strategies to increase resilience. This could be in the form of shelters or other means of shading to shield animals and ensuring sufficient water access.

"We urgently have to invest and plan now, because mitigation will have costs for farmers and donors," Notenbaert said. "We must be able to quantify economic and livelihood losses, for example through a reduction in milk yield. And we need economic, policy and livelihood measures to avoid the impacts of temperature changes."

One part of the bigger picture

ILRI livestock breeder Karen Marshall said: "Heat stress in livestock, besides being an animal welfare issue, also means less income to the farmer, less efficient use of natural resources, and higher greenhouse gas emissions per unit of livestock product.

"It is important to keep in mind, however, that while heat stress provides an important lens on the effect of climate change on animals, it is just one part of the picture."

Researchers caution that although the study only examined the direct consequences of climate change on animals, other climate change impacts, such as droughts and floods - which can impact feed production, water supply and proliferation of disease and pests - should also be taken into consideration.

###
Samsung Electronics' HBM-PIM chips / Courtesy of Samsung Electronics



By Baek Byung-yeul



Samsung Electronics is further deepening its technology moat in the semiconductor sector as the Korean tech giant is set to complete test verification of next-generation memory chips that feature artificial intelligence (AI) technology.



The world's largest memory chipmaker has developed high bandwidth memory (HBM) integrated with AI processing power, called HBM-PIM, for the first time in the industry.



The new processing-in-memory (PIM) architecture brings powerful AI processing capabilities inside high-performance memory. The new product enables existing computing system to process data much faster while data doesn't need to be moved to a main CPU for processing, the company said.



Samsung said its HBM-PIM chips are not replacements for processing chips such as a central processing unit (CPU) or graphics processing unit (GPU) as the new product is designed to facilitate speedy AI data processing.



"Our groundbreaking HBM-PIM is the industry's first programmable PIM solution tailored for diverse AI-driven workloads such as HPC, training and inference. We plan to build upon this breakthrough by further collaborating with AI solution providers for even more advanced PIM-powered applications," said Park Kwang-il, senior vice president of memory product planning at Samsung.



The company said its HBM-PIM is now being tested and the test is expected to be completed within the first half of 2021.



The AI chip market is expected to show rapid growth. Global consulting firm McKinsey & Company presumed the AI chip market will grow to $65 billion in 2025, which could account for 19 percent of the entire semiconductor market.



The development of HBM-PIM memory chips is in line with Samsung Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong's vision to expand the company's presence in the post-COVID-19 era. Last July, Lee visited the chip-making unit in Onyang, South Chungcheong Province, to check the company's next-generation chip packaging technologies.



"We have to occupy the future of the post-COVID-19 era. There is no time to hesitate. We have to leap forward," the vice chairman said during his visit.



HBM-PIM chips will also apparently help Samsung solidify its leadership in the semiconductor sector at a time when industries are struggling with chip shortages.



Carmakers worldwide have been especially affected by the chip shortages, which has caused them to postpone their car production. The shortage issue has occurred as semiconductor makers have given priority to chips for IT devices and home appliances, which have been in strong demand since the COVID-19 outbreak.



Market tracker IHS Markit expected the chip shortage issue could impact the production of nearly 1 million vehicles in the first quarter.



As Samsung has temporarily shut down its chip plant in Austin, Texas, due to a power outage in the region following an unprecedented snowstorm, industry analysts forecast the ongoing chip shortage issue will continue for products such as automobiles, home appliances and smartphones throughout the first half of 2021.



Samsung said it will resume operation of its chip-making factory in Texas as soon as the electricity is back on. To minimize the impact from the shutdown, Samsung said it will dispatch over 100 engineers working at its chip plants in Korea to Austin soon.


NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Tanaka Capital Management today announced that as published in the Wall Street Journal on February 8, 2021, the TANAKA Growth Fund (TGFRX) was ranked #1 by Refinitiv Lipper in its Multicap Core category of 692 mutual funds for the month of January 2021. In January, the Fund's total return was 14.6%, compared to the Refinitiv Lipper category average of -0.4%. Year to date, the Fund is up 33.8% through February 17, 2021 versus 5.4% for its benchmark Wilshire 2500 Growth index and 4.9% for the S&P 500. This latest #1 ranking for January 2021 follows the Fund's #1 ranking in its category for 2020 when the Fund was up 50.9% vs. 16.6% for the Lipper category average last year.

"We are proud of our continued outperformance relative to other peer funds and the Wilshire and S&P indexes," said Graham Tanaka, President of Tanaka Capital Management. "We have been unwavering in our focus on finding proprietary platform companies delivering growth over multiple years and patiently building positions to maximize potential returns for our investors. We are pleased with the broad contribution to our performance this year with 5 stocks up over 30% and another 3 stocks up 20% or more through February 17th. We are encouraged that several of our other holdings, which have not yet moved, could be on the cusp of multiple catalysts over the next 12-18 months."

"By taking a disciplined, fundamental research approach to finding the best companies in their respective sectors, we find disruptors early on and often before they are discovered by Wall Street," said Benjamin Bratt, Vice President of Tanaka Capital Management as well as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Compliance Officer of the TANAKA Growth Fund. "This allows us to build investment positions over time in companies poised to be future leaders at attractive entry points relative to the future value of their businesses."

Available for Business Media Interviews for Expertise in Technology, Biotech and other Durable Growth Stocks

Graham Tanaka has made numerous television appearances on CNBC, Bloomberg Television, Reuters Television, and Yahoo Finance Live and been quoted in the Wall Street Journal and numerous other business publications due to his expertise in discovering companies that can grow significantly for many years. He is available for interviews with business media seeking his expert commentary and his investment views on such companies as AFLAC, Intel, Dunkin' Donuts, Subaru, Novellus, ASML, Pfizer, Qualcomm, Apple, Tesla, and Amyris, all of which he identified and invested in early.

The TANAKA Growth Fund is currently open to new mutual fund investors. Investors can call 1-877-4TANAKA directly. The Fund is also available through Fidelity, Charles Schwab, TD Ameritrade, Vanguard, Wells Fargo, UBS, LPL Financial Services, Pershing, and Janney Montgomery Scott.

About Tanaka Capital Management

Founded in 1986, Tanaka Capital Management is the advisor to the TANAKA Growth Fund and also provides individually tailored investment management to high-net worth individuals, pension plans and endowments. The firm's investment philosophy reflects the view there are always misunderstood companies in the marketplace. It is our job to find these companies and validate whether they can deliver durable growth for our investors in the years ahead. Tanaka Capital Management is also accepting new clients for privately managed accounts. For more information, please visit www.tanaka.com.

The Fund's past performance does not guarantee future results. The investment return and principal value of an investment in the Fund will fluctuate so that an investor's shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance of the Fund may be lower or higher than the performance quoted. Performance data current to the most recent month end may be obtained by calling 1-877-4TANAKA.

The Fund's prospectus contains important information about the Fund's investment objectives, potential risks, management fees, charges and expenses, and other information. Please read and consider it carefully before investing or sending money. You may obtain a current copy of the Fund's prospectus by calling 1-877-4TANAKA.

Refinitiv Lipper Inc. - A Reuters Company, is a nationally recognized organization that ranks the performance of mutual funds within a universe of funds that have similar investment objectives. Rankings are historical with capital gains and dividends reinvested.

Contact:

CapComm Partners (financial communications/investor relations)

Peter DeNardo

[email protected]

+1 (415) 389-6400

SOURCE Tanaka Capital Management

Related Links

http://www.tanaka.com


Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin could be wearing pink for their Formula 1 debuts in 2021.

As Russian rookie Mazepin visited Haas' factory on Wednesday for his seat fitting, rumours swirled that - with Aston Martin turning green for 2021 - the pink-coloured Austrian sponsor BWT could switch camps.

Kolner Express newspaper cited a source who claims BWT, a water treatment company, is in talks with Haas about becoming title sponsor.

Schumacher, who lives in Switzerland, says he is unable to visit Haas for now.

"Not yet. Because of covid everything is very limited but the plan is to be there soon," the German told Auto Motor und Sport.

"There was one opportunity for drivers to go to their teams, but recently these rules for athletes was changed again at super short notice," he added.

The son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher also admits that reduced winter testing and Friday practice this season will not help him.

"As a team we only have three days of testing instead of six or eight days as in the previous years," he said. "That means I only get one and a half days of testing before my first race - and then an hour less practice.

"No, I don't like to hear that. But those are the rules and we'll certainly do our best with it."

Yet another problem is that Schumacher is struggling even to gain access to Ferrari's simulator at Maranello.

"Fortunately, I can do it at home but it's of course not as good as sitting in a real car or a big simulator that a Formula 1 team has," he said.

"It's all very difficult, and very different from the years before. Unfortunately, covid has restricted so much."
Boeing said Thursday that two of its directors are retiring, a sign of further change on the company's board as it faces a shareholder lawsuit alleging weak overview during the 737 Max crisis.

The Chicago-based aircraft maker said Arthur Collins Jr., chairman of the committee that sets executive compensation, and Susan Schwab won't stand for reelection at Boeing's annual shareholder meeting in April.

Boeing directors and executives were named in a shareholder lawsuit filed in a Delaware court that alleges the board failed to properly oversee management during engineering problems with the 737 Max. The plane was grounded for 20 months after two crashes that killed 346 people. The crisis has cost Boeing billions.

Last month, former KPMG CEO Lynne Doughtie replaced Caroline Kennedy, daughter of President John F. Kennedy, on the board. In 2020, two new directors joined, and the board created a safety committee. The year before that, CEO Dennis Muilenburg was ousted and replaced by David Calhoun, who had been board chairman.

Collins is a former CEO of medical-device maker Medtronic Inc. Schwab was U.S. trade representative under President George W. Bush.

Boeing did not announce nominees to replace them.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday warned against the use of fake saliva test kits being sold in the market.

"Hindi nyo naman magagamit anuman ang resulta nito. Walang tatanggap ng resulta nito. Sayang lang ang inyong pera," FDA Director General Rolando Domingo told CNN Philippines in an interview.

[Translation: You will not be able to use the results from these illegal test kits. No one will accept the results from these illegal test kits. You're just wasting your money.]

Philippine Red Cross chairman Richard Gordon was earlier quoted in reports as saying the fake COVID-19 saliva tests were being sold online for P1,000 each. The PRC offers saliva tests for P2,000.

The Red Cross is the only accredited laboratory allowed by the Department of Health to use saliva samples to detect COVID-19 using the RT-PCR method. The RT-PCR test is considered the gold standard in confirming the presence of the coronavirus. Usually, specimen collection for an RT-PCR test is more invasive as samples are taken by inserting a long stick with a very soft brush at the end  up one's nose, and at the back of the throat.
All six issues were part of the councils consent agenda, all or most of which are usually approved unanimously with no discussion. This time, Turner asked six of the 29 items be held out of the joint vote so there could be more discussion.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
About 1,000 Marines who arrived in Norway last month -- only to have their military exercises canceled due to the pandemic -- will remain in the country for arctic training.

The Marines will be in Norway's high north region until spring, continuing "valuable arctic and mountain warfare training," Maj. Adrian J.T. Rankine-Galloway, a Marine Corps Forces Europe and Africa spokesman, said Thursday.

While a small number of Marines headed back to the U.S. after Norwegian officials canceled a pair of multinational exercises there last month, most of the members of 3rd Battalion, 6th Marines, who arrived in the country last month stayed put, he said.

Read Next: 'They Know All About It': Pentagon Report Details Military Reach of Supremacist Groups

"The United States has a long and close relationship with Norway on issues of defense and security, and that close security relationship continues to mature," Rankine-Galloway said. "Norway offers challenging, rugged terrain that hones our cold-weather and mountain warfare skills with top specialists in fighting and winning in arctic conditions -- the Norwegian military."

Norwegian Defence Minister Frank Bakke-Jensen announced Jan. 26 that two exercises, Reindeer I and Joint Viking, would be canceled over high rates of COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Nearly 3,500 troops from five countries were set to participate.

Reports of new COVID-19 cases in Norway have since fallen from a January spike of more than 900 new cases in one day to 358 reported Wednesday, according to global health data tracked by Johns Hopkins University.

Rankine-Galloway said when the Marines arrived in Norway last month, they were isolated and didn't interact with Norwegian personnel until the quarantine period passed "unless medically necessary."

Several Marines tested positive for COVID-19 while they were in quarantine, he added, though he declined to say how many, citing Pentagon policy not to provide specific numbers of cases for operational security reasons.

"The COVID-positive individuals, as well as identified close contacts within the Marine contingent, were isolated and quarantined in accordance with U.S. and Norwegian public health protocols," Rankine-Galloway said. "We will continue to enforce strict measures to mitigate the risk of COVID transmission amongst our forces, our Norwegian allies, and the local populace."

The Marines remaining in Norway are following local and U.S. COVID-19 safety protocols during their training, he said.

"We are working closely with Norwegian military and public health officials to ensure that the Marine Corps deployment will be carried out in a safe manner," he added.

The Marine Corps has been sending units to train in Norway for years. For about four years, Marines had a yearlong presence there, with units changing out every six months.

Last year, the Marine Corps announced it was overhauling its mission in the Scandinavian country, swapping regular rotations for what the service calls an "episodic deployment model" that aligns with big Norwegian military training exercises.

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Related: Norway Cancels Big Military Exercise After 1,000 US Marines Arrive in Country
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The global home healthcare market is estimated to reach USD 447.6 billion by 2025 growing at a CAGR of 8.3% during the forecast period, according to a new study published by Polaris Market Research. The report Home Healthcare Market Size, By Component Type (Equipment  (Mobility Assist, Therapeutic, Diagnostics), Service  (Infusion Therapy Services, Telemetry, Respiratory Therapy Service, Rehabilitation, Unskilled Home Care)), By Region: Segment Forecast, 2018  2026 provides an extensive analysis of present market dynamics and predicted future trends.

The rising geriatric population globally and increasing workforce of home healthcare service providers. Moreover, increasing demand for home healthcare, and large number of population suffering from chronic disease that require long term care would retain the home healthcare market. While, increasing mergers and acquisitions between the manufacturers to tap the potential market will also influence the entire industry. However, high cost of service providers can hinder market in the near future.

The major players in the market include GE Healthcare, McKesson Corporation, Roche Holding AG, Linde Corporation, Abbott Laboratories, Omron Healthcare, Philips Healthcare, A&D Company, Kindred Healthcare, LHC Group, Fresenius, Kinnser Software.

Request for a sample of this research report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/home-healthcare-market/request-for-sample

Regionally, North America holds the major share of the global home healthcare market. This report cover the following regions: North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and MEA. In terms of geography, North America accounted majority share in the global market due to huge number of older population that require home care. While, Asia Pacific has a profitable market during the forecast period. This growth is primarily driven by the increasing investment and awareness for home care services in the developing countries on improving the healthcare infrastructure.

Key Take-away

 Based on product type, service dominate the market in 2017.

 On the basis of geography, the North Americas region dominates the home healthcare market. whereas, Asia Pacific is would notice high growth rate during the forecast period.

Polaris Market Research has segmented the global Home Healthcare market on the basis of Product Type and region type:

Complete Summary with TOC Available @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/home-healthcare-market

Home Healthcare By Geography (Revenue, USD Billion, 2015  2026)

 North America

o U.S.

o Canada

 Europe

o UK

o Germany

o France

o Italy

o Spain

 Asia-Pacific

o China

o Japan

o India

o Australia

 Latin America

o Brazil

o Mexico

o Rest of Latin America

 Middle East & Africa

o South Africa

o Rest of Middle East & Africa

Avail discount on this report @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/home-healthcare-market/request-for-discount-pricing

About Polaris Market Research

Polaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. We provide unmatched quality of offerings to our clients present globally. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world.

Contact us-

Polaris Market Research

Phone: 1-646-568-9980

Email: sales@polarismarketresearch.com

Web: www.polarismarketresearch.com

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi on Wednesday called for continuing coordination with the international community to secure the chance for African states to obtain coronavirus vaccine doses in a fair and just way.

The president delivered a speech via video conference in an African Union (AU) summit with the participation of French President Emmanuel Macron, Chair of the AU and Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, and African leaders.

The meeting, also attended by Chairperson of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki, aimed to discuss means to secure vaccine doses and back health care systems in Africa, Presidential Spokesman Bassam Rady said in a statement.

Sisi called for securing the funding and logistical support required for African nations to tackle the pandemics economic, social, and health repercussions, the spokesman said.

Mr. President indicated that holding this meeting confirms the availability of the political will to enhance joint African efforts to deal with the implications and consequences of the coronavirus, Rady added.

The president shed light on the unprecedented challenges and threat posed by the novel virus on health and development systems at the regional and international levels, Rady noted.

Mr. President also affirmed that Egypt would spare no effort towards exploiting all its capabilities to support its African brothers in obtaining coronavirus vaccines, given Egyptian experiences in this regard, Rady added.

El-Sisi highlighted the necessity to give priority to ensuring that the African continent receives a sufficient share of vaccines at a preferential price to cover the needs of African people.

He also urged continuing coordination with international companies developing the coronavirus vaccines with the aim of enabling cooperation in vaccine production at the regional level.

This comes within the framework of working to enhance local production capabilities to empower nations to face any health emergency through transferring and localising technology in the health sector, the statement read.

The president also affirmed the need to find a regional framework to obtain licenses for the production and distribution of vaccines, the spokesman added.

The meeting urged enhancing solidarity and collaboration among African peoples and governments with the aim of controlling the spread of the coronavirus and containing its negative repercussions.

Short link:


EU trade deals with China, Canada and South America are running into trouble as unresolved internal contradictions hold back efforts to set a more assertive global agenda.

A new Commission strategy to be unveiled today aims to make the bloc more effective in pursuing European interests an EU source said.

The EU executive is determined to level the playing field with its global competitors and end its weakness in areas like digital technology, raw materials and defence, while flexing its green muscles.

Brushes with Trump, Brexit and Covid-19 vaccine shortages have increased a push to pursue what Brussels calls open strategic autonomy on the world stage.

But here Sinn Fein, the Greens and Social Democrats have all raised issues with a 2016 EU-Canada deal over fears that it hands investors too much power to intervene in Irish lawmaking. A 2019 accord with the South American Mercosur bloc could face a similar fate over concerns about Brazilian deforestation.

MEPs from the political right, left and centre are lukewarm, at best, on an investment deal with China since it was signed in December.

They fear it hands China a strategic victory at a time when authorities there are cracking down on pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong and torturing its Muslim Uighur population.

The US has been far more wary with China.

I dont think it was a great move by the Commission to reach that agreement three weeks before Joe Biden started his presidency, said Dutch MEP Liesje Schreinemacher.

I think there is definitely a chance that it could be rejected by the European Parliament.

We could have easily waited. This is also part of diplomacy. Now China has got its way, has an advantage, by separating this transatlantic partnership a bit.

MEPs concerns around China include the case of Irish aviation executive Richard OHalloran, who has been held in the country without charge for two years.

Mr OHalloran, a director of the Dublin-based China International Aviation Leasing Service (CIALS), travelled to Shanghai in February 2019 to mediate after the arrest of his companys chairman, Min Jiedong, on fraud charges.

The European Parliament called for China to release the Dublin father-of-four in a resolution last month and several MEPs wrote to the Chinese EU ambassador last week to appeal for help.

They had been planning to put more political pressure on China in a further resolution this month, but have been warned off by Irish diplomats, who are hopeful of a deal behind the scenes.

We feel that its a sensitive time and [we want to] to allow some breathing space, Fianna Fail MEP Barry Andrews told the Irish Independent. We will all hold off until things develop in the next couple of weeks.

The move follows Senator Michael McDowells withdrawal of a Seanad motion on the case this week.

Fine Gael MEP Frances Fitzgerald, who also wrote to the Chinese EU ambassador last week, said the EU is right to raise human rights issues alongside trade talks.

We have human rights standards. You cant just detain somebody if theres no allegation against them. And the rule of law is important in all our relationships with China.

Its a challenging time, in terms of the relationship with China. Theres a strong economic imperative for China to adapt. Its not all one way.

Many feel the Commissions China deal was not tough enough, particularly on labour and environmental standards. Once the deal has been signed, it will be difficult for the bloc to use it to bring China into line.

It took almost 10 years for the EU to call out South Korea for failing to ratify labour standards it had signed up to in a 2011 deal.

"We dont want that with China, for it to take 10 years for them to stop forced labour, said MEP Liesje Schreinemacher.

The EUs China trade deal  which must be approved by MEPs, but not the Dail, before it can become law - comes at a time when the UK and US are toughening their approach to the country.

After his first call with Chinas President Xi Jinping last week, US president Joe Biden said that he had fundamental concerns about Beijings coercive and unfair economic practices as well as its treatment of Hong Kong, the Uighurs and Taiwan.

But EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell Fontelles said EU strategic autonomy in global affairs is not about going it alone but remaining in control of our own choices.

Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform says striking its own deals is an essential insurance policy for the EU against the dangers of resurgent Trumpism or an increasingly truculent China.

However, some in the EU are worried the new trade strategy could reopen old wounds internally between the more protectionist bloc of countries led by France and free traders including Sweden, the Netherlands and Ireland.

The EU has spent the last few years beefing up its trade defences, including measures to give its companies a bigger slice of global public procurement markets and to screen foreign investments in strategic European sectors such as defence or infrastructure.

Just this week a new enforcement regulation came into force, which would allow the EU to slap tariffs on its trade partners without having to go through the World Trade Organization, which has been hamstrung during the Trump presidency.

Ireland and the Netherlands benefit a lot from free trade, and we dont want only the big countries and big industries to profit from a more protectionist policy direction, said Liesje Schreinemacher, who sits on the European Parliaments trade committee.

I think everyone can profit in the end, if we strike the right balance: perhaps, more protectionist measures when it comes to China, for example, but in the end we have to make sure that we still have a competitive market within the EU.
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But the senators are pro-work only in a narrow sense, and in that sense they sell families short. There is no intrinsic value to labor outside the home that raises it to a higher dignity than the work of parents or other caregivers within the home. If only wage work is seen as real work, then a father who stays home with his young children doesnt count as providing for his family.

To convert care into real work, he has to perform a sleight of hand. If the father swaps kids with a neighbor and each family pays the other to take care of its kids, then the same diaper changes, food preparation and reading of storybooks become official work. Its hard to call this shell game pro-family policy, in which child care has value only if you dont provide it to your own child.

Mr. Romneys plan (like the Family Fun Pack from Matt Bruenig, the president of the Peoples Policy Project, a think tank) would allow families to be flexible. (President Biden has also released a plan for a similar benefit, which would be less generous to families with younger children and would be limited to a single year of payments as part of Covid-19 relief.) Mr. Romney and Mr. Bruenig would put money directly and unconditionally into families hands. They would not issue child care vouchers or otherwise dictate a single, right way to balance work and parenting.

In contrast, the position of Mr. Lee and Mr. Rubio isnt pro-family; its pro-employer. Their goal seems to be to fit parents to the needs of increasingly totalizing work, rather than expect jobs to accommodate the needs of families. Its the same attitude lurking behind the proposal from Kamala Harris when she was a senator, to cover the gap between the ends of school days and workdays. She proposed extending the school day by three hours, rather than shortening the workday. When children and work come into conflict, work usually wins.

Its almost as if some critics of the Romney plan are asking: How can we work around the demands children place on their parents? This is a shallow liberty that treats parents as equal only if they are equivalent to childless job candidates.
Things went off the rails behind the scenes of Triple M Sydney's Moonman in the Morning breakfast show on Thursday.

Host Lawrence Mooney grew frustrated with the hot and stuffy studio, so stripped down to his underpants and went on an impromptu nudie run.

The funnyman, 55, took off his clothes after arriving at work to discover the air conditioning system wasn't working properly.

Moonman's breakfast nudie run: Radio host Lawrence Mooney stripped down to his underpants at the Triple M studios on Thursday after the air conditioning broke down

'Good morning, do you have any idea when the air conditioning is going to be fixed up?' Lawrence asked as he walked around in his underpants and boots.

'Umm no. They keep promising it's going to get fixed but I'm not sure,' a stunned producer responded.

'Well, it's pretty hot in there,' Lawrence said, to which the staffer cheekily replied: 'That's not the only thing that's pretty hot.'

Triple M producer Jana Hocking also shared a photo to Instagram of Lawrence hosting the show in his underpants, and wrote: 'Just another day in the office.'

Protest: The funnyman, 55, took off his clothes after arriving at work to discover the air conditioning system wasn't working properly

It's not the first time Lawrence has managed to put a smile on his colleagues' faces.

Last year, the breakfast radio host attempted to 'flip a couch' with a producer, but the stunt backfired during an ad break.

Footage of the terrifying moment showed the two counting down before jumping up on the sofa to push it on its side.

Rolling with it: Triple M producer Jana Hocking also shared a photo to Instagram of Lawrence hosting the show in his underpants, and wrote: 'Just another day in the office'

His producer managed to flip the sofa over and land on the other side, but Lawrence misplaced his foot.

The unfortunate mistake caused him to fall backwards and land on the floor behind him, almost knocking over a nearby table.

As producers ran to help him, Lawrence's co-hosts Jess Eva and Chris Page could be heard laughing in the background.


Photo: Contributed Members of the Johnson and Bentley family.

Seven years ago I hand delivered a petition from more than 15,000 concerned Okanagan citizens (15,258 to be exact) to former Conservative Justice Minister Steven Blaney opposing the parole release of David Ennis.



Ennis, formerly David Shearing, is the mass murderer who brutally took the lives of the West Kelowna Johnson and Bentley families of six, who were on a camping trip in August 1982.



While this horrific and tragic act took place close to 40 years ago, Mr. Ennis may be again coming before the parole board in July.



This painful event once again haunts the family and friends of the victims. One of these family friends is West Kelowna resident Tammy Arishenkoff, who was a classmate of the Johnson girls.



Over the past decades, whenever Mr. Ennis has been before the parole board, Tammy has dutifully collected a petition from the thousands of citizens opposed to his release.



I would like to sincerely thank Tammy Arishenkoff for her efforts and also to recognize the many citizens who have participated in this petition process.



We must always remember the victims in acts of deplorable and senseless violence.



With the potential parole board hearing for Mr. Ennis in July of this year, Tammy Arishenkoff is once again leading the petition charge to gather together citizens opposed to his parole.



The petition is located here.



My question this week:

Will you sign this petition?

I can be reached at [email protected] or toll free 1-800-665-8711.
"AI Plant Expert" for Heavy Manufacturing Industries As manufacturers are challenged with margin pressures, retirement of industry experts and remote operations, UptimeAI enables operational excellence by bringing human-like intelligence at scale to process billions of data points and give precise answers", Jagadish Gattu (CEO)

UptimeAI, a company specializing in AI-based predictive maintenance software for heavy industries, announced that it is raising a total of $1.5M SEED funding from YourNest Venture Capital and other angel investors. This investment will help UptimeAI scale its core technology development efforts and expand its presence in multiple international markets.

The company was founded in 2019 by Jagadish Gattu and Vamsi Yalamanchili with the vision to create the manufacturing industrys first AI-based Plant Expert, thereby empowering operators to avoid surprises and maximize reliability, efficiency and productivity. They built a core team that is consolidating cutting-edge AI innovation and over 200 years of SME (Subject Matter Expert) knowledge from working with power, oil and gas, chemicals, automotive and other industries into a purpose-built AI solution for plant monitoring.

As manufacturers are challenged with margin pressures, retirement of industry experts and remote operations, UptimeAI enables operational excellence by bringing human-like intelligence at scale to process billions of data points and give precise answers. We are happy to have found a shared vision for this with YourNest Venture Capital, and look forward to working together to scale and take the UptimeAI value across the US, Europe & Middle East, said Jagadish Gattu, CEO & Founder, UptimeAI, who is an IIT-M alumnus with an MBA from Kellogg School of Management; he also has six patents and 15 years of prior experience managing predictive maintenance solutions at companies like GE.

Customers are tired of spending millions, getting stuck in endless pilots and waiting for years to get a return on investment. At UptimeAI, we enable rapid deployment and ROI with built-in failure modes, patent-pending AI for manufacturing and self-learning workflows, that offer up to 10x reduction in alarms, manual effort and time to act, said Vamsi Yalamanchili, CTO & Co-Founder, UptimeAI, a IIIT Hyderabad alumnus and a second-time entrepreneur whose previous startup, InResto, was acquired by the Times Group.

In UptimeAI, we found a startup that is developing a comprehensive and purpose-built AI solution for manufacturing based on a deep understanding of operational challenges. Further, the combination of AI with their robust domain expertise puts them in a league of their own and we are excited to enable their journey ahead. UptimeAi is also one of the selected startups in the YourNest SOAR Program which accelerated funding for DeepTech startups during the 2020 lockdown, said Dr Vivek Mansingh, General Partner, YourNest Venture Capital.

About UptimeAI:

UptimeAI is reinventing plant monitoring for heavy industries with their proprietary AI-based predictive maintenance software which offers expert-like intelligence at scale and fast ROI to avoid surprises and maximize profitability. With headquarters in the US and offices in Bangalore and San Francisco, UptimeAI works with some of the largest process plants globally to predict problems, explain root-cause, and give a prescriptive diagnosis, maximizing reliability, efficiency and productivity. UptimeAI has been recognized across the Indian industrial ecosystem time and again by the Govt of India, NASSCOM and Reliance Jio Accelerator for its innovation and value provided.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/uptimeai-inc
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MASON CITY, Iowa - A woman connected to a 2020 felony theft case was arrested and is now facing more charges.

Melissa Kiefer, 40, of Mason City, was wanted for felony second-degree theft in connection to being in possession of a stolen mens ring that was appraised for $2,000 in 2015.

Kiefer took the ring into a pawn shop and was paid $265 for it, court documents state.

She was arrested on her warrant in Wright County and taken to the Cerro Gordo County Jail.

There she charged with possession of contraband inside a correctional facility when a small baggie containing meth was found in a coat pocket.
KALAMAZOO, MI  Western Michigan University President Edward Montgomery, a member of the Southwest Michigan First Board of Directors, has issued a statement critical of the economic development organizations recent CEO hire.

Montgomery, who began as WMUs president in 2017, made it clear in a statement to MLive that the university did not participate in the search or hiring process for the organizations new chief executive officer, former Michigan House Speaker Lee Chatfield.

We understand certain policy positions held by Mr. Chatfield are not aligned with WMU values, and some in our community find them concerning, Montgomery said, in part, in a statement on Feb. 17, responding to questions from MLive. At Western, we unequivocally value diversity, equity and inclusion.

The university president is the latest to weigh in on Chatfields hire, which was announced in a news release from Southwest Michigan First on Thursday, Feb. 11.

On Monday, the Kalamazoo City Commission voted to withdraw its annual financial support of $10,000 as a member of the organizations Council of 100. Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners discussed the issue on Tuesday, but resolved to bring the issue back for a decision in two weeks on whether to stop the $75,000 in annual payments it makes to Southwest Michigan First.

Related: Kalamazoo County will consider cutting annual $75K payment to Southwest Michigan First

Montgomerys statement did not make clear whether Western Michigan will reconsider its support of Southwest Michigan First.

A WMU spokesperson did not respond to additional questions, including whether or not the university is considering changes to its relationship with the group.

We understand that a diverse and inclusive community will also come with a range of political perspectives, the university presidents statement continued. We believe the quality of life in our region is enhanced by our LGBTQ community. There is no equivocation or backing away from that commitment.

We also expect the same of our partners, including Southwest Michigan First, Montgomery said. We will judge this partnership not just by what is said but by what is done to promote a vibrant, inclusive community.

The WMU president, previously dubbed auto czar for his work in the Obama administration, is one of dozens of Southwest Michigan First board members.

Southwest Michigan First said in December that its Board of Directors planned to move quickly on a national search for the organizations next CEO, amid news that longtime CEO Ron Kitchens would be departing effective Jan. 15.

The group has not provided details on the process used to select and hire Chatfield as the organizations new CEO.

Southwest Michigan First is a nonprofit that works with businesses and governments throughout the region to provide jobs and economic development.

Historically, Western Michigan University has collaborated with Southwest Michigan First to enhance the quality of life in the region, Montgomery said in the statement.

We have been committed through this partnership to helping build and maintain an economically vibrant, inclusive community on and off the campus, he said.

Montgomery is one of a few members of the Southwest Michigan First board with ties to Western Michigan University. In addition to the schools president, WMU Board of Trustees Chairperson Lynn L. Chen-Zhang and Vice Chairperson William D. Johnston are both also members of the Southwest Michigan First Board of Directors.

Chen-Zhang, Johnston and some other Southwest Michigan First board members did not respond to requests from MLive for comment on the CEO decision.

Read more:

Kalamazoo city commissioner says new economic development CEO does not share the regions values

Dead people voted, Shirkey claims, despite debunking from Michigan election officials

Ill never forget that nurse, says COVID-19 patient about the kindness shown to her after cancer diagnosis
(CNN) Early in the pandemic, Jane Cox Childress brought her teenage son warm cookies at his desk during a remote learning session. She received a text message in response: "Mom, could you please not bring me anything when I'm in class?"

Childress said she "learned quickly to be more respectful when he was in class." After that, the two started exchanging a constant stream of texts throughout the day as they continued to do their respective work remotely: Are you ready for lunch? Is this your last class? Here's a heart emoji or two.

"It reminds me of the olden days when I was a teenager. Some of my friends with fancy houses had intercoms," Childress said. "We use texting a lot like that now. It beats yelling up and down the stairs."

A lot has been written about how technology has allowed us to feel closer to people outside our quarantine bubbles during the pandemic. But a number of people are also finding that texting and other chat tools can help create some much-needed distance from their loved ones under the same roof. For those who lean on texts at home, the benefits are both psychological -- as we spend 24/7 in close proximity talking face-to-face with the same few people -- and logistical, as family members confront the realities of effectively being coworkers.

Texts give people the opportunity to slow down, be reflective and say what they mean without becoming too reactive, psychologists say. Sending texts is also a way to honor the multiple roles someone has in the home right now without interrupting those functions -- a mother or father may also be a full-time remote employee, while a child might be a virtual student. Texting can help preserve some sense of separate quarters during the long and messy remote workdays.

For Brooke Sanchez, a small business owner from San Diego and mother of three kids, she uses texts to quickly get in touch with her husband, who works remotely in another room:."It's just an easy way to communicate fast," she said. "And then, of course, there's the typical me texting him to bring me something."

Brittany Burroughs, a government employee who works on financial education for low income communities, messages her husband about seven times during a typical workday at home.

"I text him funny memes that I see on social media, ideas for the house and a lot of pictures of our dog," said Burroughs, who works downstairs while her husband is upstairs. "Sometimes he responds immediately if he isn't in any meetings or in person when he comes down for lunch. It keeps some type of excitement in our lives."

When messaging someone outside the home, texting etiquette can put pressure on responding in a timely manner, especially now as people send more texts during the pandemic and keeping up is often a source of stress. But this same pressure isn't necessarily there when texting family inside the house, which may make it more tolerable.

"You can choose to read right away or not, and you can choose to respond immediately or delay your response until you inevitably run into the person in the kitchen and address it then," said Elias Aboujaoude, a clinical professor of psychiatry at Stanford University and the author of "Virtually You: The Dangerous Powers of the e-Personality." "The fact that texting under the same roof seems less stressful in some respects suggests that it may stay with us post-pandemic."

As the pandemic has dragged on, screens and communications tools have only become more central to our daily lives inside and outside the home, whether it be Zoom, FaceTime, chat apps like Slack, or texts and voice memos. And while text messages, like these other options, are no substitute for in-person interaction, it can arguably create a sense of feeling closer to someone even if you're only a room away.

"We aren't doing it to avoid each other or because we're too lazy to get up at that moment. We're texting each other to stay connected," Childress said of her texting relationship with her son. "And sometimes staying connected for a 15-year-old boy comes across in a text as: 'Mom, will you make me a grilled cheese sandwich?'"

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Why families stuck inside together just text each other all day."
A shaky cellphone video from an Antioch mother shows police officers turning her handcuffed son onto his back on her bedroom floor. Blood covers his mouth; his body appears listless.

Three days later, doctors pronounced 30-year-old Angelo Quinto dead at Sutter Delta Medical Center. What happened before that moment is the subject of a new legal claim against the city, a draft of which was obtained by The Chronicle.

A claim is the first step toward suing a city or county, and this one seeks damages of more than $25,000. It alleges wrongful death, assault, battery, negligent hiring by the Antioch Police Department, breach of duty by the officers accused of putting Quinto at risk of serious physical injury, and other offenses.

Its a really tragic situation, said Oakland civil rights attorney John Burris, who hired a private investigator to probe the details surrounding Quintos death.

The incident occurred seven months after the Minneapolis death of George Floyd ignited a national conversation about police use of force and accountability  one that Quintos family said deserves to be happening in Antioch.

It has also raised questions about transparency from the Antioch Police Department. Burris said the department has not released body-worn camera footage of the encounter, and it is not clear from the cellphone video whether the officers at the scene were wearing body cameras.

Police didnt disclose Quintos death to the public for nearly a month. When Antioch police Lt. John Fortner spoke to The San Jose Mercury News in January, he said that although officers did handcuff Quinto, they refrained from other forms of physical force.

Fortner told the Mercury News that police delayed publishing a press release, in part to protect the familys privacy and also because the cause of death was undetermined. He told The Chronicle on Wednesday that the Contra Costa County district attorney and sheriffs Coroners Division are investigating Quintos death, and that the agencies will provide more information when portions of the review are complete.

As of Wednesday, the Antioch Police Department had not posted a press release on its website or social media regarding Quintos death.

Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle

The legal claim stems from a chaotic encounter at the familys home on Crestwood Drive, shortly after 11 p.m. on Dec. 23. Quinto, who family members say suffered from anxiety, grabbed his mother and sister and began hugging them tightly around their heads and shoulders.

He was trying to keep us close, and it really freaked us out, Quintos sister, Isabella Bella Collins, recalled in an interview Wednesday.

Collins managed to extricate herself and called police, saying her brother was acting erratically and that she feared he might hurt her mother.

When officers arrived, they found Maria Cassandra Quinto-Collins seated on the floor of her bedroom and embracing her son, according to a report from private investigator Juan Sigler, which is based on interviews with the mother and daughter.

Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle

Police took Quinto from his mother, turned him on his stomach and handcuffed him. His mother said Quinto pleaded for his life when officers pinned him down, with one officer holding his legs while the other placed a knee on his neck.

In the cellphone video, which doesnt capture the initial encounter, Quinto appears unresponsive as police flip him over onto his left side, revealing blood smeared on his mouth and a blood stain on the floor. Photos obtained by the Chronicle show a pool of blood near his body.

His eyes were rolled up in his head, Collins said, adding that her brother looked purple.

Though doctors said Quinto died on Dec. 26, his mother has not yet heard a cause of death. Spokespersons for the sheriffs office, which includes the coroner, did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

After the ambulance took Quinto away, officers took his mother and sister to the police station to be photographed and interviewed, they said. At one point, Quinto-Collins received a phone call from a doctor treating Quinto, but she said a police staff member intervened and would not let her finish the conversation.

Quinto showed signs of depression for most of his life, though it was never diagnosed, Collins said. She and her mother characterized him as caring and sweet-natured, with an artistic side that came through when he began doing graffiti as a teenager. He graduated from Berkeley High School in 2008 and attended classes at Berkeley City College. In his 20s Quinto joined the Navy but was granted a medical discharge in 2019 due to a food allergy.

Collins said her brothers behavior changed after an apparent assault early last year, which left Quinto with a black eye, a head wound that required stitches and no memory of what happened. In subsequent months, Quinto seemed anxious and edgy, Collins noted.

Collins described her decision to call the police as the biggest regret of her life.

We trusted them too much during a time of fear and vulnerability and panic, she said Wednesday. In hindsight, she said, I would not call them if this happened again.

Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan
The decision for Bluewater and bamix to team-up with Chef Jew was an easy one. His style of cooking and vision for Lingr align with the bamix USA hand-blender brand to empower any home chef to make delicious food for a lifetime.

Cooking delicious meals at home has become a new hobby and passion for many people after the pandemic hit in early 2020. Remember all the social posts about baking bread? That home cooking trend has continued in 2021 as many local restaurants still struggle to remain open with reduced capacity and enhanced safety measures.

In an effort to support local restaurants and inspire home chefs of all experience levels, leading DTC ad agency Bluewater -- the strategic partner for bamix USA-- is teaming with Chef Jeffrey Jew.

Chef Jew is an alum of Bravos Top Chef and winner of Food Networks Guys Grocery Games. He has been most recently visible in Floridas Tampa Bay area for his soon- to-open solo restaurant, Lingr, that will offer patrons a Nordic and Asian inspired cuisine. Chef Jews inspiration for the upscale-casual eatery and bar came from his love of the local area, his heritage and years of experience as the Executive Chef for St. Petersburg restaurants such as Bella Brava and Stillwaters Tavern.

Rob Fallon, Bluewaters CEO, commented that the decision for Bluewater and bamix to team-up with Chef Jew was an easy one. His style of cooking and vision for Lingr align with the bamix USA hand-blender brand to empower any home chef to make delicious food for a lifetime. With the additional culinary expertise from Chef Jew making dishes with the Swiss made hand-blender, everyone can feel like a professional chef.

Chef Jew noted I have used this immersion blender through the years for sauces, hummus, smoothies and more. The quality is superior, and I am excited to put it to use in my new restaurant, Lingr.

Beyond the idea of connecting home chefs across the U.S. with these exclusive videos and bamix hand-blenders, Bluewater also had a bigger mission for its partnership with Chef Jew. Supporting local businesses and the overall community has been a longstanding priority for Bluewater, but even more so during these trying times. Bluewater regularly gives back to local families in need, sources local talent and brings attention to local businesses. Generating awareness about Chef Jew and Lingr is simply another way for Bluewater to support a fellow Floridian and ultimately help the community get back to what locals love  enjoying the beautiful scenery and gathering at the many fantastic restaurants in the area.

Theres a reason people vacation in St. Petersburg and Clearwater--its like being in a little piece of heaven and we are all privileged to live here. Were committed to take on small or large acts to help keep our community great and be a good neighbor, said Bluewaters President and COO, Gina Pomponi.

You can anticipate the first video release in late February on Facebook @bamixus, Pinterest @bamixusa and Instagram @bamixusa.

About Bluewater:

Bluewater has one core metric of success: yours. Were a DTC marketing and advertising agency converging all the services needed to be relevant to consumers where they live, work and play. Our experienced, talented team of converged professionals make us remarkable. We attack the work differently. We are always inquisitive. The pride and accountability we put in our work is at the root of what makes us better. Just ask to see our results. Visit the company website at https://bluewater.tv or on LinkedIn @bluewater-media.

About Chef Jeffrey Jew:

Chef Jew is an alumnus of Bravo's "Top Chef," a winner of Food Network's "Guy's Grocery Games," and known to locals most recently as Executive Chef at Bella Brava and Stillwaters Tavern of 2B Hospitality. The menu he has developed for Lingr on 6th St. includes culinary traditions of his Norwegian and Asian heritage with a contemporary flair. Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner  Lingr on 6th St. offers something for everyone. Sustainable and locally sourced ingredients for the menu creations are harmonized with craft beers, cocktails, and an extensive wine selection. Visit us online at LingrRestaurant.com.
A herd of 50 pedigree Guernsey cattle has arrived at Hartpury for students to carry out research on the breed, which is famous for its rich flavour of milk.

Sourced with the help of the English Guernsey Cattle Society, the arrival of the pedigree cattle aims to provide students with additional skills and experience.

The new herd will also allow those studying at Hartpury college and university an opportunity to show the animals at livestock events.

Hartpury's on-site commercial farm already has 200 Holstein milking cows, 200 beef cattle, 250 dairy youngstock and 650 ewes. It is also expecting 1,200 lambs.

Andrew Eastabrook, farm manager at Hartpury, said the college was always exploring innovative ways of providing students with farming experience.

"Demand from milk processors nowadays is heavily centred around milk solids, so while Guernsey cattle have a lower overall yield, they produce higher-percentage fat and protein milk.

Our milk buyer also requested that we supply a more level profile of litres across the year," he said.

With our autumn calving herd, we produce a peak litreage in late autumn, and through winter, but less milk in summer when cows are drying off.

The Guernseys are calving in spring as a standalone herd, so they should balance the cyclical changes in the Holstein milk solids.

The herd follows the construction of a new dairy parlour at Hartpury, providing students with hands-on experience of the latest technology.
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Its my party, and Ill cry if I want to, sang Lesley Gore in 1964, in the chorus to a song about a young teen betrayed in the worst way by her guy. You would cry too if it happened to you!

The Republican Party in Pennsylvania appears to be having its own Lesley Gore moment now, as a number of county party committees have taken action this week to condemn the U.S. Senator Pat Toomey, R-Allentown, for his vote last week to convict former President Donald J. Trump of inciting violence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

Saturdays 57-43 vote fell short of the two-thirds majority required for conviction, but the seven Republican senators who voted yes made this the most bipartisan impeachment verdict on the trial of a president yet. And thats not sitting well with some of the Republican partisans.

Its their party, these members say, they still love Trump, and theyre sick to death of those in the party who dont have his back against, in their view, the united forces of Democrats in Congress and the mainstream media.

It was a reaction that was best summed up Monday, in comments made by Washington County GOP Committee Chair Dave Ball to a Pittsburgh television station on its resolution condemning Toomeys vote:

We did not send him (Toomey) there to vote his conscience, we did not send him there to do the right thing, whatever he said he was doing. We sent him there to represent us, and we feel very strongly that he did not represent us.

Washington County had joined Republican organizations in Clarion, Fayette, Lawrence, Westmoreland and York counties in censuring Toomey through Wednesday afternoon. The chair of the Republican State Committee, Lawrence Tabas, has also sent an email to state committee members alerting them to a future meeting to discuss Toomeys vote.

Others are actively pushing back on the idea, arguing its best to let the issue fade away.

So, what is with all this handwringing over a vote that the Republicans actually won, cast by a guy who long ago announced that he wont be seeking re-election in 2022? As such, as one GOP source told PennLive Wednesday, the censure resolutions have the practical effect of putting a note in Toomeys personnel file.

It may be part exhibition season for the fights ahead in 2022, as the party tries to settle on nominees for an open gubernatorial and Senate races, and - in a larger sense - its post-Trump direction. Its also, partly, just those who are in firm control of the party at the moment having their say on a matter of internal party politics.

But does it help in the wider world?

Some have real concerns about that.

The Republican Party needs unity, not a purge, said Joseph DiSarro, a political science professor at Washington & Jefferson College in southwestern Pennsylvania, who also happens to be a member of the Republican State Committee. We dont want to start purging. We need the big tent.

As Karl Rove (the former political strategist for former President George W. Bush) has warned... this party is in disarray in the post-Trump era. The last thing the party needs is a purge. The last thing the party needs is a discussion of who is a true Republican, and who is a RINO, DiSarro said, using the acronym for Republican-In-Name-Only.

Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., departs on Capitol Hill in Washington, Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021, after the Senate acquitted former President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial in the Senate at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Saturday, Feb. 13, 2021. Trump was accused of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, and the acquittal gives him a historic second victory in the court of impeachment. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)AP

Recent national polling suggests the delicacy of the problem.

While Trump  one month removed from his presidency  is still the dominant figure on the Republican landscape, recent polling suggests that as much as one-fifth of voters who identify as Republicans say they dont want to see him play a major role in the party going forward.

What the smart folks see, very clearly, is that you can not win a national election with 75 percent of the Republican Party, said Alison Dagnes, a political scientist at Shippensburg University. You will never have the numbers that way.

Dagnes said recent actions like the Toomey censures also can have a chilling effect on future candidate recruitment.

This is not just an internecine fight within the Pennsylvania Republican Party. I think this is far more existential. By doing this they are discouraging the more, non-Trumpy Republicans from running, she said. That, she added, could hurt the party in statewide races, and in local races in the more purple parts of the state.

Some party leaders say those observers are missing the point.

To them, this is about the majority within the party having its say over an issue of great frustration. They will have their voice heard now, and the party building can follow.

Keep in mind, said York County Republican Chairman Jeff Piccola  where the county committee voted to censure Toomey after Saturdays impeachment vote  party activists were already angry at what they see as mistreatment of Trump from Day One by a media establishment that never liked him and a Democratic Congress that actively worked to undermine his presidency.

Toomeys vote, a betrayal by one of their own, seemed like the last straw, he said.

It wasnt my idea to bring up this resolution, Piccola said. This came from the bottom up. It did not come from the top down... This was a vote by people who worked diligently for Republican candidates  some for years, including Pat Toomey  to get them elected and re-elected, and it was an expression of their disappointment and frustration in him specifically.

I think its retaining people that were not necessarily Republicans but who were for Trump, and are now going to be Republicans, because we stood up for what we believed in, said Piccola. Tell the pundits were fine.

Some state leaders, however, arent so sure. And they have mounted a rear-guard effort to try to stop the censure Toomey movement in its tracks.

They counted some temporary wins in the postponement of a vote on a censure resolution in Chester County Tuesday night, although county GOP Chairman Gordon Eck told reporters it could still come up next week.

And in the Republican stronghold of Lancaster County, a proposed censure effort that had support from a majority of committee members present failed to get the 75 percent super-majority needed to get formal consideration Tuesday night, according to LNP.com.

Elsewhere in the midstate, the Lebanon County Republican Committee has a Toomey censure resolution on the agenda for its March meeting, and Cumberland County Republican Committee members are circulating a petition for a special meeting to discuss a censure there.

The stop-the-censure voices are most prominent in the larger counties with densely-populated suburban areas where local party leaders are desperately trying to hold off gains by Democrats.

They include leaders like Sam DeMarco, the chair of the Allegheny County Republican Party who said this to The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Monday:

One of the things that concerns me as a chairman is the reflexive group-think from those who believe if you dont agree with them 100 percent of the time on 100 percent of the things, youre a RINO [Republican in Name Only], spineless, a fake Republican or worse.

In Cumberland, Republican County Commissioner Gary Eichelberger agreed the party has to be about more than unswerving loyalty to Trump. Invoking another Republican hero, he noted (former President Ronald) Reagan was the biggest proponent of a big tent. He would be appalled at all of this.

A lot of the current friction, DiSarro believes, is the result of the partys ongoing assimilation of the new faces brought in by the Trump movement with the establishment conservative who traditionally aligned with politicians like former Gov. Tom Ridge, or Toomey; and the even more moderate Republicans in places like the Philadelphia suburbs.

The movement, he said, has pushed new faces to the forefront in many counties, and those leaders want to be responsive to their committee members and registered voters.

Toomey is far from the only Republican feeling heat at home.

In the U.S. House, Republican members beat back a widely-publicized effort to remove U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming, from leadership ranks after her criticisms and vote in favor of Trumps impeachment last month. But Cheney was still censured Feb. 6 by the state Republican Party organization, which asked for a return of all party donations to her last campaign.

Two of Toomeys seven Senate GOP colleagues who voted to convict Trump  Richard Burr, R-North Carolina, and Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana  have also already been censured by their state party organizations.

The Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania, meanwhile, had not set a date for a statewide discussion as of Wednesday evening.

One state committee member who said he personally opposes censure, said hes counting on President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and his thin Democratic Party majorities in Congress to help reunite the party in the long run.

If people really want to get excited, they ought to look at what Bidens proposing, and that should get em revved up, said Dick Stewart, of the state committees South Central Caucus.
INDUSTRY INSIGHT

How AI can save money, spare lives and reduce downtime

The United States leads the world in military assets with 40,000 armored vehicles, 13,000 aircraft and nearly 500 ships. Maintaining all these assets to ensure theyre combat-ready costs the Defense Department an estimated $71 billion annually. The sustainment for just one program -- the F-35 Lightning II fighter -- is projected to cost a whopping $1 trillion over the next 60 years.

Sustainment is not only expensive, its essential for safety. Weve lost 224 brave pilots and air crew members as a result of thousands of military aviation accidents since 2013, according to a congressional report released in December 2020.

The National Commission on Military Aviation Safety spent five years examining these accidents to develop a set of key recommendations. While the report cites several contributing factors, including funding issues and airman fatigue, it specifically highlights artificial intelligence as a means of improving aviation safety.

Artificial intelligence algorithms can analyze vast amounts of data: the more quality data, the better the output. The report states. The Services and DoD underutilize artificial intelligence and machine learning, which offer untapped potential to improve safety.

One specific application is using AI-powered predictive maintenance to detect failures early enough to improve safety, minimize costs and ultimately increase unit readiness.

Prediction is key to prevention

Over four years, the Air Force KC-135 tanker repeatedly suffered the same failure: One of its hydraulic pumps failed two dozen times, at an estimated cost of $6.6 million.

The Force Air Mobility Commands Enhanced Reliability Centered Maintenance program uses algorithms to solve such maintenance problems. By analyzing detailed records the Air Force already has about how a particular part has performed, AI can determine when to repair or replace it.

Lockheed Martin is also developing such capabilities, using data collected from its Sikorsky helicopters. During a technical talk at NVIDIAs GTC 2019, the company described how it deployed GPU-powered computer systems to facilitate data collection, retrieval and analysis. In doing so the company was able to optimize its maintenance and establish proactive, timely support for the helicopter fleet.

Of course, this technology can be used for more than aircraft and ships. AI can also prevent man-made disasters. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, faulty electrical equipment caused the deadly 2018 Camp Fire that devastated Paradise, Calif., when old C-hooks failed and allowed a high-voltage electric line to fall and ignite a blaze.

Consequently, utility companies are adopting predictive maintenance to curb the risk of wildfires in California. AI-powered drones can be deployed to inspect equipment and provide high-resolution images that, coupled with machine learning analysis, can proactively identify damage or weakness before a failure.

Data powers predictive maintenance

Predictive maintenance requires agencies to collect and analyze terabytes of data to glean insights that can detect system failure early.

The details aggregated from data sources such as equipment tests, supply chain, maintenance, operator information, design specs and logistics provide valuable insights into how systems are being operated over their lifespans; this insight enables a wide range of advanced analytics that supports fleet sustainment.

When powered by GPUs, AI can process terabytes of sensor data within hours to detect failures up to two months in advance, providing enough time to take preventative measures. GPU-enabled AI is being used to develop predictive maintenance capabilities for oil rigs that are one million times faster than current systems.

Its time we put these tools to work. If AI-powered predictive maintenance can save just 1% of DODs overall sustainment cost, it would save $700 million a year, spare service members lives and ensure critical assets are ready when theyre needed.
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Shanghai (Gasgoo)- BYD experienced an unusual year in 2020. It launched a heavyweight flagship NEV model, the BYD Han, that rapidly became popular among consumers. The company continued expanding its circle of friends by joining hands with some global automakers like Toyota and Hino. As for the breakthroughs in new technologies, BYD launched the blade battery that caught the eye of many industry insiders.



BYD Han; photo credit: BYD



Let's step back and take a look at what's happened last year at BYD.

BYD records 7.46% year-on-year decrease in 2020 auto sales

BYD closed its year of 2020 with an annual sales volume of 426,972 units, a year-on-year decrease of 7.46%, according to the company's announcement.

Due to the impact of coronavirus pandemic, the year-on-year change in monthly sales remained negative through the first half of 2020. The single-digit decrease in full-year sales was attributed to the incessant rise during the second half of the year.

Annual new energy vehicle (NEV) sales slid 17.35% to 189,689 units. The NEV unit was posting year-over-year decrease of over 45% in monthly sales during the first six months and started rebounding from September. In December, BYD saw its NEV sales surge 120.18% over the prior-year period to 28,841 units.

BYD, Hino ink agreement to build JV for all-electric CV development

BYD Auto Industry Company Limited, a subsidiary of BYD Company Limited, entered into a joint venture agreement with Hino Motors, Ltd. (Hino) on October 21 to set up a new company for the development of battery electric commercial vehicles, according to a posting on BYD's WeChat account.

The new joint venture was set to be established in China in 2021, and would be evenly held by BYD and Hino. It would integrate the strengths of both parent companies to develop all-electric CVs and EV-used auto parts, aiming to quickly offer ideal products in line with customers' demands, primarily in the Asian market.

BYD's full-sized Han sedan hits market with price starting at 219,800 yuan

BYD's flagship full-sized sedan, the BYD Han, eventually hit the market on July 12. Priced between 229,800 yuan ($32,820) and 279,500 yuan ($39,918), the BEV version comes with three variants. Besides, the PHEV version, namely, the Han DM, is sold at 219,800 yuan ($31,391).

With dimensions of 4,980mm/4,960mm long, 1,910mm wide and 1,495mm tall and a wheelbase spanning 2,929mm, the BYD Han plays in the league of full-sized sedans. Thanks to a silhouette of a four-door coupe, the new vehicle features a drag coefficient of 0.233 Cd, lowered than that of the Tesla Model S.

BYD Semiconductor raises 800 million yuan from 30 investors

BYD Company Limited (BYD) announced on June 15 its subsidiary BYD Semiconductor Co.,Ltd. had introduced another 30 strategic investors, which would give it significant impetus to the process of becoming a publicly-listed company.

The investors agreed to make a capital increase of 799,999,999 yuan ($113,008,720) to BYD Semiconductor based on the latter's valuation of 7.5 billion ($1,059,456,750) before investment, of which 32,021,077.24 yuan ($4,523,326) will be included in the subsidiary's increased registered capital and 767,978,921.76 yuan ($108,485,394) will be included in the capital reserve, according to BYD's announcement.

Toyota, BYD announce founding of EV R&D JV

Both Japanese auto giant Toyota and China's BYD announced on April 2 the formal establishment of their joint venture that focuses on R&D of battery electric vehicles (BEVs), showing their resolution to jointly deploy in BEV field.

Since they signed an agreement for the forming of the BEV R&D joint venture on November 7, 2019, the preparations have been actively pushing ahead with, and the operations are scheduled to commerce in May 2020, said two companies.

BYD launches blade battery to put end to spontaneous combustions in EVs

On March 29, China's leading NEV manufacturer BYD formally launched the blade battery, a new type of new lithium iron phosphate battery (LFP battery) that will largely increase the energy density of battery pack with greater safety.

The launch of 'blade battery' demonstrates BYD's resolution to thoroughly solve the pain points of NEV safety and our better capability in guiding global battery industry back on track, so as to put an end to spontaneous combustions in EVs, said Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD.

BYD announces foundation of five auto parts subsidiaries

BYD recently announced in March the establishment of five subsidiaries, in a bid to speed up the sale of NEV-related core components.

The five companies share a same surname Fudi, quoting a verse from Book of Songs, the first anthology of ancient Chinese poetry. The name embodies the meaning of honesty, integrity, diligence and aspiration.

BYD works as the world's biggest mask producer with 5 million units of daily capacity

If it were not for the combat against the novel coronavirus, people would never expect that today's largest facial mask producer in the world is an automaker.

BYD, the Shenzhen-based vehicle manufacturer backed by Warren Buffett, has now taken the leading place with a daily capacity of 5 million masks. After the company announced on Feb. 8 the resolute decision to produce the urgently needed medical supplies, all production lines running at full capacity are currently able to output 5 million masks and 300,000 bottles of disinfectant.

BYD, Daimler once again adds capital to NEV joint venture DENZA

On January 14, registered capital of Shenzhen DENZA New Energy Automotive Co.,Ltd (DENZA), a joint venture between BYD and Daimler, was increased by 700 million yuan to 5.76 billion yuan, according to an update record from corporate data platform Tianyancha.

Founded in 2011 with an initial registered capital of 2.36 billion yuan, Denza is 50/50 held by BYD Auto Industry Company Limited, a subsidiary of BYD, and Daimler Greater China Ltd. (DGRC). Prior to the latest capital increase, both parent companies had together pumped 1 billion yuan, 800 million yuan, 400 million yuan and 300 million yuan in May 2017, May 2018, February 2019 and May 2019 respectively.

BYD appoints former GM China president Kevin Wale as senior adviser

BYD named Kevin Wale, former president of General Motors (GM) China, as a senior adviser to the electric car maker's chairman, it said on January 13. The automaker said in a statement that Wale would counsel BYD on automobile marketing and brand building as well as sales service improvement.

Wale suggested electrified vehicles and other automotive products using new technologies would be key growth points in the future. China, the world's largest auto market, he said, would have significant roles to play. He would support BYD, an innovator in electrification and customer-centric technologies, by virtue of his experience.

JetBlue Airways is tacking on new service for Charleston travelers headed to and from the Northeast this summer.

The New York-based carrier will offer daily flights between the Holy City and the Big Apple's LaGuardia Airport starting July 1, the airline announced Feb. 18.

Flights go on sale Feb 23. Flight times have not been posted.

The new route is part of a code-sharing agreement with American Airlines through what they are calling a new "Northeast Alliance" to boost service from New York City and Boston to several destinations, including Charleston.

Code-sharing allows travelers to book directly with a preferred airline for flights operated by a partner airline.

"The Southeast performs very well for JetBlue, and Charleston is an important part of our success in the region, said Andrea Lusso, vice president of network planning at JetBlue.

"Our alliance with American opens the door for JetBlue to successfully enter into new markets, introducing more choices ... and low fares to more customers," said Scott Laurence, head of revenue and planning for JetBlue. "The alliance is also essential to getting our planes back in the air profitably and crewmembers working again."

American Airline's chief revenue officer Vasu Raja called it a first step to creating "a seamless experience that's easy for our customers, supports our communities and leads to more growth for our team."

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JetBlue started serving Charleston in 2013. It currently offers flights from Charleston to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, Newark Liberty International, Boston Logan International, Los Angeles International and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International.

JetBlues decision is a win-win for the Charleston region, said Elliott Summey, CEO of Charleston County Aviation Authority.

Giving our passengers options when it comes to their air travel is a top priority for us," Summey said. "We believe this announcement will further enhance the business and community needs for air travel."

Airport board chairwoman Helen Hill noted airlines are "carefully evaluating when and where to commit their assets" after a disastrous year for the air travel industry and called JetBlue's decision "a vote of confidence" in Charleston's hospitality industry.

"It also reinforces Explore Charleston's belief that our destination is well-positioned for a strong recovery," said Hill, also CEO of tourism agency Explore Charleston.

American also serves the Charleston market with flights to Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Miami, Philadelphia, Reagan National in Washington, D.C., and LaGuardia, according to the website for Charleston International.

Flight schedules and destinations may be affected by the coronavirus. Check with individual airlines for flight information.
Appointment

18 February 2021

Alistair Campbell has joined The QHotels Group to become general manager of The Queens Hotel Leeds. The new appointment comes as the hotel's highly anticipated 16million transformation project gets underway, set to be unveiled summer 2021.

Alistair joins The Queens Hotel with a wealth of experience in hotel management, having worked with prestigious names including Hilton, Thistle, Crowne Plaza and Radisson. Arriving from his most recent position as general manager of the flagship Radisson Blu at Manchester Airport, Alistair has been recruited by QHotels Group to ensure the most successful transition for this iconic hotel.

Each of the 232 rooms will see a luxurious redesign, whilst the hotel is set to play to the new way people are using city-centre hotel spaces. With plans for an exciting 'social hub' at its heart, the totally transformed ground floor will offer a multitude of vibrant communal areas, as well as creating a boutique and personal check-in area.

The Queens Hotel Leeds, is set to reopen in spring 2021 and the full transformation will be revealed in summer 2021.
Speaking at a CNN town hall event in Milwaukee on Tuesday, US President Joe Biden made a series of patently false statements about the threat posed by COVID-19 to children and their parents. Bidens false claims were aimed at convincing educators, students and parents to resume in-person learning, even though schools are major vectors for the spread of COVID-19.

In a chilling exchange with a second grade student rightly concerned that she might catch COVID-19 and possibly infect her parents, Biden flatly lied, stating, Youre not likely to be able to be exposed to something and spread it to mommy or daddy.

President Joe Biden answers questions during a televised town hall event at Pabst Theater, Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Numerous scientific studies have proven the exact opposite of Bidens claim. A study published last month by Dr. Simona Bignami of Montreal University and Dr. John F. Sandberg of George Washington University found that infections in children between the ages 10 to 19 preceded the increase in cases among adults aged 30 to 49. This means that infected children were infecting their parents, not the reverse. The study concluded, The transmission of COVID among children of school age does not appear to be the consequence, but rather an important determinant of the general level of infection in surrounding communities.

Another recent study from southern India, published in the journal Science on November 6, also found that children spread the virus among themselves and adults. Even the politically motivated guidelines released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) acknowledge that children and parents can spread COVID-19 to each other.

Biden issued another bald-faced lie, telling the second grader, Kids don't get  COVID very often. Its unusual for that to happen. He added, Youre in the safest group of people in the whole world.

In reality, over three million children have been infected with COVID-19 in the US alone, representing 13 percent of all cases, and millions more have been infected worldwide. In recent weeks, there has been an unexplained surge in cases and deaths among children suffering from Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), with the proportion of those patients admitted to hospitals needing intensive care increasing to 90 percent. Over 2,000 children have suffered from MIS-C in the US, and 30 have died, according to CDC figures.

Little is known about the long-term effects of COVID-19 on children, making school reopenings a medical experiment involving over 50 million students. The dangers are intensifying daily, as more infectious and lethal variants of COVID-19 are spreading largely undetected throughout the population, with the B.1.1.7 UK variant forecast to be dominant in the US by late March.

Bidens lying statements serve a political purpose. The unprecedented levels of debt accumulated during the pandemic and the massive stock market bubble must be undergirded by the exploitation of the working class through the production process. As has been the case throughout the pandemic, the aim of reopening schools is to ensure that parents return to unsafe workplaces in order to produce corporate profits. It is for this reason that the campaign to reopen schools is intensifying each day and has become the central axis of the class struggle.

At Tuesdays event, CNN host Anderson Cooper noted statements made last week by White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki that the goal of the Biden administration is to reopen schools only at least one day a week. Biden responded, That was a mistake in the communication, adding, The goal will be five days a week.

Bidens statements make clear the centrality of reopening schools and the lengths to which the ruling elites will go in their pursuit of this homicidal policy. While this was first spearheaded by Trump and the Republicans, Biden and the Democrats now seek to finish the job, recklessly trying to reopen the majority of all K-8 schools by April 1. In fact, the Trump administration was forced to retract the same lies Biden has now issued regarding childrens ability to contract and spread COVID-19.

Wednesdays CNN event was Bidens most direct intervention into the campaign to reopen schools, which has largely been implemented by the corporate media and local Democratic Party officials, most notably Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.

Since Bidens inauguration, the propaganda campaign to reopen schools has rapidly escalated. Almost every day, the print and broadcast media have issued editorials, news articles and featured reporting falsely portraying most parents as clamoring for schools to reopen, depicting teachers as selfish and distorting science to justify reopening schools.

In reality, wherever schools have reopened, most parents have opted not to send their kids back, knowing full well the enormous dangers posed. Educators have rightly opposed the reckless reopening of schools not out of self-interest, but because they understand that schools are major vectors for viral transmission throughout their communities.

An inflection point in the ruling class campaign to open schools came last week when the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) successfully rammed through its sellout agreement with Mayor Lori Lightfoot to begin reopening schools in the third largest district in the US. Following this highly orchestrated betrayalwhich involved the direct intervention of the Biden administration and American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingartenthe CDC issued its unscientific guidelines on school reopenings last Friday, allowing schools to open at any level of community transmission.

The focus has now shifted to Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Baltimore, Memphis, Detroit, Boston, Las Vegas, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Seattle, Portland and other major Democrat-led cities across the US that have not yet fully reopened their schools.

Each of these cities is now a battleground in which educators and the entire working class confront staunch enemies in the corporate media, the Democratic Party and their backers in the teachers unions. As the abject betrayal by the CTU makes clear, no confidence can be placed in the unions, which are thoroughly pro-capitalist and integrated into the Democratic Party.

On Wednesday, Philadelphia School District Superintendent William Hite was forced to push back the reopening date from next Monday, February 22, to March 1 at the earliest in the face of enormous opposition from teachers and parents.

Philadelphia educators must take full advantage of this time and do everything they can to organize opposition independently of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT), whose President Jerry Jordan has made clear he accepts the basic framework that schools can reopen. Teachers should join and help build the Pennsylvania Educators Rank-and-File Safety Committee .

Educators in Los Angeles, Detroit, San Francisco, Chicago, New York City, Memphis, Baltimore, San Jose and San Diego should join the rank-and-file committees that already exist, and those working in other districts should contact the Socialist Equality Party to form a committee in your district. Such committees have been formed throughout the world and are preparing for general strike action to close all schools and nonessential workplaces, in order to contain the pandemic and save lives.

The most critical task is building a revolutionary leadership to arm the coming struggles with a socialist program, demanding the expropriation of the pandemic profiteers and the reallocation of their vast wealth towards providing universal health care, high quality remote learning, financial support for nonessential workers to stay home and all the other social needs of the working class.
New Delhi:Given the pandemic resurgence fears on account of new mutant coronavirus strains, WHO has asked all countries to expedite the genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2. These concerns come in the backdrop of covid-19 cases decreasing globally by 16% over the last one week.

However, WHO is seeing a fresh challenge of mutant coronaviruses spreading across the world, and has called for a minimum of 15 samples per week from sentinel surveillance systems. It also wants genetic sequence data sharing through a publicly accessible database.

The apex global public health agency on Wednesday also issued the operational considerations to expedite genomic sequencing component of Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS) surveillance of SARS-CoV-2.

Genomic sequencing of pathogens helps understand epidemiology and transmission, tracks evolutionary changes, and informs the development of diagnostics and vaccines," said Soumya Swaminathan, Chief Scientist WHO.

The WHO has said that the countries should move beyond virus detection to genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 PCR positive materials obtained from sentinel surveillance of influenza-like illness (ILI), acute respiratory infection (ARI) and severe acute respiratory infection (SARI).

In its latest update on the COVID-19 pandemic, the WHO said that although the number of global infections has fallen by 16% in a week  500,000 fewer cases  regions, including Europe, are still in the grip of the virus whose variants are spreading. The number of coronavirus deaths also declined in all regions by 10% over the same period, with 81,000 fatalities reported in the last week.

Three main covid-19 mutations have raised concerns over faster virus transmission and also leading to eruption of doubts if the available vaccines will work on these strains, the WHO said that the UK variant is now present in 94 countries across all regions  eight more than the previous week. The South African variant has been traced in 46 countries, an increase of two, while the Brazilian/Japanese variant is present in 21 countries, up by six. Citing genetic sampling of the UK variant, the WHO report noted that the proportion of people infected with UK variant has increased in the past weeks, indicating community transmission in a number of countries.

India this week has also confirmed four cases of the South African strain and one Brazilian strain of the virus. India already has approximately 200 cases of the UK mutant strain circulating in the country. The Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG) is doing sentinel surveillance for early detection of variants of concern of SARS-CoV-2. It also determines the circulating strains of SARS-CoV-2 in unusual events such as high mortality, super-spreader.

The WHO asked countries to monitor the trend and prevalence (proportions) of existing and emerging (co-) circulating genetic variants (clades) among samples from sentinel sites. It further said that wherever possible, the countries should contribute to a better understanding of associations between genetic characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and transmission scenarios and severity of covid-19 disease.

The WHO said that the selection of SARS-CoV-2 PCR-positive sentinel samples should reflect the representativeness of different age groups (e.g. 0 to <2 years, 2 to <5 years, 5 to <15 years, 15 to <50 years, 50 to <65 years, 65 years), different geographic locations (sentinel sites) within the country, different time points, patients representing the spectrum of disease meeting case definitions in use for ILI, ARI or SARI, clinically significant cases from sentinel surveillance (e.g. fatal cases, vaccinated individuals, immunocompromised individuals, patients receiving treatment such as antivirals, plasma therapy or monoclonal antibodies), re-infected cases.









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WA Labor is playing directly into the hands of the Chinese Communist Party by placing campaign advertisements in a newspaper owned by a WA United Front figurehead, a China expert has warned, as the race for one of Perths most contested seats heats up.

Premier Mark McGowan and Labor candidate for Riverton Jagadish 'Dr Jags' Krishnan at Chung Wah Association's community centre. Credit:Facebook/Chung Wah Association

The eastern Perth electorate of Riverton has become pivotal in the upcoming March election following the retirement of former Liberal leader Mike Nahan, and each candidates ability to charm Chinese-Australian voters will determine their electoral success.

Between 2011 and 2016, more than 2100 people who identify as having Chinese ancestry moved to Riverton, while 1400 who considered themselves to be of Australian ancestry moved elsewhere.

The percentage of people in Riverton born in China also nearly doubled in the same period, extending well beyond the average for Greater Perth.

Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.

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A multimillionaire hedge fund manager told police Brexit could be behind his prosecution over indecent assault allegations, a court heard today.

Crispin Odey is accused of assaulting an investment banker in 1998 after inviting the then-26-year-old to his 7.75million house after a work meeting.

He has admitted in a police interview to propositioning the young banker but denied carrying out an assault and has said she is exaggerating what took place.

During the second day of his trial at Hendon Magistrates' Court, PC Linda Casson read a transcript of her interview with the hedge fund manager from March 15, 2019.

When asked about an email his alleged victim sent him, he said: 'After the financial crash of 2008/09 there was quite a lot of publicity coverage of me.

'Then she sent an email saying 'I won't stop trying to chase you'. How can you answer something that is so vicious?'

Hedge Fund manager Crispin Odey outside Hendon Magistrates this lunchtime during the second day of his assault trial where he is accused of assaulting an investment banker in 1998

Email: I want you to suffer like I suffered Crispin Odey's alleged victim sent him an email saying: 'I want you to suffer like I suffered' his trial heard today. The hedge fund boss, 62, told police about the 'vituperative' email over 'something that did not happen' during an interview under caution at Belgravia Police station over allegations he sexually assaulted a female investment banker in 1998. In his interview he said he had misread the signals and the young investment banker left after 30 minutes. He denied there was any physical touching. He said: 'We were talking about where it will all end. 'I got the wrong end of the stick. It was still playful, she said it was inappropriate, got up and left.' Odey told police he was bemused by the aggressive email and said he wrote back saying: 'I'm truly sorry', adding 'I do not go around attacking young girls'. He ended the email to the victim by saying 'I am glad to see you are married and hope you have prospered.' In the interview Odey told investigating officer Detective Constable Casson he was shocked by such a 'vituperative' email. 'None of that happened. She was there for 30 minutes, had a drink, got up and left and saw some friends.' The email where his victim said he will suffer was written under subject heading #metoocampaign. It read: 'I want you to suffer like I suffered. Going into police station now. My version is how I see it.' Advertisement

'When the #MeToo movement happened, it was another moment when she said: 'I am going to make sure you feel the pain that I felt'.

'I thought this is the time to put this whole thing to bed, sorry'.

DC Casson added the apology had been because 'there was some laughter at that remark' and continued to quote from the interview.

Odey added: 'Who knows whether that was anti-Brexit given that one was a Brexiteer, basically.

'It sort of said I'm sure you must have done that so many times, there were lots of inferences about making my life a misery because I had made her life a misery.

'That made me angry. She felt terrible things had been done to her.

'I thought how horrible that someone hates someone so much and thinks their whole life has been undermined by something I don't think took place.'

He said she had developed 'a bitter hatred' 'on the basis of one meeting'.

The hedge fund boss admitted he 'misread the signals' by propositioning the woman, but denied touching her.

'She left because I made a lewd suggestion. She came round here on her own.

'She was young and she seemed very keen. I probably misread the signals.

'I offered her a drink and I poured her some wine. We went up to the first floor room and we were talking.

'She said where do you think this is all going to lead, I said this is all going to bed. She was obviously appalled at this suggestion.

'I repeated it and she said I am taken aback and she left.

'She was here for half an hour at most.

'The next day I rang up to say are you alright because she obviously was upset by my proposal.'

The trial was adjourned until 11 March after the court rejected an submission by Odey's barrister Crispin Aylett to throw the case out.

Earlier today, the investment banker who claimed she was groped by Odey described the alleged assault as an 'octopussy type manoeuvre' in court.

Giving evidence via video link from America, the woman broke down in tears under cross examination as she recalled the alleged incident in 1998.

Court heard when Odey (pictured in 1995) was interviewed in 2019, he accepted she was at his house where they talked about work, and he said she asked him: 'Where is this going to end?'

Odey pictured yesterday arriving at court with his hedge fund manager wife Nichola Pease

Odey was accompanied to court by his hedge fund manager wife Nichola Pease, who he married in 1991. The couple walked arm-in-arm while heading inside as the trial entered its second day.

Describing the incident in now 62-year-old Odey's Chelsea home, she said: 'He was next to me. So it was like an octopussy manoeuvre.

'First time there was a hand on by back, then a scramble of hands. Like groping, the only way to describe it. It was like an octopus experience.'

The woman, now aged 49, said she couldn't recall the exact sequence of events when Odey approached her after he had changed into a towelling robe.

'I don't remember the choreography. I just stood up and got away from him. I don't know if he said anything,' she said.

The alleged victim was questioned by Mr Odey's barrister Crispin Aylett to further describe what had taken place - but she said she was unable to recall everything that had happened on the night.

The married 62-year-old (pictured) has denied indecently assaulting the then 26-year-old woman in his Chelsea home in 1998, when he was 39

Odey (pictured arriving in court with his wife) has admitted in a police interview to propositioning the young banker but denied carrying out an assault and has said she is exaggerating what took place

Odey (left, in 2003) was accompanied to court by his wife of 30 years Nichola Pease (right)

Mr Aylett suggested that she was still angry at what had allegedly taken place.

'Yes, I am angry and you can understand why,' she replied as she broke down in tears before composing herself.

The woman said she decided to file a complaint after watching news reports of the allegations against film mogul Harvey Weinstein for sex assaults.

In an online report to police she also mentioned the arrest of actor Kevin Spacey as a spur for making her complaint in 2017.

'There were a whole lot of them. They were on the news,' she told Mr Aylett.

Earlier a friend of the alleged victim told the court he had suggested she contact police after believing the hedge fund manager had 'tried it on with her'.

Odey (pictured outside court today) is also accused of putting his hand down the alleged victim's shirt to touch her breast after inviting her to his home following a work meeting

The friend - a former boyfriend who was not named to protect the woman's identity - was called by the victim after she left Odey's home.

He said: 'I recall a telephone call from (the complainant) who was in an upset state.'

He said she was 'very upset' when she arrived at his flat, adding: 'She was crying and when I asked details of what had got her so upset, she clammed up and then was very emotional.

'I kept asking her what had actually happened.

'I suggested if anything untoward had happened she should go and report it to police.

'I think the reaction that she gave me where she didn't want to talk about what happened made me think something not very nice had happened.'

The 62-year-old has denied indecently assaulting the then 26-year-old woman in 1998. Pictured: The Chelsea property where the alleged assault took place more than 20 years ago

Taking him through his police witness statement, prosecutor Kerry Broome said the man had 'presumed at the time Crispin Odey had tried it on with her'.

She asked: 'Is that what you deduced?'

'Yes, that's correct,' he replied.

The woman told the court she informed three senior colleagues at the bank where she worked the day after the alleged assault.

In his statement to police, one of the men said: 'She was upset and felt that Odey had taken advantage of her.

'I didn't know how serious it was and what exactly had happened.'

The multimillionaire, 62, (pictured arriving at Hendon Magistrates' Court) denies indecent assault in 1998, claiming the woman left after the 'ill-judged and unwanted sexual invitation'

The woman met with 'high-profile' Odey (pictured in 1997) at Odey Asset Management, the company he founded in 1991, where he 'showed an interest in her' and invited her to return later, which 'she hoped would further her career', the prosecutor said at Hendon Magistrates

Giving evidence, he said the meeting took place in a room off the trading floor.

'Clearly, something had happened in that meeting that made her feel uncomfortable,' he said.

'The impression was something inappropriate had happened, but she didn't tell us anything more than that in terms of what had happened, so there was a sort of spectrum of possibilities.

'There was no suggestion that anything was necessarily so serious that action need be taken forthwith.

'I think if that was the case the three of us, even though we weren't management, would've taken action unilaterally ourselves.'

Another colleague said to have been at the meeting said he has 'no recollection' but added that Odey, with whom he still has a professional relationship, is 'nothing but a complete gentleman'.

'He's a character, he's charming, he's fun, and the word 'dishonest' would be about as far as you can manage from him,' he said.

'He's a very open person. Controversial but certainly honest and honourable.'

The trial continues.
"Texplainer: Why does Texas have its own power grid?" was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

This story was originally published in 2011. If you're looking for the latest updates on the February 2021 winter storm, head over to our homepage or follow us on Twitter.

Why does Texas have its own electric grid?

Texas' secessionist inclinations have at least one modern outlet: the electric grid. There are three grids in the Lower 48 states: the Eastern Interconnection, the Western Interconnection  and Texas.

The Texas grid is called ERCOT, and it is run by an agency of the same name  the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. ERCOT does not actually cover all of Texas. El Paso is on another grid, as is the upper Panhandle and a chunk of East Texas. This presumably has to do with the history of various utilities' service territories and the remoteness of the non-ERCOT locations (for example the Panhandle is closer to Kansas than to Dallas, notes Kenneth Starcher of the Alternative Energy Institute in Canyon), but Texplainer is still figuring out the particulars on this.

The separation of the Texas grid from the rest of the country has its origins in the evolution of electric utilities early last century. In the decades after Thomas Edison turned on the country's first power plant in Manhattan in 1882, small generating plants sprouted across Texas, bringing electric light to cities. Later, particularly during the first world war, utilities began to link themselves together. These ties, and the accompanying transmission network, grew further during the second world war, when several Texas utilities joined together to form the Texas Interconnected System, which allowed them to link to the big dams along Texas rivers and also send extra electricity to support the ramped-up factories aiding the war effort.

The Texas Interconnected System  which for a long time was actually operated by two discrete entities, one for northern Texas and one for southern Texas  had another priority: staying out of the reach of federal regulators. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Federal Power Act, which charged the Federal Power Commission with overseeing interstate electricity sales. By not crossing state lines, Texas utilities avoided being subjected to federal rules. "Freedom from federal regulation was a cherished goal  more so because Texas had no regulation until the 1970s," writes Richard D. Cudahy in a 1995 article, "The Second Battle of the Alamo: The Midnight Connection." (Self-reliance was also made easier in Texas, especially in the early days, because the state has substantial coal, natural gas and oil resources of its own to fuel power plants.)

ERCOT was formed in 1970, in the wake of a major blackout in the Northeast in November 1965, and it was tasked with managing grid reliability in accordance with national standards. The agency assumed additional responsibilities following electric deregulation in Texas a decade ago. The ERCOT grid remains beyond the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which succeeded the Federal Power Commission and regulates interstate electric transmission.

Historically, the Texas grid's independence has been violated a few times. Once was during World War II, when special provisions were made to link Texas to other grids, according to Cudahy. Another episode occurred in 1976 after a Texas utility, for reasons relating to its own regulatory needs, deliberately flipped a switch and sent power to Oklahoma for a few hours. This event, known as the "Midnight Connection," set off a major legal battle that could have brought Texas under the jurisdiction of federal regulators, but it was ultimately resolved in favor of continued Texan independence.

Even today, ERCOT is also not completely isolated from other grids  as was evident when the state imported some power from Mexico during the rolling blackouts of 2011. ERCOT has three ties to Mexico and  as an outcome of the "Midnight Connection" battle  it also has two ties to the eastern U.S. grid, though they do not trigger federal regulation for ERCOT. All can move power commercially as well as be used in emergencies, according to ERCOT spokeswoman Dottie Roark. A possible sixth interconnection project, in Rusk County, is being studied, and another ambitious proposal, called Tres Amigas, would link the three big U.S. grids together in New Mexico, though Texas' top utility regulator has shown little enthusiasm for participating.

Bottom line: Texas has its own grid to avoid dealing with the feds.

Got a question for Texplainer? E-mail us at texplainer@texastribune.org.
A New York waitress was fired from her job on Monday after she told her bosses at a tavern that she wanted to wait to get the COVID-19 vaccine until she could learn more about its side effects on women who are pregnant.

Bonnie Jacobson, 34, said she is not an 'anti-vaxxer' but wanted to wait for more research as she recently starting trying to get pregnant with her husband, she told DailyMail.com.

Jacobson, who started working at the Red Hook Tavern in August, said the restaurant first sent out an email on February 8 which said: 'If you choose to get vaccinated, heres what you need to know.'

That email, reviewed by DailyMail.com, did not tell employees that vaccinations were required.

Jacobson said she told her manager during a staff meeting that she wanted more time to research the vaccine and said her manager initially understood her concerns, telling her she would not be required to get the shot.

But the Brooklyn tavern changed its mind days later on February 12 and sent workers and email noting the vaccines were mandatory.

Bonnie Jacobson, pictured, was fired from her job as a waitress at Red Hook Tavern in Brooklyn on Monday

Jacobson said she wanted to wait to get the coronavirus vaccine after workers were sent an email telling them it was mandatory

'Please be advised that we will require that all employees receive the vaccination,' notes the email.

'This will be mandatory for all existing employees and any new hires. The exception to this policy will be if your own personal health or disability prohibits you from obtaining this vaccination. We encourage you to consult your healthcare professional to determine if getting a vaccine is right for you.'

Jacobson then emailed her employers on Saturday and said that she did not yet want to get the vaccine, which she said she 'fully supports.'

'I am choosing not to get the vaccine because there just isnt enough data or research at this point on its effects on fertility,' she wrote to her boss.

'While I fully support the vaccine and understand its importance I do believe this is a very personal choice. I really hope this choice would not affect my employment at Red Hook Tavern.'

In her email, Jacobson noted that she takes COVID 'very seriously,' and has practiced the safety guidelines and would continue to do so.

'I get tested every 1-2 weeks and have never tested positive for COVID. I plan to continue these safety practices for as long as necessary,' she wrote.

She continued: 'Also once there is more research to support that it does not affect fertility I would reconsider my position.'

But on Monday, Jacobson received an email back noting her 'very personal choice' and saying the company 'respected' her decision to not get vaccinated.

'In order to continue employment with us, getting the vaccine is required. At this time your employment will be terminated. We are sad to see you go. If you do change your mind, please do not hesitate to let us know,' the company wrote.

DailyMail.com has reached out to Red Hook Tavern owner Billy Durney for additional information and further comments.

Red Hook Tavern owner Billy Durney said he could have handled the situation differently

Durney said the Red Hook Tavern would update its policy so its clear to its employees how the process works

Employees at restaurants like the Red Hook Tavern, pictured, were among the first groups to be eligible to get the vaccine in New York

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces workplace discrimination laws, allows companies to mandate vaccines for COVID-19 and other illnesses

Some existing laws could throw uncertainty to the legality of requiring a woman who is already pregnant to get the vaccine. Pictured: A view inside the Red Hook Tavern

Jacobson said her concerns were sparked when she saw articles online indicating vaccines could cause infertility. After further research, most of what she saw was debunked, she acknowledged.

'The research does say there is no evidence to support it does cause fertility. But there is not enough data to say it doesnt,' she said.

'As a 34-year-old woman, why take the risk right now when I can just wait a little longer when there are people a lot older and more at risk who could use the vaccine more than I could right now?'

She added: 'My dad is 68 years old and lives in Pennsylvania and has diabetes, theres no reason why I should be getting that before him.'

Jacobson said she was frustrated that the restaurant didn't even give her the chance to have an in-person conversation about the vaccine requirements, and said she might have been convinced into getting one.

'I just wanted more time they didnt allow me that, I didnt even have time to consult a physician. It was a week from being 'your choice,' to it's not going to be mandatory, to it us mandatory, to youre fired,' she said.

'I had a very good working relationship there. I just had an employee review on February 6 and it was all positive, so it was truly shocking that it was so impersonal.'

Jacobson said that when she sent her email on Saturday, she expected the restaurant's management would have a conversation with her directly if they wanted her to get the vaccine.

'The conversation may have swayed me the other way. When I first saw the email about getting fired, I thought, "Okay, maybe I will get vaccinated." So they maybe could have talked me into getting vaccinated,' she said.

Durney acknowledged to The New York Times that he could have handled the situation differently.

'Once New York state allowed restaurant workers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, we thought this was the perfect opportunity to put a plan in place to keep our team and guests safe,' Durney said in an emailed statement obtained by the outlets.

He continued: 'No one has faced these challenges before and we made a decision that we thought would best protect everyone,'

'And, we now realize that we need to update our policy so its clear to our team how the process works and what we can do to support them. Were making these changes immediately.'

Jacobson said she was not offered her job back,and would not accept it if she was.

Restaurant employees were among the first groups to be eligible to get the vaccine in New York outside of the health care industry and can help struggling businesses bring back diners.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces workplace discrimination laws, does allow companies to mandate the flu and other vaccines.

In December, the agency issued guidelines ruling that companies can require employees to get vaccinated but had to provide 'reasonable accommodations' to those with disabilities.

Some existing laws could throw uncertainty to the legality of requiring a woman who is already pregnant to get the vaccine.

LEGAL EXEMPTIONS FOR MANDATORY VACCINATION PROGRAMS Religious Accommodations Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 The law prohibits employers from discriminating against any individual because of their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. This means employees can request an exemption to mandatory vaccination programs if it goes against a 'sincerely held religious belief.' Establishing the case may be challenging however, depending on how jurisdictions define religious beliefs. Personal or ethical objections or personal anti-vaccination positions are not covered by this law. Medical Accommodations Under the ADA Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), employees can object to a mandatory vaccine policy for medical reasons. The worker is required to prove they have a medical condition that makes it unsafe to get a vaccine. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) of 1970 Section 11(c) of the act pertains to whistle blower rights. 'An employee who refuses vaccination because of a reasonable belief that he or she has a medical condition that creates a real danger of serious illness or death (such as serious reaction to the vaccine)' may be protected under this law. Advertisement

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, religion, and sex, including pregnancy.

The Pregnancy Discrimination Act forbids discrimination based on pregnancy, including hiring and firing, If a woman is temporarily unable to perform her job due to a medical condition related to pregnancy.

The American Disabilities Act notes that pregnancy alone cannot be deemed a disabling condition requiring reasonable accommodations, but many pregnancy-related conditions are considered disabilities.

Labor lawyer Carolyn D. Richmond told The New York Times it is too early in the distribution of the vaccine for companies to mandate employees get the shot.

'Pregnancy and vaccine  as soon as you hear those words in the workplace, you should stop to think if what you are doing is right or wrong,' said Richmond, who advises the NYC Hospitality Alliance.

'It has to be generally available to the employee population and it's not. None of us are having an easy time getting appointments.'

Adam Mastroleo, a lawyer with Syracuse-based Bond, Schoeneck and King, told Syracuse.com that everyone has the right to choose whether or not to get the vaccine because it was approved under emergency authorization.

Others claim that laws are pretty clear about whether employers can force their workers to get a vaccine.

Dorit Reiss, a professor at the University of California Hastings College of Law, told CNBC that private businesses have extensive rights.

Requiring a vaccine is a health and safety work rule, and employers can do that, Reiss told the outlet in December.

Hana El Sahly, a doctor who oversaw a clinical trial for Modernas vaccine, told CNBC that hospitals could eventually make the COVID vaccine a condition of employment.

The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines were not tested on pregnant women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and their 'actual risks' to pregnant women and their fetuses remains unknown.

The World Health Organization advised pregnant women last month not to get the inoculation unless at high risk for the coronavirus due to underlying illnesses.
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. The third meeting of the Syunik Task Force dealing with the provinces issues will be held on February 19. The task force is headed by PM Pashinyans advisor Robert Ghukasyan.

Ghukasyan said at the Cabinet meeting that right now the main issue of concern for the population in the province is the security environment. He said that the General Staff of the Armed Forces, the Ministry of Defense and the National Security Service Border Troops are working to ensure it.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations is also engaged in the works, namely for the installation of civil protection positions in communities.

A new district is being built in the village of Shurnukh for the families who lost their homes, and at the same time they will receive state support until their homes are constructed, Ghukasyan said.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
As reports of Senator Ted Cruz's family vacation trip to Cancun were confirmed Thursday morning, it didn't take long for eagle-eyed social media users to spot a hypocritical tweet from the Houston native.

In December, Cruz responded to a CNN story reporting that several Democrat politicians weren't following the same COVID-19 precautions they were preaching to their constituents.

FLYIN' TED: Ted Cruz flies to Cancun while his home state freezes

At the time, Cruz tweeted: "Hypocrites. Complete and utter hypocrites. And don't forget @MayorAdler who took a private jet with eight people to Cabo and WHILE IN CABO recorded a video telling Austinites to 'stay home if you can ... this is not the time to relax.'"

In November, Austin Mayor Steve Adler recorded a video urging the city's residents to stay home due to COVID-19, but Adler was vacationing in Cabo San Lucas when he recorded the message.

Two months after tweeting about Adler and other Democrat politicians, Cruz also flew to Mexico as more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in the Houston area were without power and dealing with freezing temperatures. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s on Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Similar throwing-stones-in-glass-houses tweets came back to haunt Cruz earlier in the week. As the Arctic blast shut down much of the power grid in Texas, peopled pointed out Cruz's tweets from the summer where he mocked California for enduring rolling blackouts during a heat wave. As California suffered, Cruz pointed out: California is now unable to perform even basic functions of civilization, like having reliable electricity." Six months later, the same could be said for Texas.

To Cruz's credit, he didn't try to defend those tweets. On Tuesday, he responded to the outrage over his old tweets by saying "I got no defense. A blizzard strikes Texas and our state shuts down. Not good. Stay safe!"

A day later, Cruz was on a plane to balmy Cancun, and he hasn't tweeted since.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday suggested a special visa scheme for doctors and nurses for quick travel during health emergencies at the Covid workshop with 10 countries.

"Can we consider creating a special visa scheme for our doctors and nurses? So that they can travel quickly within our region during health emergencies on the request of the receiving country," PM Modi said.

The Prime Minister addressed a workshop on "Covid-19 Management: Experience, Good Practices and Way Forward" where nine neighbouring countries participated including Pakistan.

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles and Sri Lanka also attended the workshop today.

Modi also asked the participating leaders from neighbouring nations to maintain a cooperative and collaborative spirit in the development of Covid-19 vaccines.

"Hopes of our region and the world are focus on rapid deployment of vaccines. In this too, we must maintain same cooperative and collaborative spirit. Over the past year, our health cooperation has achieved so much," the PM said as he addressed a workshop on the 'Covid-19 management'.

"If the 21st century is to be the Asian century, it cannot be without greater integration among the countries of South Asia and Indian Ocean island countries," PM Modi added.

PM Modi's comments come as the Covid-19 vaccination coverage in the country has crossed the 94-lakh mark, ranking India at the third position after the USA (55.2 million doses) and the UK (16.12 million doses).

Meanwhile, 25 nations across the world have already received Made-in-India vaccines and 49 more countries will be supplied in the coming days, ranging from Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean to Africa, South-East Asia and the Pacific Islands, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has announced.

India has supplied a total of 229.7 lakh doses of Covid-19 vaccine to the global community so far, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said.

"As of date, we have supplied a total of 229.7 lakh doses to the global community. Of these, 64.7 lakh doses have been supplied as a grant while 165 lakh doses have been supplied on a commercial basis," MEA Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava has said.

With agency inputs

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New Delhi: The concepts of the Quad  an informal grouping of India, Japan, Australia and the US  and the Indo-Pacific were receiving growing international support, an Indian foreign ministry statement said on Friday adding that the changes in the world were making a strong case for countries to work together.

The statement came after the third meeting of the foreign ministers of the Quad countries held virtually. Besides Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar, his counterparts  Australias Marise Payne, Japans Toshimitsu Motegi, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken  took part in the meeting.

Issues on the table included climate change, furthering cooperation in maritime security, supply chain resilience, counter-terrorism and military rule in Myanmar.

This is the first meeting of the four foreign ministers after the Biden administration took office on 20 January in Washington. The previous two foreign ministerial Quad meetings -- in Washington in 2019 and in Tokyo in 2020 -- had taken place during the previous Trump administration.

The four Quad foreign ministers highlighted their shared attributes as political democracies, market economies and pluralistic societies. They recognized that the changes underway in the world, make a strong case for their countries working closely together. It was important for the international community that the direction of changes remains positive and beneficial to all," the Indian statement said.

While the four Quad countries see themselves as a loose grouping, China has tended to see the four as joining hands with the aim of circumscribing it. Beijing and its close ally Moscow eye the Quad and the concept of the Indo-Pacific with suspicion.

The Ministers emphasized their commitment to upholding a rules-based international order, underpinned by respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty, rule of law, transparency, freedom of navigation in the international seas and peaceful resolution of disputes," it said.

Describing the exchanges as productive" the statement said that discussions on regional issues included a reiteration of their common vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region, with clear support for ASEAN cohesion and centrality. It was noted that the Indo-Pacific concept had gathered growing international support, including in Europe."

There was a discussion on the efforts to combat the covid-19 pandemic, including vaccination programmes. The ministers said they would address the challenge of improving access to affordable vaccines, medicines and medical equipment. Indias efforts at providing vaccines to 74 countries was recognized and appreciated, the statement said.

On Myanmar, where the military had removed the democratically elected government of Aung Saan Suu Kyi, the need for upholding of rule of law and the democratic transition was reiterated by India," the statement said.

In a brief statement, the US State Department said the four ministers discussed countering disinformation, counterterrorism, maritime security, the urgent need to restore the democratically elected government in Burma, and the priority of strengthening democratic resilience in the broader region."

The participants reaffirmed their mutual support for ASEAN centrality. They reiterated their commitment to the Quad meeting at least annually at the Ministerial level and on a regular basis at senior and working levels to strengthen cooperation on advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific region, including support for freedom of navigation and territorial integrity," the US statement said.

Meanwhile, also on Thursday, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi had a telephone conversation with his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison on the Indo-Pacific -- a large swathe of land and seas from the west coast of the US to the east coast of Africa.

Spoke with my good friend PM @ScottMorrisonMP today. Reiterated our commitment to consolidating our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Also discussed regional issues of common interest. Look forward to working together for peace, prosperity and security in the Indo-Pacific," Modi said in a Twitter post.

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Ghislaine Maxwell (pictured in 2008) appeared to admit Jeffrey Epstein was taping his famous friends, including Donald Trump and the Clintons, during a 2016 meeting with former CBS producer Ira Rosen

Ghislaine Maxwell appeared to admit Jeffrey Epstein was taping his famous friends, including Donald Trump and the Clintons, during a 2016 meeting with former CBS producer Ira Rosen, a new book reveals.

The British socialite, who is accused of procuring underage girls for the billionaire pedophile, reportedly told Rosen she didn't 'know where' such recordings were after the Emmy-winning producer asked her to hand over footage of Trump.

The conversation took place ahead of the 2016 US presidential election and Maxwell, who supported Hillary at the time, refused to help, saying: 'If you get the tapes on Trump you have to do [Bill] Clinton'.

The anecdote is included in Rosen's new book, Ticking Clock: Behind the Scenes at 60 Minutes, released Tuesday, in which he dishes about his time working at the investigative show.

The book sheds new light on reported claims that Epstein had secretly recorded his celebrity friends having sex with women and underage girls at his home - and then used the footage to blackmail them.

Two of Epstein's victims, Maria Farmer and Virginia Roberts Giuffre, have previously claimed that they saw a room full of CCTV monitors in a room at his $65million mansion in New York - with some cameras installed in the bathrooms.

In his memoir, Rosen reveals he arranged a meeting with Maxwell in early 2016, and acting on 'hunch' that the tapes existed, tricked her into confirming they did.

'I want the tapes. I know he [Epstein] was videotaping everyone and I want the tapes of Trump with the girls,' Rosen told her.

Rosen recalled their meeting in his new book, Ticking Clock: Behind the Scenes at 60 Minutes , released Tuesday, in which he dishes about his time working at the investigative show

Rosen said Maxwell did not deny the existence of the tapes when he told her to hand over footage of Donald Trump at Epstein's home. Trump (pictured with Epstein in Mar-a-Lago in 1992)

The British socialite (pictured with Bill Clinton on Epstein's 'Lolita Express' in 2002) suggested there were also tapes of Clinton, but claimed Epstein never told her where they were located

Maxwell replied: 'I don't know where they are.'

Rosen writes he told her to 'ask Epstein', adding that the 'fate of the country is at stake.'

'Trump could be elected president and how would you feel if those tapes emerged after he was in office?' Rosen asked Maxwell.

'She gave me a stern look and pointed a finger in my face. She said: "I am the daughter of a press baron. I know the way you people think. If you do one side, you must do the other. If you get the tapes on Trump you have to do Clinton".'

Rosen replied: 'I will. I will go wherever the story goes.'

According to Maxwell, however, Epstein, allegedly never told her of the whereabouts of the tapes, Rosen writes.

'Maxwell didn't want Trump elected, but said that Hillary Clinton was comfortably ahead and there was no need for the story to come out.

'Besides, she said, Epstein never shared with her the location of the tapes.'

Flight logs have revealed that Bill Clinton took at least 26 flights on Epstein's private jet, known as the 'Lolita Express', and photos published by DailyMail.com have shown him getting a massage while on board from a young Epstein victim.

Reports have claimed that Clinton also went to Epstein's island in the Caribbean but he has denied this and always claimed he flew on the plane through his work at the Clinton Foundation.

Maxwell claimed she didn't know where Epstein's tapes of Donald Trump were. Trump has confirmed he was previously friends with the billionaire financier (pictured in 2000)

The former president once said Epstein liked women 'on the younger side'. The pair are pictured together in Palm Beach, Florida in 1997

Trump and Epstein were also friends for years and partied together in Florida, with the former president once saying that the pedophile liked women on the 'younger side'.

At the end of the night, Rosen says he hailed Maxwell a taxi and she asked if he was going back to her place.

'Get me the tapes and I will go back to your place,' he replied, but Maxwell gave him a kiss on the cheek and left.

Rosen writes that he thinks that wealthy men in Palm Beach invested with Epstein 'after being extorted with pictures from nights of debauchery'.

The encounter was his second meeting with Maxwell.

Rosen writes that he also saw Maxwell at a book party at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York in 2014 - after she met her future husband Scott Borgerson - and that she had approached him wearing a 'sexy red dress' and asked for a ride home.

'Once there she turned to me in the front seat with an offer. "If you come in and f**k me I will tell you the secrets of my father",' Maxwell said, Rosen writes.

Maxwell was referring to Robert Maxwell, the disgraced British newspaper tycoon who was rumored to have been an Israeli intelligence agent and died under mysterious circumstances on his yacht in the Canary Islands in 1991.

'I was stunned and speechless, my mind racing. I was not about to sleep with her but the reporter in me still wondered if her information would make a good 60 Minutes piece,' he added.

Rosen said he told Maxwell: 'What a great offer but I left my dog home alone and I really need to get back to her'.

Two of Epstein's victims, Maria Farmer and Virginia Roberts Giuffre (pictured) have claimed Epstein had been recording his famous friends at his mansions

The pedophile was reported to have surveillance systems at his homes in New York (pictured) and Palm Beach that may contain evidence of his crimes

'It was a lame excuse and she knew it - she smiled weakly and said goodnight.'

Among those who have claimed that there were secret recordings in Epstein's properties is David Boies, a lawyer who represents a number of his victims.

He has said that Britain's Prince Andrew and other powerful men appear in CCTV footage recorded at Jeffrey Epstein's properties.

The pedophile has surveillance system at his homes in New York and Palm Beach and Andrew would have featured on the 'very large quantity of tapes'.

Other famous men who associated with Epstein include former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Harvard professor Alan Dershowitz and former Senator George Mitchell.

Maxwell, is currently being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn as she awaits trial on child sex trafficking charges.

In a letter to Judge Alison Nathan on Tuesday, Maxwell's attorney Bobbi Sternheim complained about the 'onerous' conditions her client is allegedly being subjected to in prison, claiming she is 'withering away' and losing her hair.

Such treatment is purported to include being deprived of sleep, being given inedible food, being 'physically abused' by a jail guard  and later being punished for complaining about it.

'It is impossible to overstate the deleterious effect of the conditions under which Ms. Maxwell is detained,' Sternheim wrote.

'She is withering to a shell of her former self  losing weight, losing hair, and losing her ability to concentrate.'

The 59-year-old British socialite (pictured in a court sketch last year) was arrested last July on child sex trafficking charges and has remained jailed on grounds she might flee

The filing is the latest complaint about Maxwell's conditions inside the Metropolitan Detention Center (pictured) where she will remain until trial

The lawyer's letter states that Maxwell is subject to constant searches and surveillance by guards, which Sternheim claims is to make up for the Bureau of Prison's failure to prevent her alleged cohort, Epstein, from killing himself in 2019.

'Ms. Maxwell continues to be at the mercy of a revolving group of security officers who are used to guarding hundreds of inmates but now focus their undivided attention exclusively on one respectful, middle-aged female pretrial detainee,' Sternheim wrote.

The attorney further claimed that recently  and out of view of the surveillance cameras in her isolation cell  Maxwell was 'physically abused' by a guard during a pat down search.

'When [Maxwell] asked that the camera be used to capture the occurrence, a guard replied 'no.', Sternheim claimed. 'When Ms. Maxwell recoiled in pain and when she said she would report the mistreatment, she was threatened with disciplinary action.'

Days later, in response to her complaints, Maxwell was then allegedly ordered into a shower by guards and told to clean, sanitize, and scrub the walls with a broom.

She once again requested for the encounter to be recorded but was allegedly denied, Sternheim said.

Sternheim went on to claim that surveillance of her client is so strict that 'guards forbid' Maxwell from standing in certain areas of her six-foot-by-nine-foot cell, including telling her not to stand to the left or right over her toilet.

Maxwell's trial will begin in July on charges that she recruited three teenage girls for Epstein to sexually abuse in the 1990s and committed perjury during 2016 depositions in a civil case.

She was arrested in July 2020 following a worldwide search and has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

She has remained incarcerated without bail since July, when she was arrested almost exactly a year after Epstein was arrested to face sex trafficking charges. Epstein killed himself in a Manhattan jail a month after his arrest.

In late December, a judge rejected a $28.5 million bail proposal for Maxwell, saying she was a risk to flee and was not forthcoming with authorities about her finances after her arrest.

As part of the bail proposal, lawyers said Maxwell had about $22.5 million in assets with her husband and had set aside over $7 million for her defense.
Georgian opposition MP and head of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Nika Melia, who was named the reason for PM Giorgi Gakharia recent resignation, has stated that the opposition welcomes the PMs decision, but it is not sufficient.

Melia has stated that an "urgent meeting" must take place between the ruling party and the opposition, with the facilitation of foreign ambassadors, and the parties "must come to an agreement" on repeat parliamentary elections, Agenda.ge reported.

Tbilisi City Court ruled yesterday that Melia be remanded into custody for failure to post bail, per the request of the countrys Prosecutors Office.

Gakharia stated earlier today that he resigned because he failed to make an agreement with the ruling Georgian Georgian Dream party over Melias issue.

Melia, along with 50 other opposition MPs, is demanding repeat parliamentary elections and has refused to take up his mandate in the 10th convocation of Georgian parliament in protest. However, the parliament did not vote for the suspension of MP status for 51 opposition MPs earlier this month.

Four meetings have been held between the ruling party and the opposition with the facilitation of foreign ambassadors to help the parties end the current political crisis. However, the meetings ended without the result.


Protesters clash with police at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. (Julio Cortez/AP Photo)

22-Year-Old Could Get 34 Years for Alleged Role in Capitol Breach

A 22-year-old student from Costa Mesa, California, faces up to 34 years in jail after being arrested in connection with the Jan. 6 breach of the U.S. Capitol.

Christian Alexander Secor, an undergraduate student at the University of CaliforniaLos Angeles, was arrested early on Feb. 16 after federal agents executed a search warrant related to the Capitol breach, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller told The Epoch Times on Feb. 17.

During the Jan. 6 vote confirmation, people gathered outside the Capitol began to scale walls, topple barriers, and occupy the building, with some engaging in violence.

The FBI began investing Secor after receiving images and videos from tipsters that appeared to show him standing on the floor of the Senate Chamber, according to an affidavit obtained by The Epoch Times.

The images also appeared to show Secor sitting in the chair of the presiding officer, a seat occupied by Vice President Mike Pence earlier that day, the document stated.

These images were widely circulated via both mainstream news outlets and on social media platforms, the affidavit said.

In the media submitted by individual tipsters and reviewed by your affiant, the subject later identified as Secor can be seen wearing a red Make America Great Again hat with several stickers. The subject is also carrying a large blue flag with America First in white writing attached to a white pole.

The FBI says it has identified a man in this image, taken during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, as Costa Mesa resident Christian Alexander Secor.

Video footage provided by U.S. Capitol police appears to show Secor walking through various parts of the building and, at one point, attempting to push through a doorway blocked by police, according to the affidavit.

As a result of Secor and others pushing on the double doors,  the doors opened, and dozens of additional rioters flooded into the building, the document said.

The Capitol Police officers were shoved by the crowd, at times trapped between the doors and the crowd, and eventually pushed out of the way of the oncoming mob. Law enforcements efforts to keep out the additional rioters were frustrated by the crowd inside pushing on the doors, including Secor.

Secor faces five federal charges, including assaulting, resisting, or impeding officers, which carries a maximum eight-year sentence. (An enhanced version of the charge could result in a 20-year sentence).

Secor was also charged with civil disorder, which could result in a fine or up to five years imprisonment.

The thirdand most seriouscharge of obstructing an official proceeding can result in up to 20 years imprisonment. A fourth charge of entering and remaining on restricted grounds could yield a fine or up to one-year sentence.

The final charge of violent entry or disorderly conduct is punishable by fines and up to six months in prison.

The combined maximum sentence for all five charges is 34-and-a-half years.

Secor appeared in Santa Ana federal court Feb. 16 and was held without bail.

He wasnt the first Orange County resident to be charged in connection with the Capitol breach. The FBI on Jan. 28 arrested Huntington Beach resident Mark Simon and charged him with being on restricted grounds, disorderly conduct, and unlawful activities on Capitol grounds.

I feel like I cannot in good conscience allow my name to be associated with someone who refuses to commit not to donate to such people, said Alistair Kitchen, a program alumnus who helped organize support for the letter.

Mr. Kitchen, 29, an Australian who works in New York for Collective Impact, a strategy firm that focuses on progressive causes, said some scholars felt their association with the program could taint them, even as it burnished Mr. Schwarzmans legacy, which Mr. Kitchen called a form a reputation laundering.

For Ashlie Koehn, who had worked her way through the University of Kansas and joined the Kansas Air National Guard before becoming a Schwarzman Scholar, the program was a revelation  the first time shed been able to focus on academics and not cost. But she said Mr. Schwarzman seemed not to understand the extent of his influence.

He has this self-perception of himself as an average American citizen, which he is in some ways, said Ms. Koehn, 30, who works in state government. But I think it disregards the fact that he has this outsized capital, and his donations give him an outsize impact.

A quarter of the more than 600 students who have participated in the program since 2016 signed the letter, including 18 anonymously. Some scholars supported the letter, organizers said, but feared repercussions in their professional lives if they signed.

Others had different reasons for declining. Charles Vitry, a London-based alumnus of the programs 2018 class, did not sign, although he said he respected and appreciated the principles of those who did. He said he also saw a need for a broader community space to discuss challenging issues.
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Mexico City, Feb 18 : Mexico's Minister of National Defence Luis Cresencio Sandoval said that he has tested positive for Covid-19 and will quarantine at home under medical supervision.

"I will continue my duties in quarantine from home, under medical treatment and relying on the officials of the National Defence Ministry in keeping with the chain of command," said the 61-year-old minister on Wednesday.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and several members of his cabinet have tested positive for Covid-19 since the outbreak of the pandemic in Mexico nearly a year ago, the Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday.

Mexico's nationwide infections surpassed 2 million on Tuesday with more than 175,000 deaths from the disease, the world's third-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the US and Brazil.
Police on Wednesday arrested two men in connection with a fatal stabbing Tuesday night at a Bergen County shopping center that left a 65-year-old man dead, authorities said.

The Bergen County Prosecutors Office on Wednesday arrested Augusto G. Perez, 70, of North Bergen, and charged him with the murder of Omar Cruz, 64, of Albany, New York, in the parking lot of the Bergen Town Center, a spokesperson for the Prosecutors Office confirmed.

Along with Perez, Jorge Sanchez-Valdez, 48, of Guttenberg, was arrested and charged with hindering apprehension in connection with the slaying, the Prosecutors Office confirmed.

Both Perez and Sanchez-Valdez were being held in the Bergen County Jail pending their first court appearance. The Prosecutors Office had filed to detain both men, the spokesperson confirmed.

At around 6:05 p.m, police received a 911 call of a stabbing in the lot of the Bergen Town Center, authorities previously said. When officers arrived, they were met with a grisly scene, a trail of blood on the exterior of the mall leading to a pool of blood around Cruz, according to the complaint.

Officers arrived to find Cruz in the sprawling parking lot of the shopping center with multiple stab wounds, slumped over near a pile of snow, according to the complaint. Police asked Cruz if he knew who stabbed him, the complaint said. He responded with Perezs name.

OC responded multiple times that Agosto had stabbed him, the complaint said.

Two witnesses told police they saw what happened after Cruz was stabbed, reportedly having heard Cruz say Im dying and that Augusto had stabbed him, the complaint said.

Shortly after he was found, Cruz was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center, where he later died.

Through cell phone pings, police were able to determine that Sanchez-Valdez and Perez had spoken on the phone just minutes after the 911 call and the fatal stabbing, the complaint said.

The fatal stabbing in the sprawling Bergen Town Center parking lot was sparked by a dispute between Cruz and Sanchez-Valdez over $80, according to the criminal complaint.

After Cruz had asked Sanchez-Valdez to transfer $80 to a female acquaintance, Cruz never paid Sanchez-Valdez back, Sanchez-Valdez told police, according to the complaint. The alleged debt led to Sanchez-Valdez threatening Cruz, according to the complaint.

Sanchez-Valdez admitted to threatening Cruz, but denied having any part in his murder or contacting Perez, according to the complaint.

But Perezs story to police conflicts with Sanchez-Valdezs version, with Perez saying that Sanchez-Valdez had called him hours before the bloody altercation, according to the complaint.

Early morning Tuesday, Sanchez-Valdez called Perez, Perez told police, according to the complaint. Around 11 a.m. Tuesday, Perez went to a coffee shop near his North Bergen home, where he would ultimately meet with Cruz, the complaint said.

At the coffee shop meeting, Cruz told Perez that Sanchez-Valdez had been sending threatening text messages, along with sexually explicit photos, the complaint said. Perez ended the conversation after telling Cruz he couldnt talk to him as he was on probation, the complaint said.

Later Tuesday afternoon, Sanchez-Valdez called Perez to ask him if he had spoken to Cruz and the two would later meet at a restaurant in Union City, according to the complaint.

But Perez denied ever going to Paramus or Maywood, the complaint said.

The Bergen Town Center is an indoor and outdoor mall spread out over 105 acres in Maywood and Paramus, according to the malls website. The stabbing occurred outside a beauty shop and near a supermarket.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a voluntary subscription.

Rodrigo Torrejon may be reached at rtorrejon@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @rodrigotorrejon.
South Africa: KZN rolls out COVID-19 vaccination

KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala has officially unveiled the COVID-19 vaccine rollout programme in the province, which will see frontline healthcare workers get vaccinated with the newly acquired Johnson and Johnson vaccine.

This follows the launch of the countrys vaccination programme by President Cyril Ramaphosa and Health Minister, Dr Zweli Mkhize, in Cape Town, on Wednesday.

A total of 80 000 doses of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine arrived in South Africa on Tuesday evening.

Zikalala, who was accompanied by Health MEC, Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu, received the first batch of the vaccine on Thursday, where healthcare workers were vaccinated at Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital in Umlazi, south of Durban.

Speaking at the provincial vaccine rollout launch, Zikalala said the arrival of the vaccine in the province is an important step towards rebuilding lives.

This vaccine is eagerly awaited in all parts of the provinces and if it was up to us, we would have administered it to all healthcare workers in the province on the same day so that they are all protected. For now, we have to make do with what we have, Zikalala said.

The Premier urged healthcare workers to take the vaccine, ensuring them that government would never subject them to a vaccine that would be detrimental to their lives.

Simelane-Zulu said the province has laid the groundwork for the vaccine rollout.

We have a continuous education programme and we are conducting webinars with all our stakeholders, including our traditional health practitioners.

We had planned to vaccinate all healthcare workers within four days, but we had to revise the plan according to the amount of vaccines we get. The good thing about Johnson and Johnson vaccine is that its a once-off, Simelane-Zulu said.

Unions welcome vaccine

Mlungisi Ndlovu, from the KwaZulu-Natal Public Servants Association of South Africa (PSA), welcomed the arrival of the vaccine in the province.

Our people in KZN and healthcare workers need the vaccine. We must speed up the process of vaccinating people before the third wave arrives in order to reduce deaths, Ndlovu said.

Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA) KZN Provincial Secretary, Mandla Shabangu, also welcomed the arrival of the vaccine and urged healthcare workers to vaccinate.

With the arrival of the vaccine, our members are excited and enjoy coming to work. We want to fast-track how it is rolled out to other members.

While we support the view that its not compulsory to vaccinate, we encourage our members to take the vaccine, Shabangu said.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.


CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Youve decided youd prefer to get Modernas coronavirus vaccine instead of the one made by Pfizer/BioNTech. Can you make a specific request to get one or the other?

Our readers have questions about the coronavirus vaccine, and cleveland.com is getting answers from health care experts.

Q. Could I request one COVID-19 vaccine if Im allergic to an ingredient in the other?

Generally speaking, theres little reason to make a specific request for one of the two COVID-19 vaccines that have been approved for use in the U.S., experts say. Theyre very similar.

Allergic reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine can occur, but they are rare, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines that have been approved for use in the U.S. do not contain eggs, preservatives or latex.

This vaccine doesnt have some of the ingredients that we know are associated with allergic reaction, said Dr. David Lang, chairman of the department of allergy and clinical immunology at the Cleveland Clinic.

There is one small exception. Some people can develop an allergy to the polyethylene glycol contained in both vaccines, but its not common, Lang said. The ingredient, also known as PEG, is the basis for laxatives such as MiraLAX. Only those patients with a known allergy to polyethylene glycol should not get the vaccine, Lang said.

A CDC study found only 21 of more than 1.8 million shots of the Pfizer vaccine resulted in anaphylaxis. Another CDC study found only 10 of more than 4.4 million doses of the Moderna vaccine resulted in anaphylaxis.

Both vaccines are made with messenger RNA, which teaches the body to make a harmless part of the spike protein that is found on the coronavirus. That induces an immune response that protects against the virus that causes COVID-19.

The Pfizer vaccines ingredients also include lipids (including PEG), potassium chloride, monobasic potassium, phosphate, sodium chloride, dibasic sodium phosphate dihydrate and sucrose.

The Moderna vaccines ingredients also include lipids (including PEG), tromethamine, tromethamine hydrochloride, acetic acid, sodium acetate and sucrose.

The primary issue with requesting one vaccine instead of the other is that providers dont get to choose which vaccine they get in a shipment. If you pass up your chance to get the Pfizer vaccine, theres no telling when you might be able to get the Moderna vaccine, or vice versa, experts said.

Whatever the state sends me is what Im using to vaccinate right now, said Jodie Turosky, the clinical director of the pharmacy at Clevelands St. Vincent Charity Medical Center. Yes, you may request something specific. But it may cost you your seat at the vaccine table.

Do you have questions about the COVID-19 vaccine that youd like an expert to answer? Send it in a brief email to cleveland.com reporter Evan MacDonald at emacdonald@cleveland.com.

Your coronavirus vaccine questions answered:

Should you get the coronavirus vaccine if youve had a bad reaction to the flu shot?

Are you contagious if you have side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine?

Can you mix and match two doses of coronavirus vaccine from different manufacturers?

Can I still get my second dose of coronavirus vaccine if I develop COVID-19 symptoms after the first?

Should you get the second vaccine if you contract COVID-19 after your first coronavirus vaccine dose?

Will your COVID-19 vaccine be less effective if you need to wait longer for the second dose?

If the coronavirus vaccine is 95% effective, how will you know if youre in the other 5%?

Why do I need to keep a mask on if Ive been vaccinated for coronavirus?
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People across Myanmar continued protesting a military coup and called for the release of the countrys de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. This, despite an increased show of force by military and police. VOAs Arash Arabasadi reports. VOA Khmer's Pochin Choeung narrates the story in Khmer.
Something Fishy in Myanmar?

Chinese Ambassador Chen Hai has dismissed as "completely nonsense" rumors in Myanmar that China was flying in technicians and equipment to help the military junta tighten internet censorship and suppress growing protests against the Feb. 1 coup. "These aircraft are normal cargo flights between China and Myanmar," he said. "They carry seafood and other exports from Myanmar to China.

Cow Trail: a wondrous tale that tells the story of Jason and his new friend as they build a friendship that will fill them with so much joy, even through the challenges. Cow Trail is the creation of published author Colleen Keke Black, a writer who lives in deep South Texas in the ranching oil town of George West. She has two wonderful sons, Tim and Kim, and two equally wonderful daughters-in-law, Brenda and Connie.

Black shares, The minute Jason saw the new boy at school, he knew he was a kindred kicker. He was long and lanky, and Jason knew it was as hard for him to find Wranglers to fit as it was for Jason. He made his way to him, stuck out his hand, and said, Hi, Im Jason Kelly.

The new boy took Jasons hand with a firm grip and said, Steve Vickers, Im glad to meet you.

That was the beginning of a friendship filled with adventures, fun, and sometimes sadness. Jason was elated when Steve shared the news that his parents had leased some acreage complete with a windmill and an old ranch house.

Well be moving our cattle in soon, and Ill be taking care of them for the summer. Would you like to help me?

Things were going well until the boys realized someone or something was stealing their food. Every effort was made to catch the thief but to no avail until one day they found a young Mexican American boy sleeping in the feed house.

No send back, the boy pleaded. I American. I help people, God tell me.

Cow Trail is not only the story of teenage boys as they experience trails and victories of a ranching life but also how God can take a tragedy and turn it into something good.

Published by Christian Faith Publishing, Colleen Keke Blacks new book is a fantastic creation giving the young readers a tale of friendship that follows two teenage boys trailing the ranch life thats always surprising them.

View a synopsis of Cow Trail on YouTube.

Consumers can purchase Cow Trail at traditional brick & mortar bookstores, or online at Amazon.com, Apple iTunes store, or Barnes and Noble.

For additional information or inquiries about Cow Trail, contact the Christian Faith Publishing media department at 866-554-0919.
Inspector Darren Taylor, from Sussex Police (pictured) posted about the bizarre exchange on Twitter

A wanted man handed himself in to police rather than spend any more time in lockdown with the people he lives with, a police inspector said on Thursday.

The man volunteered himself to officers on Wednesday afternoon in a bid for some 'peace and quiet', police said.

Being cooped up in the pandemic has led many to yearn for some space from the people they share homes with.

But the man appears to have got to the point where even a return to Her Majesty's prison estate was preferable.

Inspector Darren Taylor, from Sussex Police, posted about the bizarre exchange on Twitter.

He said: 'Peace and quiet! Wanted male handed himself in to the team yesterday afternoon after informing us he would rather go back to prison then have to spend more time with the people he was living with!

'One in custody and heading back to prison to serve some further time on his own.'

Inspector Taylor said the man was wanted on recall to prison, and that he handed himself into Burgess Hill Police Station on Wednesday at around 5pm.

The man was not named.

Inspector Darren Taylor wrote on Twitter: 'Peace and quiet! Wanted male handed himself in to the team yesterday afternoon after informing us he would rather go back to prison then have to spend more time with the people he was living with!'

A study released in October 2020 found that over half of the population (53 percent) said they had felt anger towards people they know because of their behaviour in relation to the coronavirus pandemic, according to Sky News.

The research, undertaken by King's College London and Ipsos MORI, also found that nearly a quarter of people had argued with friends or family about their behaviour amid Covid-19 restrictions.

One in 12 said they were no longer speaking to a friend or relative because of disagreements, the research found.

The man volunteered himself to officers on Wednesday afternoon in a bid for some 'peace and quiet', police said. Pictured: A man in handcuffs, stock photo

The impact of lockdown goes far beyond merely controlling the virus, with the negative effects seeping into almost every area of life. Here we examine the toll it's continuing to take every day...

DAMAGE TO EDUCATION

Children in England will have lost 850million hours of in-person teaching by the time schools are due to reopen on March 8. Exams have been cancelled for two years running and university courses have moved almost exclusively online, with student dissatisfaction at a record low of 40 per cent.

DELAYS TO CRUCIAL CANCER TREATMENT

Last year was the worst on record for cancer waiting times in England. The number of patients starting treatment plummeted to the lowest level for ten years. Cancer surgery figures dropped by a third during the first wave  with 21,700 fewer operations from April to August. Millions are now trapped in a backlog for vital screening programmes.

NHS WAITING LISTS

Experts warn that NHS waiting lists could more than double from a record high of 4.52million at the end of December to ten million by April. GPs made six million fewer referrals for hospital treatment in 2020 than in 2019, as patients stayed away. The number of people waiting more than a year for treatment has rocketed by more than 7,000 per cent in a year.

WORST ECONOMIC HIT FOR 311 YEARS

The economy shrank by 9.9 per cent in 2020, marking the biggest decline in GDP since the Great Frost of 1709. At the same time, falling tax receipts and soaring spending on Covid-support schemes meant the Government borrowed a record 270.8billion in the first nine months of the financial year  212.7billion more than the same period a year earlier. Borrowing for the full year is set to be close to 400billion and the national debt now stands at 2.1trillion, or 99.4 per cent of national income  the highest level since 1962.

The economy shrank by 9.9 per cent in 2020, marking the biggest decline in GDP since the Great Frost of 1709

JOBS, FURLOUGH AND BENEFITS

The impact on jobs and employment has been severe. Unemployment has risen by 350,000 to 1.7million since the start of pandemic, and forecasters had predicted 2.6million will be out of work by the summer. The furlough scheme is propping up more than five million jobs and is forecast to cost 62billion in 2020/21.

HOSPITALITY ON ITS KNEES

Close to one million jobs disappeared from the sector in 2020, and a million more are still on furlough. Britain also lost almost 6,000 licensed premises last year, a third of which are pubs. Hospitality businesses missed out on an estimated 71.8billion of sales last year, and rolling lockdowns forced landlords to pour 87million pints of beer down the drain.

Close to one million jobs disappeared from the sector in 2020, and a million more are still on furlough

One of the cruellest aspects of the crisis has been bans on visits to care home residents

BANS ON CARE HOME VISITS

One of the cruellest aspects of the crisis has been bans on visits to care home residents. Experts believe these rules have led to thousands of deaths from isolation and loneliness. Family visits are essential to the mental and physical wellbeing of the UK's 410,000 care home residents, 70 per cent of whom have dementia  but many have been denied hugs from loved ones for nearly a year.

DAMAGE TO OUR MENTAL HEALTH

One in five adults experienced either moderate or severe depressive symptoms in June, almost double the level recorded before the pandemic. NHS trusts have predicted a 20 per cent increase in demand for their mental health services  and one in six children say they have suffered difficulties during the Covid lockdowns.

TRAVEL INDUSTRY GROUNDED

Airlines alone have had to take on more than 5billion of additional debt to stay afloat as bookings plummeted by more than 90 per cent in some months last year. British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, TUI and Ryanair have published pre-tax losses of more than 5billion since the crisis began, with the aviation sector having shed about 100,000 jobs.

Airlines alone have had to take on more than 5billion of additional debt to stay afloat as bookings plummeted by more than 90 per cent in some months last year (pictured: Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5, March 2020)

JUSTICE BACKLOG

The pandemic has created an unprecedented backlog. There are more than 56,000 crown court cases waiting to be heard, while magistrates are sitting on a caseload in excess of 400,000. Some victims will be forced to wait years before their cases are heard. Meanwhile, the numbers of rape and domestic violence cases continue to rise.

VITAL DOCUMENTS CAUGHT UP IN CHAOS

By summer, a backlog of more than 400,000 passport applications had built up  and around 150,000 births could not be registered with town halls shut. As many as 127,000 paper driving licence applications were waiting to be dealt with in September, while learners faced six-hour waits just to book a test.

CITY CENTRES HOLLOWED OUT

Retail had its worst year for a quarter of a century, with almost 200,000 jobs lost and 16,000 stores closing. This year is expected to be even worse, with 20,000 premises forecast to shut. There are now approximately 35,000 empty sites across the UK  with the highest vacancy rate since records began in 2012  turning once-thriving areas into ghost towns.
At the grand old age of 107, Ireland's oldest man Michael O'Connor, has received the Pfizer vaccine to protect against Covid-19.

Michael, who survived Spanish flu over 100 years ago, got the jab from Dr Ken Keohane at Deenagh Medical Practice, Killarney on Wednesday and is set to receive his second dose of the covid vaccine in four weeks time on St Patrick's Day.

In October of last year, Michael marked his birthday at his home in Muckross where the champagne was flowing.

Expand Close 17-02-2021: Ireland's oldest man Michael O'Connor (107) receiving the Pfizer vaccine to protect against Covid-19 from Dr Ken Keohane at Deenagh Medical Practice, Killarney on Wednesday. Michael survived the Spanish flu over 100 years ago and is set to receive his second dose of the covid vaccine in four weeks time on St. Patrick's Day. Photo: Eamonn Keogh / Facebook

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Whatsapp 17-02-2021: Ireland's oldest man Michael O'Connor (107) receiving the Pfizer vaccine to protect against Covid-19 from Dr Ken Keohane at Deenagh Medical Practice, Killarney on Wednesday. Michael survived the Spanish flu over 100 years ago and is set to receive his second dose of the covid vaccine in four weeks time on St. Patrick's Day. Photo: Eamonn Keogh

He told how he wasnt expected to live past the age of six after contracting the Spanish Flu. Although he eventually recovered after months in bed, unfortunately his mother Bridie, a teacher in Glencar, succumbed to the illness some months later. His father Daniel, also a teacher in Glencar, died in his 40s.

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107 years ago I kicked myself into this world, Michael told the Killarney Advertiser.

I was born in Glencar to Daniel and Bridie, I travelled the world for five years, three in the last war. I then changed to aviation in the early 40s and stayed in aviation for the rest of my life based in Ballygreen between Shannon and Ennis.

Michael who came to Killarney 40 years ago in 1980 with his wife Joan, who died in 2008, told how he built a holiday home up the side of a mountain a few years before I retired. Then, when I retired, I sold the house in Limerick and have been here ever since. Theres no nicer place in the world  and Ive been around most of it.

He also attributed his longevity down to a daily glass of whiskey.

The secret is a glass of Red Breast Whiskey every night before bed, he revealed.

Read More

The number of vaccinations against coronavirus is being scaled up this week with over 80,000 people due to be inoculated.

The vaccination programme for the over-85s began last Monday with the jab being administered in their local GP practice or in 40 vaccination centres around the country.

Those aged over-85 will receive their first dose over a three-week period.

Meanwhile, all over-70s will be administered their first dose by mid-April and their second dose by mid-May.








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The question is not whether the future of the insurance industry is bright.

Few industries are better positioned for outstanding growth over the next 15 years, insists Verisks Mark Anquillare.

Anquillare points to the giant global protection gap between what could be and what is insured. Less than half of the worldwide properties that could be insured against loss actually are. Among them are the many homes without flood insurance. He also points to new threats, such as cyber risks, that will continue to fuel demand for insurance.

So, he offers, the question should not be whether the future of insurance is bright. The question should be, who owns the future of insurance?

We are in an important fight for the future of our industry, he told viewers at the Verisk Elevate 2021 virtual conference.

3 Reasons the Insurance Industry Will Change a Lot Verisks Mark Anquillare is focused on where the industry might be 15 years from now, in the year 2036. He thinks it matters for everyone in the industry and for those who depend on the industry. It will change how you get to work, how you interact with policy holders, and how you adapt to changing conditions and requirements. Its highly likely that the insurance industry will change more in the next 15 years than it has in the previous 100, he told registrants at the Verisk Elevate 2021 virtual conference. Why will it change? While there are many reasons, he discussed three, each of which by itself could lead to profound disruption. The first is artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The speed of AI insights is ramping up and has the potential to accelerate at amazing speed in the very near future, he said. The second reason the insurance industry is rapidly changing is people. Our thinking has changed and will continue to change. And certainly the thinking of insurance customers is rapidly evolving. We may not fully realize how much weve changed in just short time, but it is clear that were now geared to expect and embrace change at a much more rapid pace than we were even a year ago. Third, people are not alone in changing. The global climate is changing also. Its now routine to hear that a years weather related to disasters is a broken record. Weve been talking about this for decades, but in many ways, we arent keeping up with those profound changes that are impacting our industry.

Anquillare, executive vice present and chief operating officer of Verisk, used the insurance industrys favorite tool  models  to look ahead 15 years to 2036. He obtained three possible scenarios that answer his ownership question.

I think the models point to possibilities that can be highly helpful for us to consider, that can help us prepare for the future and to also do our part in shaping it because the insurance industry itself has a very bright future, he said.

Scenario 1

His first model suggests that in the year 2036, the industry has been completely disrupted and the familiar insurance organizations are few, with most insurance players now being technology firms.

Long-standing companies that were centuries old have disappeared. In their place are a few survivors, some significantly weakened and one or two have thrived. The rest are new and their heritage isnt insurance, its technology or retail or automotive, is how he describes this scenario.

This future has already happened over the past several decades to once-thriving industries. Think about music, network TV, travel, telecommunications, taxi service, newspapers, postal service, he said.

In this future, nearly everything will be connected, contain smart technology, be mobile, produce data, and analyze in real time. He said this means insurance will be connected to vehicles, alarm systems, appliances, weather sensors, retailers, banks, energies, even building materials.

So the question is who will make those connections most efficiently, most effectively? The existing insurance industry or the tech companies? In short, were in a race.

In this first scenario, those who are first to develop a fully connected and integrated insurance ecosystem win the future insurance marketplace.

But not so fast. To get to this future, the tech whiz kids face considerable obstacles, according to Anquillare. These include the complexity of insurance, extensive regulation and consumer confidence.

Complexity is a double-edged sword and solving it with technology offers substantial benefits, he said.

He cited a recent Verisk-backed study in which a number of insurer chief information officers said they were still using Excel spreadsheets to make underwriting decisions and that it takes months to get new products to market. He said other studies have found that insurance CEOs are more likely than others to see the speed of technology change as a threat to growth. Also, they are concerned about shifts in consumer spending and behavior.

The second barrier for insurance industry disruptors is the heavy regulation the insurance industry faces. This is unfamiliar territory for tech companies. They have mostly enjoyed protections and immunities and been allowed to grow without a lot of oversight.

Its fairly clear that when they are faced with regulation, big tech isnt very adept at handling it, Anquillare observed.

That does not bode well because there are signs this regulatory honeymoon may be ending given the governments antitrust suit and lawmakers clamoring for repeal of social media firms immunity for their content contained in a federal communications law provision known as Section 230.

Anquillares final barrier to entry to the insurance industry is consumer confidence. This first model of tech winning the future assumes that big tech and startups succeed in convincing huge swaths of the population to dump venerable long-standing insurance companies and go with a company with very little prior insurance experience.

Anquillare notes that while consumer loyalty is a major strength for the insurance industry among the silent generation and many baby boomers, there are signs that loyalty is eroding among baby boomers and it appears weak among younger generations.

Generations who grew up with technology often trust technology providers more than they do original companies who built the industry, he said. It starts with customer experience and investing in design and layout. They target consumers by substantially simplifying existing complex experiences. An important part of that process is how the experience looks and feels.

Scenario 2

His second model describes an industry that fends off most of its disruptors and sees many incumbents adapting and surviving and retaining the trust of customers. With some exceptions, the attackers find insurance to be much more complex and difficult to crack than they expected. They also learned that without very careful management, its a highly effective way to lose a lot of money very quickly, he added.

This second model is much like the first in terms of the market pressures, changes in consumer attitudes, and other threats. But in this case, established insurance industry wins the race and builds a highly effective and ever-evolving insurance ecosystem, he said.

In this second scenario, many ambitious startups crashed and burned, while others succeeded. Similarly, some long-established companies couldnt change rapidly enough while others managed to change and become stronger than ever, with some uncovering new markets and ways of conducting business.

He made it evident that this second scenario is the one Verisk advocates and is working toward.

He said there are many reasons this second model could prove true.

One is the advantage of thoroughly knowing the industry, its strengths and its weaknesses.

One thing that the insurance industry understands perhaps better than others is how to respond to a challenge  in part because it deals with catastrophes. Adapting and responding quickly is in our DNA. Its literally built into the way we do business, Anquillare believes.

He cites as an example the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake, which Lloyds of London turned into an opportunity by paying all claims  more than a billion dollars in todays dollars and almost went broke in the process. The fear was the industry would pull back and make future insurance more difficult to get. But thats not how the industry responded. Instead, it started new practices still used today, more sophisticated risk transfer strategies, construction and neighborhood analysis, diversification using insurance discounts to encourage development of better buildings, use of models, and much more, the Verisk executive said.

Perhaps the most unforeseen consequence of that billion dollar expenditure more than 100 years ago was its sales power. It was perhaps the best marketing moment in the history of insurance as potential customers saw the devastation and how Lloyds kept the promises, he said. The demand for insurance soared and the industry entered a bright new era of growth and innovation.

He said what the industry did was more effectively adapt the insurance ecosystem, embrace productivity and open systems, and become a new kind of insurance industry that competes on tech and wins on insurance savvy. It utilizes automation to reduce costs and improve customer satisfaction. It makes its digital experience user-friendly. Its automated AI systems allow underwriters to fine tune portfolios and position companies to respond quickly to new markets, opportunities and threats.

In this scenario favored by Verisk, the insurance industry wins the race to reduce complexity and provide a customer experience that builds loyalty and at the same time, it builds digital trust with its use of technology.

Scenario 3

The third model points to a world that looks a lot like it does now. Not much in the industry changes, yet the pace of new technology continues.

This third scenario has its proponents, although Anquillare thinks their numbers may be dwindling.

This model represents those who downplay the threat of disruption and claim the fear is exaggerated. They note that the industry is still talking about the same threats it did 15 years ago.

In this model, it turns out that hundreds of years of refinement and experience are still solid and difficult to assail, he said.

This third model assumes the necessary changes are already happening and disruptors will be discouraged. Proponents of this model argue about the speed of change, not the reality of change and they tend to believe the industry has more time to adapt than the first two models suggest.

Since the industry is already evolving, they suggest there is no need to rethink the model that has worked for hundreds of years, he said.

Some in this camp have concerns about too much data and connectedness and wonder when too much information becomes synonymous with no information.

He said Verisk is committed to working to build the second model. And he believes much of that scenario is already here and much more is on the way. Also, while there are some problems with data, he says they are being solved.

We are in a race to build a better insurance ecosystem, he said.

I firmly believe the insurance industry controls its own destiny.

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Much of Massachusetts will see freezing temperatures and up to eight inches of snow to close the week. With the frigid temperatures, health care professionals are warning the public of the risks associated with the coming storm and how to avoid injury.

Vincent Meoli, regional medical director of American Family Care (AFC) highlighted that the very young, the elderly and those with underlying health conditions are particularly at risk.

With the current restrictions, said Meoli. Anyone going out to a public place should assume they may have to spend extra time outdoors and dress accordingly.

The Bay State is expected to be hit with as much as 6 to 8 inches of snow from Thursday afternoon through Friday evening, with Eastern Massachusetts being impacted the most by the winter storm, according to the National Weather Service.

By the time the storms over late Friday, 6 to 8 inches of snow will have fallen across much of the Cape and Islands as well as in Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Plymouth and Bristol counties, the weather service said.

Meoli pointed out that with temperatures dipping below the freezing mark, even 10 minutes of exposure can be dangerous. He added that the key to avoiding any cold-related ailments is to dress in several loose layers and cover as much exposed skin as possible.

At a minimum, Meoli said, layers should include a thin base that can wick away moisture from the skin; an insulating middle layer such as a sweater, sweatshirt, or down jacket; and a weatherproof outer layer that blocks the elements such as wind and water.

Body parts that are particularly susceptible to frostbite include the nose, ears, toes, cheeks, chin and fingers, advised Meoli. Take extra care to cover those areas with a hat, scarf, mittens, warm socks and water-resistant, insulated boots.

Hypothermia and frostbite are common this time of year, according to Meoli. For hyperthermia, people should look for shivering, confusion and memory loss, slurred speech, and drowsiness or exhaustion. Infants may show bright red, cold skin and extremely low energy.

Some people dont know they have frostbite because the tissue actually becomes numb, said Meoli. Red and painful skin is often the first sign, so take action if you experience either. More serious signs include white, gray, or yellowish skin; numbness; or skin that feels very firm or waxy.

The AFC doctor stressed that if people are worried and even suspect that a loved one may have either condition, they should seek immediate medical help.

If the persons temperature drops below 95 degrees, seek immediate medical attention. In cases of frostbite, do not try to warm the affected area with electric heating pads, blankets, hot water, massage or rubbing, said Meoli. This may cause permanent tissue damage. If you have frostbite on toes or feet, avoid walking on them.

AFC has walk-in centers on Cooley Street in Springfield and Union Street in West Springfield and provides services including urgent care, occupational medicine, and other non-emergency health care.

The clinics are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the week and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends and no appointments are necessary.

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Dutch battery tech scale-up E-magy, a designer and manufacturer of nano-sponge silicon material for advanced lithium-ion batteries (earlier post), has secured an additional 5 million of funding. SHIFT Invest, an impact venture capital fund that invests in circular technologies, smart food & ag-tech, bio-based innovations and smart materials, led the funding round with participation of existing investors including PDENH.

The Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy has also committed an innovation credit to accelerate the development of E-magys technology.

The fresh capital injection enables E-magy to increase production at its fully operational pilot production line for nano-porous silicon and accelerate qualification programs with automakers and battery manufacturers.

The company will also use the funds to expand the team and make preparations for a new facility in the Netherlands which will boost annual capacity to thousands of tons per year. E-magy plans to start production at the new facility in 2023.

E-magy processes silicon in a unique, cost-effective and scalable way to make nano-sponge particles for high-capacity silicon anodes for lithium-ion batteries. E-magys nano-porous silicon improves the energy density by 40% and shortens the charge time of batteries allowing for an extended range at lower costs and leading to more compact models than todays high-end vehicles. Silicon is abundantly available and environmentally benign.





E-magy works with partners throughout the global automotive supply chain. The people behind E-magy have 20+ years of silicon crystallization experience and are based in Broek op Langedijk, The Netherlands.
Midlanders Jenny Cudd and Eliel Rosa pleaded not guilty Tuesday to five federal charges resulting from riots at the U.S. Capitol building last month.

During an arraignment hearing this week, they each entered not guilty pleas on counts of obstruction of an official proceeding, entering a restricted building, disruptive conduct in a restricted building, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
Actress Alaya F Addresses Rumours Of Dating Aaishvary Thackeray, Reveals Why She Refuses To Now Get Clicked With Him

Actress Alaya F has often been spotted with long time friend Aaishvary Thackeray and their pictures together have sparked dating rumours. Only one film old in the industry Alaya was straight up asked about these rumours in a recent interview and she really had lots to say.

The Jawaani Jaaneman actress last year made headlines as she attended Aaishvarys mother Smita Thackerays birthday party in Dubai. The actress talking to Times Of India spoke freely about her relationship with Aaishvary who related to major political family in Maharashtra. She said, He is a very good friend. I know it is a cliche thing to say, but we are very good family friends. Our moms know each other, my grandad knows his mom, we have known each other for a very long time. Its just now that the media notices a photo of us together and assumes that something is going on. We have been doing acting classes for a very long time, and also go to dance classes together; if the paparazzi had clicked us earlier, they would have a lot more pictures. Thats why we are bound to click together; I find him to be quite funny.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Smita thackeray (@smitathackeray)

Talking about getting clicked together Alaya also explained who she now refused to get clicked with Aaishvary even when they are some place out together. "The paparazzi get photos so I know whats going to happen with it. But I also make a joke out of it. Now, if Im exiting a place, we have to exit together, and there are bunch of photographers who ask us to pose together and I politely refuse laughing over the fact that those pictures can land me in a lot of trouble later, she explained.
Posted Thursday, February 18, 2021 9:18 am

More help is coming for renters and landlords, as the Thurston County Board of Commissioners approved a contract on Tuesday to distribute $10 million in federal and state rent assistance through the Community Action Council.

That includes $8.6 million from the second federal stimulus package that Congress passed in December. It also includes $1.4 million in money from the state's disaster response account, which Gov. Jay Inslee authorized on Feb. 11.

Tom Webster, the Housing Program Manager for the Thurston County Public Health Department, said he anticipates the money becoming available by the end of February or beginning of March.

By the most recent count, 191,000 households in Washington state are currently behind on rent, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey. That's in addition to another 450,000 households who reported using credit cards or loans to pay rent.

The state Department of Commerce first created the Eviction Rent Assistance Program (ERAP) in August 2020 using federal CARES ACT money, of which Thurston County received $3.18 million. That money was largely expended by the end of 2020, though Thurston County added a small amount of its own housing-related funds to plug the gap for January and February, according to Webster.

This new round of federal funding, called the Treasury Rent Assistance Program (T-RAP), will cover up to 12 months of rental arrears, plus a possible three months more in certain cases.

Eligibility is determined by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, although the current guidelines may yet be expanded by the Biden administration. However, even households that don't meet the federal criteria may still be eligible for state rental assistance funds, which have different screening criteria that have not yet been finalized by the Department of Commerce.

As it stands, applicants must meet three criteria: make less than 80% of Area Median Income, be at risk of homelessness or housing instability, and have experienced financial hardship due to COVID-19.

One important difference in the new round of federal relief is that landlords can now apply directly and don't have to rely on their tenants to apply for help.

More money also will be forthcoming as Washington's state legislature appropriated $365 million in federal aid for rent assistance earlier this month as part of a $2.2 billion COVID relief package. It's not clear how much of that will come to Thurston County.

To apply for rental assistance, contact the Community Action Council by calling 360-438-1100, then press 8 for Housing and 7 for ERAP.

___

(c)2021 The Olympian (Olympia, Wash.)

Visit The Olympian (Olympia, Wash.) at www.theolympian.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The head of Mastercard told a virtual audience this week that his companys success for the past decade is because of a healthy dose of good luck, the global shift toward a cashless society, and a workplace culture that promotes financial inclusion as a social compact.

The digitalization of the world economy has been like wind in our sails, fueling the companys successful strategy to diversify its businesses and client base, said Ajay Banga, speaking in a Feb. 16 event hosted by the University of Miami Patti and Allan Herbert Business School.

Banga took over leadership of the company 11 years ago; and in January, he transitioned from president and CEO to executive chairman.

The last decade has been a lot about being in the right place at the right time, he said. It may look like it was all very logical and sequenced, but weve stumbled quite a bit and been fortunate to have had a healthy dose of luckwith digitalization and the move of governments to value the concept of going against cash.

When he arrived, the firms client base was nearly exclusively large banks, he noted. Today our clients are everybody from governments that issue social security and benefits payments to transit systems to Apple and Google to the local think tank, to the mobile network operator in Africa, he added.

The virtual Southern Glazier Distinguished Leaders Lecture, moderated by Dean John Quelch and Arun Sharma, professor and chair of the Marketing Department, attracted viewers from the United States, South Africa, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Colombia, the Russian Federation, Canada, Mexico, France, Panama, Italy, Bahamas, Virgin Islands, Colombia, Chile, Jordan, Germany, Thailand, and India.

Banga, who has received Indias highest civilian award and was named Global Indian of the Year in 2019 by the Economic Times, noted that the companys growth and prosperitymarket capitalization has risen from $30 billion to $335 billion (February 2021) during his tenurehas been driven by a social compact that emphasizes doing well by doing good.

The fact that 2 billion people around the world lack an identity issued by their government and so subsist outside the formal system incentivizes the companys workforce, he said, noting that the firm has reached its stated goal of 500 million customers by 2020 and continues toward its 2025 goal of servicing 1 billion. Those include 50 million small- and mid-sized enterprises and 25 million female entrepreneurs.

The things that we take for granted they cant doreceiving and depositing money, saving money, renting a carand without an identity their view doesnt matter, its like they dont count, said Banga. With our technology we can make a difference with financial and societal inclusion, and this motivates our people.

Mastercard has maintained the same marketing firm since the 1990s, according to Banga, that highlighted the campaign, which has evolved from observing to creating Priceless experiences.

According to Banga, retail transactions in cash continued to be shockingly high, even in the developed worldstill 79 to 81 percent. He added that the pandemic has accelerated the migration away from cash transactions. Only Sweden and South Korea principally use electronic transactions and the United States pre-pandemic was still close to half cash.

Nurturing a motivated, satisfied workforce through compensation, benefits, and focus on mission and values is core to Bangas leadership approach.

Inclusion starts with your employees and then you can make the story to do it on the outside, he said. This is real money and real resources that are being dedicated; its not lip service. Weve been doing that in terms of compensation and benefits and also in the way of respect and promoting diversity.

In terms of data privacy, Banga said that Mastercard has principles of safety and security.

First, its your data as a consumer and you have the right to benefit from it. Second, you have the right to know what has been collected about youand not in a long, complicated disclosure. Third, you have the right to be forgotten. And fourth, if we do collect your data, we collect only the minimum of what is needed, he explained.

He praised the European Unions General Data Protection Regulation principles as similar to those his company has adopted and said that hes concerned that states in the United States are adopting their own individual regulationsand that the federal government should address these consistently instead.

Hes impressed by the efforts toward sustainability that the Herbert Business School has adopted and by the schools increased interest in environmental, social, and corporate governance.

For candidates who aspire to join the Mastercard workforce, Banga recommended innate curiositybe curious about the world around you; a commitment to decencymake the people around you feel that youre there for them; fairness and transparencythis isnt about being nice; and a level of competitive paranoiawhere youre willing to question everything in the aim of constructive dissent.

The executive chairman said hes confident that most countries in the world are heading in the right direction in terms of putting the consumer back in the drivers seat in terms of managing their own data.

Youve got to create a level playing field, he pointed out. Whether in diversity or open banking or in dataif you create unequal playing fields, youre cutting off your nose to spite your face, he added.

And a level playing field is really important in terms of regulation, he continued. It starts with putting the consumer at the center and then you provide the guardrails that the government should provide and then allow innovation to flourish within those guidelines. That would be nirvana.

Bangas interest in resolving global issues led to the company being among the first to fund the effort, together with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, for a therapeutic accelerator for COVID-19 drugs and vaccines.

My logic was that society should benefit from the quick discovery of therapeutics and vaccines from those companies that rely on consumers as their clients, he said. Its in our own enlightened self-interest to look up from our narrow focus and care about the world outside.
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On Jan. 20, President Bidens first day in office, his administration suspended new enrollment in the program, and on Feb. 1, the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to cancel oral arguments in a case challenging the policy.

On Tuesday, the administration confirmed that it would begin processing some asylum seekers who have been waiting in Mexico, but it stressed that the border remained closed to other migrants under the pandemic emergency measure.

We caution people seeking to immigrate to the United States that our borders are not open, and that this is just the first phase in the administrations work to reopen access to an orderly asylum process, the statement said.

Migrants enrolled in the Migration Protection Protocols program will have to register online before approaching the border. Only 300 asylum seekers a day will be permitted to enter the country, with priority given to people who are deemed most vulnerable, for health or safety reasons, and who have been waiting longest in Mexico. Once processed, they will be allowed to travel to the interior of the United States, to live with family or friends, while their immigration cases wind through the courts.
Utkal Express that plies from Odisha's Puri to Uttarakhand's Haridwar was stopped at Ghaziabad railway station with farmers blocking the tracks at Modinagar railway station.Protesters were seen on railway tracks protesting against the new farm laws in Uttar Pradesh's Hapur, Palwal of Haryana, Jammu's Channi Himat area and Fatehpur Sahib of Punjab.There were reports of a few passengers falling ill due to non-working of AC of the trains which were stopped by protesters at Jagatpur railway station in Rajasthan.Farmers under the aegis of the United-Kissan Front demonstrated at railway track in Jammu's Channi Himat area with slogans against the newly enacted farm laws.Farmers also protested on railway tracks in Fatehpur Sahib of Punjab.I n the agitation staged by workers of Jan Adhikar Party (Loktantrik) at Patna Junction railway station, a train was blocked by the agitators. Protesters were lying down on the railway tracks and they climbed up the engine of the locomotive.Meanwhile, the Indian railways reported that, initially the train schedule was affected but in most zones there was no train stoppages."Rail roko agitation passed off without any untoward incident. There was negligible or minimal impact on running of the trains across the country. Train movement in all zones is normal now. Few trains were stopped in some areas but now train operation is normal," it said."Around 25 trains have been regulated so far. There has been minimum effect on rail services due to the agitation," Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar said.The Railways had deployed 20 additional companies of the Railway Protection Special Force in view of the protest.Entry and exit at four metro stations, including Tikri border, were shut by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation for nearly four hours today. The Tikri Border metro station is near the site where the farmers are protesting against three new agriculture laws of the Centre.DMRC tweeted to inform commuters about the closure of entry and exit at these four stations.The Samyukta Kisan Morcha had last week announced a nationwide to press for its demand to repeal the farm laws. Farmer unions demonstrated 'rail roko' agitation between 12 pm to 4 pm on Thursday in different parts of the country.After the tractor rally and 'chakka jaam', 'rail roko' has been the major protest by the farmers against the three farm laws.Farmers have been protesting at the different borders of the national capital since November last year, against the three newly enacted farm laws - Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.
However, Mr Weimar said health authorities had cleared about 500 of the 1507 primary contacts associated with the Grand Hyatt outbreak. Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said close contacts needed to remain vigilant. This isnt over yet  all known contacts of cases or exposure sites need to stay in quarantine for the full 14 days to wrap this up, Professor Sutton said via Twitter. Loading

Victoria Police on Friday revealed that 62 fines were handed out for breaches during the states five-day lockdown, which ended on Wednesday. A 50-year-old St Albans man was also arrested and charged after operating his gym Campbellfield gym during lockdown on Tuesday. He will appear at court at a later date. A spokesperson for the force said compliance was overall good during the circuit-breaker and the fines issued were only for the most blatant or deliberate breaches. Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd said Victorian authorities were working to make sure all contacts of the three new cases found on Friday were traced. Obviously, the Victorian authorities will be acting very swiftly to make sure that all the contacts of these people have been followed up and are also in isolation and arranging to get tested, Professor Kidd told ABC radio.

No new cases were reported in hotel quarantine on Friday, while half-a-dozen testing sites closed due to high temperatures. Mr Weimar urged people in several Melbourne suburbs to be on the lookout for symptoms after several unexpected wastewater detections were picked up in surveillance sites. Those locations are Wantirna South and Boronia, which includes Bayswater, Ferntree Gully, Knoxfield and Tremont; Carrum Downs and Langwarrin, including Skye; and St Kilda East and Caulfield North, including parts of Caulfield, Balaclava and Elsternwick, Mr Weimar said. Weve been talking about over a number of weeks now weve again stepped up the granularity of our wastewater sampling across the metropolitan area.

Although we have no obvious connections between the new locations that are flagged up and any known positive cases, we are therefore asking people in a couple of areas to be prepared and be vigilant for any potential symptoms they may have. Several testing sites across Melbourne were forced to close early due to the heat. Locations included Dandenong, Greensborough and Pakenham. Testing sites closed due to heat Monash Health - Carroll Lane, Dandenong - Drive Through, Dandenong

Banyule Community Health - Greensborough

Monash Health - IYU Recreation Reserve, Pakenham

Darebin Arts Centre, Preston

Wyndham City Council Civic Centre, Werribee

Shorten Reserve Car Park, West Footscray Mr Weimar said that although the wastewater detections were unexpected, he was not excessively worried. Loading

If youre in those catchment areas, and feel you have any reason to be concerned about any symptoms you might be showing, no matter how slight, we really would ask you to come and get tested today, Mr Weimar said. We see these detections coming up. At this point in time, its an isolated set of detections, so were not excessively worried. COVID-19 vaccination plan Front-line coronavirus workers who are most likely to come into contact with the virus are first in line to be vaccinated under the federal COVID-19 vaccination plan. Trained health professionals will administer doses of the Pfizer vaccine to hotel quarantine and health hotel workers, airport and port workers, high-risk front-line health staff and public sector residential aged care staff and residents from Monday.

Mr Foley said the state governments priority was supporting the Commonwealth project to ensure the vaccine was deployed as quickly and safely possible. Whether they work in hotel quarantine, at the airport, or a specialist COVID ward  we need to keep Victorians most at risk of infection safe, while they continue to keep Victorians safe, he said. Following the arrival of the vaccine, health hubs will deliver the jabs at dedicated sites throughout the state, including hospitals and quarantine hotels. There will also be a site at Melbourne Airport and mobile outreach teams. Loading

Moomba cancellation reversed Melbourne lord mayor Sally Capp said on Thursday that reduced crowd numbers due to COVID-19 restrictions led her to make the incredibly difficult decision to cancel the festival for the first time in its 66-year history. But the decision to cancel the event was overturned on Friday and the festival is set to proceed with a revised program designed to meet COVID-19 safety requirements. We have been working closely overnight with the events industry and the Victorian government to ensure we can deliver a reimagined Moomba 2.0, the lord mayor said. Before the backflip, Major Events Minister Martin Pakula said he had expressed his disappointment to Cr Capp and got the sense the council would change course.

The council made the call to not go ahead with this years festival despite the Chief Health Officer having approved a COVID-safe plan for the yearly event, Mr Pakula said. Front-line COVID-19 staff went unpaid for weeks The Department of Health has admitted that front-line COVID-19 staff were not paid in the weeks leading up to the latest lockdown.

The department said the pay issue arose after the recruitment of an additional 204 employees to respond to the border permit exemptions and increased call volumes associated with the NSW and Queensland border closures. When the Department of Health became aware that a number of staff working in the border permit team had not received payment, they acted quickly and arranged for off-line payments to be made to the majority of staff, a spokesman said. The department said the issue in no way impacted the states response to the pandemic. Whitten Oval could become COVID vaccination hub Loading

Whitten Oval has been touted as a possible location for Melbournes first mass coronavirus vaccination hub under a proposal that would mean the sports stadium in the citys west hosting thousands of Victorians for immunisation. Medical groups recently visited the West Footscray oval, home to AFL club the Western Bulldogs, finding it had optimum air flow and was close to health services, making it an ideal location for a vaccination centre. Mukesh Haikerwal, of the Australian Medical Association, who is leading discussions about setting up the hub, estimated the stadium could allow for about 450 people to be vaccinated per hour. His highly successful coronavirus respiratory clinic in Altona North, also in the western suburbs, will soon be converted into a vaccine clinic, with a plan to vaccinate 16 people an hour. With Rachel Clun, Melissa Cunningham, Rachael Dexter
President Joe Biden shot down the proposal of other top Democrats to cancel $50,000 in student loan debt per borrower. Americans are spending more and more to pursue an education. Thus, student debt has been increasing for decades, primarily driven by the cost of higher education.

But during Tuesday night's CNN town hall, Biden said he disagreed with other members of his party to cancel $50,000 of student debt per borrower.

"I will not make that happen," when asked if he would increase his proposal for student loan debt forgiveness from $10,000 to $50,000.

Top Democratic congressional leaders, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, called on Biden to cancel $50,000 in student debt per borrower using existing authority under the Higher Education Act. However, Biden earlier said he does not think he has the authority to do it through executive order.

During the town hall event, Biden also said that "it depends on whether or not you go to a private or public university," arguing that the government should not forgive debt for people "who have gone to Harvard and Yale and Penn."

According to a Yahoo! Finance report, forgiving $50,000 for each borrower would cost roughly $1 trillion. Biden said the money would be better used for the early education of young children "who come from disadvantaged circumstances" and free community college.

Read also: Pelosi Expects Stimulus Bill to Pass by Early March: Here's the Latest on Who Could Get $1,400 Checks and When

Biden's Proposal on the Student Loan Debt Forgiveness

NBC News reported that Biden said he understood the burden of student loan debt, and it can be draining. He noted that he was ready to cancel $10,000 in debt and the interest. However, the President stressed that anything higher than that would require congressional action.

Apart from making community college free, Biden also reiterated his support of allowing families who earn under $125,000 to send their children to state schools for free.

The President also supported expanding debt forgiveness programs for those going into public service jobs. He also proposed extending school through the summer for states to make up for the interrupted academic year.

Democrats Press Biden to Cancel $50,000 in Student Loan Debt

NBC News reported Schumer and Democratic senator Elizabeth Warren still pursued Biden to eliminate the $50,000 in student debt. In a statement released on Wednesday, they said they are confident that the President would still agree with experts, who concluded that the administration has authority to immediately deliver much-needed relief to millions of Americans.

Meanwhile, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez earlier told her Instagram followers not to lose hope on potential student loan forgiveness because the cancellation momentum has intensified.

Reacting to Biden's statement on Tuesday, Ocasio-Cortez said the administration could "both" have large forgiveness of student loan debt and early childhood education programs.

On the other hand, Market Watch reported that White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration is reviewing whether there are any more steps to cancel the debt by executive action.

Related article: Biden Secures Deals for 600 Million COVID-19 Vaccine Doses, but California Man Tests Positive for Virus Weeks After 2nd Shot

WATCH: Democrats Press Biden to Cancel $50,000 in Student Loan Debt Per Borrower from Bloomberg Quicktake: Now
Hours before 8th round of talks with protesting farmers, govt says hopeful of resolving issues

Be ready to sacrifice your standing crop: Rakesh Tikait to farmers

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Hisar, Feb 18: Asserting that they won't return home till the farm laws are repealed, Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait on Thursday said farmers should be ready to sacrifice their standing crop for it.

Tikait said the government should not be under the impression that the movement against the laws will end as farmers will go to their villages to harvest their crop.

"Even if you have to set your standing crop on fire, you should be prepared for it. The government should not harbour this impression that farmers will return home. We will harvest crops and continue our agitation at the same time," he said addressing a "mahapanchayat" at Kharak Poonia village of Hisar.

"There will be no ''ghar wapsi'' till then," he said.

Tikait also asked farmers to be ready for the next call of the unions spearheading the stir.

"Keep your tractors filled with fuel and facing towards Delhi''s direction. You can get a call to move at any time, that will be decided by the committee (farmers unions)," he said.

Tikait said after Haryana, they will be holding panchayats in other parts of the country, including West Bengal, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.

While earlier farmers had given a call for a "tractor rally" in Delhi, Tikait said the next time, they will go to the national capital with their agricultural implements.

Farmers' Protest: Samajwadi Party legislators stage protest outside Uttar Pradesh Assembly

Addressing the gathering, Haryana BKU chief Gurnam Singh Chaduni alleged, "If new agricultural laws are implemented, crops will be purchased at arbitrary prices and farmers will be forced to even sell their land."

Thousands of farmers have been protesting since late November at the Delhi borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, demanding a rollback of the Farmers'' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers'' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that these laws will pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the "mercy" of big corporations.

However, the government has maintained that the new laws will bring better opportunities to farmers and introduce new technologies in agriculture.

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San Franciscos landmark cable cars, sidelined since the start of the pandemic, face an uncertain future. The iconic transportation system will roll again, Muni officials say, but when the cars will return and what that will mean for the rest of the citys transit network and the recovery of the tourist industry is unclear.

City officials, business leaders and residents are urging a return of the nearly 150-year-old cable cars, but the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is grappling with hard choices about how to bring back service while facing long-term financial issues.

Muni officials are also contemplating whether to do major rehabilitation work in the Cable Car Barn before resuming cable car service, Supervisor Aaron Peskin told The Chronicle. A project involving the system that pulls the cables beneath city streets can be done only when the cable cars arent operating, he said, and might be more easily done during the pandemic. Erica Kato, an agency spokesperson, said Muni is not yet working on the project.

But as more people are vaccinated and San Francisco reopens more of its economy in the coming months, the return of the cable cars could play a key role in eventually drawing back tourists.

If we are really going to get back on our feet and welcome tourists back, weve got to turn the cable cars and the F (historic streetcar) line back on, Peskin said. The bottom line is the cable cars are the pride of San Francisco. You think of San Francisco, you think of cable cars climbing the hills and crab and the Golden Gate Bridge, and its a boon to tourism.

Before the pandemic, tourism was the citys biggest industry, supporting more than 85,000 jobs and providing more than $750 million in taxes to city coffers.

Many of the 25 million tourists rode the cable cars, which carried nearly 17,000 riders a day before they were parked last March as the city sheltered in place. Muni continued to operate a skeletal network of transit lines during the shutdown and has gradually been restoring service. But the cable cars and historic streetcar lines that run on Market Street and the Embarcadero have remained out of service.

Restoring cable cars will take more time and resources than other services, Director of Transit Julie Kirschbaum told the agencys board Tuesday. The agency has lost cable car operators over the past year or reassigned them to other divisions. About 50 a day are now supporting the citys vaccine efforts. New and existing operators would need to be trained and certified. And cable car operators will need to be vaccinated before service can resume, Kato said Thursday.

Kirschbaum couldnt provide an exact timeline of restoration Tuesday because the agency is working on a staffing and training plan, but said she would come back to the board in March with more details on which lines could come back in May and the fall.

Its going to be a more complicated process to restore cable cars, Kirschbaum said. It will be a very big lift and will require the board to weigh in on things like how we prioritize restarting the cable cars against other service needs like gaps on the hilltops.

Muni, crippled by lost ridership, nosediving revenue and limited capacity during the pandemic, is running up to 70% of service compared with pre-COVID levels. Federal funds have kept the agency afloat, but the transit operator is staring down a future structural deficit of hundreds of millions.

That reality leads to hard choices, Director of Transportation Jeffrey Tumlin told the board.

Were in complete agreement around restoring the cable car and F-line service, its so important, not just as a mobility service but as part of the very image of San Francisco and what drives the economy here. ... And yet, were also suffering from a gaping structural deficit, Tumlin said.

To what degree should we prioritize restoration of cable car service in the short run as opposed to serving the reopening of schools by shifting to school lines or restarting lines in the hillier and more isolated parts of the system that currently have no Muni service? We cannot do it all.

While cable cars cost $8 a ride before the pandemic, its not clear how much the agency spends to run them. The agency said it could not immediately provide the fare revenues and operating costs.

During Tuesdays meeting, directors, residents and business leaders urged the agency to prioritize bringing back cable cars. The agencys Citizen Advisory Council unanimously recommended restoring them.

We believe return of cable cars and historic vehicles would boost morale for the city in this continuously tough time, said Neil Ballard, the councils chair.

Some directors pushed the agency to create a plan and timeline for restoration.

We ought to try to get the cable cars back out there, Director Steve Heminger said. Getting that service out there, maybe its more of a symbolic victory, but I think that would be a statement more than most we can make that were back.

Director Manny Yekutiel, who owns a small business, said business owners are experiencing extreme distress and the agency needs to get ready to transport people when the economy reopens and provide a plan so owners can prepare.

San Franciscos tourist leaders are also eager to see service restored. Laura Schaefer, deputy director of the Fishermans Wharf Community Benefit District, emphasized cable cars are an iconic city experience touted by travel and trade organizations.

No experience is more uniquely San Francisco than a ride on the cable car. Its our very own national historic landmark, Schaefer said. If we do not return the cable cars, San Francisco will be seen as struggling with the changes that have resulted from COVID, and it impacts our already struggling hospitality and tourism industry.

Elisabeth Wieselthaler-Toelly, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Travel Association, said shes pleased the SFMTA is planning for the comeback of the cable cars  and tourism.

The cable cars are important because theyre such an iconic part of our brand and an important attraction for visitors. she said. Of course, we cant wait to have the cable cars back on the street, but they are just one part of tourism in S.F.

Heminger said Thursday that the agency should weigh its choices in deciding what services to prioritize but that the cable cars shouldnt be left for last.

The cable cars have a pretty important psychic value to city, he said. They are a symbol of the city, one of the oldest and most memorable parts of our city. Getting them out there would be a shot in the arm to the city.

Rick Laubscher, head of the Market Street Railway, a nonprofit group that promotes Munis historic transportation lines, said it would be easier and quicker to resume the streetcar services, which run on Market Street and along the Embarcadero.

The streetcars can be more easily fitted with protective shields for operators and provide safe space for riders, he said. The cable cars, with much tighter space, might need to wait for virus case counts to drop and precautionary measures to ease.

We all hope the pandemic wanes quickly, allowing those protocols to be relaxed soon. But the F-line streetcars can safely start back up now, while the cable cars probably need to wait for the protocols to be loosened to restart, he said. We are glad SFMTA is looking at whats required to restore both kinds of historic service, so we can be ready to go and can all see and hear the sweet sights and sounds of the cable cars and streetcars again.

The last lengthy cable car shutdown came in the early 1980s when a $60 million rehabilitation, championed by then-Mayor Dianne Feinstein, halted the cars for 21 months. Feinstein said Thursday shes eager to see them return.

When people think of San Francisco, among the first things that come to mind are cable cars, she said. I remember our fight to save them in the early 1980s when Tony Bennett, Mick Jagger and others joined the effort. The cable car system is unique in the world, theyre a big part of our citys history and identity and they deserve to be saved.

Mallory Moench and Michael Cabanatuan are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com, mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench, @ctuan
RTL, F1's well-known German broadcaster of the last three decades, could be returning to the paddock in 2021 after all.

With the pay network Sky Deutschland stepping up with a dedicated F1 channel, RTL had announced last year that staying in Formula 1 was no longer "economically justifiable".

But multiple German sources, including Tageszeitung and Munchner Merkur, are now reporting that RTL has reached a new deal with Formula 1 to broadcast four grands prix this season.

It is believed the new plan was devised when interest spiked in Germany with the forthcoming debut of Mick Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel's switch to Aston Martin.

"RTL does not comment on speculation," a spokesperson for the broadcaster told SID news agency.

Sky Deutschland also did not comment, but the reports also suggest that 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg is a part of RTL's 2021 plan.

Meanwhile, Sport1 reports that likely Aston Martin reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg is also set to sign up as a pundit for the new Austrian F1 broadcaster Servus TV.

South Carolina legislature passes heartbeat abortion ban; governor expected to sign

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The South Carolina House voted overwhelmingly to support a ban on abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy.

Known as the South Carolina Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act, the House passed the bill on Wednesday by a vote of 79-35, having already passed the state Senate.

The proposed legislation prohibits an abortion on a pregnant woman before a physician determines  whether the human fetus the pregnant woman is carrying has a detectable fetal heartbeat.

The Act includes exemptions for a pregnancy resulting from rape or incest, and when there is a life-threatening medical emergency for the mother.

Governor Henry McMaster has been a supporter of the legislation and is expected to sign it, making South Carolina the latest in a series of states to pass similar legislation.

Lisa Van Riper, president of the pro-life group South Carolina Citizens for Life, celebrated news of the bills passage in a statement released Wednesday.

This is an historic day in South Carolina when the House and the Senate have re-established the heartbeat as the scientific, objective standard as the sign of life for the unborn, stated Van Riper. [The Act] protects not only the unborn but the medically fragile members of our human family.

Groups like the South Carolina chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union denounced the legislation as a de facto ban on abortion, claiming that it is unconstitutional.

This legislation places both medical providers and their patients at risk. It imposes criminal sanctions on abortion-providing doctors unless the procedure is intended to prevent death or serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function, stated the ACLU back in January.

This legislation is unconstitutional. The Fourteenth Amendment to the US Constitution guarantees a right to privacy, and the United States Supreme Court has repeatedly reaffirmed that this right includes a persons ability to make decisions about their healthcare.

Over the past couple of years, multiple states have passed laws that prohibit abortions in most circumstances if the heartbeat of an unborn baby is detected.

These measures have been successfully challenged in the courts, with judges concluding that they violate the right to abortion as laid out in the United States Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade.

Last July, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a similar measure into law, only to have U.S. District Court Judge William Campbell stop it from being enforced.

The Act will immediately impact patients seeking abortions and imposes criminal sanctions on abortion providers. The time-sensitive nature of the procedure also weighs in favor of injunctive relief pending a preliminary injunction hearing, ruled Campbell.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has called upon companies in the US to look at India as a manufacturing base.

Delivering the inaugural virtual address at the annual conference of USIBC State of US-India Business, he said that trade between India and the US has grown exponentially, but there is a lot more to be desired.

Goyal said that the US and India complement each other.

He said that the US offers technology, finance and innovation, whereas India has a large market that needs to be served.

The minister, however, said that at the same time, there is a need to protect people in agriculture and protect the citizens from low quality products.

Emphasising at a fair dealing in their engagement, he said that India provides an under-served aspirational market. The minister said that the US will have to be very sensitive to price points in India, which matter to emerging economies with millions of people just coming out of poverty.

Inviting businesses in the US to look at India as a manufacturing base, Goyal said that from here, they can serve a large Indian market and at the same time, also serve global markets through cost-competitive products.

He said that their reforms in defence, mining, labour and agriculture sector will open up new opportunities for the American companies.

Goyal said that the government is keen to expand on the digital space with the US. He added that they would be conscious of their responsibility to the people of India for data privacy.

"There are a lot of concerns with the big tech companies, and India would like to protect its policy space," he said.

Graphic figure showing Lake Siljan. Credit: Linnaeus University

Fractured rocks of impact craters have been suggested as suitable environments for deep colonization of microbial communities. In a new study published in Communications Earth & Environment, a team of researchers shows that fungi has colonized deep parts of the largest impact crater in Europe, the Siljan impact structure, Sweden. Intriguingly, the fungi seem to have been fueling methane production in the crater.

At the scenic Swedish lake of Siljan, an impressive impact structure of more than 50 km in diameter formed almost 400 million years ago. In newly retrieved bore cores from drillings deep into the crater, a team of researchers have found fossil evidence of fungi.

The researchers examined an intensively fractured rock section at 540 depth level in the crater and noted fine filamentous structures in the vuggy rock. After closer examination in the laboratory, it became clear to them that the filaments were fossilized remains of fungi. Fungi that withstand the oxygen free environment at these depths.

The relative abundance of different isotopes of carbon and sulfur within minerals found in relation to fungi suggested to the researchers that the fungi were involved in methane- and sulfide-forming processes in relationships with other inhabitants of the deep biospherebacteria and archaea.

Henrik Drake, of the Linnaeus University, Sweden, and lead author of the study, explains the discovery: "The findings suggest that fungi may be widespread decomposers of organic matter and overlooked symbiotic partners to other, more primitive, microorganisms, thereby capable of enhancing the production of greenhouse gases in the vast rock-hosted deep biosphere."

Radioisotopic dating of tiny calcite crystals formed following microbial methane formation revealed an age of the fungi fossils to around 39 million years ago, more than 300 million years after the meteorite impact.

"We propose that the anaerobic fungi decomposed organic bituminous material in the fractures and produced hydrogen gas that fueled methanogens. This would be the first in situ finding of ancient anaerobic fungi linked to methanogenesis at great depth in the continental crust," says Magnus Ivarsson, at the Swedish Museum of Natural History and co-author of the study.

The impact structure, with a ring zone of down-faulted Paleozoic sediments, has been optimal for deep colonization of fungi, because energy sources in the form of organics and hydrocarbons from overlying shales have migrated throughout the fractured crater.

Close up showing fungie. Credit: Linnaeus University

"The preserved organic molecules that we could detect in the fungal remains give us additional evidence for a fungal origin and also for the proposed biodegradation pathway of shale-derived hydrocarbons, ultimately leading to production of methane at depth," adds co-author Christine Heim, of University of Cologne, Germany.

Henrik Drake says, "Microorganisms and their strategies for survival and colonization of Earth's most hostile environments continue to amaze and surprise us, and here we add another fungal piece to the deep biosphere jigsaw puzzle."

The results are presented in the article"Fossilized anaerobic and possibly methanogenesis-fueling fungi identified deep within the Siljan impact structure, Sweden" in the Nature journal Communications Earth & Environment.

Explore further Europe's largest meteorite crater home to deep ancient life

More information: "Fossilized anaerobic and possibly methanogenesis-fueling fungi identified deep within the Siljan impact structure, Sweden" Communications Earth & Environment (published 18th of February 2021). www.nature.com/articles/s43247-021-00107-9 "Fossilized anaerobic and possibly methanogenesis-fueling fungi identified deep within the Siljan impact structure, Sweden"(published 18th of February 2021). DOI: 10.1038/s43247-021-00107-9
President hit for sidelining senior presidential secretary



President Moon Jae-in should be held accountable for the unilateral reshuffling of senior prosecutors without having any consultations with Shin Hyun-soo, the senior presidential secretary for civil affairs. It is embarrassing to know that Shin has repeatedly offered to resign to protest the reshuffle, which Moon has rejected each time. But Shin must have felt that he was sidelined in the decision-making process.



The President has the right to appoint and reshuffle prosecutors at the recommendation of the justice minister. Yet the senior civil affairs secretary has traditionally played a key role in the prosecution's personnel affairs. In this regard, it is difficult to understand why Moon disregarded him in conducting a small-scale reshuffle of senior prosecutors, Feb. 7.



What matters is that Moon carried out the reshuffle at the request of Justice Minister Park Beom-kye without respecting Shin's opinion. Moon announced the reshuffle abruptly while Shin was coordinating the matter with Park. The hasty move came three days after the prosecution requested an arrest warrant for Paik Un-gyu, the former industry and energy minister. Paik is suspected of having engaged in the manipulation of data to shut down the aged Wolsong-1 nuclear reactor in 2019  well ahead of schedule  to promote Moon's nuclear phase-out policy.



The presidential office denied that the warrant request prompted the sudden reshuffle. However, some critics argue that it was aimed at blocking the prosecution from arresting and questioning the ex-energy minister. If that is true, the President cannot avoid criticism for pressuring the law enforcement agency not to expand its investigation of the nuclear power plant case.



Another question is why Moon appointed Shin, a career prosecutor, as the senior secretary for civil affairs last December. His appointment was apparently aimed at appeasing the prosecution which has been at odds with the Ministry of Justice. Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl has apparently invited the rage of Moon because he has continued to investigate ranking officials and politicians, including confidants of the President, for alleged abuse of power, corruption and election rigging.



Yoon clashed head-on with former Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae over his anti-corruption drive. Choo had tried in vain to kick Yoon out of the prosecution to protect the inner circle of political power. Then Moon replaced Choo with Park to help ease the conflict between the justice ministry and the prosecution. Moon also expected Shin to play a mediating role between the ministry and the agency. But by bypassing Shin in the reshuffle, the President has invited a backlash from him.



The reshuffle itself was also problematic. Despite Shin's objection, Moon decided to keep Lee Sung-yoon, who has lost the trust of rank-and-file prosecutors due to his pro-government inclinations, in his position as the head of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office. He promoted Shim Jae-cheol, a close aide to Choo and director in charge of the prosecution at the ministry, to lead the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office.



The episode indicates that the Moon administration is still trying to directly control the prosecution to prevent it from targeting corrupt officials and politicians of the ruling camp. The sidelining of Shin could weaken Moon's leadership. It is likely to hasten the process of Moon becoming a lame-duck president. More importantly, Moon should not attempt to tame the prosecution in the name of prosecutorial reform. Instead, he must do his best to ensure the political neutrality and independence of the law enforcement agency to uphold the rule of law.




OFFALY Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen has pledged to fight against proposals to ban the cutting and burning of turf.

Environment Minister Eamon Ryan TD, leader of the Green Party, has launched a public consultation on solid fuel regulations, in advance of an expected ban on the use of all smoky coal.

Currently, smoky coal burning is outlawed in all towns with a population of over 10,000, including Tullamore.

However, the consultation will also examine the use of other solid fuels, including peat and wood, with the Department of Climate Action saying regulation would improve air quality for the benefit of all.

The department says rules on the maximum moisture content level at which wood be can sold could be introduced because wood with high moisture content is significantly more polluting than wood with low moisture content.

The Climate Action Department also said EPA research shows that the contribution of peat to air pollution levels is significant.

It said consideration needs to be given to options which may restrict the sale and marketing of sod turf, while respecting the traditional practice of turf cutting for personal use only.

The Green Party Senator in Offaly, Pippa Hackett, Minister for Biodiversity, welcomed the consultation, which opened today (Thursday, February 18).

The quality of our air is fundamental to our health. In 2018, there were 1,410 premature mortalities arising from air pollution in Ireland and many people in this country suffer horribly from respiratory diseases that are exacerbated by poor air quality. In turn, that puts pressure on our health services, Minister Hackett said in a statement.

So its timely that we should have a public consultation about how we can lessen the harm from the fuels we burn in our homes  the fuels that pollute our air. Some fuels are more damaging to our health than others. Smokeless coal and seasoned wood, for instance, are less harmful to regular coal, turf and green wood.

Retrofitting will help to reduce our dependency on burning fuel to keep our homes warm, and Midlands counties have been the first to start retrofitting local authority homes, which will help the air quality here.

The purpose of this consultation is to get the best ideas on how to change our fuel-burning habits to reduce deaths from air pollution, and to ensure a better quality of life for those with breathing difficulties. I would encourage everyone to have their say.

Speaking on the Claire Byrne Show on RTE this morning, Minister Hackett played down speculation about a ban on turf and asked people not to jump to conclusions now but to read the consultation document first.

In advance of the opening of the opening of the consultation, Deputy Cowen pledged at Wednesday night's Fianna Fail parliamentary party meeting to oppose any moves to ban turf.

He said Fianna Fail will resist and reject what he said were Minister Ryan's proposals to outlaw households using turf whether cut by themselves or purchased from commercial cutters.

He said retrofitting will continue to drive down turf use anyway and added that it is important that Fianna Fail win this argument with the Minister.

The public consultation is open until 5.30 p.m. on Friday, April 2 next. It can be accessed online at https://www.gov.ie/en/consultation/5de58-public-consultation-on-the-development-of-new-solid-fuel-regulations-for-ireland/
CarRx Mobile App Home Screen While CarRx provides tailored solutions for drivers, it also acts as an added profit center for dealers.

Elo GPS, one of the nations leading vehicle inventory management systems, has introduced a feature that is helping dealers across the country increase service retention while enhancing the overall customer experience.

CarRx is a feature within Elo GPS configurable system that allows dealers an efficient and effective way to communicate with customers post-sale. Unlike factory apps that send your customers to the competition, CarRx only sends your customer back to your dealership. Customers with the Elo GPS system installed in their vehicle can receive automatic maintenance alerts and personalized messages through the downloadable CarRx app, available via the App Store or Google Play.

One of the biggest struggles plaguing new car dealerships is the loss of service retention once a new customer drives off the lot. As a result, the ways in which dealers are seeking to get drivers back to the dealership for service and maintenance are meticulous and time-consuming. CarRx is designed to ensure that selling a vehicle is not the last time a dealer may ever see the customer. Unlike the cumbersome and expensive options provided by digital marketing companies, CarRx takes the hassle out of customer communication and streamlines the process of scheduling routine service and maintenance.

Within CarRxs dealer dashboard, owners and managers obtain a comprehensive overview of all the vehicles with Elo GPS and CarRx installed. From here, dealers can see exactly how many vehicles have their check engine lights illuminated, which ones are due for routine maintenance, and other diagnostic reports.

This data-driven insight gives dealers the ability to understand individual customer needs and tailor messaging specifically to the driver. For example, if you notice a driver is due for a routine oil change, you can send a coupon encouraging them to return to the dealership for service. No phone calls, paper messaging, or emails. Send drivers targeted alerts directly to their smartphones.

Additionally, drivers get automatic in-app notifications when its time for routine maintenance based on their make, model, and mileage - making it more likely your customer will come back to your service center.

While CarRx provides tailored solutions for drivers, it also acts as an added profit center for dealers. Elo GPS is an affordable solution that drives significant returns. Many dealers partnered with this solution gross an additional $1 million per year in non-cancelable gross profit, not including the Repair Order (RO) revenues.

If you are curious about the benefits of CarRx and how it can increase your bottom line, get in touch with a representative today to learn more or schedule a demo.
NEW YORK, NY (Feb. 18, 2021)--A new study from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons has found that suicide mortality can be reduced by a Federally coordinated approach employing scientifically proven options.

Columbia researchers J. John Mann, MD, Christina A. Michel, MA, and Randy P. Auerbach, PhD, conducted a systematic review, determining which suicide prevention strategies work and are scalable to national levels.

The study, "Improving Suicide Prevention Through Evidence-Based Strategies: A Systematic Review," was published online in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

The researchers found that screening school children or the general population for those at risk for suicide--the tenth leading cause of death in the U.S. with 48,344 suicide deaths in 2018--have generally not reduced suicide rates.

The outstanding exception is training primary care physicians in depression recognition and medication treatment. That approach prevents suicide, often halving the risk.

While educating the public about depression and suicidal behavior has not been shown to prevent suicidal behavior in adults, educating high school students prevents suicidal behavior, though educating their teachers or parents does not.

"Timing is everything," said Dr. Mann. "Active outreach to psychiatric patients after discharge or following a suicidal crisis both prevent suicidal behavior."

Although medication treatment of depression is subject to a black box warning by the FDA, meta-analyses of FDA and NIMH-funded study data find antidepressants prevent suicide attempts. But standard antidepressants take weeks to work, which has led to increased interest in intravenously administered ketamine, a promising treatment to reduce suicidal ideation in hours that is untested for suicidal behavior prevention.

The study found that the final line of defense in suicide prevention is reducing access to the most lethal methods for suicide. Half of all suicides in the United States involve a firearm that was mostly purchased years earlier, suggesting that improved gun safety in the home should be a national priority.

Combinations of these approaches in health care systems show promise in reducing suicide rates in the U.K., Denmark, and even parts of the U.S.

"It is time to use this knowledge and implement a national suicide prevention plan, " said Dr. Mann.

###

The Columbia University Department of Psychiatry is among the top ranked psychiatry departments in the nation and has contributed greatly to the understanding and treatment of brain disorders. Co-located at the New York State Psychiatric Institute on the NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Irving Medical Center campus in Washington Heights, the department enjoys a rich and productive collaborative relationship with physicians in various disciplines at the Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. Columbia Psychiatry is home to distinguished clinicians and researchers noted for their clinical and research advances in the diagnosis and treatment of depression, suicide, schizophrenia, bipolar and anxiety disorders, eating disorders, substance use disorders, and childhood psychiatric disorders.

Columbia University Irving Medical Center provides international leadership in basic, preclinical, and clinical research; medical and health sciences education; and patient care. The medical center trains future leaders and includes the dedicated work of many physicians, scientists, public health professionals, dentists, and nurses at the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, the Mailman School of Public Health, the College of Dental Medicine, the School of Nursing, the biomedical departments of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and allied research centers and institutions. Columbia University Irving Medical Center is home to the largest medical research enterprise in New York City and State and one of the largest faculty medical practices in the Northeast. For more information, visit cuimc.columbia.edu or columbiadoctors.org.
[February 18, 2021] Symetra Promotes Lisa Marecki to SVP, Life & Disability and Select Benefits

Symetra Life Insurance Company, a national provider of employee benefits, today announced the promotion of Lisa Marecki to senior vice president of its Group Life and Disability (LAD) and Select Benefits voluntary benefits product lines. Most recently vice president of underwriting for LAD and Select Benefits, Ms. Marecki reports to Harry Monti, executive vice president, Benefits Division, and will continue to be based out of Symetra's Enfield, Connecticut office. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005702/en/ Lisa Marecki, senior vice president, Group Life & Disability and Select Benefits at Symetra. (Photo: Business Wire) As SVP, Ms. Marecki will be responsible for growing Symetra's presence in the group insurance market, with oversight for product development and anagement, underwriting, claims management and the division's ongoing expansion into the voluntary products marketplace.



"Lisa has been an integral part of our success increasing Symetra's presence in the LAD and voluntary product markets, and I look forward to the impact she will have in this expanded role," said Harry Monti, EVP, Benefits Division. "Symetra is on a journey to reach more customers and provide them with excellent experiences. Whether supporting an employer's medical plan with our stop loss offerings, covering employees' supplemental health-related costs, providing financial protection from disabilities, or assisting families that have lost a loved one, we're focused on helping employers be successful and make a real difference in their employees' lives. We're fortunate to have Lisa help drive that vision forward." Ms. Marecki joined Symetra in January 2018 from AIG, where she was vice president and head of Group Life and Disability Product and Underwriting. Her extensive career in group benefits includes nearly 25 years with The Hartford in a number of individual contributor and leadership roles, lastly as AVP, director of underwriting.

Ms. Marecki attended Mitchell College in New London, Conn. Symetra offers group life, disability, absence management and stop loss insurance coverage. Its Select Benefits voluntary product suite includes accident, critical illness, and hospital indemnity insurance, as well as GapAssist, a package of accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity benefits designed to complement any other plan, including major medical coverage paired with an HSA. About Symetra Symetra Life Insurance Company is a subsidiary of Symetra Financial Corporation, a diversified financial services company based in Bellevue, Washington. In business since 1957, Symetra provides employee benefits, annuities and life insurance through a national network of benefit consultants, financial institutions, and independent financial professionals and insurance producers. For more information, visit www.symetra.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005702/en/

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SAN JOSE, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- MetricStream, the market leader in governance, risk, and compliance (GRC), and integrated risk management products and solutions, today announced that Hemant Aggarwal joined the company as the Head of Customer Engagement Operations  that includes operations for Customer Success and Professional Services, Support and Partner Enablement.

"Organizations today are going through transformative changes, driving the need for rapid deployment, adoption and value from their integrated GRC and risk management investments," said Gaurav Kapoor, COO, MetricStream. "Key to achieving this is having a customer adoption, delivery and support model that is agile and highly value centric. With Hemant's vast experience at market-leading product companies like FICO and Fiserv as well as financial institutions like Barclays and Citi, we are delighted to have him join our team to expand our vision of serving our customers as they adopt and realize value from MetricStream SaaS Cloud offerings."

"I am honored to be joining MetricStream at a time when GRC/IRM SaaS solutions are redefining how businesses stay resilient and thrive on risk," added Hemant Aggarwal. ''As a market leader in GRC/IRM, MetricStream is at the leading edge of the market with hundreds of customers globally, and I look forward to being part of the growth and customer centric journey," he further added.

Prior to joining MetricStream Hemant Aggarwal was the Vice President of Digital Channels, Payments & Risks, Internal Group at Fiserv, a global provider of financial services technology. Mr. Aggarwal brings more than 25 years financial services and IT experience from renowned industry leaders, including FICO, Barclays, Citigroup and other international fintech organizations.

About MetricStream, Inc.

MetricStream is the global market leader for Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) and integrated risk management solutions, providing the most comprehensive solutions based on a single platform that includes Operational Risk, Compliance, Audits, IT and Cybersecurity, Business Continuity and Third-Party Risk Management. Since 2008, MetricStream has empowered organizations to intuitively harness front-line intelligence that enables all stakeholders to make real-time risk-aware business decisions. MetricStream is headquartered in San Jose, California, with an operations and R&D center in Bangalore, India, and sales and operations support around the globe. More information is available at www.metricstream.com, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

MetricStream and the MetricStream logo are trademark or registered trademarks of MetricStream, Inc.

CONTACT:

Chris McKie

MetricStream, Inc.

[email protected]

408-630-9843

SOURCE MetricStream, Inc.
Kathmandu, February 18

The United States Ambassador to Nepal, Randy Berry, has warned that Nepal could risk losing out on the grant support assured by the US governments Millennium Challenge Compact if people here continued to link it to a military alliance.

Berrys statement comes at a time when the fate of the USD 500 million grant agreement signed in 2017 has been pushed into limbo with Nepal failing to approve it in parliament.

Addressing student officers and faculty at the Nepal Army Command and Staff College in Kathmandu on Tuesday, the ambassador reiterated that the programme did not have anything to do with any military alliance with Nepal.

When people claim that a development programme like the MCC commits Nepal to join a military alliancedespite the factthe FACTthat it is against US law to use MCC funding for military activities and all of the MCC information is available publiclyit means Nepal risks losing out on a grant assistance programme and an economic opportunity that has so much potential that every Nepali party in power has tried to secure it for over a decade, he said.

He clarified that the US government never wanted to establish a military base in Nepal nor form a military alliance.

The ambassador, however, said the American government would continue supporting the Nepal Army to strengthen its capacity.

Our military engagement in Nepal is more than just partnering to deal with humanitarian disasters, he said, We would like to help in other ways as well, but will only do so at the invitation of your leadership.

New Delhi, Feb 18 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested Tariq Hussain Giri, a terrorist harbourer, in connection with its probe into a Hizbul Mujahideen terror module case, in which the accused had snatched the service rifle from the escort in-charge of the DM in Kishtwar in Jammu and Kashmir.

An NIA spokesperson said here that the agency arrested Giri, a resident of Kishtwar, on Wednesday and he has been sent to five-day agency custody.

The official said that Giri was arrested for harbouring and providing logistical support to Hizabul Mujahideen terrorists, namely Osama Bin Javed and Haroon Abbas Wani, in the second week of March, 2019 after the militants snatched the service rifle from the escort in-charge.

"The case of weapon snatching was one of the four incidents of terror acts committed by Hizabul terrorists between November 2018 and September 2019," the official said.

The J&K Police had registered a case on March 8, 2019 under several sections of the Arms Act and the UAPA. The NIA took over the case on November 2, 2019.
Namkhana : , Feb 18 (IANS) In a bid to woo women-voters in poll-bound West Bengal, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday announced 33 per cent reservation for women in government jobs if the party is voted to power.

Shah made the announcement while addressing a huge crowd of supporters in Namkhana village of the South 24 Parganas district and kicking off the fifth and final phase of "Poribortan Yatraa in Bengal. "If we come to power we will provide 33 per cent reservation for women in the government jobs," the Home Minister said.

This wasn't the only sop that Shah promised at the public meeting. He also said in case the BJP comes to power, it will works towards implementing the Seventh Pay Commission.

Shah said the economy of the state is in such a precarious position that the Seventh Pay Commission is not given to employees of the state government.

"If we are voted to power, I promise we will implement the Seventh Pay Commission benefits to all the employees," Shah said.

He also highlighted the plight of teachers in the state and said that the party will fighting for their rights and proper remuneration. "After coming to power, the BJP government in West Bengal will form a committee to give right remuneration to teachers in the state," he said.

Shah also emphasised on the upliftment of the fishermen community in the state, "For welfare of fishermen, after coming to power, we will give Rs 6, 000 as 'fishermen Samaan Nidhi' like 'Kisan Samman Nidhi' to four lakh fishermen in the state," he said.

"To ensure the right price for their produce, the BJP government will create a ministry at the level of state minister. A seafood hub will be developed in the area of 24 Parganas," he said.

He further said that Gangasagar will be developed as a tourism and cultural hub. "The fair held at Gangasagar on the occasion of Uttarayan on January 14 will be given the status of international fair to bring tourists from across the globe," said the union home minister.

The BJP is giving a tough fight to the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal. Assembly elections in the state are scheduled later this year.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
President Joe Biden intends to recalibrate" the U.S. relationship with Saudi Arabia and will emphasize outreach to King Salman, in a move that signals a downgrade in ties with Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, the countrys de facto ruler.

It is the latest sign Bidens team is taking a different track from former President Donald Trump toward the worlds largest oil exporter. Trump established close ties with Prince Mohammed and made Saudi Arabia the centerpiece of his strategy toward the Middle East after taking his first trip abroad as president there.

Thats all being scaled back. In Bidens first few days, the U.S. put a hold on some key weapons sales to the kingdom and announced new efforts to bring an end to the Saudi-led war in Yemen. Biden has also called on Saudi Arabia to improve its human rights record.

Were going to recalibrate our relationship with Saudi Arabia," Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Tuesday. Part of that is going back to engagement counterpart-to-counterpart. The presidents counterpart is King Salman."

Instead of engaging primarily with Biden, the crown princes most appropriate counterpart is Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, according to a person familiar. While Prince Mohammeds official role is deputy prime minister and defense minister, he has a vast range of responsibilities as heir to the throne his father, 85, has held since 2015.

He runs the countrys day-to-day affairs, and its common for foreign leaders to liaise with him directly, including Russias Vladimir Putin and Frances Emmanuel Macron.

Snub to Crown Prince

The changes suggest U.S.-Saudi relations will return to more structured, routine channels," according to Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former Mideast official at the State Department. This is a slapdown of MBS, who the administration views as reckless and ruthless."

A White House official, who asked not to be identified discussing the change, said Psakis comment signals a return to longstanding diplomatic process.

A Saudi official who asked not to be identified said the kingdoms government is confident that bilateral ties will strengthen during the Biden administration, emphasizing shared interests as well as agreement on threats, challenges and opportunities in the Mideast. The official described ties with the U.S. as strong."

Nevertheless, theres been disquiet in Saudi elite circles over how Biden might change the U.S. relationship with the kingdom -- and with Iran, Saudi Arabias regional rival.

Tehran sees Biden as weak," read the headline of a column on Wednesday in Al Sharq Al Awsat, written by Abdulrahman Al Rashed, a Saudi commentator close to the government.

U.S. Weighs Saudi Immunity Request in Assassination Plot Case

The relationship isnt entirely broken. U.S. officials have said they want to help the Saudis be better able to defend themselves against Iranian aggression, and the U.S. is expected to work closely with the kingdoms authorities to help bring about an end to the Saudi-led war in neighboring Yemen.

The crown prince became a pariah in much of official Washington after the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. An investigation by a United Nations special rapporteur implicated senior Saudi officials who reported directly to the crown prince, an accusation rejected by the kingdoms officials.

Trump and his administration, in particular his son-in-law Jared Kushner, remained close to Prince Mohammed after the murder and avoided blaming him for it. Trump defended the relationship, saying billions of dollars in U.S. weapons sales to the kingdom would just go to China or Russia if the U.S. pushed back.

Avril Haines, Bidens director of national intelligence, has vowed to release an unclassified CIA report into Khashoggis killing that is likely to embarrass the crown prince.

Recasting the relationship is meant to send a signal that President Biden wants certain things from the crown prince, such as an end to the war in Yemen and a different approach to dissent at home," said Martin Indyk, a former U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, now at the Council on Foreign Relations.

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KYIV -- Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko has marked the seventh anniversary of the shooting deaths of dozens of participants in the Euromaidan anti-government protests that toppled Ukraine's Russia-friendly former president, Viktor Yanukovych, in 2014.

Klitschko laid flowers on February 18 at the sites where the deadly shootings occurred seven years ago and at the so-called Monument of the Heavenly Hundred on Kyiv's Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti).

"Every day of the fight -- from autumn 2013 to February 2014 -- was important. No matter how difficult it is now, we will not disown or betray the ideals and principles we fought for at Maidan," Klitschko said.

While the official day of nationwide commemorations to honor those who were killed in Kyiv during clashes with Yanukovych's security forces is February 20, some parts of Ukraine begin honoring the slain protesters two days earlier, on the day when the shootings started.

The Euromaidan movement began in November 2013 when protesters gathered on the central square in Kyiv to protest Yanukovych's decision not to sign a crucial trade accord with the European Union. Instead, he sought closer economic ties with Russia.

Ukrainian prosecutors say 104 people were killed and 2,500 injured as a result of violent crackdowns by authorities against protesters from February 18-20, 2014.

Shunning a deal backed by the West and Russia to end the standoff, Yanukovych abandoned power and fled Kyiv on February 21, 2014.

The former president, who was secretly flown to Russia and remains there, denies that he ordered police to fire on protesters, saying that the violence was the result of a planned operation to overthrow his government.

In March 2014, shortly after Yanukovych's downfall, Russian military forces seized control of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula -- a precursor to the Kremlin's illegal annexation of the territory through a hastily organized and widely discredited referendum.

Russia also has supported pro-Russia separatists who are fighting Ukrainian government forces in eastern Ukraine.

More than 13,200 people have been killed in that conflict since April 2014.
Herb Washington, an As player in the mid-1970s, received support Thursday from the Rev. Jesse Jackson for his lawsuit against McDonalds.

Washington, 69, a designated runner during his time as a big-leaguer, accused McDonalds of discriminating against Black franchise owners and forcing him to sell his franchises to white owners.

I recently learned of litigation being filed by Herb Washington, whom I met in the 80s while running for president, Jackson said in a statement. Herb Washington is a man of integrity, having served on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank (of New York) for many years. His lawsuit against McDonalds has my attention, and I am concerned about its resolution.

McDonalds needs to implement a respect-based plan for Black operators. I will be in contact with the executive leadership of McDonalds regarding these issues.

Washington owned 27 restaurants, the nations largest Black-owned McDonalds franchise operator. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Ohio, alleges that McDonalds has been pushing out Washington in part because of his opposition to the relentless discrimination he has endured in the McDonalds system.

Washington said he was forced to sell seven of his McDonalds restaurants to white owners the past three years and currently has 14 outlets.

There is a growing crisis emerging between McDonalds and its Black owner-operators, who have historically been allies and the face of the corporation, Jackson said. Although McDonalds has made tremendous strides over the years, there seems to be an adverse wind blowing in the face of its Black operators.

John Shea is The San Francisco Chronicles national baseball writer. Email: jshea@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JohnSheaHey
TORRINGTON  Elaine Murphy has spent nearly four decades providing spa services to a long list of clients in greater Torrington, and her latest salon is taking her skills a step further.

Murphy, of New Hartford, opened Beauty Lounge in January, with hair stylist and color specialist Valerie Bruno by her side. The new spa is located at 733 E. Main St., a professional building thats home to Pursue the Clues, an attorney, a nail salon and a professional that provides music lessons.

Its not her first time in the building  in fact, its her third.

In 1989 I opened the first one, Elaines Shear Skinsanity, and in 2008 I opened Elaines Spa-Aah, also in that building, Murphy said. Back then, there wasnt as much of a focus on nails and pedicures, facials and things like that.

Then the Spa-Aah started taking off, and that was a big thing  the whole feel-good health and wellness movement. So I decided to take the second part of the salon, the facials, and move it to the second unit, away from the loud blow-dryer atmosphere to separate it, to give it a different atmosphere.

In the 2000s, Murphy had 28 employees and worked nonstop.

Things were busy, she said. I worked all day and then went home to four teenage daughters. I realized I wanted to scale down. I wanted to simplify. So I sold the larger salon, added four cutting stations to the hair salon, and simplified the space. Then about four years ago, I stepped away from the whole thing.

She worked as a stylist in Burlington until the pandemic hit in March 2020, which forced hair and nail care businesses to close. When they reopened, the rules were strict, with limited customer access for appointments and a host of health department regulations to follow.

COVID-19 hit and we were home quarantining, and when we were finally allowed to go back to work, I felt I needed my own space, Murphy said. I missed the salon part of the job. I wanted to get back in there.

Murphy and Bruno were classmates at Oliver Wolcott Technical High School. Bruno had moved to Florida, where she ran her own salon. Shes from Winsted and has family here, and when I told her I was opening my own salon, she wanted to come and work for me, Murphy said.

Both women said their education at Oliver Wolcott Tech prepared them well for their careers. In 2019, Murphy was named OWTS Alumni of the Year.

You get a well-rounded education, regardless of what you take at the school, Murphy said. As hairstylists, we had four years of chemistry and biology, business classes. ... So they prepare you for the industry, definitely. You graduate with your license.

After graduation, she worked at a small salon inside the Yankee Pedlar on Main Street owned by Maryann Summa. I was on Main Street for four years, she said. Dales Casual Clothes opened across from the Nutmeg Ballet, and there was a store called Studio 58. The owner asked me to manage it, and it was a great stepping stone to me. I learned to run my own business. I worked there for six years. After 10 years on Main Street, I decided to open a business on my own.

Murphy enjoys working in Torrington. For me, its centrally located for all my clients, who are from Goshen, Sharon, Winsted, Litchfield, New Hartford, Harwinton and Torrington, Murphy said. Even though its a trip to come to Torrington, there are so many other things they can do. ... Everythings so centrally located.

At Beauty Lounge, Murphy has kept the pandemic in mind while planning the space. Shampoo sinks are in a separate room, away from the stylists chairs. Another area is dedicated to the salons full line of Repechage, a seaweed-based treatment that includes facials, body scrubs and wraps that are tailored to a persons skin type and condition. I provide all of Repechages facials and theres a variety of them, depending on the person. They might have acne, or their skin is dry, or its aging.

She also wants to provide wedding party services  hair styling and makeup  at the salon. I was going to the wedding party and doing the hair and makeup there, because I didnt have the space, she said. So I designed the Beauty Lounge with that space in mind.

In her private life, Murphy and her husband, Robert, a relocation specialist, have five children. Son RJ is a freshman at Western New England University. Her oldest daughter, Stephanie, 31, works for FOX; daughter Riley, 28, is a personal trainer; Marijo, 26, is a school guidance counselor; and Sage, 26, teaches yoga and works at the Palace Theater in Waterbury.

Murphy is a member of the Northwest Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, and belongs to the Friends of Brodie Park committee, a nonprofit in New Hartford. Shes also a member of Catholic Charities in Torrington, and was a Girl Scout leader when her children were growing up.

Her membership with the chamber, she said, made all the difference in her ability to run a successful business.

I have to say that the chamber is probably the best school (to learn about) business, she said. They have the SCORE program, and although I went to school and learned a lot, I didnt go to college to study business. I went to SCORE and met with a retired accountant, and he took me under his wing. He taught me how to create a business plan, how to apply for a business mortgage, things like that. When I have the opportunity, I always tell people about the Chamber of Commerce.

Since she opened Beauty Lounge, business has been steady, but Murphy is looking forward to busier days.

Its COVID-19 time, so right now its just the two of us, but I have four cutting stations and two treatment rooms, she said. Down the road I want to rent (chairs), but right now I want to keep everyone at a distance. I want our clientele to feel safe and comfortable in our space.

To reach the salon, call 860-733-9099 or visit www.beautylounge733.com .
Now Open

18 February 2021

Tharaldson Hospitality Management (THM) is pleased to announce the opening of the brand-new Residence Inn Grand Rapids Downtown.

This extended-stay Residence Inn, located at 40 Louis Street NW, features 147 all-suite rooms, along with great amenities such as free Wifi, free hot breakfast, an indoor pool, fitness center, business center, on-site laundry, grocery shopping service, and much more. The hotel also features a meeting room available for rent and the Residence Inn MixTM, a complimentary evening social for guests (not currently available during COVID-19 cleanliness protocols).

The unique architecture of the building, as well as the fantastic location in downtown Grand Rapids, ensures that this property will bring a plethora of business and tourists to the Grand Rapids area.

Under its franchise agreement with Marriott International, Inc., THM will own and operate the property.

WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden has quickly approved states of emergency in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana. He has spoken with the governors of seven states hit hard by cold and snow. His administration has coordinated the delivery of supplies and other assistance.

Facing the first major natural disaster of his tenure - the kind of event that can emerge unexpectedly and throw an administration off course - Biden so far has tried to showcase a competent and by-the-books government, rather than make dramatic gestures.

"Jill and I are keeping Texas, Oklahoma, and other impacted states in our prayers," Biden wrote on Twitter on Thursday. "I've declared states of emergency, authorized FEMA to provide generators and supplies, and am ready to fulfill additional requests."

Competent government was a central promise of Biden's campaign, and personal empathy has long been part of his identity. The Texas storm arguably calls for both, and it confronts Biden with an early leadership test for his young presidency.

So far, Biden has not opted for higher-profile gestures such as visiting the stricken areas, making public remarks or seizing on electrical failures to push his infrastructure plan. His administration is immersed in the fight against the coronavirus epidemic, and White House press secretary Jen Psaki said a presidential trip could disrupt police and rescue efforts in the disaster zone.

Still, the White House on Thursday sought to make the case that the administration is doing what it can. It announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has provided 60 generators to Texas to keep hospitals powered and water pumps running. FEMA has also supplied 729,000 liters of water, 225,000 meals, 10,000 wool blankets and 50,000 cotton blankets, officials said.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, said he would ask the White House for a "major disaster declaration" in addition to the emergency status that already was granted. The new aid, aimed at long-term repair rather than immediate rescue, would let Texans apply for help with expenses such as replacing broken pipes. "The past several days have been beyond challenging, but with every passing hour we are restoring power and water for families across Texas," Abbott said.

Robert J. Fenton Jr., the acting FEMA administrator, said in an interview that the agency has a presence in nearly 15 states and is monitoring the fallout from power and water supply failures and preparing for possible flooding when temperatures rise.

But the unusual storm creates some challenges as the administration deals with multiple crises, including the pandemic. Fenton said Biden requested a briefing on the storm on Tuesday, but Fenton was in Los Angeles opening a coronavirus vaccination site, and another FEMA official, David Bibo, had to conduct the briefing.

"He is engaged," Fenton said of Biden. "He's phoning governors, he's leaning on us to provide assistance early."

Not everyone in Texas is satisfied. State Rep. Bob Hall, a Republican, blamed the failures on several factors, including ailing infrastructure and a state power grid that needs improvement. But he also said he viewed the federal response as inadequate.

"I have seen nothing from the federal government in response except they were going to offer up some generators," Hall said. But he also added that he would be skeptical if federal help came with restrictions.

"I would be very concerned about any strings the federal government wants to attach," said Hall, who used a hairdryer and a lightbulb - an incandescent one, not an LED - to warm his frozen pipes at his home near Dallas. "Especially green energy-related."

One top White House aide said the government is relying in part on the network that sprang up as part of the federal response to the novel coronavirus.

"There is a silver lining to the very dark cloud of covid, which is that our FEMA teams have been deeply embedded for quite a long time," Liz Sherwood-Randall, Biden's homeland security adviser, told reporters. "There's a great deal of familiarity among the people involved in needing to work these issues now - because they've been working for quite a while on covid response."

Sherwood-Randall also said the storm highlights the need for a large-scale rethinking of American infrastructure and energy policy, forecasting a broader debate that the White House soon may pursue. The weather emergencies demonstrate again that climate change is real, she said, "and we're not adequately prepared for it. The infrastructure is not built to withstand these extreme conditions."

Although Biden has made telephone calls and been briefed several times daily, he has largely focused in recent days on what his administration views as the biggest challenge confronting his presidency - the coronavirus response and vaccine distribution.

The storm that gripped the Southwest and left millions of Texans without power did not come up Tuesday night during Biden's hour-long CNN town hall, and he did not comment publicly about them Wednesday as his Twitter feed urged Americans to embrace vaccines and mask-wearing.

The politics of natural disasters can be among the thorniest and least predictable for presidents, because they can seem to come out of nowhere and present a stark test of competence.

George W. Bush was heavily criticized for his administration's failure to prepare for and respond adequately to Hurricane Katrina, hurting Republicans the following year in the 2006 midterm elections.

As president, Donald Trump sometimes tied federal aid to a state's political leanings, threatening officials in the midst of crises. In 2019, he threatened to cut off federal aid to California to deal with its wildfires,accusing Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, of mismanagement, relenting only when Newsom called him to make a personal appeal.

Trump also held up an aid package for Puerto Rico for three years, calling its leaders corrupt and publicly sparring with them. He released the aid weeks before the 2020 election in what Democrats called a bid to win votes in Florida.

"I'm the best thing that ever happened to Puerto Rico," Trump said in releasing the aid. "Nobody even close."

In Texas this week, some state officials noted the difference - not in whether they received aid but in the tone.

"Biden didn't make Abbott grovel or humiliate himself or pledge his loyalty. I think that's a vast improvement over the past four years," said Democratic state Rep. Gene Wu, who lost power at home for three days but got it back early Thursday morning.

He spoke Thursday from a Chinese restaurant, where he was picking up hundreds of hot meals he planned to take to an apartment complex in his district in southwest Houston.

"It's nothing fancy - just chicken, vegetables and rice, but it's hot, and there are people in my district who have not had electricity or water for the last four days," Wu said. "We're just trying to help as much as we can."

State Rep. Rafael Anchia, a member of the Energy Committee in the Texas House, said he was relieved by the federal response, particularly since the Trump administration rejected a request for a disaster declaration in his district after devastating tornadoes in 2019.

"They've been really responsive, which has been good to see - a competent response to a natural disaster," said Anchia, a Democrat, adding that the 2019 decision was "a real gut punch for Dallas."

Throughout the day Thursday, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, was criticized by other officials for traveling with his family to Cancun, Mexico, as many of those in his home state were left without power, food or safe drinking water. Cruz rushed home Thursday afternoon, saying it was his daughters who'd wanted the trip.

"With school canceled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends," Cruz said in a statement. "Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon."

Some Republicans came to Cruz's defense, arguing that there is little that U.S. senators can do during a natural disaster.

"There's also a difference between a Governor and a Senator in terms of job description and what they can do for localized disasters," Donald Trump Jr. tweeted. "Optics is one thing but let's be real here."

Responding to a reporter's question about Cruz, Psaki sought to poke gently at the senator without criticizing him directly. "The many people across the state who are without power, without the resources they need - we expect that would be the focus of anyone in the state or surrounding states who was elected to represent them," she said. "But I don't have any update on his whereabouts."

Psaki suggested Biden might not visit the affected region anytime soon.

"One of the factors to consider here is what the impact is - the footprint of a presidential trip," she said. "It can take up resources, it can take up the time and energy of police and security. And so those are factors we consider as we determine when and where he'll visit."

Instead, Biden has sought to signal his concern through official actions. The president almost immediately approved a federal emergency declaration requested by Abbott, authorizing the federal government to coordinate disaster relief efforts.

On Wednesday, the White House announced that FEMA was supplying generators and moving diesel fuel into the state to boost the supply of backup power.

By Thursday afternoon, power had been restored in much of Texas, but the operator of the state's electricity grid said rotating power outages still might be required for several more days.

Biden approved a similar emergency declaration for Oklahoma at the request of Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, the White House announced Thursday.

"Thank you @POTUS for your quick action to approve our request," the governor wrote on Twitter.

By Thursday afternoon, the White House had approved an additional request that was submitted by Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat.
Thursday told the that it has not leaked any material to the media in relation to its probe in the FIR against climate activist Disha Ravi for her alleged involvement in sharing a toolkit backing the ongoing farmers' protest.

The court was hearing Ravi's plea to restrain police from leaking to the media any probe material in relation to the FIR lodged against her.

The submission was made before Justice Prathiba M Singh by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the police.

The court asked the police to file an affidavit containing its submission that it has not leaked any material relating to the investigation to the media.

Since there were no counsels representing the News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA) and some of the media houses named in Ravi's petition, the court issued notice to them and said it will hear the matter on Friday.

The petition has also sought to restrain the media from publishing the content or extract of any private chats, including those on WhatsApp, between her and third parties.

Ravi said she is "severely aggrieved and prejudiced by the media trial surrounding her arrest and the ongoing investigation, where she is being viscerally attacked by the respondent 1 (police) and several media houses".

She claimed that her arrest from Bengaluru on February 13 by a Cyber Cell team of was "wholly unlawfully and without basis".

She also contended that in the present circumstances, it was "highly likely" that the general public will perceive the news items "as being conclusive as to the guilt of the petitioner (Ravi)".

"In these circumstances, and to restrain the respondents from further violating her privacy, her reputation, and her right to a fair trial, the petitioner is moving the present petition," the plea has said.

Her petition has alleged that investigative matters have been leaked to the media and the press briefings by the police are "prejudicial" and "grossly violative of her right to a fair trial and presumption of innocence".

"The illegal actions and omissions on part of the respondents has irrevocably violated the petitioner's fundamental right to privacy, her right to reputation, her dignity, and the consequent effect of the administration of justice and right to fair trial," the petition has said.

It has claimed that the police first "leaked investigative material" -- like alleged WhatsApp chats -- the substance and details of which were only in the possession of the investigating agency.

Thereafter, the "private alleged WhatsApp chats" were publicised and disseminated by various media houses which was a violation of the provisions of the Cable Televisions Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 (CTN Act), the Programme Code and the Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines, the petition has contended.

It has also claimed that the "media houses have published one-sided defamatory, suggestive innuendos, and half truths about the petitioner".

Ravi's plea has further contended that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the NBSA "have failed to exercise their statutory and self-regulatory powers in ensuring compliance with the Programme Code under the CTN Act and the Code of Ethics of Broadcasting Standards Association".

Delhi Police, probing the "toolkit Google doc" backing the farmers' agitation shared by climate activist Greta Thunberg, had arrested Ravi while Mumbai lawyer Jacob and Pune engineer Shantanu Muluk have been granted pre-arrest bail by court.

A Delhi court had on February 14 sent Ravi to five day police custody after the agency said her custodial interrogation was required to probe an alleged larger conspiracy against the government of India and to ascertain her alleged role relating to the Khalistan movement.

A toolkit is a document created to explain any issue. It also provides information on what one needs to do to address the issue. This might include information about petitions, details about protests and mass movements.

had earlier asked Google and some social media giants to provide information about email ID, URLs and certain social media accounts related to the creators of the toolkit shared by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and others on Twitter in connection with the farmers' protest.

The Cyber Cell had lodged an FIR against "pro-Khalistan" creators of the toolkit for waging a "social, cultural and economic war against the government of India".

The case against unnamed persons was registered on charges of criminal conspiracy, sedition and various other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The toolkit was aimed at spreading disaffection and ill-will against the government of India and creating disharmony among various social, religious and cultural groups, the police had claimed.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 11:49:00|Editor: huaxia

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WUHAN, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's Hubei Province reported one confirmed COVID-19 case and one asymptomatic carrier, both imported from Pakistan, on Wednesday, the provincial health commission said Thursday.

The patient, who arrived at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport from Islamabad via flight CZ8140 on Tuesday, was quarantined upon arrival and later diagnosed as a confirmed COVID-19 case.

Currently, the patient is undergoing treatment at a designated medical institution, while 188 close contacts have been put under quarantine for medical observation.

Hubei has reported a total of 68,151 confirmed COVID-19 cases, and 63,638 patients have been discharged from hospitals after recovery. The epidemic claimed 4,512 lives in the province. Enditem
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Rabat, Feb 18 : Morocco's Covid-19 tally rose to 479,579 on Wednesday as 508 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours.

According to a statement by the Ministry of Health, the death toll mounted to 8,517 as 13 Covid-19 patients died in the last 24 hours, the Xinhua news reported.

The total number of recoveries from Covid-19 in Morocco increased to 461,466 after 838 new ones were added, while 419 people are in intensive care units, the statement said.

The Covid-19 fatality rate in Morocco stands at 1.8 per cent while the recovery rate is 96.2 per cent.

Meanwhile, 2,081,013 people have been vaccinated so far against Covid-19 in the country.

Morocco received on Tuesday another 500,000 doses of China's Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine.

The North African country launched a nationwide vaccination campaign on January 28 after the arrival of the first shipment of the Chinese coronavirus vaccine.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

Nova FM host Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli proposed to his wife, Lisa, during a romantic trip to Switzerland in September 2012.

And the radio star, 41, revealed on Thursday that Lisa was now asking for a new ring because she didn't like the one he proposed with eight years ago.

He told his Fitzy & Wippa co-host Sarah McGilvray he refused to upgrade Lisa's ring because of its sentimental value.

'It's sentimental': Nova FM's Michael 'Wippa' Wipfli is refusing to change his wife Lisa's engagement ring after she confessed she didn't like the one he gave her eight years ago

Wippa explained: 'She said to me, "I've never mentioned this to you before, but I don't like my engagement ring."

'But it's almost like a snapshot in time, right? We went on a holiday, it's sentimental, we were in Switzerland, we had a beautiful moment on the balcony overlooking the lake and everything that was in that moment is in that ring.'

'Take away that ring, lose that moment,' he added.

Unsatisfied: Wippa revealed on Fitzy & Wippa on Thursday that his wife, Lisa (pictured), had recently told him she didn't like her engagement ring anymore

Lisa then called into the station and insisted she 'adores the ring' and that it was her husband's idea to buy her a new one after he discovered the diamond needed to be repaired.

She explained: '[Wippa] discovered the rock was loose. He said, "Don't wear that, let's get that fixed."

'And I said, "Maybe this is a chance for me to remodel this a bit, keep the centre stone and everything." I'm not asking for a bigger ring.

'And he said, "Well, hang on, that represents a time in our lives so I would rather that you keep that ring and we'll get you a new one."'

'I'm not asking for a bigger ring!' Lisa then called into the station and insisted she 'adores the ring' and that it was Wippa's idea to buy her a new one. Pictured: the Wipflis with their children

Lisa, who didn't seem to appreciate the suggestion she was ungrateful, continued: 'Can I just say something here? To men out there who think the ring needs to stay the same forever and they get all precious about it, if I made you wear the same pair of shoes and shirt for the rest of your life, you wouldn't do it. Same as a ring!'

The Wipflis married in September 2013 in front of 150 guests on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, a year after getting engaged.

They share three children, sons Theodore, six, and Jack, four, and 11-month-old daughter Francesca Vera Alice.
As many of us celebrated Valentine's Day on Sunday, albeit in a different manner than normal, there were many families in Dublin who paid their annual visit to the graves of their loved ones.

Many of those who are reading this would not have been born or would have been very young when the Stardust tragedy took place.

48 people lost their lives in the Stardust fire  one of the worst disasters in modern Irish history. It happened in the nightclub in north Dublin just after the conclusion of the disco dancing competition. Sunday marked the 40th anniversary.

The ages of the deceased ranged from 16 to 28. The average age was just 19.5 years old.

There were young married couples among the dead. Others were engaged to be married. There were factory workers, carpenters, painters, receptionists, shop assistants and students.

After it was recalled that in one the graveyard there were about five funerals taking place at the same time, in one photo there were 13 hearses lined up outside a church.

To this day their families are fighting to find out the truth of what happened that night.

In 1987 a Tribunal granted compensation to victims but still the families fought on.

After a string of attempts over the years to get the government to grant the kind of new substantive inquiries into the fire they wanted, Stardust campaigners finally succeeded in 2019.

In recent years, the efforts had seen the campaigners march to the Dail with hundreds of supporters. Across the country, they managed to get 48,000 postcards signed calling for new inquiries. Their legal team put forth strong arguments that it was in the public interests for fresh inquests.



All of the protests, the petitions, the press conferences  it eventually led to the granting of new inquests into each of the 48 deaths. The Attorney General ruled in September 2019 that there was insufficiency of inquiry as to how the original inquests into the 48 deaths were conducted.

It is expected that the inquests will get under way later this year at the RDS in Dublin.

But sadly many of those who spearheaded the initial campaign are no longer alive. They are the parents of those young people who lost their lives in the fire that engulfed the nightclub that night.

But their own children now continue to pursue the matter.

The Stardust tragedy will never be forgotten, and nor should it be. The victims' families simply will not allow that.
The Birmingham Zoo announced this week that it has surpassed its goal of raising $780,000 through its Feed Your Animals year-end campaign to provide care for over 550 animals, including endangered species that call the Zoo home.

The Zoo had challenged the public to donate, with $390,000 in matching gifts from Wells Fargo, Alabama Power, the Robert R. Meyer Foundation, generous individual donors, and Protective Life Corporation which jump-started the campaign by awarding a $250,000 grant. The Feed Your Animals campaign started in the spring of 2020 and it supports the Emergency Animal Fund that was created to financially bolster the zoo during the pandemic.

We are delighted and grateful for the response we received from donors across the country. I would like to thank everyone who became a Zoo member, renewed their membership or contributed, Chris Pfefferkorn, Birmingham Zoo President & CEO, said in the statement. It is obvious that the public cares about their Birmingham Zoo and its animals. Were proud to be a part of this well-loved institution.

The Zoo touts itself as a wonderful place for families to be outdoors, go for a walk, learn about endangered species, and find relief during the pandemic, all while maintaining safe social distancing practices.

The 550 animals are among 180 species at the zoo, including sea lions, zebras, rhinos, and endangered species from six continents.

Popular messaging platform WhatsApp has already made a lot of noise, thanks to its controversial privacy policies where some users complained that this would eventually invade their privacy by giving Facebook access to their WhatsApp data.

This resulted in the delay of WhatsApp's new terms and policies. Now according to WABetaInfo, WhatsApps new Terms of Service will come into effect on May 15, 2021.

With the screenshots, the blog site explained the changes that the new policy will bring to the messaging platform and in the new WhatsApp beta for Android 2.21.4.13, WhatsApp is working to improve the communication to the users with a new informative alert.

Through the screenshots, the company said that it cant read or listen to users personal conversations as they are end-to-end encrypted. The company is also making it easier for users to chat with businesses. The website also noted that solution providers allow businesses to provide better service to their customers. However, chatting with businesses is optional.

In another screenshot, WhatsApp is planning to give all the details on how it functions and how it processes data, and how businesses manage users' data using Facebooks tools. The terms go into effect on May 15, 2021. Please accept these terms to continue using WhatsApp after this date, WhatsApp wrote in the screenshot. That said, WhatsApp hasnt made a formal announcement in this regard yet. So, all we can do for now is wait till the company makes an announcement in this regard.




Haiti - News : Zapping...





More than 35,000 Haitians intercepted at the border

General de Givision Julio Ernesto Florian Perez, Commander of the Dominican Army revealed that since the beginning of the year more than 35,000 Haitians who have entered the Dominican territory illegally at the border, including 11,000 in the first 2 weeks of February, have been arrested thanks to military vigilance and electronic surveillance and returned to Haiti.



Les Cayes : deprived of Caranaval for lack of funds

Marie Michelle Sylvie Rameau, the mayor of Les Cayes, explains that having received no funds to organize the caranaval, this event did not take place during the 3 Fat Days. The city of Les Cayes did not have a parade or dance group, only a few walking bands roamed the streets to create a festive atmosphere...



500,000 barrels of fuel have arrived

Son Aime Ignace Saint Fleur, Director General of the Office for the Monetization of Development Assistance Programs (BMPAD) informs "A shipment of 500,000 barrels of Petroleum Products arrived at the beginning of the week in Port-au-Prince on board the ships 'SILVA PHILIPPA' and 'ALPINE MATHILDE' carrying respectively 200,000 barrels of Gasoline, 45,000 barrels of Jet and 255,000 barrels of Diesel."



Australia Open : Naomi Osaka eliminates Serena William

Wednesday on the court of Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne in the 1/2 final of the Australian Open, the Japanese Naomi Osaka (23) proud of her Haitian origin, world number 3 won [6-3, 6-4] in 1h15 against the American legend Serena Williams (39 years old 10th in the world) qualifying for the grand final.



Saturday, February 20 Naomi Osaka who will live her 4th Grand Slam final will face American Jennifer Brady (22nd in the world) in the final







See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33024-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-33016-haiti-news-zapping.html



"How to invest in Haiti ?"

The Ambassador of Haiti to the Kingdom of Spain Saintil Louis Marie met the President of "Velae Legal Group" in the context of the promotion of Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) in Haiti, and explored the possibility for Haitian companies to settle in Spain. It was also agreed to organize a Conference-Debate on "How to invest in Haiti".



No case of cholera in Haiti for 2 years

Two years have passed since the last case of cholera was confirmed in Haiti in early February 2019. Last year, only 81 suspected cases of cholera were reported by the Ministry of Public Health and population, but none was confirmed after analysis.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Russia's Foreign Ministry said on February 18 that it has expelled an Estonian diplomat in retaliation for a move by Tallinn to declare a Russian diplomat persona non grata.



"Recently, Estonia groundlessly declared an employee of the Russian Embassy in Tallinn persona non grata," ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.



"The Estonian Ambassador to Moscow has been summoned, handed our decisive protest, and was informed about the expulsion of an Estonian diplomat," she added.



Tensions between Russia and the Baltic states -- Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, have risen since Russian troops seized Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and Moscow illegally annexed the territory.



They were heightened further last month when Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia -- all former Soviet republics -- issued a call for the "imposition of restrictive measures" against Moscow over the detention of Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny.



Navalny arrived in Moscow on January 17 from Germany, where he was being treated after being poisoned in Siberia in August and was promptly detained by law enforcement authorities at the airport.



A Russian court on February 2 ruled that Navalny was guilty of violating the terms of his suspended sentence relating to an embezzlement case that he -- and the European Court of Human Rights -- called unlawful and arbitrary.

The judge ruled that he violated parole conditions while recovering from the near-fatal poisoning in Germany.

Based on reporting by TASS, RIA Novosti, and Interfax

In Galveston, Texas, folks are all too used to natural disasters  but warm and wet ones from the Gulf of Mexico, like the notorious hurricane of 1900 that killed thousands. Nothing could have prepared the beachfront city for the icy dagger of a polar vortex attacking from the north with snow, ice, and a prolonged deep freeze. As county officials already reported at least two and possibly six deaths from exposure to the cold amid widespread power outages, they asked for a refrigerated morgue truck to deal with even more fatalities as the crisis persists.

Where we are now in Austin: people are out of food, Conor Kenny, a former chair of the Texas capitals planning commission, reported Thursday morning on Twitter. Half the city still (without) power or heat. Citywide boil notice and little/no water pressure. Roads (bleeped). Stores closed. High of 34 lows in 20s next three days. Its bad. Real bad. This is our Katrina.

Indeed. The once-in-a-lifetime freeze that has enveloped all of Americas second-most-populous state is on the brink of becoming one of the nations public health crises of a new millennium that has already seen far too many disasters  both natural and man-made, but usually blending both. The frigid suffering of millions without electricity, water, or food, and the mounting death toll, is the kind of tragedy that should transcend our bitterly divided politics  but you shouldnt be shocked to learn that the polar opposite has happened.

The icicles from thousands of burst water pipes had barely started to grow when the states overwhelmingly Republican political leadership took to social media and the friendly airwaves of Fox News or talk radio. They bashed their liberal enemies and blamed the statewide power outages on wind power  a growing factor on the Texas grid, although far from dominant  and a Green New Deal for clean energy, even though the GND hasnt truly been implemented in the Lone Star State or anywhere else.

This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday night on the pinnacle of right-wing media, Fox News Hannity, before spouting misleading or wrong stats on the role that wind or solar power has played in the fiasco. Abbott was amplified by fact-free Fox News anchors like Harris Faulkner, who bizarrely blamed the vilification of oil, gas and coal  the stuff that really keeps you warm. Then, Rick Perry  the former Texas governor who became Donald Trumps energy secretary  took it next level by actually hailing the lethal disaster as a good way for Texans to keep the federal government out of their business.

None of this has any grounding in reality. Although the growth of wind power in Texas has been a surprising bright spot on Americas road to cleaner energy, problems with wind turbines failing in the ice storm have caused only a fraction of this weeks power-supply problems. And, as energy experts note, wind turbines in places like Scandinavia or Americas northern plains dont freeze up because their owners spend a little more to weatherize them. In the Wild West of deregulated Texas, where few imagined winter weather anything like this weeks storm, wind-power producers hadnt bought warming equipment  but fossil-fuel producers have been even more negligent.

 READ MORE: Will a coronavirus mirage of clean air, water inspire climate action  or make things worse? | Will Bunch

The truth is that frozen equipment or supply problems at power plants that rely on thermal sources  primarily fossil fuels such as natural gas and coal but also nuclear  have been the source of the majority of the Texas electricity drain. Experts say that blueprints expected natural gas to provide 66% of the states energy during a severe winter storm, but roughly half of those plants were not functioning for one reason or another  causing the massive blackouts.

The underlying problem is not any kind of Green New Deal-related socialism but rather Texas zealous free-market capitalism that leads to deregulation and distrust of federal cooperation. The states insistence on maintaining its own electricity grid separate from the nations two big, interlocking systems  thanks to its libertarian paranoia about control from Washington  created few options for outside help when the polar vortex struck. In El Paso, connected to the national western grid and not the Texas one (and which spent more on winterizing), only a handful of homes lost power.

Texas deregulation mania also allowed utilities  in their single-minded pursuit of keeping prices as low as possible  to ignore calls to better winterize the system after cold snap that we now see as a preview of 2021s disaster struck the state a decade ago.

When you have a more deregulated, market-based system, its not clear whose responsibility it is when it fails, Daniel Aldana Cohen, a University of Pennsylvania sociologist who directs a climate-change project and co-authored A Planet To Win: Why We Need a Green New Deal, told me this week. That means the buck doesnt stop anywhere. A utility isnt into responding to the public the way a governor is.

It seems ridiculous to even have to write this but of course the Green New Deal  a progressive idea thats been vilified by rabid right-wingers much more than coal or oil ever has  didnt cause the blackouts in Texas. Although clean energy sources like wind and solar are now growing rapidly as their costs become cheaper, there is still nowhere near a coherent national energy strategy that resembles the GND thats been implemented...yet. But its easy to see how a massive clean-energy crusade could help prevent Texas-sized outages in the future.

For one thing, spending trillions to create the necessary post-carbon energy regime in America would surely include money for weatherizing wind turbines and other clean energy sources  essential as our ongoing climate crisis keeps creating new weather extremes. More importantly, as Cohen noted in our interview, a Green New Deal would mean spending on long overdue infrastructure like new transmission lines that would make for a more reliable national grid. Its imperative that the new Biden administration avoid the mistakes and timidity of the Obama government, which backed away from a proposed grid overhaul because of concerns over issues such as jurisdiction.

Cohen said the federal government can offer incentives to neighbors of new transmission lines  such as free heat pumps, which was used as a carrot for a project in Maine  to facilitate this needed infrastructure. It can also do more to improve emergency management, as an acknowledgement of the growing number of extreme weather events. Said Cohen: You cant prevent climate change as it exists now  its baked in. What were trying to prevent is an extreme apocalypse.

Indeed, the irony of attacking the Green New Deal for the crisis in Texas is that an aggressive war on greenhouse-gas pollution is the best way to ensure fewer bouts of extreme weather like this deep freeze  maybe not for 2021, but in the long run. Although its difficult to link any one specific weather episode to climate change, the overall warming of the planet has been linked both to the extreme migrations of polar vortexes and the collapse of Gulf stream air currents that might stop cold waves like the system that invaded Texas.

Politically, whats so disheartening about this whole episode is that it comes so closely on the heels of the vast majority of the Republican Party  including Texans like Sen. Ted Cruz, whos now broadened his escapes from reality by trying to get away to Cancun  embracing so the so-called Big Lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from Trump. That the partys next big move was a pretty big lie about the Green New Deal reveals the uphill climb that America faces, just to get back to a playing field of reality to have any meaningful policy debates. Our nation cant handle the climate crisis until we can handle the truth, without one nearly dead political party tilting at windmills.

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Congress wins Punjab civic polls

After Congress swept Punjab civic polls with a commendable victory, Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday hailed the party's win. He said that this is not just a validation of his government's development-oriented policies and programmes but also a total rejection of the 'anti-farmer legislation' carried out by major political parties - Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the BJP.

Read: Congress Sweeps Punjab Civic Polls; CM Amarinder Thanks Voters For Reposing Faith In Party

Govt gives financial powers to Army

On Wednesday, Union Cabinet approved financial powers to clear projects worth Rs 200 crore to the senior military officers for capital procurement projects, officials said. The deputy chiefs and command heads of the armed forces are the officers granted this enhanced financial aid. The enhanced powers come in the aspect of challenges faced by the defence forces along with China and Pakistan at the border.

Read: Centre Gives Military Officers 'financial Powers' Up To 200cr To Tackle Procedural Delays

BJP leader's convoy attacked in Bengal

BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari and his convoy were allegedly attacked by TMC goons on Wednesday leaving Kolkata North president Shibaji Singha Roy seriously injured. Suvendu Adhikari and other BJP leaders were a part of the Mega Public Rally earlier in the day following which the convoy comprising of Suvendu Adhikari, Shankudeb Panda & Shibaji Singha Roy was attacked. Sharing a video of the attack, Suvendu Adhikar expressed anguish and blamed TMC for attacking the BJP convoy.

Read: Suvendu Adhikari's Convoy Attacked, District President Grievously Injured; BJP Blames TMC

Brazil runs out of COVID-19 vaccine

Brazils second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday halted its mass vaccination campaign after it ran out of COVID-19 shots and scrambled to demand assistance from Brazils federal government. The country had earlier pledged to manufacture 100 million doses of the AstraZeneca, domestically, amid the supply shortages and the vaccination shipment delays from the manufacturers. However, in a situation that spread grimly on Wednesday, AP reported, that the Brazilian health authorities had to stall the administration of the second COVID-19 dose among the vulnerable elderly high-risk group after doses finished.

Read: Brazil's Inoculation Drive Halted In Rio De Janeiro As Vaccine Doses Run Out

India promises to work closely with Russia

India would like to work more closely with Russia on taking forward the cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said here on Wednesday. Addressing a meeting hosted by the Diplomatic Academy of Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he said no discussion on the relationship between Indian and Russia can be complete without the mention of the Indo-Pacific.

Read: India Would Like To Work More Closely With Russia On Taking Forward Co-op In Indo-Pacific: Shringla
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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A law professor on Hong Kong and Macao studies has emphasized the importance of "patriots governing Hong Kong," describing it as an integral and core part of "one country, two systems."

It is a fundamental principle that must be followed in pursuit of developing and improving the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), said Wang Zhenmin, head of the Institute of State Governance and director of the Center for Hong Kong and Macao Studies at Tsinghua University.

Taking note of the emergence of radical forces advocating "Hong Kong independence" in recent years, Wang said such people have not only incited frequent street violence but also taken advantage of institutional loopholes to penetrate into Hong Kong's local governance structure in flocks, posing the danger of replacing patriots as the main body of Hong Kong governance.

If Hong Kong were to be governed mainly by these people, it would never enjoy the bright future it is entitled to, Wang said.

It is hard to imagine how people who don't love, or even hate the country, and oppose the "one country, two systems" principle could understand and implement "one country, two systems," Wang added.

The professor said the importance of "patriots governing Hong Kong" in the policy and institutional structure of "one country, two systems" was put forward in the early 1980s and has been firmly adhered to, with relevant requirements put in place in the Basic Law of the HKSAR as well as the law on safeguarding national security in the HKSAR.

Explaining "patriots governing Hong Kong," Wang said it includes, among others, opposing any secessionist acts, respecting and acknowledging the socialist system led by the Communist Party of China that is practiced in the main body of the country, respecting the Constitution and the Basic Law of the HKSAR, and standing firmly with the motherland.

Governing by patriots is not unique to China, Wang said, noting that election candidates in many countries including the United States compete with each other on the basis of their patriotic ethos.

He added that people who rejected the constitutional order of the country and Hong Kong and who opposed "one country, two systems" have won legislative or district council elections in Hong Kong in recent years, revealing flaws in relevant systems and mechanisms.

Many people made no positive contributions to the HKSAR but won the elections simply by advocating "Hong Kong independence," Wang said.

"The number of such people is increasing, which is absolutely abnormal," he added, calling for revamping the rules and regulations to better embody the fundamental principle of "patriots governing Hong Kong."
When President Biden recently signed executive orders effectively rolling back efforts by the previous administration to reduce the 2019 surge in unlawful crossings at the southern border, he proclaimed, Im not making new law. Im eliminating bad policy. The obvious intent of the declaration was to dispel any suggestion that the newly elected president was trespassing on Congress constitutionally exclusive legislative authority. But a perusal of one of those orders reveals that one of the presidents initiatives seems to have slipped his mind.

The order includes a provision to conduct a comprehensive examination of current executive branch policy governing the adjudication of asylum claims  to evaluate whether the United States provides protection for those fleeing domestic or gang violence in a manner consistent with international standards.

On its surface this would seem unnecessary, in that U.S. asylum law is already consistent with international standards. What is not so convenient, however, for the man who made that proclamation about not making new law, is that those international standards dont include language that could be inferred to mean those fleeing domestic or gang violence.

Much of U.S. asylum law was enacted as a result of becoming a party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its ensuing 1967 Protocol. According to federal statute, the U.S. government may grant asylum to an alien who has applied for asylum if the government determines that such alien is a refugee. The key to the current discussion at hand is the definition of the word refugee. A refugee is defined in federal statute with language virtually identical to that which is in the 1951 Convention -- to wit, a refugee is any person who is outside the country of their national home or, if they have none, outside the country in which they last habitually resided, and who is unable or unwilling to return to, and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion.

In 2018, in response to a number of asylum claims by persons claiming victimization by non-state actors (e.g. spouses, gang members) as opposed to persecution as a result of government policy, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued an Interim Decision drawing a distinction between the two classes and effectively disqualifying those who could not prove political persecution. This policy directive  clearly consistent with federal statute and international standards  was deemed unlawful by a federal district court judge.

There are now indications that the Biden administration is sending signals of its stance to the broader legal community including, potentially, the federal judiciary.

In a suit filed last week by the ACLU of Massachusetts and a Boston-based law firm, messaging integrating the text of statute and the text of President Bidens order seems to be taking hold. In their quest to reverse a Trump administration directive applying public health law to deny entry of individuals into the U.S. due to the COVID pandemic, representatives of the two litigants appear to be taking their talking points from the presidents order.

In his explanation of the law firms motivation for filing the complaint against the U.S. government, a lead lawyer explained, We are proud of the work we are doing to reunite families seeking legal refuge in the U.S.  [and who are] in our immigration system  fleeing violence and persecution in their home countries. In fact, unlike political persecution, there is no statutory basis for awarding asylum on the basis of fleeing violence. But that is obviously not stopping President Biden and like-minded lawyers from arguing, in effect, that statute is no more than a foundation upon which the executive and judicial branches are to build upon.

So much for the rule of law.

Compounding this likely driver of mass migration toward the U.S. southern border is the climate of violence prevalent in the countries of the Northern Triangle  Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador  and the understandable desire for their nationals to flee. According to former assistant U.S. attorney and Senior Fellow in Border Security for the Texas Public Policy Foundation Josh Jones, due to the power and influence of violent gangs, much of the population of the Northern Triangle would likely qualify under the revised rules. Additionally, Jones observes that if one or more transnational criminal organizations based in Mexico were to be classified as a gang for purposes of asylum policy, the U.S. could see millions of Mexicans also swiftly proceed to make a gang violence-based asylum claim.

As a signatory to international agreements whose provisions are the basis for U.S. asylum law, our Union is not precluded from expanding upon those provisions. However, if for no other reason than to lend credibility to President Bidens claim that hes not attempting to make law, it should be Congress that accepts its constitutional role and legislates that expansion. And if Congress should do so, we the people can hold the legitimately empowered branch of the federal government accountable for the consequences at the southern border.
Former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, of Kansas, has been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer, according to a statement shared on social media from official accounts.

My first treatment will begin on Monday, the statement from Dole said. While I certainly have some hurdles ahead, I also know that I join millions of Americans who face significant health challenges of their own.

Dole represented Kansas in the U.S. House and Senate for a total of 35 years and ran unsuccessfully for president in 1996.



Dole, 97, is a native of Russell, Kansas. He earned two Purple Hearts and two Bronze Stars for valor for his service in the Army during World War II.

Dole was an infantry lieutenant in 1945 when he was wounded by German machine gun fire, which left him with limited use of his right arm. He was promoted from captain to colonel for his service in 2019.

Dole also received the Congress' highest civilian honor, the Congressional Gold Medal, from President Donald Trump in 2018.

U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas said there has been no better public servant than Dole, and he expects Dole to take on this challenge like he has so many others in his life.



Senator Dole, just as you taught me that when there is any problem too big, just go listen to the people of Kansas, please know that the state we both love is behind you, and Laina and I and my entire family of course are behind you. We join all of Kansas in praying for Gods comfort and His healing hand, and peace for you, for Elizabeth, for Robin, and for your entire family during this difficult time.

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly also wished Dole a full recovery.

"Wishing my friend Senator Bob Dole a swift recovery," Kelly said on social media.
The upcoming historical drama "Joseon Exorcist" dropped new stills, featuring its stars Jang Dong Yoon and Kam Woo Sung!

"Joseon Exorcist" takes place after the Joseon dynasty was established. It follows the fight of the royal family to protect the people from the evil spirits of the undead.

Jang Dong Yoon and Kam Woo Sung's Roles in "Joseon Exorcist"

To star as Prince Chungnyeong is actor Jang Dong Yoon. His character is a studious young man who was compelled to join a war to protect Joseon from the evil spirits.

Kam Woo Sung, on the other hand, will star as King Taejong, a cold-heart king who sets out to control the evil spirits who have seized his kingdom. He secretly hides his guilt of the bloodshed he joined to help his father build the Joseon dynasty empire.

Jang Dong Yoon and Kam Woo Sung Showcase their Powerful side in New Stills for "Joseon Exorcist"

The still cuts feature Jang Dong Yoon, who transforms into his character as Chungnyeong. In one photo, Chungnyeong looks worried as he gazes at something with his deep and resolved eyes. He is trapped in a crisis where people are swallowed by evil spirits, and the survival of his kingdom relies on him.

Being studious, he was able to learn a lot about the real world, but through his experience in taking down evil spirits, he will be reborn as a true leader.

Jang Dong Yoon expressed his thoughts about "Joseon Exorcist" by commenting that it is an interesting drama mixed exorcism with a genre involving creatures. Speak of his character, Jang Dong Yoon shared that Chungnyeong in the drama is a kind of person who pursues what's right.

The drama also shared new stills of Kam Woo Sung transforming into the character of the cold-blooded King Taejong. He gives out a powerful aura, and his eyes are filled with strength and determination. He shows off his powerful side, and even in war, he remains unwavering and level-headed. He is not afraid of anything and is determined to conquer the battle. He fights the evil using his sword and bow and arrow. He is proud of being of help to his father, Yi Seong Gye, build the Joseon Dynasty.

However, he harbors the feeling of guilt for the bloodshed that happened. Due to the evil that seizes the kingdom, King Taejong goes out to fight for his people.

Kam Woo Sung expressed that he decided to star in the drama because he really wanted to portray the character that he is given. In the drama, his character as Taejong is someone who would risk his life to save the kingdom they built.

"Joseon Exorcist" is set to premiere on March 22 at 10:00 p.m. KST.

Kdramastars owns this article.

Written by Liza Parker
Pfizer has not yet delivered to the European Union about 10 million Covid-19 vaccine doses that were due in December, EU officials said, leaving it about one-third short of the supplies it had expected by now from the US company.

The delay is another blow to the EU, which has also been hit by delays in deliveries from Anglo-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca and US company Moderna and had also faced earlier delays on the Pfizer vaccine.

It also raises questions about the rationale of an EU vaccine export control scheme which was set up in late January to ensure timely deliveries but has not yet been activated, despite the supply shortfalls.

CORONAVIRUS SPECIAL COVERAGE ONLY ON DH

By the middle of last week, Pfizer had delivered to the EU 23 million doses of the Covid-19 vaccine it developed with German firm BioNTech, said an EU official who is directly involved in talks with the US company.

That was about 10 million doses less than Pfizer had promised to supplied by mid-February, said a second official who is also involved in the talks.

Pfizer declined to comment, saying schedules of its deliveries were confidential. The executive European Commission did not respond to a request for comment on delivery shortfalls.

EU officials have said Pfizer committed to delivering 3.5 million doses a week from the start of January, for a total of 21 million shots by mid-February.

In mid-January, there was a temporary hiccup in supplies which EU officials say was largely resolved last month. . But a lot of doses that were due to arrive in December are still missing, the two EU officials said.

The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine was approved for use in the EU on Dec. 21. The following day, BioNTech said the companies would ship to the EU 12.5 million doses by the end of the month.

Only about 2 million of those doses due in December have been delivered, according to Reuters calculations.

The shortfall would amount to about 30% of the total supplies pledged for the period from December until mid-February.

One EU official said the company had committed to delivering the missing doses by the end of March.

The EU has two contracts with Pfizer for the supply of 600 million vaccine doses.

Trade flows

Although the EU's own supplies have fallen short, the European Commission has approved all requests for export of Covid-19 vaccines  mostly from Pfizer/BioNTech  since it set up its mechanism to monitor flows.

In the period between January 30 and February 16, the EU gave the green light to 57 requests for vaccine export to 24 countries, including Britain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a Commission spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

Before the monitoring scheme was set up, the bloc had already exported millions of vaccines to Israel, Britain and Canada among others, mostly Pfizer's, according to customs data cited in a EU document seen by Reuters.

Israel has injected the first vaccine dose to more than 75% of its population, figures from University of Oxford-based Our World in Data show. The figure for the UAE is around 50% and for Britain it is above 20%.

EU countries on average have vaccinated only about 5% of their populations, according to Our World in Data.

Countries with a high number of inoculations are already vaccinating people who are not among the most vulnerable, while those most in need elsewhere have not yet had a shot.

The World Health Organization has set the target of inoculating 20% of poor countries' population by the end of the year.
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Texians have no power, water, and heat but his family are going on vacation. He should stay and WORK. Fucking hypocrite and a waste of tax payer's money.

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yet the republicans will still turn out to vote for him 

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infuriating

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those damn antifa turbines blew him straight to gate E10 at IAH

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Truly cant wait for this POS to d*e

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Hope hes dismantled from his position on this, and then get permanently deleted from literally everything he deserves it as blocked and inaccessible. Inexcusable

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This is so disgusting.

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I hope Texans rip him l*mb from l*mb when he gets back in the state.

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you know, what's surprising to me more than people being selfish is that people are still surprised by people being selfish. like, we been knew sis. it's been nearly a year of selfish behavior. if the government isn't going to stand on the necks of citizens, many will follow the path of least resistance. sometimes i'll enter these posts on ONTD just to see how many people "CAN'T UNDERSTAND" selfish behavior.



however, from someone in public service, this is particularly gross during his state's acute suffering. i moved away from texas in 2015 so he's slightly less of my issue, but he is smart enough to know this will look exactly the way it does, and he did it anyway. he knows he will win re-election regardless.

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Ooop my comment below yours LOL.



Of course I understand it, but it's so revolting to see there aren't adequate words other than "I can't believe I'm seeing this."

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And he'll still get re-elected cause they've rigged the system.



Edited at 2021-02-18 03:35 pm (UTC)

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The Simone Biles level of mental gymnastics some of these fucking morons are doing to defend him on Twitter. I know I SHOULDN'T be shocked/surprised, but the clownery. Imagine defending him???

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I feel for texans right now but also Im like stop voting these guys in because it's obvious they don't give a fuck about you.

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this whole winter thing is stressful af, he needs to clear his head

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I'm wondering if this will stick?



It happened to an Ontario Finance Minister in Dec and made international news so he was toast. But it wasn't immediate and people were MAD.



With Texans, though many people don't have power so some might not even know as yet. His retune flight is supposed to come back at 4ish so I hope he is mobbed by reporters at the airport.

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The fucking audacity. There are a million ways he could be serving in our city rn, as a proper public servant. Hell, not just HTX, there are literally 20+ million ppl in the metros of TX that he could be serving in some volunteeristic manner. Instead he chose to do........this.



And who tf is surprised.

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This literal piece of shit.

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i hope this dumbass loses at the grammys just for this. i loved her album but she deserves nothing.

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I was a casual fan, but after how she has shown her dumbassery with this pandemic, I feel as a society we have to cancel her.



Like people need to stop buying her music and treat her like a has-been.

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She really doesn't give a fuck.



But at this point I think most people don't. There has hardly been any backlash for celebrities. Whenever I check the comments of any travel pics there is hardly anything negative there.

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yeah pretty much. for me personally what sets dua apart from other celebs is that she'll gladly bask in the attention of being the supposed "responsible" pop artist while telling people to stay inside, but then not take her own advice. when the kardashians are on their 50th trip themselves its like... yeah that tracks. expected nothing less.

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i agree, so many celebs are travelling it's basically normal for them by now. that being said, think a lot of celebs also restrict their comments on instagram so you only see the positive stuff

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hailey bald*in bieb*er

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I noticed all the Colombian artists I follow have been traveling like non stop. I guess covid-19 is officially over!



What makes me cringe the most is when they randomly but not always out on a mask as if it makes it alright



Edited at 2021-02-18 03:54 pm (UTC)

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its really not just celebs. many people are traveling, and its not just rich non-celebs people either. i know people from all walks of life, working class service industry workers, people in the actual medical field who are still traveling and not "social distancing".



the ship has sailed at this point, i dont have the energy left in me to continuously be outraged at it.

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Ah Dua Lipa, the successful Rita Ora.

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That really looks dreamy and that lavender (?) bread looks yum

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Purple/lavender bread is usually taro flavored in South East Asian countries and they are really good. Not sure if the bread in Duas pic is taro flavored tho.



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Sounds like something I need to try!

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If there is taro flavored anything at any bakery I go to I will buy it. The last thing I had was this donut in LA a few years ago and I ate that thing so fast it was appalling lol.

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ya looks like taro or ube to me! delish

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https://www.hasibread.com/ I'm from LA, and pretty sure that bread is from Hasi Bread. They're famous for the purple/yellow bread. I think it's pea flower and tumeric.

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I wish sb would confront her superspreader ass in an interview or something. She's such an asshole for this. Posting these pics like no big deal. I can't even enjoy her music anymore. Rich white people operate on a different frequency smh

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Stay the fuck at home girl

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Someone I know keeps posting Instagram photos of herself flying back and forth to Disney every other week. People DGAF.

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Why are you like this? even when you peaked at the height of your career and then do this, Dua?

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What gets me is that shes also just so flagrant about it. Its not like shes getting spotted in fan pics or something, she is actively flaunting these vacations on Instagram

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Maybe shes one of those people that like making others feel jealous? Ive known peoooe like that. Any criticism is called jealousy and they live in this bubble thats impenetrable because of it.

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Meanwhile Instacart won't let me log in because the password is wrong?!?! I need to use it since I am also covid positive but still need to get things for my Dad and I.



Been battling fever and chills for the past four days and since yesterday lost my taste buds.



Dua is pretty but dumb and she is lucky that she hasn't been infected

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I hope you feel better soon!

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Thank you!

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I'm sending you good vibes that you get better!



And Dua and all of the people flaunting it. They're lucky that they haven't lost anyone or know of people who've died from it.

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Hope you and your dad feel better.

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Were you able to reset your password?

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See I just assume with her age she is just walking around asymptomatic or possibly has caught it and just asssumes she is now immune and cant spread. At some point the odds and the places she travels just aren't in her favour.



She is prob a walking superspreader.



Edit: Sorry should have started this comment with some sympathy and I hope you feel better soon!



Edited at 2021-02-18 05:36 pm (UTC)

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I wonder if shell take the covid vaccine knowing that her idiot bf is an antivaxxer...

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Is she doing interviews right now? Why is no one asking her about her travelling and anti-vaxx boyf?

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the answer to nearly every question is money. if you build up a reputation for being combative or end up going viral for asking tough questions, good luck getting celebrities to speak with you in the future.



Edited at 2021-02-18 03:24 pm (UTC)

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LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- Currently in his 31st year as Lakewood Municipal Court judge, Patrick Carroll was recently named the 2021 recipient of the Presidents Award for Judicial Excellence from the Association of Municipal and County Court Judges of Ohio.

This marks the second time in three years that he has received the honor, which is given annually for meritorious and outstanding judicial service.

The award recognizes a judge who has contributed immeasurably to effect the efficient and fair administration of justice in addition to enhancing the public perception of the judiciary in Ohio.

I was kind of surprised -- astounded actually -- getting the award because to get it a second time is an honor, said Carroll, who also serves as editorial board chair of the Ohio Jury Instructions Committee of the Ohio Judicial Conference.

Its wonderful recognition by your colleagues statewide of doing this work, he said.

Over the years, Carroll has given numerous presentations on court administration, including bail reform, assessment and impact of fines, court costs, restitution and landlord/tenant law.

Its the latter that came front and center in 2020 when, due to the coronavirus pandemics CARES Act response and CDC eviction moratorium, Carroll taught a dozen courses to the state judiciary.

After the CDC moratorium was announced, I received a call from the (Ohio) Supreme Court about doing a course on that, said Carroll, who also as a faculty member of the Ohio Judicial College teaches civil and criminal procedure.

We got the information out in like two weeks. Everybody was confused about what was entailed and how to do it. There was almost no warning by the federal government, so its been kind of a challenging year.

Despite the 2020 hurdles, Carroll said overall, being responsible for giving presentations or teaching a course across the state made him a better judge for the Lakewood community.

Considering that Carroll is being forced off the bench due to mandatory age retirement, the notion of receiving the Presidents Award for Judicial Excellence this year is apropos.

Its kind of a nice goodbye, for lack of a better term, Carroll said. Its a nice recognition after 31 years on the bench from my colleagues statewide. It is an honor.

Read more news from the Sun Post Herald.
After a dramatic arrest of a rapper on early Tuesday, the incident later that day sparked the Catalonia protest wherein protesters filled the streets of Barcelona and Girona, in the northeastern Catalonia region of Spain.

Arrest of Pablo Hassel Sparks Protests

Together with his supporters, Hasel had barricaded themselves in the premise of a University in the northeastern provincial capital of Lleida, which is near Barcelona, since Monday. The move made by the rapper along with his fans happened after his deadline to hand over himself in following the expiration of his conviction in a free speech case.

According to CNN, Catalan riot police stormed the Lleida University on Tuesday wherein they arrested the Catalan rapper. Footage from the arrest displays a defiant Hasel shouting that the police will never defeat and overcome them as they will resist until they become victorious.

In May 2020, the Supreme Court of Spain upheld a conviction of a lower court in March 2018 against Pablo Rivadulla Duro, also known as rapper Pablo Hasel. He was sentenced to nine months in jail.

Based on a copy of the court's sentence and a Supreme Court press office statement, Hasel was convicted for his support in terrorism. Also for his libel and slander cases due to his social media messages against the Spanish monarchy.

In addition, the 70-page sentence of the Supreme Court stated that Hasel posted on his Twitter account from 2014 to 2016 messages that has denigrated various institutions while also dedicating phrases that glorified certain personalities convicted of terrorism.

The sentence by the Supreme Court of Spain mentioned that the Twitter account of the rapper had at the time of posting his tweets more than 54,000 followers and officials found 1,915 tweets wherein the terms Monarchy, GRAPO, ETA, King, Police, Bomb, Civil Guard, and Terrorism appeared, BBC News reported.

READ ALSO: Did You Receive Your Stimulus Checks? IRS Says It Has Released All Coronavirus Relief Payments

Moreover, ETA was the armed Basque group, which was listed as a terrorist group by Spain and the European Union as it already killed more than 800 individuals in its lengthy yet unsuccessful fight for Basque independence.

Meanwhile, the rapper who sparked the 'Catalonia protests' posted on his Twitter account that he stayed there without going into exile in order to contribute more in spreading the message, to the mobilization, and for the organization. He also added that the officials have imprisoned him with his head held high for not having yielded to their terror.

During the Catalonia protests on Tuesday night, the police force of Catalonia also known as the Mossos posted on their Twitter account that a group of individuals with violent tendencies in Girona has burned numerous containers and thrown not only stones but also pyrotechnic material at the police in the area of the Sub delegation, Reuters reported.

Mossos also mentioned that there is a group of individuals who had burned a bank in Girona and have removed numerous traffic lights in the area.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International in Spain also posted on Twitter on Tuesday that is unfair for Pablo Hasel if he goes to jail. The human rights group also stated that they will not stop until crimes of the Penal Code that limit artistic expression are repealed as cases like for them cannot be repeated.

RELATED ARTICLE: New Ruling Junta Releases Thousands of Convicted Prisoners Following Protests Against Myanmar's Military Coup

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The public has been warned against making plans for Easter as Northern Irelands lockdown is to remain in place for another six weeks.

The Executive has announced details of a number of relaxations to the lockdown from March 8, but the majority of measures will remain in place until at least April 1.

Revealing that the R number in Northern Ireland is now between 0.7 and 0.8, First Minister Arlene Foster has revealed that the youngest children will be able to return to school in just over two weeks time.

However, she warned that the return of pre-school, nursery and primary one to three pupils from March 8 will result in the R number beginning to climb again.

And the respite for parents and children will only be temporary as they will revert to remote learning again on March 22 to allow students in years 12 to 14 to go back to school until the Easter holidays.

Read More

Also from March 8, limited click and collect services for goods now regarded as essential, such as footwear and baby clothing, will resume, while the number of people allowed to meet outdoors will rise to 10.

The Executive met on Thursday afternoon to discuss the current lockdown, which has been in place since December 26.

Announcing the decision, First Minister Arlene Foster said: We are very conscious of the impact of the regulations on everyday life for everyone and how they place a very heavy burden on all of our citizens and over this last number of weeks, through our collective efforts, weve achieved significant results in our push back against Covid-19.

And we have been able to push the R rate even lower for cases, it now sits at around 0.7 to 0.8 and thats bringing it down again from last week.

The number of people needing ICU care has also reduced and thankfully were also seeing a significant fall in deaths.

We have to remember, of course, that this isnt about abstract figures, its about saving lives, yours and your loved ones, and I say with gratitude to everyone, thank you for your efforts, were now past the peak of this period of infection.

But we know from experience that what looks like success is both hard won but also fragile and of greatest concern at the moment is the prevalence of the new variants.

Ms Foster said the Kent variant now makes up 70% of cases and she said that, once people begin to mix again, the rate of infection is expected to increase much quicker than experienced previously.

She continued: We need our decisions to be both safe and sustainable and Im determined that through the proper sequencing of actions as we emerge from these restrictions, that we leave lockdowns in the rear view and that we do not step backwards again.

So, our clear priority at this point is to continue to keep the R rate below one and to achieve this it is considered that a full lifting of the current restrictions is not possible at this point.

Conor Murphy appeared alongside Mrs Foster, in place of his Sinn Fein colleague Michelle ONeill who was missing from the podium, and he raised concerns over setting a provisional date of April 1 for any further relaxation of measures.

Acknowledging that the public may assume this indicates it is safe to make plans for Easter, which falls on April 4, he said: I think April 1 is Holy Thursday and I think people may hear that date and start to plan for Easter breaks or visiting, or other activities.

Clearly there are a number of upcoming events and times identified in the [Executive briefing] paper as areas of concern where there might be more community interaction, Mothers Day, St Patricks Day, Easter weekend, and so I was worried it would create a confusion.

The advice would be not to be doing anything or booking anything for Easter weekend.

There will be a review on March 18, but I think the way the advice has been given today, in that all of the numbers are going in the right direction, its a very gradual pace.

There is no rapid reduction and obviously the vaccination process is rolling out very well, but this is going to be a slow re-entry into more normal life.

I dont think this side of Easter there will be any serious easing of restrictions, but I would advise people not to be looking at April 1 as the date when everything opens up again.

The development comes as the Department of Health announced 342 new cases and a further six deaths.

There are 388 Covid inpatients, of which 51 are in intensive care, while the number of active care home outbreaks has dropped to 49.

Reacting to the Executives decision, chair of the British Medical Associations Northern Ireland Council said it is time to hold our nerve.

He said: Exiting lockdown too soon would be a great disservice to frontline health service staff who have worked tirelessly throughout this pandemic, many to the point of exhaustion and burnout.
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Even though the price of car insurance is constantly rising, there are many methods that can help families save money on car insurance, said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company.

Car insurance is a major investment for any family. However, many families are struggling to pay for ever-increasing insurance premiums. Dropping coverage is not an option, because many are using their vehicles to do their daily routines. Nevertheless, there are some methods that can help anyone save money on insurance.

Drivers who want to save money on insurance can follow the next tips:



Shop around for better insurance deals. Shopping around using a brokerage website is one of the best methods used to save money on car insurance. Certain events like moving to another area, getting divorced, or getting a job to a place that is far away from home can make car insurance to be more expensive. In these cases, drivers will be required to find better insurance deals to save money. After completing an online form, brokerage websites will display multiple insurance offers from multiple insurers. Drivers only need to pick one insurance offer that can satisfy their needs.

Ask for the available discounts. Insurance companies are offering discounts for various reasons. Drivers who got married, who moved to a better neighborhood, or graduated a defensive driving course can pay lower insurance rates.

Check the low mileage discount. Some policyholders are driving fewer miles than usual for various reasons. These drivers should contact their insurers to find out if they are eligible for the low-mileage discount.

Keep a good credit score. In most states, insurance companies are allowed to determine the premiums using the credit score. Drivers with a poor credit score are considered to be less responsible and are more likely to file a claim. For these reasons, insurers will charge extra on their premiums. On the other hand, drivers with a good or excellent credit score are seen as more responsible and are less likely to file a claim., and for these reasons, they will pay lower insurance rates.

Park the car in a garage. A well-monitored garage is an ideal place to keep a vehicle. The garage can protect the vehicle against severe weather events and can lower the chances for car theft to happen.

For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit http://compare-autoinsurance.org.

Compare-autoinsurance.org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc.


When I watch videos of those unfortunate Texans trying to survive amid a record-setting cold wave worsened by an energy crisis, I think back to the winter of 1973-1974.

I was going to Rutgers and living off campus. Our apartment was in an old building that never seemed to get warm because of the drafts. It probably wasnt a good idea to keep a five-gallon can of gas on the back porch of a wood-frame house. But we did.

That was because the Arab nations, still seething at the role the U.S. had played in the 1973 Arab-Israeli War, decided to impose an oil embargo on America. They founded what came to be known as OPEC and started charging a lot more for their crude oil.

Till then, gas had cost about 30 cents a gallon or less. Now the price shot above 50 cents, a staggering sum in those days. Often, we couldnt even find it even at that price. When a rare open gas station was found the line would stretch for blocks.

Im convinced that the sour mood of the country post-embargo was a key factor in Richard Nixons decision to resign that summer amid the Watergate scandal.

I had the good fortune to be in California for the next big gas crisis in 1979. You could work on your tan while waiting in line. So I fared somewhat better.

Jimmy Carter didnt. Our Democratic president got shellacked at the polls the following year by a former California governor who hammered him on the issue of gas pricing and availability.

Theres a lesson in that for our current Democratic president, one exacerbated by the current crisis in Texas. Already the left and the right are feuding over whos responsible for the collapse of the states energy industry in this cold snap.

Meanwhile gas prices here in New Jersey will be rising as a result of the shutdown of refining capacity in the Gulf. I found that out when I spoke with Denton Cinquegrana, chief oil analyst with the Oil Price Information Service, which is located in Wall Township.

Cinquegrana said wholesale gas prices are rising and an increase in the price at the pump will follow, probably 7 to 10 cents.

That puts us in the $2.75-2.80 range, he said. In the most expensive parts of the state youll probably see some three-dollar prices. But it will probably be something short-lived.

Thats because the U.S remains awash in oil supply, partly because of the fracking boom and partly because of the decrease in driving due to the pandemic.

If this turns out to be a short-term jump in prices, then this president wont feel much heat. But what does Joe Biden intend to do in the long term?

I discussed that with Tom Kloza. He co-founded OPIS just before Ronald Reagan got rid of the government price controls that had caused those gas lines of the 1970s. That created a need for a firm that would tally prices that can change on a minute-by-minute basis.

He used as an example a tanker truck heading down the Turnpike with 8,000 gallons of gas. The price can change as its moving.

A 10-cent increase on 8,000 gallons is about $800, he said.

I was curious whether Kloza thought Biden would follow the example of Carter or of Reagan. During the recent campaign, Biden encountered an environmental activist who called for an immediate ban on fracking.

You cant ban fracking right now, Biden told the guy. You gotta transition away from it.

Biden added, Id love to make sure we cant use any oil or gas, period. Now, now, is it possible?

Thats the question. Klozas answer was that he thinks Biden is wise enough to stick to proposing long-term changes while avoiding any drastic actions that could create a gas crisis.

Such changes would be an immediate fracking ban, an end to coal mining and/or a carbon tax that could raise the price at the pump by 50 cents a gallon.

He predicted Biden will avoid such drastic moves and will stick to changes intended to take place over 15 years not 15 weeks.

He added, You can do a lot of things to people, but if you raise the cost of gasoline, you get looked at. In the South, dont take away their guns. In New Jersey, dont increase the cost of gasoline.

That goes for a lot of other states as well.

Well see whether Biden recognizes it.
A woman from Virginia Beach wrote a song about the Perseverance rover landing on Mars.

Kayla Robinson says she was inspired to write the song last week when she was on a Zoom call with NASA scientists and engineers. They spoke about their roles on the Perseverance mission when Dr. Alvin Smith with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory mentioned he'd love to hear more Mars music in the world.

"I went to my cosmic playlist on Spotify for inspiration from my favorite space songs and eventually decided to rewrite/restructure The Moon Song by Karen O into my own fun and educational song called 'The Mars Song'," Robinson said.

The rover successfully landed on the Red Planet Thursday afternoon.

Kayla Robinson says she watched the landing at home with her 10-year-old sister while geeking out with the Space Twitter community.

Robinson says she's looking forward to finding new ways to combine her passion for music with her love of science.

You can watch that cover below:
San Francisco police on Wednesday arrested a second man in connection with the kidnapping of two toddlers in Pacific Heights nearly two weeks ago, when police said suspects stole the minivan with the kids inside while the childrens father was delivering meals for DoorDash.

Investigators found San Francisco resident German Morazan, 27, near the intersection of Crisp Road and Quesada Avenue at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, police said. San Francisco police Tactical Unit officers arrested him in connection with the kidnapping, and Morazan was later booked on suspicion of two counts of kidnapping, two counts of child endangerment, auto theft, robbery, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, and conspiracy, San Francisco police said.

Chinese state-owned enterprises are among the biggest suppliers of arms and military equipment to the Myanmar military, according to an advocacy group Justice For Myanmar and public domain information.

The group has listed 122 top business partners of the military government, which staged a coup on Feb. 1, ousting the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD).



The five biggest suppliers are listed as China North Industries Group (NORINCO), the Aviation Industry Corp. of China (AVIC), the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. (CASC), the China Aerospace Science & Industry Corp. (CASIC), and the China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC).



More than a dozen other suppliers were funded from China or Hong Kong.



A spokesperson from Justice for Myanmar said weapons supplied by NORINCO to the Tatmadaw were being used on unarmed civilians amid mass protests that have followed the coup.



Norinco also runs two copper mines in the country, which have been accused of evicting local residents and polluting the environment, the spokesperson told RFA.



Other Chinese investors include Wanbao Mining (Hong Kong) Copper Ltd., Yang Tse Mining Limited, and busmaker Yutong, as well as several textile companies.



A "Dirty List" published by Burma Campaign UK listed 12 Chinese companies as having ties to the Myanmar military, including most of those already mentioned in this article.

An open secret



Zhang Shengqi, chairman of the Myanmar-Burma Assistance Association, said it is an open secret among Chinese in Myanmar that Chinese companies have been selling weapons to the regime for a long time.



"It is no secret that China supplies arms to the Myanmar military," Zhang said. "Ten years ago, the Chinese government moved its security defense line south from Yunnan province and into northern Myanmar."



"It sees the whole of Myanmar as a security zone," he said. "The stability of Myanmar directly impacts China's national interest and its security."



"If Myanmar had gotten closer to the U.S. [under a democratically elected government], then it would have fallen back into an endless civil war."



China's international infrastructure investment project, the Belt and Road initiative, currently includes the flagship China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC). Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has indicated that Beijing is willing to speed up the construction of the western, northern, and eastern ends of the CMEC.



Chinese state media reported last month that Wang is keen to promote an early implementation of the Kyaukpyu deep-sea port, the China-Myanmar Border Economic Cooperation Zon, and New Yangon City.



The CMEC bisects the northern part of the country and ends at the $1.3 billion deep-sea port at Kyaukpyu in southern Rakhine state along the coast of the Bay of Bengal. It includes plans for a U.S.$8.9 billion high-speed rail link from Yunnan, as well as gas and oil pipelines.



China is also increasingly dependent on rice imports from Myanmar, with rice imports soaring from 100,000 tons to 500,000 tons in the past decade, accounting for 65 percent of Myanmars total export trade with China.



"The military port and China-Myanmar oil pipeline in the Bay of Bengal in Myanmar will be a crucial strategic supply line, and Beijing has to protect it," Zhang said. "These military investments and presence in Myanmar will aid its stability."



"I can say with a clear conscience that the people of Myanmar have no choice," he said.



Chinese scholar Si Ling agreed, saying that there is a co-dependent relationship between the two countries.



"Myanmar is dependent on China for many things, including technology and personnel," Si said. "Beijing also has to consider geopolitical factors like the national security implications of what is happening in Myanmar on its southern border region."

Border area still quiet



A Chinese national who lives in the border region, and gave only a surname, Wang, said that while the authorities appeared to be firing on protesters elsewhere in the country, the border area had remained quiet since the coup.



He said there could also have been Chinese Communist Party (CCP) involvement in emergency censorship during the coup.



"I heard there was shooting ... maybe of high pressure air guns, and also that they cut off internet access," Wang said. "China is the best at this kind of technology."



Rights groups -- including Burma Campaign UK, Justice For Myanmar, Korean Civil Society in Solidarity with the Rohingya (KCSSR), and Korean Transnational Corporations Watch (KTCW) -- are calling on companies to cut commercial ties to the Myanmar military.



Meanwhile, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre said it had invited 18 of the companies mentioned in recent reports articles to respond.



Justice For Myanmar called on the international community to impose immediate comprehensive and targeted sanctions against the Myanmar military in response to the coup, and their continuing violations of international law, including their campaign of genocide against the Rohingya and war crimes and crimes against humanity in ethnic regions.



Reported by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by Chan Chun-ho for the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Credit: Shutterstock

I handed down the final report of a two-year review of the New South Wales school curriculum in June 2020. One of the review's key recommendations was to introduce what I called "untimed syllabuses." This is where students who need more time for their learning are given it, and those ready to move on to the next stage are able to do so.

The NSW government has agreed to trial this recommendation over the coming years.

I made this recommendation in response to a problem teachers had identified. They explained the current curriculum lacks flexibility. It expects every student of the same age to learn the same things at the same time. This sounds fair, and it might be if all students began the school year ready for the year's curriculum.

In reality, as the Gonski report observed, evidence from testing programs shows the most advanced students in each year of school are about five to six years ahead of the least advanced students. Instead of beginning on the same starting line, students begin each school year widely spread on the running track.

Despite this, they are all judged against the same finish line: the year-level curriculum expectations.

Some students are behind, others ahead

The differences we see in students' performances mean many students begin each school year one, two or three years behind average for their year group and struggle. At the end of each year, they are required to move to the next curriculum, often not having mastered the content of the current curriculum.

For some, the year-level curriculum becomes increasingly beyond their reach and they fall further behind each year. The low grades they receive fail to reveal the progress they are making and reinforce their belief they are poor learners.

By 15 years of age, according to the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), one in five Australian students has failed to achieve even a minimally acceptable level of reading or maths. Another one in five has failed to achieve a "proficient" standard (that is, a challenging but reasonable expectation) in these basics. Many of these students have struggled with year-level curricula throughout their schooling.

Worse, the students most affected are those also disadvantaged by their socioeconomic circumstances.

At the same time, some more advanced students, who are ready for more challenging material, are prevented from advancing to the next curriculum until the allotted time has elapsed.

This is not an observation about teachers; they do the best job they can to meet the needs of individual students. But teachers work within the constraints of a timed, lock-step and sometimes crowded curriculum that expects them to deliver the same content to everybody.

Not all students start the school year on the same starting line. Credit: Shutterstock

A 21st century approach

The 21st century requires a more flexible and personalized approach. Learners of the future will learn anywhere at any time, progressing at their own rates, often with the support of technology. In this world, there will be no place for determining what individuals are ready to learn from their age.

My proposal is for a curriculum consisting of a sequence of levels through which every student progresses, but not necessarily at the same pace. This provides teachers with a frame of reference for establishing where individuals are in their learning and ensuring every student is taught and challenged at their current level.

Under this proposal, schools would continue to be organized into year groups and students in each year group normally would work in mixed-ability classes. The difference is that students in the same year group could be working at different curriculum levels.

The final report of the NSW Curriculum Review and the response of the Government can be found here: https://t.co/NonCj2RwrE  Mark Scott (@mscott) June 22, 2020

This is not the same as streaming. When students are assigned permanently to different instructional groups, they usually become "locked in" to those groups, with the result that ceilings are set on how far some students can progress. Under my proposal, every student progresses over time through the same sequence of curriculum levels.

Rather than simply judging all students against the same finish line, this approach recognizes and rewards the progress individuals make over the course of a year, regardless of their starting points. Every student is expected to make excellent progress every year.

Is this backed by research?

It has long been establishedincluding through the work of American psychologist David Ausubel and Soviet psychologist Lev Vygotskythat the way to maximize learning is to stretch or challenge learners in a way that is appropriate to the points they have reached in their learning.

Students do not learn effectively when given material for which they are not ready or material well within their comfort zones. However, this is the experience of many students in our schools.

A number of countries have recognized the importance of providing every student will well-targeted learning challenges. Some, such as high-performing Finland and Estonia have dedicated teachers or small-group teaching for students who slip behind in their learning. Others, such as Scotland and Wales, have restructured their curricula into levels or "steps" through which all students progress.

Arguments against my proposed approach sometimes claim it is "fair" to hold all students to the same age-based expectations. But fairness is not achieved by treating all students equallyit depends on recognizing individual differences and meeting each student's current learning needs.

It is also often argued the best way to improve performance is to hold all students to the same standards. But this is what is currently done in Australian schools, with no evidence of improvement in either NAPLAN or PISA. The best way to lift standards is to ensure every student is presented with appropriately challenging material.

My review recognized that restructuring the school curriculum would be a major undertaking that would require time to test and get right. As many teachers observed, increased curriculum flexibility is essential if every student is to learn successfully and achieve their potential.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Catarina Andreeva and Darja Chulcova, two journalists for Belsat, the Polish satellite television station aimed at Belarus, have each been sentenced on 18 February to two years in prison for reporting live from an anti-government rally in Minsk last November. The International and European Federations of Journalists (IFJ-EFJ) and their affiliate in Belarus, the Belarusian Association of Journalists (BAJ), strongly condemn the criminalisation of journalism by President Lukashenko's regime and call on the international community to react firmly.

In accordance with the request of prosecutor Alina Kasyanchyk, judge Natallya Buhuk of the Frunze district court in Minsk, sentenced Catarina Andreeva and Darja Chulcova after finding them guilty of "organizing public events aimed at disrupting civil order."



The two journalists were arrested on 15 November while covering a rally in Minsk. The IFJ and EFJ have recognized Andreeva and Chulcova as political prisoners and demanded their immediate release and the dropping of all charges against them.



In their last statement in the courtroom, Andreeva and Chulcova rejected the charges against them, calling them politically motivated. Andreeva also demanded the "immediate release" of herself, Chulcova, and "all political prisoners in Belarus."



"We consider the verdict as politically motivated, aiming to intimidate all media workers so they stop doing their job of reporting on socially important events in the country, which in fact means a ban on the profession," reacted BAJ.



BAJ, the IFJ and the EFJ demand :



- the review of the trial in the case of Belsat journalists Catarina Andreeva and Darja Chulcova;

- the immediate release of journalists Catarina Andreeva and Darja Chulcova;

- an end to the persecution of journalists and the media in Belarus.



We call on the Belarusian and international community to join these demands.

IFJ President Younes Mjahed said: "This decision is shameful and totally unfounded. We urge President Lukashenko to stop its campaign of intimidation against the press immediately and release Catarina Andreeva and Darja Chulcova. Today's verdict is a clear attack on press freedom and we all stand together against this mockery of justice".

"This conviction is intended to intimidate the entire profession, to criminalise journalism. The repressive drift of dictator Lukashenko's regime requires a rapid and firm reaction from the international community. We once again call on the European Union, the Council of Europe and the OSCE not to be complicit in the regime's abuses", said EFJ President Mogens Blicher Bjerregard.
[February 18, 2021] Innovative Quidnet Energy Storage Technology Specifically Designed to Prevent Texas-Type Grid Failures

HOUSTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Quidnet Energy today said that on its current development trajectory, its low cost, modular, long duration energy storage technology could be installed across the Texas system in as few as three-five years to prevent failures such as witnessed the third week of February when a polar vortex froze the grid. The company is already developing two projects in the Lone Star State as well as in Ohio and New York. Quidnet's Geomechanical Pumped Storage (GPS) technology stores excess power when electricity demand is low and saves it to be released to the grid over long periods of time when generators can't keep up with demand such as this week in Texas. Quidnet was launched in 2016 and is rapidly scaling to deploy this storage technology. It is being widely embraced for its potential as a game changer for maintaining electric reliability in the new world of variable output renewable energy. The company receives support from the US Department of Energy, New York State Energy Research Development Authority, Evok Innovations, Trafigura and Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures climate change focused fund. Quidnet pumps water underground and stores it in-between layers of shale. The natural elasticity of the rock performs like a spring and holds the water under pressure until it is needed, at which time it is released through a hydroelectric turbine to produce electricity to send back to the grid. The system is closed loop and the primary components of the proces are water, clay, and natural salts. The entire process is powered by excess grid electricity. Because the majority of the process is subsurface, there is relatively minor land disturbance (well head, pump and generator building, holding pond), allowing farmers and landowners to generate significant new lease revenue with minor impact.



Quidnet utilizes many of the same subsurface knowledge, workforce, and supply chains as the O&G industry, making it a perfect opportunity to re-channel thousands of displaced workersand the supply chains they operate--toward accelerating a green energy future. Early resource investigations project sufficient North American shale resources to provide 2-4 times the long duration energy storage needed by the grid at less than half the projected cost of Li-ion batteries and other leading solutions. "The very talented, dedicated and rapidly-growing Quidnet team is hyper-focused on the imperative to ensure a reliable energy transition," said Joe Zhou, Quidnet CEO. "We are committed to being a major part of the solution."

To view the 60 Minutes, Forbes and USA Today clips and learn more about Quidnet, please visit www.quidnetenergy.com . About Quidnet Energy  Based in Houston, Texas with offices in San Francisco and Saratoga Springs, Quidnet's patented GPS technology utilizes excess renewable energy to store water beneath ground under pressure. When renewable energy is not producing this pressurized water drives hydroelectric turbines producing electricity to support the grid at a fraction of the cost of Li-ion and for much longer duration. Quidnet's technology is an adaptation of centuries-old gravity-powered "pumped storage," but without the massive land requirements and reliance on elevated terrain. Please visit www.quidnetenergy.com Contact:

Steve Sullivan

518-441-7272

sullivan@quidnetenergy.com

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/innovative-quidnet-energy-storage-technology-specifically-designed-to-prevent-texas-type-grid-failures-301231232.html SOURCE Quidnet Energy

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Pa. lawmaker who called for doxing of pro-life teens announces run for lieutenant governor

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A Pennsylvania state lawmaker who called for the doxing of pro-life teenagers last year has announced that he is running for lieutenant governor.

State Rep. Brian Sims, a Democrat who represents the Philadelphia-based 182nd district in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, announced his bid for lieutenant governor of the commonwealth Monday.

The incumbent lieutenant governor, John Fetterman, has decided not to run for re-election and is instead seeking the Democratic nomination for Pennsylvanias open seat in the U.S. Senate.

After 10 years in the State House, Ive taken the lessons that my parents taught me & reinforced them in my work as a legislator: to take responsibility, commit to service, be courageous, & push for fairness, Sims wrote in a tweet accompanying his announcement video Monday.

After 10 years in the State House, Ive taken the lessons that my parents taught me & reinforced them in my work as a legislator: to take responsibility, commit to service, be courageous, & push for fairness.



Im ready to take these values to lead the Commonwealth. pic.twitter.com/lcNmYQghgr  Brian Sims (@BrianSimsPA) February 15, 2021

My time in the Pennsylvania legislature has taught me a lot about not only how Pennsylvania government works, but a lot about how it doesnt. Its taught me a lot about how to work with people who dont always agree with me.

Simms said that he believes it is time for me to take what Ive learned in the House and to be able to bring that leadership to the direct service of the Governor.

We need adults in the room and I want to bring bold, visionary leadership based on lived experiences and shared values to the Commonwealth, he added.

Sims, who describes himself as an LGBTQ activist and a civil rights advocate, made headlines in the spring of 2019 over his confrontations with pro-life protesters demonstrating outside a Planned Parenthood clinic in Philadelphia.

In a video posted to his Twitter account, Sims filmed himself outside the clinic, calling the pro-life protesters a bunch of pseudo-Christian protestors who have been out here shaming young girls for being here.

The state representative offered $100 to anybody who will identify any of these three, as the video panned to show a woman and two teenage girls.

After the woman, Ashley Garecht, told Sims that were actually here just praying for the babies, he complained that a bunch of white people [were] standing out in front of a Planned Parenthood, shaming people. He argued that theres nothing Christian at all about what youre doing.

As he continued to assert that there was nothing Christian or loving or godly about what youre doing, he turned his attention to another protester, remarking that it would be easier if you just give me your name and your address.

On May 2, 2019, Sims sent out a tweet criticizing pro-life protesters demonstrating outside Planned Parenthood clinics.

Push back against Planned Parenthood protestors, PLEASE! Theyre racist, classist bigots who NEED & DESERVE our righteous opposition. Push back please!

Push back against Planned Parenthood protestors, PLEASE! They prey on young women, they use white privilege, & shame. Theyre racist, classist, bigots who NEED & DESERVE our righteous opposition. Push back, please! #YouAreStrongEnoughhttps://t.co/rYQOiAhC0D  Brian Sims (@BrianSimsPA) May 2, 2019

In a video accompanying the tweet, which has since been deleted, Sims went on a tirade against an elderly pro-life protester.Shame on you, maam, for standing out here thinking you know whats right for other peoples bodies.  An old white lady telling people what to do with their bodies? Shame on you  This is disgusting, he said.

If youre a white person like I am, we have a lot of catching up to do, we have a lot to apologize for, and Im going to start by apologizing for this woman. Shame on you. What youre doing here is disgusting.  Dont convince yourself that what youre doing isnt extremely racist.

In a May 7 tweet, Sims apologized for his behavior, stressing that two wrongs dont make a right. He vowed to do better, for the women of Pennsylvania.

In a subsequent apology, issued in October 2019, he wrote a letter to Garecht and her daughters.

I regret the harm that I caused and I have learned a great deal from this, he wrote. I can only ask for your forgiveness and I wish you all the best in the future.

Joe Garecht, Ashley Garecht's husband, told the Washington Examiner at the time that the family had forgiven him.

On May 10, shortly after Sims posted his first apology video, pro-life activists gathered in front of the Philadelphia Planned Parenthood, where the confrontations took place for a Pro-Life Rally Against Bullying.

Lila Rose, the founder and president of the pro-life group Live Action, served as moderator.

Other speakers included blogger Matt Walsh and activist Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood employee.

Reacting to the news that Sims is running for lieutenant governor, Rose took to Twitter to remind her followers of Sims actions.

In 2019, PA State Rep @BrianSimsPA offered his followers $100 if they were able to identify three TEEN girls he was filming & harassing as they quietly prayed outside Planned Parenthood, Rose tweeted.

Her tweet was accompanied by the hashtag #ResignBrianSims.

Should Sims win the Democratic primary for the lieutenant gubernatorial election, he will run on the same ticket as the Democratic nominee for governor.

Incumbent Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, is term-limited and cannot run for a third term in office. The next Pennsylvania gubernatorial election will occur on Nov. 8, 2022, occurring simultaneously with the 2022 midterm election.
By Ritah Kemigisa

Parliament has considered and passed The National Social Security Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2019 which will allow workers midterm access to their savings at the age of 45.

The bill now waits approval by president Museveni to become a law.

According to the current law, savings can only be accessed when a saver clocks 55.

Now with the amendment , NSSF members aged 45 and above and who have saved for at least 10 years will access 20% of their benefits.

Contributors who lose their jobs and fail to get employment for five years will have to first attain the age of 45 to be allowed to get 40% of their savings.

If the amendments are approved by the president, persons with disabilities who contribute to the fund but fail to get gainful employment for a year will be allowed 75% of their benefits.

The amended law also recommends the appointment of a stakeholder board appointed by the Minister comprised of representatives of Government, employers and employees and also give the same board powers to introduce new benefits in consultation with the Minister.

The amendment also allows the appointment of the Managing Director and Deputy Managing Director by the Minister on the recommendation of the board for a term of five years renewable on satisfactory performance.

Meanwhile the amended law provides for the deference of taxes on contributions and scheme income to the time of payment of benefits.
Donation is part of the Billion Breath Project and will benefit thousands of severely affected COVID-19 patients in Southeast and South Asia



Alpha ventilator is the worlds first telehealth ventilator that facilitates the remote management of patients with severe breathing difficulties



The first five Alpha units were donated today to Hospital Selayang in Selangor, where COVID-19 cases have spiked in recent weeks



SINGAPORE, Feb. 17, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Advanced MedTech Holdings (AMTH), a global medical technology leader headquartered in Singapore, have announced a donation of up to RM2 million worth of Alpha ventilators to hospitals in Malaysia.

The donation is part of the companys Billion Breath Project, aiming to support healthcare workers in their fight against COVID-19. The initiative has already donated nearly RM3 million worth of ventilators to hospitals in Indonesia, Myanmar and India. Ventilators worth RM2 million will be donated to Malaysia to support care for patients with severe respiratory distress in the intensive care unit (ICU) wards.

The Alpha ventilator enables a small team of healthcare professionals to monitor and adjust the settings for a large number of ventilated patients remotely via an online dashboard. This reduces the need for caregivers to enter in and out of ICU wards to manually adjust ventilator settings, reducing the risk of infection.

In Malaysia, the ventilators will be sent to hospitals in states where infection and hospitalization rates are high, the first being Hospital Selayang in Selangor.

In July 2020, the Alpha ventilator received provisional authorization to be used as an emergency ventilator by Singapores Health Sciences Authority.

Abel Ang, Group Chief Executive of Advanced MedTech, said: We take breathing for granted until we can no longer breathe. Each person takes about 100 million breaths in their lifetime. The Billion Breath Project was started to help people suffering from severe symptoms of COVID-19 recover their ability to breathe again. The remote accessibility of the Alpha ventilator will empower small healthcare teams to manage a large number of patients and will be central to Malaysias fight against the pandemic.

Datuk Dr Mohamed Alwi Abdul Rahman, HOD Emergency Department and Trauma of Hospital Selayang, said: Access to ventilators is critical factor in our response to COVID-19, especially as cases continue to rise. Were grateful for the support offered by Advanced MedTech. The Alpha ventilator will significantly boost our ability to deliver life-saving care to patients in a critical condition.

The Alpha ventilator was developed by ABM Respiratory Care, a medical device company developing novel integrated airway clearance and ventilation solutions and is manufactured and distributed by Advanced MedTech in Singapore.

In Malaysia, Advanced MedTech has partnered with MEDIWIDE SDN. BHD. to help with distribution of the ventilators.

For more information, please contact:

Thomas Harding / Khushboo Tanna / Maryanne Lee

Spurwing Communications

+65 6751 2021

advanced@spurwingcomms.com



About Advanced MedTech Holdings

Advanced MedTech Holdings is a global medical technology leader with a core focus in urology devices and services. Headquartered in Singapore, with operations in US, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, China, Malaysia and Japan, the Company serves millions of patients and physicians in 100 countries worldwide. Advanced MedTech Holdings makes strategic investments in disruptive medical technology companies, strengthening its portfolio of healthcare solutions for customers around the world. Advanced MedTech Holdings is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Temasek. For more information on Advanced MedTech Holdings, please visit https://www.advanced-medtech.com/.

About the Alpha

Weighing 4 kg, with up to three hours of internal battery backup, the portable, touchscreen-based ventilator can be deployed in an ICU, ambulatory or subacute setting for pediatric and adult patients. The device has provisional authorisation from HSA in Singapore for use as an emergency ventilator for COVID-19 patients.

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Several bandits were killed in an ambush by troops after a criminal gang invaded a village in Nigeria's northern state of Kaduna, said an official on Wednesday.

Samuel Aruwan, commissioner for internal security and home affairs in the state, said four hostages, including one woman and three children, were also rescued when the troops laid the ambush against the bandits in Birnin Gwari local government area of Kaduna on Tuesday.

The bandits used the abductees as a defense to retreat from the village of Ungwan Danko in the Birnin Gwari area which they earlier invaded.

Aruwan told reporters that troops, however, mobilized to the location, laid an ambush, and intercepted the bandits, cutting off their escape.

"In the ensuing firefight, several bandits were neutralized and others escaped with bullet wounds," he added.

Nigeria's northern region has witnessed a series of attacks by armed groups in recent months.
Many Vietnamese farmers just need to press a button to grow vegetables and raise pigs, and click a mouse to sell vegetables in the global market.

Pham Van Chu, the owner of a pig and fowl farm in Ea Nam commune in Dak Lak

The images of farmers carrying water with a shoulder pole or bending down to put manure on crops have disappeared. Now, farmers just need a smartphone to deal with heavy field work, said Pham Van Chu, the owner of a pig and fowl farm in Ea Nam commune in Dak Lak.

Chu, in a suit and polished shoes, showed his smartphone with images of his farm as he sat in Hanoi controlling his farm in Dak Lak.

With the camera system and remote control system, I can set the temperature and feeding regime of the farm. I can take care of my pigs and fowls thousands of kilometers away, he said.

Previously, Chu ran his farm the traditional way and used a high number of laborers. He has been applying high technology in farming in the last two years and gained excellent results.

The entire farm, covering 6,000 square meters, is equipped with cameras. One chip is attached to every water trough. When the water runs out, the chip will alert him and he just needs to conduct some operations on his system to make the troughs full of water again.

Previously, to control the temperature, he had to install thermometers at the farm and regularly enter the farm to check the temperature. But this work is now conducted automatically. He checks the temperature with his smartphone.

Chu now uses six workers only, but the farming results are very good. In 2020, he collected VND20 billion from pig and fowl farming alone and made a profit of VND4 billion. He also earned money from tens of thousands of square meters of orchards and fish ponds.

The entire 10 hectare farm of Nguyen Dong Hai, director of VietFarm Co Ltd in Da Lat, is run in accordance with GlobalGAP standards, using high technology.

When sowing seeds, he installs a chip that helps control moisture and nutrition and synchronizes the data with the irrigation system. Any time the crops need water or nutrition, the chip will alert him, and an automatic irrigation system will start.

The data are updated into computer and smartphone, which allows Hai to control the development of crops from anywhere. The data are also updated into the quality control system for product traceability.

The farm has obtained licenses to export products to the European and the US markets. It is also cooperating with MM Mega Market Vietnam to export products to Thailand and Singapore.

We sell about 40 tons of vegetables to the supermarket chain each month and 600 tons a year with annual revenue of VND10-12 billion, Hai said.

At VinEcos 47 hectare farm in Tam Dao, Vinh Phuc province, farmers just measure plants and press buttons on the control board. All the stages from planting to packaging are done by machines to ensure that the plants are 100 percent clean.

A representative of VinEco said the company has 14 vegetable farms all over the country like the one in Tam Dao. Thanks to high technology, farmers can save time and effort. The the yield has improved considerably, 6-8 times higher than the traditional cultivation method. The number of workers can be reduced by 50-70 percent.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong said that digital transformation in agriculture is proceeding rapidly and new farming models bring high economic efficiency.

Farmers now take care of vegetables, fruits, pigs and fowls with their smartphones. Companies are carrying out digital transformation on a large scale. At Nam Viet JSC, for example, hundreds of hectares of farming ponds are equipped with the automatic feeding system. Workers just need to press buttons to feed fish at fixed time.

Selling goods on global market

Many Vietnamese farmers just need to press a button to grow vegetables and raise pigs, and click a mouse to sell vegetables in the global market.

We will accelerate digital transformation to form a new generation of farmers who can apply digital technology and sell goods online. We can dream of a future digital agriculture as we have enterprises which are very active and dynamic in the transformation process, Cuong said.

Smartphones in recent years not only have helped Chu and Hai grow vegetables and raise pigs, but also helped Pham Van Khang in Dak Nong sell his farm produce in the global market.

Khang and his wife grow many kinds of crops, from food to industrial crops which bring revenue of VND2 billion a year. In 2020, the time for harvesting 10 hectares of macadamia, the products didn't sell because of Covid-19. However, when they shifted to sell products online, the sales went very well.

Nguyen Thanh Tan, the owner of an eel farm in Vinh Long, has been selling products via social networks for several years. With 99 percent of customers ordering online, Tan provides 12 tons of merchandise to the market each year, worth VND9 billion.

Tam An

Raising 9-spur cocks, farmer earns big money Though 9-spur cocks are no longer in high demand, they are still very expensive. A farmer in Phu Tho can earn VND300 million in Tet sale season from these cocks.
Ford Motor became the latest automaker to accelerate its transition to electric cars, saying Wednesday that its European division would soon begin to phase out vehicles powered by fossil fuels. By 2026, the company will offer only electric and plug-in hybrid models, and by 2030 all passenger cars will run solely on batteries.

The plan is part of a bid to generate steady profits in Europe, where Ford has struggled for several years, as well as to meet increasingly strict emissions standards in the European Union.

We are going all in on electric vehicles, Stuart Rowley, president of Ford of Europe, said during a news conference.

Ford and other automakers are moving more rapidly on electric vehicles in Europe than in the United States. Last year, the European Union began imposing penalties on carmakers that do not adhere to limits on carbon dioxide emissions, forcing them to sell more electric cars.
For the past several months, leading Democrats have been pressing Joe Biden to embrace an ambitious plan for student debt forgiveness by canceling up to $50,000 of debt per borrower. But on Tuesday, the president unambiguously shot the idea down. I will not make that happen, he told an audience member during a CNN town hall in Milwaukee. Biden said he did not want to write off billions of dollars in debt for people who have gone to Harvard and Yale, and added that he did not believe he had the authority to erase the debt unilaterally via administrative authority, as some major figures in his party have suggested.

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New - Biden completely rejects Schumer/Warren proposal to cancel $50K of student loan debt per borrower:



I will not make that happen."



Says he doesn't want to forgive debts of borrowers from elite schools -- and money would be better spent on early childhood education. pic.twitter.com/oDwvCJveOm  Michael Stratford (@mstratford) February 17, 2021

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Biden did say he was open to some student loan cancellation, however, telling his questioner that he was prepared to write off a $10,000 debt, but not 50. This was a position the president took during his White House campaign, when he backed the idea of including the proposal in a COVID relief bill. On Wednesday, the White House reiterated to me that Biden wanted Congress to enact loan forgiveness through legislation, and that he was not promising to do it himself via executive action.

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Bidens comments on this issue were deeply frustrating for progressives whove rallied around the idea of student loan forgiveness. One reason why is that its unclear as of yet whether there are even 50 votes in the Senate for the more modest $10,000 plan Biden has backed. If the president isnt willing to test out the power of his executive pen, and risk having the move blocked by our conservative Supreme Court, then theres a chance we wont see any broad-based debt forgiveness at all.

But the other, more straightforward issue is that a lot of forgiveness advocates think that canceling $10,000 a head simply wouldnt give borrowers enough relief. (This was basically the message of the audience member who asked Biden about it Tuesday night.) Whether or not you think thats true is a subjective judgment call, but I think its important to keep two somewhat contrasting points about it in mind when considering the issue.

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First, forgiving even $10,000 would actually do an enormous amount of good for many borrowers. Its easy to lose sight of that fact in the middle of a Twitter fight on this topic, but it shouldnt be discounted.

Second, unless youre worried about the deficit, there isnt really a strong, logical reason to stop at $10,000.

To someone who borrowed to attend private college or go to law school, $10,000 in loan forgiveness may not sound like very much aid. For people who are already relying on income-based repayment plans, it might not even change what they owe each month. But while it might sound like a measly figure to some, for many others $10,000 would be a massive helping hand. According to the Department of Educations most recent data, there are about 42 million Americans who currently hold some federal student debt. About one-third of them have balances below $10,000. Another 1 in 5 have balances under $20,000. Were ultimately talking about a policy that, for more than 50 percent of borrowers, would cut what they owe by half or more.1

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But why limit forgiveness to $10,000? The most compelling answer is probably that its a decent way to target the most troubled borrowers while spending a somewhat limited amount of cash. One unintuitive wrinkle of the student debt crisis is that the ex-students who have the most difficulty paying back their loans are not, generally speaking, the ones who took out the most money. In fact, the opposite is generally trueborrowers who default tend to have some of the lowest balances, in part because a large share of them never finished their degrees. (A long-term study of students who began repaying their loans in the 200304 school year found that, of those who eventually defaulted on their loans over the next 12 years, 49 percent had dropped out of school.) The students who rack up the largest loan balances, meanwhile, have often earned advanced diplomas in fields like law and medicine that usually pay off fairly well, at least in the long term (obviously, being a hospital resident is not a financial picnic). Forgiving just $10,000 wouldnt be cheap, per semy quick Excel math says youd probably be wiping away around $375 billion of the $1.5 trillion in outstanding federal student loans2but it would keep costs down, while relieving a lot of financial pressure. Plus it would make the whole scheme a bit more progressive, since Washington wouldnt be forgiving as much debt belonging to doctors and lawyers.

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Of course, thats also part of the argument against capping forgiveness. Once you set aside concerns about the debt, thoughand in these days of trillion-dollar relief packages, it seems like a lot of Democrats haveit becomes pretty difficult to come up with a principled reason for keeping the limit at $10,000, especially once you start considering all the nuances of student debt that make it such a pernicious burden for many Americans, such as how Black Americans are particularly saddled by costly graduate school loans. I mean, once youve committed to doing any forgiveness at all, there just isnt a clear philosophical dividing line between writing off 10 grand from everybodys loans versus 20 or 30. The number isnt really pegged to the typical debt of borrowers at graduation. It might be somewhere around the median student debt balance among lower earners, but there are plenty of poorer households grappling with well over $10,000 in loans.3 Insofar as lawmakers want to target forgiveness at people who badly need the financial help and didnt attend Yale or Harvard, the most straightforward way to do that is to limit relief based on incomeyou know, good old-fashioned American means testing. If you were determined to get really fancy, you could do it based on a combo of age and income, to account for the fact that people tend to make more as they get older. But just capping the amount of forgiveness doesnt directly address issues of economic fairness on its own.

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In the end, I suspect that the main thing that the number $10,000 has going for it, from the perspective of the White House, is that it sounds smallish, as far as major public policy gestures go, which means that its a bit less likely to arouse intense opposition and might have a slightly better chance of slipping into a bill that Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema ultimately will be willing to vote for. Student debt forgiveness polls fairly decently overall, but theres a vocal contingent thats vehemently against the idea. Those voters (and pundits) will likely object to any amount of forgiveness, but by supporting a relatively modest number, Biden is keeping much of the conversation focused on how hes resisting the more liberal wing of his party, rather than caving to them.

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When you stop and consider it in the grand scheme of things, though, its somewhat remarkable that this plan is actually considered the moderate option at the moment, given that just a few years ago mass student debt forgiveness was still considered a relatively fringe idea mostly advocated by self-identified socialists. Now the president is striking a moderate pose by talking about merely freeing a third of borrowers from their education debt entirely while the Senate majority leader is urging him to go bigger. Times have changed in the Democratic Partyjust a bit less than many would like.

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1One little nuance to keep in mind is that there are approximately 3 million borrowers still in school, who will presumably continue taking on loans even if their current balance is wiped out. Still, that doesnt really change the big picture much. 2 Borrowers with under $10,000 of debt each collectively owe about $74 billion. Meanwhile, there are around 30 million borrowers with higher balances. Multiply that out by $10,000 each, and you get another $300 billion in forgiven debt. Obviously, these figures change somewhat if you means-test forgiveness. 3 For various reasons involving survey limitations, the government does not really have good, up-to-date data on the distribution of student debt by income. But a study that linked tax records and Department of Education data from 2013 found that, among borrowers who are in lowest-earning fifth of households in their age group, the median balance was about $9,012. Which is to say, half owed more.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo faced mounting challenges to his leadership on the coronavirus pandemic Wednesday as state lawmakers threatened to strip him of the power to issue emergency orders and federal investigators scrutinized his administration s handling of nursing home data.

The U.S. Justice Department has been examining the governors coronavirus task force and trying to determine whether the state intentionally manipulated data regarding deaths in nursing homes two people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

The people, who weren't authorized to discuss the investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Cuomo administration had not been cooperative with prosecutors, especially in the early stages of the probe, and for months had not produced documents and other data the Justice Department had requested.

The inquiry began months ago in the Justice Department's civil division, and parts of it have previously been disclosed publicly. On Aug. 26, federal prosecutors gave Cuomos administration 14 days to provide data on nursing home deaths. More data was sought in October.

The Times Union of Albany reported Wednesday that prosecutors in the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn had also become involved in an inquiry.

Over the summer, Cuomo's administration assailed the investigation as politically motivated. There was also some resistance from career prosecutors inside the Justice Departments civil rights division who viewed the investigation as political, the two people told The AP.

The investigation moved back into the public spotlight in recent weeks after revelations that Cuomo's administration had given the public, and state lawmakers, an incomplete accounting of the number of deaths at nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

In recent weeks, the administration revealed that 15,000 long-term care residents have died, up from the 8,500 previously disclosed.

Cuomos top aide, Melissa DeRosa, also told Democratic lawmakers that the administration delayed releasing data to the legislature about the deaths because officials froze over worries the information was going to be used against us by the Justice Department.

Cuomos senior advisor, Rich Azzopardi, said Wednesday that it wasn't true that the administration had withheld records from the Justice Department, though he acknowledged that some data requested in October had taken time to collect and produce.

We responded to the entire August request and have been in the process of responding to the October request on a rolling basis as suggested by the Department of Justice at the time, with a production as recent as January 8, 2021, Azzopardi said. "As we publicly said, DOJ has been looking into this for months. We have been cooperating with them and we will continue to.

Meanwhile, Cuomo was dealing with a fresh challenge in the state Senate, where top Democrats, including Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, prepared to vote in the coming days on a proposal that would require the governor to consult with legislators before issuing emergency orders.

Cuomo has used those powers, granted to him last spring, to limit public gatherings, close businesses and schools, and then unilaterally loosen those restrictions when he felt it would help the state.

Stewart-Cousins said the situation had changed since the early months of the crisis.

We certainly see the need for a quick response but also want to move toward a system of increased oversight, and review, she said. The public deserves to have checks and balances. Our proposal would create a system with increased input while at the same time ensuring New Yorkers continue to be protected.

It wasn't clear whether the proposal had support in the state Assembly.

The development unfolded as Cuomo feuded with Democrats who had criticized his handling of COVID-19 outbreaks at nursing homes.

Assembly Member Ron Kim said Cuomo had vowed to destroy him during a private phone call last week for criticism he felt was unfair.

Cuomo denied the allegation, then used a call with reporters Wednesday to blast Kim, one of nine Democrats who signed a letter seeking support for the proposal to limit his emergency powers, which are set to expire this spring.

The letter, sent to Assembly members Tuesday, said Cuomo's administration "deliberately covered up" the extent of deaths in nursing homes and engaged in an intentional obstruction of justice.

Cuomo said earlier this week the state didnt cover up deaths, but should have moved faster to release information. No excuses: I accept responsibility for that, he said at a news conference.

He said its a lie that he obstructed justice, and told reporters Wednesday that he had a long hostile relationship with Kim. The governor accused Kim of being unethical for backing nail salon owners as lawmakers discussed safety and wage reforms of the industry in 2015. Kim had initially supported the reforms, but later opposed some of them after getting support from salon owners.

I didnt say anything about Assemblyman Ron Kim. He attacked me, Cuomo said. He attacked me and said that I obstructed justice in a letter.

Kim told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Cuomo called him on the phone Feb. 11 and shouted at him.

He went off on, I have not seen his wrath, that he had bit his tongue about me for months," Kim said. And I heard, I can go out tomorrow and I will destroy your career. I will start telling the world how bad of an Assembly member you are and youll be finished.'

Azzopardi, who was on the call, accused Kim of lying in a statement Wednesday and said no one threatened to destroy anyone with their wrath."

___

Balsamo reported from Washington.
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John MacArthurs mens conference postponed after threats from California officials

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John MacArthurs Shepherds Conference for men in church leadership, which was expected to draw some 3,000 attendees to the megachurch in Sun Valley, California, next month, has been postponed due to ongoing litigation" and "threats" from the state.

In light of our ongoing litigation and recent threats from the County of Los Angeles and the State of California, we have decided that the most prudent course of action at this time is to postpone the Shepherds' Conference, the church announced on the conference website and its social media platforms Friday.

We will be deposing the key health officers and county officials and requiring them to answer for their oppressive actions under oath, and requesting all documents and information supporting their arbitrary attempts to restrict our religious liberty as a church. Our church leadership remains firmly committed to the truth that Christ is the head of the Church, and we will not yield to government's infringement upon the biblical command to worship and gather together, the church continued. We intend to steadfastly defend this truth and obtain appropriate constitutional and legal protections and further relief from the Court.

The announcement comes a week after the office of California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state would revise guidelines for indoor worship services after the Supreme Court granted an emergency injunction blocking a complete public health ban on indoor worship services but keeping in place restrictions on singing, chanting and a 25% limit on crowd size in place.

"We will continue to enforce the restrictions the Supreme Court left in place and, after reviewing the decision, we will issue revised guidelines for worship services to continue to protect the lives of Californians, Daniel Lopez, the governor's press secretary, said in a statement.

Dr. Muntu Davis, Los Angeles Countys health officer, told reporters prior to the postponement of the conference on Friday that they were very concerned about the health risks that could arise as a result of the gathering at Grace Community Church, which has been holding worship services regularly.

The county is very concerned about the public health impacts that could come from an event like this if its held, especially as we continue to see high case numbers and large numbers of people in hospitals who are sick with COVID-19, Davis said.

Sun Valley and the surrounding areas continue to have among the highest case rates of COVID-19 within the county, and have for some time, he explained. And a gathering of this magnitude will create additional opportunities for COVID-19 transmission, both to the people that attend this gathering and the other people in the community.

Grace Community Church has repeatedly challenged health guidelines, citing God's command for gathering and religious freedom, amid the pandemic.

It was unclear Tuesday when the conference, which was set to take place March 3-5 and featured such speakers as Paul Washer, founder and director of HeartCry Missionary Society, and H.B. Charles Jr., pastor-teacher of the Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church, would be rescheduled.

I dont know when the conference might be rescheduled, Phil Johnson, Grace To You executive director and an elder at Grace Community Church who has spoken at the conference over the years, said in a response to The Christian Post Tuesday.

The ShepConf team have graciously invited me to speak at the conference over the years, but Im otherwise not involved in any stage of the planning or logistics for the conference. So Im waiting like everyone else to see what changes might be announced, and I expect it will be a few days before the men in charge have sorted out the strategy for rescheduling, he explained.

Johnson further noted that while many who planned to attend the conference are disappointed, they have also been universally understanding.

Were all bitterly disappointed and frustrated, with no end in sight for the lockdowns, but we nevertheless know the Lord is still sovereign and he will use even this for our good and His glory. So we remain joyful and press on despite the disappointment, he said.

The mission of the Shepherds Conference is to provide the opportunity for men in church leadership to be challenged in their commitment to biblical ministry, find encouragement together and seek to become more effective servants of God.
Building trust in vaccines, addressing the youth mental health crisis, and bridging the digital divide among key opportunities for the worlds children post-pandemic - UNICEF

In an open letter about reimagining the world after COVID-19, UNICEFs Executive Director highlights five lessons from the global pandemic

Renewing global confidence in vaccines, addressing challenges to youth mental health and wellbeing, fighting discrimination, tackling climate change, and bridging the digital divide are the biggest opportunities for children that the COVID-19 pandemic has presented the international community, UNICEFs Executive Director Henrietta Fore said in her annual open letter today.

In the letter, released as UNICEF launches worldwide commemorations of its 75th anniversary, Fore outlines how, while the world continues its fight against the global pandemic, we need to seize the key opportunities it presents to reimagine a world more fit for children.

As we kick off UNICEFs 75th anniversary, we are reminded that this organization was created in the midst of another historic crisis in the aftermath of World War II, writes Fore. Back then, it would have been easy to be overwhelmed by the scale of the problems facing children in a war-ravaged world. But we reimagined what was possible. We built new health and welfare systems around the world. We defeated smallpox and wild polio. We built the United Nations. History is calling upon us once again.

On vaccines, Fore warns that vaccine hesitancy will have a profound effect on our ability to overcome COVID-19. Even while we work with governments, partners and donors to help procure, transport and deliver vaccines around the world, Fore writes, we must also build confidence in the vaccines in order for the public to accept them. Without trust, vaccines are just expensive vials in a doctors cabinet.

On mental health, Fore says that COVID-19 has added to a worrying rise in mental health disorders among children and young people, and urges the international community to do more. Countries need to give this issue the investment it deserves, dramatically expand mental health services and support for young people in communities and schools, and build on parenting programmes to ensure that children from vulnerable families get the support and protection they need at home, she writes.

On bridging the digital divide, Fore points out how global lockdowns have exposed the inherent inequity of the digital divide. During the peak of school closures in 2020, about 30 per cent of the worlds schoolchildren were unable to access remote learning  some of the same children who are already unlikely to have access to quality education. The letter calls for reimagining education and bridging the digital divide so that digital tools can be leveraged to reimage education and leapfrog into the future.

Finally, the letter points out how critical this moment of opportunity is. The international community must support an inclusive recovery that prioritizes investments for children, Fore writes. This year, as UNICEF celebrates 75 years of reimagining the future for every child, lets gather behind children and young people with a new spirit of urgency, as we create opportunities, ignite their dreams, and support them across every part of their lives.
Melvin Banks Sr., founder of largest black-owned Christian publishing company, dies at 86

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Melvin E. Banks Sr., the founder of Urban Ministries, Inc., the largest independent, African American-owned and operated Christian media and publishing company, passed away Saturday. He was 86.

Dr. Banks was a revolutionary publisher and giant for the African American church and community, UMI CEO C. Jeffrey Wright said in a statement to The Christian Post.

He was the first to create contextualized content that portrayed positive images of African Americans in the Bible. Because of his innovation, UMI has reached millions of Black churches and individuals with the Gospel.

Banks was born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1934. He became involved with the publishing industry after completing his masters degree at Wheaton College in 1960.

After graduation, he took a job at Scripture Press Publishers. During his tenure there, Banks struggled to sell euro-centric Sunday school content to African American churches.

In light of that experience, Banks was inspired to create contextual resources for African Americans with imagery and stories unique to their culture, UMI explained in a statement.

After a few years at Scripture Press Publishers, Banks left the company to start his own. He launched UMI in 1970 from his Chicago basement. The company grew to serve thousands of churches as it provided Sunday School and Bible study materials for black churches.

Some viewed Banks' work as controversial as the company produced Bible study materials that depicted Biblical figures as both black and white to reflect that the Bible is set in the Middle East and North Africa, according to Legacy.com,

He included images of young African Americans in the publications.

Banks argued that he helped black Christians find more that they could relate to in the Bible.

For the first time, they were gaining a sense of esteem by seeing themselves portrayed in the publication, Banks said in a 2017 video.

According to Wright, Banks work came when many people were discouraged in the African American community because of the failure of the white evangelical community to come alongside the Civil Rights Movement.

The faith that we cling to needed to speak to the problems that people were facing, Banks said in the video. Are you going to be accurate when you talk about what happened in the Bible or keep on perpetuating the idea that everything is euro-centric?

Banks also wrote several books and devotionals. He also hosted a two-minute daily podcast called Daily Direction.

His pioneering work has been recognized by some evangelical organizations, including the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. Banks was presented with the ECPAs inaugural Kenneth N. Taylor Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017. Banks also studied at Moody Bible Institute and was named the institutions alumnus of the year in 2008.

I would load up my [car] trunk and go from city to city, Banks recalled of his journey in a video feature for the ECPA award. And in that way, we were able to get the word out that we had a new product that we believe could help churches because it was speaking to the issues.

The ECPA realized they werent speaking to black Americans as a result of Banks work.

He liberated many pastors, churches and young people who were ready to give up on the Christian faith, Rev. Otis Moss III of Chicagos Trinity United Church of Christ explained in the video feature.

UMI developed Christian education resources, including Bible studies, Sunday school and vacation Bible school curriculum, websites, magazines, books and videos for its more than 40,000 customers.

So many people have been introduced to the life-changing message of Jesus because of Dr. Banks ground-breaking initiatives, UMI Vice President Terri Hannett said. For 50 years, UMI has produced discipleship content that was intellectually rigorous and uniquely relevant for the black experience.

Banks planted the Westlawn Gospel Chapel church in Chicago and co-founded the Urban Outreach Foundation to reach pastors, lay leaders and Christian educators through conferences and other resources. According to UMI, he also co-founded Circle Y Ranch, a Christian camp and conference center for urban youth in Chicago.

According to a statement from UMI, Banks died from a month-long illness and is survived by his wife, Olive, and their three children.

Stanley Long, chairman of the UMI board who describes Banks as one of his closest friends for 50 years, said in a statement that he will miss Banks beyond what words can describe.

He and I have shared the same vision and burden for as many years as we have been friends, Long detailed. As board chair, I will invest as much energy as he did to continue the work of UMI in the same direction it has journeyed from its inception, to impact the lives of as many men, women, and children as possible.

Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) CEO Yoon Jong-won speaks during a conference at its headquarters in Seoul on Feb. 5. Yonhap



By Lee Min-hyung



Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) CEO Yoon Jong-won pledged Thursday to abide by an upcoming dispute mediation procedure to compensate customers who lost money from soured investments, in funds involving Discovery Asset Management.



The lender sold 361.2 billion won ($325.8 million) worth of investment products linked to the funds for three years since 2017, but failed to return 69.5 billion won of the money to customers seeking redemptions.



The IBK chief said the bank will compensate victims' losses in line with guidelines set up by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS). The regulator plans to convene the dispute settlement committee soon.



"It is reasonable for us to compensate for their losses through relevant processes taken by the committee," Yoon said in a press conference. "We are going to do our best to minimize customers' damages by sincerely cooperating with any request from the committee."



The IBK head also pledged to place top priority on protecting customers, so that the lender will not be shaken by another scandal involving soured funds. Former IBK CEO Kim Do-jin was recently slapped with a sanction for his poor management, regarding sales of risky funds linked to Lime Asset Management and Discovery Asset Management.



Yoon also did not rule out the possibility of the lender adopting a union-recommended non-executive board member. All eyes are on whether the IBK will set an example by embracing union demands, which will be unprecedented.



"The introduction of the union-recommended board system comes with expectations and concerns, but it can be realized only after the relevant laws are revised," Yoon said. "We hope to build a culture of cooperation between labor and management."



Under the much-controversial drive, the union urges the lender to fill the position with at least one person recommended by the union after two of the lender's outside board members finish their terms in February and March, respectively.



Yoon took office as the leader of the state-run bank in January 2020, amid fierce opposition from the union. At that time, he promised to introduce the union-recommended board system.



Korea's major commercial lenders do not welcome the introduction of the system, as top management of most companies  including banks  believe the system will end up adding confusion to what they call the "consistent operation" of the board. They also believe that the union-recommended board members may push for policies that could go against the overall interests of the shareholders in some ways.



Yoon also shared his plan to continue focusing on helping the self-employed, as well as small- and medium-sized enterprises suffering from the aftermath of the coronavirus shock, even throughout 2021, despite the lender's falling revenues.



IBK reported a net profit of 1.54 trillion won in 2020, down 4.1 percent from the previous year. The lender's earnings have declined since 2018 when it posted 1.76 trillion won in annual net profit.



The earnings drop was attributable to a fall in net income margin and preemptive steps by the bank to set aside more reserves to cushion the 340.6 billion won in bad debts last year amid the unexpected outbreak and spread of the coronavirus.



"Given the allowance, we consider the 2020 earnings performance to be decent enough," he said.


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Three workers who had been trapped under the rubble after a huge stack collapsed on a coke battery control room at South Africa's steel mill were found dead on Thursday, company ArcelorMittal South Africa confirmed

JOHANNESBURG (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) Three workers who had been trapped under the rubble after a huge stack collapsed on a coke battery control room at South Africa's steel mill were found dead on Thursday, company ArcelorMittal South Africa confirmed.

On Wednesday, the South Africa's largest steel maker said that three workers were missing after the accident at the plant in the city of Vanderbijlpark.

"ArcelorMittal South Africa regrets to confirm that the bodies of its three missing employees have now all been recovered," it said in an update.

The National Union of Metalworkers South Africa (NUMSA) described the news as "devastating" and extended condolences to the families of the victims.

"They have been waiting anxiously hoping that their loved ones would be found alive. Unfortunately that was not to be. We send our deepest condolences to the family and friends of those who have passed away," NUMSA said.

The union called on the department of employment and labour to launch a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident.

It noted that it had had a long painful history with ArcelorMittal and its management, which previously dismissed a NUMSA shop steward for exposing poor health safety protocols in the company.

NUMSA spokeswoman Phakamile Hlubi-Majola told Sputnik that the union would like to thank those who had been working tirelessly throughout the day on Wednesday to ensure that the bodies were found.

"We are convinced that had it not been for the intense efforts of workers themselves who volunteered and risked their own lives and took the initiative searching through the massive piles of the rubble to locate workers trapped under the building, we would not had discovered the bodies," Hlubi-Majola said.

The steel maker also expressed its heartfelt condolences and pledged assistance to the families of the victims and vows to conduct a "full investigation."
COLUMBIA  South Carolina financial institutions could soon have the power to freeze withdrawals from accounts tied to vulnerable adults who might be victims of fraud  a crime that robs people of billions every year.

A bill sponsored by Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Thomas Alexander, R-Walhalla, exempting financial institutions and its employees from facing punishment after reporting when such abuse may be taking place is moving through the General Assembly, supported by law enforcement agencies, the state Attorney General and industry leaders.

This legislation just adds another layer of reporting to us, Jonathan Williams, who works in the state Attorney Generals securities division, told a Senate Family and Veterans' subcommittee during a Feb. 17 hearing.

Language in the measure also compels institutions to divulge possible financial abuse to law enforcement. If legislators approve the proposal, South Carolina would join 14 other states that require such a disclosure.

An amendment was added that widens protection so it pertains to money lending entities where a deposit may not take place, such as asset management firms.

State code defines vulnerable adults as people over 18 years old with a physical or mental condition which substantially impairs the person from adequately providing for his or her own protection.

More than two-thirds of all bank deposits across the country are linked to accounts of people at least 50 years old and by 2030 that demographic will have an accumulated $18 trillion in assets, according to figures from the American Association of Retired Persons.

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In 2017, the financial exploitation of vulnerable adults accounted for an estimated $1.7 billion in losses, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

There's a need for a lot of tools out there not only for law enforcement and state agencies but also entities that deal with them (customers) on the front end, said Neal Rashley Jr., senior vice president of the South Carolina Bankers Association.

Williams said, once a bank, credit union or other lender slows down or freezes a withdrawal under the law, it gives investigators 55 days to look into the matter.

Officials said the schemes can range from sophisticated online scams to a more direct approach.

Particularly at community banks, you're going to know your customers, Rashley said. You start seeing a level of disbursement or transfers that's out of the ordinary for a person on a fixed income as an example of what could be a red flag.

Members unanimously voted the measure to full committee.

I was raised in a multi-generational household, and my great-grandmother was taken advantage of financially years ago. We had no recourse as a family, and so I support this, said state Sen. Penry Gustafson, R-Camden.
San Francisco, Feb 18 : Nine federal agencies and about 100 private sector companies were compromised as a result of the SolarWinds hack, the White House has said.

Although the hack was "likely of Russian origin," the hackers launched their attack from inside the US, Anne Neuberger, Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology, said in a briefing on Wednesday.

To carry out the attack, hackers installed a malware in the Orion software sold by the IT management company SolarWinds.

"As you know, roughly 18,000 entities downloaded the malicious update. So the scale of potential access far exceeded the number of known compromises," Neuberger said, adding that many of the private sector compromises are technology companies, including networks of companies whose products could be used to launch additional intrusions.

"The hackers launched the hack from inside the United States, which further made it difficult for the US government to observe their activity," she added.

The top cybersecurity official informed that the intelligence community is looking at who is responsible.

Earlier media reports suggested that the hackers compromised at least 250 federal agencies and top enterprises in the US.

According to Microsoft, the hackers compromised 'SolarWinds' software allowing them to "impersonate any of the organisation's existing users and accounts, including highly privileged accounts." Microsoft said it had discovered its systems were infiltrated "beyond just the presence of malicious 'SolarWinds' code." Several leading tech giants like Intel, Cisco, VMware and Nvidia, have suffered part of the SolarWinds hack. The SolarWinds hack first came to light late last year.

"And, finally, in terms of response to the perpetrator, discussions are underway," Neuberger said.

"This isn't the only case of malicious cyber activity of likely Russian origin, either for us or for our allies and partners. So as we contemplate future response options, we're considering holistically what those activities were," she added.

It may take several months for the US government to complete the investigation into the SolarWinds hack, according to her.
Hair stylist Amelia Herb poses for a portrait on a porch in Athens, Georgia on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2020. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Herb has brought hairstyling appointments to Athenians front porches. (Photo/Jessica Gratigny; @jgratphoto)
Two autonomous private high schools in Seoul won a lawsuit against the local education office on Thursday, in a ruling allowing them to reclaim their elite status. / Korea Times file



Two "autonomous private high schools" in Seoul won a lawsuit against the local education office on Thursday, in a ruling allowing them to reclaim their elite status.



The Seoul Administrative Court said it was illegal for the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education to decide to cancel the licenses of Sehwa High School and Pai Chai High School in July 2019, after both institutions failed a performance evaluation that year. The education ministry later approved the decision.



The two schools sued the education office over what they called procedural problems in changing the criteria for extending licenses, and the arbitrary and vague nature of the assessment criteria.



The education office maintained that the criteria and any changes were made after careful deliberation and that the schools had been properly informed.



A total of eight autonomous private high schools in Seoul lost their special status following the education office's decision in 2019. A stay of execution was granted for all eight. The other six schools are awaiting the court's decision on their own lawsuits.



Both Sehwa and Pai Chai welcomed the ruling.



"We expected this outcome," Kim Jae-yun, Sehwa's principal, said. "Our school plans to continue its educational activities without disruption."



Ko Jin-young, Pai Chai's principal, said he was pleased that both schools had reclaimed their status.



"We will continue to provide the best education we can as an autonomous private high school," he said.



The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education expressed "deep concern and regret," saying there were no legal or administrative issues in the schools' evaluation process.



"We will carefully review the court's ruling as soon as it is delivered and file an appeal," it said in a statement.



The ruling amounts to another win for the elite institutions amid the Moon Jae-in government's push to abolish them and turn them into general schools by 2025.



Last December, Haeundae High School in the southeastern city of Busan won a similar lawsuit against the local education office after its status was revoked in 2019.



During his election campaign in 2017, Moon promised to overhaul the privileged school system, which he called a key culprit of deepened educational inequality, excessive academic competition and high private education costs. (Yonhap)


Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) -Thunderstruck Resources Ltd. (OTC: THURF) (TSXV: AWE): (The "Company") is pleased to give an update on its Fiji exploration assets.

Highlights

Positive results from drilling at Korokayiu Joint Venture (JV) zinc-copper volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS) project leads joint venture partner to expand program, including initiation of metallurgical testing.

Rama copper-gold porphyry project: Management is working with multiple interested parties to secure a joint venture to fund the next phase of work.

Drilling is planned for June 2021 at the Liwa gold/silver project.

Korokayiu Zinc-Copper VMS

Initial scout drilling, at the Korokayiu VMS prospect has intersected anomalous zinc grades 275 meters north-east along strike from the discovery outcrop, extending the known mineralized horizon intersected in the 2019 drill programs ( see press release January 30, 2020 ) which outlined a significant zinc-copper-silver-gold VMS system.

Based on these positive results, the joint venture partner Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC) is presently working with Thunderstruck on details of a comprehensive 2021 Induced Polarity (IP) geophysical survey, soil geochemistry and drill program with Mitsui Mineral Development Engineering Co., Ltd. (MINDECO).

Drill hole WLK19A intersected 2.97% Zinc (Zn) and 26.6 grams-per-tonne Silver (g/t Ag), over a drill core interval of 5.42 meters (Table 1). This first hole into a new target zone is highly encouraging. The mineralization is hosted by intensely altered fragmental volcanoclastic dacite hosting sphalerite, chalcopyrite and pyrite mineralization. Drill hole WLK19A was designed to test coincident gravity, structural and soil anomalies (Figure 1).

Six line-kilometres of follow up IP surveys were conducted during late 2020 over prospects highlighted by previous drilling (including WLK19A), soil sampling, and detailed mapping. The IP surveys have been directed at delineating targets within areas of known base metal mineralization on the Korokayiu prospect including: Wainaleka (the discovery outcrop), Kula Creek, Nancy, Kalia, Rotorua, Kove Kove, Echo Creek, as well as Ruve and Palu Creek (see press release May 21, 2020). Results of IP surveys are currently being processed. These multiple targets are consistent with typical VMS-type deposits which typically occur in clusters.

Metallurgic processing test work is also underway on material garnered from the discovery outcrop, highlighted by drill hole WLK17 with 11 meters of 13.77% Zn, 2.94% Copper (Cu), 113.7 g/t Ag and 1.08 grams-per-tonne Gold (Au) (Table 1). It is highly encouraging that the joint venture partner has undertaken metallurgical testing at this stage of the exploration program.

Bryce Bradley, Thunderstruck's President/CEO, stated "We will have 2 drill programs in 2021, on our Liwa gold/silver and Korokayiu zinc/copper assets, it's a positive situation in a challenging time."

Table 1. Korokayiu Cu-Zn Deposit Significant Diamond Drill Intercepts

Drill Hole Released From (m) To (m) Interval (m)1 Zn (%) Cu (%) Ag (g/t) Au (g/t) WLK19A Current News Release 106.03 111.45 5.42 2.97 0.21 26.6 - WLK17 Jan. 30, 2020 60.50 71.50 11 13.77 2.94 113.7 1.08 and (footwall zone) 71.50 110.50 39 0.18 0.41 - - WLK16A 128.06 130.83 2.77 21.58 2.04 81.1 0.42 WLK14B Dec. 11, 2019 57.05 67.60 10.55 9.51 1.87 54.5 0.48 including 57.73 64.04 6.31 14.51 2.35 111.1 0.66 WLK14A 78.82 87.20 8.38 0.28 1.15 27.5 0.23 including 78.82 82.17 3.35 0.11 2.05 59.7 0.51

1The true width of mineralization is estimated to be 80-100% of the drilled interval

Figure 1. Korokayiu WLK19A Drill Section





To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2901/74824_174d0111d46e79bf_001full.jpg

Liwa Gold/Silver Prospect

Drilling at the Liwa gold/silver asset was interrupted due to the termination of Lloyd Gale of Bonga Drilling and is expected to resume in June, focused on targets delineated during the 2019 exploration season (figure 2) (see press release October 11, 2019) and with Induced Polarity (IP) surveys (see press release April 2 2019).

Figure 2 Liwa Gold/Silver Exploration Results





To view an enhanced version of Figure 2, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2901/74824_174d0111d46e79bf_002full.jpg

Rama Creek Copper-Gold Porphyry

Interest has been expressed from several groups seeking to create a joint venture with Thunderstruck on our Rama copper-gold porphyry prospect (Figure 3). Thunderstruck is working to secure a strong partner to advance the project which has historical drill intercepts of 0.22% Cu over 244 meters. Recent IP geophysical, trenching, and soil sampling programs (see press releases dated April 2, 2019 and October 22, 2018) have further defined the structure and the extent of the mineralized system, leading to strong interest from potential partners.

Figure 3 Rama Creek IP/Resistivity Survey Results (Isometric View Looking North)



To view an enhanced version of Figure 3, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2901/74824_174d0111d46e79bf_003full.jpg

Management Update

The Company is pleased to announce the appointment of Rob Christl as Vice President Business Development and Investor Relations.

"Rob is one of our largest shareholders and a long time Thunderstruck supporter,' stated Bryce Bradley, President/CEO. "He has been critical in advancing our goal of building a strong exploration presence in Fiji, and we're thrilled that he has agreed to take on a larger role in the Company."

About Fiji

Viti Levu, the main island of Fiji, has a long mining history. It is on the prolific Pacific Ring of Fire, a trend that has produced numerous large deposits, including Porgera, Lihir and Grasberg. The island of Viti Levu hosts Namosi, held by a joint venture between Newcrest and Mitsubishi. Newcrest published Proven and Probable Reserves for Namosi of 1.3 billion tonnes at 0.37% Cu and 0.12 g/t Au (5.2M ounces Au and 4.9M tonnes Cu). Namosi is now undergoing environmental assessment as part of the permitting process. Lion One Metals is now developing its Tuvatu Project, with Indicated Resources of 1.00 million tonnes at 8.48 g/t Au (274,600 ounces Au), and Inferred Resources of 1.33 million tonnes at 9.0 g/t Au (384,000 ounces Au) reported at a 3.0 g/t Au lower cutoff. The Vatukoula Gold Mine has been operating for 80 years, producing in excess of 7 million ounces.

About Thunderstruck Resources

Thunderstruck Resources is a Canadian mineral exploration company that has assembled extensive and highly prospective properties in Fiji on which recent and previous exploration has confirmed zinc, copper and precious metals mineralization. The Company provides investors with exposure to a diverse portfolio of exploration stage projects with potential for zinc, copper, gold and silver in a politically safe and stable jurisdiction. Thunderstruck trades on the Toronto Venture Exchange (TSX-V) under the symbol "AWE" and United States OTC under the symbol "THURF."

Methodology and QA/QC

The analytical work reported on herein was performed by Australian Laboratory Services Pty. Ltd. (ALS) Brisbane. ALS is an ISO-IEC 17025:2017 and ISO 9001:2015 accredited geoanalytical laboratory and is independent of the Thunderstruck Resources and the QP. Drill core samples were subject to crushing at a minimum of 70% passing 2 mm, followed by pulverizing of a 250 gram split to 85% passing 75 microns (PREP-31). A 0.25 gram sample pulp was then subject to 4-acid (HF-HNO 3 -HClO 4 ) digestion and analysis via 33 element ICP-AES analysis (ME-ICP61) for base metals and silver, and 30 gram fire assay fusion (Au-AA25) for gold determination. Base metal over limit values returning greater than 1%, or greater than 100 g/t for silver, were analyzed by four-acid digestion of a 0.40 gram sample pulp, followed analysis via ICP-AES (ME-OG62).

Thunderstruck Resources follows industry standard procedures for the work carried out on the Korokayiu prospect, with a quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) program. Blank, duplicate and standard samples were inserted into the sample sequence sent to the laboratory for analysis. Thunderstruck Resources detected no significant QA/QC issues during review of the data. Thunderstruck Resources is not aware of any drilling, sampling, recovery or other factors that could materially affect the accuracy or reliability of the data referred to herein.

Qualified Person Statement

Kristopher J. Raffle, P.Geo. (BC) Principal and Consultant of APEX Geoscience Ltd. of Edmonton, AB, is a qualified person for the project as defined by National Instrument NI 43-101. Mr. Raffle has reviewed and approved the portion of the technical content of this news release as it relates to Korokayiu VMS prospect.

For additional information, please contact:

Rob Christl, VP Business Development and Investor Relations

Email: rob@thunderstruck.ca

P: 778 840-7180

or, visit our website: http://www.thunderstruck.ca

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange Inc. nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". Although Thunderstruck believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of Thunderstruck's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by law, Thunderstruck undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74824
Dozens of residents in Texas' South Padre Island beach town have braved the deadly winter storm to rescue endangered sea turtles.

Volunteers working with the local rescue group Sea Turtle, Inc. have taken more than 4,000 frozen turtles for rehabilitation at the town's convention center, the Washington Post reported.

Conservationists hope to raise their body heat gradually as they lie on tarps and kiddie pools indoors.

Wendy Knight, the executive director of the rescue group, told the outlet that the situation is 'unprecedented' and she fears hundreds of them may have already succumbed to 'cold stun.'

'A cold stun like this could have the potential to wipe out decades of hard work, and we're going through it with no power and a unique, more catastrophic challenge to our efforts,' she told the outlet.

More than 4,000 sea turtles have been rescued in Texas after the winter storm caused the reptiles to experience 'cold stun'

Volunteers have placed the paralyzed turtles on tarps and in plastic tubs as they try to warm their body temperatures

The organization said that a man named Captain Henry rescued more than 100 turtles

Tagged sea turtles lie in a tub as volunteers work to warm their body temperatures after the winter storm

Turtle rescuers fear that hundreds of them may have already succumbed to 'cold stun'

Turtles have been brought to the South Padre Island convention center after the Sea Turtle, Inc. facility filled

Workers unload sea turtles from the back of a pickup truck in South Padre Island, Texas

Volunteers normally rescue from a few dozen to a few hundred cold-stunned turtles, warming them inside the group's rescue center.

Cold stun is a condition experienced by sea turtles at extremely low temperatures which paralyzes them and prevents them from eating or keeping their heads above water, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The dangerous arctic cold has left more than a dozen humans dead as millions of people across the south, particularly in Texas, face widespread power outages.

Knight told CBS News that Elon Musk's SpaceX company, which has a facility on the Island, provided the organization with a large enough generator to restore power to its main facility allowing the group to heat water for the turtles.

'We do not yet know if this was in time to save our patients in the hospital but this is a huge step forward,' Knight told the outlet.

'This is what putting passion into action means and the service they provided us this morning will save countless turtles and will be something we are truly grateful for.'

The convention center location remained without heat and water on Wednesday, Knight said.

Texas has scene an unprecedented winter snow storm that has left millions in the state without power

Jose' Nives tries to shovel his way out after getting stuck in the middle of the street on Wednesday in Austin, Texas

Conservationists told the Washington Post it may take days to determine how many turtles have been able to survive the shocking cold.

According to the group, the green sea turtles live year-round in the salty Laguna Madre and eat thick, underwater vegetation helping keep the ecosystem balanced.

Volunteers went out on boats to scoop up cold-stunned turtles from the water as others scanned the beach on foot and loaded them into their cars.

Rehab staff conducting laser therapy on a juvenile Kemp's ridley sea turtle patient

A cold stun like the one experienced in Texas could have the potential to wipe out decades of work by conservationists

South Padre Island sea temperature rarely drop below 50 degrees, the temperature which can cause the cold stun

One Twitter user posted a photo showing the turtles filling the back of a Subaru in Texas

One woman on Twitter posted a picture showing dozens of turtles loaded into her mother's Subaru.

'They rescued one turtle yesterday who is over 100 years old and approximately 350 pounds!!!' @lara_hand tweeted.

Gina McLellan, a 71-year-old retired professor and longtime volunteer, told the Washington Post that it is a 'huge community effort.'

'We very often don't even think about the [cold's] impact on animals, because we're so worried about our own electricity and water. With this kind of event, it's a classic display of humanity toward animals,' she said.

Knight said the efforts of volunteers eventually will not matter unless they get more help from the power grid in order to help warm the turtles.

'If we don't get some relief from a power standpoint, we're not going to be able to sustain this,' she said.
Adding to a chorus of concerns over the states COVID vaccine rollout, more than 100 Cape Cod officials are urging the Baker administration to increase its allocation of doses to the peninsula to help vaccinate its aging population.

In a letter addressed to Gov. Charlie Baker, Cape Cod leaders pleaded with Baker to take steps to alleviate the supply shortage impacting Barnstable County, which officials say is getting only 975 doses a week.

While 11.7% of Barnstable County residents have received the first dose of the vaccination, we worry this does not capture how many more adults over 75 there are in our communities, they write.

The letter, signed by virtually all of the Capes town managers and administrators, Select Board members and state representatives, urges Baker to establish a vaccination site at Cape Cod Community College as promised; increase vaccine doses to Barnstable County; and deliver shots to a consortium of local boards of health in Barnstable County.

To date, roughly 22,000 doses of the vaccine have been provided to Barnstable County, Cape Cod Healthcare, community health centers and two Cape towns, according to the letter.

In the most significant vaccination effort in Massachusetts history, Cape Codders are being left behind, the Cape leaders wrote. We have worked deliberately and collaboratively as a region to plan to provide vaccination to our residents. We simply need the state to allocate vaccine equitably based on demography. Please help us help ourselves.

On Wednesday, state health officials said they will open up vaccinations to Massachusetts residents 65 and older, or who have two or more health conditions considered high risk for more serious COVID illness; but Baker says those eligible groups may have to wait up to a month to book an appointment amid the ongoing shortage.

Addressing concerns over the vaccine rollout on Wednesday, Baker urged continued patience.

Unless we see a massive increase in shipments from the feds, it will take us at least a month for people in these new groups to be able to book their first vaccine appointment, Baker said, adding that the demand is so much greater than the supply at this point in time.

Related Content:
Meghan McCain lambasted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo over COVID-19 deaths in the states nursing homes, labeling him disgusting, ghoulish and calling for him to resign.

McCains scolding comments came as part of a lengthy monologue on The View Wednesday, in which the shows panel were discussing accusations that Cuomo purposely under-reported the coronavirus death toll in New York's nursing homes.

While Cuomo has denied the claims, discrediting them as a conspiracy theory, McCain insisted he should resign after months of completely and utterly ghoulish behavior amid the pandemic.

He is disgusting, McCain thundered. I think there should be a criminal investigation and I think he should step down.

Scroll down for video

Meghan McCain lambasted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo over COVID-19 deaths in the states nursing homes and called for him to resign. Cuomo (right), meanwhile, has denied he's responsible for the deaths

CUOMO ADMITS MISTAKE IN NURSING HOME DEATHS: Gov. Andrew Cuomo was praised for the way he led New York in the early days of the pandemic, but hes now defending himself against allegations he tried to cover up COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes@Sunny and @MeghanMcCain weigh in. pic.twitter.com/5Vyy3qvUU7  The View (@TheView) February 17, 2021

CNN reinstates ban on Chris Cuomo featuring family - as the host remains silent on his NY governor brother's nursing home scandal CNN has allegedly reinstated a ban on host Chris Cuomo interviewing his brother, Andrew, despite allowing the New York governor to appear on his show more than ten times last year. The network was questioned by the Washington Post on Tuesday after Chris, 50, failed to mention his 63-yar-old brother while addressing the biggest stories related to COVID-19 on his show the previous night. The host's silence came just hours after the governor had finally addressed in a press conference the latest scandal surrounding his handling of the data involving COVID-19 deaths in the state's nursing homes. And as Democrats continued to turn against the governor, with nine state assembly members on Tuesday accusing him of an 'obstruction of justice'. The Post had criticized CNN for allowing Chris to deliver 'over-the-top praise when the governor is up; silence when he's down', after the host completely ignored the press conference. CNN said in a statement to the publication that they had earlier allowed the host to break the rules on him interviewing family members as the first months of the pandemic crisis 'were an extraordinary time'. Advertisement

The controversy surrounding Cuomo pertains to an order he introduced at the beginning of the pandemic, in which he stated that COVID-19 patients could be sent back from hospitals to nursing homes, as it was believed then that they were not infectious anymore.

While families of residents killed by the virus say the order added to the number of the deaths, during a Monday press briefing Cuomo claimed 98 percent of the care homes already had COVID-19 in the building before the sick patients were sent back there - and that he was not responsible.

More than 15,000 people have died in New York state's nursing homes and long term care facilities from COVID-19, but as recently as last month, the state reported only 8,500 deaths.

Regardless, Cuomo insisted Monday that all the deaths in nursing homes and hospitals were fully, publicly, and accurately reported - despite an Democrat-led investigation suggesting otherwise.

Host Whoopi Goldberg began the Cuomo segment on the View Wednesday by asking if the embattled governor is taking enough responsibility for New Yorks 45,000 COVID-19 deaths.

Panelist Sunny Hostin insisted said she didnt believe Cuomo had, calling him evasive and insisting that she was disappointed in the governors communication with the public.

To be clear, I think that the Trump administration and Pences coronavirus task force really stands at the top of responsibility for the almost 500,000 deaths of our loved ones, she said. But I think this governor was less than transparent.

A fired up McCain then chimed in that the Cuomo scandal is personal for her, after her friend, journalist Janice Dean, lost both of her in-laws to COVID-19 in New York nursing homes last year.

I have a lot of anger towards this story for two reasons, she said, so bear with me.

McCain continued: The first one is, I think the media has done a really p***-poor job in covering this in lots of ways: Hes been given Emmys, hes gone on TV and joked about his sex life with giant q-tips with his brother Chris Cuomo.

'The adulation and the lack of question of him across the board, and his way to evade it, has been nothing short of journalistic malpractice and malfeasance,' she said.

Host Whoopi Goldberg (top left) began the Cuomo segment on the View Wednesday by asking if the embattled governor is taking enough responsibility for New Yorks 45,000 COVID-19 deaths

More than 15,000 people have died in New York state's nursing homes and long term care facilities from COVID-19, but as recently as last month, the state reported only 8,500 deaths (pictured: A COVID-19 patient being wheeled into a Brooklyn hospital in April, 2020)

The daughter of late Sen. John McCain then said her second issue stems from her being pro-life across the board.

The idea that because youre old and in a nursing home that your life is somehow worth less than mine  and if you die that way, that we will care less because you are old and dying alone in a nursing home, she continued.

I think if this involved younger people  or those under 70  I think we as a society wouldve cared more. There is no empathy coming from Gov. Cuomo.

McCain then blasted Cuomo for being utterly ghoulish in the way he has talked to people, and for failing to apologize to the family members of those whove lost loved ones in nursing homes, because of the pandemic.

He has not apologized to the families who have lost their family members in this way.

I think hes disgusting, she said. I think there should be a criminal investigation and I think he should step down.

In summation, McCain added that no one deserves to die along in a nursing home - pandemic or no pandemic.

I think about the way my father died, surrounding by family and love, outside in Sedona, surrounded by hawks and animals, with true dignity, she concluded. And then the way it couldve gone, had he not been famous or, god forbid, died from COVID under Andrew Cuomos leadership.

McCain blasted Cuomo for being utterly ghoulish in the way he has talked to people, and for failing to apologize to the family members of those whove lost loved ones in nursing homes

Cuomo claimed that it was a question of 'political spin' over 'facts' as he hit back at those who claimed he hid the true number of deaths from the public and blamed 'misinformation'

Much like the sentiments shared by McCain, lawmakers in New York have also fiercely criticized Cuomo, with some calling for his resignation.

In response to Cuomos protestations that claims he purposely misreported nursing home deaths are just a conspiracy, New York State Sen. Jessica Ramos tweeted: 'Trash. No one believes you.'

NY Sen. Alessandra Biaggi added that she believed his press conference was 'riddled with lies'.

A report late last month from Democratic state Attorney General Letitia James examined the administration's failure to tally nursing home residents' deaths at hospitals.

The state then acknowledged the total number of long-term care residents' deaths is nearly 15,000, up from the 8,500 previously disclosed.

Next, a Freedom of Information request showed that more than 9,000 recovering coronavirus patients in New York were released from hospitals into nursing homes in the pandemic's early months .

This was more than 40 percent higher than the state had said previously because it wasn't counting residents who returned from hospitals to homes where they already had lived.

It then emerged that Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa had told Democratic lawmakers that the tally of nursing home residents' deaths at hospitals was delayed because officials worried that the information was 'going to be used against us' by the DOJ.

The governor's comments did not satisfy a number of Democratic lawmakers including NY Sen. Alessandra Biaggi

New York State Sen. Jessica Ramos tweeted: 'Trash. No one believes you'

In his Monday press conference, Cuomo said he didn't cover up deaths but acknowledged that officials should have moved faster to release some information sought by lawmakers, the public and the press.

'All the deaths in the nursing homes and hospitals were always fully, publicly and accurately reported,' he claimed.

He explained the matter Monday as a difference of 'categorization,' with the state counting where deaths occurred and others seeking total deaths of nursing home residents, regardless of the location.

'We should have done a better job of providing as much information as we could as quickly as we could,' he said. 'No excuses: I accept responsibility for that.'

'We should not have created the void [of information]. We should have done a better job of providing information and knocking down conspiracy theories.

'We did not take enough action and the pain is it created confusion, cynicism and pain for the families of a loved one.'

Yet he refused to take any responsibility for any of the deaths in the state's nursing homes as he continued to blame a 'toxic political environment,' and 'disinformation' for much of the criticism surrounding his administration's handling of the issue.

Cuomo said the state was slow to respond to the lawmakers because officials prioritized dealing with requests from the Justice Department and were busy dealing with the work of the pandemic.

'Its not like people were in the South of France,' he said.

'When we didnt provide information, it allowed press, people, cynics, politicians, to fill the void,' he said, and 'it created confusion and cynicism and pain for the families.'

'The truth is: Everybody did everything they could.'
Last summer, Kathryn Swimm and Kathleen Mullins decided to meet in the middle. Ms. Swimm was living in a dungeon-like junior one-bedroom in Yorkville, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, and wanted to upsize; Ms. Mullins was in a three-bedroom flex with four roommates in Turtle Bay, in Midtown East, and wanted to downsize.

Ms. Swimm was paying $1,975 a month for her dungeon when the empty lot across the street became a huge construction project. After her lease expired during the pandemic shutdown, she temporarily moved to her familys home near Albany.

Ms. Mullins was paying $1,520 for her half of a living room. It was fine. It was fun, she said. But nobody moves to an apartment with four roommates to be stuck inside all the time.

So the two friends, both 32, who were classmates at the State University of New York at Albany and then at St. Johns School of Law in Queens, resolved to find a two-bedroom together on the Upper East Side. They assumed their new place would be in a walk-up building  as much of the housing stock in the area was, at least in their price range of up to $3,500. They wanted to face the back, to minimize traffic noise.

[Did you recently buy or rent a home in the New York metro area? We want to hear from you. Email: thehunt@nytimes.com]

Their choices seemed to be either small places that had been updated, or larger ones that hadnt been. One otherwise acceptable two-bedroom, on a tree-lined block near the subway, was unlivably small, Ms. Swimm said, with a living room that barely allowed for a sofa facing a TV.

Prices were sinking, and most rentals were being offered with no brokers fee. But the roommates didnt want to wait for prices to drop further, and Ms. Mullinss lease was expiring, so time was short.

Were lawyers  were risk-averse, said Ms. Swimm, who works as in-house counsel for a retail company.

The friends spent one intense day on the hunt, with Ms. Swimm traveling down to the city. She was hoping for a modern kitchen. Finding a place with a washer and dryer seemed unrealistic, and was only on her if-I-had-all-my-dreams-come-true list.

Ms. Mullins, who works in medical malpractice defense, wanted a real closet that was built into the wall.

Among their options:
President Trump's groundbreaking efforts to hold Communist China accountable for "bad behavior" is going nowhere thanks to the Biden admin and its new foreign policy strategies, a report reveals.

A new Republican Study Committee report reveals how the Biden administration is already beginning to undo the steps of former President Trump's actions against China. According to Breitbart, The Republican Study Committee released an RSC Backgrounder report titled "Biden on China-Bad Policies, Bad Personnel," which criticizes the Biden admin for stepping on the brakes in the race to counter communist China.

The report outlined how President Trump took bolder, tougher steps to confront China for its "bad behavior," which included "stealing U.S. intellectual property, infiltrating the U.S. education system, hijacking international organizations, and spreading disinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic."

Meanwhile, the Biden admin on the other hand has regressed in the fight to hold China accountable for their missteps. The report criticized President Biden for exhibiting weakness and copying former President Obama's "failed approach of engaging" instead of holding China accountable for their "bad behavior."

The report warns that communist China is looking to further strengthen its regime, oust the U.S. as a world leader, and claim a U.S-led international order to replace democratic values with those of Communism and authoritarianism.

Instead of holding Communist China accountable for their "bad behavior," the Biden admin suspended President Trump's E.O. 13920, which prevents China, Russia, and other adversaries from accessing or owning parts of the country's power grid.

Also in January, the Biden admin postponed to May the implementation of President Trump's EO 13959, which places sanctions on military companies of China that are operating in the United States. The Biden admin's Secretary of Commerce nominee Gina Raimondo also refused to keep the Chinese company Huawei on the Department of Commerce's Entities List, which is a trade blacklist.

The Biden admin, as an attempt to continue undoing President Trump's efforts of holding China accountable for their misdeeds, has also rejoined the World Health Organization and the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Aside from criticizing President Biden's undoing of former President Trump's efforts to hold Communist China accountable for their "bad behavior," the Republican Study Committee report also outlined the individuals in the Biden admin "who either have had links to the CCP, or have a record of weak statements and actions on confronting [China]," which include people in key positions in the government. This list includes National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, Under secretary of defense for policy nominee Colin Kahl, CIA Director William Burns, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, Head of the Domestic Policy Council Susan Rice, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, among others.

It is notable that several of these individuals occupy positions that directly impact the United States' security and intelligence operations.

President Biden has been vocal about not taking former President Trump's approach in dealing with China. CNBC reported that the new Commander in Chief said, "We will confront China's economic abuses [but] I'm not going to do it the way Trump did. We are going to focus on the international rules of the road."

CANBERRA, Australia (AP)  In a surprise retaliatory move Thursday, Facebook blocked Australians from sharing news stories, escalating a fight with the government over whether powerful tech companies should have to pay news organizations for content.

Australia's government condemned the step, which also blocked some government communications, including messages about emergency services, and some commercial pages.

The digital platforms fear that what's happening in Australia will become an expensive precedent for other countries as governments revamp laws to catch up with the fast changing digital world.

Facebook acted after the House of Representatives passed legislation that would make it and Google pay for Australian journalism, said Treasurer Josh Frydenberg. He said he was given no warning before Facebook acted. The legislation must be passed by the Senate to become law.

Australian news organizations could not post stories and people who tried to share existing news stories got notifications saying they were blocked from doing so .

This post can't be shared," the website said. In response to Australian government legislation, Facebook restricts the posting of news links and all posts from news Pages in Australia. Globally, the posting and sharing of news links from Australian publications is restricted."

The legislation mentioned by the notice has not yet been enacted.

Facebooks actions were unnecessary, they were heavy-handed and they will damage its reputation here in Australia, Frydenberg said.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison lashed out on his own Facebook page.

Facebooks actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing, Morrison posted.

These actions will only confirm the concerns that an increasing number of countries are expressing about the behavior of BigTech companies who think they are bigger than governments and that the rules should not apply to them. They may be changing the world, but that doesnt mean they run it, he added. We will not be intimidated by BigTech seeking to pressure our Parliament.

Facebook said the proposed Australian law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it.

This is an assault on a sovereign nation, Health Minster Greg Hunt told Parliament. It is an assault on peoples freedom and, in particular, its an utter abuse of big technologies market power and control over technology.

The government contends the proposed News Media Bargaining Code will ensure media businesses will be paid fairly for journalism linked online. Both Google and Facebook had threatened to retaliate.

Australia's proposal requires a negotiation safety net through an arbitration panel. The digital giants would not be able to abuse their dominant negotiating positions by making take-it-or-leave-it payment offers to news businesses for their journalism. In case of a standoff, the panel would make a binding decision on a winning offer.

Google had threatened to remove its search functions from Australia because it said the proposed law was unworkable. But that threat has faded as Google has worked out licensing content deals with Australian media companies under its own News Showcase model.

Rupert Murdochs News Corp. announced a wide-ranging deal with Google on Wednesday. Major Australian media organization Seven West Media reached a deal earlier in the week. Their rival Nine Entertainment is reportedly close to its own pact, and state-owned Australian Broadcasting Corp. is in negotiations.

The government accused Facebook of endangering public safety by temporarily blocking state emergency services messaging on a day when there were severe fire and flood warnings in various parts of Australia.

The Bureau of Meteorologys weather warnings, a Hobart womens shelter and the Betoota Advocate, a satirical website named after an Australian ghost town, were among those surprised to find their content blocked at least temporarily.

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said he told Facebook the government expects access to its pages to be restored.

The fact that there are organizations like state health departments, fire and emergency services . . . who have had their Facebook pages blocked, thats a public safety issue, Fletcher said.

Facebook said in a statement: Any pages that are inadvertently impacted, well look to reverse.

Health Minster Greg Hunt said the Royal Childrens Hospital in Melbourne still didn't have its feed fixed after more than eight hours.

Frydenberg said he had constructive discussions with Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg after the content blocking began.

He did explain to me that they had concerns with aspects of the code, and it goes to the interpretation of some of its elements. And he will come back to me with some more considered views, Frydenberg said.

He said the government remains committed to the code that is yielding generous payment deals with Google for Australian media.

Other countries are watching, but also Google and Facebook and other digital giants are very focused on what it means, as far as a precedent goes, for other countries, Frydenberg said.

News Corp. said it would receive significant payments from Google under the three-year agreement, which includes heavyweight news organizations throughout the English-speaking world such as The Wall Street Journal and New York Post in the U.S., the Times and the Sun in the U.K., and The Australian and Sky News in Australia. The deal spans audio and video and News Corp. also will get an ad revenue share from Google.

Frydenberg said after weekend talks with Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Alphabet Inc. and its subsidiary Google, that he was convinced the platforms do want to enter into these commercial arrangements.

Its a massive step forward we have seen this week, Frydenberg said of the Google deals.

But if this was easy, every other country in the world would have done it already. But they havent, he said.
Houston Independent School District will remain closed Monday and Tuesday and hold online-only classes for the last three days of the next school week  a plan that few neighboring districts are expected to follow as education leaders navigate the fallout from freezing temperatures that rocked the regions power and water supplies.

As the impact of this weeks winter storm comes into clearer focus, education leaders are grappling with how quickly they can resume in-person classes already cut short this year by the coronavirus pandemic.

In announcing the cancellation of in-person classes all next week, HISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said Friday that lingering uncertainty about building safety, ongoing concerns with the districts water supply and reports of staff members facing major issues with water-damaged homes led to her call.

I have to make sure our staff are ready to receive and take care of students, Lathan said in an interview. There are still a lot of unknowns, but also, parents need to know the plan. For me, thats why I went ahead and made that announcement.

Aldine ISD, the regions fifth-largest district, announced Friday that it would follow the same schedule as HISD.

In several other districts, however, superintendents expressed optimism Friday that they could resume in-person instruction as early as Monday.

While water supply concerns weighed on the minds of school leaders  large swaths of Houston, which provides water to nearly all of HISD, and parts of outlying areas remain under boil-water advisories  some superintendents said they could manage any remaining complications.

In Klein ISD, the metro areas seventh-largest district, Superintendent Jenny McGown said district officials are prepared to hold in-person classes even if some campuses have boil-water advisories in effect. School employees will use bottled water kept in reserves and water stored in large tanks to maintain safe conditions.

We will be open on Monday, McGown said. All of our campuses will be fully safe and operational, and so we are extremely grateful were in that situation. We know a lot of our neighbors havent been as lucky.

Many boil-water advisories are expected to lift in the next few days, with Mayor Sylvester Turner declaring that he expects the citys will expire no later than Monday. Schools could use unboiled water to flush toilets and run sinks, but district employees would need to boil water for drinking and food preparation.

The water situation and water pressure, thats going to play a major factor in reopening decisions, said Travis Stanford, Spring Branch ISDs associate superintendent of operations. His district, which has many campuses receiving city water, has not yet announced plans for Monday.

Although many district leaders reported numerous leaks and burst pipes, many said they were fortunate to avoid major damage that would knock campuses out of commission next week.

In Katy ISD, the regions third-largest district, Superintendent Ken Gregorski said Friday that he expected all campuses will be up and running for Mondays return to school and work even after about three-quarters of Katy ISDs campuses sustained some water damage.

Humble ISD Superintendent Elizabeth Fagen, who leads the areas ninth-largest district, said about 40 classrooms in Humble High School were soaked when sprinklers malfunctioned, while other campuses needed minor repairs. Fagen said all fixes should be done in a matter of days, with all schools open for in-person classes Monday.

We just have a lot of small issues, Fagen said. Im sure everybody does.

Lathan said all of HISDs 280-plus buildings and campuses appear to have avoided major damage, though staff members continue to spot new issues.

A smattering of Houston-area campuses likely will stay closed next week because of extensive water damage, necessitating online-only classes that have become commonplace during the pandemic.

Tomball ISD Superintendent Martha Salazar-Zamora said the districts largest campus, Tomball Memorial High School, will remain temporarily shuttered after a broken sprinkler system dumped about 10,000 gallons of water throughout the building.

We had building damage, a loss of print materials, a loss of technology, Salazar-Zamora said. Were communicating and making plans for how we handle all our campuses, because each campus is a little different.

In Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, the regions second-largest district, Chief Operations Officer Roy Sprague said crews will work all weekend to complete repairs at more than 60 buildings damaged by water, including three with flooding issues.

Three inches of water covered Cy-Fair ISDs Swenke Elementary School, located near U.S. 290 and the Grand Parkway, after busted pipes poured water on the schools floors. One high schools orchestra pit filled with 3 feet of water, which spilled into a surrounding area, and another schools auditorium also had some water pooling.

Even if buildings are suitable come Monday, school leaders remain concerned about the strain that classes could put on staff and students facing weather- and water-related issues.

In a message to Tomball ISD employees Friday evening, Salazar-Zamora said she decided to cancel all classes Monday, giving staff members another day to help them manage their personal affairs.

Spring Branch ISD Superintendent Jennifer Blaine said her principals are surveying campus employees to gauge their needs, which will influence her decision about classes next week.

If the kids can log on but teachers cant get on because of situations in their own homes, were going to have to decide what that looks like, Blaine said.

Several superintendents opted Friday to wait on issuing plans for the upcoming week, including the leaders of Cy-Fair, Fort Bend and Pasadena ISDs.

Spring ISD announced that it would remain closed Monday and Tuesday, host an already-scheduled day of online-only classes Wednesday, then bring students back to campuses Thursday and Friday.

Alief ISD canceled classes scheduled for Monday, but did not commit to future plans.

For days missed because of cancellations, districts will receive full funding and will not be required to add days to their calendar if they experience infrastructure issues because of outages and its related impacts, Texas Education Agency officials said this week. It was not immediately clear Friday whether HISDs rationale for canceling in-person and some virtual classes will qualify for the TEA exemption.

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Explained: Who is Princess Latifa, why is she jailed by her billionaire father in Dubai?

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Feb 18: In videos, that went online on Tuesday, Princess Latifa, the daughter of Dubai's ruler, has alleged kidnapping. According to Princess Latifa, she is being kept hostage by her father in a villa converted into a jail, and adds she has no access to medical aid.

An investigation, that was led by the BBC, revealed the videos, which were apparently recorded in a bathroom, were taken over the course of several months on a phone Latifa was given about a year after she returned to Dubai in 2018.

Latifa's account of her capture and subsequent detention was revealed by her friend Tiina Jauhianen, her cousin Marcus Essabri and campaigner David Haigh. They are all part of a campaign called 'Free Latifa'.

Who is Princess Latifa?

Princess Latifa, or Latifa bint Mohammed al-Makhtoum, is the daughter of Dubai's billionaire ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. Sheikh Mohammed is credited for transforming Dubai into one of the foremost destinations for business and tourism. He is also the President and Vice-President of the UAE.

In 2004, Latifa's mother, Her Royal Highness Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, married al-Maktoum and is his second "official wife". The ruler reportedly has a number of unofficial wives with whom he has had at least 25 children.

Princess Latifa was born in 1984. The princess tried to escape from the family residence in Dubai in 2002 when she was at the age of 16. However, she was easily tracked and brought back to the palace where she was allegedly detained by her father for over three years.

In 2018, Latifa made a second attempt to escape when she met up with her friend Jauhianen at a coffee shop in Dubai. She and Jauhianen drove out of town and managed to cross the border into Oman. From there, she got on a boat and sailed into international waters.

After the ruler's wife Princess Haya fled to the UK in 2019 with two of their children, Sheikh Mohammed commenced proceedings in England and Wales under the jurisdiction of the London High Court seeking orders that his two children - Sheikha Al Jalila bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum who was born in 2007, and Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum who was born in 2012 - return to Dubai.

Sheikh Mohammed's response to the court ruling has been that it tells only one side of the story. He insisted that the case was a private matter.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 13:57 [IST]
Assistant principal Trish Boyd, from Belfast Model School for Girls, said research carried out into how their pupils are coping with home schooling found that many are struggling without the devices they need for proper access to online studying

Young people are using their mobile phones to access their work remotely as they do not have the devices they need for studying, it has emerged.

Assistant principal Trish Boyd, from Belfast Model School for Girls, said research carried out into how their pupils are coping with home schooling found that many are struggling without the devices they need for proper access to online studying.

"We have found that a substantial number of children either don't have a digital device or access to the internet, or even when there is a digital device there are multiple children in the house," she said, speaking on Good Morning Ulster.

"They're sharing a device and that becomes very difficult for the children to keep up with their learning even if all the facilities are there online.

"The children really do struggle sometimes when there's a digital divide issue."

That divide was highlighted further as it was revealed around 30% of the pupils currently learning remotely at Girls Model are accessing lessons by phone.

"If you think about the size of the screen, that alone causes so many issues, if you're trying to read documents that a teacher has sent out," said Ms Boyd.

"We do have a loan scheme and we have been sending out laptops and chromebooks, with 195 loaned out to date.

"We're hoping to have some more for next week. Just after mid-term we'll be sending out another batch to some children. We do realise some children are sitting working on a phone at home."

Last week a Co Down school revealed 40,000 of its budget had been spent on securing remote devices for pupils.

Though Stephen Taylor, principal at Blackwater Integrated College in Downpatrick, said that big strides had been made since last March, there were still major issues in getting work to pupils.

"By last September we had managed to lend out high number of devices," he said.

"We were finding that school work and specifically access to online learning was becoming a game of pass the parcel for families who had more than one child," he said.

"Children were having to wait their turn. The flow of work was disrupted."

Taking questions in the Assembly this week, the Education Minister said: "Certainly the feedback I would generally get, particularly from parents, has been that the level of remote learning assistance that is there during this lockdown has been much better, while I think all of us would accept that face to face teaching is the best opportunity."

At Wednesday's meeting of the Education Committee at Stormont, representatives from the NI Youth Forum vented their frustrations directly to MLAs.

Adam Crothers, from Bangor, a first-year student at Queen's University, Belfast told MLAs that, like many students, he has been living at home and says his experience of being a university student "has been a lonely one".

"Covid has diluted the university experience into a laptop," he told the committee.

And year 10 pupil and NI Youth Forum member Jack Dalzell added: "Our teachers are expecting us to produce the same amount of work and at the same quality as we would if we were still in school."
Aizawl/Silchar, Feb 18 : In two seperate incidents, the security forces have seized a huge cache of drugs worth Rs 7.29 crore besides seizing 80 exotic reptiles in Mizoram and arrested three persons in connection with the cases, officials said on Thursday.

Both the drugs and the exotic reptiles were smuggled in from neighbouring Myanmar and were destined for others parts of India or abroad.

Officials said that the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Mizoram Police in a joint operation intercepted a Mahindra Bolero vehicle at Phaisen Peng tri-junction in Kolasib district and recovered 1,45,800 Yaba tablets worth Rs 7.29 crore. The Yaba or Methamphetamine tablets, locally called 'party tablets', were contained in 15 packets.

The two drug peddlers -- George Khawlhring (44) and Samuel Khawlhring (23) -- are being interrogated by the Mizoram police.

The Methamphetamine tablets contain a mix of methamphetamine and caffeine and are misused as high-dosage drugs in Bangladesh and neighbouring countries, besides India.

A BSF press release said that Methamphetamine is a synthetic drug which is very popular among the smugglers and drug addicts in India and abroad.

"The raw material of these tablets -- Pseudoephedrine -- is smuggled into Myanmar where it is further processed and then smuggled into India through the India-Myanmar borders. A bulk amount of the drug is smuggled into Bangladesh," the release said.

In another development, Assam Rifles troopers and Customs officials in a joint raid arrested a man at Zokhawthar in Champhai district along the India-Myanmar border and recovered 19 leopard tortoises, 38 red footed tortoises, 17 iguanas, three bearded dragons, three albino iguanas, exotic seeds and a large quantity of fertiliser.

The market value of these exotic reptiles are being ascertained by the Custom officials in consultation with the forest and wildlife officials.

Yeah, I saw a video of a girl from Asia live streaming in the streets of Australia (maybe?) and random people would approach her just to insult her, it was 

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Australia's open racism problem has been a thing forever. It's so weird how comfortable they are being assholes about it.



Not to say other western countries are better but Australia has a particular lack of fucks to give.

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I read a book written by an Australian ten years ago and it was so dehumanizing towards the Aborigines in such a blatantly racist no fucks to give way that:



1. I had to check when it had been published: 1998



2. I had to check it wasnt a ~~parody~~ : it wasnt



3. I had to check it wasnt written by an extremist: it wasnt, he was in charge of an mfa creative writing course in one of the universities there



The book strongly reminded me of Candid Camera episodes filmed in Appartheid-era South Africa where the ~~joke~~ was how gullible/ scared the poc was.





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I've been black in the US for 34 years now and have so far only experienced daily microaggressions. The only instance of bold ass racism I've encountered was from an Australian (a complete stranger), who said to me that Aboriginal Australians should be wiped out, because "unlike you Africans" they aren't able to be civilized. I think you're right about a particular lack of fucks.

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can i have a link to that video?

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i have a friend who went to Australia for university got followed by an old white man while being called all kinds of racist slurs. she was just walking down the street



i feel like pretty much everyone i know who has been to (or is in) Australia has told me at least one experience like this



Edited at 2021-02-18 08:27 pm (UTC)

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sounds like Australia tbh

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to clarify, if its the same girl you posted down thread (Ive seen the vid of ppl being awful to her on the streets), she was living in berlin during those vids.



NOT that Im tryna say aus isnt racist because its FUCKED down here lol Im half chinese and the messed up racist shit I have heard some people say to my dad PHEW, but I just like making sure ppl have the right info lel

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I haven't seen the movie so I can't comment on it. But yeah I've seen a few of my Asian friends mention how they were a bit intimidated and scared to go outside during the initial entry of the pandemic.



And it's rising again with the latest news of anti-Asian racism again. :(

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I literally saw a police officer here (not in the US, in the Caribbean) drive past an Asian woman at the start of the pandemic, open his window and shout at her, This is your fault.

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God it's so weird to see someone who you've shared multiple meals with in your home show up on this site.

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Weirdly, my mom grew up in the same town as Clint Eastwood and used to get coffee with him. Which now feels bad.

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It must be weird to know your mom had the chance to stop Clint Eastwood.

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Glad he's speaking out. No doubt he felt pressure to keep quiet while on the set. I will say, though, anti-Asian racism is not monopolized by white people.

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This is true and its despicable and frustrating af

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what do you mean by "not monopolized"?

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it's not just white people

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Yes. There is so much anti-Asian sentiment in (specifically in my experience) Mexican culture. Its so strange considering in the Baja and Sonora there is considerable Chinese influence, immigration and blended Chinese/Mexican families.

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Its done super casually as well.

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my dad's side is indian. lots of sinophobia there.

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Im always really taken aback by the adoration Eastwood gets with allegedly woke film circles. Movies like this, no matter the intent, dont result in sensitivity towards its characters from the intended audience. Its so infuriating.

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Every movie's purpose isn't for sensitivity towards it's characters. Perhaps that literally isn't the point of the movie

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Just wondering, what do we have to do to get you to stop trolling?

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I am still super irate that Richard Jewell is a thing and mfing Olivia Wilde helped him perpetuate his whole cutthroat/soulless/fake news narrative and Jon Hamm helped his "the FBI is crooked" bullshit. Not to say that neither of this is untrue but during the Trump administration? With his audience?

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It's a movie from 2008....why is this generation so annoying and insufferable jfc. It's a fucking MOVIE

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Yes because anyone who understands that films are meant to portray different things, different types of people and scenarios, have different purposes and points of view just must be Clint Eastwood 



Imagine thinking every movie in the world is supposed to be full of positive and uplifting portrayls. Because theres never any shitty people or characters ever in real life better yet in fake life



Oh please

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Don't be silly, Clint Eastwood doesn't know how the Internet works, lol.

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I didnt know hearing racial slurs hurt less in 2008? You always do the most

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How did this reddit comment get here?

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every comment you make is always loaded with misery and negativity and can't at all feel fulfilling.

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Trolololo

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Here's why it matters. Because people saw this movie in 2008 and said, "We have people that agree with us and it's okay to make jokes." And by making jokes, it then went to talking about how they hate Asian people and it snowballed to physically assaulting Asian people. The issue is that once you allow jokes of demeaning others, it snowballs into assaulting them and possibly putting them into camps.



I look at the Jewish Holocaust and how that started with hatred and no one spoke up because it's just stereotypes and jokes. OR we can talk about how Black people were placed into slavery and then after we were freed, we had lynching and etc based on jokes and stereotypes.





A joke tells someone that what they're doing is okay because you and the others laughing are agreeing with them. Never underestimate a joke.

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What a myopic view.

Its not this generation only.

Go read a demographic analysis.

Ill be waiting for the better version of your thesis statement.

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Wait, it's a movie?? Well, that makes his feelings invalid, then.

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When you do the clownery! Goodbye racist

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i do agree this community tends to have an issue with dogpiling on those with heterodox views. i do agree with the sentiment that i don't quite understand the general public being offended by media which is optional to consume (i do realize that's not exactly what's going on here with this post). however, there's certainly a way to better phrase things that isn't quite so combative.



nobody is going to have a reasonable back and forth with you when you phrase things the way you have in this thread chain.

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Nobody in this comment section is denying it's a movie? ... and the person raising issues with it actually STARRED in said movie, so I think they have more skin in this particular game than you do!

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i remember seeing this movie with my family when i was younger and being so surprised by it lol



good for him for speaking up

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I first watched this movie before I had any semblance of a critical lens but its so unnerving that parts of it have unfortunately still stuck with me.



But yes, its frustrating to see minority populations getting recognized in media only for their characters to be treated the same way they are in real life. Then you have idiots saying they shouldnt have taken the job, but why not focus on the racists writing these roles for them?

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Call em out and drag ha! Its so vile people showing their racist asses are like this just like the user above with such flat out racist comments. They aint shit

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You guys, all this increased racism and violence against Asians recently is NOT IT. Like WTF?!

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if you're looking for further discourse about breaking down the western perspective of anti-asian sentiment, i recommend david chang's show ugly delicious. entertaining, a great food travel show, informative, a guy who has clearly made mistakes himself wanting to learn and be better. fair warning az*z is featured (more in season 1 than 2).

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Ah this is relevant to a question ive wanted to ask, when people say "anti-asian sentiment" has it also been used for south/west asians? Or is there a different word?

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Ever since I saw ugly delicious I have started avoiding paying so much for Italian food.

Be brought up that great point of why we are willing to pay such value for Italian pasta or raviolis but expect noodles or guyosas to be cheap.

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i never saw this movie (bc why would i) but i definitely remember hearing ppl use anti-Asian slurs after this came out. i was made fun of for being Asian growing up but no one ever called me slurs, afaik ppl in my immediate family hadn't experienced it either, but somehow this movie seemed to make it "cool"? i never really understood and didn't want to engage with it any further but in 2008 i was heavily involved with film communities online and a lot of ppl told me to give it a chance, it's surprisingly good! fuck that.

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I have not and will not watch a Clint Eastwood movie. I really feel for Bee Vang being put in this position. Media's not just a reflection of society, and it also normalizes and reinforces behavior based on how the content is framed. Not surprised that people will come out of his films thinking that slurs are just jokes.



My sister and I usually drive our parents around, but lately we've been really cautious about following behind them the few times we've been out. They have mobility issues and would be easy targets. They were discussing it last night and placed all the blame on Trump inciting violence among MAGA types. I think recent anti-Asian sentiment is a bit more nuanced than that just looking at it case-by-case, but I'm glad that they haven't gone down the route of supporting racist pro-policing measures

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"I think recent anti-Asian sentiment is a bit more nuanced than that just looking at it case-by-case"



Can you elaborate on this?



Edited at 2021-02-18 07:59 pm (UTC)

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I don't think every case we've seen reported is necessary linked to Trump supporters or people who personally identify with MAGA values. I think it also ties into the pervasive cultural perceptions that identify Asians as perpetual foreigners and (older) Asians as more vulnerable and easier targets for attacks. I also notice these sentiments among liberal-minded people who believe that Asians are somehow infiltrating and taking up economic opportunities, esp within the Bay Area. There's also inter-communal friction that happens when marginalized communities are pushed out of white, affluent spaces. Idk, I feel like there are a lot of different factors going on, and it's convenient to pin it on one specific group when racism against Asians has been around forever and a lot of people shouldn't be let off the hook when it comes to examining their own prejudices.



Edited at 2021-02-18 08:12 pm (UTC)

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I can't imagine coming into a post like this and saying, "well ACTUALLY, this Asian man knows NOTHING about anti-Asian racism! surely it is I who am right! he's just a big baby!"



and yet.

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white people love to use slurs against asians because they simultaneously are racist and know that these jokes are considered "less racist" by the mainstream and therefore are more acceptable.

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That first page of comments is a mess of racism.

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holy fuck that post is so intentionally hateful and regressive for an ontd post from only 3 years ago. and it's very disheartening to know that white users aren't the only ones who were dismissing the blatant racism wtf?? :/

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Assad had emphasized the importance of political participation at the local administration level, according to Al-Watan.

President Bashar al-Assad met with the members of the Supreme Council for Local Administration, which holds its meetings on Wednesdays, in Damascus.

During the meeting, Assad stressed that the local administration, with all its entities, is the direct link between the citizen and the state, and it is the most capable of working with data on the ground and finding links, in order to enable the government to make the right decisions, according to the priorities and the needs of the citizens.

On the issue of decentralization, Assad considered that decentralization should begin with practice and actual participation before the [passing of] laws. Practice and participation are done through the role that governors and provincial councils must play in motivating society to participate in developing solution frameworks for problems and crises.

Assad noted that this role is enabled by having constant, transparent, and direct conversations with citizens, making sure they have access to information, and clarifying facts in a way that allows them to participate in proposing possible solutions that are in harmony with the available capabilities.

Assad explained that decentralization must begin with a distinction between the role of the governor and the role of the mayor, and a clear definition of the powers and tasks of each to prevent any interference in them.

He also reminded council members of the importance of studying the laws governing the work of local administration bodies and setting strict controls in order to limit corruption and combat violations, including those that affect the urban system.

Assad pointed out that the partnership between the local administration, municipalities, and popular events and activities should not be limited to searching for solutions to immediate problems, but also to develop perceptions and studies for investment projects, especially in rural areas. This should be carried out in line with the capabilities and resources of those areas, in order to achieve an added value for the citizens there, he continued. He noted that small and medium enterprises are at the heart of the economy, especially in conditions of siege and war, such as what Syria is subjected to.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
The seventh-in-a-row positive Global Dairy Trade auction result on Tuesday took prices to their highest level since April 2014.

This important indicator of global dairy market trends offers reassurance on the milk price front to dairy farmers, and the Tuesday auction result also pointed to a slowing supply trend, with slightly reduced product volumes reflecting the passing of the milk production peak in New Zealand, the No 1 global dairy exporter.

At home, the countrys biggest milk buyer, Glanbia, has increased the creamery milk price from 33.5 cent per litre (including VAT) for December to 35.1c for January.

It includes a January seasonality bonus of 4c, and 0.42c Share of GI Profit.

Glanbia Ireland Chairman John Murphy said: While lockdowns are having a negative impact on foodservice, they are positive for retail demand.

Milk supply growth is strong across all the main milk production regions, but rising feed costs may curb supply growth in the EU.

The 35.1c price is for 3.6% butterfat and 3.3% protein. This is equivalent to 38.32c for milk of 4.2% butterfat and 3.4% protein.

Dairygold has maintained its January price at 32.311c (3.3%/3.6%) including bonuses and VAT.

In addition, a January early calving bonus of 3c will be paid.

A spokesperson said markets remain relatively stable.

The price works out at 41.2c for the average Dairygold January solids, or 35.353c at 3.4% protein and 4.2% fat, the European standard, which is closer to the average milk constituents in Ireland, which co-ops are now adding to milk price announcements.

Kerry Group will pay 32c for January milk (3.3%/3.6%).

A Lakeland Dairies spokesperson announced a base milk price for January, of 32.34c, unchanged from December.

Lakeland pays a special unconditional bonus of 1cpl for January, November and December. An out-of-season bonus of 5c, additional for participating suppliers, is paid for January and December, it was 3c for November.

A Lakeland Dairies spokesperson said commodity prices are unchanged, with general stability in the market. There are concerns, however, over the increased volume of US milk production.

According to Dairy Industry Ireland (DII), which represents the industrial manufacturing dairy base, the new 3.4% protein and 4.2% fat price information presents a consistent reference price and allows for better comparison with standard EU milk prices.

The current 3.6%/3.3% pricing model will be also used, for full clarity.

Milk suppliers will continue to be paid in accordance with their internal co-op constituent payment formula (A+B-C).

For example, if a processor pays 5.90 per kg of protein, and 3.605 per kg of fat, with a volume adjustment of 4c/litre, prices would be reported as 29.41c per litre (excluding VAT), at 3.6% butterfat and 3.3% protein; and 32.25c at 4.2% milk fat and 3.4% milk protein.

With 2019 average solids at 4.17% butterfat and 3.54% protein, DII said it is time to choose a new base which more accurately reflects the milk produced in Ireland.

The existing 3.6% butterfat and 3.3% protein price was more relevant at the 1990 average Irish milk fat of 3.51% and protein of 3.2%.

As well as in price announcements, the 4.2%/3.4% price will be added onto farmers milk statements from co-ops, as soon as it can be accommodated by local IT systems.

Implementation of the 4.2%/3.4% European standard was recommended in the Teagasc/CIT academic report on An analysis of the Irish dairy sector post quota of October 2020.

The EU standard only applies for manufacturing milk. Winter and liquid milk contracts are the responsibility of individual processors.

DII said, with Ireland exporting 95% of its dairy production, for transparency purposes, it is clear we need to move to a metric that can be internationally used.

This will help in the development of tools to mitigate price volatility, such as fixed-price contracts and dairy futures.

However, farmers have reacted angrily to the new additional way of announcing milk prices.

IFA wrote to all milk processors outlining their opposition.

Acting Chairman of the IFA Dairy Committee Stephen Arthur said, The representative structure of milk processors is being undermined by management.

Farmers have been side-lined. There is no consultation with elected representatives.

IFA instead wants milk price stated on a /kg of milk solids basis.

ICMSA Dairy Committee Chairman Gerald Quain said no decisions in relation to milk price reporting to farmers should be taken by an external body where co-ops are represented by management and not farmer board members.

It is hugely disappointing that DII did not see fit to consult with other industry partners and stakeholders before announcing such a change to the media.

He said this move could be presented as part of a concerted effort to undermine the milk price being paid to farmers, with pressure from processors to increase the processing cost on the Ornua PPI monthly indicator of market returns on dairy products as another example.

If co-ops are going to publish data on a European solids standard, alongside the Irish standard metric of 3.3 and 3.6 solids, then they should also on a monthly basis publish where their milk price is relative to the LTO EU average and where in the EU league, their milk price stands.

This would be real transparency, and they could explain why the Irish price is consistently near the bottom of the league.
LAS VEGAS, NV / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (OTCQB:CLSH)(CSE:CLSH), the 'Company' or 'CLS', a diversified cannabis company operating as Cannabis Life Sciences, today announced the addition of a new member to its Board of Directors, Mr. Ross Silver.

"We're thrilled to welcome Mr. Silver to the CLS Board of Directors," said Company Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Binder. "His extensive track record as an advisor, analyst, and leader make Mr. Silver an excellent fit for our team. With all of the new developments happening at our subsidiaries, a fresh perspective will be an invaluable asset as we look toward future growth."

Mr. Silver brings an extensive background in finance to the Company. In 2016, Silver founded Sylva International, a Registered Investment Advisor in the state of Oregon. Prior to this, he founded the hedge fund and independent equity research firm, Vista Partners, serving as Principal Analyst and CEO from 2005-2016. Mr. Silver has worked extensively as a research analyst and associate at various firms, hedge funds, and banking institutions over the last two decades, and also served as a Board Member for his local American Red Cross chapter.

"CLS Holdings has positioned itself to be a thought leader in the industry, as well as a leader in cannabis production and retail," said Mr. Silver. "I am excited to join the Board while the Company is experiencing consistent and meaningful revenue growth, year after year."

The news of Mr. Silver's addition to CLS' Board of Directors comes shortly after the Company's release of a new range of products through its manufacturing division. Earlier this month, CLS also released its January financial and operational results, achieving record January revenue. CLS looks forward to continuing to grow its foothold in the Nevada cannabis industry and beyond with this latest addition to its leadership team.

About CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

CLS Holdings USA, Inc. (CLSH) is a diversified cannabis company that acts as an integrated cannabis producer and retailer through its Oasis Cannabis subsidiaries in Nevada and plans to expand to other states. CLS stands for "Cannabis Life Sciences," in recognition of the Company's patented proprietary method of extracting various cannabinoids from the marijuana plant and converting them into products with a higher level of quality and consistency. The Company's business model includes licensing operations, processing operations, processing facilities, sale of products, brand creation and consulting services. (Twitter: @CLSHoldingsUSA)

Oasis Cannabis has operated a cannabis dispensary in the Las Vegas market since dispensaries first opened in Nevada in 2015 and has been recognized as one of the top marijuana retailers in the state. Its location within walking distance to the Las Vegas Strip and Downtown Las Vegas in combination with its delivery service to residents allows it to efficiently serve both locals and tourists in the Las Vegas area. In February 2019, it was named "Best Dispensary for Pot Pros" by Desert Companion Magazine. In August 2017, the company commenced wholesale offerings of cannabis in Nevada with the launch of its City Trees brand of cannabis concentrates and cannabis-infused products.







Founded in 2017, City Trees is a Nevada-based cannabis cultivation, production and distribution company. Offering a wide variety of products with consistent results, City Trees products are available in numerous dispensaries throughout the state of Nevada.





Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and 'forward-looking statements' as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, the 'forward-looking statements'). These statements relate to, among other things, the impact of the COVID-19 virus on our business, the results of our initiatives to retain our employees and strengthen our relationships with our customers and community during the pandemic, the effect of our initiatives to expand market share and achieve growth during and following the pandemic, results of operations and financial performance, anticipated future events, and the effectiveness of our business practices during the pandemic. The continued spread of COVID-19 could have, and in some cases already has had, an adverse impact on our business, operations and financial results, including through disruptions in our cultivation and processing activities, supply chains and sales channels, and retail dispensary operations as well as a deterioration of general economic conditions including a possible national or global recession. Due to the speed with which the COVID-19 situation is developing and the uncertainty of its magnitude, outcome and duration, it is not possible to estimate its impact on our business, operations or financial results; however, the impact could be material. In some cases, you can identify forward looking statements by terminology such as 'may,' 'might,' 'will,' 'should,' 'intends,' 'expects,' 'plans,' 'goals,' 'projects,' 'anticipates,' 'believes,' 'estimates,' 'predicts,' 'potential,' or 'continue' or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions, are uncertain and involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, levels of activity or performance to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity or performance expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. We cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity or performance. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date that they were made. These cautionary statements should be considered together with any written or oral forward-looking statements that we may issue in the future. Except as required by applicable law, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements to conform these statements to reflect actual results, later events or circumstances or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. See CLS Holdings USA filings with the SEC and on its SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com for additional details.

Contact Information:

Corporate:

Chairman and CEO

Jeff Binder

President and COO

Andrew Glashow

888-438-9132

Investor Relations:

investors@clsholdingsinc.com

SOURCE: CLS Holdings USA, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630391/CLS-Holdings-USA-Inc-Welcomes-New-Board-Member-Mr-Ross-Silver
Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, is China's most important festival. It is a new beginning, heralding new hope.

Every year before the Spring Festival, President Xi Jinping visits grass-roots cadres and residents to extend new year blessings.

Here is a video to review those warm moments.
Head of Ukraine's permanent delegation to PACE Maria Mezentseva describes the latest visit as "very productive."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has praised the Ukrainian delegation's performance at the latest session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).

On February 17, Zelensky met with members of the Ukrainian delegation, the Foreign Ministry and the President's Office to discuss Ukraine's PACE-related activities, according to the presidential press service.

"Head of Ukraine's permanent delegation to PACE, MP from the Servant of the People parliamentary faction Maria Mezentseva said the latest visit of the Ukrainian delegation was very productive. According to her, the main achievement was the fact that the Russian delegation's PACE credentials were challenged with proof of violations committed not only in Ukraine [in occupied Crimea and Donbas], but also in other countries," reads the report.

Read alsoFM Kuleba slams PACE decision not to sanction Russian delegation"The fundamental issue for us is to explain at PACE what the Crimean Platform is and to invite the world community to join the restoration of international law and the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine," Zelensky said.

Mezentseva said the invitation to the Crimean Platform was welcomed by many strategic partners and friends of Ukraine, including the Baltic States, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, etc.

The MP also stressed Ukraine at PACE ceases to be a country of "one issue" and initiates dialogues on many issues on the international agenda. In particular, Ukraine takes an active part in promoting "environmental democracy." Mezentseva noted many modern Ukrainian laws reflect such European trends as, for example, the movement towards landscaping and the introduction of energy-saving technologies.

She added Secretary General of the Council of Europe Marija Pejcinovic Buric was going to visit Ukraine.

"Zelensky, in turn, noted Ukraine was re-launching a competition for the election of a judge to the European Court of Human Rights according to the rules of the European institutions, and shortly our country will be represented in the ECHR by a highly qualified judge with international experience," the press service said.

Ukraine's delegation to PACE: What is known

On January 25, 2021, Mezentseva proposed challenging the Russian delegation's credentials because of the Russian authorities' policy that violates political and civil freedoms, lets arrests of opposition leaders and hundreds of Russian citizens, infringes on human rights in occupied Crimea, as well as breaches many PACE resolutions.

On January 28, PACE decided to turn down the initiative of the Ukrainian delegates as for restrictions against the Russian delegation over the actions violating the principles of the Council of Europe.

The relevant amendment was opposed by 115 legislators, with only 37 supporting it and seven abstaining.

At the same time, Stefan Schennach's resolution allowing the Russian delegation's work was backed by 107 parliamentarians, with 36 who voted against and 24 who abstained.

Reporting by UNIAN
A metal monolith has appeared, and almost disappeared, in the Democratic Republic of Congo after it was torched by a crowd on Wednesday.

The 12-foot structure popped up at a roundabout in the Bandal neighbourhood of the capital, Kinshasa, on Sunday morning.

Crowds of curious onlookers snapped selfies and debated the possible origins of the obelisk before photos emerged of it being destroyed with sticks and set on fire later in the day.

The mysterious monolith is just the latest to appear in a puzzling international mystery that has so far reached more than 10 countries, baffling locals and fuelling theories about who - or what - could be responsible.

'We woke up and saw this metallic triangle,' said Serge Ifulu, a local resident. 'We were surprised because it is a triangle that we often see in documentaries about freemasons or illuminati.'

A metal monolith has appeared, and almost disappeared, in the Democratic Republic of Congo after it was torched by a crowd on Wednesday

The 12-foot structure popped up at a roundabout in the Bandal neighbourhood of the capital, Kinshasa, on Sunday morning

Similar mysteries have gone viral on Congolese social media before.

In August, an unidentified flying object was parachuted into dense jungle in the north of the country, briefly baffling local authorities.

Local authorities detained two people for questioning until a subsidiary of Google parent company Alphabet confirmed the device was an internet balloon.

This time again, extraterrestrial intervention appeared unlikely: Residents said they saw people digging a hole at the roundabout on Saturday.

'On Sunday morning, I got a call when I was doing some sport to tell me they found something strange. I came and I said: 'This is cultural, it's extraordinary,'' said neighbourhood mayor Bayllon Thierry Gaibene.

The BBC reported that witnesses said residents had destroyed the structure to see what was inside. It was hollow with metal sheets spread over a frame.

Gaibene told the BBC he had sent some of the material to be tested by scientists in the hopes of uncovering its origins.

Crowds of curious onlookers snapped selfies and debated the possible origins of the obelisk before photos emerged of it being destroyed with sticks and set on fire later in the day

He has been accused by Kinshasa's Governor Gentiny Ngobila of being responsible for the monolith, erecting it in order to create a buzz. Gaibene denies the accusations.

Last week, a farmer found a similar metal structure in the southeastern Sanliurfa province of Turkey. It bore old Turkic script that read: 'Look at the sky, see the moon.'

Since the first monolith appeared in the Utah desert in November, the structures have sparked comparisons to those seen in the Stanley Kubrick film 2001: A Space Odyssey.

TURKEY: On February 8, a monolith bearing old Turkic script appeared in the southeastern Sanliurfa province

UTAH: The first shiny pillar was spotted in southern Utah on November 18 by baffled locals and news of the object quickly went viral around the world

Others have since popped up across the US, as well as in Colombia, Romania and the Netherlands.

In December, a monolith appeared on the top of a hill in Glastonbury with the words 'Not Banksy' etched onto it.

Later that month, New Zealand encountered its first monolith after it appeared at a theme park for mountain bikers in Christchurch.

Christchurch Adventure Park in the Port Hills near Canterbury on New Zealand's South Island posted a picture of the monolith that appeared in a grassy patch near its 1.8km chair lift to social media on December 20.

'Does anyone know what this is or where it has come from? As we genuinely don't....' the park wrote.

NEW ZEALAND: A monolith was discovered at a theme park for mountain bikers in Christchurch on December 20

ROMANIA: A monolith stands on the hills of Batca Doamnei near Piatra Neamy in Romania

While the people behind some of the mysterious structures have been revealed, for the most part their origins remain a mystery.

Theories abound, including suggestions that artists, aliens or savvy marketing executives could be responsible.

That some of the monoliths were quickly removed has only added to speculation about their possible origins.

When the first shiny pillar was spotted in southern Utah on November 18 by baffled locals, news of the object quickly went viral around the world.

THE NETHERLANDS: A group of hikers were left intrigued after they spotted a metallic column in a nature reserve in a village in Oudehorne, Friesland in December

Some observers pointed out its resemblance to the avant-garde work of John McCracken, a US artist who lived for a time in nearby New Mexico and died in 2011.

But McCracken's representatives have given ambiguous and at times conflicting responses to this theory, prolonging an international guessing game that intensified further with the monolith's sudden removal on Friday.

The Most Famous Artist, also known as Matty Mo, is also thought to have been behind some of the monoliths that appeared in the US.

MADRID, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Spanish traded company Lleida.net (BME: LLN) (OTCQX: LLEIF) (EPA: ALLLN) has hired Bondo Advisors to identify and negotiate potential acquisitions of companies that could add value to its inorganic growth plans.

One of Lleida.net's key strategies for the coming years contemplates the possible purchase of companies, worldwide, that could fit within its business model.

The company, which has a capital of more than ninety million euros and 100 employees, is one of the European leaders in the certified electronic notification, contracting and signature industry.

"In addition to focusing on internationalisation and intellectual property, we are open to the possibility of acquiring companies that fit our business model, are attractive to the market, and add value to the industry," explained Sisco Sapena, who founded the company in 1995.

Bondo Advisors is an M&A advisory firm that focuses on mergers and acquisitions in the technology, Internet and media sectors.

It is led by Joshua Novick, Fernando Garate, Pablo Perez Garcia-Villoslada and Jesus Mera.

"Certified electronic contracting, signature and notification services are experiencing strong demand, a growing trend that is set to continue over the next few years. At Bondo Advisors, we are excited to accompany Lleida.net, a reference and leader in this market, in the consolidation of this sector", explained Pablo Perez Garcia-Villoslada, founder and director of the boutique.

Lleida.net is listed in Spain, France and the United States.

The company went public on BME Growth (the former MAB) in 2015. Subsequently, in 2018, it was listed on Euronext Growth in Paris. At the end of 2020, it was listed on the OTCQX Best Market segment in New York.

Last year, the company's shares increased in value by 940 per cent in one of the biggest rises in the European stock market.

Yesterday, the company announced that it has passed the 3,000 shareholder mark, according to official market data.

It holds more than 200 patents in e-recruitment and e-notification, granted by more than 50 countries on five continents, and its intellectual property portfolio is one of the largest in the industry worldwide.

Today, more than 75 countries recognise the legal validity of its electronic methods as a means of certifying legal notices in procurement processes

Contact:

The Paloma Project, Media

rpl@thepalomaproject.com

+356 7946 7486

https://Lleida.net
Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Wednesday met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and discussed the development of a special and privileged partnership between the two countries.

"They discussed the wide-ranging Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia and ways to further strengthen it," said the Indian Embassy in Moscow in a tweet.

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

Shringla later said the Russian Foreign Minister emphasised the importance he attaches to the special privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia.

"We also spoke about the annual summit and he (Lavrov) said President Putin was looking forward to his visit to India at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi and that the visit would take place sometime on a date to be decided," Shringla said.

"There are a number of other visits that we spoke about -- there is a visit of the Deputy Prime Minister for the Inter-Governmental Commission with our Minister for External Affairs. We are looking at the visits of our army and naval chiefs. There are a large number of exchanges that are on the cards for the India-Russia relationship," he said.

Shringla said they discussed some regional and international issues of interest including cooperation in the UN and UNSC where India is a non-permanent member now.

"We also spoke about issues like Afghanistan which both countries have a direct interest in," he said.

The Foreign Secretary said they also discussed cooperation in the area of vaccines, global responses to Covid-19 and how India and Russia can work together in partnership to deal with this issue.

"There is a lot happening in the relationship. It is a very important relationship for both countries. I think we will see some developments reinforce the close and strategic partnership we both enjoy," he said.

Shringla extended Lavrov invitation on behalf of Jaishankar to visit India and the Russian Minister said he is looking forward to doing so at the earliest.

Meeting with deputy foreign minister

Shringla also met Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov on Wednesday and discussed a range of issues pertaining to Russian-Indian interaction, including the schedule of the upcoming political contacts.

Both the sides underlined their aspiration to increase the trade and economic turnover by expanding cooperation in traditional and high-tech spheres.

They also noted the similarity of approaches by Russia & India to pressing global and regional issues, as well as stressed the intention of the two countries to continue coordination of efforts at international and regional platforms, including the UN, G20, BRICS, SCO, RIC and EAEU.

Working more closely with Russia

India would like to work more closely with Russia on taking forward the cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region, Shringla said in a meeting hosted by the Diplomatic Academy of Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow.

He said no discussion on the relationship between Indian and Russia can be complete without the mention of the Indo-Pacific.

"We would like to work more closely with Russia on taking forward the cooperation in the region, in particular along with our friends from the ASEAN, South East Asia and under organisations like the ASEAN regional forum and the East Asia summit," he said.

With inputs from agencies.









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Press Release

18 February 2021

Superhost Hospitality has been awarded the management contract for the Hampton Inn and Suites, Denison, Texas providing additional presence in Texas along with their hotels in Mesquite and Northlake. This new addition to the Superhost Hospitality portfolio takes the company to 16 hotels and $200M in real estate investments.

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The Hampton Inn and Suites Denison is one of the most recognized hotels in the Sherman/Denison/Durant area. The hotel was featured nationally on the Discovery Channel and has won the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence every year since it opened in 2011. The hotel offers 79 stunning rooms and suites with a "spa" like design concept in the color pallet used. The suites are spacious and comfortable with plenty of amenities to make our guests stay enjoyable. The hotel features complimentary breakfast, high-speed internet, Direct TV, state of the art fitness center, microwaves, and refrigerators. However, we believe a hotel should be more than the sum of its amenities. That is where our friendly team members come in. They know how to be a good host, surprise you with thoughtful extras and even show you some fun stuff along the way. Wherever the road takes you, we will be there to make your trip even better.

Proud to serve the Texoma region, hotel's superior location is convenient to major employers including Caterpillar, Cigna, Tyson, Texas Instruments, Ruiz Foods, Denison Industries, Kwikset, and the Texoma Medical Center. It is conveniently located on US 75 at exit 69. Come see why the Hampton Inn and Suites Denison was voted "Best of Texoma" and undeniably, should be your first choice in hotels when traveling to the Sherman/Denison area.

Hampton Inn and Suites, Denison, Texas participates in Hilton's award-winning customer loyalty program, Hilton Honors. Hilton Honors members who book directly through preferred Hilton channels have access to instant benefits, including a flexible payment slider that allows members to choose nearly any combination of Points and money to book a stay, an exclusive member discount, free standard Wi-Fi, as well as digital amenities that are available exclusively through the industry-leading Hilton Honors app, where Honors members can check-in, choose their room, and access their room using a Digital Key. For more information or to make a reservation, visit Hampton Inn and Suites, Denison, Texas https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/pnxdshx-hamptonsuites-denison/ or call (903) 464-9010
But he also leaves behind a state that is crippled with debt and unfunded pension liabilities, and a voting population that has grown apathetic and hopeless. He leaves behind a state that borrowed and spent on the backs of those middle-class workers he claimed to represent. He leaves behind a state that cannot take care of its most vulnerable to a level they deserve because of his hyper-focus on politics over policy. He leaves behind a state that is shrinking while each of Illinois neighbors is growing.
Executive Secretary of the National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values, Moses Foh-Amoaning says the alleged opening of an office by the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Transgender and queer Intersex Rights (LGBTQI) movement in Ghana is against the laws of the country.



Opening such office in Ghana is a criminal activity and wont be tolerated, he said in an interview with NEAT FMs morning show Ghana Montie.



According to him, Ghana had not signed any international laws permitting the promotion of the LGBTQI in the country - therefore, any attempt by anybody to promote the activities of the group amounted to illegality.



Mr Foh-Amoaning noted that on the contrary, international laws such as the Economic, Cultural, Social and Political Rights of the United Nations treaty, which the country had ratified, protected the sovereignty of Ghana to defend its cultural values.



Can a Ghanaian go to another country to open such office there; no, it will not be allowed, he questioned.



No one can disrespect our law, as far as the president is concerned, the activity here is illegal, he told host Kwesi Aboagye.





Source: King Edward Ambrose Washman Addo/peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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At the forefront of the fine jewelry segment for the past 68 years, New Delhi based fine jewelry brand Hazoorilal Legacy announced the launch of its Brand Campaign 2021 with brand ambassador, Bollywood star Tara Sutaria. The charismatic Ms. Sutaria made an announcement for Hazoorilal Legacys campaign launch on her social media, fondly highlighting her affiliation with the brand.

Commenting on the association, Mr. Ramesh Narang, Director, Hazoorilal Legacy said, Were delighted to have Tara take our brand story forward. Hazoorilal Legacy stands for classic and timeless jewelry and Tara, with her immense talent and remarkable ethics empowers and embraces the brands legacy.

The campaigns overarching theme of hope and positivity comes after what was a difficult last year, globally. Touting 2021 as the year of recovery and zeal, the campaign intends to evoke the emotions of the audience and create engagement via #TheNextChapter. Over the next few months, Hazoorilal Legacy plans to release signature bridal looks with couture, high jewelry pieces, delicately weaving the rich cultural heritage of Indian craftsmanship with a contemporary outlook. The line of statement jewelry from the Legacy Collection in gold, polki and diamonds has been extensively curated for the brides-to-be.

Talking about the campaign, Mr. Rohan Narang, Managing Director, Hazoorilal Legacy goes on to add We delved deep into the brands values and consciously devised a thought-provoking campaign that spoke of hope, resilience and our passion for building an everlasting legacy of beauty through exquisite designs & unmatched aesthetics. Taras superlative talent will mark this as one of our most memorable campaigns!

As the face of the brand, Ms. Tara Sutaria said, I am honored to continue my association with an iconic brand like Hazoorilal Legacy. A pioneer in the jewelry industry, the brand has changed the face of the jewelry design landscape. I can't wait for the big reveal in the next few weeks.

Hazoorilal Legacy introduced Ms. Sutaria as its Brand Ambassador in September of 2019. The brand ventured into the digital ecosystem with the launch of its exclusive e-commerce platform on 8th October 2020, offering an omnichannel luxury jewelry buying experience through this digital extension to its core retail business.

You can now shop the bridal collection at the flagship store in South Extension II, Ring Road, New Delhi & Gold Souk, Gurugram. You can also view the brands exclusive, online-only collection of fine jewelry at

shop.hazoorilallegacy.com
An Alabama man has filed a federal lawsuit against the Terrebonne Parish Sheriffs Office alleging an off-duty deputy injured him at a Houma restaurant last year.

Willie Levens II, of Butler County, accuses Deputy Dexter Gaspard of unlawfully detaining him and using excessive force during an incident on Feb. 22, 2020, at Honest Abes Barbecue Restaurant at 693 Corporate Drive.

According to the complaint filed Jan. 11 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Levens was accosted by Gaspard, who was grossly intoxicated.

Suddenly and without warning, defendant Dextar Gaspard, due to mistaking Mr. Levens for another individual due to his intoxication, pushed Mr. Levens out of the door of the restaurant, which caused Mr. Levens to fall and sustain severe injuries, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit then accuses the deputy of following Levens and forcibly restraining him against a vehicle by holding his elbow against his neck and telling him he was going to be arrested.

Although (Gaspard) forcibly detained Mr. Levens during this period of time, he was not advised as to why he was being detained, the lawsuit says. Additional Terrebonne Parish Sheriffs deputies arrived on the scene on instruction from (Gaspard). Once the officers arrived on the scene, they assessed the situation, determined Mr. Levens was not suspected of any wrongdoing and allowed him to the leave the premises.

Attorney Bill Dodd, who represents the Sheriffs Office, said Levens lawsuit paints a distorted picture. He added that Levens had been riding on a party bus and was intoxicated and disruptive.

From what I was told this guy was pretty intoxicated and evidently said some crude and rude things in the restaurant, Dodd said. The staff asked him to leave because he was being loud and boisterous. The deputy escorted him outside when he wouldnt leave. He then tripped over a concrete barrier. I have viewed video of the incident and it was obvious to me that (Levens) was extremely intoxicated.

Levens said in his complaint that he suffered significant injuries including three fractures in his kneecap for which he is still undergoing treatment.

In addition to Gaspard, the lawsuit names Sheriff Tim Soignet and the Sheriffs Office as defendants. However, the incident occurred in 2019 before Soignet took office last July.

He is seeking unspecified damages for past and future physical pain and suffering, past and future mental pain and suffering, mental anguish, physical impairment and disability and past and future medical expenses as well as court costs.

He is being represented by Metairie attorney Louis H. Thomas III.

Dodd said he is confident the Sheriffs Office will prevail in court.

I think at the end of the day the deputy acted appropriately even though he was off-duty, Dodd said. Well be able to defend this case.

Staff Writer Dan Copp can be reached at 448-7639 or at dan.copp@houmatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter @DanVCopp.

___

(c)2021 The Houma Courier, La.

Visit The Houma Courier, La. at www.houmatoday.com

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~ Suspect is a known women abuser and boyfriend of the victim.~

PHILIPSBURG:--- Police arrested a suspect identified as Bernal Louingston Neale a national of Nevis in the brutal murder of Guyanese art teacher Rhonda Thomas who was found dead in her Beacon Hill home on Monday, February 15th, 2021.

SMN News learned that the suspect Bernal Neale a national of Nevis is the alleged boyfriend of the deceased teacher. Neale resides in Middle Region he is also a musician and fisherman.

Neale is well known to police as a women abuser as his permanent residency was revoked in 2006 by former Lt. Governor Franklin Richards because police had several cases against him for abusing women with weapons.

In 2006 Neale was accused of abusing his ex-wife, a minor, and a girlfriend.

However, the suspect Bernal Neale appealed the decision issued by former Lt. Governor Franklin Richards and managed to keep his permanent residency and remained on St. Maarten.

SMN News learned that Neale visited Rhonda Thomas on Sunday (Valentines Day) and the two began arguing, it is further learned a carpenter was at the home at the time the two were arguing, the carpenter eventually leave the premises as the two continued to argue which probably led to the brutal murder. Detectives found the body of Rhonda Thomas around noon on Monday, February 15th, 2021.

Police Spokesman Joe Josepha confirmed a suspect identified as B.L. N was arrested Wednesday night for the murder of Rhonda Thomas.

Suspect arrested in connection with the Beacon Hill investigation.



Personnel of the detective department arrested the man with the initials B.L.N. on Wednesday evening February 17th, 2021 at about 08.00 pm in connection with the ongoing investigation of the female victim who was found deceased in her home on the White Sands Road on February 15th, 2021.

On Monday, February 15th, 2021, at approximately 12.00 pm the officers encountered a female victim who was lying on the ground in her home and not showing any signs of life. It was concluded that the victim died of foul play and the body of the victim has been confiscated for further investigation.

After the arrest, a search was conducted at the house of the suspect in the Middle Region area. Several items were confiscated during the house search by the detectives. Subsequently, the suspect B.L.N. was brought over to the Police Station in Philipsburg, where he is being incarcerated pending further investigation.

If anyone may have information as to what took place or have additional information pertaining to this case, do not hesitate to contact the Police Detective Department at +1 721 54 22222 or the anonymous tip line on 9300 (free of charge).

You can also visit the website at www.policesxm.sx to report crime anonymously via the tip contact form, or you can leave a Private Message via our Facebook page (Police Force of Sint Maarten - Korps Politie Sint Maarten).

KPSM Press Release.
SPRINGFIELD  The district attorneys office is dropping a first-degree murder charge against a 16-year-old girl in connection with the fatal shooting of Jonathan Martinez after prosecutors determined there was not enough evidence to gain a conviction.

The girl, DJalee Burgos of Springfield, is still facing assault and other charges in connection with the Oct. 19 incident that began as a car chase through downtown Springfield and ended with Martinez being shot on Acushnet Street in the citys South End.

Her lawyer, Jeffrey S. Brown of Greenfield, said he is pleased the murder charge is being dropped  but argued she never should have been charged in the first place.

From the inception of this case, it was very clear that my client was a victim and a witness in this matter, and nothing more, he said. She should not have been charged with murder, a contention we have made since day one.

Prosecutors have also amended the charges against Isaiah Marquez, 22, of East Longmeadow, downgrading a first-degree murder charge after a grand jury would only indict him on a count of manslaughter, said James Leydon, communications director for Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni.

According to the initial police narrative of the shooting, Burgos and Martinez knew each other. She allegedly took his car without permission, and he went looking for her.

When he spotted her in the North End of Springfield riding with Marquez, police said, he began pursuing her. The two cars crashed into each other on Acushnet Street, leaving debris in the road. At some point, Martinez was shot. He was found in the backyard of a nearby home on and died a short time later at a hospital.

Police said Burgos and Martinez drove away, but their damaged car eventually stalled out on Allen Street. They were arrested a short time later.

Leydon said investigators continued to work the case after the arrests, and new facts were discovered that do not support a charge of murder against DJalee Burgos.

A Hampden Superior Court grand jury returned the manslaughter indictment against Marquez on Feb. 9. He is also indicted on counts of assault and battery with a firearm, possession of a firearm without a license and receiving a stolen motor vehicle.

Court records show that on Jan. 14, prosecutors filed a motion asking the court to release Burgos on personal recognizance. Assistant District Attorney Katharine A. Johnston told the court, in light of new forensic evidence provided this day by the Massachusetts State Police Laboratory, there is no longer probable cause for the charge of murder against (Burgos).

At a Jan. 15 hearing, Burgos was ordered released from custody on the condition that she stay away from any witnesses in the case and from Martinezs family.

At 16, Burgos is a juvenile  and typically the names of juvenile suspects are not released to the public. But Massachusetts law requires that juveniles 14 and older be tried as adults on charges of first- or second-degree murder, so Burgos was arraigned in open court.

Brown said that with the murder charge being dismissed, she will revert to juvenile status and the remaining charges will be tried in juvenile court. I expect those charges to be resolved in my clients favor, he said.

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Earlier this week, health officials announced a problem with the COVID-19 vaccine distribution that could affect tens of thousands of people in Pennsylvania.

Acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said Wednesday some providers have been giving out second doses of the Moderna vaccine intended as first doses. And it will mean some people will see delays in getting their second doses and being fully vaccinated.

Here are answers to questions about the situation and other concerns related to the vaccine distribution effort.

Q: How many people are affected?

A: Up to about 200,000.

Q: Who is affected?

A: A relatively small portion of the 1.8 million Pennsylvanians who have been vaccinated so far. Pennsylvania has been receiving two brands of vaccine  Pfizer and Moderna. Moderna accounts for the smaller portion  roughly 200,000 doses, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Moderna vaccine, like Pfizer, requires two doses, ideally 28 days apart for Moderna.

According to the health department, vaccination providers receive first doses and then, some weeks later, receive second doses for those who are due. Somehow  its unclear exactly how and why this happened  as many as 100,000 second doses were given out as first doses. That leaves providers uncertain of where the needed second doses will come from. Appointments for second doses are being postponed as a result.

Q: How bad is it for the people affected?

A: From a medical point of view, first doses and second doses are the same, so theres no harm from getting a second dose first. The important thing is to get two doses.

Q: What happens if someone doesnt get a second dose on schedule?

A: Ideally, the second dose is received 28 days later. But the U.S. Centers for Disease Control recently said that, if necessary because of a situation such as a shortage, its OK for the doses to be spaced up to six weeks, or 42 days, apart.

Q: Will second doses be available within 42 days for affected Pennsylvanians?

A: The health department says yes, although its not crystal clear how that will be accomplished. The department said its doing an inventory of unused doses around the state and scouring for available Moderna doses. It further said it has reached out to the federal government regarding the needed doses. The health department said affected people should expect to have their second dose appointments pushed back a week or two. But the department is assuring them theyll get their second dose within 42 days of the first.

Q: Is the weather affecting the vaccine effort?

State officials said that shipments of both Moderna and Pfizer vaccines have been delayed this week because of severe weather around the country. But health officials said it shouldnt prevent anyone from getting their second dose of the Moderna vaccine within 42 days of their first shot.

Q: What if theres not enough Moderna vaccine to address this problem? Could a Pfizer dose be used in its place?

A: Pennsylvania health officials havent discussed that scenario. The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are based on the same technology. The CDC has discouraged mixing and matching of vaccine except in exceptional situations such as a shortage. Doctors believe its theoretically possible mixing vaccine types could actually expand the level of protection. Its also possible targeted benefits could be lost. Mixing and matching is being studied.

Q: What if I cant get my second shot within 42 days of the first?

A: There is little data available on the effectiveness of the vaccines administered beyond the 42-day window, according to the CDC. But the CDC said if the vaccination goes beyond the scheduled intervals, there is no need to start the series of shots all over.

Q: How do people know they are affected and what actions must they take?

A: The state said people will be contacted by their provider to reschedule their appointment.

Q: Which vaccine providers mistakenly gave out second doses as first doses?

A: That health department wouldnt say on Wednesday when it announced the mistake. PennLive was contacted by a western Pennsylvania resident who received a Moderna dose from an independent pharmacy. The pharmacy told him his second dose appointment must be rescheduled.

York-based WellSpan said it has distributed Moderna vaccine, but has made no mistakes regarding doses. UPMC Pinnacle said it has made no mistakes regarding doses, but didnt say if it has distributed Moderna vaccine. A spokeswoman for the long-term care industry said she believes most residents of nursing homes, assisted living and personal care facilities received the Pfizer vaccine.

Q: Whose fault is this?

A: Beam, the acting health secretary, cited a perfect storm of circumstances and eagerness to get vaccine to residents, incredible pent up desire by the public to get this vaccine, dedicated providers trying to to deliver what their customers are demanding, inconsistent vaccine allocations, confusion about [U.S.] Operation Warp Speed vaccine deliveries, and the need for more frequent and clear communication from the department.

Q: How and when did the state discover the problem?

A: According to Beam, the problem began, undetected, in early January, when some providers began giving out doses that were supposed to be saved as second doses. The problem compounded for weeks. The state discovered it recently when the number of requested second doses of Moderna approached the entire weekly allocation.

Q: Has there been any issue with the Pfizer vaccines given out in error?

A: The error is strictly related to some Moderna vaccines intended as second doses being given out as first doses. Beam stressed the issue is not related to the Pfizer vaccine distribution.


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ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliott says he wants to pay shareholders higher dividends as the bank reduces its provision for bad loans, grows its mortgage book and the economic outlook improves.

Mr Elliott said reducing and delaying dividends last year was the right thing to do but added the board was keen to pay healthier dividends once the operating environment was more certain.

Were sitting on a lot of capital - thats our shareholders money, he said. Obviously weve got to think about the dividends.

Were pleased to have achieved these results for shareholders while also helping customers in difficulty and providing the vital lending needed to support the economic recovery: ANZ chief executive Shayne Elliott. Credit:Arsineh Houspian

Mr Elliott is the latest big four bank chief to claim the Australian economy has rebounded faster than anticipated from COVID-19 and comes as ANZ cut its credit impairment provision by $150 million.
Virginia has joined a flurry of states exploring consumer data protection. The state Legislature advanced the Consumer Data Protection Act to offer residents added protections related to how their personal data is used across the digital landscape.Identical versions of the bill passed through the House and Senate where the bill garnered unanimous support in the state Senate, and near unanimous support in the House. If signed by the governor in the next few months, the law would go into effect Jan. 1, 2023, giving the tech and related industries ample time to make necessary changes to business practices to ensure compliance.So a lot of consensus around it, because the need is so pressing, said Sen. Dave Marsden, a lead sponsor of the legislation.The Virginia proposal follows closely a similar bill making its way through the Washington Legislature. Meanwhile, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) was passed and signed into law in 2018. And in November 2020, voters passed the California Privacy Rights Act, a ballot initiative aimed at strengthening the CCPA.Its based to some extent, certainly a little bit of California, a lot from the state of Washington, said Marsden, reflecting on the evolution of consumer data protection not only in Virginia, but across the nation.The Virginia proposal would affect businesses collecting or processing personal consumer data for 100,000 customers or more, annually. The law would define personal data as any information that is linked or reasonably linkable to an identified or identifiable natural person, according to the language in the bill. De-identified data, as well as publicly available data is excluded. The law would also not apply to government entities and nonprofits, and data collected by employers, among other carveouts like medical data which is already regulated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, known as HIPAA.The bill is first and foremost a consumer protection bill. It allows you to look at your data, change your data, delete your data and opt out of your data being used for sale to other folks, Marsden explained. The law would allow consumers in Virginia the ability to opt out of the sale of their data.The proposed law would place a limited oversight of data privacy on pseudonymous data, which is data that can not be tied back to an individual without the use of additional information. This could include data related to IP addresses, browser information or cookie IDs held by websites, said Stacey Gray, senior counsel with the Future of Privacy Forum, a nonprofit serving in an expert advisor capacity in areas like data privacy and security.Usually these companies don't have the ability to identify specific individuals without linking it up with additional information  like a phone number or email address, said Gray, via email. So, it's still considered personal information because it relates to a person, and thus is subject to most of the requirements of the bill  but, as long as it isn't linked to additional information, there's an exemption for complying with access, deletion and correction requests.Another detail of the Virginia bill is, it does not have a private right of action, which gives consumers the ability to take legal action when their data is misused.The attorney general is going to be the enforcer of these data breaches. And they will be able to charge penalties and fees, said Marsden. And thats what will fund the Office of the Attorney General who does these things.This provision could be a sticking point for consumer groups who would prefer a law that gives more legal options to consumers, said Gray.Yes, most consumer groups would like to see individual enforcement rights, in addition to attorney general enforcement, or, at the federal level, Federal Trade Commission enforcement, said Gray, adding the existing state actions are highly variable, and do not generally have the same consumer redress as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the European version of consumer data privacy.Still, without federal leadership in consumer data protection, lawmakers like Marsden believe the Virginia law could become a template for other states as they consider taking similar steps.This is an iterative process, where California started it out  Washington improves on a lot of it. And I think weve improved on the Washington bill. Weve made it simpler, and shorter and easier language and definitions and that sort of thing. So we think this might be one that people use, he said.Other states have introduced similar bills. Last year, the Minnesota Legislature took up the Minnesota Consumer Data Privacy Act . Similar legislation was introduced in Michigan Connecticut and New York . While most proposals would have consumers opt out to having their personal data sold, a proposed law in Oklahoma includes an opt-in feature, according to a blog about the Virginia bill and the current landscape of consumer data protection action, by the Future of Privacy Forum.To smooth the rollout of the proposed Virginia data privacy law, the legislation will include the formation of a stakeholders group, to be organized by the governors office.People will have an opportunity to come before a stakeholders group  and different groups will have an opportunity to say, Hey, heres our problem with it. Can you fix this? said Marsden.
New Delhi, Feb. Feb 18 : The Income Tax Department conducted search and seizure operation on Feb 17 on nine major Trusts registered in Bengaluru and Mangaluru, which are running educational institutes including medical colleges. Searches were conducted at 56 different locations across Karnataka and Kerala.

During the course of the search and seizure operation it was found that the transparent selection process to Medical colleges through NEET has been subverted by Trustees and key persons running these Medical Colleges in collusion with agents/brokers and some students who got high ranks in NEET Examination.

The first stage of malpractice is that some high ranking students in NEET examination take admission to MBBS courses through state counselling (who have no intention to join the said colleges as they have secured admissions or likely to get admission elsewhere), thereby blocking seats in the medical stream in a Medical college during Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) counselling process, in connivance with Agents/ Middlemen/Converters (who provide service of converting the regular seats to Management seats), I-T Department said in a statement about the investigations.

Subsequently, these students withdraw from the admission process thereby making the vacant seats available for the college management. Such seats are made available to the college management for filling up through the "Stray Vacancies Round" (seats remaining vacant or unfilled in a college after mop-up round).

In this Round, the seats are filled by the college management by admitting less meritorious candidates (Low rank in NEET) after collecting huge sums as capitation fee/donations in cash which are illegal under the Karnataka Educational Institutions (Prohibition of Capitation Fee) Act,1984. The capitation fee/ Donations are collected through a network of brokers/ agents employed by the key persons/Trustees of these medical colleges, the department said.

The I-T search operation has resulted in detecting incriminating evidence regarding cash-for-seat malpractices for admission to MBBS, BDS and Post Graduate seats in the form of notebooks, hand written diaries, excel sheets containing the details of cash received from students/brokers for admission in these colleges for various years.

It was also observed that the management, faculty, staff, meritorious students and brokers are working in close nexus to manipulate the online admission process. Also, there is evidence indicating that one of the medical colleges have some sort of "package arrangement" for passing management quota students in written examination and viva voce for fixed sum ranging from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh, the department said.

Further, there is evidence, it added, which prima facie suggests that the cash money accepted by manipulating the online admission process in these colleges has been diverted for non-charitable purpose by the Trustees which is clearly in violation of Sec 12AA of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Apart from this, evidence has been found regarding large number of investments made in immovable properties with huge cash component attracting provisions of section 69 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. One of the colleges has diversified into the business of timber/plywood industries where evidence regarding under invoicing has also been found.

So far, the evidence gathered indicates that Rs 402.78 crore has been accepted as illegal capitation fees by manipulating the online admission process and the same has not been disclosed to the Income Tax Department. Searches have resulted in seizure of cash amounting to Rs. 15.09 crore. Gold Jewellery of 81 Kg (valued at Rs. 30 crore), 50 carat diamonds and 40 kg of silver articles have been found from the residential premises of the trustees and are prime facie, unexplained. Evidence of undisclosed foreign assets of Rs. 2.39 crore in Ghana has also been found apart from evidence of huge investments in 35 Luxury cars in benami names.

Further investigations are in progress.
BUENOS AIRES (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th February, 2021) The first batch of doses of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine against the coronavirus has arrived in Paraguay, media reported.

According to the ABC tv channel's broadcast, the plane with the vaccine doses landed at the airport of Asuncion on late Thursday.

The national Ministry of Health said that the vaccination campaign would be launched on Monday. Doctors will be the first ones who will get the vaccine.

Earlier this month, Paraguayan Minister of Health Julio Mazzoleni said that the country would get 1 million doses of Sputnik V. On Wednesday, Paraguayan President Mario Abdo Benitez thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin for the vaccine deliveries during the phone conversation.
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(CNN)  Actress Ashley Judd is grateful to the Congolese people who helped her in her time of need.

Judd on Tuesday shared intimate photos and details from the horrific 55-hour ordeal during which she struggled to find treatment for a leg injury while on a research trip. She first spoke about the incident over the weekend, hoping to call attention to the plight of the impoverished nation's need for better access to health care.

"Without my Congolese brothers and sisters, my internal bleeding would have likely killed me, and I would have lost my leg," Judd wrote. "I wake up weeping in gratitude, deeply moved by each person who contributed something life giving and spirit salving during my grueling 55 hour odyssey."

Describing her leg as "grossly misshapen" from being broken in four places, she went on to thank those who helped triage her injury and get her to safety.

"Dieumerci ("Thanks be to God") remained seated, without fidgeting or flinching, for 5 hours on the rain forest floor. He was with me in my primal pain," she wrote. " Papa Jean: it took 5 hours, but eventually he found me, wretched and wild on the ground, and calmly assessed my broken leg. He told me what he had to do. I bit a stick. I held onto Maud. And Papa Jean, with certainty began to manipulate and adjust my broken bones back into something like a position I could be transported in, while I screamed and writhed."

She also thanked the "six men who carefully moved me into the hammock with as little jostling as possible, who then walked for 3 hours over rough terrain carrying me out," the two men who ultimately drove her to safety and the women who comforted her.

"Didier drove the motorbike. I sat facing backwards, his back my backrest. When I would begin to slump, to pass out, he would call to me to re-set my position to lean on him," she wrote. "Maradona rode on the very back of the motorbike, i faced him. He held my broken leg under the heel and I held the shattered top part together with my two hands. Together we did this for 6 hours on an irregular, rutted and pocked dirt road that has gullies for rain run off during the rainy season."

Judd told journalist Nick Kristof over the weekend she was in the Congo with her partner, who has a research camp in the area, focused on efforts to protect the endangered Bonobos. She said they visit the Congo often -- about twice a year, usually for one month to six weeks at a time.

The accident occurred pre-dawn one morning while she and some researchers were making their way through the rain forest in the dark.
Bank of Queensland has gone into a trading halt as it closes in on a deal to fully acquire the industry superannuation fund-owned ME Bank, after months of speculation around whether the boutique lender was for sale.

The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald earlier revealed ME Banks significant super fund shareholders were sent an email last week saying a deal with BoQ was on the table and close to being finalised. The banks smaller fund shareholders have also been asked to sell their shares and forced to sign non-disclosure agreements. BoQ was placed on a restricted list within some super funds this week, in order to prevent insider trading.

BoQ went into a trading halt late on Thursday afternoon in order to launch a capital raise to fund a potential acquisition.

The push to sell ME Bank has been brewing for years, as the lender had never paid its shareholders a dividend and failed to achieve the scale needed to compete with its commercial rivals.
Its Carnival, but the headquarters of the Mangueira Samba School in Brazil are deserted, dreary and strange. Any other year, this rehearsal space in the Rio de Janeiro favela of Mangueira would be bustling with samba dancers overflowing with joy and nerves. The flagbearer, Squel Jorgea Ferreira Vieira, 38, is holed up in a hotel, together with the rest of the artists who lead the troupe. The 4,000 sambistas from Mangueira should be getting their elaborate costumes together at this time of year  an explosion of colors, sequins and feathers  for the Carnival parade, a fiercely competitive event, images of which are seen around the world every year. But Rio and the rest of Brazil have been left without the 2021 Carnival, being robbed of one of the most hotly awaited moments of the year.

It irritates me that people dont understand our pain Squel Jorgea Ferreira Vieira, samba flagbearer

Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, the Sambadrome  the purpose-built parade area for the Carnival designed by Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer  will not see a single dancer or float this year. Instead, it will be welcoming the over-80s, who are being vaccinated there without having to leave the comfort of their cars. This year will enter Carnival history, because while the event was suspended in 1892 and 1912, it was successfully held several months later. This time around, that option is not on the cards.

No one imagined Rio de Janeiro without Carnival, explains Ferrera Vieira at the school. Granddaughter of a legendary figure from the event, she has been part of the parade since the age of nine. Its as if I were in the middle of a sea drowning, trying to breathe, she explains. Im completely desperate, and very, very sad.

This time of year is normally when people forget about their everyday hardships, decorate their houses to welcome friends and buy special clothes for the occasions. Each Carnival is different  there have been years of crisis, boom times, repression, few tourists or many  but no one could have predicted the desolation that the pandemic would bring.

Health workers administer Covid vaccinations at the Sambadrome in Rio.  Leonardo Carrato / VII

News of the first coronavirus infection in the country, detected in a businessman who had visited Italy, came on Ash Wednesday in 2020. One year on, and coolboxes are not packed with beer, but rather the vaccines from China like the one that was injected into Rosa Nina Coelho, 85. Shes a native of Rio de Janeiro who, in one of lifes little ironies, had never set foot in the Sambodrome before getting her inoculation.

The mayors of Rio, Salvador da Bahia, Sao Paulo, Recife and Olinda took it for granted months ago that celebrating the big party of the year  which brings together millions of people, attracts tourists from all over the world, and gives employment to hundreds of thousands of people  would be unworkable while the virus was circulating at great speed. In the middle of an uptick of cases, the fiestas were canceled. Brazil has suffered nearly 240,000 Covid-19 deaths and nearly 10 million infections, according to the official data. Rio is now officially ruling out delaying the celebrations until July.

The streets of Rio are deserted and have an air of sadness about them. There is not a single glitter-adorned body, garland of flowers or costume to be seen. The mayor, Eduardo Paes, who is a big fan of the celebrations, has called for common sense while at the same time sending out the police to put a stop to clandestine gatherings and crowds. The atmosphere is one of depression, a far cry from the happiness that the Rio locals usually give off.

The Carnival has given Squel Jorgeas life structure for the last two decades. This is my profession, it sustains my family, and has given me a dignified life and wisdom, says the flagbearer, who has been receiving a steady stream of affectionate messages of support and condolence. She stresses that while most people think that what is arguably the biggest spectacle in the world is just a four-day thing, there is a huge industry behind it  cruise ships, hotels, bars, restaurants...

Shopkeepers who want Carnival to be permanently suspended in Rio de Janeiro.  Leonardo Carrato / VII

But there is also the street hawker who sells beers or popcorn on the rehearsal days, she explains. The woman who sells flowers to supplement her income. The seamstresses, the cobblers All of them, without work.

The cancelation of the Carnival means losses of eight billion reales (which works out at around 1.2 billion, or $1.5 billion) according to trade associations. Half of that amount has been lost in Rio. A total of 25,000 temporary jobs have failed to materialize as a result. Last year, each tourist spent an average of 100 ($120) a day.

To combat the nostalgia, TV network Globo is broadcasting the best moments from previous parades, while artists are sharing their performances via YouTube, and institutions such as the Rio Modern Art Museum (the MAM) is coming up with initiatives for Carnival without celebrating it. Among these was a series of conferences and workshops organized in conjunction with Mangueira, and which left Squel Jorgea with an unforgettable moment: I never imagined that I would be invited to a museum, that I would enter through the front door to give a class, she explains. Or that people who want to understand my art would buy up all of the tickets.

If we are going to have a Carnival in February 2020, the preparation of costumes and floats will need to start in June or July Squel Jorgea Ferreira Vieira, samba flagbearer

Samba is a style of music and dance that was born in the poor, Black neighborhoods, and which, to the annoyance of this star from Mangueira, have no value in cinema, television or ballet in the eyes of other Brazilians. It irritates me that people dont understand our pain, she complains.

While everyone in Brazil is aware of the business that Carnival brings, the celebration also has its critics. A microscopic virus has turned one of the dreams of the most extreme Evangelical and Christian churches into a reality. For them, the Carnival is the incarnation of evil. J. P. I., 64, and his wife, M. R. T., 60, are delighted. Both Catholics, they suspect that last years event was the ideal breeding ground for coronavirus infections. Its a diabolical fiesta, which separates couples, and is for vandals who destroy our heritage, they explain, speaking from the store that they run. They are proud that their children have also turned their back on the event.

Brazilians are hoping that mass vaccinations will let them get back to normal and bring back their big yearly celebration. But the Mangueira flagbearer, who knows all too well that a troupe needs months of research and planning for every detail, is concerned. If things dont move quickly, it will be another difficult year, she explains. Because if we are going to have a Carnival in February 2020, the preparation of costumes and floats will need to start in June or July A second year without the Carnival would be a massive disappointment. For now, just 2.3% of Brazilians have been vaccinated, and problems are looming. Earlier this week, Rio announced that it had suspended its campaign due to a shortage of doses.

English version by Simon Hunter.
In brief: Apps owned by Google and Facebook have been the dominant force in the mobile world for years, consistently accounting for most of the top 15 applications in the US. With the pandemic seeing the likes of Zoom and TikTok become even more popular, one might imagine the tech titans have seen their grip on the market slip. The reality is that they now take a larger share than ever before.

As reported by Axios, the percentage of top 15 apps owned by Facebook and Google has increased from 53 percent in 2015 to 66 percent in 2021.

In addition to the social media service, Facebooks stable of apps include Messenger, WhatsApp, and Instagram, while Google has YouTube (still number one in the US), Gmail, Maps, Search, Play, and more. Most smartphones in America have several of these apps installed.

It was also found that mobile is the platform where people spend most of their online time. Nearly 80 percent of all digital minutes are on smartphones, and 88 percent of those minutes are spent within apps.

Axios notes that Google and Facebooks mobile monopoly comes from their properties being more suited to smartphones: social media, messaging services, news, and information. Markets where Google and Facebook do not have a dominant position, like higher education and training, tend to be more focused on desktop use, writes the site.

Looking at the top apps in the US this month, the highest non-Google/Facebook entry is Amazon at 7. Only five apps out of the top 15 come from other companies.

Top 15 apps in the US as of this month:

1. YouTube

2. Facebook

3. Gmail

4. Google Maps

5. Google Search

6. Facebook Messenger

7. Amazon

8. Weather Channel

9. Google Play

10. Instagram

11. Apple News

12. Google Drive

13. Google Photos

14. Pandora

15. Spotify

Facebook and Googles domination of the app world has long been common knowledge, but with their market share increasing over the years, more questions are being raised about the tech giants monopoly over the industry.

Image credit: Primakov
They came to Peddapalli to file a petition against politician Kunta Srinivas over a temple land dispute in their native place of Gunjapadugu village in Manthani mandal.

Karimnagar: High court advocate couple Gattu Vaman Rao (48) and Gattu Nagamani (42) were waylaid and murdered in broad daylight on Wednesday while they are travelling by car to Hyderabad from Manthani here. The incident took place at Kalvacherla under Ramgiri mandal in this district.

The lawyer couple were prominent social activists engaged in giving legal and other aid to the disadvantaged sections. They came to Peddapalli to file a petition against politician Kunta Srinivas over a temple land dispute in their native place of Gunjapadugu village in Manthani mandal.

Kunta Srinivas, the suspected assailant, was the mandal president of the ruling TRS party.

Gattu Vaman Rao and his wife were in social service activities and fighting cases under the banner of Gattu Law of Chambers. The couple provided free legal service to the poor and even distributed daily essentials to financially weak lawyers of the high court during the lockdown period.

Notably, the lawyer couple had filed a petition against the lock-up death of a Dalit, Sheelam Rangaiah in Manthani in May 2020. The death had created a sensation in the region and beyond. Hyderabad police commissioner Anjan Kumar was later appointed as inquiry officer in this case.

The lawyer couple had filed several cases against the TRS partys Peddapalli Zilla Parishad chairman Putta Madhukar. Arguments in the cases were going on in the high court. A case about alleged ineligibility of Manthani municipal chairperson Putta Shailaja, wife of Putta Madhukar, was also being handled by the lawyer couple in the high court.

For the past few days, Vaman Rao and his wife were receiving threat calls from unknown persons demanding that they take back all the cases they had filed in the high court. Following this, the couple appealed to the Chief Justice of the high court to order the police to provide them security as their lives were in danger.

On the spot of the attack, Vaman Rao lay in a pool of blood. He was alive and informed the locals who ran in there that Kunta Srinivas attacked us and escaped from the scene. The locals shifted the couple to the Peddapalli hospital, but they were dead before arrival at the hospital. The driver of Vaman Raos car ran away from the scene.

Police commissioner V. Satyanarayana said the murder took place around 2.30pm opposite to the petrol bunk near Kalvacherla. The assailants lay in wait there in a Creta car that did not have a number plate. They stopped Vaman Raos car, pulled him out of the vehicle and stabbed him repeatedly.

They also attacked his wife Nagamani when she tried to save her husband.

A case was registered against Kunta Srinivas and some others. They were absconding, police said, adding that six special teams were now on a manhunt to arrest Kunta Srinu and his gang-members.

A dispute existed between Vaman Rao and Kunta Srinivas over the ownership of a temple land in Gunjapadugu village. The Bar association members of Peddapalli district as also former minister and Congress party MLA from Manthani assembly segment Duddila Sridhar Babu condemned the murders and demanded that the police arrest the culprits.
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates  The United Arab Emirates is dismantling parts of a military base it runs in the East African nation of Eritrea after it pulled back from the grinding war in nearby Yemen, satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press show.

The UAE built a port and expanded an airstrip in Assab beginning in September 2015, using the facility as a base to ferry heavy weaponry and Sudanese troops into Yemen as it fought alongside a Saudi-led coalition against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels there.

But the country once praised as Little Sparta by former U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis appears to have found the limits of its military expansion in Yemens stalemate conflict, experts say. After it withdrew troops from the conflict, the satellite photos show it began shipping off equipment and tearing down even newly built structures.

The Emiratis are paring back their strategic ambitions and are pulling out of places where they had presences, said Ryan Bohl, an analyst at the Texas-based private intelligence firm Stratfor. Having that hard-power deployment exposed them to more risk than the Emiratis are now willing to tolerate.

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Emirati officials did not respond to questions from the AP. Eritrea, which gave a 30-year lease to the Emiratis for the base, similarly did not respond to questions sent to its embassy in Washington.

The UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, poured millions of dollars into improving the facility at Assab, only some 70 kilometers (40 miles) from Yemen. It dredged a port and improved the dusty airstrips roughly 3,500-meter (11,500-foot) runway to allow for heavy support aircraft.

The Emiratis also built barracks, aircraft canopies and fencing across the 9-square-kilometer (3.5-square-mile) facility initially built in the 1930s by colonial power Italy.

Over time, the UAE stationed Leclerc battle tanks, G6 self-propelled howitzers and BMP-3 amphibious fighting vehicles at the airport, according to United Nations experts. Those types of heavy weapons have been seen on Yemeni battlefields. Attack helicopters, drones and other aircraft have been seen on its runways.

Barracks on the base housed Emirati and Yemeni troops, as well as Sudanese forces filmed disembarking in Yemens port city of Aden. Records show the ship carrying them, the SWIFT-1, traveled back and forth to Assab. The vessel later came under attack by Houthi forces in 2016 and the Emirati government asserted it carried humanitarian aid, a claim for which U.N. experts later described themselves as being unconvinced of its veracity.

The base also aided wounded soldiers by housing one of the best field surgical hospitals anywhere in the Middle East, said Michael Knights, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near-East Policy who has studied the Assab base.

As Yemens war dragged on, the Emiratis also used the base for holding prisoners as the Saudi-led coalition faced increasing international pressure over detainee abuse and airstrikes killing civilians. The UAE announced in the summer of 2019 it had begun withdrawing its troops from the war, which still rages today.

Theres only so far that they can punch above their weight, which they do militarily and economically, said Alex Almeida, a security analyst at Horizon Client Access who has studied Assab. Once they figured out Yemen wasnt worth it for them, they decided, Were going to end it, and they ended it pretty suddenly.

Satellite pictures from Planet Labs Inc., analyzed by the AP, show that decision appears to extend to Assab as well.

In June 2019, around the time the Emiratis made their withdrawal announcement, workers apparently razed structures believed to be barracks alongside the port, the satellite images show. Workers gathered neat rows of materiel just north of the port, apparently waiting to be shipped off.

In early January of this year, another photo showed what appeared to be vehicles and other equipment being loaded onto a waiting cargo ship. By Feb. 5, the ship and that equipment were gone.

The deconstruction included newly built canopies along a new tarmac near the facilities runway as well. In the Feb. 5 images, another set of canopies that analysts earlier linked to the drones being flown out of the base had been dismantled as well. The UAE has used Chinese-made armed drones in the Yemen war to kill leaders among the Houthi rebels.

Destruction of the drone hangars come after rebels in Ethiopias Tigray region in November alleged that Emirati drones from Assab had been used against their positions. The UAE hasnt commented on the allegation for which the rebels offered no evidence.

The U.N.-backed government in Libya also has alleged the UAE has flown weapons through Assab on its way there. U.N. experts have accused the UAE among other nations of funneling weapons into Libya amid its yearslong civil war.

Meanwhile, a Ukrainian-registered Antonov An-124 cargo plane flew several flights in late January back and forth to the Emirati city of Al Ain from Assab, according to flight data from FlightRadar24.com.

That aircraft, once linked to the Emirati military, now flies for an Ukrainian-Emirati company called Maximus Air. The firm did not return a request for comment left at its Abu Dhabi office.

Despite the dismantling work, Emirati attack helicopters still have been seen at the base. It remains a strategically important point as well, sitting just off the crucial Bab el-Mandeb strait connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.

But the UAE may face more-pressing concerns. Since 2019, tensions between the U.S. and Iran have seen a series of escalating incidents, including attacks on ships off the Emirates. Those threats closer to home may take precedence over an expanded military footprint abroad.

I think what Little Sparta is doing is to keep its powder dry for whatever it needs to do next, Knights said.

___

Follow Jon Gambrell on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.
Tommy O'Neill (5), who has been hospitalised with a Covid-related illness.

A GRANDMOTHER who feared her five-year-old grandson would die after becoming seriously ill with a Covid-19 related disease is warning parents to be aware of symptoms.

Tommy ONeill (5) from Clondalkin, Dublin, became severely ill after complaining of a belly ache and a minor finger injury last Thursday.

The usually lively child had a high temperature that couldnt be lowered with paracetamol.

Tommys grandmother, Bernie Brennan, told Independent.ie: Tommy is my life, hes a healthy, lively, handsome little boy.

He went from having a stomach ache and a high temperature to being in ICU at Crumlin (Hospital). I was worried he was going to die and all I was able to do was stand outside the hospital, crying in the rain.

Tommy is never sick, hes a healthy little child. No-one I have spoken to has ever heard of PIMS, the Covid-19 related disease hes been diagnosed with.

I need every single parent across Ireland, every grandparent, aunt, uncle and teacher, to know about it because this is a serious disease.

My grandson never had any symptoms of ever having had Covid-19.

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Tommy was being treated in ICU at Our Ladys Hospital in Crumlin over the weekend and earlier today. However, Ms Brennan said they have been told to take things hour by hour. His mother Leanne Brennan is at his side and he has been moved to a ward this evening.

PIMS (paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome) has been described as a Covid-related illness  a rare but potentially deadly inflammatory disease in several countries.

The Royal College of Paediatrics (RCPCH) in the UK describes PIMS as the Covid-19 linked syndrome affecting children. It states that most children and teenagers do not become seriously ill with Covid-19 but doctors have witnessed a small number of cases that seem to be linked to the virus.

The family, including Tommys mother Leanne and father Sean ONeill, who is by her little boys side in hospital, are very concerned that many parents, grandparents and teachers across Ireland, may not know about the disease.

The child, who attends St Marys National School, Rowlagh, Dublin 22, originally had a finger injury, so was first taken to Tallaght University Hospital on Thursday.

According to his grandmother Bernie, once medics there realised he had a high temperature and stomach ache, they were advised to take the child to Crumlin.

Bernie and Tommys mother Leanne rushed to Crumlin, where the child was placed on a drip and his blood was taken.

A nurse and a young doctor said they were not happy, that Tommy wasnt responding to treatment, Bernie said. They took Tommy for a heart scan. Later they told us he had this Covid-19 related condition, wed never heard of, PIMS. We couldnt believe it. Tommy has never been sick.

Hes never had symptoms of Covid-19 and here he is with a serious Covid-19 related disease.

He had Covid tests in hospital and they came back negative. No-one around Tommy has been sick, so we just dont understand.

I truly believe the doctors and nurses at Crumlin are angels. I believe theyve saved Tommy.

And I cant thank them enough. They knew what this was straight away and that meant he was treated quickly.

But there are other children severely ill in ICU and I need every parent in Ireland to know about not just Covid, but Covid-19 related PIMS.

The doctors and nurses were expecting children to get sick with this. Its happened after every wave.

They were expecting to see these cases and thank God they knew.

But we now need every single parent and grandparent, every aunt and uncle and teacher to know.

During this pandemic weve all been scared for our older people, our jobs, our homes, but we had thought children were mostly fine.

Tommy has not been fine. We need to worry for our children too. We thought Tommy would die two days ago.

Everyone was crying. No one has been able to eat. And the only one able to be with him is his poor mam, whos exhausted.

My little charmer, my cheeky chops, Tommy is my life, hes all our lives.

Hes a beautiful blond-haired, brown-eyed boy and hes so intelligent, so full of life.

No mother should have to watch their child suffer like this. Please everyone be aware of these conditions and act as soon as they happen.

PIMS and Kawasaki disease have similar symptoms. Both illnesses are rare, however.

Children have shown symptoms including a rash or signs of inflammation around the mouth, hands or feet, shock or low blood pressure, heart problems, evidence of a bleeding disorder and acute gastrointestinal problems.

A spokesperson for Crumlin Children's Hospital Ireland urged parents to be aware of the symptoms which include a persistent fever, rash, red eyes (conjunctivitis), and often with abdominal symptoms, in particular crampy abdominal pain and diarrhoea.

"Paediatric multisystem inflammatory syndrome temporally associated with Covid-19 (PIMS-TS) is a hyper-inflammatory syndrome that has been described in children occurring in the aftermath of either exposure to/infection with Covid-19," she told independent.ie.

"The severity of PIMS-TS can vary. Some children require very little support. Some children have more severe disease with inflammation of the heart muscles and the coronary arteries that supply blood to the heart.

These patients require more intensive support including medications to suppress the inflammation, control temperature and support the patients heart and blood pressure."

The spokesperson noted all of children diagnosed with this have recovered and a small number remain as in-patients receiving treatment and have plans for discharge soon.

"CHI advises parents/guardians whose child is displaying the symptoms mentioned above to go to their local emergency department," she added.

In May 2020, Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said PIMS occurs in around 15 in every 100,000.

PIMS is described on the HSE's website as: A very small number of children who have Covid-19 have needed hospital treatment for an inflammatory syndrome called paediatric inflammatory multisystem syndrome (PIMS). PIMS is a life-threatening disorder caused by an unusual response to an infection by your body's immune system. It is similar to Kawasaki disease or toxic shock syndrome and is very rare. We don't know if these children developed PIMS because they have Covid-19. It is too early to tell if there is a link.

The website notes: Children who now need hospital treatment for PIMS are being tested for the virus. This is a precaution."
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The man who lost control of his vehicle on the Interstate 205 bridge on Sunday, plunging into the Columbia River below, was identified Thursday as a 57-year-old Portland man, officials said.

Portland police officially confirmed the man as Antonio Amaro-Lopez. His family had previously said Amaro-Lopez was likely the driver, as he had never arrived home from Sunday evening after leaving his job at his familys Hazel Dell restaurant.

Witnesses reported seeing a maroon SUV traveling south on the bridge, which connects Oregon and Washington, hit a patch of ice, go over a snow embankment and plunge into the water about 5:45 p.m. The crash happened as a large winter storm was hitting the region, creating hazardous road conditions throughout the Portland area.

Kelly Brown, an extended family member of Amaro-Lopez, said his daughter pleaded with him not to go to work on Sunday as the weather deteriorated. Amaro-Lopez, who worked at the family restaurant in Hazel Dell, decided to make the trip.

He was the hardest working man Ive ever met, Brown told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Thursday.

His family began to worry when he didnt come home when expected Sunday night. When they saw law enforcement had reported a car going into the water, they called to express concern that Amaro-Lopez might have been the driver.

According to witnesses, he was on the Glenn Jackson bridge, and it looks like he lost control on a sheet of ice, Brown told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Monday evening. The snow plows pushed the snow to the side and created an embankment, and the vehicle went up that and over, into the water.

On Tuesday, police said the Multnomah County Sheriffs Office River Patrol Unit had conducted sonar scans of the river bottom over the previous two days and hadnt located a person or the vehicle, though they said the search would continue.

The vehicle and Amaro-Lopezs body were discovered Wednesday night.

Amaro-Lopezs relatives have set up a fundraiser to help his immediate family, for whom he was the main provider. The family owns the restaurant Amaros Table in Hazel Dell.

Brown described him as a loving grandfather, a dedicated father to three daughters and a loving husband.

He would take the shirt off his back and give it to someone in need, Brown said. Hes the kindest person weve met in our lives.

-- Kale Williams; kwilliams@oregonian.com; 503-294-4048; @sfkale
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0108263 License for publishing multimedia online



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Galveston, TX (77553)

Today

Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 83F. Winds ESE at 10 to 20 mph..

Tonight

Mostly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 77F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph.
Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Ukraine Hadi Al-Hajri: this year's infrastructure projects will extend cooperation between our countries to a higher level

An exclusive interview of Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Ukraine Hadi Al-Hajri to the Interfax-Ukraine agency

- How does Mr. Ambassador assess the level of cooperation between Ukraine and the state of Qatar in political and economic spheres? In which sectors of the economy is cooperation developing, in which not, and why?

- In general, relations with Ukraine are important for our country and they are based on mutual respect. We note the positive development of these relations at all levels. In recent years, we have achieved significant development in the political sphere thanks to cooperation between our countries on various regional and international issues, as well as through the exchange of visits by high-ranking officials of both countries. We are witnessing the development of economic relations through the signed agreements, which are considered the legal basis for the implementation of many joint projects and an increase in trade exchange.

I believe that there are broad prospects and opportunities for expanding economic cooperation that have not yet been realized in many areas. The current level of trade exchange does not meet the expectations of the two countries, as there are opportunities in the areas of infrastructure, energy security, food security, tourism, sports, education and other areas in which we see opportunities for expanding cooperation.

I also want to note that the pace of cooperation in recent years gives us great hope that we are on the right track to double the trade exchange between the State of Qatar and Ukraine, taking into account that we have signed many agreements to facilitate cooperation. For example, we signed an agreement on avoidance of double taxation and the one on protection of investments. There is a Joint Commission on Economic, Trade and Technical Cooperation between the governments of the two countries.

- In August last year, the Infrastructure Ministry of Ukraine and the Qatari company QTerminals signed an agreement on the concession of Olvia seaport. Are you and the investors satisfied with the start of this project? Are there any difficulties?

- This investment project is of great importance for our two countries, and this is a step that will undoubtedly strengthen economic cooperation between Qatari, Ukrainian and international companies in general. Also, this project will facilitate the maintenance of maritime operations between the ports of Ukraine and the port of Hamad in the State of Qatar, which is a great achievement for QTerminals. Moreover, QTerminals, a Qatari port management company, is pursuing its business strategy by expanding foreign investment.

This project is also an important investment opportunity in the most famous Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea.

There is no doubt that all the development work that QTerminals will do in the port of Olvia will contribute to the maintenance of operations, shipping and logistics services associated with the port in accordance with the best international standards, thus increasing the port's operating income and ensuring all chances of success to become an international terminal specializing in grain trading.

As you know, this project is one of the largest foreign direct investments in the port industry in Ukraine since the declaration of independence, and the term of the concession agreement is 35 years, until 2056, according to which QTerminals will invest about $ 140 million in the port development over the next five years. Of this amount, $ 3.5 million will be allocated to restore local infrastructure in the city.

We hope that this project will benefit the city of Mykolaiv, its residents and Ukraine as a whole.

I think that this project is the beginning of other projects between Ukraine and the State of Qatar, which will raise cooperation between the two countries to a higher level. We hope that the coronavirus epidemic will end and we will resume visits by high-ranking officials of both countries and the implementation of various projects.

- According to statistics, the largest suppliers of LNG to the European market are the State of Qatar, the United States, and Russia. Does the State of Qatar consider Ukraine as a possible market for the supply of its gas and as a possible center of activity for accepting this gas and further sending it to European countries?

- The problem of gas and the energy sector as a whole is one of the important areas in which cooperation between our two countries can be achieved, since as you mentioned, Qatar is among the largest exporters of LNG to the European market, and the Ukrainian side is striving to diversify energy supplies and achieve energy security.

There are many problems that impede direct access of Qatari gas to the Ukrainian market, but these difficulties can be overcome through bilateral meetings between energy sector representatives of the two countries.

- What is the trade balance between our countries? What is the nomenclature of exports-imports in 2019, the first half of 2020? What are the trends for each product group?

- As I said above, there are broad prospects for increasing the level of trade between our two countries, and there is a positive trend in economic relations, since the trade turnover in 2019 amounted to about $ 90 million.

Although this is a modest figure, it is a good figure, especially if we look at previous years, in which the volume of trade between the State of Qatar and Ukraine did not exceed $ 20 million. During this year, despite the coronavirus pandemic hitting the world and having a widespread impact on the economies of various countries, we reached $ 76 million in the first six months alone.

If we look at the most important export and import goods between our two countries, then Qatari exports mainly include plastics, polymers and inorganic chemicals, while Ukrainian exports to Qatar mainly consist of agricultural products such as grain, fats, oils, milk, dairy products, eggs, minerals.

I want to point out the possibility of diversifying the volumes of exports and imports between our two countries in various fields, which will benefit the peoples of both countries.

- In mid-2020, Qatar Petroleum signed agreements to reserve the capacity of South Korean shipyards for building more than a hundred tankers for transportation of liquefied natural gas. Have you studied the possibilities of Ukraine in this regard? Is it possible to implement joint projects to revive the Ukrainian shipbuilding industry with your help in Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson?

- The agreements you mentioned are important agreements and some of the largest deals in this area. With these agreements, the State of Qatar reaffirms its commitment to expanding projects in the North field, even in the light of the desperate times in which the world lives today. The implementation of these projects will increase the State of Qatar's LNG production capacity from 77 million tonnes per year today to 110 million tonnes per year in 2025 and to 126 million tonnes per year in 2027 to ensure a reliable supply of additional clean energy around the world.

As for cooperation with Ukraine in this area, I would like to note that the State of Qatar is open to various investment projects.

- The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) intended to increase investments in technology companies. What is the method of selecting such companies, can Ukrainian IT companies be of interest to the State of Qatar?

- Technologies have become widespread in almost all areas, even in conventional investment areas such as real estate. The technology sector is one of the important sectors in which the State of Qatar will focus investments over the next ten years, in addition to infrastructure and healthcare.

Ukraine is a promising market in the field of technology, and Ukrainian IT companies and specialists in this field have a worldwide reputation, so we are closely monitoring this issue and are looking for various opportunities for cooperation and partnership in this very important sector at the present time.

- What airlines and how often fly between our countries?

- Qatar Airways opened direct flights to Kyiv twice a day in August 2017. This was an important event, thanks to which our countries got opportunities for becoming closer. The number of Ukrainians visiting the State of Qatar or Ukrainians using Doha as a transit to other countries, as well as the number of visitors from the State of Qatar to Ukraine increased.

Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic affected this area, and flights between our two countries were suspended, but Qatar Airways resumed flights to Ukraine from December 19, 2020 with a frequency of four flights per week, and in 2021 the number of flights is to be increased to seven per week.

In the context of this issue, I would like to refer to the signing of the protocol on amendments to the air services agreement between the State of Qatar and Ukraine. This important agreement allowed regulating air traffic between Ukraine and the State of Qatar, as well as expanding the access of airlines of both countries to the air transportation market. The agreement removes restrictions on the number of flights, types of aircraft, as well as destinations in both countries.

I think that when the pandemic ends, we will see important steps in the development of cooperation between the two countries in this area.

- How many Ukrainian citizens visited Qatar in 2019, the first half of 2020? What are the dynamics for 2015-2020? Does the Qatar leadership have plans to stimulate more interest of Ukrainian citizens in visiting the country for tourism and business purposes?

- As I mentioned earlier, relations between Qatar and Ukraine over the past five years have shown positive dynamics in both political and economic spheres, which, in turn, influenced the movement of citizens of the two countries, which also doubled due to the signing of a visa-free regime between the two countries.

I want to note that the State of Qatar opens its doors for Ukrainian tourists who can visit and get to know our country better. I also believe that Ukraine is a beautiful country where hospitable people live, where there are many attractions and tourist places worth visiting, so there is an opportunity to increase the number of Qatari tourists in Ukraine.

I will add that the State of Qatar is open to workers and specialists in various fields, and over the past three years, our country has taken unprecedented steps in the field of protecting workers' rights.

Laws on minimum wage, which protect workers from any extortion, facilitate the movement of workers between employers, have been passed and these laws have been ratified by His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

- Qatar acts as an active mediator in establishing inter-Afghan dialogue and peace in Afghanistan. Do you see similarities and differences in solving the Afghan problem and the problem of establishing peace and territorial integrity in Ukraine?

- I want to emphasize that our country has succeeded in playing the role of a mediator in ensuring a happy end to many crises and problems in the region in recent years. This mediation was not limited to the Arab region, but also extended to the African continent.

Over the past ten years, Qatari mediation has been successful, whether at the level of conflicts between conflicting countries, political groups, armed groups, or opposition forces, including an agreement between the government of Sudan and the Sudan Liberation Movement, the release of Djiboutian prisoners from Eritrea in 2016, the release of kidnapped Lebanese soldiers in 2015, the Lebanese reconciliation agreement, the signing of a peace agreement between the two tribes in Libya and the 2013 Darfur Peace Agreement. And the latest efforts concern the establishment of peace in Afghanistan.

As for your question, I think that the Afghan conflict and the conflict in Donbas, in eastern Ukraine, are different from each other, and each of these conflicts has its own characteristics and the sides that influence them.

For us, the negotiating table is the way to resolve any conflict, it is the only way to get rid of the language of weapons and violence, which only complicate the situation.

Our country supports the peaceful efforts led by the United Nations and the Normandy format to find a solution to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, and we hope that Ukraine and its people will live in friendship and peace.

- What restrictions have been applied by the Qatari authorities in connection with the coronavirus pandemic in the country? What is the situation like now?

- The State of Qatar, like most countries in the world, sought to implement preventive measures against the spread of the coronavirus, therefore, a contact center was created at the Ministry of Public Health to counter the coronavirus.

Since the first day of the outbreak of the pandemic in Qatar, our country has worked to strengthen the medical sector and support this sector with human resources, financially and technically. All ministries and government agencies have made efforts to combat this virus, provided free quarantine places for citizens and residents, and also worked to evacuate their citizens from affected countries free of charge.

As for the current situation, it is under complete control, we have an unprecedentedly low mortality rate from coronavirus, no more than 0.2%.

Our country has taken many measures to support citizens and companies affected by this pandemic. We also provided emergency humanitarian assistance to partners and friendly countries such as Ukraine, which received humanitarian aid to support efforts to combat the coronavirus in line with the directives of His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar.

Qatar's humanitarian aid, which has been sent to more than 20 countries around the world, contained medical equipment and field hospitals. Qatar also funded numerous health institutions developing vaccines for $ 140 million.

- Over 2019, Ukraine dropped by 11 points (to the 65th place) in the annual Paying Taxes 2020 ranking of ease of paying taxes, which is compiled by the World Bank and PwC audit company. At the same time, Bahrain, Hong Kong and Qatar topped the rating. Tell us about your tax payment system.

- The State of Qatar is one of the few countries in the world that levy a low tax rate, making it an attractive work environment for individual and corporate expatriates.

In the State of Qatar, there is no personal income tax, which means that employees receive their salaries without withholding any taxes.

With regard to corporate taxes, the tax rate is 10% of the company's total income, and is paid annually.

There are also many tax exemptions that apply, for example, to small businesses, as well as the income of companies operating in agriculture, fisheries, sea and air transport on a reciprocal basis, as well as other benefits.
Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Its nearly two months since turbulence erupted around China Huarong Asset Management Co.At the end of March, its 4% perpetual dollar bond was trading at 102 cents on the dollar as investors figured the January execution of former chairman Lai Xiaomin for bribery put a line under past wayward behavior. But the failure of the company to release 2020 results by a March 31 deadline, and a subsequent report by mainland media Caixin that the firm will restructure, sparked weeks of turmoil. The same bond is now at 57 cents.The heart of the matter is whether the central government will rescue a state-owned company thats integral to the smooth running of the financial system. While there are signs Beijing wants to ensure China Huarong can repay its debts on time, uncertainty prevails.Heres a look at the key events for China Huarong:May 28The company has wired funds to repay $978 million of notes maturing within the following week, according to Bloomberg News, the biggest bond payment since the 2020 results delay.May 27Liang Qiang, who currently heads another bad-debt manager, is on track to become president of China Huarong, reports Bloomberg News.May 24China Huarong dollar bonds climb after the managing editor of Caixin Media wrote in an opinion piece that the asset manager is nowhere near defaulting on its more than $20 billion of offshore notes.May 21Some of China Huarongs thinly traded onshore bonds slump after having held up better than the companys dollar-denominated notes, signaling broadening concern about the firms financial health.May 18China Huarong has transferred funds to repay a $300 million note maturing May 20, Bloomberg News reports, the first dollar bond to come due since the delayed 2020 results. Prices for the firms dollar bonds slump earlier in the day after the New York Times reports China is planning an overhaul that would inflict significant losses on both domestic and foreign China Huarong bondholders.May 17The company has reached funding agreements with state-owned banks to ensure it can repay debt through at least the end of August, by which time China Huarong aims to have completed its 2020 financial statements, according to a Bloomberg News report. That as at least two of its onshore bonds see big price declines in recent days, worrying some investors.May 13The firm says its prepared to make future bond payments and has seen no change in the level of government support, seeking to ease investor concerns after a local media report that regulators balked at China Hurarongs restructuring plan.May 6The company says it transferred funds to pay five offshore bond coupons due the following day, its latest move to meet debt obligations amid persistent doubts about its financial health.April 30China Huarong breaks its silence, with an executive telling media it is prepared to make its bond payments and state backing remains intact. The official also says the weeks rating downgrades have no factual basis and are too pessimistic.April 29Moodys Investor Service downgrades China Huarong by one notch to Baa1, adding the firm remains on watch for further downgrade. The cut reflects the companys weakened funding ability due to market volatility and increased uncertainty over its future, according to the statement.April 27China Huarong units repay bonds maturing that day. The S$600 million ($450 million) bond was repaid with funds provided by Chinas biggest state-owned bank, according to a Bloomberg News report.April 26Fitch Ratings downgrades China Huarong by three notches to BBB while dropping the companys perpetual bonds into junk territory. The lack of transparency over government support for the firm may hamper its ability to refinance debt in offshore markets, Fitch said.April 25China Huarong says it wont meet an April 30 deadline to file its 2020 report with Hong Kongs stock exchange because auditors needed more time to finalize a transaction the company first flagged on April 1. Securities and asset-management units said in the days before that they wouldnt release 2020 results by months end.April 22The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission asks lenders to extend China Huarongs upcoming loans by at least six months, according to REDD, citing two bankers from large Chinese commercial lenders.April 21China is considering a plan that would see its central bank assume more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) of China Huarong assets to help clean up the firms balance sheet, according to a Bloomberg News report. Peer China Cinda Asset Management Co. was said to be planning the sale of perpetual bonds in the second quarter.April 20China Huarongs key offshore financing unit says it returned to profitability in the first quarter and laid a solid foundation for transformation. Reorg Research reports that regulators are considering options including a debt restructuring of the unit, China Huarong International Holdings Ltd.April 19Huarong Securities Co. says it wired funds to repay a 2.5 billion yuan local note.April 16The CBIRC says China Huarongs operations are normal and that the firm has ample liquidity. These are the first official comments about the companys troubles. Reuters reports Chinese banks have been asked not to withhold loans to Huarong.April 13Fitch and Moodys both put the company on watch for downgrade. The finance ministry, which owns a majority of Huarong, is considering the transfer of its stake to a unit of the countrys sovereign wealth fund, Bloomberg News reports. Chinese officials signal they want failing local government financing vehicles to restructure or go bust if debts cant be repaid.April 9China Huarong says it has been making debt payments on time and its operations are normal. Bloomberg News reports the company intends to keep Huarong International as part of a potential overhaul that would avoid the need of a debt restructuring or government recapitalization. S&P Global Ratings puts China Huarongs credit ratings on watch for possible downgrade.April 8China Huarong is preparing to offload non-core and loss-making units as part of a broad plan to revive profitability that would avoid the need for a debt restructuring or government recapitalization, Bloomberg News reports.April 6Selling gains steam in China Huarongs dollar bonds, following a holiday in China. Huarong Securities says there has been no major change to its operations, in response to a price plunge for its 3 billion yuan local bond.April 1China Huarong announces a delay in releasing 2020 results, saying its auditor is unable to finalize a transaction. Stock trading is suspended and spreads jump on the firms dollar bonds while China Huarong tells investors its business is running as usual. Caixin reports the company submitted restructuring and other major reform plans to government officials and shareholders.More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.2021 Bloomberg L.P.
In Argentina on Wednesday, thousands of women protested against violence on women and in particular femicides.

The protest march organized under the banner "Not One Less" came about after courts and the police ignored requests for help of a young woman who was murdered by her ex-partner.

Multiple feminist groups organized the march which took place in multiple cities throughout the country with the largest taking place in the capital.

The groups have been leading massive street demonstrations focused on violence against women in Argentina since 2015.

Almost 50 femicides have been committed in Argentina in 2021.

One case that especially shocked public opinion was that of Ursula Bahillo, an 18-year-old girl who was murdered on February 8 by her boyfriend.

The man was a police officer with a psychiatric license whom she had repeatedly denounced for assaults, but neither the courts nor the police force took her seriously.

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Japan has gracefully apologized to the women of South Korea who once served as sex slaves to the Japanese Army during World War II.

The Japanese government has announced that they will pay 1 billion yen - the equivalent of $8.3 million or Y5.6 million - to the victims. This is the amount that South Korea had asked for.

The root of the issue was Japan's use of South Korean women as "comfort women" during the war. This - the issue of comfort women that Japan had been working on addressing for decades - has caused strained ties between the two countries, with South Korea demanding compensation and stronger apologies.

To date, there are only 46 surviving victims in South Korea.

Japan's announcement was made after a meeting between Foreign Minister Yun Byung-Se and his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, in Seoul. Mr. Kishida offered an apology during the meeting.

This was followed by a phone call from Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan to President Park Geun-hye of South Korea.

Speaking to reporters, Abe said that both countries are transitioning into a new era and that the issue should not be imposed upon the succeeding generation.

Park has also issued a separate statement, stating that the completion of the deal was urgent since most of the victims are already of advanced age, and many have already passed.

Estimates place the number of women forced into the practice at 200,000 during the Second World War. Many of these women were from Korea; others were from China, Indonesia, Taiwan, and the Philippines.

Terms of the Agreement

Once the compensation is received, the government of South Korea will administer the distribution of the funds. The payment comes with the agreement that an apology will be made by the Japanese prime minister and the acceptance of the South Korean government of Japan's "deep responsibility" regarding the issue. Only when Japan has fulfilled its promises will South Korea consider the matter as completely resolved.

A statue that symbolizes comfort women still stands in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul. Erected in 2011 by activists, the statue will only be removed after consideration by the South Korean government. Both Japanese and South Korean governments also agreed to avoid public criticism of each other regarding the issue.

There is no explicit clause in the deal that states whether the victims will be paid directly. However, it did state that the fund will provide support for projects that will aid in the recovery of the honor of the victims and heal their psychological wounds.

This did not sit well with some of the victims. Lee Yong-soo, 88, expressed doubt on the purpose of the deal - if it were really made in favor of the victims. She also opined that the Japanese government should also offer "direct official" compensation.

Another 88-year-old victim, Yoo Hee-nam, also said that she couldn't possibly be fully satisfied because she was deprived of her basic rights. However, since her government had worked hard to finally settle the issue, Ms. Yoo said she was willing to follow what the government wants.

Some Japanese, however, are not too keen on the idea of compensation and apology, feeling like their country lost. Nobuo Ikeda, a Japanese journalist, felt that South Korea holding out on the removal of the statue is not a "diplomatic negotiation."

The deal, however, is considered symbolic since resolving it before the year ends will also coincide with the 50th anniversary of the countries' diplomatic relations. Some critics say that a breakthrough is difficult to reach regarding such a polarizing issue and that the act of the deal may be simply symbolic.

Although Japan has admitted responsibility, it is unclear if it was made legal or merely a humanitarian act. The compensation of 1bn yen was also considered as an aid to the women but not as compensation from the government. Many of the surviving victims have also demanded that Japan apologize specifically to them and offer direct compensation. Initially, Japan was supposedly mulling over the payment of just 100 million yen.

Although Japan has apologized for allowing Japan comfort women, it also refused to provide a large compensation. The government argued that diplomatic ties built in 1965, along with over $800 million in loans and economic aid it gave to South Korea, already sufficed.

In 1995, a fund was set up for the victims. The support continued for ten years, but it was funded by private donations and not by the Japanese government.
This image shows the finely layered internal structure of a stromatolite from the Pilbara Craton in Western Australia. Credit: JPL/NASA

NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover will be the agency's ninth mission to land on the Red Planet. Along with characterizing the planet's geology and climate, and paving the way for human exploration beyond the Moon, the rover is focused on astrobiology, or the study of life throughout the universe. Perseverance is tasked with searching for telltale signs that microbial life may have lived on Mars billions of years ago. It will collect rock core samples in metal tubes, and future missions would return these samples to Earth for deeper study.

"To quote Carl Sagan," said Gentry Lee, chief engineer for the Planetary Science Directorate at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, "'If we see a hedgehog staring in the camera, we would know there's current and certainly ancient life on Mars, but based on our past experiences, such an event is extremely unlikely. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and the discovery that life existed elsewhere in the universe would certainly be extraordinary.'"

Mars 2020 mission scientists believe that Jezero Crater, the landing site for Perseverance, could be home to such evidence. They know that 3.5 billion years ago, Jezero was the site of a large lake, complete with its own river delta. They believe that while the water may be long gone, somewhere within the 28-mile-wide (45-kilometer-wide) crater, or perhaps along its 2,000-foot-tall (610-meter-tall) rim, biosignatures (evidence that life once existed there) could be waiting.

"We expect the best places to look for biosignatures would be in Jezero's lakebed or in shoreline sediments that could be encrusted with carbonate minerals, which are especially good at preserving certain kinds of fossilized life on Earth," said Ken Williford, deputy project scientist for the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover mission at JPL. "But as we search for evidence of ancient microbes on an ancient alien world, it's important to keep an open mind."

NASA's fifth rover to the fourth planet from the Sun carries a new suite of scientific instruments to build on the discoveries of NASA's Curiosity rover, which has found that parts of Mars could have supported microbial life billions of years ago.

Hunting for Biosignatures

Any hunt for biosignatures will include the rover's suite of cameras, especially Mastcam-Z (located on the rover's mast), which can zoom in to inspect scientifically interesting targets. The mission's science team can task Perseverance's SuperCam instrumentalso on the mastto fire a laser at a promising target, generating a small plasma cloud that can be analyzed to help determine its chemical composition. If those data are intriguing enough, the team could command the rover's robotic arm to go in for a closer look.

This annotated mosaic depicts a possible route the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover could take across Jezero Crater. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

To do that, Perseverance will rely on one of two instruments on the turret at the end of its arm. PIXL the Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry) will employ its tiny but powerful X-ray beam to search for potential chemical fingerprints of past life. The SHERLOC (the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics & Chemicals) instrument has its own laser and can detect concentrations of organic molecules and minerals that have been formed in watery environments. Together, SHERLOC and PIXL will provide high-resolution maps of elements, minerals, and molecules in Martian rocks and sediments, enabling astrobiologists to assess their composition and determine the most promising cores to collect.

An enduring hope of the science team is to find a surface feature that couldn't be attributed to anything other than ancient microbial life. One such feature could be something like a stromatolite. On Earth, stromatolites are wavy, rocky mounds formed long ago by microbial life along ancient shorelines and in other environments where metabolic energy and water were plentiful. Such a conspicuous feature would be difficult to chalk up to geologic processes.

"Yes, there are certain shapes that form in rocks where it's extremely difficult to imagine an environment devoid of life that could cause that shape to form," said Williford. "But that said, there are chemical or geologic mechanisms that can cause domed layered rocks like we typically think of as a stromatolite."

Enter Perseverance's sample caching system. The steamer-trunk-size collection of motors, planetary gearboxes, and sensors is among the most complex, capable, and cleanest mechanisms ever sent into space. With it, the science team will collect the most intriguing samples they can find, store them in samples tubes, and, later, deposit them so that future missions can collect the sample tubes and fly them back to Earth for analysis.

"The instrumentation required to definitively prove microbial life once existed on Mars is too large and complex to bring to Mars," said Bobby Braun, the Mars Sample Return program manager at JPL. "That is why NASA is partnering with the European Space Agency on a multi-mission effort, called Mars Sample Return, to retrieve the samples Perseverance collects and bring them back to Earth for study in laboratories across the globe."

And when that happens, samples from Mars' Perseverance rover may tell us that at one time billions of years ago life existed elsewhere in the universe. But they also may indicate the opposite. And what then?

"We have strong evidence that Jezero Crater once had the ingredients for life. Even if we conclude after returned sample analysis that the lake was uninhabited, we will have learned something important about the reach of life in the cosmos," said Williford. "Whether or not Mars was ever a living planet, it's essential to understand how rocky planets like ours form and evolve. Why did our own planet remain hospitable as Mars became a desolate wasteland?"

In the Australian Outback, scientists from NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover mission and the joint European-Russian ExoMars mission visit the oldest convincing evidence for life on Earth in the Australian Outback. Credit: JPL/NASA

Perseverance may not provide the final word on if the Red Planet ever contained life, but the data it collects and the discoveries it makes will play a key role whenever that result is reached.

Humanity has been focusing on Mars since Galileo became the first human to see it through a telescope in 1609. Did it once have life? The answer may be awaiting us somewhere in Jezero Crater. NASA's Perseverance rover will begin the process of finding out tomorrow.

More About the Mission

A key objective of Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith.

Subsequent missions by NASA in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), would send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis.

The Mars 2020 mission is part of a larger program that includes missions to the Moon as a way to prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet. Charged with returning astronauts to the Moon by 2024, NASA will establish a sustained human presence on and around the Moon by 2028 through NASA's Artemis lunar exploration plans.

Explore further Perseverance rover is 100 days out
As of Monday, a total of 280,581 doses of Covid-19 vaccines had been administered (Brian Lawless/PA Wire)

The pace of Irelands exit from the third wave of Covid-19 is going to be longer and stickier than previous waves, despite good trends overall in the fight against the virus, the health service chief has said.

Paul Reid said the pace of exiting this wave of the virus was going to be a lot slower than the scale and pace than we entered it because the virus was still transmitting at a very risky level across the community.

It is going to take longer, it is going to be stickier and not at the pace that any of us would want or like, Mr Reid said.

The HSE chief executive said people with Covid-19 were presenting much sicker to hospital and that once admitted they were staying longer in hospital and ICU than in previous waves.

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Mr Reid said there are 771 patients in hospital with Covid-19 on Thursday afternoon including 148 who were in ICU.

He said about 200 coronavirus patients were receiving advanced respiratory care on hospital wards.

But the number of people admitted to hospital with the virus had fallen by more than 25% in the last week and ICU admissions were down 11%.

Mr Reid told the HSE briefing on Thursday that more than two-thirds (68%) of positive cases confirmed last week were close contacts of previously confirmed cases.

He said positivity rates at community testing sites ranged from 16% to 20%.

It indicates to us that the levels we are at in the community are still of a concern the virus is still transmitting at a very risky level across the community, he said.

Weekly positivity rate from testing has reduced again to 5.4%. More progress. However positivity rates for close contacts is at 25% & for household contacts it's at 33%. This indicates the high transmission levels of the current B117 (UK) variant. So take care. #COVID19 @HSELive  Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) February 18, 2021

Mr Reid said he understood the publics frustration over the rollout of the vaccination programme but he said it had entered a new phase this week with people over the age of 85 being vaccinated.

We fully appreciate the frustration expressed by many members of the public and others that would like to see more vaccinations done every week, he said.

Theres nobody would like to see more of that than us.

He said the HSE was committed to delivering all the supply it receives and it was administering 95% of any supply of vaccines it receives so any issue was a supply one.

As of Monday, a total of 280,581 doses of Covid-19 vaccines had been administered, comprising 182,193 first doses and 98,388 second doses.

Mr Reid said almost 110,000 jabs will be administered between Monday and Sunday next week.

The HSEs plan includes the administration of about 36,000 doses for those over the age of 85 at around 240 GP practices, 62,000 doses for healthcare workers and 11,900 doses in long-term care facilities.

By the end of March Ireland will have received 1.248 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines.

Mr Reid added that from April onwards Ireland would receive at least a million doses a month.
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Residents of some communities in Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State on Thursday evening marched to the Government House, Benin City, with the corpse of one of the slain farmers killed by suspected herdsmen in the state.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how suspected herdsmen killed seven farmers in some communities in Edo, Wednesday.

The protesters said they were in the Government House to draw the attention of Governor Godwin Obaseki to their plight.

They complained that the police officers that came to their community after the attack merely told them to go and deposit the body in the mortuary.

Michael Idahosa, who spoke on behalf of the protesters, said the communities could no longer bear the incessant attack of killer herdsmen on the farming community, adding that they had decided to bring the dead body to Government House for Mr Obaseki to feel their plight.

We are here to protest the killing of (by) herdsmen in our communities. The governor came to Ovia North East in 2017 when herdsmen killed one of our persons and promised to tackle the problem of herdsmen in our local government area, but the government did not, Mr Idahosa said.

The residents gave the state government a three-day ultimatum to ensure the security of lives and property in the state.

Response

The state Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu, who received the protesters, assured them that the government would intensify efforts at providing adequate security to check the rising spate of insecurity in the state.

Mr Shaibu said, as a state, we had made up our mind not to lament but look for solutions on how to protect our country and our state.

There was also an attack in the early hours of today in Niger State, it is a national problem. As we speak now, Governor Godwin Obaseki and other governors are in Abuja to discuss this insecurity issue in our country.

You will remember that we are bringing in local vigilantes to collaborate with law enforcement agencies; we are strengthening our system and will still need your support.

The deputy governor added, we dont want to take laws into our hands but at the same time, we cannot fold our hands and watch the people kill us. Take it easy. Some of the bodies are yet to be found. I have discussed with the security agencies.

They will move into that area, I can assure you that they will recover their bodies and we will intensify the security in that area. We will categorise that area as one of the flashpoints so that you can sleep with your eyes closed.

At the same time, for the young men, we need you not to sleep with your eyes closed so that you can understand what is going on in your areas. We want you to give us information that will be useful to us.
Although the Republican Party lost the presidency and the power to pick U.S. attorneys, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio still can wield considerable influence over the selection of the next top federal prosecutor in South Florida.

In a key move, sources close to Rubio say, the senator has privately signaled support for a Haitian-American lawyer considered the Biden administrations front-runner  Markenzy Lapointe, a Black Miami lawyer and Marine veteran who once worked in the U.S. Attorneys Office.

But Lapointe isnt the only candidate to emerge. There are at least four others interested in the job  all also qualified and with a history of practicing law in both the public and private sectors. Among them are former South Florida federal prosecutors Jacqueline Arango, Andres Rivero and David Buckner, along with Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg.

Of those four, Aronberg also boasts notable political connections in the Democratic Party and could have power brokers in South Florida pushing him for the important post.

They are all good choices, said J.C. Planas, a Miami attorney who specializes in election law and served as a Republican state representative before he was term-limited. He eventually switched to the Democratic Party in opposition to Trumps bid for re-election.

Contacted by The Herald, Rubios office declined to comment on potential nominations for U.S. attorney in the Southern District of Florida, which will soon become vacant when Ariana Fajardo Orshan leaves office at the end of the month as part of a normal transition between presidents. Fajardo, a former Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge and state prosecutor, was nominated by President Donald Trump in 2018 after Rubio recommended her for the position.

When Democrat Joe Biden defeated Trump in November, Rubio lost the power to communicate directly with the president on recommendations for U.S. attorneys and federal judges in Florida. But as the senior Republican senator in Florida, Rubio still has input in the process, even if Biden has the sole power to make the nominations followed by Senate confirmation.

Story continues

For a Republican, Rubios support of Lapointe would be a safe political bet, at least in South Florida with its substantial Haitian-American community.

Lapointe has already been interviewed by the Biden administration for the U.S. attorneys job, which oversees more than 400 federal prosecutors from Key West to Fort Pierce in one of the busiest districts in the nation. Lapointe is also the only one of the five candidates who have expressed interest in the position to be interviewed by the White House counsel, according to sources familiar with the process.

If nominated, Lapointe, who is considered the front-runner, would make history as the first Black U.S. attorney in South Florida.

Planas said he sees Lapointes candidacy as a no-brainer with his background as a federal prosecutor, partnership in a Miami law firm and background as an ex-Marine who was born in Haiti and raised in Miami. He has a great personal story, he said.

Planas said he was encouraged to hear Rubio is supporting Lapointe for the high-profile position, in stark contrast to his opposition to Cuban-American Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who was eventually confirmed by the Senate. In the past, Rubio has been successful in blocking previous federal judicial nominees in South Florida, such as William Thomas, a Black circuit court judge, and Mary Barzee, a former circuit court judge and assistant federal public defender.

Rubios Republican colleague, Florida Sen. Rick Scott, also opposed Mayorkas for Bidens cabinet.

Asked whether Scott is supporting Lapointe or any other candidate for U.S. attorney in South Florida, his office provided a partial response  but then turned its focus on encouraging federal prosecutors to keep up their pressure on the Venezuelan government of President Nicolas Maduro.

Our office has spoken with Mr. Lapointe about his interest in the appointment to serve as the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Scotts office said in a statement. This is a very important position, particularly because the office has taken a lead role in pursuing legal action against the murderous Maduro regime in Venezuela.

Since 2017, the U.S. Attorneys Office in South Florida has targeted more than a dozen Venezuelan businessmen and officials in the governments of Maduro and his predecessor, the late Hugo Chavez, on charges of embezzling billions of dollars from the oil-rich country and hiding some of their assets in the U.S. banking system and real estate market.

Planas, a veteran political observer, said that no one should underestimate Aronbergs prospects of being nominated by Biden because of his strong Democratic Party credentials, history of public service and management experience as the state attorney in Palm Beach County over the past decade. Aronberg is also a former Florida senator.

Planas pointed out that Aronberg, though born and raised in Miami, is not a product of its politics. As an outsider, he would be objective in local corruption cases, Planas said.

In an interview, Aronberg said that protecting the safety of the community has always been his passion and that he is interested in the U.S. attorneys job to continue that pursuit. His name was on a short list of candidates for U.S. attorney in South Florida four years ago, but he withdrew his candidacy because he was in the wrong political party with Trump as president.

Now that Biden is in the White House, Aronbergs chances are decidedly better.

There has been speculation that U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Ted Deutch  both longtime Democrats in Broward County  are pushing for Aronbergs nomination behind the scenes. Wasserman Schultzs office downplayed that potential support and instead focused on her efforts to restore the process of using a bipartisan judicial nominating commission in Florida to recommend finalists for U.S. attorneys, federal judges and U.S. marshals. That process was abandoned by Sens. Rubio and Scott after Scott, Floridas former GOP governor, narrowly beat Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson in 2018.

Wasserman Schultz said she has been working with veteran colleague, U.S. Rep. Alcee L. Hastings, and the rest of the Florida congressional delegation to set up regional judicial nominating commissions in the southern, middle and northern districts of the state. She said her goal is reestablish the commissions to produce a strong slate of candidates.

This has been the longstanding, bipartisan mechanism for recommending candidates to the White House, Wasserman Schultz said in a statement.

Despite her efforts, it remains to be seen whether Rubio and Scott would want to join Democrats in the Florida House delegation in recreating that system.
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Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan Khan is all set to follow in his father's footsteps and play an active role in the bidding of their team, Kolkata Knight Riders in the latest auction event happening in Chennai. Aryan was recently spotted at the IPL auction event and his pictures soon went viral on social media. This may inevitably be exciting news for the fans of Aryan as well as the IPL team, Kolkata Knight Riders.

Talking about Aryan Khan, he was spotted wearing a formal white short along with black pants which he paired up with a black mask. He can be seen sitting between KKR co-owner and actor Juhi Chawla's husband Jay Mehta and Juhi Chawla's daughter Jahnavi Mehta presumably. The picture of the same was shared by one of the fans on Twitter who captioned it stating, "Aryan Khan All Set For The Auctions." The Twitterati also could not help spotting an uncanny resemblance between the looks and attitude of Aryan with his father on the event. One of the fans also pointed out that Aryan's way of sliding his hand through his hair is just like his father. Take a look at the tweet.

I don't even know what to say, words fail me  like two peas in a pod Too cute  pic.twitter.com/f7p56llot4  Lina (@ShahRukhsWorld) February 18, 2021

Apart from Aryan, Juhi Chawla's daughter Jahnavi Mehta has also been playing an important role in the bidding of the team. She also owns the proud title of being the youngest bidder in the history of the IPL Auction. Not only this, but the official Twitter handle of KKR had also shared the news that Jahnavi will also be giving some behind-the-scenes tour of the IPL Auction event in Chennai. Take a look at the picture of Aryan Khan and Jahnavi Mehta from the event.

Meanwhile, talking about Aryan Khan, he is not only popular amongst the netizens but they had also recently got a glimpse of his musical talent in a video which was going viral on social media. In the said video, Khan Jr. was seen strumming an acoustic guitar and crooning a verse from Charlie Puth's popular track 'Attention'. Towards the end of the video, Aryan Khan was seen losing track of the chorus and was heard saying, "We need to practise." Take a look at the video.

Earlier, during his appearance on David Letterman's show My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, Shah Rukh Khan had stated that his son Aryan Khan is not keen on following in his footsteps. The superstar had also revealed that one of the reasons why Aryan does not want to become an actor is because of the obvious comparisons. SRK had added that Aryan is worried that his efforts would constantly be seen and judged in his father's shadow.

Also Read: Youngest Bidder Of IPL Juhi Chawla's Daughter Jahnavi Mehta All Set To Give A BTS Tour Of The IPL Auction

Also Read: Aryan Khan's Acoustic Cover Of Charlie Puth's Attention Goes Viral; Netizens Say 'His Attitude Is Like SRk'
On Thursday, Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury slammed the Centre for arranging a two-day visit of foreign envoys to Jammu and Kashmir. According to him, this strategy showed that the Union government itself believes that all is not well in the Union Territory. Questioning the Centre on why it needs a certificate from foreign diplomats, he stressed that there cannot be any compromise on the country's sovereignty.

Chowdhury contended that the government must feel satisfied only after receiving praise from the people of J&K. Writing on Twitter, he added, "Else it will be a futile exercise and certainly diminish our status of an independent sovereign entity, you are at liberty to host a feast of those consummate diplomats but for God's sake do not indulge in fomenting fantasy". During the course of their visit, envoys from EU, France, Malaysia, Brazil, Italy, Finland, Bangladesh, Cuba, Chile, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Senegal, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Ireland, Ghana, Estonia, Bolivia, Malawi, Eritrea and Ivory Coast are assessing the developmental work and the security situation in the region.

The #Modi govt has now been exhausting his resources to convince the world that everything is going hunki-dory in #Kashmir valley, it testifies that govt itself does not believe that all is well in Kashmir,

(1/5)  Adhir Chowdhury (@adhirrcinc) February 18, 2021

Read: Jammu And Kashmir Police Organise Rally To Recruit SPOs In Kathua; 2,836 Candidates Apply

Why does govt need a certificate of performance from the diplomats across the world? Is india not sovereign? In our country there is a plethora of problems, shall we need praise from other countries by orchestrating our performance!!!

(2/5)  Adhir Chowdhury (@adhirrcinc) February 18, 2021

Read: Law And Order In Kashmir Improved A Lot Since Abrogation Of Article 370 Provisions: CRPF Officer

The day #Kashmir people will praise you on their own volition coupled with spontaneity you may draw the conclusion that thinks are changing much to the glee of yourselves,

(4/5)  Adhir Chowdhury (@adhirrcinc) February 18, 2021

Political situation in J&K

In August 2019, a presidential notification along with the passage of requisite legislation in both Houses of Parliament resulted in Article 370 becoming virtually redundant. Furthermore, the state was bifurcated into the Union Territory of J&K and Union Territory of Ladakh. Subsequently, several restrictions on the movement of people, communication, and internet services were imposed in the region. Multiple leaders including former Chief Ministers Farooq and Omar Abdullah and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti were detained.

While the Public Safety Act charges against the Abdullah father-son duo were withdrawn in March 2020, Mufti was shifted to her Gupkar Road residence in Srinagar which was designated as a subsidiary jail by the J&K administration. In April, her detention under the PSA was extended on May 5 and July 31. Though her daughter Iltija Mufti had moved the Supreme Court in February 2020 seeking the PDP chief's release, the matter was not listed for many months owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, Mufti was released on October 13, 2020, barely a few weeks after the apex court commenced hearing the habeas corpus case.

Meanwhile, restrictions were gradually removed in the Union Territory. Signalling normalcy in the region, the District Development Council polls - the first big election held after the revocation of J&K's special status was conducted in 8 phases between November 28 and December 19, 2020, with a voter turnout of 51.42 percent. Most importantly, the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration which is fighting for the restoration of Article 370 also participated in this election and emerged as the single-largest coalition with 110 seats. In another welcome development, 4G mobile internet services were restored in all districts of J&K on February 5, 2021.

Read: JK Handicrafts Dept Ropes In 'Kral Koor' To Help Revive Pottery In Kashmir Valley
Genetically modified (GM) salmon has been in the works for decades. And its arrival is fast approaching.

How fast? Is March soon enough for you? That is the estimated time frame given by AquaBounty, a Massachusetts-based biotech company that has developed AquAdvantage salmon -- a genetically engineered fish. AquaBounty told The Counter it expects to harvest the salmon from an Indiana facility in March, and bring it to market shortly thereafter.

AquaBountys website states that AquaBountys innovative land-based farms, combined with its expertise in genetic engineering, are the answers to a rapidly increasing global demand for high-quality seafood.

But who will buy the GM salmon? Despite the fact that AquAdvantage salmon isnt even ready to be sold, there is a lot of opposition, The Counter reports.

#THREAD: For decades, Americans have been teased with the impending arrival of genetically engineered salmon. But if a boycott campaign continues apace, they may have to wait even longer.https://t.co/DssORwdCxi  The Counter (@TheCounter) February 17, 2021

Earlier this month, a coalition of environmentalists and grassroots organizers announced they had successfully pressured Aramark, one of Americas largest food service companies, into agreeing not to sell the genetically engineered salmon if and when it became available in the United States.

Aramark runs cafeterias and food services in schools, universities, hospitals, prisons and office buildings around the country -- even Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. It has now joined 85 grocery chains, seafood companies, restaurants, and food service companies that have pledged not to sell the GM salmon since 2013, according to Friends of the Earth, a nonprofit environmental advocacy group.

Aramark World Headquarters is seen in Philadelphia on Aug. 8, 2006. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)ASSOCIATED PRESS

To check out the many companies that pledged not to sell GM salmon, visit the Friends of the Earth website. Listed there are quite a few national and regional food retailers, seafood companies, restaurants and large food service companies.

A few names recognized in central Pennsylvania include Aldi, Costco, Trader Joes, Walmart, Whole Foods and Red Lobster.

Avoiding potential impacts to wild salmon populations and Indigenous communities, whose livelihoods are deeply connected to and often dependent upon this vital resource, is core to our companys commitment to making a positive impact on people and the planet, reads a corporate policy memo from Aramark.

Created back in 1989, the bioengineered fish is genetically modified to grow twice as fast as conventionally-bred salmon. It was approved as safe to eat by the FDA in 2015 and a ban on its import was lifted by the FDA in 2019.

In 2016, Friends of the Earth, along with environmentalists, wild salmon fishers and the Quinault Indian Nation, filed a lawsuit against the FDA to overturn the approval permanently.

Some of the companies that have pledged not to sell the salmon do sell foods made with genetically modified ingredients, such as corn and soy derivatives. But Jane Kolodinsky, a University of Vermont economist said those retailers likely feel this product is different.

The Counter was told by Kolodinsky:

The strong feelings that some consumers have about genetic modification in plants are heightened in animals. A 2016 psychological study of 860 people showed that consumers were more disgusted by genetically modified tuna than a tomato. People who say they are opposed to using GMOs in plant production are very opposed to modifying animals.

Read more food news:

Eating more seafood these days? Youre not alone as sales spike during pandemic

Heres where to pull up for takeout Lenten fish fries in central Pennsylvania

McDonalds now offers a burger created by a Michelin-starred chef

El Sol Mexican Restaurant expanding to Cumberland County
Parents will be told to use lateral flow tests to check their children for Covid-19 twice a week when schools reopen, reports say.

The government is expected to launch the plan for secondary school students during term time amid a phased return to the classroom.

Education unions have also agreed with ministers for institutions to mass test on one occasion - at the beginning of term.

It comes as reports said secondary pupils will have to wear masks when they are not in their class 'bubbles' once schools reopen.

The government is expected to launch the plan for secondary school students during term time amid a phased return to the classroom (file photo)

The phased return of pupils is expected to start from March 8, with some year groups starting later so they can all be tested.

Sources told the Telegraph larger institutions - mostly secondary schools - could need two weeks to check all students.

What are each of the UK's nations planning? ENGLAND: Boris Johnson is due to announce lockdown-easing roadmap, including details on phased return of schools, on February 22. He has said the government hopes to start reopening English schools on March 8. However, this will be dependent on data showing case and infection rates dropping. SCOTLAND: Nicola Sturgeon confirmed Scottish schools will start to reopen on February 22. WALES: Primary schools will begin the process of reopening next Monday as Mark Drakeford announces a 'review' of the lockdown on Friday. NORTHERN IRELAND: Schools remain closed to most pupils until at least March 8. Stormont is discussing what to do about general restrictions. Advertisement

Teaching unions have previously said the idea of mass testing schoolchildren was 'inoperable' and 'ridiculous'.

The Association of School and College Leaders called for testing kits to be sent home to avoid schools being turned into 'field hospitals'.

It is understood schools will test students once when they reopen and parents will take over term time testing after.

General secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders Geoff Barton said: 'We think that is a good idea.

'It reinforces the responsibility for families rather than assuming that bits of the state, like schools, will carry out the tests.'

He said it would be better for the British Army or PHE to undertake the start of term testing but said teachers would do it for 'a finite period of time'.

The plans are expected to be ironed out between the Department for Education and unions on Thursday.

Meanwhile secondary pupils will reportedly have to wear masks when not in their class 'bubbles' once schools reopen.

This could mean face coverings are required while walking between classrooms or at site entrances.

It was previously up to headteachers to decide if they should be worn in indoor areas where social distancing was not possible  but this guidance is set to be scrapped.

Current advice states face coverings are not recommended in schools 'generally because a system of controls, applicable to all education environments, provides additional mitigating measures'.

The World Health Organisation recommends children aged 12 and older should wear a mask under the same conditions as adults, particularly when they cannot keep at least one metre away from others.

Officials also plan to use mass testing, including three tests per pupil on site before switching to doing them at home, the Guardian reported.

It was previously up to headteachers to decide if they should be worn in indoor areas where social distancing was not possible  but this guidance is set to be scrapped (file photo)

A two-week PR blitz to build parents' confidence in school safety is also in the works ahead of the unveiling of the road map out of lockdown on Monday.

It is believed the PM wants all year groups back at school from March 8 rather than a drawn-out process of different year groups returning in sequence or the use of a rota system.

Some scientific advisers are concerned about the impact of this 'big bang' approach on the infection rate.

Academy boss gives his thoughts on how schools can return Steve Chalke, the head of the Oasis Academies Trust, says that in order for schools to return, the Government should: Take a 'regional approach' by vaccinating all staff before sending pupils back;

He also warned schools needed to create more space including having marquees in playgrounds, to avoid children being 'like sardines in a can';

He said ministers needed to scrap 'potty' mini exams;

And he said the Government should look at phased returns for schools Advertisement

But Boris Johnson is thought to be in favour of keeping other controls in place in exchange for the return of schools, even if it does increase overall infection rates.

A source said: 'Getting pupils in class is the PM's top priority. We know that will increase infections and we need to move cautiously with everything else.'

However, teaching unions are strongly in favour of a phased return, which is the model being followed by Scotland.

Dr Mary Bousted, joint general-secretary of the National Education Union, said: 'The huge problem with a ''big bang'', with all pupils back in a one-go approach, is that this gives no opportunity for monitoring the effects of school reopening on the R rate and on community infection.'

The Department for Education was contacted for comment.

It comes as yesterday the Children's Commissioner Anne Longfield accused politicians of ignoring the needs of youngsters harmed by the pandemic.

She blamed remote officialdom for the plight of millions of children left behind after months out of school.

Miss Longfield asked ministers: 'Are you serious about 'building back better' and 'levelling up'?

'And will you put those children who were already disadvantaged at the centre of it? This is not just about missing a few chapters in a textbook.'

She also pointed to the 'scandal' of almost a fifth of children leaving 14 years of compulsory education and training without basic qualifications.

'That is abysmal. I don't know what's more shocking: that these things happen, or that they're hardly recognised,' she said.

A spokesman for the Department for Education said: 'We have enabled the most vulnerable children to continue attending school in person, while providing laptops, devices and data packages to those learning at home and ensuring the most disadvantaged children are fed and warm.'

In her final speech in the post, Ms Longfield calls for a new 'Covid Covenant' of education and well-being support in every community to help children and young people recover from the pandemic.

A year of opportunity should be launched once the virus is suppressed where schools, sports halls and swimming pools are used at evenings, weekends and holidays to help pupils 'catch up with confidence', she says.

Ms Longfield calls on Mr Johnson to get 'passionate' about making sure that we do not 'define children by what's happened during this year' but instead that we define ourselves by what we offer them.

'It will take political will and funding - an opportunity fund - measured in billions, but it would be worth every penny. It should be led by the Prime Minister,' she says.

Revealed - the price of lockdown that we can NEVER repay: From damage to our children's education to a surge in mental health issues, and industries on their knees

The impact of lockdown goes far beyond merely controlling the virus, with the negative effects seeping into almost every area of life. Here we examine the toll it's continuing to take every day...

DAMAGE TO EDUCATION

Children in England will have lost 850million hours of in-person teaching by the time schools are due to reopen on March 8. Exams have been cancelled for two years running and university courses have moved almost exclusively online, with student dissatisfaction at a record low of 40 per cent.

Children in England will have lost 850million hours of in-person teaching by the time schools are due to reopen on March 8

DELAYS TO CRUCIAL CANCER TREATMENT

Last year was the worst on record for cancer waiting times in England. The number of patients starting treatment plummeted to the lowest level for ten years. Cancer surgery figures dropped by a third during the first wave  with 21,700 fewer operations from April to August. Millions are now trapped in a backlog for vital screening programmes.

NHS WAITING LISTS

Experts warn that NHS waiting lists could more than double from a record high of 4.52million at the end of December to ten million by April. GPs made six million fewer referrals for hospital treatment in 2020 than in 2019, as patients stayed away. The number of people waiting more than a year for treatment has rocketed by more than 7,000 per cent in a year.

WORST ECONOMIC HIT FOR 311 YEARS

The economy shrank by 9.9 per cent in 2020, marking the biggest decline in GDP since the Great Frost of 1709. At the same time, falling tax receipts and soaring spending on Covid-support schemes meant the Government borrowed a record 270.8billion in the first nine months of the financial year  212.7billion more than the same period a year earlier. Borrowing for the full year is set to be close to 400billion and the national debt now stands at 2.1trillion, or 99.4 per cent of national income  the highest level since 1962.

The economy shrank by 9.9 per cent in 2020, marking the biggest decline in GDP since the Great Frost of 1709

JOBS, FURLOUGH AND BENEFITS

The impact on jobs and employment has been severe. Unemployment has risen by 350,000 to 1.7million since the start of pandemic, and forecasters had predicted 2.6million will be out of work by the summer. The furlough scheme is propping up more than five million jobs and is forecast to cost 62billion in 2020/21.

HOSPITALITY ON ITS KNEES

Close to one million jobs disappeared from the sector in 2020, and a million more are still on furlough. Britain also lost almost 6,000 licensed premises last year, a third of which are pubs. Hospitality businesses missed out on an estimated 71.8billion of sales last year, and rolling lockdowns forced landlords to pour 87million pints of beer down the drain.

Close to one million jobs disappeared from the sector in 2020, and a million more are still on furlough

One of the cruellest aspects of the crisis has been bans on visits to care home residents

BANS ON CARE HOME VISITS

One of the cruellest aspects of the crisis has been bans on visits to care home residents. Experts believe these rules have led to thousands of deaths from isolation and loneliness. Family visits are essential to the mental and physical wellbeing of the UK's 410,000 care home residents, 70 per cent of whom have dementia  but many have been denied hugs from loved ones for nearly a year.

DAMAGE TO OUR MENTAL HEALTH

One in five adults experienced either moderate or severe depressive symptoms in June, almost double the level recorded before the pandemic. NHS trusts have predicted a 20 per cent increase in demand for their mental health services  and one in six children say they have suffered difficulties during the Covid lockdowns.

TRAVEL INDUSTRY GROUNDED

Airlines alone have had to take on more than 5billion of additional debt to stay afloat as bookings plummeted by more than 90 per cent in some months last year. British Airways, easyJet, Jet2, TUI and Ryanair have published pre-tax losses of more than 5billion since the crisis began, with the aviation sector having shed about 100,000 jobs.

Airlines alone have had to take on more than 5billion of additional debt to stay afloat as bookings plummeted by more than 90 per cent in some months last year (pictured: Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5, March 2020)

JUSTICE BACKLOG

The pandemic has created an unprecedented backlog. There are more than 56,000 crown court cases waiting to be heard, while magistrates are sitting on a caseload in excess of 400,000. Some victims will be forced to wait years before their cases are heard. Meanwhile, the numbers of rape and domestic violence cases continue to rise.

VITAL DOCUMENTS CAUGHT UP IN CHAOS

By summer, a backlog of more than 400,000 passport applications had built up  and around 150,000 births could not be registered with town halls shut. As many as 127,000 paper driving licence applications were waiting to be dealt with in September, while learners faced six-hour waits just to book a test.

CITY CENTRES HOLLOWED OUT

Retail had its worst year for a quarter of a century, with almost 200,000 jobs lost and 16,000 stores closing. This year is expected to be even worse, with 20,000 premises forecast to shut. There are now approximately 35,000 empty sites across the UK  with the highest vacancy rate since records began in 2012  turning once-thriving areas into ghost towns.
Burma Myanmar Military Regime has Detained Nearly 500 People Since Coup

Security personnel at the National League for Democracy headquarters in Yangon on Feb. 15 while the office is searched. / The Irrawaddy

Myanmars military had detained nearly 500 individuals by Wednesday since its coup on Feb. 1.

Detainees included elected lawmakers and members of the National League for Democracy (NLD), election commissioners, anti-coup protesters and civil servants involved in the civil disobedience movement.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), which monitors detentions, said 495 individuals had been detained, charged or sentenced by Feb. 17. Of them, two people have been sentenced to two years imprisonment and one detainee to three months behind bars.

Only 35 of the detainees have been released and 460 are still being detained, the AAPP said.

This week, six protesters and two students in Rakhine State, six protesters and one student in Mandalay Region, four students in Shan State; three protesters in Ayeyarwady Region, three high-school pupils in Naypyitaw and a protester each in Magwe and Bago regions were detained.

The deputy director-general of the Ministry of Social Welfare in Naypyitaw, a supervisor at a Myanma Railways locomotives factory in Yangon Region and a primary school headteacher in Ayeyarwady Region were also arrested this week for involvement in the civil disobedience movement.

Arrest warrants were issued against 17 elected lawmakers this week. They have gone into hiding.

Leaders of the 1988 uprising, U Min Ko Naing, U Kyaw Min Yu, also known as Ko Jimmy, are also in hiding.

State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint are among those being detained. More than 120 NLD members have been arrested.

The NLD won a landslide in Novembers election, with 396 seats or 83 percent out of the 476 contested seats in the Union Parliament.

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WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SCORE, the nation's largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors, congratulates its Washington D.C. chapter on being named SCORE National Chapter of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Regional SCORE Chapter of the Year award winners include SCORE Kansas City, Cleveland, Rhode Island, Greater Seattle, North Metro Atlanta, Houston and Santa Barbara chapters.

SCORE, the nations largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors, congratulates its Washington, D.C. chapter on being named SCORE Chapter of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration

The Washington D.C. chapter was selected from among 241 SCORE chapters nationwide based on its quick and effective response in supporting small business owners during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many business owners reached out for help, as illustrated by the chapter's 28% increase in total services in 2020.

When the pandemic hit, SCORE D.C. moved operations to an all-virtual mentoring format, allowing it to support business owners without missing a day of service. Volunteer mentors successfully walked business owners through PPP and EIDL loan applications, and provided valuable advice on pivoting operations, adapting marketing strategies and making critical decisions about employees.

"I am so proud of our team and the work we've been able to do to help small business owners thrive, despite this pandemic," says SCORE D.C. Chapter Chair Mariann Zylstra. "It truly takes a village, and our volunteers are extremely dedicated and hardworking. I would like to especially thank the leadership and efforts of my predecessor, Gary Salisbury. As a result of all chapter efforts, we are proud to say, 2020 was our best year ever in providing client services."

"This chapter's success goes far beyond 2020 metrics," says SCORE VP of Field Operations Doug Nohe. "Over the past several years, SCORE D.C. has consistently ranked in the top five (SCORE) chapters for the number and quality of client services delivered, for increased satisfaction of chapter volunteers and for expanded outreach in the local community."

Looking towards the future, SCORE D.C. continues to strengthen partnerships with community organizations, in an effort to expand vital small business mentoring and educational services in the D.C. metro area. Current partnerships include the Women's Business Center of Northern Virginia, the Black Chamber of Commerce in Washington D.C., the Greater Washington Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and others.

The chapter is also well known for hosting the Perfect Product Pitch: Mastering the Art of Persuasion competition, which, last year, resulted in over 30 small business introductions to major retailers.

The SCORE D.C. chapter was honored with the SCORE Chapter of the Year Award during a virtual awards ceremony on Feb. 17.

About SCORE

Since 1964, SCORE has helped 11 million entrepreneurs to start or grow a business. SCORE's 10,000 volunteers provide free mentoring, workshops and educational services to 1,500+ communities nationwide, creating 45,027 new businesses and 74,535 non-owner jobs in 2020 alone. Visit SCORE at www.score.org. Follow @SCOREMentors on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Funded [in part] through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Contact Information

Betsy Dougert

Vice President, External Relations

SCORE

800-634-0245

[email protected]

SOURCE SCORE
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) speaks during a US Senate committee hearing in Washington on Sept. 23, 2020. (Graeme Jennings/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

5 of 7 Republican Senators Who Voted to Convict Trump Censured in Home States

Of the seven Republican senators who voted to convict former President Donald Trump, five have been censured by various state and county Republican Parties or by voters.

On Feb. 15, the North Carolina GOP unanimously voted to censure Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), who is retiring in 2022, after he voted to convict despite previously saying it was unconstitutional to impeach a former president.

By what he did and by what he did not do, President Trump violated his oath of office to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution, Burr stated on Feb. 13.

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), who voted to convict and is up for reelection in 2026, said he did so because he took an oath to support and defend the Constitution, and I take that oath seriously. However, his move was denounced by the states GOP.

The Louisiana Republican Party unanimously voted to censureor officially condemnCassidy for his vote on the same day that he voted to convict the former president.

The Lincoln County Republican Party unanimously censured Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) for dismissing the legitimate concerns of Nebraskas secretary of state, Nebraskas attorney general, and a huge majority of Republican voters, while it said he failed to respect the high office of the President of the United States.

Sasse could lose the most politically, as the senator could be a 2024 Republican presidential candidate. Hes likely to face blowback from Republican voters, who, according to polls, view Trump very favorably.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), who faces reelection in 2022, was censured by Republicans in six state House districts over her vote to convict.

I stand my ground. If I had to take that vote again, I would vote to uphold my oath of office, she said after voting, according to the Anchorage Daily News. And, if the party is to censure me because they felt that I needed to support the party, they can make that statement, but I will make the statement again that my obligation is to support the Constitution that I have pledged to uphold, and I will do that, even if it means I have to oppose the direction of my state party.

In Pennsylvania, the York County GOP censured Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), who is slated to retire in 2022.

Given his recent support of the second unconstitutional impeachment effort against a president who is no longer in office the York County Republican Committee has reached the limits of its frustration, Republican state Rep. Dawn Keefer wrote.

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), a noted Trump critic from within the Republican Party, will not be censured by the Utah Republican Party after the organization said it wouldnt do so. However, a widely circulated petition condemns the 2012 Republican presidential candidate for using his senatorial power and influence to undermine Trump.

The state GOP noted that Romney and fellow Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee, who acquitted Trump, cast different votes.

The differences between our own Utah Republicans showcase a diversity of thought, in contrast to the danger of a party fixated on unanimity of thought,' the Utah Republican Party said in a Feb. 15 statement, explaining that it wont censure Romney.

Meanwhile, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) hasnt faced any punitive actions from within her party or a petition, although the state GOP is reportedly meeting to discuss potentially censuring her.
The Green New Deal  Sen. Ed Markeys and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs roadmap to combat climate change, transition to renewable energy and address environmental justice  has effectively been declared a disaster in Texas, sparking outcry from environmentalists and mockery on social media partly because the landmark proposal has not even been implemented.

The Green New Deal gave me gout, one user quipped in a chain as the progressive proposal trended on Twitter Wednesday night. The Green New Deal ate my homework, tweeted another. The Green New Deal put Jar Jar Binks in the prequels.

The Green New Deal pulled my hamstring. https://t.co/pRUFTPk915  Kevin M. Kruse (@KevinMKruse) February 17, 2021

The 200,000-plus social media posts Wednesday evening served as a backlash to repeated false claims that wind and solar power were the key culprits in winter power outages across Texas this week.

According to the states grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, frozen equipment and other failures with natural gas, coal and nuclear generators accounted for almost double the outages sparked by frozen solar panels and wind turbines.

Twitter users throughout Wednesday pounced on Gov. Greg Abbotts proclamation to Fox News Sean Hannity that the winter blackouts plaguing Texas show how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America  even though the 2019 proposal has not been implemented in his state or anywhere else.

Our wind and solar got shut down and they were collectively more than 10% of our grid. That thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power on a statewide basis, Abbott said before touting the fossil fuel industry.

Abbott didnt mention that power generation in Texas  the nations top wind energy producer  is still dominated by natural gas. His comments to Fox News viewers were also at odds with his own words the day prior, as well as the reality on the ground that natural gas, coal, nuclear and renewable energy sources were all strained by the winter storm.

In fact, natural gas supplies more than half of the states power, according to ERCOT. Wind makes up less than a quarter of the states power capacity, and coal and nuclear account for about 18% combined. In the winter, wind accounts for just 10% of the states power capacity, compared to the 82% provided in the colder months by natural gas and coal, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Dan Woodfin, ERCOTs senior director of system operations, said in a statement that frozen wind turbines accounted for just 13% of the outages hitting the state.

The ability of some companies that generate the power has been frozen. This includes the natural gas & coal generators, Abbott, whos been governor for six years, tweeted a day before appearing on Hannitys show.

Sorry but this is utterly psychotic. Theres an emergency in Texas *right now* and hes dunking on the Green New Deal with complete lies about the source of the problem. https://t.co/PNzzr6juAR  Chris Hayes (@chrislhayes) February 17, 2021

Abbotts comments about the Green New Deal and several fabrications about alleged failures of renewable energy and green policy spread rapidly over social media and right-leaning airwaves on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Fox News Tucker Carlson battered his millions of viewers with a series of false statements about Texas energy policy and the situation in the state on Tuesday night.

Unbeknownst to most people, the Green New Deal came to Texas, he falsely stated. The Green New Deal has not, in fact, come anywhere, though several states including Republican-led states like Texas have for years worked more wind and solar generation into their portfolio, producing jobs and cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

The power grid in the state became totally reliant on windmills, Carlson falsely claimed. Then it got cold, and the windmills broke.

As of Wednesday morning, nearly 200 generating plants and units that would otherwise produce 46,000 megawatts were offline, including 28,000 from coal, gas and nuclear plants and 18,000 from solar and wind, according to ERCOT. On Monday, ERCOT called for rotating outages after extreme weather conditions caused many generating units  across fuel types  to trip offline and become unavailable, forcing 30,000 megawatts off the grid.

But Carlson and several conservative lawmakers and commentators framed the crisis  which left millions without power and nearly two dozen dead  as a verdict on the progressive agenda and green energy. Carlson spooked his viewers with a warning: the same energy policies that have wrecked Texas this week are going nationwide; theyre coming to your state.

Mark Jacobson, Stanford Universitys director of the Atmosphere/Energy Program and professor of civil and environmental engineering, told the Associated Press that the Green New Deal was irrelevant to Texas crisis.

Its really natural gas and coal and nuclear that are providing the bulk of the electricity and thats the bulk of the cause of the blackouts, he said.

Apparently America can put a man on the moon but Texas can't keep the lights on. Houston, we have a problem.  Dan Rather (@DanRather) February 18, 2021

The Texas Tribune reported that many power companies failed to winterize equipment that would have enabled generating units to keep producing electricity even in freezing conditions.

4 million without powerTexas could have invested in at least 3 things for its frozen wind turbines:



water resistant coating on blades



more de-icing drones



upgrades in heating packages



If they can work atop snow-covered Alps. They can work in Texas. #PolarVortex pic.twitter.com/wa7LlAMsrG  Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) February 16, 2021

Just thought wed post this beautiful picture of wind turbines operating in Antarctica, the March for Science, an advocacy group that organizes rallies on Earth Day, posted on Facebook Wednesday.

Just thought we'd post this beautiful picture of wind turbines operating in Antarctica... Posted by March for Science on Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, and Ocasio-Cortez, a rising progressive voice from New York, teamed up to introduce the Green New Deal resolution nearly two years ago. The pair called on the U.S. to transition to 100% renewable energy within the next decade.

Environmental advocates and many Democratic lawmakers say the proposals could lead to millions of new jobs in green manufacturing, infrastructure and sustainability. They also say the moves could help protect vulnerable communities from climate change impacts, including rising sea levels, severe weather and pollution.

The good news is, this calls on America to do what we do best, which is innovate and produce, Sen. Elizabeth Warren said of the climate crisis during a virtual town hall on Wednesday night. Give us a chance, we put that federal money into the innovation, and my view is ... we should fund the research and then anybody can use that research ... but you have to manufacture here in the United States.

Markey and Ocasio-Cortez teed off on the persistent bashing of their proposal.

The infrastructure failures in Texas are quite literally what happens when you dont pursue a Green New Deal, Ocasio-Cortez argued. Weak on sweeping next-gen public infrastructure investments, little focus on equity so communities are left behind, climate deniers in leadership so they dont long prep for disaster. We need to help people *now.* Long-term we must realize these are the consequences of inaction.

The infrastructure failures in Texas are quite literally what happens when you *dont* pursue a Green New Deal.  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 17, 2021

Markey painted a picture of the state directly countering Abbotts message.

The climate disaster in Texas has left millions without power, roads frozen with black ice, and families facing deadly cold in their homes, he said. This is what the future holds for our planet unless political leaders have the courage and conviction to be bold and fight for a Green New Deal.

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Pastor Pamela Jones of Liberating Word Ministries in Newark was motivated to get Modernas coronavirus vaccine because four of her neighbors died of the illness.

We just want to make sure that our community understands that this is to help because the pandemic is fierce, said Jones, 66. Its not having mercy on anybody. Its selecting people all over.

Jones and other ministers who were part of the Newark Inter-Faith Alliance got their first dose of the Moderna vaccine on Wednesday at the citys Department of Health and Community Wellness.

The ministers say they wanted to set an example to their congregants by being publicly vaccinated.

Newark Health Department Director Dr. Mark Wade explained that the vaccine doesnt contain any live virus. It contains mRNA that mimics the virus to create an immune response that generates antibodies, he said, which prevents infection or will make a person less sick if they do catch COVID-19 from another person.

The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are synthetic, Dr. Wade said. So theyre manmade. Whats being injected as the vaccine is this mRNA, which doesnt contain the live virus. So its impossible to get the virus from getting the vaccine.

Newark has been hard hit by the virus. County data shows 853 resident have died from the virus and there have been at least 29,573 cases in the city.

Yet, vaccination rates among Black and Hispanic people have been trailing behind white residents in the state. Black people account for just 4% of those vaccinated and Hispanics make up 5%, according to data from the state Department of Health. White people account for 53% of the states vaccinations.

lfeoma Moneme draws a dose of Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine at the Newark Department of Health and Community Wellness Center. George McNish | For NJ Advance Media

Mayor Ras Baraka, who was vaccinated last week, said those low numbers could be attributed to a number of factors, including economic barriers. About half of those in Newark, which is a majority Black city, dont have a car.

People are not gonna catch the bus to go get vaccinated, said Baraka. So at the end of the day, you have to make it accessible.

Newark has set up rotating pop-up vaccination sites and the housing authority has started inoculating seniors at their homes.

Low vaccination rates among the Black community could also be attributed to skepticism in health care that has been sowed throughout history and still exists today, the mayor said.

Black women are more likely to die from pregnancy-related issues than white women in New Jersey; and the Tuskegee Study that began in 1932 withheld effective treatment from Black people who were unaware they were part of an experiment.

Jones, the pastor at Liberating Word Ministries in Newark, said she understood peoples mistrust but learned more about the vaccine by listening to Dr. Wades community forums. She said she didnt feel nervous about taking the vaccine because of advances in technology too.

We know more now than weve ever known about this, she said. Its not so much an experiment, as much as it is a way of saving your life. Im compelled to do it based on the fact that I want to live.

Tyrell Cleveland, a minister at Higher Praise Family Worship Center, said he chose to get the vaccine after an 18-year-old member of his church died from the coronavirus. The minister said it was an eye-opener about the virus, which is known to adversely affect seniors the most.

But Wednesday was a happy day for him too. He was glad he could set an example for others in his congregation and those in his community.

I didnt even feel the shot, said Cleveland as he laughed and pointed to the injection site, where a large tattoo was located on his arm.

Tyrell Cleveland, associate minister at Higher Praise Family Worship Center, receives his first shot of Moderna's Covid-19 vaccine from nurse Julia Cruz. He and other members of the Newark Interfaith Alliance got their vaccine on Feb. 17, 2020. George McNish | For NJ Advance Media

Other clergy in Newark have joined church leaders across the nation to spread information about the vaccine too. Rev. David Jefferson, of the Metropolitan Baptist Church in Newark, was inoculated earlier this week at the churchs Willing Heart Community Center to launch the vaccination site at 555 Martin Luther King Blvd.

Vaccines at the Metropolitan Baptist Church are expected to be administered weekly on Wednesdays to those who reside in Newark or work in the city. Registration must be made online at newarkvaccine.com and more information can be found by calling 973-789-8111.

Registration for the citys pop-up site may be done online and Essex County has also set up vaccination centers at the following locations:

Essex County College gymnasium, located at 303 University Ave. in Newark, will service Newark, East Orange and Irvington.

Essex County Donald M. Payne, Sr. School of Technology, located at 498-544 West Market St. in Newark, will service Newark, East Orange and Irvington.

The former Kmart building, located at 235 Prospect Ave. in West Orange, will service West Orange, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Montclair, Newark, Nutley and Verona

The former Sears building at the Livingston Mall, located at 112 Eisenhower Pkwy in Livingston, will service Livingston, Belleville, Maplewood, Millburn, Newark, Orange and South Orange.

Essex County West Caldwell School of Technology, located at 620 Passaic Ave. in West Caldwell, will service West Caldwell, Bloomfield, Caldwell, Fairfield, Glen Ridge, Newark, North Caldwell and Roseland.

Local journalism needs your support. Subscribe at nj.com/supporter.

Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com.
The head of diversified miner South32 cant see Chinas ban on Australian coal imports ending any time soon.

Weaker coal prices contributed to an 8 per cent dent in South32s revenue, down from $3.21 billion to $2.94 billion from July to December 2020.

South32 mines coal in the Illawarra region of NSW.

This drop was driven largely by lower realised prices for its metallurgical coal, which took a $US145 million hit due, in part, to Chinas trade spat with Australia and an ensuing ban of Australian coal imports in October.

South32 chief executive Graham Kerr echoed comments from BHP boss Mike Henry earlier in the week that he did not expect the ban to end any time soon, though he was still bullish about metallurgical coal in the medium to long-term.

[February 18, 2021] Nokia Board of Directors approved the Nokia equity program for 2021-2023

Nokia Corporation

Stock Exchange Release

February 18, 2021 at 9.00 (CET +1) Nokia Board of Directors approved the Nokia equity program for 2021-2023 Espoo, Finland  Nokia Board of Directors has approved the Companys equity program for 2021-2023 (Program). The Program includes a new share-based long-term incentive plan (LTI Plan) and an employee share purchase plan (ESPP) under which awards may be granted until December 31, 2023. Long-term Incentive Plan 2021-2023 Nokia seeks to recognise, reward and retain its most talented employees. The long-term incentive plan intends to effectively contribute to the long-term value creation and sustainability of the Company and align the interests of the executives and employees with those of Nokias shareholders. Nokias long-term incentive plan for 2021-2023 is a key tool which supports these objectives. Under the LTI Plan the company may grant eligible executives and other employees awards in the form of both performance shares and restricted shares. Awards under the LTI Plan may be granted between the date the plan is approved and December 31, 2023 subject to applicable performance metrics as well as performance and/or restriction periods of up to 36 months depending on the award. Consequently, the restriction periods for the last awards granted under the LTI Plan would end in 2026. Performance metrics as well as weightings and targets for the selected metrics for performance shares are set by the Board of Directors annually to ensure they continue to support Nokias long-term business strategy and financial success. Further disclosure on annual implementation of the LTI Plan is provided in the Companys annual report and website. The potential maximum aggregate number of Nokia shares that may be issued based on awards granted under the LTI plan in 2021, 2022 and 2023 is 350 million. Until the Nokia shares are delivered, the participants will not have any shareholder rights, such as voting or dividend rights associated with the performance or restricted shares. If the participants employment with Nokia terminates before the vesting date of the award or a part of an award, the individual is not, as a main rule, entitled to settlement based on the plan. Employee Share Purchase Plan 2021-2023 The purpose of the ESPP is to encourage share ownership within the Nokia employee population, increasing engagement and sense of ownership in the company. Under the ESPP 2021-2023, subject to the Board commencing annual plan cycles, the eligible employees may elect to make contributions from their monthly net salary to purchase Nokia shares at market value on pre-determined dates on a quarterly basis during the applicable plan period. Nokia would deliver one matching share for every two purchased shares that the participant still holds at the end of applicable plan cycle. In addition, the participants may be offered free shares subject to meeting certain conditions related to participation as determined by the Board. The maximum number of shares that can be issued under all plan cycles commencing under the ESPP in 2021, 2022 and 2023 is 35 million. Participants have immediate shareholder rights over all shares purchased from the market. Until the matching or free Nokia shares are delivered, the participants will not have any shareholder rights, such as voting or dividend rights associated with the matching or free shares. Dilution effect As at December 31, 2020, the estimated aggregate maximum number of shares that would be issued under Nokias outstanding equity programs, assuming the unvested performance shares would be delivered at maximum level, represented approximately 1.87 per cent of Nokia's total number of shares (excluding the treasury shares owned by Nokia Group). This represents the net number of shares that would be issued, once applicable estimated taxes are deducted from the gross value of the awards. The dilution impact of Nokias outstanding equity programs, if maximum performance was achieved, in addition to the net number of shares that could be issued under the new LTI Plan and the ESPP as a result of awards made in 2021, 2022 and 2023, would not exceed 5 per cent of Nokias current total number of shares (excluding the treasury shares owned by Nokia Group). About Nokia

We create the critical networks and technologies to bring together the worlds intelligence, across businesses, cities, supply chains and societies. With our commitment to innovation and technology leadership, driven by the award-winning Nokia Bell Labs, we deliver networks at the limits of science across mobile, infrastructure, cloud, and enabling technologies. Adhering to the highest standards of integrity and security, we help build the capabilities we need for a more productive, sustainable and inclusive world. For our latest updates, please visit us online www.nokia.com and follow us on Twitter @nokia. Media Enquiries:

Nokia

Communications

Tel. +358 (0) 10 448 4900

Email: press.services@nokia.com

Katja Antila, Head of Media Relations Investor Enquiries:

Nokia Investor Relations

Tel. +358 4080 3 4080

Email: investor.relations@nokia.com



FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

It should be noted that Nokia and its businesses are exposed to various risks and uncertainties and certain statements herein that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements reflect Nokia's current expectations and views of future developments and include statements regarding: A) expectations, plans or benefits related to our strategies, growth management and operational key performance indicators; B) expectations, plans or benefits related to future performance of our businesses (including the expected impact, timing and duration of that impact of COVID-19 on our businesses, our supply chain and our customers businesses) and any future dividends including timing and qualitative and quantitative thresholds associated therewith; C) expectations and targets regarding financial performance, cash generation, results, the timing of receivables, operating expenses, taxes, currency exchange rates, hedging, cost savings, product cost reductions and competitiveness, as well as results of operations including targeted synergies, better commercial management and those results related to market share, prices, net sales, income and margins; D) expectations, plans or benefits related to changes in organizational and operational structure; E) expectations regarding competition within our market, market developments, general economic conditions and structural and legal change globally and in national and regional markets, such as China; F) our ability to integrate acquired businesses into our operations and achieve the targeted business plans and benefits, including targeted benefits, synergies, cost savings and efficiencies; G) expectations, plans or benefits related to any future collaboration or to business collaboration agreements or patent license agreements or arbitration awards, including income to be received under any collaboration or partnership, agreement or award; H) timing of the deliveries of our products and services, including our short term and longer term expectations around the rollout of 5G, investment requirements with such rollout, and our ability to capitalize on such rollout; I) expectations and targets regarding collaboration and partnering arrangements, joint ventures or the creation of joint ventures, and the related administrative, legal, regulatory and other conditions, as well as our expected customer reach; J) outcome of pending and threatened litigation, arbitration, disputes, regulatory proceedings or investigations by authorities; K) expectations regarding restructurings, investments, capital structure optimization efforts, uses of proceeds from transactions, acquisitions and divestments and our ability to achieve the financial and operational targets set in connection with any such restructurings, investments, capital structure optimization efforts, divestments and acquisitions, including our current cost savings program; L) expectations, plans or benefits related to future capital expenditures, reduction of support function costs, temporary incremental expenditures or other R&D expenditures to develop or rollout software and other new products, including 5G, ReefShark and increased digitalization; M) expectations regarding our customers' future actions, including our customers capital expenditure constraints and our ability to satisfy customers needs and retain their business; and N) statements preceded by or including believe, expect, expectations, deliver, maintain, strengthen, target, estimate, plan, intend, assumption, focus, continue, should", "will or similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, which could cause our actual results to differ materially from such statements. These statements are based on managements best assumptions and beliefs in light of the information currently available to them. These forward-looking statements are only predictions based upon our current expectations and views of future events and developments and are subject to risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. Factors, including risks and uncertainties that could cause these differences include, but are not limited to: 1) our strategy is subject to various risks and uncertainties and we may be unable to successfully implement our strategic plans, sustain or improve the operational and financial performance of our business groups, correctly identify or successfully pursue business opportunities or otherwise grow our business; 2) general economic and market conditions, general public health conditions (including its impact on our supply chains) and other developments in the economies where we operate, including the timeline for the deployment of 5G and our ability to successfully capitalize on that deployment; 3) competition and our ability to effectively and profitably invest in existing and new high-quality products, services, upgrades and technologies and bring them to market in a timely manner; 4) our dependence on the development of the industries in which we operate, including the cyclicality and variability of the information technology and telecommunications industries and our own R&D capabilities and investments; 5) our dependence on a limited number of customers and large multi-year agreements, as well as external events impacting our customers including mergers and acquisitions and the possibility of our customers awarding business to our competitors; 6) our ability to maintain our existing sources of intellectual property-related revenue through our intellectual property, including through licensing, establishing new sources of revenue and protecting our intellectual property from infringement; 7) our ability to manage and improve our financial and operating performance, cost savings, competitiveness and synergies generally, expectations and timing around our ability to recognize any net sales and our ability to implement changes to our organizational and operational structure efficiently; 8) our global business and exposure to regulatory, political or other developments in various countries or regions, including emerging markets and the associated risks in relation to tax matters and exchange controls, among others; 9) our ability to achieve the anticipated benefits, synergies, cost savings and efficiencies of acquisitions; 10) exchange rate fluctuations, as well as hedging activities; 11) our ability to successfully realize the expectations, plans or benefits related to any future collaboration or business collaboration agreements and patent license agreements or arbitration awards, including income to be received under any collaboration, partnership, agreement or arbitration award; 12) Nokia Technologies' ability to protect its IPR and to maintain and establish new sources of patent, brand and technology licensing income and IPR-related revenues, particularly in the smartphone market, which may not materialize as planned, 13) our dependence on IPR technologies, including those that we have developed and those that are licensed to us, and the risk of associated IPR-related legal claims, licensing costs and restrictions on use; 14) our exposure to direct and indirect regulation, including economic or trade policies, and the reliability of our governance, internal controls and compliance processes to prevent regulatory penalties in our business or in our joint ventures; 15) our reliance on third-party solutions for data storage and service distribution, which expose us to risks relating to security, regulation and cybersecurity breaches; 16) inefficiencies, breaches, malfunctions or disruptions of information technology systems, or our customers security concerns; 17) our exposure to various legal frameworks regulating corruption, fraud, trade policies, and other risk areas, and the possibility of proceedings or investigations that result in fines, penalties or sanctions; 18) adverse developments with respect to customer financing or extended payment terms we provide to customers; 19) the potential complex tax issues, tax disputes and tax obligations we may face in various jurisdictions, including the risk of obligations to pay additional taxes; 20) our actual or anticipated performance, among other factors, which could reduce our ability to utilize deferred tax assets; 21) our ability to retain, motivate, develop and recruit appropriately skilled employees; 22) disruptions to our manufacturing, service creation, delivery, logistics and supply chain processes, and the risks related to our production sites; 23) the impact of litigation, arbitration, agreement-related disputes or product liability allegations associated with our business; 24) our ability to re-establish investment grade rating or maintain our credit ratings; 25) our ability to achieve targeted benefits from, or successfully implement planned transactions, as well as the liabilities related thereto; 26) our involvement in joint ventures and jointly-managed companies; 27) the carrying amount of our goodwill may not be recoverable; 28) uncertainty related to the amount of dividends and equity return (if any) we are able to distribute to shareholders for each financial period; 29) pension costs, employee fund-related costs, and healthcare costs; 30) our ability to successfully complete and capitalize on our order backlogs and continue converting our sales pipeline into net sales; 31) risks related to undersea infrastructure; and 32) the scope and duration of the COVID-19 impact on the global economy and financial markets as well as our customers, supply chain, product development, service delivery, other operations and our financial, tax, pension and other assets, and the shape of the economic recovery following the pandemic as well as the risk factors specified in our 2019 annual report on Form 20-F published on March 5, 2020 under "Operating and financial review and prospects-Risk factors" as supplemented by the form 6-K published on April 30, 2020 under the header Risk Factors and in our other filings or documents furnished with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Other unknown or unpredictable factors or underlying assumptions subsequently proven to be incorrect could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. We do not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent legally required.





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He stressed at least 60% of the country's citizens need to be vaccinated.

Ukrainian Health Minister Maksym Stepanov says not only health care workers, but also elderly people will be vaccinated against COVID-19 at the first and second stages.

"At the first stage, in addition to the risk group by profession, we still have those citizens who are in specialized institutions, assisted living facilities, nursing homes. We will vaccinate them at the first stage. At the second stage, which provides for the vaccination of about 2.5 million citizens, including those who are older than 80, there are 1,016,000 such people," he told Ukraina 24 TV channel.

"Based on the [vaccine] delivery schedule, we know for sure the second stage may begin in March. The next step covers 75+, 65-75, and citizens from 18 to 59 who have severe concomitant diseases," the minister said.

Read alsoUkraine sets up first makeshift hospital for COVID-19 patientsAccording to Stepanov, there has never been a vaccination campaign of that scale in Ukraine. He stressed at least 60% of the country's citizens need to be vaccinated.

The official also explained the situation with contraindications to vaccination.

"We spoke, for example, regarding pregnant women that they need to be vaccinated. Moreover, if a woman finds out about pregnancy after her first dose, we do not recommend a second dose. Yet, it's up to a person to decide," Stepanov said.

"Or, for example, we advise against vaccination if the period after the COVID-19 disease is shorter than six months, as a person has antibodies and he or she can postpone it. We have taken all this into consideration  this is an important moment. When everything starts, it will be continuous," the minister said.

Stepanov reiterated the vaccination campaign would be launched in February, while the exact timing depends on the date when the first batch of vaccines arrives.

Other related news reports

Reporting by UNIAN

A man wears a double mask as he visits Times Square in New York on Dec. 10, 2020. (Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images)

Some Federal Courthouses in New York Require Double-Masking for Entry

Anyone seeking to enter federal buildings in some New York areas is now required to wear two masks or a properly fitted FDA-authorized KN95 mask, according to a new policy.

The new CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus measures must be followed by people visiting the federal courthouses in the Southern District of New York, which comprises the counties of Bronx, Dutchess, New York, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, and Westchester.

You are required to wear either: (i) one disposable mask underneath a cloth mask with the edges of the inner mask pushed against your face; or (ii) a properly fitted, FDA-authorized KN95 (or N95) mask, according to a public memo (pdf) published last week.

Gaiters, bandannas, or masks with valves/vents are not acceptable face coverings. If you do not have the approved mask(s), a screener will provide one. No one will be admitted without the proper mask(s).

Visitors to the courthouses will also be asked questions regarding their CCP virus health status or whether they have recently been exposed to the virus.

If your answers indicate that you may have COVID-19 or that you may have recently been exposed to COVID-19, you will not be permitted to enter, the memo states.

Officials will also check visitors temperature prior to entering any of the facilities. If the contactless thermometer indicates a temperate at or above 100.4 degrees, those people wont be allowed entry either.

A person has their temperature checked as they prepare to enter a building in the Bronx borough of New York City on Feb. 05, 2021. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The new policy comes about one week after The Center for Disease Control (CDC) released new guidance, urging Americans to take steps to improve their masks and their fit to prevent getting and spreading the CCP virus.

Director of the CDC, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, said the study found a knotted and tucked surgical mask or a double mask combination of cloth over surgical mask was found to significantly improve the wearers protection.

Dr. Rochelle Walensky, then to-be director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, speaks during a news conference in Wilmington, Del., on Dec. 8, 2020. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

It found that wearing an unknotted medical mask blocked less than 50 percent of particles compared to more than 80 percent protection if both source and receiver followed the guidance.

In the breathing experiment, having both the source and the receiver wear masks modified to fit better reduce the receivers exposure by more than 95 percent compared to no mask at all, Walensky said at a press briefing last week.

The CDC guidelines dont recommend double masking with two surgical masks or KN95, and state that with any double masking, make sure you can see and breathe easily.

Melania Sun contributed to this report.

From NTD News

Repentant separatist fighters protest in Bamenda Facebook

At the behest of the Prime Minister, Head of Government, a delegation left Yaounde to appease disgruntled repentant separatist fighters lodged at the National Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration, NDDR, Centre in Bamenda.

The Prime Ministers envoy, Gillette Nkwain Ngam touched down on Bamenda Wednesday, February 17, 2021, accompanied by representatives of other ministerial departments.

The team was the bearer of a FCFA 4 million financial package for the ex-fighters. FCFA 3 million was handed to the ex-fighters to cater for their welfare while FCFA 1 million was given to the Director of DDR Bamenda, Sixtus Gabsa for the establishment of identification cards for the former Ambazonia fighters.

When the ex-combatants marched to the office of the North West Regional Governor on Monday, February 15, 2021, it was to remind the government of its unfulfilled promises.

"Amba must obey government...if you want to kill me, go ahead. But I will never run away from this country," the ex-fighters sang waving the Cameroon flag as they marched up to the Governor's office.

The former fighters told Governor Lele Lafrique Tchoffo Deben Adolphe that the government is yet to fulfill some of the enticing promises that made them drop their weapons.

Aside from asking the government to improve their living conditions, the protesters requested that they be given identification cards.

They also asked the government to put them on an allowance that can enable them to meet up with some of their daily needs.

We also want the government to put out a clear calendar for those who have been disarmed. We need to know how long we have to stay in the DDR center before we can be reintegrated into society. Some of us have been here for too long, one of the ex-fighters is quoted as saying.

Governor Lele Lafrique Tchoffo Deben Adolphe asked the protesters to put their demands in writing. He promised to visit them at their center on Wednesday.

After a brief meeting with the Governor and a working session with the ex-fighters, the team from Yaounde gave assurances that plans are being finalized to reintegrate some of the disarmed fighters and make life at the disarmament centers more beautiful.

The government says upon their reintegration into society, the ex-fighters will not only have jobs, but they will also be job creators.



The ex-combatants handed over a written document containing their demands to the Governor who in turn handed it to the Yaounde delegation for the appreciation of hierarchy.
By David Tuffley, Senior Lecturer in Applied Ethics & CyberSecurity, Griffith University

In denying news content to its Australian users, Facebook is arguably overplaying its hand, behaving as a big company that thinks it can intimidate governments.

If it keeps doing this, it will ultimately lose customers, and thats the last thing Facebook wants.

Perhaps youre already considering breaking up with Facebook, whether in reaction to the news ban, or out of a broader unease about its business model, which profiles its users with the goal of earning revenue from targeted advertising.

If so, the good news is its definitely possible to delete Facebook. Or, if youre not ready to go the whole hog, you can certainly minimise your footprint on the platform.

From Facebooks arrival page, theres a drop-down menu in the top right corner (marked with a downward arrow icon). Click on this icon, then hit Settings & Privacy > Settings > Your Facebook Information > Deactivation or Deletion.

If you deactivate your account it goes dormant but all the data are still there. This is a good option if you want to just take a break, or if youre the kind of person who fancies a detox from Facebook and is back on it two weeks later.

Selecting delete from the same menu is a stronger option. If you do this, Facebook says it will delete your account, but its a little bit unclear about what happens to the data. This means we cant say definitively that all data gets deleted, never to be seen again.

In the European Union, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) includes giving users the right to be forgotten from the internet, so no one can dig up awkward information about what you did 20 years ago. This extends to EU citizens living in Australia.

Australias Privacy Act guarantees a persons right to request their records and to request corrections to inaccurate records. It also guarantees protection against unwarranted invasion of their privacy resulting from the collection, maintenance, use and disclosure of their personal information.

What if you have a change of heart after deleting your Facebook? Data is always recoverable if you really want it, although it would be very difficult.



https://images.theconversation.com/files/384957/original/file-20210218-2... 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384957/original/file-20210218-2... 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384957/original/file-20210218-2... 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384957/original/file-20210218-2... 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384957/original/file-20210218-2... 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">





Adem Ay/Unsplash, CC BY





Good housekeeping

There is a third way: a social media spring clean, which goes a step further than the standard cull of Facebook friends. It involves rebooting your entire Facebook presence by replacing your existing account with a new one that connects only with your most trusted friends.

First, decide which of your friends you want to stay in touch with, and then tell them youre replacing your old account and to expect a new friend request from you soon.

Then set up a new account, with the settings set to the privacy level you are comfortable with, and your connections limited to just a few trusted people.





Read more:

If you don't like Facebook, you can leave  it's easier than you think





The whole purpose of Facebook  in Facebooks view, at least  is to collect enough demographic data about users so they can use clever AI to target advertising. Its awesome how good theyre getting at that, and the more data they get, the better they get.

Their whole modus operandi is to keep you on the platform for as long as possible so they have more chances to show you advertising. Thats the whole reason they want you there.

By just hanging onto your closest friends, and starting with a clean slate, its possible to slim this enterprise down.

Keeping prying eyes away

Via your settings, you can also ask Facebook to show you which third-party apps are currently using data from your Facebook account. Some people have dozens or more of these, and all of them are potentially accessing your data to profile you. Im personally not comfortable with that, and I have very few third-party apps looking at my data.

If you see Facebook posts containing phrases such as if you want to know whos been looking at your profile, click here, some of these are little more than Trojan horses for data harvesting.

It goes even further than that: your friends settings can also allow third-party apps to gain access to your personal data. This kind of practice sits in a grey area in terms of ethical informed consent.





Read more:

Shadow profiles - Facebook knows about you, even if you're not on Facebook





You might be very careful about what apps you use, but some of your friends might be more reckless. If youre doing a social media spring clean, its probably wise not to re-friend that old work colleague who always posts personality quizzes with titles like which household appliance are you?

Life after Facebook?

Theres no shortage of other platforms that people can use. Popular alternatives include LinkedIn, Twitter, Reddit, Parler and MeWe. Bear in mind that Facebook also owns WhatsApp and Instagram. There has been talk recently about data being shared across all Facebook-owned platforms.

Over time, Facebook accounts accumulate more and more dross, and its all data for the platforms algorithms. Facebook wants you to build up hundreds and hundreds of friends, and its all grist to their mill.

Its good to do a periodic spring clean of all your social media accounts - not just Facebook. Take out contacts who are no longer relevant, or who you cant remember how you ever came to be friends with them.

If you want to take it to the next level, deactivate your Facebook account and take a break. Or delete it and set up a new account with only the friends you really want.

The ultimate is to simply take the entire account  and the probably gigabytes of data Facebook has accumulated on you  and cast it into oblivion.

David Tuffley does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Originally published in The Conversation.

UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

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Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

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61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

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Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

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Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

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Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

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We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

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Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

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Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

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Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

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Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

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Ukraine has participated in the 32nd international organic food fair BIOFACH 2021, which is held online on February 17-19, 2021, and presented the Organic Ukraine Business Hub national pavilion which brought together more than 20 domestic companies.

"At year-end 2019, Ukraine ranked first in Europe and second in the world (out of 123 countries) in terms of exports of organic products to the EU. The Ministry of Economic Development is working to ensure the expansion of areas for organic farming in Ukraine and the development of the market of organic products in Ukraine," Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine Serhiy Hlushchenko said in the opening remarks at the fair.

He added that Ukrainian organic grains, legumes, oilseeds, berries, butter, cereals and dairy products are exported not only to EU countries but also to the United States, Canada, Switzerland, the UAE, Japan and other countries. In 2019, total exports of domestic organic products amounted to $189 million (469,000 tonnes), of which 85% of products were exported to Europe, 12% - North America, about 3% - Asia, about 1% - Africa.

Moreover, thanks to the efforts of the Ministry of Economic Development, the state support for producers of organic products in the amount of UAH 100 million with the prospect for increasing it in the coming years will be introduced this year.

As noted, the Ukrainian national pavilion participants are producers and exporters of finished organic products, organic agricultural raw materials for further processing, organic fertilizers. Ukraine takes part in the BIOFACH organic food fair for the eighth time.

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Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
California wildlife officials believe that a single coyote is responsible for a series of recent attacks on residents in the Bay Area.

DNA taken from the victims bite wounds and clothing revealed that all four residents had been attacked by the same coyote, Capt. Patrick Foy of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said on Wednesday.

The agency and the police are trying to capture the coyote.

The latest attack took place at about 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday in Moraga, a suburban town of about 16,000 residents east of San Francisco.

A woman was walking with her 3-year-old daughter on a street when a coyote attacked and bit the girl, Chief Jon B. King of the Moraga Police Department said on Wednesday.
MONTREALIcon Male has released its latest feature, Daddys Weekend, via VOD, with the DVD release soon to follow. The movie is distributed through parent company Mile High Media.

Directed by Ricky Greenwood, Daddys Weekend celebrates older gay men and their younger partners in four fantasies, starring Draven Navarro, Adam Ramzi, Dominic Pacifico, Dillon Diaz, Johnny B. and their younger co-stars Andy Taylor, Tristan Hunter and Zak Bishop.

Ricky explores the compelling younger/older dynamic in this engaging new Icon Male release, said Mile High vice president Jon Blitt. Cover models Draven Navarro and Andy Taylor lead a talented cast of performers in this action-packed film that will undoubtedly leave fans and critics talking.

According to a company synopsis, "Daddys Weekend opens with a group of friends sitting around a roaring campfire, with cigars and whisky in hand as the four men, Dillon (Dillon Diaz), Draven (Draven Navarro), Dominic (Dominic Pacifico) and Adam (Adam Ramzi), reminiscence over recent sexual experiences with younger men."

The movie features four hardcore sex scenes shot in HD along with animated chapter index, a photo gallery and more.

The latest Icon Male trailers can be seen at IconMale.com.

For Icon Male sales and distribution, contact [email protected].

For the latest news and BTS previews, follow Icon Male on Twitter.
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A former Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Abdullahi Dikko, is dead.

He died on Thursday at the age of 61 years.

His younger brother and district head of Musawa in Katsina State, Sagir Inde, confirmed the development to PREMIUM TIMES.

He said Mr Dikko died while receiving treatment at a hospital in Abuja.

The district head did not disclose the ailment for which the late customs officer was treated. But associates of the late public servant told PREMIUM TIMES he died of cancer.

I was in the hospital yesterday between 4 pm and 5 pm yesterday (Wednesday) and the doctor said he was improving and that if he made it to Sunday, we are good, one close associate said.

He said Mr Dikko had sought treatment abroad for his condition.

He came back to Nigeria to recuperate two months ago but it (cancer) came back aggressive two weeks ago, he added.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the funeral prayer for the departed customs officer has been fixed for Friday after Jumaat service at the national mosque, Abuja.

Mr Dikko was born in 1960 in Musawa Local Government Area of Katsina State. He joined the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in 1988.

He was appointed comptroller-general of the NCS by former President Umaru Yaradua in 2009 and served in the office until 2015.

The deceased attended Government College, Kaduna, from 1974 and obtained the West African Senior School Certificate in 1980.

He later obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and a Master of Science degree in Finance from the University of Dimitrov Apostle Tshenov, Svishtov, Bulgaria.

He served in various customs commands, including Seme Border, Tincan Island Port, Apapa, Imo Command, Kaduna, Badagry Area Command, Investigation and Inspection Headquarters, Abuja.

He also worked at Badagry Area Command before he was appointed as Controller-General of NCS on August 26, 2009. His tenure was blighted by several allegations of corruption.
This is the moment a dog in Texas plunges into a freezing swimming pool after arctic conditions hit southern US states.

The dog's owner, Dan Holmes of Southlake, Texas, was forced to venture onto the ice to rescue his pet, Christi, an Australian Shepherd dog.

According to the footage which was shot on Monday, Christi walked onto the frozen surface of his backyard pool which gave way, plunging the dog into the frigid water.

This is the moment Christi the Australian Shepherd dog made its way onto the frozen surface of a swimming pool in Southlake, Texas

Moments later the dog plunged into the frigid water after the surface ice gave way

Owner Dan Holmes got into the frozen pool to rescue his dog who was struggling in the ice

Spotting his dog in distress, Mr Holmes got down onto his hands and knees to spread the pressure and made his way onto the ice.

Moments later, the ice gave way, plunging him into the cold water.

Fortunately, Mr Holmes was able to guide his dog safely to the edge of the pool and onto dry land.

His six-year-old pet had never experienced snowy conditions before.

He told Fox News: 'I was cleaning snow away from the windows when my wife starts screaming all of a sudden and I turned around and saw Christi hanging onto the ice,' Holmes said..

'I was petrified. I didn't really know what to do. I went to the side and she was at the middle, and I couldn't get to her, so I put my hand down and fell in and rolled over and grabbed her and pulled her out as fast as I could.

'Warning, if you have pets be careful. Watch this video, thank goodness I was out near the pool.

Millions of Texans have been left without heat due to energy blackouts in the state triggered by a cold spell in which both air and water temperatures have dropped well below typical levels.

About 7 million people in Texas - a quarter of the nation's second-most populous state - were told to boil their water or stop using it entirely as homeowners, hospitals, and businesses grappled with broken water mains and burst pipes, many in areas unaccustomed to dealing with sustained frigid temperatures.

Winter storms during the past week in the Midwest, Texas and the South forced water service providers to scramble to manage flows as sub-freezing temperatures presented serious problems.

The Texas city of Kyle, south of Austin, asked residents to suspend water usage until further notice because of a shortage.

'Water should only be used to sustain life at this point,' the city of 45,000 said in an advisory. We are close to running out of water supply in Kyle.'

The weather also caused major disruptions to water systems in the Texas cities of Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Fort Worth, Galveston and Corpus Christi.

In Austin, residents were told to boil their water after the city's largest treatment plant lost power. Meanwhile, the city's fire department said it has received hundreds of broken water pipe calls since Monday. On Tuesday alone, the department fielded 685 calls about busted pipes.

In Houston, also, residents were told to boil their water - if they had power to do so - because of a major drop in water pressure linked to the weather. Austin Water told residents in the southwest section of the city to boil water before using it for drinking or cooking.

Leaders in Austin and the Houston area asked residents to stop dripping water from their faucets because of a drop in water pressure.

Nueces Brewing Co. in Corpus Christi offered water to those experiencing shortages. Tap room manager Gwen Ponder said they plan to give out 2,000 gallons of filtered water originally intended for beer brewing.

'We are happy to do it,' Ponder said. 'These are strange times.'
UK chief negotiator David Frost looks on as Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson poses for a picture after signing the Brexit trade deal with the EU at number 10 Downing Street in London, Britain, on Dec. 30, 2020. (Leon Neal/Pool via Reuters)

UK PM Johnson Promotes Brexit Negotiator Frost to Cabinet Minister

LONDONPrime Minister Boris Johnson has given David Frost, the man who led Britains Brexit negotiations, a job in his top team of ministers to advise on relations with the European Union, the prime ministers office said on Wednesday.

The surprise move puts one of Johnsons most trusted allies, a eurosceptic former diplomat and champion of British sovereignty, in charge of managing a post-Brexit relationship with Brussels that has got off to a rocky start.

Frost served as Johnsons chief Brexit negotiator, both for the initial deal, which took Britain out of the EU on Jan. 31, 2020, and for negotiations on the subsequent trade deal that came into force at the end of last year.

The government had previously indicated that Frost would continue to advise the government on matters relating to the EU, but his appointment to Johnsons cabinet of top ministers was not expected.

As a minister rather than an adviser, Frost will have greater influence and be able to direct the work of officials.

He takes on two formal roles previously held by senior minister Michael Gove, putting him in charge of attempts to improve the trading terms for Northern Ireland and giving him a top role in helping to resolve any future disputes over the deal.

I am hugely honoured to have been appointed minister to take forward our relationship with the EU after Brexit, Frost said on Twitter.

In doing so I stand on the shoulders of giants & particularly those of @michaelgove who did an extraordinary job for this country in talks with EU over the past year.

Frost is an unelected member of the House of Lords, parliaments upper chamber. His appointment will take effect from March 1, Johnsons Downing Street office said in a statement.

Jill Rutter, senior research fellow at the UK in a Changing Europe research body, said the move raised questions about how the EU relationship would be managed.

It looked as though [Gove] was the pragmatist and Frost the sovereignty hard liner, she wrote on Twitter.

Gove who previously led the implementation of the EU exit agreement and free trade deal, welcomed Frosts appointment. He will continue in his ministerial role in charge of the cabinet office.

Frost will take over from Gove as UK chair of the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee. This means he takes on responsibility for negotiating with Brussels to make the complex parts of the trade deal relating to Northern Ireland work smoothly.

The EU has so far rejected British demands for more time to solve serious disruptions to free trade between Britain and Northern Ireland resulting from the trade deal.

By Alistair Smout and William James
City of Ithaca, N.Y.  A man stabbed at an Ithaca home on Wednesday evening is expected to survive.

The man was stabbed in the torso shortly after 6 p.m. at a home in the 400 block of Cascadilla Street, the Ithaca Police Department said. He was treated on scene by Bangs Ambulance and Ithaca firefighters before being airlifted to a hospital, police said.

The department has not released the mans age. His injuries are not considered life-threatening, police said.

Investigators do not believe the stabbing was a random act of violence. While the wounded man was not immediately able to describe his attacker, police said investigators believe the victim and the suspect know each other.

Ithaca police have asked nearby residents with surveillance cameras or anyone who was in the area at the time of the stabbing to contact investigators at (607) 330-0000 or anonymously through the departments website.

Staff writer Samantha House covers breaking news, crime and public safety. Have a tip, a story idea, a question or a comment? Reach her at shouse@syracuse.com.
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - Libya's newly appointed Prime Minister of the Government of National Accord, Abdelhamid Dbeibah, said the country is eager "to establish a comprehensive partnership with Egypt with the aim of replicating successful models from its development experience, especially in restoring security, stability, launching the development and reform process"
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 02:19:41|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A senior Iranian official said Thursday that Iran will stop implementing the Additional Protocol of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) if the U.S. sanctions against Iran are not lifted in the coming days.

Amir Abdollahian, special assistant to the speaker of Parliament for international affairs, said that the deadline for the U.S. and European signatories to the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal to lift sanctions will expire in four days.

"With no effective sanctions lifted, Iran's exit from the @iaeaorg's #Additional_Protocol will be definite," Abdollahian tweeted.

Iran will no longer wait for "empty promises" of the White House and the three European countries, namely Britain, France and Germany, he said.

Abdollahian referred to Iranian parliament's Strategic Action to Lift Sanctions which mandates the Iranian government to stop inspections pertaining to the Additional Protocol of the IAEA as of Feb. 23, in case the new U.S. administration does not lift sanctions against Iran.

On Saturday, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi will visit Tehran to talk about the agency's verification activities and "to find a mutually agreeable solution for the IAEA to continue essential verification activities in the country."

In January, Iran launched 20-percent uranium enrichment process as part of Iran's Strategic Action Plan which was approved by the parliament in December 2020.

In response to the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal in 2018 and re-imposition of sanctions, Iran has suspended implementing parts of its obligations under the 2015 nuclear deal. Enditem
"With flight demonstrations and testing already in progress, Ampaire's hybrid electric powertrain technology brings us closer to the next great shift in air travel: sustainable aviation that's accessible to everyone," said Sudhin Shahani, Surf Air Mobility's co-founder and CEO. "With this advanced technology, we have the opportunity to solve aviation's biggest problemsoperating cost and environmental impactthrough electrification. We see the near-term opportunity to transform existing turboprop aircraft across the entire industry as the first step to ultimately extend to fully electric aviation across all trip lengths."

Today Ampaire is creating hybrid electric powertrains for existing popular aircraft, aimed at upgrading a first generation fleet of vehicles focused on 9- to 19-seat piston and turboprop aircraft. There are tens of thousands of aircraft eligible for this type of powertrain upgrade worldwide. Surf Air Mobility intends to make hybrid electric powertrain upgrades available to fleet owners on and off its consumer platform, as well as license its technology to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for new aircraft types. Extending the availability of electric technology will further Surf Air Mobility's mission to move the world forward faster, and accelerate the industry's path to zero emission travel.

Electrification has the potential to unleash a new mobility market of previously uncaptured opportunity. The Union Bank of Switzerland estimates that the global market opportunity for hybrid electric aircraft is estimated to grow to $178 billion by 2040. Surf Air Mobility is building the ecosystem needed to accelerate the entire industry's adoption of sustainable flight with its marketplace platform, customer base, and focus on regional routes. Hybrid electric aircraft, which can lower direct operating costs, are on track to make air travel more affordable and more accessible for an even broader range of flyers and destinations. Surf Air Mobility and Ampaire intend to drive further advances toward fully electric aircraft, with the goal of significantly reducing direct carbon emissions. Transitioning to electric aircraft could also reduce fuel costs by up to 90 percent according to the World Economic Forum, as well as lower maintenance expense and noise.

"Working with Surf Air Mobility will allow us to follow the successful path of hybrid electric automobiles and take that model to the sky more quickly," said Ampaire CEO Kevin Noertker. "It is our intention to be one of the first to make this technology available at scale on both existing and new commercial routes."

Ampaire has successfully completed a month-long demonstration program of the first electric-powered flight on a commercial route with its Electric EEL, a hybrid electric Cessna 337 aircraft. This is the first aircraft of this type to receive FAA experimental market survey approval, allowing the company to carry passengers other than flight crew. The deployment exemplified the performance benefits of hybrid electric systems, with 100 percent dispatch reliability and long endurance flights of more than 340 miles and durations up to three hours. Ampaire has also cultivated extensive partnerships, including NASA, the Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects AgencyEnergy (ARPA-E), and The United States Air Force. With an active multimillion dollar contract under NASA's initiative for electrifying megawatt class planes, Ampaire is a trusted contributor to NASA's goals for achieving noise, emissions, and fuel burn reduction in commercial aviation. Surf Air Mobility will continue this work to make industry-wide progress toward affordable, sustainable electric air travel.

"By focusing on shorter, regional routes in the near term, hybrid electric aircraft will completely transform the way we think about how we travel," said Fred Reid, Surf Air Mobility's President. "By improving the cost structure, we're able to create a new kind of point-to-point network that opens up previously untenable markets with more direct connections. With half of all U.S. flights 500 miles or less, hybrid electric technology will have an immediate and broad-reaching impact."

Surf Air Mobility is working to create the foundation to make electric air travel broadly available by incubating the technology for the rest of the industry. Surf Air Mobility believes the coupling of its consumer platform with Ampaire's technology will make air travel more sustainable and affordable to more people in more places than ever before.

Completion of the transaction is subject to certain closing conditions, including, among others, the approval of the Ampaire stockholders of the transaction. For more information, visit: www.SurfAirMobility.com

About Surf Air Mobility

Surf Air Mobility is accelerating the world's path to zero emission travel. Using technology and infrastructure that exists today, Los Angeles-based Surf Air Mobility has assembled all the critical components needed to drive the next great revolution in aviation, including its consumer aviation marketplace, hybrid electric powertrain technology, and regional route networks. By creating the foundation to make electric aviation a reality, Surf Air Mobility aims to bring more affordable, sustainable, and personalized air transportation to everyone, beginning with regional travel. Substantially reducing the cost and environmental impact of aviation will unlock a new world of travel. For more information, visit: www.surfairmobility.com .

About Ampaire

Ampaire is leading the charge in aircraft electrification. The Los Angeles-based company's mission is to be the world's most trusted developer of practical and compelling electric aircraft. To start, the company is upgrading existing passenger aircraft to electric powerthe quickest and most capital efficient approach to making commercial electric air travel a reality. Ampaire flew the largest hybrid electric aircraft at the time in May 2019 and is exploring larger aircraft conversions with support from NASA and the U.S. Department of Energy's ARPA-E research arm. Ampaire's vision is to make flights more accessible to more people from more airports by providing electric aircraft that are clean, quiet, and affordable. Ampaire is a portfolio company of Elemental Excelerator, the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator, and Techstars, with additional support from Starburst Accelerator and others. Ampaire has received numerous prestigious industry awards including Top 100 Global Cleantech and winner, Future of Mobility. For more information, visit ampaire.com.

Cautions regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by such words and phrases as "believes," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "estimates," "may," "will," "should," "continue" and similar expressions, comparable terminology or the negative thereof, and includes statements in this press release concerning the business plans, objectives, expectations and intentions of Surf Air Mobility and Ampaire prior to and once the transaction is complete, and Surf Air Mobility's and Ampaire's future results of operations, business strategies, competitive position, industry environment and potential growth opportunities. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: (1) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the definitive acquisition agreement; (2) the inability to complete the transaction due to the failure to obtain approval of the stockholders of Ampaire or other conditions to closing in the definitive acquisition agreement; (3) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the transaction, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of the combined company to grow and manage growth profitably, maintain relationships with customers, business partners, suppliers and agents and retain its management and key employees; (4) the inability to develop products and execute Surf Air Mobility's or Ampaire's business plan as anticipated; (5) not realizing the anticipated cost benefits of the future products in a timely and economical manner; (6) costs related to the transaction; (7) changes in applicable laws or regulations; (8) the possibility that Surf Air Mobility or Ampaire may be adversely affected by other economic, business, regulatory and/or competitive factors; or (9) the impact of COVID-19 on Surf Air Mobility's or Ampaire's business and/or the ability of the parties to complete the transaction. Many of these risks and uncertainties are outside our control, and there may be other risks and uncertainties which we do not currently anticipate because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in any forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions at the time made, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be achieved. Undue reliance should not be placed on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation (and we expressly disclaim any obligation) to update or supplement any forward-looking statements that may become untrue because of subsequent events, whether because of new information, future events, changes in assumptions or otherwise. Comparison of results for current and prior periods are not intended to express any future trends or indications of future performance, unless expressed as such, and should only be viewed as historical data.

SOURCE Surf Air Mobility
U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Birmingham, urged President Biden to award the Medal of Honor to 90-year-old Alabama civil rights attorney Fred Gray, calling the personal lawyer for Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks and other civil rights era activists a true American patriot.

As a Black lawyer and as Alabamas first Black Congresswoman, I am a direct beneficiary of Attorney Fred Grays lifelong work in the fight for justice, inclusion and equity for all. His litigation in groundbreaking cases like Browder v. Gayle can be seen as not only directly responsible for integrating institutions in Alabama, but all across America, the congresswoman wrote in a letter to Biden. An iconic figure and pioneer of the Civil Rights Movement, I can think of few people more deserving of the Presidential Medal of Freedom than attorney Fred Gray. It is my hope President Joe Biden will award attorney Gray this prestigious honor to recognize him as a true American patriot and for the historic contributions he made to the betterment of our democracy.

Sewells letter comes a week after the Alabama State Bar sent a similar missive to Biden, calling on the president to award one of the nations most prestigious civilian honors to Gray.

During the civil rights movement, Gray successfully argued several key cases, including Browder v. Gayle, which challenged that the segregation laws in Montgomery that led to the bus boycott was unconstitutional. He also served as personal lawyer to Parks and activist Claudette Colvin for refusing to give up their seats to white passengers.

Aside from his civil rights work, Gray was also the first Black president of the Alabama State Bar from 2002 to 2003.
Joint Chambers Phuket Business Briefing

Start From: Thursday 25 February 2021, 05:00PM to Thursday 25 February 2021, 06:00PM Mon. Tue. Wed. Thu. Fri. Sat. Sun.

Phuket is drawing up plans to fully reopen to vaccinated visitors by October to revive its tourism industry. It was recently reported that more than a dozen business groups are planning to pool funds to vaccinate 70% of the islands population above 18 without waiting for a government rollout. The plan, which will need government approval, also seeks to waive a mandatory 14-day quarantine requirement, a major obstacle for many potential travelers. This will allow thousands of vaccinated Europeans who usually spend their winter months in Phuket to visit. AustCham Thailand and the Australian Consulate General Phuket, in collaboration with Australian Alumni and partner Chambers, invites members to attend a business briefing with Bhummikitti Ruktaengam, President of the Phuket Tourist Association, to discuss the plans for reviving the industry on the island paradise. Free of charge for AustCham members, partner Chambers members, and Australian Alumni Members.
Two years after its split from Activision, Bungie is gearing up to build out the Destiny universe and -- more importantly  branch out into new some new ones. To help it do so, the company announced a slew of new expansion measures this morning, including plans to open its first international office in Amsterdam and to more than double the size of its Bellevue, Washington headquarters so it can support multiple project teams, including those outside of the Destiny Universe.

The past several years have been a time of tremendous growth and opportunity for Bungie, said Bungie CEO Pete Parsons in a statement. We are home to some of the brightest and best talent in the industry, and we look forward to expanding upon both our talent pool this year and increasing the resources to support them.

To be clear, Destiny 2 isnt going anywhere  Bungies statement confirms it will continue with the shooters long-term development, which we already knew. Still, the company noted that exploring new stories in the Destiny universe  possibly including a proper sequel after it releases the Witch Queen and Lightfall expansions in 2021 and 2022 respectively  would be a big priority going forward. To help tell those new stories, Bungie tapped Destiny Universe VP Mark Noseworthy and executive creative director Luke Smith to lead preparations for the shift.

As for those new IPs, the juicy details are still firmly under wraps. That said, while Bungie offered no hint of what its projects outside Destiny may look like, it confirmed its plans bring at least one new IP to market before 2025. Or, should we say re-confirmed  the company locked up a trademark for a project called Matter in 2018 and made similar claims about launch plans for a non-Destiny game in 2019.
Brian Justin Crum for 'One Night Only' at The Palm



The Palm Cabaret and Bar is located at Olas Altas 508 in the heart of the Puerto Vallarta Romantic Zone. Tickets to all shows can be purchased at the box office, open daily at 10 am, or online at ThePalmCabaret.com. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Brian Justin Crum appears for 'One Night Only' on Friday, February 19th at 9:30 pm at The Palm Cabaret and Bar in the Puerto Vallarta Romantic Zone.



Brian was a competitor in the 11th season of America's Got Talent, winning 4th place in 2016. His star has continued to rise in the music industry as he has sung with major recording artists, released his own original albums, and starred in concerts and musicals.



Crum attended the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts and has always had a love for music. He took his passion for music and acting to the stage, and joined the cast of the popular Broadway musical Wicked. He later performed in the musicals Altar Boyz and Grease. He also became a part of the Next to Normal musical as a standby for the Gabe and Henry, characters of the play.



Brian has starred in numerous regional productions. With his mentor, Stephen Schwartz, the two performed alongside each other throughout the country. Brian also played the character of "Daniel" in the episode "Possessed" in Season 12 of Law & Order: SVU.



Crum portrayed "Lucas Beineke" in The Addams Family and played "Galileo Figaro" in Queen's rock theatrical We Will Rock You. He even sang with Brian May and Roger Taylor, original members of the band.



He has received numerous 'Best Actor in a Musical' awards for his performances and continues to garner impressive reviews. In addition to acting, Brian is pursuing a career in Pop music and is based in Los Angeles.



Brian Justin Crum is in Vallarta for a 'One Night Only' performance at The Palm Cabaret on Friday, Feb 19th at 9:30 pm. This is one show that you won't want to miss!



A note from The Palm Cabaret management: You can rest assured that The Palm Cabaret continues to practice the new safety measures we've adopted to protect your health during this uncertain time. We have installed a new retractable roof for air flow, and have installed a new filter air system to take old air out and bring fresh air in. Our customers are protected by Plexiglas shields in front and on the sides of their personal seating area, and we've limited our capacity to 60 people (not 130) per show. Masks must be worn to your seats and to the rest rooms. Masks may be removed upon entering your Plexiglas area.



The Palm Cabaret and Bar is located at 508 Olas Altas in the heart of the Puerto Vallarta Romantic Zone. Tickets to all shows can be purchased at the venue's box office or online at



For more information, - Brian Justin Crum appears for 'One Night Only' on Friday, February 19th at 9:30 pm at The Palm Cabaret and Bar in the Puerto Vallarta Romantic Zone.Brian was a competitor in the 11th season ofwinning 4th place in 2016. His star has continued to rise in the music industry as he has sung with major recording artists, released his own original albums, and starred in concerts and musicals.Crum attended the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts and has always had a love for music. He took his passion for music and acting to the stage, and joined the cast of the popular Broadway musical Wicked. He later performed in the musicalsandHe also became a part of themusical as a standby for the Gabe and Henry, characters of the play.Brian has starred in numerous regional productions. With his mentor, Stephen Schwartz, the two performed alongside each other throughout the country. Brian also played the character of "Daniel" in the episode "Possessed" in Season 12 ofCrum portrayed "Lucas Beineke" inand played "Galileo Figaro" in Queen's rock theatricalHe even sang with Brian May and Roger Taylor, original members of the band.He has received numerous 'Best Actor in a Musical' awards for his performances and continues to garner impressive reviews. In addition to acting, Brian is pursuing a career in Pop music and is based in Los Angeles.Brian Justin Crum is in Vallarta for a 'One Night Only' performance at The Palm Cabaret on Friday, Feb 19th at 9:30 pm. This is one show that you won't want to miss!The Palm Cabaret and Bar is located at 508 Olas Altas in the heart of the Puerto Vallarta Romantic Zone. Tickets to all shows can be purchased at the venue's box office or online at ThePalmCabaret.com. For more information, click HERE, call (322) 222-0200, or follow The Palm Cabaret and Bar PVR on Facebook.
Nestle said it was buoyed by strong sales of its coffee brands (Nestle/PA)

The pandemic pet ownership boom and customers drinking more coffee at home helped drive Nestle to a jump in sales over the past year.

The worlds largest food company revealed that sales pushed 3.6% higher in 2020 as it was particularly boosted by a robust performance from its Purina pet care arm.

It told investors that it saw strong growth from its Purina Pro Plan and Felix brands during the pandemic.

Nestle said it was also strengthened by a double-digit jump in supplement sales from its Health Science division.

Expand Close Petcare products jumped in 2020 as pet ownership grew during the pandemic (Nestle/PA) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Petcare products jumped in 2020 as pet ownership grew during the pandemic (Nestle/PA)

Coffee was also in strong demand from lockdown shoppers, with positive sales of Nespresso, Nescafe and its Starbucks branded products.

Growth in these categories helped to offset slumps for products which are typically bought by shoppers on the go.

Sales of chocolate and other confectionery slipped lower as shoppers made fewer impulse buys while gifting was also impacted by restrictions.

It revealed that bottled water sales also took a knock as people stayed at home significantly more.

Mark Schneider, Nestle chief executive, said: The global pandemic did not slow us down.

Our nutrition expertise, digital capabilities, decentralised structure and innovation engine allowed us to adapt quickly to changing consumer behaviours and trends.

Looking to 2021, we expect continued improvement in organic growth, profitability and capital efficiency in line with our value creation model.

Sophie Lund-Yates, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: As the world was ushered into lockdowns, demand for things like bottled water and confectionery went into hibernation too.

However, KitKat maker Nestle has been able to keep sales moving upwards thanks to strong demand for its pet care, health and coffee products.

This is unsurprising, given the pandemic has sparked a huge increase in pet ownership, as well as increased health awareness.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 15:38:27|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on Feb. 18, 2021 shows the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) building in Canberra, Australia. Australia's unemployment rate has fallen for the third consecutive month as the country continues to recover from the coronavirus economic crisis. According to data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Thursday, the unemployment rate fell from 6.6 percent in December to 6.4 percent in January. (Photo by Chu Chen/Xinhua)

CANBERRA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Australia's unemployment rate has fallen for the third consecutive month as the country continues to recover from the coronavirus economic crisis.

According to data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Thursday, the unemployment rate fell from 6.6 percent in December to 6.4 percent in January.

The improvement was driven by an increase of 59,000 full-time position while part-time work decreased.

Underemployment fell from 8.5 percent in December to 8.1 percent, which was lower than the pre-pandemic levels.

"Nationally, employment was only 59,000 people lower than March 2020, having fallen by 872,000 people early in the pandemic," Bjorn Jarvis, the head of labor statistics at the ABS, said in a media release.

However, unemployment is expected to rise again when the government ends the JobKeeper wage subsidy scheme in March.

Responding to the figures, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said that they demonstrated the "resilience" of the Australian economy, adding, "Yes, JobKeeper is coming to an end in March. But the Australian labor market will continue to be resilient as we taper off those payments."

The number of hours worked by Australians fell by 4.9 percent between December and January but the ABS attributed it to more workers than usual taking leave in January.

"After a tough 2020, more Australians than usual took leave in the first two weeks of January, particularly full-time workers," Jarvis said.

"However, the number of employed people who worked zero hours in early January in the capital cities also reflects some ongoing effects of recent lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne." Enditem
Feb. 17A Vancouver man who fatally shot a friend while playing Russian roulette at an apartment in northeast Hazel Dell was sentenced Tuesday in Clark County Superior Court to six years in prison.

Defense attorney Louis Byrd Jr. told the court that his client, Korbin Andrew Bourn, and the victim, 22-year-old Dayton S. Miller, were willful participants in the deadly game.

"One squeeze of the trigger separated the individuals. It could have gone either way," Byrd said.

He called the Vancouver man's death "very tragic and needless."

Bourn, 21, pleaded guilty to second-degree manslaughter and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, and entered an "in re Barr" plea to tampering with a witness  meaning he pleaded guilty to the lesser related charge he didn't commit to avoid conviction on a greater offense.

Appearing in custody via Zoom, Bourn told Miller's loved ones, who were also on the line, that he would do anything to get Miller back. He said the two had known each other for years and that Miller was one of his best friends.

"I just want to say how sorry I am," Bourn said through tears, later adding, "I'm so sorry for playing that stupid game."

Single shot

Clark County sheriff's deputies responded about 1:50 a.m. March 16, 2020, to a shooting at Teal Pointe apartments, 10405 N.E. Ninth Ave. Upon arrival, they found Miller dead inside an apartment bedroom. Deputies noted a single gunshot wound to his forehead and a small-caliber firearm under his hands, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

A witness told detectives that Bourn and Miller had taken turns pointing the gun at each others' heads. When Bourn held the gun to Miller's head, the weapon fired, killing Miller, the affidavit says.

Bourn told investigators that both he and Miller had been drinking, and he believed the weapon was unloaded, the court document states.

Miller had held the gun to Bourn's head, and Bourn heard a click, he said. He thought Miller had pulled the trigger. When Miller handed the gun to Bourn, he pointed it at Miller's head and pulled the trigger. He said he didn't expect the gun to fire, according to court records.

Story continues

Bourn then placed the gun under Miller's hand, he said, and instructed others present to say Miller shot himself. He admitted to being a convicted felon and was told he wasn't allowed to handle firearms, the affidavit says.

Family speaks

During Tuesday's hearing, a victim advocate read three statements written by Miller's loved ones.

Miller's then-girlfriend told the court that his death could have been avoided. She said the people who were present on the night of his death were not true friends.

"Dayton (Miller) was a better friend to them than they ever were to him, and I know they all would throw him under the bus to make it seem like they are blame free," she wrote.

Miller's aunt said the family suffers with "profound sadness," and due to restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic, has been left to grieve in isolation.

His grandmother, who raised him, said Miller suffered from anxiety and fetal alcohol syndrome, which affected his daily life.

"Dayton was a wonderful caring person," she wrote, later adding, "The person that killed my grandson surely deserves more than the small amount of time he will be serving behind bars."

In addition to Bourn's prison sentence, which includes a three-year deadly weapon enhancement, he will serve three years of community custody.
Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

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Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
IN THE LATE 1600s, an unusual tree appeared in northern Corsica that bore both acidic lemons and sweet oranges. The tree, which grew in a secluded hilltop village, went unnoticed for centuries, alternating between the two fruits like a soft-serve ice cream dispenser: A single branch might yield not only oranges and lemons but also fruits that are part lemon, part orange.

Some 300 years later, an amateur pomologist discovered the tree. He traced its age using records from a local monastery, then alerted the leading rare-citrus authority in France, the Citrus Biological Resource Center in San Giuliano, on the islands eastern coast. An open-air library, the center maintains trees that grow lemons as sweet as plums and as large as bell peppers; grapefruits the size of birthday balloons; garnet red hybrid clementines and green tangerines. The scientists who work there engineer new varieties and preserve early iterations of forgotten and near-extinct fruits, such as the Spanish Sucrena orange, remembered by some Valencians born before 1960 for its intensely sweet juice. Since 1997, the conservancy has been home to that lemon-orange tree, which the staff identified as a graft chimera, the botanical equivalent of the mythical lion-headed, serpent-tailed goat.

Founded in 1958 with trees imported from North Africa, the conservancy  run jointly by the French National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (INRAE) and the French Agricultural Research Center for International Development (CIRAD)  promotes citriculture in Corsica and throughout France. Its remote location helps protect the plants against disease, as do safety protocols such as a cryogenic seed bank and an insect-proof greenhouse. While many countries, including the United States, China, Brazil and Japan, maintain citrus collections, Frances is among the largest, with a 32-acre orchard that includes 300-plus varieties of mandarin oranges alone. Across the street, scientists work in the centers laboratory, studying citrus-specific diseases and the effects of climate change  warmer summers and winters make the fruit sweeter  in addition to the genuss genetic history. Besides breeding hardier and more intriguing new fruit, the researchers also test commercial applications for existing ones, whether in cocktails, pharmaceuticals or perfume.
A new study conducted in collaboration between the universities of MinnA new study reveals that estrogen deficiency alters the microRNA signalling in skeletal muscle

Menopause is associated with several physiological changes, including loss of skeletal muscle mass. However, the mechanisms underlying muscle wasting are not clear. A new study conducted in collaboration between the universities of Minnesota (USA) and Jyvaskyla (Finland) reveals that estrogen deficiency alters the microRNA signalling in skeletal muscle, which may activate signalling cascades leading to loss of muscle mass.

Menopause leads to an estrogen deficiency that is associated with decreases in skeletal muscle mass and strength. This is likely due to changes in both muscle function and the size of muscle cells commonly referred to as fibers.

"The mechanistic role of estrogen in the loss of muscle mass had not been established. In our study, we focused on signaling cascades in skeletal muscle that eventually lead to cell death," explains Academy of Finland postdoctoral researcher Sira Karvinen from the Gerontology Research Center, Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyvaskyla, Finland.

One possible signaling route leading to cell death involves microRNA molecules. MicroRNA molecules regulate gene expression by inhibiting targeted protein synthesis. To date, several microRNAs have been found to regulate key steps in cell death pathways and hence may regulate the number of muscle cells.

"In our previous studies we have established estrogen responsive microRNAs in both blood and muscle of menopausal women," says the principal investigator, Academy research fellow Eija Laakkonen. "Now we investigated this observation in more detail by utilizing an animal model of low and high systemic estrogen levels provided by Professor Dawn Lowe's group working at the University of Minnesota."

The study revealed that estrogen deficiency downregulated several microRNAs linked to cell death pathways in muscle. This observation was associated with upregulation of cell death proteins.

"Thus, estrogen responsive micro-RNAs may share a mechanistic role in muscle wasting during menopause," says Karvinen. "One preventative strategy recommended is for women to engage in resistance training especially at middle-age to aid in maintaining muscle mass and power."

###

The study was carried out in collaboration between the universities of Minnesota (USA) and Jyvaskyla (Finland) and was funded by National Institutes of Health (NIH, USA) and the Academy of Finland.
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
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JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South African scientists will meet on Thursday to discuss a laboratory study that suggests the dominant local coronavirus variant may reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer vaccine by two-thirds, the health ministry said.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine late on Wednesday, includes additional data to one released in a pre-print review published in late January.

South Africa plans to start rolling out the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine in the coming months, after on Wednesday launching its vaccination programme with Johnson & Johnson's shot in a research study targeting healthcare workers.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said on Wednesday that the country was expecting 500,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine initially and about 7 million doses by June.

"I do know that our scientists will be meeting to discuss it (the Pfizer study) and they will advise the minister," health ministry spokesman Popo Maja told Reuters. "We are not going to be releasing a statement until advised by our scientists. We will also be guided by the regulator SAHPRA."

"The Pfizer application is currently under review and SAHPRA cannot comment at this stage," said spokesman Yuven Gounden, when asked whether the regulator would take the latest study into consideration when assessing Pfizer's application.

(Reporting by Alexander Winning and Wendell Roelf; Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo)

Level 5 restrictions may remain in place until May under new plans for living with the virus being discussed by the Government.

The Cabinet Committee on Covid-19 agreed to begin a phased reopening of schools on March 1 after the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) advised students can begin returning to classes.

However, all other decisions on restrictions were postponed until a meeting next Monday.

A cautious approach to reopening the country is expected over the coming months as the National Vaccination Programme continues.

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A small amount of construction may be permitted next month but most restrictions will remain in place until the end of April or start of May. Restrictions will be reviewed in early April.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin and his Cabinet ministers were briefed by Nphet and the Health Service Executive (HSE). The warnings from Nphet were described as stark after the meeting.

A phased reopening of primary and secondary schools was discussed by the committee.

Under a proposed plan, junior and senior infant pupils, along with first and second class and Leaving Cert students, would return to classes in the first week of March.

Other national school classes would return in the latter half of the month under the plan which will be discussed by the Cabinet Committee on Covid-19 on Monday.

The proposed plan, which is dependent on the spread of the virus and teacher union support, would also see fifth-year students return to class in mid-March.

Each step of the reopening of schools will be reviewed to assess the impact on the spread of the virus in the community.

Meanwhile, in Northern Ireland the public was warned against making plans for Easter as Northern Irelands lockdown is to remain in place for another six weeks.

Last night, the Executive announced details of a number of relaxations to the lockdown from March 8, but the majority of measures will remain in place until at least April 1.

It came as it emerged the R number in Northern Ireland is now between 0.7 and 0.8.

First Minister Arlene Foster has revealed that the youngest children will be able to return to school in just over two weeks time.

However, Ms Foster warned that the return of pre-school, nursery and primary 1 to 3 pupils from March 8 will result in the R number beginning to climb again.

The respite for parents and children will only be temporary, however, as they will revert to remote learning again on March 22 to allow students in years 12 to 14 to go back to school until the Easter holidays.

Also from March 8, limited click-and-collect services for goods now regarded as essential, such as footwear and baby clothing, will resume, while the number of people allowed to meet outdoors will rise to 10.

The Executive met yesterday afternoon to discuss the current lockdown, which has been in place in Northern Ireland since December 26.
More than 40 Legislators have signed a letter to Gov. Charlie Baker expressing their concerns about halting COVID-19 vaccines to local boards of health, a decision that will seriously jeopardize the ability of our seniors to receive their COVID-19 vaccinations, the letter states.

Our seniors should not be expected to arrange this type of lengthy transportation, away from the safety of their community, in the middle of a deadly pandemic, the letter states.

State representatives and senators, including Adam Gomez, Brian W. Murray, James B. Eldridge, Susan L. Moran, Mike Connolly, and others signed the letter.

On Wednesday, Baker and Secretary of Health and Human Services Marylou Sudders, announced most local boards of health would no longer be receiving the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, as they had been previously getting. The local communities would, however, be able to administer the second doses to people who had already received their first vaccine.

Instead, the state identified 20 municipalities that would continue through this method, including those that have had the greatest COVID burden and have the greatest percentage of non- white residents. These municipalities are: Boston; Brockton; Chelsea; Everett; Fall River; Fitchburg; Framingham; Haverhill; Holyoke; Lawrence; Leominster; Lowell; Lynn; Malden; Methuen; New Bedford; Randolph; Revere; Springfield; and Worcester.

The announcement came as a surprise to many.

MassLive had reached out to multiple local boards of health earlier this week, many of which said they had been receiving the vaccine and had no plans on changing.

Palmer had actually been hoping to increase the amount of vaccines they were distributing.

We have been consistently receiving 100 doses of Moderna per week since the beginning of February. As a regional site serving 7 communities, it is our hope that we will start receiving more than 100 doses total per week at the Palmer site, said Chrissy Florence, Palmer health inspector. We have the capability to vaccinate between 1,200 and 2,500 people per week.

Chris Schultz, chair for the Arlington Board of Health, said theyve been trying to get in contact with the Department of Health to see what was happening but werent having any luck.

Its been daily, making phone calls, reaching out trying to find out whats going on, Schultz said.

About an hour before the announcement by Baker and Sudders, Schultz received a letter saying theyd no longer be getting the vaccine.

He and others from the Arlington Board of Health wrote their own letter to Baker, asking him to remove the red tape.

There are approximately 17,000 citizens relying on you to return their healthcare to the capable hands of vetted and experienced Arlington EDS, which stands ready for able, the letter states.

Kevin Nord, chief of department for the Duxbury Fire Department, said they were also surprised but knew something might be up.

It kind of caught us off guard, he said. We had been denied, prior to that letter, three weeks in a row. So, obviously, we were frustrated with what was going on. And I feel that DPH has been less than upfront about its future plans and even its existing plans have been changed week to week.

Some places, like Duxbury, said they had previously been seeing fewer vaccines than requested.

We did get less than anticipated but we are working with the allotment that we have, Jennifer Hoffman, health director for Greenfield, said prior to the announcement.

For a process that has already been difficult to many seniors in Massachusetts, some are worried this will only make things worse.

On Thursday, those 65 years or older and those with two or more underlying health conditions were allowed to start making COVID vaccine appointments. Although, many were unable to book the appointment as the states website crashed.

These mass vaccination sites are inequitable for seniors, who have confronted obstacles in every step of the process, the letter states. Firstly, the appointment process for our seniors has been difficult. The state process has been substantially improved; however, many seniors prefer to schedule their vaccine appointments through local resources, with whom they have existing relationships.

Both Nord and Schultz say thats true for many in their communities.

We know who these people are. They know us, were able to get them in comfortably and take care of them and we even had plans in place to bring vaccinations to shut-ins, Schultz said, adding that the larger vaccination sites and the pharmacies are important but it really shouldnt be at the expense of local boards who are able to do this more effectively and know their patients.

For some in their communities, they dont feel comfortable leaving their areas or sometimes their own homes, which is a barrier to getting the vaccine if its only offered at larger locations.

Theres people that physically cant get to the vaccine, and theres people that psychologically cant get to the vaccine, Nord said.

But when local communities are involved, those problems can be solved.

Some of the larger sites also have had long lines, leaving people waiting out in the cold, or other issues.

Schultz said their system has worked.

Nobody was waiting outside in the cold, he said. It worked flawlessly.

He credits it working to the fact that many in the community have been training for this for years, long before the pandemic.

One of the frustrating things for our first responders in our health department is this is something that they have been training for four years, he said, referring to the Emergency Dispensing Sites (EDS) Planning, which is certified by the state.

Hes not sure why thats not being utilized now.

I remember back in March, when the pandemic first started, we were talking about how we would do mass inoculations for the whole town, and the expectation was from day one that it would be done at the local level, he said.

Nord said some of his volunteers have been training for 20 years for something like this.

Its those volunteers that over the last 20 years have gone to meetings, taking training sessions, understood the policies and the procedures, Nord said, Pharmacists, physicians, medical secretaries, [training] for this very thing to occur, and yet, its just all been thrown to the side of the road.

This change, he said, is a real slap in the face to the volunteers.

A personal slap in the face that, Oh you dont believe in us after you stood this up and spent all these hundreds of 1,000s of dollars and consulting with people to help write the plans and to invest in these people, he said. And for not.

Now they have to reverse their efforts and try to explain that to residents.

We were letting them on to believe that were working through this process and were meeting the requirements that DPH is setting forward, Nord said.

Its counterproductive the letter states.

Each time local officials adjust to changes in the vaccine rollout, another change is handed down. These abrupt actions are counterproductive, the letter states. Instead of halting the ability of our communities to vaccinate their most vulnerable populations, we should prioritize the local infrastructure.

Its also confusing to residents.

One high school was listed as a super vaccination site, but its not, Schultz said.

Were set up to do that, he said. [But] we received no doses, so its not open and taking appointments right now because theres nothing we can do.

People dont understand and then they think its us, he added. Its very difficult when we dont have answers.

The letter asks that the state reconsider the decision to limit the capabilities of these local operations. Nord said theyll be ready when they do.

We stand ready if and when the state does deem capable of giving smaller packages of doses to smaller communities, he said.

The full list of legislators who signed the letter include:

State Representatives: Adam J. Scanlon | 14th Bristol, Tami L. Gouveia, DrPH | 14th Middlesex, Jessica A. Giannino | 16th Suffolk, Steven G. Xiarhos | 5th Barnstable, Timothy R, Whelan | 1st Barnstable, Tram T. Nguyen | 18th Essex, Carol A. Doherty | 3rd Bristol, David F. DeCoste | 5th Plymouth, Jack Patrick Lewis | 7th Middlesex, Steven C. Owens | 29th Middlesex, Lindsay N. Sabadosa | 1st Hampshire, Mike Connolly | 26th Middlesex, Brian W. Murray | 10th Worcester, David H.A. LeBoeuf | 17th Worcester, Vanna Howard | 17th Middlesex, Maria Duaime Robinson | 6th Middlesex, Alyson M. Sullivan | 7th Plymouth, James K. Hawkins | 2nd Bristol, John H. Rogers | 12th Norfolk, Nika C. Elugardo | 15th Suffolk, Christina A. Minicucci | 14th Essex, Mindy Domb | 3rd Hampshire, Patrick Joseph Kearney | 4th Plymouth, Steven Ultrino | 33rd Middlesex, Erika Uyterhoeven | 27th Middlesex, Lori A. Ehrlich | 8th Essex, Sally P. Kerans | 13th Essex, Marcos A. Devers | 16th Essex, Brandy Fluker Oakley | 12th Suffolk, Patricia A. Duffy | 5th Hampden, Carmine Lawrence Gentile | 13th Middlesex.

State Senators: Michael O. Moore | 2nd Worcester, Michael J. Barrett | 3rd Middlesex, Michael D. Brady | 2nd Plymouth & Bristol, Patrick M. OConnor | Plymouth & Norfolk, Michael F. Rush | Norfolk & Suffolk, Diana DiZoglio | 1st Essex, Mark C. Montigny | 2nd Bristol & Plymouth, Adam Gomez | Hampden, James B. Eldridge | Middlesex & Worcester, Rebecca L. Rausch | Norfolk, Bristol & Middlesex. Susan L. Moran | Plymouth & Barnstable

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A charge filed with the National Labor Relations Board alleges that Amazon attempted to intimidate workers in Bessemer with anti-union messages related to the ongoing union vote.

Law360 is reporting that an unnamed person made the charge last week before the NLRB, which mentions a website the company created in connection with the union vote.

Balloting began last week for a mail-in vote among more than 5,000 Amazon workers at the companys fulfillment center in Bessemer. The votes will be counted in late March. If approved, the workers would be represented by the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union (RWDSU).

Here is full coverage of the Alabama Amazon unionization effort

The NLRB site says a complaint was filed Feb. 12 against the company, alleging coercive statements by Amazon. According to the Law360 report, the person filing the charge accused Amazon of interfering with and attempting to restrain and coerce employees away from exercising their right to self-organization.

The charges mentioned doitwithoutdues.com, a website with a message that union members will be on the hook for monthly dues, and at the mercy of a union that could vote to strike, endangering their jobs and benefits.

Dues mean donts! it states. Dont buy that dinner, dont buy those school supplies, dont buy those gifts because you wont have that almost $500 you paid in dues. WHY NOT save the money and get the books, gifts & things you want? DO IT without dues! An Amazon spokesperson previously referred to the site as educational and helping employees understand the facts of joining a union.

The charge also accuses the company of trying to dominate or interfere with the formation or administration of a union.

A spokeswoman for the RWDSU said the union was not responsible for filing the charge. Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Earlier today, New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a lawsuit against Amazon, alleging that the company has repeatedly and persistently failed to comply with coronavirus pandemic procedures in a Staten Island fulfillment center and a Queens distribution center. The company also fired an employee and disciplined another who complained about the companys response to COVID-19 workplace safety.

RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum tied the lawsuit to the ongoing union effort in Bessemer.

This lawsuit is about Amazons failure to protect its workforce in New York, he said. But the story is the same everywhere Amazon operates  including in Bessemer, Alabama. Amazon needs to do better for all its employees to keep them safe. Its not that Amazon cannot afford to, but that Amazon doesnt want to. Amazon has betrayed its responsibility to its employees to provide a safe workplace; and we must never tolerate that. Amazon needs to change.

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SPRINGFIELD  U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey, already on record opposing construction of a biomass power plant in East Springfield, met Thursday with local officials and neighborhood activists at the Palmer Renewable Energy site on Page Boulevard.

Its time for us just to say no to this biomass plant, Markey said in brief remarks on a side street near the site. Its not just the health of the planet, but the health of the community, these neighborhoods, which is going to be put at risk.

I joined @SenMarkey along with officials and activists from the area in opposition to the proposed biomass facility in Springfield today.



Greater Springfield is the asthma capital of the country and at a greater risk for #COVID19 because of it.



Biomass doesnt belong here. pic.twitter.com/PsKjdYvWFV  Eric Lesser (@EricLesser) February 18, 2021

He said solar and wind power should be at the top of the energy priority list. The co-author of Green New Deal legislation also took a jab at Texas officials blaming green energy for recent outages more clearly traceable to maintenance and regulation deficiencies.

Notwithstanding the fact that Texas doesnt know how to operate its electricity grid, we in Massachusetts and in other places around the world have figured out how to do that, Markey said. You may have seen that Greenland has sent pictures of their wind turbines still working this winter. So its not something that is technologically impossible.

Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey speaks across from the site of a proposed Biomass plant at Page and Cadwell Drive in Springfield on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. (Don Treeger / The Republican)

Markey said wood-burning biomass plants have sold themselves as environmentally friendly recyclers of wood waste.

The reality is that biomass contributes to the dangerous greenhouse gasses that have led to the warming of our planet, said Markey.

Studies also point to particulate matter from biomass plants raising the risk of health difficulties including asthma.

The $150 million, 35-megawatt plant has been on the drawing board  and the subject of staunch local opposition  for 12 years. But the project is back in the news because of two developments at the state level.

State Senator Eric Lesser (right), speaks during a visit by Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey (center in blue jacket) to the proposed Biomass project at Page and Cadwell Drive. Others from left are city councilors Michael Fenton and Tim Allen, State Senator Adam Gomez and councilor Jesse Lederman. (Don Treeger / The Republican) 2/18/2021

The Baker administration has proposed amendments to the states Renewable Portfolio Standard that would make the Springfield plant eligible for $13 million to $15 million a year in green energy incentives.

Another legislative proposal would allow municipal light plants to buy power from the biomass plant and have it count as a renewable power source.

Both those proposals are still pending before Beacon Hill lawmakers.

What it means for activists is that state tax dollars and energy credits would go toward a plant they dont want.

Our own tax dollars are going to something thats killing us, said Zulma Lee Rivera, an activist, in her conversation with Markey.

Palmer Renewable Energy points to a newer study  one also prepared for the state  showing that burning waste wood, cuttings and downed branches destined for landfills has less of an adverse environmental impact than the earlier study said.

The facts, science, and forestry management best practices all recognize the important role that biomass waste wood can play in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and expanding the Commonwealths renewable energy portfolio, Palmer Renewable Energy has said in a statement. These environmental benefits of biomass were reaffirmed earlier this month by an independent third-party study commissioned by (the Department of Energy Resources). In reliance on our validly issued permits, which were obtained after a comprehensive review and approval process, we are now in active construction and look forward to bringing this green energy project to fruition.

Springfield city councilor Jesse Lederman (left) shows Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey the site of a proposed Biomass plant at Page and Cadwell Drive in Springfield on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021. (Don Treeger / The Republican)

Markey and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, both Democrats, sent Republican Gov. Charlie Baker a letter in December asking the state to suspend and reassess the approval it gave the plant.

Thursday, Markey put the biomass issue in the context of his Green New Deal proposal, authored with U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

The point that Alexandria and I are trying to make is that environmental justice is a part of any actions that we are going to take in the United States to fight the climate crisis, he said.

Others in attendance included state Sens. Adam Gomez, D-Springfield, and Eric Lesser, D-Longmeadow, and city council members Michael A. Fenton, Jesse Lederman and Timothy C. Allen.

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This story was originally published by Grist and has been republished here as part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

Our electronic devices take a serious environmental toll, and one of the best ways to mitigate that is to use them for as long as possible before replacing them. Its hard to know how long a new gadget will last if youre unsure how easy it will be to fix, but now, companies are going to have to start coming clean about thatin France, at least.

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In a world-first move last month, France began requiring makers of certain electronic devices, including smartphones and laptops, to tell consumers how repairable their products are. Manufacturers selling these devices in France must give their products a score, or repairability index, based on a range of criteria, including how easy it is to take the product apart and the availability of spare parts and technical documents. While France wont be enforcing use of the index with fines until next year, some companies have already begun releasing scores for their products.

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The cost and complexity of repair means that many consumers dont even try to fix old electronics, instead discarding them for new ones that take additional energy and resources to produce.

The repairability index represents part of Frances effort to combat planned obsolescencethe intentional creation of products with a finite lifespan that need to be replaced frequentlyand transition to a more circular economy where waste is minimized. But it also has global implications. Repair advocates say that the index will serve as a litmus test for other nations weighing similar regulations, help consumers make better choices, and hopefully incentivize companies to manufacture more repairable devices.

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Its a big step in the right direction, said Ugo Vallauri, co-founder of Restart Project, a London-based repair advocacy organization and member of the European Right to Repair campaign.

In recent years, electronics of all shapes and sizes have become more difficult to fix due to a combination of design choices and software locks that often require proprietary manufacturer tools to get past. The cost and complexity of repair means that many consumers dont even try to fix old electronics, instead discarding them for new ones that take additional energy and resources to produce. In 2020, the French government estimates, only 40 percent of broken electronic devices in the country were repaired.

To boost that percentage higher, France passed an anti-waste bill last year mandating that electronics manufacturers make a repairability index visible on their products. The index, which first applies to smartphones, laptops, TVs, washing machines, and lawnmowers, is presented as a score out of 10, with a higher number indicating a more repairable device.

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Manufacturers grade their products using worksheets that integrate five criteria: availability of technical documents to aid in repair, ease of disassembly, availability of spare parts, price of spare parts, and a wild-card category for repair issues specific to that class of products. All of the information that went into calculating the index must also be made available to consumers at the time of purchase.

Eventually, France intends to expand the score to other classes of consumer products. By 2024, the repair index will transition to a durability index that not only tells customers how repairable a product is but also describes its overall robustness.

While the repairability index became an official requirement on Jan. 1, many manufacturers are slow-walking its implementation, according to Vallauri. There wasnt really enough time to enforce it in early 2021, Vallauri said, explaining that some of the scoring criteria were only agreed on toward the end of last year.

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But a trickle of scores is starting to emerge. The French spare parts business Spareka is publishing repairability indexes as it receives them from manufacturers, and so far, its website includes scores for Asko washing machines, Samsung TVs, OnePlus smartphones, and more.

The scoring system has its limitations. Vallauri explained that the indexes were developed through an intensive stakeholder process that involved input from manufacturers as well as consumer advocacy organizations. Ultimately, this led to some compromises. For instance, as Adele Chasson of the French repair advocacy organization Stop Planned Obsolescence noted in a blog post, laptop and smartphone makers can get a free point by providing consumers with information about different types of software updates, such as security updates or system upgradesinformation that may not have anything to do with how fixable the device is.

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Perhaps more concerningly, manufacturers are going to be self-reporting their scores, and it is unclear whether there will be rigorous governmental oversight to ensure all the math is being done correctly.

Certainly we have seen manufacturers abuse this kind of scoring system in the past, said Kyle Wiens, CEO of the repair site iFixit, which helped advise the French government on the development of the index. (In fact, Frances index took inspiration from the repairability scores iFixit has been assigning products for years.) But Wiens also suspects that competition will help keep greenwashing in check: Apple, for instance, could call out Samsung if its competitor comes out with a dubiously high repairability index for a flagship smartphone.

Any time you have something like this, youll see competitors pushing back on each other, Wiens said.

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Repair advocates across Europe are watching the rollout of the French index closely in the hopes that it will soon be spread beyond Frances borders. In November, the European Parliament voted in favor of developing laws that mandate EU-wide repairability labeling. Vallauri said that the EU is still probably a few years away from repairability scores appearing at every shop in every member country, but draft legislation is expected to emerge this year. The fact that France chose to go first with its own score, he said, shows that its possible and represents a good learning opportunity for other countries that can now build on what the French lawmakers created.

The repair community is equally interested in seeing how the French scoring system affects both consumers and manufacturers.

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In September, the French government published the results of a study that looked at how 140,000 online shoppers responded to a beta version of the repairability index that included all of the final criteria except for price of spare parts. It found that customers tended to avoid purchasing laptops with a repair index as opposed to laptops that lacked one. Project manager Laurianne Vagharchakian, a behavioral sciences researcher with the French government, attributes this to the fact that studys average repairability index, at 5.4 out of 10, was probably not very motivating and attractive to potential buyers. Other research suggests that consumers prefer products with labels indicating a longer life span over competing shorter-lived products and that, in some cases, they may be willing to pay much more for the more durable product.

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If repair scores start influencing consumer behavior across France, as these findings suggest they will, manufacturers are likely to feel pressure to make devices easier to fix. Both Vallauri and Wiens highlighted the importance of the French repair scores being mandatory for potentially forcing a sea change in how products are made.

We think that the moment something becomes a requirement, its no longer really a problem for a manufacturer, said Vallauri. They just have to deal with it as one of their variables in bringing a product to the market. So the more some manufacturers choose to make products more repairable, it will motivate others, if nothing else for fear of missing out, to improve their practices.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
South Africa: First Lady calls for child hunger to be addressed

South Africas First Lady, Dr Tshepo Motsepe, has called on the Ministers responsible for food and nutrition security to strengthen food safety nets for children.

Motsepe made the plea on Thursday, when she delivered the opening address at the launch of the 2020 South African Child Gauge, hosted by the University of Cape Towns Childrens Institute.

The First Lady said there is a need to strengthen the food security nets for children, including the National School Nutrition Programme, the Early Child Development subsidy, campaigns for exclusive breastfeeding, programmes of food fortification and food supplementation as well as social protection policies.

And we need these to be effectively implemented and adequately resourced, said Motsepe.

She added that in line with the recommendations of the United Nations and in support of the Department of Healths Nutrition Policy, prioritising children and safeguarding their food and nutrition security was imperative.

This, she said, would ensure the protection of their health, education and wellbeing, more so now given the negative impacts of COVID-19.

The plight of children has remained a passion of Motsepe in her various capacities and years of experience in health and development work.

Long before the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic, we as a country, have been acutely aware that a significant number of South Africans do not have access to sufficient food and go hungry on a daily basis.

The extent of child malnutrition in South Africa has often been documented and it is with distress that we learn of the deteriorating situation, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown restrictions.

She bemoaned the countrys child stunting rates that show South Africa is lagging behind in nurturing children.

Stunting reflects chronic under nutrition and a lack of adequate food to promote optimal growth and development, said Motsepe. Our national demographic health survey confirmed that the proportion of children who are stunted has not changed since 1993.

The negative impact that COVID-19 has had on household earnings and on the prices of basic foods paint a very dim picture regarding any progress to addressing chronic malnutrition of children.

We salute the efforts and initiatives that communities and civil society have embarked on to bring relief to the hungry, she said, adding that while the efforts of organisations and individuals were commendable, much more needed to be done.

We cannot turn our eyes away from images that mirror the gravity of hunger in our society. It is saddening to see people standing in long winding queues for food, as we have seen in media reports, she said.

The National Department of Health Ministerial Committee for the Morbidity and Mortality of Children has found that malnutrition remains a significant underlying cause of child mortality which is linked to one third of all child in-hospital deaths.

Motsepe said while society may be distraught by these hospital-based findings, the larger burden of malnutrition lies in communities and in families, often hidden until later in the life of affected children.

The First Lady said malnutrition casts a long shadow on children and their futures. It robs them of health and wellbeing and condemns them to continued ill-health while undermining their chances to learn, to earn and to escape poverty.

It is a slow violence against our children, and we cannot thrive as a country when our children are shackled to a life of hunger and malnutrition, she said.

She warned that hungry children will go in search of food, leading them onto the streets and unsafe environments.

Children who are hungry cannot concentrate and learn. Children who are hungry become vulnerable to negative elements who will feed and manipulate them, she said.

Addressing hunger and malnutrition is not just a health issue, hunger and malnutrition have negative social and economic impacts. Not enough food in the home has a negative influence on family dynamics and not having enough food as a community leads to instability and violence.

Motshepe urged society to strive to ensure that no child goes to bed hungry.

She congratulated the 2020 Child Gauge Team for its hard work in documenting the plight of childrens food security and nutrition by providing its latest evidence.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Moncks Corner, SC (29461)

Today

Generally sunny. High near 80F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Mainly clear. Low near 55F. Winds light and variable.
Nine families in Sydney's south will be booted out of their homes to make way for a multi-level car park.

Under state laws, the New South Wales government can make compulsory acquisitions of private land for an essential public project - in this case a four-storey commuter car park for the Jannali train station in Sydney's Sutherland Shire.

Many residents affected by the shocking development have lived there for generations and one young man with a disability has only recently finished upgrading his home to make it more accessible.

Locals say Transport NSW made no efforts to consult with them until representatives showed up on their doorstep last week to inform them their homes would soon be demolished.

Sutherland Shire Council Mayor Steve Simpson has labelled the state government's move 'a bastard act'.

Pictured: Nine families in Sydney's south will be booted out of their homes to make way for a multi-level car park

Ishpal, who suffers from cerebral palsy and uses a walking frame to get around, lives on the block in a home that has been specially modified to accommodate his needs.

He recently finished fitting it out with costly ramps, rails and an automatic door after living there for 15 years.

But now Ishpal will be forced to leave the safe environment he's created and the emotion of finding a new place has been overwhelming.

'My ability to access the community will be adversely impacted if I have to move,' he told news.com.

Mayor Simpson blasted Transport NSW for using underhanded tactics to force residents out.

He said the Council were not told homes in the area would be forcibly purchased and that Transport NSW gave residents the impression the acquisition of their homes was a 'done deal'.

An artist's impression of the four-storey car park was posted to the NSW Tranport website

The commuter car park (depicted above) is set to be built for the Jannali train station in Sydney's Sutherland Shire

Pictured: An overview of the entire construction project is depicted on the NSW Transport website

'It comes down to a political decision,' he told The Leader.

'I think it's a bastard act to take people's home like this.'

The rules of compulsory acquisitions give six months for homeowners to negotiate a price before they must move out.

In the meantime, owners and occupiers are appointed a personal manager to support and guide them through the process and Transport NSW must foot resident's legal costs.

Transport minister Andrew Constance on Wednesday refuted the claims Sutherland Council were not consulted on the bid to forcibly acquire the homes in the area.

'I couldn't think of anything worse than having somebody knock on your door and saying 'we need to take your home' but this is the challenge when building this type of infrastructure,' he told reporters on Wednesday.

'Their lives are being turned upside down for the greater good'.

Many residents affected by the shocking development have lived there for generations and one young man with a disability has only recently finished upgrading his home to make it more accessible

Liam Mulhall, who has been living in Jannali for 20 years, said devastated residents had not been made aware of the process and have 'barely slept' since hearing the upsetting news.

'There was no communication, let alone consultation with the residents. It clearly indicates to me what regard they hold the residents in and the human cost in this project,' he told the ABC.

'We had planned and prepared to retire [here] for a long time, it ticks all the boxes of a retirement home.

'We've spent significant time and money improving it to be our retirement home.'

Residents have now set up a Facebook page titled Save our homes - Jannali 2226 to rally support.

The group have also started a petition to have the project overturned.

[February 18, 2021] Earnest Research launches Healthcare dataset with insights into $1 trillion of US claims

NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Earnest Research , the leading data analytics firm for investors, corporations, consulting firms, and government agencies, has launched Earnest Healthcare, a new suite of data products that tracks the U.S. healthcare economy in real time. Earnest Healthcare provides visibility into $1 trillion of de-identified U.S. healthcare claims, capturing 25% of all annual U.S. pharmacy claims and 30% of all U.S. medical claims. Data insights include drug prescriptions, medical procedures, adjudicated pricing, and diagnosis group, with the ability to cohort by particular geographies (region, state, etc.), channel (telehealth, office, etc.), facility type (in/outpatient, ASC, etc.), insurance type (commercial, Medicare, etc.) and more. "In terms of sheer breadth and accuracy, Earnest Healthcare is the first of its kind," said CEO Kevin Carson. "Understanding the healthcare space is essential for investors, management consultants, and government agencies alikeand increasingly so in he age of the coronavirus pandemic."



Earnest Healthcare has launched with an extensive coverage network including 900,000 physicians and 5,500 hospitals. Clients receive daily data with minimal lag, and history dating back to 2012. Earnest Healthcare can help clients answer questions like:

How is COVID affecting healthcare utilization by provider specialty and driving telehealth adoption?

How has the share of immuno-oncology drug therapies shifted across different indications throughout recent periods?

How are knee and hip replacement surgeries performing across various clinical settings? For more information on Earnest Healthcare or to schedule a demo visit: https://www.earnestresearch.com/earnest-healthcare/ About Earnest Research

Founded in 2012, Earnest Research measures the consumer and healthcare economies with real-time data, providing actionable insights for institutional investors, corporations, management consultants, and government agencies. Our structured datasets provide clear, correlated signals, with tools for deep fundamental analytics on Consumer Spend, Foot Traffic, Retail Pricing and Healthcare Claims. Earnest enables companies to deeply understand consumer habits and national health trends. For more information visit earnestresearch.com. For Press Inquiries

Dina Lyon, Director of Marketing - dlyon@earnestresearch.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/earnest-research-launches-healthcare-dataset-with-insights-into-1-trillion-of-us-claims-301231172.html SOURCE Earnest Research

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The short message service Twitter has played a prominent role in US politics in recent weeks and months and attracted a lot of attention. Even in business, Twitter users' tweets are being closely followed and used as a basis for decision-making. A new study shows that venture capitalists can also be influenced by Twitter sentiment when valuing start-up companies from the high-tech sector. "However, the sentiment signals on Twitter say nothing about the long-term investment success of such a start-up. Patent applications, for example, are much better suited for this," said Professor Andranik Tumasjan from Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) in Germany. He conducted the study together with Professor Reiner Braun and Dr. Barbara Stolz from the Technical University of Munich.

Twitter as a globally established information platform in the business and technology sector

The researchers' main question was whether and how strongly venture capitalists may be influenced by media hypes. "Out of all social media platforms, Twitter is the most suitable medium for such a study in the business and technology sector," emphasized Tumasjan. Founded in 2006, the microblogging service is now the world's most important social media platform for the short-term exchange of information on new technologies and trends, such as artificial intelligence and business activities in general. Twitter sentiment could therefore also influence venture capitalists' start-up valuations. "Young start-up companies are particularly difficult to value when they have just been launched, as nothing has yet been produced or sold. This means that there is a huge amount of uncertainty involved when venture capitalists decide whether to invest in tech start-ups," explained Tumasjan.

But can Twitter sentiment actually predict the valuations and long-term success of high-tech start-ups? The research team analyzed over 400,000 English-language tweets about 37 different technologies and more than 4,600 venture capital financing rounds between 2008 and 2017. The tweets were analyzed using VADER, a dictionary specifically designed to measure social media sentiment. "This gives us an objective indicator of Twitter sentiment and how people are talking about a particular technology," said Tumasjan. The study included a total of 4,005 US companies that were on average about five years old. The venture capitalists' start-up valuations were assessed using the so-called pre-money valuation. The long-term success of an investment in a start-up was measured by an initial public offering (IPO) or acquisition of a start-up.

Twitter sentiment is a "weak signal," whereas patents are a "strong signal"

The results show that Twitter sentiment about technology do, in fact, significantly predict the venture capital valuations of young high-tech companies whose business model is based on these technologies. However, Twitter cannot predict long-term investment success as indicated by a start-up's IPO or acquisition. "Twitter sentiment is a comparatively novel signal in venture capital financing, and it is at the same time only a weak signal in comparison to patents," resumed Tumasjan. Patents and patent applications have been shown to be strong signals for years, as they are associated with both the valuation and the long-term investment success.

In summary, from the perspective of start-up founders Twitter hype of a technology or trend may be beneficial to obtain a higher capital valuations. However, Professor Andranik Tumasjan recommends that venture capitalists should not let themselves be distracted by Twitter sentiment and should instead focus on other signals, such as patents. This also applies to experienced venture capitalists: according to the study, they are not immune to Twitter hype either.
FLINT, MI -- The city and social service agencies are working to help relocate residents of Richfield Court Apartments after the city issued a condemnation notice for the complex Wednesday, Feb. 17.

The city said in a news release Wednesday that in addition to the notice of condemnation, the city has filed a motion for a preliminary restraining order in Genesee Circuit Court in order to force owners to allow the city access to the property to ensure the safety and welfare of residents.

Since demolition and condemnation orders were issued for some buildings in the complex in December, conditions have deteriorated rapidly since then in the remaining buildings on the property, the city said in its release, and owners of the property have been reluctant to work with the city of Flint in an effort to safeguard residents living there.

City records show the apartments are owned by Mazel Tov Investment 770 LLC, and state of Michigan records show that corporations resident agent is Hagay Kabiri, the same resident agent for Flint 770 LLC of Miami, Florida, which owns Sunset Village, another Flint apartment complex that the city condemned earlier this month.

The condemnation order comes after city inspectors found water flowing in hallways at Richfield Court because of broken pipes and basements flooded with both water and sewage, the citys news release says.

Together, we are working with our community partners to assist these families that find themselves in this unfortunate situation through no fault of their own, Mayor Sheldon Neeley said in a statement released by the city. We are aggressively pursuing any and every legal option against the property owners. These bad actors have been an issue for years and we will hold them accountable.

The city said its employees and representatives of social service agencies have gone door-to-door at Richfield Court to encourage residents to find emergency shelter alternatives. A mobile service center also is being established at the complex to give residents direct access to services.

Agencies involved in the emergency relocation effort are being led by the United Way of Genesee County and include Catholic Charities of Genesee and Shiawassee Counties, the Flint Housing Commission, Genesee County Youth Corporation Outreach, Genesee Health Systems, Legal Services of Eastern Michigan, the state Department of Health and Human Services, Michigan State Housing Development Authority, and the Shelter of Flint.

MLive-The Flint Journal could not immediately reach a representative of Kabiri for comment on Wednesday.

Read more on MLive:

Flint condemns Sunset Village Apartments after finding residents had no heat or water

Flint council could decide Wednesday if rental inspections return to city

Flint City Council gets lesson on meeting civility but members skeptical it will help
All the talk about unity that accompanied the presidential transition from Donald Trump to Joe Biden has turned off a lot of people on the right, who translate it as those on the left saying go along with what we want.

Just as compromise, an essential ingredient to good government, too often is incorrectly translated as agree to my way.

In his Jan. 24 letter, Peter Swanson, the winner of the January Golden Pen award, offers a better idea: embracing a process to resolve our differences.

Touching on the political divide that is gripping the nation, he noted that unity might not be the right word for what we need in American politics.

A unified opinion of what we want and how to achieve it is as undesirable as it is unfeasible, he wrote. What we do need is a unity in our embrace of a process to resolve differences.

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Mr. Swanson encouraged people to have more respect for our opponents and more respect for facts and truth.

He lamented that truth has been twisted or ignored with political disagreements devolving into each side viewing the other as evil and destructive.

Most of all, he reminds us that a good unified process for solving disagreements would entail willingness for both sides to compromise in the service of making overall progress.

The Golden Pen is awarded monthly. Winners also are invited to an annual luncheon with the newspapers editorial staff.
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TV chef Rachael Ray says shes rebuilding her home in Upstate New York after it burned down to the ground.

ET reports Ray and her husband John Cusimano spoke about the devastating fire in a new video where they revealed a first look at at how theyre rebuilding their Lake Luzerne house.

I heard the fire in the walls. It was blood-curdling, Ray said. So here is our bedroom. This is the wall where I heard the fire climbing through the wall... At least you can see some bones.

...Somehow it was easier to just see it gone, and the hole in the ground thats our cellar is all that remained.

Ray also said on The Rachael Ray Show that she and her husband have been staying in a guest house on the property during the rebuild, which isnt expected to be finished until later this year.

I dont think were going to go back until its like done, done, Ray said Thursday. Were going to stay down here, it was not fun.

The celebrity cooks Warren County home, located near Lake Vanare in the Adirondacks region, was destroyed in August by the blaze that started as a chimney fire. No one was hurt in the fire, which occurred while Ray, Cusimano and their dog Bella were at home.

Ray had been producing live cooking segments for her daytime talk show during the coronavirus pandemic from the home.

Ray, 52, is a Glens Falls, N.Y., native who has hosted the syndicated Rachael show since 2006. Shes also written cookbooks, published the magazine Every Day with Rachael Ray, and hosted television shows like 30 Minute Meals, Rachael Rays Tasty Travels and Rachael Rays Kids Cook-Off.
Petroleum Development Oman has signed a statement of co-operation (SoC) with the International Energy Agency (IEA) to strengthen collaboration between the two parties in the areas of energy transitions and policy dialogues.



The agreement covers oil and gas, water management and technologies, renewable energies, energy efficiencies, hydrogen, emissions intensity, data and statistics, and training.



According to the PDO statement, the agreement will usher in intensified joint efforts across the energy sector to help Oman meet its clean and sustainable ambitions.  TradeArabia News Service
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Apex Group Ltd. (Apex or The Group), a global financial services provider, announced on the 17th February 2021, the final close of the acquisition of GFin Corporate Services Ltd. (GFin) following regulatory approval from the Financial Services Commission.

GFin is a Mauritius based and licensed Management Company, providing fund administration services to institutional clients. Its integration into the Group enhances Apexs long-established presence in Mauritius, supporting the provision of an extensive range of locally delivered fund administration and corporate solutions to clients.

Founded in 2006, Apex Mauritius provides an efficient and flexible approach to fund services, tailoring its support to meet the specific requirements of over 200 clients in the jurisdiction. Apex Mauritius currently administers 15% of all new funds in the jurisdiction. Through this acquisition, GFins clients will now benefit from the Apexs international footprint; accessing new markets through the Groups globally connected operating model across 45 offices, supported by 4,000 employees.

Since launch in 2010, GFin has demonstrated a robust business model, driving strong organic growth, with total aggregate assets under administration of $18 billion. The acquisition of the GFin business, which will now operate under the Apex Group brand, adds an additional 130 qualified professionals with a focus on funds and cross-border investment servicing to the Group.

GFins Co-CEOs and Co-Founders, Tej Gujadhur and Santosh Gujadhur, will now take on leadership roles within Apex Group in Mauritius, ensuring continuity of relationships for clients.

Peter Hughes, Founder and CEO of Apex Group comments:

Mauritius is a growing hub for financial services in the region, and continues to attract investors looking to access both Asian and African markets. With this acquisition, Apex is well positioned as the leading fund administrator in Mauritius to ensure that we deliver outstanding services and products which meet the requirements of each individual client.

Chandra K. Gujadhur, Chairman and Co-Founder, Mauritius at Apex Group notes:

We are pleased to announce the completion of this acquisition, a significant deal which complements Apexs established presence in Mauritius. The management team of GFin share our commitment to providing a responsive, dynamic and solution-oriented service which, coupled with Apexs global operating model, will ensure the highest levels of client service. Welcome to all our new colleagues, and look forward to working closely with Tej and Santosh as they join our existing leadership team.

Tej Gujadhur and Santosh Gujadhur, Co-CEOs and Co-Founders of GFin add:

We are excited for this transformative stage as GFin becomes part of the Apex Group. Our clients will benefit hugely from Apexs global scale with services and products underpinned by best in class technology platforms. This transaction will enable us to better serve our new and existing clients by drawing on Apexs global network, density of product and innovative solutions. In our new roles, working with the existing senior management team of Apex Mauritius, we excited for the future opportunities as the leading fund administrator in the region.

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ALBANY  The freak cold and snow that hit Texas in recent days has made headlines and New Yorkers may be enjoying a bit of schadenfreude, or frosty glee at the sight of the nations proud and occasionally boastful energy capital in the Sun Belt shivering in the dark.

But the event raises important questions close to home, including whether such a mass failure of the states power grid could happen in New York.

Thankfully, experts say that is unlikely for a number of reasons. But that doesnt mean Empire State residents dont have other threats to worry about.

Weather: More snow expected in the Capital Region on Thursday and Friday

Basically, Texas heavy reliance on a few sources of power, a Wild West approach to regulation, and historic trends suggest that New Yorkers would be unlikely to see the kind of power failures that have hit the Lone Star State in recent days.

Here, however, there is an ever-present risk from vulnerable power lines leading to outages like last Octobers post-derecho mess, Superstorm Sandy or what occurred more than two decades ago in Canada.

This month, several factors in Texas have conspired to create a perfect storm.

Related: New Yorkers give Texans advice on how to survive cold

One is the Lone Star States go-it-alone approach to running its power grid, the interconnected web of power lines that move electricity from generating plants to homes and businesses.

Texas essentially has its own power grid as opposed to all the other Lower 48 states in the nation, which are part of two vast grids  the federally overseen Eastern and Western Interconnections.

Regionally, there also are system operators such as New York's Independent System Operator, which helps ensure the free flow of electricity across the state and from other states when needed. New England has its own system operator as do Atlantic seaboard and Midwestern states and Canadian provinces.

If one state has a shortfall, electricity can easily be moved from one of these states to another. Its much harder in Texas, which has its own system, known as the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. It evolved on its own for a number of historical reasons and in part to avoid too much federal regulation.

But its made it harder for Texas utilities, for instance, to get power from Louisiana or Oklahoma, than it is for New York to get electricity from New England or Quebec when needed.

Consider the following: Neighboring Oklahoma was also hit with record cold and snow but they didnt have the mass outages Texas did since they could easily get power from other states, said Nick Bassill, a meteorologist and director of research and development at the University at Albanys Center Of Excellence in Weather and Climate Analytics.

Its about the ability to route the power, added Luigi Vanfretti, a professor of electrical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Texas power plants, say those in the industry, also operate with looser regulations compared to New York, particularly when it comes to the Empire States stringent rules about having certain levels of capacity and spare fuel. Power plants in New York have to demonstrate a certain maximum capacity, or the amount of power they can produce running at full steam, even though they may only rarely have to do so. These requirements are enforced through credits that can be sold in a capacity market, which Texas doesnt have.

Theres more. In New York City, for instance, gas plants, which typically use either gas or oil, must have backup supplies of oil in case there is a gas line disruption or shortage.

Texas is heavily reliant on natural gas, which fuels about 40 percent of the states power production. When gas lines or instruments that controlled them froze, there were problems. The Lone Star State is also the nation's leading source of wind power and some of their non-winterized turbine blades froze up in the cold, snowy weather. There's been a fair amount written about the turbines, but most experts contacted by the Times Union said the stuck turbines were minimal compared to the frozen gas infrastructure. "The gas pipes freezing was key," said Vanfretti.

New York has a well diversified energy supply. Thirty nine percent of New York states power comes from fossil fuels meaning the plants can burn gas or oil (gas has been in favor lately due to low prices). Another 22 percent is hydropower and about 30 percent is nuclear, as of 2019. Wind was 3 percent as of 2019, so if a turbine occasionally malfunctions here, its not much of a problem.

More for you News Was Wednesday's storm a phenomenon called a "derecho?"

The diversity of power sources provides a measure of resiliency, noted Gavin Donohue, president and CEO of the Independent Power Producers of New York, which represents power plant operators. New York has redundancy, he said.

Others stress that redundancy going forward should be in renewables, given the climate havoc that greenhouse gases have caused.

We need to be moving as swiftly as possible to 100% renewable energy, remarked Peter Iwanowicz, executive director of Environmental Advocates NY.

There is also the simple fact that Texas isnt built for blizzards.

The homes as well as gas line infrastructure in Texas arent designed or built for snow and cold, just as New York isn't built for extreme heat.

As temperatures plummeted, Texans turned their electric heaters or gas furnaces to the maximum, putting extra demand on gas lines that would normally feed power plants, leading to rolling blackouts.

When youre plunging down close to zero in northern Texas, suddenly there is a huge demand for heating, said UAlbanys Bassill, meaning that there may not be enough for power plants. Its the worst of both worlds.

If New York faces a threat or challenge it likely lies with the states creaky system of power lines  many of which are above ground and vulnerable to storm damage.

Weve seen this recently with the derecho windstorms that took out power for several days in the Capital Region last fall, and with Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

Moreover, dont forget the massive ice storm that in 1998 left eastern Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and a sliver of northern New York without power for weeks. That wasnt due to problems in power plants or a lack of alternate fuels but was instead the result of miles and miles of downed power lines.



Venfretti believes the outdated transmission system, along with what he said is the primitive 1980s-era hardware used to monitor and control many power line substations, are among the biggest vulnerabilities.



The push for clean renewable energy is driving innovation in power generation but the transmission part of the equation is lagging, said Venfretti. Its like a person buying a shiny new Mercedes to drive down a crumbling pot-holed road.

The last thing people think about is the road they are going to drive their Mercedes on, he said.
The number of Americans applying for new unemployment benefits increased last week as the US job market stalls and 10 million roles remain lost to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Applications rose 13,000 in the week ending February 13 with 861,000 laid-off workers seeking aid, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The increase backpedals on the largely downward trend recorded in recent weeks which sparked hopes of economic recovery and comes despite last week's figures being revised sharply upward.

Claims in the week ending February 6 were revised up by 55,000 from 793,000 to 848,000.

This puts the four-week moving average at 833,000 claims - still markedly higher than pre-pandemic levels.

Before the virus erupted in the United States last March, weekly applications for unemployment benefits had never topped 700,000, even during the Great Recession of 2008 and 2009.

The number of Americans applying for new unemployment benefits increased last week as the US job market stalls and 10 million roles remain lost to the COVID-19 pandemic

The job market has stalled, with employers having added a mere 49,000 jobs in January after cutting workers in December.

Despite a steady drop in the number of COVID-19 infections, nearly 10 million jobs still remain lost to the pandemic.

Though the unemployment rate fell last month from 6.7 percent to 6.3 percent, it did so in part because some people stopped looking for jobs and people who aren't actively seeking work aren't counted as unemployed.

The US is now just one month away from the year's anniversary of when new unemployment claims first skyrocketed amid the pandemic.

In the week ending March 21, claims surged a staggering 3.3 million in a single week when businesses shuttered, stay-at-home orders were issued and millions found themselves out of work overnight.

One year on and many continue to be out of work.

However there are some concerns that fraudulent claims may be elevating the totals.

Last week, Ohio reported a huge increase in applications and said it had set aside about half the increase for additional review out of concern over fraud.

Thursday's report showed that a total of 18.3 million people were receiving unemployment aid as of January 30, down from 19.7 million the previous week.

The US is now just one month away from the year's anniversary of when new unemployment claims first skyrocketed amid the pandemic. Pictured people line up for food stamps in New York back in May 2020

About three-quarters of those recipients are receiving checks from federal programs, including two extended benefit programs that provide jobless aid beyond the 26 weeks given by most states.

That trend suggests that a sizable proportion of the unemployed have now been out of work for more than six months, reflecting a bleak job market for many.

Two federal unemployment aid programs - one that provides up to an extra 24 weeks of support and another that covers self-employed and gig workers - were extended until March 14 by a $900 billion rescue package that was enacted late last year.

President Joe Biden is proposing to extend both programs through August as part of his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package now before Congress.

The legislation would also provide an additional $400 a week in federal jobless aid, on top of state benefits.

That money would replace a $300-a-week benefit that was included in the relief package approved last year.

Some industry data also suggests that hiring remains sluggish.

A Now Hiring sign hangs on the front wall of a Harbor Freight Tools store in Manchester, New Hampshire. US employers cut back sharply on hiring in December, particularly in pandemic-hit industries such as restaurants and hotels

UKG, a company that provides time management software, estimates that among its mostly small-business clients, the number of shifts worked nationally has risen just 0.2 percent in the past month.

Still, the economy has shown signs of picking up as states and cities have eased some business restrictions and the most recent round of $600 stimulus checks have made their way into Americans' bank accounts.

Sales at retail stores and restaurants soared in January, jumping 5.3 percent from December, the government said Wednesday.

Furniture and electronic and appliance stores recorded some of the strongest increases, likely a result of last year's healthy gain in home sales.

Factory output also rose last month, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday, its fourth straight increase, led by greater production of steel and other metals.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The local media houses ran a press release captioned Prime Minister Silveria E. Jacobs meets with CCSU membership. Where the presence of the representatives of the various Unions that form part of the Committee for Civil Servant Union (CCSU) was detailed.

Prime Minister Jacobs, who in that setting is referred to as Minister of General Affairs as in that role she attends to the affairs of the Civil Servants where it pertains to their legal status as employees of the Government.

We the Unions find it very disheartening that after a year of explaining to the Prime Minister the difference between a meeting with the Committee for Civil Servant Union (CCSU) and the Unions is not the same. In meeting with the unions, the interest of ALL workers is represented.

These Unions are separate entities with operating boards that represent workers from varying parts of the community. When necessary they come together as a collective body of unions under the umbrella of the Windward Islands Chamber of Labour Unions. (WICLU)

It is constantly being reported that the Prime Minister met with the Unions when the Prime Minister met with the CCSU. The role of the CCSU which is known as a committee governed by law is where discussions should take place when changes to the working conditions of the civil servant are to be discussed. When Laws that will affect the civil servant are proposed to be implemented, where it pertains to civil servants remuneration, changes to the remuneration, or anything that would influence their working conditions. Note must be taken that this committee only represents Civil Servants and not the private sector.

The Windward Island Chamber of Labour Unions has requested numerous meetings with the Prime Minister, to date the Unions have not been successful in having this request honored.

The first step, before any negotiations can take place in the CCSU or any unilateral decision is made such as the changing or implementing of any law, should be a dialogue with the Unions as these are the entities that represent all the workers that are 99% of the time affected by these changes. The membership of the CCSU are members placed there by the union to represent the civil servants on behalf of the union.

In our opinion, the organization previously referred to as the GOA (Georganiseerde Organisatie Ambtenaren zaken) which was changed as explained by the personnel department, to the English translation Committee of Civil Servants Union (CCSU) this is what has confused the whole situation because the Ministers feels that the CCSU are the people representatives instead of the Unions. However, the Prime Minister in her many elucidations on the floor of parliament stressed the independence of the CCSU thus it is very confusing for the Unions to understand how the Prime Minister cannot distinguish between the two. The workers cannot complain to the CCSU as they are not paying any dues to the CCSU, they complain and hold the Unions who they are paying dues to accountable.

The Unions is kindly requesting the Honourable Prime Minister to please stop the erroneous announcement in Parliament, and the various media including Social Media that she met with the various Unions or that the Unions refused to meet with her.

We the Unions are kindly requesting the Chairperson of the CCSU to inform the Minister of General Affairs that in the setting of the CCSU she is not meeting with the unions but with a committee that looks out for the well-being of the Civil Servants based on the Law that is found in Chapter X of the Landsverordening Materieel Ambtenarenrecht.
Libyans marked 10 years Wednesday since the start of the uprising that toppled longtime ruler Moamer Kadhafi, ending a long-lived dictatorship but throwing the country into a decade of violent lawlessness.



In western Libya, festive crowds gathered in public squares to watch anniversary fireworks, military parades and speeches.



In the east, ruled by a rival authority bitterly opposed to the armed groups dominating the west, the mood was more somber.



Residents of Zawiya, near the capital Tripoli in the west, marched on the city center where dozens of rebel fighters were executed in 2011 after being surrounded by Kadhafi's forces.



Flags hung from buildings still bearing the scars of mortar and small arms fire.



Those marks "will stay, so we don't forget what happened here," said Mofida Al-Romeih, who lost two brothers and a cousin in the massacre.



The commemorations came as the UN steps up efforts for a peaceful resolution to the bitter conflict that has divided the country since Kadhafi's ouster and killing in the NATO-backed uprising.



UN envoy Jan Kubis met Libyan leaders Tuesday on his first visit to the North African nation since taking up the post.



He stressed the importance of consolidating a fragile October ceasefire between the country's warring alliances in the east and west, a U.N. statement said.



He also called for a "smooth transition of power" following talks in Switzerland which resulted in the formation of a new, unified interim executive authority earlier this month.



U.N. chief Antonio Guterres, in phone calls with Libya's newly appointed leaders Tuesday, called for all foreign troops and mercenaries to leave, his spokesman said.



Turkey, Russia and the United Arab Emirates are all backing parties to Libya's conflict with manpower and arms, exacerbating the country's divisions in the wake of Kadhafi's demise.



While the streets of western Libyan cities were decked out with lights and banners, commemorations were low-key in the east, where an administration backed by military strongman Khalifa Haftar holds sway.



Even in the region's main city Benghazi  where the revolution began 10 years ago  no official events were planned despite authorities declaring Wednesday a national holiday.



"Going out to celebrate... would be mad because the revolution has been a catastrophe that has wrecked years of stability," said Khamis al-Sahati, an eastern-based activist.



'Mad' to celebrate



It was the defeat of a drive on Tripoli by Haftar's forces in June last year that led to the progress in UN-backed talks on a settlement.



Meanwhile much of Libya remains in the hands of a mosaic of neighbourhood militias born out of the rebel groups that toppled Kadhafi.



Some stand accused of war crimes that have gone unpunished because of the militias' importance to the rival alliances in power in Tripoli and Benghazi.



"Justice has yet to be delivered to victims of war crimes and serious human rights violations including unlawful killings, enforced disappearances, torture, forced displacement and abductions committed by militias and armed groups," human rights group Amnesty International said in a statement.



On the international level, many of the foreign forces whose intervention helped fuel the conflict of recent years remain in Libya.



During the battle for Tripoli in 2019-2020, Haftar received military support from Russia, the UAE and Egypt, while the rival Government of National Accord received crucial backing from Turkey.



"The secretary general stressed the UN's support to Libya's elections, the monitoring of the ceasefire and the need for withdrawal of foreign forces," U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.



In December, there were around 20,000 foreign troops and mercenaries deployed inside Libya, according to the U.N.



Asked if the world body had noticed any start of a withdrawal of foreign forces, Dujarric said the UN was not aware of any pullout.



"We want that to happen, obviously as soon as possible," he said.
Kathmandu, February 18

The number of online media registered in the country has increased lately. As of now, 2,325 online news portals have been registered in the country.

According to the Department of Information and Broadcasting, 478 new online media have been registered in the country so far in the fiscal year 2020/21 that began mid-July 2020.

In the previous fiscal year, a total of 550 online media were registered and 17 were re-registered. Likewise, 272 got renewed.

The President of the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ), Govinda Acharya, says the online portals have emerged as a mainstream media, hence they should pay attention towards maintaining trust and credibility.

The quality of some online media is still under question. Some online journalists are found publishing and disseminating news against the code of ethics, he says, It has to be well-regulated with the compliance of ethics.

Likewise, 7,807 print media including dailies, weeklies, fortnightlies, monthlies/bi-monthlies, quarterlies, half-yearly and yearly magazines have been so far registered.

Total 1,127 FM radios and 202 television channels have obtained operational licences.

[February 18, 2021] CGI and OP Financial Group Expand Partnership to Include Digital Services for Insurance

Stock Market Symbols

GIB.A (TSX)

GIB (NYSE)

cgi.com/newsroom HELSINKI, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - CGI (NYSE: GIB) (TSX: GIB.A) and OP Financial Group have signed an agreement that deepens their long-term application development and management partnership, dating back to 2013. CGI will be responsible for developing and delivering digital services for OP Financial Group's insurance operations. "High-quality and reliable technology services are crucial for delivering an excellent customer and employee experience," says Juho Malmberg, Executive Vice President, Development & Technologies for OP Financial Group. "CGI has proven to be an IT partner that understands our digital business needs and is able to meet them." Since 2013, the partnership between CGI and OP Financial Group has grown to include more than 600 CGI professionals working for OP Financial Group. More than 300 of these professionals work in close proximity with their OP counterparts in Finland, with the remaining supporting from CGI's global delivery centers. "OP Financial Group is a global pioneer in the effective implementation of digital technologies and agile delivery methods in service of their customers," said Leena-Mari Lahteenmaa, President of CGI's operations in Finland, Poland and the Baltics. "We value the opportunity to expand our collaboration with the company, with the aim to advance its digitization, business agility, and overall operational performance. The deepening of our partnership demonstrates the quality of our services and the strength of our delivery model."



"In addition to enhancing the customer and employee experience, our key goals in working with CGI are to drive value creation and cost-efficiency in the delivery of IT services," added Juho Malmberg. "This agreement will enable us to achieve all of our goals by making better use of CGI's capabilities in innovative areas such as automation and advanced analytics." About OP

OP Financial Group is Finland's largest financial services group, with two million owner-customers and more than 12,000 employees. We provide a comprehensive range of banking and insurance services for private and corporate customers. OP Financial Group consists of OP cooperative banks, its central cooperative OP Cooperative, and the latter's subsidiaries and affiliates. Our mission is to promote the sustainable prosperity, security and wellbeing of our owner-customers and operating region. www.op.fi

About CGI

Founded in 1976, CGI is among the largest independent IT and business consulting services firms in the world. With 76,000 consultants and other professionals across the globe, CGI delivers an end-to-end portfolio of capabilities, from strategic IT and business consulting to systems integration, managed IT and business process services and intellectual property solutions. CGI works with clients through a local relationship model complemented by a global delivery network that helps clients digitally transform their organizations and accelerate results. CGI Fiscal 2020 reported revenue is C$12.16 billion and CGI shares are listed on the TSX (GIB.A) and the NYSE (GIB). Learn more at cgi.com. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cgi-and-op-financial-group-expand-partnership-to-include-digital-services-for-insurance-301230590.html SOURCE CGI Inc.

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WASHINGTON  Its time for the United States to be crystal clear it will not allow China to invade Taiwan and will end its longstanding strategic ambiguity about whether it would come to the islands defense, said Sen. Tom Cotton, a senior Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Speaking at a Reagan Institute event to unveil his economic strategy against China, Cotton said Thursday that the U.S. should respond to what he called Chinas sharpening rhetoric and actions toward Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory. Last month, the U.S. reaffirmed its support for Taiwan after China dispatched a dozen warplanes near the island.

The United States needs to be clear that we will not allow China to invade Taiwan and subjugate it. Case closed. No further debate, said Cotton, the ranking member of the AirLand Subcommittee and former chairman of the Economic Policy Subcommittee.

I think the time has come to be clear: Replace strategic ambiguity with strategic clarity that the United States will come to the aid of Taiwan if China was to forcefully invade Taiwan or otherwise change the status quo across the [Taiwan] Strait, he added.

The U.S. should establish further clear red lines that will require a response by the United States, such as if China seizes any of the islands claimed by Taiwan or Japan, invades regional allies like India or permits an attack on American troops or allies by North Korea.

Pentagon rethinking how to array forces to focus on China

Cottons remarks came as he unveiled a report titled Beat China, which included calls for military and diplomatic strength but focused almost entirely on a targeted decoupling of the U.S. and Chinese economies  with several steps to mitigate any resulting economic losses.

That report came a day after the U.S. Chamber of Commerce released its own report saying American companies would lose hundreds of billions of dollars if they slashed investment in China.

Story continues

Now is the time for action, Cotton said. Any serious strategy to beat China must start with a commitment to decouple our countries and key areas in order to exploit the leverage we still have over China, and minimize this leverage over us, as we pull apart.

The viewpoints highlight the challenges President Joe Biden faces as he forms his policies toward China, which Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has described as the top threat to Americas military supremacy. (The Pentagon in recent days launched a new task force on China.)

CNBC reported that Biden will soon announce a review of key U.S. supply chains including semiconductors, high-capacity batteries, medical supplies and rare earth materials. The order is not expected to mention China, but the effort aims to determine Americas economic and military reliance on a critical group of Chinese exports.

China is reportedly eyeing limits on exports of rare earth materials that are critical to manufacturing the F-35 fighter jet and other advanced weapons. Cotton acknowledged those reports and decried various policies that have bolstered Chinas leverage.

China has a virtual monopoly on rare earth mining and processing, Cotton said. That means Beijing can ground our most advanced jets at almost any time just by cutting off access to new key inputs. Its sad that a great nation would ever find itself in such a position. We cant allow it to continue.

Pentagon awards $30 million contract to boost processing of rare earth elements

Cotton called for diversifying foreign sources of rare earths to reduce U.S. reliance on China, building up domestic rare earth production and establishing a national strategic stockpile of rare-earth inputs large enough to sustain the military and economy for as long as it would take to reach full wartime production.

The reports release highlights Cottons emergence as perhaps the GOPs fiercest China hawk. Politico reports the Arkansas senators stance toward Beijing has raised his profile in a field of ambitious Republican senators and governors who are beginning to maneuver for 2024.

Among Cottons other recommendations, the defense secretary could be made deputy chairman of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States as a means to elevate national security concerns in decisions to allow foreign money into American companies.

Cotton would also cut off China from U.S. semiconductor designs and equipment, and he would sanction Chinese firms that steal and benefit from U.S. intellectual property. Reminiscent of President Donald Trumps tough stance toward allies, Cotton said the U.S. must insist allies take similar decoupling measures.

Some countries are harder to bring along than other countries; that was the case in the Cold War as well, Cotton said. But Im firmly convinced after studying this issue carefully that what happened as a matter of policy  deep economic entanglements between the United States, Europe and other countries with China  can be reversed as a matter of policy as well.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott has banned the exports of natural gas until normal power supply is restored, Reuters reports, citing a statement by the governor.

The export ban is in effect until Sunday, with Abbott noting, That will also increase the power thats going to be produced and sent to homes here in Texas.

What social media users are calling the Texas freeze wreaked havoc on the Texas grid and its energy industry as wellheads and production pads have not been insulated against freezing temperatures. As a result, natural gas production has slumped, which led to price spikes topping the ceiling of $9,000 per MWh imposed by the energy regulator of the state.

The Lone Star state produces around 25 percent of the U.S. total. In December, the states share was between 22 and 27.8 billion cu ft daily. Now, this has fallen to between 8 and 10 billion cu ft, according to different estimates.

According to industry insiders cited by Natural Gas Intelligence, at least 7 billion cu ft of production capacity had been shut-off by the frigid weather, which caused wellhead freezing, gas processing plant shut-ins, and pipeline outages.

According to Refinitiv data from Reuters, the production rate this week fell from 7.9 billion cu ft before the freeze to 1.9 billion cu ft now.

Texas exports a lot of its natural gas output to other states and Mexico: as much as 40 percent of Mexicos U.S. gas imports come from Texas. These exports fell, too, this week, from 5.7 billion cu ft to 3.8 billion cu ft.

Because of its reliance on U.S. imports, Mexico, in its northern part, was also hit by the Texas gas production outage this week. Media reports said that on Monday, as many as 4.77 million people in northern Mexico were without power due to the events in Texas.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
PM Modis 'Pariksha Pe Charcha' to be held online: Education Minister

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Feb 18: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's annual interaction with students 'Pariksha Pe Charcha' will be held online in this year in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' said on Thursday.

The interaction with students from classes 9 to 12 ahead of their exams will be held in March, the minister said. "I feel happy to share that the interaction every student was waiting for is back! Get ready to smile your way through exams with PM @narendramodi in #ParikshaPeCharcha2021," he said in a tweet.

PM Modi to address Combined Commanders Conference in March

"In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year the interaction will be conducted online," he said in another tweet.

The registration for the programme will begin from Thursday and conclude on March 14. Students who will get to ask questions will be selected through a competition.

The first edition of the prime minister's interaction programme with school and college students 'Pariksha Pe Charcha 1.0' was held at Talkatora Stadium on February 16, 2018.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 10:29 [IST]
Researchers from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) are releasing recommendations designed to address the under-representation of African Americans in clinical trials for multiple myeloma (MM), a blood cancer that is twice as deadly in this demographic as in whites.

The initiative, publishing today in the AACR journal Blood Cancer Discovery, is a "road map" for designing myeloma clinical trials to eliminate racial bias by including more African American patients, as well as gathering "real-world" data from health records about the effects of drugs in African American patients. Through this joint workshop initiated by the FDA and AACR, a cohort of researchers, physicians, patients, statisticians, the pharmaceutical industry and regulators reviewed existing issues with the goal of improving effectiveness of MM therapies in African Americans.

Multiple myeloma is diagnosed in about 30,000 people in the United States annually, resulting in more than 12,500 deaths. African Americans are more than twice as likely as whites to be diagnosed with myeloma - 15.9 vs 7.5 cases per 100,000 population - and to die from the disease - 5.6 vs 2.4 myeloma deaths per 100,000 for African Americans compared with whites.

Although the disease is not presently curable, an array of new treatments in recent years has generally improved outcomes for myeloma patients. It is concerning, however, that data from large multiple myeloma clinical trials shows a decrease in enrollment of African Americans by 3.5% over a recent 10-year period, and even more critically, most racial and ethnic minority patients participated in trials that did not involve novel agents."There hasn't been as much progress in African Americans as there has been in other groups," says Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's Kenneth C. Anderson, MD, the corresponding author of the study and program director of the Lebow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics and the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center. "The number of African Americans enrolled in clinical trials of novel agents or treatments of multiple myeloma has been tragically low. When they have enrolled, their outcome to treatment with novel therapies has been the same or even better than other patients," he said.

African Americans comprise 20% of people diagnosed with myeloma, but between 2003 and 2017 only 4.5% of patients in new drug and biological license applications for myeloma were African American. This disparity has raised concerns that the findings of therapeutic clinical trials may not be entirely valid for African Americans, due to underlying genetic and biological differences that have been discovered between African American and white myeloma patients.

The new recommendations emerged from a February 2020 workshop in Washington D.C. which was co-chaired by Nicole Gormley, MD and Lola Fashoyin-Aje MD, MPH from the FDA, as well as Anderson, who heads the Regulatory Science and Policy Subcommittee of the AACR. The group recommended a number of changes to the design of clinical trials of drugs for which manufacturers are seeking approval. They included:

Broadening eligibility criteria whenever possible. For example, study criteria that reject patients with conditions like high blood pressure and kidney disease may disproportionately exclude African Americans. Including such patients may allow researchers to collect more data in racial and ethnic subpopulations.

Requiring trial sponsors to complete a diversity study plan that sets targets for enrolling diverse participants.

Appointing a diversity officer to assist with trial design and recruitment. Trial design should encompass disease subtypes and features most commonly seen in African Americans. Patients and patient advocates involved in the workshop strongly supported the recommendation of a diversity officer "to define strategies that support African American participation in clinical trials." The presence of a diversity officer "will hold researchers and industry accountable to conduct more inclusive and patient-centric trials," the recommendations stressed.

Other recommendations concerned gathering clinical trial data in the post-approval period. Studies conducted after the drug has entered clinical use could identify differences among racial and ethnic subpopulations with regard to safety and efficacy.

The recommendations also seek to increase diversity by directing stakeholders to devise strategies to overcome clinical, social, and socioeconomic impediments to trial access.

Anderson emphasized the importance of myeloma patients' participation in the workshop that formulated the recommendations.

"Our patients are truly the inspiration and heroes of this collaborative effort to eliminate the glaring issue of racial disparities in clinical trials," he said. "If we can make clinical trials more inclusive and representative of real-world patients, we may not only enhance participation of African American patients, but also provide a paradigm for new drug development more broadly."

###
ANALYSIS: Achieving this target will be challenging but we should not rule out the possibility following the remarkable February 13 Express Entry draw.

Why Canadas 401,000 immigration target for 2021 is achievable ANALYSIS: Achieving this target will be challenging but we should not rule out the possibility following the remarkable February 13 Express Entry draw.

Why Canadas 401,000 immigration target for 2021 is achievable ANALYSIS: Achieving this target will be challenging but we should not rule out the possibility following the remarkable February 13 Express Entry draw.

Why Canadas 401,000 immigration target for 2021 is achievable ANALYSIS: Achieving this target will be challenging but we should not rule out the possibility following the remarkable February 13 Express Entry draw. Kareem El-Assal Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif

Sans Font Size A

A

Welcoming 401,000 immigrants this year is a steep mountain for the Canadian government to climb, but it can be done.

The Saturday February 13 Express Entry draw, which invited a stunning 27,332 candidates to apply for permanent residence, shows that the government is preparing to climb the mountain.

In the months leading up to the start of the pandemic, Canada was inviting around 3,500 candidates per Express Entry draw with a Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score requirement in the 470 region. Towards the end of 2020, Canada broke the Express Entry draw record by inviting 5,000 candidates, a feat which it achieved four times up until Christmas.

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It then topped that record by nearly six times when it invited 27,332 candidates to apply for permanent residence on Saturday. In addition to the sheer size of the draw, what was also unusual was the fact the draw had the lowest CRS requirement ever (75 points), and occurred on a Saturday. Draws tend to occur on weekdays when government officials and immigration representatives such as lawyers are working and are able to serve their clients. Clients currently have only 90 days to submit their permanent residence application so each day is precious.

Why IRCC held this extraordinary Express Entry draw

Given the draws magnitude, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) felt the need to provide their rationale.

IRCC explained that some 90 per cent of the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates invited were residing in Canada during the pandemic, and hence, they are less likely than those overseas to face coronavirus-related immigration disruptions.

Once a candidate receives an Invitation to Apply (ITA) for permanent residence, they need to take several steps to complete the immigration process, including collecting and submitting documents, obtaining police and health clearances, submitting their biometrics, and of course, travelling to Canada. Prior to the pandemic, even those in Canada needed to flagpole to complete the process (the act of physically crossing the U.S. border, and then doing a U-turn and re-entering Canada to activate their new permanent resident status).

All of this has obviously become more difficult in a world of social distancing, lockdowns, and travel restrictions.

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Minister Mendicino: CEC candidates are ready to build their future in Canada

A key reason this draw makes sense is that plenty of IRCC and Statistics Canada research shows those with Canadian experience integrate very quickly into the labour market, something that is of greater importance during the difficult economic times we currently face.

As Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino noted to CIC News, These aspiring Canadians are already established here, possess valuable skills and are giving back to their communities. They are hard at work in some of the most essential parts of our economy and are ready to build their future in Canada.

The main reason IRCC held this massive draw is they believe they can achieve their Immigration Levels Plan target of 401,000 newcomers in 2021 by focusing on immigration candidates currently in Canada. By inviting 27,332 candidates in February, IRCC can process their permanent residence applications by the end of the year to ensure these candidates complete their landing and are counted towards the levels plan target.

Did you receive an ITA? Get Help Submitting your PR Application.

Why the 401,000 target is achievable

The levels plan calls for about 60 per cent of immigrants to be welcomed under the economic class, about 25 per cent through the family class, and about 15 per cent under the refugee and humanitarian class.

Here is a summary of how it can be done.

The economic class target can be met by predominantly transitioning those in Canada now to permanent residence. It can be supplemented by also welcoming skilled workers currently exempt from the coronavirus travel restrictions. Family class immigrants are exempt from the travel restrictions, and some are currently in Canada waiting for IRCC to process their applications. Just under half of Canadas refugee intake each year is filled by asylum claimants who are in the country. That leaves about 40,000 resettled refugees who Canada may struggle to welcome to the country amid the pandemic. IRCC could choose instead to use the resettled refugee shortfall towards increasing its intake of economic and family class newcomers.

How to achieve Canadas economic class admissions goals in 2021

Under the Immigration Levels Plan, Canada is aiming to welcome 108,500 immigrants through Express Entry this year. It has already issued 37,986 ITAs in 2021 (compared with 10,300 at the same time in 2020). This means that if IRCC is able to issue another 30,000 or so ITAs within the next two months, they should have a strong chance to achieve their Express Entry target by years end. This can be achieved by issuing at least 5,000 ITAs in bi-weekly draws between now and April. Again, Express Entry candidates have 90 days to submit their permanent residence applications and IRCC aims to process the applications within six months.

Beyond hitting its Express Entry target, IRCC will need to pursue additional exceptional measures to fulfil its 401,000 newcomer goal. The levels plan calls for Canada to land 80,800 immigrants through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) this year and another 15,500 through other federal programs such as the Atlantic Immigration Pilot (AIP). Quebec is also looking to welcome around 30,000 economic class immigrants this year.

IRCC could provide the provinces the green light to increase their PNP allocations and invite as many candidates as possible who are currently in Canada through PNP streams that are aligned with Express Entry. In recent days, both Ontario and British Columbia have held larger draws than usual. PNP-aligned Express Entry streams also have a six month processing standard for permanent residence applications which means those who receive invitations now are in good position to complete their landing by years end.

With the exception of the AIP, however, processing for most other economic class programs tends to take over six months and in the case of PNP and Quebec, around two years. Given the travel restrictions, IRCC will need to expedite the processing of non-Express Entry files received from candidates currently in Canada if it is to have a realistic shot of achieving its levels goal for this year.

If their projections suggest that the pool of eligible candidates currently in Canada is too small to reach their immigration targets, IRCC and provinces could agree to relax their eligibility criteria during the pandemic. For example, rather than requiring 12 months of Canadian work experience, as is typically the case, IRCC and the provinces could reduce this to six months (as an example), so that more people have the opportunity to apply for permanent residence and obtain it in 2021.

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Achieving the family and refugee class targets

Canada aims to welcome 103,500 immigrants through the family class this year and another 66,000 for refugee and humanitarian purposes.

Achieving the family class target is made easier by the fact that immediate family are exempt by the travel restrictions. At the same time, IRCC will likely need to expedite spousal applications, which make up the bulk of the family class, as it did at the end of 2020 when it processed up to 6,000 spousal applications per month.

Achieving the refugee and humanitarian target will be difficult in light of the travel restrictions since most under this class are resettled from overseas.

One of the exceptional measures Canada could employ would be to create new economic class pathways for those with Canadian work experience. These pathways would have unique selection criteria that complement existing federal and provincial programs and would enable individuals already in Canada, such as asylum claimants to transition to permanent residence. Canada has already used this unconventional approach during the pandemic, recently launching economic class programs for guardian angels asylum claimants who are working on the front lines in Canadas fight against COVID-19.

Canada will still look to candidates who are overseas

If you are a skilled worker currently overseas, you should not lose sight of the fact that IRCC and the provinces are still processing immigration applications received from abroad, and are also inviting new candidates who are outside of Canada. This is due to the fact that such candidates have the skills and other characteristics Canada seeks in support of its economic and social objectives.

If you are abroad, you should go ahead and submit your immigration application now so you can enter Canada as quickly as possible. IRCC is also likely to resume invitations to candidates overseas without warning, as it did last year, so you do not want to miss out by deciding to delay your application.

In the meantime, the 401,000 target appears daunting, but IRCC has overcome many daunting tasks throughout the departments history. Remember that just a few years ago, IRCC welcomed 25,000 Syrian refugees in just 100 days. Similarly, IRCC can achieve their 401,000 goal if they put their mind to it.

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 CIC News All Rights Reserved. Visit CanadaVisa.com to discover your Canadian immigration options.
Shutdowns and government guidelines have led to closures and reduced capacity that have decimated the restaurant industry. Reports from the Massachusetts Restaurant Association indicate that 20% of the states restaurants have closed for good.

Local restaurants largely figure into the fabric of our communities and their reach supports large parts of the economic stream. While restaurant owners have been creative in how they are maintaining contact with consumers, a consumer and corporate effort aimed at supporting local restaurants is taking hold.

The 413 Takeout pledge is a campaign that organizers say aims to ease the difficult plight of those in the service industry. Supported by Northampton Chamber of Commerces Economic Development Committee and Northampton Cooperative, a division of Greenfield Cooperative Bank, we are hopeful this type of campaign can be replicated in surrounding communities.

The 413 Takeout pledge works like this: Groups of four team up and each order one meal a week for three months. Its that simple. The campaign runs from Feb. 14 to May 14.

This initiative is now only in Northampton, but we hope many more communities and area chambers of commerce will consider adopting it. Amy Cahillane, director of the Downtown Northampton Association hopes there is enough support for these small businesses to survive. Our small business community has always been there for us  providing donations to our PTOs and little league teams  and now they need us to be there for them.

In the early stages of the pandemic, organizations such as the Yee familys Bean Restaurant group stepped up with Peter Pan Bus Lines and other local restaurants to launch, the Stuff the Bus campaign, delivering meals to first responders and hospital workers. At the time, Deborah Bitsoli, president of Mercy Medical Center, said, We have had an outpouring from many local restaurants as well as local business owners with everything from food to surgical masks and other personal protective supplies and I can tell you its heartwarming. The love that people have for Mercy Medical Center means so much to us, she said.

These establishments are part of our community and have proven they will offer support when needed. Now, a year into the pandemic, they need community support. We are hopeful efforts such as the 413 Takeout pledge will provide these small businesses the backing needed to get through the tough winter months and remain in our region for many decades to come.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 15:51:15|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A local minister in India's eastern state of West Bengal was wounded along with some of his supporters in a bomb attack at a railway station, police said Thursday.

According to the local police, the local government minister, Jakir Hossain, was targeted on Wednesday night when he was walking to catch a train at the Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad district, about 270 km north of Kolkata, the capital city of West Bengal.

"Last night some unidentified attackers hurled crude bombs at minister Jakir Hossain at Nimtita railway station. Hossain suffered wounds in his hand and leg," a police official said. "Some of his supporters too were wounded and all of them were taken to the Murshidabad medical college hospital."

Health officials on Thursday said the minister's condition was stable.

The targeted attack has been widely condemned in the state, where the local elections are likely to be held in April and May this year. Enditem
The of the legislature began on a stormy note on Thursday with Opposition raising slogans and then staging a walkout, protesting over the Centre's farm laws.

Governor Anandiben Patel continued with her speech, praising the state government over law and order and coronavirus management.

The Governor's customary address to both Houses of the state legislature started five minutes late, prompting the Opposition to later allege that she did not want to address due to the "atrocities" committed against the women in the state.

Addressing the joint sitting of the state legislature, the Governor said besides effectively controlling the spread of coronavirus, the government brought back migrants stranded in other states during the lockdown.

"The work done by my government in the health sector and coronavirus management by enhancing the capacity of COVID testing from zero to 2 lakh per day, arranging more than 1.5 lakh beds for COVID patients and ICU in each district has been appreciated at the national and international level," she said.

The Governor went on to say that in 2020, there has been a decline of 7.96 per cent in dowry deaths; 18.93 per cent in rapes; 20.02 per cent in molestation; 26.47 per cent in kidnapping and 13.41 per cent in domestic violence against women.

"There has been a steady decline in the incidents of murder in the state and as compared to the year 2016, there has been a decline of 25.88 per cent in such cases," she said.

The notorious mafia criminals of the state have been identified. Their arms licences were cancelled and so far, properties worth more than Rs 1,000 crore have been seized and demolished, and also freed from unlawful possession. So far, 1,019 from among different kinds of criminal have been arrested and many gangsters have surrendered in the courts under immense pressure of police," she added.

She said during the COVID-19 pandemic, not a single sugar mill was closed.

With the support of farmers, crushing of sugarcane continued during the pandemic and there was no loss of sugarcane production, she said, adding that no farmer got infected with coronavirus in any sugar mill.

The Governor further said the state has emerged as an export hub and stressed that the Power Department played an important role in achieving this.

She also praised the government for the successful inauguration of the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya by the prime minister.

For this, I express my gratitude to the prime minister and the country's judiciary, Patel said.

Meanwhile, Opposition parties raised slogans and staged a walkout during the Governor's address, opposing the Centre's three agriculture laws.

Commenting over the late arrival of the Governor for the address, Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, Ram Gobind Chaudhary, later alleged that she did not want to address the House due to the atrocities committed against the women in the state.

"Seeing the atrocities committed against the women in the state, the Governor did not want to read her address. The chief minister and the speaker convinced her. Then after seven-eight minutes, she completed her quorum," Chaudhary told reporters outside the Assembly without substantiating his claim.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Khanna said the Opposition's behaviour during the Governor's address was "irresponsible".

"The Governor's address is a reflection of the government's policies. The manner in which the Opposition parties behaved in the House during the address is irresponsible and condemnable," Khanna said.

BSP leader Lalji Verma told reporters that he has seen it for the first time that the Governor arrived late for the address.

Leader of Congress Legislature Party Aradhana Misra said, "The government should have expressed sympathy towards more than 200 farmers who have died during the protest. Most of the farmers who died are from UP."



"We opposed the three black farm laws. If the Governor's address can start after five minutes (than the scheduled time), it shows the seriousness of the government on issues pertaining to the state," she said.

Samajwadi Party legislators also staged a protest outside the Assembly building in support of the farmers' agitation before the beginning of the state's

(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.)
Up to 25 residents at a nursing home in Cork have died since the start of a significant Covid outbreak there.

Residents at Ballynoe Nursing Home started testing positive for the virus from the middle of January and the majority of those who died did so during the past two weeks.

A spokesperson for CareChoice, which runs the 51-bed nursing home in Upper Glanmire, said: CareChoice can confirm that, arising from a significant outbreak of Covid-19 in our nursing home in Ballynoe, Cork, a number of our residents have sadly passed away.

We offer our sincere condolences to their families and friends, and would like them to know that the thoughts of every CareChoice staff member are with them at this difficult time.

In the interests of the confidentiality of our residents and their families, we dont give numbers of deaths related to Covid19 or any other causes.

The entire care team is deeply saddened by the loss of those who have passed away during this outbreak.

Staff at the home are liaising with the HSE and continue to follow all HSE and public health Covid-19 protocols, the spokesperson said.

Staff who have tested positive are currently self-isolating.

The Irish Examiner asked CareChoice to confirm whether a family was told to come in and say goodbye to an unwell loved one, only for the family to discover their loved one had already died when they entered the room.

The company replied: Unfortunately, this can occur in end-of-life situations.

The company was also asked about a family who could only look at their dying mother through her bedroom window.

After about two hours, the family realised she might be dead and were forced to go to the front of the home to ring the doorbell and ask staff to go and check.

The company told the Irish Examiner: We can confirm that a resident sadly passed away during a family visit.

It is not always the case that a staff member will be present, and that is what occurred on this occasion.

CareChoice said it continues to give the highest standard of care to residents and that it is in regular communication with the families of residents.

And it said staff continue to reach out to relatives to discuss any concerns they may have.

Teresa Kelleher, whose mother Margaret Kelleher died in the home, said she was unhappy with the handling of the situation.

She says her mothers health had deteriorated so dramatically over a two-week period that her own family couldnt recognise her by the time she died.

Teresa says the family were regularly told when they asked after Margaret that she was in good spirits, good health and that her vitals were all fine.

She had lost so much weight and changed so much that the only thing we could recognise about her was that the woman in the bed was wearing her nightdress, said daughter Teresa.

We had not been allowed to see her for two whole weeks.

But during that time, we were constantly told she was doing well and that her vitals were fine.

CareChoice said it was considering a further response to concerns raised by the family.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been pleading with lawmakers for support and even threatening political retribution against Democrats who have criticized him in an aggressive effort to contain political fallout from revelations that his administration had concealed the full extent of nursing home-related deaths during the Covid pandemic.

Describing an alleged exchange with the governor that has not been previously reported, Democratic Assemblyman Ron Kim told CNN that he received a call on his cell phone from the governor last week as he was bathing his children at home.

'Gov. Cuomo called me directly on Thursday to threaten my career if I did not cover up for Melissa [DeRosa] and what she said. He tried to pressure me to issue a statement, and it was a very traumatizing experience,' Kim said. Cuomo proceeded to tell the assemblyman that 'we're in this business together and we don't cross certain lines and he said I hadn't seen his wrath and that he can destroy me,' according to Kim.

Cuomo's adviser denied that the governor threatened to destroy Kim.

DeRosa is a top aide to the governor who came under fire last week after she told state lawmakers in a private virtual meeting that the state had delayed sharing with the legislature the full scope of the Covid-related death toll of New York's nursing home residents because of concerns about a potential federal investigation by the Department of Justice. (The governor's office has since released a partial transcript of the call.)

Kim, a progressive representing Queens who has been among the most vocal critics of Cuomo's handling of nursing homes during the pandemic and believes his own uncle died from a presumed case of Covid in a nursing home last year, participated in that virtual call. During the meeting, Kim said he called on the governor to apologize to family members of those who died in assisted living facilities. When the New York Post first reported on DeRosa's controversial comments, he was one of the participants quoted in the piece criticizing those remarks.

'No man has ever spoken to me like that in my entire life,' Kim said of his phone call with Cuomo. 'At some point he tried to humiliate me, asking: 'Are you a lawyer? I didn't think so. You're not a lawyer.' It almost felt like in retrospect he was trying to bait me and anger me and say something inappropriate. I'm glad I didn't.'

Kim's wife told CNN that she had overheard parts of Kim's phone call with Cuomo last week, and described the governor as 'loud' and 'angry.' She said she heard Cuomo say, 'Who do you think you are?' as well as the words, 'my wrath,' and that immediately after the phone call, her husband told her: 'The governor threatened to destroy my life.'

Cuomo's efforts to reach Kim appeared to continue through the weekend. Kim said he received multiple calls from a 'No Caller ID' number, followed by messages from Cuomo aides saying that the governor would like to speak with him again. Kim said he did not return the phone calls. He has since hired a lawyer, telling CNN that he believed this was necessary following Cuomo's first call which made him feel that the governor had asked him to lie about what had happened in last week's virtual call. He said he has informed the governor's office that any outreach should be made through his counsel.

When CNN first reached out to Cuomo's office for comment for this story on Tuesday, communications director Peter Ajemian did not directly respond to or deny Kim's allegation of threats from the governor in a written statement. Late Tuesday, Ajemian said the office would send a clarifying statement. Ultimately, the office sent a statement from senior adviser Rich Azzopardi late Wednesday morning that said: 'Kim's assertion that the governor said he would 'destroy him' is false.'

'The Governor has three witnesses to the conversation. The operable words were to the effect of, 'I am from Queens, too, and people still expect honor and integrity in politics,'' Azzopardi said.

Around the same time that Azzopardi's statement was sent to CNN, Cuomo began a previously scheduled press conference call on the coronavirus, and discussed his office's 'long and hostile relationship' with Kim.

Cuomo said Kim's political animus dates back to a 2015 bill to reform nail salons that the governor proposed and that Kim initially backed, but later opposed. Cuomo cited a New York Times report from that year that examined financial contribution's that Kim received after he flipped his position. In that article, a top Cuomo aide was critical of Kim.

Kim said on Wednesday that he '100%' stood by his allegation that Cuomo had threatened to destroy him. He said he did not recall Cuomo making a specific reference to Queens, but that Cuomo had asked him last week on the phone, 'Mr. Kim, are you an honorable man?' before proceeding to suggest that the honorable thing for Kim to do would be to put out a statement of support.

Kim also rejected Cuomo's suggestion that he had ulterior motives for criticizing Cuomo on nursing homes-related Covid deaths, saying he was deeply disappointed by the governor's handling of the matter during the pandemic.

'There's no undoing here. They have blood on their hands,' Kim said. 'We're talking about his record of performance in the last 10 months.'

Azzopardi's statement also said that Cuomo had called Kim last week to take issue with Kim's comments in the initial New York Post story, suggested that Kim issue a new statement and that the assemblyman had agreed to do so. When no statement came, Azzopardi said, Cuomo's office followed up and did not get a response.

Kim told CNN that he did not agree to issue a new statement, and that the initial New York Post story did not misquote and misinterpret him.

In the days since the New York Post story, Kim has been outspoken in accusing the Cuomo administration of criminal wrongdoing and a cover-up. On Tuesday, he and other Democratic New York legislators wrote a letter to colleagues in the Assembly accusing Cuomo of obstruction of justice and seeking support in stripping the governor of some of the expanded executive powers he has had during the pandemic. (State Democrats had already been in active discussions to draft a bill to do this, with a vote likely to take place early next week, a source had previously told CNN.)

Kim is not the only lawmaker to have received fierce pushback and even threats from Cuomo and his top aides since last week, according to three additional Democratic New York lawmakers. All spoke to CNN under the condition of anonymity because they were afraid of retribution from the governor.

They said the administration had aggressively lobbied legislators to speak up in support of his handling of the nursing homes-related deaths, and that threats were made against those who are considering a vote to strip Cuomo of his emergency powers.

All three legislators said they were aware of outreach from the governor in which he clearly suggested or explicitly threatened political retaliation if they did not stand by him. One of them, a New York state senator who said they had not been contacted by Cuomo but heard directly from multiple colleagues whom Cuomo had reached out to, said the governor threatened those colleagues with retaliation -- including warning some that he could ruin their political careers if they supported weakening Cuomo's executive powers.

In other cases, the administration was persistent in asking lawmakers to come to Cuomo's defense, including by releasing supportive statements regarding last week's virtual meeting.

A member of the New York assembly said they had heard from multiple colleagues who received messages from the administration suggesting language that legislators could release after DeRosa's controversial comments were made public. Members were encouraged to say that the virtual call had been productive and that legislators were reassured that their requests for information would be prioritized going forward, according to this assembly member who described similar messages that multiple colleagues had received from members of the administration.

Cuomo has received widespread bipartisan criticism on his handling of nursing homes-related deaths during the pandemic. His office did not deny allegations that Cuomo threatened other New York legislators.

In a written statement to CNN, Ajemian, the Cuomo communications director, did not deny that Cuomo made threats to other legislators.

'The threats here came from some legislators who, according to a media report, threatened to use subpoenas and investigations as leverage in the budget process,' he said.

Cuomo is up for reelection next year.

A Siena College poll released Tuesday showed that only 39% of New York's voters believe the governor has done an excellent or good job when it comes to making all data about Covid-19 nursing home deaths available, while 55% believe he's done a fair/poor job. The governor continues to receive high marks on his overall handling of the coronavirus pandemic, however: 61% of New York voters said in the survey that they approved of his response to the pandemic. The poll was conducted before DeRosa's comments came out last week, but after the New York attorney general's report came out last month that said the New York State Department of Health undercounted Covid-19 deaths among nursing home residents by approximately 50%.

Kim told CNN's Erin Burnett on 'OutFront' Wednesday evening that his wife was in tears after the governor's call last week and that Cuomo's administration should apologize.

'That night was very, very troubling because we couldn't sleep, and she's telling me, 'What did you do to us? Stop what you're doing. Please,'' Kim said. 'She feared for my future, for my life.'
Pasch got into yoga after a running injury in 2008. She felt her anxiety lessen as she practiced the self-reflective exercise. A second injury focused her attention on anatomy and the connection between mental and physical health, and her eponymous yoga therapy practice strives for good alignment just as much as mental well-being  and finds connections between the two.
Concerns are growing over the safety of a screaming woman reportedly seen being bundled into the back of a van and driven away.

Police have launched an investgation after reports of a shouting woman being snatched in Peterborough late last night.

Worried residents saw the incident unfold on Clarence Road shortly after 11pm last night.

One claimed to have seen the van, which had a broken rear brake light, driving away with the woman inside.

Police have released footage of a van as part of their appeal for information. They say the European registration plate van concerned had a broken brake light and was described as a silver or white people-carrier

Reports suggest the woman was bundled into the van on Peterborough's Clarence Road and was then driven off towards Searjeant Street

The van, described as a white or silver people-carrier with a European registration plate, was driven off by two men towards Searjeant Street.

Police have released footage of a van as part of their appeal for information about the incident.

Detective Inspector Lucy Thomson said: 'We understand this incident will be of concern to local residents and we have been working throughout the night to try to establish further information.

'Officers are in the area carrying out enquiries and we are keeping an open mind while the investigation continues.

'Our main priority is to find the woman safe and well so I would urge anyone with information, or who may have seen the van in the lead up to, or after the incident, to get in touch.'

The woman is described as short with blonde hair and wearing a grey tracksuit.

Police issued an appeal for information about the incident on Clarence Road last night

Police were called by concerned residents on Clarence Road at 11.20pm on February 17.

They have appealed for anyone with information to come forward and report it to police.

A statement on their website says: 'Anyone with information should call us on 101, quoting incident 544, or visit www.cambs.police.uk/report/Report.

'Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111 or via www.crimestoppers-uk.org.'
Makkah, Feb 18 : The Ministry of Health has begun the vaccination campaign against coronavirus at the Umm Al-Qura University Vaccination Center in Al-Abdiyah, Makkah.

Hamad Al-Otaibi, spokesman of health affairs in Makkah region, said on Tuesday that the gradual operation of the vaccination centre at Umm Al-Qura University has started, the Saudi Gazette reported.

He said that vaccines will be administered for those who have registered in Sehhaty application and the vaccination will be held during the evening shift in the current week and the centre will operate during the morning and evening shifts from next week onwards.

Al-Otaibi said that the Umm Al-Qura University Vaccination Centre is the main vaccination centre in Makkah, and five other centres will be opened soon, each one at King Abdullah Medical City, and the primary healthcare centers of Al-Sharaie, Al-Maabdah, Al-Awali and Al-Takhassusi neighborhood.

"Those who wish to receive coronavirus vaccine must register for appointments available through the ministry's Sehhaty application," he added.

Director General of Health Affairs in Makkah region Dr. Wael Mutair inspected on Tuesday the operational plan and facilities of the vaccination centre at Umm Al-Qura University.

During the tour, he was accompanied by General Supervisor of the Institutional Communication Department at Umm Al-Qura University Dr. Fuad Buqas and General Supervisor of the Safety Department at Umm Al-Qura University Muhammad Zamzami.

It is noteworthy that the Makkah centre is the fifth vaccination centre in the Kingdom. The nationwide vaccination campaign started on December 17, by opening the first vaccination centre in Riyadh. Vaccination centres were opened in other major cities of Jeddah, Dammam, and Madinah later.
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[February 17, 2021] Kid App Creators From WhiteHat Jr Leave R Madhavan Awestruck As They Share Their Coding Experience

~Video series shares the story behind the apps created by 8-year-old Manya, 10-year-old Agastya and 11-year-old Yuvraj~ MUMBAI, India, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- EdTech start-up WhiteHat Jr's students Manya, Agastya and Yuvraj recently interacted with celebrated actor R Madhavan to share their thoughts and motivation, which led them to create the apps PicKaboo, Pat a Pet and Med Maze, respectively. The actor spent time with the young creators to understand their inspiration, quizzing them about the development process and their experiences of learning to code. Madhavan, a technology enthusiast, was impressed by the sheer display of compassion & intellect, which went way beyond the kids' age. These interactive sessions were released today by WhiteHat Jr in a three-part video series. Since its launch in 2018, WhiteHat Jr has continually empowered children to view themselves as creators. 8-year-old Manya Singhal from Haryana has created the PicKaboo app. She loves to teach her little sister everything she knows. With the concepts she learnt with WhiteHat Jr, Manya has developed an application that would help kids of her sister's age group get information on their own in a fun way. 10-year-old Agastya Singh Yadav from Noida has created Pat a Pet, an app for pet owners to connect with foster families for their pets while they are away. Agastya tapped into his own real-life challenge of finding a loving and caring foster home for his pet when he had to be away from home during his vacations.



11-year-old Yuvraj Shah from Kolkata has created the Med Maze app to help people donate their unused but not expired medicine to people who need them but cannot afford them. Yuvraj hopes to be able to improve healthcare for the underprivileged by helping them access medicines easily. Here is what R Madhavan has to say of his experience of engaging with these tech-whiz kids, "Kids are our future and every time I connect with these bright, young minds, I am left even more awestruck than before. It is wonderful to see kids this young learning how to code and creating apps. I've seen the apps that Manya, Agastya and Yuvraj have created and it takes a lot of skilled guidance and mentoring to be able to mold kids' minds to think in such a manner. At a young age, the mind is more supple and receptive to new thoughts, ideas and learnings. There are also no inherent inhibitions to curb one's creativity. All they need is the correct guidance and I am glad to see that WhiteHat Jr is effectively empowering kids."

Talking about the students' inspiring work featured in the latest videos, WhiteHat Jr, Founder and CEO, Karan Bajaj said, "The holy grail of edtech is individualized outcomes for each child as each and every one of them is special. Our 1:1 live online learning aims to deliver on this promise. We are delighted to see that kids such as Manya, Agastya and Yuvraj and so many others look upon themselves as creators and not just passive consumers of technology." The videos of Madhavan will be hosted on WhiteHat Jr's official YouTube channel. Viewers will be able to witness the fun exchange of ideas between Madhavan and the kids and learn more about the apps that Manya, Agastya and Yuvraj have created. About WhiteHat Jr WhiteHat Jr. has been launched with a singular mission of enabling kids to become creators versus consumers of technology. Kids learn logic, structure, sequence and algorithmic thinking to generate creative outcomes like animations and apps. To date, we have taught more than 175k students across the globe, including countries such as India, the USA, UK, Australia and New Zealand. Our 11,000 strong women-only teacher workforce conducts more than 40,000+ 1:1 LIVE online classes every day on our proprietary platform.

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A lot has been made clear during the course of the coronavirus pandemic. But one of the most consequential revelations has to be that public officials in the United States are ill-prepared to respond to any type of major event that is detrimental to human life. And within that lack of preparation lies a habit of indifference toward their constituents and a desire to blame anyone other than themselves.

Take Texas, where a historic winter storm has caused extended power outages for millions of people. Its difficult to pinpoint a single villain in this failure, explained Julie A. Cohn, an energy historian, in an op-ed for the Washington Post. The nations power grids are a complex weaving of thousands of smaller companies with no single source of oversight. In Texas, the grid that failed does not have a uniquely flawed infrastructure, but it is intentionally restricted to stay within the states lines. Winter storms of this magnitude dont typically hit Texas, although when they do, they tend to wreak havoc. The state also doesnt provide incentives to companies that would encourage them to winterize. (Texas also doesnt appear to have snow plows.)

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Among all these intricacies, narrow economic considerations reign supreme. Instead of building backup generators and charging slightly higher rates, Texas relies on a free-market principle where it allows power companies to charge as they wish when the demand for power increases. But human well-being isnt an economy and it shouldnt be run as suchnot ever, and especially not when climate change is causing drastic shifts in global weather patterns.

Subscribe to the Slatest newsletter A daily email update of the stories you need to read right now. We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again. Please enable javascript to use form. Email address: Send me updates about Slate special offers. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms Sign Up Thanks for signing up! You can manage your newsletter subscriptions at any time.

The news out of Texas shows how the harm is being distributed. At least two people suffering from homelessness have died from the cold. A woman and child died from carbon monoxide poisoning after running their car in the garage to stay warm after losing power. Someone watched their loved ones oxygen machines battery run out. A family burned their belongings so their children wouldnt wake up cold. Water supply for hospitals is running low, and some facilities must evacuate patients in the middle of two disasters. One woman tweeted that her 80-year-old grandmother slept in her car to keep warm because she didnt want to risk catching COVID-19 by staying with family. Water pipes are bursting, causing homesand hospitalsto flood and roofs to cave in.

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Due to Trumps Remain in Mexico policy, asylum-seekers living in tent camps along the Texas border must survive the blistering cold so they wont lose their spots in line to enter the country. Those incarcerated in the states prisons, some of whom have COVID-19, are without heat and other necessary supplies. Its unclear what is happening inside ICE detention centers.

The public health implications are staggering. No water means people cant engage in basic hygiene practices. Prisons and detention centers are a public health catastrophe outside of pandemics and power outages. Already strained hospitals now have to manage COVID patients as well as anyone needing assistance due to frostbite, carbon monoxide poisoning, car accidents due to icy roads, or any other incident that could occur due to a winter storm and mass power outages. Even the vaccine distribution process has been further disrupted: The health department in Harris County is figuring out how to administer 8,430 doses of the Moderna vaccine after a backup generator failed and freezers holding the vials began to thaw out.

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In the event of a mass public health crisis, the already vulnerable will suffer the most. Yet Lone Star officials are recusing themselves from the issue and relying on individualism, a marquee excuse employed by politicians who dont want to do what needs to be done in order to protect the health of their constituents.

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No one owes you or your family anything; nor is it the local governments responsibility to support you during trying times like this! Sink or swim, its your choice! said Tim Boyd, the now-former mayor of Colorado City, Texas, in a Facebook post. The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING! Im sick and tired of people looking for a damn hand out! If you dont have electricity you step up and come up with a game plan to keep your family warm and safe.

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He added: Bottom line, quit crying and looking for a handout! Get off your ass and take care of your own family!

Boyd has since resigned.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott blamed sustainable energy sources during an appearance on Fox News, implying that Texas was a case study for how the Green New Deal would be devastating for America. (This is not true. Failures within the natural gas supply chain are the most significant reason for the blackouts. Abbott knew this beforehand and still spread the lie on national television.) His predecessor Rick Perry in a quote given to House Leader Kevin McCarthys blogwhich McCarthy described as being delivered partly rhetoricallysaid: Texans would be without electricity for longer than three days to keep the federal government out of their business, Try not to let whatever the crisis of the day is take your eye off of having a resilient grid that keeps America safe personally, economically, and strategically.

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Texas Gov. Abbott blames solar and wind for the blackouts in his state and says "this shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America" pic.twitter.com/YfVwa3YRZQ  Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) February 17, 2021

And Sen. Ted Cruz, facing devastation all around him, thought it was a good time to go on vacation in Cancun. Despite some right-wing pushback that he is powerless to help on a state level, there is plenty he could do to help out.

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As power begins to return across the state, communities are relying on themselves and mutual aid funds to help those who are still suffering. Twitter users are offering advice on how to survive an extended power outage in low temperatures. One furniture store owner has turned his business into a shelter. Former Rep. Beto ORourke and his team, unlike many of his onetime political peers, have conducted welfare calls, connected people to rides and food services, as well as shared resources across the stateunofficially doing the work that officials have abdicated.

We are nearing a failed state in Texas, said ORourke on MSNBC. And it has nothing to do with God or natural disasters. It has everything to do with the leadership and those in the positions of public trust who have failed us.
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Police are appealing to the public for assistance to help locate an 11-year-old girl.

The young girl was last seen around 8am on Thursday by family at her Nerang home in Gold Coast City, 10 kilometres west of Surfers Paradise.

When she failed to arrive at school, her family were contacted.

Initial investigations suggests the girl may be in company of other youths.

The young girl is described as Caucasian, approximately 150cms tall with a slim build, blue eyes and blonde hair, last seen wearing a blue school uniform

Police and family hold concerns for her safety and well-being, considering her young age, and the out of character disappearance.

The girl is described as Caucasian, approximately 150cms tall with a slim build, blue eyes and blonde hair.

She was last seen wearing a blue school uniform.

The girl, or anyone with knowledge of her whereabouts, or who may have seen her, is urged to contact Queensland police.

The warning to Bruce L. Castor Jr. was stark.

The former Montgomery County district attorney, opening Donald Trumps defense in his second impeachment trial, had complimented Democrats prosecuting the former president. It was the type of collegial gesture common among opposing counsel in the Pennsylvania courtrooms where Castor had practiced for years.

But in Washington, a senior Republican aide cautioned: You get no points for being polite. This is out-and-out partisan war.

Trumps team of Philadelphia attorneys would learn that lesson repeatedly during the five-day trial, which ended with the former president being acquitted of inciting the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol attack.

They came to Washington expecting a trial like the dozens they handled throughout their decades-long careers. Instead they got a brutal education in the fractious divisions plaguing the country while defending a client whose presidency was built on tearing at those differences.

In interviews this week, Trumps lawyers described a hastily assembled, sometimes messy, and pressure-filled effort that left them disillusioned with the nations intractable partisanship and Washingtons cutthroat ways. While proud of the defense they mounted, they were pilloried by pundits and satirized on social media under the brightest spotlight of their careers.

Those external tensions occasionally boiled over internally.

After Castors widely panned opening, a shouting match erupted between him and a top Trump adviser who had been sent with the message that the former president didnt want to see Castor on TV again, according to two people who witnessed the encounter. The clash prompted the teams other Philadelphia lawyers to threaten to quit  a previously unreported detail  and required a phone call with Trump himself to resolve.

A day later, Alabama attorney David L. Schoen, who had tussled with Castor over who was leading the team, did quit briefly just hours before the defense was set to present its case, leaving the others scrambling to improvise new plans  even as late as their car ride to the Capitol the next morning.

Philadelphia criminal defense attorney William J. Brennan, who played a largely behind-the-scenes role on the defense team, downplayed the effect of those altercations, pointing instead to the final result.

You could watch a lot of Super Bowls where [Bill] Belichick and [Tom] Brady are screaming at each other in the third quarter, then at the end, theyre taking a Gatorade bath, he said. This team worked well together and got the job done.

Were lawyers. Thats what we do.

Trump had struggled to find attorneys willing to represent him. None of the lawyers who spearheaded his first impeachment defense would sign on again. Others worried about the backlash it would invite.

Castor was hired with just eight days to go. When he first mentioned the opportunity to Michael T. van der Veen, the head of the Center City law firm Castor had joined only two months earlier, his new boss said he didnt hesitate.

Were lawyers, van der Veen said. Thats what we do.

Like Brennan, van der Veen originally signed on only in a supporting role to Castor and Schoen. That he emerged as the fiery face of the team  the lawyer who most effectively channeled Trumps sense of grievance and bare-knuckle brio  came as a surprise.

Just months before, van der Veen had marched with Black Lives Matter protesters in Philadelphia, demonstrations Trump villainized. And in the run-up to the election, he marketed his firm as a bulwark against GOP voter-suppression efforts and even sued the Trump administration.

While van der Veen, a registered Republican, described his own politics this week as the opposite of Trumps, he likened his representation of him to John Adams defending British soldiers at trial after the Boston Massacre.

My views are really unimportant, he said. Everybody under the Constitution deserves a zealous, competent defense, and thats what we provided.

Still, van der Veen and his colleagues had conditions before taking the job: No Rudy Giuliani. No false election claims. And no telling them how best to argue their case.

They drove down to Washington during a snowstorm on Super Bowl Sunday and, for security reasons, checked into the Trump International under pseudonyms. Brennan adopted the name Frank Galvin, a nod to the drunken, down-on-his-luck lawyer played by Paul Newman in the 1982 movie The Verdict.

 READ MORE: Trumps Philly lawyers won the impeachment trial. But theyre facing a backlash at home.

But it wasnt until Trumps political advisers led them to the hotels private townhouse suite, outfitted as a war room for the defense, the lawyers realized nothing in their decades of experience had prepared them for what would come next.

Castor, van der Veen, Brennan, and Schoen all spent years toiling in criminal and civil courts. And while Castor previously held elected office, none of them arrived with significant experience in national politics or the Washington media that chronicles it.

The teams base of operation came staffed with political strategists who, along with a group of social media gurus, advised the attorneys on optics, media strategy, and the ways of the Senate.

The whole thing was for the media, van der Veen said. They are driven on 15-minute media cycles and arranging schedules around prime-time events.

Even the clothes they wore were up for debate. After the first day of trial, an aide instructed Castor that the pinstripe suits hed made his trademark on Philadelphia TV had to go  setting off a scramble to rush-order a set of solid-colored Brioni replacements.

Folksy doesnt play down in D.C.

The roundly critical reaction Castor received for his meandering, largely improvised 50-minute opening was an ever harsher reminder that this wasnt like the trials they were used to.

Castor, who didnt respond to requests for comment, has said he hadnt intended to speak the first day of the trial. But after an emotional presentation by the House impeachment managers, he made a last-minute call to try to bring down the temperature in the room before the more pugilistic Schoen took the lectern.

Van der Veen described Castors speech  filled with flattery for senators, references to his time as DA, and reminisces about his childhood  as the type of opening argument each of the other lawyers had delivered dozens of times before to endear themselves to juries.

But Brennan, who was watching both the speech and the reaction to it from a conference room off the Senate floor, was horrified as Twitter turned Castor into a punchline and TV pundits on the right and the left turned against him.

I guess folksy doesnt play down in D.C., he said.

 READ MORE: Castor says widely panned impeachment opening was by design

More important, their client was also displeased with Castors performance. Trump instructed his staff that he didnt want to see Castor on his television again  an order that led to the screaming match Wednesday evening, which was first reported by the New York Times.

The rest of the Philadelphia team threatened to quit, two advisers to the defense told The Inquirer, and Trump was persuaded to allow Castor to remain. But the former president insisted on limiting his time at the lectern.

The lawyers declined to discuss the incident or any conversations they had with Trump. But van der Veen, Brennan, and Schoen all said Castor had been unfairly pilloried.

The next day he walked back in cool as a cucumber, Brennan said. It took tremendous guts to come back to that room and that chamber, and I have tremendous respect for him for that.

I was supposed to be leading

Castors performance wasnt the only source of tension. Both Castor and Schoen had joined Trumps defense assuming they were its leader. And after the first day stumble, that conflict spilled into public view.

As the House managers put on their case, Castor and Schoen separately told reporters they were thinking about what role they would let the other play going forward.

He never seemed to quite understand that I was supposed to be leading the case, Schoen told Jewish Insider this week.

He later claimed to have been mischaracterized, saying in an email to The Inquirer: To the extent I offended any of the Philly folks, I really feel terrible about it.  We had a very nice relationship.

Still, the night before they were set to present their defense, Trumps lawyers returned to their hotel war room only to be informed Schoen had abruptly quit in a dispute over how video clips would be used, two people familiar with the situation said.

The rest of the team scrambled to reorganize. Castor, now back in a larger role, stayed up all night redrafting his speech to hit the arguments Schoen was supposed to make.

The plan was upset again Friday morning as staffers informed them as they left for the Capitol that Schoen wanted back in.

 READ MORE: The push to punish Pat Toomey points to a future tied to Trump for Pa. Republicans

Schoen disputed that account, maintaining that he never quit. But both van der Veen and Brennan, describing the fallout for the first time, said that up until the moment they walked into the Senate, it was still unclear who would present which parts of the defense, who would handle questions from senators, and who would deliver closing arguments.

Much of that fell to van der Veen, now thrust from his sideline role into the spotlight. Of all of the attorneys, he delivered the defense that best channeled Trumps bellicose style.

On Day 1 we were treating it like a trial, he said. By the end we were treating it like the brawl it was.

He railed against the Democrats case that blamed Trump for the attack. He hectored House managers, arguing that their re-creation of some tweets in their presentation amounted to manufacturing evidence. And he sparred with senators, urging them and America to reject what he described as constitutional cancel culture.

On Saturday, when House managers surprised the Senate with their request to call witnesses to testify to Trumps state of mind during the insurrection, van der Veen threatened to up the ante. If witnesses were allowed, he vowed, the defense attorneys would insist on 300 depositions of their own.

We went from Were packing our bags, were out of here, Brennan said, to suddenly, See you in September.

Still, a compromise was reached. Witnesses were avoided. And within hours, the Senate  as expected from the start  had acquitted their client, by a vote of 57-43, short of the 67 votes needed to convict.

Rome at the end

But despite their victory, Trumps lawyers returned home to a backlash.

Van der Veen said he has received death threats and vandals struck his suburban Philadelphia home last Friday night, prompting him to hire private security to protect his family. Police installed cameras outside his office and had a cruiser stationed there Tuesday.

He has faced professional consequences, too. He said this week he was asked to resign from the board of the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association  an assertion the organization denies.

Castor, meanwhile, said in a radio interview that he also has been threatened.

To some extent, all of the attorneys have struggled to reconcile their pride in successfully defending their client  as deeply divisive as he may be  with the blowback for agreeing to take on the job.

We put on an ethical case, van der Veen said. We worked hard. We were zealous. We stayed within the rules.

But, he added, he wouldnt do it again.

I have no desire to be involved in the politics of this country again as perverted as its become, he said. Down there, it felt like Rome at the end to me.
Across San Antonio and Bexar County, volunteers with nonprofits and community groups have stepped up to help their neighbors, driving across icy streets and trudging through snow to provide food and other necessities to families and elders who are without power, water and/or supplies that have become scarce during the weather crisis.

Members of Eagles Flight Advocacy and Outreach were delivering much-welcomed care packages Wednesday, as they have been for several days.

People are not trying to leave their houses, Eagles Flight member Maricella Avila, 38, said.

One of the deliveries Avila made was to Martha Cordera, who lives in a Southwest Side apartment complex. Cordera said the electricity had been flipping on and off the last few days, as she happily looked into a box that contained cereal, eggs and other food items. She also received blankets.

Cordera, 42, said its been hard undergoing treatments for cancer, worsened by repeat power outages in frigid conditions.

It feels good to to know someone cares, Cordera said, Especially when youre low on money.

The people Eagles Flight were helping were referred to the nonprofit by others or the recipients reached out to the group personally on social media.

Pamela Allen, founder of Eagles Flight, said the organizations community service is part of its collaboration with the Edgewood Independent School District.

They operate out of several portables at the Regina Reed Center at 216 Purcell, including Kyms Kupboard, a food pantry; Lillies Legacy, a multi-generational clothing closet; and Jovonies Hugs, a pantry with baby supplies, named after 4-year-old Jovonie Ochoa, who died from starvation in 2003 on Christmas Day.

We always do deliveries, Allen said, especially when its a critical need.

Avila and her spouse, Monica Avila, worked in the dark at the food pantry from 8:30 a.m. until the power came on before 2 p.m.

They packed bags with blankets, socks, water, toothbrushes and toothpaste.

In between filling the bags, Avila made a round of deliveries to individuals and 80 seniors at the San Antonio Residents and Rehabilitation Center.

The need for meals has been great, specifically in situations with families without water and or means to prepare food, said Eric Cooper, president and CEO of the San Antonio Food Bank.

Cooper said the food bank has partnered with the city of San Antonio and Bexar County, focusing on helping the most vulnerable.

The Food Bank will start direct distribution of groceries to families Friday, Cooper said. The locations will be listed on the food bank website and social media.

One of Avilas deliveries was to a woman who had coronavirus.

She left a case of water outside the womans porch. The woman sent Allen a picture of herself with praying hands as a way of saying thank you.

Allen, 57, said the photo meant so much to her because of how she has been affected by the pandemic. Her mother contracted the virus and her brother-on-law lost his battle with COVID.

That was the best moment when she sent that picture, she said. I just saw life in that picture.

Allen enlisted the help of County Clerk Lucy Adame-Clark to help deliver care packages near downtown. Adame-Clark, who arrived with more than 40 boxes full of miscellaneous food from a South Side pastor, said she was helping as a community volunteer, not in her official capacity.

Partnering with Pamela is something that we always do, Adame-Clark said. If one or the other doesnt have something, we get together to find it to make sure we provide for our community.

They came to assist an older resident, Lorenzo Uresti who lives at HemisView Village Apartments. Allen said he had one request; he asked her to help his neighbors.

On the way, they stopped to help Alea Hernandez, 24, who had lost power at her home and was staying with her aunt Abigail Hernandez, 35.

Oh my God! Alea Hernandez said, surprised as Allen handed her a box of food. Thank you!

vtdavis@express-news.net
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Blue Star Gold Corp. (TSXV: BAU) (FSE: 5WP) ("Blue Star" or the "Company") announces a significant increase in its land holdings in the highly prospective and underexplored High Lake Greenstone Belt ("HLGB"), Nunavut following an agreement to acquire a 100% interest in the Roma Project claims. Blue Star will be the largest title holder in the HLGB following the acquisition of the Roma Project claims, effectively creating a district scale project in the region when combined with the Company's Ulu and Hood River Projects in the south section of the belt. Blue Star now controls 16,645 hectares in this very prospective and underexplored district.

Highlights:

Acquisition of 100% interest in 7,683 hectares of highly prospective mineral claims (Roma Project) in HLGB gives Blue Star access to 44 km of the belt





Multiple significant gold showings are present on the Roma Project within a 6.5 km by 2.4 km area, including several drill ready targets





Numerous high-grade gold showings and zones were discovered in the 1990's with little to no follow-up work conducted since that time

Grab samples up to 126 g/t Au and chip samples up to 24 g/t Au over 1.5 m

Limited shallow drilling (10 holes for 465 m) returned 12.38 g/t Au over 2.31 m and 8.69 g/t Au over 1.87 m

The geologic setting and style of gold mineralization at the Roma Project is similar to that found at the Company's Ulu Project, where a significant high grade gold resource has been outlined at the Flood Zone deposit

Blue Star's CEO, Grant Ewing, commented: "Blue Star now controls a district scale project in an underexplored and highly prospective greenstone belt following the acquisition of a 100% interest in the Roma Project. The extent of the high-grade gold showings and the presence of multiple styles of gold mineralization, including those similar to our Flood Zone deposit at Ulu, present the Company with multiple opportunities for new discovery and resource growth."

The Company's flagship Ulu Project (Flood Zone deposit) and Hood River Property are situated in the south- central portion of the HLGB. Agnico Eagle holds a prospecting permit in the central section, and the Roma Project lies directly north and covers an extensive area of very prospective mineral claims (see Figs. 1.a and 1.b).





Figure 1a



To view an enhanced version of Figure 1a, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2421/74787_figure1ablue1a.jpg





Figure 1b



To view an enhanced version of Figure 1b, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2421/74787_figure1bblue1b.jpg

Blue Star continues to conduct detailed planning for its upcoming 2021 exploration program. The primary exploration focus will be on expanding resources at the known deposit (Flood Zone) and testing high priority proximal targets on the Ulu Property. The early results from the extensive GIS compilation and targeting work that is ongoing is yielding several high-quality near surface targets close to the Flood Zone. The secondary exploration focus will be regional targeting/testing over the extensive and highly prospective Hood River and Roma Projects, where numerous high-grade gold showings exist.

Roma Project:

Roma consists of nine (9) claim blocks totalling 7,683 ha (76.83 km2) in the northern section of the High Lake Greenstone Belt. These claims cover high grade gold showings discovered by previous explorers, notably BHP Minerals from 1989 to 1994 on their Roma and Cygnet claims (see Fig. 2).

Multiple significant gold showings are present within a 6.5 km x 2.4 km area on the historic Roma claim block (see Fig. 3). The original showing is a 0.30 to 3.0 m wide quartz vein with semi-massive arsenopyrite plus tourmaline, pyrite and chalcopyrite exposed in outcrop and boulders for 2.0 km as described in BHP Minerals' 1992 Assessment Report AR083068. Alteration of the host granodiorite adjacent to the veins includes carbonate + sericite + clay + talc + tourmaline +/- fuchsite. The auriferous quartz vein is located on the eastern border of the belt at an intermediate volcanic-granodiorite contact. Grab samples of the vein returned 2 to 126 g/t Au including assays of 14.5, 29.6, and 58.2 g/t Au (see Table 1 for surface sampling highlights). The highest-grade chip sample of 26.4 g/t Au over 1.0 m was from the northern section where the auriferous quartz vein is exposed in outcrop for 300 m. A value of 24.7 g/t Au over 1.5 m was reported from a chip sample in the southern section (1995 BHP Minerals Assessment Report AR083544).

In 1991, BHP drilled 10 shallow holes totalling 465 metres to test 1.72 km strike of the vein (see Fig. 4). All drill holes intersected quartz veins from 15 m to 37 m vertically below surface. Visible gold was noted in three of the drillholes and the best results were 12.38 g/t Au over 2.31 m (including 64.0 g/t Au over 0.37 m) from DDH MD-01 and 8.69 g/t Au over 1.87 m from MD-03. BHP did not drill downdip of the high-grade intersection in DDH MD-01 and did not step out to the north from this intercept. No follow up drilling is known to have been completed on this property after BHP's initial drill program. The north-south trending quartz vein is reported to narrow to the north and may remain open to the south where the highest-grade grab samples were taken. Shearing was mapped along this contact for an additional 1.75 km to the south. Blue Star's Roma Project covers more than 12 km of this volcanic-granodiorite contact. Bedrock exposure ranges from 10 - 30% in the project area which presents an opportunity for more discoveries under cover.

Additional discoveries on Roma were made in 1993 approximately 4 km southwest of the original quartz vein in a structurally complex area with polyphase deformation. Twelve showings were found in a 1.6 km x 0.55 km area on the east limb of an anticlinal fold structure adjacent to the Kennarctic Shear Zone (KSZ). Gold values up to 5.6 g/t Au were reported from a 1.0 to 2.5 m wide, north trending, acicular arsenopyrite bearing quartz-ankerite vein which is traceable in iron carbonate altered and sheared gabbro for 350 m (1995 BHP Minerals Assessment Report 083544). A second zone of mineralization with gold grades to 1.1 g/t Au was found 650 m north and traced in narrow shear zones within gabbro for 600 m. Several additional showings are present between the zones mentioned above and the highest-grade sample assayed 5.52 g/t Au. All of these acicular arsenopyrite associated gold showings in the anticline remain undrilled. Other gold showings with gold grades up to 6.1 g/t Au are found between the anticline hosted mineralization and the original Roma vein.

The structural setting and mineralization style of the Roma southwestern showings are similar to the mineralization found at the Flood Zone that occurs on Blue Stars Ulu Project located 48 km due south. Lithologic units within the anticline at Roma include gabbro, intermediate tuff, and biotite schist. The west limb of the anticline appears to be truncated or offset by the KSZ. The KSZ is a regional north trending structure that can be traced for at least 40 km and may represent a sheared unconformity as it separates the older High Lake volcanic sequence from the younger Central Domain of the belt. The anticline-hosted gold mineralization on Roma is found within 1 km of the KSZ. Approximately 2.5 km north of the anticline, along the KSZ, similar style mineralisation has returned gold assays as high as 6.1 g/t Au. The High Lake VMS deposit is located approximately 1 km west of the KSZ. Several gold showings including Roma, Grumpy, and Cygnet are found within 1 km of the KSZ. Very little gold exploration has been conducted in the High Lake Belt north of the James River.

The historic Cygnet claim area is located approximately 24 km north of the original Roma showing on a bend in the KSZ and the High Lake Greenstone belt. A northeast trending 3 km long, and up to 10 m wide shear zone can be traced in intermediate to felsic volcanics on the west side of the Kennarctic River. Initial reconnaissance by BHP Minerals in 1989 is reported to have returned values of 13.6 to 25.4 g/t Au (BHP assessment report 083062) from a 3 km long shear. Gold is found within the quartz veined, silicified and sericitized cores (0.30 to 2.0 m wide) of the shear zones in association with arsenopyrite and pyrite. A quartz vein with arsenopyrite and tourmaline hosted in quartz diorite on the Grumpy claim returned high grade values (up to 20 g/t Au / 1.0 m as reported on Silver Ranger Resources website) from trenching along a strike of 105 m. The section of the shear called the Central Zone is covered by the Cygnet claims. Values between 1.87 to 5.42 g/t Au were returned from the Central Zone with the highest-grade sample containing acicular arsenopyrite. Sediment-hosted gold mineralization is also found at Cygnet including an 8.4 g/t Au sample just east of the Kennarctic River on the current Roma claims.

The proposed all-weather Grays Bay Road would bisect the Roma Project as it routes to MMG's High Lake deposit and continues south to Blue Star's Ulu Project. The Canadian National Trade Corridors Fund has committed CAD $21.5 million to facilitate the design, permitting and development of the Grays Bay Road and deep-water Port (GBRP) Project. The Grays Bay Road is planned to link the High Lake Zn-Cu and Ulu gold deposits by all weather road from the Arctic coast to the terminus of the Tibbett-Contwoyto winter road, which provides access to Yellowknife.

Blue Star will issue 750,000 common shares to purchase a 100% interest in the Roma Project subject to approval by the TSX Venture Exchange.

Qualified Person

Darren Lindsay, P. Geo. and Vice President Exploration for Blue Star, is a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.





Figure 2



To view an enhanced version of Figure 2, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2421/74787_figure2blue.jpg





Figure 3



To view an enhanced version of Figure 3, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2421/74787_figure3blue.jpg





Table 1



To view an enhanced version of Table 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2421/74787_table1blue.jpg





Figure 4



To view an enhanced version of Figure 4, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2421/74787_figure4blue4.jpg

About Blue Star Gold Corp.

Blue Star is a Vancouver-based gold and silver company focused on exploration and development within Nunavut, Canada. The Company owns the Ulu Gold Property lease, an advanced gold and silver project, and the highly prospective Hood River gold concessions that are contiguous with the Ulu mining lease. With the recent acquisition of the Roma Project, Blue Star now controls 16,645 hectares of highly prospective and underexplored mineral properties in the High Lake Greenstone Belt, Nunavut. A significant high-grade gold resource exists at the Flood Zone deposit (Ulu lease), and numerous high-grade gold occurrences and priority targets occur throughout the Ulu, Hood River and Roma Projects.

Blue Star is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol: BAU and on the Frankfurt Exchange under the symbol: 5WP. For further information on the Company and its projects, please visit our website: www.bluestargold.ca.

For further information, please contact:

Grant Ewing, P. Geo., CEO

Blue Star Gold Corp.

Telephone: +1 778-379-1433

Email: info@bluestargold.ca

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the Policies of the TSX-Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this Release.

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as: "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "goal," "seek," "believe," "project," "estimate," "expect," "strategy," "future," "likely," "may," "should," "will" and similar references to future periods. Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others, statements we make regarding prospective income and revenues, anticipated levels of capital expenditures for fiscal year, expectations of the effect on our financial condition of claims, litigation, environmental costs, contingent liabilities and governmental and regulatory investigations and proceedings, and estimates of mineral resources and reserves on our properties.

Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following: economic and financial conditions, including volatility in interest and exchange rates, commodity and equity prices and the value of financial assets, strategic actions, including acquisitions and dispositions and our success in integrating acquired businesses into our operations, developments and changes in laws and regulations, including increased regulation of the mining industry through legislative action and revised rules and standards applied by the regulatory bodies in Nunavut, changes in the price of fuel and other key materials and disruptions in supply chains for these materials, closures or slowdowns and changes in labour costs and labour difficulties, including stoppages affecting either our operations or our suppliers' abilities to deliver goods and services to us, as well as natural events such as severe weather, fires, floods and earthquakes or man-made or other disruptions of our equipment, and inaccuracies in estimates of mineral resources and/or reserves on our mineral properties.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74787
The Union cabinet on Wednesday approved the signing of a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECPA) between India and Mauritius aimed at liberalizing and boosting trade.

The pact will come into force on 1 March, an official statement said. With this, for the first time India will be a signatory to a kind of free-trade agreement with an African nation. The CECPA will cover 310 Indian export items, including food and beverages, agricultural products, textiles, base metals, electricals and electronic items, plastics and chemicals and products made of wood.

In turn, Mauritius will benefit from preferential market access to India for 615 products such as frozen fish, speciality sugar, biscuits, fresh fruits, juices, mineral water, beer, alcoholic drinks, soaps, bags, medical and surgical equipment, and apparel. The move will remove barriers to imports and exports, and also promote services trade.

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For 80 years, Simos Produce in Springfield has delivered fruits and vegetables to hundreds of customers, including restaurants, schools, retirement homes, jails, and grocery stores. The family-owned wholesaler had a niche, and longtime staff ran through a days delivery with the same ease it takes to slice a cucumber.

Then, COVID-19 struck, and Scott Smith, Simos assistant general manager, says the economic hit was almost instantaneous. As restaurants and schools were forced to close, the need for deliveries tapered down.

Smith began talking about the crisis Simos faced with Jeremy Durrin, the account and marketing manager, and Trevor Emond, the company president.

As they talked about saving the business, the three longtime friends also noticed that their friends and family members were frightened. They didnt want to go out, Smith recounts. We were essential employees with a whole warehouse of food, with a distribution center with trucks and drivers. We thought, Lets bring food to our friends houses and do what we can.

What started as an altruistic way to help those in their innermost circles immediately grew into an idea that serves hundreds of people across the Pioneer Valley. Simos now offers daily deliveries of boxes loaded with enough fruit, vegetables and dairy to last a family of four a full week.

Simos Produce was appropriately founded on Avocado Street in Springfield in 1934 by three immigrants from Greece. The Delis family took over the business in the 1970s, and the company is still family-owned today.

From the start, the mission of the organization was to source and deliver locally harvested produce, when its available in New England, and produce from around the country when it is not. Before the pandemic, Smith said 100% of the business profits came from wholesale deliveries, now its more like 80% wholesale, 20% boxed deliveries.

Its definitely been tough this year, he says of 2020. Pivoting to curate grocery boxes has saved us.

When the idea launched  shortly after Smith, Durrin and Emond began delivering to friends  they were trucking hundreds of boxes a day to individual homes, as well as remaining wholesale customers warehouses. Along with pallets of produce for wholesale customers, the trucks also held dozen of the $55 boxed deliveries, each containing milk, eggs, butter, potatoes, onions, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and broccoli, along with fruit such as pineapple and cantaloupe.

Smith says it was a chaotic start because there were no systems in place. Hundreds of orders came in via the phone and were difficult to organize. Truckers with decades worth of experience in packing, loading and delivering wholesale goods had to learn how to safely deliver to individual homes during a pandemic.

It wasnt just plug and play, Smith explains, noting that after some training for the six drivers and four warehouse staff, everyone got up to speed, like theyve done it forever.

Its been a challenge, Durrin adds.

Now, customers can order online, and deliveries can be scheduled the next day  or any day. And the company has purchased iPhones and GPS software that dovetails with the wholesale business system that was earlier in place. This way, when a truck is loaded with wholesale and individual deliveries, the software creates a route that is most efficient.

As of December, Simos was delivering about 15 boxed groceries a day. It ebbs and flows, based on what the government is mandating, Smith explains.

Durrin said the new mission is in place indefinitely. If it trickles down to almost nothing, we might decide to end it, he says, adding, Weve gotten really positive feedback from the community, so I think we will keep it going.

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Film depicting CS Lewis' journey from atheism to Christianity to release this year

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A new film depicting The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe author C.S. Lewis incredible journey from atheism to Christianity is set to release later this year.

Directed by Lewis expert Norman Stone, the drama is titled The Most Reluctant Convert and is adapted from the one-man stage play starring Max McLean, according to The Guardian.

Lewis, who is widely recognized as one of the most influential Christian authors of the 20th century, will be portrayed in three stages of life, wandering through his own memories as an older man. It will follow the childhood loss of his mother to cancer, his horrific experience in the trenches of World War I, and the death of his wife.

Nicholas Ralph portrays Lewis in his 20s and Tom Glenister appears as his friend and fellow author, JRR Tolkien. The film was shot in and around Oxford, where Lewis was a tutor in English literature; at his college, Magdalen, and his home, The Kilns, where he wrote his Narnia books.

Stone, who previously won a BAFTA Award for directing "Shadowlands," a drama about the life and love of the Mere Christianity author, said he believes its the perfect time to bring Lewis story to the big screen.

Lewis looked truth in the eye, no matter what effect that would have, he told The Guardian. That comes across in his writing and its one of the key things that made him popular. At certain times, society says think a little deeper. When you get something like Covid-19, then we should be thinking a bit more about things, and I think thats happening.

Though Lewis, who died in 1963, is known as a great Christian thinker, Stone said his work appeals to everyone, noting that one Narnia fan site alone has 6 million followers: Hes sold more books this year than last year. I think its something to do with everything else thats going on in the world.

McLean said Lewis went from vigorous debunker of religion to the most respected Christian writer apologist of the 20th century and that the questions he explored are complex.

But the words that we use are Lewis.' We have the rights. That helps because were not as smart as he is. One of the great things about playing this role is its fun to be this smart for 90 minutes, to be able to say these words, and really embody them.

The films producers told the outlet they hope to release "The Most Reluctant Convert" later this year.

Over the years, Lewis fiction writings have been turned into numerous family-friendly film and TV projects.

Previous film adaptations of Lewis books include a 1988 BBC version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and three movies produced by Sony Pictures: "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (2005), "Prince Caspian" (2008), and "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" (2010), grossing more than $1.5 billion worldwide.
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Senegal on Wednesday night received the first batch of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine.

Senegalese President Macky Sall, First Lady Marieme Faye Sall, senior government officials, Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Xiao Han and representatives of the World Health Organization also attended the delivery ceremony at Blaise Diagne International Airport.

The first batch of 200,000 doses of vaccine were conveyed by a special flight of the national company Air Senegal from Beijing.

Speaking at the ceremony, President Sall first expressed his "sincere thanks" to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the acquisition of these doses of vaccine.

He also thanked Ambassador Xiao for the follow-up of "this complex operation".

Apart from these 200,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, Sall said that his country has started the process of acquiring other vaccines, and will receive 6.798 million doses in the coming weeks for mass vaccination.

The country plans to vaccinate 20 percent of its population, which is about 3.5 million people, in the first phase of mass vaccination.

Senegal has so far reported 31,771 COVID-19 cases with 26,095 recoveries and 769 deaths.
Demonstrators against Myanmars military takeover returned to the streets Thursday after a night of armed intimidation by security forces in the countrys second biggest city.

The police rampage in a Mandalay neighborhood where state railway workers are housed showed the conflict between protesters and the new military government is increasingly focused on the businesses and government institutions that sustain the economy.

State railway workers on Sunday had called a strike, joining a loosely organized Civil Disobedience Movement that was initiated by medical workers and is the backbone of the resistance to the Feb. 1 coup that ousted the elected civilian government.

Many workers and citizens of Myanmar believe that CDM is very effective for making the junta fail," said a labor activist who spoke on condition of anonymity for his own safety. Thats why health, education, transportation, different government departments and banks employees are participating in CDM together.

The railway strike has received support from ordinary citizens who have placed themselves on railroad tracks to stop trains the military has commandeered.

The efforts by Mandalay residents to block a rail line on Wednesday apparently triggered the retaliation that night.

Less than an hour after the 8 p.m. start of the nightly curfew, gunshots were heard as more than two dozen men in police uniforms, shields and helmets, marched in tight formation by the railway workers housing. Numerous videos posted on social media showed muzzle flashes as shots were heard, and some were shown shooting slingshots and throwing rocks at buildings. Cadence calls of left, right, left, right can be heard along with shouts of shoot, shoot.

Several reports included photos of people with small wounds, which were claimed to have been caused by rubber bullets. Some unconfirmed reports said several railway workers were arrested.

The junta has said it took over  preventing Parliament from convening and detaining the nation's elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and others  because the November election was tainted by voting irregularities. It replaced the election commission that affirmed Suu Kyi's party won by a landslide and says it will hold a new election in a year's time.

The Biden government has imposed new U.S. sanctions on Myanmar because of the coup, and the United Nations and other nation's governments have called for Suu Kyi's elected government to be restored.

Opponents of the coup are also urging foreign businesses to cut their ties to Myanmar operations they believe benefit the military.

About 200 people demonstrated Thursday near Kanbauk, in the south of the country outside premises involved in a major pipeline operation that pumps gas from offshore fields for export. The demonstrators moved between the premises of Total of France, PTTEP of Thailand and Petronas of Malaysia and later joined with a larger anti-coup demonstration in Kanbauk.

Extracting industries, such as gas and oil drilling and jade mining, are key sources of foreign revenue for Myanmar. Rights campaigners have appealed to foreign companies involved in those industries to stop paying revenue to the new military government.

The Myanmar Alliance for Transparency and Accountability said any payments would undermine "the Myanmar peoples efforts to return the country to democracy and instead would give the military the resources to violate human rights. The alliance urged companies to release revenue payments only to the democratically elected government.

Street protests continued in other cities. In Yangon, some tried to hinder security forces by abandoning cars in streets. But small groups of men, including several dressed in Buddhist monks robes, attacked several drivers and their vehicles, smashing windshields in some cases.

The courts are becoming another battleground.

State television announced charges Wednesday against several prominent entertainers, including actors and directors, who have all been publicly supportive of the protests. They were charged under a law that penalizes those who act in a manner intended to hinder or prevent members of the military and government employees from carrying out their duties.

The entertainers were apparently accused of inducing civil servants to walk off the job  and the move reflects the juntas concern about the widespread and increasing involvement of civil servants in the protests.

On Wednesday night, the military for a fourth day in a row ordered an internet blackout  almost entirely blocking online access from 1 a.m. to 9 a.m.

While the military did not say why the internet was being blocked, there is widespread speculation that the government is installing a firewall system to allow it to monitor or block online activity.
In the past year we have had to celebrate various holidays in a socially-distanced manner because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Large public events - including parades have been canceled. And St. Patricks Day 2021 is likely to look like it did last year - no parades or celebrations.

Now, Carhartt and Guinness have teamed up to encourage people to #MakeYourOwnParade.

The iconic brands are calling on hardworking men and women to reimagine their St. Patricks Day celebrations from home. No matter the circumstances, the spirit of the holiday must live on  it just may require folks to #MakeYourOwnParade. Consumers are encouraged to recreate their holiday traditions in a new way and share their at-home parade using the hashtag and tagging @Carhartt on Instagram.

Throughout 2020, we saw the resiliency of hard-working people all around the world, said Janet Ries, vice president of marketing at Carhartt. Weve had to reinvent the way we connect and how we share experiences. So while were still unable to celebrate in person, we encourage everyone to #MakeYourOwnParade and share your celebrations in the safest, most connected and optimistic way.

The two companies have collaborated for a third time on an apparel collection that includes mens and womens sweatshirts, T-shirts and hats in colors that blend the spirit of Guinness with the quality of Carhartt. This year, select items will feature a Work for the Better tagline.

Two years ago, Guinness and Carhartt came together to Work for the Better by making a special-edition lager to raise money for the heroic first responders of Team Rubicon. Last year, the two companies helped to fund and support the Plumbers Union of Chicago, who are also known to dye the Chicago River green on occasion.

The holiday has taken on a new meaning for us this year and, with this new collection, we remain strong in our commitment to uplifting people and communities during this time, said Nikhil Shah, Guinness brand director.

Here are some of the items in the Carhartt x Guinness collection:

Restaurants will no longer be allowed to sell pre-packaged meals through arrangements with supermarkets and other outlets, as Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley definitively closed this loophole yesterday.

Rowley said this would not be allowed to continue, as it defeats the purpose of the public health regulations. Restaurants and street food vendors were among those businesses ordered to close to limit the movement of people and curb the spread of Covid-19.
In the midst of this long dark winter, its heartening to see the Biden administration lay out a bold agenda for a more secure, fair, and sustainable future. Holding the Biden administration to its promise to reform the regulatory process to ensure swift and effective federal action to improve the lives of the American people is a crucial part of that effort. From her perch on a key congressional committee with oversight over agencies and the rulemaking process, the Delaware Valleys own Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon is well-positioned to do just that.

While not on most peoples radar, the system of centralized regulatory review poses a potentially significant obstacle to President Joe Bidens ambitious agenda. Originally created by President Ronald Reagan, this process functions as the bureaucratic instantiation of the job-killing regulations myth that Reagan so successfully infused into the American political conversation and that politicians across the political spectrum parroted for decades afterward. The executive orders issued by both Democratic and Republican presidents to govern this process over the intervening decades reflected that false narrativedescribing regulations as imposing burdens that need to be lifted and anointing economic efficiency as the singular goal of all government action.

 READ MORE: Joe Biden plans a flurry of executive orders, new legislation for first days as president

Rather than improving regulations or making them more efficient, the regulatory review process has served instead to delay, weaken, or block them outright. It accomplishes this primarily through a hyper-formalized version of cost-benefit analysis that favors monetizable costs to industry over difficult-to-quantify benefits, such as clean air and safe drinking water, and obscures issues of distributional equity and fairness.

In one of his first executive orders, Biden wisely rejected that approach. Instead, he presented a new vision of government as a power to be mobilized to confront the pressing challenges of the day. Dispensing with old tropes about relieving burdens on industry, this new vision instead recognizes the indispensable role of regulations in tackling national priorities, promot[ing] the public interest, and improv[ing] the lives of the American people.

To ensure agencies can realize this vision, Bidens order initiates a much-needed overhaul. It directs agencies and the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs to develop recommendations for remaking the regulatory review process with the aim of ensur[ing] swift and effective federal action.

As with all things political, the devil will be in the details. But recent polling released by Data for Progress and the Center for Progressive Reform should stiffen the Biden administrations resolve to implement the bold reforms promised in its high-minded, ambitious order. The poll paints a picture of an American electorate hungry for Bidens vision of government. One key finding: If forced to choose, likely voters would favor taking action to fight climate change and passing down a livable planet to future generations over economic growth by a 57-point margin.

The same poll finds that a majority of voters (58%) back stronger health and safety regulations even if it means giving up some economic growth. This finding counsels strongly in favor of a drastic overhaul of the practice of cost-benefit analysis with its myopic focus on market efficiency.

 READ MORE: Pa. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon pushes to make intimidation of elections officials a federal crime

One particularly contentious aspect of that practice is the application of a discount rate to future benefits, so that the lives of future generations are valued at a tiny fraction of the value assigned to current generations. The new poll shows American voters flatly reject that approach. Sixty-five percent of respondents agreed that regulators should weigh the value of a regulations benefits for future generations the same as for present generations.

In her oversight role, Scanlon can help empower the Biden administration to deliver on its promises, including providing effective safeguards for the fenceline communities in South Philly and Chester that have for too many years borne the toxic legacy of the Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery and other industrial facilities. Overhauling regulatory review is crucial to advancing Bidens priorities, especially those  like environmental justice  that matter to Scanlons constituents.

Amy Sinden is a professor of law at the Temple University Beasley School of Law and a Board member at the Center for Progressive Reform.

Hyderabad: Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Wednesday has alleged that Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao was not sincere towards filling up the over 1.91 lakh vacant posts in various departments of the state government.

The Nalgonda MP strongly condemned the Chief Minister for deliberately delaying the process of filling up 1.91 lakh vacancies, by one ploy or the other.

Mr Reddy said that the 11-member Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC), a Constitutional body which conducts exams for recruitment to state services, is now headless with just two members. He further said that TSPSC Chairman Ghanta Chakrapani and three other members retired on December 17, 2020, on completion of their six-year term. Five other members had already retired. The TSPSC now has just two members, Prof Sailu and Krishna Reddy, and the latters term would be over on March 11.

Uttam Reddy said it was not possible for the TSPSC with just two members to issue job notifications or hold interviews. It could not adhere to quorum norms in the Commission meetings.

The KCR government cannot appoint new members due to the model code of conduct, which is in effect due to MLC elections. Before the completion of these elections, the state will witness another bout of MCC in view of the Nagarjuna Sagar by-elections. It will be followed by elections to Khammam and Warangal municipal corporations. Therefore, the process of recruitment may not begin before six months, he said.

Chief Minister Rao could have avoided this situation by appointing new members and a Chairman in December 2020 itself, he said.

The Congress leader said that it was ridiculous on part of the Chief Minister to announce that the state government would recruit 50,000 people in different departments, despite knowing that the TSPSC was not fully functional.

KCR made a fake promise only in view of MLC elections for two graduate constituencies. He is trying to mislead jobless youth once again with a promise of government jobs. However, educated youth have now realised that the TRS has been cheating them all along, he said.

Uttam Reddy said that as per a report of the C.R. Biswal-headed Pay Revision Commission (PRC), as against a sanctioned strength of 491,304 in different departments, there are only 300,178 employees. KCR must specify as to when and how existing vacancies of 191,126 would be filled? he demanded.

Mr Reddy slammed Minister K. T. Rama Rao for misleading jobless youth by saying that the government would soon give unemployment allowance of `3,016 per month.

This promise was made by TRS in its manifesto for 2018 assembly elections. TRS should have implemented the promise immediately after coming to power for a second term in December 2018. Sensing that Graduates will punish TRS for non-fulfilment of this promise, KTR and other leaders are making false announcements, he said.

The TPCC Chief demanded that the TRS government must immediately start giving an unemployment allowance of Rs 3,016 per month to nearly 30 lakh jobless youth of Telangana, including 19 lakh graduates who have registered themselves with the TSPSC.

He said the payment should be made with retrospective effect from January 2019.
ROME, FEB 18 - Premier Mario Draghi on Thursday called for justice reforms to make "reasonable" trial lengths, in line with the EU, in a speech ahead of a confidence vote in the House. Speeding Italy's snail-paced justice is one of the top items on Draghi's agenda, along with slashing business-stifling red rape, progressive tax reforms and green and digital transition. Draghi said that processes in public tenders should be sped up, and noted that delays harboured illicit potential. Draghi added that his government's action would be marked by an eye on the future. Draghi also said his government would fight corruption because it was a drag on the economy; that small and medium sized businesses will get tax credits; and that COVID fears in overcrowded jails will not be neglected. He also announced a commitment to boosting sport which has been hard hit by the pandemic. The ex-ECB chief is expected to get an overwhelming vote of confidence in the House Thursday night after a triumph in the Senate Wednesday. (ANSA).
President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday in Biden's first phone call with the Israeli leader since taking office last month.

"The conversation was very friendly and warm and lasted about an hour, Netanyahus office said in a tweet.

President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu discussed the future advancement of the peace accords, the Iranian threat and regional challenges, and agreed to continue their dialogue, his office tweeted Wednesday.

Biden has dialed a number of world leaders since taking office, including Chinas Xi Jinping, the UKs Boris Johnson and Canadas Justin Trudeau. Waiting nearly a month to reach out to Netanyahu was seen by many as a snub of the longtime Israeli leader, who faces reelection in March and is currently embroiled in an unprecedented corruption trial.

For comparison, President Donald Trump put Netanyahu third on his list of world leader calls in 2017.

Biden is expected to take a tougher approach to Israel than his predecessor. Although he intends to build on the Abraham Accords, Biden will roll back a number of Trump-era policies that critics said undermined the changes of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Biden administration plans to resume relations with Ramallah and restore aid to the Palestinians, but the US Embassy  which Trump controversially moved from Tel Aviv  will remain in Jerusalem.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Tuesday that the call with Netanyahu would be Bidens first with a leader in the region.

Israel is, of course, an ally, she added. Israel is a country where we have an important strategic security relationship.

Other Biden officials had already spoken with their Israeli counterparts. In the past month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has called Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi and national security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke recently with Meir Ben-Shabbat.

Biden, who during the campaign pledged to reassess the thorny US relationship with Saudi Arabia, also plans to speak with King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, who is 85. Psaki said Tuesday that Biden will be calling the king rather than Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is the king's son.
A shortage of Moderna vaccines in Pennsylvania has local providers shuffling their vaccination schedules. Patients will still be able to get their shots, they say, but it may take longer than initially planned.

Local providers, including the Lehigh Valleys two main hospital groups, are responding after the announcement Wednesday by the state health department that some facilities over the last month administered shots that should have been reserved as second-doses. The state no longer has enough to cover all currently scheduled return visits.

The situation only applies to Moderna vaccines. The Pfizer supply is unaffected, the health department said.

To compensate for the shortfall, health officials are instructing providers to prioritize second-dose Moderna shots by shifting current inventory and rescheduling appointments. This will require delaying some second-shot appointments and repurposing some initial doses.

In all, the health department estimates more than 100,000 patients scheduled to receive the Moderna vaccine may be affected. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the second Moderna vaccine is effective if it is administered between 28 and 42 days after the first shot.

Here is what some local COVID-19 vaccine providers have said so far:

Lehigh Valley Health Network is rescheduling about 1,500 appointments that had been set for Friday. Appointments after that are expected to be held as scheduled as a new shipment is received. Any first-dose appointments will be unchanged; those patients will get a Pfizer shot.

Like the people of our community, we are frustrated that vaccine supply continues to be low, and we sympathize with those who were eager to get vaccinated but now have to wait a little longer, LVHN President and CEO Brian A. Nester said in a statement. At LVHN, we have the ability to vaccinate 30,000 people per week. We are ready to get to work. All we need is the vaccine to get started. Until then, we will continue to work with elected officials to find solutions that make vaccine more available to the communities we serve.

St. Lukes University Health Network , which vaccinates 3,000 people a day, said some of its appointments also will be affected this week. Patients will be notified if they need to be rescheduled.

We have far more public request for vaccines than we have vaccines to give, said Dr. Jeffrey Jahre, St. Lukes senior vice president of medical and academic affairs, in a recorded statement. We consistently request increases in vaccine delivers from the state and we are dependent on their allotment. I encourage you to remain vigilant and remain patient. We are in this together, and we will get through this together. St. Lukes will not stop until everyone who wants a vaccine receives on.

The Bethlehem Health Bureau announced it will halt appointments for this Friday due to the shortage. It was not clear when new appointments will be accepted. The city had already announced it will halt appointments for this Friday due to the shortage. It was not clear when new appointments will be accepted. The city had already canceled Thursdays clinic over forecast wintry weather.

The Bethlehem Health Bureau will not be adding any additional appointment slots this Friday due to a vaccine supply shortage. We apologize for this inconvenience and will notify the public as to when we will be able to add additional appointments to our clinic schedule. pic.twitter.com/d30B5Zj5c8  BethlehemHealthDept (@BethlehemHealth) February 17, 2021

Weis Markets said it is keeping its current vaccine appointments but not scheduling any new ones until next week, due to a much smaller allocation of vaccine than expected. Stores are calling patients to reschedule appointments for weather. said it is keeping its current vaccine appointments but not scheduling any new ones until next week, due to a much smaller allocation of vaccine than expected. Stores are calling patients to reschedule appointments for weather.

Allentown Health Bureaus online appointment system as of Wednesday evening said no slots are available. It was not immediately clear if that was due to volume, supply or weather

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com.
A former Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar, has warned that Nigeria could disintegrate if the violence and other security challenges currently witnessed in many parts of the country are not curtailed.

Mr Abubakar spoke to journalists on Wednesday at his home in Minna, the Niger State capital.

His admonition is coming a few days after some persons were killed in a market in Oyo State during a clash.

PREMIUM TIMES reported how several people reportedly died in a clash in a conflict between Hausa and Yoruba groups in the state.

The crisis was triggered by an alleged stabbing of a Yoruba cobbler by a Hausa cart pusher in Shasha market, Ibadan.

Governors of Bauchi and Benue states last week also engaged in tense verbal exchange over arms bearing by Fulani herdsmen.

While Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State justified arms bearing by the herdsmen, his Benue counterpart, Samuel Ortom, condemned his statement.

The Nigerian Governors Forum had, however, said the Shasha crisis was not ethnic in nature.

Point of no return

Vanguard newspaper quoted Mr Abubakar, a retired general, as saying that the recent spread of violence across the country, if not carefully handled, might lead Nigeria to a point of no return.

He called on all Nigerians, especially the governors of the 36 states of the federation, to take full responsibility in managing the divergent voices and frustrations within their states which he said could fuel disunity, anarchy and disintegration.

He urged the governors to be united and respect individual views. The former military leader, who is also the Chairman of the National Peace Committee, cautioned that disunity, coupled with insecurity could push the country to the point of no return.

As if the continued insurgency in the country, the kidnap and armed robbery are not cup full, the recent happenings in some parts of the country, of ethnic attacks, is unfortunate and is adding to the problems, Mr Abubakar said.

In the last two weeks or so, tension has been growing in the country and embers of disunity, anarchy and disintegration are spreading fast and if care is not taken, this might lead us to a point of no return.

We at the National Peace Committee, wish to add our voice to the voices of millions of Nigerians calling for calm in these difficult times because these times demand that we all join hands to resolve our challenges so as to keep our country united. We do not have the luxury of trading blames.

Thousands of our people are homeless and have refugees across the length and breadth of their own country.

We know the difficulties that our farmers have faced in the last few years and that the harvests will be a serious challenge this year.

Therefore, let us all rally in these hard times, make the required sacrifices and remain vigilant, standing by one another.

It is true that we are all in a state of fear and collective anxiety. However, the last thing we need is for the enemy to sense a lack of unity on our part or a break in our ranks.

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Those wanting Peeps treats in their Easter baskets will have to search elsewhere as Just Born announces it has shuttered its store at The Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley.

Just Born Quality Confections released a statement Thursday morning, citing the coronavirus pandemic in its decision to close shop.

We appreciate the many loyal fans that took the time to visit our store over the years, the company stated before adding patrons can find Peeps treats and other branded licensed merchandise at major retailers in store and online. The Bethlehem-based company also is known for Goldenbergs Peanut Chews, Jelly Beans, Mike and Ike, and Hot Tamales, as well as clothing and other themed merchandise.

Peeps & Co. moved in November 2015 to The Promenade from the former The Outlets at Sands Bethlehem, now known as The Outlets at Wind Creek. Just Born previously opened the Sands store in 2012. Just Born additionally closed its two prior Peeps stores at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota in April 2017, and at Baltimores Inner Harbor just prior to the pandemic in January 2020, said Bridget Mackey, a spokeswoman for Just Born.

Melissa Napolitano, general manager of The Promenade Shops, did not immediately return a request for information Thursday. However, The Promenade was closed due to unpleasant weather.

Napolitano previously said over this past summer there is no doubt the retail scene is experiencing headwinds amid the pandemic. The Promenades leasing team then was actively working on backfilling the vacancies. The shopping center also launched a new retail delivery paradigm, offering curbside pick-up; stop-and-shop; and buy-online, pick-up in stores as other options.

COVID, along with a rash of store bankruptcies, has contributed to a challenged environment, Napolitano previously told lehighvalleylive.com. Weve seen a few retailers close their doors due to some national brands store rationalization efforts.

Peeps joins a growing number of vacancies at the Upper Saucon Township shopping destination.

By August 2020, closures totaled at least 14 businesses with many running in every direction -- some with as many as three or four in a row. The most recent retailers to bite the dust include such financially-strapped chains as The Childrens Place, New York & Company and Justice. Go! Calendars, Games & Toys also closed. Crepe Soleil relocated to The Crossings Premium Outlets in Tannersville, Monroe County and so did Murphy Jewelers, now located at the Lehigh Valley Malls Lifestyle Center in Whitehall Township.

Anchored by such major retailer as L.L. Bean, Old Navy, and Barnes & Noble, The Promenade Shops opened in 2006 with upward of 70 stores and restaurants. The shopping destination now stands at least 20% less in capacity amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Whos left?

Retailers include Brooks Brothers, Loft, Pandora, American Eagle, Athleta, Francescas, Altard State, Bath & Body Works, J. Jill, Lucky Brand, Banana Republic, Chicos, Carters and OshKosh Bgosh, Wells Fargo, Yankee Candle, White House Black Market, Claires, Fidelity Investments, Dandelion, Johnston and Murphy, Capital Blue, Kay Jewelers, New Balance, Journeys, L.L. Bean, T Mobile, Verizon, uBreakiFix, Old Navy, Barnes & Noble, Plow & Hearth, Soma, Sleep Number, Sweet and Sassy, Wine and Spirits Premium Collections, LensCrafters, Starbucks, various salons and spa services, an AMC movie theater, several upscale restaurants and a Fresh Market.

Tell us your coronavirus stories, whether its a news tip, a topic you want us to cover, or a personal story you want to share.

Please subscribe now and support the local journalism YOU rely on and trust.

Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.

Tracy Evatt, veteran of distribution industry joins Network. Tracys board service and deep understanding of distribution will bring invaluable perspective to Networks leadership.

Network Services Company (Network), a significant force in global distribution services, is pleased to announce that Tracy Evatt has joined the executive leadership team. Mr. Evatt will provide direction and executive vision to ensure strong alignment with the companys Member-distributors. As a member of the executive team, Tracy will also help to set the companys strategy moving forward.

Tracy comes to Network a veteran of the distribution industry. With more than 40 years of experience he has held positions of increasing responsibility in sales, sales management, and organizational management. Most recently he served as Chief Operating Officer of Pollock Paper (Orora), a Network Member based in Dallas, Texas. In his more than 23 year tenure with Pollock, Tracy played a fundamental role in execution of key strategies that drove efficiency and business growth. A strong ally in supplier partnership, Tracy actively participated in a number of Supplier Advisory Councils throughout the years.

Evatt has also played a pivotal role in Networks success. He served on Networks Board of Directors for six years, including two years as Chairman. Tracy was actively involved in the organizations Technology Council, Supplier Programs Committee, and Member Advocacy Committee. Nick Morris, Networks current Chairman of the Board points out, Tracys board service and deep understanding of distribution will bring invaluable perspective to Networks leadership. His guidance will be instrumental in driving our continued growth trajectory.

For years I have relied on Tracys counsel for insight to the important issues that impact our Member-distributors, said Alan Tomblin, President and Chief Executive Officer at Network. Im equally excited to have his support in further driving ROI for our supplier community. His commitment to supplier partnerships underscores Networks own strong support of key relationships. Tomblin continued, I am thrilled to formally welcome his expertise to our leadership team. His combination of industry knowledge and operational acumen will fortify our commitment to continued growth and long term success for our constituents.
A mass COVID-19 vaccination clinic is scheduled to open Friday at Mohegan Sun, health care officials said.

The Yale New Haven Health System, working with the state and the Mohegan tribe, announced plans Thusday to open the large-scale community vaccine site at Mohegan Suns Earth Expo & Convention Center.

We are excited to provide more COVID-19 vaccinations to the residents in southeastern Connecticut, said Patrick Green, president and CEO of L+M Healthcare, a member of Yale New Haven Health. The Mohegan Sun community vaccine site is yet another extension of the remarkable partnership between our organizations to prioritize the health and wellness of the communities we serve.

Green said teams have been working nonstop to streamline the vaccination process to accommodate the most people.

The clinic will run on an appointment-only basis, weather permitting. It is open to Connecticut residents.

Officials expect the clinic to adminster 300 vacccines on its first day of operation. Officials said appointments will be routinely added as more vaccine doses become available from the federal government.

The Mohegan Tribe has a long-held philosophy of cooperation and working together with our neighbors, and throughout this pandemic we have practiced those values each and every day, said James Gessner, chairman of the Mohegan Tribe. Whether it meant temporarily shutting down operations entirely, installing new state-of-the-art safety technology, distributing PPE to healthcare partners, or helping provide community COVID testing, Mohegan is working hard to help Connecticut manage this crisis.

Those eligible for the vaccine under Phase 1B can schedule an appointment by choosing the Mohegan Sun location on www.ynhhs.org/covidvaccine. Appointments can also be made by calling 877-918-2224 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, officials said.

Under Connecticuts current vaccine roll-out phase, individuals ages 65 and up are eligible to be inoculated. This phase is expected to soon expand to include more eligible groups.

The Mohegan Tribe has taken incredible steps throughout the pandemic to keep its members and residents safe through standing up testing sites, the distribution of PPE, and coordination with the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Gov. Ned Lamont said in a statement. We will get through this pandemic by working together, especially in vaccine distribution, and thats exactly what this site represents.

The site at Mohegan Sun will join a growing number of similar vaccination clinics opened across Connecticut as hospital networks and the state work to bolster vaccination numbers.

Gessner said he hopes the clinic at Mohegan Sun will serve as a hub in southeastern Connecticut for the states vaccination efforts.

We are proud to continue to help serve our community, and eager to help Connecticut get as many state residents vaccinated as quickly as possible, Gessner said.
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Suspected herdsmen have killed seven farmers in some communities in Edo State.

The gruesome attack was said to have been carried out on Wednesday at Ugboke, Oshodi, Okokodo, Ariyan, and Yoruba camp situated in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of the state.

The police spokesperson in the state, Chidi Nwabuzor, who confirmed the incident, said efforts were on to arrest the perpetrators.

An indigene of the area, Janet Ighodaro, said the killer herdsmen used the popular Yoruba camp located in Ovia North-East LGA as a base to launch an attack into various communities in the area.

Mrs Ighodaro said, I was lucky to escape the stray bullets. I have come to Benin City to take refuge with her family. The suspected gunmen shot sporadically killing seven persons.

Four of the victims, Mrs Ighodaro said, were returning from their farm when they were shot and killed on the spot.

Others were killed in their farms, she added.

She lamented that the gruesome attack on the camps and communities was reported to the police. She said security presence in the area was zero.

Mrs Ighodaro stressed that the policemen who arrived in the area on Wednesday only stopped at Okokhua community.

They (the police) rather instructed affected communities to bring the dead bodies to them at Okokhuo, she said.

She called on security operatives to come to their rescue as a matter of urgency.

Police reaction

Police spokesperson, Mr Nwabuzor, said the dead bodies have been evacuated from the bush.

The State Police Command is aware of the incident that happened within the jurisdiction of Ekhiadolor Divisional Police Command. The DPO and his operatives visited the crime site and evacuated the bodies, and moves are on to ensure that place is calm and the lives return to normalcy.

Also, the police is carrying out its investigation to effect the arrest of the criminal herdsmen who perpetrated the dastardly acts. The command is bent on using every legal means to fish out the criminals, Mr Nwabuzor explained.

Killer herdsmen had been linked with the rising cases of kidnappings and other criminal activities in Edo State lately.

On February 3, several women blocked major roads in Uromi, Esan North-East LGA to protest against the activities of killer herdsmen which they said have brought untold hardship to their communities.

They listed the criminal activities of the herdsmen to include armed robbery, raping, and destruction of farmlands and crops, among others.
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Texas is even struggling to clear its roads of snow in comparison to neighboring Arkansas as yet another blast of icy weather sowed more chaos in a state where 3.4 million were still without power Wednesday.

Footage taken by professional storm chaser Charles Peek shows cars on the Texas side of Stateline Road dealing with icy driving conditions while those on the Arkansas side drive on a cleared roadway.

Sharing the image Peek tweeted: 'Big difference in #Arkansas and #Texas snow removal in #Texarkana', a city that straddles both states.

His colleague Mike Seidel also posted the footage from earlier this week, writing: 'Can you guess what state has snow plows? It's the AR side of State Line Ave. that's clear. The TX side is #snow covered.'

Texas is struggling with a shortage of plows amid the bad weather. The Texas Department of Transportation has deployed just 30 plows to clear roads in the North Texas area, which includes Dallas and Texarkana, according to Fox4 - but that it to cover an enormous service area.

The city of Austin's Public Works Department has no snow plows and has been forced to use motor graders used in road construction to move snow, the Austin American-Statesman reports.

Meanwhile, it's not just snowplows that are an issue: The race is on to restore power to millions of Texans facing subzero temperatures as stunning infrared images taken from space show just how far the blackouts have stretched.

More than 3million people in the state were left without power for the fourth day in a row - and for the vast majority, it is because of forced blackouts by energy agency ERCOT.

Texas is even struggling to clear its side of road compared to neighboring Arkansas. Footage taken by professional storm chaser Charles Peek shows Stateline Road in Texarkana, which straddles the line between both states, on Tuesday as cars on the Texas side the street deal with icy driving conditions while those on the opposite side in Arkansas drive on a cleared roadway

 Slide me  Infrared imaging shows just how much power has been lost to Houston in the last few days; from February 7 to 16

Seven million Texans are also under boil water notices after the deadly storm compromised water filtration systems there - a problem exacerbated by the lack of power in many homes. Another blast of ice and snow forecast Wednesday threatened to sow more chaos.

Meanwhile some Texas hospitals have reported running out of water after pipes were damaged, with some losing heat due to damaged boilers and power outages.

St. David's South Austin Medical Center and Dell Children's Medical Center, both in Austin, Texas, are transferring patients to other hospitals.

All facilities in the area are under strain with another storm set to roll through the area, meaning no hospital was able to accept a large number of transferred patients.

Conditions at St. David's became so dire after the water was shut off that staff were asked to use trash bags to empty toilets which could not be flushed, according to KVUE.

Burst pipes at Houston Methodist also left two facilities without water, with staff forced to wash their hands with hand sanitizer instead of soap and water.

Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday told the state's natural gas producers to sell the fuel to in-state power generators. He called ERCOT 'opaque' and 'not transparent' after failing to say when Texans can expect their power back.

Now, furious Texans want to know why the infrastructure in place wasn't properly prepared, especially after a similar storm in 2011 caused the same problems. The Texas Tribune reports that not all of the generators in the state were upgraded after 2011 to tackle the issue.

Jeff Dennis, managing director of Advanced Energy Economy, said: 'Where did those recommendations go, and how were they implemented? Those are going to be some pretty key questions.'

The upgrades are what's called 'winterizing' the energy system but experts say it is regularly put off because the changes are expensive. Texas' deregulated energy market gives little financial incentives for operators to prepare for the rare bout of intensely cold weather, an issue critics have been pointing out for years.

David Tuttle, a research associate with the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin, said in a recent podcast: 'There are things that can be done, but it will cost some money. About every decade we have these long-sustained periods. And then, you know weatherization is supposed to happen, and then, it doesn't because it costs money.'

An ERCOT official, Dan Woodfin, said plant upgrades after 2011 limited shutdowns during a similar cold snap in 2018, but this week's weather was 'more extreme.'

Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston, rejected ERCOT's claim that this week's freeze was unforeseeable 'That's nonsense,' he said. 'Every eight to 10 years we have really bad winters. This is not a surprise.'

Restarting the frozen oil wells in Texas also isn't going to be easy - even after power is restored - experts say, as output has plummeted by 65 per cent.

Jim Newman, Executive VP of Operations at Basic Energy Services, told Bloomberg: 'There's a good bit of water produced with oil and gas, so in areas with higher water, you're going to have burst pipes. Safety will be paramount because of the hydraulics being damaged. So there's going to be a very meticulous reactivation.'

Infrared imaging shows just how much powers has been lost to Houston in the last few days as the bumbling CEO of ERCOT said on Tuesday night he had no idea when power would be restored but claimed his agency managed to avoid an even bigger catastrophe by switching it off.

Richardson, Texas: Carlos de Jesus takes a selfie in front of the frozen fountain at the Richardson Civic Center after a second winter storm brought more snow and continued freezing temperatures to North Texas on Wednesday

Dallas, Texas: Leonel Solis and Estefani Garcia use their car to heat their home. The couple, who lost power on Sunday, have been using electricity from a neighbor's generator and heat from their car to stay warm

Southwest Arlington, Texas: After seeing a posting on Facebook, LaDonna (no last name given) drove from Johnson County, Texas to collect some of the dumpsters-full of ice cream thrown out at a Southwest Arlington, Texas, Kroger store, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Arlington TX. LaDonna said she's collecting the frozen goods for her neighbors. Rolling power outages this week have forced businesses to clear merchandise that needs refrigeration

Texas, which relies on its own electricity supply and grid, and is unprepared for winter conditions, has buckled so much so that Beto O'Rourke said on Wednesday that it was a near 'failed state'.

The Texas city of Kyle, south of Austin, asked residents Wednesday to suspend water usage until further notice because of a shortage. 'Water should only be used to sustain life at this point,' the city of 45,000 said in an advisory. 'We are close to running out of water supply in Kyle.'

Problems first began with Winter Storm Uri - a brutal weather system that is sweeping the country. Every other state in the storm's path has been able to withstand it because they operate on a shared power source which means that if one state's supply goes down, it can draw from the shared reserve.

The outages are the widest Texas' grid has suffered - but hardly a first in winter.

Some 600,000 had power switched back on by 6am and even more were turned back on before lunchtime but millions remain in the dark and without heating. With ongoing, forced blackouts in being carried out in different parts of the state, it is difficult to track exactly how many people don't have it and where they are in real-time.

ERCOT - which is in charge of managing the distribution of all of the energy in Texas and maintaining its grid - underestimated the storm so didn't produce enough reserve energy beforehand and now, plants can't produce more power because they were unprepared for the bad weather.

The agency claims it predicted that peak energy demand would be 67 gigawatts but it reached 69 gigawatts on Sunday night - the first night of the storm. The agency then cut the power across the state by close to half - reducing it to just over 40 gigawatts. Each gigawatt powers some 500 homes.

What compounded the sudden demand for energy was that ERCOT didn't anticipate not being able to produce more energy during the storm.

The vast majority of the state's energy (40 percent) comes from natural gas, and the plants that produce it are propped up by an infrastructure that, unlike other states, cannot withstand severe winter weather; pipes have frozen in subzero temperatures and wells have been blocked with snow. It is preventing the fossil fuels from being pumped from the ground to the plants and into homes and businesses.

The system was forecast to move into the Northeast on Thursday. More than 100 million people live in areas covered by some type of winter weather warning, watch or advisory, the weather service said.

'There's really no letup to some of the misery people are feeling across that area,' said Bob Oravec, lead forecaster with the National Weather Service, referring to Texas.

Seven million Texans are under boil water notices after the storm compromised systems - a problem exacerbated by the lack of power in many homes. Another blast of ice and snow threatened to sow more chaos Wednesday

Fort Worth, Texas: Gas stations such as this 7Eleven/Exxon on Highway 377 can not get deliveries of fuel, having run out on Sunday and not expecting another shipment until next week

Dallas, Texas: Houses covered with snow on Wednesday afternoon as millions throughout the state were still without power

Desperate Texans waited for more than an hour in freezing rain to fill propane tanks in Houston on Wednesday as more than 3million people remain without power. Some 600,000 had power switched back on by 6am Wednesday and even more were turned back on before lunchtime but millions remain in the dark and without heating. With ongoing, forced blackouts in being carried out in different parts of the state, it is difficult to track exactly how many people don't have it and where they are in real-time.

Carlos Mandez waits in line to fill his propane tanks Wednesday in Houston after the CEO of ERCOT - the Texas energy agency responsible for the deadly blackouts that have driven people to burn furniture and accidentally poison themselves with carbon monoxide just to stay warm - said he had no idea when power would be restored but claimed his agency managed to avoid an even bigger catastrophe by switching it off

Frozen: More than 4million people in Texas were without power yesterday afternoon in subzero temperatures for the fourth day in a row.

ERCOT switched off millions of people's power on Monday which reduced usage from around 70,000 megawatts to (70 gigawatts) to just over 43,000 megawatts (gigawatts). 1 gigawatt (1,000 megawatts) is enough to power 500 homes

ERCOT says that had it allowed the power to continue being used, the entire grid would have gone down and it would have taken longer to get up and running than the current, forced outages will. The explanation has fallen on deaf ears in Texas, where millions want to know why the crisis wasn't averted

Texas uses its own power grid and has done since the 1970s. The energy-rich state wanted to use its own resources but also sit beyond federal energy regulation. Other states to the north of it share resources. Oklahoma has been just as affected by Winter Storm Uri but because it pools resources with neighboring states, it hasn't run out of power

Some 4.4million households don't have it. In Texas, the average household size is 2.8 people. There are around 30million people in Texas. It means an estimated 12million people - 41 percent of the state - doesn't have power

ERCOT CEO Bill Magness - who made $880,000 in 2018 - claimed on Tuesday night that the situation could be worse. He refused to take responsibility for the fact his agency didn't upgrade systems to make sure plants would withstand the cold, and instead chalked the whole crisis down to a 'supply and demand imbalance'

Now, ERCOT has deliberately switched off people's power to try to stop them from draining any remaining reserves.

It has created a diabolical situation in the face of freak weather in the southern state where temperatures on Tuesday plummeted to -2 F - the lowest they have been since 1903- and where eight inches of snow have fallen in some parts.

The nationwide death toll from the storm is 31.

It's unclear how many people have died in Texas so far but the death toll there includes a mother and daughter who died from carbon monoxide poisoning because they left a car running in their garage to stay warm, and a grandmother and three children who died after the fire they were using to keep warm spread throughout their house in Sugar Land.

There are delays to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution and many doses that were being stored are under threat because the freezers storing them can't operate without power.

The outages have crippled water pressure which also threatens drinking water supply. It is a particular problem in hospitals, where pressure is dwindling.

There are also fears that without any new gas becoming available soon, prices are about to skyrocket by as much as 20 cents per gallon.

People are also being told to boil water before they drink it or use it for cooking because it is no longer safe, due to the shortage in power plants.

Many can't - because they do not have power - and stores where they could buy bottled water are closed or empty. Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday night called the situation 'completely unacceptable' and ordered a full investigation into how ERCOT had failed the state so drastically.

Texans covered in blankets wait in line for more than an hour to fill propane tanks to heat their homes in Houston on Wednesday. Millions across the state remain without power after a historic snowfall and single-digit temperatures created a surge of demand for electricity to warm up homes unaccustomed to such extreme lows, buckling the state's power grid and causing widespread blackouts

A Texan looks for information on his cell phone as he rest at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on Wednesday as winter storm Uri prompted countless people sought warmth in pop-up shelters after rolling black-outs left millions without heat and power

An apartment complex in Dallas, Texas, where icicles have formed on ceiling fans

A long line of cars snakes out of the H-E-B gas station and into the supermarket's parking lot Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021 in Brownsville, Texas

Natural gas runs in the home of Cynthia Valadez off of East Cesar Chavez Street in Austin on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021

Customers wait outside at a Home Depot in Pearland, Texas to enter the store to buy supplies on February 17, 2021. The store has no power so is only letting one person at a time

City of Richardson workers close a water main valve for a pipe that burst due to extreme cold in a neighborhood Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Richardson, Texas. Millions remain without power in the record-breaking cold, mostly in Texas

Brett Saint, right, and Joetta Myers sit on a sofa inside a Gallery Furniture store which opened as a shelter Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Houston

People line up to fill their empty propane tanks Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021, in Houston. Temperatures stayed below freezing Tuesday, and many residents were without electricity

BETO O'ROURKE - WE'RE NEAR A FAILED STATE Beto O'Rourke, the failed Senate hopeful and former Congressman, said on Tuesday night that Texas was close to becoming a 'failed state' because of the energy crisis. 'We've seen that extraordinary spike in demand and then the same storm has caused real challenges to the delivery of electricity to the supply, with wind turbines freeze and can't run, the storm blows through and there's .. you have problems with the equipment at some of these plants, they trip off and have to get fixed. 'There's a number of factors where a storm like this that's been so historic and we haven't seen much precedent for, pushes the system where demand up and supply down... the only way we can keep it in control is to do outages.' He said that if ERCOT hadn't switched power off, the systems would have completely broken and wouldn't have been able to be turned back on, but he also failed to give a firm answer on when that will happen. 'If we had let the system go into a stage where a blackout would happen, we wouldn't be talking about when are we going to restore the power, when are we going to turn it back on. We would be talking about rebuilding portions of the electric system. We wouldn't be able to do this in days. 'The goal today is to find ways to get as many Texans back on as we possibly can,' he said. Magness admitted that the agency knew the storm was coming and tried to prepare for it but that the crippling of the infrastructure hindered the efforts. Advertisement

Gov Abbott also blamed renewable energy and wind turbines for the disaster, telling Fox's Sean Hannity on Tuesday night: 'This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America.

'Our wind and our solar got shut down, and they were collectively more than 10 percent of our power grid, and that thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power on a statewide basis... It just shows that fossil fuel is necessary,' he said.

The disaster in Texas has happened because of failures in both fossil fuel production and renewable energy.

On Tuesday night, ERCOT CEO Bill Magness said he thought his agency had actually avoided an even bigger problem by taking the steps they have.

In an interview with CBS Austin, he said: 'The reason why is these outages have to exist is the electric system has to be managed where supply and demand have to be balanced all the time.

'These outages, while they are extremely difficult and we are tying to get them to end as fast as we can, are a controlled method of making sure we don't lose the system - that we don't have a much bigger, catastrophic event on the system.'

He refused to take responsibility for the fact that the reason supply is down is because the plants were unprepared, and even seemed to boast about Texas's response to the crisis.

'If you have a big imbalance between the supply and the demand, you can have catastrophic failures of the system, blackouts like we've seen in some parts of the country but haven't seen here in Texas that can take a very long time to repair.'

He also said that the same amount of energy was being used now as it is in the summer, when Texans use their air conditioners.

'What we saw this time was the demand side with the storm the temperatures, all the snow, has brought power demand higher in Texas than it's ever, ever been - even close during the winter - we're using electricity at a rate that Texas uses it in the summer time when we're pumping all our air conditioners.

'I know there were certainly efforts to plan, and then we saw some events when the storm blew in that made it a lot more challenging.'

Last night, Governor Abbott fumed that the blame lies with ERCOT and that an investigation must be launched.

'The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has been anything but reliable over the past 48 hours... Far too many Texans are without power and heat for their homes as our state faces freezing temperatures and severe winter weather. This is unacceptable,' Abbott said.

He has been criticized for seeming to sidestep the crisis.

'You can always count on Greg Abbott to pass the buck when he fails,' Julian Castro, the Mayor of San Antonio, tweeted.

HOUSTON: Karla Perez and Esperanza Gonzalez warm up by a barbecue grill during power outage caused by the winter storm on February 16, 2021 in Houston, Texas

HOUSTON: Bryan Mejia and Elias Mejia try to connect power cable to a car battery to change their smartphones during power outage caused by the winter storm on February 16, 2021 in Houston, Texas

A man walks to his friend's home in a neighborhood without electricity as snow covers the BlackHawk neighborhood in Pflugerville, Texas

Texas' perfect storm: How the Lone Star state's independent electric grid, shoddy winter infrastructure and 'wild west' approach to energy regulation left millions in the cold

Millions of people in Texas awoke on Wednesday without heat again, as catastrophic power failures continued to plague the state following a historic winter storm that has killed 23 people so far.

A week of below-freezing temperatures has knocked about a third of the state's generating capacity offline, resulting in the greatest forced blackout in U.S. history and exposing the weaknesses of Texas' unique approach to power grid management.

Experts blame Texas' independent energy grid, which avoids regulation in favor of market incentives, for allowing generators to shirk preparations for a once-in-a-decade winter storm.

Texas is the only contiguous state with its own power grid, meaning it is not linked to other states and so cannot borrow power from them.

It's a 'Wild West market design based only on short-run prices,' Matt Breidert, a portfolio manager at a firm called TortoiseEcofin, told the Washington Post.

Nearly 3 million people in Texas were without power early Wednesday, including 1.4 million people in the Houston metropolitan area. A quarter of homes in Dallas were dark.

Though some have blamed the catastrophe on frozen wind turbines, the power grid in Texas relies heavily on natural gas, responsible for nearly half the electricity generated.

Alone among the contiguous states, Texas maintains its own power grid that does not cross state lines, in order to avoid federal regulation. It is called the Texas Interconnection

Wind shutdowns accounted less than 13 percent of the 30 to 35 gigawatts of total outages, said Dan Woodfin, a senior director at the state's grid operator.

Poor winter infrastructure in Texas has brought the natural gas system grinding to a halt, with drilling fluid freezing in gas pipes, frozen wellheads unable to produce, and diesel-fueled pumps refusing to start.

Even coal plants went offline as coal piles were frozen to the ground, and one of the two reactors of the South Texas Nuclear Power Station had to be shut down after the cooling pumps froze.

While similar facilities in the Northern states are equipped to handle extended temperatures below freezing, Texas, which hasn't experienced a similar cold snap in a decade, simply didn't have the infrastructure in place to weather the storm.

As the state's electrical supply plunged, demand soared to levels normally only seen during the hottest summer days. Texans, many in poorly insulated homes, were trying desperately to keep warm, plugging in electric heaters and cranking up their thermostats.

The result was an epic crisis of supply unable to meet demand. In other states, broad regional power grids allow states to tap into their neighbors' generating supply during a crisis, but Texas is unique.

Alone among the contiguous states, Texas maintains its own power grid that does not cross state lines, in order to avoid federal regulation.

Called the Texas Interconnection, the grid is managed by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) -- the system operator that has faced heavy backlash for the planning failures that led to the catastrophe.

Even as its own projections showed a crisis in the making last week, ERCOT has been accused of downplaying the issue and failing to properly warn Texans of impending widespread outages.

On Monday, ERCOT sent out a tweet urging people not to do laundry on Valentine's Day to conserve energy -- a measure some viewed as inadequate in proportion to the crisis.

People seeking shelter from below freezing temperatures rest inside a church warming center Tuesday in Houston. Millions in Texas still had no power on Wednesday

ERCOT officials still can't say when power will be restored. 'I know it's frustrating we can't offer a time certain, but it's a process we're engaged in to get the grid back in balance,' ERCOT chief executive officer Bill Magness said during a news conference Tuesday.

Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston, said the problem was a lack of weatherized power plants and a statewide energy market that doesn't incentivize companies to generate electricity when demand is low.

In Texas, demand peaks in August, at the height of the state's sweltering summers.

He rejected that the storm went beyond what ERCOT could have anticipated.

'That's nonsense. It's not acceptable,' Hirs said. 'Every eight to 10 years we have really bad winters. This is not a surprise.'

The outages are the widest Texas' grid has suffered but hardly a first in winter.

A decade ago, another deep February freeze created power shortages in Texas the same week the Super Bowl was played in Arlington. A federal report later flagged failures in the system, including power plants that are unable to stand up to extreme cold.

The latest breakdown sparked growing outrage and demands for answers over how Texas - whose Republican leaders as recently as last year taunted California over the Democratic-led state's rolling blackouts - failed such a massive test of a major point of state pride: energy independence.

And it cut through politics, as fuming Texans took to social media to highlight how while their neighborhoods froze in the dark Monday night, downtown skylines glowed despite desperate calls to conserve energy.

'We are very angry. I was checking on my neighbor, shes angry, too,' said Amber Nichols, whose north Austin home has had no power since early Monday. 'Were all angry because there is no reason to leave entire neighborhoods freezing to death.'

She crunched through ice wearing a parka and galoshes, while her neighbors dug out their driveways from six inches of snow to move their cars.

'This is a complete bungle,' she said.

The toll of the outages was causing increasing worry. Harris County emergency officials reported 'several carbon monoxide deaths' in or around Houston and reminded people not to operate cars or gasoline-powered generators indoors.

Authorities said three young children and their grandmother, who were believed to be trying to keep warm, also died in a suburban Houston house fire early Tuesday.

In Galveston, the medical examiner's office requested a refrigerated truck to expand body storage, although County Judge Mark Henry said he didn't know how many deaths there had been related to the weather.

Republican Governor Greg Abbott called for an investigation of the grid manager, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. His indignation struck a much different tone than just a day earlier, when he told Texans that ERCOT was prioritizing residential customers and that power was getting restored to hundreds of thousands of homes.

But hours after those assurances, the number of outages in Texas only rose, at one point exceeding 4 million customers. 'This is unacceptable,' Abbott said.

By late Tuesday afternoon, ERCOT officials said some power had been restored, but they warned that even those gains were fragile and more outages were possible.

The grid began preparing for the storm a week ahead of time, but it reached a breaking point early Monday as conditions worsened and knocked power plants offline, ERCOT president Bill Magness said.

Some wind turbine generators were iced, but nearly twice as much power was wiped out at natural gas and coal plants. Forcing controlled outages was the only way to avert an even more dire blackout in Texas, Magness said.

'What we're protecting against is worse,' he claimed.

On Tuesday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said Texas had requested 60 generators and that hospitals and nursing homes would get priority.

Thirty-five warming shelters were opened to accommodate more than 1,000 people around the state, FEMA said during a briefing. But even they weren't spared from the outages, as Houston was forced to close two on Monday because of a loss in power.
NEW DELHI: In a peculiar incident, South Delhi Municipal Corporation has been sending out a bizarre message to the residents. The message reads, Your request for Death Registration has been approved with a link below which directed the users to the civic bodys website.

When you are busy completing your daily chores and you suddenly get a message regarding death registration, wouldnt you be shaken! said 56-year-old Vinod Sharma.

This incident came to light on Thursday (February 18) after Sharma reported it to the authorities.

I didnt even touch the link. Here I am alive and healthy. No one in my family has passed away either. Nobody has applied for such a certificate and SDMC is sending us a death certificate,  he added.

Vinod Sharma was scared and deleted the message and immediately reported it to the corporation councillor of the locality. I received the message a month ago. I panicked after reading it and brought it to my counselors attention, he revealed.

While investigating the issue, the authorities got to know that Vinod wasnt the only one, another resident Rohit Bainsla has also received the same message.

Rohit's father Rajpal Bainsla died in December 2020, after which Rohit applied for the registration of his death certificate. But their registration was cancelled by the SDMC.

I was applying for my father's death certificate. Four times, and on February 16, the message came that -"Your request for Death has been approved" - what a joke it is, exclaimed Rohit.

After the entire issue came to the fore, the corporation councillor ved Pal Lohia of the city raised it in the House of SDMC.

I have come to my notice that people are getting such messages. I have raised this point in the House meeting on Monday. You do not expect the government to come to such bad English messages, said Vepal Lohia, Corporate Councillor, Aya Nagar Delhi.

Meanwhile, SDMC has realised the glitch in the system and revealed that this happened durto some technical fault which will be corrected within the next 15 days.

The matter has come to my notice and I have also spoken to the officials. Some people have come to such messages. Now, the government's new company NIC is looking into it. All things will be corrected within the next 15 days, said Narendra Chawla, Leader House, SDMC.
By Ritah Kemigisa

The State Minister for Labor Mwesigwa Rukutana has revealed that government has no money to repatriate stranded Ugandan migrant workers stuck in Saudi Arabia.

In his statement, Rukutana revealed that Ugandas embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is currently cash strapped to even accommodate about 43 stranded Ugandans.

He however says they agreed with labor recruitment companies to have the stranded people repatriated but admits that the process is taking longer than anticipated.

Speaker Rebecca Kadaga has meanwhile appealed to the government to accept that there arent enough jobs in Uganda, and take up labor exportation as one of its mandates.

She however says many Ugandans continue to suffer at the hands of individuals and some improper labor recruitment companies.

Legislators have meanwhile expressed concern with the manner in which the Labor recruitment companies operate in Uganda noting that many Ugandans continue to suffer at the hands of the said companies.
On February 18, on the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ukraine and the Republic of Croatia, Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yevhen Enin took part in the inauguration of the Honorary Consulate of Croatia in Ivano-Frankivsk, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine reported.

"Croatia has always resolutely supported and supports the European and Euro-Atlantic aspirations of Ukraine, categorically condemns Russian aggression against Ukraine, helps restore the territorial integrity and sovereignty of our state. We highly appreciate this," the Foreign Ministry," the press service quoted Enin as saying on Thursday.

The Deputy Minister stressed that the Ukrainian and Croatian peoples are united by long-standing traditions of friendship and mutual respect. According to him, the Honorary Consulate of Croatia in Ivano-Frankovsk will contribute to the deepening of mutually beneficial relations between Ukraine and Croatia in the spheres of trade, investment, tourism, culture, education and science.

The diplomat expressed confidence that, thanks to the active work of honorary consul Vitaliy Zapukhliak, Ukraine and Croatia will have the opportunity to increase the volume of bilateral trade and attract new investments.
President Joe Biden unveiled his immigration plan on Thursday, a proposal that offers one of the fastest pathways to citizenship of any measure in recent years.

However, the plan doesn't contain any details on enhanced border security, which past measures have included as a way to win Republican votes.

Congressional Democrats released the legislation Thursday on Capitol Hill. And, although their party controls Congress, with a 50-50 tie in the Senate it will be a tough slog for Biden's plan, which will provide a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States.

Biden tapped the children of immigrants take the lead in Congress. The legislation's main sponsors are Democratic Rep. Linda Sanchez of California, the sixth of seven children raised by Mexican immigrants, and Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey, the son of Cuban immigrants.

'We have an economic and moral imperative to pass big, bold and inclusive immigration reform,' said Menendez said in unveiling the 353-page legislation.

Menendez said Democrats have failed in the past because they have too quickly given in 'to fringe voices who have refused to accept the humanity and contributions of immigrants to our country and dismiss everything, no matter how significant it is in terms of the national security, as amnesty.'

He noted he's been speaking to Republican colleagues in an effort toward 'putting the pieces of a puzzle together' on a bill that would receive enough votes to pass. He acknowledged the final product is likely to change significantly. But he also suggested that elements of the proposal could be included through a parliamentary maneuver in a budget bill that would only require 51 votes.

Sanchez pointed out the bill also addresses the 'root causes' of immigration.

'Our border policy is broken, period,' Sanchez said. 'But this bill employs a multipronged approach that will manage the border, address the root causes of migration crack down on bad actors and create safe and legal channels for those who are seeking protection.'

Biden said in a statement Thursday that immigration reform is 'long overdue.'

'The legislation I sent to Congress will bring about much needed change to an immigration system where reform is long overdue,' he said.

'These are not Democratic or Republican priorities  but American ones.'

Biden tapped the children of immigrants take the lead in Congress: the legislation's sponsors are Democratic Rep. Linda Sanchez of California, the sixth of seven children raised by Mexican immigrants, and Democratic Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey, the son of Cuban immigrants.

President Joe Biden will unveil his immigration plan on Thursday, a proposal that offers one of the fastest pathways to citizenship of any measure in recent years

Key points in immigration bill Immediately provide green cards to farm workers, immigrants with temporary protected status and young people who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children, the so-called Dreamers A five-year path to temporary legal status for others. If they pass background checks, pay taxes and fulfill other basic requirements, then, after three years, they can pursue citizenship Raise the current per-country caps for family and employment-based immigrant visas Eliminate the penalty barring those immigrants who live in the U.S. without authorization Replace the word 'alien' with 'noncitizen' in law More resources for judges Expand transnational anti-drug task forces in Central America Enhance technology at the border Set up refugee processing in Central America $4 billion over four years to Latin American countries to address root causes of immigration Advertisement

At his town hall meeting with CNN on Tuesday, Biden made a gaffe when he said most of those on his fast-track to citizenship are not Hispanic.

'The vast majority of the people, those 11 million undocumented, they're not Hispanics; they're people who came on a visa -- who was able to buy a ticket to get in a plane, and didn't go home,' the president said.

'They didn't come across the Rio Grande swimming,' he added to laughter from the audience. 'Sorry, that's the Irish in me.'

The largest percentage of undocumented immigrants come from Mexico, according to the Pew Research Center.

In 2018, roughly 11.2 million immigrants living in the U.S. were from there, accounting for 25% of all U.S. immigrants. The next largest origin groups were those from China (6%), India (6%), the Philippines (4%) and El Salvador (3%).

The 'U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021' will reflect Biden's immigration priorities, including expanding the refugee resettlement program and deploying more technology to the Southern border.

The bill Democrats introduced Thursday would immediately provide green cards to farm workers, immigrants with temporary protected status and young people who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children. For others living in the U.S. as of Jan. 1, 2021, the plan establishes a five-year path to temporary legal status. If they pass background checks, pay taxes and fulfill other basic requirements, then, after three years, they can pursue citizenship.

The plan also would raise the current per-country caps for family and employment-based immigrant visas. It would eliminate the penalty barring those immigrants who live in the U.S. without authorization and who then leave the country from returning for three to 10 years. It also would provide resources for more judges, support staff and technology to address the backlog in processing asylum seekers.

The bill would expand transnational anti-drug task forces in Central America and enhance technology at the border. And it would set up refugee processing in Central America, to try to prevent some of the immigrant caravans that have overwhelmed border security in recent years.

The plan includes $4 billion spread over four years to try to boost economic development and tackle corruption in Latin American countries, to lessen pressure for migration to the U.S.

'He's just looking forward to having a bill to sign at his desk,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said of Biden at her press briefing on Thursday.

The bill contains no provisions on enhanced border security, which will make it a tough sell to Republicans on Capitol Hill - above migrants at the U.S. Mexico border flee agents

Biden's provides an immediate pathway to citizenship for farmworkers, DACA recipients, and Temporary Protected Status holder - above a citizenship ceremony in New York

At his town hall meeting with CNN on Tuesday, Biden made a gaffe when he said most of those on his fast-track to citizenship are not Hispanic

Comprehensive immigration reform has struggled to gain traction in Congress for decades.

Menendez was part of the bipartisan Gang of Eight senators who negotiated a 2013 immigration reform bill that ultimately collapsed. Prior to that, a bill backed by President George W. Bush failed in Congress as well, after multiple attempts at compromise.

While Biden is pushing a comprehensive bill, he suggested earlier this week he may be open to a more piecemeal approach.

During the CNN town hall Tuesday night, Biden said that while a pathway to citizenship would be essential in any immigration bill, 'theres things I would deal by itself.'

That could leave the door open to standalone bills focused on providing a pathway to citizenship for various populations.

Still, publicly the White House is emphasizing that its goal is a comprehensive plan.

'The president feels that all of these requirements that are in the bill - these components of the bill - are what makes it comprehensive,' Psaki said this week. 'They all need to be addressed. Thats why he proposed them together.'
The Xiaomi Mi 11 5G was unveiled last week but Xiaomi Malaysia was quiet about the local release until today. At 11 AM today, the company finally broke the silence and will officially launch the phone on 25 February 2021 in Malaysia.

As usual, the launch event will be on livestream via Xiaomi Malaysia Facebook page. If you're interested, it will start at 8 PM or you can just wait for our news coverage by then. To recap the tech specs, it features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset, 8GB + 256GB memory capacity, a 6.81-inch WQHD+ 120Hz display and a 4600mAh battery with 55W fast charging technology.

For the camera, it has a triple rear camera setup that consists of 108MP (main) + 13MP (ultrawide) + 5MP (telemacro). Xiaomi Malaysia is probably going to include a 55W GaN fast charger inside the box, as they are providing an option for users to buy with or without it. It also works for charging laptops and other devices.

Are you looking forward to the Xiaomi Mi 11? Let us know in the comments below and stay tuned for more trending tech news at TechNave.com.
Giving Voice to Digital Identities Worldwide explores the use cases, governance, technological choices and go-to-market strategies of 25 government ID programs around the world

Download the new report here: https://secureidentityalliance.org/utilities/news-en/entry/giving-voice-to-digital-identities-worldwide-1-1

PARIS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- With digital identity gaining considerable momentum, Secure Identity Alliance today publishes Giving Voice to Digital Identities Worldwide, a new report charting the current state of government-led identity projects across the globe.

Developed in association with onepoint (www.groupeonepoint.com), and featuring insights from 25 government agencies, the report paints a compelling picture of the value of ID-based digital services in the social and economic lives of countries around the world.

Highlighting examples of best practice and uncovering lessons learned from real-life deployments, the report illustrates the wide-ranging uses of digital and mobile identity - from supporting victims of domestic violence, through civil registration to securing access to online government services with facial recognition.

Uncovering insights for ID-based digital service design, planning and delivery.

Of particular interest to governments, Giving Voice to Digital Identities Worldwide does more than simply report on programs, as co-author Yannick Ragonneau, Partner at onepoint explains:

"We wanted to understand government programmes' unique design and deployment challenges, the individual success factors and, with multiple paths to delivering Digital ID, why they chose their particular route forward. This approach offers a much richer source of insight for both public and private organizations."

Technical evolution, a wider acceptance of digital services and the impact of the global pandemic have combined to create what Philippe Barreau, Chairman of the Secure Identity Alliance, describes as a "tipping point."

"We are seeing a range of societal, economic and technological forces colliding to drive a new era of innovative trusted ID services - redefining how people interact with both public authorities and the private sector. But, as the report findings suggest, delivering on this promise requires ID schemes are trusted, inclusive and built on a robust digital identity framework."

Discussing the report at the festival of Identity.

On 18 February 2021, government representatives from Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Italy and Portugal discussed the report findings, common themes and the guiding principles proving critical for digital and mobile ID driving usage, adoption and success. Watch here: https://secureidentityalliance.org/news-events/events/entry/giving-voice-to-digital-identities-worldwide.

About the Secure Identity Alliance

Secure Identity Alliance is dedicated to supporting the provision of legal, trusted identity for all, and to drive the development of inclusive digital services necessary for sustainable, worldwide economic growth and prosperity.

We believe legal, trusted identity is the cornerstone of rights protection, social inclusion and digital economic development - and the access point to a wide range of essential public and private services.

We bring together public, private and non-government organizations to foster international collaboration on the issues of legal and digital identity, to help shaping policy and to provide technical and implementation guidance for identity systems.

Its Board Members are IDEMIA, IN Groupe, Thales and Veridos.

For more information on the Secure Identity Alliance, visit: www.secureidentityalliance.org.

Follow us on Twitter at @secureidentity1.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1440599/Secure_Identity_Alliance.jpg
Soon after Carrol Anderson lost power in his Crosby home earlier this week, his oxygen machine stopped working. He had asked his provider for more tanks the previous week but didnt get any before harsh winter conditions set in. The 75-year old Vietnam War veteran turned to two small bottles of oxygen he had, but his supply quickly depleted.

With no firewood left and temperatures plummeting, Anderson turned to his last resort to breathe: A small portable oxygen tank he kept in his truck.

It was 19 degrees outside. He died in his truck Tuesday.

He shouldnt have had to die because he couldnt breathe because we didnt have power, said Gloria Anderson, Carrols wife of 30 years, through tears in a telephone interview.

Andersons death was one of four deaths caused by hypothermia that Harris County authorities announced on Thursday. Two people, Jimmie Gloud and Mary Gee, died at their Houston homes. A man was also found dead early Thursday in a parking lot in the northern part of Harris County, a fatality also attributed to the cold weather.

As temperatures rose and the Houston region began to thaw after several days of sub-freezing temperatures, the number of reported local deaths related to cold weather doubled on Thursday, bringing the toll of the crisis into sharper focus.

In addition to the Harris County deaths, Galveston and Brazoria counties reported nine fatalities, bringing the number in the area who are believed to have died in weather-related incidents to 25. That several people were found dead from hypothermia inside their homes underscored how the extreme frigid weather since Monday combined with massive power outages had created unusually severe conditions. Temperatures were expected to drop into the 20s overnight before climbing into the mid-40s on Friday.

The weather is not just cold, its deadly, said Ed Gonzalez, the Harris County sheriff.

Death toll uncertainty

The spate of weather-related deaths incensed Galveston County Judge Mark Henry, who called for the district attorney to open an investigation, speculating that the body count is larger than what has been reported.

Earlier in the week, Henry received a request from the county medical examiner's office for temporary storage for 20 to 50 bodies that it did not normally have capacity for.

I just want to make sure that there's someone to file a complaint to get the process started to have an investigation about people who died that shouldn't have, Henry said.

Of the seven dead in Galveston County, two victims, a 50-year old Hitchcock man and an 88-year old Bacliff woman, died from cold exposure on Tuesday. A 70-year old Santa Fe man was also found dead on Tuesday, from suspected carbon monoxide poisoning.

Four additional Galveston County deaths were possibly related to cold weather exposure, pending autopsies. A 62-year old Galveston man was found dead on Monday. On Tuesday, authorities recovered three bodies: an 85-year old Dickinson woman; an 89-year old Hitchock woman; and a 62-year old Santa Fe man.

Henry Trochesset, the Galveston County sheriff, had said on Tuesday alone his deputies responded to five deaths in unincorporated parts of the county, all from residents who died in their homes.

We had a couple of calls where my dispatch said their oxygen levels dropped or ran out, Trochesset said, adding that several of the deaths that his deputies responded to hadnt been reported yet.

The medical examiners office also reported two deaths from Brazoria County. A 39-year old Angleton woman died Wednesday from possible cold exposure. And a 72-year old Pearland man was found dead on Saturday from possible carbon monoxide poisoning.

Indoor hypothermia deaths rare

Medical experts say the cluster of hypothermia deaths involving people found inside is highly unusual. Hypothermia occurs when a persons body temperature drops below 95 degrees. However, it starts to become more dangerous at 89 degrees

Dr. Christopher Langan, vice president and chief medical officer at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Medical Center and Memorial Hermann Northeast Hospital, said in extreme cases, hypothermia or low body temperature can cause issues with a persons heart and abnormal heart rhythms that can lead to death.

Thats when you start becoming confused and then your body also loses the ability to shiver, Langan said.

When a persons core body temperature drops to 82 degrees, he or she can become unconscious and go into cardiac arrest, Langan said.

If youre inside, you have that shelter, you're blocked from wind and the wind chill, usually people are doing better that way, said Langan. Obviously, people that are homeless, for example, or if theyve had an event outside that leaves them with the inability to get back inside, those are the ones that are really quite at risk.

In addition to layering up inside, Langan also advised people to avoid drinking alcohol and not overexert themselves, which can lead to sweating  causing the body to cool down even more. He advises people to call 911 if someones mental status changes.

Carbon monoxide deaths are becoming more frequent as well in cold weather, as people rely on gas generators to power their homes and vehicles to charge devices.

Etenesh Mersha and her 7-year old daughter were found dead Monday, likely of carbon monoxide poisoning, after she ran her car in the garage of her familys west Houston home to charge a cell phone, according to authorities and a relative.

Mershas husband, Ato Shalemu Bekele, collapsed from carbon monoxide exposure while attempting to aid his wife. Bekele and the couples son were taken to the hospital in critical condition. Bekele was discharged Thursday but his son remained in the hospital.

Its very hard to bear this, said Negash Desta, a relative of Mershas

Pain of loss

For Gloria Anderson, the pain of losing her life partner is compounded by how easily it could have been avoided had power outages not forced him into sub-freezing temperatures to find an oxygen tank.

Carrol Anderson worked for the Port Terminal Railroad Association for 36 years. The two met at a video store where Gloria worked that Anderson frequented, checking out western films and Bruce Willis-type action movies like Die Hard. She said he was a caring man who loved his daughter and grandson to pieces.

Instead she stayed with Carrols body in the bitter cold for hours waiting for authorities to arrive and carry him away.

I mean we are not spring chickens but there was no reason for this, Anderson said.

nick.powell@chron.com

Of the many depressing aspects of the Jan. 6 insurrection, one that stands out is how almost 20 percent of the rioters charged in the storming of the Capitol were veterans or active-duty military members, according to news reports.

The insurrection was a national tragedy, but it compounds the sorrow when the people who swore to protect our country were involved in defiling it. This juxtaposition between duty and betrayal is staggering, indicating how far the nation has plunged from the ideals that inspired the Founding Fathers.

Of the more than 140 individuals facing charges for the riot on Jan. 6, 27 are veterans or active-duty members, including two off-duty Virginia police officers, according to NPR.

Some were members of white supremacist groups, including the Proud Boys, the organization ex-President Donald Trump told to stand back and stand by during one of the presidential debates. As we all know, intended or not, those words became a rallying cry.

Such overrepresentation of those with military backgrounds in the insurrection raises larger concerns about extremism in the military ranks and how to root it out.

The military service will have to take a hard look at this, retired Army Lt. Gen. David Barno told CNN. The fact that there were officers (at the Capitol siege) is jarring and shocking and appalling. And even if that was a small number of people, the question is how much of a tip of the iceberg is that.

The involvement of current and former service members in the insurrection speaks to a broader problem in the military. More than half of minority service members, according to a poll released by the Military Times in 2019, witnessed instances of white supremacy. Officials, including top brass, are aware of the problem.

Last year, three veterans were charged with terrorism and felony conspiracy in Nevada. FBI agents found a large cache of weapons in their homes. They intended to use them against Black Lives Matters protesters in Las Vegas, according to USA Today.

What weve seen too often is that this kind of ideological militancy is allowed to exist in the military, former FBI agent Michael German, now a fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice, told CNN. And there isnt enough effort to root it out and to actually paint it as what it is  an anti-democratic movement thats a threat to our security.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the first Black to hold that position, was acutely aware of the problem, but it hit home after the attack on the Capitol. He took office less than two weeks after the siege, which dramatized the insidious nature of hostility that is allowed to fester. It grew into a giant cauldron of hate and brutality.

(The Pentagons job) is to keep America safe from our enemies, he told the Senate Armed Services Committee. But we cant do that if some of those enemies lie within our own ranks.

In 1995, when he was serving with the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C., three white soldiers were arrested in the murder of a Black couple walking down the streets. They were targeted, investigators concluded, because of their race. In a subsequent investigation, 22 soldiers were linked to white supremacist groups.

We discovered that the signs for that activity were there all along, Austin said. We just didnt know what to look for or what to pay attention to.

That naivete is gone, shattered by the grotesque violence at the Capitol. We cannot defend our country when some of those who wear the uniform will assault democracy. The question, now, is how to address this contradiction.

Training is one answer, but perhaps more crucial is robust vetting that can root out individuals before or after their entry into the military. We saw the efficacy of this method before Inauguration Day. We must recruit service members who view their fellow Americans as allies, not enemies; who recognize the dangers of misinformation and understand that political disagreement is part of a healthy democracy. Our future depends on it.
Digital health plays a critical role in advancing how clinical research should be done, and this is an important step in assessing how new approaches in digital health can lead to new ways to evaluate serious health conditions.

Limbix, the leader in the development of prescription digital therapeutics for the treatment of adolescent mental health disorders, has been awarded a Fast Track Phase I/II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant providing up to $3.6M from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The grant will support a large-scale pivotal clinical trial conducted in partnership with the Duke Clinical Research Institute to evaluate the efficacy and safety of the companys flagship product, Limbix Spark, which was developed to treat adolescent depression.

There is an urgent need to increase access to mental health treatment for adolescents experiencing depression. Limbix Spark is a self-guided, cognitive behavioral therapy-based program developed with clinical experts and direct input from teens. By positioning Limbix Spark as a treatment to be prescribed by pediatricians, the mobile program has the potential to reach the 60% of teens with depression today who do not receive care. If cleared by the FDA, Limbix Spark would be the first prescription digital therapeutic designed to treat adolescents with depression.

Adolescent depression is currently an overshadowed epidemic. With rising incidence rates, long waitlists to see mental health professionals, and few clinically effective options available to teens, we need new solutions to help teens who are suffering. This SBIR grant will allow Limbix to rigorously evaluate the safety and effectiveness of Limbix Spark in a double-blind, randomized controlled trial. We are grateful for the opportunity to meet this challenge and help pediatricians better serve their patients, said Jessica Lake, PhD, Director of Science & Innovation at Limbix and Principal Investigator for the three-year grant project period.

Limbix has partnered with the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI), the worlds largest academic research organization and a leader in the advancement of digital health technologies, to conduct its clinical trial. Scott Kollins, PhD, the co-director of DCRI Digital Health Solutions, will serve as the principal investigator of the Limbix Spark pivotal trial, which is scheduled to begin recruitment later this year.

We are pleased to partner with innovators who are pursuing a regulatory pathway for solutions that will accelerate improved health outcomes, said Eric Perakslis, PhD, DCRIs Chief Science & Digital Officer. The DCRI is uniquely positioned to partner with Limbix on its small business for innovation grant to evaluate how a digital platform might accelerate improved outcomes for adolescents with depression. Digital health plays a critical role in advancing how clinical research should be done, and this is an important step in assessing how new approaches in digital health can lead to new ways to evaluate serious health conditions.

About Limbix:

Limbix is a prescription digital therapeutic company passionate about creating mental health treatments for adolescents. The Limbix team is uniquely suited to develop prescription digital therapeutics, as its diverse team of clinicians, product designers, researchers, and engineers understand the value of pairing clinical expertise with technological innovation. Limbix is headquartered in San Francisco, California. For more information visit limbix.com.

About Duke Clinical Research Institute:

The DCRI, part of the Duke University School of Medicine, is the largest academic clinical research organization in the world. Our mission is to develop, share, and implement knowledge that improves global health through innovative clinical research. The institute conducts multinational clinical trials, manages major national patient registries, and performs landmark outcomes research. The DCRI is a pioneer in cardiovascular and pediatric clinical research, and conducts groundbreaking clinical research across multiple other therapeutic areas, including infectious disease, neuroscience, respiratory medicine, and nephrology. The DCRI serves as the coordinating center for major clinical research programs, such as the Environmental Influences On Child Health (ECHO) program, the Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group (ARLG), the NIH Health Care Systems Research Collaboratory, and the Pediatric Trials Network (PTN).

Website:

http://www.limbix.com

Social Media:

https://www.twitter.com/LimbixHealth

https://www.linkedin.com/company/limbix-health/

https://www.facebook.com/limbix.inc/
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
A Coupang Eats delivery worker delivers food by bicycle to customers in Seoul in this undated file photo / Courtesy of Coupang



By Kim Jae-heun



Coupang's push to go public on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), possibly as early as March, is raising jitters at Berlin-based Delivery Hero, which is preparing to grab a huge slice of Korea's burgeoning food delivery market by acquiring No.1-ranked Woowa Brothers.



What's at stake is the pole position in an intensifying race to be the top player in Korea's food delivery market, which was scaled at around $15 billion last year, coming in third after China and the United States according to market researcher Euromonitor.



Woowa Brothers operates Korea's largest food delivery service, Baedal Minjok (Baemin), which is in direct competition with Coupang Eats, a subsidiary of Coupang.



Last December, the German food delivery service firm decided to accept a conditional approval by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) conditional to sell No.2 food delivery service Yogiyo to gain approval to acquire Baemin.



Back then, Coupang Eats just started food deliveries and accounted for a mere 1 percent share of the domestic market. The antitrust watchdog viewed that Delivery Hero could end up monopolizing the market here by owning both Baemin and Yogiyo, whose combined share of the market surpassed 90 percent.



Market watchers did not expect Coupang Eats to grow so quickly and become a threat to Baemin.



"We knew we were going to face a challenge by a new competitor in this market. Big companies like Amazon or DoorDash with ample capital can implement aggressive marketing and boost their slice of the pie. We witnessed such cases overseas and it was our plan to do the same in the Korean market by merging with Woowa Brothers," a Delivery Hero official said.



"Of course we appealed this to the KFTC back in September or October of last year when the agency was reviewing our acquisition deal, but Coupang Eats displayed explosive growth after the antitrust watchdog made its decision at the end of last year, so our claim did not carry much weight."



According to market researcher Nielson Koreanclick, Baemin accounts for 58.7 percent of the Korean food delivery service market as of last September, followed by Yogiyo with 30 percent and Coupang Eats with 6.8 percent.



Coupang Eats still has a long way to catch up, even with Yogiyo, but industry watchers say it will only be a matter of time before Coupang successfully debuts on the NYSE and raises trillions of won in capital to fuel its expansion.



"There are rumors that Coupang is expected to raise over $1 billion through its initial public offering and we can surely think some of the money can be invested into building up its food delivery business," an industry source said.



Woowa Brothers and Delivery Hero reportedly spent 200 billion won in marketing recently to promote their food delivery platforms. Coupang Eats is believed to have invested a similar amount or even more.



This year, Coupang Eats plans to expand its service across the country. It has only been available in the capital area so far. Coupang Eats started its service in Daegu last Tuesday and will open in Gwangju on Friday. In the first half of this year, people will be able to use Coupang Eats in all cities in the southeastern Gyeongsang provinces, central Chungcheong provinces, mountainous Gangwon Province, southwestern Jeolla provinces and on Jeju Island.



Coupang Eats said its IPO plans remain in effect, but declined to comment further.


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Average COVID-19 deaths have finally fallen below 2,000 a day in the US, but historic winter storms and disappointing stocks of the the soon-to-be-approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine could slow progress toward ending the pandemic in the US.

Dr Anthony Fauci now says there will be vaccines for all Americans by July - just days after claiming April would be 'open season' for healthy adults to get the shot.

The chief medical adviser to the president had predicted that any American who wants the vaccine will have access to it by spring, telling NBC's 'Today Show': 'By the time we get to April, that will be what I would call, for better wording, 'open season'.

'Namely, virtually everybody and anybody in any category could start to get vaccinated.'

But he walked back on those claims early this week, saying it would likely be the end of May before shots were so widely available, and again on Wednesday, telling CNN: 'They will be available in July.' He then cautioned: 'It may take an additional couple monthstowards the end of the summer to get everybody vaccinated.'

Fauci added: 'How long it will take to vaccinate people will really depend on the efficiency with which we get doses into people's arms.'

About 57 million Americans have had one or more doses of vaccine, and about 15 million are now fully vaccinated. It's progress, but not yet a large enough share of the population to be driving down COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

Amid scandal over New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's alleged cover-up of nursing home deaths, the state that one bragged about its successful handling of the pandemic now has the nation's highest hospitalization rate, with 336 out of every million people there getting inpatient treatment or COVID-19.

Despite New York's troubles, vaccine bottlenecks and emerging variants, Covid numbers continue to fall, with average daily infections hitting their lowest level since October 27 and the average number of daily deaths falling to a low not seen since December 3, according to a DailyMail.com analysis of Johns Hopkins University data.

Wednesday saw US COVID-19 deaths tick back up to 2,459, but the seven-day rolling average number of deaths fell below 2,000 for the first time since December 3

Coronavirus infections have been on a steady and steep decline in the US for the past five weeks. On Wedesday, the US recorded 70,188 new cases

Daily fatalities hit a milestone low on February 16, when just 989 people died in a 24-hour period. Unfortunately, that figure was up Wednesday, to 2,459 deaths.

Currently, there are 63,398 Americans hospitalized for COVID-19 - the fewest since November 11.

Downward trends are being seen around the world, too, with new infections dropping 16 percent worldwide last week compared to the previous week, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Wednesday.

President Joe Biden had said Tuesday the vaccine will be available to every American 'by the end of July' with millions of additional doses on the way and predicted herd immunity may be achieved as early as Christmas.

Jeff Zients, White House COVID-19 response coordinator, had earlier said Wednesday: 'We are on track to have enough vaccine supply for 300 million Americans by the end of July.'

Dr Anthony Fauci now says there will be vaccines for all Americans by July - just days after claiming April would be 'open season' for healthy adults to get the shot. He told CNN: 'They will be available in July. It may take an additional couple months towards the end of the summer to get everybody vaccinated'

Since vaccine distribution began in the United States on December 14, more than 57 million doses have been administered, reaching 12.3% of the population, according to Data from Bloomberg

New York recorded the nations' highest per capita hospitalizations with 338 per million people. Its embattled Governor Andrew Cuomo is facing a investigation by the FBI and US Attorney's office in Brooklyn over claims his administration covered up coronavirus-related deaths in nursing homes.

The Democrat is under fire amid claims he purposely under-reported the COVID-19 death toll in the homes.

More than 27 million Americans have tested positive for the virus; 490,062 have died.

Dr. Anthony Fauci says vaccines will be available for all Americans by July but that the vaccination process will take longer.



"They will be available in July. It may take an additional couple months towards the end of the summer to get everybody vaccinated." pic.twitter.com/ZDP3MbY56H  Anderson Cooper 360 (@AC360) February 18, 2021

Moment Biden COVID adviser is UNABLE to explain why lockdown-loving California isn't doing better than open-all-hours Florida White House coronavirus adviser Andy Slavitt appeared stumped on Wednesday when asked to explain why California and Florida, which had very different methods of combating COVID-19, have similar trends in COVID-19 cases and deaths. Slavitt told MSNBC that the virus was still very unpredictable and 'a little bit beyond our explanation.' In California, a little more than 8.5% of the population has been infected; in Florida, it's a little less. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has put some of the strictest measures in place to combat the coronavirus pandemic - while Florida's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has done nearly the opposite. But both states saw massive post-holiday surges in infections, hospitalizations and deaths, raising questions over whether lockdowns were worthwhile. Advertisement

In getting the shot by spring Fauci had credited the forthcoming uptick in vaccine doses available from Pfizer and Moderna and potentially from other firms like Johnson & Johnson, whose vaccine is expected to be authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the coming weeks.

Conflicting information has come out the administration on the doses available and how they will be distributed among the population given the complicated logistics that the vaccine requires two doses, within three to four weeks of one another.

The administration has said repeatedly more doses are on the way.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday the administration will increase the vaccine supply to states to 13.5 million doses per week and send two million vaccine doses to local pharmacies this week.

In a town hall Tuesday Biden said: 'By the end of July, we'll have over 600 million doses - enough to vaccinate every single American.'

He claimed not enough vaccines were available when he took office on January 20th.

'We came into office there was only 50 million doses that are available,' he said. His administration has repeatedly criticized the Trump administration for not having enough doses of the vaccine or a plan in place to distribute it.

'I mean there was nothing in the refrigerator figuratively or literally speaking,' Biden said of vaccine availability when he took office.

Members of Biden's COVID response team are warning the White House that even July that may be unrealistic, two senior officials had told the Daily Beast.

Driving their less optimistic timelines for herd immunity are the potential fragility of the vaccine supply chain and the emergence of more infectious coronavirus variants, including two that may make vaccines less effective.

At the current clip, it will take about nine months for 75 percent of the population to get vaccinated, at which point the nation will likely have herd immunity that reduces the circulation of the virus low enough that unvaccinated people are unlikely to get infected.

But that is dependent upon how many doses Moderna and Pfizer can make of their authorized vaccines, though the supply could get a 100 million dose boost if Johnson & Johnson's one-dose shot is approved.

Data by The COVID Tracking Project shows there were 66,089 new cases of the virus Wednesday; the seven day rolling average is 77,567. A total of 63,398 people are currently hospitalized with the virus; the seven day rolling average is 67,916

New York recorded the nations' highest per capita hospitalizations with 338 per million people Wednesday

Biden also said, after cautioning he shouldn't predict things, that herd immunity could be reached by the holidays.

'They tell me be careful not to predict things that you don't know for certain what's going to happen because then you'll be held accountable. I get that. But let me tell you what I think based on all that I've learned,' he said.

Biden has longed talked about 100 million shots in the arm in his first 100 days as president.

Since vaccine distribution began in the United States on December 14, more than 52 million doses have been administered, reaching 11.5 per cent of the total population, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The U.S. is currently administering over 1.6 million shots a day. That number should rise to 1.9 million next week.

Biden announced last week his administration secured 200 million more doses of vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, enough to inoculate every American adult.

'We've now purchased enough vaccine supplies to vaccinate all Americans,' Biden said during a visit to the National Institutes of Health. 'Now we're working to get those vaccines into the arms of millions of people.'
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Founder Gus Rickette, 95 this August, and his daughter, CEO Charmaine Rickette, stand together in their Uncle Remus Saucy Fried Chicken restaurant Monday, Feb. 8, 2021, in the Austin neighborhood of Chicago. In 1969 Gus and his wife Mary opened the first Uncle Remus location in West Garfield Park. Later that year, they opened the restaurant at 5611 West Madison Street to offer customers their fried chicken and special sauce. This location is a staple in the Austin community. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)
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Bookended by towering stilettos and a guillotine-blade bob, Marla Grayson (Rosamund Pike) strides through I Care a Lot with the icy confidence of the inveterate fraud. Her racket is guardianship: identifying powerless retirees, having them falsely declared mentally incompetent and herself appointed their legal conservator.

A network of enablers  including an unscrupulous doctor and an oblivious judge  grease the grift as Marla and her personal and business partner (Eiza Gonzalez) happen upon Jennifer (Dianne Wiest). With a healthy nest egg and no apparent relatives, Jennifer is a cherry; and one chilling, all-too-believable sequence later, she has been secured in an assisted-living facility and her considerable assets liquidated. Marla, however, is about to discover she has messed with the wrong old lady.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : With Artificial Intelligence helping "biological materialism sneak in through the back door", the world is witnessing a real clash of civilisations with "the battle between algorithm and being" writes Rajiv Malhotra, one of the most respected venture capitalists of Silicon Valley and a former chairman of the powerful TiE Global, in this seminal deep dive into a phenomenon that is only partially visible, like an iceberg.

Lamentably however, most of India's leaders, public intellectuals, media personalities, policy makers, think tanks and authors are "ignoring the dangers" that lie ahead, "living securely in their comfort zones with like-minded peers", Malhotra, the founder of the Princeton-based Infinity Foundation that specialises in the field of civilisational studies, writes in "Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Power - 5 Battlegrounds" (Rupa).

Noting that China had created a vast ecosystem of domestic intellectual property in next generation technologies including AI, 5G, nanotechnology, robotics, Virtual/Augmented Reality, aerospace and biotechnology, Malhotra writes that all this while, "the brutal reality is that India's newly minted billionaires were shortsighted - the products of jugaad and selfishness. They achieved instant wealth but failed to anticipate global trends. They became intoxicated with their status as popular icons that were glorified by the media and the government" and even received Padma awards "because they built personal fortunes even though they made precious little contribution toward nation-building".

Until a decade ago, Malhotra notes, India's tech giants had a strong lead in software development, many private and corporate fortunes were made, and Indians were justifiably proud of their advantage.

"It was touted as the superpower status. However, the country squandered its lead and allowed China to surpass it in AI and related technologies. Consequently, India has become dependent on the US and others for the latest technology needed in AI," the author states.

Image Source: IANS News

Thus, while India may have recently clamped down on Chinese investments, this was more in retaliation for border tensions "and not a strategic shift in R&D emphasis. It is a defensive move that can at best prevent further Chinese investments to slow the spread of China's influence. But this by itself does nothing to upgrade the global competitiveness of India's products. The fact remains that while China is a major disruptor of the world order by using AI as a weapon, India is at the receiving end of this disruption and having to be reactive", Malhotra maintains.

Disruption, in fact, is what this 486-page tome, with an extensive reference section, is all about, as it lists the five battlegrounds of the future in an AI-driven world: Economy, industry, education and jobs; Geopolitics and military - USA, China and India; Moronization of the masses - bowing down to the digital deities, i.e., Google-devta, Twitter-devta and Facebook-devta; Loss of selfhood to artificial emotions and gratifications - this is the crash of civilisation; and Stress-testing the Indian Rashtra.

At the bottom line, it raises a troubling question: Is the world headed toward digital colonisation by the US and China? Quite obviously, this should be of immense concern to India.

To this end, the book is in two parts - the first dealing with the four battlegrounds in 255 pages in the first part and the second part, all of 138 pages, focusing on Battleground India.

"India cannot afford further delay in coming to terms with the fact that the control of most big data (the raw material required to develop machine understanding of human desires and their artificial manipulation) and deep learning is effectively in the hands of companies based in the US or China.

"Americans primarily own the software algorithms , data bases and operating platforms; the hardware is mostly Chinese. India is at the mercy of their technologies. And the foreign owners of the AI technology and digital platforms have no legal accountability in India, nor do they have the interests of Indians at heart to the same extent as their vested interests in their home countries." Regretfully, the book says, India's data policies "have been weak and have allowed the drain of its precious data assets. In some ways, India is slipping to become the world's largest digital colony with lifestyles, discourses and commerce controlled by foreign digital giants like Google, Facebook, Twitter, Netflix, Amazon and Flipkart. The foreign organisations maintain a lead of one generation of technology, and India is forever trying to catch up".

"This is causing social and political interventions in India with the use of AI-driven platforms whose strings are pulled and manipulated from abroad. Especially those who feel disenfranchised, or who are dysfunctional as productive members of society, are highly vulnerable to succumbing to AI-based digital platforms; such platforms offer feel-good free services in exchange for capturing their privacy and their agency," Malhotra writes.

Noting that the present conditions are a "playground for the breaking India forces" that he has discussed in his work over a quarter of a century, Malhotra adds: "Their foreign nexuses are well-funded and AI savvy, have experience in the use of technologies for creating social upheavals, and their machine learning systems have been using Indian big data to build and test psychological models for digital manipulation." India's fabric, the book says, "in its current state is fragile and demands an increasing amount of resource allocation merely to keep it from imploding. There is far too much reliance on soft power as the solution, but soft power is always contingent on hard power".

The lesson to be learned from the "Ramayana" and the "Mahabharata" is precisely this: Lord Ram failed to convince Ravana using all the soft power at his disposal but had to end up using hard power to defeat him. Likewise, Sri Krishna in the "Mahabharata" tries hard to use soft power arguments to win over Duryodhana, but eventually had to advocate the use of hard power to fight till the end.

"Therefore, even the avataras have needed hard power after being unsuccessful in producing the dharmic outcome with soft power alone. Indian spiritualists and political leaders should understand this and stop over-playing the soft power hand. It has made India society wooly-headed and lazy, and caused the kshatriyata to atrophy," Malhotra writes.

Still, all is not lost.

"I am presently writing a sequel to this book that gives concrete ideas for not merely catching up in AI innovation but also using India's special capabilities to leapfrog ahead by ten to twenty years. In many ways, this book is intended to prepare the ground for the way ahead," Malhotra concludes.

(Vishnu Makhijani can be reached at vishnu.makhijani@ians.in)

-- Syndicated from IANS
Every entrepreneur is curious about the lives of those who have managed to create large companies, but who would be willing to pay $175,000 (3,534,877.50 Mexican pesos) for a sheet with Steve Jobs' handwriting?

The Appe co-founder's job application was sold for $ 175,000 in 2018 and is now up for auction that closes on March 24 of this year.
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Britain slapped international sanctions on Burmese military leaders today as it condemned their military coup and demanded a return to civilian rule.

Dominic Raab announced punitive measures against the Army figures for human rights abuses while seizing power earlier this month and demanded the end of the 'the arbitrary detention of Aung San Suu Kyi'.

It came amid ongoing civil rights protests in Burma following the military takeover.

Ms Suu Kyi, whose party won the country's election last year, was deposed earlier this month and placed under arrest.

The military contends there was fraud in last year's election, which Ms Suu Kyi's party won in a landslide, and says it will hold power for a year before holding new elections.

Foreign Secretary Mr Raab said: 'The UK condemns the military coup and the arbitrary detention of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political figures.

'We, alongside our international allies will hold the Myanmar military to account for their violations of human rights and pursue justice for the Myanmar people.'

Dominic Raab announced punitive measures against the Army figures who seized power earlier this month and demanded end of the ' the arbitrary detention of Aung San Suu Kyi'.

Demonstrators have taken to the streets in recent days in defiance of an order banning gatherings of five or more people

Protesters have been holding placards with pictures of Ms Suu Kyi and demanding the return of democracy

The sanctions will be imposed on defence minister General Mya Tun Oo, home affairs minister Lt General Soe Htut and deputy home affairs minister Lt General Than Hlaing.

Britain said it would enforce immediate asset freezes and travel bans against the three.

The Foreign Office has also announced new work to stop UK businesses working with the Burmese military and measures to ensure aid is not diverted to the junta.

The state election commission found no evidence to support the claims of fraud made by the military.

Army chiefs says its takeover is legitimate under a 2008 constitution that was drafted under military rule and ensures it maintains ultimate control over the country.

Army chiefs says its takeover is legitimate under a 2008 constitution that was drafted under military rule and ensures it maintains ultimate control over the country

Demonstrators have taken to the streets in recent days in defiance of an order banning gatherings of five or more people, with protestors holding placards with pictures of Ms Suu Kyi and demanding the return of democracy.

Buddhist monks have demonstrated outside the UN's local office and on Monday in Mandalay, soldiers and police violently broke up a gathering of more than 1,000 protesters in front of the Myanmar Economic Bank.

They attacked the protesters with catapults and sticks, and police could be seen aiming guns into the air amid sounds that resembled gunfire.

Local media reported rubber bullets were fired into the crowd and that a few people were injured.

The government ordered internet access blocked on Sunday and Monday nights without giving a reason.
A gym worker from Brazil has shared her hotel quarantine journey after travelling from the 'red list' country to the UK yesterday.

Maria Eugenia Oliveira, 34, filmed as she waited at the airport, arrived at the hotel lobby and even offered a tour of her room at the Radisson Blu Edwardian Hotel in Heathrow.

The gym attendant, who is currently living in London, will spend ten days at the hotel following her arrival in the UK.

The new rules introduced on Monday mean people arriving in England must quarantine in a hotel for ten days at a cost of 1,750 if they have been to a country with a high Covid risk, such as Portugal or Brazil.

Maria Eugenia Oliveira, 34, filmed as she waited at the airport, arrived at the hotel lobby and even offered a tour of her room at the Radisson Blu

At Heathrow airport Ms Oliveira filmed the lines at the UK border as she revealed she had been separated from other travellers to wait for transportation to the hotel.

She told MailOnline: 'When we arrived at the airport, right from the beginning there was a person showing us where to go with a sign with the "red list countries".

'They were showing us where to go, all the way there were loads of people holding these signs and showing us where to go.

'So when you approach the border you can see that most people go the regular way, where everybody normally goes and then we were pointed to go all the other way around. There was not a big queue, there were just a few people in front of me.'

The gym attendant, who is currently living in London, will spend ten days at the hotel following her arrival in the UK

Once inside her room she filmed the bathroom and looked inside the wardrobe where she found an ironing board, iron, and a hairdryer

In a cupboard beneath the TV (right) she found supplies to make tea and coffee. Left, the ironing board

She said the staff working at the border were 'very kind, very relaxed, very polite' as she was asked for a form she had to fill in on the Government website, her negative coronavirus test result, passport and proof of right to live in the UK.

She added: 'He checked all my documents and asked to see the email reservation for my hotel. Then I was taken to get my luggage downstairs. There was always someone by my side.

'Then another person approached me with a UK border worker and asked for my hotel reservation, my passport and what was the purpose of my trip, how many days I had spent in Brazil and if I had anything to declare in my luggage.

'They asked me to have a seat and wait with others before being transferred to the hotel. In total it took two and a half hours between the time I landed and when I arrived at the hotel.'

Ms Oliveira filmed the moment she waited in the lobby of Heathrow Radisson Blu to be shown to her room.

Videos taken the following morning showed a breakfast of yogurt, fruit, porridge and juice had been provided

She also showed off the contents of a suitcase which held a fluffy dressing gown, a coffee machine and various snacks and bottles of alcohol

Other travellers could be seen waiting in front of her as the group was processed.

Once inside her room she filmed the bathroom and looked inside the wardrobe where she found an ironing board, iron, and a hairdryer.

In a cupboard beneath the TV she found supplies to make tea and coffee.

She said: 'There was 11 of us in total in the bus between the airport and the hotel, only one passenger was not coming from Brazil. We had to keep social distancing inside the bus as well so each one of us had one seat.

Anthony Pium, 30, from Leyton, East London, holds up his laptop to the window of his room at the Radisson Blu Edwardian hotel near London Heathrow Airport today, displaying a message to the media outside asking for legal help

'When we arrived at the hotel they asked us for our passports for check in. After that we were taken to a conference room, they gave us a paper with all the rules we would have to follow during the stay, wifi passcodes and all the menus for all the days we were going to stay here. So we have two options for breakfast, lunch and dinner, one of them is vegetarian.'

She said her room was 'quite nice' with a 'big wardrobe', adding: 'I have an iron, I have a hairdryer, my room has two single beds, a nice TV, a fridge, a kettle so I can make some coffee.

'Regarding hygiene, I have brought my own bodywash and toothpaste. Thank God I brought them  I havent asked actually - but I havent seen any. But I have towels and toilet paper and handwash provided.'

An exclusive video filmed by Mr Pium shows him being forced back into the Radisson Blu Hotel near Heathrow Airport today

Videos taken the following morning showed a breakfast of yogurt, fruit, porridge and juice had been provided.

What are the rules for entering Britain? You cannot enter the UK if you've been in or through a country on the banned travel list (known as the 'red list') in the last 10 days, unless you're British, Irish or you have the right to live in the UK

You must either quarantine where you're staying or in a managed quarantine hotel for 10 days

What you need to do depends on where you travel in the 10 days before you arrive - if you travel in or through a country on the banned travel list within 10 days, you must stay managed quarantine hotel; if not, you can quarantine at home

You need to provide your journey and contact details in the 48 hours before you arrive in the UK. You must do this by completing the online passenger locator form

You'll need to show proof that you've completed the form when you arrive at the UK border as well as proof of a negative PCR or antigen test taken three days before departure

You could be fined 500 when you arrive at the border if you cannot provide proof that you have had a negative coronavirus test

You do not need a test if you're travelling within the UK, the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey; from Ireland; from Ascension, Falkland Islands or St Helena; and children under 11 do not need a test

After arriving at a quarantine hotel you will be tested on days two and eight of your stay using a PCR test self-administered in your room

In Scotland, arrivals from all international destinations have to quarantine, even if they are not on the red list. Advertisement

She also showed off the contents of a suitcase which held a fluffy dressing gown, a coffee machine and various snacks and bottles of alcohol.

It comes after a British father-of-one tried to break out of a quarantine hotel near London Heathrow Airport this morning before going on hunger strike and claiming he was being held there 'under duress'.

Anthony Pium, 30, from Leyton, East London, was involved in an angry confrontation with security guards as he tried to force his way out of the Radisson Blu Edwardian hotel 'to get some fresh air'.

An exclusive video filmed by Mr Pium shows him being forced back into the hotel. Security guards surrounded him and pushed him back as he asked to be allowed out for some air and repeatedly told them to social distance.

Mr Pium today told MailOnline of his anguish of been detained at Heathrow last night, after he flew in from Sao Paulo, where he was working for his travel agency Sky Fly Travel. He said: 'I am being held under duress. I have not willingly signed any form that consents to me being held in quarantine at a hotel because of the Covid crisis.'

Mr Pium, who was photographed wearing a Gucci hat worth 240 and a 325 T-shirt from French luxury fashion house Balmain, added: 'The only reason I filled in the form was that I could be allowed back into Britain.

'They gave me this passenger locator form and I signed it with the words 'under duress' on it. They have tried to fine me 500 and told me that I have to pay 1750 for the hotel. But I haven't said yes to any of this.

'I just wanted to get back into the country, quarantine at home and see my son, who is eight, and I'm really missing him. I did give them my bank account, and have tried to take the 1,750 but it has been declined because that account only has 17 on it and that was my plan. I am so angry about all this.'

Meanwhile a YouGov poll found 90 per cent of Britons are in favour of the quarantine scheme, while 72 per cent thought the rules should apply to all arrivals, not just those from the 33 countries on the UK's 'red list'.
TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021, the leading provider of enterprise WordPress, has added Sophi.io , an artificial intelligence system by The Globe and Mail, to its prestigious Technology Partnership program. Sophi joins a small group of enterprise technology companies serving VIP clients, and is the first partner to provide AI-powered automated content curation in addition to their predictive analytics and paywall solutions.



"We're excited to welcome Sophi to the growing ecosystem of enterprise integrations available to WordPress VIP customers," said Nick Gernert, CEO of WordPress VIP. "Content is the heart of enterprise growth, and our partners are key players enabling publishers and marketers to create meaningful customer experiences with powerful storytelling tools."

WordPress VIP provides a fully managed WordPress cloud platform for scale, security, performance, and flexibility, as well as end-to-end guidance and hands-on support. Some of their enterprise clients include Capgemini, Facebook, Microsoft, and News Corp, among others.

Greg Doufas, CTO at the Globe and Mail, said "We're excited to bring Sophi to all WordPress VIP users. Content publishers are exactly who Sophi was developed for. This partnership will allow Sophi to transform the way content publishers do business, and how their readers are served their most valuable content - where and how they are most receptive to it. We look forward to a strong relationship with WordPress VIP."

The award-winning Sophi suite of solutions was developed by The Globe and Mail to help content publishers make important strategic and tactical decisions that transform their business. It is a suite of ML and NLP-powered tools that includes Sophi Automation for content curation, Sophi for Paywalls, and Sophi Analytics - a decision-support system for publishers.

Key criteria for technology partners include clear product expertise and innovative go-to-market strategies. VIP vets every partner to identify companies with a proven track record of successful and forward thinking implementations of WordPress integration at scale.

For more information about Sophi's partnership with WordPress VIP, please visit https://wpvip.com/partner/sophi.

About Sophi.io

Sophi.io) was developed by The Globe and Mail to help content publishers make important strategic and tactical decisions. It is a suite of AI-powered tools that includes Sophi Automation and Sophi for Paywalls as well as Sophi Analytics, a decision-support system for content publishers. Sophi is designed to improve the metrics that matter most to your business, such as subscriber retention and acquisition, engagement, recency, frequency and volume. Sophi also powers automated laydown of print newspapers and ePapers.

About WordPress VIP

WordPress VIP is the leading provider of enterprise WordPress. VIP's platform provides enterprise-grade digital marketing and publishing platforms with WordPress at their core. VIP supports flagship digital marketing platforms for some of the best-known brands, including Capgemini, Hachette Book Group, and Facebook. Our digital publishing clients span the media landscape, from focused outlets such as Quartz, TechCrunch, and FiveThirtyEight to some of the biggest publishers and sites in the world, like News Corp, Rolling Stone, and Abril.

With its unparalleled power, flexibility, and interoperability, WordPress is the best digital experience solution at scale. Together with VIP's expert support, best-in-class infrastructure, and exceptional partner network, it's an unbeatable combination.
The French Ministry for the Armed Forces renewed its confidence in Thales by selecting the Group as prime contractor for the development and deployment of the ground segment for the Syracuse IV system capacity expansion.

Thales will build on its extensive experience in military satellite systems integration in Europe and the Middle East to supply the end-to-end management system required for full interoperability, as well as nearly 200 ground terminals.

Thanks to the use of Thales's unique Modem 21 anti-jam technology, the French Forces will benefit from increased data rates and optimisation to guarantee sovereignty and information superiority, whatever their position on the globe.

Thales has been chosen by the French defence procurement agency (DGA) to lead a second part of the ground segment of the Syracuse IV satellite communications system for the French armed forces. The Group was selected to supply the satellites in 2015 and to lead the first increment of the ground segment in 2019. This second capacity increment will enhance the interoperable communications capabilities of the French Army, Navy and Air Force in terms of data rate, availability, threat resistance and end-to-end connectivity.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005759/en/

SATCOM antenna Getty Images

Military satellite communications are more critical than ever and more vulnerable to attack; they are at the heart of the battle for strategic independence across all areas of military invention. Maintaining connectivity is key to the armed forces' ability to share information of all types between command centres and units deployed on any type of mission, including coalition operations.

This crucial programme milestone will enhance the performance of the ground segment across all theatres of operation for the three branches of the French military. The Thales solution will decisive in meeting the capacity requirements of land, naval and air force programmes such as Scorpion, FREMM, FDI, Barracuda, aircraft carrier, or Rafale. It aims to increase tenfold the secure communication capabilities of fighting vehicles on the move, surface vessels, submarines, and now also aircrafts. The Thales technology guarantees roaming communications in both X- and Ka-band and fully exploits the multi-spot potential of High Throughput Satellite (HTS) technology.

All the ground terminals in the system will be able to make optimum use of the Syracuse IV constellation. Their full interconnection via new docking terminals will allow considerable increase in data rate by ensuring joint cooperation in theatres of operations and with command centres. They will also be compatible with third-party satellite resources, depending on the area of deployment, without compromising communications security.

To achieve this objective, Thales will leverage its high-level systems integration expertise, and in particular its highly secure Modem 21 transmission system, to guarantee the availability and confidentiality of all communications and provide protection from the full spectrum of threats with no impact on operational performance, which is key to retaining information superiority in high-intensity combat. Thales's NATO-standard Modem 21 solution has been proven in combat for over ten years.

The role of Thales Alenia Space in this contract will include mission management for the Syracuse constellation and management of the anchoring capabilities of the operator, the French Defence Ministry's joint infrastructure networks and information systems agency (DIRISI). Thales Alenia Space is also lead contractor for the contract notified by the DGA at the end of 2015 for the supply of the space segment consisting of the Syracuse 4A and 4B satellites and their control and mission ground segment.

Building on its expertise as a technology orchestrator and integrator for satellite communication systems in France and internationally, Thales has deployed over 1,000 secure, protected satcom stations worldwide, working with local industrial partners.

"As prime contractor for the Syracuse III and Syracuse IV ground segments since 2004, Thales is proud to strengthen its partnership with the French Ministry for the Armed Forces to help maintain the informational superiority of the country's armed forces in highly contested environments. The sovereign satcom solutions to be supplied under this contract are resilient to all types of threats, combat-proven, and fully interoperable with the systems deployed by NATO coalition forces." Marc Darmon, Executive Vice President, Secure Communications and Information Systems, Thales.

Note to editors

Syracuse is a series of protected telecommunication satellites designed to ensure that the French armed forces can communicate at all times between mainland France and units deployed around the world. The Syracuse programme provides a fully independent solution to France's wide-ranging requirements for long-range, secure communication capabilities that are protected against electronic warfare threats. Three generations of Syracuse satellites were deployed between 1984 and 2015. The Syracuse IV programme will replace the Syracuse 3A and Syracuse 3B satellites currently in orbit, while delivering an expanded and upgraded network of ground stations. A constellation of two satellites has been ordered under the first phase of the Syracuse IV programme. They will be built by Thales Alenia Space and Airbus Defence and Space. The first satellite will enter service in 2022.

About Thales

Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global high technology leader investing in digital and "deep tech" innovations -connectivity, big data, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and quantum technology to build a future we can all trust, which is vital to the development of our societies. The company provides solutions, services and products that help its customers businesses, organisations and states in the defence, aeronautics, space, transportation and digital identity and security markets to fulfil their critical missions, by placing humans at the heart of the decision-making process.

With 83,000 employees in 68 countries, Thales generated sales of 19 billion in 2019 (on a basis including Gemalto over 12 months).

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Thales Group

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View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005759/en/

Contacts:

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Faiza Zaroual

+33 (0)7 64 25 99 31

faiza.zaroual@thalesgroup.com
The latest in a continuing run of winter storms is underway in New Jersey with anywhere from a maximum of 8 to 12 inches possible in spots and at least a few inches expected throughout the state.

Some spots have already reported 6 or 7 inches of snow in the first several hours of the storm. The precipitation is expected to change between snow, sleet and freezing rain  starting in South Jersey through the afternoon.

There are winter storm warning or advisories in effect for all 21 counties until Friday.

Precipitation will be light this evening but continue through the overnight. A light coating of ice, expected to be less than a tenth of an inch, is also likely to accrue from Toms River south.

Want to see how much snow is predicted to fall in your area?

Using data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, weve created a map where you can see what to expect over the next 48 hours, based on the latest forecast from the National Weather Service.

Enter your town in the search bar to get an up-close look. Press the play button to watch how the storm is forecast to overtake the region.

NOTE: The snowfall forecast map below predicts snowfall expected over a 48-hour period. It updates automatically every six hours. Click the play button to begin the hour-by-hour forecast. Tap anywhere on the map to see the local forecast total. You can get specific forecasts for your neighborhood by entering your address in the search window at the top of the map. The map, which is exclusive to NJ.com, is designed to be accurate down to a 2-mile radius.

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(Bloomberg) --Oil fell the most in nearly a month alongside a broader market selloff with the ongoing energy crisis in the U.S. likely keeping refineries shut for another week.

Futures in New York declined 1 percent in a choppy trading session on Thursday. While U.S. oil output has plunged percent amid the unprecedented cold blast in parts of the country, crude demand from refineries is expected to remain weak as Gulf Coast fuel-making plants make repairs and take time to restart following operating issues caused by the freezing temperatures. Further pressuring prices, U.S. equities weakened after initial jobless claims hit a four-week high.

West Texas Intermediate for March delivery fell 62 cents to settle at $60.52 a barrel.

Right now, we have both refining capacity and oil production down at the same time, so there arent particular supply stresses and the market is reflecting that, said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategy at TD Securities. Meanwhile, despite crude stockpiles declining, theres a sense that oils rally may be a little overdone.

Technical indicators also show crude is due for a pullback. The 14-day Relative Strength Indexes for both the U.S. and global crude benchmarks remain above 70 in a sign the commodity is overbought. West Texas Intermediate futures are up about 25% this year as Saudi Arabias deep output cuts and an improving demand outlook encourage investors.

Still, capping further losses, U.S. crude stockpiles tumbled more than 7 million barrels last week to the lowest in almost a year, according to an Energy Information Administration report on Thursday. The data also showed supplies at the nations largest storage hub at Cushing, Oklahoma, fell by the most in a month, while crude output ticked lower.

Traders are assessing the limited available U.S. output with another freeze expected in Texas overnight. Estimates for how long the U.S. outages may last have risen in recent days as analysts try to figure out the timespan involved in thawing out infrastructure.

The supply shock is aiding an already frothy global oil market and is starting to alter energy flows, with traders snapping up ocean-going tankers to haul millions of barrels of European diesel to the U.S.

The inventory declines in the U.S. are supportive of the general thesis that as the recovery takes shape, refiners are going to uptick and demand is going to increase, said Quinn Kiley, a portfolio manager at Tortoise, a firm that manages roughly $8 billion in energy-related assets. Theres a stated goal to reduce capital spending, so that means supplys going to be weak. Thats a positive setup for prices all around the globe.

The EIA data also showed distillate inventories fell by more than 3 million barrels last week, while gasoline supplies rose.

Meanwhile, as American barrels are removed from the market, North Sea traders have been frantically bidding for the regions cargoes. Buyers in Asia, meanwhile, have been snapping up Middle Eastern crude at higher premiums. Brents prompt timespread moved further into a bullish backwardation structure this week, reflecting the tightening global supply backdrop, with the nearest contract trading at a nearly 80-cent premium to the following month.

2021 Bloomberg L.P.
Baitul, Feb 18 : The Income Tax department (IT) has simultaneously raided a number of premises owned by Congress MLA Nilay Daga, who led a group of people that opposed the shooting of Dhaakad, featuring Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut, in Madhya Pradesh's Sarni area.

Sources say a number of teams of the IT department simultaneously reached Baitul, Satna and Maharashtra. The IT sleuths raided 15 locations at the same time. Daga is a renowned businessmen who owns a number of factories and a school.

Sources in the IT department say documents at Daga's business establishments are being carefully examined. This procedure may take days. Nilay Daga's father Vinod Daga is also a former Congress MLA.

It may be recalled that owing to her anti-farmer statements, the Congress had staged a big demonstration against Kangana Ranaut in Baitul's Sarni where she had come for the shooting of Dhaakad. This protest was led by Congress MLA Daga.

During the raids, there is a heavy police deployment at the Daga residence and mobile phones of the family members have been seized by the IT sleuths.
An Alaska Airlines passenger flight comes in for a landing at the Fairbanks International Airport above the smoke-filled tree line as seen from the UAF West Ridge pull-out Friday morning, June 28, 2019. Smoke from multiple Interior wildfires including the Shovel Creek Fire has settled in on Fairbanks.
New Plan Moves People with Disabilities to Front of COVID Vaccine Line

On Feb. 12, after disability rights activists had blasted the states vaccine rollout for weeks, California officials made an announcement that might cool their criticisms.

Health officials announced that people suffering from COVID-19 co-morbidities or who are at higher risk of dying from the disease because of other medical conditions will be eligible for vaccination in March.

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Beginning March 15, healthcare providers may use their clinical judgement to vaccinate individuals age 16-64 who are deemed to be at the very highest risk for morbidity and mortality from COVID-19, read the California Department of Public Health bulletin.

According to the updated guidelines, beginning next month, healthcare providers can vaccinate individuals with certain high-risk underlying medical conditions, including cancer, chronic kidney disease at stage 4 or above, chronic pulmonary disease, Down syndrome, immunocompromised state from an organ transplant, pregnancy, sickle cell disease, heart failure, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathies (excluding hypertension), severe obesity and Type 2 diabetes mellitus.

The guidelines also include individuals with developmental disabilities or other severe-high risk disabilities for whom catching COVID-19 will limit their ability to receive ongoing care vital to their well-being, or for whom providing adequate and timely COVID care would be particularly challenging.

Officials estimate that the change will open eligibility to 4 to 6 million more people once it goes into effect, bringing the total amount of eligible Californians from an estimated 17 million to 19 million people. According to California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly, implementation and verification details were still being sorted out as of Feb. 12.

Previously, Gov. Gavin Newsom had announced that the state would shift to an age-based eligibility structure after the current Phase 1a and 1b tiers, which prioritize healthcare workers, certain essential workers and older Californians. The announcement was met with criticism from multiple disability rights advocates, who were concerned that younger people with disabilities would remain de-prioritized even though they were high-risk.

At the beginning of February, the state launched a high-level task force which included members from the departments of Aging, Disability Services and Health and Human Services, to determine logistics for how Californians with disabilities and underlying health conditions would be prioritized, based on a proposal by the states vaccine advisory committee. The task force had announced that it would make its official recommendation in a meeting last week.

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Andy Imparato of Disability Rights California, who also serves on the states vaccine advisory committee, said, Theres no question that theres going to be a lot of challenges, but theres also no question that this new policy is dramatically better. This creates a safety valve for people under 65 who have a high morbidity risk from COVID.

Several disability rights advocates held a conference Feb. 10, before the eligibility change announcement, calling for a plan to give people living with disabilities access to the vaccines sooner.

We are waiting for that specific plan, we believe we can make that plan happen. There are a lot of resources in the disability community to make that plan work very seamlessly, said Judy Mark, president of Disability Voices United.

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Like most events, Napa Valleys most extravagant annual party has been canceled this year  and it may never return. Auction Napa Valley, which began as a modest charity wine auction in 1981 and grew into a frenzied display of the valleys wealth and status, is contemplating its future.

Since the auction began 40 years ago, its generated more than $200 million for local community organizations. In the fall, its organizer, the Napa Valley Vintners, announced it was discontinuing it. Right now, a virtual substitute is underway, with bidding open until Saturday at 3 p.m.

The pandemic is the main cause for the cancellation, of course, though it didnt help that the auctions longtime setting, Meadowood resort, was severely damaged in last years Glass Fire. Yet whether or not the Napa Valley Vintners resuscitate Auction Napa Valley in some form in the future, it feels like a poignant moment  the end of an era. The auction, typically held during the first weekend of June, was a raucous bacchanal, a celebration of luxury wine that could at times approach Bonfire of the Vanities-level ridiculousness. It has also been underestimated for the crucial role it played in establishing Napa Valley as one of the worlds prestigious wine regions.

Steve Ringman / The Chronicle 1984

Though its hard to imagine now, Napa Valley wine was still fighting for recognition alongside the great wines of Europe when the auction started in 1981. None of the valleys wines had yet been deemed collectible or been traded at a traditional, non-charity wine auction. When some of those Napa wines started to command eye-popping figures at the charity auction  in 1987, a six-liter bottle of Grace Family Cabernet went for $20,000  it began to elevate the reputation not just of the individual winery, but of the entire valley.

Today, Napa wines are listed in Sothebys and Christies auction catalogs next to wines from Burgundy and Bordeaux. The charity auction isnt solely responsible for that evolution in Napa wines reputation, but it undeniably helped.

What I love most about the Auction Napa Valley story is the tendency it had to attract strange and humorous celebrity appearances. Like the time Jay Leno auctioned a jacket made out of wine corks off Robert Mondavis back. Or the year that Lyle Lovett showed up to sing even after hed been trampled by a bull only a few weeks earlier. (He remained in a chair for his performance.) There was one year when Francis Ford Coppola, who is not only the director of the Godfather trilogy but also a Napa winery and San Francisco restaurant owner, insisted on being the chef for the evening. He swore that he was really back in the kitchen forming the gnocchi with his own hands.

Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle 2008

Individual wineries would put up the auction lots, which would always include some actual bottles of wine but might also include a range of eye-popping additions: Oscar tickets, Super Bowl seats, a 1957 Corvette, a private jet trip around the world, an African safari, a tour of Burgundy with Margrit Mondavi. But (tax writeoffs notwithstanding) it could be astounding to see how much the attendees were willing to pay just for wine. In 2014, 125 bottles of wine from the then-new winery Promontory  a spinoff of Harlan Estate  fetched $600,000.

Craig Lee / Special to The Chronicle 2011

For me, attending the auction was always a bit of an out-of-body experience. One year I got lost in a crowd and found myself standing right next to Kate Upton. While the attendees were one-upping each other with bids, the winemakers in attendance would always be one-upping each other with bottles theyd BYOBed, dashing to each others tables to share a pour of some pre-Prohibition Napa wine.

But I dont think I was the only one who found the whole thing a little bit too outrageous. My favorite anecdote about Auction Napa Valley is that, in 1987, someone paid $2,800 for a six-pack of wine coolers  an expensive, and I think very effective, way of poking fun at the over-the-top nature of it all. Another bidder that year, Paul Smith, called the wine-cooler incident a disgrace. Its kind of hokey and its just not that professional, he told The Chronicle at the time. Smith had himself paid almost $30,000 for wines at that auction, not for the sake of irony. He clearly didnt get the joke.

The virtual bidding doesnt quite summon the mad rush of paddle raising at the in-person events, and some of the flash is certainly lost without a party. However, a quick perusal of the online catalog may still stir some feelings of shock and awe. The current bid on three magnums of 2015 Screaming Eagle Cabernet is $26,000.

What else Im writing

Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle

I wrote about an unusual little winery in west Marin County, Point Reyes Vineyards. Its owner is retiring and hopes to sell his 83-acre property, which includes 7 acres of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier grapes, for $6 million. And hes hoping that the threat of climate change could draw some wine-industry buyers to his chilly, coastal vineyard.

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

Wine of the Week

This weeks pick is a limey, minty, bright Gruner Veltliner from the new Fifth Moon label, an offshoot of Napas RD Winery. The winery has an interesting backstory: For years it exported all of its wine production to Vietnam, where the company operates a castle as a tasting room for tourists, but its now shifting focus toward the American market  and is making wines designed to pair with Vietnamese and other Asian cuisines. Heres my review of the Gruner.

Esther Mobley / The Chronicle

What Im reading

 The Girl & the Fig, a popular restaurant in downtown Sonoma, has been caught in a thorny controversy after an employee was asked not to wear a Black Lives Matter mask while working. My colleague Janelle Bitker writes about what the saga means for restaurants political stances in this era.

 In Punch, Priya Krishna considers how the concept of food-and-wine pairing is transforming into a more creative and inclusive discipline.

 Australias most famous winery, Penfolds, has started making California wine  and, bucking all sorts of conventions, has blended in a little bit of Australian wine. Wine Spectators MaryAnn Worobiec has the details on this bold new venture, whose wines range in price from $50 to $700.

Drinking with Esther is a weekly newsletter from The Chronicles wine critic. Follow along on Twitter: @Esther_Mobley and Instagram: @esthermob
A Mexican beauty queen was among eight people arrested on Thursday on suspicion of being involved with a kidnapping gang. According to Mexico News Daily, Laura Mojica Romero, 25, has been jailed without bail for allegedly being a part of a kidnapping ring that operates in Veracruz and Oaxaca.

Authorities reportedly said that Romero and seven others had been arrested in a raid conducted by a federal anti-kidnapping unit following two months of investigation.

Prosecutors said that Laura Mojica Romero and the other suspects were allegedly involved in a criminal organization connected to multiple kidnappings.

Crime Online reported that the Mexican beauty queen was arrested with two other women and five men. On Saturday, a judge ruled that Romero and seven other kidnapping suspects will remain in prison for the next two months as the investigation continues.

Meanwhile, Romero's mother said her daughter was "a victim of a crime that was fabricated," Daily Mail reported.

"The injustice that they are doing to my daughter makes me feel afraid, since my daughter was the victim of a crime that was fabricated," Maria del Carmen Romero said in the report.

Romero's mother further noted that her daughter had dedicated herself over the years to put "her mind and heart in the name of her state." She added that she wanted her daughter's name to be cleared because "she is innocent."

The Mexican beauty queen could face a 50-year sentence if convicted for the charges that have been filed against them.

Related story: Notorious Mexican Cartel Leader Using Children as Shields in Gang War

Laura Mojica Romero and Kidnapping Allegations



Authorities claimed that Laura Mojica Romero played a role in a kidnapping that happened in the Veracruz capital of Xalapa.

However, her mother noted that Romero's lawyers had provided phone records that could prove that the Mexican beauty queen was nowhere near the scene of the said abduction of a victim whom she said was a male.

Maria emphasized that her daughter deserves justice because she is innocent and "she owes nothing."

Mexican Beauty Queen

Laura Mojica Romero was crowned as Miss Oaxaca in 2018. The Mexican model was also placed third in the Miss Mexico 2019 and was the runner-up at the International Queen of Coffee in Colombia last year.

Romero was only identified by her first name in a statement released by investigators. She was described as one of the "eight alleged members of a criminal organization" specializing in a kidnapping.

Prosecutors said "the capture" of Maria del Rosario 'N'; Luis Antonio 'N'; Raul 'N'; Laura 'N'; Ana Martha 'N'; Diego 'N'; Cesar Enrique Escobar; and Jossiel Escobar happened in Veracruz.

They said that personnel specialized in tackling kidnapping carried out the operation "to capture those now linked to this judicial investigation."

Among those arrested with Romero were a former government official and an ex-police officer. The Mexican beauty queen is reportedly being held in a jail at Huatusco, Veracruz.

In an interview in January 2019 after her Miss Oaxaca win, Romero defined herself as more than just a pretty face. Romero, a graduate of Veracruz University with a bachelor's degree in business administration, said tackling the problem of violence against women was among her priorities.

At the time, Laura Mojica Romero, who is also fluent in English, also said she was a spokesperson in the fight against breast cancer and cancer in children.

Read also: Mexican Drug Cartels Show Off Lavish Lifestyle in TikTok to Recruit New Members
A MOTORIST who collided with two other cars after losing control of the BMW he was driving has avoided an immediate prison sentence.

Brandon Moriarty, 28, of Lee Drive, Tralee had pleaded guilty to careless driving causing serious harm to a nurse who was driving one of the other cars.

Limerick Circuit Court was told the head-on collision occurred on a straight stretch of road near Croagh village at around 4.20pm on June 25, 2019.

Garda Michael Halley said Mr Moriarty was travelling in the direction of Limerick city when his BMW veered across the road and into oncoming traffic.

There was a heavy glancing blow with a Volvo followed by a severe impact with a Kia Sportage which ended up in the ditch.

The occupant of that car  a 61-year-old nurse  sustained multiple serious injuries and had to be cut from the vehicle.

The widowed mother-of-three was initially treated at University Hospital Limerick, then Tallaght University Hospital and later Croom Orthopedic Hospital.

In a victim impact statement, she described how she immediately knew she had sustained catastrophic injuries and that it seemed to take forever before she was cut from her car.

She sustained multiple fractures and a collapsed lung and has undergone several surgeries since. The nurse, who has not returned to work, says what happened dramatically changed her life.

In the immediate aftermath, she was in horrendous pain and became a burden for her family as they had to help her with everything.

The stress this has caused me and my family will never be undone, she said pointing our that her daughter suffered hair loss and that her sons both failed exams.

I was a fit happy-go-lucky person and that was stripped from me as a result of this collision, she stated.

Judge Tom ODonnell was told it was not possible to determine the speed of the BMW prior to the impact and that no mechanical defects were found in any of the cars.

It was not possible to take a blood sample from the defendant as he was receiving medical attention and gardai were not able to access his phone.

Barrister Maria Brosnan said her client has no recollection of what happened and that he will have to live with the consequences for the rest of his life. She said he too sustained serious injuries and that he was placed in an induced coma for some time after the collision.

Judge ODonnell imposed a 12 month prison sentence which he suspended for two years. Mr Moriarty was also disqualfied for four years.
MADRID, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Spanish traded company Lleida.net (BME: LLN) (OTCQX: LLEIF) (EPA: ALLLN) has hired Bondo Advisors to identify and negotiate potential acquisitions of companies that could add value to its inorganic growth plans.

One of Lleida.net's key strategies for the coming years contemplates the possible purchase of companies, worldwide, that could fit within its business model.

The company, which has a capital of more than ninety million euros and 100 employees, is one of the European leaders in the certified electronic notification, contracting and signature industry.

"In addition to focusing on internationalisation and intellectual property, we are open to the possibility of acquiring companies that fit our business model, are attractive to the market, and add value to the industry," explained Sisco Sapena, who founded the company in 1995.

Bondo Advisors is an M&A advisory firm that focuses on mergers and acquisitions in the technology, Internet and media sectors.

It is led by Joshua Novick, Fernando Garate, Pablo Perez Garcia-Villoslada and Jesus Mera.

"Certified electronic contracting, signature and notification services are experiencing strong demand, a growing trend that is set to continue over the next few years. At Bondo Advisors, we are excited to accompany Lleida.net, a reference and leader in this market, in the consolidation of this sector", explained Pablo Perez Garcia-Villoslada, founder and director of the boutique.

Lleida.net is listed in Spain, France and the United States.

The company went public on BME Growth (the former MAB) in 2015. Subsequently, in 2018, it was listed on Euronext Growth in Paris. At the end of 2020, it was listed on the OTCQX Best Market segment in New York.

Last year, the company's shares increased in value by 940 per cent in one of the biggest rises in the European stock market.

Yesterday, the company announced that it has passed the 3,000 shareholder mark, according to official market data.

It holds more than 200 patents in e-recruitment and e-notification, granted by more than 50 countries on five continents, and its intellectual property portfolio is one of the largest in the industry worldwide.

Today, more than 75 countries recognise the legal validity of its electronic methods as a means of certifying legal notices in procurement processes

Contact:

The Paloma Project, Media

[email protected]

+356 7946 7486

https://Lleida.net

SOURCE Lleida.net
(Adds details, quote)

PARIS, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Nissan will lift recent

investments in its British plant to more than 1 billion pounds

($1.4 billion) in the next few years as it rolls out greener

technology, the company said as it showcased its latest Qashqai

car on Thursday.

The Japanese carmaker decided in 2016 to build the vehicle

in Britain in what was seen as a key vote of confidence just

months after the Brexit referendum raised uncertainty over its

trading relationship with the European Union.

On Christmas Eve last year London and Brussels struck an

agreement that allows for tariff-free trade as long as local

content thresholds are met.

Nissan said in January it would source more batteries in

Britain as a result, and on Thursday its Europe boss Gianlucca

de Fichy told reporters it planned further investment.

"We've invested over 400 million pounds so far in our

English factory, and we are planning over the coming years to

exceed the 1 billion investment mark, including due to the

introduction of e-Power which will come to market soon," he

said.

Asked about cross-manufacturing with alliance partner

Renault, de Ficchy said Nissan was working closely with the

French automaker.

"We continue to cooperate with Renault and study the

opportunities that might arise, in terms of car models and

technology," he said. "We're exploring all avenues."

($1 = 0.7164 pounds)

(Reporting by Gilles Guillaume and Sarah White; Writing by

Costas Pitas; Editing by Jason Neely and Jan Harvey)
MANILA (Reuters) - A jailed critic of Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday hailed as a "moral victory" a court's dismissal of one of three cases against her, which stem from the president's allegations she prospered from illicit drugs under the previous government.

Senator Leila de Lima, who has spent four years in prison since she led an investigation into alleged summary executions during Duterte's signature war on drugs, said the court's decision showed the charges against her were "trumped-up" by the Duterte administration.

The court said that its granting of De Lima's plea to dismiss the case on lack of evidence was "tantamount to her acquittal".

De Lima, a former justice minister, is considered by many activists as a political prisoner and has received awards from human rights groups for standing up to Duterte over the deaths of thousands of suspected drug peddlers.

"Not a single witness testified that I and my co-accused conspired with drug lords to trade drugs in prisons," De Lima said in a statement.

"From the onset, these cases were filed to silence me and distract me from my duties as senator."

Before and during her detention, De Lima was subject to humiliating public tirades by Duterte, who accused her of adultery and of making a sex tape and even recommended she hang herself.

De Lima sought a court injunction to muzzle Duterte and once called him a "sociopathic serial killer". She has expressed fear for her life because of the "diehard fanatics" among his supporters.

Akbayan Partylist, a leftwing group of lawmakers, said De Lima's first victory should serve as reminder to the government that "despite the weaponisation of the law, the people will push back in order for truth and justice to find their way out."

Duterte's spokesman, Harry Roque said De Lima had no reason to celebrate because she remains in jail.

(Reporting by Karen Lema; Editing by Martin Petty)
Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech is in the process of filing regulatory documents for approval of its coronavirus vaccine, Covaxin, in over 40 countries, the biotechnology company told news agency Reuters.

"We have submitted our documentation in Brazil and other countries and await their approval. We plan to export several million doses to Brazil," the company said in an emailed statement. "Pricing of Covaxin for international markets will be based upon supply timelines, purchase commitments and procurement volumes," the vaccine manufacturer further added.

Bharat Biotech had earlier said that it may export doses of Covaxin to Brazil and the United Arab Emirates by the end of the week, did not name other countries and did not give exact figures on doses it expects to export.

The company has also entered into an agreement with US drug developer Ocugen for the commercialisation of Covaxin in the United States, which has seen the most number of infections aross the world.

Covaxin is one of the two Covid-19 vaccines approved for emergency use in India, though efficacy data from its late-stage trial is yet to be published.

Bharat Biotech expects results from an ongoing trial involving 25,800 participants in India only by March, though the country's drug regulator has called the vaccine safe and effective amid criticism from some doctors and health experts.

At present, Covaxin is being used by India in its vaccination campaign, which has already covered over 9 million health workers, and aims to cover 300 million people by August. Bharat Biotech has supplied 5.5 million doses to the government and will sell an additional 4.5 million doses.

Meanwhile, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) said that Bharat Biotech's Covaxin may provide immunity against the disease for nine to 12 months, according to the mathematical calculations.

Covaxin's approval in India faced criticism, especially when used for inoculating healthcare workers during Phase I of the vaccination programme.

The vaccine approval came even before the release of Phase III trial data.

India, with around 11 million Covid-19 cases, has the second-highest number of infections in the world, though some experts believe the worst of the killer virus has passed in the country.

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FBD does not intend to appeal a landmark High Court has ruling that four pub owners are entitled to be compensated by the Insurer for the disruption their businesses suffered due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In his decision earlier this month, the outcome of which affects claims made by some 1,000 Irish pubs and restaurants, Mr Justice Denis McDonald found that a policy sold by FBD covered losses the pubs sustained by having to close due to the global health emergency.

The case was briefly mentioned before Mr Justice McDonald on Wednesday morning, who was told by Declan McGrath SC for FBD that his client does not intend to appeal the court's judgement.

Counsel also expressed his client's hope that a court hearing to determine the quantum of the pay-outs may not be necessary and that the parties continue to discuss a solution between themselves.

Mr McGrath agreed with Michael Cush SC and Eoin McCullough SC for the four pubs that arising out of the judgement several issues remain outstanding between the parties.

He further agreed with Mr Cush that if a quantum hearing was required not all four cases need to be considered, and as these were test actions it may be possible than only one case may need to be considered by the court.

The court heard these include what final orders the court should make in light of its findings and what level of legal costs should be paid to the plaintiffs.

The Judge agreed to adjourn the matter to Feb 26th next to hear the discrete matter where there is no agreement, but also welcomed that the sides remained in discussions on how to advance matters.

In his judgement earlier this month the judge disagreed with FBD's interpretation of its policy.

He said that cover is not lost where the closure is prompted by nationwide outbreaks of disease provided that there is an outbreak within the 25-mile radius and that outbreak is one of the causes of the closure.

The issue of quantifying the losses, the judge said, will be dealt with at a later date.

Mr Justice McDonald noted the significant implications that arise out of his decision for the parties and other pubs who have also claims, accepted that one of all of the parties may appeal his findings.

The four test actions were taken by Dublin bars Aberken, trading as Sinnotts Bar; Hyper Trust Ltd, trading as The Leopardstown Inn' and Inn on Hibernian Way Ltd trading as Lemon & Duke.

The fourth action was taken by Leinster Overview Concepts Ltd the owner of Sean's Bar, which is based in Athlone, Co Westmeath.

The publicans challenged FBD Insurance Plc's refusal to indemnify them, as well as the insurers stance that its policies of insurance did not cover the disruption caused to businesses by Covid-19.

The dispute arose after the insurer refused to provide policy holders with cover after the pandemic resulted in the first temporary closure of businesses, in mid-March 2020.

The pub owners claimed that under their policies of insurance taken out with FBD they are entitled to have their consequential losses covered by what they claimed is an insurable risk.

They also claimed that by failing to pay out on the policy the insurer was in breach of contract.

The publicans claimed the policies taken out with FBD contain a clause that states the pubs will be indemnified if their premises were closed by order of the local or Government Authority if there are "Outbreaks of contagious or infectious diseases on the premises or within 25 miles of same."

FBD disputed the claims and argued that the closures did not occur as a result of an outbreak of disease at the premises or areas where the pubs are located.

FBD also told the court that it has never provided cover for pandemics and no one in Ireland has ever asked for it.

The general insurance market in Ireland does not insure against events like pandemics, it claimed.

Only specialist foreign brokers offer an insurance policy that cover the fall-out from something like covid19, FBD also argued.
Related Thousands of Algerians rally ahead of Hirak protests anniversary

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday announced the dissolution of the lower house of parliament and called early legislative elections.

Addressing the nation on state television, Tebboune announced a government reshuffle in the next 24-48 hours and ordered the release of 60 detainees of a protest movement that forced his predecessor, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, from power in 2019.

"I decided to dissolve the assembly and call elections to build a new institution," he said, without giving a date for the elections.

The current lawmakers of the lower house had been elected for five years in May 2017, with Bouteflika's allies having an overwhelming majority.

Tebboune said the dissolution decision was part of reforms after amendments to the constitution in November last year aimed at giving parliament more powers.

Algerians have been awaiting the implementation of economic and political reforms Tebboune promised after succeeding Bouteflika, who stepped down in 2019 following mass protests after two decades in power.

The North African OPEC member country has been under financial pressure due to a sharp fall in energy earnings, forcing the government to cut spending and delay some planned investment projects.

Elected in December 2019, Tebboune has vowed to take steps aimed at diversifying the economy away from oil and gas, which account for 60% of the state budget and 94% of total export revenue.

Tebboune returned home earlier this month from Germany where he underwent surgery on his foot for complications after a coronavirus infection.

Tebboune, a former prime minister under Bouteflika, was elected amid protests demanding the departure of the whole ruling elite, with many of them boycotting the vote as they saw it as unfair and not transparent.

Several activists have been in detention since the protests broke out on Feb. 22.

Tebboune said in his speech 55-60 detainees would be released immediately, a demand that has been repeatedly raised by the leaderless protest movement known as Hirak.

The release comes amid calls on social media to stage street marches in the capital, Algiers, to mark the second anniversary of the demonstrations.

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets on Tuesday in the eastern town of Kherrata, the first protests since the government banned marches in March last year as part of measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

"We have vowed to meet all demands raised by the Hirak," Tebboune said in the speech.

Short link:


The top diplomats from the United States, Germany, France, and Britain have urged Iran to return to full compliance with a 2015 nuclear deal, which Washington pulled out of in 2018.



The deal signed by Tehran with the four Western powers, along with China and Russia, called for curbs on Irans uranium-enrichment program in return for the lifting of sanctions.



President Donald Trump in May 2018 pulled his country out of the accord and reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran, saying the terms were not strict enough to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons.



Iran has maintained that its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes.



The other signatories have been attempting to save the accord. Since the U.S. pullout, Tehran has increasingly breached limits it had agreed to under the deal.

Iran has warned it would ban short-notice inspections by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), by February 21 if the United States does not lift the sanctions imposed since 2018.



In a joint statement after a virtual meeting on February 18, the foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany, and the United States said they were "united in underlining the dangerous nature of a decision to limit IAEA access."



The statement urged "Iran to consider the consequences of such grave action, particularly at this time of renewed diplomatic opportunity," adding that they all shared the aim of Iran returning to "full compliance" with the deal.

'Playing With Fire'



German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab met Frances Jean-Yves Le Drian for talks in Paris on February 18. New U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken joined through a video link.



The powers also expressed concerns over Iran's recent move to produce both uranium enriched up to 20 percent and uranium metal in new violations of the deal.



"These activities have no credible civil justification," the statement said. "Uranium metal production is a key step in the development of a nuclear weapon."



The sides also "expressed their shared fundamental security interest in upholding the nuclear nonproliferation regime and ensuring that Iran can never develop a nuclear weapon."



Iran has maintained that its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes.

"The recent steps of Iran are not helpful at all, they endanger the return of the Americans" to the deal, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas told reporters in Paris ahead of the talks.



"Apparently Iran is not interested in easing the tensions, but in escalation. They are playing with fire," he said.



U.S. President Joe Biden has indicated more willingness to deal with Iran than his predecessor did, but he has publicly stated Tehran must adhere to its commitment under the 2015 deal before his administration will discuss the possibility of lifting sanctions.



Blinken said last month he wants to coordinate with U.S. allies to get to a "longer and stronger agreement" with Iran.

With reporting by AFP and Reuters
DUBLIN, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Research Report of the Imported Soybeans Industry in China 2020-2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

According to the report, soybeans are mainly produced in the Northeast and North China regions. From 2015 to 2019, the sown area of soybeans in China increased from 6.83 million hectares to 9.34 million hectares, and the production of soybeans rose from 12.37 million tons in 2015 to 18.10 million tons in 2019. Import volume went up from 81.69 million tons in 2015 to 88.51 million tons in 2019. Import soybeans always have a competitive advantage, since the price of imported soybeans is always lower than that of domestic soybeans.



Soybeans are important raw materials of common edible oil and feed material of the breeding industry in China. China has a huge demand for Soybeans while the domestic supply could not meet consumption. In 2019, China's Soybean consumption was 106.50 million tons, domestic production was 18.10 million tons and import volume was 88.51 million tons, which showed a very high dependence on import soybeans. Thus, China allowed more countries, such as Bolivia, Russia, and Benin to export soybeans that meet the requirements.

According to the analyst, imported soybeans in China include soybeans for cultivation, black soybeans, green soybeans, yellow soybeans, and other soybeans not for cultivation, most of them came from Brazil and the USA from 2017 to April 2020.

According to the analyst, as for major import sources of soybeans in the future, it is expected to be Brazil, the USA and Argentina. The demand for soybeans is estimated to be relatively low in 2020 because of COVID-19, and then reach 124 million tons by 2024. The gap between supply and demand could be around 94 million tons in 2024, worth the value that exceeds USD 40 million.



Readers may obtain the following information from this report:

Economic Environment of the Soybean Industry in China

Policies in Imported Soybeans in China

Analysis of Supply and Demand of Soybeans in China

Analysis of Imported Soybeans in China

Analysis of Major Sources of Soybeans in China

Price Trends of Imported Soybeans in China

Driving Forces and Opportunities of Imported Soybeans in China

Forecasts on Imported Soybeans in China 2020-2024

Key Topics Covered:



1 Analysis of Soybean Industry's Environment

1.1 Economy Environment

1.1.1 China's GDP and per capita Disposable Income of Residents

1.1.2 Grain Production in China

1.2 Policy Environment

1.3 About the Author



2 Analysis of China's Soybean Industry, 2015-2019

2.1 Planting of Soybeans in China

2.2 Demand and Supply of Soybeans in China

2.3 Price of Domestic Soybeans



3 Analysis of Soybean Imports in China, 2015-Apr.2020

3.1 Types of Imported Soybeans in China

3.2 Import Scale of Soybeans

3.3 Comparison of Import Price and Domestics Price, 2016-Apr. 2020



4 Major Sources of Soybean Imports in China, 2017-Apr. 2020

4.1 Major Sources of Soybean Imports in China, 2017

4.2 Major Sources of Soybean Imports in China, 2018

4.3 Major Sources of Soybean Imports in China, 2019

4.4 Major Sources of Soybean Imports in China, Jan. -Apr. 2020



5 Forecast on China's Soybean Market, 2020-2024

5.1 SWOT Analysis

5.1.1 Driven Force and Market Chance

5.1.2 Threats and Challenges

5.2 Forecast on Demand and Supply of Soybeans in China, 2020-2024

5.2.1 Forecast on Demand

5.2.2 Forecast on Soybean Imports

5.2.3 Forecast on Major Sources of Soybean Imports

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/mjjfon



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Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



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[February 17, 2021] JT CLASS ACTION NOTICE: Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP Files Securities Fraud Lawsuit Against Jianpu Technology, Inc. (JT)

Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP ("GPM"), announces that it has filed a class action lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York captioned Guttentag v. Jianpu Technology Inc., et al., (Case No. 1:21-cv-01419) on behalf of persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Jianpu Technology, Inc. ("Jianpu" or the "Company") (NYSE: JT) American Depositary Shares ("ADSs" or "shares") between May 29, 2018 and February 16, 2021, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Plaintiff pursues claims under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act"). Investors are hereby notified that they have until 60 days from this notice to move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff in this action. If you suffered a loss on your Jianpu investments or would like to inquire about potentially pursuing claims to recover your loss under the federal securities laws, you can submit your contact information at https://www.glancylaw.com/cases/jianpu-technology-inc/. You can also contact Charles H. Linehan, of GPM at 310-201-9150, Toll-Free at 888-773-9224, or via email at shareholders@glancylaw.com or visit our website at www.glancylaw.com to learn more about your rights.



On February 16, 2021, Jianpu announced the results of its review into "transactions carried out by the Credit Card Recommendation Business Unit" with third-party business entities. The Company concluded that previously reported revenue and associated expenses had been inflated due to "certain transactions [that] involved third-party agents (including both upstream agents and downstream suppliers) with undisclosed relationships and some transactions [that] lacked business substance." Jianpu stated that it "anticipates the total amount of overstated revenue for the fiscal years 2018 and 2019 to be approximately, RMB 90 million and RMB 164 million, respectively, representing approximately 4.5% and 10.1% of the total revenue previously reported." On this news, the Company's share price fell $0.60, or 13%, to close at $3.94 per share on February 16, 2021, on unusually heavy trading volume.

The complaint filed in this class action alleges that throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and/or misleading statements, as well as failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants failed to disclose to investors: (1) that certain of the Company's transactions carried out by the Credit Card Recommendation Business Unit involved undisclosed relationships or lacked business substance; (2) that, as a result, Jianpu's revenue and costs and expenses for fiscal 2018 and 2019 were overstated; (3) that there were material weaknesses in Jianpu's internal control over financial reporting; (4) that, as a result of the foregoing, the Company's fiscal 2018 Form 20-F was reasonably likely to be restated; and (5) that, as a result of the foregoing, Defendants' positive statements about the Company's business, operations, and prospects were materially misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook. If you purchased or otherwise acquired the Jianpu ADSs during the Class Period, you may move the Court no later than 60 days from this notice ask the Court to appoint you as lead plaintiff. To be a member of the Class you need not take any action at this time; you may retain counsel of your choice or take no action and remain an absent member of the Class. If you wish to learn more about this action, or if you have any questions concerning this announcement or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact Charles Linehan, Esquire, of GPM, 1925 Century Park East, Suite 2100, Los Angeles California 90067 at 310-201-9150, Toll-Free at 888-773-9224, by email to shareholders@glancylaw.com, or visit our website at www.glancylaw.com. If you inquire by email please include your mailing address, telephone number and number of shares purchased. This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217006072/en/

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Alleging that the TMC government has introduced a "cut-money and syndicate culture" in West Bengal, Union Home Minister Amit Shah Thursday said if voted to power BJP would constitute an inquiry into the siphoning off cyclone Amphan relief funds and book the culprits.

Shah said BJP's 'Parivartan Yatra' is not for changing a chief minister, an MLA or a minister but ending infiltration and transforming West Bengal into a developed state.

"This is BJP's fight to make Bengal 'Sonar Bangla' (Golden Bengal). This fight is between our booth workers and the syndicate of TMC. It is not just our aim to bring BJP government after removing Mamata Banerjee's ministry.

"Our goal is to ensure that there is a change in the situation in West Bengal, a change in the condition of the poor of the state, a change in circumstances for women of the state," he said.

"This 'Parivartan Yatra' is for ending infiltration and also for the transformation of Bengal. You vote for the BJP.

Leave alone illegal immigrants, not even a bird from across the border will be allowed to enter the state,"Shah said after flagging off the final leg of the five phased Rath yatra in the state.

Criticising TMCs "cut money" culture, Shah said if voted to power, the government will probe corruption in disbursal of cyclone Amphan relief funds.

"The central government had sent relief and funds post Amphan for affected people. But, the TMC leaders siphoned off the funds and did not allow it to reach the affected people.

"If we are voted to power, the government will constitute an inquiry committee to probe corruption in disbursal of Amphan relief funds. All those who have indulged in corruption would be sent to jails," he said.

Super cyclonic storm Amphan had caused widespread damage in West Bengal,Odisha and neighbouring Bangladesh in May 2020.

Shah also announced that the BJP will constitute 'Zero Casualty Task Force' to save lives from cyclones and environmental disasters if voted to power.

Speaking on the controversy over 'Jai Shri Ram' slogan, Shah said, Bengal CM gets angry at the slogan due to her appeasement politics.

"You get angry over it because you want to appease a particular section of the people for vote bank politics. Jai Shri Ram slogan is a symbol against anti-appeasement policies," he said.

Banerjee had on January 23 declined to speak at an event to celebrate Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's birth anniversary where "Jai Shri Ram" slogans were raised in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Flaying TMCs appeasement politics, Shah said it is under BJPs pressure that Banerjee is now seen worshipping Goddess Saraswati.

"Should the Durga Puja not take place in West Bengal? Court permission needs to be obtained for it. Should the Saraswati Puja not be held here? She had stopped it.

"It was only after BJP's pressure that she was seen worshipping Goddess Saraswati. Didi, Bengal knows that you had stopped Saraswati puja in schools," Shah said.

Listing out the names of some BJP workers allegedly killed in politial violence in the state, Shah alleged that the Mamata Banerjee government has created an environment of fear and panic, but the BJP is ready to take on the "goons" of the ruling TMC.

"You think that we can get intimidated by the TMC goons? They cannot stall BJP's march to power. Once we are in power, every perpetrator of violence that led to the killing of BJP workers will be thrown behind bars," he asserted while claiming that TMC goons have so far killed its more than 130 workers.

Lashing out at "dynastic politics" in the TMC, Shah alleged that Banerjee has been working only for the welfare of her nephew instead of the masses.

"The TMC government is only interested about 'bhatija kalyan' (nephew's welfare). It is not interested about peoples welfare," he said.

The union minister said the BJP is ready to take on the "goons" and the "syndicates" of the ruling TMC.

"We have to end this syndicate rule of TMC, where if you want to build a house you need to pay money. If you need anything you have to pay money to TMC leaders. The BJP will end this culture," he said.

Shah also reached out to the West Bengal government employees and said the 7th Pay Commission will be implemented in the state if the saffron party is voted to power.

"The financial condition of Bengal is so bad that the state government employees don't get the benefits of the 7th Pay Commission. If voted to power we would implement it in the state," he said.

The BJP leader said Banerjee has deprived masses of the benefits of many central schemes and the people have decided to elect a BJP government in Bengal in the upcoming assembly polls.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
A French military planes has struck electrical lines and cut the power supply to a village in southern France while carrying out a low-flying exercise.

The incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon in Le Castellet, a small village of just under 4,000 residents near Manosque.

The Rafale fighter jet was one of the two aircraft performing a low-altitude training flight. They were approaching very close to the ground after taking off from a nearby air base, reports said.

The incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon in Le Castellet, a small village of just under 4,000 residents near Manosque in south of France

No casualties were reported, a French Air Force spokesperson told local newspaper La Provence. The jets made a force-landing safely following the incident.

A fire was triggered by the fall of the electrical cables, but the blaze was quickly contained, La Provence newspaper reported.

An investigation has been carried out for the incident, which was described as extremely rare by French authorities.

Benoit Gouin, the mayor of the French village said the two aircraft were flying so low that it made a hell of a din.

It was so low that I said to myself: it went under the power lines, he told local news outlet France Bleu.

A Rafale planes on a low-altitude training flight were flying very close to the ground after taking off from a nearby air base, reports said. In this file photo, a Rafale fighter jet taxis on the tarmac after landing in Tanagra military airport, Greece, on February 4

The local official, who was driving at the time, added that he came across sectioned electric cables hanging on the ground.

One of the planes hit the line and cut it. I immediately called the emergency services and the Enedis [electricity company] team.

The village of Castellet remained without power for a few hours, while no access road to it was allowed due to security reasons.
ANZ senior executive Richard Moscati is one of six high-profile bankers to be formally charged with a combined 29 criminal offences over allegedly forming a cartel to manipulate the big four banks share price in 2015.

Citigroup Global Markets Australia and Deutsche Bank AG are also facing a combined 12 criminal charges for contravening anti-cartel laws. ANZ faces three charges of being knowingly concerned in and aiding and abetting contraventions of these laws.

ANZ senior executive Richard Moscati has been named in an indictment over alleged criminal cartel activity. Credit:Erin Jonasson

The charges were laid out in an indictment filed by the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions in the Federal Court on February 3, obtained by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.

The criminal case arose out of an Australian Consumer and Competition Commission investigation that alleged these bankers and JPMorgan hatched a plan to offload ANZ shares following a botched 2015 capital raise in a manner that would keep the banks stock value above a certain price.

Joanne Todd is hoping to find love on the new season of Married At First Sight.

Following a marriage breakdown, the Melbourne-based hairdresser hasn't had the best luck on the dating scene and for years has opted to stay single.



The mother of three told 9Now on Thursday: 'I chose to be single, I just needed to work on myself and become a better person and heal.'

Scroll down for video

'I just needed to work on myself': Following a marriage breakdown, Married At First Sight bride Joanne Todd hasn't had the best luck on the dating scene and for years has opted to stay single

'I came on MAFS because I wasn't having much luck in the outside world so I thought I'd let someone else arrange a marriage for me and let an expert find me love instead of me, because I was stuffing it right up,' she said.

Joanne said she briefly tried dating apps, but lasted less than a week.

She quit them because she felt it was a 'nightmare' experience that was repetitive and too competitive.

Focusing on herself: The mother of three told 9Now on Thursday: 'I chose to be single, I just needed to work on myself and become a better person and heal'

'He doesn't have to cook or clean': Joanne told 9Now her dream husband would be a good listener who isn't selfish and can fix things around the house

She told 9Now her dream husband would be a good listener who isn't selfish and can fix things around the house.

'He doesn't have to cook or clean. Romance is like making you feel warm and fuzzy inside, having to think about the other person. If your partner puts you first then that's what you've got,' Joanne said.

Daily Mail Australia has heard rumours she will be partnered with prestige car company owner James Susler, 44.

The multi-millionaire businessman is a divorced father of three, recently single and looking to find someone to settle down with.

Meet Mr Right? Daily Mail Australia has heard rumours she will be partnered with prestige car company owner James Susler. The 44-year-old businessman is a divorced father of three, recently single and looking to find someone to settle down with

In an early trailer for Married At First Sight, viewers were introduced to Joanne as she approached her wedding venue in a limousine.

'I'm feeling a teeny-tiny bit of cold feet,' she told a friend, looking anxious.

Married At First Sight premieres Monday, February 22, at 7.30pm on Channel Nine
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Ten one-kilogram packages containing a suspicious white powder, which police believe to be cocaine worth up to $3 million, have washed up on the shores of an island off the north Queensland coast.

Passersby called police on Sunday when they found the packages at high tide on the beach at Ramsay Bay on Hinchinbrook Island, about 120 kilometres north of Townsville.

An evidence photo of the packages that washed up on Hinchinbrook Island at the weekend. Credit:Queensland Police Service

Officers are searching the area for any further packages and are awaiting the results of forensic testing of the powder, with initial tests indicating the substance to be cocaine.

Detective Inspector Kevin Goan told reporters the find would be a significant quantity of the drug, which appeared to have been in the area for some time before its discovery, and urged anyone who found a similar package to contact police immediately.
Check back for updates to this list of roads impacted by Wednesday night's snow and ice and their conditions on Thursday:

* 12:45 p.m. update:

The Alabama Department of Transportation continues working to clear routes of snow and ice across much of North Alabama Thursday, following an all-hands response during last nights winter storm.

Despite these efforts, hazardous conditions still exist on routes in the affected area, and motorists should refrain from unnecessary travel.

Due to sub-freezing temperatures Thursday night, residual moisture or runoff on pavements will likely refreeze into black ice. Ice may be present on roadways into Friday.

Crews will be working Thursday night to treat ice as needed.

In Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin, Lawrence, Limestone and Morgan counties, ALDOT crews are cutting fallen trees and plowing and treating highways.

All primary (four-lane) routes currently have at least one lane passable in each direction, and additional lanes will be cleared Thursday if possible.

ALDOT anticipates having most secondary routes cleared by nightfall.

Higher-volume routes are prioritized, meaning urban routes are likely to be cleared before rural ones.

In Morgan, Limestone, Madison and Cullman counties, interstate travel lanes have been plowed and are passable. Additional clearing is being done on ramps and shoulders.

In Madison County, all state routes are open and passable. Crews continue to clear snow and ice.

* As of 11 a.m. Thursday, Russellville City Police report Hwy 43 and Hwy 24 through Russellville is passable but still has several slick areas. All side streets are still very dangerous. If you dont have to be out on the roads please stay home. We ask that all ATVs stay off the main roads. If you need assistance please feel free to call the non-emergency line at 256-332-2230. Only use 911 for emergencies.

* As of 9:45 a.m. Thursday, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said all roads in these counties have been deemed impassable: Jackson, Limestone, Madison, Marshall, and Morgan. All DeKalb County roads are open.

* All Lawrence County roads are still impassable, per the County Engineer.

* Madison City Police report that driving conditions on Interstate 565 are "extremely hazardous." Use alternate routes if possible. Use extreme caution if you cannot.

* Athens streets are slushy and slick. Athens Police recommend no traveling Thursday morning.

* The Franklin County Sheriff's Office said roads are impassable and it has numerous reports of trees down blocking roadways:

Hwy 243- trees are continuing to fall as crews attempt to clear,

Kelley Rd, Phil Cambell

Hwy 20 near MarJac

Highway 43-Spruce Pine Mtn, SB lane completely blocked

Hwy 69

Hwy 81

* Madison City roads are still slushy. Law enforcement requests everyone restrict travel unless it is an emergency.

* Westbound I 565 to go northbound Research Park is iced over and closed in Huntsville.

* All roads across Colbert County continue to be covered in snow/ice. Road crews continue to treat areas, but temperatures will remain below freezing much of the day which will not allow roads to thaw. Some major highways (72, 20, 43, Woodward) are being treated and plowed by ALDOT, but still remain very slick.

Reminder: An IMPASSIBLE TRAVEL ADVISORY has been issued for ALL COUNTY ROADS in Colbert County.

* Alabama State Troopers also say the Franklin County Emergency Management Agency has deemed all roads in the county impassable, and all state and federal roads there have icy spots, as well.

In Lauderdale County, roads have icy conditions with stalled vehicles.

Lawrence County roads are impassable, as well, and state roads have icy spots.

Were monitoring conditions and alerting you with the most accurate information via the WAAY 31 StormTracker Early Warning Radar Network. In addition to watching WAAY 31 News, you can access all three of our radars HERE.

You also can download our WAAY 31 Weather App to stay informed. More info HERE
Kolkata, Feb 18 (UNI) The BSF in its drive against Narcotics, acting specific information, on 17th Feb 2021 troops of Ftr HQ BSF M&C, SHQ BSF Aizawl and 90 Bn BSF intercepted one Mahindra Bolero Vehicle bearing Regd No. AS-11-K- 2480 at Phaisen Peng tri-junction under Police Station Vairangte and Police outpost Bilkhawthlir, District Kolasib, (Mizoram).

During the search of the vehicle with the help of Police rep from Police Station Kolasib and Police Outpost Bilkhawthlir, 14 Big yellow packets and 01 small packet containing 1,45,800 numbers of Yaba tablets were recovered. Its estimated value in the market is Rs.7.29 Crores @ Rs 500 per tablet. The occupants of the vehicle namely George Khawlhring s/o Lalchungnunga (44 years) and Samuel Khawlhring (23 Years) s/o George Khawlhring both r/o Tuitha Veng, Kolasib, Mizoram could not produce satisfactory reasons for possession of said contraband items.

Both the persons involved were detained by the BSF. At once, the BSF party informed the local police of the Police Station of Vairengte and Police out post Bilkhawthlir. The police team of Police Station Kolasib also reached alongwith the team of the Police out Post Bilkhawthlir. Accordingly, the Police team searched the detained persons and the Vehicle which was already guarded by the BSF and untouched in the presence of some VCP members of the local area. The Police apprehended the above persons and took under their custody alongwith seized for taking action as per the law of the land.

The trend of illicit trafficking of drugs in the region has shown significant increase in the recent past.

Earlier also on 5th Feb 2021, troops of 182 Bn and SHQ BSF in Joint Ops with the NCB, Imphal seized 32 Gms of Heroin and 3,800 Nos of Yaba from Saitu Saparmenia, Kangpokpi district of Manipur and most recently on 12th Feb 2021, troops of SHQ BSF Aizawl has also seized 23,800 Nos of Methamphetamine / Yaba tablets from general area Ramhlun, South Aizawl.

Of late, this synthetic drug, Methamphetamine, has become the most popular among the smugglers in the country and abroad. The raw material of these tablets i.e. Pseudoephedrine (precursor/pharma drugs) is being smuggled to Myanmar and it is further processed/converted into a party drugs like Meth, R7, 88 tablets, WY (World is Yours), Yaba tablets and are smuggled into India through porous borders of Indo-Myanmar whereas bulk of it is smuggled to Bangladesh through Myanmar-BD border and also for local consumption in big cities and as Party Drugs.

It is also to mention here that the BSF under Mizoram & Cachar Frontier in the year 2020 have seized 51,479 Nos Yaba / Methamphetamine tablets, 290.41 Gms of Brown Sugar, 1,712 bottles of Phensedyl and 1,149 Bottles of IMFL in its drive against Drugs/ narcotics.

In addition, the BSF is making all out efforts to make the region contraband drug free by organizing various programmes to eradicate the use of drugs and its abuse & its transshipment. One of the main objective of the ongoing Maitri Cycle Rally of the BSF is also to create social awareness against ill effects of drugs / narcotics abuses among the youths.

UNI XC RN
President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden talked on the phone earlier this month and discussed Korean Peninsula issues. Korea Times file



By Do Je-hae



During the previous U.S. administration under Donald Trump, talks on North Korea's denuclearization revolved primarily around the U.S. and North Korea. President Moon Jae-in has also put priority on mediating U.S.-North Korea talks, but the two summits between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un did not lead to fundamental progress on denuclearization. The lack of results during the Trump administration on North Korea and the urgency from Seoul to quickly resume peace diplomacy have resulted in renewed attention to the type of multilateral negotiating framework that was seen during in the late 1990s, such as the four-party talks with representatives from the two Koreas, the U.S. and China. Six rounds of negotiations were held in 1997 and 1998.



The need for expanded talks has been highlighted particularly with the launch of the Biden administration. Two-way talks between North Korea and the U.S. are likely to remain sidelined under President Biden who has ordered a meticulous review of the North Korea policy of the previous administration and the rare exchanges between his predecessor and Kim.



Some experts, including former Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul, who served from April 2019 until June 2020, have begun to stress the need for the revival of four-party negotiations that would include China, which has significant economic and political influence over North Korea. The frequent exchanges at the highest level between the leaders of the two countries in recent years show the strength of bilateral relations. Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Pyongyang for a summit with Kim in June 2019, the first visit by a Chinese leader to North Korea in 14 years.



"If the Biden administration is unable to prioritize the North Korea issue, cooperation from other concerned parties is necessary," Kim said during a recent online conference, underscoring the fact that China and North have become closer economically and politically than in the past. "Following the collapse of the Hanoi summit between Trump and Kim, China-North Korea ties have become so close that it is hard to find a precedent. The order on the Korean Peninsula has changed, and it has become difficult to exclude China."





Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, recently sent a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during the eighth congress of the Workers' Party of Korea and reiterated his commitment to the settlement of Korean Peninsula issues and regional peace. Korea Times file



The four-party talks including China have also been supported by experts in the U.S., including Joseph Yun, a former U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, based on expectations for China's role in preventing provocations through dialogue or partial economic aid.









Prospects for expanded talks



The denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula has been China's consistent strategic goal. Xi sent a letter to Kim Jong-un recently during the eighth congress of the Workers' Party of Korea and reiterated his commitment to the settlement of Korean Peninsula issues and regional peace.



But it remains unclear whether Beijing will be interested in joining expanded talks on North Korea at this point. The last time the four countries engaged in such talks was before the rise of the U.S.-China competition, in addition to the COVID-19 pandemic that is still hampering the resumption of normal diplomacy.



Therefore, some experts question the feasibility and timing of expanded talks on North Korea due to the diplomatic and domestic priorities of the related parties.



"At the moment, while there seems to be clear interest in Seoul on such an initiative, I doubt the timing works for Washington, Beijing or Pyongyang," Harry J. Kazianis, senior director for Korean Studies at Center for the National Interest, told The Korea Times. "All three are in the middle of struggles against the coronavirus and have little time for anything else. Here in Washington, with such massive political upheaval and COVID-19 dominating everything, I don't see much interest at all on anything North Korea for some time, unless Pyongyang were to offer some amazing concession  like something near full denuclearization  for America to show any interest at all. My fear is that North Korea would have to test an ICBM or detonate a nuclear weapon to get anyone's attention."



Others remain skeptical of the effectiveness of expanded talks on North Korea even if they were to happen, given past precedents during the previous Bill Clinton administration that did not produce any significant outcomes.



"Certainly the Biden team, after a review of North Korea policy, may consider expanded talks. Four-party talks including China and North and South Korea would definitely be one option, but the American team would have to face the reality that China would support North Korea on refusing to give up its nuclear program as long as sanctions remained in place and U.S. troops remained in South Korea," Donald Kirk, columnist on Korean Peninsula issues, told The Korea Times. "U.S. negotiators might see such talks as really going nowhere, as was the case with four-party talks in the late 1990s, and might be reluctant to enter into them except possibly as a delaying tactic or a means to assess the real intentions of China and North Korea."





Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, arrives in Pyongyang in June 2019 for a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Korea Times file
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Presume earlier order by centre made in consultation with state government extending Chief secretary''s tenure for threestate government extending Chief secretary's tenure for three months from June 1, stands: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

`Shocked and stunned by unilateral order' recalling Chief Secretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCHSecretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCH JRC

Mamata writes to Modi; requests rescinding orders recalling WB Chief Secretary to Delhi. Chief Secretary to Delhi.
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, fifth from left, poses with Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun, fourth from left, and other participants of an MOU signing ceremony on an electric vehicle battery leasing business at Hyundai Motor Group's research center in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, Thursday. From left are Hyundai Glovis President Kim Jung-hoon, Hyundai Motor President Kong Young-woon, Trade, Industry and Energy Minister Sung Yun-mo, Chairman Chung, Prime Minister Chung, LG Energy Solution President Kim Jong-hyun and KST Mobility CEO Lee Haeng-yeol. Courtesy of Hyundai Motor Group



By Nam Hyun-woo



Hyundai Motor and LG Energy Solution (LGES) agreed Thursday to jointly promote an electric vehicle (EV) battery leasing business here, in a bid to create an ecosystem for the industry and support President Moon Jae-in's drive to develop it as one of the country's next growth drivers.



The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) during a visit by Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun to the Hyundai Motor Group research center in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, where he detailed the government's mid-term goals for the expansion of eco-friendly vehicle use nationwide.



According to Hyundai Motor and the government, the agreement is aimed at operating a feasible EV battery leasing program, which could be used for electric taxis; and reusing EV batteries for energy storage systems (ESSs). The MOU was also signed by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, logistics firm Hyundai Glovis and taxi operator KST Mobility.



Hyundai Motor will sell Kona Electric taxis to KST Mobility, which will immediately sell its ownership of the batteries in the EVs to Hyundai Glovis. KST Mobility will then pay a monthly rental fee to Hyundai Glovis, which will manage the leasing of the batteries. Hyundai Motor said this arrangement is tantamount to KST Mobility buying vehicles without batteries, thus enabling it to purchase the EVs at a lower price.



When the batteries are swapped after extensive use, Hyundai Glovis will sell the used batteries to LGES which will assemble them into ESS units designed for fast charging, after analyzing their safety and residual charging capacity. LGES will then sell the recharging units to KST Mobility to charge the batteries of its EV taxi fleet.



The Ministry approved this business model in October last year as part of its "regulatory sandbox program" to foster the domestic EV business.



Twenty Kona Electric taxis will be used in a pilot program starting next month.



The government wants the firms to expand the battery leasing program to hydrogen buses next year. If the business is commercialized and expanded to individuals, Hyundai Motor said it will allow customers to purchase EVs at lower prices.



"The battery leasing business bears extra significance as it completes the EV ecosystem," Chung said during his visit. "This has simultaneous advantages in expanding EV use, creating new businesses and cutting emissions. This will not be realized by the sole efforts of one company or ministry, it is important for everybody to be a stakeholder."



The same day as Chung's visit to the research center, the government announced its mid-term goals for EV use expansion here. The administration has pledged a 24 percent reduction in vehicle greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, aiming to have 7.85 million eco-friendly vehicles in use nationwide. Also, it promised to support an increase in the number of eco-friendly vehicle exports to 830,000 by 2025, up from 280,000 last year, as well as allowing the introduction of vehicles powered by solid-state batteries by 2030.



Solid-state batteries, which are under development by a number of battery makers around the world, are expected to outperform the current lithium-ion batteries in energy density, while having less of a risk of exploding or igniting.


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Recently in Beirut, a small group of people cleaned oxygen machines to send to those in need. The move was the latest in a series of activities by a Lebanese group trying to serve the public during the countrys health and economic crises.

Melissa Fathallah is one of the founders of Baytna Baytak, which in Arabic means Our Home is Your Home.

No one is exempt from COVID. Nobody. Nobody has super-power immunity, she told the Associated Press.

Immunity means the power to keep yourself from being infected by a disease.

Raising more than $27,000, the group has placed 48 oxygen machines with those in need across the country.

Baytna Baytak began at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic with a very different project. The group found homes for medical workers who were worried about bringing the virus to their families. During Lebanons first lockdown in March, the group housed 750 workers in different places.

Chloe Ghosh works at a government hospital in Beirut. She has been living in housing provided by the group since the start of the pandemic. She was worried about putting her family at risk. If I got COVID or anyone my age got COVID, we could survive, Ghosh said. But our families, no.

The first place Ghosh stayed was damaged when another disaster hit Beirut, the August 4 explosion at the citys port. The blast killed more than 200 people, injured 6,000 others and destroyed thousands of homes.

Ghosh was not harmed. She moved to another place provided by Baytna Baytak. She now shares a four-bedroom apartment with three other medical workers who work in different hospitals around the city.

The apartment was donated to Baytna Baytak by a wealthy individual who wanted to help those risking their lives to fight the virus. The same person donated several other properties around Beirut for the same purpose.

After the port explosion, Baytna Baytak moved to increase its efforts to help those whose homes had been damaged. It placed them in temporary housing while it helped raise money to fix their homes. Within 24 hours of the call for housing, six apartments were donated.

Baytna Baytak grew out of a need for services for front-line workers in Lebanon, Fathallah said. As far as the government is concerned, we dont have a government. Lets just get that out of the way, she said.

Lebanons health sector has faced difficulties in the past and the problems got worse after the explosion.

Doctors are working many long days in place of health workers infected with the virus. More than 2,300 Lebanese health care workers have been infected since February, the countrys Order of Physicians reports.

Lebanon has more than 14,000 medical doctors and 17,000 nurses, but many doctors have left the country, partly because of an economic crisis that began before the pandemic.

After the explosion, Lebanon saw a large increase in COVID-19 infections that only worsened by the end of 2020. This forced Baytna Baytak to put some of its work on hold. The number of donors also decreased.

Still, the group has continued to work through new virus-related restrictions that started in mid-January. Even while giving out oxygen machines, the team was getting fined for breaking curfew.

Fathallah has no plans to stop her work. We took it upon ourselves because of the greater good, because of the bigger picture because of the country and the citizens. We took it upon ourselves, she said.

Im John Russell.

Fay Abulgasim reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for Learning English. Bryan Lynn was the editor.

_____________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

exempt  adj. not required to do something that others are required to do  usually + from
WASHINGTON  When DiZhon Chases teacher told her that she might be able to enroll in a Harvard University class, she was skeptical  and not just because the Ivy League school was more than 2,000 miles from her hometown, Gallup, N.M.

Harvard isnt part of the conversation  you dont even hear that word in Gallup, Ms. Chase said. It isnt something that adults expect out of us. I dont think its because they dont believe in us; its just so much is stacked against us.

But in fall 2019, Ms. Chase joined a small group of students across the country in an experiment that sought to redefine what is possible for students who share her underprivileged background. Through an initiative started by a New York-based nonprofit, the National Education Equity Lab, hundreds of students are virtually rattling the gates of some of the nations most elite colleges by excelling in their credit-bearing courses before they leave high school.

The Equity Lab enrolled more than 300 11th and 12th graders from high-poverty high schools in 11 cities across the country in a Harvard course, Poetry in America: The City From Whitman to Hip-Hop, taught by a renowned professor, Elisa New. The high schoolers met the same rigorous standards of the course created for Harvards admitted students  they listened to lectures, took quizzes and completed essays, and they were graded by the same standards.
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Donald Trump has speculated that Joe Biden is either lying or 'mentally gone' after the president on Tuesday night said his administration arrived to find no COVID-19 vaccines available.

Trump, who on Wednesday broke his silence to give a series of interviews marking the death of Rush Limbaugh, told Newsmax Biden made 'a very dumb statement' about the vaccines.

The former president teased a possible 2024 run, boasting about his 'tremendous support', and said he would not be returning to Twitter - the platform from which he was banned last month.

'It's become very boring,' he said. 'We don't want to go back to Twitter.'

Donald Trump spoke to Newsmax host Greg Kelly on Wednesday night

Trump has been at Mar-a-Lago in Florida since leaving Washington DC on January 20

Trump, who on Wednesday broke his silence to give a series of interviews marking the death of Rush Limbaugh, told Newsmax Biden made 'a very dumb statement' about the vaccines. Pictured: Trump playing golf this morning at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida

The former president teased a possible 2024 run, boasting about his 'tremendous support', and said he would not be returning to Twitter - the platform from which he was banned last month. Pictured: Trump playing golf this morning at his golf course in West Balm Beach, Florida

Trump, 74, was on Wednesday highly critical of Biden's remarks during a CNN town hall in Milwaukee the night before.

Biden, asked about combating COVID, told host Anderson Cooper: 'It's one thing to have the vaccine - which we didn't have when we came into office - but a vaccinator: How do you get the vaccine into someone's arm?'

His comments were immediately seized upon by critics, who pointed out that a vaccine had been available since before Christmas.

'We were giving millions of shots, millions of doses,' said Trump on Wednesday, speaking by phone to host Greg Kelly.

'So he was either not telling the truth or he's mentally gone. One or the other.

'Joe Biden's being killed on that thing. Even the haters said, well wait a minute, this vaccine was announced long before.'

Donald Trump says President Biden is "either not telling the truth, or he's mentally gone" based on his vaccine statements. @gregkellyusa https://t.co/VlT7z8drtO pic.twitter.com/mD7rPh39HR  Newsmax (@newsmax) February 18, 2021

Joe Biden on Tuesday night appeared at a CNN town hall in Milwaukee

Biden and Trump are pictured during a presidential debate on September 29 in Cleveland

Trump pointed out that Biden himself was vaccinated before his January 20 inauguration.

'Long before January 20,' said Trump.

'He made the statement that we had no vaccine. Literally, quote, we had no vaccine. He is getting lit up on that one. Even the bad ones. Even the ones that aren't exactly fans, they were saying that was a bad statement.

'Maybe, let's give him the benefit of the doubt - could he be joking? Because frankly that was a very dumb statement.'

Trump has been at Mar-a-Lago since his January 20 departure from Washington, and has seen his allies including lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell hit with massive law suits for falsely claiming that Dominion voting machines switched the votes from Trump to Biden.

The pair are facing a $1.3 billion defamation suit.

Earlier this month Fox News and three Fox anchors - Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs and Jeanine Pirro - were sued by another voting systems company, Smartmatic, for $2.7 billlion. Giuliani and Powell are also named in the suit.

The legal action has seen pro-Trump networks drastically curtail their claims of election rigging.

Dobbs' show has been taken off the air, and, earlier this month, Newsmax anchor Bob Sellers stormed off the set in the middle of an interview with MyPillow founder Mike Lindell when Lindell started spouting the election conspiracy theories.

Dominion have said they intend to sue Lindell too.

Donald Trump is pictured on January 20. His interviews on Wednesday were pre-recorded

Trump was pictured today playing golf at his gold course in West Balm Beach, Florida

TRUMP : The former President speaks out about being permanently suspended from Twitter: "I understand it's become very boring." @gregkellyusa https://t.co/VlT7z8drtO pic.twitter.com/7uRkezJP5j  Newsmax (@newsmax) February 18, 2021

The former president is also no longer on Twitter, and claimed that the social media network was 'boring' without him.

He said the platforms could not cope with his popularity, claiming he had 89 million followers on Twitter 'because they held it back' and a further 39 million on the official POTUS account.

'We had other sites where we had millions and millions of people,' he said.

'We were about as big as it gets. And likewise on Facebook. They all want that.

'Part of the problem is mechanically they can't handle it, it's too many people. It's bigger than they are by many times.'

Trump said that, since he had been forced from social media for inciting violence, it was 'not the same.'

He said: 'If you look at what's going on with Twitter, I understand it's become very boring and millions are leaving.

'They are leaving it, because it's not the same. And I can understand that.'

Trump said he was 'negotiating with a number of people' about potentially starting his own site, and said he had no plans to return to Twitter because the moderators were 'harassing' him for claiming the election was stolen.

'We were being really harassed on Twitter,' he said.

'They were putting up all sorts of flags, I guess they call them. They were flagging almost anything I said. Everything I was saying was being flagged.

'It's disgraceful.

'And yet you had other countries saying the worst things possible. And they don't even talk about it.'

Trump also dangled the possibility of a 2024 run, saying he was confident of his 'tremendous' support.

Trump, seen leaving Washington DC on January 20, said he was contemplating running again

2024?: Donald Trump on whether he will run for president again, "I won't say yet, bet we have tremendous support." @GregKellyUSA https://t.co/VlT7z8drtO pic.twitter.com/pZUxftFBR5  Newsmax (@newsmax) February 18, 2021

Asked by Kelly if he will run, he said: 'I won't say yet. But we have tremendous support.'

Trump said that his poll numbers were 'through the roof.'

He left the White House with the lowest job approval of his presidency at 29 per cent, according to Pew Research, and increasingly negative ratings for his post-election conduct.

The share of voters surveyed from January 8-12 who rated Trump's conduct since the election as only fair or poor has risen from 68 per cent in November to 76 per cent.

Trump voters, in particular, have grown more critical of their candidate's post-election conduct. The share of his supporters who describe his conduct as poor has doubled over the past two months, from 10 per cent to 20 per cent.

About two-thirds (68 per cent) said Trump should not continue to be a major national political figure for many years to come; just 29 per cent say he should remain a major figure in U.S. politics.

Trump, however, said he had become more popular since his impeachment in the House on January 13. He was acquitted by the Senate on Saturday.

'I'm the only guy who gets impeached and my numbers go up,' he said.

'Figure that one out. Let's say somebody gets impeached. Typically your numbers would go down, they would go down like a dead balloon. But the numbers are very good, they are very high. I think they are higher than they were before the election, and they were high at the election.'

Trump said his supporters 'like the job.'

He said: 'We did a great job. We lowered taxes, got rid of regulations. We rebuilt our military. Lowered taxes.

'How about space force? Just space force alone would be a big achievement - first time in 74 years, a new branch of the U.S. military. All of the things we've done.

'And the border. We built the wall. Mexico is all getting all ready to pay for the wall. We were going to charge them at the border. A small fee. Mexico would have paid for the wall. They were all set. They give us 28,000 troops. They policed them before they get there. The president of Mexico is a great gentleman, by the way. He put 28,000 troops on our border, at my request, and we didn't pay for that. We kept the border beautiful.

'Now you take a look at what is going on at the border, it's a disgrace,' he added.

'It's a disgrace. Hundreds of thousands of people are going to be pouring in.'
OSLO, Norway, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Aker Horizons AS ("Aker Horizons") announced today that it has signed a Letter of Intent with Statkraft AS ("Statkraft") and Yara International ASA ("Yara") aiming to establish Europe's first industrial-scale green ammonia project in Norway, enable the hydrogen economy, and accelerate the energy transition. The first project in the partnership will be to electrify Yara's existing ammonia facility in Porsgrunn, which has the potential to be one of the largest climate initiatives in Norwegian industrial history. The partners will further target green hydrogen and green ammonia opportunities within shipping, agriculture and industrial applications.

"Aker has been a driving force for knowledge-based industrial development for 180 years. A partnership with Yara and Statkraft, two fellow Norwegian industrial pioneers, marks the beginning of a new industrial adventure in Norway. The first project in Porsgrunn can be a lighthouse project - providing competitive advantage in a growing global hydrogen economy, building on existing capabilities in the Norwegian supplier industry to create new jobs for the future, and forming the basis for a future Norwegian export industry," says yvind Eriksen, President & CEO of Aker ASA and Chairman of Aker Horizons.

The first project in the equal partnership is for electrification and decarbonization of Yara's ammonia production at Herya in Porsgrunn, one of the largest sources of onshore CO2 emissions in Norway. The project has the potential to reduce CO2 emissions equivalent to the annual emissions from more than 300,000 fossil fuel passenger cars. Provided that power is available at the site and the required co-funding is secured, the project could be realized within 5-7 years.

"This is not just a unique decarbonization project, but a strategic investment that can establish new value chains for green hydrogen and green ammonia. Yara is a world leader in ammonia, with long experience and leading position within global ammonia production, logistics and trade. With Statkraft and Aker Horizons onboard we gain key expertise within renewable electricity, power markets, industrial development and project execution, giving us a unique opportunity to realize the project," says Svein Tore Holsether, President and CEO of Yara.

Aker Horizons, Aker's listed investment company within renewables and green technology, will carry out the project through its wholly owned subsidiary, Aker Clean Hydrogen, a new Aker Horizons' company established to design, build, own and operate major hydrogen facilities globally. Like the rest of the Aker Horizons' portfolio, Aker Clean Hydrogen will leverage the deep domain expertise across the Aker ecosystem, including within system integration, software and technology and project execution, to build and operate the project as efficiently as possible.

The conversion of Yara's ammonia plant provides a unique opportunity to leverage Norway's existing supplier industry and build new knowledge and competency for a global market. In addition to the Porsgrunn project, the three companies will explore the potential for green ammonia production in Northern Norway to leverage existing local competency and accelerate the transition for energy-intensive industries, including shipping and agriculture.

"Statkraft is Europe's largest producer of renewable energy. Norway's rich renewable energy resources are one of our most important competitive advantages. This project paves the way for new industrial development, and can at the same time give Norway's important maritime sector a new competitive advantage, namely access to an efficient and emission-free energy source on a large scale, " says Statkraft CEO Christian Rynning-Tnnesen.

Shipping currently accounts for 2 percent of global GHG emissions, of which long-distance shipping represents 80 percent. Converting all long-distance shipping to ammonia would require approximately 500-600 tons of ammonia annually, 3-4 times current world production levels. The Norwegian shipping industry has a stated ambition to reduce emissions from domestic shipping by 50 percent by 2030, which will require significant green hydrogen production.

"It is currently more expensive to produce green hydrogen based on renewable electricity and electrolysis than through natural gas, but large-scale production will reduce cost of the electrolysis route. For hydrogen to be exported or used in long-haul shipping or fertilizer production, it needs to be converted to ammonia, and converting Yara's existing ammonia plant is both faster and more cost-effective than building a new plant. However, realizing this innovative project will require good incentive frameworks and support from the authorities," says Holsether.

Yara's Porsgrunn plant is well set up for large-scale production and export, allowing Norway to quickly play a role in the hydrogen economy. Constructing a new ammonia plant and associated infrastructure is typically a capital-intensive process, but by utilizing Yara's existing ammonia plant and associated infrastructure in Porsgrunn, valued at USD 450 million, the total capital requirement for the project is significantly reduced compared with alternative greenfield locations.

"The Norwegian process industry and cornerstone companies in local communities are dependent on restructurings to secure and create new jobs. The Herya project will be a starting point for further electrification of Norwegian industry and realization of hydrogen as an energy carrier. This forms the basis for a new export industry built on unique competency and expertise already in high demand in Europe and other global markets," says Eriksen. "Not unlike the impact Ekofisk and other fields had on the development of the Norwegian oil and gas industry in the 1970s and 80s, the hydrogen project at Herya could have major ripple effects for the development of the entire hydrogen value chain and supplier industry in Norway."

Ammonia's chemical properties make it ideally suited for the hydrogen economy. It does not need to be refrigerated to the same temperatures as hydrogen, and has a higher energy density than liquid hydrogen, making it more efficient to transport and store. Ammonia is therefore the most promising hydrogen carrier and zero-carbon shipping fuel.

Yara, Statkraft and Aker will host a press conference today, Thursday, February 18, at 10:00 CET. The press conference will be held in Norwegian and can be followed live at https://www.yara.com/news-and-media/green-ammonia-project-press-conference/

Aker Horizons will host a presentation about Aker Clean Hydrogen and its ambitions in the global hydrogen market on Friday, February 19 at 11:00 CET.

For more information, please contact:

Atle Kigen, Head of Corporate Communications, Aker ASA

Tel: +47 90784878

Email: atle.kigen@akerasa.com

Christina Chappell Glenn, Head of Investor Relations, Aker ASA

Tel: +47 90532774

Email: christina.glenn@akerasa.com

This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/aker-asa/r/aker-asa-aker-horizons-partners-with-yara-and-statkraft-to-establish-europe-s-first-large-scale-gree,c3289140
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 16:08:00|Editor: huaxia

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HOUSTON, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Texas Governor Greg Abbott said Wednesday that power is restored to some Texan homes.

A total of 6,000 megawatts of power was added to the state's grid, which equates to 1.2 million households being restored, local media quoted Abbott as saying.

"There are various small, natural gas generators that are currently going on and off," local media KTRK quoted Abbott as saying. "They should sporadically add about 3,000 megawatts over the next 24 hours and that would equate to about 600,000 homes."

Abbott also said that about 19,800 megawatts of gas-powered generation is still offline due to mechanical issues or the lack of gas supply.

The governor said he has issued an order effective from Feb. 17 to Feb. 21. requiring natural gas producers that have been shipping to locations outside Texas to instead sell that natural gas to Texas power generators.

As for renewable-generated power, he said 17,200 megawatts are offline due to freezing temperatures and lack of sunlight.

According to the update from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) Wednesday night, 1.6 million households in the state had power restored since Wednesday morning.

"We're at a point in the restoration where we're going to keep energizing circuits as fast as we safely can until we run out of available generation," said ERCOT Senior Director of System Operations Dan Woodfin. "We hope to make significant progress overnight."

They added it is possible that by Thursday morning, local utilities may be able to go back to rotating outages versus keeping power off for extended periods of time.

Texas' power grid experienced a system-wide failure Monday morning as the ERCOT declared an "energy emergency alert three" after record-breaking energy use strained utilities beyond capacity together with some power plants failure due to severe weather and freezing temperatures across the state. Enditem
PORTLAND, Ore.  An infant died after contracting COVID-19, according to Oregon health officials.

Dr. Dean Sidelinger, of the Oregon Health Authority, said on Thursday that the child died the same day the test came back positive. No other details were made available.

Every death from COVID-19 is a tragedy, even more so the death of a child," Sidelinger said. "The death of an infant is extremely rare."

Gov. Kate Brown sent her condolences to the family.

The hearts of all Oregonians are with you today, she said.

Children who are infected with COVID-19 are less likely to experience severe symptoms than adults, but risks are still present, and parents should seek emergency medical care if they notice symptoms of COVID-19, Sidelinger said. These include:

Trouble breathing

Pain or pressure in the chest that doesnt go away

New confusion

Being unable to wake up or stay awake when not tired

Bluish lips or face

Thursday saw the addition of 466 new cases and six more deaths. The current totals are 151,713 confirmed and presumptive cases and 2,149 deaths.

The new cases have been reported in the following counties: Baker (6), Benton (17), Clackamas (31), Clatsop (2), Columbia (6), Coos (8), Crook (9), Curry (4), Deschutes (19), Douglas (25), Harney (1), Hood River (2), Jackson (27), Jefferson (12), Josephine (13), Klamath (6), Lake (3), Lane (41), Lincoln (1), Linn (5), Malheur (3), Marion (46), Morrow (2), Multnomah (66), Polk (13), Tillamook (3), Umatilla (21), Union (2), Wasco (4), Washington (54) and Yamhill (14).

Nearly three-quarters of a million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine have been given out in Oregon of the more than 900,000 doses delivered across the state.
A father-of-two ran off with his girlfriend's mother just days after the daughter gave birth to his baby son.

Jess Aldridge, 24, was expecting her second child with boyfriend Ryan Shelton, 29, when the pair decided to form a support bubble with her mother, Georgina, 44, and her husband, Eric, at their 270,000 semi-detached home in Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire.

The grandmother-of-six began flirting with the car parts salesman just weeks afterwards, and they began an affair while Ms Aldridge - a former Premier Inn housekeeper - was still heavily pregnant.

By the time Ms Aldridge had returned home from hospital with her newborn, Reuben, they had run off together and moved into a new home 30 miles away.

Jess Aldridge, 24, (middle) with her boyfriend, Ryan Shelton, 29, (right) and Ms Aldridge's mother, Georgina, 44, who Mr Shelton began a relationship with

When Ms Aldridge confronted her mother, she was told that 'she couldn't help who she fell in love with'

Ms Aldridge had returned from hospital with her newborn son, Reuben, when she realised her boyfriend and her mother had fled together

A 'heartbroken' Ms Aldridge told The Sun: 'It's the ultimate betrayal. You expect a new grandmother to fall in love with the baby  not the father.

'She is meant to be a granny to my two children and helping me look after them but instead she's off sh***ing my boyfriend.'

Ms Aldridge - who already shared a two-year-old daughter, Georgiana, with Mr Shelton, said she first decided to move back in with her mother in the hopes that she would be able to help her with childcare.

However over the course of a few months, Ms Aldridge began to notice her boyfriend and mother 'always being so flirty' and drinking Bacardi while 'joking around in the kitchen every night'.

When she confronted the pair they denied anything was happening but Ms Aldridge later discovered they had been having a secret affair during her pregnancy.

On January 28, Ms Aldridge welcomed her son Reuben into the world via C- section at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

But just hours later, she received a text message from Mr Shelton, who had only seen Reuben for a few minutes after he was born and for ten minutes the day after, ending their three-year relationship.

After she was discharged, Ms Aldridge was shocked to discover her mother and Mr Shelton had fled and gone to live together elsewhere.

They continued to deny they were in a relationship until they were confronted once again two days later.

Ms Aldridge had been in a relationship with Mr Shelton for three years before he began an affair with her mother

The 270,000 semi-detached home in Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire - pictured today - where the family had formed a support bubble

The property - seen today - was where Ms Aldridge moved with Mr Shelton several months ago

The 24-year-old (pictured with mother Georgina) said her mother first started flirting with Ryan within weeks of their moving in

Ms Aldridge, who welcomed her son Reuben into the world on January 28, described what happened as 'the ultimate betrayal'

Just moments after delivering her baby, Ms Aldridge said she received a text message from Mr Shelton ending their relationship

Her shameless mother is said to have told her: 'We can't help who we fall in love with.'

The pair have now confirmed that they are a relationship on Facebook.

Ms Aldridge said her mother - who had been married once before - had previously spoken to her about wanting to separate from Eric, her husband of 12 years, a few weeks before she went into hospital.

The new mother also claims that neither her mother nor Mr Shelton have apologised to her.

Ms Aldridge has now returned to the 439-a-month two-bed rented home she used to share with her ex.

On January 28, Ms Aldridge welcomed her son Reuben into the world via C- section at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital

Ms Aldridge had a three year relationship with Mr Shelton before he began cheating on her

When Ms Aldridge first confronted her mum, she shrugged and said: 'We can't help who we fall in love with.
Springfield-born costume designer Ruth E. Carter will cement her place in cinematic history this month when she receives her star on the iconic Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Carter, the first Black person to win an Academy Award for costume design, has created the look for characters in more than 45 movies including Black Panther, Do the Right Thing, and Amistad.

Carter, 60, will be only the second person to receive a star of the Walk of Fame for costume design.

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce began the honor in 1955. It will honor Carter during a virtual ceremony on Feb. 25 at 11:30 a.m. on walkoffame.com

After the announcement, Carter tweeted, I raise my star, thankful for my life, to embrace the people who know my journey and are very proud of me and of my work. And now that history is made I raise my star as I am forever grateful!

Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno applauded the Hollywood chambers decision to honor Carter.

Ruth continues make Springfield proud, Sarno said. She is memorialized here in Springfield at our Union Station on a mural with other prominent Black historical figures and I know many of us will be watching the virtual ceremony and cheering Ruth on later this month as she continues to make history. Continued success, Ruth, and God bless.

Carter, a Springfield Technical High School graduate and StageWest apprentice, was elected to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences prestigious board of governors in 2019. That same year, Carter received a career achievement honor from her peers at the 21st annual Costume Designers Guild Awards.

Motion Picture Costume Designer Ruth E. Carter will be honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame via a virtual star ceremony on February 25, at 11:30 am on https://t.co/WJ4HCLZ9Zn #walkoffame #Coming2America@ZamundaRoyals@primevideo pic.twitter.com/ExtgJe3ub7  Walk of Fame (@WalkofFameStar) February 16, 2021
As a political science student in college, Scott Chadwick wanted to be an elected official. Instead, he ended up working for five of them.

Chadwick, 46, became Carlsbads new city manager Aug. 1, where as the citys top administrator his direct supervisors are the members of the City Council.

I take my cues from the council as a whole, he said. His job is to implement the councils policies and stay as far out of politics as possible.

Most of Chadwicks career has been with the city of San Diego, where he was chief operating officer from 2013 to 1018. His efforts there were praised by the California League of Cities and others for improving service, increasing transparency and boosting community engagement

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I realized that the attraction was the operations side, he said Wednesday in an interview at Carlsbad City Hall.

Chadwick grew up in the tiny East County community of Dehesa, where his parents still live. His mother, Gloria Chadwick, is a nurse and has served 20 years as an elected member of the Grossmont Healthcare District board of trustees.

His aunt Florence Chadwick, born in 1918 in San Diego, is one for the record books.

She became the fastest woman to swim the English channel in 1950, and a year later, the first woman to swim the channel in both directions. She went on to become the first woman to swim the 26 miles from Catalina Island to the California coast, and she accomplished numerous other open-water swimming firsts.

Scott Chadwick earned his bachelors degree from Purdue University, then served eight years in the U.S. Army, including three years on active duty and the rest in the reserves and National Guard.

Then he launched his career in San Diego as a labor relations officer for the city and moved up to human resources director in 2009.

Now he said he hopes to bring some stability to Carlsbads administration. The occupants of the city managers office have changed repeatedly in recent years, each time with little explanation to the public.

The turmoil began in 2012, when Lisa Hildabrand resigned suddenly after eight years on the job. Her replacement, John W. Coates, left less than a year later because of an undisclosed personnel matter.

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Steve Sarkozy, formerly of Bellevue, Wash., was chosen from a national field of 42 applicants, but left in 2015 after just one year, saying he was not the right fit for the job. After he left, Assistant City Manager Kathy Dodson served as interim city manager.

Chadwick takes the helm from Kevin Crawford, who had retired as Carlsbads fire chief after almost 30 years with the city. Crawford was in a new job leading the United Way in San Diego, when Carlsbad brought him back in 2016 to be interim city manager.

City officials said one of the reasons for bringing the former fire chief back was that he could help find someone to fill the city manager job for the long term.

Chadwick said he hopes to be the steady leader the city has been looking for.

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I want to be here as long as theyll have me, he said.

For now, the new job includes a long daily commute. He and his wife, Christina, and their new daughter, Caroline Paige, born on the Fourth of July, live in Point Loma, where they enjoy being a few blocks away from his wifes family.

His first three weeks have been a crash course in all things Carlsbad, including a number of short- and long-term projects the city has in the works.

For example, the city is reviewing proposals for its first full-time beach lifeguard program, which could go to the council for approval in a few months.

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Also, the city is looking at four possible locations for a new civic center, which could break ground in 2023. And, farther out, the council has talked about placing the downtown train tracks into a trench below street level to reduce noise, ease traffic and improve public safety.

A project like lowering the railroad tracks would take years and cost many millions of dollars, but the payoff for the community is big.

If these projects were easy, there would be a line (to do them), Chadwick said. These are truly challenging, and it presents an opportunity for us to shine.

Carlsbad has 685 full-time and 179 part-time employees. The fiscal year 2017-18 budget is $311.6 million, with a cash reserve of $88 million.

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Chadwicks base salary is $295,581 a year, according to a copy of his contract posted on the citys website. He also gets a monthly vehicle allowance of $1,000 along with vacation, insurance and other benefits.

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philip.diehl@sduniontribune.com

Twitter: @phildiehl



This is an opinion column.

Maybe weve got it wrong. Or maybe were so still in the midst of this blasted COVID storm we cant yet see any blue skies regarding remote learning.

Maybe both.

I thank God every day that I dont have kids trying to endure it. My son is 26 and my daughter is on the cusp of 24 (no clue when that happened; seems she enrolled as a teenaged freshman at the University of Alabama just last week). I still laugh at memories of yanking their sleepy-head behinds out of bed for school, making sure they were appropriately dressed (Why cant I wear shorts, its only 20 degrees?), and tossing them out the door to catch the school bus just up the block.

My daughter, bless her heart, was that kidthe one always running for the bus before the driver shut the door.

I cant fathom many fond memories emerging from the past near-year among families contending with remote learning. Memories of rustling their kids sleepy-head behinds out of bed to  log on. In their pajama bottoms and slippers (just like their remote-working parents). Their hair looking any kind of way because turning on cameras is not always required.

Most families cant get those memories behind them fast enough and get their children back to school. Outta our house school.

What if, though, some aspects of remote learning actually fix some of the long-ignored education woes, especially among younger students?

What if we discovered a few positives we shouldnt discard once all parents are doing a happy dance as their kids head out the door and to back school.

School Wasnt So Great Before Covid, Either, is the headline of an intriguing article in a recent issue of The Atlantic that claims remote learning has given us a unique opportunity to rethink early education.

Myriad studies predict some students from this time of pajama-learning could be suffering all-but-irreparable harm, particularly those already lagging. Those already close to being inextricably left behind.

Students now displaying increased levels of stress and anxiety, of being disconnect from school. From learning.

The article cited a McKinsey & Company study from last June estimated students losing from three to 11 months of learning, depending on the quality of their remote learning instruction. Findings were based, alas, on students returning to the classroom in January 2021. Some did; many, many did not.

A later, even more alarming, McKinsey study noted the potentially devastating impact of remote learning on students of color. Sure, numerous districts predominantly serving Black and Brown families made significant investments to close the ignoble digital divide. Families unable to afford fancy tech toys were given digital devices, hot-spots, and ongoing training for less tech-savvy caregivers.

Yet, the study found students of color could be six to 12 months behind by the end of the 20-21 school year, relative to four to eight months for white students. Those [students] who came into the pandemic with the fewest academic opportunities, the study read, are on track to exit with the greatest learning loss.

Thats frightening. Its unconscionable. Its unacceptable.

Some studentsthose already killing it academicallyare faring well remotely. The article quoted a teacher from the state of Washington saying those students benefited because the overall workload was dramatically ratcheted down. A report on Edutopia, the education website, said remote students were less likely to be distracted by classroom antics.

Some are even less stressed learning at home. In a Los Angeles Times survey of demographically representative families that was also cited in the article, 43 percent of parents agreed with this: My child is less stressed now than before school closed.

The article noted some children thrived remotely because they were freed from bullying at school and experienced less high-stakes testing pressure.

So, what have aspects of remote learning should now have a seat on the school bus?

Most obviously, as the article offers: Take classrooms outside, as much as possible.

Especially in the wake of a pandemic. We know students are less likely to catch COVID-19 outdoors than inside. Does it make any sense at all to now shoehorn them behind a desk and a plexiglass shield all day when for more than a year theyve been tasked with completing assignments while lounging on their bed, on the living room couch, on the porch, or anywhere they were comfortable?

Anywhere they were less stressed.

You dont have to search hard for a study showing young students especially learn more when nature is the whiteboard. When they can touch and breathe math, reading, and, of course, science.

Lets love on parents, too. Especially those who became more vested in their childrens learning. Maybe because they had to. Maybe because they wanted to. No parent left behind.

And those facilities that stepped in to support students whose families could not fully support them. Places in Birmingham like the Sixth Ave Baptist Church youth ministry and A.G. Gaston Boys & Girls Club, keep them in the loop. There will always be a need.

This, too: Be more creative with curriculums.

A major challenge for teachers during remote learning was broadening assignments such that students wanted to complete them. Such that learning wasthis is way out therefun.

Hold onto that flexibility and creativity when our children return to school. Spice it with new radical thinking, like maybe an all-in test-based curriculum doesnt matter (lets leave No Child Left Behind behind) as much as thinking. As vital, critical thinking. As figuring it out.

Students are facing an epic COVID slide, no matter when they start chasing the school bus again. If you believe all things work together, perhaps the pandemic showed us at least a few ways of improving education, ways we never would have embraced before the Covid storm.

Ways that just may help us get it right now. Maybe.

A voice for whats right and wrong in Birmingham, Alabama (and beyond), Roys column appears in The Birmingham News and AL.com, as well as in the Huntsville Times, the Mobile Register. Reach him at rjohnson@al.com and follow him at twitter.com/roysj
Health Affairs has recently announced the public launch of a health equity initiative to address racism and promote equity.

The initiative to advance equity within Health Affairs will have three elements:



Equitable participation: Increase diversity among authors, reviewers, and editors based on race/ethnicity and other identifiers such as gender and affiliated academic institution.

New voices: Incorporate health equity research or program outcomes from institutions or community-based organizations that have historically not been well-represented in Health Affairs.

Introspection: Address our own biases as part of the publishing enterprise.

The goals for the initiative were detailed by Health Affairs Editor-In-Chief Alan Weil in a blog published on January 26 on Health Affairs Blog. Weil noted, We are examining all aspects of our work to determine where we fall short of an equitable ideal.

To implement the program, Vabren Watts has been appointed as Health Affairs equity project director. Before joining Health Affairs in September 2020, Watts served as deputy director of diversity and health equity at the American Psychiatric Association. In a companion blog published on Health Affairs Blog, Watts concludes: if we are intentional and unapologetic in our efforts, we hope we can build a foundation for health services and health policy scholarly publishing that represents the perspectives of all cultures.

Health Affairs health equity project is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Colorado Health Foundation. Updates to the project and to Health Affairs health equity content can be found on its health equity webpage.

ABOUT HEALTH AFFAIRS:

Health Affairs is the leading peer-reviewed journal at the intersection of health, health care, and policy. Published monthly by Project HOPE, the journal is available in print and online. Late-breaking content is also found through healthaffairs.org, Health Affairs Today, and Health Affairs Sunday Update.

Visit Health Affairs COVID-19 resource center for peer-reviewed articles published within two weeks of submission, as well as Health Affairs Blogs COVID-19 content.

Health Affairs podcasts go beyond the journals pages to bring you insightful discussions on the latest news and research affecting health policy. On our flagship podcast, A Health Podyssey, Editor-In-Chief Alan Weil interviews the leading researchers and influencers shaping the fields big ideas. Join Health Affairs editors on Health Affairs This Week as they discuss the weeks most pressing health policy news. All in 15 minutes or less.

Project HOPE is a global health and humanitarian relief organization that places power in the hands of local health care workers to save lives across the globe. Project HOPE has published Health Affairs since 1981.

A friend of Bashir Aliyu, a final year student of the Federal University, Dutse (FUD), Jigawa State, who committed suicide on Monday after accusing his girlfriend of cheating on him on Valentines Day, has narrated how the love affair between the deceased and his school sweetheart ended in a tragedy.

Earlier, the universitys spokesperson, Abdullahi Bello, had told PREMIUM TIMES the incident occurred on Monday. He added that the vice chancellor, Abdulkareem Sabo, had ordered an investigation.

The university spokesperson said Mr Aliyu, a 400-level student of Mathematics, died after ingesting a poisonous substance at his off campus apartment in Yalwawa quarters in Dutse.

Mr Bashir was pronounced dead at Rasheed Shekoni Specialist Hospital in Dutse, the official added.

On Thursday, a friend to the deceased, Alkali Bafu, told PREMIUM TIMES that the late Bashir was heartbroken and depressed before his death on Monday.

He said the sad incident followed months of a troubled relationship dominated by accusations and counter accusations of cheating between the lovers.

His friend described the late Bashir as one of the best students in his class. He said he was studious and usually organised tutorials with his classmates.

Bashir was also very kind, jovial and friendly. I still dont believe that he is dead, Mr Bafu said.

How the lovers met

Mr Bafu said Bashir started dating Rufiat Abdullateef in 2017 when the girl was an Interim Jamb Matriculation Board (IJMB) student in the university.

She later secured admission to the Department of Economics where she is currently a 200-level student.

According to Mr Bafu, the lovebirds broke up several times but always reconciled.

Bashir adored Rufiat. He was obsessed with her so much that he never stopped speaking about her. He stayed away from other female students just to please her.

He planned to marry her after graduation. Obviously, he would have graduated before her, but that was his plan.

Mr Bafu said he noticed Bashir was depressed about a week before he took his own life.

I told him, guy, youre depressed, I can see it on your face. He admitted to it and told me he had been to the hospital on suspicion of a heart problem but said he was counselled and discharged.

On Saturday, a day to the Valentines Day celebration, I learnt Rufiat told him she was not going to celebrate the day with him. That must have compounded his condition.

On Valentines Day she was no where to be found in Dutse. Some said she went to Kano to celebrate Valentines Day with another partner, that was obviously the information Bashir got and decided to take his own life.

On Monday, at his apartment at Yalwawa quarters, he ingested the substance and minutes later he started screaming. Neighbours rushed him to the hospital where he gave up the ghost, Mr Bafu said.

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PREMIUM TIMES could not locate Miss Abdullateef, Bashirs girlfriend. She was reportedly in mourning somewhere in Kano State.

The police spokesperson in Jigawa, Aminudeen Zubair, told PREMIUM TIMES that the university did not officially report the incident to the police. However, he said that did not deter the police from taking up the investigation.

The university spokesperson, Mr Bello, said the matter was still under investigation and the would address the public when it has new information.
Residents of the New Orleans area suffered through the first rolling power cuts in more than two decades late Tuesday, and utilities warned that more outages could be on the way as record cold temperatures tax the region's power grid.

The rolling outages affected thousands of electricity customers and drew the ire of some public officials who said Entergy New Orleans and other utilities gave little warning before pulling the plug.

Cleco reports 20,000 without power as second winter storm hits the state Cleco Power, which has about 300,000 customers in Louisiana and southern Mississippi, said Wednesday that about 20,000 of its Louisiana custom

Entergy Corp., the parent of Entergy New Orleans and the provider of half of Louisiana's 2.1 million electricity customers, said about 60,000 of its customers were affected by Tuesday's rolling cuts. That came on top of almost 40,000 homes that were still without power because of downed lines caused by the Monday ice storm that ushered in the cold spell.

On Wednesday, Entergy, Cleco Corp., and other utilities asked residents to reduce power use through the early evening to help avoid the need for additional cuts.

The rolling outages, which started Tuesday at 7 p.m., were implemented at the direction of the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, or MISO, which manages the power grid for Louisiana, large portions of the central U.S. and the Canadian province of Manitoba.

New Orleans power restored; thousands elsewhere in state still waiting as cold lingers Power was back on for most New Orleans homes on Wednesday morning, though tens of thousands elsewhere in the state were still waiting for thei

Louisiana has not been as badly affected as Texas, where millions of people have been left without power since the weekend. Texas has a separate grid regulated at the state level, and it struggled to cope with icy conditions that kept more than 40% of its power generation capacity offline.

Still, the cuts in Louisiana took many by surprise. Councilmember Helena Moreno, chair of the City Council's utilities committee, which regulates Entergy New Orleans, criticized the utility for not giving residents fair warning.

"Comms from Entergy to customers needs to be much improved for emergency situations like this," Moreno tweeted late Tuesday.

+2 Watch: Transformer explodes in Mid-City, causes power outages during Louisiana winter storm More transformer issues plagued metro New Orleans on Monday as the state experienced a rare winter storm that brought road closures and power 

MISO is a nonprofit that coordinates between regional utilities and is responsible for ensuring that supply of electricity throughout its system matches demand. That means importing and exporting supply between the various states as needed, and forcing cuts in emergencies.

On Tuesday evening, as demand across the South surged to a record level when people pumped up their home heat to cope with below-freezing temperatures, MISO declared a "max gen event" emergency for its entire region covering Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana.

"These controlled outages are a last resort in order to prevent a larger system outage and are only directed in the rarest circumstances," said Brandon Morris, a MISO spokesman.

He said that the south region continues to import from the north and central regions and the system was stable Wednesday. But, he added, "conditions for the rest of the week remain challenging in the South given the continued extreme weather and ongoing operational uncertainties."

Entergy New Orleans CEO David Ellis said Wednesday the last time Entergy was forced to implement rolling outages was in 2000. He said it was not possible for the utility to predict the latest rolling outages before late Tuesday.

Still, after criticism from customers about a lack of communication, Entergy blasted out a robocall warning customers Wednesday afternoon that more enforced outages might be necessary this week. The call also reiterated requests for customers to take measures to conserve energy, such as postponing tasks such as laundry and dishwashing during peak demand times from 5 p.m. until after 10 p.m.

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Cleco and other utilities also warned customers that more outages maybe on the way.

Andrew Tuozzolo, Moreno's chief of staff, said Entergy's communication with customers this week wasn't acceptable and the council would be writing the utility to insist on improvement.

"We're really disappointed with the level of communications from Entergy New Orleans," Tuozzolo said. "Sure, this is an unusual event. But if outages are going to happen to the extent they did and they did not alert ratepayers ahead of time, that is a huge problem."

Consumer advocates also voiced concerns that ratepayers will now be looking at another big jump in their energy bills, which spiked in December because of high use and higher rates for importing out-of-state power supply.

"There is no doubt that customers can expect to have really high electricity bills when they get them next month," said Logan Atkinson Burke, executive director of the Alliance for Affordable Energy, a New Orleans-based consumer advocacy group.

She said New Orleans customers are particularly vulnerable to big spikes because the city's antiquated housing stock is among the least energy efficient in the country. New Orleans homes use, on average, 30% more energy than those in other cities.

"Our houses are old and beautiful and historic, but they're leaky," Burke said.

The spike in electricity bills is likely to be made worse because of a huge rise in natural gas prices, which already have almost tripled since last summer and have been driven higher by the big freeze over the South. Entergy is particularly reliant on natural gas to generate electricity.

The strains on the electricity system highlighted some other long-simmering issues, such as complaints that people in poorer neighborhoods tend to be hit hardest by power outages and price spikes.

"Part of questions I have is how does the utility choose which neighborhoods get cut first," said Burke, noting that the outage map on Tuesday night at the height of the rolling cuts showed some of New Orleans poorer neighborhoods city with big blocks of outages.

"It is unclear why Broadmoor, Gentilly, the Desire area were chosen," she said.

The Louisiana Public Service Commission, the state-level regulator, said Wednesday that MISO makes the decisions about which areas lose power based on an algorithm, but that the individual utility makes the decision about the timing of bringing areas back online.

Moreno also tweeted that she wants the issue investigated.

Tuozzolo said the City Council will be asking for more answers about the procedure for rolling cuts. "Were going to be looking very closely also at who they shut off and what load they shed, what are their procedures," he said.

Entergy didn't immediately respond to questions about how it determines which neighborhoods are taken off and brought back online.

WWL television reported that Entergy's rolling outages cut power to key generators required by the New Orleans Sewerage & Water Board to produce drinking water. WWL quoted an Entergy spokesman saying the cuts were inadvertent and the S&WB generators "shouldn't have been on the list."

Entergy would not comment further on the S&WB matter.
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As for the randy lecturers in Nigerias higher institutions, the earlier they know that the time when teachers see their female students as part of their perks of office is gone forever, the better for them. Any smart lecturer ought to know that this is not the time to play pranks with female students. In this age of new media, everyone has become a reporter, publisher and broadcaster.

A lecturer at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) has been in the news for the wrong reasons since the beginning of the week. Unlike some serious-minded dons in citadels of learning across the world who have been trying to find solutions to the diverse challenges of the world, Dr. Chigozie Odum of the Department of Archaeology and Tourism has reportedly chosen another vocation for himself. He has been allegedly busy with the task of sexually molesting and impregnating his own students. Unconfirmed reports claim he has so far impregnated four of his students, although only one has officially lodged a complaint to the university authorities. The UNN has also suspended him indefinitely on the basis of the complaint of the female student. The university has also promised to investigate any further claim of sexual harassment, provided there are evidences to back such claims.

Odums letter of suspension has been trending in the social media since February 15 when it was issued. The letter, signed by UNNs Deputy Registrar, Mrs. Achiuwa F.C, reads: Following the accusation of sexual harassment made against you by a female student in the Department of Archaeology and Tourism, the Vice-Chancellor has directed that you be suspended from duty immediately. You are hereby so suspended from duty with immediate effect. You should stay away from your duty post until the final determination of the allegation against you. You should hand over any University property in your custody to the Head of Department of Archaeology and Tourism. The Bursar is by a copy of this letter advised to place you on half salary pending final disposal action on your case.

According to media reports, Odum allegedly put a female student, Onah Chinyere, in the family way after coercing her into sexual intercourse. Consequently, the girls family petitioned the police, which led to his arrest by the men of the Crack Squad, Enugu State Police Command. There are insinuations that the university acted only because Odum was arrested but the institution has since denied this. Whatever the case is, it is gratifying that the UNN at least called a spade by its name. The letter was explicit enough on the alleged offence and the steps being taken were clearly stated. It is also good to realise that in this new media age, it is getting tougher for any institution to shield any erring staff member. UNN should therefore hasten its investigation and make its findings public. Nigerians need to know the outcome of this probe. The public deserves to know if this man is found guilty or not. If found innocent, Nigerians should also know why he was wrongly accused in the first instance and the punishment for the person that wrongly maligned his character. This is the least the university can do, especially now that this matter is already in the public domain. This is very important because reports of sexual assaults can take too long to investigate, even in sane climes.

Our higher institutions should start sending out a clear message to both lecturers and students that unwanted sexual behaviours will no longer be tolerated. They just have to start doing things differently. The truth is that anyone who has gone through sexual harassment in the past cant help but seek appropriate punishment for predators. The effect can be devastating. It is both psychologically and emotionally traumatising. You need to experience it to know how it feels. I was once there and the torture is still as if it happened yesterday. I suffered grade retaliation in the hands of a randy lecturer who wouldnt take no for an answer. Imagine a lecturer old enough to be my father putting me through such emotional stress simply because I refused to be slaughtered on his sexual slab. Its horrible. Anyway, as God would have it, this lecturer left the University of Lagos for a private university years after I had left the school. Since a leopard can hardly change its skin, he wanted to continue his sexual exploits there, but the students reported him and he was sacked. He died a miserable man. I had the privilege of editing the story of his passing. For me, it was a pure case of good riddance to bad rubbish!

Until Nigerian institutions begin to make a scapegoat of randy lecturers in their midst, the problem of sexual harassment will persist. Let me also make it clear that sexual harassment goes beyond sexual advancements towards the opposite sex. Some behaviours or words could pass for sexual harassment. For example, a university lecturer at University of New Hampshire once lost a years pay for using sex as an analogy in class. He said he used the sex analogy so that students would understand the subject better. But, some students complained; the administration investigated and suspended him without pay for one year. Another professor of English was fired for reliance on sex as a theme and of sexually-explicit vocabulary. Of course, both lecturers eventually won in court but they were not reinstated by their universities. This is the extent of seriousness attached to sexual harassment in some countries.

Nigerian institutions should encourage anonymous reports of sexual harassment cases. Such cases should be independently investigated to help students who may be too shy to come forward in the open. Investigations should be transparent and everybody should be made to account for their actions.

We know that there is nothing new under the sun. Sexual harassment is a global phenomenon and an ongoing issue across the globe. As a matter of fact, a report conducted by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) notes that one in five (21 per cent) of students at Australian universities are sexually harassed, either on campus, at a universityrelated event off campus, or from someone associated with the university. In the UK, the BBC said that there were 1436 recorded allegations of sexual harassment against students from 2018-2019, which is an increase of 476 from 2016-2017. Similarly, a study into sexual harassment among universities in Norway shows that 15.2 per cent of women (compared with 4.4 per cent of men) reported unwanted touching, hugging, or kissing since they started their studies, just as a 2006 study published by the American Association of University Women concluded that sexual harassment remains a persistent problem for women on campus.

Of course, most of the cases listed above are not about lecturers harassing their students. They are cases of students being sexually harassed by one another, either on or off campus. A report by the AAUW says 80 per cent of the sexual harassment reported by college women and men was about a hostile work environment, harassment by other students and former students, and not the faculty and staff. For example, a student of Columbia University once spent an entire year carrying mattress across campus to protest being raped by a fellow student. So, one can imagine what would have happened if such student was raped or sexually harassed by a lecturer. Elsewhere, higher institutions try as much as much as possible to provide support services for victims of sexual harassment. But here, the lecturers and the staff are the ones harassing students sexually. By the way, why should a lecturer demand sexual services from a female student before doing the job he is paid to do? This is despicable. It is an abuse of trust, power and authority.

Moving forward, Nigerian institutions should encourage anonymous reports of sexual harassment cases. Such cases should be independently investigated to help students who may be too shy to come forward in the open. Investigations should be transparent and everybody should be made to account for their actions. In this particular case of the UNN, the lecturers arrest by the police is a welcome development. But beyond that, the university should be joined in a law suit, should a case be established against the lecturer. It is the universitys responsibility to keep students safe from all forms of sexual harassment.

its a share display of irresponsibility and an act of timidity for lecturers to be harassing female students that they are old enough to father simply because they think they exercise some powers over them. The same is the case with a boss trying to sexually molest a female worker at work.

As for the randy lecturers in Nigerias higher institutions, the earlier they know that the time when teachers see their female students as part of their perks of office is gone forever, the better for them. Any smart lecturer ought to know that this is not the time to play pranks with female students. In this age of new media, everyone has become a reporter, publisher and broadcaster. It is hard to keep such acts as secrets. So, it is in their best interest to keep that thing between their legs in check before it checks them out of their jobs.

Besides, its a share display of irresponsibility and an act of timidity for lecturers to be harassing female students that they are old enough to father simply because they think they exercise some powers over them. The same is the case with a boss trying to sexually molest a female worker at work. Such men are simply cowards. Otherwise, they would have been bold enough to approach women outside their spheres of power and influence, instead of intimidating and harassing weak and vulnerable ladies around them.

Olabisi Deji-Folutile is the Editor-in-Chief, Franktalknow.com and member, Nigerian Guild of Editors. Email: bisideji@yahoo.co.uk.
Haitian president Jovenel Moise during his video interview with EL PAIS. Cortesia

Haitis President Jovenel Moise has accused the political opposition and wealthy backers of mounting a coup attempt against him, as a dispute over the end date of his current term in office has been accompanied by an upsurge of violence on the streets of the Caribbean country.

In an wide-ranging telephone interview with EL PAIS, Moise, 52, hit out at Joseph Mecene, a 72-year-old judge who recently declared himself president, and attacked powerful families who control the main resources of the country, and who have always installed and removed presidents, using the street to create chaos.

The corrupt oligarchs who are used to controlling the president, ministers, parliament and judicial system think they can take the presidency President Jovenel Moise

Moise was elected in 2015 for a five-year term to start the following February, but that poll was voided due to fraud allegations. He was confirmed as president in a subsequent election a year later, but the opposition argues his time is already up and he should have left office.

My mandate began on February 7, 2017, and ends on February 7, 2022. I will hand power back to its owners  the Haitian people, he said, speaking from his office in the capital. The corrupt oligarchs who are used to controlling the president, ministers, parliament and judicial system think they can take the presidency, but there is only one way of doing this: through elections. Moise added that he would not stand again for office in line with the current constitution, which prohibits consecutive terms.

Haiti, the poorest nation in the Americas, has struggled to recover from devastating natural disasters, and is grappling with a tanking economy and armed gangs who have de facto control of sectors of the capital, Port-au-Prince. The arrest this week of 23 people accused of conspiracy and attempted murder of the president has ratcheted up tensions.

Supreme Court Justice Mecene swore himself in a message recorded in a room with no witnesses, apart from a Haitian flag and his Facebook account. The move has so far been ignored by the international community. As he was doing so, a plane from the United States landed with dozens of deported Haitians on board, 21 of them children, underlining the countrys many difficulties.

Demonstrators are detained by police during the protests in Haiti. JEANTY JUNIOR AUGUSTIN / Reuters

Regardless of the simmering domestic atmosphere, Moise so far has the backing of the United States and the Organization of American States (OAS), which are keen to avoid further violence and political gridlock in the country. Analysts have said the US and OAS will apply pressure for elections to be held this year to ensure Moise has a clear successor, rather than to oust him now.

Moise enjoyed a good relationship with former US President Donald Trump, owing to the Haitian leaders repeated denouncement of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuela responded by accusing Moises administration of corrupt handling of money from PetroCaribe, a loan programme designed to help Caribbean countries create their own development funds.

While the Haitian presidents relationship with President Joe Biden is facing its first test, he is optimistic about working with the newly elected leader. I have not had the opportunity to speak with Biden personally, but relations with the United States are at their best, and I dont think that will change in future, Moise said. There is little he can do to stem an avalanche of criticism over his governance, however. We are witnessing the making of a Somalia in the Americas, Ralph P. Chevry, a board member of the Haiti Center for Socio Economic Policy, told The Washington Post this week.

Until now, governments were the puppets of business, but thats no longer the case and so those who once felt untouchable are really taking it badly

Moise has ruled by decree since he failed to call legislative elections in 2019, effectively leaving the country without a parliament. This has exacerbated accusations by the opposition that he is acting like a dictator, though he insists they are the ones acting undemocratically.

This coup detat is not a single incident but a sequence of actions. Until now, governments were the puppets of business, but thats no longer the case and so those who once felt untouchable are really taking it badly, he told EL PAIS. Moise has previously blamed families who largely control the countrys electricity supply for sabotaging his rule and stoking violence.

He has also attracted criticism for decreeing the creation of a secret service, and referring to street protests as terrorism. Moise said that being criticised was normal and that he understood the preoccupations of his accusers, and was working hard to dispel their fears. At the same time, he dismissed the idea of widespread protests against his rule. Mass protests are not taking place all over the country. These are small groups of 30 to 50 people in Port-au-Prince or [northern commune] Gonaives. Violent people who are being manipulated, he said.

Another contentious policy that Moise seems intent on pursuing is reform of the 1987 constitution, which affords the president little power in favour of parliament and a prime minister. Moise said he would hold a referendum in April on plans to create the post of vice-president, to combine Haitis two legislative chambers, and expand the popular vote to the diaspora community. He would not personally benefit from these changes, he noted. The new constitution will attempt to balance out the power currently concentrated in the legislature, he said. If I give you an example, I won the last election but for 22 months I could not keep a single one of my promises because I could not even make appointments to my cabinet. Moise wants to allow the most capable and prosperous Haitians  referring to the diaspora  to become ministers and lawmakers too.

An armed police officer watches over a protest by journalist in Port-au-Prince. VALERIE BAERISWYL / AFP

Politics aside, Haitians are panicked by the growth and strength of violent gangs. Kidnappings and robberies are common in Port-au-Prince, even forcing organizations such as Doctors Without Borders to suspend some of their work there. Anecdotally, there is a sensation that there are more weapons on the streets than ever before.

In a country where there is a lot of misery, it is normal among people with no conscience to prey on the weakest to do their dirty work, and guarantee their interests, the president said. When you see a person with no shoes on holding a gun worth thousands of dollars, you know that they work for criminal groups. Moise pointed to the appointment of a new police chief as evidence he is serious about gun violence, but admitted he was fighting an arms business that has engulfed the country.

In the midst of its political crisis, Haiti has had little time to commemorate the anniversary of a devastating 2010 earthquake that killed at least 250,000 people. Moise also has to contend with how little quality of life has improved in the so-called Republic of NGOs, which has benefited from billions of dollars of aid. I am sorry to say it as the president of Haiti, but we missed an opportunity to remake the country. We had the problem of political instability and we didnt know what to do with the projects that came to us from international funds. However, we cannot change history and we have to start again. It was tough for us that for 11 years we were given a lot, and the results are very minimal.

Meanwhile, the president has little time left to accomplish all of his own promises. Moises pitch to the electorate of the first Caribbean republic in 2015 was that he would bring electricity to every home, but just 44% have access today, according to the US Department of Energy.

English version by Jennifer OMahony.
An armed man is reportedly holding a woman and a child as young as five hostage in a suburban home, prompting police to shut down the entire neighbourhood.

Tactical police have been surrounding a home in Sunnybank on Brisbane's southside since 10.30am on Thursday before issuing an 'emergency declaration' at 11.14am.

Acting inspector Mick Ackery said they are talking to the man 'to bring the incident to a conclusion peacefully' at 3.30pm as the siege continues.

Locals have been urged to avoid an exclusion zone between Dyson Avenue, Geddes Place, Beenleigh Rd and Ganda Place.

An armed man is reportedly holding a woman and a child as young as five hostage in a suburban home in Sunnybank on Brisbane's southside. Tactical police (pictured) are now surrounding a home trying to defuse the situation

Acting inspector Mick Ackery said specialist police are talking to the man 'to bring the incident to a conclusion peacefully' at 3.30pm as the siege continues

'What specialist police are concentrating on now is coming to a peaceful resolution to the situation,' Mr Ackery said at the conference.

'Specialist police are making all attempts to engage with the person in the house.

'We're prepared to deal with the situation as long as it takes to ensure the safety of the community, the people inside that house and of course, our officers.'

A woman and a child as young as five are being held hostage, according to 7News.

Inspector Ackery said police are talking to the armed man but would not comment on his weapon or the other occupants inside the house as to not escalate the situation.

'You have to understand it's an ongoing matter, a dynamic, fluid situation, so therefore it's very hard for me and not appropriate for me to make further comments about that,' he said.

'I need to let the specialist police their job and that's all I'm prepared to say at this stage.'

Mr Ackery crosses back into the cordoned off area as the siege continues. He said they are 'prepared to deal with the situation as long as it takes'

Locals have been urged to avoid an exclusion zone between Dyson Avenue, Geddes Place, Beenleigh Rd and Ganda Place

When asked if detectives visited the house prior to the siege, he said: 'Police had attended the address.'

'Contrary to some beliefs, the incident did not commence at the Banoon train station,' he said.

'There's a number of police here, including tactical, crime squad and detectives and other specialist police.'

Queensland Police said: 'Residents within the exclusion zone are urged to follow the advice of emergency services on the ground.

'Members of the public are advised to avoid the area.'

Trains that run along the Beenleigh line were initially skipping the nearby Banoon station but have now resumed as normal.
Acres of asphalt parking lots, unshaded roads, dense apartment complexes and neighborhoods with few parks have taken their toll on the poor. As climate change accelerates, low-income districts in the Southwestern United States are 4 to 7 degrees hotter in Fahrenheit -- on average -- than wealthy neighborhoods in the same metro regions, University of California, Davis, researchers have found in a new analysis.

This study provides the most detailed mapping yet of how summer temperatures in 20 urban centers in California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas affected different neighborhoods between 2018 and 2020. The researchers found even greater heat disparities in California than in other states. The largest disparities showed up in the Riverside and San Bernardino County urban areas.

The unequal impact on Latino communities was especially apparent, the authors said. In Los Angeles on a hot summer day, for example, the most heavily Latino neighborhoods were 6.7 degrees hotter than the least Latino neighborhoods.

"This study provides strong new evidence of climate impact disparities affecting disadvantaged communities, and of the need for proactive steps to reduce those risks," said the study's lead author, John Dialesandro, a doctoral student in geography in the Department of Human Ecology.

The authors said that lower socio-economic groups often have less access to cooled housing, transportation, workplaces and schools. Excess heat can cause heat stroke, exhaustion, and ampli?ed respiratory and cardiovascular issues.

It has long been known that paved surfaces of urban areas absorb and retain solar radiation, increasing urban temperatures. The surrounding suburbs -- with more plant life, parks or proximity to bodies of water -- will be cooler, creating heat islands in the denser areas.

"There is a strong need for state and local governments to take action to mitigate heat disparities by reducing paved surfaces, adding drought-tolerant vegetation, and encouraging building forms that increase shade and reduce temperatures," Dialesandro said.

The study was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Co-authors include Noli Brazi, assistant professor, and Stephen Wheeler, professor, each in the Department of Human Ecology, and Yaser Abunnasr, Department of Landscape Design and Ecosystem Management, American University of Beirut.

Researchers looked at U.S. Census data for each area studied, focusing on median household income and percentage of Latinx, Black and Asian populations in each. They also looked at education levels attained. They then assessed radiant and atmospheric temperatures recorded by satellite on the warmest summer days and nights in those cities over a two-year period.

On average, the poorest 10 percent of neighborhoods in an urban region were 4 degrees hotter than the wealthiest 10 percent on both extreme heat days and average summer days, the study said.

California's urban regions had much larger temperature differences between the wealthiest and poorest neighborhoods compared with regions in the rest of the Southwest. The greatest differences were seen in Palm Springs, Bakersfield and Fresno. The smallest differences were seen in Sacramento.

On extreme heat days, the poorest California neighborhoods in each region were nearly 5 degrees hotter, on average, than the wealthiest neighborhoods. This compares to about 3 degrees difference in average temperatures for other Southwestern cities when comparing wealthier and poorer neighborhoods.

The largest differences occurred in the Inland Empire and Palm Springs areas in Riverside and San Bernardino County, where disparities in average temperatures between wealthier and poorer differed by more than 6 degrees.

"Programs to increase vegetation within disadvantaged neighborhoods and reduce or lighten pavements and rooftops could help reduce thermal disparities between neighborhoods of different socioeconomic characteristics," the authors said.

While neighborhoods populated by Blacks in Southern California showed some disparities in temperature -- about 1 to 2 degrees, when compared with white neighborhoods -- this difference was not statistically significant. Black populations throughout Southwestern metropolitan areas are relatively small, authors said, meaning that findings on this demographic dimension were less pronounced.

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Adrian Vargas of Vargas Farms estimates he will loss 30% of his strawberry crop because of the wind-driven mulch fire in Ontario. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

A wind-driven fire broke out at a green-waste business in Ontario overnight, quickly chewing through massive piles of mulch and hay bales, authorities said Thursday.

The Ontario Fire Department arrived at the business between Euclid and Chino avenues around 1:20 a.m. to find the burning mulch.

Spurred by strong Santa Ana winds, the fire spread to around 50 piles of mulch and 200 bales of hay and spewed a smelly cloud of smoke across parts of Southern California, Battalion Chief Scot Roeber said.

A large wind-driven mulch fire burns Thursday in Ontario. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

Firefighters were able to contain the fire to six acres by 8 a.m., but battling the blaze will "be a lengthy operation," Roeber said.

Crews wrapped a hose around the fire's perimeter while working to topple mulch piles as high as 25 feet, officials said. Around 50 firefighters from Rancho Cucamonga and San Bernardino as well as the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection are working with Ontario crews to battle the fire.

Two nearby commercial structures are still threatened, Roeber said, noting that steady 30-mph winds from the northeast could blow embers toward the buildings, which are about 100 feet west of the fire. The two structures are connected to dairy and farm businesses.

Smoke streamed from the agricultural area across neighborhoods in adjacent Chino on Thursday morning. No homes are currently threatened, officials said.

The National Weather Service predicted that strong winds would diminish by Thursday afternoon. One gust in Chino Hills around 5 a.m. was clocked at 49 mph, meteorologists said.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Student nominated for Congress of Future Medical Leaders

Samuel Zamat, a sophomore at Fairfield Ludlow High School will be a delegate to the Congress of Future Medical Leaders on March 20 and 21 in Boston.

The Congress is an honors only program for high school students who want to become physicians or go into medical research fields. The purpose of the event is to honor, inspire, motivate and direct the top students in the country, who are interested in these careers, to stay true to their dream and, after the event, to provide a path, plan and resources to help them reach their goal.

Based in Washington, D.C. and with offices in Boston. the Academy was chartered as a nonpartisan, taxpaying institution to help address this crisis by working to identify, encourage and mentor students who wish to devote their lives to the service of humanity as physicians, medical scientists.

Call center available for COVID-19 questions

Fairfields COVID-19 call center for COVID-19 is ready to answer residents vaccine questions. Calls can be made to 203-256-3082 and will be answered between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. The call center cannot schedule appointments, but can help guide residents through the process of receiving a vaccine and answer any questions they may have.

Police departments recognized supporting Special Olympics

The Fairfield University Department of Public Safety has been recognized by Special Olympics Connecticut for being a top 10 fundraiser for the organization in 2020.

The department ranks ninth on the list with a total $9,530 raised.

Political theorist announced for Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation

Cristina Beltran, PhD, associate professor and director of graduate studies in the New York University, (NYU), Department of Social and Cultural Analysis, is going to be the keynote speaker ar Fairfield Universitys annual Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation at 7 p.m. Feb. 22.

The event is free, and open to the public. The theme for the event is Striving to Build the Beloved Community: From Dr. King to Black Lives Matter.

Visit fairfield.edu/mlk to register.

Assisted Living Services wins award

The homecare agency, Assisted Living Services, (ALS), has received a Best of Home Care - Employer of Choice Award from the home care business Home Care Pulse, for the second year in a row.

The award is granted to top ranking home care providers, based on caregiver satisfaction scores that are gathered by the independent satisfaction research firm for home care.

The home care agency has locations in Fairfield and Cheshire.

Student selected for youth council

Sophia DelGaudio, 16, a student at Fairfield Ludlow High School, has been selected a member of the Westport Country Playhouse Youth Council. The council is a new advocacy group for supporting the theaters artistic, and community building mission. The group is comprised of high school students from across New Haven and Fairfield counties.

Legislators discussing priorities

Fairfields legislators will discuss priorities facing the state legislative session at a virtual forum on Feb. 22, hosted by the League of Women Voters of Fairfield. There will be no audience for the session, which will then be presented on all FairTV platforms from Feb. 23 to March 2.

The public is invited to send questions by Feb. 20 to lwvfairfield@lwvct.org.

State Reps. Laura Devlin, (District 134), Cristin McCarthy Vahey, (District 133) and Jennifer Leeper, (District 132) and state Sen. Tony Hwang, (District 28), have been invited to speak.

The leagues co-president Bryce Perry will be the moderator.

Visit the leagues website for more information. Email the league questions at: lwvfairfield@lwvct.org.

Funeral home director elected to second term

Jonathan L. Green, CPC, has been elected to his second term as a member of the Executive Committee of the Connecticut Funeral Directors Association, (CFDA).

Green is a licensed funeral director/embalmer at Abraham L. Green & Son Funeral Home in Fairfield, Conn., where he works with his father, Samuel A. Green, also is a licensed funeral director/embalmer. The funeral home was founded in 1948 by Jonathans grandfather, Abraham L. Green.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 04:29:20|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Thursday called for efforts to advance the political process and alleviate the humanitarian situation in Yemen.

Since its return to Aden, the Yemeni government has tried its best to govern and provide services for people's livelihood under very difficult circumstances. China highly commends its efforts and expects the government to accelerate internal integration, smoothly carry out its work, and get ready to participate in the comprehensive political process, said Geng Shuang, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations.

The escalation of conflict in northern Yemen has caused civilian casualties and undermined mutual trust between the government and the Houthis, threatening the political mediation efforts. China urges all parties to the conflict to heed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' appeal for a cease-fire, put down their guns, exercise restraint, and refrain from any actions that may increase tension so as to create a safe environment for the peace process, he told the Security Council.

China welcomes the U.S. move to revoke its designation of the Houthis as terrorists and the appointment of a U.S. special envoy to promote the political process in Yemen. "We hope the United States will adopt more measures conducive to the peace process in Yemen and commit itself to maintaining peace and stability in the Gulf region."

China appreciates the recent shuttle diplomacy carried out by UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths and hopes all the parties can seize this positive momentum to meet each other halfway and create conditions for lasting peace in Yemen, he said.

The settlement of the issues in the Gulf region needs both the joint efforts of regional countries and the constructive role of key powers. China welcomes the recent visit to Iran by Griffiths and hopes that the exchanges will bring about positive impact on the political settlement of the Yemeni issue, he said.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi has proposed a multilateral platform for dialogue in the Gulf region. China is ready to conduct consultations with countries that have similar ideas to advance the forging of new consensus on maintaining peace and stability in the region, said Geng.

He also called on the international community to increase assistance to Yemen in order to alleviate the humanitarian situation. Enditem
Should the U.S. compensate Black Americans for generations of slavery and discrimination?

That was the subject of a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing Wednesday of a bill introduced by Democrats U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas to form a commission to investigate the history of slavery and the ongoing discrimination against Blacks.

An important step towards addressing systemic racism and white supremacy is to examine the harmful and painful legacy of the institution of slavery, Booker said.

More must be done to atone for the harm inflicted upon African Americans for generations due to slavery and institutionalized discriminatory policies. Bringing together the best minds to study the issue and propose solutions that will help right the scales of past harms against African Americans is necessary for us to fully achieve our nations strength and possibility.

The idea of such a study drew support from President Joe Biden on Wednesday.

He certainly would support a study of reparations, and we understand that we dont need a study to take action, right now, on systemic racism, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said during her daily briefing. So he wants to take actions within his own government in the meantime.

At the hearing, Kamm Howard, co-chair of the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America, said such assistance was long overdue. He said that Blacks supported and fought for the Union Army during the Civil war and then last November, with our overwhelming vote for the Democratic Party, again saved America from white nationalist hatred and destruction.

The highest standard of reparations is needed to adequately address over 400 years of atrocities and compounded and concretized injuries that this community endures, he said. No quick fix, no singular action or tweak here or there in existing policy will do. America must engage in full reparations.

But Hershel Walker, the star running back who once played for Donald Trumps New Jersey Generals, rejected the idea.

If you want to help any race, give them an education that helps to incentivize through opportunities with responsibility, which helps generations in the future, he said. If reparation is a fee to be paid that correct the offer sins of slave owners by taking from a non-guilty party, it will only create division with the different races, which I feel continue to tell us we are African American rather then just an American.

Booker timed the introduction of the bill so it would receive the number S. 40, matching the House measure that is numbered H.R. 40. His legislation has 17 co-sponsors while Jackson Lees has 162, including six from New Jersey: Reps. Donald Norcross, D-1st Dist., Andy Kim, D-3rd Dist., Frank Pallone Jr., D-6th Dist., Albio Sires, D-8th Dist., Donald Payne Jr., D-10th Dist., and Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-12th Dist.

Booker testified at a similar hearing in 2019 after he and Jackson Lee first introduced their legislation. That hearing took place on June Nineteenth, the anniversary of the abolition of slavery in Texas when Union soldiers arrived there on June 19, 1865, some two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JDSalant.

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EDINBURG - There is no official count for the number of people who live near the Great Sacandaga Lake year-round versus the number of summer-only residents. People who know the area best put the figure at four or five to one, in favor of the seasonal crowd. But Jason Kemper, who has lived near the lake all his life, noticed something the other night during a family outing on snowmobiles. As Kemper, his wife, Kim, and their two sons drove over the ice on their way to dinner at a local restaurant, they noticed lights along the shoreline where in years past, the camps would be dark in February. It reinforced the shift Kemper had already noticed: More people are staying longer at what used to be strictly vacation homes.

Real estate agent Tom McGroder, owner of Thomas J. Real Estate, is noticing it, too. He's seeing skyrocketing property values all around the lake, and not just since the pandemic, but over the last four years. New and longtime property owners are maxing out the available contractors to build bigger houses where modest camps once stood, McGroder said. But lake access is key. Listings that don't have direct lake access  the back lots, as the locals call them  wait longer for buyers.

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Small public schools serve the families in the area: Corinth, Hadley-Luzerne and an Edinburg elementary school. After fifth grade, Edinburg children go to the Northville school. The lake has 125 miles of shoreline. It's 29 miles long and 5 miles across at its widest point.

The Great Sacandaga Lake region includes the seven towns that touch the water in either Saratoga or Fulton County: Hadley, Day, Edinburg, Providence, Northhampton, Mayfield and Broadalbin. It's a unique place because the lake is a manmade reservoir built in the 1920s to spare down river towns from spring flooding. Because of this, the water level varies widely  something winter and summer users have to keep in mind because, Kemper noted, they might encounter an obstacle in a spot where only ice or water had been before.

Most of the towns along the lake are in the Adirondack Park, a fact that has helped preserve rural life in the region because of strict restrictions on major construction projects. A builder looking to put up four or fewer houses has only to apply to the local town Planning Board. If it's five or more, they have to contend with the Adirondack Park Agency.

Longtime Edinburg Supervisor Jean Raymond said she and the leaders of three other towns  Hadley, Day and Corinth  are taking advantage of the shifts caused by the pandemic to launch a study to find out the region's strengths and weaknesses when it comes to attracting businesses and talented residents. The lack of high-speed broadband access is a road block.

Raymond said the region has a chicken-and-egg problem: Until more year-round people move in, it's hard for businesses to thrive. But for businesses to thrive and residents to work from home, they need reliable high-speed internet.

Hadley Supervisor Mo Wright suggested to Raymond and the supervisors in Corinth and Day that they pool grant money available from Saratoga County to do an economic development study. The Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership hired public relations firm Behan Communications on behalf of the towns.

"We've been interviewing people who live in or returned there," said Mark Behan, president and founder of Behan Communications. "We've discovered a growing micro-economy  recreational entrepreneurs, artisans, farmers, crafts people and art and antique restorers."

Raymond, who does her grocery shopping in Glens Falls, 32 miles away, said she doesn't mind the lack of big stores but said she would like to see a gift shop to showcase the work of local people. She said the location of the lake, between two counties, guides the orientation people have toward population centers. If you live on the Saratoga County side, you're likely to go to Saratoga Springs or Glens Falls. But people in Northville, Mayfield and Broadalbin tend to take a trip to Amsterdam for goods and services.

Raymond said she would like to see more full-time residents because communities need people to volunteer to staff emergency services  but only if they are going to embrace the lifestyle the lake region provides. She likes the fact she doesn't hit a traffic light until she's halfway to Saratoga Springs, and doesn't want that to change.

Kemper said he and Kim, also a native of the region, chose to stay and raise their family next to the lake because of the recreational activities it provides their children. Kemper is the director of planning for Saratoga County and serves on the Great Sacandaga Lake Advisory Council, which manages an annual contribution by Erie Boulevard Hydropower LP toward community projects and fishing access. The advisory council produced a documentary on the lake using money the power company is required by law to contribute.

"We dont go more than a week without doing some sort of recreation associated with the lake such as snowmobiling, fishing, swimming, boating, etc." Jason Kemper said.

The proximity to nature also provides wildlife sightings. Kemper described a time last summer when a black bear made its way to the water between his camp and the one next door, owned by Saratoga County Historian Lauren Roberts' family. The bear jumped in the lake and swam across to the north side. Seeing its destination, Kemper jumped into his pontoon boat and followed slowly behind the animal to ensure it safe passage between the humans sharing the lake.
Police received a call about a disorder on N. Marks Avenue. A woman said she and her boyfriend recently broke up. The boyfriend was over at her house and she wanted him to leave. The boyfriend gathered his belongings and then vacated the property in a peaceful manner.



* * *



An employee of Stardust Spiritual Shoppe, 5012 Hwy 58., called police and said the night before two black females came inside the store. She said while in the store the two shopped as if they were going to buy items.

She said while one of the women put her items on the counter, then asked for another item on the back shelf, both of them ran out of the store with their items.* * *A woman called police and said that while she was attending the morning service at Covenant Baptist Church, 1640 Joiner Road, someone got into her unlocked vehicle and stole her purse, which contained her firearm. She said it was a Ruger SR9C 9mm with an extended mag for 16 rounds. She said the purse also had her wallet containing her ID, carry permit, Capital One credit card, Regions credit card, cash and her check book from Regions. She said her husband checked the area to see if the thief may have ditched her purse, but nothing was located. The firearm was entered into NCIC.* * *An employee of the Circle K, 4900 Brainerd Road, called police and said there was a man asleep in the bathroom, and they would just like him to be removed from the property. Police spoke with the man and offered him a ride to the Community Kitchen, which he accepted.* * *While on patrol on Duncan Avenue, police encountered a white Lexus SUV parked in the roadway. Officers ran the tag, which was confirmed the vehicle as stolen via NCIC. Officers found the vehicle unlocked, no keys inside and frosted over, indicating the vehicle had been parked there for a substantial amount of time. The vehicle was unoccupied, with the driver's side window halfway down. Dispatch then contacted the owner, who requested police tow the vehicle. Officers searched the vehicle and did not find the three boxes of clothes or a pocketbook the owner said had been in the car when it was stolen. The vehicle was towed to A-1 Towing #2, 3610 Calhoun Ave.* * *Police responded to a call about suspicious activity at the Quality Inn, 7015 Shallowford Road. Police searched the area and discovered a blue SUV off, but the headlights were on. There was a man inside the vehicle in the back seat. The man said he was sitting inside waiting on a co-worker to come down. Police ran the vehicle tag, which came back registered to the man.* * *Employees of Tru by Hilton, 7008 Shallowford Road, called police and said there was a black male pacing the parking lot. They said the man had been out there all night. Police spoke with and identified the man, who said he was trying to get a ride to the Community Kitchen because he was trying to get a job. Police transported him to the Community Kitchen.* * *A man called police from CHI Memorial Hospital, 2525 De Sales Ave., and said he thought someone had stolen his two wallets. He described one wallet as a red wallet with stars in the fashion of the Confederate flag and the other as a plain black wallet. He said the red wallet contained 10 $100 bills and the black wallet contained various IDs and insurance cards. He said the last time he saw the wallets was at approximately 5 p.m. when he placed his jacket containing the wallets on the chair in his room at the hospital, after being transported by Puckett EMS. The man said he discovered the wallets were gone the next morning when he woke up. One of the nurses from the hospital said she checked the room he stayed in for a wallet and she did not find one. The same nurse also called Puckett EMS, who searched the man's transport ambulance, and Puckett EMS also did not find a wallet. The hospital's security also said they searched for the wallets and were unable to locate them. As no one observed the wallets being stolen, the man's items will be entered as lost property. The man was given a complaint card.* * *Police responded to a disorder at a residence on Union Avenue. The homeowner said her brother had been acting up and yelling and she wished to have him trespassed from the residence. The brother does not live at this residence and was notified by police on scene that he needed to leave, he was no longer welcome there and if he were to return to the property he would be trespassingand arrested for that offense. The woman said at no time did her brother become physical and there was no indication that anything physical had occurred between the siblings. The brother voluntarily left the area with police assistance.* * *A woman on Austin Drive called police and said a man continues to contact her via different social media accounts using aliases in an attempt to get back together with her. She said that she and the man broke up and that he wants them to get back together. She said she has told him to quit sending her messages through social media. Officers explained to her the process for obtaining a restraining order against him.

* * *

An employee at Forester's Tire and Auto Repair, 4004 Hixson Pike, called police and said that the catalytic converter was cut to one of the company trucks that morning. No suspect information is known and no other damage was done to the vehicle.



* * *



A woman on Boynton Drive called police and said that approximately one week ago she was given a ride home by a female. She said after returning home she realized her driver's license and Snap benefits card were still in the car. She said she spoke with the woman two days ago and the woman told her she would bring the items back to her. She said she still has not received her items and wanted to make a lost property report in case she needs to renew her DL and Snap benefits card.



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A man called police from a Metro PCS store, 4011 Brainerd Road, and said that he has a phone line with Metro PCS. He said that somehow his ex-girlfriend added a second line to his phone account. He did not know how this was accomplished. He said today she came inside the Metro PCS store and took his phone line off of the account completely. He said he is not out any money, but can't understand how she was able to get on his account to begin with. He said it is possible that she spoke with PCS customer service and they added her to his line, but he said that they never contacted him directly to let him know. He said Metro PCS is trying to make the situation right.



* * *



An anonymous caller told police a man was standing inside the Speedway, 3956 Brainerd Road, with a black dog and would not leave. Police spoke with the man, identified him, and asked him to step outside. The man seemed to be having an off day, but was not violent. He said he did

not wish to hurt himself or anyone else. Police told him to not come back into the Speedway with the dog. The man agreed and left the scene.



* * *



An employee at Terminix, 7625 Hamilton Park Dr., told police that a tag from a company truck was stolen that morning from the parking lot. No suspect information is known, and no damage was done to the vehicle.



* * *



A man living on 10th Avenue told police he last saw the tag on his vehicle when he got home the night before around 10 p.m., and the vehicle was left parked at his home. The vehicle stayed there overnight and that morning around 9 a.m. he noticed that the plate was gone.


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Dr. Dominic Ayine, a member of the legal team of former President John Mahama on Tuesday described journalists as unfair after they asked why the petitioner insists on compelling Jean Mensa into the witness box.



Dr Dominic Ayine said Madam Jean Mensa has a responsibility of being accountable to Ghanaians and to explain why the figures of the 2020 election keep changing 'up till now'.



He felt instead of the media querying the petitioner, the media should rather direct their questions to the EC boss to unravel why she really doesn't want to testify.



"They are running away from giving evidence and as Journalists, I think you should be asking them more critical questions than you are asking the petitioner . . . at the risk of being petty I think you are being unfair to the petitioner; you journalists are being unfair to the petitioner," he said.



Baba Jamal, former Member of Parliament (MP) for Akwatia in the Eastern Region speaking in an interview on Neat FM said Dominic Ayine hit the nail right on the head.



"You don't direct the questions to the Electoral Commission and the NPP. Have you asked the EC boss why we have four different figures; have you??? You keep asking us the questions..."



Listen to him in the video below





Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Ukraine and the European Union will hold an industrial dialogue on March 16-17, 2021.

"In a month, on March 16-17, we will have an industrial dialogue between Ukraine and the European Union," Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture of Ukraine - Trade Representative of Ukraine Taras Kachka said at the International Conference on Authorized Exporters on February 18, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

According to him, the dialogue will touch upon the industrial strategies of Ukraine and the EU, opportunities to strengthen cooperation between Ukrainian and European industrialists, as well as climate change.

Kachka noted that the introduction of the institution of authorized economic operators significantly contributed to the deepening of industrial cooperation with the EU. "This is very much in line with the industrial policy of the European Union, which concerns open strategic autonomy, reshoring or nearshoring companies, placing production chains as close as possible to the European Union. And Ukraine, which is a neighbor of the European Union, is a very good partner in industrial policy for the EU," the deputy minister said.

As Kachka noted, signing the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products (ACAA) is very important for Ukraine as it will mean recognition of the industrial development of our state.

As reported, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on February 17 that Ukraine hopes to sign the ACAA with the European Union this year, which will provide ample opportunities for small and medium-sized businesses.

At the end of October last year, a preliminary EU assessment mission was launched on the readiness of Ukraine's quality infrastructure for the conclusion of the ACAA.

Earlier, the Government stated that the ACAA could potentially account for a fifth of Ukraine's exports to the EU, primarily engineering products, facilitating trade and raising the image of Ukrainian products in global markets.

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The California Grocers Association on Wednesday sued San Leandro, a day after the City Council voted in favor of an immediate and mandatory $5-an-hour pay increase for employees at large grocers that have remained open during the pandemic.

San Leandro is the second city in the Bay Area to be sued by the trade association. The group, which represents most grocery stores in California, sued Oakland on Feb. 3 after a similar measure was passed in the city. The trade group has lawsuits pending against the cities of West Hollywood, Montebello and Long Beach after similar laws mandating supplemental pay for grocery workers were passed.

The trade association says the pay increases are illegal and is seeking to have the new laws declared invalid and unconstitutional.

Approximately 19 businesses and over 2,100 workers in San Leandro will be affected by the ordinance, which will last for 120 days or until state and county health orders ease.

The lawsuit against San Leandro comes as momentum for hazard pay for supermarket workers grows during the pandemic. Deemed essential businesses at the beginning of the public health crisis, grocers have remained opened, and workers and their supporters say they have risked their lives by being in constant contact with customers in enclosed buildings.

Proponents of the measure, including the United Food and Commercial Workers Union, say the pay increases help workers and their families. At least 137 grocery workers have died across the country because of the virus, according to the union, which said the number accounts only for unionized workers and may be higher.

Many stores voluntarily offered pay bumps early on in the pandemic, but now few do.

The Grocers Association argues in the lawsuit against San Leandro, filed in the Northern District of California, that the hazard pay law violates U.S. and California constitutions equal protection clauses because it singles out certain grocers and ignores other groups that employ front line workers. It also argues that the ordinance is preempted by the federal National Labor Relations Act, which protects the integrity of the collective-bargaining process.

Interactive Vaccine Tracker: Latest developments Detailed information about the coronavirus vaccines as it becomes available.

In addition to clearly violating federal and state law, the extra pay mandates will harm customers and workers, Ron Fong, president of the California Grocers Association, said in a statement Wednesday. A $5/hour mandate amounts to a 28 percent average increase in labor costs for grocery stores. That is too big a cost increase for any grocery retailer to absorb without consequence.

Grocery stores have had varied reactions. Trader Joes has honored its hazard pay policy since the beginning of the pandemic, and increased the figure from an additional $2 per hour to $4 an hour in early February. Meanwhile, supermarket giant Kroger announced plans to close stores in Long Beach and Seattle after the cities passed hazard pay requirements, saying it would be too costly for them.

San Jose is another Bay Area city which passed an additional $3 per hour mandate for grocery workers last week, and will have the ordinance adopted in a few weeks.

Shwanika Narayan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: shwanika.narayan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @shwanika Instagram: @shwanika
Savers have put away more than 1,000 on average since the coronavirus lockdowns began.

More than two fifths (41 per cent) of those questioned in a survey by the Nationwide Building Society have put money into savings after cancelling plans such as holidays or nights out.

Nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) said they have had to cancel or postpone such plans because of the pandemic.

The 1,085.90 average saving relates to all those who have managed to put aside some money since last March, whether it is more, less or the same as they would normally.

More than two fifths (41 per cent) of those questioned in a survey by the Nationwide Building Society have put money into savings after cancelling plans such as holidays or nights out

The research found that exactly half of those polled said financial worries caused by Covid-19 have made them think more about saving.

Nationwide released the findings to coincide with a get the nation saving campaign.

Tom Riley of the building society said: Its heartening to see a positive shift in our collective savings mindset. Its clear that more people are seeing the importance of building a nest egg.

The research also suggests that those on lower earnings have had a bigger struggle to put more money away than people on higher incomes.

More than a quarter (26%) of those earning 15,000 or less have been able to put more money away, compared with 43% of those earning between 25,001 and 35,000, and 59% of those earning 55,001 or more.

For those earning 15,000 or less, 27% said they have saved less since last March and 17% have never saved any money.

Fewer than one in 10 (9%) of those earning between 15,001 and 25,000 said they have never saved any money at all, as did just 3% of those earning more than 55,001.

Nationwide released the findings to coincide with a get the nation saving campaign.

More than two-thirds (69%) believe the pandemic will have a long-term impact on the importance of having a financial buffer in place, rising to three-quarters (75%) of those aged 16 to 34.

Nationwide released the findings to coincide with a get the nation saving campaign. Pictured: A Nationwide Building Society Branch in London (file photo)

Looking ahead to life after lockdown, taking a holiday was found to be at the top of peoples priority lists, selected by nearly three in 10 (29%).

One in 16 (6%) said their priority is to see family and friends, and one in 20 (5%) want to attend a sporting event.

To make their plans a reality, around a fifth (19%) said they will need up to 500, while more than a third (34%) expect to need up to 1,000.

People typically believe it will take around five-and-a-half months to save the money needed, although more than three-quarters (77%) think it will take them up to a year.
Associated Press

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Sunday that flags at all federal buildings be flown at half-staff to honor more than 200 children whose remains have been found buried at what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school  one of the institutions that held children taken from families across the nation. The Peace Tower flag on Parliament Hill in the nation's capital of Ottawa was among those lowered to half-staff. To honor the 215 children whose lives were taken at the former Kamloops residential school and all Indigenous children who never made it home, the survivors, and their families, I have asked that the Peace Tower and all federal buildings be flown at half-mast, Trudeau tweeted.
IT has been well established that the countrys most effective mobilisation system is the election machinery based on political affiliation.

With this in mind, the current crisis in the country regarding the frightening spread of the coronavirus calls for a different kind of intervention. It is past time for the declaration of a political truce. We call on the countrys two major political machines, PNM and UNC, and all other existing political parties and groups, to come together in the national interest.
Mark Mulligan, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

An inmate has died after being found unresponsive in a Harris County Jail cell Wednesday afternoon, according to the Harris County Sheriffs Office.

The cause of death is currently unknown and will be determined by an autopsy.
New Delhi: Indian IT players are well-positioned to capture at least 20 per cent share of the trillion-dollar incremental spend on technology over the next 4-5 years, potentially doubling the size of the industry, HCL Technologies CEO C Vijayakumar said.

Infosys Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Salil Parekh and Wipro CEO Thierry Delaporte expressed similar views saying the pandemic has accelerated digital adoption, and there is a need to continue upskilling people on latest technologies for driving the industry's growth.

"If you look at all the projections, there is at least a trillion dollars of incremental spend in the next 4-5 years. I think, as an industry, we should get at least a 20 per cent share, which means that USD 200 billion growth over the next five years could potentially double the industry," Vijayakumar said at the 29th Nasscom Technology and Leadership Forum.

He added that for scalability of the industry, it's very important to look at platform-based services as it will provide standardisation, the ability to scale and onboard multiple customers on a similar platform.

"I think that's definitely one trajectory in which we could look at growth...we should recognise that software products is the largest profit pool in the tech sector...I think that's an untapped opportunity for us as Indian heritage companies and I think there's a lot of potential there," Vijayakumar said.

He pointed out that while Indian IT services companies have a fair share in about 5-6 countries, there are many countries where the industry is underrepresented.

According to industry body Nasscom, Indian IT industry revenues are set to grow by 2.3 per cent to USD 194 billion in FY2020-21 and the exports will go up by 1.9 per cent to USD 150 billion.

The industry remained a net hirer in the fiscal year, which saw a major hit across the world because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1.38 lakh new jobs added to take overall employment to 44.7 lakh, it had said.

Parekh noted that localisation is a critical element of globalisation as clients, especially large global enterprises, are looking for delivery capabilities across multiple geographies.

"...that's the approach we think we should follow in making sure that we support them in those geographies and ensuring the consistency of that...We are also building up localisation to make sure that our business model resilience comes into all of our discussions and becomes part of what our future looks like," he added.

The executives agreed that the industry players are engaging more closely with clients and working together towards business outcomes.

Parekh said the rich talent pool in India is a big advantage for the industry. "The skills of the people, the enthusiasm and ability to deliver for clients through all this turmoil is incredible... (this is a big advantage) for the IT industry to continue to do well, to continue to gain traction and be at the centre with what all our large clients are looking for," he added.

Wipro's Delaporte noted that one of the challenges to growth could be around how much talent is available that can cater to the burgeoning demand for digital services, and hence there is a need to invest in reskilling people to ensure employees are adapted to the evolution of technology.

"India has the most exceptional pool of talent in the entire world...this is the mother country of technology in the world...we need to bring creativity to drive innovation, for what can we do with cloud in a cloud environment when you combine 5G and Internet of Things, what can you do with sensors...," he said.

Delaporte added that a push on diversity is also essential as that would make the workforce stronger, more global and be able to think out of the box more and be more creative.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 04:20:42|Editor: huaxia

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A medical worker prepares samples for a COVID-19 test in Ankara, Turkey, on Feb. 17, 2021. Turkey on Wednesday reported 7,325 new COVID-19 cases, including 649 symptomatic patients, taking the total number of positive cases in the country to 2,609,359. Turkey will gradually lift restrictions against COVID-19 on the provincial levels from March, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday. (Photo by Mustafa Kaya/Xinhua)



ANKARA, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Turkey will gradually lift restrictions against COVID-19 on the provincial levels from March, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday.

"We will start the normalization process as the beginning of March by dividing our provinces into four groups," Erdogan said at a press conference after a cabinet meeting.

The government will lift the restrictions gradually according to the number of cases, vaccination and other relevant criteria in the provinces, he added.

But the numbers of daily coronavirus cases should also be declining in order to take a step toward lifting restrictions in these provinces, Erdogan noted.

Turkey on Wednesday reported 7,325 new COVID-19 cases, including 649 symptomatic patients, taking the total number of positive cases in the country to 2,609,359.

The death toll from the virus in Turkey rose by 86 to 27,738, while the total recoveries climbed to 2,496,833 after 7,209 more cases recovered in the last 24 hours, according to Turkish Health Ministry.

The rate of pneumonia in COVID-19 patients in Turkey stands at 3.6 percent and the number of seriously ill patients was 1,193, said the ministry.

A total of 117,121 tests were conducted over the past day, raising the overall number of tests in Turkey to 31,866,086.

Turkey started mass COVID-19 vaccination on Jan. 14 after the authorities approved the emergency use of the Chinese CoronaVac vaccine. More than 4,873,000 people have been vaccinated so far. Enditem
Famous monastery in Ethiopia destroyed, looted amid ongoing violence: reports

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A historic monastery in Ethiopia has allegedly been looted, bombed and destroyed while one monk was reportedly killed amid ongoing violence in Tigray, the nation's war-torn northern region.

According to reports, treasures located inside the Debre Damo Monastery, such as ancient manuscripts, were allegedly looted by troops from neighboring Eritrea who are allied with the Ethiopian National Defense Force.

The historic house of worship dates back to the sixth century and contains painted ceilings and walls. It is believed to have been founded by one of the Nine Saints of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The monastery can only be reached after climbing up an 80-foot cliff.

A "One monk was killed and twelve buildings destroyed," the updated report explained. "Following the bombardment of Debre Damo, six Eritrean soldiers climbed up the 80ft rift onto the plateau and searched the sacred monastery and its buildings."

According to the United Kingdom-based newspaper The Times, the other buildings that have been "completely destroyed include monks' ancient dwellings. The outlet reported that some claim the attacks to be "cultural cleansing" in the heritage-rich region laden with valuable artifacts.

Aid organizations working in the East African country say they are preparing for the worst after months of conflict between state forces and regional fighters in Tigray that has yielded thousands of deaths.

Scores of women and girls have been raped, authorities say. The turmoil has left tens of thousands at risk of starvation.

The reports coming from the Tigray region of Ethiopia are incredibly concerning, Amy Lamb, communications director for Open Doors USA, told The Christian Post in an email Wednesday.

Open Doors works with churches and ministry partners in over 60 countries to spread awareness of believers' persecution and struggles in those areas.

Open Doors contacts in the region have reported that religious minorities, including Christians, are targeted because they belong to ethnic groups who are suffering in the violent conflict, Lamb explained.

The nation rose to No. 36 on the Open Doors USA 2021 World Watch List in large part because of increased violence toward Christians, she said.

"Last year, at least 10 Christians in the country were killed for faith-related reasons. Around 100 Christian buildings were attacked or looted, Lamb added. Ethiopia has also become a hotspot for covid-19 relief discrimination, where Christians are purposefully excluded from receiving aid. We expect these rising patterns of persecution to continue in the coming year, so were calling for Christians in the U.S. to pray and advocate for the church in Ethiopia.

According to Scottish-based charity Marys Meals, which has a presence in the beleaguered region, millions are at risk of starvation and lack access to medical care and proper sanitation.

The regions capital, Mekelle, is being overwhelmed by displaced and traumatized people arriving every day, the charity warned on its website. Many are unaccompanied children who have lost their parents.

The latest attacks have come on the heels of considerable violence that began in November.

Last month, hundreds of people were reportedly killed at the Church of St. Mary of Zion (Maryum Tsiyon) in Aksum, which is said to house the Ark of the Covenant described in the Book of Exodus in the Bible.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide is also condemning the violence and human rights violations and urges the United Nations to take action.

The UN Security Council should act to ensure an immediate cessation of hostilities and unimpeded access to Tigray for local and international aid agencies. The imposition of an arms embargo on all warring parties, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which is alleged to have provided drones, would be an important initial step," wrote Kiri Kankhwende, press and public affairs team leader for CSW, in an email to CP Wednesday.

"Additionally, an urgent session of the Human Rights Council (HRC) must be convened, with a view towards mandating an independent inquiry into alleged human rights violations in Tigray and securing justice. The US, EU, Canada United Kingdom and nations with similar domestic legislation can assist further by imposing sanctions on the leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea, who bear ultimate responsibility for any human rights violations that are being committed with impunity by their forces.

The fighting began in Tigray on Nov. 4 when the regions ruling political party Tigray Peoples Liberation Front captured the Northern Command army base in Mekelle as part of an uprising.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed then ordered a military offensive soon thereafter and claimed later that month that the Ethiopian National Defense Force had regained full command of the city.
An 'extremely talented' detective who had a thirty year career at the Metropolitan Police has died after testing positive for Covid-19.

Specialist financial investigator Detective Sergeant Darren Barker, 51, died last Friday after being admitted to hospital in late January.

Det Sgt Barker, who had worked at the Met since 1992, was classed as vulnerable, Scotland Yard said.

He been shielding from Covid but had continued to work on investigations from home during the pandemic.

In a tribute, Detective Chief Superintendent James Harman, from the Met's Specialist Operations Command, said even while working from home Det Sgt Barker's leadership was 'truly invaluable'.

He said: 'He will be remembered fondly by everyone he worked with, and will be greatly missed by us all.

Specialist financial investigator Detective Sergeant Darren Barker (pictured), 51, died last Friday after being admitted to hospital in late January

'We are truly saddened by his loss and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time.'

Det Sgt Barker is the latest officer to die after testing positive for Covid, amid calls for officers to be prioritised in the Government's vaccine rollout plan.

Jon Wain, 49, who had worked as a police constable in Bury for Greater Manchester Police for 17 years, passed away on Monday, February 15, leaving behind his partner, Gaynor, and two sons.

Nick Oldfield, 48, who worked as a police constable for Staffordshire Police for ten years, died in hospital on January 21, almost a month after contracting Covid-19.

He leaves behind his partner of 20 years Sarah and their three children aged ten, 15 and 18.

Speaking of Mr Wain on behalf of Greater Manchester Police Federation, his colleague Brett Grange said it had been an 'honour' to work with him.

Police constable Jon Wain (pictured left), 49, who died on 15 February 2021 after contracting Covid-19. Former PC Nick Oldfield (pictured right), 48, who died with coronavirus. He worked for Staffordshire Police for ten years

'Devoted' police officer, 43, is found dead at home days after 'probe was launched into Covid rule breach with colleague' A 'devoted' Sussex Police officer has died suddenly at home, just days after being told he would be investigated for breaching coronavirus rules. Police constable Doug Franks, 43, who served as a member of the Bognor Response team, died at his home in Lee-on-the-Solent, Hampshire, on February 10. He leaves behind a son Police constable Doug Franks, 43, who served as a member of the Bognor Response team, died at his home in Lee-on-the-Solent, Hampshire, on February 10. He leaves behind a son. Friends of the officer told the Sun that he had been fined for breaking the no-gathering Covid rule after colleagues reported him for meeting a female officer in a car park to complete paperwork outside of work hours. Mr Franks was told he was being investigated for misconduct by Sussex Police just days before his death, the publication reports. A source told the Sun: 'He was the loveliest bloke, a top officer who was extremely good at his job and who loved his career serving the public and was the best, most devoted father to his beautiful son.' Sussex Police Force has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct for an investigation into the death of Mr Franks. A Sussex Police spokesman said: 'The force is deeply saddened by the death of PC Franks at his home in Hampshire last Wednesday. 'A referral has been made to the IOPC and Sussex Police is supporting Hampshire in their investigation on behalf of HM Coroner. 'As such, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further and we ask for the privacy of the family to be respected at this difficult time.' Advertisement

Mr Grange said: 'I last saw Jon late last year walking his dog. We had a brief socially distant chat on the street and I left him with the words: "Look after yourself Jon"- as we both knew as an operational officer he faced enhanced risk.

'He faced that risk gallantly and we have all lost a true gentleman to this horrible virus.

'Our thoughts are with Jon's family, friends and close colleagues at this very sad time, and we will be supporting them as best we can.'

PC Wain first joined GMP in 2003 and worked in the response team in Bury.

Tributes have also been paid to police constable Mr Nick Oldfield who was described as a 'truly amazing cop' and was well-known on the streets of North Staffordshire having spent ten years with Staffordshire Police.

During that time, he helped put numerous criminals behind bars and received two commendations for saving lives.

However, he was forced to retire on medical grounds five years ago after being diagnosed with functional neurological disorder - a condition affecting the nervous system.

His grief-stricken partner Sarah, from Hartshill, said: 'Nick was such a big character. He had the fun-factor and was the Peter Pan who never grew up. He has left a big hole in our lives.

'We didn't think Covid would touch us because Nick never went out of the house which is why it's been so shocking that it took him down.

'Somehow it got into our house and it got passed to him, because of his medical illness he didn't leave the house to pick it up. It makes you realise how scary this virus is.'

Nick first tested positive for coronavirus on December 30 after complaining of chest pain and lethargy.

His health then rapidly deteriorated and he was taken into intensive care at the Royal Stoke University Hospital on January 6.

Nick was placed on a ventilator to give him the best possible chance of pulling through.

However the dad-of-three's loved-ones were told the devastating news he had passed away on January 21.

Paying tribute to Nick, Sarah described him as an 'amazing' dad who was their youngest daughter's 'superhero'.

She added: 'When he was in the police he got two awards because he was heroic. He always threw himself into danger, saving people's life.

'He enjoyed everything about his job. He never complained and I don't think he ever had a sick day. He thought he was like Will Smith from the Bad Boys.

'Family meant everything, the kids were his world and he was their hero. He was a big clown and was encouraging the kids to get up to mischief.

'He will be missed tremendously. I didn't realise how many people's lives he has touched until I had that many messages.

'He brought humour to his colleagues' jobs and was always there to pick them up when they were down. That's what he did to us as a family. He was like the glue that held us together.'

Pictured from left: PC Nick Oldfield alongside PC Ruth Jones and PC Emma Morris. The three were nominated for Our Heroes for conduct when called out to machete attack

Other officers to have died after testing positive for Covid include PC Michael Warren.

The 37-year-old died last month after it was confirmed he had contracted the virus the previous week.

As he was classed as 'vulnerable', PC Warren had been shielding at home.

PC Michael Warren, 37, passed away on Tuesday after it was confirmed he had contracted the Covid-19 earlier in the week

But he had endeavoured to log on remotely to help his colleagues. It is not clear what underlying health problem he had.

PC Warren is survived by his wife Vicky, his children Eden, 8, and Joseph, 5, and both his parents.

He had been with the Metropolitan Police for more than 15 years, and was most recently attached to the Met's Territorial Support Group.

The father-of-two is believed to be the first serving Met officer to have died after being diagnosed with the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic.

Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick said earlier this week that three other colleagues, including a police community support officer, have also died.

Met Taskforce Chief Superintendent Karen Findlay, last month paid tribute to PC Warren, describing the father-of-two as a 'lovely, genuine and hard-working' officer.

She said: 'To lose his life at the young age of 37 is truly heart-breaking and my deepest thoughts and sympathies are with all who knew him, particularly his parents Pauline and Alan, his partner Vicky and their lovely children.

'Mike was a devoted father and a good police officer. Across the Met and the TSG he was a friend to many of his colleagues.

'He had a dry sense of humour and was often the heart and soul of a team in a TSG carrier.

Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick previously said she was 'baffled' that frontline officers are not closer to the front of the Covid-19 vaccine queue

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan paid tribute to PC Warren, writing: 'My heart goes out to the entire @MetPoliceUK family following the tragic loss of PC Michael Warren to Covid-19'

Police officers are told they can get a Covid-19 jab but must not wear their uniform at vaccination centres Police officers have been told they can get vaccinated at health centres with spare capacity  but must wear plain clothes so as not to draw attention to themselves. Force leaders were said to have felt 'betrayed' when Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced this week that frontline officers may have to wait months for jabs. But the Mail has learnt of an arrangement with the NHS that lets police receive a vaccine if there is spare capacity at a centre and the jab would otherwise go to waste. In an internal memo, staff are advised that they cannot be seen to receive preferential treatment that would contradict the Government's decision not to prioritise police. It also emerged that some officers have sidestepped even this discreet arrangement by booking jabs through services meant for NHS staff. It comes after Scotland Yard said last month that five Met officers had died with Covid in little more than a fortnight. A custody sergeant, three constables and a traffic police community officer died between January 11 and January 26. Met Police bosses circulated the jabs memo after officers shared a link on WhatsApp that allowed them to ignore the agreed protocols and book in for vaccinations at Hillingdon Hospital in west London, via a link originally intended for health workers. Officers were urged not to use the link but if they had already booked an appointment then they should 'still attend but in plainclothes or a plainclothes jacket and not in marked vehicles'. The same dress code advice is given for officers who manage to book a spare vaccine at a health centre. Advertisement

'Mike's passion for policing and serving the communities of London was unwavering, even after he started shielding at home so he could focus on his health given the current risk of Covid-19.

'He regularly went above and beyond to support his TSG colleagues virtually, doing anything he could to add value  our policing family has lost a kind, genuine and enthusiastic police officer.

'He was very much motivated to return to frontline duties, and he regularly spoke about how he looked forwarded to putting his uniform back on and going out on patrol with his colleagues.

'His death is a bitterly stark and upsetting reminder of the human impact of this virus, I know we will all miss him dearly.'

Last month, tributes were also paid to a 'completely fearless' police officer and father-of-two who died after testing positive for Covid-19.

Police constable Abbasuddin Ahmed, 40, was a serving officer on the Trafford district for Greater Manchester Police (GMP).

He died in hospital in January, having tested positive for the virus in December, the force said.

The officer, known as Abbas or Abs, joined GMP in March 2017 but had been away from the front line during the pandemic, instead working from home 'to look after his health'.

The force said the officer was described by colleagues on the Stretford Response Team as 'the greatest brother in and out of work' and 'such a lovely man who was never seen without a smile on his face'.

Another tribute, shared by the force, said he had 'lived up to his name meaning 'lion'  brave, loyal, a fighter, protective, and completely fearless.

'Abs will live in our hearts forever.'

Inspector Abid Sardar, co-chair of the GMP Muslim Police Association, said: 'I would describe him as a committed police officer, true friend and family man.

'Abbas will be greatly missed by everyone that knew him.'

Earlier this week Sussex Police announced the death of Sergeant Sean Preston, 50, who died on February 12, weeks after catching Covid.

The grandfather worked as a custody sergeant in Worthing, West Sussex, having previously been a policeman at Gatwick airport.

A force spokesman said Sgt Preston had been working from home for several months and was admitted to hospital in January after contracting Covid-19. He leaves his partner, children and grandchildren.

Sergeant Sean Preston (pictured left), 50, died on February 12, weeks after catching Covid. Police constable Abbasuddin Ahmed (pictured right), 40, was a serving officer on the Trafford district for Greater Manchester Police (GMP)

Ministers urged health experts to vaccinate people by age and ethnicity rather than their professions Ministers will be urged to vaccinate people by age and ethnicity rather than their job during the next phase of the coronavirus jab roll-out, it was claimed on Tuesday. Number 10's leading jab experts are expected to advise that the UK continues with its age-based approach after the nine most vulnerable groups are inoculated. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) will also urge ministers to prioritise some ethnic minority groups, who are at a disproportionate risk of dying from Covid, The Telegraph reports. Members are said to be particularly concerned about mortality rates among South Asians, who studies have shown are twice as likely to succumb to the virus as their white peers. Both Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock have previously said teachers, police officers, shop owners and other key workers could be bumped up the priority list once the top groups have been jabbed. But JCVI sources suggested this week that prioritising people based on their occupation would 'create too much complication' and 'risk slowing the roll-out down'. Advertisement

Paying tribute, Chief Constable Jo Shiner said: 'Sean was a highly respected and experienced officer working in a number of roles within the service including Neighbourhood Sergeant at Gatwick Airport and Custody Officer at Worthing and Brighton.

'Sean was a huge character with a great sense of humour he was loved by everyone he worked with and devoted to his family.'

The deaths come amid a growing row over whether front line professionals, such as police officers and teachers, should be prioritised as part of the vaccine rollout.

The Met's police chief Dame Cressida Dick last month said she was 'baffled' that frontline police officers have not been prioritised for the Covid vaccine.

But hopes that frontline public workers might be prioritised in the rollout appeared to be dashed earlier this week.

Ministers will be urged to vaccinate people by age and ethnicity rather than their job during the next phase of the coronavirus jab roll-out, it was claimed on Tuesday.

Number 10's leading jab experts are expected to advise that the UK continues with its age-based approach after the nine most vulnerable groups are inoculated.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) will also urge ministers to prioritise some ethnic minority groups, who are at a disproportionate risk of dying from Covid, The Telegraph reports.

Members are said to be particularly concerned about mortality rates among South Asians, who studies have shown are twice as likely to succumb to the virus as their white peers.

Both Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock have previously said teachers, police officers, shop owners and other key workers could be bumped up the priority list once the top groups have been jabbed.

But JCVI sources suggested this week that prioritising people based on their occupation would 'create too much complication' and 'risk slowing the roll-out down'.

Officials have until now been focusing on vaccinating the top four vulnerable groups  everyone over the age of 70, NHS staff, care home residents and workers, and extremely ill adults.

Earlier this week NHS England officially moved onto the second stage of the vaccine drive, inviting over-65s and 'clinically vulnerable' younger people, after announcing 15million of Britain's most vulnerable residents had received their first dose of the jab.

The programme will aim to give everyone over the age of 50 their first dose by the end of April.

Those under 50 are expected to be offered their first dose of the Covid jab by the summer.
WAYNE COUNTY, MI  Two local Southeast Michigan police departments and federal law enforcement believe a rash of home invasions are related to an international crime ring, WXYZ Detroit reports.

While police have not apprehended any suspects, at least two have been identified and are believed to be from Chile, the TV station reports.

Two homes were targeted on the evening of Feb. 1, the report said. The first burglary happened around 7:30 p.m. in Grosse Pointe Park; about $20,000 in valuables was stolen. The second occurred around 8 p.m. in Gross Pointe Shores; valuables were stolen, but the suspects fled when a home security system alerted police, the report said.

Police searched for the suspects but did not locate them, the report said. However, they did recover a vehicle containing most of the stolen items, including jewelry and cash.

The FBI and U.S. Customs and Border Protection are assisting Grosse Pointe Park and Gross Pointe Shores police departments with the investigation, the report said.

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Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras claim to have found a novel way to make HIV/AIDS drugs more effective. The findings of their study, published in Biochemistry, the peer-review Journal of the American Chemical Society, say that introducing electrostatic interaction sites on potential drug molecules can enhance the efficacy of the antiviral drug against the HIV virus. The research was led by Prof. Sanjib Senapati, Department of Biotechnology, IIT Madras, along with research scholars Mohammed Ahsan and Chinmai Pindi.

"Current inhibitors (molecules that bind with the enzyme, thereby making it unavailable to the virus for growth and maturation) that target HIV-1 protease (HIVPR, an essential enzyme that is used by the AIDS virus for growth and maturation), make use of the weak forces of attraction called 'van der Waal's forces' to attach themselves to the protease molecule. Given that these forces are weak, the efficacy of the drug is variable and the virus will soon become resistant to them," Prof. Senapati, says.

The Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation studies conducted by IIT Madras researchers showed the presence of a strong and asymmetrical electric charge in the active site of the HIVPR. If a drug molecule can be designed with a complementary charge, so that it can bind tightly with this active site through electrostatic attraction, it can permanently deactivate/inhibit the enzyme, they felt.

"Current drugs lack this electrostatic complementarity. This must be investigated because it is well-known that electrostatic forces between molecules are much stronger than van der Waals forces," Prof. Senapati said.

The researchers propose that drug design strategies should embrace both electrostatics and van der Waals interactions to complement the HIVPR active site architecture. Further, the team believes that such compounds will be effective against both wild-type and resistant HIV variants. According to them, it is a paradigm-shifting idea and will offer a whole new approach to the development of drugs for HIV-AIDS.

Prof. Chandra Verma, who has a Ph.D. from Bioinformatics Institute, A*STAR, Singapore, and is not involved in this IIT Madras Research, predicts a bright future for HIV drug development, with such knowledge base.

AIDS is one of the most devastating diseases and is a major cause of death among youth in many parts of the world. Since its outbreak nearly four decades ago, tremendous efforts have been directed towards development of antiretroviral therapies that target different stages in the life cycle of the virus that causes this deadly disease.

Also read: India issues fresh Covid-19 guidelines for travellers from UK, Brazil, South Africa

Also read: BT Business Leaders of TN: Manufacturing, electronics, SaaS can make India $5 trillion economy, say experts
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has pointed out towards a "conspiracy" behind the bomb attack in West Bengal's Murshidabad district that left her Labour Minister Jakir Hossain seriously injured.

Without taking names of any particular party or individual, Banerjee levelled allegation that some people were "pressurising" Hossain to join their party. The West Bengal government on Thursday also handed over the investigation into the attack to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Mamata Banerjee held even the Indian Railways responsible for the incident since it took place on its premises as crude bombs were hurled on Hossain by unidentified people on Wednesday night while he was walking towards Nimtita Railway station in Murshidabad to board a train for Kolkata.

"Railways are to be blamed for the blast at Murshidabad where Minister Jakir Hossain was injured. It was a planned conspiracy to kill him. Not a responsibility of State government, Railways and Centre are to be blamed," Banerjee said.

The Chief Minister's statement came after she along with senior Trinamool Congress leaders went to the state-run SSKM hospital here to inquire about the health of the Minister. Hossain was shifted to the SSKM Hospital on Thursday morning and admitted to the Trauma Care Unit where a medical board has been formed to look into his health condition.

Jakir Hossain suffered injuries in one hand and a leg but his condition was said to be stable, and doctors stated that he is out of danger. The Minister was waiting at platform number 2 of the station to catch the train to Kolkata at around 10 p.m. when the attack took place.

At least two other persons, who were with the Trinamool Congress MLA of Jangipur, were also injured in the incident that comes during the build-up to the Assembly elections in the state due in April-May this year.
Police say the vehicle was stolen Feb. 6, four days before the crash, in a carjacking in the 3300 block of West Belmont Avenue in Avondale. A woman was in a parking lot about 1:25 p.m. when another woman gained access to the drivers side of the SUV and sped off with an 8-year-old boy in the back seat. The 8-year-old jumped out of the Buick at Belmont and Kimball avenues, just a half-mile from where the collision with Betzel would later take place. Neither victim was seriously injured, though the woman was taken to Illinois Masonic.
PALMER  The Palmer woman charged with stabbing Marcia Wilson to death in Wilsons kitchen on Feb. 8 was reportedly erratic in the days before the killing, had run up extensive debts purchasing military-style combat knives, and spoke of killing herself and her dog in some kind of ritualistic suicide.

Three times in the two days before the homicide, police were sent to check on Brenda Mayhew after her family grew concerned.

After one of those visits, Mayhew consented to be taken to Baystate Wing Hospital for a mental health evaluation, according to a police report. She was later released and stayed overnight at the 15 Fox St. home of Wilson and her husband.

The following morning, Wilson was dead.

Mayhew, 54, was arrested Tuesday night at Baystate Medical Center and charged with murder. She had been at the hospital since the day of the homicide.

She was arraigned on the charges Wednesday afternoon at Palmer District Court.

Upon the recommendation of court psychologist Andrew Burke, Judge Danielle Williams ordered Mayhew to be held without the right to bail pending a mental competency evaluation. The evaluation will be done at the Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital, a locked Department of Mental Health facility. She is due to appear in court again on March 8.

She is being represented by attorney John P. Morris.

Wilson, 68, was found dead of multiple stab wounds from a military-style Ka-Bar knife.

According to a police report, when officers entered the house, they found Wilson dead, lying facedown in her nightgown. She had been stabbed multiple times in the chest and torso, and there were large amounts of blood on the floor, walls and kitchen counters.

Mayhew was found sitting in the kitchen, covered in blood and with injuries to her hands. She apparently suffered the injuries as she struggled for the knife with Wilsons husband.

For her arraignment, which was conducted remotely over Zoom, Mayhew appeared from the Western Massachusetts Womens Regional Correctional Center in Chicopee. She was dressed in an orange jumpsuit, had a mask over her face, and could be seen with heavy bandages over both her hands.

According to the police report, Mayhew and Wilson were friends, although the husband, who is not named in the report, told police he did not know Mayhews last name.

Wilson, according to town records, owned the property at 15 Fox St. with David Wilson. Theyve owned the property for around 10 years.

Palmer and state police responded to a crime scene on Fox Street in Palmer Feb. 8. (Patrick Johnson / The Republican file photo)

The day before her death, Wilson invited Mayhew into her home, and even put her and her dog up for the night when the roads were too snowy to drive.

An unnamed witness who watched the Super Bowl that night at the Wilson home told police that Wilson said Mayhew was having a difficult time lately with metal health issues.

The same witness told police of seeing Mayhew acting oddly off and on during the night, overhearing her say to her dog, Youre safe, and, We just need to follow the plan.

Police were called to the house just after 8 a.m. when Wilsons husband ran to a neighbors house to report his wife was dead in the kitchen.

The husband told police that he had been lying in bed alone when Mayhew stuck her head in the bedroom to say that she and Wilson were going to have a cup of tea. She said he should stay in bed, and that Wilson would bring him a cup of coffee shortly.

According to the report, the husband thought that was odd, so he got up and walked to the kitchen. There he saw Mayhew sitting on his wife and stabbing her. Wilson was screaming Help me! Get her off of me.

The husband threw a chair at Mayhew, and the two wrestled with the knife. He told police he managed to get it away from her and brought it out of the kitchen. He told police Mayhew bit him during the struggle. A blood-covered knife was found on the stairs.

He told police he tried to call 911 during the struggle, but Mayhew grabbed his cellphone and threw it into a bowl of water. She then ripped the land line out of the wall.

The police report cites people close to Mayhew describing her as exhibiting erratic behavior in the days leading up to the homicide.

Mayhews brother, who is not named in the report, contacted police on Feb. 6 because he was worried for her safety after she sent him a one-word text that read, bye.

Police and an ambulance were sent to her home. She initially refused transport but later consented and was taken to Baystate Wing for a mental health evaluation.

By the following day, she had apparently been released from the hospital, and sent her brother another concerning text. This one read, Im leaving today, I believe.

Another police car and ambulance were dispatched, but Mayhew declined transport.

According to the report, she was heard to say, This is part of the ceremony, this is where I take my life. This is part of the indian ceremony with my dog, fireplace and taking my life.

When police searched the Wilson home after the homicide, they found her dog dead and wrapped in Mayhews coat. The dog was alive the night before.

The cause of death has not been determined, but one witness recalled hearing through the wall that it sounded like the dog was struggling to breathe.

Mayhew sent Wilson three texts at 9:14 a.m. on Feb. 7 that said, come over, Now!! Fast!! and please, the police report said.

Wilson replied almost immediately, Ok. Around 30 minutes later she texted, We are here.

Mayhews home on 220 Juniper Drive is 12 to 14 minutes away from Wilsons home on Fox Street.

As part of the investigation, police searched Mayhews phone and her online history. Her exchanges with numerous individuals would suggestively suggest Mayhew was acting out of her norm.

She sent numerous people a link to a conspiracy video about President Joe Biden declaring war on farmers and the food supply.

According to the statement of facts, police searched her home and found extensive dry food / emergency rations stored throughout the residence, including in the stove, dishwasher and laundry baskets. There were multiple Ka-Bar military-style knives throughout the home. Police also found an extensive number of receipts from outdoors gear companies, indicating Mayhew was in extensive debt from having ordered food rations, knives and other survival-style equipment.

New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh wants to initiate a debate on Indian history written so far. The RSS believes that till now historians have written Indian history narrowly and now is the time to revisit it.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat will release a book titled 'Aitihasik Kaalgana: Ek Bhartiya Vivechan' on February 21 which raises serious questions on Indian historiography. The book is written by Ravi Shankar, director of the Centre for Civilisational Studies.

Ravi Shankar told IANS, "Historians have grossly ignored Indian sources while writing history. The major texts covering India's millions of years of history were in Sanskrit, but most historians did not have knowledge of Sanskrit and so they ignored these texts. In Indian history, the Indus Valley is taught, but the Mahabharata was not given a place. We need to take a relook at the history of India and the world." Ravi Shankar said there are many problems with the history taught in India. The first problem is its antiquity. How ancient can India's history be? This question also arises because the history of the countries whose people are dominated in the world today is very small. The impact of the Christian history is on the Neo-European peoples of America, who believe that history is only 6,000 years ago.

He said, "Indian scholars were also caught under the influence of this ignorance of Europeans. Indian scholars also did not show the courage to accept the scriptural era as correct. Indian historians tried to put the history of India in the European style." He said this book raises serious questions about the history taught in schools and colleges. Is India's history only 5,000 years old as taught in the NCERT books, or according to Indian tradition, is it millions of years old. This book is an attempt to understand the antiquity of the history of India and the world.
Defense officials announced Monday that of the number of U.S. military service members eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination, one-third have opted not to, while the Department of Defense says nearly 1 million vaccinations have been delivered, CNN reported.

CNN cited Maj. Gen. Jeff Taliaferro, vice director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who told the House Armed Services Committee Wednesday that, the vaccine is the right thing to do. its clearly safe for service members. Concerning the militarys acceptance rate, Taliaferro cautioned that its still very early data.

CNN also cited Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, who said Wednesday that the percentage of those who have decided not to receive a vaccine mirrors the acceptance rate across the United States.

CNN noted that the one-third estimate is the first time the Department of Defense has publicly disclosed the number of service-member vaccination opt-outs.

Reportedly, the Department of Defense has administered 916,575 vaccine doses...nearly 90% of its doses, Kirby said, adding that it is expected to cross the mark of 1 million doses administered by the end of the week.

Brig. Gen. Paul Friedrichs, the Joint Staff surgeon. noted that since the military has only received an emergency use, rather than a full authorization from the Food and Drug Administration, the military cannot make vaccination mandatory for troops, CNN reported.

Theres a real limit legally that we have to make it mandatory for our troops and our families, Kirby told reporters at the Pentagon. Thats why its a voluntary basis right now, CNN cited.

Kirby also stated that the Department of Defense has not broken down vaccine refusal data by demographics, nor does it have vaccine opt-out numbers for each service, CNN reported.

We are collecting that data on acceptance rates, Friedrichs said via CNN about the data on race and ethnicity. Our experience mirrors the preliminary data that were seeing in other communities. We are actually digging into that and continuing to collect more data as we administer more vaccines.

Regarding Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austins view of people opting out of receiving the vaccine, CNN reported:

While he has taken the vaccine because he believes it was the right thing to do for him and for his health and for his family and his ability to do the job, he recognizes that this is a personal decision that everybody has to make, said Kirby in a press release last week, regarding Regarding Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austins view of people opting out of receiving the vaccine

For those service members who have concerns about being vaccinated, Kirby said the Defense Department is encouraging them to read information available on the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Department of Defense websites and consult their doctors if they have any questions, CNN cited.

CNN also cited Taliaferro, who said during the House Armed Services hearing: We need to continue to educate our force and help them understand the benefits and ensure theres leadership involvement in the discussion of the benefits of the vaccine.

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Facebooks actions today were racist. They must immediately remove all bans and put more thought into their future political actions, said Nerita Waight, the services chief executive. Aboriginal people are always sacrificed in these political battles and all sides should feel great shame and guarantee to ensure the voices of Aboriginal people and marginalised groups are properly involved in the future. The Human Rights Law Centre, which is based in Melbourne, slammed Facebooks actions. For years Facebook has made huge profits by amplifying conspiracy theories and disinformation. Now its blocking access to vital information for an entire country in the middle of a pandemic, said Daniel Webb, the centres legal director. Amplifying falsehoods and suppressing facts is poison for democracy.

Facebook must lift its news blackout. And our government and big digital platforms must urgently deal with the issue of disinformation online. Liberty Victoria echoed the sentiment. Its preposterous that Facebook has left in place accounts which share false information or conspiracy theories, while blocking vital health, government and emergency service sites, the organisation said in a statement. Bambi Gordon, chief executive of Neighbourhood Watch Victoria, woke on Thursday morning to discover all her organisations posts vanished. It went down pretty much first thing. No warning from Facebook. We certainly did not believe, as we are not a media organisation, it would have anything to do with us, she said.

We have lost the main Facebook page for Neighbourhood Watch Victoria. We have noticed a lot of our smaller groups, associated with a suburb or town, are still there. But were not sure they are going to remain. And we cannot get any information from Facebook so we can start to plan for what the new social media landscape is going to look like. We have got approximately 130,000 followers across all our Facebook pages. We use it to connect neighbours, connect communities, make sure people can talk to each other. Thats not going to be easily or quickly replaced. It definitely is a safety and crime prevention issue.

The Victoria Police Blue Ribbon Foundation was also affected by the change, its posts remaining wiped as of 5pm Thursday. Were not a news site  we post tribute memorials to fallen Victorian police officers, said the foundations community engagement manager Jenny Davis. Its a vital communication tool for us, and for a lot of charities  and I believe there are a lot of charities caught up in this. Melbourne-based Save the Children Australia also saw its page, with about 160,000 supporters, goafety regulator tells Uber Eats and HungryPanda to shape up after deaths down. Every minute that our page is down is another minute our message isnt getting out about the needs of children, said chief executive Paul Ronalds. Belinda Caldwell, chief executive of Eating Disorders Victoria, said she had no idea why we were caught up in the whole thing. Some algorithm is glitching, I guess. This is a key means of communication for our community. We had lots of stuff on it. We post links to resources, let people know whats happening. Facebook is absolutely one of our key social media platforms. The AFLs Facebook page appears unaffected, but the AFL Womens page has had its posts removed.

Melbournes Royal Childrens Hospital, St Vincents Hospital and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have all been stripped of their content. A St Vincents Health Australia spokesman said it was extremely concerning to discover the Melbourne hospital had been blocked, particularly with Australia on the eve of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout. We hope this situation can be rectified very shortly, the organisation said. Facebook pages for the Burnet Institute and the Medical Journal of Australia, as well as literary journals Overland and Meanjin, all remained down on Thursday evening. In an emailed statement, Burnet director and chief executive Professor Brendan Crabb said: Any sudden change to quality health information flow at any time, but most especially in the midst of a health crisis, is deeply unethical and damaging. It should be met with the sustained contempt it deserves.

Loading The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, which is doing key research on COVID-19, also saw its Facebook page stripped of posts. Facebook shutting down information sharing on health and medical research pages is incredibly troubling, particularly now during a pandemic, said institute director Sharon Lewin. We hope Facebook will review organisations like the Doherty Institutes presence on the platform as ours, and many others affected by this, play a crucial role in distributing trusted, evidence-driven information, Professor Lewin said. We need to increase access to trusted information sources, not take it away.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the bans needed to be lifted straight away. I am deeply and profoundly concerned that Facebook would block access to health, COVID or vaccine-related vital public information. This must be addressed immediately, he said. Australian Medical Association president Dr Omar Khorshid said blocking news organisations and health pages was a huge issue just days out from the start of the national vaccination program. Dr Khorshid said Facebook was using its market power to bully the Australian government, and in doing so putting the health of Australians at risk. Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley demanded the return of health-based news reports.

This is not a time for credible, reliable information to be taken away from the community, he said. Were going to need those systems of engagements on all platforms particularly as we move into vaccinations. Loading Anything that removes credible and reliable information sources in the midst of a global pandemic is beyond regrettable and needs to be fixed. Facebook blamed the government for its wide-ranging bans. In a statement it said that, as the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted.
JEZERO CRATER -- Seven months and nearly 300 million miles later, NASA's most sophisticated rover to date, Perseverance, successfully landed on the surface of Mars Thursday at 12:55 p.m. PST.

RELATED: NASA'S PERSEVERANCE ROVER WILL LAND ON MARS THIS WEEK. HERE'S WHAT TO EXPECT

This is the largest and heaviest rover, and it landed at the most difficult landing site crews have seen -- Jezero Crater.

NASA scientists are able to breathe a sigh of relief after what many call the "seven minutes of terror."

The rover will search for signs of ancient life and study the planet's climate and geology.

Scott Fisher is the director of Undergraduate Studies at the University of Oregon Department of Physics.

That crazy landing sequence actually worked, Fisher said. It's an incredible technological feat. We humans are clever. We can do clever things when we put our minds to it.

He, along with thousands of others, watched the landing take place.

Now Perseverances little one liner is: 'Let's look for ancient life,' Fisher said. So a lot of the experiments and the technology that's built onto Perseverance is meant just for that.

There are several Oregon ties for those who helped on the mission, including Oregon State University graduate Bill Allen who is an engineer at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He studied engineering physics at OSU and since then has assisted with three Mars missions and four rovers, including Perseverance.

MORE: HOW TO WATCH THE MARS ROVER LANDING TODAY

KEZI 9 News spoke to Portland resident Clarke Boozer who recalls meeting Allen at freshman orientation at Oregon State University.

I just remember a young man that was really well grounded and seemed to know what he wanted to do. He knew he was going to be an engineer at that time. He just had this demeanor," Boozer said.

So, he's not surprised that his friend played a critical role in this success.

"I mean he was always serious about the books," Boozer said. "When we'd be going down to hoop at the recreation center, he'd come along every once in a while -- but most of the time he was staying back at the place to do his work."

The rover landed with the help of a team of a couple thousand people at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, as well as other NASA centers.

The $2.7 billion rover had been travelling through space since the end of July.

Now, experts say this is an even greater opportunity to explore signs of ancient life on the red planet.
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
A glimpse at rising cruelty in the metro and one of many misdeeds harder to track thanks to mask policy protections.



Take a look . . .

INDEPENDENCE, MO (KCTV) -- The Independence Police Department is looking for a man who shot and injured a dog back in January. The IPD describes the man as a "tall, slender white or Hispanic male." On Jan. 25 around 1:45 a.m., he arrived at a residence in the Susquehanna area in the 19100 block of E.

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New Delhi:

India has initiated an anti-dumping probe into all the imports of a chemical which are used in the pharmaceutical industry from four countries - South Africa, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkey.

Vishnu Chemicals has filed an application for investigation into dumping of sodium dichromate from the countries in question.



The commerce ministry's investigation arm - the Directorate General of Anti-dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) - has found "sufficient prima facie evidence of dumping" of the chemical.

If it is established that dumping has caused material injury to domestic players, the DGAD would recommend imposition of anti-dumping duty on the said import.

Anti-dumping duties are levied to provide a level playing field to the local industry by guarding against cheap below-cost imports.

The probing authority "hereby initiates an investigation into the alleged dumping, and consequent injury to the domestic industry", the DGAD has said in a notification.

Through the probe, the DGAD would determine the existence, degree and effect of alleged dumping and recommend the amount of anti-dumping duty, which if levied, would be adequate to remove the injury to the domestic industry, it added.

The period of investigation covers April 2016 and March 2017 (12 months).

The chemical is also used in metal finishing industries, anti-corrosive applications, water treatment chemicals, pigments and paints.

The DGAD is also probing dumping of several other products such as certain chemicals and steel products from China and other countries.

India is one of the most attractive markets for global producers, given its large middle class population.

Imposition of anti-dumping duty is permissible under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) regime. Both India and China are members of the Geneva-based body.

The duty is aimed at ensuring fair trading practices and creating a level-playing field for domestic producers vis-a- vis foreign producers and exporters.
Statement by Ambassador Byrne Nason at UNSC Briefing on Yemen

Statement

Thank you very much indeed Madam President and thanks, as always of course, to Special Envoy Griffiths and Under-Secretary General Lowcock for their briefings. Ms. Shawkey, we particularly welcome hearing your voice here today. We know the incredible work that Care International and other non-governmental organisations do on the ground in Yemen, and I have to say you struck a particularly deep chord with all of us this morning, bringing a perspective of the depth and the seriousness of this humanitarian crisis right across Yemen, so thank you.

Madam President, even by our own standards here in discussion of Yemen, I have to say that both Martin and Marks briefings have been particularly sobering today.

We have clearly reached a critical point in the conflict in Yemen  described as a moment of great fragility. We welcome Special Envoy Griffiths relentless efforts together with other Envoys, despite conditions on the ground, to try to inject new political momentum into these talks. We see that as a shared objective for a genuine and inclusive political process, bringing what I can only describe as a modicum of hope to the increasingly desperate Yemeni people. Putting an end to fighting, we know, offers the only route to bringing an end to this conflict and to bringing an end to the suffering of the Yemeni people. We implore all actors to hear the call of the Yemeni people, of the international community, to end the fighting and to end it now.

The overwhelming humanitarian crisis in Yemen makes it really imperative that there is an urgent end to this conflict, so I am reiterating this Councils call for immediate de-escalation and a nationwide ceasefire, as we have outlined in Resolution 2564, adopted just four weeks ago.

The ongoing Houthi escalation in Marib, in an area we have already heard has one million people already internally displaced, continues to be deeply worrying and clearly inflicts unacceptable civilian suffering. We once again call on the Houthis to cease this offensive immediately without preconditions. Ireland condemns in the strongest possible terms the intensified cross-border attacks on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

We are also concerned by the increased attacks on Sanaa, and call for a de-escalation and ceasefire. Violations of international humanitarian and human rights law continue to be perpetrated at what are now alarming levels.

It is quite simply fundamental to everything we have heard from the speakers this morning that all parties in Yemen turn towards peace. There are no two ways to say this. This is the time to return to the negotiating table.

Madam President,

The insidious, and I would say horrific link between conflict and hunger that we discussed in this Council under your presidency just last week is absolutely crystal clear in Yemen. As Martin Griffith pointed out, these are not coincidences. It is difficult to overstate the peril of food insecurity facing most Yemenis as a result of this conflict, and Mark Lowcocks repeated reference to a protracted process of prolonged starvation is truly a shocking indictment of the situation we find ourselves in as an international community. We know that it is a struggle on a daily basis for people simply to survive, with half of the population facing acute food shortages, and millions (we repeat this to ourselves  millions) facing famine. Half of all children under five in Yemen will face acute malnutrition this year, with nearly 400,000 suffering already from severe acute malnutrition and likely to die if we do not ensure they get urgent assistance. The international community shares responsibility for that situation. We must step up to ensure adequate humanitarian assistance reaches those facing those multiple threats to their survival. We share the Secretary-Generals concerns about resources for humanitarian assistance following the pledging conference at the beginning of this month.

A further catastrophic humanitarian and environmental threat looms also in the form of the Safer Oil Tanker. We call once more on the Houthis to facilitate immediate access for an assessment to be carried out. We have seen previous explosions and oil spills in recent memory cause tremendous devastation and lasting impact. For the Houthis to allow this catastrophe to unfold, when help is being offered, would be simply unforgivable.

Madam President,

At last weeks Arria-formula meeting, which Ireland hosted, and you indeed participated in, we heard the strong support of Member States for the direct and substantive participation of women in UN-led peace processes, including in Yemen. Twelve Security Council members sponsored that call. I echo the words of the Yemeni woman peacebuilder Rasha Jarhum who joined us at that meeting and said without women, and without gender equality, peace is not an attainable goal.

As we look with hope to the potential of new diplomatic efforts, despite everything we have heard today, we reiterate the fundamental point that no negotiating table should be without women. We must reject and address barriers to the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in political and public life. We call for an end to the human rights violations that aim to prevent such participation, such as arbitrary detention and sexual and gender-based violence. This Council took concrete steps towards this goal with the adoption of Resolution 2564 last month, but we can and must do more. We cannot accept that it be otherwise.

Thank you Madam President.

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Nikki Haley accused the liberal media of wanting to stoke a nonstop Republican civil war by requiring that everyone pick sides about Donald Trump as part of a strategy to pit conservatives against one another.

Haley made the accusations in an op-ed piece for The Wall Street Journal just days after she gave an interview to Politico in which she criticized Trump, saying he let us down and that he went down a path he shouldnt have.

The comments were the latest sign that Haley is positioning herself to make a run for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024.

But her political fortunes could rest on her ability to navigate a delicate tightrope given that Trump remains by far the most popular Republican while a majority of the American electorate views him as unelectable.

Nikki Haley, the former US ambassador to the United Nations under then-President Donald Trump, accused the 'liberal media' of seeking to 'stoke nonstop civil war' in the Republican Party. Haley is seen above in Cumming, Georgia on December 20

Haley, the former governor of South Carolina who served in the Trump administration as the American ambassador to the United Nations, accused the press of fomenting strife within the Republican Party.

The media playbook starts with the demand that everyone pick sides about Donald Trump - either love or hate everything about him, she wrote in the Journal on Wednesday.

The moment anyone on the right offers the slightest criticism of the 45th president, the media goes berserk: Republicans are trying to have it both ways!

Its a calculated strategy to pit conservatives against one another, Haley wrote.

Its also a ridiculous false choice. Real life is never that simple. Someone can do both good and bad things.

Haley said that while Trump deserves credit for his achievements including the coronavirus vaccine and his foreign policy accomplishments in the Middle East, he also deserves criticism for the events of January 6.

Haley has criticized Trump (seen above in Valdosta, Georgia on December 5) for trying to overturn the election, though she credits his policies with making American 'prosperous'

Hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the United States Capitol on that day in an effort to prevent Congress from confirming President Joe Bidens election victory.

Five people were killed in the rioting, including a police officer.

Trump, who addressed the mob and urged them to fight in order to overturn the results of the election, was impeached by the House of Representatives, whose Democratic majority accused him of incitement to insurrection.

He became the only president in history to have been impeached twice.

Last week, Trump was acquitted by the Senate, though seven Republicans voted to convict.

Haley has taken pains to strike a balance between criticizing Trump for his actions on January 6 and praising his record.

Many of his actions since the election were wrong and will be judged harshly by history, Haley wrote.

Nonetheless, she praised her former boss, writing: Most of Mr. Trumps major policies were outstanding and made America stronger, safer and more prosperous.

Haley acknowledged that Trumps lawyers failed to prove mass election fraud in court though she added that election security is still urgently needed.

While she credits Trump for having brought millions of new voters into the Republican Party, the GOP also lost millions of voters.

Haley added: I will gladly defend the bulk of the Trump record and his determination to shake up the corrupt status quo in Washington.

I will never defend the indefensible. I didnt do that when I served alongside President Trump, and Im not going to start now.

Last week, Haley told Politico that Trump let us down and that he went down a path he shouldnt have' - a reference to the former president's actions in the weeks and days leading up to the MAGA riot at the United States Capitol on January 6 (above)

In her remarks to Politico, Haley tried to simultaneously condemn the former president while also make a bid for his supporters - a group of 74 million that voted to give him a second term in the White House and will be a strong force in future Republican primaries.

Haley predicted that the Republican Party is not 'going to go back to the way it was before Donald Trump. I don't think it should.

'I think what we need to do is take the good that he built, leave the bad that he did, and get back to a place where we can be a good, valuable, effective party.

'But at the same time, it's bigger than the party. I hope our country can come together and figure out how we pull this back,' she said.

Haley is one of several Republicans considering a presidential bid in 2024, including former Vice President Mike Pence.

Asked if she could do the job of president, Haley said: 'Yeah, of course I do.'

Trump, if acquitted, would be able to make another White House bid but Haley expressed confidence that would not happen.

'He's not going to run for federal office again,' she said.

'I don't think he's going to be in the picture,' she noted. 'I don't think he can. He's fallen so far.'

Haley told Politico she hasn't spoken to Trump since the January 6 riot and, like other Republicans, she expressed disgust at his treatment of Pence, his longtime loyal vice president whom he pressured to illegally overturn the election.

Trump tweeted criticism of Pence as the then-vice president was whisked away by Secret Service agents to a secure location while some of the MAGA rioters were chanting 'Hang Mike Pence.'

The then-president also never bothered to call Pence to see how he was doing or to check up on his condition.

'When I tell you I'm angry, it's an understatement,' Haley said of Trump's behavior toward Pence.

Haley expressed disgust at Trump's treatment of Mike Pence (seen above on January 20 in Washington, DC), his longtime loyal vice president whom he pressured to illegally overturn the election

'Mike has been nothing but loyal to that man. He's been nothing but a good friend of that man.  I am so disappointed in the fact that [despite] the loyalty and friendship he had with Mike Pence, that he would do that to him. Like, I'm disgusted by it.'

She called the impeachment trial, where Trump is expected to be acquitted, a 'waste of time.'

She said Trump would be punished by being isolated from the Republican Party and see his business interests suffer.

'I think he's going to find himself further and further isolated,' Haley said. 'I think his business is suffering at this point. I think he's lost any sort of political viability he was going to have. I think he's lost his social media, which meant the world to him. I mean, I think he's lost the things that really could have kept him moving.'

She also said she initially thought it was fine to let Trump make his court challenges to the election, saying he had a legal right to pursue.

'Since the election' she said, 'I mean, I'm deeply disturbed by what's happened to him.'

She went on to say: 'Never did I think he would spiral out like this.  I don't feel like I know who he is anymore.  The person that I worked with is not the person that I have watched since the election.'
WestJet said Thursday that it will suspend service to four Canadian cities amid slumping demand due to COVID-19 restrictions.

A WestJet Airlines Boeing 737 Max aircraft taxis to a gate after arriving at Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, B.C., on Thursday, January 21, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

WestJet said Thursday that it will suspend service to four Canadian cities amid slumping demand due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Starting March 19, the airline plans to suspend all flights to St. John's, London, Ont., Lloydminster, Alta. and Medicine Hat, Alta. until June 24. The cuts are the latest in a series of service reductions over the last few months, many of which have affected regional air routes.

"We have continued to operate in the face of uncertainty as domestic and international travel restrictions and quarantines have caused demand to plummet," WestJet president and chief executive Ed Sims said. "Unfortunately, with new and increasingly restrictive policies, we are left once again, with no other option than to suspend service to these communities."

Sims added that the company's ability to return service in certain market depends on the government's policies, including whether it prioritizes domestic travel for aid.

Flights between St. John's and Halifax will stop as of March 21 and flights between London and Toronto will be suspended on March 22, WestJet said. WestJet Link flights from Calgary to Lloydminster will end on March 19, and flights from Calgary to Medicine Hat will be suspended on March 21.

Canadian airlines have laid off thousands of workers this year and cut more routes as the federal government implements increasingly strict travel measures.

Air Canada's former CEO and president, Calin Rovinescu, said last week that talks between airlines and the government about sector-specific aid had accelerated recently, and that he expected the two parties could reach a deal soon.

Meanwhile, low-cost carrier Flair Airlines recently announced plans to expand its domestic service to eight cities in Canada, which will bring its number of domestic destinations to 18 by the summer.

Flair, which also added 13 new Boeing 737 Max planes to its fleet this year, said it is preparing for what it believes will be a restart of tourism and travel beginning in spring and summer.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
COVID: Centre announces additional benefits under EPFO, ESIC schemes 30 May 2021 | 11:41 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) The Ministry of Labour and Employment on Sunday announced additional benefits for workers through ESIC and EPFO schemes to address the fear and anxiety of workers about well-being of their family members due to increase in incidences of death due to COVID-19 pandemic. see more..

Old Goa and Panjim to be soon connected through ferry & cruise: Mandavia 30 May 2021 | 10:31 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) The Minister of State for Ports, Shipping & Waterways Mansukh Mandaviya, while inaugurating the second floating jetty at Old Goa virtually on the occasion of Goa statehood day on Sunday, announced that Panjim and Old Goa will be connected by ferry and cruise services. see more..

ICG ships continue its efforts to control the fire onboard MV X-Press Pearl off Colombo 30 May 2021 | 10:25 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Sunday said that its ships have been is working tirelessly to extinguish the massive fire onboard container vessel MV X-Press Pearl off Colombo in Sri Lankan water. see more..

Emergency medical ICU unit installed in Indian Navy ALH helicopter 30 May 2021 | 9:41 PM New Delhi, May 30 (UNI) With an aim to evacuate the critical patients in bad weather, the the Indian Navy on Sunday said that a Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) has been installed onboard ALH Mk III helicopter from INAS 323 at INS Hansa by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). see more..
Like so many San Francisco residents, Ive found my pandemic solace in the citys parks. Spending the majority of these long 11 months living within a short walk to Golden Gate Park, Ive wandered countless hours under swaying eucalyptus trees, peering at old monuments and getting intentionally a little lost. I thought I'd covered every path.

I was wrong.

Hidden behind the bison paddock near 36th and Fulton, the Golden Gate Park Dog Training Area reopened last week after a $2.4 million renovation that, according to everyone I spoke with, was a long time coming.

A badly fenced patch of dirt before, according to frequent visitors, the area just west of the Senior Center now features a sprawling, mostly sand surface, with long sections of turf interspersed. If youre visiting for the first time by car, it feels a little like youre trespassing as you turn onto the small road past the yellow gate leading to the repaved parking lot just east of the park. New signage and fencing is obvious once you reach your spot, as are the happy barks and childrens squeals that echo through the area.

There are modern drinking fountains (with faucets for pets and adults), new tan picnic tables and benches and ample dog waste bag holders. Flat dirt paths cut through the park and around the perimeter for easy human walking, and the whole space has a decent view of the grazing bison.

Outer Sunset resident Nina Hwang said shed been coming to the park at least once a day for years with her dog, and even though she said it was clear the space wasnt well cared for before, it was a place she found community among her neighbors. Soon, she proposed a weekly Yappy Hour that before long ballooned into potluck-style celebrations that lasted each week through spring and summer.

When the proposed renovation was announced, the community group evolved into the more official Friends of the Golden Gate Park Dog Park, which became a sounding board for the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department as the organization presented plans for the reimagined park.

One of the groups biggest concerns was irrigation. Whenever it rained, the dog park would become a flood zone, Hwang said. ... The old dog park wasnt the best smelling place after it rained.

Another must was separate areas for small and big dogs, something that only exists at one other dog park in the entire city. Theres also a mix of eucalyptus trunks and boulders for pups to climb throughout the adjacent spaces.

Tessa McLean

Since it had been more than a year since my dog Archer had been out on assignment, we drove over to Golden Gate Park to check it out. A small-ish, 22-pound mini schnauzer, he appreciated the opportunity to separate from the big dogs and also welcomed a dig in the sand. Since it had rained the day before, it was also a nice mud-free alternative to what surely would have awaited me at other parks in the city.

Tessa McLean

Already holding the title for the largest fenced dog park in the city, it also may be the oldest dog park. While little is known about its history, the Golden Gate Park Dog Training Area was first established in Golden Gate Park in 1905 as a place where dog training clubs could practice their hobby. It remained a popular spot for dog training sessions, with improvements such as agility and training equipment used by dog training club members added over the years.

Hwang said while shes thrilled the renovation is complete, especially on time given the COVID-19 pandemic, the group will continue to fundraise and hopefully fight to get some lighting in the park. She also hopes to organize monthly cleaning days to keep the park in good shape and, post-pandemic, have local dog trainers host free dog training sessions at the park.

Assemblymember Phil Ting, working with former Supervisor Sandra Fewer, secured a $2 million grant from the California State Natural Resources Agency to fund the bulk of the renovations. The additional $400,000 was funded through Rec and Parks general fund.

It's a hidden gem that has really gotten the face lift it deserved for decades, Ting said. I think now it's going to be a destination for dog owners.
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.
PITTSBURGH, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The United Steelworkers (USW) union issued the following statement as workers prepare to mark the anniversary of the Pasta de Conchos mine disaster that took place Feb. 19, 2006:

Fifteen years after an explosion killed 65 workers at the Pasta de Conchos mine in Sabinas, Mexico, justice has still not been served.

One of the worst mining disasters in the country's history, the incident became still more horrifying when the mine's owner, Grupo Mexico, called off the search for survivors after only five days and sealed all but two of the victims' bodies inside the mine.

Not only did this disaster demonstrate the deep need for labor reform, it also laid bare the stark inequalities in Mexico.

Yet there has still been no investigation or prosecution of government or company officials, despite evidence that inspections at Pasta de Conchos prior to the explosion revealed major safety hazards.

Grupo Mexico is controlled by German Larrea, one of Mexico's richest men, with current family assets of $24.6 billion according to Forbes. Through his company he controls a global empire including mines, railroads, wind farms, toll roads and construction projects.

Larrea, who owes his fortune to the privatization of the mining industry under the neoliberal government of President Carlos Salinas de Gortari, at the time of the disaster was engaged in a bitter struggle against the national mineworkers' union led by Napoleon Gomez Urrutia. Shortly after the disaster, Gomez was forced to leave the country when the government brought criminal charges against him after he accused it and the company of "industrial homicide."

The governments of the PAN and PRI parties continued this anti-union campaign, while blocking any serious investigation of the disaster and denying fair compensation to the families of the workers.

Today, under a progressive government led by Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, there have been important changes. The government compensated the families of the Pasta de Conchos victims and has taken steps to meet their other key demand  the recovery of the workers' bodies, which remain entombed in the mine.

Napoleon Gomez was cleared of all charges and in 2018 returned to Mexico as a Senator in Lopez Obrador's MORENA party, where he has led the fight for labor reforms including ratification of ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines.

The government is implementing labor law reforms required by the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA). But it has done little to help workers at three other Grupo Mexico mines who have been on strike since 2007. In fact, the Mexican Supreme Court may rule shortly on the company's attempt to have one of the strikes declared illegal, which could be a major setback for workers' rights.

Meanwhile, a Grupo Mexico-led consortium just won a major concession to build part of the government's signature Mayan Train tourism project.

Grupo Mexico's impunity hasn't hurt only Mexican workers. In the United States, the National Labor Relations Board last month issued a consolidated complaint against Grupo Mexico's ASARCO subsidiary for multiple unfair labor practices at its operations in Arizona and Texas, which include bad faith bargaining, unilaterally changing working conditions and failing to reinstate workers returning from an unfair labor practice strike.

As we remember the victims of Pasta de Conchos, workers in Mexico and the United States demand that German Larrea and Grupo Mexico be held accountable by both of our governments.

The USW represents 850,000 workers in North America employed in many industries that include metals, mining, rubber, chemicals, paper, oil refining, the service, public and health care sectors and higher education. For more information: www.usw.org.

CONTACT: Ben Davis, 412-562-2501, [email protected]

SOURCE United Steelworkers (USW)

Related Links

http://www.usw.org


NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In 2020, 305 foreign companies chose to establish or expand operations in the Netherlands, according to the annual results of Invest in Holland and the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA) released today. These companies from around the globe expect to create more than 8,600 direct jobs in the first three years and invest 1.9 billion euros in their projects. Although the coronavirus is causing the Netherlands to attract fewer foreign companies, there is a constant flow of new companies as a result of Brexit.

U.S. and Canadian companies like Beyond Meat, Crocs, MSD, Inshur and McCain Foods tallied 100 direct investment projects in the Netherlands in 2020, accounting for nearly one-third of the foreign investment projects that NFIA and its partners were directly involved in worldwide.

Companies from North and South America are expected to invest close to 1.1 billion euros and generate 3,971 new jobs in the Netherlands by 2023. Expansion and relocation projects involved marketing and sales offices, distribution centers, European headquarters, manufacturing facilities and R&D in a range of industries from information technology and agrifood to life sciences & health.

Henny Jacobs, executive director of NFIA Americas, notes: "North and South American companies choose to invest in Holland to capitalize on our highly educated and multilingual workforce, world-class infrastructure, innovative culture and high-quality lifestyle that makes it easy to attract talent. The Netherlands is the America's best gateway to Western Europe."

Bas van 't Wout, Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy and responsible for the NFIA, emphasizes the importance of foreign businesses: "I am pleased with all the foreign companies that have opted for the Netherlands. These international companies make an important contribution to our economy."

Jeroen Nijland, NFIA commissioner and chairman of the Invest in Holland network says: "2020 was a year with two stories. The Netherlands is well-positioned for international companies looking for a stable base to serve the European market; for example, companies relocating operations due to Brexit. At the same time, the number of wider inward investments did see a decrease. This effect can largely be explained by the global coronavirus crisis. If we want to invest ourselves out of the crisis, we need to sustain our business climate; especially to encourage sustainable enterprise and innovation in the Netherlands, that enables us to grow."

Coronavirus crisis constrains results

Foreign business investment has been under pressure everywhere since the coronavirus pandemic. The global crisis and growing economic uncertainty, coupled with fluctuating travel restrictions and supply chain problems, are causing companies to be reluctant to open new offices.

In 2020 the Netherlands saw the number of foreign business investments decrease by about a quarter compared to 2019, while the number of created jobs fell by about 40 percent. An even stronger decline in investments is being tempered thanks to strong Dutch sectors such as life sciences & health, IT and agrifood.

Brexit continues to play an important role

Even now that a Brexit deal has been concluded, the Netherlands remains popular to companies that are experiencing disruption due to Brexit. Many companies in the United Kingdom are currently experiencing problems due to extra administration, procedures, delivery times and worsened access to the European market. Due to continued uncertainty, the number of "Brexit companies" focusing on the Netherlands continues to grow. The NFIA is currently talking to 550 Brexit companies about a relocation or expansion to the Netherlands. This includes British companies, but also American and Asian parties that are reconsidering their current European structure due to the uncertainty caused by Brexit.

Since the referendum in June 2016, 218 Brexit companies have opted for the Netherlands, of which 78 again made the (partial) move last year. These 218 companies together are expected to generate 6,000 jobs and 544 million euros in investments in the first three years after arrival.

NFIA offers free, confidential assistance to companies looking to establish or expand operations in the Netherlands and has North American offices located in Atlanta, Chicago, New York City, San Francisco and Toronto. For more information, visit www.investinholland.com.

SOURCE Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency; Invest in Holland

Related Links

http://www.investinholland.com


LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Biofriendly Corporation, the green solutions company, has partnered with Gulf Oil Mexico to provide Green Plus energy transition fuel for gas stations across Mexico. This partnership helps Gulf Oil Mexico get another step closer to reaching the Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations for 2030. Since partnering with Biofriendly in July 2020, Gulf Oil has seen a 35% increase in sales, proving that energy transition fuel is resonating with customers.

"As the only Energy Transition Fuel technology, Biofriendly's Green Plus is an innovative solution for Gulf Oil to reduce emissions from gasoline and provide more value for customers," said Biofriendly's Chief Executive Officer Noel Carroll. "With Green Plus, Gulf Oil is giving the people of Mexico an opportunity to make greener fuel choices."

Biofriendly's Green Plus is an Energy Transition fuel that is added to the gasoline at Gulf Gas Stations. By adding Green Plus to gasoline, the emissions from the gasoline are reduced resulting in a product that is better for the environment than gasoline alone.

"Throughout our relationship with the planet we have been able to witness how perfect it is and the responsibility that we have as passenger occupants," said Ricardo Gaona, CPO Gulf Mexico. "As a company we believe in the development of communities, and without a doubt it is through a great community made up of government, companies and civil society that we will be able to reverse the current situation with an echo in our next generations. We understood it that way, therefore, in alliance with Horeb and with the incorporation of Green Plus, it has allowed us to evolve and adopt a new environmental responsibility by offering in Mexico the only fuel for energy transition."

About Biofriendly Corporation

Biofriendly Corporation was founded with the express purpose of solving the world's air quality problems. To that end, the company introduced Green Plus smog reducer to the market. Twenty years later, Green Plus has cleaned over 12.5 billion gallons of fuel and removed enough pollution to take the equivalent of a 200-mile lineup of cars off the road every year. Biofriendly continues its commitment to reducing air pollution worldwide, but has expanded its purpose toward green education, investment and environmental solutions for the future of the planet.

For more information, visit www.biofriendly.com. For environmental information and green tips, visit Biofriendly's e-magazine at www.biofriendlyplanet.com and listen to the Biofriendly Podcast on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube .

Follow Biofriendly Planet on Facebook , Twitter, and Instagram .

About Gulf Oil International

With a legacy of more than 120 years, we are a leading company in innovation and application of technologies in the energy and oil markets, and we offer high-quality, higher-performance products at a competitive price, which improve people's quality of life. In addition, at Gulf we seek to create a positive impact in the environments where we operate, being aware of the environmental impact and focusing on the growth of our human talent through excellent working conditions. Contemplating our vision for the future, at Gulf we concentrate our efforts to generate new models of mobility and energy efficiency, in order to maintain our essence and passion for innovation and creating a better world.

2017: first station in Mexico and the use of liquid nanotechnology fuels.

2019: conversion to the use of energy transition fuels.

2020: launch of mobile application and contactless service.

Biofriendly Media Contact:

Jessica Bass

[email protected]

(772) 532-1543

Gulf Oil International Media Contact:

Ana Montes

[email protected]

+52 9983515454

SOURCE Biofriendly

Related Links

http://www.biofriendly.com


A person gives another one shopping coupons through a gate in Hai Duong Province due to existing social distancing measures against Covid-19. Photo by the Ministry of Health.

Vietnam recorded 18 more cases in current Covid-19 hotspot Hai Duong Thursday night, raising the third waves tally since late January to 755.

Fifteen of the 18 new patients (2330-2347), are close contacts of confirmed cases, and three others were detected through screening processes either within the community, locked down areas or at medical centers.

Further contact tracing is underway. The patients are being treated at Hai Duong hospitals.

Twenty-five recoveries were also announced Thursday.

Over 145,000 are quarantined in hospitals, centralized quarantine zones, at home or other designated accommodations.

Since a new Covid-19 outbreak was detected on January 28, it has spread to 13 cities and provinces. The biggest hotspot is Hai Duong Province with 575 cases, followed by Quang Ninh with 60, HCMC with 36 and Hanoi 35.

Hai Duong imposed 15-day social distancing across the province since Tuesday, but has been urged to extend the period given rising cases.
Media mogul Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily, arrives the Court of Final Appeal, for hearing an appeal by the Department of Justice against the bail decision of Lai, in Hong Kong, on Dec. 31, 2020. (Tyrone Siu/Reuters)

Hong Kong Tycoon Jimmy Lai Denied Another Bid for Bail in National Security Case

HONG KONGHong Kongs High Court denied another bail application on Thursday to media tycoon and Beijing critic Jimmy Lai, the most high-profile person to be charged under the Chinese-ruled citys national security law.

The Court of Final Appeal ruled last week that a lower courts decision last year to grant him bail applied an erroneous line of reasoning, but allowed Lais team to make a new application for bail to the High Court.

The High Court said it will publish its reasons for rejecting Thursdays application at a later date.

Under the new law, the onus is on the defendant to prove they would not be a national security threat if released on bail. Under Hong Kongs common law-based legal system, the onus has traditionally been on the prosecution to prove its case.

Lai has been in custody since Dec. 3, except for when he was released for about a week last year before his bail was appealed by the prosecutors and subsequently overturned.

He was arrested in August when about 200 police officers raided the newsroom of his Apple Daily tabloid newspaper.

Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai (R), who founded local newspaper Apple Daily, is arrested by police officers at his home in Hong Kong, on Aug. 10, 2020. (AP Photo)

The tabloid and other media reported on Wednesday that Lai, while in jail, had been arrested again, on suspicion of assisting a fugitive China captured at sea last year.

Beijing imposed the national security law on the former British colony last June after months of pro-democracy protests. The law punishes anything China considers subversion, secession, terrorism, or collusion with foreign forces with up to life in prison.

Critics say it is aimed at crushing dissent and it erodes freedoms in the semi-autonomous financial hub. Its supporters say it restores stability after months of unrest.

Prosecutors have accused Lai of breaching the law over statements he made on July 30 and Aug. 18, in which they allege he requested foreign interference in Hong Kongs affairs.

Lai has been a frequent visitor to Washington, meeting with officials, including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, to rally support for Hong Kong democracy, prompting Beijing to label him a traitor.

Lai stepped down last year as chairman of Next Digital, which publishes Apple Daily.

By Jessie Pang
Productivity Tools

G Suite for Ed Gets New Name and Pile of New Features

Google announced a spate of changes to its education offerings, including a renaming of its education bundle of productivity applications and a limit to free storage for schools and colleges. Security and engagement updates are also being added to the education version of Google Meet, and Google Classroom will see enhancements later this year. The announcements came during a 90-minute virtual session on "learning with Google." Replays of the event will be available for viewing by registered users after Feb. 19, 2021.

A New Name

G Suite for Education has been renamed. Starting today, it's known as Google Workspace for Education. There will be four editions available, one free, three paid, and all of which will include:

Gmail;

Calendar;

Meet;

Docs;

Sheets;

Slides;

Forms;

Classroom;

Assignments;

Sites;

Groups;

Drive; and

Admin.

The free edition is now called Google Workspace for Education "Fundamentals."

The "Standard" edition, $3 per student per year, adds a security center; device and application management; logging for Gmail and Classroom analytics; and audit logs for Drive, devices and LDAP. The company said this edition would be available soon.

The "Teaching and Learning" upgrade, $4 per license per month and also expected soon, includes all of that as well as a Meet capacity of 250 participants and live streams up to 10,000 viewers; additional engagement features for Google Meet, such as Q&As, polls and breakout rooms; and plagiarism checking across a private repository of student work.

For $5 per student per year, Google Workspace for Education "Plus" incorporates all of the previously mentioned functionality as well as the ability to livestream up to 100,000 viewers, syncing of rosters to Classroom from any student information system, a personalized cloud search for the given domain and faster technical support.

A Storage Limit

On the storage front, Google is imposing a new pooled storage model that the company said would work for "99 percent of institutions." Under the new policy, schools and universities will get a baseline of 100 terabytes of pooled cloud storage shared across all users. That's sufficient, according to Google, to storage 400,000 hours of video or more than 100 million documents. The new limit will be placed on all Google Workspace for Education editions for existing customers in July 2022 and will be effective for new customers signing up in 2022.

To help IT organizations "adapt" to the new model, Google stated that it would provide tools for identifying and managing storage use "far in advance of the policy going into effect." The company said it would also reach out in the next few weeks to those institutions that it expected would be affected by the change to discuss their options.

Updates to Google Meet

Google's videoconferencing program, Meet, is gaining functionality to increase session security and student engagement. Among the updates are these:

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FORT WORTH, Texas, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Prospective college students face a tough decision: choose to attend a private college or a public one. The advantages of private colleges and universities include smaller student-to-teacher ratios, student-centered communities, and more intimate settings. But which private college to pick?

To address the needs of the more than 400,000 incoming private college students each fall, AcademicInfluence.com releases its ranking of the leading American private higher education institutions:

Want to take advantage of smaller classes, a more intimate setting, and outstanding academics? AcademicInfluence.com ranks the 50 best private colleges & universities for you.

50 Best Private Colleges and Universities of 2021

"Our ranking of private colleges and universities not only includes some of the most desirable schools in the country, but it also accounts for their influence worldwide," says Dr. Jed Macosko, academic director of AcademicInfluence.com and professor of physics at Wake Forest University. "The schools featured in our ranking system stand out due to their influential faculty and alumni, and for their many unmatched accomplishments in academics."

According to the National Center for Educational Statistics, the average annual cost at private universities is nearly $43,000, compared to $20,000 at four-year public universities. However, about one in five students chooses a private, nonprofit higher education over the public option.

"Many students prefer the smaller communities and specialized studies that private schools offer compared to their larger public counterparts, and they are willing to pay for that privilege," adds Macosko.

Criteria for the schools in this ranking include full accreditation, operation as a nonprofit organization, and a minimum student body of 1,000 students. The following schools are featured in the ranking:

Amherst College

Bard College

Barnard College

Brandeis University

Brown University

Bryn Mawr College

California Institute of Technology

Carnegie Mellon University

Case Western Reserve University

The Catholic University of America

Claremont McKenna College

Columbia University

Cooper Union

Cornell University

Dartmouth College

Duke University

Emory University

Georgetown University

George Washington University

Hampshire College

Harvard University

Haverford College

Johns Hopkins University

Kenyon College

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Morehouse College

New School

New York University

Northwestern University

Oberlin College

Pomona College

Princeton University

Reed College

Rice University

Sarah Lawrence College

Stanford University

Swarthmore College

Tufts University

University of Chicago

University of Pennsylvania

University of Rochester

University of Southern California

Vanderbilt University

Vassar College

Washington University in St Louis

in Wellesley College

Wesleyan University

Williams College

Yale University

Yeshiva University

Click the link above to view the final ranking order, top schools by state, and additional rankings.

Founded in October 2016, with funding assistance from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Influence Networks created the InfluenceRanking Engine, the core technology behind AcademicInfluence.com's advanced rankings. The InfluenceRanking Engine scans and analyzes the web through machine learning, mapping the impact of a school's thought leadership across a wide set of disciplines. See the AcademicInfluence.com About page for further details on the unique capabilities and advantages of this advanced ranking system.

"No matter what type of university or college experience you're looking for, AcademicInfluence.com can help you find schools that fit your needs. We provide rankings of public, private, and grad schools, along with other types of higher ed institutions to help you with the selection process," says Macosko. "And our College Strategist, Desirability Score, and Custom College Rankings tools provide you with a powerful set of resources to refine your search."

AcademicInfluence.com is the preeminent technology-driven rankings site dedicated to students, researchers, and inquirers from high school through college and beyond, offering resources that connect learners to leaders. AcademicInfluence.com is a part of the EducationAccess group, a family of sites dedicated to lifelong learning and personal growth, including Influence Networks, InfluencePublishers.com (nonfiction publishing and publishers of Bright Notes), IntelligentEducation.com (instructional video library and easy instructional video creation with 3D elements), AlexandriaLibrary.com (free, online library and reader), and soon, Success Portraits (personalized strengths inventory for college and career).

Contact:

Jed Macosko, Ph.D.

Academic Director

AcademicInfluence.com

[email protected]

(682) 302-4945

SOURCE AcademicInfluence.com
As London gets its first absinthe distillery, Millie Milliken arms herself with an absinthe spoon and discovers the elixirs that are giving the spirit a new lease of life, and why the category might just surprise you.

Among my taxidermy collection are a mouse with a Jacobean collar (Blackadder), a Victorian menagerie of hummingbirds (The Jackson Five) and a sleeping mouse (Cheese). None of them, however, come close to the specimens that inhabit absinthe parlour, The Last Tuesday Society, in Hackney. One of my last visits to the curio-stuffed absinthe bar saw me take a perch next to a stuffed lion called Leonora (see header) sitting upright and wearing a red top hat. Directors Allison Crawbuck and Rhys Everett sure know how to do whimsy.

They also know how to make absinthe, having just opened Londons first absinthe distillery. Its where they make Devils Botany from a small base in Leyton, using British wheat base spirit and 14 botanicals, including grand wormwood, green anise, devils claw root, meadowsweet and elderflower.

Its part of a new wave of absinthes that includes Hendricks version, launched in 2019, which join more established brands such as St George and, of course, La Fee in changing peoples perceptions of this misunderstood, historically demonised and enigmatic spirit.

Yet, theres still plenty of work to do. Those stories of hallucinations, green fairies and setting sugar cubes on fire still abound, and its ban for nearly a century, in the US in 1912, France in 1915 and the rest of Europe, hasnt done its reputation many favours. But a world-wide repeal throughout the early noughties led to its re-emergence.

With so much history, ritual and romance, not to mention famous drinkers including Oscar Wilde and Ernest Hemingway, its a category that home drinkers are starting to rediscover. So fix yourself a Death in the Afternoon, pop some Piaf on the record player and settle in.

A new horizon

Its always been the dream, explains Crawbuck when I ask her why she and Everett decided to make their own absinthe. We opened the bar in 2016, importing our absinthes from other artisanal distillers in Switzerland and France, sharing their stories, learning from their history, and seeing where we could make our own mark.

It was important for them to highlight the complexity of absinthe, converting the naysayers who voice their dislike of aniseed and showing that there is so much more beyond it. Our research found lots of 18th century recipes for herbal elixirs, so it was a mixture of finding out what went into the absinthe and making sure that were using botanicals used pre-ban and creating our own twist on it, says Everett. We chose herbs that grow around Hackney Marshes, but also those that make a difference to the absinthe to give it a more unique flavour. Thats how we landed on elderflower and meadowsweet.

They also wanted to highlight the bleue (clear) style of absinthe, as opposed to the more famous verte, which originated in Switzerland and was perfected during absinthes ban to cleverly trick officials looking for the giveaway green liquid. The absinthe also louches, turning a beautifully milky white on impact with water, a mark of a high-quality absinthe.

Someone else who has a keen eye on absinthe is Lesley Gracie. She may be better known for being the master distiller for Hendricks Gin, but 2019 saw the bar world in a frenzy when she presented them with the brands very first absinthe.

From her lab up in Girvan, she set herself the challenge of creating one that showed the best of star anise, but also made it approachable  not to mention giving people a lower ABV.

The way that we produce gin is very similar to how you make absinthe, she explained. After all, absinthe is also a botanical spirit. I really like absinthe, but some of them that are out there are so strong: if you have something at 70% ABV, you drink it and your ears melt and fall off. We pulled the strength down to 48% abv which means that when somebody makes a cocktail with it, they can pour a proper measure and really allow that flavour to shine through.

The great re-awakening

None of this would have been possible without the help of a chap called George Rowley. The brand owner of La Fee, which was launched in 2000, also helped kickstart the repeal of absinthes ban in Europe. I (virtually) meet him in The Green Room, the very square footage where it all happened.

In the late 1990s, he set about making his own absinthe. He travelled to France to meet Marie-Claude Delahaye, owner of Musee de lAbsinthe to discuss how to go about it. It didnt go well. A week later I decided to write her a letter that said, I understand where youre coming from and we know absinthe is legally banned in France, but if we could find a distillery that used to make absinthe would you be the source of the recipe from the museum so we could guarantee that what we were selling was real absinthe? She agreed.

And so La Fee was born. It was launched at The Groucho Club, helmed by none other than legendary bartender Dick Bradsell who chose Bohemian Sours to showcase it. Fast-forward 21 years and Rowley has just added a new 20cl version of his Parisienne bottling to the collection. It comes complete with an autopourer (for a fuss-free serve) and a menu including cocktails such as the French Mojito, Spider Highball and the La Fee Sour. Drinks that bring absinthe into the 21st century.

Expect the unexpected

Crawbuck too suggests simpler drier serves a world away from the traditional ritual of resting a slotted spoon with a sugar cube on top of an absinthe-filled glass and slow-pouring water over the top. For the home bartender, absinthe as a Spritz is a great afternoon pick me up, suggests Crawbuck. Its a time and setting most people dont think to have absinthe, sitting in the sun, but it works, especially with our recipe being floral and herbaceous.

Jenny Griffiths, previously manager at absinthe-bar Croque Monsieur, champions Spritzes too, switching vermouth or amaro with absinthe and adding a dry wine and some fruit. She also found a myriad of other ways to transform classic recipes into something a bit different with the help of absinthe. The Absinthe Grasshopper was popular despite how boozy that drink should have been, while a twist on the traditional fountain brought with it some refreshment: We filled the water part with cucumber and the smallest bit of sugar and rose liqueur. That always went down really well, she said.

Strawberry and vanilla are flavours that Kelley Hill of The Distillery London picks out as unlikely bedfellows of absinthe. Shes created the Lady Claire, 40ml Chase Rhubarb, 10ml absinthe, 10ml Byrrh, 10ml creme de cassis, 1 bar spoon strawberry jam, shaken and double-strained into a coupe as well as the Pulp Fiction, a mix of Portobello 171, absinthe, cloudy apple, lemon juice, black grapes and mint, designed to share Pimms-style in a jug.

For bar manager of FAM, Tatjana Sendzimir, creating a frozen absinthe cocktail is an intriguing idea. That or a Daisy: something quite light that if you found the right gin, you could play around with something bright and zingy. Like grapefruit, which would work with the floral notes in absinthe in quite a pronounced way, she said.

If theres a cardinal rule for Rowley though, absinthe should be drunk with ice, and lots of it.

The activator within any drink with absinthe is the ice, the water acts as a catalyst for all the flavours. He should know; hes drunk absinthe every week for the last 21 years. I doff my drinking partners red top hat to him.
Advertisement

COVID-19 by and large spares children and teens from illness, but they've suffered a year of unprecedented collateral damage as the pandemic has dragged on.

NBC senior national correspondent Kate Snow would know.

Over the past 12 months, she has cared for her husband through his battle with COVID-19 and helped her kids navigate 24/7 home-time, Zoom school, socially distanced social lives and the mental health gauntlet of the pandemic.

Snow and her team collaborated with Stanford University to finally put some figures on how the pandemic is affecting kids.

'I'd like to tell you [that the results] are all shocking and surprising, but as a mother of a 12th grader and a 9th grader, a lot of the things in the study are things I'm living right now,' she told DailyMail.com.

'This is a tough, tough time to be a high school student.'

NBC and Stanford conducted the 'Kids Under Pressure' study as part of their Challenge Success non-profit work.

The survey found that 56 percent of US high school students are more stressed about school work than they were prior to the pandemic, half say they have too much homework, and the share of kids stressed over their mental health has risen 23 percent.

'[Kids are] struggling, too, with a lack of engagement...they don't care as much as they used to care and are feeling more lost because they don't have much one-on-one time with teachers,' Snow said.

Kids across the US are feeling overworked by and under-engaged with their coursework after nearly a year of 'Zoom school,' and Hibah Ansari (right) told NBC senior national correspondent Kate Snow (left) learning has become 'computer time on computer time'

Nearly 57% of US teens said they are more stressed about school since the pandemic began (light blue), and nearly 60% said they are more worried about college, the Stanford and NBC study found

'It's easy to feel like giving up because [the challenge of Zoom school and the pandemic] has become so much that it's easier to do.'

Snow and her team also followed a group of high school students over the course of the school year, capturing their successes and their struggles.

One of them, Hibah Ansari, a high school senior told Snow that she spends some 10 hours on screens for classes and homework.

'It's just computer time on computer time,' she said, and added that her motivation to do well in school has been eroded as the burden of homework has gotten heavier and school has become fully virtual.

And of course Snow has had a front row seat to her own children's adjustment to virtual learning.

Watching them, Snow had 'some sense of the weight of the problem' but says the study findings 'verify and capture what is really going on.'

What's going on is that more than 56 million students went from spending the majority of their days at school with their peers and teachers suddenly became fully virtual learners in the spring.

And since then, the question of how to educate American kids in the throes of a pandemic has become a deeply divisive political issue.

CDC left it largely to schools to figure out for themselves when and how to reopen, former President Trump barred the health agency's then-director from testifying before Congress, and months later, mixed messages still abound among members of the same Biden Covid Response team.

Biden said he wanted to reopen the majority of schools within his first 100 days in office, but critics claim he is dragging his heels on this goal for fear of crossing teachers unions.

Parents are furious with teachers whose protests over reopening schools are keeping kids from getting back to in-person classes.

Teachers are furious with the feds for at once telling them it's safe to go back to teaching without COVID-19 vaccinations and that they should be prioritized for shots.

And conspicuously missing from the many-sided, public row are the concerns of the people at the heart of the issue: kids.

The NBC and Stanford study aimed to capture how school students are really coping with 'Zoom school.'

Snow said that she was unsurprised that NBC and Stanford University's poll of 75,000 students found most were more stressed since the pandemic began, and said her kids are 'happier and lighter' when they have half-days of in-person class

Nearly 70% of students said that grades, tests, finals and other school assessments are the biggest source of their stress, and more than 30% are concerned over their own mental health amid the pandemic and 'Zoom school'

Nearly half (46.7 percent) of the 75,000 students surveyed said they felt more pressure to excel in school since the pandemic began.

More than 56 percent said their school-related stress had increased and nearly 60 percent said they'd become more worried about college since 2020 went haywire.

The only metric that remained the same for most kids (57 percent) was the stress over meeting their parents' or guardians' expectations - though more than a third said that stress had increased as well.

More than half of students said they never get one-on-one time with teachers and school staff, and 41% said that no one checks in on how they are doing (dark blue)

For nearly 70 percent of high schoolers, grades, tests, quizzes finals and other assessments were the primary stressors.

More than 60 percent of high school students said the overall workload and homework strain were stressors for them.

And more than 30 percent of teenagers said that they were stressed about their mental health, time management, lack of time to play and be with friends and being under-slept.

More than half of the kids surveyed also said they felt like the workload had increased, especially their homework.

And yet remote learning has made it harder for these teens to feel engaged and like they have real connections with their teachers.

'Fifty percent say the strength of relationships with teachers has decreased and teachers are under stress and don't have enough time in their day to teach on screens and try to help students after class,' Snow says.

Students spend all day in class 'on screens and then they have homework on more screens,' Snow added.

'Any adult can imagine - Zoom call after Zoom call - now imagine that's how classes are, that's how you're getting your instruction, it just feels different than being in person.

'They can't raise their hand easily and it's hard a lot of times to have to go back and teach yourself or find a way to go to office hours...it's easier to fall behind than it used to be.'

Filling in those learning gaps has proved challenging to do in virtual school, but schools that are back to in-person learning are findings creative ways to try to alleviate some stress for their students.

Snow visited an Austin, Texas, school, where about half of students are back in school in person, full-time. Aware of the mounting pressures and time commitments students felt, the school started dropping one class period a day each day, so that instead of having the usual class, students have a period to start homework, go to office hours, or study for a test. The students credit the program with giving them more time and alleviating stress.

Stress and symptoms of mental health concerns don't necessarily manifest the same way in children and adolescents as they do in adults - and parents are learning that in real time now that they're home with their kids who are also in class.

'When you look at the numbers on effort in school, effort in school has fallen and you hear that a lot of students are giving up and have dropped their effort, that's. result of stress for kids who were straight A students and now are not,' Snow says.

Half of students said the time they spend on school work has increased since the pandemic began, but more than 40% felt their effort and engagement levels had fallen off

Two to three hours of homework was the most common load for high school students, but nearly four percent had seven hours a night

'They feel stress and that's how exhibiting, so instead of watching the Zoom class, they have another screen open playing games.'

That might appeal to some teenagers, but both psychologists and observation suggest that kids aren't actually happier that way, and in fact may miss out on crucial aspects of social development.

'Most kids prefer being around their peers and miss school, they miss the social aspect and the teacher interactions,' Snow says.

The NBC/Stanford poll also found that parents are often underestimating the stress their kids are under - and even how parents' stress bleeds over into the lives and outlooks of children.

While 46 percent of parents said they thought their kids' stress levels had increased, 56 percent of kids felt more stressed.

'Not all parents are understanding what their kids are going through. One thing I'm guilty of myself, when we are stressed, as parents, and our kids are in the house with us, it increases their stress, they feed off us,' Snow said.

'I'm trying to take some deep breaths before I react and try to not exhibit as much stress.'

About half of students said they felt less connected to both peers and teachers since the pandemic began, but most still feel as though they belong in their schools

She says it's important for parents to check in with their kids, ask them directly how they are feeling, because it may not be obvious, and teenagers may not reveal that they're struggling without an invitation to do so.

Even with families spending so much time together during the pandemic, Snow says taking the time to bond and disconnect from screens is important.

But it's not a replacement for 'peer-to-peer interactions,' which they 'really do need developmentally,' she says.

'This has hit in their teen years right when there are all these things that are happening, when they are pulling away from parents and spending time with friends.'

She and her kids have had to get creative about ways for the teens to spend time with friends safely, such as outdoor, socially distance hangouts with masks, or even watching movies 'together' online.

Parents like Snow and teachers are doing their best, but nothing quite replaces the full in-person experience of school, and kids could be seeing the consequences for years to come.

'I personally would love for my kids to be back in school in school as soon as my district says it's safe enough, but I know not every parent in my district [in New York] feels that way.

'In the balance of benefits and costs, there is such a huge benefit [for kids to be in school] that I personally would favor it.'

For the time being, Snow's children are among the millions in a hybrid model. They go to in-person class for half the day, and spend half of it doing virtual learning.

'I can see a difference in my kids when they go for that half day and come home from the school buildings, they are lighter and happier.'


President Mnangagwa has praised his deputy, who is also the Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr Constantino Chiwenga, for volunteering to take the first jab when Zimbabwe launched the Covid-19 vaccination programme yesterday.

The Vice President turned up at Wilkins Infectious Diseases Hospital in Harare and took his first dose of the Sinopharm vaccine donated to Zimbabwe by China, allaying baseless pessimism around the inoculation process.

Despite assurances even from the World Health Organisation (WHO), naysayers in certain quarters were casting aspersions on safety of the vaccine but VP Chiwenga volunteered to lead the way by getting immunised.

This gesture went a long way in assuring health care workers, who will be among the first to be vaccinated.

Writing on micro-blogging site  Twitter  President Mnangagwa thanked his deputy for leading the way in assuring the safety of the process, signalling the start of the countrys largest mass vaccination programme which is targeting 10 million people.

Thank you to Vice President and Health Minister Constantino Chiwenga for showing Zimbabwe that this vaccine is safe for all our people. This is a historic moment in our countrys fight against this virus, wrote President Mnangagwa.

Speaking after receiving the jab, VP Chiwenga said the receding number of cases was heralding the end of the second wave but warned that Zimbabwe was not yet out of the woods and was now augmenting preventative measures with vaccines.

Active cases are now just over 2 000 falling from as high as more than 10 000 when infections peaked. Experts and Government officials have, however, warned that cases are still high and any lapse can trigger a third wave of infections.

The marked decline in new cases of Covid-19 is vividly heralding the end of the second wave of the pandemic. Despite the slump, the Government of Zimbabwe adopted a second line of defence to augment preventative measures to combat Covid-19. The second layer of defence is the procurement and roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines, said VP Chiwenga.

He said local tests were done on the vaccine being administered in the country which showed that it had an efficacy rate of more than 79 percent and urged everyone to be immunised.

My ministry has conducted all scientific processes to ascertain the efficacy of the Sinopharm vaccine which was confirmed to be 79 percent.

My presence here today, with some Ministry of Health officials, including my deputy, is to exhibit the Governments confidence in the Sinopharm vaccine.

I have received my Covid-19 vaccine together with my deputy minister and my staff, therefore I urge all Zimbabweans to be vaccinated at their nearest health centre.

More Covid-19 vaccines were expected in the country until the required quantities were achieved in the shortest possible time.

VP Chiwenga said the vaccines would be taken to the provinces ahead of a nationwide vaccination programme starting on Monday.

The training programme for the provincial and district staff was completed while lower level staff would be trained over the weekend.

Sister Siboniso Mlilo, a nurse with over two decades of experience in health services, administered the first shot on VP Chiwenga. She enrolled as a nursing student in 2000 and graduated in 2003 as a registered general nurse.

Sister Mlilo completed her training on administering Covid-19 vaccines this week and only knew moments prior that she would be the first nurse to administer the first dose.

She said the process was the same as administering any other vaccines she has been doing for years and encouraged everyone who can to be inoculated.

By the grace of the Lord, I have not yet contracted the virus and after being vaccinated, my chances are now boosted and I will continue other preventative measures, she said.

Chief coordinator of the National Response to the Covid-19 pandemic Dr Agnes Mahomva, clarified the issue of vaccines being amenable protection to certain variants.

She said because of their mutating nature, there was no vaccine which could protect against all variants, but urged everyone to be immunised since it boosted peoples immunity against the virus.

Sister Violet Badze, another nurse with 22 years experience in the medical field, said she had never been relieved in her career like what she felt after being vaccinated.

It is just a prick. I am not feeling anything different and I urge everyone to be vaccinated to boost their immunity. We are at the risk of this virus and after being vaccinated, we feel we have been protected, she said.

Dr Simuka Zizhou who was also vaccinated yesterday, implored everyone to be vaccinated. You are better off getting the vaccine to boost your immunity, he said.

Harare City Council spokesperson Mr Michael Chideme said he did not feel any change after getting the jab and promised to give daily updates to help people track if he had any challenges after the inoculation.

Some nurses who spoke to The Herald before being vaccinated said they were eagerly anticipating the jabs following VP Chiwengas lead.

There was scepticism but the Vice President has given us confidence. It is always a challenge to volunteer for something new but now that such a high ranking official has been vaccinated in front of us, we will take the shots with confidence, said a nurse.

Some journalists also received vaccines following calls to prioritise the media as one of the most vulnerable groups. After getting her dose, ZBC TVs Abigail Tembo said: Journalists are frontline workers and need to be vaccinated.

My job takes me everywhere and for the sake of everyone I interview, my co-workers and my family, I volunteered to be among the first people to get vaccinated so that on top of the masks, social distancing and sanitisation, I get maximum protection against the virus, she said.

Ministry of Health and Child Care spokesperson Donald Mujiri said: We have received a request from the Ministry of Information for journalists to be in the risk population group and they will be considered. Herald
The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has brought about an international effort to uncover the biology of its causative agent, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and to develop effective and safe antivirals to contain and treat the infection. A new study by a team of researchers in France and Sweden discusses one such study, exploring the relative immunogenicity of the three main structural proteins of the virus. The team has released their findings on the bioRxiv* preprint server.

SARS-CoV-2 infects the host cells via its surface spike glycoprotein. Once viral entry is accomplished, it uses the cells machinery to translate its RNA genome to structural and non-structural proteins, as well as accessory proteins, ensuring they have the proper secondary and tertiary structure to fulfill their function.

Among the chief viral proteins are the spike, envelope and membrane proteins, all of which are exposed to the host immune system. As a result, they trigger antibody responses, that in turn not only neutralize viral entry into the host cells, but activate other immune pathways including immune cells and complement-mediated cell destruction.

Antibodies to S, M and E proteins

Since not much is known about antibody responses to the M and E proteins, the current study aimed to understand the ability of these two viral proteins, along with the spike antigen, to stimulate antibody production, using a system based on human cells. This platform was designed to simulate viral insertion into the cell membrane and N-glycosylation, since these are considered essential for antibody recognition.

The researchers found that the serological responses showed a similar pattern in all COVID-19 patients, with mild, moderate or severe disease. The antibody profiles were comparable to those obtained with diagnostic assays, with around 90% concordance.

The control sera showed no binding to the S, E or M proteins, and were therefore used to set the reference for seropositivity.

Both COVID-19 patients and those with COVID-19-like symptoms showed immunoglobulin G (IgG), IgM and IgA antibodies to the spike protein. Patients with moderate to severe disease had higher titers of antibodies to the spike protein than with mild disease. Severe disease was also observed to be associated with anti-M antibodies.

Anti-M antibodies were always associated with anti-spike antibodies, but the converse was not true. Anti-E antibodies were not found in any patient.

D614G mutation alters spike structure

The researchers also found that the D614 spike, characteristic of the virus in the earlier part of the pandemic, was structurally different from the G614 mutant spike, which characterizes the current globally dominant variant. The earlier variant has a salt bridge connecting two spike protomers at the D614-K854 residue, as well as between R646 and E865.

With the G614 mutant, the K854 forms a hydrogen bond to the G614 backbone, which is a weaker and more energetic bond. There are changes in the non-polar region of spike protomer B, which projects towards protomer A in the D614 variant but is pushed away in the G614 mutant.

The only electrostatic interactions with the latter are with the second interaction. Additionally, the part around the K854 position in protomer B is moved around to point away from protomer A. More solvent exposure was seen with the polar residues around E685 of protomer B. Overall, therefore, the G614 mutation changes the structure of the spike protein, which in turn alters the immune response.

D614G mutation reduced antibody-spike binding

When the antibodies to the spike antigen were re-assessed with sera from COVID-19 patients, using both variants of the spike, they found that the mutation does not reduce the antigenicity of the spike antigen, but instead reduces IgG, IgM, and IgA binding to the G614 spike variant.

European patients were mostly infected by the G614 spike-bearing variant, rather than the D614 variant on which most commercial assays are based. No previous study has shown a difference in antibody binding, using ELISA testing.

This result shows the need for antigens used to explore antibody responses should reflect the viral proteins accurately.

What are the implications?

Our experimental system allows for discrimination between anti-S D614 vs. G614 Ig signals likely due to the advantage of using membrane inserted Spike following complex folding and post-translational modifications.

The study also shows the advantages of using the full-length spike, rather than only the S1 subunit or the receptor-binding domain (RBD) alone. The former will undergo proper post-translational modification, allowing it to possess structural integrity. This makes it more likely to elicit the full range of the antibody response.

The researchers demonstrated the generation of antibodies against the full M protein rather than antigenic peptides, for the first time, validating earlier assays performed with microarrays. The absence of anti-E antibodies could be due to the lack of surface expression of this protein, or the lack of antigenicity. In fact, some research suggests that this protein is mainly found within the protein-processing compartments of the cell.

Since anti-M Ig responses were robust, and none of the new variants show M mutations, it is necessary to examine the potential of these antibodies to produce effective neutralization. If so, this protein, being conserved across lineages, could be the basis for more durable vaccines.

At present, with the vaccination campaigns in many countries being well underway, simultaneous with the spread of new variants, the researchers present their serological test as a reliable test to verify the immunization efficiency during the vaccination and to analyze the impact of these Spike mutations on antibody responses.

*Important Notice

bioRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 20:25:15|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Thursday urged efforts to pool wisdom to improve the government's work and promote sustainable and healthy economic and social development.

When chairing a State Council executive meeting, Li was briefed on the handling of suggestions from deputies to the National People's Congress and proposals from members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in 2020. Enditem

Bruce Blackburn, a graphic designer whose modern and minimalist logos became ingrained in the nations consciousness, including the four bold red letters for NASA known as the worm and the 1976 American Revolution Bicentennial star, died on Feb. 1 in Arvada, Colo., near Denver. He was 82.

The death, at a nursing home, was confirmed by his daughter, Stephanie McFadden.

In a design career of more than 40 years, Mr. Blackburn developed brand imagery for clients like IBM, Mobil and the Museum of Modern Art. But he is best known for the NASA worm, which has become synonymous with space exploration and the concept of the technological future itself.

In 1974, his small New York-based design firm, Danne & Blackburn, was barely a year old and eager for a big project when he and his partner, Richard Danne, were approached by the Federal Graphics Improvement Program to rebrand NASAs classic logo, which depicted a patriotic red chevron soaring across the stars.

Known as the meatball, the original logo wasnt exactly cutting edge, evoking instead a vintage Buck Rogers sensibility of space travel. With the eyes of the world suddenly on the agency after the moon landing in 1969, NASA sought a more forward-looking image.
Two men jailed by the High Court over their interference with a bank's lawful takeover of a farm and house which was the subject of a controversial eviction in 2018 remain in prison, have again refused to purge their contempt.

Michael Anthony McGann, who owns the property at Falsk, Strokestown, Co Roscommon, and Kevin Taylor, a retired garda of Dublin Road, Longford, were among three men arrested at the house last November for interference with efforts by KBC Bank's agents to secure the property following the eviction.

They were found to be in contempt a week later and lodged in Mountjoy Prison.

On December 23 last, the third man, Colm Granahan from Ballina in Mayo, purged his contempt before the court and was released.

The two others remained in prison and at today's sitting of the High Court Ms Justice Leonie Reynolds reviewed the cases via a remote hearing.

Mr McGann said he has got a solicitor to represent him in the proceedings, but was not prepared to purge his contempt.

Mr Taylor also refused to purge his contempt.

Rossan Fanning SC, for KBC, said that the men had been in Mountjoy for some time.

While the bank did not wish to see the men in prison the ball was in their own court in relation to securing their release as Mr Granhan had done.

Mr Fanning added Mr McGann has continued in correspondence, to parties including the courts services, and the Minister for Justice Helen McEntee, to contest the legality of the repossession order obtained by KBC arising out of a 431,000 debt on the property from a loan to Mr McGann, its registered owner.

This correspondence, counsel said, was not relevant to the contempt proceedings..

After the two men indicated that their positions have not changed Ms Justice Reynolds said they must stay in prison and put the case back to April.

She said Mr McGann and Mr Taylor were well aware they can apply to purge their contempt, and that Mr McGann's solicitors can made an application they wish, at any time before the next review hearing.
Minh Phu was honest in its report and put in a great deal of effort during the EAPA investigation, assessed the CBP

Le Van Quang, general director of Minh Phu Corporation (MPC) said that the decision has been made in the morning of February 11. Accordingly, Minh Phu is allowed to continue exporting frozen shrimp to the US without being subjected to any type of anti-dumping tax. Besides, the company will be refunded the anti-dumping taxes which it temporarily paid due to the decision from October 13, 2020.

We are very pleased and satisfied with this decision. It demonstrates a thorough, fair, and accurate assessment of our traceability system, Quang said.

On October 13 last year, CBP announced that it had this enough evidence that MSeafood Corporation, belonging to MPC, violated US commercial law by using frozen warm water shrimp imported from India to avoid dumping tax.

On November 10, MPC submitted a legal complaint to the senior agency of CBP, asking to reconsider the conclusion, as it was ignored that Minh Phu has its own traceability system and does not use Indian raw shrimp for goods exported to the US. MPC submitted evidence that the company did not use Indian shrimp for frozen shrimp exported to the US.

Since the end of 2019, the company's traceability method has been approved by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), under the US Department of Commerce, based on the agency's requirements under the Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP). Besides, this enterprise also stopped importing Indian shrimp even though there was not enough raw material to cover its production.

According to the parent company's financial statements, last year Minh Phu recorded a revenue of approximately VND9.34 trillion ($406.1 million) and pre-tax profit of nearly VND6 trillion ($260.87 million).
One student was killed and 27 others were abduced along with school staff and relatives in an attack on the government school in Nigeria. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday condemned the attack and reiterated that attack is unacceptable

Guterres said that attacks on schools and other educational facilities are abhorrent and unacceptable. He urged the Nigerian authorities to spare no effort in rescuing those abducted and holding to account those responsible for this act, said Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman. The UN Secretary-General expressed his deepest condolences to the bereaved and his sympathies to the affected families.

The attacked killed student and 42 persons -- 27 students, three school staff and 12 family members of school staff -- were abducted by gunmen in an attack on the Government Science College, a boarding school in Kagara, Niger State, in the small hours of Wednesday.

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Lehigh University is cracking down on students and groups throwing parties amid a coronavirus outbreak on its South Bethlehem campus.

There are currently 379 active coronavirus cases amongst Lehigh students and more than 600 in quarantine. The universitys test positivity rate jumped to 8% last week, prompting Lehigh to urge student caution last Friday.

Yet, some students did not heed that message. At least three Greek organizations are facing student conduct charges for parties thrown in the last week, according to the universitys student affairs website.

Chi Phi allegedly hosted a COVID party on Feb. 11 that was attended by students who recently tested positive for the coronavirus as well as students whove already been infected, according to the charges.

This past weekend, both on- and off-campus parties or large gatherings were reported and the ones we were made aware of were quickly shut down, Vice President of Student Affairs Ricardo Hall said in a message to undergraduate students. As a result, several students and student organizations have been placed on interim suspension and face the very real possibility of eviction from university housing, suspension, or even expulsion. The consequences are great because the stakes are high.

(Cant see this map? Click here.)

Lehighs outbreak is contributing to Northampton County having the states second highest per capita infection rate  43 new cases per 100,000 people  over the past week. Northampton is averaging 132 new cases a day over the last seven days.

The vast majority of Lehigh students are doing everything they can to keep themselves and everyone around them safe, in hopes of returning to a more normal campus life, Hall wrote. These students are left demoralized and frustrated as they regularly observe friends, housemates, and acquaintances ignoring health and safety measures such as wearing masks, especially off campus, he said.

It is imperative that all students wear masks and dont host or attend large gatherings to keep infection rates low and make a brighter spring possible, Hall said. College students nationwide have died after contracting the virus and there are Lehigh students at extra risk due to their health conditions, he noted.

Our students have also seen and experienced the effects of COVID-19 among their own family members and are disheartened by what they describe as selfish behavior, Hall wrote. While most students recognize the inconveniences presented by the health and safety measures, they understand that their personal behavior helps keep themselves and the community  both Lehigh and South Bethlehem  safe.

Hall did not identify any of the violators, but the universitys student affairs conduct website shows organizations facing charges.

They include:

Alpha Tau Omega allegedly hosted an off-campus party with alcohol on Feb. 13.

Delta Upsilon is facing two charges. It is alleged the fraternity hosted an in-person recruitment event on Feb. 11, which resulted in it being placed on a modified temporary status. The following night, Lehigh University police were called to 454 Birkel Ave., where several Delta Upsilon members live, after receiving a report that about 15 people had entered the house.

Chi Phi hosted the COVID party Feb. 11.

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Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com.

BRIDGEPORT  A well-known restaurant owner, at the center of allegations that former Police Chief Armando Perez tried interfering in an investigation into the sexual assault of a 16-year-old girl, has been charged with bribery and hindering the investigation.

John Vazzano, a former Barnum Festival ring master and owner of Vazzys restaurants in Bridgeport, Fairfield and Monroe, surrendered to State Police at the Rocky Hill Police Department on Wednesday morning after being notified there was a warrant for his arrest.

Contributed photo

He was charged with one count each of bribery of a witness, third-degree hindering prosecution and interfering with an officer.

Vazzano, who serves on the Trumbull Police Commission and also runs the restaurant at the Bridgeport-run Fairchild Wheeler Golf Course in Fairfield, was released after posting $50,000 bond pending arraignment in Superior Court here on Feb. 25.

Vazzanos arrest comes after a 9-month investigation, initially begun by the Bridgeport Police Departments Detective Bureau, into allegations that in November and December 2019 a longtime dish washer at Vazzys Restaurant in Bridgeport and another kitchen employee sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl in the restaurant. The investigation was later taken over by the Statewide Prosecution Bureau of the Office of the Chief States Attorney.

John Vazzano is presumed innocent and we completely deny that John Vazzano committed any criminal act, said Vazzanos lawyer, Edward Gavin. John Vazzano never attempted to influence this young ladys decision to pursue a criminal complaint against the alleged attackers. This is not a bribery case.

In February 2020, the dishwasher, Jaime Sena, 56, was charged with third-degree sexual assault and second-degree unlawful restraint. His case is pending in Superior Court. A warrant has been issued for the second suspect but he has yet to be found and arrested.

But, according to an extensive 25-page State Police arrest warrant released Wednesday afternoon, that sexual assault investigation was nearly stymied by alleged efforts by Perez and then by Vazzano himself, who is accused of offering a bribe to the girls family.

Perez, who was arrested last year for cheating to get the chief job and then lying to the FBI about it, could not be reached for comment on the allegations in the warrant. He pleaded guilty to the charges in that case and is awaiting sentencing in April. He is not facing charges in connection with the Vazzys incident.

According to the arrest warrant, the girls father filed a complaint about the alleged assault with the Police Department on Jan. 11, 2020. The affidavit states that Vazzano told the investigating detective that he would provide the names of the suspects in the assault but did not do so. The restaurants manager told the detective she did not know the last names of the suspects.

The affidavit states that in February 2020, during the funeral service of an unrelated person, Vazzano approached the father of the girl and told the father that the arrest of the sexual assault suspect is not a good idea. He then offered to give the victim a job at another of his businesses and a $1,000 gift card to Macys, the affidavit states.

The conversation between the father and Vazzano was overheard by an off-duty police officer, the affidavit states. The father informed Capt. Brian Fitzgerald, then commander of the detective bureau, about Vazzanos offer, the affidavit states.

The affidavit includes comments from several witnesses recounting incidents where Perez made comments that Fitzgerald interpreted as a threat to relieve Fitzgerald of his command.

In a later meeting, the affidavit states that Perez met with Fitzgerald and asked him about the case.

Captain Fitzgerald said he told Chief Perez that he did not know if arrests were going to occur and did not know the status of the investigation. Capt. Fitzgerald stated that Chief Perez referred to John Vazzano as a good guy, who has done a lot for the Bridgeport Police Department, the affidavit states.

After Fitzgerald assigned another detective who specializes in sex assault investigations, Walberto Cotto, to the case, the affidavit states that Fitzgerald was confronted by Perez who started yelling that he (Perez) was not (expletive) about their handling of (the victims) complaint. It states that Perez again threatened that he was going to make changes, although he did not specify what changes.

Chief Perez also stated again that John Vazzano is a good guy and that he (Perez) does not want Vazzano hurt, the affidavit states.

The affidavit states that State Police also obtained telephone records showing numerous calls between Perez and Vazzano during this period.

In a Feb. 20, 2020 meeting, the affidavit states that Perez told Fitzgerald and Lt. Chris LaMaine that he didnt want the newspaper to learn about the arrest of the two sex assault suspects and was going to contact the state courthouse to make sure information about the arrests was not released. A week earlier Perez had allegedly told LaMaine that he didnt want to see anything about the victims complaint in the Connecticut Post.

The affidavit states that Perez, on another occasion, told LaMaine he was losing sleep over the Vazzys case.

The affidavit states that Vazzano later lied to members of the U.S. Marshals Violent Crime Fugitive Task Force on the whereabouts of the two sex assault suspects and that Vazzanos cellphone call logs showed he had often texted the two men.

Correction: A previous version of this story stated that John Vazzano owned Vazzys locations in several cities and towns, including Stratford. Although Vazzano does own several Vazzys establishments, Vazzys of Stratford is not one of them.
Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Its nearly two months since turbulence erupted around China Huarong Asset Management Co.At the end of March, its 4% perpetual dollar bond was trading at 102 cents on the dollar as investors figured the January execution of former chairman Lai Xiaomin for bribery put a line under past wayward behavior. But the failure of the company to release 2020 results by a March 31 deadline, and a subsequent report by mainland media Caixin that the firm will restructure, sparked weeks of turmoil. The same bond is now at 57 cents.The heart of the matter is whether the central government will rescue a state-owned company thats integral to the smooth running of the financial system. While there are signs Beijing wants to ensure China Huarong can repay its debts on time, uncertainty prevails.Heres a look at the key events for China Huarong:May 28The company has wired funds to repay $978 million of notes maturing within the following week, according to Bloomberg News, the biggest bond payment since the 2020 results delay.May 27Liang Qiang, who currently heads another bad-debt manager, is on track to become president of China Huarong, reports Bloomberg News.May 24China Huarong dollar bonds climb after the managing editor of Caixin Media wrote in an opinion piece that the asset manager is nowhere near defaulting on its more than $20 billion of offshore notes.May 21Some of China Huarongs thinly traded onshore bonds slump after having held up better than the companys dollar-denominated notes, signaling broadening concern about the firms financial health.May 18China Huarong has transferred funds to repay a $300 million note maturing May 20, Bloomberg News reports, the first dollar bond to come due since the delayed 2020 results. Prices for the firms dollar bonds slump earlier in the day after the New York Times reports China is planning an overhaul that would inflict significant losses on both domestic and foreign China Huarong bondholders.May 17The company has reached funding agreements with state-owned banks to ensure it can repay debt through at least the end of August, by which time China Huarong aims to have completed its 2020 financial statements, according to a Bloomberg News report. That as at least two of its onshore bonds see big price declines in recent days, worrying some investors.May 13The firm says its prepared to make future bond payments and has seen no change in the level of government support, seeking to ease investor concerns after a local media report that regulators balked at China Hurarongs restructuring plan.May 6The company says it transferred funds to pay five offshore bond coupons due the following day, its latest move to meet debt obligations amid persistent doubts about its financial health.April 30China Huarong breaks its silence, with an executive telling media it is prepared to make its bond payments and state backing remains intact. The official also says the weeks rating downgrades have no factual basis and are too pessimistic.April 29Moodys Investor Service downgrades China Huarong by one notch to Baa1, adding the firm remains on watch for further downgrade. The cut reflects the companys weakened funding ability due to market volatility and increased uncertainty over its future, according to the statement.April 27China Huarong units repay bonds maturing that day. The S$600 million ($450 million) bond was repaid with funds provided by Chinas biggest state-owned bank, according to a Bloomberg News report.April 26Fitch Ratings downgrades China Huarong by three notches to BBB while dropping the companys perpetual bonds into junk territory. The lack of transparency over government support for the firm may hamper its ability to refinance debt in offshore markets, Fitch said.April 25China Huarong says it wont meet an April 30 deadline to file its 2020 report with Hong Kongs stock exchange because auditors needed more time to finalize a transaction the company first flagged on April 1. Securities and asset-management units said in the days before that they wouldnt release 2020 results by months end.April 22The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission asks lenders to extend China Huarongs upcoming loans by at least six months, according to REDD, citing two bankers from large Chinese commercial lenders.April 21China is considering a plan that would see its central bank assume more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) of China Huarong assets to help clean up the firms balance sheet, according to a Bloomberg News report. Peer China Cinda Asset Management Co. was said to be planning the sale of perpetual bonds in the second quarter.April 20China Huarongs key offshore financing unit says it returned to profitability in the first quarter and laid a solid foundation for transformation. Reorg Research reports that regulators are considering options including a debt restructuring of the unit, China Huarong International Holdings Ltd.April 19Huarong Securities Co. says it wired funds to repay a 2.5 billion yuan local note.April 16The CBIRC says China Huarongs operations are normal and that the firm has ample liquidity. These are the first official comments about the companys troubles. Reuters reports Chinese banks have been asked not to withhold loans to Huarong.April 13Fitch and Moodys both put the company on watch for downgrade. The finance ministry, which owns a majority of Huarong, is considering the transfer of its stake to a unit of the countrys sovereign wealth fund, Bloomberg News reports. Chinese officials signal they want failing local government financing vehicles to restructure or go bust if debts cant be repaid.April 9China Huarong says it has been making debt payments on time and its operations are normal. Bloomberg News reports the company intends to keep Huarong International as part of a potential overhaul that would avoid the need of a debt restructuring or government recapitalization. S&P Global Ratings puts China Huarongs credit ratings on watch for possible downgrade.April 8China Huarong is preparing to offload non-core and loss-making units as part of a broad plan to revive profitability that would avoid the need for a debt restructuring or government recapitalization, Bloomberg News reports.April 6Selling gains steam in China Huarongs dollar bonds, following a holiday in China. Huarong Securities says there has been no major change to its operations, in response to a price plunge for its 3 billion yuan local bond.April 1China Huarong announces a delay in releasing 2020 results, saying its auditor is unable to finalize a transaction. Stock trading is suspended and spreads jump on the firms dollar bonds while China Huarong tells investors its business is running as usual. Caixin reports the company submitted restructuring and other major reform plans to government officials and shareholders.More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.2021 Bloomberg L.P.
A pet cat has gone viral in China after appearing to cry into a security camera while being left at home alone during a holiday.

The two-year-old British Shorthair, Fu Fu, supposedly wept while hearing his owner calling his name through the home monitor, his owner said.

The pet keeper, Ms Meng, said she was checking on the feline via a surveillance app on her phone when she saw the 'heart-breaking' scene.

Security footage shows Fu Fu staring into the camera with tears in his eyes at home in China

His owner had gone back to her parents' home to celebrate the Lunar New Year without Fu Fu

The CCTV clip was filmed on the night of February 8 in eastern China's Xuzhou after Ms Meng had gone to her parents' home in a nearby town to celebrate the Lunar New Year.

The 17-second video, which has received more than 8million 'likes', propelled Fu Fu into social media stardom, leading him to be known as the 'left-behind cat'.

Ms Meng told MailOnline she had decided not to bring Fu Fu out of fear that he could not get used to her parents' home.

She described Fu Fu as shy and clingy, adding that the pet loves spending time with her.

To ensure Fu Fu's well-being, Ms Meng had arranged enough food and water for him before her trip and would watch surveillance footage regularly.

The trending clip shows turning around to look at the door after hearing his owner's voice

After realising the voice came from the monitor, Fu Fu turns back to play with the camera

The trending video shows Fu Fu purring with tears in his eyes, after Ms Meng called his name 'Fu Fu' through the monitor.

Ms Meng can be heard saying in the clip 'do you miss me' and 'I will come back in a few days'.

As Ms Meng's voice plays, Fu Fu turns around to look at the door before turning back to touch the camera with his paw.

'I felt heartbroken when I saw this,' Ms Meng confessed. She said that she eventually cut her trip short to return home to Fu Fu.

'I had planned to stay at my parents' home for a week, but we all returned to Xuzhou early,' she noted.

A follow-up video shared by Ms Meng on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, shows Fu Fu dashing towards Ms Meng excitedly after she got home four days later.

Another video shows Fu Fu dashing towards Ms Meng excitedly after she finally got home

Fu Fu's owner says her cat is shy and clingy, adding that he loves spending time with her

Weepy eyes in cats can be signs of illnesses, such as eye infections or blocked tear ducts. But Ms Meng insisted that Fu Fu was perfectly healthy. She claimed that Fu Fu often had tears in his eyes when he was anxious or hungry.

Fu Fu's 'crying' video has attracted more than 250,000 comments on Douyin as web users flocked to show their affection for the cat.

One fan wrote: 'My heart melted when I saw Fu Fu's eyes.'

Another viewer said: 'I feel so sorry for him.'

A third person joked: 'He didn't miss you. He missed his fish.'
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A San Francisco man found dead Monday after his family reported him missing last month was discovered in a crawl space above the bathroom of his Mission District apartment, police said Wednesday.

San Francisco police said they do not suspect foul play in Christopher Woitels death and said Woitel probably accessed the crawl space from the roof of the building and not from inside his apartment.

Woitel, 50, was reported missing by his mother on Jan. 13 and had last communicated with her on social media on Jan. 9.

On Feb. 12, investigators with the Police Departments Special Victims Unit served a search warrant on Woitels home on Guerrero Street to locate evidence of a crime scene but did not find any signs of forced entry into his apartment, or evidence of a crime in that initial search, police said.

On Feb. 15, detectives with the Special Victims and Crime Scene Investigations units served a second search warrant at the home In furtherance of the investigation, this time looking into a small, roughly 3-foot tall crawl space above the bathroom, where they found Woitels body. Police said the area was hidden from plain view.

San Francisco firefighters cut a hole in the ceiling to retrieve the mans remains, police said.

The medical examiners autopsy is still pending, and the cause of Woitels death was still unclear Wednesday.

In a previous statement from the family through a spokesperson, Woitels family urged the community to Please help us by preserving Chris legacy in your memories. Thank you for your love and caring support through these very difficult times.

Family members said they would not comment further until the medical examiner releases findings of Woitels autopsy, the family spokesperson said.

Lauren Hernandez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: lauren.hernandez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByLHernandez

CHICO, Calif. - The pandemic has hurt the Chico economy. Business restrictions and no in-person classes at Chico State are just some of the setbacks.

In August, the City of Chico predicted that with no students at Chico State, there could be a loss of $50 to $60 million in revenue.

RELATED: City could lose millions of dollars in sales with majority of Chico State classes online

Six months later, "it didn't end up being a big of an impact as first expected," said Lynda Gizzi, public information officer for Chico.

Gizzi said it is a relief.

"We still had about 70% of students living here in Chico," said Gizzi.

That means students still went out to contribute to the economy, whether it's picking up food or shopping at stores.

It's good news for the folks at Upper Crust bakery.

The pastry makers know all too well about the economic impacts of the pandemic.

"We actually limited the amount of hours we're open. We close at 5 o clock now instead of 7, because we don't have the students here," said Jeffrey Plummer, owner of Upper Crust.

Once students return, the bakery hopes to see more business.

"It's going to increase our business and obviously more employees back in here to work and help the community a little bit more," said Plummer.

Chico State officials said roughly 5,000 students are expected to return to campus in the fall.

Action News Now asked the city for specific numbers in regards to how much money in sales the city has lost. They said those numbers will not be known until the March 2 City Council Meeting.
VANCOUVER - The chairman of a new Indigenous advisory committee at the Canada Energy Regulator says he wants to fix a system that has treated First Nations, Inuit and Metis people as an "afterthought."

VANCOUVER - The chairman of a new Indigenous advisory committee at the Canada Energy Regulator says he wants to fix a system that has treated First Nations, Inuit and Metis people as an "afterthought."

Tribal Chief Tyrone McNeil, a Sto:lo member in British Columbia's Fraser Valley, said he doesn't view it as a problem that the committee has no decision-making power over specific projects.

Tribal Chief Tyrone McNeil, shown in a handout photo, is the chairman of the Indigenous Advisory Committee of the Canada Energy Regulator. McNeil says he hopes to improve the regulator's understanding of and relationship with Indigenous Peoples. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Canada Energy Regulator MANDATORY CREDIT

McNeil said his group, made up of nine members, provides strategic advice to the energy regulator on incorporating Indigenous Peoples in natural resource development and oversight.

The committee meets regularly with the board and senior management, and he said in an interview Thursday he wants to take advantage of that and "fix the big system overall."

"Quite often, in other aspects, we're brought in as an afterthought or an add-on. In this case, we're part of the CER act itself," he said. "The influence is compounded when you have a willing partner sitting with us at the table  not at the other side of the table, but with us at the table.

"This thing has tremendous potential, in short order, to influence projects going forward."

While McNeil said he's not focused on existing projects like the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, the committee's advice may be applied to such projects and have an indirect effect on operations.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government replaced the National Energy Board with the new regulator in 2019 amid a number of battles with First Nations over pipelines. His government has also contended with long-standing concerns from investors that building natural resource projects is too difficult in Canada.

The Canada Energy Regulator Act aimed to clear the path forward for such projects by bringing Indigenous Peoples into the fold, requiring the regulator to create the advisory committee.

The committee is still in its early stages and recently met to endorse its terms of reference, which state its purpose is to transform the relationship between Indigenous Peoples and the regulator.

McNeil said he sees a "huge difference" between the old energy board and the new organization.

"We had our battles with the NEB back in the day, but once I read the act, there was no fear," he said. "I saw so much opportunity, so much potential, I couldn't say no."

He said when Indigenous people encountered problems in the past with natural resource companies, regulators and governments, it was often because "they have no idea who we are."

"We're all distinct. We're all different," he said. "We're building the cultural competency at the CER as a whole."

He noted the act also includes a commitment to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which requires "free, prior and informed consent." The committee will help the regulator build a new consultation model that factors in this requirement, which means engaging with communities at the earliest stages, McNeil said.

"I feel really strongly that's going to compel companies to do a whole lot more work in advance so they have more confidence before they bring (projects forward)," he said.

Cassie Doyle, board chairwoman at the regulator, said the Indigenous committee will support systemic change in the organization and help it achieve its overall goal of reconciliation.

"This Indigenous advisory committee is unique in that it's operating at a strategic level. We have already received very good advice (from it)," she said.

The regulator's CEO, Gitane De Silva, said that advice has included, for example, how it should be transforming its approach to Indigenous oversight and monitoring of specific projects.

"While that's not specific to a piece of infrastructure, that will help us form a policy that we use in all our interactions with regulated industry," she said.

She added that the regulator is approaching this process "with humility."

"We know we have a lot of work to do," she said. "We very much welcome the advice of the committee and their individual members and we see it as a tremendous opportunity for the organization to be a much better regulator for all of Canada."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
THIS WEEKEND

(image provided by Disney Plus)



1. Jim Henson's The Muppet Show will begin airing on Disney Plus on February 19. The variety show, which introduced the world to characters like Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie Bear, and more, feature weekly guests culled from the world of Hollywood and Broadway. You can sign up for Disney Plus here.

2. Actors from Broadway and London's West End team up for the [email protected] Home, all-free radio play Julius Caesar, which launches February 22 at 7pm ET. Tony-nominated actor Patrick Page (Hadestown) stars in the title role with Jordan Barbour (Broadway's The Inheritance) as Brutus, Sky Lakota Lynch (Dear Evan Hansen) as Lucius, and Keith Hamilton Cobb (American Moor) as Cassius. Julius Caesar is one of Shakespeare's best known and most often quoted plays, chronicling the political and moral crisis of Brutus and his fellow conspirators as they plot to murder Caesar to prevent a dictatorship. Debut dates for parts 2, 3, and 4 of Julius Caesar are subsequent Mondays at 7pm EST on March 1 and 8. The final episode will premiere on March 15. Tickets are free, and donations are welcome. Find out more here

Clockwise from top left: Michael Urie, Ann Harada, Constance Shulman, and Colby Lewis in Smithtown

(image provided by the production)

3. Michael Urie, Ann Harada, Colby Lewis, and Constance Shulman will star in a virtual production of the new play Smithtown, written by Drew Larimore and directed by Stephen Kitsakos. Smithtown follows four residents of a fictional Midwestern university town who unwittingly become victims of technology gone awry. The 65-minute play is presented by the Studios of Key West. The play will stream online through February 27. For tickets, click here. Read our interview with Urie and Larimore here.

John Lithgow, Shoshana Bean, and Daniel Breaker

( David Gordon)

5. John Lithgow, Shoshana Bean, and Daniel Breaker are among the artists to be featured in the second part of Myths and Hymns, a new digital adaptation of Adam Guettel's theatrical song cycle presented by MasterVoices. The free production, conceived and supervised by artistic director Ted Sperling, will premiere on February 24 at 6:30pm ET. More information can be found here.

6. Sam Tutty, Emily Redpath, and Sir Derek Jacobi will star in a new film version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Shot under Covid-19 regulations, it will stream through February 20, with a portion of the proceeds going to Acting for Others. For tickets and more information, click here.

7. Theatre East will stream Processing, a play centered around four NYC high school seniors whose lives have been upended by the lockdown and sudden death of a beloved computer science teacher, through February 27. For tickets and more information, click here.

ON THE HORIZON

Bill Camp

( Michael Creagh)

Emmy and Tony nominee Bill Camp (The Queen's Gambit) will star in a filmed production of Samuel Beckett's First Love, directed by JoAnne Akalaitis. Theatre for a New Audience will premiere the work on Vimeo February 25-March 1. It was recorded remotely over Zoom at Camp's home in Vermont. Admission is free, but registration is required. You can find out more and register here.





NNR - New Normal Rep has announced its inaugural four-play season, featuring works by playwrights Julia Blauvelt, Jack Canfora, Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony-nominated playwright Nilo Cruz, and Obie winner and Pulitzer nominee Nikkole Salter. Jericho, the first play, which streams March 4-April 4, will be directed by four-time Academy Award nominee Marsha Mason and feature Golden Globe and an Obie Award winner and Emmy nominee Jill Eikenberry. For tickets and more information, click here.

Japan Society, in association with PlayCo, presents the virtual production of Ludic Proxy: Fukushima, written and directed by the Brooklyn-based theater-maker Aya Ogawa. Based on her own play Ludic Proxy, it is a virtual reimagining of the original play's second act commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake and subsequent nuclear disaster in Fukushima Prefecture. This online iteration will stream March 6 at 9:30pm ET, March 7 at 4:30pm ET, and March 11 at 8pm ET. For tickets and more information, click here.

1010 is back to shake those winter blues away, from the comfort of your own home! Filmed live on Barrington Stage Company's Boyd-Quinson Stage, this year's selection of ten 10-minute plays is sure to delight. For tickets and more information, click here.

The cast of The Picture of Dorian Gray

(images provided by the production)

A starry cast headed by Fionn Whitehead will perform a contemporary adaptation of Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, streaming March 16-31. Whitehead will take on the title role, alongside Alfred Enoch as Harry Wotton, Joanna Lumley as Lady Narborough, Emma McDonald as Sibyl Vane, Russell Tovey as Basil Hallward, and Stephen Fry as the Interviewer. The play is written by Henry Filloux-Bennett and directed by Tamara Harvey. For tickets and more information, click here.

Maulik Pancholy

( Tricia Baron)

Maulik Pancholy will star in a streaming production of Becky Mode's solo show Fully Committed, available March 23-April 11. Fully Committed is based on characters created by Mode and original star Mark Setlock. Pancholy will play more than 40 characters in the work, which follows a day in the life of Sam, a reservation-line receptionist at one of New York's trendiest restaurants. Ticketing information to come.

Patrice Johnson Chevannes and David Harbour

( David Gordon)

American Conservatory Theatre has announced casting for its upcoming filmed reading of Alice Childress's Trouble in Mind, directed by Awoye Timpo and streaming on demand March 29-April 4. The company will be led by Patrice Johnson Chevannes, alongside David Harbour as Al Manners, Lauren Spencer as Millie Davis, Anthony Fusco as Bill O'Wray, Kadeem Ali Harris as John Nevins, Dakin Matthews as Henry, Steven Anthony Jones as Sheldon Forrester, Eliza Kaye as Judy Sears, and Johnny Rice as Eddie Fenton. Childress's masterpiece would have been the first play by a Black woman produced on Broadway if she had agreed to the producers' demands that she soften its message. For tickets and more information, click here.

CURRENTLY RUNNING

Brandy and Whitney Houston in Cinderella

( Disney)

The much-loved 1997 Wonderful World of Disney presentation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, starring Brandy and Whitney Houston, will come to Disney Plus beginning Friday, February 12. Cinderella stars Brandy in the title role and Houston as her Fairy Godmother, alongside Whoopie Goldberg as Queen Constantina, Bernadette Peters as the evil Stepmother, Paolo Montalban as Prince Christopher, Victor Garber as King Maximillian, Jason Alexander as Lionel, Natalie Desselle as Minerva, and Veanne Cox as Calliope. To watch, sign up for Disney Plus here.

Nathan Lane as Roy Cohn in Angels in America

( Helen Maybanks)

The Tony-winning revival of Tony Kushner's Angels in America has joined the lineup of National Theatre at Home, the official streaming service of London's National Theatre. Marianne Elliott's production was filmed during its 2017 run at the National, prior to its Broadway engagement the next year. The filmed Angels in America features nearly the exact same cast lineup as the New York run, led by Nathan Lane and Andrew Garfield as Roy Cohn and Prior Walter, respectively, roles for which they would eventually win Tonys. To watch, subscribe here. The full production is also available as an audio play, which you can purchase here.

The Geffen Theatre is streaming Bollywood Kitchen now through March 6. In this interactive production, filmmaker and cookbook author Sri Rao invites us to prepare a homemade Indian meal along with him, drawing on the recipes that were staples at his family's table. As we join him in cooking these delicious dishes in our very own kitchens, Sri interweaves the story of his parents immigrating to America, the joy and nourishment that Bollywood musicals brought to his whole family, and the culinary traditions they shared. To read our review, click here. For tickets and more information, click here and watch the video above.

MasterVoices is presenting a new digital film series inspired by Adam Guettel's song cycle Myths and Hymns. Conceived by artistic director Ted Sperling, Myths and Hymns is divided into four chapters. The first edition of the digital series, titled "Flight," premieres January 13 at 6:30pm ET on the MasterVoices YouTube channel and will be available through June 30. It will include the songs "Prometheus," performed by Anderson & Roe; "Saturn Returns: The Flight," performed by Joshua Henry; "Icarus," performed by Mykal Kilgore and Norm Lewis; "Migratory V," performed by Julia Bullock, Renee Fleming, and Kelli O'Hara; "Pegasus," performed by Jose Llana, Capathia Jenkins, and Elizabeth Stanley; and "Jesus, the Mighty Conqueror," performed by Take 6. Watch the video above.





Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company is streaming Hi, Are You Single? through February 28. The show is described as follows: "Ryan has a higher sex drive than you. He also has cerebral palsy. You can often find him on Grindr or at your local inaccessible gay bar. Join writer/performer Ryan J. Haddad on his search to find love." For tickets and more information, click here.

The Al Hirschfeld Foundation celebrates Black History Month with its latest online exhibition, Amplified Dignity: Black Dancers Drawn by Hirschfeld. The exhibition, which will be available though March 13, features Hirschfeld's reflections of legendary 20th-century artists including Sammy Davis Jr., Josephine Baker, Nicholas Brothers, Bunny Briggs, Judith Jamison, Hinton Battle, Maurice Hines, and Honi Coles. To view the collection, click here.





Shakespeare Theatre Company is streaming Tony nominee Patrick Page's All the Devils Are Here: How Shakespeare Invented the Villain through July 28. Page explores how Shakespeare created the treacherous characters we all love to hate. Read our interview with the Hadestown star here, and watch the show's trailer above. For tickets and more information, click here.
A 'scandalously high' 1,012 fee for children to register as a British citizen breaches the Home Office's duty to safeguard the welfare of children in the UK, the Court of Appeal has ruled.

The Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC) argued the 'exorbitant' registration fee, for an application which costs the Home Office just 372 to process, effectively removes children's entitlement to citizenship.

The case against the Home Office was also brought by a 13-year-old girl, known only as O, who was born in the UK but has been unable to afford the 1,012 fee to register as a British citizen.

In December 2019, the High Court ruled that the fee was unlawful because the Home Office had 'failed to have regard to the best interests' of children affected by the level of the fee.

The Home Office challenged that ruling at the Court of Appeal, but its appeal was dismissed on Thursday in a judgement described as 'another positive step in enabling children to access their rights as British citizens'.

In December 2019, the High Court ruled that the fee was unlawful because the Home Office had 'failed to have regard to the best interests' of children affected by the level of the fee

In the ruling, Lord Justice David Richards said: 'There is no issue but that the recent and current levels of fees have had a serious adverse impact on the ability of a significant number of children to apply successfully for registration.'

He added: 'In cases such as that of O, one of three children of a single parent on state benefits, it is difficult to see how the fee could be afforded at all.'

PRCBC's appeal against the High Court's decision not to quash the fees, instead of simply ruling that they breached the Home Office's duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, was also dismissed.

Speaking after the ruling, O said: 'I was born in this country and have lived here all my life. I am no less British than any of my friends.

'It makes me upset to think they or other people might treat me as different if they knew I don't have a British passport.

'I have a right to citizenship and have since I was 10. I do not understand why I continue to be excluded by this huge fee.'

Her solicitor Solange Valdez-Symonds, co-founder of the PRCBC, said: 'The Government's priority ought to be to ensure every child with rights to British citizenship can have this confirmed, with all the security, opportunity and sense of belonging that comes with that.

'I continue to be deeply disturbed that thousands of children are blocked by this huge fee from registering their right to British citizenship, given to them by an Act of Parliament. This must stop.'

Carol Bohmer, chairwoman of the PRCBC, said: 'We are delighted the courts have yet again held this scandalously high fee, which prevents many children registering with the citizenship to which they are entitled, is unlawful.

'But children are still being excluded, by this fee and by many other barriers, which the Government should be doing all it can to remove, and we will continue in our mission to make that happen so no one is in future forced to grow up in the UK suffering the alienation and isolation that is currently the experience of so many young people.'

Home Secretary Priti Patel (pictured), the minister responsible for the Home Office, has historically taken a tough stance on immigration

Maria Patsalos, a solicitor at Mishcon de Reya who acted for the PRCBC, said: 'This decision is another positive step in enabling children to access their rights as British citizens.

'It is a decision to celebrate but we remain concerned that, with each passing day of the Home Office waiting to rectify this, some children are losing the right to register as British upon turning 18.

'The Home Office should look now to amend its fees and act swiftly to ensure wealth is not a requirement for children to access their citizenship rights.'

Steve Valdez-Symonds, refugee and migrant rights programme director at Amnesty International UK said: 'It is plainly unjust that any child should effectively be taxed out of their right to British citizenship by this huge fee.

'When making the law on British citizenship, Parliament made clear that citizenship was the right of all children who grow up in this country.

'That thousands of children, including many children born in this country, must formally register that right is being used and abused by the Home Office to raise funds and this must end.'

Home Secretary Priti Patel, the minister responsible for the Home Office, has historically taken a tough stance on immigration.

Usually, the annual State of the Judiciary speech doesn't gets a lot of attention, either from the legislature or from the media.

This year is a different story.

"We as a branch are in crisis," Chief Justice Brian Boatright told a joint session of the legislature Thursday.

The judicial branch has been rocked recently by allegations of sexual harassment and gender discrimination, and of claims that a training services contract was awarded improperly to a former senior administrator.

Boatright, his voice sometimes breaking, talked about the harm the allegations have done to the trust the people of Colorado have placed in its judicial branch. He also told the story of a 20-year employee in the branch who said, for the first time in her career, that she was not proud to say she worked for the judicial branch. It broke his heart, Boatright said.

He said it also "steeled my desire for answers. I'm here to tell the legislature, the governor, the citizens of the state of Colorado and that employee that we will get this right. Where there is wrongdoing we will address it. Where there is abuse of power, we will stop it. Where policies are deficient, we will change them. We want to know the truth."

Boatright had announced Tuesday that an independent investigation will touch on allegations of sexual harassment, sex discrimination and a $2.75 million contract awarded to the former chief of staff of the State Court Administrator's Office, Mindy Masias, reportedly with the approval of then-Chief Justice Nathan B. Coats. Masias had threatened to file a sexual harassment lawsuit that would expose misconduct within the judicial branch. Following an audit by the State Auditor that said the contract had an appearance of impropriety, the department canceled the contract.

Boatright said he had asked the governor, attorney general and legislature to convene a panel that will select an independent counsel to investigate the allegations. That investigation will result in cultural change, the Chief Justice pledged.

Boatright also spoke of a memo released Monday that went into detail on the allegations, which he called "unacceptable and cannot and will not be tolerated." He said he has requested a full investigation on the contract and every incident listed in the document.

The Chief Justice elaborated on what he hopes will happen in the coming weeks. The panel appointed by the legislature, Attorney General and governor could select a firm that will act as a special counsel and that will conduct the investigation, Boatright said.

"We will do this by the book," he pledged, adding that every justice on the high Court is committed to reform.

Boatright's address also touched on what he called two other crises within the justice system: racial inequality and a backlog of jury trials, due to the pandemic, that could take years to process.

The Court has stepped up efforts to diversify the bench, based on the work of what Boatright called a "dream team" that helped recruit people of color, as well as help them through the process of applying to become a judge.

Those results are having an early payoff: between July 2019 and August 2020, five Black women have been appointed to the bench, more than in the previous 25 years combined, he said.

In that same time period, 59% of the judges appointed by Polis have been women, a 13% increase in the last four years.

But the protests for racial justice that took place last summer "remind us more work remains to be done," Boatright said. That includes training in the judicial branch around racial equality, an inclusivity committee tasked with combating systemic racism and discussions with students at law schools on these issues.

The other crisis, and one that will take help from the General Assembly to resolve, is on the jury trial backlog.

On average, about 2,700 jury trials, mostly criminal, are held each year. But because of the pandemic, which has slowed the system to nearly a halt, as of Jan. 19 there were 14,635 jury trials scheduled statewide, with more than 10,000 for criminal charges. "Crime has not stopped," Boatright said.

"I recognize that many of you are angry at the branch and the attention it has brought to government," the Chief Justice said, but pleaded with lawmakers to not take their anger out on courts or the probation department. "If you're going to be mad, be mad at me," he said.

Boatright asked that the legislature consider three requests. The first is for more options on the length of service for a judge. He noted that some of the state's most experienced retired jurists are unwilling to sign 60- or 90-day contracts, and that the judicial branch needs more flexibility, either to allow those judges to do jury trials or to take other roles that would allow other judges to conduct those trials.

That will also take more money, the second request. The judicial branch cut almost 200 positions with 110 layoffs last year as part of the budget-cutting by the General Assembly. He asked for a restoration of those funds for trial court and probation staff to help deal with the backlog.

The third, and one that may produce heartburn for the lawmakers who are also lawyers, is an extension of the statutory deadline for holding trials, currently at six months. "Just knowing that jury trials can be held will encourage resolution," Boatright said.

When those trials will resume will be up to the courts in individual districts, as one size does not fit all, the Chief Justice explained.

"We are committed to lifting the clouds over the branch and making it a rightful point of pride. I commit to you, I promise to you we will get this right," he concluded.

Willingness to work together

Minority Leader Sen. Chris Holbert, R-Parker, told Colorado Politics he had been on a Webex call Wednesday with Boatright, Justice Monica Marquez and several lawmakers.

"I appreciate how transparent the Chief Justice and future Chief Justice are being and welcoming of advice," Holbert said. He said he shared with the justices the sexual harassment experience that the General Assembly went through in 2018, including forming the workplace harassment policy. It was a surprise to him in 2018, Holbert said, that while people were overwhelmingly positive about working for the legislature, they were equally overwhelming in their lack of trust for the process of handling sexual harassment issues.

Holbert said he encouraged the justices to "not solve this top-down." Get third-party or entry-level employees involved, and be ready for surprises, Holbert said he told the justices. "They have a tough road ahead of them," he said, adding that 2021 will be for the judicial branch what 2018 was for the General Assembly.

Rep. Leslie Herod, D-Denver, an advocate for promoting racial equality within the criminal justice system, was a member of the "Dream Team" mentioned by Boatright. She said she appreciated Boatright's focus on diversity, that people get fair access to justice, along with advocating for more justices of color. "That is strong, demonstrable progress. But you overlay that with the allegations of the past. That's a fog that will reign over judicial until we get this problem fixed and the wrongs righted."

Herod said it will be hard to have that conversation. She also said there isn't enough transparency in the judicial branch, which Boatright alluded to. More steps will be taken, Herod said.

The Colorado judicial system, including its nomination, evaluation and discipline processes, are viewed as a "gold standard" across the country, said Sen. Pete Lee, D-Colorado Springs, but it's been substantially tarnished by the allegations. "As a 40-year lawyer, I'm shocked and devastated by what I've heard. I've always had great respect for judges and viewed them as the pinnacle of their profession. To hear what has gone on, a lack of accountability and transparency is really disturbing. It has undercut the faith of people in the judicial system. When people don't have faith in the integrity of systems, they don't follow the systems, defer or respect them."

Lee said he was glad Boatright accepted accountability for the judicial branch, which he called necessary for moving forward.

"It will take an independent, detailed investigation of the contract and allegations, as well as policies and procedures that allowed that conduct to take place," he said. "Ultimately, I suspect there may be some recommendations for systemic change." Lee said those changes could be constitutional or legislative, although he wouldn't forecast what they could be.

This article has been updated.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has asked the vice-chancellors of universities across India to encourage students to voluntarily take an online national-level exam on cow science (Gau Vigyan).

Called the Kamdhenu Gau Vigyan Prachar-Prasar Examination, there is no registration fee for this exam, which will be held on February 25. This test will be held in English, Sanskrit, and Hindi regional languages like Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi, Odia, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu.

"I write this to request you, to give wide publicity to this initiative and encourage students to enroll or register themselves for this examination. This may also be brought to the notice of the colleges affiliated to your university," UGC secretary Rajnish Jain said in a letter to vice-chancellors.

Students from primary, secondary, and senior secondary schools and colleges can take this test which will be conducted by Rashtriya Kamdhenu Aayog (RKA). Besides students, anyone from the common public can take the one-hour-long multiple-choice exam.

According to the RKA, the objective of this exam is to instill "curiosity into all Indians about cows and make them aware of the unexplored potential and business opportunities a cow can offer, even after it stops giving milk."

The RKA has been appointed by the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying for the conservation, preservation, protection and development of cows.

With PTI inputs

Also read: Pawri Ho Rahi Hai: Meet Dananeerr, the girl in viral video
An indigenous pilates instructor is sick of being asked her what 'percentage' Aboriginal she is due to her light complexion.

Lily Hodgson, 23, who posts TikTok videos under the account Thrlils about her cultural history, is often targeted by trolls questioning her right to celebrate her racial identity.

'At what generation do you stop calling yourself Aboriginal? ten, five, or two per cent? Will your grandchildren still be claiming to be Aboriginal?' one wrote.

But the proud Wiradjuri woman hit back, calling them 'uneducated morons' and said being Aboriginal has nothing to do with skin colour.

Lily Hodgson, 23, (pictured) has hit back at online trolls who questioned her right to celebrate her Aboriginal heritage

'Let me guess, you're one of the ones who solely and wholly believe Aboriginality is based on skin colour,' she said in a video addressing the comment.

'My grand kids will not be claiming anything - they simply will be Aboriginal, Wiradjuri and proud.

'You may see my face, but there are thousands of us with this sickening and saddening story that we have to keep telling whenever people like you question our Aboriginality.

'I have said it countless times, but I will keep saying it until this country is educated enough to stop asking - we look like this because our families were raped and stolen.

'If you cannot separate skin colour from culture you are a f**king moron.'

The TikTok star from the NSW Central Coast earlier told Daily Mail Australia she felt the need to speak out after copping a 'magnitude of bigotry' on the platform.

'It's tiring that others feel the need to pressure me to explain myself or any other indigenous individual because Aboriginal culture is seen as a skin colour or a percentage,' Ms Hodgson said.

'No matter what shade we are, we are faced with racism.'

Ms Hodgson said the issue is not new and impacts thousands, who re-experience past trauma every time they are attacked over their skin colour.

Ms Hodgson, who identifies as a proud Wiradjuri woman, is pictured in indigenous tribal paint

'People need to understand that you cannot, and do not have the right to dictate to a culture that was nearly wiped out, who is or who is not apart of that culture,' she said.

'I should not be attacked for knowing exactly who I am, or because of others' ignorance and unwillingness to understand genetics, blood and family, or the fact the Stolen Generation happened.

It is not the first time in recent weeks Ms Hodgson has been attacked for expressing her cultural heritage.

Earlier this month, she was berated by social media users after she got a tattoo of the Aboriginal flag on her arm.

'You are white! Stop pretending like you understand the struggle that a real Aboriginal has been through, quite insulting,' one commenter said.

Responding to her critics in a video online, she said: 'You don't know that my father was part of the stolen generations and you don't know that my aunts and uncles were beaten and raped.'

'Being Aboriginal has nothing to do with my skin colour. I have 60,000 years of blood within me.'

Her aunt Elizabeth Hodgson is an acclaimed author who wrote Skin Painting - a memoir which examines the struggles of Indigenous Australians.

The book reflects on her experience as part of the stolen generations, a period between 1905 to 1967 when a number of Aboriginal children were removed from their families by church missions on the orders of the Australian government.

Ms Hodgson, who posts under the account Thrlils on TikTok recently got a tattoo of the Aboriginal flag on her arm, prompting some social media users to dispute her racial identity

'The stolen generation was basically to bleed the Aboriginal blood out of society so there could be a supreme white Australia,' Ms Hodgson said in one of her TikTok clips.

'Hence the reason why I don't have beautiful dark hair, dark eyes or seriously dark skin because they tried to bleed us out.'

The Wiradjuri people have lived within NSW modern-day New South Wales for more than 60,000 years, and they are the largest cultural footprint within the state.

Their traditional country extends from the Great Dividing Range down to the Murray River and out to western NSW, and includes the townships of Dubbo, Condobolin, Orange, Bathurst, Wagga Wagga, Albury, Narrandera, and Griffith.

Ms Hodgson said it's important for Australians to look beyond appearance when it comes to Aboriginality and be more respectful about cultural identity.

'If somebody tells you that they are Aboriginal and they don't fit whenever your idea of what an Aboriginal person is supposed to be it is not an invitation to pick that person's life apart,' she said.

New Delhi, Feb 18 : Pakistan has launched an aggressive diplomatic effort in a desperate move to try and exit the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global watchdog to combat financing of terrorism.

According to the Express Tribune, a Pakistani newspaper, Pakistan has reached out to member countries of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in an effort to garner their support for exiting from the grey list, just days ahead of a meeting which is set to begin on February 22. This year the session would be held virtually. The four-day meeting would decide whether to keep Pakistan in the grey list or not.

Although Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi sounded optimistic about the outcome of the upcoming FATF meeting, officials admitted that Pakistan would remain in the grey list at least until June, the paper says.

Pakistan requires about 15 votes to move out of the grey list and a minimum of three votes to avoid falling into the blacklist. The FATF currently has 39 full members.

Pakistan has still got to meet 13 of the 27 parameters laid down by the FATF to show that it is not linked to terror financing in order to come out of the grey list. While it will get the three votes of friends China, Turkey, and Malaysia to escape the black list, it will also need approval from 12 out of the FATF's 39 members to exit the "grey list," which it has not been able to get so far.

Last year too, Pakistan could not get its name removed from the grey list despite hiring a top US lobbying firm and offering its leverage with the Taliban to the US for reduction of violence in Afghanistan.

The virtual plenary of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), held on October 21-23, concluded that Pakistan will continue to remain in its "grey" list till February 2021.

Pakistan had failed to fulfil six of the 27 mandates given to check terror funding and was told to impose sanctions and prosecute those involved in terror financing. The FATF had observed that Pakistan needs to do more on checking terror funding.

"Over the past few days, the Foreign Office has been inviting ambassadors and diplomats of FATF-member countries to brief them about the 'substantive progress' made by Pakistan to implement the 27-point action plan," officials familiar with the development told Express Tribune.

Pakistan has been on the 'grey list' since June 2018 for failing to take adequate steps to counter terror financing, money laundering and ensure successful prosecution of terrorists.

Pakistan had been given a 27-point action plan to get out of the grey list. Islamabad was given multiple deadlines to implement the plan. In October last year, the FATF acknowledged Pakistan's progress but called for the full implementation of the plan by February this year.

Pakistan always tries to show ahead of the FATF meetings that it is taking action against terrorists who are then allowed to go back to their old ways after the meeting is over. For instance, Lashkar-e Taiba chief Hafiz Saeed, involved in 26/11 Mumbai attacks has been sentenced to prison but is allowed to stay in his own house and lead a normal life. This has been a regular pattern in which terrorists are put in jail in the run-up to the FATF meeting and given bail and allowed to roam free after the meeting is over.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)
Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan being sworn in Lt Governor of Puducherry, an additional charge, by Chief Justice of Madras High Court Sanjib Banerjee during a brief ceremony at Raj Nivas in Puducherry, Thursday, February 18, 2021. (PTI)

Puducherry: Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, who was given additional charge of Puducherry, was sworn in as Lt Governor of the Union Territory on Thursday.

Chief Justice of the Madras High Court Sanjib Banerjee administered the oath of office to her at a simple function at the Raj Nivas.

Soundararajan took the oath in Tamil.

Earlier the Chief Secretary to Puducherry government Ashwani Kumar read out the warrant issued by President Ram Nath Kovind giving additional charge of the union territory to Tamilisai Soundararajan on February 16. Soundararajan taking charge as Lt Governor comes at a time when the ruling Congress-led government has been reduced to a minority after one more MLA quit the party on Tuesday.

Puducherry Assembly Speaker V P Sivakolundhu, Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, Ministers, Leader of the opposition N Rangasamy, former PWD Minister A Namassivayam (now in BJP) and officials of Puducherry administration were among those present at the swearing-in ceremony.

After the swearing-in, the Lt Governor was presented a guard of honour by the Puducherry police outside Raj Nivas.

Tamilisai Soundararajan is the fifth woman to hold the post of Lt Governor of Puducherry. The others were Chandrawati, Rajendra Kumari Bajpai, Rajani Rai and Kiran Bedi.

She was given additional charge of Puducherry after former IPS officer Kiran Bedi was removed from office through a Presidential order on Tuesday. The Congress party had been demanding her recall for long,with Narayanasamy and Bedi being at odds over a host of issues.
New Delhi: After the prices of petrol and diesel register a monumental rise it has been reported that petrol is being smuggled from Nepal.

As the petrol prices are much cheaper in the neighbouring country people from the border areas are buying petrol at cheaper prices and are selling it in India.

As per reports, some people from Bihar's Araria and Kishanganj are crossing the border into Nepal using narrow tracks to smuggle petrol into the country.

Several have been caught by local police and SSB jawans, Livehindustan reported.

While petrol is being sold at Rs 93.50 per litre in Bihar's Araria, it is available at Rs 70.62 in Nepal.

The local police and Sahastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel have stepped up vigilance. Also, the Nepal Police had arrested three people on Monday, who were carrying diesel in a tanker to India. Since the incident, Nepal Police is on high alert.

Also, vigilance instructions have been issued in the border areas since reports of smuggling of diesel-petrol surfaced.

Meanwhile, petrol price was hiked by 34 paise per litre and diesel by 32 paise on Thursday.

The petrol is nearing Rs 100 mark in many cities across India.

Fuel prices differ from state to state depending on the incidence of local taxes such as VAT and freight charges. Rajasthan levies the highest value-added tax (VAT) on petrol in the country, followed by Madhya Pradesh.
A wildly successful invasive species like the European house sparrow appears to be suffering under ongoing environmental declines, according to new research by Cornell Lab of Ornithology scientists.

A survey of data submitted by backyard birds participating in Project FeederWatch from 1995 to 2016 discovered that the proportion of sites reporting house sparrows declined by 7.5 percent and flock sizes declined by 22 percent.

As surprising as they are for one of the most common species across North American, those numbers represent smaller declines than the nearly 60 percent drops that have been documented in the house sparrows native range across Europe.

We wanted to find out where and how much house sparrows might be declining here, explained lead author Liam Berigan, who did this work while at the Cornell Lab but is now a doctoral student at the University of Maine.

We also explored whether the declines would match up with an increase in hawk populations, as is true in European studies. Surprisingly, they didnt.

The Cornell study found that declines in house sparrow populations were no greater when sharp-shinned or coopers hawks were also present.

Winter flocks in urban areas were larger than flocks in rural areas, but house sparrows declined in urban areas while remaining stable in rural areas.

Reports from nearly 12,500 sites were used and cross-referenced with the National Land Cover Database to determine whether the U.S. sightings came from rural or urban locations.

House sparrows were introduced to North America in 1851 by a group that wanted to introduce every bird species mentioned in the works of Shakespeare. From a limited release in Brooklyn, the species expanded rapidly to become one of the most common in the U.S. and Canada, where latest estimates place the population at 82 million individuals.

The global breeding population is estimated at 740 million by Partners in Flight.

When even a bird as common as the house sparrow is experiencing population declines, this is probably a reflection on the state of the environment, said Berigan.

In Europe, a lack of urban green space and nesting sites are threats. Its likely some of those same factors are at work in North America and contribute to house sparrow declines here.
Rev. Anil Thomas walked through the sludge and debris covering the floor of what used to be his home at the historic Holy Name Catholic Church.

A 30-degree wind whistled through the charred remains of his roof, which on Tuesday was swallowed by a fire that destroyed the home but largely spared the connecting church.

What a coincidence, he said. Today is Ash Wednesday, and we are in ashes.

While millions of Houston residents endured ice-related power outages and little to no water pressure, the Tuesday afternoon blaze further complicated life at Holy Name Catholic Church, a cornerstone of Houstons Near Northside community for a century..

Fire, not ice, forced the church campus at 1920 Marion St. to shut off electricity and running water. In addition to Thomas living quarters, the campus includes a cafeteria and family center. The institution has been a lifeline for the community in natural disasters, including Hurricane Harvey, and has been used as a weekly food distribution site throughout the COVID pandemic, Thomas said.

While the church appeared untouched, that building was not safe on Wednesday for services. Even so, more than 30 parishioners braved the frigid temperatures for an abbreviated Ash Wednesday service in the nearby cafeteria, where they sang hymns over the hum of a generator.

Im lucky to be a pastor in this place, experiencing the love of God and the love of my people, said Thomas, the pastor since 2015.

Its unclear whether the fire was related to the ice storm or widespread issues with the states electrical grid.

Houston Fire Department spokesperson Martee Boose said the cause and source of the fire is under investigation. She said a damage estimate was not available and could not offer more details.

Thomas was told an electrical outlet short-circuited in his garage. He had electricity at the time and was not using alternative heating methods.

His Toyota RAV4 was destroyed. He was left with only a small supply of salvaged clothing and his ID. He is living across the street, in a now powerless home reserved for church members.

Thomas plans to hold services again this Sunday or the next, depending on when the building is safe. He has reached out to the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston to coordinate insurance payments. He is hopeful they can rebuild.

I know that God has a plan for me, Thomas said. He has a plan for everybody, and if it happened he knows how to take care of us.

Donations to the church can be sent through its website.

Founded in 1920, the church serves about 450 families in the greater Houston area, according to the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. It is nestled in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood with many first-generation immigrants.

High-profile funerals for Josue Flores, whose killing near the church in 2016 shook the community, and slain Houston soldier Vanessa Guillen have been held there. More recently, the church has served as a COVID testing site and, before the fire, a warming shelter for two families trying to escape the cold.

Its been a vital part of the Northside community, said longtime parishioner Daniel Chavez. Thats why theres such an outpouring of people coming out to see about the fire.

Chavez said he and his wife drove on Tuesday through treacherous weather to check on the church when they heard the news.

I was heartbroken, he said. We just celebrated our centennial.

Other public officials from the Houston-area showed their support.

In a tweet, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said it was the first church I ever attended. U.S. Rep Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, said she visited the site on Tuesday to get her ashes.

The Lenten season is a time for reflection and I am reflecting on the many times I have been here, she said in a tweet. For the church bazar, the 100th anniversary, the funeral of Vanesa Guillen. Holy Name is the heart of the North Side and we will rebuild.

Texas State Senator Carol Alvarado said it is a beloved institution in Near Northside.

I'm thankful everyone got out safely & praying the damage is not extensive.

Thomas said he is grateful the main church was spared. He said he will continue to spend his days at the campus to oversee repairs and lend help to anyone in need. After losing his belongings during a historic cold snap, he expressed hope.

It is part of life, he said. These things will also pass.

He noted that Ash Wednesday only marks the beginning of the Lenten season.

Resurrection is the end, he said.

julian.gill@chron.com
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Making its World Premiere on February 27th, REDEMPTION ROOM is a new live online theatrical experience where the virtual-studio audience gets to judge six disgraced celebrities as they seek redemption for their societal crimes.

Presented by Secret Theatre, this original innovative experience will go live across the world in a Zoom studio from six major cities, including Hong Kong, London, Singapore, Mumbai, Sydney and New York, where the celebrities are located.

"Redemption Room" is a live, immersive online thriller experience premiering on February 27, 2021 from 6 cities around the world "Redemption Room" World Premiere on February 27, 2021 - a new live online theatrical thriller experience "Redemption Room" a new online immersive thriller experience goes live from 6 cities around the globe beginning February 27, 2021

A truly immersive format, REDEMPTION ROOM takes a thrilling twist after an evil entity is awakened into the proceedings. Who will survive? Who will get their redemption? The virtual-studio audience will decide, voting on how far to push the celebrity's fears. But be warned, every-night one audience member will be asked to compete along with the celebrities. The virtual experience allows audiences to vote, judge, contact the celebrities directly and impact their outcome.

To get the full theatrical experience, turn off the lights, light a candle and be prepared for the unexpected. For those with paranormal fears, please prepare accordingly. If a Ouija board is within reach, bring it and get involved. Also, wearing black can summon demons  you have been warned.

Secret Theatre are pioneers in global immersive events and have produced shows in 7 cities across the globe. REDEMPTION ROOM is created and directed by Richard Crawford, who has been Artistic Director of Secret Theatre for over 10 years with many immersive credits to his name. He was responsible for directing the immersive Edward Scissorhands in New York, the immersive Project Mayhem in London and Hong Kong, and the immersive Hell Hath No Fury in Singapore.

Shows go live on February 27th and run through March 14th, 2021 and can be viewed on any device that supports Zoom.

Screening dates and times vary across the US, including a special scary Midnight show (PST) on March 13th.

Click the appropriate link below for tickets and listings in specific time zones:

USA EST (Eastern Standard Time)

USA PST (Pacific Standard Time)

For frequently asked questions: redemptionroom.org/how-it-works

Further information visit: secrettheatres.com

Contact:

Tammy Lynn, Spotlight PR Company

310-867-1952

[email protected]

SOURCE Secret Theatre

Related Links

http://secrettheatres.com


Mars will be perfectly visible in the night's tonight, just as NASA's Perseverance rover is scheduled to land on the planet.

On Thursday, Mars is due to rise just after sunset, at 17:40 GMT, and will be visible in the south throughout the night as a orange red dot, just above the Moon.

Perseverance, meanwhile, is scheduled to land on the red planet at 8.55pm (GMT), around 124 million miles (200 million km) away from Earth.

Stargazers around the won't need any special equipment to see Mars, although a pair of binoculars will offer a better view.

Mars can be recognised by its distinctive rusty red colour, as well as its distinct lack of twinkling. Stars twinkle, while planets usually shine steadily.

An image of what the sky will look like tonight from Stellarium, the open-source planetarium software, captured by Matt Bothwell from the University of Cambridge. For reference, the Orion constellation is on the left

Mars (pictured) is moving steadily to the west and you can usually recognise it by its distinctive colour, as well as its distinct lack of twinkling. Tonight it's set to appear next to the Moon as a small dot and can be viewed without a telescope

'Mars will be easily visible tonight,' Dr Emily Drabek-Maunder, an astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, told MailOnline.

'If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, just find the Moon towards the South around sunset, and Mars will look like a bright red star just above our Moon.

'In the Southern Hemisphere, the pair will be towards the North with Mars roughly at the same altitude as the Moon.

'Both the Moon and Mars will move towards the West over the night and you'll be able to spot the two together in the sky before they set (which tends to be around midnight).'

There will be a fairly modest close approach or a 'appulse' of the Moon and Mars tonight  meaning they will appear closer to each other than usual in the night sky.

The day the rover lands, there will be a modest close approach of the Moon and Mars, meaning they will appear next to each other in the night sky

That's handy for stargazers, who will just have to find the Moon in the sky if they want to find Mars this evening.



'It doesn't have physical consequences, but it does look impressive, and it's a great chance to take some space and do some planet watching,' said Osnat Katz, an expert in space history and a PhD Student at University College London, in a piece for the Conversation.

'[Mars has] been high up in the sky since the second half of last year, and you don't need any special equipment to see it.

'As long as it's a clear night, you can generally spot it.

'Wherever you are in the world, look south for the Moon, and the little orange-red dot you see near it will be Mars.'

Today's Moon phase is a waxing crescent with 38 per cent illumination, meaning it will appear as a Cheshire Cat grin next to the small dot that is Mars.

While tonight's spectacle can be enjoyed without any equipment, a small pair of binoculars can pick out the Moon's craters in sharp, striking detail, Katz adds.

However, Mars is too small and far away for binoculars 'to do much more than make the planet look like a slightly bigger orange red dot'.

You also won't be able to catch the two together through a telescope as they're still a bit too far away from each other.

Around 6:40pm, those brave enough to face the evening's winter chill will also be rewarded with a display of fuzzy, twinkling pinpricks, just left of Mars.

These twinkly pinpricks are the Pleiades or the Seven Sisters, a group of hot blue and extremely luminous stars more than 400 light years away that have formed within the last 100 million years.

'You'll be able to see anywhere between six and nine with the naked eye, or through binoculars or a telescope,' said Katz.

Waxing crescent moon seen with an astronomical telescope. This is how it will appear tonight. The Moon takes 27.3 days to orbit Earth, but the lunar phase cycle (from new Moon to new Moon) is 29.5 days

On October 6 last year, Mars was closer to Earth than at any point in the past 17 years.

The Red Planet was at its point of opposition, with the Earth passing directly between it and the Sun, making it appear to Earthlings 'effectively as a full Mars', NASA said.

Tonight's display will be nowhere near as pronounced as last October, Dr Matt Bothwell, from the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge, told MailOnline, and the Moon and Mars will appear 'close-ish'.

'This doesnt mean they are physically close, just that they line up from our point of view,' he said.

'This is going to happen once a month for a while  in fact on March 19, they will be even closer.'

'What happened last October was Mars being physically close to the Earth, which is rarer  it happens once every 26 months, in fact, when our orbits sync up.'

As for Perseverance, the descent of the $2.2 billion car-sized spacecraft will be live streamed by NASA from 7:15pm GMT.

The rover will have to endure the so-called 'seven minutes of terror'  a spell of tumultuous conditions that batter the craft as it enters the Martian atmosphere and approaches the surface.

Perseverance is a six-wheeled vehicle which is the same size as a large car and it will be accompanied by an autonomous four pound (1.8kg) helicopter called Ingenuity which will study Mars's atmosphere

Perseverance's primary goal is to look for 'biosignatures' - signs of past or present microbial life - as well as gathering rock samples which will be picked up by another mission in 2026. However, it is equipped with a host of tools which will perform a variety of tasks

Perseverance is carrying seven instruments that will analyse samples from the surface, including an advanced panoramic camera, a ground-penetrating radar and an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer for analysis of chemical elements.

The NASA rover, which launched from Florida on July 30, will set the samples aside for retrieval by a fetch rover launching in 2026.

Under an elaborate multi-billion plan by NASA and the European Space Agency, the geologic treasure would arrive on Earth in the early 2030s.

Perseverance will be the last of three spacecraft that were launched last July to reach Mars.

China's orbiter and rover combination craft  named Tianwen-1  arrived into Martian orbit on February 10, a day after the UAE's orbiter probe, Hope.

The UAE, China and NASA took advantage of a period last July when Mars and Earth were favourably aligned to launch their exploratory missions.
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[February 18, 2021] MDA Selected for Major Role on Telesat Lightspeed

STE-ANNE-DE-BELLEVUE, QC, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - MDA announced today that it has been selected to provide one of the critical technology subsystems on Telesat Lightspeed, the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite broadband network recently unveiled by Telesat, one of the world's largest satellite operators. With advanced antenna design and manufacturing capabilities at its modern facility in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, this job-creating project enjoys the support of the Government of Quebec through a financial contribution. MDA will develop the Direct Radiating Array (DRA), a revolutionary phased array, electronically-steered multi-beam antenna that will provide unlimited coverage flexibility and agility through advanced beam-forming technology. This configuration will achieve any-beam, anytime, anywhere coverage over the entire visible Earth. This new technology represents a major and key investment for the success of MDA's Satellite Systems business, as it is expected that most LEO, Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) and geostationary (GEO) satellite markets will migrate to these technologies in the future. MDA will deliver over 1000 units. MDA is also in advanced discussions with Thales Alenia Space for the Lightspeed satellites' final assembly and manufacturing in Quebec. The scope of MDA's work on this project is expected to involve an investment of over $200 million by MDA, and create approximately 280 jobs over a period of five years, while sustaining MDA's overall highly-experienced and specialized Quebec-based engineering workforce. With the development of next generation satellite technologies, MDA expects significant growth in its Montreal-based Satellite Systems business. To support this strong economic activity, Investissement Quebec will provide a loan of $50 million. With the transformation and growth in the satellite broadband market, MDA is unlocking new business models with next-geeration technology, quality, performance and agility for less than the cost of traditional solutions, paving the way for more affordable software-defined satellites of the future. This will be achieved through integrating additive manufacturing techniques with very large-scale electronics through automated assembly at MDA's high-volume smart manufacturing facility.



For more than 60 years on over 350 missions, MDA's satellite payloads, antennas and electronics have enabled fixed, high-throughput and mobile communications systems. MDA has provided thousands of low-cost steerable antennas for satellite constellations since the inception of the non-GEO satellite market. MDA also provides communications solutions for human and robotic exploration missions, navigation and search-and-rescue space systems, remote sensing downlink, telemetry and telecommand systems, and intersatellite communications. MDA is the industry's largest independent equipment supplier, with Industry 4.0 smart factory digital and high-volume production capabilities that link automation, data exchange, real-time communications, and the Internet of Things to empower better processes, smarter decision-making and improved quality standards. QUOTES

"We are very proud to be selected for this critical role on Telesat Lightspeed, and for the opportunity to deepen our world-class expertise in non-GEO satellite constellations as the sector undergoes a transformation. Through developing this next generation antenna technology and expanding our high volume satellite manufacturing, we anticipate major growth in our Montreal-based Satellite Systems business and in our high-tech workforce while engaging our local supply chain. We would like to thank Telesat for its confidence in MDA, and the Government of Quebec for its financial support."  Mike Greenley, Chief Executive Officer, MDA LINKS www.mda.space

www.telesat.com/leo-satellites SOCIAL MEDIA Twitter: www.twitter.com/MDA_space

Facebook: www.facebook.com/MDAspace

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/mdaspace

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/mdaspace

Instagram: www.instagram.com/MDA_space ABOUT MDA Serving the world from its Canadian home and global offices, MDA is an international space mission partner and a robotics, satellite systems and geointelligence pioneer with a 50-year story of firsts on and above the Earth. With over 2,000 employees across Canada, the US and the UK, MDA is leading the charge towards viable Moon colonies, enhanced Earth observation, communication in a hyper-connected world, and more. With a track record of making space ambitions come true, MDA enables highly skilled people to continually push boundaries, tackle big challenges, and imagine solutions that inspire and endure to change the world for the better, on the ground and in the stars. SOURCE MDA Inc.

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Boris Lozhkin: US and Ukraine are united by the example of the family of Secretary of State Antony Blinken

In the wave of mass emigration from the tsarist Russia at the beginning of the 20th century, one of the families that arrived in the United States was the family of Meir Blinken, the great-grandfather of the current Secretary of State in the office of Joe Biden. This happened in 1904 due to the Jewish pogroms that raged in the Russian Empire, including the territory of present-day Ukraine. In 1904 alone, 105,000 Jews fled from Ukraine to the United States and found a society there that was more tolerant of their origin and religion. The President of the Jewish Confederation of Ukraine Boris Lozhkin writes about this in the Jerusalem Post.

This wave of mass migration marked a critical turning point in Ukrainian history. In 1900, one out of four Jews in the entire world was living in the territory of present-day Ukraine. More Jews lived in Ukraine at that time than in any other country, writes Lozhkin.

In the years that followed, pogroms, followed by the Holocaust and Soviet repressions, caused the Jewish population to fall away drastically. And only in recent years, the Ukrainian Jewish community has begun to actively recover. Now I can proudly say that the Jewish community of Ukraine is growing and thriving. Ukraine is seeing a true renaissance of Jewish life, writes the JCU President.

Those immigrants who left for the United States at the turn of the century, Lozhkin writes, were able to successfully adapt to the American democratic and tolerant conditions and achieve great success in their new homeland: While Jews in Ukraine faced almost constant persecution, in the United States, where religious freedom was greater protected, many Jews began to thrive. Americans of Ukrainian Jewish descent include titans of 20th-century culture, such as Bob Dylan, Leonard Bernstein, and Steven Spielberg, as well as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the first Jewish woman to sit on the Supreme Court.

Antony Blinken is also one of those Ukrainian Jews who have achieved success in the United States. Secretary Blinken has not forgotten his familys history and the role America has played in supporting Jews across the globe in times of desperate need, the JCU President writes.

According to Lozhkin, the appointment of Antony Blinken as Secretary of State provides another reason to celebrate the long and enduring ties between the U.S. and Ukrainian Jewish communities. But more than that, it is an opportunity to fight for tolerance together, adds Lozhkin.
A YouTube vlogger who was fined three times for breaching lockdown to travel to cities to film is refusing to pay up, claiming the work he does is essential.

Marti Blagborough said his trips to a police station and prison in Lincoln on Monday were 'essential' despite living more than 70 miles away in Leeds, West Yorks.

The father-of-three said he made his living from filming videos and selling them on to other companies as part of his role at Pinac Media UK Ltd, which he set up last year.

However, Lincolnshire Police disagreed and have slapped the 28-year-old and a fellow vlogger with 200 fines.

Marti Blagborough said his trips to a police station and prison in Lincoln on Monday were 'essential' despite living more than 70 miles away in Leeds, West Yorks

Marti said: 'We came into contact with one of the officers while we were at the police station.

'They asked us what we were doing and they spoke about Covid and I explained that I'm a director of a limited company.

'This is what I do, this is my job - and they're fine about it and left us.

'We headed over to HMP Lincoln and we were doing our videos there and then one of the same officers came back with three of his colleagues.

'And by this time he was happy to give us a Covid fine. It was kind of baffling.

'From the moment they got out of the car, just by their demeanour and the attitude, I knew it wasn't going to end well, I knew something was going to happen - I just wasn't sure what.'

Marti, who has 25,000 followers on YouTube, frequently films 'auditing' videos in which he records government and military buildings to test his rights to film in certain places.

Officers issued him with a 200 as they did not deem his travel to the city essential.

Marti, from Farnley, Leeds, is already contesting two other fines issued to him in Sheffield and Scarborough for similar trips.

He added: 'This is what I do for a living - it is essential for me to travel from work, because I cannot do these videos in my home. It's obviously not possible.

'I think it's super important because over the years a lot of our rights have been eroded by new legislation, and I just feel you have to stand for your rights because if you don't use them, you're probably going to lose them.

'Taking videos and pictures is a massive part of a lot of people's jobs and I think it'd be nice to get to a point where people no longer get hassled for doing their job and doing something they're legally entitled to do.

The father-of-three, pictured, said he made his living from filming videos and selling them on to other companies as part of his role at Pinac Media UK Ltd, which he set up last year

'I'm more than confident that I'll be able to win them because at the end of the day it is my job and there's no argument about that.'

A spokesman for Lincolnshire Police said two men were handed fixed penalty notices for breaching Covid regulations.

The spokesman said: 'The two men, aged 28 and 44, from the Leeds area had travelled to Lincolnshire and were seen taking videos outside South Park Police Station and Lincoln Prison on February 15.

'The men, claiming to be 'vloggers', visited South Park Police Station at around midday before leaving the location.

'We then received a report of the same men filming outside HMP Lincoln Prison soon after. Our officers attended and both men were issued with a 200 fine.'

Lincolnshire Police's Chief Inspector Andy Morrice said: 'The majority of the public have worked with us and I thank them for that.

'With a virus spreading so rapidly through contact with others we should all be asking ourselves whether our reason to leave home is truly essential.

'In this case travelling was not deemed essential.

'There is a real risk that our health service could be overwhelmed and people - our friends and family - could die needlessly from this virus.

'Those personal decisions are critical.'
(HealthDay)When your child enters college, the last thing you may be worried about is an eating disorder, but one expert says there are warning signs that parents shouldn't miss.

"Parents and family members are often the first to identify when their loved one is struggling with an eating disorder," said Sydney Brodeur-Johnson, from the Veritas Collective, a health care system focused on eating disorders. "Knowing the warning signsand next stepscan make all the difference in your college student's recovery journey."

What are some red flags that signal a possible eating disorder?

Limiting or refusing foods: College students may limit their intake or refuse to eat in front of others. It's not uncommon for them to make excuses such as, "I already ate," or "I'm just not hungry."

Eating past fullness: Students may also eat unusually large amounts of food quickly. They may feel out of control, experience feelings of guilt after overeating, and visit the bathroom after meals.

Body preoccupation: Individuals struggling with an eating disorder can become extremely focused on their physical appearance. They may make negative comments about their body or wear loose-fitting clothes.

Changes in mood: Other signs of an eating disorder include emotional ups and downs, anxiety and irritability. Self-harm is another concerning sign. If your college student always wears long sleeves and/or bracelets, this could be hiding self-induced injuries.

Excessive exercise: Students may exercise intensely and for long periods of time to "make up" for something they may have eaten recently.

If you observe these behaviors and your child is defensive when you bring up your concerns, your child may be dealing with an eating disorder, Brodeur-Johnson said.

"If I've learned anything over my years in clinical practice, it's that parents and family members play a pivotal role in identifying eating disorder behaviors," she said in a news release from the National Eating Disorders Association. "These aren't easy conversations to have, but expressing your concerns is a critical first step."

It's important to remain calm, caring and non-judgmental while sharing your concerns, Brodeur-Johnson added.

As a general rule, the parent or family member who has the strongest and most open relationship with the college student should be the first one to address these concerns.

"Your college student doesn't have to face their eating disorder alonethey have you," Brodeur-Johnson said. "Knowing the warning signsand taking the right next steps nowcan put your college student on the path to lasting recovery and maintain academic momentum. The support you provide your loved one struggling with an eating disorder can make a meaningful difference in their recoveryand life."

More information: Visit the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health for more on Visit the U.S. National Institute of Mental Health for more on eating disorders

Copyright  2020 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
The Supreme Court Judges presided over by Chief Justice Kwasi Anin-Yeboah on Tuesday, dismissed former President John Mahama's application to reopen his case.



According to the ruling read by the Chief Justice, the Petitioner failed to provide any evidence to warrant the reopening of their case.



He explained that Mrs. Jean Mensa could not be tagged as a hostile witness because she had not yet mounted the witness box to give evidence in the trial.



A witness, who has not yet entered the witness box to testify, cannot, therefore, be called an adverse or hostile witness under any circumstance, he explained.



"We accordingly refuse the application and proceed without any hesitation to dismiss it," the Chief Justice further ruled.



Below is the full ruling

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Police in Connecticut have determined that a mother intentionally drove her SUV into a local river last July, killing both the woman and her special-needs adult son.

Connie Crowell, 54, and her son, 22-year-old Jack, both drowned when the vehicle submerged into the Housatonic River in Seymour on July 31, 2020.

Seymour Deputy Police Chief Roberto N. Rinaldi said in a press release that investigators determined that the incident was a 'homicide/suicide,' the Monroe Sun reports.

Connie Crowell, 54, and her son, 22-year-old Jack, both drowned when the vehicle submerged into the Housatonic River in Seymour on July 31, 2020

Seymour Deputy Police Chief Roberto N. Rinaldi said in a press release that investigators determined that the incident was a 'homicide/suicide'

'On the day of the incident, a boater who was in the area, observed the vehicle go into the water and went to assist and provide rescue efforts,' Rinaldi said.

'However, Connie Crowell refused to acknowledge or accept the boater's assistance and rescue efforts.'

Rinaldi said that the car went into the river at 175 Roosevelt Drive, which is near a long driveway leading to the river bank, The Valley Indy reports. He added that police spoke with two witnesses on the boat.

Authorities were alerted to the incident at around 3.43pm, leading to a massive rescue effort in the area.

Rinaldi said that the car went into the river at 175 Roosevelt Drive, which is near a long driveway leading to the river bank

Seymour firefighters who arrived on the scene jumped aboard a resident's boat already on the water, attempting to gain entry to the car

Seymour firefighters who arrived on the scene jumped aboard a resident's boat already on the water, attempting to gain entry to the car, Fox 61 reported at the time. The firefighters were able to secure a line to a car to keep it from going further out into the water.

Crowell was known in the community for her work with Alcohol and Drug Awareness of Monroe (ADAM), working with children in educating them on sobriety.

The mother ran in the Fairfield Sunset 5K with Jack, who had special needs. Jack graduated from Masuk High School in 2007 and was known for being an active participant in community events.

'Everybody loved Jack, I'm sure at all the schools, but especially at Masuk,' said Superintendent of Schools Joseph Kobza, who was formally principal of the high school. 'He was always happy, always smiling. He just brightened up everyone's days.'

If you or someone you know needs support, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
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A top cancer surgeon has been banned from treating patients for three months after he repeatedly subjected his girlfriend to a torrent of alcohol-fueled rage and accused of her of having multiple affairs.

Jeremy McKenzie, 55, verbally abused his partner - named only as Dr A - on a 'daily basis' and once fell on top of the mother-of-two while he was drunk, a tribunal heard.

They became embroiled in a bitter feud over a pedigree pet Bengal Maine Coon cat called Solitaire - which Dr A claimed he bought her as a gift, before saying she could have it 'when her behaviour was good enough'.

The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service cleared McKenzie - a consultant in head and neck surgery at William Harvey Hospital, Kent - of physical abuse and ruled that Solitaire belonged to him.

But he was found guilty of serious misconduct and suspended from practising for three months.

A top cancer surgeon has been banned from treating patients for three months after he allegedly subjected his girlfriend to a torrent of alcohol-fuelled rage and accused of her of having multiple affairs. McKenzie was a consultant in Head and Neck Surgery at William Harvey Hospital, Kent (pictured)

During the couple's turbulent three-year relationship, the tribunal heard McKenzie accused Dr A of having affairs with colleagues, called her a 'whore' and claimed she had only done well in her career due to her flirting with other men.

He also sent her abusive text messages threatening to tell colleagues' wives of her alleged sexual encounters with their husbands and gave her orders to turn down a job offer, she claimed.

During one incident at a family get together McKenzie - who specialises in head and neck cancers - was said to have cornered the woman in a kitchen and refused to let her leave until she handed back a ring he gave her.

He also allegedly shouted 'you're all c****' at Dr A, her two children, sister and her sister's husband' and pulled a curtain rail down from the wall in a bedroom.

McKenzie was reported to the General Medical Council in 2018 after Dr A discovered he had been convicted of drink driving the previous year.

He crashed his car while almost three times the alcohol limit.

He faced 18 disciplinary allegations including concealing the conviction for which he was ordered to complete 120 hours community service and was disqualified from driving for two years.

The Manchester hearing was told the couple had been in an 'on-off', turbulent and difficult relationship from February 2015 to January 2018.

McKenzie drank alcohol to excess and repeatedly behaved in an 'erratic and mentally abusive manner', the tribunal heard.

In a statement Dr A said: 'Dr McKenzie became physically and psychologically abusive from around February 2015 right to the end of our relationship, with the verbal abuse happening on a daily basis.

'In some messages Dr McKenzie threatened to punch some of the people that he had accused me of being with.

'On one occasion I went to the door of Dr McKenzie's flat and he followed me to try and stop me from leaving.

'He went to stop me from trying to get to the door, although he had already locked it at this point and he could not find the keys as he was so drunk.

'He reached his arm out to try and push me away from the door and in doing he lost his balance and he fell over due to being so drunk and passed out on top of me.

'On another occasion I was staying at Dr McKenzie's flat with my children.

'I was exhausted and had fallen asleep. He did not have enough space to sleep so we had to use inflatable mattresses in the living room.

'I had fallen asleep in a single bed and he woke me up and pushed me in the living room, demanding that I make his bed.

'At one point when my cat died and he bought me a kitten.

'He kept the kitten at his flat. I asked when I would get the cat and he said words to the effect of "when your behaviour is good enough".

'I never got the cat. I believe this was a way of punishing and controlling me.'

Rosalind Emsley-Smith - counsel for the General Medical Council - said: 'Mr McKenzie had pursued a campaign of emotional abuse when intoxicated over a lengthy period of time. His conduct caused a negative impact to Dr A and her family.'

McKenzie admitted verbally abusing Dr A but added: 'I vehemently wish to reiterate I was never physically abusive to her.

'If Dr A ever stayed at my flat she would spend the night in the master bedroom with me.

'I do not recall her ever sleeping in the smaller room so it would therefore be illogical for me to have woken her up and pushed her into the living room demanding that she make my bed, as she would have been sleeping with me in the double bed.

'In any event I never pushed her as alleged.'

He added: 'During my relationship with Dr A, I gave her a kitten. At the time, Dr A had a dog and unfortunately her dog continuously barked at the kitten so we both decided that I should take the kitten back.'

He maintained Solitaire was his cat and not Dr A's - insisting he had wanted a Bengal Maine Coon, found a breeder and had visited the breeder with Dr A and her children to get the cat in 2016.

Defence council Christopher Mellor said the abuse 'arose during a difficult period in his personal life' and added: 'He had a previously unblemished career over approximately 30 years.

'His alcohol misuse never impacted on the care of any patient and it is plain Mr McKenzie is an excellent doctor and a caring and compassionate man.

'He is at the forefront of dealing with cancer patients in his local area at a time when the NHS is under extraordinary pressure.

'His conduct in this case was out of character and arose through the inappropriate use of alcohol during what was an on-off, turbulent and difficult relationship with Dr A.

'He has been abstinent from alcohol since November 2019.'

The tribunal cleared McKenzie of physical abuse and said Solitaire belonged to him.

Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service chairman Paul Burns said: 'Whilst it was clear from Mr McKenzie's extensive admissions that many aspects of Dr A's evidence were reliable, and correct, in other respects her evidence was, at times, unreliable or exaggerated.

'However Mr McKenzie's persistent, impactful mental abuse - when under the influence of alcohol over a three year period - amounted to serious misconduct. '
SAGINAW, MI  Before being granted parole, a Roman Catholic priest imprisoned for sexually assaulting a teen admitted to having committed his crime. Furthermore, Robert J. Father Bob DeLand Jr. expressed contrition for his misdeeds.

This is significant in that even at his sentencing before a Saginaw County judge, the disgraced priest made no admission that he had perpetrated the crimes to which he pleaded no contest.

He did that in this case, said Chris Gautz, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Corrections. Paroles are issued only if the board has reasonable assurance that the prisoner is not going to be a menace to society or public safety. Thats the overriding, guiding principle the board works on, but in this case, the prisoner did express remorse.

DeLand in March 2019 pleaded no contest to second-degree criminal sexual conduct, gross indecency between two males, and manufacturing or distributing an imitation controlled substance. By pleading no contest as opposed to guilty, DeLand did not admit to having committed any crime, though presiding Saginaw County Chief Circuit Judge Darnell Jackson treated him as guilty when he sentenced him in April 2019 to two to 15 years in prison.

At his sentencing, DeLand gave only a brief statement: Im very sorry the community has gone through all of this.

Generally, an inmate is supposed to admit guilt in the crimes they were convicted of and express some remorse before being granted parole, said defense attorney Alan A. Crawford, who represented DeLand in his criminal proceedings.

They like to see that, but I havent seen the transcript, Crawford said. I dont know what happened at his parole hearing, but that is generally what is required. I dont know what specifically he said at his hearing.

The parole process

Gautz said DeLand on Dec. 7 was interviewed by one member of the parole board. Afterward, a second parole board member reviewed the notes from the firsts interview.

Both members voted in favor of paroling DeLand, approving it on Dec. 29. Had their votes been split, a third member would have broken the tie, Gautz said.

The parole board members involved in DeLands case were Tim Flanagan and Sonia Amos-Warchock, though Gautz did not know which one conducted the interview and which one reviewed the notes from it.

A public parole hearing, in which comments could be taken from supporters and opponents, was not conducted. Those types of hearings are only held in cases involving inmates imprisoned on parolable life offenses and commutations.

This was just a regular parole, of which we probably do 10,000 to 12,000 of these interviews every year, Gautz said.

Without getting into specifics about DeLands case, Gautz said victims are notified of upcoming parole hearings and are given the opportunity to provide their input. He could not say if DeLands victims provided their feedback to the parole board.

Gautz said the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic was not an influence in releasing DeLand from prison.

Gautz also could not divulge specifics of what admissions DeLand offered, as his interview with a board member was not transcribed verbatim.

Model prisoner

DeLand had zero citations for misconduct while in prison. He worked as a school tutor, helping his fellow inmates with their studies, Gautz said.

Defense attorney Crawford said he was not involved in the parole process, though he has remained in touch with DeLand and is familiar with how he spent his time behind bars.

Just like when he was in the community, hes someone that individuals look to for guidance, for counsel, Crawford said. When you got individuals who are in prison, this is the lowest point of their lives. Theyre away from their family, theyre away from the things they took for granted. Individuals become greatly depressed, and heres Father Bob, going through his own situation, but he still took the time to help so many other people.

Crawford said DeLand was more than a model prisoner.

The counsel and the guidance that he provided while he was there, just helped so many people tremendously, he said. Thats something the parole board took into consideration.

DeLand accepted everyone with open arms, regardless of their backgrounds.

Skin heads, African Americans, he helped everybody, Crawford said. Thats been one of his greatest qualities and greatest attributes throughout the course of his life. While in prison, it was no different than when he was out.

Crawford said he did not know where DeLand plans to live once released, having not spoken with him since his parole was approved.

Of course Im thrilled, Crawford said of DeLands upcoming release. Im excited for him. Im excited for his family. Its been a long, long two years.

The Saginaw County Prosecutors Office declined to comment on DeLands parole.

The restrictions are permanent

DeLands earliest possible parole date is listed as Friday, April 23. Yet as MDOC doesnt parole inmates between Fridays and Mondays, DeLands actual earliest potential release date is Tuesday, April 27, Gautz said.

DeLand will be on parole for two years. Conditions of his parole are that he not access the internet, not possess pornography, no communicate with anyone younger than 17, not possess alcohol or intoxicants, not visit bars, and not work, reside, or be within 1,000 feet of any school safety zone, Gautz said.

DeLand will also be required to register as a sex offender until Oct. 13, 2045, at which time he will be 98. Gautz could not say where DeLand is expected to live.

We do have a possible placement for him, Gautz said. He has support in the community from his family. A field agent will go out and inspect that home and if the agent feels confident thats going to be a suitable and safe place for that individual, then that can be approved.

Regarding his future with the Catholic Diocese of Saginaw, the organization removed him from priestly duties on April 25, 2019. Prior to that, the agency placed him on administrative leave on Feb. 26, 2018.

He is permanently forbidden from presenting himself as a priest or exercising any public ministry, said Erin Looby Carlson, the dioceses director of communications.

A decision on if DeLand would be laicized would come from the Congregation for Doctrine of the Faith.

We are awaiting a final decision by the Holy See regarding Robert DeLands priestly status, Looby Carlson said.

The diocese will not be paying DeLand a salary, benefits, or living expenses, Looby Carlson said. DeLand will be receiving income and benefits from the dioceses priest retirement plan, however, as he is vested in that program and is required by law to the benefits.

The St. Louis-based Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, has voiced its displeasure with DeLands parole.

Given this mans apparent pattern of criminal sexual conduct, we hope that church officials will keep tabs on him and inform the communities where he will live and work about the danger he represents, said SNAP Executive Director Zach Hiner. Based on media coverage of his history, it appears to us that Fr. DeLand is a serial abuser. Given this background, we are concerned that he will once again find, groom, and prey on young men now that he is being released.

Hiner went on to say SNAP believes the diocese owes it to Saginaw-area residents to track DeLands movements and inform local communities of his history.

Too many Catholic clerics have been able to escape justice, move to unsuspecting communities, and continue abusing, Hiner said. That cannot be allowed to happen with Father DeLand.

To this, Looby Carlson offered the following:

We will be inquiring regarding the monitoring that will take place by law enforcement, and determining what supplemental measures might be possible.

Case background

Police began investigating DeLand in November 2017 after receiving a complaint that the priest had inappropriate contact with a minor. At the time, DeLand was pastor at St. Agnes Parish in Tittabawassee Township, volunteered as a greeter at Freeland High School, and was so popular a local road was named after him.

Police arrested DeLand in February 2018 and he subsequently faced seven charges related to the alleged sexual assaults of two teens and one young man.

DeLand in September 2018 pleaded no contest to all charges. He later withdrew his pleas and went to trial on a few of the counts in March 2019 and was found not guilty by a jury. Some of those charges stemmed from allegations that DeLand had attempted to sexually assault a teen in the coatroom of St. Agnes Church during a May 2017 memorial service for a classmate who had died by suicide.

The day after the acquittal, and with two more trials looming, DeLand pleaded no contest to the three counts he was subsequently sentenced on.

During DeLands sentencing, Saginaw County Assistant Prosecutor Melissa J. Hoover read a statement penned by the victim in the charges DeLand had pleaded to.

I would like to make it known what that man has done to me will define my life forever, Hoover read.

While dealing with the loss of a friend by suicide, This man of God told me I wasnt OK, no matter how much I told him I was strong, Hoover read.

The teen testified in court that DeLand gave him cigarette packs and $100 to acquire ecstasy.

The teen was 17 at the time he visited DeLands Saginaw Township condominium in February 2018, equipped with a recording device provided by police. Thats when DeLand massaged the teens feet, chest and back, and put his hand on the teens buttocks for a minute or two, the teen testified.

DeLand also was accused by a man who was age 21 at the time of getting him intoxicated at DeLands condo and sexually assaulting him. That man was to testify in a trial that was canceled by DeLands pleas.

At least two lawsuits have been filed against DeLand. One was filed by a diocese-employed maintenance worker and relative of the teen whom DeLand allegedly tried to assault in the church coatroom. The other was filed by attorney Todd J. Weglarz and names the Saginaw diocese and now-deceased Bishop Joseph Cistone as codefendants.

Weglarz filed his suit on behalf of a juvenile and an adult representative, alleging DeLand had inappropriately touched the juvenile by groping and fondling his crotch and buttocks, feet and toes. The boy fled the condo and police arrested DeLand the same night.

The Catholic Diocese of Saginaw, headquartered at 5800 Weiss St., covers 11 counties in eastern mid-Michigan: Arenac, Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Huron, Isabella, Midland, Saginaw, Sanilac, and Tuscola.

In the aftermath of DeLands arrest, the diocese named 22 clergy as having been credibly accused of sexual misconduct going back decades. Many of those are now deceased.

Read more:

Popular Catholic priest to be paroled after serving 2 years in prison for sexual assault

Judge dismisses ex-detectives lawsuit alleging he was fired for investigating Catholic priest

Employee sues Catholic Diocese of Saginaw, claiming retaliation for reporting sex-abuse complaint

Suspended Catholic priest gets two years for sexual assault of teen

Catholic priest pleads no contest to sex assault charge, avoids second trial

Jury acquits Catholic priest Robert DeLand of sexually assaulting 2 teens

Teens testify Catholic priest sexually assaulted them

Lawsuit against Father Bob, Saginaw Diocese moved to state court
Data is going to have a huge role in figuring out what the next version of all of our societies will look like, whether its retail, or government or banking.

Personalisation and the tailoring of benefits will have a huge impact going forward in helping citizens get back on their feet.

Governments can use a wealth of data to more efficiently target aid and resources. Credit: Getty.

He says SAS worked with a large city in Denmark to do just this to help reduce the amount of time Danish citizens spent out of work after losing their jobs.

To do this, it starts with the data. They have all kinds of data about where you went to school, whether youre married, where you live, prior work history, all of that. And then on the government side, they have a range of programs that they could offer to unemployed citizens  programs ranging from reskilling or job training, to job counselling or being connected to an employer.

The government worked with us to build a system that uses artificial intelligence, machine learning, in particular, to create a tailored package of government programs to offer an unemployed person based on what we know about them. All with the goal of getting them back to work more quickly.

The result was a huge increase in the speed of getting people back to work, thanks to AI, using data and analytics.

In a discussion that ranges from Carl von Clausewitz, World War II, to the Kennedy administration and the war on terror, the confessed history buff reveals a deep knowledge across myriad issues and a love of data and the lessons it can teach us.

He tells an anecdote about WWII bombers coming back to base riddled with bullet holes from missions over Germany that is germane.

All these planes were coming back from bombing missions with bullet holes in them. And the military was going to put additional armour where they saw the bullet holes.

The data told a different story  the places on the planes that were turned into Swiss cheese obviously werent critical to the plane (and its crew) making it home.

You need to put the armour where there are no bullet holes, because those are planes that are getting shot down  they are the ones not making it home so we can count the holes.

This earthy lesson says much about Bennetts attitude to data  that we must listen to what it is telling us, not what we want to hear, and to allow data to help us make use of finite resources - whether its bomber armour or taxpayers money - more efficiently.

This will become important as governments cope with shrinking budgets in the wake of COVID, he says.

For Bennett the lessons in 2021 and beyond for Australia are clear.

Priorities are going to be around the area of innovation-driven operations and government - how do we take what weve learned and apply the data to making ourselves more efficient, he says.

Budgets are going to continue to be stretched for governments around the world for a number of years.

There will be a lot of pressure on the Australian government, like all the others, to do more with less and analytics and data are going to be at the forefront in helping us making tough decisions that maximise impact.

He says while Australia is already a leader in digital transformation within the public sector, there are many opportunities for further innovation.

The Australian government needs to continue to digitally transform, to digitise government operations, not only to save money, but to do a better job accomplishing their mission of targeting assistance more efficiently for its citizens, he says.

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Prosecutors on Thursday raided the market watchdog Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) to look into its suspected implication in the unfolding financial fraud scandal involving Lime Asset Management, prosecution officials said.







Prosecutors and investigators from the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors Office reportedly secured documents and other materials related to Lime Asset during their raid on the FSS building in Yeouido, central Seoul, in the morning, they said.







Lime Asset, founded in 2012, has been under probe over selling and running fraudulent financial products and subsequent suspension of fund redemption worth an estimated 1.6 trillion won ($1.44 billion).







The raid was said to be carried out to obtain data on the alleged incomplete sales of Lime Asset funds and their insolvent operations by the company's former vice president, named Lee Jong-pil, and other executives, they noted.







Officials at the FSC explained the raid came as part of the watchdog agency's moves to submit Lime-related data as part of cooperation in the prosecutors' investigation.







In November last year, the prosecution also raided an FSS bureau in charge of overseeing the inspection of securities companies.







Last month, Lee, the hedge fund's former vice president, was sentenced by a Seoul district court to 15 years in prison. The court found him guilty of deceiving investors by concealing the massive loss the company's fraudulent fund product was making.







Meanwhile, officials at Woori Bank, which had sold Lime Asset funds, and KB Securities, which provided total return swap loans to Lime, have also been under investigations.







The fraud scandal has roiled the nation since last year and developed into a high-profile lobbying scandal, in which former and incumbent government officials and politicians are implicated. (Yonhap)





Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov met with Ambassador of the Arab Republic of Egypt to Ukraine Ayman Elgammal to discuss the prospects for further development of bilateral cooperation, including in the space sector, the NSDC's press service reports.

Among the key areas of bilateral cooperation, the parties mentioned the strengthening of trade and economic ties, the signing of relevant agreements, and cooperation in the defense industry and space.

Referring to the issue of cooperation in the space sector, the NSDC secretary stressed the importance of establishing contacts and discussing practical proposals between the Egyptian side and the recently created Ministry for Strategic Industries of Ukraine.

According to Danilov, one of Ukraines tasks within the framework of reforming the domestic defense and industrial complex is to attract interested countries to cooperation, in particular, through establishing joint enterprises.

In his turn, the ambassador assured of the readiness to expand bilateral cooperation and bring it to a higher level.

As Ukrinform reported, the NSDC plans to complete the development of Ukraine's energy security strategy by March 14.

ish

CHICAGO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Katten announced today that it has added highly regarded bankruptcy attorney Peter Knight to its Insolvency and Restructuring practice in Chicago, bolstering a national group that has been increasingly in demand as it continues to take on key roles in some of the most noted bankruptcy cases, representing debtors, independent directors, key creditor constituencies and stakeholders in major Chapter 11 and Chapter 15 cases throughout the country.

Knight has more than two decades of experience and had served as chair of the Chicago Finance department and global co-chair of the Restructuring & Special Situations practice at his previous firm. He advises clients in a range of out-of-court restructurings, bankruptcy proceedings, and other special situations at all levels of the capital structure, with a focus on representing senior secured lenders. He has particular experience in developing and implementing out-of-court restructuring strategies, including UCC foreclosure transactions, assignments for the benefit of creditors, rescue financing structures, receivership proceedings, exchange offers and rights offerings, to name some.

"There is no doubt that we have gained a top-of-class restructuring professional whose skills and experience will broaden our practice," said John Sieger, national head of Katten's Insolvency and Restructuring practice. "We have heard high praise for Pete directly from our clients who have worked with him. They know like we do that he is an outstanding attorney whose unique skill set and practical experience will help achieve their business goals."

As a result of his background and experience, Knight will work closely with Katten's Private Credit attorneys. "Peter is a highly respected and accomplished participant in our industry and has been for years," said Katten Private Credit practice chair Michael Jacobson. "Having him on our team further expands our ability to counsel our clients through all potential life cycles of a given transaction."

In addition to his restructuring practice, Knight devotes significant time to pro bono initiatives, including helping military veterans obtain disability benefits and representing victims of domestic violence through the Cook County Domestic Violence Legal Clinic, among other programs.

Katten's national Insolvency and Restructuring practice has grown significantly in the last few years. To name just some, last year, Kate Scherling, Julia Winters and Michael Comerford joined the practice in New York. Prav Reddy was added in London, Terry Banich in Chicago, and John Mitchell and Michaela Crocker in Dallas.

Katten is a full-service law firm with nearly 700 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm's core areas of practice include corporate, financial markets and funds, insolvency and restructuring, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, structured finance and securitization, transactional tax planning, private credit and private wealth. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals. For more information, visit katten.com.

SOURCE Katten

Related Links

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Albany

On June 16, 1961, more than 1,000 people packed Wilborn Temple's pews, crammed the balcony and vestibules, stood in aisles, sat on the floor in front and waited expectantly for the speech of a rising 32-year-old African-American preacher from Atlanta.

The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. had not yet become a household name as a civil rights leader. He was a few years away from leading historic marches in Washington, D.C., and Selma, Ala., and delivering iconic speeches.

Still, the throng squeezed into the church until it reached capacity, and dozens more were turned away at the front entrance of the brownstone house of worship on Lancaster and South Swan streets.

One of those who arrived early for King's Friday night speech was 26-year-old Solomon Dees, one of nine children raised on his family's 80-acre cotton farm in Camden, Ala., 40 miles south of Selma.

After high school, Dees migrated to Albany because two brothers lived in the area. He joined Wilborn Temple in 1956 and was eager to hear a preacher who had a pulpit in Montgomery, Ala., not far from where he grew up.

"I remember it was so jampacked there was no place to put anyone else," said Dees, who became pastor of Wilborn Temple in 2007 after serving as deacon, assistant pastor and chairman of the board of trustees.

"It was something to witness, I'll tell you," he said. "Rev. King was a great orator, even though he was young and not yet very well known outside the South at that point.

"He had a drive and a presence that was different from other preachers I'd heard," said Dees, 80, of Menands, a retired hospital cardiovascular technologist with two sons and six grandchildren. He worries that the message of King is being forgotten by younger generations.

"I talk to young people about the civil rights movement and it's all kind of foreign to them," he said. Dees recounted an incident in 1962 when his wife, Nora, was shot as she walked near her home on Clinton Avenue by a man who lived across the street.

The bullet narrowly missed her vital organs and she was not seriously injured.

"I wanted to shoot a black person," the shooter said at his trial, in which he was found guilty and sentenced to prison.

His wife recovered after a week in the hospital. She died a year ago.

"There was a lot of racial tension in Albany in those years and that was the mood here when Rev. King visited," Dees said.

Recently discovered images of King with Gov. Nelson Rockefeller, an early supporter of the civil rights leader, and Mayor Erastus Corning 2nd in the Times Union photo archives and newspaper accounts opened a window onto King's largely forgotten visit to the Capital Region at the invitation of his friend, the governor. King also spoke in Schenectady in October 1961.

There is no plaque in Wilborn Temple commemorating King's address there, but Dees is considering having one installed.

The Wilborn Temple speech almost had to be canceled when King missed his train. Rockefeller dispatched his private plane to New York City to fly the pastor to Albany. Rockefeller hosted a private dinner for King in Rockefeller's suite at the Ten Eyck Hotel in Albany.

It was a volatile time for the nascent civil rights movement. On May 21, 1961, King spoke at a mass rally at a church in Montgomery after the first groups of Freedom Riders were assaulted in Alabama as they tried to integrate bus terminals.

On June 14, 1961, the Rev. Leslie Smith, 35, pastor of the Sojourner Truth AME Church in Albany, left Albany on a bus filled with Freedom Riders. At a Greyhound bus station in Ocala, Fla., Smith was attacked, arrested and detained for four hours in jail following the fracas. He was later released and returned to Albany with his assistant pastor, the Rev. Edward C. Morton, 32, the same day that King arrived.

"The riders should continue until it is clearly established that Negroes can ride interstate buses without being harassed and discriminated against," King said.

According to accounts from the Times Union and Knickerbocker News, King said it was imperative for the Freedom Riders to act "in a peaceful and nonviolent way" despite being provoked with racial taunts and violent assaults.

He said the nonviolent tactics he espoused confused white supremacists in Mississippi and Alabama who tried to provoke black protesters into fighting.

"They don't know what to do. We are not violent. We have love in our hearts for those who hurt us," King said.

He called segregation "immoral" and said "if America is to remain a first-class nation, she can no longer afford to have second-class citizens."

Rockefeller also spoke at the three-hour church rally that was a fundraiser for King's Southern Leadership Conference. More than $1,600 was donated, ranging from quarters to $100 bills.

Rockefeller noted that he was raised a Baptist, as was King, and he called the civil rights leader "an American Mahatma Gandhi."

King's address carried some of the echoes of the lyricism he would repurpose in his famous "I Have A Dream" speech on Aug. 28, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington.

In Albany he said, "America is essentially a dream, a dream of a land where men of all races, creeds and nationalities can live together as brothers."

His speech was met with murmurs of assent, calls of "you said it, brother" and interrupted by thunderous applause on several occasions.

"We must let people know we will wear you down by our capacity to suffer," King said. "We will meet your capacity to inflict punishment by our capacity to endure punishment."

Peter Pryor, a young black lawyer who had begun taking on police brutality cases and representing blacks in housing discrimination lawsuits, attended King's talk and remembers the crowd was racially mixed.

"I viewed the speech as a wake-up call to Albany. It was a reminder by King that what was happening in the South existed in a more latent form in communities like Albany in the North," said Pryor, 88. He was born and raised in Savannah, Ga., and settled in Albany in 1947 after his Army service.

King's speech resonated with him because he witnessed racial discrimination in Albany. "It wasn't like Selma or Jim Crow, but there was de-facto discrimination in housing and employment in Albany. Police brutality against blacks was rampant."

Pryor is writing a memoir, tentatively titled "Uncommon Law: The Darker Side of Albany," that recounts local discrimination and racism. Pryor represented Smith and helped the pastor with the legal work to establish the Sojourner Truth AME Church. Pryor later became president of the local chapter of the NAACP.

Following his Wilborn Temple talk, King and the governor left Albany at midnight on Rockefeller's private plane.

At Rockefeller's urging, King returned on Oct. 9, 1961, to address a capacity crowd of 1,200 in the gymnasium of Linton High School at the opening session of the Schenectady Freedom Forum. King reiterated a recurring theme and called for nonviolent protests against racial discrimination and a collaborative approach.

"Integration can be achieved by strong and vigorous leadership from the federal government, genuine liberalism in the North, leadership of Southern moderates and the work of the Negro himself," King said.

The audience cheered loudly several times during his speech.

On April 4, 1968, King was shot and killed while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis. He was 39.

pgrondahl@timesunion.com  518-454-5623  @PaulGrondahl
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New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Widely scattered showers and thunderstorms early. Clouds lingering later. High around 85F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms developing overnight. Low near 70F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Wesfarmers boss Rob Scott has called for more stringent controls around hotel quarantine and better-managed lockdowns, warning shortfalls in managing the pandemic are causing enormous hardship for businesses and individuals.

Mr Scott, who oversees the chains Bunnings, Kmart, Target and Officeworks, said he supported the concept of snap lockdowns, but they needed to be better executed.

We need to be focusing back on the core area of risk which is hotel quarantine, and doing more to contain the risk at that level, he said. If you go back over whats driven the various snap lockdowns, the origin of the problem has been hotel quarantining.

There will always be a need [for lockdowns] in some circumstances, but an inconsistency in approach and snap decisions can result in enormous personal and business hardship.
(CNN)  Fire and emergency services. Domestic violence charities. State health agencies.

Facebook's sudden and dramatic decision to block people from sharing news in Australia has had unexpected consequences for a wide range of government organizations and service groups, who woke up Thursday to find that their pages had been inexplicably swept up in the company's far-reaching ban, too.

The American social media giant said Wednesday that it would stop people in Australia from sharing or viewing news from local and international outlets in response to proposed legislation in the country that would force tech firms to pay news publishers for content.

Although some of the pages have now been reinstated  and Facebook says it will reverse pages "inadvertently impacted" by its move  questions remain in Australia about why they were pulled down by Facebook in the first place.

'Sort this out'

FoodBank Australia Chief Executive Brianna Casey tweeted that her organization, a major hunger relief charity in the country, could no longer access its page on Thursday.

"Demand for food relief has never been higher than during this pandemic," she said. "Hours matter when you have nothing to eat. SORT THIS OUT!"

Many other charities, including the 1800Respect domestic violence support line and a range of health organizations working with Indigenous Australians, also found their pages blocked Thursday.

So did state and territory health departments, including those of Queensland and South Australia.

"Facebook isn't the only way we reach people but it's an significant one," said Robert Hoge, the executive director of strategic communications at Queensland Health, in a statement. Queensland is Australia's third-most populous state and home to the city of Brisbane.

"We are in the process of rolling out the first phase of our COVID-19 vaccine program and social media is a key tool with which to communicate this information," he said, adding that Facebook had gotten this decision "wrong."

Queensland Health and 1800Respect were among the pages that had been reinstated by midday.

Much of the criticism was directed at Facebook, which Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said during a press conference had given the government no warning of its imminent ban.

"We are in the midst of a once in a century global pandemic," Brendan Crabb, director and CEO of the Melbourne-based Burnet Institute medical research group told CNN Business. "Has there ever been a time when the general population is more in need of quality, highly reliable, up-to-date health information?"

At least one Australian politician also found his professional page affected. In Western Australia, which will hold a state election in just a few weeks, opposition leader Zak Kirkup's Facebook page was blocked. But Premier Mark McGowan's was still accessible.

While many pages run by government branches and other services were blocked, the ban on sharing content did not appear to be universal. For example, while some users reported that the page for the Western Australian Department of Fire and Emergency Service was blocked, Queenland's fire and emergency service pages were left untouched.

Facebook said in a statement that government pages "should not be impacted" by the announcement, adding that its actions were focused on "restricting publishers and people in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content."

As the proposed law "does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted," the company said, adding that it would reverse the effects on any pages "that are inadvertently impacted."

The initial rollout of the ban outraged some Australian politicians, who took the opportunity to point out that Facebook continues to struggle to contain the distribution of misinformation on its platform.

Greens Party Senator Larissa Waters said on Twitter that blocking access to Facebook pages for women's domestic violence services was "utterly reprehensible."

"They allow fake news to spread and now block real news AND SUPPORT SERVICES so they don't have to pay journos whose content they profit off," she tweeted.

Facebook said Thursday that its "commitment to combat misinformation" has not changed, adding that it is directing people to "authoritative health information" on the coronavirus, for example.

Months of tension

Facebook's move follows months of tension between Big Tech firms and the Australian government. The country is working to pass legislation that would force tech platforms to pay news publishers for content posted to their sites  instead of being freely distributed, as that content is now.

The two sides need each other: The platforms need publishers to populate their search results and feeds, providing users local, up-to-date and reliable information on what's happening. And publishers need the platforms to help drive audience numbers to their sites. But for years, publishers have said platforms like Google and Facebook take unfair advantage of the news media, giving them little in return.

Facebook and Google, though, have argued that Australia's legislation is unworkable and unfairly punishes them.

Facebook had been working with Australia for years to find a solution that "recognizes the realities of how our services work," wrote William Easton, managing director for Facebook Australia and New Zealand, in a blog post on the company's website Wednesday.

"Unfortunately this legislation does not do that," Easton said, adding that the new ban was made with a "heavy heart." "Instead it seeks to penalise Facebook for content it didn't take or ask for."

While Google had also threatened to take drastic action, saying last month that it could shut down search in Australia if the legislation passed, the company has now appeared to take a different approach than Facebook. It recently announced a three-year deal with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp in which the tech giant will pay to license News Corp content.

Facebook's sudden imposition of the ban, meanwhile, may reflect poorly on that company, according to Tai Neilson, an expert in journalism and digital media at Australia's Macquarie University.

Neilson said in a commentary that Facebook's rapid removal of Australian news content raised questions about how serious it is about cracking down on dangerous misinformation on its platform, much of which has lingered for years without being banned.

"Facebook already suffers from a lack of good will amongst the public and this may be the last straw for many Facebook users," Neilson said.

 Michelle Toh contributed to this report.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "'Sort this out': Facebook's chaotic news ban in Australia blocks pages for fire services, charities and politicians."

New Delhi: Superstar Salman Khan has a packed calendar this year. He has movies such as Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai, Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali and Kick 2 in the pipeline for now. And, there's also his special appearance in Shah Rukh Khan starrer 'Pathan' which is making the loudest noise these days.

Amid several rumours, the scoop which has caught the attention of fans is that Salman might be joining SRK on top of Burj Khalifa in Dubai where Pathan will be shot. This is most likely to be the climax part of the movie.

An active fan club of Salman tweeted: Apart from the Burj Khalifa climax, #SalmanKhan is expected to hv some other scenes too in #Pathan. His extended cameo is expected to be as long as 20 to 25 minutes, and he will be shooting for a period of 15 days starting this month, before moving on to #Tiger3 from March. #BH

Apart from the Burj Khalifa climax, #SalmanKhan is expected to hv some other scenes too in #Pathan. His extended cameo is expected to be as long as 20 to 25 minutes, and he will be shooting for a period of 15 days starting this month, before moving on to #Tiger3 from March.#BH  !!Radhe2021 (@mystery0725) February 17, 2021

Source: "Towards the climax, SRK, John and Deepika will be a part of the Bhurj Khalifa sequence, and thats when #SalmanKhan will join the agent gang of SRK and Deepika as RAW agent #Tiger in the film to take on John.

#Pathan

Source: "Towards the climax, SRK, John and Deepika will be a part of the Bhurj Khalifa sequence, and thats when #SalmanKhan will join the agent gang of SRK and Deepika as RAW agent #Tiger in the film to take on John. #Pathan  !!Radhe2021 (@mystery0725) February 17, 2021

SRK will be joined by Deepika Padukone and John Abraham in 'Pathan'.

The film is highly-anticipated as Shah Rukh took a hiatus after 2018 release 'Zero'.
Valued Philanthropist Micah Raskin discusses the signs of cyberbullying in a recent article with AVA360 as online harassment soars amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

NASSAU COUNTY, NY / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / In a new article, Micah Raskin, who donates much of his time and money to charitable programs, highlights the prevalence of online bullying and how we can support victims. As educators struggle to monitor how children and teens interact online, Raskin describes the most tell-tale signs that youth may be experiencing on-going abuse.

Since childhood, Micah Raskin has always been passionate about helping others, a value that was instilled in him from a young age by his father.

In an exclusive interview with Thrive Global, Raskin reveals that he is working on several anti-bullying and anti-cyberbullying campaigns. "Whenever I read a story of a teenager who has been humiliated, body shamed, or embarrassed on social media-so much so that they would consider suicide, I knew I had to do something. Youth mental health is at an all-time low, and cyberbullying is a contributor," he says.

Cyber-bullying occurs when a child receives targeted messages via an electronic device to embarrass, humiliate, torment, or threaten the individual. According to Raskin, roughly half of all young people (47%) are victims of virtual harassment. It's arguably the most prominent form of abuse, as bullies can remain anonymous and limit their odds of being exposed.

The COVID-19 pandemic has arguably made matters worse for students, as recent U.S. figures indicate a 70% increase in online bullying over three months. With limited research on Coronavirus and cyber-bullying, experts can only assume that increased screen time due to the lockdown and uncertainties about friendships may be playing a critical role.

Although Raskin doesn't discuss the pandemic in his article, the recent spike in harassment means his blog couldn't come at a more appropriate time.

To make things easier for concerned parents and guardians, Raskin has outlined visible signs of abuse, such as avoiding spending time with others and unease when using social platforms. Additionally, caregivers should watch out for symptoms of depression, including weight-loss, headaches, stomach-aches, difficulty sleeping, and loss of interest in hobbies they once enjoyed.

He notes that the best way to support your child is to educate oneself on the various signs of emotional abuse and allowing your loved one the opportunity to open up by encouraging activities that promote family bonding.

If you would like to know more about cyber-bullying and how to identify victims of abuse, please read Micah Raskin's full article here.

About Micah Raskin

Philanthropist Micah Raskin is devoted to helping others through exceptional charitable work. When he was young, his father set a good example by teaching him to "give back whenever possible." While he has a reputation for providing substantial donations to underserved groups, his contributions are not only monetary. In recent years, he has been addressing food scarcity and hunger in New York State by building a donor base and volunteering his time at soup kitchens. Today, he continues to spread positive messages and encourages others to participate in selfless good deeds.

Contact Information:

Micah Raskin

micahrask@aol.com

SOURCE: Micah Raskin

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630510/Micah-Raskin-Talks-How-To-Identify-Cyber-bullying-In-New-Article
Nearly 10 years ago, the buffalo appeared in the fields of Hoi An for tourists to rent and ride, creating a strange freshness among the village fields.

Hoi An offers unique farming experience.

Taking a walk around the village fields in Hoi An (Quang Nam Province), it is not difficult to see tourists riding buffalo. When it comes to the list of activities cyclist visitors walking in the village fields can enjoy, this was the final step allowing tourists to experience the real life of Vietnamese farmers, says tour guide Mai Van Chuyen.

The gentle buffalo are tamed. Tourists riding buffalo are usually between 10 and 50 years old. In any group of visitors not everyone has the courage to ride a buffalo. Most of them watch, take pictures or clap their hands for the buffalo rider.

According to Tran Dang Khoa - the Managing Director & Owner of Jack Tran Tours Co,.Ltd (Formerly known as HOI AN ECO-TOUR) , the first company to launch a buffalo riding tour in the fields of Cam Chau ward, Cam Ha (Hoi An), their original idea aimed to offer diversified tourism products with the dual goal of improving farmers' incomes.

The farmers choose purebred buffalo, trained well alongside humans, so that it will not be scared and run upon seeing tourists. Besides, the buffalo must get used to voice commands, such as "lie down", "stand up", "stop" and "go". Each location is only allowed have one buffalo in order to avoid a situation of them meeting another, creating a situation of conflict and making tourists panic. Owners who buy buffalo to raise for tourism are also very careful when looking at their appearance, hoping to avoid conflict.

In the world of cattle, the buffalo does not mind muddy fields, deep ponds or cold water. For many generations, buffaloes have helped people pull plows and carts and carry heavy goods.

Accompanied by the farmer, the buffalo patiently follows the owner's guidance with the motto "you live as well as I live". The buffalo's eyes look at the path, his ears wag, his tail twists with pride. The buffalo stands for the visitors' pictures and to greet the world.

Boomkamp, from Canada, said: "I have been to Africa and many tropical countries and have seen many buffalo. But the buffalo here in Hoi An are good friends of the guests. I was born in 1961, people here tell me my year is that of the Buffalo. My Facebook also now has a picture of a buffalo in Hoi An! ".

When he arrived in Hoi An, Vietnam, he knew he was born in the year of buffalo. Boomkamp happily said: "Some days when I walk in the village, I see white storks on the buffalo's back. Nature doesn't have to pay each other, but they do have stories together. The bird flew tiredly, swooping down on the buffalo's back. The buffalo closed its eyes, the bird preened its wings or looked for food on the buffalo's back. There is a friendship between them".

Last year, due to the absence of tourists, the buffalos did not welcome tourists but returned to the rhythm of life: in the morning, eating grass, and staying in at night.

But sadder still than the buffalo is their owner. Dang Thanh The, living in An My area (Cam Chau Ward, Hoi An), shared that when the buffalo was involved in tourism, he took better care of it. He often fed the buffalo in the morning, occasionally sprayed anti-lice sprays to help avoid itching and discomfort, also meaning they don't shake their heads and scare the guests. But now, the buffalo are not cared for like that anymore. Thus, the buffalo idled over the past year, and in fact were in many ways neglected.

In the lunar new year - the year of the ox, both buffalo and people hope for new beginnings better times.

Nhan Dan

Visitors have the chance to shop for common and unique items alike at the Hoi An Farmers Market which will last from December 28 to 31.
This week I catch up with Melissa-Joy Ohlsson, head Of strategy for Volt Africa, an integrated digital service provider based in South Africa which specialises in creating customised digital strategies suited for your brand.

Melissa-Joy Ohlsson, head of strategy for Volt Africa

You're head of strategy for Volt Africa. Could you briefly explain what your role entails?

Could you share with us whats really behind your mask - literally and figuratively speaking?

Growing up, what did you want to be?

How did you end up working in the world of all things digital?

What excites you most about your career?

Where are you based during locked down?

When you're not busy working, what do you do? How do you socialize these days?

What's your favourite meme/gif of all time?

My role is multi-faceted. In terms of strategy, I look at a brief, familiarise myself with the client and visualize what the client could be. I put processes into place using the various creative teams, to achieve said objectives. Wearing my content hat, my team and I conceptualise and create effective campaigns that will elevate the client's brand and meet its objectives.Literally, right now I am wearing a matte lipstick (Swiitch Beauty #Airmatte in 'Thicc') and figuratively, behind the mask you'll find an introvert who doesn't like crowds and loves to spend time at home, cooking and reading or just somewhere outdoors. My work forces me to be an extrovert but as an only child I actually really love my own company and stillness.I wanted to be the first female President of South Africa (I verbalised this during an SRC speech in Grade 8!)I actually studied journalism and during that time I found myself working as a PA at a marketing company. Before social media and the digital world was as it is now, I took it upon myself to manage the blog and social media platforms of my boss at the time and the rest is history.Right now, the world has come to rely heavily on digital performance, footprint and output - brands are practically scrambling for a digital presence. So, the industry is really evolving from a 'nice to have' to an essential service, so to speak. I am excited by the endless possibilities digital presents to clients and by how a brand can evolve and grow just by implementing a magical digital strategy.I am in based in Fish Hoek on days I work from home, and then I go into our offices in Cape Town CBD three days a week.When the weather is great (we all know Cape Town), I spend a lot of time on the beach (when legal!) or outdoors at wine farms or picnics. I only dine out if I can do it outdoors and there is space for my kids to run free. I love cooking yummy food for one or two people in my home, burning incense and candles with the music turned up loud.The one I probably overuse is the Cardi B Tea GIF!

via GIPHY

2021 has just begun. Do you have any 'so-called' resolutions for the new year?

Are you watching any series? Reading any books at the moment?

What is the first thing you plan to do - if and when the lockdown lifts?

I don't usually do resolutions as I have goals that I set for myself throughout the year, but I definitely want to up my fitness game and write more.I am really enjoyingon Showmax, and I am currently readingby Rupi Kaur .Take my babies on a fun adventure in a sunny locale out of the country with loads of food, ocean and interesting places to visit.
A father proposed to his girlfriend in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) with the help of their premature daughter, who has spent the last 10 months in the hospital.

Teon Kennedy and Martine Drouillard, both 31, got engaged with their baby girl, Morgan, by their side at the New York-Presbyterian Alexandra Cohen Hospital for Women and Newborns.

Hospital staffers helped the dad pull off the surprise proposal right before Valentine's Day and shared a video of the heartwarming moment on Instagram.

Special moment: Teon Kennedy and Martine Drouillard, both 31, got engaged at New York-Presbyterian Alexandra Cohen Hospital for Women and Newborns in Manhattan

Little fighter: Their daughter, Morgan, has spent the past 10 months in the neonatal intensive care units (NICU) at three different NewYork-Presbyterian hospitals in the area

Kennedy had originally planned on proposing to Drouillard in the spring of 2020 at her baby shower, but she never ended up having one.

The Brooklyn school teacher was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia 25 weeks into her pregnancy and had to deliver Morgan immediately via emergency C-section.

Morgan was born on April 12, 2020, at NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, weighing just 1 pound, 2 ounces, Kennedy and Drouillard told Good Morning America.

'She was really, really small,' the dad recalled. 'She was roughly the [size of the] palm of my hand.'

Life: Kennedy planned on proposing to Drouillard at her baby shower, but she was diagnosed with severe preeclampsia 25 weeks into her pregnancy and needed an emergency C-section

Heartwarming: The NICU staffers have become like family to the couple, which inspired Kennedy to ask for their help in planning the proposal

So pretty: The healthcare workers decorated Morgan's room with photos of her parents, which were arranged in a heart shape and topped with lights

Important guest: Morgan was dressed up and placed in the middle of her room ahead of her mother's arrival

The couple's daughter was transferred to NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where she underwent multiple surgeries, including procedures on her brain and lungs.

She was later moved to the New York-Presbyterian Alexandra Cohen Hospital for Women and Newborns when it opened in August and has been staying there ever since, earning herself the nickname 'Queen of the NICU.'

Because of COVID-19 restrictions, only one parent can visit Morgan at a time unless she is undergoing surgery or other special circumstances.

Drouillard has become their daughter's primary visitor because she is able to isolate herself more while working from home as a teacher.

Too cute: Morgan was wearing a shirt that read: 'Mommy, will you marry Daddy?'

Amazing: As Drouillard walked down the hallway, the staffers read her poems written by Kennedy, who met her outside of Morgan's room

Stunned: The mom threw her hands over her face when she saw Kennedy waiting at their daughter's door

Perfectly planned: 'Morgan has something she wants to ask you,' Kennedy said, before getting down on one knee and popping the question

Every weekday the mom teaches remotely until 3 p.m. and then commutes an hour to the hospital. She usually gets home around 11 p.m. and prepares her lesson plan for the next day before going to bed.

'Shes been there every single day for the last 300-plus days,' Kennedy told GMA of his bride-to-be. 'I tip my hat off to her every day.'

The NICU staffers have become like family to the couple, which inspired Kennedy to ask for their help in planning the proposal.

Healthcare workers decorated Morgan's room with photos of her parents, which were arranged in a heart shape and topped with lights, and a poster that read: 'Marry Daddy??'

They also laid out a red carpet and sprinkled it with flower petals for Drouillard's arrival. They made sure she was dressed for the occasion by telling her they were going to have a meeting about Morgan's case that day.

Thrilled: Drouillard said her daughter being dressed up and awake for the proposal made it extra special

Smile! The newly-engaged couple posed for photos with some of the hospital staffers

Amazing: 'They treat us so well here, and for them to make this moment just that more special, I'm so happy  so happy,' Drouillard

As Drouillard walked down the hallway, the staffers read her poems written by Kennedy, who met her outside of Morgan's room. He brought her to their daughter, who was wearing a shirt that read: 'Mommy, will you marry Daddy?'

'Morgan has something she wants to ask you,' Kennedy said, before getting down on one knee and popping the question.

The NICU staffers clapped for the couple as they hugged, and Kennedy thanked them for all of their help.

'It happening here with Morgan present, and for her to be dressed for the occasion and to be awake... They treat us so well here, and for them to make this moment just that more special, I'm so happy  so happy,' Drouillard said in the video.

Kennedy pointed out that most pregnant women are showered with love and attention before giving birth, but Drouillard had missed out on all that.

'Today was the day she was able to get all she missed in the last 300 days,' he said.
TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Orvana Minerals Corp. (TSX: ORV) (the "Company" or "Orvana") announced today that, at its annual shareholders' meeting (the "Meeting") held on February 18, 2021, the individuals noted below were elected as directors of the Company. The report on proxies provided by the Company's transfer agent indicated the following:

George Darling received 78,734,816 votes (representing 95.30% of votes cast); Alan Edwards received 77,916,316 votes (representing 94.30% of votes cast); Alfredo Garcia Gonzalez received 78,684,816 votes (representing 95.23% of votes cast); Ed Guimaraes received 77,916,316 votes (representing 94.30% of votes cast); Sara Magner received 77,916,316 votes (representing 94.30% of votes cast); and Gordon Pridham received 78,684,816 votes (representing 95.23% of votes cast).

Mr. Gordon Pridham was re-appointed as chairman of the board of directors; Mr. Juan Gavidia was re-appointed Chief Executive Officer; Ms. Nuria Menendez was re-appointed Chief Financial Officer; and Mr. Binh Vu was re-appointed Corporate Secretary/VP Legal Affairs, immediately after the Meeting.

The Company received 75,099,013 votes (representing 90.89% of votes cast) to re-approve its 2018 Stock Option Plan. The Company also reports the re-appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the Company's independent auditor.

For full voting details please see Orvana's voting results as filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com .

ABOUT ORVANA - Orvana is a multi-mine gold-copper-silver company. Orvana's assets consist of the producing El Valle and Carles gold-copper-silver mines in northern Spain, and the Don Mario gold-silver property in Bolivia, currently in care and maintenance. Orvana is in the process of completing the registration of transfer documents with the mining authorities in connection with the acquisition of Taguas, Argentina.

Additional information is available at Orvana's website (www.orvana.com).

Cautionary Statements - Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements made herein constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, potentials, future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "believes", "expects", "plans", "estimates", "intends" or "anticipates" or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "will" or "are projected to" be taken or achieved) are not statements of historical fact, but are forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements herein relate to, among other things: Orvana's ability to achieve improvement in free cash flow; the potential to extend the mine life of El Valle and Don Mario beyond their current life-of-mine estimates including specifically, but not limited to in the case of Don Mario, the processing of the mineral stockpiles and the reprocessing of the tailings material; Orvana's ability to optimize its assets to deliver shareholder value; the Company's ability to optimize productivity at Don Mario and El Valle; any measures taken by the Company to prevent and/or mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases at or near the Company's mines and support the sustainability of its business including through the development of crisis management plans, increasing stock levels for key supplies, monitoring of guidance from the medical community, and engagement with local communities and authorities; estimates of future production, operating costs and capital expenditures; mineral resource and reserve estimates; statements and information regarding future feasibility studies and their results; future transactions (including the completion of the acquisition of Taguas and subsequent results of any exploration work on Taguas); future metal prices; the ability to achieve additional growth and geographic diversification; future financial performance, including the ability to increase cash flow and profits; future financing requirements; and mine development plans. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company as of the date of such statements, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. The estimates and assumptions of the Company contained or incorporated by reference in this news release, which may prove to be incorrect, include, but are not limited to, the various assumptions set forth herein and in Orvana's most recently filed Management's Discussion & Analysis and Annual Information Form in respect of the Company's most recently completed fiscal year (the "Company Disclosures") or as otherwise expressly incorporated herein by reference as well as: there being no significant disruptions affecting operations, whether due to labour disruptions, supply disruptions, power disruptions, damage to equipment or otherwise; permitting, development, operations, expansion and acquisitions at El Valle and Don Mario being consistent with the Company's current expectations; political developments in any jurisdiction in which the Company operates being consistent with its current expectations; certain price assumptions for gold, copper and silver; prices for key supplies being approximately consistent with current levels; production and cost of sales forecasts meeting expectations; the accuracy of the Company's current mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates; and labour and materials costs increasing on a basis consistent with Orvana's current expectations.

A variety of inherent risks, uncertainties and factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, affect the operations, performance and results of the Company and its business, and could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results expressed or implied by forward looking statements. Some of these risks, uncertainties and factors include the effect of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases on the Company's operations, workforce and supply chain, fluctuations in the price of gold, silver and copper; the need to recalculate estimates of resources based on actual production experience; the failure to achieve production estimates; variations in the grade of ore mined; variations in the cost of operations; the availability of qualified personnel; the Company's ability to obtain and maintain all necessary regulatory approvals and licenses; the Company's ability to use cyanide in its mining operations; risks generally associated with mineral exploration and development, including the Company's ability to continue to operate the El Valle and/or Don Mario and/or ability to resume long-term operations at the Carles Mine; the Company's ability to successfully implement a sulphidization circuit and ancillary facilities to process the current oxides stockpiles at Don Mario; the Company's ability to acquire and develop mineral properties and to successfully integrate such acquisitions; the Company's ability to execute on its strategy; the Company's ability to obtain financing when required on terms that are acceptable to the Company; challenges to the Company's interests in its property and mineral rights; current, pending and proposed legislative or regulatory developments or changes in political, social or economic conditions in the countries in which the Company operates; general economic conditions worldwide; and the risks identified in the Company's disclosures. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements and reference should also be made to the Company's Disclosures for a description of additional risk factors.

Any forward-looking statements made herein with respect to the anticipated development and exploration of the Company's mineral projects are intended to provide an overview of management's expectations with respect to certain future activities of the Company and may not be appropriate for other purposes.

Forward-looking statements are based on management's current plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions and, except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements should assumptions related to these plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions change. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Nuria Menendez, Chief Financial Officer, E: nmenendez@orvana.com; Joanne Jobin, Investor Relations Officer, E: jjobin@orvana.com, T: 647 964 0292
The government is considering widening its current state-subsidised rural broadband rollout to meet new EU targets, according to Communications Minister Eamon Ryan.

Mr Ryan said that homes not currently eligible to receive the existing National Broadband Plan may yet qualify for taxpayer funding in future, possibly benefitting 100,000 extra households.

His remarks, given in response to a Dail question from Labours Communications spokesman Sean Sherlock, come after a Comreg survey showed that a quarter of Irish people say their broadband has gotten worse since the start of the pandemic and that three quarters of us now rely on home broadband more since the pandemic started, with working families particularly dependent on it.

Read More

Mr Ryans comments may give hope to the new segment of Irish people left out of high speed rollouts but deemed to have services that arent bad enough for state intervention through the National Broadband Plan.

At present, households that can receive a 30 megabits (Mbs) broadband service do not qualify for inclusion in the NBP.

This 30Mbs cutoff line is based on previous EU guidance about what constitutes high speed.

However, the EU is now revising that minimum target up to 100Mbs, with 30Mbs no longer deemed adequate for modern requirements. There are approximately 100,000 homes in Ireland stuck in this mediocre broadband limbo, not covered by fibre rollouts from Eir or Siro but also not deemed terrible enough to qualify for the National Broadband Plan.

Mr Ryan said that his Department is monitoring EU plans on the issue.

The 30Mbps download speed threshold is based on current targets set at EU level and contained in the State Aid Guidelines for High Speed Broadband, he said. I understand that the State Aid Guidelines for High Speed Broadband are currently being reviewed and my Department is monitoring developments at EU level in this area.

Commercial broadband operators such as Eir, Siro and Virgin say that they plan to upgrade more in-fill premises that are currently not in the National Broadband Plans intervention area because they are deemed to receive a service of over 30Mbs. However, executives estimate that there will still be at least 100,000 households caught between 30Mbs and 100Mbs.

The European Commission recently reinforced its request for countries to adopt 100Mbs for all citizens.

All Member States are encouraged to endorse their targets and adapt their national broadband strategies to the new targets, according to its broadband policy document. State aid guidelines help Member States achieving the Digital Single Market strategy aims.

In December, the head of National Broadband Ireland, Peter Hendrick, said that the Irelands state-subsidised rural rollout company would consider tendering if a second National Broadband Plan came about in 2025.

If there was another tender, certainly it's something we could look at, Peter Hendrick told the Irish Independent at the time.

Under the European Commissions digital agenda, there's going to be another assessment between now and 2025. By 2025, [the government] and other European governments have to have given another commitment for 100 megabits per second, or else there possibly needs to be another intervention.

Comregs survey showed respondents claiming that 13pc of Irish home broadband connections arent adequate for home working. The situation is particularly bad for those with mobile broadband services, where one in four say the connection isnt good enough to use for home working.

Comregs survey says that just under three in five of us are working from home to some degree. Over two in five of us now need broadband to videoconference with work colleagues, while three in five of us use it to watch Netflix, Disney+ or other online video streaming services.
A Newark woman pleaded guilty to possession of stolen mail after federal investigators determined she stole credit cards and other items from mailboxes, authorities said Wednesday.

Michele Dearaujo, 37, pleaded guilty via videoconference in U.S. District Court to two counts of unlawfully possessing mail stolen from homes in two New Jersey counties, according to acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig.

Dearaujo stole mail n Jan. 25, 2019 in Monmouth County and again on Nov. 20, 2020 in Hunterdon County, according to charging documents filed in the case.

The investigation revealed that Dearaujo had stolen mail from several residences in New Jersey, Honig said in a statement.

A victim in Hunterdon County was expecting replacement credit cards to be delivered, but later learned one of the cards had been used by someone else to buy hundreds of dollars of merchandise.

Investigators said the merchandise was scheduled to be shipped to Dearaujos home.

Dearaujo faces five years in prison for each count of unlawful possession of stolen mail and a $250,000 fine when she is sentenced on June 14, Honig said.

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Authorities in Hai Duong City of the namesake northern Vietnamese province on Wednesday said that they had fined a man for not making timely medical declaration as per requirements.

P.V.Q., 41, living in Hai Duong Citys Hai Tan Ward was charged VND15 million (US$650) for his administrative violation.

Q. had come into direct contact with a COVID-19 patient named Ph. in the same city, according to Hai Tan authorities.

Despite being fully aware of the need to report his interaction with the infected person to local medical authorities, Q. failed to do so.

Local authorities decided to slap Q. with the VND15-million fine for the severity of his violation.

Vietnamese law stipulates that a fine ranging from VND10 million ($434) to VND20 million ($868) shall be imposed on anyone who fails to timely perform health declaration for infectious disease control as required.

Vietnam has recorded 2,329 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday morning, with 1,580 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

A total of 737 local infections have been detected in 13 provinces and cities since January 27, 557 of which have been documented in Hai Duong Province alone.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
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Multiple patients at a CVS pharmacy in Massachusetts were given wrong dosages of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine on Monday.

A CVS spokesman told DailyMail.com that the drug store in Ipswich - 30 miles from Boston - gave some people a 0.3 mililiter (mL) dose instead of the correct 0.5 mL dose recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

This is 40 percent lower than the dose they should have received.

It is unclear how many patients were affected by the error but the spokesman described it as 'a limited number.'

'We have contacted all affected patients to apologize for this incident and answer any questions they might have,' the spokesman said.

'We've reported it to the appropriate regulatory agencies and have taken the necessary steps to prevent this from occurring again.'

A CVS in Ipswich, Massachusetts (pictured), gave a 'limited number of patients' the wrong dose of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine on Monday

Patients were given a 0.3 mililiter (mL) dose, 40% lower than the correct 0.5 mL dose recommended by CDC. Pictured: Three vials of the Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine at a vaccination center in Berlin, Germany, February 17

Doctors and the CDC say that as long a patient's first shot is a half-dose, or 0.25 mL, they will be fully protected once they receive a second dose. The U.S. is currently vaccinating between 1.6 and 1.7 million people a day

Carol Kennedy Hurley, from Arlington, was one of the patients who was given the incorrect dosage at the Ipswich CVS.

She told WCVB that she received a call from a pharmacist at the location and was told she was given the 0.3 mL that is recommended for the Pfizer shot rather than the Moderna one.

'A certain amount of the people that went in on Monday did not get the right dosage,' she said.

'The pharmacist who was working at CVS on Monday had been, prior to that, distributing the Pfizer vaccine and he inadvertently must have got mixed up.'

Doctors say that receiving at least half a dose - 0.25 mL - will still offer protection until it's time for the scheduled second dose

'It's still likely going to be still effective, but we don't have a lot of data,' Dr Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, told DailyMail.com in an e-mail.

Hotez added that Dr Moncef Slaoui, the head of the Trump administration's Operation Warp Speed program, 'even said that giving a half dose may even be an acceptable strategy.'

Recently, a study using Moderna's Phase II trial data was published in the journal Vaccine, suggesting the company's coronavirus shot may still trigger a strong immune response even via half doses.

Researchers looked at levels of antibodies that bind to the spike protein - which the virus uses to infect cells - and levels of neutralizing antibodies that kill the virus.

They found both the current two-dose regimen and half that amount were capable of eliciting 'significant' immune responses.

However, health officials do not recommend that patients be given half-doses of the vaccine at this time.

As of Thursday, 41 million Americans - 12.5% of the population - have received one dose and 16.1 million - 4.9% of the population - are fully immunized

At least 73 million doses have been delivered, with President Joe Biden currently on track to meet goal of 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office

The CVS spokesperson told DailyMail.com that, based on CDC and clinical guidance, it is not recommended that patients affected by the error receive a third dose.

Those who were given the 0.3 mL dose can get their second, and last, shot next month, and will still have full protection.

Kennedy Hurley told WCVB she has an appointment for her final dose scheduled in four weeks.

'I think it's really important that the people that are doing the vaccinations are really cognizant of the fact that, if they don't do it correctly, people are going to assume they're okay and they're not,' she said.

Currently, the U.S. is vaccinating average of between 1.6 and 1.7 million Americans per day against COVID-19, an increase from under one million a month ago.

President Joe Biden is currently on track to meet his goal of 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office - but the pace must accelerated to reach his plan to vaccinate nearly all adults by the end of the summer.

As of Thursday, 41 million Americans - 12.5 percent of the population - have received one dose and 16.1 million - 4.9 percent of the population - are fully immunized
COLLINSVILLE  Ameren Illinois is asking its customers to take steps to reduce electricity usage until further notice.

Our grid is performing well, said George Justice, Vice President, Electric Operations, Ameren Illinois. However, conserving electricity usage will help others across the state and region and also help customers save money. We appreciate our customers support and understanding as we work together to lessen the strain on the nationwide energy delivery system and get through this record cold spell.

New York Festivals Advertising Awards has announced the 25-member 2021 NYF Executive Jury of international award-winning creative leaders to judge entries submitted into New York Festivals Advertising Awards.

Executive Jury President, Ralf Heuel, Chief Creative Officer and Partner of Grabarz & Partner Germany will preside over this elite panel of Chief Creative Officers and Executive Creative Directors from around the globe.

With 28 years of industry experience, Ralf Heuel brings both leadership and creativity to the role of Executive Jury President. Previously as a Creative Director, and then as CCO, Heuel made the agency one of the most creative locations in the country, in the process repeatedly propelling Grabarz & Partner into the top five of the most creative German agencies.

Heuel had this to say about the key elements that will set the tone for the Executive Jury judging sessions, Keep your respect for the work, keep your mind open, and look for the best pieces of work.

His dedication to respecting the work, combined with his understanding of the creative process will ensure that Heuel will set a tone of objectivity making sure that all global work will be judged with fair and meticulous attention.

Were thrilled that Ralf Heuel will lead this years Executive Jury, said Scott Rose, Executive Director, New York Festivals Advertising Awards. With a reputation as an innovative leader known for ground-breaking creative, he will lead the Executive Jury of 24 creative minds dedicated to the quality and aesthetic of creative advertising to select this years award-winning work as well as the newly unveiled special awards, the Pivot and the Signal.

I love it (Signal Award) because it is not disconnected from the world we live in; it is highly connected to the situation we are in and that is what makes advertising and communication relevant. Its a beautiful idea, said Heuel.

This is the 11th year that New York Festivals has brought together a panel of globally respected innovators from ground-breaking agencies to view brave creative work from around the globe.

The Executive Jury will convene for multiple passionate and focused discussions to select the Worlds Best Advertising from the shortlisted entries selected by the online NYF Grand Jury.

2021 Executive Jury:

Executive Jury President  Ralf Heuel, Chief Creative Officer & Partner, Grabarz & Partner, Germany

Sandra Bold, Global Creative Director, Publicis, Italy

Alexis Bronstorph, Chief Creative Officer, Taxi, Canada

Christian Caldwell, VP, Chief Creative Officer , McCann Lima, Peru

Cindy Yan Chen, Partner/Chief Strategy Officer, Focus Media Group, China

Lexi Corn, Creative Director, Iris Atlanta, USA

PJ Eales, Executive Creative Director, Machine Cape Town, South Africa

Ioana Filip, SVP Global Executive Creative Director, Energy BBDO, USA

Chris Gokiert, Chief Creative Officer, Critical Mass, Canada

Aste Gutierrez, Creative Director, Droga5, USA

Kia Heinnen, Creative Director, Droga5, USA

Takahiro Hosoda, Executive Creative Director, TBWA HAKUHODO, Japan

Michelle Lassman, Head of Creative, AKQA, USA

Myles Lord, Managing Creative Director, Serviceplan, Germany

Sandra Luciano, Creative Director Retail, Saatchi & Saatchi, USA

Anil Nair, Chief Executive Officer, VMLY&R, India

Sergio Leon Novoa, VP of Content & Experience, Sancho BBDO, Colombia

Viral Pandya, Partner, Cog Digital, India

Allison Pierce, Global Chief Creative Officer, Intel VMLY&R, USA

Jason Romeyko, Worldwide Executive Creative Director, Serviceplan, Germany

Ramanuj Shastry, Co-Founder, Infectious Advertising, India

David Weinstock, Partner & Chief Creative Officer, Decoded Advertising, USA

Polina Zabrodskaya, Creative Director, AMVBBDO, United Kingdom

Nicolas Zarlenga, Chief Creative Officer & Partner, The Juju, Argentina

Kevin Zung, Chief Operating Officer, WMcCann, Brazil

All entries into the 2021 NYF Advertising Awards competition will be judged by 400+ members of NYFs Executive Jury and Grand Jury, a panel of prominent global creative minds, who collectively cast over 400,000+ votes to select the Worlds Best Advertising.

The deadline to enter the 2021 New York Festivals Advertising Awards is February 26, 2021. For more information on categories, rules and regulations or to review the 2021 entry guide visit: HERE. To enter this years competition, visit: HERE.
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A detailed analysis report of the Global Power Line Carrier Communications (PLCC) Market has been covered in the report coupled with a thorough description of each company profile with information on the H.Q, future capabilities, key mergers & acquisitions, financial outline, partnerships and new product launches and developments.

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The report classifies the PLCC market into different segments based on frequency, component, voltage level, modulation technique, vertical and application. These segments are studied in detail incorporating the market estimates and forecasts at regional and country level. The segment analysis is useful in understanding the growth areas and probable opportunities of the market.

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News Source  https://www.industrynewsengine.com/2020/11/19/power-line-carrier-communications-plcc-market-2020-covid-19-impact-analysis-report-2027/
Cambashi releases market analysis report that shows an $11bn market growing at 19.8% CAGR from 2020-24, identifies leading players, and analyzes trends

CAMBRIDGE, UK / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Cambashi, a leading global industry analyst and market consulting firm, today announced the release of the 2021 Industrial IoT, Connected Applications and Digital Transformation Market Analysis, Forecast and Trends report. This report, offered at an introductory price of $495 until the end of March 2021, will deliver critical data for any company looking to leverage IIoT as part of their company strategy for growth and competitive advantage.

The industrial IoT market is of great interest to software providers and investors as it is growing so quickly across so many different areas. At one time, numerous reports predicting enormous revenues and huge numbers of sensors, connections, and possible applications, tipped the promise of IIoT to the verge of hype.

Cambashi's 2021 report addresses the question 'whatever happened to the industrial IoT?' by focusing on Connected Applications software - which increasingly provides the foundation for industrial IoT implementations and Digital Transformation projects.

Most revenue from IIoT is generated by large, global, 'enterprise' software providers - mainly from an OT or IT background - with a long tail of smaller players. Although 'pure' IoT technology providers are growing quickly, they are less significant.

The market is still very fragmented, with providers large and small, from many different backgrounds. Some are totally focused on Connected Applications while others have entry-level operations or are 'testing the water.'

By defining nine Connected Market Areas and the most frequent Use Cases, Cambashi made substantial investments in research and analysis to measure the market, make accurate forecasts and identify trends with the granularity expected by strategists and IIoT experts.

Our research indicates that Connected Applications are becoming pervasive and support a growing market that providers should assess carefully.

This 2021 report:

Describes the IIoT landscape and how it will evolve.

Indicates six main trends and critical market drivers.

Identifies key players and possible disrupters.

Describes the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Uses metrics from Cambashi's IIoT and Connected Applications research - combined with other econometric sources - to make evidence-based market forecasts.

Predicts key scenarios that will occur during the evolution of the industry.

Provides a vital tool that global software providers can use for marketing and sales planning.

Provides investors critical insights to target investment opportunities.

To order the report at the introductory price, go to: https://cambashi.com/industrial-iot-connected-applications-and-digital-transformation-market-analysis-forecast-and-trends/

About Cambashi

Cambashi is a global market research, industry analysis, consulting & training firm, focused on engineering and industrial software markets (IoT, BIM, PLM, CAD/CAM/CAE, GIS).

We provide in-depth market intelligence and analysis, either in the form of licensed data services or custom consultancy projects, based on our comprehensive, consistent and multi-perspective datasets containing detailed information on software investment by country, industry and provider, and on the size of potential user communities. Executives rely on Cambashi for qualified, impartial intelligence for better plans & strategies and to align internal resources, capabilities, and product planning.

We apply our extensive industry knowledge to each client's unique situation and datasets can be customized to reflect your view of the market.

Our research also informs our unique suite of world class online industry training courses, which provides a comprehensive introduction to manufacturing and the various manufacturing industries.

For further information, please contact:

Dawn Fontaine

Ripple Effect Communications

+1 617-536-8887

dawn@rippleeffectpr.com

SOURCE: Cambashi

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630480/Whatever-happened-to-the-industrial-IoT
Merck, Novartis, IFC, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Children's Investment Fund Foundation, Dalio Philanthropies, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, ELMA Investments Ltd., Ford Foundation, MacArthur Foundation, Global Health Investment Corporation, CDC Group, Anthos Fund & Asset Management, and Others Join in Oversubscribed Debut Offering

NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Adjuvant Capital today announced an oversubscribed $300 million fund focused on accelerating the development of medical innovations for historically overlooked public health challenges. Launched in 2019, Adjuvant's debut fund will support promising new technologies for indications that the venture capital industry has largely ignored.

"Billions of people around the world live under constant assault from diseases like malaria, shigella, hookworm, tuberculosis, and Lassa fever, yet Wall Street and Silicon Valley typically pay little attention to these widespread challenges," said Glenn Rockman, managing partner at Adjuvant Capital. "As viruses like Ebola, Zika, and SARS-CoV-2 have clearly demonstrated, wealthy countries are vulnerable to these pathogens as well. Our new fund will finance cutting-edge research so we are better prepared for threats old and new alike, with the ultimate goal of saving or improving millions of lives by bringing urgently-needed drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, and medical devices to market."

Adjuvant has already backed 14 companies developing technologies for high-impact indications ranging from rare conditions, such as melioidosis, to widespread global emergencies, such as COVID-19. Each Adjuvant investment includes binding commitments to make any successfully commercialized products broadly accessible to underserved populations in low- and middle-income countries.

Diverse Coalition of Investors Committed to Global Health

To finance these ambitious goals, Adjuvant has assembled a unique coalition of conventional and catalytic investors, many of whom are also contributing scientific advice and emerging markets expertise. These investors-which include traditional asset managers, multinational biopharmaceutical companies, development finance institutions, and some of the world's largest foundations-all hope their balance sheets can increasingly support the march toward a safer, healthier, more equitable global community.

"A wide array of private, public and philanthropic partners have come together to help ensure the most promising health technologies and services are available to people most in need," said Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. "There is an important role for investment capital to play in stimulating innovation and making markets work for the poor, so that everyone has the chance to live a healthy, productive life."

In addition to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Adjuvant's investors include Anthos Fund & Asset Management, Beacon Pointe Advisors, CDC Group, the Children's Investment Fund Foundation, Dalio Philanthropies, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, ELMA Investments Ltd., the Ford Foundation, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Global Health Investment Corporation (with funding from the Government of Germany through KfW), Laerdal Million Lives Fund, Merck, Novartis, RockCreek, Sonanz, and The Sorenson Impact Foundation, among others.

Lutz Hegemann, Group Head for Corporate Affairs & Global Health at Novartis, noted that: "As a company focused on science-based innovation to address some of society's most challenging healthcare issues, we are pleased to invest in Adjuvant Capital as part of our holistic global health strategy. Novartis is committed to systematically integrating access strategies into how we research, develop, and deliver our new medicines to as many people as possible. Our investment in Adjuvant Capital complements these efforts, which we can only achieve through collaborations across sectors and industries."

"Merck's investment in Adjuvant's new fund demonstrates our commitment to impact investing as a creative and sustainable approach to improve healthcare for underserved populations globally. We are pleased to join the team at Adjuvant and the other partners and investors who share a common goal to advance promising scientific platforms to improve global health," said Julie Louise Gerberding, MD, MPH, Executive Vice President and Chief Patient Officer, Strategic Communications, Global Public Policy and Population Health at Merck.

Deploying Capital at a Rapid Pace, with a Rich Pipeline of New Opportunities

Highlights from Adjuvant's young portfolio include several companies poised to develop new solutions for rabies, yellow fever, group B streptococcus, non-hormonal contraception, chikungunya, herpes, respiratory syncytial virus, HIV, and COVID-19. Although based in the U.S., Adjuvant pursues the most promising technologies and talent globally, with investments in Nigeria, Bangladesh, and China, in addition to collaborations in India and Western Europe. Recent financings include:

New York -based Codagenix, which is using computational biology to "rationally design" vaccines for intractable public health challenges;

-based Codagenix, which is using computational biology to "rationally design" vaccines for intractable public health challenges; California -based ChromaCode, which is leveraging machine-learning and artificial intelligence to significantly increase the throughput of existing molecular diagnostic equipment;

-based ChromaCode, which is leveraging machine-learning and artificial intelligence to significantly increase the throughput of existing molecular diagnostic equipment; Lagos -based 54gene, which is using pan-African genetic data to drive discoveries in drug and vaccine development; and,

-based 54gene, which is using pan-African genetic data to drive discoveries in drug and vaccine development; and, Beijing -based Yisheng Biopharma, which is addressing chronic supply issues in the rabies vaccine market.

"Accelerating the widespread availability of emerging public health innovations is a smart business decision that has the potential to benefit millions of people, especially women and girls, in low-income countries," said Jenny Yip, managing partner at Adjuvant Capital. "We firmly believe that our investment model represents an innovative way to benefit both our investors and society at large."

Why Adjuvant's Investors Committed to this Fund:

Compiled here is a collection of quotes from select investors describing why they invested in Adjuvant's debut fund. With remarkable consistency, these investors express a shared vision for reducing health inequities by championing solutions for the most burdensome and the most neglected challenges, with the goal of bringing better health care to all by making affordable, effective solutions more widely accessible.

***

"Anthos Fund & Asset Management is proud and excited to be part of Adjuvant's new $300 million Global Health Technology Fund at a time when global health is a top priority for the world. The impressive management team and diverse group of Limited Partners are completely aligned on scaling and measuring impact while achieving a compelling financial return. We look forward to starting the journey together with Adjuvant bringing global health solutions to those who need it most."

- Dimple Sahni // Managing Director Impact Funds Portfolios // Anthos Fund & Asset Management

***

"Beacon Pointe Advisors is pleased to partner with Adjuvant Capital to provide our clients the opportunity to invest alongside renown mission-driven organizations in an effort to achieve a positive impact on global health with concurrent prospects of strong financial returns."

- Michael Dow // Chief Investment Officer // Beacon Pointe Advisors

***

"Access to healthcare for all is a fundamental part of CDC's mission. As a development finance institution, we have an important role to play in helping to deliver this using our patient capital. COVID-19 has shone a light on the need to strengthen healthcare ecosystems across the globe, and especially in developing countries. Investing in Adjuvant Capital is a crucial part of this journey; investing in world-class, tech-backed healthcare solutions will help bring vital medication to those who need it most."

- Nick O'Donohoe // Chief Executive Officer // CDC Group

***

"The Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) is proud to have been an early investor in Adjuvant's debut fund. Our belief in its strategy of backing new, innovative and price appropriate solutions to neglected diseases - which tend to disproportionately impact people in low and middle income countries (LMICs) - is today more relevant than ever. The Fund's strategy strongly aligns with our own belief in promoting health equity for the most economically disadvantaged, particularly children and women in LMICs. Adjuvant's impressive management team have been able to build a mission-aligned portfolio at significant pace, that is eminently scalable on both impact and return measures, which is the essence of impact investing."

- Imraan Mohammed // Head of Impact Investing // The Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF)

***

"We were very excited to encounter and ultimately invest with Adjuvant based on our efforts at the foundation to find investments that advance our core mission objectives in medical research and healthcare, while earning attractive returns to support our future grantmaking. Adjuvant's strategy offers promise to achieve those goals and so far they are delivering."

- Jeffrey Heil // Chief Investment Officer // Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

***

"There is a misconception that impact investing requires financial return concessions. We have long believed the opposite can be true, where mission-driven investment strategies can outperform traditional benchmarks, especially when a nuanced understanding of both the investment's clinical potential and the market into which the investment will be exploited are fully understood and carefully considered as part of one's due diligence. We hope Adjuvant will demonstrate that interventions creating tangible, long-lasting health benefits for all are not incompatible with traditional financial return objectives."

- Thomas McPartland // Chief Executive Officer // The ELMA Philanthropies Services (U.S.) Inc. and member of the Board of ELMA Investments, Ltd.

***

"We are excited to partner with Adjuvant Capital to provide greater access to promising health technologies across the Global South. This is a much-needed step towards reducing inequality in all its forms and will provide critical medical solutions for millions of people worldwide."

- Roy Swan // Director, Mission Investments // Ford Foundation

***

"The Global Health Investment Corporation, with the generous support of funding provided by the Government of Germany through KfW Development Bank, is pleased to support Adjuvant's new fund, which builds upon the impact investment model pioneered by the Global Health Investment Fund, and seeks to identify products and technologies that will improve global health and generate sustainable financial returns."

- Labeeb M. Abboud // Chairman // Global Health Investment Corporation

***

"At this critical time, bringing together the private sector, innovation, and new technologies, means having the ability to change the course of global health and save lives. IFC is excited to invest in Adjuvant's new fund, working together in emerging markets to create quality, accessible health care for all."

- Stephanie von Friedeburg // Interim Managing Director and Executive Vice President, and Chief Operating Officer // IFC, a member of the World Bank Group

***

"We are excited to support Adjuvant Capital as one of a select group of major investments that advance the MacArthur Foundation's Catalytic Capital Consortium initiative. Adjuvant is tackling some of the world's most pressing global health challenges, while also attracting conventional investors that are new to global health investing through a powerful, blended finance structure fueled by catalytic capital."

- Debra Schwartz // Managing Director, Impact Investments // John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

***

"Our mission is to invest in globally scalable technologies with the potential to meaningfully impact mortality by improving healthcare access, quality and outcomes for all populations regardless of demographics or geography. Adjuvant's investment thesis is perfectly aligned with these goals, and we are very bullish about the opportunity to save lives by financing the development of new and improved public health tools."

- Jeff Trost // Managing Partner // Laerdal Million Lives Fund

***

"RockCreek shares the mission with Adjuvant to develop novel global health solutions and deliver these technologies equitably- including the COVID-19 crisis. RockCreek looks forward to continuing this journey with Adjuvant motivated by our mutual belief in bringing vaccines, drugs and devices to underserved communities globally."

- Afsaneh Mashayekhi Beschloss // Founder and CEO // RockCreek

***

"Sonanz was founded with the belief that there is enormous untapped investment opportunity in essential sectors-such as healthcare, financial services, agriculture and environmental technologies-across growth markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Adjuvant is a natural partner for us in our healthcare vertical, and we share their conviction in the unseen value in this sector."

- Andreas Nilsson // Founder & Managing Director // Sonanz

***

"We are excited to partner with Adjuvant Capital to continue their efforts to fund innovative solutions to neglected, high burden infectious diseases, as well as women's and child health issues. The Adjuvant team has the potential to generate strong returns for investors, while funding game-changing healthcare solutions that have the potential to drive substantial social impact. Adjuvant's commitment to democratizing access to quality healthcare and investing in health equity is something we are incredibly proud to be a part of."

- Jim Sorenson // Founder // The Sorenson Impact Foundation

***

About Adjuvant Capital

Headquartered in New York, with offices in San Francisco and Zurich, Adjuvant is a global life sciences investment company built to accelerate the development of new technologies for the world's most pressing public health challenges. Backed by prominent healthcare and emerging market investors, Adjuvant draws upon its global network of scientists, public health experts, biopharmaceutical industry veterans, and development finance professionals to identify new investment opportunities. Adjuvant invests in companies developing promising new vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and medical devices targeting high-burden infectious diseases, maternal and child health, antimicrobial resistance, and malnutrition, with a commitment to make these interventions accessible to those who need them most in low- and middle-income countries. For more information, visit adjuvantcapital.com .

IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES

This document is for information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, an offer or solicitation with respect to the purchase or sale of any security, including an interest in any investment fund managed by Adjuvant. Interests in any such fund are not registered with any regulatory authority, are offered pursuant to exemptions from such registration, and are offered exclusively to certain qualifying investors pursuant to applicable fund offering documents. The testimonials included in this document are provided by persons invested with Adjuvant Capital who have agreed to provide commentary and are not directly or indirectly compensated by Adjuvant Capital for doing so.

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She propelled to fame on the 2018 series of Love Island as a 29-year-old air hostess.

And Laura Anderson, who was one of the oldest singletons on the show, has spoken out about how since leaving the villa she has been trolled relentlessly about her age.

In an interview with The Sun, the television personality, 31, has revealed the fickle side of fame and detailed how she's lost out on jobs to her peers due to being 'past it'.

Tough: Laura Anderson, 31, has spoken out about how since leaving the Love Island villa she has been trolled relentlessly about her age

Speaking about the hate she gets regarding her age, Laura said: 'I get called a "wrinkly, washed-up has-been" or they'll say, "You dont look a day over 50", tell me I'm "past it" or ask, "Why are you in a club? Go home, Grandma".

'If I'm pictured with a guy, theyll say I look like I could be his mum. There is this obsession with age and so much judgment over a womans appearance, which men simply dont get.'

Laura continued: 'I just hadn't experienced ageism before. But on the island it became very apparent that I was the older girl.'

Trolling: Speaking about the hate she gets regarding her age, Laura said: 'I get called a "wrinkly, washed-up has-been" or they'll say, "You dont look a day over 50"

During her stint on the ITV2 show, the Scottish beauty said she was horrified when her father had to get her birth certificate to prove she wasn't lying about her age.

And following her exit, Laura said she was constantly compared to her female co-stars who 'would definitely get jobs over me because they were younger'.

Laura said she was dropped from a high fashion brand campaign, which many Love Islanders go on to work with, because her 'age didn't fit the demographic' and because she 'wouldn't get any younger' the retailer couldn't commit to working with her.

Hurtful: During her stint on the ITV2 show, the Scottish beauty said she was horrified when her father had to get her birth certificate to prove she wasn't lying about her age

The reality star admitted the feedback, delivered by her agent, made her feel 'ashamed of my appearance and years on this planet'.

But while Laura has gone on to become establish as career as a successful influencer, she says she has also been targeted by trolls because she hasn't settled down.

She told the publication that trolls tell her she 'must be desperate' because her biological clock is ticking.

Confidence knock: The reality star admitted being rejected from jobs due to her age and the trolling made her feel 'ashamed of my appearance and years on this planet'

However, the star said she was adamant she didn't was to rush into marriage and start a family, and 'trusts the process' that she will find Mr Right eventually.

During the interview, Laura also spoke out about her split from her personal fitness boyfriend Tom Brazier, 37, last year.

The couple were an item for 15 months but Laura said they broke up because Tom was ready to settle down.

Describing the dumping as one of 'the most awful things I've done', Laura said she needed to take 'control of my life' and 'knew it wasn't right' between them.

The television personality has remained happily single since the break-up.
DALLAS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Reagan Lancaster ( SourceTap , Tige Investments , Intellect Software ) has announced that he and his team are offering a mentoring program for young executives and entrepreneurs in the area of general business experience in investing in 2021. This venture is near and dear to his heart, as Reagan has a passion for helping the up-and-coming leaders in business to excel to their greatest potential.

Coming up from a background in the software industry, Lancaster has a deep understanding of tech companies and companies tied to that vein, and will be focused on those specifically. Reagan Lancaster is also offering mentorship programs to CEOs of tech companies who are currently growing their businesses and looking to scale.

The sweet spot of these companies will be those accomplishing over $10 million in revenue to multiple billions and everything in between.

In addition, Reagan will be opening up his program to top sales leaders, offering vital wisdom and information on go-to-market strategies, something Lancaster is known world-wide for. Lancaster will be addressing the hottest markets and finding those key companies offering products that are usable and not over-engineered. Re-focusing on bringing true value to clients and sharing in that success.

Reagan's value-based approach made products free, and shared value in splitting the enhancements and benefits to companies back to their company. Lancaster and his team are excited for this venture, and looks forward to seeing the many lives being changed for the better.

Over the years Reagan Lancaster has provided mentorship opportunities to and continues to offer programs to:

Graduate & Doctorate Students

Young Revenue Officers

CEOs of Tech Companies

Technology Investors

Advertising & Marketing Leaders

Top Sales Professionals

Lancaster also offers mentoring for family offices and investors in the tech space.

For more information on Reagan Lancaster or to get in contact with his team regarding the mentorship program, please follow:

SourceTap - www.sourcetap.com

Intellect Software - www.intellect.software

Tige Investments - www.tigeinvestments.com

Follow Reagan on Social Media at:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/reagan-lancaster-3672a22/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/reagan.lancaster.3

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/reagan_lancaster/

About SourceTap

SourceTap is a management and consulting company (involved in over 2,000 startups) dedicated to helping technology companies of all sizes grow and develop to their fullest potential. A team of creative, experienced and knowledgeable software industry experts are here to provide execution plans to enable software businesses to execute their revenue plans.

SourceTap is a consulting service for technology companies looking to expand, grow, increase revenue, and achieve their financial goals. Led by Reagan Lancaster, SourceTap helps software companies to execute at a higher level with a focus on streamlined productivity and better revenue.

Whether your goal is to shatter your competition, go public, acquire another company, or grow to a level to be acquired, we at SourceTap can help. At SourceTap, our success can be contracted to your success. Let us make your company successful and let us share in your results. Give us a chance to take your software company to the next level.

Latest on Reagan Lancaster:

" Reagan Lancaster Celebrated for Dedication to the Field of Business Technology " - Reagan Lancaster has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

Link to full article: https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/478174/reagan-lancaster-celebrated-for-dedication-to-the-field-of-business-technology

Media contact - [email protected] - Clay Fox Creative

SOURCE Reagan Lancaster
Rotunda Rumblings

Energy bar: The Ohio Senate sent a bill to the House Wednesday afternoon that eliminates a part of 2019s House Bill 6 that guarantees revenue for FirstEnergy. Laura Hancock writes that this is the first time an Ohio legislative chamber has made a change to HB 6, even though the federal government announced a bribery probe around the bills passage over six months ago.

Bailout out? Legislation to repeal the centerpiece of HB6, a $1 billion-plus ratepayer bailout of two Northern Ohio nuclear power plants, will likely pass the Ohio Senate in a couple of weeks, Senate President Matt Huffman said Wednesday, according to Jeremy Pelzer. Meanwhile, a House committee heard testimony on five different bills to repeal all or part of HB6.

Second look: A Tuesday filing FirstEnergy made with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission brought new attention to a questionable $4 million payment the company made in early 2019 to an entity associated with someone who then took a state job regulating the energy industry. As Andrew Tobias writes, FirstEnergy officials used slightly more pointed language to describe the previously disclosed payment, which Gov. Mike DeWine has said went to former PUCO Chairman Sam Randazzo, with company officials saying it may have been for purposes other than those represented.

Plug-in play: Lordstown Motors, the startup company thats trying to begin mass-producing a fully electric pickup truck later this year, is asking state lawmakers to allow them to sell trucks to customers directly, bypassing the states dealership requirement. As Tobias reports, State Rep. Mike Loychik and state Sen. Michael Rulli announced legislation with company officials at a Statehouse news conference on Wednesday. They will face opposition from the Ohio Auto Dealers Association, which fought a legal battle against Tesla last decade before state lawmakers allowed the company to open three Ohio stores.

Vax comparison: The Kasier Family Foundation looks at the patchwork of coronavirus vaccination eligibility across the states. Some, such as Ohio, are vaccinating teachers. Some are vaccinating transit workers, but Ohio is not. Ohio and many states are not following federal guidelines when it comes to vaccinating ages 65-74, Pete Krouse writes.

Power struggle: The Ohio Senate sent to the House a bill that would curb Gov. Mike DeWines power to issue executive orders during the pandemic. Hancock reports that Senate Bill 22 was heavily amended Wednesday but still can limit orders to 30 days.

Flying through: The Senate also unanimously passed legislation to allow Ohio falconers to use owls for hunting. Senators passed the same measure last session, but it failed to take off in the Ohio House.

Flu away: From Northeast Ohio to across the state and country, the influenza season has turned out to be the mildest in memory, with few hospitalizations and deaths. Julie Washington writes that social distancing, wearing masks and other the coronavirus prevention measures have kept spread of the flu to a minimum.

Wednesday numbers: Ohio reported 1,816 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, along with 60 deaths, Hancock reports.

COVID drop by ZIP: A ZIP code by ZIP code look at new COVID-19 cases illustrates the scope of the sharply dropping case numbers in recent weeks. For example, the seven-county Greater Cleveland area has gone from about 30 ZIP codes with 200-plus cases less than two weeks old, as of mid-January, to none now, Rich Exner reports, along with a searchable database with details for every ZIP code in Ohio.

Dont call us, well call you: Theres no easy way for Ohioans to proactively find out from the state whether scammers have taken out unemployment benefits in their name, Pelzer finds. Rather, state officials advise obtaining a free credit report to search for signs of fraud and quickly reporting any signs of identity theft.

2022 watch: Mike Gibbons, a Cleveland businessman and likely U.S. Senate candidate, is asking the Ohio Republican Party not to issue endorsements for any race in the May 2022 primary election. In an open letter, he said open primaries would help keep the GOP unified enough to defeat Democratic candidates in November. Gibbons, viewed as a lower-tier candidate in the race, would benefit from a party non-endorsement.

Pension protection: Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown wants the latest coronavirus relief bill working its way through Congress to include his longtime priority of bolstering multi-employer pension plans whose shaky financial status threatens the retirement of 1.3 million workers and retirees around the nation, Sabrina Eaton reports. An estimated 60,000 Ohioans participate in affected pension systems that cover pools of union members who work for different companies in industries like trucking, mining and construction.

Water marks: The American Society of Civil Engineers, in an infrastructure report card, dinged Ohio oin drinking water, stormwater and inland waterways  noting underground pipes are aging and nearing the end of their effective life. Overall, the state received a C-minus in infrastructure, Cameron Fields writes.

Third C: JobsOhio, the states economic development agency, announced it will commit up to $100 million to create the Columbus Innovation District with Ohio State University and Nationwide Childrens Hospital serving as anchors. The districts goal is to increase STEM jobs, National Institutes of Health and life science research, and business development, the state announced Wednesday. Money will go to develop next generation energy systems, and trying to solve addiction, cancer and climate change challenges. This comes after health-care focused innovation districts that that were created in Cleveland and Cincinnati.

District pushes back: Officials in the states largest school district, Columbus City Schools, are criticizing DeWine for threatening to hold back vaccines if they cant return to in-person learning March 1. The district is struggling with low numbers of bus drivers, substitute teachers and other issues, the Dispatchs Alissa Widman Neece reports.

Murder charges: Bowling Green State University criminal justice professor Philip Stinson has crunched data of police officers in Ohio and elsewhere who have been charged with murder after fatal shootings over the past 16 years and found just seven have been charged in Ohio. Its even rarer for them to get convicted of murder, with no officers in the state being convicted, the Dispatchs John Futty reports.

Ohio betting norm: Gambling revenue nationally was down 31% in 2020, the American Gaming Association reported Wednesday. This means that Ohio weathered the COVID-19 closings a little better than the rest. Exner reported earlier that gambling revenue was down 26% last year at Ohios 11 casinos and racinos, despite record months when the facilities were fully open.

Snowjob: We know this isnt politics, but who doesnt talk about snow? With that in mind, here are how the big cities stack up for snow this winter, through Tuesdays storm: Youngstown (51.2 inches), Akron-Canton (42.8), Cleveland (40.3), Cincinnati (27.2), Dayton (26.5), Columbus (25.1) and Toledo (22.8), Exner reports.

Lobbying Lineup

Here are five groups that lobbied on House Bill 136, which banned the death penalty for offenders deemed to be seriously mentally ill at the time of the offense. State disclosures dont indicate whether groups are opposed or supportive of an issue they lobby on.

1. Catholic Conference of Ohio

2. Death Penalty Action

3. Department of Rehabilitation and Correction

4. Ohio Attorney Generals Office

5. Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association

On The Move

Gov. Mike DeWine has named LeeAnne Cornyn Director of Cabinet Affairs to replace Ryan Burgess, who became CEO of Goodwill Columbus. Kristi Burre will succeed Cornyn as Director of the Governors Childrens Initiative.

Birthdays

Matt McClellan, chief of policy and communications at the Ohio Development Services Agency

Straight from the Source

Infrastructure week finally happened.

-State Rep. Casey Weinstein, a Hudson Democrat, commenting on an online video of the Trump Plaza Hotel and Casinos demolition in Atlantic City. Former President Donald Trump dedicated a week to trying to overhaul and strengthen the countrys infrastructure, but no sweeping legislation passed.

Capitol Letter is a daily briefing providing succinct, timely information for those who care deeply about the decisions made by state government. If you do not already subscribe, you can sign up here to get Capitol Letter in your email box each weekday for free.
TL;DR: Some Pennsylvania vaccine providers have for weeks been administering Moderna shots meant for second doses as first doses, leading to a dose shortage that could cause as many as 100,000 Pennsylvanians to have their vaccine appointments delayed. Read on for answers to some of your most pressing vaccination questions like: How long does immunity last? How do we track prevention? Does infection equal a dose of vaccine?

 Ellie Silverman (@esilverman11, health@inquirer.com)

What you need to know:

 Philadelphia public schools have pushed back their targeted date for reopening schools for prekindergarten through second grade to March 1. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is promising a majority of elementary schools will be open five days a week by the end of his first 100 days in office.

 Philadelphia likely wont expand to phase 1C of its vaccine rollout until the end of April.

 North Wildwood may host its annual St. Patricks Day parade this year despite the ongoing pandemic, claiming the holiday is religious and therefore exempt from the states gathering restrictions, Mayor Patrick Rosenello said.

 New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy still believes about 70% of his states adult population can be vaccinated by the middle of the year, though available doses have remained scarce.

 Philly Christians marked Ash Wednesday with to-go rituals, livestreamed services, and masked Masses.

 Whats going on in your county or neighborhood? We organized recent coverage of the coronavirus pandemic by local counties and Philly neighborhoods mentioned in the stories to make it easier for you to find the info you care about.

Local coronavirus cases

 The coronavirus has swept across the Philadelphia region and cases continue to mount. The Inquirer and Spotlight PA are compiling geographic data on tests conducted, cases confirmed, and deaths caused by the virus. Track the spread here.

Pennsylvania Department of Health officials said on Wednesday that some vaccine providers had for weeks been administering Moderna shots meant for second doses as first doses, leading to a shortage that could cause as many as 100,000 Pennsylvanians to have their first- and second-dose appointments delayed over the next three weeks. Montgomery County Board of Commissioners chair Valerie Arkoosh said she is furious over the shortage and lawmakers across the state are calling for accountability. Residents should proceed with their vaccine appointments unless they are contacted directly by the provider. Meanwhile, Philly is not affected by the dose errors occurring elsewhere in the commonwealth, a city spokesperson said. Infectious disease experts said a delay in administering doses is unlikely to make any difference in how well the vaccines work on an individual level.

Its possible that some vaccinated people can spread the virus unknowingly, Brianne Barker, a Drew University biologist who studies the immune systems response to viruses, told my colleague Tom Avril. So although a vaccine may prevent disease, it may not prevent the virus from invading and making copies of itself  the definition of infection. Avril writes. This is why experts say we need to keep up the mask-wearing. Read more for answers to some of your most pressing questions like: How long does immunity last? How do we track prevention? Does infection equal a dose of vaccine?

Helpful resources

You got this: When you dont need to quarantine after being vaccinated

New Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance says that once youre fully vaccinated, you dont need to quarantine if youre exposed to someone with COVID-19, as long as you meet certain qualifications. My colleague Grace Dickinson breaks down those requirements, and who they apply to, in this story.

 Im sitting at home during the pandemic. Youre going out. How to make sense of these friendships now.

 Need a bike in the Philly region? Or need to get your old one fixed up? Heres where to start.

 Your neighborhood restaurant is now your grocery store, due to the pandemic. Here is a list of restaurants and cafes offering groceries.

Have a social distancing tip or question to share? Let us know at health@inquirer.com and your input might be featured in a future edition of this newsletter.

What were paying attention to

Enjoy getting our journalism through email? You can also sign up for The Inquirer Morning Newsletter to get the latest news, features, investigations and more sent straight to your inbox each morning Sunday-Friday. Sign up here.
ROCHESTER, Minn. - Rochester police issued a warning Thursday that thieves in Rochester may be going around town looking to steal vehicles that are warming up.

Police said a 2013 Chevy Impala was taken from the 2800 block of Knollwood Dr. SE as it was unlocked and warming up early Thursday.

Police said the circumstances of this care are important because someone drove up to the vehicle and let another person get out to take the vehicle.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Dish TV India jumped 4.29% to Rs 12.4 after the company said that its board approved raising upto Rs 1,000 crore through permissible modes in one or more tranches.

The board, at its meeting held on 17 February 2021 considered various options for fund raising and granted in principal approval to explore and initiate the process of fund-raising through permissible modes and issue of permissible securities, for an amount upto Rs 1,000 crore, in one or more tranches ('Issue'), in accordance with applicable laws.

Dish TV India is engaged in the business of direct to home (DTH) and teleport services. The company's segments include DTH and teleport service, and infra support services. It is also engaged in the business of broadcasting of other satellite telecommunications activities.

On a consolidated basis, the company posted a net profit of Rs 86.41 crore in Q3 FY21 as against a net loss of Rs 66.77 crore in Q3 FY20. Net sales declined 6% to Rs 815.67 crore in Q3 FY21 over Q3 FY20.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
New Delhi/Gurugram, Feb 18 : In the wake of the farm unions' four-hour 'rail roko' demonstration on Thursday, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) has stepped up security measures and deployed 20 additional companies across Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Punjab and Haryana to prevent any untoward incident.

Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), the umbrella body of 40 farm unions, has called for the rail blockade from 12 pm to 4 pm.

Speaking to IANS, RPF Director General Arun Kumar said, "We have made additional deployment across the country and also coordinated with the state agencies and state police." He said, "They (state police) are also deployed and the CRPF has been deployed at several places." When asked, if there has been additional measures in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab, as the farmers have been camping at several borders of the national capital since November 26 last year, he said, "Nothing specific for Delhi. In northern railways, which covers areas like Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, additional measures have been taken up." He said that the RPF has deployed 20 additional companies across Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and poll bound West Bengal.

"Railways has appealed for peace. We will have additional security focus across Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Twenty additional companies of RPF have been deployed," Kumar said.

Besides the RPF, the Railway ministry has put the Government Railway Police (GRP) on high alert. Even senior officials conducted checking at railway stations and have identified vulnerable spots.

During the last week Budget Session, the Railway ministry informed that the national transporter had suffered a loss of Rs 1,462.45 crore in Financial Year 2020-21 due to various agitations or strikes including dharnas at platforms and near tracks.

Meanwhile, in Gurugram , the RPF, GRP and the district police have also beefed up the security deployment in view of the 'rail roko' protest.

The Gurugram police along with the RPF and the GRP have been carrying out security checks at Patli railway station where the SKM had announced to hold peaceful protest against the farm laws.

So far, the movement of the trains were not disrupted and are running as per the scheduled time.

"As per the scheduled programme, we will be holding the demonstration from 12 pm to 4 pm. We will ensure that no harms is caused to any railway property and no passenger face any inconvenience. We will not stop any train. The farmers' demostration will continue till the government withdraws all the three 'black' laws," SKM Gurugram president, Chaudhary Santokh Singh said.

Meanwhile, the police officers said they are keeping hawk-eye vigil on the anti-social elements.

"Special duties have been assigned to stop protesters from occupying railway tracks. Adequate number of force have been deployed at all the railway station in Gurugram region. We will not allow anyone to disrupt movement of trains. Legal action will be initiated against those who to create any disturbance," said a senior police officer on requesting anonymity.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
The Cooperation and Verification Mechanism for Romania and our country's accession to Schengen, a "legitimate objective" that remains valid through a "possible gradual procedure", were among the topics addressed by the chairman of the Senate Foreign Policy Committee, Titus Corlatean, and the ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Romania, Cord Meier-Klodt, a Senate release reads, according to AGERPRES.

According to the source, during the meeting, the two dignitaries highlighted the excellent bilateral relations between the two states and expressed the desire to strengthen and intensify, for the benefit of the two countries, with a particular interest granted to the parliamentary mechanisms - the Committees for Foreign Policy and the parliamentary friendship groups

"The two officials made an assessment of the Romanian and German presidencies of the Council of the EU, in particular in relation to the promotion of complex dossiers important for the European cohesion, which involved a significant compromise effort on the part of European political actors," the release said.

In this context, senator Titus Corlatean appreciated the initiative for promotion, as a priority of the German Presidency, of the European Union's accession to the European Convention of Human Rights, also an essential objective for the other European organisation, partner of the EU, that is the Council of Europe.

At the same time, the need for close and predictable cooperation between the competent authorities of the two countries for the proper management of the file of Romanian seasonal workers was analyzed, with the assurance of respect for their rights and health safety rules.

"The electoral prospects of this year's autumn in Germany, as well as the domestic political developments in Romania, were also brought to mind. In this context, senator Corlatean mentioned his concern for the rise in recent years of hate speeech, which can generate extremely negative consequences in society and requires a corresponding intervention on the part of state institutions, under the law, but also on the part of Romania's external partners," the release added.
Billionaire Ajay Piramal moved a step closer to acquiring bankrupt mortgage financier Dewan Housing Finance Corp. Ltd (DHFL) with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) clearing its insolvency resolution plan.

We understand RBI has approved the DHFL resolution plan from Piramal Capital and Housing Finance Ltd, submitted by the CoC (committee of creditors)," Piramal Group said in a statement on Thursday. Piramal Capital is the non-bank lending unit of group flagship Piramal Enterprises Ltd. The Reserve Bank has, however, declined to transfer Dewan Housing Finance Corp.s deposit-taking licence to Piramal Group as part of the takeover, a person aware of the details of the resolution process said on condition of anonymity.

More than 55,000 retail and institutional investors hold 5,375 crore worth of fixed deposits in Dewan Housing Finance Corp. Lenders to the troubled lender are now in the process of approaching the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) with the resolution proposal for a final approval.

The Reserve Banks decision comes a month after Piramal Group outflanked Oaktree Capital and several other rival suitors in a bidding contest for Dewan Housing Finance Corp.

On 15 January, creditors to Dewan Housing Finance Corp. voted in favour of Piramals resolution plan, garnering more than 94% of the votes.

Its closest rival, US-based Oaktree Capital, secured around 45% votes, while Adani Capitals bid received 18%.

Piramal and Oaktree were engaged in an intense bidding war to take control of Dewan Housing Finance Corp., which had collapsed under the weight of a severe liquidity crunch after Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd, then Indias largest non-bank financier, defaulted on payment obligations in late 2018.

DHFL was referred to a bankruptcy court in December 2019 after it was seized by the central bank in a surprise move.

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Martha Kalifatidis successfully transitioned from reality star to bona fide influencer after appearing on Married At First Sight two years ago.

And the 32-year-old put on an eye-popping display earlier this week as she posed for a photo on Instagram in a $49 dress that has sent fans into a buying frenzy.

She looked sensational in the budget frock from Glassons while standing in front of a stylish pink doorway.

Scroll down for video

The dress sending Australia wild: Married At First Sight's Martha Kalifatidis modelled a $49 dress from Glassons on Instagram earlier this week, and it's now flying off the shelves

Martha showed off her sensational curves in the purple mini-dress, which featured cut-out panelling at the sides and midsection.

The thigh-high dress' plunging neckline also did little to contain her ample cleavage.

'Best foot forward in @glassons,' she captioned the sponsored post.

This skintight number sold out across Australia last year, and its second release is expected to do this same.

Steal her style: Martha's post sent fans into a buying frenzy as they tried to buy the cheap dress

Get it before it's gone! This skintight number sold out across Australia last year, and its second release is expected to do this same

Now that's influential! An Aceology Skincare sheet mask that Martha promoted last yeas sold out online within hours of her wearing it on Instagram

So that's her secret! Martha appears to be a huge fan of the brand, with the reality TV villain using the masks to prep for her now infamous Logies appearance in 2020

In April last year, Martha sent fans into a frenzy after wearing Aceology Skincare's Green T Infusion Gel Mask on Instagram.

After posting about the mask, it completely sold out online within 18 hours.

The Aussie beauty brand confirmed the news to Daily Mail Australia, stating they had received 'an influx of email requests and Instagram messages' about the mask after Martha wore it.

Influential: Three of the dresses Ines Basic wore on Married At First Sight in 2019 sold out in stores overnight, beginning with the camouflage zip dress she wore during her rendezvous with Sam Ball (pictured)

She's not the only participant from Married At First Sight to become a major influencer, with Ines Basic's memorable outfits from the show selling out in stores overnight after she wore them two years ago.

While her style is somewhat understated compared to some of her more glamorous co-stars like Martha and Elizabeth Sobinoff, Ines has undoubtedly become the most influential when it comes to fashion.

Three of the dresses she wore on the program sold out in stores overnight, beginning with the camouflage zip dress she wore during her rendezvous with Sam Ball.
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Traders Union's Research Department experts published the results of a comprehensive study of Forex brokers' activities, comparing them against a strict protocol containing over 100 criteria, resulting in a list of the Best Forex Brokers for 2021.

Top 5 best brokers in the Forex market

Traders Union is the largest global community of traders, which has been providing its services since 2010. During this time, the number of members of the Union has exceeded 300,000.

An expert assessment of all Forex brokers' activities has once again confirmed that FxPro remains the leader of the Forex market. According to the study results, the indicators of the trade turnover of FxPro have proven that FxPro is once again the best Forex broker. This result is primarily due to the broker's customer orientation and its constant improvement of the most suitable conditions for trading.

The main competitors of FxPro are XM Group and Admiral Markets UK brokers. Their indicators are almost equal, but at the moment, these companies cannot compete with the market leader in terms of customer turnover. However, they demonstrate a high level of service.

This time, with a margin of only 0.1 points, the second place went to XM Group, and Admiral Markets UK received bronze.

Fierce competition in the top three leaders in the Forex broker rating did not allow AvaTrade to return to the Top 3. However, its indicators grew significantly compared with the results of the previous study. Experts note that in the struggle for leadership, AvaTrade is making serious attempts to stay ahead of its closest competitors.

According to the results of the research, the fifth line of the rating was taken by the FXTM company, having displaced the FXCM broker among the Top 5 list of the Best Forex Brokers.

How the rating of the best Forex brokers is updated

The basis for updating the rating of the Best Forex Brokers is an audit of each company's basic parameters, which is carried out according to a unique methodology developed by the experts at Traders Union. The principles of data objectivity and independence of experts from brokers underlie this methodology. Each broker is checked according to several uniform criteria that form five main functional groups:

First group: Financial.

Second group: Economic.

Third group: Clients.

Fourth group: Service.

Fifth group: Reputation.

Within each category of criteria, a separate rating list of brokers is formed based on the checked results. All these lists are thoroughly investigated, and a single rating of the best brokers is compiled. Thus, the Traders Union's main goal is achieved: the creation of the most objective and independent rating of Forex's best brokers.

Reference: Traders Union is the largest global community of traders, which has been providing its services since 2010. During this time, the number of members of the Union has exceeded 300,000.

Related Images

top-5-best-forex-brokers-of-2021.jpg

Top 5 Best Forex brokers of 2021: TU Research

Traders Union is the largest global community of traders, which has been providing its services since 2010. During this time, the number of members of the Union has exceeded 300,000.

SOURCE Traders Union
Regarding the Feb. 13 Editorial Board Roundtable about the likelihood of Amtrak substantially increasing service in the Buckeye state (Amtrak bringing new passenger rail service to Cleveland and Ohio?), which was reprinted in Mass Transit magazine: As a 40-year resident of southwestern Ohio now living in New Hampshire, much as I support public transit, I feel Amtraks proposal is a nonstarter.

In the southwest corner of the state, Amtrak could make great strides in improving its service by making the Cardinal serving Cincinnati into a daily train, instead of a triweekly train. With the establishment of a daily Cardinal, it could institute stops in Hamilton (population 62,000) and at Oxford (Miami University, enrollment 20,000).

Political leadership in Columbus is needed. Former Gov. John Kasich and current Gov. Mike DeWine have demonstrated an antipathy toward the movement of people thats not autocentric. Until the legislature, business and the population are even neutral on the question of rail passenger service and the necessity of good, state-supported mass transit, all bets are off.

Herbert Pence,

Manchester, New Hampshire
Abuja, Nigeria (PANA)  Global human rights group, Amnesty International and the United Nations Childrens Fund (UNICEF) have condemned Wednesdays abduction of 42 persons by bandits at the Government Science College, Kagara, Niger State, saying attacks on schools undermine the right to education
Celebration of Spring Festival in China. Credit: Zheng Lin

Most Chinese working in the cities return to work today after a seven-day public holiday, Spring Festival. The annual Spring Festival, which also marks the start of Chinese New Year, traditionally begins with the second new moon following the winter solstice, usually in January or February. Like westerners on Thanksgiving and Christmas, people across China return to their hometown to reunite with family and friends. However, the sudden outbreak of COVID-19 last year halted the largest holiday mobilization in the world. In response to the crisis, in late 2019, local governments launched lockdowns and behavior restrictions that reduced short-term economic and social activity. Despite the negative aspects of the pandemic, reduced human activity provided a unique opportunity for atmospheric scientists to study the impact of an unprecedented intervention on air quality.

COVID-19 lockdowns have reduced carbon dioxides, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxides, all byproducts of fuel combustion used in transportation and manufacturing. These gases are closely linked to human activity, so not surprisingly, their atmospheric concentration responds quickly to economic change. Studies are showing significantly reduced airborne ammonia as well, despite the believed-to-be strong link to agricultural sources, especially in rural areas.

"We don't think this finding is surprising as the major source of ammonia in urban Beijing was found to be combustion sources rather than agricultural emissions," says atmospheric scientist Dr. Yuepeng Pan of the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Still, some researchers are startled by the substantial decrease of ammonia amid lockdowns, given that idle agricultural activities during Spring Festival holidays typically reduce ammonia levels. In an earlier study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, Dr. Pan and his group tracked and corrected isotopic signatures of ammonia sources with updated active sampling. They found that that non-agricultural emissions contributed to 66% of ammonia in urban Beijing.

While debate continues regarding ammonia sources in the urban atmosphere, the lockdowns that canceled Spring Festival celebrations provided an unprecedented opportunity to check whether fossil fuel combustion is a major source of ammonia in the air within urban regions. Ideally, relatively low ammonia concentrations should be observed if vehicular emissions are reduced due to travel restrictions during the Spring Festival.

"In addition to nitrogen isotopic evidence, the new finding in lockdowns offers additional insight for the prioritization of future clean air actions on ammonia reduction," said Dr. Pan. However, quantifying this unique scenario remains challenging as meteorological processes may mask the effective change in observed ammonia concentrations.

Pan and his collaborators introduced machine learning algorithms to models that separated these meteorological influences. They confirmed that the actual atmospheric ammonia concentration dropped to a new minimum during the 2020 Spring Festival at both urban (Beijing) and rural (Xianghe) sites. In a scenario analysis without lockdowns, ammonia concentration calculations were 39.8% and 24.6% higher than the observed values in 2020 at urban and rural sites, respectively. Their recent findings are published in Atmospheric Research.

"Future control strategies should consider the emissions of ammonia from the transportation, industrial and residential sectors, considering that agricultural emissions are minor in cold seasons." remarked Pan.

The significant difference between the two sites indicates a larger reduction of ammonia emissions in urban areas than rural areas due to lockdown measures of COVID-19 which have reduced human activity.

Explore further Isotopic evidence for enhanced fossil fuel sources of aerosol ammonium in the urban atmosphere

More information: Yuexin He et al, Changes of ammonia concentrations in wintertime on the North China Plain from 2018 to 2020, Atmospheric Research (2021). Yuexin He et al, Changes of ammonia concentrations in wintertime on the North China Plain from 2018 to 2020,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosres.2021.105490
I was contacted in October 2017 by a reliable source to inform me a plan was in place for Portlaoise Hospital and it was important I see it.

This document was signed off on by HSE chief Dr Susan O Reilly and clearly set out that important services were been taken out of Portlaoise.

It stated: We will develop a 24/7 General Practitioner referred medical assessment unit and a 12/7 local injuries unit in Portlaoise in line with national clinical care programmes model of care. It elaborated we will expand the emergency department capacity, principally in Tallaght and the MRH Tullamore.

In the autumn of 2017 Laois citizens stood up and made it very clear to Government that any attempt to downgrade Portlaoise would carry a very heavy political price.

So with absolute clarity, this meant Portlaoise was to have merely a medical assessment unit and a 12/7 i.e. 8am-8pm local injury unit. No round the clock Emergency Department (ED) and none of the services and facilities dependent on this, such as the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The expansion of ED capacity in Tullamore and Tallaght would cater for patients that Portlaoise previously treated.

I brought this to the attention of the hospital staff and the public. Its fair to say what followed was one mighty campaign to retain services that heaped pressure on the Government. All those that helped to organise or attended meetings and the massive street protest deserve credit. You ensured that the brakes were put on the Department and HSE plan.

Imagine what would have happened during this pandemic had the ED, ICU beds, critical care beds and other core services been removed? How many more would have lost their lives?

The staff have given their all over the past year. They have saved countless lives and made huge efforts to save every life. They treated hundreds of very sick patients and helped them recover. In doing so they put themselves at risk of serious illness or worse.

Over the past three years Portlaoise has become busier. Funding to it has increased and additional accommodation has been constructed. All of this is very welcome. However, it doesnt take away the desire of those in powerful positions to remove services like the Emergency Department and ICU beds from what they deem small hospitals like Portlaoise.

The argument for the retention of services is undeniable. However, three years on there is no plan to secure and develop them in Portlaoise. No blueprint has been put forward to replace the one revealed in 2017. This causes obvious problems, such as recruitment and retention of senior clinicians and specialist staff along with localised planning of services. There is also the risk of future attempts to remove core services.

Imagine what would have happened during this pandemic had the ED, ICU beds, critical care beds and other core services been removed?

Covid 19 has underlined the need to strengthen our health services and increase capacity to average EU levels. What is required for Portlaoise is certainty and a plan, not just to retain services, but to expand them to cater for the growing population of Laois and beyond. The ED must be retained at all costs and expanded.

Portlaoise and other hospitals are been considered for a Respiratory Assessment Unit (RAU), this would also mean the expansion of the existing E D and create badly needed space to cater for general emergency admissions.

Portlaoise ED is one of the busiest outside Dublin, with an average of 40,000 attending annually and this cannot be ignored. An investment such as this in the ED would also help guarantee its future, something that has not yet been forthcoming from Government.

In the autumn of 2017 Laois citizens stood up and made it very clear to Government that any attempt to downgrade Portlaoise would carry a very heavy political price.

As we emerge from Covid, we must renew our determination to secure the ED and other core services in our hospital.
This is loyalist killer Michael Stone - pictured for the first time since being freed from jail - enjoying a seaside walk.

The security-conscious Milltown Cemetery bomber was seen putting on a bulletproof vest after arriving. He then embraced his wife Karan before the pair, arm in arm, walked the seafront with their dog.

Stone (65), who appeared to have a security tag on his left arm, was dressed in jeans, trainers, a black T-shirt and flat cap.

Before he and his wife headed off for their stroll, Stone put on a coat and - mindful of the Covid-19 pandemic - a Union flag-themed face mask.

He was also seen walking with the aid of a crutch.

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They are the first pictures to emerge since Stone was controversially released on parole last month.

The killer, who was not due for release until 2024, was freed on January 26.

The move infuriated victims, who have taken a legal challenge over the decision by parole commissioners.

An onlooker said Stone appeared relaxed as he strolled along the seafront, enjoying this week's sunnier weather.

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One of Northern Ireland's most notorious terrorists, Stone was jailed for life following a gun and grenade attack at Milltown Cemetery.

He attacked the funerals of IRA members, shooting and lobbing grenades into the crowd in March 1988.

Mourners had been attending the joint funerals of three IRA members, Daniel McCann, Sean Savage and Mairead Farrell, who were shot dead by the SAS in Gibraltar.

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Stone's attack killed three people - civilians Thomas McErlean (20) and John Murray (26), and 30-year-old IRA man Kevin Brady.

After his arrest, he admitted to three other murders, including killing Catholic milkman Patrick Brady (36) in south Belfast in 1984.

He also admitted the killings of joiner Kevin McPolin in Lisburn in 1985 and bread delivery driver Dermot Hackett near Drumquin in Co Tyrone two years later.

Stone was released in 2000 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.

However, he was sent back to jail in 2006 after an attempt to murder Sinn Fein leaders Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness at Stormont.

He entered Parliament Buildings armed with explosives, knives and an axe, but bizarrely claimed the episode was an act of performance art.

He was told in 2013 that he must serve the rest of the 30-year tariff on his life sentence.

Stone, a father of nine, married his third wife Karan in a ceremony at Maghaberry Prison in 2016.

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Whatsapp Michael Stone and his wife Karan following his release from prison

Last November the Court of Appeal overturned a decision that he must remain behind bars until 2024, with judges ruling that the six years he spent out on licence should count towards the 30-year tariff.

It infuriated relatives, with Deborah McGuinness, the sister of Milltown victim Mr McErlean, saying she was afraid Stone would approach her family.

She has launched a judicial review into the lawfulness of the decision to free him, with parole commissioners ordered to disclose the reasons.

Since his release, Stone has been keeping a low profile, with these photographs marking his first public sighting in years.
She made it sound like a Mickey Mouse operation.

A former Disney accountant is suing the company, claiming the Mouse House manipulated its finances and then fired her for blowing the whistle.

Sandra Kuba, a former top financial analyst at Disney, filed the lawsuit Tuesday, the Orlando Sentinel reported. She asked for unspecified damages.

In the suit, Kuba says she discovered billions of dollars in phony revenue while working for Disney Financial Services, according to the Sentinel. Kuba said she reported it to her bosses, who did nothing.

The lawsuit says she responded in 2017 by going all the way to Walt Disney World Resort President George Kalogridis with her complaint, the Sentinel reported. Kuba says the company responded by threatening her.

In 2017, Kuba filed a whistleblower complaint with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. That complaint was publicly revealed in 2019, and Disney blasted it as utterly baseless.

The company responded similarly to Tuesdays lawsuit, according to the Sentinel, vowing to fight the suit and calling it meritless.

Kuba, who filed the complaint while on medical leave, said she was fired as soon as she returned to work, the Sentinel reported. She said the company fired her in retaliation for the SEC complaint.

Disney was also accused of accounting chicanery by Bill Nye the science guy in 2017. Nye sued the company and said he was owed millions for work on his show. Legal proceedings are ongoing, with a lengthy pretrial hearing ending earlier this month, Pasadena Now reported.
Woodbine Mohawk Park would like to inform all horsepeople the entry box for this Monday (Feb. 22) has been left open until Friday morning (Feb. 19) at 10:30 a.m. (EST).

Conditions have been added to the sheet for Mondays program. Horsepeople are urged to review the new and existing conditions.

The condition sheet for Mondays card is available here.

(Woodbine Mohawk Park)
A San Francisco man found dead Monday after his family reported him missing last month was discovered in a crawl space above the bathroom of his Mission District apartment, police said Wednesday.

San Francisco police said they do not suspect foul play in Christopher Woitels death and said Woitel probably accessed the crawl space from the roof of the building and not from inside his apartment.

Woitel, 50, was reported missing by his mother on Jan. 13 and had last communicated with her on social media on Jan. 9.

On Feb. 12, investigators with the Police Departments Special Victims Unit served a search warrant on Woitels home on Guerrero Street to locate evidence of a crime scene but did not find any signs of forced entry into his apartment, or evidence of a crime in that initial search, police said.

On Feb. 15, detectives with the Special Victims and Crime Scene Investigations units served a second search warrant at the home In furtherance of the investigation, this time looking into a small, roughly 3-foot tall crawl space above the bathroom, where they found Woitels body. Police said the area was hidden from plain view.

San Francisco firefighters cut a hole in the ceiling to retrieve the mans remains, police said.

The medical examiners autopsy is still pending, and the cause of Woitels death was still unclear Wednesday.

In a previous statement from the family through a spokesperson, Woitels family urged the community to Please help us by preserving Chris legacy in your memories. Thank you for your love and caring support through these very difficult times.

Family members said they would not comment further until the medical examiner releases findings of Woitels autopsy, the family spokesperson said.

Lauren Hernandez is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: lauren.hernandez@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ByLHernandez
The Azerbaijani Ministry of Culture has issued an appeal in connection with the carpets stolen by Armenia.

"Proceeding from the information on the Armenpress.am website, an exhibition of carpets illegally taken from Shusha Carpet Museum on November 1, 2020 will be held on February 20, 2021 at the Alexander Tamanyan National Museum-Institute of Architecture in Armenia," the ministry said.

"We state that the so-called "Artsakh carpets" that will be showcased at the exhibition are samples of the national heritage of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is an integral part of Azerbaijan," the message said. "This exhibition is another theft and misappropriation of the cultural heritage of the Azerbaijani people by the Armenians."

"The samples of cultural heritage were illegally taken by Armenia from the internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan and delivered to other country," the message said. "This is the violation of international law in accordance with the 1954 Hague Convention of UNESCO and article 19 of its Second Protocol, as well as article 11 of the 1970 Convention."

"Thus, the Armenian government is fully responsible for this. Moreover, a carpet is such a unique work of art, which is a source of important information about the history of the region in which it has been woven, about belonging to the people who live in this territory. The main goal of showcasing Azerbaijani carpets as Armenian is to falsify the history of the Nagorno-Karabakh region," the message said. "The composition, patterns and colors of these carpets, which have been woven in these lands from time immemorial, prove once again that the Nagorno-Karabakh region is one of the ancient cultural centers of Azerbaijan."

"The art of carpet weaving is one of the samples of the unique heritage that the Azerbaijani people gave to humanity in ancient period," the message said. "Thats why, Azerbaijani carpet weaving was recognized by UNESCO as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2010. This tradition is widespread and developed in every district of Azerbaijan. Historically there were eight main schools of carpet weaving in Azerbaijan, each of them differed in its patterns and colors.

"Historically, Armenians were not engaged in carpet weaving, they only sold carpets. While selling, they tried to form a false idea, presenting Azerbaijani carpets as Armenian ones. Yakov Zedgenidze, who conducted research in the Nagorno-Karabakh region in the 19th century, stressed that the entire Muslim population was engaged in carpet weaving and the Nagorno-Karabakh carpets rank first in the entire Caucasus both in quantity and quality," the message said. "The researcher also wrote that the Armenians were not involved in this art, on the contrary, they looked at carpet weaving as something "not worthy"."

"Thus, the demonstrative holding of an exhibition of samples, illegally taken out of the Carpet Museum in Azerbaijans Shusha city, under the auspices of the Armenian government is a vivid example of Armenia's disregard for the international conventions and UNESCO must act on this. The Azerbaijani Ministry of Culture will hold the necessary legal consultations with UNESCO on this issue," the ministry concluded.

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

IBM and 19 other companies have joined Amazon's Climate Pledge, committing to neutralize their carbon emissions, Amazon announced Wednesday. The new signatories include Seattle-based companies MiiR, the upscale thermos manufacturer, and consulting group Slalom.

All told, 53 companies have now signed the Climate Pledge. Members agree to measure and report their greenhouse gas emissions, decarbonize their businesses, and purchase offsets to bring their total carbon emissions to zero by 2040, 10 years ahead of the goal set by the Paris Agreement.

Environmental activists, including within Amazon, have said the scope of the climate catastrophe warrants more urgency than a 2040 deadline. Carbon offset programs, meanwhile, are controversial. Some have warned that poorly administered programs provide regulatory and public relations cover for big corporations to keep polluting without actually removing carbon from the atmosphere.

Some Climate Pledge signatories have said they'll act faster than Amazon on climate change. IBM has pledged to zero out its carbon emissions by 2030. Microsoft has said it will be carbon negative by that year, meaning it takes more carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere than it puts in.

The other new signatories of the Climate Pledge are Acciona, Colis Prive, Cranswick, Daabon, Free Now, Generation Investment Management, Green Britain Group, Hotelbeds, Iceland Foods, Interface, Johnson Controls, rsted, Prosegur Cash, Prosegur Compania de Seguridad, S4Capital, UPM and Vanderlande.

Explore further Amazon signs big allies in pledge to be carbon neutral

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Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


In California, wildfires and heat waves in recent years forced utilities to shut off power to millions of homes and businesses. Now, Texas is learning that deadly winter storms and intense cold can do the same.

The countrys two largest states have taken very different approaches to managing their energy needs  Texas deregulated aggressively, letting the free market flourish, while California embraced environmental regulations. Yet the two states are confronting the same ominous reality: They may be woefully unprepared for the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters caused by climate change.

Blackouts in Texas and California have revealed that power plants can be strained and knocked offline by the kind of extreme cold and hot weather that climate scientists have said will become more common as greenhouse gases build up in the atmosphere.

The problems in Texas and California highlight the challenge the Biden administration will face in modernizing the electricity system to run entirely on wind turbines, solar panels, batteries and other zero-emission technologies by 2035  a goal that President Biden set during the 2020 campaign.

Feb. 17SALEM, N.H.  The 72-year-old woman rescued by a neighbor earlier this month after a fire broke out at 3 Lou-Al Lane died over the weekend, according to Salem fire Chief Larry Best.

He learned of her death Monday, he said, 10 days after firefighters responded to the home on Arlington Mill Reservoir.

Best did not identify the woman, but town records say the home is owned by Maureen L. Butler. Her sister, Elaine Maher, confirmed that Butler lived there alone for about 12 years.

She said Butler died Feb. 13 at Massachusetts General Hospital, where she had been treated since the fire.

Her cause of death is undetermined, according to her sister, but her lungs suffered extreme smoke damage in the blaze.

According to Butler's obituary, she worked for the administrative department of the hospital where she died, at its Charlestown and later Boston campuses.

"Maureen will be remembered for her kind and generous nature. She loved children, she was a big kid at heart, and every year she loved participating in the Teamster's Toy Drive," the death notice reads.

She is described as a terrific sister and aunt whose love for her family was boundless.

A post on the Fire Department's Facebook page soon after their response explained that a call came in on Feb. 5 at 9:37 a.m.

At the time, all units were working at two other simultaneous incidents in the southern end of Salem. Responders freed up from the other calls were told someone was trapped at the Lou-Al Lane address.

The department posted that Salem Deputy Chief Brian Murray arrived at Lou-Al Lane at 9:45 a.m., where he reported a large fire coming from the second-floor windows of a house. The occupant had just gotten out with the assistance of a neighbor.

Maher said her sister spoke highly of that neighbor  a woman whose name she could not recall  even before the fire.

"They lived near each other. It's a small little area, where everyone knows each other, it sounds," she said. "Everyone was friendly."

Best said the fire remains under investigation by the Salem Fire Department and the New Hampshire State Fire Marshal's Office.

The chief offered condolences to the victim's family on behalf of the department.
16 killed, Catholic church burned by suspected Islamic rebels in DRC attack

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A suspected Islamic extremist group raid resulted in the deaths of 13 civilians and three soldiers, as well as the burning of a Catholic church on Sunday morning in the northeastern Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to an initial assessment.

Allied Democratic Forces, an Islamic terrorist group, was blamed by an army spokesperson for being behind the deadly massacre in Ndakya village.

But the groups involvement is not yet confirmed, according to Reuters. ADF has been prevalent in the area since the 1990s and killed around 850 people in 2020, according to a United Nations estimate.

Christophe Munyanderu, the coordinator of the Convention for the Respect of Human Rights, told the news agency that gunmen opened fire upon entering the village Sunday morning.

Army spokesperson Jules Ngongo Tshikudi stated that military troops are now occupying the village and four perpetrators were killed.

The United States-based persecuted church advocacy group International Christian Concerns Regional Manager for Africa Nathan Johnson said there is lots of violence in eastern DRC due to over 100 active rebel groups in the region.

He said ADF is one of the largest, most active militant groups and is believed to have ties to the Islamic State terrorist organization.

The attacks are daily, Johnson told CP. There is vast underreporting.

Even though DRCs population is around 95% Christian, violence from Islamic extremism continually worsens, especially in the eastern region.

Johnson said many Islamic militant groups aim to create an Islamic caliphate, which is difficult because the Christian population outnumbers them. He contends that many of the attacks are conducted to terrorize people and gain power in the area.

Johnson said several hundred had been killed already this year. The U.N. reported last July that intensified ADF attacks in the previous 18 months had resulted in over 1,000 people's deaths and could amount to crimes against humanity.

I ask for people to pray for those who have been killed and for their families, Johnson said. Thats the No. 1 thing were always asked for when were overseas is [for] prayer for them and their families.

Due to Islamic oppression, DRC is ranked No. 40 for Christian persecution on the 2021 Open Doors USA World Watch List, which ranks countries for their severity of persecution. This is the first time DRC ranked in the top 50. The country was ranked No. 57 last year.

Those rebel groups are just creating chaos, but people dont know that because nobody reports on it, Johnson said.

Johnson said the DRC government and military have had very little control in the eastern region for years and have largely been pushed hundreds of miles to the west toward the capital city of Kinshasa.

This is due to the high volume of rebel groups being pushed into eastern DRC from the neighboring countries of Uganda and Rwanda, especially during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

One of the things youll find is that the Western world really doesnt care too much about what goes on in Africa, specifically countries like DRC where theres just mass amounts of violence, Johnson asserted. Civil wars have been continuous basically for decades. The Western world doesnt care, ... neither do news agencies who are going to be getting money from what they report.

After attacks in the DRC in late December and early January, Open Doors Senior Analyst for Freedom of Religion or Belief in Sub-Saharan South Africa Illia Djadi said the DRC violence needs more attention. He said the majority of deaths in the DRC are believers.

These predominately Christian communities are attacked by an Islamic extremist group with a clear Islamic expressionist agenda, Djadi told Baptist Press. We need to pay attention to these events because whats happening in eastern DRC, the killing of innocent civilians on an almost daily basis, is an underreported tragedy.

In a late January report, Open Doors reported that Islamic extremists had killed at least 100 people, mostly Christians, in eastern DRC in 15 days.

Last October, suspected Islamic extremists reportedly killed at least 18 people and burned down a church along with several homes in the North Kivu province.

According to the Kivu Security Tracker, "at least 10 civilians were killed when suspected ADF extremists attacked Kalembo, a town in the Beni area of the North Kivu province, on Monday.
U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) speaks at a weekly news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, on Feb. 18, 2021. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Pelosi: Speaking Up for Human Rights in China Is About Honoring Our Values

WASHINGTONHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said on Feb. 18 that protecting human rights in China is about promoting American values, as well as defending U.S. national security and the economy.

Ive been working on human rights in China for over 30 years since Tiananmen Square. Its really important for the world to know that human rights are part of our value system, Pelosi said during a press conference in response to a question by The Epoch Times.

Better protection of human rights around the world is also about our national security, its about our military and our strength. Its about our economy, she said. We cannot sacrifice one for the other.

I salute the administration for honoring our values. How we go about it, is just weighing the equities, the House speaker said when asked about what policies the new administration should implement to change Beijings human rights practices.

[No matter] what form that takes, I would hope that it would change some behavior in China vis-a-vis Hong Kong, Tibet, Uyghurs.

President Joe Biden warned that Beijing would face repercussions for its human rights abuses during a town hall in Wisconsin on Feb. 16. He said the United States would reassert its role in speaking up for human rights at the United Nations and other agencies.

However, Biden came under fire for saying that culturally, there are different norms in each country when asked about Beijings repression of Uyghur Muslims in the far-western region of Xinjiang.

On Jan. 19, then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo designated the Chinese regimes persecution of Uyghurs as genocide and crimes against humanity. The Biden administration has agreed with the designation.

During his confirmation hearing last month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken stood by his predecessors determination that China is committing genocide in Xinjiang.

Beijings repression of Uyghurs, perpetrated through its network of internment camps and mass surveillance system, has drawn international condemnation. According to U.S. government estimates, more than a million Uyghurs and other Muslim minority groups are held without charge in Xinjiang internment camps.

The Trump administration placed sanctions on entities and individuals responsible for atrocities in the region. It also imposed a ban on all cotton and tomato products from Xinjiang over forced labor practices.

To designate Chinas Xinjiang atrocity as genocide is no small feat. The new administration agrees with us, and thats very reassuring, Miles Yu, former senior China policy adviser to Pompeo, told The Epoch Times American Thought Leaders program.

According to Yu, this designation is significant because it requires the new administration to formulate a wide range of both international and domestic policies to put pressure on the genocidal regime.

Pelosi said she was proud of the genocide designation as it sends a strong message to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Its also a strong statement for the people who have been detained and persecuted by the CCP without any charge, she said.

Its important for us to speak out so that those people know that they are not forgotten.

Pelosi also said that protection of human rights in China is a bipartisan issue, noting that many Republican lawmakers across the aisle, including Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and retired Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.), had been excellent on human rights throughout the world.

Theyve taken risks, theyve gone to prison-labor camps to collect evidence so that we could make our case here.


Securing long-term supply advances development of Company's proprietary VMT-??-GEN isotope generator, which enables a nimble supply of therapeutic radioisotopes with the power of alpha-particle therapy for cancer

CORALVILLE, IA / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Viewpoint Molecular Targeting, Inc. ("Viewpoint" or the "Company"), a radiopharmaceutical company developing precision -particle oncology therapeutics and complementary diagnostic imaging agents, today announced it has entered into an agreement with the National Isotope Development Center (NIDC) for the long-term supply of parent feedstock radionuclide Th-228 for the manufacturing of the Company's Ra-224/Pb-212 generator, VMT-??-GEN. The long-term agreement provides deliveries from 2021 through 2030.

In order to build a fully integrated alpha-particle radiopharmaceutical business, Viewpoint is securing the supply of therapeutic Pb-212 radioisotope for medical centers and regional radiopharmacies. To achieve this distinction, Viewpoint is developing its own proprietary benchtop production device (VMT-??-GEN) for delivering alpha-particle therapeutic isotope Pb-212. With a half-life of 10.6 hours, Pb-212 is ideally suited to deliver powerful alpha-particle therapy to cancerous tumors while representing a lower risk for off-target unintended effects and the potential for treatment on an outpatient basis.

Michael Schultz, Ph.D., Chief Science Officer of Viewpoint, commented, "This agreement is an important step that helps to de-risk our programs by providing a secure supplier of commercial levels of feedstock radionuclide Th-228, a raw material that is necessary for the production VMT-??-GEN. It also secures our position in building a fully-integrated alpha-particle radiopharmaceutical business with cancer-targeted ligands at preclinical and clinical stages of development."

?Radionuclide generators such as VMT-??-GEN are used commonly in radiopharmacies and nuclear medicine facilities across the world. The devices share a common characteristic of enabling the production of a purified chemical form of the radionuclide needed that can be easily combined with ligands that seek out cancerous tumors. Because the shelf life of VMT-??-GEN is based on a longer-lived radionuclide (Ra-224), a single shipment of VMT-??-GEN can be used to produce radiopharmaceutical doses daily for up to a week or more. The device can then be returned to the manufacturer in approved packaging to eliminate radioactive waste from the medical center or radiopharmacy.

?Viewpoint is establishing centrally located manufacturing facilities in the United States with the goal of enabling overnight shipments of a nimble supply of both its Pb-203 radiopharmaceutical imaging agents and cancer-targeted Pb-212 alpha-particle therapeutics for personalized image-guided therapies anywhere in the continental United States.

About the National Isotope Development Center

The National Isotope Development Center (NIDC) is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Isotope Program (DOE IP). It serves as an interface with the user community and manages the coordination of isotope production across the program facilities at Argonne, Brookhaven, Idaho, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Pacific Northwest National Laboratories. These facilities produce stable and radioactive isotopes in short supply using reactors, accelerators, and other methods.

The DOE Isotope Program supports the production and the development of production techniques of radioactive and stable isotopes that are in short supply for research and applications. Isotopes are high-priority commodities of strategic importance for the nation and are essential for energy, medical, and national security applications and for basic research; a goal of the program is to make critical isotopes more readily available to meet domestic U.S. needs.

The program also coordinates and supports isotope production at numerous universities, national laboratories, and commercial accelerator and reactor facilities throughout the nation to promote a reliable supply of domestic isotopes. The NIDC coordinates isotope production across these facilities and manages the business operations of the sale and distribution of isotopes.

About Viewpoint

Viewpoint Molecular Targeting is a radiopharmaceutical company developing precision oncology therapeutics and complementary diagnostic imaging agents. The Company's leading alpha-particle radiotherapies are designed to deliver powerful alpha radiation specifically to cancer cells utilizing specialized targeting peptides. Viewpoint is also developing complementary diagnostics that utilize the same targeting peptide, which provide the opportunity to personalize treatment and optimize patient outcomes. This "theranostic" approach enabling the ability to see the specific tumor and then treat it to potentially improve efficacy and minimize toxicity associated with many other types of cancer treatments.

The Company's melanoma (VMT01) and neuroendocrine tumor (VMT-??-NET) programs are entering Phase 1 imaging studies, to be followed by Phase 1/2a therapy trials for the treatment of metastatic melanoma and neuroendocrine tumors at two leading academic institutions. For more information, please visit the Company's website viewpointmt.com.

Investor Inquiries:

Jenene Thomas

Chief Executive Officer

JTC Team, LLC

T: 833.475.8247

viewpoint@jtcir.com

SOURCE: Viewpoint Molecular Targeting, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630259/Viewpoint-Molecular-TargetingTM-Enters-into-Long-Term-Supply-Agreement-with-the-National-Isotope-Development-Center-of-the-US-Department-of-Energy-Isotope-Program
Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana at the US Capitol on Saturday. Stefani Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images

GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy defended voting to convict Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial.

Cassidy was one of seven Republicans who voted to convict Trump, who was ultimately acquitted.

Cassidy has faced a backlash for his stance from Republicans in his home state, Louisiana.

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Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana has defended his vote to convict former President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial, a vote for which Cassidy has faced backlash from his party.

In an op-ed article for the Baton Rouge newspaper The Advocate, Cassidy wrote that he "voted to convict former President Trump because he is guilty."

"Rather than defending the Constitution, President Trump was actively subverting the peaceful transfer of power, which is a bedrock principle of the Constitution," Cassidy wrote of Trump's actions before the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol.

He continued: "I have no illusions that this is a popular decision. I made this decision because Americans should not be fed lies about 'massive election fraud.' Police should not be left to the mercy of a mob. Mobs should not be inflamed to disrupt the peaceful transfer of power."

Cassidy's vote to convict Trump came as a surprise to many. Cassidy indicated during the trial he would most likely acquit the former president, who was impeached on a charge of "incitement of insurrection."

Cassidy was one of seven GOP senators who joined all 50 Democrats in finding Trump guilty of inciting the Capitol attack. Trump was acquitted, since 67 votes were needed for conviction.

The Republican Party of Louisiana voted unanimously on Sunday to censure Cassidy for his vote.

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In an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos on Sunday, Cassidy said he thought Trump's power over the GOP was fading.

Read more: Bill Gates interview - The breakthrough technologies that will solve climate change, how to fund them, and what Biden can do to help

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"I think his force wanes. The Republican Party is more than just one person," Cassidy said.

"The Republican Party is about ideas," he continued, adding: "Now the American people want those ideas, but they want a leader who is accountable and a leader who they can trust. I think our leadership will be different going forward but it will still be with those ideas."

Cassidy's defense came as a rift widened in the Republican Party between those who have condemned the former president and the millions of Republican voters and their congressional allies who have continued to back him.

Cassidy was reelected to the Senate in November, meaning he has nearly a full six-year term to serve before he is up for reelection.

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A Roman millstone found near Cambridge was decorated with an engraving of a penis  an 'image of strength and virility'  archaeologists have revealed.

The millstone and others were uncovered three years ago during roadworks to improve a 21-mile stretch of the A14 between Cambridge and Huntingdon.

The finds came from the remains of a Roman villa located near the town of Godmanchester, a Highways England spokesperson told MailOnline.

However, the phallographic carving  which was made to give the millstone and its flour good luck and protection  was only recently identified by experts.

The upgraded stretch of road was opened to traffic in the May of last year  but the millstone was not the only archaeological find revealed before the works finished.

Other finds included the tusk of a woolly mammoth, the skull of a woolly rhinoceros, an abandoned medieval village, and three dismembered men from 1,500 years ago.

Archaeologists also found the earliest known evidence for beer brewing in Britain, which dated back to as early as 400 BC.

A Roman millstone found near Cambridge was decorated with an engraving of a penis  an 'image of strength and virility'  archaeologists have revealed. Pictured, the millstone

The millstone and others were uncovered three years ago during roadworks to improve a 21-mile stretch of the A14 between Cambridge and Huntingdon. Pictured, the dig site

According to Highways Englands Archaeology lead for the A14, Steve Sherlock, the penis-decorated millstone is important as it 'adds to the evidence for such images from Roman Britain.'

'There were known associations between images of the phallus and milling, such as those found above the bakeries of Pompeii, one inscribed with Hic Habitat Felicitas  "You Will Find Happiness Here",' he explained.

'The phallus was seen as an important image of strength and virility in the Roman world, with it being common practice for legionaries to wear a phallus amulet, which would give them good luck before battle.'

The millstone was examined by experts from the Museum of London Archaeology Headland Infrastructure and Oxford Archaeology.

Alongside the carving of the phallus on the millstone's upper face, the team discovered two crosses that had been inscribed on its circumference.

The quern itself would have been a simple hand mill, such as typically consists of two circular stones between which corn is ground.

According to the archaeologists, the millstone appeared to have been broken during use and subsequently adapted to be used as a saddle quern  a base stone in the grinding process  which would have hidden the genital image from sight,

The millstone was examined by experts from the Museum of London Archaeology Headland Infrastructure and Oxford Archaeology. Alongside the carving of the phallus on the millstone's upper face, the team discovered two crosses that had been inscribed on its circumference. Pictured, Oxford Archaeology expert Ruth Shaffrey, poses with the phallus-bearing millstone

The upgraded stretch of road (pictured) was opened in the May of last year  but the millstone was not the only archaeological find revealed before the works finished. Other finds included the tusk of a woolly mammoth, the skull of a woolly rhinoceros, an abandoned medieval village, and three dismembered men from 1,500 years ago. Archaeologists also found the earliest known evidence for beer brewing in Britain, which dated back to as early as 400 BC

The researchers reported that more than 300 querns millstones were recovered during archaeological work on the A14 upgrade project.

Decorated querns and millstones of any date are rare  and only four Roman millstones have ever been discovered from around a total of 20,000 nationwide.

While crosses on such stones are more prevalent, these tend to be found only at military sites, the team explained.

'As one of only four known examples of Romano-British millstones decorated this way, the A14 millstone is a highly significant find,' said Oxford Archaeology's worked stone specialist, Ruth Shaffrey.

'It offers insights into the importance of the mill to the local community and to the protective properties bestowed upon the millstone and its produce (the flour) by the depiction of a phallus on its upper surface.'

The millstone was uncovered three years ago during roadworks to improve a 21-mile stretch of the A14 between Cambridge and Huntingdon. The finds came from the remains of a Roman villa located near Godmanchester, a Highways England spokesperson told MailOnline

Woolpert Project Manager Matt Churches Matt has demonstrated solid leadership skills throughout his career, leading projects and operational initiatives that resulted in significantly increased revenues and efficiencies.

Woolpert has hired Matt Churches as a project manager to support the firms new and existing clients in the energy industry. Churches has more than 17 years of experience working in energy, including five years managing geospatial operations and services for electric and gas utilities.

A University of Nevada graduate, Churches has served in a variety of professional roles for different companies, from business development manager to director of operations and sales. His experience stretches from cultivating and managing a large client base to leading operations and sales teams to execute strategic solutions for energy clients.

Churches said he was attracted to Woolpert in part because of its certification as a Great Place to Work, which he said is an uncommon distinction that shows the firm strives for a quality environment in the workplace. He said his focus will be on helping the firm propel its geospatial services in the energy industry.

I am very excited about working with a talented group of subject matter experts who can help me learn and grow in the industry, Churches said. Machine learning and the Internet of Things are of great interest to me, and I look forward to providing solutions for clients using these cutting-edge technologies.

Woolpert Senior Vice President and Energy Market Director Mike Battles said Churches diverse professional portfolio related to geospatial technologies in the energy industry will support the firms continued reputation for dependable, high-quality services.

Matt has demonstrated solid leadership skills throughout his career, leading projects and operational initiatives that resulted in significantly increased revenues and efficiencies, Battles said. His extensive background in supporting clients through innovative solutions will be a great asset for the firm. Were proud to have Matt on board.

About Woolpert

Woolpert is committed to a vision to become the premier architecture, engineering, geospatial (AEG) and strategic consulting firm, and one of the best companies in the world. Its a vision weve been fine-tuning for decades. It guides our decisions and investments, provides our clients with optimal solutions and offers our employees unrivaled opportunities. Woolpert is recognized as a Great Place to Work by its employees and is Americas fastest-growing AEG firm. With more than a century of experience, over 1,100 employees and 42 offices, Woolpert supports public, private, federal, and U.S. military clients nationally and around the globe. For more information, visit woolpert.com and connect with us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
As sugarcane planting season is set to begin in Uttar Pradesh villages, a number of protesters from Ghazipur have left for their homes, while those left behind insist this is temporary and the protest will return to its former size once planting is over.

A langar started by Kar Sewa, Amritsar currently feeds around 4,000-5,000 protesters. 28-year-old Kamaldeep Singh, a farmer from Muzaffarnagar, who volunteers at the langar, told The Indian Express, Earlier, around 15,000-16,000 people would come to eat here.

AFP

"Farmers have left tractors, ration behind"

The weather has changed and people are preparing for summer. Many have also returned to their villages so they can attend mahapanchayats. However, many have left behind their tractors; their ration. They keep coming back and the numbers keep fluctuating.

Harpreet Singh (35), a farmer from Lakhimpur Kheri district, said many people from his village are going to arrive at the site in the next few days. I am also going back for the mahapanchayat. It is important to attend because many important things are discussed there, such as the future of this protest."

AFP

"If I go back, five others from my village will come"

Another 23-year-old farmer Navjot Singh, who is from the same district, said he might have to go to his village to help his family plant sugarcane. If I go back, five others from my village will come to the site, he declared.

Police posted at the border said the number of protesters has decreased in the last 10 days. They pointed out that the protest site currently spans over 1.5-2 km. The area in front of the UP Gate police chowki, which was previously packed with tents and trolleys, now has a handful of tents in patches. The stores at the border see fewer customers too.

AFP

Farmers prepping for summers

Tijender Singh (27), a volunteer at a general store started by Farmer Sewa Society, said, Most people have gone back for a few days because of the panchayats in their villages. They will all return and in larger numbers. Farmers added that many have returned home as they are preparing for the change in season.

While some are expected to return to the protest site with fans for their tents, others are getting coolers and generators. A volunteer at a langar received a deep freezer from a well-wisher on Monday morning. He said the site will soon be festooned with coolers and more such freezers to store water, milk and other perishables.

ANI

Sugarcane is a crop grown more in Uttar Pradesh, not sold in mandis and, moreover, has a state advised price (SAP) that is statutory. Unlike MSP, sugar mills are legally bound to pay it. Most farmers protesting at Ghazipur on the Delhi-UP border  as against those camping at Singhu and Tikri bordering Haryana  are sugarcane growers.

Sugarcane, a flashpoint at Ghazipur protest

But not withstanding the legal requirement for mills to pay SAP within 14 days of cane delivery, many havent received money even for the crop they supplied in the 2019-20 sugar season (October-September). And the Yogi Adityanath-led UP government is yet to announce the current seasons SAP, despite mills undertaking crushing operations since end-October.

UP mills, as of January 5, owe farmers Rs 2,470 crore out of the Rs 35,898 crore SAP value of cane that they crushed in the 2019-20 season. They have further crushed 363.20 lakh tonnes of cane in the current season, which is worth about Rs 11,660 crore at last years SAP of Rs 315/quintal for general and Rs 325/quintal for early-maturing varieties. Of the Rs 11,660 crore, they have paid just Rs 2,427 crore as on date.

To sum it up, non-payment of last seasons dues and no SAP being declared for 2020-21, with more than two months of crushing over, can emerge as a potential flashpoint in the ongoing farmers agitation.
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(Newser)  Students will soon have access to free period products across New Zealand, following a similar move in Scotland. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday that all schools would offer free menstrual products for the next three years, at a cost of about $18 million. The products will be made available at primary, intermediate, and secondary schools beginning in June, per the New York Times. This comes after a pilot program involving 3,200 students in 15 schools in New Zealand's Waikato region. Ardern said the goal was to "address poverty, help increase school attendance, and make a positive impact on children's wellbeing," per the Guardian.

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One study published last year found up to 20,000 New Zealand students were at risk of "period poverty," or being unable to afford tampons, pads, or other products. Another study found one in six or seven Maori and Pasifika students had missed school because they lacked these items. "Young people should not miss out on their education because of something that is a normal part of life for half the population," Ardern said. The Guardian describes implications for education, health, emotional development, and career prospects. An advocate tells the Times that a person can spend more than $10,000 on period products during their lifetime. (A New Zealand supermarket's approach to period products made waves last year.)

Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:58:12|Editor: huaxia

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VIENNA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi will visit Tehran on Saturday to talk about the agency's verification activities, a spokesperson said on Thursday.

Grossi will talk with senior Iranian officials "in order to find a mutually agreeable solution for the IAEA to continue essential verification activities in the country," according to the statement sent to Xinhua.

The statement also confirmed that Iran has made clear its decision to "stop implementing voluntary transparency measures" as of Feb. 23 under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal, and the Additional Protocol.

It added that this decision "would have a serious impact on the IAEA's verification and monitoring activities in the country."

Under the JCPOA, the IAEA has wider access to, and more information on Iran's nuclear program, while the Additional Protocol allows its inspectors to conduct complementary access to any location in Iran, according to the website of the IAEA.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Wednesday that Iran is ready for dialogue with Grossi but will not renegotiate the 2015 nuclear agreement.

"On Feb. 23, the IAEA's oversight (of Iran's nuclear program) will be reduced, not stopped," Zarif told journalists after a cabinet meeting in the capital Tehran, the official news agency IRNA reported.

In January, Iran launched the 20-percent uranium enrichment process as part of Iran's Strategic Action Plan to Counter Sanctions, which was approved by the parliament in December 2020.

In response to the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 and re-imposition of sanctions, Iran has suspended implementing parts of its obligations under the agreement. Enditem
BIG RAPIDS, MI  Ferris State University is rolling out a new program that will provide free tuition to students with high financial needs.

The Ferris Launch program covers tuition costs for students with a 3.0 high school GPA whose expected family contribution is zero. The incentive will be available to first-time college students starting with the fall 2021 semester.

University leaders are looking to target high-performing students who are ready to earn their degree but need some extra financial assistance, said Melanie Mulder, financial aid coordinator at Ferris State.

These students are doing their part by having that 3.0 GPA, theyre doing what they need to do to be prepared for college, Mulder said. College is expensive, and we want to step it up and do what we can to help them afford it financially.

Tuition is $443 per credit hour at Ferris State, or $12,404 for an entire year taking 14 credit hours. Room and board costs roughly $10,340 per year.

The incentive is meant to pay off any remaining tuition costs left over after federal Pell Grant funding and merit scholarships are applied.

Students do not have to file a separate application to be considered for the Ferris Launch program. Once a student is accepted to Ferris State and completes the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the financial aid is automatically applied for eligible students.

The university is not setting a limit on family income for the free tuition program, but rather using a students Expected Family Contribution (EFC), which Mulder said better demonstrates a students financial needs.

EFC is an index number used by FAFSA to determine how much financial aid a student would receive at a university or college. The number is calculated using the tax information and family income and size reported on a students FAFSA.

The university does not have a cap on the number of students it will accept through this program, Mulder said.

Were hoping to attract as many students as possible with this, and any student that meets that criteria is going to get that money, she said.

There are around 1,300 students who have already applied to Ferris State and are eligible for the free tuition program, said Kristen Salomonson, dean of enrollment services.

That represents quite a bit of our freshman class, Salomonson said. We welcome about 2,000 people, so that could make up a pretty significant part of it.

Mulder said the free tuition program aligns with Gov. Gretchen Whitmers goals for 60% of Michigan adults to get a post-secondary credential by 2030.

Targeting this group with the highest financial need is one of the steps that we can take to help with that goal, she said.

Grand Valley State University and the University of Michigan both have similar tuition-free programs for low-income students.

The Grand Valley Pledge program, launched earlier this month, covers tuition costs for students who come from a family income of less than $50,000.

At this time, the GVSU program is limited to incoming freshmen students from Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, Grand Traverse, Calhoun and Wayne counties. Those are the counties where the university has a physical presence.

The University of Michigan launched a similar tuition-free program in 2018 called the Go Blue Guarantee. The program offers four years of free tuition to all in-state students with a family income of up to $65,000.

More on MLive:

Ferris State University student dies a month after on-campus apartment fire injured her

$15.3 million upgrade approved for Ferris State athletic facilities

Ferris State University launching social justice degree program next fall
Officials at Fort Worth-based private equity firm Mission Consumer Capital had been eyeing an investment in the San Antonio maker of Andy Garcia Foods for at least four years but could never strike a deal.

Andy Garcia Foods had become an iconic San Antonio brand, producing tamales, chorizo and barbacoa. It had been around since the 1950s, when founder Andrew Garcia bought a small barbacoa business for $15. He and his wife, Dilia, began making barbacoa on weekends in their garage.

Their son, Kenneth Garcia, started running the business in 1999 and eventually bought it through his company Papa Grande Gourmet Foods in 2014. But starved for cash and under-invested in for three or four years, the business struggled, according to Mission managing partner Robert Bobby J. McGee.

The financial troubles of Papa Grande, which did business as Garcia Foods, pushed it into bankruptcy in 2019. Kenneth Garcia fought to hang on, but the business was put up for auction. Mission was the winning bidder with a $4.8 million offer.

On ExpressNews.com: Fort Worth firm buys San Antonio food company at bankruptcy auction

Since taking control, Mission has spent about $5 million to revamp the San Antonio plant by installing new equipment, including a refrigeration system, cookers, ovens and a machine that allowed it to produce 5 million tamales from October through December.

The machine stuffs the meat in the masa, which is then sliced by a wheel cutter. Every tamale is still wrapped in corn husks by hand. Some 400 are wrapped per minute by 28 workers on the line.

It is the fastest tamale line in the country  and I keep telling everybody, in the galaxy, boasted Mitch LaBrasseur, chief operating officer for the new company, called Nuevo Garcia Foods.

Mission took ownership just a just a few months before the pandemic. It was immediately presented with various challenges  from restaurants shutting down to ensuring the coronavirus didnt spread among workers in the plant. It has about 50 employees.

Its in the process of introducing new food items, including carnitas  or slow-cooked pork  and shredded chicken breast in seasoned broth.

McGee, who also is Nuevo Garcia Foods chairman, 66, recently discussed the acquisition and what changes have been made since the deal closed. The following has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Q: What were you doing before you started Mission?

A: I spent about 20 years as a banker. I was a banker for many of the grocery store chains and food stores throughout the state of Texas and throughout the country. I was helping arrange acquisitions, and also arranging their financing. So a lot of capital market projects.

Q: Why did you start Mission?

A: A couple of things. One, I really liked the food business. Second, I think theres a real opportunity to help small family businesses transition to be really good at selling to the larger grocery store chains. Today, there are more than 4,000 grocery store chains in the United States. The top 20 make over 80 percent of all grocery sales. I know most of them.

Q: What other businesses does Mission own?

A: We own Local Hive Honey company out of Colorado that sells local, raw and unfiltered honey all over the United States and in Europe.

Q: Is Missions small portfolio a reflection of how hard it is to do deals?

A: I would say were pretty careful. Were not a huge fund (with $25 million in capital). We are very focused. We buy companies that we think have a lot of potential. And we spend a lot of time and capital with those one on one, as opposed to buying a 100 of them and hoping 90 of them work. Were really involved in every one of them.

Q: What attracted you to Garcia Foods?

A: When you go through the grocery store check-out lane and they scan your goods, theyre not just doing that to ring up the prices. They capture all that data and then they sell it to the Nielsen Co. and a couple of other data firms. We buy that data.

In looking at that data, I can tell you that the Mexican food business is accelerating. And its accelerating at a more rapid rate than the Hispanic population is accelerating. Intuitive, I think, for people who live in San Antonio to understand that Mexican food crosses culture boundaries. Everybody likes Mexican food. And so we think authentic Mexican food - and Im not using the word Hispanic, I mean Mexican when I say Mexican - authentic Mexican flavors are attractive to people of every kind of background. The data shows thats true across the country, whether youre in San Antonio or California or New Jersey.

We think there are very few good-for-you, already prepared Mexican food items in mainstream grocery (stores). We think there is an under-representation for those. So thats what started us looking for someone who had the ability to make authentic Mexican foods. Let us help develop products that retain the authentic style and flavor, and whatever it is that makes that important to culture. But let us help get the ingredient deck clean and good for you. Were kind of paleo. We want low carbs. We want things that are good for our families.

Q: This obviously was a turnaround situation. Do you prefer turnarounds or will you buy a high-performing business?

A: We dont do turnarounds. This was. That was abnormal for us.

Q: Given the demand for Mexican Food, as you point out, why was the company not successful?

A: We see small food companies have real difficulty transitioning from founder to second and third generations, like every other business. First of all, you have challenges with generational transitions, which were acute here. And in all businesses, the world is changing very rapidly. You think of food as an aesthetic business, a subjective business. Its about smells and textures and flavors and pretty packages. Those are subjective, aesthetic kinds of things.

But this is a difficult, low-margin business. It takes being able to read that data and present it to the retailers in a way they can understand. Many  I would say H-E-B is an exception to this  many of the largest grocery retailers today, when (Nuevo Garcia Foods CEO) Gantt Bumstead comes to see them, they arent as interested in looking at the product as you would think. They want to know, OK, its a great product, is this selling well in other places? You have to be able to analyze the data and compare it for them to the other things they have on the shelf.

Q: Is buying a company at a bankruptcy auction easier or harder than a regular sale?

A: Much harder. In this case, this company was in bankruptcy for almost a year. When employees dont have adequate tools, when companies dont have adequate cash, its awfully hard to make great products. So we had to retool every part of this and be sure that everybody had the tools they needed.

Q: How you have managed Nuevo Garcia Foods during COVID-19?

A: Nobody understood COVID (last winter). We understand some today. Not as much as we would like. We understood nothing when this first started. We were new. And we were coming out of bankruptcy. And there were 50 employees here who didnt know us from anybody.

We brought a couple of emergency room docs in. They spoke Spanish. We spent two hours with the docs answering questions. And we asked the employees, What do you want to do? We think this is a dangerous time. We dont understand this virus. We have a choice. We can shut down. Or you are essential workers (who can continue to work). Thats what the governor says. And we have orders. H-E-B and other grocery stores are begging for meat products. What do you want to do? They said they wanted to work. We said, OK, how would you feel about wearing masks? They said if we provided them, they would wear them.

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And I remember saying, What do you want us to do if somebody doesnt want to wear a mask? A lady said, Fire them. And I said, How about we just send them home without pay? They said, Yes, do that.

And then we said, What were about to say next really scares us. For those of you who have been here for 40 years, if you didnt work you didnt get paid. Theres no sick leave in this company. From this second forward, if you get up in the morning and you dont feel well, if you have any of these symptoms, its not only OK, were begging you, dont come to work. Pick up the phone, call your supervisor. Just tell us you have those symptoms and we will pay you.

Now, the reason that scares us is because somebody in this room is going to hear, Let me see  I go out on the weekend and have a great weekend and I dont feel so good on Monday morning. I can either go to work or not go to work and I can get paid the same amount of money. Let me think about that. And so we said, Please dont abuse it. Were trusting you in a way the prior folks here couldnt and didnt. Please dont abuse it.

Im telling you, I think if there had been anybody who abused it, one of them would have killed them. They were so protective and appreciative. There was trust.

Q: Did you envision having to spend $5 million to upgrade the plant after paying $4.8 million to buy the company?

A: I can tell you that our estimate of what it would cost to fix the plant and what we spent to fix the plant was off by less $50,000 on a $5 million investment. What we missed was COVID. A big part of this companys customer base are restaurants. So if youre a Mexican restaurant in the San Antonio area, we probably make the chorizo for your breakfast tacos. We probably make the tamales that you serve. All of the restaurants were shut down. God bless them. How they survived that, I dont know. But we were fortunate. We did have good, deep supply lines. We were able to get meat so that we could produce our customer orders on time. Remember, that was a huge item (for us), to restore our credibility of being an on-time, full supplier.

As grocery stores were running out of items because they couldnt get access, particularly with proteins, with meats, we helped fill those shelves, and hopefully proved our credibility. But it didnt make up for all the restaurant sales we lost.

Q: What are your goals for Nuevo Garcia Foods?

A: Our goal remains to build a nationwide Mexican brand. Not a homogenized Hispanic brand, but a true, authentic Mexican brand coast to coast.

pdanner@express-news.net
Posted Thursday, February 18, 2021 9:20 am

Washington will soon have an earthquake warning system that alerts residents before shaking even occurs.

ShakeAlert could give residents and state agencies "critical" seconds to prepare for an incoming earthquake. Beginning in May, Washington will roll out the system, which will alert residents and automatically prepare critical infrastructure for incoming shaking. Oregon's system will be available in March, and California's has been operating since 2019.

"Those critical few seconds could mean the difference between taking a week to recover and six months to recover," U.S. Geological Survey staff scientist Robert de Groot said.

The USGS has been working on this system since 2006, starting by looking at how to move information on current earthquakes from the field quickly, de Groot said. It has evolved into an advanced algorithm that creates a data package to deliver alerts to residents and trigger computer systems to prepare critical infrastructure.

Seismic monitors spread out across the West Coast are the first to detect waves from an earthquake. USGS, in partnership with universities, has 1,132 seismic monitoring systems in California, Oregon and Washington. Eventually, 1,700 will be spread out across the three states. Currently, there are no plans to expand the system outside of the three states, de Groot said.

As soon as the monitors pick up the waves, the sensors transmit the location, size and estimated shaking to a ShakeAlert processing center. If it is past a certain magnitude threshold, a ShakeAlert message is issued to a delivery partner who then sends out the alert to residents. The public will only get alerts for 4.5-magnitude quakes or higher, said Gabriel Lotto, ShakeAlert engagement facilitator at the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. Part of the University of Washington and University of Oregon, the network operates the seismic monitors in Oregon and Washington.

The alerts will go out to residents within seconds of the first wave, de Groot said. Based on tests done in California, the average time between the beginning of the quake to the moment a phone got an alert was 8 seconds.

"That's pretty fast when you think about all that has to happen in between," de Groot said.

That alert likely comes a few seconds before the initial shaking does  unless someone is very close to the monitor that picks up the first wave. If someone is close to the first sensor, the ground may shake at the same time they receive an alert, Lotto said.

Not every alert will have information about the size of the quake, so if they receive one, residents should always plan to drop, cover and hold on.

When the program rolls out to the entire state in May, users who have emergency alerts, such as AMBER alerts, enabled on their phones will get them. For an iPhone, check your settings to be sure you receive emergency alerts. Android users are automatically opted in, said Maximilian Dixon, geological hazards supervisor at the Washington Emergency Management Division.

Although the east side of the state is not as susceptible to large quakes, Dixon said everyone in the state should set up these emergency alerts. Anyone traveling to the West Side, Oregon or California could benefit from the alerts if a quake hits.

Businesses, schools and state agencies have partnered with ShakeAlert to create automated systems. For example, once an earthquake is sensed, a computer system can automatically slow down trains, close valves of water supply and announce the alert in a school's PA system.

These partner companies and agencies can decide at what magnitude they want to receive an alert and when automated precautions should go into place.

Before it rolls out statewide, Washington will test it at 11 a.m. on Feb. 25 in King, Pierce and Thurston counties. To take part in the test, residents of the area, or those traveling to and from, need to opt in. To do so, visit mil.wa.gov/alerts to learn how to make sure you're included. The opt in process is different for Apple and Android users.

In the continental U.S., Washington is one of the states most susceptible to earthquakes. Since 1870, there have been 15 large earthquakes in the state, according to the Department of Natural Resources. Most of the populated areas of the state have a 40% to 80% chance of experiencing an earthquake in the next 50 years, although the West Side faces more of a threat.

The Pacific Northwest also faces what could be a catastrophic 8- or 9-magnitude quake from the Cascadia subduction zone, although when that will happen is unknown. The last rupture occurred more than 300 years ago.

Although many people worry about "the big one," Lotto said smaller earthquakes do still happen in the state, and they can cause even more damage.

While it's ready to be rolled out, the alert system is still a work in progress, de Groot said. The alerts are still being tested, and about 30% of the seismic monitoring stations are still being built. The goal is to have them completed by 2025.

Still, this technology could give residents seconds to prepare, which "means more than you might think," Lotto said. Most of the time when people are injured in earthquakes, Lotto said, it's from falling objects or walls. Those early seconds could be enough to get ready, he said.

"Right now, if there's an earthquake, the only signal you have is the shaking," de Groot said.

But it's just another tool, de Groot said. Everyone should still have a disaster bag, take part in shakeout drills and prepare to drop, cover and hold on when an earthquake hits.
NEW DELHI: Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar will be visiting the two key Indian Ocean region countries Maldives and Mauritius from 20-23 February, the Indian foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Jaishankars first stop will be Maldives where he will arrive on 20 February on a two day visit. During his visit to the Maldives, Jaishankar will call-on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and have substantive discussions with the Ministers for Foreign Affairs, Defence, Finance, Economic Development and Planning and Infrastructure," the Indian statement said. The Indian minister will also meet Maldives parliament speaker Mohamed Nasheed besides other political leaders. During this visit, the minister will review the entire gamut of our bilateral ties as well as progress of ongoing bilateral projects and hold discussions on the ongoing covid situation including Indias continued assistance to the Maldives for its post-covid economic recovery," the statement added.

India is Maldives fourth-largest trade partner after the UAE, China and Singapore. Indian imports from the Maldives mainly comprise scrap metals while Indian exports to the Maldives include a variety of engineering and industrial products like drugs and medicines radar apparatus, rock boulders, aggregates, cement and agriculture products like rice, spices, fruits, vegetables and poultry products.

India has been involved in a number of development projects in the Maldives including the Police Academy of Maldives in Addu, under an Indian grant of $ 33 million. The project is expected to complete by February 2021. During a meeting with between Jaishankar and his Maldivian counterpart Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid in August last year, the Indian minister unveiled New Delhis plan to implement the Greater Male Connectivity Project through a line of credit worth $ 400 million and a grant of $ 100 million. The project aims to connect Male to Villingili, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi islands through a series of bridges, causeways and roads. The project is seen as crucial for the proposed Gulhifalhu Port and is seen as a major catalyst for creating jobs and spurring economic activity in the post covid scenario.

To help the Maldivian economy recover from the devastation caused by covid-19, India provided a financial assistance of $ 250 million to Maldives in September 2020, through investment by the State Bank of India in Maldives Government bonds of the same value on concessional terms.

On the second leg of his two nation tour, Jaishankar will arrive in Mauritius on 22 February. The centerpiece of the visit could be the signing of the India-Mauritius Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA) that the cabinet headed by prime minister Narendra Modi cleared on Wednesday.

According to an Indian government statement on Wednesday, the pact is a limited agreement which will cover trade in goods, rules of origin, trade in services, technical barriers to trade (TBT), sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures, dispute settlement, movement of natural persons, telecom, financial services, customs procedures and cooperation in other areas." The agreement will cover 310 export items for India including food items, beverages, electrical products, telecommunication, and a variety of other items such as sea food.

Indian service providers will have access to around 115 sub-sectors from the 11 broad service sectors such as professional services, computer-related services, research and development, other business services, telecommunication, construction, distribution, education, environment, financial, tourism and travel-related, recreational, yoga, audio-visual services and transport services," the statement said.

During his two day visit to Mauritius, Jaishankar will call on President Pritivirajsing Roopun and Prime Minister Mr. Pravind Jagnauth. The Indian minister will also meet his counterpart the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade and Minister for Land Transport and Light Rail, Alan Ganoo.

All aspects of our bilateral relations, ongoing implementation of various infrastructure projects being carried out by India in Mauritius" will be reviewed during the visit, the Indian foreign ministry statement said.

Both Maldives and Mauritius are Indias key maritime neighbors in the Indian Ocean Region and occupy a special place in Prime Ministers vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region). The External Affairs Ministers visit is testimony to the importance that India attaches to its close and friendly relations with the Maldives and Mauritius and is expected to lend further momentum to substantive cooperation and robust people to people ties between the two countries," the Indian foreign ministry statement added.

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Since her election as leader of the Labor party Jan. 23, Knesset member Merav Michaeli has succeeded in reviving the long-dormant party. For months, people wondered whether it would even pass the electoral threshold, but with Michaeli at the helm, recent polls show that it could win as many as six seats.

This is a remarkable achievement, but things are not all bright and rosy in the party. Since she was chosen as the new party leader, she has had to contend with two waves of defections. It began with an announcement from the head of the partys Arab Division, Raleb Majadele, that he is leaving the party, along with 20 Arab party activists. Majadele made history in 2007 by becoming the countrys first Arab minister (appointed minister without portfolio). This was followed by reports that several veteran party members had decided to quit Labor for the Blue and White party, headed by Benny Gantz.

It was the Labor party under late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin that signed the Oslo Accord with the Palestinians and a separate peace treaty with Jordan. Rabin did this with a government based on a majority of all Israelis, and not just the Jewish majority. He forged a partnership with two Arab parties, Hadash and the Democratic Arab Party, to block the opposition from removing Labor from power so that he could press forward with his agenda. It was a groundbreaking decision. Until then, all Israeli prime ministers had based their support on Jewish parties only, refusing to rely on Israels Arab parties.

Nevertheless, while Rabins second government is commonly regarded as the Golden Age for Israels Arab citizens, it now looks as if his party  now headed by Michaeli, a self-proclaimed Rabinist  is unable to keep the Jewish-Arab relationship intact within her own party. As aforementioned, a large number of Arab activists quit Labor to protest what they described as Michaelis dismissive attitude toward the Arab public. As they put it, they feel unappreciated after everything they have done, and are being ignored by the Labor partys new leader.

More specifically, the Israeli-Arab activists are upset that the electorate they represent was not ensured a safe seat on the partys list. They contest attributing the No. 7 slot to Ibtisam Maraana, an Arab Israel film producer. They argue that she does not represent the Arab public in general and their own Arab Division in particular. She is an outsider who lives in Tel Aviv-Jaffa. She did not rise from the Arab Division or the party.

In response to this first wave of defections, Michaeli responded, The Labor party is undergoing a process of renewal and moving forward. We are building our house anew, and have seen 10,000 new members join us in the last month alone.

Majadele discussed the defections with Al-Monitor, saying, As of now, 46 Arab party activists announced that they have left the party. What we have is a party chair who does not consult with a democratically elected body within the party and does not include the Arab Division and its members in decisions regarding Arab representation. She is focused on what will benefit her personally and not what will benefit the party. She supported the candidacy of people whom the Arab Division did not consider to be authentic representatives of the Arab public. Similarly, she hurt the partys Secretary-General Eran Hermoni and failed to reach agreements with [former Yesh Atid Knesset member] Ofer Shelah and [Tel Aviv Mayor] Ron Huldai, causing them to walk away, rather than integrating them in the party list and increasing the partys strength.

Maraanas candidacy is contested also by others. Many within Labor are angry over a series of posts she had made in the past on social media, including one opposing the standing for the siren marking Israels national memorial days. In fact, she has since apologized for her remarks. It should be noted that the Central Elections Committee, which is made up of representatives of parties currently serving in the Knesset, disqualified Maraana as a candidate by a single vote, a decision that is expected to be challenged before the Supreme Court. Based on previous rulings, the decision will likely be overturned, and Maraana will be allowed to run.

Adding to all that is the feeling among party activists that Michaeli is building a Tel Aviv party, rather than a party representing all Israelis. Critics worry that this will alienate voters from the periphery, or from outside Tel Aviv for that matter.

One person taking advantage of the chaos inside the Labor party and its Arab Division is head of Yesh Atid Yair Lapid. On Feb. 16, he paid a visit to the Arab town of Taibeh, together with Knesset member Yoav Segalovitz and Arab candidate Ibrahim Qassim (26th on the Yesh Atid list). At a press conference there, they laid out their partys plan to combat crime and violence in the Arab society. Meanwhile, Meretz Chairman Nitzan Horowitz and former Chairwoman Tamar Zandberg visited Nazareth with candidates Rinawie Zoabi and Issawi Frej to launch their own partys campaign in the Arab society.

The office of Lapid sent a statement to Al-Monitor about his partys plans to fight crime in the Arab sector, as outlined in Taibeh: In 2020, there were 113 murders in the Arab society in Israel. It is a record number and completely unacceptable. The situation is out of control. Israel cannot ignore this. It must act quickly and comprehensively, with adequate resources. Our plan will stop this terrible wave of violence.

In 2017, an Iranian-American couple drew up a list of cities in the United States and Europe where they could settle now that both their daughters had left for college.

An extraordinary idea struck the couple, Emad Shargi and Bahareh Amidi Shargi. Move to Iran.

They had an attachment to the language, culture and traditions of a homeland they had both left as children. They had traveled to Iran several times over the years and felt a welcoming vibe.

Mr. Shargi, 56, was a partner at a company in Abu Dhabi leasing and selling private airplanes. Ms. Amidi Shargi, 53, a poet, gave public lectures at universities and hospitals  including a TEDx talk about the therapeutic power of poetry.

Family members in America, particularly Mr. Shargis father, warned them against the move, saying the Islamic Republic was no place for them. They dismissed the concerns as exaggeration because neither had ever been involved in politics.
MONTREAL - A Quebec judge has ruled against a law firm that tried to deduct the cost of a lavish wedding for the daughter of one of its partners as a business expense.

The Montreal courthouse is seen on March 27, 2019. A Quebec court judge has ruled against a law firm that tried to deduct the cost of a lavish wedding for the daughter of one of its lawyers as a business expense. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

MONTREAL - A Quebec judge has ruled against a law firm that tried to deduct the cost of a lavish wedding for the daughter of one of its partners as a business expense.

Judge Daniel Bourgeois of Quebec court ruled last month that the firm Spiegel Sohmer could not write off the $75,000 it reimbursed to lawyer Robert Raich and that Raich needs to pay taxes on the amount as a benefit.

The decision states that Raich, a tax lawyer, had argued that he'd thrown the sumptuous Montreal wedding party for his daughter Jacqueline in part to strengthen ties with the firm's clients. His daughter testified that she hardly knew or didn't know at all the business associates invited by her father.

"The marriage took place in Montreal because, (Raich) said, he wanted mainly to promote the interests of Spiegel Sohmer and demonstrate his appreciation to his clients and business associates," the Jan. 15 decision said, noting that the daughter and her groom lived in the United States.

Raich claimed nearly half the cost of the $169,000 wedding on a firm expense account, reasoning that 97 of the 218 guests were his clients or business associates. The firm reimbursed him the $75,242 he sought, and claimed the amount on its 2012 tax filing.

Revenue Quebec took issue with the deduction and refused it on the basis that a wedding is clearly personal in nature.

Bourgeois agreed, noting that family events are generally considered to be personal, and that Raich failed to provide convincing evidence to prove the wedding was an exception.

"Despite the audacity displayed by Mr. Raich during his testimony, he did not in any way affect the presumption of validity of the assessments issued by Revenue Quebec," the judgment read.

Furthermore, nobody from Spiegel Sohmer testified at trial to support the lawyer's claims or prove the event represented a significant business opportunity, indicating a "certain lack of interest" in their former managing partner's tax challenge, Bourgeois wrote.

His decision upheld the revenue agency's tax assessment for the firm, as well as the decision to consider the reimbursement as a taxable benefit to Raich.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021
Southside Bethlehem area residents ages 65 and up can get a free COVID-19 vaccine Friday and Saturday, thanks to St. Lukes University Health Network and the Hispanic Center of the Lehigh Valley.

The event is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Fowler Community Wellness Center, 502 E. Fourth St., Bethlehem.

Registration is required to reserve a shot and can be made by calling 610-868-7800. Vaccines will be administered by appointment only.

Appointments for booster vaccines in March will be scheduled at the time of the initial appointment.

St. Lukes University Health Network and the Hispanic Center are partnering on the vaccination campaign to boost the number of people of color who are getting vaccinated, a nationwide objective, according to a news release. The shots will be given by St. Lukes nurses and nursing students, some of whom are bilingual.

We are sponsoring this pilot vaccine event to engage our local community in receiving the vaccine in order to improve the health of our neighbors and reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus, said Hispanic Center Executive Director Victoria Montero, who also serves as St. Lukes manager of health equity initiatives, community health and preventive medicine.

Depending on the demand, the organizations may schedule another clinic, Montero said.

Bethlehem Mayor Bob Donchez said Tuesday that the citys health bureau is working with St. Lukes, Lehigh Valley Health Network, the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley and the Hispanic Center on vaccine outreach and education in Hispanic and Black communities.

Data shows that nationally the U.S.s vaccine rollout has not been equitable amid a pandemic thats disproportionately ravaged communities of color.

Bloombergs vaccine tracker indicates that vaccines are reaching white and Asian populations faster than Black and Hispanic communities.

Some of this reflects who is approved to get shots so far as well as vaccine hesitancy among certain groups and the complexity of scheduling appointments.

Elderly people are much more likely to be white, while the Hispanic population is quite young. Many states first opened up vaccinations to people ages 75 and older, criteria that left out Black Americans who often die younger than whites, recent reporting by ProPublica highlights. Brookings Institute research has shown that Black Americans who die from COVID-19 tend to be 10 years younger than white people who die from the disease.

White people comprise 86% of Pennsylvanias population and 92% of the vaccinated population, according to the Bloomberg tracker. In Philadelphia, whites are 35% of the population and 59% of vaccinated people. (Philadelphia is its own vaccine jurisdiction, separate from the state allotment.)

Black people make up 6.8% of Pennsylvanias population and 3.1% of vaccinations. Forty percent of Philadelphians are Black, and make up 20% of the known vaccinated population, according to Bloomberg.

About 6.3% of Pennsylvanians are Hispanic and 2.1% of the vaccinated population. Hispanics represent 15% of Phillys population and almost 4% of the vaccinated.

Asian people make up almost 3% of Pennsylvanias population and less than 1% of the vaccinated. In Philadelphia, theres much less of a gap. Asian people represent 7.2% of the population and 7% of those vaccinated.

Pennsylvania last week mandated all vaccine providers report demographic data on vaccine recipients or they risk not receiving new doses.

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Sara K. Satullo may be reached at ssatullo@lehighvalleylive.com.

Editors NoteL This story has been updated to reflect Saturdays clinic times after St. Lukes provided updated information.

The icy blast across much of the U.S. injected more confusion and frustration into the nation's COVID-19 vaccination drive Thursday just when it was gathering speed, snarling vaccine deliveries and forcing the cancellation of countless shots around the country.

Across a large swath of the nation, including Deep South states like Georgia and Alabama, the snowy, slippery weather either led to the closing of vaccination sites outright or held up the necessary shipments, with delays expected to continue for days.

In New York, Mayor Bill de Blasio said doses expected this week were delayed by weather elsewhere in the country, forcing the city to hold off making 30,000 to 35,000 vaccination appointments.

One public health expert said the delays were unacceptable.

Having vaccine centers take snow days is just going to back things up more than they already are, said Dr. Amesh Adalja, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. The virus doesn't take snow days.

Adalja said people in charge of vaccination efforts must find ways to be more resilient to weather, just like mailmen can deliver the mail through sleet or snow. He suggested clinics use better contingency plans. The goal, he said, must be a continuous assembly line of vaccines going into people's arms.

In Washington, White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients said: "People are working as hard as they can, given the importance of getting the vaccines to the states and to providers, but there is an impact on deliveries.

He added that in places where vaccination sites are closed, like Texas, the government is encouraging sites to increase their hours once they are open.

We want to make sure that as we've lost some time in some states for people to get needles in arms, that our partners do all they can to make up that lost ground, he said.

Some shipments of the vaccine made by Pfizer were delayed in the South because of the storm, but the company was unaware of any weather-related vaccine spoilage, said company spokesman Eamonn Nolan. Pfizer's vaccines, which must be kept frozen at minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 34.4 degrees Centigrade), are shipped with dry ice in temperature-controlled containers that last up to 10 days unopened.

The U.S. is vaccinating an average of 1.7 million Americans per day against COVID-19, up from under 1 million a month ago. New figures from the White House show a steady increase in the pace of vaccinations over President Joe Biden's first month in office.

Much of the increase, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, comes from people receiving their second dose. The pace of first-dose vaccinations has been largely steady over the past several weeks, hovering around an average of 900,000 shots per day.

Biden is on track to blow past his goal of 100 million shots in his first 100 days in office though the pace must pick up even further to meet his plans to vaccinate nearly all adults by the end of the summer.

The White House also said the government will ramp up genetic analysis of samples from around the country to gain information on where more infectious and potentially deadlier mutations may be spreading.

In the face of frustrating delays, some people showed remarkable persistence. Fran Goldman, 90, of Seattle, told The Seattle Times she walked 6 miles (9.7 kilometers) round trip in the snow to get her vaccine.

Goldman said that after much effort, she had finally secured a slot for Sunday morning, but on Friday and Saturday a strong storm moved through, filling streets with snowdrifts.

Goldman dressed in fleece pants and threw a few warm layers over a short-sleeve shirt so that the nurse could get to her arm easily.

It was not easy going. It was challenging, she said. She made it to her appointment, just five minutes late.

In other developments, Pennsylvania is facing a temporary shortage of second shots of the Moderna vaccine after providers inadvertently used them as first doses. More than 100,000 people may have to reschedule their appointments.

(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.)
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By Benjamin Jumbe

The Uganda Parliamentary Press Association has condemned the continued acts of brutality against journalists on duty by security forces.

This follows the battering of journalists by military police personnel yesterday as they covered the NUP president Robert Kyagulanyis delivery of a petition to the UN human rights office in Kampala.

The Associations President Moses Mulondo says despite various calls to government to end the brutality by security forces against journalists and other citizens, the pleas have been falling on deaf ears.

He now calls on parliament and the executive to undertake necessary interventions to end brutality by security forces against journalists and other citizens.

Mulondo further calls on media owners, managers and editors to cooperate with their reporters in undertaking tough measures against the impunity of security forces like boycotting the coverage of their activities until commitment to end the barbaric acts is made.
Millions of Texans have gone days without power or heat in subfreezing temperatures brought on by snow and ice storms. Limited regulations on companies that generate power and a history of isolating Texas from federal oversight help explain the crisis, energy and policy experts told The Texas Tribune.

While Texas Republicans were quick to pounce on renewable energy and to blame frozen wind turbines, the natural gas, nuclear and coal plants that provide most of the states energy also struggled to operate during the storm. Officials with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the energy grid operator for most of the state, said that the states power system was simply no match for the deep freeze.

Nuclear units, gas units, wind turbines, even solar, in different ways  the very cold weather and snow has impacted every type of generator, said Dan Woodfin, a senior director at ERCOT.

Energy and policy experts said Texas decision not to require equipment upgrades to better withstand extreme winter temperatures, and choice to operate mostly isolated from other grids in the U.S. left power system unprepared for the winter crisis.

Policy observers blamed the power system failure on the legislators and state agencies who they say did not properly heed the warnings of previous storms or account for more extreme weather events warned of by climate scientists. Instead, Texas prioritized the free market.

Clearly we need to change our regulatory focus to protect the people, not profits, said Tom Smitty Smith, a now-retired former director of Public Citizen, an Austin-based consumer advocacy group who advocated for changes after in 2011 when Texas faced a similar energy crisis.

Instead of taking any regulatory action, we ended up getting guidelines that were unenforceable and largely ignored in [power companies] rush for profits, he said.

It is possible to winterize natural gas power plants, natural gas production, wind turbines and other energy infrastructure, experts said, through practices like insulating pipelines. These upgrades help prevent major interruptions in other states with regularly cold weather.

Lessons from 2011

In 2011, Texas faced a very similar storm that froze natural gas wells and affected coal plants and wind turbines, leading to power outages across the state. A decade later, Texas power generators have still not made all the investments necessary to prevent plants from tripping offline during extreme cold, experts said.

Woodfin, of ERCOT, acknowledged that theres no requirement to prepare power infrastructure for such extremely low temperatures. Those are not mandatory, its a voluntary guideline to decide to do those things, he said. There are financial incentives to stay online, but there is no regulation at this point.

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which has some authority to regulate power generators in the U.S., is currently developing mandatory standards for winterizing energy infrastructure, a spokesperson said.

Texas politicians and regulators were warned after the 2011 storm that more winterizing of power infrastructure was necessary, a report by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation shows. The large number of units that tripped offline or couldnt start during that storm demonstrates that the generators did not adequately anticipate the full impact of the extended cold weather and high winds, regulators wrote at the time. More thorough preparation for cold weather could have prevented the outages, the report said.

This should have been addressed in 2011 by the Legislature after that market meltdown, but there was no substantial follow up, by state politicians or regulators, said Ed Hirs, an energy fellow and economics professor at the University of Houston. They skipped on down the road with business as usual.

ERCOT officials said that some generators implemented new winter practices after the freeze a decade ago, and new voluntary best practices were adopted. Woodfin said that during subsequent storms, such as in 2018, it appeared that those efforts worked. But he said this storm was even more extreme than regulators anticipated based on models developed after the 2011 storm. He acknowledged that any changes made were not sufficient to keep these generators online, during this storm.

After temperatures plummeted and snow covered large parts of the state Sunday night, ERCOT warned increased demand might lead to short-term, rolling blackouts. Instead, huge portions of the largest cities in Texas went dark and have remained without heat or power for days. On Tuesday, nearly 60% of Houston households and businesses were without power. Of the total installed capacity to the electric grid, about 40% went offline during the storm, Woodfin said.

Climate wake-up call

Climate scientists in Texas agree with ERCOT leaders that this weeks storm was unprecedented in some ways. They also say its evidence that Texas is not prepared to handle an increasing number of more volatile and more extreme weather events.

We cannot rely on our past to guide our future, said Dev Niyogi, a geosciences professor at the University of Texas at Austin who previously served as the state climatologist for Indiana. He noted that previous barometers are becoming less useful as states see more intense weather covering larger areas for prolonged periods of time. He said climate scientists want infrastructure design to consider a much larger spectrum of possibilities rather than treating these storms as a rarity, or a so-called 100-year event.

Katharine Hayhoe, a leading climate scientist at Texas Tech University, highlighted a 2018 study that showed how a warming Arctic is creating more severe polar vortex events. Its a wake up call to say, What if these are getting more frequent? Hayhoe said. Moving forward, that gives us even more reason to be more prepared in the future.

Still, Hayhoe and Niyogi acknowledged there's uncertainty about the connection between climate change and cold air outbreaks from the Arctic.

Other Texas officials looked beyond ERCOT. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins argued that the Texas Railroad Commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry  a remit that includes natural gas wells and pipelines  prioritized commercial customers over residents by not requiring equipment to be better equipped for cold weather. The RRC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"Other states require you to have cold weather packages on your generation equipment and require you to use, either through depth or through materials, gas piping that is less likely to freeze," Jenkins said. Texas electricity market is also deregulated, meaning that no one company owns all the power plants, transmission lines and distribution networks. Instead, several different companies generate and transmit power, which they sell on the wholesale market to yet more players. Those power companies in turn are the ones that sell to homes and businesses. Policy experts disagree on whether a different structure would have helped Texas navigate these outages. I dont think deregulation itself is necessarily the thing to blame here, said Josh Rhodes, a research associate at University of Texas at Austins Energy Institute. History of isolation Texas grid is also mostly isolated from other areas of the country, a set up designed to avoid federal regulation. It has some connectivity to Mexico and to the Eastern U.S. grid, but those ties have limits on what they can transmit. The Eastern U.S. is also facing the same winter storm that is creating a surge in power demand. That means that Texas has been unable to get much help from other areas. If youre going to say you can handle it by yourself, step up and do it, said Hirs, the UH energy fellow, of the states pursuit of an independent grid with a deregulated market. Thats the incredible failure. Rhodes, of UT Austin, said Texas policy makers should consider more connections to the rest of the country. That, he acknowledged, could come at a higher financial cost  and so will any improvements to the grid to prevent future disasters. Theres an open question as to whether Texas leadership will be willing to fund, or politically support, any of these options. We need to have a conversation about if we believe that were going to have more weather events like this, Rhodes said. On some level, it comes down to if you want a more resilient grid, we can build it, it will just cost more money. What are you willing to pay? Were going to have to confront that. Texas Tech University, University of Texas at Austin and University of Houston have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
Yet I always found a glimmer of hope when I heard my grandfather speak admiringly of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and her party, which he had formally joined. He would tell me how he welcomed N.L.D. campaigners into our home by slaughtering the biggest cow in our herd when the military allowed national elections to be held in 1990.

He would speak of leaving home for days, campaigning in other villages, persuading our people to vote for the N.L.D. (The military ignored her victory and placed her under house arrest until 2010, when a quasi-democratic transition began.)

In the 2015 election, my family and other Rohingya still put our faith in Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi and the N.L.D., hoping she would help end the discrimination and violence we faced. But when the Rohingya arrived at the polling booths, we were turned away and denied the right to vote. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi refused to speak about our disenfranchisement.

The N.L.D. won in a landslide, but things only got worse for us. The deep-seated prejudice the Buddhist majority had for us only intensified after the quasi-democratic opening, as if a lid had been removed. By that time, internet service was widely available and cheap, and every third person in the country started using Facebook. The rhetoric, the hate and the violence against us was amplified after ultranationalist Buddhist monks and the military started hate campaigns against us on the social network. Every day I logged in I came across hateful posts calling us Kalar, Bengalis and Terrorists. The exhortations to kill us followed.
Photo: The Canadian Press Deputy chief public health officer Dr. Howard Njoo

Canada's deputy chief public health officer says federal and provincial health experts are looking at evidence that one shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19 may be almost as good as giving two.

Dr. Howard Njoo says data presented by two Canadian doctors in the New England Journal of Medicine this week are compelling.

Dr. Danuta Skowronski from the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control and Dr. Gaston De Serres from the Institut national de sante publique du Quebec say data in the United States suggests the Pfizer vaccine was 92 per cent effective against COVID-19 two weeks after just one dose.

Original data suggested one dose gave about 52 per cent protection and two doses gave 94.5 per cent protection, but the doctors say that was measured from the moment the vaccine was given, rather than waiting two weeks to let the immune system gear up.

The doctors suggest with vaccine doses in scarce supply, more of the most vulnerable could be protected if we delay second doses for now.

Njoo says the doctors presented their evidence to a committee of federal and provincial public health officers and there is a live discussion underway about the matter.
DELTA, BC, Feb. 17, 2021 /CNW/ - Employment and Social Development Canada

In order to help maintain a robust workforce and better position our country for a strong economic recovery, the Government of Canada is investing in the skilled trades to ensure that Canadians have the training they need to access good, well-paying jobs. The Government is making targeted investments, so that key groups facing barrierslike women, newcomers, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities, and Black and racialized Canadianscan better find work in the skilled trades through projects led by unions and their partner organizations.

Today, the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough, announced $63.5 million, over five years, for 68 projects as part of the Union Training and Innovation Program (UTIP) 2020 call for proposals. This investment will help certify skilled tradespeople and prepare them to fill available jobs as the economy restarts. Minister Qualtrough made the announcement during a virtual event hosted by one of the funding recipients, the UA Piping Industry College of British Columbia, in Delta, B.C.

The UA Piping Industry College of British Columbia is receiving close to $9 million over five years from 2021 to 2026 for its Inclusion in the Trades from Upgrading to Red Seal Certification project. This initiative will help more than 500 apprenticesincluding more than 300 from key groups facing barrierssuccessfully enter and complete their training through programing focused on skills improvement. The college will also work to eliminate barriers, such as accessibility and distance to training, and build partnerships with community stakeholders that will lead to better apprenticeship outcomes.

The UTIP supports union-based apprenticeship training and works to reduce barriers to participation and success in Red Seal trades. The first stream, Investments in Training Equipment, helps unions across Canada improve the quality of training through investments in equipment and materials. The second stream, Innovation in Apprenticeship, supports innovation and strengthened partnerships to address challenges that are limiting apprenticeship outcomes in Canada.

In the 2020 Speech from the Throne, the Government of Canada committed to making historic investments in training and to creating more than 1 million jobs to get Canadians back to work, restoring employment to pre-pandemic levels. Providing immediate and comprehensive training through initiatives like the UTIP will help achieve these goals.

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"As we continue to fight this virus, our support for workers remains strong. Skilled tradespeople across the country have been critical to essential sectors during this pandemic, and they will continue to be so as Canada moves toward economic recovery. This investment will help Canadians, including Canadians from key groups facing barriers, get the training they need to launch exciting and well-paying careers in the trades."

 Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough

"The UA Piping Industry College of British Columbia and UA Local 170 are pleased to be awarded $9 million in UTIP funding from the federal government. This funding will allow us to continue supporting underrepresented groups in the trades and help bring training to communities around the province of British Columbia. We are very excited to get to work with this new funding and hopefully open new doors of prospect and opportunity to people throughout the province who would not have had this opportunity in the past."

 William Schwarz, Director of Operations, UA Piping Industry College of British Columbia

Quick Facts

Through the UTIP, the Government of Canada provides $25 million annually to support union-based apprenticeship training, innovation and enhanced partnerships in the Red Seal trades.

provides annually to support union-based apprenticeship training, innovation and enhanced partnerships in the Red Seal trades. Demand for skilled tradespeople is expected to remain strong as the economy moves toward recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic. Between 2019 and 2028, about 700,000 skilled trades workers are also expected to retire. Meeting these demands will require the recruitment and training of thousands of additional skilled workers.

Young women continue to be less likely to express interest in a career in the skilled trades. According to an OECD survey, only 2% of 15-year-old female students indicated they were planning to pursue a career in the skilled trades.

The Government of Canada invests significantly in apprenticeships through grants, loans, tax credits, Employment Insurance benefits during in-school training, project funding and support for the Red Seal program. The Government is also working with the provinces and territories to harmonize apprenticeship training requirements in targeted Red Seal trades.

invests significantly in apprenticeships through grants, loans, tax credits, Employment Insurance benefits during in-school training, project funding and support for the Red Seal program. The Government is also working with the provinces and territories to harmonize apprenticeship training requirements in targeted Red Seal trades. The Government of Canada has invested approximately $12 million in union training and innovation programming that must be delivered in Quebec along the same parameters as in the rest of Canada through the Investments in Training Equipment Stream (Stream 1) and the Innovation in Apprenticeship Stream (Stream 2).

has invested approximately in union training and innovation programming that must be delivered in along the same parameters as in the rest of through the Investments in Training Equipment Stream (Stream 1) and the Innovation in Apprenticeship Stream (Stream 2). Funding in Quebec under this agreement is primarily allocated toward Quebec's educational system as it relates specifically to training, while the Government of Quebec is investing $10 million to support the objectives of the UTIP.

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Backgrounder: Organizations receiving funding under the Union Training and Innovation Program 2020 call for proposals

Associated Links

Union Training and Innovation Program

Support for apprentices

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Backgrounder

Organizations receiving funding under the Union Training and Innovation Program 2020 call for proposals

Stream 1  Investments in Training Equipment

Alberta

Alberta Labourers Training Trust Fund

Millwrights Local Union 1460 Training Trust

Alberta Carpenters Training Centre

Piping Industry Training School

Saskatchewan Construction and General Workers' Training Trust Fund

Electrical Industry Training Centres of Alberta

Training Trust Fund

Boilermakers National Training Trust Fund

British Columbia

Sheet Metal Workers International Association Local 276

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 993

Ironworkers Local 97

Western Joint Electrical Training Society

British Columbia Regional Council of Carpenters

Millwrights Local Union 2736

Manitoba

UA Local 254

New Brunswick

Heat and Frost Insulators Training Centre

ILA Local 273

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 502 Training Trust

Newfoundland and Labrador

UA Local 740 Training Centre

BAC Local 1

Nova Scotia

Ironworkers Local 752

Atlantic Canada Regional Council

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 625

Ontario

Carpenters Union Local 2486

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 586

SMART Local 47 (3 projects)

LiUNA Local 527 Training and Education Centre

Ironworkers Local 765

Labourers Local 625 Training Trust

International Union of Operating Engineers Local 793 Training Fund (2 projects)

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 804 Members Building Corporation

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 115

UA Local 46 Training Department

LiUNA Local 183 Training Centre

LiUNA Local 1089

LiUNA Local 837 Training Centre

Ironworkers Local 721

Sheet Metal Workers' International Association Local 30

UA Local 527 JTC

LiUNA Local 506 Training Centre

LiUNA Local 607 Training Centre

Carpenters and Joiners Local 494

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 353 (4 projects)

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 402 TEC

Boilermakers National Training Trust Fund

Saskatchewan

International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Local 1

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2038

Stream 2  Innovation in Apprenticeship Training

British Columbia

InSite Information Systems Corporation

SkillPlan

Piping Industry Apprenticeship Board

Western Joint Electrical Training Society

Manitoba

United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners - Canadian District

New Brunswick

MAP Strategic Workforce Services Inc.

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia Construction Sector Council

Ontario

Canadian Apprenticeship Forum  Forum canadien sur l'apprentissage

United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipefitting Industry

The Redwood

Canada Welding Bureau Welding Foundation

National Electrical Trade Council

College of Carpenters and Allied Trades Inc.

UA Local 46 Training Department

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan Polytechnic

SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada

For further information: For media enquiries, please contact: Marielle Hossack, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough, [email protected]; Media Relations Office, Employment and Social Development Canada, 819-994-5559, [email protected]

Related Links

www.hrsdc-rhdsc.gc.ca


Posted Wednesday, February 17, 2021 4:27 pm

A Grays Harbor County pharmacist has been suspended for allegedly neglecting to check or verify the drug utilization review (DUR) on patient prescriptions.

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission suspended pharmacist Douglas L. Morrills license on Feb. 10 pending further legal action.

Morrill allegedly admitted to a pharmacist investigator that he depended on technicians to show him the DURs, which are ongoing reviews of prescription, dispersal and administration of a particular drug, used to help ensure that drugs are used appropriately.

Charges against Morrill were first filed after a June 26, 2013, inspection of Morrills pharmacy, Ocean Shores Pharmacy in Ocean Shores.

During that inspection, a pharmacy assistant or technician-in-training allegedly released new prescriptions without pharmacist counseling.

Morrill was placed on probation between August 2014 and September 2015.

He was charged again in February 2020 after a pharmacist investigator observed that Morrill was unable to check and verify the DUR on patient prescriptions on two separate occasions, once in December 2019 and once in October 2020.

In a statement to the commission on Jan. 28, 2020, Morrill allegedly admitted that he was dependent on technicians to show him the DURs, and that didnt happen for roughly 10 days in December 2019.

The Pharmacy Commission found Morrill guilty on Feb. 10, 2021 and suspended Morrills credentials to practice as a pharmacist pending further disciplinary proceedings.

Morrill cannot legally practice as a pharmacist in Washington until the charges are resolved, and he has 20 days to request a hearing to contest the charges and the suspension.

The Pharmacy Commission establishes, monitors and enforces qualifications for licensing, consistent standards of practice, continuing competency mechanisms and discipline in the state of Washington.

Anyone who believes a health care provider acted unprofessionally is encouraged to call 360-236-4700 and report their complaint.
Robert Haley, M.D., here reviewing brain scans of Gulf War veterans, has been studying the illness for 27 years. Credit: UT Southwestern Medical Center

Inhalation of depleted uranium from exploding munitions did not lead to Gulf War illness (GWI) in veterans deployed in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, a new study co-authored by a leading researcher of the disease at UT Southwestern suggests. The findings, published today in Scientific Reports, help eliminate a long-suspected cause of GWI that has attracted international concern for three decades.

Using high-precision multicollector mass spectrometry for the first time in such a study, Robert Haley, M.D., director of the division of epidemiology at UTSW, and Randall Parrish, Ph.D., professor of isotope geology at the University of Portsmouth in England, collaborated to examine a representative sampling of veterans' urine maintained by UT Southwestern's Gulf War Illness Research program. Their report found no differences in secretion of uranium isotopic ratios from those meeting the standard-case definitions of GWI and control veterans without GWI.

"Randy Parrish is a world expert in measuring uranium isotopes, and he had already been consulting in the U.K. for their Gulf War illness studies," says Haley, a professor of internal medicine who has been investigating GWI for 27 years and holds the U.S. Armed Forces Veterans Distinguished Chair for Medical Research, Honoring Robert Haley, M.D., and America's Gulf War Veterans.

"That depleted uranium is not and never was in the bodies of those who are ill at sufficient quantities to cause disease will surprise many, including sufferers who have, for 30 years, suspected depleted uranium may have contributed to their illness," says Parrish.

Affecting about 25 percent of the approximately 700,000 U.S. and coalition military personnel deployed in the Persian Gulf War's theater of operations, GWI is a chronic illness with symptoms that may include fatigue, fever, night sweats, memory and concentration problems, diarrhea, sexual dysfunction, and chronic body pain. The symptoms are comparable with autonomic nervous system abnormalities and dysfunction of the brain's cholinergic system, which is associated with cognitive functions such as memory, selective attention, and emotional processing.

Since 1998, the National Academy of Medicine has released numerous Department of Veterans Affairs-supported reports on possible causes of GWI. As Gulf War veterans were exposed to hazards not experienced in previous conflicts, the extensive list of suspected culprits through the years has included the physical and psychological stresses of war, pesticide or nerve gas exposure, depleted uranium (DU) munition exposures, pyridostigmine bromide pills taken by troops to protect against nerve agents, vaccinations for in-theater infections and toxins, and exposure to downwind oil and smoke that spewed for months from hundreds of burning oil wells.

The U.S. military has used depleted uranium since the 1990s for tank armor and some munitions due to its high density that allows for it to penetrate enemy armored vehicles. DU is produced when higher-energy uranium isotopes are removed from natural uranium found in the earth's crust to produce "enriched" uranium suitable for use in nuclear reactors. The uranium remaining is depleted of about 40 percent of its radioactivity but retains the same chemical toxicity as natural uranium.

Robert Haley, M.D. (left) visits with two longtime GWI research supporters, former Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and the late Ross Perot, at a campus event in 2006. Credit: UT Southwestern Medical Center

When a DU projectile penetrates a vehicle, the intense explosion releases tiny particles of DU that can be inhaled or swallowed as well as larger DU shrapnel fragments that can become embedded in muscle and soft tissue. Subsequent adverse effects are believed to result from heavy metal toxicity and alpha particle radiation from DU concentrated in the lungs, kidneys, and bone of those affected.

During the Gulf War, about 300 tons of DU munitions were fired at targets in Kuwait and southern Iraq, resulting in some friendly-fire incidents as well as secondary aerosol exposures. The Department of Veterans Affairs currently reports that some veterans of the Gulf War, Bosnia, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn may have been exposed to DU when they were in or around vehicles hit with friendly fire; near burning vehicles; close to fires involving DU munitions; or around damaged vehicles being salvaged.

Haley and Parrish undertook the study after realizing that the role of DU in GWI had never been adequately tested. Using methods developed by the British Royal Society, they calculated the level of DU to be found in urine over time after varying illness-causing levels of exposure. They found that the less sensitive sector-field mass spectrometry used to measure DU in urine in previous studies, while adequate for detecting DU in the few veterans with large fragments of retained shrapnel, would not detect the smaller amounts expected from far more common inhalation exposure or oral ingestion. The type of multicollector mass spectrometer operated by Parrish, which gave results at least 10 times more sensitive and robust than the measurements employed in previous GWI studies, could detect the lower levels expected.

In their study Parrish tested for the lower levels of DU in 154 urine samples, including 106 taken from veterans with GWI meeting standard-case definitions and the rest comprising two control groups representing Gulf War veterans without GWI symptoms and veterans who were not deployed. The subjects, drawn from a nationally representative sample of Gulf War-era veterans, were studied in a hospital research unit where urine was collected for 24 hours in special collection bottles prewashed with nitric acid to remove any trace of natural uranium that could interfere with the DU assay.

In all samples, the scientific partners found no DU presentnot in any of those with the illness, not in the control group deployed in theater, nor in those who weren't on the battlefield, not even in the sample from a U.S. Army officer who survived a friendly-fire incident that destroyed his Bradley Fighting Vehicle, causing him to inhale the resulting hot DU-containing gases and peppering him with shrapnel that was removed months later. Given the high sensitivity of the DU assay, the representativeness of the veterans in the study and their typical patterns of GWI, the study would have found DU at the expected levels in the GWI veterans but not in the controls, if DU was the cause of GWI. Finding none for the first time strongly rejects the link.

"These findings essentially rule out a role for DU in causing GWI," Haley says. "They also have implications for the international debate over whether DU has since been causing illness in other war theaters where DU munitions were used, since the concern for those situations was originally raised by speculation that depleted uranium caused GWI."

Parrish adds, "This question of the link between depleted uranium and the illness has bubbled along now for nearly 30 years, but we would argue it's time to look elsewhere. Disproving the suspected connection between this radioactive substance and GWI allows the medical community to focus more clearly on what the likely cause(s) actually are."

The investigators believe the most likely remaining causes for GWI are widespread low-level exposure to sarin nerve gas caused by the destruction of Iraqi chemical weapons storage facilities in January 1991, possibly compounded by the use of anti-nerve agent medications and the use of pesticides to prevent insect-borne diseases in coalition forces.

Explore further Research shows how a diet change might help US veterans with Gulf War illness
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An eight-episode documentary on how China fought and finally won the battle against absolute poverty will debut on the state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) on Thursday.

Produced by China Media Group, An eight-episode documentary on how China fought and finally won the battle against absolute poverty will debut on the state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) on Feb 18, 2021.[Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

Produced by China Media Group, the documentary features the theories developed by China during the process and practices, and demonstrates China's anti-poverty policies, models and ideas.

Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), nearly 100 million impoverished rural residents have escaped poverty since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012.

New Delhi: In what could be termed as the biggest mistake in the banking history, Citibank transferred USD 900 million (over Rs 3,600 crore) to a group of lenders, only to be later told by the US court that the transaction was "final and complete transactions, not subject to revocation."

A US federal judge on Tuesday said Citigroup Inc is not entitled to half a billion dollars of its own money that it mistakenly wired in what he called "a banking error of perhaps unprecedented nature and magnitude," Reuters reported. US District Judge Jesse Furman in Manhattan said wire transfers to lenders of cosmetics maker Revlon Inc at issue were "final and complete transactions, not subject to revocation."

Citigroup spokeswoman however said that the bank strongly disagrees with this decision and intends to appeal.

Citigroup, acting as Revlon`s loan agent, wired $893 million to Revlon`s lenders, appearing to pay off a loan not due until 2023. Citigroup had intended to send a $7.8 million interest payment, and blamed human error for the gaffe.

Some lenders returned money they were sent, but 10 asset managers including Brigade Capital Management, HPS Investment Partners and Symphony Asset Management refused, prompting Citigroup`s lawsuit to recoup the estimated $501 million they received.

Citigroup had argued that the lenders should return the money because they knew or should have known it made a mistake, and that Revlon could not afford the payment.

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But in a 101-page decision, following a six-day trial in December, Furman noted that the transfers matched "to the penny" what the lenders were owed, and said it appeared there had never been a mistake of this size before.

With Reuters Inputs
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Louisiana utility regulators are taking a deep dive into the chain of events, including what they call greedy natural gas suppliers, that led to the rolling energy blackouts that left some 2 million customers in the dark and cold, some for more than an hour.

The issue is not power outages caused by ice breaking lines but a larger problem of delivering enough power across the state.

The biggest dilemma, of course, has been the pressure on the electricity generating and delivery system that was not designed to handle everyone running their heaters full blast at the same time. Heaters use more electricity than air conditioners.

This polar vortex is historical, and many utilities in the Deep South, which normally has relatively mild winters, have to run full out to deliver so much energy for such a prolonged time.

Any hiccup leads to problems.

The secondary issue (is) some of the contracted fuel suppliers to these utilities, some of them decided they were going to go and not deliver  saying, Were going to sell it on the market because people have driven the price of natural gas to unconscionable levels, said Louisiana Public Service Commissioner Eric Skrmetta, of Metairie, on Wednesday.

Thats a real problem for me.

Public Service Commission Secretary Brandon Frey said Wednesday that he is working on three different issues for staff to investigate and expects more directives by Friday. The commissioners plan to meet Feb. 24 to hear from the utility officials.

The American Gas Association said in a release that a record amount of natural gas was delivered across the United States on Sunday and Monday. But there were problems too.

Natural Gas Pipeline Co. of America was experiencing horsepower issues at two compressors in Louisiana, reported Natural Gas Intelligence, a subscription service that analyzes the markets and is based in Dulles, Virginia.

Price also was a major factor. The price of gas futures, which is what utilities contract to fuel their generators over time, ran at about $3 per 1 million British thermal units, or MMBtu, which is how natural gas is sold. But spot prices, which is what gas sells for in the current market, nationally averaged $80.76 since the cold and in Oklahoma on Friday surged as high as $999, according to Natural Gas Intelligence.

Skrmetta said he has received reports that utilities werent getting the natural gas necessary to run the generators that make electricity, causing several generating plants to have to turn themselves off. When the plants go offline, regional transmission operations have no choice but to shut down some areas  rolling blackouts  to keep the entire system from collapsing.

There is no reason for these units not to be receiving fuel in the first place, Skrmetta said. We may not have jurisdiction over the gas companies, but we can tell the utilities who theyre going to buy from, and if they cant get reliable guaranteed fuel supplies, then theyre not going to be doing business with those natural gas suppliers.

Rolling blackouts have been implemented from Minnesota to Texas.

SLEMCO: Blackouts suspended, demand on power grid eased late Tuesday morning Rolling blackouts were eased late this morning after being in effect for some two hours, SLEMCO spokesperson Mary Laurent said at 9:33 a.m.

Texas is in a different position from Louisiana because most of that state has its own power grid thats not connected to the rest of the nation, so it cant receive power from regions with excess power.

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The rolling blackout Tuesday night in Louisiana, which lasted from 20 to 90 minutes, was implemented statewide, said John Hawkins Jr., Entergy Louisiana's vice president of distribution operations. Earlier on Tuesday, areas in southwest Louisiana were blacked out for a short time.

You look at the areas where you have the congestion because what youre trying to do is relieve the congestion, Hawkins said. Last night, the congestion was across the whole state, so thats why it was statewide. The one earlier, the congestion was out there in the west so it only affected that area.

The regional transmission operator for Louisiana  Midcontinent Independent System Operator, known as MISO  issued a statement Wednesday: On Tuesday evening, the prolonged winter weather event caused additional forced generation outages and high load demand across the bulk electric system. MISO declared an emergency event for the entire South Region (including most of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Southeast Texas).

"The declaration instructed member utilities in the affected areas to implement periodic power outages. These controlled outages are a last resort in order to prevent a larger system outage and are only directed rarest circumstances.

MISO said its electricity grid is stable: MISOs North and Central Regions continue to export energy to the South Region and are projected to remain reliable.

Basically, fuel is used to turn the turbines that make electricity. That power needs to be used as soon as it is made. Excess power is directed by MISO and other operators to regions in need of additional power.

During this polar vortex event, many electric generators have been unable to keep up with the demand. If the supply load drops below demand, the system faces long-term issues.

What are 'rolling blackouts'? Here's why Louisiana utilities are being asked to shut off power Rolling blackouts have left millions of customers in Texas without power this week, and on Tuesday night Louisiana residents began to experien

In order to prevent a catastrophic or cascading event, you have to reduce the load, so thats when you get into that load shedding type of scenario, Hawkins said.

At that point, the regional transmission operators, like MISO, order the shutdown of specific grids  called shedding load  to allow the electrons to catch up with the deficit.

Rather than calling the head of the utility company, MISOs calls go directly to a plants operations center with specific instructions on how power needs to be turned off. The plant operators are legally obligated to follow the orders of the transmission operators.

The tricky part is that since load shedding is a last-case scenario, MISO is always trying to avoid it until they have no choice, and then as soon as they can are stopping the load shed requirement, said Public Service Commission Chairman Craig Greene, of Baton Rouge. This is why people have seen so many different notifications that they may experience a 30-minute black out, only to then be told they wont.

+2 As Entergy, DEMCO work to restore power to thousands in Baton Rouge, ice poses unfamiliar challenge Tens of thousands of people in the Baton Rouge area remained without power Wednesday as winter weather continued to move through the region.

Greene is optimistic about the next few days as temperatures become milder.

The expectation is that as temperatures rise and the demand on power  presently the excessive demand on gas that is straining the grid  lessens, generation units will no longer be at peak demand and we will be in the clear of rolling black outs, Greene said.

Staff writers Tony McAuley and Paul Cobler contributed to this report.

New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Widely scattered showers and thunderstorms early. Clouds lingering later. High around 85F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms developing overnight. Low near 70F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Tia McBean, 33, has been jailed for 15 months following a prolonged stalking campaign

A woman who sent her ex-boyfriend a pig's head in a 'horrible and gratuitous act of spite' during a prolonged stalking campaign has been jailed for 15 months.

Tia McBean, 33, also bombarded Oralton Robinson, 35, and his long-term partner with phone calls and ordered pizzas to their home - and continued the harassment even after she was made the subject of a restraining order.

She became pregnant during a short relationship with Mr Robinson after they had met in a pub in May 2018, Woolwich Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Matthew Dalton said in an earlier hearing: 'Oralton Robinson explains he had a short relationship with Tia McBean in 2018 for a few months when he was with his partner, Arkeyia Bish.

'Ms McBean told him she had Bipolar disorder, which was when he started to distance himself from her.

After they split up, McBean then sent abusive text messages, knocked on his door late at night, left notes and at times made more than 100 phone calls a day.

McBean (pictured left and right) was told to leave Mr Robinson alone but allegedly continued her harassment campaign by calling him and sending takeaways

She also targeted the restaurant run by Mr Robinson's partner, sending Facebook messages to regular customers falsely claiming she had seen a man carrying out a sex act in a cooking pot.

McBean ordered so many pizzas to the couple's home that the receipts filled four double-sided pages of evidence, and Mr Robinson even found a delivery driver outside his home after returning from the police station to report the unwanted food.

On February 25 last year she sent a pig's head to Mr Robinson's partner's restaurant.

Prosecutor Matthew Dalton told a previous hearing: 'At about 8.50am he was working at the restaurant when a delivery was made. He thought it was from a catering company.

'He opened it... it was a pig's head. He didn't expect this and would never order anything like this. They only served halal meat at the restaurant.'

Judge Downing also noted McBean's (pictured) 'history of disobedience' and initial 'defiance' during proceedings

The court heard that a vegan employee said in a statement: 'As soon as I saw it, I felt sick. It really wasn't nice for me at all. It made me feel nauseous and I did throw up.'

McBean appeared at Woolwich Crown Court on Thursday to plead guilty to multiple charges including breach of a restraining order, criminal damage, stalking and sending malicious communications.

Judge Ruth Downing sentenced her to 15 months in jail and extended her restraining order until May 31.

Sentencing McBean, she said: 'This was a course of conduct in breach of restraining orders and was aimed specifically at Mr Oralton Robinson and his long-term partner.

'The breaches are of an offensive rather than violent nature... restraining orders are given in a variety of places which covers a gamut of conduct.

'The main feature of this conduct has not been one of violence but a loss of peace and quiet.

'I don't entirely discount that there was a genuine degree of apprehension (from Mr Robinson and his partner) that the conduct could escalate if your calls and your abuse did not achieve whatever it was you were out to achieve.'

Woolwich Crown Court, London. Judge Ruth Downing sentenced McBean to 15 months in jail and extended her restraining order until May 31

Judge Downing said the criminal damage suggested McBean's campaign was 'getting out of hand'.

'Matters reached a very unpleasant stage when you sent a package that when opened... revealed that there was a pig's head inside, which was a horrible and very gratuitous act of spite,' she said.

She added that reviews of Mr Robinson's partner's restaurant by McBean were 'deeply unpleasant, unnecessary, hurtful, irksome and worrying'.

Judge Downing also noted McBean's 'history of disobedience' and initial 'defiance' during proceedings.

James Hasslacher, defending, said: 'This was an irrational approach to the breakdown of a relationship.'

Referring to McBean's guilty pleas he said: 'It is a move by her that I hope the court can see is an optimistic way forward.'

He added it was a 'matter of record' that Mr Robinson had previously been convicted of assaulting McBean.

'This was a toxic relationship that descended into this quite irrational behaviour,' he said.

McBean, of Besson Street, New Cross, was previously remanded in custody and is due to be released on licence in mid-March.

A further restraining order will be put in place in due course.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is weighing up giving Amad Diallo his Manchester United debut in Turin on Thursday, claiming the clubs new 37million signing has not just gone along for the ride.

The 18-year-old former Atalanta winger returned to Italy on Wednesday as part of a 22-man United squad for the Europa League first leg against Real Sociedad, being played on neutral ground at Juventuss stadium.

With forward Edinson Cavani and midfielder Donny van de Beek ruled out through injury, Diallo is likely to feature on Uniteds bench. Solskjaer insists he is ready to use the Ivorian and 17-year-old striker Shola Shoretire against the Spaniards if needed.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (right) has revealed Amad Diallo (left) could make his Manchester United debut against Real Sociedad

Theyre not in the travelling squad just for experience. Theyre there to make an impact if they have to, said the United boss. Maybe theyll get their chance before we expected.

United are without a win over Spanish opposition in their last nine attempts, most recently losing to Sevilla in the semi-finals of this competition last season.

Well have to perform very well to beat Sociedad, added Solskjaer.

It was probably the hardest draw you could pick from our unseeded group.

Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford was on Wednesday named in Time magazines Next 100 list as a leader shaping the future, recognising his campaigning work on child poverty.

Solskjaer insisted the 37m January signing is not in the squad 'just for the experience'
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SPRINGFIELD  Riverbend lawmakers are offering mixed assessments of Gov. J.B. Pritzkers $41.6 billion budget proposal Wednesday that would hold most state agencies at flat funding levels and rely heavily on increased federal funds, as well as proposed changes to the states corporate tax structure.

The budget proposal does not call for income tax increases. Over the next four months, lawmakers will work on an operating budget of their own to send to Pritzker which may or may not address all of Pritzkers requests.

State Sen. Rachelle Crowe, D-Glen Carbon, said she agrees with the plan to support human services, make full payments to the states pension obligation, fund public safety initiatives and increase resources for the Illinois Department of Unemployment Security.

As conversations continue, I will be a strong advocate for the state to invest in our children and safety for working families across the Metro East, she said.

State Sen. Jason Plummer, R-Edwardsville, said the budget address perpetuates the same failed gimmicks of the past and relies on $1.5 billion in non-existent revenue.

We must address the root cause of Illinois fiscal issues, and that starts with passing a balanced budget that helps our businesses, protects our taxpayers and makes Illinois more competitive with our neighbors, he said. We should be focused on supporting our business community, not making it harder to do business in Illinois.

State Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, said Illinois finances are a mess and the pandemic has made the fiscal situation worse.

We need a legitimate balanced budget, he said. Instead, the governor has again proposed to try and balance the budget on the backs of businesses and their employees through tax increases that havent yet passed. The people of Illinois deserve better.

State Sen. Doris Turner, D-Springfield, said she believed Pritzkers proposal shows he understands crucial human services need to be maintained.

People from all corners of the 48th district are hurting, and I intend to play a key role in delivering the relief they sorely deserve, she said.

State Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville, said her priority remains a fair and responsible budget and urged Congress to pass a new federal COVID-19 relief package.

While the governor offered a good starting point, budget negotiations will have to include health and safety measures to continue fighting the pandemic while also addressing some of Illinois ongoing fiscal issues, she said. Our small businesses and high-risk populations are depending on more aid to get our state back on track.

State Rep. Amy Elik, R-Fosterburg, said she was disappointed with Pritzkers address, saying it fails to include a plan to pay off Illinois $5 billion in unpaid bills and no realistic plan to pay off the $4.3 billion the state recently borrowed.

The governors budget is more of the same  failed tax and spending schemes that continue to put our state further into debt, she said. Its time for the legislature to pass a budget that is balanced without new taxes.

State Rep. Avery Bourne, R-Morrisonville, also expressed disappointment, saying Pritzkers budget is $1.65 billion out of balance.

His budget includes funding for programs in the awful police reform bill that passed during lame duck, signaling his intention to sign the legislation, she said. He proposes decreased funding for school transportation, a signal of more remote learning.

I probably sound like a broken record saying that Illinois needs to live within our means, she said.

State Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonville, called Pritzkers address a bi-polar message of unity while attacking Republicans.

Illinois has lost hundreds of thousands of jobs since the start of this pandemic and Illinoisans are voting with their feet, he said. We lost over 80,000 people to other states last year alone.

State Rep. Charles Meier, R-Okawville, said Pritzkers plan wants small businesses to pay more.

I have worked for three years to get an international company headquartered in my district, he said. With a swipe of a pen, the governor is trying to undo what my colleagues and I have accomplished to bring more jobs to Illinois.
DUBLIN, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Research Report of the Imported Barley Industry in China 2020-2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

According to the report, in 2019, China imported 5.93 million tons of barley, worth USD 1.56 billion.

According to the analyst, with the development of the feed and beer industries, China has a large consumption scale of barley, while the domestic supply was only around 1 million tons per year, which leads to high import dependence. The annual production of barley has been decreasing year by year, and even only 956.50 kilotons in 2018. The main reasons are that the cultivated land decreased, and farmers turned to plant other higher-value grain, such as wheat. Chinese farmers do not have large-scale planting and unified field management as foreign farmers, thus imported barley has an obvious price advantage over domestic barley.

From 2017 to April 2020, Australia was the largest source of barley imports in China. At least half of Australia's annual barley exported to China, but the proportion of Australian barley keep decreasing year by year. Moreover, in 2020, the Ministry of Commerce issued an announcement to increase tariffs on Australian barley due to anti-dumping.

Out of protecting cultivated land, the barley planting area and production is estimated to decrease in the future.

According to the analyst, although feed and beer industries are impacted by the COVID-19 in early 2020, it is expected to recover after the pandemic. According to the analyst, the demand for barley will slightly drop in 2020, and then go up in the next few years. In addition, the major sources of barley imports is Canada, France, and Ukraine. Australia is expected to be the third or fourth-largest source of barley due to tariffs.



Readers may obtain the following information from this report:

Economic Environment of the Barley Industry in China

Policies in the Imported Barley Industry in China

Analysis of Supply and Demand of Barley in China

Analysis of Imported Barley in China

Analysis of Major Sources of Barley in China

Price Trends of Imported Barley in China

Driving Forces and Opportunities of Imported Barley in China

Forecasts on Imported Barley in China 2020-2024

Key Topics Covered:



1 Analysis of Industry Environment of Barley in China, 2020-2024

1.1 Economy Environment

1.1.1 China's GDP and Per Capita Disposable Income of Residents

1.1.2 Grain Production in China

1.2 Policy Environment

1.2.1 Import Policy of Barley in China

1.3 Downstream Demand of Barley in China

1.3.1 Feed Industry

1.3.2 Beer Industry



2 Analysis of Barley Industry in China, 2015-2019

2.1 Analysis on Supply of Domestic Barley in China

2.1.1 Analysis of Barley Planting in China

2.1.2 Analysis on Barley Production in China

2.2 Analysis of Barley Price in China



3 Analysis of Barley Imports in China, 2017-2020

3.1 Import Scale of Barley in China

3.1.1 Analysis on Import Volume of Barley in China

3.1.2 Analysis of Import Value of Barley in China

3.2 Import Price of Barley in China

3.2.1 Analysis on Average Import Price of Barley

3.2.2 Comparison between Local Price and Import Price of Barley



4 Major Sources of Barley Imports in China, 2017-2020

4.1 Major Sources of Imported Barley in China

4.1.1 Major Sources of Imported Barley in China by Country, 2017

4.1.2 Major Sources of Imported Barley in China by Country, 2018

4.1.3 Major Sources of Imported Barley in China by Country, 2019

4.1.4 Major Sources of Imported Barley in China by Country, 2020

4.2 Major Countries of Barley Exports into China

4.2.1 Australia

4.2.2 Canada

4.2.3 France

4.2.4 Ukraine



5 Forecast on Barley Imports in China, 2020-2024

5.1 Factors Influencing Barley Imports

5.1.1 Drivers and Opportunities of Imported Barley in China

5.1.2 Threats and Challenges Imported Barley in China

5.2 Forecast on Imported Barley in China

5.3 Forecast on Major Sources of Imported Barley in China

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/jcunw9



Media Contact:

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Laura Wood, Senior Manager

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Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
The top diplomats from the United States, Germany, France, and Britain will hold talks on February 18 to discuss the future of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, which Washington pulled out of in 2018.

The deal signed by Tehran with the four Western powers, along with China and Russia, called for curbs on Irans uranium-enrichment program in return for the lifting of sanctions.

However, President Donald Trump in May 2018 pulled his country out of the accord and reimposed crippling sanctions on Iran, saying the terms were not strict enough to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.

Iran has always denied seeking to develop nuclear weapons, saying its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes.

Trump also said Iran had violated the spirit of the accord by financing extremist activity in the region, an allegation Tehran has denied.

The other signees have been attempting to save the accord. Since the U.S. pullout, Tehran has increasingly breached limits it had agreed to under the deal.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab are scheduled to meet Frances Jean-Yves Le Drian for talks in Paris. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will take part through a video link.

U.S. President Joe Biden has indicated more willingness to deal with Iran than his predecessor did, but he has publicly stated that Iran must adhere to its commitment under the 2015 deal before his administration will discuss the possibility of lifting sanctions.

Blinken said last month he wants to coordinate with U.S. allies to achieve a "longer and stronger agreement" with Tehran.

Based on reporting by dpa and Reuters
Kevin Sorbo speaks during the Discovery Communications TCA Panel at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, Calif. on July 9, 2014. (Amanda Edwards/Getty Images for Discovery Communications)

Facebook Never Asked Me to Take Down Posts: Kevin Sorbo Disputes Tech Giants Claim

Actor Kevin Sorbo, famous for starring in the Hercules the Legendary Journeys fantasy television series, is considering legal action against Facebook after the tech giant deleted his page, twice.

Sorbo had amassed a following of around 550,000 fans on his Facebook page, which the actor said helped him book speaking events and other gigs.

These guys are taking away my livelihood, he told The Epoch Times of the ban on Feb. 17 while defending his posts.

Sorbo said his problems on Facebook started after he began posting about masks and questioning the governments COVID-19 restrictions.

In some posts, he had voiced concerns that big box stores like Target and Costco were deemed essential during lockdowns but not mom and pop stores. In others, he said that he had reposted information about COVID based on what some doctors were saying, while questioning how policies might be impacting the younger generation.

Im not denying that COVID exists. Im not denying that its contagious, he said. But  I hear anywhere between 99.4 to 99.7 percent of people who get it will survive it, you know. Were making five- and seven-year-old kids walk around with masks on. Thats child abuse to me, he said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends children older than two years old wear masks.

So I started, you know, asking more and more questions and posting what doctors were saying about it, Sorbo said.

Soon after, Facebook contacted him to say they would be restricting his posts. Were going to shadow ban you now, he said was the message he received from the tech giant.

Then all of a sudden, last week, they took me down, just took away the page. And no explanation, no other warning, nothing at all, he said. He added that a second page he started after the initial ban had just been deleted on Feb. 16.

Silhouettes of mobile users are seen next to a screen projection of Facebook logo in this picture illustration taken March 28, 2018. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

Sorbo said that he only heard from Facebook why his accounts had been deleted after a spokesperson gave a statement to Fox News in response to the outlets report on his deplatforming.

We removed Kevin Sorbos Page for repeatedly sharing debunked claims about the coronavirus or vaccines, the statement to Fox News read.

The spokesperson also told Fox that it had notified Sorbos account twice to say that it had 48 hours to remove posts that Facebook considered to be promoting alleged misinformation, as per its policy. They said they deleted Sorbos page because there had been no action. Its unclear which of Sorbos posts violated Facebooks policies.

But Sorbo has denied Facebooks account of the situation, saying, Facebook never asked me to take down whatever COVID posts they are talking about. I would have, reluctantly, taken the posts down if they had. Liars. Such a shock.

He said he had made several attempts to seek clarity from Facebook about their decision to delete his page but received no answer.

They can say whatever they want. Thats the problem, he added.

Facebook did not immediately reply to a request from The Epoch Times for comment.

The Hercules actor said hed love to go back on Facebook just to tell his followers to follow him over to platforms like CloudHub, Parler, or his website.

Censorship

Sorbo also voiced to The Epoch Times his concern that discussion on important health topics like mandatory mask-wearing is being shut down by tech giants on digital public squares while the government is exerting so much control over peoples lives.

This is fascism and Marxism at its at its finest, you know, beginning to really get rocking and rolling in America and around the world, he said. It just blows my mind that were allowing these people to control our lives like this.

Sorbo also accused big tech platforms of a left-leaning bias, citing his observations that the social media accounts of people on the left were never sanctioned for angry or inappropriate remarks.

Why is it okay for them to keep the angry comments from the left? Sorbo asked. I mean, the hypocrisy is just so unbelievably blatant.

As an example, he pointed to Disney firing Mandalorian actress Gina Corano for posts she had made online. Meanwhile, he said, Jack Morrissey, a co-producer for Disneys Beauty and the Beast, was not banned by Twitter for writing MAGA kids go screaming, hats first into the woodchipper on a post accompanied by an illustration depicting a bloody scene from Fargo in which a dead persons body is fed through a wood chipper.

Morrissey apologized for that tweet, telling The Wrap, It was something that I did not give any thought to. It was just a fast, profoundly stupid tweet.  I would throw my phone into the ocean before doing that again.
He regularly shares snippets of his life with followers on social media.

But on Thursday, Andy Lee revealed a shocking detail about his family tree he had never shared before.

Speaking to Who Magazine, the 39-year-old shed light on the relationship between his great-grandparents.

'It probably explains a lot!' Andy Lee (right), 39, revealed a shocking detail about his family tree on Thursday - his great-grandparents were first cousins. Pictured with Rebecca Harding, 30

'[Last thing I discovered about myself was] that my great-grandparents were first cousins - it probably explains a lot!' he told the publication.

Andy's confession comes as he prepares to give away cash prizes to contestants able to complete random skill games on Channel Ten's new game show, The Cube.

And in the lead up to kickstarting his new hosting gig on February 24, the comedian was put his skills to the test with a bizarre challenge on Monday.

In a video shared to Instagram, the boyfriend of Rebecca Harding, 30, attempted to throw two slices of bread into a toaster a few metres away.

What's next? Andy's confession comes as he prepares to give away cash prizes to contestants able to complete random skill games on Channel 10's new game show, The Cube

The difficult feat was entertaining for Andy, who is based in Victoria and recently went into another Melbourne lockdown because of COVID-19 on Friday.

'During lockdown, you have a lot more time on your hands to prepare breakfast and you can also touch up on your skills for if you ever get the chance to take on The Cube,' he captioned the post.

He looked determined and focused as he took multiple turns practicing landing the already-toasted bread in the toaster.

Un-BREAD-ievable! The difficult feat was entertaining for Andy, who is based in Victoria and recently went into another Melbourne lockdown because of COVID-19 on Friday

Success! After more than 12 attempts, Andy filmed himself throwing the already-toasted bread simultaneously in to the toaster's holes perfectly

After more than 12 attempts, Andy finally achieved the perfect landing, writing: 'Put me in the cube.'

Based on the UK series of the same name, The Cube will see contestants put in a small perspex cube where they must take on a series of tasks in the hopes of winning $250,000.

The tasks can involve anything from throwing and catching challenges to memorising games.

Pressure tests: The Cube will see contestants put in a small perspex cube where they must take on a series of tasks in the hopes of winning $250,000

'Things get tense with me and my mates when we play skill games to determine who's going to get the next round of beers at the pub, imagine doing it for a quarter of million dollars. I cant wait,' Andy said in a statement.

Andy's new hosting role will see him placed in direct competition with his colleague, Hamish, who hosts the hugely popular Channel Nine series Lego Masters.

The Cube will premiere on Channel 10 on February 24
Restaurants will no longer be allowed to sell pre-packaged meals through arrangements with supermarkets and other outlets, as Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley definitively closed this loophole yesterday.

Rowley said this would not be allowed to continue, as it defeats the purpose of the public health regulations. Restaurants and street food vendors were among those businesses ordered to close to limit the movement of people and curb the spread of Covid-19.
The Report Lists the Main Companies in the Smart Manufacturing Market: ABB Ltd., Siemens AG, General Electric, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Robert Bosch GmBH, Rockwell Automation Inc., Schneider Electric, Honeywell International Inc., Emerson Electric Co., Fanuc Corporation, Yokogawa Electric Corporation, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson.

Pune, India, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global smart manufacturing market size is expected to reach USD 506.33 billion by 2027, exhibiting a CAGR of 12.2% during the forecast period. The increasing adoption of advanced robotic solutions including swarm robotics, autonomous mobile robots, and cobots in industries will provide impetus to the market during the forecast period, states Fortune Business Insights in a report, titled Smart Manufacturing Market Size, Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Component (Solution and Services), By Deployment (Cloud and On-premise), By Enterprise Size (Small & Medium Enterprise (SMEs) and Large Enterprise), By Industry (Discrete and Process), and Regional Forecast, 2020-2027. The market size stood at USD 204.95 billion in 2019.

The coronavirus pandemic has caused an enormous financial crisis across various sectors around the globe. We understand that this health emergency has negatively impacted various sectors across the globe. Rising support from governments and several companies can help in the fight against this highly infectious virus. There are some industries that are struggling and some are thriving. More or less, nearly every sector is estimated to be impacted by this pandemic.

We are making endless efforts to uplift businesses in this crucial need of the hour. Our expertise and experience can offer enormous benefits to help regain during this global pandemic.





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The report on the smart manufacturing market incorporates:

Story continues

Authoritative analysis of the market for smart manufacturing

Evolving plans and tactics of corporations

Present and future projections

Dominant regions in the world

Covid-19 influence on the manufacturing industry

Market Driver :

Rising Trend towards Industrial Automation to Encourage Market

Major manufacturing companies have implemented industrial automation solutions to elevate their production capacities and productivity. The growing shift towards automation solutions to eradicate human errors in the production process will significantly benefit the market in the forthcoming years. For instance, giant automotive companies such as BMW, Audi, Tesla, Volkswagen, jaguar, and others have embraced industry 4.0 in their manufacturing units. The smart factory solutions leverage organizations proficiencies to reduce manufacturing costs and improve productivity. Furthermore, the hefty investments in industry 4.0 projects from various countries such as the U.S., China, U.K., and others will have an excellent influence on smart manufacturing market growth. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), global spending on Industry 4.0 technology is expected to be USD 907 billion per year through to 2020.



Click here to get the short-term and long-term impact of COVID-19 on this Market.





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Implementation of AI-enabled Platforms to Ease Workforce Amid COVID-19

The financial jeopardy caused by coronavirus has disrupted the manufacturing sector. The stop on production processes and supply chains will negatively influence market growth. The dependency on skilled laborers and workers across manufacturing hubs will simultaneously pose a risk to the business of the sector. However, the constant efforts of industries to adopt newer technologies such as Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence in their processes can consequently dismiss the losses that occurred during the pandemic. Additionally, the introduction of smart solutions by players can further aid the market amid coronavirus. For instance, in July 2020, SK Telecom Co., Ltd announced it has introduced a subscription-based smart manufacturing solution for SMEs to optimize equipment maintenance and eliminate the financial damage caused by the COVID crisis.

Regional Analysis :

Heavy Investment in Smart Factory Projects to Foster Growth in North America

Asia Pacific is predicted to witness a rapid growth rate during the forecast period due to the increasing adoption of industrial automation in developing countries. According to the IoT Council, the China-based manufacturing organizations' spending on the internet of things (IoT) is expected to be around USD 127.5 Bn in 2020. The Smart Manufacturing Market in North America is expected to dominate the global market owing to the rising investments in smart factory projects. For instance, in June 2019, Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson invested around USD 100 Mn for the deployment of the fully automated smart factory in the U.S. Europe is expected to rise tremendously during the forecast period due to the well-established automotive production industry in the region.





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Important Development

November 2019  Schneider Electric inaugurated its second smart factory facility in Bengaluru. The factory encompasses the companys EcoStruxure open platform that enables preventive maintenance to optimize costs & enhance agility and real-time monitoring of machine performance.

The Report Lists the Main Companies in the Smart Manufacturing Market:

ABB Ltd. (Zurich, Switzerland)

Siemens AG (Munich, Germany)

General Electric (Massachusetts, U.S.)

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation (Tokyo, Japan)

Robert Bosch GmBH (Gerlingen, Germany)

Rockwell Automation Inc. (Wisconsin, U.S.)

Schneider Electric (Rueil-Malmaison, France)

Honeywell International Inc. (North Carolina, U.S.)

Emerson Electric Co. (Missouri, U.S.)

Fanuc Corporation (Yamanashi, Japan)

Yokogawa Electric Corporation (Tokyo, Japan)

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson (Stockholm, Sweden)





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Major Table Of Content:

Introduction Definition, By Segment Research Methodology/Approach Data Sources

Executive Summary

Market Dynamics Macro and Micro Economic Indicators Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities and Trends Impact of COVID-19 Short-term Impact Long-term Impact

Competition Landscape Business Strategies Adopted by Key Players Consolidated SWOT Analysis of Key Players Porters Five Force Analysis Global Smart Manufacturing Market Share Analysis and Matrix, 2019

Key Smart Manufacturing Market Insights and Analysis, By Segments

Global Smart Manufacturing Market Size Estimates and Forecasts (Quantitative Data), By Segments, 2016-2027 By Component (Value) Solution Industrial 3D Printing Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) Manufacturing Execution System (MES) Robotic Process Automation (RPA) Remote Monitoring software Supervisory Controller and Data Acquisition (SCADA) Others (Energy Management Systems, Fleet Management Solutions, etc.) Services Professional Services Managed Services By Deployment (Value) Cloud On-premise By Enterprise Size (Value) Small & Medium Enterprise (SMEs) Large Enterprise By Industry (Value) Discrete Industry Automotive Transportation Industrial machinery Medical devices Semiconductor and Electronics/High-Tech Others (Aerospace and Defense, etc.) Process Industry Pharmaceuticals Mining and Metals Chemicals Pulp and Paper Others (Cable, etc.) By Region (Value) North America Europe Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa Latin America



TOC Continued!





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The Rimac Concept_Two electric hypercar is making its way onto markets in Asia, thanks to a smart move by the company's sales department. Of course, we are looking at key markets on the continent, and the first showroom has been opened in Shanghai, China. It comes as a result of Rimac's new partnership with the Kingsway Dealership Network. The Chinese company was founded in 1974, and has just launched its new brand Kingsway Apex, which is the group's new hypercar dedicated division.This will enable a select few wealthy Chinese car collectors to access the highly anticipated 1,914-horsepower C_Two, as Kingsway already has a strong presence on the market, with a diversified portfolio of businesses focused on luxury and lifestyle. This move further boosts Rimac 's presence around the globe, as it already has partners in Canada, the United States of America, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Japan.The first vehicles haven't been delivered yet, but they should reach the end customer sometime this year. You just can't help but be inspired by Mate Rimac, if you'll back at his story and how the whole idea of an electric hypercar came to his mind. Talking about the new partnership, he noted that the customer experience is set to match the levels of performance attained by the C_Two and that clients in both Hong Kong and Macau will benefit from the deal.The C_Two is the next generation hypercar that unlocks the extreme performance of the electric drivetrain and will bring a new level of driving experience. It will be supported by a customer service experience to match  no matter where you are in the world. As such, we are very happy to welcome Kingsway Group into our family with their excellent reputation and access to the key markets for our customers in Hong Kong, Macau and China. This is another important step in the building of Rimacs global network and brand.The CEO of Kingsway Group Holdings, Mr. Albert Wong, also shared his enthusiasm for the newly formed connection, as he too is counting on the continuous development of electrification in the automotive industry for the future. Kingsway reached another milestone. Rimac is an innovative company with outstanding capabilities in electrification. It is an extremely exciting time in the car industry and Rimac is at the cutting edge of this field. We are proud to partner with Mate and his company to take Rimac to new heights in the Greater China Region.

Rimac included just a few photos from the new showroom, and if you're ever in the area and would like to see the car up close, it is located at North Henan Road, no. 23 in the Jingan District. In one of the photos, you can notice the diversity of colors that are available for the C_Two, and we can't wait to see the various exterior-interior combos that people will go for.
Burma Eight Civil Servants in Court for Opposing Myanmar Military Regime

Civil servants who were sued for joining the civil disobedience movement leave Zabuthiri Township Court on Feb. 17. / Htet Naing Zaw / The Irrawaddy

Naypyitaw  The hearing of eight Cooperatives Department employees, who joined the civil disobedience movement on Monday at Myoma Market in Naypyitaw, took place on Wednesday at Zabuthiri Township Court.

The seven women and a man, ranking from junior clerk to officer from the Lewe Township office and Cooperatives Department head office in Naypyitaw, were charged with disobedience under Article 188 of the Penal Code.

The complaint was filed by the Zabuthiri Township administrator and the judge granted bail.

The complaint said the civil servants defied their orders, Daw Nan Aye Mya Thiri, an associate Zabuthiri judge, told reporters.

On Wednesday, the court heard from the plaintiff, police officers as prosecution witnesses and a defendant.

Under Article 188, any civil servant who defies a government order can face up to six months in prison.

The defendants declined to talk to The Irrawaddy.

On Monday, police also detained 36 student protesters, 20 people who protested outside the National Planning Ministry and 20 Kyitaungkan villagers in Naypyitaw.

The authorities released 27 student protesters on Monday evening but the others remain in detention.

Zabuthiri Township Court is also hearing the cases of President U Win Myint and State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

The court is inside the compound of Naypyitaw Council. Some journalists trying to cover activists hearings on Wednesday were denied access.

The military regime has warned that it will arrest and possibly prosecute those who protest in areas under curfew.

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Victoria has recorded three new coronavirus cases just hours after millions of people were released from a gruelling five-day lockdown.

Two parents and their child tested positive for coronavirus on Friday after staying on level three of the Holiday Inn quarantine hotel at Melbourne Airport.

One member of the household, who was not at the hotel, was considered a secondary contact and had been isolating with the family at home.

All three had negative tests between February 10 and 12. All have quarantined at home during their infectious periods.

The fresh figures take state's number of active cases to 27 after 21,292 tests were processed on Thursday.

There were no new cases in hotel quarantine.

Pictured: People in Melbourne coming out of lockdown on Thursday and heading back to work

The new cases on Friday are linked to the Holiday Inn quarantine hotel outbreak at Melbourne Airport

Australia's deputy chief medical officer professor Michael Kidd said state authorities are working to make sure people linked to the family are traced.

'Obviously the Victorian authorities will be acting very swiftly to make sure that all the contacts of these people have been followed up and are also in isolation and arranging to get tested,' he said on the ABC on Friday.

State chief health officer Brett Sutton wrote on Twitter: 'This isn't over yet - all known contacts of cases or exposure sites need to stay in quarantine for the full 14 days to wrap this up.'

Pictured: A cafe worker in Melbourne CBD preparing to re-open after a five-day lockdown

Pictured: Shoppers lining up outside a Foot Locker in Melbourne Central on February 18, just hours after Stage 4 restrictions were eased

Victoria recorded no locally-acquired infections on Wednesday as residents were freed from a brutal Stage Four lockdown.

The stay-at-home order, only allowing people to leave home for essential work, shopping, care and exercise, was repealed along with the 5km travel rule.

Face masks are still mandatory indoor and outdoors if social distancing cannot be followed, and Victorians will only be allowed to have five guests in their houses.

Premier Daniel Andrews said on Wednesday he was able to lift the 'short, sharp circuit breaker' lockdown thanks to the low infection numbers.

'[The lockdown was] exactly what we said we needed, that's exactly what we said would work,' he said.

'I am very proud of every single Victorian for the work they have done.'

The fresh figures take state's number of active cases to 27 after 21,292 tests were processed on Thursday. Pictured: People in face masks at the Australian Open in Melbourne on Thursday

Pictured: Shoppers at Melbourne Central on February 18. The state recorded three new cases on Friday

But the state remains on high alert after coronavirus fragments were detected in sewage in areas where there have been no active cases - sparking concerns the virus might have spread.

The virus fragments have been found in wastewater in suburbs in south-east Melbourne, health authorities warned on Friday.

Testing of samples from Wantirna South and Boronia on February 15 and Carrum Downs, Langwarrin, St Kilda, Caulfield and Caulfield North on February 16.

Currently the only active cases are in Melbourne's western suburbs along with one case in Greater Dandenong - sparking concerns the virus may have spread undetected to other areas.

The Department of Health said the wastewater samples contained 'weak detections' of the virus.

Victoria's five-day coronavirus lockdown will end at 11.59pm on Wednesday - but some restrictions will remain (pictured, a picnic in a Melbourne park pre-lockdown)

It comes after the announcement that Victorian hotel quarantine and airport workers will be among the first to receive the Pfizer when it rolls out in Australia next week.

Front-line workers who are more likely to come into contact with the virus will be vaccinated first in Victoria, which also includes health staff, and public sector residential aged care staff and residents.

'Our priority is to support the Commonwealth to make sure that the vaccine is administered to workers at the highest risk of contracting Covid-19 as quickly and safely possible,' Health Minister Martin Foley said in a statement.

'Whether they work in hotel quarantine, at the airport, or a specialist Covid ward - we need to keep Victorians most at risk of infection safe, while they continue to keep Victorians safe.'

Senior government ministers met on Tuesday night to discuss the easing of restrictions, which were introduced following an outbreak of the UK strain at Melbourne Airport's Holiday Inn where returned travellers were being quarantined.

Premier Daniel Andrews (pictured on Wednesday) said he was able to lift the 'short, sharp circuit breaker' thanks to the hard work of Victorians in containing the virus

The outbreak at the Holiday Inn sits at 22 cases.

The starting point of the cluster can be traced back to a family of three who had returned from overseas and tested positive for Covid.

A returned traveller in the family was allegedly using a nebuliser to treat his chronic asthma and said he was given permission by health authorities to use the medical device.

It is believed the nebuliser allowed coronavirus-carrying particles to become airborne and infect a food and beverage worker, a security officer and a resident who has since left hotel quarantine.

Victoria has recorded 20,640 cases and 820 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

With an ever-growing list foreign and domestic of challenges facing the new presidential administration, two former U.S. Secretaries say the United States has an opportunity to redefine its position in the world and the role it takes as a global leader.

Former United States Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge and former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel sat down to discuss what the nations path forward may look like as it confronts domestic terror, strengthens traditional alliances, and utilizes existing tools to take on new and emerging threats as the focus of the 2021 Chuck Hagel Forum in Global Leadership.

The virtual event hosted by the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) and the Atlantic Council on Monday night was the third installment of the series, which has previously featured then-former Vice President Joe Biden in 2019 and former Secretary of State John Kerry in 2020. During his introductory remarks, Hagel, a UNO graduate and former Nebraska Senator, thanked his longtime friend, Ridge, the nations first Secretary of Homeland Security, for his careful, wise, focused leadership that has facilitated so much good for this country.

To have an opportunity to bring someone like Tom Ridge in for the third annual lecture after now-President Biden and former Secretary Kerry, its a real pleasure and a privilege, Hagel said.

During the presentation, Ridge provided three tips for the next generation of leaders.

Be involved in the political process; hold those who represent you at the local, state and federal level accountable; and lastly, if you believe in your country and you want to make a difference, don't ever, ever miss a primary or a general election, Ridge said. And I don't care what it's for, it's not a privilege, it's a responsibility.

The presentation also featured remarks from Atlantic Council President and CEO Frederick Kempe, UNO Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D., and UNO Student Body President Jabin Moore. The presentation also featured a discussion moderated by Michelle Black, Ph.D., an assistant professor of political science at UNO and a research fellow for the National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI).

The presentation is available below to view in its entirety.

Watch the Forum
The Supreme Courts recent decision recognising unpaid domestic and care works pecuniary value is welcome.

Prabha Kotiswaran writes:

On 5 January 2021, a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court issued a decision in Kirti v Oriental Insurance Company Ltd recognising the economic contribution of homemakers. The case was about Vinod and Poonam, a couple in their 20s, who were killed when hit by a car. They left behind two young daughters and Poonam was pregnant. Vinods parents sued for compensation under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. While the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded `40 lakh, the Delhi High Court brought it down to `22 lakh. Hence, they appealed in the Supreme Court, which increased the compensation to `33 lakh.
Dear Amy: I am a retail worker. I am also severely asthmatic. As you can imagine, COVID has made this time intensely difficult for me.

Last weekend at work, several hours into my shift, I looked around my store and the amount of people not wearing a mask, despite it being a mandate in our state, was appalling. Our store asks you to mask at the door, we offer masks for free, we offer many online services to mitigate in store shopping and yet the entitlement wins out.

I ended my shift in a panic attack.

I felt so much anger and resentment that my co-workers and I bust our backs day in and day out, pushing product to the floor, sanitizing our areas, working overtime, pushing ourselves as far as we can, with so many of us being high risk for COVID.

Customers call us heroes and know that the world wouldnt run without our hard work, yet despite everything we do for them, they cant be bothered to wear a mask for the 45 minutes theyre in a store.

We wear our masks for eight-plus hours, yet a few minutes is too much for them. Our health and safety doesnt matter, as long as we continue to serve them.

Amy, when did the world become so entitled? What happened to caring for other humans?

I beg of my fellow readers to please remember we are people too, and we deserve your consideration and respect.

 Burned Out

Dear Burned Out: Im running your letter as a thank you to you and your fellow workers  and as a reminder of how important it is to respect the rules regarding mask-wearing.

This crisis has brought out the best in many, and the worst in others. Im so sorry that front-line workers like you experience the impact of such selfishness.

Dear Amy: My 21-year-old daughter (a senior in college) met her boyfriend two weeks into her freshman year (he is 23).

He asked to come live with us after his graduation.

There are far more job opportunities where we live than in his rural hometown or their college town. We agreed and have treated him like our fifth child. We support him in every way. He works a minimum wage part-time job at a retail store and is taking online graduate courses. He is not looking for real career employment. She is back at school.

I just learned that my daughter and he agreed that she will be the breadwinner. Hes waiting to hear what medical school she gets into so he can go with her.

Her student loans will cover their living expenses.

He uses phrases like, Free food is the best food, and includes his toiletries on my shopping list.

Ive begged my daughter to see that hes just using all of us for his free ride. Im sick to my stomach watching her be used like this!

Weve begged her to see whats going on.

If I kick him out or charge him rent, hell just go live with her in the dorm room (that we pay for). I just want to save her from a lifetime of providing for a deadbeat, as his sugar mama.

 Need Help in Chicago

Dear Need Help: You seem to blame your daughter for your own behavior.

YOU are helping this man to be a deadbeat. YOU are his sugar mama (she is at school!). If this man is working, you should not be purchasing his toiletries.

You lack the fortitude to do anything about this (except complain), and yet you expect your daughter to behave differently.

You are teaching your daughter that its OK to enable behavior that goes against your own values.

Youve been extremely generous. The sooner he transitions from your home to hers, the sooner your daughter will face the actual consequences of his entitlement, instead of just hearing you complain about it.

If she chooses to be the breadwinner, then it is her life. Wish them luck and let this go.

Dear Amy: You should not have encouraged Hate to Ask to ask for a portion of her mothers inheritance gift to a friend.

The mother DID know that a mutual fund could grow, and the inheritance to her daughter wouldnt, and this was her choice.

I believe that the friend got what they deserved, and so did she.

 Disappointed

Dear Disappointed: I do believe that people sometimes designate others as beneficiaries to accounts, and then basically forget about it  but your response is valid.

You can email Amy Dickinson at askamy@amydickinson.com or send a letter to Ask Amy, P.O. Box 194, Freeville, NY 13068.
INDIANA, Ind. (WLFI) - After his bill failed last legislative session, State Senator Ron Alting is authoring a pregnancy accommodations bill again this year with Senate Bill 246. This is an effort to lower Indiana's high infant and maternal mortality rate.

And if he has learned anything in his 23 years of serving District 22 in the Indiana Senate, it's this:

"The key is being persistent, persistent and persistent and that's what I'm doing once again," he said.

According to data from 2018, 6.8 Hoosier babies died for every 1,000 live births. That number is down from a peak at 7.5 in 2016.

Sen. Alting is not alone in his persistence. Governor Eric Holcomb named it as one of his priorities again this year in his state of the state address. During his address in 2018, he said his goal was to make Indiana the best in the Midwest in terms of the rate by 2024.

"The bill ask for changes in the workplace that will be common sense changes, and will not cost businesses one penny," said Sen. Alting. "But they do it because it's the right thing to do."

The bill outlines 12 accommodations, including seating, breaks for pumping breast milk and unpaid time off to recover from childbirth. CEO of the Indiana Rural Health Association Cara Veale said there may be stigma around pregnancy in the workplace. See photo.

"How many feel like they wouldn't be supported within their workplace if they disclose their pregnancy and then requested things like light duty and or modified work requirements? It is important," she said.

Veale said that while every mom and baby case is unique, some overarching reasons that contribute to Indiana's high infant and maternal mortality rates include lack of access to quality health care, cultural shame around pregnancy out of wedlock and financial issues.

IRHA is helping moms in counties with the highest infant mortality rates with the Healthy Start Communities that C.A.R.E Program, which is a grant funded through the Health Resources and Services Administration. The counties they serve are in southern Indiana: Daviess, Dubois, Martin and Greene. Joanah Wischmeier runs the program.

Our only eligibility requirement is the women be of childbearing age and live within the counties we serve. In addition to women, our program can also serve fathers as well as infants up to 18 months of age who also reside in the specified counties, she said. Program participants receive navigation through our program from perinatal navigators and community health workers where various needs are addressed. In addition, women identified as at-risk/high-risk also have the opportunity to be referred to a Healthy Start provider for specialized care. Program participants receive services in the preconception or family-planning phase, throughout pregnancy and post-partum and also to include infants through their first 18 months of life. Healthy Start services include but are not limited to case management services, education, referrals, and increasing access to care.

From physical and mental health checks, helping getting insurance or access to supplies. Veale and Wischmeier said they are seeing progress in the counties they are serving 1200 participants in the program in 2020.

"If they need diapers or if they need stuff dropped off on their front porch or they need other means of help, we can connect them with other resources in the community," said Wischmeier.

They've had to change gears a lot due to the pandemic, forcing them to do more front porch deliveries and check-ups via zoom, but Wischmeier said it's been successful.

"We've seen some great improvements but we are by no means where we want to be," said Veale. "Zero is the number that we strive for."

Sen. Alting said adding his bill to women's arsenal will only help.

"It will save mothers and children in the state of Indiana," he said.

The bill so far has bipartisan support. It's been co-authored by two republicans and two democrats. It is currently set to go before the Senate Pensions and Labor Committee for a first reading.
A new memo emphasized that President Bidens White House thinks his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan is good politics as well as good policy, potentially hurting their GOP rivals while helping Americans suffering through the coronavirus pandemic.

"There seems to be a growing conventional wisdom that it is either politically smart  or, at worst, cost-free  for the GOP to adopt an obstructionist, partisan, base-politics posture," Mike Donlion, a top adviser to President Biden, wrote to senior White House staff Tuesdayin a memo published by Axios. "However, there is lots of evidence that the opposite is true: that it isnt politically smart for the GOP to be going down this road. And rather than being cost-free, this approach has been quite damaging to them."

Republicans appear set to repeat their tactics the last time a Democrat held the White House, stonewalling Bidens agenda whenever possible. This proved an effective strategy in the 2010 and 2014 midterms when Republicans won up and down the ballot to take control of Congress, governors mansions and state legislatures. But Donlion has proposed that the staunch resistance is hurting the GOP,citing a New York Times story that cited a drop in registered Republicans and favorability ratings for theRepublican leaders in Congress being well below those of the president. Democrats have also cited last months special Senate elections in Georgia, where they flipped two Republican seats.

U.S. President Joe Biden meets with labor union leaders in the Oval Office of the White House on February 17, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Pete Marovich-Pool/Getty Images)

People need relief and they need it now, Rebecca Katz, a Democratic strategist, told Yahoo News. Republicans are having a bit of an identity crisis and while they try to figure out who they need to listen to Democrats are fighting to get real relief. Its really an easy thing to explain.

Georgia Democrats ran on a very simple message about results that Georgians could feel in their pockets, Katz added. It was the first time in the entire 2020 election that Democrats showed a clear message and it worked. They need to learn from that.

Biden has been firm on his messaging since taking office: Hed prefer bipartisan support on the stimulus package, but with the moral argument to go big in the short-term to help those suffering the most, and the economic argument to go big in the long-term to avoid a prolonged recession, hes not willing to significantly cut the size of the bill or delay it longer than necessary to achieve it.The president has cited the lessons of 2009, where former President Barack Obamas push to get 60 votes in the Senate and fulfill his campaign promise of unifying America resulted in a weaker stimulus and, Democrats now argue, prolonged economic consequences.

The way I see it, the biggest risk is not going too big, its if we go too small, Biden said in a Feb. 5 White House address.

Weve been here before. When this nation hit the Great Recession that Barack and I inherited in 2009, I was asked to lead the effort on the economic recovery act to get it passed. It was a big recovery package, roughly $800 billion. I did everything I could to get it passed, including getting three Republicans to change their votes and vote for it. But it wasnt enough. It wasnt quite big enough. It stemmed the crisis, but the recovery could have been faster and even bigger. Today we need an answer that meets the challenge of this crisis, not one that falls short.

Democrats are willing to use the process of budget reconciliation to pass the bill with just 50 votes and Vice President Kamala Harris serving as the tiebreaker. Its the same process used by Republicans to pass a massive tax overhaul in 2017 that disproportionately benefited the wealthy, undercutting their messaging on both the method the Democrats are taking and the potential impact on the budget deficit and national debt.

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. President Joe Biden (not pictured) attend a meeting with bipartisan Senators on infrastructure investment at the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S., February 11, 2021. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

As cited in the Donlion memo, polling supports the stimulus package.A CBS/YouGov survey found 83 percent support for another relief package,while Quinnipiac found 68 percent support specifically for the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. Those findings align witha Yahoo News/YouGov poll earlier this month that found 74 percent support for $2,000 stimulus checks. Even the aspects of the bill that are being debated among Democrats  like a $15 minimum wage hike  had majority support (58 percent, versus 31 percent opposed) in the Yahoo News/YouGov poll.

Other provisions in Bidens proposed legislation include extending federal unemployment benefits along with funding for vaccine distribution, nutrition programs, schools, and state and local governments.

"I learned based on the polling data they want everything in the plan -- not a joke. Everything in the plan, Biden said Wednesday. I asked a rhetorical question, those who opposed the plan: What don't they like?... Don't they want to help people with nutrition? Don't they want to help people be able to pay their mortgages? Don't they want to help people get their unemployment insurance? Don't they want to make sure that people are able to stay in their homes without being thrown out of their homes in the middle of this godawful pandemic? What don't they like?

This is a departure from 2009, where despite Obama being broadly popular and the country in the grips of a deep economic crisis, polling showed the bill with just a slight majority approving.A CNN poll found support at 54 percent, while in the weeks leading up to the February vote,Gallup found support simmering in the low 50s.

House Democrats hope to have the bill on the floor by the end of next week, with the expiration of expanded unemployment benefits set for mid-March serving as a deadline for legislators.

Im hoping Democrats can learn the lesson from 2009 and its that we dont have much time, Katz said. The end of the first 100 days is approaching quickly and we need to get some real stuff done for the American people. Democrats need to show that they can deliver. They need to show that if theyre in charge the American people are better off.

____

Read more from Yahoo News:
CORVALLIS, Ore.-- Benton County is looking to add a bond measure to the May 2022 ballot that will help fund a new criminal justice building.

The price tag for the bond hasn't been finalized yet, but the county is looking for it to be around $100 million. The money will be used to build a new courthouse, jail, and crisis resource center. The overall project would cost between $250-300 million. The rest of the money would come from state funds.

Nick Kruth, program manager for the Criminal Justice System Improvement Program, presented the plan to the Corvallis City Council Tuesday night. He told councilors the project is still in the pre-design phase and they've located potential sites for the buildings. The county will have designs for the community to weigh in on this summer. However, he said the project all depends if voters approve the bond measure.

Over the past two decades, there have been three attempts to build a new jail. In 2015, a $25 million bond measure was blocked by the voters.

One potential site for the complex is a site near the Hewlett Packard campus on the north side of the city. But there is a complication to that location. Recently, the city re-zoned the area to be for high-density residential use.

If voters do approve the bond, Kruth said construction will start right away. The plan is to open up the new buildings starting in 2025.

When it comes to the iconic courthouse in downtown Corvallis, Kruth said there are preservation plans in the works.
Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 18 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah, several of his cabinet colleagues and top national BJP leaders will arrive in Kerala on February 21 to take part in a statewide yatra being organised by the party's state unit led by its president K. Surendran.

Senior state leader George Kurian told the media here on Thursday that the yatra will be flagged off by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath from Kasargode on February 21, while Shah will arrive in the state capital on the concluding day of the yatra on March 7.

The yatra is seen as the launch of the BJP's election campaign in Kerala, which is likely to go to the polls in April/May this year.

Others who are expected to take part in the yatra include Union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman, Smriti Irani, Pralhad Joshi, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and former Congress leader Khusboo, who recently jumped ship to the BJP.

The slogan of the yatra is 'A new Kerala', which is free from corruption. Enroute the state capital, the yatra will include 14 big rallies and 80 public meetings.

The Assembly polls will be an acid test for Kerala BJP, which is aiming to increase its tally from one seat in the 140-member Kerala Assembly.

Party veteran and former Union minister O. Rajagopal stunned all when he won from the Nemom Assembly seat in the state capital to open the account for the BJP in the 2016 Assembly polls. Rajagopal, who is now 91, is most unlikely to be fielded again this time.

The state unit of the BJP will go all out to better its electoral performance in the southern state, and inviting the top party leadership to the state is a step in that direction.

In a surprise move on Thursday, the state unit of the BJP managed to rope in Metroman E. Sreedharan, who is likely to join the saffron party on February 25 when the yatra reaches his hometown in Malappurram. He is likely to contest the polls too.
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"The new contract in Romania is yet another success for Laurentis, as we grow our business in international markets as well as Canada," said Brian Fehrenbach, Senior Manager of Business Development at Laurentis Energy Partners.

"SNN looks forward to working with Laurentis in refurbishing Cernovoda Unit 1, providing Romania with a source of clean, safe, reliable and affordable electricity for another 30 years," said Cosmin Ghita, CEO of SNN.

The Laurentis contract with SNN includes a 1.5 million subcontract to Framatome, in Germany, to use their proprietary Film Forming Amine (FFA) technology. FAA has been deployed in the Darlington Refurbishment to conserve and protect water-steam systems while dry, reducing or preventing the need for maintenance.

Work by Laurentis at Cernavoda will occur in two stages. The contract award is for phase 1, system analysis and design engineering, over 21 months in 2021 and 2022. Phase 2 is implementation, following regulatory approval for SNN's refurbishment, scheduled to move forward in 2026-27.

In Romania, Laurentis operates as Canadian Nuclear Partners (CNP), a subsidiary incorporated in Romania in 2019 and part of the country's regulated nuclear industry. Laurentis opened its office in Bucharest in 2020.

About Laurentis Energy Partners:

Laurentis Energy Partners, a subsidiary of Ontario Power Generation, provides solutions for customers across the energy spectrum: from nuclear, hydro and solar generation, to the advancement of new technologies such as small modular reactors, and production of medical isotopes.

About SNN:

Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica (SNN) is a state-owned power utility, reporting to Romania's Ministry of Energy. It operates Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant, a two-unit CANDU 6 station at Cernavoda generating about 18 per cent of Romania's electricity production. Cernavoda Unit 1 came into service in 1996, while Cernavoda Unit 2 came online in 2007.

SOURCE Laurentis Energy Partners

For further information: Fred Kuntz, Director of Communications, Laurentis Energy Partners, 1 (519) 540-8410, [email protected]

Related Links

https://laurentisenergy.com




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Looking for a little something nefarious in your online shopping? Perhaps you need to spark some fresh finger traffic to your e-commerce store on Amazon. Neither of those forays is a good choice.

Trading in phony reviews may or not be legal, but such practices are clearly unethical and will have repercussions if underhanded activities are discovered, warns Amazon. Shoppers and sellers dealing in false reviews in exchange for cash rebates or commissions might face legal actions if Amazon catches you.

Online shoppers beware: a fast-selling marketplace of fake reviews is trying to lure you into buying products on major digital store sites and social media outlets. This latest review scam involves an under-wrap false review network operating among Amazon sellers.

Amazon told the E-Commerce Times that it has and will continue to take legal actions against those involved in phony reviews scams. Amazon wants to ensure customers see authentic and relevant reviews so they can make better-informed purchasing decisions.

No data on this is published by Amazon. For years reports have surfaced about review farms, according to Dr. Robin Gaster, president of Incumetrics.

Amazon sporadically acts publicly against them, and privately takes down reviews on a fairly random basis. There are also credible reports that bad actors use fake reviews to game Amazon's system (by) heavily upvoting a rival, for example, which may lead Amazon to then ban them for having fake reviews, he explained.

"Overall, it is fairly well established that this is a widespread issue. Amazon has also made the problem worse by recently allowing reviewers to post just a star review -- no commentary necessary. This massively encourages fake reviews, in part because no English language skills are required," Gaster told the E-Commerce Times.

Trail of Violations

Marketers know that in this changing digital storefront world, referrals and product reviews are gold-plated enticements for closing an online purchase. But consumers tend to view false reviews as one of the fastest ways to break their trust. Studies show that consumers burned by false reviews will take their purchasing power elsewhere.

"Over the long term, fake reviews erode customer and seller trust in the platform, and trust is absolutely central to long term dominance. If customers and/or sellers start to leave, Amazon has a problem, and once that slippage starts, I believe it will be very hard to reverse," Gaster observed.

The Washington Post in 2018 reported that a study found 61 percent of electronics reviews on Amazon are fake. Numerous other published accounts reveal unreliable product reviews on Amazon, eBay, and elsewhere.

U.K. consumer-rights group Which? ("Which") this week reported that a thriving fake review industry is gaming the Amazon marketplace.

Websites are selling fake reviews to Amazon merchants looking to boost their products' ratings, according to a Which investigation. One example Which revealed disclosed the German website AMZTigers was selling 1,000 reviews for US$10,950. Another website offered to help purchasers earn a coveted Amazon's Choice status for their products within two weeks.

Which disclosed numerous examples of phony review scams. For instance, one site was selling reviews for $18 each. Another offered for sale the contact and social-media details for Amazon reviewers. Some sites even asked for free or discounted products in exchange for reviews.

The Which revelations also pointed to a well-used practice of trading in what is called "incentivized reviews." This practice recruits or encourages consumers to write product reviews in exchange for refunds or commissions.

Amazon Not Complacent

Amazon's guidelines clearly prohibit sellers from paying for third-party reviews. The company claims that it is vigilant in rooting out such scams.

"We remove fake reviews and take action against anyone involved in abuse. We have won dozens of injunctions against providers of fake reviews across Europe, and we won't shy away from taking legal action," an Amazon spokesperson told the E-Commerce Times in a written response issued by Mary Kate McCarthy for Amazon.

However, Amazon and other online retailers cannot do this alone. Customers need to be able to trust the reviews they see online. The systematic manipulation of reviews needs consistent enforcement and global coordination with stronger enforcement powers given to regulators against bad actors, according to Amazon.

"We continue to work to protect the authenticity of customer reviews. We advise customers who doubt the credibility of a review on a product to click the 'report abuse' link available below each review. We will then investigate and take necessary measures," the Amazon spokesperson said.

Amazon does this by using powerful machine learning tools and skilled investigators to analyze over 10 million review submissions weekly, according to the company. The aim is to stop abusive reviews before they are ever published.

"In addition, we continue to monitor all existing reviews for signs of abuse and quickly take action if we find an issue," the spokesperson said, noting that the company also proactively works with social media sites to report bad actors who are cultivating abusive reviews outside its store.

Amazon claims to have sued thousands of bad actors for attempting to abuse its review systems.

Going Undercover

To conduct its investigation, the Which organization presented itself as an Amazon seller. The company registered for 10 e-commerce sites to sell "review manipulation services."

Its sales "inventory" included free or discounted products in exchange for reviews. It also offered sales campaigns to boost the positive reviews of their customers' wares.

The investigation Which conducted also found 702,000 product reviewers across just five businesses and a site claiming to have processed $8.9 million of refunds for reviews it had organized on Amazon.

This investigation is not the first involving the consumer group's inquiries into sellers gaming major online marketplaces, according to Which's published results.

Two years ago, Which published an account of a thriving marketplace it uncovered in the trading of fake Amazon reviews on Facebook.

Which reported that as a result of action by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in January 2020, both Facebook and eBay agreed to step up their efforts to combat fake and misleading reviews on their sites. Both signed up to agreements to better identify, investigate and respond to this activity.

Reviews Pathway to High Stakes

Customer reviews are a critical element to success on Amazon. It has been a long and hard-fought battle between Amazon and scam reviewers, according to Rohan Thambrahalli, president of UpstartWorks.

First, because it feeds Amazon's A9 algorithm, which is used to determine a product's relevancy when customers search on Amazon; and second, because customers rely on reviews to educate themselves on a product before making a purchase.

"I do not see that changing, and therefore there are always going to be sellers looking for ways to get quick and easy reviews," he told the E-Commerce Times.

Fake reviews are more important than they seem. They obviously affect the fairness of the marketplace, so it is absolutely critical to winning the Buy Box on Amazon, and reviews affect that, agreed Incumetrics' Gaster.

"Reviews are also a pathway for scammers to influence the competition. Getting entangled in Amazon's Kafkaesque justice system because a bad actor targeted you via fake reviews is a real problem," he said.

Given the high stakes for vendors on Amazon to maintain positive reviews, Amazon management needs to continue investing in AI and other technology to identify review traders. False reviews are appearing at too large of a scale to be manually caught, suggested Upstartworks' Thambraahalli.

"Reviewing trends such as sudden spikes in customer reviews that are inconsistent with the number of customer purchases occurring will allow Amazon to detect sketchy behavior," he offered.

No Policy Change Expected

Some speculation exists that a change in a pending shift in the top leadership at Amazon this summer might bring a change in the reviews criteria. Perhaps that is why some sellers are still relying on phony reviews to enhance their status. But that reasoning is no doubt just as false as the current crop of fake product reviews.

"I do not think so," reasoned Gaster. "Jassy (the incoming CEO) is from the same leadership team, and there likely will not be much change, at least initially. And certainly no loosening here -- more likely tightening under further PR and regulatory pressure."

Similarly, Thambrahalli does not think Amazon will change its mission to be the most customer-centric company. Customers rely heavily on reviews when doing product research and ultimately making a purchase on Amazon.

"If customers start to feel that they cannot trust this information because of rampant fake reviews, that would greatly impact the trust that customers have in Amazon. I strongly believe they will continue to make this a priority, along with other initiatives such a Project Zero that aims to have zero counterfeit products sold on Amazon," he concluded.

Shady Commerce

Some sellers do game the system to advance their products. The e-commerce marketplace has been full of entrepreneurs that are hustling, according to Claire Lefevre, vice president of customer operations at Perch, which acquires and operates Amazon FBA businesses.

"Many of them playing by the rules; many of them that are not. I think Amazon will always need to have meaningful resources marshaled against policing and enforcing in this area," she told the E-Commerce Times.

Reviews are the lifeblood of any Amazon business, and so the stakes are high for sellers to take care of their brand reputation. Those high stakes mean that some people will choose to play in the gray area of the rules or go well beyond the gray area, explained Lefevre.

"Amazon has rolled out various types of enforcement over the years. Their review purges have actually been quite effective at cleaning up some illegitimately gained reviews in the past, but anything that is done with bots can bring with it collateral damage along the way," she noted.

Jack M. Germain has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2003. His main areas of focus are enterprise IT, Linux and open-source technologies. He is an esteemed reviewer of Linux distros and other open-source software. In addition, Jack extensively covers business technology and privacy issues, as well as developments in e-commerce and consumer electronics. Email Jack.


Manitoba chiefs are asking why the second doses of the life-saving Moderna vaccine are showing up late to their First Nations, more than a week after arriving in the province.

Manitoba chiefs are asking why the second doses of the life-saving Moderna vaccine are showing up late to their First Nations, more than a week after arriving in the province.

The delay, which echoes the initial rollout last month, raises questions about who is actually in charge of getting COVID-19 vaccine doses to First Nations on time.

"A lot of people felt like they were being lied to. Theyre being let down," Cross Lake Chief David Monias told the Free Press, describing a confusing rollout in a community already trying to stem a surge in coronavirus cases.

"There hasnt been a lot of transparency."

Manitobas second shipment of Moderna vaccine arrived in the province Feb. 6  so its unclear why second doses are showing up to reserves 10 days after that.

We had to scramble, get our people lined up again, set up appointments. It's hard to do that when you're in the middle of testing over 300 contacts.  Cross Lake Chief David Monias

Moderna says patients are supposed to receive their second dose at least 28 days after their initial shot, and ideally as close to that 28-day mark as possible.

The World Health Organization and a federal panel have both said that any delay beyond six weeks could be dangerous, though Manitoba has avoided that situation so far.

Cross Lake, known locally as Pimicikamak, got its second doses just a few days short of that cutoff. The community started first-dose immunizations on Jan. 7, and received the second ones Tuesday, two days short of a six-week lag. That's also 12 days later than Moderna's recommended timeline for second doses.

BEN WALDMAN / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Cross Lake Chief David Monias.

Monias said federal officials originally told him to expect a delivery around Feb. 11, and then possibly at the end of the month, which caused a small uproar among band leaders. Ultimately, he said he got a call Tuesday that the doses were on a plane.

By that point, the community had a suspected case of a highly contagious COVID-19 variant. That presumptive result turned out to be a false-positive late Wednesday. But the preliminary result meant scores of people being re-tested and contact-traced by nurses, who Monias said are working 16-hour days.

Thats when the plane rolled up with more doses.

"We had to scramble, get our people lined up again, set up appointments," Monias said. "It's hard to do that when you're in the middle of testing over 300 contacts."

"It was frustrating. We were told four weeks and everybody expected it to be four weeks," Monias said.

Johanu Botha, co-lead on Manitobas vaccine implementation task force, said provincial officials have had no problem getting their Moderna booster shots out to personal care home residents on time.

Botha could not say why First Nations such as Cross Lake had not received their second shipment within the recommended 28 days, even when factoring in Modernas slight reduction in overall Canadian shipments.

"In terms of both our (personal care homes) and our First Nation partners, who are relying on Moderna, with the information that we have right now, when that comes in should not impact getting the dose to all the right folks," Botha said in a Wednesday vaccine briefing.

There are presently about 12,500 vaccine doses on hand in the province of Manitoba, Botha said. Most of them are Moderna.

It was frustrating. We were told four weeks and everybody expected it to be four weeks.  Cross Lake Chief David Monias

Monias said he was informed of the delivery dates by the health branch of Indigenous Services Canada, the federal agency that runs nursing stations on reserves.

Indigenous Services Canada said Wednesday that it co-ordinates and advocates for First Nations in vaccine rollouts, but that provinces co-ordinate vaccination programs.

Manitoba's First Nations COVID-19 Pandemic Response Co-ordination Team (PRCT) did not have an explanation for the 10-day lag between Manitoba receiving the doses and them reaching reserves, nor who was responsible for the delay.

The group would only say it anticipated short delays when it decided to get all of the initial shipment out to all 63 reserves as first shots, instead of holding back half that shipment for the second doses, which would have meant a slower immunization campaign.

"We were previously aware that there was a possibility that the Moderna shipping schedule would mean that some Nations would not receive their second doses at exactly 28 days; however, we endeavoured to meet that timing as closely as possible," wrote Dr. Marcia Anderson, a medical officer of health who is the PRCT's public-health lead.

"This decision was not come to lightly, but was considered by and agreed to by all partners of the vaccine task force in an effort to move forward with the safest and most fair approach."

Peguis Chief Glenn Hudson said second doses arrived Tuesday.

"We certainly wanted to meet the 28-day cycle but we understand there are delays with Canada, and the suppliers of the Moderna vaccination," said Hudson, whose community had no cases as of Sunday.

"Nobody's happy with delays, but given that it falls within the six-week timeline to administer the second shot, we're OK with that."

Opaskwayak Cree Nation administered its first doses on Jan. 18. Officials say they still dont know when the second doses are coming, and cant book appointmetns until then.

The first Moderna shipments to First Nations were also delayed in Manitoba.

Manitoba received its first shipment on Dec. 30, 2020, but only put Moderna doses on flights to First Nations communities starting Jan. 7, a process that was slower than the vaccine reaching Saskatchewan reserves.

 with files from Danielle Da Silva

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca

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Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Hi Ho Silver Resources Inc. (CSE: HHS) (OTC Pink: HHSRF) (FSE: H9T1) ("Hi Ho" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has acquired, by staking, two promising silver properties: the Isle Silver Property and the Tatler Silver Property.

The Isle Silver Property consists of 6 units totalling 123.97ha in the Slocan Mining Division located 41km northwest of Kaslo, BC. Mineralization is hosted within a 20m wide shear zone. High silver values occur with massive sulphides on the apex of dragfolds within the shear zone. A chip sample across 0.6m of vein assayed 2358g/tonne silver, 29.9% Pb, 10.4% Sb and 9.7 g/tonne Au as sampled in 1980 by D.W. Tully, P.Eng. (1980). Minor diamond drilling and a small bulk sample returned lower results.

The Tatler Silver Property consists of 22 units totalling 452.97 ha in the Golden Mining Division located 35km southwest of Invermere, BC. There are eight documented silver showings at the Tatler Silver Property; the mineralization is localized along fault structures in limey sediments and in replacement bodies associated with these structures. The following sample results were obtained by N. Tribe, P.Eng., in 1990:

At the Copper King prospect a 1.0 metre wide chip sample across the vein assayed 75 grams per tonne silver, 1.22% copper, 1.08% zinc and 0.25% lead.

At the Great Northern prospect a 1.2 metre chip sample across the mineralized vein assayed 35 grams per tonne silver, 4.37% lead and 1.05% copper (Property File - see 082KSE004, Sheppard, EP (1971): Geological Report on the Tatler Group).

At the Butler prospect the vein has been explored with two adits and a 150 metre long crosscut. A 50 cm chip sample across the mineralized vein assayed 250 grams per tonne silver, 3.0% copper, 1.26% zinc and 0.5% lead.

The Imperial prospect consists of five quartz-barite veins containing some tetrahedrite and azurite. The main vein is 90 to 130 centimetres wide and has been exposed for approximately 30 metres along strike. The veins strike 155 degrees and dip 80 degrees west. All veins are within the middle dolomite member of the Mount Nelson Formation. Mineralization appears to be associated with tensional fractures on the crest of a northwest-trending anticline. A 1.22 metre wide chip sample across the main vein assayed 210 grams per tonne silver and 4.03 per cent copper.

The historic work on both these properties was conducted by competent professionals. However, the historic work was completed before the advent of modern 43-101 standards and cannot be considered reliable. The only relevance herein is strictly geological information. The Company intends to conduct follow-up sampling as soon as possible to obtain current information. The Company does not consider the historic sampling as current or as an indication of what might be found on the claim holdings.

Due to snow conditions the Company has not completed any current work on the properties. Since there has been road access in the past the Company intends to conduct a sampling program later in 2021.

The technical content of this news release has been approved by J.T. Shearer, M.Sc., P.Geo. (BC & Ontario), a Qualified Person under NI 43-101.

About the Company

Hi Ho Silver Resources Inc. is a Vancouver based mineral exploration company dedicated to the exploration and development of precious and base metal mineral deposits and other mineral opportunities in North America and elsewhere.

For further information contact:

William G. Jorgenson

C. 778-989-0770

Email: bill@hihoresources.com

Website: www.hihoresources.com

The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of the contents of this news release.

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". The use of any of the words "anticipate', "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "would", "project", "should", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks including various risk factors discussed in the Company's disclosure documents which can be found under the Company's profile on www.sedar.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74876
On that latter point, lets not forget Illinois pitch, at the height of the pandemic, for federal aid to bail out the states $141 billion in pension underfunding. Some state requests simply dont deserve serious consideration. Even in the supermajority Democratic bubble of Illinois, Republicans have a right to differ  perhaps even an obligation to do so  especially at a time when governors granted executive powers might otherwise go unchallenged.
Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help

Editor's note: This story is for Insiders, but is being provided for everyone for free as an example of the great work available to Insiders. Read more great journalism work from the staff at the Tribune by becoming an Insider today.

Systemic failures of the power grid such as the ones Texans are experiencing due to a polar vortex are unlikely to occur here, according to DTE Energy.

Dave Harwood, director of renewable energies for DTE, said the company has redundancies in place to avoid catastrophic failures.

Our wind fleet in Michigan, which is the largest in Michigan, has a strong history of performing well in all conditions, including the snow and cold we have seen in the last few weeks, Harwood said. Wind turbines can be designed and outfitted to operate in whatever weather conditions that are expected to exist wherever they are located.

With millions of people left in the dark and the cold across Texas as a polar vortex sweeps across the country, there were early viral social media claims blaming renewable energy for the cause of the outages. However, the situation was more complicated than that, according to officials Mella McEwen of the Midland Reporter-Telegram spoke to.

"Many fingers are being pointed over the blackouts that have left millions of Texans without power during the coldest temperatures to sweep the state in over three decades, McEwens article reads. Elected officials are blaming renewable energy, utilities are blaming the Energy Reliability Council of Texas, ERCOT is blaming power distributor ONCOR.

Essentially, what occurred in Texas was a perfect storm, when the states natural gas, coal and nuclear power generation plants were unable to meet up with demand because of the historic cold snap the state saw.

The experts McEwen spoke to said that while the Texas power grids were designed for worst-case scenarios, the current weather was worse than anticipated.

According to Harwood, because of the wide variety of weather that occurs in Michigan, the companys fleet of turbines, along with its other renewable energy, are properly prepared for weather.

People do different things with the design and outfitting of turbines in places like Texas than what we do here, he said. All of our turbines in Michigan are outfitted with a special cold weather adaption package. It allows safe operation and reliable operation down to -30 degrees celsius.

Inside the machine are heating systems to keep lubrication oils and hydraulic oils warm, along with other critical components inside the cell of the turbine so it maintains the availability to run, Harwood continued.

Harwood said the utility grid in Michigan has been tested numerous times in recent history and continued operation without incident.

If you take Feb. 14-16, when we got the brunt of the really cold temperatures, our turbine availability across our entire fleet in Michigan was more than 99%, Harwood said. Everything was available  if the wind was blowing, they were spinning and we were generating power.

Before this year, the last declared polar vortex was in late January 2019, when extremely cold temperatures gripped the Great Lakes and other parts of the U.S. and North America. The polar vortex delivered windchill temperatures in excess of 45 degrees below zero and forced numerous states of emergency to be announced, including in Michigan.

Harwood said despite the record cold temperatures, DTEs wind turbines operated unaffected.

Our wind fleet survived that and operated perfectly through that whole episode, he said. It is built into the design and they run well when we get what we expect in Michigan.

In addition to being designed to survive weather extremes, Harwood said there are other elements that provide redundancies to avoid failure.

We have a control center located in Ann Arbor that is staffed 24/7 and has dedicated personnel that watch every one of our wind turbines, he said.

According to Harwood, DTE currently has more than 400 active turbines online and he said the company has a couple more projects coming online soon that will further add to their system.

Every wind turbine is a pretty sophisticated piece of machinery that has a control system and remote monitoring capability of thousands of points and operating parameters, he said. All of it is watched closely.

The turbines also have alarms, self diagnostic capabilities and auto-start capabilities.

If it fails again humans will get involved and try to figure out what is wrong, Hardwood said. We might have to send a crew out to figure out what is wrong. The turbines are outfitted with very sophisticated control systems that maintain operations, keep them safe and keep the reliability very high.

Harwood said the companys entire renewable energy system annually generates enough power to serve more than half a million homes.

Over the next couple of years we will probably be doubling that, he said. We will be close to 1 million equivalent homes by the end of 2023.

Harwood, who once was an engineer at the Harbor Beach Power Plant, said the way the power grid is set up, a situation such as what Texans are seeing is unlikely.

Twice the former Harbor Beach Power Plant proved the reliability of the power grid when it stepped up to provide energy during widespread outages. First in 1993 and again in 2003, the Harbor Beach DTE power plant was the first to go back online after a widespread blackout impacted an eastern portion of the U.S.

Harwood said the power grids in the United States are divided into three parts  the eastern interconnect, the western interconnect and the Texas grid.

All of the utilities in the country are generally interconnected with their neighbors, he said. It isnt just in moments when a utility is in trouble that they would rely on those interconnections. That interconnection and transfer of power is happening all of the time, 24/7/365.

Harwood said utilities are constantly evaluating power generation costs, and will switch to the cheapest utility sources.

It is based on economics, he said. If a neighboring utility has power that can be transferred and its cheaper in the moment than what the utility would have to generate, there is a system that allows it to happen automatically. There is the this optimization that happens across many, many states every minute, of every hour, of every week, of every year. It not only provides reliability but also optimization around costs.

Harwood said the redundancies are in place to avoid problems.

I am not an expert on what has happened in Texas, but when you look back to another example of a huge stress on the grid  the late weeks of January 2019 when we had the two or three week polar vortex  we did have some challenges on the natural gas side, but on the electric side there was no concerns, he said. We are pretty robust here in Michigan, not only our wind turbine designs, but also our power plant designs. We are used to cold weather in Michigan. We design things in and have operating procedures to prepare for those kinds of things.

Despite the false claims that renewable energy was the source of failure in Texas, Harwood said renewable energies are extremely reliable.

Throughout the year DTE takes the reliability and availability of our wind generation fleet pretty seriously, he said. Since we started building projects in 2010, with more than 400 turbines in operation in Michigan right now, we measure the availability of those machines every minute of every day.
UAE property portal houza.com has introduced a yield calculator feature to its search function, making it easier than ever for prospective investors to spot an opportunity.

The first-of-its-kind, consumer-facing tool allows landlords and investors to see what their potential yearly net return will be on a residential property, accounting for service charges, without even leaving the page, said a statement from Houza.

After launching its trends and transactions feature last month, this addition rounds off a hat-trick of firsts for the industry, from being the only portal to let consumers book a valuation with a property agent directly on the platform, to unlocking genuine transaction-level data.

On the new tool, Chief Operating Officer Sebastian Ritter said: "We rolled out trends and transactions data on houza in January, which has been incredibly well-received by both agents and consumers, so were expecting the yield calculator to be just as popular. It adds another string to our bow in achieving complete market transparency."

"In itself, displaying service charges to buyers is exclusive to houza in the region, but combining that with net return or yield data is a new level of insight for investors," he stated.

Indeed, the new tool comes at a prime-time for the investor market, he said.

"The timing couldnt be any better. Having both the transaction prices and yield calculator in place allows us to give enhanced insights to end-consumers and investors alike," he stated.

Powering the figures is Reidin Data Analytics, Houzas selected data partner. Using REIDINs expertise of carefully curated service charges and long-term visibility on rental price averages, the yield calculator processes the sale asking price with the annual rental price and the annual service charge, according to average service charge per sq ft for the location.

For apartments, Houza said one of the highest yields is in Green Community West where net return exceeds 7%. This property for instance will earn its buyer 7.31% return (as of February 17).

Meanwhile for villas, Al Reef in Abu Dhabi boasts properties where the net return is almost 7%, like this Arabian Village property at 6.9%.

Aston Pearl Real Estate General Manager Safura Abasniya said: "The introduction of the yield calculator is truly a game-changer for the investor and landlord circle."

"Never before in the region has this information been as readily accessible as it is on Houza so were excited to be able to showcase this tool to our clients," she added.-TradeArabia News Service
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AUBAGNE, France, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --

Sales revenue up 34.6 percent; underlying EBITDA margin at 31.7 percent

Outlook for the current year: sales projected to increase by 20 percent to 26 percent

Accelerated and greater ramp-up of production capacities in all geographies; CAPEX ratio of 15 percent expected for 2021

Group management raises sales target for 2025 to about 4 billion euros

Sartorius Stedim Biotech, a leading partner of the biopharma industry, confirmed its preliminary figures for 2020 upon the release of its Universal Registration Document 2020 including the Annual Financial Report. Group sales revenue surged by 34.6 percent to 1,910 million euros in constant currencies (reported: +32.6 percent). Order intake1 grew even more dynamically than sales revenue and was up 56.7 percent in constant currencies to 2,381 million euros (reported: +54.3 percent). Due to very high organic growth, Sartorius Stedim Biotech is extending and accelerating the expansion of production capacities. Therefore, the CAPEX ratio1 is expected to be around 15 percent (previous year: 8.3 percent).

"In an extraordinary and very challenging year, Sartorius Stedim Biotech performed outstandingly. We recorded strong growth and were able to complete several key strategic acquisitions. At the same time, many of our products have been playing an essential role in overcoming the pandemic, in areas ranging from diagnostics to the production of vaccines and therapeutics. For the current year and beyond, we expect growth to remain strong. That's why we are accelerating the ramp-up of our production capacities yet again, primarily at our sites in Germany, Puerto Rico, China, and South Korea. Our mid-range targets significantly raised now project sales of 4 billion euros and large-scale creation of jobs," said Joachim Kreuzburg, Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO.

In 2020, underlying EBITDA1, the Group's most important earnings indicator, also rose very significantly and overproportionately to sales revenue by 43.5 percent to 605 million euros. The respective margin climbed year over year from 29.3 percent to 31.7 percent. Economies of scale primarily played a role in this substantial increase in profitability, yet the underproportionate development of costs in some areas, i. e. due to less business travel and fewer hires in non-production units also added to this effect. The most recent acquisitions had a neutral effect on the earnings margin, while currency headwinds had a somewhat dilutive impact. Relevant net profit1 rose by 45.9 percent to 384 million euros. Underlying earnings per share surged by 45.9 percent from 2.85 euros a year earlier to 4.16 euros.

Due to the company's positive business performance, the Board of Directors will submit a proposal at the virtual Annual Shareholders' Meeting on March 24, 2021, to pay dividends of 0.68 euros per share. Therefore, the total amount disbursed under this proposal would be 62.7 million euros.

Business development of the regions

The Group increased its revenues by double digits in all three geographies yet again. Particularly in the regions of EMEA2 and the Americas, Sartorius Stedim Biotech benefited from additional demand in connection with the manufacture of coronavirus vaccines and Covid-19 therapeutics. Revenue in the Americas, which accounts for about 35 percent of total Group sales, rose sharply, also due to the acquisitions, by 34.0 percent to 670 million euros. Sales revenue in the EMEA2 region that contributes the highest share of around 40 percent to total Group revenue amounted to 761 million euros, up 33.0 percent. Generating around 25 percent of Group sales, the Asia | Pacific region recorded sales revenue totaling 479 million euros, a gain of 38.3 percent. (All sales revenue growth figures in constant currencies)

Key financial indicators

Sartorius Stedim Biotech invested substantially in expanding its capacity in 2020 in order to meet high demand. The ratio of capital expenditures (CAPEX) to sales revenue1 was within the expectations at 8.3 percent (previous year: 9.4 percent). Equity rose at year-end from 1,189 million euros to 1,483 million euros. The equity ratio of the Group continued to remain at a solid level of 48.3 percent even after closing of the acquisitions and the increased balance sheet total due to a significantly expanded cash position (December 31, 2019: 64.4 percent). Following the acquisitions, net debt to underlying EBITDA1 increased as expected, from 0.3 at year-end 2019 to 0.8 for the period ended December 31, 2020.

More than 7,500 employees

At the end of 2020, the Group employed 7,566 people worldwide. Compared to the prior-year headcount, this number was thus 1,343 higher. Besides the acquisitions, the increase resulted primarily from hiring additional production staff at the company's manufacturing sites with especially high capacity utilization. At the end of the reporting period, around 5,250 people were employed in the EMEA2 region, more than 1,200 in the Americas and about 1,100 in the Asia | Pacific region.

Forecast for 2021

Sartorius Stedim Biotech plans to grow profitably in 2021 as well. Consolidated sales revenue is thus projected to increase by about 20 percent to 26 percent. Initial consolidation of the acquisitions is expected to contribute about 5.5 percentage points to this growth, and the impact of the pandemic-related businesses on Group revenue, which is difficult to precisely estimate at present, could amount to up to 7 percentage points. Regarding profitability, the company forecasts that its underlying EBITDA1 margin will be about 32.0 percent, up from 31.7 percent a year earlier, with a negligible impact of the acquisitions on profitability.

All forecasts are based on constant currencies, as in the past years. In addition, the company assumes that the global economy will increasingly recover as the current year progresses and that supply chains will remain stable.

Mid-term targets up to 2025 increased

As early as 2018, management outlined its strategy and long-term ambition for the period of 2020 to 2025. The 2025 targets have now been raised, given the strong results achieved in 2020 and the resulting increase in the baseline values, as well as expectations of future organic growth.

Accordingly, Sartorius Stedim Biotech now plans to increase its consolidated sales revenue to about 4 billion euros in the five-year period up to 2025 (previous target: around 2.8 billion euros). The company intends to achieve this increase primarily through organic growth as well as additionally by acquisitions. The Group's underlying EBITDA1 margin is forecasted to rise to around 33 percent (former guidance: around 30 percent).

These projections are based on the assumption that on average the margins of future acquisitions will initially be somewhat below and, after integration, at a level comparable to those of the Group's existing businesses, and that there will be no relevant changes in the key currency exchange rates.

Management points out that the dynamics and volatilities in the life science and biopharma sectors have increased over the past years and the coronavirus pandemic has further amplified this trend, so that multi-year forecasts show even higher uncertainties than usual.

1 Sartorius Stedim Biotech publishes alternative performance measures that are not defined by international accounting standards. These are determined with the aim of improving the comparability of business performance over time and within the industry

Underlying EBITDA: earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and adjusted for extraordinary itemsOrder intake: all customer orders contractually concluded and booked during the respective reporting period

Relevant / underlying net profit: profit for the period after non-controlling interest; adjusted for extraordinary items and non-cash amortization, as well as based on a normalized financial result and a normalized tax rate

Underlying earnings per share: relevant / underlying net profit for the period divided by the number of shares outstanding

Ratio of net debt to underlying EBITDA: quotient of net debt and underlying EBITDA over the past 12 months, including the pro forma amount contributed by acquisitions for this period

CAPEX ratio: investment payments in relation to sales revenue for the same period

2 EMEA = Europe, Middle East, Africa

This press release contains forward-looking statements about the future development of the Sartorius Stedim Biotech Group. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Sartorius Stedim Biotech assumes no liability for updating such statements in light of new information or future events.

This is a translation of the original French-language press release. Sartorius Stedim Biotech shall not assume any liability for the correctness of this translation. The original French press release is the legally binding version.

Follow Sartorius Stedim Biotech on Twitter @Sartorius_Group and on LinkedIn .

Current image files

https://www.sartorius.com/en/company/newsroom/downloads-publications

Financial calendar

March 24, 2021 Virtual Annual Shareholders' Meeting

April 21, 2021 Publication of first-quarter figures (January to March 2021)

July 21, 2021 Publication of first-half figures (January to June 2021)

October 20, 2021 Publication of nine-month figures (January to September 2021)

Key figures for the full year of 2020

In millions of 

unless otherwise specified 2020 2019  in %

Reported  in %

cc1 Order Intake and Sales Revenue







Order intake 2,381.0 1,543.5 54.3 56.7 Sales revenue 1,910.1 1,440.6 32.6 34.6 - EMEA 761.0 575.1 32.3 33.0 - Americas 670.2 511.6 31.0 34.0 - Asia | Pacific 478.9 353.8 35.4 38.3 Results







EBITDA2 604.7 421.5 43.5

EBITDA margin2 in % 31.7 29.3



Net profit3 383.8 263.0 45.9

Earnings per share3 in  4.16 2.85 45.9



In constant currencies Underlying EBITDA = earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, and adjusted for extraordinary items Relevant / underlying net profit = net profit after non-controlling interest; adjusted for extraordinary items and non-cash amortization, as well as based on a normalized financial result and normalized tax rate

Reconciliation In millions of ,

unless otherwise specified 2020 2019 EBIT (operating result) 471.8 331.8 Extraordinary items 32.0 16.8 Depreciation and amortization 100.9 72.8 Underlying EBITDA 604.7 421.5

In millions of ,

unless otherwise specified 2020 2019 EBIT (operating result) 471.8 331.8 Extraordinary items 32.0 16.8 Amortization | IFRS 3 26.3 13.9 Normalized financial result1 -7.8 -5.1 Normalized income tax (26%)2 -135.8 -92.9 Underlying net result 386.4 264.5 Non-controlling interest -2.7 -1.5 Underlying net result after non-controlling interest 383.8 263.0 Underlying earnings per share (in ) 4.16 2.85

In millions of ,

unless otherwise specified 2020 2019 Gross debt 586.8 138.6 - Cash & cash equivalents 59.8 28.2 Net debt 527.0 110.4 Underlying EBITDA 604.7 421.5 + Pro forma EBITDA from acquisitions 15.8 3.1 Pro forma underlying EBITDA 620.5 424.6 Net debt/Underlying EBITDA 0.8 0.3

In millions of ,

unless otherwise specified 2020 2019 Sales revenue 1,910.1 1,440.6 Capital expenditures 159.2 136.0 Capital expenditures as % of sales revenue 8.3 9.4

Financial result excluding fair value adjustments of hedging instruments and currency effects relating to financing activities and change in valuation of earn-out liability Normalized income tax based on the underlying profit before taxes and non-cash amortization

A profile of Sartorius Stedim Biotech

Sartorius Stedim Biotech is a leading international partner of the biopharmaceutical industry. As a total solutions provider, the company helps its customers to manufacture biotech medications safely, rapidly and economically. Headquartered in Aubagne, France, Sartorius Stedim Biotech is quoted on the Eurolist of Euronext Paris. With its own manufacturing and R&D sites in Europe, North America and Asia and an international network of sales companies, Sartorius Stedim Biotech has a global reach. The Group has been annually growing by double digits on average and has been regularly expanding its portfolio by acquisitions of complementary technologies. In 2020, the company employed more than 7,500 people, and earned sales revenue of 1,910 million euros.

Contact

Petra Kirchhoff

Head of Corporate Communications and Investor Relations

+49 (0)551.308.1686

[email protected]

https://www.sartorius.com/en

SOURCE Sartorius Stedim Biotech S.A.
The former guitarist of an indie pop band will fight accusations he sexually assaulted a teenager, claiming he accidentally made contact with the girl while swinging his arms as he walked along a crowded footpath in Melbournes CBD.

Christian OBrien, formerly with the band Alpine, is alleged to have intentionally sexually touched the 15-year-old girl on the bottom as he passed her on the footpath on Little Bourke Street on August 2, 2019.

The 38-year-old musician was charged with sexual assault by Victoria Police after a public appeal for information about the incident in January last year.

Guitarist Christian O'Brien from Australian indie rock group Alpine.

The girl was in the city on a school excursion walking with friends at the time of the incident.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire as photos of him in an airport and a plane showing him flying to Cancun during the Arctic blast which has crippled his home state and especially his hometown of Houston, surfaced on Twitter.

The photos went viral late Wednesday night and Cruz sent out an official statement explaining the trip Thursday afternoon.

OPINION: Ted Cruz's tweets about California blackouts look really dumb right now

Earlier Thursday, Fox News confirmed Cruz took a trip to Cancun, saying "a Republican source told Fox News that the allegations Cruz was traveling to the Mexican city are true."

"The photos speak for themselves," the source told Fox News.

The Associated Press also confirmed the Cancun trip, reporting Cruz "went with his family for a long-planned trip to Cancun and was expected to return immediately, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations."

According to ABC News' verification producer Erin Calabrese, Cruz contacted Houston Police and requested assistance upon his arrival at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said his daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said in a statement released before he boarded a flight back home to Houston.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Twitter user Juan Gomez shared the first photo of Cruz with his baggage at a United Airlines gate, adding "Well Senator Cruz is flying to Cancun while millions of Texans do not have electricity #Priorities #ThanksforNothingSenator."

Former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted that he confirmed Cruz "and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before." His tweet included a photo of Cruz inside a plane. It's unclear how Shuster confirmed the story.

Keith Edwards - who was an advisor to Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff and worked with the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group - tweeted other photos of Cruz at the airport. He said the photos were sent to him by passengers on the same flight as Cruz.

Beto O'Rourke, who lost the Senate race to Cruz in 2018, appeared on MSNBC on Wednesday night and took a shot at Cruz, when talking about holding politicians accountable for their actions, including "the junior Senator from the state of Texas, who I understand is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve."

Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, tweeted: Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?"
(CNN)  Emma Stone channels meanness perfectly in the new trailer for Disney's "Cruella."

The movie focuses on a young version of the "One Hundred and One Dalmatians" villain, Cruella de Vil. "In "1970s London, young fashion designer Estella de Vil becomes obsessed with dogs' skins, especially Dalmatians, until she eventually becomes a ruthless and terrifying legend known as Cruella," Disney describes the film.

"The thing is, I was born brilliant. Born bad  and a little bit mad," Stone says in the trailer.

Along with Stone, Emma Thompson, who plays the Baroness, Joel Fry, Paul Walter Hauser, Mark Strong and Emily Beecham, star in the movie.

Craig Gillespie "I, Tonya," director, directed "Cruella. Glenn Close, who played Cruella Disney's 1996 remake of "One Hundred and One Dalmatians," is the executive producer of the film.

"Cruella" is currently scheduled to open in theaters May 28.

The project was first announced back in 2013.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Emma Stone is downright mean in new trailer for 'Cruella'"
Christian Campus Group Stands with U.S. Department of Education Against American Atheist Lawsuit

NEWS PROVIDED BY

Ratio Christi Campus Apologetics Alliance

Feb. 18, 2021



LAFAYETTE, Ind., Feb. 18, 2021 /Christian Newswire/ -- Ratio Christi Campus Apologetics Alliance announces it will act as intervening defendants in support of a U.S. Department of Education regulation protecting campus free speech against a lawsuit filed by American Atheists and Americans United for Separation of Church and State.



The lawsuit  brought on behalf of the Secular Student Alliance and one California university student  claims that by ensuring that public universities respect the First Amendment rights of religious groups on college campuses and giving them the same benefits as other campus clubs, the Department of Education somehow discriminates against students of other faiths and non-religious students. The suit additionally takes issue with the rule, because it allows club members to choose only leaders who share the same belief and mission of the club. The lawsuit asks the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to invalidate the new rule, which went into effect on November 23, 2020.



Ratio Christi (RC) is a Christian student ministry with chapters at many colleges and universities. RC exists to equip students and faculty with historical, philosophical, and scientific reasons for following Jesus. Although the chapters allow full access to all students and membership is voluntary, numerous schools have attempted to deny their chapters the right to choose student leaders who agree with RC's mission. Thus, protecting free speech and religious freedom on campus is vital to Ratio Christi. Dr. Corey Miller is President/CEO of RC. He states:

"Freedom of religion and freedom of speech both imply freedom of conscience. As a student-led club organization at over 125 universities, we are asking nothing more than to follow our freedom of conscience in having students select from amongst themselves leaders who agree with RC's fundamental religious commitments and the very basis of RC's purpose  to equip students with intelligent reasons to follow Christ. We believe in honest dialogue and in treating people well as people with intrinsic dignity made in God's image. Defending freedom of conscience is defending the foundational principles of our nation."



Miller adds, "By bringing this lawsuit against the Department of Education rule, American Atheists and Americans United for Separation of Church and State are in effect doing what they claim to oppose  discriminating against the rights of certain religious students. Disagreement is not denigration. Viewpoint diversity supports rather than undermines the goal of the university, which is the pursuit of truth. Free speech presupposes cognitive liberty."

Media representatives interested in the D.C. District Court case of Secular Student Alliance and Declan A. Galli v. U.S. Department of Education and Secretary of Education may contact ADF Media Relations at (480) 4440020 or media@adflegal.org. If interested in interviewing Dr. Corey Miller about Ratio Christi's ministry, reach him at 704-989-2752 or e-mail info@ratiochristi.org.



SOURCE Ratio Christi Campus Apologetics Alliance



CONTACT: ADF Media Relations, 480-4440020, media@adflegal.org;

Ratio Christi, 704-989-2752, info@ratiochristi.org



Acquisition will help build a full stack digital mental health platform for psychedelic medicines; Ex-Pfizer Digital Medicine Executive Dr. Daniel R. Karlin M.D. M.A. and former Google AI/ML industry veteran Bradford Cross added to MindMed executive team

NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- MindMed (NEO: MMED) (OTCQB: MMEDF) (DE: MMQ), a leading psychedelic medicine biotech company, announced that it will acquire HealthMode, a digital medicine and therapeutics startup that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled digital measurement to increase the precision and speed of clinical research and patient monitoring.

MindMed will acquire HealthMode through the issuance of 82,508 multiple voting shares of MindMed (equivalent to 8,250,836 subordinate voting shares which, at yesterday's closing price of CAD $5.13, puts the value of HealthMode at approximately CAD $41,254,180) and the payment of approximately CAD $300,000 in cash.

With the acquisition, MindMed gains access to HealthMode's Intellectual Property, platforms for clinical drug trials, and its entire twenty-four person digital medicine team. MindMed will incorporate HealthMode's machine learning (ML) engineering, product development, and operations employees based in Silicon Valley, New York City, Bratislava and Prague into MindMed's newly established digital medicine division, Albert. MindMed intends to establish Albert as an industry leading full stack digital mental health platform, capable of launching and commercializing psychedelic-assisted therapies and medicines at scale for patients.

Through the HealthMode acquisition, MindMed will add pharmaceutical veteran Daniel R. Karlin M.D. M.A. and AI/ML expert Bradford Cross to the MindMed executive team. Cross, who will become the Chief Technology Officer of MindMed, was a founding partner at deep tech venture capital fund, Data Collective (DCVC) and also founded Prismatic, a personalized AI-driven news feed that became part of the IP underlying Linkedin's newsfeed and content classification.

Dr. Karlin, who will serve as Chief Medical Officer of MindMed, previously held several leadership roles at Pfizer's Neuroscience Research Unit, ultimately serving as Head of Clinical, Informatics, and Regulatory Strategy for Digital Medicine. He is board certified in Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine, and Clinical Informatics. Dr. Karlin previously was the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Column Health, a network of technology enabled clinics that was an early leader in value-based care for substance use disorders and mental illness. He recently led the development efforts for NightWare, which received FDA clearance for its smartwatch-based treatment for PTSD-related nightmares. Dr. Karlin is also an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine.

MindMed Co-Founder and CEO J.R. Rahn said: "Our mission is to make MindMed as much a digital medicine company as a drug development company. With the addition of Dan and Bradford's team of engineers and product experts, our digital medicine division, Albert, is now the Special Ops of digital medicine, applying machine learning to drug development and patient care. The future of modern mental healthcare and psychedelic medicine ultimately will rely on improving infrequent, self-reported and observed measures for mental health to a paradigm where the continual digital measurement of our mind and body is as vital as the drug treatment itself. In effect, we see a future mental health treatment paradigm where potential drug products such as our LSD experiential therapy might be prescribed right alongside software application programming interfaces (APIs) to prepare the patient for treatment and optimally monitor the after-care of one's anxiety disorder."

HealthMode Co-Founder Dan Karlin stated: "MindMed has led the way in innovating toward solutions for mental health including cutting edge drug targets and psychedelic-assisted therapies. I've worked toward solving these same problems at Pfizer and my other medical and tech startups, and believe that there is critical work, urgently needed, to advance treatment of mental illnesses, with particularly rich opportunities in the psychedelic inspired space. The acuity and importance of unmet mental health needs is why we believe so strongly in empowering data-driven solutions, which will more efficiently enable us to generate evidence of efficacy and safety for new psychiatric treatments. Through the tech we have built at Healthmode, we aim to potentially rapidly increase the value of MindMed's asset portfolio by advancing more drugs against more indications at a faster pace with high scientific and technical rigor."

HealthMode Co-Founder Bradford Cross added: "Having worked a great deal on my own mental health, it has long been a topic near and dear to me. For years, I've thought about how technology, apps, biotech, and fintech can help change the landscape for mental health medicines, psychotherapy, and payor coverage. Dan and I founded HealthMode with this goal and pursued mental health biotech opportunities throughout the past few years. Joining forces with MindMed is exactly the opportunity we were hoping to find. At HealthMode, our technical motto has always been 'better science faster' because we always try to think about what our tech can do to answer real scientific questions by capturing more and better data from increasing patient populations at higher frequency and at a larger scale. Now we'll apply that playbook to accelerate research on one of the most promising targets in psychiatry and ultimately help launch these psychedelic-assisted therapies to patients at scale."

The HealthMode acquisition comes at a time of fast growth for MindMed and maturation of the overall executive team. The company recently hired Chief Development Officer Robert Barrow, who has over a decade of experience working in the biotech sector and previously led an FDA Phase 2 psilocybin clinical trial in obtaining a Breakthrough Therapy Designation. MindMed has also recently launched a drug discovery partnership for novel psychedelic and empathogenic compounds with Swiss Startup MindShift Compounds AG and has raised USD $187 million since inception.

The acquisition of Healthmode is expected to close by the end of February 2021 and is subject to Neo Exchange Inc. approval. The final number of shares issuable and cash payable upon closing is subject to adjustment just prior to closing. All shares issuable pursuant to the acquisition will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months and a day from the closing date, during which they may not be traded or sold by the recipients. All shares issued will also be subject to limited, time-based escrow, the final terms of which are still to be determined and will be announced upon closing of the acquisition.

About HealthMode

HealthMode drives progression to next-generation clinical trials by developing and delivering AI-enabled digital measurement methods for clinical trials. Its client partners represent a diverse set of stakeholders, from clinical researchers and drug developers at large pharmaceutical companies, to academic medical centers, to startups entering the space. HealthMode's measurement techniques improve understanding of phenotype; streamline and provide assurance for screening and eligibility; provide early detection and mitigation of adverse events; and serve as sensitive, specific, objective, and low participant burden efficacy endpoints. These measurements allow for meaningful integration of clinical trial data with real-world evidence, and provide the basis for movement toward patient-specific measures. Better measurement tools and the platforms to support them help HealthMode's partners make data informed decisions, reduce uncertainty around enrollment and outcomes, de-risk development, and increase the speed at which novel therapeutics reach patients in need.

Biography of Daniel R. Karlin M.D. M.A., Co-Founder of HealthMode

Dr. Karlin is the Co-Founder and CEO of HealthMode, Inc, and formerly, the Chief Medical Officer of NightWare, Inc. He was previously the Head of Clinical, Informatics, and Regulatory Strategy for Digital Medicine at Pfizer, having passed through a number of roles on the way to this position including Senior Director, Quantitative Medicine, Group Lead for Human Biology and Medical Informatics with Pfizer's Neuroscience Research Unit in Cambridge, MA. He is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Tufts University School of Medicine, in Boston, and has been the Director of Psychiatry Informatics, and the Associate Training Director for Psychiatry. Prior to HealthMode, he Co-Founded and was Chief Medical Officer of Column Health, a network of technology enabled psychiatry and addiction clinics. His primary research interests are neuropsychiatric drug discovery, medical informatics, cognition in clinical medicine, and methodologies for medical education, especially as these relate to decision-making strategies used by medical professionals. In addition, Dr. Karlin is actively involved in designing and implementing information systems and resources for clinical and research use. Dr. Karlin trained in Psychiatry at Tufts Medical Center, attended medical school at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, and graduate school for Clinical Informatics and Cognitive Science as well as undergraduate studies in Neuroscience and Behavior at Columbia University. He is board certified in Psychiatry, Addiction Medicine, and Clinical Informatics, and holds licenses to practice medicine in several US states.

Biography of Bradford Cross, Co-Founder of HealthMode

Bradford is an entrepreneur with a background in computer science and finance. He founded Prismatic, a personalized newsfeed that became a part of the IP underlying Linkedin's newsfeed and content classification. He has founded startups in healthtech, fintech, travel and media resulting in multiple exits. He was a founding partner at DCVC, which has grown to a leading deep tech VC. He previously worked at Google as an early ML engineer and in the financial industry at quantitative hedge funds.

About MindMed

MindMed is a psychedelic medicine biotech company that discovers, develops and deploys psychedelic inspired medicines and therapies to address addiction and mental illness. The company is assembling a compelling drug development pipeline of innovative treatments based on psychedelic substances including Psilocybin, LSD, MDMA, DMT and an Ibogaine derivative, 18-MC. The MindMed executive team brings extensive biopharmaceutical experience to the company's groundbreaking approach to developing the next-generation of psychedelic inspired medicines and therapies.

MindMed trades on the Canadian exchange NEO under the symbol MMED . MindMed is also traded in the United States under the symbol MMEDF and in Germany under the symbol MMQ . For more information: www.mindmed.co

MindMed Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties relating to future events and performance of Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc. ("MindMed"), and actual events or results may differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Words such as "anticipate," "expect," "intend," "plan," "believe," "seek," "estimate," variations of such words, and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. These statements concern, and these risks and uncertainties include, among others, MindMed's and its collaborators' ability to continue to conduct research and clinical programs, MindMed's ability to manage its supply chain, product sales of products marketed by MindMed and/or its collaborators (collectively, "Products"), and the global economy; the nature, timing, and possible success and therapeutic applications of Products and Product candidates and research and clinical programs now underway or planned; the likelihood, timing, and scope of possible regulatory approval and commercial launch of Product candidates and new indications for Products; unforeseen safety issues resulting from the administration of Products and Product candidates in patients, including serious complications or side effects in connection with the use of MindMed's Products and product candidates in clinical trials; determinations by regulatory and administrative governmental authorities which may delay or restrict MindMed's ability to continue to develop or commercialize Products; ongoing regulatory obligations and oversight impacting Products, research and clinical programs, and business, including those relating to patient privacy; uncertainty of market acceptance and commercial success of Products and Product candidates and the impact of studies on the commercial success of Products and Product candidates; the availability and extent of reimbursement of Products from third-party payers, including private payer healthcare and insurance programs, health maintenance organizations, pharmacy benefit management companies, and government programs such as Medicare and Medicaid; competing drugs and product candidates that may be superior to Products and Product candidates; the extent to which the results from the research and development programs conducted by MindMed or its collaborators may be replicated in other studies and lead to therapeutic applications; the ability of MindMed to manufacture and manage supply chains for multiple products and product candidates; the ability of MindMed's collaborators, suppliers, or other third parties (as applicable) to perform manufacturing, filling, finishing, packaging, labelling, distribution, and other steps related to MindMed's Products and product candidates; unanticipated expenses; the costs of developing, producing, and selling products; the ability of MindMed to meet any of its financial projections or guidance and changes to the assumptions underlying those projections or guidance; the potential for any license or collaboration agreement to be cancelled or terminated without any further product success; and risks associated with intellectual property of other parties and pending or future litigation relating thereto, other litigation and other proceedings and government investigations relating to MindMed and its operations, the ultimate outcome of any such proceedings and investigations, and the impact any of the foregoing may have on MindMed's business, prospects, operating results, and financial condition. Any forward-looking statements are made based on management's current beliefs and judgment. MindMed does not undertake any obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement.

Media Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Mind Medicine (MindMed) Inc.

Related Links

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(@ChaudhryMAli88)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a virtual meeting with his Australian, Indian, Japanese Counterparts the urgent need to restore the democratically elected government in the conflict-torn Myanmar, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said on Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a virtual meeting with his Australian, Indian , Japanese Counterparts the urgent need to restore the democratically elected government in the conflict-torn Myanmar , State Department Spokesperson Ned price said on Thursday.

"Secretary of State Antony J.

Blinken spoke today with Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne, Indian Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar, and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi," Price said in a readout of the meeting. "The ministers also discussed countering disinformation, counterterrorism, maritime security, the urgent need to restore the democratically elected government in Burma, and the priority of strengthening democratic resilience in the broader region."

Anyone dealing with eczema knows how debilitating the disease can be. Its miserable to live with eczema  it has a big impact on a persons quality of life, causing chronic itchiness, visible rashes on the body, and disrupted sleep, says Melissa Piliang, MD, a dermatologist at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. It can even impact relationships. While some people with eczema may turn to moisturizers and corticosteroid creams to help prevent and calm flare-ups, topical treatments dont always work for every patient. Thats where light therapy may come in.

RELATED: How Is Eczema Treated?

The Lowdown on Light Therapy for Eczema

Eczema light therapy, or phototherapy, refers to the use of ultraviolet (UV) light to treat the skin rash and itching of eczema. Exposing the skin to UV light suppresses overactive skin immune system cells that cause inflammation, explains Elizabeth H. Page, MD, a dermatologist at Beth Israel Lahey Health and assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Harvard Medical School in Boston. Light therapy works by chasing away the white blood cells that trigger the inflammation, so light therapy is anti-inflammatory.

Another payoff? Light therapy also smoothes the lesions, decreasing skin thickening, says Emma Guttman-Yassky, MD, PhD, a dermatologist and the director of the Laboratory of Inflammatory Skin Diseases at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.

Who Is a Fit for Light Therapys Perks

While light therapy is usually not the first line of defense for people with eczema (moisturizers and corticosteroids are usually step one), it could be a good option if a person doesnt want to take a medication that requires an injection, doesnt like needles, or doesnt want the side effects of a systemic medication, which is one that affects the entire body, says Dr. Piliang. For example, the medication methotrexate (Trexall, Rheumatrex), which is given by injection or taken as a pill, is used to help treat severe cases of eczema, but you cant take it if you have liver disease or if you drink alcohol, notes Piliang; per the National Eczema Society, pregnant or breastfeeding women should not take it either.

Light therapy works well for people with targeted eczema, like on their hands or feet, because dermatologists can isolate those areas with the light, says Piliang.

In addition, it can be helpful for someone who has head-to-toe eczema. Its a good way to treat widespread eczema and reduces the need to put prescription creams and ointment over a large area of the body, says Dr. Page.

Its also considered a safe treatment for kids, says Piliang. There is no age requirement; rather, the child needs to be mature enough to stand alone. Eczema light therapy is not given to infants, according to the Mayo Clinic. Piliang adds that its a nice option for pregnant women.

Just know that light therapy for eczema is not the same as basking in the sun all day. Natural sunlight can help relieve symptoms of eczema, but artificially produced UV light is best for eczema treatment because it can be controlled and given under supervision, says Page. Taking this medical route is different than using tanning beds, explains Piliang, because the medical light boxes filter out some UV wavelengths, so this therapy is the safer option.

RELATED: No, Eczema Isnt Contagious, But Heres How Secondary Infections Can Be Spread

How Light Therapy Works to Help Treat Eczema

Years ago, doctors used three types of eczema phototherapy, but these days one has come out on top. The most common form of phototherapy is narrowband UVB, which has largely replaced other forms of phototherapy such as broadband UVB and PUVA, says Page. Dr. Guttman-Yassky adds, Narrowband UVB may be best as its safe and effective.

PUVA Light Therapy

PUVA is when a doctor uses UVA wavelength light, says Page, but to make the treatment effective, the oral medication psoralen must be taken an hour beforehand (the abbreviation PUVA stands for psoralen plus UVA), so the skin is more sensitive to the light therapy. Some people are unable to tolerate PUVA because of nausea from psoralen, according to the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology. There are other serious risks with UVA light treatment. We use far less of this treatment because of the skin cancer risk, says Piliang. This treatment is more commonly used for treating psoriasis than eczema.

Narrowband UVB Light Therapy

Narrowband UVB uses a small part of the UVB spectrum, which cuts down on exposure to UV radiation, says Page. This makes it more appealing than broadband UVB, which is also less effective at penetrating the skin, according to the National Eczema Society. In addition, a review published in October 2019 in the Expert Review of Clinical Immunology called narrowband UVB light the gold standard of light therapy treatment for eczema in terms of safety and efficacy.

What to Expect at Your Light Therapy Appointment

Patients usually go to light therapy appointments two or three times a week for several weeks to months, says Piliang. At the appointment, youll moisturize your skin, then stand undressed (except for underwear) in a light box, with goggles on to protect your eyes, according to the National Eczema Association. Treatment can last anywhere from seconds to a couple of minutes, the society notes.

While light therapy may sound like a simple way to help with eczema, its not without its drawbacks.

RELATED: Bacteria Therapy for Eczema Shows Promise for More Effective, Cheaper Treatment

Possible Disadvantages of Eczema Light Therapy

Cost may be a con of eczema light therapy: For insured patients, there may be a copay involved for each time you receive treatment, plus deductible considerations. Another potential drawback is that it's time-consuming and requires many trips to a doctor's office over several weeks, Page says. If youre driving 30 minutes to your doctors office, waiting for your appointment, taking your clothes off, standing in the booth, then putting your clothes back on and driving home, it might be too much of a time commitment for you, says Piliang. If you live close to your doctors office, it may be convenient, but if not, it might be too difficult to do this several times a week.

Other drawbacks of eczema phototherapy may include these considerations:

Burning Artificial UV light, like natural sunlight, can result in tender sunburn and even blistering. Skin may redden and itch. Though, according to NYU Langone Health, side effects to phototherapy happen infrequently and tend to go away quickly. Also worth noting: "People who have a light complexion have more tendency to burn, and dosing needs to be adjusted accordingly," says Page.

Skin Damage Over time, age spots and other signs of aging like wrinkles may appear, says Page.

Skin Cancer PUVA, an older form of phototherapy, has been shown to cause skin cancer, Page says. Although there is no proof that narrowband UVB causes skin cancer, this is a theoretical possibility, and it is important to limit exposure as much as possible, she says. Separately, indoor tanning is not a good alternative to phototherapy and has been shown to increase the risk of skin cancer, Page notes.

Varied Effectiveness While light therapy can be beneficial for some individuals, it may not be right for everyone  especially for people with extreme cases of the skin condition. It doesnt work on highly widespread disease and works less on very thick lesions, says Guttman-Yassky. In very severe cases, a systemic biologic or oral medication may be needed at least initially, she advises.

RELATED: The Best Natural and Essential Oils to Help Soothe Eczema-Prone Skin

Is Light Therapy Right for Your Eczema Treatment Plan?

Despite the potential drawbacks, UV light therapy is an effective treatment for moderate to severe eczema if it is carefully controlled and the proper precautions are taken, says Page. Talk to your dermatologist to see if eczema light treatment might work for you.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire as photos of him in an airport and a plane showing him flying to Cancun during the Arctic blast which has crippled his home state and especially his hometown of Houston, surfaced on Twitter.

The photos went viral late Wednesday night and Cruz sent out an official statement explaining the trip Thursday afternoon.

OPINION: Ted Cruz's tweets about California blackouts look really dumb right now

Earlier Thursday, Fox News confirmed Cruz took a trip to Cancun, saying "a Republican source told Fox News that the allegations Cruz was traveling to the Mexican city are true."

"The photos speak for themselves," the source told Fox News.

The Associated Press also confirmed the Cancun trip, reporting Cruz "went with his family for a long-planned trip to Cancun and was expected to return immediately, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations."

According to ABC News' verification producer Erin Calabrese, Cruz contacted Houston Police and requested assistance upon his arrival at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said his daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said in a statement released before he boarded a flight back home to Houston.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Twitter user Juan Gomez shared the first photo of Cruz with his baggage at a United Airlines gate, adding "Well Senator Cruz is flying to Cancun while millions of Texans do not have electricity #Priorities #ThanksforNothingSenator."

Former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted that he confirmed Cruz "and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before." His tweet included a photo of Cruz inside a plane. It's unclear how Shuster confirmed the story.

Keith Edwards - who was an advisor to Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff and worked with the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group - tweeted other photos of Cruz at the airport. He said the photos were sent to him by passengers on the same flight as Cruz.

Beto O'Rourke, who lost the Senate race to Cruz in 2018, appeared on MSNBC on Wednesday night and took a shot at Cruz, when talking about holding politicians accountable for their actions, including "the junior Senator from the state of Texas, who I understand is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve."

Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, tweeted: Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?"


Nicholas Johnson, 27, who is in police custody after he was arrested on outstanding warrants in unrelated cases, is a 'person of interest' in the disappearance of his parents, police in Portage, Michigan said

The bodies of a Michigan couple who went missing earlier this month have been found in the woods and their 27-year-old son has been charged with two counts of murder for their deaths.

Nicholas Alexander Johnson's charges come after the bodies of his parents Gary Johnson, 64, and Laura Johnson, 65, were unearthed about three miles from their home on Friday, the Detroit Free Press reported.

Officials said the bodies were found at Gourdneck State Game Area in Portage after they were last seen alive on February 3.

Johnson has also been named a person of interest in the 2018 disappearance of 17-year-old Bonifacio Pena of Gobles, WWNT reported.

Investigators say his disappearance has been a mystery, though they said evidence suggests he was last seen with Johnson in 2018.

DailyMail.com has contacted Portage Public Safety Director Nicholas Armold for comment.

On top of the murder charges, Johnson was charged with two counts of felony firearm and one count for possession of a firearm, WXMI reported.

Alleged criminals can be charged with the catchall open murder, a combination of first- and second-degree murder, under Michigan law.

Prosecutors use an open murder charge to allow the jury to determine which degree is appropriate based upon evidence.

He is expected to be arraigned in Kalamazoo County District Court on Thursday.

Police say evidence collected inside the home of his parents, Gary (left), 64, and Laura Johnson (right), 65, indicate that violence may have been the cause of their disappearance

According to police, investigators discovered a 12-inch deep hole in the backyard that appeared to be freshly dug, though nothing was found inside the hole. Police are seen above at the home of Gary and Laura Johnson in Portage, Michigan, on Tuesday

Johnson was taken into custody on February 9 after he was arrested on outstanding warrants in unrelated cases, according to police in Portage, Michigan, just outside of Kalamazoo.

He was armed with a pistol and a spare magazine when officers took him into custody about a mile from his parents' home.

Police said last week that evidence collected inside the home of his parents indicate that violence may have been the cause of their disappearance.

Last Tuesday, just after 9am, police arrived at the Johnsons' home on Romence Road in Portage in order to do a welfare check.

Officers responded to the home after they were told that Gary Johnson had not reported to work in close to a week, according to MLive.com.

Armold said that officers have remained at the home since.

While investigating inside the home, police found signs that the missing couple fell victim to violence.

According to Armold, investigators discovered a 12-inch deep hole in the backyard that appeared to be freshly dug. He said nothing was found inside the hole.

Were going to be there as long as we think we need to be there to make sure that weve uncovered everything that we can find, he said.

It looks like well be there for a couple more days.

Police said that evidence found inside the home in Portage indicates that the Johnsons fell victim to violence

Police arrived at the home on Tuesday morning after Gary failed to report to work for nearly a week

We certainly hope that we are wrong, but things are leading us to believe that this is a homicide, Portage Public Safety Chief Nick Armold said

Armold declined to specify other pieces of evidence found inside the home, though he said at the time that investigators have determined the couple was likely murdered.

We certainly hope that we are wrong, but things are leading us to believe that this is a homicide, Armold said.

While I cant go into the specific evidence, the obvious piece of the puzzle is that the Johnsons are still missing.

We have all of their vehicles. We have their cell phones. There is no reasonable explanation as to why they are gone.

Garys car was found at the couples home, according to Armold. Lauras vehicle was located at Milham Meadows Apartment Complex about a mile north of the house, where they also found Nicholas.

Johnson, who was reported to have been hiding in a storage unit inside the complex, was wanted on felony and misdemeanor bench warrants. He was arraigned on Wednesday on charges of weapons possession.

Police found ammunition inside the storage unit, Fox 17 TV reported.

According to court records, Gary and Laura Johnson (pictured) obtained a personal protection order against their son in 2018 after he allegedly assaulted them on multiple occasions

Johnson also had two outstanding warrants including a felony home invasion - third degree stemming from a 2019 incident, according to MLive.com.

Police allege Nicholas broke into his parents home on September 7, 2019 in violation of a no-contact order.

Kalamazoo County District Judge Richard Santoni issued separate $100,000 cash bonds on each of the two active felony cases, citing the risk that Nicholas could attempt to flee.

I have reviewed, somewhere in the range of, about a half dozen search warrants that deal with the ongoing issue, Santoni said of the investigation into the disappearance of Nicholas parents. I cant ignore that.

I cant with any kind of certainty indicate what happened, what the defendants level of involvement might be, but I cant ignore it.

It creates a cloud, essentially, over all these proceedings, and If I were to ignore it, I would simply be ignoring reality and Im not going to do that.

In March 2018, Johnson parents submitted a request for a personal protection order against their son.

Gary and I are concerned for our safety and others safety. I need him to stay away from us for a while and he needs to seek mental health help, Laura wrote in the application obtained by WMMT-TV.

The request was made after two incidents in February 2018. Laura claimed that Johnson assaulted her and her husband, damaged property, and refused to leave their home.

In March 2018, Laura filed an application for a personal protection order. The request was made after two incidents in February 2018. Laura claimed that Nicholas assaulted her and her husband, damaged property, and refused to leave their home

On one occasion on February 21, 2018, Nicholas who was upset his girlfriend broke up with him, pushed his mother backwards, injuring her head and causing bruising, it was alleged

According to court records, Johnson was charged with domestic violence and malicious destruction of property.

The parents claimed Nicholas assaulted them on multiple occasions.

On one occasion on February 21, 2018, Johnson who was upset his girlfriend broke up with him, pushed his mother backwards, injuring her head and causing bruising, it was alleged.

He was told not to come back to our house at that point. He has previously pushed my husband, threatened us, Laura wrote in her application.

A week later, Johnson allegedly crawled into the basement window and entered his parents home.

He then refused to leave and broke three windows with his fist, according to documents.

Laura also wrote in her application that Johnson refused to seek treatment for mental illness and also refused offers of housing.

He is now homeless, Laura wrote.

At this point, Gary and I are concerned for our safety and others safety. We are done with allowing him to keep destroying our house and property.
A federal judge on Wednesday blocked the release of a Tennessee man accused of storming the U.S. Capitol last month armed with zip ties.

In a blistering opinion, U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth said Nashville resident Eric Gavelek Munchel, 30, and his mother, Woodstock, Georgia, nurse Leslie Marie Eisenhart, 56, both pose "clear danger to the republic" in ways that would've troubled George Washington.

In widely circulated photographs, Munchel was seen inside the Senate chamber with zip ties and a holstered Taser. He was among two men dubbed "zip tie guy" due to the images. Eisenhart was next to him in some of the footage.

By joining pro-Trump mobs and attacking the Capitol on Jan. 6 in a bid to overturn November's election won by President Joe Biden, the suspects struck at the heart of American democracy, the judge said.

Lamberth quoted Washington's famed 1796 farewell address when the nation's first president said: "The very idea of the power of and the right of the people to establish government presupposes the duty of every individual to obey the established government."

"Indeed, few offenses are more threatening to our way of life," the judge wrote of charges against the suspects.

Munchel, arrested on Jan. 10, and Eisenhart, taken into custody on Jan. 16, have been charged with conspiracy, entering a restricted building and disorderly conduct during the deadly riot.

A magistrate judge had earlier granted their release, but stayed the order to allow federal prosecutors to appeal.

Lamberth cited interviews Munchel and Eisenhart both gave to the Times of London, when they compared Jan. 6 to the American Revolution of 1776, as proof they're allegedly prone violence to achieve political objectives.

"By word and deed, Munchel has supported the violent overthrow of the United States government. He poses a clear danger to the republic," Lamberth wrote. "By word and deed, Eisenhart has supported the violent overthrow of the United States government. As a self-avowed, would-be martyr, she poses a clear danger to our republic."

Both will remain jailed until trial, the judgeruled.

Attorneys for the suspects could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday.
Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
The 30 per cent of Australians who rely on Facebook as their primary source of news will have to find it elsewhere or live a fact-free life following the Big Tech behemoths decision on Thursday to purge journalism from its site.

Overnight, Facebook has removed access to its users from any site that smells like news: not only local major mastheads such as The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, but also specialist sites like The Conversation and global leaders such as The New York Times.

News blackout ... Facebook is ignoring the public interest while acting in self-interest. Credit:iStock

It also seems Fire and Rescue NSW, the Bureau of Meteorology, MS Research Australia, Doctors without Borders and state health departments are among many placed on the blacklist, showing the scope of the Mark Zuckerberg edict from Silicon Valley.

This is an arrogant and reckless move that will be dangerous for all Australians who are relying on an evidence-based response to a global pandemic, but also self-destructive to Facebook. While Facebook argues it does not make much money from news in its network, it is wilfully turning a blind eye to its value. News provides the facts and evidence to anchor what it claims is a ubiquitous digital experience.
Chijoke Richard is accused of sexual assault in the city centre

A man has been accused of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl at a Luas stop by touching her leg without her consent.

Chijoke Richard (20) is all-eged to have approached and touched the minor in Dublin city centre.

The case against him was adjourned when he appeared before Dublin District Court.

Mr Richard, of no fixed add-ress, is charged with sexually assaulting the girl on May 6 last year.

The prosecuting garda told the court she arrested the acc-used for the purpose of charging him and he made no reply after caution. He was handed a copy of the charge sheet, she said.

The DPP consented to the case being dealt with at district court level, with the issue of jurisdiction to be considered by the judge.

Outlining the prosecution's case, the garda said it was all-eged the accused approached a 13-year-old girl at the location in question and touched her upper thigh without her permission.

Judge Smyth accepted jur- isdiction, allowing the case to remain in the district court.

He ordered the prosecution to give the defence copies of statements following a request from Peter Keatings, defending.

Judge Smyth granted the accused bail in his own bond of 200, with no cash lodgment required, after hearing there were no garda objections subject to conditions.

Under bail terms, Mr Richard must sign on twice a week at his local garda station.

He is to reside at an address on North Frederick Street, not change address without informing gardai and provide a contact phone number.

The case was adjourned to a date in January for the accused to decide how he intends to plead.
Sami Kelopuro Wins the GGPoker Super MILLION$ for $408,406

February 18 2021 Matthew Pitt

Sami Kelopuro sat down at the final table of this weeks GGPoker Super MILLION$ seventh from nine in chips but stages an epic comeback that saw him crowned the tournaments champion and scoop $408,406.

Kelopuros recent GGPoker results have been nothing short of phenomenal. He recently won three events in a single day, but this latest victory takes the biscuit. Lets see how Kelopuro got the job done in the 36th Super MILLION$ event.

Super MILLION$ Final Table Results

Place Player Country Prize 1 Sami Kelopuro Finland $408,406 2 Damian Salas Argentina $314,924 3 Darren Elias Canada $242,839 4 dimiasg Cyprus $187,255 5 Arsenii Malinov Russia $144,393 6 Adrian Mateos Mexico $111,342 7 Bert Stevens Mexico $85,856 8 Aleksei Barkov Russia $66,204 9 Guillaume Nolet Canada $51,050

Very little went right for Guillaume Nolet at the final table; he couldnt get out of second gear. Nolet was the first player out of the door, busting during the 30,000/60,000/7,500a level. He raised to 132,000 with ace-queen from early position, Bert Stevens three-bet to 384,000 on the button with suited ace-nine, and Nolet jammed for 986,837 in total. Stevens put in calling chips and won the hand courtesy of nine on the river.

Aleksei Barkov was the next player to bust, doing so shortly after Nolets demise. Barkov was down to only 4.5 big blinds and that short stack went into the middle from the button with king-seven of clubs. Damian Salas, from the small hand, called with ace-queen of clubs. Neither player improved their holding, but Salas didnt need to. Good game, Barkov.

Battle Against ElkY and Fedor Holz in GGPoker's New Flip & Gos

Former Champion Bows Out

Bert Stevens

Former Super MILLION$ champion Stevens crashed out in seventh. He lost almost all his chips when his king-queen ran into the pocket queens of dimiasg. Stevens was all-in from the big blind on the next hand with queen-ten and it lost to the ace-jack of Kelopuro.

Sixth-place and the first six-figure score of the evening went to three-time WSOP bracelet winner Adrian Mateos. Again, it was Kelopuro that did the damage. Kelopuro min-raised to 200,000 with ace-king in the late position and quickly called when Mateos three-bet all-in for 770,790 in total with the dominated ace-ten. A jack-high board failed to come to Mateos rescue and he busted out.

Russias Arsenii Malinovs impressive run ended in a fifth-place finish worth $144,393. Malinovs exit hand started with a limp in the small blind from Kelopuro with pocket sixes and check from Malinov with ace-five in the big blind. Kelopuro flopped a full house and fired out a 120,000 bet that Malinov raised to 360,000. Kelopuro, obviously, called. The turn brought the seven of spades into play, putting three spades out there and a potential straight draw. Both players checked its arrival.

The river was the five of spades and Kelopuro greeted it with a 683,100 bet. Malinov responded with an all-in shove worth 2,032,280 chips, but Kelopuro didnt believe his opponent held the eight of spades for a straight flush and called.

That hand left only four players in contention for the top prize and Kelopuro with a stack of 12.4 million with his nearest rival having a 3.9 million stack.

The final four became three with the elimination of dimiasg. They open-shoved for 8.5 big blinds on the button with ace-queen and ultimately lost to the ace-ten of Salas when Salas improved to a heart flush.

Two-Time Champion Falls By The Wayside

Darren Elias

Darren Elias is one of only three players to win this tournament twice but the hat-trick must wait because he fell in third-place. Elias pinned his hopes, and his last 13 big blinds, on pocket fours from the button. Salas called with ace-nine, turned an ace, and Elias was gone.

Salas went into heads-up against Kelopuro holding an 11,153,280 to 9,046,720 chip advantage but one-on-one is Kelopuros specialty.

Kelopuro won a huge pot when his ten-nine turned a straight at the same time Salas turned a set of eights. Salas last hand saw Kelopuro min-raise to 320,000 with king-jack and Salas call with king-eight. Both players flopped a king, but Kelopuro also flopped a jack to go with his. Salas checked, Kelopuro bet 160,000, Salas clicked it back to 320,000 and was called.

A ten on the turn saw Salas bet 275,600 and Kelopuro jam all-in. Salas called off the 1,520,460 chips he had behind only to discover he was drawing dead.

Win Your Way Into The Next $10,300 Super MILLION$ Tournament

Satellites for the next edition of the Super MILLION$ are running at GGPoker right now. Head there and see if you can follow in the footsteps of some of the greatest players in the world and become a GGPoker champion.

Satellites start from $100 and are available in the GGPoker lobby right now.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Both the FBI and the U.S. attorneys office have started a probe into Gov. Andrew Cuomos coronavirus task force handling of the pandemic in nursing homes, according to a report by the Times Union.

The investigation conducted by the U.S. Eastern District of New York is in its early stages and is focusing on the work of some of the senior members of the governors task force, according to the Times Union, which first reported the news.

Cuomos handling of the coronavirus in nursing home received intense criticism recently after his top aide, Melissa DeRosa, admitted that the state withheld nursing home data from the state Legislature because of a possible investigation from former President Trumps Justice Department (DOJ), the New York Post first reported.

I was explaining that when we received the DOJ inquiry, we needed to temporarily set aside the Legislatures request to deal with the federal request first. We informed the houses of this at the time, DeRosa later explained. We were comprehensive and transparent in our responses to the DOJ, and then had to immediately focus our resources on the second wave and vaccine rollout.

DeRosa continued: As I said on a call with legislators, we could not fulfill their request as quickly as anyone would have liked. But we are committed to being better partners going forward as we share the same goal of keeping New Yorkers as healthy as possible during the pandemic.

This week the governor addressed for the first time the report, saying his office made a mistake in creating the void.

When we didnt provide information, it allowed press, people, cynics, politicians to fill the void, Cuomo said during a press conference.

At the beginning of the month the state released updated coronavirus-related deaths at nursing homes and adult care facilities after being forced by a judge to release the data.

The data showed nearly 150 new deaths reported at nursing homes on Staten Island, the Advance/SILive.com previously reported.
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Archbishop Janusz Urbanczyk gives voice to the Holy See's concern that women's work in the family be recognized as advancing economic development, in a speech at the OSCE.

By Lisa Zengarini

While focusing on the promotion of the equality of women and men in economic participation, States should not fail to pay due attention to the family, the fundamental cell of society and building block of tomorrows economic life, the Holy See has told the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Speaking on Tuesday at the closing session of the first preparatory meeting of the 29th OSCE Economic and Environmental Forum (EEF), the Permanent Representative of the Holy See, Archbishop Janusz Urbanczyk, recalled that work and family are intrinsically related to the dignity and development of the human person, as well as to the improvement of society. 

He also stressed that in their interdependence the family ultimately has a higher value and that work should therefore be prudently orientated towards family."

Promoting economic development

In this context, the Vatican representative said it is also important to remember the huge role of womens unpaid work, which, although not officially recognized by the formal economy, contributes not only to every countrys economic development, but it also sustains the fundamental pillars that govern a society and a nation.

This," he noted, "is certainly the case for the noble and unpaid work of educating children and caring for the elderly, considering also how much the State would otherwise have to spend for these social services.

In his statement, Archbishop Urbanczyk reiterated once again the Holy Sees support for women's economic empowerment.

"Every person, woman or man, has the right to economic initiative, and should be able to make legitimate use of their talents.

Accordingly, he said, all OSCE States have an obligation to guarantee fair and equal access to the labour market for all their citizens, regardless of their sex, and this should only be oriented towards the necessary qualification.
Khao Sok National Park named 50th Asean Heritage Park

Touted as the worlds oldest tropical evergreen forest, Khao Sok National Park, located just north of Phuket, has been declared an Asean Heritage Park (AHP).

Environment

By The Phuket News

Thursday 18 February 2021, 03:04PM

The Asean Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) announced in a statement issued today (Feb 18) that the environment ministers of the Asean approved the nomination of Khao Sok National Park as the 50th Asean Heritage Park.

The designation was endorsed and recommended virtually by the 31st Meeting of the Asean Senior Officials on Environment (ASOEN) and the 22nd Meeting of the Governing Board of the ACB, hosted in Vietnam on Nov 24-25, 2020.

We are pleased to share the news that Khao Sok National Park has joined the list of designated Asean Heritage Parks. These remarkable parks are areas of high conservation value that best represent the regions rich natural resources and cultural identity, said ACB Executive Director Theresa Mundita Lim.

The ACB, as the secretariat of the Asean Heritage Parks (AHP) Programme, facilitates the rigorous evaluation process of the nominated protected areas to be declared as an AHP, the statement noted.

An evaluation team led by Robert Mather, technical assistance team leader of the Biodiversity Conservation and Management of Protected Areas in Asean (BCAMP) Project, together with Thai evaluators Dr Dachanee Emphandhu, and Dr Petch Manopawitr visited Khao Sok in October 2020. BCAMP is an ongoing project being implemented by the ACB with support from the European Union.

RARE BEAUTY

Khao Sok National Park is a 739-square kilometre terrestrial national park located in Surat Thani province, and includes the Cheow Lan Reservoir dammed by the Ratchaprapha Dam.

The park features diverse ecosystems including evergreen forest, swamp forest, and limestone forest. Wildlife species thriving in the park include the vulnerable species Mainland Serow (Capricornis sumatraensis) and the endangered Malay Tapir (Tapirus indicus), as well as the largest flower Rafflesia Kerrii Meijer and the endemic flowering plant species Khaosokia caricoides. Khao Sok is adjacent to the Ratchaprapha Dam that generates power supply to its surrounding communities, the ACB noted.

Beyond its beautiful landscape, Khao Sok National Park contains important high biodiversity ecosystems including moist evergreen forest, forest over limestone, freshwater swamp forest and cave ecosystems, the ACB explained late last year when announcing the proposal to have Khao Sok recognised as an Asean heritage Park.

The parks verdant forest is believed to shelter over 300 different species of birds that have coexisted in the jungle for over 160 million years, and includes at least seven critically endangered and 14 endangered species of wildlife, the ACB explained.

Khao Sok National Park receives rainfall from both the northeast and southwest monsoons, ensuring that the park is mostly covered by moist evergreen forest, together with smaller areas of forest over limestone, it added.

Lying at the centre of the larger Khao Sok-Klong Saeng forest complex, Khao Sok is home to important populations of several large mammals such as elephants and tapir. It is the only known location in Thailand for the Storms stork (Ciconia stormi), the rarest of all storks, thought to number less than 500 individuals remaining in the wild.

It is a major stronghold for helmeted hornbill (Rhinoplax vigil) which was recently re-classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List due to the impact of illegal wildlife trade. The park is also home to many endemic species of plants, including Impatiens sirindhorniae, a recently discovered type of touch-me-not, said the release.

With only 2% of the park area being used for tourism activities, Khao Sok National Park maintains a high level of naturalness, the ACB noted.

MAJOR ATTRACTION

Revenues generated from recreation activities in the isolated forest include long and short distance hiking, birdwatching, nature observation, and visiting caves, as well as kayaking or rafting while wildlife watching in the reservoir support the livelihoods of communities around the park, it added.

Utharat Suksumake, BCAMP National Project Manager in Thailand, noted that the park provides a variety of ecosystem services to the people who live next to the park. By including this as an Asean Heritage Park, the value and the awareness among locals, as well as administrative agencies will be heightened, and thereby, will support to ensure sustainable management.

Among the ecosystem services of Khao Sok National Park is its value of recreation. Using the individual travel cost method (ITCM), the National Parks Research and Innovation Development Centre in Surat Thani Province in 2016 estimated the annual recreation value of the park at more than B1 billion. In 2019, before the COVID-19 travel restrictions, the park earned around US$2.7 million (about B82.638mn) directly from the entrance fees, the ACB noted.

ACCOMPLISHMENT

Thailands Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation (DNP), the agency responsible for protected area conservation and management in the country welcomed the announcement, saying it gives the department a feeling of accomplishment.

On behalf of the Thai people, DNP is delighted and proud of Khao Sok National Park becoming the 50th Asean Heritage Park (AHP), said DNPDirector-General of Thanya Netithammakun.

Chonlathorn Chamnankid, Thailands AHP representative and Director of National Park Research and Innovation Centre, National Parks Office of DNP, said Khao Sok National Park, which is situated in the middle of Klong Saeng Khao Sok Forest Complex, has been a tourism destination for its ancient rainforest, limestone landscapes, and wildlife, (providing) income and enhancing quality of life for the locals.

Khao Sok National Park is the seventh AHP in Thailand. Other AHPs are Khao Yai National Park, Tarutao National Park, Ao Phang-Nga - Mu Ko Surin - Mu Ko Similan National Park, Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex, Mu Ko Ang Thong National Park, Hat Chao Mai National Park  Mu Ko Libong Non hunting Area.

The designation of Khao Sok comes at an opportune time as the Asean region gears towards the recovery of the tourism sector, which is one of the hardest hit by the pandemic. The Asean Heritage Parks, apart from showcasing the rich biodiversity in the region, can also be prime nature tourism destinations, Ms Lim said.

On Feb 4, following the 24th Meeting of Asean Tourism Ministers through a video conference hosted by the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Asean ministers issued a joint statement expressing commitment to the recovery of the tourism sector, highlighting three priority areas the Road to Recovery; Towards Asean as a Single Tourism Destination; and Realising Sustainable, Inclusive, and Resilient Tourism Development.
Australia has moved a step closer to introducing legislation that would force tech giants to pay for sharing news content, a move that could change how people worldwide experience the internet

Facebook's decision to pull news from its platform in Australia comes in response to legislation that would force tech giants to pay for sharing news content.

Here is a look at what the proposed rules are, why companies such as Facebook object, and what it might mean for users:

What is happening?

After two decades of light-touch regulation, tech companies such as Google and Facebook are coming under increased government scrutiny.

In Australia, regulators have zeroed in on the firms' online advertising dominance and its impact on struggling news media.

According to Australia's competition watchdog, for every $100 spent on online advertising, Google captures $53, Facebook takes $28 and the rest is shared among others.

To level the playing field, Australia wants Google and Facebook to pay for using expensive-to-produce news content in their searches and feeds.

After much back and forth, the House of Representatives has passed slightly amended versions of proposals and the Senate is poised to do the same.

After Facebook decided to pull the news plug Thursday, Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison signalled his willingness to press ahead with the legislation regardless.

Why is it getting worldwide attention?

Although the rules would only apply in Australia, regulators elsewhere are looking closely at whether the system works and can be applied in other countries.

Microsoftwhich could gain market share for its Bing search enginehas backed the proposals and explicitly called for other countries to follow Australia's lead, arguing the tech sector needs to step up to revive independent journalism that "goes to the heart of our democratic freedoms".

European legislators have cited the Australian proposals favourably as they draft their own EU-wide digital market legislation.

Facebook's move has also raised questions about countries' "digital sovereignty" after some emergency response Facebook pages used to alert the public to fires, floods and other disasters were inadvertently hit.

The company quickly moved to amend that mistake, but the incident left questions about whether social media platforms should be able to unilaterally remove services that are part of crisis response and may even be considered critical infrastructure.

Why are Google and Facebook opposed?

More broadly, Facebook and Google are pushing back against a slew of potential regulation worldwide that threatens to undermine business models that have allowed them to become some of the biggest and most profitable companies in the world.

Concretely, both companies say they do not have a problem paying for newsand, in fact, both already pay some news organisations for content.

Their main objection is being told how much they have to pay. That goes much further than European legislation, which encourages deals between social media and traditional media companies.

Under the Australian rules, an independent arbiter could decide if the deals reached are fair, to ensure the tech firms are not using their online advertising power to dictate terms.

Opponents have argued the new rules amount to a gift from Australia's conservative government to allies in Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, the country's biggest media group, to prop up his struggling newspapers.

What does it mean for me?

World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee has warned introducing the precedent of charging for links could open a Pandora's Box of monetary claims that would break the internet.

"Links are fundamental to the web," he told an Australian Senate inquiry. "If this precedent were followed elsewhere, it could make the web unworkable around the world."

Both Facebook and Google have argued that the proposals would spell the end of some of their most popular products.

But Facebook's move to block news in Australia would be difficult to repeat in larger markets such as the United States and Europe as a wholepotentially hitting the company's bottom line.

Google Australia had made similar threats to pull its search service in Australia, but pulled back from the brinkinstead making deals to pay several Australian media groups.

 2021 AFP
Ransomware gangs are running riot -- paying them off doesnt help

In the past five years, ransomware attacks have evolved from rare misfortunes into common and disruptive threats. Hijacking the IT systems of organizations and forcing them to pay a ransom in order to reclaim them, cybercriminals are freely extorting millions of pounds from companies  and theyre enjoying a remarkably low risk of arrest as they do it.

At the moment, there is no coordinated response to ransomware attacks, despite their ever-increasing prevalence and severity. Instead, states intelligence services respond to cybercriminals on an ad-hoc basis, while cyber-insurance firms recommend their clients simply pay off the criminal gangs that extort them.

Neither of these strategies is sustainable. Instead, organizations need to redouble their cybersecurity efforts to stymie the flow of cash from blackmailed businesses to cybercriminal gangs. Failure to act means that cybercriminals will continue investing their growing loot in ransomware technologies, keeping them one step ahead of our protective capabilities.

Daylight robbery

Ransomware is a lucrative form of cybercrime. It works by encrypting the data of the organizations that cybercriminals hack. The cybercriminals then offer organizations a choice: pay a ransom to receive a decryption code that will return your IT systems to you, or lose those systems forever. The latter choice means that firms would have to rebuild their IT systems (and sometimes databases) from scratch.

Unsurprisingly, many companies choose to quietly pay the ransom, opting never to report the breach to the authorities. This means successful prosecutions of ransomware gangs are exceedingly rare.

In 2019, the successful prosecution of a lone cybercriminal in Nigeria was such a novelty that the U.S. Department of Justice issued a celebratory press release. Meanwhile, in February 2021, French and Ukrainian prosecutors managed to arrest some affiliates Egregor, a gang that rents powerful ransomware out for other cybercriminals to use. It appears that those arrested merely rented the ransomware, rather than creating or distributing it. Cybersecurity experts have little faith in the criminal justice system to address ransomware crimes.

The frequency of those crimes is increasing rapidly. An EU report published in 2020 found that ransomware attacks increased by 365% in 2019 compared to the previous year. Since then, the situation is likely to have become much worse. The U.S. security company PurpleSec has suggested that overall business losses caused by ransomware attacks might have exceeded US$20 billion (14.3 billion) in 2020, up from US$11.5 billion (8.2 billion) in 2019.

Even hospitals have suffered attacks. Given the potential impact of a sustained IT shutdown on human lives, healthcare databases are in fact actively targeted by ransomware gangs, who know theyll pay their ransoms quickly and reliably. In 2017, the National Health Service fell afoul of such an attack, forcing staff to cancel thousands of hospital appointments, relocate vulnerable patients, and conduct their administrative duties with a pen and paper for several days.

Waging war?

With ransomware spiraling out of control, radical proposals are now on the table. Chris Krebs, the former head of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, recently advocated using the capabilities of U.S. Cyber Command and the intelligence services against ransomware gangs.

The U.S. government and Microsoft coordinated over such an attack in 2020, targeting the Trickbot botnet malware infrastructure  often used by Russian ransomware gangs  to prevent potential disruption of the U.S. election. Australia is the only country to have publicly admitted to using offensive cyber capabilities to destroy foreign cybercriminals infrastructure as part of a criminal investigation.

Sustained operations of this kind could have an effect on cybercriminals ability to operate, especially if directed against the gangs servers and the infrastructure they need to turn their bitcoin into cash. But unleashing offensive cyberwarfare tools against criminals also creates a worrying precedent.

Normalizing the use of the armed forces or intelligence units against individuals residing in other countries is a slippery slope, especially if the idea is adopted by some of the less scrupulous regimes on this planet. Such offensive cyber operations could disrupt another states carefully planned domestic intelligence operations. They could also negatively affect the innocent citizens of foreign states who unwittingly share web services with criminals.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  The Mars Perseverance Rover will attempt to make one of the most challenging landings on the Red Planet on Thursday, with a mission to seek signs of ancient life and collect rock and soil samples for the possible return to Earth.

And engineers at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in southern California, where the mission is managed, confirmed the spacecraft is healthy and on target to touch down in Jezero Crater at around 3:55 p.m. on Thursday. The rover launched last July from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

Perseverance is NASAs most ambitious Mars rover mission yet, focused scientifically on finding out whether there was ever any life on Mars in the past, said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C., in a NASA press release. To answer this question, the landing team will have its hands full getting us to Jezero Crater  the most challenging Martian terrain ever targeted for a landing.

During the landing, the rover will plunge through the thin Martian atmosphere at more than 12,000 miles per hour. A parachute and powered descent will slow the rover down to about two miles per hour. During whats known as the sky crane maneuver, the descent stage will lower the rover on three cables to land softly on six wheels at Jezero Crater, according to NASA.

Jezero is a basin where scientists believe an ancient river flowed into a lake and deposited sediments in a fan shape known as a delta. Scientists also think the environment here is likely to have preserved any signs of life  but it also has steep cliffs, sand dunes, and boulder fields.

All landings on Mars are difficult  only about 50% of all previous landing attempts have succeeded.

But the Jezero Crater is one of the most challenging terrains on Mars ever targeted. It is so intense that engineers have referred to the time it takes to land on Mars as the seven minutes of terror, according to NASA. The landing sequence is complex  and targeting a location like the Jezero Crater on Mars is only possible because of new landing technologies.

The live landing broadcast is expected to begin at 2:15 p.m. on Thursday.

The spacecrafts descent stage, using the sky crane maneuver, will lower the rover down to the surface on nylon tethers. It is expected to touch down on the surface of Mars at a human walking speed of 1.7 miles per hour around 3:55 p.m.

You can watch the broadcast and conference on NASA TV, which can be streamed through a variety of platforms -- including televisions, computers and mobile devices. You can watch on NASA Live and NASAs YouTube channel, as well as other social media channels.

A post-landing news conference is expected no later than 5:30 p.m.

Once on the surface, one of the rovers first activities will be to take pictures of its new home and send them back to Earth. Over the following days, engineers will also check on the rovers health and deploy the remote sensing mast so it can take more pictures.

It will take over a month to thoroughly inspect Perseverance and load new flight software to prepare for its search for ancient life on Mars.

Over the last two decades, missions flown by NASAs Mars Exploration Program have shown that Mars was once different from the cold, dry planet it is today. Evidence discovered by landed and orbital missions point to wet conditions billions of years ago, according to NASA, which lasted long enough to potentially support the development of microbial life.

Now the Mars Perseverance Rover is designed to better understand the geology of Mars and seek signs of ancient life, collecting and storing a set of rock and soil samples that could be returned to Earth in the future. It will also test new technology to benefit future robotic and human exploration of Mars, according to NASA.

The mission will last at least one Mars year, or two Earth years.

Perseverance has a new set of science instruments and the ability to self-drive on the Martian surface. It will also carry a separate technology experiment to the surface of Mars -- a helicopter named Ingenuity, the first aircraft to fly in a controlled way on another planet.

Once the Mars rover is on the planets surface, it will deploy the helicopter and place it on the ground. Controllers on Earth will command the helicopter to take its first autonomous flight. NASA will conduct a full 30-day flight test campaign that includes five flights of incrementally farther flight distances and longer durations over a period of time.

The rover is part of a larger exploration program that includes missions to the moon to prepare for human missions to Mars. Charged with returning astronauts to the moon by 2024, NASA will establish a sustained human presence on and around the moon by 2028 through NASAs Artemis program.

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Eurasia Mining PLC- palladium, platinum, rhodium, iridium and gold producing company - Announces death of Gary Fitzgerald, a non-executive director, who was the company's longest sitting board member after being appointed June 1999. His admission came just three years after Eurasia Mining was admitted to trading.

Chair Christian Schaffalitzky: "When I joined the company, Gary made me welcome not just as a colleague, but as a friend. We cannot highlight strongly enough his contribution at the early stage of Eurasia's development and recently with our ESG focus, that the board will strongly commit to in Gary's remembrance."

Current stock price: 25.25 pence

Year-to-date change: down 25%

By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Traditionally a Congress bastion, the former French colony has suddenly become the cynosure of the BJPs eyes since the party in power at the Centre is piqued over its inability to make inroads into South India. (Photo: Twitter @CMPuducherry)

Chennai: The proposed visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Puducherry on February 25, the series of defections from the Congress and the sudden sacking of former lieutenant-governor Kiran Bedi are all clear signals that the BJP is desperately planning to capture power in the tiny Union territory.

Traditionally a Congress bastion, the former French colony has suddenly become the cynosure of the BJPs eyes since the party in power at the Centre is piqued over its inability to make inroads into South India.

The first step that the BJP took in Puducherry towards achieving its plan to storm into the political scene, where it had no presence at all otherwise -- its local leader V. Saminathan polled just 1,509 votes in Lawspet constituency -- was to appoint Kiran Bedi.

On her part, Bedi began operations by first taking a confrontationist course against the Congress government, headed by V. Narayanasamy, and then nominating three MLAs, including Saminathan, to the UTs Assembly in 2017.

Though that backdoor entry of three MLAs into the House created a storm in Puducherry, it was finally approved by the Supreme Court and the three nominees continue to hold office. The next thing that Ms Bedi did was to start poaching from the Congress.

A minister in the V. Narayansamy Cabinet, A. Namassivayam, and his acolyte Theepainthan switched loyalties to the BJP after resigning their seats as MLAs in January, which was followed by two other MLAs resigning on Tuesday, Malladi Krishna Rao from Yanam (an enclave in Andhra Pradesh), and A. Johnkumar.

Having created such a crisis for the Congress government, the BJP, along with its allies AIADMK and NR Congress, have started putting pressure on Tamilisai Soundararajan, the Telangana governor who has been given additional charge of Puducherry, even before she has taken charge as acting lieutenant-governor, to oust the government that has just a few months more in office.

Besides poaching the Congress MLAs, the BJP has also used its allies, the NR Congress and AIADMK, in its mission to storm the Congress citadel. The DMK, ostensibly an ally of the Congress, also has ideas of capturing the Union territory on its own for various reasons.

But it is the BJP that has seemingly bigger plans. Even the sudden removal of Bedi appears to have been done to improve the image of the party among the people since the lieutenant-governor had become unpopular among several sections of people.

The chief minister, Narayansamy, had been campaigning against Bedi -- he and his party colleagues had even sat on a fast in front of Raj Nivas -- accusing her of being a stumbling block in the implementation of welfare schemes.

The BJP may have plans to bring in a new lieutenant-governor who would be able to win over the hearts of the people and also use its allies for the time being to capture power. It may project Namassivayam, who is popular locally, as its chief ministerial candidate.

Namassivayam, in any case, has a track record of party hopping. He started with the DMK, then went to MDMK, then to the TMC started by P. Kannan and thus landed in the Congress as the TMC merged with it.

As a leader with chief ministerial aspirations, Namassivayam was hopeful of realising his dream in 2016, but Narayanasamy came out of the blue and took away his chances. The BJP might have assured him that it can help him to become the chief minister.

Namassivayam and Theepainthan, incidentally, joined the BJP by travelling all the way to New Delhi and meeting top saffron leaders like Amit Shah and J.P. Nadda.
NASHVILLE  As part of America Saves Week 2021, (Monday, February 22  Friday, February 26, 2021), the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurances (TDCI) Securities Division is encouraging Tennesseans to focus on the importance of emergency savings and saving automatically in an effort to better prepare Americans for the unexpected, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since 2007, America Saves Week has been an annual campaign as well as a call to action for Americans to commit to saving. The America Saves Pledge creates a framework for individuals to make a financial plan and set goals to achieve better financial stability. Tennessee consumers should take advantage of this time to consider the importance of smart, long-term saving, financial planning and investing.

TDCIs Securities Division is supporting America Saves Week in 2021 by joining the ranks of more than 1,000 other participating organizations in order to help raise awareness of the importance of saving money, reducing debt and building wealth.

With so many Americans still reeling from the financial crisis caused by COVID 19, we thought it was important for all Tennesseans to collectively take a look at our finances, recognize where we are currently, where we want to be, and start making a plan to get there even if its just a little bit at a time, said TDCI Assistant Commissioner for Securities Elizabeth Bowling.

By participating in America Saves Week, consumers will be encouraged to navigate through different areas of their finances to help them better position themselves for financial success. By the end of the week, both short and long-term savings goals will be addressed as well as the best strategies for saving successfully.

Each day of America Saves Week has a theme that will be highlighted on TDCIs social media channels. The daily themes are:

Monday, February 22, 2021 | Save Automatically

Tuesday, February 23, 2021 | Save for the Unexpected

Wednesday, February 24, 2021 | Save to Retire

Thursday, February 25, 2021 | Save by Reducing Debt

Friday, February 26, 2021 | Save as a Family

To help raise awareness about America Saves Week, TDCI Director of Investor Education Rachel Carden has a new blog post and videos highlighting the weeks messages can be found here.

For more information, to access tool kits for your organization or to take the America Saves Pledge, visit americasavesweek.org.

For more information on investing, visit TDCIs Securities Division at tn.gov/securities.

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Sen. Lindsey Graham sees a time when Republicans could impeach Vice President Kamala Harris because of her call for donations so that a nonprofit could bail out activists arrested at Black Lives Matter protests in Minneapolis.

But the factual basis for Grahams claim is somewhat flawed.

If you use this model, I dont know how Kamala Harris doesnt get impeached if the Republicans take over the House, because she actually bailed out rioters, and one of the rioters went back to the streets and broke somebodys head open, Graham told Fox News Sunday this week.

The South Carolina Republican is close to former President Donald Trump, who had been acquitted by the Senate the previous day of charges that he incited the January 6 Capitol riot.

Harris, a rising Democratic star, has been a favorite target of Trump supporters for months.

After the May 25 death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody, protests erupted all over the country. Harris was active in efforts to reform police practices, and participated in a peaceful Washington, D.C. protest May 30.

Two days later she tweeted If youre able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota.

The Minnesota Freedom Fund, established in 2016, has as its mission that it pays criminal bail and immigration bonds for those who cannot otherwise afford to as we seek to end discriminatory, coercive, and oppressive jailing.

Its premise centers on the common criticism of money bail, that wealthier defendants can easily post bail and await prosecution at home whereas defendants with less financial means must remain in confinement before trial.

Until last year, it had collected relatively small amounts of money. Its 2018 federal tax form shows it got $110,000 in contributions that year.

In 2020, it became enormously popular after Floyds death. Currently, the fund says on its web site that it has received more than $30 million in donations.

Story continues

Harris and the riots

Harris did not personally bail out rioters or have any other interaction with the fund, according to its Greg Lewin, its interim executive director.

At the American Bail Coalition, Executive Director Jeff Clayton noted that most of those involved in the rioting after Floyds death were bailed out before donations began piling up at the fund.

He noted that it has been criticized in recent months because They were and have been since (the riots) bailing out violent defendants. But that has nothing to do with insurrection.

The fund appears to have struggled to manage what overnight became a multi-million dollar operation.

They havent really dont have a policy as far as I know. Theres no criteria they use to distinguish between defendants. They try to either bail people out at random or find people who are innocent, Clayton said.

Lewin explained how its been difficult to go from being an organization with a staff of one and volunteers to become a much bigger entity.

But he noted that trying to make a bail fund a villain is ignoring the fundamental injustice of a system that frees one person and jails another due to ability to pay.

The case of Lionel Timms

One of the cases cited by Grahams office involved that of Lionel Timms, a Minneapolis man charged in July with assault after attacking a passenger on a bus.

The Minnesota Freedom Fund paid his bail. Eleven days after his release, Timms allegedly punched and kicked a bar manager, who suffered a traumatic brain injury, a fractured skull and a brain bleed.

The two incidents had nothing to do with the rioting, Lewin said.

We paid his bail after working to first ensure that Mr. Timms would be provided with housing and other necessary support as Mr. Timms requested. Delays in the governments processing of his release prevented him from receiving that assistance, setting the stage for the subsequent tragedy, said Lewin.

Released and charged again

The fund also paid bail twice for the release of Thomas Moseley. He was at an October protest on the skyway level of the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis where he was part of a group protesting a court appearance by the four police officers charged in Floyds death, according to a statement from the county attorneys office and criminal complaints.

Police knew there was a pickup order for Moseley for possible charges in the Aug. 15 damage to the Fifth Precinct building, the statement said, and he was charged with felony criminal damage to property and gun possession.

The freedom fund paid his $5,000 bail in those cases.

On New Years Eve, Moseley and others were charged with second-degree riot for a protest that night in downtown Minneapolis. This time, the freedom fund paid his $60,000 bail.

On January 27, he was re-arrested for new evidence on his original firearm charges.

Jordan Kushner, Moseleys attorney, said his client is not accused of any violence against anyone..hes not accused of any kind of assault.

Kushner said theres no way hes going to get convicted of rioting. Theres no evidence he did anything that he was involved in a riot.

In another case cited by Grahams office, the fund paid $75,000 last year to secure the release of Jaleel Stallings, who was charged with two counts of attempted second-degree murder for shooting at police officers during Mays riots and protests, according to a statement by the Hennepin County (Minneapolis) County Attorney.

Stallings disputes the charges and is awaiting a jury trial.
New GPS Active L1 / L2 antenna for military and civilian applications Part # 1065-042 covers both the L1 and L2 bands, supporting military, commercial, and industrial applications. For military users, this antenna supports the GPS P/Y code with +/- 20 MHz bandwidth allowing for increased accuracy, jam resistance, and encryption for authorized military applications

Southwest Antennas, an industry leader in rugged RF and Microwave antennas and accessory products is proud to introduce an all-new, high-performance GPS & GLONASS Active L1/L2 patch antenna for high-accuracy location service, timing, and navigation applications.

Southwest Antennas part # 1065-042 covers both the L1 and L2 bands, supporting military, commercial, and industrial applications. For military users, this antenna supports the GPS P/Y code with +/- 20 MHz bandwidth allowing for increased accuracy, jam resistance, and encryption for authorized military applications.

The antennas built-in LNA and filters give it a total system active gain of +28 dB and out-of-band rejection of >50 dB (+50 MHz / -35 MHz of L1, +35 MHz / -45 MHz of L2), allowing the antenna to operate in contested and congested RF environments.

Our goal is to empower radio operators who require high-accuracy GNSS solutions with more choices for deployment and mounting said Benjamin Culver, president and co-owner of Southwest Antennas. Adding onto our existing line of GPS antennas and gooseneck mounting options, users now have more freedom of choice in antenna placement to help overcome reception issues in challenging environments.

The low-profile radome allows the antenna to be easily tucked into pockets or MOLLE pouches and mounted on body armor, vests, rucksacks, or other tactical gear. The custom black chrome SMA(f) RF connector ensures the antenna is waterproof while allowing users to fully customize antenna placement on their gear and select their own cable type and length to suit their preference for mounting location away from their receiver.

For additional flexibility in mounting locations part # 1065-042 features an innovative magnetic mount integrated flush into the antennas radome, allowing it to be secured and removed quickly from any ferromagnetic surface. This extends the antennas operational capabilities through the ability to remotely locate the antenna away from the attached radio system to enhance satellite acquisition speed and signal strength when operating in environments with poor sky views.

Product applications include:



SAASM GPS, GLONASS, GNSS receivers, and other precision navigation receivers

Manpack & handheld radios, dismounted soldier-level communications

Small form factor radios

Low profile vehicle mounts & unmanned ground vehicles

Unattended / Intelligent Munitions Systems

Aviators, combat search & rescue radios

I.E.D. recognition & destruction jamming systems

Law enforcement and first responders

Precision surveying receivers

Asset tracking

Precision timing applications

LBS & M2M applications

Oil & gas industries

About Southwest Antennas:

Southwest Antennas specializes in the design and manufacture of rugged, high-performance RF and Microwave antennas, accessory products, and customized antenna solutions built for todays demanding communication environments. Founded in 2005 and headquartered in San Diego, California, Southwest Antennas offers over 2,000 standard products for broadcast video, military / defense, law enforcement, homeland security, surveillance, aerospace, and oil and gas markets.

For more about Southwest Antennas, visit their website at http://www.southwestantennas.com.


Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 17:38:50|Editor: huaxia

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MOGADISHU, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Somali military said it had killed 20 al-Shabab fighters in an operation in the southern region of Lower Shabelle on Wednesday, a military officer confirmed on Thursday.

Odawa Yusuf Rage, commander of Somali National Army (SNA) said the operation was conducted along the road linking Janale and Qoryoley towns and the army inflicted casualties on the militants.

"The militants attempted to resist the forces, but we overpowered them, killing 20 of them," Rage said.

He added that the army will intensify the operations against other al-Shabab militants in the region.

Government forces have intensified operations against al-Shabab in the southern regions, but the militants are still in control of the rural areas of those regions, conducting ambushes and planting landmines. Enditem
Multimodel database allows HelloDoc eHealth solution to have optimal performance

MILAN, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Global database technology provider FairCom announced today a new agreement with eHealth software market leader Imagine Editions, which is a member of CompuGroup Medical (CGM). The new deal ushers in a significant update of Imagine Editions popular eHealth solution HelloDoc through the power of FairCom DB.

Among the reasons that Imagine Editions selected FairCom DB is that it allows HelloDoc developers to fine tune the embedded database in order to get optimal performance. In addition to the benefits of speed, reliability and developer control, a database administrator is not required to maintain operations with FairCom DB, which is a benefit to HelloDoc customers by lowering the total cost of ownership. HelloDoc is used by more than 20,000 general practitioners and specialists working in private practices, clinics and multidisciplinary health centers. The eHealth solution is also being heavily utilized during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

"We are in a complex and vital industry. Our objective is to create solutions to meet all the demands placed on healthcare operations in the most efficient, secure and optimal fashion. That is everything from organizational, medical, economical, legal, contractual and regulatory issues," said Harry Malka, Directeur General of HelloDoc. "To achieve that we have to rely on a robust, mature and fast transactional database engine. For us, FairCom DB was the clear way to go."

HelloDoc users will appreciate in particular the power of SQL that FairCom DB delivers. "This latest version of HelloDoc is a major step forward in the evolution of the medical software package. The power of SQL underlying HelloDoc, thanks to FairCom DB, means the data in the system can now be transformed into the information users need, fast. Less time searching and waiting for information results in efficiency gains and ultimately savings for our customers, not to mention healthier, happier patients," Malka said.

With this agreement, FairCom has strengthened its position as a provider of reliable database technology for the healthcare industry. FairCom technology is embedded in real-time perimetry systems, medical and dental office systems, and laboratory information systems.

"This new zenith we reach together in our relationship is a testament to the reliability of FairCom DB's performance and its ease of use, as well as the efforts of both companies' engineering teams. Our professional services team was able to work directly onsite with the HelloDoc team to ensure they knew how to tackle every criterion in their roadmap and meet target deadlines with success. No other database company has engineering and support teams who work as intimately and hand-in-hand with developers like we do," said Alysha Brown, FairCom's chief officer of operations. "We also take pride in the fact FairCom technology has an important role in HelloDoc, a system that is a key player in the French eHealth market."

Prior to 10 Nov. 2020, FairCom DB was known as c-treeACE. Also, on that date, the most recent version of the FairCom DB multimodel database (V12) was released. A sampling of what is new in FairCom DB V12 includes three-times faster performance, Replication Manager for point-and-click management of replicated data, enhanced security management, automatic database tuning, extensive system diagnostics and more than 100 new API functions.

In addition to Imagine Editions, FairCom has contracts with three other entities under the CGM umbrella.

Detailed information about FairCom DB V12 is available at www.faircom.com/products/faircom-db. Detailed information about HelloDoc can be accessed at www.cgm.com/fr.

About FairCom

FairCom database technology is among the fastest and most trusted on the market today. Since the company's founding in 1979, FairCom products have been powering mission critical systems for global entities in a broad spectrum of industries, ranging from small and medium-sized businesses to high-profile enterprise level companies and government agencies. Currently, more than 40 percent of the Fortune 100 use FairCom for its database needs. FairCom's product line is comprised of solutions for high-speed transactions, IIoT environments and legacy system modernization and migration. The product line includes FairCom DB, FairCom EDGE for IoT and Industry 4.0 environments and c-treeRTG data management solution for COBOL. Additional information about FairCom is available at FairCom.com.

About CGM

CompuGroup Medical is one of the leading eHealth companies in the world. With a revenue base of EUR 746 million in 2019, its software products are designed to support all medical and organizational activities in doctors' offices, pharmacies, laboratories and hospitals. Its information services for all parties involved in the healthcare system and its web-based personal health records contribute towards safer and more efficient healthcare. CompuGroup Medical's services are based on a unique customer base of more than 1.5 million users, including doctors, dentists, pharmacists and other health professionals in inpatient and outpatient facilities. With locations in 18 countries and products in 56 countries worldwide, CompuGroup Medical is the eHealth company with one of the highest coverages among eHealth service providers. Approximately 6,100 highly qualified employees support customers with innovative solutions for the steadily growing demands of the healthcare system.

Media Contact

Brad Thomas

FairCom

1.573.445.6833

brad.thomas@faircom.com

Follow FairCom

Twitter: @FairCom_Corp FairComDB FairComEDGE ctreeRTG

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/faircom-corporation

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Senator Ted Cruz was a leading Republican voice even before he ran for president in 2016 (Alex Brandon/AP)

Texas Senator Ted Cruz has acknowledged that he travelled to Mexico for a family holiday this week, leaving his home state as thousands struggled without power following a powerful winter storm.

The high-profile Republican, a potential White House candidate in 2024, said in a statement that he had accompanied his family after his daughters asked to go on a trip with friends, given that school was cancelled for the week.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Mr Cruz said.

Expand Close Ted Cruzs office has declined to release any details about the family holiday (Alex Brandon/AP) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Ted Cruzs office has declined to release any details about the family holiday (Alex Brandon/AP)

My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas, Mr Cruz said.

We want our power back, our water on, and our homes warm.

The revelation drew immediate criticism from Democrats and Republicans in Texas and beyond as Mr Cruz, a key ally of former president Donald Trump, contemplates the possibility of a second presidential run.

The two-term senators current term expires in early 2025.

Thats something that he has to answer to his constituents about, state Republican Party chairman Allen West said when asked whether Mr Cruzs travel was appropriate while Texans are without power and water.

Im here trying to take care of my family and look after my friends and others that are still without power, Mr West said. Thats my focus.

Expand Close People wait in freezing rain to fill their gas cylinders in Houston, Texas, following widespread power cuts (AP Photo/David J Phillip) / Facebook

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Whatsapp People wait in freezing rain to fill their gas cylinders in Houston, Texas, following widespread power cuts (AP Photo/David J Phillip)

Hundreds of thousands of people in Texas woke up on Thursday to a fourth day without power, and a water crisis was unfolding after winter storms wreaked havoc on the states power grid and utilities.

Texas officials ordered seven million people  one-quarter of the population of the nations second-largest state  to boil tap water before drinking it, after days of record low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and froze pipes.

In Austin, some hospitals faced a loss in water pressure and in some cases, heat.

Mr Cruzs office declined to answer specific questions about the family holiday, but his staff reached out to the Houston Police Department on Wednesday afternoon to say the senator would be arriving at the airport, according to department spokeswoman Jodi Silva.

She said officers monitored his movements while Mr Cruz was at the airport.

Ms Silva could not say whether such requests are typical for Mr Cruzs travel or whether his staff has made a similar request for his return flight.

US Capitol Police officials and the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms have encouraged lawmakers and their staff to be conscious of potential threats and to consider advising law enforcement about their travel at airports and other transportation hubs.
TechnipFMC, a leader in project management and construction sector, said it has secured an integrated engineering, procurement, construction and installation (iEPCI) contract (in the range of $75 to $250 million) from NIpetco and PetroAmriya for a subsea tieback located offshore Egypt on the North El Amriya and North Idku concession.

NIpetco and PetroAmriya are two joint ventures between Energean and Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (Egas) and Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation (EGPC).

As per the deal, TechnipFMC will design, manufacture, deliver and install subsea equipment including the subsea production system, subsea trees, production manifolds, umbilicals, flexible pipelines, jumpers and associated subsea and topside controls.

This is the second project that TechnipFMC will execute for Energean using its integrated

subsea model, thereby reducing the overall cost, project interfaces and associated delivery risks, said the company in a statement.

TechnipFMC is currently partnering with Energean to develop the Karish gas field development in the Mediterranean Sea offshore Israel, it added.

Jonathan Landes, President Subsea at TechnipFMC, said: "We are proud and honoured to be selected for this important development offshore Egypt. This project award showcases our position as the market and technology leader for integrated projects globally and demonstrates the benefits of our iEPCI solution for subsea developments."

"We will continue our long-term, collaborative relationship with Energean and are pleased to work again with EGPC and Egas for the development of gas production in Egypt," he added.-TradeArabia News Service

The farmers' organisations have called for a four-hour nationwide ' rail roko ' programme on Thursday as they continue their protests against the government's three newly-enacted farm laws.

The Delhi Police has tightened security in several parts of the national capital, especially near railway tracks, in view of the "rail roko" (rail blockade).

According to a senior police officer, additional staff has been deployed at several points near railway tracks and patrolling has also been increased.

Meanwhile, the railways have also stepped up security to prevent any untoward incident. Twenty additional companies of the RPSF have been deployed across the country, with focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, in the wake of the "rail roko" programme scheduled from 12-4 pm today.

Director-General, Railway Protection Force, Arun Kumar has said, "I appeal to everyone to maintain peace. We will be liaisoning with district administrations and will have a control room in place."

"We will gather intelligence. States such as Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, and some other areas will be our focus. We have deployed 20 companies of the Railway Protection Special Force (RPSF) in these areas," he said, adding, "We want to persuade them to not cause inconvenience for passengers. We have a four-hour window and we want it (rail roko) to get over peacefully."

Samyukta Kisan Morcha appeals for peaceful protest

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions that is spearheading the protest, had announced the rail blockade to press for its demand to repeal the legislation.

Jagtar Singh Bajwa, spokesperson of the Kisan Andolan Committee, Ghazipur border said they will carry out a peaceful protest during the 'Rail Roko' program on February 18 from 12 noon to 4 pm.

We will offer refreshments to the passengers to avoid inconvenience, he said.

The SKM has called for a peaceful protest, expecting to get support for the program from across the country.

"Appeal to everyone for a peaceful protest in nationwide 'Rail Roko' program on February 18 from 12 noon to 4 pm," it said.

Farmers have been protesting at the different borders of the national capital since November last year, against the three newly enacted farm laws - Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

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A group of businesses in a County Derry town have joined together to provide digital devices for the area's eight schools.

The Draperstown Digital Inclusion Project was established after a local principal raised concerns that some children's education was suffering without access to technology for online lessons.

Led by the Workspace Group, 18 businesses in the area launched a fundraising drive to purchase digital devices for the area's eight local schools.

Chairperson of the Workspace Group, Mr Laurence O'Kane, said the initiative will have a positive effect on the education of the area's children.

 Its clear that digital exclusion is real issue for many children, not just those who attend schools in our community, he said.

Children have been widely affected by school closures and the lockdowns and with the support of many local businesses this project has allowed us to try to limit the amount of digital exclusion in our community and prevent many children from falling behind their peers.

Over 27,000 was raised through the initiative and over 140 families have benefited from the digital devices provided to schools.

Representatives from all the businesses who contributed to the Draperstown Digital Inclusion Fund 2021.

Workspace Group Chief Executive, Mrs Georgina Grieve, praised the businesses for their support.

We were delighted with the response from all the local businesses, she said.

They were keen to contribute and work in collaboration with each other to provide vital support for children and help break down the digital barriers so that they can continue their education remotely.

Principal of St Eoghan's Primary School, Mr Pascal Diamond, described the fundraising initiative as 'heart-warming'.

I am very proud of the amazing response from our local business community to my request for digital devices, he said.

The families in St Eoghans P.S. that benefited from these devices have asked me to extend their gratitude to each of the businesses involved.

These are very challenging times for everyone in society, and it is heart-warming to see the response from local businesses to our families needing support.

The 18 local businesses involved in the project include: ASM Chartered Accountants, Ballinascreen Credit Union, Bloc Blinds, Cloane Construction, Corramore, Draperstown Surgery, EDS, Four Dee ltd, H&A Mechanical, Heron Brothers, MJ McBrides Construction Ltd, NMK Steel Ltd, OKane Holdings, OKanes Pharmacy, Sperrin Galvanisers Ltd, Sperrin Metal, Yard Master and the Workspace Group.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is calling for a new democratic constitution to replace the existing document that was drawn up by the countrys generals in the wake of their last hard coup in 1980. I believe that our new constitution will reflect the popular will and crown the objectives we have set for the 100th anniversary of our republic, Erdogan said in a Feb. 10 speech.

He has tasked his own party to get to work and invited opposition parties to join in the effort to come up with a text by 2023, the centenary of the modern republic founded by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. 2023 is also when the next presidential and parliamentary elections are due to be held. With his popularity sagging, Erdogan faces the prospect of defeat for the first time since his Justice and Development Party (AKP) shot to power in 2002.

And as the June 2019 rerun of the municipal elections in Istanbul showed, even with the system so decisively rigged in Erdogans favor, defeat can become unavertable when the opposition unites against him. As such, Erdogans talk of amending the constitution  it's already been changed 19 times  is seen as straight out of Russian President Vladimir Putins playbook. The purpose is to rewrite the rules yet again in his own favor. Its also to divert attention from swelling discontent over high prices, mounting poverty and unemployment, and endemic corruption. Either way, it rings hollow. Repression keeps growing. Tens of thousands of people have been locked up on specious terror charges. Torture under detention is back with a vengeance. In 2020, Freedom House ranked Turkey as not free for the fifth year running.

Erdogans current dilemma is partly of his own making. The executive presidential system introduced in the latest constitutional overhaul in 2017 was supposed to make him omnipotent. Technically speaking, it has him hanging by a thread. In order to be reelected in the first round of voting, the president needs to win 50%+1 of the popular vote. Recent opinion polls consistently show Erdogan scoring below this. His Peoples Alliance pact with Devlet Bahceli, leader of the far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), would be unable to garner a governing majority in the 600-member Turkish parliament according to a January survey by Metropoll, an Ankara-based polling organization.

Any constitutional fixes to address this glitch require a two-thirds majority. Erdogan and Bahceli together command 337 votes in parliament. So how does Erdogan wiggle his way out of this seeming impasse while preserving a veneer of legitimacy? Just how far will he go in order to remain in power?

These are uncharted waters for modern Turkey. Opinion remains divided. Many insist that Erdogans days are numbered and he will lose power in the next election. Others warn that his weakening hand is nothing to cheer about. If anything, it will propel him to further ruthlessness. Erdogan, 66, will die in office, they contend.

Nicholas Danforth, a historian and senior research fellow at the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy who closely follows Turkey, said, Erdogan has broken the mold of Turkish history. The country has had plenty of authoritarian leaders, but he is the first to come to power democratically. As a result, it's particularly hard to say what this history might mean for the future.

Danforth continued, There are a lot of contradictory clues. On the positive side, Turkeys autocrats have a comparatively good record of stepping down. In 1950, to the surprise of everyone in Turkey and abroad, [the then president], Ismet Inonu, lost an election and gave up power after a decade as a dictator. Among the many dictators who claimed they were guiding their countries toward democracy, apparently, he was one of the few who really meant it."

The Turkish military has also been, again by comparative standards, quick to return to civilian rule after the countrys coups. This doesnt mean it completely ceded power, of course, but it was eager to preserve the mechanics of competitive elections. The downside of this, though, is that these coups have led Erdogan and his supporters to believe that the only real threats to Turkish democracy come from violent military interventions, Danforth observed.

The basic mechanics of free and fair elections, starting with an independent media and judiciary, have long been compromised. But Erdogan, a classic populist authoritarian, would clearly like to preserve the aura of competition.

I dont think Erdogan has any taste for going full authoritarian less because of Western ties than because the veneer of democracy is too important for his own legitimacy with his base, said Howard Eissenstat, associate professor of Middle East history at St. Lawrence University. Erdogan aims to put his thumbs on the scale at the margins of elections in order to win. When you own the judiciary and the election officials, elections are much easier.

Erdogans current game plan is to splinter the three-way alliance between the main opposition Republican Peoples Party (CHP), the right-wing conservative IYI (Good Party) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party (HDP), which banded together in the 2019 municipal elections.

Erdogan is leading a campaign to criminalize  and isolate  the HDP over its supposed cooperation with outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants. Hundreds of its leaders including elected officials have been locked up. The extent of the clampdown makes it unlikely the HDP would ever consider dealing with Erdogan should he turn to the Kurds.

Hes tried to woo away IYI leader Meral Aksener, whose poll numbers are rising thanks in part to defections from the MHP and the AKP. Erdogan tested the waters to see whether Aksener would play ball. She said no, noted Berk Esen, assistant professor of international relations at Istanbuls Sabanci University.

The canny Aksener would rather be the oppositions compromise presidential candidate or prime minister in a bolstered parliamentary system, which the opposition is pledging to restore, than bury her career by partnering with Erdogan. Kurdish support is key to all such plans. Any flirting with Erdogan is likely no more than a tactic to strengthen her own hand.

Outside observers tend to view the opposition as an inert monolith whereas there is change happening within the opposition. There is an incredible resistance against the regime, said Seren Selvi Korkmaz, lecturer at Stockholm Universitys Institute for Turkish studies and co-founder of Istanpol Institute, a think tank in Istanbul. CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu long accused of mousy timorousness carried the resistance to a whole new level in a Feb. 17 speech before parliament. He squarely blamed Erdogan for the deaths of 13 Turkish citizens who were being held by the PKK in what appears to have been a botched operation by the Turkish military to rescue them. You rude rotter, Erdogan riposted.

Caught between a sputtering economy, an increasingly cohesive opposition, and hardening American and European leaders, Erdogan is looking for a way out. Cash injections from Qatar or currency swap deals with China in exchange for Turkish silence over the plight of the Uighurs wont be enough to sustain a country of 85 million. We are witnessing a slow death by a thousand cuts for the Erdogan regime, Esen said.

Shutting down the HDP, a measure Bahceli has been pushing for and which is now reportedly on the table, wont necessarily help tip the parliamentary balance in favor of constitutional tinkering by Erdogan. According to Murat Sevinc, professor of constitutional law, even after the party is banned, its 56 parliament members will retain their seats. And even if the Peoples Alliance were to recruit enough opposition lawmakers to secure a two-thirds majority, they would still need to take the amendments to a popular referendum. I dont believe they have much of a chance if they go down this road, Sevinc said.

Erdogan could instead resort to gerrymandering. He could also lower the minimum 10% threshold for a party to win seats in parliament in order to salvage his MHP partners, whose ratings have dipped to 7%. Changes to the electoral law do not require a two-thirds majority, Sevinc confirmed. But there is a catch. The changes do not come into effect until a year after they are approved. This makes snap elections a less attractive option.

The pessimist camp argues that none of this really matters. The law no longer matters, the electoral system no longer matters. Hell do whatever he wants. He can rule through decree, said Timur Kuran, professor of economics and political science at Duke University. The trajectory is no different than that of other dictators like [former Egyptian President] Hosni Mubarak, Kuran added. There are two scenarios. He either clings to power and ultimately theres a bloody ending. Or theres the Bourguiba Ben Ali solution  a situation where a younger person in his inner circle topples him. Kuran was referring to the ouster in 1987 of the late Tunisian dictator by his prime minister, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who himself was overthrown 24 years later in a popular uprising.

Either way, most agree that in the near term, Erdogans talk of reform is just that. Things will get a lot worse before they get any better.

Erdogan is not the sort of leader who will easily cede power. He will likely opt for further pressure. He will resort to every means in order to stay on. Journalists are under physical attack. The mafia has grown vocal again. Polarization may turn into violent confrontation. Arbitrary arrests of even moderate figures may begin, Korkmaz said.

Perhaps the most optimistic takeaway, Danforth said, is that Erdogan is almost certainly going to keep holding elections. They wont be fair, but as long as they happen, theres always a chance that he will miscalculate and lose, or the fraud needed to win will become too blatant to dismiss. At that point, Danforth speculated, theres a chance that the right constellation of political forces could come together to convince him he has no choice but to step down.

Eissenstat is less sanguine, and he doesnt believe there will be early elections. The overthrow of well-established authoritarian regimes is so rare. Erdogans got time. Its hard to game events that are more than two years out, he said.
UC Berkeley plans to build desperately needed housing for students and formerly homeless residents on the hallowed ground of Peoples Park, and some people are upset. Protesters have camped in the park a few blocks from campus and taken down fences put up in preparation for constructing dorms for 1,200 and supportive housing for 150. Longtime residents and activists are wrinkling their noses and worry that a 17-story development is completely out of scale for the neighborhood.

Come on, people.

Born of resistance to another plan to build student housing on the site, which defeated the development along with a violent police crackdown, Peoples Park has a proud history of protest dating to the 1960s. But it is, with all due respect, history. Given the inhumane housing costs and homelessness afflicting California and the Bay Area in general and Berkeley in particular, carping about too-big buildings and killing new housing is whats completely out of scale.

The student housing proposed is only a fraction of the 7,500 beds university Chancellor Carol Christ is rightly striving to add to a campus that houses a smaller share of its students than any other in the UC system. The inclusion of housing for poor and formerly homeless people recognizes an even more daunting regional need as well as the parks place as an inadequate if popular haven for the unsheltered. And the university has promised to preserve some open space and recognize the parks history.

Even Berkeley city officials, not long known for pro-housing enlightenment, have come to understand that this and much more housing has to be built. Mayor Jesse Arreguin noted that the local housing shortage is driving up rents and homelessness, which increased more than 40% in Alameda County from 2017 to 2019.

The housing shortage and consequent high prices and rents are punishing economies across the region as pandemic-induced remote working arrangements free the fortunate to live elsewhere. The San Francisco and San Jose metropolitan areas plummeted in the Milken Institutes newly released annual rankings of U.S. cities economic performance, from first and fifth last year to 24th and 22nd, respectively. The Oakland-Berkeley area saw one of the most precipitous drops in the latest report, from No. 17 to No. 65, as did two other cities in the Bay Areas outer orbit, Santa Cruz and Salinas.

The authors noted that while well-paid tech and other professionals flee the cities and inner suburbs, the areas lower-wage workers face greater potential risks due to the states housing crisis, particularly if housing prices spike in outer suburbs and local communities continue to oppose construction of new housing units.

Peoples Park is for the people, Michael Delacour, an 83-year-old activist who helped found the park, told The Chronicle recently. Thats great to hear, because the people need housing.

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.
The COVID-19 pandemic, affecting all countries across the world, has underlined the way that China addresses a global challenge and its vision for a better world.

In face of the unprecedented global crisis, Chinese President Xi Jinping has been sharing thoughts with world leaders on addressing the fundamental issues of the times, and offering China's proposals to the solution of global challenges.

2020 was a busy year for Xi, though the pandemic prevented him from traveling overseas. Xi had 87 meetings and phone calls with foreign leaders and heads of international organizations, and he attended 22 important diplomatic events in the form of "cloud diplomacy."

Watch the video to learn about Xi's "cloud diplomacy" during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is great news that the $8 billion we were able to get for the M.T.A. was able to stave off cuts, Mr. Schumer said in an interview on Thursday, referring to the aid the authority got last year. But there is more good news coming.

The M.T.A. desperately needs this money and is vital to New York, he added.

The additional money will help the authority address an $8 billion deficit over the next four years. And while the financial infusion will allow the M.T.A. to avoid major service cuts this year and next, the agencys financial future remains uncertain given the looming questions about whether ridership will return entirely and about the prospects for more federal aid.

In the short and midterm there is significant relief, but we still have a long-term structural, fiscal problem that we have not dealt with said Andrew Rein, the president of the Citizens Budget Commission, a nonpartisan fiscal watchdog group.

Also uncertain is the fate of the authoritys sweeping $54 billion plan to modernize the system. The plan, which includes replacing antiquated signals that are a major cause of delays and disruptions, was suspended amid the pandemic, but transit officials have said they will revive parts of it this year.

Making the subway more reliable is crucial to luring riders back to the system as New York tries to recover from the financial crisis brought on by the outbreak.

Lucknow/New Delhi, Feb 18 : Almost 33 years after the case of corruption, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court here has sentenced D.P. Srivastava, then Director of North Area, Telecom posted in Bareilly to undergo three years imprisonment in a corruption case.

A CBI spokesperson in Delhi said that a Special CBI Judge sentenced Srivatsava to three years imprisonment with a fine of Rs 70,000 and Delhi-based Pradeep Godhwani, partner of Grand Timber Industries to undergo the imprisonment with a fine of Rs 50,000.

The CBI had registered a case against Srivastava and others including Grand Timber Industries.

It was alleged that while functioning as Director (North Area) Telecom in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly during the year 1987, Srivatsava entered into a conspiracy in connivance with Godhwani, partner of Grand Timber Industries and others and placed two purchase orders at exorbitant rate or price on the basis of forged tender memo with the intention to cheat the Central government to the tune of Rs 44.43 lakh.

The official said the agency filed a charge sheet against the accused. After trial, the court found both the accused guilty and convicted them.
ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- NIKA, a global provider of facility life cycle solutions, announced that it has been awarded a multi-disciplinary contract by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). NIKA will provide general project support services, facility operations and maintenance support, facility support services, project development support services, commissioning, occupancy support services, and facilities system support for Department of Defense (DoD) medical facilities located in the continental U.S. (CONUS). This indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract awarded by USACE is worth $125M with a two-year base and three one-year options for a total of five years.

Under this contract, NIKA is able to provide project support services in a variety of functional areas, including inpatient facilities support, clinical area support, and ancillary support. As a previous contract holder on MFSS I and a current contract holder on MFSS II OCONUS, NIKA is well-positioned to continue providing facility support services for this new contract vehicle.

"The MFSS II contract vehicle allows NIKA to continue providing facility life cycle services to USACE and its Defense Health Agency (DHA) customers," said Kyle Henson, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Growth at NIKA. "We're proud to be part of DHA's mission to provide an exceptional level of healthcare services for our soldiers, their families, and our nation's veterans."

MFSS II CONUS will be the latest addition to NIKA's Facilities Operations Management division portfolio, which provides operations and maintenance, base operations support, initial outfitting and transition, and facility support services for managing complex facilities and government buildings.

About NIKA

NIKA delivers comprehensive services and solutions to support the full life cycle of facilities. For more than two decades, the Department of Defense and federal civilian agencies, as well as commercial and higher education institutions, have trusted NIKA to design, build, operate, and manage their real property. By combining facilities operations management, engineering, and architecture services, we provide value and expertise for complex and mission critical facilities. Headquartered in Rockville, MD with offices in San Antonio, TX, NIKA helps clients enhance operational excellence in locations around the globe.

For more information about NIKA, please visit http://www.nikasolutions.com.

For further information, contact:

Rosanna Cruz

[email protected]

(301) 770-3520

www.nikasolutions.com

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Under KKR's ownership, the assets have been developed to meet growing demand for high-quality student accommodation in an underserved market

KKR, a leading global investment firm, today announced the sale of five major student housing developments across the UK to Greystar Real Estate Partners LLC, a global leader in the investment, development, and management of high-quality rental housing, for 291m.

The five Purpose Build Student Accommodation (PBSA) developments comprise a total of 2,163 units situated in London, Glasgow, Coventry and Bristol, four cities renowned for their higher education institutions. Four of the assets are operational for the 2020/21 academic year, while the asset in Bristol is under construction and due for occupancy in September 2021.

KKR acquired the five PBSA sites in 2018 to develop high-quality, professionally managed accommodation to meet structurally growing demand in a market which continues to be underserved by quality options for student housing. The UK remains one of the leading global destinations for higher education with the benefit of top-ranking universities, with strong forecast growth trends in the university-age demographic in the UK, supported by ongoing demand from international students.

KKR worked closely with Nido Student as operator of the sites to provide best-in-class property management services, having successfully collaborated on student accommodation developments in the Netherlands. The UK sites benefited from Nido's wealth of experience in thoughtful and innovative design, providing a tailored service from development to operations focused on well-being and student experience.

Seb D'Avanzo, Managing Director in European Real Estate at KKR, said: "These assets have helped to address the growing demand for high-quality accommodation across university hubs in the UK that provide a focus on wellbeing and community for students. We continue to see the UK as a strategically significant market for PBSA, with strong projected demand, and will continue to assess future opportunities to acquire and develop quality assets."

-ends-

About KKR

KKR is a leading global investment firm that offers alternative asset management and capital markets and insurance solutions. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and supporting growth in its portfolio companies and communities. KKR sponsors investment funds that invest in private equity, credit and real assets and has strategic partners that manage hedge funds. KKR's insurance subsidiaries offer retirement, life and reinsurance products under the management of The Global Atlantic Financial Group. References to KKR's investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds and insurance subsidiaries. For additional information about KKR Co. Inc. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR's website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005087/en/

Contacts:

Media Contacts

Alastair Elwen Alice Neave

Finsbury

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[February 17, 2021] Kinder launches Applaydu - a new mobile app which brings toys to life through augmented reality

SINGAPORE, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Kinder, a Ferrero brand, announces the launch of Applaydu, a new mobile app which brings Kinder toys to life through augmented reality in a fun world of discovering and imagination. Applaydu is a free edutainment playing experience, developed with Gameloft for brands, which aims to encourage bonding time where parents and their children can play and discover together. The University of Oxford's Department of Education provided academic feedback during the development of the App. Applaydu offers an immersive new experience dedicated to children from four to nine years old: the environments, characters and stories are thought and built to spark their imagination and stimulate their ability to learn new things. Users of Applaydu can enjoy games, interactive stories, activities and a lot more. The new Applaydu mobile app also provides a family friendly, safe and controled environment, free of ads nor in-app purchase, as well as Parental Control features such as activities report and adaptive difficulty to ensure a complete peace of mind for parents. It is designed to be used with the whole family, however parents can rest assured that appropriate safeguards are in place to guarantee that children can enjoy themselves securely.



To develop the app, Kinder has partnered with Gameloft for brands - leader in the creation of gaming experiences for brands - who provided their expertise in terms of gameplay, technology, art direction and 3D animation. Meanwhile, Oxford University's Department of Education provided Kinder with a set of guidelines to help Kinder's development of the App, aimed at helping children's progression by creating and developing a game that utilizes and develops cognitive skills including mathematics, motor skills, reading & writing, and memory.

Applaydu can be downloaded now for free from the App Store or from Google Play and is compatible with all Android and iOS devices starting from Android 4.4 and iOS 12. Emiliano Laricchiuta, Global Head of Kinder Products with Surprise said, "By sparking the imagination of children, and uniting adults and children in play and enjoyment, we believe that Applaydu can play an important role in helping ensure that a happy child today will be a better adult tomorrow." "We are really proud to partner with Kinder to make this project a reality," said Alexandre Tan, VP Brand Partnerships & Advertising at Gameloft. "It is incredible to bring our 20 years of gaming expertise to the Kinder brand and their beloved toys in order to craft an app that brings a whole new layer of fun to families, by merging physical and digital worlds in order to expand the traditional play experience." SOURCE Ferrero

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Amtraks return to Mobile continues to spark hot political debate among the citys power brokers one year after a project connecting the Port City to New Orleans was given the go-ahead by city leaders.

The renewed debate occurred on Wednesday and focused on the spending of additional city money to study the location of a new train station. It pitted Councilman Joel Daves, the sole No vote last February on whether to support the Amtrak Gulf Coast service with a $3 million commitment, against Councilman Fred Richardson, a candidate for mayor this year who is advocating for Amtraks return to Mobile for the first time since 2005.

Richardson calls the Amtrak restoration a transportation necessity. Daves refers to it a joy ride for the affluent.

The dispute also led to Daves poking at Richardson for opposing a controversial annexation plan in late 2019 that would have added thousands of new residents into the city.

Promised study

Under consideration is an $80,100 city-funded match of a federal grant for an alternate site analysis for a train station at the Brookley Aeroplex south of downtown Mobile. That amount represents half of the studys $160,200 cost that would also be supported with federal money managed by the Southern Rail Commission, an advocacy group for passenger rail opportunities in Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama.

The council opted to postpone the vote for one week, but not until after the two councilmen tussled over the merits of the project. An SRC representative said on Thursday that the council should table the vote until later date.

Daves argued that Amtrak has not met the conditions of several contingencies the council agreed to last February before they moved ahead with a 6-1 vote to spend more than $3.048 million over three years to support the restoration of the Gulf Coast service.

Among those contingencies was the completion of an evaluation on the impact of freight rail activity through the Port of Mobile. That study was supposed to be finished last year, but its completion was delayed last ear due to the coronavirus pandemic. An update could be provided when the SRC next meets on March 5.

Wiley Blankenship, chairman of the Southern Rail Commission and president and CEO with the Coastal Alabama Partnership, said on Thursday that the SRC is unaware on the studys progress. He said the SRC plans on asking for an update on March 5, but added that neither Amtrak nor the freight rail operators are disclosing much while negotiations, related to the study, are ongoing.

Its a little frustrating, he said. Weve all been promised the study. Its not a SRC-authorized study. Its FRA, freight rail and Amtrak. Were all waiting on it.

Additional funding

Daves also said the councils financial commitment, approved last year, includes no additional city money for the project.

Now were being asked to provide additional funding for the train station, said Daves.

His comments drew a rebuttal from Richardson, who said the city has spent money on building a cruise terminal and for other modes of transportation. He said the commitment for passenger rail represented a drop in the bucket compared to other transportation options.

I support rail transportation and us doing what we need to do to get rail transportation here, Richardson said.

The council endorsed the $3 million commitment last year when the timing of a federal Restoration and Enhancement Grant was an issue. Without the approval in early February 2020, the entire project connecting New Orleans to Mobile with four stops in Mississippi, would have been in jeopardy.

But the councils approval did not address money needed to pursue a new train station or to fund capital improvements along the rail line. The money is to go toward the operations of the rail service for three years, starting in 2023. An additional $2.2 million is needed from an Alabama source to support improvements along the rail line to support the return of passenger rail.

The other states involved in the project have stepped forward with support: Mississippi has dedicated $15 million, Louisiana $10 million and Amtrak $6 million toward capital improvements along the rail line.

Its also unclear how much a new train station might cost. In 2019, Blankenship estimated it might cost more to build a train station at Brookley than having one built in downtown Mobile. But concerns raised by the Alabama State Port Authority about passenger trains interfering with freight rail pushed the city to consider having a station built in a location where the city is angling to have its commercial aviation services relocated.

Viable alternative

Daves said the Amtrak Gulf Coast project is not a viable transportation alternative. He said the project, which includes stops four stops in Mississippi  Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula  is an amusement park on wheels and should not be compared to passenger service that would connect Mobile to Florida or California.

The project is regional in nature and is part of Amtraks overall goal of boosting daily ridership on shorter, city-to-city routes. Its a completely different service than when Amtrak trains like the Sunset Limited, which connected Los Angeles to Jacksonville, ran along the Gulf Coast. That service, disrupted by Katrina, ran only on certain days, and often at odd hours and was marred by low ridership.

Were talking about a short-line restoration from Mobile to New Orleans that is not alternative transportation, Daves said.

Mobile City Councilman Fred Richardson speaks in support of a resolution committing the city to a future Amtrak service along the Gulf Coast. The Mobile City Council voted 6-1 on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020, in support of a resolution that commits future funds for the operations of the Gulf Coast passenger rail line. (John Sharp/jsharp@al.com).

Richardson countered, by saying that Amtrak riders from Mobile to New Orleans would be able to take a connecting train to long-distance destinations like Los Angeles and Chicago.

The track is from New Orleans to Mobile, but that is not the impact, he said. Its like saying if we had an interstate system that went from Mobile to New Orleans, thats the end. No. They have other interstate systems in New Orleans that can take you to other places.

He added, (The Amtrak service) is more than just Mobile to New Orleans. Its from all over the United States to Mobile. And in order to do that, we need a leg from New Orleans to Mobile.

Brad Christensen, director of Real Estate Asset Management with the city of Mobile, said the Federal Railroad Administration is requiring the study. The last time the city had a train station was in 2005, when it destroyed during Hurricane Katrina. It was in downtown Mobile along Water Street near its intersection with Water Street.

Christensen said that if the city opts not to do the train station study, the city would be liable for reimbursing the FRA and the SRC around $95,000.

Daves said that by going forward with the train station analysis is throwing good money after bad.

Heightened attention

The council debate comes as there is heightened attention on the overall project after new U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg promised Mississippi Republican Senator Roger Wicker that he will visit the Gulf Coast to learn more about the project. Rail advocates hope that a visit can be arranged later this year.

The project has secured millions of federal funding to move forward, that includes the state matches except from Alabama. In 2019, the project received $33 million in a federal grant for improvements along the rail line. In Alabamas case, Mobiles commitment is viewed as a stop-gap until Gov. Kay Iveys administration takes action.

Gulf rail has opponents in Alabama, led by the Alabama Coal Association in Montgomery and the Port Authority in Mobile. The latters former chief officer, Jimmy Lyons, long argued about Amtrak interference with freight trains that roll in and out of the ports vast footprint along the citys waterfront.

Richardson said he believes the city needs every mode of transportation to get visitors here. He compared Mobile to Savannah, Georgia, which he said is a smaller city that draws more tourists annually and has passenger rail.

Richardson also said that $80,000 is a small amount for the city to support in moving the train project forward, mocking suggestions that there is a concern over the city going broke if it supported the project.

Daves, meanwhile, said that Richardson is supporting a costly project with tax money that would be better spent elsewhere in Mobile.

Daves said the $3 million price-tag could be more beneficial if its spent in underserved communities of Mobile.

He then used the hot political topic of the citys annexation battles of 2019 to illustrate his point. The Mobile City Council, with a 4-3 vote in November 2019, failed to reached a supermajority that would allow for an annexation vote to occur in west Mobile. The decision split the council along racial lines: The councils four white members supported the annexation plan, while the councils three Black members voted against it.

Annexation opponents said the city needed to focus on spending its revenues within its current boundaries. Supporters argued that the city needed to add population before the 2020 Census, or face losing out on grant opportunities.

When we got into the annexation fight, we heard stories that we cant take on new people when we cant take on the people we have, said Daves. When I think of the $3 million, and if it goes beyond that, its millions of dollars of subsidy wed have to pay. I can think of the underserved communities that could benefit from those millions of dollars every year other than providing a fun ride for the affluent.
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Israel: 100,000 doses of Moderna 'for Palestinian workers' Radio: health experts fear confusion with Pfizer recipients

(ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, 18 FEB - A total of 100,000 doses of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine have been sitting unused in Israeli warehouses for weeks, and now the Israeli government is starting to feel international pressure to send the doses to those who urgently need them elsewhere, according to media reports.



Public radio Kan said that in recent days, health officials have been evaluating the possibility of using the doses to immunise Palestinian unskilled workers who move between the West Bank and Israel.



Kan said the health officials' concern thus far has been not wanting to create confusion between Israelis who have already been immunised with the Pfizer vaccine (4,138,000 people who have had at least the first dose), and those who will receive the Moderna vaccine.



However, Palestinian unskilled workers in Israel (60,000, according to estimates) represent a homogeneous sample that could be monitored over time.



Radio Kan said the administration of the Moderna vaccine is different from the Pfizer one and requires sufficient training.



The decision on whether to immunise the workers is expected soon, Kan said. (ANSAmed).




SHENANDOAH HEIGHTS  The West Mahanoy Township supervisors, during a brief meeting Tuesday that dealt with routine actions, were informed that a local cogeneration plant will apply to renew a key permit it holds operate.

The Ri-Corp. Development Inc., also identified as Gilberton Power Company, sent a letter from General Manager Alexander Brush that the company is making application to the state Department of Environmental Protection for the renewal of its Water Quality Management Permit, also known as its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit.

According to the letter, the permit is for the discharge of wastewater from its facility in West Mahanoy Township. The John B. Rich Memorial Power Station is an 80-megawatt cogeneration facility on top of the Broad Mountain near Frackville.

The renewal is for an existing permit to discharge waste water to the Mahanoy Creek located in Mahanoy Township in Schuylkill County, the letter says. There are no changes made in the operation or quality of the discharge for this renewal. The discharge would be intermittent, but to this date (Jan. 20, 2021) we have not implemented this discharge.

No action was needed or taken by the supervisors.

The supervisors did act on the following agenda items:

 Approved Ordinance 2021-1 to accept the revised Flood Plain Management Ordinance.

 Approved the purchase of a New Holland LS-180 skid loader at $15,000 at the Wolfe Industrial Auction.

 Approved the hourly pay increase of $1.50 to $16 for full-time streets department employee Brian Pritula, who has completed a 60-day probationary period.

 Retroactively approved the Declaration of Disaster Emergency for the snow event commencing on Feb. 1.
KYODO NEWS - Feb 17, 2021 - 19:41 | All, World, Japan

Japan and the United States have agreed to keep Tokyo's costs to host U.S. forces stationed in the country at around the current level for fiscal 2021 following the expiration of a five-year deal, the Japanese government said Wednesday.

Under the agreement, Japan will shoulder 201.7 billion yen ($1.90 billion) in the year starting next April for the so-called host nation support, helping cover some 55,000 U.S. military personnel in Japan.

Both governments are expected to sign the latest agreement soon so that Japan can gain parliamentary approval by the end of March.

Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi welcomed the agreement in a joint statement as helping to ensure the smooth and effective activities of U.S. forces for the defense of Japan and for the peace and stability of the Indo-Pacific region.

"We could reach an agreement at an early time following the inauguration of President Joe Biden. This shows the two countries' strong commitment to the bond of the Japan-U.S. alliance and enhances the credibility of the alliance," Motegi told reporters.

In the latest deal, which extends the current five-year deal by one year, the two sides also agreed to continue negotiations for a multiyear deal covering cost-sharing for fiscal 2022 and onwards, Motegi said.

But the Biden administration, with its focus on collaborating with allies to counter China's military rise, may ask Japan to contribute more financially in the forthcoming talks, according to sources close to the matter.

The next round of talks is also expected to explore the two countries' mutual roles in strengthening the alliance, including in new defense fields such as space and cybersecurity.

The two sides had discussed the host nation support at the working-level since November last year under former U.S. President Donald Trump, who had criticized the bilateral security alliance as one-sided.

Trump had pressured Tokyo to vastly increase its financial burden, but the talks were put on hold until the administration of Biden was inaugurated in January.

Japan had sought to maintain the current level due to its strained finances.

Under the host nation support, which began in fiscal 1978 as part of a bilateral security treaty, Tokyo shoulders costs including the U.S. military's utility, labor and training expenses.

Japan had tentatively earmarked 201.7 billion yen for the initial budget plan for fiscal 2021, about the same amount as the previous year.

Jennifer Burnett, Branch Manager, Princeton Mortgage Jennifers reputation in the industry is phenomenal; the experience and passion she brings to our team will absolutely elevate Princeton to the next level.

Princeton Mortgage is pleased to announce that Jennifer Burnett has joined the company as a Branch Manager in the greater Pittsburgh area. Burnett will report to Mark Gordon, Chief Revenue Officer of Princeton Mortgage,

and will lead sales operations and execution strategies in order to achieve Princetons mission of originating 50,000 loans per year by 2028.

Jennifers reputation in the industry is phenomenal; the experience and passion she brings to our team will absolutely elevate Princeton to the next level, said Mark Gordon, CRO of Princeton Mortgage. I am excited to watch how she bolsters our brand through her relentless dedication to customer service, which is just one of her many strengths.

Prior to joining Princeton Mortgage, Burnett served as a Senior Loan Officer at Movement Mortgage, where her service-first approach empowered numerous customers to achieve their dreams of owning a home, which resulted in over $45M in annual production. Additionally, she also served as a Senior Mortgage Consultant at Prosperity Home Mortgage.

"I am excited to join the immensely talented team at Princeton," said Burnett. The company shares my passion about helping people make sound financial decisions when purchasing or refinancing. Princetons dedication to going above and beyond for every client is something thats aligned with my approach.

Burnett earned a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Finance from Robert Morris University. She lives in South Fayette Township with her husband, Robert, their two children, Reese and Ryan, and dog, Bruno.
Shaka Kings Judas and the Black Messiah  an opportunity to set the crooked record, straight

I cant stop thinking about what the late, murdered Illinois Black Panther chairman Fred Hampton (played by Daniel Kaluuya) said: Where there are people, there is power. This is the reason, I think, the United States of America considered him dangerous and their enemy and ordered his killing.

Based on a heart-breaking, true story Shaka Kings brilliant new film Judas and the Black Messiah boldly steps into the re-telling creating both a prestige film and a pulsating thriller.

The movie premiered at this years virtual Sundance Film Festival and will be released simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max on February 12; Im confident that it will become an Oscar contender since the Academy has an extended awards calendar this year. The film is tremendous. Well directed, acted, assembled and written. I would not be surprised, at all, if it takes home an Oscar.

It begins with introducing the audience to the Illinois Black Panther chairman Fred Hampton (played by Daniel Kaluuya), who by the age of 21 had become a major figure in the national party and founded the Rainbow Coalition movement amid a time of social and civil unrest. A passionate soul with a purpose, he possed a gift for reaching people through his words and speeches.

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Then it centers on William ONeal (Lakeith Stanfield) who, avoiding a prison sentence, makes a deal with the FBI (1968) to infiltrate the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party and to get close to Hampton.

So convincing is ONeal, that he became his head of security, and then betrays him by passing along the blueprint of Hamptons home and drugging him, the night before a raid. This all leads to Hamptons murder, by Chicago police which was approved by the government of the United States of America of which Judas, opps, ONeal was paid $300.00.

Ive been following Kings career since Newlyweeds and hes good people in my book. He rolls up his sleeves and gets things done so its a surprise that he struggled to get the funding for this movie. It finally landed at Warner Bros with Black Panther director Ryan Coogler, stepping in as one of the producers, along with King himself and Charles King of Macro.

The reason behind the money woes? Old fashioned Hollywood racism wrapped up (not so neatly) to appear as business data supporting an antiquated idea that adult dramas and films focused on African-American stories and characters dont do well onscreen and prove a challenge with an international theatrical release.

The film is as timely now as the 1968 events it depicts. At a virtual summit for Judas and the Black Messiah, Warner Bros provided access to some key members of the creative team.

Here is what Shaka King, Lakeith Stanfield, Daniel Kaluuya, and Dominique Fishback had to share about making the film.

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Judas and the Black Messiah opens in theaters on February 12th as well as available on HBO Max for 31 days from the theatrical release. This has been edited for clarity

ON WHY HE WANTED TO DIRECT THIS FILM:

(Shaka King  director/co-writer/producer)

[Judas and the Black Messiah] is an incredibly clever vessel to introduce a history that has been buried in this country to a very wide audience. [it has] profound and insightful and also expressed in such a witty, often humorous but direct, sometimes even profane (and) bombastic way. The opportunity to present these kinds of ideas expressed this way in a (thriller) was irresistible to me.

ON PROPAGANDA AROUND THE BLACK PANTHERS:

The history of this government and country in terms of repressing voices of dissent, (past) and present is not [to] believe the propaganda about the Black Panthers being thugs and criminals. Theyre feeding children and building medical clinics and ambulances and trying to prioritize the people that werent being taken care of by the government that claims to represent them.

ON PLAYING FRED HAMPTON:

(Daniel Kaluuya)

[I] admired that the Black Panthers was their love for their own, their love for Black people, their love for themselves, unapologetically. Even when they havent seen that by the powers that be, they poured that love into their own community. They would die to protect their own and liberate their own.

On playing Hamptons fiance Deborah Johnson (aka Akua Njera):

(Dominique Fishback)

I felt hopeless at the top of the pandemic, questioned my role as an actor and writer. After speaking with Kaluuya, she was re-inspired. and working on the film gave her hope. All of the Black women losing their children to police terrorism and police brutality. To me, Im putting myself in those shoes. We sometimes think shooting a gun is revolutionary, but Its revolutionary to know that your children are on the frontline every day and you do it anyway out of love.

On being given the role:

When Shaka came to me about that, I was definitely floored by that one. There were already so many greats attached. Daniel Kaluuya was attached to it, LaKeith, freaking Ryan Coogler was producing it, Charles King and he wants to get Jesse Plemons and hes saying, This is for you? I was like, Oh my god! So I wasnt so much nervous. I was just more honored. I felt seen.

On playing William ONeil:

(Lakeith Stanfield)

It made him stammer a bit, battling with his actual feeling of what he had done. For a second in that interview, it cracked through: Hes not a rat, hes not a snitch, hes human. He feels that (stuff).

Most of the motivations were fear, just trying to stay out of trouble and trying to stay afloat.

On what he hopes people will take away from watching Judas and the Black Messiah:

The only thing that I want is for more people to know about the story of Fred Hampton and know about the life he lived, instead of just the way he died. People should also be more skeptical of their government because look at what theyre capable of doing. The most important thing hes hoping against is apathy. The only concern I would have is if someone could watch a movie like this and feel nothing.

Website: www.judasandtheblackmessiah.com Hashtag: #JudasAndTheBlackMessiah Twitter: www.twitter.com/JATBMFilm

Instagram: www.instagram.com/judasandtheblacmessiah/?hl=en Facebook: www.facebook.com/JudasAndTheBlackMessiahFilm/
Privatisation: Lets Playback before We Fast Forward

The governments decision to move from pseudo-privatisation to an actual sell-off, amounting to relinquishing of control, has triggered celebrations on the stock market. Shares of the four banks, assumed to be privatised immediately, hit upper circuits. Privatising chronically sick, money-guzzling public sector undertakings (PSUs) is, indeed, a good thing, especially in sectors where the government has no business being in business. A broad policy framework, classifying PSUs into strategic and non-strategic, preceded the decision to sell or close 151 non-strategic ones. But there is no clear roadmap of how this will be done and most information in the public domain is from source-based news reports.

Anurag Thakur, Union minister of state for finance, told The Economic Times that the government had to be fair and reasonable and couldnt offer a sick bank for sale; otherwise, there would be no buyers. The same interview spoke of how the government had worked extensively on cleaning up the bad loans mess inherited from the UPA (United Progressive Alliance), recapitalised banks, amalgamated them and pulled many out of the PAC (prompt corrective action) framework. Also, as part of the clean-up, a bad bank, probably backed by sovereign guarantee, will take over the massive non-performing loans of public sector banks (PSBs). But what about their undervalued assets?

Each PSB owns a large branch network and real estate across the country to house lavish offices, guest houses, official quarters, auditoriums, training institutions, etc, that are probably worth thousands of crores. While successive governments have re-capitalised PSBs at public cost, there has never been a serious market valuation of their assets or an attempt to check if these can be used to reduce their losses. Even today, the process of cleaning them up for a private buyer does not seem to include realistic asset valuation.

If so, the new owners will look to immediately sell, consolidate and extract their purchase price from the very companies they buy. This is not advance criticism, but a gentle reminder that there is much to learn from the hasty privatisation by another NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government two decades ago. A slew of PSUs was sold off then, allowing private owners to recover most of their acquisition cost by exploiting the real estate alone. We, as citizens, have the right know how mistakes of the past will be avoided before we hand over cleaned-up banks to private bidders. Consider these examples from NDA-1.

Sale of the Centaur Hotels: The privatisation of Air India is on the cards this year. So lets look at how two valuable hotels, owned by Air Indias subsidiary Hotel Corporation of India (HCI), were divested in 2001. In 2002, the Centaur Hotel at the Mumbai airport and Centaur Hotel at Juhu were sold separately. Amrit Lal Batra, a hotelier close to the RSS, bought airport Centaur for just Rs83 crore through Batra Hospitality. In exactly four months, he sold it to the Sahara group at Rs115 crore netting a 35% profit in four months. It exploded into a controversy; but the bid documents hadnt barred this back-to-back sale.

The saga doesnt end there. The Hotel was built on 30,000 square metres of prime land owned by the Airports Authority of India, had 300 rooms, five restaurants, three banquet halls and sprawling space around the Hotel thickly covered with trees. The value of assets was ignored because it was sold as a going concern ostensibly to protect employees. Immediately after the acquisition, Sahara wangled permission to expand the floor space index (FSI), which determines how much covered floor area can be built, considerably, chopped the trees and extracted considerable value from the real estate, probably more than its acquisition price. The beleaguered and controversial Sahara group, which is unable The saga doesnt end there. The Hotel was built on 30,000 square metres of prime land owned by the Airports Authority of India, had 300 rooms, five restaurants, three banquet halls and sprawling space around the Hotel thickly covered with trees. The value of assets was ignored because it was sold as a going concern ostensibly to protect employees. Immediately after the acquisition, Sahara wangled permission to expand the floor space index (FSI), which determines how much covered floor area can be built, considerably, chopped the trees and extracted considerable value from the real estate, probably more than its acquisition price. The beleaguered and controversial Sahara group, which is unable repay thousands of depositors, continues to control the prized luxury property.

The sale of Juhu Centaur was just as controversial. This fantastic property, built on six-acres of prime real estate, with over 370 rooms, was sold for a mere Rs153 crore. It was acquired by Ajit Kerkar (former chairman of the Taj group of hotels), whose Tulip Hospitality was the sole bidder, although it couldnt even cobble together the price after winning the bid. PSBs and LIC were prodded by the government to fund the acquisition and, yet, it was immediately downgraded from a 5-star to a 3-star hotel and had no funds even to renew key licences. In 2013, after it defaulted on loans, the Hotel was acquired by an asset reconstruction company which had then valued the assets at Rs1,300 crore. It remains embroiled in litigation even today because Mr Kerkar had entered into a deal with a realty company to exploit the property.

Curiously, none of the major hotel chains in India, or even global hotel majors, who have subsequently established a large presence in India, bid for the two lucrative properties, although they would have paid more and had all been interested. But two controversial private owners were allowed to acquire, exploit and ruin the assets. Another Delhi hotel was converted into an office building. Twenty years later, the government remains in the hospitality business, primarily because politicians and bureaucrats want to exploit them.

Sale of VSNL: In the 1990s, under chairman BK Syngal, Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL), was a cutting-edge telecommunications giant which gave a big fillip to Indian software companies with world-class internet and data services. It was classified as a navratna but its success led to dirty politics by dubious competitors. Mr Syngal was unfairly removed, the company run to the ground and quickly privatised. Like other PSUs, VSNL had massive real estate and reserves. The Tatas acquired control by buying a 25% stake for Rs1,439 crore in 2002. Within days of the acquisition, the much-venerated Tatas were set to divert Rs1,300 crore of VSNL reserves to Tata Teleservices, a loss-making group entity. This move was stopped when it blew up into a major controversy.

VSNL also owned 773 acres of excess land which was fortunately kept out of the bid and was to be demerged into a separate company where the government would get 51% of the value. Shockingly, this languished for 14 long years. In 2016, the Financial Express reported that the land, spread across five cities was then valued at Rs6,156 crore, was, finally, demerged into a company called Hemisphere Properties India. It is unclear if the government has realised any value from the land, as yet.

BSES and Reliance: This is a good example of how private companies are focused on assets, while the government isnt. The Reliance group, which acquired a stake in BSES Ltd (earlier Bombay Suburban Electric Supply) in the mid-1980s, stepped up to acquire management control in 2001with a two-stage public offer that took its stake to 51% in the distribution company. BSES had valuable land in Mumbai, including a chairmans bungalow spread over 1,537 sq metres of land at the posh Pali Hill and its head office on four acres of prime land off the Western Express highway. After the acrimonious Ambani split, Anil Ambani acquired control.

In 2018, after massively mismanaging the business and running up huge debt, Anil sold the business to Adani Transmission; but the two properties were kept out of this deal. According to a media report, the sale of the head office alone could fetch up to Rs3,000 crore. Yes Bank has now taken possession of the property. The bungalow has been torn down to build a luxury tower, which is also valued at a few hundred crores. Only these two assets would have been worth a significant chunk of the acquisition cost, even before re-rating of assets in 2001. Reliance Industries (RIL) has, similarly, struck gold in acquiring Indian Petrochemicals and Chemicals Ltd which was sold despite objections of the then disinvestment department. Since the 1960s, governments have been generous with handing over land to PSUs which is not correctly valued even as they have sucked up a great deal of public money as support from the exchequer. As we embark on another round of disinvestment, it is important to ensure that global consultants, hired for the job, don't doctor bids to allow fake privatisation, again bank-rolled by the remaining PSUs.
Zimbabwe rolled out its COVID-19 vaccine program Thursday, with health workers getting the first of 200,000 Sinopharm vaccines donated by China.

Officials applauded after Zimbabwe's vice president, Constantino Chiwenga, received his vaccine. Zimbabwe's free and voluntary vaccination program aims to reach 10 million citizens and achieve herd immunity.

Chiwenga, who doubles as the country's health minister, said Zimbabwe was winning its war against COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

"The marked decline in new cases of coronavirus is vividly marking the end of the second wave of the pandemic. Despite the decline, the government of Zimbabwe adopted a second line to augment preventive measures to combat COVID-19. The second layer of defense is the procurement and rollout of COVID-19 vaccines," he said.

"My ministry conducted all scientific processes to ascertain the efficacy of Sinopharm vaccine, which was confirmed to be 79 percent. My presence here today, with some ministry of health officials  to exhibit the government confidence in the Sinopharm vaccine.

Some citizens and rights group question the efficacy of the vaccine and are calling on the government to conduct clinical trials before offering it to the public.

On Wednesday, the group Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights said it would take the government to court if authorities do not conduct clinical trials of the Sinopharm vaccine.

Just outside where Chiwenga was vaccinated, 42-year-old Quinton Hassen said he doesn't want to hear their legal arguments.

"I want to be vaccinated. It's the way forward. Without being vaccinated, we're going to go nowhere in this world here," Hassen said. "It's very important to be vaccinated and not to listen to rumous about this vaccine. It is not to kill, but to protect you.

Chiwenga said Thursday that more vaccines would come, for all Zimbabweans willing to be inoculated.


5 1 of 5 Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 2 of 5 Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 3 of 5 4 of 5 Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 5 of 5









STAMFORD  Parishioners lined up to receive ashes dabbed onto their foreheads via a cotton swab due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making this years Ash Wednesday look a little different from years past at Church of St. Cecilia in Stamford.

The genius of the design of the Atomation suite of sensors is their flexibility, simplicity and cost effectiveness, said Jon Hoek, Summit SmartFarms President.

Summit SmartFarms (SSF), a leading provider of human capital and technology integration solutions for protein production in the agriculture industry and Atomation, an Internet of Things (IoT), edge computing and advanced sensor technology company, announced a new multi-year partnership to serve the agricultural industry with smart technology solutions.

Summit SmartFarms is a division of the Bahler Management Group based in Remington, IN. Bahler Management is a leading designer and builder of swine, beef, dairy and egg production facilities through the companies of Summit Engineering and Construction (Remington, IN & Emmetsburg, IA) and Heartland Builders (Columbus, NE). The Atomation partnership equips Summit SmartFarms with smart technology for remote monitoring of equipment, environment, behavior and health data for prescriptive and predictive analytics. This technology provides all levels of the organizational chart visibility to SmartMargin, (margin otherwise invisible in traditional monitoring systems) and de-risks the producers existential threats of margin erosion and alternative proteins.

The partnership between the two companies improves data collection in the field across a variety of use cases. Atomation devices (Atoms) independently sense their environment, make decisions based upon what they see, and forward information wirelessly to the cloud without recurring connectivity costs. Edge computing technology imbedded in the Atom allows for analytics on site and low bandwidth data packets. Summit SmartFarms Central Managed Finishing Solution takes the information and uses it to provide specific recommendations to the customer.

Anthony Brummel, SSFs COO and new products engineer, launched the first production application which actively monitors temperatures in large, remote composting fields to ensure optimal bacterial growth. Atoms with external temperature sensors are now monitoring more than 100k tons of compost, and the combined solution provides insight to facility managers of temperature changes critical to certification of premium compost production.

The genius of the design of the Atomation suite of sensors is their flexibility, simplicity and cost effectiveness, said Jon Hoek, Summit SmartFarms President. We needed a solution that would provide multiple types of intelligent monitoring at a price point that makes sense for our customers and Atomation delivers on all levels. Atoms let us sense and process data right at the source and provide us the important information without the noise. Atomation solutions eliminate the barrier to entry for producers in converting unconnected barns to Smartbarns.

Remote monitoring in difficult locations remains a crucial initiative for many companies, including those in the agricultural industry, said Steve Hassell, Atomations CEO. Unfortunately, the complexity and cost of traditional automation systems have created barriers that end up isolating many from the promise of the Internet of Things. Were smashing through those barriers, working with great customers like Summit SmartFarms by giving them the visibility they need to maximize production.

Founded in 2019, Summit SmartFarms is focused on providing decision-ready information to production agriculture. SSF is the newest company under the Bahler Group umbrella that also includes FBi Buildings, Summit Livestock, The Aspen Group, and Heartland Builders. As the leading developer of people/staffing resources, they help producers effectively staff remote CAFO units, minimize turnover, and drive bottom-line performance. SSF also equips barns to acquire and synthesize mission-critical data.

Atomation, founded in Tel Aviv and now with headquarters in St. Louis, MO, is a business-to-business solutions company that uses an innovative Internet of Things (IoT) platform and processes to connect existing, in-field, legacy objects and assets to the internet. Focused on making the data gathered by sensors into useful and actionable information, Atomation solves problems differently with affordable and simple solutions that allow businesses to transform operations and optimize their bottom line. Atomate it!
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Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has asked the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), localities and Vietnam Electricity Group (EVN) to review issues related to Vietnams solar power development.

Solar panels and wind turbines in Vietnam

Solar power development has gained positive results and investment, contributing to the effective exploitation of this power source, as well as electricity supply and energy security in Vietnam.

The development of rooftop solar power, however, has been incompatible with power demand, especially last December, hampering the operations of the national grid.

Of note, power demand saw a decline duto the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Total produced and imported power capacity of the national grid stood at about 245.9 billion kWh, up around 2.7 percent against 2019 but down 15.6 billion kWh compared to the operation plan of the national electricity grid approved by the MoIT.

Since the start of 2021, EVN has rolled out measures to cut down solar power sources as well as other renewable energy sources in the national grid.

To ensure the development of solar power in line with the regulations and in an efficient manner, relevant agencies have been asked to study and address problems in solar power development over the recent past, particularly rooftop solar power as well as bolster inspections in the field to promptly detect and handle violation cases.

They are also tasked with mapping out effective management measures for renewable energy sources, especially solar power in the coming time, in a bid to minimise the reduction of installed renewable energy sources and economic losses of investors.

Leaders of localities nationwide are also ordered to observe regulations on rooftop solar and ground-mount solar power systems, and avoid unregulated installation of power sources which may cause overloading.

EVNs statistics showed that as of the end of 2020, total power capacity in the national grid, excluding that of rooftop solar power, had surpassed 62,000 MW.

Capacity of solar panels installed on the ground hit 8,838 MW, while that of rooftop solar power joining the national grid about 8,000 MW./. VNA
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(TNS)  Ohio has developed a central coronavirus vaccine registration website that will allow people to sign up for the vaccine and is working to add providers to the system, Gov.said Tuesday.Under the first phase, the state created a system that is "functional and ready from a technical standpoint," he said.is now on the second phase and is working on signing up providers for the central system.The statewide portal will allow Ohioans to confirm what eligibility group they are in and also let them find providers and schedule a vaccine appointment.Many Ohioans have been confused and frustrated by the patchwork of registration methods available during the initial weeks of the vaccine rollout."In addition to increasing convenience for those already eligible, this system will be critically important as we look forward to time when we receive more vaccine and more Ohioans become eligible," DeWine said. "It will be of particular importance down the road when we have more and more vaccines coming into the."Because the system is scalable, it will be helpful once the state has enough vaccines to have mass vaccination sites.Early into the state's vaccine planning,looked into a central scheduling solution the federal government intended all states to use. After reviewing the system,, as well as about 40 other states, decided the system would not work for, the governor said.Instead,built its own system.Once most providers are signed up and have entered vaccine availability into the system,will begin phase three, which will be to make the website live for the public., in addition to reaching out to providers to get them signed up, will also require new vaccine providers to use the system as they are approved.The state is also working with providers with vaccine waitlists to possibly integrate those withsystem without allowing other patients to jump the line."Our goal is for Ohioans to have a positive customer experience when we launch to make appointments," DeWine said. "Those interested in getting a vaccination will be able to put their zip code in and pull up appointments within 20 miles."He added that the state is working with Area Agencies on Aging to help Ohioans who do not have internet access to help get a vaccine appointment.A winter storm has delayed some direct shipments of the coronavirus vaccine to providers in, as well as delayed some shipments from the state that were scheduled for Tuesday.Some shipments may be delayed a day or two, DeWine said.has contacted all providers to warn them of possible delays and to encourage them to track their shipments.The state sent out 26 deliveries scheduled for Tuesday on a two-hour delay to give street crews time to clear the roads. Delivery drivers gave providers about an hour to half an hour's notice to make sure providers were ready to receive the vaccine, the governor said.DeWine also encouraged Ohioans to contact vaccine providers if they have a vaccination appointment. Patients should not just assume vaccine clinics are canceled due to the weather.To help promote vaccine equity,will have four virtual town halls in the coming weeks to address different populations regarding vaccine safety and misinformation.Medical experts, community leaders and public health professional will join the livestream to answer questions about the coronavirus vaccine.The town halls are scheduled on the following dates: , at African American Ohioans , at Hispanic/Latino Ohioans , at Asian American and Pacific Islander Ohioans , at Rural OhioansThe livestreams will be available on Facebook, YouTube and on thewebsite.reported just more than 2,000 daily cases of coronavirus Tuesday after back-to-back days with cases under 2,000.It's the fourth straight day cases have remained below 3,000, according to theOver the last 21 days,is reporting an average of 3,351 cases a day. Since the pandemic started, there have been 943,291 total cases reported in the state.Hospitalizations increased by 59 for a total of 48,739.As of Tuesday, there were 1,566 coronavirus patients inhospitals, as well as 466 in ICUs and 303 on ventilators, according to ODH. It's the eighth straight dayhad less than 2,000 COVID-19 patients hospitalized.The state also reported 10 ICU admissions on Tuesday, bringing the total to 6,949.
Social Care Minister Helen Whately today hinted postcode lockdowns will be imposed by the Government to stop the spread of dangerous coronavirus variants when national curbs are eased.

The measures are said to be under consideration in Whitehall as Boris Johnson prepares to unveil his lockdown exit strategy on Monday next week.

Ms Whately appeared to confirm that localised shutdowns will be part of the Government's tool chest moving forward as she said ministers had 'learnt during the summer about how to manage localised outbreaks'.

Meanwhile, she also delivered a boost to families as she suggested care home visiting rules could be loosened within weeks thanks to the success of the UK vaccination drive.

Door-to-door testing and a tougher stay at home message have already been used in some areas to stop the spread of coronavirus variants

Ms Whately also suggested that care home visiting rules could be loosened within weeks thanks to the success of the national vaccination drive

Combatting the emergence and spread of new variants of the disease is viewed by ministers as crucial to staying out of national lockdown and to protecting the vaccine roll-out.

The Government has already used door-to-door testing and a tougher stay at home message in some areas to try to eliminate variants.

And it is thought the localised crackdowns will be a key part of the Government's approach in the coming months.

A senior Government source told The Times: 'Clearly it is not a problem at the moment because of the existing lockdown restrictions.

'But there is a big question about what you do when lockdown does start lifting and we see variants that we have concerns about.

'It is definitely something that we're aware of that will need to be considered. But we need to work out exactly what the mechanisms are that we need to have in place.'

Another source suggested the details on postcode lockdowns could be hammered out in time to be included in the PM's roadmap.

They told the newspaper: 'We're still on the question of is it going to be a blanket 'if there's a variant in your area, retain the stay-at-home and-get-a-test message', or something different.'

It is thought that postcode lockdown rules could vary area-by-area depending on the risk posed by whichever variant has been discovered.

Mr Johnson yesterday said that his roadmap will be 'based firmly on a cautious and prudent approach' to ease national restrictions in 'such a way as to be irreversible'.

Asked about the prospect of postcode lockdowns, Ms Whately told Sky News: 'Well, I would say probably wait until next week when the Prime Minister sets out that roadmap for how we are going to come through it.

'But we have clearly learnt a huge amount. We learnt during the summer about how to manage localised outbreaks and take that approach.

'But I don't really want to preempt what we are going to hear next week.'

Ms Whately also suggested that care home visiting rules could be eased within weeks.

The majority of care home residents have now had their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine and the minister said 'I don't see that we have to wait for the second vaccination dose' and that she wants to 'open up sooner than that'.

There are signs the UK's coronavirus vaccine roll-out may be slowing after fewer than 280,000 doses were administered yesterday

She said: 'I really, really want to open up visiting in care homes more. I mean, to be clear we have made sure that visiting can continue even during this national lockdown but I recognise it is not the normal kind of visiting, it is having to use screens and visiting pods or through windows if care homes don't have those facilities.

'Also, we have put funding into social care to help care homes have these facilities and have extra staff if they need to supervise.

'But what I want to do as we come out of the national lockdown is also increase the amount of visiting.

'I don't see that we have to wait for the second vaccination dose. I want us to open up sooner than that.

'But I will say with this as with generally as we come out of lockdown we do have to be cautious, most residents in care homes have only had their first dose and some of them only very recently so it will be step by step but I am determined so that we can see people, go back to even if it is to be able to hold hands again and see somebody who you haven't been able to see very much in the last few months and over the last year, I really want to make that happen again.'

However, visitors to care homes will still be expected to wear PPE even when rules are relaxed.

Ms Whately told BBC Breakfast: 'There is still a way to go to see, for instance, whether the vaccine stops people from being infectious and how it plays through.

'Visiting will be taken step by step and we will, for instance, when people come back to more normal visiting, still be asking people to use PPE and follow those kinds of procedures.'
Like nearly half the lodgings in the state, the hotel at the corner of Meeting and Hasell streets in downtown Charleston temporarily closed its doors last year. But, unlike others, it's stayed closed as it undergoes a transformation.

When it reopens this spring, it will be The Ryder, a 91-key hotel with a bar and restaurant, a cafe and an all-new look and feel from its predecessor at the site, the King Charles Inn.

Sold for $43 million in late 2019 to an affiliate of Atlanta-based High Street Real Estate Partners and WHI Real Estate Partners out of Chicago, the hotel came under the management of Pivot Hotels, a portfolio of "lifestyle" hotels by Atlanta hospitality firm Davidson Hotels.

Davidson announced at the time of the sale that a complete rebranding and makeover was in store for the property in 2020.

In the fall, general manager Ryan Rauscher shared that the transformation would include a new name.

Calling the hotel The Ryder was inspired by Japhy Ryder, a character in Jack Kerouac's 1958 novel "The Dharma Bums," Rauscher said. Ryder is thought to be based on poet Gary Snyder of the "Beat Generation" of the 1950s that defied conformity and promoted freedom of expression.

In the months the property has been closed, the structure has been gutted, including new plumbing and drywall.

Rauscher said they've gone with "natural finishes," using shiplap and other wood. Furnishings in the rooms are custom-made and promoted as having a "modern look" with "laid-back vibes."

For new food and beverage concepts, The Ryder has brought on Gin & Luck, the hospitality group behind the Manhattan cocktail bar Death & Co. In the last several years, two other Death & Co. bars have opened in Los Angeles and Denver. The bar and restaurant and cafe at The Ryder will be their first venture in the Palmetto State.

But, Devon Tarby of Gin & Luck said, they've had their eye on Charleston for awhile.

"The hospitality community there has an amazing reputation," Tarby said.

The restaurant and bar, called Little Palm  the translation of the word that "palmetto" comes from  will incorporate an indoor dining area with tables, booths and a large bar. That space will flow out to a outdoor pool area with lounge seating and umbrellas.

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Mosaic tiles at the bottom of the pool will read, "Good Time State of Mind," Rauscher said.

The pool itself will function more as a "wading pool," Rauscher said. Drinks, food and full service will be available inside and outside, and, once limits on when alcohol can be served are lifted  a current coronavirus-related policy from Gov. Henry McMaster doesn't allow the sale of alcohol at a bar after 11 p.m.  the bar will be open to the public until 2 a.m.

They're in the middle of cocktail development now, Tarby said. Their drinks will have "subtle tropical flavors," she said, but will be rooted in classics. A similar concept will carry over to the food menu, which Tarby said will have "solid, fresh dishes that compliment the climate."

Food will be available from 11 a.m. through midnight, Tarby said, and they plan to host brunch on the weekends.

At the cafe, which will have an entrance on Meeting Street, coffee, espresso and tea drinks and grab-and-go food options will be served from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m., Tarby said, with a shorter limited window for "a more formal breakfast offering" that will include about five options.

The Ryder will have the same number of rooms as the King Charles Inn, but changes to the top level have allowed the hotel to offer two new suites, one of which will have a bedroom and bathroom, a seating area, a powder room and a small kitchen. That suite will have a dining table and will also be used as a small event space, Rauscher said.

Like most hotels in downtown Charleston, The Ryder is angling to appeal to the destination wedding market. That includes the so-called micro wedding segment that became more popular once couples started shortening guest lists and simplifying plans because of COVID-19.

The Ryder is a short walk from another hotel property that recently had a full makeover. Emeline on Church Street was a DoubleTree Hotel before it closed and was then reopened with an all-new design, bar and restaurant and cafe in summer 2020.

Pre-opening rates at The Ryder start at $209 per night, and reservations are being accepted online at theryderhotel.com.
The UK's first national lockdown from March 2020 and its immediate aftermath saw a massive shift in consumer habits that was initially mandated but then lingered as shops and restaurants opened but risks from the virus remained.

A new study from the universities of Cambridge and Newcastle used data from the ONS to compare retail, hospitality and online sales in the UK between March and August 2020 with average figures for the same months for the years 2010-2019.

Researchers took an approach normally used to estimate cumulative excess deaths to try and measure the impact of the COVID-19 shock on sales of UK retailers and restaurants.

They say their economic models suggest that shops predominantly selling food, such as supermarkets, saw a 5-10% bump in sales in lockdown, adding up to an additional 4 billion in earnings over "business as usual" expectations.

This is "consistent with large-scale stockpiling", they say, as people prepared for an indefinite future of home-cooked meals.

With many shops shut and people stuck indoors, online sales experienced a major boost, peaking at around a third higher than business-as-usual estimates during the first lockdown - an increase that amounts to an additional 4 billion.

Non-food high street shops, those selling everything from books to clothes, saw sales evaporate during the first lockdown when they had to shut, costing around 20 billion in turnover. Sales returned to normal once national lockdown lifted.

The shortfall for bars, pubs and restaurants was "dramatic", say researchers, with the first UK lockdown causing sales to fall as much as 90% below the business-as-usual level, equating to around a 25 billion revenue loss.

Hospitality sales saw some recovery post-lockdown, as government schemes such as 'Eat Out to Help Out' kicked in, but were still 25% below estimated business-as-usual revenues by the end of summer.

Writing in the journal Global Food Security, researchers say they found no evidence of a post-lockdown fall in food-shop sales as people used up their stockpiles, or an "overshoot" on the high street due to "pent-up demand" during lockdown.

"Lockdown restrictions led to behaviour changes in consumers and retailers that caused huge fluctuations in sales," said Dr Shaun Larcom from the University of Cambridge, who co-authored the study with his Cambridge colleague Dr Po-Wen She and Dr Luca Panzone from the Newcastle University.

"Shopping frequency dramatically reduced, and footfall vanished from many commercial areas, with people going online or using local outlets within residential areas when they had to shop."

"Consequences of lockdown, such as long queues outside supermarkets, led to 'forced experimentation'. Consumers had to explore new purchasing methods," said Larcom, from Cambridge's Department of Land Economy.

"Many people shopped online for the first time. They also bought directly from wholesalers or even farms, and trialled different types of home cooking. When people are forced to experiment, it can lead to behaviour changes that last well beyond the life of a crisis."

The researcher say that, while online sales peaked during lockdown, they remained above pre-lockdown levels in August 2020, which they suggest may be early signs of a more permanent "structural change" in shopping habits.

Recent media reports suggest that the UK Treasury is considering a one-off tax for online retailers who saw profits boosted by the lockdowns.

"Understanding the monetary impact of the pandemic is important to gauge the magnitude of the damage, and can help government design policies to assist these sectors," said Panzone from the University of Newcastle.

"Food services and non-food retailers lost a huge share of their yearly business, compared to food stores and online retailers that actually gained from lockdown. One-size-fits-all policy approaches across retail won't work," he said.

NOTES:

In February 2020, stores primarily selling food had sales figures almost identical to business-as-usual (BAU) estimates produced by the researchers' econometric models: 12.6 billion. Sales for March ran at 17.5 billion - around 10% higher than the 16 billion BAU estimates - but had returned to BAU levels by July.

For online retail, sales sharply diverged from BAU estimates by May - 5.3 billion against a predicted value of 4.1 billion (+29%) - and peaked in June at 6.8 billion compared to 5 billion BAU estimate (+36%). While online sales then started to fall, they were still above BAU estimates by the end of summer.

Non-food shops had February sales figures almost equal to their BAU estimates: 11.6 and 11.9 billion respectively. Actual sales tumbled as the pandemic took hold, with an April nadir of 5.9 billion compared to BAU estimates of 13 billion (-54.6%). Sales then started to recover, and by August only just lagged BAU estimates.

Sales in "food and beverage serving services" suffered most in terms of lost revenue. In February, turnover was 5.7 billion, just shy of the 6 billion BAU estimate. By March this had slumped to 4.3 billion against a prediction of 6.7 billion.

April sales for bars, pubs and restaurants were just 0.7 billion compared to a BAU estimate of 6.7 billion: an approximate shortfall of 90%. While this gap shrank it remained startling. Even with the 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme, August sales were 5.2 billion compared to a BAU estimate of 7 billon (-25%).

###
Metroman E Sreedharan, the man credited for changing the way residents of Delhi travel is all set to join the BJP in his home state of Kerala.

Kerala BJP president K.Surendran on Thursday confirmed that Sreedharan will join the party later this month.

"Metroman has informed that he will be joining the BJP by taking the party membership when the state-wide yatra reaches Malappurram district," said Surendran.

BCCL

The 88-year-old who was once rumored to be in the race for the President of India is currently living his retirement life in Kerala after leaving DMRC.

Even after his retirement, Sreedharan was involved with the DMRC and played a key role in the Kochi Metro project.

BCCL

On Thursday, Sreedharan in a press conference attacked the CPIM-led Left government in Kerala and said he is open to contesting elections if the party asks so.

"It's our desire that Metroman contests the upcoming assembly polls and we have proposed it to him," Surendran had said.

BCCL

This came ahead of the Assembly elections in Kerala scheduled to be conducted between April-May, in which BJP is hoping to make it big.

Kerala has been a state that the BJP failed to make an impact, which the party hopes will change this time.

So far, the party has managed to win only one seat in the Kerala assembly.

Make him as a CM candidate of BJP in the upcoming assembly election  #Metroman #ESreedharan as #CMcandidateofBJPKeralam  Manoj (@manuadm) February 18, 2021

The most respected Technocrat/Professional in India's history. Hats off to his boldness to join @BJP4India defying the social taboo against the party in Kerala. Credible names joining politics is a great omen for India's bright future. https://t.co/5cESy4MFbv  Porinju Veliyath (@porinju) February 18, 2021

He is 88 years old. Does the BJP want to make him the latest member of the Marg Dharshak? Or are they changing the age to 90 for that exclusive club? #ESreedharan https://t.co/soa9ZfZ03i  ramesh sharma (@rameshfilms) February 18, 2021

Of all the things, he agreed to grow fascism. #ESreedharan  Apoorva  (@apoorvagopalan) February 18, 2021

Good education and great skill, doesnot define a person. One can be a fascist enabler even with all that. #ESreedharan   | Elina (@LawyerInBaking) February 18, 2021

#ESreedharan is yet another example for why you shouldn't make a hero out of a man for being Employee of the month. At the end of the day, ideologies matter, strength of character matters.  Natasha (@thebokettogirl) February 18, 2021

It is not just Sreedharan the BJP is eyeing to get into its fold. Some local media reports say that the party is in talks with legendary athlete PT Usha also.

Other big names from the state who have recently joined the BJP in Kerala include former DGP Jacob Thomas and actor Krishna Kumar.
Credit: Teagasc

A new academic study has provided conclusive proof of terroir's influence on whisky, settling an industry-dividing debate for both whisky drinkers and producers alike.

The concept of terroirthe French principle that factors such as soil, microclimate, and topography together can influence flavor characteristicshas long been accepted in other drinks categories such as wine and cognac, but has polarized whisky experts for years.

However, a peer-reviewed paper published today in leading scientific journal Foods, spearheaded by Waterford Distillery, proves that terroir can also be found in barley, and significantly, the single malt whisky spirit distilled from it.

The first paper from The Whisky Terroir Project examined two barley varieties grown on two farms with separate environments in 2017 and 2018: Athy, County Kildare and Bunclody, County Wexford in South Eastern Ireland.

Each sample of barley was micro-malted and micro-distilled in laboratory conditions to produce 32 different whisky distillate samples. These were then tested by world-leading whisky lab analysts and using the very latest analytical methods of Gas chromatographymass spectrometryolfactometry (GC/MS-O), as well as highly trained sensory experts.

Key findings include:

More than 42 different flavor compounds, half of which were directly influenced by the barley's terroir.

The sheltered inland Athy site had predominantly higher pH levels with increased amounts of Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg) and Molybdenum (Mo) in its limestone based soil. It had consistent, higher temperatures and lower rainfall. Whisky new make spirit made from this barley was characterized by toasted almond notes, and a malty, biscuity, oily finish.

The more exposed Bunclody site had lower pH levels with increased amounts of Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu) and Manganese (Mn) in its soil, which is based on a shale or slate bedrock. The farmland is closer to the coast and was typically subject to more volatile weather. Whisky new make spirit made from this barley was lighter and floral, with a flavor of fresh fruitiness.

The findings of the study are significant for the whisky industry as the presence of terroir within the spirit distilled from barley creates the possibility of producing regionally specific whiskies in the same vein as wines, potentially an Appellation Controlee system of provenance.

Dr. Dustin Herb, lead researcher and post-doctoral researcher at Oregon State University, said: "This interdisciplinary study investigated the basis of terroir by examining the genetic, physiological, and metabolic mechanisms of barley contributing to whisky flavor. Using standardized malting and distillation protocols, we preserved distinct flavors associated with the testing environments and observed year-to-year variations, indicating that terroir is a significant contributor to whisky flavor."

Mark Reynier, founder and CEO of Waterford, said: "Barley is what makes single malt whisky the most flavorsome spirit in the world. This study proves that barley's flavors are influenced by where it is grown, meaninglike wine and cognacwhisky's taste is terroir-driven."

"Critics claimed any terroir effect would be destroyed by the whisky-making process, saying there is no scientific evidence to prove that terroir even exists. Well, there is now."

Waterford, a global whisky brand based in Ireland, uses a terroir-driven approach for all its single malt whiskies, with barley from each of its 40 Irish farms harvested, stored, malted and distilled separately each year. It has produced whisky from almost 100 different terroirs as Single Farm Origin distillations since it was founded.

Waterford's Whisky Terroir Project was undertaken by a truly international team of academics from the U.S., Scotland, Greece, Belgium and Ireland, including: Prof. Kieran Kilcawley and Maria Kyraleou of Teagasc Food Research Centre, part of the Irish Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine; Enterprise Ireland; Minch Malt; and featured cooperation from Scotland's leading whisky laboratory.

Professor Kieran Kilcawley, principal research officer at Teagasc, said: "We utilized gas chromatography olfactometry which enabled us to discern the most important volatile aroma compounds that impacted sensory perception of the new make spirit. This research not only highlights the importance of terrior, but also enhances our knowledge of key aroma compounds in whisky."

This first step of the project explores the terroir impact via a laboratory malted and distilled spirit for complete production uniformity. The next stagewhich will be published in 2022further explores the same role of terroir in whisky, this time using analysis based on Waterford Distillery's own commercial spirit and matured whisky.

More information: The Impact of Terroir on the Flavour of Single Malt Whisk(e)y New Make Spirit, Foods 2021, The Impact of Terroir on the Flavour of Single Malt Whisk(e)y New Make Spirit,2021, doi.org/10.3390/foods10020443

Provided by Teagasc
Deadly weather will be hitting the U.S. more often and the country faces security threats if it is not properly prepared for it, climate scientists have declared.

The experts made the proclamation on Wednesday as Texas and other states battled winter storms that caused historic power outages, leaving millions of residents without heat or hot water in below freezing temperatures.

'This definitely was an anomaly but one that is likely to occur more frequently as a result of climate change,' Sara Eftekharnejad, assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Syracuse University, told the Associated Press.

'There probably needs to be better planning, because we're starting to see more extreme weather events across the country,' she added, referencing both the severe cold currently gripping Texas and the intense heat wave that fueled deadly wildfires in California last year.

Climate experts say this week's storms - with more still heading east - fit a pattern of worsening extremes under climate change and demonstrate that local, state and federal officials have failed to do nearly enough to prepare for greater and more dangerous weather.

Deadly weather will be hitting the U.S. more often, and America needs to get better at dealing with it, climate scientists have declared. Pictured: People line up to collect firewood from a wood heap opened to the public in Dallas on Wednesday after power went out and residents were left freezing

In recent weeks, hundreds of millions of US residents have been at the mercy of severe winter storms, with current infrastructure inadequate for dealing with such events. Pictured: A snowplow moves through New York City on February 1

More than 100 million people live in areas under winter weather warnings, watches or advisories, and blackouts are expected to continue in some parts of the country for days.

At least two dozen people have died during the winter storms this week while struggling to find warmth inside their homes.

Power supplies of all sorts failed in the extreme cold, including natural gas-fired power plants that were knocked offline amid icy conditions.

Michael Craig, an assistant professor of energy systems at the University of Michigan, said the events in California and Texas show that 'what we have now is not going to do it in the face of climate change. It's only going to get worse from here.''

Eftekharnejad believes better forecasting - both short-term and long-term - would help avoid catastrophic failures such as the current outages in Texas and other states, as would large-scale storage systems that can supply electricity when demand spikes and a greater diversity of power sources.

President Joe Biden says he will spend up to $2 trillion on infrastructure and clean energy investment over four years. Biden has pledged to update the U.S. power grid to be carbon-pollution free by 2035 as well as weatherize buildings, repair roads and build electric vehicle charging stations.

'Building resilient and sustainable infrastructure that can withstand extreme weather and a changing climate will play an integral role' in creating jobs and meeting Biden's goal of 'a net-zero emissions future,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday.

In the past year, the U.S. has witnessed record-breaking wildfires, hurricanes and winter storms, leaving millions of residents without access to power, food and water. Pictured: Hurricane Sally approaches Gulf Shores, Alabama last September

A firefighter assesses the evolution of the Bobcat Fire near Los Angeles last September

'It's only going to get worse from here': Sever winter storms, such as the one currently moving across the United States, are only going to become more regular. Pictured: Vehicles traveling along unplowed roads in Memphis, Tennessee earlier this week

The disaster in Texas and other states 'is a reminder that our nation's critical infrastructure is vulnerable to extreme weather events and we can no longer turn a blind eye to the resiliency investments needed to protect it,'' said Sen. Tom Carper, , chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, who met with Biden at the White House last week.

'The cost associated with addressing climate change and improving our infrastructure's resilience is always going to be less than the cost of rebuilding or failing to act,'' Carper said.

Climate change also is hurting military readiness. Damage from a 2018 hurricane at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida and 2019 flooding at Nebraskas Offutt Air Force Base, for example, led the Pentagon to send service members as far away as Britain to train.

'The cost associated with addressing climate change and improving our infrastructure's resilience is always going to be less than the cost of rebuilding or failing to act': Pictured: Residents in Houston, Texas wait hours to fill propane tanks after freezing weather buckled the state's power grid and caused widespread blackouts

Another 2018 hurricane that hit North Carolinas Camp Lejeune, home to one-third of the U.S. Marine Corps capability, caused enough damage to degrade training overall, senior U.S. military authorities concluded.

Hardening military installations against worsening natural disasters will cost trillions. But it has to be done, said Joan VanDervort, a former longtime Defense Department climate expert now with the Center for Climate and Security think tank.

'We have eyes overseas that are looking at our vulnerability and seeing how we respond. ... There are enemies out there that will certainly take advantage of it.'
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Thursday urged efforts to pool wisdom to improve the government's work and promote sustainable, healthy economic and social development.

When chairing a State Council executive meeting, Li was briefed on the handling of suggestions from deputies to the National People's Congress (NPC) and proposals from members of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in 2020.

In 2020, offices and departments under the State Council coordinated the handling of 8,108 suggestions from NPC deputies and 4,115 proposals submitted by CPPCC members, taking up 88.3 percent and 84.9 percent of the total, respectively, according to the meeting.

The meeting pointed out that relevant departments adopted about 3,700 pieces of advice and subsequently introduced some 1,500 policy measures.

Concrete results must be achieved concerning the adopted advice, the meeting noted.

This year's "two sessions" will be held soon. The meeting required that hearing advice from NPC deputies and CPPCC members and handling proposals, as an essential part of the government's work, should be integrated into the government's decision-making process and policy implementation, to help secure a good start for fully building a modern socialist country.

The meeting urged efforts to effectively collect and take in the advice and recommendations from NPC deputies and CPPCC members during the two sessions.

Proposal handling shall be closely incorporated into the work of the government, the meeting noted, adding that the quality of proposal handling should be raised.

It also called on relevant departments to fulfill their due responsibilities in this regard.
The head of Alabamas Republican party is calling on UAB to act on a professors controversial statements following the death of conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh.

In a Thursday morning tweet, GOP chief Terry Lathan asked how many times UAB would be disgusted over the antics of archaeology professor Sarah Parcak without acting.

So @UABNews how many times will you be disgusted over her antics? Blazers deserve better. You should be making national news for your good things. Other than another we are appalled statement what are you going to do? Lathan tweeted.

A woman who works at a worldwide premiere cancer fighting facility glad someone with cancer died and wanted suffering is messed up, Lathan added in a separate tweet.

So @UABNews how many times will you be disgusted over her antics? Blazers deserve better. You should be making national news for your good things. Other than another we are appalled statement what are you going to do? #ALpolitics https://t.co/7uIXTa73kb  Terry Lathan (@ChairmanLathan) February 18, 2021

UAB is continuing to review the matter, according to spokesperson Alicia Rohan.

Personnel matters are handled between the institution and the employee, she added.

Parcak drew widespread criticism yesterday over a now-deleted tweet following Limbaughs death from cancer at age 70.

When a terrible piece of scum who caused immeasurable harm to millions dies, there is no sympathy, Parcak tweeted. Only a desire that they suffered until their last breath.

UAB President Ray Watts issued a statement condemning the tweet.

UAB is disgusted and extremely troubled that Sarah Parcak would tweet something so unprofessional and blindly inhumane and cruel. Her poor judgment is completely counter to our shared values as an institution that include integrity and respect. She absolutely does not speak for our university, and we are reviewing the matter, Watts said.

The Limbaugh tweet wasnt the first controversial one from Parcak, an Egyptian archaeology expert at UAB and a professor at the universitys Department of Anthropology

In September, she drew condemnation from the university on tweets following the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in which she said late Supreme Court Justice was stronger than than any M*GA f*ckstick bootlicker could ever dream of. UAB said the tweet  a reference to former President Trumps supporters  reflects poor judgement and do not represent the opinions of our university.

Parcak is an Egyptian archaeology expert at UAB and a professor at the universitys Department of Anthropology who used space satellites to discover the street plan of an ancient Egyptian city.

University condemned white supremacists

Parcaks supporters on Twitter suggested UAB had not responded as quickly or vigorously during an earlier controversy over white supremacists on campus.

In 2019, the Executive Committee of UABs Faculty Senate approved a statement against bigotry after three members of the campus community were publicly identified as a either having been associated with a white supremacist organization and/or having made racist statements in personal online posts.

The statement said while the university recognized the constitutional right to free speech, it would take action against comments that violated its policies.

We want to assure you that UAB is against racism, white supremacy, discrimination and hate in all its forms, the statement read. The thoughts expressed by such groups and in such posts are not shared by the institution and do not align with our values.

We reject all forms of racism, xenophobia, and sexism - as well as bigotry in all of its forms. We will not tolerate any such activities or communications in our classrooms, research and teaching laboratories, clinics and hospitals, or anywhere else on the UAB campus, the statement said.

Updated Feb. 18 at noon to reflect comments from UAB spokesperson.
Prominent Russian actor Andrei Myagkov has died at the age of 82.

Media reports cited friends and colleagues of the actor on February 18 as saying that Myagkov died in Moscow of an unspecified illness.

Myagkov played many roles in more than 50 films and television series starting in the early 1960s. His most prominent was the role of Zhenya Lukashin in the movie Irony Of Fate, shot in 1975 by director Eldar Ryazanov.

Watching that film on New Year's Eve turned into a tradition in the former Soviet Union.

Based on reporting by TASS and Interfax
[February 18, 2021] Andersen Global Continues Central Asia Expansion With One of Turkmenistan's Largest Law Firms

Andersen Global extends its platform in Central Asia through a Collaboration Agreement with Turkmenistan-based Altyn Kanun LLC, further strengthening the organization's presence in the region by providing additional coverage. Founded in 2008, Altyn Kanun LLC provides legal services to leading transnational corporations, financial institutions, investment funds, government agencies and large companies at the local and international levels. The full-service firm, led by Managing Partner Kerim M. Akmamedov, has capabilities in corporate, commercial, litigation, dispute resolution, labor, energy, customs and trade, banking and tax. The firm focuses on various sectors of the economy such as oil and gas, energy, chemical, mining, textile, construction, transport and logistics. "Our clients' needs will always be at the center of everything we do," Kerim said. "Over the years, our firm has been recognized for providingclients with high-level services as well as maintaining the highest standards of integrity and transparency in the provision of services. Collaborating with the like-minded individuals at Andersen Global further supplements our growth as we continue to expand and deepen our range of our services."



"Kerim and his team have demonstrated their commitment to stewardship, which has led them to be one of the leading law firms in Turkmenistan," Andersen Global Chairman and Andersen CEO Mark Vorsatz said. "They have deep knowledge and expertise of the country's legal environment. Our aligned values and client-focused approach allows for a synergistic collaboration that positions us for further expansion as we continue to add more resources in the region." Andersen Global is an international association of legally separate, independent member firms comprised of tax and legal professionals around the world. Established in 2013 by U.S. member firm Andersen Tax LLC, Andersen Global now has more than 7,000 professionals worldwide and a presence in over 253 locations through its member firms and collaborating firms.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005366/en/

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When the first COVID-19 vaccination clinics opened in the Lehigh Valley, public health officials knew that some of those signing up for shots would come from outside the region.

The vaccines are federally funded so the clinics cant turn away people who dont meet a residency requirement. But the buzz around how efficient the Lehigh Valley has been at administering vaccines has been stronger than perhaps anyone anticipated.

Large numbers of eligible vaccine recipients at Lehigh Valley clinics have travelled to get their shots, directors from the Allentown and Bethlehem health bureaus said during a virtual forum this week.

The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission hosted the forum Tuesday night as part of its Transformative Talk series, and the topic for the night was the rollout of COVID-19 vaccinations.

When the Bethlehem Health Bureau opened its vaccination clinic last month, almost 50% of those with appointments were from outside the region, said Kristen Wenrich, Bethlehem health director. She said those numbers have since leveled out.

Some have gone farther than others.

Allentown Health Director Vicky Kistler told forum participants that New York and New Jersey residents have been among the out-of-towners to flock to the Allentown Health Bureaus clinics. But she also pointed to cases where Florida residents have flown in to Lehigh Valley International Airport to get a vaccination. Theyve gone back home and then returned a month later for the second dose, she said.

For those from Florida, the cost of the flights havent been a huge financial burden because low-cost carrier Allegiant Air offer fares between LVIA and several Sunshine State airports for as low as $29 one way, Kistler said.

The pilgrimages are a symptom of unique circumstances in the Lehigh Valley that put the region ahead of most others in the state in terms of public health.

With two strong health networks  Lehigh Valley Health Network and St. Lukes University Network  and two city health bureaus operating clinics, the Lehigh Valley has a remarkable infrastructure in place for a massive public vaccination effort.

Vaccination efforts locally and across Pennsylvania have taken a hit after some facilities over the last month administered shots that should have been reserved as second-doses, officials revealed Wednesday.

Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure said the Lehigh Valleys capabilities at administering vaccine are far ahead of the federal governments capabilities at delivering vaccine.

Everyone in the Lehigh Valley could be vaccinated if the supply existed, but it does not, McClure said. Theres just not enough supply in the pipeline today.

Kistler said most regions of Pennsylvania arent as fortunate as the Lehigh Valley in terms of public health infrastructure. Its an issue the state needs to address and a reason why in-state residents from outside this region have joined out-of-state residents in traveling here to get vaccinated, she said.

Its a frustrating process for those who dont have a hometown connection to a hospital or health bureau, she said.

Even in the Lehigh Valley, the two city health bureaus are small and the regions success in mass vaccinations wouldnt be possible if not for the two health networks, Kistler said.

Wenrich said focusing on getting vaccine to Lehigh Valley residents, particularly those in minority communities, remains a priority to public health officials. There are ways to do this, she said, pointing to efforts to better educate minority communities about the safety of the vaccine and opening call centers that book appointments exclusively to Lehigh Valley residents.

The clinics also have the ability to refer anyone from another county with a health department back to that county to get vaccinated, Wenrich said.

For those locals growing impatient and perhaps irritated that out-of-towners are ahead of them in lines forming in their own backyards, the message from both health directors is to keep following the Centers for Disease Control guidelines and hang in there.

If you social distance, if you wear your mask, you will be OK until you get your vaccine, Kistler said, adding that everyone should also be cautious about communal meals where people are taking off their masks to eat and drink.

Said Wenrich: Everyone just needs to exercise patience. We are literally working around the clock. Our area is very fortunate. Were trying to be fair. We will get to everybody.

Pennsylvania reported on Wednesday that it has administered 1.75 million of the 2.76 million vaccine doses it has been allocated through Feb. 20. About 82% of first doses and 38% of second doses have been given.

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Nick Falsone can be reached at nfalsone@lehighvalleylive.com.
Australias Ambassador to US Calls on Biden to Rejoin Trans-Pacific Partnership

Australias Ambassador to the United States, Arthur Sinodinos, has called on U.S. President Joe Biden to rejoin the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

While the United States was an original member of the agreement, former President Donald Trump withdrew from the TPP after his election in 2016.

The remaining 11 countries then re-negotiated a new free trade agreement, the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which was signed on March 8, 2018.

President Donald Trump shows the executive order withdrawing the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership on Jan. 23. (Ron Sachs  Pool/Getty Images)

The current CPTPP members are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Darussalam, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, New Zealand, Singapore, and Vietnam.

Speaking at an online economic development conference on Wednesday, Sinodinos said that Australia needs the United States back in the agreement to help reform the World Trade Organisation alongside other like-minded countries, which would encourage China to operate within a rules-based order rather than somehow seek to change the order in their own favour.

Ultimately, what we want to do is encourage the U.S. to deepen its economic engagement in the region by the joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Sinodinos said.

Sinodinos said the United States was needed in the TPP to maximise the benefits of the agreement and to maximise the economic and strategic benefits of the United States being in the region.

At the moment the Trans-Pacific Partnership is a bit like Hamlet without the prince, Sinodinos told Sevens Sunrise in January. It needs the United States to set the rules and the standards in the region.

There was vocal opposition from both Democrats and Republicans to the TPP in 2015 and 2016, with both Bernie Sanders and Hilary Clinton among some of the most prominent politicians who voiced their unhappiness with the trade pact.

Sanders wrote in an op-ed: If both Clinton and I agree that the TPP should not get to the floor of Congress this year, its hard to understand why an amendment saying so would not be overwhelmingly passed, he said.

Sinodinos has previously urged Trump to re-join the agreement, telling U.S. foreign policy experts it gave the region safety in numbers against China.
Checkbook.org researchers looked at 600 used cars for sale and found 227 of them had at least one unaddressed safety recall. "This investigations frightening findings show that urgent action is needed to ensure the safety of used cars, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said. "It is unacceptable that defective cars are regularly sold with known, potentially life-threatening safety issues to unsuspecting buyers."

Each year millions of used cars are sold with potentially deadly unaddressed safety recalls. The new owners of the affected vehicles often have no idea they are driving cars that could pose a danger, possibly a life-threatening one, to themselves, their passengers, and other drivers. Today, nonprofit Consumers Checkbook, in partnership with the Consumer Federation of America (CFA), is releasing the results of an investigation that exposes the breadth of the problem and the significant risk to Americans safety. The full report is available at Checkbook.org/recalls.

Between 2010 and 2018, automakers in the U.S. recalled 238 million cars and light trucks due to unsafe defects. As mandated by federal law, automobile manufacturers issue recalls to inform vehicle owners about often dangerous problems. Checkbooks investigation revealed many cars deemed unsafe until repaired end up on used-car lots, where theyre resold by dealers that have not fixed the problems nor informed buyers about them.

Checkbooks researchers selected 10 vehicle models manufactured between 2010 and 2019 with previously announced recalls: 2014-18 Chrysler 300; 2013-16 Dodge Dart; 2013-14 Ford Escape; 2011-16 Honda Accord; 2011-14 Hyundai Sonata; 2012-16 Kia Soul; 2016-17 Nissan Maxima; 2012-14 Subaru Impreza; 2011-19 Toyota Corolla; and 2011-18 Volvo S60. Researchers searched for these cars on six major used-car online marketplaces and identified 600 individual vehicles up for sale in seven major metro areas. Researchers then checked the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) database for unaddressed recalled safety defects for each.

Per the NHTSAs database, Checkbook found 227 of the 600 automobilesnearly 40 percent of themhad at least one unaddressed problem subject to a recall, almost all of them serious, such as engines that might stall, brakes that might fail, and seatbelts that might not operate properly in the event of a crash. Checkbook found one vehicle up for sale that had four unaddressed open recalls.

It is unbelievable  and a surprise to most consumers  that dealerships routinely sell vehicles with open recalls, and in most cases its perfectly legal to do so, said Kevin Brasler, executive editor of Consumers Checkbook. What other industry gets a pass on knowingly selling defective dangerous products? A store would face massive fines and lawsuits if it knowingly sold contaminated meat or produce or filled prescriptions with medications after a pharmaceutical company warned that they might contain harmful contaminants. So why do we let used-car sellers get away with knowingly peddling dangerously defective vehicles? Its unacceptable.

Used-car dealers or anyone else can easily check a car for an unrepaired recalled defect simply by entering the vehicles 17-character VIN on the NHTSA website. Recalls can be addressed at no cost to vehicle owners.

The automobile recall program is one of the governments most important auto safety functions, but to be truly effective, car dealers should not be allowed to simply resell vehicles with known and correctable defects, said Jack Gillis, CFAs executive director and author of The Car Book. Simply put, profiting from the sale of any product with a known defect is unconscionable, and this investigation shows it is happening all the time.

Advocates say whats needed is a federal law requiring dealers to address recalled defects before selling, leasing, or loaning out a used vehicle. The Used Car Safety Recall Repair Act, introduced in the U.S. Senate by Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) would do just that.

This investigations frightening findings show that urgent action is needed to ensure the safety of used cars, Blumenthal said. It is unacceptable that defective cars are regularly sold with known, potentially life-threatening safety issues to unsuspecting buyers. Congress must act to pass my bill  the Used Car Safety Recall Repair Act  and require auto-dealers to repair dangerous used cars. This is a common-sense measure to protect American consumers and our roads from unsafe cars.

Among those that have opposed such legislation is the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA). Although NADA did not respond to repeated requests for an interview for the report, a statement posted on its website in September 2020 said such a law would cripple the used vehicle market, creating what amounts to a trade-in tax by devaluing used vehicles by an average of $1,210 to as much as $5,000, according to one study it cited. The statement said that while dealers support a 100% recall completion rate, some recalls are too minor to justify federal legislation like Blumenthals.

Consumer advocates disagree. I doubt many drivers would consider door latches that might fail, airbags that might not deploy, seat belts that might not work, engines and brakes that might fail, and other serious safety defects our investigation routinely revealed as minor problems, said Brasler. While car dealers, manufacturers, and their trade associations insist theyre working hard to make their products are safe, theyre clearly not doing nearly enough to actually make them so.

About Consumers' Checkbook/Center for the Study of Services

Consumers Checkbook (Checkbook.org) is an independent, nonprofit consumer organization, founded in 1974. Its mission is to help consumers get high-quality services and products at the best possible prices. In addition to working on national projects, Checkbook publishes Consumers Checkbook magazine in print and online in the Washington, D.C., San Francisco Bay, Puget Sound, Twin Cities, Chicago, Boston, and Delaware Valley areas, with ratings of service providers ranging from plumbers to surgeons. Checkbook is fully funded through subscription and publication sales, fees for information services, and consumer donations, and does not accept advertising dollars or other support from businesses so there can be no question of bias.

About the Consumer Federation of America

The Consumer Federation of America is an association of more than 250 non-profit consumer groups that, since 1968, has sought to advance the consumer interest through research, education, and advocacy.
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New York, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :A driver accused of striking and killing US rapper Nicki Minaj's father in a hit-and-run has been arrested, police said Wednesday.

Charles Polevich, 70, was charged with "Leaving the Scene of an Accident with a Fatality and Tampering with Evidence," New York state's Nassau County Police said on Twitter.

Polevich, who pleaded not guilty, was released on a $250,000 bond, his lawyer Michael Scotto told CNN.

Minaj's 64-year-old father Robert Maraj was walking down the street in the municipality of Mineola on Long Island on Friday when he was struck by a car.

The driver fled the scene and Maraj was taken to the hospital where he died Saturday.

Minaj, who was born in Trinidad and Tobago but raised in a Queens neighborhood not far from where her father was struck, has not yet issued an official statement.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 16:15:11|Editor: huaxia

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TASHKENT, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday that Uzbekistan's large support package was timely and well-targeted, though the COVID-19 pandemic has had "a marked, but so far relatively short-lived, adverse impact" on the country's economy.

The Uzbek authorities' strong policy reaction led to the country being among the few countries that showed positive overall economic growth in 2020, at a rate of 1.6 percent, the IMF said in a statement following a three-week remote mission in Uzbekistan.

"Growth is expected to pick up further in 2021, but the level of uncertainty remains high and the recovery will depend especially on vaccine rollout," it said, adding that the Uzbek economy is projected to grow by about 5 percent this year.

The Uzbek authorities faced the challenge of not only supporting the recovery, but also continuing with the country's transformation to a modern market economy, according to the statement.

Uzbekistan has made significant progress during the last few years in implementing ambitious reforms, focusing mainly on improving overall macro-economic management, foreign exchange, trade liberalization, and major improvements in fiscal and monetary policy frameworks.

"The reform agenda is still large, however, and the pace of reforms has inevitably slowed due to the impact of the pandemic on administrative capacity," the IMF said, reaffirming its readiness to continue to support Uzbekistan in these efforts with policy advice, technical assistance and financial assistance. Enditem

Update: Sony India has issued a statement taking cognizance of the issue and says that they have taken action against retailers involved in malpractice. We have taken serious note of the feedback of our patrons that have been made on our social media handle and reportedly on other platforms. We sincerely expect that the third party retail partners operate in compliance of the legal frame work of our country and follow ethical business practices. We have zero tolerance policy for any practices that are inconsistent to the afore-said. We have taken steps, as deemed appropriate and available with company including but not limited to discontinuing our association with such channel partners," Sony said in a statement.

Sony authorized retailers in India have reportedly been found engaging in PS5 scalping, shooting up the price of the console at a time when theres a global scarcity. The PlayStation 5 went on its first sale earlier this month but the demand trumped stocks across retailers in India. With no clear information on restocks yet, the companys own authorized retailers have been getting rid of the leftover stocks by selling the PS5 at more than the MRP in order to make some profit.

According to a detailed report by IGN India, some Sony-affiliated stores in the national capital have been selling the PS5 at Rs 65,000. This is a direct profit of Rs 15,000 that the retailer is making on the leftover stocks. Furthermore, the report states that the show owners have asked customers to refrain from telling the truth to Sony in the event it contacts them.

Sagar, a Twitter user posted a screenshot of his conversation with the authorized store for the PS5. The person is demanding Rs 65,000 from the person for the PS5 disc edition which launched at Rs 49,990 in India. The person called Sagar again and asked him to lie to Sony executive about his malpractice.

Sources have told IGN that Sony is well aware of the issue and has initiated an audit of its entire retail network pan India. This raises some grave concerns over Sonys vetting process of retailers in the country that resorted to such illegal means of making a profit on the PS5.

Meanwhile, the report mentions that based on the import data from the Indian Department of Commerce, less than 4,000 PS5 consoles made it to the country. Several potential PS5 owners were left disappointed in an attempt to grab the console as it was sold out in a flash. It remains to be seen when Sony replenishes the PS5 stocks in India but it is rumoured it could happen in March. In any case, we will be keeping an eye out for when it happens.

You can read our review of the PS5 here and know more about the PS5 restock situation here. In case you're interested in seeing how the PS5 feels like, watch the video below.
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Delhi HC says Central Vista a vital, essential national project.

Central Vista construction work to continue: Delhi HC.

I sincerely hope latest order (transferring CS to Delhi) is not reated to my meeting with you at Kalaikunda: Mamatanot reated to my meeting with you at Kalaikunda: Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM JRC

Do not understand what happened between your allowing extension to Chief Secretary on May 24 and your unilateralextension to Chief Secretary on May 24 and your unilateral order 4 days later: Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM JRC

All-India service and laws framed for it, have federal cooperation as cornerstone of its legl architecture: Mamata incooperation as cornerstone of its legl architecture: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

Presume earlier order by centre made in consultation with state government extending Chief secretary''s tenure for threestate government extending Chief secretary's tenure for three months from June 1, stands: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

`Shocked and stunned by unilateral order' recalling Chief Secretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCHSecretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCH JRC

Mamata writes to Modi; requests rescinding orders recalling WB Chief Secretary to Delhi. Chief Secretary to Delhi.
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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- As part of an ongoing internal investigation prompted by the federal corruption probe into House Bill 6, FirstEnergy Corp. says it unearthed improperly classified transactions, most of which occurred in Ohio, that were billed to customers and date back more than 10 years.

Company officials said the improper expenses, which they disclosed Thursday in a required federal filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, were small enough to not have a major impact on the companys finances.

But they said the expenses included $4 million the company previously disclosed paying in early 2019 to an entity associated with a former state official Gov. Mike DeWine has said is Sam Randazzo, whom DeWine hired in January 2019 to run the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. The company fired its then-CEO Chuck Jones and two other top company officials shortly after they discovered the payment, and Randazzo resigned from the PUCO the day after the payment was disclosed, and the same week the FBI searched his home.

The company said it is working with regulators to address the improper expenses.

Asked during a conference call with investors on Thursday for additional details, Chris Pappas, a board member whos taken a more active day-to-day role since the emergence of the HB6 probe, said they included lobbying expenses and vendor payments. FirstEnergy is being audited by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission over its lobbying expenses, it disclosed this week. Utility companies are restricted from spending ratepayer money directly on lobbying.

A whole variety of small items like that, but its not focused in one area or otherwise. These are small items over a period of time that will need to be corrected, Pappas said.

As part of their ongoing efforts to clean up the companys image, FirstEnergy officials also announced Thursday they are scaling back their political activities. The company, which long has been one of the major political contributors in Ohio, has suspended its political spending, and in the future, wont be giving money to 501C4s, the technical name for political nonprofits with lax disclosure rules that often are referred to as dark money groups.

Our activity in this space will be much more limited than it has been in the past and with closer alignment to our strategic goals, and with additional oversight and significantly more robust disclosure, Interim CEO Steve Strah said Thursday. With this additional transparency, my goal is to make it crystal clear exactly what efforts we support.

Asked in particular about 501C4s, Strah said: You can count on us not contributing to any 501C4 that is politically focused. Thats going to be the basis of our activity going forward.

Prosecutors have said dark money groups were central to a bribery scheme in which FirstEnergy and its affiliates funneled $61 million in anonymous political spending. Company money was used to help push HB6, which is supposed to send $1 billion to two Ohio nuclear plants owned by a former FirstEnergy subsidiary, and to support then House Speaker Larry Householder, who backed the bill.

But federal tax filings show the companys money also flowed through a vast dark-money network, revealed by the federal criminal investigation, to diverse causes including a campaign to undermine Cleveland Public Power and to support DeWines daughters bid in an Ohio county prosecutors race.

Householder was arrested last July, and has pleaded not guilty to a federal charge. Two political operatives involved in passing HB6 have pleaded guilty in recent months, while a Householder-aligned political nonprofit is expected to enter a guilty plea Friday. FirstEnergy has not been accused of wrongdoing or officially named in the federal probe, but charging documents make clear the company is central to the investigation.

Some state officials have called for Ohio to beef up its disclosure laws for political spending in the aftermath of the HB6 scandal. But a bill introduced by state lawmakers last year failed to advance.

FirstEnergy addressed the improper payments and change in its political spending policies during the Thursday conference call, which was scheduled to discuss FirstEnergys financial performance during the final three months of 2020. The company reported a $242 million quarterly profit. But many analyst questions revolved around the ongoing federal criminal investigation into HB6.

Company officials were eager to tout a turnaround story as they manage the ongoing federal probe and perform damage control with Ohio customers and politicians. As part of what they portrayed as a goodwill gesture, FirstEnergy announced earlier this week it was forfeiting a lost distribution revenue customer charge through which it made up for lost electricity sales as a result of its state-mandated energy-efficiency programs.

The company during the call said that Carl Icahn, a well-known billionaire investor, recently had informed FirstEnergy officials of plans to buy a major stake in the company, causing FirstEnergys stock price to spike nearly 8% Thursday morning.

I would just say in general, were taking a new and fresh approach to Ohio, Strah said. Its one of collaboration and creating a more constructive environment, and its really around listening and learning in terms of not only the regulators views but all of our stakeholders. And the first step was to forego the lost distribution revenue issue.

The company was generally tight-lipped about the details of the investigation, which is ongoing. Asked about a change in wording FirstEnergy used in regulatory filings to describe the $4 million payment to the unnamed state official, company officials didnt elaborate didnt beyond what the company wrote in its filings, which are closely reviewed by lawyers.

When the company initially disclosed the $4 million payment in October, FirstEnergy officials said former management had said it was to terminate a consulting arrangement the unnamed official had before taking the state job, which involved directly regulating FirstEnergy and other utilities.

The company said at the time it could not determine if the payments were for the purposes represented within the consulting agreement. They also said Jones and other senior executives did not reasonably ensure that relevant information about the payment was communicated with board members and independent auditors the company hired after the emergence of the HB6 probe.

In a disclosure filed earlier this week, the company used more pointed language to describe the $4 million, saying it may have been for purposes other than those represented within the consulting agreement.

As we learn more, we understand more, and as we do, we update our disclosure. The language thats in our [Thursday SEC filing] reflects our current understanding of the situation, Hyun Park, the companys recently hired chief ethics officer and senior vice president, said Thursday.

In part of the Thursday SEC filing that describes FirstEnergys possible future financial risks, the company said after it discovered the payment in October, it had to renegotiate the terms of its credit access with banks and other institutions that lend it money.

Any further breaches, including any breach related to alleged failures to comply with anti-corruption and anti-bribery laws, could cause the companys debt to immediately become due, which could make the company unable to cover its bills, FirstEnergy wrote in the filing.
Vide Press announces a new book about worth, work and COVID

Popular author, speaker, and Christian entrepreneur, Brian Sooy, shares in his new Vide Press book how COVID has been devastating for many people at work, yet for others, its actually been a blessing. The truth is, were not all in this together, he writes.

In his book, Essential: Finding Worth in Your Work During Uncertain Times, Sooy explains how if we are genuinely in this together, works essential nature and its value for our lives and livelihoods would not be debatable. At the beginning of the lockdowns, companies anxiously checked the 14 categories of workers and businesses deemed essential to meet operational requirements. Millions of people experienced loss, grief, and stress when they were considered nonessential.

When we find identity in our work and are confined to our homes, what becomes of the community for which we all long and the meaning we gain from purposeful work?

If anything is right, we will all get through this, but to be in it together assumes we have mutually agreeable goals for its outcome. Many people are trying to survive, while others are thriving. Some have given up the fight for what is true and beautiful in society and culture, while others fight to preserve what is good and honorable. But Sooy writes in his book how we are ALL essential.

Regardless of what any government official decides or legislates, it is not their role, right, or responsibility to declare which jobs or vocations are essential. To declare any of us nonessential denies our inalienable rights and demeans Christs sacrifice for all people.

To limit our right to work when, where, and how we choose eliminates the spirit of risk and reward associated with the entrepreneurial spirit found in cultures worldwide. People want the freedom to determine their present and future without being told how to do it.

If your job or vocation defines your identity and your job is labeled nonessential, you may begin to doubt who you are and struggle with your worth. Sooy writes, When you think of your job or vocation as something that only fulfills your needs, you may be disappointed. When you believe your work, career, or role is precisely that to which God calls, you can be confident in its worth because you are an essential member of the body of Christ.

Your job is a spiritual gift from God that empowers you to meet the needs of others. That alone should set you free. No matter where you serve, you are fulfilling your calling! Who you are matters far more to God than what you do. Work is a precious gift from God, but it must not define who you are.

Your work doesnt define who you are. Every person has worth. All people made in Gods image have the right to work, create, and add value to the world. To everybody who works, remember this truth: You are essential. Dont let anybody convince you otherwise!

Essential: Finding Worth in Your Work During Uncertain Times is available wherever books are sold.

Farmers' Protest: Samajwadi Party legislators stage protest outside Uttar Pradesh Assembly

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

Lucknow, Feb 18: Legislators of the Samajwadi Party on Thursday staged a protest outside the Uttar Pradesh Assembly building in support of the farmers' agitation before the beginning of the state's budget session.

Raising slogans against the government and in favour of farmers, the SP lawmakers sat before the statue of former prime minister and kisan leader Chaudhary Charan Singh in the Vidhan Bhawan compound and demanded that the Centre's three new agri laws be repealed.

Explained: Who is Princess Latifa, why is she jailed by her billionaire father in Dubai?

Earlier, some legislators arrived on a tractor carrying the party flag , sugarcane and a sack with 'dhaan' written on it as a mark of protest but were stopped by policemen.

"These things are symbols of agriculture. Cane prices have not been increased but the prices of diesel and petrol have been hiked several times," said a legislator when asked why he had come to the Vidhan Sabha on a tractor.

"The tractor is a symbol of the country's prosperity. The green revolution and increase in income of farmers happened because of tractors. To give the message that the SP is with the farmers and will fight for them, we decided to come to the Vidhan Sabha on a vehicle (tractor) that is identified with farming," he said.

The budget session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly began on Thursday with the address by the Governor. The state budget is scheduled to be tabled on Monday.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 15:34 [IST]
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 21:26:15|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- China's decision to pull BBC World News off the air countrywide is legitimate and reasonable, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said here on Thursday.

Hua made the remarks when asked to comment on British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab's claim that the decision by China's National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) to ban the Britain-based BBC World News broadcaster was "an unacceptable curtailing of media freedom." Enditem
Agencies | Abu Dhabi

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has warned that anyone who fails to report that he or she is infected with the COVID-19 will be prosecuted.

Under Articles 32, 33 and 38 of the Federal Law 14 of 2014 regarding the Prevention of Communicable Diseases, a jail sentence and or a fine between $2,722 and $13,600 will be pronounced against the offender.

It is mandatory for a person infected with COVID-19 to visit the Ministry of Health and Prevention or other health institutions to receive medical treatment or receive the appropriate advice in such cases, the public prosecution said in its warning.

The visit to a health institution enables the relevant authorities to stem the spread of the infection, it added.

It also helps boost the level of awareness of the risks of infection and the transmission of the infection.

The infected person must also adhere to the preventive measures, implement prescriptions and comply uncompromisingly with the instructions given to him/her to prevent the transmission of infection to others, the prosecution said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) holds her weekly news conference in the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center in Washington on Jan. 28, 2021. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Pelosis Office Fends Off Questions From House Republicans About Capitol Security

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has responded to a request from a group of House Republicans to explain decisions in regards to Capitol security before and on the day of the Capitol breach. She said on Monday they are attempting to deflect responsibility for the Capitol attack from Donald Trump.

Reps. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.), the ranking Republican on the House Committee on Administration; Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee; James Comer (R-Ky.), the ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform; and Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), the senior Republican on the House Select Committee on Intelligence all signed the letter.

Drew Hammill, Pelosis deputy chief of staff told Fox News that Pelosi has and will continue to take action to ensure accountability and enhance the security of the Capitol.

The letter demanded answers from Pelosi on the following questions, among others:

When Police Chief Sund made a request for National Guard support on Jan. 4, why was that request denied?

Did sergeant-at-arms Paul Irving get permission or instruction from your staff on Jan. 4 prior to denying Sunds request for the National Guard?

What conversations and what guidance did you and your staff give the sergeant-at-arms leading up to Jan. 6, specific to the security posture of the campus?

Five weeks have passed since the January 6th attack on the Capitol building, and many important questions about your responsibility for the security of the Capitol remain unanswered, the letter stated.

As you are aware, the Speaker of the House is not only the leader of the majority party, but also has enormous institutional responsibilities. The Speaker is responsible for all operational decisions made within the House. We have observed for two years this very heavy-handed and tightly controlled approach to House operations that has been exerted by yourself, your staff, and an army of appointed House officials.

Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Capitol Police to obtain videos and documents pertaining to last months breach of the Capitol building.

The public has a right to know about how Congress handled security and what all the videos show of the US Capitol riot. What are Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer trying to hide from the American people? Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said, referring to the Democratic speaker of the House and the Senate majority leader.

Mark Tapscott and Jack Phillips contributed to this report.
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The New York attorney general is suing Amazon over COVID-19 safety protocols, accusing the global online giant of being more concerned with making money than protecting its workers from getting sick.

The lawsuit, filed late on Tuesday, involves two Amazon facilities in New York City that employ more than 5000 workers. It alleges that Amazon failed to disinfect those facilities when infected workers had been present; didnt contact workers when they were exposed to the virus; and made employees work so much that they didnt have time to disinfect their workstations or stay socially distant.

While Amazon and its CEO made billions during this crisis, hardworking employees were forced to endure unsafe conditions, said New York Attorney General Letitia James, who filed the lawsuit.

Amazon has been accused of being more concerned with making money than protecting its workers from getting sick. Credit:Ruth Fremson/ The New York Times

The suit landed just days after Amazon preemptively sued to block it from happening. In its own lawsuit filed on Friday, Amazon said that unannounced inspections by the New York City sheriffs office found its New York warehouse went above and beyond safety requirements. On Wednesday, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel added that the attorney generals lawsuit doesnt present an accurate picture of Amazons response to the virus.
Good morning, North State. Here's what you need to know to start your day on Feb. 18.

California governor, lawmakers set $9.6B virus spending plan

Help could be on the way for people and businesses in California. Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders on Wednesday agreed to a $9.6 billion spending deal in coronavirus aid  if approved by the legislature. Small business owners in Northern California could apply for grants of up to $25,000. About 5.7 million people earning less than $30,000 per year could receive $600 relief checks.

Shasta County could move into state's red tier

Shasta County may soon move to the red tier of the state's Blueprint for a Safer Economy. It has been 10 days since the Super Bowl and Shasta County Public Health officials said Wednesday the region has not experienced a post-game surge. Health leaders said at this point, they do not expect to see one. If the county's positivity rate and the health equity metric remain at orange tier levels -- public health said the move into the red tier is likely.

First Butte Climate Action Plan workshop takes place today

The first virtual public workshop for the Butte Climate Action Plan will take place today. The goal is to implement the plan by 2021. There will be small group discussions followed by a Q and A session. That meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. Click here to register.

California lawmaker proposes ban on fracking by 2027

A new bill is calling for a ban on all fracking in California by 2027. The measure announced Wednesday comes months after Gov. Gavin Newsom called on the legislature to ban fracking by 2024. Climate groups said the technique harms the environment and threatens public health.

California DMV: Security breach at address verification company may compromise information

The DMV announced an investigation is underway after a company it uses to verify the information was a victim of a security breach. The department said its systems have not been compromised but the information like vehicle registration records from over the past 20 months may have been. The DMV said the company does not have access to any other personal information.

How to watch the Mars rover landing today

Today a new era of exploration  NASAs mars rover prepares to touch down on the red planet. The rover will commemorate the town of Paradise by carrying two tiles on it, dedicated to the town. The rover has been traveling through space since launching from Cape Canaveral, Florida, at the end of July. When it reaches Mars, Perseverance will have traveled 292.5 million miles on its journey from Earth. If all goes well -- and there is a chance it will not -- Perseverance will land around 3:55 p.m. ET.
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Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
In the picture: Subfreezing temperatures were noted all the way into south Texas as of 200 pm CST on 02/15/2021. Readings were below zero as far south as Kansas and Missouri.

It was even colder on the 15th. High temperatures were mostly in the single digits and teens. It was 4 degrees at Fayetteville (Washington County), Harrison (Boone County), and Highfill (Benton County), and 6 degrees at Mountain Home (Baxter County). At noon CST, given a north to northwest wind at 10 to 15 mph (and higher gusts), wind chill index readings ranged from zero to twenty below zero in northern and central sections, and a few degrees above zero in the south. While snow tapered off in the afternoon (there were leftover flurries), clouds hung around the bulk of the day. There was clearing after dark, especially in the northwest. With snow cover, the mercury plummeted. The 16th started with well below zero readings in the northwest. It was -20 degrees at Fayetteville (Washington County)! Going back through records (using information from the experimental station on the north side of town), it was comparably cold on the morning of February 10, 2011. Otherwise, it had not been this much below zero since 1930. At Highfill (Benton County), it was -13 degrees, with -9 degrees at Harrison (Boone County) and Russellville (Pope County), and -8 degrees at De Queen (Sevier County) and Fort Smith (Sebastian County). Little Rock (Pulaski County) had -1 degree, which was the lowest reading since December 23, 1989.

The portrait of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong is seen on Tiananmen Gate, which is covered during renovation works, in Beijing, China, in this May 2019 file photo. Reuters-Yonhap



'China 1949' tells the story of lingering fallout of Chinese civil war on East Asia and beyond



By Kang Hyun-kyung





Graham Hutchings, author of "China 1949: Year of Revolution" / Courtesy of Graham Hutchings

Graham Hutchings, an associate at Oxford University's China Center and honorary professor of politics and international relations at Nottingham University, revisited what happened in China about seven decades ago in his recently published book, "China 1949: Year of Revolution," providing clues as to what to expect in East Asia in the foreseeable future.



Calling 1949 "a decisive year" in China's modern history, the British scholar claimed that China and the world still live in the shadow of China's 1946-49 civil war that resulted in the establishment of the Chinese Communist Party.



"Unfortunately, the Chinese civil war, so far from being over, might flare up again. And that is a matter that will affect not just the Chinese people but all those in East Asia and indeed beyond," he said during a recent Korea Times interview.



Hutchings argued the three-year civil war in China between the Nationalist government led by Chiang Kai-shek and the communists under the leadership of Mao Zedong did not reach a conclusive ending.



"There are still two Chinas. Beijing won't allow that to continue for much longer," he said. "So 1949 is a year that casts a long shadow."





In "China 1949," the author zeroes in on two key historical figures in modern Chinese history  Mao and Chiang  and their struggles and clashes in their respective efforts to revolutionize or modernize China under their visions.



Hutchings observes that the two leaders had much in common.



"Intelligent, resourceful, determined, they both immersed themselves in the struggle to change China for the better, which dominated much of the political life of their country in the early decades of the twentieth century. Both were shamed by their country's weaknesses and both were determined to do something about it, often at great personal risk. They fought on the same side for a while, rallying to the cause of National Revolution in the early 1920s championed by Sun Yat-sen, leader of the 'recognized' GM, and backed by the Soviet Union," his book reads.



Despite their common traits, Mao and Chiang were pitted against each other with regards to their visions for the future of the country. "Yet doctrinally and in terms of their visions for the future of their country, the two men were miles apart. And while they both possessed extraordinary will power, confidence and sense of mission, it was to very different ends. Ultimately, it was communism that divided them," the author explains.





"China 1949: Year of Revolution" published by Bloomsbury Academic
ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) announced today that the 2021 Szent-Gyorgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research will be awarded to Tak W. Mak, Ph.D., senior scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and university professor at the University of Toronto, and Mark M. Davis, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and immunology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, for their breakthrough discoveries of the structure of T-cell receptor (TCR) and pioneering research in deciphering the mechanisms of T-cell recognition and development. These discoveries have formed a critical part of contemporary immuno-oncology and the molecular foundation for life-saving CAR (chimeric antigen receptor) T-cell therapies, a novel T-cell-based immunotherapy approach already approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of several types of blood cancer.

In March 1984, Mak was the first to molecularly clone the human gene encoding the TCR  chain. At the same time, Davis published the cloning of the murine TCR gene. These combined discoveries marked the beginning of a new era, making prior-to-which elusive cell-based immune-therapy a medical reality and effective new form of cancer treatment. Since then, both Mak and Davis have also made several other important and often complementary contributions in the fields of immunology, cancer biology and cancer therapy.

Based on the structure and biology of TCR and the mechanisms of T-cell recognition and development discovered by Mak and Davis, a disruptive novel approach called CAR T-cell therapy was developed by designing molecular changes to the external domain of a patient's own TCR. This causes the engineered CAR T-cells to be able to recognize specific molecules on the patient's tumor cells and mount stronger attacks against them. The remission rates of CAR T-cell therapies in certain cancers are much higher than other available treatments, and these CAR T-cell drugs have been approved by the FDA for the treatment of several hematopoietic malignancies, including lymphomas and leukemia.

Both Mak and Davis are continuing to make research progress. They are also collaborating to develop novel approaches for designing and producing TCRs that are highly specific in recognizing the neoantigens mainly appearing on the tumor cells of non-blood cancers. Their research efforts will bring increased clinical benefits not only to blood cancer patients but also to patients with solid tumors.

"The Szent-Gyorgyi Prize recognizes scientists who have enhanced our understanding of cancer," said Susan Band Horwitz, Ph.D., chair of the 2021 Prize selection committee and winner of the 2020 Szent-Gyorgyi Prize. "These two scientists, Doctors Davis and Mak, through their combined efforts to define and exploit the science of the T-cell receptor, have dramatically increased our comprehension of cancer and ability to treat the disease."

"We would like to see more and continued support to basic cancer research that is the true driving force for the development of novel cancer therapies," stated Sujuan Ba, Ph.D., co-chair of the 2021 Prize selection committee and president and CEO of NFCR. "What Mak and Davis have achieved is an outstanding example of how the discoveries made from basic cancer research can lay a solid foundation for the further development of life-saving clinical applications."

"It is indeed an honor to receive this prestigious award for our basic research on the T-cell receptor," said Dr. Mak. "Although our research helped in the development of T-cell based immunotherapy against certain blood cancers, identification of molecular targets specific for solid tumors is just beginning, and I hope our continued research around the TCR could lead to better cancer therapies in the future."

"We are thrilled and proud to be selected as the winners for the Szent-Gyorgyi Prize," said Dr. Davis. "As a scientist, the best reward to me is to see that the knowledge uncovered by research in my laboratory has been successfully applied to developing advanced therapies that have brought benefits to so many cancer patients."

Doctors Mak and Davis will be honored at an award ceremony in October 2021 in the greater Washington, D.C., area.

About the Szent-Gyorgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research

The Szent-Gyorgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research was established by the National Foundation for Cancer Research in honor of its co-founder, Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, M.D., Ph.D., recipient of the 1937 Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine. The award recognizes outstanding scientists who have expanded our understanding of cancer and cancer causation; whose vision has moved cancer research in new directions and whose discoveries have led to advances in cancer prevention, diagnosis or treatment. Its past recipients (and their associated institutions at the time of the award) are:

Susan Band Horwitz , Ph.D., Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 2020

, Ph.D., of Medicine, 2020 Steven A. Rosenberg , M.D., Ph.D., U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2019

, M.D., Ph.D., U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2019 Douglas R. Lowy , M.D., and John T. Schiller , Ph.D., U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2018

, M.D., and , Ph.D., U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2018 Michael N. Hall , Ph.D., Biozentrum of the University of Basel , 2017

, Ph.D., Biozentrum of the University of , 2017 Mary-Claire King , Ph.D., University of Washington School of Medicine, 2016

, Ph.D., School of Medicine, 2016 Frederick W. Alt , Ph.D., Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School , 2015

, Ph.D., Boston Children's Hospital and , 2015 James Allison , Ph.D., University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2014 and Nobel Laureate 2018

, Ph.D., MD Anderson Cancer Center, 2014 and Nobel Laureate 2018 Alex Matter , M.D., Experimental Therapeutics Centre and A*STAR, 2013

, M.D., Experimental Therapeutics Centre and A*STAR, 2013 Zhu Chen , M.D., Ph.D. and Zhen-Yi Wang , M.D., Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 2012

, M.D., Ph.D. and , M.D., Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 2012 Beatrice Mintz , Ph.D., Fox Chase Cancer Center, 2011

, Ph.D., Fox Chase Cancer Center, 2011 Peter K. Vogt , Ph.D., Scripps Research Institute , 2010

, Ph.D., , 2010 Ronald A. DePinho , M.D., Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School , 2009

, M.D., Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and , 2009 Carlo M. Croce , M.D., The Ohio State University , 2008

, M.D., The , 2008 Webster K. Cavenee , Ph.D., Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, University of California San Diego , 2007

, Ph.D., Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, , 2007 Harold F. Dvorak , M.D., Harvard Medical School and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 2006

About the National Foundation for Cancer Research

The National Foundation for Cancer Research (NFCR) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides scientists in the lab the funding they need to make and apply game-changing discoveries in cancer treatments, detection, prevention and, ultimately, a cure. NFCR has distinguished itself by emphasizing long-term, transformative research often overlooked by other major funding sources and/or deemed too risky. Since its establishment in 1973, NFCR has provided more than $390 million for cancer research and public education. For more information, visit http://www.nfcr.org.

CONTACT:

National Foundation for Cancer Research

Bradley Gillenwater, Senior Director for Corporate Engagement & Global Program Development

E-mail: [email protected] / Phone: 301-961-9161

SOURCE National Foundation for Cancer Research

Related Links

http://www.nfcr.org


New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Delhi government has speeded up the process of disbursing claims money to 488 construction workers under various schemes.

Cheques were personally handed over to the construction workers by Deputy Chief Minister and Labour Minister Manish Sisodia at an event in Delhi Secretariat on Thursday.

At the event, Sisodia said, "The Labour department has streamlined the way funds are disbursed." "Disbursements and aid used to get stuck in pipelines, the Delhi government has expedited this entire process for the benefit of its people." The grant-giving process for construction workers registered under the Delhi Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board was reviewed and eased by Sisodia. 181 beneficiaries received claims under the maternity scheme, 131 beneficiaries received claims under the education scheme, 53 under the death and funeral scheme and 51 beneficiaries under the pension scheme.

"Every construction worker of Delhi should have the confidence that my government stands with them in times of need. People of Delhi should have that level of trust in the government", said Sisodia.

The applicant needs to call on 1076 and a person from the department will pay a home visit to finalise the documentation process. After the completion of filing the applicant will receive a a message that their registration has been completed.

A construction worker who received benefits under this scheme said at the meeting that due to the lockdown he has been at home without food and work. He stated that it was an unbelievable to know that he would be getting Rs 10,000. Till date more than 48,000 construction workers have received Rs 10,000 each as COVID relief benefit.

Kusum, the wife of a construction worker who received Rs 30,000 under Maternal Health Scheme, said that these funds would be of great help to them and will help them eat and sleep better.

Jagdish, another construction worker from Paschim Vihar who received funds under the education scheme, said that his daughter got a scholarship under this scheme and with the help of this money she can finally attend college.

Urging workers to disseminate information on this scheme, Sisodia said "It is the key focus of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to extend help and hope to those who are not privileged. The politics of Delhi government is the politics of work. We have made schools; schools that have been constructed by all of you. We have provided free water and electricity to three-fourth of Delhi. We have subsidised healthcare. We don't just say things - we do them. I urge all of you to share information about this scheme with your relatives, friends and others." Once registered, the beneficiaries can receive approximately Rs 35,000-Rs 51,000 for the marriage of daughter and son, Rs 1,00,000 for people with disabilities, Rs 500-Rs 10,000 for education, Rs 3000 monthly for pension, Rs 2,00,000 for death due to accident, Rs 1,00,000 for death due to natural causes, Rs 10,000 for final rites, Rs 2000 to Rs 10,000 for healthcare and Rs 30,000 for maternal healthcare.

BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Senior Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi will visit Qatar, Uganda, Zambia and Kuwait at the invitation of the governments of the four countries, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said Thursday.

Yang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, will pay the official visits from Feb. 19 to 23, Hua said at a regular press briefing.
Rite Aid contacted customers this week to delay COVID-19 vaccination appointments due to supply interruptions beyond the retailers control, according to a Feb. 17 statement.

The company is among the first to participate in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program that is expected to provide about 100 doses per week to each of Rite Aids participating pharmacies, including in Michigan, for distribution based on state and local eligibility requirements.

Due to supply interruptions beyond our control, including severe winter weather impacting much of the United States this week, the U.S. government is experiencing delays in COVID-19 vaccine shipments and deliveries to participants of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program, the company said in a statement.

The supply interruption caused some vaccination appointments to be rescheduled; the company contacted customers directly. Anyone who has an appointment and was not contacted has not been affected and should proceed with their vaccination plan.

Initially, the program will provide vaccine doses to over half of Rite Aids locations in California, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and New York City. The goal is to provide vaccinations in all locations when supply becomes available.

Visit riteaid.com/covid-19 for up to date information on vaccine and testing availability in your area. Michiganders can schedule vaccination appointments at https://bit.ly/3axdu1R.

READ MORE:

Thursday, Feb. 18, coronavirus data by Michigan county: 68 counties now at 5% or below in positivity rates

Senior center warned of possible eviction over claims of repeated COVID safety order violations

Parade of snowstorms continues; See how next 2 storms impact Michigan

Health officials suspect wrestling events may have sparked COVID-19 outbreak at LakeVille High School
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NEW DELHI : Canadas Brookfield Asset Management Inc., Indias quasi-sovereign wealth fund National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) and private-equity firm Actis Llp have placed bids to buy Ashoka Concessions Ltd in a deal with an implied equity value of around $350 million, said two people aware of the development.

EY is running the sales process for the highways infrastructure firm.

It is now to be decided who gets the exclusivity on the deal that has an enterprise value (EV) of around $1.2 billion," one of the two people cited above said, requesting anonymity.

The roads portfolio of Ashoka Concessions comprises 15 assets, including six operational build, operate, transfer (BOT) toll projects, one operational BOT annuity project and eight under-construction hybrid annuity projects.

Ashoka Buildcon Ltd has a 61% stake in Ashoka Concessions, and the remaining 39% is held by Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA), one of the biggest foreign infrastructure investors in India.

In 2012, Macquarie, through its first India-focused fund, bought a stake in Ashoka Concessions for 800 crore. It finalized the deal jointly with State Bank of India.

Spokespersons for Brookfield, Actis, Macquarie Group and EY declined to comment.

As per NIIF policy, we do not comment on market speculation and information gathered from third-party sources," said an external spokesperson for NIIF in an emailed response.

Queries emailed to a spokesperson for Ashoka Buildcon on Monday remained unanswered.

To be sure, the sale process for Ashoka Concessions has been in the works for long. The person cited above did not give a timeline when a deal would be completed.

Mint reported on 6 December about Actis looking to buy Ashoka Concessions. I Squared Capital-owned Cube Highways had also shown interest in buying Ashoka Concessions.

This comes against the backdrop of the Modi administration lining up a large infrastructure capital expenditure plan. India has already awarded 13,000km length of roads involving an investment of 3.3 trillion under the 5.35 trillion Bharatmala project and plans to award another 8,500km of roads by next month. The Union budget for fiscal 2022 increased the outlay for road transport and highways ministry to 1.18 trillion.

Investors are looking at opportunities attracted by the governments intensified focus on the infrastructure sector.

With more than $575 billion in assets under management, Brookfield has been placing bets on Indias infrastructure space, investing around $20 billion in the country so far. It recently bid to buy a majority stake in Fortum Oyjs 500 megawatts (MW) solar projects in India, in a deal estimated at about half a billion euros. It also signed an exclusivity agreement to buy Mahindra Sustens engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) business, and 1.2 gigawatts (GW) of solar assets, at an enterprise value of around 5,000 crore, as reported by Mint.

With $4.5 billion of equity capital commitments across its three funds, NIIF has a road project platform in India with Canadas Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) ROADIS, that plans to invest $2 billion as equity in acquiring road assets in India.

Actis, which invests only in emerging markets, on its part, has committed $2.1 billion to India and has been operating in the energy, financial services and real estate sectors.

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[February 18, 2021] CPI Aerostructures Announces Decision to Expand Manufacturing Operations on Long Island

- Company Will Retain Existing Jobs and Add 85 New Full-Time Jobs Over Five Years - - Company Will Receive Up to $3.75 Million From Empire State Development and Remain and Grow in New York State - EDGEWOOD, N.Y., Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CPI Aerostructures, Inc. (CPI Aero) (NYSE American: CVU) today announced that Empire State Development (ESD) has awarded the company up to $2.7 million in Excelsior Jobs tax credits and an ESD Capital Grant of $1.05 million as incentive for CPI Aero to remain headquartered and grow in New York State. CPI Aero has committed to remaining on Long Island. To receive the maximum award, the Company over the next five years expects to invest over $5.7 million in new equipment, upgrades, and facility improvements, retain its current workforce and add 85 new full-time jobs. In connection with the New York State incentive, CPI has extended the term of its current leased facility in Edgewood, NY into 2023. After this term expires, CPI Aero is expected to either remain at its current location or relocate to a newly constructed and leased building adjacent to Long Island MacArthur Airport. Empire State Development Acting Commissioner and President & CEO-designate Eric Gertler said, "CPI Aeros decision to expand its manufacturing facilities in Suffolk County, where it has been headquartered for more than 40 years, is a vote of confidence in New York State. By doing so, the company will continue to contribute to Long Islands historic role in aerospace innovation, supported by a skilled 21st century workforce that will support its future growth and success."



Douglas McCrosson, CEO and President of CPI Aero said Long Island has a storied history in aviation and for the past 40 years CPI Aero is proud to have played our part in this heritage. As a manufacturer, we compete on a global basis and it is essential that we maintain our competitive edge.As we explored potential alternatives to New York, it became clear that other states could potentially offer operating cost savings but they couldnt replicate what has been the secret to our success - our talented workforce and a labor pool with the aerospace and defense manufacturing skills that will be needed to support our growth plans. Id like to acknowledge the efforts of the our many state and local partners that recognize the economic contributions CPI Aero makes to Long Island and New York State and who have made our decision to remain and grow in the Empire State an easy one.







About Empire State Development

Empire State Development (ESD) is New Yorks chief economic development agency. The mission of ESD is to promote a vigorous and growing economy, encourage the creation of new job and economic opportunities, increase revenues to the State and its municipalities, and achieve stable and diversified local economies. Through the use of loans, grants, tax credits and other forms of financial assistance, ESD strives to enhance private business investment and growth to spur job creation and support prosperous communities across New York State. ESD is also the primary administrative agency overseeing Governor Cuomos Regional Economic Development Councils and the marketing of "I LOVE NY," the States iconic tourism brand. For more information on Regional Councils and Empire State Development, please visit www.regionalcouncils.ny.gov and www.esd.ny.gov. About CPI Aero

CPI Aero is a U.S. manufacturer of structural assemblies for fixed wing aircraft, helicopters and airborne Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance pod systems in both the commercial aerospace and national security markets. Within the global aerostructure supply chain, CPI Aero is either a Tier 1 supplier to aircraft OEMs or a Tier 2 subcontractor to major Tier 1 manufacturers. CPI also is a prime contractor to the U.S. Department of Defense, primarily the Air Force. In conjunction with its assembly operations, CPI Aero provides engineering, program management, supply chain management, and MRO services. CPI Aero is included in the Russell Microcap Index.

The above statements include forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, which are described from time to time in CPI Aero's SEC reports, including CPI Aero's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, and Form 10-Q for the three-month periods ended March 31, 2020, June 30, 2020, and September 30, 2020. CPI Aero is a registered trademark of CPI Aerostructures, Inc. For more information, visit www.cpiaero.com, and follow us on Twitter @CPIAERO. Investor Relations Counsel:

LHA Investor Relations

Jody Burfening

(212) 838-3777

cpiaero@lhai.com

www.lhai.com



Source: CPI Aerostructures, Inc.



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"The Queen's Gambit," the recent TV mini-series about a chess master, may have stirred increased interest in chess, but a word to the wise: social media talk about game-piece colors could lead to misunderstandings, at least for hate-speech detection software.

That's what a pair of Carnegie Mellon University researchers suspect happened to Antonio Radic, or "agadmator," a Croatian chess player who hosts a popular YouTube channel. Last June, his account was blocked for "harmful and dangerous" content.

YouTube never provided an explanation and reinstated the channel within 24 hours, said Ashiqur R. KhudaBukhsh a project scientist in CMU's Language Technologies Institute (LTI). It's nevertheless possible that "black vs. white" talk during Radi?'s interview with Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura triggered software that automatically detects racist language, he suggested.

"We don't know what tools YouTube uses, but if they rely on artificial intelligence to detect racist language, this kind of accident can happen," KhudaBukhsh said. And if it happened publicly to someone as high-profile as Radic, it may well be happening quietly to lots of other people who are not so well known.

To see if this was feasible, KhudaBukhsh and Rupak Sarkar, an LTI course research engineer, tested two state-of-the-art speech classifiersa type of AI software that can be trained to detect indications of hate speech. They used the classifiers to screen more than 680,000 comments gathered from five popular chess-focused YouTube channels.

They then randomly sampled 1,000 comments that at least one of the classifiers had flagged as hate speech. When they manually reviewed those comments, they found that the vast majority82%did not include hate speech. Words such as black, white, attack and threat seemed to be triggers, they said.

As with other AI programs that depend on machine learning, these classifiers are trained with large numbers of examples and their accuracy can vary depending on the set of examples used.

For instance, KhudaBukhsh recalled an exercise he encountered as a student, in which the goal was to identify "lazy dogs" and "active dogs" in a set of photos. Many of the training photos of active dogs showed broad expanses of grass because running dogs often were in the distance. As a result, the program sometimes identified photos containing large amounts of grass as examples of active dogs, even if the photos didn't include any dogs.

In the case of chess, many of the training data sets likely include few examples of chess talk, leading to misclassification, he noted.

The research paper by KhudaBukhsh and Sarkar, a recent graduate of Kalyani Government Engineering College in India, won the Best Student Abstract Three-Minute Presentation this month at the Association for the Advancement of AI annual conference.
After a lull in trade and premature musings about the entertainment strips demise, hospitality businesses on Beaufort Street look set for a boisterous 2021.

The once bustling nightlife precinct has spent the past few years living dangerously, as rent rises, roadworks and a raft of minor setbacks reared their ugly heads at once.

The Elford will open on Beaufort Street in June.

But on the back of some cool venues re-emerging this summer from their retail slumber  including iconic small bar Clarences  and relative newbies like Local & Aesthetic and Le Rebelle leading revitalised trade on the inner city strip, the year ahead shapes as pivotal for the former darling of Perths post-dusk drinking crowd.

The recent momentum received its biggest boost yet on Thursday, with news Beaufort Streets most iconic pub, The Flying Scotsman, would reopen in June as The Elford, an art deco-inspired refresh of the heritage-listed Clarkes Building.
COVID-19 testing information for west-central Illinois counties:

Morgan County

Jacksonville

Days and times: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

Location: Drive-through testing site located at the intersection of Dunlap Court and Morgan Streets.

Details: No appointment necessary. Photo ID and insurance card requested but not required.



Brown County

Mount Sterling

Days and times: By appointment.

Location: Brown County Health Department, 120 E. Main St. 217-773-2714

Details: Testing eligibility determined by telephone screening.



Cass County

Beardstown

Days and times: Monday-Friday 9-11:20 a.m.

Location: Cass County Health Department, 8590 St. Lukes Drive. 217-323-2182

Virginia

Days and times: Monday-Friday 1-3 p.m.

Location: Cass County Health Department, 331 S. Main St. 217-452-3057

Details: Testing by appointment only and is limited to those who live or work in Cass County. Schedules subject to change.



Greene County

Carrollton

Days and times: By appointment. Open seven days a week.

Location: Boyd Rural Health Clinic, 800 School St. 217-942-3600

Details: Testing performed if medically indicated, pre-op with doctors order, or return to work. Must call and leave message with name and callback number.



Jersey County

Jerseyville

Days and times: By appointment.

Location: Jerseyville Community Hospital Walk-in Clinic, 903 S. State St. 618-498-2273

Details: Testing performed if medically indicated.



Macoupin County

Gillespie

Days and times: By appointment.

Location: Maple Street Clinic, 109 E. Maple St. 217-313-5078

Details: Drive-through free testing. Register by phone or online at mcphd.net.



Pike County

Pittsfield

Days and times: By appointment.

Location: Quincy Medical Group, 320 N. Madison St. 217-277-4001

Details: Testing performed if medically indicated.

.

Days and times: Monday-Saturday 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

Location: Illini Express Clinic, 101 E. Washington St. 217-277-3504

Details: Testing performed if medically indicated. Register upon arrival.



Scott County

Winchester:

Days and times: Mondays and Fridays 9-11 a.m.

Location: Scott County Health Department, 335 W. Cherry St.

Details: Schedule subject to change. See Facebook page for updates.
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The federal government is proposing giving municipalities much more control over handguns within their borders, a move Brandons mayor calls curious.

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The federal government is proposing giving municipalities much more control over handguns within their borders, a move Brandons mayor calls "curious."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Tuesday the federal Liberal government would table legislation allowing municipalities to restrict the storage, possession or transportation of handguns through bylaws.

Brandon Mayor Rick Chrest contends reasonable, defendable, enforceable legislation on handguns would be difficult to pull off at the municipal level. (File)

While exact details are currently scant, Mayor Rick Chrest called the move "curious" as bylaws dont normally deal with gun control.

"At minimum, it seems to me it should be at the provincial level, so this one does kind of surprise me that they would want to suggest it would be at the municipal level. That gets it down to pretty granular level like this," said Chrest.

Under the legislation, a municipality could bring in bylaws forcing citizens to store handguns at a licensed business or completely outlaw them within the municipality.

This could create a patchwork of rules, Chrest said.

"In some areas, Im sure you could stand at the confluence of four municipalities that butt together, and in four directions you could have four different sets of rules," he said.

Brandon City Council would need to meet to discuss the federal governments proposal and much more information is needed, said Chrest.

"Im all for providing things that create more safety. But on the other hand, there needs to be something thats reasonable, defendable, enforceable  and for that to occur at the municipal level might be tricky," he said.

"Having a patchwork quilt of legislation on something as significant as gun control would be a very curious measure," he said.

Premier Brian Pallister was more pessimistic when asked about the proposed legislation on Wednesday.

"Its not going to work. Public safety issues arent just germane to just one municipality. There are issues of national importance and I think, quite frankly, we would benefit by having that discussion at a national level, not at a municipal level," said Pallister.

He said any new powers to restrict firearms should respect farmers and hunters, the vast majority of whom use guns safely.

The Association of Manitoba Municipalities is also looking for more details on the federal governments proposal, according to president Kam Blight.

"While all orders of government have a shared responsibility to ensure public safety, the AMM has reached out to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) for more information regarding this federal initiative," Blight said in an emailed statement.

"Since gun-related crime does not respect local borders, any new measures should be based on a nationwide approach to improving public safety."

The bill would also bring in "red flag" and "yellow flag" laws that would allow a concerned person to ask a court to remove a persons firearms or review an individuals licence to own them.

The legislation would also target smuggling and gun trafficking by increasing penalties and boosting law enforcement capacity.

 dmay@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @DrewMay_
Signup Open For Kynect Health Insurance

By The Associated Press

FRANKFORT - Gov. Andy Beshear is urging Kentuckians who lack health insurance to take advantage of opportunities now available to sign up for coverage.The sign-up window for government insurance markets runs through May 15.President Joe Biden ordered the markets that ended their annual enrollment periods in December to reopen.Beshear said the coronavirus pandemic shows how expanded health care in Kentucky has helped the Bluegrass State suffer fewer virus-related deaths than most states.Kentuckians needing help to enroll for health coverage can visit kynect.ky.gov.
Prince Philip spent a third night in hospital last night and is expected to stay for the weekend  as a ticket-happy official outside tried to lay claim to the title of Britain's bravest traffic warden.

As the Duke of Edinburgh, 99, remained in King Edward VII's Hospital - where he is not allowed Royal visitors- protection officers found their Range Rover given a fixed penalty notice.

The fine was attached to the windscreen after it was left on double yellow lines as the protection officers went inside for 'a couple of hours', a witness said.

Britain's bravest traffic warden: Picture shows a Parking Warden putting a parking ticket on a royal protection officers Range Rover on a yellow line outside the King Edward V11 Hospital

Duke of Edinburgh leaves the King Edward VII hospital in west London on December 24, 2019

When they emerged, one of the officers removed the ticket and the car was moved.

The duke was admitted to the hospital in central London on Tuesday evening as a 'precautionary measure' on his doctor's advice after feeling unwell, Buckingham Palace has said.

As the nation hoped for his swift recovery, royal author Penny Junor joked yesterday that hospital staff probably would not want Philip, who turns 100 on June 10, on their shift due to his aversion to people making a fuss.

She told BBC Breakfast: 'He can be quite blunt and I think if he felt people were fussing over him he could be quite outspoken about that.

This is a man who doesn't want any fuss made of his 100th birthday, so the fact he's in hospital and getting some fuss made of him will really irritate him.'

Philip was reported last year to be unconcerned about becoming a centenarian. But sources say his view has modified and he is rather reluctantly looking forward to reaching the milestone.

The Duke of Edinburgh is preparing for his third night at the King Edward VII hospital for a non-Covid related illness and decision to admit him was taken with an 'abundance' of caution

It is understood a doctor was called after Philip felt unwell for a short period at Windsor Castle, where he has been spending lockdown with the Queen, 94.

Royal sources said the duke was taken to the hospital by car, where he walked in unaided. He is said to be in good spirits.

A source said his illness was not Covid-related. The Queen and Philip were vaccinated last month, Buckingham Palace took the unusual step of revealing.

On Wednesday, the Palace said: 'The duke is expected to remain in hospital for a few days of observation and rest.'

Philip was last in hospital in December 2019, when he spent four nights at King Edward VII's being treated for a 'pre-existing condition' before being discharged on Christmas Eve.

The duke retired from public duties in 2017 but made a rare public appearance at Windsor last July 2020 for the official handover of his role as Colonel-in-Chief of The Rifles to his daughter-in-law Camilla.

Prince Philip, 99, prepares for third night in hospital - as it's revealed the Queen and Duke 'enjoyed lunch and dinner together' most days in Windsor because the pandemic proved the 'perfect royal cocooning'

By James Robinson, Mark Duell, James Gant and Jack Elsom

Prince Philip is preparing for a third night in hospital as it was revealed the Queen and Duke 'enjoyed lunch and dinner together' most days in Windsor because the pandemic proved the 'perfect royal cocooning'.

The Duke of Edinburgh, 99, will stay at King Edward VII's Hospital in London again this evening for an undisclosed reason - which is not coronavirus-related.

Royal sources revealed the 'sprightly' Duke was 'in very good humour' before his admission following a 'short period' of feeling unwell.

He reportedly remains in 'good spirits' and is said to have walked unaided into the hospital on Tuesday. The move is said to be a 'precautionary measure'.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have spent more time under the same roof together during the coronavirus lockdown than they have in many years.

Joe Little, managing editor of Majesty magazine, said it provided 'an opportunity for them in their later years to reconnect' and was the 'perfect royal cocooning'.

Meanwhile a royal biographer has claimed the 'blunt' Prince is unlikely to be an ideal patient because he 'doesn't like people making a fuss over him'.

Penny Junor joked doctors and nurses at the private hospital in London probably 'would not want' the Duke of Edinburgh on their shift as he gets 'irritated' by people making a fuss of him.

The Queen, 94, who yesterday carried on with her royal duties as she spoke by telephone to the First Sea Lord, Admiral Tony Radakin, about the work of the Royal Navy, has remained at Windsor Castle.

It was announced on January 9 both the Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen had received their first doses of the vaccine, because their age put them in one of the high-risk categories.

Buckingham Palace has not yet confirmed if they have received their second jab, which boosts immunity and is supposed to be administered 12 weeks later - although some Britons have received their second shots sooner.

Of the 15,940,972 who have received jabs, 558,577 have had their second dose - while it was revealed a further 315,797 people had theirs yesterday.

November 2020: The last photograph of Philip, where the Duke and Queen looked at the homemade card given to them by their great-grandchildren Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis ahead of their 73rd wedding anniversary

Royal biographer Penny Junor (pictured) joked that medics at the private King Edward VII's Hospital in London probably 'would not want' the Duke of Edinburgh on their shift as he gets 'irritated' by people making a fuss of him

King Edward VII Hospital in Marylebone, where the Duke was taken as a 'precautionary measure' on the advice of his doctor

The Duke of Edinburgh reportedly remains in 'good spirits' and is said to have walked unaided into the hospital (pictured left: Hospital security staff is seen at the entrance of King Edward VII Hospital). The move is said to be a 'precautionary measure', while his illness is not related to Covid, say palace sources. Pictured right: Police and security outside the hospital)

Police officers stand at the entrance of The King Edward VII hospital where Prince Philip, who turns 100 this year, is currently receiving treatment

The Duke of Edinburgh was last night admitted to hospital on the advice of his doctor after feeling unwell, Buckingham Palace has said (pictured at Balmoral in August 2020)

Before the pandemic, Philip, who was admitted to hospital on Tuesday, was mostly at his cottage, Wood Farm, in the sanctuary of the Sandringham estate, more than 100 miles away from the Queen, who was usually at Buckingham Palace or at Windsor.

But they were reunited at the Berkshire castle for their safety after Philip was flown there by helicopter on March 19, 2020, ahead of the restriction on movements amid the Covid-19 crisis.

Mr Little, managing editor of Majesty magazine, said it provided 'an opportunity for them in their later years to reconnect' and was the 'perfect royal cocooning'.

The couple are being attended to at Windsor by a reduced household of around 20 staff dubbed HMS Bubble.

The monarch and Philip most likely have lunch or dinner together each day while spending other time on their separate interests.

FROM A BLOCKED CORONARY ARTERY TO A URINARY INFECTION, PRINCE PHILIP'S AILMENTS OVER THE PAST 10 YEARS Prince Philip has enjoyed excellent health for a 98-year-old and still enjoys an active lifestyle. But in recent years he has struggled a little more with illness, suffering from a number of ailments over the past decade, including:  December 2011, four days in hospital: Prince Philip is airlifted to Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire from Sandringham two days before Christmas after suffering chest pains, and undergoes surgery for a blocked coronary artery  June 2012, six days: Philip is taken to hospital after developing a urinary infection during the river pageant to mark the Queen's Diamond Jubilee  June 2013, 11 days: He has abdominal surgery for an undisclosed condition and spends his 92nd birthday in hospital  December 2016: Both the Queen and Philip suddenly cancel plans to leave London for their festive break in Norfolk after they both come down with heavy colds  June 2016: The Duke pulls out of a Battle of Jutland anniversary event citing a minor ailment  June 2017, three days: Philip is admitted to hospital as 'a precautionary measure' for an infection arising from a pre-existing condition  April 2018, 11 days: The Duke spends nearly a fortnight in hospital following his successful hip replacement  December 2019, five days: He is treated at King Edward Hospital in London for a 'pre-existing condition' Advertisement

Philip, who stepped down from public duties in 2017, usually keeps himself busy reading, writing and painting, and even released a rare public statement in April 2020, his first since his retirement, praising key workers and those making sure that essential services are kept running during the pandemic.

As well as enjoying riding her fell ponies in Windsor Home Park, the Queen has her official duties to deal with, including her red boxes of papers and regular telephone audiences, along with video-calls as royal duties changed in an unprecedented way.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast this morning, Ms Junor, who wrote the biographies of both Princess Diana and Prince Charles, said she thinks the 'blunt' Prince could be a tough patient to deal with.

She said: 'I think he can be quite blunt and I think if he felt people were fussing over him he could be quite outspoken about that.

'This is a man who doesn't want any fuss made of his 100th birthday, so the fact he's in hospital and getting some fuss made of him will really irritate him.'

In a statement, Buckingham Palace said: 'His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh was admitted to the King Edward VII Hospital in London, on Tuesday evening.

'The Duke's admission is a precautionary measure, on the advice of His Royal Highness's Doctor, after feeling unwell. The Duke is expected to remain in hospital for a few days of observation and rest.'

Boris Johnson led the nation in sending his best wishes to the Duke for a speedy recovery.

A No10 spokesman said: 'The Prime Minister sends his best wishes to the Duke of Edinburgh as he undergoes a few days of rest in hospital.'

Police officers were yesterday standing guard outside the private central London hospital where Philip is being treated.

The Duke will celebrate his 100th birthday on June 10, around the same time Harry and Meghan are expecting their second child.

Reinforcements were seen trooping towards the front entrance later as television cameras began arriving.

Philip's hospitalisation is not being treated as an emergency and it appeared senior royals were sticking to their duties.

The Queen yesterday had a telephone call with the First Sea Lord for an update on the Royal Navy's operations.

The Royal Navy tweeted: 'This afternoon the First Sea Lord (Admiral Tony Radakin) had a telephone audience with Her Majesty The Queen to provide an update on Royal Navy operations and the well-being of our people throughout the pandemic.

Prince Charles and his wife Camilla continued to carry out their first royal duties of the year, meeting volunteers taking part in clinical vaccine trials in Birmingham.

Prince William and Kate are at their Norfolk residence, Anmer Hall, Prince Harry and Meghan are in California and Princess Anne is at her Gatcombe Park house in Gloucestershire.

The Queen and Prince Philip have been spending lockdown at Windsor and had a quiet Christmas at the Berkshire residence after deciding to forgo the traditional royal family gathering at Sandringham.

They have been getting by with a reduced 20-strong staff - dubbed HMS Bubble - to minimise their contact with the outside world and the risk of spreading Covid.

Philip, who stepped down from public duties in 2017, keeps himself busy reading, writing and painting, and even released a rare public statement in April 2020, his first since his retirement, praising key workers and those making sure essential services are kept running during the pandemic.

Last month it was revealed the Duke and the Queen had received their first dose of the vaccine

Prince Philip's hospitalisation is not being treated as an emergency and his son Prince Charles and his wife Camilla continued to carry out their first royal duties of the year, meeting volunteers taking part in clinical vaccine trials in Birmingham

Queen keeps calm and carries on: Monarch chats with First Sea Lord 24 hours after Prince Philip is taken to hospital The Queen continued to carry out royal duties yesterday despite Philip's hospital admission. She had a telephone call with the First Sea Lord, the Navy revealed. The Royal Navy tweeted: 'This afternoon the First Sea Lord (Admiral Tony Radakin) had a telephone audience with Her Majesty The Queen to provide an update on Royal Navy operations and the well-being of our people throughout the pandemic. Prince Charles and his wife Camilla also pressed ahead with their first royal duties of the year, meeting volunteers taking part in clinical vaccine trials in Birmingham. Advertisement

Meanwhile the Queen has served as a symbol of national stability during the pandemic, delivering two rare televised addresses to the nation just weeks apart.

The last photograph of Philip was in November, when the Palace released pictures of him and the monarch inspecting a homemade 73rd wedding anniversary card made by their great-grandchildren Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

Philip has suffered a number of ailments over the years, including being treated for a blocked coronary artery at Papworth Hospital in Cambridgeshire in December 2011 and a bladder infection in June 2012, forcing him to miss the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

Exploratory surgery on his abdomen followed in June 2013 and he began to use hearing aids by 2014, aged 93.

He later pulled out of a Battle of Jutland anniversary event in June 2016 citing a minor ailment which was followed soon after by his retirement from public duty in 2017.

He spent four nights at King Edward Hospital in December 2019, where he was treated for a 'pre-existing condition' and was later discharged on Christmas Eve. The Duke was then driven to Sandringham and spent Christmas with the Queen.

The King Edward Hospital, which only has 56 beds across its wards, has also been used by the Queen, Princess Margaret, the Queen Mother, Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cambridge.

A car crash while driving at the age of 97 left him shocked and shaken but miraculously uninjured. He surrendered his driving licence three weeks later.

Shortly after his hospitalisation was announced at around 2pm on Wednesday, the first well-wishers began to take to social media.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: 'Really sorry to hear that HRH the Duke of Edinburgh is in hospital. Sending him my best wishes for a speedy recovery.'

Tory MP Alexander Stafford tweeted: 'Wishing His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh a speedy recovery. My thoughts and prayers are with him today.

The Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), of which Philip has been a patron, also wished the Duke well.

Its chief executive Neil Heslop told MailOnline: 'We are very sorry to hear The Duke of Edinburgh has been admitted to hospital and we wish him a speedy recovery.

'He has been a champion of our work on behalf of charities for many years.'
The drilling program was designed to grow the resource along strike in both directions.

Results for the remaining 31 RC drill holes for 4,415 metres are expected in the coming weeks

's ( ) (OTCMKTS:GRXMF) (FRA:GR2) results from the first eight holes of a resource expansion drill program at the Tabakorole Gold Project in southern Mali has confirmed an extension to the southeast.

The results have extended the existing 2.9 kilometres strike length by a further 150 metres.

Results from a hole 150 metres southeast of previous resource drilling intersected 23 metres at 2 g/t from 178 metres and terminated in mineralisation.

Other key intercepts from recently completed drilling within the Tabakorole deposits existing strike length include:

24 metres at 1.2 g/t from 13 metres;

25 metres at 0.8 g/t from 4 metres; and

14 metres at 0.8 g/t from 17 metres.

Potential upgrade to resource

Marvel managing director Phil Hoskins said: We are very pleased with this first batch of drilling results successfully extending the Tabakorole deposit to the southeast.

This program was designed to grow the resource along strike in both directions and this is an excellent start.

With the results from 31 drill holes remaining outstanding, including the northwest strike extension, were excited about the implications for a potential upgrade to the 910,000-ounce mineral resource.

First 8 drill results from Tabakorole resource expansion drill program.

Next steps

The results from the remaining 31 RC drill holes for 4,415 metres are expected steadily over the coming weeks.

An aircore drilling program is planned shortly, targeting part of the 1.3 kilometre continuation of the NW-SE trending structure hosting Tabakorole, as highlighted by ongoing high-resolution ground magnetics surveys.
A comfort woman statue in Seoul / Korea Times file



A grandson of a renowned Korean independence fighter said Thursday that he had sent a letter to Harvard University's president to end any discussions about donating his historical archives due to a professor's article depicting Japan's wartime sexual slavery as voluntary prostitution.



In an email and phone interview with Yonhap News Agency, Philip Ahn Cuddy, the grandson of Ahn Chang-ho who fiercely fought against Japan's 1910-45 colonization, revealed that he wrote the letter to President Lawrence S. Bacow to terminate the talks in "direct consequence" of J. Mark Ramseyer's "inappropriate academic writing."



Ramseyer, Mitsubishi professor of Japanese Legal Studies at Harvard Law School, recently published the controversial article, titled "Contracting for sex in the Pacific War," in which he described former sex slaves as prostitutes under voluntary contracts.



"Considering my family's legacy and what the Japanese have done to my family and to Korea during the imperial occupation and in direct consequence of Ramseyer's words, I am terminating any and all discussion about donating materials to Harvard," he wrote in the letter, a copy of which was sent to Yonhap News.



"Maybe a lesson will be learned about the consequences of not seeking the truth, not upholding history and revising it for personal gain," he stressed.



Cuddy previously had discussions with the university on the transfer of his archives, which are part of the legacy of his grandfather and his mother, Susan Ahn Cuddy  the first Asian American woman in the U.S. Navy.



Cuddy voiced frustration that Harvard University and the International Review of Law and Economics, which published the article online, would not do enough "hiding behind the veil of academic freedom."



"Allowing employees to think they can hide behind academic freedom freely spewing such pointed false opinions about comfort women indicated Harvard is no place to deposit any of my archives," he said, referring to the euphemism for the former sex slaves.



He made it clear that his termination of the discussions is the consequences of Ramseyer's "inappropriate" academic writing.



"I believe Ramseyer's narrow minded teachings about comfort women deserve some consequences for his grotesque misrepresentations of this inhumane issue," Cuddy wrote.



"His actions and the consequences of his actions will affect many within Harvard University, the Harvard Community and beyond," he added.



Born in 1878 in South Pyongan Province currently in North Korea, Ahn Chang-ho, whose pen name is Dosan, was one of the first to immigrate to the United States where he played a role in helping his homeland gain independence. He was one of the founders of Korea's provisional government and was a statesman, educator and freedom fighter all his life until his death in 1938.



His eldest daughter, Susan Ahn Cuddy, joined the U.S. Navy in 1942, becoming the first Asian American woman to join the armed service. She served in the Navy until 1946 and later worked for the Naval Intelligence and National Security Agency.



International condemnation of Ramseyer's article has been escalating as aging victims of Japan's sexual slavery, euphemistically called comfort women, have clamored for Tokyo's sincere apology and due reparations.



On Tuesday, Lee Yong-soo, a surviving victim, called for Seoul to bring the sexual slavery issue to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), as she voiced hope for an end to the animosity between the two neighboring countries.



The issue resurfaced after a Seoul court ordered Japan last month to make reparations of 100 million won (US$90,293) each to 12 former sex slaves  without recognizing sovereign immunity in the trial. (Yonhap)


Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The Department of Health confirmed on Thursday night the detection of two new COVID-19 mutations in Central Visayas.

"Following the enhanced genomic biosurveillance in the country, the Department of Health and the University of the Philippines - Philippine Genome Center (UP-PGC) today confirm the detection of SARS-CoV-2 mutations of potential clinical significance in samples sequenced last week from Central Visayas," the Health Department said in a statement.

The DOH clarified the current available data on the two new mutations of SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, are "insufficient to conclude [these] will have significant public health implications."

On Thursday afternoon, the DOH-Central Visayas office (DOH-7) announced that two COVID-19 "mutations of concern" have been detected in Cebu.

In a press briefing, DOH-7 spokesperson Dr. Mary Jean Loreche said these mutations identified as E484K and N501Y were found in the first batch of samples they sent to the PGC for genomic sequencing. This batch covers the period Jan. 30 to Feb. 2 and contained samples from Cebu City, Mandaue City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Cebu province.

"Out of 50, there were 37 samples equivalent to 78% that had two mutations of concern," Loreche said. "And out of these again, 29 out of 50 meaning 58% had a co-occurrence of the two mutations."

These mutations are now called "a variant under investigation or a variant of concern," according to Loreche. The health official explained there is no name yet, as the entire sequence has yet to be identified.

'No cause for panic'

DOH-7 Regional Director Dr. Jaime Bernadas, meanwhile, clarified that these mutations still need further study.

The DOH Central Office reiterated that it is natural for viruses to mutate, but that not all mutations and variants necessarily cause negative effects.

"Nevertheless, the DOH recognizes the potential public health implications of these reported mutations in samples from Region 7," the DOH said. It assured that local health officials have already initiated measures to contain viral transmission in the region, as well as to characterize the cases and areas of concern.

In the briefing, Loreche also bared the two mutations are "also of global concern...as these are mutations that are related to increased transmissibility." While they are believed to be more contagious, Loreche said they have yet to establish if they are more virulent or can cause a more severe disease.

"But for now, based on our data on rising cases...clustering cases, ayan [there], most likely, this is the cause of the high transmissibility," she said.

In its latest report, independent research group OCTA noted a spike in cases in a number of areas in Cebu. The group also said Cebu Citys positivity rate over the past week stood at 13%, way above the ideal rate of below 5% as recommended by the World Health Organization.

The DOH-7 has tallied 5,240 active cases in Central Visayas as of Feb. 17. Of the regions currently ill patients, Cebu City accounts for 2,668, while Cebu province has 1,029.

According to Loreche, they are also awaiting results of the second batch of 90 samples they sent to PGC for genome sequencing.

CNN Philippines' Cebu-based correspondent Dale Israel contributed to this report.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire as photos of him in an airport and a plane showing him flying to Cancun during the Arctic blast which has crippled his home state and especially his hometown of Houston, surfaced on Twitter.

The photos went viral late Wednesday night and Cruz sent out an official statement explaining the trip Thursday afternoon.

OPINION: Ted Cruz's tweets about California blackouts look really dumb right now

Earlier Thursday, Fox News confirmed Cruz took a trip to Cancun, saying "a Republican source told Fox News that the allegations Cruz was traveling to the Mexican city are true."

"The photos speak for themselves," the source told Fox News.

The Associated Press also confirmed the Cancun trip, reporting Cruz "went with his family for a long-planned trip to Cancun and was expected to return immediately, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations."

According to ABC News' verification producer Erin Calabrese, Cruz contacted Houston Police and requested assistance upon his arrival at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said his daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said in a statement released before he boarded a flight back home to Houston.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Twitter user Juan Gomez shared the first photo of Cruz with his baggage at a United Airlines gate, adding "Well Senator Cruz is flying to Cancun while millions of Texans do not have electricity #Priorities #ThanksforNothingSenator."

Former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted that he confirmed Cruz "and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before." His tweet included a photo of Cruz inside a plane. It's unclear how Shuster confirmed the story.

Keith Edwards - who was an advisor to Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff and worked with the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group - tweeted other photos of Cruz at the airport. He said the photos were sent to him by passengers on the same flight as Cruz.

Beto O'Rourke, who lost the Senate race to Cruz in 2018, appeared on MSNBC on Wednesday night and took a shot at Cruz, when talking about holding politicians accountable for their actions, including "the junior Senator from the state of Texas, who I understand is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve."

Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, tweeted: Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?"

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The Australian consumer goods behemoths have grown significantly thanks to changes in consumer spending, says S&P Global.

Wesfarmers shares have risen to new all-time highs of $56.40 this year.

( ) and Coles Group Ltd (ASX:COL) have benefited greatly from changing consumer trends thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and are likely to continue their upward trajectory, according to global credit consultant S&P Global.

Wesfarmers, which owns brands including Bunnings, Officeworks and Kmart, has seen its shares rise to new all-time highs of $56.40 this year, although Coles Group, which controls the Coles supermarkets, this week fell to just above $16, about the point it was trading before the market-wide pandemic slide last March.

Both groups were buoyed by positive assessments from S&P Global, which is confident increased online shopping and the need from home-based office and DIY products will continue well into 2021.

Increased consumer spending on home improvement projects, homewares and work-from-home needs (will continue) as consumers continue to work from home and holiday locally, it said.

Wesfarmers brands in high demand

What some may not know is that Wesfarmers is one of the most diversified companies listed on the ASX.

It is well-known as the parent company of the aforementioned retail brands, as well as Target, and online bargain retailer Catch.com.au (it also retains a 4.9 per cent shareholding in Coles Group, which it demerged in 2018 and half-owns Flybuys alongside Coles).

But Wesfarmers also has interests in the energy, chemical and fertiliser sectors, while it has in the last 24 hours signed off on a $1.8 billion investment into the Mt Holland Lithium Project in Western Australia, with its joint venture partner Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (NYSE:SQM).

In its half-year earnings, Wesfarmers revealed that its energy, chemical and fertiliser arm had suffered a 7.5 per cent decline, but it was comfortably offset by significant growth across Bunnings, Officeworks and Kmart.

We believe Wesfarmers' diverse portfolio of retail businesses positions the company well to benefit from consumers continuing to redirect discretionary income toward at-home purchases given the ongoing restrictions on international travel and intermittent periods of COVID-19 stay-at-home orders, S&P Global said.

We expect Wesfarmers' retail sales growth to remain above historical rates over the coming 12 months, however, we do not anticipate sales growth rates to match the extraordinary levels seen at the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.

In addition, significant increases in demand for Officeworks' home office products such as technology and furniture are likely to moderate over the next 12 months as these purchases are in large part driven by one-off home office setup requirements.

S&P Global also raved about Wesfarmers shift towards digital, including click-and-collect initiatives and Catch.com.au, and said the $950 million it expected to spend developing the Mt Holland lithium project could be funded through existing liquidity.

Coles fundamentals look good

While Coles shares have taken a slide in 2021 thus far, its half-year earnings made for promising reading.

Earnings before interest and tax increased 12 per cent, driven by prolonged at-home consumption of consumer staples, including groceries and alcohol.

Sales revenue grew about 8 per cent, with its Liquor business gaining 15 per cent, Express service station business gaining 10 per cent and supermarkets growing 7 per cent.

We expect at-home consumption to continue to benefit Coles' supermarket division, with strong grocery demand persisting in the second half of fiscal 2021, S&P said.

This positive momentum is supported by consumers holidaying domestically while international borders remain closed, consumers trading up to more premium products, and promotional activity remaining subdued given sustained levels of above-trend demand.

Having said that, we anticipate sales growth rates for the remainder of fiscal 2021 to be subdued in comparison to the extraordinary levels seen at the onset of the pandemic in early 2020.

- Daniel Paproth
09:59 | Lima, Feb. 16.

As he explained, the committee of jurists analyzing the draft contracts has approved the new document, so the contract is expected to be completed by the end of this month.

"There is a tentative schedule for the delivery of vaccines, and we expect to receive a very important batch of around 12 million Sinopharm doses in March," he pointed out.





Wagner noted that his priority at the Foreign Affairs Ministry will be to reach the necessary agreements to ensure that most Peruvians will be immunized by the end of the year to defeat the virus.





"It is a major priority. There is significant progress in the signing of contracts, the delivery dates have not yet been confirmed and precisely determined," he remarked.









(END) VVS/RMB/MVB
English French

OTTAWA, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canadas unions are calling on the federal government to extend income support for unemployed workers until at least the end of 2021 or they will soon face a benefits cliff.



The numbers of workers who are currently facing the prospect of an end to their benefits this March are staggering:

844,000 workers were receiving the Canada Recovery Benefit in late January 2021;

129,000 workers were receiving the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit in late January 2021;

Over 2.3 million people are receiving Employment Insurance benefits in February 2021.



These workers need to know what happens next as they continue to face economic hardship and uncertainty, said Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. This pandemic is not ending anytime soon. We need the federal government to plan for the long-term and provide support for workers whose jobs have disappeared.

Canadas economy saw higher than expected job losses at the end of 2020 and another large drop in employment in January, with 213,000 jobs lost. Women and low-wage, racialized workers in precarious employment have been hit the hardest.

It will be some time before Canada returns to full employment. The federal government must act now to ensure workers arent left struggling to put food on the table and cover their essential needs, said Yussuff.

The federal government has already promised much-needed changes to Canadas EI system. Read CLCs recommendations for EI reform here.

To arrange an interview, please contact:

CLC Media Relations

media@clcctc.ca

613-526-7426
To offend the Welsh, the Scots and Ulster Protestants and to mangle the history of Ulster and to do it all in a single article is a remarkable achievement, but the veteran journalist and historian Sir Max Hastings has managed to do all that and more.

Now, Max Hastings is the product of a privileged background and a public school education, who lives today in the comfort of a rambling country house in rural England, but as a former newspaper editor who had previously reported on Northern Ireland for the BBC, you would expect him to have a good knowledge of Ulster history.

Yet, in a piece for Bloomberg, he wrote of a million Protestants, most of whose forebears were planted in Ulster by Oliver Cromwells followers in the 17th century.

Does he not know about the 17th-century settlement of Lowland Scots in east Ulster in the years before the Plantation, something which happened when Oliver Cromwell was just five-years-old?

Is he unaware that this settlement was a prelude to the official Plantation of Ulster, at which time Cromwell was still a small boy?

But, then, why not have a good rant and bring in Cromwell?

Hastings offends the Scots and the Welsh, mocking the Welsh language for its tortured spellings, but his greatest disdain is reserved for Protestants in Ulster and there is a reference to several hundred thousand embittered people he calls Proddies.

His choice of the word Proddie is striking.

Its a word that is sometimes heard in colloquial speech, but its use in a formal article is derogatory and contemptuous.

What would be the reaction if a journalist wrote an article and referred to Irish nationalists as Papes, or Taigs? The answer is that there would be an outcry and, in truth, no newspaper today would publish it.

But when it comes to Ulster Protestants, theyre fair game.

His history is confused, his language and tone are derogatory, but how does he fare as a prophet?

A few weeks ago, it was George Osborne, the former Conservative chancellor turned newspaper editor and now investment banker, who was predicting a united Ireland in a matter of years.

Now, Max Hastings, another of the English elite, has appeared to tell us that within a generation Northern Ireland will have been merged into an Irish Republic.

Interestingly, both men have a connection with the Republic. Osbornes father has an Irish baronetcy linked to Co Waterford and Hastings lived in Kilkenny when he was reporting on Northern Ireland.

If the prophetic part of his article is as flawed as the historical part, we havent too much to worry about, but what has been notable has been the reaction of Irish nationalists.

Immediately it appeared, some Irish nationalist newspapers descended into a state of delirium, devoting pages of print to it and extolling Hastings as a distinguished historian, the sort of person to be taken seriously.

Now, Irish nationalists might well have turned on Max Hastings for his ridiculing of the Welsh language and the offence this has undoubtedly caused to their Welsh nationalist friends, but no. That was simply set aside.

Such delight was not restricted to nationalist newspapers and the chief executive of the pan-nationalist pressure group Irelands Future said that it was evidence of a growing recognition of the tremendous opportunities a new Ireland will present.

In truth, such articles play into the Irish nationalist tactic of demoralising unionists with the constant repetition of the inevitability of a united Ireland.

Its an old tactic in psychological warfare, designed to sap the morale of the enemy.

At the same time, it helps to bolster the morale of pan-nationalism.

But it is a deeply unpleasant way to treat your unionist neighbours and exposes any talk of a shared island as a sham, more sham than shared, and unionists can see that.

As regards Hastings, the historian Dr Aaron Edwards, who has written extensively and intelligently on Northern Ireland, was particularly dismissive and tweeted: Hes at it again. Max Hastings has surpassed himself in his deployment of stereotypes in this piece.
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is quoting at Rs 243.9, up 4.03% on the day as on 12:49 IST on the NSE. The stock is up 7.71% in last one year as compared to a 24.68% jump in NIFTY and a 24.4% jump in the Nifty Energy index.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is up for a third straight session today. The stock is quoting at Rs 243.9, up 4.03% on the day as on 12:49 IST on the NSE. The benchmark NIFTY is down around 0.6% on the day, quoting at 15118.35. The Sensex is at 51392.24, down 0.6%. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd has gained around 5.17% in last one month.

Meanwhile, Nifty Energy index of which Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is a constituent, has gained around 6.92% in last one month and is currently quoting at 18305.45, up 2.33% on the day. The volume in the stock stood at 201.1 lakh shares today, compared to the daily average of 77.97 lakh shares in last one month.

The benchmark February futures contract for the stock is quoting at Rs 245.75, up 4.37% on the day. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is up 7.71% in last one year as compared to a 24.68% jump in NIFTY and a 24.4% jump in the Nifty Energy index.

The PE of the stock is 4.14 based on TTM earnings ending December 20.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Australia has become Ground Zero in the battle over payment for news in recent weeks, thanks to a proposed law to force technology platforms to pay publishers for the right to use even small portions of their articles. That battle escalated in two different directions at once on Wednesday: on one side, News Corp. announced a multi-year deal with Google that will see the search company pay for content from the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, the Times in the UK and other Murdoch properties. Just hours later, Facebook announced that it has taken the exact opposite approach: because of the proposed law, the company says it will block publishers in Australia from posting any of their articles to Facebook, and will also block Facebook users in that country from sharing any news on its platform  not just news from Australian publishers. William Easton, director of operations in Australia for Facebook, wrote that the proposed news-payment code fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content.

The proposed Australian code, which is scheduled to go before that countrys Senate later this month for approval, would force Google and Facebook to negotiate with news publishers  either individually or as a group  in order to arrive at fair compensation for the use of even small snippets of their news content. If they cant reach an agreement, then the Australian code would force the digital platforms to enter into binding arbitration with a government-appointed mediator. In addition to payment, the code also requires the platforms to do other things, including sharing any changes to their news-recommendation algorithms that might affect how a publishers content is found. The original version of the code would have forced Google and Facebook to pay a specific amount for every click on a news article, but a revised version released this week says that the platforms can negotiate lump sums.

The Australian code is a tougher version of similar copyright-based laws that have been enacted over the past few years in a number of European countries, including France and Germany. Those laws were sparked by changes to European Union copyright laws to enable what are called neighboring rights, and the EU is said to be watching Australias proposed law with a view towards possibly toughening its own legislation in similar ways. While Google has threatened in the past to withdraw its search and news services from the EU, as well as from France and Germany, the company has not followed through on these threats (with one exception: it removed Spain from its Google News index in 2014 after similar laws were passed in that country). Instead, it has been signing deals with publishers in France and elsewhere, paying them for inclusion in its Google News Showcase, which was launched last year.

Related: Meet the journalist tracking Digital First Medias hedge fund owner

Googles strategy seems to be to cut checks for publishers wherever it can, in the hope that it can avoid laws that tell it what to pay include the threats of arbitration and fines. In addition to signing a deal with News Corp., Google has signed similar deals with two broadcast networks, Seven and Nine in Australia, committing to pay them $30 million each for the right to use their content in the News Showcase. Facebook has not only taken the complete opposite tack, but has chosen what some call the nuclear option, removing news from Australia completely. In its blog post about the decision, the company said its approach diverged from Googles because the two platforms have fundamentally different relationships to the news. A search engine, it says, is inextricably intertwined with news, and publishers do not voluntarily provide their content (which isnt strictly accurate  publishers can easily block Google from taking their content if they wish), while publishers willingly choose to post on Facebook because it allows them to increase their audiences and revenue.

The move may make life difficult for some Australian news publishers, especially smaller ones that rely on distribution through the social network, something the company is no doubt hoping will put pressure on the government to amend the code. But blocking publishers and even users from posting news articles is unlikely to impose much pain on Facebook itself, even over the longer term  the company said that news makes up less than 5 percent of the main News Feed globally. Australias communications minister said Facebooks move raises questions about the companys commitment to high-quality information. The decision theyre taking is to remove all authoritative news sources from the platform, he said. Obviously the Australian government will consider that very carefully but it certainly raises issues about the credibility of information on the platform. Some argue that it could even backfire if it makes regulators pay even closer attention to Facebooks market dominance.

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Mathew Ingram is CJRs chief digital writer. Previously, he was a senior writer with Fortune magazine. He has written about the intersection between media and technology since the earliest days of the commercial internet. His writing has been published in the Washington Post and the Financial Times as well as by Reuters and Bloomberg.
Patricia Lynch, an investigative television journalist who specialized in exposing cults and their leaders, including Lyndon LaRouche, a political extremist who ran for president eight times, died on Feb. 3 at her home in Manhattan. She was 82.

The cause was complications of Alzheimers disease, said William O. Wheatley Jr., her former boss at NBC.

Ms. Lynch was one of the first women to be named an investigative producer for NBC Nightly News, joining its investigative unit in 1977. In nearly 20 years at NBC, she won two Emmys and shared in an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University award for investigative journalism.

Ms. Lynch focused on consumer-oriented issues and notably produced a series on abuses in nursing homes. But she also became interested in fringe groups that were run by charismatic leaders and that had developed reputations for bizarre activities or beliefs.
An anti-monarchy group has been blasted for releasing a new video titled 'It's Time' on the day it was announced Prince Philip had been rushed to hospital.

Republic published the 'trailer' on its YouTube page featuring shots of the Queen, Prince Charles and Prince Andrew.

The minute-long video, which has been seen more than 400 times, calls for Britons to join the movement to wipe away the Royals.

It came on the day it was announced the Duke of Edinburgh was taken to hospital in London after feeling unwell and is expected to stay for a few days.

Royal commentators branded the video 'tasteless', 'bad timing' with 'bad material and bad ideas'.

Republic published the 'trailer' on its YouTube page featuring shots of the Queen, Prince Charles and Prince Andrew as well as the Sussex's wedding (pictured)

The minute-long video, which has been seen more than 400 times, calls for Britons to join the movement to wipe away the Royals

A message with the clip said: 'In a country where Royals reign one group will defy the odds to abolish the monarchy. A campaign will become a movement. It's time.'

It featured footage of Prince Andrew during his car crash Newsnight interview in 2019, shots from Harry and Meghan's wedding in 2018 and footage of the Queen.

It ended with a trailer page which claimed the footage was 'starring the British people'.

Prince Philip, 99, was Tuesday night taken to the private King Edward VII's Hospital in Marylebone as a 'precautionary measure' on the advice of his doctor.

The Duke was said to be in 'good spirits' and walked into the hospital unaided after being driven there by car.

The decision to admit him was taken with an 'abundance of caution' and the Queen, 94, remained at Windsor Castle and pressed ahead with her duties.

His illness is not Covid-related and comes after it was announced on January 9 the Royal couple had received their first doses of the vaccine due to their old age.

November 2020: The last photograph of Philip, where the Duke and Queen looked at the homemade card given to them by their great-grandchildren Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis ahead of their 73rd wedding anniversary

King Edward VII Hospital in Marylebone, where the Duke was taken as a 'precautionary measure' on the advice of his doctor

Police officers stand at the entrance of The King Edward VII hospital where Prince Philip, who turns 100 this year, is currently receiving treatment

Royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told MailOnline: 'Republic's new publicity video ''It's Time'' is hilarious.

'It's rather like a trailer for an extremely bad comedy as we see clips but only hear deafening music.

'Its Chief Executive Officer Graham Smith is shown speaking but we can't hear a word of what he is saying.

'At the end it actually says ''starring the British people'' which is rubbish. According to YouGov they consistently have around 20 per cent support.'

He added: 'Bad material and bad ideas. With Prince Philip in hospital today, it's bad timing too.'

Prince Charles's biographer Tom Bower slammed the footage as 'tasteless and counterproductive. And unfortunately disgusting too'.

Another person commented on Republic's YouTube page: 'PRINCE PHILIP IS IN HOSPITAL.'

A message with the clip said: 'In a country where Royals reign one group will defy the odds to abolish the monarchy. A campaign will become a movement. It's time'

It featured footage of Prince Andrew during his car crash Newsnight interview in 2019, shots from Harry and Meghan's wedding in 2018 and footage of the Queen

It ended with a trailer page which claimed the footage was 'starring the British people'

Police officers were on Wednesday standing guard outside the private central London hospital where Prince Philip is being treated.

Reinforcements were seen trooping towards the front entrance later as television cameras began arriving.

The Duke will celebrate his 100th birthday on June 10, around the same time Prince Harry and Meghan are expecting their second child.

In a statement, Buckingham Palace said: 'His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh was admitted to the King Edward VII Hospital in London, on Tuesday evening.

'The Duke's admission is a precautionary measure, on the advice of His Royal Highness's Doctor, after feeling unwell. The Duke is expected to remain in hospital for a few days of observation and rest.'

Boris Johnson led the nation in sending his best wishes to the Duke for a speedy recovery.

A No10 spokesman said: 'The Prime Minister sends his best wishes to the Duke of Edinburgh as he undergoes a few days of rest in hospital.'

Republic CEO Graham Smith said: 'The video was something I did a couple of weeks ago while experimenting with the iMovie trailer feature.

'It took me about twenty minutes and was really just a bit of fun. I thought I'd put it on YouTube to see what our followers thought.

'I hadn't seen the Philip story at the time I put it up and we're not doing anything in relation to him now or in the future.'
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With the increasing rate at which suspected criminals are being set ablaze in Akwa Ibom State, police in the state have issued warnings to residents against jungle justice.

The police a spokesperson in the state, Odiko MacDon, vowed that the police would prosecute those found to have taken laws into their hands.

A man suspected to have stolen a goat around February 5 was set ablaze in Ibiono Ibom Local Government Area of the state, while another man was also set ablaze along Nwaniba Road, near a popular Pentecostal church, in Uyo.

A journalist in Uyo said about six people were attacked and burnt to death by a mob in the city within 48 hours, early February, on suspicion of being either a thief or robber.

The police spokesperson, Mr MacDon, in a statement on Thursday, said henceforth, perpetrators of jungle justice would be identified, apprehended and prosecuted.

Mr MacDon said jungle justice could not guarantee fairness to a suspect and, therefore, should not be allowed to continue.

The act of jungle justice, if not checked, might lead to the death of innocent persons and snowball into anarchy, he said.

The Commissioner of Police notes that jungle justice is a travesty of justice, as it does not guarantee fairness to anyone and may lead to the death of an innocent person(s).

The act may lead to a state of anarchy and will, therefore, not be tolerated as it negates the subsisting constitutional provisions and has no place in our criminal justice administration, the statement quoted the police commissioner as saying.

The commissioner appealed to members of the public to be law-abiding and always handover suspected criminals, when caught, to the police for diligent prosecution.

Most Nigerian states are currently facing various forms of security challenges, including increasing rates of kidnapping, armed robbery, and communal clashes.

(NAN)
California State Governor Gavin Newsom Visits Kendren Hospital

Observing the Success of the Co-Pilot Initiative of Vaccination Distribution in Impacted Communities

California State Governor Gavin Newsom visited the vaccine distribution center found at the Kendren Hospital in Los Angeles, CA. Observing their protocols, the governor highlighted its success and stated that there should be hundreds more replicated, but in the current vulnerability of the state, every county is facing a different saturation of challenges that Newsom is looking to face head on.

On February 3, Newsom and the Biden administration announced a pilot partnership to open community vaccination centers in Oakland and Los Angeles. The Governor dissected the issues happening across the state are unique in each community and call for specific solutions. Newsom spoke of a new age of humility stemming from this; the solution is found within the alignment of the community and the organizations that look to serve the public.

The directive is in direct collaboration with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), they will provide resources and federal staffing support to new vaccination centers. Using the states MyTurn online system, the mission behind these co-piloted facilities is to expand the rate of vaccination in California, in a effective and equitable manner, focusing on high-risk communities, according to the released press information from the governors office.

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The coronavirus pandemic has been an impetus for accelerated progress and social change. The role of racism in the quality of ones life, has been seen vividly through data and research that italicize demographics most susceptible to the virus.

There is a zoomed in lens, magnifying underrepresented and impacted communities and location of vaccination centers have become a key factor in treating the imbalance of resources found within the health care system.

Quoting the official press release, Newsom stated, In the fight against COVID-19, partnership is key, especially when it comes to reaching Californians in underserved areas, Governor Newsom continued, These new sites will help us get available supply to some of the California communities most in need

It was 11 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 15, the line for vaccinations traveled down the block, snaking around to the corner intersection of Avalon Blvd and 42nd Place. People of all ages and ethnicities were standing, funneling through the maze to get to Kendren Community Health Center, where COVID-19 vaccine shots were being administered. Some were there for the very first time and were nervous about the experience, others familiar with the process, stood ready for their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccination.

After a tour of the Kendren facilities led by Dr. Jerry P. Abraham, Newsom sat with L.A. Sentinel and stated, This is great, this is amazingI mean its a model and it needs to be replicated hundreds of times. The governor spoke in full transparency of the challenges behind doing that, this type of organization depicted at Kendren Hospital is greatly needed across California.

Newsom mentioned the shared responsibility of the nation and how America has been shaken, abruptly woken up to the core issue of racial inequity hemorrhaging the resources in impacted communities. Coming into this level of awareness, location has played a significant role in vaccine distribution.

Newsom broke down the strategy behind the placement of resources includes a healthy place index; the analysis of social economics for over 200 communities and a close look at their equity index level, it all plays a critical role when deliberating the priority of supplies, amplified health care assistance, and vaccines.

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Looking directly at the vaccinations and the hesitation found among the population, Governor Newsom highlighted the African American community, he stated, The African American community in particular, understandably, is a community that has very strong opinions, historically around the issue of vaccinations.

Recent data shows people who identified as White are the majority of those vaccinated at 32.6 percent, followed by Latinx 15.8% percent, and 2.8 percent are Black.

Newsom recognizes the concept of trust has been broken through a dark past Black Americans have encountered in this nations medical system, causing a deep resistance to the vaccination. With this in mind, the governor stated, We have to meet people where they are.

The Governor shared the feeling of last year being a heavy and enduring season, various communities have been brought to their lowest means of living. He stated, We are at a point where theres truly a bright light at the end of this tunnelits just a few months away, but we are also at the zenith of exhaustion.

The nation developed racially charged phobias, escalated levels of anger, and exercised radical behavior throughout this pandemic, it has been a massive weight for all levels of government, as they look to carry out their civic duty in serving the public who are in dire need of a remedy.

The governor stated, When you look at the solution for any problem, you have to start from the bottom, up in communities, culturally competent in language, and recognize in every way, shape, and form, one size does not fit all.

Newsom enlisted the word of the year is humility, there is a new understanding of seeing each other and caring for one another, superseding any social difference that is found in this nation. Newsom reflected on what this pandemic has done to his perspective and the amplified call for a solution in racial inequality.

Governor Newsom stated, What drives me is what I believe is represented in our values. The governor reflected on his strategy going into his position 25 months ago, he wanted California to be for all.

He stated, I feel a deep responsibility and weight to connect to those values and to advance them. Newsom has the mindset of collaboration and to build a framework that seeks inclusivity in legislation and connection to the people the state government has sworn to protect.

Newsom closed with the following statement, This year has been humbling, and it has exposed the best and the worstand its also a year of such profound energy and that energy was manifested in terms of how this nation responded, in some parts, the rest of the world responded like to George Floyd and the energy that we are now placing the issues of equity

Lucknow, Feb 18 : The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) is planning a series of pro-farmer meetings in rural areas of Uttar Pradesh to clear the misconceptions regarding the farm laws among farmers.

Leaders, who are connected to farmers, will be entrusted the responsibility of these meetings which will also be held in canal and eastern Uttar Pradesh.

This will be the BJP's way of countering Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's foray into the farmers' agitation through her Kisan Panchayats in western Uttar Pradesh.

The BJP leaders can see a pattern in Priyanka's visits which are a combination of a pro-farmer approach and a touch of "soft Hindutva" through her temple visits.

In the past two weeks, the Congress general secretary has visited the state thrice.

On February 4, she visited the family of a farmer from Rampur who died during the ongoing stir against the farm laws.

In Saharanpur, she attended a kisan panchayat on February 10 and offered prayers at the Shakumbari Devi temple.

The next day, she took a holy dip in the Sangam during Mauni Amavasya in Prayagraj.

On Monday, she addressed another Kisan Panchayat in Bijnor.

"We have to counter the anti-BJP mood that is being deliberately built up among farmers by the opposition. We are asking our cadres to collect information on all assembly seats, including the 84 seats that the BJP lost in the 2017 UP polls when it returned to power in the state after a long gap," said a party functionary.

Cadres have also been asked to ascertain the extent of damage, if any, that has been done on farmers' issue.

UP BJP chief Swatantra Dev Singh has been leading the party's rural connect activity, one that comes just ahead of the panchayat polls, likely in April-May.

Immediately after the panchayat elections, the stage will be set for the 2022 UP assembly polls and the BJP is working on regaining the confidence of the farmers by approaching them in small groups in western UP.

The BJP is equally focusing on eastern and central UP even though the participation of farmers from this region in the ongoing agitation is minimal.

The BJP, apparently, wants to nip in bud the possibility of the agitation spreading across UP.

However, the main concern is the increased participation of the Congress in the farmers' agitation.

"There is no doubt that, at present, the Rashtriya Lok Dal is gaining because of the farmers' agitation. But the situation will change when elections are held next year. The RLD alliance with Samajwadi Party continues and if they stay together, people will recall the Muzaffarnagar riots when Akhilesh Yadav was in power. The Congress is nowhere in the picture and the party does not have the infrastructure needed to convert crowds into votes," said a BJP MLA from western UP.
Taiwan was close to an agreement to buy five million doses. For islands Health Minister, political interference scuttled the deal. Shanghai Fosun is licenced to distribute the vaccine in China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. Taiwan has already bought millions of doses from AstraZeneca and Moderna.

Taipei (AsiaNews)  Taiwan announced that a deal to buy five million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine fell through because of interference from outside sources.

Maybe someone didn't want Taiwan to be too happy, said Taiwanese Health Minister Chen Shih-chung speaking to a local radio, suggesting that perhaps mainland China was responsible for the failure.

Taipei had worked out a deal with Pfizer, a US-based pharmaceutical company, and BioNTech, a German biotech firm. The negotiations with the German firm, which began in the summer, were cancelled at the last moment

BioNTechs agent in China is Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group whose mandate also includes Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. In return, Shanghai Fosun paid BioNTech US$ 85 million in licensing fees and pledged to invest US million in the German firm.

To date, Taiwan has secured 14.76 million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine (10 million supplied through a deal with AstraZeneca and the rest through COVAX), and 5 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine produced by US-based Moderna.

When asked, Chen did not reject the suggestion that Beijing and Shanghai Fosun might have interfered, implying there was a political dimension to the decision.

For its part, Fosun has an interest in defending its licence and protect its financial interests. Chen said that he did not have any dealings with the Chinese company over the vaccine.

Beijing considers Taiwan a rebel province, and has never ruled out retaking it by the use of force. The island is de facto been independent from mainland China since 1949 when Chiang Kai-shek's nationalist forces (Kuomintang) lost the civil war against the Communists, while holding onto the claim to be the rightful heir to the Republic of China founded in 1912.

Taiwan is one of the few countries to have contained the coronavirus, a success that has also been reflected in the national economy.

President Tsai Ing-wen has repeatedly rejected Communist Chinas demand to act on Taiwans behalf in the fight against the pandemic. For the Taiwanese government, as well as Western nations, Chinese hostility undermines the efforts of the world community against COVID-19.
Researchers pioneer 3D imaging to detect breast cancer, COVID-19 and other diseases

LOWELL, Mass. - A research team led by UMass Lowell is pioneering a new 3D imaging technique to better detect breast cancer and other diseases, including COVID-19.

The noninvasive medical technology uses specialized contrasting dye that recognizes breast cancer cells, allowing practitioners to better visualize human tissue inside the body. The dye amplifies the X-ray signal in tumors when used together with a state-of-the-art computed tomography (CT) scanner, called a "photon-counting spectral CT," which produces multi-colored, 3D images.

"The contrast agents, combined with spectral CT and machine learning, could lead to a more precise diagnosis of the disease and assist significantly in early intervention," said UMass Lowell Chemistry Assistant Prof. Manos Gkikas, who is leading the project, which is funded by a three-year, $750,000 grant from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center.

Other team members include UMass Lowell's Hengyong Yu, professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Mary Rusckowski, associate professor of radiology at UMass Medical School in Worcester. MARS Bioimaging Ltd., a leader in photon-counting spectral CT technology, is providing $210,000 in additional funding to support the research as an industry partner.

UMass Lowell doctoral students Shayesteh Tafazoli, Dayang Wang and Yongshun Xu, all of Lowell, are contributing to the work under the direction of Gkikas and Yu.

"To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time this type of combined research is being done. It highlights the importance of X-ray CT in medicine, a field where UMass is strong," said Gkikas, who lives in Boston.

Breast cancer is the most common type and the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in American women, according to the American Cancer Society. The organization estimates about 281,550 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in U.S. women this year. Many cases are discovered when the disease is at an advanced stage, making earlier detection and diagnosis key to improving patients' outlook and chances of survival.

"Detecting early signatures of this terrible disease will significantly improve the rate of survival of patients. Prof. Manos Gkikas and his collaborators are pursuing novel ideas that have the potential to yield new technologies that could save many lives. I am pleased to see work being conducted by researchers from different colleges at UMass Lowell and from our sister campus UMass Medical School," said Noureddine Melikechi, dean of UMass Lowell's Kennedy College of Sciences.

The research team believes the combined use of the specialized dye and the colored 3D X-ray images generated by spectral CT will revolutionize medical imaging, according to Gkikas.

"This can assist radiologists in discriminating between healthy and cancerous tissues. They can use those images to determine if a cyst or a tumor requires further examination or biopsy," Yu said. "The resulting data can then be amplified even further using image reconstruction algorithms and machine learning, enabling us to track a tumor's progression in primary breast cancer."

Unlike conventional contrasting agents, the specialized dye being developed by the research team can specifically target cancer cells and remain in the body for an extended time, which would improve the accuracy of diagnoses, according to Gkikas.

"In our approach, we are designing contrast agents that could stay in the body for a prolonged period. They can accumulate at the cancer site and enhance the CT signal to better visualize the tumor," he said.

The imaging would also allow practitioners to track a tumor's progression in primary breast cancer. In addition, the researchers hope to expand the technology to one day detect secondary, metastatic cancers that have spread beyond their primary site to other tissues or organs in the body. Such metastatic cancers can sometimes emerge anywhere from four to 10 years after treatment of the original cancer, according to Gkikas.

"In combining the expertise of our researchers across disciplines and institutions, we have established a unified front working to defeat breast cancer. The researchers are also aiming to use this method to detect COVID-19 and other diseases. We look forward to developing the many ways this cutting-edge technology could help save lives," said James Sherwood, dean of UMass Lowell's Francis College of Engineering.

In a separate project funded by UMass Lowell, Gkikas is applying the imaging technique to detect COVID-19 and track the progress of lung inflammation in patients coping with the disease.

###

UMass Lowell is a national research university offering its more than 18,000 students bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. UMass Lowell delivers high-quality educational programs and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe.

http://www. uml. edu

Additional Contact:

Christine Gillette,

978-758-4664 or

Christine_Gillette@uml.edu

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
To get her coronavirus vaccination last weekend, Frances H. Goldman, 90, went to an extraordinary length: six miles. On foot.

It was too snowy to drive at 8 a.m. on Sunday when Ms. Goldman took out her hiking poles, dusted off her snow boots and started out from her home in the Seattle neighborhood of View Ridge. She made her way to the Burke-Gilman Trail on the edge of the city, where she wended her way alongside a set of old railroad tracks, heading south. Then she traversed the residential streets of Laurelhurst to reach the Seattle Childrens Hospital.

It was a quiet walk, Ms. Goldman said. People were scarce. She caught glimpses of Lake Washington through falling snow. It would have been more difficult, she said, had she not gotten a bad hip replaced last year.

At the hospital, about three miles and an hour from home, she got the jab. Then she bundled up again and walked back the way she had come.
Gandhinagar, Feb 18 : BJP's Rambhai Mokariya and Dineshbhai Prajapati Anavadia on Thursday filed their nominations for Rajya Sabha bypolls on two vacant seats in Gujarat. After a gap of five years, it seems the Rajya Sabha elections will go uncontested by the Congress, as there have been no nominations filed by the party.

Both the leaders from the saffron party, after getting the mandate from the high command, handed over their nominations to the Returning Officer in the Gujarat Assembly.

Rambhai Mokariya, the founder of the established Maruti Couriers, is an old warrior of the BJP based in Rajkot. He was also a member of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) from 1974 and later joined the Jan Sangh in 1978. Since then, he's been with the BJP. He hails from the Brahmin community.

"I will raise issues like that of the SagarKhedu (fishermen), Rajkot's medium and small industries. There are no issues of the Brahmin community. But I will try to raise such issues like that of unemployment," said Mokariya.

Dineshbhai Prajapati Anavadia hails from an OBC community and is from the northern part of Gujarat of Deesa, Banaskantha. He heads the BJP Bakshipanch Morcha. He was the BJP Banaskantha district general secretary.

"It would be early to say that these candidates will win unopposed. But both our candidates have filed nominations," said Gujarat BJP chief C.R. Patil.

Bypolls for the two vacant Rajya Sabha seats in Gujarat are scheduled on March 1.

The Election Commission had decided to hold two separate bye-elections for Gujarat to fill up the vacancies owing to deaths of Congress' Ahmed Patel and BJP's Abhay Bhardwaj, both of whom succumbed to Covid-19 last year.

The scrutiny of the nominations will take place on February 19, whereas the last day of withdrawal of application forms is February 22.

The polls will be held on the March 1. The counting of the votes will be held the same day at 5 pm. The entire election process will be completed on March 3.

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat in 2017 and his term was to end on August 18, 2023. He died on November 25 last year.

Similarly, newly-elected BJP Rajya Sabha member Abhay Bhardwaj died on December 1 last year. Bhardwaj had been elected in June 2020 and his term was to end on June 21, 2026.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text

Syrian sources, exchange with Israel for soldier's remains 'No Israeli girl entered from Golan by mistake'

(ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, 18 FEB - The remains of an Israeli soldier, and not an Israeli girl who "mistakenly" entered Syrian territory through one of the most sealed-off borders in the Middle East, is at the heart of an Russia-mediated exchange between Syria and Israel, well-informed Syrian sources close to the negotiations underway in Moscow told ANSA.



Israeli and Syrian media on Wednesday released news of a mediation underway by Russia to facilitate a prisoner exchange between the two countries.



They reported that an Israeli girl who had entered Syrian territory "by mistake" two weeks ago from the disputed Golan Heights is reportedly about to be exchanged for two Syrians, Nahal al Moqt and Diab Qahmuz, originally from the area of Golan controlled by Israel and sentenced, respectively, to prison and community service.



The Syrian sources, on the other hand, said Russia is mediating the return from Syria of the remains of an Israeli soldier in exchange for the deportation to Syria of two Syrians from Golan.



If this is confirmed, it would tie into a recent precedent: between April 2019 and January 2020, Russia successfully mediated the return to Israel from Syria of the remains of an Israeli soldier, Zachary Baumel, who died in Lebanon in 1982, in exchange for the release of two Syrian prisoners from Golan.



The analogy of the exchange two years ago also resides with the fact that Nahal al Moqt, one of the two Syrians ready to be exchanged, is the sister of Sudqi al Moqt, who was transferred to Damascus in January 2020 as a result of the previous exchange.



The Syrian sources insist in addition that it is nearly impossible that "an Israeli girl" could cross without being stopped and "by mistake" through one of the most controlled and militarised borders in the Middle East, marked by electrified fences, curtains of barbed wire, mine fields, and closed-circuit video surveillance. (ANSAmed).




Dubai:

According to a media report, Pakistans former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf considered the use of nuclear weapons against India during tension following the 2001 terror attack on Indian Parliament, but decided not to do so out of the fear of retaliation.

Musharraf, 73, also recalled that he had many sleepless nights, asking himself whether he would or could deploy nuclear weapons, the Japanese daily 'Mainichi Shimbun' said.

The former president disclosed that amid tensions between India and Pakistan following the 2001 terrorist attack on the Indian Parliament, he contemplated the use of nuclear weapons, but decided against doing so out of fear of retaliation.

When tensions were high in 2002, there was a "danger when(the) nuclear threshold could have been crossed," the paper quoted Musharraf.

At the time, Musharraf had publicly said that he would not rule out the possibility of using nuclear weapons. Musharraf also said, however, that at the time, neither India nor Pakistan had nuclear warheads on their missiles, so it would have taken one to two days to make them launch-ready.

Asked whether he had ordered that missiles be equipped with nuclear warheads and put into firing position, he said, "We didn't do that and we don't think India also did that, thank God" -- pointing, perhaps, to a fear of retaliation, the paper reported.

The two countries subsequently avoided an all-out clash and tensions subsided. The then army chief Musharraf ousted the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a coup in October 1999. The army general served as president from 2001 to 2008.

Musharraf has been living in Dubai since last year when he was allowed to leave Pakistan on pretext of medical treatment. He has been charged with involvement in the murder of the former two-time prime minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007.





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WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices continue to rally on Thursday as a cold blast that's taken out almost 40 percent of U.S. crude production morphed into a global supply shock. Brent crude for April settlement rose half a percent to $64.65, after having earlier climbed above $65 a barrel due to supply disruptions in Texas and hopes of demand rebound. U.S. crude futures were up half a percent at $61.42 a barrel. More than 4 million barrels a day of U.S. oil output is now offline as Texas oil producers and refiners remain shut due to icy cold weather that's frozen well operations and led to widespread power cuts. Officials warned of 'disasters within the disaster' of historic cold weather that left millions without heat for a third day on Wednesday. Adding to the oil price rise, the American Petroleum Institute's weekly crude oil inventory report estimated an almost 6 million-barrel drop in U.S. crude stockpiles in the week ended Feb.12. The U.S. Energy Information Administration will release its oil inventory data later in the day. Abdul Aziz bin Salman, the Saudi energy minister, meanwhile, warned global oil markets against the 'futility' of trying to second-guess the OPEC+ oil alliance's next crucial move. Speaking to fellow members of the OPEC+ alliance at a forum held virtually from Riyadh, he said that the world had to learn the lessons of last year's dramatic gyrations in oil prices. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
London: The chair of the British Parliaments committee for the media and technology says Facebooks irresponsible decision to cut off news and official government feeds for Australian users constitutes bullying and will unite legislators from around the world into wanting to curb Big Techs abuse of its monopoly.

The Australian government has expressed shock and outrage at Facebooks decision to stop Australian users from posting and sharing news content, as well as wiping the posts of some government authorities, MPs and charities.

Facebook has taken a hard line with Australia over its media bargaining code. Credit:AP

The Silicon Valley giant took the action to protest the proposed media bargaining code, which would force the company to pay Australian media organisations tens of millions of dollars in recognition of the news content shared on the site.

Facebooks actions are in stark contrast with Google, which has struck deals multimillion-dollar deals with media companies Nine (publisher of this masthead), SevenWest and NewsCorp in recent days, ahead of the codes introduction.
BURLINGAME, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ReverseLogix Corp., the leading cloud-based platform to automate reverse logistics for e-commerce brands, third-party logistics providers and manufacturers, today announced $20 million in its first round of external funding. The new capital will enhance the company's capabilities and resources to deliver a turn-key, modular SaaS platform to manage, plan and execute the complex end-to-end reverse logistics process for the world's largest e-commerce-focused companies.

The Series A financing was provided by Cambridge Capital, a leading supply chain technology-focused investment firm. In conjunction with the investment, Cambridge Capital's Benjamin Gordon and Matt Smalley have joined ReverseLogix's Board of Directors.

Through ReverseLogix's proprietary, cloud-based technology platform, e-commerce companies, logistics providers and manufacturers can manage every aspect of returns, repairs and after-sales care. With distinct modules focused on returns initiation, returns processing, repair management, warehouse management and inventory optimization, customers can leverage the best and only centralized end-to-end returns management solution for their specific needs. By automating and optimizing reverse logistics processes with AI and machine learning, ReverseLogix's customers can achieve a significant reduction in operating costs and increase customer satisfaction, while also achieving enhanced visibility and adherence to complex service level requirements and custom policies  all in one centralized platform.

According to Bank of America and McKinsey, the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated e-commerce penetration in the US from 16% to 34% of all retail sales, resulting in 10 years of expected penetration growth in just three months  which leads to significant growth in returns/reverse logistics.

With 25% of e-commerce orders returned, there was a 70% annual growth in total packages returned in 2020, and there is significant continued growth projected in the future. Since returns cost e-commerce businesses up to 20% of the underlying value of the purchased good, leading companies are seeking to leverage best-of-breed technology to better manage this previously manual, cumbersome and costly process. ReverseLogix is poised to capture significant market share due to its flexibility and product depth, being purpose built exclusively for reverse logistics workflows.

"After bootstrapping ReverseLogix for over 6 years, I am excited to announce this significant investment. Cambridge Capital is the perfect partner for us who has deep experience in logistics technology globally. Working with them will allow us to continue developing our platform, expanding our leadership team and extending our high-growth trajectory into 2021 and beyond, leveraging their industry relationships with key customers and partners," said Gaurav Saran, Founder and CEO of ReverseLogix.

"We are extremely excited to partner with Gaurav and ReverseLogix as the first outside investor. Our background as global business builders in supply chain, and our unique viewpoint as a group of operators, strategic advisors and investors focused exclusively in logistics, will allow us to help ReverseLogix continue to extend its market leadership, in what we believe is a trillion dollar reverse logistics market globally," said Benjamin Gordon, Cambridge Capital's Managing Partner. "ReverseLogix's continuous growth with existing and new large customers, top-tier satisfaction with the most important customers globally, and best-of-breed cloud-native flexible technology platform are a validation of ReverseLogix's large market opportunity and excellent product-market fit," added Matt Smalley, Principal of Cambridge Capital.

With large customers such as FedEx, Electrolux, Cole Haan, BNSF Logistics, Amer Sports, Samsonite and Tumi, ReverseLogix is already a leader in an important emerging product category underserved by incumbent vendors. With this new investment, ReverseLogix is accelerating and deepening its relationships with other large customers and partners globally.

About ReverseLogix:

ReverseLogix Corp. is the leading cloud-based platform to automate end-to-end reverse logistics for e-commerce brands, third-party logistics providers and manufacturers. ReverseLogix's centralized, highly configurable, modular SaaS platform is designed to manage every aspect of returns, repairs and after-sales care for all reverse logistics ecosystem players. With the rise in e-commerce, and the unique demands relating to returns and reverse logistics, ReverseLogix is poised to be at the forefront of innovation in a $1 trillion global market.

Founded in 2014 as a pioneer in SaaS-based centralized returns management, ReverseLogix is on the cutting-edge of solving reverse logistics challenges holistically. ReverseLogix is headquartered in Burlingame, California and serves top brands in all major verticals globally.

To learn more about ReverseLogix, visit https://ReverseLogix.com

About Cambridge Capital:

Cambridge Capital is an investment firm focused on the applied supply chain. The firm provides private equity to finance the expansion, recapitalization or acquisition of growth companies in transportation, logistics and supply chain technology. Our philosophy is to invest in companies where our operating expertise and in-depth supply chain knowledge can help our portfolio companies achieve outstanding value.

For more information, please visit http://www.CambridgeCapital.com

SOURCE ReverseLogix Corp

Related Links

http://www.reverselogix.com


GREEN RIVER (Wyoming News Exchange)  A Rock Springs woman was sentenced to prison on Thursday afternoon after pleading no contest to second-degree sexual abuse of a minor.

Kaila Marie Krotzer received a seven- to 10-year prison sentence during a change of plea and argued sentencing hearing before Judge Suzannah Robinson in Sweetwater County District Court.

Krotzer was originally charged with two felony counts of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor as well as two related misdemeanor charges. In a plea agreement, Krotzer pleaded no contest to second-degree sexual abuse of a minor, and the...
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
Teens can learn about desegregation of New Orleans public schools as the New Orleans Public Library and the Amistad Research Center present "Through a Crowd, Bravely," a Zoom event. Archivists Philip Cunningham and Christopher Harter will lead the program, which is being held from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Feb. 25.

Following their presentation, Cunningham and Harter will give a virtual tour of the newest Amistad Research Center exhibit, which focuses on the same topic. For information, contact M'issa Fleming at mfleming@nolalibrary.org. Register at nolalibrary.org/events.

WINNING WRITERS: The winners of the New Orleans Public Librarys 2021 Winter Writing Contest will read their entries and share their process and inspiration at 6 p.m. Feb. 25 during a Virtual Readers Night.

This years contest theme was escape." First place was awarded to Sarah Waits for One Parlors Parrot. Second place went to Escaping Into Green by Erin Lestrade and third to Horse Firetruck Apple Sky by MM Kaufman. All three pieces can be read at nolalibrary.org.

COMMUNITY MEETINGS: Community office hours are every week through May at the New Orleans Public Library as a way to improve communication and information sharing between City Hall officials and residents. The program is intended to address important neighborhood issues by connecting residents with neighborhood liaisons and city personnel through in-person or virtual appointments. Districts and meeting locations are:

District E community office hours: East New Orleans Regional Library, 5641 Read Blvd.

District A: Mid-City Library, 4140 Canal St.

District B: Rosa F. Keller Library & Community Center, 4300 S. Broad Ave.

District C: Algiers Regional, 3014 Holiday Drive

Appointments are available Mondays through Wednesdays and can be made online at nolalibrary.org/events or nola.gov or by calling (504) 658-4933.

VOTING PROGRAM: The New Orleans Public Library will be participating in the Louisiana Endowment for Humanities Who Gets to Vote? program, a weekly series led by Professor Lo Faber and organized through the librarys City Archives & Special Collections department.

Who Gets to Vote? is a thoughtful reading and discussion series exploring how voting rights history intersects with the present.

The series kicks off March 13 with The Embattled Vote in America: From the Founding to the Present with Allan J. Lichtman.

For information, email afallis@nolalibrary.org or call the City Archives at (504) 596-2610, and follow the City Archives' Facebook page for updates.

The program is brought to you by the City Archives & Special Collections at the New Orleans Public Library and is sponsored by the Friends of New Orleans Public Library. It is part of the Why it Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Coronavirus infections have risen above 600 a day again for two days in a row. The number hovered below 400 over the Lunar New Year holiday, probably because fewer tests were conducted. The main reason for the spike was group infections in factories and hospitals recently, including a plant in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, where 114 workers were infected. After one foreign worker at the factory tested positive in Seoul on Feb. 13, the other 158 employees were also tested. Most of the patients are foreign workers who live together in staff accommodation.

Quarantine workers prepare for coronavirus tests at a makeshift facility in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province on Wednesday. /Yonhap

Another 60 cases had been counted in a boiler factory in Asan, South Chungcheong Province as of Wednesday, bringing the total number there to 114 as well. And at Soonchunhyang University Hospital in Seoul, more than 140 have tested positive. The spike comes after lockdown rules were eased for some businesses like restaurants and coffee shops, though there is no evidence of a direct link. Jung Jae-hun of Gachon University's Gil Medical Center said, "The problem is that lockdown was eased too hastily right after the holiday weekend."

Nurses attend a training course for coronavirus vaccination at a nursing school in Seoul on Thursday. /Newsis

But health authorities said it is unclear whether the spike is temporary and occurred as a result of an increase in testing. Son Young-rae, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Welfare warned, "We could consider tightening lockdown again if there's a spike in new cases" but added the ministry hopes to avoid that. Meanwhile, five more infections with the U.K. variant were confirmed on Wednesday, bringing the total number of variant cases here to 99.
Nigerias Defence Minister, Bashir Magashi, has advised citizens to defend themselves. The retired General told Nigerians to stay at...

Nigerias Defence Minister, Bashir Magashi, has advised citizens to defend themselves.

The retired General told Nigerians to stay at alert at all times.

Magashi addressed reporters on the banditry and attacks in some parts of the country.

The minister said people should not be cowards, adding that bandits sometimes possess few rounds of ammunition.

He said, It is the responsibility of everybody to keep alert and to find safety when necessary. But we shouldnt be cowards.

At times, the bandits will only come with about three rounds of ammunition, when they fire shots everybody runs. In our younger days, we stand to fight any aggression coming for us.

I dont know why people are running from minor things like that. They should stand and let these people know that even the villagers have the competency and capabilities to defend themselves.

On firearms, he said even in developed countries, they are debating whether to continue or not.

But I dont advise Nigeria to start issuing firearms for personal use, Magashi said.

Video:
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Dizzying losses, the looming threat of bankruptcies and tens of thousands of people thrown out of work: the aviation industry has been devastated by COVID-19 and there is still no light at the end of the tunnel. The sector may be unrecognisable when it finally emerges.

What is the state of air traffic?

Air traffic took a beating due to the COVID-19 pandemic, dropping by two-thirds last year according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The airline trade association's chief economist Brian Pearce called it "the biggest shock the industry of air travel has ever experienced."

At 1.8 billion, the number of passengers fell back to the level of 2003, according to the UN's International Civil Aviation Organization.

Border closures and quarantines had a greater impact on international traffic, which dropped by three-quarters, while domestic flights fell by just under half, according to IATA.

The situation differs sharply from country to country.

The number of passengers on domestic flights in the United Statesnormally the world's top aviation marketwas still down 63 percent in December. In India, the drop was 43 percent, 12 percent in Russia and eight percent in China.

In Europe, the number of flights was down by two-thirds in mid-February, according to Eurocontrol, which coordinates air traffic control in the EU.

What kind of recovery?

A slow one, most likely. IATA is forecasting traffic to double this year, but that will still leave the sector at just half of its pre-crisis level. But even that forecast is dependent upon virus variants not causing extended lockdowns and new border closures.

One thing is certain: traffic will pick up first in large regional or domestic markets like North America, Europe and China, which could recover to their 2019 levels "from 2022, while the international segment will have to wait until 2025-2026," said Yan Derocles, an analyst at ODDO BHF Securities.

That is because financially weakened airlines will only slowly expand costly long-haul flights beyond the most profitable pre-pandemic routes.

What consequences for airlines?

The dizzying drop in the number of passengers led to a sharp squeeze in revenue for airlines, which IATA put at $510 billion for 2020.

Meanwhile, airlines could not cut costs as quickly, even if they parked most of their planes on the ground and were able to furlough most employees, leading to losses of $118 billion.

While that is expected to narrow to $38 billion in 2021, the airlines that survive will be much weaker financially.

They have already taken their more costly planes out of service. Airlines retired 3,400 planes from service in 2020, and of those 2,400 were ahead of schedule, according to a study by the Oliver Wyman consultancy.

Boeing 747s and Airbus A380s, which are more expensive to operate as they have four engines, were among those to go.

And while many governments have stepped in to aid airlines some 40 have already shut down, according to IATA.

Whether the companies go under or not, many employees are likely to find themselves without a job. In Europe, the jobs of 18,000 out of 65,000 pilots are at risk, according to the European Cockpit Association.

In the United States, tens of thousands of airline jobs may go next month if lawmakers do not extend support for the firms.

And what about airports?

The Airports Council International estimates that airports lost out on nearly $112 billion in revenue last year. Many have reduced staff as they seek to cut costs, and have dropped expansion plans, such as Paris's Charles de Gaulle airport cancelling construction of a new terminal.

The company that manages Paris's airports posted a 1.2 billion euro ($1.4 billion) loss last year.

What future for the sector?

Despite huge injections of public money ($173 billion in various forms of aid in 2020 according to IATA) or tapping loans, airlines may not find it easy hang on until mass vaccinations make it possible for a large-scale return to travel.

ODDO BHF Securities analyst Yan Derocles said some governments will cut support for airlines or concentrate their aid on one or two companies.

"Certain companies will disappear... and that will most likely be mid-size airlines," he said.

Europe alone has more than 460 airlines with fewer than 50 aircraft, he noted.

Firms which rely heavily on intercontinental flights are likely to suffer longer as such travel is forecast to recover last.

Low-cost airlines that were highly profitable before the crisis, such as Ryanair, are expected to come out of the crisis in an even better position compared to their rivals.

And aircraft manufacturers?

With their clients on life support, the crisis was immediately felt by Airbus and Boeing, as airlines sought to put off or reduce orders.

Airbus quickly slashed production by nearly 40 percent and it still ended the year with 268 net new orders.

Boeing, which was already wracked by the two crashes of its new 737 MAX, lost hundreds of orders last year and its commercial aviation division suffered a loss of $13.8 billion.

Deliveries, which is when manufacturers get paid, also plunged. They were down by around one third at both Airbus and Brazilian manufacturer Embraer.

Boeing's commercial aviation division saw revenues plunge by 50 percent with deliveries of the 737 MAX not resuming until December and the 787 Dreamliner halted in October following the discovery of a manufacturing defect.

If the pace of production of medium-haul planes is expected to resume firstAirbus expects to boost output of the A320 in the second half of this yearproduction of long-haul planes could slow further as international routes are expected to rebound only slowly, said Archery consultant Bertrand Mouly-Aigrot.

Explore further Airbus orders plunge 65 percent as airlines hunker down

 2021 AFP

[February 18, 2021] Bank Leumi USA Bolsters Presence in Healthcare Space with $23.5M Prestige Care, Inc. Deal

Bank Leumi USA announced today that it has booked and funded a $23.5M deal with Prestige Care, a third-generation family operator of 80 senior living and rehabilitation centers across eight states in the western United States. The deal includes a significant treasury management relationship for Leumi in the West Coast region. The deal will refinance one of Prestige Care's ABL revolvers and a real estate term loan, which will enable it to support a portfolio of 356 operating beds across four skilled nursing facilities in Oregon and Washington and one assisted living facility in Arizona. The refinancing will allow Prestige to restore its liquidity and continue on its growth trajectory. "As the longterm healthcare industry swiftly adapts to meet the needs of a growing aging population, super regional operators like Prestige Care are a critical part of the market," said David Paulson, Leumi Chief Banking Officer. "Operators are faced with new demands in services and reimbursement capabilities and they need a lending partner that not only brings a strong track record in healthcare, but also understandswhere the market is going. We're thrilled to provide financing to Prestige Care as they navigate this rapidly-evolving industry."



Leumi has served the healthcare industry for 40 years and is committed to growing with the industry over the coming decades. "In the midst of a global pandemic and after 25 years with our prior banking partner, they decided to exit the industry," said Prestige's CFO Tom Mitchell. "Prestige conducted a competitive nationwide search and we are extremely pleased to announce Bank Leumi as our new banking partner, as they impressed us greatly with their commitment to our industry in these trying times. We look forward to expanding our relationship with Bank Leumi as they expand their presence in our industry."

About Leumi

Bank Leumi USA (Leumi) is a full-service commercial and private banking institution providing financial services to middle market firms, as well as a full range of private banking solutions to domestic and international clients. Leumi also offers a broad range of securities and insurance products through its brokerage subsidiary, Leumi Investment Services Inc. More information about Leumi is available at www.leumiusa.com. About Prestige Care, Inc.

Prestige Care operates a family of more than 80 senior communities throughout the western United States. Founded in 1985, Prestige Care provides a comprehensive senior service experience, offering assisted living, independent living, memory care, skilled nursing and rehabilitation. The company holds firm to a set of core values - respect, integrity, commitment and trust - that guide every aspect of its mission to personally touch lives every day. For more information on Prestige, visit its website at www.prestigecare.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005195/en/

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President Joe Biden will unveil his immigration plan on Thursday, a proposal that offers one of the fastest pathways to citizenship of any measure in recent years.

However, the plan doesn't contain any details on enhanced border security, which past measures have included as a way to win Republican votes.

Congressional Democrats will release the legislation Thursday on Capitol Hill. And, although their party controls Congress, with a 50-50 tie in the Senate it will be a tough slog for Biden's plan, which will provide a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States.

President Joe Biden will unveil his immigration plan on Thursday, a proposal that offers one of the fastest pathways to citizenship of any measure in recent years

At his town hall meeting with CNN on Tuesday, Biden made a gaffe when he said most of those on his fast-track to citizenship are not Hispanic.

'The vast majority of the people, those 11 million undocumented, they're not Hispanics; they're people who came on a visa -- who was able to buy a ticket to get in a plane, and didn't go home,' the president said.

'They didn't come across the Rio Grande swimming,' he added to laughter from the audience. 'Sorry, that's the Irish in me.'

The largest percentage of undocumented immigrants come from Mexico, according to the Pew Research Center.

In 2018, roughly 11.2 million immigrants living in the U.S. were from there, accounting for 25% of all U.S. immigrants. The next largest origin groups were those from China (6%), India (6%), the Philippines (4%) and El Salvador (3%).

The 'U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021' will reflect Biden's immigration priorities, including expanding the refugee resettlement program and deploying more technology to the Southern border.

The bill would immediately provide green cards to farm workers, those with temporary protected status and young people who arrived in the U.S. illegally as children.

For others living in the U.S. as of Jan. 1, 2021, the plan establishes a five-year path to temporary legal status, if they pass background checks, pay taxes and fulfill other basic requirements. Then, after three years, they can pursue citizenship.

The plan would raise the current per-country caps for family and employment-based immigrant visas. It would eliminate the penalty barring those immigrants who live in the U.S. without authorization and who then leave the country from returning for three to 10 years. It also would provide resources for more judges, support staff and technology to address the backlog in processing asylum seekers.

The bill would expand transnational anti-drug task forces in Central America and enhances technology at the border. And it would try to reduce the burden at the border by setting up refugee processing in Central America, to try to prevent some of the immigrant caravans that have overwhelmed border security in recent years.

Biden's provides an immediate pathway to citizenship for farmworkers, DACA recipients, and Temporary Protected Status holder - above a citizenship ceremony in New York

At his town hall meeting with CNN on Tuesday, Biden made a gaffe when he said most of those on his fast-track to citizenship are not Hispanic

The plan includes $4 billion spread over four years to try to boost economic development and tackle corruption in Latin American countries, to try to address some of the root causes of migration to the U.S.

A dozen Democratic lawmakers, including lead sponsors California Rep. Linda Sanchez and New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez, are set to unveil the full text of the bill.

Comprehensive immigration reform has struggled to gain traction in Congress for decades.

Menendez was part of the bipartisan Gang of Eight senators who negotiated a 2013 immigration reform bill that ultimately collapsed. Prior to that, a bill backed by President George W. Bush failed in Congress as well, after multiple attempts at compromise.

While Biden is pushing a comprehensive bill, he suggested earlier this week he may be open to a more piecemeal approach.

During the CNN town hall Tuesday night, Biden said that while a pathway to citizenship would be essential in any immigration bill, 'theres things I would deal by itself.'

That could leave the door open to standalone bills focused on providing a pathway to citizenship for various populations.

Still, publicly the White House is emphasizing that its goal is a comprehensive plan.

'The president feels that all of these requirements that are in the bill - these components of the bill - are what makes it comprehensive,' White House press secretary Jen Psaki said this week. 'They all need to be addressed. Thats why he proposed them together.'
The militant opposition group has released an American journalist after a 188-day detention in Idleb, writes Zaman Al-Wasl.

On Wednesday, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) released an American journalist known as Bilal Abdul Kareem, a correspondent for the American ONG channel, after six months of detention.

An informed source told Zaman Al-Wasl that HTS released the journalist after a 188-day detention in its prisons in Idleb. This came halfway into the sentence issued against him and based on a guarantee from the regions notables close to Abdul Kareem, who was arrested on August 13 in the town of Atme, north of Idleb, on the Syrian-Turkish border, with his photographer, who was previously released by HTS.

The reason for the arrest came after a number of allegations surrounding the accused, which are currently being looked into, HTS media relations manager told Zaman Al-Wasl in a previous statement. He did not provide more information about the nature of the allegations.

The source indicated that the arrest of Abdul Kareem came after he published a video report in which he talks about the torture of prisoners inside the HTS detention centers, zooming in on the most prominent person who was tortured, Tauqir Sharif. Sharif is a British aid worker who was released by HTS a month ago, and who had been on good terms with Abdul Kareem since they entered Syria.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
JPEC Sends Crews to Aid Sister Cooperative

By West Kentucky Star Staff

PADUCAH - Jackson Purchase Energy Cooperative has sent two crews to aid a sister Cooperative in Eastern Kentucky in power restoration efforts.The utility said in a press release two five-men crews went to Big Sandy Rural Electric Cooperative in Paintsville Thursday morning to assist with restoration efforts caused by winter weather that continues to devastate the region.At its peak, 8,500 of the cooperatives 12,745 consumer-members were without electricity. As of Thursday morning, nearly 4,900 remained in the dark.JPEC is part of a nationwide network of electric cooperatives that assist each other in times of natural disasters.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 08:21:13|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

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WASHINGTON -- Modeling data suggest that B.1.1.7 could become the predominant variant in the United States in March, according to a study released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday.

The first U.S. infection case of the B.1.1.7 variant was detected in Colorado in late December. As of Feb. 16, a total of 1,277 COVID-19 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant had been identified in 42 U.S. states.

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SAO PAULO -- Brazil was approaching 10 million COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, after 56,766 new cases were registered in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 9,978,747, according to the Health Ministry.

In its daily report, the ministry also reported 1,150 deaths in the same period for a death toll of 242,090.

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COLOMBO -- Sri Lanka's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that the temporary travel restrictions introduced by the government on visitors traveling from Britain due to the spread of a new COVID-19 variant were lifted with immediate effect.

The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that following discussions with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, it has decided to relax the restrictions on travellers from Britain, who are still subject to 14 days of quarantine and PCR tests determined by the health authorities.

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JOHANNESBURG -- As the vaccination program got under way in South Africa on Wednesday, President Cyril Ramaphosa was among those first to be vaccinated at the Khayelitsha Hospital in Cape Town.

"Taking the vaccine was quick, easy and not so painful," he said after the vaccination, urging all healthcare workers to register in order to be vaccinated.

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NICOSIA -- Chinese manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines are open to all potential users, said Chinese Ambassador to Cyprus Liu Yantao on Tuesday.

There is not yet an ongoing negotiation between the European Union (EU) and Chinese vaccine producers, but Chinese manufacturers "are open to all potential users," said Liu in an interview with the state-run Cyprus News Agency.

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TOKYO -- Tokyo on Wednesday reported 378 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the city's tally to 108,337.

According to the latest figures released by the Tokyo metropolitan government, it is the 11th successive day that new infections in the city have remained below 500.

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DHAKA -- Bangladesh reported 443 new COVID-19 cases and 16 more deaths on Wednesday, taking the tally to 541,877 and death toll to 8,314, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said.

The official data showed that 16,612 samples were tested in the last 24 hours across Bangladesh.

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KUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysia reported 2,998 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the national total to 272,163, the health ministry said on Wednesday.

Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press statement that seven of the new cases are imported and 2,991 are local transmissions. Enditem
Occupied El Aaiun, Feb 17, 2021 (SPS) - Several peaceful demonstrations took part in the streets of the capital of occupied Western Sahara, El Aaiun, in solidarity with activist Sultana Khaya.

The protesters raised flags of the Sahrawi Republic and chanted slogans demanding the end of the occupation, expressing their support to the Sahrawi human rights activist Sulatana Khaya and her family, despite the tight military blockade and the repression in the occupied areas.

Since the resumption of the armed struggle on November 13, 2020, the occupied parts of Western Sahara are under tight military siege imposed by Moroccan Occupation Authorities. SPS

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  Despite several warnings from health experts, Metro Manila could shift to the most relaxed form of community quarantine by March now that mayors have agreed to the proposal of economic leaders.

Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco on Thurday said the 17 mayors were split during their voting, but those in favor won by one vote, 9-8, for the National Capital Region to shift from general community quarantine to modified GCQ.

Tiangco said he voted against the easing of restrictions. Other mayors who voted to keep NCR under GCQ are Marikina City Mayor Marcy Teodoro, Muntinlupa City Mayor Jaime Fresnedi, San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora, and Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian.

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, Makati City Mayor Abigail Binay, and Mandaluyong City Mayor Menchie Abalos voted in favor of shifting to MGCQ, while Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and Pateros Mayor Miguel Ponce III did not disclose their votes.

CNN Philippines is still waiting for the response of other NCR mayors on how they voted.

The National Economic and Development Authority recommended to President Rodrigo Duterte to place the entire country under MGCQ next month. The different levels of quarantine classification enforced per area depend on their COVID-19 cases and the capability of health facilities to tend to patients. Duterte has yet to announce the quarantine status for March.

The proposal of acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua on Monday was quickly met with warnings from the OCTA Research group. It said it will be dangerous since COVID-19 and UK variant cases are increasing in some parts of the country. OCTA fellow Ranjit Rye also pointed out that the country has not yet even started vaccinating medical frontliners.

OCTA also warned that if Metro Manila moves to MGCQ, it will lead to a surge of up to 2,400 new cases per day by March 26, similar to the daily tally when the region was placed under modified enhanced community quarantine in August 2020 due to dwindling healthcare utilization.

Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, World Health Organization representative to the Philippines, said the cases in Metro Manila have not flattened yet so it is best to keep restrictions in place.

"We still need to be conscious that there is a relatively high level of transmission in the community," he said in a media briefing.

Infectious disease expert Dr. Rontgene Solante also said it's still too early to ease quarantine restrictions, citing the presence of new COVID-19 variants. He suggested it would be better to wait for another month before transitioning to MGCQ.

Solante told CNN Philippines' News.PH that local government officials should also observe first the behavior of people, once high-risk establishments like cinemas and gaming arcades reopen.

Although Metro Manila is recording a negative growth rate, eight out of 17 cities are showing increased cases, according to the Health Department.

Benhur Abalos, chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and who attended the meeting of the mayors, said the local chief executives agreed to ease to MGCQ. However, he said the mayors kept their stance against further lowering of the ages allowed to leave their homes. He said those under 15 and over 65 are still prohibited from going out for leisure.

NEDA also recommended to allow people aged five to 70 to go out for non-essential trips, increase public transportation operations from 50% to 70%, and resume pilot face-to-face classes in low-risk areas. Chua said the country needs to recover from huge economic losses.
US President Joe Biden hit out at China over Uyghur genocide taking place in Xinjiang and said they will face repercussions over human rights abuses ahead of the virtual gathering of G7 countries.

US President Joe Biden has made it clear from the beginning that his administration will focus on China, saying he anticipates outrageous rivalry between the two nations. While Bidens way of talking isnt just about as hawkish as that of his archetype Donald Trump, his govt is required to proceed with a hard way to deal with China. Early signals from the Biden administration likewise mirror attention on basic freedoms in the relationship with China.

Biden says he revealed to Chinas leader the US would oppose misuses and crackdowns that contradicted American qualities. Secretary of State considers the US in a more grounded position against China when it works with partners and leads from the front as opposed to utilizing Trump strategies. US President Joe Biden hit out at China over Uyghur genocide taking place in Xinjiang and said they will face repercussions over human rights abuses.

In a major hit between US-China relations, China has voiced resistance to selective inner circles after the US said the China challenge would be on the table during Fridays virtual gathering of the gathering of G7 countries. The G7 virtual talks will be the new US presidents first since taking office in January. The group of leaders last met in April.

Meanwhile, Chinas foreign ministry condemned the States attitude and elaborated that behaviours like these will not gain popularity among the international community, nor will they benefit the countries themselves. The Ministry further added that such a move will only push the world towards divide and even confrontation.
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President Joe Biden called out the Proud Boys as one of the greatest threats to America during his town hall this week in Milwaukee.

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee professor Joel Berkowitz asked Biden about white supremacists and other hate groups during that town hall Tuesday night.

"While I appreciate efforts being made to bring them to justice, I worry about ongoing threats to our country from Americans who embrace white supremacy and conspiracies that align with it. What can your administration do to address this complex and wide-ranging problem?" Berkowitz asked the president.

"I got involved in politics to begin with because of civil rights and opposition to white supremacists, the Ku Klux Klan, and the most dangerous people in America continue to exist. That is the greatest threat to terror in America, domestic terror," Biden said.

"Are you concerned about white supremacists in Wisconsin?" Terry Sater, a reporter at sister station WISN asked Berkowitz.

"Sure. We've seen them kill people. We've had things happen in our own backyard," Berkowitz said.

In January, Kyle Rittenhouse, charged with killing two people during police brutality protests in Kenosha, could be seen in a bar, prosecutors said, flashing "white power" signs while posing for photos and serenaded with the Proud Boys anthem.

The same group the president brought up at the town hall.



"You may remember, in one of my debates with the former president, I asked him to condemn the Proud Boys and he wouldn't do it," Biden said.



Berkowitz said he wished the president would have talked more at the Pabst Theater about the underlying causes of hate groups, but he's glad Biden has changed the tone of the conversation from the White House.

"They are dangerous people," Biden said.

The president said he'd like the Justice Department and the civil rights division to focus on hate groups.

You have permission to edit this article.

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Capitol Police are investigating two Republican congressmen for incidents involving the new metal detectors outside the House chamber after one tried to bring a gun onto the chamber floor and another may have manhandled an officer while rushing through the triggered magnetometer.

Members of Congress and their staff are now required to pass through metal detectors placed outside the chamber to prevent any weapons, including guns, from being brought onto the House floor  part of new safety measures put in place after the January 6 Capitol attack.

One of the probes is looking into Republican Representative Andy Harris of Maryland allegedly trying to bring a concealed gun onto the House floor on January 21, the day after Joe Bidens inauguration.

Harris set off the magnetometer that day and complied with a subsequent wand-search, according to a Wednesday report detailing a Huffington Post reporters witness of the events. The search resulted in the officer finding a gun on Harris side, a Capitol officer later confirmed, and led to a hushed conversation between the two.

U.S. Capitol Police are investigating two incidents involving the new magnetometers outside the House Chamber after Rep. Russ Fulcher (left) potentially assaulted an officer while rushing through the triggered detector and Rep. Andy Harris (right) was found concealing a gun while trying to enter the chamber

Metal detectors were erected outside the House chamber last month as extra safety measures were put in place following the January 6 Capitol attack. All lawmakers and their staff are required to pass through the magnetometer before entering the chamber

The reporter said Harris then went to the elevator banks to speak with Republican Representative John Katko of New York to supposedly ask him to hold his firearm while he cast his vote.

I dont have a license for that, the reporter heard Katko say, but the rest of the conversation was inaudible.

Lawmakers are permitted to carry firearms in most areas of the Capitol campus, excluding the chamber floors, the adjoining lobbies and cloakrooms, the Marble Room of the Senate and the Rayburn Room of the House.

Those who wish to conceal carry also have to obtain the special permit needed for conceal carrying of the firearm. U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) seemed concerned with the fact Harris was concealing his weapon, HuffPost noted.

The second incident involved GOP Congressman Russ Fulcher of Idaho who on January 12 had a physical interaction with a female officer near the magnetometer.

The night of the first vote following the Capitol storming, HuffPost observed Fulcher set off the metal detector and subsequently tried to rush past an officer operating the device who seemed to inadvertently get in his way.

Fulcher and the officer, a black woman significantly smaller than the congressman, got into an awkward position in trying to avoid a run in. After a few uncomfortable zig-zags, Fulcher grabbed the officer with both hands and pushed past her roughly.

Based on the reporters witness of the interaction, they did not feel Fulcher was intentionally trying to injure or be adversarial with the officer.

USCP said they are investigating the matter.

Many GOP lawmakers have already pushed back against the new safety measure and tried to evade the magnetometer. Here pro-2nd Amendment Rep. Lauren Boebert is stopped by Capitol Police as she passes through the metal detectors

The magnetometers erection has caused some stir among Republican congressmen and women.

The Democrat-controlled House voted earlier this month to fine lawmakers who tried to evade the detectors on their first offense by $5,000 and $10,000 for each subsequent offense.

Pro Second Amendment freshman Representative Lauren Boebert of Colorado vowed to carry her Glock to Congress even before the riots. She refused to allow Capitol Police to search her bag after it set off the newly placed magnetometer.

Representative Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma shouted at police officers conducting the searches.

According to several reports, GOP Representatives Ralph Norman of South Carolina, Louie Gohmert and Randy Weber, both of Texas, walked around the machines at some point.

Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne has been curiously reticent about confirming Nick Greiners appointment as Australias consul-general in New York. But any mystery surrounding the former NSW premiers appointment was blown out the window this week, considering Greiner has officially touched down in New York and is even installed at the consul-generals residence.

Former NSW premier Nick Greiner is now installed at the consul-generals residence in New York. Credit:Nick Moir

Have been here 10 days and at Beekman [Place], Greiner happily told CBD on Thursday morning. Beekman Place is, of course, the address of the consul-generals rather enviable home on Manhattans East Side with views of the East River and a handful of ambassadors and government-types as neighbours.

Heck, even Australias newly appointed ambassador to the UN Mitch Fifields residence - a bigger one, natch - is in the same building as Greiners.

Hopefully Fifield was apprised of Greiners arrival before his fellow Liberal colleague and former Liberal federal president touched down.
Zimbabwean authorities say the more contagious coronavirus variant that was first spotted in South Africa now accounts for 61 percent of Zimbabwes new cases. Public health experts say they fear the variant could overwhelm Zimbabwe's collapsed health care system.

Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa told reporters late Tuesday that officials would tighten lockdown enforcement because the variant had become more common.

Results of the genomic sequencing recently conducted indicated the disappearance of the type of COVID-19 virus that the nation had in 2020," Mutsvangwa said.

"There is now a 61% dominance of the new South African variant of the COVID-19 virus, which spreads faster and has a higher fatality rate. Accordingly, the nation now needs to be more vigilant than before and adhere to COVID-19 prevention and control measures. Our security personnel have therefore been directed to intensify monitoring and enforcement in order to enhance compliance.

While the claim of a higher fatality rate of the variant has been contested, it has been proven to be more contagious.



Zimbabwe shares a border with South Africa, which authorities say helped the virus  and the variant  to spread.

While international health authorities are urging countries to heed COVID-19 measures, rights groups say some countries, like Zimbabwe, are using the restrictions to silence opposition.

The head of Human Rights Watch in southern Africa, Dewa Mavhinga, said Zimbabwes government should instead focus on helping those in need.

The government needs to step in and support [those] who are in need and at risk of starvation," Mavhinga said. "That the government is intensifying the enforcement of regulations by the security forces is in itself not a solution. ... There is need for the government to ensure that there is no excessive use of force by the security forces as they monitor the lockdown. People should not be arrested and detained. Places of detention are already crowded and present a huge risk for the rapid spread of the COVID-19.

If the variants spread is not brought under control, Zimbabwes public health experts say, it could quickly overwhelm the countrys hospitals.

Dr. Pamela Magande, president of Zimbabwes College of Public Health Physicians, said, "We already had a health system that was in need of improvement before COVID. I think we have a window for us as a country to make sure that our health system [gets] to where it is supposed to be. ... A good number of our district hospitals cannot even give our patients oxygen.

Inoculation program

Zimbabwe on Thursday will launch its COVID-19 inoculation program, with the Chinese government having donated 200,000 doses of Chinas Sinopharm vaccine. Zimbabwes government says that once enough vaccine doses have been acquired, it plans to eventually immunize 60 percent of the countrys estimated 14 million people in an effort to achieve herd immunity.

Zimbabwe had more than 35,400 confirmed infections and 1,418 deaths from the infection as of early Thursday local time, according to the Johns Hopkins University Corornavirus Resource Center in the U.S.

There have been some solid .io sales this year and it prompted one reader to ask me if there was a guarantee that .io would always be in existence? They want to jump in but are concerned by an article that I wrote.

A guarantee? No. Since the 2014 article on GigaOm came out about the plight of the Chagossians and the dark side of .io much has come to light.

Back in 2014 GigaOM published a story on the .io extension, the country code for the British Indian Ocean Territory.

With the ominous title, The dark side of .io: How the U.K. is making web domain profits from a shady Cold War land deal.

The Chagossians want to return and want their extension. Mauritius wants sovereignty over the Archipelago, BIOT will cease to exist as a dependent territory. Country code domains are based on the International Organization for Standardizations ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 codes, the removal of the BIOT from the standard could mean the end of the .io domain.

WsWs.org reported that UK dismisses UN Maritime Court ruling that it has no claim to Chagos Islands/Diego Garcia

On January 27, the United Nations International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), in the latest round in a protracted legal battle, ruled that the UK has no sovereignty over the Chagos Islands

With no powers of enforcement, the courts ruling is a dead letter and Britain knows this, declaring, The UK has no doubt as to our sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory, which has been under continuous British sovereignty since 1814. Mauritius has never held sovereignty over the BIOT and the UK does not recognise its claim.

Now whether this would happen or not remains to be seen. Kieran McCarthy speculated that if administration of the Chagos islands transferred to Mauritius, so would all .io domains.

Emma Bennett wrote an article last year that stated Mauritius could run the extension how they saw fit.

What I think about is old school Verisign type premiums on .tv. What about Mauritius saying Trade.io, yeah thats $500 to renew.

Its worth reading Emmas post in its entirety as she addressed a lot of things like domain history, SEO and a host of other things.

TheDarkSideof.IO encourages startups operating on a .io to donate to the Chagossians.

Do I think .io going away? I would bet no, but to make it a guarantee is foolish. There is a lot of parties going back and forth here and tempers are high.

Lowy Institute summed it up two weeks ago in a way that I think makes the most sense.

Any future negotiated solution to the Chagos territorial dispute will probably need to take this issue into account  potentially even including the perpetuation of an Indian Ocean (or IO) territory  to preserve this profitable digital asset.

There is a lot of money at stake and a lot of businesses could be upended, a practical solution is a must.

Mount Sinai researchers have discovered that Polycomb complexes, groups of proteins that maintain gene expression patterns, are essential for proper skin development, according to a paper published in Genes & Development on February 18. This latest discovery could improve development of future stem cell therapies to generate "skin on a dish" to transplant into burn victims and patients with skin-blistering disorders.

Polycomb complexes are groups of proteins that maintain the gene-expression patterns during early development by regulating the structure of DNA and proteins in cells. They play a critical role in the repression of gene expression, or the switching-off of individual genes to help control responses to changing environments and stimuli. The researchers found that Polycomb repressive complex 1 (PRC1) and Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) each help maintain the skin-specific gene expression pattern necessary for proper development of the skin.

The researchers studied Polycomb complexes in the developing skin of mice. Mice that were bred missing either Polycomb complex still had a functioning skin barrier, albeit with minor defects in skin thickness. In contrast, when researchers bred mice missing both complexes, it resulted in severe skin defects including a significantly thin epidermis that lacked essential layers required for survival. The researchers found that PRC1 and PRC2 help maintain regular function of gene repression, in particular the repression of transcription factors essential for the formation of non-skin tissues.

"We show that Polycomb complexes function redundantly to control proper development of the skin," said the study's corresponding author Elena Ezhkova, PhD, Professor of Cell, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, and Dermatology in the Black Family Stem Cell Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. "Polycomb complexes function together to repress non-skin lineage programs and thus control proper skin development."

The researchers said their discovery has implications for development of stem cell therapies to produce "skin on a dish" to use for transplantation. Since Mount Sinai researchers have established that both Polycomb complexes are vital for skin formation, this discovery could improve current protocols for generating skin cells from stem cells. Polycomb complexes are also often overexpressed in epithelial cancers, including skin cancers, and treatments using Polycomb inhibitors are currently being studied in clinical trials. This study suggests that parallel inhibition, use of both PRC1 and PRC2 inhibitors, may be a more powerful form of treatment for cancer patients.

While Polycomb complexes are important for skin function, their role in other tissues remains unknown. Future studies should explore the role of Polycomb complexes in developing and regenerating tissues, the researcher said.

###

This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health. The Albert Einstein College of Medicine and RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences in Japan contributed to the study.

About the Mount Sinai Health System

The Mount Sinai Health System is New York City's largest academic medical system, encompassing eight hospitals, a leading medical school, and a vast network of ambulatory practices throughout the greater New York region. Mount Sinai is a national and international source of unrivaled education, translational research and discovery, and collaborative clinical leadership ensuring that we deliver the highest quality care--from prevention to treatment of the most serious and complex human diseases. The Health System includes more than 7,200 physicians and features a robust and continually expanding network of multispecialty services, including more than 400 ambulatory practice locations throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, and Long Island. The Mount Sinai Hospital is ranked No. 14 on U.S. News & World Report's "Honor Roll" of the Top 20 Best Hospitals in the country and the Icahn School of Medicine as one of the Top 20 Best Medical Schools in country. Mount Sinai Health System hospitals are consistently ranked regionally by specialty and our physicians in the top 1% of all physicians nationally by U.S. News & World Report.
President Biden signs a series of executive orders on climate change in the State Dining Room of the White House on Jan. 27, including plans to launch a Civilian Conservation Corps. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)

President Biden hopes to take a page from the New Deal playbook and launch a modern version of the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps. The idea is to use government programs to provide jobs and training for workers on public projects aimed at preparing for, mitigating or forestalling some of the worst environmental impacts of global warming. Its a fine idea, though notably at the moment its just an idea.

Well wait for the details of Bidens Civilian Climate Corps, which are due in late April, before rendering judgment. But were encouraged by the broad scope of what Biden wants to accomplish by merging solutions to two pressing problems.

The president last month directed the Interior and Agriculture departments to flesh out the specifics of a Civilian Climate Corps Initiative to mobilize the next generation of conservation and resilience workers who will conserve and restore public lands and waters, bolster community resilience, increase reforestation, increase carbon sequestration in the agricultural sector, protect biodiversity, improve access to recreation, and address the changing climate.

The nation has already seen some of the effects of climate change, including raging wildfires here in the West, stronger and more intense hurricanes along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, and other extreme weather events pretty much everywhere. A Civilian Climate Corps obviously cant do much to stop the weather changes. But it can work to mitigate some of the problems, such as by promoting wildfire prevention (by thinning forests, for example), planting trees, restoring wetlands and removing invasive species.

Biden's proposal is part of a broader rollout of environmental policies by the president, including his embrace of the international movement to enact legal protections against development for 30% of oceans and 30% of land by the year 2030  dubbed 30 by 30 by proponents  which would help preserve habitats for species and maintain forests and other natural collectors of atmospheric carbon.

Story continues

Such projects can help put people to work, and now would be a good time for that. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment among people between the ages 20 and 24 was 10.3% in the last three months of 2020, and even higher for teenagers and higher still for nonwhites, compared with a national rate of 6.5%.

Crafting programs that will mesh the need for jobs with appropriate public projects and without competing with existing federal workers and contractors will be a challenge. That wasn't a problem for the original Civilian Conservation Corps, but that's because it was launched during a time of massive unemployment. That CCC put 3 million unskilled single men, most between the ages of 18 and 25, to work in camps scattered around the country tackling such projects as planting trees, building bridges and campgrounds, establishing wildlife preserves, building trails, roads and visitor facilities in national parks and helping state governments create more than 700 parks.

As a program of its time, unfortunately, it offered few opportunities for women and segregated the men's camps by race, an approach that clearly must be left to history. In fact, a Civilian Climate Corps could offer nonwhites, particularly in urban areas, an entry into work and careers they might otherwise not consider.

Such a corps should not be just a temporary jobs program. It should link the work with training for potential future employment, perhaps meshing with existing apprenticeship programs, and give preference to people currently unemployed or underemployed, the homeless or others showing clear need for economic help. Those who sign up should be able to use the training and experience to gain certifications that would help them move on to better future jobs and perhaps establish careers.

And it can build on, or intersect with, existing corps programs, such as the California Climate Action Corps, which recently placed 63 corps members with 26 nonprofits or local governments in Los Angeles, Redlands, Fresno, Stockton and San Jose doing a range of climate-related projects, including urban greening and wildfire mitigation. Nationally, the Corps Network representing more than 130 corps programs around the country offers an established framework for how such programs can work.

However it is structured, the Civilian Climate Corps can help the nation combat global warming and mitigate some of its effects. Yet the program also must help corps members prepare for their next jobs too. It's a tall order, we know, but the potential gains for the environment and for those needing work are significant.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

For years, Daniel Jose Older has been writing novels for middle grade, YA, and adult readers set in multi-tiered worlds in which the ordinary is infused with magic, mystery, and mayhem. Disney Publishing Worldwide imprint Rick Riordan Presents is dedicated to publishing novels that are retellings of myths from around the world. The two are now joining forces as Older, author of the bestselling Shadowshaper Cypher YA series, has negotiated a two-book deal with the imprint.

The two books in Olders new urban fantasy series, Outlaw Saints, about a teen who discovers that he has the capability to save New York City from being destroyed by an ancient evil force, are the first YA titles acquired by Rick Riordan Presents. The duology will be edited by publisher and author Riordan, along with editorial director Stephanie Owens Lurie, who is Riordans editor. The first novel, Ballad & Dagger, will be published in May 2022 and the second in May 2023.

Ballad & Dagger introduces readers to Mateo Matisse, born in San Madrigal, an island in the Caribbean that for centuries provided a refuge for pirates, Sephardic Jews fleeing the Inquisition, and Cuban Santeros. After the island is destroyed by a freak hurricane, a vibrant diaspora emerges in Brooklyn. Fifteen years later, Mateo, now a teen and a piano prodigy, lives with his two auntsone alive, the other a spirit. While he is playing the piano at the San Madrigal Grande Fete, a raucous annual party, gods and magical creatures appear, resulting in street battles breaking out between the three neighborhood factions. During the melee, Mateo discovers that he has healing abilities. One person seems to know whats going on: Chela Hidalgo, the rabbis daughter, who, like Mateo, possesses newly discovered secret powers. Mateo and Chela set aside their differences to unravel the mystery behind their sunken homeland and to stop a dangerous political operative whos trying to harness their powers to unleash a whole new terror on the world.

For me, these books are very personal, Older noted of the inspiration for the novels, which he describes as infused with a mix of spirit, art, and healing. I was raised in a Cuban Jewish household, Ive been an initiated Santeria priest for 10 years, and I worked as a New York City paramedic for a decade. In fact, I started out my EMS career as a street medic at protests against the Iraq War back in 2002. That whole time, I was playing music on the side.

Riordan told PW he is excited about his latest acquisition, stating, Ive been dying to work with Daniel ever since I read Shadowshaper. Im thrilled to have the chance to help Daniel bring to the world as our first YA titles a series based on his own rich and varied heritage.

For his part, Older said that he has been a huge fan of Riordans storytelling and presence in the publishing industry for years, calling this a dream come true project. As an unrepentant mythology nerd since childhood, Older added, I love how Mr. Riordan has brought mythology to life for so many readers, and I love how hes expertly used his platform to uplift other voices. He is truly a hero and an inspiration to me on so many levels."

Rick Riordan Presents debuted in March 2018 with the release of Aru Shah and the End of Time by Roshani Chokshi, a retelling of Hindu mythology. The imprint has published 14 middle-grade novels to date, and another six books are in the production pipeline.
We Must Return to Properly Functioning Legislatures

The persisting pandemic requires all minds on deck

Commentary

When an early Blackfoot or Plains Cree tribe faced a problem of food supply or contagion such as smallpox in their territory, councils met to discuss it. Typically a group of senior menwar chiefs, shamans, hunters, and the liketalked, in turn, and considered the various aspects of the problem. The input of many experienced voices was heard. These were so-called primitive societies, yet this is how at least some of them worked.

When the classical Greeks of Athens discussed taxes or faced war, they met in assembly to deliberate publicly. Men such as Demosthenes and Pericles discussed options in orations while others listened, noting dubious ideas for rebuttal in order that votes might result in effective action for the polis as a whole. A polis was not simply the city, as Robin Lane Fox notes in The Classical World: An Epic History of Greece and Rome, but the large area of villages and agricultural lands surrounding it so that policy was required to meet the needs of a varied population. They regularly ostracized people in Pericles time (voted to expel them for a period), similar to the current banishment of Donald Trump. And just as those ostracized in Greece returned, so shall Trump.

From the Greeks we inherited democracy and the practice of fact-basednot fear-basedreasoning, echoed by more recent aboriginal societies in their councils. The adage that two heads are better than one is therefore well-grounded in our past.

For a year now, the proper and traditional functioning of democracy in Canada and elsewhere to various degrees has been subverted by the pandemic, an emergency that has caused the legislative and executive branches of our governments, the deliberative and decision-making branches, to relinquish much of their constitutional authority to un-elected medical officials. This was done on the premise that these officials and their staff possessed the scientific expertise to deal more effectively with a pandemic than a group of mostly non-medical persons.

This was wrong. A pandemic is more than a medical emergencyit is a societal one because it affects all areas of life. But because we have become accustomed to specialization in work, government, and science, we have confused specializations valid use in normal times with the proper way to deal with a generalized crisis, which is to do so in a generalized manner.

Emergency management specialist David Redman has struggled from the start to make this point with authorities, with little success. He calls the pandemic a public emergency instead of a health emergency because it affects jurisdictions beyond the medical affecting all citizens.

Provinces should have set up emergency management teams featuring a cross-section of professionalsincluding those in the medical, education, and major resource sectorsthat could look at all areas impacted by the pandemic and work together to minimize the damage, Redman has told the Epoch Times.

[Health professionals] have no capability of understanding the power grid, the water supply system, the cattle industry, the pork and beef industry, the oil and gas industry, he said. Why would they? Thats not their job.

In times of crisis, cabinets should contain the best possible minds and meet often. Prime Minister Mackenzie King of Canada put the inimitable C. D. Howe in charge of wartime industry in 1940, while Britains Winston Churchill placed a feisty Canadian newspaper publisher, William Maxwell Aitken (Lord Beaverbrook), in charge of aircraft production before the Battle of Britain. Without Aitken and his extra Spitfires and Hurricanes, that key battle may well have been lost and with it, perhaps, Englands war.

The error in our approach to COVID-19 was identified early, yet those who sounded alarms were ignored or cancelled. Letters to editors went unpublished; formal applications like Redmans were brushed aside as the powers that be closed ranks to protect the saw of the day: Were all in this together, so listen to the science.

A year into the pandemic we see serious damage to our societies, much of it caused by well-intentioned but flawed policy with a medical focus. Many thousands of small businesses have shuttered their doors and big sectors like airlines and tourism have laid off tens of thousands of people. Our children are being harmed, perhaps irreparably, by school closures and other restrictions on social activities even though science tells us children are not good transmitters. So we arent even following the science properly.

We close our churches, denying freedom of worship, yet keep the Costcos and Walmarts open.

The best way forward is to shed the fear of normal procedure, much of which I think is based in concerns of legal liability. With COVID variants spreading, its more important than ever that we should return our Parliament and legislatures, as best we can, to normal daily functioning. Provincial and federal cabinets must resume their full executive duties. Mr. Redmans emergency management teams have roles to play as advisers, as do medical officers. And we need proper budgets and full oversight of them.

Each of us might also strengthen our immune system with good food, sleep, supplements, and exercisewhich many of the well-seasoned among us already do.

Brad Bird is an award-winning reporter and editorial writer based in B.C. He has a masters degree in political studies. An ancestor, Jimmy-Jock Bird, was a noted Blackfoot chief.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:14:18|Editor: huaxia

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KATHMANDU, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Nepal has granted approval to the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co. Ltd, under Sinopharm, for the emergency use in Nepal, the country's drug regulator said.

It is the second COVID-19 vaccine to get approval from the Department of Drug Administration, the Nepali drug regulator, after the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca received such approval a month ago.

The approval of the drug regulator is a pre-condition for any vaccine to be eligible for use in the Himalayan country.

"It is to notify to all concerned that the conditional permission has been granted for emergency use authorization to COVID-19 vaccines (vero cell), inactivated vaccine, manufactured by Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co. Ltd under Sinopharm against COVID-19 in Nepal," the department said in a notice on Wednesday.

This approval has paved the way for Nepal to receive the COVID-19 vaccines that China had promised to deliver to Nepal.

"With the approval to the Chinese vaccine, we have now more alternatives on vaccines," Dr. Shyam Raj Upreti, coordinator of the COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee under the health ministry, told Xinhua on Thursday.

But, the Nepali government is yet to decide on how and when to use the Chinese vaccines once they are supplied. "After the regulatory approval, we can now prepare a plan on the use of Chinese vaccines. We are also awaiting the confirmation of when the Chinese vaccines would be available to Nepal," said Dr. Upreti.

Currently, Nepal has been running a vaccination drive against the COVID-19 with the vaccines supplied by India. India had supplied one million doses of Covishield, the vaccine developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca and produced by Serum Institute of India.

Dr. Jhalak Sharma, chief of the Child Health Section at the Family Welfare Division under the health ministry, told Xinhua on Thursday that the Nepali government has so far inoculated the first dose of COVID-19 vaccines for more than 300,000 people.

Initially, the Nepali government had prioritized vaccinating health workers, security personnel, people involved in waste management, journalists and some officials among others.

As of Thursday, Nepal reported a total number of 273,166 infected cases and deaths of 2,058 people from COVID-19, according to the health ministry. Enditem
Throughout the 2020 presidential campaign and the transition, Mr. Biden insisted he would lift sanctions imposed by President Donald J. Trump only if Iran returned to the limits on nuclear production that it observed until 2019.

Under the original 2015 deal, Iran shipped 97 percent of its nuclear fuel out of the country and agreed to sharp limits on new production that would essentially assure it would take it a year or more to produce enough material for a single weapon. (It would take even longer to build a weapon.) In return, world powers lifted international sanctions that had choked the Iranian economy.

But over the objections of his first secretary of state and his first defense secretary  both of whom were fired  Mr. Trump restored American sanctions in 2018, arguing that the deal was flawed and that economic penalties would eventually break the government in Tehran, or force it into a new agreement. His move infuriated the other nations that brokered the accord with Iran after years of stop-and-start negotiations.

Over the past year, Iran has unabashedly compiled and enriched nuclear fuel beyond the limits negotiated in the 2015 agreement. Its leaders have accused the United States of being the first to violate its terms and vowed to come back into compliance only after America reversed course and allowed it to sell oil and conduct banking operations around the world.

Publicly, the Iranian foreign minister, Mr. Zarif, has cast doubt that Tehran will agree to talks before the American sanctions are lifted. In a tweet on Thursday, he played down Irans repeated violations of the accord as mere remedial measures.

A senior Biden administration official said that closing that gap would be a painstaking process.

The offer comes days before a Sunday deadline when Iran has said it will bar international inspectors from visiting undeclared nuclear facilities and conducting unannounced inspections of nuclear sites, unless the United States lifts sanctions reimposed by the Trump administration. The threat would not bar inspectors from declared nuclear-related facilities that are monitored on a regular basis. Still, the ability to inspect anywhere, on demand, by the International Atomic Energy Agency, is mandated by the nuclear deal.

And it is crucial to the international communitys confidence that Iran is not rapidly reconstituting its ability to make a weapon. There has been growing circumstantial evidence, much of it provided by Israeli intelligence, that the country never fully disclosed the sites involved in its program, dating back more than two decades.
Warsaw: Central European leaders pushed on Wednesday, local time, for faster deliveries of COVID-19 vaccines from every reliable manufacturer to speed up inoculations which they said is the way to conquer the pandemic and jump-start the Continents economic recovery.

The leaders of Hungary, Slovakia and Poland said they supported purchasing vaccines from manufacturers regardless of geopolitics provided they were safe and effective. Hungary is the European Unions first and so far only member state to administer Russias Sputnik V vaccine without waiting for approval from the European Medicines Agency.

Prime Ministers Mateusz Morawiecki of Poland, centre, Viktor Orban of Hungary, right, with European Council President Charles Michel, left. Credit:AP

There is no Eastern or Western vaccine, there is only a good or a bad vaccine, Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban told a news conference in Krakow, Poland. It is not good to be too political about the health security of the people.

The Hungarian leader said procuring safe and effective vaccines quickly was now more important than their cost.
Ever since the teaser of Yash's KGF: Chapter Two dropped on the internet on his birthday, fans have been eagerly waiting to catch a glimpse of their favourite superstar. What makes the film even more exciting is the addition to two new characters- Sanjay Dutt as the main antagonist Adheera and Raveena Tandon as Ramika Sen.

KGF: Chapter Two marks Raveena Tandon's return to Kannada cinema after 21 years. The actress was seen in the 1999 film Upendra. Her two-second appearance in the teaser of KGF: Chapter Two has already raised up the anticipation levels.

Recently in a chat with a leading tabloid, the actress revealed that she was actually set to be seen in the first part as well.

Talking about why her character was kept under the wraps in the film film, Raveena told Hindustan Times, "At that point, the story of KGF 2, especially my character had not developed fully. If I had done the first part, and it didn't turn out as well in the second part, it would have been a dicey proportion. They agreed to use my body double, and left the decision to me. I saw the first part when it was complete, and I was like 'Oh my God! This is phenomenal'. It was edgy, new age cinema."

The actress said that she has always been a big fan of films made in southern languages.

"I think there was a time when the Hindi film industry was grappling between good storylines, they were trying to cater to or copy from the West. They were becoming too westernized for the masses. There was a phase in the late 1980-mid 90s, I felt we were losing that grip on what the masses really wanted and could identify with. We suddenly had choppers (in the films)... it's not that you don't spend on movies, but the storylines had become very westernised. That's when I saw a couple of south films which were still catering to their regional senses and interiors. Heartland is the right word. I used to love their storylines, and when a couple of good films were narrated to me, I just jumped at it," Raveena explained the reason why she started taking up projects in the south film industry.

Coming back to KGF: Chapter Two, the Prasanth Neel directorial is slated to release in Kannada, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, and Tamil. There's a buzz that Yash will be dubbing his lines for the Hindi version himself. The much-awaited sequel is slated to release worldwide in theatres on July 16, 2021.

ALSO READ: KGF Chapter 2: Cost Of The Yash Starrer's Climax Sequence Will Make You Go WOW!

ALSO READ: KGF Chapter 2: Yash Planning To Dub His Lines For Hindi Version Himself?
During the CNN town hall, Joe Biden answered a question by saying that he was tired of talking about President Trump.

Maybe he is, but his fellow Democrats can't stop talking about the guy living in Florida. From Georgia to New York, there are many investigations opening. The New York Times wants more investigations, too. A House Democrat wants to use the KKK law from 1871 for intimidation and incitement of Capitol riot.

As the Democrats obsess over President Trump, parents from coast to coast are sending the political class a different message: open the schools or else. This is from David Catron:

In most red states, public schools opened up last fall for full time in-person instruction or some hybrid of in-person and distance learning. The blue states have, however, been considerably more dilatory about reopening. These states are, of course, governed by Democrats who are bought and paid for by the teachers unions. During the most recent election cycle, for example, the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) contributed a combined total of $43.6 million to Democrats and outside spending groups that support them. In the reopening debate, money talks and science walks. Ask California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

By the way, do you wonder if these Democrat politicians even send their kids to public schools? We remember that President Clinton and President Obama did not.

So the blue versus red divide keeps widening. On one hand, the "blues" are talking Trump "All Day and All of the Night," to quote the Kinks. On the other hand, the "reds" want the teachers' union to care about the kids and to get back to work. It's hard to believe that those two groups are living in the same country.

And the media? They are pitching softballs at Biden and avoiding difficult questions. They can't let go of Trump, either.

And the public get more frustrated because no one seems to care about them. I guess this is how civil wars happen, as an old teacher told me over the phone yesterday.

PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk).

Image: Travis Wise.
TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Orvana Minerals Corp. (TSX: ORV) (the "Company" or "Orvana") announced today that, at its annual shareholders' meeting (the "Meeting") held on February 18, 2021, the individuals noted below were elected as directors of the Company. The report on proxies provided by the Company's transfer agent indicated the following:

George Darling received 78,734,816 votes (representing 95.30% of votes cast); Alan Edwards received 77,916,316 votes (representing 94.30% of votes cast); Alfredo Garcia Gonzalez received 78,684,816 votes (representing 95.23% of votes cast); Ed Guimaraes received 77,916,316 votes (representing 94.30% of votes cast); Sara Magner received 77,916,316 votes (representing 94.30% of votes cast); and Gordon Pridham received 78,684,816 votes (representing 95.23% of votes cast).

Mr. Gordon Pridham was re-appointed as chairman of the board of directors; Mr. Juan Gavidia was re-appointed Chief Executive Officer; Ms. Nuria Menendez was re-appointed Chief Financial Officer; and Mr. Binh Vu was re-appointed Corporate Secretary/VP Legal Affairs, immediately after the Meeting.

The Company received 75,099,013 votes (representing 90.89% of votes cast) to re-approve its 2018 Stock Option Plan. The Company also reports the re-appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the Company's independent auditor.

For full voting details please see Orvana's voting results as filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com .

ABOUT ORVANA - Orvana is a multi-mine gold-copper-silver company. Orvana's assets consist of the producing El Valle and Carles gold-copper-silver mines in northern Spain, and the Don Mario gold-silver property in Bolivia, currently in care and maintenance. Orvana is in the process of completing the registration of transfer documents with the mining authorities in connection with the acquisition of Taguas, Argentina.

Additional information is available at Orvana's website (www.orvana.com).

Cautionary Statements - Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements made herein constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws ("forward-looking statements"). Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, potentials, future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "believes", "expects", "plans", "estimates", "intends" or "anticipates" or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "will" or "are projected to" be taken or achieved) are not statements of historical fact, but are forward-looking statements.

The forward-looking statements herein relate to, among other things: Orvana's ability to achieve improvement in free cash flow; the potential to extend the mine life of El Valle and Don Mario beyond their current life-of-mine estimates including specifically, but not limited to in the case of Don Mario, the processing of the mineral stockpiles and the reprocessing of the tailings material; Orvana's ability to optimize its assets to deliver shareholder value; the Company's ability to optimize productivity at Don Mario and El Valle; any measures taken by the Company to prevent and/or mitigate the impact of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases at or near the Company's mines and support the sustainability of its business including through the development of crisis management plans, increasing stock levels for key supplies, monitoring of guidance from the medical community, and engagement with local communities and authorities; estimates of future production, operating costs and capital expenditures; mineral resource and reserve estimates; statements and information regarding future feasibility studies and their results; future transactions (including the completion of the acquisition of Taguas and subsequent results of any exploration work on Taguas); future metal prices; the ability to achieve additional growth and geographic diversification; future financial performance, including the ability to increase cash flow and profits; future financing requirements; and mine development plans. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company as of the date of such statements, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. The estimates and assumptions of the Company contained or incorporated by reference in this news release, which may prove to be incorrect, include, but are not limited to, the various assumptions set forth herein and in Orvana's most recently filed Management's Discussion & Analysis and Annual Information Form in respect of the Company's most recently completed fiscal year (the "Company Disclosures") or as otherwise expressly incorporated herein by reference as well as: there being no significant disruptions affecting operations, whether due to labour disruptions, supply disruptions, power disruptions, damage to equipment or otherwise; permitting, development, operations, expansion and acquisitions at El Valle and Don Mario being consistent with the Company's current expectations; political developments in any jurisdiction in which the Company operates being consistent with its current expectations; certain price assumptions for gold, copper and silver; prices for key supplies being approximately consistent with current levels; production and cost of sales forecasts meeting expectations; the accuracy of the Company's current mineral reserve and mineral resource estimates; and labour and materials costs increasing on a basis consistent with Orvana's current expectations.

A variety of inherent risks, uncertainties and factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, affect the operations, performance and results of the Company and its business, and could cause actual events or results to differ materially from estimated or anticipated events or results expressed or implied by forward looking statements. Some of these risks, uncertainties and factors include the effect of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases on the Company's operations, workforce and supply chain, fluctuations in the price of gold, silver and copper; the need to recalculate estimates of resources based on actual production experience; the failure to achieve production estimates; variations in the grade of ore mined; variations in the cost of operations; the availability of qualified personnel; the Company's ability to obtain and maintain all necessary regulatory approvals and licenses; the Company's ability to use cyanide in its mining operations; risks generally associated with mineral exploration and development, including the Company's ability to continue to operate the El Valle and/or Don Mario and/or ability to resume long-term operations at the Carles Mine; the Company's ability to successfully implement a sulphidization circuit and ancillary facilities to process the current oxides stockpiles at Don Mario; the Company's ability to acquire and develop mineral properties and to successfully integrate such acquisitions; the Company's ability to execute on its strategy; the Company's ability to obtain financing when required on terms that are acceptable to the Company; challenges to the Company's interests in its property and mineral rights; current, pending and proposed legislative or regulatory developments or changes in political, social or economic conditions in the countries in which the Company operates; general economic conditions worldwide; and the risks identified in the Company's disclosures. This list is not exhaustive of the factors that may affect any of the Company's forward-looking statements and reference should also be made to the Company's Disclosures for a description of additional risk factors.

Any forward-looking statements made herein with respect to the anticipated development and exploration of the Company's mineral projects are intended to provide an overview of management's expectations with respect to certain future activities of the Company and may not be appropriate for other purposes.

Forward-looking statements are based on management's current plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions and, except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements should assumptions related to these plans, estimates, projections, beliefs and opinions change. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Orvana Minerals Corp.

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www.orvana.com


Reddit is now involved in a lawsuit claiming that bots and foreign entities had a hand in the r/WallStreetBets subreddit which contributed to the almost 400 percent rise of GameStop's stocks early this year. The Reddit CEO has clarified that there has been no evidence of that allegation and would be testifying in front of Congress to defend the platform.

The popular social networking platform and forums, Reddit, is now caught in the crossfire of a massive allegation that alleges its ties to a bot that helped in the stocks and earnings of GameStop in a community. The social network forums and platform contributed a massive deal to the rise of GameStop in the market, which is now valued as a multi-billion company.

The lawsuit comes after the Robinhood application which temporarily restricted trading on the application, after the massive growth of GameStop's stocks, to meet certain conditions it is under. Now, a lawsuit has been sent to the House of Representatives' Committee on Financial Services to look into Reddit's contribution to the matter.

Read Also: Nvidia RTX 3060 Pre-Order Now Available: Price, Specs, and Everything You Need to Know!

Reddit CEO Would Defend the Social Network and WallStreetBets in Congress

According to the documents from the Congress' lawsuit probe, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman would be defending the name of the company and the WallStreetBets community as it had done nothing to violate laws. Huffman would be mentioning his prepared statement regarding the connection of Reddit bots in r/WallStreetBets, which is nonexistent.

The Reddit CEO's planned statement reads that there are no bots that contributed or were part of the boost in GameStop's stocks which took place in r/WallStreetBets. Moreover, Steve Huffman also clarified that there were no pieces of evidence that foreign entities or bad actors were part of the processes and events that transpired in the subreddit.

Reddit's CEO claims that they have checked "every metric" in the social network platform, particularly in r/WallStreetBets, and discovered nothing out of the ordinary and within the normal parameters. Moderation tools in the community and the platform was also working and have been present during the times when the trades happened.

Reddit CEO would be Testifying with Robinhood and other Entities

According to CNBC, The Committee on Financial Services probe called upon the Reddit CEO, alongside Vlad Tenev, CEO of Robinhood App, Kenneth Griffin from Citadel, a Redditor called u/DeepF*ckingValue Keith Gill, and Gabriel Plotkin from Mervin Capital Management.

Steve Huffman even went as far as to mention that he is proud that these traders and the early event of 2021 in stock trading happened on the social networking and forum platform. The subreddit is also said to uphold "fairness and opportunity" in the country's financial system, particularly in stock trading.

Related Article: WallStreetBets Redditors Wanted for a $200K Job in a Hedge Fund Company: How to Apply

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Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Conservative lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives are launching a legislative blitz against Joe Biden to exposes his weakness towards the Chinese Communist Party's threats and address his coziness with China.

The effort, which was led by Republican Study Committee (RSC) Chairman Rep. Jim Banks (R-IN), will consist of a messaging push as well as the introduction and roll-out of a series of legislative proposals which are drafted to control Chinese influence and aggression and expose the democrats, including Biden, for their weakness towards China.

Banks, alongside his team, gave the detailed plans of the effort exclusively to Breitbart News ahead of the push, which will reportedly begin on Tuesday and will carry on throughout the week. The Republican Study Committee (RSC) under Banks is planning blitzes like this on major issues to counter Biden's agenda pushed from the White House and by the congressional Democrats.

"The Biden administration has lifted almost every single tough action the Trump administration took on China and has already demonstrated a clear pattern of going back to the tried and failed strategy of supporting China's rise," Banks told Breitbart News.

"It's not enough to compete with China, we must continue President Trump's approach to confront China. The Chinese Communist Party is not a partner, it's the greatest threat to the U.S. and worldwide freedom and prosperity, and if we fail to treat them as such, we will reap severe consequences."

The House conservatives are pushing this effort shortly after Biden's first call with Chinese president and CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping last week.

The White House released a statement regarding Biden and Jinping's call claiming that the two leaders were discussing about Biden's concern over "Beijing's coercive and unfair economic practices, the crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan" as well as concerns about COVID-19, "global health security" and "climate change."

"The two leaders also exchanged views on countering the COVID-19 pandemic, and the shared challenges of global health security, climate change, and preventing weapons proliferation. President Biden committed to pursuing practical, results-oriented engagements when it advances the interests of the American people and those of our allies," the statement continued.

The RSC has complied a six-page background memorandum that explains the House conservatives' perspectives on China and, especially, their concerns over Biden's approach in handling the CCP as compared to how the former president Donald Trump handled the CCP.

Just days after his inauguration, Biden has already issued a flurry of executive orders helping the CCP. These include the United States' re-entry into the World Health Organization (W.H.O.) even after its efforts in covering up the Chinese origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

The executive orders also included one that allows Chinese Communists and Russians access to the U.S. power grid, undoing yet another order from Trump that barred them from getting into the nation's energy supply.

These are only some of the mentioned issues in the article regarding Biden's approach to the CCP.

The RSC document also contains information revealing the ties that some of Biden's political appointees have to the CCP.

Some of the officials mentioned in the document include National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, United Nations ambassador nominee Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the nominee for Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl, Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Secretary of Commerce nominee Gina Raimondo, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas and CIA Director William Burns.

Bank's team also told Breitbart News that the chairman intends to counter Biden's weak approach to China by showing that the conservatives and republicans know that China is America's opponent, even though Biden treats China as a partner.

Conservatives want to confront China and contain them, they said, while Biden just wants simple competition with the Chinese which is something the conservatives know is impossible because the CCP does not fight fairly.

This week's push by the RSC will continue all year throughout the Biden administration and will continue to expose and counter the administration for its weak approach to China.

The RSC's effort to expose and counter the Biden administration will include the introduction of at least 17 pieces of legislation from at least a dozen House Republicans to zone in on the threats of the CCP to America that the top conservatives in the RSC, the biggest caucus of conservatives in the House of Representatives, believes the Biden administration is mishandling.

Among these bills are Rep. Ronny Jackson's legislation which would prohibit Biden from lifting sanctions that trump levied against Chinese military companies, Rep. Joe Wilson's bill that would require transparency with regard to the Confucius institutes, Rep. Ralph Norman's bill which would ban PLA fundings, Rep. Jeff Duncan's bill which would stop Biden from lifting trump's prohibition on Chinese and Russian companies from accessing U.S. energy grid, and Rep. Lauren Boebert's bill which would permanently remove the United States from the W.H.O. after it has been apparently compromised by CCP influence, and many more.
A 26-year-old Waterbury man has been sentenced to nearly four years in prison after federal authorities allege he distributed heroin and fentanyl around Waterbury.

Brayan Gonzalez, was sentenced to 46 months imprisonment by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant Wednesday, the U.S. attorneys office for the District of Connecticut said.

Gonzalez arrest stems from an investigation by the DEA and Waterbury police into an alleged drug trafficking group run by Nestor Sosa-Ortiz, a news release said. Authorities allege the group received large quantities of heroin and fentanyl from suppliers in Connecticut and New York and distributed the narcotics throughout New Haven County, the release said.

Sosa-Ortiz was arrested on May 18, 2019, after authorities intercepted a drug deal, during which they recovered about two kilos of heroin and two kilos of fentanyl.

While he was incarcerated, authorities claim Sosa-Ortiz continued to control the organization through smuggled cellphones.

During the investigation in Connecticut, Gonzalez was intercepted on calls coordinating the purchase and distribution of heroin and fentanyl, the release said. He sold the drugs to his own customers and other distributors in the greater Waterbury area.

Gonzalez and several others were arrested Oct. 29, 2019. During a search, authorities found around 100,000 bags of suspected heroin/fentanyl packaged for street distribution, along with around 1,000 fentanyl pills, one gun and about $50,000 in cash.

In Gonzalez home, they found 117 grams of fentanyl, 100 grams of heroin, pills with oxycodone markings and items used to process and package narcotics, including a kilogram press, the release said.

He later pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, heroin and fentanyl.

The U.S. Attorneys Office said Gonzalez, who is a citizen of the Dominican Republic, will face immigration proceedings after his release from prison.

Sosa-Ortiz has also pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing, the release said.

Sixteen individuals were charged as a result of this investigation. Sosa-Ortiz pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing.
One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021

ST. PAUL, Minn.  Two Rochester fugitives connected to multiple arsons during the George Floyd riots in the Twin Cities have been arrested in Mexico.

Jose Angel Felan Jr., 34, and Mena Dhaya Yousif, 22, were detained by Mexican authorities on Monday for immigration violations. Felan is charged with three federal counts of arson for allegedly setting fire to the Goodwill store, the Gordon Parks High School, and the 7 Mile Sportswear store on University Avenue in St. Paul on May 28. Yousif is charged in federal court with accessory after the fact for allegedly helping Felan avoid arrest.

Thanks to the skilled investigative work of the ATF and the tireless apprehension efforts of the U.S. Marshals Service these two defendants, who have been on the run for more than eight months, will be returned to Minnesota to face justice, says U.S. Attorney Erica H. MacDonald.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI, the St. Paul Police Department, and the Minnesota State Fire Marshal Division.
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Berkshire County vaccine coordinators have drawn praise from the state for their efforts. This week, the speed and efficiency of local clinics resulted in some 100 leftover doses barreling towards their expiration date. They found a solution.
Kangana Ranaut has never shied away from voicing her opinions even after getting backlash for them. Just yesterday, she slammed Joe Biden and had a strong point of view about American politics. Soon after that, people started to bash her for poking her nose into their internal matters.

Sharing a video of Joe Biden wherein he is seen mentioning the history of China being victimized, Kangana attacked the US president by calling him names like submissive pet of China.

She wrote, Look at this tail wagging, submissive, meek little pet of China, is he the president of the United States or a China ambassador? Shame on you American today China is the worlds biggest power because you gave it that top spot it was lusting for on a platter.

Look at this tail wagging, submissive, meek little pet of China, is he president of United States or a China ambassador? Shame on you American today China is worlds biggest power because you gave it that top spot it was lusting for on a platter. https://t.co/ujRz4jUbmL  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) February 18, 2021

She has also given back to people who think she is interested in American politics and went to say that people like Biden who are weak can not affect her in any way because she feels our country has set strong leadership standards.

It might seem I am interested in American politics. No I am not, we have a very strong leadership here it does not affect us, what I find amusing is liberals all across the world love weak, meek, submissive easy to dominate type leaders. Why they like Pappus is beyond me, wrote Kangana.

It might seem I am interested in American politics no I am not, we have a very strong leadership here it does not affect us, what I find amusing is liberals all across the world love weak,meek, submissive easy to dominate type leaders. Why they like Pappus is beyond me.  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) February 18, 2021

She also told her followers the concept of a strong leader. She said, A leader should be a ferocious, roaring, raging voice. Especially for a civilization like India who didnt get a good deal in its history. Its important we learn from what happened in America, a generation of confused, foggy disoriented youth sold their nation to China.

A leader should be a ferocious, roaring, raging voice. Especially for a civilisation like India who didnt get a good deal in its history. Its important we learn from what happened in America, a generation of confused, foggy disoriented youth sold their nation to China.  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) February 18, 2021

She also added, Right now the biggest threat to our nation are these confused, disoriented, foggy youth who claim to be librus. When a nation compromises on its value system/Dharma it becomes easy to buy, manipulate and capture by big dominating forces around.

It's a long one but thats the tweet.

Right now biggest threat to our nation are these confused, disoriented, foggy youth who claim to be librus. When a nation compromises on its value system/Dharma it becomes easy to buy, manipulate and capture by big dominating forces around.

Its a long on but thats the tweet.  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) February 18, 2021

We wonder how Americans would react to her statements. What do you have to say about it? Do you agree with her statements? Let us know in the comments section below.

Tommaso Boddi/WireImage

Actor Ricardo Chavira is one of the many San Antonians without water in the freezing weather that has left Texans scraping for necessities.

Chavira, whose latest role is Abraham Quintanilla in Netflix's Selena series, called on SAWS to address the situation in his north Bexar County neighborhood. SAWS explained on Tuesday that the power outages are affecting the system, but water will not be shut off to residents. The organization sent out an alert squashing rumors that water was being cut off at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
South Africa: Everything you need to know about the Johnson & Johnson vaccine

South Africa kick-started its first phase of the vaccination rollout programme using the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on Wednesday.

Yesterday, the first group of healthcare workers lined-up to receive the shot of the 80 0000 Johnson & Johnson vaccines that landed on Tuesday, which the department has described as a success.

The Health Department answers some of the burning questions about who will get it first; why it is a good choice for the country; why pregnant woman cannot get the shot and how effective it is?

Why is the Johnson & Johnson vaccine a good first choice for the National Vaccination Programme?

It was tested in a large trial of almost 44 000 people from four continents, of whom 7 000 participants came from South Africa.

The study also provided a good picture of how the vaccine works against the new 501Y.V2 variant, which is dominant in South Africa and currently responsible for around nine in 10 of all COVID-19 infections detected during the second wave.

The South African trial showed that while the Johnson & Johnson vaccine is not going to prevent mild symptoms, it provides 57% protection against moderate-severe disease, 85% protection against severe disease and 100% protection against death.

By way of comparison, the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine provided only 27% protection against mild to moderate COVID-19 caused by the new 501Y.V2 variant.

How does the Johnson & Johnson vaccine compare with other COVID-19 vaccines?

Like all COVID-19 vaccines, the jab contains instructions for the spike protein on the Coronavirus.

These instructions are delivered to the immune system by a modified adenovirus that has also been used in other vaccines, such as the Ebola and Zika shots.

The adenovirus is safe to use in vaccines as it has been modified so that it cannot cause disease or replicate in humans.

Non-active ingredients in the vaccine include sodium chloride, citric acid monohydrate buffer, polysorbate 80, 2 hydroxypropyl--cyclodextrin (HBCD), ethanol (absolute), sodium hydroxide and water for injection.

All of these ingredients are safe for human consumption.

The vaccine does not contain any animal products and is halal.

How does the vaccine protect you against COVID-19?

When injected, the vaccine trains your immune system to fight the virus that causes COVID-19.

The vaccine does not contain the Coronavirus and will not give you COVID-19.

Some mild side effects include tenderness at the injection site, feeling unwell, feverish and a headache for a few days and these are positive signs that the body is mounting an immune response to the Coronavirus.

When you encounter real Coronavirus particles in future, your immune system will be able to disarm the virus so that you either do not fall ill at all or if you do, the symptoms are mild and your chances of being hospitalised or dying are much lower.

How is it stored?

The vaccine has a long shelf life of two years at minus 20 degrees Celsius and can be safely stored in a domestic fridge for a month.

This makes it suitable for widespread rollout in warmer countries like South Africa as ultra-cold freezers are not needed.

How is the vaccine given and when does protection start?

The vaccine is given as a single dose into the upper arm.

Protection starts around 10 to 14 days after vaccination and even as early as seven days for severe disease and can also rise to good levels around a month after vaccination.

It is currently the only vaccine available that uses a single dose, while others require two shots.

No vaccine provides 100% protection. However, the jab is said to provide 57% protection against moderate-severe disease, 85% protection against severe disease, and 100% protection against death.

The researchers are still waiting for further results on how effective the vaccine is at preventing asymptomatic transmission.

It is important you continue to use masks, practise social distancing and good hand hygiene.

If you are a healthcare worker, you still need to wear your personal protective equipment (PPE) and stay vigilant, even after you are vaccinated.

Why is a research programme being used to make the vaccine available?

Manufacturers apply for vaccines to be licensed after trials show to be safe and effective.

The Johnson & Johnson trial results were released in early February and applications for licensing are underway in the United States, Europe and South Africa.

The Sisonke Together programme allows the government to make this safe and effective vaccine immediately available to healthcare workers using a research study.

Sisonke is not the same as a clinical trial, rather a way that research can help to make it available while the licensing process takes place.

The South African government has chosen to move ahead with this programme because it would be unethical to withhold a vaccine known to be safe and effective.

The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) has approved the use of the vaccine for the programme while it processes the full licensing.

It is important to understand that the fact that it is not yet licenced does not mean that it is not safe or effective.

The third wave of COVID-19 is predicted to begin in South Africa this winter and protecting healthcare workers is a priority and so we must start vaccinating healthcare workers before the third wave arrives.

How is the Sisonke rollout going to work?

South Africa has secured 500 000 doses of the vaccine from Johnson & Johnson, enough to vaccinate half a million health workers.

The first batch of 80 000 doses arrived on Tuesday, 16 February and further deliveries will follow every two weeks.

Vaccines will be available at 17 hospitals throughout the country where teams of researchers and vaccinators will work together to deliver the vaccine to health workers up to 10 hours a day, seven days a week.

I am a health worker. How can I access the programme?

The first step to accessing a vaccine is to register on the countrys Electronic Vaccination Data System (EVDS). You can access the system by visiting this website: https://vaccine.enroll.health.gov.za

In general, patient-facing health workers will receive priority access to vaccines.

Non-clinical staff and traditional healers are also eligible to register on the EVDS system.

You will receive an SMS alert with a vaccination voucher and details on what vaccination centre to attend and when.

You will also be asked to read an information sheet and provide advanced consent for vaccination before your visit.

On the day of your vaccination, you will need to arrive with your voucher and an identity document.

Why do I need to sign consent for the vaccine?

Consent to be vaccinated against COVID-19 is being sought in most national vaccination campaigns around the world. This is common when vaccines are provided under Emergency Use Authorisation mechanisms.

You will also be asked to provide consent for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as part of the early access arrangement through the Sisonke programme.

The information has been loaded on the EVDS system and you will need to read it and agree to receive it before you attend your vaccination visit. Staff will also recheck this with you to attend your vaccination.

It also includes consent to access your medical records to monitor any future episodes of COVID-19 or hospitalisations.

This information will include where appropriate, your ID number, name, date of birth, postcode and contact details.

This information will be kept safe and only Sisonke researchers will monitor the effectiveness of the vaccination programme and access secure and anonymised data.

Are there any reasons why you will not be able to access the programme?

The vaccine is unavailable to pregnant women during this initial stage, which is a common practice when vaccines are not yet fully licensed, such as during clinical trials.

This is done because at this stage there is very little information on the safety of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in pregnancy.

It is highly expected that the jab will be found to be safe in this population and that pregnant women will become eligible for vaccination in the coming months.

Similar vaccines to the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine have shown no safety concerns in pregnancy.

Access to COVID-19 vaccination for pregnant women is likely to be made available in the coming months.

However, the vaccine can be safely used in breastfeeding women.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
 Flash

Another 12,718 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,071,185, according to official figures released Wednesday.

The country also reported another 738 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 118,933. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

The latest figures were revealed as nearly 16 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine. Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi has said the government would "not rest" until the vaccine was offered to all over-50s by the end of April.

Earlier Wednesday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he will be focusing on "data, not dates" as he is set to announce a roadmap for easing England's coronavirus lockdown next week.

Johnson said he agreed with Professor Dame Angela McLeanthe, the government's deputy chief scientific adviser, who told a committee of British lawmakers earlier that the relaxing of COVID-19 restrictions should depend on "data, not dates".

Johnson is expected to unveil his "roadmap" out of lockdown on Monday next week.

The plan will be based "firmly on a cautious and prudent approach" that ensures the unlocking will be "irreversible", said Johnson."We want to be going one way from now on."

Johnson urged caution and patience with the public, stressing that the easing would be done in "stages".

England is currently under the third national lockdown since outbreak of the pandemic in the country. Similar restriction measures are also in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines.
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

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Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

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There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

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Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

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Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

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Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

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Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
Teknosa reached its all-time high performance in 2020, posting TL 5.6 billion in revenues and TL 85.3 million in net profit - an impressive turnaround from TL 148 million net loss a year ago. The company will double investments with a focus on technology.

ISTANBUL, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Teknosa, the leading technology retailer and e-commerce platform in Turkey, achieved record results in 2020. Thanks to a comprehensive transformation program called "Teknosa of New Generation" launched back in mid-2019, the company managed a successful turnaround despite the global COVID-19 pandemic. The company's performance improved quarter by quarter and reached its peak in 4Q20.

Teknosa increased its revenues by 36 percent to a record-high TL 5.6 billion, while recording TL 85.3 million in net profit, up from the net loss of TL 148 million a year ago. The company's online revenues grew 3.6-fold annually to exceed TL 1 billion. As a result, e-commerce's share in total retail revenues soared from 7 to 19 percent.

Teknosa plans to expand the scope of investments and diversify the company's technology base in 2021.

"Customer experience and technology are our future"

Baris Oran, Chairman of Teknosa, shared the news of upcoming investments in a press conference alongside an evaluation of the company's 2020 performance. "2020 was an unprecedented year due to the pandemic. However, we did not compromise on our objectives and continued with great determination on our comprehensive transformation program," announced Oran. "This transformation revealed the significance of using big data accurately and becoming more customer-oriented than ever before. Our revenues and profitability stepped up since mid-2019 and improved each subsequent quarter. Our excellent execution brought us the best performance of the last 20 years," Oran added. "For us, 2020 was marked by a successful turnaround, whereas 2021 will be a year of investments. We plan double our investments. We have several agenda items on our strategic roadmap. We aim to place our e-commerce business at the core of our omnichannel experience. We will excel our in-store digital competences and data analytics capabilities. We will also pursue new growth opportunities. Our investments will accelerate progress, so that we can shape the future."

"Consistent performance enabled by digitalization and innovation"

Bulent Gurcan, Teknosa General Manager, highlighted the company's data-based omnichannel business model, which enabled Teknosa to rapidly meet changing customer needs and expectations during the pandemic. "The pandemic accelerated technological developments and brought digitalization to the forefront in every area. Demand for products grew as customer expectations shifted," noted Gurcan. "Today, strong presence in e-commerce and omnichannel, digitalization, in-depth customer experience, responsiveness and reliability are keys to success. Thanks to the successful steps we took as part of our 'Teknosa of New Generation' program, we were able to rapidly adapt to changing market conditions and continue to offer uninterrupted, high-quality services. While ensuring a safe shopping environment, we made a key difference by diversifying the channels in which we communicate one-to-one with our customers. For the first time in Turkish retail sector, we rolled out a virtual store experience via the Video-chat application on teknosa.com. In addition to our 'Click & Collect' - buy online, pick up in store option, which we have been offering customers for many years now - we launched a 'Click & Drive' curbside pickup, another pioneer service in Turkey. Meanwhile, we evolved our product range in line with customer needs. Our agile organization and robust infrastructure have been key enablers in this challenging period. We are the leading technology retail brand in Turkey, having pioneered various efforts to facilitate access to technology over the last 20 years. Looking forward, we will continue to remain Turkey's trusted technology provider through new initiatives and game-changing practices."

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1440630/Teknosa.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1325146/Teknosa_Logo.jpg

Contact:

Inci Dogan

inci.dogan@desibelajans.com
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While stating that Kamala Harris and her family will uphold the highest ethical standards, Deputy White House Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said that according to the policy of the White House, the US Vice President's name should not be used in connection with any commercial activity.

This announcement from Sabrina Singh comes after the White House had earlier asked Meena Harris, niece of Vice President Kamala Harris, to stop "using her aunt to boost her brand," according to the Los Angeles Times.

Instagrammed by meena

"The Vice President and her family will uphold the highest ethical standards and it is the White House's policy that the Vice President's name should not be used in connection with any commercial activities that could reasonably be understood to imply an endorsement or support," Sabrina Singh, Deputy Press Secretary to the Vice President, told PTI.

What's the controversy?

After Joe Biden and Kamala Harris won the election, the transition team's ethics lawyers told Meena Harris that she could no longer produce clothing or write new books with her aunt's name or likeness, an unnamed White House official was quoted as saying by the daily.

According to the daily, the White House official said "Vice President Aunty" sweatshirts, Ms Harris-themed swimsuits and other products previously sold, were not allowed under the current rules.

AP

After Kamala Harris became the Vice President of the United States of America, her niece and social media star has been in several news reports. She recently tweeted in favour of farmers' protest in India.

Who is Meena Harris?

Meena Harris is the niece of Kamala Harris and a Harvard graduated lawyer and social media star. She is also an entrepreneur who worked in Uber previously along with her stepfather Tony West.

Four years ago, she started a company called 'Phenomenal' that sells t-shirts with socially relevant messages. Many of these are often posted on her social media platforms including her Instagram profile along with other photos where she is posing with Kamala.

AFP

In recent weeks, there has been a sudden spurt in India-specific tweets by Meena Harris. She has also come out in open in support of farmers protesting against the recently enacted agricultural laws and arrest of individuals related to it.

According to informed sources, the White House believes that her tweets are unlikely to have any impact on India-US relationship, to which the Biden administration gives top priority.
Related Thousands of Algerians rally ahead of Hirak protests anniversary

Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday announced the dissolution of the lower house of parliament and called early legislative elections.

Addressing the nation on state television, Tebboune announced a government reshuffle in the next 24-48 hours and ordered the release of 60 detainees of a protest movement that forced his predecessor, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, from power in 2019.

"I decided to dissolve the assembly and call elections to build a new institution," he said, without giving a date for the elections.

The current lawmakers of the lower house had been elected for five years in May 2017, with Bouteflika's allies having an overwhelming majority.

Tebboune said the dissolution decision was part of reforms after amendments to the constitution in November last year aimed at giving parliament more powers.

Algerians have been awaiting the implementation of economic and political reforms Tebboune promised after succeeding Bouteflika, who stepped down in 2019 following mass protests after two decades in power.

The North African OPEC member country has been under financial pressure due to a sharp fall in energy earnings, forcing the government to cut spending and delay some planned investment projects.

Elected in December 2019, Tebboune has vowed to take steps aimed at diversifying the economy away from oil and gas, which account for 60% of the state budget and 94% of total export revenue.

Tebboune returned home earlier this month from Germany where he underwent surgery on his foot for complications after a coronavirus infection.

Tebboune, a former prime minister under Bouteflika, was elected amid protests demanding the departure of the whole ruling elite, with many of them boycotting the vote as they saw it as unfair and not transparent.

Several activists have been in detention since the protests broke out on Feb. 22.

Tebboune said in his speech 55-60 detainees would be released immediately, a demand that has been repeatedly raised by the leaderless protest movement known as Hirak.

The release comes amid calls on social media to stage street marches in the capital, Algiers, to mark the second anniversary of the demonstrations.

Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets on Tuesday in the eastern town of Kherrata, the first protests since the government banned marches in March last year as part of measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus.

"We have vowed to meet all demands raised by the Hirak," Tebboune said in the speech.

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Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid on Wednesday said the Primary and Secondary Healthcare department Punjab was providing free of cost diagnostics, treatment and counseling services to more than 11,500 patients of HIV/AIDS in the province

LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 17th Feb, 2021 ) :Punjab Health Minister Dr Yasmin Rashid on Wednesday said the Primary and Secondary Healthcare department Punjab was providing free of cost diagnostics, treatment and counseling services to more than 11,500 patients of HIV/AIDS in the province.

This was informed by the Minister while highlighting importance of patient confidentiality at a seminar on Role of Media in HIV/AIDS Awareness at a local hotel.

The Minister appreciated Secretary Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department Captain (Retd) Usman Younis for holding such event for awareness on the important topic.

"We have decided to provide free HIV/AIDS medicines to private sector as well," she added.

She said that the transmission of HIV/AIDs could be prevented and patients could live normal lives by using medicines. "Recently we have conducted HIV/AIDS tests of TB patients and HIV/AIDS tests have been made mandatory for TB patients," she added.

She said the Punjab government was providing treatment to the patients by keeping their records confidential.

"In order to facilitate patients of co-infections by ensuring confidentiality of the patients, the government has started Insaf Medicines Cards," she added.

She said that the next generation sequencing machine had been introduced in the province which would help in development of vaccines as well.

The minister said that as many as 22 new BSL-3 Labs were set up in Punjab during coronavirus pandemic.

She disclosed that the AIDS centres would be expanded to 36 districts from 16 districts under Punjab AIDS Control Program.

On the occasion, Secretary Primary and Secondary Healthcare Department Captain (Retd) Usman Younis said that provision of right information to media was being ensured. He appreciated the role of media for generating awareness about diseases. He said the government had decided to introduce auto-disabled syringes to control blood born infections.

Project Director Punjab AIDS Control Program Dr. Muneer Ahmed Malik apprised the participants of the services provided by the Punjab AIDS Control Program.

A large number of media persons attended the seminar.
A top civil servant working on the cladding scandal admitted the crucial 18-metre rule had been picked simply because ministers 'didn't have time to come up with a better number'.

Safety expert Brian Martin said 'a whole bunch of ridiculous things' had been used to justify the building height cut-off, which now means hundreds of thousands of leaseholders are barred from government funds.

It means those living in low and medium rise buildings could face bills of up to 600 a year to replace unsafe cladding.

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick last week said an additional 3.5billion fund would be limited to blocks above 18 metres (59ft) high as expert advice showed they posed a greater safety risk.

Safety expert Brian Martin said 'a whole bunch of ridiculous things' had been used to justify the building height cut-off, which now means hundreds of thousands of leaseholders are barred from government funds

But a video seen by the Daily Mail shows Mr Martin suggesting height limits were based on little evidence. He told the Institution of Fire Engineers in 2018 that questions had been asked as to why the ban on combustible materials introduced after the Grenfell fire applied only to buildings above 18 metres.

The civil servant responsible for fire safety guidance said: 'A whole bunch of people say 'where does the 18 metres come from?' and we start talking about length of fire service ladders and a whole bunch of other quite ridiculous things that have cropped up over the years.

'We're sticking with 18 metres because we haven't got time to come up with a better number. That's the honest answer.'

It means those living in low and medium rise buildings could face bills of up to 600 a year to replace unsafe cladding

The revelations last night sparked a backlash from MPs and campaigners, who branded the comments 'disgraceful'.

Tory MP Royston Smith, who has tabled an amendment to the Fire Safety Bill that seeks to protect leaseholders from paying for historic fire safety defects, said: 'I couldn't be more disappointed in the Government.

The reason I have been campaigning so hard on this issue... is because the Government's approach makes no sense. To find out that 18 metres was plucked out of the air because the department didn't have time to come up with a better number is sickening. We are talking about people's lives. What sort of country do we live in?'

Campaigners say it is 'illogical' that government guidance means buildings under 18 metres require remediation but are not eligible for funding. Giles Grover, of campaign group End Our Cladding Scandal, said government plans have 'already been revealed as deeply unfair'. He added: 'These disgraceful comments by Brian Martin only serve to confirm that view.'

Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick last week said an additional 3.5billion fund would be limited to blocks above 18 metres (59ft) high as expert advice showed they posed a greater safety risk

Independent fire safety consultant Stephen Mackenzie said it was 'cruel' that the 'outdated' 18-metre rule was 'being used to exclude leaseholders from funding'.

Mr Jenrick's approach also appears to contradict comments he made last year, when he said a reliance 'on crude height limits with binary consequences... does not reflect the complexity of the challenge at hand'.

The Mail is campaigning to end the cladding scandal within 18 months and spare leaseholders the financial burden. In Australia, where buildings are also blighted by flammable cladding, funding is available to all at-risk blocks above two storeys.

The extra 3.5billion UK fund to replace unsafe cladding announced last week takes the total pot to 5.1billion.

A Government spokesman said it was 'taking a proportionate risk to fire safety...based on longstanding expert advice and evidence'.
WASHINGTON  Former President Donald Trump is escalating a political war within his own party that could undermine the Republican push to fight President Joe Bidens agenda and ultimately return to power.

A day after blistering Mitch McConnell, the Senates top Republican, as a dour, sullen and unsmiling political hack, Trump repeated his baseless claim on Wednesday that he was the rightful winner of the November election in a series of interviews with conservative outlets after nearly a month of self-imposed silence.

Trump also continued to attack McConnell, accusing the Senate GOP leader of failing to stand up for Republicans after McConnell blasted Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol riot despite voting to acquit the former president at his second impeachment trial.

The Republicans are soft. They only hit their own, like Mitch, Trump complained on Newsmax. If they spent the same time hitting (Senate Democratic leader Chuck) Schumer and (President Joe) Biden, the Republicans would be much better off, that I can tell you.

Republican officials in several battlegrounds carried by Biden, including Georgia and Arizona, have said the vote was fair. Trumps legal claims surrounding the vote were rejected by judges across the political spectrum, including many appointed by the former president. McConnell himself described Trumps contention as an unhinged falsehood.

Leading GOP strategists described the exploding feud between the former Republican president and the Senates most powerful Republican as, at best, a distraction and, at worst, a direct threat to the partys path to the House and Senate majorities in next years midterms.

I dont think he cares about winning, Steven Law, a McConnell ally who leads the most powerful Republican-aligned super PAC in Washington, said of Trump. He just wants it to be about himself.

Law noted that Trump lost several states where Republicans face must-win Senate elections in next years quest to break up Democrats control of Congress, including in Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Republicans are also competing in Nevada and New Hampshire, where Trump was defeated, and in North Carolina, where Trump barely won.

If Trump tries to make himself the center of attention, Law said, that actually could cost Republicans seats in the general election.

Such infighting is not altogether unusual after a political party loses the White House, but in this case, the feuding factions have been willing to attack each other publicly. And there was a broad consensus on Wednesday that the ugly intraparty clash would likely extend well into next years congressional primary season.

The stakes may be higher this time, however, as key players  Trump, among them  have openly threatened the prospect of creating a new political party, which would endanger the Republican Partys very existence.

Roughly 120 anti-Trump Republicans, including current and former officeholders, secretly convened earlier in the month to contemplate the future of the GOP. A plurality, or 40%, supported the idea of creating a new party, according to an internal survey provided by one of the meetings organizers, former independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin.

Theres a lot of energy out there for something new, McMullin said, while encouraging Trump to follow through with his threats of creating a Patriot Party. Frankly, I would welcome him to start a new party and take his most loyal supporters with him. I think that would be a wonderful thing for the party and the country.

Trumps plans for the future are still coming together in West Palm Beach, Florida.

He has been banned from Facebook and Twitter for inciting violence, but on Wednesday, he broke his monthlong silence, giving his first interviews since leaving the White House after the death of conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh.

On Newsmax, Trump said his team was still exploring its options for returning to social media and negotiating with a number of people, while still keeping the option of building his own platform on the table.

Were looking at a lot of different things, but I really wanted to be somewhat quiet, Trump said, sidestepping repeated questions about whether he intends to run again in 2024.

Too early to say, he said, while acknowledging that he missed being president.

Still, Trump said that he has had no problem communicating when he wants to by issuing statements  and has made clear this week that he will not retire quietly.

The former president hurled a series of personal insults at McConnell in a fiery written statement Tuesday. Mainstream Republicans were perhaps most concerned about his threat to support primary challengers against Republican candidates who dont fully embrace his Make America Great Again philosophy.

Some feared that Trump might encourage Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., to run for the Senate, though there was no evidence of that. The fears hark back to the GOPs struggle a decade ago when a handful of tea party candidates with baggage emerged from their Senate primaries and stymied the GOP from retaking a majority.

In Indiana, Richard Mourdock defeated six-term Sen. Richard Lugar in the 2012 primary, but he imploded after a debate in which he said pregnancy resulting from rape is something that God intended. In Missouri, Republican nominee Todd Akin lost after he insisted on a local talk show that womens bodies have ways to avoid pregnancy in cases of legitimate rape.

And in Delaware, tea party favorite Christine ODonnell beat a longtime GOP congressman before losing by a landslide in the 2010 general election following reports of personal financial difficulties, questionable use of campaign funds and allegations that she had dabbled into witchcraft.

Now that Trump has invigorated a similarly populist movement, Republicans need to recruit candidates who can navigate a pro-Trump primary and maintain statewide appeal while not alienating establishment-minded donors. Thats no easy task.

The Senate Republican campaign arm, led by Florida Sen. Rick Scott, will not get involved in open primaries. But McConnells advisers have not ruled out the possibility  even if it draws Trumps ire.

You cant let insanity go unchecked, or it will eat you alive, said Josh Holmes, a top McConnell political adviser.

He just wants to win, he said of McConnell. If he has to act as a heat shield, so be it.

Meanwhile, Trump broke his monthlong media blackout Wednesday, calling into Fox News, Newsmax and OANN and repeating what Democrats have labeled his big lie: his insistence that he won the 2020 election, even though he lost to Biden by millions of votes.

Dozens of judges, local election officials and even his own administration have said there was no evidence of mass voter fraud, but that hasnt stopped Trump from saying there was, even after the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol building that left five dead.

Well, Rush thought we won. And so do I, by the way. I think we won substantially, Trump told Fox.

He did not call out McConnell by name, but he acknowledged critics within his own party: We dont have the same support at certain levels of the Republican system.

Meanwhile, Law sought to downplay Trumps grip on the Republican Party. He noted that Trumps approval rating among Republican voters, at close to 80%, stands at a similar mark to that of former President George W. Bush following the Iraq War and the 2007 financial meltdown.

The focus on the next election cannot be Trump, he said.

We will do everything we can to make the focus Joe Biden and the Pelosi-Schumer Congress. We can win with that, Law said. The challenge is if theres a way in which Trump finds a way to make himself the focus next fall.

___

Peoples reported from New York.
The Huron Intermediate School District is in the process of searching for a new superintendent and is encouraging its staff and community to be involved with the process.

The Lansing-based Michigan Association of School Boards will be assisting the search process, with Greg Sieszputowski, the director of leadership development and executive search services, facilitating this search.

Sieszputowski will put on virtual Zoom meetings to give the community and staff opportunity for input. The first one took place Feb. 17, and the second one will at 5 p.m. Feb. 22. The second meeting can be reached at https://melg.zoom.us/j/93106526735.

An online survey is also available for public input, which is available at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/HuronISD. The MASB search team estimates it takes about 10 minutes to complete and will run through Feb. 21.

Sieszputowski said that this is a service the Michigan Association of School Boards provides to school districts and the ISD reached out to them about it.

Stakeholders in the community can share what the qualities of their next superintendent should be, Sieszputowski said.

He will soon partake in work sessions with the school board to develop the final search criteria for the superintendent posting.

Janice Holz, the president of the HISD school board, said the board decided to reach out to MASB because that is what their responsibility is in helping schools find superintendents, along with creating work postings, running background checks on candidates, and running Zoom meetings.

Applications for the superintendent position will be accepted until March 22. From there, Sieszputowski will help the school board determine which candidates to interview and eventually make the final decision. The interviews will be public meetings separate from school board meetings that members of the public can attend, with Holz saying the board is looking at conducting them in April.

The new superintendent is expected to assume the position on or before June 1, 2021.

Joe Murphy, the current superintendent for HISD, announced he would be retiring from the role at the December school board meeting, staying on until June 30. He has been the superintendent for the past 10 years.

Its been a great place to work, Murphy said. Ive been blessed to work in a place with great staff, programs, and services.

Murphy will have little involvement in how the school board picks the next superintendent.

Working with colleagues from Germany and the US, researchers at Leipzig University have achieved a breakthrough in research into how cancer cells spread. In experiments, the team of biophysicists led by Professor Josef Alfons Kas, Steffen Grosser and Jurgen Lippoldt demonstrated for the first time how cells deform in order to move in dense tumour tissues and squeeze past neighbouring cells. The researchers found that motile cells work together to fluidise tumour tissue.

Kas led the research project in cooperation with Professor Lisa Manning from Syracuse University (US) and Professor Bahriye Aktas from Leipzig University Hospital. They have now published their findings in "Physical Review X", a leading journal that primarily publishes groundbreaking research results.

"These first observations of a phase transition in human tumours change our basic concepts of tumour progression and could improve cancer diagnosis and therapy," said Kas, who has been studying the physical properties of cancer cells for years. He said the research showed that human tumours contain solid and fluid cell clusters, which would be a breakthrough in scientists' understanding of tumour mechanics. He added that the results form the basis for the first procedure with which metastatic cancer cells can already be detected in the tumour.

In tumour samples from patients at Leipzig University Hospital, the researchers found regions with motile cells as well as stable, solid-like regions with no cell movement. From a physical point of view, cells should not be able to move in the dense tumour mass - tumours are so densely crowded with cells that motion would be inhibited in any typical material.

The researchers therefore developed a new approach to live tumour microscopy by fluorescently staining human tumour samples immediately after surgery, allowing them to observe cell movement live. This led them to discover that, contrary to all previous findings, this cell motility does indeed take place and is associated with strong nuclear deformation. They observed how cells and their nuclei literally squeeze through the tissue by becoming severely deformed.

"Cells in biological tissues behave much like people in a bar. At low densities, they can move freely. However, movement becomes difficult when things get very crowded. But even in a crowded bar, you can still squeeze past if you turn sideways. This is exactly the effect we see in tumour tissues," said Kas. The researchers believe this phase transition explains how cells can move and multiply in a tumour, eventually leading to metastasis. The fluid tissues showed elongated, deformed cells and nuclei. Static images of elongated cell and nuclear shapes could thus serve as a fingerprint for the metastatic aggressiveness of a tumour.

"These are spectacular results from the field of cancer physics. We now need to investigate whether the fluid regions can predict tumour aggressiveness. Here we have found a cancer marker that indicates active, motile regions and that is based on a simple physical mechanism," said Steffen Grosser. Professor Kas is currently embarking on a clinical trial to investigate the potential of cell and nuclear shape as a new tumour marker that could be used to examine and treat patients in a much more targeted way than before.

###
Syrian intelligence has released a list of 100 individuals wanted in connection with assassinations and bombings near Damascus, according to Sowt Al-Asima.

The Air Force Intelligence Branch has issued a list of more than 100 wanted residents from the village of Kanaker in the western countryside of Damascus. The individuals are accused of causing the recent security tension in the village.

Private sources said that the list includes the names of young men accused of carrying out bombings of homes belonging to the local militia members of the 4th Division in Kanaker. They are also accused of assassinating a young man, Naim al-Zamil, a few days ago.

The sources confirmed that the list was shared with all military checkpoints in the vicinity of the area.

According to the sources, the list included young men from the al-Zamel family  who are accused of bombing the homes of two of those accused of assassinating Zamil  in addition to a number of former opposition faction members.

The village of Kanaker was subjected to a collective settlement process on Oct. 18, 2020, after many meetings between the regimes Intelligence Services and representatives of the people, to end the security tension in the village, after the latter was subjected to a complete 18-day siege.

A State Security patrol carried out, on Tuesday, a raid operation in the city of Douma, eastern Ghouta, during which a woman and her son were arrested.

The Sowt Al-Asima correspondent said that during the raid, the patrol targeted a house owned by the Idris family in the al-Hajaria neighborhood, and a young man, Yahya, and his mother, were arrested.

The correspondent indicated that the arrest came based on the accusation that the woman had communicated with one of her relatives, who is wanted by the Syrian regime and was forcibly displaced to northern Syria. As for Yahyas arrest, it came on charges of receiving a money transfer worth 3 million Syrian pounds through the black market.

The Sowt Al-Asima team documented the arrest of 453 people in 2020  including 15 women, 56 children, and two people with special needs, on charges related to security and criminal issues, communicating with opposition parties, and charges related to terrorism.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
New integration between The Privitar Data Privacy Platform and Cloudera Data Platform provides flexibility for organizations to safely use sensitive data for analytics in the cloud and on-premises

Privitar, the leading data privacy platform provider, today announced that it has achieved certification on the Cloudera Data Platform (CDP). Building on Privitar's existing partnership with Cloudera, The Privitar Data Privacy Platform now natively integrates with CDP, providing flexibility for organizations to safely use sensitive data for analytics in on-premises, public cloud, and hybrid environments.

"Running analytical workloads may force businesses to choose between a familiar ecosystem and one that will keep their most sensitive data protected," said Steve Totman, Chief Product Officer at Privitar. "Privitar's integration with Cloudera CDP and central policy approach to data privacy enables organizations to safely use sensitive data for analytics no matter the environment, offering flexibility and ease of use, especially for organizations upgrading to the latest version of the Cloudera Data Platform whether it is on-premises or public cloud."

The Privitar Data Privacy Platform enables businesses to analyze their potentially sensitive data, use that data to gain valuable insights, and support data-driven decisions while simultaneously keeping that data safe. Privitar provides a unique combination of privacy techniques, governance, and management features that are essential to any organization embracing data-driven insights. By delivering comprehensive data privacy techniques and streamlining data provisioning, Privitar enables enterprises to extract the maximum value from the data they collect, manage, and use, while minimizing risk.

CDP is a new approach to enterprise data, anywhere from the Edge to AI. By simplifying operations, it reduces the time to onboard new use cases across the organization. The platform uses machine learning to intelligently autoscale workloads up and down for more cost-effective use of cloud infrastructure. With Cloudera's Shared Data Experience (SDX), the security and governance capabilities in CDP, IT can confidently deliver secure analytics running against data anywhere. CDP manages data in any environment, including multiple public clouds, bare metal, private cloud, and hybrid cloud. The Cloudera Data Platform offers game-changing technology that lets companies harness diverse data to solve important business problems.

The integration between The Privitar Data Privacy Platform and Cloudera Data Platform enables organizations to begin realizing the full value of their sensitive data and leveraging the powerful analytical capabilities of CDP while protecting the privacy of their data subjects. The Privitar Data Privacy Platform is a Cloudera Certified Technology, a Cloudera Silver Partner, and has been tested, validated, and certified to work with Cloudera Data Platform.

"Customers invest in Cloudera for cost effective, high performance data storage and processing," said Gary Green, Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Cloudera. "The combination of Privitar and Cloudera enables customers to optimize the utility of their sensitive data while fully taking advantage of Cloudera's powerful analytics platform."

For more information about the integration between Privitar and Cloudera, visit: https://www.privitar.com/partners/cloudera.

About Privitar

Privitar empowers organizations to harness the power of data to innovate faster, while protecting the privacy of individuals' personal information.

Privitar's flexible Data Privacy Platform applies privacy protection to data at massive scale. By combining The Privitar Data Privacy PlatformTM and data privacy best practices into their analytics and data science operations, customers accelerate insights while building trust and mitigating regulatory risk.

Founded in 2014, Privitar is headquartered in London, with regional headquarters in Boston and locations throughout the US and Europe. For more information, please visit www.privitar.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005716/en/

Contacts:

Olivia Savage (for Privitar)

617-502-4300

privitar@pancomm.com
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ROKiT Drinks, a division of ROKiT Group, co-founded by Jonathan Kendrick, and run by the CEO of ROKiT Drinks, Dean Becker announced today that it will be opening up sales and distribution of its best-selling liquor brands in South Florida beginning May 1st, 2021.

Having successfully relaunched the business in California in September 2020, ROKiT Drinks has grown its sales team from five to nearly 200. The company is now selling its award-winning Bandero Premium Tequila, Tikorsti, Russian-style vodka, and ROKiT Spirits in more than 2,000 new locations.

Tikorsti Russian- Style Vodka, part of the ROKiT Drinks portfolio. Bander Premium Tequila, part of the ROKiT Drinks portfolio.

With a focus on both on and off-trade premises, ROKiT Drinks is looking to employ a dynamic new sales force in the Southern Florida region, to secure sales of its premium spirits as well as several emerging independent brands across the wine, spirits, and beer category.

The sales teams will be focusing their efforts on securing distribution across cities and towns throughout Southern Florida.

"We are looking for some self-motivated individuals with a passion for sales, to help drive our drinks business forward in Southern Florida," said Dean Becker. "We are also expanding our offering, and plan to use our sales expertise to help other independent brands secure sales locations across both California and Southern Florida."

For more information about ROKiT Drinks, visit ROKiTDrinks.com

Media Contact:

Serena Thynne

SVP Marketing and Communications

ROKiT

[email protected]

917 853 3121

SOURCE ROKiT
She won huge critical acclaim after playing Marianne in Normal People.

And Daisy Edgar-Jones appeared to be enjoying her next role as she laughed and smiled while filming new thriller Fresh in Vancouver on Wednesday.

The actress, 22, cut a casual figure in a black jacket and mustard shirt as she chatted and laughed with co-star Jonica Gibbs while shooting by a food truck.

New project: Daisy Edgar-Jones cut a casual figure in a bold mustard shirt as she filmed new thriller Fresh in Vancouver on Wednesday

Daisy looked every inch the screen star as she confidently chatted to her co-stars and the crew inbetween takes.

The beauty wore her long locks down and naturally wavy, letting them cascade over her shoulders as she worked on the movie.

Keeping things laid-back, she donned a smart black jacket for the scene with Jonica and sported a brown leather handbag.

Several crew members and the movie's director Mimi Cave were also seen donning face masks or shields as they watched the actress during the scene.

On set: For one scene, the Normal People actress, 22, was seen chatting and laughing with co-star Jonica Gibbs while sitting near a food truck

Not much is known about the upcoming asocial thriller, Fresh, as the studio is keeping details about the plot under wraps for now.

However last Wednesday, Daisy was spotted locking lips with co-star Sebastian Stan as they filmed outside what appeared to be a bar.

The new film will be directed by Mimi Cave and is based on Lauryn Kahns script, reports Variety.

Daisy became an overnight sensation when she starred as Marianne alongside Paul Mescal (Connell) in the hit adaptation of Sally Rooney's novel Normal People.

Bad news? The beauty's expression turned more serious at one point in their conversation

Daisy and Paul won critical acclaim and the hearts of fans across the world for their portrayal of the 2018 book's characters.

The drama follows Irish students Connell and Marianne as they navigate social and class dynamics from school to university.

Filming on Fresh comes shortly after it was reported that Daisy has split from her boyfriend Tom Varey after two years of dating.

The actress is said to have called it quits with the actor, 29, late last year after they both decided it would be best to focus on their careers.

Despite their break-up, Daisy and Tom are said to still be on good terms and there are 'no hard feelings' between them.

A source speaking to The Sun claimed: 'They got on really well during lockdown last year, but they're both young and passionate about following their careers.

'Daisy has been inundated with opportunities and feels she has to put them first, Tom's also really dedicated to his acting and wants the best for both of them.

'They were sad they couldn't make it work, but are still close and there's no hard feelings.'

MailOnline contacted Daisy and Tom's representatives for comment at the time.

Watch Normal People on Stan in Australia.
GATINEAU, QC, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CDS Visual today announced an agreement with SMITH to partner in support of the North American Configure/Price/Quote (CPQ), eCommerce and Digital Marketing product visualization markets.

CDS Visual continues to expand its CPQ Visualization offering, including support for 3D visualization, dimensioned drawings, downloadable CAD files and augmented reality experiences of configured products. These solutions are integrated to leading CPQ software products. These solutions drive significant ROI for companies using CPQ to sell configured products, as well as expanding CPQ use into product areas for which traditional text entry of configuration information hasn't been ideal.

SMITH, an SAP Gold Partner, provides manufacturers and retailers with commerce, experience, and sales enablement solutions. The company has a CPQ implementation and optimization team dedicated to helping clients increase revenue and drive efficiencies. SMITH also supports the integration of CPQ and Variant Configuration with commerce platforms to enable distributor and consumer self-service.

"Changes in the selling environment are driving the need for companies to present their products online, giving their prospects all the information they need to make a buying decision. This has been a challenge for companies selling configured products, given the often tens-of-thousands of product variations. CDS Visual solves that challenge, creating an information-rich and immersive online buying experience for customers. Seeing truly is believing," said Bill Butler, Chief Revenue Officer for CDS Visual. "Partnering with SMITH to provide service and support to North American customers will accelerate adoption of CPQ and ecommerce visualization, increasing revenues significantly for our joint customers."

"Our partnership with CDS Visual will help our clients bring to life engaging and interactive experiences for their buyers that will increase revenue and customer loyalty," notes SMITH's Customer Growth Officer, Rob Miller. "Combining 3D visualization with CPQ and digital commerce brings a next-level experience to B2B buying."

About CDS Visual:

Headquartered in San Jose, CA, CDS Visual is the worldwide leader in CAD-based CPQ visualization technologies. Their products integrate with all leading CPQ software products. In addition, CDS Visual also offers CAD Automation tools, spare parts solutions, Enhanced 3D website content and augmented reality solutions.

About SMITH:

SMITH is a results-driven digital commerce agency that works in partnership with its clients to deliver better business outcomes with design thinking and technology enablement. Learn more at www.smith.co.

Contact CDS Visual:

(408) 550-8820

[email protected]



Contact SMITH:

1 (888) 222-8870

[email protected]

SOURCE CDS Visual
JOHANNESBURG, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Gold Fields Limited (NYSE: GFI) (JSE: GFI) announced normalised profit for year ended 31 December 2020 of US$879m (US$1.00 per share). This compared with normalised profit of US$343m (US$0.42 per share) for the year ended 31 December 2019.

A final dividend number 93 of 320 SA cents per share (gross) is payable on 15 March 2021, giving a total dividend for the year ended 31 December 2020 of 480 SA cents per share (gross).

Full results are available on the company website:

www.goldfields.com

Enquiries

Investors

Avishkar Nagaser

Tel: +27 11 562-9775

Mobile: +27 82 312 8692

Email : [email protected]

Thomas Mengel

Tel: +27 11 562 9849

Mobile: +27 72 493 5170

Email: [email protected]

Media

Sven Lunsche

Tel: +27 11 562-9763

Mobile: +27 83 260 9279

Email : [email protected]

About Gold Fields

Gold Fields is a globally diversified gold producer with nine operating mines in Australia, Peru, South Africa and West Africa (including the Asanko JV), as well as one project in Chile. We have total attributable annual gold-equivalent production of 2.2Moz, attributable gold-equivalent Mineral Reserves of 51.3Moz and Mineral Resources of 115.7Moz. Our shares are listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) and our American depositary shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

Sponsor: J.P. Morgan Equities South Africa (Pty) Ltd

SOURCE Gold Fields Limited
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP)  The Dutch parliament approved hastily drawn-up legislation Thursday underpinning the country's coronavirus curfew after a judge ordered the measure scrapped earlier this week.

The legislation is now expected to be debated by the senate on Friday  the same day that government lawyers go to court to appeal the order banning the 9 p.m.-to-4:30 a.m. curfew.

If the senate approves the legislation, the curfew will remain in place and the appeal court's decision will become largely irrelevant.

Maarten Hijink of the opposition Socialist Party gave the legislation his backing, but told the government: Dont take the support as an appreciation of the way this Cabinet made such an unbelievable mess of the judicial underpinning of the curfew.

Populist Geert Wilders was among opposition lawmakers who do not support the legislation introduced by Prime Minister Mark Rutte's government.

What an embarrassment for Prime Minister Rutte, and what a hammer blow for the credibility of the corona policies of his Cabinet in general and the curfew in particular, said Wilders, who has repeatedly described the measure as disproportionate. He demanded that fines meted out for breaches of the curfew be canceled or repaid.

The curfew, which sparked rioting last month but is very broadly supported and followed, remains in force pending the outcome of the government's appeal.

A judge in The Hague banned the curfew, saying the law the government used when it introduced the measure last month can only be wielded in pressing emergencies such as a massive dike breach.

The government argues that the curfew became an urgent necessity because of the swift rise of new, more transmissible variants of the virus, particularly the one first discovered in Britain which has already gained ground in the Netherlands.

Rutte told lawmakers Thursday: Of course, we regret the situation because it creates a lack of clarity. That's why the Cabinet has tried to create clarity as quickly as possible via ... the urgent appeal against the court decision and also the legislation we're talking about.

Story continues

The Netherlands has been in a tough lockdown since mid-December, with all nonessential stores closed, along with bars, restaurants and other public venues. Elementary schools reopened this month, but all other schools and universities remain shut.

Infections have been slowly declining, with the 7-day rolling average of daily new cases decreasing over the past two weeks from 23.38 new cases per 100,000 people to 21.28 on Feb. 17. The country has more than 15,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths.

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Follow all of APs pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic, https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-vaccine and https://apnews.com/UnderstandingtheOutbreak
Its time to start thinking about it [whether she should stand down]. She has serious questions to answer, they said. I dont think she has been up to the task on a number of fronts. Brittany Higgins claims she was raped inside Parliament House. Credit:Facebook Another Liberal MP said her response to the sexual assault allegation was another example of poor judgment. Senator Reynolds had been facing criticism of her handling of the $90 billion future submarines program and her response to the Brereton war crimes inquiry before the revelations of the sexual assault this week. Ms Higgins says she was raped in March, 2019, by another staffer of Senator Reynolds in the Defence Ministers office after security guards let them into the building late the previous night. She says she felt pressured afterwards to choose between her job and pursuing the matter with police.

Mr Morrison on Thursday said everyone here tried to do the right thing but conceded more could have been done. They took advice and followed the advice, he told Parliament. Even when that has been done, it hasnt done the job. Ms Higgins this week told of her distress when Senator Reynolds and the ministers then-acting chief of staff Fiona Brown set up a meeting on April 1 about the matter in the same room where the alleged rape took place. Senator Reynolds told Parliament that during that meeting with Ms Higgins she made it clear to Brittany that she would have my full support in whatever course of action she decided to take and she would have full access to counselling services.

My chief of staff and I moved quickly to ensure that Brittany was given access to the police should she wish to make a complaint, she said. Mr Morrison revealed on Thursday the minister herself also followed up with the AFP deputy commissioner. I became aware incrementally over a period of days of Brittanys story through private conversations with her and my then-chief of staff and via reports from parliamentary authorities, Senator Reynolds said. Defence Minister Linda Reynolds became emotional during question time after earlier saying she was deeply sorry if her handling of sexual assault allegations has caused a former staff member distress. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen For my part, I am deeply sorry that Brittany felt unsupported at the time of the incident and in the months that followed, and in fact the years that followed. Senator Reynolds said Ms Higgins story had occasioned a wide reckoning of how women are treated in this building, it has prompted a national conversation about how we ensure women are safe in their workplace wherever that is.

Loading Later in question time, Senator Reynolds appeared emotional trying to answer a question on behalf of Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton and his administration of security grants. Outside of the chambers, Minister for Women Marise Payne said she had absolute confidence in Linda Reynolds. But I also understand that in the depths of trauma, in the depths of distress, sometimes it is just so hard to see a way through or out  that no matter what happens or what is done, it may never seem to be the right thing or be enough of the response that one is seeking. Three counsellors will arrive in Parliament House on Monday and phone support services for advisers and MPs expanded as Mr Morrison acknowledged the past week had been traumatic for staff.

Loading Finance Minister Simon Birmingham will also spend the next few days consulting leaders from other parties and crossbenchers on who should lead an independent review of how parliament deals with workplace complaints. One person involved with these discussions said on Thursday it was at the most embryonic of stages. Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese has suggested former sex discrimination commissioner Liz Broderick or domestic violence and equality campaigner Natasha Stott Despoja for the job. The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age revealed on Thursday an anonymous tip about criminal conduct in Parliament House sparked a security review last year to examine whether officials had interfered with a suspected crime scene in relation to the alleged rape. Former federal security inspector-general Vivienne Thom was called in by Senate President Scott Ryan and Speaker Tony Smith to review the explosive claims and view footage of closed-circuit television to check serious allegations against officials in the building.
Montinique Monroe/Getty Images

Texas is dealing with more than power outages during the winter storm.

On Wednesday, SAWS announced during a City Hall meeting that the utility company would soon issue a boil water notice for the San Antonio area "out of an abundance of caution." However, the Alamo City isn't the only one issuing boil water notices.

Banco Promerica El Salvador launches Cuenta Inicia, the new 100% digital account, which can be opened easily, quickly and securely through its Mobile Banking app, thanks to the support of Veentrix, a local partner of Mobbeel, a pioneer in KYC / Digital Onboarding, digital signature and biometric authentication technology. Cuenta Inicia can be opened in a couple of minutes with an Android or iOS smartphone. Users can start the account opening 


Amit Shah has lunch with refugee family in West Bengal Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday had lunch at the home of a refugee family in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas, a few days after announcing on the campaign trail that the Centre will roll out the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) after the Coronavirus pandemic. During his visit to the state to flag off the BJP's yatra, Amit Shah had lunch at the residence of Subrata Biswas, a refugee from Bangladesh. "Had lunch at Subrata Biswasji's home in Narayanpur village, South 24 Parganas (West Bengal). I thank Biswasji and his family from the bottom of my heart for such warmth and hospitality," Shah tweeted. A BJP leader said that ancestors of Biswas arrived in West Bengal from East Pakistan, now known as Bangladesh and have been living in poverty ever since. Earlier this month, Shah had announced that the process of giving citizenship under the CAA would begin as soon as the Covid-19 vaccination drive ends. The raking of the CAA issue regularly by the BJP and especially by Shah has all set to polarise the upcoming polls in the state and the party believes it will help in consolidating the votes of those who are against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. BJP's raking up the CAA issue in the state has criticism from its political rivals. "Shah's decision to have lunch with a refugee family whose ancestors moved to West Bengal from Bangladesh will clear doubts about its implementation in our rivals' minds. The BJP is committed to implement CAA and it will do it in the future," said a party leader. A BJP leader said that today's lunch with refugee family establishes the party's commitment to give citizenship under the new law. "The Home Minister having lunch at a refugee family shows that the government is concerned about their plight and will address it the coming days despite opposition from political rivals," he said.




The United Nations is to demand information from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) about a daughter of Dubais powerful ruler after she said in video messages that she was being imprisoned in a heavily guarded villa in the UAE.

Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum tried to flee the wealthy Gulf state in 2018 but was detained by commandos in a boat off India. She had not been heard from until Tuesday, when the BBCs Panorama programme broadcast video messages from her.

In the videos, which appear to have been recorded covertly, the 35-year-old princess says she is worried about my safety and my life.

I dont really know if Im going to survive this situation, she says in one of the videos. The BBC said they were recorded over months on a phone she secretly received about a year after her capture.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said it would raise these new developments with the UAE.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has urged the Irish Government to investigate Princess Latifas claims.

When asked if countries need to step in, Devin Kenny, who is Amnestys UAE researcher, said: Yes, clearly, the UK government especially and the US government, but also other governments in Europe, including the Irish government, have friendly relations with the UAE and sometimes personal friendly relations with Sheikh Mohammed.

There are strong relations between him and the British monarchy.

Mr Kenny said it was an absolute minimum that countries should be raising the issue of human rights in the UAE.

Former Irish president Mary Robinson now says she feels horribly tricked by the family of Princess Latifa, whom she met in Dubai at their request. She described the princess after the meeting as a troubled young woman.

Ms Robinson said: I continue to be very worried about Latifa. Things have moved on. And so, I think it should be investigated.

Panorama verified that Latifa is resident near the Dubai canal in a villa, watched in shifts by a team of 30 guards.
A commuter wears a facemask as he sits in a bus shelter with NHS signage promoting "Stay Home, Save Lives" in Chinatown, central London, on Jan. 8, 2021. (Tolga Akmen /AFP via Getty Images)

UK Data Show Significant Decline in CCP Virus Infections

CCP virus infections in England have fallen significantly since January, according to a study data published on Thursday.

Imperial College Londons latest REACT-1 study report found that CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus infections fell by more than two-thirds from the last report in January.

These findings show encouraging signs infections are now heading in the right direction across the country, but we must not drop our guard. I urge everyone to stay at home, remember hands, face, space & get your jab when invited.https://t.co/S2M3yRjcP5  Matt Hancock (@MattHancock) February 18, 2021

Swab results recorded between Feb. 4 and 13 from volunteers showed that 51 people per 10,000 were infected, just a third of the prevalence during the last round of tests conducted in January, when 157 per 10,000 people were infected, the Department of Health and Social Care said.

The most marked drop was witnessed in London, where positive tests fell from 2.83 percent to 0.54 percent from last month.

These findings show encouraging signs infections are now heading in the right direction across the country, but we must not drop our guard, Britains Health Secretary Matt Hancock said in a statement.

He said infection rates and hospital admissions remain high, with over 20,000 COVID-19 patients still in hospital.

Professor Paul Elliott, director of the study at Imperial College, said the encouraging results show that lockdown measures are effectively bringing infections down.

Its reassuring that the reduction in numbers of infections occurred in all ages and in most regions across the country, he said.

While the trends weve observed are good news, we need to all work to keep infections down by sticking to the measures which are designed to protect us and our health system.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is due to reveal his plan for exiting lockdown on Feb. 22, has come under pressure from lawmakers and businesses to set clear dates for the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions following the biggest vaccine rollout in British history.

Nearly 16 million people have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, official figures show.

The COVID Recovery Group (CRG), a group of Tory MPs who are sceptical about lockdown measures, said that they welcomed the tremendous pace of the vaccination rollout and that the restrictions will no longer be justified once the high-risk groups have been protected by vaccines.

In a letter to the prime minister on Feb. 13, they demanded that schools must be reopened to all pupils on March 8 and all COVID-19 restrictions must be lifted by the end of April.

But Johnson has refused to set firm dates for easing COVID-19 lockdown measures, arguing instead that a cautious but irreversible plan would be preferable.
AUSTIN, Texas - Power was restored to more homes and businesses Thursday in states hit by a deadly blast of winter that overwhelmed the electrical grid and left millions shivering in the cold this week. But the crisis was far from over in parts of the South, where many people still lacked safe drinking water.

People wait in line to fill propane tanks Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Houston. Customers waited over an hour in the freezing rain to fill their tanks. Millions in Texas still had no power after a historic snowfall and single-digit temperatures created a surge of demand for electricity to warm up homes unaccustomed to such extreme lows, buckling the state's power grid and causing widespread blackouts. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

AUSTIN, Texas - Power was restored to more homes and businesses Thursday in states hit by a deadly blast of winter that overwhelmed the electrical grid and left millions shivering in the cold this week. But the crisis was far from over in parts of the South, where many people still lacked safe drinking water.

In Texas on Thursday, about 325,000 homes and businesses remained without power, down from about 3 million a day earlier, though utility officials said limited rolling blackouts were still possible.

The storms also left more than 320,000 homes and businesses without power in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. About 70,000 power outages persisted after an ice storm in eastern Kentucky, while nearly 67,000 were without electricity in West Virginia.

And more than 100,000 customers remained without power Thursday in Oregon, a week after a massive snow and ice storm. Maria Pope, the CEO of Portland General Electric, said she expects power to be restored by Friday night to more than 90% of the customers still in the dark.

Meanwhile, snow and ice moved into the Appalachians, northern Maryland and southern Pennsylvania, and later the Northeast. Back-to-back storms left 15 inches (38 centimetres) of snow in Little Rock, Arkansas, tying a 1918 record, the National Weather Service said.

An Oncor crew works on along Elsie Faye Higgins Street as power outages continue across the state after a second winter storm brought more snow and continued freezing temperatures to North Texas on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Dallas. (Smiley N. Pool/The Dallas Morning News via AP)

The extreme weather was blamed for the deaths of more than four dozen people, some while trying to keep warm. In the Houston area, one family died from carbon monoxide as their car idled in their garage. A woman and her three grandchildren were killed in a fire that authorities said might have been caused by a fireplace they were using.

Utilities from Minnesota to Texas implemented rolling blackouts to ease strained power grids. Southwest Power Pool, a group of utilities covering 14 states from the Dakotas to the Texas Panhandle, said rolling blackouts were no longer needed, but asked customers to conserve energy until at least Saturday night.

Texas' remaining outages were mostly weather-related, rather than forced blackouts, according to the state's grid manager, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. ERCOT Senior Director of System Operations Dan Woodfin said rotating outages could return if electricity demand rises as people get power and heating back, though they wouldn't last as long as outages earlier this week.

Carlos Mandez waits in line to fill his propane tanks Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Houston. Customers had to wait over an hour in the freezing rain to fill their tanks. Millions in Texas still had no power after a historic snowfall and single-digit temperatures created a surge of demand for electricity to warm up homes unaccustomed to such extreme lows, buckling the state's power grid and causing widespread blackouts. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott warned that state residents are not out of the woods, with temperatures still well below freezing statewide, south central Texas threatened by a winter storm and disruptions in food supply chains.

Adding to the state's misery, the weather jeopardized drinking water systems. Authorities ordered 7 million people  a quarter of the population of the nations second-largest state  to boil tap water before drinking it, following record low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and pipes.

Water pressure dropped after lines froze, and because many people left faucets dripping to prevent pipes from icing over, said Toby Baker, executive director of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Abbott urged residents to shut off water to their homes to prevent more busted pipes and preserve pressure in municipal systems.

The parking lot of a Walmart Store on Coit Road empties as a second winter storm brought more snow and continued freezing temperatures to North Texas on Tuesday night, Feb. 16, 2021, in Plano, Texas. Walmart announced on Tuesday the chain would be closing 415 stores in Texas due to the weather. (Smiley N. Pool/The Dallas Morning News via AP)

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said he expects that residents in the nations fourth-largest city will have to boil tap water before drinking it until Sunday or Monday.

FEMA sent generators to support water treatment plants, hospitals and nursing homes in Texas, along with thousands of blankets and ready-to-eat meals, officials said. The Texas Restaurant Association also said it was co-ordinating donations of food to hospitals.

Some Austin hospitals lost water pressure and heat. But because the problem was statewide and affected other facilities, "no one hospital currently has the capacity to accept transport of a large number of patients, said David Huffstutler, CEO of St. Davids South Austin Medical Center.

People disembark a Long Island Rail Road train at the Forest Hills station as snow falls Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, in the Queens borough of New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Two of Houston Methodist's community hospitals had no running water but still treated patients, with most non-emergency surgeries and procedures cancelled for Thursday and possibly Friday, said spokeswoman Gale Smith.

Emergency rooms were crowded "due to patients being unable to meet their medical needs at home without electricity, Smith said.

Texas Childrens Hospitals main campus at the Texas Medical Center and another location had low water pressure, but the system was adequately staffed and patients had enough water and are safe and comfortable, spokeswoman Jenn Jacome said.

A water bucket is filled as others wait in near freezing temperatures to use a hose from public park spigot Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, in Houston. Houston and several surrounding cities are under a boil water notice as many residents are still without running water in their homes. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

The next phase of the states disaster response will be to test drinking water from systems knocked offline by the cold. As of Thursday afternoon, more than 1,000 Texas public water systems and 177 of the states 254 counties had reported weather-related operational disruptions, affecting more than 14 million people, according to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

The weather also disrupted water systems in Southern cities, including New Orleans, and Shreveport, Louisiana, where fire trucks delivered water to hospitals and bottled water was brought in for patients and staff, Shreveport television station KSLA reported.

Power was cut to a New Orleans facility that pumps drinking water from the Mississippi River and generators were used until electricity was restored.

Shoppers stand on a long line inside a Target in South Austin, Texas on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Power outages in Texas have dropped to below a half million, but the state is still facing major problems with drinking water systems. (Kolby Lee via AP)

And in Jackson, Mississippi, Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba said almost the entire city of about 150,000 was without water Thursday night.

Crews were pumping water to refill citys tanks but faced a shortage of chemicals to treat the water, Lumumba said.

We are dealing with an extreme challenge with getting more water through our distribution system, he said.

Snow begins to accumulate as San Antonio police officers gather near the Alamo, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, in downtown San Antonio. Snow, ice and sub-freezing weather continue to wreak havoc on the state's power grid and utilities. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Drinking water was made available at fire stations throughout Jackson and officials also planned to set up bottled water pickup sites.

About 85 seniors in one Jackson apartment building haven't had water since Monday and were relying on deliveries from a building manager, said resident Linda Weathersby.

Weathersby said she spent part of Thursday outside collecting buckets of ice to melt it so she could flush her toilet and said my back's hurting now.

Donated water is unloaded at a distribution site, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, in Houston. Houston and several surrounding cities are under a boil water notice as many residents are still without running water in their homes. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

As the storms headed east, 12 people had to be rescued Wednesday night from boats after a dock weighed down by snow and ice collapsed on Tennessee's Cumberland River, the Nashville Fire Department said. Elsewhere in the state, a 9-year-old boy was killed when the tube his father was pulling behind an ATV slammed into a mailbox.

In and around the western Texas city of Abilene, authorities said six people died of the cold  including a 60-year-old man found dead in his bed in his frigid home and a man who died at a health care facility when a lack of water pressure made medical treatment impossible.

A 69-year-old Arkansas man was found dead Wednesday after falling into a frozen pond while trying to rescue a calf. In Kentucky, a 77-year-old woman was found dead of likely hypothermia Wednesday night after two days without power and heat.

A couple walk through falling snow, Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, in downtown San Antonio. Snow, ice and sub-freezing weather continue to wreak havoc on the state's power grid and utilities. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

And a man fell through the ice on the Detroit River on Wednesday night and likely drowned, a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman said.

Before the wintry weather moved from Texas, the city of Del Rio along the U.S.-Mexico border, got nearly 10 inches (25.4 cm) of snow on Thursday, surpassing the citys one-day record for snowfall. Up to 3 inches (7.6 cm) were forecast for San Antonio, and Mayor Ron Nirenberg urged residents to stay off treacherous roads.

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Bleed reported from Little Rock, Arkansas. Associated Press journalists Terry Wallace in Dallas; Juan Lozano in Houston; Leah Willingham in Jackson, Mississippi; Rebecca Reynolds in Louisville, Kentucky; Jay Reeves in Birmingham, Alabama; Kevin McGill in New Orleans; Darlene Superville in Washington; and Tammy Webber in Fenton, Michigan, contributed.

So your water pipes have burst during the arctic freeze. What are you supposed to do?

The Insurance Council of Texas expects hundreds of thousands of insurance claims  including auto, home, renters and commercial  thanks to the winter weather.

With a few more days before warm temperatures return to Houston, experts say it may take a while for pipes to thaw and leak.

Heres what to expect if youre filing an insurance claim to cover the cost of fixing your plumbing and replacing your property.

Homeowners

Most homeowners insurance policies will cover the ensuing damage from a burst pipe. If theres a flood in the living room and water soaks through the flooring, baseboards and drywall, your policy will cover it  to a certain extent. Your insurance may also cover the costs of temporary relocation if the home is uninhabitable.

RUNNING WATER: Houstons boil water notice is still in effect. Heres what to do once faucets are running again.

The average property damage claim for a frozen pipe in Texas cost $15,500 in 2020, according to data from State Farm.

If you have damages already, start documenting that, said Camille Garcia, a spokesperson for the Insurance Council of Texas. Make a list of what was spoiled or damaged, so when you contact the agent, youre going to have that information readily available.

Even if you dont have damage yet, take pictures now in case you need a before-and-after comparison.

Reach out to your insurance company as soon as possible to find out exactly how much your policy covers and what other documentation is necessary. Your policies will likely include personal property damaged in the ensuing floods, such as furniture, clothing and food.

If the pipes ruptured because you didnt drain water or keep them warm when you could have, insurance may not cover the damage. Most policies will expect you to take reasonable steps to protect your home, but thanks to the power grid failures that left more than 4 million people without heat this week, there were only so many things people could do to keep their pipes from bursting. Sudden and accidental leaks are generally covered.

Before insurance coverage kicks in, though, you may have to pay the cost of your deductible.

Given high demand, it will take a while to get a claims adjuster on the line. Kelly Hyde, who owns a townhouse in Shady Acres and was in the process of selling her home when the winter storm swept through Texas, spent an hour and a half on the phone Tuesday afternoon trying to get hold of her insurer, Allied Trust.

Hyde, who now lives in Denver, found out the ceiling of her master bathroom had caved in after asking a neighbor to check on the property. The pipes coming from the water heater, located in the attic, ruptured during the blackouts and freeze.

Her insurer gave her a claim number but no estimated time for when an adjuster would help her.

We were waiting for the clear to close, and now I dont know whats going to happen, Hyde said.

Youll also face a long wait for plumbers and other contractors  many expect to be booked for the coming two to three months.

Renters

If youre leasing your home or apartment and face a burst pipe, your renters insurance should cover the cost of any personal property. Similar to homeowners insurance, it may cover the cost of furniture, clothing and food.

Take pictures and keep a written list of your belongings in case you need to submit documentation to your insurer. Property owners are allowed to require renters to carry insurance, but Houston does not require it of all renters. Homeowners insurance wont cover the cost of your belongings as a tenant.

As a renter, you wouldnt have coverage for the structure, Garcia said. What your policy kicks in for is any damage to your personal property.

COVERING TENANTS: Houston passes grace period ordinance to help protect renters from eviction

Your landlord is responsible for fixing and covering the costs of structural damage if the storm and blackouts were at fault.

First, notify the manager immediately if theres a broken pipe or any sort of water leak in your unit, said Alpa Patel, a spokesperson for the Houston Apartment Association. Many leases require this in writing but even if yours doesnt, its always a good idea. That way, theres a record of what you reported and when you reported it.

The property owner should also tell you where the water cutoff is located in case you need to turn off flow.

Water damage may be so extensive that the home or apartment is unlivable. In that case, tenants are allowed to terminate their leases via written notice before repairs are finished; they are also entitled to a rent reduction based on the extent of the damage, according to Texas Property Code. Most tenants and landlords will be able to come to an agreement without court interference.

Insurance premiums wont change significantly as a result of the winter storm. Texas is a disaster-prone state, and companies already factor that into their costs when providing quotes.

Mayor Sylvester Turners office will also be working on a fund to assist people who lost property to a burst pipe and do not have homeowners or renters insurance. The city of Galveston says people should take photos of damage and save receipts from plumbers, hotel stays and other property replacements in case a disaster fund becomes available.

While FEMA has not promised individual assistance yet, renters can call 211 or 311 (the citys help line) for social services assistance during the freeze.

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Deep in the frozen heart of Wisconsin, state wildlife officials allegedly dined like oligarchs, feasting on tens of thousands of dollars worth of caviar and passing around jars of the prized delicacy at team meetings.

Meanwhile, some of their colleagues were working undercover to expose the long-running scheme responsible for the lavish spread, and tipping federal authorities off to a world of clandestine after-hours meetings at state laboratories and five-gallon buckets filled with gleaming fish roe.

The extensive three-year investigation resulted in the arrest of the state's top sturgeon expert last week. Ryan P. Koenigs, nicknamed the "sturgeon general" by local television stations, allegedly obtained at least $20,000 worth of caviar in a single year while holding down an otherwise unglamorous post as a biologist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. He faces charges of misdemeanor theft for illegally trading sturgeon eggs, as well as obstructing an investigation by a conservation warden.

Court records obtained by WLUK offer no indication that Koenigs, 36, or any other DNR employees were part of a larger caviar crime ring extending beyond the ice-fishing bars of Wisconsin, or had any intention of profiting off the luxury food. But prosecutors noted that strict regulations exist because of the lucrative trade in black market caviar, which has been linked to organized crime.

Caviar is made from curing the eggs of wild sturgeon, a threatened species in many parts of the world. Typically, harvesting the massive, prehistoric fish is off-limits for recreational anglers - with one major exception. During the month of February, Wisconsin allows a limited number of residents to build makeshift shanties on frozen Lake Winnebago, near Oshkosh, where they plunge spears into the icy depths and pull up lake sturgeon that can weigh more than 100 pounds and yield hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of caviar.

Under state law, spear fishermen are entitled to keep any caviar from their catch, but can't sell it. And many prefer the thrill of the hunt to the taste of briny fish eggs. But DNR staffers had developed a taste for the pricey appetizer, and according to a criminal complaint, Wisconsin game wardens had a long-standing directive to collect eggs for "research purposes" whenever anglers said they didn't plan to process and eat them.

While some of the wardens told investigators they were under the impression that those eggs were being used for a scientific study, other wildlife officials said that the scheme was primarily intended to ensure that DNR employees had a steady supply of caviar that would cost upward of $100 per ounce in stores. The arrangement dated back to at least 2011, before Koenigs was in charge.

"Basically we distributed among ourselves and had a good old time with it," DNR fisheries supervisor Kendall Kamke told a warden, according to the affidavit.

The affidavit indicates that some game wardens repeatedly expressed concerns about the scheme, which went against an ethics policy requiring sturgeon roe that wasn't being used for research to be destroyed so that DNR employees didn't appear to be "personally benefiting from their position." But staffers in other roles expressed an unwillingness to let perfectly good caviar go to waste.

Others benefited from the arrangement, too, officials said. Working undercover with agents from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, game wardens found that other DNR employees were also illicitly funneling sturgeon eggs to locals willing to turn the roe into caviar in exchange for a share. One former state fisheries biologist became a caviar processor after retiring, and began making "after hours" visits to a state laboratory to pick out the best-looking eggs. The former scientist, who has not been charged, kept a third of the finished product for himself and gave the rest to DNR staff, who would "keep the eggs for personal use, eat some at team meetings, and put some out at registration stations or nearby bars," according to the complaint.

As a result of the sweeping investigation, authorities also filed criminal charges against a pair of octogenarians and the owner of a lakefront bar popular with ice fishermen. All three are accused of receiving caviar as payment for processing sturgeon eggs, violating the ban on bartering or trading the valuable roe. It wasn't immediately clear if any had attorneys.

Koenigs, who allegedly lied to investigators about the caviar scheme and attempted to destroy potential evidence from a state-issued cellphone, has been placed on administrative leave, according to the Associated Press. His attorney told the New York Times that he intends to plead not guilty.
The will form the next



government in and while the NDA will come to power in Tamil Nadu with the mandate of the people who will reject "family parties," Union Minister Kishan Reddy said on Thursday.

The is part of the NDA in Tamil Nadu and the combine under the ruling AIADMK's leadership had fought the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Already people across the country have rejected "family parties" and the people of Tamil Nadu who had rejected the "2G Spectrum scam fame" UPA, will again send the dynasty parties packing home, the Minister, who hails from Telangana, said.

Reddy, union minister of state for Home Affairs and also BJP's election in-charge for poll-bound Tamil Nadu, was making an apparent reference to the DMK, which has been often targeted by its critics for taking forward "dynasty "



"The people of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir have rejected the Congress that ruled the country for over half-a-century. And even our P Sudhakar Reddy (now election co-incharge of Tamil Nadu) rejected that party and had joined the BJP," Reddy said while addressing the partys Intellectual Cell members here.

"There is no future in India for family parties, private limited parties and family owned parties. People have rejected them. And I am confident that Tamil Nadu, which rejected the family parties, will again discard them in the coming assembly election," the minister said.

Elections are likely to be held in Tamil Nadu and neighbouring union territory of by April-May.

The has been saying it would capture power in Telangana, where elections are due in 2023.

Fortunately, the country has a good and dynamic leader in Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has made his ministers accountable to the people, Reddy said.

Further, there has been "not a single scam" in the last six years as Modi was monitoring things on a daily basis, he added.

The Prime Minister took several "historical, long- standing and necessary decisions" in the interest of the country including tax reforms, especially the GST.

"As minister of state for home affairs, I can proudly say that under the leadership of the prime minister and guidance of (Union Home Minister) Amit Shahji, the ministry took a bold decision to abrogate article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir where for the past 70 years the constitution was not implemented and no major decisions were taken," he said.

Gen. V K Singh, union minister of state for road transport and highways and Tamil Nadu BJP chief L Murugan also spoke.

Reddy also addressed the Tamil Nadu BJPs State Core Committee along with Singh, BJP national general secretary in-charge of Tamil Nadu C T Ravi and Sudhakar Reddy.

Later, he held a meeting with senior officials from the CRPF at Avadi here and expressed his gratitude for all the work being discharged by them with utmost commitment.

(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.)
Japanese tire manufacturer Toyo Tires has announced that it will be ending production at its Silverstone Berhad (SSM) tire manufacturing subsidiary in Perak, Malaysia. The facility is currently used for manufacturing tires for OEMs, Toyos own branded tires, and also Silverstone-branded tires for aftermarket use in Malaysia.

The company states that due to the position of the plant in its global strategy, and in terms of overall production capacity, the closure of the facility is unavoidable and it will cease production in June 2021 once preparations have been completed.

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Another manufacturing subsidiary, located in Perak, commonly known as the Toyo Tire Malaysia plant (TTM), will take on the production of certain Silverstone-branded products previously made at the Silverstone Berhad facility. Alongside this, the TTM will form a global hub, supplying tires to Southeast Asia, North America, Europe and Japan.

The move follows a tough financial year for the tire manufacturer. Toyo states that for the year ending December 31, 2020, the company suffered losses totaling 6,270m (US$59.1m). This figure includes an impairment loss of 5,110m (US$48.1m), and a loss of 1,159m (US$11m) due to the liquidation of subsidiaries and affiliates.
Annapolis, MD; February 17, 2021--When the invasive spotted lanternfly arrived in the United States in 2014, it was immediately recognized for the threat it posed to native plants and crops. A community of researchers and experts in science, agriculture, and government sprang into action to respond, improving our chances for containing the pest and curbing its potential for damage.

While the effort continues, a new collection curated by the Entomological Society of America's family of journals showcases the growing body of research that is helping us understand the spotted lanternfly's biology and how to contain it. The collection features 25 articles published in ESA journals since 2015, with 16 of them new additions since June 2020.

The spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) is a treehopper native to Asia but was discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014, and it has since spread to five other northeastern states. Its primary host is tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima), but it is known to feed on more than 100 types of plants--mostly trees, shrubs, and stout vines. Valuable crops the spotted lanternfly can damage include grapes, apples, and peaches, as well as hardwood trees. One study of the lanternfly's potential range in the U.S., based on environmental and climatic conditions, suggests most of New England and the mid-Atlantic states as well as parts of the central U.S. and Pacific Northwest are vulnerable to establishment of the spotted lanternfly if it finds its way there.

Melody Keena, Ph.D., research entomologist at the U.S. Forest Service, is co-editor-in-chief of the ESA journal Environmental Entomology and compiled the collection on spotted lanternfly. Like many, Keena was struck by the insect's potential when she first learned about it. "I was surprised because it is so much bigger than the treehoppers that are native. I was also surprised by the large numbers congregating on single trees," she says.

Early on, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal Plant Health Inspection Service and the state of Pennsylvania led the charge, says Keena, while more states and groups have joined in as the spotted lanternfly has spread.

"Both federal and university groups--with Pennsylvania State University taking the early lead--have developed a lot of knowledge and tools rapidly for dealing with this pest, as this collection demonstrates," Keena says.

Engaging the public has been critical as well.

"The public has taken an interest in it because of the major nuisance the adults are in the fall, with all the honey dew the lanternflies produce and black sooty mold that grows on it," Keena says. "They are willing to help in any way they can, like removing its egg masses or smashing adults they find or allowing researchers to use their property."

The research collection showcases progress made so far, as continued awareness and research will be necessary to slow the spotted lanternfly's spread.

"Multiple tools for trapping and killing spotted lanternfly have been developed but still need improvement, especially for adults. Biological control organisms have been found and are being evaluated. Prospects for managing it are good," says Keena. "We don't yet know how far it will successfully be able to spread, but there are indications that it may have some climatic limitations. Current work to understand how humans are aiding its spread, and how to cut off those avenues, is underway."

###

The ESA spotted lanternfly collection is available at http://www. academic. oup. com/ ee/ pages/ research-on-spotted-lanternfly , featuring 25 articles published across the ESA family of journals. Several articles in the collection have also been featured in accompanying posts at the Entomology Today blog, available at http://www. entomologytoday. org/ tag/ slf-collection .

CONTACT: Joe Rominiecki, jrominiecki@entsoc.org, 301-731-4535 x3009
[February 18, 2021]

Black Sage Solution Neutralizes Drone Threat in Middle East

BOISE, Idaho, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- An illegal drone was detected and neutralized at a major public event in the Middle East by a Black Sage mobile counter unmanned aircraft solution (CUAS) featuring Black Sage's DefenseOS command and control software.

Due to the rapid response by the local civil defense authority, no one attending the event was injured. The event continued without disruption. The safety and security of all those attending the event was assured by the civil defense authority and the Black Sage CUAS solution.

"Black Sage is proud to work with our partners across the Middle East to protect their citizens and visitors at major public events," stated Trent Morrow, Black Sage's Chief Strategy Officer. "Our Counter UAS solutions are deployed with civil defense authorities, militaries and airports worldwide defending people and critical infrastructure."

Drones pose an increasing threat at major public events worldwide. The number of illegal drones entering the airspace above and near public events is accelerating.

Black Sage is a Systems Integration Partner (SIP). We made the strategic decision to not manufacture CUAS sensors and effectors. This means we are not tied to specific technologies, which allows our copany to offer each customer a unique solution featuring industry leading components tailored to their requirements.







Black Sage's DefenseOS open architecture command and control software orchestrates a layered defense network comprising radars, EO/IR cameras, Passive RF sensors and effectors. DefenseOS features an operator friendly interface and solution automation to reduce operator burden.

About Black Sage

Black Sage is a CUAS solutions provider and systems integration partner, serving civil defense authorities, military organizations, and airports worldwide. Our mission is to protect civilian and military personnel from unmanned threats. Black Sage's open architecture DefenseOS command and control software integrates and orchestrates industry-leading sensors and effectors required for a modular, layered air defense network. Our Sage Work's Innovation Lab coupled with our three research facilities representing urban, rural, and remote environments enables rapid prototyping, testing, and integration. These resources enable Black Sage's solutions to defend against the constant evolution of UAS threat capabilities.

For more information, please visit: www.blacksagetech.com or our LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/company/blacksagetech

Contact

Scott Talcott

Black Sage

+1-208-571-8135

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View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/black-sage-solution-neutralizes-drone-threat-in-middle-east-301230813.html

SOURCE Black Sage
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 06:34:11|Editor: huaxia

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DAKAR, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Senegal will launch its COVID-19 vaccination campaign next Tuesday, Senegalese Minister of Health and Social Action Abdoulaye Diouf Sarr announced Thursday night.

Invited on Senegalese public television, Sarr said the ministry will launch the large-scale vaccination operation following the establishment of a monitoring committee. He invited the Senegalese to mobilize for the success of the campaign.

Senegalese President Macky Sall welcomed on Wednesday night the first doses of COVID-19 vaccine acquired from China's pharmaceutical group Sinopharm.

Apart from the 200,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, Sall said that his country had started the process of acquiring other vaccines, and would receive 6.798 million doses in the coming weeks for mass vaccination.

The country plans to vaccinate 20 percent of its population, which is about 3.5 million people, in the first phase of mass vaccination.

Senegal has reported 32,099 COVID-19 cases, with 26,363 recoveries and 781 deaths. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 21:25:09|Editor: huaxia

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Photo taken on Feb. 18, 2021 shows a scene from a job fair at the Tianxin cultural industry park in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province. The job fair, sponsored by the authority of Tianxin District of Changsha with assistance from authorities of Shifeng District of Zhuzhou City and Yuetang District of Xiangtan City, all in Hunan, took place in both on-line and off-line forms, and covered a variety of sectors such as software, culture and advertisement, smart manufacturing, and medicine and health. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo)
Gregory Yee covers breaking news and public safety. He's a native Angeleno and previously covered crime and courts for the Press-Telegram in Long Beach, CA. He studied journalism and Spanish literature at the University of California, Irvine.
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Intervals of clouds and sunshine. High 83F. Winds ESE at 10 to 20 mph..

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Mostly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 77F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph.
Johnson & Johnson's one-shot coronavirus vaccine may actually be two doses, the Biden administration has said.

The vaccine, which was recently submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval, was hailed as one of the most effective ways to help increase supply and bring President Joe Biden closer to his goal of 150 million shots in arms in the first 100 days of his term.

J&J is currently on track to produce 100 million doses of its single-shot vaccine, but is trying to find a way to update the immunization in the face of variants.

However, during a Washington Post Live event, Andy Slavitt, the White House senior advisor on COVID-19 response, say the company is currently testing the effectiveness of its shot with a booster.

'Johnson & Johnson is currently evaluating how their vaccine performs with two doses in other words with their own booster,' he told host Jonathan Capehart, a columnist for the newspaper's op-ed section.

Pending the results of that, pending what the FDA has to say - if the vaccine's approved in the first place - there may be a second shot of Johnson & Johnson.'

The news raises concerns that the U.S. may not be able to immunize enough of the population before the more contagious variants from the UK and South Africa become dominant in the U.S.

Johnson & Johnson's one-shot coronavirus vaccine may actually be two doses, Andy Slavitt, the White House senior advisor on COVID-19 response, said on Thursday. Pictured: J&J vaccine vials against COVID-19 seen at the Klerksdorp Hospital as South Africa, February 18

Slavitt (pictured) told The Washington Post Live that J&J is testing the effectiveness of its vaccine with a booster and that the single-shot may become two

The single-shot was hailed as one of the most effective ways to help President Biden's goal of 150 million doses administered in 100 days. The US is currently vaccinating between 1.6 and 1.7 million people a day

Andy Slavitt, the White House senior advisor on COVID-19 response, joins The Post to discuss vaccine production and delivery, and the challenges of slowing community spread.

https://t.co/uzONLEnkJp  The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) February 18, 2021

J&J's vaccine was found to be 66 percent rate of preventing infections in its large global trial, but just 57 percent effective when test in South Africa.

It's unclear if this will delay FDA approval of the inoculation for emergency use authorization.

If regulators approve the vaccine, it would be the third shot made available to the American public after vaccines from Pfizer Inc/BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc were approved in December.

Unlike the two currently authorized vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, J&J's does not need to be shipped frozen.

It also does not use new mRNA technology but rather combines genetic material from the new virus with the genes of the adenovirus - which causes the common cold - to induce an immune response.

It is the same technology the company used to make an experimental Ebola vaccine for people in the Democratic Republic of Congo in late 2019.

Currently, 40.2 million Americans - 12.2 % of the population - have received one dose and 15.4 million - 4.6% of the population - are fully immunized

Slavitt says states have gone from using 46% of their vaccine supply o 75% since Biden took office on January 20

After the J&J's application, regulators will need time to analyze the data and an advisory committee will need to meet.

Last month, Dr Paul Stoffels, J&J's Chief Scientific Office, said J&J was on track to roll out the vaccine in March.

It remains unclear if this recent revelation by Slavitt will effect the rollout.

The US has an agreement to buy 100 million doses of J&J's vaccine for $1 billion, and the option of purchasing an additional 200 million doses.

On Thursday, Dr Fauci confirmed that J&J is still on target for this goal of its single-dose and confirmed that the company is making a two-shot dose.

This prices the vaccine at around $10 per dose, but the New-Jersey drugmaker has pledged not to price its inoculations for profit.

By comparison, the US is paying $19.50 per dose for the Pfizer immunization and $32 to $37 per dose of Moderna's jab.

Meanwhile, the jab being developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford is estimated to cost between $3 and $4 per dose.

J&J said it aims to deliver one billion doses in 2021 with production in the United States, Europe, South Africa and India.

President Biden aims to get 150 million shots in Americans' arms by late April, his first 100 days in office

Slavitt told Washington Post Live that states have gone from using 46 percent to 75 percent of their supply since Biden took office.

He added that there are currently enough vaccines purchases to vaccinate every person in the U.S. by July, but that does not include the J&J vaccine.

'We are gonna let the FDA make the determination and not assume anything,' Slavitt said.

This is part of letting the science lead and not having the White House push from the side.'
India and China share a complex relationship and the ongoing tensions at the border make it difficult for the two countries to construct a bilateral relationship if the transgression at the border continues, said Foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Wednesday.

Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla arrives in Moscow for a 2-day visit, stated that the disengagement plan is a step in the right direction and is expected to reach a conclusion within 2-3 days. Talking about the ongoing border tensions between India and China, he said that the relationship between the two Asian giants is definitely dependent on the normal situation at the border.

Addressing the conference hosted by the Diplomatic Academy of Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr.Shringla also underlined that the process of disengagement of Indian and Chinese soldiers in eastern Ladakh is expected to reach a conclusion within the next 2-3 days. As I told our friends in China, we cannot have a normal bilateral relationship if there is no peace and tranquility in our border areas. The relationship is definitely dependent on the normal situation at the border, Mr. Shringla added. The Indian and Chinese militaries are locked in a sharp deadlock in eastern Ladakh since May last year.

In the last few days we (India and China) have started what is called a disengagement plan. We have come to some kind of understanding with China after nine months of negotiations on a plan of disengagement that would involve frontline troops, that were in close proximity to each other, I would say, going to their permanent bases and thereby preventing any chance of any mishap or miscalculation of troops being in close proximity to each other, Mr Shringla stated, at a meeting in Moscow.

COVID-19 has not made people any less concerned about climate change -- despite the pandemic disrupting and dominating many aspects of their lives, a study suggests

Covid-19 has not made people any less concerned about climate change - despite the pandemic disrupting and dominating many aspects of their lives, a study suggests.

Over a period of 14 months - including the first three months of the Covid-19 lockdown - neither concern about climate change nor belief in the severity of the problem declined in the UK, the research found.

Researchers compared responses to the pandemic with the financial crisis of 2008 to better understand how worries and priorities can change in a crisis.

In contrast to the economic collapse of 2008, which led to reduced concern with environmental issues, the pandemic has not decreased people's belief in the severity of climate change.

The findings shed light on how a concept called the finite pool of worry applies to climate change. The theory proposes that there are only so many things a person can care about, and when a major crisis happens, some concerns are replaced by others. However, in this case climate change was not replaced by other issues, researchers say

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh surveyed 1,858 people in the UK in April 2019 and asked the same questions again in June 2020.

The survey included five questions to gauge people's beliefs about the reality of climate change, and four about how severe they think it is.

The results showed only small shifts in public opinion. Participants' answers to four of the five questions about the reality of human-caused climate change showed slightly increased concern since the onset of the pandemic.

Only one of the four questions about the seriousness of climate change showed a slight reduction, while the other responses showed no marked change in views.

The results suggest that climate change may now be a permanent part of people's concerns, the researchers say.

Dr Darrick Evensen, of the University of Edinburgh's School of Social and Political Science, said: "Following the financial crisis, it seemed that climate change was one thing that gave, and most people saw it as less of a problem. We are not seeing that same crowding out of climate change as an issue of concern now. This means heightened societal attention to climate change is here to stay."

###

The study is published in PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America) - https:/ / doi. org/ 10. 1073/ pnas. 2018936118

This study was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Unconventional Hydrocarbons in the UK Energy System Programme.

It was carried out in partnership with the Universities of Exeter, Bath, Heriot-Watt and Stirling.

For further information, please contact: Joanne Morrison, Press and PR Office, tel +44 131 651 4266, joanne.morrison@ed.ac.uk

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Unnao: Police register murder case, no apparent injury marks on Dalit girls found dead

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

Unnao (UP), Feb 18: Police on Thursday registered a case of murder into the deaths of two teenage girls whose bodies were found in a field here even as a post-mortem revealed no injury marks.

A third girl, who is on ventilator support at a Kanpur hospital, is being treated for suspected poisoning.

The Uttar Pradesh human rights body has taken note of the incident at Babuhara village in Asoha -- around 36 km south of Lucknow -- in Unnao district on Wednesday evening and political parties slammed the Yogi Adityanath government over it.

Although the cause of death could not be immediately ascertained in the post-mortem, samples from the girls'' viscera have been preserved for further examination, police said.

Police ruled out the suggestion that the victims'' hands were tied, citing the absence of any injury marks.

Apart from Section 302 (murder), the FIR also lists Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code, related to causing disappearance of evidence. The case mentioning the two sections was lodged on the basis of the family''s complaint.

The three girls, aged 16, 15 and 14, were found in a field by the villagers when they did not return after leaving their house to take fodder for cattle, police had said.

Post-mortem conducted on 2 Dalit girls found dead in UP's Unnao district; poisoning suspected

The villagers rushed the teenagers, who are related, to a hospital, where two of them were declared brought dead. The other girl was rushed to a district hospital and later referred to a Kanpur healthcare facility, according to police.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took a serious note of the incident and sought a detailed report from the director general of police (DGP). He has directed officials to ensure proper treatment of the teenager, according to a spokesperson.

DGP Hitesh Chandra Awasthi said six police teams had been constituted and senior officials were supervising the probe.

"The post-mortem of the two girls was done by a panel of doctors and no injury before death or external injuries were found on their bodies," Awasthi said in a video clip released to the media.

"The cause of death could not be ascertained and viscera has been preserved for chemical analysis," he said. "We are taking help of forensic experts and looking into all possibilities."

A medical bulletin by the Kanpur hospital treating the third girl has noted that it was a suspected case of poisoning, the officer said.

Earlier, Unnao Superintendent of Police Anand Kulkarni said there was a contradiction in the statements of girls'' family members. He added that the brother had said the girls were tied with a stole, while her mother said on Thursday that it was around her neck.

"Our investigation has found that bodies had no marks on them either in the hands or legs, suggesting that they were not tied," the SP said.

Kulkarni said the family members who were the first ones to reach the spot were being questioned, adding that the post-mortem was conducted by a panel of three doctors and videographed.

On speculation about it being a case of honour killing, the officer said all aspects would be probed and it would not be right to comment on it at the moment.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra hit out at the state government over the issue of women safety.

"The UP government is not only crushing Dalit society, but also the honour and human rights of women," Rahul Gandhi tweeted. "But they should remember that I and the entire Congress party will stand as the voice of victims and will endeavour to get them justice."

He also used the hashtag "Save_Unnao_Ki_Beti" (daughter of Unnao) in his tweet.

Priyanka Gandhi demanded that the third girl be shifted to Delhi for better medical treatment and asked why her family had been detained.

In a Facebook post, she said: "The Unnao incident is heart-wrenching. Hearing out the family and providing immediate medical help to the third victim is very important for investigation and justice."

BSP chief Mayawati expressed condolences to the affected family, describing the incident as "very serious and sad".

"The BSP demands a high-level inquiry into the incident and strict punishment for the culprits," Mayawati tweeted.

Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav described it as shocking and a "shame on humanity", and demanded strict punishment for the culprits.

"It seems that the chief minister did not care about law and order in the state. The state has become insecure for women due to the BJP," Yadav said in a statement.

He said the Adityanath government had "failed" to check the atrocities on women.

"The BJP government does not have any policy for women security. BJP ideology ignores women interests. UP has become ''Hatya Pradesh'' (murder state) in the present regime," Yadav added.

Taking suo-motu cognisance, the Uttar Pradesh Human Rights Commission sought a report from the SP within two weeks, panel member K P Singh said.

Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad demanded that a post-mortem be conducted by a medical board of AIIMS Delhi and the third girl be shift there for treatment.

A Samajwadi Party spokesperson said a delegation would visit Unnao on Saturday to meet the family members of the victims.

Party MLC Sunil Singh Yadav, who is from Unnao, alleged that police are trying to hush up the case and sought a probe by an independent agency.

Congress legislature party leader Aradhana Misra also demanded a judicial inquiry.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 22:47 [IST]
Head of Monitoring Unit at the Forestry Commission, Charles Owusu has ridiculed former President John Dramani Mahama's election petition before the Supreme Court.



The former President is petitioning the court to rule against the 2020 Presidential elections because he believes neither him nor President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo got the required votes for the latter to be declared winner of the elections, hence seeking a second election to be conducted by the Electoral Commission.



The court hearing has since seen the petitioner's various demands dismissed by the Supreme Court Justices with recent one being the petitioner's application for the Electoral Commissioner Jean Mensa to appear in the witness box but it was thrown out by the court.



The petitioner's application to reopen his case in court was also dismissed.



To Charles Owusu, Mr. Mahama's election petition has "gone up in flames".



"If I were President Akufo-Addo, I wouldn't have even presented lawyers in court. There is no need for the lawyers because the NDC hasn't made any solid case in court," he stressed.



"How can the court call for re-run of the elections when you don't know your contender's votes?" he cited.



"As we talk right now, what specific thing has the NDC said in court for us to support them?" he further queried.



Charles Owusu asked critics to stop comparing Mr. Mahama's case to that of President Nana Akufo-Addo's 2013 election petition saying "what made President Akufo-Addo win the sympathy of Ghanaians with the 2013 election petition is because he proved the irregularities that he felt should the court overturn, he would win the election or there should be a runoff in some places? But this (NDC) petition has no merit".



He made these submissions during a panel discussion on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo".



Watch video below





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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NEW HAVEN  A city man was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison for defrauding local residents of more than $145,000 through a series of credit card schemes, according to the Connecticut U.S. Attorneys Office.

Steven Finkler, 56, previously pleaded guilty to credit card fraud, wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft, federal officials said in a release.

The case involved two periods of significant credit card theft, officials said.

In August 2017, Finkler stole credit cards from two of his employers customers and used the cards to make more than 40 fraudulent charges in Connecticut and New York totaling more than $20,000, including buying jewelry for his girlfriend, Apple products and electronic devices, and other high-end consumer and retail goods for either himself or his friends, federal officials said in the release.

Then, in September 2018, he opened a membership at a fitness center with gym locations throughout Connecticut under a stolen identity, used that identity to create accounts with mobile device payment applications, then visited multiple gym locations and stole credit cards from lockers and other locations while the victims were located elsewhere in the gym, according to federal officials.

Using the stolen credit cards, and the mobile device payment applications, he made approximately $144,000 in fictitious charges to bank accounts that he created and controlled. He then returned the credit cards to the victims wallets before the victims returned to the locker room. Approximately 50 individuals were victimized through this scheme, federal officials said in the release.

In a hearing before U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill and an associated sentencing memo, defense attorney Terence Ward argued that Finklers crimes, while significant, paled in comparison to other instances of fraud, and noted that Finklers actions were to some extent driven by a health condition.

He asked for Underhill to deviate from the recommended sentence of nine to 10 years in prison.

Mr. Finkler has clearly earned a jail sentence. No one disputes that fact. He has repeatedly committed fraud offenses, and his conduct here was brazen. He is, however, a person with ... health issues that contribute to his criminality and risk taking behavior, Ward said in his sentencing memo.

Prosecutor Sarala Nagala sought a sentence of 10 years in prison, to be followed by eight years of supervised release.

In her sentencing memo, she noted Finklers criminal history, which includes decades of instances of credit card and check fraud, and his failing to live up to past sentiments of regrets offered at other sentencing hearings.

Protecting the public is perhaps the most important reason for imposing a ten-year sentence of imprisonment for Steven Finkler. While Finklers past crimes have certainly had victims, including companies, banks, and individuals, the conduct for which he stands before the Court now is undoubtedly the most far-reaching and widespread of all of his many crimes, Nagala wrote. The Court should have no confidence that, if Finkler were to be sentenced to a minimal term of imprisonment, he would not return immediately to criminal conduct that might harm an even larger pool of victims. The general public needs to be kept safe from Steven Finkler, and the most effective way of accomplishing that is a very long prison sentence.

The owner of an auto body shop victimized by Finkler expressed the pain that betrayal had caused. He said his sense of trust has been shaken.

Finkler expressed regret for his actions, noting his bipolar disorder, and said he had to make a change in his life.

Im ashamed, and I dont understand why (Ive done these things) myself, said Finkler, noting he believed he hit rock bottom before, but that wasnt the case. I have to figure out a way to live a regular life.

Before handing down his sentence, Underhill said that Finkler had been engaged in one fraudulent activity or another for his entire adult life, causing pain to many. His explanations lack credibility at this point, he said; it seems unlikely that another prison sentence would lead to reform.

Im very frustrated by you. I think you are a bad person, said Underhill. Theres no other way to put it  you are a bad person.

Finklers time in prison will be followed by three years of supervised release, officials said.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, Connecticut Financial Crimes Task Force, and the Wallingford, Avon, North Haven, Madison, Glastonbury and Branford Police Departments, according to the release.

william.lambert@hearstmediact.com
RICHMOND, Va., Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Dominion Energy Virginia crews are preparing for a second round of ice and freezing rain as they wrap up restoration efforts following last weekend's destructive ice storm. The second ice storm is expected to begin Thursday, and it could potentially be more impactful than the most recent ice event that left more than 290,000 customers without power. Dominion Energy crews and contractors are prepared to respond to power outages and customers should be prepared for the possibility of being without power for multiple days.

More than 6,000 workers  including crews from 12 states, Washington D.C., and Canada  have been working around the clock for the past five days to restore power from the worst ice storm in Virginia since January 2000. As of 6 p.m. Wednesday, Dominion Energy crews have restored service to nearly 99% of the 290,000 customers who lost power. Damage has been reported at more than 9,600 work locations, and crews have made the necessary repairs at more than 9,200 of those sites. Work will continue tonight until all customers are restored.

Dominion Energy is closely watching the weather forecast and preparing for a second ice storm to hit parts of Virginia, including Southside, the Piedmont Valley, the Richmond metro area, and parts of Northern Virginia. The company encourages customers to monitor the weather and prepare for power outages that could last for multiple days. Learn about how customers can prepare.

"We know many of our customers have already endured multiple days without power and we appreciate their patience as our crews work to restore service as safely and quickly as possible. Whether you lost power or not, now is not the time to let your guard down," said Charlene Whitfield, senior vice president of Power Delivery for Dominion Energy. "Unfortunately, this second ice storm will likely bring a new round of power outages. Our crews have been working long hours to restore service and will continue to work around the clock to assist our customers. We ask for your continued patience and that all customers prepare for the possibility of losing power for multiple days."

Major ice storms, like the one approaching, have the potential to cause more damage and more challenging working conditions than a hurricane. A fast-moving hurricane rolls through and the damage is done; but days of freezing rain cause ice accumulation to gradually build up and outages continue to occur even as crews make repairs. Ice also slows down the power restoration process because it causes extremely dangerous travel conditions and makes some areas nearly impossible to access.

To ensure the fastest response, Dominion Energy asks that customers report their power outages. The fastest way to report or track an outage is using the Dominion Energy app or online at DominionEnergy.com. Customers may also call 1-866-DOM-HELP (1-866-366-4357) to report an outage.

Here's how customers can stay safe:

Beware of downed power lines and remember that they could be covered by snow. Assume they are energized and dangerous. Please remain at least 30 feet away and ensure that others also avoid the downed line. Virginia and North Carolina customers should call 1-866-DOM-HELP (1-866-366-4357) right away to report a downed power line.

and remember that they could be covered by snow. Assume they are energized and dangerous. Please remain at least 30 feet away and ensure that others also avoid the downed line. and customers should call 1-866-DOM-HELP (1-866-366-4357) right away to report a downed power line. Ensure generators are properly connected. Be sure they are fueled, tested and connected in a well-ventilated area outdoors. Improper use of a generator could be life-threatening for customers and crews working to restore power.

For photos and video, visit our website: Multimedia | Dominion Energy

About Dominion Energy

More than 7 million customers in 16 states energize their homes and businesses with electricity or natural gas from Dominion Energy (NYSE: D), headquartered in Richmond, Va. The company is committed to sustainable, reliable, affordable and safe energy and to achieving net zero carbon dioxide and methane emissions from its power generation and gas infrastructure operations by 2050. Please visit DominionEnergy.com to learn more.

SOURCE Dominion Energy

Related Links

http://www.dominionenergy.com


Appointment

18 February 2021

With more than 20 years of international culinary experience, Executive Chef Gerboles brings passion and creativity to Canopy by Hilton Cancun La Isla, as he steps into his new role at Azulinda Cafe & Bar and Wander Rooftop. Believing in the importance of using local and sustainable products, Gerboles creates a new, authentic culinary experience at the hotel.

Through his locally inspired menus, Gerboles introduces guests to native specialties and provides opportunities to support local vendors. Whether enjoying his Mayan Paella, blending classic Paella traditions with a local Caribbean twist, or the bright flavors of his Seafood Taco Trio, guests will savor authentic cuisine and fresh flavors for a true Cancun experience.

Prior to joining Canopy by Hilton Cancun La Isla, Gerboles was most recently Executive Chef at Hilton Mexico City and served on the pre-opening task force at Umbral, Curio Collection by Hilton. He is a graduate from multiple culinary institutions, having formally trained under programs including the Gato Dumas Institute and Le Cordon Blue - Sofitel.
Bengaluru, Feb 18 : Tech-savvy Karnataka would soon have 2,500 smart classrooms for promoting digital learning in higher education across the southern state, said Deputy Chief Minister C.N. Ashwath Narayan on Thursday.

"The 2,500 smart classrooms across the state will have high-speed internet, latest tabs (tablets) and integrated learning management system (LMS) for learning online over the next 2 months," said Narayan at a state-run college function here.

The LMS was developed by the state higher education department to make the learning process more accessible on the tab through internet.

"A smart classroom will also enable teachers to keep a track of their students learning the course," the minister said on the occasion.

Stating that the state government would implement the new education policy from the ensuing academic year, the minister said the number of smart class rooms would be increased by converting an additional 5.500 to cover more students and subjects.

"As the policy enables students to select curriculum of their choice, they can opt for subjects of their interest to pursue higher education," Narayan said.

As a knowledge city, Bengaluru ranked top in job creation across the country, as evident from the pharma sector providing 5-lakh jobs annually.

"Other knowledge sectors contribute 2-lakh new jobs every year. Over 5 lakh employees have provident fund (PF) accounts in the state, indicating job creation in this tech city," added Narayan./Eom/225 words.
KYODO NEWS - Feb 18, 2021 - 19:56 | World, All

Singapore and Indonesia strongly support the holding of a meeting of foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to help Myanmar resolve its post-coup political conundrum, Singapore's Foreign Ministry said Thursday.

It said Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan and visiting Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, in talks, "expressed strong support for a proposed Informal ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Myanmar to be convened as soon as possible, to facilitate a constructive exchange of views and identify a possible way forward."

They agreed "that ASEAN can play an important role in facilitating constructive dialogue and a return to normalcy and stability in Myanmar," where the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi was overthrown in a military coup on Feb. 1.

Their meeting came one day after Retno met in Brunei with the current chairman of ASEAN, Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, who has also given his support for an immediate meeting.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo proposed the special ASEAN meeting during his talks with Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin when the latter visited Jakarta early this month.

In the statement, Balakrishnan urged all parties involved to exercise utmost restraint and take urgent steps to de-escalate the situation. "He stressed that there should be no violence against unarmed civilians. In particular, live rounds should not be fired on unarmed civilians under any circumstances."

Related coverage:

Large-scale protests continue in Myanmar for 12th day

Suu Kyi faces new charge making long-term detention likely

Tensions rising in Myanmar as armored vehicles seen in Yangon

Balakrishnan told parliament earlier this week that the obstacle for convening an urgent meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers on Myanmar is the "difficulty that we need consensus before the meeting can even take place."

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. One of its principles is noninterference in fellow members' politics.

"Our starting point has to be that every country's politics and destiny should be determined by its own people. Just as in Singapore we will not tolerate foreign interference in our politics, similarly we do not seek to interfere in others' domestic affairs," Balakrishnan told parliament.

He also said that Singapore is not in favor of generalized economic sanctions by the international community that would hurt ordinary citizens in Myanmar.
Trips in Australia will not depart at least until June

& PLC ( )( ) announced its P&O Cruises Australia arm extended the pause in cruising, while Italys Costa Cruises is resuming trips next month.

P&O has halted all departures until June 18 and said guests with bookings affected by the pause extension are being given as much notice as possible.

Last month, the subsidiary halted operations in New Zealand until April 25 and said it would return to the country for a dedicated 150-day season in July 2022.

Meanwhile, the FTSE 250 group said on Wednesday afternoon that Costa is ready to set sail again with enhanced health and safety protocols.

These include limited capacity, swab tests, temperature checks, protected shore excursions, physical distancing, new ways of using on-board services, enhanced sanitation and medical services, and use of protective face masks when necessary.

Flagship Costa Smeralda will depart on March 27 with itineraries of 3- and 4-day mini-cruises as well as the usual week-long trip, calling at various Italian cities.

From May 1, Costa Smeralda will return to sailing one-week cruises in the western Mediterranean with visits to Italy, France and Spain.

A second ship, Costa Luminosa, will also be back in service from May 2, confirming its programme of one-week cruises in Greece and Croatia.
Andrew Purdue left his New Caney home in search of propane and food with his girlfriend Kathleen DeLeon on Tuesday.

However, it took much longer than usual because unprecedented power outages after snowstorms this week drove Tuesday and Wednesdays rush for resources like water, food and propane in addition to roads that were slippery and tough to navigate.

ENERGY: Perry says Texans willing to suffer blackouts to keep feds out of power market

It was still hard to drive because the roads were still iced over here, but we still had to drive to go get propane, Purdue said. The roads are really slick.

Purdue returned to find the fire department in their driveway almost three hours later.

It took about 20 minutes for Purdue and DeLeons 1993 model trailer to be engulfed in flames, Andrews father Kenneth said. A nearby telephone pole was damaged as well, but all other structures remain undamaged.

Andrew said the family believes it was an electric fire.

Kenneth said their neighbor across the street noticed smoke coming from behind his metal tool building, so he ran around to the trailer. By the time he got to it, the side window was busted by growing flames. Kenneth shut off the propane tank and turned off the breaker on a cell phone tower that was near it.

Flames continued to come out of the other side of the trailer, and while he naturally reached for the water hose to dull the flames, it was already frozen from the storm. He and the neighbor took buckets of water from the ditch nearby, but most of the trailer was engulfed in flames by then.

Its hard to think right now, Kenneth said. Im still like in shock, you know what I mean. Ive never had anything like this happen before.

CRISIS: Energy crisis in Texas similar to Hurricane Katrina, oil and gas analyst says

Right now, Andrew is sleeping on an air mattress in his fathers living room. Fortunately, some people have donated clothes to them.

Its just unexpected, something we never even thought in our life would happen, Andrew said. Then we come home one day and there was a fire truck there and we were heartbroken over it. You know, thats everything we had in there we just lost.

Andrew was living in his trailer while working on building a house on the property. He has spent four years building his future home, but with financial restrictions caused by COVID-19, Andrew has slowed down. Now, he is seeking support for finishing the 16x40 house. Kenneth said they need insulation, sheetrock and plumbing.

Its still a shell home and we just need help to get it done so we can move in it, Andrew said. Theres not much.

Andrew can be reached at 832-480-7314 and Kenneth can be reached at 346-351-9628.

savannah.mehrtens@chron.com
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cleveland police are searching for a car stolen from the driveway of a Clark-Fulton home with two children inside. The carjacker eventually threw the children  a 6-year-old boy and a 3-year-old girl  out of the car.

The robber stole the dark blue 2017 Honda Accord from the mothers driveway Wednesday outside a home near Meyer Avenue and West 31st Street, Cleveland police spokeswoman Sgt. Jennifer Ciaccia said. An initial police report did not specify the time.

The mother told police she went into the house and left the car running with the children inside, Ciaccia said.

The woman told police she assumed that no one could take the car without the key fob inside. She locked the door and took the fob with her into the house, she said, according to police.

A witness told police that he was driving on West 32nd Street when he saw two children thrown from the passenger side of a vehicle at Woodbridge Court. The witness placed the children in his car and then called the police, Ciaccia said.

The children were returned to their mother, unharmed, but the vehicle has not been recovered. The Honda Accord has a Ganley plate holder and USMC sticker on it.
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New high-resolution gravity data has revealed a corridor of low gravity coincident with the Arsenal Trend, indicating that the entire 20-kilometre trend could be prospective for new gold discoveries.

The company will use this data to continue exploring the Arsenal Trend for other Blue Poles-style gold occurrences.

( ) has received initial results from a recently completed high-resolution gravity survey at its Whiteheads Gold Project that confirms the regional potential of the Arsenal Trend.

The survey has confirmed a large low gravity feature striking south from outcropping granite in the north-eastern corner of the project, coincident with the position of the Arsenal Trend gold-in-soil anomaly.

This feature explains the broad, coherent gold anomalism found at surface along the Arsenal Trend as wherever mineralising fluid encounters a suitable setting to reduce fluid temperature such as a sudden pressure drop, or an increase in pH, the gold may precipitate.

The company believes this also explains the location of the Blue Poles prospect.

Theory supported by data

Great Boulder managing director Andrew Paterson said: Its very encouraging to see our initial theory about Arsenal supported by the new gravity data.

There are two key takeaways here.

Firstly this explains the location and scale of gold anomalism on the Arsenal Trend.

Secondly it reinforces our view that the southern extension of Arsenal  currently a 7 kilometre gap in the exploration data  is equally prospective."

The Arsenal trend low gravity corridor (red outline) is interpreted to be caused by a granite at depth.

Next steps

A reverse circulation drilling program is scheduled for Blue Poles in the second half of March to infill and extend the zone of primary gold mineralisation.

Aircore drilling is being planned to test the lookalike auger anomaly north of Blue Poles and is expected to be completed during April.

Any high-priority nickel targets will need to be tested with an aerial EM (electromagnetic) survey prior to planning drill testing.

Paterson said: Weve no soil geochemistry or drilling at all in that area between Blue Poles and Four Dudes.

That will be a key target for early-stage exploration going forward.

Our early petrography work at Blue Poles identified widespread alteration, so we knew we were dealing with a large system.

But the scale of this fluid pathway does indicate a much larger target than previously thought.

Were still poring over the gravity data looking for nickel targets.

I expect to have another update for the market in the next couple of weeks.


Earn your Associate of Applied Business in Business IT (BIT) degree online from the University of Cincinnati. This program can be completed fully online, with curriculum customized to fit your schedule, interests and how quickly you want to complete your degree. Application deadline July 1, 2021. Learn More 

An online map of surveillance cameras in New York City is in the works.

The map project is part of a larger campaign called "Ban the Scan," sponsored by Amnesty International, which is partnering on the initiative with several other tech advocacy, privacy, and civil liberties groups.

"We need a map so citizens can have a sense where they are being observed by the NYPD as they go about their everyday lives," explained Michael Kleinman, director of Amnesty USA's Silicon Valley Initiative.

"It also gives the citizens of New York, and more broadly people who are concerned about the issue of facial recognition, a sense of just how pervasive this kind of surveillance is," he told TechNewsWorld.

Data for the map will be "crowdsourced" by volunteers. This spring the volunteers will be able to roam the streets of Gotham and identify surveillance cameras using a software tool that runs in a Web browser. Data gathered by the tool is integrated with Google Street View and Google Earth to create the map.

"To surveil the population as a whole, you don't need a special facial recognition camera," Kleinman explained. "As long as law enforcement has the imagery from that camera, they can conduct facial recognition at the back end."

"That's why we say that in any city you can think of, facial recognition is just one software upgrade away," he continued.

"It's not an issue of I'm going to reroute my daily commute away from facial recognition cameras," he added. "We can push the New York City Council to ban police use of this technology."

Measures banning or restricting the use of facial recognition have already been adopted in Boston, San Francisco and Portland, Ore.

Game Changing Technology

Yuanyuan Feng, a researcher at the Institute for Software Research at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh explained that there's a transparency problem with the way the technology is used now.

"There's no transparency about the retention time of the data, what it's being used for, and what are the sharing practices," she told TechNewsWorld.

Most police departments are secretive about this, not only to the public, but to individuals that are arrested, added Jake Laperruque, senior counsel for the Project on Government Oversight, a government watchdog group in Washington, D.C.

"Most departments take the position that if it isn't introduced as evidence in a court case, they don't have to talk about it at all," he told TechNewsWorld.

That stance seems to belie the significance of the technology to law enforcement.

"This isn't just the latest model of car or walkie talkie," Laperruque said. "This is game-changing technology for how policing works."

Politicized Technology

Karen Gullo, an analyst with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a San Francisco-based online rights advocacy group, explained that facial recognition is one of the most pervasive and intrusive of all surveillance technologies.

"It's being utilized by law enforcement and government entities with little to no oversight and limitations," she told TechNewsWorld.

"Face surveillance is becoming an all-encompassing tool for government to track where we are, what we are doing, and who we are with, regardless of whether we're suspected of a crime or not," she continued.

"Programs that provide the public with information about how and where surveillance tools are being used to spy on people...are an important check on law enforcement and give citizens knowledge to demand accountability and public input," she added.

Facial recognition has become a politicized technology, argued George Brostoff, CEO of Sensible Vision, a face authentication company in Cape Coral, Fla.

"When something becomes politicized, everything becomes black and white," he told TechNewsWorld. "There are few things in this world that are black and white."

"People don't want to be tracked," he said. "That's what should be discussed, not just facial recognition. What does the government know about me? How does the government use my information, including my face? Those are things that should be discussed in general."

Racial Bias

One of the chief criticisms of facial recognition systems is not only are they inaccurate, but biased.

Gullo noted that there are studies and research that show facial recognition is prone to errors, especially for Black Americans.

A 2012 study co-authored by the FBI, for example, showed that accuracy rates for African Americans were lower than for other demographics.

In fact, Gullo continued, the FBI admitted in its privacy impact assessment that its system "may not be sufficiently reliable to accurately locate other photos of the same identity, resulting in an increased percentage of misidentifications."

In another study by MIT, she added, there were error rates of 34 percent for dark women compared to light-skinned men in commercially available facial recognition systems.

Gender Shades study: How well do IBM, Microsoft, and Face++ AI services guess the gender of a face?

"This means that face recognition has an unfair discriminatory impact," Gullo said.

She added that cameras are also over-deployed in neighborhoods with immigrants and people of color, and new spying technologies like face surveillance amplify existing disparities in the criminal justice system.

Hampering Law Enforcement?

Since those studies were performed, facial recognition technology has improved, Brostoff countered, but added that even better technology can be misused. "The question is not is facial recognition biased, it's is the implementation biased?" he asked.

He added that not all facial recognition algorithms are biased. "The ones tested had an issue," he said.

"Even in those tested," he continued, "not all of them had inaccuracies solely due to a bias. They were also due to their settings. The percentage for a match was set too low. If a match is set too low, the software will identify multiple people as potentially the same person."

"Some of it was the quality of images in the database," he added. "If an algorithm doesn't have a filter to say this image is too poor to be accurate, then a bad match will result. Now, 3D cameras can be used to generate depth information on a face to produce more detail and better accuracy."

When facial recognition bans are proposed, law enforcement's response is that removing the technology from its toolbox will hamper their efforts to keep the public safe. Critics of the technology disagree.

"They can use other tools to track down criminal suspects," observed Mutale Nkonde, CEO of AI For the People, a nonprofit communications agency and part of Ban the Scan Coalition.

"For example, during the riot at the Capitol, the FBI used cell phone data to find out who was there and to create a no fly list," she told TechNewsWorld.

"The idea that by not using facial recognition, law enforcement will not be able to do their job requires quite a leap of faith when you consider all the power and all the resources law enforcement already has," Kleinman added.

"Our concern should not be that law enforcement has too little power," he continued. "Our concern should be what does the expansion of the power of law enforcement mean to all of us?"

"The argument that if we can't do X, then we will be crippled is an argument that can be used to justify an endless expansion of law enforcement power to surveil us," he added.

John P. Mello Jr. has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2003. His areas of focus include cybersecurity, IT issues, privacy, e-commerce, social media, artificial intelligence, big data and consumer electronics. He has written and edited for numerous publications, including the Boston Business Journal, the Boston Phoenix, Megapixel.Net and Government Security News. Email John.


Land assets of Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML) securitised against Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) will also be a part of the strategic disinvestment process of the public sector unit. The information was shared by the government to the SBI Capital Markets in response to queries raised by interested parties in BEML's proposed strategic sale.

SBI Capital Markets has been appointed as transaction advisor for managing the disinvestment process on behalf of the government. Responding to investor queries, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (Dipam) said, "The NCD issued by BEML is secured by operational land. The specific land will form part of the strategic disinvestment process."

NCD issued by BEML is secured by certain land and building. The investors had sought information on whether those specific land assets will be part of disinvestment or not.

A source close to the development told BusinessToday, "This essentially means that the land asset tied to the NCDs will also be sold to the qualified institutional party that picks up the government stake in BEML. Also, the QIP will have to honour the BEML's commitment towards the NCD holders."

The total outstanding principal towards the NCDs is to the tune of Rs 300 crore as on March 2020. The NCDs carry a rate of interest of 9.24% and have a staggered maturity till 2022-23.

Dipam invited expressions of interest (EoI) to offload its 26 per cent stake in BEML - the government-run defence and construction equipment manufacturer. The government currently holds 54.03 per cent stake in BEML Ltd. With the stake sale, management control of BEML will also be transferred to the successful bidder. BEML EoI was invited in January this year and the deadline for submission of EoI is March 1.

Also read: NHAI to award highway projects worth Rs 72,000 cr in Q4FY21
Qatar Airways Cargo, the freight division of Qatar Airways has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Unicef for a five-year period to support Unicefs Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative.



Through this initiative, Qatar Airways Cargo will work closely with Unicef and its freight forwarders to prioritise the transport of vaccines, medicines, medical devices and critical supplies utilising its extensive global network and capacity.



Through its QR Pharma product, Qatar Airways Cargo will offer controlled cool chain and dedicated monitoring, intervention and servicing as well as proactive re-icing at its Doha hub when required and will also adjust and increase its cold chain capacity to meet Unicefs forecasted requirements.



Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer Cargo said: The logistics around the transportation of these shipments is complex and being at the forefront of time and temperature-sensitive transportation, we understand the intricacies of a seamless cool chain and the criticality of transporting Covid-19 related shipments on priority.



We are glad to join hands with Unicef and support them, helping transport vital supplies to impacted regions and communities worldwide. We remain committed and resilient in the fight against the pandemic and together with Unicef, we will ensure the safe, timely and efficient transportation of these life-saving supplies.



Delivery of these life-saving vaccines is a monumental and complex undertaking, considering the sheer volumes that need to be transported, the cold chain requirements, the number of expected deliveries and the diversity of routes, said Etleva Kadilli, Director of Unicef Supply Division.



We are grateful to these airlines for joining forces with the Unicef Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative to support the roll-out of Covid-19 vaccines.



Unicefs Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative brings together a number of airlines covering routes to over 100 markets for the air transport of Covid-19 vaccines and other critical supplies in support of the Covax Facility  the global effort aimed at equitable access to Covid-19 vaccines.



Qatar Airways Cargo played a major role during the pandemic last year from the very early stages, ensuring vital aid and PPE is transported globally. The cargo carrier continued in the face of challenges, ensuring continuity of global trade and prioritised medical and aid shipments working closely with governments and NGOs to transport over 250,000 tonnes of essential supplies to impacted regions.



In July 2020, Qatar Airways Cargo also launched One Million Kilos, Chapter 1 of its sustainability programme, WeQare, through which it offered free transport of 1 million kilos of humanitarian aid and medical equipment. Most of the cargo transported was Covid-19 related essential supplies.



It has received the IATA CEIV Pharma certification for its headquarters in Doha and Qatar Aviation Services Cargo, its ground handling partner at Hamad International Airport has also been CEIV Pharma certified.  TradeArabia News Service


In a surprising incident, a British Columbia man dove into freezing water to get back his iPhone XS which was lost in Victoria Inner Harbor on Valentine's Day.

As per the onlookers, the man stripped down to his boxers, walked over ice, and then jumped into Victorias Inner Harbor. While taking photos of the famous Empress Hotel, Roman Czarnomski dropped the phone.

When he returned to get his phone the next day, onlookers urged him on, saying they could see the phone, he tried dipping one foot into the water and then decided to jump, and then he came up with his lost iPhone XS and then swam for shore.

"I dropped my phone the night before," Czarnomski told Victoria Buzz. "Then grabbed it the next day when the tide was low. It was refreshing."

He further said that he had a feeling that the phone would work and when it buzzed, he understood that the phone was working completely fine.

Apple iPhone XS complies with the IP68 standard of water resistance, and the company rates it as being able to be submerged in 2 meters of water for up to 30 minutes.
CINCINNATI, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Altix Consulting Inc. (ALTIX), a greater Cincinnati-based boutique consulting firm specializing in strategy and operation for international manufacturing champions, today announced the acquisition of LCL Consult Ltd (LCL) based in Dublin, Ireland.

"LCL is the global leader in transforming traditional factories into Lean benchmark sites," said Yannick Schilly, President of ALTIX. "With implementations across the automotive, aerospace, technology and consumer packaged goods industries, LCL's specialized expertise will allow us to further evolve as we look to the future. They have an impressive track record, and we are excited to welcome them to the ALTIX team."

Established in 2009, LCL implements rapid turnaround solutions grounded in Lean Principles and leadership skills to transform poorly performing operations, supply chains and suppliers across the US, Europe and Asia. LCL employs a proven Lean formula, recognized by major international institutions and journals, to quickly net improvements for manufacturing companies in both high- and low-cost locations.

"We have worked with ALTIX for years as a valued Lean transformation partner and have a long-standing history of successful collaboration with their team," said Liam Cassidy, Managing Director of LCL. "This move is a natural fit for both of our organizations, and we look forward to expanding our work together."

With this newly enhanced Lean capability, ALTIX will elevate its service offering, providing seamless Lean implementations to manufacturing customers across the globe.

About ALTIX

Altix Consulting Inc. (ALTIX) is a boutique consulting firm specializing in advanced manufacturing and international supply chain management. The company provides support with global business strategy, technology & innovation, operational excellence, workforce development, training & education. With decades of international expertise, spanning three continents, ALTIX partners offer a hands-on approach  from industry for industry  with focus on long term success for their clients. ALTIX specializes in multilingual and multicultural business environments and international market entry. For more information, visit altixconsulting.com.

Media Contact:

Anne Cappel, Chief Marketing Officer

[email protected]

+1 513.216.8386

SOURCE Altix Consulting Inc.
Agitating farmer groups on Thursday held a four-hour nationwide 'rail roko' agitation with the railways saying there was negligible impact on services though some trains were stopped by officials at stations as a precautionary measure.

In Punjab and Haryana, farmers at several places squatted on railway tracks which led to disruption in normal movement of trains on some routes.

Protests were also staged at some places in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka.

However, in many states, it was a low-key affair.

The All India Kisan Sabha claimed the agitation received "massive response across the country".

It further claimed that some activists were arrested in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka and Telangana.

"The massive success of the struggle is a warning to the Modi government. The farmers across the country have expressed their determination to continue the struggle till the demands are met with," the Sabha said in a statement.

A railway spokesperson said the agitation passed off without any untoward incident and there was negligible or minimal impact on running of the trains across the country.

Trains began running normally across the country within an hour after the agitation ended at 4 pm, he said.

Earlier, around 25 trains were regulated by the Railways on account of the agitation called by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions which is spearheading the protest against the three farm laws.

"Majority of the zones have reported not a single case of any stoppage of train by the agitators. Few trains were stopped in some areas of some Railway zones but now train operation is normal and trains are being operated smoothly. While dealing with the agitation, utmost patience was exercised by all concerned," he said.

The railways deployed 20 additional companies of the RPSF across the country, especially in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Farmer groups congregated in Haryana's Ambala, Kurukshetra and Charkhi Dadri railway stations, according to officials.

In Kurukshetra, some protesters climbed atop the Gita Jayanti Express train, which was stationary at that time, resulting in some delay.

In Punjab, protesters sat on tracks at many places on the Delhi-Ludhiana-Amritsar railway route, officials said.

Farmers also blocked the Jalandhar Cantt-Jammu railway track in Jalandhar and besides a rail track in Mohali district, they said.

The Ferozepur division of the Northern Railways decided to halt trains at stations so that passengers face less inconvenience during the 'rail roko' protest.

In Rajasthan, officials said that the Rewari-Sri Ganganagar special train was the only train cancelled due to the agitation, while few others were delayed.

In West Bengal too, stray incidents were reported across the state with little or no effect on rail services.

In Maharashtra, members of several organisations and workers of political parties, including Congress, Shiv Sena, NCP, Janata Dal and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), also took part in the agitation at the Pune railway station, labour welfare activist Nitin Pawar said.

The protesters blocked the Koyna Express and shouted slogans by standing in front of trains, he said.

At least 12 people were detained at Lasur station, around 40 km from Aurangabad, an official said.

"The Jalna-Mumbai Janshatabdi train was stopped at the station for around 30 minutes. We have detained around 12 agitators and further probe is underway," the official from the railway police said.

In Bengaluru, the protest was low-key but there was a good turnout of protesters in Raichur, Belagavi and Davangere.

In Raichur, Belagavi and Davangere, some protesters were arrested, sources said.

Thousands of farmers have been protesting since late November at Delhi's borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, demanding a rollback of the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, the Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The protesting farmers have expressed their apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the "mercy" of big corporations.

However, the government has maintained that the new laws will bring better opportunities to farmers and introduce new technologies in agriculture.
Emmerson has an attractive project, and the team in place to get in built

Shares in ( ) are currently trading just a few fractions of a penny off their all-time highs, and its not hard to see why.

The company has just been granted a mining licence for its Khemisset potash project in Morocco, following the completion in 2020 of a feasibility study that demonstrated the economics of what could potentially become a huge project.

That study put the net present value of Khemisset at US$1.4bn, and showed that over a 19 year mine life the internal rate of return was likely to run at over 38%.

The numbers assume steady state production of 735,000 tonnes of muriate of potash per year, plus a million tonnes of by-product de-icing salt.

But theres always been room for further refinement and, with the mining licence in place and fundraising efforts now getting underway in earnest, Emmerson is beginning to explore wider options.

Quite possibly - and against the usual trend of companies at the financing stage - the project could actually be made bigger.

Its an option in part because the mine life was predicated on only around half of the known resource at Khemisset. Bringing the rest into the plan at this stage will likely push up overall production rates, and push the mine life out even further too.

So, its now mooted that muriate of potash production (MOP) might be boosted by 50%, that planned sulphate of potash production could be brought forward, and that by-product salt sales could be increased to 4mln tonnes per year.

No wonder the support in the market is strong, and the price is holding up well.

But theres still plenty of work to be done, as chief executive Graham Clarke explains.

Now that the mining licence is in place, the next significant permit is the environmental licence, he says.

Thats now in due process with the authorities. Weve had a series of meetings with that will hopefully result in our environmental permit coming shortly.

After that, the key hurdle is the funding.

Were working with a number of potential strategic partners, says Clarke.

Two or three have them have gone through due diligence and were optimistic well bring some on board. And we continue to talk to other parties. The target is to have the funding package in place for the beginning of the third quarter.

The structure of the funding will be fairly standard: some combination of debt and equity, with the reassurance of off-take agreements to guarantee sales.

The recent statements about flexibility in regard to the parameters of the feasibility study ought to make an impact too. Precisely what parameters eventually get used in constructing Khemisset will probably depend on the outcome of discussions between Emmerson and its funding partners.

But whatever the decision on scale, Clarke expects construction to be getting underway by the end of this year.

In the meantime, theres always the possibility, of course, that a larger company may come out of leftfield and make a bid, secure in the knowledge that the project works and can get funding. But Clarke is making no assumptions on that.

The plan is to take the project all the way into production, and keep on working it from there.

And hes enthusiastic about that possibility.

Theres so many synergies involved in building a potash mine in Morocco, he says.

Thats because the worlds largest phosphate producer is in-country, but has to import all the MOP it needs for its production processes. Having a new source of MOP will be a no-brainer if the mine comes on stream. No deals have been done yet, but its easy to see where discussions on off-take might lead.

Then theres the mine itself. Clarke likes the location, and he likes the geology. Its just 15 kilometres away from a major power source, and pretty close to the coast too, if Emmerson does end up exporting to a market like Brazil. The resource itself is shallower than your average Canadian potash project, and thus much less expensive to mine.

Its a straightforward low-risk, low-capital project, with the product going into a market with demand forecast to increase 2-3% per year, says Clarke.

It isnt complicated.

And he should know. Hes experienced in the management of potash mines, having worked his way up in the industry in the UK, and managed the well-known Boulby mine for a time. That mine was, at times, a challenge. But the experience of working through those challenges, he says is good to bring to Khemisset
Destiny developer Bungie has detailed some major expansion plans designed to prepare the company for "expected and rapid future growth."

The Washington studio intends to more-than-double the size of its Bellevue headquarters, expanding its HQ footprint to 208,000 square feet from 84,000 square feet.

Due for completion in 2022, the new "state-of-the-art" facility will be able to support multiple project teams, including those working on non-Destiny projects, and is being designed around collaborative "neighborhoods" that can accommodate a hybrid workforce of remote and on-site staff.

Although it clearly intends to expand beyond the Destiny universe, Bungie reiterated that the "long-term development of Destiny 2" is one of the biggest reasons for the expansion.

Beyond growing its footprint on home soil, Bungie has laid out plans to open its first international office in Amsterdam in 2022 to house its publishing and marketing divisions.

The company has also made some notable personal changes, appointing finance and strategy director Trace Harris and president of global consumer products at ViacomCBS Pamela Kaufman to the board of directors, aiming to tap into their expertise in multimedia IP expansion and business operation scaling.

Internally, Bungie has tasked chief creative officer Jonny Ebbert and general manager Zach Russell with driving the creative vision behind its next franchise, with the company hoping to bring "at least one new IP to market before 2025."

It has also appointed Destiny Universe vice present Mark Noseworthy and executive chief director Luke Smith to "prepare for the expansion of the Destiny Universe into additional media" -- again expressing a desire to turn the popular shooter into a sprawling multimedia franchise.

"Were grateful and humbled that our independent success allows us to invest in our talented people and headquarters this year and are delighted to welcome Trace Harris and Pamela Kaufman to the board of directors," said Bungie chief exec Pete Parsons.

"The past several years have been a time of tremendous growth and opportunity for Bungie. We are home to some of the brightest and best talent in the industry, and we look forward to expanding upon both our talent pool this year and increasing the resources to support them."
A man who bccame verbally abusive to a Garda when he attended at his house, appeared at Portlaoise district court on Thursday last.

Vadims Kotlars of 19 Oakleaf Place, Portlaoise was charged with intoxication and threatening, abusive or behaviour in a public place at his address on January 25, 2021.

The court heard that on January 25 this year Gardai were called to a domestic incident at Oakleaf Place.

Mr Kotlars had reportedly been violent towards his wife. Garda Pychynski asked him to step outside and he became aggressive towards the Garda.

He said derogatory terms in Polish to the Garda which translated as f*** off and Im going to f***ing get you.

Counsel for Mr Kotlars read a letter of apology from him to the court.

Counsel said that Mr Kotlars was 45 and has been in Ireland for a significant period.

He is married with two children and was previously a builder.

He had significant anxiety issues, and had a letter from the Cedar Clinic to that effect.

On the date in question he had a very significant amount of alcohol taken. There was a domestic argument.

Mr Kotlars daughter, translating, said he was upset.

His father was unwell in Latvia and he was really upset about it. He had stopped drinking since.

Applying the Probation Act, Judge Catherine Staines told him to show respect to the Gardai.
The Syrian Yazidi community is no longer exempt from Islamic personal status laws, sparking outrage, writes Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

The Syrian regime has imposed Islamic personal status laws on the Yazidi community, sparking outrage and fears for the ethnoreligious minority that faced genocide in neighboring Iraq.

A Justice Ministry circular issued on Sunday ruled that the Yazidi minority were not exempt from Islamic personal status laws, essentially terming the religion a sect of Islam rather than an independent religion.

Members of the community had earlier applied to form a Yazidi religious court to oversee family disputes and other issues of personal status.

That right is afforded to members of the Christian, Jewish, and Druze religious minorities under Syrian law.

Yazidis who hold Syrian citizenship will be forced to resolve issues of personal status in Islamic Sharia courts, according to the circular.

Members of the minority who do not hold Syrian citizenship will be referred to civil courts and treated as foreigners, the Justice Ministry said.

The application of Islamic religious law has sparked outrage among members of the Yazidi community in Syria.

The Yazidi Council of Syria slammed the move as a flagrant violation of the most basic principles of human rights.

Not only was the circular discriminatory to Yazidis in general by refusing to recognize them as a religion, the council said, it was also discriminatory against Yazidis who were stripped of their Syrian citizenship in the past.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Top European and US officials are urging Iran to keep allowing United Nations nuclear inspections to salvage a 2015 deal between Tehran and world powers and to cool global tensions over Iran's atomic ambitions.

The foreign ministers of France, Germany and Britain met Thursday in Paris to discuss security in Iran and the region, and US Secretary of State Tony Blinken joined them by videoconference.

Iran has said it will stop part of International Atomic Energy Agency inspections of its nuclear facilities next week if the West doesn't implement its own commitments under the 2015 deal.

The accord has been unraveling since Donald Trump pulled the US out of the agreement in 2018.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned that Iran was ``playing with fire'' and could jeopardize efforts to get the United States back as a signatory now that Trump no longer is in office.

``We are the ones who have kept this agreement alive in recent years, and now it's about supporting the United States in taking the road back into the agreement,'' Maas told reporters in Paris.

``The measures that have been taken in Tehran and may be taken in the coming days are anything but helpful. They endanger the Americans' path back into this agreement. The more pressure that is exerted, the more politically difficult it will be to find a solution,'' he said.

The accord aims to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear bomb, which it says it doesn't want to do. Tehran has been using its violations of the deal to put pressure on the remaining signatories _ France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China _ to provide more incentives to Iran to offset crippling. sanctions the Trump administration re-imposed after pulling out of the 2015 deal.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the president of the European Council spoke with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani this week to try to end the diplomatic standoff.

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the UN nuclear watchdog, is scheduled to travel to Iran this weekend to find a solution that allows the agency to continue inspections.

In Iran, Rouhani expressed hope Thursday that the Biden administration will rejoin the accord and lift the US sanctions that the United States re-imposed under Trump, according to state television.

Ahead of Thursday's talks in Paris, US State Department spokesperson Ned Price urged Iran to ``provide full and timely cooperation with the IAEA.''

He insisted that ``the path for diplomacy remains open....We hope to be able to pursue it together with our allies and partners.''

Short link:


Syracuse, N.Y.  The citys largest political party will play host to a primary this year as two candidates plan to seek the Democratic nomination for mayor.

Khalid Bey plans to challenge the Onondaga County Democratic Committees endorsed candidate, Michael Greene, in a primary this summer, he said Wednesday.

Democrats met Wednesday evening to designate candidates for this years elections. They chose Greene to run for mayor by a margin of 58% to 42%.

Immediately following the vote, Bey released a statement saying he plans to challenge Greene in a primary.

As I continue my campaign for mayor, I look forward to having another opportunity to earn the endorsement of the OCDC after the primary, he said. The city of Syracuse deserves an authentic and passionate mayor who delivers informed and principled results. I am confident that I am the person best fit to do that. I look forward to continuing the fight on behalf of all our citys residents.

When reached after the vote Wednesday, Greene said he hadnt yet spoken with Bey about a primary.

Pamela Hunter, the partys chairwoman, said she doesnt consider it her job to try to dissuade candidates from running in a primary.

It really is up to Khalid, she said. I have not been a chair to talk people out of running. Primaries are costly and obviously each candidate has to raise money. But I also think its important for our voter base to hear different issues.

Bey will formally announce his intentions Friday morning at a press conference in Clinton Square.

Both candidates are at-large members of the Common Council.

Greene grew up in Onondaga Hill. He went to Cornell University then moved to New York City where he worked for the Port Authority and for the citys economic development office. He moved to Syracuse in 2016 and now works in commercial real estate.

Bey grew up in Syracuse and graduated from Corcoran High School. He went to school at Virginia State University then began a career as a hip-hop recording artist, author and motivational speaker. In 2009 he took a job with the state Senates local office before becoming a councilor.

Bey was first elected to the council in 2011 as 4th district councilor. He ran for a citywide seat in 2017 and won one of two open positions. He would have been up for re-election this year to a second four-year term, but will not run as he seeks the mayors office.

Greene was appointed to an at-large seat on the council in 2018 after Helen Hudson stepped down to become Council President. He won a special election to keep the seat that year, and won one of two at-large seats again the following year.

The primary is June 22. Candidates will have three weeks in March to collect and file enough petition signatures to get on the ballot.
VANCOUVER, WA / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Adaptive Ad Systems, Inc. (OTC PINK:AATV), is proud to report that its subsidiary Adaptive Broadband has been able to maintain and even expand services during the recent unprecedented winter storms throughout Oregon.

Adaptive and its subsidiary companies provide Dynamic Digital Ad Insertion (DDAI) via its streaming media hardware and proprietary processing software for all U.S. cable TV markets, and High Speed Fixed Wireless Internet Service (WISP) via a network of Hybrid Access Points and Micro POPs.

In the wake of a huge winter ice storm in Oregon with power and internet services failing statewide in and affecting services to several hundred thousand people since last Friday, AATV subsidiary Adaptive Broadband (ABB) has been able to maintain its high-speed internet services fully functional for all customers.

ABB Vice President and General Manager Jordan Reed states: "Recent storms have caused a massive disruption in services to many areas and residents of Oregon. Providing our services throughout several areas of Oregon, we pride ourselves in building and maintaining the best infrastructure for broadband services. We have carefully located towers, transmission, and retransmission equipment, as well as generators and battery back-ups.

In response to these enormously difficult conditions, in the last 48 hours we took over space at a former restaurant and are using that location to address the immediate needs of current and new customers. Our reputation for quick response times, addressing technical problems and providing quality and reliable service to individual customers, the word is spreading throughout our community. As a result, we have had an unprecedented number of residents switching services from their current service provider over to Adaptive Broadband."

CEO J. Michael Heil states " While serving our nation-wide network of ad-insertion equipment at nearly 200 cable television head-ends, we are pleased to report that our tech teams have been working 24/7 to make sure all systems throughout our network are functioning properly and without interruption. Accordingly, we have succeeded in maintaining ad insertion operations for every head-end in our system."

THE ADAPTIVE SYSTEM

Adaptive allows advertisers across the US to purchase ads that are inserted into a linked group of the Adaptive digital TV advertising system. Adaptive Ad Systems manages all ad-related activities, provides all technical support, ad-sales, traffic, and billing. Adaptive has established an innovative revenue share agreement with each individual cable television system.

ABOUT ADAPTIVE

Adaptive Ad Systems Inc. is a digital media and video communications company that together with its subsidiary manufactures, develops and deploys dynamic digital ad insertion (DDAI) and video streaming media hardware and proprietary processing software for the Cable TV, Satellite TV, and IPTV markets. Adaptive's primary focus is the 2nd and 3rd tier US markets. Adaptive exclusively sells all available advertising space in each market across multiple national cable television networks, while maintaining complete technology ownership. Adaptive has implemented a unique profit-sharing model with its cable TV partners. The Company serves over 200 designated marketing areas in approximately 39 states. Adaptive also provides broadband and cable TV services in some niche markets. For additional information, please visit: www.adaptiveadsystems.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Any statements contained in this press release that do not describe historical facts constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, financial projections, statements regarding the plans and objectives of management for current and future operations, the development, regulatory approvals, and commercialization of the Company's products, or any of the Company's proposed services, systems, partnerships, or acquisitions. Such forward-looking statements are not meant to predict or guarantee actual results and performance and actual events or results may differ considerably. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from any projections may include, without limitation, the Company's delays in the development of its products, the inability to obtain additional financing, the impact of significant new or changing government regulation on the industry, existing or increased competition, results of arbitration and litigation, stock volatility and illiquidity, and the Company's general failure to implement the Company's business plans or strategies. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release.

DOWNLOAD SWI RESEARCH REPORT HERE.

Adaptive Ad Systems, Inc. 4400 NE 77th Avenue, Suite 275 Vancouver, Washington 98662 310-321-4958 info@aatv.co www.aatv.co StockWatchIndex San Diego, California 442-287-8059 info@stockwatchindex.com www.stockwatchindex.com www.swiresearch.com

SOURCE: Adaptive Ad Systems, Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630487/Adaptive-Ad-Systems-Continues-and-Expands-Services-During-Winter-Storms
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After Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called for setting up the Fisheries Ministry under the Central Government, Union Minister Giriraj Singh took a swipe at the Wayanad MP over his remarks on fisheries ministry. Giriraj Singh, who is the Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairy in India, urged Rahul Gandhi to come to "new fisheries ministry" to know the schemes being run by the ministry for fisheries sector all across the country.

Jovially taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi, the Fisheries Minister said, "I request you to come to the new fisheries ministry or call me so that I can come and tell you about the schemes being run by the new Fisheries Ministry all over the country and in Puducherry."

 !

              ,                         https://t.co/eV39avbeDt  Shandilya Giriraj Singh (@girirajsinghbjp) February 17, 2021

Further taking a jibe at the Congress leader, Giriraj Singh went on to tweet that there is no separate ministry for Fisheries in Italy. He tweeted this in Italian for better understanding of "Caro Raul" aka Rahul Gandhi.

"There is no separate Ministry of Fisheries in Italy. It comes under the Ministry of Agricultural and Forestry Policies," Giriraj Singh tweeted in Italian while tagging Rahul Gandhi and also adding the link to the website of the Italian Ministry for the Congress leader's perusal.

Caro Raul (@RahulGandhi),



Non esiste un Ministero della pesca separato in Italia. Viene sotto Ministero delle Politiche Agricole e Forestali. https://t.co/Lv9x3r8ozK  Shandilya Giriraj Singh (@girirajsinghbjp) February 17, 2021

READ | 'Fisherman The Farmer Of The Sea': Rahul Gandhi Wants Dept of Fisheries; It Already Exists

READ | Puducherry Opposition Seeks Floor Test In Assembly As Congress Government Enters Minority

'Fishermen are farmers of sea': Rahul Gandhi

The Union Minister's jibe on Rahul Gandhi comes after the latter called for setting up of Fisheries Ministry. On Wednesday, during his address to fishermen in Puducherry ahead of the assembly elections, Rahul Gandhi compared fishermen to farmers and opined that the fishermen did not a ministry to address their grievances as the farmers had through Agriculture Ministry.

"Everybody knows that farmers are the backbone of every country. Now you will be wondering why I have come to a meeting of fishermen and I am talking about farmers. And the reason is that I consider you to be farmers of the sea. And I think to myself that if farmers of the land can have a ministry in Delhi then why can't the farmers of the sea have a ministry in Delhi," Rahul Gandhi said while addressing the fishermen.

Targeting the Centre, Rahul Gandhi claimed that the current government is attacking all small and medium businesses because they want all businesses in India to be controlled by big corporations. He added that his view is different and he wants to strengthen small businesses in the country. He also claimed that the Centre wants to weaken the SMEs.

"What Narendra Modi wants is that one or two very rich people control the entire sea," he added.

READ | Pralhad Joshi Slams 'migrant Neta' Rahul Gandhi Over Wayanad Vikas, Sabarimala Doublespeak

READ | 'Rahul Gandhi Lacks Leadership Skills, Left Left Out': BJP's Babul Supriyo On Bengal Polls

Watch Rahul Gandhi's address here:
The news you need, when you need it, by the editors you trust. Get continuing news coverage and educational information on crops, livestock, soil health and other topics you select.
By Laila Kearney NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices gained more than $1 a barrel on Wednesday, as frigid Texas temperatures shut production across the largest U.S. crude producing state, with the unusually cold weather expected to hamper output for days or even weeks. Brent crude settled at $64.34 a barrel, gaining 99 cents, or 1.6%, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude settled at $61.14 a barrel, rising $1.09, or 1.8%. Both benchmarks were at their highest levels since January last year. Oil has been supported by OPEC+ supply curbs, Saudi Arabia's additional cuts ...

Eight people have been extradited to Poland today on foot of European Arrest Warrants.

This morning, Gardai attached to the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (GNBCI) surrendered eight eight persons to the Polish Police (Policja) at Baldonnel Aerodrome on foot of European Arrest Warrants.

These extraditions were sought by Polish Police in respect of a number of offences including armed robbery, false imprisonment, burglary and offences in relation to organised crime.



Speaking today, Detective Superintendent Michael J. Mullen of the Garda Extradition Unit said: "This successful operation highlights strong international cooperation enjoyed by the Garda Extradition Unit.



"This operation also highlights the continued commitment of domestic stakeholders including the Department of Justice, The Defence Forces and the Irish Prison Service all of whom work in tandem to ensure wanted fugitives are brought to justice."
MIAMI, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A group oriented to become a leader in Cannabis based products markets, today announced they have filed the Annual Reports for the years 2019 and 2020. The company is expecting to be Pink in the coming days as the OTC reviews same. The filings signal the intention of the company to become fully transparent to our shareholders. As we work on the financials of the previous years and hire a PCAOB auditing firm so we can upgrade to fully reporting, we move closer to reaching our goals of full transparency. At the same time we will use our best efforts to establish an appealing group of business units that will accomplish the expectation of a fast-growing market.

Current operations of CATV include the following subsidiaries, CIGN, Healthcare and Wellness Clinics of America, Corporation Clinic, Hip, Chai, and Get Medicated. Currently all working cohesively under one roof, our team is fostering an environment of collaboration finding synergies and reduction of costs in repeat areas. Rebranding the company and consolidating the supply chain is resulting in significant cost reductions leaving more for the bottom line. Having secured compliance and the new marketing company we are working together to accomplish our goals sharing operational knowledge while maintaining operational independence to avoid mistakes. The choices made so far only go to show the synergies between the company models and how together we are more powerful than apart. We have already begun negotiations for several other mergers and acquisitions that we will be announcing shortly.

About 4Cable TV International, Inc.

4Cable TV International, Inc. (OTC: CATV) is determined to become a fully integrated Global CBD/Hemp business from seed to sale. Farming is where it all starts, and distribution is where it all goes.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

Statements in this press release regarding 4Cable TV International's business that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements." Examples of forward-looking statements include, among others, statements regarding the Company's future business and prospects, strategic plans and strategic transactions. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on the Company's current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of its business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of the Company's control. The Company's actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause the Company's actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others: general economic and financial conditions; consumer demand for CBD/hemp products and services; volatility in the trading markets and the lack of liquidity in the Company's common stock; the Company's ability to successfully execute on its new CBD/hemp strategy; the Company's limited operating history in the CBD/hemp business; the legal status of the Company's CBD/hemp business; risks inherent in the CBD/hemp business; existing and new government regulations and changes in regulatory requirements; risks related to rules and regulations at the U.S. federal, state and municipal levels with respect to CBD/hemp; the Company's ability to obtain financing or raise capital on favorable terms or at all in order to execute its business strategy; the Company's ability to successfully identify and integrate acquired businesses; and risks associated with engaging in transactions with third parties, including related parties. For a discussion of additional general risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see CATV's OTC Market filings. Any forward-looking statement made in this press release are based only on information currently available to the Company and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as required by law.

Contact:

[email protected]

+1(833) 211-3200

SOURCE 4Cable TV International, Inc.
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Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia announced his resignation on Thursday.

Gakharia said in a statement that he decided to step down because he could not reach an agreement with the ruling party over the arrest warrant issued against Nika Melia, a parliament member and head of the United National Movement opposition party.

He believed it was wrong to arrest Melia when there is a danger of political escalation in the country.

"My absolutely firm position is that the enforcement of justice against one person, if it endangers the health of our citizens, if it creates a chance for political escalation, is unacceptable," Gakharia told a briefing.

Tbilisi City Court ruled Wednesday that Melia be remanded in custody for failure to post bail, per the request of the country's Prosecutor's Office.

Georgian Parliament on Tuesday suspended the MP status of Melia, allowing the prosecution to demand his arrest claiming the latter has not posted bail for his release in a case dating back to the June 2019 protests.
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As psychologists worry that the coronavirus pandemic is triggering a loneliness epidemic, new Harvard research suggests feelings of social isolation are on the rise and that those hardest hit are older teens and young adults.

In the recently released results of a study conducted last October by researchers at Making Caring Common, 36 percent of respondents to a national survey of approximately 950 Americans reported feeling lonely "frequently" or "almost all the time or all the time" in the prior four weeks, compared with 25 percent who recalled experiencing serious issues in the two months prior to the pandemic. Perhaps most striking is that 61 percent of those aged 18 to 25 reported high levels.

"I was surprised at the degree of loneliness among young people," said Richard Weissbourd, a psychologist and senior lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE) who helped lead the research. "If you look at other studies on the elderly, their rates of loneliness are high, but they don't seem to be as high as they are for young people."

The unsettling statistic is even more troubling when combined with June data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that 63 percent of young people reported experiencing substantial symptoms of anxiety and depression. "It's a group that we are really concerned about," said Weissbourd, who suspects several factors are at work.

Older teens and young adults may be particularly susceptible because they are often transitioning from their "inherited families to their chosen families," said Weissbourd, meaning they lack important connections to those who can "be critical guardrails against loneliness." Students in college may be struggling to fit in and feel homesick, while those not in school can feel disconnected from important social groups or communities. Young people are also often making critical decisions about their professional and personal lives and relationships, which can add to the stress and sense of isolation, he said.

The new report also points to the way such feelings can lead to a downward spiral. Many young people who reported serious loneliness also said they felt as if no one "genuinely cared" about them. The survey also suggests that lonely people often feel they're reaching out or listening to other people more than other people are reaching out or listening to them. "These things can become self-defeating," said Weissbourd. "When you feel like you're trying hard while other people are not trying hard, or you feel like you're going to get rejected again, you withdraw, which increases your loneliness and your anxiety about social situations."

Weissbourd and his team argue that eliminating loneliness requires a robust social infrastructure. Schools can be important points of intervention, they suggest, where teachers can be trained to connect parents to each other and to ensure every student is connected to a school adult. Doctors should also be asking about loneliness during annual physicals, helping connect patients who are struggling with social supports; high schools, colleges, and senior centers should focus on connecting young people with the elderly; and employers should check in with employees about whether they are lonely and provide them with resources that support connection. To further reduce the stigma associated with loneliness, the authors also recommend the creation of national, state, and local campaigns that stress the importance of maintaining social ties, and reassure those suffering that it's OK to seek help.

"We need public education that removes the stigma of loneliness and really tries to alleviate the shame," said Weissbourd, "because shame can also be self-defeating and cause you to avoid social situations or hide your true feelings in ways that make meaningful connections with others very hard."

Weissbourd said he and his colleagues consider combating loneliness a moral imperative in an increasingly "hyper-individualistic society," where many people often choose to focus on the well-being of their small circle of family and friends.

"We're making the case that there's a moral matter in terms of our community health, and that those of us who are in a position to do so should try to reach out to people who may be lonely. If every person who's in pretty good shape can make a commitment to reaching out to one person they are concerned might be lonely once a week, that would be a good thing."

Explore further Loneliness a leading cause of depression in older adults

More information: Loneliness in America: How the Pandemic Has Deepened an Epidemic of Loneliness and What We Can Do About It. Loneliness in America: How the Pandemic Has Deepened an Epidemic of Loneliness and What We Can Do About It. mcc.gse.harvard.edu/reports/loneliness-in-america
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BIOGRAPHY

BRIGHT STAR, GREEN LIGHT

By Jonathan Bate (Collins 25, 416pp)

Jonathan Bate has generously given us two books for the price of one  a biography of John Keats (1795-1821) interleaved with a biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald (18961940), where romantic poetry about nightingales meets Jazz Age novels involving sexually liberated flappers, fast cars and bootleg partying.

Bate points out what the authors had in common. Each grew up in a world at war: the Napoleonic battles in Keatss case, the Kaiser and the trenches in Fitzgeralds. Both had physical insecurities: Keats was self-conscious about being below average height  barely 5ft. Fitzgeralds worries were in another area: to check whether his penis was of normal size, he went around the Louvre examining the statues. It is in their works, however, that the writers join hands across the centuries. Both were attuned to the idea of loss: lost love, happiness, beauty that will only fade like the scent of roses.

Jonathan Bate has penned a biography revealing how similar John Keats (pictured) and F. Scott Fitzgerald were

Keats, of course, dead at 25, hardly had a chance to leave adolescence. His brief life was dominated by illness. His mother and brother died of tuberculosis in his presence, and he himself endured a persistent cough from early 1819.

At the age of just 14, he was apprenticed to an apothecary and began training at Guys Hospital. He scooped bullets from wounds, drained blood, pulled teeth and mended broken legs. He attended anatomical demonstrations and prepared sedatives from hemlock and deadly nightshade.

What a lot there is in his poetry about the beat of the pulse, pumping of the heart, headaches, fevers and thirst and the exhalation of breath.

When he couldnt shake off a cough, he knew the score: I know the colour of that blood. It is arterial blood. He went to Italy, for warmth, and died in Rome within months.

Keats was Fitzgeralds favourite writer. The title of his 1934 novel Tender Is The Night is taken from Keatss Ode to a Nightingale. Next to Keats, he said, everyone else, including Shakespeare, seems to be only whistling and humming.

Fitzgerald may also have identified with Keatss nervous obsession with girls  all those enchantresses in the poems who are feared as much as desired.

The poets main lyrical obsession was with the lady next door in Hampstead, Fanny Brawne. Nothing happened. According to Bate, for Keats, domestic reality could never match the ethereal ideal of poetry. Maybe so, but perhaps Keats couldnt afford to provide for a wife and family.

Its sufficient evidence, nevertheless, to advance the notion of unrequited love being the one love that lasts  and Fitzgerald, we are told, never got over being rejected by socialite Ginevra King, who was exceptionally pretty, slim, with dark hair and sparkling brown eyes.

Accursed: Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan in the 2013 film of Fitzgeralds The Great Gatsby

Shes the original of Gatsbys Daisy but the real Ginevra married the son of the owner of a bank. Sensible Ginevra.

Fitzgerald belonged to a dynasty of Irish Catholics. Money came from a grocery business in Minnesota. Though Fitzgerald was not particularly bright, he scraped into Princeton, where he received poor grades.

He doesnt sound very nice. Contemporaries remembered him for his charm, magnetism, poise, but also for his ability to dominate others, all traits on display in his autobiographically orientated novels.

The first, This Side Of Paradise, came out in 1920. Three further volumes followed quickly, The Great Gatsby appearing in 1925.

In July 1918, Fitzgerald met Zelda Sayre, the daughter of a Justice of the Supreme Court.

She had a reputation as a girl who thought she could do anything and get away with it, so its not as though Fitzgerald hadnt been given an inkling.

BRIGHT STAR, GREEN LIGHT By Jonathan Bate (Collins 25, 416pp)

They were married in 1920 and went around Central Park in a horse and carriage, making love on the back seat.

Actually, they made love all over the shop, in theatre boxes, country fields, under the sun, moon and stars. Throw a bucket of water over them.

Ahead lay only wreckage. His tales of bright young things, pre-marital sex and adultery were bestsellers. With money flowing in, a downward spiral began  orgiastic parties in East Coast mansions, gaudy retreats in the style of French chateaux; crawling from bar to bar in Paris with Ernest Hemingway.

Fitzgerald and Zelda were constantly inebriated. In drunken rages they burned each others clothes and flung platinum watches out of train windows.

In Zeldas case, this was a symptom of psychological disturbance. She made suicide attempts, suffered hallucinations and religious mania and was placed in a succession of clinics.

Fitzgerald, meanwhile, went to Hollywood and worked on the script of Gone With The Wind but was sacked for persistent drunkenness.

He died of arteriosclerotic heart disease, aged 44. Zelda survived him by eight years, dying in a North Carolina sanatorium when it burnt down.

Bate tells the tales of these accursed creatures frightfully well, but  truth be told  the book doesnt really work as a concept. Tying Fitzgerald up with Keats is the sort of thing academics love doing. Its specious. Where will it end?

Joint books about Byron and Bob Dylan? John Bunyan and Spike Milligan?
Jailed blogger Le Anh Hung is shown at right, with visiting family members shown in the photo at left.

A Vietnamese blogger held in a mental hospital while awaiting trial for criticizing Vietnams one-party communist state was refused a visit from supporters on Wednesday, with authorities saying he is being kept in isolation as a political case.

Le Anh Hung, a member of the online Brotherhood of Democracy advocacy group who blogged for Voice of America, was arrested on July 5, 2018 on a charge of abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the state under Article 331 of Vietnams criminal code.

He was later transferred in April 2019 from jail to Hanois Central Mental Hospital No. 1 for observation and treatment. If convicted at trial, he could serve up to seven years in prison.

Fellow activist Vu Hung and a group of friends attempted on Feb. 17 to bring gifts to Le at his hospital to celebrate Tet, the start of the Lunar New Year, but were denied permission to visit, Vu told RFA on Thursday.

Yesterday was the day that the hospital re-opened after Tet, and so we went to see our friend Le Anh Hung and tried to give him New Year gifts, Vu said.

But a hospital official told us that Le Anh Hung had been involved in politics, and therefore we were not allowed to meet with him.

The officer told Vu and his friends that Le was in good health but was being held under extremely strict conditions, Vu said, adding, So we left our gifts for Le Anh Hung and left the hospital.

Also speaking to RFA, Les mother Tran Thi Nhiem said on Thursday she had received a phone call from her son the previous day and was assured he was in good health.

Yesterday, my son borrowed a cell phone and called me from the hospital to tell me was doing well. He is still completely lucid, Tran said.

My son had previously been severely beaten and tortured by the hospitals officials, but now he does not argue with them anymore. At the same time, Ive recently been able to send him some money, so his situation is better now, she said.

Beaten, forcibly injected

Le had been forced in his first years in hospital to take drugs to treat his supposed mental illness, and had once been beaten with a metal folding chair, tied to his bed, and injected with a sedative that left him unconscious, sources told RFA in earlier reports.

Tran called on authorities in June 2019 to release her son from his forced stay in the mental hospital, where she said he was being forced to take medicine and was suffering both mentally and physically.

Le, in his mid-30s, had lost weight and looked ragged, gaunt, and depressed, Tran told RFA following a May 2019 visit to her son in the hospital, adding that he had undergone psychiatric assessments twice between October 2018 and April without his family being informed.

Vietnams already low tolerance of dissent deteriorated sharply last year with a spate of arrests of independent journalists, publishers, and Facebook personalities as authorities continued to stifle critics in the run-up to the ruling Communist Party Congress in January.

Reporters Without Borders ranked Vietnam 175 out of 180 in its 2020 World Press Freedom Index. Around 25 journalists and bloggers are being held in Vietnams jails, where mistreatment is common, the Paris-based watchdog group said.

Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Huy Le. Written in English by Richard Finney.
As the pandemic wore on, we came to see more clearly that many of these workers are the lowest- paid in our community  and the most likely to be engaged in insecure work.

Highway billboards lauded the courage and resilience of teachers; supermarket, transport and warehouse workers; aged care and child care staff; cleaners; and of course those on the front line in health care.

The underlying premise of the bill is simple, but wrong: that the pandemic has delivered such a shock to the Australian economy, the only way out is to remove workplace rules seen as limiting managerial decision-making.

The original bill would have allowed businesses to get enterprise agreements approved by the Fair Work Commission that cut award wages and conditions, based on an ill-defined link to the pandemics impact on the enterprise. This involved suspending the better off overall test that normally applies to safeguard employees against agreements that remove award conditions without adequate compensation. Even though the government dropped this proposal on Tuesday, the bill still includes provisions that will weaken the better off overall test.

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Currently, the test requires an assessment of a proposed agreement (its benefits and detriments for employees) against the underlying award. The test is designed to ensure workers are better off overall than they would be under the award. The bill would require the commission (in making that assessment) to give more weight to the outcome of the employee vote on an agreement  regardless of the disadvantage it might cause to certain groups (such as casuals or part-timers).

Further, the bill will water down the minimal protections in place to ensure employees are fully informed about a proposed workplace agreement before they vote on it. It will reduce commission scrutiny of agreements through a 21-day time limit for approvals.

Mumbai, Feb 18 : Actor Shekhar Suman on Thursday expressed curiosity over whether there is a link between the deaths of actors Sushant Singh Rajput, his former manager Disha Salian and, mostly recently, the death of actor Sandeep Nahar.

"Sushant's friend Sandeep Nahar also committed suicide. It's strange, Disha and two more of SSR's friends also connected with him, had earlier ended their lives.. Is there a common link or thread?? Or is it just a coincidence? Point to ponder," Shekhar wrote.

Earlier this week, Sandeep Nahar was found dead in his Mumbai apartment. The actor reportedly committed suicide after posting a suicide note on Facebook along with a video stating why he does not want to live anymore. The video and the post were subsequently taken down from his Facebook page, and his is being investigated by Mumbai Police.

Nahar co-starred with late star Sushant Singh Rajput in his film MS Dhoni: The Untold Story. Sushant passed away on June 14 last year while his former manager Disha Salian died a few days before on June 8.

Latest updates on Sushant Singh Rajput Death Mystery
Life expectancy in the United States dropped a staggering one year during the first half of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic caused its first wave of deaths, health officials are reporting.

FILE - In this Friday, March 27, 2020 file photo, William Samuels delivers caskets to the Gerard Neufeld Funeral Home during the coronavirus pandemic in the Queens borough of New York. A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021 finds that life expectancy in the United States dropped a staggering one year during the first half of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic caused its first wave of deaths. Minorities suffered the biggest impact, with Blacks losing nearly three years and Hispanics, nearly two years, according to preliminary estimates. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Life expectancy in the United States dropped a staggering one year during the first half of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic caused its first wave of deaths, health officials are reporting.

Minorities suffered the biggest impact, with Black Americans losing nearly three years and Hispanics, nearly two years, according to preliminary estimates Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This is a huge decline, said Robert Anderson, who oversees the numbers for the CDC. You have to go back to World War II, the 1940s, to find a decline like this.

Other health experts say it shows the profound impact of COVID-19, not just on deaths directly due to infection but also from heart disease, cancer and other conditions.

What is really quite striking in these numbers is that they only reflect the first half of the year ... I would expect that these numbers would only get worse, said Dr. Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, a health equity researcher and dean at the University of California, San Francisco.

FILE - In this Tuesday, April 7, 2020 file photo, gravedigger Thomas Cortez watches as a refrigerated trailer is delivered to keep pace with a surge of bodies arriving for burials, mostly those who died from coronavirus, at the Hebrew Free Burial Association's cemetery in the Staten Island borough of New York. A report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021 finds that life expectancy in the United States dropped a staggering one year during the first half of 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic caused its first wave of deaths. Minorities suffered the biggest impact, with Blacks losing nearly three years and Hispanics, nearly two years, according to preliminary estimates. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

This is the first time the CDC has reported on life expectancy from early, partial records; more death certificates from that period may yet come in. Its already known that 2020 was the deadliest year in U.S. history, with deaths topping 3 million for the first time.

Life expectancy is how long a baby born today can expect to live, on average. In the first half of last year, that was 77.8 years for Americans overall, down one year from 78.8 in 2019. For males it was 75.1 years and for females, 80.5 years.

As a group, Hispanics in the U.S. have had the most longevity and still do. Black people now lag white people by six years in life expectancy, reversing a trend that had been bringing their numbers closer since 1993.

Between 2019 and the first half of 2020, life expectancy decreased 2.7 years for Black people, to 72. It dropped 1.9 years for Hispanics, to 79.9, and 0.8 years for white people, to 78. The preliminary report did not analyze trends for Asian or Native Americans.

Black and Hispanic communities throughout the United States have borne the brunt of this pandemic, Bibbins-Domingo said.

Theyre more likely to be in frontline, low-wage jobs and living in crowded environments where its easier for the virus to spread, and there are stark, pre-existing health disparities in other conditions that raise their risk of dying of COVID-19, she said.

More needs to be done to distribute vaccines equitably, to improve working conditions and better protect minorities from infection, and to include them in economic relief measures, she said.

Dr. Otis Brawley, a cancer specialist and public health professor at Johns Hopkins University, agreed.

The focus really needs to be broad spread of getting every American adequate care. And health care needs to be defined as prevention as well as treatment, he said.

Overall, the drop in life expectancy is more evidence of our mishandling of the pandemic, Brawley said.

We have been devastated by the coronavirus more so than any other country. We are 4% of the worlds population, more than 20% of the worlds coronavirus deaths, he said.

Not enough use of masks, early reliance on drugs such as hydroxychloroquine, which turned out to be worthless, and other missteps meant many Americans died needlessly, Brawley said.

Going forward, we need to practice the very basics such as hand-washing, physical distancing and vaccinating as soon as possible to get prevention back on track, he said.

Marilynn Marchione can be followed on Twitter: @MMarchioneAP

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Food and Beverage Company Haldiram's has entered into India's health food biz to tap into the rising consumption of healthier food and beverages.

Accordingly, the company has tied-up with South African nutritional food brand Futurelife.

The company said that these nutritional food products will be available across key states in North India.

Besides, these products will be available across Haldiram's outlets as well as other retail platforms like Amazon, Big Bazaar, Flipkart, Milk Basket, Big Basket and Grofers.

The two companies launched a range of four products: 'Smart Foods, Smart Oats and Ancient Grains, Crunchy Granola and High Protein'.

"At Haldiram's, we are not only seeing an increasing consumer preference in India for health foods but also a growing inclination to try new, non-traditional food products," said A.K. Tyagi, Executive Director, Haldiram's.

"We are equally excited about our partnership with FUTURELIFE and are eagerly looking forward to retailing their products across our retail stores across North India."
A nasal antiviral created by researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons blocked transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in ferrets, suggesting the nasal spray also may prevent infection in people exposed to the new coronavirus, including recent variants.

The compound in the spray--a lipopeptide developed by Matteo Porotto, PhD, and Anne Moscona, MD, professors in the Department of Pediatrics and directors of the Center for Host-Pathogen Interaction--is designed to prevent the new coronavirus from entering host cells.

The antiviral lipopeptide is inexpensive to produce, has a long shelf life, and does not require refrigeration. These features make it stand out from other antiviral approaches under development, including many monoclonal antibodies. The new nasal lipopeptide could be ideal for halting the spread of COVID in the United States and globally; the transportable and stable compound could be especially key in rural, low-income, and hard-to-reach populations.

The study published in Science on Feb. 17.

Ferrets a model for respiratory diseases

Ferrets are often used in studies of respiratory diseases because the lungs of these animals and humans are similar. Ferrets are highly susceptible to infection with SARS-CoV-2, and the virus spreads easily from ferret to ferret.

In this study, carried out in collaboration with Rory de Vries, PhD, and Rik de Swart, PhD, at Erasmus in the Netherlands, 100% of the untreated ferrets were infected by their virus-shedding cagemates, approximating a setting like sharing a bed or close living conditions for people.

Porotto and Moscona have previously created similar lipopeptides--small proteins joined to a cholesterol or tocopherol molecule--to prevent infection of cells by other viruses, including measles, parainfluenza, and Nipah viruses. These anti-viral compounds have been challenging to bring to human trials, in large part because the infections they prevent are most prevalent or serious in low-income contexts.

When SARS-CoV-2 emerged, the researchers adapted their designs to the new coronavirus, collaborating with Christopher Alabi, PhD, at Cornell University.

One lesson we want to stress is the importance of applying basic science to develop treatments for viruses that affect human populations globally. The fruits of our earlier research led to our rapid application of the methods to COVID-19." Matteo Porotto, PhD, and Anne Moscona, MD, Professors, Department of Pediatrics and Directors, Center for Host-Pathogen Interaction

A paper describing a first generation of the compound and its effect in a 3D model of the human lung first appeared in the journal mBio on Oct. 20. In this human lung model, the compound was able to extinguish an initial infection, prevent spread of the virus within the lung, and was not at all toxic to the airway cells.

Lipopeptides prevent viruses from infecting cells

The lipopeptides work by preventing a virus from fusing with its host's cell membrane, a necessary step that enveloped viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, use to infect cells. To fuse, the new coronavirus unfolds its spike protein before contracting into a compact bundle that drives the fusion.

The compound designed by Porotto and Moscona recognizes the SARS-CoV-2 spike, wedges itself into the unfolded region, and prevents the spike protein from adopting the compact shape necessary for fusion.

In the ferret experiments at Erasmus, the lipopeptide was delivered into the noses of six ferrets. Pairs of treated ferrets were then housed with two control ferrets that received a saline nasal spray and one ferret infected with SARS-CoV-2.

After 24 hours of intense direct contact among the ferrets, tests revealed that none of the treated ferrets caught the virus from their infected cagemate and their viral load was precisely zero, while all of the control animals were highly infected.

Lipopeptides are effective against variants

Public health officials are concerned about the emergence of several SARS-CoV-2 variants, which appear to be more transmissible and deadly, and could be more adept at evading the antibodies generated by current therapies and vaccines available.

Porotto and Moscona tested the lipopeptide on cells infected with a range of SARS-CoV-2 variants, including B.1.1.7 and B.1.351, and found that the compound prevented the spike protein of all variants from fusing with the cell membrane as effectively as the dominant strain.

Lipopeptides are easily administered

Porotto and Moscona propose these peptides could be used in any situation where an uninfected person would be exposed, whether in a household, school, health care setting, or community.

"Even in an ideal scenario with large segments of the population vaccinated--and with full trust in and compliance with vaccination procedures--these antivirals will form an important complement to protect individuals and control transmission," Moscona and Porotto say. People who cannot be vaccinated or do not develop immunity will particularly benefit from the spray.

The antiviral is easily administered and, based on the scientists' experience with other respiratory viruses, protection would be immediate and last for at least 24 hours.

The scientists are conducting advanced studies on transmission in animal models and on production and formulation of the peptide. They hope to bring this preventative approach to human clinical trials soon, with the ultimate goal of deploying the therapy to help contain transmission during this pandemic and to support preparedness for future emerging strains and pandemics.
Posted Thursday, February 18, 2021 9:24 am

Canada won't require coronavirus testing for residents of Point Roberts traveling through Canada for any essential services, Gov. Jay Inslee announced Wednesday.

The Consulate General of Canada informed Inslee's office about the decision Wednesday, according to a statement from the governor's office.

That move will allow Point Roberts residents  of whom there are approximately 1,300  from having to get a test on either side of the border.

Travel between Point Roberts  a waterfront U.S. enclave connected to British Columbia  and the rest of Washington state requires a 25-mile trip through Canada.

"Point Roberts residents have had very real concerns about transit ever since the pandemic struck, and this exemption will ease some of the burden," Inslee said in prepared remarks. "I want to thank the Canadian government for hearing our request, and to the state's congressional delegation, who continue working on border access issues for Point Roberts residents."

On Feb. 15, Canada implemented a policy that requires proof of a recent negative coronavirus test for visitors arriving by land, according to the statement.

The unique cross-border challenges have been a concern for Point Roberts residents since the start of the pandemic, ever since the two countries closed the border last March as the outbreak exploded in Washington.




Member of Parliament (MP) for Sekondi Constituency in the Western Region, Andrew Kofi Egyapa Mercer has blasted Dominic Ayine, Member of Parliament(MP) for Bolgatanga East, over his recent comments about the Supreme Court (SC) Justices.



Dr. Dominic Ayine, a member of the legal team of former President John Mahama - the petitioner in the ongoing election petition - courted criticisms for saying the Judges have a predetermined agenda to rule against the petitioner.



" . . these are germane issues under the constitution of Ghana and to reduce the petition into a single issue petition is rather unfortunate and smacks of a predetermined agenda to rule against the petitioner in this matter," Dr Ayine said after the SC dismissed former President Mahama's application to reopen his case to enable him subpoena Madam Jean Mensa, the EC Chairperson.



Reacting to this on Peace FM's morning show ''Kokrokoo'', Egyapa Mercer wondered how Dr. Ayine could make such statements about the Justices because he is a Professor of law and therefore should know better.



"He said the Justices of the Supreme Court have a predetermined agenda; like seriously! My own Professor, that you're not aware that adverse witness is defined? . . . That you go to court and make an application to reopen your case, even with that, there's a test that you need to meet. Is Dr. Ayine not aware? He's not aware and that if you don't meet that test, the Supreme Court is not likely to grant you your application. Is he not aware? He's not aware that an adverse witness is your own witness you call . . . Dr. Ayine is not aware?'' he questioned his (Dr. Ayine) logic.



Lawyer Egyapa Mercer explained the difference between Dr. Afari Gyan, former EC Chairperson, mounting the witness box during the 2013 election petition by President Nana Akufo-Addo, then NPP Presidential candidate, and the inability of Mrs. Jean Mensa, current EC Chairperson, to be a witness in the ongoing election petition at the Supreme Court.



"We had proof of those infractions, irregularities, illegalities and we went to court with that evidence. So, let nobody confuse nobody that, in 2012, Afari Gyan went into the witness box; why is it that Madam Jean Mensa doesn't want to go into the witness box? Because, by the time Dr. Bawumia led his evidence-in-Chief, it was clear that the EC had a question to answer," he stated.



He therefore expressed utter disappointment in Dr. Ayine who he described as once his tutor.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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(CNN)  Russia is becoming a major provider of Covid-19 vaccines to Latin America, a move that could have long-standing consequences in shaping the post-pandemic world and further dent US prestige in the region.

While Moscow faces protests at home and condemnation over human rights issues from the US, France, UK, Canada and other Western countries, those issues have had little resonance in Latin America, where the recent publication of a positive peer-reviewed assessment of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine in The Lancet, Britain's leading medical journal, was widely celebrated.

Eduardo Valdes, a former diplomat and member of government coalition Frente de Todos, who now serves as chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee in Argentina's Chamber of Deputies, says there's a clear line between vaccine negotiations and external factors.

"Now is not the time to do ideology. Our goal is for the Western Hemisphere to get its vaccines and not to poke into someone else's internal affairs," he told CNN.

Turning to Moscow for help

Though historically seen as Washington's geopolitical "backyard," Latin America is increasingly turning to Moscow for help dealing with the pandemic. Six countries across the region -- Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Venezuela -- have now authorized use of the Sputnik V vaccine. Others are considering authorization requests, ever more urgent given the global shortage of available vaccines.

Colombia's case is an example: America's closest regional ally, Bogota is now poised to authorize Sputnik V as well -- a decision that surprised many due to the close alignment between some sectors of the government coalition and the US Republican Party. In the past, right-wing members of Duque's own party, Centro Democratico, openly criticized Putin's involvement in Latin America.

But when the country found itself without vaccines in hand at the end of January, Duque seems to have decided to push ideology to the side. The day after The Lancet's publication on the Sputnik V, Colombia announced it was entering negotiations with Russia.

Less than three months prior, Bogota had expelled two Russian officials in unclear circumstances. But the expulsion "did not influence the negotiations to bring here the vaccine," Leonid Sboiko, first secretary at the Russian Embassy in Bogota, told CNN. The Colombian Health Ministry declined to comment on the status of negotiations.

If anything, the vaccine deal could be a step toward smoothing things over. "Both countries want to turn the page. It was regrettable, but we want to move on," Sboiko said, adding, "Cooperating on the vaccines is the most pressing issue right now, and is going to positively influence [Colombia and Russia's] bilateral relationships."

Sboiko told CNN that the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) which handles Sputnik V's commercialization, last week presented an emergency authorization request to the Colombian medical agency INVIMA, and it is ready to deliver 100,000 doses within 14 days after a purchase.

"I think they had to bite the bullet and buy the vaccine regardless to whom they bought it from. And the Russians acted with enormous pragmatism," Juan Carlos Ruiz, professor of Foreign Relationships at Bogota's Universidad del Rosario, told CNN.

Colombia will begin vaccinations this week, after receiving 50,000 doses as first shipment from Pfizer.

Ease of doing business

The need to secure more vaccines is urgently felt in the region. Latin American countries have been among the most affected in the world by the pandemic, but large-scale vaccination campaigns have not commenced yet, with limited exceptions.

According to the University of Oxford, South American countries have on average dispensed less than two doses of any coronavirus vaccine per 100 people, compared to almost five doses per 100 people in the EU and over 14 doses per 100 people in the US.

Russia's readiness to strike deals has been key in spreading the vaccine across Latin America so far, according to Danil Bochkov, an expert of international relationship at the Russian International Affairs Council.

"It is always easier to deal with the state than with a private company, which has to hedge possible risks fearing huge losses. State-owned companies are easier to negotiate with, especially when they are pursuing political goals," Bochkov told CNN.

Valdes, the Argentinian lawmaker, says negotiations with Moscow were easier than with Pfizer, from whom the Argentinian government initially planned to purchase vaccines. "When we looked at the contract, we evaluated that the ones with Pfizer did not comply with the legal protocols we expected," Valdes said. "We reached out to the Russians and [Argentinian] President Fernandez related directly with Putin, and this sped things up," he told CNN.

Argentina has so far purchased up to 25 million doses of the Sputnik vaccine and dispensed over 600,000 doses. Meanwhile, it is still waiting to dispense the first Pfizer vaccine.

In a statement to CNN, Pfizer said the company remains committed to working with the Argentinian government but refused to comment on the status of confidential negotiations.

Regional neighbors Peru and Brazil have also cited issues in negotiations with Pfizer, allegedly because of some of the liability clauses it requested, and ultimately turned to other vaccines  Chinese-made Sinopharm in Peru, and Coronavac and AstraZeneca in Brazil.

Apart from ease of negotiations, two more factors have worked to advantage the spread of Sputnik V through Latin America, according to analysts and lawmakers involved in vaccine purchases in Argentina and Bolivia: Sputnik V is cheap, and relatively easy to store.

Even before the negotiations start, the RDIF lists Sputnik V's price at approximately $10 per doses  roughly half the price of the Pfizer vaccine, which costs $19.50 per dose. Latin American economies have been badly hit by the pandemic, and any possible saving is more than welcome by administrators and politicians.

The Russian vaccine can also be stored at a temperature of 2 to 8C (35 to 45F) and does not require the ultra-freezing temperature the Pfizer vaccine is stored at. Most of Latin America lacks the infrastructure to maintain ultra-freezing temperatures, especially in rural regions with limited road access.

Other privately made vaccines, like those made by AstraZeneca and Moderna, are yet to arrive in large quantities in Latin America, while countries like Brazil, Chile and Mexico have invested in Chinese-made vaccines.

Around the world, 26 countries have approved the Sputnik V vaccine.

What Russia stands to gain

Former diplomats and analysts in Buenos Aires, Bogota and La Paz say Russian president Vladimir Putin could now reap benefits from the vaccine's spread, potentially using it as a global business card to start new and more forgiving relationships.

According to Andres Serbin, president of the Regional Coordinator of Social and Economic Research (CRIES), a foreign policy think tank in Buenos Aires, Russia's interests in Latin America are both political, to rival the United States' hegemony in the Western hemisphere, and commercial, expanding markets for Russian-owned companies. Selling the vaccine serves both of these objectives.

"Russia made a big bet on the vaccine: in the last few years, Russia has re-discovered Latin America, not for ideology but because if your goal is to question the norms and values of the liberal international order, Latin America is a region particularly sensitive to that goal," Serbin said.

Both Russia and China are looking to improve their reputations after years of confrontation with the US and the EU, and the role of vaccine provider for the developing world is a perfect opportunity for a positive PR campaign. As Bochkov puts is, "Russia has mastered the Sputnik V as a diplomatic instrument so far."

Commercially, selling millions of vaccine doses also means turning multi-million dollar profits  something of primary importance for the Russian economy, which has been hit by Western sanctions in recent times.

In contrast, the West's handling of vaccine distribution has often seemed inward-looking. In January, Britain and the EU squabbled over vaccine distribution, while the White House bulked up purchases of vaccines to a total of more than 7 potential doses available for every American, according to data collected by Duke University.

"The difference is that the United States are working to get vaccines mostly to vaccinate US citizens. Others like Russia and China are looking to stretch relationships where they can," Pablo Solon, a former Bolivian ambassador to the United Nations, told CNN.

A missed opportunity for the West?

Western powers could have seized the political  and even moral  advantage, says Amadeo Gandolfo, an Argentinian scholar in political communication at Berlin's Humboldt University. He argues that Western countries missed a key opportunity to claim a moral victory when they allowed companies to patent their vaccines.

"Faced with the absolute necessity for the whole world to obtain the vaccine, leaving it in the hands of the pharmaceutical companies and not allowing a liberalization of the formula, I think it is something that pushed some sectors of Latin America away," he told CNN.

Now, as with any new patented product, the privately developed vaccines are protected by property right and cannot be replicated by other companies or countries. So while private companies like Pfizer and AstraZeneca are struggling to meet committed orders, other laboratories cannot step in to produce the same vaccines and increase supplies.

Many Western countries have instead invested in the Covax mechanism, a framework promoted by the World Health Organization to purchase vaccines in bulk and secure deliveries to developing countries that cannot afford to purchase them on their own.

But while Covax promises to inoculate up to 20% of the developing world and says it will prioritize four Latin American countries including Bolivia and Colombia for early access, it has yet to deliver a single dose.

Whether vaccination efforts would be more equal if Western pharmaceutical companies were not allowed to patent and commercialize the vaccines has been discussed since the beginning of the pandemic. An effort by South Africa and India urging the World Trade Organization to suspend intellectual property rights related to Covid-19 has so far proved unsuccessful.

This will cost Western governments dearly in post-pandemic geopolitics, argues Solon, the Bolivian diplomat. "The world has been multipolar for some time," he told CNN. "But within this multipolar world Russia and China are advancing fast. This vaccine situation is only strengthening the trend."

This story was first published on CNN.com How Russian vaccine Sputnik V spread through Latin America
- Stakeholders in the UTI treatment sector are developing new women-centric smartphone apps. Pharmacies and doctors develop these apps

- Antibiotic resistance to most of the UTI-causing pathogens can be attributed to high consumption of and overreliance on antibiotics. This factor is likely to increase prevalence of UTI in near future

ALBANY, N.Y., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Urinary tract infection (UTI) is considered one of the most common health problems in people. High prevalence of the disease is expected to foster development of the global urinary tract infection treatment market over the forecast period, from 2019 to2027. This infection is found mostly in women than men. Women are face conditions like pregnancy, menopause, and issues like side effects of birth control measures. Despite being a common problem, many are hesitant to consult doctors for correct diagnosis. This factor is likely to affect the expansion of the global urinary tract infection treatment market in the near future.

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Existing research and development activities hint at the presence of multidrug-resistant, gram-negative bacteria in hospitalized patients suffering from cUTI (complicated urinary tract infection). Market stakeholders are making use of logistic regression model to examine the symptoms of patients suffering from the complicated form of this infection. Proper diagnosis with healthcare experts along with implementation of antibiotic stewardship policies for treatment of this infection is required to lessen such cases. These factors are estimated to propel growth of the global urinary tract infection treatment market over the analysis timeline, from 2019 to 2027.

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Based on the growing awareness about the infection and its high prevalence, the global urinary tract infection treatment market is anticipated to clock a growth rate of ~3% CAGR over the forecast tenure, from 2019 to 2027.

Key Findings of Urinary Tract Infection Treatment Market Study

High Prevalence of Renal Diseases to Increase Cases of UTI

Patients suffering from renal diseases usually experience long stays at hospitals. Hence, they are at more risk of being exposed to this infection. During hospital stays, these patients often experience use of non-sanitized urinary catheters and the manipulations done during the treatment process. These factors raise the incidences of urinary tract infections. Providers of healthcare services need to offer broadened and effective monitoring measures to patients even after discharge from hospital. This factor is expected to work in favor of the global urinary tract infection treatment market over the analysis timeline, from 2019 to 2027. Market players are making efforts to create increased awareness in patients to avoid unnecessary catheterization in patients and carefully use catheters.

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In addition, healthcare providers are experiencing rising incidences of community-acquired urinary tract infection, which is caused by Escherichia coli or E. Coli. This condition is caused by antibiotic resistance in patients, which gives rise to the need for improved antibiotic medication. Riding on the back of these factors, the global urinary tract infection treatment market is likely to observe growth in the near future.

Development of Women-centric Smartphone Apps to Work in Favor of the Market

Stakeholders in the global urinary tract infection treatment market are coming up with new smartphone apps that are designed for women. Several pharmacies and doctors are creating these apps. With the growing influence of digitization in the healthcare sector, several stakeholders are able to do away with the problem of long-queue appointments for practitioners. Utilizing such apps, doctors can now diagnose and prescribe correct medicines. Advent of digitization in the healthcare sector is likely to spell growth for the global urinary tract infection treatment market in the near future.

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Urinary Tract Infection Treatment Market: Key Driving Factors

Development of antibiotic resistance in patients during the treatment of urinary tract infection is one of the leading challenges for the market stakeholders. As such, development of much improved antibiotics to counter the issue of antibiotic resistance is likely to foster market growth.

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a chronic disease and it is associated with kidneys, urethra, and bladder. High consumption and over-dependence of antibiotics are estimated to cause antibiotics resistance in most of UTI causing pathogens, thereby increasing the incidences of UTI.

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Noting that the spirit of collaboration is a valuable takeaway from COVID-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said hopes of the region and the world are focused on rapid deployment of vaccines and there is need to maintain "the same cooperative and collaborative spirit".

Addressing a workshop on 'COVID-19 Management: Experience, Good Practices and Way Forward' with 10 neighbouring countries, the Prime Minister said If the 21st century is to be the 'Asian century', it cannot be without greater integration among the countries of South Asia and the Indian Ocean island countries.

He suggested creating a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying data about the "effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines among our populations" and a regional network for promoting technology-assisted epidemiology, for preventing future pandemics.

Representatives from countries including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles and Sri Lanka attended the workshop.

"This spirit of collaboration is a valuable take-away from this pandemic. Through our openness and determination, we have managed to achieve one of the lowest fatality rates in the world. This deserves to be applauded. Today, the hopes of our region and the world are focused on rapid deployment of vaccines. In this too, we must maintain the same cooperative and collaborative spirit," he said.

He made four suggestions to increase health cooperation in the region including the creation of special visa scheme for doctors and nurses so that they can travel quickly during health emergencies.

He also suggested a regional air ambulance agreement between the countries in the region.

"Can we consider creating a special visa scheme for our doctors and nurses, so that they can travel quickly within our region during health emergencies, on the request of the receiving country? Can our Civil Aviation ministries coordinate a regional Air Ambulance agreement for medical contingencies?" he asked.

"Can we create a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying data about the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines among our populations? Can we similarly create a regional network for promoting technology-assisted epidemiology, for preventing future pandemics?" he added.

The Prime Minister suggested sharing successful public health policies and schemes and said Ayushman Bharat and Jan Arogya schemes may be useful case-studies for our friends in the region.

"Beyond COVID-19, can we also share our successful public health policies and schemes? From India, our Ayushman Bharat and Jan Arogya schemes may be useful case-studies for our friends in the region. Such collaboration can become the pathway for greater regional cooperation among us in other areas too."

He said countries of the region share so many common challenges - climate change, natural disasters, poverty, illiteracy, and social and gender imbalances.

"But we also share the power of centuries-old cultural and people-to-people linkages. If we focus on all that unites us, our region can overcome not only the present pandemic but our other challenges too," he said.

The Prime Minister said when COVID-19 hit the world last year, "many experts voiced special concern about our densely populated region".

"But, from the very beginning, we all met this challenge with a coordinated response. In March last year, we were the first to come together for recognizing the threat and committing to fight it together. Many other regions and groups followed our early example," he said.

"We created the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund to meet the immediate costs of fighting the pandemic. We shared our resources - medicines, PPE, and testing equipment. And, above all, we shared the most valuable commodity - knowledge-through collaborative training of our health workers," he added.

The Prime Minister said the countries shared experiences and learned from each other's best practices in testing, infection control and medical waste management.

"Through webinars, online courses and IT portals, we developed our own best practices based on what worked best for us. Each one of us contributed immensely to this pooling of knowledge and experience," he said.

"If the 21st Century is to be the Asian Century, it cannot be without greater integration among the countries of South Asia and the Indian Ocean island countries. The spirit of regional solidarity that you have shown during the pandemic has proven that such integration is possible," he added.

(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.)
State should not follow Utahs education example

Dear Editor,

This is an open letter to the Wyoming Legislature.

My name is Drew Roska. I am originally from Salt Lake City and attended elementary, junior high and high school in the Salt Lake valley. All of my alma maters, including my high school, have closed since I was there due to cuts in funding. I grew up waiting for public transit with my teachers so they could go to their second jobs. I watched them trade in their chalk and erasers for backpack vacuums so they could clean the school for extra money. I watched as they sat in the...
NEW DELHI : External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar will undertake a visit to the Maldives on February 20-21 and Mauritius on February 22-23, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.

According to a statement by the MEA, during his visit to the Maldives, the EAM will call on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and "have substantive discussions" with the Ministers for Foreign Affairs, Defence, Finance, Economic Development and Planning and Infrastructure.

It further stated that Jaishankar will also call on Speaker Mohamed Nasheed and meet with other political leaders.

"During this visit, EAM will review the entire gamut of our bilateral ties as well as the progress of ongoing bilateral projects and hold discussions on the ongoing COVID situation, including India's continued assistance to the Maldives for its post-COVID economic recovery," the MEA said.

During his visit to Mauritius, the minister will call on President Prithvirajsing Roopun and Prime Minister Pravind Jagnauth. He will also meet his counterpart the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade and Minister for Land Transport and Light Rail, Alan Ganoo.

"During this visit, EAM will review all aspects of our bilateral relations, ongoing implementation of various infrastructure projects being carried out by India in Mauritius, and hold discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest including India's assistance to Mauritius," the ministry added.

"Both Maldives and Mauritius are India's key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region and occupy a special place in Prime Minister's vision of 'SAGAR' (Security and Growth for All in the Region)," MEA stated further.

Jaishankar's visit is "testimony" to the importance that India attaches to its "close and friendly relations" with the Maldives and Mauritius and is expected to "lend further momentum to substantive cooperation and robust people to people ties between the two countries", the ministry said further.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

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1. Roads. The citys roads are a mess. Significant resources are needed to fix them.

2. Public safety. The crime rate is too high. Police pay and resources come first.

3. More city programs. The city must invest more in city programs and services.

4. Comprehensive plan. The city needs to focus on rebuilding and rebranding.

5. Cut city spending. City officials must get serious about trimming the budget.

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An 8-month-old girl who police say was murdered and sexually tortured by a Decatur man had genital bruising that came from penetration, according to a police affidavit filed in court Wednesday.

The girl, born June 1, also had welts on her neck, bruising on her face, shoulder and legs and a bite mark on her arm, police said.

Thats an innocent child who had not a chance in this world against that type of evil, Decatur police Detective Timothy Pace said Wednesday.

A candlelight memorial service will be held Sunday at 5:30 p.m. at Delano Park, according to Derrick Nichols, her grandfather.

She was always joyful, always playful, Nichols said. We have lots of memories.

Cameron Almen Elliott, 22, is being held in Morgan County Jail without bond on charges of capital murder, sexual torture and felony drug possession.

The girl was removed from life support and died Monday. She was declared dead at 9:45 a.m. that day when her brain activity ceased, according to Morgan County Coroner Jeff Chunn. He said her body was transported to the state Department of Forensic Sciences office in Huntsville for an autopsy.

In an affidavit filed in Morgan County District Court on Wednesday, Pace wrote that the girl was transported to Childrens of Alabama hospital due to the severity of her condition. (She) was admitted into the critical care unit where it was discovered (she) had vaginal injury in addition to the apparent bruising that was only possible through penetration.

Sexual torture under Alabama law requires penetration with an inanimate object. It is a Class A felony punishable by up to life in prison. Capital murder is punishable by death or life without parole.

Morgan County District Attorney Scott Anderson said he is cautious about deciding whether he will seek the death penalty in a case.

I dont ever want to rush to judgment on that. But honestly, in this case, Im going to have to find something that convinces me not to, he said.

In a Feb. 10 search warrant affidavit, Detective Joshua Daniell said a rape kit was used on the girl and the results are unknown at this time. The search warrant requested authorization to take a DNA swab from Elliott, which was granted, for purposes of comparing it to DNA gathered for the rape kit.

Anderson said he was horrified by the case.

Its just makes you sick when you hear of a child being treated this way, of the innocence that was murdered, Anderson said.

According to police reports, Morgan County 911 received a medical call reporting an unresponsive child shortly before midnight Feb. 9 and police responded to the 2200 block of Victoria Drive Southwest along with medical personnel.

Upon arrival, police found the girl gasping for air and unresponsive. (She) was suffering from multiple bruises and abrasions ranging from welts on her neck, bruises on her face, vagina, shoulder, legs and a bite mark on her arm, according to an affidavit.

She was initially transported to the Parkway campus of Decatur Morgan Hospital.

Medical staff there advised all of her injuries appeared to be recent and her nonresponsive condition was due to the amount of trauma her body had received, Pace wrote, and she was transported to Birmingham and admitted into the critical care unit where she ultimately succumbed to her injuries and died on February 15.

Pace interviewed the childs mother, who said her daughter had been in good health with no injuries. The mother told the detective that Elliott took (the girl) on a car ride and when he returned approximately 10 minutes later (she) was gasping for air and in her current state, according to the affidavit.

Elliotts drug charges  first-degree possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance  stemmed from his possession of marijuana packaged for resale and his possession of Adderall, according to police.

According to a search warrant affidavit, Elliotts drug charges arose from a phone call he made.

After being booked into the Morgan County Jail, he made a phone call to a number instructing the other party to go to (redacted) to retrieve his backpack he left inside the residence, Daniell wrote. He instructed the other party to sell an unknown item inside the backpack for money.

The contents of the backpack, which was found in a garage, included three digital scales, a jar containing marijuana and 10 Adderall pills, according to the executed search warrant.

Elliott was arraigned without a lawyer on the capital murder and sexual torture charges Wednesday. District Judge Kevin Kusta appointed attorneys Christy Miller and Catherine Carter to represent him. A preliminary hearing in Elliotts cases is set for March 5 before District Judge Shelly Slate Waters.

Miller did not return a call Wednesday.

Anderson said after various procedural steps the case will go to a grand jury.

This is one I will handle personally from beginning to end, Anderson said.

 eric@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2435. Twitter @DD_Fleischauer.

___

(c)2021 The Decatur Daily (Decatur, Ala.)

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MADRID  Largely peaceful protests in several Spanish cities descended into chaos and clashes on Wednesday after the police arrested a popular rapper, Pablo Hasel, who had barricaded himself inside a university to avoid a prison sentence on charges that he had glorified terrorism and denigrated the monarchy in tweets and lyrics.

Mr. Hasel, 32, was arrested on Tuesday in his home city of Lleida, in the northeastern region of Catalonia, and the demonstrations opposing his incarceration swelled in size Wednesday night as protesters gathered in Madrid, Barcelona and other cities.

What started with people chanting for the rappers release turned violent as some protesters hurled bottles and set fires as officers rushed in with batons and fired rubber bullets to disperse the crowds.

The conviction and arrest of Mr. Hasel have set off a national debate over Spanish regulations on speech, which are some of the most restrictive on language deemed dangerous to state institutions.
The Justice Department under Mr. Trump had argued that Mr. McGahn was absolutely immune from any compelled appearance before Congress to testify about his work duties. But in August, the full District of Columbia Circuit rejected that theory.

Justice Department lawyers under the Trump administration continued to fight the subpoena on other legal grounds, however, arguing that Congress had no cause of action that authorized it to sue the executive branch. (The executive branch has taken that position under administrations of both parties, and the Justice Department said it was prepared to proceed with the argument as scheduled if the court denied its request for a delay.)

The dispute is further complicated by the fact that there are so many participants  House Democrats, Mr. McGahn, the Biden administration and potentially Mr. Trump. The former president has not been a party to the lawsuit, but he might try to intervene and assert executive privilege  yet another issue that has not yet been adjudicated in the matter  if the executive branch under Mr. Biden drops out of the case.

Patrick F. Philbin, a former deputy White House counsel who is one of the people Mr. Trump designated to deal with residual issues related to presidential records, declined to comment.

William A. Burck, a lawyer for Mr. McGahn, has previously said that his client intended to defer to the presidents instructions, pending a final judicial order. A person familiar with the deliberations said Mr. Burck had not taken a position on what Mr. McGahn would do if Mr. Biden were to instruct him to talk to Congress, but Mr. Trump still told him not to.

Stuart F. Delery, a deputy White House counsel, said in an interview that the negotiations are still preliminary but that the Biden administration would like more time to try to resolve the dispute while preserving the institutional interests connected to the presidency.

There are few legal precedents. A rare and limited guidepost is a 1977 case, Nixon v. General Services Administration. In it, the Supreme Court ruled that Richard M. Nixon could assert executive privilege claims over official records from his White House even though he was no longer the president  but it also weighed that assertion against the contrary view of the sitting president at the time, Jimmy Carter.
A man was disqualified from driving for four years at Portlaoise District Court on Thursday.

Graham Hall (30) of 73 Fairways, Abbeyleix was charged with driving with no insurance and no driving licence at Ballyroan Road, Rathmoyle, Abbeyleix on January 21, 2021.

He pleaded guilty to the charges.

The court heard he was driving while disqualified.

The court heard he had two previous convictions, one for no insurance and one for failing to give a specimen.

Defending Solicitor Josephine Fitzpatrick said he was aware he was disqualified.

He works in security in Dublin and cycles from Abbeyleix to Portlaoise to catch the train to work in Dublin.

On the date in question Mr Hall and his partner had just brought their new baby home.

Mr Hall travelled downtown to get a prescription and to get some bottled water. The Garda had accepted his explanation on the day.

He was fined 200 and was disqualified from driving for four years.
Olivia Munn asked the internet for their help in tracking down an assailant who attacked her friend's mom and arm chair sleuths rose to the occasion.

The 40-year-old took to Twitter on Thursday to express her gratitude for those who aided the NYPD in identifying the man, Patrick Mateo, who was arrested and charged with assault and harassment.

Mateo was taken into custody after a video emerged of a suspect violently shoving a 52-year-old Asian woman to the ground on a New York City street.

Helping out: Olivia Munn took to Twitter on Thursday to thank followers for their help in identifying a suspect - that was later apprehended by the NYPD - for allegedly attacked her friend's mom in New York

'This is the guy you guys helped @nypd find and arrest,' Munn penned on Twitter along with a video of the incident. 'This is him attacking my friends mom who is a petite 5-foot-3 Chinese woman. F**k this guy,' she added. 'The internet is undefeated. Thank you thank you thank you'

Patrick Mateo, from Queens, New York, was picked up by the New York Police Department on Thursday and charged with assault and harassment, according to TMZ.

The NYPD said the 52-year-old woman was outside a bakery on Roosevelt Avenue in the Flushing section of Queens around 2 p.m. Tuesday when the suspect got into a verbal dispute with her and pushed her.

The woman hit her head and was taken to the hospital, police said, and the public was being asked for help in finding the suspect. Munn took to social media to shine even more of a spotlight on the incident and ask for assistance in tracking down the then unidentified man.

The allegations: Patrick Mateo, from Queens, New York, was picked up by the New York Police Department on Thursday and charged with assault and harassment, according to TMZ

'My friends mom is a 53' 50+ Chinese woman and she was attacked,' Munn wrote adding: 'She left the hospital with 10 stitches in her head. Were gonna find this guy. Queens, Internet, please... do your s**t.'

The woman's daughter, Maggie Kayla Cheng, in a post on Facebook, said her mom was pushed 'with such force that she hit her head on the concrete and passed out on the floor.'

Munn has been speaking out about an increase in crimes against Asian Americans across the country during the pandemic.

Last week, she said in an Instagram post that she's found herself 'at a loss for words at the rise of Anti-Asian hate crimes,' which 'have spiked since Covid and continue to increase.'

'Hate crimes against Asians Americans have become so bad that in just the past week a 91-year-old Asian American was attacked from behind as he walked down the street in Oakland, an 84-year-old Thai American was murdered in San Francisco, a 64-year-old Vietnamese American woman was assaulted in San Jose and a Filipino American man was slashed in the face in Manhattan,' Munn said in the post.
Many celebrities arent above changing up their looks for a role. Some gain weight, while others lose it. Changing their natural hair color is a much simpler routine that actresses like Emma Stone turn to if it feels right for a particular role.

What is her natural hair color, however? Stone is able to rock any hair color she chooses, but many may wonder what shade she was actually born with. The truth may be surprising.

Emma Stone has been in a wide variety of movies

Emma Stone | Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

RELATED:Emma Stone Depended On Acting At a Young Age to Escape Her Devastating Anxiety

Type casting is a real thing in Hollywood, but Stone has managed to avoid this particular trap that so many others have fallen into. From comedies like Zombieland to dramas that are more serious like The Help, Stone has proven she can play any character she chooses.

According to IMDB, the road to fame was not an easy one for her. Stone began her acting career on a small stage in Phoenix, Arizona. She knew at a young age that acting was what she wanted to do with her life, but convincing her parents was a whole other matter.

Stone managed to do so, and she moved to Los Angeles at fifteen with her mother. In 2004, Stone proved she had found her calling when she landed the role of Laurie Partridge on In Search of the Partridge Family.

After that, Stone began to branch out to minor roles on television shows. In 2007, Stone was cast as Jules on Superbad. Having now proved she was marketable, Stone has since gone on to play in movies like The Amazing Spiderman, La La Land, and Gangster Squad.

Stone has changed up her hair style for more than one

RELATED: Emma Stone Dated These Two Actors Before Meeting Her Fiance

Sometimes it doesnt really matter what hair color a character has, and sometimes it can define the character. While some actors and actresses may prefer not to change up their looks, Stone is always game.

She first dyed her hair for the role of Jules in Superbad. That has become her signature look for most of her movies, but she didnt hesitate to dye it again for Zombieland when she went with a dark chocolate brown.

When she played in The Amazing Spiderman, she went with a pale blonde. Red seems to be the color Stone favors most, but she never hesitates to head to the stylist when its required for a role.

While none of these changes are all that shocking, Stones latest role will be. She will be rocking one half black hair and the other half white in the role of Cruella de Vil. Its quite the change for Stone, and while few other people could pull it off, it looks amazing on her. Still, what shade was Stone born with?

And her natural hair color is.

RELATED: What Is Gwen Stefanis Real Hair Color?

While red may be her trademark color, it isnt Stones natural shade. That is actually a pale blonde. So why does she choose to go with red?

The answer is quite simple. Stone likes rocking red locks.

Insider reports that Emma Stone told Refinery 29, My hair grows out blonde, but my coloring is similar to that of a redhead. So I really like having red hair. Im a natural blonde, but I really like the red.

While they say that blondes have more fun, Stone isnt the only actress to ditch her naturally pale locks in favor of something more fiery. Amy Adams, Deborah Ann Woll, and Christina also choose to go red. It may not be their natural shade, but it works.
LOS ANGELESFree Speech Coalition has partnered with CDFI blueacorn to create an industry-specific tool for members of the adult industry to apply for first and second-round Payment Protection Program (PPP) forgivable loans successfully.



During the first round of PPP loans, too many adult businesses and independent contractors didnt apply or didnt believe they qualified, says Michelle L. LeBlanc, executive director of the Free Speech Coalition. Our businesses deserve the same access to relief funds as those in other industries. Through our partnership with blueacorn, were able to give our members access to specialized resources that have greatly simplified the process of applying for second-round PPP loans.



The FSC PPP site guides adult businesses and talent through the process of securing a forgivable loan. It is specifically tailored to LLCs, contractors who receive 1099s, and self-employed individuals. The process begins with a 60-second quiz to find out if you qualify. After that, it takes ten minutes to apply and one to two days to be approved. If approved, your loan will be funded in less than a week.



Blueacorns partnership to create FSCPPP.com is the first step towards equal banking for all FSC members. The sexual health industry is often overlooked by the financial industry. Having owned multiple eCommerce sites in the pleasure products industry, I know first hand how hard it can be, says blueacorns Matt Mandell.



The FSC PPP site is free to use. There are no fees associated with obtaining a PPP loan, and the proceeds are 100% forgivable if used according to the guidelines. Visit the FSC PPP site for more information about qualification, loan terms, and forgiveness.
School districts across the city, region and state have shut down as the state deals with a once in a generation weather event.

But that isnt stopping Third Future Schools  operator of Houston Collegiate Preparatory Academy (formerly Houston elementary in central Midland)  from keeping the power on and having school as usual.

With the power situation inside the city keeping people literally in the dark and in the cold, Third Future powers on with school, according to officials with the charter.

We know that school is a second home and a sanctuary for many students and many families. That is why we are committed to staying open every scheduled school day of the year, according to the schools chancellor, Brandon Thurston, in a press release. Sam Houston is committed to the service of our families and our greater community. Please remember, Sam Houston remains open during inclement weather days to ensure that our students always have a safe, warm place to be during the day, even when their guardians have to work, or the power is out in their home.

Midland ISD interim Superintendent Ann Dixon told the Reporter-Telegram on Wednesday that the decisions to have school Tuesday and Wednesday on campus was Third Futures and not that of the district. As a charter operator, Third Future has the ability to open its campus, no matter the decision of the district, according to Dixon.

Midland ISD set up the charter partnership with the Colorado-based operator last year. The district has other partnerships in place. Those operators are not having school, according to the district and according to those operators. IDEA Travis has actually cancelled school through the end of the week. MISD also stated Wednesday that campuses it operates would be closed Thursday as the region deals with icy weather and unpredictable power situation.

Midland Greenwood and Andrews ISDs have already stated their intentions to close for the week, and MISD announced Wednesday it will be closed not just Thursday but Friday as well. The Texas Education Agency has provided waivers that cover schools for three days, according to Dixon.

Dixon told the Reporter-Telegram on Wednesday that there are at least 12 schools without power and flooding at IDEA Travis. She added that one benefit of not having campuses open is that they are not taking power from residents across the city.

The following is the statement that Houston Collegiate Preparatory Academy sent to the Reporter-Telegram about the decision to have school this week.

Dear Sam Houston Families,

We hope you are staying warm and staying safe out there today, everyone. If you need a warm place to be, please come to us. Our doors are open.

Sam Houston is committed to the service of our families and our greater community. Please remember, Sam Houston remains open during inclement weather days to ensure that our students always have a safe, warm place to be during the day, even when their guardians have to work, or the power is out in their home.

Our lights are on. Our heat is turned up. Our water is running.

And we're here for you.

We know that school is a second home and a sanctuary for many students and many families. That is why we are committed to staying open every scheduled school day of the year. Families, please remember that you may always choose to keep your children home if you feel it is the safest and best thing for them. Students may choose to join class remotely via Zoom so that they keep up with instruction. Any and all absences will be excused, and there will be no academic penalties for students missing these days.

We are open, and we will stay open, because Sam Houston is committed to serving the needs of our community. We are committed to serving you.

Thank you and be well,

Dr. Thurston and the Sam Houston team
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The coronavirus vaccine roll out in Australia will begin in every state and territory on Monday, officials said Thursday.

Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt said that people over 80, health workers and quarantine staff would be given priority.

Thousands of aged care residents across 190 towns will start being inoculated from the beginning of next week under the Australian Government's program.

Frontline healthcare workers and quarantine and border staff will receive the jab through 16 different Pfizer hubs, run by the states and territories.

Earlier this week, the first batch of the Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Australia.

As the pandemic continues, a number of more infectious COVID-19 variants have emerged that threaten the success of the global vaccination campaign but Pfizer has said its COVID-19 vaccine is well-placed to respond to any future variants of the virus.

(Image Credit: AP)

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:22:45|Editor: huaxia

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MOSCOW, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Russian officials on Thursday slammed the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for urging Moscow to free detained Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, a case that is widening the rift between Russia and Europe.

The ECHR said Wednesday in a press release that it had decided on Tuesday to request the Russian government to release Navalny immediately.

"The ECHR decision is unlawful and demonstrates a flagrant attempt to interfere in Russia's internal lawsuit, which is unacceptable," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

While Russia is not seeking confrontation, such a "hasty decision, marked by clear bias, raises many questions," he said.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the demand of the ECHR gravely undermines the credibility of this institution.

"This decision has catastrophic consequences for international law, because it is impossible to endlessly use legal instruments for political purposes," she noted.

Russian Minister of Justice Konstantin Chuychenko called the ECHR decision groundless and a gross interference in the judicial affairs of a sovereign state.

The ECHR did not present any factual data that would lead to such a conclusion, he added.

Earlier this month, a Moscow court replaced Navalny's suspended sentence in 2014 with 3.5 years in real jail time. The activist, 44, has appealed the ruling and sought European help.

Navalny's case has sparked protests and then detentions by police in major Russian cities, while Russia and some European countries have mutually expelled diplomats.

The European Union is mulling harsh economic sanctions against Russia, which has threatened to sever ties with the bloc. Enditem
Wanted a quiet word with you, Mamata in letter to PM while refusing to release chief secretary

Bomb attack on minister: West Bengal govt hands over investigation to CID

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

Kolkata, Feb 18: The West Bengal government on Thursday handed over the investigation into the attack on state minister Jakir Hossain, who was seriously injured in a bomb blast, to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Hossain was seriously injured after unidentified attackers hurled a crude bomb at him at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad district on Wednesday night. At least two other persons, who were with the Trinamool Congress MLA of Jangipur, were also injured in the incident which occurred ahead of the assembly election in the state due in April-May this year.

Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan sworn in as Puducherry Lt Governor

Hossain was brought to the SSKM Hospital here on Thursday morning and admitted to the Trauma Care Unit, state minister Firhad Hakim said, adding that a medical board has been formed to look into his health condition. "The investigation has been handed over to the CID.

A team of forensic experts have visited the spot this morning," a senior police officer said. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and senior TMC leaders went to the state-run hospital here to inquire about his health. "Hossain is presently admitted to the Trauma Care Unit.

Maharashtra minister Jayant Patil tests positive for novel coronavirus

A medical board is looking after his health. He is stable now and has injuries in his fingers and foot," Hakim said. Hossain, the minister of state for labour, was waiting at platform no 2 of the station to catch a train to Kolkata at around 10 pm on Wednesday when he was attacked, the officer said.

"The incident shows that West Bengal is not safe even for ministers. The government has failed to control the law and order," state BJP president Dilip Ghosh said. Meanwhile, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari's rally was attacked by unknown miscreants in Beleghata area of north Kolkata on Wednesday night.

Two BJP activists, including party's North Kolkata district president Sivaji Singha Roy, were injured in the incident. Both are admitted to a hospital.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 12:30 [IST]
Photo taken on Feb. 15, 2021 shows over 1000 mu (circa 66.7 hectares) of cherry blossoms in full bloom in eastern Chinese city of Zaozhuang. With spring arriving, farmers in Zaozhuang are busy carrying out artificial pollination to ensure a bumper harvest of fruits. (Li Zongxian/Guangming Picture)

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The Thursday directed 17 banks and financial institutions of former Ranbaxy promoters Malvinder and Shivinder Singh to place on record the basic documents pertaining to loans for which the shares of Fortis Healthcare Ltd (FHL) were pledged with them.

A bench of Justices U U Lalit, Indira Banerjee and K M Joseph also asked the banks to place on record the nature of securities offered in connection with such loans as well as the details of the encumbered/ unencumbered FHL shares in the name of Fortis Healthcare Holding Private Limited (FHHPL), as held by them in September, 2016.

The banks were also asked to place on record similar details as on August 11, 2017 as also of shares of FHL standing in the name of FHHPL which were put by them under encumbrance after this date.

The apex court directed the banks and financial institutions (FIs) to file responses by February 22.

The matter is posted for next hearing on February 24.

The order came after senior advocates Rakesh Dwivedi and Arvind P Datar said the role of banks should be scrutinised in the scenario.

Datar, appearing for Japanese firm Daiichi which is in a legal tussle with the Singh brothers, argued that there would normally be a basic arrangement or loan agreement, in terms of which various kinds of securities including charge over properties, corporate and personal guarantees would be offered; and that a pledge of shares would only be by way of an additional security.

However, none of the banks/FIs had indicated why the unencumbered shares were sought to be put under encumbrance or the shares were sold when other forms of securities were available, he said.

Datar further submitted that the arrangements under which the shares were pledged must be disclosed so that the purpose for which the basic accommodation or loan was obtained would also be clear.

He said that with various orders passed by the Delhi High Court and the top court, the concerned individuals and corporate entities could not sell the shares held by FHHPL directly and, therefore, the arrangement was structured in such a way that the shares were proceeded against by banks and FIs.

It was submitted that the banks/FIs had intervened in the matters pending before this Court, that they were definitely aware of the award granted in favour of Daiichi Sankyo Company Ltd and that the role of banks and financial institutions would, therefore, require closer scrutiny.

The apex court on November 15, 2019 had held former Ranbaxy promoters guilty of contempt of court for violating its order asking them not to divest their shares in FHL.

The top court had earlier asked the Singh brothers to give it a plan as to how they would honour the arbitral award of Rs 3,500 crore granted by a Singapore tribunal against them and in favour of Japanese drug manufacturer Daiichi Sankyo.

The apex court held them guilty of contempt of court and said that they had violated its earlier order by which the sale of their controlling stakes in Fortis Group to Malayasian firm IHH Healthcare was put on hold.

The Japanese firm had filed contempt petition against the former Ranbaxy promoters alleging that execution of their arbitral award had been in jeopardy as the Singh brothers disposed of their controlling stakes in Fortis Group to the Malaysian firm.

(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.)

An Australian outback farmer had his sheep stolen, shot, butchered, and left in a field - leading police on a hunt to track down the culprits.

Rural crime investigators from Dubbo, NSW are on the case after the remains of the sheep were found in the small town of Geurie on Tuesday.

'The animals appeared to have been shot and then butchered at the location,' the rural crime prevention team said on Wednesday.

Regional detectives are investigating after a number of stolen sheep were found butchered in a paddock (pictured)

The sheep were identified as belonging to landholders from Comobella and Guerie who said they were recently stolen after shearing.

Geurie has a population of 755 people and is the centre for a farming industry around the town which includes sheep, cattle, and grain producers.

Police asked anyone who may have seen something suspicious near the Guerie rubbish tip, to let them know.

Rural Crime Investigators Dubbo can be reached on 02 6883 1647 or via Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
What should the president do about jobs?

For 30 years, Democratic administrations have approached the question by focusing on the overall economy and trusting that a vibrant labor market would follow. But there is a growing feeling among Democrats  along with many mainstream economists  that the market alone cannot give workers a square deal.

So after a health crisis that has destroyed millions of jobs, a summer of urban protest that drew attention to the deprivation of Black communities, and another presidential election that exposed deep economic and social divides, some policymakers are reconsidering a policy tool not deployed since the Great Depression: to have the federal government provide jobs directly to anyone who wants one.

On the surface, the politics seem as stuck as ever. Senator Cory Booker, the New Jersey Democrat, introduced bills in 2018 and 2019 to set up pilot programs in 15 cities and regions that would offer training and a guaranteed job to all who sought one, at federal expense. Both efforts failed.

And after progressive Democrats in Congress proposed a federal jobs program as part of their Green New Deal in 2019, Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming, the No. 3 House Republican, asked, Are you willing to give the government and some faceless bureaucrats who sit in Washington, D.C., the authority to make those choices for your life?
Northern Irish farmers have urged the UK to align with the EU's agri-food sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPSs) to help improve the current 'trading nightmare'.

The Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) said aligning with the bloc's SPSs would significantly help minimise trade friction from GB to NI and vice versa.

The union said this would solve the disruption that the NI agri-food industry had been experiencing since the implementation of the NI Protocol on 1 January 2021.

The Protocol is in place to prevent a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Northern Ireland remains in the European Union's single market for goods, but this has created a new trade border between NI and GB.

The UFU said a UK-EU SPSs alignment would remove a large percentage of the physical and documentary checks that are currently required.

This would help ensure agri-food products and livestock can continue moving, flowing freely from GB to NI without extra complications and costs.

Examples of disruption facing farmers include livestock identification changes and machinery soil contaminant certification, where additional restrictive measures are now required.

"One particular and very visible effect is the shop window for NI pedigree breeders being blocked, as animals cannot be taken to GB to be shown," UFU president Victor Chestnutt said.

"While animals can still be sold in GB the regulations still limit the farmer. If he or she travels to GB to sell an animal but the animal is not sold, it has a six-month residency to complete in GB before it can be brought back into NI."

He said this unpractical situation could lead to long-term damage of the pedigree sector and the availability and quality of the gene pool of NI livestock.

"Aligning the UKs agri-food standards with the EUs would straighten out a lot of the trade issues that we have been burdened with since the beginning of the year," he added.
Heartless thieves stole a safe containing thousands of pounds from a 100-year-old war veteran as he recovered from a fall in hospital.

Former RAF flying boats pilot Len Parry had checked into Bradford Royal Infirmary for a small procedure but lost his balance as he was taking his jumper off and banged his head on the ground.

Doctors recommended he stay overnight for observations which is believed to be when the opportunistic thieves struck.

Thieves broke into Len Parry's home in Skipton, North Yorks, and took a safe containing thousands of pounds and premium bonds

Widower Len, who escaped from the Japanese after being taken prisoner in Singapore during the Second World War, says the incident has left him 'angry'.

He said: 'The strange thing is there was no damage to any doors or windows and nothing else had been touched and no sign of a break-in.

'I hadn't noticed my safe was missing straight away. It was a couple of days later when I went into the spare room upstairs and the safe had gone.

'It was a brown enamel digital type about a foot square and was bolted to the floor. I know because I had put it in. Whoever took it would have needed a wrench of some sort to get it out.'

Len, from Skipton, North Yorks, kept about 3,000 in the safe which he used for emergencies and to give to his grandchildren for their birthdays.

War veteran Len Parry had been recovering in Bradford Royal Infirmary when the thieves broke into his home and took the safe

The former RAF flying boats pilot was taken as a prisoner of war, but managed to escape when the Japanese soldiers got drunk while guarding the captives

He also had bank books and his driving licence inside as well as some premium bonds.

He added: 'The money's gone and forgotten now and I'm not frightened of anyone coming back because there is nothing of any real value here. You don't need valuables when you're 100.

'I would like whoever did it to be caught, though. It really upset me for a few days.'

He was born in Burnley, Lancs., and left school at the age of 14 to work as an apprentice gas fitter.

Len was taken prisoner in Singapore during World War Two but managed to flee when Japanese soldiers got drunk while guarding the captives.

After being demobbed in June 1946, he returned to being a gas fitter.

He moved to Skipton in 1950 to marry his beloved wife Muriel and the couple had three children - Nigel, Rosamund and Nicholas.

North Yorkshire Police launched an appeal for information about suspicious activity in Long Meadow, Skipton.

A force spokesman said: 'Officers are appealing for information about any unusual activity seen in the area between these dates, especially on February 4 and 5.

'Also if anyone has found, or knows the whereabouts of, a small brown coloured digital safe around a cubic foot in size.'
Pro-life activist Lila Rose speaks during U.S. President Donald Trump's "social media summit" with prominent conservative social media figures in the East Room of the White House in Washington, on July 11, 2019. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Biden Using Christian Religion as Cover for Extreme Policies: Pro-Life Activist Rose

Lila Rose, founder and president of the pro-life organization Live Action, says Americans need to be aware of the serious deception by the Biden administration regarding abortion.

Most Americans are not aware of the pro-abortion extremism of the administration, Rose said in an interview with NTD News on Feb. 17. And when they do become aware, theyre deeply concerned.

Rose said that she and her organization are immensely concerned about the agenda of the Biden administration, which is even more pro-abortion than when he served as vice president under President Barack Obama.

She says Biden has denounced his past support of the Hyde Amendment, legislation that took effect in 1980 to prohibit federal funds from being used to perform abortions, with exceptions for live-saving situations or pregnancy resulting from rape or incest. The new administration also has rolled back the so-called Mexico City policy, which had banned U.S. taxpayer funds to groups that offer abortions or abortion counseling.

While Biden professes to be a devout Catholic, a religion that carries clear and repeated messages that protect the sanctity of life, Rose says she thinks hes using the religion as a cover for his radical abortion agenda.

The president is using the Christian religion as a cover for his extreme policies and his promotion of abortion. And that is simply the worst kind of lie. Its the worst kind of violence, its what needs to be exposed.

She said the media has a clear double standard because other people who are Catholic arent treated equally.

To see the double standard and media where Joe Bidens faith is praised and held up as an example, while at the same time, hes supporting the legalized killing and even the taxpayer-funded killing of human beings, of children, Rose said. While at the same time, other Catholics like [Supreme Court Justice] Amy Coney Barrett is excoriated for her faith, is attacked, even, for her faith and called a handmaid, that shes going to set us back decades or centuries because of her faithful Catholic witness.

In addition, she said that not only are the civil liberties of preborn children in danger, but also pro-life advocates.

For example, his own vice president, Kamala Harris, has been on the warpath against pro-lifers since she served as attorney general of California. She was the one who sent her state agents to raid the apartment of a pro-life undercover journalist, my friend David Daleiden, Rose said.

He also has recently appointed former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to a high position in his administration. This was the same attorney general who went ahead and filed criminal charges against two pro-life activists in California, as well as forcing pregnancy centers to post abortion advertisements in their clinics in California.

Rose encourages conservatives to speak out, adding that they have an important role to play and should focus on the long run.

You are not alone. There are so many people that actually agree with you but perhaps they havent found the courage to speak yet because they need to see somebody else standing up first. So dont think that you are alone, know that there are many that are with you. Secondly, I would encourage everybody that the change starts with us.
Melburnians will be able to dine and drink on the streets until the end of June as the city extends its outdoor dining program.

The City of Melbourne will fork out $2.2million to extend the program aiming to help hospitality venues hit by lockdowns and Covid-19 restrictions.

Close to 1,500 permits were given to venues for outdoor dining areas and more than 200 'parklets' - which are seating areas setup in car spaces - have been installed.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp said the council would directly contact each business to give them the option to extend their outdoor dining permits.

Melburnians will be able to dine and drink on the streets until the end of June as the city extends its outdoor dining program

'The latest lockdown has already had a major impact on our business community - particularly the hospitality industry - so we're doing everything we can to provide certainty for businesses once we emerge from lockdown,' she said.

'The outdoor dining program has helped bring back the buzz by attracting patrons from across Melbourne and the regions.'

A survey last month found the plan helped 81 per cent of venues reopen, giving them ways to offset the number of patrons allowed inside.

Ms Capp said as the city's weather get cooler and wetter, additional features would be added to outdoor venues.

'The extended outdoor dining program has helped to provide hospitality businesses with extra capacity to seat more customers and get more revenue,' the lord mayor said.

'Businesses can have confidence that outdoor dining will continue in the City of Melbourne until winter. We're looking into additional features to support outdoor dining during the cooler months such as weather protection.'

Businesses across the Victorian city relied heavily on outdoor seating areas during Covid-19 restrictions (pictured in Brunswick)

Victoria was freed from its brutal five-day snap Stage Four lockdown on Thursday after outbreak at the Holiday Inn quarantine hotel at Melbourne Airport was contained.

The stay-at-home order, only allowing people to leave home for essential work, shopping, care and exercise, was repealed along with the 5km travel rule.

Face masks will still be mandatory indoor and outdoors if social distancing cannot be followed, and Victorians will only be allowed to have five guests in their houses.

Shops, bars, pubs and restaurants can also reopen on Thursday and 20 people can gather outside.

Victoria's five-day coronavirus lockdown ended at 11.59pm on Wednesday - but some restrictions will remain (pictured, a picnic in a Melbourne park pre-lockdown)

Schools will reopen on Thursday after shutting down for three days, while visits to hospitals and care facilities will be limited to one household with a per day as restrictions ease.

Retail, hospitality and religious gatherings will be able to resume with the same density limits that were in place before the lockdown.

There are no limits on numbers for funerals and weddings but the gatherings must follow the venue's density limits indoors and outdoors.

Sport and recreation will also be able to begin again with density quotas in place.
Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
'By Xue Fei and Liang Lihu

Chinese sailors are manning the rails on board the guided-missile destroyer Guiyang (Hull 119) at the fleet review of the multinational naval exercise "Peace-21" in the waters off Karachi, Pakistan, on February 16, local time.

KARACHI, Pakistan, Feb. 18 -- A fleet of the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) Navy composed of the guided-missile destroyer Guiyang (Hull 119), the missile frigate Zaozhuang (Hull 542) and the comprehensive supply ship Dongpinghu (Hull 960) , completed the maritime drill of the multinational naval exercise Peace-21, in the waters off Karachi, Pakistan, running from February 15 to 16 local time.

The multinational naval exercise Peace-21 kicked off on February 11, local time. From February 15 to 16, the PLA Navy fleet, together with participating vessels and aircraft from other countries, has carried out drills on training tasks including formation maneuver, maritime search and rescue, helicopter formation flying, and live-firing at sea, and also participated in the fleet review at sea.

At 10 am on February 15, the PLA Navy fleet rendezvoused with other counterparts in the designated waters, and conducted underway replenishment drill and anti-piracy drill afterward.

From the afternoon of February 15 to early February16, the PLA Navy fleet carried out drills on tasks such as formation maneuver and maritime search and rescue with vessels from Pakistan, Russia, the US, the UK, and other countries.

In the subsequent naval fleet review, the participating vessels marched in a single file, among which, the warship involved from the PLA Navy was inspected with sailors manning the rails on deck. The fleet review marked the ending of this joint naval exercise.

Wan Jun, commander of the PLA Navy fleet, said that the exercise served to strengthen the PLANs professional exchanges and friendly interactions with navies of other countries, and improve their capability to respond to multiple security threats and safeguard maritime peace of the region.
Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said the reopening of schools is going to be on a phased basis and will likely start from March 1 (Danny Lawson/PA)

The reopening of schools will be on a phased basis and will likely start from March 1, Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said.

The Cabinet sub-committee on Covid-19 is meeting today to discuss proposals of bringing Leaving Certificate students and junior and senior infants back into the classroom next month.

First and second class pupils may also return to school in the coming weeks.

Mr Martin said the indications are that it will likely be at the beginning of March.

Clean hands saves lives and stops the spread of infections. Cleaning your hands regularly is the most effective way of stopping the spread of lots of infections, including #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/0mDCkkLJeI  HSE Ireland (@HSELive) February 18, 2021

Mr Martin told Live95 Limerick radio show: We will be reopening schools on a phased basis.

Nphet (National Public Health Emergency Team) will be making a presentation to us (today).

The public health authorities want to do this on a gradual basis because they want to monitor the impact of increased mobilisation of people on the spread of the disease.

Too many people coming back at the one time is just not possible because of the impact, given the nature of the variant that we now have, which is highly transmissible and more dangerous.

That does give us hope and it does give us a sense that if we are very cautious, we can keep the trajectory of the virus down. Micheal Martin

Mr Martin said the Cabinet sub-committee will today make a definitive decision on the return of junior and senior infants, as well as first and second class pupils to school.

He said the recommendation will be brought to Cabinet when it meets next week and an announcement will follow thereafter.

Mr Martin also said that the first phase of reopening schools will be monitored by public health officials for two weeks before further classes return.

Mr Martin added: In terms of the next number of months, were looking at a very slow and cautious reopening (of schools).

We want to roll out the vaccines and get as many people vaccinated as possible, that will drive down the spread.

Expand Close A sign for a vaccination centre outside the GP vaccination clinic in the Midlands Park Hotel, Portlaoise (Brian Lawless/PA) / Facebook

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Whatsapp A sign for a vaccination centre outside the GP vaccination clinic in the Midlands Park Hotel, Portlaoise (Brian Lawless/PA)

We have already seen in the nursing home settings and hospital settings that the outbreaks are reducing, the number of people getting the disease is reducing as a result of the first vaccine being administered.

That does give us hope and it does give us a sense that if we are very cautious, we can keep the trajectory of the virus down.

He also said that people are finding the current lockdown very difficult.

This third wave and the lockdown associated with it is having a very significant psychological impact on people, he added.

On the other hand, it was tremendous to see the joy articulated by the over-85s who were vaccinated in the last number of days.

These are people who have been essentially cocooning for 12 months.

In May and June I think we will be in a different space because of the fact that we will have a significant number of people vaccinated.

By mid-May we should have all over-70s vaccinated and thats the age cohort that is most at risk from the virus and of becoming ill.

He added, however, that he is loath to predict beyond the end of April.

Mr Martin said he was also concerned about the number of daily cases slowing up.

He said public health officials have a target of reducing daily cases to between 400 and 600 by the end of February.
A jilted father-to-be shared revenge porn pictures of his pregnant ex-girlfriend with her mother and said he hoped she would have a miscarriage after she ended their relationship.

Akash Manzoor, 21 had been expecting a child with the young woman but she dumped him due to his violent rages.

He later sent her abusive messages over social media and text saying: Youve f***** with the wrong family before sending the revenge porn images to her mother.

The victim subsequently lost the couples baby during the hate campaign.

Akash Manzoor has been jailed for a year after admitting harassment, common assault, criminal damage and disclosing private images

At Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester, Manzoor from Spotland, Rochdale was jailed for 12 months after he admitted harassment, common assault, criminal damage to her 300 iPhone and disclosing private images with intent to cause distress.

He had known the woman for a year through mutual friends and they began dating last October but the court heard he began beating her up including an attack which occurred on her birthday.

Joshua Bowker prosecuting said: She had planned on getting her makeup done professionally to mark the occasion but as she tried to leave her home, he dragged her back and punched her in the face.

She fell to the floor where the defendant continued punching and kicking to the legs and face as she held her head.

Manzoor sent revenge porn pictures of his pregnant ex-partner to her own mother during the campaign of hate

She got photographs of her injuries but he snapped her phone in half.

Later that evening, she had friends over for her birthday but as they greeted her, the defendant produced a hammer and the friends ran from the house.

He then turned on the victim and kicked her causing her to fall to the floor and he repeatedly kicked her again before running off.

The woman stuck with Manzoor despite his violent temper tantrums, but whilst they were at home watching TV, he suddenly flew into a rage and hurled items around the lounge including an electric plug which hit the victim in the face.

He then smashed her head into the TV set before refusing her pleas to call an ambulance.

Mr Bowker added: She ended the relationship saying she had never experienced anything like this in her life but following the break up he began contacting her by phone and social media.

During one incident Manzoor produced a hammer when his ex-partner's friends arrived at their home, making them run away

Message would initially be friendly but when she ignored them he would then threaten her.

He contacted her by Snapchat saying he hoped she would have a miscarriage and called her a rat and a prostitute. At the time she was pregnant with his child and she did in fact have a miscarriage some time later.

He also called her on Facebook calling her a slag...sent her explicit and naked photos and videos of herself. When she pleaded with him to leave her alone said he wouldnt until she got what she deserved.

He subsequently sent the pictures to her mother via Facebook along with the message: Your daughter keeps begging me for sex.

Manzoor initially denied wrongdoing and blamed the victim saying she caused her own injuries and was trying to set him up.

He changed his mind and pleaded guilty after being refused bail. He has been in custody since his arrest in December.

In mitigation defence counsel Keith Harrison said Manzoor was an immature man who had difficulties managing his temper and who had suffered abused himself as a child.

But the judge Mr Recorder Nicholas Clarke QC told him: You were violent, aggressive and abusive towards this unfortunate young woman. These violent outbursts involved punching and kicking which persisted when she was on the floor. Its fortunate she did not suffer more serious injuries. The disclosing of the private images was an act to further degrade and humiliate her.

Manzoor was also banned from contacting the victim for five years under the terms of a restraining order.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The average number of new COVID-19 cases per day in the Philippines for each month has remained nearly the same since November 2020, but this should not prompt the national government to relax quarantine restrictions yet, OCTA Research Team said in its report published on Wednesday.

The researchers' data show the country recorded an average of 1,680 new COVID-19 cases per day, although the number slightly dropped in December 2020 due to reduced testing capacity amid the holiday season.

"The current national average of 1,680 new cases per day is on par with July 2020, but is higher compared to the average of 640 new cases per day in June 2020," the OCTA researchers said.

Despite the number of national COVID-19 cases remaining flat for the past four months, the OCTA Research Team reiterated its appeal to the national government on Tuesday to reject the National Economic and Development Authority's proposal to place the entire country under the most relaxed form of community quarantine by March 1.

"The proposal to shift the NCR (National Capital Region) to modified general community quarantine by March 2021 amidst the backdrop of a more contagious and lethal UK variant spreading in the regions is not just risky but also contrary to sensible epidemic management," the group stated.

The researchers advised the national government against loosening the age restrictions unless regional health indicators have improved and all health workers are vaccinated. It must also wait for the outcome of the Department of Health's deeper study on the extent of the UK COVID-19 variant transmissions in the country, and ensure that local government units have been given more time to prepare for the quarantine level shift.

The OCTA Research group also expressed their support in opening business operations that have shown to pose minimal public health risks and in expanding of public transportation within Metro Manila and provinces that should be compliant with health and safety protocols.

The report also stated the country's current reproduction number is at 1.10, a bit higher than Metro Manila's rate of 1.0. The reproduction rate refers to the average number of people that can be infected by a person in a susceptible population.

The peak of daily COVID-19 cases in the country occurred in August 2020, when the nation averaged more than 4,000 cases per day. Health workers requested for a "medical timeout" during this month because of the overwhelming national health systems capacity, which forced the national government to reimpose the stricter modified enhanced community quarantine in Metro Manila for two weeks.

As of Wednesday, the Philippines now has a total of 553,424 confirmed COVID-19 cases, where 29,814 of which are active cases. Some 11,577 persons died and 512,033 patients recovered from the coronavirus.
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Posted Wednesday, February 17, 2021 4:52 pm

A bill in the state Legislature to create regional public health districts has been altered to exclude its most controversial provision: dissolving local health jurisdictions.

The move comes after lawmakers fielded concerns from a Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC) workgroup, which includes Lewis County Public Health Director J.P. Anderson.

On Tuesday, Anderson said the original idea of ending local boards of health was shocking, and the most concerning part of the bill, which he and Lewis County commissioners have opposed since Gov. Jay Inslee announced the proposal last month. But still, Anderson said the bills proposed regional districts threaten to supersede decision-making by local officials.

Recognizing that the bill  repeatedly called a work in progress by lawmakers  will undergo many more iterations, and that conversations between lawmakers and stakeholders have so far been productive, Anderson said he doesnt foresee a version of the bill he would support.

At this time, I dont see what the benefit to Lewis County would be. I dont see what the benefit to these services were trying to deliver to the people of Lewis County would be, he said.

The substitute bill, which passed from committee on a 10-4 vote (with one excused), would create nine districts to diversify and stabilize funding for public health, with the aim of enabling state and local entities to share resources and functions. Local boards of health  oftentimes composed of mostly elected officials  would also be altered to include tribal representatives, health practitioners and consumers. The idea is to depoliticize public health.

Committee Chair Rep. Eileen Cody, D-Seattle, said the hope is to protect local control, increase funding and ensure accountability.

Weve improved this, but not perfected this, said Rep. Marcus Riccelli, D-Spokane, who sponsored the governor-requested bill. Ill meet with folks anywhere, anytime throughout the state to have this discussion.

Anderson said so far those conversations have been productive. Despite opposing the bill, he said good faith discussions will be important.

I think theres a hopefulness now, around the bill, but I do think that theres still a lot to be discussed and understood, he said.

Anderson also critiqued a key idea behind the bill: that politics can be removed from public health. Others, including Republican lawmakers, have echoed the concern, arguing that the shift would simply put public health decisions in the hands of state officials, or Gov. Jay Inslee, instead of local officials.

Some issues do become inherently political, so the idea that you can remove it by consolidating that under one elected official, I think just didnt seem realistic, Anderson said.

Rep. Skyler Rude, R-Walla Walla, who voted against the bill, said something similar during an executive session last week.

Restructuring over disagreements at a local level doesnt take the politics out of decision-making, especially if were shifting to our state executive branch, which I feel strongly is not immune to politicizing health decisions, Rude said. So I just think its important to respect local control and local decision-making and those structures that exist, even if we disagree with those decisions.

Proponents, however, cite the bills requirements that the voices of elected officials be balanced by medical professionals and other community members.

Ranking member Rep. Joe Schmick, R-Colfax, said hes worried smaller counties in his district would be overshadowed in a regionalized system.

I have a hard time in thinking that setting up another level of bureaucracy is going to be expeditious in getting that money to the counties, he said.

Several lawmakers voted to move the bill out of committee despite their concerns, many citing confidence that more discussions will lead to better iterations of the bill.

District 24s Rep. Steve Tharinger, for example, cited his own fear that regional districts could end up hampering local efforts.

But I do understand  and the virus has highlighted  how poorly our public health system is organized in the state, he said. And theres more work that needs to be done.

One Republican  Rep. Paul Harris, R-Vancouver  crossed party lines to vote the bill out of committee.
Santiago, Feb 18 : Chile has vaccinated some 2.39 million people against Covid-19 two weeks after launching a mass vaccination campaign, the Health Ministry said.

As of 11:00 a.m. local time, 2,398,006 people were immunised across the South American country, the vast majority with a vaccine developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac, the ministry said in a statement.

According to Health Minister Enrique Paris, the vaccination drive is progressing in keeping with vaccine supplies, the Xinhua news agency reported on Thursday.

On Wednesday, the ministry reported 2,330 new daily cases of Covid-19 infection and 15 more deaths, raising the total caseload to 784,314 and the death toll to 19,659, since the first national case was detected on March 3, 2020.
Albany, N.Y.  Democrats in the New York State Senate are advancing a plan to curb some of the special powers the Legislature granted to Gov. Andrew Cuomo last spring.

The Senate could vote on the proposal as soon as next week, according to The New York Times. The plan would create a 10-person commission, made up of members of the state Senate and Assembly, to evaluate future Cuomo orders involving the Covid-19 pandemic.

The plan would also limit Cuomos ability to supersede existing state law to respond to the pandemic, the Times said.

The new commission would have to approve any new pandemic orders from the governor, according to the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle.

I think everyone understands where we were back in March and where we are now, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said, according to the D&C. We certainly see the need for a quick response but also want to move toward a system of increased oversight, and review. The public deserves to have checks and balances.

Its not clear yet if the Assembly will take up a similar measure, according to Spectrum News.

Cuomo would have to sign any bill passed by the Legislature into law, although Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers and could override any veto by the governor, according to the Times.

Cuomos powers, approved in March just as the pandemic began to take hold in New York, gave the governor broad authority to respond unilaterally to the crisis.

He has used the authority to enact a wide array of Covid-era restrictions, including mandatory business closures and extensive rules for reopening.

The powers expire in April.

Cuomo has faced increasing criticism and pressure in recent weeks, in particular over his administrations response to the pandemic in the states nursing homes. The FBI and U.S. attorneys office in Brooklyn are investigating the matter.

Cuomo is also facing backlash from legislators and others for recent attacks on a member of the state Assembly.

Lawmakers from both parties have said theyd support reducing Cuomos pandemic powers as the controversies mounted.

Cuomo has defended his use of the powers as essential to the states effective pandemic response. He has noted the Legislature can override any of his pandemic orders with a simple majority vote, something lawmakers have never done.

These are public health decisions, Cuomo said during a press conference on Monday. Theyre not local political decisions and they have to be made on a public health basis. This virus is serious and I understand these decisions are difficult politically. I get that. Its difficult to close schools. Its difficult to close restaurants. Its difficult to impose curfews.

But otherwise people die and these decisions should not be politicized. If you made these decisions by a poll, none of them would happen and more people would die.

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Contact Kevin Tampone anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-282-8598
By Benjamin Jumbe

The Executive Director UNRA, Allen Kagina has revealed that the government was making headway with the Kampala-Jinja express highway.

The preparation for the Kampala-Jinja Expressway project as a public Private Partnership is now complete.

She says they are now awaiting final clearance and guidance from the government before going to tender.

Relatedly, the Director in charge of Roads and bridges maintenance, Eng Sam Muhoozi disclosed that the Northern Bypass road will be ready for use by June this year, except for the other accessories which will be done in October.
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More than a dozen Portland police officers were drafted in to guard dumpsters outside a Fred Meyer from hungry residents seeking food that had been thrown out when the store freezers failed in the winter storms.

Around 14 cops descended on the Hollywood West Fred Meyer store in Northeast Portland, Oregon, Tuesday and threatened to arrest a group of around 20 activists who said they were trying to salvage the mountain of wasted produce to take to emergency weather shelters.

Fred Meyer said its staff were concerned the food - which included everything from lobster tails to cheese and juices and joints of meat - was no longer safe to eat.

The standoff came as some Portland residents have been left to survive without power for a week, leaving perishable food spoiling in their refrigerators and freezers after Storm Uri pummeled the US.

As of early Thursday, 106,000 Oregonians were still without power with grid officials warning the damage to the power system was the worst seen in 40 years.

More than a dozen Portland police officers were drafted in to guard dumpsters outside a Fred Meyer from hungry residents seeking food that had been thrown out when the store freezers failed in the winter storms. Pictured cops outside the store

Around 14 cops descended on the Hollywood West Fred Meyer store in Northeast Portland, Oregon , Tuesday and threatened to arrest a group of around 20 activists who said they were trying to salvage the mountain of wasted produce to take to emergency weather shelters

The mountain of food pictured in a dumpster. Fred Meyer said its staff were concerned the food - which included everything from lobster tails to cheese and juices and joints of meat - was no longer safe to eat

Portland police said they were called to the store at 3030 Northeast Weidler Street at around 4pm Tuesday because a group of people were said to be arguing with staff and refusing to leave.

Police said they didn't initially respond to the scene but received another call about 15 minutes later from an employee who said they felt the situation was escalating and feared there may be a physical confrontation.

Morgan Mckniff, a local activist who uses they and them pronouns, told Oregon Live they had gone to the store to get some of the tossed food after losing power at the weekend and running out of food.

Mckniff said a group of employees were standing guard around the dumpsters to stop people salvaging the food.

At this point, McKniff said they started filming the staff who threatened to call the police if they didn't leave.

'After that, other people started showing up and asking them, 'Why are you guys guarding a dumpster?' Mckniff said.

There were reportedly around 15 hungry residents and activists on the scene when officers showed up and stood guard around the dumpsters packed full of food.

Police said in a press release that there were 14 officers at one point including a lieutenant, a sergeant, six officers, and three trainees who were there with their training officers.

McKniff told the New York Times some of the officers threatened the group with physical force if they didn't leave.

The standoff came as some Portland residents have been left to survive without power for a week, leaving perishable food spoiling in their refrigerators and freezers after Storm Uri pummeled the US. Pictured the food thrown out

As of early Thursday, 106,000 Oregonians were still without power with grid officials warning the damage to the power system was the worst seen in 40 years. Pictured residents trying to salvage the wasted food

Residents hold aloft some of the food that was being tossed while many Oregonians are without power in the wake of winter storms

The police left about an hour after arriving and the group of residents and activists moved in and collected food they deemed salvageable. The activists said it was distributed to 11 community refrigerators around the city and to families in need

Why did Fred Meyer toss the food? Fred Meyer said the food was thrown by staff because it was 'no longer safe' to be donated. 'Unfortunately, due to loss of power at this store, some perishable food was no longer safe for donation to local hunger relief agencies,' it said in a statement. 'Our store team became concerned that area residents would consume the food and risk foodborne illness, and they engaged local law enforcement out of an abundance of caution. We apologize for the confusion.' Guidance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency states that food in freezers will remain safe for around 48 hours and food in refrigerators for around four hours after power first goes out. Under the Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act, the business could have donated the food when its power first went out and would have been protected from potential lawsuits because they were donated within the safety window and they were acting in good faith. Food shelters and aid groups across Oregon including Blanchet House and Feed the Mass often accept food being thrown due to power outages, reported Eater. Fred Meyer told the outlet the store had lost power for 48 hours during the storm but it is not clear if 48 hours had passed at the point the food was tossed. It's also not clear if the store had made efforts to donate the food before it was spoiled. Advertisement

Another witness, activist Juniper Simonis, told Oregon Live the police threatened to arrest the group for trespassing.

'I'm just interacting with officers and trying to get their information, and then they say, 'We're going to arrest you if you don't leave,' and threatened me with trespassing,' Simonis said.

Officers estimated the crowd grew to about 50 people, police said.

Police said they tried to explain the food was unfit for consumption but said 'no subject in the crowd was willing to have an open dialogue with the officers and continued to shout insults at them and store employees.'

Police said officers were there to 'preserve peace, prevent violence, and restore order' and that no arrests or citations were issued and no force was used.

The police left about an hour after arriving and the group of residents and activists moved in and collected food they deemed salvageable.

The activists said it was distributed to 11 community refrigerators around the city and to families in need.

Fred Meyer faced a backlash over the incident at a time when many residents are struggling to feed their families amid the winter storms.

Oregon Rep. Barbara Smith Warner blasted the grocery store chain for its 'wrong priorities' on Twitter.

'This is the definition of wrong priorities. I know you can do better. Please use an emergency spoilage plan, instead of misusing police,' she wrote.

Comedian Jenny Yang tweeted: 'THEY ARE USING ARMED GUARDS TO PROTECT A DUMPSTER OF PERFECTLY GOOD FOOD. this is not the America we should live in. our priorities are completely backwards. the real trash in this situation is @Fred_Meyer.'

Fred Meyer responded to the criticism in a statement Wednesday saying the food was 'no longer safe for donation' and said the company donates 5.5 million pounds of food to food banks each year.

Fred Meyer faced a backlash over the incident at a time when many residents are struggling to feed their families amid the winter storms. Oregon Rep. Barbara Smith Warner blasted the grocery store chain for its 'wrong priorities' on Twitter

'Unfortunately, due to loss of power at this store, some perishable food was no longer safe for donation to local hunger relief agencies.

'Our store team became concerned that area residents would consume the food and risk food borne illness, and they engaged local law enforcement out of an abundance of caution. We apologize for the confusion,' they said.

'Fred Meyer donates 5.5 million pounds of safe, nutritious surplus food to our food bank partners and communities every year. We are engaging our store teams with this important reminder of our established processes in situations like this.'

But the activists on the scene believe the incident shows the value the city puts on people in need.

Fred Meyer responded to the criticism in a statement Wednesday saying the food was 'no longer safe for donation' and said the company donates 5.5 million pounds of food to food banks each year

'The people who were there weren't there for selfish reasons  they were there to get food to distribute to hungry people around the city,' Simonis told Oregon Live.

'There are mutual aid groups that have been helping feed people at warming centers, because the city doesn't have enough resources to feed them.'

More than 350,000 homes and businesses lost power in Portland at the weekend as Storm Uri plowed into the area.

Some homes have now been without power for over a week and desperate residents flocked to emergency warming shelters and hotels for refuge.

'These are the most dangerous conditions we've ever seen in the history of PGE,' Dale Goodman, director of utility operations, said.
Certified organically grown high-THC Sativa strain

Grown in living soil and enriched with maple syrup from Quebec

Developed based on consumer feedback and careful genetic analysis

TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. ("TGOD" or the "Company") (TSX: TGOD) (US: TGODF), a leading producer of premium certified organically grown cannabis, is pleased to announce the addition of Organic Sugar Bush to its portfolio of premium strains.

"When planning TGOD's premium portfolio, I wanted a special strain with a unique Canadian twist, a differentiated product that would appeal to Canadian users," commented David Bernard-Perron, TGOD's Vice President of Growing Operations. "Organic Sugar Bush promises to be a Canadian-favourite with its unique terpene profile loaded with sweetness amplified by enriching the living soil it grows in with maple syrup from Quebec."

TGOD's Organic Sugar Bush, a high-THC Sativa variety, was developed based on feedback from consumers and presents the top characteristics Canadian cannabis users look for when purchasing premium dried flower  a THC level higher than 20%, large buds, certified organically grown, and balanced humidity to preserve its terpenes and trichomes. The fruit of careful in-house genetic analysis and certified organically grown in living soil, Organic Sugar Bush gets its name from Quebec's maple forests  the source of the maple syrup used to nurture the soil it grows in.

Careful Genetic Analysis

TGOD's grow team analysed a myriad of strains before selecting Organic Sugar Bush, a strain it perfected by developing a unique cultivation method which includes the addition of maple syrup from Quebec to its proprietary living soil. The result, a full-bodied strain packed with aroma  bringing with it a fruity, sweet scent reminiscent of ripe melon and passion fruit. The plant features bright green leaves, tiny peach pistils, and large buds that are soft and sticky to the touch.

The launch of Organic Sugar Bush is the continuation of TGOD's plans to introduce innovative strains as part of its premium portfolio.

About The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd.

The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd. (TSX: TGOD) (USOTC: TGODF) is a premium certified organically grown cannabis company focused on the health and wellness market. Its organic cannabis is cultivated in living soil, as nature intended. The Company is committed to cultivating a better tomorrow by producing its products responsibly, with less waste and impact on the environment. Its two Canadian facilities have been built to LEED certification standards and its products are sold in recyclable packaging. In Canada, TGOD sells dried flower and oil, and recently launched a series of nextgeneration cannabis products such as hash, vapes, organic teas and dissolvable powders. Through its European subsidiary, HemPoland, the Company also distributes premium hemp CBD oil and CBD-infused topicals in Europe. By leveraging science and technology, TGOD harnesses the power of nature from seed to sale.

TGOD's Common Shares and warrants issued under the indentures dated November 1, 2017, December 19, 2019, June 12, 2020, October 23, 2020 and December 10, 2020 trade on the TSX under the symbol "TGOD", "TGOD.WT", "TGOD.WS", "TGOD.WR","TGOD.WA" and "TGOD.WB", respectively, and TGODF trades in the US on the OTCQX. For more information on The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd., please visit www.tgod.ca .

Cautionary Statements

This news release includes statements containing certain "forwardlooking information" within the meaning of applicable securities law ("forwardlooking statements"). Forward looking statements in this release include, but are not limited to, statements about future product launches, statements about the potency of specific cannabis strains, statements about the availability of specific products and statements about the future demand for organic products. Forwardlooking statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan", "continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "should", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. These statements are only predictions. Various assumptions were used in drawing the conclusions or making the projections contained in the forwardlooking statements throughout this news release. Forwardlooking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties (including market conditions) and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forwardlooking statements, including those risk factors described in the Company's most recently filed Annual Information Form available on SEDAR. The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to update or revise any forwardlooking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.

Neither the TSX nor the TSX's Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of Toronto Stock Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd.

Related Links

www.tgod.ca


Wyoming Business Tips for Feb. 22-28

A weekly look at issues facing Wyoming business owners and entrepreneurs from the Wyoming Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Network, a collection of business assistance programs at the University of Wyoming.

By Mike Lambert, Market Research Center manager, Wyoming SBDC Network

In todays economy, branding is more important than ever. However, in my work with the Wyoming SBDC Networks Market Research Center, I see a lot of companies that have neglected one critical element of branding -- their logos.

When you start a business, it is easy to fall into the trap of having your creative nephew produce your logo, or even use one of the online logo builders, or even just DIY (design it yourself). These tactics can work and have good results but, more often, what results is either extremely generic, poorly focused on the business, difficult to reproduce or just plain terrible.

Businesses may want to consider using professional designers with logo experience. In order for a logo to work for a business, it should meet most -- if not all -- of the following criteria:

-- Keep it simple. Complex designs with multiple fonts, complex images and numerous colors may seem appealing, but businesses need to think about how they use their logos. A logo should be a quick and easy to recognize symbol that evokes your business. If it is overly busy, people may not understand what a businesss brand is about.

-- Are the colors timeless? A business logo should use colors that are going to be used elsewhere in the business. Think UPS. Brown wouldnt necessarily be the go-to color for most businesses, but UPS has made it work for them. Their trucks, stores and uniforms all use the Pullman brown and gold color scheme, and are instantly recognizable. Businesses should be cautious about using trendy colors. Whats hot today may be old news tomorrow.

-- Color is important, but does the business logo work in black and white? If not, the business needs to consider all of the ways it might want to use it. Does the business want to print or embroider shirts in multiple colors? What about printed marketing materials? Its a good practice for a business to have its designer start with black and white, and then add color to the logo design.

-- Are the fonts a business is using professional and clean looking? Businesses should try to avoid the mistake of overusing different styles of fonts. The logo is supposed to communicate immediately what the business is about. If the font is hard to read or, if it is totally illegible, it also wont communicate.

-- Avoid using stock art. If at all possible, businesses should use original art. If a business must use stock art, the business needs to make sure that it isnt something that is used by dozens of companies. A business wants a unique, clean look for its logo that stands out and says something about the company. Also, if a business decides to use stock art, it should always make sure that it has the rights to use the image.

-- Does the logo work everywhere? Will the logo work on Facebook, Instagram and other social media? Does it look good on the businesss website? On its truck? On a shirt, business card or even on a giveaway pen? Facebook uses a circle for its logo display. Will a businesss logo work in this format and still be legible? It may not work for all purposes, or the business may need to have an alternate version.

-- Format, format, format. Whatever a business does, it needs to make sure that it receives the logo not just as an image file, such as a JPG or PNG, but as a vector image. Vector images can be scaled up and down in size, which makes them easy to adapt to any size without losing quality.

If you need assistance during these difficult times, please contact the Wyoming SBDC Network. Our regional directors and counselors are ready to assist you in creating strategies to bring your business through a new and challenging world. Visit www.wyomingsbdc.org to speak with your local adviser to receive no-cost, confidential assistance today.

The Wyoming SBDC Network offers no-cost advising and technical assistance to help Wyoming entrepreneurs think about, launch, grow, reinvent or exit their businesses. In 2020 alone, the Wyoming SBDC Network helped Wyoming entrepreneurs start 95 new businesses; support 6,954 jobs; and bring a capital impact of $18 million to the state. The Wyoming SBDC Network is hosted by UW with state funds from the Wyoming Business Council and funded, in part, through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

To ask a question, call 1-800-348-5194, email wsbdc@uwyo.edu, or write 1000 E. University Ave., Dept. 3922, Laramie, WY 82071-3922.
Britt noted that while the vendor is able to develop the study in conjunction with the city until its time for its public release, Cottons points are well-taken that a city council and a municipality are part of the same team, working for the taxpayer. To that end, this office has indeed always advocated for the free-flow of information between public officials and offices. This fosters better decisions overall.
By Matthias Williams

KYIV (Reuters) - A Belarusian court on Thursday jailed a pair of journalists for two years on charges of orchestrating protests against President Alexander Lukashenko, while Washington imposed visa restrictions on 43 Belarusian officials it accused of undermining democracy.

Belarusians Katsiaryna Andreyeva, 27, and Darya Chultsova, 23, were detained in November in an apartment they had been using as a vantage point to film demonstrations over the death of a protester killed several days earlier.

Both women, who were working for Belsat, a Warsaw-based satellite TV channel that provides Belarussians with an alternative to state-run television, pleaded not guilty. They appeared in a cage at Thursday's hearing, hugging and making "V"-for-victory signs. Their lawyer said they would appeal.

Asked about Thursday's verdict, Belarusian Information Minister Igor Lutsky said the court would not have made its ruling unless it was justified.

More than 33,000 people have been detained in a violent crackdown on protests against Lukashenko's rule following a contested August election his opponents say was rigged. He has been in office since 1994.

In Washington later on Thursday, the United States announced visa restrictions on 43 Belarusians, including law enforcement officials it accused of detaining and abusing peaceful demonstrators. Also targeted were judges and prosecutors allegedly involved in sentencing protesters and journalists.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States was alarmed by Lukashenko's violent crackdown on protesters, activists and journalists.

"We stand with the brave people of Belarus and support their right to free and fair elections," he said in a statement.

Neighbouring Lithuania, where Tsikhanouskaya is based, urged Minsk to end a "spiral of repression". Poland said it would have "very serious consequences".

The European Union's foreign affairs spokesman, Peter Stano, condemned the "shameful crackdown on media".

Story continues

Exiled opposition figure Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya praised the spirit of the two journalists, writing in a tweet: "Just look at Darya and Katsiaryna  strong, smiling, and saying goodbyes to their loved ones through bars. Lukashenka can't break us."

RENEWED CRACKDOWN

The crackdown prompted new Western sanctions. Lukashenko has refused to step down, buttressed by support from Moscow, which sees Belarus as a buffer against the European Union and NATO.

In a statement earlier, Andreyeva said she had risked her health and life for her work.

"I managed to hide from rubber bullets, explosions of stun grenades, blows from truncheons. My colleagues were much less fortunate," she said. "I have everything: youth, a job that I love, fame and, most importantly, a clear conscience."

The journalists were filming protests after the death of 31-year-old Roman Bondarenko, who died in hospital in November after what protesters say was a severe beating by security forces. The interior ministry denied responsibility.

Lukashenko has mixed promises of reform with a renewed crackdown this week that saw police raiding the homes of journalists and rights activists and one of Lukashenko's main electoral opponents put on trial for corruption.

A separate trial begins on Friday of a journalist from the local outlet TUT.BY who contradicted the government's assertion that Bondarenko had been drunk at the time of his death.

(Reporting by Matthias Williams; Additional reporting by Agnieszka Barteczko in Warsaw, Robin Emmott in Brussels, Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber in Moscow and David Brunnstrom, Daphne Psaledakis and Jonathan Landay in Washington; Writing by Matthias Williams and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Angus MacSwan, Peter Graff and Peter Cooney)
During 2020, the number of residents of Ukraine decreased by 314,062 people and reached 41.59 million Ukrainians, according to data from the State Statistics Service.

"The population in Ukraine, according to estimates, as of January 1, 2021, amounted to 41,588 people," an express release of the State Statistics Service published on Thursday says.

It indicates that the number of deaths in Ukraine significantly exceeds the number of children born alive (48 live births per 100 Ukrainians who died).

At the same time, last year the population decline was mainly due to natural reasons (616,835 deaths), and migration abroad had little effect on the number of inhabitants of our country (only 9,316 Ukrainians migrated over the year).

At the same time, in 2019, the number of migrants was more than twice as high (21,512), and the number of residents of Ukraine as a whole decreased by 250,785, which is 63,200 less than in 2020.
Nigerian officials said dozens of high school boys were abducted Wednesday in Niger state by gunmen disguised in military uniforms. Reports said the kidnappers killed at least one student who tried to escape during the attack, the second in Nigeria in just two months.

Authorities said the attack occurred about 2 a.m. local time at the Government Science Secondary School Kagara. A teacher who escaped the raid at the boarding school for boys said hundreds of gunmen on motorcycles herded many abductees into a nearby forest and one student was killed in the process.

A state government spokesperson said Wednesday that 27 people had been kidnapped, dismissing initial claims that hundreds might have been taken.

A viral video released showed captives with abductors demanding about $1.4 million as ransom.

Nigerian security officials did not respond to requests for an interview, but security expert Kabir Adamu said criminal gangs operating in Nigeria's northwest and central regions were to blame.

Kidnapping for ransom

"It's a kidnap-for-ransom situation where they're able to gather this number of persons," Adamu said. "It will be almost easy for them to now take over and then use them to negotiate some form of ransom."

The government secondary school in Kagara where the attack happened has about 1,000 students. Authorities are currently profiling the students for further updates.

President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered troops with aerial surveillance to go after the captors and rescue the students, according to a statement released Wednesday by his spokesperson, Garba Shehu.

But experts say lack of government control over the crisis-ridden regions is the reason incidents reoccur.

"The locations where these schools are are vulnerable locations; they are remote locations usually that are close to these ungoverned spaces that exist in Nigeria that these criminals use as haven," Adamu said. "Then the schools physical security is almost very weak, the fencing, sometimes the perimeter walls."

Nigeria's northwest and central regions have been recording growing insecurities often carried out by criminal gangs known as bandits, kidnapping for ransom.

Last December, a similar attack occurred in Katsina state but the more than 300 boys were released six days later through negotiations.

Reporter

Heather Bellow, a member of the investigations team, joined The Eagle in 2017. She is based in the South Berkshire County bureau in Great Barrington. Her work has appeared in newspapers across the U.S.
Some insurers are now refusing to pay Covid-related business interruption claims for reasons outside the scope of dispute in the recently decided FBD test case.

According to correspondence seen by the Irish Independent, at least one insurer is now claiming that certain seated food businesses could have remained open during the first lockdown, as they were deemed essential.

Only food wholesalers and takeaways were permitted to remain op en in the first lockdown. Some seated businesses eventually were able to partially re-open with takeaway services.

Two other insurers have delayed processing claims for weeks, saying they need time to review the cases before reverting with their decisions.

Claims managers handling the cases are rejecting the arguments, citing guidance from the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI) that insurers should interpret the language in policies in terms most favourable to the customer.

Im very surprised at the arguments they are putting up and the length of time it is taking to review these cases, said Jim Flannery, a director at Balcombes Claims Management, which is handling hundreds of business interruption cases.

There is nothing left to review after the FBD judgement. The wording is the same. They knew this was coming. Come out with your hands up.

Balcombes has reported the three firms to the CBI asking regulators to take action.

The news comes as the CBI is threatening to seek court orders against a handful of insurance firms that are not honouring valid claims on business interruption policies.

The regulator is writing to a small number of insurers that are still holding out on payments and telling them to process claims as well as deliver payouts promptly, or face escalating regulatory action.

The communications with these companies include specifically-tailored risk-mitigation programmes (RMP) outlining explicit expectations for how each firm should deal with claims. The RMPs draw on the CBIs Business Interruption Supervisory Framework and the February 5 judgement from the FBD case.

The Commercial Court found that FBDs pub customers were entitled to claim for Covid-related closures under their business interruption policies.

Companies that fail to comply with the guidance, which the CBI regards as its final and definitive communication on the issue, could face enforcement orders from the High Court.
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A young man who denied obstructing a drugs search complained in his trial that gardai violated him and he brought a complaint to the Garda Ombudsman.

Judge Marian OLeary convicted Kelvin Higgins of obstructing a drugs search at Gurranabraher garda station and sentenced him to four months in prison.

Judge OLeary also convicted him of assaulting Garda Senan Dormer by striking his head backwards on to Garda Dormers forehead. Higgins denied the assault charge but was fined 500 or five days in prison in default of payment.

Cross-examined by Inspector Martin Canny, Higgins said at Cork District Court in respect of the search the garda station on September 30 2019, I felt I was violated. I am a man. They were around my back area with a clamp. I never seen this in my life.

Higgins, 29, with an address at Lus Na Meala, Banduff, Mayfield, Cork, made a complaint to GSOC a day or two after it happened in 2019 and he said he was waiting to hear from them.

The incident that gave rise to Higgins being charged with assault and obstructing a search occurred when Garda Danielle Love and Garda Conor Smiddy saw the defendant and another man on a laneway between Cattlemarket Avenue and Glenryan Road and one appeared to be passing the other a package.

One man took off running and was never located. Kelvin Higgins was arrested.

He said later that the man was a relative who had loaned him 350 or 370 earlier that day and he did not know why the other man ran away.

Gardai said he was so aggressive he had to be handcuffed and put in a personnel carrier and that he kicked out in the back of the van throughout the journey to the garda station. Higgins denied this.

Prosecution evidence was given that he shouted insulting comments and remarks of a sexual nature at gardai in the garda station.

Higgins had to be restrained and put in a cell and told he was to be searched.

Higgins replied, If you come any closer I will break your face and that he threw his head back, connecting with Garda Dormers forehead.

Higgins said there was contact but it was accidental during a scuffle and was not an assault. He said he only made comments to gardai after being violated in a drugs search. He did not recall making any comments of a sexual nature at any stage.

The case went on at length at Cork District Court and when Judge OLeary convicted him she then asked if he had any previous convictions. Inspector Martin Canny said Kelvin Higgins had 94 previous convictions.

Michael Quinlan solicitor said the accused had undertaken rehabilitation since this incident occurred. A five-month suspended sentence was imposed on him for another offence where he was carrying a Stanley knife. It was found concealed down the back of his pants that another occasion.
A state trooper and an EMT were assaulted during a Feb. 4 medical call in Banks Twp., court papers say.

Michael S. Green, 53, Tresckow, is accused of hitting both and faces two felony counts of aggravated assault and two misdemeanor counts of simple assault filed by state police at Hazletons Criminal Investigation Unit. He was released on $50,000 unsecured bail Feb. 10 by Magisterial District Judge Joseph Homanko, Weatherly.

According to arrest papers:

Lehigh Valley EMS was called to Greens home at 17 W. Oak St. before noon for a man in need of medical care. When they entered the house, they found Green pulling a womans hair and scratching her face. An EMT was hit by Green when they attempted to leave and wait on the porch for police.

Once a trooper arrived, he asked Green to talk to him outside. Green told the trooper he wouldnt go with EMS, then attempted to walk back inside. The trooper held the door to prevent Green from entering and Green punched the trooper in the face. He swung at the officer a second time but the trooper blocked the blow and deployed his stun gun on Green. Green pulled out the probes so the trooper launched a second round of probes, which brought Green to the ground so he could be handcuffed.

 Amanda Christman
February 18 : Sidharth Malhotra has been shooting in Lucknow for his upcoming spy thriller Mission Majnu. The actor, who has been hitting the headlines with his shooting news and some off-duty activities like horse riding, never forgets his daily workout sessions.

While shooting is going on in full swing, the Student of the Year actor has been sharing glimpses from his shoot location, keeping his fans and followers updated. Today, the actor shared a glimpse of his outdoor workout and left his fans inspired. Working out in the exterior #Outdoor #SidFit, the actor wrote while sharing a video on his Instagram handle.

In the video, the actor can be seen sweating it out on the grounds as he does some workout in the open, while skipping the gym for a change. He is seen running and jumping on the ground, while also doing some yoga asanas. It seems that Sidharth is doing his morning workouts before heading for the day's shoot in Lucknow. The actor is seen in a greyish blue tee teamed with black track pants.

The Marjaavaan actor and co-actor Rashmika Mandanna have started shooting for Mission Majnu in Lucknow early this month. Mission Majnu marks the South actress debut in Bollywood.

Directed by Shantanu Bagchi, Mission Majnu is about one of Indias deadliest covert operations. The film also marks Shantanus directorial debut. Sidharth plays a RAW agent, who leads a mission that forever changed the relationship between India and Pakistan. Set in the 1970s, the story of the film has been penned by Parveez Shaikh, Aseem Arrora, and Sumit Batheja. It is being co-produced by Ronnie Screwvala along with Amar Butala and Garima Mehta. The film will also be shot in Mumbai.

Besides Mission Majnu, Sidharth will be seen in a double role in the biographical film Shershaah along with Kiara Advani. Directed by Vishnuvardhan, it is co-produced by Karan Johar. Sidharth has also started shooting for his upcoming comedy film Thank God, which is being directed by Indra Kumar. The movie also stars Rakul Preet Singh and Ajay Devgn.


KENILWORTH (NJ) (dpa-AFX) - Today's Daily Dose brings you news about Nektar's collaboration with Merck; Pfizer initiating a refractory multiple myeloma study; Processa Pharma's strategic financing; and vTv Therapeutics' initiation of a phase 1 multiple ascending dose study of HPP737.



Read on...



1. Nektar Teams Up With Merck



Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) has entered into a clinical trial collaboration and supply agreement with Merck (MRK) for a Phase 2/3 study of Bempegaldesleukin in combination with KEYTRUDA for first-line treatment of patients with metastatic or unresectable recurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck.



Bempegaldesleukin is Nektar's drug candidate and is designed to stimulate the patient's own immune system to fight cancer. KEYTRUDA is Merck's approved blockbuster drug, which is approved for various cancers.



The study is planned to start in the second half of 2021.



Under the terms of the agreement, Nektar will conduct the Phase 2/3 study, which is expected to enroll 500 patients with metastatic or recurrent SCCHN with PD-L1 expressing tumors. The primary endpoints of the trial are overall response rate (ORR) and overall survival (OS); progression-free survival (PFS) is a secondary endpoint.



The company also inked a financing and co-development collaboration with SFJ Pharmaceuticals to support the development of Bempegaldesleukin. As part of the deal, Nektar is all set to receive up to $150 million to support the study and manage clinical trial operations.



NKTR closed Wednesday's trading at $25.46, up 13.36%.



2. Pfizer Initiates Multiple Myeloma Trial



Pfizer Inc. (PFE) has initiated a pivotal phase II study of investigational drug Elranatamab in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma.



The study, dubbed MagnetisMM-3, is designed to enroll approximately 150 people with multiple myeloma who are refractory to at least one proteasome inhibitor, one immunomodulatory drug and one anti-CD38 monoclonal antibody.



The study's estimated primary completion date is June 2022.



In other news, Pfizer and BioNTech SE (BNTX) announced an agreement with the European Commission to supply an additional 200 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine COMIRNATY, also known as BNT162b2. The European Commission has the option to request supply of an additional 100 million doses.



Albert Bourla, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pfizer said, 'With this new agreement with the European Commission, we now expect to deliver enough doses to vaccinate at least 250 million Europeans before the end of the year.'



PFE closed Wednesday's trading at $34.89, up 0.58%.



3. Processa Strengthens Balance Sheet



Shares of Processa Pharmaceuticals Inc. (PCSA) jumped more than 30%, following a $10.2 million strategic financing.



As part of the financing, the company sold 1.32 million shares through private investment in public equity (PIPE) financing at a price of $7.75 per share.



The financing attracted both institutional and accredited investors, noted the company. The closing of the private placement is expected to occur on or about February 23, 2021.



The company's lead product candidate is oral PCS499, proposed for the treatment of Necrobiosis Lipoidica, under phase IIb trial. Another compound PCS6422 is under a phase Ib study in combination with capecitabine as first-line therapy for metastatic colorectal cancer. The company expects results from the interim analyses in the phase 1B PCS6422 study and the Phase 2B PCS499 study in the second half of this year.



PCSA closed Wednesday's trading at $10.76, up 33.17%.



4. vTv Therapeutics On Track



vTv Therapeutics Inc. (VTVT) has initiated a phase 1 multiple ascending dose study of HPP737 in healthy adult volunteers.



HPP737 is a novel, potent, orally administered PDE4 inhibitor discovered by vTv Therapeutics. PDE4 has been demonstrated to be a validated therapeutic target for the treatment of a variety of disorders including psoriasis.



The phase I multiple ascending dose study is expected to be completed in Q2 2021.



Meanwhile, the company's strategic partner, Newsoara Biopharma, has initiated a proof of concept phase II study of HPP737 in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in China. Newsoara is also initiating phase 2 studies with HPP737 in psoriasis and atopic dermatitis this year.



VTVT closed Wednesday's trading at $2.84, up 6.77%.



5. Stocks That Gained/Lost The Most In A Day



Predictive Oncology Inc. (POAI) closed Wednesday's (Feb.17, 2021) trading at $2.20, up 34.15%.



Shineco Inc. (TYHT) closed at $5.68, up 32.09%.



Check-Cap Ltd. (CHEK) closed at $2.33, up 29.44%.



Interpace Biosciences, Inc. (IDXG) closed at $4.44, down 23.97%.



AIkido Pharma Inc. (AIKI) closed at $1.68, down 21.13%.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

PFIZER-Aktie komplett kostenlos handeln - auf Smartbroker.de

MASON, Ohio, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In Emma Thomas new romance novel, Live for Me (published by Archway Publishing), the lives of two struggling people collide and take them on a roller-coaster journey of good times and bad, ultimately leading to true love, devotion, and tragedy.

Twenty-seven-year-old Ophelia Lux Taylor is feisty and driven; she also happens to have bipolar disorder. Although shes had her ups and downs, life is good now; she lives with her twin brother, Onyx, and another friend in an artsy community in Cincinnati and is pursuing a masters degree in psychology. An avid reader, Ophelia likes everything to be orderly, including her job at a nearby bookstore. But when a good-looking stranger ends up in her apartmentinvited to crash on their couch by her brotherher life begins to change forever.

Brax Smith arrives to Cincinnati with nothing other than his van, having left Florida to start a new life, escaping the memories of losing his mother to cancer and dealing with his drunk father. A recovering alcoholic himself, Brax meets two guys at a group session in an eclectic area of Cincinnati when he gets to town. He feels grateful to have a place to stay but also comes face-to-face with the sister of one of his new friends, who is less than excited to have an additional roommate. Can he win her over, despite the fact that she has no interest in being his friend?

I have bipolar disorder. I created these fictional characters from my own experience and knowledge not by just doing research, Thomas says. She hopes that her book shows readers That not everyone who is diagnosed has the same symptoms. Everyone is different. Maybe they can relate to them too. Maybe if they relate, it will help them to be more open and not ashamed because they have nothing to be ashamed of.

Live for Me is available for purchase online at the Archway link above, at Barnes & Noble and on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Live-Me-Emma-Thomas/dp/1480899747.

Live for Me

By Emma Thomas

Hardcover | 5.5 x 8.5 in | 226 pages | ISBN 9781480899742

Softcover | 5.5 x 8.5 in | 226 pages | ISBN 9781480899735

E-Book | 226 pages | ISBN 9781480899759

Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author

Emma Thomas knows firsthand the challenges and triumphs of living with bipolar disorder. An avid reader, she loves painting, dancing, and spending time with her golden retriever, Edgar. Live for Me is her first novel. Thomas currently lives in Mason, Ohio.

Simon & Schuster, a company with nearly ninety years of publishing experience, has teamed up with Author Solutions, LLC, the worldwide leader in self-publishing, to create Archway Publishing. With unique resources to support books of all kind, Archway Publishing offers a specialized approach to help every author reach his or her desired audience. For more information, visit archwaypublishing.com or call 844-669-3957.

Attachment
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.

Wilmoth brings over 19 years of banking experience with him, most recently from BB&T in Mount Airy, where he served as Business Banker and Market Leader. In his new role with FB&T, Wilmoth will serve small businesses and commercial entities in Mount Airy and northwest North Carolina's surrounding counties.

Wilmoth graduated from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke before furthering his banking education at the BB&T Banking School at Wake Forest. Wilmoth currently resides in Mount Airy and is an exceptional community advocate, having served with several organizations, including Rotary International, the Yadkin Valley Chamber of Commerce, Habitat for Humanity, Big Brothers Big Sisters, March of Dimes, and the Salvation Army and Relay for Life.

"We feel very fortunate to welcome Travis Wilmoth to the FB&T team as we enter the North Carolina market. Travis has earned a tremendous level of respect from his customers by delivering a high level of banking expertise and service," stated Jim McAlister, Senior Vice President and Regional Manager.

Travis Wilmoth may be reached at [email protected] or by calling 336-782-0041.

Myra Edwards, a 2013 graduate of Gardner-Webb University, joins Wilmoth as Manager and Loan Processor for FB&T. Edwards may be reached at [email protected].

About FB&T

FB&T is an extension of The First Bank & Trust Company brand into the new market area of Mount Airy, North Carolina. FB&T was formed to differentiate from similarly named institutions in the state of North Carolina. Lending solutions for FB&T are managed by mortgage, agricultural and commercial lending divisions.

About First Bank & Trust Company

First Bank & Trust Company, one of the top community banks in the United States, is a diversified financial services firm with office locations throughout southwest Virginia and the New River and Shenandoah Valleys of the state. First Bank & Trust Company also operates locations throughout northeast Tennessee. Financial solutions are addressed by offering free checking products for personal and business accounts, savings, money market and time deposit accounts. Lending solutions are managed by mortgage, agricultural and commercial lending divisions. Comprehensive wealth management solutions are available through trust and brokerage service representatives.

For more information, visit www.firstbank.com or contact Kaitlyn Widner at [email protected].

SOURCE First Bank & Trust Company

Related Links

https://www.FirstBank.com


Dolly Parton is pushing back on a petitioned bill to erect a monument of her in her home state of Tennessee.

State representative John Mark Windle introduced legislation last month to create and design a statue of the veteran songstress, 75, to honor her legacy and contributions, after more than 25,000 people signed a petition to replace a confederate statue with her likeness.

Though admittedly 'humbled' by the offer, Parton spoke out on social media Thursday as she politely declined the idea from 'any and all consideration', adding that it did not seem 'appropriate.'

A national treasure: Dolly Parton, 75, has declined Tennessee legislators' bill to erect a monument of her in place of confederate statues as she shared on social media that although she was humbled it was not 'appropriate'; pictured 2019

'I want to thank Tennessee legislature for their consideration of a bill to erect a statue of me on the Capitol grounds. I am honored and humbled by their intention but I have asked the leaders of the state legislature to remove the bill from any and all consideration.

'Given all that is going on in the world, I don't think it's appropriate at this time. I hope, though, that somewhere down the road several years from now or perhaps after I'm gone if you still feel I deserve it, then I'm certain I will stand proud in our great State Capitol as a grateful Tennessean.

'In the meantime, I'll continue to try to do good work to make this great state proud,' she wrote.

No thanks! The veteran songstress said she would like the idea removed from 'any and all consideration,' after a petition popped up last year to erect her likeness on the Capitol grounds in her home state

The bill picked up speed in recent weeks after her notable $1M contribution to fund research for the Moderna vaccine to combat the COVID-19 virus.

Despite that, in an interview with Associated Press she said she was waiting to get her vaccine until people that needed it more urgently got theirs.

'I'm not going to get mine until some more people get theirs. I don't want it to look like I'm jumping the line just because I donated money. I'm very funny about that,' she said.

Additionally she turned down the Presidential Medal of Freedom from the Trump administration citing personal reasons, while adding that President Joe Biden has also made the same offer.

'I couldn't accept it because my husband was ill and then they asked me again about it and I wouldn't travel because of the COVID,' she told NBC's Today.

In demand: The songstress turned down the Presidential Medal of Freedom twice after both the Trump and Biden administrations had offered it to her; pictured 2019

'Now I feel like if I take it, I'll be doing politics, so I'm not sure,' Parton shared.

Always humble she added, 'I don't work for those awards. It'd be nice but I'm not sure that I even deserve it. But it's a nice compliment for people to think that I might deserve it.'

Turning 75 on January 19, she continued with a very selfless birthday wish - kindness.

She wrote on Twitter, 'This year my birthday wish is a call for kindness...Love too often gets buried in a world of hurt and fear.'

A longtime philanthropist, she also founded The Dollywood Foundation in 1988 which has a focus on literacy and education in her home state.
New Delhi:

Indian auto major Tata Motors on Wednesday unveiled a wide range of commercial vehicles in the Philippines with a view to expand its market presence in the South East Asian nation.

The company said it has entered into a distribution agreement with Pilipinas Taj Autogroup Inc, a business conglomerate engaged in local distribution of motor vehicles in the Philippines.

"Through this partnership, Tata Motors will commence the supply of its commercial vehicle brands," the company said in a statement. The range includes Tata Prima Range of tractor trailers and tippers, the LPT range of light, medium and heavy trucks, SFC 407, and the mini trucks range of Ace and Super Ace.

"The Philippines is one of our key markets in South-East Asia and we are delighted to be a part of one of the fastest growing ASEAN nations," Tata Motors Head (InternationalBusiness), Commercial Vehicles Rudrarup Maitra said.

The company is confident that the partnership with Pilipinas Taj Autogroup will be successful in establishing a long-term relationship with customers, he added.

Tata Motors had entered the Philippines market in 2014 with cars and small commercial vehicles. Pilipinas Taj Autogroup President Jon Fernandez Jr said the partnership offered a new opportunity to cater to the commercial vehicle market in the Philippines with India's largest and most trusted automobile brand.



Besides the Philippines, Tata Motors commercial vehicles are present across several South-East Asian markets, including Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Thailand. It has manufacturing facilities in Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia.

For all the Latest Business News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
~In celebration of International Women's day, Local Women in Politics are Recognized~

PHILIPSBURG:--- On March 8, 2021, six (6) influential women in the political arena, representing the Dutch and French side of the island will be keynote speakers in the 2021 event: Oualichi Politics. Oualichi is one of the indigenous names given to pre-Columbian St.Martin meaning strong women. These women of the island have done exceptionally well in their contribution to politics but to St.Maarten/ St.Martins culture for years.

In what is expected to be a historical event of 2021, these dynamic women will share publicly their journeys and vision for an equitable, sustainable, and democratic society. The public is invited to learn more about them, how they overcame challenges and how they are shaping a better future for the island.

The six (6) speakers are the Honorable Silveria Jacobs (Prime Minister and former Minister of Education), Lysanne Charles (Caribbean MP candidate for Tweede Kamer, Bij1), Melissa Gumbs (MP and co-founder of PFP), Jorien Wuite (Caribbean MP candidate for Tweede Kamer, D66), Valerie Demaseau (First Vice President of the Collectivite de Saint-Martin) and Gwendolien E. Mossel (The Bureau Ombudsman).

Speakers will engage with the general public and commentators representing the community such as Ms. Makhicia Brooks, managing director of the St. Maarten Development Fund. Commentators will kick-start the live Q&A. Oualichi Politics will be hosted by Ife Badejo, founder of Produce Wealth Revolution (PWR) Agency.

TelEm Groups Residential Manager Marketing & Sales, Mrs. Julie Zambrini-Judd, says the company is honored to be providing the digital platform and bandwidth required to host such an impressive and influential group of women on St. Maarten, and she is encouraging maximum attendance at the March 8th, event.

Undoubtedly we can expect some stimulating and thought-provoking conversation, not only about politics on our island but also about St. Maarten culture and where its heading. Having worked with the PWR Agency and Ms. Ife Badejo in the past, we look forward to another successful event that we are once again proud to be a part of, said Mrs. Zambrini.

Oualichi Politics is a collaborative effort of the University of St.Martin (USM), TelEm N.V., and the PWR Agency, in celebration of International Womens Day. It will be aired live on March 8 on Facebook platforms of the collaborative partners. For more information or inquiries, kindly email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
A special forces helicopter has clipped a cruise ship on Sydney Harbour during a drill and dramatic footage has shown the moment it makes impact.

The Black Hawk helicopter hit the cruise ship at around 2pm on Thursday, forcing it to make an emergency landing at a public park in the posh Sydney suburb Watson's Bay.

Two aircraft's were participating in an anti-terrorism training exercise when one collided with the mast of a defence-leased Captain Cook Cruise ship.

A special forces helicopter has clipped a cruise ship on Sydney Harbour during a drill and dramatic footage shows the moment it makes impact

The Black Hawk helicopter hit the cruise ship at around 2pm on Thursday, forcing it to make an emergency landing at a public park in Sydney suburb Watson's Bay

Two aircraft's were participating in an anti-terrorism training exercise when one collided with the mast of defence-leased Captain Cook Cruise ship

A harbour fisherman caught the dramatic moment the two crafts collided and uploaded the video to TikTok, reported news.com.au.

The footage showed defence crew members descending onto the ship before the helicopters fly off and make an emergency landing at Robertson Park in Sydney's east.

The personnel from the damaged helicopter were seen transferring quickly into the other aircraft and leaving the scene.

A witness to the training exercise told Nine personnel from the two helicopters had spent several hours winching on and off the cruise ship

A witness to the training exercise told Nine personnel from the two helicopters had spent several hours winching on and off the cruise ship.

One of the Black Hawk helicopters damaged its rotor blade after colliding with the ship

Winching is the pick-up or lowering of an object or a person to or from a helicopter.

Watson Bay residents are used to hearing the rescue helicopters circle the area and land, but one witness said this particular landing sounded different.

'This one came very quick and very loud, the leaves just flew off the trees, virtually before you could blink an eyelid it had landed,' one witness said.

Specialist engineers were seen arriving to assess the scene and to inspect the damage to the helicopter, which is expected to remain in the park overnight.

No civilians or Defence personnel were injured in the incident.
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ROME, FEB 18 - European Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis told the House Thursday he was sure Mario Draghi's new government would "brilliantly" complete Italy's COVID Recovery Plan in time to get the 209 billion in EU funding on tap at the end of April. He said there was still work to be done to make sure the plan reflected all the necessary reforms and investments "but I absolutely convinced that the new government will brilliantly succeed in completing the measures and necessary steps to make sure the huge funding can start flowing as soon as possible". Dombrovskis said "we have already had intense and constructive exchanges with Italian authorities on the national recovery and resilience plan". (ANSA).
With a storm expected to drop up to 8 inches of snow across Connecticut Thursday into Friday, several municipalities have announced parking bans to keep streets clear for plows.

Snow-covered roads and potentially hazardous travel are expected as snow starts to fall, with all of Connecticut under a winter weather advisory through 7 p.m. Friday, according to the National Weather Service. The heaviest snow will hit late Thursday morning into the evening.

Below, find the latest on parking bans, the forecast and more weather-related information.

Feb. 18

4 p.m.  In East Lyme, Director of Public Works Joe Bragaw said snow was coming down pretty good.

Were dealing with it, and it is the northeast, he said. It is what it is.

Bragaw said East Lyme had 3 to 5 inches of snow on the ground as of 2:30 on Thursday afternoon. He said crews came in at 7 a.m., allowing them to get a full night sleep, and began pretreating the roads.

Any time the snow comes down as fast as it is, its kind of hard to keep up because the second you plow (you go to a different area) and once you get back its like you werent even there, he said.

Bragaw said one thing that would help is people keeping their cars off the road, and not travelling unless necessary. He noted that some school buses got stuck as they tried to drop students off after an early dismissal.

In Waterford, First Selectman Rob Brule said the town was handling the snow great, adding all the relevant department heads were on high alert.

Were pretty well organized, he said. Ive got a really good team here in Waterford.

Brule said crews were pre-treating roads early in the day. He noted that Waterford had plenty of salt stockpiled, despite reports that some towns were having issues acquiring it.

The roads are good, he said. The state is doing a nice job. Public works is doing a nice job and everything is good.

1:43 p.m.  Newtown police said fingerprinting services at the police station have been canceled for Thursday because of the weather.

1:35 p.m.  A snow emergency has been declared in Fairfield, with a parking restriction set to go into effect at 6 p.m. Thursday on Reef Road, Fairfield Beach Road, Rowland Road, Penfield Road and Beach Road. Parking is prohibited on those streets until snow removal is complete. Veterans Park and Penfield Pavilion are available for overnight parking.

1:28 p.m.  A parking ban will go into effect on all public streets in Vernon at 9 p.m. Thursday and remain in effect through 5 p.m. Friday. Violators can be ticketed and/or towed.

1:15 p.m.  Police in Easton say road conditions are hazardous, adding that the department has taken numerous reports of vehicles sliding off the road in town. Police asked all residents to stay home unless they absolutely must travel. Anyone who has to travel should drive slow and leave plenty of space between vehicles, police urged.

12:58 p.m.  The National Weather Service said a band of heavy snow will shift through the area from now until around 2 p.m. or 3 p.m. Thursday, bringing snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour to southern Connecticut. Visibility could drop to a quarter of a mile or less.

12:35 p.m.  Roads across Connecticut are slick as plows work to keep up with the falling snow. Officials are urging drivers who dont need to be on the roads to stay home until the storm passes and the roads are clear.

11 a.m.  All Fairfield public and parochial schools will dismiss early on Thursday, the district announced as snow fell across the area. The high schools dismissed at 11 a.m., followed by the middle schools at noon, Holland Hill at 12:05 p.m. and the Walter Fitzgerald campus at 12:25 p.m. The morning pre-school classes will dismiss at 11:45 a.m. and there are no afternoon classes. The elementary schools will dismiss at 1 p.m. with no afternoon classes after dismissal, according to the districts website.

10:45 a.m.  The New Canaan Library will close at noon on Thursday.

10:40 a.m.  State officials say there have been some shipping delays of the COVID-19 vaccine to Connecticut with the snow across the area. Officials said the majority of this weeks doses arrived on time earlier this week.

10:30 a.m.  North Branford police said a parking ban went into effect at 10:30 a.m. Thursday and will continue through the entirety of the storm.

8:50 a.m.  Greenwich Public Schools are on a remote learning day for Thursday. Students are expected to log on during their usual start time.

8:30 a.m.  Wilton Library will be closed Thursday. There will be no drive-through window service or express service appointments. Reference librarians will be available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. remotely to answer questions by email (reference@wiltonlibrary.org) or phone (203-762-6350).

7:50 a.m.  A parking ban will go into effect in Meriden at 10 a.m. Thursday and remains in effect well into Friday, police said. Vehicles cannot be parked on any public street. Off-street parking is available at Columbus Park, Washington Park, Ceppa Field, Jack Barry Little League Field, City Park 116 Cook Ave. and the municipal lot on East Main Street at Saint Casimer Drive.

7:17 a.m.  Norwalk Public Schools will move to a full remote learning schedule for Thursday. Students should be online for instruction at their usual school start time. All school and office staff will work from home.

6:25 a.m.  In Hartford, a parking ban goes into effect at 4 p.m. Thursday, police said.

6:10 a.m.  A widespread 3 to 5 inches of snow is expected across Connecticut by evening, with another 1 to 3 inches possible Thursday night into Friday. Much of the state will see anywhere from 4 to 8 inches. Southwestern Connecticut could see snow-covered roads, poor visibility and hazardous travel by the end of the Thursday morning commute. The Thursday evening commute, as well as Fridays morning and evening commute, could also be impacted.

6 a.m.  In Hamden, a parking ban goes into effect at noon Thursday and remains in effect until further notice.

Feb. 17

10 p.m.  Quinnipiac University in Hamden announced it will hold a remote learning day Thursday. In a tweet, the university said all non-residential buildings will be closed.

7 p.m.  Danbury Mayor Joe Cavo announced the city will be under a level 2 snow emergency starting Thursday morning at 8 a.m.

The declaration means Hat City residents will need to move their vehicles off the street by 10 a.m. Thursday. Free parking is available at the Patriot Parking Garage throughout the snow emergency.

A Level 2 Snow Emergency also means that we are recommending limited travel. Please stay safe should you have to commute throughout the day. I appreciate your continued cooperation as we weather these winter storms, Cavo said in a pre-recorded phone call to residents Wednesday night. Thank you, stay warm and stay safe.

6:30 p.m.  Stamford has declared a snow emergency, putting a parking ban into effect along emergency snow routes. Those along alternate side parking streets will need to move their cars to one side of the street the even numbered side on even calendar days, and odd on odd-numbered calendar days. A complete list of snow emergency routes and alternate side parking streets can be found on the citys website.

6:11 p.m.  Saint Marys Hospital in Waterbury has announced it will close two drive-through testing sites due to the storm. The Division Street test site will be closed Thursday, and the drive-through testing site at the hospital will be closed Friday.

5:15 p.m.  Bridgeport has declared a snow emergency and parking ban starting at 6 a.m. Thursday. Cars cannot be parked on snow emergency routes. On other streets, cars must be parked on the even-numbered side of the street. City residents can also park at Central High School or Bassick High School. Commercial and residential owners are also required to remove snow from their sidewalk or risk a fine.

3:45 p.m.  West Hartford will be under a parking ban beginning 7 a.m. Thursday until further notice, police said in a tweet.

3:30 p.m.  Bristol will be under a parking ban from 6 a.m. Thursday through 6 a.m. Saturday.

10 a.m.  Wallingford will be under a parking ban from 9 a.m. Thursday to 9 a.m. Friday.


Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks to reporters during a news conference at a COVID-19 pop-up vaccination site in the William Reid Apartments in the Brooklyn borough of New York on Jan,. 23, 2021. (Mary Altaffer/Pool/AP)

Strip Governors of Their COVID Emergency Powers

Commentary

From Pennsylvania to California, Americans are relearning what Lord Acton warned about over two centuries ago: Power corrupts. Giving governors emergency powers to fight COVID-19 is destroying our civil liberties and endangering our lives.

The stench from New York Gov. Andrew Cuomos nursing home carnage and months-long coverup is finally causing even Democratic pols in Albany to turn against him. At least 14 are now joining Republicans to demand that Cuomo be stripped of his emergency COVID-19 powers.

And not a day too soon. Cuomo used those powers to shut restaurants and other businesses, close schools, and even impose heavy-handed restrictions on houses of worship until the U.S. Supreme Court rebuked him. Emergency powers should last for a few weeks or maybe a monthjust long enough to keep the public safe until the legislature can swing into action.

Instead, Cuomo has wielded emergency powers for 11 monthswith disastrous consequences for businesses, workers, schoolchildren, and the elderly.

Last March 25, the Cuomo administration ordered nursing homes to accept hospital patients treated for COVID-19. Then, for months afterward, he lied and covered up news about the thousands of deaths that resulted when the virus raced through the homes. In January, state Attorney General Letitia James, a Cuomo protege, revealed the true death toll in an investigative report. Last week, Cuomos top aide Melissa DeRosa admitted that the administration withheld the truth to avoid a federal Department of Justice investigation.

The Republican minority in the state legislature has been trying repeatedly to rein in Cuomos powers, but the Democratic majority refused, preferring to collect their paychecks for doing nothing while the governor called all the shots.

Now, with the public demanding accountability, some Democrats finally are on board.

Republicans want moreimpeachmentbut thats not going to happen. Convicting and removing the governor would require an improbable two-thirds vote in the democratically controlled state Senate.

Its been 100 years since a New York governor was impeached, though, in 2008, lawmakers were readying articles of impeachment against Gov. Eliot Spitzer for his involvement in a prostitution ring. Spitzer chose to resign.

Stripping Cuomo of his emergency powers is politically doable, and the public would benefit. That would put the state legislature back in charge, ensuring that whatever actions are taken to fight COVID-19 are more reasonable than what Cuomo did. Its hard to imagine that state lawmakers would vote to shutter churches, destroy businesses, and close down schools in their own districts. Theyd have to answer to their own angry neighbors and constituents. Albany is largely insulated from that.

Even when governors behave more honorably than Cuomo, prolonged emergency powers are a bad idea. After all, if government by one person produced wiser decisions than government by the peoples elected lawmakers, wed opt for autocratic government all the time. Why choose it during crises?

Eleven months into the pandemic, the public across the country is revolting against governors whose emergency powers have allowed them to act like autocrats. Over half the states are in the process of passing laws barring governors from closing businesses and schools in a future emergency. Pennsylvania is considering a law to limit a governors disaster powers to 21 days. Kentucky is limiting them to 30 days, and Indiana is imposing a 60-day limit.

Laughably, many of these governors are pushing back, even going to court to hold onto their autocratic powers. They argue that in emergencies, the democratic process is too slow and messy. Dont buy it. Like Cuomo, theyre relishing power.

In California, a recall effort against Gov. Gavin Newsom has amassed more than 1.5 million signatures. Newsom sparked outrage not only with his lockdown orders but also his hypocrisy. When he got caught attending a posh dinner at the French Laundry restaurant in Napa Valley, the recall effort gained steam.

Sadly, New York state doesnt provide for recall, and one-party rule makes impeachment impossible. The public is stuck with Cuomo at least until the next gubernatorial election, nearly two years off. Thats why state lawmakers must act now to remove King Cuomos emergency powers.

As the political sages teach, absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Betsy McCaughey, Ph.D., is a political commentator, constitutional expert, syndicated columnist, and author of several books, including The Obama Health Law: What It Says and How to Overturn, and The Next Pandemic. She is also a former lieutenant governor of New York.
Mr. Boakye Agyarko, a former Energy Minister has disclosed that the cancellation of the Ghanas power agreement with GPGC Limited which has led to the birth of a $134 million judgment debt did not occur under his watch.



The decision from Cabinet was to restructure our power sector which was bridled with a lot of poorly agreed contracts which were going to put the country into further financial problems.



For the said plant , GPGC Ltd who were expected to provide emergency power for four years sort to use a Used Plant which was due for decommissioning in Italy to Ghana as against the Energy Commissions regulations.

The said company as at the time of the renegotiation didnt even have a site to operate, he said.



Mr. Agyarko is credited for successfully stabilizing the powers supply and distribution networks in this country, having him end the perineal  DUMSOR this country was facing.



Mr. Agyarko is unhappy and surprised that his name has been linked with the abrogation of the deal despite not having powers to do so at the time.



Speaking in at Oman FM interview which was monitored by many Ghanaians, Boakye Agyarko explained that at the time of the cancellation of the deal, he was no longer serving as Energy Minister.



I just realized that they had filed for arbitration on August 11, 2018. This was after I had left the ministry. I never knew they had gone for arbitration. I am told that the government presented itself at the arbitration. How would someone accuse me of cancelling the contract? I have not cancelled any contract, I dont have the power nor the need or desire to cancel it. I am for what will help Ghana, he said.



Mr. Agyarko in disappointment and displeasure revealed how a representative of GPGC tried to get him change a cabinet decision which he didnt succumb to.



Mr. Agyarko presented documents to buttress his point and clear his name of such unfounded allegations.



Mr. Agyarko ended his interview with Oman fm by stating that the deliberate attempt by some individuals to tarnish his image should be rethought about as it has no bearing on him but the party-NPP and Ghana as a whole.



 Boakye Agyarko Clears air on $134 Million Judgement Debt ; Decision was a Cabinet Decision not personal 



Mr. Boakye Agyarko, a former Energy Minister has disclosed that the cancellation of the Ghanas power agreement with GPGC Limited which has led to the birth of a $134 million judgment debt did not occur under his watch.



The decision from Cabinet was to restructure our power sector which was bridled with a lot of poorly agreed contracts which were going to put the country into further financial problems.

For the said plant , GPGC Ltd who were expected to provide emergency power for four years sort to use a Used Plant which was due for decommissioning in Italy to Ghana as against the Energy Commissions regulations.

The said company as at the time of the renegotiation didnt even have a site to operate, he said.



Mr. Agyarko is credited for successfully stabilizing the powers supply and distribution networks in this country, having him end the perineal  DUMSOR this country was facing.



Mr. Agyarko is unhappy and surprised that his name has been linked with the abrogation of the deal despite not having powers to do so at the time.



Speaking in at Oman FM interview which was monitored by many Ghanaians, Boakye Agyarko explained that at the time of the cancellation of the deal, he was no longer serving as Energy Minister.



I just realized that they had filed for arbitration on August 11, 2018. This was after I had left the ministry. I never knew they had gone for arbitration. I am told that the government presented itself at the arbitration. How would someone accuse me of cancelling the contract? I have not cancelled any contract, I dont have the power nor the need or desire to cancel it. I am for what will help Ghana, he said.



Mr. Agyarko in disappointment and displeasure revealed how a representative of GPGC tried to get him change a cabinet decision which he didnt succumb to.



Mr. Agyarko presented documents to buttress his point and clear his name of such unfounded allegations.



Mr. Agyarko ended his interview with Oman fm by stating that the deliberate attempt by some individuals to tarnish his image should be rethought about as it has no bearing on him but the party-NPP and Ghana as a whole.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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It's about reforming the High Council of Justice and taking certain measures in energy policy.

G7 Ambassadors (diplomats representing the UK, the U.S., Canada, France, Italy, Germany, and Japan) informed Minister of Finance of Ukraine Serhiy Marchenko of the measures that need to be taken to have the International Monetary Fund complete the review of its Stand-By Arrangement for Ukraine.

During their meeting with Minister, G7 Ambassadors "welcomed Ukraine's commitment to take the necessary actions, including reforming the High Council of Justice & on energy policy, to conclude the review of Ukraine's IMF programme," the Support Group tweeted.

Read alsoBreak in Ukraine-IMF talks could make hryvnia much weaker  expert"Delivering these commitments, as well as the positive plans we heard about regarding land reform and financing a green transition, will support Ukraine's macro-economic stability and development," the diplomats added.

Stand-By Arrangement: Background

On June 9, 2020, the IMF's Executive Board adopted an 18-month Stand-By Arrangement for Ukraine with funding equivalent to SDR 3.6 billion (about US$5 billion) aimed at helping Ukraine overcome the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On June 12, Ukraine received the first tranche of the IMF loan under the SBA worth US$2.1 billion.

In late November, the Finance Ministry reported on the successful completion of talks with the IMF on the benchmarks of the draft 2021 budget, which was one of the major prerequisites for starting the IMF to start the SBA review.

On January 11, 2021, the IMF mission resumed its work in Kyiv but the next day completed its work without making a decision on the SBA review.

"The discussions were productive, but more progress is needed to support completion of the first review under the program. Discussions will continue," IMF Resident Representative in Ukraine Goesta Ljungman said in a press release on February 13.

As per the IMF official, the discussions focused on strengthening governance of the National Bank; improvements to the legislative and regulatory framework for bank supervision and resolution; policies to reduce the medium term fiscal deficit; legislation restoring and strengthening the anti-corruption framework and the judiciary; and energy policy.

Reporting by UNIAN

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Phillips Carbon Black advanced 2.48% to Rs 202.50 after company informed about the commissioning of two specialty black lines at Palej in Gujarat.

The lines are for production of wide range of specialty black products totalling about 32,000 MTPA (million tonnes per annum) to service the growing needs of its customers. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday.

In the past one year, the stock has gained 60.77% while the benchmark Sensex rose 26.40% during the same period.

Phillips Carbon Black, a part of RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, is India's largest carbon black manufacturer.

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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The most picturesque views in the UK according to experts in the matter - Britons - are of Loch Ness and Windermere.

Researchers asked the British public to vote for the views that inspire, delight and excite them the most and Loch Ness and Windermere came joint top with 27 per cent of the vote each.

The London Eye came second with 26 per cent, while the Tower of London, St Ives Bay in Cornwall and Ingleton in the Yorkshire were joint third with 24 per cent of the vote.

The view of Loch Ness came joint top when researchers asked the British public to vote for the views that inspire, delight and excite them the most. Rumours of the Loch Ness monster living in its waters have abounded over the decades, despite a distinct lack of hard evidence

The view across the Lake District's Windermere, which came joint top in the public view vote. Measuring 5.69 square miles, Windermere is the largest natural lake in England and the body of water has 18 islands. This stunning picture of the lake was snapped by Instagram user @dianavonr

The London Eye came second with 26 per cent of the vote. The eye's capsules travel at 26cm per second and it takes around 30 minutes for them to do a full rotation of the wheel

THE MOST STUNNING VIEWS IN THE UK ACCORDING TO THE EXPERTS - BRITONS 1= Loch Ness - 27 per cent 1= Windermere - 27 per cent 2. The London Eye - 26 per cent 3= The Tower of London - 24 per cent 3= St Ives Bay, Cornwall - 24 per cent 3= Ingleton, The Yorkshire Dales - 24 per cent 4. Snowdonia, Wales - 23 per cent 5. Man OWar beach, Jurassic Coast - 20 per cent 6= White Cliffs of Dover - 19 per cent 6= Stonehenge - 19 per cent 7= Ben Nevis, Scotland - 18 per cent 7= Cheddar Gorge, Somerset - 18 per cent 8. York Minster - 17 per cent 9= Loch Lomond, Scotland - 16 per cent 9= Pen y Fan, Brecon Beacons - 16 per cent 9= The Giants Causeway, Northern Ireland - 16 per cent 10= Durdle Door, Dorset - 15 per cent 10= Westminster Bridge, London - 15 per cent 10= Arthurs Seat, Edinburgh - 15 per cent 11. St Michaels Mount, Cornwall - 14 per cent 12= Peak District from Stanage Edge - 13 per cent 12= Buttermere, Lake District - 13 per cent 12= Robin Hoods Bay, Yorkshire - 13 per cent 13= Hadrians Wall, Northumberland - 12 per cent 13= Richmond Park, London - 12 per cent 14= The Angel of the North, Gateshead - 11 per cent 14= The Three Sisters, Glencoe Valley - 11 per cent 14= Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight - 11 per cent 15. Eden Valley, Cumbria - 10 per cent 16. Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland - nine per cent Source: LNER Advertisement

Other popular vistas were Snowdonia (fourth, 23 per cent), the Jurassic Coast's Man O'War beach in Dorset (fifth, 20 per cent), the White Cliffs of Dover (joint sixth, 19 per cent) and Stonehenge (joint sixth, 19 per cent).

Completing the top 10 were Ben Nevis (joint seventh, 18 per cent), Cheddar Gorge (joint seventh, 18 per cent), York Minster (eighth, 17 per cent), Loch Lomond (joint ninth, 16 per cent), Pen y Fan in the Brecon Beacons (joint ninth, 16 per cent), Giant's Causeway - as featured in Game of Thrones - (joint ninth, 16 per cent), Dorset's Durdle Door (joint 10th, 15 per cent), London's Westminster Bridge (joint 10th, 15 per cent) and Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh (joint 10th, 15 per cent).

According to the research, by London North Eastern Railway (LNER), a whopping two-thirds of Britons had desperately missed being able to visit UK beauty spots during the past year (67 per cent).

And 58 per cent hope to visit their favourite UK destinations as soon as restrictions are lifted, and it is safe to do so.

The study also discovered that the UK is a proud nation, as nearly half (47 per cent) insisted that Britain is blessed with some of the most beautiful views in the world, and a further 44 per cent admitted they are grateful to live somewhere that has such stunning scenery.

Two-thirds of Britons said they have British beauty spots and destinations on their own personal travel bucket lists (67 per cent).

The Tower of London has been a Unesco-designated World Heritage Site since 1988 and is the home of the Crown Jewels. It came joint third in the vote

An aerial view of Cornwall's St Ives Bay, which came joint third in the poll. The bay is on the Atlantic coast of north-west Cornwall and stretches for four miles between St Ives and Godrevy Head

A bewitching shot of a pathway outside the picturesque village of Ingleton by Instagram user @real_yorkshire. Ingleton is nestled on the slopes of Ingleborough, a 2,372ft (723m) mountain in the Yorkshire Dales

When it comes to what it is about Britains views that make them so spectacular, 47 per cent of those polled said the UK has a great mix of both landscapes and urban cityscapes, 45 per cent think theres lots of history to see in British views, while over a third said the proximity of city and countryside means you can be transported to a different view in minutes (36 per cent).

Despite Britain being a small island, 42 per cent of those taking part in the vote agreed that it is home to places that feel wild and undiscovered, with rural beauty spots like Robin Hoods Bay in Yorkshire coming joint 12th (13 per cent) in the stunning view ranking.

In fact, 57 per cent go as far as to say that a UK-based trip can be just as enjoyable - or even better - than a holiday abroad and that they like to explore destinations that offer plenty to discover (49 per cent), beautiful views and scenery (47 per cent) and going somewhere they have never been before (42 per cent).

The research also revealed that 77 per cent of Britons hoping to holiday this summer are intending to take a UK staycation first before planning a trip abroad.

Snowdonia, which came fourth in the picturesque vistas poll. The national park is home to the highest mountain in England and Wales - Snowdon, which is 3,560ft (1,085m) high

Fifth place in the vote was the Jurassic Coast's Man O'War beach in Dorset, pictured. This incredible image of the beach was taken by Instagram user @macaloon and has been liked 539 times

Unsurprisingly, six in 10 (61 per cent) of the 2,000 people polled admitted they have found UK-based travel restrictions over the past 12 months to be frustrating.

David Horne, managing director at LNER, said: 'Its clear to see that as a nation were proud to be home to some amazing views, ranging from natural beauty like Loch Ness and the Yorkshire Dales to great cities like London and York.

'Although restrictions are in place, for now, it is not difficult to see why so many of us will be looking to explore the beauty of Britain once it is safe to do so.

The White Cliffs of Dover, which stretch for eight miles and are up to 350ft (110m) high, came joint sixth in the public vote

Stonehenge, which came joint sixth in the vote. The pre-historic monument, on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, was designated a Unesco World Heritage site in 1986

'When people can travel again, it is pleasing to see that the staycation should return thanks to the ease of travelling around the UK, and an enjoyable, safe journey being a key priority.

'We are not surprised to see destinations on the LNER route feature highly in the popular vote as we are blessed with some of the most picturesque spots in the UK.

'With over 900 miles of track to explore, were looking forward to helping people discover their favourite views again soon.'
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Chris Morris on Thursday became the most expensive player in IPL history. After a competitive round of bidding, Rajasthan Royals purchased all-rounder Chris Morris for Rs 16.25 crore. Going into the auction the South African all-rounder had a base price of Rs 75 lakh.

After an intense bidding war between Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore, Morris finally went to the Rajasthan side for the record amount.

Morris has dethroned Yuvraj Singh as the most expensive IPL player. In 2015, Delhi Daredevils had purchased Yuvraj Singh for Rs 16 crore which at that time was the highest any team had ever paid for a player.

Australian bowler Pat Cummins is now the third most expensive player in IPL history. In the year 2020, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) had bought Pat Cummins for Rs 15.5 crore. Following Cummins is Ben Stokes as the fourth most expensive player in IPL history. Rising Pune Supergiants had purchased the English all-rounder for Rs 14.5 crore back in 2017.

The fifth most expensive purchase in IPL history is also from the 2021 auction. Australian all-rounder Glen Maxwell, who had a base price of Rs 2 crore, was sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 14.25 crore.

IPL 2021 auction is currently underway. Eights teams with deep pockets are competing with each other to purchase the players of their choosing.

Also read: IPL 2021 Auction Live Updates: Chris Morris goes to RR for Rs 16.25 crore after intense bidding war
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Michael J. Hicks, Ph.D., is the director of the Center for Business and Economic Research and the George and Frances Ball distinguished professor of economics in the Miller College of Business at Ball State University. Contact him at cberdirector@bsu.edu.
[February 18, 2021] Universal Broadband Fund-supported project will bring high-speed Internet to southern British Columbia

Rural British Columbians to benefit from increased connectivity OTTAWA, ON, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how much we rely on our connections. Now more than ever, Canadians across the country need access to reliable high-speed Internet as many of us are working, learning, and staying in touch with friends and family from home. Right now, too many Canadians living in rural and remote communities lack access to high-speed Internet. Through the Universal Broadband Fund's (UBF) Rapid Response Stream, the Government of Canada is taking immediate action to get Canadians connected to the high-speed Internet they need. Today, the Honourable Maryam Monsef, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development, announced $6.7 million in funding for TELUS Communications to bring high-speed Internet to rural residents of British Columbia. This project will connect 1,977 underserved households in the following regions: Pemberton, Steelhead, Ryder Lake, northwest of Princeton and the north Sunshine Coast. The $1.75-billion Universal Broadband Fund was launched on November 9, 2020. The project being announced today was approved within three months of the formal launch of the program. Projects funded under the UBF, as well as through other public and private investments, will help connect 98% of Canadians to high-speed Internet by 2026 and achieve the national target of 100% connectivity by 2030. To facilitate applications for projects like this one, the UBF provides a pathfinder service for applicants, particularly for those who need more support to build partnerships, find potential sources of funding and navigate the application process. Today's announcement builds on the progress the Government of Canada has already made to support British Columbians living in rural and remote communities. Since 2015, the federal government has invested over $2 billion in more than 113 infrastructure projects in British Columbia communities. These investments mean 124 km of new or upgraded roads that are making our communities safer; more than 604 projects that are providing residents with cleaner, more sustainable sources of drinking water; and more than 3,282 additional housing units in rural communities, helping ensure all British Colombians have a safe place to call home. Quotes "High-speed Internet service is essential o the success of everyone living and working in rural British Columbia. Today's investment will bring reliable, high-speed Internet access to 1,977 households in southern British Columbia, helping create jobs, improving access to health care and online learning services, and keeping people connected to their loved ones. Our government has committed approximately $90 million to 20 connectivity projects in British Columbia, which will connect over 28,000 more households to better, faster Internet. We will continue to make investments like these to help connect every Canadian to the high-speed Internet they need."





"Access to reliable, high-speed Internet is essential for our health, safety, work and education, as well as for the way we communicate. The pandemic has only reinforced this reality and highlighted the need to bridge the urban-rural connectivity divide. Today's investment is an important step in doing just that, providing better connection to hundreds of homes on the Sunshine Coast and in the Squamish-Lillooet regional districts. Projects like this will ensure that 98% of Canadian households have access to high-speed Internet by 2026 and that every Canadian has access to high-speed Internet by 2030."

 Patrick Weiler, Member of Parliament for West VancouverSunshine CoastSea to Sky Country

"TELUS is committed to ensuring all British Columbians can stay connected to the people and information that matter the most. Social capitalism is a central thesis of what we do, and by bringing our PureFibre network to 11 more rural communities in partnership with the Universal Broadband Fund, we are bridging digital divides. Since 2013, we have invested more than $5 billion to connect 2.5 million premises in 137 communities to our PureFibre network, including 1.6 million Canadians living in rural and remote parts of our country, as well as 56 First Nations in B.C. These investments ensure British Columbians in more remote parts of our province have equal access to the educational, health and economic opportunities that PureFibre's speed and capacity provide."

 Shazia Zeb Sobani, Vice-President of Customer Network Implementation, TELUS Quick facts Canada's Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload.

Connectivity Strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to Internet speeds of at least 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download / 10 Mbps upload. Applications to the Universal Broadband Fund are being accepted until 3:00 p.m. (ET) on March 15, 2021 .

on . The UBF is part of a suite of federal investments to improve high-speed Internet. The suite includes the Connect to Innovate program, which is expected to connect nearly 400,000 households by 2023, and the recently announced $2-billion broadband initiative from the Canada Infrastructure Bank. Associated links Backgrounder: Universal Broadband Fund and Telesat low Earth orbit satellite capacity agreement

Universal Broadband Fund

Connect to Innovate Program  Project status updates

Canada Infrastructure Bank announcement

High-Speed Access for All: Canada's Connectivity Strategy Stay connected Follow Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada on Twitter: @ISED_CA SOURCE Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

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Former High Court justice Kenneth Hayne has condemned sexual harassment in the legal profession and the culture of victim-blaming as he urged senior lawyers to deliver blunt messages aimed at curbing unacceptable behaviour.

Mr Hayne, QC, who sat on the High Court bench for almost 18 years, including a decade alongside Dyson Heydon, said sexual harassment shames the perpetrator, not the victim and it must be called out for what it is: an abuse of power.

Former High Court Justice and banking royal commissioner Kenneth Hayne, QC. Credit:Eddie Jim

Sexual harassment was a continuing and pervasive issue in the legal profession and elsewhere, and not a case of a few dinosaurs ... [who] will die out, he said.

The High Court confirmed in June last year that an independent inquiry commissioned by the court had found Dyson Heydon sexually harassed six former staff members. He has denied the allegations.
EACH AND EVERY DAY, my colleagues and I hear about how New Hampshires high property taxes are an unsustainable burden on hardworking Granite Staters. According to a recent report from US News and WalletHub, New Hampshire has the third-highest property tax rates in the country. For young wor
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The 27-year-old who became a covid-19 data superstar

If only he could now predict when the third stimulus check will arrive!

Via Bloomberg: "In the contest over who could make the most accurate coronavirus forecast, it was global institutions vs. a guy living with his parents in Santa Clara.

"Spring 2020 brought with it the arrival of the celebrity statistical model. As the public tried to gauge how big a deal the coronavirus might be in March and April, it was pointed again and again to two forecasting systems: one built by Imperial College London, the other by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, or IHME, based in Seattle.

"But the models yielded wildly divergent predictions. Imperial warned that the U.S. might see as many as 2 million covid-19 deaths by the summer, while the IHME forecast was far more conservative, predicting about 60,000 deaths by August. Neither, it turned out, was very close. The U.S. ultimately reached about 160,000 deaths by the start of August.

"The huge discrepancy in the forecasting figures that spring caught the attention of a then 26-year-old data scientist named Youyang Gu. The young man had a masters degree in electrical engineering and computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and another degree in mathematics, but no formal training in a pandemic-related area such as medicine or epidemiology. Still, he thought his background dealing with data models could prove useful during the pandemic.

"In mid-April, while he was living with his parents in Santa Clara, Calif., Gu spent a week building his own Covid death predictor and a website to display the morbid information. Before long, his model started producing more accurate results than those cooked up by institutions with hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and decades of experience.

"While certainly not perfect, Gus model performed well from the outset. In late April he predicted the U.S. would see 80,000 deaths by May 9. The actual death toll was 79,926. A similar late-April forecast from IHME predicted that the U.S. would not surpass 80,000 deaths through all of 2020. Gu also predicted 90,000 deaths on May 18 and 100,000 deaths on May 27, and once again got the numbers right.

"Where IHME expected the virus to fade away as a result of social distancing and other policies, Gu predicted there would be a second, large wave of infections and deaths as many states reopened from lockdowns."
Advertising monitoring and insights business, Adcheck, celebrates its 50th birthday this year. Considered one of the country's leading advertising monitoring services, in 2020 the company detected more than 38 billion impressions on digital display and video advertising, across Facebook, YouTube and more than 500 IAB publishers.

Angela Adamson

The company was founded in 1971 as Adcheck to provide a vouching service for print media bookings and tear sheets for advertising agencies. After various owners the business was sold by entrepreneur Trevor Ahier to Primedia where it formed part of the marketing division. Adcheck was then sold back to Ahier who established a new division called Retail Monitor, which tracked broadsheet promotional activity. In 2008, the Retail Monitor division merged with BMi Foodpack, which later became known as BMi Research. Adcheck is currently co-owned by BMi Research and Adcheck director, Angela Adamson who has been with the business since 2009.Over the last five decades, the company has built its monitoring experience and developed significant expertise around monitoring and analysing advertising of its clients competitors. In the process, it has kept abreast of advancements in the industry including utilising state-of-the-art technology.In 2014, Adcheck broke new ground when it introduced an innovative web-based delivery portal for marketers and brand owners who wanted the inside track on competitor advertising. The online portal boasted user-friendly search functionality that allowed clients to browse through all the latest advertising material being published or broadcast by their competitors. At the time, the new portal revolutionised delivery given that marketers had previously received the tracked advertising material via disc  or had to wait for it to be uploaded to an FTP site before they could access it.The biggest game-changer was Adchecks introduction of AdClarity in 2019, currently the only cross-channel digital advertising intelligence solution in South Africa. Adchecks AdClarity provides insights from over 500 South African IAB publishers, Facebook and YouTube through multiple searches per day.Specialising in providing insights on brands strategy and programmatic media buying and selling for desktop display, mobile web and video, AdClarity is able to drill down  all the way to the creative level  and reveal the entire creative deployment chain. The benefit of the solution is that it allows advertisers, publishers and advertising agencies to make strategic decisions based on competitive insights by revealing competitors number of impressions and share of voice in real-time; competitors creative executions, media plans and the online publishers they are using to execute them; share of voice by publisher; and competitors digital media mixes.In 2020, additional features were added to AdClarity including adspend and monitoring of Facebook paid for media.AdClarity and the opportunity to measure digital impression is the biggest change to the business in the last decade, says Adamson, adding that this has enabled the business to offer a significantly more competitive offering. And although print has seen a decline, Adcheck continues to provide ad checking and verification of print placements on behalf of advertising agencies.What has not changed is the businesss core business of vouching, supported by a number of long-standing employees including Suraya Omar, one of the original Adcheck staff members, who celebrates 45 years of service this year.Conceding that 2020 was a challenging year for the business as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Adamson reports that despite this, Adcheck was able to maintain its overall revenue and has seen a steady uptake on the digital side of the business in the last year. Growth, she concludes, is looking positive for the year ahead with a number of new digital accounts.
Rates of vaccination in Black and Latino communities in New York are lower than rates in largely white communities, new data shows, the latest evidence that suggests they arent getting equal access to vaccines, even though they have been disproportionately been affected by the coronavirus.

The picture is hazy because accurate national data on race and ethnicity is lagging. But experts and leaders in these communities say the data shows that Black and Latino Americans are being vaccinated at lower rates because they face obstacles like language and technology barriers, disparities in access to medical facilities and getting to a site.

Some Black and Latino Americans face other problems, too, including social media misinformation and hesitancy to get the vaccine because of mistrust in government officials and doctors.

Data released on Tuesday on the 1.3 million vaccines administered in New York City showed lower rates of vaccination in predominantly Black areas. New York State also reports Latino and Black residents to be behind in vaccination totals.
Cannabidiol (CBD), an extract from the hemp plant, has entered the market in recent years for its potential health and wellness benefits and homeostatic qualities. People take CBD oil to combat anxiety, pain, inflammation, depression, and a broad scope of other issues.

One of the most popular ways to take CBD is in the form of gummy candy. CBD gummies taste good, provide a regulated CBD dose, and are more discreet than pills or tinctures. However, with so many CBD gummies on the market, you may feel overwhelmed trying to choose the best or safest option for your needs.

We have compiled a list of the top five best CBD gummies to help you as you search. Read on to learn more about each of these CBD products and how CBD can benefit your health overall.

Top 5 Best CBD Gummies of 2021

#1 Fab CBD: Best Brand Overall

Fab CBD is the best overall brand for high-quality CBD gummies. These gummy bears contain full-spectrum cannabidiol, maximizing their potential health benefits. They utilize an all-natural, non-GMO, vegan formula that is safe for the environment and your health, so you can feel confident that these gummies are of top-notch quality.

Fab CBD sources its CBD from hemp, which contains less than 0.3 percent tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), rather than marijuana. The company purchases its U.S.-grown hemp plants from a farm in Colorado, making the CBD the safest for consumption and meeting the highest standards for hemp products.

The Fab gummy product contains a blend of cane sugar, citric acid, and concentrated apple, carrot, and black currant to produce a fruity, sweet, delicious flavor. Better yet, it does not contain high-fructose corn syrup as many other gummies do.

Because Fab CBD gummy bears utilize full-spectrum CBD, these products contain all the cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids your body needs to stimulate your endocannabinoid system, as well as less than 0.3 percent THC. As a result, users may experience relief from everyday stressors, faster recovery from exercise, and a sense of focus and calmness when taking them.

This product contains 25mg of CBD isolate oil per gummy, with 30 fruit-flavored gummies per Fab jar. We recommend starting with one or two Fab CBD gummies per day and increasing your dose as neededbut you should always talk to your doctor before beginning a CBD regimen.

Fab CBD produces some of the best CBD gummies on the market. Whether you are new to CBD or have tried other products in the past, we think youll be impressed by the potent, quality ingredients in these CBD gummy bears.

Gluten-free, non-GMO, and vegan

25 milligrams of CBD isolate per fummy

30 gummies per package

Fruit-flavored

Premium Colorado-grown hemp extract

Click Here to Visit the Fab CBD Website for the Best Prices

#2 CBDistillery: Pure CBD Oil Gummies for Sleep and Anxiety

CBDistillery is the top CBD gummy brand recommended for sleep and anxiety. Some people prefer higher-potency CBD gummies so that they can take fewer each day. If this sounds like you, CBDistillery may offer the best CBD gummy option.

CBDistillery produces delicious CBD gummies that contain 30mg of CBD per gummy, which is a higher dose than other hemp gummies on the market. You may experience more noticeable benefits after taking these gummies than you may get from less potent products.

CBDistillery takes quality and safety seriously when producing its broad-spectrum gummies, which contain zero THC. The company sources its hemp from a farm that utilizes outdoor, natural practices, promising that the hemp is safe and pure. The company then uses a food-safe CO2 extraction process to isolate the cannabidiol, creating a THC-free CBD extract.

Next, CBDistillery heats the CBD oil to activate the cannabinoids, then freezes it to remove unwanted terpenes and fatty acids. The remaining oil is a pure crystalline powder that the company adds to all its CBD gummies.

Every CBDistillery CBD product undergoes third-party lab testing to verify its cannabidiol content and quality. Better yet, the company has received certification from the U.S. Hemp Authority to ensure that it meets regulatory guidelines during each step of production.

These gummies contain only gluten-free, non-GMO, and vegan ingredients, including tapioca starch, pectin, and malic acid. They do not have any artificial colors or chemical flavorings you may find in other gummies, making them a toxin-free CBD option.

CBDistillery sells two varieties of broad-spectrum CBD gummies: mixed-berry-flavored sleep gummies and tropical-fruit-flavored anytime gummies. The companys sleep gummies contain melatonin as an added ingredient, making them the perfect natural solution for night-time insomnia and anxiety. Both varieties include 30mg of CBD per gummy and 30 gummies per bottle.

If youre looking for a potent, flavorful CBD gummy, youll want to give CBDistillery a try.

30 milligrams of CBD per gummy

Mixed berry and tropical fruit flavors

30 broad-spectrum CBD gummies per package

Third party tested

High quality hemp

Click Here to Visit the CBDistillery Website for the Best Prices

#3 Joy Organics: Organic CBD-Infused Hemp Gummies

The best CBD gummies can be expensive, leading many people to avoid buying them. If you're looking for quality, natural CBD gummies on a budget, Joy Organics is the brand to try. These broad-spectrum CBD gummies are more affordable than other products on the market, and Joy Organics offers several discounts and freebies each month to bring your total cost down further.

Joy Organics CBD gummies are premium-grade, broad-spectrum CBD products that contain zero THC. Like other broad-spectrum gummies, these products include phytocannabinoidsincluding cannabidiolthat stimulate your endocannabinoid system. Taking these CBD chews may promote bodily homeostasis, leading to an overall feeling of contentment, healthier sleep patterns, and mental focus.

The company sources its hemp from a U.S.-based farm, ensuring that the CBD in its candy is high quality and natural. Its products are also third-party lab-tested to verify that they meet quality and potency standards.

Each Joy Organics gummy contains gluten-free, vegan ingredients such as fruit and vegetable juice, spirulina, organic tapioca syrup, and cane sugar to create its fruity, delicious flavor. Joy Organics gummies come in strawberry lemonade and green apple options.

Joy Organics offers several promotions to bring down the cost of its products. New customers receive 10 percent off their first purchase, and the company will ship your order to your house free.

Even better, Joy Organics provides a subscribe-and-save option that lets you save 35 percent on your order. Subscribing to the products means you can receive a new jar of gummies at your door every two, four, six, eight, or 12 weeks without having to reorder them yourself.

Joy Organics CBD gummies contain 10mg of CBD per gummy, lower than other products on our list. However, these products are an excellent choice for people on a budget who want a small boost of CBD each day in a tasty, flavor-packed gummy.

Vegan CBD gummies

Flavors include strawberry-lemonade and green apple

10 milligrams of broad-spectrum CBD per gummy

USA-grown hemp

Subscribe and save 30 percent off

Click Here to Visit the Joy Organics Website for the Best Prices

#4 Cheef Botanicals: High-Quality CBD Edibles

Cheef Botanicals is one of our top choices for high-quality CBD edibles. Many people enjoy the potency and potential health benefits of a full-spectrum CBD oil product. As opposed to broad-spectrum varieties, full-spectrum cannabidiol contains trace amounts of THC, amplifying its effects on your endocannabinoid system.

If youre in the market for the best full-spectrum CBD gummies, Cheef Botanicals gummies are an excellent choice. These products contain 100 percent full-spectrum CBD that the company sources from Colorado-grown hemp.

Cheef Botanicals CBD gummies contain less than 0.3 percent THC, making them legal in the many states that allow ingestible CBD products. You are unlikely to experience a high feeling after taking these gummies because they contain such minute amounts of THC.

Because Cheef Botanicals gummies utilize full-spectrum CBD, they contain cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids, as well. Combining these elements optimizes the CBDs strength by producing a synergistic effectcalled the entourage effectenabling you to take a smaller dosage than CBD-isolate gummies to achieve similar results.

Cheef Botanicals utilized rigorous testing and refining during development to ensure that its products hold up to quality standards.

These gummies contain only non-GMO, gluten-free, vegan ingredients. The company utilizes fruit and vegetable extracts instead of artificial flavors and colors, and the gummies do not have any high-fructose corn syrup.

Each jar of Cheef Botanicals CBD gummies includes a mix of apple, orange, pineapple, and strawberry flavors. The bottles contain 10mg of CBD per gummy, and you can choose between 30-, 75-, 150-, or 300-count jars.

Taking these CBD gummies may lead to an overall sense of well-being and contentment. Cheef Botanicals products are ideal for customers looking to optimize CBD oils effects without experiencing any side effects from THC.

Vegan CBD gummies

Assorted fruit flavors

Available in 300mg, 750mg, 1500mg and 3000 milligrams of CBD

100 percent satisfaction guaranteed

Click Here to Visit the Cheef Botanicals Website for the Best Prices

#5 Royal CBD: Full-Spectrum Gummy Bears For Sale

In general, CBD gummies can be hit or miss when it comes to flavor. Some taste overly sweet, others taste very natural, and some have little to no flavor. One of the appeals of CBD gummies is their delicious flavors, so finding ones that taste good is essential to being happy with your purchase.

On that note, Royal CBD offers delicious, flavorful CBD gummies that use all-natural ingredients. The gummies' formula is gluten-free and non-GMO, and their natural flavors mask the cannabis extract taste without sacrificing its potency.

These gummies contain CBD isolate, the 99.99 percent pure form of cannabidiol, which is THC-free. Unlike the other products we reviewed, Royal CBD gummies do not have any other phytocannabinoids like terpenes or flavonoids, and they contain a higher concentration of CBD than other gummies. This concentration may help your body maintain homeostasis and balance, reducing stress.

Royal CBD gummies come in 10 mg and 25 mg dosages, so you can choose the potency that works best for your health and lifestyle. The gummies come in strawberry, orange, and grape flavors, and customers say they taste just like fruit snacks. You can choose between dots and sour drops depending on how sweet you want your gummies to be.

Royal CBD tests all its products through an independent third-party lab, which allows for top-notch quality control and consistency. The company continually updates its formula to create high-quality, potent, reliable CBD products. Even better, Royal CBD sources its hemp from U.S.-based farms and adheres to national standards for purity and potency.

Royal CBD gummies are some of the tastiest CBD products on the market. If you're looking to mask CBD's natural flavor with a reputable candy product, these gummies may be one of the best options for you.

Click Here To Visit The Royal CBD Website For The Best Prices

What Are CBD Gummies?

CBD gummies are sweet, flavorful candies that contain cannabidiol oil, a substance extracted from the hemp plant. These gummies come in a range of flavors and colors, and because they each contain a controlled amount of CBD, you can easily manage your daily dosage.

To produce CBD gummies, manufacturers extract CBD from the hemp plant. Some gummies contain only pure CBD isolate, while broad-spectrum products also include the other compounds, such as terpenes and flavonoids, that you could find in hemp. Full-spectrum products include all of those plus trace amounts of THC.

When manufacturers extract cannabidiol from hemp, the CBD takes the form of a crystal that can easily dissolve in edible mediums, like pectin, sugar, and fruit juice.

Many people prefer to take CBD gummies over other edible CBD products because they have a better flavor. The sweeteners and flavorings in these gummies mask the earthy flavor of pure CBD, making them more enjoyable to take than oils or capsules.

You can find CBD gummy products over the counter, but each product we reviewed is available for purchase online.

Things to Consider Before You Buy CBD Gummies

If you search for CBD gummies on the Internet, youll probably find thousands of results. CBD gummies have exploded in popularity in recent years, and discerning which gummies are high-quality, authentic, and safe may feel like a challenge.

As you search for the right CBD products for you, keep the following qualities in mind.

Source of CBD

CBD can come from two sources: cannabis in general and hemp (a subtype of cannabis) in particular. The significant difference between these two sources is that hemp, by law, contains less than 0.3 percent THC. The chemical makeup of the CBD from both sources is the same.

Cannabidiol is legal across the United States only if it is hemp-derived, and some cannabis-sourced CBD may not meet these requirements. All the gummies on our list come from hemp plants to ensure they contain a legal amount of THC. However, consumers should check the legal status of edible CBD products in their state because some states allow topical CBD but not edible CBD.

As you search for the right gummy products for you, you should make sure that the hemp or cannabis a company uses is grown in the United States. Some companies source their hemp from international farms that have lower quality and content standards.

Whether you decide to try hemp-sourced or cannabis-sourced CBD, be sure the THC content meets your states requirements.

Type of Hemp Extract

CBD gummies can contain three types of hemp extract: full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, and CBD isolate. A full-spectrum CBD gummy includes all the cannabinoids in hemp, including a small, legal amount of THC. Broad-spectrum gummies contain all cannabinoids and zero THC, and THC-free isolate gummies include only 99 percent pure, refined CBD.

Well look at these types in greater detail later, but for now, think about what extracts you want your gummies to contain.

Potency

One of the perks of taking CBD gummies rather than CBD oil or extract is their controlled, pre-dosed nature. CBD gummies contain a regulated CBD concentration, so you can easily calculate how many gummies to take to add up to your desired dosage.

However, gummy brands vary in the amount of hemp oil their products contain. Some gummies include as low as 10mg of cannabidiol per gummy, while others may have 30mg per gummy or more. Potency is an essential quality to examine when searching for the best CBD gummies because a low-priced option may end up costing you more if each gummy only has 10mg.

If youre new to the cannabidiol world, you may not know how many milligrams you should take each day. Manufacturers recommend starting with 10mg to 20mg each day, then increasing your dose as needed. Some people take up to 1,500mg a day for chronic pain, but you can probably get by with a smaller dose for milder symptoms.

Ingredients

Unlike other CBD products, gummies contain a wide range of additional ingredients to create their chewy texture and sweet flavor. These ingredients can easily add sugar and calories to your gummies, taking away from their health advantages.

If youre trying to stay on the healthier side of the market, look for gummies with no high-fructose corn syrup and a small list of ingredients. All the gummy products we reviewed are vegan, gluten-free, and non-GMO, and some gummies also contain added vitamins and supplements, such as melatonin or L-theanine.

Be sure to look at all of a product's ingredients during your search process to ensure that you feel comfortable with each of its additives.

Third-Party Lab Testing

The best CBD gummies are third-party lab-tested, meaning that an independent third-party lab verifies their hemp oil content. These labs offer an unbiased view of the company's products, so customers can feel confident their research is accurate and reliable. After reviewing the products, these labs give CBD companies a Certificate of Analysis (COA) that the company makes available for customer review.

As you search for the best CBD gummies, be sure that each company utilizes third-party testing and is transparent about its results. If a company does not mention independent testing on its website, it may be trying to scam customers.

Flavor

CBD gummies come in a wide range of flavors, and the one you choose is up to your personal preference. Some companies combine several flavors in each jar, while others offer one flavor per gummy product.

If you are looking to mask CBD's sometimes-bitter taste, look for intense flavors like strawberry lemonade or watermelon. You can also read customer reviews to see what flavors other users prefer.

Health Benefits of Taking CBD Gummies

Research has yet to determine all the health and wellness benefits taking CBD gummies can provide. Currently, the Food and Drug Administration has approved a hemp oil product only as a treatment for rare, severe forms of epilepsy.

However, many users report experiencing benefits such as:

Reduced anxiety and depression

Pain relief

Decreased acne

Neuroprotective benefits

Heart benefits

Reduced inflammation

Reduced Alzheimer's symptoms

Decreased smoking and drug withdrawal symptoms

Some people also experience placebo benefits from CBD gummies. Taking these gummies can convince you that you feel better overall, even if they do not tangibly change your health.

Keep in mind that because CBD gummies often contain sweeteners, they are not as healthy as CBD oil or tinctures alone may be.

Understanding The Types of CBD Gummies For Sleep, Anxiety, and Pain

You may have noticed that each of the CBD gummies we reviewed is either broad-spectrum, full-spectrum, or isolate. Let's break down what each of these terms means and how the type of CBD gummy you buy might affect your mood and health.

Broad-Spectrum

Broad-spectrum CBD gummies contain all the hemp plant compoundscannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoidsapart from THC, which is the cannabis-derived compound in marijuana that produces the high feeling. Because broad-spectrum CBD gummies are THC-free, you can reap all the benefits from the plant, usually without worrying about experiencing any psychoactive effects.

Taking broad-spectrum CBD gummies is thought to alert your endocannabinoid system, telling your body to heighten its immune response, metabolism, appetite, memory, and other processes. Though these gummies are used regularly for several health benefits, their potential effects are not as potent as those of full-spectrum CBD gummy products.

Full-Spectrum

Full-spectrum CBD gummies also contain all the phytocannabinoids from the cannabis plant, including cannabinoids, terpenes, and oils. However, unlike broad-spectrum CBD gummies, these products also have low THC levels (under 0.3 percent if they come from hemp).

Taking a full-spectrum hemp product will amplify the benefits of the CBD more than a broad-spectrum gummy will because the trace amounts of the THC substance will trigger your endocannabinoid system and kick it into action in synergy with the other cannabinoids to produce the entourage effect, maximizing these gummies benefits.

Isolate

CBD isolate gummies contain only pure CBDno other cannabinoids, oils, or terpenes. While these gummies cannot produce the entourage effect, they may still are used by people for a range of health benefits. CBD isolate is used by people who expect it to provide pain relief, minimize anxiety, and reduce inflammation.

Many CBD users consider CBD isolate to be the perfect product for beginners looking to experiment with the substance. And because CBD isolate is ultra-refined, it has no taste or smell, allowing the gummies fruity flavor to shine through.

Do Pure CBD Gummies Have Any Side Effects?

Everyones body is different, and every CBD user reacts differently to gummies. For those that experience side effects, here are the most common ones:

Nausea

Diarrhea

Drowsiness

Dry mouth

Reduced appetite

If you have never taken CBD before, its best to try a low dose of 5-10mg to see how your body reacts. If you do not notice any side effects, you can increase your amount a little at a time until you reach your desired results.

Most brands will recommend taking only one or two gummies per day to limit any adverse effects. Experiencing side effects with a higher dose could indicate that you are taking more CBD than your body can handle and that you should lower your amount.

Why Choose CBD Gummy Bears Over Tinctures or Capsules?

CBD gummies are just one of the many forms of CBD available on the market today. You may be wondering why you should purchase hemp edibles instead of other CBD products, such as tinctures and capsules. Here are a few reasons many users choose to take CBD-infused gummies rather than other forms of CBD:

Taste: One of the primary reasons users choose edibles over other products is their taste. CBD gummies taste good and mask the earthy, bitter flavor of pure CBD. You can eat them just as you would fruit snacks or gummy candy (although in far smaller quantities) while reaping the potential health and wellness benefits of CBD.

Convenience: CBD gummies are more convenient to take than tinctures and capsules. Instead of swallowing a pill with water or measuring a dose of oil, you can pop a few candies into your mouth and chew them up.

Discretion: Some customers prefer to keep their CBD use private, and gummies are more discreet than tinctures and capsules. Because they look like candy or fruit snacks, no one will have a second thought when you pull CBD gummies out in a public setting. You can keep a bottle on your desk at work or in your purse without risking judgment. Just be cautious if children might have access to them, thinking they are normal gummies.

Control: Gummies contain a regulated CBD concentration, so you can plan exactly how many candies to take to reach your desired dose and effects. On the other hand, tinctures require you to measure out a liquid dosage, and your measurement could easily vary.

Ease of use: CBD gummies are simple and easy to take. They do not require any special knowledge about medication or any specific tools.

Added ingredients: Some CBD gummies contain additional supplements that can benefit your health. Eating products that include melatonin, Vitamin C, or iron in their ingredients list can further boost your well-being.

Do CBD Gummies Contain THC?

Some CBD-infused gummies contain trace amounts of THC. These products will advertise that they include full-spectrum CBD, but they should always clarify that their THC content is 0.3 percent or less.

The 2018 Farm Bill specified that this concentration is legal in hemp across the United States, even in states that have not legalized marijuana. However, the FDA has not approved edible forms of hemp-derived products, although more than 20 states have done so, so check your states laws to find out the legal status.

A 0.3 percent concentration is not likely to produce the high feeling that many users associate with marijuana. Instead, this small amount of THC can boost your bodys endocannabinoid system to allow the CBD to have the optimal effect on your health and wellness.

If youre looking for a THC-free CBD product, search for gummies that contain broad-spectrum CBD or CBD isolate. To use these labels, the company must release products that are 99.99 percent THC-free.

How Much CBD Oil Is in Cannabis Gummies?

CBD gummies contain varying amounts of CBD. Most brands on the market include 10mg of CBD per gummy, but some go up to 25mg or 30mg each. Each type of CBD product should clearly state its CBD content under the nutritional and health information.

Some CBD companies mislead customers into thinking their products contain more CBD than they actually do. To ensure that a product is clear and accurate about its CBD content, you should verify that the company undergoes independent third-party testing.

Final Thoughts  Are CBD Gummies Right for You?

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"In the state of Illinois, there are over 17,000 cybersecurity job openings across all sectors," Eureka College Provost Dr. Ann Fulop said. "Eureka College's cybersecurity bootcamp will prepare the workforce to help meet this need. For people who want to change careers or begin a career, this program is for them."

The Bootcamp, which will launch this summer, will provide participants with intensive training to help them transition into entry-level positions in cybersecurity, while leveraging existing relationships with large companies, such as Boeing and Caterpillar.

The Cybint Bootcamp is structured to future-proof workers with the knowledge they need to expand their horizons and become cybersecurity professionals. The collaboration with Eureka College is the second partnership with an educational institution in Illinois.

"We're excited to partner with Eureka College," says Roy Zur, Founder and CEO of Cybint. "Between this partnership and the existing relationships with companies that are eager to expand their cyber teams, we are making a real impact locally and beyond. This is rewarding on many levels for all of us, as we will strengthen the careers and collective livelihoods of all participants within the communities."

For more information about the Eureka College Cybersecurity Bootcamp, powered by Cybint, visit www.eureka.edu/cybersecurity.

If you have questions about the training program, contact Eureka College Assistant Director of Continuing Education and Transfer Enrollment Katelyn McDougall at [email protected] or call 309-467-6344.

About Cybint

Cybint is a global cyber education company with a commitment to reskilling the workforce and upskilling the industry in cybersecurity. With innovative and leading-edge education and training solutions, Cybint tackles cybersecurity's two greatest threats: the talent shortage and the skills gap. The Cybint team is comprised of military cyber experts, industry professionals, and educators united under the vision of creating a safer digital world through education, training, and collaboration. For more information, visit www.cybintsolutions.com

About Eureka College

Located in Eureka, Illinois, and chartered in 1855, Eureka College cultivates excellence in learning, service and leadership while providing students uniquely personalized and custom educational opportunities.

Originally founded by abolitionist members of Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Eureka College holds the unique distinction of being the first college in Illinois and only the third in the nation to admit men and women on an equal basis. The College, which is located on nearly 70 wooded acres in central Illinois, is the smallest of only 24 colleges and universities to ever award a bachelor's degree to a future President of the United States. For more information, visit: https://www.eureka.edu/

SOURCE Cybint
Health Minister Robin Swann has urged an extremely careful easing of the Covid-19 lockdown restrictions ahead of today's crunch Executive meeting.

Stormont ministers plan to discuss Northern Ireland's roadmap out of the latest shutdown and it is expected that the reopening of schools on March 8 will top the agenda.

However, it is understood that the vast majority of the lockdown regulations will remain in place for the foreseeable future.

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Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Mr Swann said he would not be going into detail about what will be discussed during the Executive meeting, but stated the effort to combat the virus must be "invested now" so we don't return to further lockdowns in the future.

"The slower we come out of this phase, the more headroom and the more time we will have to get back to doing more normal things during the summer," he said.

"It's really about investing now and we are seeing a decrease in the number of positive cases, the number of hospitalisations and the number of people in the ICU, but it started from a very high level.

"It's about taking the gradual, proportionate response to where the virus is to ensure that we don't rush out of this so we have to go back to it at a later date.

"I would rather invest the time now and do it in a safe, managed and proportionate way to ensure that we don't have to do this severity of a lockdown again."

The Department of Health yesterday reported that a further six people had died after contracting Covid-19 - bringing the death toll here to 2,015 since the start of the pandemic.

A further 297 new cases of the virus were also recorded after 6,005 tests were carried out on 1,829 people.

There are currently 434 Covid-19 patients in Northern Ireland's hospitals, with 53 in intensive care.

Over the past week a total of 2,047 people tested positive for the virus.

The Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon council area recorded the most cases over the last seven days with 434 people testing positive.

Belfast had the second highest number of cases with 376, while there were 284 new cases in Mid Ulster.

As of last night, vaccination figures for Northern Ireland showed that a total of 438,708 vaccines had been administered, including 409,507 first doses and 29,201 second doses.

GPs administered 205,555 of those, while the Trusts have carried out 233,153.

In the Irish Republic, an additional 57 deaths with Covid-19 have been notified to health authorities.

The median age of those who died was 82 and the age range was 52-99, NPHET said.

As of midnight on Tuesday, the health system has been notified of 650 more confirmed cases.

Dr Ronan Glynn, Ireland's deputy chief medical officer, said: "Although we have made great progress, the situation remains precarious.

"Almost 90% of cases in Ireland are the B117 (UK) variant. The increased transmissibility of this variant is apparent in the current profile of the disease in households, with one in three household contacts of a confirmed case testing positive for Covid-19.

"This underlines the need for people to exercise caution in households and other settings. In particular, people should isolate immediately on experiencing any symptoms and contact their GP."

Boris Johnson, meanwhile, said easing England's lockdown will be based on a "cautious and prudent approach", as he was urged to focus on data rather than dates when lifting restrictions. The Prime Minister stressed that any easing needs to be done in stages and said that his road map out of lockdown on Monday will be done in a way that ensures it is "irreversible".
The trompe loeil effect created by the scores of hours Butler puts into a work is powerful, Warren points out: I think a lot of people, when they see the work, they think its a painting. I knew it wasnt, and Im still totally amazed when I get in close and see all these layers, all these small pieces of fabric and the kind of interdisciplinary approach to materiality, where she is trained as a painter, but shes using photographs and using these printed textiles and shes quilting.
By Doug OMalley

Everything is bigger in Texas  including a frozen meltdown of the states electricity grid system.

The state  and its electric grid system  is built to withstand the punishing hot summer heat waves that blanket the state with growing regularity. Snow is traditionally an odd occurrence. But the last week has been punishing for the Midwest and Southwest as massive winter storms and historic cold snap have left more than 4 million Texans in the dark and other regional electric grids suffering. What went wrong?

This is hardly the first winter storm in Texas, and after recent cold snaps in 2011 and 2018, state utilities were supposed to winterize their fossil fuel plants. Spoiler alert  they didnt. And the electric grid in Texas isnt a regional electric grid  its state-only grid is an artifact of resisting federal partnership. The regional transmission operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), failed to require resiliency provisions for utilities that often dont stockpile gas reserves. The cold snap literally froze wellheads in West Texas and froze gas pipelines. Utilities that plan slavishly for the summer peak in electricity got caught with their pants down. This was both an unprecedented event  and a clear market failure.

If you asked Texas Gov. Greg Abbott what went wrong, there were two answers. To local Texas television viewers, he accurately pointed out Texas electric grid was suffering from a massive failure of its gas infrastructure. But what did he say to national viewers on Fox to Sean Hannity? Taking a page out of the Trump playbook, he pointed fingers at the Green New Deal and said the failure of renewable energy sources like wind turbines was to blame for the massive blackouts.

The only problem is that the states own electricity regulators directly contradicted him. While all energy sources have been hammered during this energy crisis, if anything, renewables like wind overperformed. This is a crisis in Texas but the real story is how the impacts of global weirding, as described by climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe, are challenging our electric grids.

The deep freeze the Midwest and Southwest are suffering from is another incidence of the polar vortex, which climate scientists have ironically linked to global warming. Arctic warming is reducing the strength of the jet stream that usually serves as a winter lasso that keeps frigid polar air in northern latitudes. A weaker jet stream then leads to colder air rushing into warmer climes.

So while Texas is stuck in a deep freeze, the dog sledding in Greenland has gotten difficult because of warm temperatures. And California last month had a spate of wildfires in January. The massive wildfires last fall led to rolling black-outs across California because the danger of power lines sparking more fires.

Electric grid planning and resiliency is based on predicting threats based on past events but climate change is upending the script  the threats keep changing. In New Jersey, noreasters now grow into a Tropical Storm Isaias, which inflicted more than $4.7 billion in damage across the region. This months earlier snowstorm was punishing for Shore beaches and turned the streets of Atlantic City into mini water parks. And a grid that is still reliant on fossil fuels, like fracked gas, only expands the footprint of climate change.

New Jersey is part of a sprawling electric grid that stretches all the way to Illinois, and the promised expansion of wind energy off the Shore provides a welcome challenge to get a massive amount of clean, renewable energy onto the grid, which the NJ Board of Public Utilities is embracing. The success of initial community solar pilots, micro-grids and a dynamic, modern grid that embraces smart meters can all make a more resilient grid.

These successes from the Murphy administration need to be balanced by making a commitment to reject the expansion of new fossil fuel infrastructure projects, to end budget raids to the states Clean Energy Fund and to start phasing out fossil fuel power plants in line with climate science.

The duplicity of Texas leaders defending fossil fuels and attacking renewables is one thing. But the global weirding and future storms will only intensify for them and for us. Texas wasnt ready, and the best lesson is to move to a more renewable, resilient energy grid for all of our energy needs.

Doug OMalley is the director of Environment New Jersey, a state-based environmental advocacy organization, representing more than 80,000 dues-paying members and activists.

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Texas AT&T Wireless customers, your phone service has some good news for you.

AT&T Wireless announced on its website Wednesday that it is extending relief to AT&T Wireless and AT&T PREPAID customers impacted by the Texas winter storm. The company is waiving data overage charges for customers in more than 2,400 zip codes across Texas from Feb. 17 through Feb. 21.

READ ALSO: SAWS issues boil water notice for San Antonio

The company is waiving the fees for customers with billing addresses or phone numbers in the directly impacted zip codes automatically.

Click here to find your zip code.

On Thursday, AT&T Wireless also noted its network is performing well with 75 percent of its sites fully restored since peak impact. The company said it will continue to closely monitor as the winter storm moves across the country.

"(We) remain committed to keeping our customers, their families, and the public safety community connected," AT&T Wireless stated in its announcement on its website. "And in order to assist others in the industry, we continue to keep our network open to some other companies' customers to aid in recovery efforts too."

Priscilla Aguirre is a general assignment reporter for MySA.com | priscilla.aguirre@express-news.net | @CillaAguirre


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8 companies that made changes to reduce sexual exploitation

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The National Center on Sexual Exploitation has released a report highlighting actions taken by major corporations to address concerns about childrens access to pornographic material on the internet.

On Feb. 9, which is Safer Internet Day, NCOSE detailed victories to celebrate in the organizations battle against organizations that prop up sexual exploitation through their platforms or services. NCOSE puts together a Dirty Dozen List every year, documenting the worst offenders and urging people to take action to convince the companies to change their behavior.

In its Tuesday report, NCOSE highlighted that eight companies it had previously singled out on Dirty Dozen lists had taken actions to address their concerns. Here are the eight companies that have made strides that NCOSE describes as Dirty Dozen List 2020 Victories.


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Iraqi President Barham Salih met with U.S. Ambassador Matthew Tueller in Baghdad for talks on Thursday.

The pair discussed bilateral relations and the need to continue to combat terrorism, a statement issued by the Salih's media office said.

Tueller affirmed his country's commitment to supporting Iraq's security and stability, the statement added.

The meeting comes days after a barrage of rockets struck outside an airport near where U.S. forces are based in northern Iraq, leaving a coalition contractor dead.

More than a dozen rockets hit late Monday in areas between the civilian international airport in the city of Irbil in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish-run region and the nearby base hosting U.S. troops.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has pledged Washington's support for investigating the attack and holding accountable those who were responsible.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
So. Baptist agency asks Supreme Court to reverse ruling in Will McRaney case

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A missions body within the Southern Baptist Convention has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling against the organization regarding the firing of a former state convention leader.

In 2017, the SBC North American Missions Board was sued by Will McRaney, the former executive director of Baptist Convention of Maryland/Delaware. McRaney claimed that NAMB officials had, among other things, made defamatory statements against him to get him fired from the convention.

In a petition filed Wednesday, NAMB argued that the SBC decision to dismiss McRaney was protected by the ministerial exemption, a legal precedent that provides churches with protection from lawsuits over certain hiring decisions.

In particular, the NAMB took issue with the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals refusing to rehear the case with a full-court rather than a panel.

The court of appeals decision conflicts with the decisions of numerous other federal courts of appeals and state appellate courts of last resort holding that state law tort claims arising from ministerial employment disputes  cannot be adjudicated by secular courts, argued the petition.

And the court of appeals decision is wrong, as eight judges on the Fifth Circuit recognized in dissenting from the denial of rehearing en banc, for it conflicts with this Courts decisions and with fundamental principles of the First Amendments Religion Clauses.

NAMB, SBCs domestic missions agency, is represented by the legal nonprofit First Liberty Institute and lawyers with Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP.

The lawyers contend that Supreme Court needs to reverse the lower court decision to prevent such constitutionally impermissible intrusion into church affairs by secular courts.

Kelly Shackelford, head of the First Liberty Institute, said in a statement released Wednesday that the Constitution protects the independence of religious organizations to choose their own leaders.

The mission of NAMB is to help local churches plant new churches and engage in compassion ministry to share the gospel. Secular courts are ill-equipped to evaluate how that mission is best carried out and by whom, stated Shackelford.

In his lawsuit, McRaney claimed that NAMB, which helps state conventions to plant new churches, defamed him via false statements and influenced the 2015 decision to fire him following a dispute about a partnership agreement.

In April 2019, a judge in Mississippi ruled against McRaney. However, a three-judge 5th Circuit panel reversed the decision and remanded it to the lower court.

Circuit Judge Stephen A. Higginson authored the unanimous panel opinion, concluding that McRaney was not asking the court to weigh in on issues of faith or doctrine.

At this time, it is not certain that resolution of McRaneys claims will require the court to interfere with matters of church government, matters of faith, or matters of doctrine. The district courts dismissal was premature, wrote Higginson.

In July 2020, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru that two Catholic schools can classify their teachers as ministers and not be held to the standards of anti-discrimination laws.

The U.S. Supreme Court has made it clear that the Constitution protects the independence of religious organizations to choose their own leaders, Shackelford added.

Just as courts cannot tell the local church who it must hire to preach their beliefs, teach their faith, and carry out their mission, courts cannot influence those decisions when there are two groups working together.

Scientists are urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to swiftly set standards to limit the airborne transmission of the coronavirus in high-risk settings like meatpacking plants and prisons.

The push comes nearly a year after research showed that the virus can be spread through tiny droplets called aerosols that linger indoors in stagnant air and can be inhaled.

Action on air standards is even more urgently needed now because vaccination efforts are off to a slow start, more contagious virus variants are circulating in the United States, and the rate of Covid-19 infections and deaths remains high despite a recent drop in new cases, the scientists said in a letter to Biden administration officials.

The C.D.C. issued new guidelines on Friday for reopening schools, but the guidelines made only a passing mention of improved ventilation as a precaution against viral spread. The World Health Organization was slow to acknowledge that the virus can linger in the air in crowded indoor spaces, accepting that conclusion only in July after 239 experts publicly called on the organization to do so.
The 1,000 fee charged by the Home Office for a child to register as a British citizen is unlawful, the Court of Appeal has upheld in a landmark case.

The judge said ministers had failed to assess and consider the impact of this fee on children and their rights, pointing out that for some families it was difficult to see how the fee could be afforded at all.

The Home Office currently charges 1,012 for a child to register for citizenship, for a process that costs 372. The department says it uses the remaining 640 profit to cross-subsidise the immigration system.

In December 2019, a High Court judge ruled that the fee was unlawful after finding a mass of evidence that it prevented many children from being registered for citizenship, leaving them feeling alienated, second-best and not fully assimilated into the culture and social fabric of the UK.

The Home Office appealed against the High Courts ruling that the department had failed in its duty to assess the best interests of children and give primary consideration to these interests in setting the fee.

However, the Court of Appeal rejected this appeal on Thursday. The department must now reconsider the fee and ensure that childrens best interests are taken fully into account in doing so.

Responding to the judgement, Carol Bohmer, chair of the Project for the Registration of Children as British Citizens (PRCBC), which brought the case, said she was delighted the courts had again held that the scandalously high fee was unlawful.

She added: But children are still being excluded  by this fee and by many other barriers, which the government should be doing all it can to remove; and we will continue in our mission to make that happen so no one is in future forced to grow up in the UK suffering the alienation and isolation that is currently the experience of so many young people.

Maria Patsalos, partner at Mishcon de Reya, who acted for PRCBC, said the decision was another positive step in enabling children to access their rights as British citizens, and called on the Home Office to act swiftly to amend the fees.

The child who brought the case along with PRCBC, known only as O, who is 13, said: I am no less British than any of my friends. It makes me upset to think they or other people might treat me as different if they knew I dont have a British passport.

I have a right to citizenship and have been since I was 10. I do not understand why I continue to be excluded by this huge fee.

Alistair Carmichael, Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesperson, said it was shameful that children were being denied their rights by extortionate Home Office fees, and called on the government to immediately reduce the fees to no more than the cost of administration.

He added: Instead of wasting taxpayers money defending her bad decisions in the courts, Priti Patel should get on with fixing our immigration system so that everyone is treated with dignity and the public can have confidence that it is fair and effective.

A Home Office spokesperson said: Citizenship registration fees are charged as part of a wider fees approach designed to reduce the burden on UK taxpayers.

The Home Office acknowledges the courts ruling and will review child registration fees in due course.
Pakistan: Sets up first artificial reefs to improve marine life

by Sana Jamal

February 18,2021 | Source: Gulf News

New artificial reefs have been installed off Balochistan coast to improve marine life and fish stocks by creating a sustainable marine ecosystem. The government of Balochistan has placed nearly 330 modular blocks of the artificial reef, each weighing 1.5 tons, in an area of four square nautical miles west of Jiwani town in Gwatar Bay. The artificial reef was set up at a total cost of Rs48.5 million by the provincial government, said Ahmad Nadeem, project leader and director fisheries department of Balochistan government. Following the successful deployment of reefs, the government plans to establish more artificial reefs along the coast, he added.



Significance of Gwatar Bay



The artificial reefs have been installed in Gwatar Bay  a transboundary marine wetland area shared by both Pakistan and Iran  which is known for its rich marine biodiversity. The area is important for marine fisheries and animals including whales, dolphins, sea turtles, migratory birds and mangroves. The installation of artificial reefs in the area will further enhance the productivity of the area and provide fishermen near Jiwani access to fish stock, experts say.



What is an artificial reef?



The artificial reef is primarily an underwater structure built to promote marine life in areas with a flat bottom in the sea. This manmade structure mimics some of the characteristics of a natural reef and provides shelter, food and other necessary elements for marine biodiversity. Natural reefs are made of rock, sand, coral, and other materials, while artificial reefs can be made of sunken ships, wood, rocks, or other structure. Reefs are essential to the health of the ocean, providing habitat for a variety of marine life and play an important role in local economies.



New era of biodiversity conservation



WWF-Pakistan, which was consulted during the planning, design and site selection of the artificial reef, considers the initiative the beginning of a new era of biodiversity conservation that will help increase production of commercially important fish and shellfish in Pakistani waters. The reef will help in reducing poaching by trawlers in the Gwatar Bay as bottom trawl fishing is considered to be highly destructive to the sea biodiversity in Balochistan, said Muhammad Moazzam Khan, technical advisor fisheries at WWF-Pakistan. Marine experts at WWF-Pakistan say that Pakistans first artificial reefs would help protect marine biodiversity and improve socio-economic conditions of the coastal communities in Balochistan. The project would also provide shelter for a number of fish species as well as benthic and agile fauna. After placement in the seawater, the modular blocks would be encrusted with important marine animals such as corals, barnacles and bivalve shells, which will help in the growth of rich animal and plant communities. It will also become home to large predatory fishes which are commercially important species and the productivity and biodiversity of the area will be enhanced through this process.

 Al Nisr Publishing LLC 2021.
Nifty futures on Singapore Exchange traded 52 points higher at 15,248 around 8.35 am, indicating a firm start for benchmark indices back home.

Here are the top stocks that are likely to be in focus today:

Bharti Airtel: The company will acquire 20 per cent stake in its DTH arm Bharti Telemedia from an affiliate of Warburg Pincus for about Rs 3,126 crore.

Earnings Today: Ambuja Cements and four other firms are slated to announce their December quarter numbers today.

Telecom equipment makers: Shares of telecom equipment makers such as Dixon Tech, ITI will be in focus after the government announced Rs 12,000-crore PLI scheme for the telecom sector.

India: The company's board approved raising funds of up to Rs 1,000 crore on Wednesday. The company and its promoters also settled with Sebi cases of alleged disclosure lapses after paying nearly Rs 45 lakh as settlement charges.

GAIL: The share buyback offer will open on February 25 and close on March 10.

Jubilant FoodWorks: The company has appointed Ashish Goenka as its CFO. Goenka was earlier with as Executive VP.

Phillips Carbon Black: The company has commissioned two specialty black lines at Palej in Gujarat.

IndiaMart: The company opened QIP issue February 17 with a floor price of Rs 9,065.61 per share.

Marico: The company board will meet on March 3 to consier and approve a second interim dividend for financial year 2020-21. The company informed exchanges that it has fixed March 12 as the record Date for the purpose of payment of second interim dividend, if any.

Future Enterprises: The company has defaulted on payment of interest of Rs 12.72 crore due on listed NCDs issued by the company.

VA Tech Wabag: The company has achieved financial closure for its Hybrid Annuity Model project received from Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority.

Steel Strips Wheels: The promoters Dheeraj Garg and DHG Marketing revoked pledge of 2 lakh shares on February 16.

Bajaj Electricals: ICRA has revised the long-term rating of the company to A from A- and the short-term rating to A1 from A2+. The outlook on the long-term rating is stable, ICRA said.

GIC Re: The government is debating whether reinsurer General Insurance Corporation of India should be divested, a media report said.

NALCO: The company will open its Rs 749.1 crore- share buyback on February 25 and close on March 10.
Good morning.

A pedestrian was taken to hospital after being struck by a vehicle at the intersection of Balmoral Street and Sargent Avenue last night. There was no word on the person's condition.

A probe designed to collect rocks from Mars is set to land on the red planet today. A planetary geologist at the University of Alberta will be among the scientists working with NASA to monitor the rover and tell it when to sample.

Life expectancy in the U.S. decreased by one year during the first half of 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the biggest drop since the Second World War.

 Adam Treusch, assignment editor

New Delhi: Tesla CEO Elon Musk has released a video where he has warned the investors to be cautious while investing their savings in cryptocurrency.

The video was released just a day before the Tesla made its bitcoin investment public on Sunday (February 7). Elon Musk was in West Hollywood and his fans asked him for an autograph and thus asked questions about investing in cryptocurrency, as reported by ABC.

Elon Musk told his fans in Hollywood that the cryptocurrency will be the future currency on the Earth, and it is fine to invest a fair amount in it, but spending all your life savings in it is not recommended.

Elon Musk said that "People should not invest their life savings in cryptocurrency, to be clear- that's unwise". He further added that "There is a good chance that crypto is the future currency of the Earth, and it's like which one's it going to be? Maybe it'll be multiple. It should be considered speculation at this point. So don't go too far with the crypto speculation front".

The bitcoin rose to an all-time high of $50,000 on Tuesday (February 16). Bitcoin has grown 67 per cent this year alone, all thanks to $1.5 Billion investment from Tesla in the bitcoin.

In a recent development, Elon Musk has bought Dogecoin - a cryptocurrency - for his son X  A-Xii. Earlier, Musk triggered a surge in Dogecoin`s price with a single word tweet "doge." Similar to bitcoin, Dogecoin is a digital coin that is mainly used for e-transactions and its meme has a picture of the Shiba Inu on it. Invented by software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer in 2013, the price of Dogecoin saw a mammoth rise after Reddit traders targeted it.

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Students in the Mid Valley School District will have four days of in-person instruction each week rather than two beginning March 16.

The Mid Valley School Board voted 9-0 Wednesday to approve a revised hybrid instruction model. Hybrid students will attend classes in person on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, board President Steven Vituszynski said. Wednesdays will remain virtual, giving the district time to clean its facilities, he said.

Under the outgoing hybrid model, students whose last names begin with A through L have in-person classes on Mondays and Tuesdays, and students with last names M through Z have in-person instruction Thursdays and Fridays, with Wednesdays as a virtual-learning day for all students, he said.

Virtual students will have the option to remain fully virtual, and hybrid students can switch to virtual learning, Vituszynski said. The district asks that families stick to their decision for the remainder of the year, he said.

We realize that  the best option for students is to be in the classroom, Vituszynski said, noting declining COVID-19 cases in Lackawanna County. It is important, especially with the elementary kids, to get them back in the classroom.

Mid Valley will continue to provide three different bus runs: one for kindergarten through fourth, one for fifth through eighth and one for ninth through 12th grades, he said.

The district surveyed parents and expects an uptick in students returning for in-person instruction, Superintendent Patrick Sheehan said.

Currently, about 70% of students in kindergarten through sixth grade are hybrid and 30% virtual, he said. Its about a 50/50 split for grades seven through 12, he said.

Under the updated model, they anticipate it being closer to 80% of kindergarten through sixth grade students using the hybrid model, and 60% of students in grades seven through 12 going hybrid, Sheehan said.

They will arrange classes to maximize social distancing, striving for 6 feet, he said, adding they know that might not be possible in some areas.

With the new plan approved, principals will reach out to families who havent responded to the survey to get final numbers for hybrid and virtual students, Sheehan said.

Once we get a firm number for class sizes, well start to look at the space and the requirements of what we need, he said.

Under Pennsylvania Department of Education guidelines, if the elementary center has between six and 10 COVID-19 cases among students and staff in a rolling 14-day period, they will close the building for three to five days, he said. The secondary center would close with four to six COVID-19 cases in the 14-day window, Sheehan said.

Mid Valley split its year into trimesters instead of quarters, and the March 16 return coincides with the start of the third trimester, he said.
The efforts of the Ukrainian delegation to participate in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) on resolving the situation in Donbas on the issue of ensuring the IAEA's access to the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions have not yet yielded results, since the Russian side makes it impossible to make a decision on this issue, Ukrainian delegation to the TCG said.

"The head of the Russian delegation, Gryzlov, during the TCG meeting, could not answer a direct question from the head of the Ukrainian delegation about the admission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspection to the occupied territories," according to the Telegram channel.

In this regard, the Ukrainian delegation reiterated its concern about the unresolved issue of access to the IAEA inspection, and also reminded that "Ukraine reserves the right to appeal to the world community, governments and organizations in order to increase pressure on the Russian Federation, the said inspection was carried out, and Ukraine was able to fulfill its obligations under the Agreement between Ukraine and the IAEA on the Application of Safeguards in Connection with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Additional Protocol to this Agreement."

The head of the Ukrainian delegation, Leonid Kravchuk, offered to provide, starting from February 24, a shuttle bus for transporting citizens across the contact line to the Zolote entry-exit checkpoint, and in case of a relevant appeal from the leadership of international humanitarian organizations, and humanitarian cargo to the territory of the temporarily occupied regions.
Hole LADD007, intersected 55.43 metres grading 2.76 grams per ton of gold, including 12.45 metres grading 8.11 grams per ton

We continue to be encouraged by the results at Adumbi, Loncor president Peter Cowley said in a statement

( ) ( ) (FRA:LO51) announced additional assay results Thursday from the drilling program at its roughly 85%-owned Imbo Project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The deepest borehole drilled to date at its flagship Adumbi deposit, LADD007, intersected 55.43 metres grading 2.76 grams per ton (g/t) gold (Au), including 12.45 metres grading 8.11 g/t Au.

The company also received results from core hole LADD006, which was a shallower hole drilled on the northeastern contact of the Adumbi deposit. Drilling results included an intersection of 15.2 metres grading 1.67 g/t Au.

We continue to be encouraged by the results at Adumbi, Loncor president Peter Cowley said in a statement. Results from all five boreholes of our current drilling program have intersected significant widths and grades and will increase the current inferred mineral resource of 2.19 million ounces (28.97 million tonnes grading 2.35 g/t gold) at Adumbi. We are especially pleased with the continuity of gold mineralization at depth.

The gold mineralization at Adumbi is associated with up to 130 metres of interbedded banded ironstone and quartz-carbonate and chlorite schist, the company said, with higher grade sections being found in a strongly altered siliceous unit known as Replaced Rock, where structural deformation and alteration has completely destroyed the primary host lithological fabric.

The objective of the drilling program at Adumbi is to outline additional mineral resources to the current inferred 2.5 million ounces of gold on the Imbo Project, which contains the Adumbi, Kitenge and Manzako deposits, including inferred mineral resources of 30.65 million tonnes grading 2.54 g/t Au.

Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow him on Twitter @andrew_kessel
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SIGNIFICANT ADVANCEMENT TOWARDS LAUNCH OF PHASE I OVARIAN CANCER VACCINE TRIAL

VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BioVaxys Technology Corp. (CSE: BIOV) (FRA: 5LB) (OTC: LMNGF) ("BioVaxys" or "Company") announced today that it has signed a Term Sheet ("Term Sheet") with BioElpida S.A.S. ("BioElpida") of Lyon, France, to collaborate on the build-out for the clinical-grade manufacturing process and aseptic packaging for BXV-0918A, BioVaxys' vaccine for Stage III/Stage IV ovarian cancer. Completion of the GMP-grade bioproduction process development is planned for later this year, with the EU Phase I/II clinical trial slated for early 2022, pending European Medicines Agency ("EMEA") approval.

BioElpida is a biotechnology contract development and manufacturing company ("CDMO") which applies single-use bioprocessing for development and manufacturing of biological and cell-based products. BioElpida's expertise extends from R&D to pharmaceutical manufacturing and release of clinical batches, and intermediate steps such as process development, feasibility studies, analytical method validation, as well as aseptic fill & finish and other bioproduction services. BioElpida's facility is certified for clinical bioproduction by France's National Security Agency of Medicines and Health Products (ANSM).

The two companies are working towards the execution of a definitive agreement by the end of this March. Completion of the GMP-grade bioproduction process development is planned for later this year, with the EU Phase I/II clinical trial slated for early 2022, pending European Medicines Agency ("EMEA") approval.

Kenneth Kovan, President and Chief Operating Officer of BioVaxys, stated that, "In addition to its bioproduction expertise, the BioElpida team is intimately familiar with our haptenized protein approach, having previously been involved in the process development for the clinical supply of the 'first generation' haptenized tumor cell vaccines."

BioVaxys recently announced that it is collaborating on the ovarian cancer vaccine clinical program with Spanish biopharma company ProCare Health Iberia S.A.S., which plans to submit a Clinical Trial Application ("CTA") for BVX-0918A to the European Medicines Agency ("EMEA") later this year for a compassionate use approval in Stage III & Stage IV ovarian cancer. ProCare Health will have marketing rights to BVX-0918A in the EU and UK, whereas BioVaxys will market its ovarian cancer vaccine in North America and Rest of World.

Globally, there remain significant unmet therapeutic needs for ovarian cancer treatment. Worldwide, over 300,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year (World Cancer Research Fund, 2020), with ovarian cancer the leading cause of death from gynecologic malignancy in the United States (American Cancer Society Facts & Figures 2020). An estimated 21,750 new cases of ovarian cancer were expected in the US in 2020 with 13,940 deaths (National Cancer Institute, Surveillance and Epidemiology Program, 2020). The majority of women with Stage III or Stage IV cancer will ultimately have recurrent disease resistant to chemotherapy. Patients who have relapsed after platinum-based chemotherapy have limited life expectancy even with multiple salvage regimens. This large group of non-responders to, or those who relapse after, first line therapy are the initial target market for BioVaxys.

The global ovarian cancer drugs market was valued US$1.2B in 2017 and is expected to reach US$4.6B by 2026, at a CAGR of 18.29 % (www.medgadget.com/2020/11/ovarian-cancer-drugs-2020-global-market-to-reach-us-4-6-bn-and-growing-at-cagr-of-18-29-by-2026.html).

About BioVaxys Technology Corp.

Based in Vancouver, BioVaxys Technology Corp . is a British Columbia-registered, early stage biotechnology company that is developing viral and oncology vaccine platforms, as well as immuno-diagnostics. The Company is advancing a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine based on its haptenized viral protein technology, and is planning a clinical trial of its haptenized autologous cell vaccine used in combination with anti-PD1 and anti-PDL-1 checkpoint inhibitors that will initially be developed for ovarian cancer. Also in development is a diagnostic for evaluating the presence or absence of a T cell immune response to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. BioVaxys has two issued US patents and two patent applications related to its cancer vaccine, and pending patent applications for its SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) vaccine and diagnostic technologies. BioVaxys common shares are listed on the CSE under the stock symbol "BIOV" and trade on the Frankfurt Bourse (FRA: 5LB) and US OTC: LMNGF.

Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward Looking Information

This press release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, without limitation, statements relating the future operating or financial performance of the Company, are forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "potential", "possible", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will", "may", "could", or "should" occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements in this news release relate to, among other things, completion of the murine model study, regulatory approval for a Phase I study of its BVX-0320 Vaccine Candidate in humans and the overall development of BioVaxys' vaccines, including any haptenized SARS-Cov-2 protein vaccine. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made and are based upon a number of assumptions and estimates, primarily the assumption that BioVaxys will be successful in developing and testing vaccines, that, while considered reasonable by the Company, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies including, primarily but without limitation, the risk that BioVayxs' vaccines will not prove to be effective and/ or will not receive the required regulatory approvals. With regards to BioVaxys' business, there are a number of risks that could affect the development of its biotechnology products, including, without limitation, the need for additional capital to fund clinical trials, its lack of operating history, uncertainty about whether its products will complete the long, complex and expensive clinical trial and regulatory approval process for approval of new drugs necessary for marketing approval, uncertainty about whether its autologous cell vaccine immunotherapy can be developed to produce safe and effective products and, if so, whether its vaccine products will be commercially accepted and profitable, the expenses, delays and uncertainties and complications typically encountered by development stage biopharmaceutical businesses, financial and development obligations under license arrangements in order to protect its rights to its products and technologies, obtaining and protecting new intellectual property rights and avoiding infringement to third parties and their dependence on manufacturing by third parties.

The Company does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements of beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

Signed "James Passin"

James Passin, CEO

+1 646 452 7054

Media Contacts

Nikita Sashdev

Luna PR

[email protected]

SOURCE BioVaxys Technology Corp.
Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 3 mesi fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili.

The worlds population is expected to grow to almost 10 billion by 2050, boosting agricultural demand  in a scenario of modest economic growth  by some 50 percent compared to 2013., says the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO, part of the United Nations. However, meeting this requirement might not be that easy, considering that the arable land is already being overexploited to feed the existing population. More crop cycles than the land in a particular area is suitable for, heavy chemical fertilizer and biocide usage, and general soil pollution are harming the fertility of farmlands.

Download report sample at: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/agricultural-micronutrients-market/report-sample

These are some of the biggest reasons that, as per P&S Intelligence, will drive the agricultural micronutrients market from $5,848.0 million in 2017 to $9,009.2 million by 2023, at a 7.5% CAGR between 2018 and 2023. Moreover, the land available for agriculture is rapidly shrinking with the expansion of cities and setting up of industrial units. In addition, with the rising population, the per person availability of arable land is decreasing too, as in many countries, the land owned by a farmer is equally divided amongst their children.

Around the world, Asia-Pacific (APAC) is to remain the largest agricultural micronutrients market in the years to come. Being the most populated region, the demand for produce is the highest here, which is why farmlands are put through extensive sowing and reaping. This has resulted in a perpetual loss or a lower-than-sufficient availability of micronutrients in the soil, which are now being supplied externally. Within APAC, China has been the largest user of agricultural micronutrients, being home to the most people and largest farming workforce, thus becoming the largest agricultural producer on earth.

Browse full report at: https://www.psmarketresearch.com/market-analysis/agricultural-micronutrients-market

Thus, to feed the growing population from the diminishing area of farmlands, the need for supplying nutrients to the soil externally will only rise.
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
A Mumbai court has rejected a plea filed by Gangubai Kathiawadi's adopted son Babuji Rawji Shah. The plea reportedly sought a permanent injunction against the film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and lead actor Alia Bhatt over "indecent representation".

For the unversed, the film directed by Bhansali is based on S Hussain Zaidi's book titled Mafia Queens of Mumbai. It revolves around Gangubai Kathiawadi, the brothel owner who was one of the most powerful, loved, and respected madams of Kamathipura during the 1960s. Gangubai's fictional representation will be played by Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt.

The petitioner, Babuji Rawji Shah in his plea has alleged that certain portions of the book are not only defamatory but also an infringement upon his right to privacy, self-respect, and liberty. He has also filed a case against the book's authors S Hussain Zaidi, and Jane Borges, stopping them from defaming and/or publishing, selling, alienating, assigning or creating any 3rd party rights with the novel.

After a case was filed, the makers moved the court seeking rejection of the suit. The defendant's lawyer stated that the petition was barred by limitation, since the book was published in 2011 and the petition filed in December 2020, exceeding the time period. They also argued that Shah is yet to present proof of him being the adopted son of Gangubai.

Meanwhile, Gangubai Kathiawadi, which was supposed to release in September 2020 was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Reports have revealed that the production is near completion, which had begun in October 2020. Earlier this year, the makers also announced that the film is set to release in 2021

Bhansali is also co-producing the film with producer Jayantilal Gada's Pen India Limited.

ALSO READ: Alia Bhatt Preps Hard With Dancing Lessons For Gangubai Kathiawadi

ALSO READ: Alia Bhatt Is A Visual Delight In Her Latest Monochrome Photoshoot; See Pics
An animal rights group has said contraception would be a kinder and more humane option than shooting deer in front of their offspring in Dublins Phoenix Park.

It has emerged that nearly 100 animals were shot dead in the park last year as part of the annual cull.

According to Freedom of Information figures released to Newstalk, the animals were killed over four days in January and November.

A total of 95 deer were killed last year and 74 were killed the year before.

Read More

The Office of Public Works (OPW) has said that to keep the parks deer population at a sustainable size of between 500 and 600 animals, it is necessary to cull the numbers.

Otherwise, the OPW points out, the park will not be able to produce enough food to sustain the herd and this could lead to welfare issues such as low body fat, malnutrition and high incidences of deaths from exposure during cold winters".

It said rising herd numbers would also lead to a build-up of parasites and other pathogens causing disease to spread rapidly while also having an effect on the other flora and fauna in the park.

But Alliance for Animal Rights spokesperson Bernie Wright said she disapproved of the killing of deer because there are options and it doesnt have to happen.

Like America, we could change over to contraceptives for the deer because the numbers seem to the problem, she told Newstalk. Maybe some could be relocated.

While contraceptives would have to be imported from the US, she still believes it to be a far kinder and more humane option than shooting these animals in front of their offspring in the park.

The Government body said there are currently no suitable contraceptives licensed for use in wild Irish deer  and insisted that contraceptives are also difficult to monitor.

According to the Phoenix Park's website, deer have lived in the park since 1662 and the deer we see today are the descendants of the original deer brought over 350 years ago.

Last month visitors to the park were reminded to keep away from the deer after one woman got a fair whack in the jaw while attempting to feed one.

Amy Murphy had a lucky escape and walked away with just a swollen jaw after a deer attacked her.

Speaking of her ordeal, she told Newstalks Lunchtime Live: There were crowds of people, families with children feeding the deer.

We went over, was feeding them the carrots, and one in particular would not move away.

I went to take the carrot out of the bag, and next of all his antlers came to the side of me and hit me straight in the jaw.

I didnt feel the pain straight away because it was so cold out, but when I got home the shock hit me. I have no bruising or anything, but it was very sore after.

A notice on the Phoenix Park website reads: Deer are naturally very timid animals but in the Phoenix Park they are losing their fear of humans due to being fed by them.

When they see someone standing with food in their hand they now sometimes approach, and this can be dangerous, it continues.
For the first time in 10 years, two boys from the Greerton Scout Club have been awarded the Chief Scout Award.

Tauranga Boys College students Lachlan Clark and Shayton Steele, both 14, were awarded the highest level of scouting success.

Shayton, who has been scouting for seven years, says hes ecstatic to receive the award.

Its a really good feeling of accomplishment.

The award was presented by Royce English, a scout member of more than 65 years.

Shaydon says both his mum and aunty also got the chief scout award, so it feels good to be involved in the family tradition.

Gaining the award involved organising and completing a four-day expedition, which covered more than 150 kilometres.

He says the most difficult part of the expedition was organising it, as the trip had to include at least three modes of transport, and they had to bring two extra people.

The group started in Waihi and travelled by train to Waikino, then by bike from Waikino to Paeroa. They then travelled by car to Hamilton and took public buses to the Classic Car Museum and Leap.

They visited museums, went rock climbing, visited the Waihi relics, Pit Rim trail, the Gold Centre, and the Hauraki Rail Trail.

It gives you a chance to go out and do what you want to do.

The boys were responsible for the bookings, activities, budgeting, food purchases, and setting out a plan for each day.

They camped at local Scout Halls and carried all their gear on their bikes.

Lachlans mum Louise, says the time and commitment involved made it something to be truly proud of, especially given the disruption that Covid threw up during 2020.

Prior to the expedition, scouts must progress through bronze, silver and gold awards.
New Delhi:

All parties to give their objections on the the proposed Motor Vehicles Bill in writing in the Rajya Sabha to Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien on Monday, said Minister of Road and Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday.

Gadkari informed about the development to the media after an all-party meeting held on the bill which aims at bringing radical reforms in the transport sector.

"It was decided in the meeting that all parties will give their objections in writing to the Deputy Chairman," Gadkari told reporters.

Opposition parties have been demanding the bill should be referred to a Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha alleging that the provisions in the bill are too harsh.

Gadkari also informed the media that another all-party meeting will be held if matters are not resolved.

Also Read: Software engineer bleeds to death on Pune road, while onlookers make video

There is an imperative need to bring the Act expeditiously as India accounts for about 5 lakhs accidents per annum and a delay will lead to unnecessary loss of lives, he added.

The bill aims at bringing radical reforms in the transport sector like heftier fines for traffic rule violations, improve licensing system. The new bill seeks to amend the 30-year old Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.

Also Read: Uproar in Rajya Sabha over Jaitley's remarks on adjournment notices

The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in 2016 but got stuck in the Rajya Sabha where the Opposition members demanded and overlook by the Select Committee of the House for scrutiny.

The bill has already been examined by the Standing Committee on Transport and Tourism.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:22:03|Editor: huaxia

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GENEVA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- According to Joerg Wuttke, president of the European Union (EU) Chamber of Commerce in China (EUCCC), the opening up of the services sector and more pro-trade measures could help EU businesses as well as Chinese enterprises further expand their growth.

In an interview with Xinhua on Thursday, Wuttke reacted to the EU statistical office Eurostat's Monday announcement that China overtook the U.S. as the EU's top trading partner for the first time last year. Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU and China have both seen an increase in exports to each other's markets.

Wuttke said he saw opportunities for both sides to further boost bilateral trade ties.

"We need to keep in mind that the U.S. remains the EU's number one trading partner when you include services," he said, adding that this really highlights the untapped potentials of EU-China trade.

"The current headwinds include decoupling dynamics, politicized trade, import bans and export controls," he said. "Although the underlying economic forces for trade between the EU and China remain strong, we cannot take it for granted that it will continue to be that way indefinitely."

The EU's imports from China in 2020 jumped by 5.6 percent year-on-year to 383.5 billion euros (463 billion U.S. dollars), Eurostat said, while exports grew by 2.2 percent to 202.5 billion euros. At the same time, the EU's trade with the U.S. saw a substantial decline in both directions, according to Eurostat.

In December last year, China and the EU concluded their seven-year negotiations on a Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI). The two sides also signed an agreement on geographical indications, which is likely to come into force on March 1, 2021.

"If ratification can be achieved, we hope that there will be the political will to go beyond the implementation of the agreement as it stands, and to continue reforming the Chinese economy to benefit not only EU businesses but also competitive and innovative Chinese private enterprises," Wuttke said.

"The current situation could act as the EU's 'Sputnik moment'. Obviously, the focus should not be Moon-bound endeavors, but artificial intelligence, biotechnology and information and communication technology. After all the EU is still an engineering superpower," he said. (1 euro = 1.21 U.S. dollars) Enditem
As the Internet frothed with speculation and fury over Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's trip to Mexico, officials at the Houston Police Department confirmed that they'd handled security for the senator on Wednesday as he was heading out of the country.

"A member of Ted Cruz' staff contacted HPD on Wednesday afternoon," HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva said. "They stated would be arriving that afternoon and requested HPD assistance on his arrival."
Diplomats acknowledge Ukraine's importance for the Bloc, while reiterating the need for reform.

Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration requires progress on important reforms, the U.S. Embassy underlines.

"Ukraine is an important NATO partner, critical to the Black Sea and wider transatlantic security. Progress on difficult but rewarding reforms remains necessary to further advance Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration. We welcome Ukraine's contributions and intention to join NATO, as enshrined in Ukrainian Constitution," the embassy tweeted on February 18.

Read alsoKuleba: Ukraine, NATO may overcome any challenge through joint effortsUkraine and NATO: Background

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview for Axios on the U.S.-based HBO channel that Ukraine wants to be an equal member of NATO. "We are grateful for everything, but Ukraine is not just saying in words that it wants to be an equal member of the Alliance, an equal member of NATO, because this is one of the most important security points  the same security that President [of the United States Joe] Biden is speaking about. How should we further state the desire to accede, if it is enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine  the movement towards the European Union, European integration, as well as accession to NATO? Therefore, I have a very simple question  why is Ukraine still not in NATO? Putting away these phrases that we will all contemplate and communicate, the first simple question from me would be: 'Mr. President, why are we not in NATO yet?'" he said then.

Zelensky expressed the hope that during Biden's presidency, Ukraine and the United States would enter a new stage of security enhancing relations.

On February 9, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine needed to focus on reform to get closer to NATO, whose "door remains open", including to strengthen democratic institutions, fight corruption, and introduce democratic political control over the Armed Forces.

At the same time, on February 17, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called on NATO Allies not to keep the decision to provide a Membership Action Plan to Ukraine "hostage" of Russian myths about eastward expansion.

Reporting by UNIAN
[February 17, 2021] Quad9 public domain name service moves to Switzerland for maximum internet privacy protection

Quad9 is the first DNS security solution to extend GDPR privacy protections to internet users worldwide. ZURICH, Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Quad9, the global, not-for-profit Domain Name System (DNS) security platform, today announced that it has moved its headquarters from California to Zurich, Switzerland supported by Packet Clearing House and SWITCH. Quad9 has set itself apart from other DNS providers by voluntarily placing itself within a jurisdiction which strictly enforces privacy laws to the highest global standards. Considered a stronghold of individual rights, Switzerland has a legal privacy regime harmonized with the European-standard General Data Protection Regulation. It grants individuals enforceable rights and effective remedies, giving Quad9 users around the world the full protection of Swiss law. This and other important concessions and findings of law from the Swiss government which ensure Quad9 users' privacy and security, have made Quad9's selection of domicile a natural choice. Quad9 is the only global DNS security provider to offer these universal privacy protections. Privacy by Force of Law Unlike commercial DNS operators, which profit from the sale of users' personal information and internet browsing history, Quad9 collects no personal information. Users' queries and addresses are neither collected nor recorded, and thus no third parties have access to them. Quad9 is a not-for-profit organization with transparent governance and finances, supported by donations, and dedicated exclusively to the operation of private and secure DNS services. "The privacy protection claims of DNS security solutions are only meaningful if they are bound under law and enforced by an empowered authority. Privacy policies which are not backed by law are empty promises," said John Todd, general manager of Quad9. Quad9 is under the supervision of the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner and subject to Swiss jurisdiction. The Swiss Data Protection Act does not contain any restriction regarding the citizenship or residence of the individuals whose personal rights are to be protected by the law. By using Quad9, anyone in the world can receive the same, fully legally enforced, protection as a Swiss citizen. Privacy Risks o the Domain Name System



Whenever users use the internet, they leave a trail of digital footprints. Recursive DNS providers are the chokepoint through which all users' actions pass, and this is where personal information can be scrutinized, recorded, and turned into dossiers for sale. Unlike other large DNS providers, which are domiciled in the United States, a jurisdiction that shields them from privacy claims and responsibility to users, Quad9 has placed itself under the legally binding authority of a strong privacy regulator. The strength of Swiss law, combined with Quad9's mission and transparent privacy practices, guarantee that personal data will never be collected, analyzed, or sold. Protection Against Cybercrime

Independent tests show that Quad9 also prevents users' devices from connecting to 97% of malicious web sites. To achieve this success rate, Quad9 aggregates information from many cyber threat analysts, now including SWITCH, to form a uniquely comprehensive database of malicious domains. When a Quad9 user connects to the internet, Quad9 checks their destination in that database and blocks the connection if connecting to it would harm the user. Quad9 operates in more than 150 locations in ninety countries and protects internet users from more than sixty million malicious attacks each day. Collaboration With SWITCH Quad9's move to Switzerland is being facilitated by SWITCH, one of Switzerland's centers of competence for internet security. The foundation operates several critical infrastructures and has been committed to greater cybersecurity for decades to make the internet a more secure place for its users. SWITCH is taking a seat on Quad9's foundation council and contributing to Quad9's governance. "In less than five years, Quad9 has built a global alternative to the commercial DNS platforms that are focused on reaping profit from user data," said Tom Kleiber, managing director of SWITCH. "We look forward to expanding Quad9's reach and impact to show internet users across the globe that security can be improved without exploiting their privacy." Using Quad9 Quad9 is free and available throughout the world. Users may configure their computer's DNS resolvers to 9.9.9.9, 149.112.112.112 and 2620:FE::FE. For a step-by-step guide or for more advanced options, please visit https://quad9.net. About Quad9 Quad9 is a recursive DNS service providing cybersecurity protection against malware and phishing. As a not-for-profit organization, Quad9 does not collect or resell personal data and provides a trusted service to individuals and organizations at no cost and with no contract. The organization was launched in 2017 and now is operational in more than 150 locations in 90 countries. Quad9 exists to improve end user protection and privacy worldwide in addition to promoting the stability and security of the internet. Learn more at https://www.quad9.net About SWITCH SWITCH is a trusted partner for digitalization issues that jointly concern the education, research and innovation community in Switzerland. The independent foundation helps universities and other partners take advantage of the possibilities of digitalization within and outside the academic world. SWITCH has been the registry for .ch and .li domain names since the early days of the internet. As one of Switzerland's centers of competence for security on the internet, SWITCH operates a multi-sector CERT providing services for universities, the domain registry, banks, industry, logistics and the energy sector. Learn more at https://www.switch.ch Press conference, February 17, 2021 at 11am (CET): https://swit.ch/quad9 Contacts For Quad9 Vrge Strategies, Adam Benson, adam@vrge.us For SWITCH SWITCH, Roland Eugster, press@SWITCH.ch SOURCE Quad9

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(Newser)  Bowe Bergdahl is suing the United States over his 2017 court-martial conviction, which he blames on "scandalous meddling" from late Sen. John McCain and former President Trump. In the civil lawsuit filed in federal court Wednesday, the former soldier, who was held hostage by the Taliban for five years after he walked off his military base in Afghanistan, accuses McCain and Trump of exerting "unlawful command influence" over his case, Fox reports. The lawsuit states that Trump referred to Bergdahl as a "dirty, rotten traitor" during his campaign and continued to disparage him while his case was underway, while McCain, chairman of the Armed Services Committee during the military trial, said he would call for a committee hearing if Bergdahl wasn't punished.

story continues below

The meddling "would never be tolerated if the proceeding had been a criminal prosecution in this or any other federal district court and should not be tolerated in a court-martial," the lawsuit states. Bergdahl received a dishonorable discharge but no prison time after pleading guilty to desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. His lawsuit asks the court to declare his conviction unconstitutional and grant "such other and further relief as may in the circumstances be just and proper." The judge who oversaw his case in 2017 rejected the argument that Trump's remarks made the trial unfair, though he said it could be a mitigating factor in sentencing. Bergdahl's argument about Trump and McCain's remarks was also rejected by the military's top appeals court last year. (Read more Bowe Bergdahl stories.)

Former president of League of Women Voters, voting rights activist to speak May 15

Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins, in her 1974 Western College yearbook photo (left) and now (images courtesy Jefferson-Jenkins).

Miami University President Greg Crawford has announced that Dr. Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins will be the commencement speaker at Miamis spring ceremony. The university has not yet announced a decision on whether the ceremony, slated for 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 15, will be in-person or virtual as officials continue to monitor the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic and the feasibility of large gatherings.

Jefferson-Jenkins, a 1974 Western College for Women graduate, was elected as the 15th national president of the League of Women Voters in 1998, serving two terms and also chairing the League of Women Voters Education Fund. She was the first woman of color to be elected president.

Under her leadership, the league helped pass the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA), which closed the most significant loopholes in campaign finance regulation at the time. She also led a charge to focus on local elections while increasing the number of voters who participated in all elections.

Throughout her illustrious career, Dr. Jefferson-Jenkins has dedicated herself to affirming and upholding our countrys democracy, Crawford said. Time and again she has used her voice and her platform to protect and expand voting rights, encouraging all to participate in the electoral process. Through her example, our graduates will be inspired to use their Miami education to serve, lead, and build a better future for all.

After graduating from Western College, Jefferson-Jenkins started her career as a public school teacher and administrator. She earned a masters degree in education from John Carroll University, an educational specialist degree from Kent State University and a doctoral degree from Cleveland State University.

Western College prepared us for life, not just a career, Jefferson-Jenkins said. While teaching was my vocation, my calling was always community-based activism. I grew up and came of age during the Civil Rights Movement. There was never a time I was not active or not calling for change, not calling for progress.

With the League of Women Voters, Jefferson-Jenkins was instrumental in the Get Out the Vote Campaign, and later, the Wired for Democracy project. Still in the early days of the internet, Wired for Democracy was the first foray into making sure that people could access objective, nonpartisan election information online.

As chair of the leagues Voter Education Fund, Jefferson-Jenkins promoted democracy-building efforts in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, the Netherlands, Israel and a group of African countries.

She is the author of The Road to Black Suffrage and One Man, One Vote: The History of the African-American Vote in the United States. Her most recent book, The Untold Story of Women of Color in the League of Women Voters, was released last year in honor of the organizations centennial celebration.

Jefferson-Jenkins is the third honoree of Miamis Freedom Summer of 64 Award. It is named to remember and recognize the site at the Western College for Women, now part of Miamis Western campus, where 800 young Americans trained to register black voters in the south.

For my generation, its time to pass the mantle and then be supportive, Jefferson-Jenkins said. What I hope to convey to the new Miami alumni is that they were made for a moment like this. Every generation has a transformational time, and this is it for them. And while we dont know what the future holds, we know that this class is made for this moment  their passion, their perseverance, their adaptability. We know they will make the world better, and their Miami education and experience has prepared them for that.

Jefferson-Jenkins continues to be an advocate and activist for civil rights, social justice, educational excellence, and stronger citizen participation in the electoral process for underrepresented populations. She actively serves on numerous boards and advises community-based organizations. She is currently an adjunct assistant professor in the School of Education at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Lifting Michiganders Out Of Poverty

"No parent should have to choose between paying rent and putting food on the table for their families. That's why I've charged this task force with identifying more ways we can lift families up and ensure they can build a good life for themselves here in Michigan. I plan to work very closely with this team to ensure that every parent can feed their families with healthy, nutritious food, put a roof over their heads, and keep them warm in the winter. - Governor Whitmer

Right now, hundreds of thousands of Michiganders live in poverty. There is no single face to this problemits causes are many and varied, and so are its consequences. No matter how poverty is viewed or measured, however, one thing is cleartoo many Michiganders lack the opportunity they deserve to get ahead, or even get by.

While there are already many efforts underway throughout state government to assist individuals living in poverty, the Michigan Poverty Task Force will find ways to strengthen, broaden, coordinate and streamline those efforts, ensuring that Michigan families have access to the support they need.
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NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 17, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors of pending deadlines in the following securities class action lawsuits:

SolarWinds Corporation (SWI)

Class Period: 10/18/2018 - 12/17/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: March 5, 2021

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-solarwinds-corporation-securities-litigation

QuantumScape Corporation (QS)

Class Period: 11/27/2020 - 12/31/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: March 8, 2021

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-quantumscape-corporation-securities-litigation

Penumbra, Inc. (PEN)

Class Period: 8/3/2020 - 12/15/2020

Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: March 16, 2021

SECURITIES FRAUD

To learn more, visit https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/view-penumbra-inc-securities-litigation

If you purchased shares of the above companies and would like to discuss your legal rights and your right to recover for your economic loss, you may, without obligation or cost to you, contact us toll-free (844) 367-9658 or visit the case links above.

If you wish to serve as a Lead Plaintiff in the class action, you must petition the Court on or before the Lead Plaintiff Motion deadline.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com
LUANDA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :Angolan President Joao Lourenco on Thursday iterated his government's commitment to establish and consolidate a society featuring the rule of law and a market economy.

Lourenco made the remarks at the opening of the 44th session of the board of governors of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) held via video-conference.

He said the Angolan government intends to diversify the national economy and change, in definitive terms, the economic structure of the country which is very dependent on oil resources.

Angola has developed several initiatives to improve the business environment to attract more direct local and foreign private investment, Lourenco said, underscoring the need to promote growth of the non-oil sector to create more jobs and increase income and well-being of its citizens.

The Angolan President said the government is paying special attention to agriculture, agro-industry, fisheries, extractive and manufacturing industries, construction, tourism and other labor-intensive sectors.

"We are making a great effort to revitalize and develop agriculture in Angola, so that we can reduce our great dependence on food imports," he said.
7,000 ISIS fighters have taken advantage of the coronavirus pandemic to reorganise themselves in Iraq, according to a Kurdish general.

Sirwan Barzani, a Peshmerga commander stationed in Arbil, said the lack of anti-ISIS operations in the region had provided jihadists with an opportunity to emerge from hiding, The Times reports.

Speaking to the paper, the Kurdish general said that the group still posed a 'big threat for all of the world', estimating more than 7,000 ISIS fighters are still in Iraq.

Barzani explained that when the Islamic State territory was liberated, many of the fighters shaved their beards and posed as members of the public.

Kurdish general Sirwan Barzani (pictured) has warned that Islamic State has used the coronavirus pandemic to reorganise in Iraq in their thousands

The Peshmerga commander (pictured in 2015) said that the group still posed a 'big threat for all of the world', estimating more than 7,000 Isis fighters are still in Iraq

He said: 'They reorganised themselves quicker because of the pandemic.'

The coronavirus pandemic was cited by Barzani as one of the reasons why ISIS has been able to regroup, because coalition forces had not been carrying out operations as regularly.

He stated that an RAF strike last month against a depot containing IEDs was the first action taken by British forces in three months.

However, a Ministry of Defence spokesperson told The Times that the pandemic had not had an impact on the frequency of coalition attacks and that any strikes were a 'final step' led by intelligence.

Coalition training of Iraqi and Kurdish forces had been suspended last January after a US airstrike killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani.

The coronavirus pandemic was cited by Barzani as one of the reasons why ISIS has been able to regroup, because coalition forces had not been carrying out operations as regularly. Pictured: Iraqi soldiers train with members of the US Army on June 2, 2015

Barzani explained that when the Islamic State territory was liberated, many of the fighters shaved their beards and posed as members of the public. Pictured: International coalition forces and Iraqi forces install a floating bridge at the Taji camp, north of Baghdad, on March 6, 2017

The same training was paused again when the coronavirus pandemic started spreading.

Following the handover of Camp Taji in northern Baghdad to Iraqi forces, only 100 British soldiers remain, while only 2,500 American troops are still stationed in the country.

It comes after two ISIS terror cells were destroyed by RAF fighter jets using laser-guided bombs in Iraq.

A pair of RAF Typhoon FGR4s conducted simultaneous attacks using two Paveway IV guided bombs to kill the terrorists based in two caves near Bayji, a city 130 miles north of Baghdad.

A coalition surveillance aircraft had located a number of ISIS fighters on January 24 and the two fighter jets were tasked to strike them, according to a statement by the Ministry of Defence.

There are now only 2,500 American troops still stationed in Iraq and 100 British soldiers. Pictured: File image of US troops walk through the village of Oreji, south of Mosul on February 22, 2017

Following the handover of Camp Taji (pictured) in northern Baghdad to Iraqi forces, only 100 British soldiers remain, while only 2,500 American troops are still stationed in the country

The pilots checked the area around the caves, which were a mile and a half apart, for any signs of civilians who could have been at risk. They then simultaneously launched two laser-guided bombs against each group.

'All four of the bombs struck the targets accurately and the strike was assessed to have been a success in eliminating the terrorist threat', the MoD said. They did not reveal how many casualties there were.

Coalition operations against ISIS began in 2014 when America began a bombing campaign in Iraq and Syria, and began supporting forces on the ground - largely led by the Kurds - in order to push the terror group back.

By early 2016, the US estimated that ISIS had lost 40 per cent of the 36,000 square miles of territory it once held.

The following year ISIS lost the battle for Mosul, its last stronghold in Iraq, shortly before being driven out of Aleppo in Syria.

Last month, two ISIS terror cells found hiding in caves were destroyed by British RAF fighter jets using laser-guided bombs in Iraq. Pictured: The blast following the airstrikes

A pair of RAF Typhoon FGR4s conducted simultaneous attacks using two Paveway IV guided bombs to kill the terrorists based in two caves near Bayji, a city 130 miles north of Baghdad

In March 2019, the terrorist's last redoubt - a sliver of land called Baghouz in Syria - was captured by Kurdish forces, spelling the end of the group as a territorial power.

Since then ISIS has transformed into a guerrilla fighting force similar to Al Qaeda, directly launching bomb and gun attacks in Syria and Iraq.

Last year, Masrour Barzani, prime minister of the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, warned Isis had double the number of soldiers it had when it began capturing territory in Iraq and Syria in 2014.

While ISIS has lost all of its territory and much of its leadership, last year, Barzani believed the terror group still had 20,000 fighters spread across Iraq and Syria and had been trying to recruit more.
February 18, 2021: The financial situation is very bad, so bad that it has the attention of senior government officials as well as populist religious leaders who have supported the continuing public, and sometimes violent, protests again corruption and misrule in general. The government budget for 2021 includes a 20 percent deficit that is covered by expensive loans. Government income fluctuates depending on the sale price for oil and how much Iraq can produce. Because of the global covid19 recession the oil price fluctuated from $33 to $43 a barrel in 2020. Iraq had to cut production to about three million BPD (Barrels Per Day) for much of 2020 to maintain its membership in OPEC (the oil cartel) and to make up for several instances of overproduction since late 2019.

Iraq is more dependent on oil income than any other Gulf nation. Because of lower oil prices and lower oil demand the Iraqi GDP shrank eleven ten percent in 2020. The monthly government payroll is $4.5 billion and in 2020 oil income has only been able to cover about half of that. Much of the payroll spending is stolen and the government is under a lot of pressure to save money by making a serious effort to shut down the scams that steal as much as a third of the payroll costs. For most of 2020 the government was able borrow money to cover the monthly budget shortfall. But by late 2020 that the government was out of credit and millions of Iraqis were not getting paid on time. The situation improved a bit at the end of the year when oil price in December reached $48 a barrel.

The 2021 government budget avoided major spending reductions or reducing corruption and mainly depends on higher ($60 a barrel would be nice) oil prices to work. For too many Iraqi politicians that is seen as a more realistic solution than taking on the corruption problems involving who gets paid what by the government. Because of the continued corruption and deficit spending, recovery from the recession will take longer. GDP is expected to grow by 1.2 percent in 2021 and about four percent in 2022 and 2024. Before covid19, in 2019, GDP was growing at 4.5 percent a year. Continued reluctance of government officials to deal with corruption means the popular protests will continue.

Dealing with problems involving Iran or Turkey are also being avoided. Iranian sponsored violence in Iraq or interference in the economy are opposed by most Iraqis. This does not motivate Iraqi politicians to act and that is causing more and more popular discontent. Thats fine with Iran because a government collapse would provide Iran with more opportunities to expand it control in Iraq.

The Danger Below

A UN effort to count the number of landmines and other unexploded munitions still present in Iraq concluded that there are apparently 50 million of these items, most of them unexploded or unfired munitions as well as bombs and explosive traps left behind by ISIL in northern and western Iraq. Efforts to remove those items only were not sufficient to clear them any time soon. Only 33,311 were removed in 2020. A few percent were along the Iranian border where the 1980s war was fought.

February 16, 2021: In the north (Nineveh Province, 120 kilometers west of Mosul) PKK (Turkish Kurdish separatists) remain in Sinjar, which is also dominated by the Kurdish Yazidi faction. The Yazidi were particularly hated by ISIL which tried to wipe the group out. ISIL failed, in large part because support for the Yazidi from Kurds Iraqi, Turkish and Syrian Kurds as well as the American military. For that reason, the Yazidi tolerate the continued presence of PKK. This angers Turkey, which now threatens to send in ground forces and lots of airpower to occupy Sinjar if the Iraqi government does not remove PKK from Sinjar and northern Iraq in general. Turkey added that they would act without warning. With that degree of motivation Iraq has sent two Iran-backed PMF (Popular Mobilization Forces) militia brigades to Sinjar as well as an army brigade. Most Iraqis, including the Kurds, want the 100,000-man PMF force disbanded but so far pro-Iran and bribed-by-Iran Iraqi politicians have blocked that move.

Since 2018 PKK has been moving some of Qandil headquarters operations westward to Sinjar. Turkey has been trying to persuade the Iraqi government and the Iraqi Kurds to prevent this. There was some cooperation but the PKK continued to be active in and around the Qandil base area as well as Sinjar. Since 2019 Turkish troops and airstrikes have increased their attacks on PKK bases in and around Mount Qandil, a remote area near the Turkish and Iranian borders that has long harbored PKK hideouts and served as a supply source for PKK operations in eastern Turkey. The Turkish attacks involve lots of airstrikes by F-16s, helicopter gunships and missile-armed UAVs along with 155mm artillery for targets within 20 kilometers of the Turkish border. This has been supplemented by ground troops (mainly special operations forces) advancing up to 50 kilometers into Iraq to confirm the damage and collect intel material. Because this is such a remote, and thinly populated, area the Iraqi government does not protest too vigorously. The PKK have proved resilient and operations like this slow PKK down but after decades of fighting PKK survives and rebuilds. Turks, Iranians and Arabs have been fighting the Kurds for centuries.

February 15, 2021: In the north (autonomous Kurdish provinces) someone fired about two dozen 107mm rockets at the Erbil (Kurdish capital) airport complex and fourteen of them landed in populated areas. This facility is heavily guarded but unguided 107mm rockets have a max range of ten to twelve kilometers and the American C-RAM rocket defense is short range and there mainly to defend the Patriot anti-ballistic missile battery. The airport has a heavily patrolled eight kilometers security zone around it to make rocket and mortar attacks more difficult, or at least much less accurate. Several of the rockets hit areas containing American troops and civilian contractors. One contractor was killed and eight others wounded. Five of the wounded were Americans, including a soldier. The contractors are recruited worldwide even though most work for American firms. Awliya al-Dam, a minor Shia Islamic terror group claimed responsibility. Smaller Islamic terrorist groups often stage attacks like this to get publicity. This helps them with recruiting and fund raising. It also increases efforts to find and destroy them. Another complication is that nearly all Shia Islamic terror groups in Iraq are taking orders from Iran. Such groups have been responsible for attacks on American troops in Iraq for over a decade.

Kurdish counter-terror forces immediately began tracking down those responsible for this attack and the next day found the truck from which the rockets were launched. The rockets used were the variants of the original Russian B-12 rockets. These are manufactured by many nations in the region, especially Iran. The B-12 is a 107mm, 19 kg (42 pound), 107mm (4.2 inch) diameter, 84 cm (33 inch) long rocket that is very popular with terrorists. This rocket has a range of about six to ten kilometers and 1.35 kg (3 pounds) of explosives in its warhead. The BM-12 with the longest range is a Chinese variant which has a smaller warhead and larger rocket motor. This version is supposed to have a range of about 12 kilometers. Similar variants are available from several nations. The longer-range variants are even less accurate but that does not matter if the target is a large community, military base or airport. Normally fired from a launcher, in salvoes of dozens at a time, when used individually it is more accurate the closer it is to the target. This 107mm design is very popular with guerillas and terrorists because of its small size and portability.

February 11, 2021: In the west (Anbar province) another airstrike hit a convoy of trucks carrying Iranian weapons as it passed through the Al Bukamal crossing into Syria (Deir Ezzor province). There were several large explosions, made possible by the munitions carried in the trucks. The attacking aircraft could not be identified but were believed to be Israeli and part of a campaign to cripple Iranian efforts to build up a large force in Syria that would be capable of launching thousands of guided and unguided rockets into Israel.

February 10, 2021: In the far north (Duhok Province) Turkish air and ground forces carried another attack against PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) Turkish Kurdish separatist camps and positions in the hills. There were over forty airstrikes (against fifty actual or suspected targets) with ground troops following up to confirm damage and seize an prisoners or useful documents. At least 33 PKK members died, including two known leaders. A larger number of wounded and unwounded PKK got away.

Outside there was another roadside bomb attack made on an American supply convoy. There were no casualties and not much damage.

February 8, 2021: Next door Syria is falling apart because cash shortages. This means more trouble for Iraq. For example, at the end of 2020 the Assad government ordered the military to reduce costs by having most military units return to lower peacetime (pre-2011) levels of readiness. Syria is not at peace but the Assads cannot afford to keep most of the military combat ready. The cutbacks are dictated by the sharp reduction in financial support from Iran. The American economic sanctions have, since 2018, greatly reduced the amount of money Iran could spend on its foreign wars. Iran-backed groups in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and Yemen are all feeling the impact. Iran is hoping the new American government will relax the sanctions. While the Americans are now saying nice things about Iran, the sanctions are still in place and enforced. In Syria that means the troops have less ammo and fuel for patrols and combat. As was the case in peacetime, more soldiers and officers were given leave, to spend a few weeks visiting families or even taking a vacation.

February 7, 2021: In the west (Anbar province) the army carried out a series of raids on ISIL camps near the 599-kilometer border Anbar shares with Syria. The Iraqis revealed that the targets had been found using tech supplied by the American led counter-terrorism coalition. The tech apparently consisted of hidden night-vision digital cameras and detected anyone crossing at night and transmitted the data to a UAV high overhead which could use its more powerful sensors to track the border crossers to their destination. The Iraqi army wants to expand the use of this tech and replace cameras discovered and removed or destroyed by smugglers, Islamic terrorists or even some civilians looking to make some money. Such cameras have long been available as a commercial product for people living in rural areas curious about what kind of wildlife is near them. Researchers also use such cameras to detect or simply count rare species in the wild. The more expensive commercial wildlife cameras have wireless communications but most simply save any photos or video the camera took to a memory ship after the motion detector was triggered by nearby movement.

February 1, 2021: In Baghdad and other cities the attacks on liquor stores that began in early December 2020 continue. The worst of these attacks use explosives but some of these fail because they are discovered before they go off (or fail to go off) and are safely removed. In response pro-Iran or Islamic conservative policemen closed many other liquor stores for bogus violations. Turkish manufacturers and wholesalers provide most of the alcoholic beverages for the Iraqi market. Since the campaign against liquor stores began liquor imports from Turkey fell 50 percent during a period of peak demand because of New Year and Christmas, which is celebrated by many non-Christians in Iraq. Technically alcohol is only supposed to be purchased and consumed by Iraqi Christians and this tolerance has been observed since Iraq was founded after World War I. Before that Iraq was part of the Ottoman Empire which was always considerate of its non-Moslem subjects, thereby earning their loyalty. Since 2003, clergy representing the Shia majority have preached against any tolerance or special accommodations for non-Moslems. This is the old Moslem curse of clergy getting into who is more Islamic feuds with clerical and secular rivals. Its another form of corruption since many of these outspoken clerics will modify their message if the price is right.

January 27, 2021: The main problem in Iraq is corruption and it is believed to have cost the government over $300 billion since 2003. Thats just the losses to the government budget. Overall, more than half a trillion has been stolen from commercial and government organizations since 2003. Government budgets have declined since 2014, when oil peaked at over $100 a barrel. It is now about a third of that because of increased production in the U.S., which is again an exporter of oil, and reduced global demand. Iraq has always been one of the most corrupt nations on the planet. The extent of this corruption c an be seen in the international surveys of nations to determine who is clean and who is corrupt.

In 2020 Iraq ranked 160 out of 180 nations in international rankings compared with 162 in 2019. Corruption is measured annually in the Transparency International Corruption Perception Index. Corruption is measured on a 1 (most corrupt) to 100 (not corrupt) scale. The most corrupt nations (usually Yemen/15, Syria/13, South Sudan/12 and Somalia/9) have a rating of under 15 while of the least corrupt (Finland, New Zealand and Denmark) are over 85.

The current Iraq score is 21 (versus 20 in 2019) compared to the least corrupt nation in region, nearby UAE (United Arab Emirates), which ranked 21st out of 180 nations. The current UAE score is 71 (same as 2019) compared to 61 (61) for Israel, 15 (15) for Yemen, 67 (69) for the United States, 33 (35) for Egypt, 25 (26) for Nigeria, 44 (44) for South Africa, 40 (39) for Turkey, 53 (53) for Saudi Arabia, 33 (30) for Ukraine, 47 (45) for Belarus, 56 (58) for Poland, 80 (80) Germany, 65 (65) for Taiwan, 40 (39) for Turkey, 40 (41) for India, 30 (28) for Russia, 61 (57) for South Korea, 42 (41) for China, 18 (14) for North Korea, 36 (37) for Vietnam, 85 (85) for Singapore, 74 (73) for Japan, 37 (40) for Indonesia, 38 (38) for Sri Lanka, 34 (34) for the Philippines, 31 (32) for Pakistan, 26 (26) for Bangladesh, 25 (26) for Iran, 19 (16) for Afghanistan, 28 (29) for Burma, and 25 (28) for Lebanon.

Iraqs corruption score has changed for the better since the 2012 when it was 18. Unfortunately, Iraq hasnt improved enough to make a major difference.

January 26, 2021: The issue of Iraqs instability continues to trouble Turkey. Its not an afterthought. Iraq still provides a haven for the PKK. Turkey calls the PKK a terrorist organization, for good reason. The PKK began as a Marxist revolutionary group created supported by the USSR (Russia) during the Cold War. Turkey is willing to trade with Iraq, especially with the autonomous northern-Iraqi Kurds. Iraqi-Kurds are seen as more reliable trade partners than the Arab Iraqis who dominate the national government. Part of this is ethnic prejudice stemming from the apparent (to the Turks) corrupt and self-destructive ways of the Iraqi, and especially the dominant Baghdadi Arabs. These ancient prejudices still resonate. The Turks see the Iraqi Kurds as easier to deal with, in part because northern Iraq (from Kirkuk to the current Turkish border) used to be part of the Turkish homeland according to the Ottoman Empire. The victorious allies took Kirkuk province away from post-Ottoman Turkey because the area had oil and without it the Turks would have to import oil and be less of a future threat to outsiders. The Turks have not forgotten their lost province, and that irritates Arab Iraqis.

January 23, 2021: In Syria and Iraq Iran is trying to organize local versions of the Lebanese Hezbollah. In Syria this process has just for started with the formation of the Sayyida Zaynab Brigade. To do this Iranian spends a lot of money on hiring Syrian mercenaries who are deemed likely to become loyal and reliable true believers in Iranian goals. The same thing is underway in Iraq. Both efforts depend on lots of cash incentives, especially at the beginning. To pay for this Iran has reduced the budget for bribes and less-special mercenaries.
(Alliance News) - The UK government has been urged to launch a compensation scheme for frontline workers who are suffering from the long-term effects of coronavirus.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group on coronavirus said UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson should recognise long Covid as an occupational disease, saying some sufferers have found it hard to return to work.

Symptoms of long Covid include ongoing fatigue, loss of taste or smell, and respiratory and cardiovascular problems, and this week Professor Danny Altmann, from Imperial College London, said up to 20% of patients are reporting symptoms of the disease weeks after becoming ill.

APPG Chair Layla Moran said: "Long Covid is the hidden health crisis of the pandemic, and it is likely to have an enormous impact on society for many years to come.

"When it comes to frontline NHS, care and key workers, they were specifically asked to go to work and save lives while everyone else was asked to stay at home.

"They were exposed to an increased level of risk of catching the virus, often without adequate levels of PPE."

The group wants the government to follow France, Germany, Belgium and Denmark, which have formally recognised Covid as an "occupational disease".

Liberal Democrat Moran added: "They are the true heroes of the pandemic and, sadly, many have developed the debilitating effects of long Covid, meaning that they are unable to return to full-time work.

"The government cannot abandon them now or ever. The least the government can do is recognise their sacrifice by recognising their condition as an occupational disease, launching a compensation scheme, and save the livelihoods of those who save lives."

A letter, signed by more than 60 MPs and peers, has been sent to Johnson.

Their call has been backed by Chaand Nagpaul, chair of the British Medical Association Council, who said a compensation scheme to support healthcare staff is "only right".

He added: "After being exposed to increased risk working on the front line during the Covid-19 pandemic, there are now healthcare workers across the country living with the long-term, debilitating impacts of having caught the virus.

"We have heard harrowing stories from doctors suffering with long Covid, who are often unable to work, threatening their financial stability and affecting their lives at home.

"The dedication and selflessness shown by healthcare workers over the last year, and the debt of gratitude owed to them, cannot be under-estimated.

"While the government and employers must increase efforts to protect staff now and stop them contracting Covid-19 in the first place, for some it is already too late."

By Alexander Britton

source: PA

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
One million counterfeit N95 masks were seized by federal agents on Wednesday as part of a sweeping fraud investigation stemming from the global coronavirus pandemic, the head of the Department of Homeland Security announced.

The seizure brought the total number of knockoff masks that have been confiscated in recent weeks to more than 11 million, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary, said during a news conference.

Mr. Mayorkas appeared next to several boxes of masks that had been seized and were stamped with the name 3M, the largest remaining American producer of N95s.

Officials said that the company had been working with investigators to identify sources of counterfeit masks, which originated in China, and that the department expected to make arrests.
[February 18, 2021] E-Commerce Enabler Klaviyo Keeps Pace with Rapid Business Growth, Expanding Leadership Team

Today, Klaviyo, the leading marketing automation platform for marketing and growing businesses online, announced it has added four new senior executive team members to guide and support the next phase of company growth: Ben Cook as Chief Financial Officer (CFO); Jenny Dearborn as Chief People Officer (CPO); Landon Edmond as General Counsel; Chief Legal Officer (CLO); and Kady Srinivasan as Head of Global Marketing. The hires follow the company's $200 million Series C funding round, closed in late 2020, which propelled the 8-year-old startup to unicorn status. Klaviyo is known for changing the way marketers and entrepreneurs operate, by providing direct access to their data and customers in a single source, allowing personalized messaging that produces strong results without relying on platforms like Facebook (News - Alert) or Amazon. Today over 60,000 paying customers are on the Klaviyo platform. "We are excited to welcome such incredible talent to our team," said Andrew Bialecki, co-founder and CEO of Klaviyo. "Ben, Jenny, Kady and Landon's direct experience scaling fast-growing technology companies will take Klaviyo to the next level. Marketing automation has never been more important, with so many businesses focusing on online growth during the pandemic. This team is equipped to share our story on the global stage, while ensuring our business is as healthy as ever." Senior Hires Ben Cook was hired as CFO from Qualtrics, where he spent nearly a decade in leadership finance and operations positions, most recently as Chief Operating Officer for The Americas. He received both his bachelor's and master's degrees in Accounting from Brigham Young University. Jenny Dearborn joins Klaviyo as CPO from SAP (News - Alert) , where she was Chief Talent Officer, EVP of Human Resources. Dearborn came to SAP hrough its acquisition of SuccessFactors where she was an executive in the Sales function. She has more than two decades of experience in tech companies like HP and Sun Microsystems (News - Alert) . She holds a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley, a master's degree from Stanford University, an MBA from San Jose State University and is currently completing her Ph.D in Global Leadership and Change at Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology. She's a published author of two books on data-driven performance.



Landon Edmond joins in the role of CLO and General Counsel, also from SAP, where he was SVP and General Counsel at SAP Cloud with a global team of 300+ legal professionals in over 40 countries. Edmond was General Counsel, Chief Legal Officer at Ariba when it was acquired by SAP. Edmond started his career as an attorney for the law firm of Morrison & Foerster LLP. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of South Florida and his law degree from Santa Clara University School of Law. Edmond also recently joined a distinguished group of jurists and legal industry leaders on the Law School Advisory Board at Santa Clara University School of Law. Kady Srinivasan joins as Head of Global Marketing. She joins the company from Owlet Baby Care, where she was Chief Marketing Officer. Prior to that, she has held senior marketing roles at Dropbox, Electronic Arts and Betable. Srinivasan started her career as a software engineer at Intel (News - Alert) . She is a mentor for Girls Who Code and an advisor for Relay Ventures. She earned a bachelor's degree in Computer Science and Engineering from R.V. College of Engineering (Bangalore) and an MBA in Marketing from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

"These key hires come at the perfect time for Klaviyo. We are growing rapidly, as more companies realize the value in building direct, high-fidelity relationships with their customers, rather than outsourcing to Facebook or Amazon," notes investor Ping Li of Accel and Klaviyo board member, "This team is uniquely positioned to usher Klaviyo into our next phase of growth as we overtake marketing incumbents through our innovative customer data platform and set our sights on replacing reliance on platforms that take your data rather than help you own it effectively" Klaviyo serves more than 60,000 customers ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, in more than 125 countries. Headquartered in Boston, the company employs more than 600. It has raised $358.5 million in funding to date, from lead investors Summit Partners and Accel. Klaviyo continues its rapid growth through R&D, hiring, increased sales, customer support and international expansion. ABOUT KLAVIYO Klaviyo is a world-leading marketing automation platform dedicated to accelerating revenue and customer connection for online businesses. Klaviyo makes it easy to store, access, analyze and use transactional and behavioral data to power highly-targeted customer and prospect communications. The company's hybrid customer-data and marketing-platform model allows companies to grow by fostering direct relationships with customers, without giving up their valuable data to Facebook or Amazon. In 2020, Klaviyo reached coveted unicorn status with a robust Series C of $200m at $4.15B valuation. Over 60,000 innovative companies like Unilever, Custom Ink, and Huckberry sell more with Klaviyo. Learn more at www.klaviyo.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005650/en/

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Kim Il, 27, one of three North Korean computer programmers charged with a massive hacking spree aimed at stealing more than $1.3 billion in money and cryptocurrency, is seen on a Federal Bureau of Investigation wanted notice released Feb. 17, 2021. Handout via Reuters





Jon Chang-hyok, 31, one of three North Korean computer programmers charged with a massive hacking spree aimed at stealing more than $1.3 billion in money and cryptocurrency, is seen on a Federal Bureau of Investigation wanted notice released Feb. 17, 2021. Handout via Reuters



The US Justice Department charged three North Korean military intelligence officials Wednesday in a campaign of cyberattacks to steal $1.3 billion in crypto and traditional currencies from banks and other targets.



The first action against Pyongyang by President Joe Biden's administration took aim at what the department called "a global campaign of criminality" being waged by North Korea.



The department accused the three of a wide-ranging hacking and malware operation to obtain funds for their government while avoiding punishing UN sanctions that have cinched off its sources of income.



Over at least seven years, the officials created malicious cryptocurrency applications that opened back doors into targets' computers; hacked into companies marketing and trading digital currencies like bitcoin; and developed a blockchain platform to evade sanctions and secretly raise funds, the department said.



The case filed in federal court in Los Angeles builds on 2018 charges against one of the three, identified as Park Jin Hyok.



He was charged with the 2014 hack of Sony pictures, the creation of the notorious WannaCry ransomware, and the 2016 theft of $81 million from the central bank of Bangladesh.



The new charges added two defendants, Jon Chang Hyok and Kim Il.



The allegations said the three worked together in the North Korean military intelligence's hacking-focused Reconnaissance General Bureau, better known within the cybersecurity community as the Lazarus Group, or APT 38.



In addition to the earlier charges, the three allegedly operated out of North Korea, Russia and China to hack computers using spearfishing techniques, and to promote cryptocurrency applications loaded with malicious software that allowed them to empty victims' crypto wallets.



They allegedly robbed digital currency exchanges in Slovenia and Indonesia and extorted a New York exchange of $11.8 million.






(Newser)  Texans have lots of questions on their minds these days. When will the heat come back on? Will we run out of water? And now, where's Ted? That would be Sen. Ted Cruz, who confirmed on Thursday that he flew to Cancun with his family amid the state's deep freeze. Cruz was on his way back to Texas and says the quick trip was an innocent one, but some critics were calling for his resignation. Coverage:

"With school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends," Cruz said in a statement Thursday, per CNBC. "Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon. Cruz said he and his staff have been in "constant communication" with state and local leaders amid widespread power blackouts.

Cruz's trouble began Wednesday, when photos showed up on Twitter, showing him at a Houston airport waiting to board the flight to Mexico. Former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted a photo of Cruz on the plane. He was with his wife, Heidi, and their two daughters.

story continues below

Before Cruz confirmed the trip, both the AP and Fox News reported that he did indeed fly to Cancun. "The photos speak for themselves," a GOP source tells Fox.

Critics have been unloading, notes the Washington Post. "Texans are dying and you're on a flight to Cancun," tweeted the Texas Democratic Party on Wednesday night, adding the hashtag "TedCruzRESIGN. Democratic state Rep. Gene Wu wrote, "Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?"

At CNN, Chris Cillizza writes that Cruz failed a fundamental law of politics. Nobody expects Cruz to single-handedly fix the power grid, but in times of crisis like this, people do expect their leaders to be a source of reassurance, he writes.

The heat wasn't only from the left. A tweet from conservative Sonny Bunch of the Bulwark: "I cant believe I have to say this, but: if youre an American pol whose state is enduring a crisis of Katrina-like proportions and instead of going to help your constituents in even a basic, performative sort of way you FLY TO ANOTHER COUNTRYS BEACH TOWN, youre doing it wrong." BuzzFeed rounds up other online criticism, and it's plentiful.

Politico notes that Cruz has previously courted controversy during emergencies, including when he criticized a relief package for victims of Hurricane Sandy as too extravagant. He was reminded of that years later when he sought emergency spending for his own state after Hurricane Harvey.

(Another Texas politician caught flak amid the deep freeze .)

Kejriwal gives Rs 1 crore each to kin of 2 corona warriors

India

oi-Madhuri Adnal

New Delhi, Feb 18: Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday provided financial assistance of Rs 1 crore each to the family members of two corona warriors who passed away after getting infected with the virus while on duty.

The pain these families have faced is irreplaceable but I am hopeful that with this financial assistance, they will get some relief, Kejriwal said after meeting the family members of Om Pal Singh and Raj Kumar, both Delhi government employees.

"The past one year has been very tough for all of us. But during this one year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Corona warriors of Delhi fought this battle from the front," the chief minister said.

PM writes letter to Gujarat BJP, hails its 'page committee' drive

Singh was the principal of government boys senior secondary school in Kalyanpuri while Kumar was a security guard at the Rajiv Gandhi Hospital.

"You all know that during the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown, the Delhi government was running various hunger relief centres where Singh was working. Unfortunately during the work, he got affected by the virus and lost his life," he said.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Corona warriors have worked relentlessly for the citizens of Delhi. The Delhi government has already announced that it will provide Rs 1 crore to the families of Corona warriors who have lost their lives during COVID-19 duty, he added.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 21:02 [IST]
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday spoke with Australian counterpart, Scott Morrison. Calling Morrison a good friend, PM Modi said that both leaders reiterated their commitment to consolidate India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. PM Modi and Australian PM discussed regional issues that concern both nations. Prime Minister, in a statement shared on Twitter, said that he is looking forward to work with Morrison for peace and prosperity in the Indo-pacific.

Spoke with my good friend PM @ScottMorrisonMP today. Reiterated our commitment to consolidating our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Also discussed regional issues of common interest. Look forward to working together for peace, prosperity and security in the Indo-Pacific.  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 18, 2021

Prime Ministers conversation with Scott Morrison came just ahead of third Quad security dialogue on Thursday, announced by the United States. Brainchild of then Japans Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) was launched in 2007 with an aim to convene partners to balance rising China. As per reports, while India and Australia had initially been cautious over antagonizing China, the Quad format, over the years has not only expanded but the relations with Beijing of both nations have deteriorated over a range of issues.

Prior to Morrison, on Wednesday, Prime Minister spoke with Sultan Haitham bin Tarik of Oman. PM Modi said, We discussed our Strategic Partnership, and our close cooperation during COVID-19. Conveyed my best wishes for one year of HM the Sultan's reign and his Vision 2040 for Oman.

Read - PM Modi's Pariksha Pe Charcha To Return Bigger Than Ever This Year; Promises To Go Global

Read - PM Modi Launches Mahabahu Brahmaputra; Terms It A Step Towards 'Aatmanirbhar Assam'

India is a critical partner

Meanwhile, the United States Pentagon Press Secretary called India a critical partner especially while considering all challenges surrounding the Indo-Pacific region. In a news conference, John Kirby noted the significance of Indias participation after US State Department spokesperson Ned Price announced that Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his counterparts from Japan, Australia and India will interact virtually to elevate cooperation.

"India is a critical partner, especially when you consider all of the challenges in the Indo-Pacific region," Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday. Price had previously said that these discussions with the Quad foreign ministers is critical to advancing our shared goals of a free and open Indo-Pacific and rising to the defining challenges of our times.

Read - Owaisi Frowns Upon Pangong Tso Disengagement Plan; Accuses PM Modi Of Giving Up Leverage

Read - PLI Scheme Will Make India Telecom Manufacturing Hub, Generate Opportunities For Youth: Modi

Unions have a right to engage in the political process by endorsing and financially supporting candidates with campaign contributions. However, other voters in the community may not share the same priorities. Households with no children or with kids who have grown up may be more concerned about their property tax bills.

There are some encouraging signs in the fight against the pandemic, with new global infections slowing sharply, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. There were 2.7 million new covid-19 cases in the week ended 14 February, the lowest since October. The death toll is also beginning to ease, but at a less dramatic pace. Meanwhile, the United Nations is pushing for a worldwide vaccination effort. In the UK, scientists are set to carry out the worlds first study to deliberately expose volunteers to the new coronavirus to speed research.

Are increments back this year?

View Full Image Are increments back this year?

Indian companies are expected to dole out an average increment of 7.3% to employees this year amid faster-than-expected economic recovery and revival in business and consumer confidence, according to a survey. The first phase of the 2021 Workforce and Increment Trends Survey by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India also said the average increment this year will be higher than 4.4% seen in 2020 but lower than 8.6% given by companies in 2019. As many as 92% companies that participated in the survey plan to give an increment in 2021 compared to just 60% last year. The survey covered around 400 organizations. Out of the 60% companies that gave an increment in 2020, a third of them did that off cycle, while among those that did not give an increment last year, only about 30% plan to compensate employees for the previous year through higher increments and/or bonuses.

UAE dismantles Eritrea base

View Full Image UAE dismantles Eritrea base

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is dismantling parts of a military base it runs in the East African nation of Eritrea after it pulled back from the grinding war in nearby Yemen, satellite photos analysed by the Associated Press (AP) show. The UAE built a port and expanded an airstrip in Assab beginning September 2015, using the facility as a base to ferry heavy weaponry and Sudanese troops into Yemen as it fought alongside a Saudi-led coalition against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels there. But the country once praised as Little Sparta" by former US defence secretary Jim Mattis appears to have found the limits of its military expansion in Yemens stalemate conflict, experts say. After it withdrew troops from the conflict, the satellite photos show it began shipping off equipment and tearing down even newly built structures. Emirati officials did not respond to questions from the AP.

M&As to help SGX scale up

View Full Image M&As to help SGX scale up

Singapore Exchange (SGX) is exploring mergers and acquisitions (M&As) to drive its ambitions as a multi-asset exchange. The bourse has operations in place across asset classes and now will concentrate on bolstering them, chief executive officer Loh Boon Chye said in an interview on Wednesday. That means seeking deals that bulk up the foreign exchange, fixed income, data and capital markets connectivity businesses. SGX had previously set a goal to have the fixed income, currencies and commodities segment, along with data, connectivity and indices, double revenues by about 2025. It may reach that goal before the initial target date, he said, adding the segments combined could account for 50% of revenue by then. The bourse is hardly a newcomer on the M&A front though.

Texans rescue cold-stunned turtles

View Full Image Texans rescue cold-stunned turtles

The brutal cold snap that has frozen Texas hasnt only numbed unprepared people to the bonethousands of turtles have been caught off-guard too, reports Reuters. Thousands of sea turtles unused to the plunge in temperatures have been washing up on the beaches of South Padre Island, off the southern coast of Texas. Volunteers have brought some 4,700 of them to a convention centre, where they are being kept in tubs and enclosures before they can be released when the water is warmer. According to conservation centre Sea Turtle, normally only 100-500 turtles wash up on the beaches in south Texas each winter. Cold-stunned" is a condition where cold-blooded animals suddenly exhibit hypothermic reactions such as lethargy and an inability to move when the temperature in the environment around them drops. Texas has faced massive energy blackouts triggered by the unusual cold spell.

Ancient Spanish bathhouse found

View Full Image Ancient Spanish bathhouse found

A decorated 12th-century Islamic bathhouse, filled with geometric motifs and skylights, has emerged from the walls and vaulted ceilings of a popular tapas bar in Seville, Spain, reports the Guardian. Last summer, the owners of the Cerverceria Giralda decided to take advantage of local roadworks and the coronavirus pandemic to set about a long-delayed renovation. Although local legend and the odd historical document had suggested the site may once have been an ancient hammam, most people had assumed the Giraldas retro look was down to the Islamic revival style, in which architect Vicente Traver built the bar and hotel above it in the early 1920s. The explorations soon uncovered an exquisite piece of design dating back to the 12th century when the Almohad caliphate ruled much of what is now Spain and Portugal as well as a large swath of north Africa.

Curated by Sohini Sen. Have something to share with us? Write to us at feedback@livemint or tweet to @shohinisen









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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a press conference at the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, on May 18, 2020. (Lynda M. Gonzalez/The Dallas Morning News Pool)

Texas Gov. Gives Update on Power Restoration Plan as Many Still Without Electricity or Safe Drinking Water

Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott gave an update Wednesday on the plan to restore power to the many residents still without electricity or safe drinking water after a brutal cold snap wreaked havoc on the Lone Star states power grid and caught utility providers flat-footed.

Power outages in Texas dropped below a half-million on Thursday morning for the first time in four days, down from about 3 million the day before. Around 7 million Texans are still under an advisory to boil drinking water for safety following days of record-low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and froze pipes.

Abbott told a press conference Wednesday that he has ordered natural gas producers in Texas to stop selling fuel outside of the state and to instead supply its power generators in Texas in a bid to restore electricity. He also said more power was being restored to the grid, including via nuclear, coal, and gas-powered generation.

He said around 6,000 megawatts of power had already been added to the grid, and that a nuclear generator and coal power would add another 2,000 megawatts.

About 1,600,000 homes have had power restored today, Abbott wrote in a tweet later in the day. Current power generation is restoring an additional 200,000 homes every hour.

Mechanical problems or a lack of supply of gas meant that about 19,800 megawatts of gas-powered generation was still offline, Abbott said at the presser. Frozen wind turbines and lack of sun for solar power led to another 17,200 megawatts remaining offline, the governor said.

Plunging temperatures caused Texans to turn up their heaters, including many inefficient electric ones. Demand spiked to levels normally seen only on the hottest summer days, when millions of air conditioners run at full tilt.

The state has a generating capacity of about 67,000 megawatts in the winter compared with a peak capacity of about 86,000 megawatts in the summer. The gap between the winter and summer supply reflects power plants going offline for maintenance during months when demand typically is less intense and theres not as much energy coming from wind and solar sources.

But those planning for this winter didnt imagine temperatures cold enough to freeze natural gas supply lines and stop wind turbines from spinning. Earlier on Wednesday, 46,000 megawatts of power were offline statewide28,000 from natural gas, coal, and nuclear plants and 18,000 from wind and solar, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the organization that operates the states power grid.

ERCOT said Thursday morning that the remaining outages are largely weather-related, rather than forced outages that were made early Monday to stabilize the power grid.

We will keep working around the clock until every single customer has their power back on, ERCOT Senior Director of System Operations Dan Woodfin said.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched an investigation into the ERCOT, alleging mishandling amid the brutal cold snap that left millions of Texans shivering and in the dark.

ERCOT & other energy cos have slipped & fallen on their faces & its not the ices fault. They have left 3+ million homes w/o power for days, including my own, Paxton wrote in a tweet late Wednesday.

What do they do in response? Jack up prices, go silent, make excuses, & play the blame game. Its unacceptable! he added.

The staggering imbalance between Texass energy supply and demand caused prices to skyrocket from roughly $20 per megawatt hour to $9,000 per megawatt hour in the states freewheeling wholesale power market.

Gas-fired plants and wind turbines can be protected against winter weatherits done routinely in colder, northern states. The issue arose in Texas after a 2011 freeze that also led to power-plant shutdowns and blackouts. A national electric-industry group developed winterization guidelines for operators to follow, but they are strictly voluntary and also require expensive investments in equipment and other necessary measures.

ERCOT official Dan Woodfin said plant upgrades after 2011 limited shutdowns during a similar cold snap in 2018, but this weeks weather was more extreme.

Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston, rejected ERCOTs claim that this weeks freeze was unforeseeable.

Thats nonsense, he said. Every eight to 10 years we have really bad winters. This is not a surprise.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Nvidia is looking at multiple releases this year, and one of those is unlisted and remains in secret until a leaker spotted that a GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is part of a pre-built desktop PC that was on sale. The leak was spotted in Germany, and it was part of a Lenovo Legion personal computer that was listed on the website, and it features better numbers than the anticipated RTX 3060.

The popular computer components manufacturer that specializes in gaming, Nvidia, is sneaking one under the noses of the public, as no news surfaced regarding the RTX 3070 Ti's existence or release. The only graphics card that was expected by the public is the long-awaited RTX 3060, RTX 3080, and RTX 3090 which are all in the same lineup.

Additionally, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 sees a massive dilemma on stock and availability, as it joins the PlayStation 5 in limited stocks and scarcity. The latest leaked graphics card of the Santa Clara gaming giant also saw no announcement from the company, as well as being debuted by Nvidia as part of the RTX lineup which is massive this year.

Read Also: Nvidia RTX 3060: Where to Buy Online This February 25? Specs, Price, and More

Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti Leaks: Lenovo Legion Stock Graphics Card with Massive Specs

According to German computer leaker GameStar, a screenshot from a German computer retailer called "Alternate," reveals that a Lenovo Legion pre-built CPU housing contains the graphics card unit (GPU). Nvidia has not released any details regarding the card but the report revealed that it is double its Nvidia RTX 3080 Ti counterpart that only has 10 GB.

Notably, the Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti features a 16GB VRAM, which is 4GB more than the regular version, which has become apparent and obvious within the company. Additionally, RTX 3070 Ti's VRAM resembles its competitor's use of the specific random access memory (RAM), including the Radeon RX 6800 and 6900 graphics card series.

GameStar reported that upon asking about the listing and inquiring about the RTX 3070 Ti's availability, the Lenovo Legion pre-built PC was removed and deleted from the website. Nvidia has not made any comments regarding the matter and has not released anything with regards to the 3070 Ti and its existence as an unreleased product.

Nvidia RTX 3070 Ti: Initial Specs, Price, and Release Date

According to PC Games N, the performance of the GeForce RTX 3070 Ti sits between the 3070 and 3080 GPUs of the company, as it features 16GB VRAM, a massive one in the lineup. Moreover, it is also speculated that the core count would be around 8-cores, which also resembles that of the nearest graphics card with its model number.

The price is expected to be around $600, which is also based on its sibling's price tag that is currently available on the market. As far as the release date goes, the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti is not expected to be out this year, as the company is focusing on the release of the RTX 3060 and its stock issues as of the moment.

Related Article: Nvidia RTX 3060 Pre-Order Now Available: Price, Specs, and Everything You Need to Know!

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Isaiah Alonzo

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.  In an effort to further restrict abortion in Tennessee, two state lawmakers have introduced legislation that would allow a father to deny an abortion without the pregnant woman's consent.

The bill, sponsored by state Republicans Sen. Mark Pody and Rep. Jerry Sexton, would give a man who gets a woman pregnant the veto power to an abortion by petitioning a court for an injunction against the procedure.

Tennessee lawmakers already passed one of the nation's most restrictive abortion laws last year, although much of it is held up with legal challenges from abortion rights advocates. The ongoing court battle could stretch for months if not years.

Despite the outlook for potential lawsuits, state lawmakers appear adamant in pushing for stricter abortion laws this legislative session. Including Pody and Sexton's legislation, six bills to further restrict abortion have been filed this year.

Pody said Wednesday that he introduced his bill after a Tennessee resident expressed concerns that fathers do not have a say over abortion under the current law. He said his bill would assure fathers' right to make a decision about an unborn child.

"I believe a father should have a right to say what's gonna be happening to that child," Pody said. "And if somebody is going to kill that child, he should be able to say, 'No, I don't want that child to be killed. I want to able to raise that child and love that child.'"

More: Tennessee legislature passes fetal heartbeat bill, ban on abortions for Down syndrome

But the bill language has drawn criticism from abortion rights groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee and the state's Planned Parenthood chapter.

"This unconstitutional legislation demonstrates the condescending mindset underlying this bill: that men should control womens bodies," ACLU of Tennessee Executive Director Hedy Weinberg said in a statement. "Women are not chattel and this bill needs to be stopped in its tracks."

Story continues

Francie Hunt, executive director of Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood, called the bill "insulting" in a Wednesday statement. She criticized the legislative priorities of state lawmakers as "out of step with the dire needs" of Tennesseans amid a pandemic.

"A pregnant person must have the ultimate control over their body and their pregnancy," she said in a statement. "The legislature needs to stop trying to distract the public from their leadership failures with increasingly stigmatizing abortion restrictions."

How the bill would work

Under the bill, a judge would be able to grant the petition as long as the petitioner proves he's the biological father of an unborn child and there is a "reasonable possibility" the woman would seek an abortion. If the woman acknowledges the petitioner's fatherhood, no DNA evidence would be required, Pody said.

It would be up to the judge to ultimately decide if there's enough evidence to establish one's paternity, Pody said.

State legislatures in 2021: What to expect on abortion rights and more

For unmarried couples, the father would have to voluntarily establish his paternity, but can do so without the woman's consent. Once paternity is established, the father would have the ability to deny an abortion.

A man who voluntarily establishes paternity should be responsible for child support and fulfill other parental obligations, Pody said, and would not be able to rescind or challenge the acknowledgement of paternity afterward.

"He can't turn around under any circumstance and say, 'I was wrong, and it's not mine,'" he said.

The injunction against the abortion could be granted even without both parties present for the proceedings, Pody said. The woman would be penalized at the court's discretion if she violates the injunction.

The bill makes no exception for rape or incest. Weinberg said the legislation could lead to "dangerous" consequences.

"This extreme and dangerous bill would even allow a rapist to stop his victim from ending a pregnancy," she said in the statement.

Hunt echoed Weinberg's concern.

"Nobody should have the power to make health care decisions for someone else  not a judge, a partner, and certainly not a rapist regardless of paternity," she said.

But Pody said he does not believe rapists would voluntarily go before the court and acknowledge their paternity to stop an abortion.

"If somebody comes up and says, 'Yes, I raped her and I'm the father,' he should immediately go to jail," he said. "I just do not believe that somebody is gonna come in and say, 'I committed this crime, I'm guilty of this crime. Put me in jail.'"

Tennessee's abortion restrictions

Women seeking abortions are still allowed to do so under the current law, as legal challenges have halted enforcement for many of the restrictions.

The law passed last summer would prohibit abortions after the detection of fetal heartbeat, which can be as early as six weeks. The language includes an exception for women whose lives are in danger, but makes no exception for rape or incest. It would be considered a Class C felony for any physician to perform an abortion in those cases.

Part of the ban, which survived a court challenge last November, also bans abortions over the childs sex, race or the diagnosis of Down syndrome.

Under the law, doctors would also be required to show the woman images of the fetus, allow her to listen to the fetal heartbeat and inform her of certain information about the fetus, including its gestational age, location within the uterus, dimensions, body parts and organs.

Follow Yue Stella Yu on Twitter at @bystellayu_tnsn.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee abortion bill: Fathers would get veto, no rape exception
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Philadelphia police have arrested another one of their own  the fifth such arrest in less than a month  following a yearlong Internal Affairs probe into allegations that a detective had illegally distributed stolen items recovered during police investigations, according to a law enforcement source.

Detective John Logan, a 32-year member of the department, turned himself in Wednesday on charges of tampering with public records, obstruction, and misapplying entrusted property, public records show.

Logan, 53, who worked in the Major Crimes Auto Squad, retired a day before his arrest.

 READ MORE: Inside the once-secret misconduct files of 27 Philadelphia police officers

Sgt. Eric Gripp, a police spokesperson, said the department is limited on what it can release about Logan because of his retirement. He confirmed that Logan had been the subject of an Internal Affairs investigation that began in January 2020, and that he had been placed on restricted duty.

According to the law enforcement source, the investigation was prompted by allegations that Logan illegally distributed property that was in police possession, and improperly confiscated or cataloged stolen goods.

Logan could not be reached for comment Thursday. A man who answered the phone said he was Logans son, then the call was dropped or he hung up. A subsequent voice mail was not returned.

In 2011, Logan was named in an FBI search warrant that sought records of any transfer of goods or services to him or a police sergeant as part of a sprawling corruption investigation that involved automobile towing and salvage companies, strip clubs, and the Department of Licenses and Inspections.

At the time, Logan told The Inquirer that he had no idea what the investigation was about or why his name would be on a search warrant.

I dont know anything about that, he said.

It was unclear Thursday whether the FBI still has any interest in Logan. There was no indication that his arrest was tied to the old investigation.

 READ MORE: Fired, then Rehired: How the police arbitration system overturned the firings or discipline of 100 questionable Philadelphia cops

Logans arrest was preceded by the arrest of four other Philadelphia police officer in recent weeks on charges that include two cases of sexual assault of minors, DUI and aggravated assault, and violation of a protection-from-abuse order.

Logans base salary in 2019 was $83,806, according to city payroll records.
The C3.ai Digital Transformation Institute (DTI) today announced that KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden has become the eighth university member and first international member of the academic and industry consortium. Karl H. Johansson, Professor at the KTH School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, has joined the C3.ai DTI Executive Committee as campus lead.

Johansson also leads the cross-disciplinary Digital Futures research center at KTH, launched in 2020 to explore and develop digital technologies and solutions to great societal challenges. His research focuses on networked control systems, cyber-physical systems, and applications in transportation, energy, and automation systems. He is a member of the IEEE Control Systems Society Board of Governors, the European Control Association Council, and Fellow of the IEEE.

"Digital Futures has a long-term strategic outlook and a high-risk, high-gain research agenda that aligns particularly well with the ambitious aims of the C3.ai Digital Transformation Institute," says Johansson. "KTH is eager to contribute to and expand DTI's reach as the first international member of the consortium. We are confident that this will be a very productive partnership."

"The upcoming digital transformation revolution will be a worldwide phenomenon," says C3 AI Founder and CEO Tom Siebel. "It is critical to engage with international partners and welcoming the distinguished KTH Royal Institute of Technology to the consortium is a great place to start."

About C3.ai Digital Transformation Institute

Established in March 2020 by C3 AI, Microsoft, and leading universities, the C3.ai Digital Transformation Institute is a research consortium dedicated to accelerating the benefits of artificial intelligence for business, government, and society. The Institute engages the world's leading scientists to conduct research and train practitioners in the new Science of Digital Transformation, which operates at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud computing, internet of things, big data analytics, organizational behavior, public policy, and ethics.

The ten C3.ai Digital Transformation Institute consortium member universities and laboratories now include: University of California, Berkeley, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Carnegie Mellon University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, National Center for Supercomputing Applications at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Princeton University, Stanford University, and University of Chicago.

To support the Institute, C3 AI is providing the Institute $57,250,000 in cash contributions over the first five years of operation. C3 AI and Microsoft will contribute an additional $310 million of in-kind support, including use of the C3 AI Suite and Microsoft Azure computing, storage, and technical resources to support C3.ai DTI research. Additional industry partners include AstraZeneca, Baker Hughes, and Shell.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005223/en/

Contacts:

C3.ai DTI Contact:

Kap Stann

Communications Manager, C3.ai DTI Berkeley

Tel. +1 510-295-9685

Kstann@berkeley.edu
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
California Casualty joined The NEA Foundation in celebrating the nations top educators and education support professionals at the 2021 Salute to Excellence in Education Gala I dont think there ever has been a time when this country has been more aware of what educators contribute...

The NEA Foundations 2021 Salute to Excellence in Education Gala took place virtually on the evening of Friday, February 12th. Although the venue was different, the event remained exceptional - filled with inspiration, appreciation and celebration. California Casualty, a longtime sponsor of the event, was proud to attend and pay tribute to the 46 educators chosen by their peers for one of public educations highest honors  the California Casualty Award for Teaching Excellence.

The virtual gala went off without a hitch and was attended by over 1100 individuals. Attendees were able to snap a virtual photo through the unique online photo booth and share chats throughout the event while celebrating the honorees.

Through a pre-recorded greeting, California Casualty President and CEO, Joe Volponi, delivered an inspiring message to the deserving recipients and attendees. On behalf of our California Casualty family, I am honored to be here with all of you tonight for this special event. This gala gives us the opportunity to honor some of the American Heroes that we at California Casualty are there to protect and I have to say, have never been more heroic than throughout this past year.

This evening we celebrate the can-do spirit, the perseverance, the dedication and the tremendous accomplishments of some of our nations greatest heroes  public school educators and public schools, said Sara A. Sneed, President and CEO, The NEA Foundation. I dont think there ever has been a time when this country has been more aware of what educators contribute: not just to childrens lives, but to the very heart of community life, to the functioning of our economy and to democracy.

The Awards for Teaching Excellence program recognizes educators from around the country who shine in their schools, their communities, and their own learning. These educators advocate for each other, the profession, and students, and they embrace the diversity of their communities and the wider world.

Casey Keyser, a third-grade elementary school teacher at Butterfly Ridge Elementary School in Frederick, MD took home the top honor: the NEA Member Benefits $25,000 Award for Teaching Excellence.

California Casualty gave a $150 stipend to each Awardee to purchase items to enhance classrooms.

ABOUT THE NEA FOUNDATION

The NEA Foundation is a national nonprofit and philanthropic organization that works in partnership with others to promote the very best in public education. Learn more at neafoundation.org, Facebook and Twitter.

ABOUT THE NEA FOUNDATIONS SALUTE TO EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION GALA

The NEA Foundations Salute to Excellence in Education Gala is a national celebration of public school educators and public schools. At this annual event, the Foundation recognizes and promotes educators excellence in teaching, attention to diversity, and advocacy for the profession.

ABOUT CALIFORNIA CASUALTY

California Casualty has been serving the insurance needs of educators for 70 years and is the only auto and home insurance company to earn the trust and endorsement of the National Education Association (NEA). Learn more about the special rates and educator-specific benefits available through the NEA Auto and Home Insurance Program by visiting http://www.calcas.com/NEA, or by calling 1.800.800.9410.
Calgary, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - ARROW Exploration Corp. (TSXV: AXL) ("Arrow" or the "Company") announces that effective February 16th, 2021, it has appointed Mr. Bob Petryk as the Company's Manager of Operations.

Mr. Petryk has been with the Company since its formation and has been a key contributor to Arrow's successful drilling program in Colombia. Bob has also led the Company's annual reserve review and compilation process, together with Arrow's independent reserve engineers.

Mr. Petryk is a professional engineer with over 40 years of technical, operational, and managerial experience in the oil and gas industry in Canada and abroad. He previously held senior management and executive positions in the upstream E&P sector, as well as in the oilfield service sector. Bob holds a Bachelor of Science in Mineral Engineering, Petroleum Specialization from the University of Alberta (1977) and an active member of APEGA.

Arrow also announces that Mr. John (Jack) Scott is no longer with the Company as its Chief Operating Officer. The Company would like to thank Mr. Scott for his many contributions to the Company since its formation and wishes him success in his future endeavors.

About ARROW Exploration

Arrow Exploration Corp. (operating in Colombia via a branch of its 100% owned subsidiary Carrao Energy S.A.) is a publicly-traded company with a portfolio of premier Colombian oil assets that are under-exploited, under-explored and offer high potential growth. The Company's business plan is to expand oil production from some of Colombia's most active basins, including the Llanos, Middle Magdalena Valley (MMV) and Putumayo Basin. The asset base is predominantly operated with high working interests, and the Brent-linked light oil pricing exposure combines with low royalties to yield attractive potential operating margins. Arrow's 50% interest in the Tapir Block is contingent on the assignment by Ecopetrol SA of such interest to Arrow. Arrow's seasoned team is led by a hands-on executive team supported by an experienced board. Arrow is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "AXL".

For further information contact:

Marshall Abbott

Chief Executive Officer

mabbott@arrowexploration.ca

(403) 651-5995

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) nor its regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-looking Statements

This news release contains certain statements or disclosures relating to Arrow that are based on the expectations of its management as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to Arrow which may constitute forward-looking statements or information ("forward-looking statements") under applicable securities laws. All such statements and disclosures, other than those of historical fact, which address activities, events, outcomes, results or developments that Arrow anticipates or expects may, could or will occur in the future (in whole or in part) should be considered forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of the words "continue", "expect", "opportunity", "plan", "potential" and "will" and similar expressions. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release reflect several material factors and expectations and assumptions of Arrow, including without limitation, Arrow's evaluation of the impacts of COVID-19, the potential of Arrow's remaining Colombian assets (or any of them individually) to resume production, and Arrow's business plan to expand oil production and achieve attractive potential operating margins. Arrow believes the expectations and assumptions reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable at this time but no assurance can be given that these factors, expectations and assumptions will prove to be correct.

The forward-looking statements included in this news release are not guarantees of future performance and should not be unduly relied upon. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and the Company undertakes no obligations to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless so required by applicable securities laws.

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74878
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South Carolina health authorities confirmed 15 COVID-19 cases in Aiken County on Wednesday.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control confirmed a total of 655 cases and 50 coronavirus-related deaths across South Carolina on Wednesday. None of the deaths were in Aiken County.

This is the lowest daily case count in three months and the second straight day the state has had less than 1,000 cases.

The data reported Wednesday is for the date of Feb. 15.

As of Feb. 17, South Carolina has received 970,750 total doses of COVID-19 vaccine and has administered 687,669. There are currently 467,554 vaccine appointments scheduled throughout the state.

Aiken Regional Medical Centers has received 4,325 doses of the Pfizer vaccine and has administered 4,698 of them. Augusta University Medical Centers has received 1,950 Pfizer doses to be administered in Aiken, of which 2,004 have been used.

CVS is now offering the COVID-19 vaccine at many of its locations around South Carolina, including Aiken. At this time, all appointments are booked, but more will be added as they become available.

University Health Care System is conducting a reservation-only Moderna vaccination clinic for South Carolina residents aged 65 and older who have seen a University Hospital physician in the past 18 months.

The clinic will be open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 23, at Millbrook Baptist Church, 223 South Aiken Blvd. S.E. Residents will return at the same appointment time on March 23 for the second dose.

Appointments will be made online. Appointments cannot be made over the phone.

Residents can sign up for future vaccination clinics being held by Rural Health Services on the organization's website.

Wednesday's report brings the total confirmed number of COVID-19 cases in Aiken County to 11,752, with 161 confirmed coronavirus-related deaths.

Aiken County also has reported a total of 3,003 probable COVID-19 cases and 32 probable coronavirus-related deaths.

In neighboring Barnwell and Edgefield counties, two and four virus cases were confirmed, respectively, on Wednesday.

Aiken Regional Medical Centers released a statement Wednesday saying it has confirmed 1,192 cases of coronavirus in Aiken County. Of those 1,192 individuals, 10 are currently receiving care in the hospital and 126 have died.

The total number of individual test results reported to DHEC statewide Wednesday was 9,746, and the percent positive was 9.1%.

The total number of cases statewide is now 429,494, with 62,875 probable cases, 7,248 confirmed deaths and 869 probable deaths.
Ngo Minh Hieu, a convicted hacker who has been hired by Vietnams National Cybersecurity Center as a technical expert. Photo by VnExpress/Le Thi Hong.

A Vietnamese hacker who stole the personal information of 200 million Americans has developed a software add-on that alerts users to scam websites.

Earlier this month, Ngo Minh Hieu published a long article on his personal page, sharing information about a cyber-safety software that took him "three nights to complete."

Hieu doing such good, useful work is the stuff of Hollywood or Bollywood scripts about redemption of erstwhile criminals and/or convicts.

As a teen and a youth, from 2007 until 2013, Hieu stole personal data, including names, birth dates, social security numbers, and bank account information from online marketplaces, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. He sold the information for nearly $2 million, the department said.

On his release, Hieu said he regretted his action and hoped that he would land a cybersecurity job to make amends.

His hope has been realized. He returned to Vietnam in August and works currently for Vietnams National Cybersecurity Center (NCSC).

Hieus new initiative, "Chong Lua Dao" (Fighting scam), can be installed on Chrome, Coc Coc, Brave and Kiwi browsers. It will rate the safety level of websites and social media accounts. For instance, if a page is flagged as a phishing or otherwise unsuitable site, the software add-on will block the computer from accessing it. The software had more than 3,500 downloads a day after it was launched.

For real?

The anti-phishing article on Hieu's personal account has received tens of thousands of comments and interactions, mostly of encouragement. But there were some who expressed doubts about an information security tool built by someone who used to be a hacker.

"I know that people won't stop talking about at my past," said Hieu. However, he has moved on and does not care about his history, Hieu said, he is focused on creating benefits for the community at large.

The idea of creating a software to protect users from phishing sites crossed his mind when he was serving his sentence in the U.S. and deployed after he returned to Vietnam.

He said that he has learned his lessons from past mistakes and now considers them "assets" that help him build a project against phishing.

"I understand the nature of the matter since I once was a hacker going around deceiving people and spreading malicious codes. So I want to contribute my understanding to help the community."

In the anti-phishing development team, Hieu is responsible for evaluating the safety of a website. His previous experience helps him tell at just a glance if a site is a scam or not.

The anti-phishing tool is built on the idea of MyWOT - a tool that evaluates the reputation of websites with more than 6 million users around the world, sharing a similar working mechanism. The add-on evaluates the security of a website based on technical analysis, such as IP, URL length and SSL certificate, combined with user ratings, which are combined to create an overall rating on a 1 to 5 scale for each site.

However, the development team must review each report to avoid errors in their judgment, since there are safe websites getting bad reviews from competitors or malicious websites that get good reviews from people "with bad intentions."

Thanks to Hieu's experience as well as the contribution of two other security experts, the tool has added 1,000 websites to the "blacklist" after reviewing 1,400 reports from users just one day after its launch. Once it is blacklisted, a website will be "locked," preventing users from accessing it. The browser displays warnings when certain users want to access such phishing websites.

Bamboo curtain

The "Chong Lua Dao" add-on has been launched in the context of increasing instances of fraud in Vietnams internet environment.

Hieu said a phishing website is one that mimics a reputable page in order to attract traffic and takes advantage of the users personal information, spreads malicious codes or carries out direct scams for money.

With the rapid rise in internet and mobile users in Vietnam, cybercriminals are also using increasingly sophisticated tricks. For example, a hacker buys a domain name that is similar to that of an airline in order to impersonate it. For this, a professional interface is built and money spent on pushing the website up in the Google search results.

Recently, cybercriminals invested hundreds of millions of dong in equipment to fake a mobile broadcasting station and use the "brand message" to urge people to click on fraudulent websites.

"Cybercriminals in Vietnam are investing more and more money on upgrading their scamming tactics," Hieu said.

The former hacker said new internet users with little knowledge about information technology are most likely to become victims of these scams.

"Even my parents regularly visit such websites," Hieu said, adding that this motivates him and his team further in completing their projects.

"In the past, bamboo forests helped protect rural people from enemy attacks and natural disasters, now I want to build an anti-phishing barrier to protect everyone from internet fraud."

The logo of the new software add-on has the image of a bamboo cluster forming a fence, protecting the "green" sides on the internet. Hieus nine member team want to see the small green bamboo icon on as many users browsers as possible.

Hieu admitted that the project was not perfect because, as a non-profit initiative, it faces human resource limitations. The team is advocating the application of artificial intelligence for faster and more accurate identification, incorporating the open source code of a tool specialized in phishing websites detection to give the best results for the Vietnamese market.

The larger the number of users, the more fake websites will be reported and the more accurate the tool becomes, thus reducing the amount of people needed to moderate internet traffic.

The Chong Lua Dao project plans to develop more applications on smartphones, adding the ability to prevent malicious YouTube and Facebook pages.

Hieu said he also plans to organize small competitions on using the tool in order to help users access security knowledge in newer ways.

He added: "This project is for the community and also develops through the community."
The City of Birminghams Boutwell Auditorium warming station, which opens for the homeless when the National Weather Service forecasts temperatures below freezing on consecutive nights, has set a record for most nights open this winter, the most in any winter in 20 years.

Don Lupo, operations manager for the City of Birmingham, who has overseen the Boutwell warming station for 20 years, said the warming station had never been open more than 22 nights in one winter before.

The city has opened the Boutwell warming station this winter from Nov. 30-Dec. 1, Dec. 5-8, Dec. 16-18, Dec. 24-26, Jan. 8-13, Jan. 27-28, Feb. 1-2 and Feb. 15-16, a total of 25 nights. It will be open tonight, Friday and Saturday, Feb. 18-20, bringing the total to 28 nights open this winter.

The warming station opens at 5 p.m. and closes at 7 a.m. the following day.

On Tuesday night, the warming station hosted 230 people, the most so far this winter, Lupo said. The city provides cots and blankets. Restaurants donate food.

We registered 40 people that had never registered before, Lupo said. Even that large turnout doesnt reflect the overall homeless population, he said.

Thats a miniscule fraction as to how many people are on the street, Lupo said.

Cots are more spaced out this winter than in the past to avoid spreading coronavirus.

Throughout the winter, the city has provided COVID-19 testing at the warming station, but not a single homeless person who came in for shelter has tested positive yet, Lupo said.

Theyve pretty much all self-quarantined, Lupo said. Youre pretty much out there by yourself.

Most simply are not exposed to people who might transmit COVID-19, he said.

Weve done testing here at the warming station, Lupo said. We havent had a single case.

Many of the homeless who stay at the warming station on cold nights typically sleep in tents set up in various places around the city, below viaducts, under loading docks and next to buildings that have heating vents in alleys.

Even when it gets below freezing, a certain percentage of the homeless population stays outdoors, Lupo said.

Its the same thing that keeps them on the street, Lupo said. Some people just dont want to come inside. I got a call Tuesday night. Theres a guy under bridge who is going to freeze to death. I go down there, tell him he needs to shelter inside. Hes just not interested. I went back at 1:30 a.m. He still wouldnt go. I came back at daylight. The third time, he said, You still got room for me? He was cold.

The reluctance comes from many factors. Some dont want to leave their tents and possessions.

If they come in, they run the risk of somebody stealing all their stuff, Lupo said.

Others dont like rules.

They dont want to give a name, dont want to be questioned, they dont want to follow any kind of rule, Lupo said. We dont have many rules. Were about as flexible as can be. For some, even one rule is too much.

Mostly, its familiar faces.

We know most of them, Lupo said. Were seeing a lot more now that we dont know, so many more women.

The city has been discussing ways to make COVID-19 vaccines available to the homeless, but one problem is that current vaccines require two shots about three weeks apart, and its hard to get a homeless person back on a specific day. Lupo suggested that it may be better to wait for a one-dose vaccine for the homeless. Even then, many may refuse it out of mistrust, he said.

Lupo, who formerly served as president of the board of directors for the Firehouse Shelter, said most shelters are at half-capacity now due to COVID-19. Shelters are insisting that people not come and go to other shelters, he said.

The makeup of the homeless population might surprise some people, Lupo said.

Its amazing who is out there, he said. Three or four years ago, I walked by this gentlemans cot. He was reading the New York Times Arts and Leisure section. He was reading about opera. He knew it all. Most of them are really good people. Some of these folks are very educated. They hit a bump and got down on their luck.

He recalled that in 2008, after the housing crisis, a couple that lost their home in Vestavia Hills came and stayed at the warming station. The man would wake up every morning, shave, and go to work at Alabama Power.

They were here every time we were open, Lupo said. That woman hung in there with him. He never lost his job. He continued to get up and go to work.

The warming station is possible because of the support of Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin and other city officials, Lupo said. It all starts with the commitment of the mayor, Lupo said. This week the mayor said, You need a break. I said, Mayor, they need a break.
All primary, intermediate and secondary students across the country will have access to free period products from June 2021.

The government announcement comes after a successful pilot programme which has been running since Term 3 last year in 15 schools and kura in the Waikato region.

Young people should not miss out on their education because of something that is a normal part of life for half the population, says Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.

Ardern says feedback from the students was that period products should be made available for all who need them, when they need them.

The positive response from schools and students to the pilot has encouraged us to expand the initiative to all New Zealand schools.

Around 3200 young people were provided with period products during the pilot.

Associate Education Minister Jan Tinetti says issues with periods at school includes embarrassment, stigma, missing classes, being caught out without product, cost, lack of knowledge and discomfort.

Feedback from the pilot noted that providing choice was important, both in types of products and the way they are accessed. Students also said they wanted information about periods, period products, and other practical elements of managing their period such as tracking and knowing when and who to reach out to for assistance.

The Ministry of Education will work with suppliers to manage a phased roll out of the scheme, with period products available towards the end of Term 2 for schools and kura that opt-in by March of this year.

Those schools that do not initially choose to take up the initiative will continue to be able to opt-in to the initiative at a later date.

Providing free period products at school is one way the Government can directly address poverty, help increase school attendance, and make a positive impact on childrens wellbeing, says Ardern.

The free period products in schools initiative is the latest in a series of Government programmes to reduce barriers to education for all students and their whanau.

Others in the series include healthy free school lunches, the abolition of exam fees, and the replacement of school donations, Tinetti says.
Last Wednesday afternoon, when former President Donald J. Trumps legal team gathered in a conference room in a special suite at the Trump hotel in Washington, a longtime adviser to Mr. Trump, Justin Clark, had an announcement to make.

Mr. Clark told one of the lawyers, Bruce L. Castor Jr., that after his widely panned performance a day earlier, Mr. Trump did not want him appearing on television any more during the impeachment trial.

Mr. Castor rose from his chair, and began angrily shouting at Mr. Clark, arguing that Mr. Trump was wrong to demote him. The back and forth became so heated that Mr. Castor left the conference room in a huff.

He later apologized to Mr. Clark. But the tense exchange was just one example of how Mr. Trumps hastily assembled legal team  a mash-up of political hands, a personal-injury lawyer, a former prosecutor and a longtime defense lawyer, most of whom did not particularly like or trust one another  clashed, stumbled and regrouped throughout the impeachment proceeding under the watchful and sometimes wrathful eye of its client.
Pennsylvania movie theaters ditch mask mandate

Three chain movie theaters have announced that masks are no longer mandatory for moviegoers who have been vaccinated against coronavirus.
KYIV, Ukraine, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Solar energy producer TIU Canada announced their plans to appeal a lower court decision in their case against the Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant (NFZ) for illegal disconnection today. This move follows a January 26 decision by the Kyiv Commercial Court to reject the claims of an illegal disconnection despite overwhelming evidence presented by TIU Canada's legal team. TIU Canada President Michael Yurkovich stated "Ukrainians and foreign investors alike are tired of oligarchy and injustice. Ukraine is on the wrong track. The Euro-Atlantic aspirations of the Ukrainian people will never bear fruit unless the administration takes to heart real judicial reform and complete de-oligarization of the economy and government. Efforts to date are piecemeal and futile against entrenched interests which regularly degrade the effectiveness of Ukraine's institutions  whether judicial or bureaucratic. We will continue to challenge these unfair outcomes and thank our international and Canadian interlocutors for their support."

A number of respected business associations and former diplomats commented on the case. Roman Waschuk who served as Canada's Ambassador to Ukraine (2014-2019) said, "As the diplomat who cut the ribbon at the opening of this facility, it is extremely disappointing to see the power plant cut off from the grid, in a further deterioration of the investment climate. It is also in stark contrast to the promises made by Ukraine's President to investors during the Ukraine Reform Conference held in Toronto in 2019. It is clear Ukraine cannot succeed without rule of law ensuring a level playing-field for foreign investors, including protection against oligarchic abuse."

Sviatoslav Kavetskyi, Executive Director of the Canada-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce (CUCC) stated, "Attracting high quality investment to Ukraine cannot occur without adequate investor rights, judicial reform, and a level playing field. TIU Canada is one of the larger Canadian investors in Ukraine. It's experience thus far, despite assurances at the highest levels, hinders investor confidence. We are deeply concerned and watching this case carefully."

Meanwhile Morgan Williams, President of the US  Ukraine Business Council (USUBC) added, "TIU Canada was one of the first North American private investors in green energy in Ukraine. The present court case is a real test of whether or not a major international investor can obtain a fair trial within the current judicial system in Ukraine. As everyone has known for a long time, Ukraine faces two main threats: Russia and internal corruption. TIU Canada invested heavily in Ukraine to build solar energy plants and help the country reduce its energy dependence on the aggressor state, Russia. Ironically now, after helping Ukraine to overcome one problem, TIU Canada is an unfortunate victim of Ukraine's internal problem of corruption and the lack of political will on the part of the Government of Ukraine to take major steps to significantly reduce the massive levels of corruption instigated by a large number of powerful, well-financed, politically and legally connected, monopolistic corporations. The U.S.- Ukraine Business Council, calls on the Ukrainian government, the international community, and Ukraine's judicial system to ensure a fair trial in this case involving TIU Canada and Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant. International investment flows into countries where businesses can operate under the rule of law, and USUBC knows many international investors are watching this legal case very closely."

The 10.5 MW solar station was disconnected from the electricity grid by NFZ on March 2, 2020, despite the fact that Ukrainian law prevents electricity producers from being disconnected from the energy grid without obtaining the range of all the necessary permissions. TIU Canada is seeking an immediate reconnection to the electricity grid and plans to hold the NFZ and its shareholders fully accountable under the law. The main shareholders of the Nikopol Ferroalloy Plant are Igor Kolomoyskyi, Gennadiy Bogolyubov, and Viktor Pinchuk.

The Nikopol solar station owned by TIU Canada is on land leased long term from the city of Nikopol. The solar plant connects to a substation on the grounds of the NFZ. On December 23, 2019, TIU Canada received a letter from the General Director of the NFZ, that they would be disconnecting the TIU Canada connection to grids via the substation on the grounds of the NFZ in order to make 'repairs.' The NFZ stated that they would begin the repairs after February 29, 2020, and TIU Canada immediately contacted the NFZ to seek solutions to avoid any disconnection. However, despite multiple discussions, the NFZ management and shareholders proceeded with disconnecting TIU Canada from the substation on the morning of March 2, 2020. This illegal disconnection has caused more than 1.5 million Euros of damage to TIU Canada already and increases daily.

The case is viewed as a test of the Zelensky's administration's commitment to protecting foreign investors. It should be noted that on July 3, 2019, while speaking to the Economic Club of Canada, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised the work of TIU Canada at the Toronto Ukraine Reforms Conference. He said, "We think about the future, that is why green energy will be one of the key sectors of our economy during the upcoming years. I know that we have here Canadian company TIU that already successfully works in this area. We are grateful to them for this - please, follow their example".

Unfortunately, this court ruling is just the latest in a series of setbacks for foreign investors in Ukraine. Last year Ukraine received only $200 million in foreign direct investment due to the lack of rule of law, widespread corruption, and the Covid pandemic. The corruption situation was exacerbated last year due to a kangaroo court ruling by Ukraine's Constitutional Court which cancelled the disclosure requirements for public officials.

TIU Canada is owned by the Calgary based Refraction Asset Management, has been working in Ukraine since 2016, and is a leading solar energy producer. The company commissioned a 10  megawatt solar energy plant in Nikopol, Ukraine, in January 2018, and an 11-megawatt solar station in the Mykolayiv region in April 2019. An additional 33 megawatts of solar electricity production have been commissioned in the Odesa region, for a total of 56.4 megawatts nationwide. TIU Canada has invested more than $65 million in Ukrainian solar energy over the last four years and was the first investor in Ukraine under the Canadian Ukrainian Free Trade Agreement (CUFTA).

TIU Canada directly and through its subcontractors employs more than 30 people in Ukraine whose jobs are now threatened by this illegal disconnection.

SOURCE TIU Canada

Related Links

https://tiucanada.com/


Lindsey is the North Augusta reporter at the Aiken Standard and North Augusta Star. She graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2017, and grew up in Hodges, SC.
Press Release

February 18, 2021 Bong Go co-sponsors measure seeking to expedite procurement of COVID-19 vaccines for LGUs and establish indemnification fund Senator Christopher "Bong" Go co-sponsored Senate Bill 2057 which aims to hasten the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines by allowing local government units to procure vaccines and make advance payments, and to include an indemnification fund requested by vaccine manufacturers to cover the possible expenses and claims arising from adverse effects of the vaccines. "It is my honor to co-sponsor the COVID-19 Vaccination Program Bill to expedite the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines," Go said during the Senate regular session on Tuesday, February 16. To hasten the process of procurement and administration of the COVID-19 vaccines, the measure gives authority to the Department of Health and the National Task Force Against COVID-19 to "undertake negotiated procurement of COVID-19 vaccines and the ancillary supplies and services for their storage, transport, and distribution," according to Senator Sonny Angara, the sponsor of the measure. If required by the supplier, manufacturer, distributor, contractor or consultant, the bill also allows LGUs procuring their own vaccines to pay in advance not more than 50% of the contract price. "Malaki po ang pasasalamat ko sa ating mga LGUs sa kanilang inisyatibo sa pag-secure ng vaccines para sa kanilang constituents. The national government must work hand-in-hand with our LGUs because despite the national government's own tireless efforts, we cannot do this alone. We need to be united amid these challenges," Go said in his manifestation speech during the regular session. "In the spirit of bayanihan, some LGUs have entered into tripartite agreements with the national government and vaccine manufacturers and have allotted funds to help ensure the immediate and efficient roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccination program. Malaking tulong po ito. Sa kabila nito, marami pa tayong mga oportunidad upang magtulungan," he added. SB 2057 also proposes the creation of a COVID-19 National Vaccine Indemnity Fund. It will be administered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation and will be sourced from the 2021 national budget's Contingent Fund. "The Vaccine Indemnification Fund is intended to be earmarked exclusively to compensate and indemnify identified vaccine recipients who sustain injury in connection with the use of the vaccines and where the adverse effects may be attributed to the vaccination," Go explained. He added that, according to vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez, Jr., all vaccine manufacturers require indemnity and liability frameworks, which include setting up an indemnification fund backed by legislation to safeguard them from possible liabilities. "Medyo nagmamadali na po ang ating National Task Force ukol dito. They have informed the National Task Force against COVID-19 that without legislation covering indemnification, they may not be able to supply the vaccine," he said. "Kaya suportado ko ang panukala hinggil dito para maging mas handa tayo sa kung meron mang hindi kanais-nais na epekto sa tao ang paggamit ng COVID-19 (vaccine). Importante na maisabatas ito dahil malaking parte ito ng ating National COVID-19 Vaccine Roadmap at kailangan ito upang tuloy-tuloy na ang pag-roll-out ng mga bakuna sa ating bansa," the Senator added. The said measure was also co-authored by Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto, Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, and Senators Imee Marcos, Grace Poe, Pia Cayetano, Bong Revilla Jr, Francis Tolentino, Sherwin Gatchalian, Nancy Binay, Cynthia Villar, Francis Pangilinan, Manny Pacquiao, Joel Villanueva and Richard Gordon. Its principal sponsor is Senate Committee on Finance Chair Angara. Meanwhile, Go also emphasized and commended the inclusion of a provision in the Committee Report that will waive the requirement of Phase 4 trials for COVID-19 medication and vaccine stipulated in the Universal Health Care Law to expedite the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine. "The provision under Bayanihan 2 is due to expire next month which is why this provision is needed to cover the ongoing procurement of vaccines," explained Go. The Health Technology Assessment Council will now have the authority to make recommendations to the DOH and the PhilHealth on COVID-19 vaccines based on preliminary data from Phase 3 clinical trials and World Health Organization recommendations. "I just want to underscore that to ensure safety, there must be an Emergency Use Authorization from the Food and Drug Administration," Go suggested. Citing data from the National Economic and Development Authority on the economic costs of reverting back to Enhanced Community Quarantine, Go urged his fellow senators to speed up the process of procuring the vaccines. "According to the National Economic and Development Authority or NEDA, reverting to Enhanced Community Quarantine could cost NCR and nearby regions some 2.1 billion pesos in income a day. Meanwhile, every day of General Community Quarantine costs these regions around 700 million pesos in income," Go pointed out. "Malaki na po ang epekto ng COVID-19 sa ating ekonomiya, marami na po ang nawalan ng trabaho at nadaragdagan po ang mga nagugutom nating mga kababayan," he lamented. Once the vaccines are available, Go asked Galvez to prioritize poor Filipinos aside from frontliners by coordinating closely with LGUs. "Makipag-coordinate po tayo sa mga LGUs na walang pondong pambili ng bakuna. Marami pa pong LGUs na wala talaga silang sariling pambili ng bakuna," the Senator said. "Ipagpatuloy rin dapat natin ang close coordination sa mga LGUs at maging sa pribadong sektor. Ito po ay bahagi ng ating whole-of-nation approach upang tuluyan na nating malampasan ang pandemyang ito," he added. Go also stressed the importance of gaining the confidence of Filipinos on the vaccines, saying "importanteng makuha natin ang kumpyansa ng mga kababayan natin, confidence ng mga kababayan natin, dahil kung makakabili nga tayo ng bakuna pero wala namang magpapaturok, hindi pa rin po tayo makaka-recover sa pandemyang ito." Ending his statement, Go called on the public to trust the government and trust medical experts. "Importante po sa ating lahat ang safety at efficacy ng vaccine na bibilhin. Hindi po papayag ang mga medical experts natin na hindi safe at effective ang bakuna na ituturok sa atin. Magtiwala po tayo sa mga ginagawa ng ating gobyerno para mabigyan tayo ng sufficient, safe, at effective vaccines," he urged. "Magtiwala po tayo. Magbayanihan po tayo. Magkaisa po tayo para sa kapakanan ng bawat Pilipino," Go ended.
TravelCenters of American in Westlake, Ohio, is introducing its smaller TA Express travel center format to Baker, California, through a franchise agreement.

The Baker travel center, at exit 221 on Interstate 15, is expected to open later this year, the company said in a statement.

The operator and franchisor of TA, Petro Stopping Centers and TA Express travel centers plans to open five more franchised TA Express sites in California this year in Bakersfield, Grenada, Newberry Springs, Olancha and Rosemond, according to the statement.

Read the full story on cleveland.coms sister site, Cleveland Business Journal.

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SPRINGFIELD, Ore. -- Despite openly defying Gov. Kate Brown's COVID-19 orders, Along Came Trudy owner Trudy Logan has been nominated for Springfield Chamber of Commerce's business person of the year award.

Other restaurant owners in Springfield reacted to this nomination.

"It's quite frustrating to be honest. When we first got the orders from the governor, none of us wanted to shut down. But it was something that we felt we should do for the safety of the public," Ciao Pizza owner David Lucht said. "It feels like the Chamber of Commerce is telling us to open up and defy orders at this point."

However, Hole in the Wall Barbeque owner Gary Rodgers said he understands Logan's decision to allow indoor dining at her business.

"As a business owner, we make decisions every day based on what we need to do for our business. And I believe that's what she's done," Rodgers said.

Earlier in February, Oregon OSHA fined Along Came Trudy $9,200 for willfully exposing their workers to the virus. However, Logan appealed this citation.

RELATED: Along Came Trudy remains open despite fines

KEZI 9 News reached out to Springfield Chamber of Commerce to understand how the nomination process worked.

Chamber CEO Vonnie Mikkelsen said in a statement: "Our tradition of honoring the tremendous achievements of our business community are founded on a process that remains neutral, allowing our independent selection committee the ability to perform its due diligence in selecting winners."
WOOD RIVER  Mary Roberts has launched her campaign for the Wood River City Council.

Roberts was a Wood River Police Cadet for a short time before working at Amoco, Shell and ConocoPhillips where she was an Operator/Offsites Supervisor before her retirement. At Shell, she was on the Shell Recreation Association board and was was responsible for the annual Easter Egg Hunt. She also started and coordinated the Adopt-the-Highway with the Refinery and Hartford.

She served on the Emergency Response Team at the refinery in several roles, including Incident Commander and a member on the Fire Crew, Rescue, Hazmat, Medical and CISM Teams..

Roberts said that, if elected, she would like to work with the mayor and city council on meeting protocols and transparency. She would like to see all meetings video streamed ans said the mayor and city council should address citizen complaints presented at meetings.

She said that, while collecting signatures for the Save the Roundhouse campaign, she became aware of infrastructure issues in Wood River, including water lines, roads, sidewalks and sewers. She said she wants to work with the city to address these issues.

Roberts also said she would like to see local schools and city government work together on local activities such as Memorial/Veterans Day Services and more events at Central Park, including a Movie Night and concerts from local bands and schools.

Roberts has also advocated and served the community as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for children in foster care, an OSF St. Anthonys Hospice Volunteer, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Illinois, a Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Rape Crisis counselor and a member of the Wood River Womens Club.

She is a member of the Wood River Heritage Council, Community Advisory Panel with Phillips 66, the Wood River Refinery Museum/Retiree Board, the Madison County Community Response Team. She is secretary on the Wood River Marine Corps League Ladies Auxiliary. She is a member of Holy Angels Parish in Wood River where she is a funeral usher, a Mass/funeral server and delivers Communion to homebound parishioners. She is a member of St. Vincent de Paul and president of the St. Ann Altar Society.

The lifelong Wood River resident is the daughter of (late) Anthony and Rosemary Totora. Her only brother, Chris, was killed in Vietnam in 1967. Her sister, Patricia Penberthy, lives in Florida with her husband, Max, and their family.

Roberts has three children  Chris, Beth, and Tony  who all still live in the Riverbend area. She also has 10 grandchildren and fopur great grandchildren.

COVID-19 vaccines should be considered a shared asset of the international community, and delivered to countries at affordable prices, prioritising vulnerable groups and frontline workers in the pandemic combat.

browser not support iframe.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh made the statement during an open debate of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines in contexts affected by conflicts and insecurity, which was held virtually.

Minh called on the international community to effectively implement a strategy on pandemic response and vaccination, saying the COVAX mechanism needs more support from countries so that vaccines can be allotted to developing countries and people in conflict-hit areas.

Ensuring an environment of peace and stability, and protecting essential infrastructure are key factors to vaccine universalisation, he continued.

He proposed the UNSC step up the implementation of Resolution 2532, especially the call for a global ceasefire, considering this a prerequisite for the UN and relevant sides to directly deliver vaccines for humanitarian purposes.

The international community needs to deal with the root cause of conflicts, uncertainties and inequalities, while engaging in global multi-lateral efforts led by the UN in order to build a strong and self-reliant medical system, and boost development cooperation, and global trade and economy post COVID-19, Minh stressed.

The official said the enhanced solidarity and multi-lateral cooperation, both regionally and globally, would help to effectively cope with the epidemic.

As an active member of ASEAN and the UN, Vietnam will make more contributions to joint efforts in the pandemic fight, Minh pledged.

Delegates at the debate shared the view that the safe and effective universalisation of COVID-19 vaccines plays an important role in containing the pandemics spread, and minimising economy, health and education losses.

Resolution 2532, adopted on July 1, 2020, supports a global ceasefire and calls for an immediate humanitarian pause for at least 90 consecutive days to allow humanitarian assistance to be delivered.

COVAX is one of three pillars of the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, which was launched in April by the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Commission and France in response to this pandemic.

It is the only truly global solution to this pandemic because it is the only effort to ensure that people in all corners of the world will get access to COVID-19 vaccines once they are available, regardless of their wealth./. VNA
Funds raised will be used to fully fund development of the low capex, direct shipping Wiluna West JWD Iron Ore Project and drilling and approvals work at the Yarram Iron Ore Project.

The companys cash balance post the placement is in excess of $10 million.

( ) (FRA:B4T) has received firm commitments for its $5.5 million placement via the issue of around 123.4 million shares at $0.045 per share to sophisticated and professional investors (before costs of raising).

The funds will be directed towards the development of the Wiluna West JWD Iron Ore Project and evaluation works, including further resource drill out, project approvals and milestone payment, at the Yarram Iron Ore Project.

Bell Potter Securities Limited acted as lead manager and bookrunner to the placement.

Progressing JWD Project

FEL executive chairman Tony Sage said: We are pleased with the strong support for this raising and to welcome several significant Australian institutional investors to our register.

We look forward to their ongoing support as we continue to grow the company.

Post this placement the company has a cash balance in excess of $10 million which fully funds us to deliver the JWD project.

We are making good progress on the JWD approval and development project streams and look forward to updating the market as milestones are ticked off in coming weeks.

Shipping in second quarter

The company aims to begin shipping iron ore product from JWD in the second quarter of 2021.

FEL expects to begin mining during the current quarter as it locks in key mining and sales contracts and makes a final investment decision.

This will be followed by shipment in the June quarter, alongside an assessment of second-phase mining at the project, which the company hopes to begin in the September quarter.

Two-pronged iron ore strategy

In addition to the JWD Project, the company also has a 50% stake in the Yarram Project as part of two-pronged iron ore production strategy.

Yarram is not as advanced as JWD but the company intends to commence drilling, environmental and stakeholder work in the early months of 2021.

It is anticipated that the first iron ore product will ship from Yarram three months after a development decision, which is expected in the December quarter, following exploratory drilling and a JORC resource estimate.

Placement details

The placement issue price of $0.045 per share represents a 13.5% discount to the last close price and a 15.2% discount to the 10-day VWAP.

Placement shares are expected to be issued on February 25, 2021, consisting of 68,028,993 shares under ASX Listing Rules 7.1 and 55,352,662 shares under ASX Listing Rules 7.1A.

Additionally, the company has confirmed the issue of 5,650,000 fully paid ordinary shares following the exercise of 4,150,000 unlisted options at $0.02 expiring May 31, 2021, and the exercise of 1,500,000 unlisted options at $0.03 expiring March 13, 2021 - raising a total of $128,000.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)  A California lawmaker has introduced a measure that would ban fracking in the nation's most populated state by 2027.

The legislation was revealed Wednesday, five months after Gov. Gavin Newsom called on the Legislature to ban fracking by 2024.

Fracking is a technique used to extract huge amounts of oil and gas from shale rock deep underground. Opponents say the chemicals involved threaten water supplies and public health.

The measure would halt new fracking permits or renewing current ones on Jan 1, 2022, and completely ban the practice by Jan. 1, 2027. It's likely to be one of the most contentious fights in the state Legislature this year.
A prisoner swap will see the release of two Syrians held in Israel, in exchange for an Israel woman who entered Syria by mistake, writes Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

With the help of Russian mediation, Damascus is securing the release of two Syrians held in Israel in exchange for releasing an Israeli woman that entered Syria by mistake, Syrias official news agency reported Wednesday.

The report did not provide details on when the Syrians were taken prisoners in Israel or when the Israeli woman entered Syria.

The SANA news agency said the two Syrians are natives of the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Nihal al-Makt, one of the Syrian captives, comes from a family of former prisoners in Israeli prisons. Her brother was released in an exchange of prisoners last year, also mediated by Russia, that came after Syria returned the remains of an Israeli soldier killed during a battle in 1982.

SANA said that the Israeli woman entered Syrias Quneitra province by mistake and was taken into Syrian custody.

Israeli officials declined to comment. There was no immediate Russian comment.

Israeli media reported late Tuesday that the Israeli government had convened for deliberations regarding a recent incident related to Syria. Israels Haaretz newspaper reported that communications with Damascus, related to humanitarian issues, were mediated by Russia.

This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
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A 10.5-foot Nile crocodile who ate a shoe that fell from a man riding a zip line at an animal park has had it removed by vets.

Brave surgeons put their arms down the mouth of the crocodile to recover the shoe she had swallowed.

The 341-pound reptile ate the footwear after it fell from a zipliner passing overhead at the St Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park, near Jacksonville, Florida.

A 10.5-foot Nile crocodile who ate a shoe that fell from a man riding a zip line at an animal park has had it removed by vets

The crocodile - named Anuket after an Egyptian goddess of the Nile - was witnessed spitting out the shoe before eating it

It was decided surgery was the only option and large animal surgeon Dr Adam Biedrzycki opened an incision to attempt to manipulate the shoe through it

The crocodile - named Anuket after an Egyptian goddess of the Nile - was witnessed spitting out the shoe before eating it.

Keepers at the park tried in vain to flush out the sneaker before deciding to seek medical attention amid concerns it could cause a blockage in the animal's intestine.

On February 5, a team at the University of Florida Veterinary Hospital began the unusual task of recovering the shoe.

During the complicated operation, zoological medicine resident Dr Garrett Fraess bravely put his whole arm inside Anuket's mouth in a bid to grab the offending item from the esophagus.

It was decided surgery was the only option and large animal surgeon Dr Adam Biedrzycki opened an incision to attempt to manipulate the shoe through it.

It was decided surgery was the only option and large animal surgeon Dr Adam Biedrzycki opened an incision to attempt to manipulate the shoe through it. Removed shoe is pictured above

Dr Biedrzycki said the footwear was causing a pyloric outflow obstruction, which can cause vomiting and abdominal pain in people, as well as crocodiles.

He said: 'In this case the obstruction was caused by a foreign body, the shoe. It was too big to pass into the intestines and left untreated the crocodile would not have been able to eat or absorb any food.

'She would have died either due to rupture of the stomach or starvation, which would be a long and painful death.'

Dr Biedrzycki said there was nothing written in the textbooks about how to get to the stomach of a crocodile.

He said: 'We had to come up with a new method and ended up with an intercostal approach (between the ribs) which gave us the most direct access to the stomach.

Dr Biedrzycki said the footwear was causing a pyloric outflow obstruction, which can cause vomiting and abdominal pain in people, as well as crocodiles

He said: 'In this case the obstruction was caused by a foreign body, the shoe. It was too big to pass into the intestines and left untreated the crocodile would not have been able to eat or absorb any food'

'It is totally possible to have feelings for a crocodile. It is an animal like any other, we want them to be happy and healthy and pain free, so when we do well at surgery, we have good feelings.'

In a statement on Facebook, the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine wrote: 'If the shoe fits your fancy . swallow it? Not a good idea! This 10.5-foot, 341-pound Nile crocodile, named Anuket, came to the UF Veterinary Hospitals on Feb. 5 for removal of a shoe she had swallowed in December.

'It had fallen off of a zipliner at St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park, where she lives, and into her habitat. Anuket was witnessed eating the shoe, and subsequently seen regurgitating it  then eating it right back up again.

'Previous efforts to flush out her sneaker at the farm and at UF had been unsuccessful.

Dr Biedrzycki said there was nothing written in the textbooks about how to get to the stomach of a crocodile

'During her most recent visit to UF, zoo medicine resident Garrett Fraess initially attempted to remove the shoe by reaching his arm up and through the crocodile's esophagus but was unsuccessful.

'The zoo medicine team then took Anuket for surgery, where Dr. Adam Biedrzycki, a large animal surgeon, attempted to manipulate the shoe through an incision and push it from the stomach to the esophagus, where Fraess hoped to be able to feel and grab hold of the shoe to pull it out.

'That effort, too, failed.

'Biedrzycki then performed a gastrotomy which allowed easier access to the crocodile's stomach.

'Within a short time, he was able to remove the shoe. After an overnight stay, Anuket returned home, and has been recuperating at the park since then.

'We're so happy to hear that she is doing well!'
It so happens that there is a new, full-size statue of Woolf in the works intended for a spot along the Thames in Richmond, London, near where the author lived and worked, in which she will be depicted sitting on a bench, as though resting after one of her walks, an activity she fondly described in her 1927 essay Street Haunting. The sculpture  more straightforward, fully clothed, striving for realism  is startling only for one reason: Woolfs likeness is gently smiling. (One might, at a dozen paces, mistake her for Mary Poppins.) In any event, in Woolfs appearance there is something to be glad about, as there is in last summers arrival of the first nonfictional female figures to ever reside in New Yorks Central Park: a statue of the pioneering suffragists Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton collaborating at a table  who joined Mother Goose, Alice in Wonderland, 23 statues of respected men and Balto the dog.

THESE NEW STATUES are also arriving in the midst of a larger and significant global reckoning about historical authority and representation. It felt like a turning point last summer when, in Bristol, England, a statue of the 17th-century slaver Edward Colston was tossed in the harbor and temporarily replaced by Marc Quinns statue of the Black Lives Matter protester Jen Reid, her fist raised triumphantly in the air. The same month, the poet Caroline Randall Williams published her searing essay You Want a Confederate Monument? My Body Is a Confederate Monument, which begins, I have rape-colored skin. In November, Simone Leighs iconic Brick House was installed on the University of Pennsylvania campus in Philadelphia (another edition is also on display on the High Line in New York), a 16-foot cast-bronze sculpture featuring a Black womans head atop a large, encompassing base  an especially eloquent piece in a year in which women of color have figured prominently in progressive politics. As a legal battle continues over the future of a prominent 12-ton statue of Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Va., the former capital of the Confederacy, the site has become a peaceful daytime gathering place, activated, as the artist Catherine Opie recently put it for this magazine, with new meaning. Artists projected images of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd on it; activists painted names of other victims of police violence on its base. Such statues are compelling onlookers to consider what is essential history, to reconsider ones position within the arc of the moral universe.

Last summer, while I was visiting a friend in Bronzeville, a neighborhood on Chicagos South Side, we decided to take a walk together, passing by Margot McMahons sculpture of the poet Gwendolyn Brooks. Installed in 2018, it is the first outdoor portrait sculpture of a Black woman in the city. As we chatted, my 4-year-old daughter examined the steppingstones inscribed with Brookss words, quotations from her Pulitzer Prize-winning 1949 book, Annie Allen, before stopping to scrutinize her bespectacled face. Who is Gwendolyn Brooks? she wanted to know. A great poet, we told her. An important woman.
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Disney has finally released the trailer of the Emma Stone-starrer Cruella and fans can't help but make comparisons with a certain DCEU villain. The trailer released on February 17, also stars Emma Thompson, Joel Fry, Paul Walter Hauser, Mark Strong and Emily Beecham among others.

The trailer begins with Emma Stone's narration and introduction. The actress says dialogues like, "The thing is, I was born brilliant. Born bad -- and a little bit mad," she also goes on to call herself a psycho and challenges the ones against her by saying, "I am woman, hear me roar."

The trailer shows a very young Cruella sporting red hair in a grim and dark London in the 1970s. She is an aspiring punk designer who believes no one can understand her sense of style. The out of the world designer then begins trying to get society's wealthiest people to take notice of her. While she is shot down, again and again, she becomes the infamous Cruella de Vil.

The film's original concept was in making since 2013 and Emma Stone was finally brought on board the project around 2017. Directed by I, Tonya fame Craig Gillespie, Cruella is expected to be the villain's origin story of sorts.

The film will see Emma in bright colours surrounded by a dark world. The trailer turns spooky as her crazy laughter takes over the music and narration, reminding very much of DCEU's Joker. For the unversed, Cruella is inspired by Dalmatians franchise and is not a direct adaptation.

Cruella, darling, I'm so sorry the internet saw your pale face and signature manic personality and called you the joker... that clown WISHES he was as iconic as you pic.twitter.com/VVtQspeDz1  aaron  vision scrapbook era (@vandawision) February 17, 2021

Cruella seems like Disneys answer to Joker. pic.twitter.com/YuZZtemqt8  gare  (@ReadsGaranteed) February 17, 2021

DISNEY'S JOKER IS TRENDING BC OF THE CRUELLA TRAILER PLSSSSSSSSSSS pic.twitter.com/ijptkTIFai  Krissy (@Krissy_Blues) February 17, 2021

I can't wait for Cruella's Joker-like, gritty take on when she's baked into a cake by puppies. pic.twitter.com/Zwd5ljAB44  Bennett The Sage (@BennettTheSage) February 17, 2021

Disney out here giving Cruella... Joker/Harley Quinn vibes & Im here for it. pic.twitter.com/WGZhWsKarH  Patrick Dougall (@PatrickADougall) February 17, 2021

Disney has described the film as, "In 1970s London, young fashion designer Estella de Vil becomes obsessed with dogs' skins, especially Dalmatians, until she eventually becomes a ruthless and terrifying legend known as Cruella."

Glenn Close, who played Cruella in Disney's 1996 remake of One Hundred and One Dalmatians, 102 Dalmatians (2000), is the executive producer of the film.

Cruella is currently scheduled to hit the theatres on May 28, 2021. However, Disney CEO Bob Chapek noted on the company's recent earnings call that the theatrical release could change depending on where the world is at, with the current pandemic. The film could also see a hybrid release or wind up on Disney Plus.

ALSO READ: Disney's Cruella To Release In May 2021; Emma Stone Looks Unrecognisable In First Poster

ALSO READ: Fan Suggests Disney's Timeline Till 2100; Will Buy Apple, Microsoft and DC Comics
Indian ambassador Abhay Kumar on Thursday called on Prime Minister of Madagascar, Christian Ntsay in the capital Antananarivo to review the progress between both the nations while discussing ways to further elevate them. News agency ANI cited its source saying, A number of agreements in various areas are under discussion between the two countries in sectors like culture, education, information, trade etc.

Ambassador Abhay Kumar called on H.E. Christian Ntsay, Honble Prime Minister of Madagascar today. They reviewed the progress in bilateral ties between #India and #Madagascar and discussed ways to further strengthen them.

 pic.twitter.com/6xWQat0Lv6  India in Madagascar & Comoros (@IndembTana) February 18, 2021

The Defence Minister of Madagascar, General Richard Rakotonirina had even visited India in the first week of February and attended the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) Defence Ministers' Conclave on the sidelines of Aero India 2021. During his visit, Rakotonirina told ANI that India is a major player in the Indian Ocean Region, and the neighbouring countries even rely on it to play its part in ensuring peace and prosperity in the region.

In October 2020, the Indian mission in Madagascar posted pictures from the meeting informing that as many as 18 memoranda of understanding (MoUs) are currently under discussion between both the nations with a joint desire to enhance the bilateral ties.

The Ministry of External Affairs had shifted Madagascar to the Indian Ocean Region Division from East and South Africa division in December 2019. The Indian Ocean Region Division deals with nations such as Sri Lanka, Maldives, Mauritius and Seychelles. President Ram Nath Kovind had even visited Madagascar in March 2018 during the signing of a defence cooperation agreement between both nations.

Moreover, the Defense Minister of Madagascar had visited India in February 2020 and attended the DefExpo in Lucknow apart from meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Madagascar President Andry Rajoelina and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had exchanged greetings on Twitter on this years Independence Day of India.

Read - 'Humanitarian-driven Solution': Worlds First '3-D Printed School' To Open In Madagascar

Read - The Grand Tour Madagascar Special 'A Massive Hunt' Released A Day Early On Dec 17

Indias bilateral exchanges with Madagascar

As per the official website, India has had maritime links with Madagascar for several centuries and the establishments of Indian merchants in the foreign nation date back to as early as the 18th century. Currently, there are more than 17,000 Indian-origin people living in Madagascar including 2,500 of Indian passport holders. On February 1, 2020, the Indian government donated relief material in Operation Vanilla to help the flood-affected regions in the northern part of Madagascar.

In March 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, India donated 600 tonnes of rice as a human disaster and relief assistance (HADR) to help Madagascar in tackling the situation of heavy floods in the northern region. This was followed by the donation of a consignment of medicines in may 2020 meant to treat the highly-infectious disease on the request from the Malagasy side.

Read - Inscribe 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam', Adopt 'Earth Anthem': India's Madagascar Envoy To UNGA

Read - COP26 President-Designate Meets PM; 'Action From India Will Be Catalyst For Change'

Australian University Push For Gender Inclusive Terms Like Chestfeeding

An Australian University is urging its staff to incorporate gender-inclusive language such as chestfeeding rather than breastfeeding, and human milk instead of mothers milk.

The Gender-Inclusive Handbook published last year by The Australian National Universitys (ANU) Gender Institute also asks staff to replace traditional terms such as mother and father, with gestational and nongestational parents, or birthing and non-birthing parents.

Additionally, when using masculine generic language such as mankind and guyswhich is said to legitimise the male student and exclude other gender identitiesgender-inclusive language will instead reduce cognitive and behavioural male biases, combatting stereotypes, and increasing the visibility of gender diverse students.

There are links between gender beliefs and language, and the language of a teacher can thus communicate inclusive or sexist/discriminatory attitudes, the Handbook said.

Additionally, describing student parents as mother and father will exclude those who do not identify with gender-binaries, the handbook states.

Those who make a mistake are advised to acknowledge it and correct themselves.

Language habits take practice to overcome, and students respect the efforts you make to be inclusive.

While the universitys gender institute concedes that gender-inclusive language is a more recent social phenomenon, Federal Education Minister Alan Tudge said the move undermines public confidence in Australian universities instead.

This is woke rubbish and has the effect of undermining public confidence in our universities, Tudge told The Daily Telegraph.

We have great universities who do world-class research and educate thousands of students. This should rightly remain their focus.

University of Sydney sociologist Associate Professor Salvatore Babones has described ANUs recommendations as confusing and argues that it doesnt consider social realities.

Most people dont know what parents milk is and would question what it means. If someone said parents milk they might be looking for a brand of milk named parents milk, Balbones told The Daily Telegraph.

On Feb. 8, 2020, Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust became the first UK hospital trust to adopt terms breast/chestfeeding and human milk for its perinatal services.

In addition to the above, the hospital trust replaced maternity with perinatal, and maternal consent with informed consent. Parent was replaced co-parent and second biological parent were also added.

The hospitals policy document (pdf) states: We also recognise that there is currently biological essentialism and transphobia present within elements of mainstream birth narratives and discourse.

A spokesperson from the Australian National University told The Daily Telegraph the universitys gender institute was not an official policy and that experts were free to research in their field of expertise under our policies on academic freedom.

Students and staff are free to engage with, debate and contest the ideas canvassed in this handbook.
President Joe Biden accompanied by Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (not pictured) attends a meeting with business leaders at the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Feb. 9, 2021. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Biden Corporate Tax Hikes Will Send Jobs Overseas

Commentary

President Joe Biden has proposed $4 trillion in tax increases on American families and businesses. While Biden touts his tax hike plan as a way to ensure that corporations pay their fair share, the proposal will harm the U.S. economy at a time that it is recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.

These tax hikes will make America a more uncompetitive place to do business, send jobs overseas, trigger a return of corporate inversions, and make it easier for foreign businesses to acquire U.S. companies.

The Biden plan tax hike calls for raising the corporate rate to 28 percent from 21 percent, proposes a new global minimum tax on American businesses, and creates a 15 percent tax on book income. These tax hikes would be devastating to American businesses and would see U.S. businesses pay a 32 percent rate after state taxes, one of the highest rates in the developed world.

For instance, the U.S. rate would be higher than key competitors such as the United Kingdom (19 percent), China (25 percent), Canada (26.5 percent), Ireland (12.5 percent), Germany (29.9 percent), and Japan (29.74 percent), according to data compiled by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

It would also impose new taxes on American businesses at a time the United States is lagging behind foreign competitors when it comes to promoting innovation. In fact, according to a Manufacturing Leadership Council study, the United States ranks 26th in research and development tax incentives when ranking the 36 developed countries in the OECD.

Not only will these tax increases result in businesses creating jobs overseas instead of America, they will also cause a return of corporate inversions.

Inversions came to prominence during the Obama administration, when concern grew that the uncompetitive tax code was causing U.S. business to merge with, or acquire, a foreign business with the intent of incorporating the new, combined entity overseas. In 2014 alone, American businesses with combined assets of $319 billion announced plans to invert, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), signed into law in 2017, solved this problem and caused businesses to begin coming back to America. This is not the only problem solved by the TCJA that will return if Bidens tax hikes are signed into lawthe United States will also see a surge of foreign businesses acquiring American businesses.

Between 2004 and 2017, the high U.S. rate and worldwide tax system meant non-U.S. companies could outbid U.S. companies. As a result, American companies suffered a net loss of almost $510 billion in assets, according to a study released by EY.

If the corporate rate was lower between 2004 and 2017, the study estimates that U.S. companies would have acquired a net of $1.2 trillion worth of businesses, meaning that more than $1.7 trillion in businesses were lost because of the uncompetitive U.S. rate.

A corporate tax increase will not just harm businessesit will directly harm American workers in the form of fewer new job opportunities and lower wages.

Numerous studies have found that between 50 percent and 70 percent of the corporate tax is borne by workers. This correlation of lower corporate taxes and the well-being of American workers can also be seen in economic data following passage of the TCJA. For instance, in 2019 median household income increased by $4,440, or 6.8 percentthe largest one-year wage growth in history. During this time, wages grew faster for the bottom 25 percent of wage earners than the top 25 percent of earners, according to the Atlanta Fed.

Bidens tax increases will be borne by publicly traded companies, which will also harm millions of middle-class Americans that are invested in the stocks.

This is not about the rich. These tax hikes will harm the 53 percent of Americans that are invested in the stock market, and half of all Gen-Zers and millennials that have begun trading in stocks as a way to increase their life savings.

In addition, it will reduce the life savings of the 80 million to 100 million Americans that have a 401(k) and the 46.4 million households that have an individual retirement account. Its important to note that a majority of the assets in these accounts are invested in stocksof the $6.2 trillion in assets held in 401(k)s, almost 70 percent (or $4.3 trillion) are in stocks.

The fact is, Bidens plan to raise taxes on businesses will harm U.S. families and businesses as we look to rebuild our economy. It will impact workers, suppress wages, and reduce the life savings of families across the country. It will make the United States a less competitive place to do business, resulting in jobs being shipped overseas and a return of corporate inversions.

From RealClearWire.

Alexander Hendrie is director of tax policy at Americans for Tax Reform.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
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BOOK OF THE WEEK

AFTER

by Dr Bruce Greyson (Bantam 16.99, 272 pp)

One Monday morning, at the age of 56, lorry driver Al Sullivan turned up for work and had a massive heart attack.

The next thing he remembers is looking down at his own body on an operating table. He was interested, in a detached way, to see that his chest had been cut open, exposing his heart.

His eyes were taped shut, something often done when a patient is unconscious and unable to blink.

But he was more puzzled to see a man in surgeon's scrubs strutting about the room with his elbows out, waggling and flapping his arms like a chicken.

Dr Bruce Greyson spoke with dozens of people who had a near-death experience and provides the accounts in his new book After (stock image)

Al survived his quadruple coronary bypass surgery. A few days later, his surgeon visited the ward. Al asked him about the flapping and, instead of denying it, the medic became irritable.

'Who told you about that?' he snapped. And then he became defensive: 'I must have done something right, because you're still here, aren't you?' With that, he marched away.

This curious anecdote was told by Al to Bruce Greyson, now professor emeritus of psychiatry and neurobehavioural sciences at the University of Virginia in the U.S.

Dr Greyson contacted the surgeon who confirmed that he did flap his elbows in theatre. In fact, after sterilising his hands he used them to point at people and tools, to avoid touching anything.

Dr Greyson took Al's story seriously, partly because he has been collecting reports of near-death experiences for 50 years... and partly because, as a trainee psychiatrist, he had been confronted by a patient with a bizarrely similar story.

The patient's name was Holly, a 20-year-old student, and she was brought comatose to the hospital in Virginia after taking an overdose.

Lorry driver Al Sullivan had a heart attack at age 56 and remembers looking down at his own body on an operating table despite being unconscious (stock image)

The young Dr Greyson, hoping to discover exactly what pills she had swallowed, took Holly's roommate, Susan, to an interview room down the corridor. He was inexperienced and nervous  so nervous that, when his pager went off that morning, he'd spilled tomato sauce down his tie.

Holly regained consciousness the next day. When the doctor introduced himself at her bedside, she murmured: 'I know who you are. I remember you from last night.'

She then told him she had 'followed' him and Susan down the corridor, to the interview room, and hovered over them as they talked.

Though she had not spoken to Susan since the overdose, Holly was able to recount the conversation exactly. More eerie still, she remarked to Dr Greyson that he'd changed his tie. The one he wore earlier 'had a red stain on it'.

That inexplicable incident inspired the professor's investigation into near-death and out-of-body experiences that would span his whole career.

This hardback, told in the sort of layman's language that made Oliver Sacks a bestseller, includes dozens of similar accounts  such as the fireman who was blown off his feet in an explosion, and found himself trying to help his comrades carry his own unconscious body to safety.

The author is adamant nothing he has discovered is proof of a spiritual dimension and a life beyond this world. All of the stories might arise from some hallucinatory faculty in the brain, which kicks in during the last moments of life.

But the simplest explanation, he suggests, is that these experiences feel so convincing because they are objectively real, not hallucinations.

He compares the stories to medieval travellers' tales  imagine an explorer, he says, who returns home after an adventure in far-off lands and describes an exotic animal he encountered that's able to travel for days across the desert without water. It's called a camel

The sceptical scientists he meets agree to hold a conference, to decide whether such a creature is biologically possible.

Dr Greyson suggested the events felt convincing because they were objectively real, rather than simply being hallucinations (stock image)

Frustrated and upset at the implication that he's either deluded or a liar, the explorer decides to say nothing more. Camels might be impossible, according to science, but he knows what he saw.

It isn't only scientists who feel uncomfortable talking about near-death experiences. Al the lorry driver learned not to say anything to his wife. During his surgery, he became aware of his mother's presence beside him.

She had died in her 50s, 20 years earlier, and now she appeared much younger, the way he remembered her as a child. She spoke to him, and guided the surgeon's hands.

Al was profoundly moved that she was watching over him, and during his recovery felt thrilled to know that he would see her again when he finally died.

But his wife didn't want to hear anything about this, and forbade him to talk about it. She married a happy-go-lucky guy, she said, 'not some Old Testament prophet'.

These glimpses of a life after death have a deep and permanent effect on most who report them.

AFTER by Dr Bruce Greyson (Bantam 16.99, 272 pp)

John Wren-Lewis was travelling in Thailand when a thief on a bus slipped him poison, to rob him. He passed out and, as his pulse stopped, his wife, Ann, stopped the bus.

John was unconscious for seven hours, during which he had what he could only describe as 'eternity consciousness'. For the rest of his life, he found joy in everything... even the things that had previously been unpleasant and irritating.

'The discovery that I could positively enjoy a cold  not merely wallow in the indulgence of a day in bed, but get a kick from the unusual sensations in my nose and throat  was a big surprise,' he said.

'I also started to enjoy tiredness and the many minor pains that afflict a 60-year-old body.'

That fresh appreciation of life and the ability to 'live in the present moment' is a common consequence of near-death experiences, and a testament to their power, says Dr Greyson.

And so is a reduced fear of death. One especially tragic case involved a man called Henry, who lived with his mother on the family farm.

Unable to cope after she died, he lay down on her grave and shot himself in the head. He didn't die  but he did see his mother again. 'Oh Henry,' she told him sadly, 'now look what you've done.'

When he regained consciousness, far from feeling guilty or depressed, Henry was relieved.

He was hideously disfigured, with half the right side of his face missing.

But he knew beyond doubt that he would see his mother after he died, and that paradoxically gave him strength to go on living.

From a less authoritative source, these stories could seem mawkish or flaky. Told here with calm precision, and with a conversational flair, they are both absorbing and convincing.

With so much evidence available for further investigation, the most vexing question now is not whether life continues in some form after we die, but why mainstream science is so resistant to the idea.
We must not start with concessions out of the gate. We are not going to start with two million undocumented people instead of 11 million, he said. We will never win an argument that we dont have the courage to make. We must make our case for bold, inclusive and lasting immigration reform.

How to successfully revamp the nations immigration system has for decades eluded policymakers in Washington. The last time a major immigration bill was signed into law was in 1990, when President George Bush expanded legal immigration into the United States, ahead of an explosion of illegal crossings at the southwestern border in the following 20 years.

The surge in illegal border crossings prompted demands for increased enforcement from conservatives even as backlogs in legal immigration created a growing crisis for businesses looking for workers and for families seeking refuge in the United States from violence and disasters at home.

For nearly three decades, those in favor of immigration have argued for a single, comprehensive bill with elements that could unite Democrats and Republicans, labor unions and big businesses, security-minded conservatives and liberal immigration supporters.

Such bills  which were introduced in 2001, 2006, 2007 and 2013  centered around a trade-off: amped up border security and immigration law enforcement in exchange for a path to citizenship for undocumented people. They also included increases in the number of temporary workers allowed into the United States; more resources for processing asylum applications; new opportunities for high-skilled workers from other countries; some limits on immigration based on family ties; and protections for undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children.

But none of those efforts succeeded. Despite support from President George W. Bush, the Senate and House failed to reach a compromise in 2006, and legislation in 2007 was defeated in the Senate. In 2013, Mr. Obama secured bipartisan Senate passage of an immigration overhaul, 68 to 32, only to see it ignored by the Republican-controlled House. Over the past four years, some of the conservative side of the equation  border security  was secured by Donald J. Trump in the form of tough restrictions on asylum seekers and partial construction of Mr. Trumps border wall.

Mr. Biden won the presidency in part by pledging that he would bring back bipartisanship and saying that his longstanding relationships in the Senate would help him bridge the partisan divides that have grown deeper in recent years. Ms. Psaki said the president has outlined the tenets of what we think the proposal should look like in the hopes of addressing the root causes of immigration problems.
Playing it safe, Jennifer Fultz and her group booked flights Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to return to Boise, Idaho.

Fultz and seven of her employees  they were in San Antonio for a company retreat last weekend  figured if one flight got canceled, they would have an insurance policy for seats on another plane out of San Antonio International Airport.

The winter storm forced the cancellation of their original flight Monday. So they rented a car to drive El Paso and leave the snow belt behind. If El Paso didnt work out, they figured Phoenix would.

They aborted the plan after reaching Kerrville, 57 miles northwest of San Antonio. No gas stations were open in the Hill Country town.

We decided not to go past civilization and risk running out of gas, said Fultz, who co-owns a home health care agency.

Back in San Antonio, they checked into Drury Inn & Suites San Antonio Riverwalk. They ate a frozen pizza Monday night before the hotel ran out of food. It was candy bars and other snacks Tuesday. There was no running water in the hotel, but Fultz and her co-workers managed to flush the toilet after filling up ice buckets with water from the swimming pool.

Wednesday, Fultz and thousands of other stranded travelers finally received good news  kind of. The airports main runway opened, and the first flights since the storm hit the region were scheduled to depart late Wednesday afternoon.

But every airline operating out of San Antonio International had already canceled their Wednesday flights, except for Southwest Airlines. Even then, only five of Southwests 16 daily flights were scheduled to take off.

Thursday also could be dicey.

About 47 percent of the scheduled departures Thursday, a total of 29 flights, were canceled, according to FlightAware, which tracks arrivals and departures.

Sundays storm shut down all departures and arrivals at San Antonio International, with no planes taking off on Monday or Tuesday.

The airport owns no snow removal equipment, leaving airport officials unable to remove snow that blanketed runways and the rest of the airfield on Sunday night and Monday morning. Sheets of ice under the snow on the airfield were also a problem.

A combination of less frigid weather, which melted the snow, and de-icing equipment enabled the airports main commercial runway to open at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, said Jesus Saenz Jr., San Antonios aviation director.

Our team worked hard for the last 72 hours, he said. It was a team effort to reopen the runway.

Dozens of passengers spent Wednesday night at the airport. For some, it was the second or third night in a row. They had already checked out of their hotels in anticipation of a plane trip back home, only to find their flight had been canceled.

Airline employees gave many travelers mock tickets so they could go through security checkpoints and eat at the small number of open restaurants in Terminal A.

Since the snowfall, Fultz and her employees had bonded over card games and devising plans to make it out of San Antonio. It was unclear if they would make it home Wednesday.

Their 3:45 p.m. flight on Southwest to Denver, where they would board a second flight to Boise, had already been bumped to 5:10 p.m. A second delay moved the flight to 7 p.m.

I am not sure we are going to get out of here tonight, she said.

Some passengers on Wednesday gave up hope of flying out of San Antonio, instead opting for car rentals.

But only two of the seven rental counters were open Wednesday at the airports car rental center.

SIXT Rent A Car manager Cody Barrows said one renter was driving to New Jersey, and another was traveling to Denver. Barrows said he was cutting rates on the rentals.

We are trying to work with people as best we can because we realize people need to get home, he said.

randy.diamond@express-news.net

The company has launched its "X strategy", committed to diversifying its business and becoming a world-leading new retail platform capable of incubating more sub-brands.

On December 18, 2020, MINISO launched its sub-brand "TOPTOY", a toy store for children and young adults, opening 9 stores in 5 Chinese cities over the last 6 weeks. TOPTOY intends to become the leader in the country's booming toy market.

The parent brand, MINISO, has also announced that "Art Toy" will be its strategic product category of focus during 2021 and even beyond.

Continuing expansion in China and overseas, accelerating digitalization

Given now China is at a different stage of its post-COVID 19 recovery, MINISO has set a clear goal of its expansion in the domestic market, aiming to open more stores, mostly in tier 3 cities and even rural areas.

For the overseas market, despite the continued uncertainty of the pandemic, MINISO will continuously expand, especially in countries with populations of at least 50 million - India, Indonesia, the U.S., Colombia, Mexico, Egypt, and Spain.

As a key learning from 2020, MINISO is boosting its online presence on top of its proven success in brick-and-mortar channels. "COVID-19 is a catalyst that has accelerated our digital transformation and embrace of online channels," said Robin Liu, Chief Marketing Officer of MINISO, "We will keep broadening our online sales channels."

As a result of its accelerated digitalization, MINISO will open unmanned stores in China, with products also soon available on all online channels including its self-owned online stores, WeChat mini-programs and flagship stores on major e-commerce platforms. Similarly, MINISO will further strengthen its e-commerce channels in key overseas markets.

About MINISO:

MINISO (NYSE: MNSO) is a lifestyle product retailer, offering high quality household goods, cosmetics, and food at affordable prices. Since its first store opened in Guangzhou in 2013, MINISO has opened more than 4,330 stores in over 80 countries and regions in 7 years. With a focus on sleek design and fun trends, its mission is to assure through its products that a better life has nothing to do with the price.

SOURCE Miniso Group

BlueBotics, the global leader in natural feature navigation, has announced that its Autonomous Navigation Technology (ANT) is now estimated to have driven automated guided vehicles (AGVs) and autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) over 10 million kilometres, in applications ranging from warehousing and manufacturing to commercial cleaning services, UVC disinfection and more.

Dr Nicola Tomatis, CEO of BlueBotics, said: The timing of this milestone is perfect as it comes the same month that we celebrate the companys 20th anniversary. It is amazing to think that our customers ANT driven vehicles have driven over 10 million kilometres, almost 250 times the circumference of the globe. This achievement really speaks to the robustness of our industry-proven ANT technology.

ANT navigation is popular with manufacturers and end users of AGVs, automated forklifts and AMRs, since it simplifies and shortens vehicle installation times as well as providing flexible, accurate and user-friendly operation. The technology suits a myriad of vehicle types and kinematics, from small 100 kg AMRs to 30-ton heavy load transporter AGVs. In addition, with BlueBotics accompanying ANT server software, users whose vehicles are driven by BlueBotics ANT lite+ product can create and operate a synchronised fleet of ANT driven vehicles, no matter what the type or even brand. All of these vehicles are able to interact seamlessly with on-site equipment and machinery, including an organizations existing WMS/MES/ERP software, using ANT servers simple API, the company said.

Dr Tomatis continued: In arriving at our 10-million-kilometre milestone, we conservatively estimate that AGVs driven by ANT technology have worked more than one million days  over 2,500 years  of commercial operation.

It is exciting to see the impact ANT technology is having, both on the AGV market and - most importantly - on the efficiency of those companies that operate ANT driven vehicles. With our continuing strong growth, it shouldnt be long before ANT driven products will have circumnavigated the globe 500 times! - TradeArabia News Service
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have outlines guidelines that that call for inoculating frontline health-care workers, people in nursing homes and older Americans.

But beyond that, its up to states to decide who, and how, to prioritize vaccinations. Were talking about who can get in line where on This Week in the CLE.

Listen online here

Editor Chris Quinn hosts our daily half-hour news podcast, with editors Jane Kahoun, Kris Wernowsky and me.

Youve been sending Chris lots of thoughts and suggestions on our from-the-newsroom account, in which he shares what were thinking about at cleveland.com. You can sign up for free by sending a text to 216-868-4802.

Here are the questions were answering today:

What are some ways Ohio has different rules from other states for who can get the coronavirus vaccines?

How does the Black owner of three McDonalds restaurants in Cleveland says the fast-food chain discriminated against him?

Did a committee in the Statehouse actually take some action this week to take the sting out of the corrupt House Bill 6 energy law?

How much are taxpayers forking over to keep the publicly owned Hilton Hotel afloat during a deep drop in tourism during the pandemic?

Why does Lordstown Motors need a change in the Ohio law to sell its electric piuckup trucks directly, rather than through dealerships?

After serial killer Anthony Sowell died last week, we caught up with survivor Vanessa Gay. What did she have to say about what his death means to her?

How much money did the parent company of Cedar Point lose because of the coronavirus in 2020, and what are the prospects for 2021?

Want more? You can find all our past episodes here.

We have an Apple podcasts channel exclusively for this podcast. Subscribe here.

Do you get your podcasts on Spotify. Find us here.

If you use Stitcher, we are here.

RadioPublic is another popular podcast vehicle, and we are here.

On Google Podcasts, we are here.

On PodParadise, find us here.

And on PlayerFM, we are here.
New Delhi: The Walt Disney Company has unveiled the all-new official trailer for its upcoming live-action feature film 'Cruella'. The film stars Academy Award winners Emma Stone and Emma Thompson in the lead role.

Directed by Craig Gillespie, 'Cruella' is based on the legendary character Cruella De Vil, introduced in Dodie Smiths 1956 novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians and Walt Disney's 1961 animated film One Hundred and One Dalmatians.

Watch Cruella trailer here:

'Cruella' is set in 1970s London amidst the punk rock revolution, follows a young grifter named Estella, a clever and creative girl determined to make a name for herself with her designs. She befriends a pair of young thieves who appreciate her appetite for mischief, and together they are able to build a life for themselves on the London streets.

Later, Estellas love for fashion catches the eye of the Baroness von Hellman, a fashion legend who is chic but Haute. Played by two-time Oscar winner Emma Thompson.

Disney's 'Cruella' will release in Indian theatres soon!
Queen Letizia of Spain looked elegant in a all-blue ensemble as she attended a presentation at Viana Palace in Madrid with King Felipe.

The royal mother-of-two, 48, showcased her sensational sense of style in a pastel blue pencil skirt paired with a floating navy top for the visit on Wednesday.

She teamed her sophisticated attire with a pair of elegant black heels and a clutch purse as she attended the presentation of the Scholarships of the Spanish Cooperation.

Despite the cool temperatures in Madrid, she bravely flaunted her bronzed arms as she went without a jacket, simply wearing a short-sleeved top

The royal mother-of-two, 48, showcased her sensational sense of style in a pastel blue pencil skirt paired with a floating navy top for the visit on Wednesday

Queen Letizia of Spain looked elegant in a vibrant ensemble as she attended a presentation at Viana Palace in Madrid with King Felipe VI on Wednesday

The queen wore her silky brunette tresses in a straight fashion across her shoulders and opted for a glowing palette of makeup for the outing with Felipe, 53.

The monarch made sure to keep herself protected amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic by sporting a white face mask covering both her nose and mouth.

Despite the cool temperatures in Madrid, she bravely flaunted her bronzed arms as she decided not to wear any jacket, simply donning a stylish short-sleeved top.

King Felipe and Letizia presided over the presentation of the Scholarships of the Spanish Cooperation, which are awarded by the European Union and Cooperation and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A new website was created by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation to bring all the scholarships, lectures and internships on to one place, with the new platform being presented at the Viana Palace.

At the event, the King congratulated those who participate and contribute to the scholarships which 'change lives', notimerica reported.

King Felipe and Letizia presided over the presentation of the Scholarships of the Spanish Cooperation, awarded by the European Union and Cooperation and Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Queen (left) wore her silky brunette tresses in a straight fashion across her shoulders and opted for a glowing palette of makeup for the outing with Felipe VI, 53 (right)

Queen Letizia and King Felipe VI both made sure to keep themselves protected amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic by sporting a white face masks

Arancha Gonzalez Laya, the Spanish Foreign Minister, revealed that more than 1,000 scholarships worth 14 million euros have been offered across 2021.

Also in attendance were the Secretary of State for International Cooperation, Angeles Moreno Bau, director of the Foundation Carolina Jose Antonio Sanahuja, and the director of AECID, Magdy Martinez-Soliman.

Queen Letizia has been keeping busy as she attended an exhibition showcasing the work of the Spanish poet and essayist Concepcion Arenal Ponte on Tuesday.

At the event (King Felipe and Queen Letizia pictured arriving), the King congratulated those who participate and contribute to the scholarships which 'change lives

Also in attendance at the presentation were the Secretary of State for International Cooperation, Angeles Moreno Bau and Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya (left)
One of the most watched variety shows, SNL Korea will be making its comeback after three years!

After years of being out in the spotlight, comedy and variety show "SNL Korea" is finally preparing for a big comeback. Production company A Story exclusively signed a contract to produce "SNL Korea" with the NBCUniversal Formats, which owns the rights of the said show.

The Korean version of NBC's long-running comedy show Saturday Night Live, aired its last episode in 2018 ending with nine seasons. It has been confirmed that the new season will be directed by producer Ahn Sang Hwi. Director Ahn, was also the person behind the successful direction of the entire season of "SNL Korea." Joining him in the project are producers Kwon Sung Wook and Yoo Sung Mo.

Shin Dong Yup Will Remain as the Host of "SNL Korea"

And of course, the show will never be complete without the magic of the host. Returning also in the show is none other than, actor and comedian Shin Dong Yup. The 50-year-old artist was also the one hosted all 9 seasons of "SNL Korea." Now that he will be back again as the main MC, Shin Dong Yup is expected to make another fun and humorous show welcoming new and familiar personalities in the industry.

Also Read: Yoo Jae Suk Once Again Chosen as Comedian of The Year By Gallup Korea

Meanwhile, Korean citizens were not just the one celebrating for the show comeback. In fact, the Senior Vice President of NBCUniversal Formats, Ana Langenberg expressed her excitement for the return of the sain program. According to her, "I am happy to see 'SNL Korea' again. This legendary show has received lots of support from avid viewers for many years."

A Story to Lead the Upcoming Comeback of the Iconic Show Saturday Night Live Korean Version

Ms. Langenberg also wished for a good and strong partnership with the Korean production company A Story, "We hope that our new partner A Story and the original production staff will be bringing fresh content to SNL Korea. I can no longer wait to see how the audience and the new generation will embrace and react to the new 'SNL Korea.'"

The CEO of A Story, Lee Sang Baek can't also hide his excitement for the forthcoming project. According to him, "As much as NBCUniversal, we all the staff of A Story are also happy to be launching the newest season of 'SNL Korea.' Fresh characters and never ending laughter are all expected to be present in every episode of the show."

Meanwhile, "SNL Korea" is expected to kick off in the second half of 2021.

Are you all excited for the return of "SNL Korea"? Let us know in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at Kdramastars.

Kdramastars owns this article.

Written by Shai Collins.



Graphical Abstract. Credit: Molecular Cell (2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2021.01.030

Research led by McGill University and Queen's University Belfast has found that viruses can 'hijack' an existing molecular process in the cell in order to block the body's antiviral immune response to a viral infection.

The results of the study have been published in the journal Molecular Cell.

As the current COVID-19 pandemic has proven, viral infection is a significant threat to the health of humans as well as livestock, pets, and plants. Discovery of a potentially druggable process that is hijacked by the virus to facilitate viral infection could have significant health and financial benefits to society.

Molecular investigation unlocks discovery

To conduct their study the researchers looked at how healthy cells control the levels of the molecules known as "Interferon-' or "Interferon beta." These molecules are used for communication between cells to trigger the protective defenses of the immune system that help eradicate pathogens, such as viral microbes. This communication between cells is essential for a functioning immune system.

The researchers discovered a molecular process used by the virus that blocks the synthesis of Interferon-, therefore blocking the immune system.

Dr. Seyed Mehdi Jafarnejad, Principal Investigator from the Patrick G Johnston Centre for Cancer Research at Queen's University Belfast, explains, "Our study has found that certain viruses 'hijack' this natural process in order to neutralize Interferon- and block the immune system, resulting in unrestrained viral infection which can make people incredibly sick."

"My lab was fortunate to continue our collaboration with Mehdi Jafarnejad to discover how the mRNA translational repressor, 4EHP, on which we reported first in 1998, inhibits the production of the host defense protein, interferon," adds Professor Nahum Sonenberg, Gilman Cheney Chair in Biochemistry at McGill University. "This work is likely to have important implications for the understanding of how SARS-CoV-2 evades the human defense response to the virus."

While this discovery represents a breakthrough in the fields of immunobiology and gene expression, further research will determine if targeting this cellular mechanism could be used to more effectively treat various types of viral infections, including those such as SARS-CoV2, ultimately saving lives.

More information: Xu Zhang et al. microRNA-induced translational control of antiviral immunity by the cap-binding protein 4EHP, Molecular Cell (2021). Journal information: Molecular Cell Xu Zhang et al. microRNA-induced translational control of antiviral immunity by the cap-binding protein 4EHP,(2021). DOI: 10.1016/j.molcel.2021.01.030
HARRISBURG, Pa., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- AARP Pennsylvania invites community organizations and local governments across the state to apply for the 2021 Community Challenge grant program, now through April 14. Grants fund quick-action projects that can range from several hundred dollars for small, short-term activities to several thousand or tens of thousands for larger projects. Now in its fifth year, the grant program is part of AARP's nationwide Livable Communities initiative, which supports the efforts of cities, towns, neighborhoods and rural areas to become great places to live for people of all ages.

"We are thrilled to bring this grant opportunity back to Pennsylvania in 2021 and we encourage all eligible organizations to apply," said AARP Pennsylvania State Director Bill Johnston-Walsh. "We've seen great results from the Community Challenge grant program in communities across Pennsylvania, and this year we are increasing our support for projects that focus on diversity and inclusion and aid in local recovery from the coronavirus pandemic."

Since 2017, AARP has awarded 560 grants  including 15 in Pennsylvania  through the Community Challenge to nonprofit organizations and government entities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The program provides direct support to all community types, with nearly 40% of past projects benefitting rural communities, 20% going to suburban locations and 40% improving urban places. Granted projects have demonstrated an ability to help garner additional funds or support from public and private funders, encourage replication and overcome local policy barriers, and receive greater overall awareness and engagement.

AARP will prioritize projects that deliver inclusive solutions that meet the needs of diverse populations, as well as those that directly engage volunteers through permanent or temporary solutions that aim to achieve one or more of the following outcomes:

Create vibrant public places that improve open spaces, parks and access to other amenities.

that improve open spaces, parks and access to other amenities. Deliver a range of transportation and mobility options that increase connectivity, walkability, bikeability, wayfinding, access to transportation options and roadway improvements.

that increase connectivity, walkability, bikeability, wayfinding, access to transportation options and roadway improvements. Support a range of housing options that increase the availability of accessible and affordable options.

options that increase the availability of accessible and affordable options. Increase civic engagement and demonstrate the tangible value of "Smart Cities" with innovative and tangible projects that bring residents and local leaders together to address challenges and facilitate a greater sense of inclusion.

with innovative and tangible projects that bring residents and local leaders together to address challenges and facilitate a greater sense of inclusion. Support local recovery from the coronavirus pandemic with an emphasis on economic development, improvements to public spaces, and transportation services.

with an emphasis on economic development, improvements to public spaces, and transportation services. Ensure a focus on diversity and inclusion while improving the built and social environment of a community.

while improving the built and social environment of a community. Other community improvements. In addition, AARP wants to hear about local needs and new, innovative ideas for addressing them.

The Community Challenge is open to 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4) and 501(c)(6) nonprofits and government entities. Other types of organizations will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

The application deadline is 8:00 p.m. ET, April 14, 2021, and all projects must be completed by November 10, 2021. To submit an application and view past grantees, visit www.AARP.org/CommunityChallenge.

Johnston-Walsh said that in addition to supporting the Community Challenge grant program, AARP Pennsylvania remains committed to making communities more livable by focusing on safe transportation, affordable housing, and improving the accessibility of public and green spaces.

"Working with community partners around the state, AARP Pennsylvania brings people together and provides resources and expertise to help make our cities, towns and counties great places to live, work and play for residents of all ages," he said.

CONTACT: Steve Gardner, AARP PA

(717) 319-5484 or [email protected]

Or

Jacklyn Isasi, AARP PA

(609) 902-6242 or [email protected]

SOURCE AARP Pennsylvania

Related Links

http://www.aarp.org


Evan Agostini /Associated Press

Fiction author Stephen King's reaction to the real-life horrors Texas is grappling with in the wake of a fatal and historical winter storm is not sitting well with people online.

Millions of Texans have been without access to consistent energy and water this week following Sunday's snowfall and winter weather. The storm has claimed more than 3o lives thus far. As national attention begins to pivot to Texas, days after the initial impact, celebrities are starting to react on their Twitter platforms. Chrissy Teigen asked how to help. Former President Barack Obama directed his followers to resources. King hit send on a snarky tweet blaming Texas voters for the misery.
One of Australias most senior air force officers warned that changes proposed by the former chief of Defence Science and Technologys aerospace division, scientist Dong Yang Wu, threatened the operational capability of the nations military aircraft.

Defence Department documents reveal Dr Wus 2017 proposals to outsource structural integrity testing of aircraft and focus on future technologies were opposed by Air Vice-Marshal Catherine Roberts, who said they were not an area that can be compromised or degraded.

Former chief of the Defence Science and Technology aerospace division, Dong Yang Wu.

Dr Wu, a Chinese-Australian scientist with no previous Defence experience who was recruited from Boeing China, was appointed to the position of chief of aerospace at Defence Science and Technology, part of the Department of Defence, in 2017 ahead of two internal candidates. She left two years later for undisclosed reasons.

It is unclear to what extent the changes proposed by Dr Wu in her 10-year plan for the division were adopted. A Defence spokesman said the Defence Science and Technology groups ability to support structural integrity tests, fatigue tests and conduct forensic investigations were retained, under Dr Wus proposals. Changes under the reforms included expanding partnering with industry and academia to support structural and fatigue-testing, the spokesman said.
Burma Nine People Injured During Military Regime Clearance Operation in Mandalay

An injured man receives treatment at a philanthropic clinic on Thursday morning in Mandalay. / Supplied

Yangon  At least nine people, including a pregnant woman, were injured in shooting by Myanmars security services to clear squatters blocking train tracks in Mandalay on Wednesday night to make way for a train with security personnel onboard. The train left Mandalay early in the morning.

Around 50 police and military personnel used rubber bullets, tear gas and stones at a squatter settlement near railway staff housing in Chanmyathazi Township at around 9pm.

Former railway staff were living as squatters and blocking the train tracks in support of the civil disobedience movement.

Several videos show the security forces firing rubber bullets at squatters homes and throwing stones while trying to clear the tracks.

They also fired at the adjacent office of the Minkhaung Rescue Society that houses several philanthropic organizations.

Two ambulances were damaged and a member of the rescue team was injured in the leg, said Ko Aung Bu of the society.

They deliberately fired at our office with several rubber bullets. We condemn the violence, he told The Irrawaddy on Thursday.

He said his clinic treated about eight people, including a pregnant woman, who were injured by rubber bullets.

Dr. Kyi Moh Moh Lwin, who provided treatment, said the injuries were not serious.

Ko Thurain Tun, a member of Myanma Railways staff in Mandalay, said around 1,000 railway staff have joined the civil disobedience movement against military rule.

Myanmars military regime has been intensifying its crackdown against demonstrators in Mandalay as protests in the city gain momentum.

The security forces have used tear gas, slingshots, rubber bullets and air guns firing lead pellets.

More than 100 protesters have been injured, including 10 who were seriously hurt, according to the Kanung Institute, a Mandalay-based NGO working to promote democracy and public participation in governance.

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Detectives have appealed for a person who called Crime Stoppers to reveal the location of missing mother Ju Zhang to make contact again.

Victoria Police issued the plea late on Thursday night after Crime Stoppers passed on details from the anonymous call.

Ju Zhang was last seen on February 1 at her Epping home. Credit:Victoria Police

Investigators are urging the person, who contacted Crime Stoppers on Thursday morning, to call back and provide further information or make contact with detectives.

Ju was last seen at her home on Winchester Avenue in Epping about 5.30pm on February 1.
Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) -- Its nearly two months since turbulence erupted around China Huarong Asset Management Co.At the end of March, its 4% perpetual dollar bond was trading at 102 cents on the dollar as investors figured the January execution of former chairman Lai Xiaomin for bribery put a line under past wayward behavior. But the failure of the company to release 2020 results by a March 31 deadline, and a subsequent report by mainland media Caixin that the firm will restructure, sparked weeks of turmoil. The same bond is now at 57 cents.The heart of the matter is whether the central government will rescue a state-owned company thats integral to the smooth running of the financial system. While there are signs Beijing wants to ensure China Huarong can repay its debts on time, uncertainty prevails.Heres a look at the key events for China Huarong:May 28The company has wired funds to repay $978 million of notes maturing within the following week, according to Bloomberg News, the biggest bond payment since the 2020 results delay.May 27Liang Qiang, who currently heads another bad-debt manager, is on track to become president of China Huarong, reports Bloomberg News.May 24China Huarong dollar bonds climb after the managing editor of Caixin Media wrote in an opinion piece that the asset manager is nowhere near defaulting on its more than $20 billion of offshore notes.May 21Some of China Huarongs thinly traded onshore bonds slump after having held up better than the companys dollar-denominated notes, signaling broadening concern about the firms financial health.May 18China Huarong has transferred funds to repay a $300 million note maturing May 20, Bloomberg News reports, the first dollar bond to come due since the delayed 2020 results. Prices for the firms dollar bonds slump earlier in the day after the New York Times reports China is planning an overhaul that would inflict significant losses on both domestic and foreign China Huarong bondholders.May 17The company has reached funding agreements with state-owned banks to ensure it can repay debt through at least the end of August, by which time China Huarong aims to have completed its 2020 financial statements, according to a Bloomberg News report. That as at least two of its onshore bonds see big price declines in recent days, worrying some investors.May 13The firm says its prepared to make future bond payments and has seen no change in the level of government support, seeking to ease investor concerns after a local media report that regulators balked at China Hurarongs restructuring plan.May 6The company says it transferred funds to pay five offshore bond coupons due the following day, its latest move to meet debt obligations amid persistent doubts about its financial health.April 30China Huarong breaks its silence, with an executive telling media it is prepared to make its bond payments and state backing remains intact. The official also says the weeks rating downgrades have no factual basis and are too pessimistic.April 29Moodys Investor Service downgrades China Huarong by one notch to Baa1, adding the firm remains on watch for further downgrade. The cut reflects the companys weakened funding ability due to market volatility and increased uncertainty over its future, according to the statement.April 27China Huarong units repay bonds maturing that day. The S$600 million ($450 million) bond was repaid with funds provided by Chinas biggest state-owned bank, according to a Bloomberg News report.April 26Fitch Ratings downgrades China Huarong by three notches to BBB while dropping the companys perpetual bonds into junk territory. The lack of transparency over government support for the firm may hamper its ability to refinance debt in offshore markets, Fitch said.April 25China Huarong says it wont meet an April 30 deadline to file its 2020 report with Hong Kongs stock exchange because auditors needed more time to finalize a transaction the company first flagged on April 1. Securities and asset-management units said in the days before that they wouldnt release 2020 results by months end.April 22The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission asks lenders to extend China Huarongs upcoming loans by at least six months, according to REDD, citing two bankers from large Chinese commercial lenders.April 21China is considering a plan that would see its central bank assume more than 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) of China Huarong assets to help clean up the firms balance sheet, according to a Bloomberg News report. Peer China Cinda Asset Management Co. was said to be planning the sale of perpetual bonds in the second quarter.April 20China Huarongs key offshore financing unit says it returned to profitability in the first quarter and laid a solid foundation for transformation. Reorg Research reports that regulators are considering options including a debt restructuring of the unit, China Huarong International Holdings Ltd.April 19Huarong Securities Co. says it wired funds to repay a 2.5 billion yuan local note.April 16The CBIRC says China Huarongs operations are normal and that the firm has ample liquidity. These are the first official comments about the companys troubles. Reuters reports Chinese banks have been asked not to withhold loans to Huarong.April 13Fitch and Moodys both put the company on watch for downgrade. The finance ministry, which owns a majority of Huarong, is considering the transfer of its stake to a unit of the countrys sovereign wealth fund, Bloomberg News reports. Chinese officials signal they want failing local government financing vehicles to restructure or go bust if debts cant be repaid.April 9China Huarong says it has been making debt payments on time and its operations are normal. Bloomberg News reports the company intends to keep Huarong International as part of a potential overhaul that would avoid the need of a debt restructuring or government recapitalization. S&P Global Ratings puts China Huarongs credit ratings on watch for possible downgrade.April 8China Huarong is preparing to offload non-core and loss-making units as part of a broad plan to revive profitability that would avoid the need for a debt restructuring or government recapitalization, Bloomberg News reports.April 6Selling gains steam in China Huarongs dollar bonds, following a holiday in China. Huarong Securities says there has been no major change to its operations, in response to a price plunge for its 3 billion yuan local bond.April 1China Huarong announces a delay in releasing 2020 results, saying its auditor is unable to finalize a transaction. Stock trading is suspended and spreads jump on the firms dollar bonds while China Huarong tells investors its business is running as usual. Caixin reports the company submitted restructuring and other major reform plans to government officials and shareholders.More stories like this are available on bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.2021 Bloomberg L.P.
Federal Agents Seize About 11 Million Counterfeit N95 Masks

Federal agents have seized about 11 million fake N95 masks as part of ongoing investigations and efforts to prevent the sale of counterfeit goods to hospitals and first responders.

The seizures took place over the course of a few weeks in operations across five states, with hundreds of thousands of masks seized from an East Coast warehouse in the agencys most recent enforcement action. Homeland Security Investigations also worked with international law enforcement partners to dismantle sources of supply and prevent shipments from reaching U.S. shores, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on Feb. 17.

The department added that more enforcement actions are expected in the coming weeks.

These seizures illustrate the ongoing efforts of HSI, CBP, and private industry in keeping our communities and medical staff safe and free from counterfeit products, DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.

Often, this battle is fought behind the scenes and is unknown to the general public, but you can be assured that the DHS workforce remains firmly committed to protecting the health and safety of our medical workers, the American public, and the integrity of the American economy.

Initial leads about the fake products came from 3M after the company shared reports of suspected counterfeits being purchased for health care workers.

Kevin Rhodes, 3Ms deputy general counsel, said in a statement: This collaboration has helped prevent millions of counterfeit respirators from reaching frontline workers. We are committed to fighting the pandemic from all anglesmanufacturing needed PPE, working to prevent counterfeiting, and helping ensure N95s get to where they are needed the most.

The investigation into counterfeit masks is being conducted under the departments Operation Stolen Promise , a government initiative begun in April 2020 to combat threats posed by pandemic-related fraud and criminal activity such as countering fake PPE or phone vaccines.

As of Feb. 12, the department has arrested 227 individuals related to these alleged offenses, served 222 criminal search warrants, opened 862 investigations, and seized over $33.2 million in illicit proceeds.

N95 respirators are similar to medical masks in their protection value because of their ability to be tightly fitted.
[February 18, 2021] Cubic Wins $32 Million Contract to Deliver P5 Combat Training System for the F-35

Cubic Corporation (NYSE:CUB) today announced its Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions (CMPS) business division was awarded a contract worth $32 million from Lockheed Martin (News - Alert) for two more production lots of the P5 Combat Training System (P5CTS) for the F-35 Lightning II. Under the contract, Cubic will deliver over 150 training subsystems for Lockheed Martin's F-35 Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) system. This new order increases the total number of F-35 P5 on contract to over 1,150 and ensures fielding of F-35 P5 out to 2025. Unlike traditional P5 podded solutions for fourth generation fighter aircraft, the F-35 P5 is an Internal Subsystem (IS) configuration that relays Time, Space and Position Information (TSPI) between participating aircraft and range ground stations during training sorties. Cubic's F-35 P5 is the only fielded encrypted ACMI solution for fifth generation fighter aircraft hat connects directly to the aircraft bus to access necessary data to accurately run weapons simulations.



"Our advanced and interoperable P5CTS is used on more than 30 ranges worldwide and continues to set the standard for joint, multiservice and coalition training," said Mike Knowles, president of Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions. "Training for today's advanced threats to air combat operations requires adaptable, high-fidelity training tools. Cubic's P5CTS provides secure and scalable instrumentation solutions that enable integrated fourth- and fifth-generation training for our U.S. forces, allies and partners." The worldwide P5 infrastructure includes the integration of P5 pods and internal subsystems, ground stations and software, and is an investment shared by 17 countries. A recent upgrade to this training infrastructure is the integration of decryptors in the P5 ground stations to enable F-35 live monitoring at training ranges.

Cubic and its principal subcontractor, Leonardo DRS, will continue to produce and maintain the F-35 P5 internal subsystem. The Leonardo DRS Airborne and Intelligence Systems business division is responsible for the design and production of the airborne P5CTS Internal Subsystem. About Cubic Corporation Cubic is a technology-driven, market-leading provider of integrated solutions that increase situational understanding for transportation, defense C4ISR, and training customers worldwide to decrease urban congestion and improve the militaries' effectiveness and operational readiness. Our teams innovate to make a positive difference in people's lives. We simplify their daily journeys. We promote mission success and safety for those who serve their nation. For more information about Cubic, please visit www.cubic.com or on Twitter (News - Alert) @CubicCorp. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005991/en/

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Today I want to talk about one of the fascinating tussles in technology: trying to turn the shop around the corner into an online store.

Just about every business, from Walmart to a home baking operation, wants to find customers and sell its products online, and this has only accelerated during the pandemic. But its hard. An owner of a cheese shop doesnt have the time, expertise and money to become as skilled in online shopping as Amazon.

Whats happening spotlights a big question about the future of commerce: Will one-stop specialists like Amazon dominate everything, or will the internet empower anyone to open a successful store?

To over simplify, there are essentially two paths for businesses that want to sell stuff online or just have an internet presence. They can either do it themselves, or link up with an online powerhouse. Both come with downsides.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday denied permission to around 600 Sikh pilgrims intending to visit gurdwaras in Pakistan citing the security and COVID-19 situation in that country. In a communication to the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC), the Home Ministry said that the security situation in Pakistan continues to be adverse and there is a threat to Indian citizens in that country.

Besides, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected five lakh people in Pakistan and 10,000 people lost their lives due to the disease. "The health infrastructure in Pakistan is also not adequate," the ministry said. Citing these reasons, the Home Ministry conveyed to the SGPC that it has decided not to accord permission to the Jatha comprising around 600 pilgrims which intended to cross over to Pakistan on Friday. The jatha wanted to go to Pakistan from 18 to 25 February to observe the 100th anniversary of Saka Nanakana Sahib.

'It is not advisable...'

"You may be aware that traffic on India Pakistan International border has been suspended from March 2020 due to COVID pandemic. While the pandemic continues to persist, it is pertinent to note that Pakistan has so far recorded over half a million cases with over 10,000 plus deaths due to COVID. Considering the capacity of health infrastructure in Pakistan, it is not advisable for a large group of our citizens to visit Pakistan for a week during the pandemic," MHA said in a reply, as per ANI.

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"In view of the factors mentioned above MHA has not accorded permission to the Jatha for crossing over to Pakistan which is mandatory in view of the ongoing suspension of cross-border traffic due to Covid pandemic," the MHA said.

Last week, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee chief Bibi Jagir Kaur had said that COVID-19 test will be mandatory for pilgrims going to Gurdwara Nankana Sahib in Pakistan. The SGPC had conducted a two-day special Covid testing camp that concluded on its premises on Wednesday.

Kaur said, "A jatha of Sikh pilgrims is being sent by the SGPC to attend the events to be held at Sri Nankana Sahib, Pakistan, to mark the centenary of Shaheedi Saka." "The details of pilgrims have been sent to the Pakistan embassy in this regard," the SGPC chief said. According to media reports, the Pakistan government had given permission to visit the shrines in the country.

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(With agency inputs)
A Moscow court has upheld a ruling placing Oleg Navalny, the brother of jailed opposition politician Aleksei Navalny, under house arrest.



The Moscow City Court on February 18 rejected Oleg Navalny's appeal against a lower court decision to place him under house arrest on charges of breaking coronavirus restrictions by publicly calling on Moscow residents to take part in unsanctioned rallies to protest his brother's arrest.



Oleg Navalny is one of 10 supporters and associates of Navalny who were detained in January on the eve of unsanctioned mass rallies against the Kremlin critic's arrest.



The others include Lyubov Sobol, a lawyer of Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation; Anastasia Vasilyeva, the chief of the Alliance of Doctors NGO; Maria Alyokhina, a leading member of the Pussy Riot protest group; Oleg Stepanov, a coordinator of Navalny's team in Moscow; Navalny's spokeswoman Kira Yarmysh, activist Nikolai Lyaskin, and three municipal lawmakers -- Lyusya Shtein, Konstantin Yankauskas, and Dmitry Baranovsky.



The majority were placed under house arrest and charged with violating sanitary and epidemiological safety precautions during a pandemic. If found guilty of the charges, each faces up to two years in prison.



On February 8, the Memorial Human Rights Center in Moscow recognized the group as political prisoners.



A day earlier, more than 100 Russian actors, directors, writers, musicians, poets, and scholars issued an open letter, protesting Navalny's persecution and the mass arrests of his supporters in recent weeks.

Navalny. 44, was taken into custody on January 17 after returning to Russia from Germany where he was treated for a nerve-agent poisoning that he says was ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, which the Kremlin has denied.



More than 10,000 people were rounded up by police during nationwide rallies protesting Navalny's arrest in more than 100 Russian towns and cities on January 23 and January 31.

On February 2, Navalny was found guilty of violating the terms of his suspended sentence relating to an embezzlement case that he has called politically motivated. The court converted the sentence to 3 1/2 years in prison. Given credit for time already spent in detention, the court said the Kremlin critic would have to serve 2 years and 8 months behind bars.

The court's ruling caused new protests across the country that were also violently dispersed by police.



More than 1,400 people were detained by police in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other Russian cities on that day.

With reporting by TASS and Interfax
MARLBOROUGH, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Infosenseglobal is proud to announce its newest division, focusing exclusively on building innovative artificial intelligence solutions for businesses looking to accelerate digital transformation. With decades of experience in information technology, the new artificial intelligence division seeks to work together with companies to create new and novel solutions using cutting-edge technology.

Infosenseglobal

Infosenseglobal CEO Hitesh Ruparelia is extremely excited about the launch, particularly around seeing how fast the company has evolved to offer more advanced technical solutions. It's clear that artificial intelligence and machine learning are the future, he stated, and that this new division is unlocking a new way forward for technology that will transform the way businesses operate.

Machine learning offers an immense amount of potential across industries such as finance, healthcare, manufacturing and many more, and there is clear potential to create real change across sectors, he said. According to Hitesh Ruparelia, as businesses begin to see the possibilities and opportunities that artificial intelligence creates, demand will continue to grow for solutions that go beyond the surface and seek to pinpoint areas of improvement. Moreover, he added, it has become abundantly clear that there is need for expert companies that can help companies solve complex challenges and deliver high-quality solutions.

He also added that the company has more plans in the future to expand and meet the increased demand Infosenseglobal is seeing. With this division, Infosenseglobal is harnessing the technology of the future to create solutions that are laser-focused when it comes to what is needed to create impact and deliver true value to businesses and their clients. According to him, this new division is the first step towards creating larger service offerings for artificial intelligence solutions and will be valuable services for small and medium businesses alongside large enterprise organizations.

Infosenseglobal's artificial intelligence and machine learning division will be catered to businesses across sizes and industries through a collaborative approach with clients to identify issues and create artificial intelligence solutions accordingly. The division has developed pathways for quick deployment and custom build that can fit a variety of timelines and budgets.

This collaborative approach will also include innovative ways of working, such as sprints to craft custom AI solutions for clients. This will include workshops, prototyping, and deployment to deliver value and create novel solutions in a short timeframe for maximum impact. To accomplish this, Infosenseglobal plans to incorporate agile working methods into working sessions, ensuring quick and timely solution delivery to clients.

Established in 2006, Infosenseglobal has headquarters in both the U.S. and India and offers leading technical business solutions. Backed by deep expertise and experience, Infosenseglobal specializes in creating and delivering bespoke artificial intelligence and machine learning applications for some of the world's leading businesses.

Contact Information

Infosenseglobal, Inc

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DALLAS - Feb. 18, 2021 - Inhalation of depleted uranium from exploding munitions did not lead to Gulf War illness (GWI) in veterans deployed in the 1991 Persian Gulf War, a new study co-authored by a leading researcher of the disease at UT Southwestern suggests. The findings, published today in Scientific Reports, help eliminate a long-suspected cause of GWI that has attracted international concern for three decades.

Using high-precision multicollector mass spectrometry for the first time in such a study, Robert Haley, M.D., director of the division of epidemiology at UTSW, and Randall Parrish, Ph.D., professor of isotope geology at the University of Portsmouth in England, collaborated to examine a representative sampling of veterans' urine maintained by UT Southwestern's Gulf War Illness Research program. Their report found no differences in secretion of uranium isotopic ratios from those meeting the standard-case definitions of GWI and control veterans without GWI.

"Randy Parrish is a world expert in measuring uranium isotopes, and he had already been consulting in the U.K. for their Gulf War illness studies," says Haley, a professor of internal medicine who has been investigating GWI for 27 years and holds the U.S. Armed Forces Veterans Distinguished Chair for Medical Research, Honoring Robert Haley, M.D., and America's Gulf War Veterans.

"That depleted uranium is not and never was in the bodies of those who are ill at sufficient quantities to cause disease will surprise many, including sufferers who have, for 30 years, suspected depleted uranium may have contributed to their illness," says Parrish.

Affecting about 25 percent of the approximately 700,000 U.S. and coalition military personnel deployed in the Persian Gulf War's theater of operations, GWI is a chronic illness with symptoms that may include fatigue, fever, night sweats, memory and concentration problems, diarrhea, sexual dysfunction, and chronic body pain. The symptoms are comparable with autonomic nervous system abnormalities and dysfunction of the brain's cholinergic system, which is associated with cognitive functions such as memory, selective attention, and emotional processing.

Since 1998, the National Academy of Medicine has released numerous Department of Veterans Affairs-supported reports on possible causes of GWI. As Gulf War veterans were exposed to hazards not experienced in previous conflicts, the extensive list of suspected culprits through the years has included the physical and psychological stresses of war, pesticide or nerve gas exposure, depleted uranium (DU) munition exposures, pyridostigmine bromide pills taken by troops to protect against nerve agents, vaccinations for in-theater infections and toxins, and exposure to downwind oil and smoke that spewed for months from hundreds of burning oil wells.

The U.S. military has used depleted uranium since the 1990s for tank armor and some munitions due to its high density that allows for it to penetrate enemy armored vehicles. DU is produced when higher-energy uranium isotopes are removed from natural uranium found in the earth's crust to produce "enriched" uranium suitable for use in nuclear reactors. The uranium remaining is depleted of about 40 percent of its radioactivity but retains the same chemical toxicity as natural uranium.

When a DU projectile penetrates a vehicle, the intense explosion releases tiny particles of DU that can be inhaled or swallowed as well as larger DU shrapnel fragments that can become embedded in muscle and soft tissue. Subsequent adverse effects are believed to result from heavy metal toxicity and alpha particle radiation from DU concentrated in the lungs, kidneys, and bone of those affected.

During the Gulf War, about 300 tons of DU munitions were fired at targets in Kuwait and southern Iraq, resulting in some friendly-fire incidents as well as secondary aerosol exposures. The Department of Veterans Affairs currently reports that some veterans of the Gulf War, Bosnia, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn may have been exposed to DU when they were in or around vehicles hit with friendly fire; near burning vehicles; close to fires involving DU munitions; or around damaged vehicles being salvaged.

Haley and Parrish undertook the study after realizing that the role of DU in GWI had never been adequately tested. Using methods developed by the British Royal Society, they calculated the level of DU to be found in urine over time after varying illness-causing levels of exposure. They found that the less sensitive sector-field mass spectrometry used to measure DU in urine in previous studies, while adequate for detecting DU in the few veterans with large fragments of retained shrapnel, would not detect the smaller amounts expected from far more common inhalation exposure or oral ingestion. The type of multicollector mass spectrometer operated by Parrish, which gave results at least 10 times more sensitive and robust than the measurements employed in previous GWI studies, could detect the lower levels expected.

In their study Parrish tested for the lower levels of DU in 154 urine samples, including 106 taken from veterans with GWI meeting standard-case definitions and the rest comprising two control groups representing Gulf War veterans without GWI symptoms and veterans who were not deployed. The subjects, drawn from a nationally representative sample of Gulf War-era veterans, were studied in a hospital research unit where urine was collected for 24 hours in special collection bottles prewashed with nitric acid to remove any trace of natural uranium that could interfere with the DU assay.

In all samples, the scientific partners found no DU present - not in any of those with the illness, not in the control group deployed in theater, nor in those who weren't on the battlefield, not even in the sample from a U.S. Army officer who survived a friendly-fire incident that destroyed his Bradley Fighting Vehicle, causing him to inhale the resulting hot DU-containing gases and peppering him with shrapnel that was removed months later. Given the high sensitivity of the DU assay, the representativeness of the veterans in the study and their typical patterns of GWI, the study would have found DU at the expected levels in the GWI veterans but not in the controls, if DU was the cause of GWI. Finding none for the first time strongly rejects the link.

"These findings essentially rule out a role for DU in causing GWI," Haley says. "They also have implications for the international debate over whether DU has since been causing illness in other war theaters where DU munitions were used, since the concern for those situations was originally raised by speculation that depleted uranium caused GWI."

Parrish adds, "This question of the link between depleted uranium and the illness has bubbled along now for nearly 30 years, but we would argue it's time to look elsewhere. Disproving the suspected connection between this radioactive substance and GWI allows the medical community to focus more clearly on what the likely cause(s) actually are."

The investigators believe the most likely remaining causes for GWI are widespread low-level exposure to sarin nerve gas caused by the destruction of Iraqi chemical weapons storage facilities in January 1991, possibly compounded by the use of anti-nerve agent medications and the use of pesticides to prevent insect-borne diseases in coalition forces.

###

The authors declare no competing interests. The original recruitment of GWI subjects and controls by Haley's team was completed under U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command grant DAMD17-01-1-0741. The epidemiologic and clinical data and urine samples analyzed for this study were collected under Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity contract VA549-P-0027 and the National Institutes of Health's National Center for Research Resources (Grant UL1RR024982-05), while the Perot Foundation in Dallas supported in part the writing of the manuscript. Parrish received departmental support and funding from the University of Portsmouth's School of Earth and Environmental Sciences. About UT Southwestern Medical Center

UT Southwestern, one of the premier academic medical centers in the nation, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institution's faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 23 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 13 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The full-time faculty of more than 2,500 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in about 80 specialties to more than 105,000 hospitalized patients, nearly 370,000 emergency room cases, and oversee approximately 3 million outpatient visits a year.
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.

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TROY, MI -- A Missouri man has been charged in the death of a Flint man who was found dead outside of a Belle Tire store earlier this week. Jerome Perry-Bey, 41, of St. Louis was arraigned on open murder charges Thursday for allegedly stabbing 38-year old Carlos Contreras to death.

Perry-Bey was identified as a suspect by police who traveled to Flint to apprehend him. According to the Troy Police Department, officers interviewed Perry-Bey in Flint after making contact with him. During that interview, police say Perry-Bey confessed to the crime and described what happened.

Perry-Bey allegedly told police that he and Contreras were traveling together Sunday evening from the Pontiac area to Detroit. The two began arguing during the trip and pulled over in the parking lot of the Belle Tire store. Perry-Bey said a fight broke out between the two men and he eventually pulled a knife from his pocket and stabbed Contreras in the chest.

After the fight, Perry-Bey then got into the vehicle and drove away, leaving Contreras in the parking lot. Contreras was found laying near the front entrance to the store the next day, covered in snow.

Police also say Perry-Bey may have been in Michigan because he was wanted on a weapons charge in Missouri and may have been hiding out in Michigan.

Perry-Bey was denied bond during his court appearance Thursday and he remains in custody at the Oakland County Jail.

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Son charged with two counts of open murder in death of Portage couple

Missing Flint-area man found dead, suspects in custody
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Delhi Police and the Railway Protection Force on Thursday intensified vigil on railway platforms and tracks in view of the four-hour nationwide rail blockade by protesting farmers.

The vigil was intensified at New Delhi railway station, Old Delhi railway station, Anand Vihar, Nizamuddin, Sarai Rohilla, Delhi cantonment railway station and others. Policemen were keeping an eye on the possible gatherings at the railway stations and railway tracks in the capital.

"We have identified some hotspots near the bordering areas like the Haryana and Uttar Pradesh border. Vigil has been intensified and monitoring of railway tracks along with the platforms is being done," said Harendra Singh, DCP Railways.

The Delhi Police are also coordinating with the RPF (Railway Protection Force) to gather inputs about the protesters if they try to come to the tracks.

"We are also in touch with our counterparts in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to gather inputs on any development or build up if any, regarding the protest," the officer added.

The SHO's of various railway stations have been asked to personally monitor all developments and the security deployment around the tracks with a special focus on tracks near bordering areas.

Station House In-charge (SHO) New Delhi railway station Satish Kumar said the staff has taken all precautionary measures and the police staff was also monitoring the railway track stretches at various crucial junctions as a precautionary measure.

Farm unions have called for a four-hour 'rail roko' demonstration across the country on Thursday as they continue to agitate against three agricultural laws enacted by the Centre in September last year. The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), the umbrella body of 40 farm unions, has called for a peaceful protest between 12 p.m. and 4 p.m.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Here's what you need to know: Thursday, Feb. 18
The latest developments on the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada (all times eastern):

The latest developments on the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada (all times eastern):

6:45 p.m.

There have been 617 new cases of COVID-19 in British Columbia and four additional deaths related to the virus.

The province says 180,691 doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been administered so far, and 29,952 of those are second doses.

B.C.'s total number of COVID-19 infections stands at 75,327, and there are 4,348 active cases.

There have been 1,321 deaths related to COVID-19 in British Columbia.

5:30 p.m.

Alberta has reported 415 new COVID-19 cases in its latest update.

Chief medical officer Dr. Deena Hinshaw says 4.2 per cent of the more than 10,000 tests done in the past day have come back positive.

Seven more people have died from the novel coronavirus in the province.

There are 362 in hospital, including 55 in intensive care.

3:40 p.m.

Prince Edward Island is reporting one new case of COVID-19 today.

Chief public health officer Dr. Heather Morrison says the case involves a man in his 20s who recently travelled outside Atlantic Canada.

She is asking anyone who travelled on Air Canada Flight AC8302 from Montreal to Charlottetown on Feb. 16 to get tested for COVID-19 if they havent already done so.

P.E.I. has two active reported cases of COVID-19.

2:55 p.m.

Transport Canada has issued fines to two passengers who knowingly boarded a flight to Canada from Mexico on Jan. 23 after having tested positive for COVID-19 a few days earlier.

The passengers have been fined $10,000 and $7,000 respectively, for presenting a false or misleading COVID-19 test and for making a false declaration about their health status.

2:45 p.m.

Saskatchewan is reporting 146 new cases of COVID-19.

The province says there have been no additional deaths linked to the virus.

There are 174 people in hospital with COVID-19, and 23 of them are in intensive care.

Premier Scott Moe is touring a mass vaccination clinic today in Regina that is to open in April.

1:40 p.m.

Nunavut is reporting six new cases of COVID-19 today.

All the new cases are in Arviat, which is the only community in Nunavut with active COVID cases.

Chief public health officer Dr. Michael Patterson encouraged Arviat residents who haven't already been vaccinated to contact their health centre to do so.

To date, 6,850 doses of the Moderna vaccine have been administered in Nunavut.

There are 27 active cases of COVID-19 in Nunavut, all in Arviat.

1:40 p.m.

Manitoba is reporting 138 additional COVID-19 cases and two deaths.

Northern areas, on a per capita basis, continue to be the hardest hit.

Provincial government data shows large case numbers in Cross Lake, Thompson and the Island Lake district.

1:10 p.m.

Health officials in New Brunswick are saying that people who are less at risk for severe complications from COVID-19 can wait longer for a second dose of vaccine.

Chief medical officer of health Dr. Jennifer Russell says the shorter, two-dose schedule will continue for the most vulnerable, but others will get their second dose within 90 days.

Officials are reporting four new cases of COVID-19 today, all in the Edmundston region in the northwest of the province, which will be moved to the lower, orange pandemic-alert level at midnight tonight.

New Brunswick says it has 111 active reported cases of COVID-19 and five patients in hospital with the disease, including one in intensive care.

12:40 p.m.

Newfoundland and Labrador health authorities are reporting 48 new confirmed cases of COVID-19.

Officials say there are also 46 presumed positive cases awaiting confirmation through further testing.

All of the 48 new cases are in the eastern health region, which includes the metro area of St. Johns, where an outbreak has been growing since last week.

Six people have recovered since yesterday and there are now 380 active reported infections across the province, with two people in hospital as a result of the disease.

12 p.m.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says Ontario is carefully considering a plea from health officials in Toronto and Peel to delay loosening pandemic restrictions in their regions.

Elliott says the province's top doctor will be looking at new data today that will inform his recommendation on what should be done for the two COVID-19 hot spots.

Toronto and Peel are among the Ontario regions that have yet to move back to the provinces colour-coded framework.

The two local medical officers have asked that the current stay-at-home order stay in place in their regions until at least March 9.

11:15 a.m.

Quebec is reporting 900 new cases of COVID-19 today and 10 more deaths linked to the virus.

Four of those deaths occurred within the past 24 hours.

Health officials say the number of hospitalizations dropped by 19, to 747, and 129 people were in intensive care, a drop of one.

The province says it administered 2,234 doses of vaccine yesterday, for a total of 302,118.

10:55 a.m.

Ontario's fiscal watchdog says the province lost more than 355,000 jobs last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Financial Accountability Officer says in a report today that the job losses represent the single largest annual decline on record.

The report says that in addition to job losses, more than 765,000 Ontario residents worked fewer hours because of the pandemic.

The FAO says young workers were the hardest hit group, as youth unemployment jumped to 22 per cent.

10:30 a.m.

The Manitoba government is now letting people who have received a COVID-19 vaccine carry proof with them.

A government website allows people to view their vaccination data and print it.

It's a temporary measure until formal vaccination cards are available, similar to ones in British Columbia.

10:15 a.m.

Ontario says there are 1,038 new cases of COVID-19 in the province and 44 more deaths linked to the virus.

Health Minister Christine Elliott says that 376 of those new cases are in Toronto, 142 are in Peel Region and 122 are in York Region.

Another 12,383 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine were administered in the province since the last update.

Ontario has now given out more than 500,000 vaccine doses to date.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
Starz has set its main cast for Power Book IV: Force, the third installment in the Power universe. Lili Simmons (Banshee, Ray Donovan), Gabrielle Ryan (The Haves and the Have Nots, Bonding), Isaac Keys (Get Shorty, The Oath), Hightown alum Shane Harper, Kris D. Lofton (Ballers, Empire), Anthony Fleming III (Prison Break, The Beast), Lucien Cambric (Chicago P.D., The Chi) and Tommy Flanagan (Sons of Anarchy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) are set as series regulars opposite Joseph Sikora in the series from Courtney Kemp and Curtis 50 Cent Jackson and Lionsgate Television.Keys plays Diamond, a gentle giant with truthful eyes and a body made of granite with defensive precision, a trait drilled into him during a 15-year sentence. Before Diamond got locked up, he was the young head of Chicagos most promising crew that was taking over the city. In his short time at the helm, he created a tactical drug running outfit respected by all of Chicagos crime families. He spent his time in prison reading the classics, educating himself on everything from history to literature to philosophy. Now that hes out, Diamond plans on taking the reins back from his crews interim leader  his younger brother.Simmons portrays Claudia Claud Flynn, the only daughter to the largest kingpin in Chicago. Astute doesnt begin to describe her  her intellect is a mixture of Ivy League lecture halls and Chicago street-smarts. She is as brilliant as a politician and as blunt as a pipe wrench to the face. Claud doesnt need the green light or permission to set things in motion, she is the fire starter and the one person nobody in Chicago should ever count out. In a male-dominated business, Claud is determined to carve out her own path and one that might save her family in the end.Ryan is Gloria, a razor-sharp and stunning former Marine carving her own path in Chicago. Shes passionate, fiery and beholden to no man. Out of the small kitchen in the back of her bar, she pumps out Michelin-level, Jamaican inspired dishes. Her clientele is a revolving door of Irish mobsters looking to move in on her real estate. This doesnt stop Glorias hustle and dream of one day owning her own restaurant and being free from under the watchful eye of the crime family that shes entangled with. A chance encounter with Tommy quickly causes a seismic shift in the lives of those around her that only she can unravel.Harper plays Vic Flynn, the heir apparent to Chicagos largest crime family  a prince who leads with his heart as much as his fists. Vic resents the fact that his father has mapped out his entire life for him  both in business and in love. Vic can roll with Chicagos wealthiest socialites just as easily as he can get down with Chicagos heaviest dealers. Realizing his father has taken a shine to Tommy, Vic will fight to regain control of his rightful position at any and all costs. Looking to move his familys business forward and bury old beefs, Vics allegiance to his family is put to the test and where he comes out on it will impact the entire city of Chicagos POWER structure.Lofton portrays Jenard Sampson. Not a traditional student, but a shining star who was gifted from birth, Jenard was accepted to Brown University within days of his older brother Diamond being sentenced to 15 years. Jenard parked his ambitions of academia and took the reins of one of Chicagos largest crews. Buffeted by the benefits of Diamond being his brother and keeper, he took power of the organization with an unbridled ability of a CEO along with the wild energy to end anybody that crosses him.Flemming III plays JP Gibbs, a gifted jazz musician who toured several continents, developing a rich worldliness that comes through in his swagger and collage of diverse tattoos. JP owns and operates a blues club with his ailing father that has been the target of several attacks by local gang members. As rich as JPs life is, he still carries the pain of never having had a mother in his life and having a son he has no relationship with. JPs world is thrown off its axis when he crosses paths with Tommy.Cambric is Darnell D-Mac McDowell, a young man who has been raised by the streets of Chicagos Southside. Independent, fiercely loyal and completely unflinching when called upon to represent his crew, D-Mac is still a kid at heart looking for someone to take care of him. After a run in with Tommy proves to be more than a fluke, D-Mac looks to Tommy as he hits a crossroads in his life that can completely upend his future.Flanagan is Walter Flynn, the head of the Irish crime family in Chicago. Despite living a life of immense prosperity in his castle on the lake, he longs for the way things used to be. Walter believes that without community and family, there is no tradition, and his deeply held code of honor bleeds into every aspect of his life. As he ushered his family into the twenty-first century, Walter quickly saw the criminal organization he built facing threats he never accounted for.Power Book IV: Force centers around Tommy Egan, played by Joseph Sikora, after he cuts ties and puts New York in his rearview mirror for good.
Just like in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, the answer was 42

The temporary breakdown of Earth's magnetic field 42,000 years ago sparked major climate shifts that led to global environmental change and mass extinctions, a new international study co-led by UNSW Sydney and the South Australian Museum shows.

This dramatic turning point in Earth's history - laced with electrical storms, widespread auroras, and cosmic radiation - was triggered by the reversal of Earth's magnetic poles and changing solar winds.

The researchers dubbed this danger period the 'Adams Transitional Geomagnetic Event', or 'Adams Event' for short - a tribute to science fiction writer Douglas Adams, who wrote in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy that '42' was the answer to life, the universe, and everything.

The findings are published today in Science.

"For the first time ever, we have been able to precisely date the timing and environmental impacts of the last magnetic pole switch," says Chris Turney, a professor at UNSW Science and co-lead author of the study.

"The findings were made possible with ancient New Zealand kauri trees, which have been preserved in sediments for over 40,000 years.

"Using the ancient trees we could measure, and date, the spike in atmospheric radiocarbon levels caused by the collapse of Earth's magnetic field."

While scientists already knew the magnetic poles temporarily flipped around 41-42,000 years ago (known as the 'Laschamps Excursion'), they didn't know exactly how it impacted life on Earth - if at all.

But the researchers were able to create a detailed timescale of how Earth's atmosphere changed over this time by analysing rings on the ancient kauri trees.

"The kauri trees are like the Rosetta Stone, helping us tie together records of environmental change in caves, ice cores and peat bogs around the world," says co-lead Professor Alan Cooper, Honorary Researcher at the South Australian Museum.

The researchers compared the newly-created timescale with records from sites across the Pacific and used it in global climate modelling, finding that the growth of ice sheets and glaciers over North America and large shifts in major wind belts and tropical storm systems could be traced back to the Adams Event.

One of their first clues was that megafauna across mainland Australia and Tasmania went through simultaneous extinctions 42,000 years ago.

"This had never seemed right, because it was long after Aboriginal people arrived, but around the same time that the Australian environment shifted to the current arid state," says Prof. Cooper.

The paper suggests that the Adams Event could explain a lot of other evolutionary mysteries, like the extinction of Neandertals and the sudden widespread appearance of figurative art in caves around the world.

"It's the most surprising and important discovery I've ever been involved in," says Prof. Cooper.

The perfect (cosmic) storm

The magnetic north pole - that is, the direction a compass needle points to - doesn't have a fixed location. It usually wobbles close to the North Pole (the northern-most point of Earth's axis) over time due to dynamic movements within the Earth's core, just like the magnetic south pole.

Sometimes, for reasons that aren't clear, the magnetic poles' movements can be more drastic. Around 41,000-42,000 years ago they swapped places entirely.

"The Laschamps Excursion was the last time the magnetic poles flipped," says Prof. Turney. "They swapped places for about 800 years before changing their minds and swapping back again."

Until now, scientific research has focused on changes that happened while the magnetic poles were reversed, when the magnetic field was weakened to about 28 per cent of its present-day strength.

But according to the team's findings, the most dramatic part was the lead-up to the reversal, when the poles were migrating across the Earth.

"Earth's magnetic field dropped to only 0-6 per cent strength during the Adams Event," says Prof. Turney.

"We essentially had no magnetic field at all - our cosmic radiation shield was totally gone."

During the magnetic field breakdown, the Sun experienced several 'Grand Solar Minima' (GSM), long-term periods of quiet solar activity.

Even though a GSM means less activity on the Sun's surface, the weakening of its magnetic field can mean more space weather - like solar flares and galactic cosmic rays - could head Earth's way.

"Unfiltered radiation from space ripped apart air particles in Earth's atmosphere, separating electrons and emitting light - a process called ionisation," says Prof. Turney.

"The ionised air 'fried' the Ozone layer, triggering a ripple of climate change across the globe."

Into the caves

Dazzling light shows would have been frequent in the sky during the Adams Event.

Aurora borealis and aurora australis, also known as the northern and southern lights, are caused by solar winds hitting the Earth's atmosphere.

Usually confined to the polar northern and southern parts of the globe, the colourful sights would have been widespread during the breakdown of Earth's magnetic field.

"Early humans around the world would have seen amazing auroras, shimmering veils and sheets across the sky," says Prof. Cooper.

Ionised air - which is a great conductor for electricity - would have also increased the frequency of electrical storms.

"It must have seemed like the end of days," says Prof. Cooper.

The researchers theorise that the dramatic environmental changes may have caused early humans to seek more shelter. This could explain the sudden appearance of cave art around the world roughly 42,000 years ago.

"We think that the sharp increases in UV levels, particularly during solar flares, would suddenly make caves very valuable shelters," says Prof. Cooper. "The common cave art motif of red ochre handprints may signal it was being used as sunscreen, a technique still used today by some groups.

"The amazing images created in the caves during this time have been preserved, while other art out in open areas has since eroded, making it appear that art suddenly starts 42,000 years ago."

Uncovering ancient clues

These findings come two years after a particularly important ancient kauri tree was uncovered at Ngawha, Northland.

The massive tree - with a trunk spanning over two and a half metres - was alive during the Laschamps.

"Like other entombed kauri logs, the wood of the Ngawha tree is so well preserved that the bark is still attached," says UNSW's Dr Jonathan Palmer, a specialist in dating tree-rings (dendrochronology). Dr Palmer studied cross sections of the trees at UNSW Science's Chronos 14Carbon-Cycle Facility.

Using radiocarbon dating - a technique to date ancient relics or events - the team tracked the changes in radiocarbon levels during the magnetic pole reversal. This data was charted alongside the trees' annual growth rings, which acts as an accurate, natural timestamp.

The new timescale helped reveal the picture of this dramatic period in Earth's history. The team were able to reconstruct the chain of environmental and extinction events using climate modelling.

"The more we looked at the data, the more everything pointed to 42," says Prof. Turney. "It was uncanny.

"Douglas Adams was clearly on to something, after all."

An accelerant like no other

While the magnetic poles often wander, some scientists are concerned about the current rapid movement of the north magnetic pole across the Northern Hemisphere.

"This speed - alongside the weakening of Earth's magnetic field by around nine per cent in the past 170 years - could indicate an upcoming reversal," says Prof. Cooper.

"If a similar event happened today, the consequences would be huge for modern society. Incoming cosmic radiation would destroy our electric power grids and satellite networks."

Prof. Turney says the human-induced climate crisis is catastrophic enough without throwing major solar changes or a pole reversal in the mix.

"Our atmosphere is already filled with carbon at levels never seen by humanity before," he says. "A magnetic pole reversal or extreme change in Sun activity would be unprecedented climate change accelerants.

"We urgently need to get carbon emissions down before such a random event happens again."

###

This work was made possible by funding from an Australian Research Council Discovery Project Grant, support from Ngapuhi iwi and Top Energy, the University of Waikato Radiocarbon Laboratory, and many other national and international partners.
Gov. John Bel Edwards is requesting a presidential emergency declaration as Louisiana continues to experience severe winter weather.

Edwards submitted his request to President Joe Biden Wednesday evening. He sought direct federal assistance, specifically in response to extended power outages and also Emergency Protective measures under the FEMA Public Assistance program.

+2 As Entergy, DEMCO work to restore power to thousands in Baton Rouge, ice poses unfamiliar challenge Tens of thousands of people in the Baton Rouge area remained without power Wednesday as winter weather continued to move through the region.

Extreme winter weather, including record low temperatures, snow, sleet and freezing rain, has been destructive for many areas of Louisiana, most notably through continued power and water outages across the state," Edwards said in a statement. "This emergency declaration will help Louisiana better respond to this crisis and protect the health and safety of our people.

Edwards spoke with Biden on Tuesday about the devastating impact the weather has had on the state, including causing at least three deaths and leaving thousands without power for several days.

On Wednesday, 62,000 Louisiana households still did not have power, according to a statement from the governor's office. Thirty-six water outages throughout and 178 boil water advisories have also affected residents.

Louisiana deep freeze sends Baton Rouge to lowest Feb. 16 temperature in 112 years; see latest As Fat Tuesday rolled in, so did plunging temperatures across Louisiana and Mississippi that broke records spanning back more than a century.

I am confident that working with our federal and local partners we can overcome these challenges, which are felt particularly hard in communities still recovering from hurricanes since last year, Edwards said.
Police have released this composite digital image of a man they wish to speak to in relation to the alleged sexual assault. Credit:Victoria Police

A man who allegedly sexually assaulted a 14-year-old girl while she was swimming at Brighton pier is being sought by police.

The teenager was swimming with friends at the Middle Brighton Pier on January 13 when the alleged incident occurred about 4.40pm.

Police say the girl was swimming back to a ladder on the pier when the man grabbed her while she was in the water and sexually assaulted her.

He was last seen swimming away from the area.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : : Amid the sustained concern of safety of the Covid vaccines which has maintained hesitancy for the vaccination so far, All India Government Nurses Federation (AIGNF) has appealed to the nurses to come forward and take the jab.

The association has urged the nurses to understand the crucial role they play in the fight against pandemic viz a viz need for the vaccination.

"We care about your health as you are on the front lines and risk being exposed to COVID-19 and many other infections each day at the workplace. At this current time, getting a COVID-19 vaccine is an important step to prevent getting illness with COVID-19 disease. Healthcare personnel like you are among the first to receive the vaccine because of your role is essential in fighting this pandemic," it said.

The AIGNF, which has a pan-India network of nurses working in government healthcare settings, asked them to view the vaccination as an opportunity of serving as a role model for the community.

"This is also an opportunity for you to serve as a role model in our community. By getting vaccinated first, you can positively influence vaccination decisions of co-workers, residents, friends, and family," the association said.

Vouching for the safety of the vaccines approved in India for immunization against Covid-19, the federation also stated that the safety of the Covid vaccines meet the standards of other vaccines. A "We understand you may have questions about theCovid-19 vaccines. However, they are being held to the same safety standards as all other vaccines. Your turnout will not only support the credibility of the vaccines amid various concerns about their safety and efficacy, but will also urge a greater number of people to come forward for immunization, which is crucial to achieve herd immunity," it appealed.

The federation also said that by getting vaccinated, we will also acknowledge the hard work of our scientists who gave the safe and effective vaccine to our country and the world.
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Amid Covid-19 surge in the state, Mumbai's civic body Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) tightened Covid-related guidelines in the city.

According to the latest revised release, BMC stated that people in home quarantine to be stamped on the back of the hands. It also said that it will appoint 300 marshals to monitor those travelling without masks in trains. Besides, additional marshals will be hired to keep an eye on violators in Mumbai.

The civil body also issued an order that if 5 or more Covid patients are found in a building, it will be sealed.

Wedding halls, clubs, and restaurants etc will be raided to check if they are floating rules.

Now, people returning from Brazil will also have to undergo mandatory institutional quarantine. Tests will be increased in areas where more patients are found, BMC commissioner IS Chahal said.

However, BMC chief clarified that these restrictions were not new at all. "We have made the existing SOPs stringent," he said.

Of late, Maharashtra has been witnessing a steady rise in COVID-19 cases.

The state reported 4,787 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the highest one-day count in more than two months.

Further, Mumbai on Wednesday recorded 721 fresh COVID-19 cases, the highest single-day spike since January 7.

With this, the city's COVID-19 tally mounted to 3,15,751. The death toll in the city climbed to 11,426 with three new fatalities.

For the last two days, the daily cases had remained below the 500-mark. More than 500 fresh cases were recorded for five straight days since February 10.

Mumbai had recorded 461 new cases on Monday and 493 on Tuesday.

In view of the recent spurt in cases, Chief Minister Thackeray on Tuesday warned that if COVID-19 norms are not followed, people should be prepared for a fresh round of strict lockdown.

The government last month extended the coronavirus- induced lockdown in the state till February 28, even as a lot of restrictions have been eased in the last few months.

The government's guidelines to operationalise 'Mission Begin Again' for easing of restrictions and phase-wise opening will remain in force till February 28, it had said.

Earlier in the day, a weekend lockdown was announced in Amravati district of the same Vidarbha region from 8 pm on Saturday to 7 am on Monday.

Along with that, concerned by growing number of coronavirus cases, the administration in eastern Maharashtra's Yavatmal district ordered a ten-day lockdown from Thursday night.

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Rush Limbaugh relying on 'relationship with God' amid lung cancer diagnosis

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Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh shared how his deeply personal relationship with God has sustained him as he battles advanced lung cancer.

On Monday, Limbaugh, 69, told his 20 million listeners he has been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer. The talk show host said he plans to take a brief sabbatical for further medical tests and to determine treatment, but hopes to return soon, Fox News reports.

"This day has been one of the most difficult days in recent memory, for me, because I've known this moment was coming," Limbaugh said. "I'm sure that you all know by now that I really don't like talking about myself and I don't like making things about me.  One thing that I know, that has happened over the 31-plus years of this program, is that there has been an incredible bond that has developed between all of you and me."

Limbaugh, who began his nationally syndicated radio show about 30 years ago, told his listeners that his job has provided him with the "greatest satisfaction and happiness" of his life.

"So I have to tell you something today that I wish I didn't have to tell you. It's a struggle for me because I had to inform my staff earlier today," he said. "I can't help but feel that I'm letting everybody down. The upshot is that I have been diagnosed with advanced lung cancer."

Limbaugh revealed he's been experiencing shortness of breath that he initially thought might be heart-related but turned out to be a pulmonary malignancy. He credited his faith for sustaining his health amid his cancer battle.

"I told the staff today that I have a deeply personal relationship with God that I do not proselytize about, but I do, and I have been working that relationship tremendously," Limbaugh said. "I am, at the moment, experiencing zero symptoms."

Limbaugh said he plans to undergo further testing and will "push ahead and keep everything as normal" as he can.

"I felt that I had to tell you because that's the kind of relationship that I feel like I have with those of you in this audience," he said. "Over the years, a lot of people have been very nice, telling me how much this program has meant to them, but whatever that is, it pales in comparison to what you all have meant to me."

"I hope I will be talking about this as little as necessary in the coming days, but we've got a great bunch of doctors, a great team assembled, we're at full speed ahead on this," Limbaugh said. "It's just now a matter of implementing what we are going to be told later this week."

His longtime producer, Bo Snerdley, also confirmed the news on Twitter.

Those of you who are listening to the Rush Limbaugh show now. Pray with us. Thank you. God Bless you Rush Limbaugh. Love you so much Rush, he wrote.

Those of you who are listening to the Rush Limbaugh show now. Pray with us. Thank you. God Bless you Rush Limbaugh. Love you so much Rush.  Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) February 3, 2020

On social media, Limbaugh's announcement, made just ahead of World Cancer Day, was met with prayers and well-wishes from a number of supporters.

Conservative author and Fox News opinion host Laura Ingraham tweeted, We are praying the rosary this week for Rush Limbaugh. May he find treatment that brings healing. Prayer warriors coast-to-coast are hard at work.

We are praying the rosary this week for Rush Limbaugh. May he find treatment that brings healing. Prayer warriors coast-to-coast are hard at work.  Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) February 4, 2020

Rudy Giuliani tweeted, Rush Limbaugh was the innovator who spoke for the Americans ignored and disrespected by the elites. Hes done it with powerful rational argument and a truly great sense of humor. Hes been a friend for almost 30 years and all of us are praying for him. America needs Rush.

Rush Limbaugh was the innovator who spoke for the Americans ignored and disrespected by the elites.

Hes done it with powerful rational argument and a truly great sense of humor.

Hes been a friend for almost 30 years and all of us are praying for him.

America needs Rush.  Rudy Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani) February 4, 2020

Musician Charlie Daniels tweeted, God Speed Rush Limbaugh, my prayers and sincere wishes for a complete and speedy recovery. For thirty years you have stuck to your guns, youve set the bar high and brought us the other side of the story and may your voice grace the airwaves for many years to come.

God Speed Rush Limbaugh, my prayers and sincere wishes for a complete and speedy recovery.

For thirty years you have stuck to your guns, youve set the bar high and brought us the other side of the story and may your voice grace the airwaves for many years to come.  Charlie Daniels (@CharlieDaniels) February 4, 2020

Christian financial expert Dave Ramsey tweeted, Our prayers this morning for my friend Rush Limbaugh. The Elvis of Talk Radio, an iconic career. You got this sir. Beat Cancer.

Our prayers this morning for my friend Rush Limbaugh. The Elvis of Talk Radio, an iconic career. You got this sir. Beat Cancer.  Dave Ramsey (@DaveRamsey) February 4, 2020

Mitt Romney tweeted: Rush Limbaugh is a fighter. In this battle with lung cancer, he will face this fight with the same tenacity in which he has delivered his show for the past three decades. Keeping Rush and his family in my prayers.
A 32-year-old man was left wondering why he had been offered a Covid vaccine earlier than expected after a fault in the NHS system incorrectly listed him as being just 6.2cm tall.

Liam Thorp, who has no underlying health conditions, is in fact six foot two and weighs around 17.5st, but the error meant NHS staff thought he had a BMI of 28,000.

The health service classes a BMI of between 30 and 39.9 as obese.

Mr Thorp, who lives in Liverpool, was told he qualified for the jab after being placed in vaccine priority group six because of his weight.

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, he said: Ive put on a few pounds in lockdown but I was surprised to have made it to clinically, morbidly-obese.

It really made me rethink what I was going to do for pancake night.

Dr Fiona Lemmens, of the NHS Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group, admitted after the incident she could see the funny side but also recognised it was an important issue for us to address.

There are millions of GP appointments taking place every day and while we take care to make sure records are accurate, occasional data errors do occur, she said.

After Mr Thorp was told on Tuesday that he would receive the jab much sooner than he had anticipated, he called his local GP to double check.

It was only when he received a phone call from the surgery the following day that the mix-up became clear.

Mr Thorp, who is political editor at the Liverpool Echo, described the bizarre phone call in a detailed article for the newspaper.

A nervous sounding chap said unfortunately my details had been put into the system incorrectly when I had registered with the GP just a year ago, he said.

To be honest I was quite relieved as had felt strange about being invited ahead of so many other more vulnerable people.

The man from the surgery went on to explain that rather than six foot two, Mr Thorps height had been recorded as 6.2cm which, combined with his actual height, had given him a BMI of 28,000.

If I had been less stunned, I would have asked why no one was more concerned that a man of these remarkable dimensions was slithering around south Liverpool, the journalist joked.

Both Mr Thorp and Dr Lemmens have now urged others who believe there has been a mistake in their vaccine call-up to check with their GP.

Id much rather somebody else who needs it earlier than me got that appointment, he told the BBC. I was completely cool with it. Mistakes are going to happen in such an enormous undertaking.

Meanwhile, Dr Lemmens said the NHS was grateful to Liam for his honesty and implored others to do the same.

We would encourage anyone who has received a text invitation that they think they are not eligible for at this stage, to contact their GP practice to clarify. This will help ensure that more vulnerable people get vaccinated first, she added.
Revenue and pre-tax profits at one of our biggest hotel groups held firm in the year up to Covid-19, its accounts show. (stock photo)

Revenue and pre-tax profits at one of our biggest hotel groups held firm in the year up to Covid-19, its accounts show.

For the year to the end of April 2020, Andras House - led by Rajesh Rana - reported revenue of 24.5m, down from 26m. Pre-tax profits were 4.3m, down from 5.1m. Workforce numbers were also steady at 349.

But a strategic report filed with the accounts said the pandemic and lockdowns were having an impact.

The company owns six hotels in Belfast, including the Crowne Plaza at Shaw's Bridge, two Ibis hotels in Queen's Quarter and in the city centre, and the Hampton by Hilton.

The hotels are almost all shut following the lockdown which began in late December. They were also closed between March and July last year, and from October.

However, the hotels had performed strongly after the July reopening, which the report said had a positive impact on cash flow. It added: "Whilst the directors are content that the business is in a strong financial position, they recognise that an extension to the current restrictions, or additional periods of restriction in the future, cannot be ruled out."

They said the future impact of such risks had been built into the company's planning for the future.

The company had also been able to secure additional funding and restructure some of its bank debt, and was still being supported by its banks. It had also availed of government support schemes.

And overall, the report said the company "is in a strong financial position to withstand future challenges in this context", while commenting that the roll-out of vaccines was a positive development.

Andras House also owns Grade A offices and restaurants.

During the year the company had carried out improvements to some of the hotels, including a 5m project to add 33 guest rooms to the Crowne Plaza and refurbish existing rooms.

The company also has seven development projects, with planning permission obtained for new hotels in Belfast and Londonderry, and an office development in Belfast.

The company said: "Timelines for development of these projects will be dictated by prevailing market conditions, taking account of the recovery post-Covid nationally and within the local hospitality and office market."
The International Review of Law and Economics recently posted online an abstract of a paper by Mark Ramseyer titled "Contracting for Sex in the Pacific War." The gist is much the same as the Japanese government's own claims, namely that the Imperial Army did not force women into sexual slavery in World War II but they volunteered to become prostitutes.

A professor at Harvard University Law School has stirred up a hornet's nest by describing women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese Imperial Army as "sex workers."

Ramseyer's paper considers the problem from a purely economic perspective and claims that Korean women who were drafted into military brothels were given "a large advance with one- or two-year maximum terms with an ability for the women to leave early if they generated sufficient revenue."

Ramseyer is not a historian but teaches Japanese law and corporate law. But he lived in Japan until he was 18, is fluent in Japanese and majored in Japanese history at a U.S. university.

Another suggestion of bias is that he holds the title of Mitsubishi professor of Japanese Legal Studies, meaning he is paid out of an endowment from the Japanese company, which used Korean slave labor in World War II.

In an op-ed in a Japanese newspaper in January last year, Ramseyer also dismissed evidence that women were forced into sexual slavery during the war as "fabrications."

Wading into another controversy, he also downplayed the 1923 massacre of Koreans in Japan after the Kanto earthquake and suggested that Koreans provoked the mob violence with widespread crimes.

Fellow U.S. academics were scathing. Alexis Dudden, a historian at the University of Connecticut and expert on modern Korean and Japanese history, said, "There has been so much scholarship produced in the 30 years since the first survivor came forward, and it's almost as if Professor Ramseyer's decision is to just ignore all of the debate -- as if he's the first person to come into this -- and give a withering condemnation of all opinions different from his as lies."

And Harvard historian Carter Eckert described Ramseyer's paper as "woefully deficient, empirically, historically, and morally."

Korean-American groups are up in arms. Several of them held a press conference on Wednesday and accused Ramseyer of violating Harvard's mission of civic education and demanded his resignation.

The Korean Association of Harvard Law School "strongly condemn[ed] the deliberate erasure of human rights violations and war crimes" and called for the paper to be withdrawn, backed by 800 other Korean students of law at U.S. universities.

Rep. Young Kim on Thursday tweeted Ramseyer's claims are "untrue, misleading and disgusting."

But others are wary of so-called "cancel culture" and have defended Ramseyer's right to be wrong. Harvard University President Lawrence Bacow, responding to demands for a retraction, said Ramseyer's paper is an expression of "academic freedom."
Senate Intelligence Leader Seeks Answers From Probe of Florida Water Supply Hack

A top senator on Wednesday asked for details about the probe into the hacking of a Florida water plant.

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, asked officials at the FBI and the Environmental Protection Agency for information on the breach, which sought to alter water chemical levels in the Florida town of Oldsmar to a poisonous extent.

Warner wants to be informed of the progress of the FBIs probe into the incident and that the Environmental Protection Agency review whether the facility that was hacked in is compliance with the most recent Water and Wastewater Sector-Specific Plan. He also requested confirmation that the U.S. government is sharing timely threat information related to the incident with other water and wastewater facilities.

This incident has implications beyond the 15,000-person town of Oldsmar. While the Oldsmar water treatment facility incident was detected with sufficient time to mitigate serious risks to the citizens of Oldsmar, and appears to have been identified as the result of a diligent employee monitoring this facilitys operations, future compromises of this nature may not be detected in time, Warner wrote in a letter to the officials.

The federal government must ensure we are taking all precautions to keep drinking water safe for Americans. Designated as one of the 16 infrastructure sectors critical to national security under the Presidential Policy Directive 21 (PPD-21), we must protect water facilities from cyber and other compromises, he added.

Hackers remotely breached the water treatment facility in Florida on Feb. 5. They upped sodium hydroxide levels from 100 parts per million to 11,100 parts per million. Sodium hydroxide is also known as lye.

This is obviously a significant and potentially dangerous increase, Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri told reporters at a press conference.

A plant operator noticed what was happening and the situation was fixed before it could affect residents.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency at the Department of Homeland Security said in an incident summary that the hackers likely accessed the system by exploiting cybersecurity weaknesses, including poor password security, and an outdated operating system.

Early information indicates it is possible that a desktop sharing software, such as TeamViewer, may have been used to gain unauthorized access to the system, although this cannot be confirmed at present date, the agency said, adding that continuing to use any operating system beyond its end of life status could provide an entry point for cyber criminals.

Experts recommended plants install independent cyber-physical safety systems and update to the latest version of an operating system while utilizing multiple-factor authentication and using strong passwords.
Ten new remote working hubs are to be established in town centres across Northern Ireland to allow Civil Service staff the chance to work closer to home.

The e-hubs, which provide similar facilities to main offices but closer to workers' homes, are seen as a way to combine working from home with the traditional office experience, particularly for those who are based outside cities.

The plan, announced by Finance Minister Conor Murphy, will seek to utilise existing public buildings rather than embark on a new building programme.

The first Connect2 hubs are expected to open in Ballykelly and Downpatrick in the spring.

They will only become operational when appropriate in line with health advice and health protection regulations.

There are plans for additional hubs in Ballymena, Craigavon, Omagh and the Antrim/Newtownabbey area next year.

Projects in Londonderry, Enniskillen, Newry and the Bangor/Newtownards area are planned for 2023.

There will continue to be a significant Civil Service presence within Belfast city centre for the foreseeable future.

It's estimated that around one-in-three civil servants live outside greater Belfast, with officials targeting areas where the greater concentration of public workers reside.

The first two hubs will be based within the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs' (DAERA) site at Ballykelly and Rathkeltair House in Downpatrick, which is shared by a number of Stormont departments, including Infrastructure, Communities and DAERA.

The Connect2 hub in Derry will be located at Orchard House.

The Finance Minister said timelines for different hubs are based on the estimated time required to identify and equip suitable buildings in each area.

The proposal had been in the pipeline prior to the Covid-19 outbreak, but it's understood that the pandemic has resulted in Mr Murphy accelerating the 'Connect2' project.

Mr Murphy said the regional hubs will transform how civil servants work - enabling them to be based closer to home, reducing travel time and lowering carbon emissions while importantly promoting regional economic balance.

"Covid-19 has seen an unprecedented shift in how the civil service works with many public services being delivered remotely.

"We now have an opportunity to build on these new ways of working," Mr Murphy added.

"These hubs are an exciting development in how the Civil Service estate operates and present a huge opportunity to make a positive impact on local economies, the environment as well as the health and of our staff. We are working collaboratively with councils to maximise the local regeneration impact and to establish the hubs as soon as possible.

"I ask all elected representatives to support us in this work."
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In a statement on Wednesday, the ODM leader said the proposed Bill by Parliaments National Security Committee that seeks to criminalize the hustlers versus dynasties campaign slogan is unnecessary. The Bill proposes severe fines, jail time, and removal from office for any leader who propagates it.

According to the former Prime Minister, Ruto has freedom of speech and association as stipulated in the Constitution and should therefore be allowed to run his campaign without inhibitions.

Raila, however, noted that the hustler versus dynasties narrative is dangerous and scary. He likened it to Adolf Hitlers National Socialism(Nazism) which profiled German society along racial and tribal lines.

Hustler vs Dynasties is scary in its similarity to Adolf Hitlers national socialism, most often referred to as Nazism.

Nazism profiled German society on the lines of race, social classes and tribe. It had the Aryan race, which it considered the master race, and whose survival Hitler pegged on the elimination of Jews, Romanis or Gypsies, the Indo-Aryan, the Slavs and the inferior sub-humans who were seen to be the problem in Germany. These ideologies caused a great deal of trauma to Germany and the world. They ended in the Holocaust. I fear the hustlers vs dynasties narrative will have the same deadly consequences for Kenya as Nazism did for Germany, Raila stated.

Odinga urged MPs not to legislate against the narrative for the purposes of respecting Rutos freedom of speech.

However, I would strongly appeal to members of parliament to drop any attempts to legislate against this otherwise deadly slogan. As a country, we fought for, and should respect free speech and association. We should be able to allow the Deputy President and his team to continue with their chosen slogan without any inhibitions.

He further added: Those of us who see its dangers should continue educating our people against falling for it. I have faith that Kenyans will see through this divisive and potentially deadly rhetoric and its attacks on fellow Kenyans, and reject it in the end.
NEW LONDON  A 17-year-old high school football player was gunned down Wednesday night in what investigators believe was a targeted shooting.

Detectives are aggressively pursuing leads Thursday in the shooting in the area of Grand and Elm streets, police said.

[He] was a very popular young man in this city. He was athletic. He was a football player... He excelled on the football field, Mayor Michael Passero said in an afternoon press conference.

The tight-knit city was mourning the loss Thursday, Passero said.

When something like this happens to one of our families, we all suffer with them, Passero said.

New London High School Superintendent Cynthia Ritchie said the death of a high school student was an incredibly sad loss in a letter Thursday to the school community.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and to the entire school community of which this student was a beloved part, Ritchie said. This news is sure to raise many emotions, concerns, and questions, especially for our staff and students.

Police Capt. Brian Wright said the investigation was a priority for the police department.

Theres a full cadre of detectives and investigators assigned to this case, Wright said. We are working closely with the states attorney's office, as well as the board of education, in regards to this tragic incident.

Detectives have interviewed a number of people and are trying to confirm what led up to the deadly shooting, Wright said.

Thus far, detectives have been able to collect very viable information and evidence in the investigation, he added. No arrests have been made and police did not yet determine what motivated the shooting.

Passero said in the near future the city will reflect on how this high school student was killed.

In the coming days weeks and months we will all pull together we will deconstruct what happened, Passero said.

A GoFundMe was started to help with funeral costs. It had collected thousands in donations by Thursday afternoon.

Anyone with information or who might have video footage related to the incident is asked to call 860-447-1481. Anonymous tips can also be submitted by texting NLPDTip and the information to Tip411.
FLINT, MI  Since the age of five, Kevin Baba Collins has had some sort of instrument in his hands and had a hunger for learning about his culture and its history.

Ive been studying music ever since I was five or six years old in the kitchen, playing drums, playing using pots and pan and oatmeal boxes, Collins said as he reminisced.

Kuungana African Drum and Dance Company, owned by Collins, is a nearly 30-year-old business that was birthed after years of playing and learning music and connecting with African culture, one closely interwoven with rhythm and dance.

Classes from the company are offered to those ages 2-80 on the second floor of the Masonic Temple, 755 Saginaw St., in downtown Flint.

I have been studying the culture all my life, Collins said. Im a musician first of all. I have been studying music itself all my life.

He studied Afro-Cuban and West African music, but to get hands-on experience he had to leave his hometown of Flint and visit the birthplace of it all: Africa.

Related: Percussionist Kevin Collins mixes African rhythms, jazz and more for first Swingin at the Shell concert in Albion

Collins traveled to Guinea, Mali and countless times to Howard University in Washington D.C. to study with a decades-old west African dance company called Kankouran.

They have all the different master teachers and all the different styles that you want to learn whether its just to dance or the drum, Collins said.

In the late 1990s, Collins, 60, continued to immerse himself in culture and music.

Around the same time, a group of administrators from Flint Community Schools took a trip to New York City and observed a school with a curriculum that included African drum and dance.

We didnt have that here, Collin said. So we started doing what we call in-service school days. We started doing the work in the schools.

Holmes STEM Middle School Academy, Brownell STEM Academy and King Elementary, which closed in 2005, were among some of the schools that Collins could recall implemented the program into their curriculums.

Related: Hugs, tears and goodbyes punctuate last day for three closing Flint schools

When that ended, we tried to bring all of them together, Collins said.

He added that Flint schools, like many others, were stripped of their fine arts programs and that drastically changed the make-up of the curriculum. The classes were funded by grants, Collins said.

Despite the change, Collins offers classes to children to learn various instruments through his nonprofit, African Drum and Dance Parent Association, separate from his company.

We are doing those types of things now for our programs because nobodys bringing those programs back to the schools and, Flint Institute of Music and what not will get some of the students, but who knows, families cant afford that, Collins said. So were fixing a way that they can come to our program and wont cost them anything.

In addition to music, the nonprofit also offers lessons on leadership, sewing and entrepreneurship.

Collins, a Black man, said African drum and dance is a part of Black history and its a way for communication, but learning about the history of Black people is the most important part.

Its a culture, what we came from, Collins said. People are disconnected from where they came from. It brings you back your roots, your heritage, your culture, where you came from. Theres so much we dont know about our culture and we continue to learn.

Related: Arts group to honor Flints own Baba Collins

Theres also more than one style of African dance, which dates back to 5,000 to 6,000 years, Collins noted.

When you see a piece of material, that is language, he said. When you see dance, dance is language.

Over the years, Collins was given the name Baba, which means father in many African languages, by master teachers of the craft.

Its a fitting title because he makes it a point to teach the younger generation about culture and encourages that generation to teach the next.

One thing we got to do is we got to keep pushing, Collins said. The spirit lives on and people start to understand that when you look at us, it doesnt stop when somebody dies, the spirit leads on and leads to the next one. If we could just get one, teach that one and we get to another one, and that one can teach one, it gets to another one and it goes so we can teach our children their culture of what they need to know of whats missing.

Read more on MLive:

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Search database of black-owned businesses in Michigan

Looking for a way to be involved? Support one of these black-owned Michigan businesses
Like millions of his constituents across Texas, Senator Ted Cruz had a frigid home without electricity this week amid the states power crisis. But unlike most, Mr. Cruz got out, fleeing Houston and hopping a Wednesday afternoon flight to Cancun with his family for a respite at a luxury resort.

Photos of Mr. Cruz and his wife, Heidi, boarding the flight ricocheted quickly across social media and left both his political allies and rivals aghast at a tropical trip as a disaster unfolded at home. The blowback only intensified after Mr. Cruz, a Republican, released a statement saying he had flown to Mexico to be a good dad and accompany his daughters and their friends; he noted he was flying back Thursday afternoon, though he did not disclose how long he had originally intended to stay.

Text messages sent from Ms. Cruz to friends and Houston neighbors on Wednesday revealed a hastily planned trip. Their house was FREEZING, as Ms. Cruz put it  and she proposed a getaway until Sunday. Ms. Cruz invited others to join them at the Ritz-Carlton in Cancun, where they had stayed many times, noting the room price this week ($309 per night) and its good security. The text messages were provided to The New York Times and confirmed by a second person on the thread, who declined to be identified because of the private nature of the texts.

For more than 12 hours after the airport departure photos first emerged, Mr. Cruzs office declined to comment on his whereabouts. The Houston police confirmed that the senators office had sought their assistance for his airport trip on Wednesday, and eventually Mr. Cruz was spotted wheeling his suitcase in Mexico on Thursday as he returned to the state he represents in the Senate.
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip  The Palestinian militant group Hamas used the chaos of Libyas civil war to set up an arms-smuggling group that tried to funnel anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles to Gaza, The Times reported Feb. 8.

Citing documents it has received, the British daily continued that the group was given the job of diverting arms intended for Libyan battlefields through Egypt and used middlemen and Hamas militants in Turkey and Qatar to circumvent an Israeli blockade on Gaza.

The arms-smuggling group was set up by Marwan al-Ashqar, Hamas envoy to Libya who was arrested in 2017 by Libyan authorities and tried two years later on charges of smuggling and possession of weapons for a period of 10 years in prison, the newspaper reported.

According to the judicial records reviewed by The Times, Ashqar admitted receiving orders to purchase weapons for Hamas leaders during a 2011 meeting in Gaza, which was attended by the movements leaders, including Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, and that he obtained a Palestinian diplomatic passport to facilitate the mission.

In a statement to Al-Monitor, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasem denied these allegations, saying, Some parties have been spreading fabricated news in different countries, to pit the public opinion in these countries against Hamas.

He said, Hamas is active in various arenas but abides by a rule of noninterference in the domestic affairs of any country, respecting their sovereignty. Hamas also mobilizes support for the Palestinian cause, as it is a national liberation movement. Hamas has nothing to do with Ashqar and he is not Hamas' envoy to Libya.

He noted, These reports aim to justify the ongoing blockade on the Gaza Strip to the international public opinion, which is calling for the siege to be lifted.

Qasem, however, stressed the full right of Hamas, as a national liberation movement, to acquire all necessary equipment and tools to defend the Palestinian people, underlining that this right is guaranteed by international law and humanitarian norms.

The Israeli army should be the one to be banned from acquiring weapons used to commit massacres against our Palestinian people, he said, stressing the enormous ongoing efforts on the part of the Israeli army to prevent the resistance from exercising its right to obtain the necessary tools to defend its people.

But the resistance does not give in to such obstacles, Qasem said alluding to the local manufacturing of some military equipment.

On Feb. 8, Israeli media reported that helicopters fired a rocket at a boat in the sea of the Gaza Strip, said to be transporting weapons, according to Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee. The report was deleted a few minutes after being published.

This was not the first time that the British daily published a report hostile to Hamas. In January, The Times reported that Turkey has been criticizing Hamas activities, as a prelude to restoring ties between Ankara and Tel Aviv. Hamas, however, denied these claims, stressing that Ankaras relations with the Palestinian factions are good and stable and that the report aimed at undermining ties between Turkey and Hamas.

Mukhaimer Abu Saada, a professor of political science at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, told Al-Monitor, Hamas does not hesitate to jump on any opportunity to smuggle weapons into Gaza. The situation in Libya is very conducive to this.

He said, Hamas gloats about its ability to smuggle weapons into Gaza, especially from Iran.

Abu Saada stressed that Libya is in a state of security chaos with all the groups and militias fighting there, supported with weapons by several countries, such as Qatar, Turkey, Egypt and Yemen. Every country supports its allied groups with advanced weapons and anti-aircraft missiles, he added. Libya and Egypt share a long border, which does not help the latter to fully control its border."

Abu Saada pointed out that Hamas is not reluctant to develop its military capabilities, whether through manufacturing weapons locally or smuggling advanced ones from abroad.

Commenting on whether or not The Times report would affect Hamas relations with some states, he said, Libya is currently not a sovereign state. Egypt, however, must be disturbed as weapons pass through its territories, which poses a threat to national security, especially if Salafist groups in the Sinai Peninsula take over part of the smuggled arms.

Hamas does not wish to strain its relations with Egypt, especially the security understandings reached between the two in 2017, whereby the Islamic movement made promises to Cairo not to smuggle weapons via Egyptian territories, according to Abu Saada.

Since then Hamas has been keen on smuggling weapons via the sea or via Israel, and then relied on manufacturing [arms] locally and to develop its [military] capabilities, he said. The military equipment that is being smuggled by sea is mostly from Iran and Hezbollah.

Mustafa al-Sawaf, a political analyst close to Hamas, told Al-Monitor, The [Times] report aims to distort the image of Hamas and is baseless.

He noted that there is no way that weapons from Libya would enter Gaza without passing through the Egyptian desert and that the Egyptian authorities are very keen on security on the border and on preventing the smuggling of weapons.

He added that the movement has the ability to manufacture weapons locally and does not need to smuggle arms from Libya through Egypt, stressing that the report seeks to pit others against Hamas and cause ill feelings within and outside Hamas.

It is unlikely that this report would affect relations between Hamas and Libya and another country, he said, noting that all the concerned countries have the necessary information and tools to refute the information in the report.

Hamas is keen on maintaining good relations with all Arab countries, Sawaf said. The report is unfounded and we do not even know if Marwan al-Ashqar is a real name or not, he said, arguing that Hamas has every right to bring in everything it needs to the Gaza Strip in order to defend itself, protect the Palestinian territories and strengthen its defense system against the Israeli aggression.

He denied that Hamas is boosting its military capacity due to the decrease in arms smuggling to Gaza Strip and drying up its sources, stressing that Hamas seeks self-sufficiency in the manufacturing of arms.

Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 03:30:14|Editor: huaxia

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RAMALLAH, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Ishtaye said on Wednesday that Palestine, Qatar and the European Union are cooperating to resolve the chronic electricity crisis in the besieged Gaza Strip.

Ishtaye said in a statement that he met with EU Representative to Palestine Sven Kuehn von Burgsdorff on Wednesday and discussed ways to resolve Gaza's electricity problems.

He said Palestine is working with Qatar and the EU to address Gaza's electricity problems and that a meeting of all parties will soon be held to deal with this issue.

"Qatar and the EU will contribute to delivering the gas to the power station in the Gaza Strip to ensure the regular supply of electricity in the coastal enclave," he added.

On Sunday, Mohammed al-Emadi, the Qatari envoy to the Gaza Strip, said in a statement that Qatar is cooperating with the EU, the United Nations, France and Germany to supply the Gaza Strip with gas.

Al-Emadi said a gas pipeline project is dedicated to supplying the only power plant in the Gaza Strip with gas instead of fuel.

He mentioned two possible contracts for the gas pipeline project: the first is for purchasing gas between the Palestinian Authority and Israel's Delek company, while the other for extending the gas pipelines from Israel to the Gaza Strip.

"The Europeans will allocate 5 million U.S. dollars to install gas pipelines from the border with Israel to the power plant in central Gaza, while Qatar will install the pipes inside Israel," al-Emadi said.

The Gaza Strip, home of more than 2 million people, needs 500 megawatts of electricity every day, in which 120 megawatts are from Israel, 30 megawatts from Egypt, and 350 megawatts generated by its power plant. Enditem
Analysis Myanmar Military Regime Rewrites Laws to Stifle Dissent, Justify Power Grab

Police and soldiers fire rubber bullets and slingshot projectiles at anti-coup protesters in Mandalay on Feb. 15, 2021. / The Irrawaddy

Over the weekend, Myanmars military regime introduced a number of legal changes, scrapping laws that constrain security forces from detaining dissidents and breaching privacy, reinstating the notorious overnight guest registration requirement, and imposing new punishments against protesters.

The changes have been widely condemned as attempting to legalize the regimes crackdown on the opposition; despite the widely held view that the coup it staged on Feb. 1 was unconstitutional, military leaders have been at pains to say that they are protecting, and acting within, the 2008 Constitution and existing laws.

On Saturday, it suspended democratic provisions of the privacy law and reinstated mandatory overnight guest registration, a notorious provisionabolished by the Union Parliament in 2016that was used by past regimes to allow authorities to conduct warrantless midnight inspections and breaches of privacy. Its return allows security forces to hunt down opponents, make arrests and search private properties without a warrant.

The amendments came amid condemnation of many actions conducted by the regime since the coup as illegal and unjustified, including late-night warrantless arrests, raids and the locking up of civilians without charge for more than 24 hours.

The suspended provisions of the Privacy Law prohibited household arrests and inspections without a warrant, as well as state surveillance of individuals and their private communications and detention of civilians for more than 24 hours without a court ruling.

Lawyer U Khin Maung Zaw said that while undemocratic provisions were restored, democratic ones ensuring protection of privacy and security of individuals being abused by authorities were removed, referring to the suspensions of the privacy laws provisions.

On Sunday, the military regime also amended the countrys high treason and sedition laws. The move was seen as an attempt to protect the military leaders who seized power in a coup on Feb. 1, amid claims by lawyers that coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing could be charged with high treason, and as the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) prepares to prosecute the military council under high treason and other charges. The CRPH is a self-declared parliamentary committee formed by lawmakers elected to the Parliament that was dissolved by the coup. The Pyidaungsu Hluttaw is Myanmars Union Parliament.

He made the amendment to use it for himself; it is not the law, said legal adviser Sai Aung Myint Oo. They amended the law to prevent the next government or authorities from prosecuting them. But in fact, they can still be prosecuted retrospectively, he said.

While the original Article 121 of the Penal Code says anyone who attempts or otherwise prepares by force of arms or other violent means to overthrow the organs of the Union or of its constituent units established by the Constitution is guilty of high treason, the coup leader has amended it so that only unconstitutional use of force of arms constitutes high treason, meaning it is acceptable to use force of arms as long as it is done in line with the Constitution.

The military regime also expanded the definition of, and imposed tougher punishments on, the crime of sedition under the Penal Code, with the clear aim of targeting anti-coup protesters. The crime now covers those found to have incited hatred or contempt and disaffection towards the military and military personnel, or any effort to sabotage or hinder the success of the Defense Services and law enforcement organizations. The crime now carries a penalty of up to 20 years imprisonment.

Legal adviser U Khin Maung Myint said the recent legal changes pose a serious threat to the liberty and security of individual citizens.

It appear the prosecuting institutions authority was expanded, as it can arrest anyone it wants without giving a reason, and detain people without a court ruling, while the rights of citizens have been severely curtailed.

Lawyer U Kyee Myint, however, said legal amendments that attempt to justify the militarys power grab are not binding, as the military seized power unconstitutionally.

Article 417 of the Constitution requires the President to declare a state of emergency when there is a risk to the sovereignty of the country. Article 418 requires the President to hand over all power to the Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services. Contrary to this provision, the state of emergency following the recent coup was declared by the militarys hand-picked vice-president, General Myint Swe, after the military detained President Win Myint.

Besides the above legal changes, the military government also seeks to impose a new cybersecurity law that would grant it almost unlimited power to access user data, ban content it dislikes, restrict internet providers and intercept data, and imprison opponents of the regime who express their views on the internet, as well as officials at noncomplying companies.

It would also enable the regime to arrest anyone accessing sites such as Facebook, which is still banned in the country, via virtual private network (VPN) applications.

Rights groups both local and international have condemned the draft law, saying it would violate human rights and freedom of expression. Business groups, many of them tech companies, have also raised the alarm, as the draft law would enable the authorities to intervene in business operations at their unfettered discretion.

I would say laws that go against justice, made for the benefit of those in power, are not laws. If this is the situation, it is fair when the public goes against those, lawyer U Khin Maung Zaw told The Irrawaddy.

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SC says cannot rule out conspiracy against former CJI Ranjan Gogoi

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: The possibility of a conspiracy against former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi cannot be ruled out, the Supreme Court said today. The observations were made while closing an inquiry set up after he was accused of sexual harassment.

The court said that such a conspiracy could be linked to Justice Gogoi's decisions, including his views on the NRC and his attempts to streamline the Supreme Court's registry.

Former Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi provided with 'Z+' VIP security cover

The decision of the court was based on a report of former judge, Justice A K Patnaik. He was tasked with investigating a larger conspiracy and also whether middlemen and fixers working with the disgruntled court officials were trying to fix judges.

"The Justice Patnaik report acknowledges the existence of a conspiracy against the ex Chief Justice and it cannot be ruled out," the Supreme Court said. "Certain tough administrative decisions were taken to streamline the process in the registry," the court also said.

The court said that the Intelligence Bureau director said in a report that Justice Gogoi had taken a serious view in cases relating to the NRC and thee were strong reasons to believe that some are unhappy with the decision.

The inquiry was ordered the allegations were made by lawyer Utsav Bains.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 11:53 [IST]
The odds were 1 in 175 million when Marie Holmes hit the jackpot.

Holmes, 26 at the time, was a single mother in coastal North Carolina supporting her children with a string of five retail jobs. Then six numbers lined up the right way on her Powerball ticket, awarding her $188 million and a chance to change her family's future.

She talked about finishing her college degree, buying a house for her mother and setting aside money for her three daughters and her son who has cerebral palsy.

"I started screaming and jumping around," Holmes remembered afterward. "I said to my kids, 'You just don't understand what this means.' "

Six years later, Holmes's lottery win is the subject of a lawsuit from her ex-fiance, who says she used some of the money to buy him lavish gifts, then gave them away while he was serving time for a drug trafficking conviction.

Lamarr Andre McDow, 36, says Holmes closed his auto restoration business, got rid of his Chevy Silverado and sold 77 acres of land that she had given him for a dirt bike and ATV track, according to the lawsuit, first reported by WECT.

Holmes's attorneys said McDow never truly owned the gifts.

"This case is the embodiment of the phrase 'what's yours is mine and what's mine is my own.' The problem here, however, is that McDow has nothing of his own," the lawyers wrote in a memo supporting a motion to dismiss the case. "Instead, McDow is Holmes' disgruntled, currently imprisoned former fiance with multiple criminal convictions and an unfortunate desire to pursue meritless litigation."

Holmes and McDow met in 2012, while she was working at a McDonald's and living with her mother and kids in Brunswick County. They dated and eventually had two daughters together, according to the lawsuit, filed in September and transferred to federal court this month.

Sheriff's officers arrested McDow on drug charges in November 2014, the lawsuit says, two months before Holmes became the largest jackpot winner in North Carolina history. She chose to receive a lump-sum payment and took home about $87.9 million after taxes.

She paid millions of dollars to bail McDow out of jail several times.

"We are a couple, and I am the father of her youngest child. This is what people do for each other," McDow told the New York Daily News in 2016. "She has the money and she can do what she wants with it. If I had that money then I would do the same for her. People are just jealous because of how much she won and people want to see me locked in jail."

McDow and Holmes moved in together in January 2016, the lawsuit says. He was sentenced three months later and remains in prison with a scheduled release date in 2023, state records indicate.

Before McDow reported for his sentence, the couple filmed an episode of "Iyanla: Fix My Life," a reality show on the Oprah Winfrey Network. In that episode, the lawsuit says, Holmes told host Iyanla Vanzant that she had bought McDow several gifts, including property worth $600,000. That property became M's Automotive Center, which the episode framed as "an automotive restoration business for Lamarr."

"The response I've been getting from the media is, like, oh, I'm dumb, I'm going to be broke," Holmes said on the show, of the response to her lottery win. "Or, 'She could be doing so much more with her money.' "

Holmes had also given McDow several other luxury items, the lawsuit says, including a 2015 Chevy Stingray worth $250,000, clothes and jewelry valued at six figures, and an array of landscaping equipment. Engaged to be married at the time, McDow allegedly named Holmes his power of attorney before his prison sentence and authorized her to store his belongings.

But after the relationship ended in 2017, a family member told McDow that Holmes had given away his personal items, the lawsuit says. Among other belongings, the 77 acres of land, his auto business, his truck and his clothing were all allegedly gone.

McDow's attorneys say Holmes "failed to act openly, fairly and honestly by secretly giving away" his property. They are seeking tens of thousands of dollars in damages, among other compensation.

Holmes's attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but argued in court filings that McDow does not legally own the items that he cited - valued at $1.4 million - because the titles are in Holmes's name. The lawsuit also describes some of the property vaguely and therefore fails to properly notify Holmes of the claims, her attorneys added.

Holmes is also contesting the lawsuit on procedural grounds, including around the statute of limitations and how the lawsuit was served.
Oslo, 18 February 2021: Yara International has signed a Letter of Intent with Statkraft, and Aker Horizons, aiming to establish Europes first large-scale green ammonia project in Norway, enable the hydrogen economy and accelerate the green energy transition. The partners will target green hydrogen and green ammonia opportunities within shipping, agriculture and industrial applications, by electrifying Yaras existing ammonia facility in Porsgrunn.





This is not just a unique decarbonisation project, but a strategic investment that can establish new value chains for green hydrogen and green ammonia. Yara is a world leader in ammonia, with long experience and leading position within global ammonia production, logistics and trade. With Statkraft and Aker Horizons onboard we gain key expertise within renewable electricity, power markets, industrial development and project execution, giving us a unique opportunity to realize the project, says Svein Tore Holsether, President and CEO of Yara.

The partners plan to electrify and decarbonise Yaras ammonia plant in Porsgrunn. Building on their combined expertise, the partners aim to fully remove CO 2 emissions from ammonia production, thereby producing emission-free fuel for shipping, carbon-free fertilizer and ammonia for industrial applications.



The conversion of Yaras existing ammonia plant has the potential to become one of the largest climate initiatives in Norways industrial history, targeting annual CO2 reductions equivalent to the emissions from more than 300,000 fossil fuel passenger cars. Provided that power is available at the site and the required public co-funding is in place, the project could be realized within 5-7 years.



Aker has been a driving force for knowledge-based industrial development for 180 years. A partnership with Yara and Statkraft, two fellow Norwegian industrial pioneers, marks the beginning of a new industrial adventure in Norway. The first project in Porsgrunn can be a lighthouse project  providing competitive advantage in a growing global hydrogen economy and building on existing capabilities in the Norwegian supplier industry to create new jobs for the future, says yvind Eriksen, President & CEO of Aker ASA and Chairman of Aker Horizons.





In addition to the Porsgrunn project, the three companies plan to explore the potential for green ammonia production in Northern Norway as a future opportunity.



Statkraft is Europe's largest producer of renewable energy. Norway's rich renewable energy resources are one of our most important competitive advantages. This project paves the way for new industrial development and can at the same time give Norway's important maritime sector a new competitive advantage, namely access to an efficient and emission-free energy source on a large scale, says Statkraft CEO Christian Rynning-Tnnesen.





Shipping currently accounts for 2 percent of global GHG emissions, of which long-distance shipping represents 80 percent. Converting all long-distance shipping to ammonia would require approximately 500-600 million tonnes of ammonia annually, 3-4 times the current world production. The Norwegian shipping industry has a stated ambition to reduce emissions from domestic shipping by 50 percent by 2030, which will require significant green hydrogen production.

Yaras Porsgrunn plant is well set up for large-scale production and export, allowing Norway to quickly play a role in the hydrogen economy. Constructing a new ammonia plant and associated infrastructure is typically a capital-intensive process, but by utilising Yara's existing ammonia plant and associated infrastructure in Porsgrunn, valued at USD 450 million, the total capital requirement for the project is significantly reduced compared with alternative greenfield locations.

It is currently more expensive to produce green hydrogen based on renewable electricity and electrolysis than through natural gas, but large-scale production will reduce cost of the electrolysis route. For hydrogen to be exported or used in long-haul shipping or fertilizer production, it needs to be converted to ammonia, and converting Yaras existing ammonia plant is both faster and more cost-effective than building a new plant. However, realizing this innovative project will require good incentive frameworks and support from the authorities, says Holsether.

Ammonias chemical properties make it ideally suited for the hydrogen economy. It does not need to be refrigerated to the same temperatures as hydrogen, and has a higher energy density than liquid hydrogen, making it more efficient to transport and store. Ammonia is therefore the most promising hydrogen carrier and zero-carbon shipping fuel.



Link to joint virtual press conference today at 10:00 CET. The press conference will be held in Norwegian:

https://www.yara.com/news-and-media/green-ammonia-project-press-conference/



Contacts



Thor Giver, SVP Investor Relations

Mobile: (+47) 480 75 356

E-mail: thor.giaver@yara.com



Josiane Kremer, Director External Communications

Mobile: (+47) 481 80 451

E-mail: josiane.kremer@yara.com





About Yara



Yara grows knowledge to responsibly feed the world and protect the planet. Supporting our vision of a world without hunger, we pursue a strategy of sustainable value growth, promoting climate-friendly and high-yielding crop nutrition solutions for the worlds farming community and food industry.



Yaras ambition is to be the Crop Nutrition Company for the Future. We are committed to creating value for our customers, shareholders and society at large, as we work to develop a more sustainable food value chain. To achieve our ambition, we have taken the lead in developing digital farming tools for precision farming, and work closely with partners throughout the food value chain to improve the efficiency and sustainability of agriculture and food production.



Founded in 1905 to solve the emerging famine in Europe, Yara has established a unique position as the industrys only global crop nutrition company. With our integrated business model and a worldwide presence of around 16,000 employees and operations in over 60 countries, we offer a proven track record of responsible and reliable returns. In 2020, Yara reported revenues of USD 11.7 billion.



www.yara.com



This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act

Attachment

The world has never been more indebted after a year of battling Covid-19. And theres even more borrowing ahead.



Governments, companies and households raised $24 trillion last year to offset the pandemics economic toll, bringing the global debt total to an all-time high of $281 trillion by the end of 2020, or more than 355 per cent of global GDP, according to the Institute of Finance. They may have little choice but to keep borrowing in 2021, said Washington-based director of sustainability research Emre Tiftik and economist Khadija Mahmood.

Even as vaccines are rolled out, low central bank policy rates are keeping issuance above pre-pandemic levels. Governments with big budget deficits are set to increase debt by another $10 trillion this year as political and social pressures make it hard to curb spending, pushing this groups debt load past $92 trillion by end-2021, the IIF estimates.

The most important challenge is to find a well-designed exit strategy from these extraordinary fiscal measures, Tiftik said during a Wednesday webinar.

Both mature and emerging markets will be searching for a perfect balance. While an economic recovery may lead some governments to start developing strategies to roll back stimulus, doing so too soon could magnify default and bankruptcy risk. But waiting too long could lead to unwieldy debt loads.

Even amid historically muted credit spreads, global debt markets have started selling off, pushing up sovereign yields. Long-term US Treasury yields reached the highest in about a year this week.





Increases in non-financial industry debt-to-GDP ratios in France, Spain and Greece were among the sharpest in mature economies, as governments rapidly ramped up borrowing. In emerging markets, China saw the biggest jump in debt ratios last year, followed by Turkey, Korea and the United Arab Emirates, IIF data show.

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CenterPoint Properties purchased a 601,261-square-foot industrial building on 31 acres at 3507 Pasadena Freeway in Pasadena near the Port of Houston. The building is served by Union Pacific, BNSF and Kansas City Southern via the Port Terminal Railroad Association. It has a 32-foot clear-height, 62 dock-high and 21 rail doors, outside storage and trailer parking.

The asset aligns extremely well with CenterPoints national port investment strategy, Rives Nolen, CenterPoints senior vice president for investments said in an announcement.

Rusty Tamlyn, Trent Agnew and Charles Strauss of JLL Capital Markets brokered the transaction between CenterPoint and Link Logistics Real Estate.

Prior to the acquisition, CenterPoints Houston portfolio totaled 5.94 million square feet across 37 properties. The company is not affiliated with Houstons CenterPoint Energy.

Sealy & Co. acquired a fully-leased 663,821-square-foot distribution warehouse at 8800 CityPark Loop in northeast Houston. The facility, on more than 40 acres near Loop 610 at McCarty Drive, has access to two Union Pacific rail intermodal yards and more than 200 trailer parking spaces. Scott Sealy Jr. and Jason Gandy of Sealy worked with Tom Lynch and Faron Wiley of CBRE to acquire the property from First Industrial Real Estate Trust.

PCCP provided an $86.3 million senior loan to Madera Residential for the acquisition and renovation of the 620-unit Domain and Lofts at CityCentre apartments at 811 Town and Country Blvd. The property is 94 percent leased. Domain is in one building with 370 units and Lofts has two residential buildings totaling 250 units. The ground floor retail is not part of the acquisition. Madera Residential owns and manages 14,000 units in Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth.

MLG Capital acquired the Heights at Harpers Preserve, a 328-unit apartment complex at 17116 Harpers Trace in Conroe. Built in 2017, the property is in the Harpers Preserve master-planned community. Based in Brookfield, Wis., MLG has invested in nine Houston area properties totaling about 2,600 units.

The Bascom Group acquired the 350-unit Cantera at Towne Lake Apartments at 17807 Lakecrest View Drive in Cypress. Built in 2006, the complex is in the Towne Lake community developed by Caldwell Cos. Brian Eisendrath, Annie Rice and Samantha Jay with CBRE Capital Markets sourced the Freddie Mac senior loan debt financing. David Mitchell with Newmark was the broker. James DArgenio and Chang Liu sourced and managed the acquisition for Irvine, Calif.-based Bascom.

Allied Orion Group has been chosen to manage Los Prados Apartments, a 264-unit apartment community at 125 Dyna Drive in north Houston. The property is owned by GenWealth Capital Group.

Power Manufacturing signed a long-term headquarters lease for 105,300 square feet at West Sam Houston Business Park, 10111 Houston Oaks Drive. Jason Gibbons and Chase Tucker of Finial Group assisted Power Manufacturing, which will occupy both buildings in the park.

Brookfield Properties formed a partnership with Enwave Energy Corp. to provide cooling services to its recently renovated Houston Center complex. Enwave, an affiliate of Brookfield Asset Management, operates a district cooling network in downtown Houston, including commercial office buildings, retail businesses, schools, hotels, theaters and a ballpark. By replacing outdated systems and improving efficiencies through incorporating Houston Center in Enwaves network, the partnership will result in less water and energy usage, according to Brookfield. Houston Center consists of LyondellBasell Tower, 2 Houston Center, Fulbright Tower, 4 Houston Center and The Shops at Houston Center.

katherine.feser@chron.com

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 10:45:56|Editor: huaxia

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A woman reacts after receiving the CoronaVac vaccine during the drive-in inoculation against COVID-19 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Feb. 8, 2021. (Photo by Rahel Patrasso/Xinhua)

- Brazil nears 10 mln COVID-19 cases

- Gaza receives 1st batch of Russia's COVID-19 vaccine



- B.1.1.7 may become predominant variant in U.S. in March

- South Australia to begin coronavirus vaccine rollout within days: premier



BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

- - - -

CANBERRA -- South Australia (SA) will begin administering coronavirus vaccines as early as Monday.

Steven Marshall, the premier of SA, said that his government was aiming to vaccinate 1,726 South Australian frontline workers in the first week of the rollout and 12,000 in the first three weeks.

A woman checks the window of a shop to see if it is open on a business street in Burlingame, California, the United States, Feb. 16, 2021. (Xinhua/Wu Xiaoling)

WASHINGTON -- Modeling data suggest that B.1.1.7 could become the predominant variant in the United States in March, according to a study released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday.

The first U.S. infection case of the B.1.1.7 variant was detected in Colorado in late December. As of Feb. 16, a total of 1,277 COVID-19 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant had been identified in 42 U.S. states.

- - - -

SAO PAULO -- Brazil was approaching 10 million COVID-19 infections on Wednesday, after 56,766 new cases were registered in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 9,978,747, according to the Health Ministry.

In its daily report, the ministry also reported 1,150 deaths in the same period for a death toll of 242,090.

A medical worker displays swab samples collected to test for COVID-19 in Gaza City, Feb. 16, 2021. (Photo by Rizek Abdeljawad/Xinhua)

GAZA -- The Hamas-run health ministry in the besieged Gaza Strip announced on Wednesday that it has received the first batch of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine.



The shipment contains 2,000 doses of vaccines and will be enough for the vaccination of 1,000 people.



The first batch of vaccines will be used for the medical staff in intensive care units, patients who have transplanted organs, elderly people and patients with chronic diseases.



- - - -

COLOMBO -- Sri Lanka's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that the temporary travel restrictions introduced by the government on visitors traveling from Britain due to the spread of a new COVID-19 variant were lifted with immediate effect.

The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that following discussions with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, it has decided to relax the restrictions on travellers from Britain, who are still subject to 14 days of quarantine and PCR tests determined by the health authorities.

Pupils have a class at a primary school in Johannesburg, South Africa, Feb. 15, 2021. (Photo by Matthew Martin Brink/Xinhua)

JOHANNESBURG -- As the vaccination program got underway in South Africa on Wednesday, President Cyril Ramaphosa was among those first to be vaccinated at the Khayelitsha Hospital in Cape Town.

"Taking the vaccine was quick, easy and not so painful," he said after the vaccination, urging all healthcare workers to register in order to be vaccinated.

- - - -

NICOSIA -- Chinese manufacturers of COVID-19 vaccines are open to all potential users, said Chinese Ambassador to Cyprus Liu Yantao on Tuesday.

There is not yet an ongoing negotiation between the European Union (EU) and Chinese vaccine producers, but Chinese manufacturers "are open to all potential users," said Liu in an interview with the state-run Cyprus News Agency.

- - - -

TOKYO -- Tokyo on Wednesday reported 378 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the city's tally to 108,337.

According to the latest figures released by the Tokyo metropolitan government, it is the 11th successive day that new infections in the city have remained below 500.

A medical worker prepares the COVID-19 vaccine in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Feb. 7, 2021. (Xinhua)

DHAKA -- Bangladesh reported 443 new COVID-19 cases and 16 more deaths on Wednesday, taking the tally to 541,877 and death toll to 8,314, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said.

The official data showed that 16,612 samples were tested in the last 24 hours across Bangladesh.

- - - -

KUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysia reported 2,998 new COVID-19 infections, bringing the national total to 272,163, the health ministry said on Wednesday.

Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press statement that seven of the new cases are imported and 2,991 are local transmissions. 
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  A House leader pushed to strengthen the country's claims over the West Philippine Sea and other maritime zones to counter China's increasing presence in disputed territories.

Deputy Speaker Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro on Wednesday urged his colleagues in the lower chamber to pass House Bill 6156 or the Philippine Maritime Zones Act, a measure which seeks to declare the maritime zones under the country's jurisdiction and draw closing lines for the delimitation of the country's internal waters.

His call came amid reports that China is continuously building structures on Mischief Reef, also known as Panganiban Reef, despite the area being inside the Philippines' exclusive economic zone. Satellite images released Tuesday by American tech firm Simularity revealed seven sites on the reef appear to have changed from May 7, 2020 to February 4, 2021.

Rodriguez said the bill could help China acknowledge the Philippines' delineation of its maritime areas, following the recent passage of the Coast Guard Law, which authorizes China's coast guard to fire on foreign vessels entering contested waters.

I am urging the House leadership to take up and approve the bill which will strengthen our position on the West Philippine Sea. This will counter the Chinese law allowing its coast guard to fire at perceived intruders in the entire South China Sea, which illegally includes our West Philippine Sea, he said in a statement.

The bill was filed in February 2020, but the measure remains pending with the Committee on Foreign Affairs until now.

It is not clear how different the proposal is to the existing law defining the country's archipelagic baselines. The Philippines in 2009 already deposited with the United Nations the country's list of geographical coordinates of points as contained in Republic Act 9522. The law also says the baselines in Kalaayan Island Group and Bajo de Masinloc or Scarborough Shoal over which the Philippines exercises sovereignty and jurisdiction shall be determined as "Regime of Islands" consistent with the 1983 UN Convention of the Law of the Sea.

Rodriguezs proposed definition of the countrys maritime territory also covers the Chinese-occupied Scarborough, also called Panatag Shoal, off Zambales and Pangasinan, a tradition fishing ground of Filipinos. The Chinese Coast Guard routinely patrols this area, which Beijing seized in 2012 after a standoff between Chinese and Philippine government vessels.

As a signatory and party to the UNCLOS, the Philippines recognizes the establishment of various maritime zones and jurisdiction of coastal states, including its own, over which sovereignty and appurtenant sovereign rights can be exercised," the lawmaker said.

Rodriguez added that the Philippines must continue exercising its sovereignty over its internal and archipelagic waters, its seabed and subsoil in accordance with UNCLOS and other existing laws and treaties. This also covers its sovereign rights over the 200-mile exclusive economic zone, including the right to explore and exploit living and nonliving resources.

Philippine Ambassador to China Chito Sta. Romana said on Monday that China "is not targeting the Philippines" under the newly implemented Coast Guard Law.

"The Chinese have reassured us through their Foreign Affairs spokesman, as well as the Chinese Embassy that they are not targeting the Philippines or any specific country and they will not resort to force in the first instance," he said.

RELATED: China says new Coast Guard law not a threat of war

In 2016, an international tribunal in The Hague invalidated Beijings sweeping territorial stakes in the South China Sea and recognized Manilas sovereign rights in areas within its exclusive economic zone which China claims. But despite the ruling, China continues to increase its law enforcement patrols in the West Philippine Sea.

President Rodrigo Duterte has long been vocal about his warm ties with the Chinese government. In a previous speech, he stressed that he can't badmouth China amid controversial issues, including the Philippines' sovereign rights over the West Philippine Sea, because the country cannot afford to go to war against Beijing.
PALERMO, FEB 18 - Italian police on Thursday seized 150 million euros from a Palermo-based 'supermarket king' who has been linked with the mafia. Carmelo Lucchese, 53, owns 13 supermarkets in Palermo and the surrounding province, at Bagheria, Carini, Bolognetta, San Cipirello and Termini Imerese. Police froze his bank accounts, inusrance policies and shares, impounded companies, and seized property and cars. Police said their investigations had shown that Lucchese, while not a member of Cosa Nostra, was "close" to them. Informants said he had ties to the mafia in Bagheria and had had business benefits from them. In exchange for their favours, police said, he hired relatives of Cosa Nostra bosses. He also allegedly put a flat at the disposal of late long-time fugitive Bernardo Provenzano in the period shortly before his capture in 2006 after 43 years on the run. Lucchese's main company, Gamac, grew exponentially thanks to the Mob's help and in 2019 had a turnover of more than 80 million euros. (ANSA).
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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Police arrested an 18-year-old man in connection with a fatal hit-and-run crash where a 68-year-old woman died and a 70-year-old man was critically injured in Graniteville.

Prince Nesbitt-Hall of Paterson Street in Rahway, N.J., faces manslaughter and a slew of other charges in the crash on Tuesday evening at Elson Street and Lamberts Lane, according to a statement from the NYPD.

Police allege that Nesbitt-Hall was behind the wheel of a stolen 2020 Honda Accord that was traveling northbound on Elson Street when it blew a stop sign and slammed into a 2009 Mercedes-Benz going eastbound on Lamberts Lane.

The Honda was traveling at a high rate of speed, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.

The suspect fled on foot from the scene of the crash, according to police.

Nesbitt-Hall did not have a valid drivers license and was traveling in a car that was reported stolen earlier in February in Hackensack, N.J., police said.

Kauser Akhund, 68, of Bulls Head, who was riding in the front passenger seat of the Mercedes-Benz, died at Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton.

The 70-year-old man remains in critical condition at the same hospital on Thursday morning, according to police.

Akhund and the 70-year-old man were married, according to reports.

About 20 minutes after the crash, Nesbitt-Hall walked into the 121st Precinct stationhouse in Graniteville and tried to make a report that property was stolen in connection with the Honda Accord involved in the crash, according to sources with knowledge of the investigation.

At that moment, investigators and officers realized that Nesbitt-Hall was the individual they were looking for who allegedly fled the scene.

Police have charged Nesbitt-Hall with manslaughter, assault, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death, criminal possession of stolen property, reckless endangerment, falsely reporting an incident, reckless driving, and motor vehicle violations that include driving without a license and failure to obey a stop sign.
Germany's vaccine regulator said on Thursday AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine is "highly effective" and reactions to it are short-lived, issuing a message of reassurance after some essential workers refused the shot.

Health authorities in some European countries - including Germany - are facing resistance to the vaccine after side-effects led hospital staff and other front-line workers to call in sick, putting extra strain on already-stretched services.

In a statement retweeted by Health Minister Jens Spahn, the Paul Ehrlich Institute (PEI) said the vaccine "prevents COVID-19 disease in the majority of cases or alleviates symptoms when disease occurs."

"Vaccine reactions occur relatively frequently after administration of the vaccine. But they are short-lived and usually reflect the body's normal immune response to vaccinations," it added.

The PEI said it had been notified of reports from some clinics of increased sickness among personnel given the AstraZeneca vaccine, with reactions including fever, chills, headache, muscle and limb pain, and a general feeling of illness.

The Institute said clinical trials of the vaccine had shown "reactions usually occur shortly after vaccination and are not associated with more severe or prolonged illness."

Spahn responded on Wednesday to reports that essential workers were reluctant to receive the AstraZeneca shot after some experienced strong side-effects, saying it was both safe and effective.

"I would be vaccinated with it immediately," Spahn told reporters.

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Puducherry, Feb 18 : Puducherry Lieutenant Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan on Thursday directed Chief Minister V. Narayansamy to prove his majority in the Assembly on February 22.

Hours after taking additional charge as Lieutenant Governor of the union territory, she directed the Congress-led government to prove its majority.

The direction came amid claims by the opposition parties that the Congress-led government slipped into minority after one more party MLA quit the party on Tuesday.

The lieutenant governor, in an official communication, said the session of the legislative assembly shall be summoned on February 22 with a single agenda of ascertaining whether the government continues to enjoy the confidence of the House.

She directed that voting on the agenda shall take place by show of hands. The entire proceedings before the legislative assembly shall be videographed. The floor test shall be conducted by 5pm on February 22, and the proceedings shall not be adjourned/delayed or suspended at any cost.

After Soundararajan, who is the governor of Telangana, was sworn in as the incharge lieutenant governor at Raj Nivas here, both the chief minister and the leader of opposition called on her separately.

All India NR Congress (AINRC) founder-leader N. Rangasamy, who is the leader of opposition, claimed that the government had lost its majority after four of the MLAs of the ruling party resigned in the last 25 days. He also pointed out that a legislator of the ruling party was disqualified last year.

The opposition MLAs led by Rangasamy told Soundararajan that the government had lost its legitimacy to continue and requested her to direct the government to prove the majority in the House.

Both the government and the opposition have 14 MLAs in 30-member Assembly. There are three nominated members and all the three belong to BJP.

Five seats fell vacant after resignation of four MLAs and disqualification of one MLA.

The Congress party now has 10 seats. The DMK, which has three seats and an independent, are supporting the Congress government.

AINRC has seven MLAs and its ally AIADMK four. Another ally BJP has three members, all nominated.

The ruling Congress maintains that it still enjoys majority in the House and has accused the BJP of engineering defections.

Soundararajan was given additional charge of lieutenant governor on Tuesday after Kiran Bedi was removed from the post.

Narayansamy welcomed Bedi's removal and termed it as people's victory. They have been at loggerheads since the former IPS officer was appointed as lieutenant governor over four years ago.

Assembly elections in Puducherry are due to be held in May this year along with the elections in neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
HAZLETON  The city housing authority adjusted flat rent rates based on the fair market rent for the area for 2021.

All flat rent rates from efficiency to four-bedroom units will increase and are based on 80% of the fair market rent in the region, Dorothy George, executive director, said.

The new rates will go into effect April 1, and the authority has to provide 30-day notice to existing tenants, she reported.

New tenants are given the choice between a flat rent amount or an income-based rent, George said. Existing tenants are offered the flat rent at their next annual rent certification.

Flat rate rents will increase as follows: $453 to $472, efficiency; $526 to $548, one bedroom; $642 to $671, two bedroom; $832 to $866, three bedroom; and $887 to $925, four bedroom.

Vaccines

The authority will be working with Rite Aid to set up a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for its high-rise tenants, George said.

The state Department of Health announced a partnership with the pharmacy to administer the vaccinations to staff and residents in long-term care and congregate care in late January, she said.

George reached out to the pharmacy chain and the health department, she said, and due to the availability of the vaccine, a clinic is on hold for now.

Hopefully, they can soon set up this clinic for our residents and staff, she said. Most of our residents are over the age of 65 and do qualify under Phase 1A.

Evictions

A temporary moratorium on evictions due to non-payment of rent because of the pandemic has been extended by the Centers for Disease Control through March 31. The moratorium previously ran through the end of January.

Inspections

The authority has scheduled training sessions in mid-March to prepare for the HUD-sanctioned inspections of its properties. Maintenance staff and property managers will learn how to identify defects to improve its inspection score.

The formal inspections by the Real Estate Assessment Center have not been scheduled yet, which will give the authority time to address deficiencies and hopefully improve its score at the Vine West family complex.

Section 8

An incentive program to bring more landlords into the Section 8 program hasnt been as successful as hoped, George said. Three new landlords joined the program and four existing landlords received the incentive for accepting new voucher holders, she said.

A few voucher holders, who were unable to find units, also pulled out of the program, George said in response to board member Ed Shemansky. So, the numbers are up and down, she said.

The incentives will be advertised in a Spanish newspaper this month in hopes of getting a few more landlords interested.

Capital Fund

The Vine Manor restoration project, a Capital Fund project, has been completed and a pre-construction meeting to start the flooring at the Hazle Twins was held, George said.

The next Capital Fund project will be upgrading the medical call systems and fire alarm systems by Triguard Security. Kitchen cabinet and floor replacements will continue at Vine West when the weather improves, she said.
Sicily Hunston, 20, bit one policeman on the arm and hurled foul mouthed abuse at his three colleagues during a drink-fuelled fit of rage in Wythenshawe, Manchester

A drunk woman who shouted 'black lives matter' before biting and racially abusing police during a violent struggle claimed she was 'antagonised' by an officer saying 'all lives matter'.

Sicily Hunston, 20, bit one police officer on the arm and hurled foul mouthed abuse at his three colleagues during a drink-fuelled fit of rage in Wythenshawe, Manchester.

Officers were called to the property by concerned families members amid fears Hunston was in possession of a knife - and she later told police she had a gun.

But when officers attempted to search her she began shouting 'black lives matter' and threatened to bite one of the male officers.

During a violent struggle Hunston then carried out her threat, by biting one of the officers on the arm.

She appeared at Manchester Magistrates's Court after admitting assault on an emergency worker and racially-aggravated harassment.

But her lawyer argued that Hunston, who he said was suffering a 'mental health crisis' at the time, had been 'antagonised' by one of the officers saying 'all lives matter' in response to her 'black lives matter' shouts.

Hunston was spared a prison sentence. She was instead fined 100 and told to complete a 12 month community order, along with paying 50 in compensation to her bite victim.

The court heard how police attended Hunston's family home amid concerns for her welfare in July last year.

Hunston (pictured) was spared a prison sentence. She was instead fined 100 and told to complete a 12 month community order, along with paying 50 in compensation to her bite victim

Prosecutor Peter Conroy said that when officers found Hunston (pictured) she had a bottle of alcohol in her hand and was 'clearly intoxicated'

The incident took place around the time of Black Lives Matter protests in the UK following the death of George Floyd in the US.

Mr Floyd, 46, died after one of the officers knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes during an arrest.

Prosecutor Peter Conroy said that when officers found Hunston she had a bottle of alcohol in her hand and was 'clearly intoxicated'.

'She was also quite angry and she stated there were knives and meat cleavers in the room and she also said she was in possession of a gun,' he said.

'One of the officers then approached the defendant and said he needed to search her.

'But at this point, the defendant became very aggressive and it took several officers to apprehend her.'

He said Hunston then began unleashing verbal abuse at officers before shouting 'black lives matter'.

Mr Conroy said: 'The defendant then went to bite the arm of the officer and managed to put her teeth on his forearm.

'As a result, the officer pulled her head down with great difficulty and she constantly shouted racial abuse when being arrested and whilst getting into the police van and whilst in the van.'

Mr Conroy added that, while carrying out a search, officers found a knife in Hunston's waistcoat.

Prosecutor Peter Conroy added that, while carrying out a search, officers found a knife in Hunston's waistcoat. Pictured: The case was heard at Manchester Magistrates' Court

Mitigating for Hunston, Matthew Wallace said his client has suffered a 'mental health crisis' at the time of the incident, including anxiety and depression.

He told the court: 'I do not seek to I do not seek to justify her behaviour and what she did in breaking the law and she feels ashamed of her conduct and behaviour.

'But she said 'Black Lives Matter' and the officer in response said 'All Lives Matter' which antagonised her.

'It was an ignorant thing to do and the response escalated the situation instead of de-escalated it because of the occasion.'

He added that Hunston, who had no previous convictions, was engaging with mental health services and said he was hopeful she could 'move forward'.

Alongside her fine, community order and compensation to the officer, Hunston was also ordered to pay court costs of 180.
Va Tech Wabag has achieved financial closure for its hybrid annuity project received from Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority.

The company had earlier signed a Rs. 575 crore HAM concession agreement under the Namami Gange programme administered by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) which included the scope of engineering, supply and construction of new sewage treatment plants, renovation and up-gradation of existing sewage treatment plants, rehabilitation of pumping stations and other associated infrastructure in Kolkata.

WABAG will execute Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) portion of this project over 24 months followed by O&M of 15 years.

Once complete, the project with a cumulative wastewater treatment capacity of 187 MLD will contribute to reducing the discharge of untreated sewage into the Holy Ganga from the state of West Bengal by around 15 per cent.

The EPC portion of the project is to be funded by a mix of NMCG Grant, Equity and Debt. 40 per cent of EPC cost will be funded by NMCG grant during the construction period and balance 60 per cent to be funded by a mix of debt and equity.

The project debt requirement will be funded by a consortium of International Finance Corporation (AFC) and Tata Cleantech Capital (TCCL).

In line with the asset light principle of WABAG, the company has signed an agreement with Kathari Water Management (Kathari Water), a wholly owned subsidiary of EverSource Capital, fund manager for Green Growth Equity Fund (GGEF') who will be the company's investment partner in the project. GGEF is established with anchor investment from National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) anchored by Government of India and Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCD0), Government of UK.

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Lying at the heart of Facebooks abrupt ban on all Australian news is a global strategic gamble that will have a huge bearing not just on Mark Zuckerbergs behemoth, but on the dynamic between Big Tech and democracy.

As a former chief executive of Facebook in Australia and New Zealand, I suspect its bet is this: that by taking an aggressive hard line with a middle power, such as Australia, a tough message will be sent to the rest of the world to back off on regulation. This bet assumes that even if countries are perturbed and inclined to fight back, they will be unable to co-ordinate the international co-operation necessary to effectively stand up to the giant. When you look at the global response to climate change, you can see why Facebook may have judged this a reasonable bet.

But there is an alternative scenario with very different consequences. Governments dont like being bullied, and more importantly, they dont like being bullied in public. Masters in the dark arts of government relations know pressure and threats generally need to occur behind closed doors. When you pull a governments pants down in front of the world, you leave it little option but to dig in. When you vandalise 13 million citizens news feeds as a bargaining chip, you raise the stakes  and the temperature.

So witnessing a standoff between Australia and Facebook could be the catalyst for genuine global reform. It could be that future historians of the internet come to see this decision as the moment the world sat up and started to take serious action on making Big Tech accountable to society.
With rising reports of illegal innoculations, vaxx scams

NANCY TO PNP: GO AFTER FAKE VACCINES; FOCUS ON REAL CRIME THREATS

Sen. Nancy Binay today urged the Philippine National Police (PNP) to go after syndicates and criminal groups manufacturing and selling fake vaccines instead of focusing on "perceived threats".

Binay appealed to the PNP to be mindful of its oversight in gathering relevant information regarding illegal innoculations, clandestine vaccination clinics, manufacturing and selling of fake Covid-19 vaccines.

"Instead of spending time questioning innocent individuals, pursuing false leads and chasing phantoms, bakit di na lang habulin yung mga sindikatong nagkakalat ng pekeng mga bakuna. With criminal groups taking advantage of the situation, our PNP should focus on real threats to public health, and not perceived threats," the senator pointed out.

Binay added that those who peddle counterfeit products present more of a threat to public security and public health safety than teacher-volunteers being questioned for helping schoolchildren in remote barangays in Mindanao.

"Paulit-ulit na nating sinasabi na sa ngayon, Covid-19 ang kalaban. Ang dapat na inaaksyunan natin ay ang paglipana ng mga pekeng bakuna at ng mga underground vaccine services. Tugisin na lang sana ang mga talagang lumalabag ng batas kaysa iyong mga volunteer na nagsasakripisyo para maturuan ang mga kabataan nating walang access sa edukasyon," the senator said.

On Monday, Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto posted on Twitter a screenshot of a seller offering 50 vials of fake Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines for P60,000.

"Merong failure of intelligence dito kasi noong October pa lumabas ang mga reports ng illegal vaccines na kumakalat sa merkado, pati na yung clandestine innoculation ng mahigit 100,000 Chinese POGO workers, pero patuloy pa rin yung pagbebenta ng mga pekeng bakuna at operation ng underground clinics.

"It should be incumbent upon law enforcement agencies like the PNP, NBI, or even the Bureau of Customs, to put a high premium on vaccine safety and continue to go after 'sham' clinics, and syndicates making counterfeit products. Government must make sure that fake and illegal vaccines do not proliferate in the local market," Binay noted.
STUTTGART, Germany, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --

Financial results 2020 significantly better than expected amid COVID-19 challenges

Net profit increased by 48% to 4.0 billion (2019: 2.7 billion)

Net liquidity of the industrial business of 17.9 billion (end of Q3 2020: 13.1 billion/end of 2019: 11.0 billion)

Dividend proposed of 1.35 per share (2019: 0.90)

Daimler Group expects sales, revenues and EBIT in 2021 to be significantly above the prior-year's level

Intention to spin-off Daimler Truck with majority listing on the stock exchange

Daimler AG (ticker symbol: DAI) today reported its results for the fiscal year 2020 ended December 31, 2020. In a challenging environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Group's total unit sales of passenger cars and commercial vehicles decreased by 15%, to 2.84 million (2019: 3.34 million). Revenue was 154.3 billion (2019: 172.7 billion), a reduction of 11%. Due to extensive cost and cash preservation measures and strong performances across all divisions, EBIT of the Daimler Group increased by 53% to 6.6 billion (2019: 4.3 billion). Adjusted EBIT, reflecting the underlying business, was 8.6 billion (2019: 10.3 billion). The figures are based on audited financial statements. The reporting structure and previous year's figures have been adjusted to reflect the newly formed Group divisions.

"The year 2020 was a stress test for just about every company in almost every industry. The Daimler team mastered this test very well. Our products continue to be in great demand across all major markets and divisions. With rapid growth in our xEV sales and the introduction of new products and technologies, we have also taken important steps in terms of electrification and digitalization. Our financial results are significantly above market expectations reflecting substantial progress on cost-efficiencies. In addition, we have achieved a significant margin improvement based on strong product mix and pricing - especially in the second half of the year. We proved our ability to generate substantial cash flow and to drive the ongoing transformation on our own - even under the adverse circumstances of a pandemic," said Ola Kallenius, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG.

In 2020, net profit improved to 4.0 billion (2019: 2.7 billion). Net profit attributable to the shareholders of Daimler AG amounted to 3.6 billion (2019: 2.4 billion), leading to an increase in earnings per share to 3.39 (2019: 2.22). At the Annual General Meeting on March 31, 2021, the Board of Management and the Supervisory Board will propose a dividend of 1.35 per share (2019: 0.90). The total payout will therefore amount to 1.4 billion (2019: 1.0 billion).

"We are confident that we can maintain positive momentum if current market conditions prevail, accelerating our strategic plans and further enhancing our financial robustness. The intended separation of our industrial businesses is designed to unlock the full potential for Mercedes-Benz as the world's pre-eminent luxury car business, committed to leading in electric drive and car software, and Daimler Truck as the world's largest truck and bus producer and technology leader," said Kallenius.

Daimler plans to spin-off and list Daimler Truck. It is intended that a significant majority stake in Daimler Truck will be distributed to Daimler shareholders. Daimler Truck will have a fully independent management, stand-alone corporate governance including an independent Chairman of the Supervisory Board, and is targeted to qualify for listing on Germany's blue-chip DAX index. The transaction and the listing of Daimler Truck on the Frankfurt stock exchange is expected to be completed before year-end 2021. In addition, it is also Daimler's intention to rename itself as Mercedes-Benz at the appropriate time. All further details about the intended spin-off will be presented to shareholders at an extra-ordinary shareholder meeting in Q3 2021 in order to obtain their mandatory approval for the plan.

Investments, free cash flow and liquidity

In 2020, at the Group, investments in property, plant and equipment decreased by 20% to 5.7 billion (2019: 7.2 billion). Research and development expenditure was 8.6 billion (2019: 9.7 billion)  a reduction of 11%. The free cash flow of the industrial business amounted to 8.3 billion (2019: 1.4 billion). The adjusted free cash flow of the industrial business was 9.2 billion (2019: 2.7 billion). The net liquidity of the industrial business improved to 17.9 billion (end of Q3 2020: 13.1 billion/end of 2019: 11.0 billion).

Divisional results

Sales by the Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans division decreased by 13% to 2,461,800 vehicles (2019: 2,823,800). Revenue was 98.6 billion (2019: 106.9 billion). EBIT amounted to 5,172 million (2019: minus 109 million) and return on sales was 5.2% (2019: minus 0.1%). Adjusted EBIT was 6,802 million (2019: 6,151 million) and adjusted return on sales was 6.9% (2019: 5.8%). Cash flow before interest and taxes (CFBIT) was 7,048 million (2019: 598 million). Adjusted CFBIT amounted to 7,917 million (2019: 1,939 million). The adjusted cash conversion rate (CCR) was 1.2 (2019: 0.3).

Sales by Mercedes-Benz Cars slipped by 13% to 2,087,200 vehicles (2019: 2,385,400). Mercedes-Benz Vans' sales were down 15% to 374,600 (2019: 438,300). In 2020, the average CO2 emissions of the new car fleet in Europe (EU28 - European Union, United Kingdom, Norway and Iceland) are expected to reach 104 g/km (2019: 137 g/km NEFZ, including vans registered as passenger cars). With this, the 2020 CO2 targets in the European Union have been met.

Daimler Trucks & Buses division showed a decrease in unit sales of 27% to 378,500 vehicles (2019: 521,100). Revenue was 34.7 billion (2019: 44.4 billion). EBIT amounted to 525 million (2019: 2,672 million) and return on sales was 1.5% (2019: 6.0%). Adjusted EBIT was 678 million (2019: 2,672 million) and adjusted return on sales was 2.0% (2019: 6.0%). Cash flow before interest and taxes (CFBIT) was 2,513 million (2019: 2,654 million). Adjusted CFBIT came in at 2,513 million (2019: 2,654 million). The adjusted cash conversion rate (CCR) was 3.7 (2019: 1.0). Sales by Daimler Trucks fell by 27% to 358,300 vehicles (2019: 488,500). Daimler Buses sold 20,100 vehicles (2019: 32,600)  a decrease of 38%.

At Daimler Mobility, new business decreased by 9% to 67.8 billion (2019: 74.4 billion). Contract volume was 150.6 billion (end of 2019: 162.8 billion). Revenue was 27.7 billion (2019: 28.6 billion). The division's EBIT amounted to 1,436 million (2019: 2,140 million). At 9.8%, return on equity was lower than the figure of 15.3% in the prior year. Adjusted EBIT was 1,595 million (2019: 1,827 million) and adjusted return on equity was 10.9% (2019: 13.1%).

Outlook for Daimler and divisions

With the expected rise in availability of effective vaccines to combat the COVID-19 virus and in the absence of further unexpected pandemic-related setbacks, Daimler assumes that the global economy will recover strongly in 2021. Based on the expected market development and the current assessments of the divisions, Daimler anticipates Group sales, revenues and EBIT in 2021 to be significantly above the prior-year's level. Although bottlenecks in the semiconductor industry will impact sales mainly in the first quarter it is currently anticipated that lost production volume can be compensated for by the end of the year.

The divisions expect the following adjusted returns in the year 2021:

Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans: adjusted return on sales of 8  10%





Daimler Trucks & Buses: adjusted return on sales of 6  7%





Daimler Mobility: adjusted return on equity of 12  13%.

The business plan of Daimler covers the full year 2021 and is based on the existing Group structure, including Daimler Trucks & Buses. The spin-off of Daimler Truck, including significant parts of the related financial services business, will be examined before the end of 2021. Before the spin-off, Daimler will reclassify Daimler Truck as discontinued operations. The expected considerable positive effects in the second half of the year cannot be reliably determined at present.

The adjusted cash conversion rate (ratio of cash flow to EBIT) for the Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans division in 2021 is expected to be between 0.7 and 0.9 and for Daimler Trucks & Buses between 0.8 and 1.0. After exceptionally strong free cash flow in 2020 triggered by various successful measures to reduce costs and safeguard liquidity in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Daimler for 2021 anticipates a healthy free cash flow of the industrial business on a normalized level. CFBIT adjusted from the industrial divisions is expected to be on the prior-year-level. However, free cash flow adjusted includes higher tax payments and therefore will be below last year's figure. Additionally, the reported free cash flow includes the payments agreed in September 2020 in the context of the settlement with the US regulators in civil law proceedings relating to diesel emissions. Therefore, Daimler expects reported free cash flow to be significantly below 2020's figure.

In 2021, Mercedes-Benz Cars will push the xEV strategy forward and introduce four all-new EV models with the EQS, EQA, EQB and EQE as well as increase the proportion of PHEVs. Therefore, the division expects European passenger car CO2 emissions to be significantly below previous year's number.

Link to capital market presentation on full year 2020:

http://www.daimler.com/fullyear2020

Pictures of the Annual Results Conference 2020 will be available here:

https://media.daimler.com

Further information from Daimler is available at:

www.media.daimler.com and www.daimler.com

This document contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current views about future events. The words "anticipate," "assume," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "can," "could," "plan," "project," "should" and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including an adverse development of global economic conditions, in particular a decline of demand in our most important markets; a deterioration of our refinancing possibilities on the credit and financial markets; events of force majeure including natural disasters, pandemics, acts of terrorism, political unrest, armed conflicts, industrial accidents and their effects on our sales, purchasing, production or financial services activities; changes in currency exchange rates and tariff regulations; a shift in consumer preferences towards smaller, lower-margin vehicles; a possible lack of acceptance of our products or services which limits our ability to achieve prices and adequately utilize our production capacities; price increases for fuel or raw materials; disruption of production due to shortages of materials, labor strikes or supplier insolvencies; a decline in resale prices of used vehicles; the effective implementation of cost-reduction and efficiency-optimization measures; the business outlook for companies in which we hold a significant equity interest; the successful implementation of strategic cooperations and joint ventures; changes in laws, regulations and government policies, particularly those relating to vehicle emissions, fuel economy and safety; the resolution of pending government investigations or of investigations requested by governments and the conclusion of pending or threatened future legal proceedings; and other risks and uncertainties, some of which we describe under the heading "Risk and Opportunity Report" in the current Annual Report. If any of these risks and uncertainties materializes or if the assumptions underlying any of our forward-looking statements prove to be incorrect, the actual results may be materially different from those we express or imply by such statements. We do not intend or assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements since they are based solely on the circumstances at the date of publication.

Daimler at a glance

Daimler AG is one of the world's most successful automotive companies. With its Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans, Daimler Trucks & Buses and Daimler Mobility divisions, the Group is one of the leading global suppliers of premium and luxury cars and one of the world's largest manufacturer of commercial vehicles. Daimler Mobility offers financing, leasing, fleet management, investments, insurance brokerage as well as innovative mobility services. The company founders, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, made history by inventing the automobile in 1886. As a pioneer of automotive engineering, Daimler sees shaping the future of mobility in a safe and sustainable way as both a motivation and obligation. The company's focus therefore remains on innovative and green technologies as well as on safe and superior vehicles that both captivate and inspire. Daimler continues to invest systematically in the development of efficient powertrains  from high-tech combustion engines and hybrid vehicles to all-electric powertrains with battery or fuel cell  with the goal of making locally emission-free driving possible in the long term. The company's efforts are also focused on the intelligent connectivity of its vehicles, autonomous driving and new mobility concepts as Daimler regards it as its aspiration and obligation to live up to its responsibility to society and the environment. Daimler sells its vehicles and services in nearly every country of the world and has production facilities in Europe, North and South America, Asia and Africa. In addition to Mercedes-Benz, the world's most valuable luxury automotive brand (source: Interbrand study, 20 Oct. 2020), and Mercedes-AMG, Mercedes-Maybach, Mercedes-EQ and Mercedes me, its brand portfolio also includes commercial vehicle brands Mercedes-Benz Trucks Freightliner, Western Star, BharatBenz, FUSO, Setra and Thomas Built Buses as well as the brands of Daimler Mobility: Mercedes-Benz Bank, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, Daimler Truck Financial and Athlon. The company is listed on the Frankfurt and Stuttgart stock exchanges (ticker symbol DAI). In 2020, the Group had a workforce of around 288,500 and sold 2.8 million vehicles. Group revenues amounted to 154.3 billion and Group EBIT to 6.6 billion.

Figures for the 4th quarter and full year 2020













Daimler Group Q4 Q4 Change FY FY Change

2020 2019 20/19 2020 2019 20/19 Sales, in units 881,550 910,163 -3% 2,840,402 3,344,951 -15% Revenue, in millions of  46,621 47,127 -1% 154,309 172,745 -11% EBIT, in millions of  4,598 383 - 6,603 4,313 +53% EBIT adjusted, in millions of  5,151 2,377 +117% 8.641 10,276 -16% Net profit, in millions of  3,589 -11 - 4,009 2,709 +48% Earnings per share (EPS), in  3.26 -0.10 - 3.39 2.22 +53% Dividend proposed, in  - - - 1,35 0,90 +50% Employees (December 31) 288,481 298,655 -3% 288,481 298,655 -3% Net liquidity (industrial business, December 31), in millions of  17,855 10,997 +62% 17,855 10,997 +62% Free cash flow (industrial business), in millions of  4,751 1,890 +151% 8,259 1,368 +504% Free cash flow (industrial business) adjusted, in millions of  4,894 2,946 +66% 9,155 2,709 +238%









































Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans Q4 Q4 Change FY FY Change

2020 2019 20/19 2020 2019 20/19 Sales, in units 760,895 779,724 -2% 2,461,884 2,823,818 -13% Sales Mercedes-Benz Cars, in units 641,146 649,826 -1% 2,087,232 2,385,432 -13% Sales Mercedes-Benz Vans, in units 119,749 129,898 -8% 374,652 438,386 -15% Revenue, in millions of  30,613 30,854 -1% 98,576 106,897 -8% EBIT, in millions of  3,669 62 - 5,172 -109 - EBIT adjusted, in millions of  4,066 1,763 +131% 6,802 6,151 +11% Return on Sales (RoS), in % 12.0% 0.2% +11.8%pts 5.2% -0.1% +5.3%pts Return on Sales (RoS) adjusted, in % 13.3% 5.7% +7.6%pts 6.9% 5.8% +1.1%pts Cash Flow Before Interest and Tax (CFBIT), in millions of  3,730 1,749 +113% 7,048 598 - Cash Flow Before Interest and Tax (CFBIT) adjusted, in millions of  3,855 2,805 +37% 7,917 1,939 +308% Cash Conversion Rate (CCR) adjusted 0.9 1.6 - 1.2 0.3 -









































Daimler Trucks & Buses Q4 Q4 Change FY FY Change

2020 2019 20/19 2020 2019 20/19 Sales, in units 120,655 130,439 -8% 378,518 521,133 -27% Sales Daimler Trucks, in units 113,795 120,745 -6% 358,349 488,521 -27% Sales Daimler Buses, in units 6,860 9,694 -29% 20,169 32,612 -38% Revenue, in millions of  10,497 11,191 -6% 34,671 44.429 -22% EBIT, in millions of  493 447 +10% 525 2.672 -80% EBIT adjusted, in millions of  575 447 +29% 678 2.672 -75% Return on Sales (RoS), in % 4.7% 4.0% +0.7%pts 1.5% 6.0% -4.5%pts Return on Sales (RoS) adjusted, in % 5.5% 4.0% +1.5%pts 2.0% 6.0% -4.0%pts Cash Flow Before Interest and Tax (CFBIT), in millions of  1,577 1,123 +40% 2,513 2,654 -5% Cash Flow Before Interest and Tax (CFBIT) adjusted, in millions of  1,577 1,123 +40% 2,513 2,654 -5% Cash Conversion Rate (CCR) adjusted 2.7 2.5 - 3.7 1.0 -









































Daimler Mobility Q4 Q4 Change FY FY Change

2020 2019 20/19 2020 2019 20/19 Revenue, in millions of  7,271 7,534 -3% 27,699 28,646 -3% New business, in millions of  18,965 20,411 -7% 67,786 74,377 -9% Contract volume (December 31), in millions of  150,553 162,843 -8% 150,553 162,843 -8% EBIT, in millions of  584 87 +571% 1,436 2,140 -33% EBIT adjusted, in millions of  623 384 +62% 1,595 1,827 -13% Return on Equity (RoE), in % 16.2% 2.4% +13.8%pts 9.8% 15.3% -5.5%pts Return on Equity (RoE) adjusted, in % 17.3% 10.5% +6.8%pts 10.9% 13.1% -2.2%pts

The figures are based on audited financial statements.

The reporting structure and previous year's figures have been adjusted to reflect the newly formed Group divisions.

SOURCE Daimler North America - Corporate Communications

Related Links

https://www.daimler.com


New Delhi, Feb 18 : Two MBA graduates joined hands to be part of an ammunition racket to earn quick money. One of the accused, Dipanshu Mishra, did his MBA in marketing and used to work with a software company in Noida, while the other accused, Amit Rao, is a native of Rewari who did his MBA from the Kurukshetra University.

Both were part of a six-member gang pumping cartridges into Delhi-NCR from nearby areas of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh besides other areas of the country. All the six men have been arrested by the special cell of Delhi Police, which recovered a huge cache of 4,500 cartridges from their possession.

The arrested accused have been identified as Ramesh Kumar, a resident of Karnal; Dipanshu Mishra, a resident of Etawah; Ikram, a resident of Panipat; Akram, a resident of Muzaffarnagar; Manoj Kumar from Shaharanpur; and Amit Rao from Rewari.

Mishra's father had a gun house in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, which was closed after his death in 2015. Mishra used to visit Karnal with his father and there he met Ramesh Kumar. During the lockdown, Mishra was sacked from his job following which he contacted Ramesh Kumar and asked him to supply cartridges illegally to him in order to earn some quick bucks.

Mishra procured the cartridges from Ramesh Kumar for Rs 125 apiece and then supplied them for Rs 200-250 per cartridge to his contacts in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi.

"The cartridges supplied by him in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh eventually reached the dreaded criminals of Delhi and its adjoining states. He has been indulging in this illegal trade for more than one year," said Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, DCP, Special cell.

Rao's maternal uncle was the owner of Ambala Gun House and after his death, Rao got the licence of the hun house transferred to his name and started managing the business.

He also worked as the administrative head of an institute in Jaipur. For smooth functioning of the gun house, Rao employed Ramesh Kumar as he couldn't give sufficient time to the business.

Ramesh Kumar told him that they can earn quick money by selling cartridges illegally in the grey market. Rao agreed to the proposal and they started selling cartridges illegally to various persons to earn some quick money.

The special cell of the Delhi Police arrested Ramesh Kumar and Mishra on February 14 from the Mukundpur flyover in Delhi, which later led to the arrest of the other accused persons.
Four Sudanese journalists were arrested by local security forces on 12 February due to alleged "incitement of acts of violence, sabotage, and looting across the country". The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Sudanese Journalists Union (SJU), demand their immediate release.

The former general director of Radio and TV Public Authority, Amin Hassan Omar, was arrested in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, and was transferred to a prison located in the northern section of the city.

On the same day, journalist Khuwailid Abdel-Azim and his colleague Saleh Muhammad Ahmed were also detained in the capital city. Ahmed was previously fired from Al-Shorouk TV, according to SJU.

Journalist and social media activist Yasser Al-Attar was arrested by a police unit in the state of Gedaref, located in eastern Sudan.

The arrested journalists and media personalities are accused of inciting the violent demonstrations that happened a few weeks ago in the north of Sudan. Protesters complained of the high prices and scarcity of bread and fuel, according to media reports.

These arrests came two days after the detention of editor and owner of Alwan newspaper, Al Masaa Radio and satellite TV channel Omdurman, Hussein Khojaly, who was accused of committing "crimes against the state". He remains in a cell in the northern prison of Khartoum, despite his delicate health condition.

Omar and Khojaly are also members of the dissolved National Congress Party (NCP), the ruling party under the previous president Omar al Bashir, who was removed from power in April 2019.

SJU said in a statement: We condemn these repressive measures in the strongest terms and press the Sudanese government to release our colleagues immediately and without delay.

IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: The IFJ is deeply concerned over the increasing number of arrests of journalists for simply doing their job. We call on the Sudanese authorities to release all the imprisoned colleagues immediately."
Twenty-one years ago this week, a young Carlow businesswoman was abducted, raped and almost murdered by Larry Murphy.

The Wicklow carpenter served ten years in prison for the heinous crime.

While jailed, he emerged as a suspect for involvement in the disappearance of three other women who vanished in the Leinster area. Murphy was visited in jail several times by officers probing the missing women, all of whom are presumed murdered.

But the carpenter steadfastly refused to co-operate.

Yet detectives persevered.

And week last year, Valentine's Day, officers investigating the disappearance of Deirdre Jacob sent a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) seeking charges against the Wicklow man, now the chief suspect in the teenager's disappearance, which was upgraded to murder in 2018.

Investigating officers await a direction "any day now" on whether Ireland's most infamous rapist should be held criminally culpable for the murder of the 18-year-old trainee teacher.

"We haven't forgotten about Larry Murphy. The DPP has been considering a case against our chief suspect for exactly one year," according to a senior source.

"No news is good news. The longer the garda evidence is considered, the better a signal this is for investigators, as all aspects of the case are being fully considered."

The Wicklow carpenter is currently living in the UK.

Gardai know exactly how to find him and extradite him back to Ireland, should the DPP direct charges. "Larry Murphy is a figure of fascination for the media," added the well-placed source. "But gardai deal in facts and evidence.

"At present, Larry Murphy been convicted of just one attack on a woman. As bad an attack as is imaginable."

On February 11th 2020 when Larry Murphy committed the crime that defined his life, while almost ending that of his victim.

After he was arrested his calmness in custody disturbed gardai. He maintained composure despite insurmountable evidence.

He was charged and taken to prison on remand. At first, his wife Margaret visited him where he claimed he was innocent.

But knowing he could not beat the charge, Murphy opted to plead guilty, effectively ending his marriage.

Larry Murphy has never met his son, who his wife gave birth to a few months after her husband's arrest.

The method of the Carlow woman's rape, kidnap and attempted murder suggested to gardai that Murphy was a seasoned predator.

Operation Trace was set up by former Garda Commissioner Pat Byrne to investigate the disappearance of six women who all vanished from the Leinster area between 1993 and 1998. Its objective, aside from solving the cases, was to try and establish if a serial killer was involved.

The Wicklow carpenter has been ruled out of involvement in the cases of Ciara Breen, Fiona Pender and Fiona Sinnott.

But Operation Trace concluded that there was commonality in the cases of Annie McCarrick, Jo Jo Dullard and Deirdre Jacob.

There is circumstantial evidence linking him to the disappearances of both Jo Jo Dullard and Annie McCarrick.

He remains a suspect, sources confirm. But the evidence against him in relation to Deirdre Jacob is far stronger.

Deirdre disappeared in July 1998, as she made her way towards her home in Newbridge, Co Kildare. Murphy initially became a person of interest to detectives after it emerged he had visited the shop owned by Deirdre's grandmother.

As part of a 2017 review of the case, CCTV footage from the day of the disappearance was digitised, resulting in new witnesses.

A prisoner who implicated Murphy in Deirdre's murder has also been re-interviewed.

He maintains that Murphy confessed to the murder while they got drunk together behind bars.

On the 21st anniversary of her disappearance in 2019, Deirdre's family expressed confidence in the garda investigation.

"We have always been positive, because you have to be," said her father Michael. "If you don't hold a positive outlook, the world collapses around you."
EGLE Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate launches water leak pilot

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Feb. 18, 2021

EGLE Media Office, EGLE-Assist@Michigan.gov, 517-284-9278

Drinking water conservation effort to be launched in Benton Harbor and Highland Park

The Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) announced today that its Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate has launched a new initiative to reduce water waste in communities throughout Michigan. Called the Water Leak Pilot, the new program highlights the benefits of reducing water waste for consumers, water suppliers and the overall community.

Approximately 100 Benton Harbor residents and 100 Highland Park residents will be the first in the state to benefit from the new initiative and receive free in-home plumbing repairs.

In communities with older homes and aging water infrastructure, water leaks are very common, said Ninah Sasy, EGLEs Clean Water Public Advocate. Im happy to work with local partners to offer this free plumbing repair program to residents in Benton Harbor and Highland Park.

Water leaks can significantly increase consumer water bills and contribute to water quality concerns. They can also increase the energy consumption of municipal water suppliers thus having an impact on climate change. The Water Leak Pilot will aim to increase community awareness across the state through education, household water audits and tips on saving energy.

The Benton Harbor pilot is part of the Office of the Clean Water Public Advocates Focus on Water Initiative that brings together multi-sector partners to support community efforts and connect resources to address water concerns.

Grant funding was awarded to the following Benton Harbor community partners for the pilot effort:

The Benton Harbor Community Water Council was awarded funding to help recruit residents to participate in the Pilot

The Building Excellence in Science and Technology non-profit was awarded funding to work with students and schools to develop Public Service Announcements

The City of Benton Harbor was awarded funding to hire two part-time students to coordinate the Pilot in Benton Harbor

Grant funding was awarded to the following Highland Park community partners for the pilot effort:

The Highland Park Human Rights Coalition and the Peoples Water Board were awarded funding to help recruit residents to participate in the Pilot

Metro Consulting Associates was awarded funding to coordinate the Pilot in Highland Park

Residents in the City of Benton Harbor and Highland Park interested in participating in the Water Leak Pilot should visit Michigan.gov/WaterLeakPilot. For more information about the Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate visit Michigan.gov/CleanWater.

All Michigan communities are invited to partner with the Office during Fix-a-Leak Week to promote the importance of addressing water leaks. For more information, visit Michigan.gov/FixaLeakWeek.

Additional resources will be available to Michigan communities through the Office of the Clean Water Public Advocate in support of Gov. Whitmers MI Clean Water Plan to invest $500 million in federal dollars, state bonding authority, and existing state revenues to create a comprehensive, statewide water infrastructure program.

# # #
Funds raised will used to advance a scoping study at the Chinook project and complete permitting work for the re-start of the Tent Mountain Mine.

The placement was strongly supported by new and existing investors.

( ) has raised A$5.2 million in a share placement to sophisticated or professional investors at A$0.17 per share to advance its coking coal projects in Canada.

The company has a portfolio of hard coking coal (steelmaking coal) projects in western Canadas Crowsnest Pass region including the Tent Mountain Mine re-start project, the Chinook Project and greenfield exploration projects.

Montem intends to use placement funds to advance the Chinook scoping study and complete the permitting for the re-start of the Tent Mountain Mine.

Delighted with support

Montem managing director and CEO Peter Doyle said: We are delighted with the support for the placement and welcome a number of highly credentialed institutional investors to the register.

On behalf of the board, I also thank our existing shareholders for their ongoing support.

The placement provides financial strength and positions the company to advance its two hard coking coal projects.

These projects lie within category 4 land of the 1976 Coal Development Policy for Alberta, which allows for surface mining subject to the normal permitting process.

A clear signal

Doyle said: The company is fortunate to have an exciting portfolio of hard coking coal assets, with both Tent Mountain and Chinook located on favourable Category 4 land.

The placement affirms our belief in the potential of our projects and provides a clear signal that the investment community understands the opportunity and differentiation Montem presents in the region.

To submit licence application

The company is on track to submit a mining licence application and permit amendments for the Tent Mountain Mine in mid-2021 providing near-term production, with the restart of production targeted for early 2023.

Montem will also advance the potential world-class Chinook Project, which the recent scoping study indicated as an economic and technically viable project with upside, justifying progression to the pre-feasibility study stage.

Placement details

The company has issued 30,394,021 new shares to raise $5,166,984 at 17 cents per share through the placement, which was strongly supported by new and existing investors, and several new Australian and offshore institutional investors join Montems register.

Petra Capital Pty Limited acted as sole lead manager and sole book-runner to the placement.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-17 00:40:21|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Five people were killed in a road accident in western Kenya on Tuesday, the police confirmed.

Rarieda Sub-County police commander Evelyn Cherotich said the incident involved a commuter minibus locally known as matatu and a truck which were travelling in different directions before colliding a head-on.

"Those injured have been rushed to hospital. We have launched investigations to establish the cause of the accident," Cherotich said on the phone.

A local resident said the truck was heading towards the city of Kisumu and tried to overtake another vehicle when it hit the oncoming matatu.

The incident comes barely a week after 12 people were killed along a busy highway in northwest Kenya.

Kenya's road safety enforcers have blamed increased road fatalities on overspeeding and drunk driving.

An estimated 3,000 Kenyans die in road accidents annually despite concerted efforts by the state and the private sector to promote safety on the highways, according to the National Transport and Safety Authority. Enditem
THE Newcastle West Municipal District continues to have the third-lowest incidence rate of Covid-19 in the country, new figures have confirmed.

According to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, just 13 confirmed cases of the disease were recorded between February 2 and February 15 - giving a 14-day incidence rate of 47.4 (per 100,000 population) - less than a fifth of the overall national rate of 269.3.

The latest data published this Thursday, shows the rate of infection in all areas of the city and county continues to decline following the peak of cases over the Christmas and New Year period.

The highest incidence rate in Limerick, between February 2 and February 15, was in the Limerick City East LEA where 143 cases of the disease were reported.

It's understood a significant number of cases may be linked to an outbreak among students attending the University of Limerick.

The incidence rates, as of February 16, for the six LEAs in Limerick are.

Limerick City East: 404.6 (143 new cases) [498 the previous week]

404.6 (143 new cases) [498 the previous week] Limerick City West: 275.1 (96 new cases) [289.4 the previous week]

275.1 (96 new cases) [289.4 the previous week] Adare/Rathkeale: 274.3 (76 new cases) [375.3 the previous week]

274.3 (76 new cases) [375.3 the previous week] Limerick City North: 227.6 (79 new cases) [242 the previous week]

227.6 (79 new cases) [242 the previous week] Cappamore/Kilmallock: 186.7 (65 new cases) [307.3 the previous week]

186.7 (65 new cases) [307.3 the previous week] Newcastle West: 47.4 (13 new cases) [76.6 the previous week]

Nationally, the latest data shows the highest rates of infection, between February 2 and February 15, were in Galway City Central, Galway (951.2); Ballymun/Finglas, Dublin (819.9); Blanchardstown/Mulhuddart, Dublin (606.1); Galway City East, Galway (579.1) and Tullamore, Offaly (538.4).

Earlier tonight, 49 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in Limerick by the Department of Health.


Sofia Vergara proved she could making any outing a fashionable one while out in Beverly Hills on Thursday.

The Modern Family actress, 48, was the image of casual elegance as she ran errands wearing a chic denim look.

A black and grey tie-dyed sweatshirt with ripped jeans looked effortless while stacked platform heels added a flirty touch.

Effortless: Sofia Vergara was the epitome of casual chic while out in Beverly Hills on Thursday

Exuding pure glamour, she wore her caramel tresses straight, shiny and smooth. Her glowing face was hidden by a gray face mask.

While her outfit was lovely, it was the Colombian stunner's accessories that really stood out.

Sofia proved she was an excellent ambassador as she threw one of Dolce & Gabbana's Devotion bags over one shoulder.

The gorgeous purse - which retails for $2495 online - featured detailed embroidery stitched into soft quilted nappa leather and adorned with a jeweled heart-shaped clasp and gold chain.

Finishing her look, she wore a diamond heart necklace, round earrings. and several sparkling rings.

Balancing act: The Modern Family actress, 48, ran errands wearing distressed jeans with platform heels for some stylish contrast

Luxury item: Sofia proved she was an excellent ambassador as she threw one of Dolce & Gabbana's $2500 Devotion bags over one shoulder

The beauty's outing comes after news she'll be joining the slew of celebrities with their own beauty brand.

News of the new, yet-to-be-named venture was announced via WWD on Tuesday.

She'll be partnering with Spain's Cantabria Labs, entrepreneur Luis Balaguer, and former president of Kiehl's, Chris Salgardo to bring the project to life.

According to Juan Matji of Catabria Labs, the line will be 'offering the consumer a new generation of smart products and solutions for skin care, beauty and health that we expect to be a success in the United States.'

True beauty: Sofia's outing comes after news she's starting her own beauty brand with Spain's Cantabria Labs, entrepreneur Luis Balaguer, and former president of Kiehl's, Chris Salgardo

Vergara said she was thrilled to be working with Salgardo, someone with so much experience and respect in the industry.

'Throughout his career, Chris has proven himself to be one of the beauty industry's most influential voices and leaders,' Vergara said in a statement to WWD. 'His creativity, authenticity and track record for success make him an invaluable partner, and I am so excited to work with him and Cantabria Labs in this new endeavor.'

Vergara already has a few beauty ventures. She's the face of four fragrances and is also a spokesperson for Head & Shoulders shampoo in addition to previously appearing in CoverGirl commercials.
Mandatory Credit: Photo by AP/REX/Shutterstock (8871167z)Members of Britain's Royal family from left, Camilla, Camilla Duchess of Cornwall, Prince Charles, Princess Eugenie, Queen Elizabeth II, background Tim Laurence, Princess Beatrice, Prince Philip, Kate, Catherine Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Charlotte, Prince George and Prince William watch a fly past as they appear on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, after attending the annual Trooping the Colour Ceremony in LondonBritain Royals, London, United Kingdom - 17 Jun 2017.

For centuries, Parliament has held most of the official power in the United Kingdom, but Britains first family still reigns. Never is that more apparent than when one of the family members celebrates a milestone, such as a royal wedding or a birthday.

Related: Heres How the British Royal Family Spends Their Money

With the fourth installment of Netflixs The Crown being released in just two days  this season features both Margaret Thatcher and Princess Diana  the Windsors names will soon be a topic of conversation once again.

Take a closer look at how much the British royals are worth  and how theyre spending some of that money.

Last updated: Feb. 17, 2021

Mandatory Credit: Photo by REX/Shutterstock (9912877c)Meghan Duchess of Sussex arrives at University of ChichesterPrince Harry and Meghan Duchess of Sussex visit to Sussex, UK - 03 Oct 2018.

Meghan Markle: $10 Million

Although Prince Harry and Meghan Markle no longer formally represent the Queen and will no longer use their official titles, family is still family. Markle joined the family when she tied the knot with Prince Harry in May 2018. The former Suits actress is worth about $10 million, although she and her husband share a combined net worth of $50 million  which is just a bit more than their their royal wedding cost.

Read: Meghan Markle and More Americans Made Royal by Marriage

Camilla Parker Bowles: $5 Million

Married to Prince Charles since April 2005  with reportedly no prenuptial agreement  Camilla Parker Bowles is formally known as Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall. Parker Bowles is said to be a kind, humble person who carries her own money.

She spends most of her time doing charity work dedicated to a variety of causes, including health and well-being, literacy promotion, helping the less fortunate, Cornwall-based charities, heritage and the arts, animal welfare, sexual assault and cancer.

Check Out: This Is How Much It Costs To Travel Like the Royal Family

Mandatory Credit: Photo by REX/Shutterstock (9927728dp)Princess BeatriceThe wedding of Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank, Pre-Ceremony, Windsor, Berkshire, UK - 12 Oct 2018.

Princess Beatrice: $10 Million

Princess Beatrice works full time in business and contributes much of her time and efforts to a variety of causes, such as the Berkshire Community Foundation, Broomwood African Education Foundation, English National Ballet School and the Forget Me Not Childrens Hospice.

Save Up: Americans Savings Drop to Lowest Point in Years

Mandatory Credit: Photo by REX/Shutterstock (9927742ak)Princess EugenieThe wedding of Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank, Ceremony, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, Berkshire, UK - 12 Oct 2018.

Princess Eugenie: $10 Million

Princess Eugenie tied the knot with her husband Jack Brooksbank at St. Georges Chapel in Windsor Castle on Oct. 12, 2018. Brooksbank is the European manager for Casamigos Tequila, according to Town & Country. Her wealth is rumored to be held in trust funds set up by her grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and her great-grandmother, the Queen Mother, as well as a trust set up by her divorced parents, Prince Andrew, Duke of York, and Sarah Fergie Ferguson.

Eugenies net worth is estimated to be around $10 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. Unlike other royalty, some of this might come from Eugenies own earnings. She holds degrees in art history and English literature and currently works in London as an associate director at an art gallery.

Find Out: Biden Wants to Shut Down Credit Bureaus  What Would That Mean for You?

Kate Middleton: $10 Million

Its only a fraction of the British royal family net worth, but Kate Middletons entrepreneurial family has an estimated fortune of $5 million thanks to their company Party Pieces. Now the mother of Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, its unknown how much  if any  of her net worth comes from the Middleton family, but her grounded nature and enviable fashion sense have turned her into a beloved international superstar.

Prince Charles covers her staff, travel and official wardrobe expenses. Some of her other travel costs are often funded by the countries she visits, allowing her to keep more of her own money in the bank.

Find Out: These Are the 12 Richest Princesses in the World

Prince Philip: $30 Million

Prince Philip has been married to Queen Elizabeth II since November 1947. Due to long-established rules and regulations set by the monarchy, he never took on the title of king, but royalty is in his blood. Born Prince Philip of Greece, his father was Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark and his mother was Princess Alice of Battenburg.

A fourth cousin of his wife, Prince Phillip served in the British Royal Navy from 1939 to 1953. Also an accomplished pilot, he earned his Royal Airforce Wings in 1953 and garnered more than 5,900 flight hours over a 44-year span.

Bad Credit: 30 Things You Do That Can Mess Up Your Credit Score

Prince Harry: $40 Million

Now removed from official royal duties, Prince Harry retired from his 10-year British Army career in 2015. Prior to his departure from the service, he was a captain in the Army Air Corps with an approximate annual salary of $45,000.

His royal net worth saw a significant increase following his 30th birthday in September 2014, when he received an estimated $12.3 million inheritance from the estate of his late mother, Princess Diana.

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prince

Prince William: $40 Million

A large portion of the future King of Englands net worth comes from a roughly $12.3 million inheritance, received from the estate of his late mother, Princess Diana, on his 30th birthday in 2012.

Despite his British royal family net worth, Prince William worked as a helicopter pilot for East Anglian Air Ambulance. He donated his entire $62,000 annual salary to charity  the prince now works full time as a royal.

Find Out: How Do Your Stimulus Payments Affect Your Taxes?

prince charles

Prince Charles: $100 Million

The next in line to the English throne, Prince Charles reigns over much of the British royal family net worth. His total assets have reached an all-time high of nearly $1.3 billion.

Charles earnings are mainly due to the Duchy of Cornwall, a massive real estate portfolio he doesnt own but receives all income from as the Duke of Cornwall. It paid him more than $20 million for the year ending March 31, 2018, according to its annual report.

A responsible royal, Prince Charles voluntarily pays income tax on his Duchy earnings.

Read: Heres How Much Teachers Make in Every State

queen elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II: $600 Million

One of the richest, most powerful women in the world, the bulk of the royal familys reported $88 billion net worth comes from Queen Elizabeth II. Her private real estate portfolio includes the prestigious historic buildings Sandringham House and Balmoral Castle. The properties are valued at $65 million and $140 million, respectively, according to Forbes. Her Majesty also owns agricultural land and horse farms throughout England and has also acquired valuable property in London.

As the Queen of England, she receives 15% of the Crown Estate income  The Sovereign Grant  to fund official functions and all income from the Duchy of Lancaster, despite not having an ownership stake in either.

More From GOBankingRates

Sean Dennison contributed to the reporting for this article.

All net worth figures are according to Celebrity Net Worth unless otherwise noted.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: How Rich Are Queen Elizabeth and the Rest of the British Royal Family?
A woman had to endure three hours inside a bus next to a male stranger flashing his genitalia while traveling from Busan to Jeonju in January. Korea Times file



By Ko Dong-hwan



A woman who had to endure three hours on a bus sitting next to a pervert said she is still traumatized by the experience even after a month.



The woman, whose name and age are being withheld, has been seeing a psychiatrist and taking medication, according to the local Chosun Ilbo daily, but the trauma from the Jan. 23 incident hasn't been mitigated. She said she sometimes retches even thinking about it.



She was on a bus in Busan that was leaving for Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, at about 10 a.m. A man got in about five minutes after her and sat at the window seat next to her. There were no empty seats.



The nightmare trip began when she heard the announcement to fasten her seatbelt. As she fastened hers, she saw the man unzipping his pants and taking out his genitalia. She was shocked, but did not show any reaction, fearing that he would harm her.



When the bus reached a rest stop about halfway to Jeonju, she got off the bus and waited, trying to change her seat when she got back on. But she couldn't because there were no empty seats. She took her seat next to him again, and he continued exposing himself.



She entered a message in her mobile device and handed it to a person behind her while hoping the pervert wouldn't notice. The person behind her took the phone and saw what she wrote: "the man next to me is flashing and I want to record proof but I am too afraid. Please do it for me."



The plan worked and she received back the phone with a video record of the man. Then she texted police to report what was happening.



The pervert didn't stop until the end of the trip in Jeonju, where police officers were waiting for him at the city bus terminal.



She said she couldn't leave her seat for a while after the bus arrived because she couldn't feel her legs.



After the police charged him with public indecency and sent the case to the prosecution on Feb. 3, she said she was disappointed because she expected he would get at least a sexual harassment charge.



"It wasn't merely public indecency because his misconduct directly targeted me," she said.



She cited another case she heard about recently, in which a different man who had exposed himself behind a female high school student sitting at a bus stop was charged with sexual harassment. She said the same punishment must be doled out to her harasser.



The woman also said police didn't accept her request for protection following the incident because they believed he wouldn't harm her since he didn't know her personally. However, officers said she made no such request.


Both Russia and the United States are advertising new strategies for dealing with Central Asia, but each is deficient in its own way. While Russia seeks to exclude Afghanistan from its vision of Central Asia, the U.S. explicitly and wisely incorporates Afghanistan as organic to its vision. Neither vision links Central Asia strategically to a larger Eurasian concept that embraces the South Caucasus. To the contrary, both explicitly (the Russian version) or implicitly (the American version) isolate Central Asia geopolitically from the larger emerging political, economic, and security dynamics that Central Asians themselves seek to encourage to establish their region as the connective tissue between Asia and Europe.

BACKGROUND: Central Asia has featured in no ones strategies for decades, yet recently both Russia and the United States have apparently become aware that the Central Asian states should be an elemental part of their geopolitical visions for Eurasia.

Long-time students of Central Asia are unlikely to find anything new or novel in Russias strategy, which is described by this Bishkek based Russian-language publication. For the most part, the strategy repackages the conventional ingredients of familiar formulae. Its significance is not in what it advocates or promises, but that it appeared at all. The Russian initiative unambiguously targets a new U.S. strategy for influencing the geopolitics of this part of Eurasia. Like the Russian variant, the U.S. strategy says little about the objectives of the competition or its dynamics, with one major exception, noted below, although in the American strategy the word democracy is mentioned five times, and human rights four times, while in the joint Russian-Central Asian document these concepts do not appear at all. No surprises here.

Like the Russian document, the articulated American strategy is significant for filling what has been a vacuum in American policymakers thinking about the importance of Central Asias emergence at the center of Eurasias larger competitive landscape. These unprecedented dueling strategies thus thrust the competition for Central Asia boldly into the open. In the future, the contestants will have to be more transparent about their objectives in the region and the means by which they choose to achieve them.

IMPLICATIONS: Each of the dueling strategies reveals a contradiction or omission that threatens its success.

The Russian strategy to pull the Central Asian countries into its various organizationsCSTO, EAEU, CISand from these platforms speak more often from a consolidated position appears to be ceding ground to Central Asian realities, which feature self-assertiveness by big players like Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the growing presence of Chinese investment, and Russias declining clout. But this nod to reality stumbles over Afghanistan.

The Russian strategy treats Afghanistan not just as an outlier in Central Asia but as a threat. To stop the threats emanating from Afghanistan, Russia offers the countries of the five more active assistance in the fight against terrorism, drug trafficking and arms smuggling. Also, the strategy speaks about plans to strengthen cooperation in the fight against cyber-threats. One senses a good dose of recent history in this attitude, passed through a thoroughly Soviet planning prism that sees only five former colonies with hard borders: a kind of geopolitical constipation that the post-Soviet world could not relieve.

By contrast, the U.S intention is to reattach Afghanistan strategically to any vision of or for Central Asia  that is, to treat Central Asia as a geopolitically coherent whole. This is novel and startling, given Americas own recent history in Afghanistan. In the past, it is chiefly the American Foreign Policy Councils Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, and its CAMCA network in cooperation with the Rumsfeld Foundation, that has assumed Afghanistans organic connection to the rest of Central Asia as part of its intellectual and operational foundation.

It will be fascinating to watch this play out: the Russians trying to keep Afghanistan at arms length, while most Central Asians seek to bring Afghanistan into a comprehensive and coherent Central Asian family. With Afghanistan outside their vision and imagination, Russians will quickly compromise their efforts to consolidate a Central Asia that is favorable to them. But look for them to find as many ways as possible to underline Afghanistans culpability for their former colonies ills, perhaps even by stoking them.

Russians and Americans, however, both come up short on what should be a key part of strategies to advance their respective and competing interests across Eurasia: a link to the South Caucasus. More pointedly, neither appears to have one.

As with Russias treatment of Afghanistan vis-a-vis its vision of a consolidated Central Asia, the Caucasus threatens this consolidation from another direction, as this revealing swipe demonstrates: According to the interlocutors of the publication in the state structures of the Russian Federation, the Americans surrounded Russia with a network of laboratories in order to study the impact of certain types of biological weapons on the local population. That accusation is clearly aimed at Georgias Richard G. Lugar Center for Public Health Research, the leading biological research institution in its region dedicated to solving the COVID-19 pandemic and other persistent public health issues. The center has become the cause of some amusing Russian media gymnastics. They describe the Lugar Center as the nucleus of a conspiracy to conduct biological weapons research aimed at Russia. It is according to Russian conspiracists a nest of viruses, that it tests illegally on Georgian citizens, and which is responsible for diverse virus outbreaks, including Ebola, and probably even the toxins used in England on former Russian intelligence agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.

This is but one canard reflecting Russias resistance to any linking of common interests between the South Caucasus and Central Asia. Russia is pushing for isolating the more limited Eurasia it knows and wants, even as energy pipelines, new trade routes, Chinas Belt and Road initiative, and countless other connections demonstrate Central Asias central position as an essential part of the connective tissue of the larger Eurasia that links China via the South Caucasus and the Black Sea to Europe.

For their part, American strategists might see Russias short-sightedness regarding the South Caucasus as offering yawning opportunities for enlightened American strategy toward the region, but this is surely wishful thinking. No American strategy suggesting any understanding of either the organic strategic link between the South Caucasus and Central Asia or its influence on other areas of U.S. interest is detectable. The State Departments slow and quickly subverted response to the Karabakh crisis, punctuated by the American Secretary of States comments revealing his confusion, is the most recent indicator that it has no strategic plan in place. Failure to advance Georgias well-earned claim to full NATO membership against the persistent objections of the European Unions foreign affairs technocrats is another. A lack of a geopolitical vision that connects these intersecting political, economic, and security lines on the increasingly vibrant Eurasian landscape is a powerful barrier to the United States advancing its interests across this realigning continent.

CONCLUSIONS: As noted, American strategists should see opportunities to advance U.S. interests across Central Asia, with its multiple connections in all directions, by including Afghanistan within the larger geopolitical concept of that region. Russian strategy will suffer for failing to do so. Moreover, because of its imperative to define Afghanistan and the South Caucasus as the antitheses of its vision of geopolitical unity across Central Asia, Russia incentivizes itself to contribute to the isolation and instability in both regions. This will not sit well with the leaders of increasingly dynamic and engaged states like Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and even Turkmenistan, which see their attachments to the larger geopolitical firmament as running through a more unified Central Asia in which Afghanistan is an essential player and where the South Caucasus is increasingly their link to significant parts of the global economy.

But the absence of any American strategy that understands the synergies between Central Asia and the South Caucasus will in the longer term miss the larger and more important opportunity to connect the strategic dots across Eurasias political, economic, and security landscape that these Russian idiosyncrasies create. If the next U.S. administration turns a blind eye to the larger Eurasian geopolitical tapestry as so many administrations have done before ita fully imaginable scenariothese obvious connections, and the opportunities to advance U.S. interests while thwarting the interests of those who oppose them, will remain unrealized.

It is unlikely that the U.S. can have a workable strategy for Central Asia without a converging strategy for the South Caucasus, but this may be too much to ask of Americas lethargic strategic planning machinery, which too often suffers from paralyzing regionalization.

AUTHOR'S BIO:

S. Enders Wimbush is a founder and partner at StrateVarious Global Strategy, and a Distinguished Fellow for Strategic Studies at the American Foreign Policy Council and the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute. He has a long career in strategy, national security consulting, and strategic communications. From 20102012, he served as a governor of the U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors, building on his experience as Director of Radio Liberty from 19871993. Mr. Wimbush has held senior executive positions with the German Marshall Fund of the United States and Hudson Institute, where he managed foreign policy portfolios, as well as directing projects to study future security environments at Booz Allen Hamilton and Science Applications International Corporation. Wimbush founded and directed the Society for Central Asian Studies in Oxford, England and served as senior analyst of Soviet affairs at the Rand Corporation.

Image Source: United States Department of State via Flickr. Accessed 2.18.2021


Artificial Intelligence and Traditional Knowhow Saving Sea Turtle Eggs

Indigenous rangers and scientists utilising Artificial Intelligence (AI) to protect endangered sea turtles along the west coast of Queenslands Cape York from predators have found that it is playing a vital role in stabilising the ecosystem.

CSIRO research scientist Dr Justin Perry, the project leader, is combining cloud and AI technology with traditional knowledge of the land to monitor the nesting grounds of endangered sea turtles. The project is a National Environmental Science Program (NESP) collaboration between CSIRO, Aak Puul Ngantam (APN) Cape York Indigenous Rangers and Microsoft.

Three of the seven marine turtle species, the Hawksbill, the Flatback and the Olive Ridley, nest on the west coast of Cape York in Northern Queensland and can lay up to 100 eggs in the sand at a time. After the eggs are laid, the mother will return to the sea, leaving the eggs and the potential hatchlings to survive on their own. But feral pigs, introduced by the early European settlers, pose a large threat to these turtle species survival as they eat all the laid eggs.

Biodiversity and fire program manager at Cape York Natural Resource Management, Kerri Woodcock says the project is crucial to the turtle species survival. Without intervention, there can be zero survival of the baby turtles, Woodcock says.

But monitoring the vast and remote regions is difficult and time-consuming with rangers often arriving too late to save the eggs.

The eggs are most vulnerable during the first few days they are laid as the mothers tracks are still visible to the predators and the scent of the eggs are still strong.

A sign marking a sea turtle nest is seen on the beach on January 14, 2012 at Lady Elliot Island, Australia. (Kolbe/Getty Images)

Now scientists and indigenous rangers are using drones to photograph the 100 km (62 miles) stretch of remote beach, allowing them to detect areas of interest quickly.

The footage is uploaded to the Azure cloud service where Microsoft AI begins its automated analysis to locate nesting grounds and predator tracks. The AI uses algorithms that can detect predators and objects and classify terrain with over 90 percent accuracy. This real-time, on the ground monitoring, enables rangers to act more quickly to protect the nests and deter predators.

We can now monitor twice the length of the coastline in two hours instead of a month, said Perry. This work has seen 20,000 hatchlings make it to the ocean every season. An entire ecosystem is being stabilised. New technology, like AI, is playing a vital role to bring turtles back from the brink of extinction.

Minister for Environment, the Hon. Sussan Ley has expressed support for the combined approach of traditional knowledge and modern technology to tackle the environmental problems.

This project is just one of many examples of how the Australian governments $294 million National Environmental Science Program is continuing to support science-based solutions to environmental issues, Ley said.

A German prince is suing his 'ungrateful' son for selling the family's run-down castle he inherited to the government for one euro.

Prince Ernst August, head of the House of Hanover and a distant cousin of the Queen, accused his son of 'going behind his back' in court papers filed this week.

The 66-year-old - whose wife Caroline, 63, is the eldest daughter of the Prince of Monaco Rainier III - transferred Marienburg castle and the neighbouring Calenburg estate to his son - also called Ernst August - in the mid-2000s.

The Duke of Braunschweig and Luneberg, 37, then flogged the land and in 2018 announced that Marienburg would be sold to the government for a nominal fee.

This may have been more economic than benevolent: the castle required renovations estimated at more than 23 million and had been costing a fortune to keep open to 200,000 visitors each year.

Ernst August, prince of Hanover is suing his son - also called Ernst August - years after he transferred Marienburg castle (pictured) to him. The son has since sold it to the German government for a symbolic 1 due to the high upkeep costs

Ernst August, prince of Hanover (left) is suing his son - the younger Ernst August, the Duke of Braunschweig and Luneberg - after his sold off the family's property, art and artefacts

The younger Ernst said it marked an 'historic turning point' for the family and would help preserve the Gothic palace for the public.

The Bundestag - Germany's federal parliament - has already voted in favour of contributing 12 million towards the renovations, while around 100 paintings and other artefacts from the castle have been handed to Hanover's state museum.

These were worth a total of 2 million, while a further 5 million worth of treasures have been given to an art foundation.

In court papers filed in Hanover, Prince Ernst seeks to regain the properties and accuses his son of 'gravely violating the rights, legal entitlements and interests.'

It further accuses the son of illegally appropriating some of the family's paintings, sculptures and antique coaches from a library and a museum, The Times reported.

Prince Ernst also alleged that he has been cut off and left to live in an Austrian 'forest lodge' without financial help despite illness.

The younger Ernst said his father's claims were without merit and was confident they would be dismissed.

'All the arguments in this lawsuit have already been refuted in an out-of-court settlement,' the duke told German newspaper Der Spiegel.

'Against this background we are relaxed about any dispute in court.'

The Hanoverians trace their lineage to the Welfs, also known as the Guelphs, who were once one of the foremost medieval dynasties in Europe.

The ruled over large swathes of what became southern Germany and northern Italy, including Tuscany, Bavaria and Saxony.

Later, they were the electors and kings of Hanover and ruled Britain and Ireland from when George I ascended to the throne in 1714 to the start of Queen Victoria's reign in 1837, at which point the personal union with the United Kingdom ended.

In 1866 they lost their last German royal title, but held on to a large portfolio of properties, with the 135-room Marienburg castle near Hanover, built in 1867, being the best-known property under their stewardship.

The castle was built between 1858 and 1867 as a birthday present by King George V of Hanover (reigned 18511866) to his wife, Marie of Saxe-Altenburg.

It has been likened to the famous Neuschwanstein castle in Bavaria, which was built two years later in 1869, which famously served as the inspiration for Disneyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle.
Earlybird Digital East Fund  a fund associated with Germanys Earlybird VC, but operating separately  has launched a 200 million ($242 million) successor fund. The funds focus will remain the same as before: a seed and Series-A fund focusing on whats known as "Emerging Europe"; in other words, countries stretching from the Baltics to Central and Eastern Europe, and Turkey. The firm has also promoted Mehmet Atici, whos been with the firm for eight years, to partner. The new fund has made four investments so far: FintechOS, Payhawk, Picus and Binalyze.

The back-story to DEF is a fascinating tale of what has happened to Europe in the last 15 years, as tech took off and Europeans returned from Silicon Valley.

Following his exit from SelectMinds (where he was the founder & CEO) in 2005, Cem Sertoglu moved back to Turkey. Although he says he accidentally became the first angel investor there, he was clearly the right man in the right place at the right time. He told me: I was very lucky and ended up writing the first checks in some of the first large outcomes in Turkey.

In 2013, Sertoglu partnered with Evren Ucok (the first angel in Peak Games and Trendyol), and Roland Manger (Earlybird). Dan Lupu, a Romanian investor who had covered the region for Intel Capital, joined them, and together they raised the Earlybird Digital East Fund I ($150 million) in 2014, focusing on CEE and Turkey. This was and is an area where there can be high-quality ventures to be found, but very little in the way of VC.

Thereafter, between 2014 and 2019, the fund invested in UiPath, Hazelcast and Obilet. UiPath has become a global leader in the area known as Robotic Process Automation (RPA). Hazelcast is a low latency data processing platform startup with Turkish roots. Obilet is a marketplace focused for the massive Turkish intercity bus travel market. DEF has also exited Vivense, Dolap and EMbonds, and, in more recent times, the fund has exited Vivense, the "Wayfair of Turkey" to Actera, the top local PE fund.

Story continues

The team had spectacular early success. Peak Games, Trendyol, Yemeksepeti and GittiGidiyor are the four largest Turkish tech exits to date. Digital East Fund was an investor in all of them. Peak Games exited for $1.8 billion in cash to Zynga only last year.

As of Q4 2020, the funds metrics are:

Investment Multiple: 24.9x

Gross IRR: 104.4%

Net IRR: 84.1%

So in VC terms, they have done pretty well.

I interviewed Sertoglu to unpack the story of Earlybird Digital East Fund.

He told me DEF has achieved a 17x investment multiple on a $150 million fund. He thinks this might be the biggest European VC fund performance in history, and it's not coming from Berlin, it's not coming from London, but it's coming from Eastern Europe. We have been told by some of our LPs that they think we're the top 2014 vintage VC fund in the world, nobody's seen stronger numbers than this.

Peak Games turned out to be a phenomenal story. When you look at how tough it's been for Turkey, macroeconomically. The fact that a single company with 100 people essentially sold for $1.8 billion in cash, was just it was staggering for the local market here.

DEFs emergence from Turkey, together with its relationship with a fund in Berlin, was not the most obvious path for the VC fund.

One thing we realized early on was that we could invest with our own capital and syndicating to our friends, but for follow-on funding, we'd always have to go global. And that made us feel vulnerable. It made us feel we were always dependent on others comprehension of the opportunity that we were facing. So that's when the first fund idea came out, said Sertoglu.

We felt that there was this unusual dislocation between opportunity and capital in Eastern Europe. Our first fund was $150 million -- I mean, a very quaint size compared to Western markets. But we became the largest fund in the region, and decided to focus on this Series A gap where we felt that there was this big opportunity, because of the way we think Series A is still very much a local play.

Being a local player that understands the region would be an advantage, so this was proven to be true. We could essentially see pretty much everything in Eastern Europe for the last eight years. And we caught the biggest one, fortunately, which was UiPath. I think very few funds around the world can say that they see the majority if not all of the opportunities that fall into their mandate, he said.

We have this dual strategy of backing local champions as well as contenders for global markets as well. Twenty years ago you had to be in Silicon Valley. Now, TransferWise comes out of Estonia, UiPath comes out of Romania. And that was even before the pandemic.

Sertoglu concluded: "So we now have fresh capital, coming on the heels of a very successful first fund, which we're keen to deploy. We're calling all the opportunities, seeing very ambitious, strong teams coming out of the region. And we have 200 million to focus on these types of opportunities in the region.
PITTSBURGH--"The Queen's Gambit," the recent TV mini-series about a chess master, may have stirred increased interest in chess, but a word to the wise: social media talk about game-piece colors could lead to misunderstandings, at least for hate-speech detection software.

That's what a pair of Carnegie Mellon University researchers suspect happened to Antonio Radi?, or "agadmator," a Croatian chess player who hosts a popular YouTube channel. Last June, his account was blocked for "harmful and dangerous" content.

YouTube never provided an explanation and reinstated the channel within 24 hours, said Ashiqur R. KhudaBukhsh a project scientist in CMU's Language Technologies Institute (LTI). It's nevertheless possible that "black vs. white" talk during Radi?'s interview with Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura triggered software that automatically detects racist language, he suggested.

"We don't know what tools YouTube uses, but if they rely on artificial intelligence to detect racist language, this kind of accident can happen," KhudaBukhsh said. And if it happened publicly to someone as high-profile as Radi?, it may well be happening quietly to lots of other people who are not so well known.

To see if this was feasible, KhudaBukhsh and Rupak Sarkar, an LTI course research engineer, tested two state-of-the-art speech classifiers -- a type of AI software that can be trained to detect indications of hate speech. They used the classifiers to screen more than 680,000 comments gathered from five popular chess-focused YouTube channels.

They then randomly sampled 1,000 comments that at least one of the classifiers had flagged as hate speech. When they manually reviewed those comments, they found that the vast majority -- 82% -- did not include hate speech. Words such as black, white, attack and threat seemed to be triggers, they said.

As with other AI programs that depend on machine learning, these classifiers are trained with large numbers of examples and their accuracy can vary depending on the set of examples used.

For instance, KhudaBukhsh recalled an exercise he encountered as a student, in which the goal was to identify "lazy dogs" and "active dogs" in a set of photos. Many of the training photos of active dogs showed broad expanses of grass because running dogs often were in the distance. As a result, the program sometimes identified photos containing large amounts of grass as examples of active dogs, even if the photos didn't include any dogs.

In the case of chess, many of the training data sets likely include few examples of chess talk, leading to misclassification, he noted.

###

The research paper by KhudaBukhsh and Sarkar, a recent graduate of Kalyani Government Engineering College in India, won the Best Student Abstract Three-Minute Presentation this month at the Association for the Advancement of AI annual conference.
Warner wants answers on Florida water utility hack

The chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence wants more information from the FBI and the Environmental Protection Agency about the recent cybersecurity breach at a Florida water utility.

Hackers took control of a computer at a water treatment plant in Oldsmar, Fla., and changed chemical controls to dump excessive amounts of lye into the drinking water. Plant personnel watched the intruder change the chemical levels and corrected the issue even before the systems software flagged the change and alerted staff.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency suggested in a Feb. 11 advisory notice hackers were able to gain control of the facility through a remote desktop sharing application and exploiting vulnerabilities in the Windows 7 operating system, which Microsoft has stopped supporting.

"This incident has implications beyond the 15,000-person town of Oldsmar," Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) wrote in a letter to top officials at both agencies. "While the Oldsmar water treatment facility incident was detected with sufficient time to mitigate serious risks to the citizens of Oldsmar future compromises of this nature may not be detected in time."

The senator is asking the FBI to update the investigation's progress and the EPA to review whether the treatment facility was compliant with the "most recent Water and Wastewater Sector-Specific Plan" as well as whether that plan needs to be updated.

The plan Warner is referring was created by the Department of Homeland Security and the Environmental Protection Agency in 2015 to outline the oversight of public water utilities and provide a blueprint for how they can strengthen their physical and cyber infrastructure.

Warner wants the agencies to confirm the government is "sharing timely threat information related to this incident with water and wastewater facilities, and other critical infrastructure providers across the United States," according to the letter.

The senator's letter also points out the attack highlights "broader security weaknesses" within the industrial control systems used by public utilities and the government in general.

Bryson Bort, a cybersecurity fellow at the R Street Institute, said the problem of government systems using outdated operating systems, like the Oldsmar facility did, is probably "widespread."

Industrial control systems are "built for a long operational lifecycle and the devices and software were developed on the [operating system] that was available at the time. As an OS goes end of life/unsupported, there is oftentimes no way to even provide an upgrade or a patch," Bort said.

This article was first posted to FCW, a sibling site to GCN.

WASHINGTON - The District of Columbia announced Thursday that it will offer coronavirus vaccines to people 16 or older with serious health problems, beginning March 1.

Residents who have conditions such as cancer, diabetes or kidney or liver disease can seek a vaccine through their doctor or through the city's public registration system. Doses remain in short supply, and this new group of patients - representing more than a quarter of adults in the city - will compete for appointments with seniors and an increasingly large pool of eligible essential workers.

The announcement from Health Director LaQuandra Nesbitt represents a change in the city's plans for vaccinating people whose health puts them at additional risk from the virus, following criticism from the public.

Earlier, Nesbitt had said she was considering opening appointments first to people over 50 with health complications, then to younger sick people. Younger adults with serious conditions - including those with cancer or who are permanently disabled - argued in testimony at a D.C. Council hearing, in letters to city leaders and in the news media that they were equally or more endangered by the virus than some older people with less-serious illnesses who qualify before them.

Ankoor Shah, a pediatrician who is running the city's vaccine program, said at a council meeting Wednesday that the stories from these young people "tug at my heart." On Thursday, Nesbitt said the city's scientific advisory committee decided not to sort this group by age, in part because many patients with HIV and sickle-cell anemia do not live to 50. They wanted to make sure those patients qualified right away, she said.

But while the city expanded eligibility, it significantly shrank the pool of people who qualify by eliminating two conditions that had earlier been on the list: People who smoke and people whose body mass index classifies them as overweight but not obese.

Under the rules that Nesbitt announced Thursday, the city will offer vaccines to people with a BMI of 30 or higher - classified as obese - but not to those whose BMI falls between 25 and 29.9, which originally was in the city's plan.

While nearly 24 percent of adults in the District are considered obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than half the city's residents are considered at least overweight.

Many states are vaccinating people with a BMI over 30, or in some states over 35 or 40. Medical experts had questioned the District's original plan, saying scientific studies offer little proof that people with BMIs from 25 to 30 suffer worse outcomes from coronavirus than those at a healthy weight.

Smoking, on the other hand, has been shown to put patients at much higher risk of severe complications from coronavirus. But Nesbitt said she removed smoking on its own as a qualifying condition for a vaccine on the theory that those who smoke might have other conditions to qualify them for a shot.

Pregnancy remains one of the conditions that will qualify D.C. residents for a vaccine, and Nesbitt said she encourages residents to take advantage, despite the lack of scientific research into the effects of the vaccines on pregnant patients.

The city allocates more than 60 percent of the doses it receives from the federal government directly to health-care providers, including major hospital systems and nonprofit health clinics. Most patients with these health conditions, city leaders predict, will seek a shot from their doctor - meaning doctors will have their medical history on file and will know which patients qualify.

Those who don't have a doctor affiliated with a health system delivering vaccines will need to register through the city's website. No doctor's note or documentation will be required; patients will need to agree to a statement affirming they have one of the qualifying conditions.

Coronavirus cases across the greater Washington region have been falling for weeks. On Thursday, the District reported 121 new cases and seven deaths; Maryland reported 986 cases and 31 deaths; and Virginia reported 2,304 cases and 15 deaths.

Regional leaders continued their push for the federal government to take on responsibility for vaccinating some of the area's federal workforce.

D.C. emergency management director Christopher Rodriguez said again Thursday he expects the Federal Emergency Management Agency will rebuff last week's request by D.C., Maryland and Virginia that FEMA vaccinate 30,000 workers.

But seven Democratic members of Congress from the region asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Office of Personnel Management in a letter Thursday to find a way for federal workers' vaccines not to come from local supplies.

"Rather than foisting federal employees into Virginia, D.C., or Maryland's supply of vaccines and increasing their essential worker vaccination responsibilities, the federal government should vaccinate federal employees through a separate federalized allocation," they wrote

The District also published new maps showing, in more granular detail, where people who have gotten vaccinated live in the city. The maps showed major gulfs between wealthier, Whiter neighborhoods and poorer, majority-Black neighborhoods.
Although the above terms were most commonly employed during the Cuban Missile Crisis of the President John F. Kennedy administration and the Lyndon Baines Johnson - Barry Goldwater contest in 1964 they were in use in politics from an early time period in American history.

In 1798 Thomas Jefferson coined the term war hawk for those who supported the concept of war.

The description of individuals who advocated peace arose from the Biblical book of Genesis where Noah after the Great Flood sent a dove to see if the waters had receded enough to allow the bird to secure an olive leaf, indicating that there was land nearby.

Current politicians are often described by one of the terms to indicate their viewpoint on use of the military to preserve peace or advocate war.

(Excerpts from The Little Book of Answers  Author  Doug Lennox  (2003)  MJF Books  New York, NY 1001.

The book is available on Ebay and other Internet sites.)
Romania's Defence Minister Nicolae Ciuca is taking part February 17-18 in a virtual meeting of NATO defence ministers, according to AGERPRES.

Discussions on the first day of the meeting - chaired from the NATO headquarters in Brussels by NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg - focused on the "NATO 2030" agenda, as well as the implementation of the collective deterrence and defence posture, fair burden-sharing and the transatlantic security, according to the Romanian Defence Ministry (MApN).

The virtual meeting provided an opportunity for the first attendance of a NATO meeting by the new US Secretary of Defense, Lloyd J. Austin.

According to a MApN press statement, Ciuca voiced Romania's support for the continuation of the "NATO 2030" process and highlighted Romania's commitment to secure defence spending in line with specific decisions and requirements at NATO level.

Ciuca also reiterated Romania's support for deepening the process of adapting and consolidating the NATO's deterrence and defence posture in line with the medium and long-term requirements of the security environment.

During a special session, with the participation of Finland and Sweden, both NATO partner countries, and of the High Representative of the European Union for European Affairs and Security Policy, Joseph Borell, common security challenges and threats were highlighted in order to identify solutions for their efficient management, including in the development of NATO - EU cooperation.

Ciuca underlined the fundamental role of the transatlantic relationship for European security and defense and highlighted the central position of the security aspects regarding NATO's eastern flank for NATO's priority agenda.
ANKARA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :Former US President Donald Trump has indicated he will continue to be in American political life, according to three different interviews he gave on Thursday.

Trump left the White House last month amid Capitol riot, for which he was blamed for inciting. Although he went down in history as the only US president that was impeached twice by the House of Representatives, the Senate acquitted him.

After the Jan. 6 riot in Capitol building, Trump's Twitter account was suspended indefinitely. While the social media service provider was his foremost choice of communication with the masses, he said he "won't be back on Twitter," adding that he is considering building his own social media network.

"... on Twitter, it's become very boring and millions of people are leaving. They're leaving it because it's not the same, and I can understand that," he told conservative American news and opinion website Newsmax.

The riot came amid Trump refusing his loss in the Nov. 3 presidential election, and repeatedly saying "Stop the Steal" on Twitter, media outlets, and in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6 when Congress convened to approve President-elect Joe Biden's win.

"I think we won substantially ... you would have had riots going all over the place if that happened to a Democrat," he said.

Trump stressed his popularity among Republican voters by pointing out a recent poll released Tuesday.

A massive 59% of Republicans said they wanted Trump to play a major role in their party going forward, which is up 18 percentage points since the day after the Capitol riot, according to the poll by Politico and Morning Consult.

The latest level, however, is down from 68% of Republicans had before the election, indicating that Trump is more in touch with the party's rank-and-file than congressional Republicans, according to a poll released Nov. 24 by the same institutions.

In that poll, 54% of Republicans had also said they would vote for Trump if the 2024 presidential Primary was held today."Too early to say -- but I see a lot of great polls out there," he said about whether he would run for 2024 election.

Trump also spoke with Fox News and the One America News Network (OANN) in phone interviews to talk about the conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh who passed away on Wednesday.

About the election, he said "Rush felt we won and he was quite angry about it," before he was asked about his future, saying "we have a lot to talk about."Trump told OANN that his political movement "is very strong and it's getting stronger."
Evelyn Perez tried to share her trauma. Five years ago, she met every week with a small group of womenwhom she calls great peopleat her large nondenominational church in the San Francisco Bay Area. She told the group of mostly white women, plus two other women of color, that her marriage had grown dangerous. The relationship was breaking down, and her husband was physically and emotionally abusive.

But she did not feel fully understood.

As I shared my story, it was more like, Oh, were so sorry youre going through that, lets just pray for you,  says Perez, who is 37 now and divorced. And it was never a deeper concern of We want to be that neighbor. We want to sit with you in the pain. We want to walk with you. 

Perez, who had come with her mother from Guatemala to the United States when she was two, didnt feel that they understood how, in her experience, her husbands Mexican heritage led to a manifestation of you know, alcohol and machismo that wended its way into their marriage.

Though they were empathetic, the group did not recognize why and how deeply she hurt.

There wasnt the willingness of wanting to have a deeper understanding of who I was, where I came from, she says. What was my culture? It was never asked.

So she left. Though she resisted at first, Perez took herself back to Maranatha Covenant Church in Richmond, California, the majority-immigrant church where she had grown up.

She found a dramatically different reception there.

When Perez shared the trauma of her marriage, they supported me, they came alongside me, she says. They were ...

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LGs smartphone division may have an uncertain future but it's got no shortage of ideas or development potential. Reports from Taiwanese media DigiTimes said Apple has commissioned LG Display to develop a foldable panel for a future iPhone.

According to industry sources, the division at LG, responsible for the development and manufacturing of display panels, is only working with Apple on a prototype. It is not yet confirmed whether future iPhones will have foldable OLEDs made by LG, or Cupertino will turn to other makers once the design is finalized.

Reports from earlier this week also revealed Apple plans to bring a foldable phone in 2023, complete with Apple Pencil support. It will put the company some four years behind Huawei, Samsung, and Motorola, which launched their first foldable devices in 2019, but perhaps the company is looking to only enter after the technology has matured enough.

Source (in Chinese)


A man who was high on cocaine when he lost the plot and attacked two women including his then partner when she accused him of cheating on her has been jailed for 18 months.

One victim described Michael Joyce (23) as being vicious and violent and grinding his teeth during the attack.

Detective Garda Des Molloy told Dublin Circuit Criminal Court that on the night of May 24 last (2020) Joyce's then girlfriend Katelyn Stevenson became suspicious of him and began looking through his mobile phone to see if he was hiding something from her.

Joyce became annoyed and shouted at her to give him back his phone. He grabbed her iPhone, worth around 800, and threw it across the room, smashing it.

At one stage he pushed her and slapped her face. The two were rowing in the bedroom of the home of Joyce's sister Elizabeth and Ms Joyce's young daughter was in the room.

When Ms Joyce came into the room to tell the couple to be quiet the defendant punched her twice in the face. Ms Joyce was shocked and began screaming at her brother to get out.

As she pushed him out of the room and the house, he punched her a third time before finally leaving. The court heard that at one stage the victim's young daughter said don't hit my mammy.

Ms Joyce was treated in hospital for a swollen left cheek and a 2cm cut under her eye. She declined to make a victim impact statement, Dt Gda Molloy said.

A third woman who was present said that Joyce appeared vicious, violent and was grinding his teeth in a rage. The court heard that Joyce took his sister's and this woman's mobile phones when he left but returned them the next day.

Joyce of Dunedin Terrace, Monkstown, south Dublin pleaded guilty to assault causing harm to Ms Stevenson, criminal damage of her iPhone, and theft of two mobile phones at a house in Churchtown, south Dublin.

His 27 previous convictions include criminal damage, public order offences and an offence for violence.

Oisin Clarke BL, defending, said Joyce and his then partner had gone to a party at his sister's home and everybody was quite drunk.

His client was also taking cocaine on the night and he lost the plot when his partner accused him of cheating on her. He said Joyce did express remorse to gardai after his arrest.

Judge Martin Nolan said his behaviour on the night was shameful and said Joyce is bad-tempered when he is abusing drink or drugs.

He said that Joyce's employment history was to his credit and accepted his remorse was genuine. He suspended 18 months of a three year prison term on condition Joyce be of good behaviour for the three years.
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Bobbi Jo Reed on transformation from addict to hero; helping thousands out of addiction through Christ

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The documentary film titled "Bobbi Jo: Under the Influence" shows the remarkable transformation of a Kansas City woman named Bobbi Jo Reed, who went from being an addict to a minister who's helped thousands find recovery.

Thousands of people have stayed in Reed's healing houses over the years to help get their lives back on track. Along with getting cleaned up on the outside, an inner cleansing has also taken place for many.

"Nobody's ever left here without finding a relationship with Christ, and that's amazing," Reed said of the people who've stayed in her recovery homes during an interview with The Christian Post.

The documentary highlights Reed's remarkable journey of overcoming a 22-year struggle with alcoholism which led to homelessness, being trafficked, and nearly killed. After getting sober, she began her life's work with Healing House, which was started in 2003.

Healing House is a nonprofit that helps people recover from addiction by providing housing, support, and life assistance as they work on their recovery. She operates 14 homes and an apartment complex that houses those who come for help. Once, Reed recounted, 900 women were going through recovery in Kansas City, Missouri, but there were only 24 safe beds for them citywide.

Reed, a devout Christian, said she didn't come to her faith until she reached the end of herself. With her homes, she now provides a safe place for everyone to feel welcomed, valued and loved.

"When I started helping these other people and sharing my experience with them, I started feeling like maybe there's something I could be good at," Reed said. "The Lord just took that ... changed my life."

The following is an edited transcript of The Christian Post's interview with Reed, who shared her honest testimony of addiction and how God used her experience to help save others. Her journey can also be seen in the Gold Room Films documentary which is now available.

Christian Post: Can you share a synopsis of your testimony?

Reed: I have two older brothers. My dad was a police officer, always worked two jobs. That's just a big part of my story. I always longed to have a relationship with my father. This is a common thread that I had found with women with addiction issues.

My mom had mental health issues that were not being addressed, so I started working a full-time job at 12 years old. I had the opportunity to go out with some of the older people at the job. My first drink was at 12. I had a speech impediment, I was always a chubby kid, and I had really low self-esteem. So when I found alcohol, I thought, 'Boy, I have arrived.' You always think you're funnier and better looking and a better dancer, right? But I just thought, "This is it."

From the time I was 13 years old, I was an alcoholic and an addict. I lived in a house where we had a purple elephant in the front room and everybody just walked around it. Nobody said, "Hey, we have an elephant in our room." If we didn't talk about it, it was non-existent.

We lived really in silos in my house, everybody did schoolwork and we were very siloed. It's not like we had any communication. My mom was a hoarder too, so there weren't places for us to sit and eat dinner and talk about things. I didn't know the Lord at all.

When I was a kid, I probably went to Sunday School three, four times and that's all I knew. I knew of a God, but as I spiraled more and more out of control, I was in my addiction for 22 years. It took me to a lot of sorted places. This is the sad thing about it. Once you keep going to new depths of despair, your mind tells you, "Oh, well, this is just how it is."

I remember a point when I was homeless, and there was an old guy that had a mattress and an old loveseat and a lantern under a bridge. I used to be envious and think, "Man if I could just have those things, I would be alright."

My addiction led me to homelessness, being human trafficked. Of course, he [my pimp] would beat me up severely; my face would be too messed up. I would have to live under a boxcar next to a liquor store, the boxes on the back of semis.

There's a part in a 12 step program that says incomprehensible demoralization. I know exactly what that means. I was so in the depths, I became an "it" out there. I was one of those people lying by the side of the road. When you pull up and you go, "Oh, my God, how can anybody be like that?" Well, it happens to people; it happened to me.

CP: In your upbringing, what could have been done differently to help you not turn to substance abuse?

Reed: I think if my dad wouldn't have always worked two jobs and not been present, I think that if we would have actually done things as a family, and not be so separated under the same roof. One of the things that I do at Healing House  and we always have  is I've created at Healing House the family that I always wanted.

We come together at five o'clock in the evening, we pray together, we eat dinner together, we talk about what's going on with one another. If you're just sitting down for a few moments, you can look at somebody's face and see if they've got something going on and we never did that.

A lot of families miss that because they might be in the same room together. But let's face it, everybody's on their phone, doing their own thing. If you're not paying attention, their demeanor, and you're not doing that on a regular basis, people get lost in it. I just got lost.

CP: What turned this around for you?

Reed: It was nothing but the grace of God that brought me out. I ended up in a detox in the inner city. This was what really made an impact. I always felt worthless. ... I went over a year without looking at myself in the mirror because I couldn't stand to see what was looking back at me.

The blessing [was] this detox. Everybody's in one of 18 bunk beds, no toothpaste, no toothbrushes, no soap, everybody's dirty. So when I got out of the detox, I got into a treatment center. But what I did to supplement my income back in those days is I baked things like banana nut bread, zucchini bread, and I'd take them to the flea market, I'd sell them.

So what I started doing when I got out of the treatment is I would buy like the little tubes of toothpaste and the small bars of soap, hotel stuff, I could get it really cheap. So I started taking that back to the detox. I started giving them my leftover baked goods and hygiene products.

As it sounds, I did it at first because it made me feel good. I kept doing it because it just became the next right thing to do. God showed me and I started filling up. Because addiction is selfish and self-centered. Even though you might be homeless, it's still selfish.

So when I started helping these other people and sharing my experience with them, I started feeling like, "Man, maybe I could do something, maybe there's something I could be good at."

The Lord just took that, those hygiene products and that detox and those loaves of homemade bread changed my life.

CP: Where would you say God was when you went through everything in your journey?

Reed: God always had to be with me. That is a promise because God gave us all free will. He gave us free will and I ran into a lot of people being in my addiction that those folks were using their free will badly.

But I know for a fact that if God hadn't been there with me, I would have been dead 100 times over anyway. I lived; I survived circumstances that most people would have died from. So I know for a fact He had to be there with me, even though horrific things were happening, that's people doing their free will. God was with me or I'd be dead. He spared my life through all the chaos and nonsense and stuff I was caught up in. I know for a fact that He was there with me through all of it.

We have to be at a point in our life when we're willing to accept God. For me, I was sober three-and-a-half years before I really accepted Christ deep down in my heart, and it was my mother's death that brought that on.

By taking care of her with cancer for three-and-a-half years and she died on Dec. 30, 1998. I had some roommates, I was three-and-a-half years sober, but my roommates had relapsed and left. My ex-boyfriend took me to the church, but I came home on Dec. 31 with my mother's urn for her ashes and I came home and my house was empty.

So my two roommates who relapsed were gone. My boyfriend's not home ... I started bawling because it seemed like the rug was pulled out from all my support system around me. My dad had just died three-and-a-half years before. So I went home that night, and I got into bed and I was just crying out to God.

I said, "Please don't let me go back where I came from. Lead and direct me, Lord, just take a hold of me." And I fell asleep praying to God and crying. Fear had always covered my life, fear of everything. When I woke up on Jan. 1, 1999, the Holy Spirit had taken up residence in me and I knew that I was going to be OK. That was the first time in my life that I ever felt I was going to be OK.

Don't get me wrong, I still tried to take my will back and forth periodically. But I thought that I wanted a boyfriend, I want this or that. You know what? I just let the Lord take ahold of me and just heal me and show me and lead me. The Lord does speak to me audibly, but He speaks to my heart and He always tells me this is the next thing. This is what you do, and I just follow it. When I say I'm a Christ-follower, I am a Christ-follower. When He speaks, I go!

CP: What advice do you have for families hoping to get through to a loved one in bondage to addiction?

Reed: I think that we just have to come to a point of brokenness. I didn't come to the Lord, basically, because I wanted to be this goody two shoes. I went to the Lord because I was out of options. I tried a lot of different things; this was my last thing. I had not even acknowledged God in my life prior to that. I think we have to get to this point of brokenness where we're willing to say, "OK, God, I've exhausted my efforts, I'm yours, just please take me."

When you have a loved one using drugs and alcohol, prayer is such a powerful thing. Continue to pray for them. My little saying is: There's always hope for an addict or alcoholic as long as they're breathing, there's always hope.

I think the families don't want to enable people, but you do want to be there and especially be there if that person becomes willing to accept the help. The other thing is, drug and alcohol treatment can cost $50,000 to $75,000. I also want people to know that there's free treatment that they can get into, there's free recovery housing.

Healing House does recovery support services. So we basically take people right off the street ... we get them hygiene, we get them clothing, we get them stable. They get put in this beautiful home. We have 14, all of our homes are beautiful. They live exactly like I want to live.

I've been 25 years sober. They just walk in there and they feel the presence of God. You know what? Even the ones that have their hearts really hardened. God permeates the place. Nobody's ever left here without finding a relationship with Christ and that's amazing.

CP: Tell us about Healing Homes and how that came about?

Reed: I had an inheritance, I had $50,000, and I was looking for places to help women. There was an abandoned old nursing home that I kept being drawn to. The Lord kept drawing me to this place. One day, I went around the corner from that nursing home. I went in and looked at a house and the guy wanted $150,000 and it wasn't set up right to help accommodate a lot of women. So when I went back out to my car, I said, "Lord, you know I'm impatient. When you want me to have this, will you please just drop it in my lap because I'm getting impatient?"

Then, I turned the corner and I'm on the side street of that old nursing home that I've been drawn to so many times. A real estate agent was walking up the steps to a house and I just said that prayer a minute earlier. So I pulled my car over and I ran up. I went in and it wreaked of urine and cigarette smoke. It had dark wood paneling and the windows were knocked out. It was awful. But guess what? The Holy Spirit was inside me saying, "This is it!"

It was a 23 room house for $50,000, the exact amount I had coming in the mail. Two months later, a dope-dealing pimp moved right in next door to the original house. So I claimed his house in Jesus' name. A year-and-a-half later, we got the dope man's house [too].

Every house has a God story attached to it. I mean, just the way He worked, there's no doubt that He wasn't present in showing the way and making a way.

Now we have 14 homes. Initially, it was for single women, and then men, and now families. So we have 40 apartments, and then we have 14 homes. There are 200 people that live with us each and every day. We also have a recovery community center that holds up to 350 people. There were Friday nights before COVID where we'd have 250 to 300 people in there for Bible study on a Friday night praising God, and staying clean and sober. Not just going without drugs and alcohol, but they're learning to be servants of God and helping others change.

We've really changed this whole community where we live. There used to be gunfire, drug dealers, pimps, gang members, you don't see any of that anymore, at all. So the whole dynamic has changed in our community. It's just amazing.

God has just been on the move. It's an amazing journey and I'm honored that God would pick me to be part of it. We just keep trekking. We also have a strip mall where we're opening up a beauty shop for people returning from prison who have their beauty certificates.

CP: How can people be a part of doing something like what you've done in their community?

Reed: I think just open your eyes and look around, see what's going on around you. Right now, my car is full of coats, and stocking caps and gloves, and bottles of water. So if I see somebody that's not dressed, I pull over and I say, "Do you need a coat honey? How about some gloves?" Find out you're homeless shelters and things like that. Give a donation of soap or toothpaste, toothbrushes. Look what's going on. Sometimes we don't even see what's right there. If you have an elderly neighbor, how is her grass getting mowed? Go mow her grass.

CP: The documentary is titled 'Under the Influence.' Who are you under the influence of now?

Reed: I love that title because I was under the influence of drugs and alcohol for so long. Absolutely, I am under the influence of God and Jesus Christ today, and I will be there until the Lord takes me home.

This is what God created me to do and I'm a very blessed woman. I am so thrilled at the opportunity for this message to get out there and help other folks who are suffering in their addiction, or family members, or people who are just sitting still right now and only staying in their little circle. God calls us to do more than just love the people directly around us. God calls us to do more.

I hope this film sparks something in every single person. I don't hope it, I pray that this will spark something in every person that gets to see it and call them to do something more than they're doing.
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We are excited for our government customer and our member Perspecta Labs. Cybersecurity is a critical component for the Armys modernization plans, so DATC is eager to provide leading cybersecurity solutions to support the warfighter. Brandon Card, Executive Director, DATC

The U.S. Army awarded Defense Automotive Technologies Consortium (DATC) member Perspecta Labs, the innovative applied research arm of Perspecta Inc., a $952,346 award, to produce prototypes for ground vehicle platforms to increase cybersecurity capabilities and maximize system survivability and force protection.

With the Assurance and Verification of Vehicular Microelectronic Systems (AV2MS) project, the government is seeking a prototype to verify and validate operation of on-vehicle hardware, software and firmware without degrading the functionality of vehicular microelectronics. The AV2MS prototype will identify malicious and unintended compromise in hardware, software or firmware and present threat mitigation strategies that do not degrade the vehicles designed functionality in a powered-on state.

The prototype will be demonstrated on an existing military platform, with the intent of integration into a U.S. Army Next Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV) platform.

We are excited for our government customer and our member Perspecta Labs, said Brandon Card, Executive Director at DATC. Cybersecurity is a critical component for the Armys modernization plans, so DATC is eager to provide leading cybersecurity solutions to support the warfighter.

Perspecta Labs is looking forward to providing an innovative, on-board cyber capability that works alongside existing supply chain security and post-manufacturing of vehicular microelectronics to secure mission-critical U.S. Army ground vehicle platforms, says Petros Mouchtaris, president and general manager, Perspecta Labs. We will leverage our expertise to develop, design, integrate, test, evaluate, document and deliver a novel cyber solution that meets demanding constraints in real-time operation and size, weight, power and cost.

DATC enables connection of advanced automotive suppliers to the U.S. Armys efforts to modernize its ground forces. DATCs rich technology capabilities helped the government link to Perspecta Labs. The project, including options, has a 48-month timeline.

DATC currently has nearly 200 members, with 70% of these classified as non-traditional defense contractors. DATC members gain access to government projects and visibility of their capabilities to the government and among other members. A majority of DATC members have limited or no prior government procurement experience. They greatly benefit from a facilitator such as DATC, which streamlines the process and requirements for engaging the government.

About DATC

The Defense Automotive Technologies Consortium (DATC) is a unique public-private partnership created in 2016 to connect advanced automotive technology suppliers to government technology modernization efforts. DATC can address work from any government agency, including state governments, related to the core technology areas defined in its scope. DATC was created through SAE Industry Technologies Consortia (ITC) to support the Defense Arsenal Automotive (DA2) OTA sponsored by U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Ground Vehicle Systems Center; automotive is broadly understood as self-propelled vehicles for land, air, sea or space. DATCs eight core technology areas are: Automotive Cyber Security; Vehicle Safety; Vehicle Light Weighting; Autonomous Vehicles and Intelligent Systems; Connected Vehicles; Advanced Energy Storage; Propulsion; Active Suspension.

More information about DATC, including upcoming events and membership information, can be found at: https://datc.sae-itc.com.

SAE Industry Technologies Consortia (SAE ITC) is an affiliate of SAE International. The SAE ITC team specializes in establishing and managing consortia by providing proven processes, tools and resources. ITC enables public, private, academic and government organizations to connect and collaborate in neutral, pre-competitive forums thus empowering the setting and implementation of strategic business improvements in highly engineered industries globally. (http://www.sae-itc.com)

About Perspecta Inc.

At Perspecta, we question, we seek and we solve. Perspecta brings a diverse set of capabilities to our U.S. government customers in defense, intelligence, civilian, health care and state and local markets. Our 280+ issued, licensed and pending patents are more than just pieces of paper, they tell the story of our innovation. With offerings in mission services, digital transformation and enterprise operations, our team of nearly 14,000 engineers, analysts, investigators and architects work tirelessly to not only execute the mission, but build and support the backbone that enables it. Perspecta was formed to take on big challenges. We are an engine for growth and success and we enable our customers to build a better nation. For more information about Perspecta, visit perspecta.com.

Disclaimer

Reference herein to any specific commercial company, product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or the Department of the Army (DoA). The opinions of the authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or the DoA, and shall not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes
BCCL

Wednesday recorded a 'grim' first in India as for the first time in history the price of regular petrol breached the Rs 100 mark for a litre. Read more



Here's more top news of the day:

1) Many Ghazipur Farmers Return To Villages In UP But Only Till Sugarcane Planting Season Lasts

ANI

As sugarcane planting season is set to begin in Uttar Pradesh villages, a number of protesters from Ghazipur have left for their homes, while those left behind insist this is temporary and the protest will return to its former size once planting is over. Read more

2) MJ Akbar Vs Priya Ramani: Five Big Takeaways From Delhi Court's Judgement

AP

A Delhi court, on Wednesday, acquitted journalist Priya Ramani over a defamation case filed by former Union Minister MJ Akbar, whom she had accused of sexual harassment in 2018. Read more

3) Who Is Bhim Army Chief, Chandrashekhar Azad 'Ravan', Named In TIME's Emerging Leaders List

@BhimArmyChief/Twitter

Bhim Army chief and activist Chandrashekhar Azad has featured in TIME magazine's annual list of 100 "emerging leaders who are shaping the future". Read more

4) Ahead Of Kerala Assembly Elections, Metroman E Sreedharan Set To Join BJP, Open To Contesting

BCCL

The 88-year-old who was once rumored to be in the race for the President of India is currently living his retirement life in Kerala after leaving DMRC. Read more

5) These Instances Show How Unnao Is Proving To Be Really Unsafe For Women

BCCL

There are several cases that highlight the plight of women in Unnao. There are those in recent times are really stand out and it is not something that we as Indians or human beings should be proud of. Read more
WHO roots for training of African health workers to boost COVID-19 vaccine roll-out

NAIROBI, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- A seamless roll-out of COVID-19 vaccine in Africa hinges on improving the knowledge of the continent's frontline health care workers in critical areas like storage, supply chains management and effective communication to the public, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday.

Ambrose Talisuna, emergency preparedness programme manager at WHO Regional Office for Africa said that a critical mass of trained healthcare workers is key to boost COVID-19 vaccine preparedness and uptake in the continent.

"There is a need to train and prepare African healthcare workers to administer the COVID-19 vaccine effectively," Talisuna said at a virtual briefing in Nairobi.

"We need to reach out to policymakers and vaccine managers at national and sub-national levels and improve their capacity to conduct mass immunization against the virus," he added.

Talisuna said that WHO has supported the training of African healthcare workers on key areas of vaccine administration including cold storage, logistics and detection of side effects.

He said that a partnership between WHO and international online healthcare training initiative, Project ECHO that was launched on Wednesday, is expected to revolutionize capacity building aimed at facilitating a seamless administration of COVID-19 vaccine in Africa.

According to Talisuna, the new partnership aims to bridge the knowledge and expertise gap that could undermine mass immunization against coronavirus in Africa.

"We will leverage on technology and innovation to train vaccinators, facilitate peer learning and sharing of knowledge across borders to address misinformation that might hinder vaccine acceptance," said Talisuna.

He said that African countries have gradually improved their COVID-19 vaccine readiness amid the quest to contain the pandemic and return to normalcy.

"The capacity to deliver vaccines among African countries is up to task based on the ongoing assessment on critical areas like storage," said Talisuna adding that more than 30 African countries have submitted their vaccine readiness plans.

Bruce Struminger, senior associate director and Africa Project leader at Project ECHO said that training and mentorship tailor-made for the frontline healthcare workers is key to facilitate a smooth roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccine in the continent.
"Approval of the credit facility by the lender's investment committee is a key milestone to completing the Atomic acquisition, said Ryan Gaffney

Canadian Overseas Petroleum Ltd ( ) said a US$65mln senior credit facility has been approved by the lender, described as US based global investment firm.

The company, in a statement, highlighted that it is significant positive step towards closing the companys transformative acquisition of Atomic Oil and Gas, an onshore US producer.

The approval secures a four-year facility with an initial borrowing base of US$45mln, plus an additional US$20mln to provide funds for future developments.

COPL describes the financing terms as market competitive and said that the facility is now subject to the execution of final definitive loan documentation.

In January, COPL announced the signing of a term sheet for the facility and, as noted at that time, that the company has been working with the lender to complete due diligence, including a review of the development and capital investment plans for 2021 and 2022.

Draw down of the facility will allow COPL to complete its US$54mln acquisition of Atomic, which comprises a US$41mln cash component.

"Approval of the credit facility by the lender's investment committee is a key milestone to completing the Atomic acquisition, said Ryan Gaffney, COPL's chief financial officer.

The quality of the assets we are acquiring has allowed the company to attract the debt necessary to complete and we are working with the lender to complete loan documentation in the coming week."

Arthur Millholland, COPL chief executive, meanwhile, added: This loan will facilitate the completion of the Atomic acquisition which will be materially value enhancing to COPL, providing an immediate and growing revenue stream from day one.

Crude oil prices have increased by 50% since we entered into the transaction thus enhancing the overall value of the proposition.

Working with our new colleagues we plan to accelerate the production profile from the Atomic assets. This represents a step change in the strategic growth opportunities open to COPL and we look to the future with renewed confidence."

The Atomic acquisition brings producing assets in the US state of Wyoming, the Barron Flats Shannon Unit (57.7% owned by Atomic) and Cole Creek Unit (66.7% owned by Atomic).

Barron Flats produces around 1,400 barrels per day (bpd), up from 200 bpd in 2017, and is forecast to reach a plateau rate of 5,000 bpd gross by 2022.

The Cole Creek asset, meanwhile, is forecast to have a 3,500 bpd plateau by 2026.

Significantly, the fields are at the front end of whats expected to be a 40+ year operating life.
The Ethiopian Communications Authority (ECA) has denied shortlisting contenders for the countrys two new operating licences after Safaricom chairman Michael Joseph claimed that that his firms application was one of six on the alleged list.

In response to Josephs statement to Business Daily Africa, the ECA said: We wish to clarify that to date no proposals have been received for the two new telecom licenses, and no prospective bidder has been shortlisted, prequalified nor excluded from participating in the bid process. The RFP [request for proposals] process is ongoing.

In his comments, Joseph claimed that Safaricom was finalising the technical details for its submission. Together with Vodacom Group and Vodafone Group, Safaricom has formed the Global Partnership for Ethiopia consortium in order to bid for an Ethiopian operating licence.

The ECA confirmed that it has received expressions of interest from 12 parties, including international groups Etisalat, MTN Group, Orange and STC. Final submissions are due before 5th April, with the ECA having pushed back the deadline earlier this month after requests by interested parties.

State incumbent Ethio Telecom has long held the monopoly on the market, and there are concerns that current policies could put newcomers at a disadvantage, with the World Bank's Ethiopian country director Ousmane Dione cautioning against this last week.
A Monroe County man was charged Wednesday with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence of drugs in a crash last month that killed a local industrialist.

Daniel Zipp, 40, of Cresco, Pennsylvania, allegedly was driving west about 5:30 p.m. Jan. 23 on Uhler Road in Forks Township when he swerved into the eastbound lane and collided with a vehicle driven by 86-year-old Joseph Lee Boucher.

Boucher was taken to St. Lukes University Hospital, Fountain Hill, where he was found to have internal injuries, the office of Northampton County District Attorney Terry Houck said in announcing Zipps arrest. Boucher died the following morning of his injuries.

Boucher, of Plainfield Township, was owner and CEO of Bardot Plastics Inc., a company he founded in Alpha in 1973 and which he moved to its current location in Palmer Township in 1990, according to his obituary. He and his wife of 65 years had six children, 15 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

Zipp recently had been paroled after pleading guilty in October 2017 to simple assault and reckless endangerment in a Nazareth domestic dispute from that previous July. His sentence included a drug-and-alcohol evaluation and order to follow the recommended treatment, court records show.

When Forks police spoke with Zipp at last months crash, he said he had possibly fallen asleep before hitting a car head-on, according to the DAs office release.

He further stated he was on methamphetamine and that it was in his pocket, after police asked if he was currently on any drugs, the release states. Police took custody of the methamphetamine and clear glass pipe in Zipps left jean pocket.

A blood sample drawn at St. Lukes, Fountain Hill, showed he had a measurable amount (1,031 ng/ml) of methamphetamine in his system, according to the release.

Witness statements collected at the scene observed Zipp swerve in the eastbound travel lane on Uhler Road, while he was driving west on Uhler Road, the release continues. One witness observed Zipp drive into the oncoming lane of traffic, striking Bouchers vehicle.

Zipp was arraigned Wednesday before District Judge Jacqueline Taschner on the felony homicide-by-vehicle count in addition to misdemeanor driving under the influence of a controlled substance (two counts) and possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia, plus a summary traffic offense.

He was sent to Northampton County Prison in lieu of 10% of $1 million bail. A preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled March 3 before Taschner to determine if there is sufficient evidence to send the charges toward trial in Northampton County Court.

Court records did not immediately list an attorney for Zipp.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
Vice-President of the Republican Party of Armenia Armen Ashotyan today posted the following on his Facebook page:

Today the Executive Committee of Centrist Democrat International (CDI) held a session during which it considered and adopted a resolution on the truce in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The Republican Party of Armenia and Heritage Party succeeded in incorporating several major recommendations in the resolution.

In particular, one of the largest political families stressed the importance of the role of the OSCE Minsk Group in the establishment of longstanding peace in the region, touched upon the issue of exchange of prisoners of war and the bodies of the deceased, called on conducting proper investigation of war crimes and punishing the guilty and called on Azerbaijan to respect the rights of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh and protect the religious and cultural monuments in the region.

In the resolution, the Executive Committee also makes a reference to the provisions stated in the Armenia-EU Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (I would like to remind that it also contains the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination as a principle for settlement), as well as the December 3, 2020 statement by the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group which reaffirms the importance of the Basic Principles and Elements for the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
The shareholders paid an amount of 4.99 cents for each LITCF for a total consideration of $178,596.

Lithium Australia requests that ASX change the designation of 3,579,070 LITCF shares to the ASX code LIT.

( ) ( ) (FRA:3MW) has raised $178,596 after shareholders fully paid the balance on more than 3.579 million LITCF partly paid shares.

The shareholders paid 4.99 cents per share while a further 42 million shares have transitioned from LITCE partly paid shares to LITCF partly paid shares. These have been paid to $0.0101 with $0.0499 remaining unpaid.

More than 120.9 million LITCF shares remain on issue.

Statements will be issued shortly to those shareholders who paid all outstanding amounts on their LITCFs.

The company has requested that ASX change designation of these 3,579,070 LITCF shares to the ASX code LIT.

Field trial update

LIT and its 90%-owned subsidiary Envirostream Australia Pty Ltds field testing of fertiliser blends containing manganese micronutrients derived from spent alkaline batteries recycled by Envirostream have demonstrated successful uptake of these micronutrients in a field setting.

The uptake of manganese from the micronutrients being trialled was in line with, or superior to, that for comparable, commercially available treatments.

This result demonstrates that wheat cultivation can benefit from the manganese in fertiliser blends containing the manganese recovered from spent alkaline batteries by Envirostream.
The Missourians Opinion section is a public forum for the discussion of ideas. The views presented in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Missourian or the University of Missouri. If you would like to contribute to the Opinion page with a response or an original topic of your own, visit our submission form
The latest tips and techniques for controlling internal parasites in sheep and beef will be presented at a talk in Warkworth on Tuesday, February 23.

The Wormwise workshop will cover the life cycle of worms, drenching options, how to manage drench resistance, and refugia  the practice of leaving some worms untreated in a bid to slow drug resistance.

Guest speaker will be Ginny Dodunski, from Totally Vets, which has branches in Fielding, Awapuni and Taumarunui, and the day is being hosted by Beef + Lamb New Zealand.

Extension manager for the northern North Island Veronica Gillet says managing internal parasites is one of the biggest challenges farmers face.

Research shows that there is widespread resistance to several drench families across both sheep and cattle, she says. Most farms have worms that can survive one or more worm drenches.

The event runs from 10am to 3pm at Shoesmith Hall, Shoesmith Street, and lunch is included. Pre-registration is essential due to Covid-19 protocols, and anyone who has cold or flu symptoms on the day is asked to stay at home.

Info and registration: www.beeflambnz.com/events or email rachel.jukes@beeflambnz.com

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Armenias economy is showing the first signs of the post-crisis recovery, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said during todays Cabinet meeting.

According to the data of the first 15 days of February, 604,000 more transactions with cash registers and settlement documents have been registered than in the first 15 days of February 2020. And the trade turnover increased by 12% or nearly 31,4 billion drams compared to the first 15 days of February 2020. I would like to remind that the COVID-19 impact didnt exist in early February 2020 because no coronavirus case has been confirmed in the country that time. And February 2020 has recorded a very serious growth against February 2019, the PM said.

Pashinyan stated that the export and import volumes have also greatly increased in the first 15 days of February. The conclusion from here is that the economy seems is entering into a recovery phase, and this, of course, is very important news, he added.

At the meeting Chairman of the State Revenue Committee Edvard Hovhannisyan clarified that the growth in the trade turnover mainly relates to three fields  retail consumption, manufacturing and services.

In his turn Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan noted that attention should be paid on the consumption growth. We should continue the support provided to the economy until we are sure that we are in stable condition, he added.

PM Pashinyan stated that the government continues all assistance programs for the business.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan


COVID-19 pandemic exposes flaws in American system for older adults in need in long-term services and supports

The COVID-19 pandemic's heavy toll on older Americans highlights the need to strengthen the nation's safety net for people in need of long-term services and supports, an Oregon Health & Science University researcher and co-authors argue in a new report published by Milbank Quarterly.

The report proposes a system of universal coverage to support the long-term care of all older Americans.

"This approach would protect against financial catastrophe and end the current system that is based on the need to be financially destitute in order to access coverage via Medicaid," the authors write. "Such an approach would benefit both individuals and families and would also create a far more stable and more generous funding stream to providers."

Walt Dawson, D.Phil., assistant professor of neurology in the OHSU School of Medicine, said he believes the pandemic could be an inflection point to improve the U.S. system of long-term services and support.

Dawson, also a senior Atlantic Fellow of Equity in Brain Health with the Global Brain Health Institute, studies the public policy implications of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias - including the financial impact on families and the public programs that finance care.

The report lays out a series recommendations to repair what it characterized as a fragmented and patchwork system of long-term services and supports for older Americans living with physical and cognitive impairments.

Long-term recommendations

Universal coverage: The report calls for establishing universal coverage for all Americans' long-term care needs through Medicare. "Universal coverage is essential to achieving greater equity in access and coverage, but it is also essential to the fiscal viability of the financing mechanism (e.g., everyone pays into the system)," the authors write.

Creating an age-friendly health system: The report calls for better collaboration between public health, health care systems and long-term care to safeguard the health and safety of older adults.

Near-term recommendations

Improved reporting of COVID-19 infections: The report calls for improving a "lack of publicly available information" nationally about COVID-19 infections among people receiving long-term services and supports and the workforce caring for them.

Support for unpaid caregivers: Family caregivers could be identified through Medicare and compensated at the rate of home health aides. In addition, the report calls for improved lines of communication between acute care facilities and other forms of long-term services and support.

Equitable treatment: The Medicaid reimbursement system should provide resources to support independent long-term care and home care providers who often care for the most vulnerable and medically fragile older adults.

"Although these are not new problems, the pandemic has exacerbated and amplified their impact to a point that they are impossible to ignore," the report concludes. "The opportunity for reform is now."

###

In addition to Dawson, co-authors included Nathan Boucher, Dr.PH., assistant research professor in the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University; Robyn Stone, Ph.D., senior vice president of the LeadingAge LTSS Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston; and, Courtney Van Houtven, Ph.D., professor of population health science in the Duke University School of Medicine.
Joseph Rosendo We shouldnt be afraid of traveling. We just need to be more discerning about where we travel and how we travel.

As millions of people continue to be inoculated with the COVID vaccine and reported cases of the virus continue to decline, consumers itching to hit the road again are anxiously awaiting a third component to further stimulate travel: Spring! One year after business and leisure travel came to a screeching halt, consumers are seeing light at the end of a dark tunnel and beginning to jockey for position as the weather thaws and the prospects of travel begin to heat up. Joseph Rosendo is one globetrotter who knows a thing or two about travel destinations, safety, and patience. The Emmy-winning host of Joseph Rosendos Travelscope on PBS spoke with ExpertFlyer.com to discuss his 40-year career as a travel writer, a year without travel and plans for the year ahead, and his new book, Musings  The Short Happy Pursuit of Pleasure and Other Journeys.

For Travelscopes 12 seasons we have brought experiential travel experiences to consumers around the country, and around the world, Joseph Rosendo explains. And I think that is the reason for our success. Today, travelers are interested in genuine, authentic experiences with other people and their cultures, not just a list of landmarks they can check off, and I think our PBS show inspires viewers to experience the world for themselves.

Rosendo concurred that consumers are chomping at the bit to get back out there and experience the world and physically connect with people again, himself included. The PBS show was placed on hiatus in 2020 and he is anxious to hit the road and roll the cameras once again. But the pandemic gave Rosendo the downtime he needed to compile (and consolidate) 40-plus years of travel experiences, reflections, and insights into a new book. Musings is almost a travel diary of my adventures over the past 40 years and includes tips and short, fun stories about destinations and my travel life that are easy to read and digest.

As spring approaches, Rosendo recommends travelers focus on trips that feature the great outdoors to maintain safe distance protocols. There are so many great treasures in the world and so many here in the U.S., Rosendo says, reminding U.S. travelers that experiencing amazing locations doesnt require international travel. We visited beautiful national parks during the pandemic including Yosemite and Big Sur in California. We shouldnt be afraid of traveling. We just need to be more discerning about where we travel and how we travel.

As consumers look ahead to summer destination options, Rosendo suggests researching locations who have lifted travel restrictions but beware of their guidelines. For example, Rosendo says that New Zealand and countries in the Pacific and Southeast Asia, such as Taiwan, seem to have a handle on the pandemic and offer amazing travel experiences. But he says you have to ask lots of questions as you research potential destinations that claim to be safe. Does their idea of safety match mine and what exactly are they doing to keep visitors safe?

To listen to the entire podcast with Joseph Rosendo, visit ExpertFlyers blog.

About Joseph Rosendo

Emmy-award winning director and host Joseph Rosendo has been a travel, food and wine journalist and travel broadcaster for 40 years. Since 2007, he has hosted, directed and written Joseph Rosendos Travelscope, the award-winning PBS travel television series. We close each show with a quote from Mark Twain: Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness, says Joseph. Its a truth that first turned me on to travel and has kept me hooked for more than fifty years. He welcomes questions and e-mails at jrosendo@Travelscope.net and fans at http://www.Facebook.com/Travelscope.

About ExpertFlyer.com

Each month, ExpertFlyer's One-on-One blog goes face-to-face with the travel industry's leading decision makers to discuss and address topics relevant to many of today's business and frequent travelers.

ExpertFlyer.com was conceived and created by an eclectic team consisting of a veteran elite tier frequent flyer, an airline captain and corporate travel manager, and information technology professionals to deliver a 24/7 real time powerful air travel information service. The company provides its subscribers and corporate travel managers alike with a complete, concise, and efficient way to access the ever-changing details of worldwide air travel information. For more information, please visit expertflyer.com.

Stuck in the middle seat again? Download the free Seat Alerts app from ExpertFlyer and get the window or aisle seat without hassle or frustration.
In addition to spreading more easily, some scientists have also said the U.K. variant is likely deadlier than other strains, though additional studies are needed to confirm those findings, the county and state health departments have said.
Wistron, the contract manufacturer for Apple iPhone, is set to resume production in the coming few days, Jagadish Shettar, minister for large and medium scale industries of Karnataka said.

The factory, located in Kolar district of Karnataka, has been closed on 12 December after the violence by contract workers and others over wage-related issues.

The company, which had removed its vice-president overseeing the India operations, had admitted to some workers not being paid correctly or on time and had apologised for the lapse.

A team led by Sudipto Gupta, managing director of Wistron, met Shettar at Vidhana Soudha and apprised him on resuming the re-appointment process to commence production in the facility. Shettar regretted that such an incident had taken place. However, industry-friendly Karnataka has been working hard to create a supportive environment for industries.

"It is a matter of happiness that the re-appointment process has started and production-ready to resume," Shettar said. He added that support would be extended by the state government and the Industries Department.

On February 9, the Wistron Smart Devices CEO David Shen had announced restarting the operations at Kolar. He had said the company has been working on improving across the board to raise standards and fix the issues. "All employees have been promptly and fully-paid, and we implemented new hiring and payroll systems to ensure everyone is paid correctly and provided the correct documentation going forward," Shen had said in a statement

Earlier, a Mint report said that Wistron will restart operations at its factory near Bengaluru after being forced to shut it down in December.

Though the statement given by the company in early February did not give a timeline for reopening the plant, two people aware of the developments said it could happen within a week. Wistron said it has now put in place new hiring and payroll systems.

"We are looking forward to restarting our operations and welcoming back team members and we thank them for their patience and support as we worked through corrective actions," Wistron said.

The restarting of the Wistron facility will be significant for Apple, which has been pushing hard to boost its market share in India. As part of the companys efforts, Apple launched its official online store in India in September and may later open physical stores.

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NATO is hosting the first meeting at the level of defense ministers since US President Joseph Biden took over. On the eve of the meeting, the main ministry of this thirty made a number of important statements that determine the direction of the bloc's development in the coming years. Traditionally, the focus is on the geopolitical rivals of the North Atlantic Alliance. And here, as they say, no changes.

Enemy number one is Russia. Then - China.

Pentagon: Russia is a threat to all NATO allies

On February 17, the US Department of Defense reminded the bloc countries that Russia remains their main threat. "It is quite obvious that Russia is a threat to all NATO allies, including the United States. <...> They use military force to achieve their goals," the Pentagon's press service said in a statement.

They are convinced that it is Russia that is "trying to undermine security and stability" in the world, of which the United States has allegedly been convinced more than once. Washington does not exclude possible cooperation with Russia, but is ready to "punish" it if necessary. In a word, the United States is proposing to NATO to combine the "carrot" and "stick".

We will work with Russia to advance our own interests, while holding them accountable for their reckless and aggressive actions, the US Department of Defense spokesman said.

In the spirit of the cold war

A little earlier his parting words to NATO countries were addressed by his Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. The Norwegian argued for the need to contain Russia by value differences.

We need to expand political and practical dialogue with all states with the same thinking with us around the world in order to confront those who do not share our values - countries such as Russia and China, he said.

If we omit that it is now 2021, then Stoltenberg's words may well pass for the statement of any of the American and NATO generals of the Cold War period, when the fight against Russia (USSR) was justified by the threat to Western liberal values - communism. Now the word "communism" is being carefully replaced by "authoritarianism," and anyone can fit under this criterion - from Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The secretary general sees one of the main tasks of the alliance in the deployment of the armed forces of the member states near the borders of Russia. Unlike Donald Trump, who extorted money from Germany for armament, Stoltenberg generously offers NATO to cover the expenses of its members to expand military capabilities in Poland, the Baltic States, Scandinavia, Romania and the Balkans.

The approach of the new head of the Pentagon towards Russia

To be fair, it should be noted that by and large the Pentagon and the NATO Secretary General are not proposing anything new. Containment of Moscow has been on the agenda for at least the last 20 years, with the only difference that every year Russia is becoming an increasingly powerful and independent military force capable of imposing a struggle on the United States not only in the former USSR, but also in the Middle East and even in Latin America.

The new US Secretary of Defense, African American Lloyd Austin, has already outlined his priorities. Speaking in the Senate, he made it clear that he agreed with the National Defense Strategy of 2018, approved under Trump, which "correctly characterizes China and Russia as the main challenges." If the head of the Pentagon regards China as a "growing threat", then he calls Russia a "key adversary."

Problematic moments

A number of unresolved contradictions remain between NATO and Russia. First, there are ongoing military exercises by NATO countries. The last of these, held in Norway (Defender 2020), did not even stop the coronavirus pandemic. In addition, NATO continues to expand along the Russian borders and is trying to draw into its ranks the western countries of the former USSR - Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia. A negative background in Russia's relations with the military bloc is brought about by the destructive actions of the United States - the transfer of American ships to the Barents and Black Seas, overflights of bombers and fighters on the border of Russian airspace.

It is also worth mentioning here the sanctions. For example, the restrictive measures that stopped Nord Stream 2 were enshrined in the US defense budget signed by Trump in December 2019. The United States regards Nord Stream 2 not only as an economic threat preventing the "flooding" of Europe with American LNG, but also as a military-political one. The Biden administration recently warned that the US would not abandon sanctions on the pipeline if Ukrainian transit of Russian gas was not preserved.

Separately, it should be said about the disagreements on conflict points. NATO considers the reunification of Crimea with Russia an "annexation" and expects to return the peninsula to Ukraine. Brussels also blames the Kremlin for the loss of South Ossetia and Abkhazia by Georgia. For its part, Moscow condemns the attempted coup d'etat in Ukraine, staged in 2014 with the active participation of NATO countries, and demands the withdrawal of illegal American coalition forces from Syria.

How NATO will "contain" Russia - expert opinion

Boris Rozhin, a military expert and editor-in-chief of the Kassad information-analytical center, presumes that NATO countries will try to bring loyal regimes to power in neighboring countries.

"They will sponsor local political regimes in Russia's neighboring countries. They will finance the media, conduct propaganda and impose anti-Russian discourse in the ideological field of these countries. There will be attempts to draw them into various political models and the sanctions program, into the discussion of Nord Stream 2." , the issue of Ukraine, oppression in Xinjiang and Hong Kong, and the attraction of countries to the coalition to confront China, "he said in an interview with the Vestnik Kavkaza correspondent.

Recall that along with Russia, China is called one of the two main threats by Pentagon officials. In the new concept of NATO, the PRC will for the first time be called the enemy of the alliance.

The policy of containing Russia was pursued by Washington under previous administrations, but under Joseph Biden it will be "more focused and linear," Rozhin believes.

At the ongoing closed meeting, the heads of the Defense Ministries of NATO countries will touch upon the situation in Ukraine, the arrest of Alexei Navalny, discuss the need to strengthen the policy of containing Russia in Eastern Europe and the introduction of additional sanctions against the Russian Federation, the military expert notes. At the same time, he excludes that NATO countries can come to a consensus on sanctions against Nord Stream 2, because "Germany is interested in completing it."

The meeting of NATO Defense Ministers is being held on February 17-18 via videoconference over a closed communication. Among the main topics on the agenda of the meeting are the following: 1) The need for the Alliance to fulfill the agreement with the Taliban on the evacuation of the international coalition troops from Afghanistan by May 1; 2) A further increase in the defense spending of the bloc countries and an increase in purchases of new weapons (the United States insists on this, although, to put it mildly, not everything is going smoothly with the economies of the EU countries after the coronavirus pandemic); 3) Discussion of the NATO-2030 program and the development of a new strategy for the alliance, in which Russia is declared the main threat.
The San Antonio City Council shot down a plan to create a one-stop COVID-19 vaccine registry for those who havent been able to get an appointment  but the idea isnt totally dead yet.

In a 7-4 vote Thursday, council members rejected a move by District 9 Councilman John Courage to put together a registry where residents could sign up to receive the vaccine and be notified later when an appointment becomes available.

While the effort to create the waiting list failed, the matter will be sent to a council committee for further review, so it could make a comeback.

City leaders said they are trying to improve communication to residents about when vaccine appointments become available. City Manager Erik Walsh said officials are working on a system in which people would receive text messages when appointments open up.

On ExpressNews.com: San Antonio COVID-19 vaccine tracker

For weeks, Courage has clashed with Metropolitan Health District leaders over whether to set up the registry. The idea would be to give people certainty that they would receive a vaccination at some point, rather than forcing people to navigate jammed phone lines and crashing websites to try to schedule an appointment whenever one becomes available.

Other major Texas cities  including Austin, Houston, Dallas and Fort Worth  have their own registries, Courage has noted.

Its just a gamble, Courage said about trying to secure a vaccination appointment in San Antonio. If youre lucky enough to have somebody answer your call, you may get an appointment.

The North Side councilman forced a vote on the matter Thursday as the council deliberated changes to the citys coronavirus response plan  including the approval of a $27 million vaccine distribution program that will include deploying four mobile units across the city in April, starting with the citys poorest areas, and making house calls to vaccinate about 10,000 homebound elders.

City health leaders  including the citys coronavirus czar, Colleen Bridger  have argued that a registry wouldnt help much. People frustrated with not being able to schedule an appointment would then become anxious about when that appointment would take place, Bridger has said.

On ExpressNews.com: Across San Antonio a common cry is heard: Wheres my shot?

On top of that, the city hasnt received a new round of first doses to administer at the mass vaccination site at the Alamodome in more than three weeks. Prior to the winter storm, workers with Metro Health and the Fire Department were administering at least 10,000 doses a week at the Alamodome, Bridger said.

Even if people were put in a registry, Mayor Ron Nirenberg pointed out, theres no guarantee when the appointments would surface.

We are in fact only going to increase peoples frustration with the current system, Nirenberg said. Thats where I dont want to end up.

Thats what happened when District 5 Councilwoman Shirley Gonzales and her staff collected information from West Side residents to try to sign them up for appointments, she said.

We really did try to do it a little bit independently, Gonzales said. What did happen  as Dr. Bridger has explained  is that people are very disappointed and then become very angry at us, at me and my staff, for not being able to get as many people as we had hoped.

On ExpressNews.com: Get the latest update on coronavirus and a tracking map of U.S. cases

Complicating matters is the increasing decentralization of the vaccine distribution system. Aside from the citys four mass vaccination sites, private providers such as pharmacies have begun receiving doses. Getting all those providers into one system would be a difficult task  and not something theyve agreed to do so far, officials said.

We dont have the capability to set up a vaccine system and pull everybody in, Walsh said.

Courages idea found sympathy from Nirenberg, council members and city leaders, even if they found the request impractical.

District 7 Councilwoman Ana Sandoval likened the process of getting an appointment to a lottery. But the discussion will continue in the councils Community Health and Equity Committee, which Sandoval chairs.

For now, a majority of council members were inclined to go with Bridgers suggestion not to set up a registry.

If theyre telling us this is a bad idea, Im going to trust you guys, District 8 Councilman Manny Pelaez said.

jfechter@express-news.net | Twitter: @JFReports


An independent report into Belfast City Council's handling of the cremation of IRA man Bobby Storey has found no evidence the service was handled differently due to his connections to Sinn Fein (Liam McBurney/PA)

The findings of an independent report into how Belfast City Council dealt with the cremation of IRA leader Bobby Storey at Roselawn Cemetery will be given to party group leaders on Thursday.

The investigation by barrister Peter Coll, which began in September, examines how Mr Storeys relatives were treated differently to eight other families whose loved ones were cremated on the same day.

They were kept at the gates of Roselawn on June 30 while up to 30 mourners were allowed inside for the Storey service.

The findings will be presented to the parties and the eight families.

An internal council report by city solicitor John Walsh last summer found no political intent in the decision-making at the cemetery.

It said the decision by Nigel Grimshaw, director of city and neighbourhood services, to allow up to 30 mourners to attend the Storey cremation was taken in the context of managing potential issues if numbers arrived and demands for access were made.

Mr Grimshaw acknowledged it was a mistake for which he takes responsibility, and he regretted its impact on the other families. He retired from his position by mutual agreement with the council six months ago.

The internal report said that working arrangements for senior council officers were incredibly difficult and stressful during the coronavirus crisis, with long hours worked without leave.

Those circumstances may have played a significant part in Mr Grimshaw not seeing his decision through a wider and more forensic lens, it stated.

The report noted that, as Mr Storey was being buried, council chief executive Suzanne Wylie was dealing with a serious personal family issue.

This meant that she couldnt have an in-depth discussion with Mr Grimshaw and an important means of scrutiny was lost.

The report stated that an operational decision was taken to permit up to 30 mourners for the Storey funeral. There appears to have been a focus on this as a profile event, it added.

A Belfast City Council spokesman said: "Party Group Leaders have been advised that the independent investigation into the events surrounding the cremation of Mr Robert Storey at Roselawn on June 30, 2020, has concluded and Peter Coll QC has completed his report.

"Mr Coll will present his findings and share copies of the report with Party Group Leaders on Thursday 18 February after which the report will be made publicly available.

"Council is contacting the families affected to advise that the independent investigation is now complete and a copy of the report is being made available to them, before the report is made publicly available."


Denton, TX (76205)

Today

Cloudy in the morning, then thunderstorms developing later in the day. High 79F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low 66F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. 1 to 2 inches of rain expected.
Biden promises vaccines by the end of July

During a town-hall style meeting on Tuesday night hosted by CNN, President Biden said that every American who wanted a Covid vaccination would be able to get one by the end of July this year.

Mr. Biden qualified the remark slightly, saying that doses would be available by then, but he added that it shouldnt take months to get the shots into peoples arms. He also said that the nation would be significantly better off by the start of the next school year in the fall, and in a very different circumstance by Christmas.

As far as vaccine doses go, Mr. Bidens timeline appears solid. His administration said last week that it had secured an additional 200 million doses, and that the country now had enough to cover the countrys 260 million adults  and then some  by the end of summer.

With Moderna and Pfizer continuing to ramp up production, and the likelihood that Johnson & Johnsons single-shot vaccine could be approved for emergency use in the U.S. in early March, the next big challenge will be logistics.
The last year has seen several foreigners living in Vietnam experience unprecedented changes, particularly with 2020 being heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, meaning that travelling between countries has become increasingly difficult.

Nirop, a 30-year-old Bangladeshi national who originally traveled to Ho Chi Minh City in early 2020, arrived in the nation with the intention of experiencing Vietnam for roughly two months, but the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic prevented him from returning home. A few months ago, when social-distancing measures were in place, he began to feel depressed due to being unable to go anywhere other than his accommodation.

After social-distancing measures were eased, he and his friends tried to learn more about Ho Chi Minh City and found that they were able to do business in the southern metropolis. With this becoming his motivation, coupled with difficulties returning home and the countrys effective control of the pandemic, Nirop and his friends decided to rent a house and open a small coffee shop in District 12.

Alongside this, Nirop also worked as a manager for another friend's restaurant and quickly became familiar with the local environment. Now, he also has plans to continue living and working here, even when it once again becomes possible to return home.

"Actually when in Vietnam I feel a lot safer as a good result of the Vietnamese Government's control of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, Vietnamese people are also very kind, and this has greatly impressed me," Nirop shares.

Giorgia (first left) and her friends meet after the end of a social distancing period in Vietnam.





Another example can be seen in Giorgia, a 28-year-old girl from the UK who feels lucky after getting out of the "pandemic epicentre" after her and her boyfriend had first traveled to Hong Kong (China) before coming to Vietnam in February, 2020.

Whilst lots of people lost their jobs due to the impact of COVID-19, Giorgia was able to find a job of teaching English online through an international volunteer organisation based in the nation.

At present, although she feels positive about the local environment and enjoys seeing average citizens being able to go out and enjoy normal activities, she expects the global pandemic to be brought under control soon so that she can return to her home country.

Giorgia prepares for an online class





When the pandemic originally broke out, many people lost their jobs due to businesses laying off staff. This can be seen in the story of Francis, a man from New Zealand who has lived in Ho Chi Minh City for nearly four years and was left jobless when the pandemic broke out and was unable to return home.

At first, he felt under more stress than ever because he did not know how to manage the challenging situation, with acquaintances sending him money in order to help him get along with his life in the southern city. Fortunately, he has now been accepted as an English teacher at a local high school and he feels this news is the greatest luck for him in 2020.

He stated that he now feels more comfortable and confident thanks to his teaching job which has left him feeling transformed compared to before when he had no job for a long time and had no family members nearby. Indeed, it was the most difficult time in his life, he reveals.

Francis (middle) and his students





In contrast to the fortunes of Giorgia, Nirop, and Francis, is Fabrice, a French man who found it difficult to get a job when he was accidentally "stuck" in Vietnam. With little English, others wanting to communicate with him had to use French or signs to be understood.

This also made it difficulty as many jobs for foreigners require English or professional knowledge.

Therefore, he decided to buy a push-cart in order to sell fried banana cakes with the thought that he is healthy so he should not receive money from others but should instead work under his own strength.

Fabrice with his push-cart





Initially, he only sold a small number of cakes. But after a while, because of curiosity and knowledge of this man's story through social media, many people came to buy the cakes to support him. There were even days when it was just past 8 a.m. and the cakes had already sold out.

Fabrice confides, "When I sell cakes, there are many kind Vietnamese people who are willing to offer great help to me. They help me with accommodation, visa procedures, and even the police also help me. Everyone is very good. Thanks to that, everything is more favorable, the business here too."

These stories are only a small part of the many foreign tourists who have been "stuck" in Vietnam over the past year. Their only wish at this time is still a new year with more changes than the old one, with the epidemic set to be brought under control globally in the near future, they will be reunited with their families shortly. VOV

Norwegian diplomat enjoys making Vietnamese spring rolls to welcome Tet When I came to Vietnam, I realized that spring rolls was a popular dish, both for vegetarian and pescatarian. Tet (Lunar New Year) is coming and this is the dish that almost every Vietnamese family has in their Tet meal.
Kaitlyn Conely was sentenced to 23 years in prison after poisoning her ex-boyfriend's mother. At the sentencing, the poisoned victim's widower, William Yoder, retold accounts of how his wife had spent her final hours vomiting and suffering from diarrhea.

Just hours before those symptoms appeared, William said that his wife appeared to be the picture of health, according to The State report.

"To get even with my son, she decided to murder his mother," William was quoted in a report. Conley and Yoder's son were involved in a years-long, off-and-on romance.

Conley spoke during her sentencing in Oneida County, New York, Court, saying that she is innocent, with all respect to the justice system. In addition to her prison term, Conley will be under five years' post-release supervision, according to a People report.

Related story: Florida Man Charged in Family's Deaths Claims His Wife Poisoned Their Kids

Mary Yoder's Poisoning

Mary was a 60-year-old chiropractor with a thriving upstate New York practice that she ran with her husband.

A friend who had seen her that day recalled Mary radiated her signature warmth and peace. However, this changed after lunch time when she started feeling sick and struggled to finish her scheduled appointments.

Mary then told her husband that she had a stomach bug, but she was brought to the hospital the next day, where doctors expected her to be released after an overnight stay. However, her condition worsened, according to an Oxygen report.

William then called their three children and summoned them to the hospital. Mary went into cardiac arrest and her death was painful and sudden.

Mary's longtime friend and client, Sharon Groah, asked what happened. An autopsy offered little answers and a closer look suggested Mary was poisoned.

A series of tests were then ordered to search for the presence of toxins, which includes arsenic, cyanide, and other standard poisons. However, the result came back negative after a number of weeks.

A poison control expert suspected Colchicine, which is an anti-gout drug with a narrow therapeutic index. This means that the range between therapeutic and toxic doses is small, and in some cases they overlap.

Oneida County Asst. D.A. Laurie Lisi said that in its pure form, a tiny amount is deadly. The lab results then revealed that Mary had a lethal amount of Colchicine in her system despite not having a history of gout.

Investigation for Suspicious Death

Detective turned their investigation to Mary's husband, William, and looked into the victim's life insurance policies as a potential motive. The search showed that nothing was suspicious and the possibility of an insurance payout as a motive was ruled out.

However, in November 2015, the case turned into a different way when the detectives received an anonymous letter mailed to the Oneida Country's Sheriff Office and blamed Adam Yoder, the couple's son.

The letter cited that Colchicine and said that a container of it could be found under the passenger seat of Adam's Jeep.

In December 2015, he was brought in for questioning and denied allegations about her mother's death. Investigators asked if they could search his vehicle and Adam gave them a go signal after consulting with a lawyer.

Detectives then spoke to on-off girlfriend, Conley, after doing some digging to Adam's whereabouts at the time of his mother's poisoning. Conley then admitted to writing the letter when police interviewed her and claimed that she was afraid of Adam.

Investigators lacked a clear connection between Conley, as well as a finding a motive as Mary was Conley's boss and a friend.

However, in February 2016, they found Conley's DNA on the Colchicine vial found in Adam's jeep.

"I hate the defendant with every bone in my body and every drop of blood in my veins," Adam was quoted in a report as he said during the hearing.

Related story: Local Cane Alcohol Poisons 77 People, Kills 25 in Mexico
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Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Product Market Growth & Trends

The global roll-your-own tobacco product market size is expected to reach USD 10.42 billion by 2028, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. It is expected to expand at a CAGR of 4.2% from 2021 to 2028. The rising consumption of products among females and students is fueling market growth over the world. The adoption rate of the product is increasing among the youth in major economies, including the U.S. Moreover, the financial stress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has encouraged numerous smokers to shift from factory-made cigarettes to hand-rolled cigarettes due to the cost advantage of roll-your-own (RYO) tobacco products.

The filter and paper tip segment is expected to register the fastest CAGR of 4.7% from 2021 to 2028. Rapid research and product development of new kinds of filters focusing on removing maximum tar, nicotine, and certain gases are estimated to fuel the segment growth. Furthermore, the introduction of biodegradable or environment-friendly filters is expected to boost the demand for filter and paper tips in the upcoming years.

Europe dominated the market with a revenue share of more than 55.0% in 2020. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Europe reported the highest prevalence of smoking among adults (28%), with a percentage of the consumption trend observed among adolescents. Cigarettes witnessed the highest consumption among Europeans. The popularity of RYO cigarettes is on the rise among consumers due to the cost-effectiveness of the products and the availability of varied flavors. The consumption of RYO cigarettes in the region is mainly concentrated among men who smoke regularly.

Companies are looking to maintain their brand image and gain customer loyalty by upgrading their offerings according to customer specifications and studying consumer behavior patterns. Key players in the market are offering tobacco products in different sizes, flavors, and attractive packaging. These initiatives by manufacturers are propelling the global demand for premium roll-your-own tobacco products.

Request a free sample copy or view report summary: Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Product Market Report

Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Product Market Report Highlights

North America is expected to register the fastest CAGR of 4.7% from 2021 to 2028 owing to the increasing adoption of the product among the young consumers

By product, the filter and paper tip segment is expected to register the fastest CAGR of 4.7% from 2021 to 2028

Europe dominated the market by accounting for over 55.0% in 2020. The rate of smoking in the European countries has contributed to the growth of the market in the region

Offline distribution channel held the largest share of more than 85.0% in 2020

Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Product Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global roll-your-own tobacco product market on the basis of products, distribution channel, and region:

RYO Tobacco Products Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

RYO Tobacco

Rolling Paper & Cigarette Tubes

Injector

Filter & Paper Tip

RYO Tobacco Product Distribution Channel Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

Offline

Online

RYO Tobacco Product Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2016 - 2028)

North America US.

Europe Germany UK. France

Asia Pacific China Australia

Central & South America Brazil

Middle East & Africa

List of Key Players of Roll-Your-Own Tobacco Product Market

Imperial Brands

British American Tobacco

Japan Tobacco International

Scandinavian Tobacco Group A/S

Altria Group, Inc.

Philip Morris International

HBI International

Curved Papers, Inc.

Karma Filter Tips

Shine Brands

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Keith Gill, one of the most influential voices that backed GameStop shares on the WallStreetBets Reddit forum, was hit with a lawsuit that accused him of misrepresenting himself as an amateur investor and profiting by artificially inflating the price of the stock.

The proposed class action against Gill, who adopted the online nickname "Roaring Kitty," was filed yesterday in a federal court in Massachusetts.

The suit alleged Gill was a licenced securities professional who manipulated the market to profit himself.

Mr Gill backed GameStop shares through an extensive social media presence on Youtube, Twitter and Reddit.

"Gill's deceitful and manipulative conduct not only violated numerous industry regulations and rules, but also various securities laws by undermining the integrity of the market for GameStop shares," the suit said.

"He caused enormous losses not only to those who bought option contracts, but also to those who fell for Gill's act and bought GameStop stock during the market frenzy at greatly inflated prices."

The lawsuit said Gill was far from being an amateur stock picker.

Rather, it said, Mr Gill is in fact a Chartered Financial Analyst who holds multiple broker licences.

The stock trades at $45.50 (38).


Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is returning home after coming under harsh criticism for flying to the Mexican resort area of Cancun with his family while the state he represents deals with widespread power outages in the wake of a historic winter storm.

Cruz said he was returning to Houston on Thursday after flying to Cancun the day before.

"With school canceled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends. Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon," Cruz said in a statement. "My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas."

Cruz's statement came many hours after pictures of him at Houston's Bush Intercontinental Airport circulated on social media, and after Houston Police confirmed that Cruz's staff had asked for the department's help at his departure Wednesday.

"A member of his staff reached out to the police department asking for assistance yesterday regarding his arrival at Terminal A," Houston Police spokeswoman Jodi Silva said.

The trip triggered outrage and criticism from Democrats as about 500,000 homes and businesses in Texas remained without electricity Thursday morning after a severe winter storm pummeled the state for days. That number is down from more than 3 million on Wednesday.

More than 7 million Texans are under orders to boil water after power outages robbed utilities of the ability to keep pumping, which allowed pressure to drop to levels at which bacteria could proliferate. The bitter cold burst pipes in houses built for 100-degree summers, and temperatures aren't expected to get much above freezing until Saturday for most of the state.

"This has been an infuriating week for Texans," Cruz said, in his statement. "Like millions of Texans, our family lost heat and power too."

The Senate has been in recess since Saturday when Cruz was among those who voted to acquit former President Donald Trump of the impeachment charge of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

Cruz has been an outspoken defender of the former president, even though the two clashed in the 2016 presidential campaign when they were both seeking the Republican nomination. Cruz, who would be up for reelection in 2024, is one of several GOP senators eyeing a bid for the Republican presidential nomination that year.

The Democratic Party of Texas called on Cruz to resign Thursday for leaving his constituents in the middle of a disaster.

"Ted Cruz jetting off to Mexico while Texans remain dying in the cold isn't surprising, but it is deeply disturbing and disappointing," state party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement.

Former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, who was Housing and Urban Development secretary in the Obama administration, said in a tweet that members of Congress "play a critical role connecting their constituents to emergency services and assistance. @tedcruz should be on the phone with federal agencies, not on a trip to Mexico."

Asked Thursday about Cruz's travel, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, D, said, "It's certainly much warmer where he's going."

President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency in Texas and other states affected by the historic winter storm.

At the White House, press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration is focused on working with state officials in addressing the crisis "and we expect that would be the focus of anyone in the state or surrounding states who was elected to represent them."

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, R, said Wednesday he was banning gas from leaving the state through Feb. 21 to ensure in-state power generators had ample supplies. Less than 24 hours later, Texas' top energy regulator told gas producers to offer supplies for sale in-state before shipping it elsewhere, citing the governor's mandate.

"We will continue to exhaust all available methods to restore power for Texans and ensure that our communities can recover," Abbott said.
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The state Assembly and Senate are in agreement that New York should study the availability and affordability of high-speed internet and create a map pinpointing the strengths  and weaknesses  of broadband coverage across the state. The data could be used to help direct resources where they're needed most.

Great, right?

Well, not so fast.

The problem is that the Comprehensive Broadband Connectivity Act was passed last summer, but because Gov. Andrew Cuomo failed to sign it into law within the first 30 days of 2021 it isn't going to be acted upon.

The so-called "pocket veto" occurred because Cuomo argues that legislation that comes with a price tag ($3 million in this case) can't be considered outside the framework of the annual state budget. A Cuomo staffer said that the administration agrees with legislation, however, and will be including it in this year's budget proposal.
Puducherry: Puducherry Lt Governor Tamilisai Soundararjan on Thursday ordered a floor test for the Congress government in the union territory on February 22, to ascertain whether it has majority in the wake of a spate of resignations by the ruling party MLAs that has reduced its strength to 14. The strength of both the ruling and opposition camps stands at 14 in the 33-member house, including three nominated legislators of the BJP. The assembly has five vacancies.

Congress' own strength is ten, including the Speaker, while its ally DMK has three members. An independent also supports the government. Soundararajan's direction to Chief Minister V Narayansamy came after the opposition, led by Leader of the Opposition in the assembly and AINRC chief N Rangasamy, "reiterated" its stand that the government has to prove its majority on the floor of the House, a release from the Lt. Governor's Secretariat here said.

The Lt Governor has conveyed to Narayanasamy that the Assembly will meet on Monday and be confined to a "single agenda, namely whether the government of the incumbent Chief Minister continues to enjoy the confidence of the House," it said.

Voting shall take place by show of hands and the entire proceedings be videographed, it said. "The floor test in pursuance of the above directions shall be concluded by 5 pm on 22.02.2021 and the proceedings shall not be adjourned/delayed or suspended at any cost," it said.
Tom Felton looked dapper as he suited up to host the 23rd British Independent Film Awards on Thursday night.

Taking charge, Tom fronted the ceremony, being held virtually this year due to COVID-19.

Harry Potter star Tom, 33, looked suave in a midnight blue velvet suit and burnt orange tie, paired with a crisp white shirt, all by Paul Smith.

Suave: Tom Felton looked dapper as he suited up to host the 23rd British Independent Film Awards on Thursday night

He added a rainbow pin to the look, in support of the NHS, and wore round black-framed glasses.

The Murder In The First actor settled into a teal armchair to host the awards, as he linked up virtually to the nominees, winners and guest hosts.

Live from Wales, where he is filming Save the Cinema for Sky Cinema, Tom welcomed a glittering array of stars to announce the winners.

Best British Independent Film was awarded to coming-of-age drama Rocks by Zendaya with actress Kosar Ali also taking home the awards for both Best Supporting Actress and Most Promising Newcomer with her young co-star DAngelou Osei Kissiedu winning Best Supporting Actor.

Taking charge: Tom fronted the ceremony, being held virtually this year due to COVID-19

Smart: Harry Potter star Tom, 33, looked suave in a midnight blue velvet suit and burnt orange tie, paired with a crisp white shirt

Ready to go: The Murder In The First actor settled into a teal armchair to host the awards

Linking up: He connected virtually to the nominees, winners and guest hosts [pictured with Yinka Bokinni]

The four awards on the night took the films BIFA tally to five with Lucy Pardee winning the award for Best Casting sponsored by Casting Society of America and Spotlight when the craft award winners were announced in January.

British horror His House was awarded two BIFAs on the night with Remi Weekes winning Best Director and Wunmi Mosaku winning Best Actress for her acclaimed performance with the awards for Best Production Design sponsored by Studio Juice won by Jacqueline Abrahams and Best Effects going to Pedro Sabrosa and Stefano Pepin.

Anthony Hopkins poignant portrayal of an ageing man in The Father won him Best Actor amongst three wins for the film which also took home the awards for Best Screenplay sponsored by BBC Film for Florian Zeller, who also directed, and Christopher Hampton, and Best Editing sponsored by Intermission Film for Yorgos Lamprinos.

Support: He added a rainbow pin to the look, in support of the NHS

On duty: The show was hosted live from Wales, where Tom is filming Save the Cinema for Sky

Nominees: Tom welcomed a glittering array of stars to announce the winners

Trio: Tom is pictured enjoying a laugh with Rafe Spall and Esther Smith

In good company: James Norton presented the Best Supporting Actress award

There he is: Bridgerton star Rege-Jean Page presented the gong for Debut Director

Bringing the glam: Priyanka Chopra Jonas presented Best Director to Remi Weekes

The big one: Zendaya presented the gong for Best Film

Riz Ahmed took home the award for Debut Screenwriter sponsored by Film4 for Mogul Mowgli, also written by Bassam Tariq, which was also awarded Best Music sponsored by Universal Music Publishing Group for Paul Corley.

Saint Maud director Rose Glass was awarded The Douglas Hickox Award for Debut Director sponsored by Kodak & Pinewood with Ben Fordesman winning Best Cinematography sponsored by Dirty Looks in January.

The Breakthrough Producer trophy went to Irune Gurtubai for her work on Limbo, director Ben Sharrocks poignant look at the asylum experience on a remote Scottish island.

Crowning glory: Emma Corrin presented the award for Best Supporting Actor

Legend: Anthony Hopkins was honoured with the Best Actor gong for The Father

Fresh talent: Riz Ahmed presented the Most Promising Newcomer gong to Kosar Ali

Shocked: Actress Kosar Ali took home the awards for both Best Supporting Actress and Most Promising Newcomer

Double up: Brett Goldstein and JunoTemple presented Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger and won by Chloe Zhaos Nomadland

Jerry Rothwells documentary The Reason I Jump won Best Documentary on the night and Best Sound for Nick Ryan, Ben Baird and Sara De Oliveira Lima.

Misbehaviour was awarded Best Make-Up and Hair Design for Jill Sweeney and Best Costume Design for Charlotte Walter.

Best Short Film sponsored by the BFI Network went to Aneil Karia, Riz Ahmed and Tom Gardner for The Long Goodbye and The Raindance Discovery Award went to Perfect 10.

The only category of the night open to non-UK films, Best International Independent Film sponsored by Champagne Taittinger, was won by Chloe Zhaos Nomadland.

Chat: Tom talks to Susan Wokoma

Presenting duty: Daniel Kaluuya announced the Best Actress gong

Congratulations: Wunmi Mosaku won Best Actress for her acclaimed performance in His House

Ensemble: Sareah Gavron, Theresa Ikoko, Claire Wilson, Faye Ward and Ameenah Allen won for Rocks in the Best British Independent Film category

Winner: Rose Glass won The Douglas Hickox Award for Debut Director for Saint Maud
Minister of Labor and Social Protection Raluca Turcan told a press conference in Constanta today that she hopes that both the new pension law and the wage law are finalized in about a year.

"I hope that overall, the parliamentary debate included, the pension law is finalized in one year at the most. The wage law is an extremely delicate piece of legislation, covering many beneficiaries, many of whom work in difficult conditions or in key sectors, therefore we are doing a thorough analysis and I hope that we are able to put out a draft in about one year, and that it is then supported by all the ministries that regulate the various social and professional categories, so that Romania's public pay system becomes truly fair," Turcan said.

Regarding the pension recalculation process, Turcan said that she wants it to be completed in about two years, given that it will be done electronically.

"The recalculation process itself has two stages. One is the evaluation stage. (...). In parallel, we prepare the legislative variant. When both the evaluation and the legislative part are ready, we proceed to the recalculation, which shouldn't take too long, given that it's done electronically. (...) I would like us to be able to complete this one-of-a-kind process in the last 30 years in about two years. Let me tell you that just about one million pensions have been recalculated in three years, between 2005 - 2008, while we are set to recalculate five million pensions in a maximum of two years," said the Labor Minister.

Raluca Turcan mentioned that the software for the electronic recording of the retirees' files will probably be launched next week.
An intellectually disabled woman who was locked in seclusion for 23 hours a day for seven years in NSW forensic mental health facilities graffitied the walls with her own blood.

The woman, known by the pseudonym Melanie, was deprived of food and medicine if she misbehaved, and kept by herself in a room with a mattress on the floor and no natural light.

Melanie, a pseudonym, was locked in seclusion for seven years. Credit:Disability Royal Commisson.

Melanies story was revealed as part of the disability royal commissions examination of the experiences of people with cognitive disabilities in the criminal justice system who are locked in indefinite detention in forensic mental health facilities.

Solicitor Helen Seares said she would never forget meeting Melanie for the first time in 2013.
Almost exactly a decade after it first debuted, Real Housewives of Miami is getting the reboot treatment.

The Peacock streaming service, which is owned by Bravo's parent company NBCUniversal, announced the Real Housewives of Miami reboot on Wednesday.

No cast members have been announced at this time, though the announcement revealed this reboot is happening, 'after much fan demand.'

Reboot: Almost exactly a decade after it first debuted, Real Housewives of Miami is getting the reboot treatment

Streaming service: The Peacock streaming service, which is owned by Bravo's parent company NBCUniversal, announced the Real Housewives of Miami reboot on Wednesday

The Real Housewives of Miami debuted on February 22, 2011, with the first season featuring Lea Black, Adriana de Moura, Alexia Echevarria, Marysol Patton, Larsa Pippen, and Cristy Rice.

The second season added Joanna Krupa, Lisa Hochstein, Karent Sierra and Ana Quincoces to the cast, as Echevarria became a 'friend,' devoting more time to her son who was injured in a car accident.

The third season brought Echevarria back, and featured Krupa's marriage to Romain Zago, but it was the show's last, becoming only the second Real Housewives show to be canceled, following The Real Housewives of Washington D.C., which lasted just one season in 2010.

Premiere: The Real Housewives of Miami debuted on February 22, 2011, with the first season featuring Lea Black, Adriana de Moura, Alexia Echevarria, Marysol Patton, Larsa Pippen, and Cristy Rice

Marriage: The third season brought Echevarria back, and featured Krupa's marriage to Romain Zago, but it was the show's last, becoming only the second Real Housewives show to be canceled, following The Real Housewives of Washington D.C., which lasted just one season in 2010

Interestingly enough, the D.C. show was given a soft reboot, of sorts, when Bravo launched The Real Housewives of Potomac in 2016, which executive producer Andy Cohen described as, 'D.C. adjacent.'

The Real Housewives of Potomac aired its fifth season this past fall, though it has yet to be renewed for a sixth season as of yet.

This will seemingly be the first Real Housewives show to debut exclusively on Peacock, with the rest of the franchise airing on Bravo.

Streaming housewives: This will seemingly be the first Real Housewives show to debut exclusively on Peacock, with the rest of the franchise airing on Bravo

While no cast members were announced, Andy Cohen will serve as executive producer, as he does on all of the Real Housewives shows.

Purveyors of Pop will produce the series with Matt Anderson, Nate Green and Cooper Green serving as executive producers.

It's unclear if casting for the reboot is already under way, or when Peacock may be eyeing at aiming the reboot.

Production: It's unclear if casting for the reboot is already under way, or when Peacock may be eyeing at aiming the reboot

The Real Housewives franchise launched in 2006 with The Real Housewives of Orange County, which just wrapped its 15th season in late January.

Real Housewives of New York and Real Housewives of Atlanta followed in 2008, which was joined by Real Housewives of New Jersey in 2009.

The most recent additions were Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2010, and Real Housewives of Potomac in 2016.
Workers at the Hollywood West Fred Meyer had a safety deadline of four hours to act to salvage thousands of perishable items after a power outage during the snowstorm this week led to food sitting unrefrigerated Tuesday.

But icy conditions in Portland prevented food pantries from getting trucks to the store to pick up the load in time, Fred Meyer spokesperson Jeffery Temple said Wednesday. Two food pantries confirmed that they wouldnt have been able to pick up the food.

The food continued to sit unrefrigerated as the power outage dragged on at the store in Northeast Portland, prompting employees to toss out boxes of packaged meat, cheese and juice, whole turkeys, racks of ribs and other items they feared had spoiled.

The mound of discarded food in two large dumpsters attracted a crowd of 15 to 50 people at times who started taking some of it. Employees called police when they felt the scene got tense. Activists said police were guarding the food. Police said they were responding to restore order. National media picked up the story.

The escalation highlighted intense food insecurity faced by many during the pandemic as well as a food distribution system stymied by the unprecedented loss of electricity to more than 300,000 customers around the region hit by days of ice and snow.

At least one other area grocer also reported having to throw out food because of the power outages.

Fred Meyer policy calls for stores to donate food to hunger relief agencies rather than throw it away if safe to do so, Temple said.

But he cited Oregon Department of Agriculture requirements and guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that say perishable food that goes without refrigeration for four hours isnt safe to eat.

Our store team was concerned that area residents would consume the food and risk foodborne illness, and they engaged local law enforcement out of an abundance of caution, Temple said in an email. We apologize for the confusion.

Over a few hours Tuesday afternoon, people gathered at the Hollywood stores dumpsters to collect the discarded food. Police said they arrived when store employees called them after trying to prevent people from sorting through the pile. The employees were worried that a physical confrontation would break out, police said in a statement.

Morgan Mckniff, a prominent activist and outspoken Portland police critic who lives in the neighborhood, said workers were guarding the dumpsters and then police moved in. Another well-known activist, Juniper Simonis, arrived to document the police presence and said people were threatened with arrest for trespassing. Simonis said the food appeared to be in good condition.

Both Mckniff and Simonis said the run-in speaks to a skewed societal value system.

The people who were there werent there for selfish reasons  they were there to get food to distribute to hungry people around the city, Simonis said.

Fred Meyer has touted its Zero Hunger/Zero Waste plan, which commits to eliminating waste across the Kroger company by 2025. In fact, Fred Meyer sent a letter to employees Tuesday afternoon praising the companys work on the program.

Temple said Fred Meyer donated 5.5 million pounds of food last year and has partnerships with local food banks in Oregon, including the Oregon Food Bank, Oregon Harbor of Hope, Portland Rescue Mission and Sunshine Division.

The stores rely on food bank organizations to make the pickups as part of the program, but the weather prevented that, he said.

He didnt know the exact amount of food lost at the Hollywood store or if other Fred Meyers also had to throw out food.

Kim Rodgers, a spokesperson for New Seasons Market, said five of the companys Portland-area stores lost power and had to toss food for the same reason.

New Seasons is committed to reducing food waste by 50% by 2030 and has relationships with over 50 food recovery and hunger relief organizations, Rodgers said.

But this week she said, No partners were able to collect and safely store product. As a result, we did have perishable food that was required to be properly disposed of under food safety regulations.

Safeway, Albertsons and Whole Foods didnt respond to requests for comment from The Oregonian/OregonLive.

The fraught situation at the Hollywood Fred Meyer brought home that people are going hungry in Oregon.

At Portland Public Schools, nutrition services staffers normally provide grab-and-go meals for neighborhood children on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. But those distributions were canceled Friday due to snow and Monday for Presidents Day, leaving families that count on those meals short. Beaumont Middle School, one of the districts meal sites, is about two miles northeast of the Hollywood Fred Meyer.

Food insecurity has increased significantly year over year, said Ashley Mumm, the public relations manager for Oregon Food Bank.

Roughly one in five people are food insecure in Oregon, according to a recent Oregon State University report.

Mumm couldnt say whether her agency got word to pick up any of the Fred Meyer food but said the food bank wouldnt have been able to collect it in any case because the storm had limited its resources.

She did note that the food banks Fresh Alliance initiative works to connect hundreds of grocery stores with community organizations that distribute food in their neighborhoods.

Perishable items arent always safe for donation, but Mumm said there is a process to check food and make sure that the food that is safe is given to people in need.

Kyle Camberg, executive director of the Sunshine Division, the nonprofit offshoot of the Portland Police Bureau, said the organization was forced to close last Thursday due to the icy conditions. It provides food and clothing to Portland families and individuals in need.

The Sunshine Division remained closed until Tuesday, which made it impossible for it to take its refrigerated trucks out for any donation pickups.

In this particular case, we wouldnt have physically been able to get a truck from our locations to them because of the conditions, Camberg said.

Bacteria can begin growing on perishable food once the temperature reaches 41 degrees, said Andrea Cantu-Schomus, a spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Agriculture, which licenses and inspects grocery stores.

The presence of many bacteria isnt readily identifiable by smell, touch or sight, she said.

The four-hour rule for perishable food held above that temperature is even more strict at two hours for meat, poultry, fish and prepared foods when it comes to donations, she said.

The department has been in communication with many of our retail firms to ensure that they are monitoring the storage conditions of the food products, she said. Many firms are taking measures to move perishable food products into temperature controlled containers to preserve them through the crisis, but in some cases foods were not able to be salvaged before their safety was compromised. ODAs stance in those cases is that the food should be discarded to protect public health.

Joy Waite-Cusic, an Oregon State University professor of food safety systems, said Fred Meyer could have opened itself up to litigation if people consumed food the store threw away and then got sick.

They took this food that they didnt really have a temperature history on and they put it in the garbage, Waite-Cusic said. They arent managing that environment for sanitation. Now, if somebody comes and gets that food and gets sick, there is some potential for liability for them.

Scott Kerman, executive director of Blanchet House, said the organization served over half a million meals last year in downtown Portland  a 60% increase from 2019.

That was completely caused by the pandemic and the economic crisis, Kerman said. And there is a range of food security people experience. Maybe they have no food resources whatsoever or maybe some families can make it part way through the week, but their food needs are not totally met.

While Kerman said he wasnt comfortable commenting on the Fred Meyer confrontation since he didnt know the context behind the decisions to throw away the food, he did say Blanchet House absolutely would have accepted donations from grocery stores that had to get rid of product due to the power outage.

Blanchet House accepted donations from Portland Community College and a local high school due to the power outages.

They called us because they didnt want their food to go to waste, Kerman said.

To be sure, Blanchet House has strict standards for the food they accept and wont accept donations if, for example, meat went bad after a power outage.

I dont know what exactly was in the dumpster or the state of it, but at the very least, the incident at Fred Meyer highlights the need for food that is out there, Kerman said.

Oregonian/OregonLive reporters Nicole Hayden, Eder Campuzano, Jayati Ramakrishnan and Beth Nakamura contributed to this report.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg
Remote Monitored Systems PLC - London-based survey and inspection services provide - Says mask making machine at its Pharm 2 Farm Ltd subsidiary in Nottingham is now operational and ready to produce its 4-ply anti-viral mask. Current production rate "significantly below" the previously announced maximum capacity of around 5 million masks a month when operated 24/7. Commissioning process identifies "a number of issues that need to be resolved over the coming weeks in order to improve the machine's productive capacity." Remote Monitored is in talks regarding appointment of an independent adviser to assist Pharm 2 Farm in developing the production facility. This would include building up the production team to operate a single shift and allowing a gradual increase from the current limited production level to begin. Notes that despite high demand for materials, "key raw materials for the next few months" have been obtained. Development of a 5-ply mask is on hold.

Remote Monitored embarks on a strategic review of its other CloudVeil and Gyrometric subsidiaries, as well as Pharm 2 Farm. Explains that: "The purpose of the strategic review is to identify how to employ the funds raised last year to focus on and develop the most attractive opportunities among the large number now presenting themselves, alongside the investment that has been required to manufacture masks."

Trevor Brown and Alex Vergopoulos step down from the Remote Monitored board. Intends to appoint Gareth Cave as a non-executive director - subject to due diligence. Also looking to appoint an additional independent non-executive director in the near future, ideally "with a strong scientific background". Issues Brown with 8 million shares in place of his remaining 14.8 million options and director fees if he had stayed until the AGM later this year, when he had been scheduled to depart. Also agrees to pay Vergopoulos-owned FortOak Rolls Ltd GBP150,000 and provide him with 8 million shares and options over an additional 7 million shares.

Also agrees to issue 5 million shares to John Richardson "in recognition of his work supporting the company and P2F over the last year and his salary sacrifice taken in 2020" as well as his "key role in providing the finance function for the company during this time".

Current stock price: 1.85 pence; down 31% on Thursday

Year-to-date change: up 33%

By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
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Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong, left, talks with Unification Minister Lee In-young during a plenary session of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee in Seoul, Thursday. Chung said that the ministry will make efforts to cooperate closely with the U.S. government in Washington's review of its policy toward North Korea, while seeking a summit between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden as soon as possible. / Yonhap
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* Governments face uphill struggle to change deals

* Negotiations, disputes with mining firms can drag on

* Mongolia's deal with Rio Tinto 'not likely to change'

* Mali says it is waiting too long for mining dividends

By Jeff Lewis and Helen Reid

TORONTO/JOHANNESBURG, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Some resource-rich

developing countries are seeking to rewrite mining contracts and

accelerate dividend payouts, which can take years to materialize

under deals that experts said are tilted in companies' favor.

Any move to renegotiate agreements will trigger pushback by

miners wary of threats to their profit margins, experts said,

and previous attempts have caused protracted disputes.

Mongolia became the latest country to demand better terms,

asking for more tax revenue from Rio Tinto's Oyu

Tolgoi copper-gold mine while it waits for dividends. In West

Africa, Mali has said it would try to reopen mining contracts

that leave the state waiting years for dividend payments.

"What we're asking for today is for African countries to be

able to benefit more from their mineral production," said

Abdoulaye Pona, president of Mali's Chamber of Mines.

The historical power imbalance between mineral-rich but

cash-poor countries and multinational mining companies has left

a legacy of bad deals that have been overly generous to

investors, said Alexandra Readhead, tax and extractives lead at

the International Institute for Sustainable Development.

The financial strain governments are under from the COVID-19

pandemic could lead to stricter implementation of existing tax

laws and closer scrutiny of deals, Readhead said.

Governments are pushing for speedier payouts as prices for

metals from gold to copper scale multiyear highs,

signaling what investment bankers said is the start of another

commodity supercycle.

Glencore remains at odds with the Democratic

Republic of Congo nearly three years after the country signed a

new mining code into law, CEO Ivan Glasenberg said on Tuesday.

The 2018 code hiked royalties on cobalt, copper and gold.

"We are still in discussions with the government... we have

not accepted the change from the old code to the new code,"

Glasenberg told investors on a call.

'NOT LIKELY TO CHANGE'

Mongolia, which owns 34% of the Oyu Tolgoi mine, is unlikely

to get dividends until 2051 based on Rio's latest cost estimate

for an underground expansion, a source familiar with

negotiations said.

Delays and rising costs have eroded the expected benefits of

the project, the state argued.

Rio, whose majority-owned Turquoise Hill Resources

owns the rest of the mine, declined to comment.

Some are skeptical Mongolia's government will win better

terms under a new pact, given that previous agreements limit its

taxation powers.

"It's not likely to change to their benefit," said Vincent

Kiezebrink at the Netherlands-based Centre for Research on

Multinational Corporations.

In Mali, the transitional government is reviewing mining

deals after the auditor general last year identified problems

including "non-distribution of dividends" in the contracts.

In September, Barrick Gold unit SOMILO paid its

first dividend to Mali, 15 years after production at the Loulo

mine started and a year after the auditor general criticised the

firm for not paying dividends.

Barrick did not respond to questions. The Loulo mine is part

of the Loulo-Gounkoto gold-mining complex, West Africa's

biggest, and Barrick said the project generated $240 million in

dividends for 2020.

CEO Mark Bristow has said he does not expect major changes

to mining deals in Mali.

Last year Mali's auditor general demanded Resolute Mining

pay dividends to the state, a 20% shareholder in the

Syama mine which started producing in late 2008.

Resolute's Mali subsidiary SOMISY will begin paying

dividends to the government once it reaches profitability, the

company told Reuters.

While pushing for reforms, countries in need of investment

must still tread carefully, Pona at Mali's Chamber of Mines

said.

"You can't create a (mining) code which will make mining

companies avoid your country," he said.

(Reporting by Helen Reid and Jeff Lewis; Editing by Cynthia

Osterman)
TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Toronto real estate expert Michelle Kam recently answered FAQs about Toronto real estate for an article for Incredible Things.

Michelle Kam is a veteran real estate broker from Toronto, Ontario, who has spent 15 years working in the lucrative industry. She knows the ins and outs of the real estate market in Ontario, with a specific focus on high-end condos, lofts, and townhouses in the resale niche.

The article consists of seven questions, covering everything from buyer's markets versus seller's markets to paying land transfer taxes in Toronto.

The first two questions explain what buyer's markets and seller's markets are. Kam shared that a buyer's market is when there are more properties for sale than there are buyers who want to purchase said properties, which makes for a significant advantage on the part of the buyer. She said that she always advises her clients to purchase a new home in a buyer's market. On the flip side, she said that a seller's market is when the demand exceeds the supply, putting homeowners in an excellent position to sell. In a seller's market, homeowners are often able to get their full asking price, if not above the asking price, for their home, and homes in a seller's market typically sell very quickly.

In the article, Kam also claimed that the number one thing a seller can do to ensure their property sells as quickly as possible is to work with an experienced real estate broker. This is because veteran brokers know how to best price your property, using a mix of comparative sales, professional knowledge, and market analysis.

The next two questions were focused on land transfer tax in Toronto. Any and all buyers purchasing a home in Toronto are required by law to pay a municipal land transfer tax. This land transfer tax is separate from the provincial land transfer tax that is also required of anyone buying a home in Ontario.

The article concludes with a question about the necessity of hiring a real estate broker. Michelle Kam answered that although it's possible for a homeowner to sell their house on their own, it's generally advised that one hires a real estate broker. One of the main reasons for this is that there are many technical and legal aspects of real estate transactions that the average person could benefit from professional help with.

For more information, visit https://michelle-kam.com/.

About Michelle Kam

With more than 15 years of experience, Michelle Kam is a seasoned real estate agent and broker. After graduating with honours from York University, she started working with Re/Max and specialized in high-end, million-dollar properties in the resale market. With a passion for working in the urban market with a focus on condos, loft, and townhomes, she began to develop a niche for herself in high volume sales, learning the ins and outs of the pre-sale market. After building a large and loyal client base, Michelle opened her own brokerage. In June 2016, after owning and running City Accord Realty Inc., Brokerage for more than 10 years, Michelle Kam was fortunate enough to come across Jamie Johnston, owner of Re/Max Condos Plus, and decided to jump onto the Re/Max brand.

Contact:

Michelle Kam

Broker of Record

Re/Max City Accord Realty Inc., Brokerage

Office: 416-883-0892

Fax: 416-883-0894

17 Capreol Crt

Toronto, ON M5V 3Z6

http://www.michelle-kam.com

SOURCE: Michelle Kam

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630619/CORRECTION-Michelle-Kam-Addresses-Frequently-Asked-Questions-About-Toronto-Real-Estate
Analysts are warning that Chinas new law authorizing its coast guard to fire on foreign vessels in the disputed South China Sea will target five other Asian governments that have competing maritime claims and growing support from Beijings superpower rival, Washington.

The National Peoples Congress standing committee in Beijing passed a law January 22 that expressly lets the coast guard use force. The law prescribes all necessary means to stop foreign vessels, including use of weapons aboard Chinese ships.

The coast guard fleet of about 200 boats regularly encounters vessels from Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, three countries with rival sovereignty claims in the resource-rich South China Sea that extends from Hong Kong south to Indonesia.

The U.S. Navy regularly passes warships through the 3.5 million-square-kilometer waterway to warn China, a former Cold War foe, and show support for the Southeast Asian claimants. China cites historical records to back its claim to about 90% of the sea. Other countries believe China's claims violate international maritime laws.

Using guns and real force against others will be against Vietnam and the Philippines and Malaysia in the South China Sea because of the sheer imbalance of power in favor of China, said Alexander Vuving, professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Hawaii. Big guns on the Chinese coast guard ships would intimidate the Southeast Asian states, he said.

The three Southeast Asian countries, plus quieter claimants Brunei and Taiwan, resent China for its expansion at sea, especially in the heavily contested Paracel and Spratly islands. China, backed by the strongest armed forces in Asia and the third most powerful worldwide, has built up some of the islets that Southeast Asian states call their own. The surrounding sea is prized for fisheries and undersea fuel reserves.

Philippine National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Chinas coast guard law raises the risk of "miscalculation" at sea, domestic media outlets said. A Vietnamese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman reacted to Chinas move by urging all countries to follow international laws.

Vietnamese sailors died in 1974 and 1988 in military clashes with China. The two countries rammed each others boats in 2014 when Beijing authorized placement of a Chinese oil rig in disputed waters. China and the Philippines entered a standoff in 2012 as the Chinese side took control of a shoal west of Luzon Island. China and Malaysia were locked in their own standoff in early 2020.

Southeast Asian claimants also shadow Chinese ships that pass near the contested islets and repel Chinese fishing vessels.

Chinese resentment has grown because of U.S. support for the Southeast Asian claimants including regular warship movement in the South China Sea  such as U.S. carrier group exercises earlier this month. Washington, which does not claim the sea, helps train Philippine troops and in 2016 it authorized sales of lethal weapons to Vietnam. Taiwan already buys advanced U.S. arms.

I think the PLA [Chinas Peoples Liberation Army] is playing that game of uncertainty in the minds of everyone else, so that uncertainty claims a buffer of 'dont take precipitate action in these territories, because we have this option,' said Eduardo Araral, associate professor at the National University of Singapore's public policy school.

In Beijing, Standing Committee Chairman Li Shanzhu said the coast guard law provides legal guarantees for effectively safeguarding national sovereignty, security and maritime rights and interests, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

Chinas coast guard has the largest ships of any patrol force in the world, but it cannot match U.S. forces, Vuving said.

China hopes instead to reset relations with the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden after a rocky four years under former president Donald Trump, said Yun Sun, East Asia Program senior associate at the Stimson Center.

The context of the great power competition in the past four years is already very negative, Sun said. If the Chinese have any expectation for improvement, overreaction at this point is not a good strategy.

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An officer is seen at the national resident data center of the Ministry of Public Security in Hanoi, 2020. Photo by VnExpress/Ba Do.

The Ministry of Public Security has proposed fines of up to VND80 million ($3,475) for intentionally revealing personal information online.

The fine is included in a draft decree on protecting personal data drawn up by the ministry.

The draft decree divides personal data into two categories. Basic data includes first name and last name at birth, date of birth, blood type, sex, phone number, place of birth, place of residence, identity card number, marital statu, driver's license number and personal tax code.

The other category comprises sensitive personal data, including political view, religious beliefs, health conditions and genetic data.

The ministry now suggests a fine of VND50-80 million for anyone disclosing and sharing such information illegally without owner consent.

A fine of VND80-100 million is proposed for illegally transferring personal data across the border, as well as violations in registration of sensitive personal data.

The person charged with imposing fines is said to be the head of the ministrys Department of Cybersecurity and Hi-tech Crime Prevention, according to the decree.

However, the draft decree allows third parties, which include business organizations, data processors, and authorized state agencies, to disclose personal data without owner consent in cases where data is deemed essential in protecting national security, national defense, social ethics and community health.

Explaining its decision, the ministry said disclosing, leaking, stealing, buying and selling personal data online has become increasingly common and that the draft decree is meant to counter these trends.

In addition to these violations, more and more agencies and companies have been collecting, analyzing and using personal data for various purposes without informing their clients, posing a risk to national security, social order and cybersecurity.

The ministry will collect feedback from other ministries and departments over the next two months.

According to the ministry, more than two-thirds of Vietnams 95-million people are online, making the nation rank 13th globally in the number of internet users.

Of those users, 58 million have Facebook accounts and 62 million, Google accounts.
A number of popular Australian news and lifestyle businesses fear Facebook's shock ban on news content could prove fatal for their websites in the long-term.

The global social media giant pulled a series of Australian-produced news websites from its platform on Thursday after failing to persuade the federal government to alter aspects of a proposed code.

The code change would force Facebook into commercial arrangements with news organisations.

While major news organisations owned by the likes of News Corp and Fairfax Media, who run websites including The Australian and the Sydney Morning Herald weren't majorly affected, smaller news publishers were left reeling by Facebook's bold business decision.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison (pictured above) labelled Facebook's decision 'arrogant' on Thursday

Susannah George, who created lifestyle website Urban List, said the war over the government's media code could see the end of independent digital websites.

'Facebook's decision to restrict publishers and people in Australia from sharing not just hard news, but any content originating from a publisher, will have a significant and detrimental impact far beyond the media landscape,' she told the Sydney Morning Herald.

'Despite the best of intent, the news media bargaining code has squashed the upward momentum of digital-first publishing platforms and is a real blow to the diversity and vibrancy of Australian media.'

Popular satirical website The Betoota Advocate could also fold, while Junkee Media, whose target audience is primarily the digital savvy youth market, expects Facebook's decision to be 'significantly detrimental'.

'We urge the federal government and Facebook to work constructively to find a solution to this issue that is workable for all parties,' Rob Stott, Junkee Media's editorial director, said.

William Easton, Facebook Australia's managing director, felt the social media giant was backed into a corner after failing to reach a suitable agreement with the government over media codes.

Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Scott Morrison blasted Facebook, labelling the vastly popular platform 'arrogant and disappointing'.

'These actions will only confirm the concerns that an increasing number of countries are expressing about the behaviour of big tech companies who think they are bigger than governments and that rules should not apply to them,' he said in a statement.

'This decision sees Facebook effectively 'unfriending' Australia.'

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg was just as critical, stating Facebook jumped the gun by shutting down access to news pieces with zero notice.

'Their decision to block Australians' access to government sites - be they about support through the pandemic, mental health, emergency services, the Bureau of Meteorology - were completely unrelated to the media code which is yet to pass through the Senate,' he said.

Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg (pictured above) felt his company had 'no choice' but to pull news content from its platform

The likes of Junkee Media (pictured above), satirical website The Betoota Advocate and Urban List may struggle to survive if their content isn't available on Facebook

'What today's events do confirm for all Australians is the immense market power of these media digital giants.

'We want digital giants paying traditional news media businesses for generating original journalistic content. 'This is critical to sustaining public interest journalism in this country, and this is world-leading.'

In response, the social media giant claims it was left with no choice, arguing the bargaining media code is poorly worded.

'As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted,' a Facebook spokesman said in a statement.

'However, we will reverse any pages that are inadvertently impacted.'
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All-India service and laws framed for it, have federal cooperation as cornerstone of its legl architecture: Mamata incooperation as cornerstone of its legl architecture: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

Presume earlier order by centre made in consultation with state government extending Chief secretary''s tenure for threestate government extending Chief secretary's tenure for three months from June 1, stands: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

`Shocked and stunned by unilateral order' recalling Chief Secretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCHSecretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCH JRC

Mamata writes to Modi; requests rescinding orders recalling WB Chief Secretary to Delhi. Chief Secretary to Delhi.
Activists Seek Firing, Meeting After Claims Of Mocking Floyd Photo By LAPD

Activists called today for the firing of any Los Angeles Police Department employee who created or circulated a Valentine-themed social media post featuring an image of George Floyd that included the words

You take my breath away, while the police union, the Floyd family attorney and various city leaders decried the post.

The family of George Floyd is outraged and devastated, Project Islamic Hope director Najee Ali said at a news conference at the LAPDs Harbor station, where an officer had made a formal complaint about the post at the urging of Police Chief Michel Moore.

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Its despicable and outrageous that there are LAPD employees who are in the workplace mocking the police murder of George Floyd, who died in May after being handcuffed and pinned to the ground under the knee of Derek Chauvin, who was then a police officer in Minneapolis, Ali said.

Floyd died May 25 after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes as he repeatedly said, I cant breathe. That officer, Chauvin, is awaiting trial on a second-degree murder charge.

LAPD officials said they launched an internal investigation after an officer complained about the image and alleged it was being circulated within the department. The complaining officer was scheduled to be interviewed Monday. Department officials said they have not yet determined whether the post was circulated by any members of the LAPD.

Moore told the Los Angeles Times he was determined find out what happened and who, if anyone, from the department was involved.

Our investigation is to determine the accuracy of the allegations while also reinforcing our zero tolerance for anything with racist views, Moore said. If the department confirms that officers were circulating the image, people will find my wrath.

Ali and a coalition of activists are asking for a meeting with Moore and calling for the termination of any LAPD (employee) who shared this image mocking Floyds killing.

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We have a relationship with law enforcement, community activist LaWanda Hawkins said Monday. And Im not going to allow anything like that to destroy our relationship. I hope this makes our relationship a little bit stronger. I know the (police) captain here and I know how hes working with the community.

Ali also shared a statement from the Floyd familys attorney, which read in part: The Floyd Family is understandably outraged. This is beyond insult on top of injury. Its injury on top of death. The type of callousness and cruelty within a persons soul for them to do something (like this) evades comprehension and is indicative of a much large problem with the culture of the LAPD.

The LAPDs union also expressed outrage at the post.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League repudiates this abhorrent image and anyone associated with its creation, dissemination, or passive observation of it, the union said in a statement Monday. If that image was created, `liked, or shared by a member of the LAPD, the chief of police must act swiftly to hold those individuals accountable. There must be zero tolerance for this behavior in our profession, and any police officer who feels the need to be part of any online group that engages in, promotes, and/or celebrates this type of activity should quickly rethink their career choice because they clearly dont have the judgment, nor temperament, to be a member of law enforcement.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon, who has made addressing systemic racism the cornerstone of his mission since taking office in December, said his office would look into the matter to determine if the integrity of any of its cases may have been compromised by biased police work.

Celebrating the murder of a Black man at the hands of police demonstrates a profound absence of humanity. The mock valentine underscores the highly problematic, and frankly, racist perceptions that pervade the law enforcement culture regarding the communities we are sworn to protect and serve, Gascon said.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer also released a statement Monday condemning such behavior.

No one with racist views has any place in our police force, Feuer said. It is outrageous that anyone sworn to serve our city would ever conceive of creating or distributing this image. I commend Chief Moores swift action in getting to the bottom of this, and his commitment to hold the offending officer(s) accountable. Whoever participated in this incident stains the badge, and undermines the efforts of officers throughout the department who strive to earn the trust and respect of the communities they serve.

Reports of the image, and the subsequent complaint within the LAPD, first surfaced Friday, two days before Valentines Day.

Screen grabs of the image allegedly referred to in the internal LAPD complaint, and posted on Twitter and elsewhere, show a picture of Floyd on a pink background surrounded by hearts with the words You take my breath away and Valentine-style spaces to designate who it is being sent to and from.
Bob Dole Has Stage 4 Lung Cancer

By West Kentucky Star Staff

WASHINGTON DC - Bob Dole, the 97-year-old former Republican senator and 1996 presidential candidate, announced Thursday that he is battling lung cancer.Recently, I was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. My first treatment will begin on Monday, Dole said on Twitter.While I certainly have some hurdles ahead, I also know that I join millions of Americans who face significant health challenges of their own, he added.Dole represented Kansas in the US Senate from 1969 to 1996. He was the GOP leader during the final 11 years of his tenure.
Titular de la PCM: Hemos recibido el primer lote de un millon vacunas y estamos negociando la adquisicion de muchas mas. No permitiremos que este proceso se empane por ninguna razon. pic.twitter.com/ZOoWtecLVX
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The bomb blast on Wednesday night at the Nimtita railway station in West Bengal's Murshidabad district, which left 25 people, including state minister Jakir Hossain, injured, was the result of 'internal feud' and 'political rivalry' among the cadres of the ruling Trinamool Congress, people in the Railway Ministry aware of the investigation said on Thursday.

The railway officials' remarks came after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday pointed towards a "conspiracy" behind the bomb attack that left her Labour Minister Hossain seriously injured.

Without taking the name of any particular party or individual, Banerjee alleged that some people were "pressurising" Hossain to join their party. The West Bengal government on Thursday handed over the probe into the matter to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Banerjee even held the railways responsible for the incident since it took place on its premises when crude bombs were hurled on Hossain by unidentified persons on Wednesday night when he was walking towards the Nimtita railway station to board a train for Kolkata.

"Railways is to be blamed for the blast at Murshidabad where minister Jakir Hossain was injured. It was a planned conspiracy to kill him. Not a responsibility of the state government, Railways and Centre are to be blamed," Banerjee said.

The Chief Minister, along with senior Trinamool Congress leaders, went to the state-run SSKM hospital in Kolkata to inquire about the health of Hossain.

A Railway Ministry official in the know of the developments said that Hossain's party and the CPI(M) are political rivals, as the Trinamool Congress leader had defeated CPI(M) candidate Somnath Singh Rai in the last Assembly polls.

The official pointed out that CPI(M) had organised a protest near Trinamool headquarters Nabanna last week, where the police had resorted to lathi charge to control the crowd, adding that one of the CPI(M) workers had succumbed to the injuries he sustained in the lathi charge due to which there is an environment of tension in the area.

The official said that the CPI(M) had called a 'rail roko' from 11 a.m. on Thursday as a mark of protest.

The official said that there are also reports of internal feud between the ruling party workers. He added that Hossain had also filed a police complaint against two Trinamool Congress members in 2017, who were giving him death threats.

"This incident is prima facie a result of political rivalry between the Trinamool Congress and the CPI(M) and many have some links to the internal feud among the ruling party cadres," the official said.

He said that the resulting chaos may disrupt train operations and cause inconvenience to the general public.

The railway official added that the West Bengal government should tighten the law and order situation in the state and ensure that the culprits are caught at the earliest to restore normalcy in the area.

Earlier in the day, the Railway Ministry had described the bomb blast as an "unfortunate" incident, saying that law and order is a state subject and the state police are responsible for the same.

"It may be noted that law and order is a state subject and state police are fully responsible for the same. Law and order on railway platforms is also under the purview of the Government Rail Police (GRP) of the state government," the ministry said in a statement.
Pro-lifers slam congresswoman who compared abortion 'health care' to cancer coverage

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Pro-life advocates are speaking out after a Democratic congresswoman compared the importance of abortion coverage in healthcare to cancer coverage while debating a proposed COVID-19 relief amendment in the U.S. House of Representatives last week.

Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., objected to a bill proposed by Rep. Jacki Walorski, R-Ind., that would have restricted abortion funding for COBRA insurance for the unemployed.

"COBRA is supposed to provide employers with the same exact employer-sponsor plan as when they were employed, Chu said in a video statement responding to the bill. Abortion is health care, and excluding abortion from COBRA coverage makes as little sense as excluding cancer coverage.

Walorski presented an amendment that would have added Hyde protections in the budget reconciliation package and ensured taxpayer dollars are not used to subsidize abortion. But the Democratic-controlled House Ways and Means Committee failed to pass the amendment Thursday.

I believe every human life is precious, and taxpayers should not be forced to pay for the destruction of life, Walorski said during the committee hearing. Thats why House Republicans have been united in our efforts to protect the unborn and prevent taxpayer funding for abortion. A majority of Americans  nearly 60 percent  agree that tax dollars should not be used to fund elective abortions.

National Right to Life Committee president Carol Tobias said Chus claim that equates abortion coverage to cancer treatment is based on opinion. She argues that the two are not comparable.

Comparing abortion to cancer treatment is just bizarre. If cancer is not treated, the patient most likely dies. If an abortion is not performed, a beautiful little baby lives. Theres just no way to compare them, Tobias told The Christian Post Tuesday.

Tobias said that even though Chu may see the pre-born children as a cancer, it does not change the fact that a pre-born child is not a disease.

When an abortion is performed, one human being, the unborn child, is killed, Tobias said. Another human being, the mother, may be harmed physically, emotionally, psychologically. There is no way our taxpayer dollars should be paying for abortion at any time. Abortion is simply not health care.

Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser tweeted a response to Chus statement on Feb. 11.

Real healthcare in the case of a difficult pregnancy looks like addressing the illness of the mother or unborn child; not eliminating the child, she tweeted. Real doctors heal; they don't harm. Two patients. Every time.

Susan B. Anthony List, a leading national pro-life grassroots organization that spent millions in the 2020 election, also tweeted a link to Chus video statement and remarked that while one procedure takes a life the other seeks to restore life.

Chu tweeted in response to the SBA List that Abortion is health care. Period.

In January, Chu praised President Bidens actions to expand abortion access when he rescinded President Donald Trumps Mexico City Policy barring international groups that promote or provide abortions internationally from receiving federal family planning funds.

Chu has served in Congress since 2009.

Rep. Judy Chu has doubled down on her claim that abortion is health care. Abortion is NOT health care, and never can be, Dannenfelser told CP in an email. Cancer treatment seeks to restore life, while the object of abortion is to destroy it. To compare the two is shameful.

Dannenfelser said comparing abortion to health care is not uncommon in the pro-abortion movement, which regards the unborn child as no more deserving of moral consideration than a tumor or appendix.

Doctors who work with expectant mothers and their unborn babies know well that they have two patients, Dannenfelser wrote. With modern technology, surgeons can even treat dozens of conditions right in the womb, and they routinely administer anesthesia because science shows unborn children can feel pain. Unborn human life is never a malignancy to be eliminated but deserves equal care and respect.

Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, the nations largest youth pro-life organization, said, pregnancy is not a disease cured by abortion.

To equate cancer and pregnancy is to ignore that one condition brings life into the world while the other needs treatment to prevent death, Hawkins told CP in an email. This is a sad comparison. The abortion lobby is so accustomed to talking points about abortion as healthcare they seem to forget that abortion ends life.

Tobias said the pro-life movement must point out that unborn children deserve to be protected and have the right to live once conceived. She encourages pregnant women considering abortion to look into adoption and seek help, which is available.

The pro-life movement is there to help her [the mother], Tobias said.  There is something precious here. Look at the overall situation and think of that baby.

[February 18, 2021] Codefresh Runner Wins 2021 DEVIES Award for DevOps Innovation

During today's all-virtual DeveloperWeek expo and conference, Codefresh was honored with a 2021 DEVIES Award for its Codefresh Runner, a cloud-native solution that allows DevOps teams to selectively run pipelines, deployments and versioning on their own Kubernetes clusters no matter where they are: behind a firewall, on site, or the virtual private cloud. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005285/en/ During DeveloperWeek, Codefresh was honored with a 2021 DEVIES Award for its Codefresh Runner, a cloud-native solution that allows DevOps teams to selectively run pipelines, deployments and versioning on their own Kubernetes clusters no matter where they are: behind a firewall, on ste, or the virtual private cloud. (Graphic: Business Wire)



The DEVIES recognize excellence in developer tools, products and technology. The Runner, which was released in July 2020, won for developer and engineering innovation in the DevOps category. It's a meaningful win since products are judged on technical innovation, adoption, and reception in the developer technology industry and by the developer community. DeveloperWeek 2021, the world's largest developer and engineering conference and expo, with more than 8,000 participants, continues through tomorrow.

Dan Garfield, Codefresh's Chief Open Source (News - Alert) Officer, said, "The Runner, combined with our GitOps offering, opens up so many possibilities for managing clusters and providing services in hospitals, in banking, and defense. The security and low-maintenance overhead has made it a hit." The 2021 DEVIES Awards received hundreds of nominations. Winners were determined based on three criteria: attracting notable attention and awareness in the software industry; general regard and adoption by the developer, engineering, and IT communities; and, being a technical leader in its sector for innovation. "Developer tools and solutions are continuing to grow in their importance to the global technology industry. Codefresh is a great example of the new era of products and services allowing developers and engineers to have a greater impact on a company's bottom line and overall efficiency," said Geoff Domoracki, CEO of DevNetwork, producer of DeveloperWeek and the 2021 DEVIES Awards. About Codefresh Codefresh is the first cloud-native DevOps automation platform. Their mission is simple, to provide a platform and practices that enable companies to confidently ship code faster. After launch in 2017, Codefresh is trusted by companies like GoodRx, Skillshare, Monday.com, TBS, and financial services companies. Unlike legacy solutions, Codefresh goes beyond simple pipelines to connect runtime environments for total observability, advanced deployments and faster engineering/recovery cycles. Codefresh is headquartered in Mountain View, CA (News - Alert) and backed by world-class investors: M12, Microsoft's venture fund, Red Dot Capital Partners, Shasta Ventures, Viola Ventures, Vertex Ventures, Hillsven, CEIIF, UpWest Labs and Streamlined Ventures. Learn more about Codefresh at https://codefresh.io/. Follow on LinkedIn (News - Alert) and Twitter at @codefresh. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005285/en/

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MITCHELL COUNTY, Iowa - Two people are facing multiple charges after a report of a suspicious vehicle circling around the small town of Carpenter before it was located in St. Ansgar.

Tomi Clarke, 48, of Cedar Rapids, and Michael Dolezal, 48, of Cedar Rapids, are both being held in the Mitchell County Jail.

A citizen reported the vehicle had been circling around town for a couple of hours before a truck matching the description was located in St. Ansgar early Thursday morning.

When asked to step out of the vehicle, Dolezal allegedly locked the keys in the truck in an attempt to not allow the search.

The vehicle was towed to the Mitchell County Sheriffs Office where the following items were located:

Gloves and masks

Multiple crowbars with paint transfer

Drug paraphernalia

A 9-inch bowie knife

Numerous burglary tools.

Clarks is facing charges of driving while suspended, carrying weapons, possession of burglary tools, possession of drug paraphernalia and no insurance.

Dolezal is facing charges of felony drug possession, possession of burglary tools, carrying weapons, interference with officials acts and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Victor Muruako has been confirmed by the Senate as Chairman of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC).

Mr Muruako has been serving in an acting capacity for seven years after the expiration of the tenure of the pioneer board of the commission on December 4, 2013.

His confirmation comes weeks after President Muhammadu Buhari conveyed his (Mr Muruako) appointment to the Senate. It was, however, not without some arguments among lawmakers.

The chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Adeola Olamilekan, presented the panels report. He informed the Senate that Mr Muruako possesses the right experience and that there was no petition against him.

He also said the panel was aware that there were no other members of the board. He recommended that the nominee be confirmed and the executive be asked to nominate other members.

Prior to his confirmation, Mr Muruako had not only acted without a board, some staff of the commission also alleged that he appointed himself as the Acting Chairman of the commission in 2014.

According to the policy of the commission, before a new chairman can be inaugurated, there a must be an existing board  after being appointed by the president and screened by the National Assembly.

Section 5(3) of the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 states that the Chairman and other members of the Commission other than ex-officio members shall be appointed by the President subject to confirmation by the Senate.

There was, however, no appointment letter or directive from the president when Mr Muruako appointed himself the chairman of the commission.

There are also several allegations accusing him of being involved in corrupt practices in the commission ranging from illegal suspension(s), illegal employment (ghost workers) to irregular signatures, favouritism, among others.

In a petition written against the Acting Chairman, cited by this newspaper in 2018, members of the commission not only accused Mr Muruako of assuming his position legally and accruing the benefits meant for the acting chairman but also being involved in corrupt acts ranging from illegal suspensions to employment of ghost workers, among others.

One of such petitions prompted operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices (and other related offences) Commission to raid the FRCs headquarters in Abuja, in July 2017.

PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the raid followed a petition received from a group of Concerned Staff of FRC against Mr Muruako. The petition dated May 29, 2017, signed on behalf of the group by Jonathan Yakubu, was addressed to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

However, after officials of the ICPC raided the building and carted away several volumes of files and official documents, no legal action was taken.

Mr Muruako had told PREMIUM TIMES that the allegations were not true. Although he said it was not the first time that such allegations were being made, he expressed surprise that they were coming up again.

The Controversy

After Mr Olamilekans presentation, the Senate Leader, Abdullahi Adamu, informed his colleagues that the commission should not be operating without a board. He, therefore, advised that the report be stepped down pending when the president sends other nominations.

The Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, was of the same opinion.

I dont believe that it is the intent of the president to nominate a sole administrator. This commission requires the full complement of its members.

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My view is that we put this on hold while we await Mr President to bring other nominations. Going ahead to confirm him, is validating this sole administrationship that has been practiced, he said.

But Mr Olamilekan and the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, argued otherwise.

Mr Lawan who acknowledged the absence of a board, said nominees can be sent on another day and that it would be unfair not to confirm Mr Muruako after acting for seven years.

This is even as he wondered what the commission has been doing over the years.

he has a huge and massive responsibility to turn around this commission for it to perform efficiently and effectively otherwise, for him to be there, seven years acting, and then four years, that will be 11 years It is simply not acceptable because the FRC is such an important commission that we need to have everybody who is supposed to be there and they have to sit up especially the man who will lead this.

He has sufficient experience, being there for seven years as an acting chairman.

I want to plead with us that instead of putting it down, we should go ahead and confirm him. Even if we put it down, this chairman will continue to act. So let him be there with our endorsement but we ask for an expeditious action from the executive to send the remaining nominees for us to screen.

In a bid to further convince his colleagues with dissenting opinions, he said we go ahead and do the confirmation but we dont communicate the confirmation

This stirred murmuring among lawmakers for a moment.

Bala NaAllah (APC, Kebbi South) thereafter told the Senate that confirmation of other nominees can be done separately.

Mr Muruako was then confirmed as chairman of the FRC.
New Delhi: On a day when petrol crossed the Rs 100 mark, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the middle-class would not have been burdened if the previous governments had focussed on reducing India's energy import dependence.

Without referring to the relentless increase in retail fuel prices, which are linked to international rates, he said India imported over 85 per cent of its oil needs in the 2019-20 financial year and nearly 53 per cent of its gas requirement.

PM Modi

"Can we be so import dependent? I don't want to criticise anyone but I want to say that had we focussed on this subject earlier, our middle-class would not have been burdened," he said.

Price of petrol crossed the Rs 100 per litre mark in Rajasthan after fuel rates were hiked for the ninth day in a row.

Modi said his government is sensitive to concerns of the middle-class and so has focussed on raising share of ethanol mixing in petrol.

Petrol and Diesel

India, he said, is looking to cut energy import dependence as well as diversify its sources to reduce risks.

The focus now is also towards using renewable sources of energy, which will by 2030 form 40 per cent of energy generated in the country, he said.

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Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help
By Ramon Pacheco Pardo



This year is shaping up to be a busy one for South Korea on the multilateral diplomacy front. Seoul has received and accepted an invitation to the G7 meeting scheduled for June, which could well become the springboard for a more permanent Democracy 10 (D10). The Joe Biden administration is planning a "summit of democracies," with South Korea at the front of the queue among potential attendees. And there is incessant talk of opening up the Quad to new members, with Seoul as one of the preferred partners.





Ramon Pacheco Pardo
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The jokes from people who move to Portland from colder locales begin as soon as forecasts include a chance of snow.

The punchline?

That even an inch of the white stuff brings the Rose City to a standstill, pushes shoppers to strip their local supermarket of its kale supply and prompts schools to close if a snowflake dares appear on parents smartphone weather apps.

But last Friday, as Ursula Scofield set out to Kenilworth Park, sled in hand, the Sellwood Middle School seventh grader did so knowing shed need to make it back home in time for her mid-day Spanish class.

Yep, just like college, her father Chris said Sunday while he and Ursula visited the park for the fourth time in three days.

Portland Public Schools canceled in-person classes that day for the nearly 100 students who who take part in face-to-face learning at school for about two hours per day. But the district kept online all of its students learning virtually as Portlanders braced for a weekend that brought nearly 6 inches of snow in the regions lowest elevations.

And after nearly a year of schools delivering lessons almost exclusively online, Gresham-Barlow Superintendent Katrise Perera had a blunt assessment on the prospect of parents seeing the words inclement weather associated with school cancelations.

No more snow days, Perera told a City Club of Portland panel Friday. This is what itll be.

The districts did cancel virtual classes when a major ice storm downed power lines and caused major outages in electricity and internet services. By Wednesday, as many other districts canceled online classes for a third consecutive day, Portland Public Schools, Gresham-Barlow and others resumed virtual learning as snow continued to make driving and walking hazardous in some neighborhoods.

As long as the power is on and internet service available, the coldest temperatures or record snowfall wont be a get-out-of-class card for Portland-area students.

That a wide-scale pivot to distance learning might spell doom for snow days isnt unique to Oregon.

In Ohio, Cincinnati Public Schools similarly required students to check in for online classes during what would typically be an inclement weather closure.

Several New England districts also kept classes going during a spate of snowfall, The Boston Globe reported.

Still, some Ohio districts opted to cancel classes over inclement weather, citing insufficient internet access for many students. Officials in one Missouri district told NPR they kept snow days intact because so many staffers still come in to work to use school internet to deliver virtual lessons.

Such access problems are also an issue in Oregon.

Gresham-Barlow officials had a three-year plan to purchase enough Chromebooks so that every student could take one home in the event of inclement weather or other circumstances that typically shutter schools for a day or two.

Instead, the pandemic forced the district to execute those plans in two weeks.

Portland Public Schools spent upward of $8 million to purchase Chromebooks for students last spring and partnered with internet providers to deliver internet hotspots and purchase basic access packages for families through its foundation.

Both Perera and Portland Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero said they were concerned by the number of their students without reliable access to broadband internet before the pandemic. A Pew Research Center study showed about 15% of K-12 students nationwide did not have broadband internet access at home prior to the pandemic.

School districts should not have had to be in the business of internet connectivity, Perera said.

Still, a majority of Portland-area districts opted to keep class in session Friday even as they canceled meal pick-ups and other on-campus activities. But that didnt deter students from taking advantage of the weather.

Grout Elementary fourth-grader Maddie Trebelhorn hit the slopes at Kenilworth Park around 7:30 a.m. Friday with her father, Chris.

Why so early?

She still had to check in for a virtual class in a few hours time.

Thats just the way it is right now, Chris Trebelhorn said.

--Eder Campuzano | 503-221-4344 | @edercampuzano | Eder on Facebook

Eder is The Oregonians education reporter. Do you have a tip about Portland Public Schools? Email ecampuzano@oregonian.com.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 00:43:24|Editor: huaxia

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A woman wearing a face mask walks in central London, Britain, on Feb. 17, 2021. Another 12,718 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,071,185, according to official figures released Wednesday. (Xinhua/Han Yan)



LONDON, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Another 12,718 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,071,185, according to official figures released Wednesday.

The country also reported another 738 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 118,933. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.

The latest figures were revealed as nearly 16 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine. Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi has said the government would "not rest" until the vaccine was offered to all over-50s by the end of April.

Earlier Wednesday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he will be focusing on "data, not dates" as he is set to announce a roadmap for easing England's coronavirus lockdown next week.

Johnson said he agreed with Professor Dame Angela McLeanthe, the government's deputy chief scientific adviser, who told a committee of British lawmakers earlier that the relaxing of COVID-19 restrictions should depend on "data, not dates".

Johnson is expected to unveil his "roadmap" out of lockdown on Monday next week.

The plan will be based "firmly on a cautious and prudent approach" that ensures the unlocking will be "irreversible", said Johnson."We want to be going one way from now on."

Johnson urged caution and patience with the public, stressing that the easing would be done in "stages".

England is currently under the third national lockdown since outbreak of the pandemic in the country. Similar restriction measures are also in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States have been racing against time to roll out coronavirus vaccines. Enditem
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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 16)  The Anti-Terrorism Act, highly challenged for its supposed potential to violate constitutional rights, has been heavily scrutinized by the Supreme Court in its ongoing oral arguments.

Day 3 still centered on the law's allegedly vague and overbroad definition of terrorism, and how it opens doors to arbitrary arrest and detention. An innocent individual, petitioners contend, may even be designated as a terrorist for merely expressing his views or speaking his mind.

This time, however, Associate Justice Amy Lazaro-Javier asked: Whose rights weigh more  the suspected terrorist, or the general public?

Atty. Evalyn Ursua, one of the counsels for petitioners, said she believes the contentions against the law do not necessarily conflict with the interest of the State. But pressed to answer the question, she said the government is duty-bound to prioritize public safety.

The magistrate further quizzed Ursua, asking what harm would result from the detainment of a suspected terrorist who later turns out to be innocent. Ursua said the wrongfully accused would have already been deprived of liberty, his reputation damaged, and his assets frozen, among others.

"But he remains alive, kicking and in one piece," the justice said.

Ursua argued the damage already done is no minor harm. The justice agreed, but added, "What can be greater than losing one's life?"

Lazaro-Javier said while there is always a possibility that the State will err in tagging an individual as a terrorist, "it's better to err on the side of caution than play with fire." An innocent suspect can still pursue legal actions against the State, such as a suit for damages, the justice said. The Anti-Terrorism Act itself also prescribes sanctions against erring law enforcers and military personnel, she added.

But if a suspect is released and later turns out to be indeed a terrorist, Lazaro-Javier said this can result in "a massacre of people."

"One misstep, one missed moment, one error of judgment, one moment of delay, of hesitation, of reluctance, of doubt, of indecision, of cowardice or fear on the part of our law enforcers can instantly mean the loss of multitudes of lives," Lazaro-Javier said.

She stressed that in quelling terrorism, time is of the essence. Earlier in the interpellation, Ursua said in designating terrorists, intelligence agents "should not resort to shortcuts," as this can lead to violations of human rights.

According to the justice, balancing conflicting rights ultimately "does not mean a robotic response," as the State would act "on a case-to-case basis."

For the third consecutive session, only petitioners were able to present during the oral arguments. Day 3 ended with Rep. Edcel Lagman, also one of the petitioners counsels, again asking the high court for the issuance of a temporary restraining order on the Anti-Terrorism Law. Despite dozens of petitions urging the tribunal to stop the law's implementation due to the "grave and irreparable injury" red-tagged groups and individuals stand to suffer, no TRO or status quo ante order was issued.

The oral arguments are scheduled to resume next Tuesday, Feb. 23, with Solicitor General Jose Calida and the government's lawyers expected to defend the measure.
PHILIPSBURG:--- Independent Member of Parliament Christophe Emmanuel on Wednesday called on the Princess Juliana Airport Holding Company (PJIAH) to make haste to formalize the dismissal of CEO of PJIA Brian Mingo and save the airport employees from victimization.

The MP, who has accused the CEO and other Dutch consultants of fleecing the airport, said he has been made to understand that the CEO is very pre-occupied with trying to determine how Members of Parliament were in possession of confidential information.

This comes after several MPs raised several concerning questions on Monday about the ongoing reconstruction of the airport. Most notably among those were MP Emmanuel who highlighted the amount of money consultants are being paid, the alleged double payment of Mingo, the benefits and perks of these same persons as well as the fact that the airport re-construction bottom line is now at the US $131 million, up from the US $107 million.

The MP on Wednesday said he knows that government has most if not all of the information that he presented in the Parliament meeting. It should not have been left to MPs to raise the issue. The government should have handled this situation already with the information they have. And if they dont have it, it is negligence on their part. So the question is now, will the government sit by and do nothing? MPs are the only people employees of these companies can turn to in order to be treated fairly and in the best interest of the country, MP Emmanuel said.

Once again we see the airport CEO pre-occupied with things other than controlling costs overrun at the airport and the actual completion of the reconstruction. The pandoras box was opened and now he is reportedly hunting for someone to victimize, MP Emmanuel said.

He is creating an unhealthy and dark atmosphere at the airport, as if airport employees dont have to worry about enough such as possible loss of income and benefits, now they have to be concerned about a CEO that is unhinged. I urge the holding company to follow its corporate governance directives and as soon as possible dismiss the CEO of the airport. It should have happened already, MP Emmanuel said.

MP Emmanuel also urged the replacement of the operating board of PJIAE who he said is empowering the CEO and contributing to the mismanagement of the airport reconstruction.

He went on to say that a capable and caring leader would have taken the first opportunity after the grilling in Parliament to reassure employees about the airports plans moving forward, in which they are included and treated fairly. Instead, the MP continued, the CEO and his right-hand CFO have yet to answer the employees questions about the money owed to them and their future status.

Again his approach is a selfish one that seeks to protect himself and intimidate employees. This atmosphere at PJIA is not conducive for progress and definitely not a comfortable place for what should be a dedicated and committed workforce, something we have always known the airport employees to be. One person has negatively influenced that working spirit and it is time for that person to go and go now, MP Emmanuel said.
A nightclub that repeatedly flouted warnings to stop breaching Covid laws has been forced to shut down after authorities were 'left with no confidence' that those in charge could comply with the law.

The Incense Lounge in Enfield, north London, was visited by police and council officers in September last year and found to be operating as a nightclub and shisha bar, serving alcohol and playing music.

In October, police found a large group of people inside the venue with no social distancing, while on another occasion the shutters were pulled down to conceal what was going on inside.

The venue was finally taken to court by Enfield Council this month after it continued to stay open despite being served with enforcement notices.

The Incense Lounge in Enfield, north London, was visited by police and council officers in September last year

Under coronavirus guidelines, shisha bars are required to close amid the lockdown.

However the venues can continue to provide food and non-alcoholic drinks on a takeaway basis - between 5am and 11pm.

This means customers are able to enter the venues to collect their orders or can also be provided with their food and drinks via a drive through.

Food and non-alcoholic drinks can also be provided by the venues through delivery services.

A court has now ordered that the Incense Lounge immediately close for three months after risking public health in the flagrant double-breach.

The venue was also ordered to pay more than 4,000 to the council and handed a closure order at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court on February 10.

This was granted under section 80 of the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.

Cllr George Savva, cabinet member for licensing and regulatory services at Enfield Council, said: 'Enfield Council repeatedly visited these premises to advise the directors on what they needed to do to operate legally and safely.

'But the licensing officers were left with no confidence that those in charge were capable of complying with the law.

Enfield Council were left with no confidence that those in charge were capable of complying with the law. Pictured: The bar inside the nightclub

The Incense Lounge was ordered to pay more than 4,000 to the council and handed a closure order

'There appeared to be a deliberate disregard of Covid-19 regulations and licensing laws which risked the health of the wider public.

'I would like to thank the police, licensing officers and the council's legal team for working hard to protect the people of Enfield and ultimately, preventing the further spread of coronavirus.'

It comes as Boris Johnson faces mounting pressure to speed up the easing of lockdown after he yesterday suggested pubs, bars and restaurants will be the final parts of the economy allowed to fully reopen.

It is thought lockdown rules could be eased at four-weekly intervals after a 'limited' loosening at the Easter holiday, with the hospitality sector likely having to wait until early May for the green light to resume restricted trading.

Earlier today Britain's coronavirus plummeted to its lowest levels since September, official data revealed.

Figures from the Department of Health showed the UK recorded 12,057 new infections in the last 24 hours, marking a 10.6 per cent drop from last Thursday.

Another 454 deaths were also announced, a 33 per cent fall on last week.

Data from Public Health England also revealed cases among school-age children plunged to 86.2 infections per 100,000 people, a rate which hasn't been recorded since the seven-days to September 26.

Bengaluru, Feb 18 : With airlines flying to more destinations across the country, the Bengaluru airport has been connecting to more non-metro cities, its operator said on Thursday.

"The share of non-metro traffic to and from Kempegowda airport increased 9 per cent to 64 per cent in 10 months (April 2020-January 2021) from 55 per cent in the corresponding period in 2019-20 amid the Covid pandemic," the Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL) said in a statement.

Leading private airline IndiGo recently started service to Assam's Jorhat and Uttar Pradesh's Gorakhpur while SpiceJet flies to Odisha's Jharsuguda.

"More non-metro cities like Agra, Dibrugarh in Assam, Durgapur in West Bengal, Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh and Rajkot in Gujarat are 5 new destinations the airlines will soon operate their service from Bengaluru," said the operator.

SpiceJet will fly to Rajkot and Durgapur, while IndiGo will operate to Dibrugarh from later this month and to Agra and Kurnool in March.

Domestic flight operations resumed partially on May 25 at the country's third largest airport after the extended Covid-induced lockdown was lifted and frequency was increased gradually, as per the standard operating procedures of the Union Home Ministry and guidelines of the Union Health Ministry to contain the virus spread.

"With average 270 flights daily, about 30,000 passengers were flown to non-metro cities from the city airport in January," said the consortium's operator.

Private airlines and state-run Air India were operating to 58 cities across the country before the pandemic forced the government to suspend all domestic flights from March 23 to May 25.

Airlines began operating services from Bengaluru to Amritsar, Darbhanga in Bihar, Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh, Nashik in Maharashtra and Silchar in Assam during fiscal 2020-21.

The increasing flights to regional and non-metro routes is in line with the Union Civil Aviation Ministry's focus on improving regional connectivity in the country.

"The improved regional connectivity has led to a 3-fold increase in transfer passengers, strengthening the city airport's position as the new gateway," said the statement.

In calendar year 2019, a record 33.65 million passengers transited from the airport at Devanahalli, registering 4 per cent annual growth from 32.33 million in 2018.
The Rail Roko Andolan announced by farmers to protest against the farm laws began at 12:00 pm and will last till 04:00 pm on Wednesday. The spokesperson of the Kisan Andolan committee, Ghazipur Jagtar Singh Bajwa said that they will offer refreshments to the passengers to avoid inconvenience. Many farmers gathered near railway tracks in Punjab and Haryana where officials stopped trains as a safety measure.

The Ferozepur division of Northern Railways has decided to halt trains at stations so that passengers face less inconvenience during the 'rail roko' protest. Movement of trains is likely to be delayed because of the blockade by farmers. Train services will be resumed after following due security protocols once the agitation is over, according to news agency PTI.

Farmers blocked railway tracks in Palwal under the rail roko agitation against the three contentious farm laws. Farmers in Jammu and Kashmir also demonstrated under the aegis of United-Kissan Front at the Channi Himat area in Jammu as part of the nationwide 'rail roko' agitation.

Ahead of the Rail Roko movement, spokesperson of the Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Rakesh Tikait told news agency ANI, "Trains aren't plying anyway. It'll be done peacefully. We'll provide water, milk, lassi and fruits to people who will be founded stranded. We will tell them our issues." When asked whether a rail roko protest will spread to poll-bound West Bengal, the BKU spokesperson said, "Their crops are not being sold on MSP. We have got nothing to do with elections. We will talk to the farmers there."

Farmers have been protesting at Delhi's border areas-Singhu, Tikri, and Ghazipur since late November 2020 against the three farm laws passed by the Parliament-Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Production and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

Also read: Petrol price hits century: PM Modi lambasts previous govts for not reducing import dependence
A mass shooting has left at least seven people wounded at a station in Philadelphia, police say.

The gunman opened fire near the SEPTA station in the Olney area of the city at around 2.50pm ET, according to reports.

Police say that a 71-year-old man remains in critical condition after he was hit once in the stomach and multiple times in the legs.

A 22-year-old man was shot in the back, two other men aged 21 and 53 were struck in the legs, a 17-year-old girl was shot in the right arm, and a 36-year-old woman and 70-year-old man were each hit in the thigh.

All six of those victims are reportedly in stable condition in hospital.

Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw described the shooting as a very brazen incident.

We were able to get someone in custody as quickly as we did because we had officers in the area working on another assignment, she said.

I think its very telling that folks that are willing to engage in these shootings are becoming more and more emboldened regardless or not if they see us out here.

Philadelphia police say they do not have information on the wounds of two of the victims, or any of their conditions.

Six of the victims were taken to the citys Albert Einstein Medical Center while a seventh victim was transported by police to Temple University Hospital.

At least one person was arrested in connection with the incident and two guns were recovered at the scene.

Philadelphia police say that as of Monday 257 people had been shot in the city so far in 2021, a 56 per cent increase over 2020.

The incident on Wednesday saw the largest number of woundings in one single incident this year.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani addresses the opening session of Iran's new parliament in Tehran, Iran, May 27, 2020. (Photo by Ahmad Halabisaz/Xinhua)

TEHRAN, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Iran's President Hassan Rouhani reiterated on Wednesday the Islamic Republic's "definite" determination not to produce or store weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), including nuclear weapons, official news agency IRNA reported.

"As we have said many times, in our country's defense program, there is no place for weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, and this is a definite decision of the system," he said in a cabinet meeting in Tehran.

Rouhani said this is not a new or recent decision, because Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and late Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani underlined nearly 30 years ago that Iran will not pursue nuclear weapons.

However, Iran has ever since intended to develop "peaceful nuclear technologies" as it is right as a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and signatory to a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), he added.

Iran's president also reiterated that Tehran will not accept any changes in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) agreed in 2015 after intensive works between Iran and six world powers, neither will negotiate its national defense program.

Meanwhile, Rouhani said that Iran vowed to return to compliance with the JCPOA "in a few hours" after sanctions against Iran are lifted, whether this is done step by step by both the U.S. and Iran, or in full and at once.

Regarding Iran's stated plan to stop the implementation of the IAEA's Additional Protocol next week, Rouhani said the IAEA inspections will continue on the basis of safeguards agreement, noting the IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi has made a request to travel to Iran.

In January, Iran launched 20-percent uranium enrichment process as part of Iran's Strategic Action Plan to Counter Sanctions, which was approved by parliament in December 2020.

In response to the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 and re-imposition of sanctions, Iran has suspended implementing parts of its obligations under the agreement.
AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Legacy Collective, a giving community dedicated to funding nonprofits addressing systemic issues with sustainable, innovative solutions, today announces the Texas Disaster Relief Fund. Donations collected from this emergency fund will be used to provide food and shelter to those in need across the state of Texas. This will include helping Texans with emergency relief, food insecurity, and rebuilding efforts.

To make a donation, go to https://legacycollective.org/relief.

"Texas is in a state of disaster as the recent winter storms have caused power outages, water shortages and more, all in the midst of freezing temperatures," says Erin Arnheim, Legacy Collective CEO. "I can personally attest, as someone who has been without power and water for many days and had to be evacuated from my home, that we rely on others in times of need and I'm so grateful to those who have helped me. This Disaster Relief Fund is a way for anyone to step in and help Texans in a time of need."

Donations collected from the Texas Disaster Relief Fund will be allocated to the following organizations:

Feeding Texas : Feeding Texas is the largest hunger-relief organization in Texas. Together with 21 member food banks, they reach over 4 million Texans annually with food and resources and engage the state in the fight against hunger. Their network of food banks reaches every county in Texas  making them uniquely prepared to serve as a central point of contact for information, resources, and donations.

: Feeding Texas is the largest hunger-relief organization in Texas. Together with 21 member food banks, they reach over 4 million Texans annually with food and resources and engage the state in the fight against hunger. Their network of food banks reaches every county in  making them uniquely prepared to serve as a central point of contact for information, resources, and donations. Austin Disaster Relief Network: ADRN is comprised of nearly 200 Greater Austin churches and thousands of trained volunteers bringing hope into crisis. ADRN's network enables and empowers church members to organize, prepare, mobilize, and respond quickly in the event of disaster, great or small. They are currently mobilizing emergency transportation efforts and volunteers to staff warming centers across the Austin area.

churches and thousands of trained volunteers bringing hope into crisis. ADRN's network enables and empowers church members to organize, prepare, mobilize, and respond quickly in the event of disaster, great or small. They are currently mobilizing emergency transportation efforts and volunteers to staff warming centers across the area. Rebuilding Together Houston: RTH is a core services organization that provides home repairs and modifications at no cost to low-income seniors, U.S. Military Veterans, homeowners with disabilities, and working families impacted by natural disasters in Houston / Harris County .

About Legacy Collective

Legacy Collective works to engage systemic problems related to social issues by resourcing what we believe to be the most innovative efforts and funding the most critical projects. Follow Legacy Collective online:

Contact: Whitney Otstott, 512-699-7730, [email protected]

SOURCE Legacy Collective
Ethnic groups from New England pledge to donate $1 million towards Indias COVID-19 fight

Maharashtra minister Jayant Patil tests positive for novel coronavirus

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

Mumbai, Feb 18: Maharashtra water resources minister and state Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Jayant Patil on Thursday said he has tested positive for COVID-19.

Taking to Twitter, the minister also said he is doing fine and taking appropriate medical advice.

PM Modi to address Combined Commanders Conference in March

Earlier, Patil visited parts of the state during the 'Rashtravadi Parivar Samvad Yatra' (an initiative to reach out to NCP leaders and workers), also asked those who came in contact with him recently to be observant and self-isolate.

"I have tested Covid positive. Whilst I am doing fine, I am taking appropriate medical advice and hope to recover soon. I shall be undertaking my duties via video-conference," he tweeted.

Farmers' Protest: Farmers call for 'rail roko' protest today

Earlier this month, state ministers Anil Deshmukh, Satej Patil and Rajendra Shingne also tested positive for the coronavirus infection.

Deshmukh was discharged from a hospital in Nagpur, where he was undergoing treatment, on February 15. Last year, over a dozen state ministers, including Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, were infected by the virus.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 11:11 [IST]

Acting Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly during a press conference in the Prime Ministers Courtyard at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, on July 24, 2020. (Sam Mooy/Getty Images)

Chief Medical Officer Concerned by Virus Vaccination Hesitancy in Australia

Australias Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly is concerned about the number of Australians who are hesitant to get the CCP virus vaccination, ahead of the first Pfizer shots being administered on Monday.

At a press conference on Feb. 17, Kelly was asked if he is concerned that a health department survey has shown that 27 percent of people were considering not getting the vaccine.

We certainly are concerned about that, Kelly told reporters.

I believe, actually, the information was that 27 percent were going to delay; looking to delay their vaccine rather than to not have it, he added.

The figure represents what health authorities are calling vaccine hesitancy, Kelly said, adding that they would be easier to shift than the nine percent who indicated they would refuse outright.

That demonstrates that we need to continue to stress the vaccines as being safe and effective, he said.

Pfizer is confident their vaccine can stand the test against new virus strains. (Joel Saget/Getty Images)

The first doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be given to aged care residentswhich represented the majority of COVID-19 related deaths in Australiaand frontline health and quarantine workers, after receiving approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).

While the number of hesitant Australians is larger than Kelly was expecting, the health department survey showed that most Australians agreed to the question that the vaccine would protect vulnerable people and reduce pressure on the hospital system.

The latest health department figures show there are currently a total of 12 people hospitalised with the virus, as of Feb. 18, with zero in intensive care.

Matt Hancock, Secretary of State for Health, visits the NHS vaccine centre that has been set up at Epsom Racecourse in Epsom, England, on Jan. 11, 2021. (Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

On Feb. 16, the TGA provisionally approved AstraZeneca, which is already being administered in the UK along with the Pfizer vaccine.

Kelly said he had spoken to his UK colleagues twice in the last week and they are finding that both of them are working very well, they are both safe, and they are definitely saving lives.

An epidemiology expert who spoke at the National Press Club last week said that 90-95 percent of Australians would need to be vaccinated to achieve herd immunity, The Australian reported.

Infectious Disease Physician Sanjaya Senanayake, Epidemiologist Mary-Louise McLaws and Honorary Professor of Paediatrics Robert Booy at the National Press Club in Canberra, Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2021. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas)

Epidemiologist and University of NSW academic Mary-Louise McLaws told the National Press Club, My calculations are that we need to vaccinate at least 90 to 95 per cent if were covering a variant of concern.

When asked about this, Kelly said, Well, it will be a challenge to get high rates of vaccination, but I am very confident that Australians will see the benefit of this vaccine as it rolls out.

To date, there have been almost 110 million cases of COVID-19 recorded worldwide with 2.4 million people dying.

Comparatively, Australia has reported 909 people dying, the majority (815) were adults aged over 70; with 28,911 total cases.

The majority of those Australian deaths were reported in Victorias residential care, where there were 655 deaths out of 1,988 total cases.

COVID-19 cases in aged care services  residential care in Victoria, Australia as of Feb. 18, 2021. (Department of Health)

Australia has a deal for 20 million Pfizer doses and almost 54 million injections of the AstraZeneca vaccine with both needing two shots.
PHILIPSBURG:--- Independent MP Christophe Emmanuel on Wednesday said Minister of Finance Ardwell Irion slapped civil servants across the other cheek when he attempted to include a budget post in the 2021 budget to hire some 155 new full-time government workers, two weeks after spearheading the drive to cut the benefits and income of current civil servants.

I do not understand what this government and this finance Minister are doing. I really dont. He submitted a budget to the CFT with a 16% increase on the 2019 figures for personnel costs, after he just implemented a cut of 12.5%. An elementary school child would tell you this doesn't make sense. So he created increases in personnel expenses during a crisis after you just cut people using the same crisis as your reasoning. Simply unbelievable, MP Emmanuel said.

The MP said he was not surprised to read that the CFT sent the budget back with the 155 new hires as an obvious problem. He said the Finance Ministers attempt to hire follows a baffling statement made by the Prime Minister during the debates in Parliament on the laws that resulted in income and benefit cuts.



The PM said that government will have to hire persons to execute the country packages. This of course makes no sense, because the government was already instructed by the Dutch to implement the 12.5% cut on personnel costs as the cost has been increasing every year. But instead of implementing personnel stop last year as a cost-saving measure, which would have meant that no new employees would have been hired as of last year, they decided to continue to hire and now want to hire more, the MP said.

MP Emmanuel said poor decisions like this one is just one of the reasons why some people will continue to want the Dutch involved. When the government comes with illogical things and others have to point out that what they are doing is nonsense. It is a bigger slap to civil servants because they have been understaffed for a long time already and doing work for maybe two or three persons. So had the government done its due diligence it would have not agreed to ambitious packages that require our civil core to take on more work and accept a cut in their income and benefits, the MP said.

He continued: In the past when departments were understaffed civil servants would work overtime and even on weekends with the understanding of overtime pay, gratificaties and so on. But since this government went and cut out all of those things, a limited civil core with less income will now be asked to fulfill country packages for which this government had no foresight, but just accepted.

He also used the opportunity to touch on a related matter: The Minister of Finance continues to perpetuate the lie that civil servants' salaries were not cut. Stop playing with words. You cut their income. You have the right to certain increases, bonuses ect. Many plan their lives around this. This is income rightfully earned. Not a gift. So when you cut this income, where do you think civil servants will have to turn to? They take from whatever is left from their base salary, which will now be under further pressure on top of regular monthly obligations. So this notion that their base salaries are not being touched is a lie, the MP said.
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Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk).
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 21:05:52|Editor: huaxia

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DHAKA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- More than 1.5 million people in Bangladesh have so far taken the first doses of COVID-19 vaccine paving the way for the Asian country to contemplate re-opening educational institutions.

The Bangladeshi government is planning to administer COVID-19 vaccines to 16.9 million people from varied high-risk groups on a priority basis.

As of Thursday, officials said some 3 million people had registered on a designated website for receiving the COVID-19 vaccine. Bangladesh's countrywide COVID-19 vaccination drive kicked off on Feb. 7, and on Wednesday, the total number of people receiving the first jab reached 1,586,368, showed official data on Thursday.

The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) reported on Thursday 391 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 15 new deaths, bringing Bangladesh's total tally to 542,268 with 8,329 deaths.

Meanwhile, the total number of recovered patients rose to 489,932 including 678 new recoveries, said the DGHS.

According to the latest data, the COVID-19 fatality rate in Bangladesh currently stands at 1.53 percent and recovery rate at 90.35 percent.

Although offices, businesses and transports resumed operation in Bangladesh last June on a limited scale after being suspended for about three months following the COVID-19 outbreak in the country, the educational institutions have remained closed with the extension of government-ordered closure in phases since March 17 last year.

The latest extension of closure was until Feb. 28.

Following declines in daily caseloads, the Bangladeshi government has said it is contemplating reopening educational institutions based on further improvement of the COVID-19 situation.

Bangladeshi Education Minister Dipu Moni said, "We're still not sure whether educational institutions will be reopened in February or March. We'll reopen schools only when we're convinced that the risks are lessened." Enditem
Vancouver, British Columbia and Boulder, Colorado--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Intellabridge Technology Corporation (CSE: INTL) (OTC Pink: CRBTF) (FSE: 98AA), a blockchain technology company, is pleased to announce that the Company has closed a non-brokered private placement offering (the "Offering"), pursuant to which the Company issued 2,500,000 units of the Company (the "Units"), at a price of C$0.15 per Unit (the "Offering Price"), for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately C$375,000 (the "Offering") from ThreeD Capital Inc. ThreeD is a publicly-traded Canadian-based venture capital firm focused on opportunistic investments in companies in the junior resources and disruptive technologies sectors. ThreeD's investment strategy is to invest in multiple private and public companies across a variety of sectors globally. ThreeD seeks to invest in early stage, promising companies where it may be the lead investor and can additionally provide investees with advisory services and access to the ThreeD's ecosystem.

Each Unit consists of one common share (a "Common Share") and one common share purchase warrant of the Company (a "Warrant"). Each Warrant will be exercisable to acquire one Common Share at an exercise price of C$0.45 per share, subject to adjustment in certain events, for a period of two years following February 17, 2021 (the "Closing Date") provided, however, that if, after the first 6 months following the Closing Date, the volume-weighted average trading price of the Common Shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange is equal to or greater than CDN $0.52 for any consecutive trading day period, the Corporation, may, upon providing written notice to the holder of Warrants, accelerate the expiry date of the Warrants to the date that is 30 days following the date of such written notice.

"We are very excited that Sheldon Inwentash, Founder, Chairman and CEO of ThreeD Capital Inc. has agreed to join Intellabridge as Strategic Advisor to Intellabridge's newly formed Board of Advisors. Mr. Inwentash is an astute and clear visionary, with valuable knowledge and experience of the industry," said John Eagleton, Chief Executive Officer of Intellabridge. "We are gratified by Sheldon and ThreeD's vote of confidence in Intellabridge."

All securities issued in connection with the Offering are subject to a four month and one day hold period from the Closing Date in accordance with applicable securities laws. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Offering for capital expenditures including Kash product development, marketing, branding and business development, working capital, and general corporate purposes.

About Sheldon Inwentash, B.Comm., CA., CPA., LL.D



Mr. Inwentash is the Founder, Chairman and CEO of ThreeD Capital Inc.

Mr. Inwentash has more than 30 years of investing experience. He co-founded Visible Genetics, the first commercial pharmacogenomics company, in 1994 and exited in 2001 to Bayer. Through two decades leading Pinetree Capital, Mr. Inwentash created significant shareholder value through early investments in Queenston Mining (acquired by Osisko Mining Corp. for $550-million), Aurelian Resources (acquired by Kinross for $1.2-billion) and Gold Eagle Mines (acquired by Goldcorp for $1.5-billion) to name a few.

Mr. Inwentash obtained his B.Comm from the University of Toronto and is a Chartered Professional Accountant. In 2007, he was an Ontario finalist for the Ernst & Young entrepreneur of the year award. In 2012, Sheldon received an honorary degree, doctor of laws (LL.D) from the University of Toronto for his valuable leadership as an entrepreneur, his philanthropy, and inspirational commitment to making a difference in the lives of children, youth and their families.

About Intellabridge Technology Corporation

Intellabridge Technology Corporation (CSE: INTL) (OTC Pink: CRBTF) (FSE: 98AA) is a venture builder investing in blockchain technologies with a focus on fintech and decentralized financial ("DeFi") solutions.

For more information, visit www.intellabridge.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD of DIRECTORS INTELLABRIDGE TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION

"John Eagleton"

John Eagleton, CEO

To contact Intellabridge:

Website: intellabridge.com

Phone: +1-303-800-5333

Email: maria@intellabridge.com

The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation (collectively "forward-looking statements"). The use of any of the word "will" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward looking statements. Such forward-looking statements should not be unduly relied upon. Actual results achieved may vary from the information provided herein as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors. The Company believes the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct. The Company does not undertake to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74777
MPs attacked the decision by US Congress members Tom Malinowski and Don Beyer to form an Egyptian Human Rights Caucus to mark the 10th anniversary of the Egyptian revolution on 25 January.

Parliament Speaker Mohamed Abul-Enein said forming the bloc was an attempt to intervene in Egypts domestic affairs, and that US representatives should stop weaponising human rights to do so.

Abul-Enein noted that the bloc had been formed at a time when the Egyptian state is working hard to improve public freedoms and civil rights.

We should send a message to Congress that Egypt respects human rights and that the state is doing its best to improve the economic and social conditions of its citizens. Human rights is not just a matter of freedom of expression but concerns meeting peoples needs in terms of food security and housing, and improving the quality of life, said Abul-Enein.

Ashraf Rashad, leader of the majority Mostaqbal Watan (Future of the Homeland) Party, denounced the way some foreign parliaments, particularly the US Congress and the European Parliament, use human rights as a pretext to intervene in Egypts domestic affairs.

It is unacceptable to use loaded terms like political detention and forced disappearance as an excuse to intervene in domestic matters, said Rashad.

He added that Congress should better take care of Americas own affairs rather than discussing the affairs of other countries.

According to Rashad, the term political detainees is inaccurate because the Egyptian judicial system has deep roots and is empowered to follow the correct legal procedures to achieve justice and defendants have the right to defend themselves at every stage of an investigation.

Head of parliaments Human Rights Committee Tarek Radwan singled out US Congressman Tom Malinowski, accusing him of using the caucus to support Muslim Brotherhood activists and Islamist movements.

Malinowski has recently announced the formation of the so-called Egyptian Human Rights Caucus and wants to use this forum to allow members of the Muslim Brotherhood to hold hearing sessions and conferences inside Congress. This represents a violation of the UN Charter which states that no country has the right to directly or indirectly interfere into the internal and external affairs of any other country, said Radwan.

Malinowski was lending himself to an initiative that will allow the Muslim Brotherhood to deceive American policymakers and public opinion by introducing its members and officials as political activists defending human and civilian rights. It is a dangerous game, said Radwan, because when you open the door of Congress to groups that espouse Islamist Jihadist, you will only hurt American national security.

US politicians need to draw lessons from the wars in Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq, and Libya where the US supported Islamist jihadists and opened dialogue with political Islamist movements. The result caused great harm to the US and Western countries in the terms of the proliferation of terrorist movements, said Radwan.

It is playing with fire to forge contacts with such movements because this is the way you help them infiltrate American society and threaten American national security. And the same Islamist movements endanger the stability and security of Egypt and other Arab countries which is why the Muslim Brotherhood was designated a terrorist organisation.

In Radwans words: The US and the West must recognise that the Muslim Brotherhood was the progenitor of Islamist terrorist organisations such as Hasm, the Army of Islam, Islamic State, Al-Qaeda and Ansar Beit Al-Maqdis, all of them designated terrorist organisations by the United States and most Western countries.

Egypt-US relations were a central issue in the statement delivered by Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukri to MPs on 26 January.

Egypt will never allow outside interference in its affairs and fully respects human rights, said Shoukri. He added that Egypt-US relations stand on solid foundations, are not determined by partisan concerns and Cairo remains keen on reinforcing relations with Washington across the economic, commercial, and military fields.

He underlined that the two countries have a mutual interest in fighting terrorism and that trade between Egypt and the US increased by 76 per cent between 2016 and 2019.

America ranks third in terms of foreign investments in Egypt. US investments in Egypt have reached $22 billion, placing Egypt as the top African recipient of US investment, said Shoukri.

US Congress member Don Beyer said Egypt remains a key ally, but its human rights record  including the years-long detention of my constituent Aya Hijazi  remains a major concern, and we must demand better of our closest allies.

Malinowski said the Egyptian Human Rights Caucus will reflect and help shape the growing consensus in Congress that we need to rebalance our relationship with this important country.

Malinowski and Beyer previously served in the US State Department. Malinowski, a Democrat representing New Jersey, was former assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labour under the Barack Obama administration.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 11 February , 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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The Ekiti State Judicial Panel of Inquiry on Human Rights Violations has recommended the payment of N500,000 as compensation to Ogunleye Ajayi, wife of a murdered officer in the disbanded police Special Anti- Robbery Squad (SARS).

The panel, headed by Cornelius Akintayo, a retired judge, recommended the payment at its resumed sitting in Ado-Ekiti on Thursday.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the deceased, Musiliu Ajaiyi, was murdered by unknown persons in 2019.

Mr Akintayo said the panel established the facts of the case and made appropriate recommendations from the oral and documentary evidence of the complainants, produced through exhibits tendered as well as visits to the scene of the murder.

He, therefore, ordered the Nigerian Police Force to investigate the circumstances that led to the death of the late officer and that the police authority should compensate the wife adequately.

He said the recommendation from the panel was just for the upkeep of the late officers wife and children.

NAN reports that the wife of the late officer, who had earlier appeared before the panel, said under cross examination that the death of her husband had remained a mystery to her.

She explained that her husband left for work on his motorcycle around 6.30 a.m. only for her to be called around 8.30 a.m. that her husband was dead.

She told the panel the marks she saw on the corpse of her husband revealed that he was gruesomely murdered by unknown persons.

The mother of four, who is a petty trader, pleaded for sponsorship for her childrens education, since her late husband was the breadwinner of the family.

When asked if she reported the incident to the police authority, she said she was not in a stable condition to report as of when the incident happened.

(NAN)
Rescuers assist miner Feng Yin after he was trapped following a blast accident that occured at Dongfeng Coal Mine on Nov. 28, 2005 in suburb of Qitaihe City of Heilongjiang Province, northeast China. (China Photos/Getty Images)

6 Killed in Fire at Gold Mine in Eastern China

Six people were killed in a fire at a gold mine in eastern Chinas Shandong province, state media reported on Wednesday, with the local government announcing a new campaign to shut down unsafe facilities following recent accidents.

The fire occurred at around 6 a.m. local time during maintenance at the Caojiawa gold mine in the city of Zhaoyuan, the official Xinhua news agency reported, citing local authorities.

Ten miners were trapped by the fire, Xinhua said, with four who were rescued sent to the hospital for medical treatment.

The fire was the second major incident at a Shandong gold mine in little over a month.

In January, 11 workers trapped by an explosion at the Hushan mine were dramatically pulled out alive after spending two weeks underground.

At least 10 miners were killed, however, prompting authorities to launch more safety inspections.

The Shandong province emergency bureau said it would begin a comprehensive and thorough inspection program lasting until the end of March to tackle safety risks at all its non-coal mines. Those that fail the inspection will be closed.

Chinas mines are among the worlds deadliest. The country recorded 573 mine-related deaths in 2020, according to the National Mine Safety Administration.

By Chen Aizhu
A former Marine Corps base is now home to the self-described last free place in America. Built for artillery training exercises before the Second World War, the 630-acre military installation is located 100 miles northeast of San Diego, in Californias Sonoran Desert . It was decommissioned and dismantled by 1956, and the land returned to the state a few years later. The concrete slabs that had served as foundations for buildings on the base were all that remained. Squatters moved in almost immediately, and Slab City was born. The population grew over the years, reaching an estimated 15,000 in the 1980s. Lately, there are maybe 4,000 here in the winter months, the number dwindling to a couple hundred in the summer when desert temperatures can reach 120 degrees.For many, the attraction of Slab City is the freedom that comes from living off the grid. The downside to living off the grid means residents must be almost entirely self-reliant, doing without the civic amenities that other city citizens of the 21st century have come to expect. There is no electricity or running water. Sewers and garbage collection do not exist. The dusty dirt roads are rutted and, in places, nearly impassable. There is no police department or any kind of government entity. Here, you are pretty much on your own. Somehow, on some level, it seems to work.Visitors to Slab City must first pass through the tiny town of Niland , near the southeast shore of the Salton Sea . The small business district has been abandoned for years and a major fire last summer forced a tenth of its residents from their homes. The total number of residents is down to around 500, half what it was a decade ago. Three miles down the road, Salvation Mountain sits off to the right. Made of concrete, adobe and donated paint, the three-story tall, brightly colored religious folk art is the product of one mans decades-long vision and commitment. Leonard Knight built his first mountain on this spot in 1984. It collapsed five years later. Undaunted, he built again, this time using better methods and materials. After his death in 2014, a team of volunteers takes care of the constant upkeep.Just beyond Leonard Knights mountain, a small, concrete sentry post welcomes visitors to Slab City. Makeshift dwellings, random found-art installations and litter dot the landscape. Homes can be simple structures made of scrap wood and tin sheets or oversized and luxurious motorhomes costing $100,000. Converted buses and aging travel trailers are a popular option, usually personalized with unusual paint schemes and ramshackle additions. Generators can be heard humming here and there. Many of the homes have solar installations. In some places there are several distinct neighborhoods within Slab City, but they are not always easy to discern in the summer when the population dwindles. One, though, is intact year-round because it is itself a permanent but ever-evolving art installation called East Jesus.East Jesus is first and foremost an outdoor art museum. Resident artists and caretakers live along the perimeter. The works of art are mostly made of found objects and are subject to constant revision since many of the materials degrade rapidly, exposed as they are to the relentless desert sun. Each sculpture seems to have something to say about modern society, but its left to observers to decide for themselves just what the message might be.Every so often, rumors spread through the desert outpost, saying that the land they live on is about to be sold out from under them. Long ago, the state decreed that any revenue generated from the property would go to the California State Teachers Retirement System . But it will be a long time before the teachers see a penny from the property, given the projected costs associated with a necessary cleanup of the land before it could be repurposed. For the time being at least, the residents of Slab City will continue to live free.

Visibility in the Google 3-Pack drives views and clicks, with the average Google My Business listing experiencing a 404% increase in total views and a 113% increase in clicks or actions. Meeting customers where they are by optimizing for mobile-local search means more foot traffic and online conversions, and ultimately more sales for multi-location brands. - Nick Hedges, CEO of MomentFeed

NEWS SUMMARY:



The top spot in the Google 3-Pack isnt the most impactful in terms of performance for nearby businesses. Rather, the number two position often garners more clicks, suggesting that consumers use other factors when choosing between businesses in the Google 3-Pack.*

When choosing from the brands presented in the Google 3-Pack, 64% of consumers said proximity is a top factor, followed by familiarity with the brand (57%), rating (57%), and number of reviews (49%).**

Securing any spot in the Google 3-Pack improves performance, with the average Google My Business listing experiencing a 404% increase in total views and a 113% increase in clicks or actions when ranked in the Google 3-Pack.*

Ranking in the Google 3-Pack has the most dramatic impact on Click to Directions (88% increase), an indication of the 3-Packs substantial value in reaching high-intent consumers looking to visit a business and make a purchase.*

MomentFeed, the leading provider of Proximity Search Optimization, today published new research that quantifies the marketing value of a top-three spot in the Google 3-Pack for multi-location consumer brands in industries like, retail, restaurant, banking, mortgage lending, and insurance. The term Google 3-Pack or local search pack refers to the first organic results consumers see in response to a search query with local intent. When a search is deemed locally relevant, a grid called the Google 3-pack appears above the organic results and is visible on a smartphone without scrolling.

Meeting customers where they are by optimizing for mobile-local search means more foot traffic and online conversions, and ultimately more sales for multi-location brands, said MomentFeed CEO Nick Hedges. Our latest research not only underscores the importance of securing a spot in the Google 3-Pack, it also uncovers the surprising fact that the number two position is more impactful than the number one spot in increasing clicks and other actions that lead to online conversions.

To find out how valuable a top-three spot is to a brands visibility and engagement, MomentFeed analyzed the performance of more than 350 brands and 25,000 business locations, and fielded a rigorous consumer survey regarding consumer preferences and choice when presented with a 3-Pack. The results shed light on important steps multi-location brands can take to better optimize their proximity to millions of potential customers. Among the key findings:

SHOWING UP IN A 3-PACK MEANS SIGNIFICANT GAINS

The average Google My Business listing saw a 404% increase in total views and a 113% increase in clicks or actions when ranked in the Google 3-Pack.* Each type of action saw a significant lift:



Click to Directions (88%)

Click to Call (76%)

Click to Location Website (76%)

The lift in Click to Directions suggests that the 3-Pack is particularly valuable for attracting high-intent consumers looking to visit a business and make a purchase. It also indicates that consumers are getting enough information from the business listings to make a decision without needing to call the business or visit its website.

ONCE IN THE 3-PACK, SECOND IS FIRST

Local results did not follow the pattern typically seen with traditional organic search results, where the number one position drives the lionshare of the engagement and each subsequent link receives fewer and fewer clicks. Instead, all three positions in the 3-Pack tended to see similar gains, with the second position even resulting in higher gains than the first in many industries.

3-PACK RANKING DRIVES INCREASED VIEWS FOR ALL INDUSTRIES

The biggest increases in listing views as a result of appearing in the Google 3-Pack can be found in the grocery (547%) and restaurant (503%) industries, while financial institutions (270%), doctors and healthcare facilities (183%) experience smaller but still impressive gains.

Higher consideration purchases  finding a new doctor or a lender for a new home loan  require more research than other categories before selecting a company with which to do business. Accordingly, while visibility in the 3-Pack is still important for higher consideration purchases, the user will likely conduct multiple searches over an extended research phase and scroll beyond the 3-pack when evaluating their options.

CONSUMERS USE FACTORS OTHER THAN RANK TO MAKE SELECTIONS

While rank certainly impacts visibility, once a consumer is presented with a 3-Pack, factors other than rank come into play. When asked what factors were most important when presented with a Google 3-Pack, consumers cited being the first result on the page the least often (36%). The most important factors cited are proximity (64%), familiarity with the brand (57%), rating (57%), and number of reviews (49%).**

HOW PROXIMITY SEARCH OPTIMIZATION WORKS

Securing a spot in the 3-Pack on a consistent basis for hundreds or even thousands of a brands locations can seem like an elusive goal, but it doesnt have to be, said Hedges.

Proximity search optimization is the process by which multi-location brands seek to improve their rank on search engines that use the users location to suggest nearby businesses in response to keywords such as car loan near me. Optimizing search ranking requires brands to adeptly manage all the signals that determine local search rankings including data accuracy; location profile completeness; ratings and reviews; on-page signals; and local-social publishing and advertising.

The full report Impact of Google 3-Pack is available for download on MomentFeeds website.

ABOUT MOMENTFEED

MomentFeed is the leading Proximity Search Optimization platform trusted by many of the largest multi-location brands in the restaurant, retail, automotive, hospitality, and financial services industries. Proximity Search Optimization is gaining significant interest from CMOs of multi-location, national brands and franchises as a way to show up locally, at the precise moment a customer has a need. MomentFeed makes it possible for national brands to execute hyperlocal marketing campaigns at scale  driving local awareness, in-store traffic, and more calls for appointments and orders.

Founded in 2010, MomentFeed is headquartered in Santa Monica, California. An Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Privately Held Company, it was also named a Comparably Best Company.

For more information visit http://www.momentfeed.com | Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

*Based on regression analysis of each listing, comparing volume of views and clicks when ranking in the Google 3-Pack, to times when it did not rank in the Google 3-Pack. Data shown is statistically significant at the 99% confidence level.

**Percent of respondents who considered each option "Extremely Important" or "Very Important" when choosing between businesses in the Google 3-Pack
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Cow's milk is the most common cause of fatal anaphylaxis amongst school children, warn researchers

The rate of hospital admissions in the UK due to a serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) caused by food has more than tripled over a 20-year period. Despite this, the death rate from food-induced anaphylaxis halved over the same period, according to research published by The BMJ today.

Food allergy is the commonest cause of potentially life-threatening allergic reactions, known as anaphylaxis. Substantial increases in hospital admissions due to food anaphylaxis have been reported globally, but it is unclear whether this trend is continuing, and if it is, whether this has led to an increase in fatal reactions.

To explore this further, researchers from Imperial College London's National Heart & Lung Institute set out to describe time trends for hospital admissions due to food anaphylaxis in the United Kingdom over the past 20 years.

They studied data between 1998 and 2018, measuring time trends, age, and sex distributions for anaphylaxis admissions due to food and non-food triggers, and then compared these with reported fatalities.

Between 1998 and 2018, 101,891 people were admitted to hospital for anaphylaxis. Of these admissions, 30,700 (30%) were coded as due to a food trigger.

Food anaphylaxis admissions increased from 1.23 to 4.04 per 100,000 population per year (from 1998 to 2018), an annual increase of 5.7%.

The largest increase in hospital admissions was seen in children younger than 15 years, with an increase from 2.1 to 9.2 admissions per 100,000 population per year (an annual increase of 6.6%, compared with 5.9% in people aged 15-59 years and 2.1% in those aged 60 years and older).

Over the 20-year period, 152 deaths were identified where the fatal event was probably caused by food induced anaphylaxis.

The case fatality rate (number of fatalities as a proportion of hospital admissions) decreased from 0.7% to 0.19% for confirmed fatal food anaphylaxis and to 0.3% for suspected fatal food anaphylaxis.

At least 86 (46%) of all deaths between 1992-2018 were triggered by peanuts or tree nuts, while cow's milk was responsible for 17 (26%) deaths in school aged children.

The data also showed that over the same time period, prescriptions for adrenaline autoinjectors increased by 336% - an increase of 11% per year.

The researchers say that improvements in the recognition and management of anaphylaxis could partly explain the decrease in the case fatality rate despite increasing hospital admissions for anaphylaxis.

No evidence exists to suggest that the clinical criteria used to diagnose anaphylaxis have changed in the UK over the study period, they add. Although the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) introduced national guidance in 2011, which may have resulted in an increase in hospitalisations, the year-on-year increase has persisted since then.

The authors acknowledge some study limitations, such as the possibility of some cases of anaphylaxis being wrongly coded or misdiagnosed, and they were unable to include cases of anaphylaxis seen in emergency departments that did not require hospital admission.

Nevertheless, they used a national dataset in the context of the UK health system, which provided the opportunity to draw robust conclusions compared with other countries.

As such, the researchers conclude: "Cow's milk is increasingly identified as the culprit allergen for fatal food reactions, and is now the commonest cause of fatal anaphylaxis in children. More education is needed to highlight the specific risks posed by cow's milk to people who are allergic to increase awareness among food businesses."

They add: "Further work is needed to assess the evidence for an age related vulnerability to severe anaphylaxis in young adults, therefore improving our ability to risk stratify patients with food allergies and to reduce the risk of fatal outcomes."

###

Peer reviewed? Yes

Evidence type: Observational; data analysis

Subjects: People
The owners of a new deli in Old Town Orcutt want it to become the gathering place for the people of the community, and if the initial reaction
South Africa: Qatar Airways increases flight frequencies

Qatar Airways is expanding its network in South Africa by increasing its flight frequencies in Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg.

Cape Town will increase to seven weekly flights, Durban increases to three weekly flights, while Johannesburg increased to 18 weekly flights, offering passengers more flexible and reliable travel options, Qatar Airways said on Wednesday.

By March 2021, Qatar Airways will operate 28 weekly flights from South Africa. The airline has applied its unrivalled knowledge of global passenger flows and booking trends to rebuild its South Africa network to 28 weekly flights across Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg.

We are proud to be the leading international carrier connecting South Africa with Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and the United States, offering more flexible travel options and a global network of flights that passengers, trade and business partners can rely on.

South Africa has always been a very important market to us and we continue to demonstrate our commitment to the region by adding new routes and steadily increasing frequencies across the continent.

As global travel recovers in 2021, we look forward to further expanding our network and offering more connections to and from Africa via the Best Airport in the Middle East, Hamad International Airport, to our global network of over 120 destinations, Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar Al Baker said.

South African Tourism CEO, Sisa Ntshona, welcomed the move by the airline.

This certainly demonstrates to the world that South Africa has put the necessary measures in place to ensure that it is safe for travel in the Covid-19 environment.

Air Access is important for South Africa, as we to look to recover post COVID and Qatar Airways has an extensive global network that links travellers via Doha from our source markets. As we embark on our tourism recovery strategy, having airlines such as Qatar Airways play a supporting role by increasing its capacity will go a long way in assisting us regain the international arrival numbers, Ntshona said.

In line with the airlines steady rebuild of its South Africa network, Qatar Airways has increased frequencies to the following destinations:

Cape Town (increasing to seven weekly flights from 1 March)

Durban (increased to three weekly flights from 14 February)

Johannesburg (increased to 18 weekly flights from 26 January)

SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

The pandemic knocked the U.S. back on track to meet its targets in the Paris climate accord, and renewable energy saw a record-setting level of deployment in 2020 as coal consumption dwindled, figures from an independent report released Thursday show, while transportation emissions are expected to jump as the country gets the virus under control.

COVID-19, the virus that has dominated economic, social and political decisions around the world for nearly a year, dominated the energy, electricity and emissions landscapes last year tootaking a bite out of greenhouse gas emissions from the power grid, curbing emissions from vehicles and witnessing the highest record of new renewable energy to come online in a year.

"We can't think of a crazier year than what happened in 2020," said Paul Camuti, executive vice president and chief technology and strategy officer of Trane Technologies, a manufacturing company.

The report compiled by research organization BloombergNEF and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, an advocacy group, attaches data to those facts.

"We are just amazed by the changes that have occurred in such a short period of time," said Emily Duncan, director of federal government relations for National Grid, a natural gas and electricity utility, and a BCSE board member.

The figures arrive as the Biden administration is focusing on climate as an early priority and congressional Democrats are drafting a public works and infrastructure bill expected to contain low-carbon elements.

"Things were not looking great halfway through the year," said Ethan Zindler, head of Americas at BloombergNEF, adding that renewable energy sources got off to a "dire" first half of 2020.

Yet the U.S. set a record in 2020 for the most wind and solar power built in a calendar year, thanks in part to federal tax incentives and guidance from the IRS in May that gave companies an extra year to complete their work and qualify for tax credits.

And the proportion of electricity generated from renewables including hydropower hit a record high of 20%, while coal dipped to just 19%, a trend likely to continue as the retirement of coal plants continues. "Coal plants that have retired are not coming back," Zindler said.

Greenhouse gas emissions "plummeted" in the U.S., the report authors found, down 9% from the previous year, 2019, and down 20% from 2005 levels. Emissions from transportation sources fell 40 percent below 2005 levels, placing the country on track to meet its obligations under the 2015 Paris climate agreement. Former President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the deal, a decision President Joe Biden moved to reverse on his first day in office.

"The sheer size of the accomplishment is pretty remarkable," said Zindler of the emissions reductions and renewables buildout.

Still, he said, cuts in transportation emissions, the No. 1 sector of emissions in the country, will likely not happen without government intervention.

"Transportation will not necessarily get there without new policies and regulations," he said, adding that he expects emissions from electricity generation and transportation will rise in 2021.

Emissions from electricity use, however, dropped 3.8% last year as people stayed home and changed their commuting patterns, leaving office spaces unused.

"At the office lights might not be on as much anymore, but they are at home," Zindler said.

On the liquid fuel front, the Energy Information Administration, the data-churning wing of the Energy Department, forecast Wednesday the U.S. will import more petroleum than it will export in 2021 and 2022.

Low- and zero-carbon energy industries finished 2020 with the "fewest number of workers since 2015," according to the report, as 429,000 people, or 12 percent of those industries' workers, remained out of work at the end of the year.

Among the hardest hit have been energy efficiency workers who have to get access to homes or offices to install appliances and equipment such as heating and cooling systems, insulation or window panes.

"Those are jobs where people are going into peoples' homes," said Paula Glover, president of the nonpartisan Alliance to Save Energy.

The wind, utility-scale solar and battery storage industries all had banner years in 2020, said Heather Zichal, chief executive officer of the American Clean Power Association, a trade group created this year.

Zichal, who advised former President Barack Obama on climate and energy, predicted the majority of the power grid in the U.S. would be run by renewable energy by 2030. "This is going to be a clean power decade," she said.

Explore further Wind powers more than half of UK electricity for first time

(c)2021 CQ Roll Call

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
New Delhi:

Terrorists on Thursday attacked a joint party of Police and Army in Materbugh area of Jammu and Kashmirs Shopian district.

The joint party of Army and Jammu Kashmir police came under attack when it was returning from a cordon and search operation in the Shopian district to chase away terrorists.

In a separate incident in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, terrorists opened fire on J&K police constable. The constable received serious injuries in the attack and was later shifted to hospital where his condition is being told stable.

Earlier in the day, the Army killed three terrorists in an encounter in the Bandipora district along LoC when they were trying to infiltrate to the Indian side of the border.

J&K: Terrorists fired upon a joint party of Army & Police which was returning from cordon & search operation at Shopian district's Materbugh pic.twitter.com/Jeuy1sPO1i  ANI (@ANI_news) July 27, 2017

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AIB is still in talks with the Department of Finance as the bank seeks permission to pay bonuses to staff at Goodbody Stockbrokers in order to buy the firm.

Insiders had expected the 130m takeover of the stockbroker to be agreed this week, following months of talks between AIB and Goodbody, but the timescale is understood to have been pushed back by at least a week.

The developing situation at Ulster Bank is understood to be a factor in delaying AIBs hopes of securing a decision from Government on the bonuses.

The UKs NatWest is expected to say tomorrow whether or not it will retain the Ulster Bank business in the Republic long term.

If Ulster is to be sold or broken up, the Departments so called pillar bank strategy, which is predicated on a market with two big banks in AIB and Bank of Ireland plus a second string of smaller players led by Ulster, will be in disarray.

AIB, meanwhile, will be a potential buyer for at least some of Ulster Bank's assets.

It means Ulster Bank rather than Goodbody is currently the major focus for officials at the Department and senior staff at AIB, sources said.

Insiders are still optimistic an AIB-Goodbody deal will be struck within weeks.

A key hurdle remains Government imposed caps on pay and bonuses at bailed out banks, including AIB, which have been in place since the banks were rescued by taxpayers.

AIB wants the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe to grant an exemption to allow it to pay bonuses to staff at Goodbody Stockbrokers, if it buys the business.

The rules include salary caps of a maximum 500,000 a year pay, and an effective ban on staff bonuses, which are taxed at 89pc.

AIB regards bonuses as a crucial element of pay for staff at the stockbroker where they are the industry norm, even though its own staff have not been paid bonuses and have been subject to the pay cap for a decade.

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Classical music was once popular enough to warrant television broadcasts. Leonard Bernstein with members of the New York Philharmonic rehearsing for a television broadcast. (Infrogmation/CC-BY-SA-2.5)

What Happened to the Chestnuts of Classical Music?

It seems we classical musicians feel lucky if nowadays the general public has any familiarity at all with classical music. We dont even mind if a certain amount of music gets called classical that didnt used to be. It was way back in 1990 that the Three Tenors won a Grammy for Best Classical Vocal Performance with a CD that included Memory from the musical Cats, the 1940s French pop hit La vie en rose, and the West Side Story songs Maria and Tonight.

The Grammy-winning album Carreras Domingo Pavarotti in Concert (1990) with (LR) Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras, conductor Zubin Mehta, and Luciano Pavarotti. (Decca)

However, it was not too long ago that the public actually had a pretty good knowledge of traditional classical music. Leonard Bernsteins Young Peoples Concerts were even aired in weekend prime time on CBS during the 1960s. Pretty much everyone knew Disneys movie Fantasia and its musical selections.

It was not uncommon to see performances of classical music in the Miss America talent competition and on popular TV variety shows. The Ed Sullivan Show showcased not only the Beatles but also, among many other classical performers, the 13-year-old Itzhak Perlman performing the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in 1958,and Birgit Nilsson and the Montreal Symphony performing an excerpt from Puccinis opera Turandot in 1967.

You could hardly watch a Looney Tunes cartoon without getting a classical music education, as in their wonderful cartoon Whats Opera, Doc? featuring a mash-up of Wagner excerpts (analyzed thoroughly in its own Wikipedia article).

My parents used to shop at a grocery store that offered this bonus: If you spent a certain amount in your weekly shopping trip, you could buy at a discount another vinyl 33-speed record as the next weekly installment of a Great Classical Music collection.

The collection included, at the start, a big book with sleeves in which to insert each of the new records you bought, and pages with program notes. In the school concert band, we played transcriptions for band of popular classical overtures in addition to our Souza marches. Every kid who played in a high-school band knew about Gioachino Rossini, Richard Wagner, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.

Classical Subcategories

In those heady days, we even had the luxury of recognized subcategories of classical music, designating some classical pieces as light classics. These included the most easily understood and tuneful or popularized compositions like Rossinis William Tell Overture (1829), famous for its use as the Lone Ranger theme, or Alexander Borodins Polovtsian Dances (1887) from which had come the tune for the popular song Stranger in Paradise, featuring the incomparable vocal of Vic Damone in the 1955 film version of the musical Kismet.



From Sergey Rachmaninoffs second piano concerto (1901) came the great pop hit Full Moon and Empty Arms.



From Frederic Chopins popular Polonaise in A-flat (1842) came Perry Comos career-making 1945 hit, Till the End of Time.



Likewise, Chopins Fantasie Impromptu in C-sharp Minor (1834), could be heard as Judy Garlands tune for Im Always Chasing Rainbows in the 1941 film Ziegfeld Girl, with a cast including Jimmy Stewart and Lana Turner.



Both of these last two Chopin originals, on their own, became popular hits thanks to the unprecedented fame of classical pianist Van Cliburn (19242013), whom the Associated Press dubbed a rock star when he won the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958 as an American during the Cold War. He was celebrated through his bestselling albums, concert tours, and numerous TV appearances, even as the mystery guest on the popular game show Whats My Line? in both 1959 and 1962.

How many classical pianists today are on the lips of the general public, as was the name of the great Van Cliburn?

American classical pianist Van Cliburn became a household name overnight when he won the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958 during the Cold War. Here he is playing at a state dinner honoring the emperor and empress of Japan in 1975. (Public Domain)

Reclaiming the Lost Joy of the Chestnuts

The classical subcategory of Chestnuts referred to sure-fire pieces, the ones with the most memorable tunes to win anyone over to an appreciation of classical music. If the chestnuts were ever needed in the world, perhaps it is no more than today, when beauty still has the power to soften the many hard feelings, anxieties, and stresses we often experience. Here are a few to soothe your savage breast. (By the way, its not savage beast; the quote is from the play The Mourning Bride, 1697, by William Congreve.)

Here are just a few of the many chestnuts, but you can enjoy thinking of others to add. I must start with a childhood favorite, the very popular Peer Gynt (1875) by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg, which was composed as incidental music for Henrik Ibsens 1867 play of that name.

Actors Henrik Klausen and Sofie Parelius in Henrik Ibsens play Peer Gynt. From the first performance at the Christiania Theater, Norway, in 1876. (Severin Worm-Petersen/CC BY-SA 4.0)

Several animated and live film versions were made for kids, and a whole Broadway musical was made of Griegs life (including music from Peer Gynt), called Song of Norway (1946), spawning a 1970 film version staring Florence Henderson, best known as the mom on The Brady Bunch. Who can forget In the Hall of the Mountain King from Peer Gynt, among its many famous numbers.



Two undisputed chestnuts that appear in Disneys 1940 animated film Fantasia, both already extremely well-known before that film used them, were The Sorcerers Apprentice (1897) by French composer Paul Dukas and Night on Bald Mountain (1867) by Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky, best known in its 1886 version, arranged by fellow Russian Nicolay Rimsky-Korsakov.

The enduring and iconic portrayal of the apprentice by Mickey Mouse has surely made that composition among the best-known classical pieces outside of the concert hall.



For Fantasia, the legendary conductor Leopold Stokowski made his own arrangement of Night on Bald Mountain (sometimes titled Bare Mountain), charmingly spooky but with animations that can even be scary (just a little warning) to some smaller children.

Conductor Leopold Stokowski arranged his own version of Night on Bald Mountain for the Walt Disney film Fantasia. Screenshot of Leopold Stokowski in the film Carnegie Hall, 1947. (Public Domain)

Alas, I will mention only one more beloved chestnut, the beautiful and quintessential 1886 depiction of The Swan from The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens.



This one happens to be a favorite of players of the novelty instrument called the musical saw, and it is not to be missed in that version. (I must have heard it on the saw at least a few times on Ted Macks Original Amateur Hour, popular on radio from 1934 to 1945 as Major Bowes Amateur Hour, and on TV from 1948 through the 1960s.)



All of these works once enriched American culture and could do so again, especially as an introduction to classical music for someone who has heard little of it. For those who do remember but have not heard them in a long time, they offer a heartwarming revisit to a more innocent time, not to mention immense enjoyment.

American composer Michael Kurek is the author of the book The Sound of Beauty: A Composer on Music in the Spiritual Life and the composer of the Billboard No. 1 classical album The Sea Knows. The winner of numerous composition awards, including the prestigious Academy Award in Music from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, he has served on the Nominations Committee of the Recording Academy for the classical Grammy Awards. He is a professor emeritus of composition at Vanderbilt University. For more information and music, visit MichaelKurek.com

In late January, after its first citation, Lans said on Instagram it was open only for carry out and delivery and in capital letters said it was not open for dining in. A message left at the restaurant Thursday was not returned.
CALGARY - Buoyed by stronger gold and copper prices and flush with cash after realizing $1.5 billion in proceeds from the sale of non-core assets since 2019, Barrick Gold Corp. is proposing to return US$750 million to its shareholders later this year.

The Barrick Gold logo is seen during the company's annual general meeting in Toronto on Tuesday, April 28, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

CALGARY - Buoyed by stronger gold and copper prices and flush with cash after realizing $1.5 billion in proceeds from the sale of non-core assets since 2019, Barrick Gold Corp. is proposing to return US$750 million to its shareholders later this year.

The Toronto-based miner said Thursday it will ask shareholders at its annual meeting in May to vote in favour of a one-time distribution of 42 cents per share.

"Last year, we set ourselves very specific objectives. As you can see here, we ticked all those boxes," said CEO Mark Bristow on a conference call.

"We met our production target, delivered on our business plans and fully capitalized on the higher gold price and copper prices. We increased free cash flow to an annual record of $3.4 billion against a 27 per cent rise in the gold price, and we achieved our goal of zero net debt by the end of the year."

The payment would be made in three equal tranches and is in addition to the company's regular dividend, it said.

Barrick shares trended lower on Thursday despite the promised payout, falling by as much as 66 cents per share to $25.75.

The miner's updated 2021 gold production guidance for a range between 4.4 million and 4.7 million ounces was slightly lower than previous expectations and would likely result in a negative reaction in markets, said National Bank analyst Mike Parkin in a report early Thursday.

The guidance doesn't include the company's Porgera gold mine in Papua New Guinea which remains idled while Barrick works toward an agreement with the national government to reopen it.

Barrick, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, reported a profit of US$2.32 billion or $1.31 per share for 2020, down from a profit of $3.97 billion or $2.26 per share in 2019.

On an adjusted basis, Barrick says it earned $2.04 billion or $1.15 per share in 2020, up from an adjusted profit of $902 million or 51 cents in 2019.

Its realized gold price for all of 2020 was US$1,778 per ounce, up from US$1,396 in 2019, and production was 4.76 million ounces, down from 5.46 million.

This report by The Canadian Press was first Feb. 18, 2021.

Companies in this story: (TSX:ABX)
New Delhi, Feb 18 : A report by Foreign Policy Magazine has revealed that Chinese Tech Titans are assisting the Communist Party of China (CPC) in establishing a surveillance state that cracks down on Political dissent. These goliaths--Tencent, Alibaba and Baidu-are armed with supercomputers that crunch terabytes of data. Facial recognition tech adds new meaning to images provided by the ever-ubiquitous surveillance cameras, enabling the party-state to nip in the bud any signs of brewing dissent.

The Wall Street Journal has reported that police outposts have been embedded at workplaces. These CPC moles are at the frontline of ensuring a regular flow of information as requisitioned by the authorities.

The data that is sought ranges from identity of people posting opinions against the views of CPC on social media to GPS coordinates of activists on the run. Then this is used to tame whose who do not follow the diktats of the CPC oligarchs.

The Wall Street Journal further states that activist Hu Jia was interrogated by state security agents after he bought a slingshot online through WeChat's mobile payment feature. Without evidence, the agents claimed Hu had bought the slingshot to destroy the cameras placed near his apartment.

It is pertinent to note that Chinese companies are not allowed to disagree with requests for information by the police authorities unlike their western counterparts. An independent body to approve and review requests- along with set procedures like court warrant to gain access to an individual's private data is conspicuously absent.

Another report by WSJ reports that China has also put in a place a draconian cybersecurity law that requires internet companies to block unfavourable view of the CPC and its leaders, along with foreign articles that are critical of China. Thus, a heavily whitewashed image of China and CPC are projected both at home and abroad.

The cloud computing prowess possessed by these tech giants is used to identify people of interest. Their movements are then tracked to restrict them from gathering at political events. Unfettered by public furore or concerns regarding privacy, sophisticated cameras are being installed at various security checkpoints equipped with facial recognition technology. This spectre of an Orwellian nightmare serves a nefarious purpose of cudgelling people into conformity.

A report by South China Morning Post States that China is also aiming at implementing a National Social Credit System that will enable it to provide rating to citizens based on their financial status and their behaviour in public places. This grading will further enable China in its malicious campaign in segregating the population according to its whims and fancies.

These tech giants are also complicit with state machinery in furthering China's diabolical plans of international espionage. Ministry of State Security (MSS), the Chinese intelligence agency is using their data processing capabilities to sift through copious reams of digital information to help identify foreign undercover operatives. These operatives are identified, then tortured with solitary confinement practiced as routine. China is also developing capabilities to even catch such people in other countries through its agents under its Foxhunt programme.

Chinese hackers have continuously targeted United States' data reservoirs. Cyberattacks on Anthem, Marriot, Equifax and Department of Personnel have been reported by New York Times. Since China does not have commercial capabilities to process the data in-house, it has been outsourcing the same to these tech giants to gain an insight into the American Government. The firms, although reluctant to deal with national security and ideological expectations, have acquiesced to the request.

The datasets stolen by China is an attempt to undermine foreign economies by putting them under severe financial strain. They are used to identify companies that are on the verge of a financial crisis. Then, a subsidiary of one of these tech giants masquerading as a customer approaches them with a large order. The order is then cancelled at the last minute, causing the shares of the company to sink fast. The tech company then swoops like a hawk and offers a hefty buy-out to the struggling company, portraying itself as a saviour while being responsible for the entire crisis.

The symbiotic relationship between these tech giants and Chinese intelligence agencies has caused an internal strife. The Cybersecurity system requires backdoors in every software and system owned by tech companies so that the data can be accessed by the Chinese government with ease. These backdoors make it easier for an attacker to gain access of the systems and compromise security.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)
VIJAYAWADA: YSR Jagannana Colonies must resemble model colonies and not slums, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy told officials in charge of constructing them.

Reviewing the mega housing programme at the CM Camp office at Tadepalli on Thursday, he suggested the colonies be provided with all amenities including underground drainage and library facilities.

Further, the CM suggested offering cement and steel at subsidised rates for house construction and asked officials to provide materials at less than market rates to the 15 lakh beneficiaries in the first phase. He also suggested changes in the proposals laid for providing infrastructure facilities. He instructed the officials to prepare an action plan for timely release of funds for constructing the houses at a brisk pace.

The officials said over 15 lakh houses will be constructed in the first phase and 83 per cent of the beneficiaries have so far opted from the three given options.

The Chief Minister directed the officials to complete receiving options from the remaining beneficiaries. He said construction material must be made available to all so that whoever chooses to build their own houses, would also benefit. The officials said they were geo tagging all houses.

Jagan emphasised the focus must be on beautification and directed officials to revisit every layout and ensure they are beautiful and pleasant. He directed the officials to complete construction of houses fast and said the people in the colonies should have high standards of living. He said underground drainage must be set up and construction of roads should be commensurate with the population.

The Chief Minister said Anganwadis must be available for every population of 2,000 in the new colonies and a library for every 1,500 to 5,000 households. He instructed officials to also give priority to parks.

He said the best practices must be followed in maintaining sanitation and hygiene and cautioned about planting saplings in colonies. He wanted them to ensure the trees which boost peoples health were planted. He said that marking should be done for planting trees while the colonies are being constructed.

Municipal and Urban Development minister Botsa Satyanarayana, housing minister Cherukuvada Sriranganatha Raju, Chief Secretary Adityanath Das, Chief Commissioner of Land Administration Neerab Kumar Prasad, Principal Secretary of Housing Ajay Jain, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Prateep Kumar, Municipal Administration Principal Secretary Y. Srilakshmi, AP State Housing Corporation Limited MD Narayana Bharat Gupta and other officials were present.
COLUMBIA  Amid the push to vaccinate South Carolina's teachers before in-person learning can fully resume, the local officials deciding how their schools operate are converging on Hilton Head Island for their own face-to-face educational conference.

About 300 school board members and superintendents from across the state are attending the South Carolina School Boards Association's annual, four-day convention starting Feb. 18, said the association's director, Scott Price.

Scaled down to comply with safety protocols, this year's convention at beachfront Hilton Head Marriott comes with a mask mandate, temperature screenings and social distancing. Hall exhibitors have been eliminated.

And all student performances will be streamed in by video. Featured groups include student choirs from Cayce, Johnsonville and Fairfield County, the Williston-Elko drumline and the Pelion High orchestra, according to the program.

"It's going to look completely different than it normally does," Price said.

Asked how he would respond to critics who would question why school leaders are meeting in person when many districts are setting conditions to do the same for students, Price said, "The optics are what they are."

It's the association's first fully in-person conference since its convention a year ago, following an online-only one in August and a hybrid meeting in December.

"We're trying to provide much-needed professional development for our members in a safe manner," Price said. "We've taken a number of steps to ensure the safety of attendees and our staff."

The event received approval Jan. 14 from the state Commerce Department as meeting COVID-19 protocols for gatherings of more than 250 people. The cost is $225 for the conference and $146 nightly for the hotel.

The organization declined to give a registration list, so which school districts the attendees are coming from is unknown, other than those listed in the program.

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Currently, about 55 percent of the state's 1,266 public schools offer a full week of face-to-face learning. The bulk of the rest offer a weekly mix of in-person and online learning. The last two districts to bring any students back, rural Lee and Calhoun counties, recently allowed some in-person learning in the early grades.

Lawmakers pushing districts to offer a full week in the classroom say they hope attending school board members make decisions back home allowing students to learn in person.

"I just hope they know what they're doing and being safe and understand the optics with some districts not meeting person to person," said Rep. Russell Ott, D-St. Matthews. "The potential to send mixed messages definitely exists."

The Calhoun County Democrat authored a proposal to make K-12 employees eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations in exchange for requiring every district to offer families full weeks in the classroom. In the first hearing Feb. 16 on that measure and a similar one passed by the Senate, dozens of advocates for other workers and medically at-risk residents asked to be prioritized for shots too. A second hearing is scheduled for next week.

"If it's safe for the school board members to gather in those numbers, certainly it's safe for teachers to be in classrooms," said Senate Education Chairman Greg Hembree, R-Little River.

Advocating for the legislation to bump K-12 employees into the first phase for COVID-19 vaccinations, Richland Two School Board member Amelia McKie said it's the local officials who must weigh what's best for students, staff and their families on "when it's absolutely safe to fully reopen schools."

"The one thing we at the local level know will work is for teachers, school staff and administrators to be able to get the COVID-19 vaccine," she told the House panel, representing the School Boards Association as a member of its governing board.

The convention begins at 8:30 a.m. Feb. 18 with a welcome from Richland One Chairman Jamie Devine, the association's president-elect, and concludes at 11:30 a.m. Feb. 21. Speakers include former state Rep. Anton Gunn, a former official with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the Obama administration, Fairfield County Superintendent J.R. Green, and state Teacher of the Year Sarah Gams.
Brian A. Pounds / Hearst Connecticut Media

FAIRFIELD  All public and parochial schools will dismiss early on Thursday, the district announced as snow fell across the area.

The high schools dismissed at 11 a.m., followed by the middle schools at noon, Holland Hill at 12:05 p.m. and the Walter Fitzgerald campus at 12:25 p.m. The morning pre-school classes will dismiss at 11:45 a.m. and there are no afternoon classes. The elementary schools will dismiss at 1 p.m. with no afternoon classes after dismissal, according to the districts website.
The auction for IPL 2021 took place in Chennai on Thursday where eight franchises with deep pockets competed with each other to purchase the players of their choosing. South African all-rounder Chris Morris went on to become the most expensive player in the history of Indian Premier League (IPL) after he was bought by Rajasthan Royals for Rs 16.25 crore.

Here's a look at some of the most expensive players in IPL history:

Chris Morris

After an intense bidding war between Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore, Morris finally went to the Rajasthan side for a record Rs 16.25 crore on Thursday.

Yuvraj Singh

Morris dethroned Yuvraj Singh on Thursday as the most expensive IPL player. In 2015, Delhi Daredevils had purchased Yuvraj Singh for Rs 16 crore, which at that time was the highest any team had ever paid for a player. The all-rounder is now placed at second position in the list of most expensive players.

Also read: IPL 2021 auctions: Mumbai Indians buy Sachin Tendulkar's son Arjun Tendulkar for Rs 20 lakh

Pat Cummins

The Australian fast bowler is now the third most expensive player in IPL history. In the year 2020, Kolkata Knight Riders had bought Cummins for Rs 15.5 crore.

Kyle Jamieson

Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore shelled out Rs 15 crore to buy the New Zealand all-rounder, outbidding the Punjab Kings. In the process, Jamieson also replaced Ben Stokes as the fourth most expensive player.

Ben Stokes

The English all-rounder moved to fifth position in the list of most expensive buys in IPL history. Rising Pune Supergiants had purchased Stokes for Rs 14.5 crore in 2017.

Glen Maxwell

The Australian went on to become the sixth-most costliest player in IPL history on Thursday after he was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 14.25 crore.

Also read: IPL Auction 2021: Full list of players sold, unsold; Kyle Jamieson sold to RCB for Rs 15 crore

Also read: Chris Morris becomes most expensive player in IPL history
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Re: Genesis G80 spotted in India for the first time Quote: motorworks Originally Posted by Instead of trying to launch Genesis, Hyundai should actually open a Nexa kind of dealership chain and try and push Elantra, Tucson, Kona, Sonata, Santa Fe and the likes. Just some limited outlets in metros and few cities. Current Hyundai dealerships dont show any interest in any of these vehicles, and Im sure its mainly due to Hyundai itself not focusing on these. However, the next Gen Tucson, Elantra look very interesting and premium and I would think they need a fighting chance to make their case in India really interesting idea to me. I do remember reading anecdotal evidence from a member on another thread about having to explain to their relative that their car was still a Maruti even if they bought it from a Nexa outlet. If indeed that is how much you can get away with in terms of brand dissonance, might as well use it to your advantage. A Hyundai Nexa equivalent could very well be a good place to sell vehicles in their portfolio Elantra upwards, maybe even using one of the Genesis models as a halo car so to speak for this offshoot. One problem I see is that ultimately using the Nexa example, I don't think the spread of pricing of the Nexa offerings is that far removed from the regular Maruti outlets. Already with the Elantra, Santa Fe, Sonata and Tucson you're looking at a spread that's both wider and higher than the regular Hyundai offerings. For the kind of investment and effort it would take to set this Nexa-like parallel chain, I don't see there being enough volumes for any of those products to justify it. Furthermore, come to think of it, Hyundai went through the whole song and dance of establishing Genesis as a separate brand precisely because they weren't getting any traction of the erstwhile Genesis sedan when it was simply the fanciest Hyundai badged vehicle. It wouldn't be unusual for India (a market where Datsun's are now Nissans; Dacia's are run of the mill Renaults; and Toyota gives us whatever scraps they care to offer) but surely that would be quite the about face for Hyundai to do with Genesis no? This is ainteresting idea to me. I do remember reading anecdotal evidence from a member on another thread about having to explain to their relative that their car was still a Maruti even if they bought it from a Nexa outlet. If indeed that is how much you can get away with in terms of brand dissonance, might as well use it to your advantage. A Hyundai Nexa equivalentvery well be a good place to sell vehicles in their portfolio Elantra upwards, maybe even using one of the Genesis models as a halo car so to speak for this offshoot. One problem I see is that ultimately using the Nexa example, I don't think the spread of pricing of the Nexa offerings is that far removed from the regular Maruti outlets. Already with the Elantra, Santa Fe, Sonata and Tucson you're looking at a spread that's both wider and higher than the regular Hyundai offerings. For the kind of investment and effort it would take to set this Nexa-like parallel chain, I don't see there being enough volumes for any of those products to justify it. Furthermore, come to think of it, Hyundai went through the whole song and dance of establishing Genesis as a separate brandbecause they weren't getting any traction of the erstwhile Genesis sedan when it was simply the fanciest Hyundai badged vehicle. It wouldn't be unusual for India (a market where Datsun's are now Nissans; Dacia's are run of the mill Renaults; and Toyota gives us whatever scraps they care to offer) but surely that would be quite the about face for Hyundai to do with Genesis no?
Radio talk show host and conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh, one of the judges for the 2010 Miss America Pageant, speaks during a news conference for judges at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, Nev. on Jan. 27, 2010. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Rush Limbaughs Brother Thanks America for Support After Siblings Passing

David Limbaugh, political commentator and brother of Rush Limbaugh, thanked Americans for their support following his brothers passing on Wednesday after a lengthy battle with lung cancer.

Im not ready to speak yet but I Im so proud of my amazing, loving brother [sic], he wrote in a heartfelt Twitter post. Thousands of you have shared how much he meant to you.

My brother was the real deal. I cant describe how sad I am but also how proud I am of my big brother. I love and adore you Rush. Thank you all.

Im not ready to speak yet but I Im so proud of my amazing, loving brother. Thousands of you have shared how much he meant to you. My brother was the real deal. I cant describe how sad I am but also how proud I am of my big brother. I love and adore you Rush. Thank you all.  David Limbaugh (@DavidLimbaugh) February 18, 2021

Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh died at the age of 70 on Feb. 17.

His wife, Kathryn Adams Limbaugh, announced his death on Wednesday morning. She told listeners at the beginning of Limbaughs radio show that he had been battling stage four lung cancer while continuing to broadcast his radio show.

He passed away at his Palm Beach, Florida home, his wife said, hours after his death.

Limbaugh announced his cancer diagnosis in February last yeara day before he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom during then-President Trumps State of the Union address. He said he started experiencing shortness of breath on Jan. 12, 2020, before he was diagnosed by doctors.

His brother David, an author who lives in his hometown of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, previously spoke fondly of Limbaugh in a Fox News op-ed published on Feb. 14, last yearshortly after Limbaugh announced his advanced cancer diagnosis.

David in his piece said he is uniquely blessed to be Rush Limbaughs brother in ways too numerous to count.

I am blessed to be in the special position of witnessing firsthand the outpouring of love and prayers from his family, friends and fans.

Limbaugh was born in 1951 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. After leaving college, he entered radio in 1971 before founding his own radio show.

When Rush began his nationally syndicated radio show, the liberal media monopolized television news, and his show became an oasis and a lifeline for millions who felt their voices had been ignored, he wrote last year. He gave them a sense of community, as they came to realize that the principles they believed in, their love for America and its founding ideas, were still commonly held.

Speaking of his diagnosis in October last year, Limbaugh said that he was grateful to have been able to continue his work despite the physical toll it took on him.

In his final live show on Feb. 2 this year, Limbaugh criticized President Joe Bidens decision to cancel the permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline project last month, referring to a Fox News interview conducted hours earlier with several people who had lost their jobs as a result of the move.

What do you think the Democrat Party is? Its clear as a bell they have no desire to enhance your lifetheyre taking jobs away from you, Limbaugh said. This is what Biden and his administration are hellbent on doing. They want you to become dependent on them, a ward of the state. Youre not supposed to have enough power to oppose them.

Biden has defended the decision, saying it was part of his administrations larger agenda to tackle with the projected climate crisis.

Odds are, there are a lot of people who voted for Biden who had no idea what hes going to do and whats yet to come, and thats why I say theyre going to overstepand it isnt going to take them long, and it isnt going to be pretty when all kinds of people are going to start to figure it out, he added.

Following Limbaughs passing, former President Donald Trump in a statement remembered him as defender of Liberty, and a guiding light to the United States.

People, whether they loved him or not, they respected him, the former president added, describing Limbaugh as a very brave guy and a friend.

Melania and I express our deepest condolences to his wonderful wife, Kathryn, his family, and all of his dedicated fans. He will be missed greatly, Trump added.
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by Francis Khoo Thwe

In a historic first diverse ethnic groups march in unison. Military junta claims "national unity" to exploit the mineral, wood, water and oil resources found on their lands. The strikes continue with hundreds of thousands of participants. The army uses rubber bullets and water cannons. There have been around 500 arrests so far.

Yangon (AsiaNews) - Thousands of people, belonging to 27 ethnic groups of the country, are marching in the economic capital to demand the end of the military dictatorship, the release of those arrested and a federal union of the state (photo 1).

The demonstration of ethnic groups, who all come together and united, is added to that of hundreds of thousands of demonstrators from all walks of life and social sectors to protest against the coup.

The groups also visited several embassies and handed them a letter calling for an end to the state of emergency. Most of the protesters accuse China (and Russia) of supporting the military regime.

It is perhaps one of the first times that the different ethnic groups have marched in unison. They include groups from karen (kaya), kachin, shan, mon, wa, ... - the country is made up of 135 ethnic groups  all of whom have suffered the violence of the army in the past.

The military junta has often brandished the claim of " national unity to exploit the mineral, wooded, aquifer and oil resources found in their lands. There are still no peace treaties with some of these groups, including the Kachin.

Democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi has long been working for a federal or semi-federal solution, but she is hindered by the army which - according to ethnic groups - does not want to give up economic power over resources.

The groups who march or stage sit-ins (photo 2) are helped by women religious who distribute drinks and food to the demonstrators (photo 3).

For three days, the army has taken to the streets with tanks and armoured vehicles trying to obstruct the demonstrations. They use rubber bullets and fire hydrants, leaving many injured, but - at least so far - no deaths.

In an attempt to stem resistance, there is a tenacious curfew from 1 to 4 in the morning; the internet is blocked from 1 am to 9 am.

Meanwhile, the series of arrests continues. Yesterday an arrest order was issued for six artists, guilty of inciting the crowd and above all state employees to demonstrate and implement civil disobedience. Due to the lack of staff, trains and hospitals are in trouble.

Other personalities are arrested for writing appeals on blogs which, according to the junta, "put the country's security and peace in difficulty".

It is estimated that since the coup d'etat, last February 1st, the junta has made about 500 arrests.
Bareilly, Feb 18 : One man died and another sustained grievous injury after they were brutally thrashed by a mob here on suspicion of being thives, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place on Sunday.

According to the police, the autopsy report of the victim, Rehaan, 31, stated that he died due to antemortem head injuries (head injury caused by a blunt object when alive).

Saba, the victim's wife, alleged that her husband and his friend Shahrukh were caught urinating on the wall of a house by the owner and they were later beaten up.

"Police informed me that my husband was admitted at a hospital after being beaten on the suspicion of theft. Rehaan was lying unconscious and given his serious condition, he was shifted to a higher medical facility in Bareilly. However, doctors in Bareilly referred him to a Delhi hospital, but Rehaan died in the ambulance," she said "My husband and his friend were thrashed by the house owner Nandan Singh and his aides, who had levelled a false theft charge against the duo. My husband was murdered. I want a strict action against all the people involved in the crime," Saba said.

Two people have been arrested in connection with the case.

Bareilly SSP Sankalp Sharma said, "Rehaan and Shahrukh were caught by Nandan Singh and his family on the suspicion of robbery. They were later rescued by the police after being thrashed. Rehaan had suffered serious head injuries. We had registered an FIR under IPC sections 307 and 323 on the complaint of Rehaan's wife. Now, section 302 (murder) was added to the FIR. We have arrested main accused Nandan Singh and he has been sent to jail." "We are trying to identify other people involved in the crime with the help of Shahrukh, the prime witness. Besides, a video of the crime has also surfaced. We will not spare any accused," the SSP added.
The Oxford, AstraZeneca vaccine is a Non-Replicating Viral Vector type of vaccine that aims to protect against COVID-19.

Ali Sukhanver

The Covid-19 has no doubt given a very hard and tough time to almost all the countries and all the nations. Millions of people have lost their lives and millions are still fighting the horrible impacts of this cruel pandemic. Moreover the world is facing a very painful economic disaster too as an aftermath of this brutal epidemic. But it is something very encouraging that in spite of facing huge losses at the hands of this killer, the world is trying all its best to counter the long-term damages caused by this disease and stop its further spread in the days to come. Certainly the efforts of the countries like UK and US must be esteemed high in this context. Unfortunately at this very critical juncture of time, there are some countries which are trying to get every possible benefit out of this calamity by doing business and by earning more and more.

According to the New York Times, The University of Oxford partnered with the British-Swedish company AstraZeneca to develop and test a corona virus vaccine known as ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 or AZD1222. Clinical trials found that the vaccine had an efficacy of 82.4 percent when two doses were given 12 weeks apart. Despite some uncertainty over trial results, Britain authorized the vaccine for emergency use in December and India authorized a version of the vaccine called Covishield on 3rd January 2021. The Oxford, AstraZeneca vaccine is a Non-Replicating Viral Vector type of vaccine that aims to protect against COVID-19. It is administered through intramuscular injection. In India the Serum Institute of India (SII) is producing and supplying this vaccine. The Serum Institute of India is the worlds biggest vaccine maker and it has licensed the vaccine from AstraZeneca and Oxford University. This vaccine is being marketed as COVISHIELD for low-and middle-income countries. Unfortunately the prepared vaccine failed in giving the required rather expected results.

According to the media reports, last week one million doses of this vaccine landed in South Africa and another 500,000 were due to arrive in the next few weeks but the South African government has recently asked SII to take back the sent one million doses because of its poor effectiveness. Moreover, the South African government has put on hold use of Indian AstraZenecas Covid-19 vaccine in its vaccination program: says the Economic Times in a recent report. The Serum Institute has yet not given any comment in response to the action taken by the government of South Africa. The government has decided to start vaccinating health workers with Johnson & Johnson's vaccine instead of the AstraZenecas Covid-19 vaccine made in India. On the other hand the government of India has rejected the concerns raised by the government of the South Africa. Vinod Kumar Paul, a top Indian vaccine official, said defending his government on substandard vaccine, Our vaccination programme is robust and valid, and I assure you that we are going ahead with it, not worried at the moment. We will intensify our surveillance and we will be watching other developments in due course. In 2017 the WHO prepared a report which said that India is a major player in counterfeit pharmaceutical manufacturing as the country is the worlds largest producer of generic drugs. The report said that one in ten medicines is substandard. Substandard, counterfeit or falsified medicines may be expired, contaminated, have substituted or inappropriate quantities of active ingredients, or bear misleading packaging and labels. It is often difficult to determine whether this is the result of production errors or deliberate action. Antibiotics, anti-malarial, birth control pills, cough syrup and painkillers are some of the most common counterfeit drugs.

A few years back some incidences of illness due to consumption of a cough syrup were reported in Paraguay and Pakistan. The case was referred to researchers for further inquiry who reached the conclusion that the most active ingredient used in the syrup Dextromethorphan was imported from India. It was also brought to light that the raw material used in making of Dextromethorphan was contaminated with levomethorphan, a drug five times stronger than morphine. In another case, involvement of an Indian company was traced when an individual suffering from HIV in Africa was given mouldy tablets by an NGO. The name of an American organization was also printed on the packing. Investigations revealed that the American organization had bought the tablets from an Indian company which had repackaged the anti-retroviral to show false expiry dates. Nayanika Mukherjee said in the fortnightly Down To Earth commenting on the sorry plight of the drug-manufacturers in India, With counterfeiting being carried out on a commercial level and at a large scale, India needs to plug in the loopholes in the supply chain and bring transparency in the distribution of pharmaceutical products. Certainly South Africas step of sending the vaccine back to India and putting a ban on use of the made-in-India vaccine would damage the repute and credibility of India but as far as the Indian exporters and manufacturers are concerned, this is a routine matter there specifically in the field of drugs-manufacturing.
Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
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Unnao: Three girls were found in an unconscious state in a field in Unnao districts Asoha on Wednesday night. Two girls succumbed while one has been referred to District hospital.

As per police, the girls had gone to cut grass and had not returned. They were found in their own farm in an unconscious state.

"Two girls died at the hospital, one referred to District Hospital. As per initial info, the girls had gone to cut grass. The doctor states that there are symptoms of poisoning," Superintendent of Police Unnao Anand Kulkarni told ANI.

3 girls were found lying unconscious in their own farm in Asoha, Unnao Dist, today. 2 girls died at the hospital, one referred to District Hospital. As per initial info, the girls had gone to cut grass. The doctor states that there are symptoms of poisoning; probe on: SP Unnao pic.twitter.com/IJO4L7GtUk  ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) February 17, 2021

They were found in the field by the villagers who had gone out searching for the girls after they had not returned home.

The bodies of the victims have been sent for postmortem and further investigations in the case is underway.
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Testing Program Overview

As mentioned in the Campus Guide, Bowdoin College has developed a testing protocol in partnership with the Broad Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that is central to our return-to-campus plan. Per the Campus Community Agreement, students must comply with Bowdoins COVID-19 testing.

Test attendance will be tracked throughout the semester, and students will be allowed one unexcused missed test. A student who misses three additional COVID-19 tests without prior written authorization will effectively opt out of the testing protocol and forfeit their on-campus privileges, including physically living on campus, and will move to remote learning for the remainder of the semester.

Please note:

Within 24-48 hours after your PCR test your results will be available on-line. Follow the steps outlined here to retrieve your results from the Broad Institute.

Missed tests must be made up the following testing day .

. If you miss your make-up test, that will count as yet another missed test.

It is your responsibility to be mindful of the testing center's hours of operation on any given day, including any changes due to weather.

And again, remember, after one unexcused missed test and three additional missed tests, you will effectively be opting out of the testing protocol and forfeiting your on-campus privileges.

To learn about how to do your Broad PCR test, please watch this 90-second video:

February 1526 Plan

Students will complete a Broad PCR test every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at Morrell Gym. No registration required; simply show up anytime during the testing centers hours of operation (7:00 a.m.4:00 p.m.).

March 1April 11

Students will complete two Broad PCR tests every week with their testing cohort:

Cohort 1: Tests on Mondays and Thursdays in Morrell Gym. No registration required; simply show up anytime during the testing centers hours of operation (7:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.).

Tests on Mondays and Thursdays in Morrell Gym. No registration required; simply show up anytime during the testing centers hours of operation (7:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.). Cohort 2: Tests on Tuesdays and Fridays in Morrell Gym. No registration required; simply show up anytime during the testing centers hours of operation (7:00 a.m.4:00 p.m.).

April 12Updated Remainder of the Semester Plan

Students will complete three Broad PCR tests every week on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. No registration required; simply show up anytime during the testing centers hours of operation (7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.).

Daily Symptom TrackingCampusClear

Bowdoin community members will use a symptom tracker, CampusClear, for self-reported symptom screening. Students residing on campus will complete a daily survey prior to leaving their residence halls and will receive direction from Health Services if symptoms are reported. Additional information about symptom tracking and CampusClear:

Read through the Daily Symptom Check FAQs.

Download the CampusClear app and set it up on your mobile device (instructions can be found here).

Suggestions for Testing Success

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  Despite several warnings from health experts, Metro Manila could shift to the most relaxed form of community quarantine by March now that mayors have agreed to the proposal of economic leaders.

Navotas Mayor Toby Tiangco on Thurday said the 17 mayors were split during their voting, but those in favor won by one vote, 9-8, for the National Capital Region to shift from general community quarantine to modified GCQ.

Tiangco said he voted against the easing of restrictions. Other mayors who voted to keep NCR under GCQ are Marikina City Mayor Marcy Teodoro, Muntinlupa City Mayor Jaime Fresnedi, San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora, and Valenzuela City Mayor Rex Gatchalian.

Manila Mayor Isko Moreno, Makati City Mayor Abigail Binay, and Mandaluyong City Mayor Menchie Abalos voted in favor of shifting to MGCQ, while Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and Pateros Mayor Miguel Ponce III did not disclose their votes.

CNN Philippines is still waiting for the response of other NCR mayors on how they voted.

The National Economic and Development Authority recommended to President Rodrigo Duterte to place the entire country under MGCQ next month. The different levels of quarantine classification enforced per area depend on their COVID-19 cases and the capability of health facilities to tend to patients. Duterte has yet to announce the quarantine status for March.

The proposal of acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Chua on Monday was quickly met with warnings from the OCTA Research group. It said it will be dangerous since COVID-19 and UK variant cases are increasing in some parts of the country. OCTA fellow Ranjit Rye also pointed out that the country has not yet even started vaccinating medical frontliners.

OCTA also warned that if Metro Manila moves to MGCQ, it will lead to a surge of up to 2,400 new cases per day by March 26, similar to the daily tally when the region was placed under modified enhanced community quarantine in August 2020 due to dwindling healthcare utilization.

Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, World Health Organization representative to the Philippines, said the cases in Metro Manila have not flattened yet so it is best to keep restrictions in place.

"We still need to be conscious that there is a relatively high level of transmission in the community," he said in a media briefing.

Infectious disease expert Dr. Rontgene Solante also said it's still too early to ease quarantine restrictions, citing the presence of new COVID-19 variants. He suggested it would be better to wait for another month before transitioning to MGCQ.

Solante told CNN Philippines' News.PH that local government officials should also observe first the behavior of people, once high-risk establishments like cinemas and gaming arcades reopen.

Although Metro Manila is recording a negative growth rate, eight out of 17 cities are showing increased cases, according to the Health Department.

Benhur Abalos, chairman of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority and who attended the meeting of the mayors, said the local chief executives agreed to ease to MGCQ. However, he said the mayors kept their stance against further lowering of the ages allowed to leave their homes. He said those under 15 and over 65 are still prohibited from going out for leisure.

NEDA also recommended to allow people aged five to 70 to go out for non-essential trips, increase public transportation operations from 50% to 70%, and resume pilot face-to-face classes in low-risk areas. Chua said the country needs to recover from huge economic losses.
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The FBI and US Attorney's office in Brooklyn are investigating New York Governor Andrew Cuomo over a mounting potential scandal that his administration covered up coronavirus-related deaths in nursing homes, according to a report Wednesday.

Democrat Cuomo is under fire amid claims he purposely under-reported the COVID-19 death toll.

The investigation - first reported by The Times Union - is said to be in its early stages; it is focusing on Cuomo's coronavirus task force, the paper notes.

DailyMail.com has contacted the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York for comment. The FBI said it had 'no comment'. Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said of the federal probe: 'As we publicly said, DOJ has been looking into this for months. We have been cooperating with them and we will continue to.'

Officials are said to be looking into the governor's task force whose members include attorney Linda Lacewell, state Health Commissioner Howard Zucker and Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa.

It was DeRosa who is said to have admitted the administration withheld data on the nursing home deaths from state lawmakers, fearing an official investigation from the federal government.

It is not known if any of Cuomo's team have been interviewed. Subpoenas have been issued, ABC reports.

But Cuomo had said this week: 'The New York state (Department of Health) has always fully and publicly reported all COVID deaths in nursing homes and hospitals.

'They have always been fully reported. I don't think there's anything to clear here.  There is nothing to investigate.'

The FBI and US Attorney's office are investigating New York Governor Andrew Cuomo over the nursing home death scandal, according to reports Wednesday

Even fellow Democrats in New York have slammed Cuomo for what they said was covering up deaths in nursing homes. They said those deaths came from Cuomo's decision to send COVID-19 patients back to their nursing homes from hospitals.

Cuomo said he followed expert guidelines at the time, as he said it was believed then that they were not infectious anymore.

Many families and New York state lawmakers though, say the decision added to the number of deaths - making nursing homes hotspots for coronavirus transmission.

Yet Cuomo claimed on Monday that 98 percent of the care homes already had COVID-19 in their buildings before the sick patients were sent back there - and that he was not responsible.

More than 15,000 people have died in New York state's nursing homes and long term care facilities from COVID-19, but as recently as last month, the state reported only 8,500 deaths.

The numbers, while accounted for in the full state death totals to the state, were not ascribed to nursing homes for residents who died in hospitals rather than within the facilities.

Last week Cuomo's top aide admitted that his administration had withheld data on the nursing home deaths from state lawmakers as they feared an official investigation from the federal government. Melissa DeRosa, pictured, allegedly said that they were worried Trump would turn the deaths 'into a giant political football'

President Joe Biden, center right, and Vice President Kamala Harris, center left, meet with Governor Andrew Cuomo last Friday , to discuss the vital need to pass the American Rescue Plan, which will get more support to their communities and those on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19

A report late last month from New York Attorney General Letitia James, a fellow Democrat, had examined the administration's failure to tally nursing home residents' deaths at hospitals.

The state then acknowledged the total number of long-term care residents' deaths is nearly 15,000, up from the 8,500 previously disclosed.

Next, a Freedom of Information request showed that more than 9,000 recovering coronavirus patients in New York were released from hospitals into nursing homes in the pandemic's early months.

This was more than 40 percent higher than the state had said previously because it wasn't counting residents who returned from hospitals to homes where they already had lived.

It then emerged that Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa had told Democratic lawmakers that the tally of nursing home residents' deaths at hospitals was delayed because officials worried that the information was 'going to be used against us' by the DOJ, then under the Trump administration.

DeRosa allegedly said that they were worried Trump would turn the deaths 'into a giant political football'.

Since then seven Democratic state assembly members have accused Cuomo of an 'intentional obstruction of justice'. In a letter they say that Cuomo attempted to circumvent a federal probe by delaying the release of a complete tally of deaths of nursing home residents.

Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing although he apologized on Monday for not working to provide the information more quickly.

Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker speaks during opening of vaccination site at Jacob Javits Center. To his right is Secretary of State Rossana Rosado and to his left is Director of Emergency Management Michael Kopy

CNN reinstates ban on Chris Cuomo featuring family - as the host remains silent on his NY governor brother's nursing home scandal CNN has allegedly reinstated a ban on host Chris Cuomo interviewing his brother, Andrew, despite allowing the New York governor to appear on his show more than ten times last year. The network was questioned by the Washington Post on Tuesday after Chris, 50, failed to mention his 63-yar-old brother while addressing the biggest stories related to COVID-19 on his show the previous night. The host's silence came just hours after the governor had finally addressed in a press conference the latest scandal surrounding his handling of the data involving COVID-19 deaths in the state's nursing homes. And as Democrats continued to turn against the governor, with nine state assembly members on Tuesday accusing him of an 'obstruction of justice'. The Post had criticized CNN for allowing Chris to deliver 'over-the-top praise when the governor is up; silence when he's down', after the host completely ignored the press conference, which had been among the main coronavirus stories of the day. CNN said in a statement to the publication that they had earlier allowed the host to break the rules on him interviewing family members as the first months of the pandemic crisis 'were an extraordinary time'. The network also argued that it has 'covered the news surrounding Governor Cuomo extensively'. Yet the decision to now continue to ban after an extended break comes after months of praise being heaped on the governor by his brother in more than ten appearances on his show. Advertisement

New York assemblyman Ron Kim said Wednesday he was threatened by Cuomo, claiming the governor told him 'I can destroy you' if the assemblyman did not issue a positive statement regarding the nursing home cover-up scandal.

The Democrat claimed he received an angry phone call from Cuomo on Thursday after he was quoted in a New York Post article.

On Wednesday, a senior Cuomo aide issued a statement accusing Kim of 'lying about his conversation with Governor Cuomo Thursday night'.

Kim alleges that Cuomo shouted at him for 10 minutes and asked him 'are you an honorable man?' before the governor added that he 'hadn't seen his wrath and anger' before.

Cuomo appeared to make good on his alleged threat earlier on Wednesday as he criticized Kim during a press briefing and claimed that he and the assembly member had a 'long and hostile relationship'.

He also suggested that Kim was guilty of practices that were 'unethical if not illegal'. The governor claimed that the tension rose from a 2015 bill to reform nail salons that the Cuomo proposed, and Kim voted against.

Kim, who represents the Queens district that was hardest hit at the height of the pandemic, told the Post that secretary to the governor Melissa DeRosa's comments sounded like the governor was 'trying to dodge having any incriminating evidence'.

The assemblyman said he also called on Cuomo to apologize to family members of those who died in assisted living facilities during the call.

Cuomo was allegedly angered by Kim's statement to the Post and made the call later that day in an effort to make him pull it back and issue a positive statement instead.

Kim said the call amounted to the governor threatening to tarnish his reputation if he did not decide to publicly back Cuomo and say that he misheard DeRosa, according to the New York Times.

'Gov. Cuomo called me directly on Thursday to threaten my career if I did not cover up for Melissa [DeRosa] and what she said. He tried to pressure me to issue a statement, and it was a very traumatizing experience,' Kim told CNN.

'No man has ever spoken to me like that in my entire life,' he added.

'At some point he tried to humiliate me, asking: "Are you a lawyer? I didn't think so. You're not a lawyer." It almost felt like in retrospect he was trying to bait me and anger me and say something inappropriate. I'm glad I didn't.'

Kim's wife also told CNN that she had overheard fragments of the call, which took place as the assemblyman had been bathing his children.

She said that she heard Cuomo ask 'who do you think you are?' and reference 'my wrath', and that he sounded 'loud' and 'angry' on the phone.

'The governor threatened to destroy my life,' Kim allegedly told her once he had hung up.

The assemblyman said that after the first phone call, Cuomo attempted to contact him on multiple occasions over the weekend using a 'No Caller ID' number.

He said that Cuomo's aides also told him that the governor would like to speak to him again.

Kim said he did not return the calls but told CNN that he has since retained a lawyer as the call made him feel that the governor had asked him to lie about the potential cover-up.

Kim believes that his uncle died from a presumed case of COVID in a nursing home last year

'He's utterly ghoulish': Meghan McCain scolds Gov. Cuomo over 'disgusting behavior' and calls for him to resign and be criminally investigated Meghan McCain lambasted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo Meghan McCain lambasted New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo over COVID-19 deaths in the states nursing homes, labeling him disgusting, ghoulish and calling for him to resign. McCains scolding comments came as part of a lengthy monologue on The View Wednesday, in which the shows panel were discussing accusations that Cuomo purposely under-reported the coronavirus death toll in New York's nursing homes. While Cuomo has denied the claims, discrediting them as a conspiracy theory, McCain insisted he should resign after months of completely and utterly ghoulish behavior amid the pandemic. He is disgusting, McCain thundered. I think there should be a criminal investigation and I think he should step down. Cuomo insisted Monday that all the deaths in nursing homes and hospitals were fully, publicly, and accurately reported - despite an Democrat-led investigation suggesting otherwise. Host Whoopi Goldberg began the Cuomo segment on the View Wednesday by asking if the embattled governor is taking enough responsibility for New Yorks 45,000 COVID-19 deaths. Panelist Sunny Hostin insisted said she didnt believe Cuomo had, calling him evasive and insisting that she was disappointed in the governors communication with the public. To be clear, I think that the Trump administration and Pences coronavirus task force really stands at the top of responsibility for the almost 500,000 deaths of our loved ones, she said. But I think this governor was less than transparent. A fired up McCain then chimed in that the Cuomo scandal is personal for her, after her friend, journalist Janice Dean, lost both of her in-laws to COVID-19 in New York nursing homes last year. I have a lot of anger towards this story for two reasons, she said, so bear with me. McCain continued: The first one is, I think the media has done a really p***-poor job in covering this in lots of ways: Hes been given Emmys, hes gone on TV and joked about his sex life with giant q-tips with his brother Chris Cuomo. 'The adulation and the lack of question of him across the board, and his way to evade it, has been nothing short of journalistic malpractice and malfeasance,' she said. The daughter of late Sen. John McCain then said her second issue stems from her being pro-life across the board. The idea that because youre old and in a nursing home that your life is somehow worth less than mine  and if you die that way, that we will care less because you are old and dying alone in a nursing home, she continued. I think if this involved younger people  or those under 70  I think we as a society wouldve cared more. There is no empathy coming from Gov. Cuomo. McCain then blasted Cuomo for being utterly ghoulish in the way he has talked to people, and for failing to apologize to the family members of those whove lost loved ones in nursing homes, because of the pandemic. He has not apologized to the families who have lost their family members in this way. I think hes disgusting, she said. I think there should be a criminal investigation and I think he should step down. In summation, McCain added that no one deserves to die along in a nursing home - pandemic or no pandemic. I think about the way my father died, surrounding by family and love, outside in Sedona, surrounded by hawks and animals, with true dignity, she concluded. And then the way it couldve gone, had he not been famous or, god forbid, died from COVID under Andrew Cuomos leadership. Advertisement

Three additional Democratic New York lawmakers told CNN anonymously that they had also heard and experienced an aggressive lobby from Cuomo and his aides in the past week, as his administration tries to negate the bad press he is receiving over the potential scandal.

An adviser to Cuomo initially denied that the governor had threatened Kim.

'Kim's assertion that the governor said he would "destroy him" is false,' senior adviser Rich Azzopardi told CNN.

'The Governor has three witnesses to the conversation. The operable words were to the effect of, "I am from Queens, too, and people still expect honor and integrity in politics".'

Azzopardi also claimed that Kim had initially agreed to issue a new statement in the phone call and that the follow ups over the weekend were only because he had failed to do so.

In a longer statement, Azzopardi claimed that he knew Kim is lying because 'I was once of the three people in the room when the phone call occurred'.

He blasted the claims as 'part of a years-long pattern of lies by Mr. Kim against this administration'.

'We will not allow an unscrupulous politician to deceive New Yorkers or distort the truth ... He is without credibility as his own word demonstrate. Lies have caused grieving families from COVID enough pain,' Azzopardi continued.

Earlier that day, Cuomo had addressed the matter himself during a press briefing as he issued accusations of impropriety at the assemblyman.

He accused the fifth-term assemblyman of a 'continuing racket' in accepting donations from nail salon owners.

Cuomo claimed that Kim voted against the bill that he had helped craft after siding with the salon owners who were upset about the reform it would introduced.

He suggested Kim engaged in 'pay to play' and said it was 'unethical if not illegal'.

Cuomo noted a New York Times article from that year that examined financial contributions to Kim after he had changed his position on the salon reform bill.

The governor appeared particularly angered during the briefing by a letter issued by Kim and six other Democratic state assembly members on Tuesday in which they accused Cuomo of an 'intentional obstruction of justice'.

The letter said that Cuomo attempted to circumvent a federal probe by delaying the release of a complete tally of deaths of nursing home residents.

Up until last month, the state had claimed that only 8,500 people had died in nursing homes.

Yet these figures did not include deaths of nursing home residents who were hospitalized and then died in hospital. The state only released the full figure of 15,000 last month.

Despite the criticism he received from Cuomo on Wednesday, Kim said that he stands '100%' behind his allegations about the threat and was disappointed by the suggestion that he had an ulterior political motive.

'There's no undoing here. They have blood on their hands,' Kim said. 'We're talking about his record of performance in the last 10 months.'

'Basically, I saw a crime and hes asking me to say that I did not see that crime,' he added to the Times. 'I heard what I heard and I cant lie.

'The governor can personally attack me all he wants in an effort to distract us from his incompetent management. But these facts are not going away because they are the facts and are unacceptable.'

Several other lawmakers in New York have also fiercely criticized Cuomo, with some calling for his resignation.

In response to Cuomos protestations that claims he purposely misreported nursing home deaths are just a conspiracy, New York State Sen. Jessica Ramos tweeted: 'Trash. No one believes you.'

NY Sen. Alessandra Biaggi added that she believed one of his press conferences earlier this week was 'riddled with lies'.

The governor's comments did not satisfy a number of Democratic lawmakers including NY Sen. Alessandra Biaggi

New York State Sen. Jessica Ramos tweeted: 'Trash'

In his Monday press conference, Cuomo said he didn't cover up deaths but acknowledged that officials should have moved faster to release some information sought by lawmakers, the public and the press.

'All the deaths in the nursing homes and hospitals were always fully, publicly and accurately reported,' he claimed.

He explained the matter Monday as a difference of 'categorization,' with the state counting where deaths occurred and others seeking total deaths of nursing home residents, regardless of the location.

'We should have done a better job of providing as much information as we could as quickly as we could,' he said. 'No excuses: I accept responsibility for that.'

'We should not have created the void [of information]. We should have done a better job of providing information and knocking down conspiracy theories.

'We did not take enough action and the pain is it created confusion, cynicism and pain for the families of a loved one.'

Yet he refused to take any responsibility for any of the deaths in the state's nursing homes as he continued to blame a 'toxic political environment,' and 'disinformation' for much of the criticism surrounding his administration's handling of the issue.

Cuomo said the state was slow to respond to the lawmakers because officials prioritized dealing with requests from the Justice Department and were busy dealing with the work of the pandemic.

'Its not like people were in the South of France,' he said.

'When we didnt provide information, it allowed press, people, cynics, politicians, to fill the void,' he said, and 'it created confusion and cynicism and pain for the families.'

'The truth is: Everybody did everything they could.'

Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa (pictured left) reportedly said last week that Cuomo's administration had feared that the COVID-19 deaths in nursing home could 'be used against us' as the Justice Department investigates New York and three other states

Cuomo will be standing for relection next year.

On Tuesday, a survey released by Sienna College revealed that Cuomo still hold a good favorability rating among New Yorkers although his approval rating had dropped slightly in the past month.

However, the poll was carried out before Post revealed DeRosa's comments last week.

They did come after a report from Attorney General Letitia James' office and a court order forced the state to finally release the figures showing the true extent of COVID nursing home deaths was almost double what they had originally claimed.

In the survey, New Yorkers failed Cuomo on his handling of the scandal.

Both Democrats and Republicans in the state have been angered by Cuomo's administration and the delay in receiving the full figure of deaths after lawmakers had made a formal request for the information in August.

Yet Cuomo has denied any wrongdoing although he apologized on Monday for not working to provide the information more quickly.
BRIDGEPORT  A city man with a history of gun violence is accused of shooting a woman in front of her 4-year-old daughter.

Rayquawn Poopa Jenkins, 23, of Pearl Harbor Street, was charged Tuesday with first-degree assault, third-degree assault, risk of injury to a child, illegal discharge of a firearm, first-degree reckless endangerment and carrying a pistol without a permit.

During Jenkins arraignment on Wednesday, he was seen gripping the bars of his cell as he watched on video as Senior Assistant States Attorney Nicholas Bove urged the judge to set a high bond for Jenkins.

These are extremely serious allegations, the prosecutor said.

Jenkins lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Ashley Miller, urged leniency, arguing that her client, while unemployed, has been working to get his high school equivalency diploma.

However, Superior Court Judge Kevin Doyle said that Jenkins posed a danger to the community and ordered him held in lieu of $1 million bond. He continued the case to March 2.

According to the affidavit of Police Detective Thomas Harper, on Sept. 28, a city man was dropping the woman and her 4-year-old daughter at the womans home when a man she identified as Jenkins approached their car with a gun in his hand.

The driver of the car attempted to drive off but, the affidavit states, Jenkins allegedly yelled, Why you trying to pull off? and then is accused of firing into the car as the female victim screamed, my daughter, my daughter.

The car drove to Bridgeport Hospital where the male driver was treated for gunshot wounds to the chest and upper right thigh. The female victim was treated for minor gunshot injuries, the affidavit states. The child was not injured.

Jenkins is listed as a deadly weapon offender on the state police registry as the result of a 2015 gun conviction.
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

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Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

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Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

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"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

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US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

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"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
Alabama native Hannah Brown is in hot water again for showing racial insensitivity on social media.

The former Bachelorette star -- who faced a backlash in May 2020 for saying the N-word in an Instagram Live video -- recently deleted an Instagram photo that showed her wearing a Southern belle outfit.

The photo, taken in May 2013, showed Brown posing at a presentation ceremony for the Tuscaloosa Belles, a service organization for high school girls thats linked to the Tuscaloosa County Preservation Society.

Dresses that evoke the Old South -- with hoop skirts, pantalettes and petticoats -- appear to be standard for Tuscaloosa Belles at the ceremony Brown attended in 2013, as well as for parades, the annual Dickens Downtown event in Northport and other public appearances.

Folks who support such costumes say theyre a nod to Southern traditions and heritage, and a way to preserve history. But critics say the outfits glorify the antebellum South and celebrate plantation culture while ignoring the horrors of slavery.

The photo of Brown as a Southern belle -- and her deletion of it on Instagram -- was pointed out by observers such as @TeaAndRoses21 on Twitter, amid a Bachelor Nation controversy about racism in the franchise and another Southern belle image.

Both Hannah Brown and Jessica Clarke (former Bachelor Ben Higgins fiancee) have been photographed at antebellum plantation-themed eventsso far, all have been silent on this Chris Harrison/Rachael Kirkconnell racism scandal #TheBachelor pic.twitter.com/poC2QTDW7R  Rose (@TeaAndRoses21) February 12, 2021

Although Brown isnt at the center of the current controversy, shes become part of the aftermath. Heres whats been happening:

Rachael Kirkconnell, a contestant on The Bachelor this season, is among four women who remain on the show, hoping to forge a romantic relationship with Matt James. Hes the first Black lead on The Bachelor in the series history.

Kirkconnell, whos white, made headlines earlier this month when photos emerged on Reddit, showing her in Southern belle garb at a plantation-themed fraternity formal in 2018. TikTok users also found evidence of the Georgia native liking social media posts with the Confederate flag and sharing QAnon conspiracy theories.

The controversy became more heated when Bachelor host Chris Harrison appeared on the show Extra, defending Kirkconnell in a conversation with Rachel Lindsay, a former Bachelor contestant and the first Black lead in Bachelorette history. Among other things, Harrison said Kirkconnell was a victim of the woke police and the plantation-themed formal she attended happened a long time ago.

During the Extra conversation, Lindsay said Kirkconnells presence in the Old South photos was not a good look.

Rachel, is it a good look in 2018, or is it not a good look in 2021? Harrison asked. Lindsay said, Its not a good look ever.

Harrisons interview with Lindsay provoked an intense backlash among Bachelor fans and prompted a #FireChrisHarrison hashtag on social media. In response, Harrison apologized twice, announcing in the second apology that he was stepping away from the show until further notice. Hes been the host of The Bachelor since the series made its debut in 2002.

I have spent the last few days listening to the pain my words have caused, and Im deeply remorseful, Harrison wrote. My ignorance did damage to my friends, colleagues and strangers alike. I have no one to blame but myself for what I said and the way I spoke. I set standards for myself, and have not met them. I feel that with every fiber of my being. Now, just as I taught my children to stand up, and to own their actions, I will do the same. By excusing historical racism, I defended it. I invoked the term woke police, which is unacceptable. I am ashamed over how uninformed I was. I was so wrong.

In the meantime, Kirkconnell released a statement on Instagram apologizing for her behavior and truths that have come to light.

At one point, I didnt realize how offensive and racist my actions were, but that doesnt excuse them, Kirkconnell wrote. They are not acceptable or okay in any sense. I was ignorant, but my ignorance was racist ... I hope I can earn your forgiveness through my future actions.

More fallout: After the contentious interview with Harrison, Lindsay said she will not be renewing her contract with The Bachelor franchise. She hosts a Bachelor Nation podcast and makes cameo appearances during some episodes in various seasons. Basically, Lindsay said she was frustrated with the show and tired of pushing to make it more racially inclusive.

Im exhausted. I have truly had enough, Lindsay said on the Feb. 12 episode of her podcast for The Ringer, Higher Learning with Van Lathan.

And theres more.

On Feb. 15, Lindsay and Lathan joined for an Ask Me Anything session on Reddit, answering questions from fans. During that discussion, one participant mentioned that Brown had pulled a Southern belle photo from her Instagram and asked, Did she at least reach out to you? Thoughts on her growing and learning since her apology last year?

(Brown apologized twice for using the N-word in her 2020 video, with a brief written statement and an 18-minute video, both on Instagram.)

Lindsay replied: Wait seriously? This is why actions speak louder than words. This is why we have uncomfortable conversation and this could have really been a big teaching moment. We cant continue on a path of pretending things did not happen or running away from them. We do not learn and grow from that.

Lindsay also said Browns comments on the current Bachelor controversy -- the one involving Kirkconnell and Harrison -- lacked substance. Brown addressed the issue, more or less, on an Instagram Stories video posted on Feb. 12.

Ive been catching up and reading about everything thats been going on in Bachelor Nation and Lord knows Ive made mistakes, Brown said. But I have learned this past year if we want to move forward, we have to confront where we have fallen short. And its so important that we lift up and listen and value and encourage under represented voices. We just have to be better and while being accountable has helped me evolve so much, and Im still not a perfect person but I do remain committed to the work. And Im so humbled and truly grateful to be on this journey and could only hope that I encourage others to go on the journey as well.

As of Feb. 18, Brown has remained silent about the Southern belle photo on her Instagram, and hasnt explained why she deleted it.
Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

Bern, 18.02.2021 - 'Rumantsch: in ferm toc Svizra' (Romansh: an essential part of Switzerland). This is the motto under which the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) is launching the first ever Romansh language week in Switzerland and abroad. On 19 February, Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis  in collaboration with the Canton of Graubunden and Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha (RTR)  is inviting people to an online launch event dedicated to Switzerland's fourth national language. Together with the representations abroad, the FDFA wants to promote greater knowledge of the Romansh language and culture, which is a key component of Switzerland's national cohesion.

20 February 1938 is a historic date for Swiss plurilingualism, marking the point where Romansh officially became a national language, along with German, French and Italian. The FDFA has chosen this symbolic date to launch the first Romansh Language Week (Emna Rumantscha), in addition to Plurilingualism Week and the activities organised during Italian Language Week and French Language Week. These events underline the importance of plurilingualism for national cohesion, but also for openness to the outside world.

The idea of the 'Emna Rumantscha' was born two years ago on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Lia Rumantscha in Zuoz. This project has been strongly supported by Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis and was the result of collaboration between a number of actors in Switzerland and abroad. "Our country is composed of a multitude of identities and cultures living together in harmony. And Romansh is a key ingredient of that melting pot. Plurilingualism and diversity are both a challenge and an asset: they teach us to resolve conflicts through dialogue, a Swiss quality that is in great demand throughout the world," highlights Cassis.

Online event devoted to Romansh culture

This major collective effort with various partners  including the Canton of Graubunden and the Lia Rumantscha  is reflected in the launch event on 19 February 2021 (livestream from 11:45am to 1pm on www.rtr.ch). From Bern, from Romansh-speaking Switzerland and from all over the world, participants will be exchanging views and trying to answer the question: why is Romansh "in ferm toc Svizra"? Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis and Mario Cavigelli, President of the Graubunden Cantonal Council, will be talking to pupils from Glion secondary school and will then take part in a panel discussion together with Graubunden Cantonal Councillor Jon Domenic Parolini and other speakers of the Romansh language from various fields. Swiss Ambassador Chasper Sarott and Aita Pult will also contribute video messages from Madagascar and from New York.

Contribution of Swiss representations abroad

Romansh Language Week is an opportunity to shine a spotlight on Swiss plurilingualism, bringing together a wide variety of Romansh-speakers and including stories, interviews, language courses, readings, videos and virtual meetings. Switzerland's representations abroad have been taking steps to promote knowledge of the Romansh language and culture in their respective countries within the limits of the conditions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. "We excel in diplomacy," says Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis, "precisely because of our centuries of experience in bringing different identities and cultures together in harmony. We want to pass on this experience at the international level, through our good offices and mediation services. Switzerland is thus an important actor for peace, human rights and security in the world."

The FDFA, plurilingualism and intercultural dialogue

The promotion of minority languages in Switzerland is also part of the structured, ongoing political dialogue that the head of the FDFA is conducting with the cantons of Graubunden and Ticino. In addition, Switzerland has a global presence with around 170 representations which employ about 2,300 local staff. The variety of languages spoken, in addition to the Swiss national languages, is enormous, which puts the promotion of intercultural dialogue right at the heart of Swiss diplomacy.

Livestreaming event on 19 February 2021: www.rtr.ch

Address for enquiries

FDFA Communication

Federal Palace West Wing

CH-3003 Bern, Switzerland

Tel. Communication service: +41 58 462 31 53

Tel. Press service: +41 58 460 55 55

E-mail: kommunikation@eda.admin.ch

Twitter: @SwissMFA

Publisher

Federal Department of Foreign Affairs

https://www.eda.admin.ch/eda/en/home.html




As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), continues to distress worldwide, new variants are emerging that threaten the possibility of containment by current vaccines or therapeutic antibodies.

Variants of concern may drive higher transmission

These, called the variants of concern (VOCs), have been called the UK, Brazilian, and South African variants, depending on where they were first identified.

Now, a new preprint research paper posted to the medRxiv* server reports the estimated effects of these variants on epidemiological parameters of virus spread, including the seven-day incidence rate.

The designation VOC comes from the fact that they have been associated, on epidemiological grounds, with higher transmissibility based on earlier strains.

The countries and regions that first reported these VOCs' emergence saw a simultaneous increase in infections towards the end of 2020 and early 2021. This increase occurred despite the high levels of social distancing that were practiced at that time. There was an estimated increase by 50% to 70% in the risk of infection with the UK variant.

Some preliminary findings have also shown that mortality rates are rising in the UK. Moreover, epidemiologists know that when novel variants spread rapidly at a local level, they are sure to increase international transmission rates as well.

VOCs in Germany

All three VOCs were identified in Germany by the middle of January 2021, having been imported via returning travelers from countries where these were spreading to a large extent. The researchers sought to identify any link between VOC cases and infection rates.

Temporal and spatial distribution of VOC cases in Germany. Panel A counts NUTS-3 regions with confirmed VOC cases over time. Panel B reveals that the 7-day incidence rate (by day of reporting) decreases for Germany and Schleswig- Holstein but increases in Flensburg (a region with many confirmed VOC cases). Panel C shows the spatial spread of VOC cases by February 4, 2021. Flensburg and Cologne, Duren and Leverkusen report most confirmed VOC cases.

The seven-day incidence rate refers to the number of new infections over the last seven days reported per 1,00,000 people. The VOC data was obtained from a database that acquires information on confirmed cases of these three VOCs, based on newspapers and public health documents. The data was crosschecked against aggregated data from the premier disease control institute in Germany, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI).

The researchers found that in over half of the ~400 NUTS-3 regions, one or more VOC infection cases had been documented by the beginning of February. The number of such regions experienced exponential growth by the end of January. Among these, Flensburg and three localities in the North-Rhine Westphalia (NRW) region were among the top 5% affected regions.

Local infection rates driven by VOCs

The investigators aggregated VOC infections with daily infection rates for each NUTS-3 region and calculated VOCs' effects on the latter.

In Flensburg, a city of 90,000 residents, the infection rates were constantly below Germany's average in 2020. However, in January 2021, the seven-day incidence showed a steep rise. The main driver was parties on New Year's Eve in infringement of lockdown regulations.

In Flensburg, the seven-day incidence rates went up threefold within 20 days of January 5, 2021, the study group's start date. This was thought to be due to the potential superspreading events at the illegal parties on New Year's Eve.

Among several infections traced to these parties and some unrelated to them, the UK variant was first identified on January 24, 2021. Within ten days, the number of VOC infections had ballooned to almost 150.

In the NRW cluster of cities, the increase was about 40%, after 20 days from the start date. This is more in keeping with earlier results.

Comparison of regions with VOCs

In all regions with one or more VOC, the incidence rate went up by 15/1,00,000. This is comparable to other regions. Suppose the sample includes those where the VOC was confirmed before January 22, or where nine or more cases have been reported. In that case, the incidence rate is found to be 37% higher on average, corresponding to 40 more cases per 1,00,000 compared to the 109/1,00,000 in the comparison regions.

The effect size is smaller if this period is extended by one, two, or three weeks. This suggests that infection rates change around the time when the VOC is documented.

Panel event study

When measured 20 days after the start of the treatment period, the seven-day incidence rate is found to be almost twice as high as before this period. The most extensive changes occur in the regions where there were nine or more VOC cases, and smaller changes are seen in those regions where the VOC emerged before January 22.

The explanation may be that the containment strategies that allowed the first few VOC infections imported from outside to be isolated failed as time passed.

What are the implications?

The researchers point out that the earliest date of VOC reporting in a region is just that and should not be taken to represent the variant's actual time of arrival. The rates of specific VOC testing are lower in Germany than international rates, leaving room for many unrecognized VOC infections.

The association between confirmed VOC cases and seven-day incidence rates does not directly show whether VOCs are actually more infectious than the older variants. Finally, testing rates may be higher in regions where VOC infections have been reported, which may itself lead to a spike in incidence rates compared to other regions.

The study shows that the emergence of a VOC drives up infection rates by 10-40%. When regions with high VOC counts are considered separately, the incidence may double or triple the rates at local level, in regions without reported VOCs.

The considerable rise in estimated infections is disturbing since VOCs may still make up only about 6% in the week between January 22 and January 29, 2021. With this low level of VOC infections in many regions, there is a possibility that the estimates are falsely low.

This can be corrected only by providing information on the spread of these variants. "We hope that our early assessment can fill the eminent knowledge gap regarding the epidemiological effects of VOC and inform health policy authorities about the need for swift actions to control local transmission."

*Important Notice

medRxiv publishes preliminary scientific reports that are not peer-reviewed and, therefore, should not be regarded as conclusive, guide clinical practice/health-related behavior, or treated as established information.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 04:45:22|Editor: huaxia

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LA PAZ, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Bolivia reported that 23 people were killed during carnival celebrations between Feb. 13 and 16, a year-on-year increase of 15 percent, Bolivian police said on Wednesday.

Commander General of the Bolivian Police Jhonny Aguilera explained in a press conference in the capital La Paz that during the 2020 carnival season 20 deaths were reported, "but this year the figure rose to 23, with 16 traffic accidents, four homicides, two femicides and one suicide."

Bolivia experienced an unprecedented carnival season this year between the suspension of traditionally big parades and quarantines in some cities due to the wave of COVID-19 infections, a fact that caused heavy economic losses for the sectors that live off of the celebrations.

Instead, carnival has had to reinvent itself amid the pandemic, with virtual events and smaller events that would not draw big crowds.

Bolivia has accumulated 237,706 COVID-19 cases and 11,274 deaths since March 2020, when the first cases were detected in the South American country. Enditem
Suny Lay Chang named president and COO of Linc Housing The work of building affordable and supportive housing and communities has become an imperative - one that we are ready and able to meet with these and other organizational changes.

In 2020, Linc Housing set a new record for housing development and resident support, and its executive team is expanding to reflect that growth. Suny Lay Chang has been named president, in addition to her current role as chief operating officer. Rebecca Clark continues as CEO. Clark and Chang, along with newly hired Anne Wilson as chief real estate development officer, will lead Linc into 2021, with expanded plans for growth and increased impact on communities throughout California.

Our exciting near-term plans require additions to and reorganization of our talented team, said Clark. We are continuing our trajectory of strong growth. The work of building affordable and supportive housing and communities has become an imperative - one that we are ready and able to meet with these and other organizational changes.

In her new role, Chang works with Clark to lead key initiatives for the organization, including strategic planning, community partnerships, organizational growth, and internal planning. Other areas of focus include oversight of Lincs finances, real estate development, fundraising, community and public relations, property development, risk management, and overall operations. Shell also support Linc's policy and advocacy efforts.

Im so proud of the work we do every day to serve the most vulnerable and underserved in our communities, said Chang. The team and organization we have built reflect both the passion and compassion that we bring to our daily work. We show up each day wanting to do more, which contributes greatly to the tremendous growth we have experienced and look forward to continue achieving.

Chang, a native of Long Beach, Calif., joined Linc in 2007 as assistant director of housing development. She became COO in 2016, leading key initiatives for the organization, including strategic planning, stakeholder partnerships, and housing development operations. She was instrumental in moving Linc from a nonprofit joint-venture partner to a robust development and production team, creating more than 3,300 stand-alone units during her tenure at Linc.

Chang has more than 20 years of professional experience in affordable housing, community development, and strategic management. Her career has been driven by her passion for economic development and poverty alleviation, leading Chang to her work in affordable housing. She sees affordable housing as a powerful catalyst to build communities and neighborhoods, as well as a vehicle for economic growth for families and local economies.

Prior to Linc, Chang served as director of development for New Economics for Women, where she oversaw the financing and construction of new projects and negotiated joint venture development partnerships. As management consultant with The Boston Consulting Group, she consulted for senior managers of Fortune 100 companies across several disciplines, including strategy and operations, valuation and financial analysis, marketing, asset management, and post-merger integrations.

Chang obtained an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a bachelor's degree in economics from Harvard University, where she wrote her thesis on measuring the effects of economic growth on poverty alleviation. She revisited Harvard to complete the Achieving Excellence program, a prestigious training program for community development leaders offered by NeighborWorks America through the Kennedy School of Government. Her current and prior leadership roles include serving on the boards of the Long Beach Economic Partnership, Long Beach Community Investment Commission, St. Mary Medical Center, Rotary Club, United Cambodian Community, and the Western Region Advisory Committee for the Low Income Investment Fund.

About Linc Housing Corporation

Linc Housing, one of California's most productive nonprofit developers of affordable housing, is committed to building communities and strengthening neighborhoods for people underserved by the marketplace. Linc has helped create nearly 8,800 homes in 89 communities throughout the state. The organization's properties are known for excellent design, outstanding management and life-enhancing services for its residents. Linc has 36 years of service to families, seniors, people with special needs, and local governments - helping to create sustainable communities via new construction, acquisition and rehabilitation, and historic preservation. Visit http://www.Linchousing.org for more information.


Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 18 : The 'estranged' top leader of the Kerala unit of the BJP, Sobha Surendran, on Thursday made it clear that she will not be contesting in the upcoming assembly polls.

"I have made the decision not to contest the upcoming assembly polls and I have informed this to the leadership also. But I will campaign for the party," said Sobha to the media here.

She made her first public appearance in a long time when she joined the ongoing protests by youths in front of the Secretariat demanding that all backdoor appointments should be stopped and the Pinarayi Vijayan government should give them jobs by extending PSC lists that have expired.

Sobha has been cut up with the state leadership after she was removed as general secretary and appointed vice-president when K. Surendran took over as the new State BJP president last year.

Since then she had withdrawn into a shell and was rarely seen at BJP platforms, However, she surprised one and all when she secured an appointment to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi last week and was also present on the tarmac to receive Modi when he made a flying visit to Kochi last Sunday.

Clwyd South MS praises monumental efforts of NHS staff after visit to Wrexham vaccination centre

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Feb 18th, 2021

The Member of the Senedd for Clwyd South has praised the monumental efforts of NHS staff after a visit to Wrexhams vaccination centre.

Ken Skates MS was invited to join Mark Polin, Chairman of Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, at the Catrin Finch Centre at Glyndwr University earlier this week.

The facility opened on January 26 as one of the health boards Local Vaccination Centres and has already seen thousands of priority patients given their jabs.

The centre has been open six days a week as the roll-out programme across North Wales continues to accelerate, and Plas Madoc Leisure Centre has also been lined up as a second LVC in Wrexham.





So far 192,789 have been vaccinated as part of the rollout in north Wales  including nearly 31,000 people in Wrexham.

Mr Skates visit followed the news that Wales had become the first UK nation to reach the milestone of offering jabs to everyone in the first four priority groups.

Mr Skates said: The team are doing an incredible job and Im really grateful to the health board for inviting me to go and see how things are going first-hand. Ive had a lot of feedback recently from constituents saying how impressed theyve been with the organisation and efficiency at the Mass Vaccination Centre in Deeside and here in Wrexham, and its clear to see why.

It really has been a monumental effort by everyone involved and its something we can all be immensely proud of.

Betsi Cadwaladr was the first health board in Wales to hit 100,000 and its fantastic to see the roll-out up here going from strength to strength. They deserve huge credit.

Mr Skates added: We hit our first milestone ahead of schedule, but no one is resting on their laurels. The next phase is already under way and the health board has begun offering appointments to people in priority groups five and six as well as arranging second dose appointments to all those in the first four groups.

The next phase of the roll-out will see vaccinations offered to people aged 65-69; people aged 16 to 64 with an underlying health condition; younger adults in residential care settings and unpaid carers who are looking after vulnerable people.

Mr Skates added: Arrangements are in place to make sure no one is left behind. If someone missed an appointment because they were ill, or they changed their mind about having the vaccine, a new appointment will be made for them.
ALBANY  A man who threatened to attack Troy police in Facebook Live videos following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis was sentenced in U.S. District Court on Wednesday to eight months in jail  time he has already served.

Jhajuan Sabb, 21, who on June 5 threatened to throw bricks at the Troy police station and police cars during a large protest planned for June 7, pleaded guilty in November to making an interstate transmission of a threat to injure another person. He was sentenced virtually Wednesday by Senior U.S. District Judge Lawrence Kahn.

"I understand what I said was wrong and I apologize for that," Sabb told the judge. "I'm ready to just go home and back to the community and do what I have to do to pick my life back up and head in the right direction."

On three videos he made before the protest, Sabb said was going to brick the police station and all the cop cars. Sabb said if police approached him during the demonstration he would drive a vehicle into them, he admitted in his plea agreement. Sabb had his shirt off in the videos and, according to the prosecution, was smoking pot.

Sabbs attorney, Assistant Federal Public Defender Michael McGeown-Walker, told Kahn his clients remarks, while wrong, reflected Sabbs frustration with his past encounters with police and the treatment of the Black community in general. Floyd was killed in Minneapolis by a police officer who kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

I think it is worth noting that these statements were made directly after the death of George Floyd and the conflict that has been ongoing, frankly, for centuries now between the African-American community and the police, the attorney told the judge.

McGeown-Walker said there were any number of people charged with roles in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, who participated in a violent uprising and are charged with misdemeanors and could face less supervised release.

These things were actually carried out, he said. Mr. Sabb never did actually carry out any act of violence here. Nothing of the sort happened in this instance.

The plea agreement said Sabb's video traveled from the defendants phone in Troy to Facebook servers in California and then back to other computers and devices in Troy, including Troy police computers. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett asked the judge to impose the time served sentence, saying it was appropriate under federal sentencing guidelines, which are two to eight months.

Kahn sentenced Sabb to the eight months the defendant spent behind bars since his arrest in early June. The judge imposed three years of supervised release but said he could shorten the supervision to as little as a year depending on Sabbs behavior over the next year.

"You're still young. You've got a long life ahead of you," the judge told Sabb. "I'm hoping that when this is over, you're not going to come back again. ... I'm expecting that you've learned the hard way that that you've got to be careful even about how you talk, certainly what you do."
Michigan is middle of the pack when it comes to its gun safety laws.

The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence released its Annual Gun Law Scorecard this week, which grades and ranks each state on its gun laws. The state of Michigan received a C grade and according to the report, has significant room for progress when it comes to gun safety.

The report notes that Michigan should enact an extreme risk protection order law and invest in proven community violence intervention strategies to improve its grade.

The state has the 20th-lowest gun death rate in the country, according to the scorecard, with 12 out of 100,000 people dying from guns. The national average is 11.9 deaths per 100,000 people.

Americas devastating gun violence epidemic is growing and impacting every part of our country because too many lawmakers would rather wish it away than acknowledge their role in advancing solutions to make our communities safer, said Robyn Thomas, executive director of Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.

This public safety threat needs to be addressed with facts, evidence, and action. Weve proven that lawmakers can save lives, reduce violence, and make their states safer by following a simple blueprint: pass gun violence prevention laws. Every year, our scorecard is a reminder to states that progress is possible, but also a reminder of the work we have left to accomplish. The Gun Law Scorecard should be both a resource and roadmap for elected leaders, activists, and concerned citizens to take action.

Other states with a C grade include Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Vermont and Florida.

California, New Jersey, New York and Maryland are the four states with A grades because those states have taken significant steps to protect their residents from gun violence, such as closing loopholes in the federal background checks system, investing in community violence intervention and prevention, and prohibiting unregulated and untraceable firearms, also known as ghost guns.

Conversely, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama and West Virginia all received F grades. According to the scorecard, these states are responsible for the export of guns used for crimes in other states along with pushing policies like expanding the places concealed carry permit holders can bring their guns.

Black Americans also have a significantly higher gun death rate than Americans in all states, the report said. According to the scorecard, 23 out of 100,000 Black Americans die of gun violence while 12 out of 100,000 white Americans die of gun violence.

You can see the scorecard in its entirety here.
Lucknow, Feb 18(UNI) Opposition parties including Congress and Samajwadi Party on Thursday attacked the Yogi Adityanath-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Uttar Pradesh after two dalit girls were found dead under mysterious circumstances in Unnao district.

The police, however, suspected food poisoning in the case based on the circumstantial evidence.

Attacking the state government over safety of girls in the state, Samajwadi Party spokesperson and MLC Sunil Sajan said, "The police in the state has become a mute spectator while females in the state are not safe. The Unnao police are trying to play down the case. I demand to form a different panel for the post mortem of the deceased girls and a different team should investigate the matter."

Former Unnao MP and Samajwadi Party leader Anu Tandon reached the Regency Hospital in Kanpur to take updates on the health of the third teenager who was undergoing treatment. Hitting out at the BJP government, Tandon alleged that such incidents have become common under the rule of the present government.

Demanding action against the cuplrits, Congress state spokesperson Amarnath Agarwal said, "The incident of Unnao is a blot on the face of the Yogi government. The Congress demands that they investigate immediately and take action against the culprits. The claims that the government is constantly making are proving to be lies and frauds. Criminals are having a free run in the state. This incident is shameful. The government has failed."

"Two Dalit girls have been found dead in Unnao, the third is seriously injured. She should be immediately airlifted and treated at AIIMS, Delhi,"said Congress leader Udit Raj.

Expressing his concern, Bhim Army chief and Azad Samaj Party national president Chandrashekhar Azad said that the girl is the only witness in the case and her treatment and protection should be given utmost importance. The girl should immediately be brought by air ambulance to AIIMS, Delhi, said Azad, adding that the country had seen the work of the UP government in the case of protecting the criminals.

On Wednesday night, three Dalit teenage girls were found in a wheat field by villagers in Uttar Pradesh's in Unnao, police said.

Three girls -- aged 13, 16 and 17 years -- had left their house to bring fodder for the cattle but had not returned, following which, locals began to look for them. The villagers informed the police and rushed the girls to a hospital, where two of them were declared brought dead while one was taken for treatment, police added.

Superintendent of Police Anand Kulkarni, who reached the spot, said that two girls had died while the other one has been admitted at the hospital. The bodies of the victims had been sent for postmortem and an investigation is underway.

The police said that their clothes were intact and no superficial injury marks were found on the bodies of the victims, hence, they suspected a case of food poisoning.

UNI MB JW1414
The first B-1B Lancer bomber has headed to the Boneyard, Air Force Global Strike Command announced Wednesday.

It's the first step in the Air Force's plan to divest 17 of the bombers in coming months, reducing the active B-1 fleet to 45 aircraft.

"Beginning to retire legacy bombers, to make way for the B-21 Raider, is something we have been working toward for some time," said Gen. Tim Ray, Air Force Global Strike Command commander, in a news release.

Read Next: Pentagon Delayed Promoting 2 Generals for Fear of Trump Reaction: Report

"Due to the wear and tear placed on the B-1 fleet over the past two decades, maintaining these bombers would cost tens of millions of dollars per aircraft to get back to status quo, and that's just to fix the problems we know about. We're just accelerating planned retirements," Ray said in the release.

The service first retired 33 of the aircraft in 2003.

A single B-1 aircraft was spotted flying over Arizona earlier Wednesday; an Air Force spokesperson confirmed that aircraft was headed to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota. Davis-Monthan houses the "Boneyard," where retired aircraft are kept for parts or future use. B-1s are also stationed at Dyess Air Force Base in Texas.

In the fiscal 2021 budget request, the Air Force proposed retiring 17 B-1B bombers from its 62-aircraft fleet in order to better sustain the most functional planes. Officials on Wednesday said a small number of the sweep-wing bombers are in a state that would require "approximately ten to 30 million dollars per aircraft to get back to a status quo," according to the release.

The service plans to retire the entire fleet by 2036.

Lawmakers allowed the service to go ahead with retirements, but said officials must provide a new bomber roadmap strategy detailing how its current "bomber aircraft force structure ... enables the Air Force to meet the requirements of its long-range strike mission under the National Defense Strategy," according to the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act. The strategy is due this month.

The law mandates that the bombers kept at the boneyard will be preserved well enough for their parts to be used for other bombers.

The Air Force spokesperson said that while final details are still being evaluated, 14 bombers will head to Davis-Monthan's aircraft boneyard by the end of September.

Plans for the remaining three are still up in the air, but the bombers will likely be sent to Edwards Air Force Base, California for test purposes, or to Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma for depot management and structural evaluation, the spokesperson said.

In 2012, the Air Force began the Integrated Battle Station, or IBS, modification for the B-1 -- likely the largest and most complicated modification the bomber will see. The enhanced navigation and communication system upgrade -- completed in September 2020 -- cost the service roughly $1.1 billion, officials said.

Still, due to heavy use in the Middle East over a decade as the only U.S. supersonic heavy-payload bomber, the Lancer fleet has seen repeated breakdowns and required extensive maintenance.

The repeated deployments caused the aircraft to deteriorate more quickly than expected, Ray said in 2019.

Ridding the fleet of these 17 bombers "will not affect the service's lethality or any associated maintenance manpower," officials said.

"Retiring aircraft with the least amount of usable life allows us to prioritize the health of the fleet and crew training," Ray said, adding that fewer aircraft gives maintainers the ability to devote more time and attention to the remaining fleet.

The B-1 is capable of carrying both precision-guided and conventional bombs; plans are underway to make it more versatile for future operations.

In August 2019, the Air Force proved it could transform the Lancer to hold more ordnance, a first step toward carrying hypersonic weapons payloads.

B-1s have also been busy conducting flights around the world.

Over the last few months, the bombers have been spotted conducting multiple high-visibility patrols -- known as a dynamic force employment -- in the Indo-Pacific region, most notably across the East and South China Seas.

Last May, bombers from Ellsworth held their first-ever training mission over Sweden near the Arctic; B-1s will deploy to Norway in coming days for similar training, the Air Force said this month.

-- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @oriana0214.

Related: How the Air Force Pulled Off the First-Ever Super Bowl Flyover with All 3 Bombers
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18) - Cebu City has failed to mitigate its post-holiday surge of daily COVID-19 cases, the OCTA Research Team said in its weekly report published on Wednesday.

"The post-holiday surge in Cebu City has now lasted more than one month, resulting in an increase to more than 200 new COVID-19 cases per day," the group said.

The OCTA Research Team's data showed Cebu City averaged a total of 202 cases per day from February 10-16 with a positivity rate of 13%, way above the 5% limit recommended by the World Health Organization. The city also has a 1.6 reproduction number rate, which refers to the average number of people that can be infected by a person in a susceptible population.

The current trend of increasing COVID-19 cases in Cebu City, which has been topping the OCTA tally for most daily cases for three weeks, is far from its previous average of seven infections per day in early December before the holidays. The researchers also noted the city's good pandemic management months before the present surge of cases.

Nearby cities Mandaue, Talisay, and Lapu-Lapu are also experiencing surge in COVID-19 cases.

Data shows Mandaue City had an average of 35 infections per day last week, but its positivity rate increased to 18% with an attack rate of 7.48. Lapu-Lapu City recorded 37 cases per day at the same timeframe, with increased positivity rate at 11% and hospital occupancy rate at 71%. Talisay City had 21 cases per day last week, with a high positivity rate of 13% and hospital occupancy rate at 83%.

OCTA researchers also saw a two-week rise in COVID-19 cases in Tabuk, Kalinga and Cagayan de Oro City. On the contrary, Baguio City is experiencing a continuing decrease in cases that are now down to 22 per day.

In Metro Manila, Navotas is the only local government unit which tallied an increase in daily infections last week. The region's reproduction number remained flat at 1 and a positivity rate of 4%.

"Navotas had the most noticeable increase, to 20 new COVID-19 cases per day over the current week, from 3 over the previous week. While this increase was not expected, it remains to be seen if this is simply due to a local clustering of cases," the OCTA report stated.

OCTA researchers also warned that relaxing quarantine restrictions in Metro Manila will lead to a surge of up to 2,400 new cases per day by March 26, equaling its daily tally when the region was placed under modified enhanced community quarantine on August 2020.

"If restrictions are relaxed today, and if a surge happens, how long will it take before the situation becomes unmanageable?" the team said.

The OCTA Research Team reiterated its appeal to the national government on Tuesday to reject the National Economic and Development Authority's proposal to place the entire country under the most relaxed form of community quarantine by March 1.

As of Wednesday, the Philippines now has a total of 553,424 confirmed COVID-19 cases, where 29,814 of which are active cases. Some 11,577 persons died and 512,033 patients recovered from the coronavirus. CTA: Cebu City still experiencing post-holiday surge in COVID-19 cases
The City watchdog has been told to set out when it will conclude its probe in into the collapse of Neil Woodford's investment empire.

MPs on the Treasury Committee noted that the Financial Conduct Authority launched its inquiry into the scandal more than 18 months ago  but still nothing has been heard.

And with the disgraced fund manager planning an audacious comeback, committee chairman Mel Stride said: 'The FCA should set out when we can expect its investigation to conclude.'

MPs on the Treasury Committee noted that the FCA launched its inquiry into the Neil Woodford scandal more than 18 months ago  but still nothing has been heard.

The intervention came as the financial regulator in Jersey said it was 'disappointed' that Woodford had announced he was starting a new business WCM Partners on the island without first seeking or receiving authorisation.

In a further blow to the 60-year-old, Jersey's minister for external relations, Ian Gorst, last night said: 'As minister with political responsibility for financial services, I would be dismayed if such a fund were to be authorised before the proper resolution of any outstanding regulatory matters in the UK, which Mr Woodford is subject to.'

The FCA launched a probe after the collapse of Woodford Investment Management in 2019 left thousands of savers nursing heavy losses.

But that has not stopped the once-feted stock picker from outlining plans to resume his fund management career.

Earlier this week, the FCA warned that Woodford's new firm would need to seek its permission before performing any regulated activity in the UK - and that it would consider the 'fitness of its management' before granting approval.

In another blow, the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC), the financial services regulator for the island, said it was 'disappointed' that WCM was unveiled 'in advance of either receiving or processing any application from this company for authorisation'.

The JFSC added: 'No application has been received or processed to authorise WCM Partners to operate as a Jersey company or an authorised investment management firm in the island.'

Woodford's downfall began with the implosion of his Equity Income Fund, which locked investors' money inside in 2019 and is being wound up.

Stride said: 'The previous treasury committee was vocal in its concerns regarding the failure of the Woodford fund and the impact on its investors.

'As the FCA's investigation still continues over 18 months after the fund was suspended, the reports of the new fund may understandably be of concern to investors who previously lost out.

'The FCA should set out when we can expect its investigation to conclude.'

Critics including transparency campaigners Gina and Alan Miller, who wrote a letter to the treasury committee this week, are calling for the FCA to face an independent inquiry into its handling of the scandal.

Stride said the committee would 'consider' the letter next week when Parliament returns from recess.
New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Widely scattered showers and thunderstorms early. Clouds lingering later. High around 85F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms developing overnight. Low near 70F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
According to data Ahram Online obtained in late December from the Egyptian Medical Syndicate, 33 percent of the documented cases of coronavirus among doctors in 2020 were in the 25-30 age group, with the majority -- 66 percent -- recorded among males.

The figures could be higher," Nagwa El-Shafei, the undersecretary of the Medical Syndicate, told Ahram Online, adding that according to the estimates of the syndicate, the medical sector, including nurses, pharmacists, and administrators had not less than 10,000 coronavirus cases in 2020.

The syndicate noted that the figures represented only the documented cases reported by its members in Cairo and its branches in the governorates that received financial aid and pensions.

Even Egypts Ministry of Health and the World Health Organisation reported that the registered numbers of coronavirus cases in Egypt are less than the actual numbers. The two bodies cited the reasons for the discrepancy in numbers that included the fact that many people depend on inhouse treatment and do not go to isolation hospitals except in critical cases.

Despite asserting that Egypt has the lowest coronavirus infection and death rates in relation to its population size, Minister of Health Hala Zayed said in a press conference in January that Egypts coronavirus cases are one-tenth of the countrys actual cases. This was the case all over the world, not only in Egypt, she added.

By the end of January, Egypt had documented 165,418 coronavirus cases, including 129,293 recoveries and 547 fatalities.

Documented cases of coronavirus among doctors

According to data released by the Medical Syndicate, the 25-30 age group tops the infection cases because young doctors stand in the front line of dealing with patients in hospitals.

In May 2020, the Egyptian Medical Syndicate got into a direct confrontation with the Ministry of Health over several issues, starting with the coronavirus protection protocols for medical teams.

The syndicate criticised the coronavirus protection protocols for medical teams adopted then by the health ministry that depended only on rapid tests and not the PCR tests. The syndicate considered the rapid tests less accurate despite their speed and depended on more PCR tests to ensure the safety of the medical teams.

The Ministry of Health did not only expand in PCR tests but also in coronavirus isolation hospitals across the country, and the following two months witnessed the peak in coronavirus cases in Egypt.

According to the Ministry of Health in December 2020, 55 percent of the documented cases in Egypt were in the age groups above 50, while 25 percent of the total infected cases were in the 15-35 age group.

The syndicate revealed that 66 percent of the documented infections were among male doctors, numbering 4,021.

Cairo was listed first among other governorates when it comes to the number of coronavirus cases among doctors, according to the figures provided by the syndicate in 2020, with 1,582 cases out of 6,064 recorded cases, or 26 percent of the total cases.

Following Cairo was Giza with 475 cases, Assiut 409, and Gharbiya 360.

Port Said, which recorded 17 infections among doctors, witnessed the first death of a practicing doctor in the country by the coronavirus in March 2020.

Port Said was followed by South Sinai, 12 infections, and North Sinai, five.

It is no surprise that Cairo tops the governorates and North Sinai comes in last. The two governorates, after all, recorded the highest and lowest infections, respectively, among the general public, according to the health ministry data in late December 2020.

According to the data of the Medical Syndicate and its branches nationwide, 93 percent of the infections, or 5,643 cases, was among practicing doctors, the rest, 421 cases, among doctors on pension.

General practice doctors topped the coronavirus infections with 46 percent, or 2,767 cases (1,062 among women and 1,704 among men) out of 6,064 cases.

These were followed by paediatricians with 443 cases, internal medicine doctors 370 cases, obstetrics and gynaecology doctors 350 cases, general surgery 250 cases, cardiology and angiology 154 cases, orthopedics 142 cases, and chest diseases and tuberculosis, 137 cases.

Fatalities among members of the Medical Syndicate

On 30 March 2020, the Egyptian Medical Syndicate announced the death of 57-year-old doctor Ahmed Al-Lawah due to coronavirus complications in Port Said. The pathologist contracted the virus in Port Said from a foreign coronavirus patient who went to his clinic for tests.

Then there was an avalanche of deaths among Egypt's medical teams who sacrificed their lives to treat coronavirus patients. The Medical Syndicate's Facebook page became a collection of obituaries with the names and faces of deceased doctors from all specialisations, ages, and governorates.

In late December, the syndicate reported 125 fatalities, but its most recent data showed deaths among doctors have surpassed 280. Factoring in the doctors on pension, the figure rises to 377 fatalities on 18 February.

The figures do not include the doctors or medical workers who passed away due to coronavirus complications while working abroad.

According to the data sheet received by Ahram Online, the 61-70 age group had the highest rate of fatalities, making up 35 percent of the total fatalities documented among doctors by the Medical Syndicate.

According to the Egyptian health ministrys official figures in December 2020, some 33-35 percent of the fatalities occurred among the age group above 50.

Fatalities among general practitioners were the highest, 26 cases, followed by general surgery 17, internal medicine 17, and paediatrics, 13.

Out of the 125 fatalities initially recorded among doctors, 117 were men.

According to the geographical distribution, Cairo may top the governorates but 52 cases had unspecified locations, meaning their governorates of birth and work are different.

In the past month, the Egyptian Ministry of Health started the first stage of vaccination using Chinas Sinopharm targeting the medical staff. The vaccination is not mandatory.

The total number of medical workers targeted for vaccination in chest and fever hospitals is 207,000, including doctors, nurses, administrators, and workers.

The vaccination aims to provide protection for Egypts first line of defence against the coronavirus pandemic.

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The family of Sydney teenager Dyllan Kettule, who was shot dead outside his girlfriends home in 2014, has pleaded with police to keep investigating as the case was referred to the unsolved homicide unit on Thursday.

The referral, following an hour-long inquest, comes less than a month after Mr Kettules older brother Amar  a well-known gang figure  was the latest victim of a targeted shooting.

Shot dead: Dyllan Kettule. Credit:Facebook

The inquest on Thursday heard that on the evening of January 25, 2014, 19-year-old Dyllan Kettule was at a gathering at his girlfriends home in Canley Vale.

At around 2.30am, the girlfriend and some friends took her dog, Trigger, for a walk. Mr Kettule was seen walking towards his girlfriend on Equity Place at Canley Vale, where an unidentified gunman fired two shots, hitting Mr Kettule in the arm and the left side of his back. He died at the scene.
For New York's Gov. Andrew Cuomo, all those 15,000 nursing home deaths brought on by COVID patients coming back from hospitals and into nursing homes instead of President Trump's offshore hospital ships and the cover-up in numbers was a communications problem.

Here's his Feb. 16 press conference where he refused to apologize for his March 25 memo forcing nursing homes to take in COVID patients returning from hospitals, and then covered up the death toll by splitting death toll numbers between hospitals and nursing homes, to make the numbers look smaller:

From Rev.com, the transcript:

Apologize? Look, I have said repeatedly, we made a mistake in creating the void. We made a mistake in creating the void. When we didnt provide information, it allowed press, people, cynics, politicians to fill the void. When you dont correct disinformation, you allow it to continue. And we created the void, not because people werent working hard, Mike, because you know how hard people were working and well, you should have prioritized providing more information. Yes, yes. In retrospect, we should have prioritized providing more information. I get the operational demand. I dont like to second guess my team. They were all working 24 hours a day. Remember where this was? Youre in the middle of hell during this time, but no excuses, no excuses. Andrew Cuomo: (01:34:35)

We should not have created the void. We should have done a better job in providing information. We should have done a better job of knocking down the disinformation. Youd never knock down all these conspiracy theories, the political conspiracy theories, because they generate 10 a day, but we should have done a better job of providing as much information as we could as quickly as we could and we should have done a better job on that, yes, and no excuses. I accept responsibility for that. I am in charge. I take responsibility. We should have provided more information faster. We were too focused on doing the job and addressing the crisis of the moment and we did not do a good enough job in providing information. I take total responsibility for that. The pain in it is it created confusion and cynicism and pain for the families of the loved ones.

You see, it's all a problem of communications, and all his bureaucrats were working "so hard" and supposedly under duress. Sorry 'bout that, pudknockers  Cuomo (or rather, now it's his staff) had bigger things to do than explain to you why your grandmother was dying alone in a nursing home even though you were barred from visiting her in order to keep the place "safe." But rest assured: he's taking full responsibility and is in charge.

This loathsome garbage, because the problem wasn't communications, a public relations management problem as he'd like you to think; it was the policy itself, the March 25 memo commanding nursing homes to take in COVID patients returning from hospital and forbidding them, under penalty of law non-discrimination clauses, from so much as testing them. Splitting the numbers to make them both look smaller was a cover-up move for a very, very, very bad policy, one that's so bad that it's now being investigated by the FBI and the Brooklyn district's U.S. attorney. According to the Times-Union, which makes every effort to make Cuomo look good:

Nearly three weeks after the governor's task force was announced last year, the state health department issued an order directing nursing homes and other long-term care facilities that they must accept residents who were being discharged from hospitals even if they were still testing positive for the infectious disease, as long as they were able to care for them properly. That directive, which was rescinded less than two months later, has been the focus of a firestorm of criticism directed at Cuomo's administration, including allegations that the order  which the governor said was based on federal guidance  had contributed to the high number of fatalities of nursing home residents in New York. That assertion was largely dismissed in a report by the Department of Health that was released in July. Last month, the office of Attorney General Letitia James issued a scathing report that concluded the practice may have increased the risk of COVID-19 infections at the congregate facilities and that Cuomo's administration had delayed reporting that thousands of additional nursing home residents died at hospitals after being infected in their residential facilities.

The "as long as they were able to care for" claim is nonsense  nursing homes were threatened with license yankings if they weren't "able to care for" the patients, and the Times-Union left off that unpleasant little detail about nursing homes being prohibited under penalty of law from testing anyone returning from a hospital COVID unit into a nursing home on discrimination grounds. That effectively forced nursing homes, under protest, to take in the coughing and sneezing COVID patients from hospitals, and every time they tried to call Cuomo's bureaucrats about it to alert them to the catastrophe, the latter refused to pick up the phone. All of that was reported by the New York Post last spring.

All this, while President Trump's record-time dispatched military hospital ships, intended for COVID overflow patients in New York, sat empty. Maybe that was to avoid giving President Trump any credit for saving the thousands of people who would have been saved. For Cuomo, they were more politically useful dead, serving as fodder to Blame Trump instead.

Yes, an FBI and U.S. attorney's investigation is warranted in this case, because far from this being a communications or transparency problem, it might just be a money and greed problem. According to the Times-Union:

Republicans at all levels of New York's government spectrum, and many Democrats as well, have repeatedly called for independent investigations of the state's nursing home policies and directives during the ongoing pandemic. Some of those critics also have raised questions about whether there were any ties between policy decisions and hospitals or other special interests that either have business before the state or are subject to its regulating agencies.

So instead of being more transparent now, as Cuomo is apparently claiming to be, he needs to be way more transparent, with the lawmen. Yet the public has a right to know what went into this bad policy.

Was it to Get Trump?

Was it to "cull" the nursing home population, the better to save on Medicaid expenses the state would have to pay? According to ProPublica, about 13% of the New York nursing home population was picked off.

Or was it greed and graft among Cuomo's staff, which wouldn't be the first time among that bunch, with special interests offering "incentives" to get the patients into the nursing homes in return for some kind of emolument? Maybe the release of some emails and memos as to their thinking in the crafting of this bad decision might be in order, and hopefully, the FBI will be able to get their hands on it.

For Cuomo, it doesn't look good. After a big media buildup claiming he was such a competent, extraordinary guy, complete with an Emmy award, he may just be going down, shamelessness and all. He's certainly acting like it. Over the weekend, he reportedly threatened to "destroy" one Democratic legislator, Assembly member Ron Kim, whose questioning of this Cuomo policy arose after his father died in one of these nursing homes as a result of this policy. According to CNN, Cuomo last week was screaming at Kim over the phone to demand that he stop.

He's constantly fighting with the left wing of the Democratic Party, which is why he's billed as Mr. Moderate in much of the press. A lot of them want his job, reportedly including state attorney general, Letitia James, who wrote the report about the cover-up. What's more, a massive amount of stimulus money, if Joe Biden gets his way, is going to be rolling into New York for either Cuomo or whoever can knock him out  much more money than New York even requested. Cuomo himself has plenty of enemies likely to want that and to want him gone. Cuomo's mean and Mafia-like to his associates, "born for social distancing," as the New Yorker quoted a former aide as saying. Without Trump in the picture, the vipers are going after each other and expecting a jackpot.

And with Cuomo acting as menacing as a Mafia don, it looks as though the minions around him are plotting a political rubout.

Image: Screen shot from shareable Today show video via YouTube.
2018 OFFline Resident, Jack OShea created the short film The Dream Report during his residency in Birr, which went on to win Best Irish Animation at the 2020 The Irish Film & Television Academy (IFTA) awards.

Jack is an incredibly talented animator and OFFline were delighted to see him win such a prestigious award.

The OFFline Residency provides animators with a platform to work on their projects for six months, with support to help them thrive.

The residency is open to individuals or small teams of up to three animators. The successful candidates will receive free accommodation in Birr, Co. Offaly, as well as studio space, equipment and living expenses covered for six months.

If you are interested in developing your skills, focusing on your passion project and growing as animator then click here to apply.

The application deadline is March 1 , with the successful applicants being selected March 15 and residency starting March 22 .
The newly announced funding will help universities make decades-old interviews widely available

Reprinted with permission from SmartNews/Smithsonian.

The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a disproportionate toll on Native American communities and, in particular, the Indigenous elders who often act as keepers of historical knowledge.

To help keep...
The 292-article bylaws regulating the performance of the Senate  Egypts consultative upper House  were finally approved by MPs in a plenary meeting on Tuesday morning.

The House of Representatives approved the full text of the Senate bylaws on Monday, but speaker Hanafy El-Gebaly said the bill will be put up for a final vote on Tuesday.

Once finally approved by MPs, the Senate bylaws bill will have to be ratified by President Abdel-Fatah El-Sisi. The presidents ratification will open the door for the 300-member chamber to hold plenary meetings.

The Senate discussed and approved the bylaws on 29 November 2020, after which they were referred to the House of Representatives to be enacted into law.

The bylaws include some controversial articles such as article 155, which states that the Senates plenary meetings cannot be valid unless they are attended by two thirds of the majority of members.

Article 164 also states that the Senate can hold secret meetings upon the request of the president, the prime minister, the speaker or at least 20 senators.

The amended bylaws will strip the prime minister of his right to invite the Senate to hold plenary meetings.

The bylaws, however, state that the Senate can hold special meetings upon the request of the president or the prime minister to exchange views on issues related to supreme national interests or listen to statements and clarifications on decisions related to the states internal and external public policies.

The bylaws also left in place a controversial article (no.234), which requires that senators take prior approval from the speaker before traveling abroad.

The Parliamentary Spokesperson of Mostaqbal Watan party, Ashraf Rashad, said the speaker of the Senate has the full right to reject a members request to travel to a certain country (like Turkey or Qatar).

This is necessary to prevent senators and MPs who travel abroad from participating in conferences attacking Egypt, said Rashad.

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Rio Tinto has secured a new commercial freight shipping service connecting Western Australia's Pilbara region to the major international shipping hub of Singapore. The service will provide the company with a quicker, cheaper and cleaner alternative to the existing freight delivery route via Perth, helping to drive regional economic development and local job creation.

The regular freight service commenced with the arrival of the MCP Graz at the Port of Dampier from Singapore today. The vessel delivered essential maintenance supplies for Rio Tinto Iron Ore's operations in the Pilbara, including rail wagon wheels, wagon parts, oil and lubricants. Future shipments are expected to include tyres for heavy earth moving equipment, conveyor belts, rail wagon and locomotive parts and mining consumables.

The service is also open for use by local businesses in the north-west of Australia, providing companies operating in the region with better access to international markets and more efficient movement of freight.

Rio Tinto Iron Ore managing director of Port, Rail and Core Services, Richard Cohen, said, "This is an important new service that connects the Pilbara to the rest of the world via the major international shipping hub of Singapore. It will provide a number of benefits by delivering cheaper, cleaner and faster freight to the region.

"It is an important breakthrough not only for our business, but it will also provide a great opportunity for the local Pilbara economy by helping to unlock small business growth and supporting job creation."

Rio Tinto expects the service to reduce the lead-time for goods in to the Pilbara by six to 10 days compared with freight via Fremantle. Additionally, it's expected to provide an annual saving of around three million litres of diesel fuel by reducing road train travel from Perth by more than 3.8 million kilometres.

Over time, Rio Tinto is hopeful that more than 50 per cent of its freight requirements to the Pilbara will utilise this service, increasing the speed of delivery and lowering costs. The vessel capacity of the freight service will be 350 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent) with Toll Global Forwarding and other freight forwarders offering a service for smaller volumes on the vessel.

Peter Stokes, President Global Logistics Toll Group, said, "This dedicated container vessel service from Singapore to Dampier will enable enormous possibilities to deliver more efficient supply chains to the Pilbara region.

"Toll Group is heavily invested in the north of Western Australia and is one of the largest employers in the Pilbara region. We are proud to be partnering with Rio Tinto on this landmark project which will provide businesses in the north with a significant opportunity to access international imports and exports."

Viva Energy, the supplier of fuels and lubricants and supply partner to Rio Tinto, expects to reduce its road transport travel by 350,000 kilometres a year through use of the new service.

Viva Energy Sales Manager Gavin Syminton said, "Over and above any commercial benefits there are also a number of other positive aspects to the initiative including increased opportunities for local employment through infrastructure investment, the reduction of our carbon footprint and, a shorter, more efficient supply chain. As we continue to work closely with Rio Tinto we hope to further connect our business and community through this opportunity while making the region a more sustainable place to live."

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218006066/en/

Contacts:

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riotinto.com

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WINSTED  The Educated Canines Assisting with Disabilities Lions Club Branch recently inducted 10 new members at its monthly meeting.

New members include Cheryl Carriere, Joe Cipriani, Catherine and David Davignon, Barbara Hayward, Joe and Joe Ann Jackson, Jim Morgan, Mary Tazzara and Linda Vivian.

The ECAD Lions were launched in June 2020 under the auspices of Lion Dave Roberts and is now one of the fastest growing Lions Clubs in Connecticut, said club president Carrie Picard.

We are so pleased to partner with Lions Clubs International and form this specialty Lions Club which supports those with special needs that can be helped with a service dog, she said. We now have 19 members and continue to add new members each month. Barkhamsted Lions Club is our sponsor through the great support of Lion Jackie Martin and Terryville Lions provides us Lion Sue Boilard as our Guiding Lion.

For more information, contact Lion Jackie Martin at jmartin2101946@gmail.com or 860-379-2019.
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The impact of COVID-19 in Africa has been vastly underestimated, warn researchers in a study published by The BMJ today.

Outside of South Africa, this is the first study to provide systematic surveillance data capturing the impact of COVID-19 in Africa.

Their findings are based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results for 364 deceased people of all ages at the University Teaching Hospital morgue in Lusaka, Zambia between June and September 2020, enrolled within 48 hours of death.

The findings show that COVID-19 deaths accounted for 15-20% of all sampled deathsmany more than official reports suggest and contradicting the widely held view that COVID-19 has largely skipped Africa and had little impact.

They also show that COVID-19 deaths occurred across a wider age spectrum than reported elsewhere and were concentrated among people aged under 65, including an unexpectedly high number of deaths in children.

The absence of data on COVID-19 in Africa has fostered a widely held view that the virus has largely skipped Africa and had little impact. However, this may be an example of the "absence of evidence" being widely misconstrued as "evidence of absence."

To address this evidence gap, a team of international researchers set out to measure the fatal impact of COVID-19 in an urban African population.

Deaths were stratified by COVID-19 status, location, age, sex, and underlying risk factors.

Overall, the virus was detected in 70 (19%) of people. The average age at death was 48 years and 70% were men.

Most deaths in people with COVID-19 (73%) occurred in the community and none had been tested for the virus before death. Among the 19 people who died in hospital, six were tested before death.

Among the 52 people with data on symptoms, 44 had typical symptoms of COVID-19 (cough, fever, shortness of breath), of whom only five were tested before death.

COVID-19 was identified in seven children, only one of whom had been tested before death.

The proportion of deaths with COVID-19 increased with age, but 76% of people who died were aged under 60 years.

The five most common underlying conditions (comorbidities) among people who died with COVID-19 were tuberculosis (31%), high blood pressure (27%), HIV/AIDS (23%), alcohol misuse (17%), and diabetes (13%).

Understanding the true extent of COVID-19's impact on Africa is critical, say the researchers. Not only is there a moral imperative that the world acknowledges suffering wherever it exists, if Africa is seen as posing little threat, this could put it at a lower priority for access to COVID-19 vaccines.

This is an observational study using data from one city, in one African country, over a short three month span, and the researchers point to several limitations, such as relying on the accuracy of medical chart data and being unable to identify deaths indirectly due to COVID-19, such as from heart attacks or strokes.

However, this was a well-designed study, carried out by researchers with a high level of experience in postmortem sampling and data collection, which minimised the potential for false positive results.

As such, the authors say that contrary to expectations, COVID-19 deaths were common in Lusaka, and the majority occurred in the community where testing capacity is lacking.

Yet few who died at health facilities were tested, despite presenting with typical symptoms of COVID-19. Therefore, COVID-19 cases were under reported because testing was rarely done, not because CV19 was rare, they explain.

If these data are generalizable, the impact of COVID-19 in Africa has been vastly underestimated, they conclude.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
Authorities are searching for two men wanted in connection with a January armed robbery at a Pike County convenience store.

The holdup happened at 6:45 a.m. that Monday at the Corner Store on Alabama Highway 125 and U.S. 231. Authorities said the men drove into the parking lot in a black Kia Forte, believed to be a 2016 to 2018 model.

They then entered the store and one of them pointed a solid black semi-automatic handgun, ordered the clerk down behind the counter and demanded money. The second male, brandishing a tan and black handgun, went to the liquor side of the convenience store and started removing liquor.

During the robbery, a customer entered the store and went towards the drink box area. The first robber ordered him down on the ground and then made him crawl to a storage room. The robber removed a pocketknife from the customer and began pulling wires from the security system out of the wall.

A second customer entered and was also ordered to the storage room. The second customer started wrestling with one of the robbers and received injuries from the other robber as he began to hit the customer with his firearm across the head.

The first robber exited the store and left in the black Kia Forte. The other robber exited the store and stole a customers truck that had been left running outside of the store. The customers truck was wrecked at US 231 and SA Graham Boulevard in Brundidge. The second robber was picked up by the other robber in the black Kia Forte.

A $1,000 reward is being offered.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Pike County Sheriffs Office or Central Alabama Crime Stoppers at 334-215-STOP (7867) or through the P3-tips app. Crime Stoppers toll free number is 1-833-AL1-STOP.
(TNS) - Over a couple frigid days in February, as demand for power soared, generators across Texas tripped up and failed to operate in wintry conditions. Long outages ensued across the state, and millions of Texans were left without power. Even more wondered how something like this could happen here. "You would have never thought you would see the day in the energy capital of the world," said one oil company CEO.Plenty of sentences like those have been written in the last 48 hours, but everything described above is actually from 2011. Yes, Texas has been here before. Although temperatures throughout the state have touched record lows over the past few days, creating a perfect storm to stress the power system, severe outages on Texas' deregulated, independent grid are not unprecedented.Leaders in both the private and public sector knew something like this could happen. They have called for investigations over weather-related energy failures and quickly arranged hearings at the Capitol before, just as they are doing now. And their inability to make lasting reforms after previous winter storms left millions of Texans in danger during one of the worst weather events in the history of the state."It may not be an event that you plan for, but it's got to be an event that you are prepared for," said Jim Robb, President and CEO of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, which has authored reports on Texas' grid.The power started going out in large swaths of Texas on Sunday, as grid manager ERCOT selected areas for blackouts to avoid the system being overworked. ERCOT CEO Bill Magness said ERCOT knew extremely cold weather  and a resulting increase in demand  was coming, but the organization was surprised to find how much the energy supply had dropped.By Tuesday, 45,000 megawatts had tripped offline, potentially enough to power 22 million homes. (About one-third of the lost power came from wind sources and the rest from fossil fuel sources.) In 2011, the estimated total that unexpectedly dropped from the grid was 8,000 megawatts.The exact causes for what tripped up the power supply will be investigated and determined. So far, ERCOT officials and outside experts have pointed to a few likely reasons, none of which are new. For one, the ability to move natural gas appeared to falter because of the weather and was made available at first priority to consumers, rather than power generators. The move helped the general public with their heating needs but may have prevented some generators from getting the natural gas they need to produce electricity at their plants.The other reason is purely about the cold: The power generators' equipment, both for wind energy operators and fossil fuel operators, was not ready for the extreme temperatures. "It's those private companies that generate power that are not working," said Gov. Greg Abbott in a TV interview. "Some of them literally froze up, and were incapable of providing power, and some are still incapable of providing power."The deep freeze and blackouts of 2011 were caused by almost the exact same reasons. Less than two weeks later, the Texas Legislature and Public Utility Commission held hearings, coming up with a bill on winterizing techniques for generators.But the only requirement of the bill, which was signed into law that June, was timing: Generators must file a weather preparation report with ERCOT by Dec. 1 that ERCOT sends to the PUC. There are no standards for generators to meet or any methods for sanctioning them. Even turning the report in on time has been a challenge: More than 30 generators filed theirs late this year."These companies are ... not spending the money to make the necessary upgrades," said David Blackmon, a longtime energy industry analyst based in Mansfield. "I think the proof is we have 3 million Texans with no power, and that's an incredibly dangerous situation."Comptroller and former Republican state Sen. Glenn Hegar sponsored the winterization bill in 2011. He noted the need for more reform in a statement to the Star-Telegram. "The most immediate issue is getting power to the millions of Texans who have experienced prolonged outages that threaten their lives and property," he said. "However, once the grid is back to being fully operational again, we must address why, after 10 years have passed, are we in a worse position today than in 2011."Blackmon, a former lobbyist, has one theory: The special interests representing wind, coal and natural gas pointed fingers at each other, and legislators allowed themselves to get tangled in the mess. "There wasn't any one of them willing to be the person to lead the charge and make real change happen so we ended up with these half measures," he said.For this session, Abbott declared an emergency item to enhance Texas' electricity grid. Numerous legislators have also called for investigations and reforms, from Republicans like Fort Worth Rep. Craig Goldman to Democrats like Grand Prairie Rep. Chris Turner.However the hearings unfold, they may arrive to a thornier question beyond winterization: Why didn't the state have enough energy reserves for the extreme weather?"We have been worried for a while about whether or not the Texas market is attracting enough investment in power generation to meet the loads that have been developing there," Robb said. The NERC made note of this concern in recent assessments. "Most of those were written with summer loads in mind because of the high amount of heat and air-conditioning load. But even our 2020 winter assessment highlighted the risk of extreme weather leading to load shedding events like we've seen here," he said, noting the stretch of frigid temperatures the last few days was beyond what they had expected as extreme.In the summer, ERCOT has successfully managed demand to avoid rolling blackouts, which, Robb says, "is something to be very, very proud of." But what would really help, both in high-demand summer and winter periods, according to experts, would be more power plants. That's easier said than done here.Unlike most places in the U.S., Texas has a deregulated electricity grid. So private companies decide to invest in new power plants when it makes sense from a profit standpoint, and they decide how much power to generate based on how much they will be able to sell at the best price. As the state population has increased, the amount of power plants, as well as reserve power supplies, have not kept pace.As far back as 2013, energy industry analyst Edward Hirs warned Texas' ERCOT-managed, deregulated model could lead to a focus on short-term prices that create long-term capacity issues. He told Houston's NBC-2 news station on Monday, "This has been a fool's errand since it was passed into law 20 years ago. And it just totally needs to be revamped."Former Republican state Sen. Troy Fraser, who co-sponsored the 1999 bill that deregulated Texas' grid, defended the system in a Tuesday interview with the Star-Telegram. "If you have a gold-plated system that can handle any problem you could potentially double the price of people's electricity," he said. As for more energy supply, he said Texas could incentivize but not force companies to build more plants. "We don't have the reserve margins to handle events like this. There's not enough extra capacity available."The power went out for Fraser, who lives about a quarter mile from a power plant in Horseshoe Bay. He said he used his fireplace for heat, and for making coffee, and was not deterred by what he described as two impactful weather events in 20 years. "I'm sitting here without power and without heat, but one day of being inconvenienced is not a reason to redesign the market," he said.To others, the coming weeks will be an important time for seeking reforms."It's up to the legislature and the PUC and the Governor and Lieutenant Governor," Blackmon said, "to see if they want to use the bully pulpit to really force some real change."___2021 Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Visit at star-telegram.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Qatars role in advancing energy transition globally, its potential for creating a domestic hydrogen economy, as well as the evolving global energy trends was highlighted at a recently concluded three-day virtual conference held by Siemens Energy.

The conference, entitled Qatar Energy Days brought together over 350 participants from across government, energy and industrial sectors, focusing on the technologies to meet and surpass energy-related goals under Qatars vision 2030. It was held from February 15-17.

A wide variety of perspectives were shared at the conference by local experts in generation, transmission, and industrial applications, as well as government officials, in order to help shape the energy of tomorrow. Qatars government is making it a priority to find harmony between economic growth and protecting the environment in order to mitigate the effects of pollution and global warming.

Qatar has already adopted initiatives to protect the environment and reduce carbon emissions, but its energy transformation is still in the early stages. We hope that discussions like the ones we had will help accelerate the energy transformation in Qatar, said Herbert Klausner, Managing Director of Siemens Energy in Qatar.

Topics discussed during the conference include: Shaping the energy transformation in Qatar; Grid stabilization through digitalizing transmission products and asset performance management; Why oil and gas companies should pivot to hydrogen?; and Driving operational excellence in oil and gas through digital transformation.

This event was a great platform to discuss the potential for Qatars energy transformation. Qatar has the ability to leverage its existing expertise and technologies as a leader in the LNG industry to drive its transformation into cleaner energy, said Vinod Philip, EVP Chief Technology and Strategy Officer at Siemens Energy. Tradearabia News Service
New Delhi: Farmers` organisations will hold a nationwide `rail roko` programme for 4 hours on Thursday (February 18) as they continue their protest against the Centre's new farm laws. The peaceful protest is scheduled to be organised today from 12 noon to 4 pm.

Jagtar Singh Bajwa, spokesperson of the Kisan Andolan Committee, Ghazipur border said they will carry out a peaceful protest during the `Rail Roko` programme, adding "We will offer refreshments to the passengers to avoid inconvenience."

Bajwa told ANI, "We will carry out a peaceful protest in the nationwide Rail Roko program on February 18, from 12 pm to 4 pm. We`ll offer refreshments to passengers to avoid inconvenience."

"We will welcome trains and passengers will flower garlands. We have intensified the campaign to keep farmers active on social media. We instructed dozens of farmers today and also created their profiles on social media," he added.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), however, appealed to everyone for a peaceful protest in nationwide `Rail Roko` programme. It demanded that the government should resolve the farmers` issues immediately without any further delay."

The SKM took note of the high-level meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of JP Nadda with elected party leaders and others from Haryana, UP, Punjab and Rajasthan, along with Cabinet and other Ministers like Amit Shah, Narendra Singh Tomar, Sanjeev Baliyan and others, according to a release by Darshan Pal of the SKM.

Live TV

The statement said, "It is clear that instead of resolving the ongoing struggle`s demands, BJP is trying its best to counter and destroy it. SKM condemns this attitude of the ruling party and demands that the government resolve the farmers` issues immediately without any further delay. SKM vows that it will intensify the struggle and mobilise more farmers in its support."

The SKM also condemned an alleged attack by Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) "goons" on a peaceful protest organised by the All India Krishak Khet Majdoor Sangathan in Muzaffarpur on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Indian Railways has deployed 20 additional companies of the Railway Protection Special Force across the country with a focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, in view of the protest.

Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait has expressed hope that the movement would extend to West Bengal in the coming days. He told IANS, "Is West Bengal an outside state? Then why can`t we go to West Bengal? The farmers there are not getting good rates for their crops."

Tikait said that Bengal is near the sea and the farmers there involved in fish farming are a troubled lot, adding that imports are increasing while many fishermen have lost their lives in the state.

He said that they are planning to go to West Bengal not because it is a poll-bound state, but to spread awareness about the farmers` issue. A mahapanchayat will be held in West Bengal in the coming days, Tikait added.

Farmers have been protesting at the different borders of the national capital since November last year, against the three newly enacted farm laws - Farmers` Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; the Farmers Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and farm Services Act 2020 and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

(With Agency Inputs)
Landlords in Oregon whose tenants have fallen behind on rent during the coronavirus pandemic can now apply for relief from the state.

Applications for Oregons new landlord compensation fund opened Wednesday, nearly two months after state lawmakers allocated $150 million to seed the program.

Landlords can apply for relief to cover 80% of the rent they are owed by residential tenants dating back to April 2020. However, they will be required to forgive 20% of unpaid rent. Tenants whose landlords are approved for the money will have their unpaid rent bill forgiven for the months the landlord receives funding.

Nicole Stingh, a spokesman for Oregon Housing and Community Services, which is administering the fund, said her agency will make $50 million available during the first round of funding. Applications for the first round of funding will be open until March 2. The agency expects to offer at least three rounds of funding before the end of June.

With limited money available, the state has opted to prioritize landlords owed the greatest percentage of rent and those with fewer properties. The state will make funding decisions after the application window closes.

Tenants must sign a declaration of financial hardship for landlords to submit with their applications, a requirement that some landlords raised concerns about during conversations with Oregon Housing and Community Services in January. Those landlords worried about losing out on the opportunity to receive relief if their tenants didnt sign the declaration.

Oregon lawmakers created the new landlord compensation fund in December as part of legislation that extended the states eviction moratorium through June for renters who declare they are experiencing financial hardship.

Along with allocating $150 million to the new fund, lawmakers provided an additional $50 million to existing rent relief programs. Tenants can find out how to apply for that relief through local community action agencies or by calling 211. That assistance will also be paid directly to landlords to cover past due rent.

Oregon Housing and Community Services is also receiving roughly $200 million more in rent assistance from the federal government, Stingh said last month. She said the agency was waiting on additional guidance before allocating those funds.

Earlier this month, Sen. Lynn Findley, R-Vale, and Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, introduced a separate bill that would offer tax credits over a five-year period to landlords who forgive past-due rent. Landlords would be allowed to sell credits to other Oregon taxpayers.

Multifamily NW, a rental industry group whose members include mostly large landlords and property managers, expressed support for the bill when Johnson first floated the idea ahead of the December special session. But lawmakers ultimately only took up legislation in December to extend the eviction moratorium and create the landlord compensation fund.

During public testimony in December, some landlords raised concerns about key elements of the new fund.

Violet Wilson, a property owner and landlord in Keizer, said at the time that she had seven tenants who owed a combined $30,000 in back rent and expected their debt to double in the next six months. She criticized the requirement that landlords forgive 20% of rent owed to access the assistance and expressed worry that the assistance wouldnt reach landlords quickly enough.

I understand this is being done to stretch dollars, but we cant do the same, Wilson said.

Her worry about not being able to quickly access assistance appears to have been justified.

Landlords approved for funding through the new compensation fund are unlikely to see any money until at least mid-March, a year after the state imposed its first eviction moratorium in response to the pandemic.

Stingh had expressed hope in January that the application process for the funding could open as early as the first week of February, but the agency spent several extra weeks speaking with landlord groups and testing out the online application site before officially opening the fund this week. Once landlords apply, it could take several weeks for the state to make funding decisions before money is released to local housing authorities to distribute.

Its also unclear how many landlords that are owed rent will actually be able to access money through the new fund.

A September report commissioned by the National Council of State Housing Finance Agencies estimated that Oregon renters would miss between $249 million and $378 million in rent payments by January. That number is sure to rise as the pandemic continues, and the landlord compensation fund wont come close to covering that amount of past due rent.

Oregon tenants who are unable to access rent relief on their own or whose landlords dont receive funding through the states new compensation fund will be obligated to pay the entirety of their past due rent when the state eviction moratorium ends in late June, potentially leaving tens of thousands in an impossible situation.

Portland State Universitys Homelessness Research & Action Collaborative estimated in a February report that approximately 89,000 Oregon households owed back rent and that it could cost the state up to $3.3 billion to respond to mass evictions if those renters arent offered the support they need to avoid being evicted.

Lawmakers have extended the states eviction moratorium multiple times over the last year and could take steps to do that again before June, but any further extension of the moratorium would likely face intense pushback from landlords, many of whom are feeling the strain of going nearly a year without payments. That has been particularly tough on small independent landlords who rely on monthly payments to pay their own bills.

A group of landlords filed a lawsuit against Gov. Kate Brown, the state of Oregon, Multnomah County and the city of Portland in federal court in December, in an attempt in invalidate the states most recent extension of the eviction moratorium. The lawsuit is still ongoing.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg
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WASHINGTON  U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz was feeling the heat in Cancun, but it wasnt the 80-degree weather.

What he later called a firestorm of criticism was building online after pictures surfaced showing the Texas Republican boarding a plane out of Houston on Wednesday while millions in his home state were left in the cold, without power and water, reeling from a major disaster.

The Cancun trip, which drove the national news cycle Thursday, was obviously a mistake, Cruz said in a rare mea culpa after returning home to Houston after just one night  cutting short a trip that was originally scheduled to last through the weekend.

Cruz said he was taking care of his family and caved as his daughters asked him to get away from their freezing home, which was without power like much of Houston. But Cruz said he regretted it as soon as he got on the plane.

By Thursday morning, the trip had already sparked renewed calls for Cruzs resignation  six weeks into 2021, the senator with 2024 presidential ambitions has also been the focus of scorn over his objections to certifying President Joe Bidens electoral victory, an effort his campaign used to raise money that also led to calls for his resignation and an ethics complaint from Senate Democrats.

LIVE UPDATES: Keep up with the latest on the winter storm

In hindsight I wouldnt have done it, Cruz told reporters gathered outside his home. I needed to be here and thats why I came back, and as it became a bigger and bigger firestorm it became even more compelling that I needed to come back.

It was the second time this week Cruz publicly acknowledged he was wrong. He did the same after he was called out for having mocked Californias rolling blackouts in 2020.

I got no defense, Cruz tweeted in response. A blizzard strikes Texas & our state shuts down. Not good. Stay safe!

Political experts in Texas, however, dont expect all this bad PR to stick. Even after the insurrection at the Capitol, Cruz consistently ranks among the most popular Republicans in the state. He was second only to Donald Trump in a University of Houston poll released last month, easily weathering the outrage from the Capitol attack.

While he may be one of the most disliked politicians in Texas, he is also one of the most well-liked  and his base is not going to budge, even under these circumstances, said Renee Cross, senior director at UHs Hobby School of Public Affairs, which conducted the poll.

Republican political operatives, however, were shaking their heads at the Cancun trip, even as they questioned what Cruz realistically could have done about the crisis in Texas that he couldnt also do remotely.

Derek Ryan, a Republican political consultant in Texas, predicted the photos will haunt the senator for some time.

Whether he can help or not, in 2024 the ads will be, While you and your family froze, Cruz fled to Mexico, Ryan tweeted. Perception is reality.

You need to be seen as engaged, you need to be seen as active in your community, helping out, said Brendan Steinhauser, a GOP strategist in Texas.

MEGA/GC Images

He is a senator, so what can he actually do right now? Most of what they can do is make calls, send emails, make statements.  He could argue a lot of those things, I can do from my phone, from virtually anywhere, Steinhauser said. But he decided to come back home.  He sees this is a perception problem.

Cruz said he had planned to work from Cancun and that it certainly was not my intention for that to be understood, as critics have tried to paint it, as somehow diminishing the hardship other Texans have experienced.

He said his family spent two days without power and my girls wanted to take a trip with their friends and frankly get somewhere where it was warmer.

We were trying to be good parents and said, OK, well do it, Cruz said.

At a time when so many Texans are hurting and frustrated and mad, that this has become an item of debate and distraction, I think that's unfortunate, Cruz. That was certainly not my intention. My intention was to take care of my family.

Meanwhile, text messages Cruzs wife, Heidi, sent to a group of friends, which were leaked to the New York Times, were going viral online Thursday night. Heidi Cruz complained their house was FREEZING and invited friends for a getaway at the Ritz-Carlton, where she said the Cruzes had stayed before and where rooms were going for $309 a night.

Democrats, likely already writing their 2024 attack lines, were again calling for Cruzs resignation Thursday.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

Ted Cruz jetting off to Mexico while Texans remain dying in the cold isnt surprising, but it is deeply disturbing and disappointing, Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement titled For the 21st Time, Texas Democrats Call on Ted Cruz to Resign or Be Expelled From Office.

Cruz is emblematic of what the Texas Republican Party and its leaders have become: weak, corrupt, inept and self-serving politicians who dont give a damn about the people they were elected to represent, Hinojosa said. They were elected by the people but have no interest or intent of doing their jobs.

Elected officials in some of Texas biggest cities also pounced.

Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water? tweeted state Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat.

In crises like these, members of Congress play a critical role connecting their constituents to emergency services and assistance, former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro tweeted, adding Cruz should be on the phone with federal agencies, not on a trip to Mexico.

U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, a Houston Democrat, brought up Cruzs trip in an unrelated interview and said shes in a couple of group text threads that have just been going crazy with that. Garcia joked that she had been thinking this week that real Texans can get through it all, before seeing the news about Cruzs trip to Cancun and thinking, Oh, thats right, Cruz is from Canada.

I just think its incredible insensitivity, Garcia said.

RICK PERRY ON THE STORM: Texans willing to suffer blackouts to keep feds out of power market

Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

But the most potent attacks against Cruz may not come from Democrats, predicted Steinhauser, the GOP strategist. He noted that Cruz and Gov. Greg Abbott are considered possible presidential candidates in 2024 and would both be competing for Texas support in the primary.

Its more likely to come up there than anywhere else, Steinhauser said.

In front of Cruzs home in River Oaks, about a dozen protesters chanted calls for his resignation while several Houston police officers stood close by. One officer appeared to measure the noise level of the crowd as they shouted hey hey, ho ho, Ted Cruz has got to go.

Camille Chenevert said she has been calling for Cruzs resignation since he raised claims of election fraud last year.

But leaving us to freeze for four days while hes in Cancun, its unacceptable, said Chenevert, a Montrose resident. My apartment was 37 degrees this week. My pipes burst, and if youre going to represent us  youve got to represent us while were in trouble and were in crisis.

Gina Biekman agreed, contending that Cruz did not appear sincere when he announced his return to Texas.

I got angry, because it seems like he just left and didnt try to do anything to make the situation better, she said. And then when he was caught leaving he was like Oh Im coming back to fix this problem.

Cruz isnt the first Texas politician to stir up scandal by hopping on a flight to Mexico during a disaster. Austin Mayor Steven Adler drew scorn for vacationing in Cabo San Lucas in November as he urged Austin residents to stay home amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Cruz was among those to pile onto Adler, tweeting: Hypocrites. Complete and utter hypocrites. And dont forget @MayorAdler who took a private jet with eight people to Cabo and WHILE IN CABO recorded a video telling Austinites to stay home if you can  this is not the time to relax.

Like Adler in the pandemic before him, Cruz had also warned Texans against traveling during the winter storm.

If you can stay home, dont go out on the roads, dont risk the ice, Cruz said in a radio interview Feb. 16. Dont risk it, keep your family safe and just stay home and hug your kids.

St. John Barned-Smith, Julian Gill and Jasper Scherer contributed to this report.

ben.wermund@chron.com
Emirates SkyCargo has signed an agreement with UNICEF to prioritise the transport of COVID-19 vaccines, essential medicines, medical devices and other critical supplies to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The announcement is the latest in a series of measures undertaken by the freight division of Emirates to support global communities in recovering from the devastating impact of COVID-19.



Watch a video announcing Emirates SkyCargo's participation in UNICEF's initiative.



The Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative spearheaded by UNICEF brings together a number of partners collectively capable of distributing essential supplies to more than 100 markets in support of the COVAX Facility, the global effort aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines. UNICEFs Humanitarian Airfreight Initiative will also act as a blueprint for collective global partnership in the face of future health and humanitarian crises.



"Every single day counts in the fight against COVID-19 and the sooner that communities can have access to COVID-19 vaccines, the sooner they can curb the spread of the virus and get back on their feet. As a global player flying to more than 130 destinations, Emirates SkyCargo has been committed to the fight against the pandemic from the very early stages and we have rolled out a number of initiatives to expedite the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines through Dubai, starting with our GDP certified dedicated airside hub. Through our partnership with UNICEF, we will be taking yet another step to prioritise and facilitate the rapid and secure movement of COVID-19 vaccines particularly to communities hard hit by the disease," said Nabil Sultan, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President, Cargo.



Emirates SkyCargo is an industry leader in the air cargo sector for the transport of temperature sensitive pharmaceuticals including vaccines. The cargo carrier features a global network spanning six continents, a modern fleet of widebody only aircraft as well as state of the art EU GDP certified infrastructure at its hub in Dubai for the secure transport of pharmaceuticals and vaccines.



In October 2020, Emirates SkyCargo announced that it was setting up the worlds largest EU GDP certified airside distribution hub dedicated for the storage and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. With over 15,000 sq metres of storage space available for vaccines, Emirates SkyCargo is able to store large quantities of the COVID-19 vaccine in Dubai, and fly in smaller quantities regularly to markets with limited cold chain infrastructure, reducing the need for large scale storage solutions.



In January 2021, under the directives of Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Emirates SkyCargo joined hands with three other Dubai-based entities- DP World, International Humanitarian City and Dubai Airports to form a COVID-19 vaccine alliance for rapid transport of COVID-19 vaccines to the developing world through Dubai.







Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video

First three images courtesy of the NOAA historical collections.........

The coldest temperature on record for Greater Lafayette was recorded on the morning of January 7, 1887 with -33.

January 1887 records taken at Purdue University (note the big warm-up late in the month though & there were actually multiple damaging tornadoes in Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas & Alabama on that day with a high of 62!).

Year Month Date Liquid Snow Daily High Temperature Daily Low Temperature

11" of snow was on the ground & another 3.5" would fall on the 8th & 9th with a warm-up (teens for highs), only to be followed by lows of -18 & -19 a few days later.

1886-87 ranks up with the winter of 1884-85 as a stand-out for brutal cold & snow in the weather history of our area.

All of the top 5 lowest temperatures in the viewing area as a whole occurred in the winters of 1883-84, 1884-85 & 1886-87.

These winters led to the complete collapse of the cattle industry in the Plains & wiped out the early citrus farming industry in Texas, Louisiana & northern Florida. It shifted southward after complete groves were killed.

Rivers were completely frozen over or clogged with ice from our region down through parts of the South by mid to late January.

Interesting optical phenomena was seen around the sun & moon are frequent times in the month with falling ice crystals in the Arctic outbreaks. Parheliac Circles, Parhelias, halo were also seen.

Interestingly, in the cold, dry frequent northwest flow (with strong winds), multiple large forest & prairie fires were reported from Oklahoma to Texas & over Florida during the month.

Heart of the extreme, record cold wave of early January not only brought the deadly cold here, but across the Midwest where Lacon, Illinois dropped to an incredible -32. This early January cold led to 3 at Gadsden, Alabama, -3 Eureka, Arkansas, -22 Omaha, Nebraska, -2 Nashville, Tennessee, -15 Elizabethtown, Kentucky.

The lowest temperature in New Jersey was not as bad with 0 in northwestern New Jersey, showing that the brutal cold did not move too far east in the Mid-Atlantic & New England region. The worst cold wave to hit the Northeast occurred around January 19-21 with -40 in New England.

Abilene, Texas dropped to 6, Brownsville, Texas 28.

Jacksonville, Florida dropped to 22 & 8 consecutive days failed to get highs out of the 40s.

At Key West, Florida, two days failed to reach 60 with two daily highs at 59 & a low of 50.

The temperature dropped to 20 at Pensacola, Florida & two consecutive days saw highs only in the lower to middle 30s.

Other minimum temperatures in this event include from -34 at Minneapolis-St. Paul to -60 at St. Cloud, Minnesota & then to -34 at Cedar Rapids, Iowa (newspaper clippings courtesy of Indiana Historical Society from Lafayette & Crawfordsville newspapers):

Enos Simonton, 13 years old, was lost in the preceding snow storm on January 6 & was found dead in a snow drift near North Crane (present-day near Wyandot Road & US 52).

Fires were numerous. This is two of many in the area as heating demand was greatly increased & various fires ignited as a result.

There were many, many house fires in the viewing area & region with multiple deaths & injuries.

In southern Indiana's Harrison County, there were 3 major building/school building fires & other house fires.

The snowy, brutal weather was tough on the railroads & trains, as well.

Note the extreme below normal temperatures from the Plains to Midwest January 5-7.

Also note the anomalies January 1-9 & where the core of the Polar Vortex segment is likely occurring.

Core of the cold & vortex around January 7:

Core shows up well South Dakota to Iowa in upper level jet:
Credit: NASA

Timing is extraordinarily important in many aspects of astronomy. If an astronomer or their instrument is looking the wrong way at the wrong time, they could miss something spectacular. Alternatively, there are moments when our instruments capture something unexpected in regions of space that we were searching for something else. That is exactly what happened recently when a team of scientists, led by Rohini Giles at the Southwest Research Institute, saw an image of what is likely a meteor impacting Jupiter's atmosphere.

The team collects data from the UVS, one of the instruments on Juno, NASA's mission tasked with studying the largest solar system planet up close. UVS is Juno's ultraviolet spectrograph, which collects data in the ultraviolet spectra from 68-210 nm. Its primary mission is to study Jupiter's atmosphere and watch for its breathtaking auroras.

Recently, when reviewing a batch of images that came in from the sensor, one of Dr. Giles' colleagues noticed a huge spike in brightness in an area outside of the normal auroral zone. As with much other science, this discovery started with someone finding interesting data when they didn't expect to see it.

The team's first thought was to eliminate other sources that could have caused the spike. First they eliminated the aurora they were searching for as part of their normal research. This area of the planet where the spike appeared on was outside the normal bounds of the auroras they studied.

Next they sought to understand whether it might have been a transient luminous event (TLE) that had popped up in their data previously. These TLEs, commonly known by the whimsical names of "elves" or "sprites," are thought to be instances of lightning in Jupiter's upper atmosphere. While they have been seen in the same general area of the event, TLEs are similar to auroras in terms of their spectral profile, and none had ever been seen that was anywhere near the size or scale of the event UVS captured this time.

Jupiter has spectacular aurora, such as this view captured by the Hubble Space Telescope. Auroras are formed when charged particles in the space surrounding the planet are accelerated to high energies along the planets magnetic field. Credit: NASA, ESA, and J. Nichols (University of Leicester)

One final check required an understanding of whether the data was an artifact from the instrumentation itself. But there were many photons clustered together in one particular spatial area, making it highly unlikely that it was an artifact. If the signal was, in fact, caused by instrumentation error, it would be much more likely to be random rather than spatially concentrated the way that it was.

Through this process of elimination, and Occam's razor, it seems the team happened upon a sighting of a meteor hitting Jupiter's atmosphere. This is not the first time that astronomers have noted such an eventthe most famous occurrence being comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 which impacted Jupiter in 1994. However, this is the first detection from Juno, which has been in orbit around the planet since 2016.

One advantage Juno has over previous observational efforts is that due to its proximity, it is able to detect much smaller impactors. The scientists estimate that the object they observed weighed anywhere between 250 and 5,000 kg. They also estimate that there are approximately 24,000 impacts of a similar size on Jupiter each year.

Illustration of what a TLE (sprite or elf) would potentially appear like on Jupiter. Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SwRI

That many impacts seems like a lot considering that Juno has been in orbit for almost four and a half years, and has only found one. However, in all that time in orbit, the observational time on each individual area of the planet is less than you might think. Orbital mechanics and spacecraft stabilization techniques have huge impacts on the amount of time that UVS is able to collect data.

Juno is in an elliptical orbit around Jupiter, and only passes the planet at its closest point (known as a "perijove") once every 53 days. During each perijove, the UVS is only able to take data for approximately 10 hours. Making things even more complicated, radiation wreaks havoc with the sensor, so if the spacecraft happens to be passing through a particularly high radiation area, it is unable to collect useful data.

Example of a type of instrumentation artifact when observing Sirius A Credit: NASA / ESA / H Bond (STSci) / M Barstow (University of Leicester)

But that's not allJuno itself is actually rotating, which is a way of stabilizing the spacecraft's orbit. It rotates approximately once every thirty seconds, and since the UVS is placed on one side of the spacecraft, it is only able to collect data for about 7 seconds each spacecraft rotation, if Juno is at its closest approach point.

Scott Manleys description of how Junos camera works. Credit: Scott Manley YouTube Channel

How Jupiter might guard us from having even more meteor impacts. Credit: Universe Today

All this rotating, orbiting and radiation navigating adds up to very little coverage over the four-year mission. With this small slice of observational time, the spacecraft still managed to capture this spectacular image of a reentry. And with a simple bit of statistics, the team has calculated that there are likely thousands more to detect each year, if Juno or another spacecraft or telescope happens to be looking the right way.

Capturing another such event would both lend credence to the theory that this event was actually a bolide (the technical name for these impactors). Additionally, it would allow the team to better calculate the total number of impacts suggested, and therefore, a rough estimate of the total amount of material added to Jupiter's mass every year.

Image from Junos UVS showing the indicated impactor and where it appears on the planet. Credit: Giles et all

No matter how many coincidental impacts it captures, the UVS will continue scanning for the aurora and providing great data on that spectacular light show. If it happens to catch another impact, as well, it will be another great instance of fortuitous timing playing a role in great science.

More information: Detection of a bolide in Jupiter's atmosphere with Juno UVS. Detection of a bolide in Jupiter's atmosphere with Juno UVS. arxiv.org/abs/2102.04511
An apparent record number of people demonstrated in Myanmar Wednesday against the military since its February 1 coup, despite a ban on gatherings of at least five people.

Protesters took to the streets in the capital of Naypyitaw, the countrys second-largest city of Mandalay and in Yangon, where the turnout appeared to be one of the biggest since the military takeover.

Scores of private and public sector employees and civil servants joined the mass demonstrations against the coup by walking off their jobs, despite a military order to return to work and threats of action against them.

There were no reports of significant violence, but protesters blocked police and military vehicles in Yangon by continuing the practice of blocking major thoroughfares with vehicles parked in mid-street with their hoods raised while using engine trouble as an excuse.

Protesters also streamed into the streets of Mandalay, where security forces two days earlier pointed guns at about 1,000 demonstrators and attacked them with sticks and slingshots. Local news accounts said police also fired rubber bullets into a crowd, injuring several people.

In Naypyitaw, engineers and bank employees joined thousands of people in a march down the citys major streets, chanting for the release of de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint.

One motorist told VOAs Burmese Service that he joined the broken-down car campaign to disrupt transportation.

An organiser of the civil disobedience movement said some government workers are reluctant to participate, leaving it to the youth to engage in tactics like the broken-down car campaign.

But one railway worker told VOAs Burmese Service that he (she) and his (her) colleagues do not care about the consequences of joining the movement as they demand a return to the civilian government they voted into office.

The leader of the pro-democracy group 88 Generation Students, Min Ko Naing, distributed an audio message urging protesters to continue demonstrating Wednesday with the intent of eventually disrupting the military government.

Wednesdays demonstrations came one day after the United Nations warned of the potential for violence on a greater scale.

Security forces have grown increasingly aggressive against the protesters, firing warning shots, rubber bullets and water cannons in an effort to disperse the crowds. The countrys Assistance Association for Political Prisoners group said more than 450 arrests had been made since the coup, many of them in night-time raids.

Tom Andrews, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, said Tuesday in a written statement that such troop movements during the previous junta preceded killings, disappearances, and detentions on a mass scale.

Protests and troops converging  we could be on the precipice of the military committing even greater crimes against the people of Myanmar, Andrews said.

The regime briefly shut down Internet services Tuesday for a third consecutive night.

The military has cited widespread fraud in last Novembers general elections, won by Suu Kyis National League for Democracy in a landslide, as justification for the takeover. Those claims were rejected by Myanmars electoral commission. The junta has declared a one-year state of emergency and has promised to hold a new round of elections.

Suu Kyi has been under house arrest at her official residence in Naypyitaw since the coup. Authorities filed a second charge Tuesday against Suu Kyi in an apparent legal manoeuvre that could keep her detained indefinitely.

Suu Kyis lawyer told reporters in Naypyitaw after meeting with a judge that she was charged with violating the countrys COVID-19 containment restrictions. She was previously charged with illegally possessing imported walkie-talkie radios without a license. Violating the law is punishable by a maximum of three years in prison.

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President U Win Myint is also under house arrest.

Western nations have strongly condemned the coup in Myanmar, and even China has begun to express concern about the situation. Chen Hai, Beijings ambassador to Naypyitaw, said Tuesday that current state of affairs is absolutely not what China wants to see.

VOA is PREMIUM TIMES syndication partner. We have permission to republish.
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Significant reductions in personal injury awards are still expected to be introduced despite opposition from some senior judges.

The Judicial Council is to meet for a second time this Saturday to consider draft proposals produced by a seven-judge personal injury guidelines committee chaired by the President of the High Court, Ms Justice Mary Irvine.

A decision on the adoption of the guidelines is not anticipated at the meeting as an adjournment is expected to be requested by the council board.

This would be to allow time for the consideration of concerns raised by some judges and for the guidelines committee to prepare a response.

Read More

Despite the expected adjournment, legal sources still believe the guidelines will ultimately be passed.

An initial meeting to consider the guidelines on February 5 was adjourned after judges sought more time to consider the proposals.

Under the as yet unpublished plan a range of reductions are proposed, but minor whiplash injuries, which are the main ones of interest in the insurance costs debate, would be cut by up to 50pc.

Since the February 5 meeting two judges, one from the High Court and another from the Court of Appeal, have circulated memos to colleagues outlining concerns. It is understood that among the issues raised were concerns reductions would be unfair to certain groups and that the council did not have the authority to reduce awards.

The Irish Independent understands a memo from another High Court judge was also being circulated yesterday.

At a meeting on Wednesday night the board of the council decided to seek a further adjournment until March 6. The request will have to be agreed to by the council, which is made up of all the countrys 166 judges.

This will allow time for concerns raised to be addressed, said a legal source familiar with the matter.

Despite the concerns, legal observers said it would be difficult to see the council rejecting the proposals when their adoption had been recommended by the councils board and personal injury guidelines committee. A simple majority is required for the adoption of the guidelines.

A legal source who has been watching the issue closely said if a groundswell of support for the dissenting judges emerges, a vote on the adoption of the guidelines could be tighter than previously expected. Another possibility is that the committee may agree to tweak the guidelines to pacify dissenting judges, the source said.

Another legal observer said the behind the scenes machinations meant there was likely to be a robust debate but believed the proposals would ultimately be passed.

Asked if memos from individual judges had been sent to the council board or the personal injury guidelines committee, a spokesman for the Judicial Council said it and its members were reserving any commentary until after a decision is made on the guidelines.

While some judges believe the cuts proposed are too severe, insurance reform campaign groups believe they do not go far enough. Both ISME, which represents small and medium enterprises, and the Alliance for Insurance Reform have argued an 80pc reduction in whiplash awards is needed.

Following leaks from the report, ISME last week wrote to Taoiseach Micheal Martin urging him to legislate for a cap on damages.

In letter to Justice Minister Helen McEntee yesterday ISME chief executive Neil McDonnell said a considerable number of judges had relatives actively involved in personal injuries litigation and that it would be inappropriate that they should be involved in consideration of the recommendations. He called for the Attorney General to communicate this to the Chief Justice.

A spokesman for Ms McEntee would not be drawn on the letter, but said the minister was awaiting the outcome of the deliberations.
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



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Heart arrhythmias are a major health concern that doubles the risk of death in an estimated 33.5 million people worldwide. 1,2 While remote cardiac monitoring has improved arrhythmia detection, patient compliance and timely access to heart activity currently limit accurate and timely diagnosis.

"The novel wearable RhythmStar monitoring device offers increased patient compliance and allows for accurate assessment of cardiac rhythm in real time," states Steven DaTorre, M.D., a Clinical Cardiologist at Cooper University Health Care in New Jersey. "It also allows me to remain connected to my patients throughout their monitoring period, which may expedite a life-saving diagnosis."

The sleek, one-piece device, with built-in 4G cellular technology, is the first wearable multi-modality cardiac monitor (Holter, Event and MCT) that connects patients and clinicians for improved patient care. RhythmStar integrates seamlessly into clinical practice, helping physicians make informed treatment decisions that allow patients to enjoy life, without missing a beat.

"We are excited to offer physicians and their patients our unique monitoring solution that improves patient compliance, helps accelerate diagnosis, and allows physicians to stay virtually connected to their patients with on-demand access to clinical data", stated Brian Pike, President, Chief Operations Officer and Co-Founder of RhythMedix. "We look forward to bringing this next-generation RhythmStar technology to physicians across the U.S. in 2021."

About RhythMedix

RhythMedix, a privately owned medical device manufacturer, provides innovative technology to transform the medical monitoring industry and improve patient outcomes.

Learn more at www.rhythmedix.com.

1. https://www.ajconline.org/article/S0002-9149(98)00583-9/fulltext

2. https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.113.005119

SOURCE RhythMedix

Related Links

http://www.rhythmedix.com


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



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By Justin Chan

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Electronics shops in Hong Kong have seen a sharp increase in demand for cheap burner phones as the Chinese-ruled city's government eases coronavirus restrictions but pushes the use of a contact-tracing app which has raised privacy concerns.

The former British colony saw anti-government and anti-China protests erupt in 2019 and a sweeping national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020 in response, along with the arrest of most of its prominent pro-democracy activists.

The swift authoritarian turn taken by the government, which denies curbing the rights and freedoms of the special administrative region's 7.5 million residents, has resulted in deep-seated mistrust of public policies, including of measures to curb the coronavirus.

Health Secretary Sophia Chan said the app poses no privacy risks as it only stores data on users' phones and no third party collects it. The app notifies users if they had been in the same place with a person confirmed with COVID-19.

"I'm buying a burner phone because the government clearly doesn't trust Hong Kong people, so why would I trust them?" said Vincent, 28, an accountant who gave only his first name because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Contact-tracing apps have sparked similar privacy and trust issues around the world, from Singapore to the United States.

Hong Kong on Thursday lifted limits on how many people could sit together in restaurants to four from two and the cut-off time for dining to 10pm from 6pm.

Restaurants and other venues just reopening, such as gyms or beauty salons, are required to write down customers' details or ask them to scan a QR code with the LeaveHomeSafe app, which authorities use for contact tracing.

Civil servants have been asked to scan the code before entering and leaving government offices.

In the working class neighbourhood of Sham Shui Po, a Mecca for cheap electronics, more than a dozen vendors told Reuters they have seen a spike in demand for old smartphones since last week, when the government announced plans to ease restrictions.

Story continues

"People are just looking for a cheap smartphone that can run the LeaveHomeSafe app, said Wong, a vendor at Phone House, who said she sold 50 phones in the past week, compared with the usual 10 or so per week previously.

Other vendors reported a three- or four-fold increase in sales of cheap phones.

"I have seen a lot more people asking about and buying older phones over Chinese New Year," said Andy Kwok of Ah Ling Telecommunications. "I have had to tell them the phone needs to be at least on Android 8 (for the app) to run."

The most popular phone was the Samsung Galaxy J5, released in 2015, now selling for as little as HK$300 ($38.70).

The app has been downloaded 840,000 times since its launch last November, with more than 70,000 venues participating in the scheme, the government said this week.

($1 = 7.7524 Hong Kong dollars)

(Reporting by Justin Chan; Writing by Marius Zaharia. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
Tankers: Why think Baltic Exchange?

A glance at a list of the worlds top tanker charterers and owners shows that they have more than just the movement of liquid cargoes in common.

Most are also members of the Baltic Exchange. 15 of the 20 largest crude oil charterers, five of the seven supermajors and five of the eight biggest tanker owners all benefit from membership of the Baltic. The worlds leading tanker brokers all sit on the Baltic Exchange panels, providing the industry with independent, accurate data. The focus is now on bringing in more tanker pools and smaller independent tanker owners from Europe, Asia and the Americas into Baltic membership. The campaign is being led by US based Paul Mazzarulli, a well known figure in tanker circles having worked for Chemoil, Evolution Markets, MJLF, Noble and PVM amongst others in his 25 plus years in shipping. We offer the tanker market more than just data, but a seat at the table and the ability to get involved with the development of new routes and services, explains Paul Mazzarulli, Americas Representative at the Baltic Exchange. With Baltic Exchange assessments used to settle physical and futures contracts as well as benchmark performance, the ability to have a say on new routes and vessel descriptions is important to any company trading tankers. The discussions around TD9, our East Colombia to US Gulf route, are a good example of this, says Paul Mazzarulli. We have seen business dropping away from Colombia and over to east coast Mexico. We quickly gathered feedback from members via our Advisory Councils and consultation processes. The result is a TD26 route which is currently in private trial. The same happened last year with our TC18 MR route. We saw more cargoes than ever moving from the US Gulf to Brazil, and were now up and running with a well-traded route thanks to the input from the market. Paul Mazzarulli firmly believes that tanker pools and smaller owners can benefit from the services offered by the Baltic Exchange. Its not just about access to data, but our dispute resolution and escrow services which can be used to help save pool operators and owners significant amounts of money. In a low market, the ability to chase unpaid demurrage and cargo claims quickly and efficiently is critical. The Baltics dispute resolution service helps members recover millions of dollars in late commissions, unpaid freight, demurrage, and arbitration awards as well as resolving disputes amicably, often negating the need for further legal action. Maintaining commercial relationships is always a priority and cases reported to the Baltic are handled in close cooperation with the company reporting the issue. Membership of the Baltic Exchange also grants access to its valuable escrow service. The Baltic performs all diligence checks and holds funds securely. The service can be used by tanker operators for chartering security payments when dealing with new or unfamiliar counterparties, allowing them to deal with a wider range of charterers than before.





https://www.aish.com/h/purim/t/Queen-Esthers-6-Lessons-for-Today.html

Timeless messages that Esther wanted every man, woman and child to hear.

Queen Esther asked that the scroll relaying her story, Megillat Esther, be written and shared for generations to come. She wanted every man, woman and child in every land for eternity to hear her timeless message. Queen Esther lived a legacy that speaks to us until today.

Here are six life lessons from Queen Esther:

1. Master Silence

The key to Esther remaining in the palace of Achashverosh was her keeping a secret. Mordechai told Esther not to reveal her origins, that she was a Jew. The time was not yet ripe; Esther was required to master the quality of silence.

There are times in life that we must guard our privacy or someones confidence. How many relationships have been harmed and friendships broken because we could not keep silent? We were given a trust to keep and couldnt contain ourselves. Or we overshared and exposed intimate details of our life. In our world of social media, we are privy to many photos and conversations that should really be kept hidden. Modesty isnt just about dress. It's about living with dignity and sensitivity, knowing what and when to share, and what and when to keep private.

2. You Have a Unique Life Mission

Esther is told by Mordechai that she must speak to the king and plead for her people. She replies: Thats impossible. Everyone knows the rule of the kingdom: If you enter the kings chambers without his beckoning, you will be killed unless he extends his golden scepter. I havent been called for 30 days! she relays to Mordechai.

Mordechais reply gives Esther direction. You cannot remain silent. Who knows? It might be that you were chosen to be queen just for this moment!

Every encounter, talent and strength that we have been given is for a purpose. Each of us has our own unique spiritual fingerprints to leave in this world. God places us exactly where we need to be to accomplish our mission. Esther is asking us to discover the meaning of our existence.

3. Live with Courage and Compassion

After accepting her mission, Esther says, I will go to the king. And if I die, I die.

I will give it my all. I will muster the courage to do my best.

As seasons of life pass, many people are left with their regrets, If only but the moment is lost.

Esther is telling us to seize courage, step up to the plate and at least know forever that you tried to make a difference.

In one of my mothers final interviews she was asked What do you want it to say on your gravestone?

She replied I want it to say two words: I cared.

4. Look for Gods Hidden Hand

In the entire Scroll of Esther there is no clear mention of God. The name Esther means hidden in Hebrew, Megillah means revelation. Esther is revealing a powerful hidden truth.

How easy it is to think that life is a series of random events. The story of Purim could seem to be a natural story that took place over the course of many years. The king just happened to choose this sweet innocent young Jewish woman, Mordechai just happened to hear a plot against the king, the king just happened to suffer from a bout of insomnia, and all the pieces just fell into place.

Esther is urging us to wake up; see Gods hidden hand in your every day. Its not only about the big miracles, like the splitting of the sea. It's about the little moments. God is in every sunrise, every soul, every success or disappointment life brings. We won't always understand Gods ways but His presence is here, even now amidst this most challenging time our world is facing.

Esther refused to lose hope when it seemed as if Gods protective presence was lost in a dark fog. She knew that ultimately, even if it feels as if Gods hand is hidden, He is directing and watching over us. He will never abandon us.

5. Dont Bow to Haman

Mordechai refused to kneel or bow down to Haman.

Every generation has its Haman. Any force that threatens your ability to connect to your soul or tries to cool your passion for what is right and truth is Haman. Haman descends from Amalek, the first nation that tried to destroy the Jewish People after leaving Egypt. We were on a high, connected to God, inspired to become a blessing in this world. They tried to squash our spirit.

There will always be people who belittle your desire to be better and live higher. There will be those who mock your standing for truth, for your people, and the land of Israel. Dont crumble. Dont bow. Never lose your passion for goodness. Stay strong as Mordechai did.

6. Unity brings Strength

Haman describes the Jewish people as a nation dispersed and divided to the king. His words are jolting. "They are constantly bickering and quarreling with each other. Dont worry about them joining together and mounting a united offensive, they cant agree on anything. No one will come to their defense because they are hated. Get rid of them."

Esther succeeds in her mission to save her people by uniting the Jews and bringing them together in prayer and fasting. And she leaves a wish for us, her children. Esther asks that we celebrate this day together with joy, parties, charity, and sending food portions to one another. Esther is telling us to create a feeling of unity and peace. The antidote to all the bickering and hatred is reaching out to one another with friendship. Unity brings strength.

Our enemies never asked, "What type of Jew are you?" No one was spared the gas chamber based on their observance or head covering.

We dont have to be the same. We must only know that we are brothers and sisters, one family.

Stop judging. Start loving.

May you have a joyful Purim.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 17, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Canterra Minerals Corporation (TSXV:CTM)(OTCQB: CTMCF) (Canterra or the Company) is pleased to announce that the Companys common shares have begun trading on the OTCQB Venture Market (OTCQB) under the ticker symbol CTMCF.



The common shares of the Company are eligible for electronic clearing and settlement in the United States through the Depository Trust Company ("DTC"). DTC is a subsidiary of the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation and manages the electronic clearing and settlement of publicly traded companies. The Companys common shares will continue to trade on the TSX Venture Exchange ("TSXV") under the symbol "CTM" as well as the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol "DXZB".

About the OTCQB

The OTCQB offers early stage and developing U.S. and international companies the benefits of being publicly traded in the U.S. without the complexity and cost of a U.S. exchange listing. As a verified market with efficient access to U.S. investors, the OTCQB helps companies build shareholder value with a goal of enhancing liquidity and achieving fair valuation. Companies are current in their reporting and undergo an annual verification and management certification process. Investors can find Real-Time quotes and market information for the Company on www.otcmarkets.com.

About Canterra Minerals

Canterra is an exploration company focused on exploring for gold in central Newfoundland. The Companys flagship asset is the Wilding Gold Project, 50km south by logging road from Millertown. Canterras team has more than 100 years of experience searching for gold and diamonds in Canada and have been involved in the discovery of two of Canada's four diamond mines, in addition to the discovery of the Blackwater Gold deposit in BC.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF CANTERRA MINERALS CORPORATION

Chris Pennimpede

President & CEO

Additional information about the Company is available at www.canterraminerals.com

For further information, please contact: +1 (604) 687-1448

Email: info@canterraminerals.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains statements that constitute forward-looking information (collectively, forward-looking statements) within the meaning of the applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that discusses predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as expects, or does not expect, is expected, anticipates or does not anticipate, plans, budget, scheduled, forecasts, estimates, believes or intends or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results may or could, would, might or will be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements. Consequently, there can be no assurances that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Except to the extent required by applicable securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange, the Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if managements beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause future results to differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements include risks associated possible accidents and other risks associated with mineral exploration operations, the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors, the possibility that the Company may not be able to secure permitting and other governmental clearances necessary to carry out the Companys exploration plans, the risk that the Company will not be able to raise sufficient funds to carry out its business plans, and the risk of political uncertainties and regulatory or legal changes that might interfere with the Companys business and prospects.; the business and operations of the Company; unprecedented market and economic risks associated with current unprecedented market and economic circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as those risks and uncertainties identified and reported in the Company's public filings under its respective SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this press release. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, changes in factors affecting such forward-looking statements or otherwise.
A team of eight nurses from Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, an integral part of Mubadala Health, has flown to the US to spend six weeks with caregivers on the frontlines of the Covid-19 pandemic at Cleveland Clinic Hillcrest Hospital in Ohio.

Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabis collaboration with the US-based Cleveland Clinic during this time highlights the international confidence in Abu Dhabis healthcare sector and the readiness of its medical workforce and resources during the pandemic.

Nurses have played a critical role during the pandemic by providing direct assistance and raising awareness among patients and communities, said Sue Behrens, chief nursing officer, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi. Having been on the frontlines of care for the sickest patients during the peak of the pandemic in the Emirates, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabis nursing workforce has gained the crucial knowledge and treatment skills required to address the pressing needs of patients in the United States and are ready to support their counterparts where and when it is needed the most.

Nimeh Mahmoud, a nurse on the neurological intensive care team at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, said that when she got the call one evening to volunteer in the US, she did not have to think twice. I became a nurse to help people in need and give back to the community. So, when I was told that there was an opportunity to help my colleagues in the US, I could not refuse.

Jennifer Yeckley, who is part of the wound and stomal care team at the Abu Dhabi hospital, says that she will be sharing her experience and expertise in treating Covid-19 patients in the UAE with the US team.

During the peak of the pandemic, we learned a lot about the positioning of patients while they recovered. Im looking forward to sharing that knowledge and learning more from my peers at Cleveland Clinic. -- Tradearabia News Service
A young father was home alone looking after his two girls when he allegedly tried to murder his infant daughter just two weeks before Christmas.

The 26-year-old man, who cannot be named, was caring for his two girls at his home in Cessnock, in the New South Wales' Hunter, on December 11 while his wife was out.

When she returned home she found her baby daughter, just five months old, was suffering from serious injuries.

She was taken to Cessnock Hospital before requiring a transfer to the John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle.

Detectives from the Child Abuse and Sex Crimes Squad began an investigation and on Wednesday - more than two months on from the alleged attack - arrested the father at his home.

A young father (left) was home alone looking after his two girls when he allegedly attempted to murder the youngest daughter (right) - who was just five months old (Neither the father or the daughter can be identified)

The 26-year-old man was arrested on Wednesday, more than two months on from the alleged incident which police say occurred on December 11, 2020. He faced Cessnock Local Court (pictured) but was refused bail

Daily Mail Australia understands as part of their inquiries the girl's mother - and the man's partner - provided a statement to police, clarifying that she was not at the home that night.

The young girl's injuries are so severe they are not only life altering, but will reduce her life expectancy.

Police swooped on the man about 8.50am on Wednesday, taking him into custody and charging him with attempted murder.

He made a brief appearance in Cessnock Local Court and did not apply for bail.

Neighbours along the quiet street said they had been questioned by detectives in the weeks since Christmas about whether they had seen anything unusual or heard any noise from the children at the home.

When reports of the alleged attack began to break, they put 'two-and-two' together.

'We had detectives knock on our door maybe a few months ago now, and ask if we had heard anything,' one woman said.

'When we saw the news last night I said "oh, no" and we put two-and-two together.

The young girl was transferred to John Hunter Hospital (pictured) in the wake of the incident with injuries so severe they are expected to not only be life altering, but also life reducing

'I'd spoken to them a few times and they just seemed like a normal family, cute kids. It's just so sad.'

Police returned to the home on Thursday and spoke to the girl's mother.

The father remains in custody and is due to return before Cessnock Local Court on April 14.
Dame Kelly Holmes will join Pladis' advisory board to help build an inclusive business

A leading snacks company has announced it is setting up a global advisory board to help create an inclusive and diverse workforce.

Pladis, whose brands including McVitie's and Ulker, said its advisers will include Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes, Paralympic medallist Ade Adepitan and writer and mental health campaigner Alastair Campbell.

The final member of the four-person panel will be Stevie Spring, chair of the mental health charity, Mind.

Pladis said the advisory board members will work with senior pladis leaders to provide strategic counsel and advice, accelerating pladis 'on its journey to building an inclusive and diverse business globally'.

The company added that they will be tasked with sharing best practices and learnings to build the right roadmap to success for pladis.

Anisa Missaghi, global head of corporate affairs and communications at pladis, said: 'We are thrilled to be announcing our Inclusion and Diversity Advisory Board, made up of prominent experts in this field.

'Bringing external thinking into the organisation is critical for us if we are to make a difference.

'If we want to make real change, we must push ourselves further and by convening these minds and listening to their outside perspectives, we will be able to do just that.'

Chief executive Salman Amin added: 'Inclusion and diversity is a cause that I care deeply about but its not enough just to consider the problem.

Pladis, which owns McVitie's, said board members will work with senior leaders to provide counsel and advice 'on its journey to building an inclusive and diverse business globally'

'As a global business, with global brands loved by millions of consumers in the markets we serve, it is so important our workforce reflects that customer base.

'My mission is to ensure pladis is a place where diverse, bright, ambitious and passionate people come and thrive.

As we continue to build a culture that celebrates our differences and values inclusion, we must be challenged by both our colleagues and by external voices.

'That is one of the key reasons for setting up this board. I am truly excited about how Dame Kelly, Ade, Alastair and Stevie will help us on our critical journey to being a more inclusive and diverse workplace.'

Alistair Campbell (left) and Ade Adepitan (right) will also sit on the advisory board for Pladis

It comes after the company joined MSDUK last year - an organisation which promotes diversity and champions British ethnic-minority businesses.

MSDUK has built up a strong network of over 2,000 ethnic minority businesses and access to this network, as well as MSDUKs experience and insight, will help to provide greater knowledge and understanding of pladis suppliers to ensure a greater representation of ethnic minority businesses, the company said.

It added that MSDUK will also work with pladis procurement teams to help ensure an increased understanding of the importance and benefits of a diverse supply chain and provide guidance with respect to supplier engagement.
Burma Lawyers Call for Myanmar Coup Chiefs to Face High Treason Charges

A National Defence and Security Council meeting after the Feb. 1 military coup. / Tatmadaw True News Information Team / Facebook

Yangon  Lawyers in Myanmar have called for the prosecution of the militarys State Administrative Council (SAC) for high treason for seizing power in breach of the military-drafted 2008 Constitution.

The recommendation was made to the Committee Representing the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (Union Parliament) (CRPH), which was formed by National League for Democracy lawmakers elected to the Union Parliament that was dissolved by the Feb. 1 coup.

The CRPH has sought legal advice to prosecute the SAC in domestic and international courts and a group of Myanmar lawyers suggested the coup leaders can be charged with high treason, which carries the death sentence.

The fact that the military council has seized power by means of arms constitutes high treason against the government and the council should be prosecuted at the Supreme Court of the Union, the statement said.

The seizure of power breaches Articles 201, 203, 347 and 375 of the military-drafted 2008 Constitution and commander-in-chief, Min Aung Hlaing, alone declared a state of emergency, the lawyers said.

Article 201 says a state of emergency cannot be declared without the approval of the 11-member National Defence and Security Council, in which the military chief ranks sixth below the president, two vice-presidents and two parliamentary speakers, said the lawyers.

They are justifying their coup by referring to the 2008 Constitution. We will prosecute them by proving that the coup is against the Constitution. We will do whatever we can, said U Myo Naing, a CRPH member representing Mandalay Region.

The military views the CRPH as an attempt at a parallel government and has issued arrest warrants for its members.

People are acting collectively. We are giving guidance where we can and working step by step. The common agreement is to overthrow the military dictatorship. People must fight it with one mind and one voice. We are working for that, said U Myo Naing.

The lawyers said they would assist attempts to put the military council on trial.

The SAC has already amended the Penal Codes definition of high treason to say only unconstitutional use of force constitutes high treason, meaning it is acceptable to use force constitutionally.

The CRPH stated it opposed the amendments and urged the public not to acknowledge the changes.

According to the lawyers, legal changes under the 2008 Constitution must be drafted in a bill which passes through Parliament and is signed into law by the president.

You may also like these stories:

Eight Civil Servants in Court for Opposing Myanmar Military Regime

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We have brought the people over here and loved on them. And I mean, they are God's people, man. I don't care what their condition is. I don't care that theyre less fortunate. They belong to the Lord. He loves them just as much as he does you and me. He does.

- Roy Smith, True-Lite Fellowship pastor

-

Does one need a better reason to provide shelter, food, warmth and compassion to the homeless and Midland residents in need? Pastor Roy Smith and Carla Smith dont think so.

That is why when the temperatures dropped to record-breaking levels and a community was paralyzed by ice and wind chill, True-Lite was open, welcoming and ready to just love on these people with the love of God.

And thats even  more than shelter from the cold. Just showing them that you are the hand of Jesus is more paramount than anything. The message that we send to them is not words, but how we treated them will go on; they'll remember that.

Smith and the True-Lite community were minding their business when Karl Boroski of Backyard Midland called wanting to know if the church could help with the homeless on the streets as the cold front, which currently plagues our hometown, had arrived.

I told him if you get them here, we'll open our doors, Smith said And immediately (Boroski) started looking. It wasnt 10 minutes after I talked to you him, that he called me back and said We have two people, will you open it for just two people? I said, We'll open it for one person.

Probably some of the best social media I have seen in a long time has come from friends who have offered help to those in need in their respective circles. One friend, Annie, wrote, Friends, we have heat, water, WiFi, food and even a spare bedroom available to you. I also have two bags of firewood if anyone needs those. She later added, she had an entire upstairs available for a family in need.

Simply incredible.

The Smiths, they also dont have to take a backseat to anyone. And when word spread of True-Lites efforts, others responded, including Christ Church Anglican, Stonegate Fellowship, Midland Bible Church and First Baptist Midland.

That is what the church community in Midland does. Smith said this week, he would later talk to Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council. Perkins, he said, wanted to put together a national call about Midland, Texas, and how the church is reaching out.

I think people across the country need to come here for a seminar to see how you love people, Smith said. If the government and people like that would just leave people alone -- leave us alone  they will see we take care of one another. We would love each other, because it's innate in the human mind to take care of each other. And boy, this community has come out and brought soup, blankets, sleeping bags, cots; they have brought everything by this church and some don't even go to church here. Some dont go to church at all, but they want to help. And that's what love is built around -- people taking care of people.

A warming station is what many have needed in our community  some for an hour and some for an entire, bitterly cold night. As of Thursday afternoon, the temperature had dropped at/or freezing for more than 200 hours. The temperature during this cold spell has fallen below 0 degrees. The wind chill felt on one night reached 20 below.

Smith said he and Carla have had outage issues of their own at their Greenwood area home. They have stayed at True-Lite to lend a helping hand or offer counsel. In one case, the shelter experience at True-Lite allowed one man to get needed medical attention to take stitches out of his head and a thorn out of his foot.

I asked Pastor Smith the same question I asked Boroski earlier in the week about the quality required by someone looking to become active in helping others in the community.

In a word, it would be resolve, Smith said. Long before any situation like this happens, there must be resolve that I'm going to have an impact and I'm going to make a difference in the next crisis that Midland faces.  I'm going to already have the resolve that I'm going to do something about it.

When you love people, it's not an inconvenience. It's not an inconvenience at all. You do what has to be done. To do it for people who can't give you anything back is a beautiful thing in my spirit. They can't help us. They can't do anything for us, but boy, we can sure love them.
New Delhi: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday (February 18) said that the attack on state minister Jakir Hossain was a conspiracy. She alleged that "some people" were putting pressure on Hossain to join "their party".

Banerjee arrived at the hospital in Kolkata to meet Hossain who got injured after unidentified people hurled a bomb at him at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad on Wednesday.

"This (attack) seems to be pre-planned. At the time of the blast, there were no officials from the railways and there were no lights too. It was a railway property where the incident occurred. It is a conspiracy. We want the truth to come out," Banerjee told media in Kolkata today.

"It was the central government's property where this happened. It is a game plan to kill him. He was a very popular leader," she said.

"It is sad that in a democracy they are targeting and trying to kill TMC leaders," she added.

Banerjee announced Rs 5 lakh compensation for those who were seriously injured in the incident and Rs 1 lakh for those with minor injuries.

She said that the investigation has been assigned to Counter Insurgency Force (CIF), Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Special Task Force (STF), so that "we do not have to depend on just one agency."

West Bengal Minister Firhad Hakim has also termed the incident a conspiracy.

"Around 26 of our people, including Jakir Hossain, were injured, 14 of them are serious. The police investigation is on. CM has said that CID, STF and CIF have joined in. I hope Railway will help them. On behalf of the party, we want that culprits be arrested & brought to court," Hakim was quoted as saying by ANI.

"This is definitely a conspiracy. But it is the job of the police and investigation agencies to probe and find out who was behind this," added Hakim.

Meanwhile, state BJP president Dilip Ghosh attacked the government saying that the incident was proof of the poor law and order situation in the state.

"The incident shows that West Bengal is not safe even for ministers. The government has failed to control the law and order," Ghosh said.

The incident occurred ahead of the assembly election which is due in April-May this year. Hossain was admitted to the Trauma Care Unit of the SSKM Hospital in Kolkata. A medical board has been formed to look into his health condition.

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Jean Fai Bungong, victim of human rights violation Twitter

Jean Fai Bungong, the civilian beaten to near-death by security forces in Ndu on February 11, 20201 says he is responding to treatment.

In a video clip published Wednesday, February 17, 2021, the victim of human rights violation from state forces saluted the timely intervention of Hon. Ta Nformi Ngala Gerard, Member of Parliament for Donga Mantung Centre.

I am Jean Fai Bungong. I am the person who was tormented by the military in Ndu. I know that the situation created fear in the hearts of many who thought that I am dead. I am still alive because I have been put on treatment. The government has been struggling to ensure that I come back to life. Although I have pains now, I believe that I will be well again after taking the drugs prescribed. By Gods grace, I will be strong again, said the victim.

Fai extended special thanks to Hon. Ngala Gerard providing him succor in his time of need.

I thank Hon. Ngala Gerard who has shown a lot of concern towards me. He has taken good care of me. He has been the one taking me from one hospital to another. Although my health is yet to stabilize, I remain indebted to Hon. Ngala. I pray God continues to give him the strength and the means so he can help others like me, Fai said. I am happy. I did not have a phone. Hon. Ngala has bought a phone for me. He has also done so many other good things for me. He ensures that I eat on time and I have the liberty to discuss with him at all times.

Two gendarmes, two soldiers, and four police officers are currently under detention at the Territorial Gendarmerie Brigade in Ndu for beating Fai to near-death.

On Saturday, 13 February 2021, an amateur video appeared on the web, presenting a man being interrogated, then assaulted and severely beaten by some elements of the Defense and Security Forces. The scene took place in the afternoon of Thursday, 11 February 2021, in the locality of Ndu, Donga-Mantung Division, North West Region, military spokesman Navy Captain Atonfack Guemo said on Monday.

The government has said the erring security forces will face the law given that they breached their rules of engagement and violated human rights.
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MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- After a successful initial public event series showcasing unique aspects of their work, global humanitarian organization, Alight , is revisiting their Virtual Workshare Series, with the introduction of new and relevant topics. The six part series, co-hosted by notable journalists familiar with each subject, will give an inside look at the organization's impactful work, while also highlighting a range of country-specific approaches that are being implemented in some of the most vulnerable parts of the world. The series will take place Thursdays at 10 a.m. CST, beginning February 25 through April 1, 2021.

Often working behind the scenes with grassroots activists and other pillars within the communities they serve, Alight's human-centered approach addresses a wide range of issues impacting migrant and displaced populations around the world.

"At Alight, we believe the world is abundant with amazing people who want to help others. Any chance we get, we shine a light on changemakers, the meaningful work they're doing, and the real impact they're making in the lives of others," said Alight Interim CEO, John Gappa. "Our Workshare Series illuminates these incredible stories of change through the lens of notable journalists who've covered these issues and can bring the most important ideas into focus for the rest of us."

Each session will take place weekly and feature a different journalist paired with an Alight representative to lead a virtual visual showcase about a specific topic, followed by a Q+A. The Virtual Workshare Series schedule includes:

February 25 : | Meeting Families at the US-Mexico Border With Humanity

A Little Piece of Home is a global movement that is transforming migrant shelters along the U.S./ Mexico border. Bringing people together through the development of sustainable spaces, cooking and food, this initiative is the first of many offering hope and refuge for families.

March 4 : | EMERGENCY RESPONSE: Ethiopia

Learn about the situation for Ethiopian families who've fled their homes due to the conflict in the Tigray region and how Alight's rapid response teams have been responding from the beginning of the crisis.

March 11 : | Alternative Education Ecosystem in Pakistan

Alight's delivering education to Pakistan's most vulnerable students and communities, including at a first-of-its-kind smart school structure designed by world-renowned architect (the late) Ms. Zaha Hadid .

March 18 : | Nakivale Library

In collaboration with partners and Nakivale Refugee Settlement residents to promote youth engagement throughout the community, The Nakivale Community Library has become a valuable resource for increasing school enrollment and literacy for all ages, and is providing much more than just academics.

March 25 : | Eliminating Malaria in Thailand and Myanmar ( 9-10 a.m. CST )

Serving some of the hardest to reach populations along the Thai- Myanmar border, Alight's Southeast Asia program is recognized as a leader in public health focused on malaria elimination and health equity.

April 1 : | Safe Rides Violence Protection

Safe Ride is a social enterprise helping boda boda drivers  motorcycle taxis  in Ugandan refugee settlements build a business that is both profitable and helps prevent violence against women and girls.

To attend these complementary virtual events, please visit http://wearealight.org/workshares to learn more and register.

About Alight

Established in 1978 by founder Neal Ball, Alight , formerly known as American Refugee Committee, provides health care, clean water, shelter, protection and economic opportunities to more than 3.5 million people in 19 countries each year. Alight believes in the incredible creativity, potential and ingenuity of the displaced and works to shine a light on their humanity, the tremendous amount of good that's already happening and the possibilities to do more. In 2020, Alight received the prestigious 4-Star Rating from Charity Navigator for the tenth consecutive year, celebrating a decade of impactful work.

SOURCE Alight

Related Links

https://wearealight.org/




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Following the report of late apologist Ravi Zacharias' sexual misconduct, Christian leaders all across the nation reacted with horror, dismay, and disappointment.

The Christian Post interviewed Christian leaders on their reaction following the report that Zacharias was found guilty on multiple accounts of sexual misconduct. Some called the late apologist's action to not only be "criminal" but "sociopathic" and even "satanic" in its truth with confirmed allegations on "sexting, unwanted touching, spiritual abuse and rape."

Zacharias' own denomination, Christian and Missionary Alliance said that the late apologist's "sinful behavior" brought "enormous pain" and a bad testimony to the Church of Christ which led the organization to posthumously expel his ordination from ministry.

"Mr. Zacharias' actions were in direct violation of his obligation to demonstrate his commitment to serve Christ and His people through his devotion, character, lifestyle, and values," the CMA said, adding, "This comes with the automatic revocation of his ordination."

Jim Denison, another apologist, acknowledges that when a respected leader falls, it brings deep and painful emotions among other believers like embarrassment and anger.

According to Denison, what happened to Zacharias must become a lesson to everyone saying that Christians must know that "private sins" will one day come to light and called those who live in "secret sin" to "repent now."

"If this could happen to Ravi Zacharias, it can happen to any of us. If you are living in unrepented sin, you are climbing a ladder that will collapse under you when Satan chooses. Get off it now," Denison said.

Russell Moore, the Southern Baptist leader has rather scathing remarks following the details of Zacharias' sexual misconduct reported earlier by Christianity Daily.

"One woman reports that after she experienced what she described as rape that Zacharias had her pray with him, thanking God for 'the opportunity.' Such an action would be unspeakable - an act of blasphemy to empower predatory violence," he wrote.

Moore expressed his anger over the "awful report" putting the Church and its testimony at stake. He urged believers not to admire someone who "does something disgusting or evil," and has used "the name of Jesus Christ to do so."

Lee Strobel, another apologist called Zacharias' sexual sins to be "horrific" saying that he will also stop printing the book that included the late minister because of his deception.

"The report on sexual sins by Ravi Zacharias is horrific. He deceived so many. My heart goes out to his victims. Ravi was among those I interviewed 20 years ago for 'The Case for Faith'. My publisher and I decided to halt printings of the book, and I am working on a revised edition," Strobel wrote.

Collin Hansen, The Gospel Coalition's editor-in-chief also commented that Zacharias used his ministry and influence to prey on the "vulnerable, exposed women."

Hansen added, "We agonize on their behalf and beg God that no one else would suffer as they did. We lament this grievous evil. We renew our commitment to repair what injustice has destroyed."

Pastor Michael Youssef commented that what happened to Zacharias is a sobering reminder that every ministry and churches must bring back "accountability."

"Accountability is a word that's almost a dirty word among some of the celebrity preachers, and that's got to come back," Youssef said. "Whether a church has 10 members, 100 members or 10,000 members, he must have accountability. This is a word that is lost in today's churches and must be returned to our vocabulary."

Youssef also emphasized that Jesus must be the reason why people gather together and not because people put other people on a pedestal.

"Weekly, I tell my congregation, 'If you're here because of me, go somewhere else. If you want to worship Jesus, then, welcome.' We are about Jesus. We're not about the preacher. We're not about celebrities, because that is deadly as far as the Gospel of Jesus Christ is concerned."

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A Jamaican national has been rescued in the waters off Florida after 36 hours clinging to a boat that capsized as he tried to enter the U.S. from the Bahamas, while six of his compatriots are missing and presumed dead.

Captain Chase Cornell, a charter fishing skipper out of Fort Pierce, spotted the man on radar about 20 miles offshore and came to his rescue on Friday in his employer's fishing boat, the Southern Eagle.

'I slowed down to take a closer look and found this guy clinging to his capsized boat,' Cornell wrote in a Facebook post.

'He had left Bimini with six others in attempt to make it across to the states when the boat capsized at 8pm Wednesday night,' he added.

Scroll down for video

A Jamaican national has been rescued in the waters off Florida after 36 hours clinging to a boat that capsized as he tried to enter the U.S. from the Bahamas

A Coast Guard Station Fort Pierce 45-foot response boat launched to the scene, received the survivor and transferred him ashore to local emergency medical services

Cornell and the fishing boat's owner Peter Busch worked together to bring the man aboard

The rescued man, a Jamaican national whose name has not been made public, was suffering from hypothermia and dehydration, and the crew offered him provisions and blankets

Captain Chase Cornell (above) rescued the man while sport fishing in Florida

The rescued man, a Jamaican national whose identity has not been made public, was suffering from hypothermia and dehydration. Cornell and his friends wrapped him in warm blankets and contacted the Coast Guard.

The fishing boat's owner Peter Busch, owner of Southern Eagle Distributing and chairman of the board at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary, was also on hand to lend assistance in the rescue.

A Coast Guard Station Fort Pierce 45-foot response boat launched to the scene, received the survivor and transferred him ashore to local emergency medical services.

It was unclear what happened to the man after he received medical care, or whether he was transferred into the custody of immigration authorities.

A Coast Guard spokesman told DailyMail.com on Thursday that the service did not have any further information about the man after the rescue, and a Fort Pierce Police Department spokeswoman said that the department was not called in on the case.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to an inquiry.

'We wrapped him in blankets and put him in front of the engine room companionway for warmth,' Cornell wrote in a social media post

A fishing expedition in Florida came across a stranded migrant on Friday, rescuing the man after his boat capsized while he was trying to make it from the Bahamas to the US

A sport fishing crew spotted him on radar clinging to capsized boat

Cornell, the charter fishing captain, said that he was 'thankful to have been in the right place at the right time.'

After the Coast Guard retrieved the rescued man from his boat, Cornell decided to continue fishing and caught six blue marlin. He released four and tagged the other two for tracking by the Billfish Foundation to assist with conservation efforts.

The Coast Guard launched a massive search for the six missing crew members that the rescued man said had fallen overboard from the capsized dinghy.

Coast Guard crews searched an area of 10,694 miles through the weekend, but suspended the search on Sunday night.

'The decision to suspend a search-and-rescue case is never one we come to lightly,' said Captain JoAnn Burdian, commander of Coast Guard Sector Miami.

'We offer our deepest sympathies to the friends and families of those involved during this difficult time,' said Burdian.

After the Coast Guard retrieved the rescued man from his boat, Cornell decided to continue fishing and caught six blue marlin. His friends are seen above on a different fishing trip

Cornell was fishing on the Southern Eagle when he spotted the distressed man on radar

The U.S. Coast Guard suspended the search on Sunday evening for six other men who went overboard from the capsized dingy (seen above)

It comes amid an apparent rise in attempts to enter the U.S. illegally by water, often with tragic consequences.

On Monday, the Coast Guard suspended its search for 10 people who were reported as missing approximately eight miles south of Long Key.

The 10 people were reported to have departed from Cuba in an attempt to enter the U.S. onboard what the Coast Guard described as a 'rustic vessel.'

'Regardless of nationality, the Coast Guard makes every effort to rescue those in peril at sea,' said Captain Adam Chamie, Commander of Sector Key West.

On Monday, the Coast Guard suspended its search for 10 people who were reported as missing from this 'rustic vessel' approximately eight miles south of Long Key

'Unfortunately, migrants who attempt to illegally enter the United States by boat, often travel aboard unseaworthy, make-shift vessels.

'Most times, these vessels are dangerously overloaded, actively taking on water, and are ill-equipped to safely transport any number of people,' added Chaime.

We made every effort to try and locate these 10 people, and our thoughts are heavy knowing we were unable to locate them and get them home to their loved ones.'

Earlier this month, three Cuban nationals were rescued by the Coast Guard after spending 33 days stranded on an island south of Florida, where they survived by eating rats, coconuts and conch.
New Zealands high commissioner in Canberra, Dame Annette King, says Australias decision to cancel the citizenship of a woman trying to flee Syria has left her country in a difficult position.

Suhayra Adam, who held both Australian and New Zealand citizenship but spent most of her life in Australia, was recently detained trying to cross the Syrian border into Turkey with her two children.

New Zealand high commissioner Dame Annette King says the womans connections are in Australia, not New Zealand, and cancelling her citizenship leaves NZ in a difficult position. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Dame Annette said NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern first raised the cancellation of her Australian citizenship with Prime Minister Scott Morrison as far back as July 2019, saying it is an issue she feels strongly about.

Ms Ardern this week accused Australia of abdicating its responsibilities regarding the 26-year-old Melbourne woman, who allegedly joined Islamic State in Syria.
Joan Didion is 86. Frederick Seidel is almost 85. Sometimes you just have to pause in awe of the great ones  and what better time for these two than right now, when both have new collections casting an eye back on their long careers? Didions latest essay collection, Let Me Tell You What I Mean, gathers 12 pieces spanning more than three decades, from 1968 to 2000. Frederick Seidel Selected Poems ranges over five decades in nearly 300 pages. They pair neatly, both writers fluent in a reserved, almost haughty tone as chilly as a good martini, diluted with self-knowing irony. Read one of those this week. Read both.

Or maybe youd rather read a younger writer  Walter Mosley, say, whos a mere 69. His latest Easy Rawlins mystery is the 15th in that series, and our new crime columnist likes it a lot. She likes Belinda Bauers Exit, too, so add that to your pile. And why not add the fiction anthology Kink to the list while youre at it? Other good choices, depending on your mood and interests: a riff on the Pinocchio story as narrated by Geppetto, a biography of the writer Sybille Bedford, a novel about the effects of the Holocaust on four generations of one family. The Pulitzer-winning environmental journalist Elizabeth Kolbert is back with Under a White Sky, a look at efforts to mitigate the crises facing our planet. Finally, two reporters investigate complicated stories from Asia: Amelia Pangs Made in China looks at the issue of forced labor in that country and its effect on global commerce, while Sonia Faleiros The Good Girls traces the tragic mystery surrounding the deaths of two teenagers found hanging in an Indian mango orchard.

Gregory Cowles

Senior Editor, Books

Twitter: @GregoryCowles

FREDERICK SEIDEL SELECTED POEMS, by Frederick Seidel. (Farrar, Straus & Giroux. $30.) Seidel, who turns 85 this week, grew up wealthy in St. Louis, and the nouns that populate his poems include old prep schools, Hermes briefcases, Savile Row tailors, grand hotels, elite restaurants. But hes a complicated critic of status-seeking, and grief filters through his work. Seidel is among the rare poets whove become noticeably better  nervier, more tricksy and electric  as theyve slid into old age, our critic Dwight Garner writes. Hes the Dark Prince of American poetry, a writer of glittering malice, one who cuts against the grain of almost every variety of community feeling. Hes not a poet for everyone, but no poet worth anything is.

THE GOOD GIRLS: An Ordinary Killing, by Sonia Faleiro. (Grove, $26.) In their village in India, 16-year-old Padma and 14-year-old Lalli were inseparable cousins who were spoken of as one person: Have you seen Padma Lalli? The girls went missing one night in 2014, and their bodies were discovered the next morning in an orchard, hanging from the same mango tree. The girls parents refused to let the bodies come down, calling for authorities all the way up to the prime minister to witness the bodies, to solve the crime. Faleiros account of the tragedy and the search for answers is transfixing, with the pacing and mood of a whodunit, but no clear reveal, our critic Parul Sehgal writes. In brisk chapters, we glide swiftly, smoothly, only to realize that were not approaching a clearing but being led into a darker, more tangled story.
The United Kingdom Embassy in Madrid has published an update on travel to Spain for British nationals who were already legal residents of the country before January 1, 2021, when the Brexit transition period came to an end and the UK definitively left the European Union.

We are aware that some of you who were legally living in Spain before January 1, 2021 have faced difficulty returning to Spain from the UK, as you dont yet have a residence document (green certificate or Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero - TIE), said the embassy in a statement on its Facebook page.

The embassy has shared a list of alternative documents that UK nationals without either one of these two proofs of residency may use instead.

If you are resident in Spain, you should carry your residence document (the green paper EU residence certificate or the new TIE), as well as your valid passport when you travel, notes the embassy. If you are not in possession of a residence document, the Spanish government has formally confirmed to the UK government that UK nationals who were legally residing in Spain before January 1, 2021, and as such are beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement, can present other documents to prove their residence status when entering Spain.

The list of acceptable documents, which have reportedly been communicated to airlines and other operators, is as follows:

Residence card issued under Article 18.4 of the Withdrawal Agreement (the TIE  Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero)

Temporary or permanent EU residence certificate (Certificado de Registro de Ciudadanos de la Union)

Receipt of application for the TIE (Resguardo de presentacion de la solicitud de la tarjeta de residencia)

Confirmation of the positive outcome of your residence application (Resolucion favorable por la que se concede la tarjeta de residencia)

In the absence of any of the above documents, other documents that credibly evidence your legal residence in Spain before January 1, 2021, such as a padron certificate (issued by your town hall), a work contract, a rental contract, or proof of property purchase

In the case of students, documentation that demonstrates enrolment in an on-site or in-person course and proof of accommodation

In addition, travelers must show a valid passport and comply with the other documentation requirements, such as a negative COVID test within 72 hours of arrival.

Restrictions extended to March 2

On December 22, Spain introduced travel restrictions on passenger travel from the UK by air and sea, after a new and apparently more contagious strain of the coronavirus was identified in the UK. These measures have been extended repeatedly, and are now set to last until until 6pm mainland Spain time on March 2.

But Spanish nationals and legal residents may still travel to Spain. For the latter, the challenge remains proving their legal residency if they lack the new TIE biometric identity card, despite the fact that this card is not currently mandatory.

In early January, there were numerous reports of UK nationals who were prevented from boarding flights bound for Spain after airlines such as British Airways and Iberia refused to accept their green paper identity cards as proof that they resided in the country. Instead, airlines demanded to see the TIE.

The embassy said that the new list of acceptable documents has been sent to airlines and other travel operators to ensure that passengers are not denied boarding due to confusion over this issue.

Diagnostic tests

The UK government has also reminded travelers that international transit through Spanish airports by passengers on flights departing from the UK is permitted on presentation of a negative PCR, TNA or LAMP test taken within no more than 72 hours prior to arrival into Spain.

Additionally, all passengers (excluding children under the age of 6 years old) travelling to Spanish airports from risk countries, as determined by the European Centre for Disease Prevention & Control, are required to present a negative PCR, TNA or LAMP test taken within no more than 72 hours prior to arrival, in order to enter the country, adds the governments travel advice, noting that the UK is currently on the risk countries list and passengers arriving from the UK are therefore subject to this requirement.

Overland travellers to Spain are exempt from these entry requirements and are therefore not currently required to present a PCR, TMA or LAMP test, or Health Control Form on entry by road or rail.
India on Wednesday issued specific rules for flights from the UK, Europe and the Middle East, aimed at segregating travellers from Brazil, the UK and South Africa, where new covid-19 mutant viruses have surfaced.

The new standard operating procedures (SOPs), which take effect on 23 February, mandate airlines to identify travellers arriving from or transiting through the UK, Brazil and South Africa in past 14 days and segregate them in-flight or while disembarking to facilitate the authorities to follow due protocol for covid.

All the travellers arriving from/transiting through flights originating in the United Kingdom, Europe or Middle East shall be mandatorily subjected to self-paid confirmatory molecular tests on arrival at the Indian airports concerned (port of entry). Entry made in the SDF (self declaration form) regarding telephone number and address would be reconfirmed," according to the new guidelines. Mint has seen a copy of the new guidelines.

Adequate arrangements for passengers waiting for their confirmatory molecular test as well as test results duly following effective isolation may also be made at the airports in conjunction with the airport authorities. The airport authority shall ensure streamlining of the systems for testing at the concerned airports to ensure seamless sampling, testing, and waiting arrangements to avoid crowding and inconvenience to passengers," it said.

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Cabinet endorses bill on agricultural insurance in Ukraine

The draft law defines agricultural products that may be insured, as well as insurance risks and conditions.

Reporting by UNIAN

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 03:33:45|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths said on Thursday that he was greatly saddened by the current military tension in Yemen.

"I am saddened -- I think the word is probably more than that -- to report that over the past month, the conflict in Yemen has taken a sharp escalatory turn with Ansar Allah's most recent offensive in Marib governorate," he told the Security Council in a briefing, using the official name of the Houthi militia.

"I have condemned this many times since early last year when this offensive operation started, and I will repeat my call now: the attack on Marib must stop."

The offensive puts millions of civilians at risk, especially with the fighting threatening to reach camps for internally displaced persons. The quest for territorial gain by force threatens all the prospects of the peace process, he warned.

Although the situation on the ground is deteriorating, Griffiths saw renewed international momentum of finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict. He particularly welcomed the renewed focus the United States is placing on the Yemeni conflict.

International support for ending the conflict is indispensable, and offers a new opportunity to re-open space for a negotiated solution, he said.

There is a negotiated way out of this conflict. But in any negotiation, the parties need to know where they are going. They need to clearly see the end-state. The basic elements of a mutually acceptable end to the war and a path toward peace should be guided by the aspirations of Yemenis for a future marked by peaceful political participation, accountable governance, equal citizenship and economic justice, he said.

The only way to realize these aspirations is through a genuinely inclusive, Yemeni-led political process under UN auspices supported by the international community. Through this political process, Yemenis can indeed negotiate an agreement to end the conflict and start the road toward sustainable peace, he said. Enditem
Mid-sized non-banking lender Ugro Capital, which is focused on supply chain financing, is entering the micro-loan segment with a new vertical to support the unorganised small businesses in non-metro markets, and plans to sell one-third of its credit target from this segment.

To begin with, the new vertical, called 'Gro Micro', will have 25 branches across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Telangana and Rajasthan, and hopes to serve 50,000 small businesses with 100 branches by the end of 2021-22, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

The company has a net disbursement target of Rs 2,500 crore for 2021-22 and 30 per cent of this expected to come from the new vertical, Ugro Capital Executive Chairman and Managing Director Shachindra Nath told PTI.

He further said that since June 2020, the company has sold over Rs 750 crore loans which in the first year of operations was only Rs 850 crore and, currently, the active loans or assets under management stand at Rs 1,200 crore.

Ugro Capital lends Rs 50 lakh-Rs 3 crore loans to eight sectors -- healthcare, education, chemicals, food processing /FMCG, hospitality, electrical equipment and components, auto components, light engineering and micro loans. It has disbursed Rs 2,000 crore since its inception in April 2019 and has a live loan book or assets under management of Rs 1,200 crore as of December 2020, Nath said.

He said the company is back to pre-pandemic levels now with the average monthly loan run rate crossing Rs 140 crore now.

He also said the asset quality is also back to the pre-lockdown days with gross non-performing assets (NPAs) trending at 2.3 per cent and net NPAs at under 1 per cent. This is despite the 3.5 per cent of its customers choosing to get their loans restructured after the lockdowns.

Nath said 'Gro Micro' will offer both unsecured and secured small-ticket loans to micro businesses to help them sustain and also to meet working capital or for business expansion.

With the launch of 'Gro Micro', the company aims to reach out to over 5 lakh small businesses across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Telangana and Rajasthan, he said.

With 'Gro Micro', the group now has 34 branches across eight states, he added.

'Gro Micro' will cater to small and medium enterprise (SME) borrowers in areas like kirana stores, pharmacies, mess/ restaurants and hair salons.

Ugro has so far raised Rs 920 crore from a set of private equity funds like institutional investors and well-known family offices.

(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.)
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The state is opening a mass vaccination site in the Orr Building at the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield.

The site will be able to administer up to 1,620 doses of COVID-19 vaccine daily with a beginning weekly allocation of 4,000 doses, according to Gov. J.B. Pritzker.

The site, which now is serving those eligible under Phase 1A and Phase 1B by appointment, will ramp up to full capacity as federal vaccine shipments increase, he said.

While supply remains limited across the nation, here in Illinois we are building out a robust vaccine infrastructure to ensure we can reach all of our residents as quickly as possible, Pritzker said in a release. As Illinois and other states across the nation await additional vaccine supply from the federal government, every Illinoisan can continue do their part to fight this virus by following public health guidance and getting vaccinated when it is their turn to do so.

Along with the additional vaccination site, the state also has activated more Illinois National Guard members to assist the Sangamon County Department of Public Health in supporting its vaccination sites.

Vaccination is critical in ending this pandemic and we must ensure equitable access to vaccine, Illinois Department of Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike said. We will continue to work to bring vaccine to communities across the state. And as we work to increase access to the vaccine, so shall we continue our educational and outreach efforts to increase acceptance of the vaccine.

The mass vaccination site at the fairgrounds, as with other such sites around the state, is managed through an interagency effort led by Pritzker and the state health department, coordinated by the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, supported by the Illinois National Guard, and working in partnership with the local health department and county officials.

More than 850 vaccination sites in Illinois now are open to the public. There is no charge to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

In addition, the Banterra Center at SIU Carbondale and Carbondale Civic Center are now mass vaccination sites.

For more information on the COVID-19 vaccine, go to coronavirus.illinois.gov. To make an appointment to receive the vaccine at the state fairgrounds, go to SCDPH.org or call 217-210-8801.
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Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

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Haiti - FLASH : Violent clash between Haitians and Peruvian security forces





A group of nearly 400 migrants, mostly Haitians (men, women and children), stranded since February 12 at the Integration Bridge, which connects the Brazilian city of Assis, in the State of Acre, to the Peruvian region of Madre de Dios, want to cross the border with Mexico as their final destination.



However, the Integration Bridge that separates the two countries has been closed since March 2020 in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and contrary to a rumor which suggested that Peru, on the dates of the Brazilian carnival, would open its border, the Peruvian authorities denied it and instead sent reinforcements to the border (police and armed soldiers).



Assisi volunteers set up tents and brought food to the Haitian group, which includes many children and pregnant women, said the spokesperson for the mayor's office.



On Sunday February 14, Jerry Correia the Mayor of Assis visited the Haitians and declared "the situation is chaotic and dramatic due to the high presence of children and the categorical refusal of Haitians to return to the shelters". He claimed to have met the Governor of Madre de Dios, Luis Hidalgo, so that the Peruvian authorities allow the entry and transit of Haitians on their territory, but the situation became more complex after the State of Acre entered in its most restrictive phase due to Covid-19...



On Tuesday, exasperated to wait, the Haitians forcibly crossed the border "[...] They broke the security cordon and entered Peruvian territory [...] throwing stones and bottles at the police," declared Colonel Jorge Barrera Chief of the local police "[...] they did not heed the call for calm to resolve the situation [...] They do not understand, they are violent, we wanted to discuss with them to withdraw from the border, without result [...]"



The police went on the offensive and regained control of the situation with batons and tear gas. Finally, the Haitians were returned by van to Brazilian territory.



Colonnel Barrera, who deplores the violence, told the media that the solution was in the hands of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Peru and Brazil and that he had only followed orders.



SL/ HaitiLibre


















A Chicago committee has listed five statues of Abraham Lincoln among dozens of monuments that it said needed to be reviewed as part of a project to reconsider symbols that have become a focal point for conversation, protest and activism, the city said Wednesday.

The city created the committee in response to last summers protests, some of which centered on statues of historical figures, to review Chicagos collection of monuments and recommend solutions.

The review comes as other U.S. cities have made similar efforts to re-examine historical symbols and monuments that have come under new scrutiny in the wake of protests against racism and police violence. Last year, local leaders took down statues of Christopher Columbus and Confederate leaders, among other monuments, and last month, the San Francisco school board voted to remove the names of modern and historical figures, including Lincoln and George Washington, from 44 of its public schools.

The committee in Chicago did not provide specific reasons that the statues of Lincoln, who started his political career in Illinois, should be reviewed. The list also includes statues of Ulysses S. Grant, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and several monuments to Indigenous people.
New Delhi: Television actor Aly Goni is a family man. Throughout his stay in the Bigg Boss 14 house, he has often been spotted talking about his mother, sister and nieces and nephews. Recently his elder sister was blessed with a baby girl, and during a task when "Bigg Boss" asked him to make a wish, he asked for a video call with his mother with his newborn niece in her lap.

The Wednesday episode in the reality show began with a 'Wishing Well' task where the contestants had to make a wish and put a coin in a well. After the contestants had made their wishes, "Bigg Boss" announced a continuation of the task where the contestants had to agree or refuse the offers made by "Bigg Boss". This was happening in a cave and at the end of the task, the three contestants who remain seated on the chairs will have their wishes fulfilled.

Aly Goni and his good friend Rahul Vaidya were the first to take their seat on the chair.

"Bigg Boss" made an offer to Aly that if he is in the top two on the finale day then he will give up on his position and the prize money. If Aly chose to accept it, his wish will be granted, but Aly refused and said that even the person to whom the wish is related wouldn't want him to do it.
Egypt detected 618 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, bringing its total infections tally to 175,677 since the outbreak last year.

The health ministry reported 49 new deaths, bringing overall fatalities from the virus nationwide to 10,150.

Also, 411 patients have been discharged from hospitals over the past 24 hours to mark total recoveries at 136,081.

Egypt has received tens of thousands of coronavirus vaccine doses and has vaccinated hundreds of health workers in quarantine hospitals. It is also taking steps to provide vaccine doses for medical teams nationwide.

The state plans soon to vaccinate old people and people suffering from chronic diseases as part of the targeted priority groups.

Egypt also seeks to localise the manufacture of the vaccine developed by Chinas Sinovac and to become a hub for exporting vaccine doses to African states.

On Wednesday, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi called for securing fair and just access to vaccine doses for African nations, as he spoke during a meeting under the auspices of the African Union.

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Winners of the Canon Central and North Africa Awards announced and celebrated at the Annual Partner Conference
Estonian Ambassador to Ukraine Kaimo Kuusk has advised the Ukrainian authorities to inform international partners in a timely manner and as widely as possible about Ukraine's steps to protect national security.

He said this during the panel discussion entitled "Stability and Security: What Can Ukraine Learn from NATO?" on February 17, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

"Estonia welcomes Ukraine's move to impose sanctions on the oligarch and shut down certain TV channels because we support Ukraine in its efforts to protect itself... We support everything you do in accordance with your legislation, perhaps we would only advise you to disseminate information about this in a timely manner through the maximum number of channels - state information channels and even intelligence," Kuusk said.

He added that Ukraine has partners in different capitals and recommended sharing with them information that is not publicly disclosed.

Now is the very moment when [Ukraine] should seek as much support as possible, and this will be a good means to achieve this goal, the Estonian ambassador noted.

As Ukrinform reported, on February 2, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky enacted the decision of the National Security and Defense Council to impose sanctions against the NewsOne, ZIK and 112 Ukraine TV channels, as well as their owner, MP from the Opposition Platform  For Life party, Taras Kozak. The sanctions, among other things, provide for the revocation of licenses of these pro-Russian TV channels.

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A technician works in a lab at Sinovac Biotech where the company is producing their potential COVID-19 vaccine CoronaVac during a media tour in Beijing on Sept. 24, 2020. (Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

Hong Kong Green Lights Chinas Sinovac Vaccine for Emergency Use

Hong Kong has formally approved Chinas Sinovac vaccine for emergency use, the citys health secretary announced Thursday.

Sophia Chan said in a statement that the vaccine met the safety, efficacy, and quality requirements specified in Hong Kong emergency situations.

The first batch of the Chinese-made Sinovac vaccine will arrive in the city on Friday at 5:30 p.m. on a Cathay Pacific cargo flight. It was formally approved despite the lack of endorsement from the World Health Organization (WHO).

The government is now seeking HK$1 billion ($129 million) from the citys Legislative Council (LegCo) for an indemnity fund as it prepares to distribute the vaccination program citywide early next month. Chan submitted the proposal to the council on Wednesday.

The first batch of the Pfizer and BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is expected to arrive in Hong Kong by the end of the month.

The formal approval comes a day after a Hong Kong government advisory panel on COVID-19 vaccines said it would recommend Chinas Sinovac vaccine for emergency use, saying that the benefits outweighed the risks.

Hong Kongs government said in early February that it was exempting Chinese drug maker Sinovac from publishing results of its third phase clinical trials in medical journals due to the urgency for vaccination.

The Pfizer vaccinethe first approved by Hong Kongs health departmentwas required to have published results in a medical journal before being examined by the advisory panel.

Other rival vaccines such as jabs from Moderna and AstraZeneca have also submitted their third phase clinical trial data to medical journals for peer review.

The panel said that according to data from Sinovac, the Chinese-made vaccine showed an efficacy rate of 62.3 percent when two doses are administered 28 days aparta significantly lower efficacy rate compared to rival vaccines. BioNTech has confirmed a 95 percent efficacy rate when two shots are administered. The WHO has a 50 percent threshold for regulatory approval.

Syringes in front of a displayed BioNTech logo in this illustration taken Nov. 10, 2020. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

The data that we have looked at appeared to show that this vaccine is efficacious, the advisory panel convener Wallace Lau said on Wednesday.

The news comes at a time when public confidence in the safety and efficacy of Chinas COVID-19 vaccinesboth in and outside Chinaappears mixed. Its COVID-19 vaccines are being aggressively promoted to foreign countries by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

The leaders of France, Taiwan, and Brazil have expressed concerns over the lack of transparent information about Chinese vaccines.

YouGov, a London-headquartered research data and analytics group, also conducted a survey that asked 19,000 people from 17 countries about their attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines made in 12 countries.

China scored second-to-last, at minus-19 on average. The negative score means people were more likely to feel worried than reassured by a vaccine coming from there.

Chinese citizens also showed low confidence in China-made vaccines.

The Epoch Times previously obtained an internal survey conducted by authorities in Jingan district of Shanghai, in which 113,000 people were surveyed about their willingness to be vaccinated.

Roughly 21 percent (24,000) said they were willing.

The Hong Kong government is expected to release additional information of the citys vaccination scheme on Thursday.

Nicole Hao and Reuters contributed to this report.
RIYADH, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 18th Feb, 2021) The International Energy Agency (IEA), the International Energy Forum (IEF) and the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) today hosted the 11th IEA-IEF-OPEC Symposium on Energy Outlooks to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global energy markets and the outlook for global energy security and market stability.

Hosted by the IEF, the symposium reviewed the IEAs and OPECs short-, medium- and longterm outlooks, which are analysed in the newly released IEF-RFF Outlooks Comparison Report. Produced by the IEF and Resources For the Future (RFF), the report highlights a reset in energy outlooks after the biggest demand shock in history last year.

"The pandemics impact on energy demand is unparalleled in the history of energy markets," said IEF Secretary General Joseph McMonigle. "The symposium explored what government policies and industry responses are necessary to safeguard the long-term stability of energy markets."

Among the reports major findings were that the pandemic led to oil demand contracting by 9-10 million barrels per day in 2020, but it is expected to rebound by 5-6 million barrels per day this year. The pandemic has also led to a downward revision in long-term annual economic growth by as much as 0.8 percentage points in some outlooks, the report noted.

The Symposium is part of a wider joint program of work by the three organisations originating from the 12th International Energy Forum held in Cancun, Mexico in March 2010.

Dr Fatih Birol, the Executive Director of the IEA, said: "Dialogue and cooperation will be increasingly vital to steer the global energy system towards a future that is fit for tomorrows generations, where energy is abundant, affordable, clean and is used to underpin growth and development."

In his opening remarks to the Symposium, Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, OPEC Secretary General, recognised the vital contributions of the OPEC and non-OPEC countries participating in the Declaration of Cooperation (DoC) in helping to stabilise the oil market over the past year, and the importance of close dialogue with the G20, the IEA and IEF in supporting market rebalancing efforts. He also emphasised the need for continued investment in the oil industry to ensure stability of supply and to help maintain an inclusive approach to addressing climate change, the energy transition and energy access challenges. "These investments are essential for both producers and consumers," he said.

"In our fast-changing and unpredictable world, we seek to contribute to greater stability, more predictability and enhanced transparency," the OPEC Secretary General told the Symposium. "We constantly seek to improve our capacity to do so, for we believe this will help us build a better future, one which serves the interests of generations of producers and consumers."
Presidential historian Michael Beschloss is prompting national chats this week about bygone weather days in the Berkshires. Blizzards, for a spell, have trumped the public intellectual's most common Twitter topic: the 45th president.

In a series of tweets, Beschloss posted photos of historical blizzards, including several in Berkshire County.

That post led many to reflect, in replies, about their own experiences with weather in the region and, well, just about anything else that came to mind, as is the way with social media.

"Loving these shots, having grown up in western Mass.," wrote @canarymartha.

Beschloss, who attended Williams College, appears to have prowled The Berkshire Eagle's digital vault, and credits the paper in several of his posts. Given his prominence, the writer's tweets are generating thousands of likes and hundreds of retweets.

That image of the blizzard of 1888, also from The Eagle's photo archives, apparently came up in a conversation locally. "Zoomed today with a childhood friend who now lives in Pittsfield!" a Beschloss follower, Dr. Linda Tribuzio, replied. "Sent this to her - with appropriate references, of course!"

In a recent online feature, The Eagle presented a collection of images from notable blizzards. As staffer Jen Huberdeau wrote in that account, "Mysteries from the Morgue: Legendary Snowstorms to hit the Berkshires," the 1888 storm was a killer.

It began the evening of March 11 and lasted 3 days. Reported snow totals vary from 36 to 42 inches. What made the storm so memorable was the huge snowdrifts that came with it and the aftermath. A train arriving from Albany, N.Y., on the Boston and Albany Railroad was caught in the "Washington Cut," the name given to a granite outcropping on Washington Mountain 3 miles outside Hinsdale. There, 72 passengers remained for two days as efforts were made to free them from the snowdrifts that reached the top of the train cars. Passengers dined on raw eggs, which they took from a crate in the baggage car. A train carrying livestock didn't fare as well. The train, stopped in "the Junction" in Pittsfield, lost 32 carloads of hogs. The hogs froze to death during the night. But six carloads of sheep and another of cattle were saved.

In his own storm, of tweets, Beschloss received lots of replies of the personal check-in variety.

"Wow! This is an amazing shot of my birthplace. Are you in the Berkshires?" wrote Christena (@now_in_zen).

The photo of the trolley led one Beschloss follower, Stu Nicholson, to grow a little nostalgic. "America's systems of streetcars and interurban trolleys was truly amazing in the first half of the 20th Century. What a boost to mobility they would be today if we have preserved and modernized those systems," he wrote in a reply.

A follower named L.J. Henderson replied: "Can't believe they let a little snow stop them!"

That image, in particular, triggered replies about Pittsfield's history, including from people possessed of some local intel.

"Down behind England Brothers? When O.B. Joyful was still around?" asked Lorin Cowell (@Rt9Grad).

"Wonder what the date is?" asked John Lowe (@jlowe1317). "Pittsfield looked the same for the past 100 years, or so."

"Two tickets to Pittsfield!" added RayThom (raythom12558).

William Boot (@williamboot5) ought to get a tip of the hat from local tourism officials. "Thank you for the evocative pictures of Berkshire Co.  not just picturesque Williamstown, but its beating heart, Pittsfield and North Adams  when they had industries and thousands of workers," he wrote. "Now, instead of exporting its products, Berkshire Co. needs tourists to come to us."

To support the Police Personnel who continue to valiantly work as frontline COVID-19 warriors for the safety and well-being of the public at large, Kotak Mahindra Prime Limited (Kotak Prime), a subsidiary of Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, primarily in the business of car and two-wheeler finance, today announced that it is rolling out its Protect the Protector Programme. Under the COVID-19 Relief Programme, Kotak Prime is providing protective and hygiene kits to the policemen, for their safety and well-being, across geographies.

Kotak Prime is providing PPE kits, masks, gloves, sanitisers, face shields, sneeze shields/panels and other protective gear/equipment that helps protect frontline policemen as well as other staff operating from police stations. Kotak Prime is also providing police personnel with essential tools & kits for detection of COVID-19 infection.

Vyomesh Kapasi, Managing Director, Kotak Prime said, Across the country, our police personnel have been tirelessly working for the safety and well-being of the public at large during the lockdown and continue to do so even now. In addition to maintaining law and order, they have been encouraging people to follow social distancing protocols, wearing of masks etc. Their services are also required for testing and manning quarantine facilities. The nature of their job, thus, puts them at high risk of catching the virus. Through our Protect the Protector programme, our effort is to protect thousands of our policemen across the country and support them to fulfil their duties.
On Wednesday, Union Cabinet approved financial powers to clear projects worth Rs 200 crore to the senior military officers for capital procurement projects, officials said. The deputy chiefs and command heads of the armed forces are the officers granted this enhanced financial aid. The enhanced powers come in the aspect of challenges faced by the defence forces along with China and Pakistan at the border.

Union Cabinet today approved enhanced delegation of Financial Powers under Capital Procurement to levels below Vice-Chief of Armed Forces: Defence Ministry  ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2021

READ | VK Singh Takes Umbrage At 'distortion' Of His China Remark, Clarifies 'LAC Not Demarcated

An official release of Ministry of Defence said that under 'Other Capital Procurement Procedure' (OCPP) of Defence Acquisition Procedure-2020, financial powers up to Rs 100 crore has been delegated to General Officer Commanding-in-Chief in the army, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief in the navy, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief in the air force at Services Command and regional commanders of Indian Coast Guard (ICG).

READ | Owaisi Dares PM Modi To Publicly Shame China Amid LAC Faceoff, Questions Preparedness

The cabinet has also given nod for the financial powers up to Rs 200 crore.

Powers up to Rs. 200cr delegated to Deputy Chief of Army Staff (CD & S)/ MGS (Master General Sustenance), COM (Chief of Material), AOM (Air Officer Maintenance), DCIDS (Deputy Chief Integrated Defence Staff) & ADG ICG (Addnl Director General Indian Coast Guard): Defence Ministry  ANI (@ANI) February 17, 2021

According to the Defence Ministry release, the delegation of power will help in the modernization of Armed forces.

"This delegation of powers within Service Headquarters and up to Command Level for items of Capital nature such as overhauls, refits, and upgrades will enhance the utility of existing assets and will facilitate faster processing and implementation of projects for modernization of Armed Forces to meet the security challenges of the nation," the release said.

READ | New Visuals: Indian & Chinese Troops & Tanks Disengage From Pangong Tso Area In Ladakh

The cabinet has also sanctioned government support up to Rs 50 crore towards the cost of prototype development to Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee, Vice Chief of Army Staff, Vice Chief of Naval Staff, Deputy Chief of Air Staff, and Director General Coast Guard.

The release further stated that, in the line with the government's vision of 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' and 'Make in India' for a robust defence industrial ecosystem, financial powers have also been enhanced for other competent financial authorities under 'Make-I' category.

READ | Aung San Suu Kyi's Trial Begins In Secret After Military Imposes New Charges

LAC faceoff

The faceoff at the Line of Actual Control was exacerbated when 21 Indian Army soldiers including a Commanding Officer were martyred in the Galwan Valley on June 15, 2020, when the de-escalation process was underway. This was followed by multiple attempts of provocation by the Chinese side at the end of August. Multiple rounds of military commander-level and WMCC meetings have taken place between the two sides to resolve the crisis. Besides this, EAM S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh have met their respective counterparts.

(With ANI Inputs)
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Swiss food and beverage major on Thursday said it has "performed well" in the South Asia market in 2020, including in in India where it posted "high single-digit'' growth.

Key brands such as Maggi, Nescafe and KitKat posted robust growth in the Indian market in 2020, said in a post-earnings statement.

Besides, the company saw sustained momentum in e-commerce sales in India, a segment which has grown in prominence after the pandemic.

"South Asia continued to perform well, with high single-digit growth in India and a return to positive growth in Pakistan," said.

"In India, Maggi, Nescaf and KitKat posted robust growth and e-commerce sales saw sustained momentum," it added.

The Indian market falls under Nestle's Asia, Oceania and sub-Saharan Africa (AOA) zone, which reported sales of 20.73 billion CHF (around USD 23.10 billion).

China posted negative growth in AOA zone due to the timing of the Chinese New Year, decline in out-of-home channels and limited consumer stockpiling during lockdowns, it said.

South-East Asia saw low single-digit organic growth and South Asia markets reported mid-single-digit organic expansion.

Sub-Saharan Africa recorded double-digit organic growth and countries like Japan, South Korea and Oceania combined saw almost flat organic growth.

Overall, Nestle reported sales of 84.34 billion CHF (USD 94.04 billion). This was 8.9 per cent lower than 92.56 billion CHF sales of 2019 but was up 3.6 per cent in terms of organic growth.

"Growth was based on strong momentum in the Americas and robust sales development in EMENA (Europe, Middle East and North Africa)," it said.

Commenting on the full-year results, Nestle CEO Mark Schneider said, "2020 was a year of hardship for so many, yet I am inspired by the way it has brought all of us closer together."



In this unprecedented environment, Nestle achieved its third consecutive year of improvement in organic growth, profitability and return on invested capital.

"The global pandemic did not slow us down. Our nutrition expertise, digital capabilities, decentralized structure and innovation engine allowed us to adapt quickly to changing consumer behaviours and trends.

"We advanced our portfolio transformation, continued to build Nestl Health Science into a nutrition powerhouse and expanded our presence in direct-to-consumer businesses," he said.

Over the outlook for 2021, Nestle said it expects continued increase in organic sales growth towards a mid-single-digit rate, underlying trading operating profit margin with continued moderate improvement and increased capital efficiency.

Earlier, this week, Nestle India had declared its result for 2020.

Nestle India's net profit was up 5.79 per cent to Rs 2,082.43 crore as against Rs 1,968.44 crore a year before.

Net sales stood at Rs 13,290.16 crore, up 8.09 per cent from Rs 12,295.27 crore in 2019.

(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.)

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First Texans lost their power. Now, theyre losing their potable water.

After enduring multiple days of freezing temperatures and Texans dripping faucets to prevent frozen pipes from bursting, cities across the state warned residents on Wednesday that water levels are dangerously low and may be unsafe to drink. Theyre asking Texans to boil tap water for drinking, cooking, brushing their teeth and for making ice  as residents have been struggling to maintain power and heat while an unprecedented winter storm whips across the state. Activities such as showering and doing laundry are safe, but cities under water boil notices are asking people to conserve water if at all possible.

THE NEXT FEW DAYS: Millions of Houstonians will remain powerless in days to come, Houston city officials say

Approximately 420 public water systems in 120 Texas counties have reported disruptions in service, affecting more than 8 million people, according to a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality spokesperson, as of Wednesday afternoon.

Water pressure is very low. Please do not run water to keep pipes from bursting, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner tweeted Wednesday morning. Turn off water if pipes have burst. Please contact us if you dont know how to turn off water. Be conservative on water usage today. It is needed for hospitals and fires.

Austin Mayor Steve Adler on Wednesday afternoon acknowledged that dripping faucets was the correct guidance earlier this week, but now its in peoples best interest to shift gears and conserve water. The city is also calling for volunteers who can help transport people from their homes to warming centers.

At a Wednesday press conference, Toby Baker, TCEQ executive director, said water quality issues were related to the lack of electricity, frozen and broken water lines, and people dripping faucets so much that it was causing water lower pressure. Baker also said it will take testing to demonstrate that the water is safe before boil notices can be lifted. There are only 135 labs in the state that do that sampling, he said, which means the boil notices could linger.

Its not clear when water supplies will be replenished, but energy constraints often have impact on the water system because the water system requires energy for treatment and pumping, said Michael Webber, an energy resources professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

But because freezing temperatures are expected to persist throughout the week, bursting pipes could still be a risk, Webber said.

That temperatures will drop below freezing again introduces the risk that water will freeze in pipes which can block the flow of water or damage the pipes, Webber said.

The loss of drinking water is a devastating blow to Texans who are still suffering from power losses in freezing temperatures.

Madie Leon Riley, a Pflugerville resident who has been without water since Monday morning, said she doesnt know when her faucet will be able to turn back on again  or when her toilet will be able to flush without melting top snow in it to keep water flow moving. Her mother and husband, who are currently living with her, are also boiling snow as back-up drinking water.

No grocery stores are open in our area so theres no chance for restock even if you are one of the very few with a car that can make it the miles it would take to get water, Riley, a 27-year-old writer, told The Texas Tribune.

One Fort Worth resident reported a small pencil-width stream of water at their house. A Houston-area woman who lives near the Medical Center got water back for about an hour yesterday after, but said it was brown and undrinkable. A resident in San Antonio said their water froze even after running their taps.

On Tuesday, more than 200,000 residents of northern Fort Worth, as well as people in Keller, Southlake, Roanoke and other nearby communities were told to boil their water as power outages affected water treatment plants, the Dallas Morning News reported.

On the same day, several Houston-area municipalities, including the Pearland, Katy and Greatwood-Sugarland areas, have also issued the same instructions to their customers, the Houston Chronicle reported.

By mid-day Wednesday, Austin water was encouraging residents in southern parts of the city to boil water before drinking it  but maintained theres not detected contaminants in the water we are providing.

#AustinWater is asking customers in southwest #Austin and Lost Creek neighborhood to boil their water prior to using it for drinking or cooking, until further notice, Austin Water tweeted. This boil water notice is currently in specific areas and is a precautionary measure to ensure the health and safety of our customers.
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Did you ever hear the song that begins with the words, We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord? The lyrics are very simple, with the repeated refrain, And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love, Yeah they'll know we are Christians by our love. Today, we might want to change that refrain to they'll know we are Christians by our hate, by our hate. We have become terribly disfigured in recent years, in many ways, the opposite of Gods intent. How on earth did this happen?

If you dont believe me, visit some of our personal, Bible-affirming, Jesus-believing, social media pages, where we savage each other and attack each other and spread hearsay and even lies about one another with reckless abandon. They are hate-filled pages, pages filled with venom and poison, yet pages that ultimately reflect what is in our own hearts. I ask again: how on earth did this happen?

To give one recent, case in point, when my younger colleague Jeremiah Johnson publicly apologized for wrongly prophesying Trumps reelection, he received a torrent of hate mail of the basest sort, almost all of it from professing Christians.

This is the fruit of the Spirit? This is the result of our fellowship with God? This is what happens when we are changed into the likeness of Jesus? Obviously not.

Yet I see this every day. We are vile. We are vicious. We are mean-spirited. We treat each other with disrespect and disdain. There is little honor. Little humility. Little grace.

Perhaps worse still, we have been taught to hate and we have found justification for our hatred. After all, the Democrats (or Republicans or whatever people have our ire at the moment) are downright demons. They are Satan incarnate. They are pure evil. They deserve nothing but damnation. They are worthy of our ridicule.

To treat them with even a modicum of decency is beneath our high Christian calling, a calling we now demonstrate by our condescending, cruel, mocking, and merciless attitudes. Oh, how holy we have become!

The truth is that we can hate sin without becoming hateful. We can stand against corruption and evil without becoming vile. We can even be righteously indignant without becoming venomous.

Yet we get in the flesh and violate hundreds of scriptural exhortations, all while puffing out our self-righteous chests. This is a stench in Gods nostrils.

At all points, God calls us to speak the truth in love.

At all points, God calls us to exercise self-restraint.

At all points, God calls us to follow the example of Jesus.

Some will say, I agree. We should follow the example of Jesus  the Jesus who overturned the tables of the money changers in the Temple and the Jesus who rebuked the Pharisees in the strongest possible terms. Thats the Jesus I emulate.

Sorry friend, but youre barking up the wrong tree.

First, youre not the unique Son of God, and neither am I. Yet when He overturned the tables in the Temple, He did so as the Son of God, taking action on behalf of His heavenly Father. Where, in Scripture, did He ever tell us to go and do the same? Where, in the Bible, is it recorded that the apostles followed His lead and repeated His acts?

Second, it was the perfect, sinless Messiah who rebuked the Pharisees, men who were highly respected religious leaders of their day. Today, He might be rebuking some of us. Not only so, but He did more than simply rebuke them for their hypocrisy. He also died for their salvation.

When we have that kind of love, the love that is ready and willing to die for those we rebuke, then our words will sound and feel a lot different. That is the kind of love that weeps in secret before it rebukes in public.

Third, Jesus explicitly told us how we are to conduct ourselves, saying this: You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48)

Listen to those words again: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.

Are we living as children of our heavenly Father? Whose image and likeness do we bear?

Paul wrote, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law (Galatians 5:22-24). What kind of fruit are we bearing?

We should analyze everything we post or text or say against this grid. Is it in harmony with the fruit of the Spirit? Do our words and attitudes reflect true love? Or do they reflect the works of the flesh, which include hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions (Galatians 5:20, CSB)?

According to Paul, Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a).

One of my colleagues, the leader of a major, international media ministry, said that everywhere he has traveled in the United States, he has seen Christians angry and divided over politics.

Is that what has infected us? Have we become so consumed with partisan politics to the point that our Christian identity is now completely intertwined with a fleshly, angry, divisive, and accusative spirit  the very spirit of worldly politics?

Or does the problem run deeper still? Could it also be that we have drifted from our first love with the Lord, drifted from intimacy with Him, drifted from the beauty and wonder of the cross, drifted from fellowship with the Spirit, drifted from being transformed by the Word?

Peter exhorted, Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart (1 Peter 1:22).

John wrote, We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him (1 John 3:14-15).

Are we getting the message?

Jacob (James) added this: Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless.

Does that describe us?

Shortly before His crucifixion, Jesus said, By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another (John 13:35).

Today, we are better known for our hate than for our love.

It is high time  no, it is way past time  for some deep, serious soul-searching and repentance. It is time for radical change. May we learn to love again.
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New Delhi:

The decision to part ways with the RJD and join hands with the BJP was taken in the interest of Bihar and will ensure development and justice for the state, Nitish Kumar on Thursday said after being sworn in as the Chief Minister.

Kumar resigned the post last night after a fall out with the alliance partner RJD over corruption charges against Lalu Yadav and some of his family members, including son Tejashwi,who was the then deputy CM.

"Whatever decision we have taken will be in the interest of Bihar and of its people. It will ensure development and justice. It will also ensure progress. This is a collective decision. I ensure that our commitment is towards the people of Bihar," Nitish Kumar told reporters.

Kumar was worn in as the chief minister of the state along side senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, who will be his deputy in the new government, at the Raj Bhawan in Patna.

Also Read: PM Modi congratulates Nitish Kumar on being sworn in as Bihar CM

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Thirty years ago, Albany dedicated a monument for Sgt. Henry Johnson in Washington Park at Willet Street and Madison Avenue.

In 2015, Johnson, an African American World War I hero, was posthumously awarded the nation's highest military honor - the Medal of Honor - in a White House ceremony.

Almost 100 years before, in 1918, Johnson was presented the French Croix de Guerre medal for bravery. It took much longer for him to receive recognition from the U.S. military. He was awarded a Purple Heart, given to those who have been injured or killed in service, in 1996 and the Distinguished Service Cross in 2002.

In his remarks, President Barack Obama acknowledged the oversight: "It's never too late to say thank you."

Obama recounted Johnson's uncommon battlefield bravery. Johnson was part of the first Black unit of the U.S. Army to engage in combat in World War I. As a member of the 369th Infantry Regiment, the Harlem Hellfighters, Johnson was on watch in the Argonne Forest in northeastern France on May 14, 1918, when he fought off a German raid in hand-to-hand combat, killing multiple German soldiers and rescuing a fellow soldier while being severely wounded.

Johnson is "one of the five bravest American soldiers in the war," wrote Theodore Roosevelt Jr. in his book "Rank and File: True Stories of the Great War."

Times Union archive photos reflect the decades-long battle for Johnson to receive full military honors from his country.

The owner of a faulty amusement park ride that killed an eight-year old girl in Adelaide struggled to find a consultant willing to issue safety certification.

Adelene Leong visited the Royal Adelaide Show on September 12, 2014 while on holiday from Malaysia.

She slipped out of restraints, which suffered from serious design faults, and was flung from the Airmaxx 360 ride in excess of 100km/h before landing on the ground headfirst, the court heard.

Eight-year-old Adelene Leong (pictured) visited the Royal Adelaide Show on September 12, 2014 and slipped out of the restraints from the Airmaxx 360 ride

The Airmaxx 360 ride (pictured) was the first of its kind to be imported into Australia in 2013, but did not undergo a required design registration process

C J And Sons Amusement director Jenny-Lee Sullivan testified via video link on the second day of the inquest into the death of Adelene.

Ms Sullivan was waiting to hear from engineering consultant Brian Bradley, now deceased, who had been unable to certify pressure vessels on the ride to Australian standards.

Ms Sullivan said she had lost patience and 'did my own research', approaching an alternative option in Ian Anderson in late 2013.

'He told me [the pressure valves] were fine,' she told the Adelaide Coroners Court on Thursday. 'He put a sticker on it.'

In a statement to the court, Mr Anderson denied he had certified the ride and claimed Ms Sullivan believed he was being 'pedantic'.

'[I] told her I couldn't certify the air vessels because there was a lack of documentation,' he said.

Counsel assisting the coroner Sally Giles suggested the sticker was related to the separate process of item renewal.

Ms Sullivan said that Mr Bradley had been unhappy with her approach to Mr Anderson, and so she stopped pursuing the matter and was subsequently waiting for Mr Bradley to resolve the registration, while the ride continued to tour Australia.

C J And Sons Amusement director Jenny-Lee Sullivan was waiting to hear from engineering consultant Brian Bradley, now deceased, who had been unable to certify pressure vessels on the ride (pictured) to Australian standards, the coroners court heard

Police and safety officers inspect the Airmaxx 360 ride at the Royal Adelaide Show in Adelaide on September 12, 2014

Prior to the Royal Adelaide Show accident the ride was linked to 22 injuries at the Royal Melbourne Show in 2013.

Ms Sullivan was also questioned on the Victorian address she used to undertake plant registration in Victoria, where rides can undergo the process via an easier online process.

She was uncertain what address she used but suggested it was her sister's.

The court heard that Mr Bradley had sent Ms Sullivan an application to apply for design registration in NSW, where she had bought a home.

Ms Giles asked why Mr Bradley had sent her NSW documentation when she had told the court that he had recommended she undertake plant certification in Victoria.

Ms Sullivan said she did not ask.

The inquest continues.
South Carolina Rep. David Hiott, R-Pickens, says a prayer as the House votes on a bill that would ban most abortions in the state in Columbia, S.C., on Feb. 17, 2021. (Jeffrey Collins/AP Photo)

SC Lawmakers Pass Fetal Heartbeat Bill 7935, Outlawing Most Abortions

South Carolina lawmakers passed a fetal heartbeat bill on Wednesday that will ban most abortions in the state after the pregnancy is about six weeks in.

The legislation passed 7935 votes in favor in the Republican majority House who have gained three seats during the elections last year. Many officials considered the South Carolina Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act a top priority.

Gov. Henry McMaster repeatedly backed the abortion ban as one of his biggest focuses since being sworn-in to office in 2017.

McMaster has promised to sign the bill as soon as he can and after the House will give it a final procedural vote on Thursday, which is unlikely to change the outcome.

Were closer than weve ever been to passing into law the most comprehensive pro-life legislation our state has ever seen, McMaster tweeted in January. During a press conference Wednesday, the governor called the bill one of the most pro-life in the country.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster speaks to a crowd during an election night party for Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in Columbia, S.C., on Nov. 3, 2020. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

The new bill will require doctors to use ultrasound on a pregnant woman to try and find a detectable fetal heartbeat before the abortion can continue, according to a statement from the South Carolina General Assembly.

If a heartbeat is detected, the abortion can only be performed if the health of the mother is at riskor in case of rape, incest, or fatal fetal anomalies that could lead to the infants death.

The bill will not punish a pregnant woman for having an illegal abortion but the person who performed the abortion could be charged with a felony, sentenced up to two years, and fined $10,000 if found guilty.

South Carolina senators have over the years reintroduced multiple bills seeking to ban abortions in the state and potentially make it a crime to get one.

Rep. Melissa Lackey Oremus, R-Aiken, speaks in favor of an abortion bill as it is debated in Columbia, S.C., on Feb. 17, 2021. (Jeffrey Collins/AP photo)

From the moment life begins, it should be protected, as an inalienable right under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, Republican Sen. Richard Cash said. I do believe in a moral absolute of right and wrong, and the shedding of innocent blood is a moral evil we need to turn away from.

Republican Rep. David Hiott of Pickens said the bill is the greatest pro-life bill this state has ever passed. Many state senators spoke in favor of the legislation and also cheered after the vote.

Most House Democrats walked out in protest of the bill shortly after Rep. Todd Rutherford from Richland shared his viewpoint, comparing the fetal heartbeat bill with lives lost from the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic and the opioid crisis, calling Republican lawmakers hypocritical for not mandating masks.

South Carolina Democrats walkout as an abortion bill is debated in Columbia, S.C., on Feb. 17, 2021. (Jeffrey Collins/AP Photo)

One of the speakers yesterday said 8,000 people in this state have died because of COVID-19. And yet in this very body, we serve with people that believe that the government should not make people wear masks, Rutherford said.

The Democratic caucus is not going to participate in this farce of a vote about pretend life, the Democratic lawmaker continued. We care about life, we care about people eating, people not dying because they cant get vaccines, people not dying because they cant get tests.

We dont believe that life begins when science says it does not, he added. We more firmly believe that we are here to take care of people.

Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter of Orangeburg, a Democrat and the Houses longest-serving member at 29 years criticized the General Assembly for making the abortion bill a priority over education, several COVID-19 bills.

The government not having any business mandating face masks sounds to me real close to the government not having any business telling a woman what to do with her body, Cobb-Hunter said.

Two Democrats voted in favor of the ban and two Republicans voted against it.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

From NTD News
By Donald Kirk





The great divide in the U.S. between far right and far left parallels debates around the world between political and ideological extremes, but there's one big difference. The main provocateur of the most violent protest in the U.S. remains at large if still under fire.



It's disturbing to think that Donald Trump has such leverage over the Republican Party that most of its members were against finding him guilty in the Senate impeachment trial that acquitted him of inciting the assault on the Capitol building in Washington on Jan. 6, as the Congress was about to certify the 2020 election of Joe Biden as president.
English French

PRESS RELEASE  PARIS, 18/02/2021

New governance and senior executive appointments at the Bouygues group

The Bouygues Board of Directors at its meeting of 17 February 2021 decided, on a proposal from Martin Bouygues and after consulting the Selection and Remuneration Committee, to change the Groups governance and make a number of senior executive appointments.

As of 17 February 2021, the functions of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer will be separate.

Martin Bouygues will be the Chairman of the Bouygues group. As such, he will continue to chair Board meetings, attend meetings relating to Group strategy and represent Bouygues in its relations with public authorities, major customers and partners. He will also carry out specific duties assigned to him by the Board.



Olivier Roussat, previously Deputy CEO, is appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Bouygues group. In his new position he will exercise executive power over Bouygues SA and oversee and coordinate the five business segments. As such, he will chair the Group Management Committee.

Olivier Roussat, 56, is a graduate of INSA  Lyon. He joined Bouygues Telecom on its foundation in 1995, having begun his career at IBM. He became head of network operations in 2003, then in 2007 took charge of the performance and technology unit before being appointed Chief Executive Officer. He was appointed Chairman and

Chief Executive Officer of Bouygues Telecom in 2013 and joined Bouygues SA in 2016 as Deputy CEO of the Bouygues group.

Two new Deputy CEOs have been appointed to assist him in his duties:

Edward Bouygues, Director of Strategy at Bouygues Telecom, joins Bouygues SA with responsibility for telecoms development, CSR and innovation for the Group. He will also be appointed Chairman of Bouygues Europe, the Brussels-based entity which represents Bouygues interests within the European Union. Alongside his functions at Bouygues SA, Edward Bouygues will devote part of his time to Bouygues Telecom where he will hold the position of Executive Vice-President with responsibility for development.

Edward Bouygues, 36, is a graduate of ESSCA, Angers, and holds an MBA from the London Business School. He joined the Group in 2009 as a works supervisor at Bouygues Batiment Ile-de-France and subsequently worked in marketing at Bouygues Construction. After joining Bouygues Telecom in 2014 as Head of Marketing, he was appointed CEO of RCBT (the Bouygues Telecom store network) in 2017, then Director of Strategy in 2019. Edward Bouygues has been a member of the Bouygues Board of Directors since 2016. In his new position, he joins the Group Management Committee.



Pascal Grange, 59, Senior Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer since 1 October 2019 and a member of the Group Management Committee, is appointed Deputy CEO. He will continue to serve as Chief Financial Officer of the Bouygues group.

Pascal Grange has a masters in management, a masters in law and a DESS postgraduate diploma in finance from Universite Paris Dauphine. He joined the Bouygues group in 1986. He has held numerous administrative and financial positions at Bouygues, Screg and Saur, then at Bouygues Construction, where he was

Deputy CEO from 2008 to 2019.

Following the Board of Directors meeting of 17 February 2021, Martin Bouygues said:

The Bouygues group will soon celebrate its 70th birthday. It has been forged by a strong and distinctive culture and has only had two Chairmen and CEOs since its foundation. To meet the challenges we face, whether economic, climate-related, social or digital, we wanted to ensure that Bouygues has the most effective governance. The arrival of a new generation of senior executives, acknowledged for their professional skills, trained within the Group and perfectly familiar with its culture, is entirely consistent with the tradition at Bouygues which, since its foundation, has always chosen its leaders from within the Group in order to secure its future.

About Bouygues

Bouygues is a diversified services group operating in over 80 countries with 129,000 employees all working to make life better every day. Its business activities in construction (Bouygues Construction,

Bouygues Immobilier, Colas), media (TF1) and telecoms (Bouygues Telecom) are able to drive growth since they all satisfy constantly changing and essential needs.

PRESS CONTACT:

presse@bouygues.com  Tel.: +33 (0)1 44 20 12 01

BOUYGUES SA  32 avenue Hoche  75378 Paris CEDEX 08  bouygues.com

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Falun Gong Practitioner Dies After Becoming Comatose in Chinese Prison

A Falun Gong practitioner has died in China after falling into a coma during incarceration, the most recent verified victim of the Chinese regimes relentless persecution of the faith.

Yao Xinren, from Chinas eastern province of Shandong, was arrested in July 2019 at his workplace. He suffered a brain hemorrhage in April 2020 while being held at the Zhangjiagou Detention Center and had to undergo brain surgery at the local Longkou Peoples Hospital, according to Minghui.org, a U.S.-based website dedicated to tracking the persecution of Falun Gong in China.

He fell into a coma following the surgery and remained in the intensive care unit. On Feb. 4, the citys domestic security officers and staff members of the local court withdrew Yaos life support without seeking permission from his family. They ordered that he be sent to a senior care facility called Dongjiang County Home for the Aged, despite the facility not having any capacity for professional medical treatment.

Falun Gong practitioner Yao Xiren at the ICU care unit at Longkou Hospital in Longkou city, Shandong Province, China. (Courtesy of Minghui.org)

Yao died a week later on Feb. 11, on the eve of the Lunar New Year holiday.

His story is the latest reminder of the harsh conditions millions of believers currently face in China.

Falun Gong, a spiritual practice consisting of moral teachings based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance and a set of meditative exercises, was introduced to the Chinese public in 1992 and drew a following of 70 million to 100 million by the end of the decade.

Concerned that Falun Gongs popularity would challenge its rule, the Chinese Communist Party began a systematic campaign targeting the practice in July 1999, throwing adherents into jail, labor camps, and other facilities, where they are often tortured. Minghui.org has verified that thousands of victims like Yao have died under the persecution, but its thought that the true death toll is far higher.

A table showing the number of Falun Gong practitioners arrested or harassed in January 2021. (Courtesy of Minghui.org)

At the age of 51, Yao was described as having a tall and sturdy build, according to the Minghui report. He had previously worked at the state-owned Liangjia Coal Mine in Shandongs Longkou city, but lost his job due to the persecution. He had to take on odd jobs to support his son in graduate school.

While handing out Falun Gong flyers in 2003, Yao was arrested and later sentenced to four years in prison. Local authorities paraded him and a few other arrested adherents through the streets in an attempt to humiliate them, according to the testimony from another local Falun Gong practitioner who was also subjected to the mistreatment.

Since his 2019 arrest, local police officers held him without trial and constantly monitored the lawyer that his family hired for him. A court hearing initially scheduled for February 2020 was called off due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

When Yaos wife saw his bandaged head on April 24, 2020, after his brain surgery, she cried and demanded an explanation from the local police chief Guo Fu, but received no clear answers.

Police monitoring the ICU unit where Falun Gong practitioner Yao Xinren was being treated, in Longkou city, Shandong Province, China. (Courtesy of Minghui.org)

Despite Yao being in an unconscious state, multiple officers stood watch outside his ICU unit day and night to take note of any visitors, telling the passersby that they were watching a criminal.

During a May 2020 meeting with Longkou court officials, a family member asked them, Yao Xinren was perfectly fine before. How did he become like this? Was it a result of a beating?, according to the Minghui.org report.

The police declined the familys request for surveillance footage at the detention center, saying they didnt have clearance from a higher police bureau.

Chinese authorities have shown no signs of easing the persecution amid the ongoing pandemic. In 2020, more than 15,000 Falun Gong practitioners experienced arrests or some form of harassment from police, with nearly 3,600 cases of house raids. Arrests in January alone totaled 482 across 155 cities, including dozens of adherents in their 70s or older.
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OTTAWA  Federal cabinet minister Dan Vandal said he agrees with critics that his governments national housing strategy isnt moving fast enough for the chronic needs of Indigenous people in Winnipeg.

OTTAWA  Federal cabinet minister Dan Vandal said he agrees with critics that his governments national housing strategy isnt moving fast enough for the chronic needs of Indigenous people in Winnipeg.

"We have to move quicker on that; I will admit that," the Saint BonifaceSaint Vital MP told the Free Press.

"Trying to find the partnerships and working with urban Indigenous people has to be a priority; certainly, we need to a better job."

Vandals comments come within a week of both a tragic death at a homeless encampment in Winnipeg, and a federal report suggesting the Liberals' housing plan had done little to get affordable units built in the Manitoba capital.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer found Winnipeg has the largest number of Indigenous people who are inadequately housed in the country, with 9,000 homes either overcrowded, unaffordable or in major disrepair.

The report, which did not include First Nations reserves, found a yawning gap between urban Indigenous people and other Canadians, which could cost an annual $1.4 billion to fix.

In Manitoba, just 663 housing units are dedicated to low-income Indigenous people  none were built in the last fiscal year, the report found, and most of the billions in earmarked funding wont flow until years later.

The PBO also found since the housing strategy launched in 2017, only 143 affordable units had been earmarked in Manitoba, including for non-Indigenous people, and not all had been built.

Vandal noted his government launched an initiative last fall to retrofit abandoned buildings into affordable housing.

He pointed out the Liberals allocated separate pots of money for First Nations, Metis and Inuit groups  however, they have yet to launch a promised plan for urban Indigenous housing.

"It's got to be a real community effort to close that gap," said Vandal, who also serves as minister of northern affairs. "There are a lot of good organizations in Winnipeg that are doing just that."

The Liberal MP said homeless people also need help with poverty, addictions and mental health issues  socials ills the government has tried to address.

"We have to understand that homelessness is an extremely complex issue dealing with trauma caused by colonization, in large part," Vandal said.

To him, the rub is connecting the many Winnipeg groups with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., and other federal and provincial agencies. "I'm the first to say that we need to do a better job connecting."

Vandal also expressed condolences for a Tuesday death that occurred after fire broke out at a Higgins Avenue homeless camp.

That day, New Democrat MP Leah Gazan joined four NDP MLAs and three Winnipeg city councilors in letter to the federal Liberals, saying the PBO report showed the city needs more housing funds.

On Wednesday, Gazan called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to immediately put up funding for what she called Winnipegs housing crisis.

"This governments failure to uphold the right to affordable, accessible, social housing is costing lives," she said via a video connection.

Trudeau replied in the Commons his government has boosted spending for addictions and local housing programs.

"We have stepped up significantly," the prime minister said.

"We are there as a partner, to support vulnerable Canadians through this difficult time, and into the coming years."

dylan.robertson@freepress.mb.ca
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Iconic restaurant chain Chargrill Charlie's has opened its new flagship store at an equally iconic location - Sydney's Bondi Beach.

At the back of the diner on Curlewis Street, just one block from the world-famous beachfront, is an old school milk bar that conjures childhood memories of summers past.

The milk bar can be accessed through a separate window on Gould Street where customers can order $2 soft serve ice cream, $8.90 thickshakes and limited-edition menu items that will be announced throughout the year.

The new store will also serve up Chargrill Charlie's signature dishes including hero chargrilled chicken, chicken schnitzels, seasonal salads, and hot chips, as well as classic desserts like homemade apple pie.

At the back of the diner just one block from world-famous Bondi Beach is an old school milk bar (pictured) that conjures childhood memories of summers past

Customers can order $2 soft serve ice cream (left) along with Chargrill Charlie's signature dishes (right)

For the rest of February, the family-run business - which is widely regarded as the Harbour City's leading chicken shop - will treat customers to surprises such as free soft serve and picnic pack giveaways.

Terry towelling T-shirts and bucket hats will also be up for grabs, while an in-store DJ will be spinning tunes from local artists each weekend until the end of summer.

Decked out in beachy, bohemian decor and cane furniture, the new store is a perfect representation of the laidback Bondi lifestyle.

Store partner Greg Cohen said opening an outlet beside the beach is a lifelong dream come true.

The milk bar can be accessed through a separate window on Gould Street (pictured)

On the menu is soft serve in a range of flavours as well as milkshakes and thickshakes (pictured)

'The anticipation and support from the local community as the store has been built has been extraordinary to watch,' Mr Cohen said.

'We're so excited to be opening during summer and can't wait to welcome family and friends as they walk off the beach and into our doors to create lasting memories together over good food.'

The Bondi opening is the first of two store launches slated for early 2021, with Beecroft on the Upper North Shore set to follow in the coming weeks.

For the rest of February, the family-run business will treat customers to surprises such as free terry towelling T-shirts (left) and bucket hats (right)

The Bondi opening is the first of two store launches slated for early 2021, with Beecroft on the Upper North Shore set to follow in the coming weeks

Chargrill Charlie's now operates 17 stores across Sydney and Melbourne, with locations including Annandale, Coogee, Dee Why, Drummoyne, Mona Vale, Mosman, Randwick and Woollahra.

The Coogee store opened its doors in November with a retro menu complete with original prices from 1989.

The chicken chain first first launched more than 30 years ago on the golden shores of Coogee Beach in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

Fast forward three decades and the business turned back the clock to where it all began, offering chooks from as little as $3.90.
Russian man narrowly misses Heroines Monument in early morning accident

PHUKET: A Russian man escaped with no injuries early this morning (Feb 18) at all after his car ploughed through the barrier surrounding the Heroines Monument, narrowly missing the monument itself.

accidentstransportSafety

By Eakkapop Thongtub

Thursday 18 February 2021, 11:49AM

Maj Niwat Thimkhet of the Thalang Police was called to the scene at about 00:20am.

Police together with Kusoldharm rescue workers arrived to find the Russian mans black Bangkok-registered Toyota Camry with damage on the far side of the monument.

Russian national Albert Kovalenko, 37, was still at the scene and presented himself as the driver of the car.

Footage from the CCTV overlooking the monument showed that Mr Kovalenko was driving at speed from Srisoonthorn Rd when the car ploughed through the poles mounted around the monument.

The car crossed the raised area, narrowly missed the monument, and came to a halt after crashing through barrier poles on the far side.

Maj Niwat told The Phuket News that Mr Kovalenko did not appear drunk, and hence did not have him tested for alcohol.

As for the charge, we have not yet decided what charge he will face as we have to question him more, Maj Niwat said.

However, as he did not hurt anyone, the charge at this stage is likely to be reckless driving causing damage to other peoples property, he added.
In total, the individual assistance payments will cost the state nearly $3.7 billion, according to an estimate by the state's Department of Finance.

The deal also includes $2 billion in aid for small businesses. Newsom had originally proposed $575 million for the program, which provides grants up to $25,000 for businesses hurt by the coronavirus.

"People are hungry and hurting, and businesses our communities have loved for decades are at risk of closing their doors," Senate President pro Tem Toni Atkins said in a statement. "We are at a critical moment, and I'm proud we were able to come together to get Californians some needed relief."

Under the deal, businesses that received loans through the federal Paycheck Protection Plan or the Economic Injury Disaster Loan program can deduct up to $150,000 in expenses covered by those loans on their state taxes.

The deal also includes:

 Fee waivers for 59,000 restaurants and bars licensed to serve alcohol and more than 600,000 licensed barbers and cosmetologists

 $24 million to house agricultural workers who need to quarantine away from their families

 $35 million for food banks and diapers
For the seaside sparrow  a fleet brown bird that nests amid swaying cordgrasses in southern salt marshes  dangers come from all angles.

Surging tides can swamp nests laid too low, and a bevy of predators wait to snatch eggs from nests too high.

But researcher Corina Newsome recently published a paper on a wholly different kind of threat. She recorded a fish launching into a flooded nest and pulling an hours-old sparrow hatchling down to a watery death.

The attack unfolded during a year of record-breaking high tides in the Southeast. It's a novel collision between predator and prey, as climate change degrades habitat and pushes species closer together.

Newsome, a graduate student at Georgia Southern University, said she screamed when she spotted the attack amid hundreds of hours of blurry nest footage.

"I was sending videos to everybody," she said. "I was like, 'You're not going to believe what I'm seeing.' "

Such an encounter was not seen before in scientific literature. Newsome captured it on video in 2019 as she monitored 22 different sparrow nests in the marshes of Brunswick, Ga. Her long-term aim is to glean lessons for wildlife managers on how to protect the birds from predators.

The Wilson Journal of Ornithology published the resulting paper earlier in February.

Robert J. Cooper, a University of Georgia ornithologist uninvolved with the publication, said the paper is an important contribution. While it's easy for ecologists to hypothesize such a face-off, he said, there's no certainty unless it's actually observed.

Observations like Newsome's "add to a growing body of knowledge, in this case, about the songbirds that have to run this gauntlet between all these different nest predators," Cooper said.

The seaside sparrow is a marsh specialist, a bird so adapted to intertidal conditions that it will place nests higher after an old one is flooded by a swell. The sub-species at issue in the paper, the MacGillivrays seaside sparrow, nests among spartina from South Carolina to Florida. It's a bird of conservation concern and climate change threatens its habitat. A recent attempt to list this sparrow as endangered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was unsuccessful.

The sparrow's relatively short nesting season also helps these birds produce offspring between major tides, said Elizabeth Hunter, a co-author on the paper and Newsome's advisor at Georgia Southern. Kory Evans, now an assistant professor at Rice University in Houston, also co-authored.

All coastal bird hatchlings are vulnerable to attack if they fall out of a nest into the water. That's why, for example, alligators are prone to linger under trees with wood stork rookeries, Hunter said. But a fish entering a nest of its own accord is new.

It's possible the scenario was made more likely by the historic tidal flooding of 2019. In Charleston, there were a record-smashing 89 tidal flooding events that year. Similar flooding was persistent across the rest of the Southeast, too. In Newsome's field work, more than a third of the nests she videotaped ended up underwater.

"It's not like this sort of thing did not happen before we really started seeing the effects of climate change, but I think it's likely to happen more frequently now, with increasing sea levels and higher average high tides," Cooper said of the fish attack.

There are other stresses, too. Roads and causeways built in marsh might make it easier for mammalian predators to reach these nests, Hunter said. The territorial marsh wren was spotted poking holes in sparrow eggs, something Newsome plans to publish in another paper. And predation should become more intense in the marshes as sea rise drowns cordgrass.

Marsh die-off leaves less nesting space and a more concentrated area for attackers like raccoons to prowl, Cooper said.

On the poor-quality field video that Newsome described as "like Dunkin Donuts security cameras," it was easy to make out the fact that a fish pulled down a chick that had managed to float on top of the floodwater. It wasn't immediately clear what species had done the deed.

The culprit turned out to be the lowly mummichog, a small, ubiquitous fish that survives well in challenging environments, including one experiment where the fish were sent into space. Mummichogs are often used as bait fish and are present year-round in South Carolina's estuaries and tidal creeks.

"We would never have known had we not spied on the seaside sparrow nests," Newsome said.
Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump gather at the west entrance of the Capitol during a "Stop the Steal" protest outside of the Capitol building in Washington D.C. U.S. January 6, 2021. REUTERS/Stephanie Keith/File Photo

A UCLA student with a history of far-right online activity was charged with storming the Capitol.

Federal agents helped arrest 22-year-old Christian Secor with the help of tipsters.

One tipster indicated that Secor threw away his phone and bragged he wouldn't get caught.

Visit the Business section of Insider for more stories.

Christian Secor, a UCLA student who espoused far-right and white supremacist views, was charged by federal authorities for his role in storming the Capitol on January 6.

According to court documents, tipsters shared information about Secor, telling the FBI that Secor had gotten rid of his phone, moved into his mother's basement, and bragged that he wouldn't get caught.

In total, 11 people helped identify Secor, 22, who live-streamed the breach of the Capitol and was pictured sitting at Pence's dais during the siege.

Federal authorities in DC charged Secor with assaulting, resisting, or impeding a police officer; violent entry and remaining on restricted grounds; civil disorder; and obstructing an official proceeding.

On Tuesday, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller told the Los Angeles Times that federal agents arrested Secor at his Costa Mesa home.

Federal investigators stated that Secor founded an unofficial club called "America First Bruins" while attending UCLA.

According to the Daily Bruin, Secor had been active with the Bruin Republicans as recently as February 2020, which is when the conservative group stated that Secor was banned for "inappropriate behavior."

"What I can tell you is that UCLA believes the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol was an attack on our democracy," Bill Kisliuk, the UCLA director of media relations, said in a statement. "As an institution, UCLA is committed to mutual respect, making decisions based on evidence and using rational debate - not physical violence."

According to the affidavit, Secor's hateful views towards immigrants and Jews were well-documented by student groups and on his social media during his time on campus. On Twitter, he lauded the 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, and called fascism "epic."

Story continues

In photos and videos taken during the insurrection, Secor was seen carrying a blue "America First," flag.

Secor also live-streamed from the Capitol on January 6 under the moniker Scuffed Elliot Rodger - a reference to a 22-year-old who killed seven people at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014.

"As a result of Secor and others pushing on the double doors, the doors opened and dozens of additional rioters flooded into the building," the affidavit said. "The Capitol Police officers were shoved by the crowd, at times trapped between the doors and the crowd, and eventually pushed out of the way of the oncoming mob."

According to court documents, FBI agents had Secor under surveillance from January 25-28 before detaining him.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Not too long ago, Prabhas impressed his countless fans and followers with the first glimpse of Radhe Shyam. Featuring the Rebel Star and the leading lady Pooja Hegde, the glimpse was unveiled on February 14, 2021, coinciding with Valentine's Day. Though the audiences were highly impressed with the lead actors' sizzling chemistry and Prabhas' romantic avatar, what attracted the attention of the netizens is the train set shown in the sequences.

If reports are to be believed, the railway station sequences were earlier scheduled to be shot in Italy, however, the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases forced the makers to chalk out an alternative plan. Post the cast and crew's return from Italy, the art director of Radhe Shyam Raveendar Reddy along with his team of 250 members, recreated the train set which cost a whopping Rs 1.6 crore.

Though there is no official clarification regarding how much time was taken to erect the set, the team indeed did complete justice to the glimpse and truly deserves a big applause for their dedication. Notably, the set was recreated in Annapurna Studios.

Speaking about the film, Radhe Shyam directed by Radha Krishna Kumar will have a massive release on July 30, 2021, in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. Jointly produced by UV Creations, Bhushan Kumar, Vamsi and Pramod, the romantic thriller will also feature Jayaram, Sachin Khedekar, Bhagyashree, Priyadarshi, Murali Sharma, Sasha Chettri and Kunaal Roy Kapur in key roles.

Renowned music composer Justin Prabhakaran is composing music for the film's Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam version while Mithoon and Manan Bharadwaj will be scoring songs for Radhe Shyam's Hindi version. Manoj Paramahamsa is the director of photography.

Also Read: Pooja Hegde Is Now A Proud Owner Of A Swanky 3BHK Apartment In Bandra

Also Read: Radhe Shyam Glimpse Is Out: Prabhas And Pooja Hegde Win Hearts With Electrifying Chemistry!
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Spain will make travellers from South Africa and Brazil go into quarantine for at least seven days following their arrival, Health Minister Carolina Darias said on Wednesday, part of efforts to quell more-transmissible variants of the coronavirus.

Those travellers will have to stay at home and not receive visitors for 10 days upon arrival - unless they test negative during their quarantine, Darias specified, in which case they would regain mobility after seven days.

"It is an absolutely necessary and urgent measure to avoid the propagation of those variants in our country," Darias said, as she called on regions not to relax measures. "We need to learn from what happened in previous waves ... because once the numbers go up it's very hard to bring them down again."

After a post-Christmas surge in which daily infections exceeded 40,000, Spain's third wave is receding, with the two-week incidence falling to 350 cases per 100,000 people on Wednesday from 900 at the end of January.

The infection tally rose by 10,829 to 3.1 million on Wednesday, while the death toll increased by 337 to 66,316.

In the next phase of its national inoculation plan, Spain will administer AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine to people aged 45 to 55, the Health Ministry said.

The shot, currently approved for those between 18 and 55, is now being given to people in that age bracket with a high risk of contracting the virus, such as daycare workers and physiotherapists, as well as police, firefighters and teachers.

Most of Spain's highest-priority nursing home residents and staff have already received two shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines, which are now being rolled out to over 80-year-olds and medics.

Those shots will be given next to those over 70 and then over 60, the ministry said, while people under 60 with a high risk of serious COVID-19 will be next.

Authorities have administered 2.7 million doses and 1.1 million people have received a full course in the population of about 47 million.

Several regions have relaxed limits on business opening hours and the hospitality sector, though curfews remain in force across Spain.
Two of the world's leading coronavirus vaccines don't work as well against a more contagious South African variant, though both did manage to neutralize the virus, two new studies show.

But experts pointed out that what level of neutralization is needed to actually protect against the variant is still unclear and these latest studies on the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were done in a lab setting, and not the real world, the Washington Post reported. Both reports were published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

"These are in vitro studies and we don't know if there is a threshold for neutralization that defines protection. In fact, we don't even know that there is a quantitative correlation between antibodies levels and protection," NEJM Editor-in-Chief Eric Rubin said in a podcast on the findings. "It is very concerning that we don't know the clinical significance of these findings."

The two studies used genetically engineered versions of the South African variant against blood samples from vaccinated volunteers, the Post reported. The strain has been identified in many countries, including the United States, along with a variant first identified in Britain that scientists say is also highly contagious.

Moderna's research letter in the NEJM on its COVID-19 vaccine showed a sixfold drop in antibody levels against the South Africa strain, the newspaper said. The shot's efficacy against the variant has not yet been determined.

Pfizer, in testing its vaccine against the variant in a lab, found the shot generated about a third of the antibodies that are normally mobilized with the original strain. The activity, however, appeared to be enough to neutralize the virus.

Still, Pfizer said in a statement that it was "taking the necessary steps to develop and seek authorization" for an updated vaccine or booster shot that could better combat the variant.

In Johannesburg, South African scientists planned to meet Thursday to discuss the Pfizer study, a Health Ministry spokesman told Reuters.

"I do know that our scientists will be meeting to discuss [the study] and they will advise the minister," Popo Maja told the news service. "We are not going to be releasing a statement until advised by our scientists. We will also be guided by the regulator."

Vaccines for all Americans by August: Biden

Every American who wants a coronavirus vaccine should be able to get one by the end of July, President Joe Biden said this week.

His message, delivered during a town hall meeting hosted by CNN, was more optimistic than one he delivered last week when he warned that logistical hurdles would most likely mean that many people would still not have been vaccinated by the end of the summer, The New York Times reported.

Meanwhile, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert, on Tuesday revised his own optimistic estimate from last week, when he predicted the beginning of an "open season" for vaccines by April, the Times reported.

"That timeline will probably be prolonged, maybe into mid-to-late May and early June," he said in an interview with CNN.

At a time when Americans are keen for life to return to normal, Biden tried on Tuesday night to reassure the public.

While the president said he did not want to "overpromise," he said at one point that "by next Christmas I think we'll be in a very different circumstance, God willing, than we are today." At another point he predicted that by the time the next school year starts in September, the nation would be "significantly better off than we are today," the Times reported.

The White House also said Tuesday that states would begin receiving 13.5 million doses each weeka jump of more than 2 million doses.

The increases were welcomed by state officials desperate to inoculate more vulnerable Americans before more contagious variants of virus become dominant, the Times reported.

The Biden administration has been working with Pfizer to get the company more manufacturing supplies through the Defense Production Act, the Times reported. The administration announced last week that Pfizer and Moderna, the other maker of a coronavirus vaccine authorized in the United States, would be able to deliver a total of 400 million doses by the end of May, well ahead of schedule.

The latest boost in supply came partly because Pfizer will now get credit for six doses instead of five per vial, a White House spokesman said, while two-thirds of the boost came from increased output. Officials also now say there is an ample supply of the specialized syringes needed to extract the extra Pfizer dose.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Tuesday that with the latest increase, vaccine deliveries had jumped 57 percent since Biden was inaugurated, the Times reported.

New evidence that British COVID variant could be more deadly

More evidence has emerged that suggests a coronavirus variant already known to spread faster is also likely to be more deadly.

The B.1.1.7 variant, which is thought to have originated in Britain, is already firmly entrenched in America and could soon become the dominant strain, according to Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Speaking on CBS' "Face the Nation" earlier this week, she said "we know now that, or we estimate now that about 4% of disease in this country is related to B.1.1.7," she said. "And we have projections that it may be the dominant strain by the end of March."

As of Thursday, there were 1,277 cases of the British variant found in 42 U.S. states, according to the CDC.

Walensky's warning came on the heels of research released by British scientists that shows B.1.1.7 might be more likely to trigger more lethal cases of COVID-19.

"The overall picture is one of something like a 40 to 60 percent increase in hospitalization risk, and risk of death," Neil Ferguson, an epidemiologist and scientific adviser to the British government, told the Times.

Vaccines already being distributed in the United States are believed to be effective against B.1.1.7, so Walensky said it's imperative that the massive rollout already underway continues. At the same time, and in the face of other new variants, other steps are underway, she told CBS.

Pharmaceutical companies are tweaking their research to fight the B.1.1.7 variant, she said, and the CDC is monitoring how people who've already gotten the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines are faring.

"But we're not waiting for that," she said. "We're doing the science to scale up different vaccines in case we either need bivalent vaccines, that is a vaccine that has two different strains, or booster vaccines. Both are happening."

As of Thursday, more than 56.3 million Americans had been vaccinated, with 72.4 million doses distributed. More than 15.5 million people have gotten their second shot, according to the CDC.

A global scourge

By Thursday, the U.S. coronavirus case count passed 27.8 million while the death toll was over 490,000, according to a Times tally. On Thursday, the top five states for coronavirus infections were: California with over 3.5 million cases; Texas with nearly 2.6 million cases; Florida with over 1.8 million cases; New York with more than 1.5 million cases; and Illinois with over 1.1 million cases.

Curbing the spread of the coronavirus in the rest of the world remains challenging.

In India, the coronavirus case count was more than 10.9 million by Thursday, a Johns Hopkins University tally showed. Brazil had nearly 10 million cases and more than 242,000 deaths as of Thursday, the Hopkins tally showed.

Worldwide, the number of reported infections neared 109.9 million on Thursday, with more than 2.4 million deaths recorded, according to the Hopkins tally.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

More information: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on the Journal information: New England Journal of Medicine The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on the new coronavirus.

Copyright  2020 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
PHILIPSBURG:--- Chief Executive Officer of TELEM Group of Companies Kendall Dupersoy penned a letter to the St. Maarten Communications Union (SMCU) after the employees of the company held a protest action on Wednesday. In his letter Dupersoy asked the SMCU if they enjoy playing the victim, he said whenever he talks to the union they consider it disrespectful.

The contents of the letter are below:

SMCU PRESENT

February 17, 2021

Kendall Dupersoy Executive Division Chief Executive Officer

Reference: CORP-006-2021

Description: Letter sent 12 February 2021 Ref Cost-Cutting Measures

Dear SMCU,

Do you enjoy playing the victim? Every letter is disrespectful, when I talk to you its disrespectful. You know what is disrespectful? When you constantly make untrue statements in the media and to staff when you know the opposite is true. Your constant bullying of staff and management is what is disrespectful. Publishing of private letters in your members WhatsApp chat is disrespectful. Respect earned is the respect given, when you as a union behave in respectful manner, is only then you can claim disrespect from anyone.

Admittingly, the letter I sent did not say in exact terms that it was a proposal, but it also did not say it was final. I sent the letter to the union expecting you, to at the very least, request an audience. However, although you claim that it is I who does not want to negotiate, in actuality it is you that behave in an autocratic way. You refuse to acknowledge the financial situation of the company and are refusing to negotiate a new CLA that better reflects the current telecom situation worldwide. Instead of contacting me directly, all of you have my number, you prefer to send a letter meant for you to the employees which then causes a walkout and unrest. Which in my opinion is your ultimate goal.

You have no intention of sitting down and coming to a realistic solution with limited impact on the employees. You prefer to stick your head in the sand and make statements like Government has not imposed any measures to reduce our labor conditions, even though you are fully aware of the law passed in Parliament almost two weeks ago. Your opinion that the law is not yet in place is of little consequence. I never told you in the letter that I will implement the measures tomorrow.

In conclusion, since you have addressed the issue to the Government Mediator, Management will adhere to the rules and engage in the process. In the meantime, I request your indulgence that no additional payments will be made until such time that you are satisfied that the law is active and the negotiated measures can be applied. Your acceptance of this condition is very important because if any payments are made during this time, the impact on our colleagues when you are satisfied that the law is active will have extremely negative effects on us.

I hope that you will in the future refrain from making the untrue statement that I am not willing to negotiate just because I do not adhere to your wishes. As a concession, I too will make sure to clearly indicate when something is open for negotiations. However, as a rule, any document I send to the union before sending to staff is open for negotiations.

Regards,

K Kendall Dupersoy

Yuma News

Yuma, Arizona - On Wednesday, at approximately 6:04 p.m., the Yuma Police Department responded to the 400 block of S. Magnolia Avenue for a report of shots fired.

Upon arrival, officers located a 22 year old male subject with multiple gunshot wounds. Life saving measures were performed by officers until Yuma Fire Department arrived and took over. The victim was transported to Yuma Regional Medical Center where he was later pronounced deceased.

There is no suspect information at this time.

This case is still under investigation.

The Yuma Police Department encourages anyone with any information about this case to please contact the Yuma Police Department at (928) 373-4700 or 78-Crime at (928) 782-7463 to remain anonymous.
A full 12 hours of walking lies ahead for Loren OSullivan, who is raising funds for a charity she has been involved with for almost a decade.

Alongside her for part of the 40km walk will be her parents, Marita and Martin OSullivan, of Orewa.

Loren volunteered for the international charity NPH in 2013 and went on to become director of its NZ fundraising arm. The organisation helps vulnerable children in Latin America and the Caribbean, including running childrens homes.

Loren and supporters have pledged to walk a day in the shoes of people who Loren says are facing a particularly harsh existence because of Covid-19.

In this region there is no government support for people who lost their jobs during the pandemic, Loren says. Medical workers are struggling to cope with limited resources and crowded hospitals. On top of this, thousands were left homeless by Novembers cyclones. At a time when travel is not possible, I would like to experience what its like to walk a day in their shoes.

The walk, on March 6, starts and ends at St Heliers, passing through Aucklands eastern and inner city suburbs.

As well as taking part in some, or all, of this walk, supporters can do their own walking challenge in March to raise funds for NPH.

Lorens parents are looking forward to the challenge. We are happy to help with NPH NZ fundraisers in any way we can, Marita says. It is a wonderful cause and weve seen it at work first-hand in Mexico City.

Info: www.nph-nz.org/walk
New observations of the first black hole ever detected have led astronomers to question what they know about the Universe's most mysterious objects.

Published today in the journal Science, the research shows the system known as Cygnus X-1 contains the most massive stellar-mass black hole ever detected without the use of gravitational waves.

Cygnus X-1 is one of the closest black holes to Earth. It was discovered in 1964 when a pair of Geiger counters were carried on board a sub-orbital rocket launched from New Mexico.

The object was the focus of a famous scientific wager between physicists Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne, with Hawking betting in 1974 that it was not a black hole. Hawking conceded the bet in 1990.

In this latest work, an international team of astronomers used the Very Long Baseline Array--a continent-sized radio telescope made up of 10 dishes spread across the United States--together with a clever technique to measure distances in space.

"If we can view the same object from different locations, we can calculate its distance away from us by measuring how far the object appears to move relative to the background," said lead researcher, Professor James Miller-Jones from Curtin University and the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR).

"If you hold your finger out in front of your eyes and view it with one eye at a time, you'll notice your finger appears to jump from one spot to another. It's exactly the same principle."

"Over six days we observed a full orbit of the black hole and used observations taken of the same system with the same telescope array in 2011," Professor Miller-Jones said. "This method and our new measurements show the system is further away than previously thought, with a black hole that's significantly more massive."

Co-author Professor Ilya Mandel from Monash University and the ARC Centre of Excellence in Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav) said the black hole is so massive it's actually challenging how astronomers thought they formed.

"Stars lose mass to their surrounding environment through stellar winds that blow away from their surface. But to make a black hole this heavy, we need to dial down the amount of mass that bright stars lose during their lifetimes" he said.

"The black hole in the Cygnus X-1 system began life as a star approximately 60 times the mass of the Sun and collapsed tens of thousands of years ago," he said. "Incredibly, it's orbiting its companion star--a supergiant--every five and a half days at just one-fifth of the distance between the Earth and the Sun.

"These new observations tell us the black hole is more than 20 times the mass of our Sun--a 50 per cent increase on previous estimates."

Xueshan Zhao is a co-author on the paper and a PhD candidate studying at the National Astronomical Observatories--part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NAOC) in Beijing.

"Using the updated measurements for the black hole's mass and its distance away from Earth, I was able to confirm that Cygnus X-1 is spinning incredibly quickly--very close to the speed of light and faster than any other black hole found to date," she said.

"I'm at the beginning of my research career, so being a part of an international team and helping to refine the properties of the first black hole ever discovered has been a great opportunity."

Next year, the world's biggest radio telescope--the Square Kilometre Array (SKA)--will begin construction in Australia and South Africa.

"Studying black holes is like shining a light on the Universe's best kept secret--it's a challenging but exciting area of research," Professor Miller-Jones said.

"As the next generation of telescopes comes online, their improved sensitivity reveals the Universe in increasingly more detail, leveraging decades of effort invested by scientists and research teams around the world to better understand the cosmos and the exotic and extreme objects that exist.

"It's a great time to be an astronomer."

###

Accompanying the publication in Science, two further papers focusing on different aspects of this work have also been published today in The Astrophysical Journal.

Original Publication:

'Cygnus X-1 contains a 21-solar mass black hole - implications for massive star winds', published in Science on February 18th, 2021.

Companion Papers:

'Reestimating the Spin Parameter of the Black Hole in Cygnus X-1', published in The Astrophysical Journal on February 18th, 2021.

'Wind mass-loss rates of stripped stars inferred from Cygnus X-1', published in The Astrophysical Journal on February 18th, 2021.

Multimedia:

Images and animation available from http://www. icrar. org/ biggest-black-hole

Embargo period password for access is: "Hawking"

Contacts:

Professor James Miller-Jones (ICRAR / Curtin University)

Ph: +61 488 484 825 E: James.Miller-Jones@icrar.org

Professor Ilya Mandel (OzGrav / Monash University)

Ph: +61 466 710 590 E: Ilya.Mandel@monash.edu

Pete Wheeler (Media Contact, ICRAR)

Ph: +61 423 982 018 E: Pete.Wheeler@icrar.org

Lauren Sydoruk (Media Contact, Curtin University)

Ph: +61 401 103 373 E: Lauren.Sydoruk@curtin.edu.au
The Delhi Police on Thursday tightened security in several parts of the capital, especially near railway tracks, in view of the "rail roko" (rail blockade) called by the farmer groups protesting against the Centre's new agri laws, officials said.

According to a senior police officer, additional staff has been deployed at several points near railway tracks and patrolling has also been increased.

Though there is no information on whether rail blockades will take place inside the capital, police have made adequate security arrangements, another officer said.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions which is spearheading the protest, last week had announced the rail blockade to press for its demand to repeal the legislations.

The SKM had said that the blockade will be held across the country from 12 pm to 4 pm.

The railways has deployed 20 additional companies of the Railway Protection Special Force across the country, with focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, in the wake of the "rail roko" call.

Earlier, farmer unions had called a 'chakka jam' on February 6 and a 'tractor parade' in Delhi on January 26, during which a section of protesters clashed with police, overturned vehicles while some hoisted a religious flag from the ramparts of the Red Fort.

Farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, are protesting at Delhi's borders against the legislations since November 28 last year and demanding these be repealed.

Their agitation is against the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020, the Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020, and the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

(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.)
Kayleigh McEnany's comments on Biden's remark about children drew attacks online. Many of Biden's supporters are not tolerant of other's opinions.

Social media is not the right place for dissenting opinions like one's that concern the new president. But, during the former administration, this was not the case.

No middle ground for opinions

The former White House press secretary is under assault on social media for dissenting with Joe Biden's remark. He said that kids are much better than people, mentioning it during a town hall event reported MSN.

While getting interviewed by CNN, Biden told Anderson Cooper about his infant son, saying staying at home with the baby is better. McEnany commented on the event and is alleged to mock the new president on Twitter a bit later.

As a retort, she added before signing off the quote by Joe Biden. He said that everyone knows that he likes kids better than people. McEnany showed an emoji contemplating.

I tweeted this revealing, bizarre quote from Joe Biden that underscores his horrific pro-choice, anti-child policies that have dehumanized life (Mexico City policy etc.)



cc: @jaketapper your source should put her name on the record if she claims to know the intent of my tweets  Kayleigh McEnany (@kayleighmcenany) February 17, 2021

Signing off with a final notable quote from Joe Biden during his town hall this evening:



Everyone knows I love kids better than people.   Kayleigh McEnany (@kayleighmcenany) February 17, 2021

Attack on her opinion

Immediately liberal rode on the bandwagon to chastise her attitude during the town hall. One of her critics, lawyer NBC contributor Katie S. Phang wrote on Twitter that it was despicable and attacked her as a parent.

What a despicable thing to tweet. Scary to think you're a parent.  Katie S. Phang (@KatiePhang) February 17, 2021

Another tweet from Actress Rosanna Arquette added to the unopen attitude to the express secretary's tweet. Arquette said that McEnaney is canceled and is powerless. She said brusquely to be gone, or a house would be dropped on the Trump supporter. Others, like writer Lesley Abravanel posted that Kayleigh McEnaney and her opinion is not worth listening to.

Also read: Failed Attempt to Impeach Trump Angers Pelosi, Says Censuring Is Not Enough

Rachel Vindman, the wife of former Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, was one of the critical witnesses used to make a conviction stick in the first impeachment case against Trump. Vindman's wife said that McEnany is a sad and miserable person; she expressed contempt for her and the ex-president.

You are a sad, miserable person. I would be justified in despising you given your comments about my husband and your support of the former president. Instead, I pity you because you are completely pathetic.  Rachel Vindman (@natsechobbyist) February 17, 2021

The Jesuit Catholic Priest Robert Ballecer tweeted about the Q Folk as her legacy. He was even saying that she was peppy and mistaken. He shared a clip during a February 2020 Fox Business appearance. One of Trump's critics, CNN's Jake Tapper, said that one of her co-workers said she wanted to mix up the Qanon crowd.

Rebuking the liberal assault on her tweet

The tweet issue is typical, and there's always dissent, but the liberals tend to discount conservatives and cancel them out. For all intents, it was a typical response, but intolerance with censorship is growing.

McEnany went on the offensive to Tapper's allegation and countered his arguments, saying her comment had no malice and it had no ill intent to it.

QAnon is a conspiracy theory that is untrue that Trump is fighting against evil Democrats who are a party of evil. They accuse the Democrats of child sex trafficking, which is all conspiracy, nothing more. She Challenged Tapper to name a source before tweeting such nonsense.

The ex-WH press secretary clarified that the tweet was a bizarre quote coming from Biden. It shows how his policies have dehumanized life with these flawed decisions. Kayleigh McEnany also served in the Trump campaign and believed in the Trump crusade against election fraud.

Related article: After Failed Conviction Pelosi Says Democrats Starting Independent Probe to Investigate Capitol Breach

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
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NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bernstein Liebhard, a nationally acclaimed investor rights law firm, reminds investors of the deadline to file a lead plaintiff motion in a securities class action lawsuit that has been filed on behalf of investors who purchased or acquired the securities of Penumbra, Inc. ("Penumbra" or the "Company") (NYSE: PEN) from August 3, 2020 through December 15, 2020 (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit filed in the United States District for the Northern District of California alleges violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.



If you purchased Penumbra securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit Penumbra Shareholder Class Action Lawsuit or contact Matthew E. Guarnero toll free at (877) 779-1414 or MGuarnero@bernlieb.com.

The complaint alleges that during the Class Period defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose: (1) that the Jet 7 Xtra Flex had known design defects that made it unsafe for its normal use; (2) that Penumbra did not adequately address the risk of the Jet 7 Xtra Flex causing serious injury and deaths, which had in fact already occurred; (3) that the Jet 7 Xtra Flex was likely to be recalled due to its safety issues; and (4) as a result, Penumbra's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.

On December 8, 2020, Quintessential Capital Management (QCM) published a report questioning the validity and independence of the scientific research supporting the Jet 7 Xtra Flex's safety, and accused the Company of using a fake author to publish studies regarding the purported safety and efficacy of its products.

In response, Penumbra's stock price fell by 9%, $224.02 per share on December 7, 2020, to $204.70 per share on December 8, 2020, a decline of $19.95 per share.

On December 15, 2020, after the markets closed, the Company issued a press release announcing that it was issuing an "urgent" recall of the Jet 7 Xtra Flex because the catheter "may become susceptible to distal tip damage during use" which could lead to injury or death. On a conference call held the same day, the Company's CEO acknowledged that the product's design "ma[de] the catheter susceptible to failure in certain scenarios" and that the Company's "steps to ensure the safe use of the product...were not able to fully address the risks."

In response, Penumbra's stock price fell by 7%, from $188.82 per share on December 15, 2020 to $174.98 per share on December 16, 2020, a decline of $13.84 per share.

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 16, 2021. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. Your ability to share in any recovery doesnt require that you serve as lead plaintiff. If you choose to take no action, you may remain an absent class member.

If you purchased Penumbra securities, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit https://www.bernlieb.com/cases/penumbrainc-pen-shareholder-class-action-lawsuit-fraud-stock-345/apply/ or contact Matthew E. Guarnero toll free at (877) 779-1414 or MGuarnero@bernlieb.com.

Since 1993, Bernstein Liebhard LLP has recovered over $3.5 billion for its clients. In addition to representing individual investors, the Firm has been retained by some of the largest public and private pension funds in the country to monitor their assets and pursue litigation on their behalf. As a result of its success litigating hundreds of lawsuits and class actions, the Firm has been named to The National Law Journals Plaintiffs Hot List thirteen times and listed in The Legal 500 for ten consecutive years.

ATTORNEY ADVERTISING.  2021 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, (212) 779-1414. The lawyer responsible for this advertisement in the State of Connecticut is Michael S. Bigin. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter.

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Matthew E. Guarnero

Bernstein Liebhard LLP

https://www.bernlieb.com

(877) 779-1414

MGuarnero@bernlieb.com
Workforce development has become a central focus in New York City as its boroughs struggle to recover from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, New York higher education officials are looking to help solve the citys unemployment woes by strengthening and diversifying career and technical education programs.Six New York City community colleges and the City University of New York (CUNY) were recently awarded a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to help connect students with employment opportunities in underemployed industries such as information technology and the increasingly tech-integrated fields of education and health care.The new grant program will fund workforce development efforts at Queensborough, the Borough of Manhattan, Bronx, Hostos, LaGuardia and Kingsborough community colleges, all of which will now work together as the CUNY Community Colleges Consortium to offer transferable, online and mixed-learning career training credits in the years ahead.According to the New York Department of Labor , the city's total adjusted unemployment rate reached 11.4 percent by the end of 2020, representing a 7.8 percent increase since December 2019. However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment in IT-related occupations to grow by 11 percent in the decade ahead.Dr. Hui-Yin Hsu, dean of continuing education and workforce development at Queensborough Community College and grant principal investigator, said researchers are starting the grant program with a local assessment to further gauge specific workforce needs and guide curriculum programming for health care, education and tech courses. This detailed assessment should be completed by the end of 2021.Schools will then work with the New York City Workforce Development Board and the Future Skills Exchange Workforce Development Institute to develop certification courses for high-demand positions at companies like Amazon, Google and Towne Nursing, as well as in public education. Officials say students could earn the qualifications necessary to work as an IT support professional, EMS responder, certified teaching assistant and more.According to Hsu, the overall goal is to create "one unified workforce development system" in New York City to meet the needs of employers and job-seekers alike.We are really trying to figure out how to work together as one system to serve our students, Hsu said. We will be bringing employers to the table very soon.While funding details had yet to be released as of Thursday, Kingsborough Community College officials noted general plans to use a portion of the grant for IT training courses. Meanwhile, the consortium plans to invest in instructional technology tools to expand online training options for students.Hsu believes flexible virtual courses will accommodate students who would otherwise need to commute to campus, which will ultimately bring more tech workers into the citys workforce.Hsu, who developed online learning programs as an academic dean and interdisciplinary professor at the New York Institute of Technology, said the pandemic underscored an existing need for virtual workforce development programs throughout the citys higher ed system. Much of Hsus research focuses on using ed tech to enhance learning and new literacies, as well as the use of mobile devices for learning.We are also trying to look into using technology to leverage the resources for education to a broader population, Hsu said. Weve talked a lot about how we are going to use technology to facilitate equitable access to education. In terms of training or education programs, technology should be seamlessly integrated."With flexibility in mind, LaGuardia Community College announced the future development of accelerated education courses to quickly prepare students for careers in health care, cybersecurity and data science.Given the financial crisis and record unemployment caused by COVID-19 within Queens and beyond, this work is vital to support our communitys recovery from the pandemic, LaGuardia President Kenneth Adams said in a news release.Though the grant program is largely in its infancy, LaGuardia Vice President of Continuing Education Sunil Gupta said the aim will be to put more students on the path to an associate degree and job training.The recovery is by no means determined  which form or shape its going to take, he also noted.Like Hsu, Gupta believes using ed tech for tech ed could help expand access to the training required in a digitized job market. This could serve to help revitalize Queens economy  among the most affected during the pandemic.The ability to successfully deliver hybrid training programs using technology is going to be the key to the future. Theres no putting this back in the bottle, he said. I think this [need for flexibility] has been a key issue for many students who are managing families, multiple jobs, family commitments, child care. This will provide that level of flexibility that didnt exist before.The grant program will work in concert with ongoing city efforts to connect students with jobs, which include the use of online tools to connect prospective employees to skill-building programs. By year four of the grant, Hsu said, the consortium will increase its enrollment by 10 percent. At least six online/blended training programs in tech, health care and education will be created.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court declined Thursday to hear Jason Dominicks appeal of a Lackawanna County judges decision upholding his conviction for the 2013 murder of a Dunmore man.

The ruling, handed down in a one-sentence order, effectively closed the door on any further appeals at the state level to reverse Dominicks conviction for the shooting death of Frank Bonacci.

In rejecting Dominicks petition, the high court let stand a state Superior Court decision from August that upheld Judge Terrence Nealons denial of Dominicks request for a new trial based on claims of ineffective counsel.

Dominick, 30, Scranton, is serving a sentence of 40 to 80 years in prison after his May 2014 conviction for third-degree murder and conspiracy in Bonaccis killing.

Prosecutors said Dominick shot the 24-year-old victim in the back of the head on July 20, 2013, as they rode in an SUV driven by co-defendant Neil Pal. Police later found the vehicle with Bonaccis body inside over an embankment off Ridge Row.

Pal was convicted of first-degree murder during a separate trial in June 2014, and was sentenced to life imprisonment.

The Superior Court denied Dominicks initial appeal and upheld his conviction in 2016, and the state Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

He then sought a new trial under the state Post Conviction Relief Act, which allows a defendant to raise issues on appeal that were not previously reviewed.

Attorney Terrence McDonald, who was appointed to handle the case on appeal, argued Dominicks trial counsel, Bernard Brown, had been ineffective. He raised more than a dozen points for court to review.

Nealon rejected Dominicks ineffective counsel claims in June 2019, finding Brown had a reasonable basis for each of the decisions he made in defending Dominick at trial.

The state Supreme Court declined to hear Pals appeal under the Post Conviction Relief Act in July. With the denial of Dominicks PCRA claims, all state court proceedings involving both defendants are now concluded.

McDonald said he forwarded a copy of the court decision to the defendant. Dominick could pursue a federal appeal, but McDonald said his involvement with the case is now over.

Im not sure what his intentions are, McDonald said.
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Syracuse, NY -- Its been almost six years since an Onondaga County jury delivered a guilty verdict against then-doctor Robert Neulander in the 2012 death of his wife, Leslie, inside their DeWitt mansion.

After New Yorks top court overturned the verdict over concerns of juror bias, Neulanders retrial has been adjourned numerous times over scheduling and then the pandemic.

On Thursday, trial Judge Thomas J. Miller spoke by phone with lawyers over the latest snag: the death of a key prosecution witness from the first trial in March 2015.

The witness, Dr. Jan Leestma, of Chicago, died recently, Onondaga County District Attorney William Fitzpatrick told Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

Leestma was key to the DAs theory that Leslie Neulander died a slow death over many hours, not a relatively sudden death after a slip-and-fall in the shower, as her husband has maintained.

A juror who spoke to Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard in September 2019 cited Leestmas testimony as being one of the major elements of the case. And the jury asked to hear Leestmas testimony read back to them during deliberations six years ago.

Dr. Jan Leestma

RELATED: Inside Dr. Neulander murder jury: We went through hell to find truth, juror says

Its not uncommon for key experts to change from one trial to the next. But its clear that Fitzpatrick had hoped on bringing Leestma back for Neulanders retrial, scheduled now for October.

During the phone call, the judge was asked to consider whether Leestmas testimony from the first trial could be read to the jury at the retrial. Thats a decision left up to Millers discretion, Fitzpatrick said.

If not, the DAs office will likely have to scramble to find another witness who can examine the brain-cell evidence in time for Neulanders retrial.

Neulanders case will next be due in court in April. Its unlikely that the former doctor will be present in person -- most court cases are being heard virtually during the pandemic and theres no indication that Neulander has done anything to jeopardize his freedom on $1 million cash bail.

Neulander, 69, spent three years in prison before his release on the overturned conviction. He has remained free on bail since June 2018.

Neulanders lawyers have already signaled that they plan on challenging whether he can get a fair retrial in Syracuse after the highly publicized first trial. The courts have said that lawyers have to attempt to pick a local jury before making an application to have the case moved out of the county. That would delay the retrial far past its planned October start.

If convicted after a retrial, Neulander faces up to 25 years to life in prison on a murder charge.

Staff writer Douglass Dowty can be reached at ddowty@syracuse.com or 315-470-6070.
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Part of the draw of Lenten fish dinners is the social aspect.

Hungry folks pack church or fire company community halls and basement rooms on Friday nights for plates of crispy fried fish with sides of french fries and cole slaw. The fundraisers draw hundreds of people for the meatless meals during Lent.

Obviously, this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, fish fries will look different. Some groups have canceled the dinners, while others preparing to pull them off are following different models with takeout, curbside and drive-thru only.

Its going to keep things simpler for the church, said John Ciardullo of Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Palmyra via a video message.

The church is adapting with online ordering and takeout and curbside pickup.

From a workers standpoint, there are not a lot of changes in the church, its just how we are getting the meals to the people, he added.

Heres a list of places offering fish dinners this year in central Pennsylvania.

Cumberland County

Our Lady of Lourdes Church

The church is hosting takeout only dinners 4-7 p.m. Fridays from Feb. 19-March 26. The menu includes seasoned baked cod, baked macaroni and cheese, church made pierogis, veggie, stewed tomatoes, cole slaw, roll, dessert and bottled water. Baked fish dinners are priced at $12, while mac and cheese and pierogi meals are $10. Childrens meals are $5.

225 Salt Road, Enola, 717-732-9642

Chambers Hill Fire Company in Swatara Township is hosting drive-thru fish dinners on Fridays during Lent. File photo by Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.comPENNLIVE.COM

Dauphin County

Chambers Hill Fire Company

The East Shore fire company is hosting seven weeks of drive-thru fish dinners 4:30 -7 p.m. on Fridays from Feb 12-March 26.

There will be no traditional sit-down, all-you-can-eat meals due to COVID-19 restrictions. The drive-thru will be set up next to the firehouse.

Meals are priced at $9 and include baked fish, macaroni and cheese, stewed tomatoes, cole slaw, roll and butter. The food is homemade by members in the firehouse kitchen. Proceeds benefit the all-volunteer fire company.

6400 Chambers Hill Road, Swatara Township, 717-564-8009

St. Lawrence Lodge 13

Update: The lodge is not hosting dinners this year.

13 Highland St., Steelton, 717-939-4788

Londonderry Fire Co.

Takeout will be available 5-8 p.m. Fridays Feb. 19-April 2. The menu includes two- or three-piece battered fried fish, single or double crab cake dinners, baked lemon pepper haddock, small and large pierogi and chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting. Order and pay online for pickup.

2655 Foxianna Road, Middletown, 717-944-2175

Seven Sorrows BVM Catholic Church

Seven Sorrows is selling a limited fish fry menu for pickup only at the church parking lot in Middletown. The drive-thru operates 5-8 p.m. Fridays from Feb. 19-March 26.

Menu includes two- or three-piece fish and chips, fish sandwich with fries, baked haddock with two sides, breaded shrimp, small and large macaroni and cheese and dozen pierogi as well as sides and desserts. Prices range from $7-$10.50.

Due to respect to school students and parents, drivers will not be permitted in the parking lot until 4:30 p.m. Everyone must enter at 360 E. Water St. An online traffic pattern map is available for guidance.

Also, the church is selling candy eggs in peanut butter, coconut and buttercream for pre-order only online.

360 E. Water St., Middletown, 717-944-5371

Lebanon County

Holy Spirit Catholic Church

The church is selling curbside meals from 3-7 p.m. on Fridays from Feb. 19-March 26. Menu includes fresh north Atlantic haddock ($10), crab cakes ($10-$14), shrimp ($9), clam strips ($9), pierogi dinners ($6 no fries included) along with extra sides including french fries, pierogi, soup, mac and cheese, crab cakes, apple sauce or cole slaw.

Pre-order online or place your order from your car once you arrive.

300 W. Pine St., Palmyra, 717-838-3369

Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Cornwall

The church is hosting meals 4-7 p.m. Wednesdays through March 31, available for walk-in, take out, or drive-up. Menu includes baked or fried fish, baked or fried potatoes and cole slaw or applesauce and a Bernies Bakers homemade dessert for $10.

2596 Cornwall Road, Cornwall, 717-273-1574

St. Cecilias Catholic Church

Takeout Lenten fish dinners available from 4-7 p.m. Fridays Feb. 19-March 26 in the social hall on East Lehman Street. Dinners are $10 and include fried or baked haddock, fries or baked potato, pepper cabbage, roll and butter and assorted desserts.

120 E. Lehman St., Lebanon, 717- 272-4412
Los Angeles, Feb 18 : Irish actress Eve Hewson, daughter of popular musician Bono, says her father stopped hiring goodlooking boys for band support because she was a trouble-making teenager! Talking about her current love life, the actress jokes she might just end up with a robot boyfriend.

"There got to a point in my teens when my dad couldn't hire good-looking support bands any more. He was like, 'No more boys in their twenties, please God!'" Eve told Town and Country magazine.

"It's hopeless out there. It's really a disappointment. I've heard they're creating these girlfriend robots and hopefully soon they'll do boyfriend robots, so I think I'm just going to wait for those," she added on a lighter note.

Eve also mentioned that she had a rebellious teenage and stints of hopeless love.
Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
The protesting farmers' unions will hold a nationwide 'Rail Roko' program for four hours on Thursday as part of their agitation against the three contentious farm laws.

The farmers have planned to carry out a peaceful protest between 12 pm and 4 pm, according to Jagtar Singh Bajwa, spokesperson of the Kisan Andolan Committee, Ghazipur border.

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

"We will offer refreshments to the passengers to avoid inconvenience," said Bajwa.

Meanwhile, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of 40 farmers' unions, has called for a peaceful protest, expecting to get support for the program from across the country.

"Appeal to everyone for a peaceful protest in nationwide 'Rail Roko' program on February 18 from 12 noon to 4 pm," it said.

Here are the key updates of the protests today

SKM's statement: Demanding that the government resolve the farmers' issues immediately, SKM said: "It is clear that instead of resolving the ongoing struggle's demands, BJP is trying its best to counter and destroy it. SKM condemns this attitude of the ruling party and demands that the government resolve the farmers' issues immediately without any further delay. SKM vows that it will intensify the struggle and mobilise more farmers in its support.

The statement came in the light of a high-level meeting presided over by BJP chief JP Nadda, Union Home minister Amit Shah and Union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar was attended by leaders from all ranks from states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan.

The SKM also condemned an alleged attack by Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) "goons" on a peaceful protest organised by the All India Krishak Khet Majdoor Sangathan in Muzaffarpur on Wednesday.

Additional security arrangements: The railways has deployed 20 additional companies of the RPSF across the country, with focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, in the wake of the Rail Roko.

Director-General, Railway Protection Force, Arun Kumar on Wednesday said, "I appeal to everyone to maintain peace. We will be liaisoning with district administrations and will have a control room in the place."

On 'toolkit case': The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted transit anticipatory bail to advocate Nikita Jacob, a suspect in a case registered by Delhi police in connection with the "toolkit" shared by climate activist Greta Thunberg over the ongoing farmers' protest.

The SKM has backed 21-year-old climate activist Disha Ravi, the first to be arrested in connection with the' toolkit case' and demanded her unconditional release. Shantanu Muluk, another accused, was granted transit anticipatory bail on Tuesday.

Republic Day violence: A team of the Delhi Police's Special Cell has arrested a man, identified as Maninder Singh alias Moni, in connection with the violence at the Red Fort on Republic Day, Delhi Police officials said on Wednesday.

Third major demonstration: Rail Roko will be the third major demonstration by the farmers as part of their agitation. Besides the 26 January tractor march, they held a nationwide chakka jam on 6 February.

The protesting farmers had blocked all national and state highways between 12 pm and 3 pm on 6 February in response to internet shutdowns in areas around the protest sites and farmers being ignored in the Union Budget.

Series of events: The farmers had earlier this month announced a series of events to highlight their demands.

Farmers' unions had said that they will close all toll plazas in Rajasthan and make them free from 12 February. Following this, a candle march or 'mashal juloos' was taken out, accompanied by other activities, on 14 February across the country to remember the sacrifices of martyred soldiers in the Pulwama attack.

On 16 February, the farmers observed the birth anniversary of peasant leader Chhotu Ram.













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God of Scribes and Wisdom

Close up of the giant statue to the god Nabu stood at the entrance of the Temple of Nabu which is now housed in the Iraq Museum in Iraq. ( Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP / CC BY-SA 4.0) Nestled in the fertile region around the River Tigris and Euphrates, the historical region of ancient Mesopotamia has long been regarded as one of the earliest cradles of civilization. Home to ancient cultures of Assyria, Babylon, and Sumer, it was also the home of diverse gods and goddesses. Sumer, one of the oldest civilizations in this region, influenced the developing pantheons of both Assyrians and Babylonians. And the God Nabu, one of the most important deities in Mesopotamia, was established very early in history.

Where are the Earliest Origins of Nabu?

Nabu is a major deity that was worshipped by both the Assyrians and Babylonians, and formed a crucial part of their pantheon. He was considered as the patron god of scribes, and a god of writing, learning, prophecies, and of wisdom. Nabu was often also viewed as the god of fertility and prosperity, and dictated the yield of a harvest.

Nabu's name is originally derived from a Semitic root: nb'. This can be translated as: "to designate." Nabu's name is considered to mean "the announcer" or "the herald". This name can refer to his powers as a prophet, and can also be related to scribes, reflecting his powers to call forth words and events. Another proposed interpretation puts his name into a verbal adjective, translating into "the one who is named." One of the earliest spellings of his name as attested from surviving writings is dna-bi-um, which was later normalized as Nabium and Nabu.

Nabu is cognate to the Sumerian deity called Nisaba. The latter was an earlier, Sumerian goddess of writing, learning, and the harvest. She was also the patroness of scribes. Gradually, her cult spread amongst the Assyrians and Babylonians, where it grew into the God Nabu. By the first millennium BC, his worship was widespread and he began to be regarded as the son of the god Marduk.

This was a clear sign of his importance and high esteem. His name was later used as a part of the names of the most powerful rulers, such as Nebuchadnezzar and Nabonidus. His name even appears in the Bible! A passage in the book of Isaiah mentions the god Nebo in reference to the humbling of the idols of Babylon. This gives us an insight that his cult survived a very long time, throughout the history of Mesopotamia. Nabu was also the patron god of the city of Borsippa. This was one of the most important Sumerian cities, located some 17 kilometers (11 miles) from Babylon and known as its sister city.

Originally, Nabu had a consort of his own. This was the goddess Tashmetum ( Tashmit), known as "the Lady who listens." She was called upon to grant requests and listen to the prayers of the devoted. However, in later periods his consort becomes the goddess Nanaya, a deity of warfare, sex, and voluptuousness. Nanaya was originally the consort of an obscure and minor god of the Sumerian pantheon known as Muati. However, as Muati gradually became worshipped and cognate with Nabu, so did Nanaya become his wife.

Becoming the Divine Son of Marduk

Every new year, the people would begin a ceremony in which a statue of Nabu would be carried all the way from Borsippa to Babylon "so Nabu could pay respects to his divine father Marduk" the patron god of Babylon. What is more, Borsippa was the location of a magnificent temple dedicated to Nabu. This temple was adorned with a grandiose ziggurat, which is today one of the most identifiable surviving ones.

In the ancient times it was this ziggurat that was identified as the Tower of Babel from the Biblical stories. For the Babylonians, this lavish temple of Nabu was known as the "temple of the seven spheres" and was restored by the famed King Nebuchadnezzar II . Rising from the flat plains all around, the tower above the temple of Nabu is a magnificent site. When the restoration by Nebuchadnezzar II was completed, the tower was roughly 70 meters (230 feet) tall and had seven terraces.

Today it survives as a partial ruin, and even so it is still an unforgettable site with its height of 52 meters (170 ft). Such magnificence, and even the fact that Nebuchadnezzar bore the name of Nabu, signify that this was a very important deity. Alas, the majestic temple of Nabu in Borsippa was destroyed in 448 BC when a revolt against the Achaemenid King Xerxes was violently quelled.

Nabu rose to particular prominence during the period known as the Old Babylonian Period, which lasted from 2000 to 1600 BC. This was especially prominent during the reign of the legendary King Hammurabi (1792 to 1750 BC), during whose rule the male gods in Mesopotamia became the focal point of religious worship, largely replacing old goddesses. Before this period and during it, many Babylonian literary works would always finish with the phrase " Praise be to Nabu!" .

This custom was taken from early Sumerian literary works such as hymns and similar compositions, which sported a similar phrase in praise to goddess Nisaba. Early on in the rise of prominence of Nabu, some confusion existed in his connection to Nisaba. At first he was seen as her husband and assistant, rather than a Babylonian male version of the same deity. During this period, he is seen as Nisaba's assistant who helps her keep the records and preserve the library of the gods.

The Patron God of Scribes and the Written Word

Nevertheless, as his cult grew steadily and he became a major deity, his connection to Marduk also grew. Marduk, as we know, was one of the central deities in Mesopotamia, whose cult was highly important in Babylon. Originally, Nabu was seen as a scribe and a vizier of Marduk, essentially serving under him. Step by step, however, he morphed into his divine son. This was especially prominent during and after the Kassite Period. Kassites were the peoples who came to control Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire around 1595 BC up until roughly 1155 BC.

Following this period, Nabu begins to be depicted as Marduk's son, and almost equal to him in power and reverence. Likewise, his divine role also developed gradually. Originally a scribe to major deities, his role from there naturally progressed to that of a god of writing. As this came to be, he quickly replaced the goddess Nisaba in that role, most likely during the period when male gods became popular. As a god of writing he became the protector and patron of all scribes. From his role as a god of writing, he progressed into becoming the god of wisdom, literacy, and of science.

When it came to his appearance, Nabu wore a pointed horned cap, as did most of the Sumerian deities, and like his father Marduk he rode on his dragon-like creature known as Mushussu (Mushkhushshu). Most depictions show Nabu with his hands clasped in a gesture of prayer, which was associated with priesthood in ancient times.

The symbol of Nabu was usually a stylus (used for writing) resting upon a writing tablet, and sometimes also a cuneiform mark in the shape of a wedge. Both symbols associate him with scribes and writing. One iconic example of this depiction is the stone carving of the 13th century BC Assyrian King Tukulti-Ninurta I. Found at Assur, this elaborate carving shows the king as he worships at the altar of Nabu. He first stands, then kneels in front of a small altar with a stylus and a tablet. This is one of the cases where Nabu is not depicted in his human form, but simply as an object.

Likewise, one of the most common symbols of Nabu was a single wedge symbol in cuneiform. Either vertical or horizontal, this wedge (the essential feature of cuneiform writing) would represent the stylus used for writing it. Also, some depictions of Nabu simply show the dragon creature Mushkhushshu with a wedge symbol on his back.

A Favorite of the Assyrian King

Sir Ernest Wallis Budge, one of world's foremost scholars specializing in the history of ancient Near East, left a remarkable summary of Nabu in one of his works pertaining to Mesopotamia. In it, he includes the following description:

"He [Nabu] was endowed with great wisdom, like his father; and he acted as scribe to the gods; he had charge of the Tablet of Fate of the gods and had the power of prolonging the days of men. Like the Egyptian Thoth, his eyes travelled over the circuit of the heavens and over all the earth. He was the personification of knowledge and, as a god of vegetation, he caused the earth to produce abundant crops."

However, at one moment in time, the powerful cult of Nabu was immensely weakened. This occurred during the time of the Neo-Assyrian Empire, and the second ruler of the Sargonid Dynasty known as Sennacherib. This famous ruler sought to reassert the dominance of Assyria and Assyrian Gods, over those of Babylon. Thus he greatly downplayed the Babylonian pantheon and instead promoted the worship of Assur (Ashur), the head of the Assyrian pantheon.

However, this situation was remedied during the reign of his son, Ashurhaddon, who sought to regain the political support of the Babyonians, and thus reinstated the primacy of their gods. During the reign of Ashurhaddon's son, Ashurbanipal, the situation got even better: this famed king was a great patron of knowledge and literacy, and Nabu became the foremost god he worshipped.

Just how important Nabu was to Ashurbanipal is shown in a unique archeological discovery: a clay tablet with a lengthy cuneiform text commonly titled as Dialogue Between Ashurbanipal and Nabu. It showcases how this Assyrian ruler saw to emphasize his godlike grandeur, but also how Nabu's cult didn't wane over time:

"Ashurbanipal: I constantly speak in praise of you, Nabu, in the assembly of the great gods; may the host of those who wish me ill not take possession of my life! In the temple of the Queen of Nineveh I approach you, hero among the gods, his brothers; you are the trust of Assurbanipal for ever and ever! Ever since I was a small child I have lain at the feet of Nabu; do not abandon me to the assembly of my ill-wishers, O Nabu! Nabu: Pay attention, Assurbanipal! I am Nabu. Until the end of time your feet shall not grow slack, your hands not tremble; your lips shall not become weary in praying to me; your tongue shall not falter on your lips; Because I will endow you with pleasant speech. I will lift your head and straighten your body in the House of Emasmas."

The Forgotten Deities of Ancient Near East

It is interesting to note that the cult of Nabu spread far beyond the borders of the Mesopotamian region. Brought overseas by Aramaic migrants, the cult of Nabu developed in these expatriate communities. This deity was thus worshipped in Anatolia and Egypt, where he was identified with the God known as Thoth.

Nabu also reached Rome and ancient Greece, where he was identified with Mercury amongst the Romans, and as Apollo or Hermes amongst the Greeks. His cult was strong and widespread until roughly the 2nd century AD. As the art of writing in cuneiform became gradually lost and forgotten, so did the power of the patron god of scribes wane.

Alas, even for the most powerful of Gods, the wheel of time shows no mercy. History is turbulent, and powerful: mighty civilizations crumble, empires and kingdoms fall, and thousands of years of culture and ancient languages can disappear in a mere century. The same fate befell those once glorious civilizations of Sumer, Babylonia, and Assyria, as the many millennia of their existence fell, were forgotten, and then became the stuff of hazy legends. The fate of Nabu and other major Mesopotamian gods is shared with these civilizations.
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India reported 12,881 fresh Covid-19 cases in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative cases to 1,09,50,201, according to the Union health ministry said.

In the same duration, the country saw 101 deaths. This took the death toll due to the disease to 1,56,014.

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India currently has 1,37,342, while the 1,06,56,845 people have been cured of the disease so far. India's cumulative recoveries have been showing a progressive increment on a daily basis.

Vaccination drive

The country has so far vaccinated 94,22,228 healthcare workers and frontline workers.

Meanwhile, Director of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Dr Randeep Guleria who has received both shots of anti-Covid jabs said on Wednesday that coronavirus vaccines might be available in the open market by end of the year but only after prime targeted people are vaccinated.

"Vaccine will be available in the open market only when prime targets -- people to be vaccinated -- are covered. And there has to be equivalence in supply and demand. Hopefully, there would be such a situation by year-end or before that. Then, there may be a likelihood of vaccines coming to the open market," he told news agency ANI.

On Monday, Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan had said: "The government will be in a situation to administer vaccines to those above 50 years of age in March in the next phase of countrys nationwide Covid-19 vaccination drive."

India is hosting on Thursday a regional conclave on the management of coronavirus pandemic. Nine countries, including Afghanistan Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, have been invited for it.

New strain in India

India on Wednesday issued specific rules for flights from the UK, Europe and the Middle East, aimed at segregating travellers from Brazil, the UK and South Africa, where new Covid-19 mutant viruses have surfaced.

The new standard operating procedures (SOPs), which take effect on 23 February, mandate airlines to identify travellers arriving from or transiting through the UK, Brazil and South Africa in past 14 days and segregate them.





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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday the alliance had made "no final decision" on the future of its Afghanistan mission, as new US President Joe Biden weighs pulling out troops.

While defence ministers held off on making that call at a two-day virtual conference, they did decide to expand a NATO training mission in Iraq from 500 to "around 4,000" personnel.

The fate of NATO's 9,600-strong support mission in Afghanistan was top of the agenda after former US leader Donald Trump struck a deal with the Taliban to pull troops out.

Biden's administration is reviewing whether to stick to a looming May 1 deadline to withdraw the remaining 2,500 US troops or risk a bloody backlash from the insurgents by staying.

"We are faced with many dilemmas and there are no easy options. At this stage, we have made no final decision on the future of our presence," Stoltenberg said at a news conference.

"But as the May 1st deadline is approaching, NATO allies will continue to closely consult and coordinate in the coming weeks."

Stoltenberg insisted the Taliban must live up to commitments under the deal with the US, including making progress in peace talks with Kabul, reducing violence and cutting ties to "international terrorist groups".

"NATO's goal is to ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes a safe haven for terrorists that would attack our homelands," he said.

The Taliban has launched a string of offensives threatening at least two provincial capitals and warned NATO ministers not to seek a "continuation of occupation and war" by staying.

"The protection of our troops remains paramount, and we will take all necessary measures to keep them safe," Stoltenberg said.

Allies are waiting anxiously for Biden to make his decision on whether to end two decades of involvement in Afghanistan -- but say they are willing to remain if the US stays too.

Story continues

While Trump cut US forces to just 2,500 troop in January, from nearly 13,000 a year earlier, the other NATO members rely on the American capabilities to keep the mission going.

US officials said new Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, keen to revitalise ties after years of tensions under Trump, was going to listen to the allies and pass on their input to Biden.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the review with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in a call on Wednesday and vowed the US would consult closely "on the way ahead", Washington said.

In a statement the Pentagon said Austin told NATO allies that Washington remains "committed to a diplomatic effort to end the war."

Austin also reassured them "that the US would not undertake a hasty or disorderly withdrawal from Afghanistan," the Pentagon said.

- Iraq expansion -

On Iraq, defence ministers agreed to bolster a NATO training mission aimed at strengthening the country's military as it looks to curb the resurgence of the Islamic State group.

"The size of our mission will increase from 500 personnel to around 4,000," Stoltenberg said, adding that the increases would be "incremental".

"Training activities will now include more Iraqi security institutions, and areas beyond Baghdad."

Stoltenberg insisted that the mission was being carried out "at the request of the Iraqi government".

"It is carried out with full respect for Iraq's sovereignty and territorial integrity," he said.

NATO has had a small non-combat mission in the country since 2018 to train and advise Iraqi forces.

The alliance announced plans to expand the mission last year under pressure from Trump to increase NATO's role in the Middle East.

That move was put on hold by the coronavirus pandemic and worries about instability, but is now being pushed through with strong backing from Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi.

There is currently also a force from a US-led coalition against IS based mainly in the northern city of Arbil in Iraq's Kurdish region.

Since Iraq declared victory over IS in late 2017, the coalition presence has been reduced to fewer than 3,500 troops, of whom 2,500 are American.

The expanded NATO mission is expected to take over some of the training currently being conducted by the anti-IS coalition.

The announcement comes amid fears over rising tensions in Iraq after a rocket attack on Monday killed a foreign contractor for the US military in Arbil.

del/har
Pennsylvania movie theaters ditch mask mandate

Three chain movie theaters have announced that masks are no longer mandatory for moviegoers who have been vaccinated against coronavirus.
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Kilkenny County Council is to be allocated 601,706 22, as part of the Governments 45m investment in Local Authority Homes throughout the country.

The funding was announced this morning by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh OBrien TD and is aimed at retrofitting existing local authority homes aiming to make houses warmer, easier to heat and more comfortable for occupants.

Welcoming the news, Chairman of Kilkenny County Council, Andrew McGuinness said, this is very positive news for Kilkenny as this funding will go towards retrofitting up to 22 local authority homes, bringing them up to current standards and improving air quality in the home and for those currently using oil or gas they will see savings on energy bills while also reducing carbon emissions by more than half.

Every investment in our housing stock is welcome as it will help Kilkenny County Council to keep houses at a high standard, improving the quality of life for tenants while helping them to save money on household energy bills, he said.

Deputy John Paul Phelan also welcomed the funding announcement.

Im delighted to see 601,706 confirmed to finance works on 22 homes in Kilkenny. These are part of an initial government allocation of 35m for the retrofitting of 1,293 homes.

The works to be completed will not only save energy and help reduce our carbon emissions but they will greatly improve the quality of life for the 22 families living in these homes.

"Many older homes are poorly ventilated and are hard to heat. This will be a great boost to the health and the well being of these families and I look forward to the next tranche of investment in this area.

Commenting Minister OBrien said, The 2021 Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme is a newly revised programme designed around the Programme for Government commitment with an important increase in funding support of 65m, 20m of which has been allocated under the midlands retrofit programme.

This revised programme will see a significant upscaling - from a shallow to deeper retrofit - on what has been completed by local authorities in previous years and will target 2,400 social homes in total for upgrade works in 2021.

We are being realistic in our initial allocation and taking account of the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on the works which can take place. We are taking an equitable approach ensuring that allocations are calculated on the basis of the number of social housing units each local authority has, as a percentage of the overall national stock, as well as the ability of individual local authorities to complete the programme and draw down all funding in 2021. This also ensures that those local authorities who have the capacity to deliver more are facilitated so that the 2021 retrofitting target of 2,400 homes is reached and the budget is spent, he said.

The Programme for Government 2020 set challenging and ambitious targets over the next ten years aimed at Irelands objective of reducing its carbon emissions by more than half. With approximately 40% of Irelands energy-related carbon emissions coming from buildings alone, one of the key objectives of the Programme is the target of retrofitting reaching over 500,000 homes by 2030, of which it is expected that approximately 36,500 of those with be local authority owned homes. In response to this commitment the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting programme has been revised and enhanced for 2021, homes retrofitted under this programme will benefit householders in many ways, they will be warmer, easier to heat and more comfortable homes, it will enhance air quality in the home and for those currently using oil or gas they will see savings on energy bills.






Former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole and his wife Elizabeth Dole wait as President Donald Trump arrives to participate in the Armed Forces Welcome Ceremony in honor of the Twentieth Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at Summerall Field, Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, Va., on Sept. 30, 2019. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

Former Sen. Bob Dole Diagnosed With Stage 4 Lung Cancer

Bob Dole, a former Republican presidential candidate and longtime U.S. senator from Kansas, says hes been diagnosed with lung cancer.

Recently, I was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer, Dole said in a statement released on Feb. 18.

My first treatment will begin on Monday. While I certainly have some hurdles ahead, I also know that I join millions of Americans who face significant health challenges of their own.

Dole, 97, served for decades in Congress, starting with the House of Representatives in 1961. He began representing Kansas in the Senate in the late 60s, and eventually became Republican leader.

Dole left the Senate for an unsuccessful challenge to President Bill Clinton in the 1996 presidential election. He had also launched two other bids for the GOP nomination, but was defeated in the primaries by Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, respectively.

Former Sen. Bob Dole stands up to salute the casket of the late former President George H.W. Bush at the U.S. Capitol, in Washington on Dec. 4, 2018. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Republican presidential candidate Robert Dole delivers a speech in Belmond, Iowa, on Feb. 3, 1988. (Mike Sprague/AFP via Getty Images)

Dole went on to become a lobbyist and chairman of the World War II Memorial Campaign, among other roles.

He was seen in 2018 in Washington paying his respects to George H.W. Bush at the late presidents funeral.

Dole overcame disabling war wounds sustained near the end of World War II before forging his lengthy political career. While charging a German position in Italy in 1945, Dole was hit by a shell fragment that crushed two vertebrae and paralyzed his arms and legs. The young Army platoon leader spent three years recovering in a hospital but never regained use of his right hand.

He announced his diagnosis just one day after conservative icon Rush Limbaugh died following a one-year struggle with the very same disease.

Numerous people expressed thoughts and prayers after Doles announcement.

We send prayers and love to Senator Bob Dole as he begins his battle with lung cancer. Senator Dole is an American hero and statesman, and we wish him, and his family, strength for the days ahead, the office of the Kansas secretary of state said in a statement.

The Pompeos are praying for Senator Bob Dole. A Kansas legend who has servedand continues to serveKansas and America. All our love and support to Bob and Elizabeth, added former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Unnao : , Feb 18 (IANS) The families of the two girls, who were found dead in a field in Unnao's Baburaha village, on Thursday demanded a CBI probe into the incident.

Three girls, aged 13, 16 and 17, were found unconscious in the field on Wednesday night and two of them were declared brought dead at the hospital. The third girl is undergoing treatment in Kanpur and is said to be critical.

All three belong to Dalit families.

A three-member panel of doctors has been set up to supervise the post mortem.

Meanwhile, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and party General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have tweeted about the incident.

Rahul said women in UP -- not only Dalits -- are facing a violation of human rights. "The Congress party will fight to ensure justice for such victims," he tweeted in Hindi.

Priyanka said in a Facebook post that the incident was 'heart-wrenching'.

She asked the state government to shift the third girl to Delhi for advanced treatment and ensure justice for the families.

Priyanka said that according to reports, the families were 'under house arrest' which is unacceptable.

Meanwhile, the Baburaha village where the incident took place, is seeing a heavy deployment of police.

According to the police, the three girls had gone to their fields to cut grass on Wednesday afternoon. When they did not return till late evening, their family members went out to search for them and found them lying unconscious in the field.

The hands and feet of the girls were tied with their dupatta and they were frothing at the mouth, indicating that they had been given poison.

Their clothes, however, were intact.

The brother of the 16-year-old girl, in his statement to the police, said "I spotted my sister along with my two other cousins with their hands and legs tied." Superintendent of Police, Unnao, Anand Kulkarni, told reporters that the three girls are cousins. "A white substance was oozing out of their mouths, and was visible, when the police teams reached there," he said.

The two bodies have been sent for post mortem.

Family members have alleged murder. "Why would the girls tie their own hands and feet if they were committing suicide? It is a clear case of murder," said a family member.

Samajwadi Party MLC Sunil Singh Sajan, meanwhile, alleged that the Unnao police was trying to hush up the case. He has sought a probe by an independent agency in the matter.

"The incident proves that our daughters are not safe in this regime. Unnao, in the past three years, has witnessed a spate of similar incidents which is a matter of concern," he said.

-- Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Prokerala team and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed
Millions of Texans were left without power over the weekend, and more than 3 million remain in the dark as temperatures have plunged into the single digits in much of the state. More than a dozen deaths have been linked to the power outagesincluding some people experiencing homelessness who died from exposure to the coldand hundreds of others have been treated at hospitals. The power outages, which began Monday, were initially promised to last around 15 minutes, but some residents have reported hours to days without electricity. The temperatures inside some homes have dropped to the 40s and lower. And in anguished comments on social media, angry Texans have wondered whos to blame for these dangerous conditions. It turns out that its a whole bundle of issues, all happening at once.

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The simplest factor is that Texas is not equipped to handle winter weather, let alone one of the most brutal cold spells in decades. In many parts of Texas, temperatures have hovered some 40 or 50 degrees below average. The heating needed to maintain a comfortable environment is immense, and houses in the state are often not insulated to retain heat but instead to cast it off. Texas power grids also arent set up for the cold. In more northern states, the physical elements of power infrastructure are winterized to help them withstand subzero temperatures. In Texas, though, they can be disabled by ice and busted fuel lines. Trees that flourish in the subtropical heat can crack in the cold, falling onto power lines. Instruments can stop working. In addition, the states power grid is not prepared for the extreme energy demands of the past week. According to experts, the power system in Texas is oriented around the summer, when air conditioning strains the grid. Winter months are often a time for power plants to step back or shutter for maintenance and repairs. The kinds of resources they can tap into in the summer arent available.

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There are still things we dont know for certainif there were a significant number of downed power lines or cracked fuel lines, for examplebut some experts argue that the design of Texas system lends itself to these crises. Of all the continental states, Texas alone has its own power grid. (The rest of the continental U.S. is covered by two other grids.) The reason for this is very Texan: The utilities wanted to avoid the oversight from the federal government that comes with interstate business. So Texas developed a massive market governed by the rules of supply and demand that led to low prices for consumers.

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But according to Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston, theres no incentive for Texas power generators to jump in at a moments notice, thanks to the way the market is structured. The average wholesale price of electricity for the past decade or so has been lower than what it costs to provide that electricity. He notes that the high-cost generators know they have to be ready to go in the summer, but after that, they button up and go fishing, and it can be difficult to bring them back online quickly. For some companies, providing that reserve power in offseason times, such as February, could prove very rewarding if an unusual spike happens. But its a high-risk venture, and larger companies are motivated to avoid sinking so much into the cost of producing supply without a reliable demand. So Texas doesnt have a lot of reserve power.

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Julie Cohn, a historian with affiliations at the Baker Institute at Rice University and at the Center for Public History at the University of Houston, added that in Texas there is no law or regulatory entity requiring a power system to have a certain amount of backup in case of a sudden spike in demand, as is the case elsewhere. Its possible that, because of its isolation, the Texas grid was unable to pull power from the surrounding regions. But as Gurcan Gulen, an independent energy consultant and a former researcher at UT Austin, noted, the surrounding regions were dealing with their own blackouts, so its unlikely that would have helped much.

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At least one expert has argued that Texas had little reserve power on hand simply because it had little need to worry, given its abundant natural gas resources. But natural gas, which powers a large percentage of Texas electricity plants, was a major culprit in this weeks blackouts. Multiple technological elements in the extraction and distribution of natural gas failed in the extreme temperatures, knocking out about half of its normal output. This would have been a huge problem even if natural gass role in the states power generation wasnt taken into account: Texans rely heavily on natural gas for heat and fuel during the winter, and when demand skyrocketed as temperatures plunged, the utilities were forced to prioritize individual houses and hospitals over the power plants. And even then, some of those power plants that received the natural gas were forced to halt operations due to the cold.

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The cold was punishing for other power sources as well: At least one nuclear power plant partially shut down in the cold, and some coal generators failed in the frigid temperatures. And, as many conservative commentators noted, wind turbines at Texas numerous wind farms iced over. But experts note that wind turbines do not typically provide a significant portion of the regions power in the winter. Thats just nonsense, Hirs said. Sure, the wind guys went down. But theyre not counted on to provide electricity 24/7 anyway. Cohn pointed out that the incident should not count against wind energy in generalit, too, could be adapted to withstand the coldand that the larger crisis came from natural gas.

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So how does Texas avoid a future crisis like this? While the state has just one grid, there are countless entities involved in energy production in Texas. Private companies, regulated utilities, rural co-ops, municipal entitiesthere is a big, confusing morass of people and companies and governments, Cohn said. Its really hard to point the finger. There are so many moving parts.

As a result, Cohn doesnt think theres one simple solution. Winterizing equipmentno small or cheap endeavor, given the vastness of Texas infrastructurecould help. As could refiguring the way customers in a network pay for their power, to fund those winterizing efforts or make room for more reserve power.

Gulen, an economist, said he doesnt know if everyone will agree that something needs to change. These kinds of things, you have to do some kind of risk analysis: Can you really invest in a redundancy for an event that is a one-in-a-hundred-years event? he said. These are tough decisions. He said that he was also skeptical that a more traditionally regulated market would have caused companies to make any different choices. No utility administrator would approve anything like that, he said.

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Hirs thinks the solution is to restructure the market with input from the state Legislature. Both Republicans and Democrats have expressed anger over the situation and called for an accounting of the missteps that led to the outages. On Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott declared that the reform of the state agency overseeing the grid would be an emergency item on the legislative agenda. Hirs expressed some concerns that, after a disastrous 2011 winter storm, there were investigations and reports and everybody nodded their heads and said these are great recommendations and filed them in a dustbin in Austin. But if legislators were serious about avoiding more blackouts, they would compensate the power generators for times in fallow months when they dont turn profits. Its important to keep the equipment up, he said. And its important to realize that if reliability is a goal, you have to pay for that.
Your Colleagues

Buffalo Law Review issue a tribute to Schlegel

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The issue grew out of a planned conference in Schlegels honor, originally scheduled for spring 2020 and now set to take place this fall, organized by David A. Westbrook, Louis A. Del Cotto Professor, and the Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy. (Typically, papers presented at a conference are then gathered for subsequent publication; the order is reversed in this case because of the coronavirus postponement. Schlegel had insisted that no papers be read at the conference, so they would have been circulated in advance anyway.)

Schlegel joined the UB Law faculty in 1973. Generations of students have experienced his broadly informed, yet intensely personal engagement with how law works in our society, and come away challenged to look in new ways at the law and its practice.

 Serious Fun  A conference with & around Schlegel! , the Law Reviews second issue of the academic year, collects nine original essays by colleagues and interlocutors of UB Distinguished Professor John Henry Schlegel, a foreword and a closing reflection by Schlegel himself.

The newest issue of the Buffalo Law Review devotes itself to the teaching, scholarship and unique personality of the School of Laws longest-serving active faculty member.

Serious Fun as a theme was Schlegels idea. One of the things that Jack has been talking about, and also has embodied, is a sense of intellectual playfulness, Westbrook says. Keeping alive a sense of play, of adventure, of possibility has been a huge contribution of Jacks, and its been very important, particularly to younger faculty, who are under professional pressure to conform.

That playfulness is evident in Schlegels work, with titles like More Crabs, Still No Barrel and Does Duncan Kennedy Wear Briefs or Boxers?

Not to be outdone, contributors to the Law Review issue share their own encounters with Schlegel  personal stories that serve as springboards to a serious appraisal of his lifes work. Contributors include UB colleagues James Gardner, SUNY Distinguished Professor; Alfred Konefsky, UB Distinguished Professor Emeritus; and Professor Matthew Steilen (Westbrook wrote the foreword), as well as scholars from Notre Dame, the University of Virginia, Georgetown, Stanford and Berkeley.

A light touch cant obscure, though, Schlegels influence on the way we see two critical moments in the U.S. legal academy. Jack has established a dual view of probably the most important legal movement in 20th-century legal history, American Legal Realism, Westbrook says. In addition, Buffalo was one of the early centers of Critical Legal Studies, and Jack was both a participant in and an observer and chronicler of that movement. Nobody has done a better job of providing both an inside and an outside view of the whole.

Kevin Hartnett Jr., a third-year law student who is editor-in-chief of the Buffalo Law Review, inherited the Schlegel publication project from his predecessor in that role. I was super excited about picking that up as one of our early issues, he says, and I thoroughly enjoyed working on this project. Its an important project for the Law Review and the school.

The Serious Fun theme, he says, was fitting, because you could tell the authors had serious fun writing it. There are a lot of thought-provoking pieces about legal history and methods of teaching, really thoughtful scholarship written by some high-level authors. But the theme of the issue allowed the authors a little more flexibility to write about interesting topics. They cited their experiences with Professor Schlegel, told some stories, then in really crafty ways tied that into the scholarship.

Hartnett says he never took a course from Schlegel and had only one encounter with him, back in his first year of law school. I was leaving OBrian and there was someone behind me, so I held the door for him, then saw it was Professor Schlegel. And that turned into a conversation that lasted from OBrian all the way to the parking lot. It was almost as if I entered the conversation halfway through. Just talking with him, even as a 1L, I knew that I had brushed up against greatness.


Guru IoT Enters North American Pet Products Market With FCC-Certified Pet Sitter Robot PEDDY

Guru IoT, Korean IoT products developer, announced that it would move into the North American pet device market with its pet sitter robot PEDDY. The pet caring robot earned a certification with the U.S. Federal Communications Commission.

The PEDDY, which is already under field test in the United States and Canada, can be used for video-chatting, automatic feeding, and safety check while the pet owner is away from home. With the pet industry set to grow quickly, the demand for the PEDDY is expected to increase as well.

The companion pet caring robot PEDDY, which is used in combination with a smartphone by placing it on the robot and establishing a connection through an app, can play with a pet, keep an eye on for safety accidents, and relieve the loneliness of a pet left home alone, as well as providing food at preset time intervals.







The robot supports features including indoor self-driving using IoT, home closed-circuit TV, automatic feeder, and other supervision functionalities custom-tailored to each pet's needs.

A Guru IoT official said, "With PEDDY, pet owners can talk with their pets on the video screen while they are away from home. As the robot is equipped with the emotional interaction function, it can help pets cope with the COVID-19 blues due to less frequent outings."

For more information on pet sitter robot PEDDY, visit https://en.guruiot.com/.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005399/en/
Almost a million unemployed Australians are set to have their welfare payments permanently increased when the boosted JobSeeker payment ends next month.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison is expected to announce a rise in the dole to replace the $150-a-fortnight coronavirus supplement that comes to an end on March 31.

Without the increase, JobSeeker payments would fall back to a pre-pandemic base rate of $565 a fortnight.

Australians could be about to receive a permanent increase to their welfare payments when the JobSeeker coronavirus supplement comes to an end. Pictured is a woman wearing a mask outside a Centrelink in Bondi Junction, Sydney last year

Any changes to welfare payments would likely have to be legislated by next week to be effective by the time both the JobSeeker supplement and JobKeeper expire, a government source told The Australian.

Targeted wage subsidy support for industries hit hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic is also part of a raft of changes being considered by the federal government.

Both Labor and Reserve Bank Governor Philip Lowe called for a permanent increase to the dole.

The proposals - which could be finalised at a meeting of the federal cabinet budget committee on Friday - comes as the government considers streamlining Centrelink payment for the jobless into one.

Some JobSeeker recipients are eligible for supplements that include pharmaceutical allowance, telephone, and utilities allowances, and the literary supplement.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison is expected to announce a rise in the dole to replace the $150-a-fortnight coronavirus supplement

The federal government is also looking at streamlining income support into one single payment. Pictured, people are seen lining up in Melbourne in 2020

Every recipient also receives a fortnightly energy supplement. The top-up payments are worth as little as $4 a fortnight.

Those additional payments would all be scrapped as part of the measures to permanently boost the base rate of JobSeeker.

But rent assistance and family tax benefits are likely to remain under the reforms, which are still being thrashed out.

The government is adamant the coronavirus supplement will end as scheduled, but confirmed it is looking to increase the rate of JobSeeker rather than allowing it to return to $40 a day.

The federal government is reportedly examining axing multiple supplement payments in favour of providing one streamlined payment. Pictured, people are seen in long queues outside the Centrelink office in Southport, Gold Coast last year

'In terms of the rate and its future, we will consider that in the normal expenditure review committee process, and that's what we're doing right now,' Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said.

Social advocacy group Anglicare Australia said its polling of service agencies across the country showed 100 per cent of respondents said any cut would see more people needing help.

'The old rate of JobSeeker was frozen for decades, leaving hundreds of thousands of people trapped in poverty,' Anglicare executive director Kasy Chambers said.

New figures released Monday show 785,000 jobs were created in the past seven months, while the unemployment rate dropped from 7.5 per cent in July to 6.6 per cent

'When the government raised the rate last year, it righted that wrong.'

Last April, the introduction of the coronavirus supplement effectively doubled the rate of JobSeeker to $557.85 per week.

The supplement was cut in September to leaving JobSeeker recipients with $407.85 per week and then that was reduced again in December to $357.85 per week.

Under the current JobSeeker rates, a single person with no children can earn up to $715.70 a fortnight, which includes a base rate of $565.70 and the coronavirus supplement.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg (pictured) while welcoming figures showing a decrease in JobKeeper recipients said some sectors will need support once the pandemic-inspired scheme cuts out

JobSeeker supplement was introduced alongside JobKeeper, with the latter provided as a lifeline to businesses impacted by coronavirus restrictions to help retain staff.

Recent figures from the Australian Taxation Office showed more than 2.13 million Australians were no longer receiving JobKeeper payments at the end of December.

There were 1.54 million employees eligible for the wage subsidy between October and December last year, down from 3.6 million between April and September.

The biggest decrease came in Western Australia, the Northern Territory and South Australia while Victoria reported the smallest decrease.

'What these numbers show is a broad based recovery in the Australian labour market much better than we expected, even through the pandemic last year,' Mr Frydenberg told ABC radio on Monday.

JOBKEEPER FIGURES JobKeeper registrations between the first phase (April to September) and second phase (October to December) were down in: - Retail trade (68 per cent) - Accommodation and food services (52 per cent) - Education and training (50 per cent) - Wholesale trade (71 per cent) - Construction (48 per cent) Advertisement

JobKeeper will end on March 28 - six months later than first planned - but Mr Frydenberg conceded sectors like tourism, aviation and international education were still struggling and would need support once the pandemic-prompted scheme cuts out.

Mr Frydenberg said 785,000 jobs had been created in the past seven months, while the unemployment rate has dropped from 7.5 per cent in July to 6.6 per cent in December.

But ACTU secretary Sally McManus said the education, tourism and manufacturing sectors continue to be 'smashed' by the coronavirus pandemic.

'What we say is JobKeeper should be extended for those businesses that are still affected by the coronavirus, through no fault of their own,' she told the ABC.

Ms McManus said the support should continue 'for as long as the pandemic is with us'.

Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers says the government not only has to focus on supporting businesses through the pandemic but deal with the broader issues of stagnant wages, underemployment and job insecurity.

'It's not a recovery if it's built on the back of less secure work or weaker wages growth.'
iOS 14's updates are making Apple's smartphone system worse. Well, that's what ad companies are currently claiming as they move into the Android system instead. Right now, some marketing companies are choosing to spend their budget on Android advertising since they claimed that Apple's iOS 14 App Tracking Transparency feature is uncertain.

Before Apple's new App Tracking Transparency even arrives in iOS 14.5, marketing firms and advertisers are already identifying how much the new privacy feature will change their income. According to Apple Insider's latest report, some of them are already moving into Android temporarily.

Why ad companies are choosing Android over iOS

They are currently doing this so that they can see the real-world impact of the new privacy update. Ad companies claim that the costs will rise. However, they are not sure if their income will also go up.

"Everyone is nervous about the future and how the performance of their advertising is going to take a hit whenever Apple's changes do arrive," said Brian Karas, Playbook Media's staff, via Apple Insider.

Also Read: Apple's iOs 14.5 Beta Directs 'Safe Browsing' Traffic Control Through Own Server Instead of Google, Why?

"I wouldn't say anyone is trying to frontload budgets or make big commitments to another platform because there's so much uncertainty," he added.

On the other hand, advertising company Bigabid's Ido Raz explained that there are a lot of uncertainties that are hidden behind Apple's new software update. He added that marketing firms and advertisers are moving their money to other platforms that they have more control over.

As of the moment, some marketing companies, there were iOS-first firms, are now changing their perspective when it comes to the importance of Android apps. However, some analysts claimed that ad companies will soon adopt Apple's new App Tracking Transparency (ATT) and SKAdNetwork frameworks.

Is iOS still better than Android system?

If you will consider the marketing and ad companies, then the iOS system is really getting worse since Apple's new security updates will not allow them to make personalized ads. However, if you will consider the smartphone users, then iOS 14 is still a better system compared to the latest Android Software, as reported by Android Authority. Here are some of the reasons why iOS 14 is still more user-friendly compared to the Android system;

iOS is super simple to use

iOS has better security features

iOS is generally faster and smoother

iOS has timely updates

iOS has better resale value

For more news updates about Apple's iOS system and its issues with ad companies or regular users, always keep your tabs open here at TechTimes.

Related Article: Apple iPhone 12 Repairs: No More Replacing Faulty Device Says New Rear System Memo Leaks

This article is owned by TechTimes.

Written by: Giuliano de Leon.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The Sensor Fusion stack is designed to equip ASVs with more advanced sensory capabilities than human security guards, enhancing the patrol and surveillance functionality.

The technology will make autonomous systems more human-like in how they perceive surroundings.

( ) has started developing a Sensor Fusion stack for integration into a new generation of autonomous robotic security vehicles that will make them more intuitive and more responsive to their environment.

The sensor fusion will make the autonomous systems more human-like in the way they can perceive their surroundings.

This technology is designed to equip the autonomous security vehicles (ASV) with more advanced sensory capabilities than human security guards, significantly enhancing the patrol and surveillance functionality of the companys ASV.

The Sensor Fusion stack is also a key enabler in the technology roadmap towards the ASV achieving advanced Artificial Intelligence capabilities.

Generating significant momentum

Strategic Elements managing director Charles Murphy said: We have undertaken a significant amount of work to plan and design the next generation of the ASV.

In our view, the Sensor Fusion stack is just the start of showing how we can add advanced intelligence into our mobile robotics platform.

We are generating significant momentum across our technology projects, including the Electronic Battery and Memory Inks and look forward to communicating these developments as they occur.

We can see how we can develop, test and validate the technologies to potentially attract significant interest from industry participants.

Our technologies are by design highly innovative and seek large global markets and as a company, we are highly leveraged to technology development success.

Shares higher

SOR has a market cap of approximately $187.3 million and shares have been almost 11 per cent higher in early trade to 51.5 cents.

ASV sensor fusion stack

The ASV fusion stack will include additional sensors such as LiDAR, radar, GPS, sonar, thermal imaging and different types of cameras, with each sensor adding different strengths to the fusion data generated.

Sensor fusion is an important upgrade to the design of autonomous systems and requires a complex assortment of sensors and the real-time software to enable local processing of raw sensor data.

It combines data from multiple sensors in real-time to create an accurate picture of the local environment.

Environmental information to drive behaviour

The ASV can use this to enable higher-level tasks to understand, plan and interact autonomously with its environment - for example not just to detect humans, but to interpret why they may be there and what they are doing.

It can enable environmental information to drive robot behaviour.

Fusion is the ultimate form of sensor integration, combining multiple sensor technologies in a single application.

Each sensor has individual strengths that when combined can eliminate the weaknesses of the others.

For example, when it is dark, LiDAR, Radar and thermal imaging can see whilst cameras and humans cannot.

In addition, the ASV will be able see around corners, view from an elevated position, focus with much longer range and apply greater attention to detail than human security guards.

Global perimeter security market

SOR is designing the ASV to automate perimeter security.

The global perimeter security market is forecast to grow quickly at CAGR of 12% over the forecast period 2020-2026, reaching US$282.26 billion by 2025.

Integration with collaborative work

The Sensor Fusion stack will also include integration with ongoing collaborative work with Planck AeroSystems enabling autonomous drones to launch and land autonomous surveillance flights from a moving ASV platform.

Planck is a global leader working with the US Department of Defenses Combating Terrorism Technical Support Office (CTTSO), the US Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security on various aspects of its technology.

In addition, the CSIRO Wildcat SLAM technology will also be integrated with the Sensor Fusion stack.

The company has licensed world-leading CSIRO technology that enables robots to work together in teams.

The Wildcat SLAM technology leverages more than ten years of research and development at CSIROs Data61.

Wildcat is a key enabling technology in robot perception, a system that endows the robot with the ability to perceive, comprehend and reason about the surrounding environment.

Autonomous Perimeter Security Testing

The company is also exclusively collaborating with giant US company International Inc ( ) to build autonomous security vehicles for the correctional justice sector.

The parties are working with the WA Department of Justice to build a fully autonomous robotic security vehicle for the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison in Kalgoorlie to inspect, test and confirm the integrity of the secure perimeter.

SOR has developed custom robotics built on top of its autonomous mobile platform to provide automated perimeter security testing 365 days a year, 24 hours a day.

This enables automated testing of multiple technologies including microphonics, microwave, buried electromagnetic cable and photoelectric beams.

The ASV is being deployed to increase the security of the perimeter and reduce the amount of human involvement in testing and patrols, freeing those staff up for more skilled tasks.

As development progresses certain ASV Fusion Stack features will be assessed for applicability in the correctional justice sector.

However, under the agreement with Honeywell, the company can independently market the ASV into other sectors such as transport, energy, defence, government and utilities.

These sectors will be the initial focus for the new generation of the ASV with Fusion Stack.

Next steps

An ASV is under live testing at the Eastern Goldfields Regional Prison and this is on track to be completed in the current quarter.

Further facilities and deployments of the perimeter testing focused vehicle will be assessed upon successful completion of the testing program.

The company has started talks with potential Early Adopter Program participants for the ASV in non-correctional sectors such as mining and transport.

It is seeking to work closely with early adopters to deeply understand their use case, solve their problems and continuously upgrade and improve the ASV.

Discussions are ongoing and no agreement has been entered into to date.

Sensor placement and development, integration with the Stealth Autonomous Operating System and real-time software to enable local processing of raw sensor data will be developed over the next two-three months.

Live trials of the new generation ASV with Sensor Fusion is expected to commence in the first half of 2021.

Further upgrades to the ASV technology stack are being assessed and if a decision is made to commit to the integration of the technology, the company will communicate this as appropriate.
An agreement has been reached with Kvika Banki hf on amendments to the market making agreement from July 2017. According to the amended agreement, Kvika is committed to make daily bid and ask offers for a minimum of ISK 5.000.000 at market value at a price decided by Kvika at any given time. The maximum spread between bid and ask is 1.5%, if the intraday price change is more than 5% Kvika is allowed to increase the maximum spread to 3.0%. The maximum amount Kvika is obliged to trade within any day amounts to 25.000.000 kr of market value.

The amended agreement takes effect from February 19th 2021.
Photo taken on Feb. 12, 2021 shows a variety of annual customary and cultural activities held in an ancient village in Longyuanba Town, Quannan County, Ganzhou City, east China's Jiangxi Province in celebration of the Chinese New Year. (Yin Qiqi/Guangming Picture)
Nikki Haley was snubbed Wednesday by Donald Trump when she requested a sit-down with the former president at his Mar-a-Lago residence, a source told Politico Thursday.

Trump and his former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations have not spoken since January 6, when Haley publicly blamed the former president for riling up his supporters before they stormed the Capitol.

The turn down for an in-person meeting came hours before Haley released an op/ed with the Wall Street Journal appearing to conduct damage control regarding her relationship with Trump after she continuously broke with him post-insurrection.

Trump denying Haley her requested meeting comes on the heels of a report last week where she spoke of rumored presidential ambitions and said Trump 'let us down' by his actions after the election.

In her interview with Politico last week, Haley insisted Trump wouldn't run for public office again.

'I think impeachment is a waste of time,' she said.

When pressed on how Trump should be held accountable for 'inciting the insurrection', Haley said: 'I think he's going to find himself further and further isolated.'

'I think his business is suffering at this point. I think he's lost any sort of political viability he was going to have. I think he's lost his social media, which meant the world to him. I mean, I think he's lost the things that really could have kept him moving,' she continued.

Donald Trump denied Nikki Haley's request for a meeting Wednesday  as it appears the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations is doing damage control on her relationship with the former president as she could launch a White House bid in 2024

The requested meeting would have taken place at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Southern Florida

Since leaving office, Trump (pictured here on Thursday) has spent much of his time golfing at his West Palm Beach golf club, just a 10-minute drive down the road from Mar-a-Lago

'He's not going to run for federal office again,' she assured when pressed on the issue.

'I don't think he's going to be in the picture,' Haley said. 'I don't think he can. He's fallen so far.'

In mid-December, she defended Trump's election fraud claims.

'I understand the president. I understand that genuinely, to his core, he believes he was wronged,' Haley told Politico at the time. 'This is not him making it up.'

Haley, however, has oftentimes flip-flopped her stance on Trump.

Haley appeared to realize, by evidence of her op/ed Wednesday, that her words against the former president could have consequences  including jeopardizing her ability to ride on Trump's coattails while potentially ticking off his massive base of supporters, which are needed for any Republican to win a presidential election.

Haley's Journal op/ed included condemnation of Trump, where she claimed he 'will be judged' for his actions  but she also praised the former president for the lasting changes he brought to the Republican Party.

'Here's my take: Most of Mr. Trump's major policies were outstanding and made America stronger, safer and more prosperous,' Haley wrote in her opinion piece. 'Many of his actions since the election were wrong and will be judged harshly by history. That's not a contradiction. It's common sense.'

'We can't go back to the pre-Trump GOP,' she continued. 'Those days are over, and they should be.'

The main question of Haley's op/ed: 'Where does the Republican Party go from here?'

Haley is a prominent voice within the GOP, serving as governor of South Carolina before joining Trump's administration as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations for the first two years of his presidency.

Now, Nikki is facing encouragement from the GOP to run for president in 2024.

Haley released an op/ed late Wednesday night where she walked back on some of her outward criticism of Trump in what appeared to be a damage control moment

After Trump was acquitted on Saturday of the article of impeachment for 'incitement of insurrection,' rumors reemerged that he could still make a run for the White House again in 2024.

Even though the Senate voted against conviction, several members of the Republican Party, including those who voted for his acquittal, condemned Trump for his words allegedly leading to the Capitol insurrection on January 6.

Some of the former president's most staunch supporters finally departed from Trump after the violent insurrection, which left hundreds injured and five dead  including a Capitol Police Officer.

Days before her Journal op/ed, Haley told Politico that Trump 'let us down' in the weeks after the 2020 presidential election, adding that he 'went down a path he shouldn't have.'

Haley said the press is using the riff in the Republican Party to further divide the GOP.

'It [media] wants to stoke a nonstop Republican civil war,' Haley wrote. 'The media playbook starts with the demand that everyone pick sides about Donald Trump either love or hate everything about him.'

'The moment anyone on the right offers the slightest criticism of the 45th president, the media goes berserk: Republicans are trying to have it both ways!' she continued. 'It's a calculated strategy to pit conservatives against one another. It's also a ridiculous false choice. Real life is never that simple. Someone can do both good and bad things.'

She said 'what's good' for the media 'is bad for America', namely the 'hatred and polarization drawing attention, ratings and clicks' to TV and computer screens.

Haley urged Republicans to not take an 'all-or-nothing' approach.

Haley served as Trump's U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations for the first two years of his term

'Some Never Trump and Always Trump Republicans also attack anyone who doesn't join the all-or-nothing chorus,' she lamented. 'That's not how I saw Mr. Trump conduct himself when I worked with him in the White House, where he engaged in internal debates, welcomed disagreements, and at times changed his mind.'

Despite Haley's condensation of post-election Trump, she still suggested the election was not conducted fairly.

'Mr. Trump's legal team failed to prove mass election fraud in court,' she wrote. 'But election security is still urgently needed.'

Trump returned to the public eye on Wednesday by first giving a tribute interview on Rush Limbaugh's life and career to Fox News after the conservative radio personality died from cancer.

He then went on a media frenzy, announcing interviews on the trifecta of right-leaning media: Fox News  with Sean Hannity  One America News and Newsmax.
A new cafe in the heart of Hershey is playing off the towns sweet history.

Cafe aMusee opened this week at The Hershey Story at 63 W. Chocolate Ave. with dessert pizzas, hot chocolate bombs and syringes filled with warm chocolate ganache.

Were in Hershey. This is a town founded on milk chocolate and Milton Hershey, said Angela Megoulas, Cafe aMusee co-owner.

The cafe slides into the former Pantry Cafe and is designed to appeal to tourists and local residents. Megoulas and partner Irene Gekas, who also operate Gourmet Grille and Gyro.GRK at Hersheypark, envision a community atmosphere with outdoor dining, catering and pop-up events.

The cafe highlights breakfast and lunch and introduces central Pennsylvania to La Colombe Coffee Roasters. La Colombe is headquartered in Philadelphia and operates cafes in New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles.

Diners can order La Colombes popular draft latte and cold brew, as well as Black and Tan, a combination of the two draft coffee beverages.

We just love it. Were addicts, Megoulas said.

Otherwise, breakfast items cover baked oats, lox and bagels, cinnamon roll skillets and avocado toast, while lunch extends to Wagyu beef burgers, Croque Monsieur, turkey sandwiches, grilled salmon sandwiches and tahini cauliflower bowls.

Hot chocolate bombs and chocolate-filled syringes are made in the museums Chocolate Lab. The syringes pair with fresh strawberries and cream or the cafes dessert pizzas, inspired by the owners trips to Max Brenner, a chocolate bar in New York City.

READ MORE:

For those who cant resist injecting the syringes directly into their mouths, thats perfectly acceptable.

Thats what its known for - just a shot of chocolate, Gekas said.

Daily specials and homemade soups round out the offerings along with pastries and breads delivered daily from Philadelphia bakeries. Admission to the museum is not required to dine in the restaurant.

The cafes hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., daily. Online ordering is available through Cafe aMusees website. Phone is 717-508-1729.


High-resolution satellite imagery has revealed the large-scale impact of the massive fire that engulfed hundreds of trucks at Afghanistan's Islam Qala on February 13, which is also the crucial border crossing between Afghanistan and Irans Herat province. The Guardian reported citing Afghan officials and Iranian state media that the fuel tanker explosion injured at least 60 people and caused a massive fire that consumed over 500 trucks carrying natural gas and fuel.

Two of the explosions at the border crossing were powerful enough to be spotted from space by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) satellites. As per the report, the first blast took around 1:10 PM (Afghan time) and the next at least 30 minutes later at 1:42 PM. However, it was not immediately clear what caused the blasts. The high-resolution satellite images were shared on Twitter by Maxar Technologies WorldView-3 satellite on February 17 which also indicates that debris continues to smoulder days after the initial explosion.

Images from today, Feb 17, of the #Afghan-#Iran border showing the aftermath of a series of fuel tanker explosions that occurred on Feb 13 at the Islam Qala crossing in #Afghanistan's Herat province. 500+ trucks carrying natural gas & fuel were reportedly destroyed in the blasts. pic.twitter.com/dCnIhH9dPG  Maxar Technologies (@Maxar) February 17, 2021

Read - Satellite Images Show Fire Devastation On Afghan-Iran Border

Read -Firefighters Battle Afghan-Iran Border Blaze For A 2nd Day

Over 500 trucks carrying natural gas burned

While the Islam Qala border crossing is a lifeline for millions in Afghanistan, Irans semi-official ISNA news agency quoted truck drivers as saying more than 500 trucks carrying natural gas and fuel were engulfed in the fire. The Herat provincial governor, Wahid Qatali said that over 2,000 vehicles at the site of the blaze were protected including 1,500 that were rushed across the border into Iran to keep them away from the blasts.

Qatali reportedly also said that at the time of the blaze, the crossing point was overcrowded. Even though it has a capacity of up to 700 oil trucks, there were more than 2,500 trucks present. While the Herat provincial governor informed that an investigation has been launched into the cause of the fire and the estimate losses for the government and the private sector. The United States allows Afghanistan to import fuel from Iran as part of a special concession that exempts Kabul from American sanctions against Tehran. Reportedly, the satellite images before the explosion showed dozens of tankers parked on the Afghan side at the border crossing.

Read - Afghanistan: Fuel Tanker Explosions In Herat Injure 60; Blasts Spotted From Space

Read - Afghan Painter Paints PM Modi's Portrait In Kabul, Wishes For Long Friendship With India

Image credits: The Associated Press

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The Covid-19 vaccination drive is on and its third phase is scheduled to start in March. The self-registration for the vaccine will happen in the CoWin app and people above the age group of 50 and those with comorbidities will be expected to participate in the vaccination drive.

As per the health ministry, the app will provide an option to the users to choose their date and location of the vaccination site and the beneficiaries will also be able to use the app to update their age from what is reflected on the last electoral roll.

The third phase of vaccination guidelines and suggestions are still under work as which comorbidities will come under the phase hasnt been decided yet.

It's a subject that is being deliberated amongst the topmost relevant experts of the country and we are taking opinion from relevant quarters within the country if required even from WHO. The expert committee is expected to give the guidelines soon, said Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan.

After the framing of guidelines, the registrations for eligible beneficiaries of the third category of vaccination are likely to be open soon on the CoWin app.

Currently, India has vaccinated over 94 lakh healthcare and frontline workers against coronavirus and coveted the third spot after the US and the UK. By February 20, the government has promised to give at least a single dose of vaccine to healthcare workers. The mop-up rounds will have to be finished by February 24 and for Frontline workers, the dates are March 1 and March 6, respectively.
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The US has received enough petitions needed to reach the Congressionally-mandated 65,000 H-1B visa cap for the fiscal year 2021 and successful candidates for the most sought-after work visa among foreign professionals, including Indians, would be decided by a computerised draw of lots.

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows the US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

The technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has said it has received a sufficient number of petitions needed to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa US advanced degree exemption, known as the master's cap, for fiscal year (FY) 2021.

Successful applicants would be decided by a computerised draw of lots.

We have completed sending non-selection notifications to registrants' online accounts, a media release said.

We will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap, it said.

Petitions filed for current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap number, are exempt from the FY 2021 H-1B cap.

The USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions filed to extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the US and change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers.

The Biden administration this month announced that it was delaying the H-1B policy of the previous Trump administration on the allocation of the popular foreign work visas by continuing with the lottery system until December 31, 2021, to give the immigration agency more time to develop, test and implement the modifications to the registration system.

On January 7, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced to do away with the traditional lottery system in deciding the successful applicants for the H-1B visas.

The Trump-era rule was scheduled to go into effect on March 9.
A number of applicants for the HSEs Be On Call for Ireland campaign have spoken of contact abruptly ceasing between themselves and the health authorities despite their ongoing desire to volunteer.

Corkman Chris Carroll and his partner Mary, who are both retired healthcare workers, applied for the HSEs campaign to bolster the health service when it was first launched in March 2020.

Having gone through the full vetting process for the programme, contact between them and the HSE ended from October of last year.

It recently transpired that just 321 of over 73,000 applicants  less than 1%  for the service were ever recruited, despite sustained promotional campaigns across media asking people to help out where they could.

Be on Call was one of the earliest recruitment drives of the pandemic, with former medical staff based both at home and abroad urged to make a difference by bolstering the health services headcount at a time of national crisis.

Despite an ongoing personnel crisis due to Covid-19 isolation and illness, the 600,000 HSE recruitment campaign has filled roles using just 0.4% of the schemes applicants.

Mr Carroll describes Be On Call as a shambles. We both want to volunteer and its clear they have been short on people.

HSE chief executive Paul Reid at the launch of the 'Be on call for Ireland' recruitment campaign in March 2020. Picture: Sasko Lazatov/Photocall Ireland

He and Mary applied for Be On Call initially and reiterated their availability in October and in January when the Government requested the publics help in bolstering its track and trace programme and delivery of the vaccine roll-out respectively.

We put our names down on the first day, Mr Carroll, who is 68 and worked for the HSE for eight years, said.

We werent interested in a job, we were interested in volunteering. We spoke to them twice and then were told in June its great but we dont need you.

Both have remained registered with Be On Call and have also consulted five Cork TDs, indicating their desire to volunteer to aid in the vaccine roll-out across the country, with Mary, a former dental surgeon who only retired late last year, of particular potential use to that end.

All of those messages were passed on to the Minister for Health, though a response has yet to come from the department. Neither the HSE nor the Department of Health responded to requests for comment.

In early February Mary made direct contact with the HR department of Cork University Hospital who, in Mr Carrolls words, were absolutely delighted to have help and said they would respond imminently. It appears there is a need for help with giving the vaccine after all, he said.

The woman in CUH was laying out the red carpet yet every other avenue we went through was just shut down.

Another nurse, speaking on condition of anonymity, who had left the profession in 2019, applied for Be On Call last April and told the Irish Examiner that they had done so after seeing places like Italy on the news and the absolute devastation Covid had caused.

I had the skills, it made sense to help, they said. They rejoined the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland and were asked for their nursing qualifications and employment history.

I told them I was available to work as soon as possible, I could even do contact tracing if I wasnt needed as a nurse, they said. I was told to stand by for a further call after the weekend and then never heard from them again.
Apple Inc is angling to participate in a new scheme to boost India's exports of computer products, part of what government and industry sources say are plans to bring iPad tablet manufacturing to the South Asian country. India launched a $6.7 billion plan to boost smartphone exports last year, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped up efforts to promote electronics manufacturing and create jobs. Apple, which has steadily raised production of iPhones in India to lessen its dependence on Chinese manufacturing, took part in that scheme via its contract manufacturers. Now the ...
The Uzbek authorities' strong policy reaction led to the country being among the few countries that showed positive overall economic growth in 2020, at a rate of 1.6 per cent, the IMF said in a statement following a three-week remote mission in Uzbekistan, the Xinhua news agency reported.

Tashkent (Uzbekistan), Feb 18 (IANS) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday that Uzbekistan's large support package was timely and well-targeted, though the Covid-19 pandemic has had "a marked, but so far relatively short-lived, adverse impact" on the country's economy.

"Growth is expected to pick up further in 2021, but the level of uncertainty remains high and the recovery will depend especially on vaccine rollout," it said, adding that the Uzbek economy is projected to grow by about 5 percent this year.

The Uzbek authorities faced the challenge of not only supporting the recovery, but also continuing with the country's transformation to a modern market economy, according to the statement.

Uzbekistan has made significant progress during the last few years in implementing ambitious reforms, focusing mainly on improving overall macro-economic management, foreign exchange, trade liberalization, and major improvements in fiscal and monetary policy frameworks.

"The reform agenda is still large, however, and the pace of reforms has inevitably slowed due to the impact of the pandemic on administrative capacity," the IMF said, reaffirming its readiness to continue to support Uzbekistan in these efforts with policy advice, technical assistance and financial assistance.

--IANS

int/rs
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Leader in Cloud Financial Planning and Analysis Becomes Top Planning Extension for Acumatica's Cloud ERP Solution

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Planful Inc., the pioneer of financial planning and analysis (FP&A) cloud software, today announced it has partnered with Acumatica to give users of both platforms an industry-leading solution for tightly integrated, cloud-based ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and FP&A.

Acumatica is a comprehensive cloud ERP solution optimized for ease of use, adaptability, mobility, and security. As a recommended extension for Acumatica, Planful provides numerous unique capabilities for FP&A compared to alternative platforms, including:

Fast, flexible implementation using Planful Now, a package of quick-start solutions that helps enterprises meet critical use cases in just weeks.

using Planful Now, a package of quick-start solutions that helps enterprises meet critical in just weeks. Excel syntax support for ease-of-use with existing Excel charts and processes.

for ease-of-use with existing Excel charts and processes. Ability to seamlessly process large amounts of data to create a scalable, stable experience for the end user.

to create a scalable, stable experience for the end user. Fast cloud deployment with rapid configuration and seamless product updates.

"This partnership brings the power of Planful's end-to-end platform for financial planning, consolidation, and reporting & analysis together with Acumatica's robust ERP solution," said Kyle Van Jahnke, Vice President of Global Partnerships, Planful. "With Planful, Acumatica customers will now be able to automate and accelerate FP&A activities to drive faster and more agile planning and decision-cycles, and elevate the financial IQ of the organization."

This partnership signals that the Planful Platform meets the highest standards set for Acumatica integration and functionality. It also points to Planful's commitment to Acumatica quality measurements and alignment to future Acumatica roadmap releases.

"We're proud to partner with Planful to meet our customers' growing business demands," said Christian Lindberg, Vice President of Partner Solutions, Acumatica. "Customers who want to stay competitive need flexible, responsive FP&A cloud software such as the Planful Platform to execute their long-term business strategies."

To learn more about Planful and Acumatica's partnership, click here .

About Planful

Planful (formerly Host Analytics) is the pioneer of financial planning and analysis (FP&A) cloud software. The Planful platform is used by the Office of the CFO around the globe to streamline business-wide planning, budgeting, consolidations, reporting, and visual analytics. More than 800 customers, including Boston Red Sox, Del Monte, TGI Friday's, and 23andMe, rely on Planful to accelerate cycle times, increase productivity, and improve accuracy across the end-to-end FP&A process. Planful is a private company backed by Vector Capital, a leading global private equity firm. Learn more at www.planful.com .

About Acumatica

Acumatica provides cloud-based business management software that enables small and mid-size companies to accelerate their businesses. Built on cloud and mobile technology and a unique customer-centric licensing model, Acumatica delivers a suite of fully integrated business management applications, such as Financials, Distribution, CRM, and Project Accounting, on a robust and flexible platform. For more information, visit www.acumatica.com .

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New Delhi: The foreign ministers of India, Australia, Japan and the USA will hold the third Quadrilateral Security Dialogue or Quad meeting on Thursday (February 18 ).

The members are expected to exchange views on regional and global issues and to working towards an inclusive Indo-Pacific region.

"The Ministers will exchange views on regional and global issues especially practical areas of cooperation towards maintaining a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

The leaders will also discuss the efforts to combat the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and other issues of mutual interest such as global climate change.

The last quad meeting was held in Tokyo in October last year. The Quad initiative also focuses on countering the Chinese hegemony in South Asia.

In the October meeting, then-US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had called out China for using its economic power to increase its hegemony over the neighbouring countries in the region.

India had called for respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty and peaceful resolution of disputes.

Live TV
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- In 2020, NIO, the most high-profile EV startup in China, delivered 43,728 vehicles, representing a year-on-year increase of 112.6%. Besides, the company also made continuous efforts into research and development of core technologies and business model innovation.

Let's step back and take a look at what's happened in 2020 at Tesla.

NIO, State Grid's subsidiary team up on construction of battery swapping stations

NIO and State Grid Electric Vehicle Service Co., Ltd. (State Grid EV Service), a wholly-owned subsidiary of China's mammoth electricity provider State Grid, signed on Dec. 14 a framework agreement for an in-depth cooperation on electric vehicle (EV) charging, battery swapping and energy services.

Under the agreement, two companies would strive to co-construct 100 battery swapping stations nationwide in 2021, aiming to make all charging and battery swapping facilities fully connected, improving energy supply experience for users, and further lowering TOC (total ownership cost) of EVs.

NIO's 100kWh battery offers NEDC range of 615km

On November 6, NIO launched its 100kWh battery pack that is able to provide a NEDC range of up to 615km for NIO models.

With over 300 patents filed and gained, the 100kWh battery features the CTP (cell-to-pack) technology jointly developed with CATL, which helps achieve 37% higher energy density, according to NIO. Thanks to the thermal propagation prevention design, the newly-launched battery realizes better thermal runaway management. Besides, the highly integrated design can streamline the manufacturing process by 40% and improves space utilization by 19.8%, and the all-climate thermal management can improve performance and extends the service life of the battery.

NIO China's headquarters launched in Hefei

NIO China's Hefei-based headquarters was officially put into operation on October 9, NIO announced via its Sina Weibo account, a Twitter-like social media platform in China.

The operation of NIO China's headquarters will press ahead with the strategic cooperation between NIO and Hefei. NIO China will strive to help Hefei's NEV industry engaged in global competition and assist Hefei with building a world-class industrial cluster, said William Bin Li, founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of NIO.

NIO announces Navigate on Pilot, new charging service at Auto China 2020

At the Auto China 2020, NIO, the most high-profiled Chinese EV startup, announced the upgrade of its smart operating system to NIO OS 2.7.0 and released the NOP (Navigate on Pilot), which is designed to automatically guides cars following the navigation route on ring roads and highways.

NIO said the NOP is China's first commercial application of HD map on the ADAS functionality of mass-produced vehicles, which can further improve NIO Pilot's performance.

At the same time, NIO announced its new Power Up Plan, which would provide a commitment of 100 million yuan ($14,654,590) subsidy for the deployment of 30,000 destination DC chargers. The 20kW DC chargers have officially joined the string of NIO's destination charging stations for the sake of a wider charging network across the country and a faster charging speed in certain scenarios.

NIO Inc.'s market value for the first time surpasses $20 billion

NIO Inc., the first Chinese EV startup going public on the New York Stock Exchange, saw its shares were up 19.17% closing at $17.84 on August 25 and its market value hit $21.131 billion, for the first time exceeding $20 billion.

The startup was starting to turn skeptics into believers after it was upgraded from sell to neutral by UBS.

According to a UBS note published on the same day, UBS raised NIO's price target to $16.30 from $1.00, representing a precipitous surge of 1,530%. The Swiss multinational investment bank said improving fundamentals at NIO have alleviated concerns around its balance sheet thanks to a successful capital raise in June.

NIO launches Battery-as-a-Service, announces foundation of battery asset company

NIO formally launched on August 20 the BaaS (Battery-as-a-Service) service, which allows customers to buy electric vehicles and subscribe the usage of battery packs separately.

The service renders the cost of using an EV more affordable. If users decide to purchase a NIO's vehicle and subscribe to use the 70kWh battery pack under the BaaS model, they can enjoy the vehicle purchase price with a 70,000 yuan ($10,114) deduction off the original price and pay a monthly fee of 980 yuan ($142) for the battery pack. Meanwhile, the users will still enjoy the purchase tax exemption and government NEV subsidies.

NIO's 3rd production model EC6 hits market with price starting at 368,000 yuan before subsidy

NIO's third mass-produced model, the NIO EC6, went on sale at the Chengdu Motor Show 2020 with three variants offered at one go. The vehicle was sold at the pre-subsidy prices ranging from 368,000 yuan ($52,542) to 526,000 yuan ($75,101).

The EC6, deemed as the coupe version of the ES6, comes with a panoramic-view sunroof to afford the cockpit with more openness. It is expected to take on such vehicles as the Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe and Tesla's Model Y.

NIO's 50,000th mass-produced vehicle rolls off production line in Hefei

NIO witnessed on July 18 its 50,000th mass-produced vehicle roll off the production line at the JAC-NIO Advanced Manufacturing Center in Hefei, only 783 days after the first one coming out, the EV manufacturer announced via its WeChat account.

Up until that moment, the users of the high-profile EV startup have driven for over 800 million kilometers with their foot prints covering 341 cities in China, said NIO.

NIO China gains 10.4 billion yuan worth of credit line from six banks

NIO China would receive a credit line worth 10.4 billion yuan ($1,484,568,800) from six Chinese banks, the EV maker announced on July 10.

Under the strategic agreement signed on July 10, the credit line afforded by six banksthe Anhui branches of China Construction Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, Agricultural Bank of China, Industrial Bank Co.,Ltd. and China Merchants Bankwill be used to support the operation and development of NIO Chinas business.

NIO China to obtain 7 billion yuan investment from strategic investors

NIO signed on April 29 with a group of strategic investors the definitive agreements pursuant to which the latter would plow RMB7 billion collectively into NIO China, the EV manufacturer announced via its WeChat account.

Under the agreements, the strategic investors, led by Hefei City Construction and Investment Holding (Group) Co., Ltd., CMG-SDIC Capital Co., Ltd., and Anhui Provincial Emerging Industry Investment Co., Ltd., will pump cash into NIO (Anhui) Holding Ltd., the legal entity of NIO China. NIO said it would imbue NIO China with its core businesses and assets in China, involving complete vehicle R&D, supply chain, sales & service, as well as NIO Power.

NIO celebrates start of volume production of NIO EC6

On Feb. 25, the ceremony to celebrate the mass production of NIO EC6 was held at the JAC NIO Advanced Manufacturing Center in Hefei, according to a post on NIO's WeChat account. Meanwhile, the startup signed a framework agreement with Hefei municipal government to launch its China headquarters in the capital of Anhui province.

The EC6 all-electric coupe SUV would be the third model mass produced at the Hefei-based JAC-NIO manufacturing base, said NIO. Offering the first glimpse at the 2019 NIO Day, the company plans to announce the price and configuration of the EC6 in July, and kick off the delivery in this year's September.
MASON CITY, Iowa - If you could the mayor of your town for a day, what would you do? Two Mason City middle schoolers answered that question, and on Wednesday, got the chance to be honorary mayors of North Iowa's largest community.

John Adams' Blair Smith and North Iowa Christian School's Carter Osmundson were selected for the city's "Mayor for a Day" program for their compelling essays on the topic of "What I would do if I were Mayor of Mason City?" Smith wrote that if she were mayor, she would make Mason City a better place, stop hunger, clean up litter, and listen to what people want. Osmundson wrote that if he were mayor, he would give the police better pay, and improve parks.

On Wednesday, Smith and Osmundson toured city hall, met with city agencies, including the fire and police departments, and even spoke on the weekly 'Ask the Mayor' show on KGLO radio. Both elaborated on what was the most exciting part of the day.

"Touring city hall," Smith adds.

"I want to go into law enforcement when I grow up, so the police force is pretty good," Osmundson says.

Smith and Osmundson say it's an eye opening experience as to how a city government functions, and recommends other students sign up.

"It's really cool. I had fun doing this," Smith says.

"I learned a lot today. It was pretty nice learning a lot more than what I really thought city government would be," Osmundson says.

Katie Zickefoose of Central Iowa Youth for Christ helped organize Wednesday's event. She has experience in being mayor for a day; she was selected for the program while in 5th grade.

"It was one of the first times that I could really remember looking at myself as a leader. It was an experience that really meant a lot to me, and obviously, I never forgot it."

Zickefoose encourages other students to get involved in future years and gain knowledge about how government works.

"Any time you can empower and equip a young person, you're doing a good thing. We have a lot of great young people in this community. This was an opportunity for young people to be seen and to be heard."

NSF Names 52 Teams as Civic Innovation Challenge Awardees

Anchorage, Alaska, Launches Financial Pandemic Navigator Assistance

US Digital Response Is Still Offering Pro-Bono Vaccine Rollout Support

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has established a task force dedicated to improving its broadband data and mapping tools, officials announced at the groups Open Commisson Meeting , according to a press release that described the work as long overdue.The move was made by Acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, who also named Jean Kiddoo as the chair of the effort, dubbed the Broadband Data Task Force. Rosenworcel also announced related senior staff members and gave an update on the FCCs ongoing broadband data collection work.The Broadband Data Task Force is a cross-agency effort to gather detailed data and develop more precise maps about broadband availability, Rosenworcel said.The FCCs broadband data  as well as the resultant maps  have long been the subject of criticism, with advocates in the broadband and digital inclusion spaces saying they dont get granular enough, among other things. In 2019, the FCC pledged to rework the maps following a request to do so by a bipartisan group of senators . Amid the absence of effective and acceptably accurate FCC mapping, other efforts have arisen to fill the void, specifically at the state government level . The data and mapping challenges within the commission have caused obstacles and questions for rural broadband funding efforts The new Broadband Data Task Force will coordinate with the FCCs mapping and data collection efforts, doing so across several expert teams, including the Office of Economics and Analytics, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, Wireline Competition Bureau, Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, International Bureau, Office of Engineering and Technology and Office of the Managing Director.In the press release announcing the work, FCC officials also noted the importance of this coordination, writing, Each of these teams is essential to the effort of ensuring the Commission, state and local governments, tribal entities and consumers will have access to granular nationwide information on the availability and quality of broadband services.The Civic Innovation Challenge  which is led by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in partnership with the Department of Energy and the Department of Homeland Security  has named 52 teams to its list of Stage-1 awardees.What that means is that the teams  spread across 30 states, as well as tribal regions, Puerto Rico, and Washington, D.C.  will now receive $50,000 to refine their civic tech concepts over the course of the next four months. Once that time period ends, the NSF will next look to choose a set of Stage-2 awardees. These teams will get awards of as much as $1 million to support ready-to-implement pilot projects, which will have the potential to result in scaleable, sustainable and transferable solutions to address community-identified challenges, organizers wrote in a press release. Each of the teams is made up of researchers on one side and civic partners on the other, the list of which includes local, state and tribal government officials, as well as nonprofit organization and community group leaders. The overarching idea of the civic innovation challenge is to help communities overcome challenges through research partnerships. As with many such programs in or adjacent to government, the broader hope is that work can benefit other similar jurisdictions.The challenge is funded by $11 million from the federal government parents, and it is split into two tracks. The first track for this challenge is mobility. The second track is helping communities enhance their natural disaster resilience, a topic that is perhaps of great relevance this week as the vast majority of the state of Texas battles rolling blackouts and other challenges resulting from an atypical blast of winter weather.Some of the involved projects in the first track are related to developing mobility hubs, testing microtransit concepts and developing analytical tools around transportation. The projects in the second track include helping communities both plan for and respond to natural disasters such as floods, hurricanes and wildfires.The history of this challenge dates back to 2018. Interested particles can find the full list of awarded projects along with updates on progress on The Civic Innovation Challenge Web page Anchorage, Alaska, has launched a new program called Financial Navigator, which aims to help residents do exactly what the name implies  navigate financial issues amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.What it is essentially is an online form that connects residents with an advisor, dubbed here a financial navigator. This results in a 30-minute session by phone, during which the financial navigators help residents prioritize any financial concerns, strategize about immediate action steps and find programs or services that can help them.The program is tailored to individuals, but it can involve some combination of prioritizing daily expenses, maximizing income, managing debt, avoiding predatory scams, receiving help from social services, budgeting for future loss of income and more. The program, of course, does not provide direct financial help by way of cash or loans.Interested parties can be part of the program by visiting the Financial Navigator website. The U.S. Digital Response (USDR)  a nonprofit and nonpartisan group formed amid the pandemic to help connect volunteer technologists with government in order to address challenges related to COVID-19  continues to offer pro-bono vaccine rollout support for communities.Interested parties can find more information about this help on the USDRs website . In short, some potential avenues for vaccine rollout support include data automation, interoperability and reporting; use of a COVID-19 vaccine website template; and a comprehensive COVID-19 vaccine provider guide.The website also features a list of resources and a mechanism for contacting the USDR in order to receive help.
Kolkata: West Bengal's BJP District President North Kolkata Shibaji Singha Roy sustained injuries after he along with other party leaders including Suvendu Adhikari and Shankudeb Panda were attacked allegedly by TMC cadres at Phoolbagan. Roy has been admitted to a hospital.

As per reports clashes erupted between TMC-BJP cadres in Phoolbagan after BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari was gheraoed allegedly by TMC party workers. The incident took place when Adhikari was on his way to meet Deputy Commissioner of Kolkata Police.

While Lok Sabha MP from Balurghat Dr Sukanta Majumdar commented that law and order is 'missing' in West Bengal.

"Another murderous attack on BJP leaders by TMC goons near Phoolbagan. This time it was the trio of Suvendu Adhikari, Shanku Deb and Shibaji Singha Roy, who is grievously injured in the attack. Law and order was never there and is missing now," Majumdar tweeted.

Another murderous attack on BJP leaders by TMC goons near Phoolbagan. This time it was the trio of Suvendu Adhikari, Shanku Deb and Shibaji Singha Roy, who is grievously injured in the attack. Law and order was never there and is missing now.

pic.twitter.com/qBG0u9JZuW  Dr. Sukanta Majumdar (@DrSukantaMajum1) February 17, 2021

Earlier on Wednesday, West Bengal Minister of State for Labour Jakir Hossain suffered injuries after unidentified persons hurled crude bombs at him while he was walking towards Nimtita Railway station to board the train for Kolkata.

At least two other persons who were with Hossain have also reportedly been injured in the incident.

The minister was then rushed to Jangipur Hospital and as per latest reports, he is now being shifted to a hospital in Kolkata.

Notably, assembly elections in West Bengal are slated to take place in the upcoming months.

(With inputs from ANI)
Hyderabad: Congress working president and Malkajgiri MP A. Revanth Reddy on Wednesday demanded that the state government immediately pass a unanimous resolution in the Legislative Assembly opposing the three farm laws brought into force by the Centre.

He said that since the farm laws are under the concurrent list, the state governments have an option of not implementing the laws, even though laws are made by the Union government.

Taking a dig at the Centre, Mr Reddy said that the Union government will bear the Rs 1.25 lakh crore losses incurred by corporates. On the flipside, it is privatising profitable government agencies, which is atrocious.

The Centre is handing over every farmers destiny into the hands of corporations. Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, who previously assured he would oppose the laws, is now dancing to the tunes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. KCR deserves an Oscar award for his acting. Why does KCR not stand by farmers, when he claims to be one himself?, he said.

The Malkajgiri MP also slammed the Chief Minister for not waiving off farm loans. He said as a result, bankers are not giving Rythu Bandhu, claiming banks would forfeit the amount as interest dues for the older loans.

Mr Reddy said that about 1,800 acres of tribal land in Palguthada has been grabbed by miscreants. He said the government should take immediate steps to return the land.

The KCR government has grabbed 20,000 acres of land in the name of Pharma city at a cheaper price by booking police cases against poorer land owners, he said.

Mr Reddy thanked his supporters for participating in the 10-day yatra. I appeal that one unemployed youth or farmer from every family should step out and join the Congress-led agitations for a brighter future, he added.

Revanth Reddy also thanked E. Suryanarayana Rao, alias Sureedu, an associate of late Dr. Y.S. Rajashekhara Reddy, for meeting him at the padayatra in Ravirala yesterday.
A precautionary boil-water notice was issued Wednesday for the San Antonio area. At a city council meeting, Manny Pelaez, who represents the Northwest Side, raised a valid point.

"I dont how the hell anyones going to boil water if they have no electricity," Pelaez told San Antonio Water System officials.

Fortunately, Suchil Coffman has some answers.

Coffman is the program director for The Human Path, a Bulverde outdoor education school that teaches post-disaster survival skills. She was more prepared than most for the catastrophic failure of the Texas power grid during this week's severe winter weather.

People without power  more than 200,000 CPS Energy customers as of Wednesday evening  can boil water on a natural gas stove. If the gas is out, a rocket stove, camp stove, or barbecue grill will do the job. Coffman emphasized that grills must be used outside, not indoors or in a garage.

Coffman also lost power this week. After boiling water for her family outside, she ran it through a filter to remove as much pollutants as possible.

That filtration process would be especially important for people boiling snow melt  preferably snow from an unsullied yard  or rainwater off a roof, Coffman noted. People should ask what they have available, then make what they have available safe to use.

As meteorologists began forecasting a storm last week, Coffman made an extra Costco run to add to supplies already well-stocked amid the pandemic. She ensured the family had enough food that would last in the event of a blackout, like beef jerky instead of raw meat.

When the blackout occurred, she immediately wrapped her elderly mother in blankets, covered drafty windows with heavy drapes, and closed all the interior doors to keep each room as warm as possible.

She used the time between rolling blackouts to boil water and eggs for later, then fill thermoses and five-gallon tubs with purified water.

While Coffman was pretty well prepped for this week's chaos  she regretted not being able to refill her mother's prescriptions  she's not taking any victory laps or saying, "I told you so."

She's simply glad her family has been safe and warm, and happy to be of service to the community. The Human Path lent a propane generator Tuesday to Primarily Primates, a Bexar County sanctuary where numerous animals including a chimpanzee died after the power went out Monday.

Such gestures are key to dealing with the effects of natural disaster, Coffman said. She's learned from working in places like Lake Charles, which was devastated by two hurricanes last year, that giving to others or offering service can make a both parties feel better.

"The best way to deal with the mental fallout or the tremendous stress that comes from an event like this would be community," Coffman said. "Does somebody not have enough? Can we share? Is there someone who's cold? Who has a blanket?"

You don't have to dig out your neighbors frozen pipes. It can be as simple as getting groceries or shoveling a driveway, she noted.

The worst of the winter weather appears to be behind San Antonio, with the forecast calling for sunshine and rising temperatures this weekend. Coffman suggests that people use the past few days as a prompt to ensure they're ready for next time.

"God forbid something like this happens again, but it's good to be prepared nonetheless," Coffman said.


Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 18 : Kerala recorded 4,584 new Covid cases on Thursday out of the 67,506 samples sent for testing in the past 24 hours, keeping the positivity rate below 7 per cent.

A statement issued by state Health Minister K.K. Shailaja also said that 5,193 people turned negative, taking the total cured in the state to 9,56,935.

There were 60,178 people currently positive across the state, while 14 more deaths were reported, taking the total death toll to 4,096.

Across the state, there were 2,55,857 people under observation of which 9,506 were in hospitals.

The state has 433 hotspots.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Supreme Court on Thursday directed 17 lenders, banks and financial institutions to explain the share sale by Fortis Healthcare's former promoters Malvinder Singh and Shivinder Singh.

Passing a slew of directions, a bench comprising Justices U.U. Lalit, Indira Banerjee and K.M. Joseph said: "We direct all the noticee banks and financial institutions: - (a) to place on record the basic documents pertaining to loans advanced or financial accommodations extended in respect of which the shares of FHL were pledged with them; (b) to place on record the nature of securities offered in connection with such loan arrangements." The top court also asked the lenders to place on record the details of the encumbered and unencumbered shares of Fortis Healthcare Ltd (FHL) standing in the name of Fortis Healthcare Holding Private Ltd (FHHPL), held by them in September 2016, as well as details of encumbered and unencumbered shares of FHL standing in the name of FHHPL, held by them on August 11, 2017.

"... to give details of shares of FHL standing in the name of FHHPL, sold by banks/financial institutions from January 2017; (g) to disclose whether such encumbrance created after August 11, 2017 was in pursuance of any fresh arrangement or agreement and, if so, the details of such agreement/arrangement," the top court directed the lenders.

The lenders were also told to disclose whether under such agreement/arrangement any other security was given by the pledgers.

The top court will further hear the matter on February 24.

It also declined to entertain submissions from a bank that the role of banks had already been examined by another bench when Singh brothers were convicted for contempt of court on November 15, 2019 for selling their stakes despite restraining orders.

The Singh brothers have been accused by Daiichi Sankyo and lenders of collusion which led to sale of Fortis Healthcare's shares to IHH Berhad despite assurances to the court to not alienate stakes.

Daiichi had claimed that Fortis Healthcare had availed a loan of Rs 350 crore from banks. The proceeds were diverted to a subsidiary company and then, disappeared.

"It was submitted that the banks/financial institutions had intervened in the matters pending before this Court, that they were definitely aware of the Award granted in favour of M/s Daiichi Sankyo Company Ltd; and that the role of banks and financial institutions would, therefore, require closer scrutiny," noted the top court.
Syringes in front of a displayed BioNtech logo in this illustration taken Nov. 10, 2020. (Dado Ruvic/Reuters)

Taiwan Says BioNTech Vaccine Deal on Hold, Cites Potential Beijing Pressure

TAIPEIA deal for Taiwan to buy 5 million doses of a COVID-19 vaccine developed by Germanys BioNTech SE is on hold, the islands health minister said on Wednesday, citing potential pressure from Beijing for the delay.

Taiwan Health Minister Chen Shih-chung said officials were on the verge of announcing the deal in December when BioNTech pulled the plug.

Taiwans Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung gestures during a press conference at the headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Taipei, Taiwan, on March 11, 2020. (Sam Yeh/AFP via Getty Images)

While he did not directly say Beijing was to blame, Chen implied there was a political dimension to the decision and that he had been worried about outside forces intervening, hence his caution in discussing the planned deal publicly.

Certain people dont want Taiwan to be too happy, he added, without elaborating, in a radio interview.

Chinas ruling communist party, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, has repeatedly sparred with the island over the coronavirus pandemic.

Taiwan has been angered by the Chinese Communist Partys (CCPs) assertion only it can speak for the island on the international stage about the subject, while Taiwan has accused the CCP of lack of transparency.

BioNTech signed a deal with China-based firm Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co. Ltd. to exclusively develop and commercialize COVID-19 vaccine products developed by using BioNTechs mRNA technology in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan.

In return it agreed to pay up to $85 million in licensing fees and invest $50 million for a stake in the German firm.

BioNTechs development and distribution partner for the rest of the world is U.S. firm Pfizer Inc.

Chen said BioNTech had not asked them to speak to Fosun, and the deal with BioNTech had not been torn up, only that it was pending.

BioNTech and Fosun did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Chinas Taiwan Affairs Office declined immediate comment. China is currently observing the week-long Lunar New Year holiday.

Taiwan announced late in December said it had agreed to buy almost 20 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine, including 10 million from UK drugmaker AstraZeneca, with the rest coming from the COVAX global vaccine programme and an unnamed company.

By Ben Blanchard

Shenandoah, IA (51601)

Today

Cloudy. Slight chance of a rain shower. High 71F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph..

Tonight

Partly cloudy early with increasing clouds overnight. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low near 50F. Winds light and variable.

New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Supreme Court on Thursday sought a response from the government and the Election Commission on a plea seeking introduction of e-voting, decentralising the voting system, and enhancing the system of postal voting to other categories.

A bench headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde and comprising Justices A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian asked advocate Kaleeswaram Raj: "How can law help you, if you are not in your constituency to cast vote? If the voter does not wish to come to the constituency, and also there is no denial of voting?" Raj, representing petitioner K. Sathyan, a native of Kerala, said the electoral law needs to be brought in tune with the modern times and technology. The petitioner suggested evolving an OTP system for the purpose of fault-free identification of voters without infringing privacy rights.

"Providing double databases for transactions, namely a central database and a local database, which would drastically reduce the chance for manipulation of data and the EVMs, enhancing the existing system of postal voting to other categories by expanding the scope of certain classes of people occurring in Section 60 of the 1951 Act," said the plea.

The plea contended that students, NRIs, migrant workers and employees cannot be deprived of their right to vote merely because they are unable to be physically present in their respective constituencies.

The Chief Justice asked the counsel, "What is the nature of this plea, sitting in England, you will vote here? If you can't care enough to go to your constituency why should law help you?" Raj argued that denying postal ballot, e-voting facility etc, to internal migrant labourers, employees, students and business professionals stationed outside the constituency, as well as NRIs and overseas migrant labourers is violative of Article 14 of the Constitution.

After a brief hearing in the matter, the top court agreed to examine the plea and issued notice to the central government and the Election Commission.

"It is submitted that logistic concerns are not a ground to curtail the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. Extension of remote voting facilities to armed forces personnel, service electors and now even to the NRIs show that there is a logistical possibility in grant of remote voting facilities to migrant labourers, employees, students and business professionals stationed outside their constituency, NRIs and overseas migrant labourers," said the plea.
Around 50% of patients who have been hospitalised with severe COVID-19 and who show raised levels of a protein called troponin have damage to their hearts. The injury was detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans at least a month after discharge, according to new findings published today (Thursday) in the European Heart Journal [1].

Damage includes inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis), scarring or death of heart tissue (infarction), restricted blood supply to the heart (ischaemia) and combinations of all three.

The study of 148 patients from six acute hospitals in London is the largest study to date to investigate convalescing COVID-19 patients who had raised troponin levels indicating a possible problem with the heart.

Troponin is released into the blood when the heart muscle is injured. Raised levels can occur when an artery becomes blocked or there is inflammation of the heart. Many patients who are hospitalised with COVID-19 have raised troponin levels during the critical illness phase, when the body mounts an exaggerated immune response to the infection. Troponin levels were elevated in all the patients in this study who were then followed up with MRI scans of the heart after discharge in order to understand the causes and extent of the damage.

Professor Marianna Fontana, professor of cardiology at University College London (UK), who led the research together with Dr. Graham Cole, a consultant cardiologist at Imperial College London, said: "Raised troponin levels are associated with worse outcomes in COVID-19 patients. Patients with severe COVID-19 disease often have pre-existing heart-related health problems including diabetes, raised blood pressure and obesity. During severe COVID-19 infection, however, the heart may also be directly affected. Unpicking how the heart can become damaged is difficult, but MRI scans of the heart can identify different patterns of injury, which may enable us to make more accurate diagnoses and to target treatments more effectively."

The researchers investigated COVID-19 patients discharged up until June 2020 from six hospitals across three NHS London trusts: Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and University College London Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Patients who had abnormal troponin levels were offered an MRI scan of the heart after discharge and were compared with those from a control group of patients who had not had COVID-19, as well as from 40 healthy volunteers.

"The recovering COVID-19 patients had been very ill; all required hospitalisation and all had troponin elevation, with around one in three having been on a ventilator in the intensive care unit," said Prof. Fontana.

"We found evidence of high rates of heart muscle injury that could be seen on the scans a month or two after discharge. Whilst some of this may have been pre-existing, MRI scanning shows that some were new, and likely caused by COVID-19. Importantly, the pattern of damage to the heart was variable, suggesting that the heart is at risk of different types of injury. While we detected only a small amount of ongoing injury, we saw injury to the heart that was present even when the heart's pumping function was not impaired and might not have been picked up by other techniques. In the most severe cases, there are concerns that this injury may increase the risks of heart failure in the future, but more work is needed to investigate this further."

The function of the heart's left ventricle, the chamber that is responsible for pumping oxygenated blood to all parts of the body, was normal in 89% of the 148 patients but scarring or injury to the heart muscle was present in 80 patients (54%). The pattern of tissue scarring or injury originated from inflammation in 39 patients (26%), ischaemic heart disease, which includes infarction or ischaemia, in 32 patients (22%), or both in nine patients (6%). Twelve patients (8%) appeared to have ongoing heart inflammation.

Prof. Fontana said: "Injury relating to inflammation and scarring of the heart is common in COVID-19 patients with troponin elevation discharged from hospital, but is of limited extent and has little consequence for the heart's function.

"These findings give us two opportunities: firstly, to find ways of preventing the injury in the first place, and from some of the patterns we have seen, blood clotting may be playing a role, for which we have potential treatments. Secondly, detecting the consequences of injury during convalescence may identify subjects who would benefit from specific supporting drug treatments to protect heart function over time."

The findings of the study are limited by the nature of patient selection and included only those who survived a coronavirus infection that required hospital admission.

"The convalescent patients in this study had severe COVID-19 disease and our results say nothing about what happens to people who are not hospitalised with COVID, or those who are hospitalised but without elevated troponin. The findings indicate potential ways to identify patients at higher or lower risk and suggest potential strategies that may improve outcomes. More work is needed, and MRI scans of the heart have shown how useful it is in investigating patients with troponin elevation," concluded Prof. Fontana.

The study is also the subject of a discussion between Prof. Fontana and Prof. Eike Nagel, at the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance annual meeting on Friday 19 February, where it will be presented for the first time [2]. Prof. Nagel, director of the Centre for Cardiovascular Imaging at Deutsches Zentrum Fur Herz-Kreislauf-Forschung (DZHK), Frankfurt, Germany, is the senior author on an earlier paper [3] that found ongoing heart problems in up to 78% of COVID-19 patients who were less sick and most of whom did not require admission to hospital.

###

Notes:

[1] "Patterns of myocardial injury in recovered troponin-positive COVID-19 patients assessed by cardiovascular magnetic resonance", by Tushar Kotecha et al. European Heart Journal. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehab075

[2] Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance virtual scientific sessions 2021, 09.00-09.45 hrs Central Standard Time in USA (6 hours behind GMT): https:/ / bit. ly/ 3oMn84t

[3] JAMA Cardiol. 2020;5(11):1265-1273. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2020.3557.
Because of the way in which they were drawn, Advance-Design trucks still are favorites of the custom industry, with garages all over America coming up with innovative ways to exaggerate those lines far beyond what the carmaker intended. They do so by using various methods, from custom parts to carefully chosen paint, and from massive wheels to the deployment of air suspension.All of these methods seem to have come together in the build we have here, a Chevrolet 3100 from the middle of the series life, in 1951. We found it as it sits waiting for a buyer on Earth Motors Cars , with a price sticker attached that reads $59,990.Wrapped in a color called Matte Verde, the 3100 is built on an S-10 frame, but keeps all the signature design lines of its family, from the massive, bulging hood up front, to the fat and bulky fenders on both ends, and ending with the perfectly vertical tailgate out back.The interior retains its breed's classic look, with a cream bench seat fitted in front of the 1950s-style steering wheel and a dashboard holding Dolphin gauges fitted inside the factory housing. The truck has been gifted with an air conditioning system for comfort.Sitting on American Racing staggered wheels (18-inch front, 20-inch rear), it gets its kicks from a 383-ci (6.3-liter) stroker engine running Edelbrock aluminum heads, a hi-rise intake, and a four-barrel carburetor. It is controlled by means of a four-speed automatic transmission, but the performance specs for the drivetrain are not listed.
Data from two Hungarian towns, i. e. Goedoelloe (b) and Ajka (c), show that economic inequality (expressed by the Gini index) is higher in Goedoelloe, where social networks are strongly separated. Data were retrieved from iWiW, an early online social network once used by around 40 percent of the population in Hungary. Urban geographies turn out to play a key role in this relationship. Credit: Nature Communications (18 Feb 2021); the authors of the paper

Communities worldwide are trying to address inequality. One promising approach could be to look at the design of a city, according to research with real-world data in the journal Nature Communications.

An international team of scientists, including members of the Complexity Science Hub Vienna (CSH), show that urban planning directly influences the formation of social networks in a city and subsequently the socio-economic equality or inequality of its citizens.

"We know how important social networks are for our social and economic outcomes," explains CSH researcher Johannes Wachs, one of the authors of the paper. Social relations provide individuals with essential access to resources, information, economic opportunities and other forms of support. In towns with more evenly distributed social networks, the economic inequality tended to be much lower than in towns with highly fragmented social networks, the study shows.

The scientists even found a vicious cycle: the higher the fragmentation of social networks, the higher was the income inequality in a town over time.

On the wrong side of the tracks?

But where does such fragmentation come from? The researchers argue that one root cause lies in geography.

To test their hypothesis, the complexity scientists used a large dataset from Hungary with 2 Mio individuals from about 500 towns. The data were retrieved from iWiW, a onceand before Facebookvery popular social media platform used by nearly 40 percent of the Hungarian population.

"Urban sociology research says that people cannot easily build social ties when they are separated by large physical obstacles such as rivers, railways, highways or walls," Johannes Wachs points out. "It was impressive to see this confirmed in our data: we could see evidence of strong physical boundaries in a city just by looking at its social network."

City design and income go hand in hand

"We hypothesizedand confirm it with our findingsthat if valuable ideas and information cannot float freely through a city because that city is physically fragmented, which in turn causes social fragmentation, we will see inequality. We clearly see how strongly geography and income inequality are related."

Of course, social networks do not form in a vacuum. A lot of different mechanisms influence with whom we are in regular contact. For instance, humans tend to befriend similar people ("homophily"). Friends of friends also show the tendency to become friends too ("triadic closure"). Yet, the iWiW data found geographic indicators of towns as an additional strong predictor of fragmentation in social networks.

The findings are of great value for city planners.

"You hardly can change social networks directly via public policyyou cannot force people to interact if they don't want to," says the CSH researcher. Yet, towns and cities frequently make decisions about the built environment that will have effects on how their inhabitants can meet and interact. "If these decisions reflect on our findings, we predict that cities will have fewer problems with inequality in the future," Johannes Wachs concludes.

Explore further Virtual spaces mirror income inequality

More information: G. Toth, J., R. Di Clemente, A. Jakobi, B. Sagvari, J. Kertesz, B. Lengyel, "Inequality is rising where social network segregation interacts with urban topology," Nature Communications (18 Feb 2021) Journal information: Nature Communications G. Toth, J., R. Di Clemente, A. Jakobi, B. Sagvari, J. Kertesz, B. Lengyel, "Inequality is rising where social network segregation interacts with urban topology,"(18 Feb 2021) DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-21465-0
The Washington Post / Contributor; Paras Griffin / Contributor; The Washington Post / Contributor; Bill O'Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images; Katherine Frey/The Washington Post via Getty Images; Cory Clark/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Few college pledges are as enduring as the ones members of Black sororities and fraternities take as young adults.

Consider Frances Webb of Ann Arbor, Michigan, who died of complications from COVID-19 on May 9, eight months shy of her 100th birthday. Webb joined Delta Sigma Theta at West Virginia State University during World War II, and remained an active soror throughout her life, mentoring younger members even in her later years.

Webb monitored Deltas careers, penned notes of encouragement and sent care packages, noted Kim Trent, 51, a Delta who was a beneficiary of Webb's friendship. She never wrote the words I'm proud of you, but she didn't have to, Trent wrote in an obituary tribute to Webb. I knew."

For many members of Black Greek life, bonds formed at fraternities and sororities in college span generations, geographies, professions and personal lives. Alums take their roles to heart, supporting each other in ways that in other spheres only the closest of friends would take on.
Facebooks decision to block Australian news content from its platform has been slammed by Victorian Health Minister Martin Foley, who appealed to the social media giant to reinstate the flow of health-based news reports as soon as possible.

Mr Foley said peoples ability to get accurate health information in the middle of the pandemic had been one of the casualties of Facebooks actions. This is not a time for credible, reliable information to be taken away from the community, he said.

Health Minister Martin Foley on Thursday. Credit:Jason South

Victoria has recorded no new local coronavirus cases and one new diagnosis in hotel quarantine overnight.

Fifteen of the 19 coronavirus cases associated with Melbournes Holiday Inn cluster have so far been genomically linked to the hotel outbreak.
After some debate, the Hamilton County Commission voted to deny a special exception permit for a planned apartment complex in Sale Creek.

The controversy surrounded being able to develop apartments on the property which may not have the septic capabilities to handle that. Commissioners Warren Mackey and David Sharpe were both proponents of the development, citing the need for housing as the Sale Creek area and Hamilton County as a whole continues to grow.

Youve been doing this quite a while? Commissioner Mackey asked John Bridger, executive director of the Regional Planning Agency. When you have a property owner who wants to develop their own property, and in your history those who are in opposition say the same thing. That development will crowd their schools. Are there any sort of general oppositions people bring to you?

The commissioner was referencing complaints by residents who live near the property. They told the RPA that their street would become unbearably crowded and that the street does not have the infrastructure to handle the influx of people an apartment would bring.

There is no precedent for this zone, Mr. Bridger responded. Thats why staff recommended to deny, because of the precedent it would set. Staff were looking at it based on it being an R3 zone.

If you have a property owner and they have invested in a piece of property and feel like they have held onto it until they feel they can maximize their opportunity, isnt it the American way to let people be capitalistic and develop their property? Commissioner Mackey asked.

Mr. Bridger told the commissioner that as currently zoned, the developer would be able to develop the property as an A1 zone. He said the zoning process is discretionary, but that developers still have property rights if they own the property.

I think were growing, but I think the question is how do we do it in a smart way, Mr. Bridger said. When youre planning it, you think of your transportation, construction, sewers, and more. You want to promote more development where you have schools and transportation.

If a road is already crowded and neighbors say they dont want any more cars on the street, dont they kind of prolong the congestion in the streets before further infrastructure coming in, in the form of homes and roads? Commissioner Mackey asked before ending his Q&A.

Applicant Alan Jones said the main concerns surround the septic lines, but he said the property has five acres of land that can be dedicated to the septic lines. He also said there are no regulations against developing on a flood plain.

When we do our grading plan, were going to balance the site where we are going to not be increasing the flood plain issues in the community, Mr. Jones said, who also noted the location is close to schools. Rock Creek is also quite a bit further to the south, and isnt directly bordering our property. This site is only half a mile from Sale Creek Middle and High School.

Commissioner David Sharpe was Commissioner Mackeys ally on this issue, and was a supporter of allowing this development.

We cant put on the brakes and stop it, Commissioner Sharpe said. I think things are in motion for great things to happen in that area of the county. We cant let a handful of citizens holding back the county in its ability to move forward. Im going to have to be supportive of this.

Meanwhile, Commissioner Fairbanks spoke at length about the property that resides in his district. While he too supported the idea of development, he simply thought that this plan was at the wrong place at the wrong time, while still agreeing Sale Creek needed more affordable housing.

Ive met with the owner and walked the piece of property, Commissioner Fairbanks said. I as much as anyone else will look forward to development in Sale Creek. The bottom line is this project is great and very much needed, but its in the wrong place and wrong time. The main problem I have is the low-lying area and the septic tank issue that will be satisfied with some things Commissioner Sharpe mentioned.

I think its more suited for homes to be built, rather than apartments, but thats just an opinion of mine. I hope the builder will look to other property in Sale Creek, because it will be needed in the future. We shouldnt let just a few stagnate growth in moving forward.

Commissioner Mackey made one final pitch to change his co-commissioners minds by stating that the commission has already discussed developing in those kinds of areas before.

We are not a socialistic state, we are a free enterprise and we want growth, Commissioner Mackey said. A year and a half ago, we already have had the conversation about building on steep slopes and flood plains. Let the science determine if that is going to work.

Im not a resident there. Im a capitalist and I believe in growth. If a person has property, they should be able to develop it and maximize the usage of it. I cant think of a reason why we shouldnt. We need growth and affordable housing is in short supply in Hamilton County.

Commissioner Tim Boyd agreed with Commissioner Fairbanks on this issue. He too supported growth and development, but did not think that property was the best place for that kind of development.

For the last eight to 10 years, Ive been promoting infrastructure growth for the very reasons that Commissioner Fairbanks mentioned, Commissioner Boyd said. I dont know how many people are familiar with Harris County in Texas, which has no zoning.

Because they have no zoning, they have been developed irresponsibly and weve seen that in the power failure this week. A lot of our constituents in the county are talking about responsible growth, and its the responsibility in the commission to talk about responsible growth.

Commissioners Mackey and Sharpe both voted to approve this project, while the other seven commissioners voted to deny.
MPs could be fined or sacked from Parliament for serious cases of bullying or harassing staff as part of a proposed revamp of the laws governing Victorian politicians behaviour in the workplace.

Amid a wider debate about the culture of parliaments following allegations a Liberal staffer was raped by a colleague in federal minister Linda Reynolds office, the Victorian Parliament will adopt new punishments for politicians found guilty of unacceptable behaviour.

Only five MPs have been kicked out of the Victorian Parliament. Credit:Julian Kingma

Under one proposal, the power to fine, suspend or expel an MP could be handed to a new independent commissioner who would be able to bypass the Parliament and, for the first time, sanction rule-breaking MPs. The proposal would be a significant departure from the current regime where MPs can only be expelled by a vote of their colleagues.

An alternative proposal suggests the Commissioner, expected to be a former judge, could make a recommendation to Parliament about the appropriate sanction and the Legislative Assembly choose whether to impose it.
Hong Kong: HK returnee reminder issued

The Government today reminded Hong Kong residents who wish to return to Hong Kong from Guangdong under the Return2hk scheme to fulfil all the specified conditions in order to be exempted from the 14-day compulsory quarantine requirement upon their return.

It noted that many Hong Kong residents are returning to the city from Guangdong after the Lunar New Year holiday.

The specified conditions include not having been to places other than Hong Kong, Guangdong or Macau in the past 14 days; being able to present the proof of a valid negative nucleic acid test result conducted in any medical institution located in Guangdong or Macau that is mutually recognised by the governments of Hong Kong and Guangdong/Hong Kong and Macau upon arrival; and holding a Return2hk Scheme quota allocation and returning to Hong Kong on the date and at the boundary control point as specified in the booking.

Hong Kong residents who wish to return under the scheme should apply under a quota online.

Those who have successfully applied for a quota allocation should allow sufficient time for taking a COVID-19 nucleic acid test at one of the medical institutions mutually recognised by the governments of Hong Kong and Guangdong/Hong Kong and Macau.

The sample should be taken within three days prior to or on the day of the person's entry into Hong Kong.

There are 51 recognised medical institutions in Guangdong and four in Macau. The lists of recognised medical institutions are available on the Return2hk scheme's dedicated website.

To ensure smooth immigration clearance at the boundary control points, Hong Kong residents who intend to return to the city under the scheme are strongly advised to come back on the date and at the boundary control point as specified in their booking as well as complete the code conversion process through the Yuekang code or the Macao Health Code within 24 hours before setting off to obtain a green QR code.

A dedicated channel has been set up at the boundary control points for travellers with a green QR code.

They should also bring their Hong Kong identity card or other identification documents, the confirmation of a successful booking as well as proof of a valid negative nucleic acid test result for checking if necessary.

If the code conversion process generates a QR code of a different colour, it means the traveller has yet to fulfil all the specified conditions, and he or she may still be subject to the 14-day compulsory quarantine requirement upon entry into Hong Kong.

User guides on code conversion for the easy reference of returning Hong Kong residents are available.

Call 3142 2330 for enquiries.

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.

While the world grapples with the Covid-19 pandemic many new lessons are being learned every day by nations all over the globe. For example, Brazil and the US have learned that having a leader who does not believe that the virus is a serious threat to life certainly doesnt augur well for the population.
New Delhi:

The Facebook owned messaging app, WhatsApp has crossed the one-billion daily users globally. "Just last year we shared that one billion people around the world use WhatsApp every month.Today we are excited and proud to share that one billion people around the world use WhatsApp every day to stay in touch with their family and friends", WhatsApp said in a statement.

People use WhatsApp at least once in a month stood at 1.3 billion.

About 55 billion messages and 4.5 billion photos are shared every day globally on WhatsApp. The app which supports 60 languages also sees 1 billion videos being shared on a daily basis.

India is the largest market for WhatsApp with over 200 million monthly active users as of February 2017. However, the company did not disclose what percentage of the 1 billion daily users are from India. WhatsApp competes with messaging apps like LINE, Viber, and Hike in India.

In February 2014 WhatsApp was acquired by social networking site Facebook, its biggest buyout till date, for a whopping USD 19 billion.

Previously, WhatsApp said its service has been strong uptake, especially in developing nations such as Brazil, India and Russia." congrats to the WhatsApp team for connecting one billion people every day!" said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.




Photo: CTV News

Crescent Point Energy Corp. says it has struck a deal to buy Alberta oil and gas producing assets from the Canadian arm of Royal Dutch Shell for $900 million.

The Calgary-based producer says it will pay $700 million in cash and issue 50 million shares in return for the Duvernay light oil shale assets in the western part of the province.

Shell, which sold most of its oilsands assets in Alberta to Calgary-based Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. in 2017, says the deal announced after markets closed will allow it to focus on core producing assets such as the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico.

The companies say Shell's Duvernay assets are currently producing around 30,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from more than 270 wells.

Saskatchewan-focused Crescent Point says the deal allows it to enter a "premier and established" liquids-rich play which will boost its 2021 production estimate to about 134,000 boe/d, mainly highly profitable crude oil and petroleum liquids.

It says Shell will own about 8.6 per cent of Crescent Point common shares when the deal closes.

"Divesting these assets underpins Shell's effort to focus the upstream portfolio to deliver cash," said Shell upstream director Wael Sawan in a news release.

"While we believe these assets hold value, the divestment allows us to focus on our core upstream positions like the Permian Basin, with integrated value chains, thereby building a resilient, lower-risk and less complex portfolio."


Five Indian-origin personalities, including Twitters top lawyer Vijaya Gadde and UKs finance minister Rishi Sunak, and an Indian activist feature in TIME magazine's annual list of 100 emerging leaders who are shaping the future".

The 2021 TIME100 Next, released on Wednesday, is an expansion of TIMEs flagship TIME100 franchise of the most influential people in the world and highlights 100 emerging leaders who are shaping the future.

Everyone on this list is poised to make history. And in fact, many already have," Dan Macsai, the editorial director of the TIME100, said.

Other Indian-origin personalities on the list are Instacart founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta, doctor and Executive Director of nonprofit Get Us PPE Shikha Gupta and founder of nonprofit Upsolve Rohan Pavuluri.

Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad is also on the list.

Sunaks profile in the TIME feature says that a little over a year ago, the 40-year old was an unknown junior minister in the British government" but after he was named to lead Britains Treasury last year, he quickly became the benevolent face of the governments response to the COVID-19 pandemic, approving large handouts for many citizens whose jobs were disrupted by the virus."

Sunak has however also been criticised for advocating early relaxation of lockdown rules, the profile said.

"Nonetheless, Sunak remains the countrys most popular politician, according to the pollster YouGov. And hes the oddsmakers favourite to be Britains next Prime Minister," it added.

On Mehta, 34, the TIME profile said that in the initial days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Instacart faced a tidal wave of orders, as people with means opted en masse to pay the services workers to buy groceries for them." Mehta describes that period as a wartime moment," it said.

However, later Instacart also faced new criticism about the way it treated its workers, including labyrinthine sick-pay policies, frequent rule changes for shoppers and demanding performance metrics." Instacart continues its focus on expansion. The smartphone is the supermarket of the future. We are going to help co-create that," Mehta said in the TIME article.

The TIME profile described Gadde, 46, as one of Twitters most powerful executives" who was the one to convey the news to CEO Jack Dorsey that President Donald Trumps Twitter account had been suspended following the Capitol attack of January 6.

Dorsey "has delegated to her Twitters content-moderation decisions; she was the architect of the 2019 decision to ban all political advertising, and is responsible for the warning labels that Twitter applied to COVID-19 and election-interference misinformation in 2020.

"While Twitter is still home to much misinformation and harassment, Gaddes influence is slowly turning the company into one that sees free speech not as sacrosanct, but as just one human right among many that need to be weighed against one another," the TIME profile said.

Aazad, 34, is the leader of the Bhim Army, which runs schools to help Dalits escape poverty through education and also practices a distinct brand of assertiveness, sweeping into villages on loud motorbikes to protect victims of caste-based violence and organising provocative demonstrations against discrimination," the TIME profile on him says.

Aazad and the Bhim army also spearheaded a campaign for justice" in the case of the fatal gang-rape of a 19-year old Dalit woman in Uttar Pradeshs Hathras.

TIME said Gupta and her team stepped up to meet the growing demand for personal protective equipment for healthcare professionals at a time when there was a leadership vacuum" from the White House.

In a crisis, small acts can make a big impact. And in extraordinary times, ordinary people, driven by service, can do extraordinary things. The early days of the COVID-19 pandemic were some of the darkest in Americas history. A leadership vacuum from the White House contributed to health care professionals across the country lacking the personal protective equipment they needed to stay safe and save lives," it said.

Gupta, who wasnt on the White House Task Force" or a governor or member of Congress, took action to solve the problem.

Gupta leads the Get Us PPE organisation and along with a group of medical professionals and team members, the organisation helped distribute more than 6.5 million pieces of PPE to frontline workers.

Pavuluri is the 25-year founder of the free online tool that helps users fill out bankruptcy forms on their own.

TIME said that as the COVID-19 pandemic brought varied economic hardships to Americans, filing for personal bankruptcy was seen as an effective way to eliminate debt but entailed high legal costs and complex paperwork.

Upsolve, which Pavuluri founded in 2018, has till date helped American users relieve more than USD 300 million in debt, the TIME profile of him said.

Weve found a way to use technology to address a civil rights injustice at scale," Pavuluri said in the TIME profile.

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Cybersecurity

Warner seeks answers from FBI, EPA on Florida water utility breach

The chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence is calling on the FBI and the Environmental Protection Agency to provide more information about the cybersecurity breach at a Florida water utility earlier this month.

Hackers on Feb. 5 sought to add dangerous amounts of lye to potable drinking water at a treatment facility in Oldsmar, Fla. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said in an advisory notice last week hackers were able to gain control of the facility through a desktop sharing application and exploiting vulnerabilities in the Windows 7 operating system, which Microsoft has stopped supporting.

"This incident has implications beyond the 15,000-person town of Oldsmar," Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) wrote in a letter to top officials at both agencies. "While the Oldsmar water treatment facility incident was detected with sufficient time to mitigate serious risks to the citizens of Oldsmar future compromises of this nature may not be detected in time."

The senator is asking the agencies for an update on the investigation's progress, the EPA to review whether the treatment facility was compliant with the "most recent Water and Wastewater Sector-Specific Plan" as well as whether that plan needs to be updated.

The plan Warner is referring was created by the Department of Homeland Security and the Environmental Protection Agency in 2015 to outline the oversight of public water utilities and provide a blueprint for how they can strengthen their physical and cyber infrastructure.

Warner wants the agencies to confirm the government is "sharing timely threat information related to this incident with water and wastewater facilities, and other critical infrastructure providers across the United States," according to the letter.

The senator's letter also points out the attack highlights "broader security weaknesses" within the industrial control systems used by public utilities and the government in general.

Bryson Bort, a cybersecurity fellow at the R Street Institute, told FCW the problem of government systems using outdated operating systems, like the Oldsmar facility did, is probably "widespread."

Industrial control systems are "built for a long operational lifecycle and the devices and software were developed on the [operating system] that was available at the time. As an OS goes end of life/unsupported, there is oftentimes no way to even provide an upgrade or a patch," Bort said.
Over the last month 28 cabinet ministers have delivered policy statements before the House of Representatives. The only ministers who have not appeared before MPs are the ministers of interior, defence and justice. While the latter is scheduled to address MPs when parliament reconvenes on 28 February, it is not yet clear whether the ministers of interior and defence will do so.



Ahmed Al-Sigini, head of parliaments Local Administration Committee, told Al-Ahram Weekly that Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli had invited the heads of parliaments 25 committees to a meeting on Tuesday evening.



The invitation, the first of its kind, reflects the prime ministers concern about the response of MPs to the policy statements delivered by cabinet ministers, said Al-Sigini. He is aware some cabinet ministers were criticised by MPs and wants an open dialogue on this issue.



The outcome of the meeting was still not known as Al-Ahram Weekly went to press.



Al-Sigini said MPs believe some cabinet ministers should be replaced in a cabinet reshuffle.



Shawki Al-Sayed, a political analyst and former Shura Council member, told the Weekly that people do not want a parliament just focused on passing laws.



They want a parliament that listens to their concerns and addresses injustice, and a government that accepts criticism.



Minister of Information Osama Heikal was the cabinet minister who came under the most sustained attack.



An eight-page report issued by the Media and Culture Committee accused Heikal of poor performance and financial negligence. Released on 10 February, the report was scheduled to be discussed on Sunday but Heikal asked Speaker Hanafi Gibali to delay the discussion to give him time to compile a detailed response.



A majority of committee members decided at the end of their discussion to reject the Minister of Informations policy statement delivered on 19 January. They insisted that Heikal had failed to achieve the objectives of his ministry and had violated administrative and financial regulations, said the report.



The report questioned the constitutionality of Heikal serving as minister of information and chairman of the Egyptian Media Production City (EMPC), and suggested this violated both Article 166 of the constitution and Article 79 of the joint-stock companies law.



It is deplorable that since coming to office in December 2019 the minister of information has failed to improve the financial performance of the EMPC. The only thing he seems to have done as head of EMPC is to raise his salary to LE100,000 a month, said the report.



The ministers aggressive statements against Egyptian journalists and media workers, accusing them of poor performance, have been exploited by hostile television channels broadcasting from Qatar and Turkey to attack the Egyptian state, the report continued.



Heikal was guilty of another error of judgement when he claimed that the Ethiopian media had bettered the Egyptian media in its coverage of GERD negotiations in Washington last year.



According to the report, Heikals statements fanned tensions between the minister and Egyptian journalists and media institutions.



These conflicts undermined the ability to forge a national media strategy capable of defending state interests in the face of hostile foreign media outlets, claimed the report.



It added that Heikal should have coordinated with local media institutions to settle the debts of the National Press Organisation and the National Media Organisation and improve the performance of National Radio and Television.



MPs also criticised Heikal for failing to formulate a national media strategy capable of fighting extremist ideologies and containing malicious rumours against the state.



The report concluded by saying it was up to senior politicians to decide whether the Information Ministry be scrapped.



Deputy chairman of parliaments Media and Culture Committee Tamer Abdel-Qader said in a TV interview that the Information Ministry was redundant and a waste of public funds.



Minister of Public Enterprise Hisham Tawfik faced criticism from MPs affiliated with the Committees of Industry, Labour, and Economic Affairs.



In a meeting last week, the Industry Committee accused Tawfik, who delivered his statement before MPs on 21 January, of pursuing a policy of liquidation against public sector companies, including the Egyptian Iron and Steel Company.



MPs said Tawfik had ignored their views, and those of the public, by insisting to pursue policies that will fuel social unrest and increase unemployment.



MPs have demanded a fact-finding commission be formed to investigate Tawfiks privatisation policies.



Chairman of the Industry Committee Moataz Mohamed said the figures cited by Minister Tawfik in his policy statement should all be verified by the commission. The figures on the Iron and Steel Company in particular will be checked, he said.



The policy statement delivered by Minister of Planning Hala Al-Said on 8 February went down poorly with the Budget Committee which issued a report saying the government has yet to adopt a rational policy vis-a-vis foreign borrowing. Foreign debt rose from $60 billion in 2014 to more than $110 billion in 2019, and it is still rising, said the report.



The report dismissed Al-Saids claim that the poverty rate had fallen from 32.5 per cent in 2017-18 to 29.7 per cent in 2019-20.



Reports issued by the Institute of National Planning said the implementation of the 2016-2019 economic reform programme had left 44 per cent of the population of Egypt living under the poverty line, pointed out the committee.



The ministers of agriculture, petroleum, local development, housing, education, religious endowments, and supply and internal trade were summoned to meetings on Monday to discuss the policy statements they had delivered over the last three weeks. On the same day Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouli met with MPs affiliated with the local Administration and Housing Committees to discuss new building and urban planning regulations. MPs blame the proliferation of illegal buildings on the governments lax implementation of existing laws.



Madbouli said the government is serious in cracking down on illegal construction and that the new construction code will be strict, covering everything from height to the painting of facades.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February , 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Tom Hallberg covers a little bit of everything, from skiing to long-form feature stories. A Teton Valley, Idaho, transplant by way of Portland and Bend, Oregon, he spends his time outside work writing fiction, splitboarding and climbing.
The US is the second-most surveilled country in the world after China, with one camera for every five people in major cities.

A new report found that bigger US cities have an average of over 112,000 CCTV cameras, or about 2,200 for every 10,000 citizens.

That was still dwarfed by China, which has 15,880,491 CCTV cameras in places like Shanghai, equal to a camera for every man, woman and child.

Other Big Brother nations included the UK, Singapore, Australia, Germany, Poland, Brazil, Hong Kong and India.

Researchers also looked at how often countries requested their citizens personal data from Google, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft and Twitter.

China took the top spot here, too  mainly because it blocks most sites  but Malta was a surprise second, with 33 data requests per 10,000 people, followed by Singapore, the US, Luxembourg and Germany.

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A new report from WebsiteToolTester examined the number of CCTV cameras in a country compared to the population of its biggest cities. The study also examined how many data requests individual governments made on their citizens from Facebook, Google, Apple and other online giants

The report was conducted by WebsiteToolTester, which reviews website-building platforms like Winx and Squarespace.

To generate surveillance rankings, data on CCTV cameras from 150 of the most populated cities was pulled from government reports, police websites, and news articles and then compared to population figures in those cities.

For online surveillance, WebsiteToolTester founder Robert Brandl looked at transparency reports by Apple, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter and other companies about data requests from various governments.

China is far and away the biggest surveillance state in the world: With 10,342 CCTV cameras per 10,000 citizens, there are more cameras than people in some areas.

China was the number one surveillance state in a new report, with a camera for every person in bigger cities. The US came in second, with one camera for every five citizens in urban areas.

Of the 150 cities analyzed in the report, 18 of the top 20 most surveilled cities were in China.

Requests for online data by the Chinese government are low, says Brandl, only because most platforms are banned.

'Citizens are made to use a tightly moderated government social media site where everything is monitored.'

The Chinese government blocks Google, Facebook, Twitter and Microsoft, but still managed to request data from Apple on 94,866 of its citizens.

The vacation getaway of Malta ranked high on online surveillance, and number one for requests on citizen's Facebook records. That may be tied to the riots and political upheaval that followed the 2017 murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia

The United States had the second-lowest ratio of people to cameras  2,232 cameras for every 10,000 people in big cities like New York and Boston.

The American government is busy keeping tabs on its citizens online, too: In 2019 alone it requested personal data from Facebook, Twitter, iPhones, Microsoft and Google on more than 800,000 Americans.

The UK takes third place for the most-watched country, with an average of one CCTV camera for every 16 citizens in its larger citiesLondon alone is home to over 620,707 security cameras.

When it came to cyberspace, the British government made attempts to get 117,848 citizens' personal data in 2019.

The report did have a few surprises, especially when it came to online data requests.

Malta came in second after China, with 33 requests from the government for every 10,000 people.

That may be tied to the riots and political upheaval after the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017, Brandl theorizes.

The government of Singapore was ranked third for online data requests, with more than 26 requests per 10,000 people, followed by officials in the US, Luxembourg, Germany, France, the UK, Monaco and Portugal.

Singapore was most likely to requisition info from Google, while Apple data was top with the US government, Facebook in Malta, Twitter in Japan, and Microsoft data was most requested from Luxembourg.

Of the platforms surveyed from 2019, Facebook received the most requests for personal data, 691,223, and Twitter had the least, just 16,113.

Though it wasn't included in the main report, TikTok received about 500 governmental requests for personal data in 2019, 302 of which were from India and 100 from the US.

Poland, Brazil, and Turkey all doubled the number of data requests they made between 2018 and 2019.

The USA saw the biggest increase, though, with almost 50,000 more requests made in 2019 than in 2018.

'A rapid expansion of technologies for surveillance and identification, combined with much slower adoption of policies to safeguard privacy and security, means this intrusive surveillance is becoming more prominent,' Brandl told Mail Online.

While the report was expansive, Brandl admits its not complete: CCTV figures are not available for North Korea, Iran, Syria and several other nations.

In addition, it's estimated that there are only 28 websites permitted in North Korea, all of which are government-owned.

There will be an estimated one billion security cameras around the globe by the end of this year, with 10 to 20 percent of them in the US.
The seaplane service from Ahmedabad to Kevadia launched in October last year is back in action again after being suspended for the third time as it had gone for maintenance to its home country the Maldives. The 15-seater Twin Otter 300 seaplane was flown back to the Maldives on 3 February.

"After much anticipation and undergoing comprehensive service and repair, our seaplane service is back in action again! Heres a glimpse of our seaplane making a triumphant return to service yesterday," Spice Shuttle said in a tweet.

After much anticipation and undergoing comprehensive service and repair, our seaplane service is back in action again! Heres a glimpse of our seaplane making a triumphant return to service yesterday.#seaplane #Gujarat #Ahmedabad #Sabarmati #aviation #statueofunity pic.twitter.com/PRNaYYvv4G  Spice Shuttle (@flySpiceShuttle) February 18, 2021

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on 31 October inaugurated India's maiden seaplane service between the Statue of Unity near Kevadiya in Gujarat's Narmada district and the Sabarmati Riverfront.

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

On Thursday, Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the government is looking to start seaplane services on several routes. Some of the proposed routes include Delhi-Jaipur, Delhi-Udaipur, Delhi-Jodhpur and Delhi-Badrinath among others.

The minister said the proposed services would also cover various islands of Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep, Guwahati Riverfront and Umranso Reservoir in Assam, Yamuna Riverfront / Delhi (as a hub) to Ayodhaya, Tehri, Srinagar (Uttrakhand), Chandigarh and many other tourist places.

These will be developed through collaboration between the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and the Ministry of Civil Aviation, he said.





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Officials in Limestone and Madison Counties are urging drivers to stay off roads Wednesday night due to icy conditions.

The Huntsville-Madison County Emergency Management Agency said around 8 p.m. that roads are quickly becoming impassable, and law enforcement is requesting everyone to restrict travel unless it is an emergency.

The Huntsville Police Department said drivers should use caution on all roadways due to ice.

Huntsville police said around 9:45 p.m. Wednesday that Memorial Parkway and the overpasses are closed, along with Bankhead Parkway, due to icy conditions.

Elevated portions of Interstate 565, Green Mountain and Research Park Boulevard from Highway 53 to Interstate 565 are also closed.

Madison police also issued an alert saying all roadways in the area are becoming hazardous. They said Hughes Road at the overpass is shut down.

In Limestone County, Commission Chairman Collin Daly urged everyone to stay off the roads unless absolutely necessary.

Athens Police Chief Floyd Johnson said public works is sanding slick areas such as the bridges on Forrest Street and Alabama 251. He said the department has notified the Alabama Department of Transportation that U.S. 72 has slick areas.

Were monitoring conditions and alerting you with the most accurate information via the WAAY 31 StormTracker Early Warning Radar Network. In addition to watching WAAY 31 News, you can access all three of our radars HERE.

You also can download our WAAY 31 Weather App to stay informed. More info HERE


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President Donald Trump gestures during the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit at the Palm Beach County Convention Center in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Dec. 21, 2019. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP via Getty Images)

Republicans Must Unify Against the Left

Commentary

Former President Donald Trump captured the core of the problem in his official statement following his acquittal in the Senate impeachment trial: It is a sad commentary on our times that one political party in America is given a free pass to denigrate the rule of law, defame law enforcement, cheer mobs, excuse rioters, and transform justice into a tool of political vengeance, and persecute, blacklist, cancel and suppress all people and viewpoints with whom or which they disagree.

This is the state of affairs today.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, salivating over the one article of impeachment hastily passed by her House against Trump, used national time and resources to do this for one reason and one reason only: to personally damage Trump and create division in the Republican Party.

It was clear that there was no way Donald Trump would be convicted in the Senate. But politics was the point, not the Constitution.

Now that President Trump has been acquitted, the left-wing media is stepping up to do its part to fan the flames and assure that no burning ember that could potentially damage Republicans is wasted.

Longtime Fox News token lefty Juan Williams wrote a piece for The Hill newspaper under the guise of truly caring about the health of the Republican Party, offering his heartfelt advice to Republicans to purge the kooks in favor of the conservatives. Or, as he says, to choose reality over delusion.

Williams, saying hes got Rep. Liz Cheneys back, defends her against the pursuit of Republican kooks who condemn her for voting to impeach Trump.

For years, the media has portrayed the Democratic Partythe party of abortion on demand, gender-neutral bathrooms, and every failed socialist idea known to mankindas the party of sobriety and sanity, in contrast to Republican wackos.

Former U.N. Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley availed herself to an interview with Politico, which did the expected hatchet job on her.

This was one of these so-called interviews where not the full transcript was published but rather only snippets, interlaced with comments and editorializing by the interviewing journalist.

The headline practically all of the media have run about the interview includes Haley saying that Trump let us down.

This extraordinary woman of accomplishment comes off in this feature as lost and confused.

Lets face it. President Trumps challenge of governing in the face of fake news and media dominated by liberals was real.

Maybe its wrong for someone, certainly the president of the United States, to become angry and combative.

But consider that Trump spent the first half of his presidency fending off fabricated charges of abuse of power and conspiracy to influence the 2016 election, which led to his first impeachment and acquittal. And it turned out that the basis of it all was a dossier whipped up by someone in the employ of the Democratic Party and used as legitimate intelligence by the FBI. And all the perpetrators of this horrible, corrupt scheme are off scot-free.

I appeal to Republicans to not let the smoke bellowing forth daily from the Democratic Party/left-wing mainstream media complex blindside them.

Our nation is limping, deeply wounded and dangerously close to fiscal and moral bankruptcy.

There is a reason why Americans picked a man with no prior political experience as their president in 2016. Make America Great Again was about the critical and noble crusade to restore one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Compared to this vital and noble mission, current injuries and differences in the party are but superficial wounds.

Republicans must unify to continue working to restore American greatness and keep focus on the real enemy: A corrupt, deeply confused and dangerous left-wing regime now holds the reins of power in our nation.

Star Parker is the founder and president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE) and host of the new weekly news talk show Cure America with Star Parker.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Singapore-India ties can expand on the basis of greater degree of people to people engagement, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday.

Goyal, who's the Minister of Railways, Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution, was delivering the keynote address at the India-Singapore CEO Forum.

According to Goyal, "Buddhism, Bollywood and Business" can help cement the partnership between the two nations.

He urged businesses to look at ways to expand the engagement and encourage India's youth to use more innovative technologies.

Besides, the minister said that e-commerce, fintech, smart manufacturing, healthcare are the significant areas where India offers a large market.

He cited that India and Singapore are working together in cyber security and disaster relief, while education and skill development can also be taken up using Singapore's experience.

Goyal expressed the belief that the new regional order will rest on the 'strong shoulders' of Singapore and India.

In addition, he said that through Budget 2021-22 and various other measures, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been trying to prepare the country to engage with the world from a position of strength in the next decade.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Lucknow, Feb 18 : The Samajwadi legislators created a ruckus in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly as Governor Anandiben Patel began her address to the joint session of both Houses on Thursday.

SP MLAs shouted slogans against increasing fuel prices, farmers' issues and deteriorating law and order situation.

They carried placards with slogans against the government but the Governor continued with her address.

Later the SP, Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party legislators walked out in protest and the Governor completed her address.

The Governor's address focussed on achievements of the Yogi Adityanath government.

She spoke about the government's Corona management which earned international recognition.

She also spoke about help for migrant workers who were given ration kits, Rs 1,000 each and buses were deployed to take them to their homes.

The Governor said that the government had enhanced its medical infrastructure to deal with the pandemic.

Talking about the Grand Ram temple in Ayodhya, the Governor thanked the judiciary and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for paving the way for temple construction.

She also focused on increase in investment in the state and the steps taken by the state government to generate employment and boost the economy, particularly through ODOP scheme.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text

A 33-year-old woman has decided to embrace her gray locks - and saved herself more than $2,400 a year in trips to the salon.

After spotting her first gray hairs at the age of just 17, Alex Duvall, from California, has spent thousands in an attempt to mask her real colour over the years.

She forked out on pricey highlight treatments at the salon, which cost $500 a trip - but that would grow out after just a month.

Alex Duvall, 33, (pictured) decided to embrace her gray locks - and saved herself more than $2400 a year in trips to the salon

After spotting her first grey hairs at the age of just 17, Alex has spent thousands in an attempt to mask her grays over the years. Left with natural gray hair and right with freshly dyed hair

The primary school teacher resorted to switching some trips for bottle-dye in a bid to control the ever-spiralling costs.

But after more than a decade she decided to embrace her prematurely silvery tresses and says that she feels more beautiful than she ever has done before.

Alex said: 'I first spotted some grays when I was 17. Both of my parents were fully grey and had been for quite some time, so in a way, I was kind of expecting it.

'It was kind of a bummer moment and I immediately got my mother to box dye my hair to cover them so that no one could notice.

She used to fork out on pricey highlight treatments at the salon, which cost $500 a trip - but that would grow out after just a month. Pictured: Alex now loves her gray hair

'This is when my life of box dyes and pricey highlights at the hairdressers would begin.'

Alex says that she has tried every hairstyle under the sun throughout the years while trying to cover her hair.

She added: 'From dark to platinum blonde, ombre and balayage. I tried everything. As I got older my hair kept on getting more and more gray.

'I would have to dye my hair at least once a month, but sometimes it was more than that.

Alex says that she has tried every hairstyle under the sun throughout the years while trying to cover her hair. Pictured with natural locks with her son Archer

Alex is pictured at her wedding in 2013 with freshly dyed hair. She used to get her hair dyed before all special occasions

'People would always ask me 'why is your hair like that?' which kind of came across as though they were asking what is wrong with me.

WHY DOES HAIR GO GREY? Grey hair is hair without pigment, and it could be regarded as the hairs' 'natural state'. When we are young, our hair is coloured by the pigments produced by cells in the hair follicle known as melanocytes. As we grow older, the melanocytes gradually become less active, so less pigment is produced, the colour fades, and grey hair grows instead. The process can be accelerated by factors such as stress and genetics. Advertisement

'I would sometimes google things like 'why is my hair rapidly turning gray?'

'There is just such a stigma around gray hair as people just associate it with old people. Everyone assumed I was too young to be grey.'

Alex would often spend $500 on a full head of highlights to disguise her gray hairs throughout a year, which would grow out within a month.

She said: 'Because the highlights would soon grow out, I then wouldn't be able to afford another $500 on the highlights, so I would buy a $10 box dye from the shop.

'It was like a vicious cycle and just a reaction to being so desperate to cover the grays.

'I wouldn't think twice about spending $500 at the hairdressers. I wasted such a huge amount of money on it. I couldn't imagine spending that much on my hair now.'

In 2017, at the age of 30, Alex gave birth to her son, Archer, now three, and was adamant that she wasn't going to be a new mother with gray hair.

Alex with blonde hair during her pregnancy. She said the hair treatments became a 'vicious cycle'

Alex would often spend $500 on a full head of highlights to disguise her gray hairs throughout a year, which would grow out within a month

She dyed her hair as soon as she could after giving birth so that she would have freshly coloured hair for pictures with her newborn.

Towards the end of that same year, Alex read a book which made her realise she wanted to do things differently in her life.

She said: 'I gave up social media for a couple of years and tried to focus on other things.

Alex is pictured here with her husband, Robert, while growing out her gray hair in August 2020

Alex is pictured with blonder hair in 2011. The primary school teacher used to hate her silvery locks

'I had an appointment at the hairdresser's, where I said I wanted to grow my gray hair out.

'I wanted to be really strong, but the hairdresser seemed to be opposed and I walked out with $400 worth of highlights.

'I was blonde again and crying. I had another appointment booked for a couple of months time, but I didn't go and started my grow out.

'At the time I was a stay at home mother and if I went out I was wearing hats to still cover my hair, however, within five months I realised I loved my grey hair and I was really into it.

Alex is pictured with her gray hair in December 2020

Alex is fully embracing her gray hair and says that she loves it more than she has ever loved her hair before

'It was natural and beautiful, so I kept going. In December I went back to social media and discovered a whole community of ladies embracing their gray hair. It was amazing.

'I wished I had known about this during the start of my grow out. It was magical.'

Alex is fully embracing her gray hair and says that she loves it more than she has ever loved her hair before.

She added: 'I can't ever see myself dying my hair again. I want long silver mermaid hair.

Alex is pictured left and right with some grays showing after her colour was growing out

'I feel so much more beautiful and more like myself. It's like this is what I was meant to look like. I feel like I have a glow about me now.

'I am more confident than I have ever been and I'm accepting myself for who I am. It is empowering and I am obsessed with my gray hair.'

Keep up with Alex's grey hair journey on her Instagram: @alliegrowsgray.
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Our local newspaper faces huge challenges and require government supports, that is according to Sligo Leitrim TD and Minister of State, Frank Feighan TD.

Minister Feighan has written to his colleague and Minister with responsibility for Media, Catherine Marin TD seeking public service funding supports for the local and regional newspapers.

Over many years local newspapers were the main source for local news and sport results, newsagents sold hundreds on papers, then came along local radio in the late 1980s which became a source of competition however the coming of the internet and social media has had a dramatic effect on the demand for the local paper, leading to dramatic sales drop and advertising revenue.

This has put many of these titles under financial pressure and possible closure, to date they have haemorrhaged staff and the Covid-19 pandemic has exasperated their position.

As a public representative I have a clear concern where many people, especially younger people, source their news and information, it has been proven that some news sources through the internet and social media broadcast and publish fake news leading to mis-information and presenting a real danger to our society, one only has to observe the recent election in the USA where many people are convinced that this election was stolen from the outgoing President

I am urging people especially our younger generation to buy your local newspaper if not every week then as regularly as possible because like many things in life if you dont use it you will lose it - since 2010, 16 local papers have closed.

On the other hand, I have written to Minister Martin to request that local newspapers can benefit from funding like the 5 million allocated to local radio in two funding rounds to support its Covid coverage. Local Newspapers have had no such support from Government to date, yet they provide an essential public service to us as readers in the same market.

"I understand that other countries offer direct and indirect funding for newspapers. I would like to see more advertising from Government and national agencies going to local papers. Many of the Covid-19 advertising communications campaigns run in the national press, radio and television have not featured in local papers. Given that many of our older people rely on local newspapers for their information it is vital to the distribution of public service information that Government publications use local papers particularly as we are involved in a vaccine roll out.

In conclusion I will do what I can within government to ensure we sustain our local newspaper in the community through policy and financial support and I urge my constituents to be aware of the imminent threat there is to this information resource that they, and our forefathers relied on for many years, concluded Minister Feighan.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was reportedly unfazed by the scathing broadside he endured from Donald Trump on Tuesday, in which the former president, among other things, labelled him a dour, sullen and unsmiling political hack.

According to CNN, the Kentucky Senator just laughed off the blistering comments and has no plans to dignify Trumps remarks with a response.

McConnells apparent choice to take the proverbial high-road, sources say, is indicative of how he plans to navigate the post-Trump era: by ignoring him completely.

You probably are not going to hear him utter the name Donald Trump ever again, a source told the network. He's moving on.

Whether Trump will follow suit, however, remains to be seen. But the source said that 'McConnell is too disciplined' to rise to any future bait.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was reportedly unfazed by the scathing attack he endured from Donald Trump on Tuesday. Sources say he laughed off the remarks and has no plans to respond

In his Tuesday statement, issued through his Save America PAC, Trump delivered a number of stunning personal attacks on McConnell, accusing him of destroying the GOP and urging the partys senators to end his leadership

In his Tuesday statement, issued through his Save America PAC, Trump delivered a number of stunning personal attacks on McConnell, accused him of destroying the GOP and urged the partys senators to bring an end to his leadership.

According to Politico, Trumps statement could have been even more cutting, if not for the intervention of some of his aides.

A source familiar with the matter told the outlet that Trump wanted to mock McConnell for having multiple chins but not enough smarts, but advisors managed to talk him down.

The former presidents thunderous remarks came just days after McConnell, the Republican Partys most senior elected figure, voted to acquit Trump for inciting the Capitol riots but then blasted his conduct in an excoriating speech.

McConnell declined to charge Trump, he said, because the Senate lacked jurisdiction to try a former president. But he did strongly condemn Trump, insisting he was to blame for the deadly insurrection on January 6.

Former President Trump's actions preceding the riot were a disgraceful dereliction of duty, McConnell said on the Senate floor.

In response, Trump wrote in his letter: The Republican Party can never again be respected or strong with political 'leaders' like Sen. Mitch McConnell at its helm.

McConnell's dedication to business as usual, status quo policies, together with his lack of political insight, wisdom, skill, and personality, has rapidly driven him from Majority Leader to Minority Leader, and it will only get worse,' he wrote.

'The Democrats and Chuck Schumer play McConnell like a fiddlethey've never had it so good and they want to keep it that way! We know our America First agenda is a winner, not McConnell's Beltway First agenda or Biden's America Last.'

Trump also claimed that McConnell begged or his endorsement last year and saw his poll numbers shoot up more than 20 points in the aftermath.

Several sources told CNN that statement is completely false, noting that Trump was even presented with a poll during a White House meeting last year showing the GOP leader handedly ahead in his reelection bid.

McConnells apparent choice to take the proverbial high-road, sources say, underscores how he plans to navigate the post-Trump era: by completely ignoring him

A day after blistering McConnell, on Wednesday, Trump broke his near-month long self-imposed media silence to regurgitate his baseless claims of election fraud, insisting he was the rightful winner of the November vote.

Trump also continued to attack McConnell, accusing the Senate GOP leader of failing to stand up for Republicans.

The Republicans are soft. They only hit their own, like Mitch, Trump complained on Newsmax. If they spent the same time hitting [Senate Democratic leader Chuck] Schumer and [President Joe] Biden, the Republicans would be much better off, that I can tell you.

Republican officials in several battlegrounds carried by Biden, including Georgia and Arizona, have said the vote was fair.

Trumps legal claims surrounding the vote were rejected by judges across the political spectrum, including many appointed by the former president.

McConnell himself described Trumps contention as an unhinged falsehood.

Leading GOP strategists described the exploding feud between the former Republican president and the Senates most powerful Republican as, at best, a distraction and, at worst, a direct threat to the partys path to the House and Senate majorities in next years midterms.

I dont think he cares about winning, Steven Law, a McConnell ally who leads the most powerful Republican-aligned super PAC in Washington, said of Trump. He just wants it to be about himself.

Law noted that Trump lost several states where Republicans face must-win Senate elections in next years quest to break up Democrats control of Congress, including in Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Republicans are also competing in Nevada and New Hampshire, where Trump was defeated, and in North Carolina, where Trump won by the narrowest of margins.

If Trump tries to make himself the center of attention, Law said, that actually could cost Republicans seats in the general election.

Former President Trump's actions preceding the riot were a disgraceful dereliction of duty, McConnell said on the Senate floor

In addition to stoking infighting within the GOP, Trump has also previously peddled the prospect of starting a new political party, which would endanger the Republican Partys very existence.

Roughly 120 anti-Trump Republicans, including current and former officeholders, secretly convened earlier in the month to contemplate the future of the GOP.

A plurality, or 40 percent, supported the idea of creating a new party, according to an internal survey provided by one of the meetings organizers, former independent presidential candidate Evan McMullin.

Theres a lot of energy out there for something new, McMullin said, while encouraging Trump to follow through with his threats of creating a Patriot Party. Frankly, I would welcome him to start a new party and take his most loyal supporters with him. I think that would be a wonderful thing for the party and the country.

Trumps plans for the future are still coming together in West Palm Beach, Florida.

He has been banned from Facebook and Twitter for inciting violence, but on Wednesday, he broke his month-long silence, giving his first interviews since leaving the White House after the death of conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh.

On Newsmax, Trump said his team was still exploring its options for returning to social media and negotiating with a number of people, while still keeping the option of building his own platform on the table.

Were looking at a lot of different things, but I really wanted to be somewhat quiet, Trump said, sidestepping repeated questions about whether he intends to run again in 2024.

Too early to say, he said, while acknowledging that he missed being president.

Still, Trump said that he has had no problem communicating when he wants to by issuing statements - and has made clear this week that he will not retire quietly.
The Russian-run port of Tartous will receive its fourth director within a year, writes Al-Souria Net.

A Russian company has appointed a new manager for the port of Tartous, in which it is a major investor.

Gaysin Iirat Raivatovic will be the fourth director within the span of a year, according to the Port Directorates Facebook account.

The Directorate wrote that Mr. Gaysin Iirat Raivatovic was appointed to the position of Director of the Directorate of Administration of the Tartous Port, succeeding Alexei Aleksanrovich, who was appointed five months ago.

Russian sources said that Raivatovic, who has a degree in transportation engineering, arrived in Syria a few days ago.

For his part, the head of the Maritime and Air Transport Syndicate in Tartous, Fouad Harba, considered that these changes are not healthy, as every time we start working with a new director we have to return to square one.

The Assad government had leased the port of Tartous through a 49-year contract, which it concluded with Russian company STG-E, taking over the management of the port in October 2019.

The regimes Peoples Assembly approved a draft law authorizing the company to invest, manage, and develop the port of Tartous, the largest in Syria, claiming that the step comes within the context of preparing for the reconstruction of the country.

After the Russians took over, several disputes arose between the port workers and the Russian company, due to the latters decision to expel 3,600 Syrian workers who worked in the port before the company started managing it. The Assad government intervened to mediate their return, considering that the Russian decision contradicts the agreement.

This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
Tim Boyd, mayor of Colorado City, went viral with his Facebook post on Tuesday

The wife of the Texan mayor who called his snowed-in residents 'lazy' for asking for handouts during the snow storm has been fired from her school job, he claims in an updated post.

Tim Boyd, mayor of Colorado City, 220 miles west of Fort Worth, said in an irate Facebook rant that people should 'get off your a** and take care of your own family' during the deadly storm.

The extreme weather has left millions without power in Texas, with data from Oncor Electricity Delivery suggesting more than a quarter of Colorado City's 4,000 residents were without power at 9pm on Tuesday when it was 23 degrees.

Boyd said in a second post that his family had come under fire for his controversial statements, leading to his wife Casey being fired from her job as an administrative assistant and secretary in the local school system, according to her LinkedIn page.

He said: 'The anger and harassment you have caused my wife is so underserved.... my wife was laid off of her job based off the association people gave to her and the business she worked for.

In an updated message, Boyd said his family had been the target of abuse and his wife Casey had been fired

The extreme weather has left millions without power in Texas but Boyd accused them of wanting handouts and being lazy. Pictured: residents pushing a car in Austin

'She's a very good person and was only defending me! But her to have to get fired from her job over things I said out of context is so horrible.

'I admit, there are things that are said all the time that I don't agree with; but I would never harass you or your family to the point that they could lose there livelihood such as a form of income.'

The mayor added that his previous comments had been 'taken out of context' and stated he had already decided not to run for reelection.

Boyd claimed that he had resigned before making Tuesday morning's post, and was speaking only as a citizen, not an elected official.

'I had already turned in my resignation and had not signed up to run for mayor again on the deadline that was February 12th!' he said.

In his first post, Boyd voiced his anger at residents despite their difficulties, saying the 'city and county owe you NOTHING'.

In his first post, Boyd voiced his anger at residents despite their difficulties during the winter storm

The mayor added that his previous comments had been 'taken out of context' and stated he had already decided not to run for reelection

He wrote on Tuesday morning: 'No one owes you are your family anything; nor is it the local government's responsibility to support you during trying times like this!

'The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING!'

Boyd continued at length, saying that he was 'sick and tired' of people looking for handouts and that the current situation is 'sadly a product of a socialist government.'

Boyd accused the townsfolk of being lazy. Pictured is Richardson, Texas on Tuesday

Colorado City, Texas, as it usually looks. More than 25 per cent are currently without power

'Only the strong will survive and the weak will perish,' he wrote.

Boyd took the post down, but screenshots of the image quickly went viral.

Several hours later, he said he stood by his sentiments but should have phrased it better and been 'more descriptive'.

'I would never want to hurt the elderly or anyone that is in true need of help to be left to fend for themselves,' Boyd said.

'I was only making the statement that those folks that are too lazy to get up and fend for themselves but are capable should not be dealt a handout.'
Maal-e-Ganimat: 11 JMB operatives charged for dacoity intended to raise terror funds

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: The National Investigation Agency has filed a chargesheet against 11 terrorists of the Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, Bangladesh for dacoities committed by them in the year 2018.

Najir Sheikh, Arif Hussain, Kador Kazi, Asif Iqbal were among the 11 to the charged by the NIA.

The NIA said that in the month of February 2018, four cases were registered for the dacoities committed by the members of the JMB. They had hatched a conspiracy to raise funds for terror activities under the pretext of Maal-e-Ganimat. The JMB terrorists committed dacoities in four place in Bengaluru.

Hizbul Mujahideen narco-terror case: NIA files supplementary chargesheet against 2 more accused

During investigation, all these accused persons were taken in police custody and were thoroughly interrogated. The main accused Jahidul Islam alias Kausar disclosed and pointed out all the hideouts where he along with his associates/JMB members had taken shelter and identified shops from where they had procured instruments for using the same in dacoities and also the houses where dacoities were committed from February to April, 2019.

Investigation also revealed that Jahidul Islam , a Bangladeshi national, who is the main conspirator and leader of JMB, a proscribed terrorist organization, was involved in promoting the activities of JMB in India.He is one of the prime accused in serial blasts in Bangladesh carried out by JMB in 2005.

The investigation established the broad network forged by JMB terrorists in India for committing terrorist and subversive activities by procuring arms and explosives, recruiting youth and conducting training camps, the NIA said.

It may be recalled that back in 2014, the Students Islamic Movement of India had launched a Maal-e-Ganimat wing, which was aimed at raising funds. This wing only focused on the finances and after the module was busted, the investigators learnt that the group was involved in robberies and extortion.

The SIMI wing was involved in robberies in Karimnagar and Madhya Pradesh. Officials tell OneIndia that the wing started by the SIMI was replicated by the JMB as well. A dedicated set of operatives are assigned to the wing and their job is to raise funds by committing acts of robberies and dacoities, the officer also said.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 8:45 [IST]
Kim Il, 27, one of three North Korean operatives charged with attempting to steal $1.3 billion via cyber attacks, is seen on an FBI wanted notice released on Feb. 17, 2021.

CORRECTED: 12:55 ET on 2021-02-18

The United States has charged three North Korean military intelligence operatives with attempting the cybertheft of $1.3 billion from banks and cryptocurrency companies around the world, including South and Southeast Asia, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Wednesday.

The conspirators hacked into the computers of victims to steal data and money, and further the strategic and financial interests of the North Korean regime and its leader, Kim Jong Un, U.S. justice officials said.

Jon Chang Hyok, 31, Kim Il, 27, and Park Jin Hyok, 36, also stole around $100 million from Bangladeshs central bank in 2016, said a Dec. 8, 2020 federal indictment in California that was unsealed on Wednesday.

The hackers attempted to steal or extort more than $1.3 billion from victims in cyber-enabled heists and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cash-outs from banks, cyber-enabled heists from cryptocurrency companies, and cyber-enabled extortion schemes, the indictment said.

The hackers hacked and defrauded victims around the world - including in Bangladesh, Malta, Mexico, Indonesia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Slovenia, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, Vietnam, Central America, and Africa - as well as in the United States and, specifically, the Central District of California, the indictment said.

Of the three accused, Park Jin Hyok had been previously charged in an indictment unsealed in 2018.

Todays unsealed indictment expands upon the FBIs 2018 charges for the unprecedented cyberattacks conducted by the North Korean regime, Paul Abbate, deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, said in a statement.

While the conspiracy was in operation, the three North Korean hackers, who were working at units of the countrys Reconnaissance General Bureau, traveled to and worked from other countries, including China and Russia, the indictment said. The bureau, a military intelligence agency headquartered in Pyongyang, comprised multiple units, according to the court document.

The North Korean hackers successful thefts in South and Southeast Asia were from institutions in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Vietnam, according to a copy of the indictment.

About 2 million euros (U.S. $ 2.4 million) was fraudulently transferred by the hackers from a Vietnamese bank to accounts in Bulgaria and Slovenia in December 2015, the indictment said.

Taiwans Far Eastern International Bank became a target of the North Korean hackers in October 2017. About $60 million was transferred by the hackers from this Taipei-based bank to accounts in Sri Lanka, Cambodia, and the United States.

The indictment said that on Feb. 4, 2016, the North Korean hackers attempted to conduct fraudulent wire transfers worth about $951 million from Bangladesh Bank, the countrys central bank, and succeeded in fraudulent wire transfers of $81 million to bank accounts in the Philippines and $20 million to a bank account in Sri Lanka.

The $20 million transfer was immediately detected and returned to Bangladesh Bank's account at Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

In Indonesia, the North Korean hackers fraudulently transferred cryptocurrency, valued at approximately $24.9 million from a cryptocurrency exchange based in Jakarta in September 2018, the indictment said.

In a plan to create a digital token called Marine Chain Token, which would allow investors to purchase fractional ownership interests in marine shipping vessels, the hackers also tried to receive approval from the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong to trade the Marine Chain Token as a security.

While the hackers didnt steal from institutions in Cambodia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Thailand, they did transfer funds to accounts there, creating at least one bilateral controversy.

Bangladeshi bank heist

Bangladesh sued the Philippines in February 2019, saying bankers there conspired with the North Korean hackers in the theft of the $81 million, which was stolen from Bangladesh Bank and wire transferred to a Philippine bank.

The lawsuit said Makati-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) of the Philippines along with eight of its officers conspired with casino operators, Chinese citizens, and the hackers to rob Bangladesh Bank funds kept in an account at the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank in New York.

To pull off the heist, the North Korean hackers aligned with co-conspirators in the Philippines, most importantly, RCBC. ... The conspirators used RCBCs New York City correspondent accounts to receive the fraudulent transfers from the New York Fed, said the Bangladesh government complaint filed in New York.

The techniques used by the North Korean hackers differed vastly from, say, the infamous American bank robber John Dillingers methods, and Assistant Attorney General John C. Demers of the Justice Departments National Security Division described the contrast.

As laid out in todays indictment, North Koreas operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of cryptocurrency instead of sacks of cash, are the worlds leading bank robbers, Demers said in a statement.

Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story incorrectly implied that the indictment unsealed Wednesday revealed the extent of the Bangladesh Bank heist for the first time.
But theres another side to that lighthearted coin, one in which Erewhon represents only a privileged sliver of the citys diverse population. Its rise continues as the city struggles to contain the coronavirus and faces a housing crisis as gentrification pushes further into minority neighborhoods. The Silver Lake location was welcomed by the neighborhoods creative class but is also seen as a more complex sign of the times. As Los Angeles magazine recently asked: Is Erewhons Arrival in Silver Lake the Final Nail in the Gentrifying Neighborhoods Coffin?

Its a good question, one without an easy answer. Technicolor smoothies may be boffo for likes and shares, but they represent the most visible part of a very large iceberg.

Were a majority-Latino county with 10 million people, said Mr. Elliott. The idea that Erewhon is a baseline for how the majority of Angelenos eat is not only absurd, its beyond offensive. The city offers a wide range of cuisines, and nutritious foods can be found in minority neighborhoods that havent been overtaken by influencers, at places like Simply Wholesome, a Black-owned restaurant and store in South Los Angeles.

Still, Mr. Elliott understands why Erewhon has gained such traction: It attracts a type of consumer, and that type of consumer helps build hype. I think its easy to make lighthearted fun of the people there, he said. They do tend to fit a certain demographic. That gets back to the repetition of social media: You see the thing, you become the thing, and you show the thing and the cycle repeats.

Meanwhile, social media popularity may mean that Erewhon is poised for a bigger stage. In late 2019, it was announced that the store had accepted a minority-stake investment from Stripes, a growth equity firm based in New York, in hopes of expanding the stores footprint beyond Southern California. Naturally, fears of selling out, as Whole Foods did to Amazon, started to bubble up.

Did social media help fuel the deal? Can TikTokers influence Erewhon from local grocer to a national chain? I think we leveraged the digital community, Mr. Widener said. But the digital community leveraged Erewhon.
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A notorious lockdown dodger who breached quarantine restrictions twice, used the funeral of a drowned teen as her reason to enter the state to party with friends.

Teen 'Covidiot' Isata Jalloh told Western Australian authorities she needed to enter the state to attend the funeral of drowned teenager Matiyas Bekuretsion, the West Australian reported.

Ms Jalloh initially told authorities she was applying for a G2G pass because she needed to attend a funeral, but did not specify whose, on November 19.

It wasn't until the party girl had crossed state lines, that she claimed to have entered the state for the funeral of the drowned teen, who was swept from Scarborough beach, in Perth on November 28.

Isata Jalloh (pictured), 19, has been sentenced to six months jail time and fined $7500 for flouting Western Australia's quarantine restrictions twice

In her sentencing hearing on Thursday, Perth's Magistrate court was told Mr Bekuretsion's body was found several days after Ms Jalloh filed her G2G application.

The nineteen-year-old was jailed for six months and one day for flouting Western Australia's anti-Covid measures twenty-three times in total.

Ms Jalloh was also fined $7500 for providing false information, and has been in police custody since December 10.

Police prosecutors told the court Ms Jalloh took advantage of the fatal accident for her own benefit, and showed no empathy for the drowned teenagers family.

Matiyas Bekuretsion, 16, tragically drowned at Scarborough Beach in Perth on November 28

They also argued that the teenager placed the wider Western Australian community at risk, when she used false claims to enter the state.

The court was told Ms Jalloh entered the state on December 6, from New South Wales through South Australia and within hours of landing, visited a petrol station with a male.

The pair bought snacks and other items, with Ms Jalloh not wearing any form of PPE.

After returning to her hotel with the male, CCTV footage shows the teenager leaving again, only to return with another female.

Isata Jalloh (right) and friend Banchi Techana (left) were sent back to Adelaide in disgrace, after the pair left a Perth hotel to party with 'social media friends' in August 2020

Over the next 36 hours Ms Jalloh received several guests in her hotel room, three different women and four different men, one of whom stayed the night.

On some occasions, the party girl and her associates were seen carrying alcohol into the hotel room.

Ms Jalloh and her three friends decided to leave the hotel at 10:30pm and were captured on CCTV footage on William Street.

The group remained outside for about half an hour, none of them wearing masks.

Police visited the hotel room on January 7, but did not find Ms Jalloh.

Isata Jalloh, 19, and Banchi Techana, 22, (pictured) had plotted to breach quarantine on the bus ride from the airport

When police called her mobile phone, the teenager revealed she was in Belmont Shopping Centre, and was soon arrested in a barber shop.

Pictured: Rapper Siri Kidd

Ms Jalloh's lawyer Sue Maharaj, arguing for a suspended sentence, told the court her client accepted what she had done was wrong, and said her behavior was immature at best.

Ms Maharaj said her client's brother was in jail, and Ms Jalloh was the only source of support for her mother, who had arrived in Australia as a refugee.

She told the court her client had been bullied at school, lacked a father figure in her life and had cut off contact with the 'friends' she claimed had influenced her offending.

Magistrate Deen Potter ruled an immediate imprisonment sentence was warranted, citing her multiple infringements of Western Australia's quarantine laws.

Mr Potter called her decision to fly from New South Wales, which was a hot spot at the time, as 'selfish', but said he would take the teenagers age and lack of criminal history into account.

Isata Jalloh (pictured, right) and accomplice Banchi Techanan were arrested for leaving hotel quarantine the following morning, with both pleading guilty to the breach in court

Ms Jalloh was sentenced to six months, one day in jail, making her eligible for parole after three months.

The teen was also slapped with a $7500 fine for lying to authorities.

The party girl had already copped a $5000 fine the previous time she breached Western Australian quarantine law, after flying from Adelaide without an exemption.

Accompanied by friend Banchi Techana, 22, the pair snuck out of hotel quarantine for the first time, leaving the Novotel Hotel to party with friends and rapper Siri Kidd last August.

Police called Jalloh's mobile phone to ask where the women were but she laughed and hung up on the officer.

Jalloh and Techana made obscene gestures as they were placed on a tax-payer funded return flight to South Australia

The mobile phone signal was then used to track both women to the flat.

The pair were arrested the next morning and remained in police custody for two days, before appearing before the Perth Magistrates Court, where both women plead guilty.

Jalloh narrowly avoided jail time but was fined $5000, while Techana admitted to obstructing an officer while in custody and was given an eight month sentence, suspended for twelve months.

Jalloh and Techana were escorted back to hotel quarantine before making obscene gestures as they were placed on a taxpayer-funded return flight to South Australia.

The escape of the two women from quarantine led to an immediate police review into the hotel quarantine system, while Premier Mark McGowan announced there would be a crackdown on quarantine surveillance, following the series of breaches.

West Australian authorities requested an additional 134 defence force officers, including 20 to be trained in Covid-19 contact tracing, with personnel already supporting state authorities in quarantine hotels to be doubled.
Texas is experiencing simultaneous power outages across the state, leaving the state in cold conditions. However, some blame the green energy alternatives, which are wind turbines, to be the cause of the power outage.

Recently, a viral photo of a helicopter deicing the wind turbines gathers attention and backlash from people online, saying that Texas utilizes helicopters to melt the ice in their wind turbines.

According to The American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the icing on any part of the wind turbine, especially the blades' tips, affects the performance of the wind turbines.

But the issue of utilizing helicopters for deicing the wind turbines has caught the attention of different people.

Truth behind the circulating photo

According to AP News, a photo became viral online, featuring a helicopter spraying chemicals to unfreeze Texas's wind turbine. They add that this incident indeed happened.

Numerous conservatives have posted their sympathies on the issue. Newsweek notes that voices from Representative Lauren Boebert of R-Colo, and commentator Steven Crowder criticized the action and were not blissful about the idea because of the fossil fuels.

Read also: Woman, Girl Die From Carbon Monoxide Poisoning After Using Running Car to Stay Warm in Texas Freeze

However, Climate Feedback points out that the photo and the people who are giving comments about it mislead the people. This only means that the picture is a hoax.

The circulating image was taken in 2014, and the wind turbine is from Sweden. The helicopter was from the Alpine helicopter, a company from Sweden is carrying a water tank that shoots a stream of hot water on the turbine's blade to melt the ice.

Newsweek adds that no evidence emerged from the operator of the wind turbines, ERCOT, to spray chemicals on the wind turbines.

The wind turbines should not be blamed for power outage

Meanwhile, Newsweek also notes the wind turbine should not be blamed alone for the power outages occurring in the state due to the record-breaking cold that hit Texas.

They point out that wind turbine frozen mid-rotation is only responsible for only a part of the overall catastrophe. Fiscal Notes shares that as of 2019, Texas generates their electricity from Nuclear, Solar, Coal, Natural gas, and Wind. They also note that wind turbines produce roughly 20 percent of energy.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas announced to the public that they would be working the day to unfreeze the turbines, among other things in their to-do list.

Climate Feedback references a press conference with the senior director for ERCOT, Dan Woodfin, earlier this week, saying that a lot of generations that have gone offline have either tripped or should be shut down because of the natural issues gas system.

With evidence, the viral photo of Texas utilizing helicopters spraying chemicals on their wind turbines is not accurate because the image is from Sweden.

In addition, the power outage that happens in the said state is not because of wind turbines alone, but other power generators are also responsible for it.

Related article: 6 Dead, More Than 60 Injured in 130-Vehicle Pileup on Icy Texas Interstate
Three North Korean computer programmers have been charged by the US over their alleged involvement in a number of global cyber attacks (Peter Byrne/PA)

Three North Korean computer programmers have been charged by the US over their alleged involvement in a number of global cyber attacks, including the WannaCry attack on the NHS in 2017.

The US Department of Justice said the range of attacks also included the 2014 targeting of Sony Pictures and an extortion scheme attempting to steal more than 1.3 billion dollars (934 million) from banks and other financial institutions.

Officials said the three men are accused of being members of the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), a military intelligence agency in North Korea which engaged in criminal hacking  including the creation of the WannaCry 2.0 ransomware which hit the NHS in 2017 and spread to more than 100 other countries.

The virus, which hit dozens of NHS Trusts, blocked access to computer software and demanded a ransom in order to return control to the user, leading to widespread chaos inside the health service, with thousands of appointments cancelled and diagnostic equipment infected.

Three North Korean Military Hackers Indicted in Wide-Ranging Scheme to Commit Cyberattacks and Financial Crimes Across the Globe https://t.co/XiGrrYpllq  Justice Department (@TheJusticeDept) February 17, 2021

The three men, named as Jon Chang Hyok, Kim Il and Park Jin Hyok, are accused of carrying out the attacks to generate funds for the benefit of the North Korean regime.

They have been charged with conspiracy to commit computer fraud and abuse and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud.

All three are not in custody and are believed to be in North Korea.

Park was previously charged in 2018 over links to the NHS and Sony Picture attacks, as well as the targeting of a British production company making a series which involved a British nuclear scientist taken prisoner in North Korea.

Assistant attorney general John C Demers, of the US Justice Departments National Security Division, said: As laid out in todays indictment, North Koreas operatives, using keyboards rather than guns, stealing digital wallets of cryptocurrency instead of sacks of cash, are the worlds leading bank robbers.

The Department will continue to confront malicious nation-state cyber activity with our unique tools and work with our fellow agencies and the family of norms abiding nations to do the same.
A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind.

Climate activist Disha Ravi, arrested for alleged involvement in sharing a toolkit backing the farmers' protest, on Thursday moved the Delhi High Court seeking to restrain police from leaking to the media any probe material in relation to the FIR lodged against her.

Advocate Abhinav Sekhri, one of the lawyers representing Ravi, said he is waiting for the matter to be listed for hearing in the high court and then only he can comment about it.

The petition also seeks to restrain the media from publishing the content or extract of any alleged private chats, including those on WhatsApp, between her and third parties.



Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Delhi Police, told Delhi High Court that the Police has not leaked any information to media in relation to FIR against Disha Ravi.

The Delhi Police, probing the "toolkit Google doc" backing the farmers' agitation shared by climate activist Greta Thunberg, had arrested Ravi while Mumbai lawyer Jacob and Pune engineer Shantanu Muluk have been granted pre-arrest bail by court



A Delhi court had on February14 sent Ravi to five day police custody after the agency said her custodial interrogation was required to probe an alleged larger conspiracy against the government of India and to ascertain her alleged role relating to the Khalistan movement.

Ravi was arrested by a Cyber Cell team of the Delhi Police from Bengaluru on February13 and was produced before a court here seeking her police custody for seven days.

While seeking her custody, the police had told the court that the activist had allegedly edited the toolkit and many other people were involved in the matter.

A toolkit is a document created to explain any issue. It also provides information on what one needs to do to address the issue. This might include information about petitions, details about protests and mass movements.

Earlier, the Delhi Police had asked Google and some social media giants to provide information about email id, URLs and certain social media accounts related to the creators of the toolkit shared by Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and others on Twitter in connection with the farmers' protest.

The Cyber Cell had lodged an FIR against "pro-Khalistan" creators of the toolkit for waging a "social, cultural and economic war against the government of India".

The case against unnamed persons was registered on charges of criminal conspiracy, sedition and various other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The toolkit was aimed at spreading disaffection and ill-will against the government of India and creating disharmony among various social, religious and cultural groups, the police had claimed.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

AUCKLAND, New Zealand  Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday that all schools would make free menstrual products available to students for the next three years, adding New Zealand to the global effort to reduce period poverty  a lack of access to pads or tampons that could negatively affect education, health or employment.

The announcement came after a six-month pilot program involving 3,200 students across 15 schools in the countrys Waikato region. The national initiative, which will begin in June at primary, intermediate and secondary schools, is expected to cost 25 million New Zealand dollars ($17.96 million), Ms. Ardern said.

Young people should not miss out on their education because of something that is a normal part of life for half the population, she said outside a school in the city of Hamilton.

In November, Scotland became the first country to announce that it would make period products freely available to all who need them. Other countries have taken smaller steps toward addressing period inequity.
If you're ready to get out of the house and see some animals, the San Antonio Zoo has you covered with its reopening on Saturday.

The local attraction closed this week due to the extreme freezing weather that resulted in power outages and a water shortage. The cold temperatures forced the zoo the move some of its animals to warmer areas.

Craig Pelke, Director of Ectotherms, told MySA.com they moved 14 crocodiles and alligators and more than three dozen turtles into the zoo's Africa Live! building, which is typically filled up with guests who are visiting its resident hippo, Timothy. The staff also relocated its flamingos, King Vultures, and Toucans into its Riverview restaurant and other indoor areas at the zoo.

Both areas will be closed to the public this weekend, the zoo said.

RELATED: Chimpanzee, monkeys and lemurs are dead after animal sanctuary near San Antonio is left without heat, electricity

Pelke said the decision to relocate the animals came after the rolling power outages cut off electricity to the city's well pump, which he says is the "heart of the zoo."

"It's our lifeblood because the water comes up at 74 degrees, so when the rolling blackouts occurred, it basically stopped the heart of the zoo," Pelke said. "Like other businesses, we don't have a plan for this, but we knew we had to get the animals out of the cold."

On Thursday, the pump's power was restored. The zoo plans to relocate the rest next week.

READ ALSO: 'Travel is not possible': National Weather Service cautions against driving

As of Friday afternoon, all of the power has been restored to the zoo along with the water. However, the zoo said it is following all protocols under the city's boil water notice, so all water fountains will be closed this weekend.

The zoo, the train, and the Starbucks will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Due to the recent closures, the zoo is asking supporters to please consider donating to its emergency fund. Click here to donate.

Priscilla Aguirre is a general assignment reporter for MySA.com | priscilla.aguirre@express-news.net | @CillaAguirre

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Telcel, AT&T and Movistar, the three major operators in Mexico, can now connect to the Altan Shared Network, an LTE network that aims to cover most areas of the country, but in particular its underserved areas.

According to Mexican media, Altan Redes, which describes itself as the Mexican company responsible for designing, developing, operating and marketing the Red Compartida, the Network for Everyone has signed an agreement with the national government so that Telcel, AT&T and Movistar can connect to its network.

Altans sharing of its infrastructure with these three major players will, it suggests, allow it to bring communications to hard-to-reach areas with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants. Salvador Alvarez, director general of Altan Redes, has described this as a win-win for all parties.

Operators can take advantage of Altans already installed infrastructure and bring connectivity to their customers in areas where they did not previously have coverage. In addition, the Red Compartida adds more users in areas with little traffic, which gives the network sustainability.

The Red Compartida currently provides 4.5G LTE coverage to 61.66 percent of the total population of Mexico. This so-called Social Roaming agreement helps it to fulfil its promise to connect the majority of Mexicans and close the digital divide.

Built via public private partnership, Red Compartida is a 20-year concession awarded by the Mexican government to Altan Redes that aims for the development of a wholesale, universal, continuous, neutral and non-discriminatory 4G LTE network that will cover 92.2 percent of the Mexican population by 2024. This will include 15 percent coverage in towns of fewer than 10,000 inhabitants.

La Red Compartida uses 700MHz spectrum. Altan Redes is reportedly investing $7 billion in building out the network so that it can be used by network and non-network operators in a non-biased wholesale business model. Of course, whether Mexicos operators are happy to work with that business model remains to be seen.

Work continues with Middle Baxter area

An outdoor manufacturer is interested in coming to Rock Springs, through discussions are in their preliminary phases.

Kayla McDonald, economic development specialist for the Sweetwater Economic Development Coalition, said the organization is working with a company which manufactures outdoor recreation equipment in a bid to establish the company in Rock Springs. McDonald declined to name the company, citing the early nature of the discussions, but said both Western Wyoming Community College and Rock Springs Mayor Tim Kaumo have been involved as well. McDonald said Kaumo was the person respon...
Veo Robotics logo

Veo Robotics, Inc., an industrial automation company building technology to make robots responsive to humans, today announced a partnership with Calvary Robotics, a leader in the design and development of custom turnkey automation solutions, robotic platforms, and material handling systems, as its initial certified systems integrator partner.

Calvary will include Veos flagship product FreeMove, a comprehensive 3D safeguarding solution that turns standard industrial robots into collaborative machines that work safely with humans, as part of its solution offering to customers. The Veo team will provide training to the Calvary team on how to install FreeMove in various manufacturing settings.

We are thrilled to partner with Calvary Robotics as our first certified systems integrator, said Veo Robotics CEO and Co-Founder, Patrick Sobalvarro. This partnership will help us establish strong customer relationships with manufacturing engineers and improve flexibility in manufacturing so they better incorporate safe, dynamic, and effective human-robot collaboration.

Veo Robotics has created a first-of-its-kind safeguarding system that significantly reduces the cost and complexity of human-robot collaboration, said Joe Gemma of Calvary Robotics. We are excited to offer their FreeMove system as part of our solution.

This is the first of more systems integrator partnerships for Veo to provide its FreeMove system to customers in automobile manufacturing, durable goods manufacturing, and more.

About Veo Robotics

Using advanced computer vision and 3D sensing, Veo Robotics is reinventing the way we manufacture products by giving standard industrial robots the ability to perceive and respond to their surroundings so they can work safely alongside humans. Veo provides the conditions for safe and dynamic interactions between humans and robots so that manufacturers can build more fluid, efficient, and flexible production lines. Veo currently partners with the four major robot manufacturers FANUC, Yaskawa, ABB, and Kuka. To learn more, please visit http://www.veobot.com.

About Calvary Robotics

Calvary Robotics is a world leader in the design and development of custom turnkey automation solutions, robotic platforms and material handling systems. Calvary also has extensive experience in tooling and fabricated components, product development and commercialization and large-scale repetitive manufacturing. Founded in 1994 in Rochester, NY, Calvary is comprised of over 280 highly skilled employees and serves many product markets including medical, automotive, consumer goods, electronics, energy and food & beverage. For more information, please visit http://www.calvaryrobotics.com.

Contact

pr@veobot.com
It turns out the coronavirus pandemic has had an unexpected silver lining for Americans contemplating making aliyah: the normalization of working remotely.

To be sure, the technology that makes it possible in certain instances to work an American job while living in Israel has existed for years. But for many U.S. employers, the idea of allowing someone to move their job overseas for personal reasons was a nonstarter. Then came the COVID era and with it the massive shift to remote work.

With so many people working from home, no one is even thinking about where you are, said David Gardner, an attorney who immigrated to Israel from Los Angeles in 2020.

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That has opened up opportunities for Americans who wish to move their U.S.-based jobs to Israel.

Weve seen an increasing trend of people bringing their jobs with them to Israel, and it picked up a lot since COVID, said Rachel Berger, vice president of employment at Nefesh BNefesh, the organization that assists with immigration to Israel from North America in partnership with Israels Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the Jewish Agency, Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael and JNF-USA. With American offices emptying out and people working from home, employers are more open to remote work.

The change has opened up new possibilities for some business owners, too.

With people working from different parts of the world, we can spread our searches more broadly and seek out the best talent, said Azi (Alan) Cutter, CEO of a New York-based digital recruiting firm, AC Lion, that he runs from Israel. Cutter immigrated in 2018. The distributed workforce model is here to stay, he said.

There are myriad benefits for immigrants who move to Israel while keeping their U.S. jobs. Among them, it eliminates the stress of finding a job upon arrival or securing one beforehand, and the immigrants can keep their U.S. salaries and preserve seniority in their current firm.

But working from Israel does require planning. If youre thinking about making the move, here are a few key tips to make the transition to working abroad as seamless as possible.

Managing your finances

When earning dollars in a shekel economy, youll need to set up your finances wisely to maximize benefits and limit costs and risk.

Exchange Rate: Currency fluctuations mean your spending power will rise and fall with the fate of the U.S. dollar, which recently hit a 24-year low against the shekel. If possible, address the exchange rate during salary negotiations before leaving the U.S., perhaps securing an agreement from your boss to revisit your salary level when the exchange rate changes to your detriment or locking in a salary floor below which it cannot go.

I didnt do either of those things and I wish I had, said Rivka Tauber, a consultant who immigrated to Jerusalem from New York in October.

Banking: Will your salary be deposited in your U.S. bank account or your Israeli account? The Israel-based payroll company Route 38 can arrange for automatic conversion of your salary, or a portion thereof, into shekels, and deposit it into your Israeli bank account. But you may lose a chunk of money on fees.

If your salary goes into your U.S. account, youll need to figure out a regular way to turn that into shekels while minimizing fees. Chances are your U.S. bank can do it, but you might get an unfavorable exchange rate or have to pay fees.

Whichever U.S. bank you use, make sure it can actually perform transfers to Israel.

Not all U.S. banks, such as small credit unions, are willing to do online transfers to Israel. And things can vary from branch to branch at a bank, said Doron Seitz, CEO of IsraTransfer, a Jerusalem-based currency transfer company that guarantees security and offers better rates than most banks.

For everyday expenses, Charles Schwab offers a no-fee ATM card that can be used overseas to draw shekels from a dollar account without conversion fees. However, the daily maximum withdrawal limit of $1,000 means you probably wont be able to use it to buy a car or an apartment. Capital One also offers a no-fee ATM card for use overseas.

Credit cards: Youll definitely need an Israeli credit card because foreign credit cards dont work with certain Israeli vendors. But using a U.S. credit card with no overseas transaction fees is a smart way to draw on U.S. funds for spending in shekels, and U.S. credit cards tend to have better rewards programs than Israeli ones.

If you dont want to pay an annual fee, Capital One and Bank of America both offer decent rewards cards. If youre a big spender, you might want to go with a card from Chase Sapphire or Citi Premier, which charge annual fees but have more aggressive rewards programs and sign-up bonuses. Credit card companies are constantly changing their offerings, so make sure to do some research before making your choice.

Taxation: Because youll be living in Israel but earning from a U.S. employer, youll have tax obligations in both countries. Assuming you spend most of your time in Israel, youll have to pay your Israeli tax obligations ahead of any U.S. ones.

There is a U.S.-Israel tax treaty to prevent double taxation on your earned income, but youll have to keep track of the work you do while in Israel and outside the country.

Be sure to find a good accountant for both your Israeli and U.S. tax obligations, even if it means working with two different accountants.

Philip Stein, CEO of Philip Stein & Associates, an accounting firm that assists individuals and companies in Israel with U.S. tax compliance, recommends discussing permanent establishment with your employer. This is a taxation concept whereby the profits of a U.S.-based company with an employee who is in Israel for over six months could be subject to Israeli taxation.

There are legal ways to deal with this, but you dont want your company to be surprised by it, Stein said.

Be aware that there is double taxation on U.S. Social Security and Israeli National Insurance (Bituach Leumi). This might mean it makes more sense for you to convert your U.S. payroll employment to contractor status, if possible.

With this and all other matters, its crucial to plan ahead and consult with a professional to help you figure out how to lower your tax exposure overall.

Have these conversations before you get on the plane, Stein said.

Facebook groups like Nefesh BNefesh Community and Living Financially Smarter in Israel are good places to crowdsource answers to any questions that might come up.

Staying connected

Phone: Keeping your U.S. phone number may be crucial to running your business. Fortunately there are various ways you can keep it in Israel without continuing to pay hefty fees to a U.S. carrier. Israeli companies such as TCS Telecom and Annatel offer plans that let your U.S. number ring to your Israeli phone. You can also port your number to Google Voice and have that forward to your Israeli phone.

Calling the United States from Israel is usually pretty inexpensive, or you can do it for free from your desktop using Gmails phone function.

Gardner, the attorney who recently moved to Israel from L.A., has clients book phone appointments with him during his work hours via an answering service or the free Setmore scheduling app.

Mail: While you should reduce your U.S. mail clutter as much as possible, shifting all your statements to online delivery, chances are youll still need a U.S. address to receive mail. Ideally, find a trusted friend or family member to agree to receive and handle any incoming mail so they can alert you about anything important. You can also sign up through the U.S. Postal Service for free electronic preview of the exterior of all incoming mail to see what youre getting.

Be prepared to work U.S. hours

Israel is seven hours ahead of the East Coast and 10 ahead of the Pacific time zone. That means youre likely to work a lot of late nights. So pace yourself. Think about shifting some of your family time to daylight hours. Try to carve out a no-call window in the evening so you can have dinner with your family and do bedtime with young children.

Many employees work out a plan with their bosses for specific times when they are or are not available.

We call being available during specific windows of time overlapping, said Yehuda Freilich, CEO of Outsourcing to Israel, a firm that finds remote staffing solutions in Israel for U.S. companies.

If youre Sabbath observant, reserve Thursday nights for work: Given the onset of Shabbat on Fridays, Thursday night may be your last chance to conduct business with the U.S. until the following Monday evening, when the U.S. workweek resumes.

On the plus side, youll have your mornings free to devote time to personal hobbies or fitness, do household chores, socialize or just catch up on work. And your Sundays will be wide open.

When negotiating with your boss, dont forget to work out a plan for the differences between Israeli and U.S. holidays.

Set up an appropriate work space

Wherever you choose to live in Israel, make sure you have a good work setup: either a dedicated room at home or an office you rent outside home.

When on video calls, some people are careful not to let anything in the background indicate theyre in Israel  like a glimpse of Jerusalem stone or a window that will show darkness when its daytime in America.

Where I am is a distraction, so I dont bring it up if it is not necessary when speaking with clients, said Gardner, the lawyer. And as far as working with colleagues, I see no difference between calling or Zooming in than popping into the office next door.

Even if you dont want to advertise the fact that youre in Israel, never lie about it  either to your employer or a client.

Perhaps most importantly when working remotely from Israel, dont forget to get out and interact with people (safely, of course, given COVID) and find ways to enjoy your new home! Take a hike, sign up for a Hebrew ulpan language class, try out your local hummus joint. The Jewish people waited millennia for their homeland. Make it your own.

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Dozens of Alabama inmates convicted of murders when they were juveniles now have a shot at one day being released. Thats because of a federal ruling that stopped states from automatically locking up juveniles convicted of capital murder for life without a chance at parole.

But Evan Miller, the Alabama prisoner whose plea before the U.S. Supreme Court gave hope to those inmates and a few thousand others around the nation still awaits a ruling to see if he too gets that chance.

Lawrence County Circuit Judge Mark Craig has not issued a ruling in Millers case since he held a hearing in March 2017 on whether Miller should again be sentenced to life without parole or get a chance at one day being released for his capital murder conviction in the 2003 brutal slaying of Cole Cannon.

Miller was 14 at the time of Cannons death. His attorneys have said he is the youngest child ever sentenced to life without parole in the state of Alabama.

Miller, who is now 32, is serving his sentence at the St. Clair Correctional Facility. Hes now been locked up longer than he was alive before the slaying.

This week, when asked by AL.com, the judge said that ruling would be coming soon.

I am carefully considering thousands of pages of documents, reports, transcripts, and other evidence, not only about the crime and the defendants participation in it, but also concerning the defendants life history preceding the crime and his life since incarceration, Craig stated in an email to AL.com. I am also reviewing ongoing developments in the caselaw that continue to provide insight as to the law that must guide the decision. This task is complicated by the fact that I am the only circuit court judge in a county having to maintain already crowded criminal, civil and domestic dockets. The case has never lost my attention and I hope to have a comprehensive written opinion and decision released soon.

I take the plights of Mr. Miller and his family, the family of Mr. Cannon, the attorneys involved and the State very seriously and my delay should not be interpreted in any way as a lack of care about the outcome, Craig stated in another email. Quite the contrary, it is my care about getting this right for all concerned that is the principal reason for this delay.

While Craig couldnt say how he might rule, if Miller had his sentence changed to possibility of parole, he still would have another 15 or so years to serve under an Alabama law enacted several years ago.

Lawyers with the Montgomery-based Equal Justice Initiative have been fighting for him to get that chance at parole and freedom one day.

Millers attorneys did not reply to an email from AL.com seeking comment.

The Alabama Attorney Generals Office did not respond to questions about the Miller case. But it did provide updates about the status of resentencing of several juvenile offenders.

Precedence

In 2005 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that juvenile killers cant be sentenced to death. That left many states, including Alabama, with only one option for sentencing juveniles convicted of capital murder - life with no chance at parole.

Because that sentence was in essence automatic for juveniles convicted of capital murder, there was no need for a sentencing hearing to reveal any mitigating factors, such as age and maturity of the defendant.

But the U.S. Supreme Court in 2012 ordered Miller be re-sentenced, a nationwide precedent-setting ruling affecting about 2,000 inmates nationwide who were juveniles when they killed.

In Alabama, at least 73 inmates qualified for resentencing, according to a list compiled from prosecutors at district attorneys and the Alabama Attorney Generals Office. According to court records as of Wednesday, 39 had been resentenced and granted an eventual shot at parole. Another 13 had been resentenced to life without parole, 20 cases were pending, or it was unclear about the status. Another inmate had died in prison.

Hundreds of others nationwide benefitted from the Miller case ruling.

One of those who has already been freed because of Millers case was 82-year-old Joe Ligon. He was released Feb. 11 from a Pennsylvania prison after serving about 68 years for a crime he committed when he was 15 years old in 1953. Ligon was sentenced to life without parole for taking part in a crime spree in which two people died. He has admitted to taking part in the crime with a group of drunk teens, but denies he killed anyone.

Ligon was resentenced to 35 years to life in 2017. He is one of more than 500 Pennsylvania prisoners who were resentenced but will remain on parole for the remainder of their lives.

Also this week, an Oakland County Michigan prosecutor announced she was seeking the re-sentencings of 22 inmates under the Miller v. Alabama case to give juvenile lifers a chance at parole, according to the Detroit Free Press.

In its order in Miller v. Alabama in 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled judges must have more than one option when sentencing juveniles convicted of capital murder. And the judges also must weigh certain sentencing factors, such as age.

Some courts, including in Alabama, ruled that the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Miller case did not apply retroactively to others already in prison. But in January 2016 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled it did apply.

In an effort to keep juveniles convicted of capital murder behind bars longer, the Alabama Legislature enacted a new law in 2016 that requires those re-sentenced to life to serve at least 30 years before being eligible for parole.

The Crime

Many of those resentenced to life without a chance of parole were involved in heinous crimes, such as multiple murders.

As for Miller, he was just 14 when the crime he was convicted of shocked the small Lawrence County community of Five Points near Moulton.

According to trial testimony, Miller and another teen, Colby Smith, planned to get Cannon, 52, who was a neighbor of Millers family at Country Living Trailer Park, drunk and rob him the night of July 15-16, 2003.

Miller beat Cannon with his fists and a bat before he and Smith set fire to Cannons trailer. Cannon died of smoke inhalation.

Smith, who admitted striking Cannon with the bat once, testified at trial that after the beating Miller wrapped Cannons head in a sheet and said to Cannon I am God, Ive come to take your life.

Miller was convicted at trial in October of 2006 on the charge of murder, which was made a capital crime because it was committed while in the course of an arson.

He was sentenced the same day to life without parole since that was the judges (not Craig) only option at that time. Smith was convicted of murder and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole. Smith has a parole consideration date of Sept. 1, 2025.

Candy Cheatham, one of Cannons children, said her dads murder and the on-going legal case has been an ongoing burden her family has had to carry.

There is uncertainty in when the decision will come, what the decision will be, what will that mean for our future, and could that shatter justice for us, Cheatham told AL.com. The re-sentencing was four years ago and there are two options to make: same sentence Life Without Parole or Life (with possibility of parole). One of our main concerns is having to go through another re-sentencing hearing should something happen where the judge is no longer the presiding judge. The re-sentencing for us was probably more difficult to bear and we do not want to have to go through that again.

Cheatham believes Miller needs to receive the same sentence of Life Without Parole. He has never expressed remorse. The first attempt at any type of apology was at the re-sentencing which was 14 years after my dad was murdered by him. He wrote what he stated just prior to reading it. If you listen to the words, they are empty.

What he did was horrific and my family as well as our community deserves to feel safe from individuals like him, Cheatham said. If he doesnt receive the same sentence-Life Without Parole, then it will undermine the jurys decision in 2006, who made part of their decision based on the fact that he committed such a horrible act at 14 that they didnt want to know what Miller would be capable of as an adult. If he doesnt receive Life Without Parole, the same sentence, we will be devastated. This should be about justice for Cole Cannon not excuses and ways to shift blame for Miller.

Factors

Among the factors judges are to consider when determining whether a juvenile convicted of capital murder should be resentenced to life with the possibility of parole are:

The juveniles chronological age at the time of the offense and the hallmark features of youth, such as immaturity, impetuosity, and failure to appreciate risks and consequences.

The juveniles diminished culpability

The circumstances of the offense

The extent of the juveniles participation in the crime

The juveniles family, home, and neighborhood environment

The juveniles emotional maturity and development

During a three-day re-sentencing hearing in March 2017 the judge heard from a number of witnesses regarding the crime, Millers family history and his emotional state around the time of the slaying.

A psychiatrist from New Mexico hired by Millers attorneys at EJI testified about the development of a 14-year-olds brain, the familys frequent interactions with Department of Human Resources social workers, and his evaluations of Miller.

Millers father was physically and emotionally abusive to Miller and his siblings, according to testimony at the sentencing hearing. The father and mother also were drug addicts. Miller attempted suicide when he was 6 and 13, and had used drugs for years prior to Cannons death.

At the end of the hearing Miller read a short statement, apologizing to Cannons family for stealing that joy from your lives.

But he stopped short of outright admitting to killing Cannon.

Cheatham said after the hearing she felt Miller was making a self-serving statement as he faces being re-sentenced.

This is a nightmare created by Evan Miller and I am forced to live with it, Cheatham said at the time of the hearing four years ago. Evil can come in the form of a 14-year-old as it has here.

EJI attorneys argued that the U.S. Supreme Court held in the Miller, and another related case, that even when juveniles have been convicted of aggravated, intentional murders, they should not be sentenced to life in prison without parole except in the very rare circumstance where they are so irretrievably depraved that they are beyond rehabilitation.

The group argued that children who commit even heinous crimes are capable of change. The younger the offender, the more certain this is true. At 14, Evan Miller is the youngest child ever sentenced to life without parole in the state of Alabama. His crime was unmistakably shaped by horrific abuse, neglect and environmental influences that match precisely the kind of factors the United States Supreme Court and Alabama Supreme Court have laid out, EJI stated.

In arguing for a change to a life sentence for Miller, EJI said that the evidence shows that this was a crime of transient immaturity. Evan is not only capable of rehabilitation but has already taken substantial steps in that direction.

The Alabama Attorney Generals Office argued in a brief to the judge that Miller should again be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.

The defendants (Millers) crime was predatory and depraved, Leigh Gwathney, who at the time was an assistant Alabama Attorney General, wrote in the brief. Furthermore, his behavior that day, and afterwards, is that of an individual capable of appreciating the consequences of his actions, of forethought and planning. His chronological age may have been fourteen at the time of the crime; however, his actions are those of an adult who brutally and mercilessly took the life of Cole Cannon in a heinous and vicious manner.

For that reason, the State of Alabama believes that his crime, and the attending facts, reveal that the Defendant is indeed incorrigible and deserving of a sentence of life without the possibility of parole, Gwathney wrote.

AL.com reporter Ivana Hrynkiw contributed to this report

Updated at 10:35 a.m. Thursday Feb. 18 to include comments from Cole Cannons daughter
The San Antonio City Council has approved a proposal to place on the May ballot the option to change the city charter to allow for expanded use of bond money to support permanent public improvements or for any other public purposes.

Currently, the charter permits such funds to be used in the building and maintenance of public works. The one-word change is intended to give the city greater flexibility in how it spends money. New wording would bring San Antonios charter in line with those of other large Texas cities.

Allowing voters to decide on the change is a welcome first step in the process of increasing the number of affordable homes in San Antonio. The new language in the charter will make it possible for urgently needed funds to go to building, replacing and restoring affordable housing. Right now, the chief obstacle to creating affordable housing in San Antonio is the gap between the high cost of construction and the very modest rents of those who live in it are able to pay.

Unlike in market-rate housing, developers of affordable housing will not recoup their costs in rents or sales of units.

But the gap must be bridged; the math must work. This is where bond money comes in. Bond issues alone cannot solve all housing problems, but by subsidizing building costs, the city can help close the financing gap and make possible more and better housing for those who most need it.

On ExpressNews.com: City considers charter amendment intended to free bond funds for affordable housing but some fear it could open Pandora's box

Decent, affordable housing is a human right. The need for housing cannot be bent to the market, but collectively, we can bend the market to serve those in need. Many experts agree the once-popular approach to housing of creating mixed-income developments has not worked. Too often, mixed-income projects, developed in part to solve the cost-rent gap, have displaced residents and placed affordable housing further out of reach. In many such projects, the total number of affordable units has been reduced.

In San Antonio, roughly 50,000 families are on the waiting list of affordable housing. Many of those who depend on such housing are children. Some housing advocates suggest an appropriate target for a subsidized project is 50 percent to 60 percent of the area median income, or AMI. For many San Antonians, the threshold must be even lower  perhaps 30 percent or even 10 percent of AMI.

Housing is the knot at the center of a complex tangle of social and economic challenges. The need for affordable housing would not be so urgent today if wages had grown in proportion to housing costs in the last 40 years. Because of disparities in the accumulation of intergenerational wealth, historical policies and practices of race-based exclusion in education and work, and race and gender pay inequity, paying for housing is often harder for people of color than for whites, as well as women. We cannot quickly untangle the knot, but we can take steps to make lives better here and now.

The chance to support more and better housing for San Antonians will soon be in our hands. The need for affordable housing has not been this urgent since perhaps the 1930s. You may not know anyone who needs affordable housing, but you can make a difference for those who do. Between now and May, talk to your neighbors and friends about this charter change proposal. Early voting begins April 19; the election is May 1.

Kathryn ORourke is an associate professor of art history at Trinity University and president of Design Forum. Richard Mogas is founder and head of Richard Mogas Architecture and Community Design Studio.
523,091 has been allocated to Longford County Council to retrofit 19 homes and make them more energy efficient.

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh OBrien TD announced an initial allocation of 35m for the retrofitting of 1,293 homes while the balance of funding (10m) will then be allocated to the local authorities who demonstrate an ability to complete additional work and spend their full allocation during 2021.

Also read: Longford planners give green light for multi million euro 43 bed unit at St Joseph's Care Centre

Roscommon County Council received 345,200 towards retrofitting 13 units, Westmeath County Council received 498,398 for the retrofitting of 18 units and Cavan County Council received 518,556 towards 19 units.

The Programme for Government commits to retrofitting 500,000 homes to a B2/Cost Optimal Equivalent BER standard by 2030. It is expected that approximately 36,500 of those with be local authority owned homes.

Longford Fine Gael Senator Micheal Carrigy said the 523,091 allocated to Longford Couty Council under the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme for Social Housing is in addition to the 3.3m which it was allocated in 2020 as part of the Midlands Retrofit Project.

Also read: Residents and landowners unhappy about a lot of issues in relation to N4 Mullingar to Longford upgrade

Senator Carrigy added, "The retrofitting programme has been revised and enhanced for 2021, homes retrofitted under this programme will benefit householders in many ways, they will be warmer, easier to heat and more comfortable homes, it will enhance air quality in the home. This is good new for householders who have been struggling to heat their homes for years.

Fianna Fail Senator for Roscommon/Galway Eugene Murphy also welcomed the significant allocations and targets under the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme for Social Housing.

He said, "Last year we saw an allocation of 20m from Carbon Tax to eight local authorities under the Midlands Retrofit Project. This is significant funding and is helping provide an economic stimulus to the regions most affected by Bord na Mona and ESB closures in areas such as counties Longford and Offaly following the closure of Lough Ree and Shannonbridge power stations."

Senator Murphy added, "Retrofitting homes can help create high-quality, sustainable jobs in local communities throughout the country, and can help play an important role in our economic recovery. In addition to the 65m funding available, funding of 5m is available in the Local Government Fund to help resource local authorities to respond to the new programme and deliver on the ambitious targets."
Her split with Seb Guilhaus last month shocked Married At First Sight fans.

And on Thursday, Elizabeth Sobinoff shared an inspiring statement about going through life's ups and downs.

The 29-year-old shared a glamorous photo of herself flaunting her sensational figure in a shimmering rose gold dress.

'Dear life, you sure do throw some ups and downs': On Thursday, Married At First Sight's Elizabeth Sobinoff shared an inspiring statement about life on Instagram after her shock split with Seb Guilhaus

In the caption, she shared a message about getting through life's challenges - hinting at her recent breakup.

The reality TV star wrote: 'Dear life, you sure do throw some ups and downs. Life may knock you down, you might lose a few rounds.

'But baby, I promise you this, I'll get up and come back swinging every single time. That, I promise you,' the brunette beauty vowed.

Challenges: The reality TV star wrote, 'Life may knock you down, you might lose a few rounds'

Don't underestimate her! 'But baby, I promise you this, I'll get up and come back swinging every single time. That, I promise you,' the brunette beauty vowed

Elizabeth and Seb announced their split in January after a little under a year of dating.

The pair were living together in Sydney prior to the split. Seb has since returned to his hometown of Adelaide.

The reality stars shared similar statements to fans with Elizabeth asking for respect following the split.

'We have mutually decided to end our relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend,' she began, in the statement.

Split: Elizabeth and Seb announced their split in January after a little under a year of dating after finding love on Married At First Sight

'We want to thank everyone for the endless support we have received on our platforms. Please be kind and respectful,' she added.

'We are aware you have followed parts of our journey, but please remember we are real people, and we are both navigating our way through this time to the best of our abilities.'

The tattooed reality star explained she was 'well aware' the announcement would spark 'countless rumours', and asked fans to respect her privacy.
The family of a great-grandfather have shared heartbreaking images of him one year apart to highlight the cruel effect a year of separation is having on care home residents.

Photos of dementia-hit John Ross, 89, show the dreadful impact that long-term isolation to protect against coronavirus can have.

The former engineer has been living in a care home in south Liverpool away from his wife of 63 years, Marlene, for over a year.

As pictures show, this time last year he was looking healthy and smiling as he put his arm around Marlene after presenting her with a bouquet of roses on Valentine's Day.

In another picture taken around the same time he looked well - and his family say he was in good shape at the time.

The family of great-grandfather John Ross, 89, have shared heartbreaking images of him one year apart to highlight the cruel effect a year of separation is having on care home residents

But after a year of separation from his loving family because of the coronavirus pandemic, John has deteriorated.

His smile is gone and he looks gaunt and unkempt, and when his daughter Penny Ogden is allowed a rare visit, he tells her: 'I've got nothing left to live for. I want to die.'

John was born in India and met Marlene there, before the two moved back to the UK to get married and settle in Liverpool.

He has only seen his beloved wife once for 20 minutes in the past 12 months - and his children only a handful of times.

John has five children, 21 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Penny said the lack of family contact has been devastating for him and sadly means he doesn't remember many members of his family.

She said: 'In the last year he has deteriorated so much in his appearance. He just looks absolutely awful. He's lost so much weight, he's not eating or drinking. He has changed so much.

As pictures show, this time last year he was looking healthy and smiling as he put his arm around Marlene after presenting her with a bouquet of roses on Valentine's Day

'The photos prior to lockdown and now show his deterioration - it is unbelievable. He needs a haircut, he needs a shave. He misses all of that.'

Penny says she can count on one hand the number of visits she's had with her dad in the past year.

And while the 59-year-old understands the need to protect care home residents from the virus, she says it has gone too far the other way at the price of her dad's quality of life.

She said: 'It was his birthday in September and my mum, who's also in her eighties, got to visit him.

'It was an outdoor visit for 20 minutes. She wasn't allowed to hold him, to touch him or give him a hug. And all he did was cry.

'My mum came away absolutely distraught. She just feels so guilty because she says she's put him into this care home.

'Since March 12, 2020, I can count on one hand how many times I've seen my dad.'

Penny and her family say her dad is receiving good care and staff are doing their best in a difficult situation but something needs to change.

Scrap ban on care home visits by March, charities urge Johnson Boris Johnson was last night urged to give the elderly a 'ray of hope' by allowing families to see loved ones in care homes next month. A coalition of charities banded together to write an open letter to the PM calling on him to allow visits by relatives from the beginning of March 'for the sake of humanity'. And they said his roadmap out of lockdown, published next week, should announce that this step would be followed by the relaxation of the rules to allow access to all relatives and friends. The charities, including Age UK and the National Care Forum, say this is having a devastating effect on their mental health. And they insist that, with virus cases falling, now is the time to consider allowing visits. It has also emerged that the official regulator, the Care Quality Commission, will carry out inspections if care homes impose blanket bans when lockdown has finished. The letter told Mr Johnson: 'We are writing to you today to implore you to include a commitment to reopening care homes to visiting by essential care givers on March 1 within the 'roadmap' out of lockdown you are reported as being due to publish on or around February 22. 'For hundreds of thousands of older people living in care homes and their families  in many cases kept apart now for almost a year  this is the ray of hope they are longing for. Please give it to them.' Advertisement

She added: 'He's had his vaccination, my mum's had it. We still can't go in and see him.

'Even if one member of the family was able to get in - I know it's not going to go back to the way it was - but they've got to do something. It is absolutely desperate.'

Campaign group Rights for Residents, along with Age UK, John's Campaign, National Care Forum, Relatives & Residents Association and the Nursing Homes Association, want people in care homes to be able to select a relative as an essential care giver so they can be reunited with their loved ones.

Being designated as a care giver will give relatives the same status as care home staff, meaning they will be entitled to have the vaccine and be able to make in-person visits indoors and without glass screens.

But the government and many care operators believe it is too soon, with risk of infection still too high and many care home residents yet to receive their second dose of the vaccine.

The only exceptional circumstance is when residents are receiving end-of-life care.

Meanwhile thousands of vulnerable care home residents in the UK have gone almost a year without proper visits from their loved ones, instead having to settle for video calls or seeing them through a window, which can be confusing especially for dementia patients.

Rights for Residents is calling on Parliament to pass emergency legislation that enshrines the rights of 'essential family carers' in law.

They say: 'We demand that the government, local authorities and care providers find a more humane solution that balances the risk of contracting Covid-19 against the devastating mental and physical deterioration we are witnessing as people remain locked away.'

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: 'We know visits to care homes are crucial in supporting the health and wellbeing of residents, which is why we have updated guidance on visits during lockdown.

'We are acutely aware of the importance of visits for everyone involved and visits can continue to take place with arrangements such as outdoor visiting, substantial screens, or visiting pods.

'While the vaccines provide protection from serious disease, we do not yet know if they prevent someone from passing on the virus to others.

This means it is still important to follow the visiting guidance.

'We will do everything possible to enable close contact visits the moment it is safe to do so and will provide an update in due course.'
Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
Britain is to donate millions of surplus vaccine doses to poorer countries, Boris Johnson will announce today.

The Prime Minister's pledge could see developing nations benefit before the end of the year if the UK vaccination programme goes to plan.

As Britain takes over the G7 presidency, Mr Johnson will also urge other world leaders to support an ambitious target to develop new vaccines in 100 days  a third of the time it took to create the Pfizer jab.

Today's virtual G7 meeting will be Mr Johnson's first major multilateral summit with new US President Joe Biden.

They are due to meet in person at a scaled-down summer G7 summit in Cornwall  with attendees subjected to a strict Covid testing regime.

It comes as data from the anti-poverty group the ONE campaign revealed Australia, Canada, Japan, the UK, the US and the EU have purchased more than 3billion doses of the vaccine. This leaves a surplus of 1.2billion.

Boris Johnson (pictured at the vaccination centre at Cwmbran Stadium in Cwmbran, south Wales) will announce that Britain is to donate millions of surplus vaccine doses to poorer countries

Australia, Canada, Japan, the UK, the US and the EU have purchased more than 3billion doses of the vaccine. This leaves a surplus of 1.2billion

Number of vaccination doses which have been administered per 100 people in 13 countries

In other coronavirus developments:

Britons as young as 40 could be offered a jab within a few weeks;

The Justice Secretary suggested firms could refuse to employ people who have not had the Covid vaccine under 'no jab, no job' contracts;

A minister suggested that care home visits, with people allowed to hold hands, could resume in weeks;

Pubs and restaurants demanded they be allowed to open soon after Easter;

Holidays to Greece are on the horizon for inoculated Britons after talks began on using 'vaccine passports';

PHE said 147 out of 149 councils saw a drop in their infection rates in the seven days to February 14;

Dozens of MPs warned Britain was facing a 'cancer disaster' that could cost tens of thousands of lives;

It was announced yesterday that a further 454 people had died and another 12,057 had tested positive for the virus.

Mr Johnson will vow to share up to 75 per cent of the UK's surplus vaccine supplies with developing nations under the international Covax initiative.

Countries such as Ireland, which have been hard-hit by production problems, could benefit  although no firm decisions have yet been made.

The details of Britain's donation will be settled later this year, once it has been determined whether residents require third doses or booster jabs for emerging variants.

The UK has ordered more than 400million jabs from seven different companies, including 100million doses of the Oxford vaccine.

The total number of orders works out at around five vaccine doses per head  meaning there should be a sizeable surplus.

Doses could be deemed surplus to our requirements while still in production, meaning they could be diverted to those in need without ever reaching British shores.

A woman receives the AstraZeneca vaccine at an NHS vaccination centre in Ealing, west London

The Prime Minister will also urge other world leaders to support an ambitious target to develop new vaccines in 100 days

A graph showing the number of vaccines per day in the UK. Over 16.4 million people have so far received at least one dose in the UK

The UK hopes to have offered a vaccine to its entire adult population by the autumn  but the World Health Organisation has warned of a looming 'catastrophic moral failure' amid concerns that poorer countries would struggle to secure supplies.

Professor Azeem Majeed of Imperial College London today told Good Morning Britain spare vaccines will only be offered to developing countries once this process is completed.

He said: We plan to vaccinate everyone in the UK by September so the plan is to finish that process first and only offer spare vaccines once we have enough to vaccinate our own population, which I think is a reasonable step to do.

So hopefully by the summer everyone will have been offered a vaccine and then well have vaccinations to offer to other countries.'

Health Secretary Matt Hancock confirmed this week that he hoped all adults in Britain would be offered the vaccination 'a bit before' September.

The Covax group has already agreed deals for 1.1billion doses. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said yesterday: 'Vaccinating everyone, everywhere, is our collective way out of this pandemic.

It comes as the Prime Minister prepares for his first major multilateral summit with the new US President Joe Biden today

The percentage of 70 to 74-year-olds who have been given their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine

'The UK is clear that as a world leader we have a moral and national interest in making this happen, which is why we are committing to share the majority of any future surplus doses with Covax to support the countries who need them most.

'We are already one of the biggest donors to Covax, helping to get more than one billion doses to the world's poorest people.

Macron calls on Europe and the US to send five per cent of vaccines to developing countries French President Emmanuel Macron today called on Europe and the US to donate up to five per cent of their vaccine supplies to developing nations. He told the Financial Times: 'We're not talking about billions of doses immediately, or billions and billions of euros. 'It's about much more rapidly allocating 4-5% of the doses we have. 'It won't change our vaccination campaigns, but each country should set aside a small number of the doses it has to transfer tens of millions of them, but very fast, so that people on the ground see it happening.' Advertisement

'International co-operation has to be at the heart of this effort, so we are calling on the G7 and other nations to step up support to get vaccines to everyone.'

Today's virtual summit will see Mr Johnson urge Britain's fellow members  the US, Japan, Canada, Germany, France and Italy  to increase funding for Covax.

In addition, he will call on the group to support the 100-day target set by the international Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (Cepi) for developing and approving new vaccines and treatments.

Mr Johnson's chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance is to work with the WHO and Cepi, along with industry experts, in the drive to secure faster results.

'Perhaps more than ever, the hopes of the world rest on the shoulders of scientists,' Mr Johnson will say. 'Over the last year, like countless times before, they have risen to the challenge.

'The development of viable coronavirus vaccines offers the tantalising prospect of a return to normality, but we must not rest on our laurels. As leaders of the G7 we must say today 'never again'.

By harnessing our collective ingenuity, we can ensure we have the vaccines, treatments and tests to be battle-ready for future health threats.'

Today's video conference marks the first meeting of the G7 since last April, with leaders due to travel to England in June.

Officials insisted yesterday that the Cornwall summit is likely to go ahead in person, albeit on a much smaller scale than previous meetings.

Mr Johnson, Mr Biden and others will be subjected to rigorous virus testing, and a 'bubble' system will be used to prevent the spread of infection.

The Prime Minister has also invited the leaders of India, South Korea and Australia to Cornwall, with a view to creating a 'D10' group of leading democracies.

Issues on the agenda will include climate change and the economic recovery following the Covid crisis.

WHICH AREAS HAVE GIVEN OUT THE LEAST FIRST DOSES TO THE OVER-70S? North Central London 79.4 per cent Barking and Dagenham 78.1 per cent Hammersmith and Fulham 78.1 per cent Waltham Forest 77.9 per cent Brent 77.9 per cent City and Hackney 72.6 per cent Newham 70.5 per cent Tower Hamlets 70.3 per cent West London CCG 67.5 per cent Central London (Westminster) CCG 60.9 per cent Advertisement
Because Jersey City students have been attending school remotely, Academy 1 language arts teacher Lavon-de Hampton didnt get to know Desire Reid as well has she would have liked.

But over the course of five months in her first year at a new school, the 11-year-old sixth-grader made quite an impression.

She was working so hard and I was so proud of her, said Hampton, who explained that many students at a new school struggle at first, but Desires grades were getting better. I was really going to tell her that day.

But Desire never made it to class that day, Feb 11. She and her 8-month-old brother died in a fire at their Martin Luther King Drive home. Authorities believe Desire died trying to rescue her baby brother from a room on the second floor.

Desires mother, Angie Reid, and her 6-year-old brother, Aamil, survived the fire. Wednesday afternoon family, friends and the community participated in a vigil for the victims.

She was absent and we didnt know what happened, Hampton recalled. I called her name out in class to take attendance. I said Desire, where are you? Come on girl. Come on. We need you here. 

Hampton, who was also Desires homeroom teacher, said the 11-year-old was devoted to her brothers.

A lot of times when she did answer in class, more than once she said, Mrs. Hampton, can you excuse me? I have to go help my brother. I could hear her little brother in the background.

Fellow students in the class felt that Desires brothers were practically members of the class.

We all heard several times when she was trying to learn at home, her brothers were there with her in the room, Hampton said.

Still, the only time she came in close contact with Desire was when she dropped off a book Desire needed for the class.

Working remotely is very different and I just have mixed feelings, because if we were in school, I definitely would know her so much better, Hampton said.

I found her to be very sweet.
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Mr. Biden told reporters that the call with Mr. Netanyahu was a good conversation but offered no details. Israeli officials had been concerned that it was so delayed, and that it occurred only after Mr. Biden had spoken with leaders of other allies, but also with adversaries like President Xi Jinping of China. American officials said there was no significance in the delay, but officials were clearly trying to settle on an Iran negotiation strategy before engaging Mr. Netanyahu.

The prime ministers office described the conversation in personal terms, saying in a statement that the two leaders noted their personal ties of many years and said they will work together to continue bolstering the strong alliance between Israel and the U.S.

The White House description, in contrast, mentioned the strength of the alliance but said nothing about the relationship between Mr. Biden and Mr. Netanyahu, part of an effort by the new administration to depersonalize interactions between the two countries.

The president affirmed his personal history of steadfast commitment to Israels security and conveyed his intent to strengthen all aspects of the U.S.-Israel partnership, including our strong defense cooperation, the White House statement said. It reaffirmed Mr. Bidens decision to build on the Abraham Accords, the regional agreements Israel reached with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain  two key Arab allies of the United States  at the end of the Trump administration.

The conversation with the two leaders took place before Mr. Bidens secretary of state, Antony J. Blinken, is scheduled to speak this week with Britain, Germany and France, the European nations that participated in the Iran negotiations. But administration officials do not appear to be in a rush to engage directly with the Iranians or to feel compelled by deadlines being set in Tehran.
A former adviser to the Defence Minister who alleges she was raped at Parliament house has slammed claims the government has been backgrounding journalists in a bid to undermine her and 'muddy the waters'.

Brittany Higgins this week alleged she was sexually assaulted by an unnamed government employee in Senator Linda Reynolds' office in March 2019.

Amid claims the Prime Minister's Office is briefing reporters in an apparent attempt to smear her now partner, a former public servant, Mr Higgins said if they are true it 'speaks to the systematic problems of this place' - and needs to stop.

'I knew personally that when I decided to put my name and face to this there would be repercussions for me. But I think it's unfair if they are starting to try and take this out on loved ones,' Ms Higgins told Guardian Australia.

'It silences people and I think it's gross.'

Former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins pictured with Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Ms Higgins slammed claims the Prime Minister's Office was providing background briefings in an apparent attempt to smear her current partner

Ms Higgins (pictured), the former media adviser to Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, this week revealed claims she was raped by a male staffer in Reynolds' Parliament House office in 2019

Network 10 political editor Peter Van Onselen claimed on ABC radio on Thursday the PMO 'has been backgrounding that her partner, her now partner, has a vendetta, or a gripe might be the better way to put it, against the government because of him being a former public servant'.

Mr Van Onselen took to Twitter to claim the backgrounding was being carried out 'in a bid to muddy the waters'. Daily Mail Australia contacted the Prime Minister's Office for comment.

Ms Higgins - who was 24 when she was allegedly raped - released a statement late on Wednesday blasting Prime Minister Scott Morrison for what she described as his 'victim blaming' rhetoric.

'I have only been made aware of key elements of my own sexual assault as a result of coming forward publicly with my story,' Ms Higgins said.

'I didn't know that security guards let me into Minister Reynolds' suite. I didn't know that a security guards (sic) came into the office multiple times seeing me in a state of undress.

'I didn't know they were undertaking an internal review into how the matter was handled at the time. I didn't know that they debated calling an ambulance at the time of the incident.'

Ms Higgins is reportedly planning to pursue her rape allegation with authorities. She told Network Ten she initially decided not to pursue a police complaint as she felt her job was on the line.

'I didn't feel like I had a choice,' she said.

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds (left) told the Senate this week that the staffer had been 'terminated' following a 'security breach'. Until recently Ms Higgins worked for Employment Minister Michaela Cash (together in Parliament's Great Hall on right)

In October 2019 - when Ms Higgins was working under Employment Minister Michaelia Cash - a media request was made to Ms Reynolds' office asking for more information about the rape allegations.

As the two politicians' staffers scrambled to come up with a response to the press inquiry, Senator Cash called Ms Higgins to reassure her the situation was 'under control'.

'Brittany, it's Michaelia. Just checking up on you - you looked absolutely gorgeous on Saturday,' she said in the 30 second-long message obtained by news.com.au.

'I really hope you had a lovely time at the Federal Council. Hoping everything is OK.

'Look, Daniel has got everything under control. I promise you. And just remember. We are with you every step of the way. OK? Sleep tight. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.'

Senator Cash has denied knowing about the alleged sexual assault until this year, saying until then all she knew of was an incident happened in Ms Higgins' previous role that she wanted to keep secret.

'At the end of January this year, Ms Higgins advised the Minister and COS that the March 2019 matter had become an issue and that she wished to resign and leave Canberra,' a spokesman for the senator said.

Mr Morrison has apologised for Ms Higgins' treatment and has asked his department's secretary to lead a review of the complaints process.

Ms Higgins (pictured) told Network Ten she initially decided not to pursue a police complaint as she felt her job was on the line

Mr Morrison has also appointed Liberal backbencher Celia Hammond to review cultural problems around the treatment of women.

'The government regrets in any way if Ms Higgins felt unsupported through this process,' a statement published earlier this week said.

The Liberal staffer accused of raping Ms Higgins has since checked himself into hospital.

The staffer - who hasn't been charged or investigated by police - reportedly left his home on Sydney's north shore on Wednesday evening to seek psychiatric care.

The Daily Telegraph reported that he was not suicidal, but was concerned with his mental state.

Ms Higgins' alleged assailant left Canberra for Sydney following the incident with Minister Reynolds telling Parliament he was 'terminated' because of a 'security breach'.

During a tearful interview with The Project on Monday, Ms Higgins claimed that her alleged attacker had landed 'a good job' in Sydney and 'just kind of got to keep going.'

Daily Mail Australia understands he now works for a major multinational. The former policy hand also recently deactivated his Twitter account where he used to rail about politics.

For confidential crisis support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14
EUGENE, Ore. -- A Eugene resident was targeted with two separate hate crime incidents this week.

Ron Visconti and his wife, Ashleigh, first discovered a noose placed on top of their trash can on Saturday morning. They immediately reported the incident to the authorities without putting much further thought into it.

On Monday morning, as Visconti went to grab one of his daughters toys from the family vehicle, he realized the car had been spray painted with a racial slur. He said this wasnt the first time he has dealt with racial discrimination since he moved to Oregon about three years ago, but it was the first time he felt his familys well-being was in jeopardy as a result of it.

The pain I felt, it was just overwhelming like how, why is this going on still? Why is this happening? Visconti said.

The couple moved into their neighborhood near River Road just over a year ago, and they said the neighbors have been nothing but helpful since they arrived.

We have a beautiful neighborhood and have amazing neighbors that have shown us more love than I can imagine, Visconti said.

Ashleigh Visconti said beyond seeing her husband go through this ordeal, the hardest part of the situation was having to discuss the harsh reality of racial discrimination with their 4-year-old daughter.

I had to sit her down and tell her somebody painted Daddys car because they didn't like the color of his skin. And that was really heartbreaking, she said.

The car will likely have to be repainted, and the Viscontis organized a GoFundMe to help cover some of the costs of the damage. They said theyve already surpassed the fund limit they set and plan to donate the extra money to organizations that bring awareness to racism and inequality.

The two emphasized the idea that all parents should teach their children how to love everyone regardless of the color of their skin.

The Lane County Sheriff's Office is currently investigating the incident, but without the proper camera and surveillance equipment in place, the Viscontis said they think its unlikely the suspect will ever be caught.

Moving forward, the family and the surrounding residents will be deploying more home defense tools to make sure this doesnt happen again.
ALBANY  The state Assembly's Republican Conference is pressing for their colleagues to form an impeachment commission to "gather facts and evidence" in Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's handling of COVID-19 in nursing homes, including the administration's acknowledgment that it had deliberately delayed providing information to the Legislature.

The Assembly Minority Conference has a roughly 2-to-1 disadvantage to Democrats who control the chamber. But they are proposing concurrent resolutions in the Assembly and Senate that would establish the Temporary Joint Legislative Committee on Investigating the States Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Nursing Homes.

The draft resolution indicates the committee, within a 60-day period, would be tasked with examining the states method of administration and conduct in all matters relating to nursing homes and long-term care facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The committee's findings and recommendations would be submitted to the Legislature.

"I think the cover-up is what concerns us most and was there an obstruction of justice, was there some other crime out there," Assembly Minority Leader William Barclay said. "We thought maybe we could get a hearing just with the Assembly committees, but that seems to be not working so we want to take it to the next level."

Barclay said the central issues the Republicans believe should be pursued include the administration's acknowledgment that information on nursing home fatalities was withheld from the Legislature and public and that a state attorney general's investigation determined the health department had underreported fatalities in the long-term care facilities by roughly 50 percent.

Barclay added that the revelation by Secretary to Governor Melissa DeRosa that they were concerned the information they may share with the Legislature could be used against them by the U.S. Justice Department is also troubling.

"It is incumbent upon the Legislature to undertake a comprehensive, bipartisan review of the Cuomo administrations policies, decisions and actions on this matter and render a decision on what steps must be taken to hold the governor accountable," Barclay said.

The proposal is for a bipartisan panel consisting of eight members, with two appointees from each legislative leader. Of those eight members, the Assembly speaker and Senate majority leader would jointly appoint one co-chair, with another co-chair selected by the minority leaders in each house. The impeachment panel would have the same powers of a legislative committee, including the ability to subpoena witnesses and compel records, correspondence and documents related to the matter be produced, the Assembly Republicans said.

After the Cuomo Administration spent months refusing to provide information on the states true nursing home death toll, Attorney General Letitia James issued a scathing report on January 28 which revealed state officials underreported the number of deaths by 50 percent. In addition, the attorney generals report indicated that March 25 guidance from the state Department of Health, requiring facilities to accept COVID-positive patients, contributed to the spread of the disease.

On Feb. 1, Assembly Republicans pushed their Democratic colleagues on the committees on Health, Aging and Oversight, Analysis & Investigations to invoke a rarely used section of legislative law and sign a petition to initiate hearings and use full subpoena powers. The Democrats have ignored the requests.

The Legislature has a responsibility to hold this administration accountable. Rolling back the governors emergency powers is important, but doesnt begin to scratch the surface of whats needed, Barclay said.
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This article appears in the February 19, 2021 issue of Executive Intelligence Review.

LYNDON LAROUCHE: A TALENT WELL SPENT

Livestream Memorial on the

Second Anniversary of His Death

[Print version of this article]

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EIRNS/Stuart Lewis

Feb. 15February 12, 2021 marked the second anniversary of the death of Americas greatest statesman and philosopher, Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr., who passed away on Abraham Lincolns birthday in 2019 at the age of 96. The LaRouche Organization and the Schiller Institute, founded by his wife Helga Zepp-LaRouche, commemorated that day with a 19-hour livestream of Lyndon LaRouches speeches and lectures, titled Lyndon LaRouche in the Simultaneity of Eternity, which opened and concluded with the powerful memorial concert which was held in New York City on June 8 in the year of his death.

The livestream featured some of LaRouches most critical, history-changing interventionsbut to those who knew him and his legacy, far more than 19 hours would be required to revisit even a fraction of the speeches and classes he gave that changed history. In that regard, Lyn was a true scientist, always challenging the prevailing assumptions of the day, including his own, and developing a higher hypothesis.

To those who began watching, at whatever point in the day-long event, it was nearly impossible to tear myself away, said several of LaRouches associates, this author included. Allowing oneself to spend hours in the presence of such a mind through this video tour was a welcome and joyful contrast to the treasonous and deceitful spectacle taking place in the United States Senate of the second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump, which finally ended in the expected acquittal, but continues in the press.

Equally disturbing are the recent comments of the STRATCOM Commander Admiral Charles A. Richard, about the necessity to prepare for the possibility of nuclear war, and continuing the demonization of Russia and China. The new COVID-19 relief bill would have been seen by LaRouche as a sick joke, and just a further vindication of his 1996 Triple Curve Function, which was illustrated in the penultimate video of the day.

Even after watching only a few minutes of Lyndon LaRouche and/or hearing from others of the profound effect he had on their lives, it is clear that the United States sufferers greatly from the lack of such inspired leadership as LaRouche embodied for decades, including emphatically throughout his eight presidential election campaigns.

As Helga Zepp-LaRouche described her late husband in her introduction to her video statement for the LaRouche Legacy Foundation, Lyndon LaRouche, from the beginning, developed an analysis of what went wrong with the system, on the one side, and the necessary solution on the other:

I think one of the most important conceptions, was that in 1975, he presented for the first time a comprehensive idea of what such a new world economic system would look like: the International Development Bankthe idea that there should be a transfer of technology worth $200 billion every year, overcoming underdevelopment through large projects. This idea immediately caught fire. In 1976, the Non Aligned Movement, in their final conference in Colombo [Sri Lanka], basically made a final resolution more or less adopting that policy, word by word.

In the following years, Lyn was working with Indira Gandhi, with Jose Lopez Portillo, on these conceptions. I think that this is a very rich story. We traveled in all of these decades to more than forty countries. We met with leaders from practically every single country of the planet. I can assure you, from my own experience, that all these people looked at Lyn with an incredible hope for what the United States would be.

The Livestream Program

Times, given in hours (not minutes) are according to the video:

First Video:

00:00Memorial Concert, The Triumph of Lyndon LaRouche. Held in New York City on June 8, 2019, this program features opening remarks by Helga Zepp-LaRouche and choral and instrumental musical tributes performed by LaRouches associates.

02:55Megan Dobrodt, President of the Schiller Institute, and member of LaRouches science team, introduces the Woman on Mars, LaRouches famous 1988 nationally televised campaign program, which inspired thousands of young girls to write in volunteering to be that woman.

03:30Megan Dobrodt introduces LaRouche speaking on Creativity as Such, from an address he made to a conference in Germany in 2011.

04:19Jason Ross, Secretary-Treasurer of The LaRouche Organization, and member of LaRouches Science Team, introduces a presentation given by himself and Megan Dobrodt in Germany in 2019, unfolding the story of LaRouches Basement Team of young scientists.

05:19Helga Zepp-LaRouche introduces her video presentation launching the LaRouche Legacy Foundation, dedicated to publishing the complete works of Lyndon LaRouche.

05:50Helga Zepp-LaRouche introduces the 2019 German conference presentation, If God Selects Someone as a Leader, No One Can Destroy Him, in memory of Lyndon LaRouche, by Dr. Jozef Miklosko, former Vice-Premier of Czechoslovakia.

6:12Harley Schlanger introduces LaRouches keynote address to a 2003 cadre school.

6:17Lyndon LaRouches address to a 2003 cadre school, A Lesson in Economics.

7:07Gerry Rose develops the context and significance of Lyndon LaRouches debate with Abba Lerner in 1971 at Queens College. Rose was present for the debate.

7:18Excerpt from the 1971 debate between Abba Lerner and Lyndon LaRouche.

7:47Jacques Cheminade introduces an answer given by Lyndon LaRouche, in response to a question at a 1995 conference regarding how to organize. Jacques documents the harassment by the FBI of LaRouches movement in general and of him personally.

8:04Lyndon LaRouche answers a question presented to him at a 1995 conference: Who Put LaRouche in Prison?

8:35Dennis Speed introduces Lyndon LaRouches 2004 presidential address to a gathering in Talladega, Alabama.

8:48Amelia Boynton Robinson and Lyndon LaRouche address a meeting in Talladega, Alabama in 2004, commemorating Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

9:44Dennis Speed introduces a clip of Lyndon LaRouche addressing a cadre school in 2002.

9:46Lyndon LaRouche addresses a cadre school in 2002 on the subject of Hamlet.

9:59Dennis Speed introduces Storm Over Asia.

10:02Excerpts from Storm Over Asia, 1999.

11:25Dennis Speed introduces a clip of Lyndon LaRouche answering questions at a 2002 cadre school.

11:29Lyndon LaRouche answers questions from a 2002 cadre school (note: the second question is cut offYouTube only plays back the first 12 hours of a broadcast).

Second Video:

00:00The 2002 cadre school continued.

00:05Diane Sare, LaRouche Independent candidate for U.S. Senate, introduces LaRouches February 17, 1996 keynote address to a conference in Virginia, If You Passed Economics 101, You Probably Are a Member of an Endangered Species.
Lucknow, Feb 18 (UNI) The opposition members in the Uttar Pradesh assembly on the opening day have raised their objection to the delay in the arrival of governor Anandiben Patel to address the joint session of the state legislature on Thursday and not allowing the media to cover the session from the press gallery.



Raising the issue of 5 minutes delay of the arrival of the governor to address the joint session, Congress legislature party leader Aradhana Mishra Mona said that it was for the first time that the governor came late to address the joint session.



Demanding holding of the governor address again, she said that such a thing was never seen in the past.



However, leader of the opposition and SP member Ram Govind Choudhury claimed that as the government did not want to read out the lies of the government hence she had delayed her arrival.





"As a respect to a woman, the entire opposition boycotted the address and did not create any scene inside the house during the address,' Mr Choudhury said while supporting the demand of the Congress leader for holding the governor's address again.



However speaker Hridya Narain Dikshit nor the treasury bench members made any statement on the delay of the governor in reaching the assembly.



Meanwhile, the opposition also raised the issue of vacant press gallery and sought to know from the speaker whether the media too is boycotting the proceedings of the house.



Mr Dikshit, however, clarified that some media persons have been allowed but due to the Covid pandemic, arrangements have been made for our media persons to cover the proceedings from outside the house.



On the demand of the opposition members that a few media persons should be allowed to cover the house proceedings, the speaker said that she will discuss the matter with the political party leaders and will take up the issue in the business advisory committee meeting.



The house was adjourned for the day after completing the agenda.



UNI MB ASN 1340
Reversing former President Donald Trumps position, the Biden administration is backing California in a Supreme Court case by growers challenging state regulations that allow union representatives onto their property to talk to farmworkers during nonworking hours.

The Trump administration told the court on Jan. 7 that the California Agricultural Labor Relations Boards rules authorize outsiders to physically invade the employers land and violate their property rights. But in a Feb. 12 filing, President Bidens Justice Department said the federal government has changed its position and said union representatives temporary and limited access does not necessarily violate the landowners rights. Any such claims must be evaluated case by case, the department said.

The court will hear the case on March 22 and is due to rule by the end of June.

The state farm labor board adopted the regulations shortly after California enacted the nations first law allowing farmworkers to join unions in 1975. The rules allow union representatives onto farmers property for an hour before work, an hour after work and during the lunch hour, for up to 40 days a year.

In a non-agricultural case, the Supreme Court ruled in 1992 that union organizers could enter employers property only in the rare case that the union could show unique obstacles preventing it from contacting employees in other ways.

But the California farm labor board said unions faced more difficulties in contacting agricultural workers than they would encounter in most other industries. Many of the workers are migrants, their work schedules change frequently, there are no nearby public areas where they regularly gather, and they can seldom be reached at permanent addresses or telephone numbers, the board said.

The access rules were upheld by the state Supreme Court in 1976 and were not challenged by growers in federal court until a strawberry grower in Siskiyou County and a grape and citrus fruit grower in Fresno filed suit 40 years later. A federal appeals court upheld the rules in a 2-1 decision in 2019, finding no significant interference with property rights and citing the U.S. Supreme Courts 1980 decision allowing activists to collect signatures on petitions in a Santa Clara County shopping center over the owners objections.

But the high court granted review of the growers appeal in mid-November. Nationwide farming and business organizations have filed arguments supporting the growers, while labor organizations have backed the states position.

The case is Cedar Point Nursery vs. Hassid, 20-107.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @BobEgelko
Protesters have staged a rally over bill No. 3704 on simplified customs clearance of cars with foreign registration plates.

Representatives of NGO Auto Euro Sila and owners of cars with foreign registration plates have been rallying outside the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, since Thursday morning.

Many law enforcers have been deployed in the government quarter. The protesters have staged a rally over bill No. 3704 on simplified customs clearance of cars with foreign registration plates, which should be passed by the lawmakers on February 18, an UNIAN correspondent reported from the scene and shared the relevant photos.

Customs clearance of cars with foreign registration plates: What is known

On February 16, 2021, Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, lawmaker from the ruling Sluha Narodu (Servant of the People) Party Danylo Getmantsev said the parliament would soon vote for a one-time affordable customs clearance payment worth EUR 1,000 for a car with a foreign registration plate in Ukraine.

"A person pays this amount, it's a one-time payment, and we don't get back to this issue again," he said.

This refers to cars imported into Ukraine before January 1, 2021.

Reporting by UNIAN
Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak speaks at the House of Commons in London, Britain January 11, 2021. UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT

A coalition of landlords, housing groups and charities has warned that the government needs to do more to support renters and avoid them "being scarred" by debts, otherwise more will lose their homes in the coming months, with the risk of an increase in homelessness.

A joint statement by The Big Issue Ride Out Recession Alliance, Citizens Advice, The Mortgage Works, National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA), Nationwide Building Society (NBS.L), and StepChange Debt Charity and Shelter, among others, said that at least half a million private renters are in arrears due to the economic impact of COVID-19.

It said it welcomed measures taken to date by the government, but said chancellor Rishi Sunak should no longer wait to take further action.

It has recommended a targeted financial package to help renters pay off arrears since lockdown measures started in March last year.

This will help to sustain existing tenancies and keep renters in their homes  whilst also ensuring rental debt does not risk them finding homes in the future, it said.

Its second suggestion is a welfare system that provides renters with the security of knowing that they can afford their homes.

The government increased universal credit and housing benefit because it recognised that the system was not doing enough to support people in the first place, yet it has chosen to freeze housing benefit rates again from April and is considering cutting universal credit at the same time, it noted.

It cannot be right that these measures could be pulled away from renters during continued economic uncertainty, the statement said.

The coalition had also said last month the government needs to get a grip on the debt crisis.

WATCH: Am I wasting my money by renting?

READ MORE: Coronavirus: 840,000 renters are in arrears

Lockdowns have left many people unable to work, leading to unpaid rental debts. Declining income for landlords has put some at risk of going bust.

Story continues

A report from December showed more than 800,000 private renters in England and Wales have built rent arrears since lockdown measures began, with average arrears between 251 ($333) and 500.

Market research agency Dynata surveyed 2,077 private renters in England and Wales in November and December this year for the NRLA.

It found that 7% of private renters have built arrears due to COVID-19. That would amount to 840,000 tenants. Worryingly, 11% of private renters are now unemployed.

And it was reported last month that over half of private landlords have lost rental income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic new research revealed.

Interim findings from the NRLA's survey for the fourth quarter of 2020 showed that 56% of landlords lost rental income as a result of the pandemic, with 12% having lost more than 20% of that income.

Meanwhile, the UK government has once again extended a ban on serving eviction notices across the country until the end of March. It means eviction notices  which could have started again on 22 February  cannot be served for another six weeks.

The government had also extended it last month. At the time, some 43% of UK landlords said the ban should not have been extended, while 76% of tenants welcomed the move.

The ban is only on physically evicting a tenant from a property, meaning that landlords cannot start court proceedings against the tenant. The ban is not on serving section 21 and section 21 notices, which is still permitted.

WATCH: Should I move in with my parents to save money?

Duty of Care: Holding the Taxman to Account

News Analysis

With tax season approaching and people and businesses across the country preparing to file their taxes, past cases involving taxpayers grievances are giving rise to questions about tax collectors reciprocal obligation to Canadians: their duty of care to provide fair treatment.

In a case in Quebec, a Revenu Quebec error led to 16 years of loss and suffering by a restauranteur cumulating now in a lawsuit seeking compensation that he hopes the Supreme Court will hear.

The provincial tax collector had in 2004 wrongly accused restaurant owner Gary Chionis and his wife Isabelle Desbiens of failing to report $1 million in sales. They won their court challenge in 2012 and were refunded the money they had thus far paid to CRA and Revenu Quebec. But by then they had accumulated $350,000 in debt to accountants and lawyers.

They then launched a lawsuit to seek compensation. Eight years later, with no compensation in sight and mounting fees, the couple has applied to the Supreme Court of Canada to hear their case and to clarify tax collectors obligations and appropriate consequences for their mistakes.

Theirs is not an isolated case. In 1999, Irvin Leroux received a surprise tax bill of $728,000 from the CRA for his RV park in B.C. The CRA seized his financial records and accidentally shredded them. The agency then issued a writ of seizure and sale on his property, leading Lerouxs creditors to foreclose. Leroux sued for $4 million in losses, but the courts ruled there wasnt enough evidence to support his claim.

Leroux didnt give up, and although he never succeeded in receiving compensation, in 2016 he obtained a precedent-setting ruling when a judge upheld an earlier ruling that tax-collecting agencies have a duty of care to taxpayers. This obliges agents to treat taxpayers with an adequate standard of care and makes them liable for damages when they dont. However, several provinces have interpreted this precedent in different ways, thus theres a need for the Supreme Court to give clarification.

Lack of Accountability Linked to Level of Care

Yacine Agnaou, a lawyer for the Quebec couple, told The Epoch Times that the case is about holding tax collectors to account.

In the state of the law right now, CRA and Revenue Quebec are treated differently in regard of their duty of care compared to policemen, compared to other representatives of the government. There is really no policy reason to create a realm of immunity, he said.

Agnaou said the protection tax collectors have from meaningful consequences has empowered their disrespect for taxpayers.

The lack of accountability is directly linked to the level of care done,  the level of service that they will provide to the public, he said. Theres many examples of how the tax authorities dont respect taxpayers in many, many ways.

The Canadian Taxpayers Federation funded Lerouxs legal fight and is also supporting the Quebec couples Supreme Court effort. Federal director Aaron Wudrick said the case is important.

Simply put, if CRA or its employees had to worry about being liable for misconduct, they would be more careful in their actions. Its hard to think of another entity that wields so much power over regular Canadians with so little accountability, he said in an interview.

The Epoch Times contacted the CRA for comment but did not receive a response by press time.

The CRA is hiring some 2,000 additional agents as it gears up for this tax season, adding to its workforce of roughly 44,000. Its also hiring Maximus Canada to answer general enquiries from the public about the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB). The company is expected to hire 130 people to fulfill its contract with CRA, which will run from February to August.

Wudrick said this solution is not preferable.

Id rather they hire temporary experts than end up hiring permanent, unionized employees that are impossible to shed once theyre hired, he said.

But the obvious question is why should the tax code be so complicated that it needs to hire so many people to answer questions? The CRA has done a terrible job of answering Canadians questions in the past, for the simple reason that taxes in Canada are so complicated.

Paul Young, an expert in data and cloud computing and a chartered general accountant, says the system is burdensome. The audits are becoming more complex with the data. And theyve got a lot of legacy archaic systems that dont necessarily talk together, and I think thats part of the problem too.

The Hamilton resident says the tax system is designed to go after the small guy and low-hanging fruit instead of simplifying the tax code or pursuing tax evasion in tax havens. He says tax agencies are relying increasingly on artificial intelligence to catch anomalies and trigger audits.

With the tax, youre always presumed guilty and its up to you to work with an accountant to do things. So when they get stuff like the CERB and all that, they basically needed to make it so complicated. But also people took advantage of it. They just thought they wouldnt get caught.

In 2017, Auditor General Michael Ferguson audited the CRAs call centres and found that the agency had poor results responding to the 28.9 million calls it received in 2016. It blocked 54 percent of calls, and 14 percent were directed to an automated menu.

Ferguson found that callers had less than a one in three chance of reaching an agent, and that agents gave wrong answers to basic queries nearly 30 percent of the time. On the question of when interest would start to accrue, agents were wrong 84 percent of the time.
NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR THROUGH U.S. NEWS WIRES

OTTAWA, ON / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / NBS Capital Inc. ("NBS" or the "Company") (TSXV:NBS.P) announces further to its press release of January 4, 2021, that in connection with its proposed scheme of arrangement (the "Arrangement") with Electric Metals (USA) Limited ("EML"), EML and NBS have completed the non-brokered private placements (the "Financing") of subscription receipts (the "Subscription Receipts") in multiple tranches for aggregate gross proceeds of Cdn$5,049,635.13, at a price of Cdn$0.33 per Subscription Receipt. Pursuant to the fully subscribed Financing, EML issued a total of 13,308,407 Subscription Receipts for proceeds of Cdn$4,391,774.85, and NBS issued a total of 1,993,516 Subscription Receipts for proceeds of Cdn$657,860.28.

The additional proceeds raised in connection with the Financing by EML (net of certain professional and financing fees), together with proceeds previously raised as announced on January 4, 2021, have been (such funds together, the "Escrowed Funds") delivered to and are being held in escrow on behalf of the subscribers by TSX Trust Company (the "Escrow Agent") and invested in an interest-bearing account pending the satisfaction or waiver (to the extent such waiver is permitted) of certain escrow release conditions (the "Escrow Release Conditions") as set out in the Company's January 4, 2021 press release on or before the 120th day after the closing of the Financing (the "Termination Date"), in accordance with the provisions of subscription agreements entered into with the subscribers in the Financing and subscription receipt agreements entered into with the Escrow Agent.

Each Subscription Receipt shall entitle the holder thereof to receive, upon the satisfaction or waiver (to the extent such waiver is permitted) of the Escrow Release Conditions on or before the Termination Date, without payment of additional consideration or further act or formality on the part of the holder thereof, one ordinary share in the capital of EML (each, an "Underlying Share") and one-half of one ordinary share purchase warrant of EML (each whole such warrant, an "Underlying Warrant"). Each whole Underlying Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one share of the Resulting Issuer (as defined below) at an exercise price of $0.60 per share for a period of two years from the closing of the Arrangement (the "Warrant Expiry Date"). The Warrant Expiry Date may be accelerated upon notice to the Underlying Warrant holders should the closing price of the shares of the Resulting Issuer (as defined below) on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") be greater than $1.00 for twenty consecutive trading days.

If the Arrangement is completed, each Underlying Share will then be exchanged for one common share of NBS (the "Resulting Issuer" after completion of the proposed Arrangement) and each Underlying Warrant will, upon exercise in accordance with its terms, entitle the holder thereof to one common share (on a post-Consolidation basis) of the Resulting Issuer. In the event the Escrow Release Conditions are satisfied, and the Proposed Transaction is completed, the Escrowed Funds will be released to the Resulting Issuer. The Resulting Issuer intends to use the Escrowed Funds to fund the exploration of EML's Corcoran Canyon Silver Project, pay for expenses of the Financing and the Arrangement, and for general working capital purposes. NBS will consolidate its outstanding common shares on the basis of 0.73271 new common shares for each currently issued common shares. All securities issued in connection with the Arrangement (including those issued in exchange for each Underlying Share and upon exercise of each Underlying Warrant) will be issued on a post-consolidated basis.

In the event that: (i) the Escrow Agent does not receive the Release Notice at or prior to 11:59 p.m. (Toronto time) on the Termination Date, or (ii) if prior to the Termination Date, the Company advises the subscribers or announces to the public that it does not intend to satisfy the Escrow Release Conditions, the Subscription Receipts will be null and void and of no further effect, and the Escrow Agent will return to each holder of Subscription Receipts an amount equal to the aggregate subscription price of the Subscription Receipts held by such holder plus a pro rata portion of any interest and other income earned on the Escrowed Funds, less applicable withholding taxes, if any. EML will be responsible and liable to the holders of Subscription Receipts for any shortfall between the aggregate Subscription Price and the Escrowed Funds.

Any securities issued by the Resulting Issuer in connection with the Financing will be in addition to the Resulting Issuer common shares that will be distributed to the current EML ordinary shareholders in connection with the Arrangement. Investors in the Financing will hold approximately 23.44% of the issued and outstanding Resulting Issuer common shares following completion of the Arrangement, on a non-diluted basis.

Amendment to Implementation Agreement

NBS also wishes to advise that the implementation agreement with EML in connection with the Arrangement dated December 31, 2020 (the "Arrangement Agreement") has been amended ("Amending Agreement" ) effective February 15, 2021 to provide that the "Reimbursement Fee" (as defined in the Arrangement Agreement) will be the lesser of (i) $C100,000 and (ii) 1% of the equity value of EML. Copy of the Arrangement Agreement and the Amending Agreement are both available on www.SEDAR.com under NBS' profile.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain "Forward-Looking Statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation relating to the proposal to complete the Proposed Transaction and associated transactions, including statements regarding the terms and conditions of the Proposed Transaction, the Concurrent Financing, the use of proceeds of the Concurrent Financing, and the business of the Resulting Issuer. The information about EML contained in the press release has not been independently verified by the Company. We use words such as "might", "will", "should", "anticipate", "plan", "expect", "believe", "estimate", "forecast" and similar terminology to identify forward looking statements and forward-looking information. Such statements and information are based on assumptions, estimates, opinions and analysis made by management in light of its experience, current conditions and its expectations of future developments as well as other factors which it believes to be reasonable and relevant. Forward-looking statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements and information and accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on such statements and information. Although the Company believes, in light of the experience of its officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate, that the expectations reflected in this forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. In evaluating forward-looking statements and information, readers should carefully consider the various factors which could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward looking statements and forward-looking information depending on, among other things, the risks that the parties will not proceed with the Proposed Transaction, the Concurrent Financing and/or other associated transactions, that the ultimate terms of the Proposed Transaction, the Concurrent Financing and/or other associated transactions will differ from those currently contemplated, and that the Proposed Transaction, the Concurrent Financing and/or other associated transactions will not be successfully completed for any reason (including the failure to obtain the required approvals or clearances from regulatory authorities). The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this release. The Company undertakes no obligation to comment on analyses, expectations or statements made by third parties in respect of the Company, EML, their respective securities, or their respective financial or operating results (as applicable).

Completion of the transaction is subject to a number of conditions, including but not limited to, TSXV acceptance and if applicable pursuant to Exchange Requirements, majority of the minority shareholder approval. Where applicable, the transaction cannot close until the required shareholder approval is obtained. There can be no assurance that the transaction will be completed as proposed or at all.

Investors are cautioned that, except as disclosed in the management information circular or filing statement to be prepared in connection with the transaction, any information released or received with respect to the transaction may not be accurate or complete and should not be relied upon. Trading in the securities of a capital pool company should be considered highly speculative.

The TSXV has in no way passed upon the merits of the proposed transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This press release is intended for distribution in Canada only and is not intended for distribution to United States newswire services or dissemination in the United States. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent U.S. registration or an applicable exemption from the U.S. registration requirements. This release does not constitute an offer for sale of securities in the United States.

All information contained in this press release relating to EML was provided by EML to NBS for inclusion herein. NBS has not independently verified such information and shall bear no liability for any misrepresentation contained therein.

About NBS Capital Inc.

The only business of NBS is the identification and evaluation of assets or businesses with a view to completing a "Qualifying Transaction" in accordance with the policies of the TSXV.

Investors are cautioned that trading in the securities of a capital pool company should be considered highly speculative. For further information, contact: NBS Capital Inc. Paul Barbeau, Chief Executive Officer and Director. Phone: 613-232-1567 x 201.

About Electric Metals (USA) Limited

EML is a public, unlisted company incorporated under the laws of New South Wales, Australia. It is a US-based resource company, with its material asset being the 100% owned Corcoran Canyon Silver Project in Nevada. EML also holds a high-grade manganese project in Minnesota, USA.

SOURCE: NBS Capital Inc.

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630578/NBS-Capital-Inc-Completes-Subscription-Receipt-Financing-for-Aggregate-Proceeds-of-5-Million
The security guard who found Brittany Higgins in a ministerial suite one Saturday morning took the first step on a path that should have taken Higgins to total safety and Parliament to a total culture change. The path took them into a wilderness instead. First, to insecurity for Higgins in a career she had set her heart on. Second, to almost two years of inaction by the government on a chronic problem that lay before its eyes.

The accountability for the failure is simple. It goes directly to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, even though he says he did not know of the rape allegation until Monday this week, and, in particular, Defence Minister Linda Reynolds as the most senior person who knew, early on, that this was about rape.

Brittany Higgins. Credit:Facebook.

The woman from the Parliamentary Security Service, whose name we do not know, did the right thing. She chose to make a welfare check early on March 23, 2019, because she knew someone had slept over in Reynolds office. Security knew two of the ministers advisers had come in late the previous night and the man had left hours later, while the woman had not.

What we know now is that Higgins distress was clear. Her words are the starting point in the entire debate, and she says she had woken at one point with the man on top of her. The first thing that sort of awoke me was I was in pain. My leg was kind of being crushed, Higgins told journalist Lisa Wilkinson on The Project on Monday night.
Authorities Investigating Bomb Threat at Bard College at Simon's Rock

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass.  Bard College at Simon's Rock was on lockdown Thursday after an anonymous bomb threat was emailed to the campus.

The all-clear was given at 1:30 p.m. after the grounds were searched by local first responders and the state police bomb squad.

According to Police Chief Paul Storti, the college notified police shortly after 7:15 a.m. of the threat and the college campus was locked down. Great Barrington Police also posted a notification on its Facebook page alerting the community of the situation, stating "appropriate emergency and investigative personnel are on scene. Further information will be released at a later time."

"The school immediately initiated their safety protocols while the Great Barrington Police Department investigated the threat," according to a release from the Police Department. "Great Barrington Fire Department, Officers from Egremont and Sheffield, Massachusetts State Police, MSP Detectives assigned to the District Attorney's Office, as well as the Massachusetts State Police Bomb Unit assisted on scene. The campus was thoroughly searched and deemed safe."

The college, which offers early entrance for high school students, posted on its web page that the all-clear was givin at 1:30 p.m. and that classes via remote would be resumed. Students are expected to return to in-person learning on Friday. The private college has an average student age of 16 and enrollment of about 450, although it's not clear how many students have been on campus during the pandemic. Students returned for the semester last week.

Students were notified by an emergency campus alert and told to shelter in place during the incident. Tele-counseling services were made available to anyone who wished them.

"On behalf of the entire Simon's Rock community, I thank the officers and first responders who worked quickly and thoroughly to ensure our campus community was safe," wrote Vice Provost Sue Lyon on the school's web page. "Thank you to our students and our employees, who remained calm and cooperative as the authorities conducted their investigation. I know that for many students, the hour of the threat meant that this was how they were awakened this morning."

The incident is being investigated by Great Barrington Police and state police assigned to the DA's Office.
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Every day 30-33 remains of Artsakh war victims are identified by medical specialists in Armenia, according to Healthcare Minister Anahit Avanesyan.

Round the clock work is being done, and the number of bodies pending identification has significantly decreased. It is expected that the identification process will soon be completed, she said.

Avanesyan said that as of late January the authorities had conducted medical examination of 3450 bodies of the war victims.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Analysis of past flu-related hospital bills suggest an average out-of-pocket cost over $1,000 for serious cases of COVID-19

Nearly 1.7 million times in the past year, Americans have checked into hospitals to get treated for severe cases of COVID-19.

And for the most part, that care hasn't cost them anything, thanks to insurance companies and government programs that absorbed the usual costs patients would owe for any other hospital stay.

But as some insurers phase back in those out-of-pocket costs, a new study estimates that many people over 65 hospitalized for COVID-19 in 2021 may owe an average of nearly $1,000 after they get out of the hospital, due to co-pays, deductibles and co-insurance. A few may owe hundreds or thousands more.

That estimate is based on a new analysis of out-of-pocket costs for influenza-related hospitalizations in 2018 that were paid by people with Medicare Advantage plans, which are Medicare plans run by private insurance companies.

Nearly 40% of Americans over age 65 - who have a high chance of needing hospital-level care if they catch the coronavirus - have the kind of insurance analyzed in the study.

Most insurers that offer Medicare Advantage plans currently cover COVID-19 hospitalization costs fully for their Medicare Advantage enrollees, but one of these insurers quietly started to allow cost-sharing for its non-Medicare Advantage enrollees in February. This raises concerns that cost-sharing waivers may soon be a thing of the past for many or all patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

"Insurers may choose to extend their waivers for enrollees with Medicare Advantage and private insurance coverage," says Kao-Ping Chua, M.D., Ph.D., the study's first author and an assistant professor at the U-M Medical School. "But if they don't, patients will be faced not only with the physical and emotional toll of COVID-19 hospitalizations, but also the financial toll."

Writing in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, a pair of health care researchers from the University of Michigan and Boston University describe data from 14,278 people hospitalized during one of the worst flu years in recent times.

On average, the flu patients in the study were hospitalized for an average of 6 days, and one-third of patients needed intensive care. This is around the same or slightly lower than the averages for hospitalized adults over 65 who have COVID-19.

Those who needed intensive care for flu, and those with longer stays at any level of care, faced out-of-pocket costs that were higher than the general average. About 3% of the flu patients faced out-of-pocket costs over $2,500.

Another study of cost-sharing among people with private non-Medicare insurance who were hospitalized for respiratory infections in pre-COVID times suggests out-of-pocket costs could be even higher for them. In part this is because so many private plans have high deductibles that must be paid each year before insurance coverage fully kicks in.

Chua notes that the choice of flu or other respiratory infection hospitalizations is not a perfect stand-in for COVID-19, which is having far more impact on the United States than even the worst flu year. But it is as close a stand-in as possible.

People with traditional Medicare also must share in the cost of their hospital care, but the current study did not analyze data from people with that form of coverage.

In 2018, 40% of Americans lacked enough savings to pay for a $400 emergency, according to federal data. The pandemic has put even more economic pressure on the lowest-income Americans.

Chua and his co-author Rena Conti, Ph.D. of Boston University's Institute for Health System Innovation and Policy, note that worries about out-of-pocket costs might keep some people from seeking emergency or inpatient care. They call for federal legislation mandating insurers to fully cover the costs of COVID-19 hospitalizations for the duration of the pandemic, and for insurers to extend waivers due to expire soon.

###

Chua, a pediatrician at Michigan Medicine as well as a health care researcher, is a member of the Susan B. Meister Child Health Evaluation and Research Center and the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation.

The Association of Health Insurance Plans offers a page that tracks private insurers' current policies regarding COVID-19 care, including cost-sharing waivers.

Wesfarmers boss Rob Scott has called for more stringent controls around hotel quarantine and better-managed lockdowns, warning shortfalls in managing the pandemic are causing enormous hardship for businesses and individuals.

Mr Scott, who oversees the chains Bunnings, Kmart, Target and Officeworks, said he supported the concept of snap lockdowns, but they needed to be better executed.

We need to be focusing back on the core area of risk which is hotel quarantine, and doing more to contain the risk at that level, he said. If you go back over whats driven the various snap lockdowns, the origin of the problem has been hotel quarantining.

There will always be a need [for lockdowns] in some circumstances, but an inconsistency in approach and snap decisions can result in enormous personal and business hardship.
Africa on Thursday recorded more than 100,000 deaths from Covid-19, a grim milestone likely to understate the real toll, as the continent of 1.2 billion people battles a second wave of infections.

The 54 countries in the region have a death toll of 100,000 from 3,793,660 reported cases, according to an AFP tally.

The continent, relatively spared by the pandemic, is the last except Oceania to reach the threshold of 100,000 deaths, which Europe crossed in April 2020.

South Africa -- the worst hit African country -- rolled out a mass testing campaign at the start of the pandemic.

To date, the country has recorded nearly 1.5 million cases and more than 48,000 deaths.

But those figures, based on daily reports communicated by health authorities, only reflect a fraction of the actual case load, health specialists say.

"The cases are clearly under-reported because of poor access to healthcare facilities and under-reporting of milder cases," South African virologist Barry Schoub, also a member of the Scientific Council at the South African Ministry of Health told AFP.

Understaffed health facilities and lack of means have meant many African countries have been unable to do mass testing.

"Many countries have mainly PCR tests in the capitals. And the further one moves away from the urban centres, the less there are tests," explained French epidemiologist Emmanuel Baron from Doctors Without Borders.

"It is a disease that can go unnoticed with asymptomatic patients, or with symptoms that can be confused with others," he added.

- Covid found in pawpaw -

In Zimbabwe, a country with a devastated economy and mismanaged health system, hospitals are filled with Covid patients, exhausted doctors and overwhelmed nurses. But the official number of cases remains low.

Tanzania stopped testing in May 2020 after claiming it had found a positive Covid case in a pawpaw, a quail and even a goat. The Tanzanian government last released official figures in April.

Story continues

"If someone had told me a year ago that we, as a continent, would see 100,000 deaths from this infection, I probably would not have believed it," John Nkengasong, the Africa Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions (CDC), told reporters on Thursday.

The toll in Africa is, however, significantly lower than in Europe, the worlds most affected region, with 818,912 deaths recorded so far. The other regions that are badly hit are Latin America with 649,006 deaths and the United States and Canada 512,295 deaths.

After a sharp increase in January, Africas figures have fallen sharply in the past few weeks. Over the last seven days, the continent recorded 3,054 deaths, a drop of 18 percent from the previous week.

At the height of the pandemic in January, the continent had 906 deaths per day.

- No disaster -

While coronavirus figures are clearly underestimated, "we have not seen a health disaster in Africa to date", said Baron.

Several studies on antibodies, which make it possible to detect whether a person who is recovered has previously been exposed to the virus, are underway in many African countries and should provide a better idea of the impact of the pandemic in the region.

South Africa, where almost all of the latest cases are attributed to a variant of the virus known to be more contagious and which has spread widely, represents nearly half of the deaths and reported cases on the continent.

The other African countries that are most affected are Egypt (10,150 deaths from 175,677 cases) and Morocco (8,524 deaths from 480,056 cases).

South Africa is also the country with most Covid-19 fatalities on the continent, counting 82 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, ahead of Tunisia (65 deaths) and Eswatini (55).

Lagging behind in the vaccination race, the continent's leading industrial powerhouse administered its first vaccines on Wednesday.

Globally, Covid-19 has caused more than 109 million infections and over 2.4 million deaths since the start of the epidemic in Wuhan in China in December 2019.

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Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
Ben Lambert / Hearst Connecticut Media

NEW HAVEN  A 21-year-old city man found dead Monday has been declared the seventh homicide victim of the year in New Haven, according to police.

Angel Luis Rodriguez, 21, was found after officers responded to the area of Farnum Drive and Orange Street Monday morning, Sgt. Shayna Kendall said in a release.
Any product that is scented can potentially damage the skin, Dr. Tanouye said. And while not everyone may experience a reaction, or react immediately, experts said that certain health issues can emerge after prolonged use. Fragrance is the No. 1 cause of allergic contact dermatitis, Dr. Tanouye said, which is a condition in which the skin gets inflamed and becomes itchy, red and rashy after contact with an irritating substance.

Because these are some of the same symptoms that many of these products claim to soothe, health experts said they are concerned that, in an effort to get rid of symptoms like pain, itching or irritation  which could be signs of a larger problem, like a yeast or bacterial infection  women might keep using these products and potentially make their problems worse.

If a person with a vagina has itching, the key isnt to cover it up with an anti-itch cream, said Dr. Jennifer Lincoln, an obstetrician in Portland, Ore. Were really concerned about people delaying care.

Dr. Irobunda estimated that about 30 percent of the patients she sees in an average week come in with vaginal complaints like itching, pain and inflammation that theyve tried to heal with over-the-counter products from brands like Vagisil or Summers Eve (which sells feminine hygiene items like douches, cleansing cloths and freshening sprays). She sees many patients who are underinsured or in low-income communities, and who opt to treat their symptoms with creams they can pick up at a pharmacy instead of seeking medical attention. It doesnt wash away the bacteria that causes an inflammation or smell, she said. If the area is already inflamed, using these products will irritate that area even more.

Dr. Jones, who posted a YouTube video about the OMV! line under her channel Mama Doctor Jones (which currently has more than 320,000 views), said she is concerned that teens might develop a habit of using these products. It catches them early where it becomes something they think they inherently need for the rest of their lives, she said.

And when use of these kinds of intimate care products becomes more regular, said Dr. Monica Woll Rosen, an ob-gyn at the University of Michigan Medical School, that can potentially disrupt the healthy balance of bacteria in the vagina, which can increase the risk of bacterial infections, sexually transmitted infections and urinary tract infections in teens.

Using these types of products in the vagina can damage lactobacilli and mucus, Dr. Gunter wrote on Twitter, which could increase the risk of sexually transmitted infections if exposed.
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ROCHESTER, Minn. - New bipartisan legislation would offer the Paycheck Protection Program as an option for rural hospitals.

The bill is spearheaded by Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). The senators hope by offering rural hospitals access to the PPP it will allow facilities to focus on providing quality care to patients while retaining staff.

The bill would waive Small Business Administration Affiliation rules for non-profit critical access hospitals and rural facilities.

Sen. Smith says many small hospitals operate as part of larger health systems which then exceed the 500-employee limit under SBA's affiliation rules making them ineligible for the PPP.

She explained, "Community hospitals in Worthington and Owatonna and places that might be affiliated with a big health system and because of that affiliation they weren't eligible for the Paycheck Protection Program before now and they really need this help."

Smith hopes this bill will take effect some time next month as part of the federal COVID-19 relief package.
The full program is expected to take at least three months to complete, however, we look forward to updating the market as we progress on this potential company-making exploration program, says MD.

The 2021 drilling program will test the large IP chargeability anomaly that lies beneath an historic shallow IP anomaly

( ) (FRA:RNF) has started its 2021 deep drilling program at the Juruena Copper-Gold Project in Brazil designed to test an interpreted giant copper-gold rich porphyry system identified below the high-grade epithermal gold deposit.

The program, which is a culmination of exploration carried out by the company over the last two years, consists of 3,600 metres of drilling with three drill holes pegged at around 1,200 metres deep.

Meteoric will test the large IP chargeability anomaly that lies beneath an historic shallow IP anomaly, major gold artisanal workings, giant soil copper-molybdenum-gold anomaly and fertile porphyry intrusive rocks.

"Many lines of geological evidence"

Managing director Andrew Tunks said: The geology team has drawn together many lines of geological evidence and interpret a significant copper-gold porphyry system at depth related to the outcropping high-grade epithermal gold deposits at Juruena.

The presence of the large IP chargeability anomaly defined in the late 2020 Deep IP survey, conducted by Geomag, gave us a definitive drill target.

We successfully commenced drilling on February 15, with the first of three holes initially targeting both the central portion of the IP chargeability anomaly and the Juruena Fault.

Each hole is planned for around 1,200 metres depth.

The full program is expected to take at least three months to complete, however, we look forward to updating the market as we progress on this potential company-making exploration program.

Three major epithermal targets

Drilling by Meteoric at Juruena has largely concentrated on three major epithermal gold targets - Dona Maria, Querosene and Crentes.

Down-hole multi-element geochemistry and surface geochemistry highlight at least two different metallogenetic styles of mineralisation.

The high-grade gold Dona Maria and Querosene targets have a structure, hydrothermal alteration and metal association typical of an Intermediate Sulphidation style of deposit. Associated gold-silver-tellurium is typical of the ore from these targets.

However, the Crentes target exhibits a different metal association and structural characteristic. At this target, gold is closely related to copper mineralisation. Molybdenum values are significant and the major host rock for the copper-gold mineralisation is hydrothermal breccia.

Geophysics

This deep IP survey carried out over the Juruena Project at the end of 2020 was definitive in highlighting the projects potential to contain major magmatic hydrothermal systems, related porphyry and epithermal styles of gold-copper mineralisation.

It returned a large, high chargeability anomaly below the outcropping high-grade epithermal gold deposits, centred beneath the Uiliam and Mauro prospects.

The top of the high chargeability anomaly is around 500 metres below the surface.

Southern Geoscience Australia (SGC) independently completed a 2D Inversion of the geophysical survey data obtained by GEOMAG and confirmed the location of the chargeability anomaly.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Delimitation Commission for Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday held its first meeting here to seek suggestion and views on the process of delimitation in the Union Territory.

An overview on the process of delimitation based on the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 and the Delimitation Act, 2002 was presented before the Members detailing various sections of these Acts related to the delimitation exercise of Jammu and Kashmir.

Of the five associate members, only Union Minister Jitendra Singh and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Jugal Kishore Sharma attended the meeting and suggested that "delimitation of constituencies should be practicable".

Appreciating the Commission's efforts, the two also said that regard should be given to physical features, existing boundaries of administrative units, facilities of communication and public convenience.

They also suggested to give special attention to the difficult terrain while carrying out the delimitation exercise.

The other three associate members -- Jammu and Kashmir National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah, Mohammad Akbar Lone and Hasnain Masoodi -- did not attend the meeting even after the Commission had sent a written intimation to them on February 5.

The Commission comprising of Chairperson, Justice (retd) Ranjana Prakash Desai, ex-officio members Sushil Chandra (Election Commissioner) and K.K Sharma (State Election Commissioner, J&K) held the meeting with the two associate members.

Sushil Chandra welcomed their valuable inputs and expressed satisfaction of the Delimitation Commission on the suggestions and views of the two associate members.

The members desired to put forward more suggestions in coming days.

The Delimitation Commission for Jammu and Kashmir was constituted by the Central government on March 6 last year to redraw Lok Sabha and assembly constituencies of the Union Territory in accordance with the provisions of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which carved out the erstwhile state into two UTs-- J&K with an Assembly and Ladakh without one.

Both the UTs -- J&K and Ladakh -- came into being on October 31, 2019 after the state was reorganised.
Lucknow, Feb 18 : Leader of Opposition in Uttar Pradesh Assembly, Ram Govind Chaudhary, has questioned the ban on media coverage of the state legislature proceedings.

Talking to reporters, he said, "Why is the press absent from the press gallery? Is the COVID-19 only affecting journalists? Does it not infect the legislators, ministers, chief minister, speaker and others?" The media has not been allowed coverage of the state legislature in the budget session due to the pandemic.

Chaudhary further said that the Governor, in her address, did not mention a word about the farmers' agitation and the death of nearly 200 farmers. "Can there be anything more insensitive?" he asked.

Congress legislature party leader Aradhana Mishra, said, "The government should have expressed its sympathy towards the more than 200 farmers who have died during protest. Most of the farmers who died are from UP. The government did not express any sympathy towards the farmers. We oppose the three black farm laws. The Unnao incident also is a major one and we demand a judicial inquiry in this."

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Brisbane lord mayor Adrian Schrinner took to Twitter to condemn Facebooks move to disable the Brisbane City Council Facebook page. Facebook has just become the worlds biggest cyber-bully and their victim is the Australian public! This is an outrageous response from Facebook to a reasonable proposal from the Australian Government that seeks to protect the interests of all Aussies, Cr Schrinner posted. Cr Schrinner told ABC Radio Brisbane he believed most people supported the federal governments legislation to force Facebook and Google to pay media organisations for news, which sparked the bans. Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick expressed his outrage at the Queensland Health Facebook page being affected overnight. This is nuts. Queenslanders need access to accurate and trustworthy sources for health information. Facebook is blocking access to the @qldhealthnews in the middle of a pandemic. This needs to be fixed, he posted on Twitter.

Health Minister Yvette DAth urged the federal government to work with Facebook to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Its very concerning to see Queensland Healths Facebook page stripped of content at a time when so many Queenslanders rely on it for important information about COVID and the vaccine rollout, she said. Some of the organisations hit by the Facebook news takedown Queensland Health (restored)

Bureau of Meteorology (restored)

Brisbane City Council (restored)

1800RESPECT (restored)

Energex

RACQ LifeFlight

TransLink

RACQ

DVConnect

Centre Against Domestic Abuse

Queensland Council of Social Service

Queensland Rugby League

Intrust Super Cup

Queensland Maritime Museum

University of Southern Queensland

Bond University

QUT News

Harvey Norman

Small Steps 4 Hannah

Queensland Theatre

Brisbane Arts Theatre Queensland Health is a frontline public health agency - not a news organisation. Queensland Health strategic communications branch executive director Robert Hoge said Facebook was not the only way the department reached the public but said the ban could harm its efforts to roll out the COVID-19 vaccine from next week.

We are working urgently this morning to restore public access to our content, he said. We are in the process of rolling out the first phase of our COVID-19 vaccine program and social media is a key tool with which to communicate this information. The decision to block access to our content could hinder our ability to communicate to high-risk groups. University pages were also caught up, including the University of Southern Queensland, Bond University and QUT News. In a statement, the Bureau of Meteorology said the latest forecast and warning information was available on its website, app and Twitter.

A Facebook company spokesman said government pages should not be impacted by the decision and any pages that were inadvertently impacted would be reversed. Loading The actions were taking are focused on restricting publishers and people in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content, the spokesman said. As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted. The official Facebook pages of Nine metropolitan mastheads  Brisbane Times, Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and WAtoday  were also disabled.

Other news accounts targeted included The Courier-Mail, ABC, 9 News Queensland, Guardian Australia, The Australian and Australian Financial Review. Articles published by online youth publication Junkee Media and satirical news websites The Betoota Advocate and The Chaser were also removed. Even Facebooks own Facebook page was wiped for Australian users. The ban appeared to have come into effect for at least some users, who were unable to post links to Australian news articles on their Facebook pages or see past articles posted by media companies. International articles from newspapers such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times also can not be viewed or reposted by Australian users.

Facebook groups run by news outlets are still live. Facebook has banned publishers and users in Australia from sharing or viewing any news articles on its platform in response to the Morrison governments proposed media bargaining laws. The bargaining code, which passed through the House of Representatives on Wednesday night, will require social media companies to pay media outlets for using their content. In a blog post on Thursday (AEDT) Facebook said it had carried through on the threat made in September after being unable to find a solution in discussions with the Australian government.
Provided

Three Jacksonville residents are among the Springfield Dance Theatre cast that will present the childrens ballet Princess and the Frog online starting Friday.

Springfield Dance Theatre members Charlotte Lynch, Jasna Hallam and Eva Wilson, all of Jacksonville, have roles in the production that follows Tiana and her friends through the bayous of Louisiana in a tale of transformation and finding a new perspective when nothing feels like it should.
CBC

Recent developments: Ottawa reported 52 new COVID-19 cases and two more deaths Sunday. Kingston's top doctor will replace Dr. David Williams as Ontario's chief medical officer of health. What's the latest? Another 52 COVID-19 cases were confirmed Sunday by Ottawa Public Health (OPH) as various pandemic indicators continue their gradual decline. Another two deaths were also recorded. In western Quebec, health officials reported another 17 cases, while zero cases were recorded in the Kingston, Ont., area. Dr. David Williams is retiring as Ontario's chief medical officer of health. He'll be replaced by Dr. Kieran Moore, the medical officer of health for Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health. The Ontario government is extending its ban on non-essential travel across its land borders with Quebec and Manitoba until June 16. Residents of an Old Ottawa South street have come together to save a massive boulder unearthed during recent infrastructure work  in part because the unexpected discovery has brought them all back together during the pandemic. How many cases are there? The region is coming down from a record-breaking peak of the pandemic's third wave, one that has included more dangerous coronavirus variants. As of Sunday, 27,019 Ottawa residents have tested positive for COVID-19. There are 709 known active cases, 25,741 resolved cases and 569 deaths. Public health officials have reported close to 49,100 COVID-19 cases across eastern Ontario and western Quebec, including more than 47,000 resolved cases. Elsewhere in eastern Ontario, 185 people have died. In western Quebec, the death toll is 214. Akwesasne has had nearly 700 residents test positive, with four known active cases, and 10 deaths between its northern and southern sections. Kitigan Zibi has had 34 cases. Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory has had 11, with one death. Pikwakanagan hasn't had any. The transfer of COVID-19 patients from other regions to Ottawa hospitals continues. As of Friday, there were 21 COVID-19 patients from other communities in Ottawa ICUs. Some patients are even coming from Manitoba. CBC Ottawa is profiling those who've died of COVID-19. If you'd like to share your loved one's story, please get in touch. What can I do? Eastern Ontario: Ontario is under a stay-at-home order until at least Wednesday. Its reopening plan leans on rates of spread and vaccination; the province plans to take the next step in mid-June. Many closed outdoor recreation venues can now reopen. Ontario's outdoor distanced gathering limit has now risen to five people, including people from different households. Most non-essential businesses can only offer curbside pickup. Access to malls is restricted and big-box stores can only sell essential items. Gyms and personal care services are closed, while restaurants are only available for takeout and delivery. Ontario has moved to online learning. Daycares remain open and summer camps should eventually open as well. Officers in Ontario have the power to stop and question people if they believe they've gathered illegally. Local health units and communities can also set their own rules, as Ottawa is doing around playgrounds and the Belleville area is doing for the agriculture industry. Western Quebec Western Quebec is under red zone rules. People can eat outside at restaurants. Outdoor gatherings of up to eight people are also allowed, as is travel throughout the province. As many as 2,500 people can gather in a large theatre or arena. There is no longer a curfew. More rules lift on Monday, allowing indoor dining and gyms to reopen. Non-essential travel is not allowed between Ontario and Quebec. Police checkpoints are not running 24/7 on either end. Distancing and isolating The novel coronavirus primarily spreads through droplets that can hang in the air. People can be contagious without symptoms, even after getting a vaccine. Coronavirus variants of concern are more contagious and are now established. This means it is important to take precautions now and in the future like staying home while sick  and getting help with costs if needed  keeping hands and surfaces clean and maintaining distance from anyone you don't live with, even with a mask on. A young man and woman wait for the lights to cross at the intersection of Montreal and North River roads in Ottawa on May 28, 2021.(Trevor Pritchard/CBC) Masks, preferably ones that fit snugly and have three layers, are mandatory in indoor public settings in Ontario and Quebec. OPH says residents should wear masks outside their homes whenever possible. People have to show proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test to enter Canada by land without a fine and have to pay for their stay in a quarantine hotel if entering by air. Health Canada recommends older adults and people with underlying medical conditions get help with errands. Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms should self-isolate, as should those who've been ordered to do so by their public health unit. The length varies in Quebec and Ontario. Vaccines Four COVID-19 vaccines have been deemed safe and approved in Canada. Canada's task force said first doses offer such strong protection that people can wait up to four months to get a second. About 1,200,000 doses have been given out in the Ottawa-Gatineau region since mid-December. Eastern Ontario Ontario is now vaccinating anyone age 12 or older. People can look for provincial first dose appointments opening up online or over the phone at 1-833-943-3900. Pharmacies continue to offer vaccines through their own booking systems as supply allows. The first people who got an AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine March 10 to 19 can now book a second dose. There's a list of locations offering them in the Kingston area. WATCH | Health Canada extends AstraZeneca expiry date to start of July The province's goal is a second AstraZeneca dose 12 weeks after the first, with more details to come on other recipients. It's speeding up other kinds of second dose appointments, starting by allowing people in their 80s to rebook if they wish as of Monday at 8 a.m. Health officials continue to tell people who got a first dose before a second dose was automatically booked they won't be forgotten. Local health units have flexibility in the larger framework, including around booking, so check their websites for details. Some offer standby lists for first doses. Western Quebec Quebec is now giving a first dose to anyone 12 and older. People who qualify can make an appointment online or over the phone. Starting today, there are walk-in clinics for first doses in Buckingham, Hull and Wakefield and six walk-in clinics for second AstraZeneca doses. The province expects to have given a first dose to 75 per cent of adults by June 15 and is looking at 75 per cent of people age 12 and up getting their second dose by the end of August. Its goal is second doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine eight weeks after the first. People may be able to get an earlier second dose appointment for other types of vaccines starting June 7. Symptoms and testing COVID-19 can range from a cold-like illness to a severe lung infection, with common symptoms including fever, a cough, vomiting and loss of taste or smell. Children tend to have an upset stomach and/or a rash. If you have severe symptoms, call 911. Mental health can also be affected by the pandemic, and resources are available to help. In eastern Ontario: Anyone seeking a test should make an appointment. Check with your health unit for clinic locations and hours. Ontario recommends only getting tested if you fit certain criteria, such as having symptoms, exposure or a certain job. People without symptoms but who are part of the province's targeted testing strategy can make an appointment at select pharmacies. Shoppers Drug Mart stores can now offer rapid tests. Travellers who need a test have very few local options to pay for one. Dr. Kieran Moore, medical officer of health for the Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Health Unit will become Ontario's next chief medical officer of health, replacing the retiring Dr. David Williams.(Lars Hagberg/Canadian Press) In western Quebec: Tests are strongly recommended for people with symptoms and their contacts. People can make an appointment and check wait times online. Call 1-877-644-4545 with questions, including if walk-in testing is available nearby. First Nations, Inuit and Metis: First Nations, Inuit and Metis people, or someone travelling to work in a remote Indigenous community, are eligible for a test in Ontario. Akwesasne has a COVID-19 test site by appointment only and a curfew of 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. Anyone returning to the community on the Canadian side of the international border who's been farther than 160 kilometres away  or visited Montreal  for non-essential reasons is asked to self-isolate for 14 days. People in Pikwakanagan can book a COVID-19 test by calling 613-625-1175. Anyone in Tyendinaga who's interested in a test can call 613-967-3603 and in Kitigan Zibi, 819-449-5593. Tyendinaga's council is asking people not to travel there to camp or fish. Inuit in Ottawa can call the Akausivik Inuit Family Health Team at 613-740-0999 for service, including testing and vaccines, in Inuktitut or English on weekdays. For more information
In The Know is proud to celebrate Black-owned businesses. During Black History Month, our team will highlight a new Black-owned business each day. We encourage you to support today and beyond.

You may have heard of designer Aurora James from the 15 Percent Pledge she founded in 2020, which holds retailers accountable to committing 15 percent shelf-space to Black-owned businesses. But when shes not working to change the retail industrys infrastructure, James is busy running her wildly successful fashion label, Brother Vellies.

James authentic approach to fashion made her luxury accessories brand what it is today. Founded in 2013 with the goal of preserving traditional African design practices, the line of shoes and leather handbags quickly became one of the most coveted brands amongst fashion it girls and celebrities. Even Beyonce and Zendaya are loyal fans.

Sustainability is at the forefront of Brother Vellies, with products made with vegetable-tanned leathers, recycled tires and floral dyed feathers. James even employs local artisans from South Africa, Kenya, Haiti, Mexico, Morocco, Ethiopia and more, paying a living wage.

Recently, global fashion search platform Lyst included Brother Vellies on its Brands To Watch in 2021 list. According to Lyst, searches for the brand increased 23 percent year-over-year in 2020. However, the Brooklyn-based label has already been recognized by fashion insiders over the years. In 2015, Brother Vellies won the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund. Just three years later, James was first Black women ever nominated for the Council of Fashion Designers of Americas Swarovski Award for Emerging Talent.

Check out some of the best-selling styles from Brother Vellies below. Theyre sure to become the most coveted pieces in your closet.

Credit: Brother Vellies

Credit: Brother Vellies

Credit: Brother Vellies

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Credit: Brother Vellies

If you liked this story, check out moments of Black history makers on Prime Video.

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The post Brother Vellies brings sustainable artisanal craftsmanship to the masses appeared first on In The Know.
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Experts have called for the government to get a grip , with taxpayers having now paid for three successive strategies for a huge and valuable land parcel in Perth, none of which have been finalised.

Ironically, the land in Perths northern suburbs has lain fallow so long that carbon credit revenue alone could potentially cover the costs of a reforestation project that would be Australias biggest carbon farm, says the nations peak forestry body.

Perths black cockatoos rely on pine plantations for shelter and forage. Credit:Marta Pascual Juanola

Pine plantations across the Gnangara mound near Yanchep, above the aquifer that supplies half of Perths drinking water, have been felled from just over 22,000 hectares down to 6000 over the past three decades.

The government plans to clear the rest within three years, with no large-scale revegetation or other plan for the land, despite the plantations being the citys largest remaining roost for the endangered Carnabys black cockatoo.
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Ludi Lin is set to join The CWs forthcoming reboot of the classic series Kung Fu.Lin is set to play the character of Kerwin, heir to the billionaire Tan family fortune. He is described as dashing, handsome, physically fit, and impossibly charismatic. He puts on a suave playboy act to the world but is driven by a deep hurt and antipathy towards his father. An erotically charged partnership with Zhilan will provide Kerwin with just the path to revenge (and vindication) he has been waiting for.Christina M. Kim and Roberto Berens serve as executive producers and co-showrunners of the new iteration of Kung Fu which follows Nicky (Olivia Liang) who is in a middle of a quarter-life crisis. This causes her to drop out of college and go on a life-changing journey to an isolated monastery in China. But when she returns to San Francisco, she finds her hometown is overrun with crime and corruption and her own parents Jin (Tzi Ma) and Mei-Li (Kheng Hua Tan) are at the mercy of a powerful Triad.

We are excited to work with Delaware Nation Investments to build on our shared history as we continue to expand across the Country to provide our respective communities with higher family incomes and well-deserved opportunity, said Bob Olds, Co-Founder, President and Chairman of Triple Impact.

Triple Impact Connections, the first veteran-owned customer contact center staffed by spouses of active military members, announced it will be partnering with another unique organization, Channel Blend. Channel Blend is owned by Delaware Nation Investments (DNI), a tribally-owned holding company of the Delaware Nation. The Delaware Nation is the oldest known nation in the Northern Hemisphere, originally inhabiting the Eastern Seaboard of North America.

This working relationship is particularly significant since Native Americans have the highest per-capita involvement in the U.S. Armed Forces. American Indians have participated in every major U.S. military engagement since the Revolutionary War.

Channel Blend is an innovative customer capture center specializing in responding to consumers and businesses who request additional information generated from digital advertising. Channel Blend is much different than a typical call center, using unique software built from the ground up.

Triple Impact Connections and Channel Blend are currently providing support services for Channel Blends clients and are making an effort to increase employment among military spouses to reduce the persistent gap between military vs. civilian family income.



A veteran-owned organization, Triple Impact Connections primarily employs spouses of active military members, compensating them at a rate that effectively doubles the average enlisted military family household income.

Delaware Nation Investments was created to support the rapid growth of the Delaware Nations entrance into the Federal contracting industry, establishing themselves as a leading innovator.

Triple Impact Connections operates in partnership with the Military Spouse Employment Partnership (MSEP), created by the U.S. Department of Defense and The White House to connect military spouses with employers who are committed to recruiting, hiring, training, promoting, and retaining military spouses. With a potential talent pool of 650,000 skilled workers embodying the military values of dedication, loyalty, and efficiency, Triple Impact Connections is delivering a personalized and enhanced experience for customers.

This new partnership grew out of a long friendship of two class of 1978 West Point classmates - Bob Olds, Co-Founder, President and Chairman of Triple Impact, and Frank Keechi, Chairman of Delaware Nation Investments.

We are excited to work with Delaware Nation Investments to build on our shared history as we continue to expand across the Country to provide our respective communities with higher family incomes and well-deserved opportunity, said Bob Olds.

About Triple Impact Connections

Triple Impact Connections is a veteran-owned customer communications company founded in 2018 by three West Point classmates to provide employment opportunities for military spouses. Its triple mission is to provide client companies with superior customer service, provide jobs for spouses of military families to assure financial stability and career opportunities, and to give back to severely wounded veterans through Sentinels of Freedom, a non-profit organization that helps veterans complete their higher education.

About Channel Blend

Channel Blend is a subsidiary of Delaware Nation Investments (DNI). Channel Blend provides enterprise call center operations to agencies located throughout the United States. Channel Blends mission is Opening the path to success for those who desire to reach their full potential. For more information, visit http://www.channelblend.com.

About DNI

Channel Blends parent company, DNI, operates with a Shared Services Business Model which provides the corporate reach-back and proven management expertise that allows them to leverage best practices across their business portfolio. For more information, visit http://www.DNIshines.com.

For media inquiries:

David Sawicki, dsawicki@tripleimpact.com

Stacy Bodine, sbodine@tripleimpact.com
MINDCURE's first items in a line of original supplements, including Reishi Energy, Lion's Mane Focus, Turkey Tail Immunity, and Teen, available for purchase.

VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Mind Cure Health Inc. (CSE: MCUR) (OTCQB: MCURF) (FRA: 6MH) ("MINDCURE" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the release of its original nootropic and adaptogen product offerings (the "Products"). Items can now be ordered from the Company's website and are expected to begin shipping Feb. 23.

"Our supplements launch marks the beginning of MINDCURE's product sales division, which is a key milestone for the company this year. With it, we're promoting support across the spectrum of mental hygiene to the general public," said Sacha Hebbert, Senior Product & Marketing Manager, MINDCURE. "MINDCURE's nootropic and adaptogen products are safe, unique, and packed with all-natural ingredients specifically chosen to promote mental performance. We're eager to continue developing our product offerings to help in new and exciting ways."

MINDCURE's first Products in an ever-expanding line of mental hygiene and wellness offerings include three nootropic formulations in capsule and powder form, as well as a teen-centric formulation in capsule form:

MINDCURE Lion's Mane Focus

MINDCURE Reishi Energy

MINDCURE Turkey Tail Immunity

MINDCURE Teen

"MINDCURE's overall mission is to improve wellness, so people can maintain mental health and achieve mental wealth. Our first step is promoting mental hygiene to help customers tackle their day-to-day list of demands with added energy, focus, and protection from immune threats," said Kelsey Ramsden, President & CEO, MINDCURE. "We know that trust is essential when building out products used to optimize mental wellbeing. I am thrilled that our team is committed to ensuring exemplary quality standards with all our natural products."

About MINDCURE's Products

MINDCURE harnesses the benefits of nootropic mushrooms and adaptogens, which are known to support the immune system, boost energy, and balance mood by confronting sleeplessness, restlessness, distractedness, and brain fog.

MINDCURE's current nootropic formulations contain 100% organic, sustainably cultivated functional mushrooms. MINDCURE's Teen formulation comprises safe, all-natural ingredients including botanicals, minerals, and vitamins known to reduce nervousness, sleeplessness, and restlessness in teens. Notably, Teen meets the standards laid out by California's Proposition 65, which ensures products do not contain harmful levels of hazardous chemicals.1

About Mind Cure Health (MINDCURE) Inc.

MINDCURE exists as a response to the current mental health crisis and urgent calls for effective treatments. MINDCURE drives to reinvent the mental health care industry for patients and practitioners.

MINDCURE is focused on identifying and developing pathways and products that ease suffering, increase productivity, and enhance mental health. The Company is interested in exploring diverse therapeutic areas beyond psychiatry, including digital therapeutics, neuro-supports, and psychedelics, all to improve mental health.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Kelsey Ramsden, President & CEO

Phone: 1-888-593-8995

Forward-Looking Information

Certain statements in this news release may constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws (also known as forward-looking statements). Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, and may cause actual results, performance or achievements or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements or industry results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward-looking information generally can be identified by the use of terms and phrases such as "anticipate", "believe", "could", "estimate", "expect", "feel", "intend", "may", "plan", "predict", "project", "subject to", "will", "would", and similar terms and phrases, including references to assumptions. Some of the specific forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to: MINDCURE's intention of releasing the Products; MINDCURE's Products shipping Feb. 23, 2021; MINDCURE expanding its nootropic and adaptogen products; and MINDCURE's mission to improve overall wellness and mental hygiene.

Forward-looking information is based on a number of key expectations and assumptions made by MINDCURE, including, without limitation: the COVID-19 pandemic impact on the Canadian economy and MINDCURE's business, and the extent and duration of such impact; no change to laws or regulations that negatively affect MINDCURE's business; there will be a demand for MINDCURE's products in the future; no unanticipated expenses or costs arise; MINDCURE will be able to continue to identify products that make them ideal candidates for providing solutions for treating mental health; that the functional mushroom industry will continue to grow; the release of MINDCURE's Products will help MINDCURE achieve its business goals; and MINDCURE will be able to operate its business as planned. Although the forward-looking information contained in this news release is based upon what MINDCURE believes to be reasonable assumptions, it cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with such information.

Forward-looking information is provided for the purpose of presenting information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future and readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking information involves significant risks and uncertainties and should not be read as a guarantee of future performance or results as actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking information. Those risks and uncertainties include, among other things, risks related to: the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Canadian economy, MINDCURE's industry and MINDCURE's business, which may negatively impact, and may continue to negatively impact, MINDCURE and may materially adversely affect MINDCURE's investments, results of operations, financial condition, and MINDCURE's ability to obtain additional equity or debt financing, and satisfy its financial obligations; general economic conditions; future growth potential; competition for mental health and wellness investments; the release of MINDCURE's Products may not help MINDCURE achieve its business goals; and changes in legislation or regulations. Management believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information contained herein are based upon reasonable assumptions and information currently available; however, management can give no assurance that actual results will be consistent with such forward-looking information. Additional information on the risk factors that could affect MINDCURE can be found under "Risk Factors" in MINDCURE's final prospectus which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com .

The forward-looking information contained herein is expressly qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement. Forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and is based on information currently available to MINDCURE. The forward-looking information is stated as of the date of this news release and MINDCURE assumes no obligation to update or revise such information to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required by applicable law.

The CSE has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release and the CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

_______________________ 1 "About Proposition 65." California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment. OEHHA. Accessed December 24, 2020. https://oehha.ca.gov/proposition-65/about-proposition-65.

SOURCE Mind Cure Health Inc.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 12:38:09|Editor: huaxia

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NAIROBI, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- New outbreaks of the deadly Ebola virus disease in the two African countries of Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are sending new jitters to Africa as the continent is grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the West African country Guinea, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the west, health authorities have confirmed more than a dozen Ebola cases in the N'Zerekore administrative region, Southeast Guinea.

SUDDEN OUTBREAK

Adama Kaba, director of the N'Zerekore Provincial Hospital said on Monday that Ebola cases in the country had climbed to 15, including five deaths.

The National Agency for Health Security (ANSS) has linked these cases to a nurse from N'Zerekore, who fell ill with symptoms of Ebola and died on Feb. 1. A few days after the burial of the patient, some relatives started to show symptoms of diarrhea, vomiting and high fever.

In Central Africa's DRC where outbreaks of Ebola are not fresh in recent years, the health ministry again confirmed a new positive case on Feb. 7 in the eastern North Kivu Province. Only three months have passed since the country announced on Nov. 18, 2020 the end of the 11th Ebola epidemic that hit the northwestern Equateur Province.

The country's Minister of Public Health Eteni Longondo said the new confirmed case was found in a woman farmer and wife of a survivor of the recent Ebola virus disease in the Butembo health zone in North Kivu. She began to show symptoms on Feb. 1.

As of Tuesday, the North Kivu Province reported four confirmed Ebola cases in total, including one medical staff member.

MEASURES ACTIVATED

Response measures have been put in place to cope with the new outbreaks. In Guinea, more than 150 people have been traced and identified as close contacts of the confirmed cases with 115 of them in N'Zerekore and 10 in the capital Conakry. The close contacts have been put under medical observation.

The N'Zerekore provincial government has suspended the local weekly market and prohibited large gatherings of people such as funerals.

The health ministry will reopen multiple Ebola diagnosis and treatment centers in N'Zerekore, and dispatch two medical expert teams to isolate the affected areas and trace the source of the virus.

ANSS Director Sakoba Keita meanwhile urged the public to refrain from panic, take preventive measures such as frequent hand washing and avoid contact with suspected cases, and promptly consult local health agencies if relevant symptoms appear.

In the DRC, nearly 300 close contacts of the confirmed cases have been traced. In response to the new round of Ebola risk, the Ebola Center in Butembo in North Kivu has been reopened.

The country currently has in stock 10,000 doses of Ebola vaccines, and arrangements have been made for vaccination in Butembo in North Kivu Province, local media reported, citing data from the country's Ebola response task force,

AFRICAN COUNTRIES ON ALERT

African countries, particularly those neighboring Guinea and the DRC, have been on guard following the new Ebola outbreaks.

Uganda's Ministry of Health has strengthened monitoring along its border with the DRC since last week. Health Minister Ruth Aceng said the country has heightened surveillance and preparedness and taken measures to prevent the inflow of Ebola, including intensifying risk communication, re-activation of Ebola Virus Disease district task forces, and dispatch of the rapid response to Kasese district neighboring the DRC.

The government of Sierra Leone on Sunday also activated its Health Emergency Response System following confirmed Ebola cases in neighboring Guinea, and intensified surveillance at the already closed border with Guinea.

In Cote d'Ivoire, the Ministry of Health has urged the public to be alert to Ebola in Guinea and take sanitary measures. The government also said it will further limit the movement of people.

WHO, AU OFFER SUPPORT

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday expressed concern over the resurgence of Ebola in two African countries. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference in Geneva that the outbreaks in Guinea and the DRC are completely unrelated.

He told reporters that the WHO is working closely with health authorities in both countries and that vaccination already started on Monday in the DRC.

The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) of the African Union (AU) announced Sunday that it will deploy an emergency response support team of experts in Guinea to help the country fight a new Ebola outbreak.

The Africa CDC will call for an emergency meeting of experts to better coordinate emergency responses in Guinea and in neighboring countries across the region, in collaboration with the West African Health Organization.

Ebola is a highly contagious hemorrhagic fever that causes a range of symptoms including fever, vomiting, diarrhea, generalized pain or malaise and in many cases internal and external bleeding.

Mortality rates of the viral disease are extremely high, with the human fatality rate ranging from 50 percent to 89 percent, depending on viral subtype, according to the WHO.

The 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola virus outbreak, which mainly hit Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, claimed over 11,300 lives, with more than 28,600 recorded cases.

The Ebola outbreak has compounded challenges to Africa in coping with health emergencies. The Africa CDC said the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases on the African continent reached 3,759,166 as of Tuesday, while the death toll from the disease is almost to hit 100,000. Enditem

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Authorities have released the name of a man killed in a shooting outside a west Birmingham gas station

The Jefferson County Coroners Office identified the victim as Ogle Terrance Avery. He was 40 and lived in Birmingham.

The shooting happened at 8:18 a.m. Wednesday at the Shell at 800 Third Avenue West, said Sgt. Rod Mauldin. West Precinct officers arrived to the find the victim lying in the roadway suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 8:43 a.m.

Mauldin said the investigation shows that the victim, whose identity has not been released, was involved in an altercation in the parking lot and was then shot. He attempted to run away but collapsed on Third Avenue West.

Birmingham police on Thursday said they have a person of interest detained for questioning, however they believe others were involved.

Chaverst Strategies early Wednesday afternoon released this statement on behalf of the Shell owner: The Shell on 3rd would like to extend their thoughts and prayers to the victim of this mornings shooting. Just like many others, we are saddened by the culture of violence that has stricken Birmingham communities.

The Shell on 3rd has done everything possible to prevent tragedies like this from happening. In addition to adding more security and police presence, Shell on 3rd has worked to give back to the community in a plethora of ways including a gas giveaway for Martin Luther King Jr. Day with other organizations, assisting families financially during the COVID pandemic and help to pay funeral expenses for individuals killed in 2020. Shell on 3rd will continue to give back to our communities while providing an essential service to those around.

What happened this morning was out of our control. We had no customers in the store and the parking lot was empty. During the time of the incident the victim was the only person around. We will reach out to the victims family to see how we may assist during this difficult time.

The homicide is Birminghams 14th so far in 2021 and the first in 10 days. In all of Jefferson County there have been 21 killings including the 14 in Birmingham. Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham homicide detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.

PORTAGE, MI -- A Burmese advocacy group is holding a protest for Myanmar during President Joe Bidens visit to a major COVID-19 vaccine production facility in Portage Friday.

The Protest for Myanmar will be held beginning at noon Friday, Feb. 19, outside the Air Zoo, 6151 Portage Road, according to a Facebook event page.

The event was postponed after Biden delayed his visit to the Pfizer plant just south of Kalamazoo due to weather. Bidens plane, originally expected on Thursday, will now be arriving on Friday at the Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International, Airport Director Craig Williams said.

Pfizer-made coronavirus vaccines began shipping out of Portage on Dec. 13. Though a detailed schedule of Bidens Michigan visit has not yet been released, the president is expected to tour the plan where the COVID-19 vaccine is being produced and to talk with workers there.

A similar protest to the one planned in Portage was held in Grand Rapids on Feb. 12. More than 100 people attended to draw attention to the ongoing political upheaval in Myanmar, previously known as Burma.

Myanmar is in Southeast Asia. After gaining independence from Britain in 1948, the country was ruled by the armed forces from 1962 until 2011, when a new government began ushering in a return to civilian rule, the BBC reported.

On Feb. 1, the military seized control following a general election in which Aung San Suu Kyis National League for Democracy (NLD) party won. The military, which placed Suu Kyi and other members of her party under arrest, has since declared a year-long state of emergency and have been met with protests, according to the BBC.

Tha Tin Par, one of the Portage event organizers, said all Burmese living in Michigan are invited to come out to ask for (Bidens) help for Myanmar.

I think whats different about this event, compared to other events, is that our main, targeted audience is the president of the United States of America, Par said. We are so grateful for his acknowledgment of whats happening in Burma and also the humanitarian aid that he has released. But, we know things in Burma are not getting better; if anything, theyre getting worse.

We just really want him to continue to come up with different strategies to effectively end the coup in Burma.

Par said organizers believe Portage Road will be closed around noon for the president, so advised attendees they should arrive early.

The United Kingdom, European Union and Australia are among those to have condemned the military takeover in Myanmar. Biden has threatened to reinstate sanctions, according to the BBC.

Burma is in its infancy of becoming a democratic society, Par said, and citizens living abroad see the U.S. as a prime example of democracy.

I think it is critical for the U.S. to pay attention to whats happening in Burma and to play an active role in really birthing democracy and making sure that it flourishes, she said.

Attendees to Fridays protest are encouraged to follow CDC guidelines, to dress warmly and to bring their own chair and protest signs.

Also on MLive:

Pfizer workers, past and present, cheer on vaccine maker ahead of President Bidens Portage visit

Pfizer and Moderna vaccines work against new variants, new studies say

Bidens visit to Michigan Pfizer facility highlights focus on vaccine distribution, economic relief
WALTHAM, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world leader in serving science, today announced it has won six awards in the annual CMO Leadership Awards. The awards, presented by Life Science Leader and Outsourced Pharma, recognize top contract manufacturing partners as evaluated by biopharma and biotech companies.

Thermo Fisher won across all six categories, including: Capabilities, Compatibility, Expertise, Quality, Reliability and Service. This is the second consecutive year Thermo Fisher has received this recognition across all six categories and eighth time overall that the company has been honored by the CMO Leadership Awards.

"This year more than ever, Thermo Fisher is proud to be recognized for our ability to serve our biopharma and biotech customers with speed, flexibility and scale," said Mike Shafer, senior vice president and president, pharma services, Thermo Fisher Scientific. "We look forward to continuing to accelerate innovation and drive productivity for our customers globally so they can deliver critical medicines and critical vaccines to patients at a time of unprecedented demand."

The CMO Leadership Awards, based on the annual Contract Manufacturing Quality Benchmarking survey conducted by Industry Standard Research (ISR), assessed more than 70 contract manufacturers on 23 performance metrics. Survey participants included pharma and biopharma companies of all sizes and were screened for decision-making influence related to directly working with contract manufacturing organizations within the past 18 months.

"These past months reinforced the criticality of the services and partnership models provided by CMOs to biopharma organizations of all sizes," says Louis Garguilo, chief editor and conference chair, Outsourced Pharma. "In fact, much of the drug development and manufacturing industry was sustained by reliable outsourcing in the face of a horrible pandemic. That reliability was a result of constant dedication to customers  and perhaps one attribute above all  flexibility."

Thermo Fisher offers a comprehensive range of industry-leading services for both small and large molecule product portfolios, including drug substance and drug product development, viral vector and cGMP plasmid manufacturing, clinical trial services and commercial-scale manufacturing and packaging.

To learn more about the CMO Leadership Awards, please visit https://www.cmoleadershipawards.com/.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science, with annual revenue exceeding $30 billion. Our Mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. Whether our customers are accelerating life sciences research, solving complex analytical challenges, improving patient diagnostics and therapies or increasing productivity in their laboratories, we are here to support them. Our global team of more than 80,000 colleagues delivers an unrivaled combination of innovative technologies, purchasing convenience and pharmaceutical services through our industry-leading brands, including Thermo Scientific, Applied Biosystems, Invitrogen, Fisher Scientific, Unity Lab Services and Patheon. For more information, please visit www.thermofisher.com.

Marcia Goff

Thermo Fisher Scientific

+1.508.902.7041

[email protected]

Rachel Robbins

Greenough

+1.781.249.9490

[email protected]

SOURCE Thermo Fisher Scientific

Related Links

http://www.thermofisher.com


China dethroned the U.S. last year to become Europes top trading partner for the first time, data from the European statistics office has shown, CNBC informs. European Union exports to China grew by 2.2% last year and imports rose by 5.6%. In comparison, exports to the U.S. dropped by 8.2% and imports fell by 13.2%. The latest figures, released Monday by Eurostat, showed that China now has an even bigger role in how European economies perform.

The reason behind it is clearly the fact that China/Asia is the only region going through a nice V-shaped recovery, ING Germany economist Carsten Brzeski told CNBC on Tuesday. China, where the first Covid-19 cases were reported, has not gone through severe social restrictions for a second time as has been the case in many European nations.

As a result, the Chinese economy is performing slightly closer to pre-Covid levels in comparison with other parts of the world, where restrictions are still taking a toll on activity. China is expected to register the second-highest growth rate globally in 2021, according to forecasts from the International Monetary Fund.

Looking ahead, the importance China has for European trade is also a clear dilemma, Brzeski said, adding that Europe will have a hard time making choices between trading with China and helping the U.S. on the technology front.

The U.S. and EU have clashed with Beijing over 5G and technology transfers  when a government asks foreign firms to share their tech in exchange for market access. At the same time, Washington and Brussels also have concerns over human rights in China. The risk is that compromising and balancing between the two will hamper future growth, Brzeski said. However, the European Union seems willing to strengthen economic ties with China. The two reached a new investment agreement in December aimed at making it easier for European firms to operate in China.

The deal, which seemed to have been rushed through before Joe Bidens inauguration in late January, prohibits China from stopping access or introducing new discriminatory practices on manufacturing and some service sectors.

At the time of the announcement, European trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis said: The current crisis gives us no other option but to work hand in hand with our global partners, including China. By pulling together we can recover more quickly economically, and make progress on areas of mutual interest such as trade and investment relations, he said in a statement. The agreement has yet to be approved by European lawmakers, some of whom are critical of the Chinese government and are reluctant to sign it off.
A picture of the AFP detector taken during its installation in the LHC tunnel. The quartz time-of-flight detector is on the left, the silicon pixel detectoron the right. Credit: IFJ PAN

Creation of matter in an interaction of two photons belongs to a class of very rare phenomena. From the data of the ATLAS experiment at the LHC, collected with the new AFP proton detectors at the highest energies available to-date, a more accurateand more interestingpicture of the phenomena occurring during photon collisions is emerging.

If you point a glowing flashlight towards another one, you do not expect any spectacular phenomena. The photons emitted by both flashlights simply pass by each other. However, in certain collisions involving high-energy protons the situation is different. The photons emitted by two colliding particles may interact and create a pair of matter and antimatter particles. Traces of processes such as these have just been observed in the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN near Geneva. Precise observations were carried out using the new AFP (ATLAS Forward Proton) spectrometer, developed with significant participation of scientists from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN) in Cracow. The Polish physicists, funded by the National Science Centre and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, have been involved in the development of AFP detectors since the conception of these devices.

"Observations of the creation of particles of matter and antimatter from electromagnetic radiation go back to the beginnings of nuclear physics," says Prof. Janusz Chwastowski, head of the team of physicists at the IFJ PAN involved in the AFP detectors.

Indeed, it was February 1933 when Patrick Blackett (Nobel 1948) and Giuseppe Occhialini reported an observation of the creation of an electron-positron pair initiated by a quantum of cosmic radiation. The creation of matter and antimatter was therefore noticed earlier than the reverse process, i.e. the famous and spectacular positron annihilation. The first observations of the latter were made in August 1933 by Theodor Heiting, and three months later by Frederic Joliot.

"In the most commonly recorded events of creation, one photon transforms into a particle and an antiparticle. In contrast, the phenomenon we are studying is of a different nature. The particle-antiparticle pair arises here due to the interaction of two photons. The possibility of such processes was first reported by Gregory Breit and John A. Wheeler in 1934," continues Prof. Chwastowski.

As a charged particle, the proton moving inside the LHC beam pipe is surrounded by an electric field. Since the carriers of electromagnetic interactions are photons, the proton can be treated as an object surrounded by photons.

"In the LHC beam pipe, protons reach velocities very close to the speed of light. A proton and the surrounding field undergo the Lorentz contraction along the direction of motion. Thus, from our point of view, a proton moving at almost the speed of light is associated with particularly violent oscillations of the electromagnetic field. When such a proton approaches another one accelerated in the opposite directionsand this is the situation we are dealing with at the LHCan interaction between the photons may occur," explains Dr. Rafal Staszewski (IFJ PAN).

In the LHC accelerator, collisions between photons can happen when protons fly past each other inside the ATLAS detector. Pairs of the created leptons are detected inside the ATLAS, while the protons that were the photon sources are observed by AFP detectors located approximately 200 m from the collision point. Credit: IFJ PAN

At the LHC, collisions of highly energetic proton beams occur in several places, including the one located inside the giant ATLAS detector. If two photons collide, the result could be an electron-positron pair or a muon-antimuon pair (a muon is about 200 times more massive than an electron). These particles, which belong to the lepton family, produced at large angles with respect to the proton beams, are recorded inside the main ATLAS detector. Such phenomena have been observed at the LHC before.

"The point is, we have two more protagonists of two-photon processes! These are, naturally, the photon sources, i.e. the two passing protons. Thus we get to the essence of our measurement," says Dr. Staszewski and explains: "As a result of the photon emission, each proton loses some energy but, importantly, it practically does not change the direction of its motion. So, it escapes the detector together with other protons in the beam. However, the proton that emitted the photon has a slightly lower energy than the beam protons. Therefore, the accelerator magnetic field deflects it more, and this means that it gradually moves away from the beam. These are the protons we are hunting for with our AFP spectrometers."

Each of the four AFP tracking units contains four sensors: 16x20 mm semiconductor pixel plates, placed one behind the other. A proton that passes through the sensors deposits some energy and thus it activates the pixels on its path. By analyzing all the activated pixels, the proton path and properties can be reconstructed.

The need to record protons only slightly deflected from the main beam means that the AFP spectrometers have to be inserted directly inside the LHC beam pipe, just a few millimeters away from the circulating beams.

"When you are operating so close to a particle beam with such high energies, you have to be aware of the risks. The smallest error in the positioning of the spectrometer could result in burning a hole in it. It would be very upsetting, but that would really be the least of our problems. The resulting debris would contaminate at least a part of the accelerator causing its shut down for some time," notes Prof. Chwastowski.

The measurements described here were carried out with AFP spectrometers placed at a distance of about 200 m from the point at which the protons collided.

"Protons interact at the LHC in many ways. As a result, the protons observed in the AFP spectrometers may originate from processes other than those associated with photon-photon interactions. To search for the right protons, we needed to have precise knowledge about the properties of each particle," emphasizes Ph.D. student Krzysztof Ciesla (IFJ PAN), who dealt with the initial analysis of the raw data collected by the AFP spectrometers in 2017 and converting them into information about the energies and momenta of the registered protons. The results of the proton energy measurements were then juxtaposed with the energies of the created lepton pair and, based on conservation principles, it was determined whether the observed proton could be the source of the interacting photon.

The measurements using the AFP spectrometers proved to be highly statistically significant, at nine standard deviations (sigma). For comparison, a five-sigma measurement is usually sufficient to announce a scientific discovery. So, the AFP spectrometers have successfully passed the test, proved the usefulness of the method and provided very interesting, though still unclear, results. It turned out that theoretical predictions do not fully agree with the determined characteristics of the investigated interactions. Clearly there are hidden nuances in the two-photon processes observed in high energy proton-proton collisions that require better understanding and further measurements.

Explore further ATLAS finds evidence of a rare Higgs boson decay

More information: G. Aad et al, Observation and Measurement of Forward Proton Scattering in Association with Lepton Pairs Produced via the Photon Fusion Mechanism at ATLAS, Physical Review Letters (2020). Journal information: Physical Review Letters G. Aad et al, Observation and Measurement of Forward Proton Scattering in Association with Lepton Pairs Produced via the Photon Fusion Mechanism at ATLAS,(2020). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.125.261801

Provided by The Henryk Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics Polish Academy of Sciences
In order to give an edge to the farmers 'protests against the farm laws, the farmers' organisations announced a 'rail roko' protest on Thursday.

The police have also increased the security along the border in wake of the "rail roko".

Speaking on about the movement, Spokesperson of Bharatiya Kisan Union Rakesh Tikait told IANS in the day earlier: "Where the trains are running? Only one-two trains trains are being operated. We would also request to the government that run more trains".

"The government has stopped the trains since last eight months, public is facing trouble. Whichever the train would come, we would stop that and offer water and milk to the passengers along with offering flowers. And, we'll tell them that what problems are we facing," he said.

When the train stops, is it not that passengers are abused? In response to this question, Tikait said, "Who will misbehave? Whoever does will be prosecuted." Train Stop campaign will be peaceful. The passengers will be distributed gram, milk and water, he added.

Although the farmers organisations are calling this campaign symbolic, the police-administration and the Railways have made preparations to deal with it. At the same time security has been increased at Singhu, Tikri and other places where protesters are sitting.

However, the farmers sitting at the Ghazipur border will not shift anywhere.

Convenor of Jai Kisan movement Yogendra Yadav has also said that we blocked the road at the time when the traffic is lowest and similarly, the train traffic remains low during day time as long distance trains mostly run at night.

The farmer organisations want to mount pressure on the Centre to roll-back the three farms laws that they are describing as anti-farmers.

(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.)
LAS VEGAS - Federal prosecutors are expected to file drug and weapons charges against the original bass guitarist for Panic! At The Disco, the musicians lawyer told a Las Vegas judge on Wednesday.

Defense attorney Dustin Marcello, left, addresses the court during Brent Wilson's status check at the Regional Justice Center, on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Las Vegas. Marcello, said he expects an indictment to be filed within days in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas. Wilson has been jailed since his arrest Jan. 22 on felony drug possession and gun charges. (Bizuayehu Tesfaye/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP)

LAS VEGAS - Federal prosecutors are expected to file drug and weapons charges against the original bass guitarist for Panic! At The Disco, the musicians lawyer told a Las Vegas judge on Wednesday.

Brent Matthew Wilsons attorney, Dustin Marcello, told Justice of the Peace Eric Goodman that he expects an indictment to be filed within days in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas. The local judge postponed a hearing on state charges until March 3.

Wilson, 33, a founding member of the Las Vegas-born band, appeared in court in shackles and jail clothing, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported . He has been jailed since Jan. 22 on felony drug possession and gun charges.

Wilson pleaded guilty in July 2018 to felony drug possession. Prosecutors say he is prohibited from having a gun and was in violation of his probation curfew when he was arrested last month.

Las Vegas police said Wilson was stopped while driving a vehicle that failed to yield to oncoming traffic. Officers reported finding a "white powder substance" and an unregistered handgun in the car and a small amount of a substance believed to be heroin in Wilson's pants pocket.

Wilson left Panic! At The Disco in 2006, after the groups first two years.
The American Chamber of Commerce in Romania - AmCham Romania considers that the 2021 state budget represents a step ahead towards Romania's development through investments and fiscal consolidation, noting a series of positive trends, but also certain areas that require increased attention in the implementation of the budget, according to AGERPRES.

"First of all, regarding expenditures, a component on which the business community has always called for an efficient and prudent approach, similar to the private sector practice, we welcome the fact that this is a consolidation budget, by limiting direct expenditures. Also in terms of expenditures, we notice an important increase in allocation for investments, which would double compared to the pre-pandemic years to an unprecedented level for Romania. The investments are intended for infrastructure, health and education, areas that AmCham Romania considers essential, and which we believe could have benefited from additional allocations. We hope that these targets will be enabled by increasing the administrative capacity for their execution, a chapter in which Romania has significant potential for improvement," the organization said in a release.

Secondly, regarding revenues, AmCham Romania considers that increasing the collection rate remains a promise made by many governments, yet to be fulfilled, which "leads us to believe that the government that will achieve this performance will remain in Romania's economic history."

Overall, AmCham Romania welcomes the start of fiscal consolidation, but at the same time voices its belief that more courageous measures are needed to limit the structural deficit for 2022 - 2024, as for the time being it remains well above the midterm objective, both by reducing expenditures and by increasing the collection rate of fiscal revenues and a major improvement of the EU funds absorption.

"We trust that a coherent state budget, reflecting the economic realities and addressing the current challenges, correlated with a well-designed National Recovery and Resilience Plan, will be defining for the way Romania will use the window of opportunity 2021 - 2023, until the next elections, to achieve structural reforms, maintain macroeconomic balance and capitalize on opportunities to reposition the Romanian economy in the global value chain," the release states in conclusion.
IF you have absolutely no urgent or emergency need to be outdoors today, then remain at home.

Should you take a chance and decide to tempt fate, then it may most likely result in you being stopped and questioned by police officers and members of the Defence Force, or even find yourself charged and taken before a court.

Emperor Energy and APA Group established a Memorandum of Understanding relating to the Judith Gas Project offshore Victoria in October 2019.

The company has a strong management team with extensive exploration and financial experience.

( ) director Carl Dumbrell has demonstrated his confidence in the company with the purchase of shares in an on-market transaction.

Dumbrell, who is also company secretary, acquired 206,437 shares increasing the total number of securities held to more than 8.109 million shares.

Following the purchase, Dumbrell has boosted his substantial interest in the company to 5.78%.

Completion of pre-FEED for Judith Gas Field

The company recently welcomed the completion of pre-front end engineering design (pre-FEED) by for the provision of midstream infrastructure and services related to gas to be produced from the 100%-owned Judith Gas Field in Victoria.

This is an important step in Emperor's plan to produce has from Judith in the 100%-owned VIC/P47 Permit in the offshore Gippsland Basin.

Pre-FEED documents and a summary report have been received by Emperor Energy and subsequently accepted by the board of directors.

APA has carried out the pre-feed work using a balanced combination of in-house and external expertise.
2021 CRN MSP 500 "We have invested significantly in our Managed Services practice by adding additional toolsets and headcount to manage our six core solution areas."

ConRes announced today that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named ConRes to its 2021 Managed Service Provider (MSP) 500 list in the Security 100 category. The list, released annually, recognizes the leading North American solution providers that have demonstrated innovative and forward-thinking approaches to managed services. These services help end users improve operational efficiencies and navigate the ongoing complexities of IT solutions, while maximizing their return on IT investments.

With cutting-edge approaches to delivering managed services, MSPs have become an integral part of the success of businesses worldwide. They help empower organizations to leverage complex technologies, keeping a strict focus on their core business without straining their budgets. CRNs 2021 MSP 500 list identifies the markets key managed services players who are setting themselves apart with best-of-breed solutions that provide the business outcomes customers need.

The MSP 500 list is divided into three sections: the MSP Pioneer 250, recognizing companies with business models weighted toward managed services and largely focused on the SMB market; the MSP Elite 150, recognizing large, data center-focused MSPs with a strong mix of on-premises and off-premises services; and the Managed Security 100, recognizing MSPs focused primarily on off-premises and cloud-based security services.

The ConRes Managed Services practice is completely focused on the customer. The creation of a Technical Account Manager Role has solidified this focus by establishing the following processes: onboarding and project management, alignment with Professional Services and Sales to ensure the customer receives the best service, identifying and managing process improvements, hosting weekly cadence calls with customers, delivering monthly reports and prioritizing customer requirements.

Effective MSPs enable companies to focus on their core objectives while improving the quality and reliability of their cloud computing capabilities, said Blaine Raddon, CEO of The Channel Company. The solution providers on CRNs 2021 MSP 500 list deserve recognition for their innovative and forward-thinking approaches to managed services, and the ability to optimize operational efficiencies and systems to maximize return on investments.

ConRes is proud to be named to the 2021 MSP 500 List, says Andy Chiquoine, Chief Technologist for Managed Services at ConRes. "We have invested significantly in our Managed Services practice by adding additional toolsets and headcount to manage our six core solution areas. Our engineers have a breadth of experience and the most advanced certifications in the industry. This experience and expertise allow our team to solve our customers IT problems before they arise, proactively managing their infrastructure and driving agility so they can focus on whats important to their business.

The MSP 500 list will be featured in the February 2021 issue of CRN and online at http://www.CRN.com/msp500.

About ConRes

Backed by 55+ years of customer dedication, ConRes is a Private, Family, Women-Owned IT solutions provider bringing best-of-breed technology solutions and managed services together to solve business problems. By combining top-level manufacturer partnerships, highly skilled professional services and a state-of-the-art Integration & Logistics Center, we bring value by delivering end-to-end solutions across cloud, collaboration, cybersecurity, data center, digital infrastructure and DevOps.

About The Channel Company

The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequalled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. http://www.thechannelcompany.com
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Stellar Health ("Stellar"), a healthcare technology company leading the way in value-based care delivery, recently announced the appointment of Dr. Catherine Gaffigan, Dr. David Carmouche, Bunny Ellerin, Michael Akinyele, and Dr. John Fitzgerald to its Board of Advisors.

Stellar saw tremendous growth in 2020 with both payors and providers. Through partnerships with over 45 collaborations across 18 states, Stellar manages outcomes for 300,000+ lives. The company looks to their Board of Advisors to guide strategic decisions, inform the evolution of their point-of-care platform, and broaden client relationships across the United States. Each new appointee to Stellar's Board of Advisors, brings a unique perspective and experience that contributes to Stellar's success in advancing value-based care through the use of behavioral economics and user-friendly technology. In addition, the Board of Advisors actively participates in a company-wide mentorship program, where they volunteer their time to mentor team members at the company.

"Our new Board of Advisors have meaningful expertise in key areas of healthcare, such as, government and community organization leadership, regulatory and compliance, new innovative healthcare 2.0 models, health system strategy, and payor network development, that will contribute to our evolving business model," said Michael Meng, CEO of Stellar Health. "I am confident these individuals will give rise to exciting opportunities and strengthen Stellar's position in the market as the preferred partner to bring payors and providers together in value-based care. We are thrilled to welcome them to the team."

Dr. Catherine Gaffigan has spent the past two decades in a variety of roles in U.S. healthcare, primarily at the intersection of payors and providers. Recently, she rejoined Aetna, a CVS Health Company, as President of Arizona and Northwest Mountain Markets. Prior to joining Aetna, Dr. Gaffigan led all provider contracting, provider relations, and provider partnership innovation for Cambia Health Solutions in the Northwest. Throughout her career, Dr. Gaffigan has spent time working with providers to achieve positive outcomes in their value-based arrangements, making her an ideal candidate to help grow the Stellar Health Platform.

"I strongly believe we must change the economic incentives in our healthcare system. Stellar addresses these core issues by (1) helping the provider and their care team identify what can be done to drive improved cost, quality, and consumer experience, (2) rewarding the actual person on the care team who is performing the action that drives value, and (3) rewarding practices for those actions and their outcomes in near-real time," described Dr. Gaffigan. "Stellar enables providers to prioritize the health of their patients and deliver the best care possible for complex and chronic populations."

Dr. David Carmouche brings over 23 years of progressive healthcare leadership to Stellar's Board of Advisors. As Senior Vice President, Community Care at Ochsner Health System and President of Ochsner Health Network, he serves on the organization's senior management team and leads Ochsner's value-based care delivery organization. Dr. Carmouche states, "the Stellar Health Platform fits into the workflow of all provider practices. From small practices to large health systems, Stellar takes innovative technology and information to the clinical setting in the simplest way."

Bunny Ellerin has dedicated her career to driving change in healthcare. She is currently the Director of Columbia Business School's Healthcare Management Program. Bunny co-founded and serves as the President of NYC Healthy Business Leaders (NYCHBL), a community of 4,500 healthcare executives, entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors. Bunny believes Stellar has the tools to drive providers to take on more risk in their value-based care contracts and is excited to support the team as a member of the Board of Advisors.

Michael Akinyele, is the former, founding Chief Innovation Officer of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ("VA"), the largest federal civilian agency. His efforts at the VA were primarily focused on implementing Section 152 of the MISSION Act of 2018, which authorized the creation of a Center for Innovation for Care and Payment. Michael explained, "the Stellar approach to enabling value-based care incentive models can and should be used to power Direct Contracting Entities ("DCE") and their performance. Fundamentally, Stellar can be viewed as a key tool for improving compliance with timely completion of preventative screenings which improve health outcomes and reduce unnecessary curative care."

As a practicing general internist, Dr. John Fitzgerald has almost 30 years of experience in senior management roles with physician group practices, developing population health programs, and leading risk bearing provider-based managed care organizations. Most recently, he led population health efforts at Indiana University Health ("IUH") and was CEO of IUH's ACO where he started to recognize the importance of activating providers at the point of care.

"Stellar provides the entire practice with timely rewards and activates physicians at the point of care," said Dr. Fitzgerald. "The key components needed to achieve success in value-based care programs start with creating behavioral change at the end-user level."

As Stellar continues to scale, this industry leading Board of Advisors will continue to help define the next steps for Stellar's innovation in value-based care and support their continued growth in 2021. In March, Stellar will be hosting a Women's Panel open to all healthcare stakeholders where Dr. Catherine Gaffigan, Bunny Ellerin, Nanette DeTurk, and Karen Janousek will be participating to share their experiences and insights as they've navigated the healthcare landscape. If you're interested in attending, please register here or email [email protected] for more information.

About Stellar Health: Stellar Health is a point-of-care, cloud-based platform that activates primary care providers to achieve value-based care goals that improve patient outcomes, such as optimizing the patient care journey and improving quality scores through transitions of care and high-value referrals. The Stellar Health Platform helps primary care providers continually engage with their patients by providing them real-time information and tangible action-based incentives for improving quality of care. Stellar Health's mission is to enable all physicians to engage and succeed in value-based care by bridging the incentive gap between providers and payors. If you would like more information, please contact Stellar Health at [email protected] or visit their website at www.stellar.health.

Contact Stellar Health  Sarah Barrett

Email [email protected]

Phone Number (929) 382-4886

Website http://www.stellar.health/

SOURCE Stellar Health

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Xu Xianqin, Vice-Minister of Rites, overseeing the imperial civil service exam circa 1587, during the Ming Dynasty. Credit: Public domain.

The media has been rife with stories about democracy in decline: the recent coup in Myanmar, the ascent of strongman Narendra Modi in India, and of course ex-President Trump's attempts to overturn the U.S. presidential electionall of which raise alarms about the current status of democracies worldwide. Such threats to the voices of the people are often attributed to the excesses of individual leaders.

But while leadership is certainly important, over the past decade, as established democracies like Venezuela and Turkey fell and others slid toward greater authoritarianism, political scientists and pundits have largely overlooked a key factor: how governments are funded. In a new study in the journal Current Anthropology, a team of anthropologists assembled data on 30 pre-modern societies, and conducted a quantitative analysis of the features and durability of "good governance"that is, receptiveness to citizen voice, provision of goods and services, and limited concentration of wealth and power. The results showed that societies based on a broad, equitable, well-managed tax system and functioning bureaucracies were statistically more likely to have political institutions that were more open to public input and more sensitive to the well-being of the populace.

For more than a century, the accepted textbook account of democracy was that it was peculiarly modern, a purely Western phenomenon born of the "commercial restlessness" of European nations, with older agrarian/rural polities viewed as static and authoritarian. However, the current crises of democratic "backsliding" have prompted a deeper dive by anthropologists and political historians into the core features, origins, and sustainability of modern democracy.

"The decline we are seeing today in many democratic governments is difficult to get a handle on," says Richard Blanton, professor emeritus at Purdue University, and the study's lead author. "In a sense, there's a fundamental tension at the heart of every democracy: the greater good versus individual self-interest. We wanted to identify the factors that motivate both leaders and citizens to maintain more egalitarian systems, given the potential of power to corrupt. As archaeologists, we know that the past always has lessons for the present."

Blanton and his co-authors assembled data on 30 pre-modern societies, broke them down into numerically coded variables, and generated statistically significant scores for "good government" measurespublic goods (like transportation infrastructure, wider access to water, and food security), bureaucratization (citizen voice, equitable taxation, official accountability), and controls over authorities (impeachment ability, limits on leaders' control of resources, institutions that checked each other's clout).

The researchers, including Gary Feinman of the Field Museum in Chicago, Lane Fargher of the Instituto Politecnico NacionalUnidad in Merida, Mexico, and Stephen Kowalewski of the University of Georgia, were initially surprised by the results. The case studies covered thousands of years of human history and spanned the globe, from the Venetian Republic (1290 to 1600) to the early-mid Ming Dynasty (15th century) to the Asante Kingdom in West Africa (1800 to 1873), but despite the great diversity of geographical, cultural, historical, and social contexts, there was a positive correlation between the three metrics. Capable bureaucracies, public goods, and limits on rulers tended to occur together in relatively good governments, and were largely absent in more autocratic regimes. As Blanton says, "although what we call good governments were not commononly 27% of our examples had relatively high scoresit's clear that it is both a global and trans-historical social process that existed well before Western history and influence." This unexpected finding led the authors to reconsider the broader and causal factors that shape democracy.

Today, we tend to equate democracy with elections, but electoral democracies are a fairly recent phenomenon. They are not the only way to assess the voice of citizens, and elections alone are not sufficient to ensure the public's voice in government, or that personal power of leaders is checked. "The key elements of democracies are not elections themselves," says the Field Museum's Gary Feinman, "but rather features like the rule of law, checks and balances on official power, and tools to assess the will of the governed."

Ming Emperor Xianzong (reigned 1464  1487) presiding over the Chinese Lantern Festival. Credit: Public domain.

Economics are key, the authors argue. Evidence overwhelmingly demonstrates that authoritarian regimes have broad discretion over a nation's wealth, for both personal and political gain. In the study's more authoritarian examples, there were few limits on self-serving leaders, and little incentive to ensure equitable distribution of public goods, or to monitor government administration. "It's no coincidence that the legend of Robin Hood arose in 14th century England," says Feinman, "where our coding identified ill-conceived and oppressive taxing schemes that diverted wealth into private hands." Conversely, the statistical models show that the more democratic systems were marked by broadly based tax revenues, which were responsibly managed by governments. In short, taxpayers generally comply if they see that the government is meeting expectations, and government authorities are incentivized to ensure that revenues will be used for the public good, and not for private gain.

In the United States, these realities were recognized during the founding of our country and that has contributed to the relative longevity of our democracy, Feinman observes. "James Madison put checks and balances in the Constitution because the Founders knew they could not rely on the virtue of leaders alone. One of the key changes in transforming the Articles of Confederation into the Constitution was to give the federal government a stronger foundation to raise funds."

This also underlines the authors' point that leaders, whether virtuous or selfish, are less important than the economic foundations of government, provisioning of public goods/services, and the bureaucratic institutions needed for both. "Look at Iraq after Saddam Hussein," says Feinman. "You could institute voting, and power-sharing agreements, but without an equitable means of financing and provisioning, it didn't matter how much shifting of leaders occurred. The system failed."

Likewise, although a majority of people in the U.S. and abroad see Donald Trump as a threat to American democracy and governance, the threats were four decades in the making, with the increasing inequity of the tax base, the devaluing of labor, the lack of infrastructure and public goods funding. "The market fundamentalism that was ushered in with President Reagan, Fed Chair Alan Greenspan, and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during the 1980s encouraged people to pursue financial self-interest with no restraint or regulation. Cutting taxes on the wealthy and starving government undermines democracy," says Feinman.

Like modern democracies, good governments have always been fragile and hard to maintain. Across time, neither monarchies nor democracies guaranteed good governance nor excluded its possibility. Rather, the main causal factor was the way that governance was fiscally funded. Above all, the authors of this article emphasize that politics and economics cannot be decoupled in understanding government quality. Nor can we assess by ideologies alone. Rather, we must look at the practice of governance and how it affects people. "Functioning bureaucracy and broad-based, equitable taxation are not stumbling blocks to good governance, as many on both the left and right have argued for years," says Blanton. "Rather, as our historical analysis illustrates, they are key legs of the stool."

For modern-day America and other faltering democracies, the implication is that the global turn toward market fundamentalism 40 years ago, which included reduced taxation rates and lowered values on labor, is likely a key cause of democratic backsliding over the same era. As Feinman notes, "in 1936 Franklin Delano Roosevelt said that 'political equality [is] meaningless in the face of economic inequality." But in fact, extreme economic inequality and the monopolization of resources required to fund government may render political equality unsustainable."

Explore further History shows that societies collapse when leaders undermine social contracts

More information: Richard E. Blanton, Lane F. Fargher, Gary M. Feinman, and Stephen A. Kowalewski. "The Fiscal Economy of Good GovernmentPast and Present." Current Anthropology, 62 (1), February 2021. Journal information: Current Anthropology Richard E. Blanton, Lane F. Fargher, Gary M. Feinman, and Stephen A. Kowalewski. "The Fiscal Economy of Good GovernmentPast and Present.", 62 (1), February 2021.
It did not hurt a bit, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said Wednesday, shortly after he became one of the first South Africans to receive the hot-off-the-plane coronavirus vaccine at a public clinic in Cape Towns sprawling Khayelitsha township.

At first, I was a bit terrified of this long needle that was going to be imbedded into my arm, but it happened so quickly, so easily, it was just a prick on my flesh, and I really did not feel much pain, he said.

The 68-year-old president did ask the nurse if he could close his eyes before getting the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine in his left arm, just hours after 80,000 doses of the vaccine landed in South Africa. He smiled and laughed as she administered the shot. The crowd clapped.

South Africa carries the bulk of the continents cases, with 1.49 million confirmed infections and 48,000 deaths

But seriously, Ramaphosa said, this is a big deal. The first shots will go to front-line health workers at public and private clinics. He encouraged his fellow South Africans not to fear the prick.

This day represents a real milestone for us as South Africans that finally the vaccines are here, and they are being administered, he said.

And I was rather pleased that there were five people who were vaccinated before me, and they are health workers, and it was a joy to watch them to see whether anything had happened to them, the president said, prompting laughter. Gladly, nothing had happened to them.

It means that being vaccinated, it's a fairly straightforward process. And I'd like to invite South Africans to take this up so that we can all be safe. We can all be healthy, he said.

Wednesdays vaccinations could turn around what had been a disappointing narrative for the continents viral epicenter. The nation carries the bulk of the continents cases, with 1.49 million confirmed cases, and 48,000 deaths.

Earlier this month, South Africa received 1 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. Shortly thereafter, it was followed by the disappointing announcement that a study conducted in South Africa found that the vaccine is not totally effective against the highly contagious variant of the virus that is prevalent in South Africa.

Health Minister Zweli Mkhize told local media that another 420,000 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine would land in the next four weeks, along with another 20 million doses of the two-shot Pfizer vaccine.

In all, South Africa plans to inoculate 40 million people  about 67% of the population.
The EU passenger car market registered an accelerated decline in January, with new car registrations falling by 24% year-on-year to 726,491 units, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA).

Due to a combination of factors, such as Covid-19 restrictions dampening sales across the EU and fewer business days, January suffered the lowest total of new car registrations on record.

Of the four major European markets, Spain suffered the most severe decline at 51.5%. The German market was hit with a 31.1% loss followed by Italy and France with a 14% and 5.8% decrease, respectively. Conversely, Sweden boasted a 22.5% increase.

Discrepancies between the individual European markets are particularly stark when assessing regional progress towards electrification. While Norway and the Netherlands have adequate electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, other markets have fallen behind.

Subsequently, carmakers, environmentalists and consumer groups have called for targets on EV-chargers by 2024 and 2029, across the EU.



Earlier this week, the ACEA, Transport & Environment (T&E) and the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) asked the EU climate, transport, industry and energy commissioners to use this years revision of the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure law to require 1 million public charging points by 2024, and 3 million by 2029.

Ubiquitous and easy charging

William Todts, executive director of T&E, commented: If were serious about global warming we need to go electric fast. To speed up the transition we need ubiquitous and easy charging not just in Norway and the Netherlands but across Europe. EV charging targets per country are a great way to make that happen and the Commission should stop dragging its feet over this.

Establishing such targets will provide reassurance to consumers that the number of public charging points will keep pace with the accelerating sales of EVs in Europe.

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Facilitating the creation of 1m jobs across the bloc, the targets would also help with progression towards climate goals whilst granting certainty to the automotive industry, grid operators and transport companies.

According to Oliver Zipse, ACEA president and CEO of BMW, electrification progress driven by automakers is threatened by the delayed installation of charging infrastructure in the EU.

Zipse added: The EU Commission quickly needs to take action and set binding targets for the ramp-up of charging infrastructure in the member states. Otherwise, even the current reduction targets in fighting climate change are at risk. In addition to public charging infrastructure, we also need to put a stronger focus on workplace and home charging.

Region-specific targets

The targets should be allocated to each country via a simple and fair methodology accounting for factors such as the availability of private charging. Increasing inline with the rise of EVs on the road, the EU should also address the growing needs of EV drivers with reduced access to private charging.

The groups also called on the European Commission to propose replacing the directive with regulation to help harmonise re-charging standards, payment methods for consumers, tariff transparency, maintenance and other issues across the EU common market. Regulation would also allow for swift implementation of the new targets while a directive would require their transposition into national law, which can take years.
For most healthcare providers, the pandemics early days stretched the limits of their capabilities for care, with many struggling with staffing strategies in response to COVID-19. But for Northwell Health, a major healthcare provider in and around New York City, those initial weeks also stress-tested an ongoing HR system migration, resulting in innovative features the provider hadnt planned for before the pandemic hit.

Northwells HR transformation began in early 2018, when the provider sought to replace the PeopleSoft system it used to manage its 74,000 staff providing care in Manhattan, Staten Island, Queens and nearby Westchester.

PeopleSoft felt like an end-of-life product that was not meeting our business objectives, says Elina Petrillo, Northwells assistant vice president for HR technology. Among those objectives: to provide a better, self-service experience for staff and management, replete with up-to-date dashboards, extensive and efficient, and capable of providing access to the data it held, making it not just a system of record but a tool for analysis and improvement, she says.

We had brought in another vendor to do an overlay on PeopleSoft to make it more friendly, and made a couple of transactions mobile-aware, but it was still very limited in the number of transactions that you could perform and in the experience itself, Petrillo says, adding that there also were issues integrating Northwells recruitment platform, Taleo, with PeopleSoft.

Despite the difficulties Northwell was experiencing with PeopleSoft and Taleo, both Oracle products, Northwell chose Oracles HCM Cloud as their replacement.



ALBERT LEA, Minn.  A trial date is set for the man accused of shooting three people, including a police officer, during a nine-hour standoff.

Devin Matthew Weiland, 21 of Albert Lea, is charged with three counts of 1st degree attempted murder and three counts of 2nd degree assault with a dangerous weapon. Authorities say that during a standoff at the Shady Oaks apartment complex on November 29, 2020, Weiland fired between 75 and 90 rounds and hit a police officer and two other victims.

All three suffered what are described as non-life threatening injuries.

On Wednesday, a trial date for Weiland was entered in online court records. His trial is scheduled to begin on September 21.

Weiland remains in the Freeborn County Jail on $1 million bond.
This year, Ukraine and NATO will develop additional measures and practical steps to improve military interoperability under the Enhanced Opportunities Partnership (EOP) program.

Director of the NATO Information and Documentation Centre in Ukraine Vineta Kleine said this during the panel discussion entitled "Stability and Security: What Can Ukraine Learn from NATO?" on February 17, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

Kleine noted that Ukraine's obtaining the status of an Enhanced Opportunities Partner is a recognition of our country's important contribution to NATO's operations, exercises and response forces.

As an Enhanced Opportunities Partner, Ukraine will be able to gain new opportunities, in particular, improving access to interoperability programs, conducting exercises, sharing information and learning from our common experience This year we will work together with Ukraine to improve the program [Enhanced Opportunities Partnership (EOP) program], there will be additional activities to improve our interoperability," Kleine said.

In this context, she assured that NATO will continue to support Ukraine in its efforts to ensure security and peace.

As reported, on June 12, 2020, the North Atlantic Council recognized Ukraine as an Enhanced Opportunities Partner.

ish
Confiscating Firearms From Law-Abiding Owners Wont Solve Gun Violence

Commentary

The Liberal government introduced Bill C-21 in Parliament this week claiming that it would combat gun violence and keep Canadian communities safe. This is difficult to believe, because none of its provisions address violent crime or deal with the violent misuse of firearms. It does increase the maximum penalty for non-violent firearms crimes from 10 to 14 years.

Bill C-21 contains a number of provisions that amend the Criminal Code and Firearms Act to invent new crimes and simplify gun confiscation. These new crimes and penalties criminalize law-abiding firearms owners, who are not the problem. Ottawa misleads Canadians by claiming that forcing law-abiding men and women to surrender their firearmsfirearms that they have used responsiblywill somehow solve the problems of criminal gang activity or domestic violence.

Confiscating legal property from hunters and sport shooters doesnt remove guns from the streets. None of the newly prohibited firearms are possessed by criminals. Bill C-21 ignores the real problems of criminal violence to focus exclusively on lawful firearms owners. Instead of providing additional resources to police to combat smuggling and drug gangs, this legislation invents new administrative crimes that merely increase the complexity of firearm laws.

Instead of providing support to struggling municipalities dealing with the social and economic problems caused by COVID-19 and subsequent lockdowns, Bill C-21 offers no hope at all. When will governments get serious about helping to resolve the real problems facing troubled youth attracted by gangs or desperate individuals contemplating suicide?

Canadian police chiefs, the RCMP union, and working police members oppose the measures proposed in Bill C-21 because they know that the enforcement of these additional useless laws will take away potentially tens of thousands of policing hours from front-line police work.

On May 1 last year, the government banned, via the Order in Council, hundreds of thousands of legally owned firearms that had never been misused. Nine months later, Bill C-21 finally provides the legal framework justifying this precipitous action, although it remains vague on the details of how this will be accomplished. Perhaps surprisingly, owners of these supposedly dangerous weapons are allowed to keep them until the government gets around to dealing with them, and indigenous Canadians can continue to use them for hunting.

Ignoring criminal violence, Bill C-21 contains two other questionable provisions. It would allow municipalities to ban legal handguns within their boundaries, and streamline the confiscation of firearms from a lawful owner who is accused of posing a threat to themselves or to someone else. This is unjust because no violence need be involvedsuspicions alone are sufficient to prompt a raid by police. Confiscating private property based solely on accusations is a slippery slope. Contrary to what the government claims, these provisions unjustly harm the law-abiding men and women who own and use firearms responsibly.

Allowing municipalities to ban lawful handgun ownership ignores criminals. Since legal firearms are rarely used in criminal violence, this will be ineffective in curbing either gangland shootings or domestic violence. Mayors and city authorities should realize that sport shooters arent the problem. Available data from Statistics Canada confirm that hunters and sport shooters are law-abiding and that legally purchased firearms are rarely involved in criminal violence, either through theft or straw purchases.

The federal government claims that this bill will combat intimate partner violence by creating red flag and yellow flag laws that would allow anyone to apply to the courts for the immediate removal of an individuals firearms. This is redundant and violates due process unnecessarily. Concerned citizens can already alert police to potentially dangerous individuals. This law removes important safeguards that protect harmless, law-abiding people from angry neighbours or former partners.

Bill C-21 will not make women any safer, either. Few spousal murders involve firearms, and those that do involve repeat offenders who already cannot legally own firearms, according to information from Statistics Canada and the RCMP. The problem is domestic abuse, and that should be dealt with by supporting programs for counselling families in crisis as well as re-opening the economy. Providing jobs for the currently unemployed would do more good than inventing new laws and penalties for hunters and sportsmen and women.

The framework set up by Bill C-21 for the firearms banned last May is unjust. It forces legal owners to choose between accepting the governments price for their newly prohibited firearms, or agreeing to strict new regulations that force them to lock up their gun in a safe without being able to take it to the range, or sell it, or even let their heirs inherit it. These firearms are owned by law-abiding men and women who use them for hunting or target shooting. These firearms have never been misused; they were legally purchased and can cost thousands of dollars.

Ottawa calls the newly prohibited firearms assault-style firearms. This is a made-up term to frighten the ignorant. Assault rifles, which are fully automatic and used by the military, were banned decades ago. But this bill seeks to ban anything that merely looks like a military firearm, including regular hunting and target-shooting firearms. The ban includes bolt-action as well as semi-automatic, and even airsoft guns, air guns, and replicas. None of these have been involved in criminal violence.

Confiscating firearms owned by responsible men and women does not remove a single weapon from dangerous individuals. The only firearms this bill will confiscate are those owned by hunters and sport shooters who have been vetted by the police and have dutifully followed all Canadian laws.

The government did not provide a clear estimate of the cost of the program. Ive estimated it could easily be a multibillion-dollar boondogglean absolute waste of taxpayers hard-earned dollars.

Gary A. Mauser is a professor emeritus at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, B.C. His report Do Triggers Pull Fingers? A Look at the Criminal Misuse of Guns in Canada was recently published by the Mackenzie Institute.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
SAO PAULO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Embraer welcomes the Brazilian Government's decisions to withdraw its ongoing World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute with Canada regarding aeronautical subsidies and to launch negotiations on more effective disciplines to regulate government support in the Commercial Aviation segment.

At the WTO, Brazil challenged more than USD 3 billion in illegal subsidies that the Governments of Canada and Quebec provided to Bombardier for the launch, development and production of the C-Series program. These subsidies distorted the conditions of competition in the global market for commercial aircraft, causing serious prejudice to Embraer, in clear violation of WTO rules.

Although Brazil has a strong case, the WTO dispute became ineffective to address the Canadian subsidies and to remedy the distortions generated in the market. After Bombardier exited the Commercial Aviation segment and transferred the C-Series program (now called A220) to Airbus, which has a second assembly line in the United States, the trade dispute against Canada at the WTO is no longer the most effective means to achieve Brazil's and Embraer's goal of reestablishing a level playing field in this sector.

Embraer also supports Brazil's initiative to launch negotiations for more effective disciplines on government support in the commercial aviation segment, as the best way to achieve this goal, as previously seen with the successful experience of the OECD's Aircraft Sector Understanding (ASU), signed in 2007 to regulate export credits. Ultimately, Embraer believes that commercial aircraft manufacturers should compete against each other based on the merits of their product, not on the amount of funding they receive from their governments.

Follow us on Twitter: @Embraer

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A Florida burglar has been accused of scouring obituaries then targeting the homes of dead people and their grieving relatives while they were away at funerals.

Ronald Rose, a 42-year-old Lake Wales resident, allegedly embarked on a spree of 10 home break-ins between October 1 and February 8 across the areas of Auburndale, Mulberry, Lakeland and Haines City.

Polk County officials said Rose, who has a long rap sheet of felony and misdemeanor charges, broke into his victims' homes while they were at funerals and made off with items including jewelry and firearms.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd slammed the suspect as 'lower than low' for targeting people in the throes of grief and said investigators believe he may also be behind other similar crimes.

Rose was arrested Monday and slapped with 27 charges including multiple counts of armed burglary and grand theft.

A Florida burglar has been accused of scouring obituaries then targeting the homes of dead people and their grieving relatives while they were at funerals. Pictured Ronald Rose in mug

The net closed in on the suspect when a detective investigating one of the burglaries found at least nine other burglaries going back four months that also occurred while the victims were away at a funeral which had been publicly promoted in obituaries, authorities said.

Investigators then unearthed other similarities between the break-ins including that they were carried out in the daytime and that the perpetrator mainly stole jewelry, watches, silver, coins, and firearms.

Rose was arrested on February 15 and allegedly confessed to carrying out one of the burglaries in Auburndale.

A search of the car used in that break-in - a 2020 Kia Optima rental - led to the discovery of 'property of evidentiary value', Polk County Sheriff's Department said.

Roses home on Carver Street in Lake Wales was then searched and stolen property was found linking him to all 10 burglaries.

A gray Caddillac CTS registered to Rose also matched the description of a vehicle seen by witnesses at the scene of some burglaries.

Authorities believe Rose searched obituaries to find homes that would be left empty during funerals and then targeted them at the very moment bereaved families bid goodbye to their loved ones.

Ronald Rose, a 42-year-old Lake Wales resident, allegedly embarked on a spree of 10 home break-ins between October 1 and February 8

Polk County officials said Rose, who has a long rap sheet of felony and misdemeanor charges, broke into his victims' homes while they were at funerals and made off with items including jewelry and firearms. Burglaries took place across the areas of Auburndale, Mulberry, Lakeland and Haines City (in map)

Rose is also thought to have other victims not yet identified because some of the stolen goods found do not match the items taken in the 10 burglaries, the Sheriff's Department said.

The Department is now working with other law enforcement agencies across the state to find other potential victims.

Sheriff Judd said targeting people in their moment of grief shows 'no compassion or consideration' on the suspect's part.

'People who burglarize or steal are low, so victimizing people during a time when they are grieving the loss of a loved one thats lower than low,' he said in a statement.

'Someone who is willing to take advantage of people at a time like this has no compassion or consideration, and is a true menace to society.'

Rose was charged with two counts of armed burglary, eight counts of burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, one count of grand theft between $20,000 and $100,000, eight counts of grand theft from a dwelling, seven counts of grand theft of a firearm and one misdemeanor charge of petit theft.

He is being held in Polk County Jail with no bond.

Rose already has six felony charges and fifteen misdemeanor charges on his criminal record including arrests for burglaries, battery, thefts and drug possessions.

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Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  It took some time before Metro Manila mayors agreed to let people aged 15 to 17 to be out on the streets, and they are alarmed at a proposal to even let children as young as five years old to leave home.

San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora told CNN Philippines News Night on Thursday that the National Economic Development Authoritys recommendation to let people aged five to 70 to leave their homes was discussed during a meeting Wednesday night. It was a meeting between the Metro Manila Council, composed of 17 mayors of the capital region, and the economic cluster of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, the policy-making body in the COVID-19 response.

There were proposals to bring down the age to as young as five years old. This is something that alarmed a lot of the Metro Manila mayors and we feel that the changes should not be this abrupt, Zamora said.

This is one issue that has to be resolved because a lot of the mayors are not comfortable lowering the age, he added, noting that children are considered potential super spreaders of the virus.

Acting NEDA chief Karl Chua earlier made the suggestion during a meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte. "Pwede natin gawing dahan-dahan [We can do this gradually], in increments of five years, also with appropriate safeguards," he said.

As early as October 2020, the IATF has allowed persons aged 15 to 65 to go out. The Metro Manila mayors earlier only allowed those aged 18 to 65 to leave home, but they recently agreed to ease restrictions.

They are now recommending the shift to the most relaxed form of community quarantine in March in line with the proposal of economic leaders.

Zamora was among the eight mayors who voted against placing the National Capital Region under modified general community quarantine instead of GCQ. The close 9-8 vote was unprecedented, Zamora said, noting that the mayors would often vote unanimously on issues, or with only a few objections.

I was very surprised also with what I saw but I guess a big factor really is the meeting last night when the economic cluster explained our current status, Zamora said.

Health experts have warned that a shift to MGCQ would lead to a surge of up to 2,400 infections daily, while the World Health Organization said it would be best to keep the quarantine rules tight especially amid the presence of a more transmissible COVID-19 variant.
BUDAPEST, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- The first batch of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine purchased by Hungary arrived at Budapest on Tuesday.

The shipment was welcomed at the Liszt Ferenc International Airport by Tamas Menczer, state secretary from the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Chinese Ambassador to Hungary Qi Dayu.

"We are the first country in the European Union (EU) that uses Sinopharm vaccine. We try to save lives and preserve the economy, and we are fighting together with our Chinese friends against COVID-19," Menczer told Xinhua. "It is a very important day for Hungary."

Qi said that China and Hungary are fighting the coronavirus side by side and the vaccines arriving today embody China's commitments to making its vaccine a global public good.

Hungary announced on Jan. 29 that it had signed a deal to buy China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine, which will allow the vaccination of 2.5 million people.

With the Sinopharm vaccine, Hungarians will have access to five vaccines against COVID-19. Hungary has also become the first EU member state to buy and authorize the use of Chinese vaccines.

On Tuesday, Hungary registered 823 new COVID-19 cases in a 24-hour span, raising the national total to 389,622, according to the government's website.

In the past 24 hours, 85 people have died from the virus, taking the death toll to 13,837 in the country, while 298,773 have recovered. Currently, 3,979 patients are being treated in hospitals, and 318 of them are on ventilators, it added.
Britons as young as 40 could be offered a jab within a few weeks, the Mail can reveal.

Government advisers are set to recommend the next phase of the vaccine rollout continues on the basis of age, rather than prioritising key workers.

But the age brackets will be wider than before  meaning 40 to 49-year-olds are likely to be invited to have a jab once the 32million people in the top nine groups have had their first dose.

Earlier this week it emerged this target could be hit as soon as March 24, if the daily average is maintained.

This would mean the over-40s being invited for a jab in less than five weeks.

It would be a huge boost for Britain's vaccine programme and could add to the pressure on ministers to ease the lockdown sooner.

It comes as the head of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation said age should be the dominant factor in deciding the next phase of the jab rollout.

Professor Wei Shen Lim told an online audience of doctors age 'dominates by a long way' while underlying health conditions contribute 'some increased risk'.

But Andy Burnham today called for the rollout to be expanded to younger age groups as it was revealed half of appointments at Manchester's mass vaccination centre were going to waste.

He said older people were choosing to wait to book an appointment locally, rather than head to the major hubs to get their first dose - leaving vital jabs 'sitting in fridges' and many appointments going spare.

Vaccine age bands are set to be widened, with no priority for key workers, meaning that over-40s could get a first does of a Covid jab by the end of March. Pictured: A vaccinator administers an injection of AstraZeneca/Oxford Covid-19 vaccine to a patient at the vaccination centre set up at Chester Racecourse, in Chester, England, on February 15

A graph showing the number of vaccines per day in the UK. Over 16.4 million people have so far received at least one dose in the UK

MANCHESTER MAYOR ANDY BURNHAM CALLS FOR ROLLOUT TO BE EXPANDED TO YOUNGER AGE GROUPS Only half of appointments for coronavirus vaccines are being used at a mass vaccination centre in Manchester, it was revealed today, as Andy Burnham called for the rollout to be expanded to stop doses going to waste. The mayor of Greater Manchester said doses are just 'sitting in fridges' at the Etihad stadium's jabbing hub, and warned the situation was similar in other areas. He said it was because too many residents in the top priority groups were opting to wait to get their jabs locally, rather than drive to the regional centres. 'Strictly proceeding by age as the Government is doing at the moment is leading to a massive underuse of resources,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. 'When people are getting the letter, as people in the 65 to 70 age group have got recently, saying "do you want to go to the regional centre at Etihad or do you want to wait to go local?", most people are going local. 'That is leading to a situation where we've got plenty of slots that are just going unfilled. 'So our message to the Government is why not open up the mass vaccination centre to a younger, more mobile cohort who then can go and use that and free up then more slots at the primary care level for people who might struggle to get to the regional centre.' Britain is in a race against time to dish out as many first doses to the top priority groups - including all over-50s - as possible before second jabs must be administered en masse. No10's top scientists widened the gap between shots to 12 weeks last month, in a move praised by the World Health Organization, to maximise the rollout. With the Government taking a cautious approach to easing lockdown this time around, it is widely accepted that all of the nine top groups will need to have had at least one dose before curbs can be eased significantly. Advertisement

The priority list for the rollout is determined by the Government's Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, which met yesterday to draft its recommendations for the next phase.

These are expected to be signed off by members today before being sent to ministers to approve at the start of next week.

It is understood the committee rejected the idea of prioritising key workers or ethnic minorities in favour of a simple age-based approach.

In further encouraging news Public Health England (PHE) said cases were still falling in all regions, while separate figures suggested deaths among the over-80s are down by two thirds in three weeks.

Boris Johnson is due to unveil his roadmap out of lockdown on Monday after a meeting of his 'Covid O' committee and data  expected today  on how well the vaccine rollout is working.

The Mail revealed this week that under the current plans, life is unlikely to return to normal until July.

That has led to pressure on Mr Johnson to go further in easing restrictions.

In other developments:

Mr Johnson was set to announce Britain will donate up to three quarters of its surplus vaccines to poorer countries;

Pubs and restaurants demanded they be allowed to open soon after Easter;

Holidays to Greece are on the horizon for inoculated Britons after talks began on using 'vaccine passports';

The Justice Secretary suggested firms could refuse to employ people who have not had the Covid vaccine under 'no jab, no job' contracts;

PHE said 147 out of 149 councils saw a drop in their infection rates in the seven days to February 14;

A minister suggested that care home visits, with people allowed to hold hands, could resume in weeks;

Dozens of MPs warned Britain was facing a 'cancer disaster' that could cost tens of thousands of lives;

A study suggested the South Africa strain may make the Pfizer vaccine less effective;

It was announced yesterday that a further 454 people had died and another 12,057 had tested positive for the virus.

The first 15million people to receive the jab were prioritised by five-year age bands, and also included front-line health and social care workers.

The current phase includes everyone over 50 as well as those who have certain underlying medical conditions.

It had been thought this group would all have been offered the first dose by the start of May, but it emerged earlier this week that the target could be hit much sooner  potentially in late March.

Brits could get quarantine-free Greece holidays this summer Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays in Greece this summer as the two countries discuss vaccine passports. Tourism minister Haris Theoharis said 'technical discussions are underway' to enable what Athens hopes will be a 'semi-normal' summer for its vital tourism industry. Nearly four million tourists normally visit Greece each year, with British visitors contributing more than 2 billion to the economy. Mr Theoharis said that a vaccine passport could be used to prove immunity to Covid and allow Britons to fly without also needing to provide a test certificate. The tourism minister told Radio 4: 'We don't want to limit travel to those who have been vaccinated but since we are mandating that before travelling someone has to have a negative test result, this is a waste of resources if people are vaccinated to be tested every time they travel, the need for this testing could be limited by the vaccination certificate.' Advertisement

The issue of who should be prioritised next has been debated for weeks, with many arguing key workers  such as police or teachers  should be offered a jab first.

It has also been suggested ethnic minorities should be prioritised as data from the first wave suggested they were up to twice as likely to die from Covid.

Members of the JCVI are said to be satisfied that those at highest risk within the key worker and ethnic minority groups are already accounted for, due to being 'clinically vulnerable' or 'over 50'.

However, they are believed to have suggested the age brackets could be widened from five years to ten in the next phase.

This is because the difference in death risk between someone aged 30 and someone aged 39 is significantly less than between a 70-year-old and a 79-year-old.

There is therefore no need to segment younger people into such narrow age categories.

Ministers may still take a 'political decision' to prioritise teachers and other front-line workers, contrary to the committee's guidance.

There is a chance some other medical conditions may be added to the priority list, too.

A source said: 'Members are now close to an agreement on what the next stage of the vaccine rollout programme should look like.'

Meanwhile Professor Lim of the JCVI told an online audience of doctors that age 'dominates by a long way' while underlying health conditions contribute 'some increased risk', the Daily Telegraph reports.

The JCVI has not yet published plans on who should be vaccinated beyond the top nine groups, but has faced calls for police officers and teachers to be prioritised in the next stage.

Appearing at an online event on Thursday night, Prof Lim said: 'Age dominates by a long way, and almost all the underlying health conditions contribute some increased risk, but not a huge amount of increased risk.'

Prof Lim said one of the 'great successes' of the vaccination programme had been the rate of deployment and this was now the 'most important factor'.

It was also reported the first 'real world' data examining the impact of the vaccination programme suggests both the Oxford and Pfizer jabs cut two thirds of infections and transmissions.

The Government met its target of offering a vaccine to 15million people in the top four groups by February 15.

Care home hugs could be allowed after just one jab Rules on care home visits could be relaxed within weeks to allow people to hold hands with loved ones. Care minister Helen Whately indicated yesterday that restrictions could be eased before residents receive their second vaccine dose. All care home residents and staff in England have now been offered vaccination against Covid, but recipients face a 12-week delay between the first and second shots. Miss Whately said she wants care homes to open up 'sooner than that'. She told Sky News: 'I really, really want to open up visiting in care homes more. 'What I want to do as we come out of the national lockdown is also increase the amount of visiting. 'I don't see that we have to wait for the second vaccination dose  I want us to open up sooner than that.' Miss Whately said any approach would be 'cautious' as most residents will only have had their first dose of the jab, but added she was 'determined' to make it happen. 'Even if it's to be able to hold hands again and see somebody who you haven't been able to see very much... I really want to make that happen again.' The minister's comments, which come days before Boris Johnson announces his 'roadmap' out of lockdown, are a welcome sign for care home residents and their families. They follow the Mail's Christmas campaign to allow relatives to hold their loved ones' hands once again. Miss Whately warned against rushing measures, saying that the lifting of care home restrictions must occur 'step by step'. 'There is still a way to go to see, for instance, whether the vaccine stops people from being infectious and how it plays through,' she told the BBC. 'We will, for instance, still be asking people to use PPE and follow those kinds of procedures.' She stressed: 'I don't want to have to wait for the second vaccination dose. Clearly, that's really important to give care home residents maximum protection but I really want us to be able to open up cautiously and carefully.' Advertisement

England's Covid vaccine postcode lottery: Parts of London have only jabbed 60% of over-70s... while almost all the elderly living in one Hampshire district have had their first dose (and some areas have done nearly 300x as many top-ups)

Area with the poorest uptake of the first dose is Westminster, in central London, where jab rate was 60.9%

Uptake was almost as low in West London, where rate was 67%, and worst 10 areas were all in the capital

In more promising sign, 114 out of 135 NHS areas in England have vaccinated more than nine in 10 over-70s

First real-world data shows Oxford and Pfizer vaccines cut TWO THIRDS of Covid-19 infections and transmissions - as PM gets early findings ahead of roadmap out of lockdown The first 'real-world' data examining the impact of vaccines suggests the Oxford and Pfizer jabs cut two thirds of infections and transmissions. The data, which supports Britain's policy of widening the time between doses, will show one shot of either of the vaccines will have that effect on people of all ages. Boris Johnson is expected to hear evidence on the impact of jabs on transmission, infection, hospital admissions and deaths by Friday. This will come ahead of the PM's highly-anticipated 'roadmap' out of England's lockdown on Monday. The 'real world' data, from Public Health England studies with 40,000 healthcare workers and 9,000 care homes, are to be released later this month. But Mr Johnson is reportedly going to get preliminary results - showing the positive impact of the Oxford and Pfizer jabs in cutting infections - early. Sources told the Telegraph the data was 'very encouraging' and will play a large part in when England is opened up again. Most of the data is on the effect of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine after doses were first given in December. But similar results were found with the Oxford/AstraZeneca jabs, just on a smaller scale due to it being rolled out later. A PHE spokesman said: 'We have been analysing the data since the start of the vaccination rollout and will publish our findings in due course.' Advertisement

England's Covid vaccine postcode lottery was laid bare today after it emerged parts of London have jabbed just 60 per cent of over-70s - while almost every elderly person has had their first dose in one district in Hampshire.

The NHS England statistics, which go up to February 14, also show that some parts of the country have dished out nearly 300 times as many second vaccine doses as others.

The area with the poorest uptake of the first dose was Westminster, in central London, where only 60.9 per cent of residents over 70 have had their first injection. The figure was almost as low in West London, where just 67.5 per cent of people in the age group have been jabbed. The worst 10 areas for uptake were all in the capital.

Health chiefs fear vaccine hesitancy among black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) groups is behind the poorer uptake in London's culturally diverse boroughs. It follows reports of GP surgeries in London having to close early because not enough people have been turning up to get their injection.

North East Hampshire and Farnham, on the other hand, has given out the most first doses to over-70s in the country, with 99.8 per cent uptake. East Leicestershire and Rutland was second, at 99.3 per cent. Somerset and Sunderland have both also jabbed more than 99 per cent of over-70s with either Pfizer's or Oxford University's vaccine.

While London is being hit hardest by the postcode lottery, overall, uptake across the country appears even. The figures show 114 out of 135 NHS areas in England have vaccinated more than nine in 10 over-70s.

But uptake of the second dose is far more inconsistent, with some areas jabbing up to 300 times as many patients as others. Portsmouth, for example, has seen 14.7 per cent coverage compared to 0.05 per cent in Morecambe Bay, in Lancashire.

Number 10 decided last month to delay the second dose for up to 12 weeks in an attempt to get the first injection to as many Brits as possible, which may partially explain the disparity.

The figures do not take into account health and social care staff or extremely clinically vulnerable younger people, such as those with terminal illnesses, who are both also at the top of the vaccine priority list. Instead, they look solely at over-70s, who are most at risk of dying from the illness.

Britain has already vaccinated more than 16million Britons and ministers have pledged to dish out jabs to all 32million Britons in the top nine groups by April. With the Government taking a cautious approach to easing lockdown this time around, it is widely accepted that all of the nine top vulnerable groups will need to have had at least one dose of vaccine before curbs can be significantly eased.

WHICH AREAS HAVE GIVEN OUT THE MOST FIRST DOSES TO THE OVER-70S? North East Hampshire and Farnham 99.8 per cent East Leicestershire and Rutland 99.3 per cent Somerset 99.3 per cent Sunderland 99.1 per cent Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire 99.0 per cent Milton Keynes 98.9 per cent North Staffordshire 98.8 per cent West Leicestershire 98.6 per cent Vale of York 98.6 per cent South Warwickshire 98.5 per cent Advertisement

WHICH AREAS HAVE GIVEN OUT THE LEAST FIRST DOSES TO THE OVER-70S? North Central London 79.4 per cent Barking and Dagenham 78.1 per cent Hammersmith and Fulham 78.1 per cent Waltham Forest 77.9 per cent Brent 77.9 per cent City and Hackney 72.6 per cent Newham 70.5 per cent Tower Hamlets 70.3 per cent West London CCG 67.5 per cent Central London (Westminster) CCG 60.9 per cent Advertisement





The Department of Health announced another 497,257 vaccine doses were administered yesterday, taking the total number of people to be immunised to 16,423,082.

The NHS must reach 15.6million more people over the next four days  an average 502,481 per day  32million Britons in the top nine groups by April.

Ministers are hunting for vulnerable Britons who have not yet come forward for their jab, warning that having large numbers of unprotected people could delay the easing of lockdown.

It comes after the NHS today unveiled a 'blueprint' to improve coronavirus vaccine uptake among ethnic minority groups.

Local faith and community leaders will team up with doctors to host online virtual events where they will answer questions and address concerns people have about the jabs.

They will also distribute leaflets in 20 different languages  including Arabic, Punjabi and Hindi  to reach those who do not speak English fluently or can't be targeted through traditional methods.

People want 'normal way of life' back after getting Covid jabs: Government adviser says it's 'not plausible' to expect Britons to comply with major curbs once they've had both doses The public will not accept having to comply with draconian coronavirus restrictions once they have been vaccinated, a Government adviser warned today. Professor Sir John Bell, who is a member of the Government's vaccine taskforce, claimed it is 'not plausible' to expect people to abide by major curbs, such as a ban on attending football matches, if they have received both doses. Speaking at the Commons Science and Technology Committee today, he told MPs that people want to get back to a 'relatively normal way of life' and steps need to be taken to allow that. He said: 'It's not plausible to imagine a world where we vaccinate the whole country and everybody believes they are still in a place that we were in six months ago, it's just not reasonable 'I think we are going to have to allow people to adapt their behaviours appropriately if they have actually had the vaccine.' Oxford University's regius professor of medicine added: 'It's better to plan for that than to assume you can hold back the water with a dam, because you won't be able to. 'People will feel that they would like to get back to a relatively normal way of life and I suspect we are going to have to get used to that.' Sir John warned that further mutations in the virus are likely in response to the rollout of the vaccination programme. So far most of the variants have been due to the virus evolving to be more effective in humans, having only recently crossed species, but that will change as coronavirus comes under pressure from the vaccines. 'Most of the variants we have seen so far represent that kind of adaptation to a new species  it's a bit like moving into a new apartment, you are shuffling the sofa around and making sure the TV is in the right place,' he said. 'What we will see between now and the end of the year is a number of variants which are driven by immunological selection, largely by the vaccines, and that will add another layer of complexity.' Advertisement

Number 10's Counter Disinformation Unit will ramp up its efforts and work with social media companies to tackle anti-vaxx misinformation online. Bogus claims that the jabs contain animal products or interfere with fertility have been widely distributed on platforms include WhatsApp, YouTube and Facebook.

BAME people who have already received their first dose could also be recruited to give testimonies and encourage friends and family to get the vaccine.

Figures have shown that a significant number health and social care workers from black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) backgrounds have been reluctant to get the jab.

Research this week suggested white NHS staff are almost twice as likely as black medics to get the Covid vaccine.

A lack of trust in Government is thought to be one of the main reasons behind their hesitancy, numerous surveys have suggested. Minorities face a higher risk of having a severe bout of Covid or dying, several studies have shown.

Meanwhile, No10 has been urged to expand the rollout of Covid vaccines to include all over-50s as soon as there are enough supplies to avoid bottlenecks as the country moves through the priority list.

NHS bosses say local health teams can make their own way down the list of nine priority groups, so long as they have attempted to reach everyone in a group before moving on.

But areas that are further ahead in vaccinating their elderly populations are more quickly making their way through younger people, while willing people of the same age are left waiting longer in areas that are struggling more to reach older residents.

Critics suggest that opening up the scheme so anyone in a priority group can get a vaccine as soon as they want one could avoid low uptake in certain groups holding back others.

Dr Simon Clarke, a microbiologist at the University of Reading, said 'it would make sense' to roll out jabs to people in their 50s and 60s as soon as supplies allow.

Think-tanks said officials needed to be more ambitious about the speed and not get stuck on particulars, saying it was 'false economy' to slow down some groups or clinics to help others catch up.

Minister will have to start dishing out second doses within weeks, making it essential to keep up the pace and get as many first jabs done before that begins to eat into supplies.

At the current pace of 434,301 people per day, it will take until March 26 to give a first dose to 32million people.

Some over-60s have already began being given the jab in areas across the country, with areas of Manchester and London handing out doses to the next age bracket.

Wales began inviting over-50s, while Northern Ireland started offering appointments to over-65s in January.

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon yesterday said 53 per cent of 65-69 year-olds have already received their first dose of vaccine.

The Adam Smith Institute think-tank urged areas of the country already ahead of the curve to open up the programme to over-50s now.

A spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Each person jabbed represents a life that won't be lost to this terrible disease. We should be trying to ensure jabs reach as many people as possible as quickly as possible. If some areas have steamed ahead they should to continue apace, opening up to the over-50s and other cohorts.

'Areas that fall behind should be looking at best practice at home and abroad to increase the vaccination rate, including ringing down lists, using online bookings and social media to reach out if spare doses are available towards the end of the day, targeted outreach to hard to reach demographics.

'Slowing down some parts in the hope others speed up is a false economy and it's one with a high cost in terms of lives potentially saved and taxpayers borrowing to keep the companies going while the economy is closed.'

And experts have urged No10 to be more ambitious in the roll-out's second phase in order to open up the economy.

Dr Simon Clarke said: 'I would say it's vital that, as long as the bottlenecks in other areas are not due to lack of vaccine doses, it would make sense to roll out vaccination to over-50s.

'There is no sense in not vaccinating people in one area just because there at logistical problems in others. But it's vital that people who may be higher up the priority list because of need are not denied a vaccine because it's been sent elsewhere.'
(Newser)  The popular Gimlet podcast Reply All is focusing this month on the recent turmoil at food magazine Bon Appetit, which stemmed from allegations of a toxic workplace and racial discrimination. And now, the podcast is itself in the same boat. Host PJ Vogt and senior reporter Sruthi Pinnamaneni both exited Reply All this week over allegations that they contributed to a toxic workplace, per Vulture. On Tuesday, Eric Eddings, former co-host of Gimlet's The Nod, penned a Twitter thread, describing how the pair had "actively and AGGRESSIVELY worked against multiple efforts to diversify Gimlet's staff & content" in 2019. He wrote that staff on Gimlet's "biggest show" had "used their weight as a cudgel" against efforts to unionize and recognize the contributions of people of color. He also named Reply All co-host Alex Goldman but noted he's since become "a staunch ally."

story continues below

Eddings claimed Pinnamaneni had called him "a piece of shit" and "personally held an Anti-union meeting." He claimed Vogt had denigrated staffers and sent them "harassing messages." Of Reply All's four-part "The Test Kitchen" series focusing on Bon Appetit, Eddings added, "it was so triggering to hear the words of people who have suffered like me from people who caused that suffering to me and others." Vogt and Pinnamaneni apologized Wednesday, the same day Gimlet managing director Lydia Polgreen announced both were stepping back from the podcast, per the Hollywood Reporter. In an internal email, Polgreen wrote that Yogt had asked to take a leave of absence, which Vulture reports will be permanent. Polgreen also noted the Spotify-owned studio would discuss the future of "The Test Kitchen." Only two of the four episodes have aired. (Read more workplace discrimination stories.)
The Embassy of Denmark in Ukraine, with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO), provided 30 hospitals in 19 regions of Ukraine with 30 lung ventilators for intensive care units (ICU).

The World Health Organization in Ukraine wrote on Facebook that the organization provided technical support for equipment installation, provided an extended warranty for maintenance and assisted with staff training.

It is noted that this is a joint project of the Embassy of Denmark in Ukraine and the Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine.

As reported by Ukrinform, a total of 1,287,141 COVID-19 cases were registered in Ukraine on February 18, including 6,237 new cases in the past 24 hours. Since the start of the pandemic, 1,287,141 people in Ukraine have fallen ill with coronavirus, 1,134,120 people have recovered, and 24,852 have died.

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The Missourians Opinion section is a public forum for the discussion of ideas. The views presented in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Missourian or the University of Missouri. If you would like to contribute to the Opinion page with a response or an original topic of your own, visit our submission form
Ever since Bombay High Court judge Pushpa Virendra Ganediwala delivered the controversial verdicts in sexual assault cases under the POCSO Act, particular the one that stated no sexual assault without skin-to-skin contact, she has been on the receiving end of huge public flak.

 Twitter

Miffed at the bizarre ruling, a Gujarat woman sent 150 condoms to Ganediwala, as a mark of her protest.



For the unversed, Ganediwala had recently acquitted a man accused of groping a 12-year-old girls breasts because he did not make skin-to-skin contact and before that, the judge also ruled that holding the hands of a five-year-old girl and unzipping the trousers do not amount to sexual assault under the POCSO Act.

Devshri Trivedi, the woman who sent the condoms, identified herself as a political analyst. She says she had sent condoms to 12 different locations, including Justice Ganediwala's chamber, the registry of the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court and the principal seat in Mumbai.

 Twitter

"I cannot tolerate injustice. A minor girl did not get justice because of a judgment by Justice Ganediwala. I am demanding that she (Justice Ganediwala) be suspended," Trivedi told India Today.



Trivedi also told India Today that she had sent the packets on February 9 and had received delivery reports for a few of them.

"As a woman, I do not feel I have done anything wrong. I do not have any guilt. Women have to stand up for their rights. By this order of Justice Ganediwala, men can go scot-free for sexually assaulting girls over their clothes," she said.

Trivedi's actions, however, may not go unpunished.

The registry office of the Nagpur bench told India Today they did not receive any packet of this nature, however, senior advocate of the Nagpur Bar Association, Shrirang Bhandarkar, said, "This is a clear case of contempt. We demand that action should be taken against this woman."

 Twitter

The controversial judgement in question is a case involving a 12-year-old girl who had reportedly been groped by a 39-year-old man in December 2016.



What Does The POSCO Act Say?

According to the POCSO Act, sexual assault can be defined only when someone with sexual intent touches the vagina, penis, anus or breast of the child or makes the child touch the vagina, penis, anus or breast of such person or any other person, or does any other act with sexual intent which involves physical contact without penetration is said to commit sexual assault.
Upstate New York was a hotbed in the 19th century for the abolitionist movement and the Underground Railroad. Names like Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass and Gerrit Smith are familiar. But there were also valiant figures from the region, white and Black, who fought for the end of slavery whose names have faded into history.

During this Black History Month, after searching through old newspapers and websites, we take a look back at some of Upstate New Yorks forgotten abolitionists.

***

In the 1830s and 40s, at a time in America when calling for the abolition of slavery was considered a radical thought, Beriah Green went even further.

He was a radical abolitionist at a time when the voices for freedom in America were few in number, wrote Green biographer Milton Sernett. Green embraced an educational and social vision that went beyond the mere ending of slavery and embodied equal opportunity for all.

His scholarly writings and lectures ably showcased his expertise in Biblical studies and moral theology. His arguments attacked the arguments used by pro-slavery forces that their peculiar institution was supported by the Old and New Testaments.

At an 1836 sermon at the Presbyterian Church in Whitesboro, N.Y., in Oneida County, he called American slavery a system of fraud, adultery and murder, and argued that the slave had been robbed of inalienable rights.

He is fairly entitled to the immediate enjoyment of those privileges, which have been wrested from him by remorseless tyranny, he said.

Green was born in Connecticut in 1795.

He was valedictorian at Middlebury College and hoped to become a foreign missionary, but he found his true calling as a Biblical scholar and abolitionist educator.

He taught at schools throughout New England and then in Ohio.

In 1833, he became President of the Oneida Institute in Whitesboro but only one two conditions.

He could not be stopped in advancing the cause of immediate abolition and the school had to admit students without any restrictions in regard to class or race.

The Oneida Institute became an abolitionist school and would soon be admitting more African American students than any other school in the country.

Green became friendly with Gerrit Smith and the two began a regular correspondence which would last for decades.

Oneida became a hotbed of abolition activity and the Institute would attract many future Black abolitionists and leaders.

Student Alexander Crummell, who go to become one of the most important Black intellectuals of the 19th century, referred to the Rev. Beriah Green as that Master-thinker and teacher.

And he later remembered fondly his three years of perfect equality with upwards of 100 white students of different denominations at Oneida Institute.

Financial problems hit the Institute hard following the Panic of 1837 and the school closed in 1845.

Green became a supporter of the Liberty Party but had little impact on American politics.

He became disillusioned with politics and was not shy in voicing his frustrations with the new Republican Party and President Abraham Lincoln for attempting at first to preserve the Union at the expense of black freedom.

He rarely traveled far from his home in Whitesboro after Oneida closed.

He died in 1874.

William G. Allen, who studied at Oneida and who became the second Black man to become a college professor in the United States, said Green was a profound scholar, an original thinker, and, better and greater than all these, a sincere and devoted Christian.

Our series

See all of our profiles of Upstates forgotten abolitionists here.

Black History Month

Black History Month in Upstate NY: Historical sites, monuments and more

Black History Month movies: 20 great films to stream right now on Disney+, Hulu, Prime Video, more

Peterboros Abolition Hall of Fame and Museum offers free daily videos during Black History Month

CNY Jazz brings L.A. to Syracuse for Black History Month cabaret

Send your ideas and curiosities to Johnathan Croyle at jcroyle@syracuse.com or call 315-427-3958.
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
BOAT owners are avoiding Tullamore because of domestic waste and sediment in the Grand Canal, a local councillor has claimed.

Cllr Ken Smollen said boat owners were afraid their propellers would be damaged due to the canal's condition.

Speaking at last week's meeting of Tullamore Municipal District, Cllr Smollen called on Offaly County Council to engage with Waterways Ireland on the issue.

We need all the tourists we can get, he stressed.

Senior Engineer, Mary Hussey of the council's Environment and Water Section, said the body would talk to Waterways about the condition of the canal through the town.

I wasn't aware there was a navigation issue, she added.
Israel and Syria announced Thursday they had swapped prisoners in a deal mediated by Russia, with the Jewish state handing back two shepherds to Syria in exchange for an Israeli woman.

Israel's military said the two shepherds had been arrested "a few weeks" ago, after they crossed the contested border in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The army "returned (the) two shepherds to (the International Committee of the) Red Cross representatives through the Quneitra Crossing, in accordance with an Israeli Government directive," it said in a statement.

The military gave no further details on the identity of the men, but Syria's SANA news agency confirmed the swap, identifying the "Syrian prisoners" as Mohamed Hussein and Tarek al-Obeidan.

SANA said the pair were released following a deal conducted through "Russian mediation", that also allowed the release of Syrian woman activist Nihal al-Mokt, in exchange for a young Israeli woman who had strayed into Syria.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday evening held an emergency cabinet meeting to discuss the "humanitarian" situation in Syria.

Asked on Wednesday shortly after the SANA report of a prisoner swap, Netanyahu said it "was a matter of life or death".

Netanyahu, in an interview with Israeli military radio, called it a "sensitive" matter.

"I am using my personal contacts with President (Vladimir) Putin to resolve the problem," Netanyahu told the radio station.

Israel seized much of the Golan Heights from Syria in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed it in a move not recognised by the international community.

The countries remain technically at war.

Israel routinely carries out air strikes in Syria, mostly against targets linked to Iran, in what it says is a bid to prevent its arch foe from consolidating a foothold on its northern border.

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At 2 a.m. in the South Padre Island convention center, Wendy Knight looked around at the many rescued sea turtles resting on blue tarps. She wondered: Were they going to run out of space?

More than 4,750 stunned sea turtles were rescued from the area as of Thursday, as freezing conditions left the threatened green sea turtles unable to swim in bays along the Texas coast, from Galveston to South Padre Island.

Now Playing: Video: Courtesy/Chris Dowdy

It was the largest number of rescues since groups started recording cold stunnings, said Knight, executive director of Sea Turtle, Inc., which coordinated the effort. Stunning occurs when the water temperature drops, causing the reptiles to become lethargic.

The weeks freezing weather lowered the temperatures of Texas bays, stunning the turtles, making them susceptible to drowning, predators and freezing to death. The freeze could have been catastrophic, Knight realized, had the scrappy group of volunteers not saved so many.

Can you imagine if we did not have the kind of community support and interest that we did? she said. This event could have wiped out decades of work around the conservation of sea turtles.

Knights group regularly trains volunteers to respond to stunnings, though typically on a much smaller scale. Volunteers who lacked power and fresh food stepped up, amazing Knight. How many turtles may have died is unknown.

Much of the turtle population is around South Padre Island, a nesting hub, but it extends up to Galveston Bay. Those in the bays now are commonly green sea turtles, a threatened species, which eat plants there.

In the Galveston area, people saw turtles needing rescue from East Matagorda Bay through Galveston Bay, said Christopher Marshall, a marine biologist at Texas A&M Galveston and director of its Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research.

They rescued about 60, but still at least 75 more were dead  a number that keeps rising.

Its been heartbreaking, Marshall said. Sea turtles have literally been freezing to death.

That was the first thing Joanie Steinhaus, gulf program director of the Turtle Island Restoration Network, had thought of, she said: the suffering and the pain.

It remains to be seen what the full impact will be. Around South Padre Island, Texas Parks and Wildlife game wardens had joined the volunteers rescuing the turtles, including around Lower Laguna Madre and Boca Chica Beach.

Wardens pulled turtles onto boats and others plucked them from where they washed onto the shoreline. But Chris Dowdy, game warden captain based in Brownsville, knew they couldnt save every one.

We cant save them all, he said. We can try.

Sea Turtle Inc. was born from a community that watched sea turtles vanish from the ocean, Knight said. They were doing all they could not to let that happen anymore.

By Thursday, the stunnings slowed.

Some turtles were moving their flippers again.

emily.foxhall@chron.com
A founding member of notorious Sydney surfer gang the Bra Boys has told a court that his struggles with heroin and bipolar left him with an 'atrocious' criminal record.

Jai Abberton pleaded guilty in Waverly Local Court on Wednesday to throwing rocks at a man with his ex lover Kirri Argus, who allegedly threatened the victim with a taser, during an argument on October 23.

The former pro surfer, from Maroubra in Sydney's eastern suburbs, also admitted to lobbing a large stone paver from the victim's driveway into his parked car on November 14, smashing the rear window.

Representing himself in court, the 47-year-old vowed to 'turn his life around', adding he struggled with heroin addiction and was attending narcotics anonymous.

Infamous 'Bra Boy' Jai Abberton (in red T-shirt) pleaded guilty in Waverly Local Court on Wednesday to throwing rocks at a man and smashing his car

In 2012, Abberton (pictured exiting a Sydney court in 2006) was jailed for nine months for assaulting police in Byron Bay

Abberton also told the court he had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and was getting professional help.

'My record is atrocious ... But I have remained pretty much out of trouble since 2012,' he told the court, according to the Daily Telegraph.

Abberton was jailed for nine months after assaulting police in Byron Bay in 2012.

Despite one of the rocks hitting the victim in the attack last year, no one was injured and Abberton said he is no longer seeing Argus.

The 33-year-old has been charged with attempt stalk/intimidate intend fear of harm, enter building/land with intent, and larceny. She has not entered a plea.

Abberton (pictured) - a former professional surfer - was found not guilty of murder on the grounds of self-defence, after he shot dead standover man Tony Hines in 2003

Magistrate Carolyn Huntsman convicted Abberton on all counts, including destroy and damage property and common assault.

She also placed him on a community correction order for two years.

'If there is any repeat of this behaviour a magistrate is likely to jail you,' Magistrate Huntsman said.

'The only reason that is not happening today is because of everything you have done to improve your mental health.'

Abberton (right), a former pro surfer, is the brother of fellow Bra Boys founders Koby (left) and Sunny (centre)

In 2003, Abberton shot dead standover man Tony Hines, whose naked body was found at the base of cliffs at Maroubra, in Sydney's east.

He was found not guilty of murder on the grounds of self-defence, claiming Hines was going to rape a woman.

Abberton is the brother of fellow Bra Boys founders Koby and Sunny.

Koby was found guilty of attempting to pervert the course of justice in relation to the same matter and given a nine month suspended sentence.

The Abberton brothers were the subject of a 2007 documentary called Bra Boys: Blood Is Thicker Than Water, narrated by Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe.
AMSTERDAM (dpa-AFX) - The Dutch unemployment rate declined in January, data from the Central Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday. The ILO jobless rate for the 15-75 year age group fell to a seasonally adjusted 3.6 percent in January from 3.9 percent in December. The number of unemployed decreased to 337,000 in January from 368,000 in the previous month, the agency said. The unemployment rate among the youth aged between 15 and 25 years, rose to 9.1 percent in January from 9.5 percent in the previous month. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Vietnam posted a sharp growth in the export import value during 2016-2020, with export surplus hitting $19.95 billion record in 2020

The latest statistics from the Vietnam General Department of Customs show that the country raked in $55 billion in total export-import turnover in the first month of 2021, a 48 per cent jump on-year.

Many localities have posted fairly impressive growth in their export import value compared to the corresponding period in 2020 despite the impacts of the recent COVID-19 reemergence.

Leading the list is Ho Chi Minh City which counted $8.9 billion in total export-import value, followed by Bac Ninh with $7.7 billion, Binh Duong with $5 billion, Thai Nguyen with $4.4 billion, and Hanoi with $3.8 billion.

Many localities have posted fairly impressive growth in their export import value compared to the corresponding period in 2020 despite the impacts of the recent COVID-19 reemergence.

It is noteworthy that Hai Duong province  the epicentre of the current COVID-19 resurgence  posted more than $1.3 billion in total export-import value in January 2021, with export value reaching $754 million and import value surpassing $568 million. Compared to the same period in 2020, its export value jumped nearly 37 per cent and import value picked up about 23 per cent.

This is an impressive performance as Hai Duong needs to ramp up efforts to carry out the dual target of preventing and curing COVID-19, while still ensuring socio-economic development.

Last year, the province attracted nearly $7.76 billion in total export value and more than $6 billion in total import value, and carved out a place among the localities with biggest export-import value in the northern region.

Quang Ninh, Lao Cai, and Lang Son (the major export players) have increased business even during the Lunar New Year holiday. For instance, on the first three days of the new year, the Lao Cai International Border Gates Customs Bureau had completed customs clearance for 4,000 tonnes of export-import goods valued at more than $2 million.

In Ho Chi Minh City, right on the eve of the Lunar New Year, Saigon New Port Corporation conducted a ceremony to receive goods marking the New Year of the Ox.

In 2020, the cargo volume calling on Ho Chi Minh Citys Cat Lai port rose 8.2 per cent, making it one of the top performers worldwide in cargo throughput volume. This year, the cargo volume through Cat Lai port is expected to surge 5 per cent.

More than 7,000 tonnes of goods passed through each day Mong Cai International Border Gate Customs Bureau under Quang Ninh Customs Department during the Lunar New Year holiday.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade forecast that export business would maintain its growth momentum in February, especially in localities hosting the manufacturing complexes of South Korean tech giant Samsung Group, leveraging the proliferation from January 2021. The exports of handsets and accessories could lift up, capitalising on Samsungs fresh roll-out of new items such as Samsung Galaxy S21, Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus, and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.




Haiti - UN : Mounting insecurity indicates BINUH report on the situation in Haiti





In its Report to the Secretary-General on the situation in Haiti (S/2021/133) of 11 February 2021, the United Nations Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) indicates in terms of the fight against local violence, that the mounting insecurity, driven by a growing wave of kidnappings combined with several ruthless killings, increased public outrage, as evidenced by a monthly average of 84 demonstrations in the second half of 2020.



That phenomenon compelled the Haitian authorities to take decisive action regarding escalating gang-related criminality. As part of a shift to a more assertive public safety agenda, for the first time in 13 years, the national police received a significant budget increase in September, affording it more capability to fight crime.



Concurrently, the new Director-General ad interim and new General Inspector in Chief, who were appointed in October, changed the majority of the senior police management team.



The national police adopted a more robust response to public disorder and intensified interdiction measures to curb violent crime in gang-ridden areas, starting in the Port-au-Prince neighbourhood of Village-de-Dieu. With logistical support from the engineering unit of the Haitian military, specialized police units engaged in a pacification drive in that area, as well as in nearby Martissant.



Those operations drove gang members out, they also resulted in an undisclosed number of residential buildings being destroyed. The neighbourhood of Bel-Air in Port-au-Prince and the commune of Croix-des-Bouquets (West Department) witnessed similar police action amid inter-gang violence.



With their activities disrupted in some of their Port-au-Prince strongholds, the gangs became more active on the outskirts of the metropolitan area and in neighbouring departments. This was observed in a few areas of the Artibonite Department, where gangs posed additional security threats to which the national police was responding.



Despite the disruption of activities of armed criminal groups by the national police and the work of the National Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Commission to negotiate a de-escalation with gangs, 70 abductions were reported between September and December (including of 13 women and 6 minors). In the past 12 months, kidnappings followed a concerning trend as they increased by 200% compared with the previous year (a total of 234 cases, including 59 women and 37 minors, were reported in 2020 compared with 78 in 2019).



Voluntary homicide followed a similar, albeit less pronounced, trend, increasing by 20% (1,380 cases reported by the police) in 2020, with three quarters of the cases recorded in the West Department.



Conversely, with 424 cases (including 182 women, 53 men, 146 girls and 43 boys), instances of gender-based violence recorded by the national health system, which were still underreported, fell 7.3% from September to November compared with the previous quarter, while the police registered a 12% increase in rapes, from 43 to 49, during the same period.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















FREDERICTON - Health officials in New Brunswick have decided that people who are less at risk for severe complications from COVID-19 can wait up to 90 days to get a second vaccine dose.

A registered nurse administers a dose of the Moderna vaccine in Halifax on Monday, Jan. 11, 2021.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan-Pool

FREDERICTON - Health officials in New Brunswick have decided that people who are less at risk for severe complications from COVID-19 can wait up to 90 days to get a second vaccine dose.

With variants of the novel coronavirus circulating in New Brunswick, the focus should be on rapidly vaccinating as many people as possible with at least one dose, chief medical officer of health Dr. Jennifer Russell said Thursday.

"This is not a perfect approach, but action is required," Russell told reporters in Fredericton.

Russell said the most vulnerable will continue to receive a second dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines within 28 days of the first one. She said others will have to wait longer.

"Some Canadian jurisdictions are now waiting for 42 days or more," Russell said. "Some countries are waiting for up to 90 days. Our goal will be to administer the second dose as soon as we can, but certainly within 90 days."

Health Minister Dorothy Shephard said officials are confident the updated plan is the best way to ensure vulnerable residents are protected in a timely manner while also addressing delays in vaccine shipments.

"Even a single dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine provides more than 90 per cent protection 14 days after receiving the shot," she said. "Delaying the second dose is a strategy that has been recommended by public health to ensure as many people as possible are protected."

So far, more than 21,000 doses of the vaccine have been administered in the province and over 7,500 people have received a second dose. The first phase of vaccinations targeted long-term care residents and staff, front-line health-care workers, First Nations adults and people over the age of 85.

The next phase, starting in April, expands access to groups such as pharmacists and dentists, first responders, home support workers and people over the age of 70.

Shephard said the province remains committed to ensuring all New Brunswickers who want a COVID-19 vaccine can receive one as quickly as possible.

Officials reported four new cases of COVID-19 Thursday  all in the Edmundston area, in the northwest of the province. The Edmundston region will move to the "orange" pandemic-alert level Thursday night, joining the rest of the province.

New Brunswick has 111 active reported cases of COVID-19 and has five patients in hospital with the disease, including one in intensive care.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:31:50|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Life expectancy in the United States plummeted by an entire year in the first half of 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic, the biggest decline since World War II, said a study on Thursday.

Preliminary data from January through June 2020 showed life expectancy at birth for the total U.S. population fell from 78.8 years in 2019 to 77.8 years, the lowest since 2006, according to the study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics.

"This is a huge decline," said Robert Anderson, who oversees the data for the CDC. "You have to go back to World War II, the 1940s, to find a decline like this."

Life expectancy for African American populations dropped the most from 2019, by 2.7 years to 72 years, hitting a new low since 2001. Latinos experienced the second-biggest decline, falling 1.9 years since 2019 to a life expectancy of 79.9 years, lower than when it was first recorded in 2006.

Black Americans are hospitalized with COVID-19 at 2.9 times the rate of white Americans and die at 1.9 times the rate, according to a USA Today report citing CDC data. Latinos are hospitalized at more than three times the rate and die more than twice the rate of white Americans.

"It was disturbing to see that gains that have been made for the Black community and decreasing the gap between life expectancy for African Americans and (white) Americans over the past six years had come to a halt," said Dr. Leon McDougle, president of the National Medical Association.

Life expectancy in the United States decreased by 0.3 years from 2014 to 2017 and slightly increased 2018 through 2019 by 0.2 years, according to CDC data.

Life expectancy is how long a baby born today can expect to live, on average, if death rates remain the same. Enditem
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:20:39|Editor: huaxia

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YINCHUAN, Feb. 18, 2021 (Xinhua) -- Chinese people love the color red and they regard red as a symbol of happiness and prosperity. They buy red decorations for the Spring Festival as a way to wish good luck for the next year. In northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, intangible cultural heritage artworks in red have heightened the atmosphere of the Spring Festival.

With distinctive ethnic features, most paper-cuts of Hui ethnic group are inspired by local life. Artists use only scissors and pieces of red paper to depict various and vivid figures. People now use paper-cuts to decorate houses and believe they can bring good luck and happiness to the family.

Chinese knot is a traditional threaded craft for blessing. Its shape is regarded as a symbol of reunion, amity, and peace. First as a decorative addition to clothing, Chinese knot is later used to decorate their houses as well. As China's young people now have strong confidence and appreciation of their own culture, more and more young people are willing to learn traditional Chinese culture and carry forward it.

Fu Zhao'e, a national intangible cultural heritage inheritor, makes an ox-themed paper-cutting work for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua)

Wei Minghui, an intangible cultural heritage inheritor, makes a Chinese knot in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Jan. 28, 2021. (Xinhua/Tang Rufeng)

National intangible cultural heritage inheritor Fu Zhao'e (C), her daughter (L), and her grandson make ox-themed paper-cutting works for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 6, 2021.(Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)

A student of Wei Minghui, an intangible cultural heritage inheritor, makes a Chinese knot in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Jan. 28, 2021.(Xinhua/Tang Rufeng)

Photo taken on Feb. 6, 2021 shows an ox-themed paper-cutting work created by national intangible cultural heritage inheritor Fu Zhao'e for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Wang Peng)

Wei Minghui (R), an intangible cultural heritage inheritor, teaches her students to make a Chinese knot in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Jan. 28, 2021. (Xinhua/Tang Rufeng)

Students of Wei Minghui, an intangible cultural heritage inheritor, discuss the knotting technique in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Jan. 28, 2021. (Xinhua/Tang Rufeng)

Fu Zhao'e, a national intangible cultural heritage inheritor, tells stories behind papercuts to her grandson in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua)

Fu Zhao'e, a national intangible cultural heritage inheritor, makes an ox-themed paper-cutting work for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua)

Fu Zhao'e, a national intangible cultural heritage inheritor, shows an ox-themed paper-cutting work for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 6, 2021. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua)
https://www.aish.com/jw/me/Jerusalem-and-the-US-Administration.html

Understanding the geo-political dynamics of Jerusalem under Israeli sovereignty.

What does it mean for Israel that the United States has a new leader? Should we expect a repeat of previous policies, or will the President Biden and the new White House administration forge its own path?

Assuming the latter, these principles guide the U.S.-Israel relationship:

Broad popular American support for Israel

President Biden's personal sympathy toward Israel

Shared Judeo-Christian values

America's own strategic interests

The desire to strengthen America's most trusted Mideast ally

The mutual desire to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons

The positive momentum generated by the Abraham Accords

Regarding Jerusalem, specifically, it is critical to reinforce the importance of united Jerusalem under Israeli control. The new administration will be under intense pressure, both from within and without, to take steps liable to compromise the future of united Jerusalem under Israeli sovereignty.

We must refrain from freezing construction in Jewish neighborhoods in the eastern part of Jerusalem, where nearly half of Jerusalem's 570,000 Jews live. Under the Obama administration, most construction in those neighborhoods was frozen for six years, though it did not bring the parties any closer to peaceful resolution.

One positive stabilizing sign is reflected in the Biden administrations commitment not to roll back the reality of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem and the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

The administration also expresses commitment to a two-state solution regarding Palestinians, while recognizing that the parties are not quickly returning to the negotiating table. U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken added his wish that neither party "takes steps that make the already difficult process even more challenging."

Smart Options

There are multiple visions for a peaceful resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, which include also the option of a two-state solution. Lovers of Israel and united Jerusalem must plan for a future that avoids the repetition of past mistakes.

Any peaceful resolution will need to have the agreement of both parties, and a commitment to stop incitement and dismantle all terror infrastructures and activities.

Even considering the option of a two-state solution, it must not include the disastrous division of Jerusalem into two capitals  due to multiple, historical, religious, social, safety and practical factors. Supporters of Israel and a united Jerusalem must adopt strategies to positively impact and inform, to ensure that rusty, failed and dangerous narratives regarding an Arab capital in Jerusalem are not reintroduced.

The following points can help to improve, educate and advocate for keeping Jerusalem united and secure. Share these facts with the American public and others who are wise enough to form an opinion, and with legislators on bipartisan sides of the aisle  at both the federal and state level.

Negatives of divided Jerusalem

Religious Rights  Jerusalem has been the capital of the Jewish people for over 3,000 years  and never of any Arab or other entity. The only period when Jews did not live in Jerusalem was the 19 years of Jordan's illegal occupation of the city between 1948-67. During that time, the Jewish quarter was destroyed, including multiple historical synagogues, and the Jews were not allowed to visit their holiest sites for even a short prayer.

Security Threat  Placing major parts of the holy city under Arab sovereignty is a high-risk security danger to residents and visitors. Almost all the strategic high ground in Jerusalem and its surroundings would be left under Arab control, with severe security risks to all residents. Prior to 1967, Arab snipers targeted Jewish pedestrians and residences, and areas near the partition were danger zones. Today, Hamas and Fatah terrorists would have little trouble repeating this scenario  but with much greater intensity. Unfettered unrest and radicalism in a divided Jerusalem would quickly embolden jihadists to export their ideology to the U.S. and its allies.

Sustainability and Morale  Social and security unrest would cause large numbers of residents to leave Jerusalem permanently, thus weakening the capital city and the morale of the entire country. Tourism would drop drastically, and the city's economy would cave.

Urban Development  In a scenario of divided Jerusalem, urban development and growth would be stifled. Israeli enforcement of the rule of law should continue to address all necessary issues, including illegal building, tax collection, municipal fees, and fighting crime. This will strengthen Israeli sovereignty over eastern Jerusalem, and the peaceful coexistence between all citizens  Jews, Muslims, and Christians.

United Jerusalem: asset for all peace-loving people

A stable and strong Israel has successfully limited the success of radical nationalist movements in Lebanon, Jordan, and PLO-controlled areas. In addition, Israel assists America in intelligence-gathering and covert operations, among other projects. A weakened Jerusalem significantly weakens Israel and its value to the U.S.

Benefit of united Jerusalem for Christians

A large portion of the American Christian public feels strongly that Jerusalem must remain under Israeli control and sovereignty.

As demonstrated by pre-1967 history and current events around the world, Christian holy sites in Muslim-controlled areas do not fare well and are often destroyed. Only Israel can guarantee that Jerusalem remains an open city, embracing all religions with holy sites freely accessible to all.

Benefit of united Jerusalem for Arabs

Surveys of eastern Jerusalem Arabs by international groups repeatedly reflect that most Arab residents of Jerusalem do not want to be under Palestinian Authority or Hamas control, under which they would lose freedoms, financial stability, and other Israeli benefits.

Dividing Jerusalem would imperil the jobs of over 40,000 eastern Jerusalem Arabs who work in western Jerusalem daily  at salary scales often four times higher than in PA-controlled territory.

Hatem Abdel Kader, a former PA Minister for Jerusalem Affairs, has said, "Jerusalem is at the bottom of the [PA's] list of priorities. The Israelis have a plan and vision for Jerusalem, while the Palestinians have nothing to offer."

Share this information

By sharing knowledge with all your contacts, you can help improve the lives of peace-loving citizens of all religious beliefs and backgrounds, in the Middle East and beyond. It will also strengthen Americas pro-Israel, pro-Arab and pro-U.S. policies, and will prevent many mistakes of past failed policies.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi's annual interaction with students 'Pariksha Pe Charcha' will be held online in this year in view of the COVID-19 pandemic, Union Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank' said on Thursday.

The interaction with students from classes 9 to 12 ahead of their exams will be held in March, the minister said.

"I feel happy to share that the interaction every student was waiting for is back! Get ready to smile your way through exams with PM @narendramodi in #ParikshaPeCharcha2021," he said in a tweet.

In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year the interaction will be conducted online, he said in another tweet.

The registration for the programme will begin from Thursday and conclude on March 14. Students who will get to ask questions will be selected through a competition.

The first edition of the prime minister's interaction programme with school and college students Pariksha Pe Charcha 1.0' was held at Talkatora Stadium on February 16, 2018.

(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.)

Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad has featured in TIME magazine's annual list of 100 emerging leaders, which also features 5 Indian-origin persons, including UK Finance Minister Rishi Sunak.

The 2021 TIME100 Next list, an expansion of TIME magazine's flagship TIME100 franchise, highlights 100 emerging leaders who are shaping the future.

"Everyone on this list is poised to make history. And in fact, many already have," said Dan Macsai, editorial director of the TIME100.

Twitter's top lawyer Vijaya Gadde, non-profit Upsolve's founder Rohan Pavuluri, grocery delivery and pick up platform Instacart's founder and CEO Apoorva Mehta and non-profit Get Us PPE's executive director Shikha Gupta are the other Indian-origin persons on the list.

On Aazad, Time Magazine said, "The movement he leads, the Bhim Army, runs schools to help Dalits escape poverty through education. It also practices a distinct brand of assertiveness, sweeping into villages on loud motorbikes to protect victims of caste-based violence and organising provocative demonstrations against discrimination."

It called the assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh next year as the 'first real test' for Aazad's political party. Aazad had launched Azad Samaj Party in March last year.

"Despite the Bhim Army's muscular stance, Aazad has also cultivated an aura of charismatic approachability through deft use of social media; even Aazad's luxuriant mustache-a style seen by some dominant castes as a status symbol-is a form of resistance," his profile said.

TIME magazine called Sunak an "unknown junior minister" in the British government more than a year ago. "But after the 40-year-old former hedge-fund partner was appointed to lead Britain's Treasury in February 2020, he quickly became the benevolent face of the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, approving large handouts for many citizens whose jobs were disrupted by the virus."

While his perceived generosity and youthful charm earned him a legion of fans, his policy was blamed when COVID-19 cases began to rise, his profile said.

"Critics also point out that because he has consistently advocated for early relaxation of lockdown rules, Sunak bears perhaps more responsibility than most for Britain's failures in responding to the virus, which has left more than 115,000 people dead-the fifth highest toll in the world," it added.

Also read: Narayana Murthy's daughter richer than Queen Elizabeth; husband Rishi Sunak draws fire for hiding assets

TIME called Gadde one of Twitter's 'most powerful executives' and said she was the one who conveyed the micro-blogging site's CEO Jack Dorsey the news of Twitter suspending the account of the then US President Donald Trump following the Capitol Hill violence.

"...Gadde's influence is slowly turning the company into one that sees free speech not as sacrosanct-but as just one human right among many that need to be weighed against one another," TIME said.

While the youngest person on the Time100 Next list is 16-year-old entertainer Charli D'Amelio, who counts more than 100 million followers on TikTok, among the eldest is 51-year-old Raphael Warnock, a Democratic Senator from Georgia.

"Although recognising the leaders of tomorrow lends itself to a younger group, we intentionally have no age cap, an acknowledgment that ascents can begin at any age," TIME said.
The Louisiana Department of Health reported 511 more confirmed coronavirus cases and 13 more confirmed deaths in its noon update Thursday.

The number of hospitalizations decreased by 26, and the number of patients in need of ventilators increased by two.

There are also 57,311 total "probable" coronavirus cases in Louisiana, according to the agency's dashboard.

Louisiana hospitals reschedule vaccine appointments as winter weather causes shipment delays Some major hospitals across south Louisiana have been forced to reschedule coronavirus vaccine appointments as near-freezing temperatures ling

Since Monday, there have been 29,970 more vaccine doses administered statewide. The Department of Health releases vaccine updates twice a week.

Since Dec. 14, the state has administered a total of 812,962 vaccine doses.

The state releases data on vaccinations twice a week, as part of its regular updates on coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths. The initial doses are the first of two -- spaced three weeks apart -- required for immunity.

These are another few key statewide statistics as of Thursday:

Vaccine news in your inbox Once a week we'll update you on the progress of COVID-19 vaccinations. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Total confirmed cases: 364,535

Total "probable" cases: 57,311

Total confirmed deaths: 9,406

Currently hospitalized: 823

Currently on ventilators: 128

Vaccine series initiated: 541,746 (updated twice weekly)

Vaccine series completed: 271,216

Presumed recovered: 396,834 as of Feb. 15 (updated weekly)

Note: The Advocate and The Times-Picayune staff calculates daily case count and confirmed death increases based on the difference between today's total and yesterday's total of confirmed coronavirus cases and deaths. The Louisiana Department of Health releases a daily case count on its dashboard that includes probable cases as indicated by a positive antigen test. That case count can be different than the one listed here.

Here are some of the parishes with the highest single-day increase in confirmed coronavirus cases, based on the Thursday report:

East Baton Rouge: 97

Jefferson: 86

Orleans: 52

Livingston: 40

St. Tammany: 31

You can view more graphs and charts breaking down the data by clicking here.

Louisiana began reopening for Phase 1 on May 15-16 then moved to Phase 2 on June 5. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards extended Louisiana's Phase 2 restrictions twice in August before moving the state to Phase 3 on Sept. 11. The governor then moved the state back to a modified Phase 2 near the end of November.

This is a developing story. More details and analysis to come.
Chicago announced on Wednesday that a city commission is reviewing the fate of 41 statues including those honoring Presidents Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, and Christopher Columbus.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that the city is seeking public comments before a decision is made on whether to remove the statues and replace them with something else as part of the Chicago Monuments Project.

They were identified by the commission from more than 500 monuments around the city, after a review began over the summer when Black Lives Matter protesters attacked two statues of Columbus, forcing Lightfoot to have them temporarily removed.

The mayor said that the project was launched afterward as part of a 'racial healing and historical reckoning' in the city, targeting Lincoln despite Illinois' own motto naming it the 'Land of Lincoln'.

The historical figures identified for removal are said to have ties to slavery, oppression, or subjugation.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot (pictured above) announced on Wednesday that Chicago is reviewing the fate of 41 statues including those honoring Presidents Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, Founding Father Benjamin Franklin, and Christopher Columbus

President Lincoln has been selected despite many regarding the 'Standing' Lincoln in Lincoln Park in Chicago, pictured, as one of the great masterpieces of public art

This statue of George Washington is also being reviewed because he was a slave owner

HISTORICAL FIGURES WHOSE STATUES ARE BEING 'REVIEWED' IN CHICAGO President Abraham Lincoln: Chosen for his treatment of Native Americans Explorer Christopher Columbus: Ties to colonization and supression of native peoples President George Washington: Owned slaves Founding Father Benjamin Franklin: Owned slaves as a young man 'Franklin owned two slaves who served in household responsibilities, but he later freed both and became an outspoken abolitionist,' the commission notes, adding that Franklin was 'complex' President Ulysses S. Grant: The commission said his 'American Indian policies were well intentioned, but ultimately disastrous' President William McKinley: Led U.S. territorial expansion after the Spanish-American War of 1898 to take over the colonies of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines Robert Cavalier de la Salle: A French explorer and fur trader who led expeditions to the Mississippi, whose basin he claimed for France as Louisiana Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet: French missionary Jacques Marquette and the Quebec-born cartographer Louis Jollie were among the first Europeans to explore and document the northern portion of the Mississippi The statue shows them with a subservient American Indian at their side General John Logan: Chosen for his military career began as a soldier volunteer in the Mexican War He also participated in legislation directed towards halting black migration and settlement in Illinois. General Philip Henry Sheridan: The Union army general, employed the same scorched earth tactics against the American Indians that he was notorious for using against the South during the Civil War, according to the commission Leif Ericson: The commission simply lists him as a Norse explorer Advertisement

Others identified included Ulysses S. Grant and William McKinley, as well as Robert Cavalier de la Salle, Jacques Marquette, Louis Jolliet, General John Logan, General Philip Henry Sheridan, and Leif Ericson.

Many of the others include tributes to pioneers or depictions of Native Americans, as well as a police memorial based on the Haymarket riot.

'This project is a powerful opportunity for us to come together as a city to assess the many monuments and memorials across our neighborhoods and communities - to face our history and what and how we memorialize that history,' Mayor Lightfoot said in a statement.

'Given the past year and in particular the past summer that made clear history isnt past, it is essential that residents are a part of this conversation.'

On Wednesday, besides identifying statues and markers of Lincoln, Washington and others for review, the city launched a website that details those flagged for review by the mayor's commission on monuments.

Members of the public have until April 1 to submit their opinion on the statues on social media or on the website, before the commission will decide officially on whether they will be removed and what they could be replaced with.

The commission is made up of 27 members, including city officials, artists, local academics, and museum curators.

It is chaired by Mark Kelly, Commissioner of the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events; Bonnie McDonald, President and CEO of Landmarks Illinois' and Jennifer Scott, a Public Historian and Curator.

'The Chicago Monuments Project Advisory Committee has considered hundreds of the city's sculptures and plaques in this critically important process,' Kelly said in a statement.

'The City's public art collection is a defining characteristic of Chicago and it should reflect and respect all Chicagoans.'

According to its website, the project aims to 'grapple with the often unacknowledged  or forgotten  history ... and provides a vehicle to address the hard truths of Chicago's racial history, confront the ways in which that history has and has not been memorialized, and develop a framework for marking public space that elevates new ways to memorialize Chicago's history more equitably and accurately.'

Its list for review includes five Lincoln statues located in different parts of the city.

Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War that freed the slaves. But he has still come under fire in recent months over his treatment of Native Americans.

President William McKinley was selected as he led U.S. territorial expansion after the Spanish-American War of 1898 to take over the colonies of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Philippines.

His statue was already vandalized in December and has been hit with protests calling for its removal.

This statue is one of two to Christopher Columbus that is under review in Chicago

Franklin is described as 'complex' by the commission but this statues is still under review

Washington was identified as the nation's first president was a slave owner and Franklin is also being hit as he owned slaves as a young man.

General Logan opposed abolition, the commission said, while Grant was chosen as his 'American Indian policies were well intentioned, but ultimately disastrous'.

The announcement was met with a mixture of disgust and interest from Chicago residents. While the public can now have their say, the final decision will still ultimately lie with the commission.

'Nevermind the mismanagement of the pandemic, high crime, closed schools, and bankrupt finances of Chicago. The powers that be have spent the time and done the hard work necessary to identify 41 problematic monuments around the city, including these,' wrote Tom Bevan of RealClearPolitics in a tweet.

'Can we not cancel Lincoln in Chicago?' John Greenfield also questioned.

'Yes, he made racist comments before becoming president, reflecting typical attitudes of white folks 160+ years ago. But hopefully taking a bullet for saving the union & signing Emancipation Proclamation outweighs that.

'And Union General John Logan? Yes, he initially opposed abolition, but as a postwar senator he worked for Black civil rights, women's suffrage, and public education, as well as helping to found Memorial Day and opposing prohibition,' he added.

The review is being met with derision by some on social media, pictured

'It's been coming on for decades, but the Stupid People are finally in charge - from #Biden down,' slammed a Twitter user named It's Next Year.

'There is a committee to take down statues in #Chicago - NOT to reduce crime or help small businesses. Pieces of marble are the Real problem.  its next year.'

'In case you were wondering, one of the monuments deemed "controversial" is an adolescent, barefooted Abe Lincoln sitting on a tree trunk,' joked another named Dylan Gresik.

Others appreciated the opportunity to have their say before a final decision was made and offered up their thoughts to the commission on social media.

'Why is The Republic in Jackson Park on the #ChicagoMonuments list for possible removal? The only context they list is that it is often mistaken for the original...,' one user wrote.

'I can see Confederate Monuments being moved, I certainly understand why the monument to Italo Balbo, given to Chicago by Benito Mussolini, might be troublesome, but what did Leif Ericson do that was objectionable? Or Robert Cavalier de La Salle?' questioned another named Seth Anderson.

Lincoln is targeted even though the state motto is 'The Land of Lincoln'

A user named Jedd Manuel also noted that many of those picked for review have already been targeted with physical attacks.

'Among the 41 monuments in Chicago being reviewed in this project is one that has *already* been bombed, hit by a streetcar, and moved four time,' he wrote in a tweet.

Chicago is among several U.S. cities that have been dealing with disputes over monuments celebrating Christopher Columbus, Confederate leaders, and other slave owners.

In the wake of the May 25 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody, activists - angry about Columbus' mistreatment of Indigenous people - clashed with police in Chicago as they tried to forcibly remove a statue of the explorer.

Lightfoot ordered the 'temporary' removal of Columbus statues in June and it was unclear when or if they will be returned.

In San Francisco last month, his name was among several historical figures that the city's Board of Education voted to remove from schools.

Lincoln was included on the list after a committee determined Native Americans were mistreated during his administration.

Even with the removal of the statues in Chicago, the city would still have markers remembering several of the president including Lincoln Park and Grant Park.
SOUTHBOROUGH, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- NeurAegis, Inc., a neuropharmaceutical company pioneering the development of breakthrough treatments for neurological disorders, today announced the publication of a paper titled "Calpain-2 Activation in Mouse Hippocampus Plays a Critical Role in Seizure-Induced Neuropathology" in the peer-reviewed journal Neurobiology of Disease. This publication highlights the scientific rationale for selectively inhibiting calpain-2 to prevent the development of serious pathological consequences associated with epilepsy including neuronal degeneration, brain inflammation and cognitive impairment.

"We employed a mouse model of status epilepticus (SE), which reproduces several features of epilepsy, to demonstrate that calpain-2 genetic deletion or blockade with NeurAegis' novel calpain-2 inhibitor significantly limits brain inflammation and neurodegeneration after SE," said Dr. Michel Baudry, Professor of Neuroscience at Western University of Health Sciences and scientific co-founder of NeurAegis. Dr. Baudry added, "Status epilepticus is the most extreme form of epilepsy and has a relatively high mortality rate. These data provide further support for the development of our novel calpain-2 inhibitor to address this serious unmet medical need."

The studies reported in the publication were performed in the Baudry Lab at Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA. Dr. Baudry and his team have been investigating the roles of calpain-1 and calpain-2 in the brain over the past 30 years. His groundbreaking research has shown that calpain-2 activation plays a major role in acute neurodegeneration found in multiple neurological disorders including traumatic brain injury and epilepsy.

About Status Epilepticus

Status epilepticus is a life-threatening medical condition associated with significant mortality. SE is defined as a seizure lasting more than 5 minutes, or two or more seizures without full recovery between any of them. SE may occur in association with a history of epilepsy or underlying brain trauma, infection, or stroke and may lead to permanent brain damage or death. There are currently no FDA approved medications that provide neuroprotection after SE.

About NeurAegis, Inc.

NeurAegis, Inc. is a preclinical stage neuropharmaceutical company pioneering the development of breakthrough treatments for neurological disorders including TBI, epilepsy, mild cognitive impairment and acute glaucoma. We have assembled a leadership team with deep, relevant experience for developing novel therapeutics that address large unmet needs for people with neurological disorders. For more information, please visit www.neuraegis.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

SOURCE NeurAegis, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.neuraegis.com


GRAND RAPIDS, MI  On Ash Wednesday, people typically encounter Christians with a smudged cross from blessed ashes on their foreheads, but that ritual changed Wednesday at the Cathedral of Saint Andrew to help stem the spread of COVID-19.

Dozens of Catholics flocked to downtown Feb. 17 for one of the most important holy days. Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent, a season of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Lent runs until the evening of Holy Thursday, April 1.

Reverend Rene Constanza, C.S.P., presided over the 12:05 p.m. socially distanced Mass with the contactless distribution of ashes by sprinkling them onto the heads of the faithful.

In January, the Vatican issued guidelines for Ash Wednesday in the pandemic that said priests could sprinkle ashes on the heads of people rather than rub them on the forehead.

Here, our practice is to have the cross on the forehead, said Constanza, about the traditional sign of repentance. This is something that we do with much humility understanding that God is the one that gives us life and that Gods love is able to transform our lives too.

The practice of sprinkling ashes on the crown of the head has been done at the Vatican and Europe for centuries, and also has Biblical connotations, he said.

It feels good to see a packed church, said Constanza, Rector at Cathedral of Saint Andrew. Meaning people we havent seen in a while are coming back. Its beautiful because they are returning to the Eucharist and returning to the community of believers. We certainly miss so many people.

Recognizing that there are people who still need to be away (during the pandemic), we totally understand that, because of medical reasons.

As the community has become more educated about how the novel coronavirus spreads, Constanza hopes church attendance can increase with safety measures.

Constanza said Bishop David J. Walkowiak is inviting people the whole season of Lent to return to Mass and encouraging them to invite others.

In some Diocese of Grand Rapids parishes Wednesday, the manner in which ashes were distributed may have been different based on the presiding ministers preference, officials said

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RINA and SDARI to develop ground-breaking methanol/ammonia fuelled tanker design

RINA, a leading global classification society, and the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI) have signed a Joint Development Project Agreement to develop a ground-breaking ship design capable of being fuelled by either ammonia or methanol.

Within the Agreement, SDARI will focus on the ship concept development and design while RINA will verify the compliance with the applicable rules, including those for the use of alternative fuels. The selected ship type is a tanker but the project, which is the first to investigate using both methanol and ammonia in this type of vessel, will increase understanding of the application of both fuels within the shipping industry with opportunities to apply designs to different types of ships. External support to the project will be provided by MAN Energy Solutions, a leader in dual fuel innovation. Giosue Vezzuto, Executive Vice President Marine at RINA, said: Ship designs have come a long way in their efficiency, but to meet targets for reduced emissions we need to look to alternative fuels. A ship specifically designed and optimized for using ammonia and methanol as fuels offers a future proof, environmentally sustainable solution. This is an important milestone within the RINA set of initiatives on innovation and energy transition towards the compliance with IMO 2030 and IMO 2050. We are pleased to join forces with SDARI and believe this project will benefit the whole shipping industry, releasing the potential of both ammonia and methanol. Wang Gang Yi, Vice President of SDARI, said: SDARI will always invest important resources into R&D, producing more efficient ship concepts and designs and using innovative energy sources. We are pleased to be working with RINA on our common goals to provide increasingly reliable design solutions to meet the emissions targets set by IMO for 2030 and 2050. Brian stergaard Srensen, Vice President and Head of R&D, Two-Stroke Business at MAN Energy Solutions Copenhagen, said: We encourage industry-wide partnerships for decarbonising the marine market and are very happy to collaborate with such respected institutions as RINA and SDARI. While two-stroke engine technology will likely retain its influence within deep-sea shipping for the foreseeable future, ammonia and methanol are fuels with a lot of potential as clean, zero-carbon fuels and with whom we have a lot of experience. We look forward to adding our expertise to the project.




Six days after announcing that Manitoba would be purchasing doses of an in-progress COVID-19 vaccine from an Alberta company, Premier Brian Pallister announced more details of the deal with Providence Therapeutics.

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Six days after announcing that Manitoba would be purchasing doses of an in-progress COVID-19 vaccine from an Alberta company, Premier Brian Pallister announced more details of the deal with Providence Therapeutics.

The order, according to the premier, was made to ensure a made-in-Canada vaccine supply in the face of shortage issues from manufacturers outside of the country.

"Because of their Canadian location, we believe that delivery of these vaccines is at much less risk than the delays and supply circumstances weve had to arrange with other providers thus far," he said.

While the final contract between Manitoba and Providence Therapeutics has yet to be signed, some key details of the agreement were revealed on Wednesday.

The two million doses of the vaccine Manitoba is ordering will cost $18 per dose and result in a final purchase price of $36 million.

Manitoba is paying 20 per cent ($7.2 million) up front when the contract is signed and 40 per cent ($14.4 million) when the vaccine is approved for use by Health Canada, with the final 40 per cent going out when the vaccine doses are delivered.

The first 200,000 doses of the vaccine are guaranteed to go to Manitoba, with Providence promising that Manitoba will receive a lowest price guarantee for any sales it makes in 2021.

"We believe that lowest price guarantee will put our price lower than the United States or the EU is paying," said Pallister.

According to him, the price per dose the United States government pays is between $24 to $35 depending on the manufacturer, and the European Union is paying between $18 and $22 per dose.

Under the agreement, Manitoba sites will be used for clinical trials and Providence is committing to provide a web portal that will allow the province to check the progress of clinical trials and the Health Canada approval process in real time.

Theres also a commitment from Providence to find a replacement buyer for the vaccine if the doses end up not being required when theyre eventually delivered.

When the final contract between Manitoba and Providence has been signed, Pallister pledged to make the entire document available for public view without redactions.

The premier said there was "strong interest" in this vaccine program from other provinces. He said there was a deputy ministers call on Tuesday evening between all provinces, territories and the federal government.

Today, there will be a national call between all premiers and the prime minister as well.

If more jurisdictions buy in, Pallister said theres a chance that Providence can offer a better per-dose price.

Last week, Pallister said he hoped this vaccine would be available for use "as early as this fall."

This week, he made reference to using them next year and acknowledged that they will likely not arrive in time to assist with the current supply issues the province is facing.

"Next year, although the science in terms of timing or need has yet to be verified, we do believe that there will be need for booster shots," he said. "If we have similar disruptions next year, then we are back to a lot of the negative effects this pandemic has created for Canadians already."

Asked why the province decided to partner with a company that has yet to bring any vaccines to market, the premier said Providence has done more research on mRNA vaccines than any other company in Canada.

Speaking further on why Providence was chosen, Pallister said the province had approached many companies about producing a vaccine locally but was rejected more times than he was as a young man.

Also at the media conference, the premier revealed that Elections Canada officials had been in touch with the province regarding finding polling stations for a potential federal election this year.

"I want to be very, very clear to them and to the people of Manitoba that should the federal government decide that it wants to call an election this spring, Manitoba schools will certainly not be made available for polling stations," said Pallister. "Keeping our students, our schools safe, it remains a top priority for our government for our Manitoba families."

 cslark@brandonsun.com

 Twitter: @ColinSlark
Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
State TV footage shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-un presiding over a party meeting, Feb. 8. Yonhap



By Do Je-hae



North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is now using "president" as his official title in English, instead of "chairman" as he has used in the past, according to the North's state media.



The English service of the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) has been using president rather than chairman since Feb. 12 a report about Kim's attendance at a Lunar New Year performance with leading members of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK).



Since then, the KCNA has been referring to him as the "general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)." The DPRK is North Korea's official name.



"President Kim" appears in the latest English report about his visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, Wednesday, to mark the birthday of his late father, Kim Jong-il, whose body is displayed there alongside Kim Il-sung's.



The change in his title followed the eighth party congress in January, during which Kim became the general secretary of the WPK.



Experts said that the change of his English title has to do with boosting his image ahead of possible international negotiations, as most state leaders, including Chinese leader Xi Jinping, also use the title "president" in English.



"Kim taking the title of president appears to emphasize his representation and control of the entire North Korean state on top of his already cultivated image as leader of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. North Korea seeks to refute theories that it is desperate under the pandemic's economic conditions. Kim intends to show confidence in domestic governance and strength ahead of any international negotiations," said Leif-Eric Easley, an associate professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.



The North Korean leader previously used "chairman" of the State Affairs Commission as his title, and "Chairman Kim" has often been used by U.S. officials, such as former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. He has also gone by the title "marshal," the highest rank in the Korean People's Army.


Inside the Zoo

Rating:

Wartime Britain: Keep Calm & Carry On

Rating:

You never want to meet Mr Skylight. That name over the Tannoy system is code aboard some cruise lines, for a medical emergency on the ship.

Mr Mob is Mr Skylight's accident-prone friend: he signifies 'Man Overboard'. If you're on the Tube, hope that you never hear a message for Inspector Sands  that's the warning to staff that a fire has broken out.

And if you're strolling around Edinburgh Zoo, especially if you're near the tiger enclosure, what you don't want to hear is 'Priority! Priority! Priority!'  a panicky code that means: 'One of our animals has escaped.'

The triple priority on Inside The Zoo (BBC2) didn't announce a man-eater on the loose, luckily. The biggest threat was to the zoo's canteen: one of the Ethiopian gelada 'baboon' babies had wriggled out of its enclosure and was on the lookout for food.

Like its cousins The Secret Life Of The Zoo on C4 and BBC1's Animal Park, the Scottish zoo series Inside the Zoo (BBC2) offers an entertaining blend of the familiar and the surprising, the top-of-the-bill breeds and the unknowns

Geladas are fussy eaters, if Auntie Alice is typical. This elderly animal, who was hunched over with a curvature of the spine, expects to be fed treats by her indulgent keepers. She likes potatoes but not in their jackets, peeling the skins off before she will consume them.

Now that the geladas have found a way out, just wait until Alice learns about the bags of flabby french fries at McDonald's. Priority, priority, priority!

Like its cousins The Secret Life Of The Zoo on C4 and BBC1's Animal Park, this Scottish zoo series offers an entertaining blend of the familiar and the surprising, the top-of-the-bill breeds and the unknowns.

The headliners this time were giant pandas Tian Tian and Yang Guang, who were busy not doing the one thing that pandas everywhere refuse to do: they weren't breeding. Every year, the staff wheel out the panda incubator, in the hope of little paws, and every year the animals give a shudder and turn their backs, as if to say: 'I am not that sort of bear, thank you very much.'

Frankly, Paddington is more likely to get pregnant than the average panda. To emphasise the point, Yang Guang developed an illness that meant he had to be castrated. It's as though they actually want to be extinct.

The pine hoverflies at the Highland Wildlife Park in the Cairngorms were no better. You might imagine that, if there's one thing the Scottish wilds don't lack, it is winged insects.

But these hoverflies are so endangered that every larva in a jam jar was reason for rejoicing. The zoo raised 16 last year.

Even the dead ones are protected 'because they are so rare', said keeper Lina. 'We keep every one that passes away.' For heaven's sake, don't leave the top off that jam jar. Priority! Priority! Priority!

In Wartime Britain: Keep Calm & Carry On (C5), a young family (pictured) recreate life under rationing

The young family recreating life under rationing, in Wartime Britain: Keep Calm & Carry On (C5), were tucking into meals that would delight any gelada baboon  mock chocolate spread made from cocoa powder and potato, followed by a frozen carrot on a stick.

This history lesson is a version of BBC2's Back In Time series, done on the lowest budget possible. Mum Louise, with her children Amelie, 13, and Bryson, nine, dressed up in 1940s garb, sewed clothes made from muslin and parachute silk, tried out a few big band dance steps and attempted the recipes in a Ministry of Information pamphlet.

It was all so cheap and cheerful that this was more like a school lesson than a documentary.

If Channel 5 persists with this make-do-and-mend approach to TV, we might as well listen to the wireless instead.


WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After traveling millions of kilometers in space, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is set to land the agency's fifth robot on the Red Planet Thursday to find signs of past life there.



Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, where the mission is managed, have confirmed that the Rovers spacecraft is healthy and on target to touch down in Jezero Crater at around 3:55 p.m. EST.



The six-wheeled robot is fast approaching Mars after a 470 million kilometers long journey from Earth that started six-and-a-half months ago.



NASA said that a variety of factors can affect the precise timing of the spacecraft's entry, descent, and landing. They include unpredictable properties of the Martian atmosphere and the complexity of deep-space communications.



The riskiest portion of the rover's mission that some engineers call the 'seven minutes of terror' will be broadcast live on NASA TV from 2:15 p.m. EST.



Only about 50 percent of all previous Mars landing attempts have been successful.



'Perseverance is NASA's most ambitious Mars rover mission yet, focused scientifically on finding out whether there was ever any life on Mars in the past,' said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. 'To answer this question, the landing team will have its hands full getting us to Jezero Crater - the most challenging Martian terrain ever targeted for a landing,' he added.



A key objective of Perseverance's mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover will characterize the planet's geology and past climate, pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and will be the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and sediment for later return to Earth.



3.5 billion years ago, Jezero Crater was the site of a large lake, complete with its own river delta. Mars 2020 mission scientists believe that while the water may be long gone, somewhere within the 28-mile-wide crater, evidence that life once existed there could be waiting.



Once on the surface, one of Perseverance's first activities will be to take pictures of its new home using the rover's suite of cameras, especially Mastcam-Z, and transmit them back to Earth. Over the following days, engineers will also check on the health of the rover and deploy the remote sensing mast, so it can take more pictures.



Subsequent NASA missions, in cooperation with European Space Agency, would send spacecraft to Mars to collect the sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis.



Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

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Crystal Cook, president of REDI Transports, Green Bay, Wisconsin, said in a statement that the company has received a letter from The Lake County Board of Commissioners regarding the intent to recover the costs associated with the capture of Leon Taylor and that the company is working with its advisers to request a further breakdown of the expenses.

CLEVELAND, Ohio  City Council President Kevin Kelley is considering an inquiry into whether FirstEnergy sought to interfere with a wind turbine energy project that involves Cleveland Public Power.

In an interview with cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer, Kelley said his inquiry would explore whether a questionable $4 million payment by First Energy to the future head of the PUCO was used to harm the proposed wind turbine project on Lake Erie.

Kelleys comment came after FirstEnergy, in a filing this week with the Securities and Exchange Commission, renewed attention on the payment by stating the money may have been for purposes other than those represented in a consulting agreement.

And Gov. Mike DeWine has said that regulator was former Public Utilities Commission of Ohio Chairman Sam Randazzo, who was chair of the Ohio Power Siting Board when it approved six wind turbines in the lake, but with conditions viewed as a poison pill for the project.

Over the last month the council has issued subpoenas to Consumers Against Deceptive Fees, a dark-money group that distributed leaflets to customers of city-owned Cleveland Public Power, and to Generation Now, a no-profit corporation that FirstEnergy used as a pass-through entity.

Issuing a subpoena over the wind turbine project by the Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation  also known as LEEDCo  would be a separate inquiry. Kelley said it would have to be done in consultation with Mayor Frank Jacksons administration.

The mayor said Tuesday that he intends to sue FirstEnergy Corp. for efforts to undermine CPP .

Jackson didnt say when that suit would be filed, but Kelley, in his interview, said the council would not want its inquiries to interfere with that case.

CPP has about 80,000 commercial and residential customers in Cleveland, including the home of the Browns, FirstEnergy Stadium. Akron-based FirstEnergy is a competitor with about 60,000 Cleveland customers.

Court and tax records have shown that FirstEnergy, via Generation Now and another pass-through, Partners for Progress, distributed $200,000 to Consumers Against Deceptive Fees in 2019. Council has subpoenaed documents hoping to learn the source of $351,000 the group received in funding in 2018.

LEEDCo, formed in 2009 to explore wind power, is a collaboration between Great Lakes Energy Development Task Force, Cuyahoga and Lorain counties and the city, through CPP. The demonstration project could lead to larger wind farms. Cleveland is involved as part of its efforts to expand its use of renewable energy.

The Power Siting Board last May approved erecting six wind turbines 8 miles offshore from Cleveland but attached 33 conditions -- including that the turbines could not turn at night between March 1 and November 1, to limit risk to birds and bats. LEEDCo said then the restriction could kill the project.

In September the board abruptly reversed.

Last fall, FirstEnergy told the SEC that it uncovered the $4 million payment during an internal investigation prompted by the fallout from the federal corruption probe into Ohio House Bill 6, the nuclear bailout bill.

The company said it made the payment in early 2019, purportedly to end a consulting agreement with an entity associated with the unnamed official, who DeWine has said was Randazzo. The payment was made in early 2019, about the same time Randazzo joined the PUCO.

But days before the company disclosed the $4-million transaction, the FBI raided Randazzos home in Columbus. The day after FirstEnergy disclosed the $4-million payment, Randazzo resigned from his job.

In a new filing, FirstEnergy told the SEC this week that the company now believes that payments under the consulting agreement may have been for purposes other than those represented within the consulting agreement.

More from Cleveland City Hall

Clueless Cleveland councilman admits at public hearing to improperly releasing dozens of nuisance animals

Plan to expand street paving program in Cleveland a casualty of the coronavirus, Mayor Frank Jackson says

Mayor Frank Jackson says Cleveland will sue FirstEnergy over actions by dark-money group against CPP

Cleveland City Council issues two more subpoenas in investigation of dark money used to discredit CPP

Cleveland working on plan to target support for mid-level neighborhoods before they decline
Chattanooga Clergy and community members said they were demanding the Sheriff's Office release a public report detailing training standards and more surrounding policies of excessive force. They said they wanted this report to be sent out by March 12 at the latest.

Sheriff Jim Hammond on Wednesday replied to the group. The sheriff's office recently took over operation of the Silverdale Detention Center and has made a number of "sweeps" at the facility seeking contraband and weapons. A number of "shanks" have been found.

In a press release sent out on Sunday afternoon, the Chattanooga Clergy for Justice said:

"Chattanooga Clergy for Justice has issued a letter to Sheriff Hammond asking for him to produce policies and procedures around: use of force, hiring/firing of officers with histories of excessive force, training and implementation for officers, and medication/meals at Silverdale Detention Center."







Around 20 clergy and community members gathered in front of the downtown jail. Reverend Dr. William Ladd addressed the people and detailed the main objectives of the letter. He said the clergy will continue to "apply pressure" to sheriff Hammond.





"He failed to meet with us after commissioning this task force," Rev. Ladd said, referencing the 2019 task force the sheriff's office set up to discuss these things. "We want our community to be better, and we want to work with the sheriff. But if the sheriff is not going to be transparent about the training of his officers and the dashcam footage, then we need to move forward in legal action."





Rev. Ladd said he and others are willing to hold the sheriff accountable for what he considers a violation of his oath of office to his constituents. He said a lawsuit is a possibility.





"He violated his pledge to do, to the best of his ability and knowledge, agreeably to law," Rev. Ladd said. "We are moving to take legal action as it relates to training. If there's not adequate training, and it's already been shown by an independent investigator in the Arrington case that showed that there was no adequate training because of use of force."





Alan Holman Sr., a pastor at Bethel A.M.E Church, said clergy have a responsibility to their congregations to be involved in civil rights.





"Even the word of God says the government is upon the shoulders of Christ, and the civil rights movement was led by the clergy," pastor Holman Sr. said. "It's always been our responsibility, to lead our parishioners, who are citizens. So we all have the same responsibility."





"There is no justification for the force they use in law enforcement. They need to teach their officers anger management, they need to screen their officers as to their ability to de-escalate the situation. And when people have their hands handcuffed behind their back, why in the world will they continually abuse these citizens."





The Chattanooga Clergy for Justice also linked to a website where they have more information. You can find it here:





Sheriff Hammond replied:

As Sheriff, it is my duty to ensure the safety and protect the rights of all Hamilton County citizens, including those individuals in the custody of the Hamilton County Jail and now, the Silverdale Detention Center. As Sheriff, I have always welcomed recommendations and feedback from members of the community that I proudly serve.

In an effort to develop and strengthen relationships between the HCSO and our local minority community, I assigned Captain Van Hinton to serve as our Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Officer and created a Minority Relations Community Taskforce. This taskforce was formatted to be an advisory group in order to advance the HCSOs goals of community-oriented policing (COPS) through recruitment, engagement, and transparency. Members of this taskforce have various backgrounds and many are members of the local clergy.

Throughout my career, I have developed numerous, longstanding relationships with members of our local clergy and value the insight they have offered regarding community relations. Through this insight and our own proactive measures, the HCSO has made improvements to our policies and procedures and enhanced our training in certain areas.

I recently received a letter from the Chattanooga Clergy for Justice in which my office is accused of resisting public calls for information in the form of silence when official HCSO policies are requested. To be clear, any citizen of the State of Tennessee is able to request copies of specific HCSO policies through an open records request pursuant to the Tennessee Public Records Act. We provide policies and similar records each time they are requested through the Public Records Act, as we have a statutory obligation to do so. We often receive these requests by the local media and are quick to comply when a specific policy is requested. We recently implemented a new online organizational tool, PowerDMS, so that we can soon make HCSO policies available to the public without requiring a records request. We look forward to this information being accessible to the public as we believe it will be informative and beneficial to the community and also will be more efficient for the HCSO.

Regarding the requests in the February 14, 2021 letter from the Chattanooga Clergy for Justice, I will address each request separately:

Request: HCSO official policy and procedures guidelines on officer training and patrol services, especially regarding standards for use of force and for the medication and feeding of detained individuals.

As a CALEA (Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies) accredited law enforcement agency, the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office has over 484 existing policies. Hundreds of these policies involve officer training and patrol services. The HCSO can retrieve any existing policy that is specifically requested. Pursuant to your specific request, attached to this response you will find nine (9) HCSO policies that involve use of force.

Inmate medical care and food services are governed by the Tennessee Corrections Institute (TCI), the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC), and the American Correctional Association (ACA). All correctional facilities in the State of Tennessee are required to comply with all TCI standards in order to continue operation. TCI inspects every state correctional facility annually, and if deficiencies are found upon inspection, TCI will continue to inspect and review the facility until the deficiencies are corrected. The Hamilton County Jail last received TCI Certification in August of 2020. Silverdale, under CoreCivic operation, last received TCI Certification in October of 2020. The Hamilton County Jail was proud to also receive ACA and NCCHC accreditation. It is our intent to earn both ACA and NCCHC accreditation at the Silverdale Detention Center by the end of 2021.

The Sheriffs Office has partnered with a correctional medical provider that has achieved NCCHC accreditation in other detention facilities and has a reputation for quality inmate care. For food services, the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office partners with Trinity Services Group to provide inmates adequate meals with portions, calories, and nutritional quality that meet the standards described above. The HCSO remains committed to serving inmates at the Silverdale Detention Center three hot meals a day. The meals and menus that Trinity provides to inmates at Silverdale were included in the contract that Hamilton County signed with Trinity and subsequently, are a matter of public record.

Request: Clear answers related to staff development and internal training on official policies, including: 1. The regular schedule of staff development and training sessions, 2. personnel running and facilitating regular training sessions, 3. whether development and training sessions are mandatory for officers and how that is enforced, 4. frequency and expectations of officers going through development and training sessions.

All Hamilton County Sheriffs Office deputies are required to attend and complete 40 hours of annual in-service training. Of the 40 hours of in-service for the 2021 year, 38 hours of the subject matter has been mandated by the Peace Officer Standards & Training Commission (P.O.S.T.) or is required for sustaining specific areas of proficiency and certification. The Sheriffs Office has dedicated the remaining two hours to legal updates, as we feel that these updates can be a critical area for deputies to be aware of the most current case law, T.C.A., and procedural updates that may affect their day-to-day function.

The 2021 in-service class consists of the instruction in the following areas: Emergency Vehicle Operation, Mental Health, Child Sex Abuse, Officer Wellness and Mental Health, Defensive Tactics (baton, hands, OC spray, taser), Public Assembly Interaction, CPR & First Aid, De-Escalation and Duty to Intervene, Firearms, Legal Updates, and Community Immersion. The HCSO requires that deputies who attend training meet the minimum training standards. If they are unable to meet the standards, they then receive remedial training. If remedial training is not successful, they are then subject to reclassification or reassignment.

In addition to meeting the minimum standards required by the State, the HCSO offers an enormous amount of specialized training coursesthis includes career development training, instructor level certifications, or training to become an expert in a specific field. For example, we are proud that many officers in our Criminal Investigations Division have been through the National Forensic Academy.

Throughout each year, all firearms qualified deputies participate in training that is in addition to the mandated eight hours of P.O.S.T., including the completion of use of force shooting scenarios in the firearms training simulator. The HCSO also complies with P.O.S.T. regulations that require newly promoted supervisors to attend leadership training.

At the end of each year, our Training Division completes a summary of the years Training Division activities. The summary of 2020 training division activity is attached.

The HCSO Training Division consists of the following full-time leadership personnel:

 Law Enforcement Training Division: Lieutenant Paul Maupin, Sergeant Jeremy Durham, and Deputy Marie Kurtz

 Corrections Training Division: Lieutenant Mike McGowan and Corporal Richard Womack

Our instructors consist of the most trained and experienced officers who have been certified to instruct on the full array of training subjects.

Request: HCSO official policies around hiring and firing of officers who use excessive force, including: 1. Officers who have been fired or decertified for misconduct involving excessive or unjustified use of force. 2. Officers who have received sustained complaints of misconduct involving excessive or unjustified force.

The Sheriffs Office maintains multiple policies that govern the process in which a use of force incident is reviewed. The policies that involve use of force are attached to this letterto accompany those policies and answer the questions in this specific request, you will also find attached five HCSO policies that govern Internal Affairs Investigations and Disciplinary Procedures if and when policy violations are sustained.

If it is determined by Internal Affairs that an officer has violated HCSO policyincluding the use of excessive forcethe officer will be disciplined pursuant to HCSO disciplinary procedures and the requirements of the Civil Service Board. If the use of force may rise to the level of criminal conduct, the incident will be investigated as a criminal incident and the case will be presented to the District Attorney for review and possible further investigation.

As Sheriff, my office and I respond to citizen and media inquiries each and every day. We provide information and records, including our official policies, dozens of times each week when requested by attorneys, criminal defendants, concerned citizens, journalists, or groups such as the Chattanooga Clergy for Justice. We strive to be transparent and, when necessary, willing to evaluate our policies so that we are constantly improving. Transparency involves admitting when improvements can be made and acknowledging that despite the best efforts of any law enforcement agency, officers will make mistakes and will fall short. However, I remain committed to the goals of the Hamilton County Sheriffs Office and I stand behind my deputies and officers who sacrifice every day to protect and serve the citizens of this County.
Applications for asylum in the European Union dropped by more than 30 per cent in 2020 compared to the previous year, reaching their lowest level since 2013, according the bloc's asylum agency.

The European Asylum Support Office said on Thursday that a decrease of 31per cent in the 27 member states plus Norway and Switzerland is mainly the result of emergency travel restrictions put in place during the pandemic.

The agency noted that despite the virus crisis, national asylum authorities showed resilience in sustaining many activities, resulting in a decrease in backlogs of pending applications."



According to figures provided by the office, 461,300 applications were lodged in 2020, compared to 671,200 in 2019.

The agency said that about 4 per cent of all applications were lodged by people claiming to be unaccompanied minors.

As in 2019, Syrians lodged the most applications (14 per cent), followed by Afghans, Venezuelans, Colombians and Iraqis.

Together, the five top nationalities lodged over two fifths of all asylum applications," the European asylum office said.
A really tight community of Winnipeg students is dealing with the shocking blow of a car crash that killed three young men from Bangladesh near Arborg Thursday.

A "really tight" community of Winnipeg students is dealing with the shocking blow of a car crash that killed three young men from Bangladesh near Arborg Thursday.

RCMP said the students were travelling southbound on Highway 7 at 6:20 a.m., when their vehicle collided head on with a northbound car driven by a 53-year-old woman, seven kilometres south of Arborg.

The three men, two of whom were 23 years old, were pronounced dead at the scene. The age of the third male was not known.

The woman, from the Rural Municipality of Armstrong, was taken to hospital in Winnipeg with serious injuries.

On Thursday night, Tahbit Dewan, president of the University of Manitobas Bangladeshi Student Association, said hes been close friends with the three students for more than three years.

He identified them as: Al Numan Aditta, Risul Badhon, and Aranoor Azad Chowdhury.

Dewan said hes struggling to come to terms with such a sudden loss, having spoken to the men recently.

"I had been in contact with them last week, actually," Dewan told the Free Press.

"Its still unreal that I will never be seeing them around or talking to them about sports or whatevers going on. It doesnt feel right."

The three were always together, Dewan said.

The men were well into their studies  Chowdhury was a science student, Aditta was in agribusiness, Badhon was attending the Asper School of Business  and were known for being friendly, giving and kind, he said.

"They were my oldest friends I had when I landed in Winnipeg as an international student," Dewan said. "Ive never seen them sad or upset about anything. They were always so positive."

Dewan said he has been in contact with the families.

"They are quite in shock  most of them had a conversation (with them) last night," he said. "In Bangladesh, theres a 12-hour difference. Yesterday morning, all three families had conversations with their sons. And six or eight hours later, they heard the news that they are no more."

There are some 600 Bangladeshi students at the U of M, and the community is "really tight," Dewan said.

It is the second tragedy to hit in a month: Sami Uzzaman, 24, who was found dead in the Fort Garry area after being missing for nearly three weeks in January, was also a Bangladeshi U of M student.

"Its just back-to-back bad news, its really affecting us," Dewan said. "We are taking it hard, honestly. Its taken a toll on our mental health. Its too early to say how everyones doing, but I cant say its good."

The U of M Muslim Student Association is grieving three active members, who gave so much to the student and wider community in Winnipeg, group president Abdul Ahad said Thursday.

"A lot of us are really emotional, because we have such incredible memories for them, so its really emotional for us," he said.

Ahad knew all three, and said hell always remember them fondly: Chowdhury as a dedicated MSA volunteer and gifted soccer player; Badhon as a cheerful and supportive confidante for many; and Aditta as the first to offer help to anyone in need.

"International students, we dont have any family here, so our friends are our family," he said.

"Its unbelievable, it was really heartbreaking for me and for everyone in our circle," he said.

Ahad also referred to the death of Uzzaman a month earlier as a painful reminder of how important it is to keep contact, even through a pandemic, with the people you care for.

"Right now, what were trying to do as a community, is trying to connect with everybody. We also learned a lesson from the death of Sami Uzzaman... so we try to stay connected with everybody to make sure everybodys safe," he said.

The RCMP are investigating.

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: malakabas_
The lives of Australia's hottest reality stars, influencers and models may appear picture perfect online.

But beneath their glossy social media pages lie scandalous secrets that even the bravest of gossip websites wouldn't dare to publish.

On Wednesday, Instagram snark account Celeb Spellcheck encouraged fans to share anonymous stories about their encounters with D-list celebrities, before reposting the best responses.

Gossip: Instagram account Celeb Spellcheck has encouraged fans to share anonymous stories about their encounters with Australian reality stars, influencers and models

Celeb Spellcheck censored the responses in order to hide the identities of the influencers and reality stars in question.

Illicit drug use quickly became a popular topic, with one user claiming a 'massive influencer' doesn't want to have children because she 'likes coke too much'.

Another commenter alleged that a 'legit model sells her uncle's ketamine' at bars on the Gold Coast.

Censored: The snark account censored the responses in order to hide the identities of the influencers and reality stars in question

Oh, dear: One Instagram user claimed a 'massive influencer' admitted she doesn't want to have children because she likes 'coke too much'

Selling out: Another commenter alleged that a 'legit model sells her uncle's ketamine' at bars on the Gold Coast

Bumped out: One fan said she'd even witnessed a fitness influencer snorting cocaine in public, before getting herself kicked out of a venue for taking drugs

One fan said she'd even witnessed a fitness influencer snorting cocaine in public, before getting herself kicked out of a venue for taking drugs.

'Fitness gal taking my friends bag for a bump then when we ask for it back, she accuses my friend of stealing it from her, calls security, gets herself kicked out of the venue for drugs hahaha,' they divulged.

Celeb Spellcheck's expose also included allegations of theft, as one follower claimed a fitness influencer had been 'chased out of a retail store for shoplifting'.

From heavy lifting to shoplifting: Celeb Spellcheck's expose also included allegations of theft, as one follower claimed a fitness influencer had been 'chased out of a retail store for shoplifting'. (This is a stock photo)

A family affair! 'Her mum also has been banned from most stores in town stealing (all 100% true - I know some of the owners),' they claimed

'Her mum also has been banned from most stores in town stealing (all 100% true - I know some of the owners),' they claimed.

Infidelity was another hot topic, with several commenters claiming they'd been in adulterous relationships with celebrities or their partners.

One user claimed she'd been in an 'ongoing fling' with the boyfriend of a popular influencer for five years.

Saucy: One user claimed she'd been in an 'ongoing fling' with the boyfriend of a popular influencer for five years

Surprise! Elsewhere, a female user claimed she'd had adulterous sex with a famous model who was married to a man at the time

'Nice little reminder to not always believe what you see on Instagram': Another alleged that a 'big influencer's boyfriend' had subscribed to her account on adult website OnlyFans

'We regularly sext on Snapchat to this day,' the commenter alleged.

Elsewhere, a female user claimed she'd had adulterous sex with a famous model who was married to a man at the time.

Another alleged that a 'big influencer's boyfriend' had subscribed to her account on adult website OnlyFans.

'Nice little reminder to not always believe what you see on Instagram,' they said.

Don't you know who I am? Several comments exposed celebrities' diva behaviour

Several comments exposed stars' diva behaviour, including calling people 'peasants' and demeaning others for not having as many Instagram followers as them.

Perhaps one of the most shocking claims involved a 'huge influencer' who had been supposedly spotted 'full on yelling' at her fiance in public.

'It was super uncomfortable, almost abusive... if it was roles reversed I think passersby would have intervened,' they claimed.

Trouble in paradise: Perhaps one of the most shocking claims involved a 'huge influencer' who had been supposedly spotted 'full on yelling' at her fiance in public. (This is a stock photo)
WASHINGTON  U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz was feeling the heat in Cancun, but it wasnt the 80-degree weather.

What he later called a firestorm of criticism was building online after pictures surfaced showing the Texas Republican boarding a plane out of Houston on Wednesday while millions in his home state were left in the cold, without power and water, reeling from a major disaster.

The Cancun trip, which drove the national news cycle Thursday, was obviously a mistake, Cruz said in a rare mea culpa after returning home to Houston after just one night  cutting short a trip that was originally scheduled to last through the weekend.

Cruz said he was taking care of his family and caved as his daughters asked him to get away from their freezing home, which was without power like much of Houston. But Cruz said he regretted it as soon as he got on the plane.

By Thursday morning, the trip had already sparked renewed calls for Cruzs resignation  six weeks into 2021, the senator with 2024 presidential ambitions has also been the focus of scorn over his objections to certifying President Joe Bidens electoral victory, an effort his campaign used to raise money that also led to calls for his resignation and an ethics complaint from Senate Democrats.

LIVE UPDATES: Keep up with the latest on the winter storm

In hindsight I wouldnt have done it, Cruz told reporters gathered outside his home. I needed to be here and thats why I came back, and as it became a bigger and bigger firestorm it became even more compelling that I needed to come back.

It was the second time this week Cruz publicly acknowledged he was wrong. He did the same after he was called out for having mocked Californias rolling blackouts in 2020.

I got no defense, Cruz tweeted in response. A blizzard strikes Texas & our state shuts down. Not good. Stay safe!

Political experts in Texas, however, dont expect all this bad PR to stick. Even after the insurrection at the Capitol, Cruz consistently ranks among the most popular Republicans in the state. He was second only to Donald Trump in a University of Houston poll released last month, easily weathering the outrage from the Capitol attack.

While he may be one of the most disliked politicians in Texas, he is also one of the most well-liked  and his base is not going to budge, even under these circumstances, said Renee Cross, senior director at UHs Hobby School of Public Affairs, which conducted the poll.

Republican political operatives, however, were shaking their heads at the Cancun trip, even as they questioned what Cruz realistically could have done about the crisis in Texas that he couldnt also do remotely.

Derek Ryan, a Republican political consultant in Texas, predicted the photos will haunt the senator for some time.

Whether he can help or not, in 2024 the ads will be, While you and your family froze, Cruz fled to Mexico, Ryan tweeted. Perception is reality.

You need to be seen as engaged, you need to be seen as active in your community, helping out, said Brendan Steinhauser, a GOP strategist in Texas.

MEGA/GC Images

He is a senator, so what can he actually do right now? Most of what they can do is make calls, send emails, make statements.  He could argue a lot of those things, I can do from my phone, from virtually anywhere, Steinhauser said. But he decided to come back home.  He sees this is a perception problem.

Cruz said he had planned to work from Cancun and that it certainly was not my intention for that to be understood, as critics have tried to paint it, as somehow diminishing the hardship other Texans have experienced.

He said his family spent two days without power and my girls wanted to take a trip with their friends and frankly get somewhere where it was warmer.

We were trying to be good parents and said, OK, well do it, Cruz said.

At a time when so many Texans are hurting and frustrated and mad, that this has become an item of debate and distraction, I think that's unfortunate, Cruz. That was certainly not my intention. My intention was to take care of my family.

Meanwhile, text messages Cruzs wife, Heidi, sent to a group of friends, which were leaked to the New York Times, were going viral online Thursday night. Heidi Cruz complained their house was FREEZING and invited friends for a getaway at the Ritz-Carlton, where she said the Cruzes had stayed before and where rooms were going for $309 a night.

Democrats, likely already writing their 2024 attack lines, were again calling for Cruzs resignation Thursday.

TEXAS TAKE: Get political headlines from across the state sent directly to your inbox

Brett Coomer, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

Ted Cruz jetting off to Mexico while Texans remain dying in the cold isnt surprising, but it is deeply disturbing and disappointing, Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement titled For the 21st Time, Texas Democrats Call on Ted Cruz to Resign or Be Expelled From Office.

Cruz is emblematic of what the Texas Republican Party and its leaders have become: weak, corrupt, inept and self-serving politicians who dont give a damn about the people they were elected to represent, Hinojosa said. They were elected by the people but have no interest or intent of doing their jobs.

Elected officials in some of Texas biggest cities also pounced.

Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water? tweeted state Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat.

In crises like these, members of Congress play a critical role connecting their constituents to emergency services and assistance, former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro tweeted, adding Cruz should be on the phone with federal agencies, not on a trip to Mexico.

U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, a Houston Democrat, brought up Cruzs trip in an unrelated interview and said shes in a couple of group text threads that have just been going crazy with that. Garcia joked that she had been thinking this week that real Texans can get through it all, before seeing the news about Cruzs trip to Cancun and thinking, Oh, thats right, Cruz is from Canada.

I just think its incredible insensitivity, Garcia said.

RICK PERRY ON THE STORM: Texans willing to suffer blackouts to keep feds out of power market

Marie D. De Jesus, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

But the most potent attacks against Cruz may not come from Democrats, predicted Steinhauser, the GOP strategist. He noted that Cruz and Gov. Greg Abbott are considered possible presidential candidates in 2024 and would both be competing for Texas support in the primary.

Its more likely to come up there than anywhere else, Steinhauser said.

In front of Cruzs home in River Oaks, about a dozen protesters chanted calls for his resignation while several Houston police officers stood close by. One officer appeared to measure the noise level of the crowd as they shouted hey hey, ho ho, Ted Cruz has got to go.

Camille Chenevert said she has been calling for Cruzs resignation since he raised claims of election fraud last year.

But leaving us to freeze for four days while hes in Cancun, its unacceptable, said Chenevert, a Montrose resident. My apartment was 37 degrees this week. My pipes burst, and if youre going to represent us  youve got to represent us while were in trouble and were in crisis.

Gina Biekman agreed, contending that Cruz did not appear sincere when he announced his return to Texas.

I got angry, because it seems like he just left and didnt try to do anything to make the situation better, she said. And then when he was caught leaving he was like Oh Im coming back to fix this problem.

Cruz isnt the first Texas politician to stir up scandal by hopping on a flight to Mexico during a disaster. Austin Mayor Steven Adler drew scorn for vacationing in Cabo San Lucas in November as he urged Austin residents to stay home amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Cruz was among those to pile onto Adler, tweeting: Hypocrites. Complete and utter hypocrites. And dont forget @MayorAdler who took a private jet with eight people to Cabo and WHILE IN CABO recorded a video telling Austinites to stay home if you can  this is not the time to relax.

Like Adler in the pandemic before him, Cruz had also warned Texans against traveling during the winter storm.

If you can stay home, dont go out on the roads, dont risk the ice, Cruz said in a radio interview Feb. 16. Dont risk it, keep your family safe and just stay home and hug your kids.

St. John Barned-Smith, Julian Gill and Jasper Scherer contributed to this report.

ben.wermund@chron.com

[February 18, 2021] Data Storage Corporation Enters into Joint Venture with Canadian Technology Firm Able-One to Provide IBM Cloud Services in Canada

MELVILLE, N.Y., Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Data Storage Corporation (OTCQB: DTST) (the Company), a provider of diverse business continuity, disaster recovery protection and cloud solutions, today announced that it has entered into a joint venture agreement (the Joint Venture) with Able-One Systems Inc. (Able-One) to provide Data Storage Corporations portfolio of enterprise-level IBM cloud services to customers in Canada. Able-One has provided technology solutions in Canada for over 30 years. The arrangement is effective immediately.

The Joint Venture between Data Storage Corporation and Able-One is intended to fill a vital need for cloud services in Canada among businesses that run IBM Power Systems on IBM i, AIX and Linux operating systems. Data Storage Corporation believes the Joint Venture with Able-One represents an ideal arrangement, as Data Storage Corporation has built a successful track record of providing hosting, backup and recovery, high availability, security and monitoring to enterprises and SMBs across the U.S. Concurrently, the Joint Venture will also accommodate the development of new markets in Canada, adding two new Tier 3 enterprise-level data centers, while expanding the Companys North American footprint. Our joint venture with Able-One represents an important step in Data Storage Corporations efforts to expand its services in underserved markets where our exceptional cloud services and capabilities are needed, stated Hal Schwartz, President of Data Storage Corporation. Mr. Schwartz continued, We look forward to working closely with Able-One to develop new opportunities in Canada and to solve technology issues for businesses seeking superior IBM services. Mark Ciprietti, President of Able-One, commented, At Able-One, we are thrilled to be entering into this important agreement with Data Storage Corporation. Our collective technological expertise, coupled with our market understandig and the palpable need for enterprise-level IBM cloud services in Canada, make this agreement the perfect arrangement to service new and existing customers today and into the future.



About Able-One Able-One provides end-to-end business IT solutions. With over 30 years of experience, we are experts in optimizing IT operations while reducing spend and have helped thousands of customers across Canada. We offer seamless remote managed services, optimized equipment procurement, and proven professional consulting. Please visit: http://www.ableone.com.

Able-One is a proud member of Communitech and the Trust X Alliance. About Data Storage Corporation Data Storage Corporation is a 25-year veteran in business continuity services, providing Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS), Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) Cyber Security as a Service (CSaaS) and Data Analytics as a Service (AI). Data Storage Corporation provides clients subscription based, long-term agreements for disaster recovery solutions, Infrastructure-as-a-Service (cloud Hosting), telecommunications solutions, and high processing on-site computing power and software solutions. While a significant portion of the Companys revenue has been subscription based, Data Storage Corporation also generates revenue from the sale of equipment and software for cybersecurity, data storage, IBM Power systems equipment and managed service solutions. Please visit us at http://www.DataStorageCorp.com. Safe Harbor Provision This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended, that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor created thereby. All statements other than statements of historical fact contained herein, including, without limitation, statements regarding the Company's future financial position, business strategy, plans and objectives, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "estimates," "anticipates," or "believes" or the negative thereof or any variation thereon or similar terminology or expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from results proposed in such statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can provide no assurance that such expectations will prove to have been correct. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations include, but are not limited to, those factors set forth in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018 and its other filings and submissions with the SEC. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements. Investor Relations Contact:

Crescendo Communications, LLC

Tel: 212-671-1021

Email: DTST@crescendo-ir.com



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A notorious jail chief has been fired in Russia amid allegations of mass 'torture' targeting 100 or more inmates.

Colonel Igor Mokeev, nicknamed 'Hitler' and 'The Master', was dismissed after official checks on several 'illegal actions of a sexual nature' and other ill-treatment at his Siberian jail in Irkutsk.

Aziyana Oorzhak Ondar, whose brother Kezhik Ondar is an inmate at the prison, claims Kezhik had been 'permanently disabled' after his rectum was 'torn' by an immersion heating rod leading to two surgical operations.

Notorious jail chief Colonel Igor Mokeev (pictured) has been fired in Russia amid allegations of mass 'torture' targeting 100 or more inmates

Mokeev was dismissed after official checks on several 'illegal actions of a sexual nature' and other ill-treatment at his Siberian jail in Irkutsk (pictured)

The alleged 'torture' in Irkutsk SIZO-1 temporary detention facility was confirmed by an ombudsman.

'Ondar moaned, shouted and called for help for three days, but none of the administration of SIZO-1 stopped these tortures and rape,' said one account.

A senior officer was reported to be 'grinning' at the 'torture', and 'silently closed' his door.

Mokeev has been dismissed and is now under investigation for 'discrediting' the service, while another senior jail commander has been detained over torture accusations, and other warders face criminal charges, according to reports.

A former inmate and now a campaigner against jail abuses in Russia, Vladimir Osechkin, 40, said: 'We believe that what happened to Kezhik Ondar was also suffered by more than one hundred inmates (in this detention centres).'

A former inmate and now a campaigner against jail abuses in Russia, Vladimir Osechkin (pictured), said that Mokeev subjected more than 100 inmates to 'torture'

Aziyana Oorzhak Ondar, whose brother Kezhik Ondar is an inmate at the prison, claims Kezhik had been 'permanently disabled' after his rectum was 'torn' by an immersion heating rod (stock image) leading to two surgical operations

Osechkin said Mokeev was nicknamed 'The Master' and 'Hitler', and that even his name 'terrified jail inmates for more than ten years.

Five years ago, Mokeev responded to claims that his detention centre was known as the 'territory of torture', telling local media: 'There are reports about it. Indeed, there are a lot of emotions, but there are no facts.'

The Main Directorate of Federal Penitentiary System confirmed 'illegal actions' as alleged by 'suspects, accused and the convicted about the unlawful actions' of warders had taken place.

A new head has been put in charge of Irkutsk SIZO-1 temporary detention facility.
Engineers have developed a technique that allows them to precisely place microscopic devices formed from folded DNA molecules in not only a specific location but also in a specific orientation.

As a proof-of-concept, they arranged more than 3,000 glowing moon-shaped nanoscale molecular devices into a flower-shaped instrument for indicating the polarization of light. Each of 12 petals pointed in a different direction around the center of the flower, and within in each petal about 250 moons were aligned to the direction of the petal. Because each moon only glows when struck by polarized light matching its orientation, the end result is a flower whose petals light up in sequence as the polarization of light shined upon it is rotated. The flower, which spans a distance smaller than the width of a human hair, demonstrates that thousands of molecules can be reliably oriented on the surface of a chip.

This method for precisely placing and orienting DNA-based molecular devices may make it possible to use these molecular devices to power new kinds of chips that integrate molecular biosensors with optics and electronics for applications such as DNA sequencing or measuring the concentrations of thousands of proteins at once.

The research, published on February 19 by the journal Science, builds on more than 15 years of work by Caltech's Paul Rothemund (BS '94), research professor of bioengineering, computing and mathematical sciences, and computation and neural systems, and his colleagues. In 2006, Rothemund showed that DNA could be directed to fold itself into precise shapes through a technique dubbed DNA origami. In 2009, Rothemund and colleagues at IBM Research Almaden described a technique through which DNA origami could be positioned at precise locations on surfaces. To do so, they used a printing process based on electron beams and created "sticky" patches having the same size and shape as the origami did. In particular, they showed that origami triangles bound precisely at the location of triangular sticky patches.

Next, Rothemund and Ashwin Gopinath, formerly a Caltech senior postdoctoral scholar and now an assistant professor at MIT, refined and extended this technique to demonstrate that molecular devices constructed from DNA origami could be reliably integrated into larger optical devices. "The technological barrier has been how to reproducibly organize vast numbers of molecular devices into the right patterns on the kinds of materials used for chips," says Rothemund.

In 2016, Rothemund and Gopinath showed that triangular origami carrying fluorescent molecules could be used to reproduce a 65,000-pixel version of Vincent van Gogh's The Starry Night. In that work, triangular DNA origami were used to position fluorescent molecules within bacterium-sized optical resonators; precise placement of the fluorescent molecules was critical since a move of just 100 nanometers to the left or right would dim or brighten the pixel by more than five times.

But the technique had an Achilles' heel: "Because the triangles were equilateral and were free to rotate and flip upside-down, they could stick flat onto the triangular sticky patch on the surface in any of six different ways. This meant we couldn't use any devices that required a particular orientation to function. We were stuck with devices that would work equally well when pointed up, down, or in any direction," says Gopinath. Molecular devices intended for DNA sequencing or measuring proteins absolutely have to land right side up, so the team's older techniques would ruin 50 percent of the devices. For devices also requiring a unique rotational orientation, such as transistors, only 16 percent would function.

The first problem to solve, then, was to get the DNA origami to reliably land with the correct side facing up. "It's a bit like guaranteeing toast always magically lands butter side up when thrown on the floor," says Rothemund. To the researchers surprise, coating origami with a carpet of flexible DNA strands on one side enabled more than 95 percent of them to land face up. But the problem of controlling rotation remained. Right triangles with three different edge lengths were the researchers' first attempt at a shape that might land in the preferred rotation.

However, after wrestling to get just 40 percent of right triangles to point in the correct orientation, Gopinath recruited computer scientists Chris Thachuk of the University of Washington, co-author of the Science paper, and a former Caltech postdoc; and David Kirkpatrick of the University of British Columbia, also a co-author of the Science paper. Their job was to find a shape which would only get stuck in the intended orientation, no matter what orientation it might land in. The computer scientists' solution was a disk with an off-center hole, which the researchers termed a "small moon." Mathematical proofs suggested that, unlike a right triangle, small moons could smoothly rotate to find the best alignment with their sticky patch without getting stuck. Lab experiments verified that over 98 percent of the small moons found the correct orientation on their sticky patches.

The team then added special fluorescent molecules that jam themselves tightly into the DNA helices of the small moons, perpendicular to the axis of the helices. This ensured that the fluorescent molecules within a moon were all oriented in the same direction and would glow most brightly when stimulated with light of a particular polarization. "It's as if every molecule carries a little antenna, which can accept energy from light most efficiently only when the polarization of light matches the orientation of the antenna," says Gopinath. This simple effect is what enabled the construction of the polarization-sensitive flower.

With robust methods for controlling the up-down and rotational orientation of DNA origami, a wide range of molecular devices may now be cheaply integrated into computer chips in high yield for a variety of potential applications. For example, Rothemund and Gopinath have founded a company, Palamedrix, to commercialize the technology for building semiconductor chips that enable simultaneous study of all the proteins relevant to human health. Caltech has filed patent applications for the work.

###

The paper is titled "Absolute and arbitrary orientation of single-molecule shapes." Co-authors at Caltech include Harry Atwater, the Howard Hughes Professor of Applied Physics and Materials Science, and former graduate student Anna Mitskovets (PhD '20). This work was supported by the Office of Naval Research, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, the National Science Foundation, the Orr Family Foundation, the Abedin Institute, and a Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:57:09|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

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MOSCOW -- Russia registered 13,447 more COVID-19 cases over the past 24 hours, up from 12,828 a day earlier, the country's COVID-19 response center said Thursday.

The national tally has thus increased to 4,125,598 with 81,926 deaths and 3,661,312 recoveries, the center said.

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KUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysia reported 2,712 new COVID-19 infections, the health ministry said on Thursday, bringing the national total to 274,875.

Health Ministry Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah said in a press statement that four of the new cases are imported and 2,708 are local transmissions.

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KABUL -- The Afghanistan's Public Health Ministry reported 18 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, raising the total nationwide infections to 55,575, including 4,347 active cases.

The ministry said in a statement that 2,029 COVID-19 tests were conducted across the country in the past day.

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ADDIS ABABA -- A total of 3,783,214 COVID-19 cases have been reported on the African continent as of Thursday morning, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said.

Meanwhile, the death toll related to the pandemic in Africa rose to 99,840, the Africa CDC said, adding that a total of 3,332,632 COVID-19 patients have recovered.

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KATHMANDU -- Nepal has granted approval to the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co. Ltd, under Sinopharm, for the emergency use in Nepal, the country's drug regulator said.

It is the second COVID-19 vaccine to get approval from the Department of Drug Administration, the Nepali drug regulator, after the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca received such approval a month ago.

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STOCKHOLM -- Sweden is making plans for its mass vaccination drive amid signs that mutated strains of COVID-19 are spreading across the country, local media reported on Thursday.

"We hope to be able to start this up on a certain scale from April onwards," Magnus Thyberg, vaccine coordinator in the capital region of Stockholm, told Swedish Television on Thursday.

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TEHRAN -- Iranian authorities announced that they will close borders with Iraq in the southwestern Khuzestan province over the transmission risks of new variant of COVID-19, Iranian Student News Agency reported on Thursday.

"From Saturday, Iran will close the borders of Shalamcheh and Chazzabeh for one week for passengers' entrance," the Khuzestan province governor, Qassem Soleimani Dashtaki, was quoted as saying. Enditem
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The global cardiac rhythm management devices market size is expected to touch USD 35.22 billion by 2026 growing at a CAGR of 7.5% from 2019 to 2026, Cardiac rhythm management devices have witnessed evolution of pacemakers, cardiac resynchronization therapy, implantable cardioveter defibrillators and loop recorders over the last decade. The growth drivers for the market include favorable legislative policies followed by Government in developed and developing countries. Additional market drivers include rising incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), cohesive reimbursement climate and technological advancements that boost market growth

CRM devices are the universal solution for patients suffering from arrhythmias. Latest findings in Cardiac Resynchronization therapy devices are anticipated to drive this market. Furthermore, implantable cardioverter-defibrillators have opened up more vistas of operations since their integration with pacemakers. This increases the product life for pacemakers. Cardioverter- defibrillators having found immense applications are certain to expand market growth.

Get Sample Copy @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/cardiac-rhythm-management-devices-market/request-for-sample

Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) is also debilitating human population that explains high growth of external defibrillators. Government initiatives are working in the direction of making economies more cardio-friendly. This works positively for external debrifillators to experience surging market growth.

As per Government data available More than 6.0 million people have fallen prey to cardiac disorders. Of these, 0.8 million are victims of atrioventricular blockage that ends in cardiac failure. This proves an outgo of USD 20-60 billion annually. Hence to prevent this, CRM devices are being put to effective use to prevent surgical costs from inflating and also prevents readmission charges, thus impacting market growth.

North America took credit of nearly 35% overall market for CRM Devices in 2016. This was particularly due to supportive legislative policies, lenient reimbursement schemes and increase in cardiovascular diseases. Asia Pacific was seen as fast growing market for CRM devices with a CAGR of 9%. This was largely made possible due to accessibility of CRM devices.

Do you have questions or special requirements? Ask our industry experts @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/cardiac-rhythm-management-devices-market/speak-to-analyst

The key players operating in Cardiac Rhythm Management Devices Implantation include St, Jude Medical, BIOTRONIK, Inc., Medtronic and Boston Scientific Corporation and ZOLL Medical Corporation among others.

Polaris Market Research has segmented the global Cardiac Rhythm Management (CRM) market on the basis of product and Region:

CRM Devices Product Outlook (Revenue USD Millions 2015-2026)


SAN FRANCISCO (BCN)  San Francisco police on Wednesday announced the arrest a second suspect in connection with the kidnapping of two children who were taken as their gig worker father was delivering food earlier this month.

After locating 27-year-old German Morazan at 1:30 p.m. near Crisp Road and Quesada Avenue, officers arrested him on suspicion of kidnapping, child endangerment, auto theft, robbery, aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping and conspiracy, police said.

Morazan is the second suspect connected to the Feb. 6 kidnapping.

Last week, officers arrested 25-year-old Erlin Romero, on suspicion of kidnapping, auto theft, robbery, conspiracy, battery and parole violation. Romero remains in custody and is being held without bail, according to jail records.

The kidnapping happened as DoorDash worker Jeffery Fang was making a food delivery, leaving his car momentarily with the engine running in the 2100 block of Jackson Street, with his two children Winifred, 4, and Sean, 2, inside.

The children were eventually located hours later in the car, which was found abandoned in the Bayview District.

With both suspects now in custody, police thanked the public for assisting with the case.

"The San Francisco Police Department would like to acknowledge and thank the public for their concern for the wellbeing of the children. Information regarding the abduction was shared quickly on social media and it was apparent that residents of San Francisco were actively looking for the van and sharing information," police said in a statement.

The investigation remains active and anyone with information is asked to call the SFPD 24-hour Tip Line at 1-415-575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the message with SFPD. Tips can be left anonymously.

Copyright  2021 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
(Newser)  Facebook blocked Australians from sharing news Thursday amid a dispute over a proposed lawbut news outlets weren't the only ones who found themselves blocked. The ban affected dozens of pages run by state governments, health authorities, charities, and even Facebook's own page, the Guardian reports. State health departments said it was "extremely concerning" that they had been blocked from sharing information during a pandemic. Facebook said it would restore pages that had been "inadvertently impacted" by the move. Since the proposed law requiring Facebook and Google to pay Australian news organizations for content "does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted," the company said.

story continues below

"Were in the middle of a pandemic," tweeted lawmaker Mark Butler. "Australians need to hear from credible voices in the vaccine rollout. This is completely irresponsible from Facebook." Facebook abruptly blocked Australians from sharing news stories and Australian news organizations from posting after the country's House of Representatives passed the bill requiring it to pay for content, though it has yet to become law, the AP reports. "Facebooks actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing," said Prime Minister Scott Morrison. "They may be changing the world, but that doesnt mean they run it." Google, which had threatened to cut off service to Australia, said Wednesday that it had worked out deals with media companies. (Read more Facebook stories.)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 22:06:29|Editor: huaxia

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BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Many universities in China have decided to stagger the start of the new semester in an effort to minimize the risk of coronavirus transmission.

The University of International Business and Economics in Beijing announced Thursday that it will delay in-person classes for the new semester after the winter break.

According to the announcement, online classes will start on March 1 and continue for about two weeks. Students will stagger their return to campus between March 16 and March 21 and offline classes will resume on March 22.

Renmin University of China and Peking University have also postponed the new semester by one to two weeks.

Classes will start as planned at Tsinghua University, which is expected to welcome some 18,000 return students over three days from Friday. The university has arranged shuttle buses to pick up the students and two mass testings for COVID-19 will be conducted on Feb. 27 and March 6.

Similar arrangements have also been made by universities in other parts of the country, with a variety of COVID-19 prevention and control measures.

Wuhan University in central China's Hubei Province and Anhui Normal University in east China's Anhui Province have staggered the opening dates of the new semester for undergraduate and graduate students in different grades.

Students at Wuhan University are required to register with the university before returning to campus. Students from low-risk areas must present a green health code to apply for permission to get back to school while those from middle-or-high risk areas should stay put until the warning level for COVID-19 drops to low-risk. These students should also have a negative nucleic acid test result within seven days when applying to go back.

The Chinese mainland reported no new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, the National Health Commission said Thursday.

No new locally transmitted COVID-19 cases have been reported for three consecutive days since Monday, according to the commission. Enditem
A shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm arrives at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport in Hungary on Tuesday, making the country the first member of the European Union to receive a Chinese vaccine. (Photo/Agencies)

Development cooperation set to enter new stage

Tshepo Heqoa's family was struggling to make ends meet amid a growing number of climate-related woes, such as drought, floods, pests and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently.

The 29-year-old lives in Koalabata, a small village in the Berea district of Lesotho in southern Africa, where farmers like him rely on cultivating soybeans, sugar beans, maize and wheat for a living.

"Life had been hard. My mother was a sole bread winner, and she had to pay for the tuition of my college education," he recalled in an online interview.

Heqoa was introduced to growing mushrooms in 2014 by his peers. But he found the technology difficult to grasp and had only occasional success.

A trip he made to China in 2018, one of the knowledge-sharing tours organized by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, took him to the China National Engineering Research Center at Juncao Technology in Fujian province. "I was blown away. I had a lot of ideas of what to do when I got home. I found the technology amazing and a way to improve livelihoods in many aspects of life," he said.

Inspired by the Chinese technology and with help from Chinese experts, Heqoa is now expanding his business from growing mushrooms to producing mushroom spawnthe substance that, like a seed, causes mushroom growth, which gave him revenue of about $1,500 in the past four months, a considerable amount in a country with a per capita GDP of $1,118 in 2019.

Heqoa's case is an example of China's ongoing efforts in international development cooperation. He was one of some 200,000 beneficiaries of training sessions and seminars for foreign officials and technical personnel and in-service education programs that the country hosted between 2013 and 2018.

With China on course to attain its goal of building itself into a moderately prosperous society in all respects this year, its international development cooperation is also set to enter a new stage, according to experts. Stronger emphasis will be given to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, a vision championed by President Xi Jinping in response to global challenges.

"The primary goal of China's international development cooperation will be to promote building a community with a shared future for mankind," said Xu Xiuli, dean of China Agricultural University's College of International Development and Global Agriculture.

She explained that the process would primarily involve enabling a better response to various challenges worldwide, including working together against shortcomings in trust, peace and development and improving global governance.

The next stage of China's international development cooperation is set to contribute more to solving global issues such as health challenges, food security and climate change, she said.

According to a white paper titled "China's International Development Cooperation in the New Era", issued by the State Council Information Office last month, China allocated 270.2 billion yuan ($41.8 billion) for foreign assistance in three categoriesgrants, interest-free loans and concessional loansbetween 2013 and 2018.

A total of 127.8 billion yuan in grants were allocated to help other developing countries build small and medium-sized social welfare projects and to fund such projects as those for cooperation in human resources development and emergency humanitarian assistance.

China has been providing development cooperation to other developing countries over the past seven decades, the paper said.

"China's approach to foreign assistance gradually coalesced around a set of principles emphasizing recipient countries' sovereignty and mutual benefit," said Cheng Cheng, chief economist at the Made in Africa Initiative, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to the industrialization of Africa.

With a set of reforms launched in recent years, "China seems to want to integrate into its foreign aid portfolio and the BRI a greater range of socially conscious development projects, in areas such as agriculture, public health and education", Cheng added.

Xu, the dean, said even though China is now the world's second-largest economy, it is still a developing countrya key factor that determines that its international development cooperation is conducted under the framework of South-South cooperation.

"Meanwhile, China has always given priority to providing the means for independent development while refraining from attaching political strings or pursuing political self-interest during the process," she said.

Many officials and experts have hailed the issuance of the latest white paper as a new starting point for China's development cooperation.

"This white paper comes at an opportune moment, as China is embarking on a new stage of its journey as an increasingly important provider of development cooperation," Beate Trankmann, United Nations Development Programme resident representative in China, said at an online seminar last month.

Trankmann said the white paper highlighted a few entry points for more detailed regulations, providing stepping stone toward enhancing the effectiveness and transparency of China's aid, a move she welcomed.

Barnaby Willitts-King, a senior research fellow at the Overseas Development Institute, an independent think tank, wrote that the white paper detailed not only China's role in COVID-19 response but also disaster relief and recovery, support for refugees and food security, which "reflected China's growing interest in engaging in humanitarian action".

A shipment of COVID-19 vaccines made by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm is loaded on a plane in Beijing on Wednesday before being transported to Senegal. This is the first batch of vaccines exported by China to a sub-Saharan country in Africa. (Photo provided to China Daily)

Pandemic response

With the COVID-19 pandemic still posing an immense threat to the lives, safety, health and well-being of people worldwide as well as challenges to global public health security, China has made its contribution to a global community of health for all a priority in its future international development cooperation, as set out in the white paper.

Key measures include continuing to offer medical supplies to various nations, engaging in cooperation on medical technologies and working with the World Health Organization to help developing countries, especially in Africa, to fortify their public health defenses and improve the speed of their response and capacity for disease control.

On Wednesday morning, the first shipment of vaccines from China to a nation in sub-Saharan Africaa planeload of COVID-19 vaccines bound for Senegaldeparted Beijing Capital International Airport.

Zhang Jun, ambassador and permanent representative of China to the United Nations, wrote in an article last week that Chinese vaccine aid has been provided to 14 developing countries and will soon reach 38 more, as part of broader efforts to deliver on its pledge to make its vaccines a global public good.

The country is also slated to deliver 10 million doses of Chinese vaccines to COVAX, a UN facility that aims to ensure all countries have access to a safe, effective vaccine.

With the pandemic also causing a global economic downturn, causing the loss of 114 million jobs and increasing the number of poor people by 131 million worldwide, the importance of China's role in helping to attain the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda was also highlighted by analysts.

Promoting the implementation of the agenda was also listed as one of the priorities for China's international development cooperation.

"China will make eliminating poverty and improving people's lives its ultimate objective and implement more projects for improving living standards in developing countries, especially the least developed countries," the white paper said.

With his enterprise growing and more revenue coming in, Heqoa also expressed confidence in the future of his business.

"I have hired one employee and will be hiring more with time. My future plan is to be the director of the largest mushroom company in southern Africa and to help alleviate poverty by selling mushrooms in a very affordable way," he said.
LOS ALTOS, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Constella Intelligence ("Constella"), a global Digital Risk Protection leader, announced today it has added five members to its executive leadership team, building upon a momentous 2020 in which the company integrated 4iQ and Alto Analytics, upgraded its product portfolio, expanded its global footprint, and significantly grew revenue. Andy Johnson has joined the company as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Laura Juanes as the Company's first Chief Privacy and Compliance Officer, Scott Whitney as Chief Product Officer, Cynthia Crossland as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and Brian Laing as VP of Business Development.

Andy Johnson will lead finance, human resources, and administrative functions and joins Constella from AT&T, where he served as CFO of its Cyber Security business unit. Prior to AT&T, Andy served as CFO at AlienVault, a leading cyber threat detection and intelligence company, which AT&T acquired in 2018.

Laura Juanes Micas joins as Chief Privacy and Compliance Officer  a newly created position, which reflects Constella's dedication and commitment to data protection  to oversee the development of Constella's Privacy and Compliance program. She is a multilingual law, policy and privacy expert in the technology industry, previously at Facebook, where she led a global team providing policy and regulatory advice on privacy issues impacting how individuals use technology daily.

As Chief Product Officer, Scott Whitney will be responsible for developing and driving the vision, roadmap and innovation strategy to unify Constella's product portfolio. He will lead a global product team. Scott brings over 20 years of experience focused on the development and growth of enterprise software products including Actiance, Symantec and Mimosa Systems.

Cynthia Crossland will oversee the corporate branding, communications, and go-to-market strategy for Constella. She brings senior marketing leadership experience from B2B companies at different growth stages, ranging from start-ups to large-scale, public companies including OverOps, Actiance, and Interactive Data Corp.

Brian Laing will lead business development and strategic partnerships. He joins from Lastline (acquired by Vmware in 2020) where he served as SVP of Business Development and Corporate Development. Prior to Lastline, Brian was the CSO/Founder of Redseal Networks, which was acquired by STG in 2019.

In the past year, key milestones for the company include:

48% year-over-year recurring bookings growth

73% year-over-year ARR (annual recurring revenue) growth

Constella Data Lake, which includes the largest breach data collection on the planet, grew over 40% in the past year, surpassing 25 billion credential records

During the same period, Constella tripled the number of digital assets it monitors and alerts on behalf of customers and surpassed 20 billion social posts analyzed

"The rising tide of cyber-attacks, disinformation campaigns, and geopolitical threats has made our mission to 'make the world a safer place' more relevant than ever before," said Constella Intelligence CEO Kailash Ambwani. "These leaders are critical to the realization of that mission. They will help us build the infrastructure to support our growth, strengthen our privacy and data protection policies, accelerate product innovation, and help drive our customer engagement. All towards the goal of helping our customers anticipate and defeat digital risks."

About Constella Intelligence

Constella Intelligence is a leading global Digital Risk Protection business that works in partnership with some of the world's largest organizations to safeguard what matters most and defeat digital risk. Our solutions are broad, collaborative and scalable, powered by a unique combination of proprietary data, technology and human expertiseincluding the largest breach data collection on the planet, with over 100 billion attributes and 45 billion curated identity records spanning 125 countries and 53 languages. Learn more about Constella by visiting constellaintelligence.com.



SOURCE Constella Intelligence
White House deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger speaks during a press briefing, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

U.S. authorities are still working to unravel the full scope of the likely Russian hack that gave the "sophisticated" actor behind the breach complete access to files and email from at least nine government agencies and about 100 private companies, the top White House cybersecurity official said Wednesday.

Anne Neuberger, the newly appointed deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technology, also warned that the danger has not passed because the hackers breached networks of technology companies whose products could be used to launch additional intrusions.

A task force is investigating the extent of the damage from the breach, assessing potential responses and trying to confirm the identity of whoever was behind ita process Neuberger warned will take more time.

"This is a sophisticated actor who did their best to hide their tracks," she told reporters at the White House. "We believe it took them months to plan and execute this compromise. It will take us some time to uncover this layer by layer."

U.S. authorities have said the breach, disclosed in December, appeared to be the work of Russian hackers. Neuberger, a former senior official at the National Security Agency who was appointed by President Joe Biden this month, went no further.

"An advanced, persistent threat actor likely of Russian origin was responsible," she said, without providing any further details and sounding a cryptic note on potential responses.

White House deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger speaks during a press briefing, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

"This isn't the only case of malicious cyber activity of likely Russian origin, either for us or for our allies and partners," Neuberger added. "So, as we contemplate future response options, we are considering holistically what those activities were."

The Russian government has denied involvement.

Private security company FireEye was first to identify the breach, revealing that hackers hijacked widely used network software from SolarWinds Inc. to install malicious software through a what appeared to be a routine security update.

Intelligence agencies did not detect the breach because they largely have "no visibility into private-sector networks," and it was launched within the U.S., Neuberger said. The Biden administration supports changes to "culture and authorities" that prevented the hack from being detected on the federal civilian systems, she added.

The hack, Neuberger said, highlights the need to modernize the nation's IT infrastructure and its cyber defenses, issues that will be addressed in an upcoming executive order from Biden aimed at addressing security and technology gaps highlighted by the breach.

White House deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger speaks during a press briefing, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Several agencies have acknowledged that they were breached, including the Treasury Department and Justice Department, but the full list has not been publicly released. Once inside, the hackers had full access to the victims' data.

"The techniques that were used lead us to believe that any files or emails on a compromised network were likely to be compromised," Neuberger said.

Some members of Congress have criticized the response based on what they have been told so far, all in private. "The briefings we have received convey a disjointed and disorganized response to confronting the breach," Sen. Mark Warner, a Democrat from Virginia, and Sen. Marco Rubio, Republican from Florida, said in a recent letter to the White House.

Neuberger said she intended to return to the Capitol to brief lawmakers in the coming days.

Explore further French cyber agency reveals suspected Russian hacks

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
The coronavirus pandemic has encouraged more cash-loving Japanese to move away from banknotes and coins, giving a boost for banks in their drive toward digitalization, the industrys lobby group chief said.

A trend toward cashless payments, which so far progressed gradually, has picked up speed during the pandemic, Kanetsugu Mike, chairman of the Japanese Bankers Association, said at a news briefing on Thursday. The banking industry would like to actively work toward going cashless.

Japan has long been known for its heavy use of cash, which is a burden for banks that are trying to move more services online. Maintaining ATMs alone costs about 700 billion ($6.6 billion) annually and another 100 billion is spent handling cash at branch counters, Nomura Research Institute estimates.

Now the pandemic has added an incentive for consumers and merchants to avoid touching physical money.

As well as reducing costs, cashless payments could help to spur innovations in areas such as the use of transaction data, said Mike, who is also chief executive officer of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.s main banking unit.

Banks are trying to expand cash-free locations so employees can focus on more lucrative services such as offering investment advice to clients. Aozora Bank Ltd. stopped dealing with notes and coins at its branches in January, though customers can still use ATMs.

The government has set a goal of increasing cashless payments to about 40% of all transactions by 2025, from about 20% currently. More Japanese are using credit cards and electronic money for small purchases, according to a survey by the Central Council for Financial Services Information.
In form Tauranga trained horse Gold Watch has one jockey effusive in praise.

Gold Watch is trained and owned by Tauranga based Cliff Goss. The 89-year-old retiree has hit the jackpot with the four-year-old, who has now won all four of his races in the 2020-21 season.

Goss bought Gold Watch off the farm at Trelawney Stud, which is run by his daughter Cherry Taylor and his son-in-law Brent Taylor.

Gold Watch showed promise in training as a three-year-old, but he finished a long last at his first start in November 2019.

After a suspensory ligament injury was discovered Gold Watch underwent shockwave treatment and was given a rest period.

Upon returning this season he has won a 1200m maiden at Tauranga and then 1400m events at Te Rapa and Ellerslie.

Jockey Jonathan Riddell guided the gelding to his most recent win over 1400m in a Rating 74 contest at Te Rapa.

"He excites me. Hes the bees knees," says Riddell.

"He takes a bit to get around the corners, and then on Saturday I was actually going quite well and then he got a bump from Acutus, which put me off stride a bit and made it a bit tougher."

Riddell has now ridden Gold Watch to four successive victories, and is clearly hopeful he can get to ride the in-form horse again soon.

The horse has generally been given four to five weeks between races and Riddell is unsure of the future plans of Goss and his prized winner. However, wherever the exciting Gold Watch crops up next Riddell will be hoping for another win.

"Ive ridden him four times now, and its like he knows where the winning post is, Riddell says. I think hes pretty special."
A few hours after the Senate voted in Donald Trumps impeachment trial Saturday, I spoke to the lead impeachment manager, Jamie Raskin. He was crushingly disappointed. Despite Republicans indulgence of Trump over the past five years, despite the fact that three Republican senators met with Trumps lawyers before they presented their defense, Raskin had so much faith in the overwhelming case he and his colleagues brought that, until the end, he held out hope of conviction.

Ive always been seen as a rose-colored-glasses guy, he said.

Raskins openhearted belief that Senate Republicans maintained a remnant of patriotic solidarity with their fellow citizens is part of what made his presentation so effective; he threw himself into it without fatalism or cynicism.

The House managers forced the Senate to reckon with the scale of the terror Trump unleashed on Congress.

I did see a bunch of the Republicans who voted against us, including Mitch McConnell, crying at different points, Raskin said.

The case was strong enough to win over even two Republican senators, Richard Burr and Bill Cassidy, whod initially voted against holding the trial at all.

But when it comes to McConnell and his caucus, cynicism always prevails.

Because Im less optimistic than Raskin, I was less disappointed. The 57-43 verdict against Trump was the biggest bipartisan majority for conviction in a presidential impeachment trial. And it seems to me that if McConnell couldnt behave honorably, he did the next best thing with the speech he gave after voting to acquit.

There is no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of Jan. 6, McConnell said. The attack on the Capitol, he argued, was an effect of the intensifying crescendo of conspiracy theories, orchestrated by an outgoing president who seemed determined to either overturn the voters decision or else torch our institutions on the way out. Once it began, McConnell said, Trump watched television happily, happily, as the chaos unfolded.

The senators excoriation could have doubled as the House managers closing summation.

To Raskin and the eight other managers, McConnells speech was at once a vindication and an insult, showing that theyd proved their case and that it didnt matter. McConnell voted to acquit on a manufactured technicality, arguing that a former president is constitutionally not eligible for conviction.

His bad faith is awe-inspiring; it was he who refused to move forward with a trial while Trump was still in office. With his split-the-baby solution to Trumps manifest guilt, McConnell seemed to be trying to stay on the right side of his caucus while calming corporate donors whove cut off politicians who supported the insurrectionists.

But  and heres the important part  McConnell signaled openness to Trumps prosecution in other forums.

He didnt get away with anything yet  yet, McConnell said. We have a criminal justice system in this country. We have civil litigation. And former presidents are not immune from being accountable by either one.

To Raskin, a former constitutional law professor, this is no comfort.

Youve got to rewind to pre-Trump days, he said. Politicians should not be telling prosecutors who to prosecute. Impeachment was a way for our political system to defend itself, and it failed.

We had an opportunity to deal with the clear and present danger that is Donald Trump in a bipartisan way through our constitutional system, he said. The Republican Party could not join the effort in sufficient numbers to make it completely successful, so now they are either going to have to fight him internally, or, more likely, they will become an autocratic political party that really does operate like a religious cult.

This is true. But if we cannot restore pre-Trump norms, McConnell has at least stripped away some of the taboo about prosecuting a former president. In addition to the investigations of Trumps business practices in New York, prosecutors in Georgia have opened a criminal investigation into his attempts to subvert the election there. Washingtons attorney general is reportedly considering charging Trump with violating a District of Columbia law against provoking violence. President Joe Bidens Justice Department could look into the countless federal crimes Trump appeared to commit in office.

In the past, Republicans seemed ready to try to stop any federal Trump investigation.

Should Trump actually face legal jeopardy, plenty of Republicans will still howl about a witch hunt. McConnell might even join them. But his words cant easily be taken back.

There has to be a nationwide reckoning with the gravity and horror of these events, Raskin said of Trumps coup attempt. I hope that the impeachment trial has started that educational process.

It has, and Republicans can no longer pretend that the trial should be the end of it.
The Nagol is Back! VTOs guide to this years Nagol, plus where to stay and play in south, central and north Pentecost.
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Looking like the largest Airfix model you could possibly imagine, parts of a World War Two Lancaster bomber are laid-out in a hangar waiting to be assembled. But this is not a toy.

The pieces of wing, fuselage, bombs, machine guns and propeller blades are all real.

The famous aircraft is three years into a ten-year restoration at the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre in East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, which will see it return to the skies to add to the two remaining bombers which are still flying.

Before it can fly again, each part of the four-engined plane, which is called 'Just Jane', needs to be stripped-down, checked, repaired or re-built so a certificate of airworthiness can be issued by the Civil Aviation Authority.

Looking like the largest Airfix model you could possibly imagine, parts of a World War Two Lancaster bomber are laid-out in a hangar waiting to be assembled. But this is not a toy. The pieces of wing, fuselage, bombs, machine guns and propeller blades are all real. The famous aircraft is three years into a ten-year restoration at the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre in East Kirkby, Lincolnshire, which will see it return to the skies to add to the two remaining bombers which are still flying

Before it can fly again, each part of the four-engined plane, which is called 'Just Jane', needs to be stripped-down, checked, repaired or re-built so a certificate of airworthiness can be issued by the Civil Aviation Authority. Pictured: Aircraft engineer Gerbs Jeffery (left), 57, and apprentice engineer Bradley Winder, 24 guide the rear fuselage towards the main body of the aircraft

In April 1952 Just Jane was bought by the French Government. Painted midnight blue, she flew in maritime patrols for the French. Ten years later, she went to Noumeau, New Caledonia, was painted white and used for air sea rescue and cartography. Pictured: The plane is seen at RAAF Butterworth in Malaysia, preparing for her flight back to the UK from Australia, in November 1962

World War Two enthusiasts can build an Airfix Lancaster Bomber for themselves. The kit is being sold online for 32

Toy company Airfix is owned by toy manufacturer Hornby. It is famous for its range of war models including the Lancaster

Some 7,377 Lancasters had carried out more than 150,000 missions by the end of the Second World War including the supremely audacious Dambuster Raids of 1943.

They had also dropped more than 600,000 tons of bombs on the enemy, a feat unequalled by any other plane.

The men who flew them had the most perilous posting of the war - Bomber Command  and 3,249 aircraft and their crews would be lost in action.

During the summer months Just Jane is used for ground displays and taxiing passengers around a former RAF airfield in Lincolnshire.

But every winter, as part of the 4million project, different sections of the Lancaster are restored. This year it's the huge tail and rear fuselage that's being worked on.

Andrew Panton, 33, general manager at the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, said: 'This year we thought with the number of parts we have removed from the Aircraft it looks very much like an Airfix kit.

During the summer months Just Jane is used for ground displays and taxiing passengers around a former RAF airfield in Lincolnshire. Pictured: A view of the cockpit gives an indication of the view which pilots in the Second World War took in each time they flew the plane

Every winter, as part of the 4million project, different sections of the Lancaster are restored. This year it's the huge tail and rear fuselage that's being worked on. Pictured: One of the aircraft's four twelve-cylinder Rolls Royce Merlin engines. The plane has a pristine new paint job which is faithful to how the plane would have looked during the Second World War

Andrew Panton, 33, general manager at the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, said: 'This year we thought with the number of parts we have removed from the Aircraft it looks very much like an Airfix kit'. Pictured: Parts of the plane sit on the hangar floor. They include the four Browning machine guns (centre) and one of the 250lb bombs which the plane carried (top right)

Mr Panton said his team set out to see how the plane would look from the air, 'as an Airfix kit would have done in the packet'. He said that the Lancaster is a sectional aircraft, meaning that it comes apart in its major component pieces and then bolts back together again. Mr Panton said the aircraft reassembles 'in a similar way you glue an Airfix kit back together'. Pictured: Engineer Mr Jeffrey working in the plane's main fuselage

Mr Panton said that working on the project is 'very reminiscent of being a child' in the way in which the plane has been taken part and bolted back together again, like an Airfix model. He added: 'On a plane this age, the rivets start to crumble and need to be replaced. As for "instructions", we have original RAF manuals and thousands of original AVRO drawings to work from'. Pictured: Mr Jeffery and apprentice engineer Mr Winder move a rudder

Mr Panton's great-uncle Christopher Panton was shot-down and killed during a raid on Nuremberg, Germany in a Halifax bomber in March 1944 when he was only 19 years-old . The Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, which is at the site of the former RAF East Kirkby airfield, is a tribute to him and the whole of Bomber Command. Pictured: The plane's original Browning machine guns

The plane is the only running Lancaster in Europe which visitors can climb aboard. The plane was bought in the early 1980s and moved there in 1988 to become the institution's central attraction. Pictured: Part of the plane's wing sits on supports as the restoration work continues

When the plane is not in pieces, it is used to taxi passengers around the airfield so they can get an experience of a Second World War Lancaster bomber on an 'original' airfield. Mr Panton added: 'The next stage which we're progressing to is making her airworthy so she can fly on air-show circuits and possibly with passengers in the future'. Pictured left: The cover for the H2S radar which was fitted to the plane sits upside down in the hangar. Right: The plane's throttle controls

'So we've set it out to see just what it would look like from the air, as an Airfix kit would have done in the packet. The Lancaster is a sectional aircraft, so it does come apart in its major component pieces.

'It bolts back together again in a similar way you glue an Airfix kit back together as well.

'So a lot of the parts, you'll see here are parts you'll take out of the Airfix kit so it is very reminiscent of being a child, building it up, actually taking the aircraft apart and bolting it back together again is a similar concept.

'On a plane this age, the rivets start to crumble and need to be replaced. As for "instructions", we have original RAF manuals and thousands of original AVRO drawings to work from.'

Mr Panton's great-uncle Christopher Panton was shot-down and killed during a raid on Nuremberg, Germany in a Halifax bomber in March 1944 when he was only 19 years-old .

The Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre, which is at the site of the former RAF East Kirkby airfield, is a tribute to him and the whole of Bomber Command.

Mr Panton said many veterans have come back to East Kirkby, the place where they may have flown during the War. The airfield opened in August 1943 and was a base for the RAF's Bomber Command. Pictured: The plane's cockpit

The plane was built by Austin Motors in Longbridge near Birmingham in April 1945 and was due to become part of the RAF's Tiger Force in the Far East. The early surrender of Japan meant Just Jane did not see service and went on to be used by the French Naval Air Arm

The plane's Trolley Accumulator is seen above. It was an external battery which was used to start the aircraft's engines. One of the men working on the project, Roy Lemmon, 56, said he will be 'chuffed' when the Lancaster takes to the skies again. He said: 'It's a privilege, it's interesting, it's something different. There's a lot of corrosion and people have tried to repair it without the view of it flying, so it's got to be taken to pieces and done properly'

Aircraft engineer Gerbs Jeffery and apprentice engineer Bradley Winder move a rudder as the partially-assembled Lancaster looms behind them. It is hoped that the plane will be able to take to the skies again later this decade

Next year will be the 80th anniversary of the Lancaster first going into service. 'Just Jane' was built by Austin Motors in Longbridge, in 1945. She had the serial number NX611, and was intended to become part of an RAF squadron in the Far East. Pictured: Apprentice engineer Bradley Winder and aircraft engineer Gerbs Jeffery work inside both sections of fuselage

The seven-man Lancaster crew consisted of a pilot, bomb aimer or nose gunner, wireless operator, flight engineer, navigator and mid-upper and rear gunners. Pictured: The plane's tail turret

Overall, of the 6,000 Lancasters which were made available for duty in the war, 3,400 were lost. Tragically, about 55,000 out of the 125,000 aircrew who served in Bomber Command were killed, while 10,000 became prisoners of war. Pictured: Just Jane's parts are seen laid out as the aircraft is worked on

Apprentice engineer Bradley Winder inspects one of the aircraft's four twelve-cylinder Rolls Royce Merlin engines

The intricate instructions for the model are perhaps a little easier to follow than those for the real thing

Mr Panton added: 'At the moment she's the only running Lancaster that you can get on board in Europe.

'The Lancaster here was bought in the early 1980s and moved here in 1988 and has become the centre-piece of the museum.

A history of the Lancaster Bomber 'Just Jane' 'Just Jane' was built by Austin Motors in Longbridge, near Birmingham, in 1945. She had the serial number NX611, and was intended to become part of an RAF squadron in the Far East. Following the surrender of Japan the bomber did not see active service. After the war, in 1952, she was bought by the French and used for air sea rescue. Ten years later, Just Jane went to Noumeau, in New Caledonia, which is part of islands in the South Pacific owned by France. She was painted white and once again used for air sea rescue. The plane was then flown to Sydney in 1964, where she was overhauled before being flown back to Britain. It was not until 1967 before Just Jane flew again, and future public appearances were brief because of the cost. She was then flown to Suffolk before being put up for sale in 1972. However, the plane was bought in 1983 by brothers Fred and Harold Panton. They believed it would be the perfect monument to their brother Christopher who was killed while serving in Bomber Command. In 1993, the first moves were made to begin restoring the plane at the site of the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre and it was gotten to a fully operation taxiing standard. Advertisement

'We taxi passengers around the airfield and they get the experience of a WW2 Lancaster bomber on an original WW2 airfield.

'The next stage which we're progressing to is making her airworthy so she can fly on air-show circuits and possibly with passengers in the future'

'The plane stands as a memorial to Bomber Command during WW2.

'So it's important that she's kept in a running condition and restored to airworthy condition, which would make her only the third airworthy Lancaster in the world.

'In the past we've had many veterans come back to East Kirkby, whether they flew from here during the war or whether they operated with Bomber Command, so for them to come back and experience the Lancaster again brings back many memories.

'Good memories and of course bad memories as well. And now we're getting the families of those veterans coming to experience a little bit of what their fathers and grandfathers did during the Second World War'.

Mr Panton previously said when the project began: 'The work is quite easy in the grand scheme of things, it's quite standard stuff - it's just having the knowledge to do it.

'It's important work for that aircraft, and for the memory of Bomber Command, and the nation.'

Next year will be the 80th anniversary of the Lancaster first going into service.

'Just Jane' was built by Austin Motors in Longbridge, near Birmingham, in 1945.

She had the serial number NX611, and was intended to become part of an RAF squadron in the Far East.

Following the surrender of Japan the bomber did not see active service. After the war she was bought by the French and used for air sea rescue.

One of the men working on the project, Roy Lemmon, 56, said when the project began that he will be 'chuffed' when the Lancaster takes to the skies again.

He said: 'It's a privilege, it's interesting, it's something different. There's a lot of corrosion and people have tried to repair it without the view of it flying, so it's got to be taken to pieces and done properly.'

Another person helping on the project, Brian Howard, 67, said: 'There's a lot of work to be done, and it makes you think about what you've got to do next. It's the oldest thing I've ever worked on - it feels fantastic.

The first prototypes of the Lancaster were built in 1941. They impressed test pilots immediately. One reported that the plane 'took off like a startled stallion'. Pictured: Pieces of the plane are seen laid out in the hangar

By 1942, the plane was ready for active service. Lancasters were used that year in raid on Augsburg in 1942. Pictured: Apprentice engineer Bradley Winder and aircraft engineer Gerbs Jeffery work inside both sections of fuselage

From 1942 onwards, the planes played a leading role in every major raid on German cities. Of the 791 planes which dropped bombs on Hamburg on the night of July 24/25 in 1943, 247 of them were Lancasters. Pictured: Aircraft engineer Gerbs Jeffery works on one of the Lancaster's Merlin engines

Lancasters were also modified to be able to carry bouncing bombs so they could be used in the famous Dambusters raids. However, the human cost of the raids which the Lancasters were involved in was enormous. Tens of thousands of German civilians were killed and cities were devastated. As for the pilots, in 1943, only one airman in six could expect to survive his first tour of 30 sorties. Pictured: Apprentice engineer Bradley Winder works inside the rear fuselage

Some 7,377 Lancasters had carried out more than 150,000 missions by the end of the Second World War including the supremely audacious Dambuster Raids of 1943. Pictured: The front of the plane is seen during restoration work

A big model: The rear part of the plane is seen laid out in the style of a giant Airfix model. The plane is being restored at the site of RAF East Kirkby, where bombers once flew from

Aircraft engineer Gerbs Jeffery stands by nose of Lancaster, giving an indication of its imposing size. When in one piece, the bomber is more than 69 feet long and has a wingspan of 102 feet

An illustration on the side of the plane gives its name away. It shows a bikini-clad woman sitting on one of the aircraft's bombs

'I just miss a lot of the drawings, that's all. Everything has got to be in your head because you're so used to looking at a computer.'

A fundraising club has also been set up for people wishing to make a regular donation.

For details visit www.lincsaviation.co.uk

Just Jane is seen on the runway at East Kirkby in a file image. The plane is used during the summer to taxi visitors around the airfield

Old footage shows Just Jane at an airfield shortly after the Second World War
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Hollywood Police DepartmentBy MORGAN WINSOR, ABC News

(HOLLYWOOD, Fla.) -- Multiple law enforcement agencies are searching for a 21-year-old woman with autism who disappeared from a Florida nature reserve a week ago.



Noemi Bolivar was last seen at the Ann Kolb Nature Center in Hollywood, Florida, on the afternoon of Feb. 11, according to a Facebook post by the Hollywood Police Department.



Police did not immediately respond Thursday to ABC News' request for additional information on the case.



Bolivar's parents told Miami ABC affiliate WPLG-TV that she left their home around 4 p.m. that day to catch a bus to go hiking at the nature reserve.



"She's just a nature girl. She loves birds," her mother, Marycel Bolivar, told WPLG in a recent interview. "That's her passion -- go look at the birds and the plants and everything."



Bolivar has autism, although her parents said she is high-functioning. They said it is uncharacteristic of her to leave without keeping in touch and they fear she may have been kidnapped, according to WPLG.



Bolivar took a selfie with her cellphone at the observation tower inside the nature reserve and sent it to a friend on Snapchat. But she stopped sending or receiving messages and calls that evening around 6:15 p.m., according to WPLG.



Police were able to ping Bolivar's cellphone a few hours later, showing the location to be near Hollywood Beach. But when officers arrived, she was nowhere to be found, according to WPLG.



Investigators from the Hollywood Police Department and the Broward County Sheriff's Office conducted a grid search from the air and ground of a wooded area near the nature reserve on Wednesday in hopes of finding clues.



"The reason why we're doing that is to possibly find any evidence or any indication of where she could possibly be or have traveled," Officer Christian Lata, a spokesman for the Hollywood Police Department, told WPLG.



Investigators currently don't suspect any foul play in Bolivar's disappearance, according to WPLG.



"We want to assure the family, we want to assure the citizens that we're doing everything we possibly can to help find Noemi," Lata said.



Anyone with information on Bolivar's whereabouts is urged to contact the Hollywood Police Department at 954-967-4636 or Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.



Copyright  2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:34:24|Editor: huaxia

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TBILISI, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The ruling Georgian Dream party has nominated Defense Minister Irakli Garibashvili for the post of prime minister, after the resignation of Giorgi Gakharia earlier Thursday.

Irakli Kobakhidze, chairman of the Georgian Dream party, told a briefing that "the political council (of the party) unanimously decided to name Irakli Garibashvili as a candidate for prime minister."

According to the Constitution of Georgia, the parliament will have two weeks to approve a new prime minister and cabinet.

If the parliament fails to approve the new government, the president will dismiss the parliament and snap parliamentary elections will be scheduled.

Garibashvili was appointed the country's defense minister in September 2019 and continued in the role after the 2020 parliamentary elections. Previously, he had served as prime minister between November 2013 and December 2015.

Earlier Thursday, Gakharia announced his resignation, citing disputes with the ruling party over the detention of the head of the opposition United National Movement party Nika Melia as the main reason.

The Tbilisi City Court on Wednesday ruled that Melia be remanded in custody for failure to post bail, as per the request of Georgia's Prosecutor's Office.

The Georgian Parliament on Tuesday suspended Melia's MP status, allowing the prosecution to demand his arrest and claiming the latter has not posted bail for his release in a case dating back to the June 2019 protests. Enditem

Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:32:31|Editor: huaxia

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ISLAMABAD, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A soldier was killed and two people were injured in a bomb explosion in Quetta city of Pakistan's southwest Balochistan province on Thursday, officials said.

Some unknown militants parked an explosive-laden motorbike at the roadside and exploded it when a vehicle of paramilitary troops Frontier Corps passed by it, sources from an intelligence agency in the city told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

The explosion left the soldier killed and two passersby injured who have been shifted to a nearby hospital.

Security forces cordoned off the area and called in bomb disposal squad to collect details about the explosion from the blast site.

No group has claimed the attack yet, but most of the blasts of the kind are attributed to anti-government organizations working as proxies of hostile agencies in the province.

A wave of terrorism recently resurged in Balochistan where an increase in terrorist attacks on security forces and civilians has been witnessed.

Earlier this month, two people were killed and 19 others injured in two separate attacks on public rallies in Balochistan. Enditem

As Willamette Valley farmers and agricultural workers prepare for the 2021 season, a regulatory battle is playing out over state rules intended to reduce the risk of COVID spreading in farmworker housing.

The Oregon Farm Bureau is seeking to overturn state regulations intended to protect agricultural workers from COVID, arguing the requirements are forcing farmhands into crowded and unsafe conditions. But in Marion County, a farmworkers group said that the regulations have made working conditions safer.

Last month, the Oregon Farm Bureau filed a petition with the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration targeting new requirements for agricultural workplace around social distancing, masking, cleaning, signage, reporting and others. The regulations apply to labor-intensive agricultural establishments where employee work by hand in the field.

The requirements went into effect in June of last year and were intended to prevent COVID from spreading among agricultural workers who often work near one another, or are crammed into tight living spaces or transportation.

Farmworkers have been at particular risk during the pandemic because of challenges around social distancing, unreliable access to personal protective equipment, testing and information on support services, a study released by University of Oregon researchers in September found.

Marion County is one of the most agriculturally oriented in the state, with nearly 6,000 people employed in agriculture, according to state numbers. ZIP codes in north Salem and Woodburn, which have high concentrations of farmworkers and Latinos have been particularly affected by COVID. The Woodburn area has one of the highest concentrations of people diagnosed with COVID in Oregon.

But Samantha Bayer, the bureaus policy counsel, wrote in a January letter to Michael Wood, the head of the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration, that regulations have caused substantial harm to both farmworkers and the farm families who employ them.

We believe there is a way to protect essential agricultural employees and farm operators, while also keeping farms viable and employees housed and earning wages, she said.

The Oregon Farm Bureau, which represents 7,000 farmers and ranchers, also filed a petition with the workplace safety agency asking it to scrap the regulations and work with it to craft a more workable set.

The petition takes particular issue with the requirements around housing provided by agricultural producers. According to the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration, there are 320 registered agricultural labor housing sites in the state.

Under the regulations, bunk beds in farmworker housing cant be used by unrelated individuals. Beds are required to be separated by at least 6 feet or an impermeable barrier. Sleeping areas without bunk beds must have at least 50 square feet of floor space per employee. Isolation units are also required for workers exposed to COVID.

The regulations have made farmworker housing unworkable for many agricultural businesses, she said. With agricultural employers offering less housing workers have been pushed into entirely unregulated environments, Bayer said in her letter. She referenced reports from farmworker advocacy groups that workers have had to live in cars, sleep on couches or move into crowded housing shared by multiple generations.

Bayer, in an interview, pointed to remarks by Reyna Lopez, the executive director of Woodburn-based Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste, as well as Kathy Keesee-Morales, of Medford-based Unete Center for Farmworker Advocacy, speaking to the difficulties farmworkers face in quarantining in multi-generational housing. Neither mentioned adverse effects from the regulations.

The issue of substandard labor housing, and its inadequacy - has been a problem for decades, Lopez told Salem Reporter in an email. She said the problem shouldnt be blamed on regulations or farmworker advocates.

Lopez, whose organization represents 6,000 farmworkers, said the overwhelming majority of her members and supporters saw improvements after the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration adopted the rules. She said her members reported that employers were trying to follow them.

This means that people felt safer coming to work, because they knew precautions were being taken, said Lopez, who credited the regulations with keeping Oregons COVID rates relatively low.

Bayer clarified she heard from bureau members, hundreds of which provide housing to workers, about farmworkers living in their cars. She said that members have also heard about farmworkers not using hotel vouchers to quarantine because they didnt want to be away from family.

She said the state already has a shortage of housing and shelters disproportionately affects Oregons Latino population and was made worse by last falls wildfires.

Many agricultural producers rely on this housing during the summer when farmhands harvest crops, said Bayer. While agricultural companies can face a Class C misdemeanor for violating the regulations, Bayer said the response hasnt been heavy-handed.

Last summer, she said the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which has seen a record number of complaints during the pandemic, has tried to work with employers and issued citations for minor infractions, such as not displaying a poster informing workers of protections.

We havent seen massive non-compliance issues, she said.

She also said agricultural producers have been largely successful in preventing outbreaks, particularly from farmworker housing. Agriculture has accounted for just 2.6% of workplace outbreaks with 426 cases, according to a database kept by the Oregon AFL-CIO thats based on Oregon Health Authority data.

The workplace safety agency has issued at least 23 COVID-related citations involving agricultural operations, according to Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration spokesman Aaron Corvin. He said nearly all of them were issued under regulations addressing employer housing for agricultural workers.

Nargess Shadbeh, director of the Farmworker Program at the Oregon Law Center, said in a statement that the pandemic has exacerbated problems with inadequate and substandard farmworker housing. She said her group, which helped spur the regulations, is working with the worker safety agency to strengthen regulations.

These rules must include better protections than the previous rule, not take them away, she said. We have the opportunity to learn from the lessons of the past year and move forward with the best science available on ventilation, reduced density, social distancing, masks, training, enhanced testing and access to vaccines.

Public comments on the Oregon Farm Bureaus petition are due Feb. 24. Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration is also going to propose another permanent set of COVID-related workplace regulations thatll also address farmworker housing,

With the harvest season approaching, both Lopez and Bayer said the regulations need to be finalized soon. Bayer said farmers need to know how much housing they can offer when they apply for visas for immigrant workers. Lopez said thousands of workers will begin migrating from May to October, many with families in tow and many likely unvaccinated.

--Jake Thomas/Salem Reporter

Sri Lanka has cancelled Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khans planned address to its Parliament during his upcoming visit to Colombo, according to media reports.

Sergeant-at-Arms of Parliament, Narendra Fernando said he has informed Parliament that the Pakistan Prime Ministers visit to Sri Lanka will go ahead as scheduled, the Colombo Gazette website reported on Wednesday.

However, the Foreign Ministry had informed Parliament officials that his proposed visit to the Parliament complex will not take place.

Pakistan Prime Minister Khan will arrive in Sri Lanka on February 22 on a two-day official state visit.

Khan, who will be the first head of state to visit the country since the Covid-19 pandemic, is to hold talks with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena during the visit.

It is said that the speech to Parliament had been included in Khans itinerary at the Pakistan government's request. However, it was later cancelled and Sri Lankan media gave various reasons for the cancellation of Khans address, Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported on Thursday.

The address was scheduled for February 24.

According to Sri Lankas daily Express, Foreign Secretary Jayanath Colombage said that Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena had requested for the cancellation of Khan's address, citing COVID-19.

Dawn newspaper quoting Sri Lankan media reports that there were elements within the Sri Lankan government, who did not want the speech to take place as they feared that doing so could further harm ties with India, which have already been strained after the cancellation of a deal over the East Container Terminal in Colombo port, Dawn newspaper said.

It was expected that Khan would raise the Kashmir issue during his speech, which could have upset Delhi, it said.

Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after New Delhi abrogated provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw Jammu and Kashmir''s special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories in 2019.

Pakistan has been trying to internationalise the Kashmir issue but India has asserted that the abrogation of Article 370 was its "internal matter".

Another speculation doing the rounds is that the Sri Lankan government was concerned about Khan speaking about the rights of Muslims in Sri Lanka, who have faced abuses at the hands of Buddhist majority, rising anti-Muslim sentiments, and biased government actions.

The Sri Lankan government had made compulsory cremation rule for those dying from Covid-19, enraging the Muslim community in the country.

The government, however, earlier this month exempted the Muslims from cremation and allowed them to bury their dead after a global outcry over the issue.

Khan had welcomed the Sri Lankan governments decision.

The Pakistan Prime Ministers visit, scheduled a month after Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankars three-day visit to Colombo, will coincide with the 46th UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, where a new resolution on Sri Lanka is likely to be adopted.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had addressed Sri Lanka's Parliament in 2015.
Reporter

Heather Bellow, a member of the investigations team, joined The Eagle in 2017. She is based in the South Berkshire County bureau in Great Barrington. Her work has appeared in newspapers across the U.S.
Authorities in Hanoi have ordered that COVID-19 tests be carried out on all people who have arrived in the capital from the northern province of Hai Duong  Vietnams current largest COVID-19 epicenter.

At a meeting on Wednesday, the Hanoi Department of Health asked the municipal steering committee for COVID-19 prevention and control to perform tests on all people who had arrived from Hai Duong Province between February 2 and 16.

Those individuals will also have their health conditions monitored at home.

The proposal was approved by Chu Xuan Dung , vice-chairman of the Hanoi Peoples Committee.

Approximately 18,000 people have come to Hanoi from Chi Linh City in Hai Duong and COVID-19-hit areas in northern Quang Ninh Province since the beginning of January.

Four of them have been confirmed as coronavirus patients while the rest have tested negative.

About 1,517 others have arrived in the capital from Cam Giang District in Hai Duong since January 15.

Among them, 437 have tested negative for the novel coronavirus and the remainder are still waiting for results.

Relevant agencies have been tracking all arrivals from virus-hit areas across the country in order to conduct COVID-19 testing as per regulations.

According to Hoang Duc Hanh, deputy director of the Hanoi health department, the city may detect more local infections in the coming days and weeks as a large number of people return to the capital after having spent the Lunar New Year holiday in their hometowns.

Hanh also noted that many Hanoi residents are still participating in large gatherings or not wearing face masks when in public, two factors that may contribute to the virus spread.

The Hanoi administration has ordered the health sector to conduct random COVID-19 testing in high-risk areas such as industrial zones, factories, and export processing zones.

Vietnam has recorded 2,329 COVID-19 cases as of Thursday morning, with 1,580 recoveries and 35 deaths, according to the Ministry of Health.

A total of 737 local infections have been detected in 13 provinces and cities since January 27.

Among them, 557 cases have been documented in Hai Duong Province, while 35 cases have been recorded in Hanoi.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!

BEIRUT, Lebanon  A court in Lebanon on Thursday removed the judge appointed to investigate a huge explosion in the Beirut port last year, adding a delay to the countrys sluggish efforts to determine what happened and ensure accountability.

The removal of the judge, Fadi Sawan, was the outcome of a complaint filed by two former ministers whom he had accused of criminal negligence. The court based its decision in part on damage to Judge Sawans own home from the port explosion, which it said had raised questions about his impartiality.

The Aug. 4 blast was one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history and sent a pressure wave ripping through Beirut that killed 200 people, wounded 6,000 and left billions of dollars in damage.

The blast happened when whatever was left of 2,750 tons of hazardous chemicals that had been unloaded into the port in 2014 blew up.
February 18 : Bollywood controversial queen Kangana Ranaut just took to her social media profile and slammed the American President Joe Biden for favouring China.

Kangana Ranaut took to her Twitter profile and wrote a series of Tweets, calling the USA president Submissive and Tail Wagging China supporter.

The Tweets read, Look at this tail wagging, submissive, meek little pet of China, is he president of United States or a China ambassador? Shame on you American today China is worlds biggest power because you gave it that top spot it was lusting for on a platter

Look at this tail wagging, submissive, meek little pet of China, is he president of United States or a China ambassador? Shame on you American today China is worlds biggest power because you gave it that top spot it was lusting for on a platter. https://t.co/ujRz4jUbmL  Kangana Ranaut (@KanganaTeam) February 18, 2021

It might seem I am interested in American politics no I am not, we have a very strong leadership here it does not affect us, what I find amusing is liberals all across the world love weak, meek, submissive easy to dominate type leaders. Why they like Pappus is beyond me

A leader should be a ferocious, roaring, raging voice. Especially for a civilisation like India who didnt get a good deal in its history. Its important we learn from what happened in America, a generation of confused, foggy disoriented youth sold their nation to China

Right now biggest threat to our nation are these confused, disoriented, foggy youth who claim to be librus. When a nation compromises on its value system/Dharma it becomes easy to buy, manipulate and capture by big dominating forces around. Its a long on but thats the tweet read the full thread.

Meanwhile on the work front, Ranaut will next portray the politician Jayalalithaa in the trilingual biopic Thalaivi and star in the action film Dhaakad and Tejas.
ATLANTA, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Florida Department of Education has approved CENTEGIX's CrisisAlert emergency management solution for public school districts to comply with the newly passed Alyssa's Law. Alyssa's Law, named after Parkland shooting victim Alyssa Alhadeff, mandates Florida public and charter schools to install a panic alarm system activated by a mobile device to silently notify law enforcement of emergencies or life-threatening situations.

CENTEGIX's award-winning CrisisAlert solution is best distinguished by a wearable badge that empowers all teachers and staff to request help easily and discreetly from anywhere on campus. The solution enables 100% user adoption, unlike mobile apps that have historically low adoption rates, and it does not require teachers and staff to have a smartphone, which may not be equitably available.

CrisisAlert currently protects over 1 million students and staff nationwide and was recently featured in the news for being installed in Martin County and Hillsborough County, one of Florida's largest school districts.

CrisisAlert goes above and beyond the requirements of Alyssa's Law by delivering precise, room-level alert location accuracy within buildings, immediate audio and visual incident notifications (including lighted strobes, on-screen messages, and two-way radio integration), simple activation via a CrisisAlert badge, and 100% full campus coverage.

"We are pleased to be selected by the Florida Department of Education and look forward to working with even more districts to ensure they comply with the Alyssa's Law deadline. Our experience with districts from Florida and across the country confirms that a wearable solution like CrisisAlert is the best option because it ensures everyone has the ability to activate an alert, is easy to use, and activates in an instant during an emergency," said CENTEGIX CEO Matthew Stevens.

About CENTEGIX

CENTEGIX innovates technology to save and enrich lives. Our CrisisAlert solution is an IoT incident alert platform that utilizes mobile and desktop applications along with a mesh network to provide campus-wide protection. CrisisAlert is a force multiplier, allowing staff and security professionals to request assistance and implement emergency protocols from anywhere. We go well beyond the limitations of legacy communications devices and single-dimensional apps, because in a crisis: Every. Second. Matters.

To learn more about CENTEGIX, please visit www.centegix.com.

Contact:

Karen Jones

[email protected]

404-483-8226



SOURCE CENTEGIX

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WASHINGTON - The Soviet Union put fighter-bombers loaded with nuclear bombs on 24-hour alert in East Germany during a NATO nuclear weapons command exercise in November 1983, and the alert included "preparations for the immediate use of nuclear weapons," according to newly released U.S. intelligence records that confirm a "war scare" during some of the most tense months of the Cold War.

It was disclosed previously that the NATO exercise, named Able Archer 83, triggered worries in the Kremlin. But the new documents provide precise details for the first time of the Soviet military response to the NATO exercise, an annual event that practiced a simulated nuclear attack on the forces of the Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact.

According to the documents, the heightened Soviet alert was raised in the fighter-bomber divisions of Soviet forces stationed in East Germany. All command posts were ordered to be manned around-the-clock by augmented teams. In tandem, the chief of the Soviet air forces, Marshall Pavel Kutakhov, ordered all units of the Soviet 4th Air Army in Poland to be covered by the alert.

Fighter-bomber divisions were ordered to load nuclear bombs on one squadron of aircraft in each regiment. These aircraft were to be armed and placed at "readiness 3," meaning a 30-minute alert to "destroy first-line enemy targets," according to the documents.

Europe was the scene of a decades-long standoff during the Cold War as both superpowers prepared for conflict on land and in the air, including the possible use of nuclear weapons. A previous review of the war scare noted that Soviet military doctrine had called for preempting a NATO attack by striking first, and Warsaw Pact forces had long assumed a NATO offensive could start under the cover of an exercise such as Able Archer. The West also was prepared to use nuclear weapons in response to a conventional attack from the larger Warsaw Pact forces.

The Soviet Union deployed nuclear-capable Su-17 fighter-bombers in East Germany with six to eight pylons for bombs. One of the most ominous signs of the 1983 Soviet alert came in an intelligence report about a squadron at Neuruppin, East Germany. The alert aircraft were to be loaded with an electronic jamming pod for protection. However, reporting from the National Security Agency showed that the squadron asked to do without the electronics because of "an unexpected weight and balance problem."

U.S. military intelligence analysts concluded that "this message meant that at least this particular squadron was loading a munitions configuration that they had never actually loaded before, i.e., a warload."

A top U.S. intelligence official on the scene during Able Archer, Lt. Gen. Leonard Perroots, contacted his superiors at the peak of the tensions. He spoke with the commander in chief of the U.S. Air Forces in Europe, Gen. Billy Minter. When Minter asked whether the United States should react to what was happening in East Germany, Perroots replied there was "insufficient evidence to justify increasing our real alert posture." But Perroots grew more worried as information came to him later showing the Soviet nervousness about Able Archer. "If I had known then what I later found out I am uncertain what advice I would have given," he later wrote.

The new documents were included in an edition of Foreign Relations of the United States released on Tuesday. The new edition covers U.S. relations with the Soviet Union from January 1983 to March 1985, a period that included President Ronald Reagan's description of the USSR as an "evil empire," the launch of Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative to build a space-based missile defense, and the September 1983 shoot-down of a civilian Korean airliner.

Moreover, the period included massive antinuclear demonstrations as the United States prepared to station Pershing II missiles and ground-launched cruise missiles in Western Europe to counter Soviet missiles. The Soviet leadership was thrust into uncertainty as three leaders died between 1982 and 1985.

In the new volume, State Department historians included a lengthy editor's note on the war scare. The editor's note reproduces a January 1989 memorandum from Perroots, titled "End of Tour Report Addendum." Perroots had served as assistant chief of staff for intelligence, U.S. Air Forces Europe, during the Able Archer exercise and then as director of the Defense Intelligence Agency from 1985 to 1989. At the end of his tour he wrote the memo to record "his disquiet over the inadequate treatment of the Soviet war scare," according to the State Department history.

Perroots, who died in 2017, believed that he had made the correct decision not to escalate U.S. force against the Soviets, but that he lacked full intelligence about the Soviet alert. At the time, he thought the Soviet alert was concerning, but not overly so. That view changed when he saw additional intelligence reported only after the exercise had concluded. This "much more ominous picture" included a "stand-down" of all Soviet air forces in the region.

A stand-down meant a pause in routine flying activity - and preparations for something else - but it was not picked up right away by Western intelligence, and that later worried Perroots.

He wrote that "a real stand-down of aircraft was secretly ordered in at least the Soviet Air Forces units facing the Central Region, and that standdown was not detected," by the West. "The Soviet alert in response to ABLE ARCHER began after nightfall on Wednesday evening, there was no flying on the following two days which led to the weekend, and then the following Monday was 7 November, the revolution holiday."

"The absence of flying could always be explained," Perroots wrote, but then new material arrived that was alarming, and produced an intelligence warning. On Nov. 9, "overhead photography showed fully armed FLOGGER aircraft on air defense alert at a base in East Germany. When this single indicator was raised, the standdown had been underway for a week." The "FLOGGER" was a Soviet Mig-23 fighter.

In 2015, the U.S. government declassified a 109-page report by the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board, dated Feb. 15, 1990 and titled, "The Soviet War Scare." It was released to the National Security Archive, a nongovernmental organization affiliated with George Washington University that seeks government documents through the Freedom of Information Act.

The PFIAB review concluded, "In 1983, we may have inadvertently placed our relations with the Soviet Union on a hair trigger." The Perroots memorandum was cited in the PFIAB review, but not made public at the time. The National Security Archive had sued the DIA for the record in 2019. The suit is still pending.

According to the PFIAB report, U.S. and British intelligence showed that the Soviet and Warsaw Pact reaction to Able Archer was "unprecedented" and was "activity seen only during crisis periods in the past." These actions were a reconnaissance effort that included 36 intelligence flights, "significantly more" than in previous years that Able Archer was conducted, and the standdown of all military flight operations between Nov. 4 and Nov. 10, except for the intelligence flights, "probably to have available as many aircraft as possible for combat."

The release of the Perroots memorandum adds to the PFIAB conclusion that the war scare was real. But the event has been a Cold War puzzle for many years, and the nature of high-level Kremlin discussions about it are still largely unknown.

In the aftermath of Able Archer, the U.S. intelligence community commissioned two postmortems, in May and August 1984, looking back at the events. Both intelligence estimates declared: "We believe strongly that Soviet actions are not inspired by, and Soviet leaders do not perceive, a genuine danger of imminent conflict or confrontation with the United States." This conclusion was based on the fact that the United States did not see widespread mobilization for war at the time. But the PFIAB review criticized these estimates, saying that the intelligence community "did not at the time, and for several years afterwards, attach sufficient weight to the possibility that the war scare was real."
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All-India service and laws framed for it, have federal cooperation as cornerstone of its legl architecture: Mamata incooperation as cornerstone of its legl architecture: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

Presume earlier order by centre made in consultation with state government extending Chief secretary''s tenure for threestate government extending Chief secretary's tenure for three months from June 1, stands: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

`Shocked and stunned by unilateral order' recalling Chief Secretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCHSecretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCH JRC

Mamata writes to Modi; requests rescinding orders recalling WB Chief Secretary to Delhi. Chief Secretary to Delhi.
The court pointed to Rule 39 of its regulations, citing "the nature and extent of risk to the applicant's life."

The court's ruling demanded that Navalny be released immediately, warning that failure to do so would mark a breach of the European human rights convention.

ECHR said in a press release Wednesday that it "grants an interim measure in favor of" Navalny and "asks the Government of Russia to release him."

The European Court of Human Rights is calling on Russia to release top Kremlin critic Alexey Navalny.

Navalny, 44, has been jailed since his return to Russia last month. Moscow said he violated the terms of his probation while recuperating in Germany from a poisoning attack. The sentence stems from a 2014 embezzlement conviction ECHR has ruled to be unlawful.

Navalny was treated in Germany following a nerve-agent poisoning in Siberia last August. He blamed Russia for the poisoning, a charge denied by the Kremlin.

Several western countries have called for Navalny's release, threatening to impose sanctions against Russia over the case.

The Russian Justice Ministry warned in a statement that the ECHR's demand would represent a "crude interference into the judicial system" of Russia and "cross the red line."

ECHR is the international court of the Council of Europe, Europe's main human rights forum.

In the past, it has complied with ECHR's rulings to compensate Russian citizens who contested verdicts in Russian courts, but it has never faced a demand by the court to release someone who has been detained.
MILAN, FEB 18 - The former fire chief in the northern Italian city of Biassono near Monza donned an SS officer's uniform in a Fecbook post in October that earned him a six-month suspended jail term and a 250,000 euro fine, a judge recalled Thursday in explaining the man's conviction for apology of fascism. The former commander, Giorgio Piacentini, accompanied his picture with captions including "all it would take is a company of these to fix certain things" and "I'll ask the mayor to adopt this uniform". By sporting an SS uniform, judge Marco Formentini said, Piacentini "not only publicly exalted antidemocratic principles and values belonging to nazism and fascism, but also conveyed a message of support for idea based on the superiority of the race and racial discrimination, the SS being sadly noted in the collective memory for their persecution of the Jews". The judge said the official had undermined the public's confidence in institutions. He had also wrongly communicated the notion that "officials, in order to be efficient, had to be violent and authoritarian like the SS". Piacentini told the court "I'm not a Nazi, but a history buff". (ANSA).
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People wonder why they must venerate Kim Jong Il when they cannot afford food.

In a photo taken on February 16, 2021 an image of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il is displayed on a backdrop as members of Mansudae Art Troupe perform a music and dance routine marking 79th anniversary of Kim Jong Il's birth, a day known in North Korea as the 'Day of the Shining Star', at the East Pyongyang Grand Theatre in Pyongyang.

North Koreans pressed into mass public tributes to late leader Kim Jong Il for his 79th birth anniversary this month are now struggling to support themselves after missing work for political meetings, patriotic singing contests and dance parties, sources in the country told RFA.

The birth anniversary of Kim Jong Il (1942-2011) on February 16, known as the Day of the Shining Star, and that of his father and predecessor Kim Il Sung (1912-1994) on April 15, known as the Day of the Sun, solidify the cult of personality surrounding the Kim family and the countrys third-generation leader, Kim Jong Un.

The two birthdays bookend a two-month Loyalty Festival period, where in most years the country puts on mass games, military demonstrations and cultural events that draw large crowds.

RFA reported at the beginning of this month that people were made to practice singing the praises of Kim Jong Il while dancing in the middle of a harsh Siberian blizzard. Sources complained that the government was asking them to violate its own coronavirus protocols to prepare for the event.

Now they are complaining that they cant make ends meet, as the preparations have taken them away from their jobs.

The authorities are mobilizing residents for all these political events because of the Day of the Shining Star, making it difficult for them to make a living, a resident of northeastern North Hamgyong province told RFAs Korean Service on the eve of the major holiday.

Residents can only buy food if they work in their daily livelihood activities, whether thats business or labor. Mobilization for these kinds of events inevitably causes resentment, said the source, who requested anonymity for security reasons.

While all residents have government-assigned jobs, the paltry monthly salary they earn is not anywhere near enough to live on. Most families survive by supplementing their income through other activities, like operating small businesses.

But these side hustles are hard to carry on under mass mobilization campaigns.

The people are busy every day attending things like the Songs of Loyalty singing contest, dance parties, documentary and film festivals, all these events held around the Day of the Shining Star, the source said.

In addition, a special security decree was declared from the 15th, today, the day before the Day of the Shining Star, to the end of this weekend, so it is not easy for residents to go out to the nearby marketplace to do their business, said the source.

The holiday preparations not only affect the mobilized individuals, but their entire communities. Prices for essentials like rice and corn have gone up because when merchants are mobilized, fewer can sell their goods in the marketplace, according to the source.

The Central Committee [of the Korean Workers Party] promoted the Day of the Shining Star extensively, and now they are busy idolizing Kim Jong Il, but the people wonder why they should treat the holiday like it is a big deal when they have nothing to eat tomorrow, the source said.

Residents are resentful of the authorities, saying they should come up with measures to help them make ends meet before promoting the greatness of the former leader,

A resident of South Pyongan province, north of the capital Pyongyang, told RFA that residents there complained about market prices. Rice was up more than 10 percent, as were other staples like soybeans, corn, soybean powder, millet and red beans. Alcohol was also more costly as the holiday approached.

Things we need to cook holiday foods, like meat and cooking oil are in short supply, said the second source, who requested anonymity to speak freely.

The authorities do not care about the lives of the residents. They just bother the residents by making them participate in the Songs of Loyalty contest and watch Kim Jong Ils films every day. What can the Day of the Shining Star mean to residents who cant even afford to buy a bottle of cooking oil, much less meat, in this cold winter?

The day after the holiday, the state-run Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on the festivities, saying, All the people of the DPRK significantly celebrated the birth anniversary of Chairman Kim Jong Il.

The report described crowds of people visiting various sites in Pyongyang, including the mausoleum where Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung lie in state. There were also photo exhibitions, outdoor performances by opera and folk-art troupes, movie screenings, plays, and a circus event.

Additionally, parties of young people took place at the plazas of the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium, the Monument to Party Founding, etc. revving up the atmosphere of the February holiday, the report said.

While very descriptive of the holiday of the capital, the report only briefly mentioned similar performances happening in the provinces.

Reported by Jieun Kim for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Eugene Whong.
Starbreeze's new acting CEO Tobias Sjoren is optimistic about the once-troubled company's future.

Sjoren, who stepped into the position after former CEO Mikael Nermark resigned in October, says that the company is well on its way to reclaiming its seat as an industry leader, thanks in no small part to the continued success of its Payday franchise.

"Starbreeze is a much stronger company today than it was one year ago," reads comments from Sjoren published alongside Starbreeze's Q4 and FY 2020 results. Starbreeze did still report an overall loss before tax for 2020, but notably a smaller one than it did during its shaky 2019.

For the full year ending December 31, 2020, Starbreeze reported a loss of SEK 130.5 million ($5.7 million), up from a loss of SEK 452.4 million ($54.3 million) in 2019. Net sales, now supported almost entirely by its Payday series, were reported at SEK 118 million ($14.2 million), down from SEK 280 million ($33.6 million) last year, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization came in at SEK 49.3 million ($5.9 million), up from SEK -116.5 million last year (-$14 million).

Payday was responsible for SEK 111.5 million ($13.4 million) of this year's net sales, and Sjoren adds that it's "through the proven strength of the Payday franchise and a highly dedicated development team [that] we now have a stable platform that supports the continued successful development of Payday 3."
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Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  Every time South Carolina made a move, Tennessee answered.

Victor Bailey was a big part of the Volunteers' response.

Bailey connected on 7 of 10 3-pointers and scored a career-high 29 points to lead No. 19 Tennessee to a 93-73 victory over the Gamecocks on Wednesday night.

The game was originally scheduled for Tuesday, but what turned out to be a false positive COVID-19 test for a Tennessee player led to a one-day postponement.

John Fulkerson scored 15 of his 19 points in the second half, Jaden Springer added 16 points and Yves Pons had 10 for the Volunteers (15-5, 8-5 Southeastern Conference).

AJ Lawson led the Gamecocks (5-10, 3-8) with 20 points. Keyshawn Bryant and TJ Moss each scored 15.

Tennessee expanded its 11-point halftime lead to 89-69 late in the second half thanks to a 17-7 run. Bailey had nine points in the burst and Fulkerson had eight.

We can't stop the bleeding when it starts, South Carolina coach Frank Martin said. The biggest problem is that we have no personality on defense. We gave up another career high. The desire to defend and sustain effort is not what it needs to be.

Bailey had struggled in recent weeks after a strong start to the season.

Sometimes when a player stops thinking about making shots and just plays, the shots go down, Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. All we ask him to do, like anyone else, is to Do what you do and trust each other. Play to your strength.

I've tried to stay resilient, Bailey said. I've stayed focused on my work. It's tough to put in the work when you're not seeing the results.

Bailey hit 4 of 7 3-pointers and had 14 points to lead Tennessee to a 50-39 halftime advantage. Spring connected on a buzzer-beater jumper to score 10 in the opening half. The Vols were good on 6 of 13 3-pointers in the first 20 minutes.

SCORING MORE

Tennessee has scored 80 or more points in three of its last four games. However, Barnes saw a lot of room for improvement.

Story continues

If we don't make the turnovers like we did (16), we'd be much better, the coach said. There are things we have to clean up.

One area that improved was the Vols scoring 16 points in transition.

FALSE POSITIVE

If the positive COVID-19 test result for a Tennessee player had not turned out to be false, the Volunteers would have been missing four players because of subsequent contact tracing. But all tests came back negative on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, meaning all four players were cleared to play under SEC rules, the university said.

Tennessee's Josiah-Jordan James missed the game with a left wrist injury.

BIG PICTURE

South Carolina: The Gamecocks dropped their fourth straight. After Saturday's loss to Ole Miss, Bryant said: Three losses in a row is just the outcome of us playing single basketball and not team basketball.

Tennessee: Finding consistency is the Vols' mission heading into the postseason. That starts with veteran big men Pons and Fulkerson playing up to the expectations they had at the start of the season.

We need them both to be aggressive, Barnes said. Not just on offense, but defense, too. They need to be involved and be engaged, playing with some force.

UP NEXT

South Carolina: Hosts Missouri on Saturday. The Gamecocks have had eight games affected by the pandemic.

Tennessee: Hosts Kentucky on Saturday. Tennessee won 82-71 at Rupp Arena on Feb. 6.

___

More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
Minister of Justice David Lametti gives a thumbs up as he rises to vote in favour of a motion on Bill C-7, medical assistance in dying, in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada, on Dec. 10, 2020. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)

Senate Passes Amended Bill on Medical Assistance in Dying

The Senate wrapped up debates on the bill to expand access to medical assistance in dying (MAiD) with a vote, sending it back to the House of Commons for a final review later this week.

On Wednesday, senators voted 66-19, with 3 abstentions, passing Bill C-7, which would expand access to medical assistance in dying to individuals experiencing intolerable suffering and are not close to a foreseeable natural death.

Bill C-7 intends to bring the federal law into compliance with a 2019 Quebec Superior Court ruling that declared the reasonable foreseeability of natural death to MAiD eligibility unconstitutional.

Senators approved five amendments to the bill, two of which have expanded access to medical assisted dying even further than the government had first proposed.

One amendment would impose an 18-month time limit on the legislations proposed ban on assisted dying for people suffering solely from mental illnesses. Another would allow people who suffer from dementia or other competence-eroding illnesses to make advanced requests for assisted dying.

Final Debate Over Amendments

Leader of the Opposition in the Canadian Senate Donald Neil Plett said the legislation could be normalizing suicide.

We are creating a situation where there is no longer any viable argument to persuade someone who is intent on dying by suicide in any stage in their life, Plett said. Not to do so by expanding access to a selected group, who are not approaching end of life, for whom there may be treatment options available, and by preemptively reducing the safeguards before we have had data to justify it, I fear we are normalizing suicide.

Plett said that a radical expansion of medical assisted dying should best be addressed by a five-year parliamentary review, which is not in place.

I find it very troubling that all three government representatives and the sponsors of this bill jointly abstained on the most radical expansion of the amendment proposed. And yet on any proposal to enhance or restore safeguards, they were vehemently opposed, he said.

The revised bill will now be sent to the Commons, which is left with just over a week to decide whether to accept or reject the amendments before the court-imposed deadline on Feb. 26.

If some or parts of the amendments were rejected, senators will have to decide whether to adopt or strike down the bill.
When I saw the CNN headline about the heroism of police during the U.S. Capitol insurrection, I did a double take because I wasnt sure Id read it correctly.

New radio and video footage from Capitol riot shows a coordinated attack and officers restraint, it said.

In that moment, the anger I felt was visceral. While I will always have empathy for the Capitol officers who fought valiantly despite being betrayed by everyone from their police chief to Americas commander in chief, one question overshadows everything else: Would the police have shown such tremendous restraint if the Capitol Hill rioters were Black?

 READ MORE: Senate panels call former Capitol Police chief to testify about siege

In my view, the answer is a resounding no. In a society where white life is seen as more valuable, everyone, even Black police officers under attack by a racist Capitol Hill mob, thinks twice before shooting at white people. Black people dont get the same consideration.

Thats why, when Harvard researchers concluded a four-year study of police shootings, they found that Blacks, on average, were more than three times as likely as whites to be killed during a police encounter. Thats no accident. The value of white life is taught to every American  regardless of our race or ethnicity  from the time we are born.

The faces in our advertisements are overwhelmingly white, which is no surprise since as of 2019, only 0.7% of advertising and promotion managers were Black. Hollywood is white, too, just like nearly 71% of characters in the top films of 2017. And in case you have any doubt about how good whiteness is, remember what Megyn Kelly famously told us back in her Fox News days: Santa just is white  Jesus was a white man, too.

In America, such messages dont have to be spoken. They are shown to us in every waking moment because American society is predicated on white supremacy.

Thats why, when Officers Timothy Loehmann and Frank Garmback sped over the grass in a Cleveland park and skidded to a stop just a few feet away from a 12-year-old Black boy playing with a toy gun, Loehmann was able to claim he had no time to think about it before shooting Tamir Rice in seconds.

In a written statement to investigators, Loehmann said he shot Tamir because he feared for his life. I saw the weapon in his hands coming out of his waistband and the threat to my partner and myself was real and active.

Cuyahoga County prosecutor Timothy McGinty agreed. He said that officers who must make split-second decisions when their lives are in danger get the legal benefit of the doubt.

Compare their story with that of D.C. Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone, who was beaten so badly by white Capitol rioters that he had a heart attack. Rioters actually said, Kill him with his own gun! while Fanone was being pummeled on the Capitol steps.

Fanone told CNN that he thought about using his gun, but thought better of it because he knew he would run out of bullets and the rioters would have the advantage again.

So, the other option I thought of was to try to appeal to somebodys humanity, Fanone told CNN. And I just remember yelling out that I have kids. And it seemed to work.

 READ MORE: Police keep showing us who they are. Pay attention. Its not good. | Helen Ubinas

Let me get this picture painted of American policing straight. When its a Black child, officers have to kill him because its a split-second decision and his humanity is not at issue. But when its a white mob thats actually assaulting cops, theres time to think about using a gun and time to appeal to their humanity.

Theres no question that CNN reporters reached the right conclusion when they said that the riot would have been more deadly if the police had used more force. But if officers can face a white mob and only shoot one person while losing one of their own, I dont want to hear another cop say he had to shoot a Black person with a cell phone, or a Black child with a toy, or an unarmed Black woman in her home.

The restraint shown at the Capitol riot lets me know those excuses are lies.
Xi Jinping (R), general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the CPC Central Military Commission, visits the family of Tang Rongbin, an impoverished villager in the Luotuowan Village of Longquanguan Township, Fuping County, north China's Hebei Province. Xi made a tour to impoverished villages in Fuping County from Dec. 29 to 30, 2012. (Xinhua/Lan Hongguang)

BEIJING, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- An article by Xi Jinping on the poverty alleviation work during his visit to Fuping County of north China's Hebei Province will be published Tuesday in this year's fourth issue of the Qiushi Journal.

The article is a transcript of a speech by Xi, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission.

It is the essential requirement of socialism to eradicate poverty, improve the people's livelihood and achieve common prosperity, the article says.

With regard to completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects, the hardest and most arduous tasks lie in the rural areas and the poverty-stricken regions in particular, the article adds.

The article stresses helping people in difficulties, especially those in the old revolutionary base areas and poverty-stricken areas, to break away from poverty.

Underscoring the importance of Party organizations in poverty alleviation work, the article says they should become the backbone leading villagers to shake off poverty and strive for a better life.

The fundamental purpose of the Party is to serve the people, the article says, adding that cadres at all levels should often ask themselves whether they have been wholeheartedly working for the people.
Lazy Bay Private Villas in Staniel Cay, Exuma, Bahamas The Staniel Air / Lazy Bay experience makes it easy to feel good about traveling again. Smaller, more contained venues, like a private villa, are simply smarter choices right now.

Staniel Air, a boutique air service that provides flights from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to the Exuma islands of the Bahamas, offers answers for those who are ready to travel but are still hesitant to do so. Through semi-private air service and private villa offerings, Staniel Air provides the traveler community with a solution that is thoughtful and diligent by design, through its 'COVID-Smart' travel approach

COVID-Smart travel is a mode of traveling more cautiously, by making travel and accommodation choices that offer selective, private and more isolated environments, providing the best chance of avoiding COVID-19, while also making extra safety precautions easy and accessible for travelers.

Staniel Airs COVID-Smart experience begins with requiring proof of negative COVID-19 PCR test from all travelers prior to boarding the flight. This means that when travelers fly with Staniel Air, all fellow passengers have been pre-screened. With only 9 passengers on board, the carrier offers a semi-private flight experience, more isolated and environmentally controlled than larger commercial carriers. So travelers can take flight feeling more confident that the virus isnt on board and sitting in the seat next to them.

In addition, Staniel Air flies from a private executive airport in Fort Lauderdale. This allows travelers to avoid large, busy airports and crowded terminals, in favor of a much smaller, quieter, private pre-flight venue.

Once arrived in Staniel Cay, an open-air transport takes guests to Staniel Airs private villas at Lazy Bay, minutes away.

Through its design configuration, Lazy Bay private villas promote COVID-Smart lodging. Three 2 bedroom / 2 bath private modern villas sit side-by-side-by-side and include fully equipped kitchens, wifi, housekeeping and breakfast delivered daily. Villas offer large open-air decks and private splash pools that can facilitate as much social distancing as desired. Private chef services are available so that travelers can have a fine dining experience inside their villa, rather than navigating local dining establishments which may be crowded or unfamiliar.

Villas are available as single unit or multi-rentals of 2 or 3. The privacy of a single unit allows safe distancing from others, while the proximity of the three provides accessibility when traveling in a larger group. Villas are intimate enough to accommodate 2, yet expansive enough to sleep up to 18 (all 3). Instead of sharing a single dwelling, larger groups traveling together become neighbors during their stay, turning Lazy Bay into a self-contained private resort, complete with boats, wave runners and other amenities onsite.

A recent Lazy Bay guest, well-seasoned travel expert Chris Betzmann of the Betzmann Vlogs shared:

The Staniel Air / Lazy Bay experience makes it easy to feel good about traveling again. Smaller, more contained venues, like a private villa, are simply smarter choices right now.

To meet COVID testing requirements for return to the U.S. (or other countries), a rapid-testing service is located near Lazy Bay and is free of charge to travelers.

To book a COVID-Smart travel experience, contact Staniel Air at 954-900-2739. Learn more about Staniel Air and Lazy Bay at the following links:

https://stanielair.com

https://stanielrental.com
THE LITTLE THINGS 

(M) 127 minutes

How many times has Denzel Washington played a cop, ex-cop or cop-adjacent character with an eye for detail and a deceptively relaxed manner? Often enough that there are two ways to respond to The Little Things: you can yawn at its star going through the same old routine, or you can appreciate how hes got it down to a fine art.

Not that Washingtons law enforcement professionals are all the same, or that any character hes played in the past exactly resembles Joe Deke Deacon, the Bakersfield deputy sheriff who is the hero of John Lee Hancocks The Little Things. The difference is partly a consequence of passing time: Washington is now in his mid-60s, and Deke is not far off retirement, a silver-haired codger filled out in the middle and heavy on his feet.

Denzel Washington and Jared Leto in a scene from The Little Things. Credit:Warner Bros. Pictures via AP

While Deke does not entirely lack Washingtons usual swagger, we catch it mainly in his intermittent aw-shucks grin, never wider than when hes hanging out in a morgue close by a teenage corpse. This is the sort of jovial callousness we expect from the heroes of crime films  but Washington has the knack of revealing Dekes deeper pain precisely through his insistence on keeping it under wraps.
Mumbai: As Maharashtra's Akola and Amaravati witness a surge in rising COVID-19 cases it is likely that a fresh lockdown could be imposed in these two districts, as per sources.

More than 500 cases of coronavirus has been registered in Akola in the last three days, previously only 30-35 cases were being reported daily.

As the number of cases escalate, the district magistrate of the area is likely to make an announcement to impose lockdown soon.

While the coronavirus crisis in Amravati too has deepened with over 1400 cases being reported in the last three days.

The reason for the rise in infections is due to the recently conducted panchayat elections, a change in weather and return of crowd in some areas.

An official statement from the District Magistrate is likely to come by Thursday evening.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Water Resources Minister Jayant Patil has been found to be coronavirus positive. On Twitter, the minister also said he is doing fine and taking appropriate medical advice.

"I have tested Covid positive. Whilst I am doing fine, I am taking appropriate medical advice and hope to recover soon. I shall be undertaking my duties via video-conference," he tweeted.

On Tuesday, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray termed the situation as alarming and hinted that another lockdown could be imposed. Shiv Sena's editorial mouthpiece, Saamna, expressed displeasure over people violating the covid norms.

"Follow the rules otherwise the lockdown will have to be imposed again. The same warning has been given by the State Health Minister Rajesh Tope. The public should take it seriously," read the editorial hinting that the state administration is planning adequate measures to stop the spread of the virus.


David Shapiro, of Romney, is the founding president of PTSD Relief Now Corp. and its African PTSD Relief projects and Alliance for PTSD Recovery (both 501 C 3, nonprofit charities). He has lived in West Virginia since 2011.
Man Arrested After Mayfield Motel Disturbance

By West Kentucky Star Staff

MAYFIELD - An incident at a Mayfield motel on Wednesday led to a man's arrest for the second time is as many days.

The Mayfield Police Department said officers responded to the Wingfield Inn where motel staff said 33-year-old Charles Oxx was cursing at them and causing a disturbance for the second straight day. Oxx had already been arrested Tuesday at the motel on alcohol intoxication charges. Oxx bonded out and returned to the motel on Wednesday.



Staff told police they wanted Oxx removed and trespassed.

Oxx reportedly became argumentative with officers, and said he would leave when he wanted. When it became clear that Oxx would not leave on his own, officers placed Oxx under arrest.



He was booked into the Graves County Jail on a charge of criminal trespassing.
Advertisement

A rare contact sheet of candid photos of John Lennon and Yoko Ono exploring New York City in the 1970s has emerged for sale.

The Beatle and his artist wife are seen posing in front of a statue at a park in one of the throwback black and white images.

In others they also take turns listening to the ground using a stethoscope.

The couple stoop down together in this image from the collection taken in New York City, possibly for Lennon's Imagine album, released about three months after these images were taken by the photographer who also took the iconic image of the Beatles crossing Abbey Road

Lennon, then aged 31, is in a casual shirt and trousers, while Ono, who was seven years older, is in a dark top and short shorts.

The 20ins by 16ins sheet features 12 pictures taken by celebrated British photographer Iain MacMillan in 1971.

He was close friends with the couple and stayed with them in New York that year.

The contact sheet is going under the hammer with auctioneers Bonhams, of London, at a price of 9,000.

Claire Tole-Moir, specialist at Bonhams, said: Iain MacMillan was close friends with John and Yoko and stayed with them for quite some time in New York in 1971.

John Lennon, 31 at the time, stoops down to hold a stethoscope to the floor as he pulled on a pair of sunglasses in one of the images of the former Beatle taken nearly a year after the Fab Four broke up in 1970

Part of New York City's famous skyline can be seen in this image of another angle of John Lennon holding a stethoscope to the ground of a war memorial in the city's limits in 1971

Yoko One then takes a turn also listening to the ground in the photo taken by Iain MacMillan in 1971 which auctioneers Bonhams believe may have some kind of spiritual meaning

I believe these photos of them in a New York park were taken for the Imagine album.

It is possible them listening to the ground had some kind of spiritual meaning.

The images are part of the MacMillan Archive which is being auctioned off and also includes photos of the supermodel Twiggy and the musician Brian Jones.

John Lennon and his artist wife Yoko Ono pose in front of an eagle statue in New York City in the incredible images taken by photographer Iain Macmillan up for sale from auctioneers Bonhams later this year, starting at 9,000

The married couple look as though they have dressed in military garb in the images from the 1970s from a trip to New York City, captured by photographer Iain MacMillan

Lennon and Ono first met at an art exhibition in London in 1966 and they married in 1969, months after she had divorced Anthony Cox.

They remained together until he was murdered by Mark David Chapman outside of their New York apartment in 1980.

MacMillan also took the iconic image of the Beatles crossing Abbey Road.

The sale takes place on February 25.
By Bill Moore

Recently there has been a push in many States to modify Social Studies Standards in such a way that demonizes the Founders and the Constitution. The attempts are meant to vilify the Founders as racist and bigots; therefore, it would indirectly weaken the principles included in the Constitution as they were written by these Racists.

They claim this approach is necessary to instruct future generations how evil our country is and how many mistakes they have made ever since its inception. They paint all the Founders with a broad brush and attack the very foundations of our Constitution as being racist. Their ultimate goal is to turn out adults with no appreciation of their heritage and in fact a dislike for anything American. The question becomes how one addresses the facts both good and bad, while still developing in students an appreciation for the evolution of this great nation.

It can be approached from the view point of history. First of all students need to understand what the standards of civilization were at the time. They need to review what was occurring in the prism of what society was at the time. For example, at the time slavery was part of the Colonies/ United States, slavery was accepted by many and practiced in all parts of the world. In fact it still exists today in many parts of the world. It has and still does enslave people of every color and nationality and gender . In addition it needs to be explained that other African tribes participated in the slave trade capturing the men of rival tribes and selling them to European traders who brought them to the New World for sale. While emphasizing how wrong slavery is, it needs to be explained how this nation, its people and its leaders have fought to eliminate slavery and continue to fight to eliminate any remnants of it from our Culture.

Another example would be voting rights. It is true that initially voting was given to only landowners and the middle class business owners. Putting that in context to the times focuses on the fact that this representative government was a new ideal, untested in those times. Every other nation was ruled by Kings, Emperors, religious leaders, dictators, sultans or some other form of royalty. It should also be pointed out that as the US culture matured voting rights were extended to all citizens, eventually former slaves and women. In addition our nation has successfully fought to thwart any attempts by states to deny voting to any groups of citizens. Both the Reconstruction Amendments as well as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 are excellent examples. In addition our students need to develop an appreciation that while they live in a nation that is consisting evolving into a more equal society, most of the world remains living in nations controlled by dictators or under governments that allow no freedom at all.

Another area that needs to be properly explained is the role of Capitalism in our society. It needs to be fairly compared to other economic systems such as Socialism and Communism. Our students need to understand that through entrepreneurships our people have evolved into the highest level of economic levels in the history of the world. Our students need to understand that there are excesses with Capitalism such as Crony Capitalism and how these excesses should be reversed and opposed. They also need to understand why people flock to come to our nation as a nation of opportunity. In addition they need to comprehend that there are no caravans or armadas of people heading to Venezuela and Cuba for a better life as their people are barely surviving. Any walls built in America were built to keep illegal immigration out not to keep our citizens from escaping to other nations. Regardless of how you feel about immigration these facts are not disputable.

These are just a few examples of how we can better and fairly teach our Heritage to our young so they graduate with both an appreciation of their Country and heritage as well as an understanding of all the struggles that went into making our nation what it is today.
- By Margaret Moran





Oaktree Capital Management recently disclosed its portfolio updates for the fourth quarter of 2020, which ended on Dec. 31.

Founded by Howard Marks (Trades, Portfolio) and several fellow investors in 1995, Oaktree Capital Management is a global investing firm that specializes in alternative and credit strategies. The Los Angeles-based firm now has over 39 portfolio managers and 950 employees in offices around the globe. Marks serves as co-chairman (along with Bruce Karsh) and chief financial officer. The firm's core investment philosophy has six tenets: risk control, consistency, market inefficiency, specialization, bottom-up analysis and disavowal of market timing.





Based on the firm's investing criteria, its top buys for the quarter were in Americold Realty Trust (NYSE:COLD) and Vale SA (NYSE:VALE), while its top sells were in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (NYSE:TSM) and Montrose Environmental Group Inc. (NYSE:MEG).

Americold Realty Trust

Oaktree established a new holding of 11,771,646 shares in Americold Realty Trust (NYSE:COLD), impacting the equity portfolio by 9.43%. During the quarter, shares traded for an average price of $35.96.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Americold Reality Trust is a real estate investment trust headquartered in Atlanta. It is the world's largest publicly traded REIT that is focused on the ownership, operation, acquisition and development of temperature-controlled warehouses.

On Feb. 18, shares of Americold traded around $35.37 for a market cap of $8.90 billion. According to the Peter Lynch chart, the stock is trading above its intrinsic value but in line with its historical median valuation.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

The company has a financial strength rating of 4 out of 10 and a profitability rating of 4 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.08 is average for the industry, while the Piotroski F-Score of 6 out of 9 suggests the company is financially stable. The return on equity of 3.79% and return on assets of 1.44% are underperforming their respective industry medians of 50.07% and 33.46%, though both represent improvements over the company's own history.

Story continues

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Vale

The firm added 2,403,524 shares, or 55.21%, to its investment in Vale (NYSE:VALE) for a total holding of 6,756,996 shares. The trade had a 0.86% impact on the equity portfolio. Shares traded for an average price of $13.37 during the quarter.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Vale is a Brazilian multinational metals and mining company headquartered in Rio de Janeiro. It has operations in approximately 30 countries and is the largest producer of iron ore and nickel in the world. Vale is also involved in the logistics, energy and steelmaking businesses.

On Feb. 18, shares of Vale traded around $17.98 for a market cap of $92.24 billion. The GuruFocus Value chart rates the stock as significantly overvalued.

The company has a financial strength rating of 5 out of 10 and a profitability rating of 8 out of 10. The Altman Z-Score of 1.79 indicates the company could face liquidity issues, though the Piotroski F-Score of 7 out of 9 is typical of a financially stable company. The return on invested capital has surpassed the weighted average cost of capital in recent years, indicating the company is creating value.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

The firm reduced its investment in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE:TSM) by 2,139,084 shares, or 84.28%, for a remaining holding of 398,949 shares. The trade had a -4.71% impact on the equity portfolio. During the quarter, shares traded for an average price of $95.04.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, Taiwan Semiconductor is the world's largest independent semiconductor producer. It derives most of its profits from smartphone components and memory, though its internet of things products have seen increasing sales in recent years.

On Feb. 18, shares of Taiwan Semiconductor traded around $134.63 for a market cap of $698.19 billion. The GuruFocus Value chart rates the stock as significantly overvalued.

The company has a financial strength rating of 5 out of 10 and a profitability rating of 9 out of 10. The interest coverage ratio of 289.69 and Altman Z-Score of 14.36 indicate a fortress-like balance sheet. The three-year revenue growth rate is 4.1%, while the three-year Ebitda growth rate is 3.5%.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Montrose Environmental Group

Oaktree sold all 4,322,644 of its shares in Montrose Environmental Group (NYSE:MEG), impacting the equity portfolio by -2.80%. During the quarter, shares traded for an average price of $28.49.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Based in Irvine, California, Montrose is an environmental services company that provides measurement and analytical services as well as environmental resiliency and sustainability solutions to companies in a wide variety of industries.

On Feb. 18, shares of Montrose traded around $39.37 for a market cap of $982.74 million. The stock price has increased 78% since its initial public offering on July 23.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

The company has a financial strength rating of 3 out of 10 and a profitability rating of 1 out of 10. The cash-debt ratio of 0.22 is lower than 66% of companies in the industry, while the Altman Z-Score of 1.19 suggests the company could be in danger of bankruptcy. The operating margin is -3.83%, while the net margin is -10.07%.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Portfolio overview

At the end of the quarter, Oaktree Capital Management held 57 common stock positions valued at a total of $4.66 billion. The firm established five new holdings during the quarter, sold out of 21 stocks and added to or reduced several other positions for a turnover of 15%.

The top holdings as of the quarter's end were Vistra Energy Corp. (NYSE:VST) with 12.77 % of the equity portfolio, Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE:ALLY) with 10.73% and Americold with 9.43%. In terms of sector weighting, the firm was most invested in financial services, utilities and energy.

Howard Marks' Oaktree Invests in Americold, Sells Montrose

Disclosure: Author owns no shares in any of the stocks mentioned. The mention of stocks in this article does not at any point constitute an investment recommendation. Portfolio updates reflect only common stock positions as per the regulatory filings for the quarter in question and may not include changes made after the quarter ended.

Read more here:

Top 4th-Quarter Trades of Jeremy Grantham's Firm

Julian Robertson's Biggest Trades of the 4th Quarter

Sarah Ketterer's Top 4th-Quarter Trades







Not a Premium Member of GuruFocus? Sign up for a free 7-day trial here.

This article first appeared on GuruFocus.


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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 06:58:19|Editor: huaxia

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UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Inger Andersen (on screen) attend a press conference for the launch of a UN Environment Programme report, "Making Peace with Nature." at the UN headquarters in New York, on Feb. 18, 2021. Guterres on Thursday asked for global action to stop "a senseless and suicidal war on nature" and address climate disruption, biodiversity loss and pollution. (Xinhua/Xie E)

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday asked for global action to stop "a senseless and suicidal war on nature" and address climate disruption, biodiversity loss and pollution.

"I want to be clear. Without nature's help, we will not thrive or even survive. For too long, we have been waging a senseless and suicidal war on nature. The result is three interlinked environmental crises: climate disruption, biodiversity loss and pollution that threaten our viability as a species," he told a press conference for the launch of a UN Environment Programme report, "Making Peace with Nature."

"Human well-being lies in protecting the health of the planet. It's time to re-evaluate and reset our relationship with nature," he said.

Human beings are overexploiting and degrading the environment on land and sea. The atmosphere and the oceans have become dumping grounds for waste. Governments are still paying more to exploit nature than to protect it. Globally, countries spend some 4 trillion to 6 trillion U.S. dollars a year on subsidies that damage the environment, he noted.

The interlinked climate, biodiversity and pollution crises require urgent action from the whole of society -- from governments, but also from international organizations, businesses, cities and individuals, said Guterres.

The report shows that the global economy has grown nearly fivefold in the past five decades, but at a massive cost to the global environment, he said.

Earth is heading for more than 3 degrees Celsius of global warming this century. The burden falls disproportionately on women, who represent 80 percent of those displaced by climate disruption. More than 1 million of the planet's estimated 8 million plant and animal species are at risk of extinction. And diseases caused by air pollution cause some 6.5 million premature deaths every year. Polluted water kills a further 1.8 million, predominantly children. Meanwhile, 1.3 billion people remain poor and some 700 million are hungry.

"The only answer is sustainable development that elevates the well-being of both people and the planet," he said.

The new report points to many ways the world can accomplish this, he said. For example, governments can include natural capital in measures of economic performance and promote a circular economy. They can agree to not support the kind of agriculture that destroys or pollutes nature. They can put a price on carbon. They can shift subsidies from fossil fuels toward low-carbon and nature-friendly solutions.

"The bottom line is that we need to transform how we view and value nature. We must reflect nature's true value in all our policies, plans and economic systems. With a new consciousness, we can direct investment into policies and activities that protect and restore nature and the rewards will be immense," he said. "It's time we learn to see nature as an ally that will help us achieve the Sustainable Development Goals." Enditem
Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM Partners With Perfect Corp. To Deploy Its Groundbreaking Technology To Allow Beauty Lovers To Virtually Try On Motives Cosmetics -- Anytime & Anywhere "Not only will this technology benefit our direct consumers but it will also offer our entrepreneur base a new tool to grow their business, said Beauty Mogul, Founder of Motives and Senior Executive Vice President & Co-Owner of Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM, Loren Ridinger.

Market America Worldwide, a global product brokerage company and the proud owner of the award-winning global e-commerce site SHOP.COM, has announced a new partnership with Perfect Corp., the worlds leading beauty tech solutions provider and developer of the award-winning YouCam Makeup app. Perfect Corp. is best known to consumers for its revolutionary beauty app, YouCam Makeup, which lets users try on virtual products and looks. Across the beauty industry, Perfect Corp. is known for being the augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI) business solutions provider for more than 300 global brands, now including Motives cosmetics, founded by Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COMs Senior Executive Vice President & Co-Founder, Loren Ridinger. With offices in eight countries, including its global headquarters in the U.S., Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM's leadership has continued to partner with companies that help optimize the overall online shopping experience while continuing to offer superior quality products and services to its UnFranchise Owners, known as UFOs, as well as to their customers.

Augmented Reality (AR), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Facial Recognition Technologies have become extremely popular in the world of online retail cosmetics, especially with so many people around the world currently living and working from home. We knew that our customers, who have come to expect the best in beauty from our exclusive, gold-standard beauty brand, Motives, deserve the opportunity to test out the superior quality products and shades Motives offers from the comfort and safety of their own home. Therefore, it only made sense to partner with Perfect Corp., known to consumers as having the best technology to virtually try on cosmetics anywhere, any time, said Marc Ashley, President and Chief Operating Officer of Market America Worldwide.

By partnering with Perfect Corp., Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM will offer global online shoppers a convenient way to try on a multitude of premier beauty products through advanced YouCam-powered virtual try-on technology embedded into the Motives online shopping experience. This innovative try-on technology allows customers to virtually browse and experiment with hundreds of lipsticks, eye shadows and palettes safely and confidently from their computer or smart device, creating a hyper-engaged online shopping experience. The Motives interactive website also gives the companys beauty consultants, known as UFOs, the ability to grow their online businesses by better understanding consumer preferences and shopping behaviors.

The beauty industry is constantly evolving so Motives prides itself for remaining at the forefront of innovation. Our new partnership with Perfect Corp. will allow us to introduce the brand globally like never before. Entering a new era of virtual connection, Im excited to take our shopping experience to the next level. Not only will this technology benefit our direct consumers but it will also offer our entrepreneur base a new tool to grow their business, said Beauty Mogul, Founder of Motives and Senior Executive Vice President & Co-Founder of Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM, Loren Ridinger.

By integrating YouCam AR and AI technologies into the companys Motives websites, we will create an online shopping experience for our UFOs, their customers and all beauty lovers by providing accurate and realistic simulations that can be tested on any skin tone and adapted to different textures, mattes, sheens and glosses with a choice of 400+ shades of lip and eye colors, Ridinger continued.

We are excited to partner with Market America Worldwide to help introduce an enhanced online shopping experience that resonates with the modern day consumer, said Alice Chang, Perfect Corp. Founder and CEO. These hyper-realistic virtual beauty try-ons transform the online shopping experience across the Motives website by creating a unique experiential journey that engages the consumer on a whole new level.

As Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM continues to innovate and create a highly interactive and personalized shopping experience, the companys leadership will continue to partner with the best in breed within all key industries that matter most for consumers now and well into the future.

About Market America Worldwide | SHOP.COM

Market America Worldwide is a global product brokerage and internet marketing company that specializes in One-to-One Marketing and is the creator of the Shopping Annuity. Its mission is to provide a robust business system for entrepreneurs, while providing consumers a better way to shop. Headquartered in Greensboro, N.C. and with locations in eight countries, including the U.S., Market America Worldwide was founded in 1992 by Chairman and CEO JR Ridinger. Through the company's primary shopping website, SHOP.COM, consumers have access to millions of products, including Market America Worldwide exclusive brands and thousands of top retail brands. SHOP.COM ranks 11th in Newsweek Magazine's 2020 Best Online Shops, #42 on Digital Commerce 360's (formerly Internet Retailer) 2020 Top 100 Online Marketplaces, #67 in Digital Commerce 360's (formerly Internet Retailer) 2020 Top 1,000 Online Retailers, #12 in the 2019 Internet Retailer Primary Merchandise Category Top 500, #96 in the 2018 Internet Retailer Asia 500 and #18 in 2017's Internet Retailer Mobile 500. The company is also a two-time winner of the Better Business Bureau's Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics and received 2019's Triad Business Journal's "Fast 50" award as one of the top privately held companies for sustained growth, driving the area's economy, marking the 14th time the company has received this recognition. Market America Worldwide has also been named on Grant Thornton's North Carolina 100 (NC 100) ranking of the state's largest private companies by revenue 14 consecutive years and was ranked #15 in The Business North Carolina Top 125 Private Companies for 2020. By combining Market America Worldwide's entrepreneurial business model with SHOP.COM's powerful comparative shopping engine, Cashback Program, Hot Deals, SHOPBuddy Express Pay check out, social shopping integration and countless other features, the company has become the ultimate online shopping destination.

For more information please visit marketamerica.com.

ABOUT MOTIVES

Founded in 2008 under parent company, Market America Worldwide, Motives by Loren Ridinger is a luxury cosmetics brand created so every person, on any budget, can enjoy high quality, custom-formulated cosmetics that enhance true beauty and help nourish the skin. This customized approach combines a selection of revolutionary foundations, powders and concealers to create the perfect canvas for the application of color to the eyes, cheeks and lips. Motives offers a variety of colors and products from Custom Blend Foundations to Luminous Translucent Powders to Moisture Rich Lipsticks, allowing anyone to easily create the look they want for any and every occasion or mood. Motives is about feeling empowered, beautiful and achieving goals, all at an affordable price. For more information about Motives, visit: motivescosmetics.com.

About Perfect Corp.

With over 900 Million downloads globally, Perfect Corporation is dedicated to transforming how consumers, content creators and beauty brands interact together through AI and AR technologies. Our experienced team of engineers and beauty aficionados are pushing the frontiers of technology to create the beauty platform of the future  a fluid environment where individuals express themselves, learn the latest about fashion and beauty, and enjoy instant access to the products from their favorite brands. To discover expert beauty tech insights and unlock powerful ROI secrets, read our Complete Guide to Beauty Tech.
's ( ) Osamede Okhomina talks to Proactive London about their extended its agreement with Trafigura, over a US$120mln financing, for a further 12 months.

He also discusses the latest on the Nigerian Marginal Field Bid Round, with 'results out very soon'.

Okhomina references the latest oil prices, as Brent oil went past $65 a barrel, he says 'I wouldn't be surprised if oil went to $70-75 this year'.
President Hassan Rouhani made some fresh comments today as the public battle between the United States and Iran heats up over which country will take the first step in salvaging the nuclear deal.

Participating in a virtual conference via video, Rouhani admitted that the people of Iran have experienced difficulty, pain and problems since President Donald Trump exited the nuclear deal in 2018 and reapplied US sanctions. We did not think that in America a crazy person would be elected and start a historically incomparable war against the nation, said Rouhani, referring to the crippling economic sanctions as an economic war.

The new US administration has not yet waived these sanctions, calling on Iran to first return to full compliance with the terms of the deal. Rouhani said, The people of the US and the current administration have understood that [Trump] was in the wrong.

Talking about Irans resilience in the face of the maximum pressure policy of the Trump administration, Rouhani said, The enemy brought all of its pressure and suspended our sale of oil. We managed the country without oil sales and wrote a budget not tied to oil.

Rouhani added, We are not asking the Americans to do something illegal due to our insistence; what we want is for them to implement an international pact. We are hopeful they will return to the law. The nuclear accord was endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2231.

Despite public statements by Iranian officials about the need to return to the deal, some Iranian officials and media outlets are beginning to sense that progress is not imminent. Mahmoud Vaezi, Rouhanis chief of staff, said that the agreement by itself has no value and it only has value when we see benefits to it. An article in the hard-line Javan newspaper headlined Is Biden opportunity or threat argued that President Joe Bidens differences with the Trump administration were a campaign performance and that even members of the Rouhani administration are learning that Biden is following Trumps actions.

The next step in the escalation appears to be Irans withdrawal from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty's Additional Protocols, which Iran signed in 2003 and give the International Atomic Energy Agency broad access to Iran's nuclear facilities. An Iranian bill called the Strategic Action to Remove Sanctions calls for Iran to suspend its voluntary participation in the additional protocols.

Tehrans representative to the IAEA, Kazem Gharibabadi, has notified the United Nations that Iran will suspend compliance with the Additional Protocols on Feb. 23. It is not yet clear what doing so will mean.
Chad Morrissey had bought more than 800 of cannabis

A MAN who was caught with more than 800 worth of cannabis after running away from gardai had bought the drug in bulk for his own use, a court heard.

Father-of-one Chad Morrissey (22) panicked and took off when he was seen in a city centre car park.

Morrissey, with an address at Basin Street Flats in the south inner city, admitted possession of drugs with intent to sell or supply.

He was fined 200.

A garda sergeant told Dublin District Court that officers responded to an assistance call to Drury Street car park at 1.45pm last February 22.

Gardai were in pursuit of a man who had run off after they tried to stop him.

He was apprehended and a quantity of cannabis, which he had discarded, was retrieved. It was valued at 840.

Morrissey was arrested and taken to Pearse Street garda station.

The accused had a job with an electrical firm but was out of work due to Covid-19.

He had also recently suffered a family bereavement.

On the day in question, he saw the gardai and essentially panicked, his lawyer said.

He had reason to panic because he had drugs on his person, the judge said.

The cannabis was for the accuseds own use and he had bought it in bulk, his lawyer said.

A letter from Morrisseys employer stated that he was hard-working, dependable and trustworthy.

Judge Alan Mitchell said the fine was low as he had pleaded guilty early on.
One of the biggest and first known black holes in the Milky Way galaxy is more massive than astronomers thought, a team of scientists announced on Thursday. The finding throws a wrench into long-held models of how massive stars evolve on the way to the ultimate doom.

Cygnus X-1, an unseen, X-ray-emitting object, and a fat blue star called HDE 226868 circle each other every 5.6 days. Cygnus X-1 was one of the earliest celestial sources of X-rays ever discovered, in 1964, when astronomers began lofting cosmic Geiger counters into space, and one of the first to be considered as a possible black hole. The X-rays are produced by gas that is heated to millions of degrees as it swirls around the cosmic drain.

With a mass originally estimated at 15 times that of the sun, Cygnus X-1 is one of the most massive and most luminous of the X-ray binary systems known in the Milky Way.

New measurements have now raised that figure to 21 solar masses. The makeover does not change the overall perception of the cosmos; Cygnus X-1 is still a black hole, an almost science-fictional manifestation of Einsteinian weirdness in celestial reality. But the details of how Cygnus X-1 became a black hole are now in doubt.



Magellan Aerospace looks to expand factory in Wrexham by creating new facility

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Feb 18th, 2021

An aerospace company is looking to expand its base in Wrexham by creating a new facility.

Magellan Aerospace wants to create an 8,000 square metre building next to its factory on Llay Industrial Estate to assemble, store and distribute aircraft parts.

The development will also provide offices and welfare facilities for staff, along with on site car parking and a new access point off Miners Road.

The Canadian firm said the proposals would provide new job opportunities in the area.





In a planning statement submitted to Wrexham Council, architects acting on the companys behalf said: The proposed development is a significant investment in high tech engineering which supports the wider economy and further enhances North Wales as a centre for aerospace manufacture.

In the long term, the construction of the new unit will provide economic benefit to the local area via the increase of employment opportunities.

It will help to encourage other companies to expand onto the business park.

In the short term, the proposals will provide employment for those contracted to carry out the construction works of the new building.

It was announced last summer that up to 240 jobs could be lost at the factory due to a reduction in orders during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement released at the time, the company said it would work to mitigate the potential job losses.

The new proposals will result in the loss of 40 car parking spaces at the existing site.

However, the firm said 72 extra spaces would be created at the facility, which would mean a net increase of 32.

The architects added: There are currently 123 spaces at the existing facility that will remain in operation following the development being implemented.

A review has been undertaken of the staffing and shift patterns to confirm the adequacy of the future car parking arrangements to accommodate the needs of the both facilities.

The local authority is expected to make a decision on the proposals at a later date.

By Liam Randall  BBC Local Democracy Reporter
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 00:08:05|Editor: huaxia

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MOGADISHU, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Four al-Shabab militants were killed and 21 others arrested in joint operations by African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the Somali National Army (SNA) in the south-central region last week, the AU mission said on Thursday.

AMISOM said the operation against militants in HirShabelle State also led to the recovery of a cache of weapons, destruction of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), arrests, surrender and neutralization of armed militants.

Burundi contingent commander Telesphore Barandereka said the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections are important to Somalia.

"We are ready to secure them in our areas of responsibility. Our preparations include putting together a special force that will provide security at the venues for the election, the immediate environment and beyond," Barandereka said in a statement issued in Mogadishu.

"Together with the Somali Security Forces, we have also put in place contingencies to thwart attempts by al-Shabab to disrupt the elections. We also hold regular planning meetings with our partners and other actors to agree on strategies that will create a conducive environment for a secure and peaceful election," he added. Enditem

Two men were arrested and charged with impersonating a federal officer after they pretended to be U.S. marshals to avoid wearing masks at a South Florida resort, according to a criminal complaint.

Walter Wayne Brown Jr., 53, and Gary Brummett, 81, flashed mask exemption cards and fake U.S. marshal badges to get around mask rules at the hotel, according to the criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. They were arrested last week after a real U.S. marshal was sent to the hotel to validate their claims.

The men were guests at the Wyndham Deerfield Beach Resort, an oceanfront hotel in Broward County, Fla. The resort did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the arrests, which were reported by The South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

During their confrontations with members of the resorts staff, both men wore authentic appearing circular badges with a seven-point star that read Cherokee Nation Marshal and Aniyvwiya Criminal Justice Deputy, according to the complaint.
We were thrilled to be nominated, owner Patrick Spensley said. But then to go on and win it against some other really good competition in the area, it was very exciting.

The winery, which is owned by Spensley and his wife Hadley, came out on top of the Jackson poll for Michigans Best Outdoor Dining. Boss Cider in Leslie came in second, and in third place, The Roadhouse Grill & Bar, who narrowly beat out the Oak Tree Lounge.

Were lucky, Spensley said. Weve got a large outdoor space, with a big beautiful pergola overlooking the vineyards, so we take advantage of that. Obviously with the winter, and everything, weve got five igloos out there right now, as well as plenty of picnic tables, and seating around some fire pits. We take advantage of the space we have.

Cherry Creeks tasting room is inside an old 1870s schoolhouse that doesnt offer a lot of space during normal times. Space is limited inside for us all times of the year, Spensley said. Outside dining and entertaining are just kind of our bread and butter out here. Thats the one thing weve said all along, that with the pandemic and everything, at least weve been blessed with this outdoor space, and weve just tried to take full advantage of it through everything.

Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

This is the second winter that Cherry Creek has had igloos outside for people to enjoy. They continue to prove to be immensely popular, and are usually completely sold out on the weekends. Reservations are highly recommended for these coveted spots. When you make a reservation, Cherry Creek will charge your credit card for $100. $10 of this goes to pay for the sanitation process, and the remaining $90 is then yours to spend during your visit to Cherry Creek. It can be used on any food, drink or merchandise that you like. This pre-payment has ensured that reservations are held, and has worked out really well for the vineyard.

Cherry Creek had been running live music on the patio through December, then it got too cold for the musicians fingers to keep working. They hope that when the temperature starts rising that they can bring this live music back, so look for its return this spring.

A staff member cleans an igloo between visits at Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

There is a small, cafe style menu to enjoy here. The most popular choice is one of the charcuterie boards, that can be ordered either small or large. Spensley said that it seems like almost every single table gets one. They are the heart and soul of our dining, he said. They feature high quality cheeses, cured meats, fresh fruit, cured olives and pickles, mustards, and crackers. Perfect for sharing.

There a variety of house made dips to try, including a creamy smoked salmon, a spicy Buffalo chicken, a hot and savory spinach artichoke, and rich, decadent beer cheese dip that gets served with soft pretzels. Want something warming and hearty? Try Cherry Creeks Schoolhouse Chili. All of it is shareable, which fits our vibe here, he said. Come hang out with family and friends, enjoy a glass of wine.

And that you can certainly do that here. Theyve been making wine at Cherry Creek since they opened in 2003. Our wine list is pretty extensive, Spensely said. Typically, they offer about 24 wines to taste or purchase. Spensely said that Michigan still skews toward sweeter wines, and some of the winerys long time staples lean this way. Cranberry Passion is a sweet red that gets a hint of tartness from cranberries. Summer Breeze is a sweet white that is very popular. These two are staples that will never go anywhere, he said. At the same time, we mix in the dry stuff for those that like that.

We really do try to have something for everybody, Spensely said. In addition to wine, Cherry Creek offers 6 hard ciders, and usually 3 craft beers.

The charcuterie boards at Cherry Creek cellars are one of their most popular offerings.Courtesy Photo, used with permission.

The winery was originally owned by John and Denise Burtka, who sold the business to Patrick and Hadley Spensley in 2018. The Burtkas went on to open and own Grand River Brewery and Veritas restaurant in Jackson, both of which they have recently sold.

Patrick had been working at the winery since 2012, after a trip to New Zealand introduced him to winemaking, and he found his calling.

Thats where I really fell in love with the industry, Spensely said. The people, the culture. I didnt go over there expecting it to become a career, but while I was there I discovered I really liked it. I thought Id give it a shot and see where we went. Sure enough, I liked it enough to buy a winery.

Spensely slowly worked his way up at the winery, learning about processes, techniques, and building both his palate and his passion.

After they purchased the winery, the Spenselys changed the name from Cherry Creek Winery, to Cherry Creek Cellars, and a new dynasty was born.

The patio area with igloos at Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

Cherry Creek does have statewide distribution, but is mostly focused on southeast lower Michigan. Theyve been focusing on distribution, widening their footprint, during the pandemic. One of their top priorities this new year is to introduce shipping of their wines and ciders. Weve noticed an uptick in interest in that through the pandemic, Spensley said.

Outdoor dining is going to stick around at Cherry Creek Cellars. Were not going to give back the igloos just because the pandemic is over. Looking forward all the way to next winter, well stil be making improvements, and continuing to refine our game to provide a great space for people to come and eat, and drink, and enjoy themselves, Spensley said. The outdoor space will always be our kind of bread and butter.

The interior of an igloo at Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

Erin Kozina of Millbury, Ohio, left, and Lindsey Hudson of Toledo and Stephanie Reighard of Sylvania, Ohio enjoy food and drinks in an igloo at Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

The search for Michigans Best Outdoor Dining is sponsored in part by Warm Fitness.

Cherry Creek Cellars

11500 Silver Lake Hwy, Brooklyn, MI 49230

(517) 592-4663

More info: https://cherrycreekwine.com/ or https://www.facebook.com/cherrycreekcellars

Melanie Neumann of Ypsilanti, left, and Erin Kozina of Millbury, Ohio enjoy food and drinks in an igloo at Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

The patio area at Cherry Creek Cellars, 11500 Silver Lake Hwy. near Brooklyn, on Saturday, Feb. 6, 2021. Cherry Creek won the Jackson area poll in MLive's search for Michigan's Best Outdoor Dining.J. Scott Park | MLive.com

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Ann Arbor outdoor dining poll winner has enticing dishes, great ambiance

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Igloos, shanties, huts and more: Where to dine outdoors in Michigan this winter
PINEVILLE, La.  Feb. 17, 2021 (1:30 p.m.)  Approximately 20,000 Cleco customers across Louisiana are without power due to freezing rain and ice that began this afternoon. Several of the parishes we serve are currently experiencing freezing rain and ice from a second winter storm, and with temperatures expected to remain near or below freezing for most of the day, more power outages are likely, said James Lass, director of distribution operations and emergency management. As conditions deteriorate, we are asking customers to avoid unnecessary travel, operate generators outside in well-ventilated areas and stay away from downed power lines.

In addition to Cleco personnel, the company has secured nearly 400 contractors to assist with power restoration efforts. Our crews will work throughout the day to restore as long as its safe, said Lass. The safety of our employees, contractors and customers is priority in everything we do.

Reasons for power outages during ice and snow:

 Trees can become heavy and brittle due to the accumulation of ice and snow, breaking and falling onto our system.

 Power lines and other equipment can become damaged due to the weight of ice and snow on the system.

Safety tips:

 Operate portable generators outdoors in well-ventilated areas and plug appliances directly into generators with grounded extension cords. Never plug a generator into a wall outlet.

 Assume all downed power lines are live and stay away. Report downed power lines immediately by calling 1-800-622-6537 and 911.

Power Outages as of 1:30 p.m.

Allen Parish 2,201

Avoyelles Parish 2,187

Beauregard Parish 2,962

Calcasieu Parish 39

Catahoula Parish 8

DeSoto Parish 140

Evangeline Parish 3,410

Grant Parish 236

Iberia Parish 5

Natchitoches Parish 77

Rapides Parish 4,995

Sabine Parish 3,765

St. Mary Parish 16

Vernon Parish 114

For the latest information on Cleco preparations, outage updates and restoration efforts, visit Clecos Storm Center page at www.cleco.com or follow the company on Facebook @Cleco Power.
A search is underway for a beloved golden retriever named 'Peggy' that was snatched from a backyard in Melbourne's southeast.

Two-year-old Peggy was stolen from her home on McComb Boulevard in Frankston South, sometime between 10pm on Tuesday and 6am on Wednesday.

Victorian Police believe someone entered the home during the night and vanished with Peggy.

A beloved golden retriever named 'Penny' (pictured) was stolen from her home in Melbourne's south east

At the time of her disappearance, Peggy had no way of exiting the backyard on her own.

Peggy is two-and-a-half years old, with a thick blonde coat and was wearing a brown leather collar at the time of her disappearance.

Police are encouraging anyone with further information to contact Crime Stoppers.
E Sreedharan, who is popularly known as the Metro Man of India, announced on Thursday that he will be joining the BJP ahead of Kerala legislative assembly elections 2021. BJP Kerala President K Surendran announced Sreedharan's induction into the party. Surendran stated that Sreedharan will officially join the party during the 'Vijaya Yatra' (political rally).

E Sreedharan confirmed to The News Minute that he is going to join the BJP. "The news is correct. I am joining the BJP," said Sreedharan.

"I have been living in Kerala for 10 years, but I have noticed that the LDF and UDF are only interested in their political growth, not in the state's growth. In this scenario, it is only the BJP that can do something for the state," Sreedharan told the news website

Sreedharan stated that Narendra Modi is the most promising Prime Minister and that working with PM Modi inspired him to join the BJP. "He is one of the best Prime Ministers India has seen, I have worked with him closely," he told The News Minute.

"Him joining BJP is a reflection of the people's emotions. We have informed him of our demand to contest the elections. Several renowned people will join the BJP in the days to come and contest the elections for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the BJP. Details of that will be informed in the coming days," K Surendran stated about Sreedharan joining the BJP.

K Surendran explained that the 'Vijaya Yatra' will begin on February 21 from Kasaragod which is the northern district of Kerala. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is expected to flag off the 'Vijay Yatra'.

Elattuvalapil Sreedharan, who is 89-years-old, is largely credited for modernising the Indian public transport system by leading the construction of Konkan Railway and the Delhi Metro. He had served as the managing director of Delhi Metro from 1995 to 2012.

Also Read: Congress Working Committee decides to delay party internal elections again by four months
Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
By John Irish, Humeyra Pamuk and Arshad Mohammed

PARIS/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Thursday said it was ready to talk to Iran about both nations returning to a 2015 agreement that aimed to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, seeking to revive a deal that Washington itself abandoned nearly three years ago.

The move reflects the change in U.S. administration, with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken stressing President Joe Biden's position that Washington would return to the accord formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) if Tehran came into full compliance with the deal.

Iran reacted coolly to the idea, put forward by Blinken during a video meeting with the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany - a group known as the E3 - gathered in Paris.

"If Iran comes back into strict compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA, the United States will do the same and is prepared to engage in discussions with Iran toward that end," a joint statement from the four nations said.

Iran began breaching the deal in 2019, about a year after former U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew and reimposed U.S. economic sanctions, and has accelerated its breaches in recent months.

A U.S. official told Reuters that Washington would respond positively to any European Union invitation to talks between Iran and the six major powers who negotiated the original agreement: Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States.

"We are ready to show up if such a meeting were to take place," the official told Reuters, after a senior EU official floated the idea of convening such talks. It is unclear whether any talks might occur, let alone when or where.

Responding to the four nations' statement, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Washington should make the first move.

"Instead of sophistry & putting onus on Iran, E3/EU must abide by own commitments & demand an end to Trump's legacy of #EconomicTerrorism against Iran," Zarif said in a tweet.

Story continues

"Our remedial measures are a response to US/E3 violations. Remove the cause if you fear the effect," he continued. "We'll follow ACTION w/ (with) action."

Zarif has previously signaled an openness to talks with Washington and the other parties over reviving the deal.

The U.S. official also hinted there could be a way to bridge the impasse over who should go first in returning to the deal - the United States, by relaxing its economic sanctions, or Iran, by adhering to limits on its atomic program.

"I don't think that the issue of sequencing will be the obstacle that prevents ... us from getting there," he said, saying a greater challenge may be defining what constitutes compliance.

URANIUM ENRICHMENT

A French diplomatic source said Washington's shift marked an opening for Iran but the path ahead was fraught with obstacles.

Tehran has set a deadline of next week for Biden to begin reversing sanctions imposed by Trump, or says it will take its biggest step yet to breach the deal - banning short-notice inspections by the U.N. nuclear watchdog.

Britain, France, Germany, and the United States called on Iran to refrain from that step and repeated their concerns over Iran's recent actions to produce both uranium enriched up to 20% and uranium metal.

"We remain in a precarious situation," said the French source, adding that if Iran ignored these warnings there would likely be "an extremely firm reaction."

Refining uranium to high levels of fissile purity is a potential pathway to nuclear bombs, though Iran has long said it its enrichment programme is for peaceful energy purposes only.

U.S. officials have offered some conciliatory gestures toward Iran such as relaxing the travel restrictions on diplomats in its mission to the United Nations that the Trump administration imposed in 2019, which had confined them to a small section of New York City.

The U.S. official told Reuters the Biden administration has had no contact with Iran apart from notifying their U.N. mission of the easing of travel restrictions.

The United States has also withdrawn a Trump administration assertion that all U.N. sanctions had been reimposed on Iran in September, according to a U.S. letter to the United Nations Security Council seen by Reuters.

(Reporting by William Schomberg in London, Richard Lough, Michel Rose and John Irish in Paris; Michelle Nichols at the United Nations; and Humeyra Pamuk and Arshad Mohammed in Washington; Editing by Nick Macfie, Alistair Bell and Karishma Singh)
He will have to await trial for threats to national security in custody. Judge Pang: If released he could repeat the offense. Also indicted for helping 12 democratic activists escape, later arrested and sentenced in Shenzhen. Already on trial for his role in the anti-extradition movement.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews)  Hong Kongs High Court today rejected Jimmy Lai's lawyers latest request for release on bail. The democracy activist and media tycoon will have to wait in prison for his trial for having threatened national security, which opens on April 16. The charge is of "collusion" with foreign forces, a crime provided for by the national security law imposed by the Chinese leadership.

He was jailed in early December; on 9 February the Final Court of Appeal invalidated his release, decided on 23 December by the High Court, which had granted him release on bail under house arrest. At the request of the Justice Department, an Intermediate Court suspended his release on December 31, ordering his return to Stanley maximum security prison. Also indicted for corruption, he faces life imprisonment.

In reading the sentence, Judge Anthea Pang said she did not have sufficient reason to believe that the accused " "will not continue to commit acts that endanger national security".

She confirmed the line of appeals judges, according to which the High Court had misinterpreted the draconian law on security in the first bail request hearing. This provision, argued the Court of Appeal, imposes stricter thresholds for bail, with the burden of proof being on the defence and not the prosecution: an exception to general principles such as the presumption of innocence, included in the Basic Law (the city's mini-Constitution) and in the International Charter on Civil and Political Rights.

On February 16, the authorities notified Lai of a new detention. He is accused of helping Andy Li, one of 12 anti-government activists who tried to flee to Taiwan in the summer. Arrested by the Shenzhen police, 10 were tried and sentenced to terms ranging from 10 months to three years in prison; two minors have been returned to Hong Kong and await trial.

The crime attributed to Lai falls within those punished by the security law imposed by Beijing. His support for Li also configures the charge of conspiring with foreign forces.

The 73-year-old owner of the Apple Daily newspaper  highly critical of the city's and Beijing's leadership  is also accused of being the leader of an international pressure group called "Stand with Hong Kong".

Lai is also among the nine democracy leaders who have been on trial for two days for organizing and taking part in a large demonstration against the extradition law on August 18, 2019.
Editor

Darren Marcy, a journalist since 1992, is the editor of the Manchester Journal. A New Mexico native, he previously worked for newspapers in the Land of Enchantment before moving to Vermont in 2004. He joined the Journal in October 2018.
A tenth of San Francisco's police force could be slashed because of budget cuts, as city agencies grapple with economic challenges caused by the pandemic.

A proposal obtained by the San Francisco Examiner found that 167 officers  and 43 civilian staffers  could be dropped by the police department during this budget cycle.

In December, Mayor London Breed ordered all city departments to cut their budgets by 7.5% after the city projected a deficit of up to $653 million within the next two years. "While this pandemic will continue to slow our recovery, I know we can do the hard work to get this City moving forward," she said in a statement at the time.

That order also included a 2.5% contingency cut "should things get worse." If that occurs, another 56 officers could be laid off, police said.

While crime is down overall in San Francisco, auto thefts and burglaries have spiked. Nonfatal gun violence has also increased in the city, with 33 shooting victims last month compared with nine incidents in the same period in 2020. The number of homicides has remained the same.

Newly hired officers would be the first eliminated because of a "last in, first out" mandate by the department. Two-thirds of the officers who could be affected by layoffs are people of color  30% Latino, 28% Asian and 9% Black. Police say that these layoffs, as a result, could hurt diversity efforts in the force.

The police commission unanimously rejected the budget Wednesday night in a symbolic display of support for the police force, per KTVU. The police union also condemned the cuts at the meeting.

"For residents, for tourists, when COVID is over and people come back, you want a safe city," said Tracy McCray, the vice president of the police union, KTVU reported.

SFPD employs 1,829 officers. The department has until Monday, Feb. 22, to submit a final budget proposal.



Hanoi building lockdown ended after dead South Korean tests negative for SARS-CoV-2

Authorities in Hanoi have removed the lockdown at Goldmark Citys R2 Building after Covid-19 test results showed that the deceased South Korean man did not carry the virus.















Lockdown at Goldmark Citys R2 Building has been removed



The 47-year-old man was found dead at an apartment on the morning of February 17 and the building was immediately locked down while local authorities carried out viral testing as a preventive measure.

The lock down was removed late in the afternoon following the negative results.



According to local authorities, the man lived alone in the apartment and worked as director of a construction company in Hanoi. He had stayed in Vietnam since 2014.



Head of Bac Tu Liem District's Police Department, Le Duc Hung, said that it was likely that the man committed suicide.



"We are investigating the cause of his death," he said. "And we found his suicide letter at the apartment."



On February 13, a Japanese man was also found dead at a hotel in Hanois Tay Ho District. He tested positive for Covid-19 and had affected other people.

The hike in fuel prices across the country has been a major lately because it has crossed Rs 90 in several states adding to the stress of the locals. Petrol and diesel prices have been a topic of political interest and the parties pit it on each other for the hike.

The Prime Minister, on Wednesday, blamed the former party Congress for not focusing on the matter of petrol earlier. He said the middle-class would not have been burdened if the previous governments had focussed on reducing India's energy import dependence. "I do not want to criticize anyone but I want to say (that) had we focused on this subject much earlier, our middle-class would not be burdened," he said.

Now, the Congress representative from Maharashtra, Nana Patole, has retaliated and slammed celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar for keeping mum after Narendra Modi led BJP didnt do anything to help the middle class in this crisis. He went on to say that they wont let the films of these two celebs release in the state if BJP doesnt do anything to prevent the rise of petrol.

Heres the video:

In 2012, Akshay Kumar had raised his voice about the rising fuel prices. On 27 February 2012, the actor had tweeted, "Guys, I think it's time to clean up your bicycles and hit the road! As per sources, expecting another petrol price hike." 9 years later, he didnt bother to tweet about the national concern but also deleted the earlier tweet. Akshay has also been bashed by people for deleting the earlier tweet.

 Twitter/Akshay Kumar

In 2012, Big B also had slammed the government when there was a rise of Rs 7.50 in petrol price but theres not a single mention of it in 2021.

 Twitter/Amitabh Bahchan

We wonder how Akshay and Amitabh react to the allegations by Nana Patole.



Do you support Nanas arguments? Let us know in the comments below.
New guidelines for law enforcement officers responding to scenarios involving human trafficking have been unveiled by Massachusetts officials.

The guidelines announced Thursday were developed by various law enforcement professionals with support from survivors and providers, the state said, meant to establish best practice standards for law enforcement when responding to and investigating potential human trafficking.

The three core principles are the foundation for the guidelines: recognition of human trafficking indicators; trauma-informed approach; and multidisciplinary and interagency cooperation.

We would feel comfortable going to a police officer that we know was trained in commercial sexual exploitation, said a youth leader survivor.

Local law enforcement officers are often the first people that come into contact with victims of human trafficking. These new guidelines are intended to be used by current law enforcement and in training programs, according to a statement states Executive Office of Health and Human Services.

When we combine and coordinate our efforts, survivors have a better chance of exiting exploitation and we are more likely to succeed in holding perpetrators accountable, said Beth Bouchard, the associate director of the Childrens Advocacy Center of Suffolk County.

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, the chair of the Governors Council to Address Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence, said the administration continues to work on developing multi-disciplinary approaches to identifying and combatting human trafficking in Massachusetts and that sensitive law enforcement response is critical to helping victims.

The law enforcement professionals involved took the time to develop an approach to human trafficking that is timely, pragmatic, and appropriate, but also builds survivor-focused skills in the law enforcement community, increasing communities confidence in the police, Polito said.

The guidelines include information about attending to the basic needs of victims and believing them, human trafficking red flags for dispatchers, courtroom preparation and testimony and other topics.

Human trafficking occurs across Massachusetts, said Attorney General Maura Healey, noting that many victims and survivors, particularly vulnerable children, dont have access to traditional support systems during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cases of human trafficking can be some of the most complex that we encounter in the criminal justice system, said Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni. These guidelines, developed by police and prosecutors and informed by the lived experiences of survivors and advocates, represent a useful tool and knowledge base that will greatly assist local, county, and state law enforcement across the Commonwealth.

Young survivor leaders from My Life My Choice offered input from their lived experience to help develop the guidelines.

By welcoming input in their development, were building law enforcement professionals that better understand the needs of survivors, and can better support them through the process, said Audrey Morrisey of My Life My Choice.

Chief Robert Ferullo, the executive director of the Municipal Police Training Committee, said the guidelines will inform the curriculum taught in academies.

They cover a wide variety of circumstances, from initial encounters through trial, and they reflect the philosophy that we can only address and prevent human trafficking by recognizing the people at the heart of the case  the victims and survivors we in law enforcement serve, Ferullo said.

Funding for the development of the guidelines was part of a 3-year, $1.5 million grant to improve outcomes for child and youth victims from human trafficking from the federal Office of Victims of Crime, which was awarded at the end of 2019, the state said.

I am grateful for the leadership of the law enforcement officials who led this effort to develop clear, pragmatic guidelines to better identify trafficking and support survivors with compassion, and to Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, who continues to bring human trafficking and sexual assault and domestic violence issues to the forefront, and supports the Commonwealths communities to always do more for youth and adult survivors, said Gov. Charlie Baker.
IDLEYLD PARK, Ore.  Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife staff members are finally discussing plans to rebuild the Rock Creek Hatchery after it burned down five months ago in the Archie Creek Fire.

Right now, officials said theyre trying to secure the funding to get the project done.

RELATED: SURVIVING ROCK CREEK HATCHERY FISH MOVED TO EASTWOOD ELEMENTARY

Theyre also focusing on their short-term solutions, like cleaning up the remaining debris and evaluating any environmental issues that need to be addressed.

Staff said they also want to make sure the surviving fish are being well cared for at the hatcheries they were transferred to so they can finish out their life cycles successfully.

MORE: STAFF DEVASTATED BY LOSS OF ROCK CREEK FISH HATCHERY

I think now weve had enough time to take a step back a little bit and take a deep breath and really start to evaluate and look a little bit more into the long term, said Greg Huchko, Umpqua district fish biologist.

Huchko said the goal is to bring the offspring back to Rock Creek by the fall.

When their rebuild plans are more concrete, he said they hope to get input from the community.
A groundbreaking win was achieved by pro-lifers in South Carolina when the House passed a bill banning almost all abortions in the state.

The bill, which achieved an overwhelming vote of 30-16, will face a final procedural vote in the House on Thursday, as per the Associated Press. However, the vote is unlikely to affect the bill, which is slated to be passed on to Gov. Henry McMaster, who is looking forward to signing it immediately.

The measure banning almost all abortions was approved by the South Carolina Senate on January 28 following years of failed attempts.

During the 2020 elections, the Republicans triumphed by adding three seats for a stronger Republican majority that resulted in the proposal Senate Bill No. 1. Rep. David Hiott of Pickens said that the "South Carolina Fetal Heartbeat and Protection from Abortion Act" is the "the greatest pro-life bill this state has ever passed."

Under this new law banning almost all abortions in South Carolina, doctors will be required to perform ultrasounds to detect a heartbeat in the unborn baby. If a heartbeat is present, the abortion will not be allowed, unless the pregnancy was caused by rape or incest or if the mother's life is in danger.

Unborn babies exhibit a heartbeat as early as six weeks following conception, a period that women are often unaware of their pregnancy. While the bill will not punish women who undergo the illegal abortion, it will incriminate the medical professional or individual who performs the abortion. He or she will then be charged with a felony and will be sentenced up to two years and be fined $10,000 if they are found guilty.

The decision of the South Carolina Senate to pass the bill banning almost all abortions in the state did not sit well with the entire state House. In fact, The Blaze reported that a number of Democrats walked out of the chamber during the debate.

Democrat Rep. Jonathan Hill was visibly upset as he threw up in the air his amendments to the proposal, that he was prevented from filing and speaking on, before storming out of the building. Republican House Speaker Jay Lucas reprimanded the Democratic representative for his "childish behavior" and warned him that he will be escorted out of the building if he continued on.

During the walkout, Republicans eliminated over a hundred proposed amendments for the bill banning almost all abortions in the state. Only a few Democrats remained, with the rest of those who walked out returning to oppose the measure.

The State reported that House Rep. Russell Ott, a Democrat who represents Calhoun County, said that his constituents in House District 93 "sent me up here to deal with issues regardless of how tough they are, regardless of what the personal consequences are. I take my responsibility as a representative, I hold that in high regard."

Lawmakers then approved the bill banning almost all abortions by a vote of 79-35. Republicans are looking forward to seeing the bill signed by the South Carolina governor as soon as possible.
The move comes one week after Gov. J.B. Pritzker said beginning Feb. 25, the state would open vaccinations to those between the ages of 16 and 64 who have underlying conditions including cancer, diabetes and others, and it would prioritize those with disabilities. Pritzker said the move was in line with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and was possible due to increased federal vaccine shipments.

by Shafique Khokhar

The Archbishop of Rawalpindi-Islamabads Lenten message sets the path for Easter. The 40 days are a time to change our lives by taking care of the poor. Praying can happen at any time and in any place.

Rawalpindi (AsiaNews)  Archbishop Joseph Arshad of Rawalpindi-Islamabad released a message to the faithful on the occasion of Lent.

In it, he writes that Lent is a time in which the Lord has provided an opportunity to concentrate on our lives, repent, ask forgiveness for our sins and change.

For the prelate, who heads the Catholic Bishops Conference of Pakistan, the 40 days of Lent are, first of all, a call to change our lives and repent by coming back to the Lord.

To do so, the faithful must recognise the works of God in your lives for God always strengthens and straightens the ways of those who recognise Him.

If we live our lives according to the commands of Jesus, He lives and walks with us and we will be filled with His Light.

Echoing what Jesus said about fasting, praying and alms giving in the Gospel of Matthew, Archbishop Arshad explains that we must not show off when we engage in these three activities.

Fasting is very important for all of us, but why do we fast? he askes.

There are two important aspects to it: first of all, during fasting we do not drink and eat, we feel pain and suffer, we relate to the suffering and pains of Jesus Christ.

The second aspect is that during Lent we deny our desires and save money, but the money we save must be given to those who are suffering and dont have what is necessary to eat and be clothed.

Pope Francis has asked us to experience charity by taking care of the poor and those who need our help, Archbishop Arshad explained.

This is what Christianity and the Holy Bible teach us: To go forward and live according to Christian values, not only during the Lenten season but also throughout the year and our life.

As for praying, the Archbishop of Rawalpindi-Islamabad notes that it can happen at any time and in any place and must have great value in our lives because with prayer we can create a stronger relationship with God the Father.

To this end, Mgr Arshad encourages individual prayer, family prayer and prayer for this Lent together with the entire Christian community.

Last but not least, the Archbishop has a special message for children. We are all children of God, he said. Jesus gave us the good news and wants us to go with Him. How? By helping each other and showing respect to our parents and teachers and do what they ask us.
For weeks, the pressure has been building on San Francisco school officials to reopen classrooms, with national media berating them and parents and politicians threatening a shake-up of the school board over what they say is dysfunctional and tone-deaf leadership.

On Wednesday, district leaders defended their approach and emphasized their commitment to bringing students back by showing off an elementary school thats ready to reopen.

Superintendent Vincent Matthews and board President Gabriela Lopez held a news conference Wednesday to reiterate the ongoing effort to resume in-person learning as soon as possible, but declined to guess when the first students might be back. The district said recently the goal is to have six weeks of partial live instruction before the school year ends June 2.

Theres been a lot of really amazing progress weve been wanting to see for so long, Lopez said, standing in the playground of Sunset Elementary School. For families who want to return, we hear you and appreciate you. For staff who want us to return as safe as possible, we hear you and appreciate you. We understand this is hard for everyone.

The Wednesday event came as San Francisco families and community leaders created a political action committee this week to look at recalling or appointing  rather than electing  board members. A separate group launched a public poll to gauge support for similar efforts.

Those critical of the board are calling for schools to reopen immediately, saying it can be done safely and that many families and students are suffering under distance learning, with children declining academically, physically and mentally. Others, including many labor unions, parents and teachers, have argued its still too soon given coronavirus case counts, new variants and lack of a vaccine for all staff.

Sunset is one of six elementary schools  out of 64  ready for reopening, with desks 6 feet apart, adequate soap, windows that open and signs to keep masks on.

But it will likely be two months or more before any elementary students sit at those desks. And district officials have previously said its unlikely that middle and high schools will return to live instruction at all this year.

Sarahbeth Maney / Special to The Chronicle

The district is still negotiating an agreement with the teachers union on what the school day looks like.

In addition, a safety and health agreement, pending a school board vote thats been pushed back a week, would allow schools to reopen only when San Francisco is in the states red tier, the second most restrictive in the pandemic tier system, and only if staff are vaccinated. A return in the less-restrictive orange tier would not require vaccinations.

The news conference came amid legal challenges for the district over the ongoing school closures as well as national media attention on the boards recent decisions to rename 44 schools and eliminate merit-based admission at Lowell High School, one of the top-performing public schools in the country.

A recent New York Times commentary compared the citys school board to former President Donald Trump, saying neither have political predators to hold them in check.

While Lopez acknowledged the national attention, the lawsuits and problems with the process of renaming schools, as well as calls to recall or appoint board members, she said her sole focus now is getting students back in class.

My full attention is going to be on the return to schools, she said. We recognize there are issues with a number of the things that have gone national, but that has not been (part of) where we are today.

Matthews emphasized that nine of the states 10 largest school districts also remain in distance learning.

The challenges and complexity of reopening our public schools during a pandemic cannot be overstated, he said.

Matthews did not explain why far larger school districts  including New York City with 1 million students  have reopened.

Districts doing only distance learning are likely to face even more pressure in the coming weeks as schools reopen in other communities. Berkeley school officials Wednesday announced expected reopening dates, starting with the youngest students March 29, though the dates hinge on vaccinations for teachers.

Meanwhile, a group of San Francisco residents filed paperwork this week to form a political action committee, the Campaign for Better San Francisco Public Schools.

The immediate goal is to explore all options for getting a better Board of Education, said Patrick Wolff, one of the organizers. The group is exploring a recall effort and a ballot initiative to have an appointed rather than elected board.

At the same time, another grassroots effort has funded a poll asking residents if they are happy with the boards performance; if they support a recall of board members; and if they would support a city charter amendment to have an appointed school board rather than elected one.

Lopez said she was aware of the PAC and acknowledged the frustration among families.

COVID Resources Coronavirus Map Tracking COVID-19 cases across the Bay Area and California.

While the school board has been criticized, labor unions have also come under fire for requiring health and safety requirements for reopening that exceed local, state and national guidelines.

Labor leaders have said the safety of staff and students is a top priority.

Sarahbeth Maney / Special to The Chronicle

The United Educators of San Francisco said Wednesday they have reached an agreement with the district to start assessing students with special needs in person as soon as the city reaches the red tier.

Our teachers are ready to move forward, union President Susan Solomon said. Educators understand the importance of getting this done, and look forward to reaching an agreement with the district on all the issues that are outstanding.

State and federal officials have repeatedly called on schools to reopen, saying it can be done safely and is critical to stem learning loss and mental health issues.

Lopez and board member Alison Collins have been criticized recently for downplaying the harm from Zoom school.

Lopez has said distance learning is different, allowing children to learn about their cultures and spend more time with their families, while Collins told parents via social media that she doesnt believe school closures are causing growing opportunity gaps or mental health issues, despite growing evidence to the contrary.

After the news conference Tuesday, Lopez acknowledged that distance learning is leading to learning loss and mental health issues in children.

We all agree on that, she said. We know that the best form of education, which is what everyone is seeing now and is valuing, is in-person instruction.

Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twittter: @jilltucker
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Dems Lawsuit Accuses Trump of Inciting Deadly Capitol Riot

The House Homeland Security chairman accused Donald Trump in a federal lawsuit Tuesday of inciting the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and conspiring with his lawyer and extremist groups to try to prevent Congress from certifying the results of the presidential election he lost to Joe Biden.

The lawsuit from Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson is part of an expected wave of litigation over the Jan. 6 riot and is believed to be the first filed by a member of Congress. It seeks unspecified punitive and compensatory damages. It also names as defendants Rudy Giuliani, Trumps personal lawyer, and the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers, extremist organizations that have had members charged by the Justice Department with taking part in the siege.

All I wanted to do was do my job, and the insurrection that occurred prevented me from doing that, Thompson, D-Miss., told reporters Tuesday as he recounted his harrowing experiences as Trump loyalists broke into the Capitol and disrupted the constitutionally mandated process of certifying the election.

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A Trump senior adviser, Jason Miller, said in a statement that Trump did not organize the rally that preceded the riot and did not incite or conspire to incite any violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6th. A lawyer for Giuliani did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

The suit, filed in federal court in Washington under a Reconstruction-era law called the Ku Klux Klan Act, comes three days after Trump was acquitted in a Senate impeachment trial that centered on allegations that he incited the riot, in which five people died. That acquittal is likely to open the door to fresh legal scrutiny over Trumps actions before and during the siege. Additional suits could be brought by other members of Congress or by law enforcement officers injured while responding to the riot.

Even some Republicans who voted to acquit Trump on Saturday acknowledged that the more proper venue to deal with Trump was in the courts, especially now that he has left the White House and lost certain legal protections that shielded him as president.

The suit traces the drawn-out effort by Trump and Giuliani to cast doubt on the election results even though courts across the country and state election officials repeatedly rejected their baseless allegations of fraud. Despite evidence to the contrary, the suit says, the men portrayed the election as stolen while Trump endorsed rather than discouraged threats of violence from his angry supporters in the weeks leading up to the assault on the Capitol.

The carefully orchestrated series of events that unfolded at the Save America rally and the storming of the Capitol was no accident or coincidence, the suit says. It was the intended and foreseeable culmination of a carefully coordinated campaign to interfere with the legal process required to confirm the tally of votes cast in the Electoral College.

Presidents are historically afforded broad immunity from lawsuits for actions they take in their role as commander in chief. But the lawsuit filed Tuesday was brought against Trump in his personal, not official, capacity and alleges that none of the behavior at issue had to do with his responsibilities as president.

Inciting a riot, or attempting to interfere with the congressional efforts to ratify the results of the election that are commended by the Constitution, could not conceivably be within the scope of ordinary responsibilities of the president, Joseph Sellers, a lawyer who represents Thompson, said in an interview.

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In this respect, because of his conduct, he is just like any other private citizen, he said.

Sellers, a lawyer with the law firm of Cohen Milstein, filed the case along with the NAACP. Several other members of Congress are expected to join.

Asked about the lawsuit Tuesday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that Biden supports the rights of individuals to take steps through the judicial process, but she declined to comment further.

Though the impeachment case focused squarely on accusations of incitement, the lawsuit more broadly accuses Trump of conspiring to disrupt the constitutional activities of Congress  namely, the certification of election results establishing Biden as the rightful winner  through a monthslong effort to discredit the outcome and to lean on individual states and his own vice president to overturn the contest.

The case against Trump was brought under a provision of the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, which was passed in response to KKK violence and prohibits violence or intimidation meant to prevent Congress or other federal officials from carrying out their constitutional duties.

Fortunately, this hasnt been used very much, Sellers said. But what we see here is so unprecedented that its really reminiscent of what gave rise to the enactment of this legislation right after the Civil War.

The suit cites incendiary comments that Trump and Giuliani made in the weeks leading up to the riot and on the day of it that lawyers say were designed to mobilize supporters to work to overturn the election results and to prevent the congressional certification process. That process was temporarily interrupted when Trump supporters broke into the Capitol.

Trump encouraged supporters at a rally preceding the riot to  fight like hell, but lawyers for the former president adamantly denied during the impeachment trial that he had incited the riot. They pointed to a remark during his speech in which he told the crowd to behave peacefully that day.

Defense lawyers are likely to revisit those assertions in the lawsuit. They may also argue, as was done during the impeachment case, that Trumps speech was protected by the First Amendment.
The body of a missing San Francisco computer programmer has been discovered by police inside a small, hidden crawl space above his bathroom more than a month after his disappearance - as investigators say no foul place is suspected in his death.

The San Francisco Police Department said in a press release on Wednesday that officers initially served a search warrant at 50-year-old Christopher Woitel's apartment in the Mission District on February 12, looking for evidence of a crime, but found no signs of forced entry and left.

Three days later, on Monday, investigators from the department's Special Victims Unit returned to the missing man's apartment on Guerrero Street, accompanied by a team from Crime Scene Investigations, and focused their second search on a small, three-foot-tall crawl space above the bathroom.

Inside, they located Woitel's body, which police wrote 'was hidden from plain view.' It's unknown at this time how or why the 5-foot-10, 200-pound man ended up inside the tiny space.

Scroll down for video

Found: Christopher Woitel, 50, was found dead inside a three-foot-high crawl space above the bathroom at his San Francisco apartment building, more than a month after he was seen on security video going upstairs to his unit

Police recovered Woitel's body from the crawl space, which they said is only accessible from the roof of this building on Guerrero Street in the Mission District

Firefighters were then called to the scene and cut a hole in the ceiling to retrieve Woitel's remains.

'Mr. Woitel likely accessed the crawl space from the roof of the building and not from inside his apartment,' police stated. 'Foul play is not suspected in this incident.'

Woitel's cause of death is pending the medical examiners autopsy.

Many questions surrounding Woitel's January disappearance and death are still unanswered at this time, including how he died, how his body ended up in the crawl space, and why it remained there undiscovered for a month, despite repeated searches conducted by the police, the manager of the building and a private investigator.

In earlier email exchanges with DailyMail.com prior, Mark Guarino, who has been speaking on behalf of Woitel's family from the time of his disappearance, expressed frustration with the police.

'The family wanted an investigation soon after he went missing,' he wrote. 'The police did not respond to their pleas.'

The police department's policy dictates that missing persons cases are investigated by officers at the district stations for 30 days, before being transferred to the Special Victims Unit.

Guarino said that is why the family hired Scott Williams, a private investigator, who produced a report indicating that Woitel may have been the victim of foul play and submitted it to the police, seeking for them to take action.

'It wasn't until media reports from late last week and the weekend that the police acted,' Guarino wrote. 'Sadly, this means his body has been sitting there for over a month.'

It was not until February 10 that the San Francisco Police Department appealed to the public for help in locating the missing man.

The family spokesperson accused the police of failing to act on the investigator's report in a timely fashion.

'If they got a warrant that first day and searched the building they would have found his body weeks ago and the evidence would still be fresh, he added. 'But their delay caused extended grief for the family and evidence to get stale.'

Woitel last contacted his mother through social media a day after his final sighting on surveillance video inside his building on January 8, and had not been heard from since.

Woitel's mother reported him missing on January 13. She says there had been no activity on his bank account or credit cards for the past month.

Video from January 8 shows Woitel entering his building at 8.38pm, carrying a bottle of wine in his hand

Woitel is seen walking up the stairs to his unit, marking his final sighting

Williams was given access to Woitel's apartment on Guerrero Street in San Francisco's Mission District and found his possessions undisturbed and no signs of foul play. The search yielded no clues as to the man's whereabouts, reported Mission Local.

According to Williams, the apartment building has a back door, but surveillance video from that area did not show Woitel leaving.

'My gut feeling is something bad happened,' Woitels sister Lara Haben told Mission Local before the discovery of his body.

Woitel's siblings had traveled from the Midwest and spent the weekend handing out flyers in the Mission District to raise awareness of their brother's plight, reported KPIX.

They also shared with the outlet footage that shows Woitel, wearing a black face covering, a beanie and a tan-colored jacket, going up the stairs to his unit, with a bottle of wine in his left hand, at 8.38pm on January 8, marking the last time he was seen.

In the days leading up to his disappearance, relatives said Woitel, who has been struggling with depression, was acting paranoid. He expressed concerns about the prospect of supporters of President Donald Trump causing unrest in San Francisco, and told his sister he was hearing explosions and felt 'unsafe.'

He also asked Haben for money to replace his lost phone and talked about a planned getaway to the mountains.

Family and friends have described Woitel as a kind-hearted and generous man who has been known to bring food and open his home to people down on their luck, including some of San Francisco's numerous homeless.

Woitel communicated with his mother on January 9 and had not been heard from since; his bank account and credit cards had not been used

'It was always a little concerning, and he didnt really like to talk to me about it too much because I would always say, "What are you doing, why are you doing that?"' friend Jennifer Berg told the San Francisco Examiner.

Williams, the private investigator, told the Mission Local that he has located a homeless man who is believed to be among the last people to visit Woitel at his apartment before his mysterious disappearance.

The man, who goes by the nickname 'Bood,' was allegedly found to be in possession of Woitel's cellphone, which he said the computer programmer had sold him for $100.

According to Williams, the man claimed to have psychic abilities and told him that Woitel had been 'shot in the head and wrapped in plastic' during a robbery by a group of men before his body was thrown into the San Francisco Bay.

'It is clear [the man] suffers from mental illness and as such could be delusional,' the investigator said.

Woitel was said to be infatuated with Bood and would spend his money on whatever the man wanted. According to a friend, Woitel allowed the homeless man to stay at his apartment and paid his phone bills.

Woitel's siblings, including sisters Kathy Flynn (left) and Lara Haben (right) had traveled from the Midwest this weekend to pass out fliers in the Mission District

Two days before Woitel vanished, surveillance video inside his building caught Bood entering his apartment, and leaving the following morning.

On the eve of Woitel's disappearance, he sent Bood an angry, expletive-laden message on Facebook, accusing him of using his social media account to 'harass people.'

'You f***ing a**hole!' Woitel reportedly wrote to Bood. 'DONE. THATS IT. ENOUGH. You are on your own. You are far too much trouble...Dont ever come here again!'

Woitel's friend speculated that it is unlikely that Bood harmed the man himself because he has trouble walking due to a leg injury.

Woitel's neighbor also revealed to the Mission Local that the programmer has been trying to avoid two friends, whom he described as 'thugs from the underworld.'
Books can save us from years of trial and error and monumental mistakes. A book contains experiments. Decades of learning. It allows us to discover in 100 or 200 pages all the author's thoughts and experiences. For only ten dollars! It's magic, isn't it?

If youre looking for a good read, can we suggest Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg's favorite books and an economics classic? Get ready to be inspired and surprised!



Business Adventures: Twelve Classic Tales from the World of Wall Street by John Brooks

Investor and businessman Warren Buffett recommended this book (and gave it away) to Microsoft's founder, who had never heard of it. It had been out of print since the 1960s, and the author died in 1993. But a few years ago, Gates said: "More than two decades after Warren Buffett loaned it to me and more than four decades after its first publication, this book is still the best business book I have ever read.

Business Adventures is a collection of 12 true stories, which have little in common except the style in which they are told. One story describes the "great crash" of May 28, 1962, as vividly related by numerous sources who recall how they lived through it, what the environment was like, and how it ended. Another tells the story of the Edsel, the car named after Henry Ford's son and which nearly bankrupted the auto giant in the mid-20th century. Then theres the General Electric scandal and the impressive rise of Xerox. Great stuff!

Related: 9 Must-Read Books to Prepare Entrepreneurs for 2021



Good to Great by Jim Collins

Today, Amazon is one of the three largest companies in the world, but it wasnt always like that. In early 2001, the company was four years old and had yet to report a profit. Then Jeff Bezos had an idea and picked up the phone.

On the other end of the line was Jim Collins, author of Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap ... And Others Don't. Collins listened to Bezos and decided to pay a visit to Amazon headquarters.

After Collins spoke to the companys management team, Jeff decided to change the economic structure according to Collinss advice.

In a podcast with Kara Swisher, Collins remembered that he told them to stop focusing on short-term gains and make long-term decisions  what he calls the "inexorable logic" of success.

"What a company spends its time doing should be concerned with developing and generating momentum," Collins explained.

Collins' work suggests that a company should focus on building one thing to drive another.

"If you can get the compound momentum out of your flywheel in a world that wants you to do something fast and overnight, it is enormously powerful," said Collins.

Indeed, the plan must have been very logical because it worked. The last quarter of 2001 was when Amazon first reported a profit.

With that knowledge built in, Bezos and his team at Amazon were able to make the necessary strategic changes in the business to establish their flywheel for success.

The lessons Amazon absorbed and that catapulted it to global domination are collected in the book. We dont guarantee that after you read it, you will have a net worth of more than $182 billion, but were pretty sure youll have a better idea of how to build a healthy and thriving business.

Related: 5 Books to Read Before Starting Your Business



The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith

This classic, first published in 1776, is still required reading in university Economics departments. The Scotsman Adam Smith was the first to write about a complex subject that had massive repercussions; his book built the foundation for capitalism.

The Wealth of Nations describes the roots of prosperity in England and the Netherlands and proposes economic theories about work, the market, the nature of wealth, wages, and capital accumulation, among other concepts. To Smith, the market was guided by an "invisible hand," or the free pursuit of individual interests that benefited the common good by solving problems.

Related: 11 Business Books Entrepreneurs Must Reread in 2021



The End of Power by Moises Naim

"A Year of Books" is the name of Mark Zuckerberg's virtual reading circle, which devotes itself to a new book every 14 days. After Zuckerberg recommended this book to his Facebook group, it sold out in less than 48 hours all over the world. The Financial Times voted it the best book of the year in 2013, and its fame has only grown since then.

In The End of Power'', Moises Naim, a celebrated Venezuelan journalist, describes the struggle between the once-dominant mega players and the new micro powers that now challenge them in all areas of human activity. The author explains how the end of power is changing everything in our world, from large corporations to agile entrepreneurs, from presidential palaces to public squares.

The beautiful and reliable thing about power is that it never disappears. It just shifts from General Motors to Google, for example. Or from literary criticism to Oprah Winfrey and Elke Heidenreich, and from there to people like Mark Zuckerberg.

Power, like energy, is neither created nor destroyed, but inevitably disseminated among a multitude of agents and micro-powers in whose hands it ends up being degraded. This degradation, and its effect on the march of the world in the 21st century, is the central theme of The End of Power.

Related:

4 Classic Business Books Recommended by Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg

Get to Know the 3 Types of Influencers

HBO's 'Fake Famous' Documentary Gets Influencer Marketing All Wrong



Copyright 2021 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
A survey by Europe's main psychiatric and mental health patient organisations shows that only 4 out of 20 European countries prioritise COVID vaccinations for individuals with severe mental disorders (such as psychosis and mood problems), despite a wealth of scientific evidence showing that these patients are amongst the most at risk. This is published today in the peer-reviewed journal Lancet Psychiatry.

The authors of the paper, and the major European mental health organisations, call for the European Union, as well as national health authorities to take concerted action to protect these vulnerable patients.

The authors reviewed official publicly available vaccine deployment plans and contacted clinicians in 20 European countries to confirm national vaccination policies. They found that only the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, and the UK recognise severe mental illness as a high-risk medical condition eligible for early vaccination. Strikingly, the majority of countries surveyed do not make any mention of mental health in their vaccination priority guidance (see map and table) Some countries prioritise treatment for those in mental health institutions, but most patients with severe mental illness are now living and receiving treatment in the community, and thus are not covered by vaccination plans.

Lead author, Dr Livia De Picker (from the University Psychiatric Hospital Campus Duffel, Belgium) said: "Everyone is concerned about the mental health problems which will follow the COVID epidemic. But many of those who already have severe mental health issues will face these problems earlier and probably more seriously. Research also clearly indicates that their risk of severe complications or dying of COVID is as high if not higher than those with physical conditions. Recent work shows that if you have a psychiatric disorder your risk of COVID infection rises by 65%(ref 1), and severely mentally ill patients are between 1.5 and 2 times more likely to die( ref2).

Early vaccination is needed to protect them from severe or even fatal COVID infection; they need to be prioritised in the same way that at-risk patients with physical conditions are prioritised. Most countries are giving priority to people living in institutions, but this is not good enough. Most people with severe mental disorders are now living and being treated in the community, these patients are completely disregarded in most vaccination plans, and this needs to change. We are glad to see that more and more countries are changing their policy to include patients with severe mental illness, but vaccination is happening now, so we can't delay".

Up to 1 person in 20 in Europe will suffer from a severe mental health problem at some point.

The survey was initiated by the ImmunoNeuroPsychiatry Thematic Working Group of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology; this was prompted by a recent article, on the neuroscientific reasons why individuals with severe mental illness are at increased risk of COVID infection in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity (ref 3). Following this paper, the Lancet Psychiatry paper was developed in collaboration with the Europe's main clinical and patient mental health organisations.

European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP)

European Psychiatric Association (EPA)

European Federation of Associations of Families of People with Mental Illness (EUFAMI)

Global Alliance of Mental Illness Advocacy Networks-Europe (GAMIAN-Europe)

European Union of Medical Specialists Section of Psychiatry (UEMS-Psychiatry).

These bodies endorse the call for the European Union to take a lead in setting standards, and for national health and scientific bodies to ensure that vulnerable mental health patients are prioritised in vaccine strategy.

Author and director of the working group, Professor Marion Leboyer (University of Paris Est Creteil, France) said, "Patients with severe mental disorders are again neglected, despite suffering great risks. There is substantial evidence of the harm mental health patients suffer due to the pandemic. For example, recent work (ref 4) has shown that schizophrenia is second only to age as a risk for death due to COVID. Countries often look to what's happening elsewhere when setting vaccine priorities, and given how few countries prioritise mental health this risks perpetuating the neglect of mental health issues. This is a huge problem in Europe, and will continue unless action is taken. I am therefore pleased that the French scientific advisory committee on vaccines has just announced that it will recommend a change in policy for schizophrenia patients".

ECNP President, Professor Gitte Moos Knudsen (Righospitalet, Copenhagen) said: "This work reveals an intolerable lack of consideration for mental health patients. If you want to "follow the science", then these at-risk patients should be prioritised. Further, as COVID does not respect national borders, we need European-level strategies to contain the virus".

Speaking for the mental health patient community, Global Alliance of Mental Illness Advocacy Networks-Europe (GAMIAN-Europe), President Hilkka Karkkainen said;

"Society needs to prioritise at-risk groups, but it is dispiriting to see that even during the pandemic, mental health is an afterthought - if that - for many countries. The scientific evidence is clear that COVID and the resulting lockdown is causing significant harm to people with serious mental health problems, but very few countries are addressing this. This needs to change".

###

Type of work: Peer reviewed/International Survey/people

The full paper is published online by Lancet Psychiatry on 17th February 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(21)00046-8

A copy of this paper is available pre-embargo to accredited journalists: contact the press officer (see "Notes for Editors").

Note: the information in this press release is correct to 10th February 2021.
In September 2021 the UN will hold a Food Systems Summit. The aim will be to reshape world agriculture and food production in the context of the Malthusian UN Agenda 2030 sustainable agriculture goals. The recent radical farm laws from the government of Narenda Modi in India are part of the same global agenda, and its all not good.

In Modis India, farmers have been in massive protest since three new farm laws were rushed through Parliament last September. The Modi reforms were motivated by a well-organized effort of the World Economic Forum (WEF) and its New Vision for Agriculture, part of Klaus Schwabs Great Reset, the corporate side of the UN Agenda 2030.

Modi Shock Therapy

In September, 2020 in a rushed Parliamentary voice vote, rather than a duly-registered formal vote, and reportedly with no prior consultation with Indian farmer unions or organizations, the government of Prime Minister Narenda Modi passed three new laws radically deregulating Indias agriculture. That has sparked months of national farmer protest and nationwide strikes.The protests which are spreading across all India, demands repeal of the three laws.

In effect the laws end restrictions on large corporations buying land and stockpiling commodities to control farmer prices. They also allow large multinational businesses to bypass local or regional state markets where farmers produce is normally sold at guaranteed prices, and allows business to strike direct deals with farmers. This all will result in the ruin of an estimated tens millions of marginal or smallholder farmers and small middlemen in Indias fragile food chain.

The new Modi laws are measures the IMF and World Bank have been demanding since the early 1990s to bring Indian agriculture and farming into the corporate agribusiness model pioneered in the USA by the Rockefeller Foundation decades ago.Until now no Indian government has been willing to attack the farmers, the countrys largest population group, many of whom are on tiny plots or bare subsistence. Modis argument is that by changing the present system, Indian farmers could double income by 2022, an unproven,dubious claim. It allows corporations to buy farm land for the first time nationally so large companies, food processing firms, and exporters can invest in the farm sector.Against them a small farmer has no chance. Whos behind the radical push? Here we find the WEF and the Gates Foundations radical globalized agriculture agenda.

WEF and the Corporativists

The laws are a direct result of several years effort of the World Economic Forum and its New Vision for Agriculture (NVA) initiative. For more than 12 years the WEF and its NVA has pushed a corporate model in Africa, Latin America and Asia. The big target has been India, where resistance to corporate takeover of agriculture has been fierce ever since the failed 1960s Green Revolution of the Rockefeller Foundation. For the WEF Great Reset, better known as the UN Agenda 2030 for sustainable agriculture, Indias traditional farm and food system must be broken. Its smallholder family farmers must be forced to sell to large agribusiness conglomerates and regional or state-level protections for those farmers eliminated. It will be sustainable, not for the small farmers, but rather the giant agribusiness groups.

To advance that agenda the WEF created a powerful group of corporate and government interests called the NVA India Business Council. Its website at the homepage of the WEF states, The NVA India Business Council serves as an informal, high-level leadership group to champion private sector collaboration and investment to drive sustainable agricultural growth in India. An idea what they mean by sustainableis found in their membership.

The WEFs NVA India Business Council in 2017 included Bayer CropScience, one of the worlds largest purveyors of agriculture pesticides andnow,of Monsanto GMO seeds; Cargill India Pvt.of the giant US grain company; Dow AgroSciences, GMO seed and pesticide producer;GMO and agrichemical firm DuPont;grain cartel giant Louis Dreyfus Company; Wal-Mart India; India Mahindra & Mahindra (worlds largest tractor maker); Nestle India Ltd; PepsiCo India; Rabobank International; State Bank of India; Swiss Re Services, the worlds largest re-insurer; India Private Limited, a chemicals maker;and the Adani Group of Gautam Adani,the second richest man in India and major financier of Modis BJP party. Notice the absence of any Indian farmer organizations.

In addition to top Modi backer Guatam Adani on the WEF NVA India Business Council, MukeshAmbani, sits on the Board of Directors of Klaus Schwabs World Economic Forum. Ambani, another top Modi backer, is Chairman and Managing Director of Indias largest conglomerate, Reliance Industries, and Asias second wealthiest person worth some $74 billion. Ambani is a strong advocate of the radical farm reform as Reliance stands to reap huge gains.

In December farmers in Punjab burned effigies of Prime Minister Modi, along with Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani, and Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani, accusing them of being behind the new laws of Modi.

For anyone with even a slight idea of these corporate behemoths, it is clear that the interests and welfare of Indias estimated 650 million farmers are not the priority. Notably, IMFs Chief Economist Gita Gopinath, an Indian now in USA,has endorsed the laws, and has said that Indias recently-enacted agriculture laws have the potential to increase farmers income.

On 26 November a nationwide general strike began that involved approximately 250 million people in support of the farmers. Transport unions representing over 14 million truck drivers have come out in support of the farmer unions. This is the biggest challenge to the BJP Modi regime to date. The fact the government refuses to back down suggests it will be a bitter battle.

For the Agenda 2030, or Great Reset to transform the global food and agricultural industries as Klaus Schwab prefers to call it, to succeed, it is highest priority that India, with the worlds largest population,be brought into the globalist web of corporate agribusiness control. Clearly the timing of the Modi deregulation has in mind the UN 2021 Food Systems Summit.

AGRA and the UN Food Systems Summit

Indication of the agenda in store for Indias farmers is the upcoming September UN Food Systems Summit. UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres in 2019 announced the UN will host Food Systems Summit in 2021 with the aim of maximizing the benefits of a food systems approach consistent with UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. He named Agnes Kalibata of Rwanda as his Special Envoy for the 2021 Food Systems Summit. The summits founding statement pushes precision farming such as GPS, Big Data and robotics, and GMO, as solutions.

Kalibata, former Minister of Agriculture in war-torn Rwanda,isalso the President of AGRA, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa. AGRA was created by the Gates and Rockefeller Foundations to introduce GMO patented seeds and related chemical pesticides into African agriculture. A key person Gates put in charge of the AGRA, Robert Horsch, spent 25 years as a senior Monsanto executive. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is also a Contributing Partner of the WEF.

After nearly 15 years and some $1 billion in funds from Gates, Rockefeller and other large donors, AGRA has failed to lift farmers into a better wellbeing. Farmers are forced by their governments to buy seeds from commercial suppliers, often tied to Monsanto and other GMO companies, as well as commercial fertilizer. The result is debt and often bankruptcy. The farmers are forbidden to reuse the commercial seeds and are forced to abandon traditional seeds which they could reuse. AGRAs focus on market-oriented means the global export market controlled by Cargill and other major grain cartel giants. In the 1990s, under pressure from Washington and agribusiness, the World Bank demanded African and other governments in developing countries end their agriculture subsidies. That, while the USA and EU agriculture remains heavily subsidized. The cheap subsidized EU and OECD imports drive local farmers bankrupt. Thats intended.

A 2020 report on AGRA, False Promises, concluded, yield increases for key staple crops in the years before AGRA were just as low as during AGRA. Instead of halving hunger, the situation in the 13 focus countries has worsened since AGRA was launched. The number of people going hungry has increased by 30 percent during the AGRA years affecting 130 million people in the 13 AGRA focus countries. Gates AGRA has made African food production more globalized and dependent than ever on the will of global multinationals whose aim is cheap inputs. It forces farmers into debt and demands specific cash crops like GMO corn or soya, be grown for export.

Gates Foundations confidential Agricultural Development Strategy 2008-2011 outlined its strategy:

Smallholders with the potential to produce a surplus can create a market-oriented agricultural system to exit povertyThe vision of success involves market-oriented farmers operating profitable farmsthis will require some degree of land mobility and a lower percentage of total employment involved in direct agricultural production. (emphasis added)

In 2008 Rajiv Shah was the Gates Foundations Director of Agricultural Development, and led the Foundations creation of the AGRA together with the Rockefeller Foundation. Today Shah is President of Rockefeller Foundation,Gates partner in AGRA, which foundation also financed the creation of GMO patented seeds back in the 1970s, the creation of CGIAR seed banks with the World Bank and Indias 1960s failed Green Revolution.Rajiv Shah is also an Agenda Contributor at the World Economic Forum. Small world.

The fact that the President of AGRA is heading the September 2021 UN Food Systems Summit (note the use of food systems) exposes the seamless links between the UN, the Gates and Rockefeller Foundations, the World Economic Forum and their web of global corporate mega companies.

India, with 1.4 billion people, perhaps half in agriculture, is the last bastion where global agribusiness has been unable to dominate the production of food. The OECD has been globalized by industrial agribusiness since decades and the deterioration in food quality and nutrition confirms it. China has opened up and is a major player in the GMO world with Syngenta, as well as the world largest producer of glyphosate. China industrial pork factory farms such as Smithfield Farms, where the recent African Swine Fever is believed to have originated, are on the way to wipe out small-scale farmers there.The central role of the Gates-Rockefeller AGRA in the UN 2021 Food Systems Summit, the major role of the WEF in the world food systems reset, and the pressures in recent months on the Modi government to implement the same corporate agenda in India as in Africa, are all no accident. It sets the world up for catastrophic harvest failures and worse.

F. William Engdahl is strategic risk consultant and lecturer, he holds a degree in politics from Princeton University and is a best-selling author on oil and geopolitics, exclusively for the online magazine New Eastern Outlook
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The drugs seized in Cork weigh 172kgs and are worth 12m

Gardai have not yet identified which organised crime gang is responsible for the biggest drugs seizure of the year with a value of more than 12m, according to senior sources.

Around 172kg of cocaine was seized in Cork yesterday as part of a major operation.

The joint operation by the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau and Revenues Customs Service uncovered cocaine with an estimated street value of 12.04m in Ringaskiddy Port.

The drugs were discovered following an intensive search of containers that arrived on a vessel from Costa Rica.

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Senior sources say gardai have not yet identified which organised crime gang is responsible for the seizure.

There are very few gangs operating in this country that have the means to directly organise such a massive shipment from central America, a source said.

However, there is no doubt that this would well be within the capabilities of the Kinahan cartel or the international network controlled by The Penguin [German-based drugs trafficker George Mitchell who is originally from Ballyfermot].

Gardai have also not ruled out that a number of different organised crime gangs may have clubbed together to bring in the massive haul.

Assistant Commissioner John O'Driscoll confirmed this morning that the ship originated in Costa Rica.

He told RTE's Morning Ireland: Its significant of course in its value but it is indicative of the drug market routes that are opened between the Americas and Europe."

Assistant Commissioner ODriscoll said Gardai and Customs worked with law enforcement from Europe and further afield in the intelligence-led operation.

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Mr ODriscoll confirmed both agencies also liaised with the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre in Lisbon, which is headed by Irishman Michael OSullivan, a former head of Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau.

Sophisticated equipment used by Revenue Customs officers was used during the course of the intensive search of the vessel once it arrived in Ringaskiddy.

Through international cooperation, and as result of intelligence and the equipment now available to officers, this sort of success can be achieved, he noted.

Assistant Commissioner ODriscoll said Gardai are investigating whether the shipment was destined solely for the Irish market or was to be moved on to the UK.

Cocaine is the second-largest illicit drug market in Europe. The EU drug market is valued at 30bn with the cocaine market. responsible for 9bn. There are an estimated four million users of cocaine in this market.

Mr ODriscoll said there were 8,238 deaths in Europe arriving from drug use in 2017 and said this illustrates the importance of removing these drugs from the market. First of all, to prevent the number of deaths from drug use, but also to prevent organised crime groups from accumulating large sums of money."

Gardai and Revenue have seized more drugs and money from organised crime gangs in the first two months of the year compared to any other year, Asst Commissioner ODriscoll said.

There have been no arrests in the case so far.

This comes after Mr ODriscoll said in a statement the joint operation demonstrates the potential of collaborative working relationships involving partner agencies, in tackling importation of controlled drugs that harm our communities.

The Garda Siochana will continue to work with others at a national and international level in targeting the importation and supply of illicit drugs and the organised crime gangs that benefit from such activity.

Mick Gilligan, director of Customs Drug Law Enforcement, also commented on the seizure: Combating the smuggling of controlled drugs such as cocaine into this jurisdiction, in collaboration with An Garda Siochana is a priority for Revenue.

He said that Revenues customs services had deployed the full suite of its specialist search resources including its container X-ray scanner, canine drug detection teams, container inspection teams and deep rummage officers from its Customs National Maritime Service.

Mr Gilligan said the seizure of cocaine will have a significant impact on organised crime and demonstrates the hard work that is undertaken every day by Revenues Customs Service and gardai.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says Australias media bargaining code has ushered in a historic moment for local news businesses, as Nine Entertainment Co became the latest outlet to ink a multimillion-dollar deal with Google for its news content.

Speaking before MPs began debating legislation in Parliament that would bring the code into law Mr Frydenberg said Googles deals with media companies this week would sustain public interest journalism in Australia for years to come.

This is a historic moment. A world first. The digital giants [are] entering into negotiations and agreements with Australian news media businesses for original content, Mr Frydenberg said. None of these deals would be happening if we didnt have the legislation before the Parliament. This world-leading mandatory code is bringing the parties to the table.

Treasurer John Frydenberg has hailed Googles deals with media companies. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Google agreed to pay Nine more than $30 million in cash annually for five years for the use of its news content, in a major breakthrough after months of high stakes negotiations. Multiple industry sources who were unable to speak publicly due to confidentiality agreements said the deal is the largest agreement for news Google has signed in Australia to date. The two parties signed a letter of intent late on Tuesday, and a final agreement is expected to be sealed in the next fortnight.

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI) -- Dozens of people spoke out for and against Sargent Brad Newman at the Merit Commission meeting Wednesday.

Many said a post he made on Facebook was racist and promotes genocide, but the Merit Commission said action already taken against him is enough.

In January Sargent Newman was suspended briefly after a post he made on Facebook that said in part, "we ought to nuke China. This virus wasn't an accident."

Wednesday afternoon the Terre Haute Police Merit Commission held a public meeting to hear from the community about Sargent Newman.

Afterward, Terre Haute Police Chief Shawn Keen explained legally, the commission couldn't do anything.

Those who support Newman said it was a good decision.

"To ask the merit board to go against the procedure in a case like this is not right and it could potentially be unlawful," Emily Donohue, a Terre Haute resident who spoke for Newman said. "And in saying that, you know, I think that his post was not a good post."

Others said they are upset but will continue speaking out.

"I'm disappointed right now. We're going to continue shedding light on these injustices. Now, we may not be able to do much more with Brad Newman right now, but we also will be keeping an eye on how Brad Newman acts in the future," Domonique Morefield, an organizer with the Terre Haute Reform Movement said.

The discipline Newman received was a 6-day suspension from the department. plus, 6 months of supervision on the force. They said that supervision is set to last into July.

Again, this is all action that the Terre Haute Police Department decided and the Merit Commission ruled in favor of Wednesday night.

Exxon Mobil on Wednesday said it has shut down manufacturing units across its Baytown refining and petrochemical complex area due to freezing weather conditions, coupled with the curtailment of natural gas supplies throughout Texas.

HOUSTON CHRONICLE: What went wrong with the Texas power grid?

Natural gas is the feed stock for Exxon's chemical operations in Baytown. The refinery has the capability to process up to 584,000 barrels of crude oil per day, according to Exxons website.

Any units that remain in operation are dedicated to exporting electricity back into the grid or to generating the power necessary to keep our people, the community and units safe, said Exxon Mobil spokesman Todd Spitler.

Exxon is exporting more than 200 megawatts back to the grid, which is enough electricity to power approximately 100,000 homes, according to Spitler.
The Biden administration says it's ready to join talks with Iran and world powers to discuss a return to the 2015 nuclear deal.

The U.S. will accept an invitation to join talks and discuss 'a diplomatic way forward' with Iran, the State Department said.

The State Department said the U.S. would accept an invitation from the European Union to attend a meeting of the participants in the original agreement.

Such an invitation has not yet been issued but one is expected shortly, following discussions earlier Thursday between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British, French and German counterparts.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at the State Department, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

'The United States would accept an invitation from the European Union High Representative to attend a meeting of the P5+1 and Iran to discuss a diplomatic way forward on Irans nuclear program,' State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.

Earlier Thursday, Blinken and the foreign ministers of Britain, Germany and France urged Iran to allow continued United Nations nuclear inspections and stop nuclear activities that have no credible civilian use. They warned that Irans actions could threaten delicate efforts to bring the U.S. back into the 2015 deal and end sanctions damaging Irans economy.

The move comes a day after President Joe Biden spoke to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and discussed what Netanyahu called 'the Iranian threat.' He has called for rejoining the agreement negotiated during the Obama administration. But his top diplomat has said Iran must act first before the U.S. can rejoin talks.

President Joe Biden has called for rejoining the Iran nuclear deal, and spoke about Iran Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu

Iranian president Hassan Rouhani said his country was not looking for nuclear bomb and claimed 'we didn't have secret nuclear activity not today, not yesterday and not in the future and this is the whole diplomacy of the regime'

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (C front) and Permanent Representative to the UN Vasily Nebenzya (R front) attend a ministerial meeting of the P5+1 countries [Russia, China, United Kingdom, France and Germany] and Iran held on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly

Iran is 'playing with fire,' said German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who took part in the talks Thursday in Paris with his British and French counterparts. Blinken had joined via videoconference.

Iran has said it will stop part of International Atomic Energy Agency inspections of its nuclear facilities next week if the West doesnt implement its own commitments under the 2015 deal. The accord has been unraveling since Trump pulled the U.S. out of the agreement.

Blinken reiterated that 'if Iran comes back into strict compliance with its commitments ... the United States will do the same,' according to a joint statement after Thursdays meeting that reflected closer trans-Atlantic positions on Iran since President Joe Biden took office.

The administration is seeking to salvage the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

The diplomats noted 'the dangerous nature of a decision to limit IAEA access, and urge Iran to consider the consequences of such grave action, particularly at this time of renewed diplomatic opportunity.'

They said Irans decision to produce uranium enriched up to 20% and uranium metal has 'no credible' civilian use.

The 2015 accord is aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Tehran denies it is seeking such an arsenal.

'We are the ones who have kept this agreement alive in recent years, and now its about supporting the United States in taking the road back into the agreement,' Maas told reporters in Paris.

'The measures that have been taken in Tehran and may be taken in the coming days are anything but helpful. They endanger the Americans path back into this agreement. The more pressure that is exerted, the more politically difficult it will be to find a solution,' he said.

Irans threats are 'very worrying,' British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said, stressing the need 'to re-engage diplomatically in order to restrain Iran, but also bring it back into compliance.'

The diplomats also expressed concern about human rights violations in Iran and its ballistic missile program.

In Iran, President Hassan Rouhani expressed hope Thursday that the Biden administration will rejoin the accord and lift the U.S. sanctions that Washington re-imposed under Trump, according to state television.

Tehran has been using its violations of the nuclear deal to put pressure on the remaining signatories - France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China - to provide more incentives to Iran to offset the crippling sanctions.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the president of the European Council spoke with Rouhani this week to try to end the diplomatic standoff. The head of the IAEA is scheduled to travel to Iran this weekend to find a solution that allows the agency to continue inspections.
US State Department Secretary will be speaking to his counterparts from Japan, and India soon as part of the "Quad" group of countries, said Ned Price, State Department Spokesperson, on Wednesday (local time).

The initiative is expected to put an end to the economic coercion tactics of China and cooperation with Japan and other allies will checkmate Chinese development assistance and its hegemony in the region.

While announcing Blinken's upcoming call, Price said, "This discussion with Foreign Ministers is critical to advancing our shared goals of a free and open Indo Pacific and rising to the defining challenges of our time."

This comes as members of the framework- the US, India, Japan and - are working to arrange the first meeting of their leaders amid China's growing clout in the region, reported the Japan Times.

The Biden administration appears eager to build on the renewed attention to the grouping of the four major Indo-Pacific democracies, with security adviser Jake Sullivan calling it "a foundation upon which to build substantial American policy in the Indo-Pacific", reported the daily quoting a source.

According to the source, the US has already proposed to other countries the idea of holding an online meeting of the Quad leaders.

During the envisioned meeting, the Quad members are expected to discuss cooperation for the realisation of a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" amid concerns over China's maritime assertiveness in the region. It is speculated that China may react with displeasure to the meeting.

The Japan Times reported that for the first time under the Quad framework, the foreign ministers of the four countries met in New York in 2019. The four countries held another meeting last year in Tokyo during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the October meeting, then-US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has reprimanded the dragon (China) for using its economic power to increase its hegemony over the neighbouring countries in South Asia.

Pompeo brought to the forum a denunciation of China's "exploitation, corruption, and coercion" of neighbouring countries. He said, "This is for the soul of the world. This is about whether this will be a world that operates in this sense that we're on a rules-based international order system or one that's dominated by a coercive totalitarian regime like the one in China.

(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.)
On Wednesday, Google announced that it has agreed to pay Rupert Murdochs News Corp for content. The deal was brokered at a time when tech giants are facing increasing pressure by Australian government to pay for news content. Australias House of Representatives passed the new media bill on Wednesday which proposes that digital platforms pay news publishers for carrying their news content. The bill will be considered by the Senate.

The three year agreement would see Google feature news from the media giant as part of the Google News Showcase. The agreement also mentions the development of a subscription platform, sharing of ad revenue and meaningful investments in video journalism by video sharing platform, YouTube.

The outlets joining Google News Showcase will include The Wall Street Journal, Barrons, MarketWatch, The New York Post, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Sun and other Australian media outlets like The Australian.

Earlier, tech giants Facebook and Google had threatened to partially withdraw services in Australia if the new media law came to pass.
Some Christians in India's Jharkhand state were hospitalized and arrested after being brutally attacked by religious nationalists who accused them of constructing an "unauthorized" church building and trying to convert people to Christianity.

On February 11, Christians were brutally attacked by religious nationalists in Meral village while the Christians were working on the construction of a new church building.

The incident resulted in serious injuries that sent three Christians to the hospital. Another 12 of them were falsely charged with various crimes they allegedly committed, the International Christian Concern (ICC) wrote.

Local sources told the ICC that a mob of 30 religious nationalists, led by a man named Shankar, attacked the construction site where the Christians were working.

Many Christians were injured in the attack including Pastor Ramnath Ram, Pravesh Ram, and Jai Murty Kunwar. All three were hospitalized due to severe injuries. Others sustaining minor injuries include Sunil Ram, Shiv Shankar Kumar, Shambhu Kumar, Ayan Kumar, Anita Devi, and Ruby Devi.

"The mob was shouting that the Christians were converting people to Christianity," an eyewitness told the ICC. "They said they would not let the Christians continue to live in this place."

Local authorities filed FIR No. 20/21 against 21 Christians who were attacked by the mob. Three of them, namely Sunil Kumar, Sambu Kumar, and Aryan, were arrested and sent to jail.

A local indicated that the incident didn't seem spontaneous; rather, it was a pre-meditated event.

"This seems to be a pre-planned incident," the local, a Christian who requested to stay anonymous, told the ICC. "The radical nationalists somehow wanted the church to be shut down in this village."

"That is why they targeted the pastor and the construction of the church building."

Jharkhand State is one of the nine states in India to have implemented an anti-conversion law. Radical nationalists often misuse these controversial laws to abuse and intimidate Christians. They use false accuse Christians of forcing conversions to gain legal immunity for their assaults on religious minorities.

An article from Hindustan Times in 2017, wrote that the Jharkhand's Religious Freedom Bill is targeted primarily at Christians, which comprises about 4.3 percent of Jharkhand's overall population according to the 2011 Census, and goes against the freedom of religious belief in the constitution of India.

Previous reports from Christianity Daily indicated that Hindu nationalists have been using such laws to persecute believers and have them thrown in jail.

Earlier this month, a group of six Christians, including three pastors, were attacked in the Balaghat District of Madhya Pradesh in Central India. The three pastors were arrested and sent to jail for allegedly forcing conversions in Bagoli village. The perpetrators were Hindu nationalists.

Last month, a group of Christians were also thrown in prison for allgedly violating the new anti-conversion law. The Christians were merely doing charity work in the Gautam Buddh Nagar District of Uttar Pradesh at the time, giving food to the poor people in the location. Police officers were behind the arrests and eventual imprisonment of the group, which included a Korean Christian named Mi Kyung Lee.
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The state Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld a womans $1.8 million award for an attack she suffered when she was hit in the head with a bottle on an NJ Transit bus, resulting in nearly two dozen stitches.

The 4-3 decision affirmed that NJ Transit, although a public carrier, has the same heightened duty of care to protect its customers as a private carrier under the states Tort Claims Act. NJ Transit had argued it couldnt be liable under the higher standard.

However, a new jury will be called to determine if the damages should also be found at the fault of the bottle thrower, who was never caught. Jurors could also consider whether NJ Transit had effective policies in place, and if the driver abided by those policies.

In July 21, 2013, Anasia Maison was riding an NJ Transit bus heading to Newark, taking a seat toward the back, a few rows in front of a group of teenagers, according to the ruling. As the bus pulled away, the teens began harassing her, throwing objects and flashed a knife at her. Maison, then a 22-year-old college student, tried move seats but failed, court documents state.

According to bus driver Kelvin Coats testimony, he knew there was a threat to Maison and acknowledged his job to get passengers from Point A to B safely, but also said that its not my job to get involved.

The teenagers threw a bottle at Maisons face as they got off the bus, and she called 911 using another passengers cell phone, court records state. She was transported to a local hospital, where she was treated for the serious and permanent injury to her forehead that resulted in 22 stitches.

Coats testified he followed NJ Transits policies and called the control center. After 15 minutes, the call center returned his call and contacted authorities. While he was monitoring the situation on the bus, he said he did not stop the bus, tell the men to stop harassing Maison, or contact the control center until after the woman was hit with the bottle.

In 2014, Maison filed the complaint alleging NJ Transit and Coats, the driver, breached their common-carrier duty to protect her from co-passengers, and suffered severe injuries as a result of the negligence. After a two day trial, a jury found the Tort Claims Act did not shield NJ Transit from liability, making them 100% responsible, and awarded Maison $1.8 million

NJ Transit appealed on several grounds, including that the bottle thrower should have been listed as a defendant. The court took the appeal in 2019.

Through this decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court protected the lives of all riders of NJ Transit buses and trains, said K. Raja Battacharya, Maisons lawyer. We hope that NJ Transit will follow the direction of the Court and re-examine its policies and procedures concerning passenger safety. This case is a significant victory for those of us who work to assure public safety.

An NJ Transit spokesperson did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Sophie Nieto-Munoz may be reached at snietomunoz@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her at @snietomunoz.

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Former mayoral candidate Tony Buzbee slept on the streets of downtown Houston Tuesday night to "prove a point and raise awareness," according to a video posted on his Facebook page.

Buzbee, a trial lawyer, has been staying at the Four Seasons Hotel Houston since Jan. 11 while his home in River Oaks undergoes renovation. He previously took up residence at the Post Oak Hotel in December 2020.

"I got run off twice from the Four Seasons," he said in a second video, which posted at midnight on Wednesday. "I was chased by another homeless person, since I'm homeless tonight."

In a third Facebook post on Wednesday morning, Buzbee said that he had only a sleeping bag, stick and hoodie for his night spent on the street:

"I spent a night on the street last night, with only a sleeping bag and a stick. I had a hoodie, but no coat. It was only one night. It certainly wasnt pleasant, but it was a learning experience. I can only imagine the mental, physical and emotional toll it would take on you to be out there day after day, night after night. It was cold, so I kept moving until I was absolutely sure I had found a place on the streets safe enough to lay down and sleep. But I didnt feel safe. In fact, the whole time I felt the presence of constant threats, even small. I was asked to move along repeatedly. Funny, the same guy who was quick to help me with my bags the day before was even quicker to tell me to move on off the hotel property. There was kindness. I was implored a few times to go to the GRB warming station blocks away. I was followed by a guy waving a large white blanket once. Most people I happened to come across, though, ignored me and looked right through me, like I didnt exist or matter.

Home is a special place for us. Without one we lose that sense of security and comfort. When our leaders fail us and our home has no power, water, no communications, it loses those key features that make it home. I was only out for one night. Now Im back, warm and safe. Others arent so lucky."

He also said he "quickly learned not to be using a phone, lest you want to lose it!"

Buzbee, who poured $7.5 million into his mayoral campaign in 2019, is no stranger to bold gestures. In January of that year, he brought a wheelbarrow of manure to a press conference to reinforce his assertion that something stinks at City Hall.

He previously made headlines for parking a World War II-era Sherman tank in front of his home on River Oaks Boulevard and having $300,000 worth of artwork destroyed by a guest.

After Buzbee hosted a party for Super Bowl LIII, thieves stole about $21 million worth of items from his home, including Monet and Picasso paintings. Buzbee said he tried to shoot one of the burglars, but his gun misfired.

He and fiancee Frances Moody frequent the couple's 7,000-acre Antioch Ranch -- which is also undergoing renovation -- in East Texas by private plane to visit the 17 species of mostly rescue animals who live on their property.

"The state, the city and county have failed you. If you're without power there's a reason for that," Buzbee said in his Facebook video. "I feel you, I'm on your side."
Recording videos has never been so easy or effortless, thanks to the tiny device that we all carry around in our pockets  the smartphone. And given how content creation these days is all about videos, the need for effective smartphone videography is higher than ever before. So, when a leading pioneer of smartphone technology like OPPO that always keeps its evolving consumer needs at the forefront of everything it does, comes out with something, the result is bound to be extraordinary.

And that is exactly what the new OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G aims to do. As the perfect smartphone for budding or even professional videographers, the new Reno device is so powerful that it covers all your videography needs to deliver some exceptional results. Furthermore, the brands association with one of the most loved Bollywood directors, Imtiaz Ali, aims to inspire video creators around the world to live infinite possibilities.

A one-of-its-kind film titled Eyes for You, created by the filmmaker using OPPOs latest videography expert is taking everyone by storm. By showcasing how a renowned director like him uses a smartphone to capture and create magic on screen, OPPO hopes to drive new-age video creators to share their stories the way they want to.

A noteworthy effort to unleash the worlds videography prowess

In the world of videography, where the usual way to go about things is through heavy equipment, mobile photography and videography have brought about a revolution. With increased consumption of video content, smartphone technologies are increasingly playing a major part in content production and consumption, delivering brighter, and clearer results with ease. With every generation, smartphone cameras are getting better, allowing aspiring creators to narrate their stories on the reel.

As the pioneer of smartphone camera technology, OPPO has always been one step ahead. With the Reno5 Pro 5G, the brand proves yet again that it not only understands evolving consumer needs but actively works on innovations to improve the consumer experience. And thats what the association with Imtiaz Ali also shows.

While the film itself is a work of art, what takes the cake is the entire experience of the director as he captured the entire film using the Reno5 Pro 5G. The ease-of-use shines through and showcases how the awesome features of the phone helped him bring out the emotions in the movie, just the way he wanted to. His experience will inspire a whole generation to become directors of their own life stories and capture stunning videography moments in any lighting conditions. The campaign will inspire the audience to shoot beyond limits and capture what they can imagine with the new OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G. Check out the video here:

As a contemporary Bollywood director, Imtiaz Ali has made a big name for himself. He has a stream of experimental stories to his credit, with an individualistic storytelling style that cinema has rarely seen before. Not only his stories, but even his use of camera techniques are also experimental. That makes this association with OPPO all the more riveting, as both the brand and the director have envisioned a new domain of videography that was unheard of.

Commenting on the collaboration with OPPO, Imtiaz Ali, said: As a brand, OPPO has been constantly innovating and I think they come up with very interesting and cutting-edge technologies for the consumers. Being a part of this project was very exciting for me! Shooting a film entirely on a smartphone felt challenging and thrilling at the same time. I was stunned by the video capabilities of the OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G. The industry-first AI Highlight Video feature helped me to shoot brilliant videos in all lighting conditions, without compromising on the quality of the shots. Even during low light conditions and while shooting in the dark, the smartphone helped in getting bright and crystal-clear videos. I must say this is the perfect device for new-age content creators.

He further added, The Reno5 Pro 5G is a great example of infinite passion with its exemplary features, stellar design, and exceptional videography capabilities. It truly helped me bring the characters I envisioned - to life. My advice to all new-age video creators is to stay fearless and never shy away from becoming the director of your own lifes story. With the OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G, you can explore the limitless possibilities around you and Live The Infinite.

The best companion for video creators

The OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G is a videographers true delight. With some path-breaking innovations, the device has ushered in a whole new era of videography and taken the video creation trend to a whole new level. And its not about higher megapixels or anything, but the fact that OPPO has intelligently integrated the software and AI advancements to provide users with the ability to capture superior videos in any lighting condition.

Damyant Singh Khanoria, CMO, OPPO India, said- At OPPO, we strive to introduce best-in-class technologies for consumers. The OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G is a shining example of this. Its exemplary video capabilities, especially the AI Highlight Video feature, have been applauded by creators and consumers globally. Our partnership with Imtiaz Ali showcases the magic the Reno5 Pro is capable of - Eyes For You is shot on the device. This collaboration aims to inspire new-age Creators and give wings to their boundless imagination.

Case in point, its spectacular AI Highlight Video feature. It doesnt matter what the lighting condition is, OPPO has ensured that your videos make everything look good in dim or backlit surroundings. This is powered by an industry-first Full Dimension Fusion (FDF) Portrait Video System that recognizes light levels and then applies a corresponding AI solution to make every video clear and vibrant. So whether you are recording a run on the beach against the harsh light of the sun, recording your parents anniversary celebrations in a dimly lit cafe, going deep-sea diving to capture marine life, or even simply recording yourself eating your favourite recipes, OPPO has you covered on all fronts.

Thats not all. To help you capture both sides of the story, the Reno5 Pro 5G features the Dual-view Video feature, which lets you simultaneously record videos from the front and rear cameras. So, you can record something that is happening right in front of you, and how you are reacting to it at the same time. Another great feature is the AI Color Portrait, which ensures that colour remains on your subject as they move through black-and-white scenery. And if you are looking to add some slo-mo effects, the 960fps slo-mo video feature does the job. After all, is done, and youre scratching your head for the perfect video editor, OPPO comes to your rescue, again. Because the Reno5 Pro 5G has SOLOOP, a Smart Video Editor that will take you from shooting to editing with just one tap. Whether you want the phone to edit, or would like to do it yourself, the Reno5 Pro 5G gives you all the tools to make you a next-gen video creator.

A few years ago, it would have been unimaginable to think that something that fits in your back pocket could help you with a video production quality that is pro-level. But with OPPO, anyone can bring out their lifes story, whether you are a movie creator or not. The Reno5 Pro 5G is a great tool for the new generation of storytellers- ultimately creating new ways of storytelling, new modes of production, and new types of engagement. It presents pioneering and visionary examples of smartphone films that will undoubtedly take their place as significant innovations in the history of cinema and the history of our life.

So, whether you are just starting out as a videographer, or are looking to ace your everyday video creation game, the OPPO Reno5 Pro 5G promises to encompass everything that you could want from a videography companion. In short, go out there and live your dreams, because the Reno5 Pro 5G is here to help you to Live the Infinite possibilities your life has to offer. Priced at Rs 35,990, the device is available across all mainline retailers and Flipkart.

(Disclaimer: This is an Impact Feature)
Officers are required to turn on body cameras during arrests and other confrontations, but department leaders acknowledged that the cameras often werent rolling, Ferguson wrote. His office said that less than 1/5 of arrest reports indicated there was bodycam footage of the arrest. Only 43% of uses of force were caught on bodycams, the report states. Many officers werent properly equipped after reporting to locations other than the districts, where the cameras are kept, Ferguson wrote.
Frances former conservative Secretary of State had been dramatically sent to prison for raping and sexually assaulting a colleague after coaxing her into office sex with a third woman using foot massages.

Georges Tron, 63, was found guilty by the Paris Appeal Court late on Wednesday evening after originally being cleared of the charges in 2018.

Tron  who was conservative Secretary of State under President Nicolas Sarkozy and is now the Mayor of Draveil, near Paris  was sentenced to five years in prison with two suspended.

Pictured: Former Secretary of State of Public Function and mayor of Draveil Georges arrives to Paris courthouse for his appeal trial on charges of rape and sexual assault on two former employees on February 17, 2021

As soon as the verdict was handed down, Tron was led away to the court cells, and then taken to La Sante prison in Paris.

Tron had used work meetings in Draveil to prey on a female colleague who cannot be named for legal reasons.

Trons co-accused, Brigitte Gruel, a former aide in Draveil, was also convicted of aiding and abetting gang rape and sexual assault and given a two-year suspended prison sentence.

Tron and Gruel were said to have offered foot massages to their victim, and then had sex with her.

Both Tron and Gruel were entered into a national register of sex offenders in France, and banned from holding a public office for six years.

Judges acquitted the defendants of the rape and sexual assault of a second complainant, who left the courtroom in tears. She cannot be named for legal reasons either.

Trons co-accused, Brigitte Gruel (pictured leaving a court house in 2018 after first being acquitted), a former aide in Draveil, was also convicted of aiding and abetting gang rape and sexual assault and given a two-year suspended prison sentence

Prosecuting documents stated that the rape and sexual assault of one of the plaintiffs in November 2009 and January 2010 were established by the constant and detailed statements of the victim.

Tron was forced to hand his resignation to Mr Sarkozy when the rape accusations were first made public in 2011, but he consistently claimed it was all part of a plot by political enemies.

Commenting on the conviction on Wednesday, Ms Ettels barrister, Vincent Ollivier, said: It's a message of relief for my client. Its also a message of hope for other women who find themselves in a similar situation.

Pictured: Former French President and head of the UMP right-wing opposition party Nicolas Sarkozy (left) with Georges Tron (centre) in 2015

It comes as France faces up to a serious of accusations of rape and other forms of sexual assault by women targeted by powerful men, including fashion bosses and film makers.

Many complainants have complained about cover-ups, and the notoriously slow nature of French justice in dealing with such crimes.

Trons old boss, Nicolas Sarkozy, is himself due in a criminal court himself on March 1 to hear the verdict of a corruption trial that could see him imprisoned.

Sarkozy is accused of plotting to get confidential information from an Assizes court judge by bribing him. The former president, who spent one term in office up until 2012, denies any wrongdoing.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne was curiously reticent to confirm Nick Greiners appointment as Australias consul-general to New York. The former federal president of the Liberal Party and NSW premier actually touched down in New York earlier this month and was promptly installed at the consul-generals residence.

Mitch Fifield and Nick Greiner. Credit:John Shakespeare

Have been here 10 days and at Beekman [Place], Greiner happily told CBD on Thursday morning. Beekman Place is the consul-generals rather enviable home on Manhattans East Side with views of the East River and home to more than a dozen ambassadorial and government residences. Heck, even the digs of Australias newly appointed ambassador to New York Mitch Fifield sit across the corridor from Greiners.

Hopefully Fifield was apprised of Greiners arrival. Finally, Paynes office was prepared to confirm his arrival on Thursday afternoon, praising him for his extensive and diverse experience as ideal to promote Australias strengths as a natural trade and investment partner to Big Apple business leaders.

Greiner cant get started soon enough given he was initially expected to be Stateside by October and in time for the US election. But February is better than never. Just ask News Corps supposedly New York-bound global head of innovation Damian Eales. Almost 10 months after his announcement to the job in News Corps Big Apple HQ, Eales remains in Sydneys Birchgrove.
This article first appeared in The Texas Tribune.

Frozen wind turbines in Texas caused some conservative state politicians to declare Tuesday that the state was relying too much on renewable energy. But in reality, the wind power was expected to make up only a fraction of what the state had planned for during the winter.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas projected that 80% of the grid's winter capacity, or 67 gigawatts, could be generated by natural gas, coal and some nuclear power.

An official with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas said Tuesday afternoon that 16 gigawatts of renewable energy generation, mostly wind generation, were offline. Nearly double that, 30 gigawatts, had been lost from thermal sources, which includes gas, coal and nuclear energy.

By Wednesday, those numbers had changed as more operators struggled to operate in the cold: 45 gigawatts total were offline, with 28 gigawats from thermal sources and 18 gigawatts from renewable sources, ERCOT officials said.

Texas is a gas state, said Michael Webber, an energy resources professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

While Webber said all of Texas energy sources share blame for the power crisis, the natural gas industry is most notably producing significantly less power than normal.

Gas is failing in the most spectacular fashion right now, Webber said.

Dan Woodfin, a senior director at ERCOT, echoed that sentiment Tuesday.

It appears that a lot of the generation that has gone offline today has been primarily due to issues on the natural gas system, he said during a Tuesday call with reporters.

Still, some have focused their blame on wind power.

This is what happens when you force the grid to rely in part on wind as a power source, U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Houston, tweeted Tuesday afternoon. When weather conditions get bad as they did this week, intermittent renewable energy like wind isnt there when you need it.

He went on to note the shutdown of a nuclear reactor in Bay City because of the cold and finally got to what energy experts say is the biggest culprit, writing, Low Supply of Natural Gas: ERCOT planned on 67GW from natural gas/coal, but could only get 43GW of it online. We didnt run out of natural gas, but we ran out of the ability to get natural gas. Pipelines in Texas dont use cold insulation so things were freezing.

Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, known for his right-wing Facebook posts that have, in the past, spread misinformation and amplified conspiracy theories, also posted an unvarnished view of wind energy on Facebook: We should never build another wind turbine in Texas."

In another post, Miller was even more forthright, but also misleading. Insult added to injury: Those ugly wind turbines out there are among the main reasons we are experiencing electricity blackouts, he wrote. Isnt that ironic? ... So much for the unsightly and unproductive, energy-robbing Obama Monuments. At least they show us where idiots live.

While wind power skeptics claimed the weeks freeze means wind power cant be relied upon, wind turbines  like natural gas plants  can be winterized, or modified to operate during very low temperatures. Experts say that many of Texas power generators have not made those investments necessary to prevent disruptions to equipment since the state does not regularly experience extreme winter storms.

Its estimated that of the grids total winter capacity, about 80% of it, or 67 gigawatts, could be generated by natural gas, coal and some nuclear power. Only 7% of ERCOTs forecasted winter capacity, or 6 gigawatts, was expected to come from various wind power sources across the state.

Production of natural gas in the state has plunged due to the freezing conditions, making it difficult for power plants to get the fuel necessary to run the plants. Natural gas power plants usually dont have very much fuel storage on site, experts said. Instead, the plants rely on the constant flow of natural gas from pipelines that run across the state from areas like the oil and natural gas-producing Permian Basin in West Texas to major demand centers like Houston and Dallas.

Gov. Greg Abbott specified that fossil fuel sources were contributing to the problems with the grid when describing the situation Monday afternoon.

The ability of some companies that generate the power has been frozen. This includes the natural gas & coal generators, he wrote in a tweet.

Heather Zichal, CEO of the industry group the American Clean Power Association, said opponents of renewable energy were trying to distract from the failures elsewhere in the system and slow the transition to a clean energy future.

It is disgraceful to see the longtime antagonists of clean power  who attack it whether it is raining, snowing or the sun is shining  engaging in a politically opportunistic charade, misleading Americans to promote an agenda that has nothing to do with restoring power to Texas communities, she said.

Matthew Watkins contributed reporting.

Disclosure: Facebook and University of Texas at Austin have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
Foreigners attend a job fair for foreign residents at COEX, Seoul, in this September 2019 photo. Yonhap



By Lee Hyo-jin



Carolina Bahamondes, 31, a foreign resident from Chile, has been searching for a job in Korea since she obtained her master's degree from a university in Seoul in February 2020.



But so far, it's not going very well.



"Last year, I submitted applications to at least 30 companies and received contact from three of them. But we couldn't proceed due to visa issues because I was then in Chile. Since I came back to Korea this January, I have applied to around 10 companies, but I haven't heard from them yet," she told The Korea Times



With an intermediate to advanced level of proficiency in the Korean language, it is not easy to find a job in a relevant field as her major, environmental energy engineering.



"The companies I'm interested in are mostly small or medium-sized enterprises, and they demand fluency in Korean. It is hard to compete with native speakers," she said.



A Ph.D. student from Malaysia surnamed Ahmad Basri has similar concerns. Currently attending a university in North Gyeongsang Province, he is preparing to enter the job market, as he finishes his course in June.



"It's difficult because I don't know where I can get information on job vacancies for foreigners. Some companies only accept Korean nationals but they don't put that requirement in their advertisements," he said.



Both Bahamodes and Ahmad Basri pointed out a lack of support from their universities.



"A lot of foreigners aren't familiar with the resume format including the mandatory self-introduction letter, and this reduces our opportunities. It would be better if international students could receive guidance from the university before they finish their courses," Bahamondes said.









Admad Basri echoed the sentiment saying, "Any kind of help would be great for us, career counseling or open job fairs."



Their concerns are shared by hundreds of foreign nationals who are struggling to find jobs in Korea after getting an advanced degree here, due to multiple reasons including a lack of information on employment, the language barrier and work visa issues.





A woman looks at postings during a job fair for foreign residents at COEX, Seoul, in this September 2019 photo. Yonhap
EDWARDSVILLE  Founding members Troy Walton and Steve Telken along with firm attorney Micah Summers of Walton Telken, LLC were selected as Illinois Super Lawyers for 2021.

Firm attorney Adam Bragee was also honored as a Rising Star for the third year in a row.

Super Lawyers selects attorneys using a patented multiphase selection process. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. No more than five percent of attorneys in the state are given the honor of being named a Super Lawyer.

Walton was also honored as a distinguished member of the Top 100: 2021 Illinois Super Lawyers List.

Walton has been inducted into the Million Dollar Advocates Forum with membership reserved for the top 1 percent of lawyers in the United States, selected as a Leading Lawyer in personal injury, received the AV Preeminent Rating from Martindale-Hubbell for Legal Ability and Ethical Standards and recognized as one of the Top 100 Civil Plaintiffs Lawyers by the National Trial Lawyers.

Telken said the firm has strived to find ways to continue to provide quality representation and personal service to clients during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic.

Our clients come to us with difficult problems and serious injuries. Anytime we are recognized for the dedicated service that we provide, we are grateful, Telken said.

In the past few years, the Walton Telken firm has handled cases resulting in the recovery of millions of dollars for clients. Walton Telken handles serious personal injury and wrongful death actions involving motor vehicle and trucking accidents, defective products, medical malpractice, premises liability and workers compensation. The firm also handles complex civil litigation including mass torts and class actions.

Walton Telken is headquartered in Edwardsville and handles cases throughout Illinois and Missouri. For more information, visit www.waltontelken.com.
New York, Feb 18 : US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin considers India "a critical partner" for meeting the challenges in the Indo-Pacific region and gives priority to ties with it, according to Pentagon Spokesperson John Kirby.

"The secretary is prioritising this relationship, wants to see it continue to grow and develop and to get stronger," Kirby said on Wednesday at a news briefing in Washington.

"He looks very much looking forward to working on initiatives to do just that," Kirby said in reply to a reporter's question about Austin's views on relations with India.

Austin considers India "a critical partner, especially when you consider all the challenges in the Indo-Pacific region," he added.

Austin spoke last month with India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and "emphasised the Department's commitment to the US-India Major Defence Partnership, observing that it is built upon shared values and a common interest in ensuring the Indo-Pacific region remains free and open", the Pentagon said.

President Joe Biden announced the formation of the new strategy task force so that "we can chart a strong path forward on China-related matters" during a visit to the Pentagon last week.

"We need to meet the growing challenges posed by China to keep the peace and defend our interests in the Indo-Pacific and globally," he said.

(Arul Louis can be reached at arul.l@ians.in and followed on Twitter at @arulouis)
Drill Program to commence on its Rice Island Strategic-Metal Ni-Cu-Co Deposit

THUNDER BAY, ON / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Wolfden Resources Corporation (TSXV:WLF) (the "Company" or "Wolfden") is pleased to announce that the Company has been awarded a $230,000 grant from the Manitoba Mineral Development Fund to support a 2,300 metre diamond drill program designed to expand its wholly owned Rice Island strategic-metal nickel-copper-cobalt deposit. The deposit is well located near the town of Snow Lake and its existing infrastructure that includes power, an experienced mining work force and other operating mineral processing facilities. The drill program is expected to commence in the coming days.

Highlights of the $230,000 MMDF Grant

Awarded by the Manitoba Mineral Development Fund (MMDF), the granted has been approved to help expedite a diamond drill program on its Rice Island Project

The MMDF mandate is to jump-start mineral exploration and economic development Province-wide to create new opportunities and capitalize on existing infrastructure

The focus of the drill program to expand the mineral resource of the Rice Island nickel-copper-cobalt deposit with step-out drill holes and to explore for similar mineralization within the Project area

"The MMDF is pleased to be able to assist in a project like Rice Island that is known to contain strategic metals of nickel, copper, and cobalt in a very prospective mineral belt," stated Chuck Davidson, the President and CEO of the Manitoba Chamber of Commerce and Chair of the Manitoba Mineral Development Fund. "The project is consistent with the MMDF's priority and objective to jump-start mineral exploration initiatives in Manitoba that could capitalize on existing mineral assets and infrastructure, in an effort to strengthen and diversify economic opportunities, particularly in the northern part of the Province."

The creation of the MMDF is in response to the relative economic instability of the mining and mineral development industry in Manitoba. Projects funded by MMDF will benefit Manitoba's economy and local communities, featuring a partner-based approach to help grow and diversify the provincial economy together among other things, with Indigenous communities.

"We appreciate the generous grant, it's a strong endorsement for Wolfden and the potential to expand the deposit," stated Ron Little, President & CEO of Wolfden. "In addition, it demonstrates the Manitoba Governments' forward-looking commitment in supporting strategic-metal mineral exploration and the importance of the mineral extraction industry in creating jobs and other associated economic benefits, for the community of Snow Lake and the surrounding area. Wolfden will more than match the funds of the grant in the coming drill program."

About Wolfden

Wolfden is an exploration and development company focused strategic and precious metals deposits in good jurisdictions. Its wholly owned Pickett Mountain Project is one of the highest-grade polymetallic projects in North America (Zn, Pb, Cu, Ag, Au). This relatively advanced project is well-located near excellent infrastructure that will support straight forward development as detailed in a Preliminary Economic Assessment date September 14, 2020.

For further information please contact Ron Little, President & CEO, at (807) 624-1136 or Rahim Lakha, Corporate Development at (416) 414-9954.

The information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Don Dudek, P. Geo., VP Exploration and Ron Little P.Eng., President and CEO, who are Qualified Persons' under National Instrument 43-101.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains forward-looking information (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation) that involves various risks and uncertainties regarding future events. Such forward-looking information includes statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties and such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance of the Company, and include, without limitation, statements relating to the completion of the Offering, the use of proceeds of the Offering, metal price assumptions, cash flow forecasts, projected capital and operating costs, metal or mineral recoveries, mine life and production rates, and other assumptions used in Preliminary Economic Assessment dated September 14, 2020, information about future activities at the Pickett Mountain Project that include plans to complete additional drilling and pre-permitting (rezoning petition), the results of the Preliminary Economic Assessment dated September 14, 2020, the potential upside of the Pickett Mt. Project, and the timing and commencement of future drill programs in Maine, Manitoba and New Brunswick. There are numerous risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and the Company's plans and objectives to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking information in this news release, including without limitation, the following risks and uncertainties: (i) risks inherent in the mining industry; (ii) regulatory and environmental risks; (iii) results of exploration activities and development of mineral properties; (iv) risks relating to the estimation of mineral resources; (v) stock market volatility and capital market fluctuations; and (vi) general market and industry conditions. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such information. This forward-looking information is based on estimates and opinions of management on the date hereof and is expressly qualified by this notice. Risks and uncertainties about the Company's business are more fully discussed in the Company's disclosure materials filed with the securities regulatory authorities in Canada at www.sedar.com. The Company assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking information or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from such information unless required by applicable law.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Wolfden Resources Corporation

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630507/Wolfden-Awarded-023M-Grant-from-the-Manitoba-Government-MMDF
Vermont's House of Representatives opens each session with a "daily devotion." Tuesday morning's presentation (February 16) by Representative Harold "Hal" Colston was an outrageous condemnation of Vermont's history and culture as racist. This abused the very concept of devotion, and Vermonters.

The Vermont House Clerk's "Guidelines for Devotions" provide that

[a] devotional is an inclusive homily, life lesson, song, poem, prayer, reading, or musical piece appropriate to the setting[.] ... The devotional helps to set the tone and allows a few moments for reflection and contemplation. The person ... offering the devotional shall ... refrain from discussing individual political positions[.]

Referencing the 1619 Project, Rep. "Hal" launched into an overtly anti-white tirade. Quoting James Baldwin, whom Colston " regard[s] as one of Black America's most prolific prophets," Colston proclaimed (in a state where slavery was never legal, and very few blacks ever resided):

What if the Negro was not invented? How would our country have worked without chattel slavery, the exploitation of black and brown people who became the backbone of our capitalistic system? Who would you be? Who would we be? ... Structural racism is the normalization of many dynamics that are historical, cultural, institutional and interpersonal and routinely advantages White people while producing chronic, adverse outcomes for people of color.

Not all Vermont legislators  let alone citizens  would view this rant as "inclusive" of the Vermonters who died in the Civil War freeing blacks from slavery. This "historical and cultural omission" is suspicious.

What if a GOP legislator took the floor, asking, "Where would black people be without the white man?" He could then quote Thomas Sowell:

The people made worse off by slavery were those who were enslaved. Their descendants would have been worse off today if born in Africa instead of America. Put differently, the terrible fate of their ancestors benefitted them. The black family survived centuries of slavery and generations of Jim Crow, but it has disintegrated in the wake of the liberals' expansion of the welfare state.

That would set a different (non-racist) tone for the Vermont House...

Importing Depression-era suffering in New York City to 2021 Vermont is more than anachronistic  it is alien, dishonest. If Colston is to so reverently employ Baldwin, a prophet of doom and hate, is he also calling for violence against white people as Baldwin did? Is he endorsing Baldwin's blatant racism and anti-Semitism?

Rep. Colston should relate Baldwin's words for Vermont's Jews at a future devotional. In his 1967 New York Times editorial "Negroes Are Anti-Semitic Because They Are Anti-White," Baldwin spews out a laundry list of those he hates that shows an intense devotion indeed:

In the American context, the most ironical thing about Negro anti-Semitism is that the Negro is really condemning the Jew for having become an American white man  for having become, in effect, a Christian. The Jew profits from his status in America, and he must expect Negroes to distrust him for it.

In the course of this raging justification for his racism, Baldwin condemns Jews for using the slaughter of 6,000,000 "as proof they cannot be bigots" while suggesting that his invocation of slavery exempts him from bigotry. But the hate is seething  against Jewish landlords, storekeepers, butchers, pawnbrokers, and shoe salesmen; against welfare workers, postal workers, policemen, unions, teachers, "all his bosses in the Army." The list is long...

Concludes Baldwin:

The crisis taking place in the world, and in the minds and hearts of black men everywhere, is not produced by the star of David, but by the old, rugged Roman cross on which Christendom's most celebrated Jew was murdered. And not by Jews.

Vermont's Constitution (Section 3) provides (in part):

[E]very sect or denomination of christians ought to observe the sabbath or Lord's day, and keep up some sort of religious worship, which to them shall seem most agreeable to the revealed will of God.

This language is quite at odds with Baldwin's hateful rhetoric, just as Colston's hateful shaming of his own constituents is completely at odds with the House Rules for Devotionals (and their well established history as Abolitionists).

But Vermont's Progressives run a tight, if oppressive, ship. In February 3's House devotional, a virtue-signaling Democrat perverted an MLK sermon into a hateful condemnation conveying the opposite of King's message to inveigh against Vermonters:

So whether we agree or are aware or not, we are all, myself included, a part of a system of white supremacy that was fundamental to the birth of our constitutional government. If we were born in this country we were born into white supremacy. We have all been acculturated in it.

Two years ago, a Vermont pastor was banned from delivering devotionals in the Vermont Senate because he referenced a "right to life." Preaching hate and racist strife goes unchallenged; referencing the miracle of life is silenced.

These Circus Devotionals are the ultimate bully pulpit on display. Vermont's thuggish Progressive supermajority religiously slanders its own constituents as white supremacist beneficiaries of "systemic racism." Is this the future of America?

Someone should take a knee...and pray.

Subscribe for John Klar's commentaries at vtliberty.net.

Image via Public Domain Pictures.

In recent weeks, San Francisco has opened vaccination sites in neighborhoods that have been hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Next, the city hopes to bring vaccines directly to homeless people.

When it has enough vaccines, San Francisco will start a mobile program to vaccinate some of its 17,000 homeless people, according to Dr. Deborah Borne, who is overseeing San Franciscos vaccine rollout to people experiencing homelessness. It could happen as early as next week.

Currently, mass vaccination sites at both the Moscone Center and City College are closed due to lack of vaccination supply.

Borne said the city plans to visit and vaccinate all residents at a permanent supportive housing location where 40% to 50% of the people are over 65, a congregate site and possibly also a shelter-in-place site. She did not specify the locations.

Borne said the city also allows individuals who are homeless to get vaccinated at drop-in sites for specific neighborhoods throughout the city, but she could not say how much of the homeless population has already been vaccinated through these drop-in sites.

The state is restricting who can get vaccines because of limited supply. Under its most recently updated guidelines, only people 65 and older, health care workers and long-term care residents are allowed to get vaccinated, with workers in agriculture and food, emergency care and education becoming eligible on Feb. 24.

Nick Otto / Special to The Chronicle

Although Borne told The Chronicle on Wednesday that the city aimed to offer vaccinations soon to even people under 65 who are homeless, the city said Thursday that it would remain within state guidelines  and was awaiting further clarification from the state on vaccinations for people without homes.

Our mobile strategy will be tailored to populations with high rates of COVID-19 illness, hospitalizations and death and with structural barriers to getting vaccine, a spokesperson said. As we test these operations, we will do so in accordance with the states guidelines.

One factor the city considered regarding mass vaccination of its homeless population was the viability of returning to give people their second dose.

A spokesperson for the city said Wednesday: We do not withhold vaccine from someone we think might be unlikely to get their second dose. ... Its better to do one than none at all even if its a two-dose regimen.

Berkeley, which also has a sizable homeless population, is likewise gearing up to start mass vaccinations for its homeless population after getting the go-ahead from the state over the weekend, according to Lisa Warhuus, Berkeleys director of Health, Housing and Community Services.

The state is aware that we have a large, unhoused and vulnerable population that we need to protect through an equity lens and has let us know that we may move forward given where we are in Tier 1B. Vaccine is allocated to jurisdictions, including the city of Berkeley, on a weekly basis, and so we dont always know from week to week how much we will receive, she said.

That said, we intend to set aside a portion that will allow us to vaccinate all unhoused members who want to be vaccinated over a period of several weeks. We are prioritizing based upon individual health status, and settings (i.e. congregate living vs. less congregate).

Warhuus told The Chronicle that Berkeley will work with shelters, respite sites, Alameda County and other partners to develop a plan that involves building trust and implementing mobile vaccinations.

She said the city hopes to be able to move forward with the plan by early to mid-March.

Meghan Bobrowsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email Meghan.Bobrowsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MeghanBobrowsky
Veteran Christian film-maker, Evangelist Mike Bamiloye, whose wife, Gloria, clocked 57 on February 4, 2021, has said he didnt post some a...

Veteran Christian film-maker, Evangelist Mike Bamiloye, whose wife, Gloria, clocked 57 on February 4, 2021, has said he didnt post some attributes of his wife on social media for fear of backlash by social media militants.

In a Facebook post on Thursday, the founder of Mount Zion Faith Drama Ministry said he restrained himself when he remembered how feminists attacked the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, last year for paying a birthday tribute to his wife, Pastor Folu Adeboye.

Bamiloye, who has been married for 33 years, said his wife, Gloria, is very humble and submissive like Pastor Folu Adeboye.

He wrote, Sometimes ago, when My Daddy, Pastor Enoch Adeboye said Mummy Folu Adeboye is very humble and submissive, the internet and social media broke loose and some bees of people went after him, talking against him and dragging him.

When I saw what the social media militants did to him, I too could not post the post what I wanted to post about my wife.

I had wanted to post that my wife, Mummy Olusola Gloria, resemble my Mummy, Folu Adeboye, in humility and submission, and that is why I am still enjoying my marriage of 33 years.

Up till now, I am still not able to post the post I wanted to post that sister Gloria is very humble and submissive in her husbands house.

In a tribute last July, 78-year-old Adeboye who has been married for over 50 years, said his wife still cooks for him and is submissive.

Although the message was well-received by many of Adeboyes followers, several feminists on social media called out the cleric for promoting patriarchy and male chauvinism.

Adeboye later apologised to his critics saying he was talking to his spiritual children and members of his church.
Minister of Energy Virgil Popescu had a working meeting on Thursday with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Hungary, Peter Szijjarto, during which the emphasis was placed on the need to develop bilateral relations between the two states, especially in the field of energy.

"Specifically, we talked about the Black Sea gas, the BRUA pipeline and the Hungarian perspective on this important project, given that we want to find viable solutions for the diversification of food and transport sources, in order to strengthen energy security. We agreed to intensify the dialogue in order to collaborate on the discussions that will take place at the level of the European Union in order to meet the objectives of the transition to clean energy, using a technologically neutral diversified energy mix," Virgil Popescu wrote on Facebook.

The meeting was also attended by E.S. Ambassador Zakonyi Botond and Secretary of State Mosoczi Laszlo on behalf of Hungary and Secretaries of State Dan Dragan, Niculae Havrilet and representative with special tasks of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for energy security Cristian Badescu, on behalf of Romania.

Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Catalin Drula met on Thursday, at the Ministry of Transport, with Peter Szijjarto, the two officials discussing the very good collaboration between Romania and Hungary in the field of transport and transport infrastructure, including in the period characterized by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, they addressed issues of common interest related to bilateral cooperation in the field of transport and transport infrastructure, with particular emphasis on investment projects in road and rail infrastructure, road transport, reduction of border waiting times for rail transport, and also transport on the Danube.

The 8th session of the Joint Romanian-Hungarian Inter-Governmental Commission for Economic Cooperation, expected to take place in the first part of April 2021, in Budapest, was also reviewed.



[February 18, 2021] BREAKING ALERT: ROSEN, TOP RANKED GLOBAL INVESTOR COUNSEL, Encourages Jianpu Technology Inc. Investors to Secure Counsel Before Important Deadline - JT

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, announces the filing of a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of the securities of Jianpu Technology Inc. (NYSE: JT) between May 29, 2018 and February 16, 2021, inclusive (the "Class Period"). A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 19, 2021. SO WHAT: If you purchased Jianpu securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the Jianpu class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-2033.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than April 19, 2021. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience or resources. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement againt a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities Class Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 3 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020 founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.



DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) that certain of the Company's transactions carried out by the Credit Card Recommendation Business Unit involved undisclosed relationships or lacked business substance; (2) that, as a result, Jianpu's revenue and costs and expenses for fiscal 2018 and 2019 were overstated; (3) that there were material weaknesses in Jianpu's internal control over financial reporting; (4) that, as a result of the foregoing, the Company's fiscal 2018 Form 20-F was reasonably likely to be restated; and (5) as a result, the Company's public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages. To join the Jianpu class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-2033.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn (News - Alert) : https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm, on Twitter (News - Alert) : https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook (News - Alert) : https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm/. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005714/en/

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Hannah Clarke's grieving family have been caught in the crossfire of Facebook's war on Australian news after their tribute page was shut down on the social media platform.

Some of Australia's most important services have been gagged after the Australian government proposed legislation which would require services like Facebook and Google to pay for news.

Rather than lock in deals with Australian outlets like Google has, nine million daily Australian Facebook users instead woke on Thursday to find their access to news on the app had been revoked.

Facebook also shut down services beyond official media organisations, including the page dedicated to Lloyd and Sue Clarke's Small Steps 4 Hannah foundation.

The Facebook page set up for the Small Steps 4 Hannah page was impacted when Facebook restricted access to news websites

Hannah Clarke's grieving family have been caught in the crossfires of Facebook's war on Australian news after their tribute page was shut down on the social media platform. Pictured: Hannah with her son, Trey, who was particularly affectionate and a 'mummy's boy'

The foundation was established after 31-year-old Hannah was doused in petrol and set alight alongside her three children by her possessive estranged husband, Rowan Baxter, a year ago on Friday.

Six-year-old Aaliyah, her four-year-old sister Laianah and three-year-old brother Trey all died at the scene.

Hannah bravely detailed the attack to police twice before succumbing to burns covering 97 per cent of her body.

As bystanders tried to rescue Hannah and her three babies, Baxter brandished a knife and told witnesses to 'let her burn' before fatally stabbing himself.

Friday will mark the one year anniversary of the brutal attack, and Mr and Mrs Clarke had planned to use their Facebook platform to communicate with followers on the page.

Hannah Clarke is pictured with her two daughters Aaliyah, six, and Laianah, four

Hannah's parents Lloyd and Sue are pictured with two of their grandchildren. The grieving couple are speaking out as a reminder that domestic violence can happen in any postcode and any class

The family have not been informed about the whether access to the page will be reinstated.

Small Steps 4 Hannah is not affiliated with any media organisations, and instead hoped to raise awareness about the detrimental impact of coercive control in the community.

The couple hoped to shine a light on the topic after learning Hannah was herself a victim of coercive control within her relationship, yet didn't know what signs to look out for.

Queensland took the first step towards criminalising coercive control by abusive partners just 24 hours ago.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced on Wednesday she had established a task force to consult with survivors of domestic, family, and sexual violence to better understand the needs of victims.

WHY HAS FACEBOOK BLOCKED AUSTRALIAN NEWS AND WHO IS AFFECTED? Emergency services that provide Australians with news about Covid-19, bushfires and where to go for domestic violence help are among the vital Facebook pages which have been scrapped by the foreign-owned social media giant. Even the Bureau of Meteorology's Facebook page has been pulled by the US-based Big Tech company, along with crucial health information pages from the Queensland, South Australian and ACT governments. Facebook also blocked its own page during the blundered roll-out of its ban on Australian news in response to the proposed Media Bargaining Code. The law would make companies like Google and Facebook negotiate fees with news providers to use their content. The extraordinary decision to remove news services from the platform rather than obey Australian law also meant 1800Respect - the national domestic violence and sexual assault helpline - can no longer share essential information with some of the most vulnerable Australians. Westpac and Careflight's official rescue helicopter pages and NSW Fire and Rescue's posts have also been blocked. Dozens of pages linked to charities have also been stripped of their content, including the National Homeless Collective and DV Connect. Facebook's decision to ban Australian news means its nine million user nationwide who log into the site every day can no longer view any news whatsoever about their nation or anywhere else in the world - but can still read conspiracy theories, news from dictators and other extremist unsubstantiated views. The social media platform's 13 million monthly Australian users cannot read news from established organisations or even shares news with each other on Facebook - which is particularly damaging to those living in regional and remote areas. Facebook's move contrasts with Google, which in recent days has brokered deals with most Australian media groups - from Nine, to Seven and News Corp - in response to the regulatory push. Advertisement

The task force will report back to the government with its findings in October, when Ms Palaszczuk hopes to pass laws to criminalise the behaviour.

And while Mr and Mrs Clarke are thrilled with the outcome, their limited access to the page has put a dampener on their spirits.

'It's very upsetting,' Mrs Clarke said of the Facebook censorship. 'We were wanting to announce one of our new ambassadors. It's very, very disappointing.'

Prior to her death, Hannah separated from Baxter and learned she was a victim of coercive control.

Coercive control is categorised as an insidious form of family violence which slowly restricts victims and strips them of their power within a relationship.

In Hannah's relationship, Baxter dictated what she could and couldn't wear, would go through her phone and limited the time she could spend with friends and family.

Offenders also often seize control of their victim's finances, though this wasn't the case with Hannah because Baxter was not smart enough to handle the money.

'Coercive control, like other forms of domestic and family violence, needs to be everybody's business,' Ms Palaszczuk said in a statement.

'We've seen legislation against coercive control in places like the UK, and it's important that we too have legislation in place to better protect victims.'

While Lloyd and Sue Clarke can't access the Facebook page, they previously revealed how they would honour Hannah and their grandchildren on the anniversary of their deaths this Friday.

The Clarke's will light a candle to represent Hannah, Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey on Friday afternoon, and have encouraged the public to do the same

Lloyd and Sue have created the Small Steps 4 Hannah Foundation to ensure other women know the less obvious warning signs of domestic violence

The Clarke's will light a candle to represent Hannah, Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey on Friday afternoon, and have encouraged the public to do the same.

The purpose of lighting candles is to remember the late family as 'bright, happy people who brought light to everyone they met,' Mrs Clarke explained.

Her husband said the 'light' will come after 'our family and friends have been through some pretty dark times in the last 12 months'.

'As the sun goes down we invite you to light a candle for them and for all victims of domestic and family violence,' Mr Clarke said.

Mrs Clarke also encouraged religious people to pray for a 'lighter and happier world' and to help 'keep the flame burning until there is no more darkness'.

This Friday, Lloyd and Sue Clarke will light a candle to represent each of the lives lost on February 19, 2020
The easing of coronavirus restrictions next month will be extremely limited, Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said.

He expected schools to be reopened in a phased manner and predicted assessments would be taken every two to three weeks.

The Enterprise Minister said Covid numbers were falling but not as fast as they had been and the country was still above the peak of the first wave.

The Tanaiste acknowledged the need for more detailed information for those in line for vaccines and said that will be put in place.

The Fine Gael leader told colleagues at Wednesdays parliamentary party meeting that all those 85 and over would be vaccinated over coming weeks.

Mr Varadkar said the administration of the vaccine is entirely dependent on the supply and expected one million doses each month in April, May and June.

The party leader told the meeting that a two-island strategy would make sense but would require all five jurisdictions to be in line with each other.
Multiple patients who went to a CVS location in Massachusetts this week to get their coronavirus shots were given wrong dosages of the vaccine, according to the company.

A limited number of patients at the companys pharmacy on Central Street in Ipswich were inadvertently given 0.3 milliliter doses of the COVID-19 vaccine instead of the correct 0.5 milliliter doses recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a spokesperson for CVS told MassLive in a statement.

It is unclear exactly how many people were affected by the mistake.

We have contacted all affected patients to apologize for this incident and answer any questions they might have, the spokesperson said. Weve reported it to the appropriate regulatory agencies and have taken the necessary steps to prevent this from occurring again.

The spokesperson noted that based on CDC and clinical guidance, another dose of the vaccine is not recommended for the patients who were impacted by the companys error. The people who were affected can get their previously scheduled second shot next month, according to the spokesperson.

WCVB reported a woman who received her vaccine for the viral respiratory infection Monday at the Ipswich location was contacted by a CVS pharmacist, who told her she was given the dosage for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which is less than the Moderna vaccine.

According to the CDCs website, the dosage for Pfizer-BioNTechs vaccine is 0.3 milliliters, while Modernas is 0.5 millileters.

The dosage mistake is one in a line of mishaps that have occurred over the course of the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine in Massachusetts.

The State House New Service reported that lawmakers, after expressing frustration with the states rollout, are set to kick off hearings next week to examine Gov. Charlie Bakers vaccination efforts and hear testimony from his administration about its distribution process and future plans.

Nearly all the members of the Massachusetts federal congressional delegation, excluding U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, also penned a letter to Baker earlier this week in which they called on him to set up a centralized vaccine pre-registration system. The lawmakers described the states current sign-up process as disjointed and cumbersome.

The states online booking portal crashed Thursday morning as nearly a million more Massachusetts residents became eligible to schedule an appointment to receive their COVID-19 vaccine.

The setback comes after Baker announced Wednesday the state would be allowing priority group 2 of Phase 2 of the rollout to receive their vaccines starting Thursday. The priority group includes people 65 years and older, individuals with at least two comorbidities that put them at high risk of coronavirus and residents and/or staff of low income and affordable senior housing.

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The joint venture now has a majority stake in the property portfolio; Sainsbury retains a 49% stake in the portfolio

( ), the grocery property investment trust, has bought another slew of properties on which supermarket giant Sainsburys trades.

The 25.5% beneficial interest in one of the UK's largest portfolios of supermarket properties has been acquired from an Aviva Investors managed fund through Supermarket Incomes 50:50 joint venture with the British Airways Pension Trustees Limited.

The purchase price is 115.0mln (excluding acquisition costs), of which the London-listed real estate investment trust (REIT) will stump up half.

The joint venture (JV) acquired its initial 25.5% beneficial interest from PLC ( ) in May 2020. Following this second acquisition, the JV's ownership in the portfolio is 51.0%. The remaining 49.0% beneficial interest is held by Sainsbury's PLC ( ).

The directors of Supermarket Income REIT said the strategic rationale remains compelling for this high-quality portfolio of predominantly omnichannel supermarkets.

The portfolio offers strong property fundamentals and scope for progressive valuation growth in excess of the company's targeted annualised total shareholder return, the REIT said.

"This acquisition increases the size of our investment in this high-quality Sainsbury's property portfolio through our joint venture with British Airways Pension Trustees Limited. We will work closely with our tenant and co-owner, Sainsbury's, to deliver a long term occupational solution for them, said Nick Hewson, the chairman of Supermarket Income REIT.

Peel Hunt noted that the 115mln paid for the current stake compares to 102mln paid for the original stake, "although the income produced is used to amortise the debt, so these are not directly comparable".

"We estimate todays acquisition equates to a property valuation of around 228m (or 114m attributable to the REIT). The JV generates an equity income return of around 10%, although income is currently used to pay down debt. Sainsburys owns the outstanding 49% and a re-gearing of the leases is expected before the 2023 expiry," the broker said in a note to clients.

"The company continues to deploy capital rapidly and appears to be tracking ahead of our assumptions. The shares trade on an 8% premium and 5.4% dividend yield," it added.

Shares in the REIT were up 0.2% at 109.25p in mid-morning deals.

--- adds broker comment and updates share price ---
IMMIGRANTS in Winnipeg could soon have new ways to contribute to their new city.

IMMIGRANTS in Winnipeg could soon have new ways to contribute to their new city.

On Wednesday, councils executive policy committee voted to change a policy that lets only Canadian citizens be appointed to city boards and commissions. The change  pending city councils approval  would allow permanent residents to apply for and be appointed to such posts.

The new rule would aim to ensure municipal boards offer a diverse cross-section of the broader community, a public service report notes.

Abdikheir Ahmed, who lobbied for the move, said it will help ensure those who come to Winnipeg from other countries can have input on the vital city services they depend on.

Ahmed, a past director of Immigration Partnership Winnipeg, was born in Somalia and came to Canada as a refugee. He said allowing newcomers to participate more at the civic level may also encourage them to take part in other political activities.

"When they realize the importance of decision making and participating in the civic process, (this) can result in people running for elected office," he said Wednesday. "We would have more people who understand the needs of our community."

The policy change would potentially affect tens of thousands of people.

An average of 15,000 people came to Manitoba from other countries per year before the pandemic, and it took them an average of seven years to become a Canadian citizen, Ahmed said. Roughly 84 per cent wound up living in Winnipeg.

"Thats a lot of people (who) live in this city, pay property taxes, take (Winnipeg) Transit (and) use city services but would have no voice in contributing to the decision making," said Ahmed.

Opening up boards and commissions to permanent residents would also make many feel more welcome in their city, he said.

The citys website notes council can delegate responsibilities to dozens of boards and commissions, which include the Winnipeg Police Board, Winnipeg Public Library Board, and many others.

Mayor Brian Bowman said he expects removing such citizenship requirements would benefit the entire city by attracting a broader group of candidates to join important boards.

"Its a way to be more inclusive, to pull in the talents and the insights of more Winnipeggers than we are able to do now," said Bowman. "When you serve on a city board or commission, you are in a position where you can really affect some positive change in our community Theyre a really important part of local democracy."

joyanne.pursaga@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @joyanne_pursaga
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GOTTINGEN, Germany, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The life science group Sartorius confirmed its preliminary figures for 2020 upon the release of its annual report. Group sales revenue surged by 30.2 percent to nearly 2,336 million euros in constant currencies (reported: +27.8 percent). Order intake1 grew even more dynamically than sales revenue and was up 49.0 percent in constant currencies to 2,836 million euros (reported: +46.2 percent). Pandemic-related orders accounted for close to 14 percentage points of growth. Sartorius invested substantially in expanding its capacity in 2020 in order to meet high demand. The ratio of capital expenditures (CAPEX) to sales revenue remained in the double digits, at 10.3 percent, despite strong sales growth (previous year: 12.3 percent).

"In an extraordinary and very challenging year, Sartorius performed outstandingly. We recorded strong growth and were able to complete several key strategic acquisitions. At the same time, many of our products have been playing an essential role in overcoming the pandemic, in areas ranging from diagnostics, to the development of vaccines and therapeutics, to their production. For the current year and beyond, we expect growth to remain strong. That's why we are accelerating the ramp-up of our production capacities yet again, primarily at our sites in Germany, Puerto Rico, China, and South Korea. Our mid-range targets significantly raised now set goals of achieving 5 billion euros in sales and creating more than 1,000 new jobs on average per year," said Executive Board Chairman and CEO Joachim Kreuzburg at today's virtual press conference.

In 2020, underlying EBITDA1 also rose very significantly, showing an overproportionate increase in relation to sales revenue, by 39.6 percent to 692 million euros. The respective margin climbed year over year from 27.1 percent to 29.6 percent. Economies of scale in the Bioprocess Solutions Division primarily played a role in this substantial increase in profitability, yet the underproportionate development of costs in some areas as a result of the pandemic also added to this effect, such as the significant reduction of business travel as well as fewer new hires in non-production areas. The most recent acquisitions had a slightly positive effect on the earnings margin, while currency headwinds had a somewhat dilutive impact. Relevant net profit1 for the Group rose in relation to sales, by 42.9 percent to 299 million euros. Underlying earnings per ordinary share were 4.37 euros (previous year: 3.06 euros) and per preference share, 4.38 euros (previous year: 3.07 euros).

Due to the company's positive business performance, the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board will submit a proposal at the virtual Annual Shareholders' Meeting on March 26, 2021, to pay dividends of 0.71 euros per preference share and 0.70 euros per ordinary share. Therefore, the total amount disbursed under this proposal would be 48.2 million euros.

Business development of the regions

The Group increased its revenues by double digits in all three geographies yet again. Particularly in the regions of EMEA2 and the Americas, Sartorius benefited from additional demand in connection with the development and manufacture of coronavirus vaccines and Covid-19 therapeutics. Revenue in the Americas, which accounted for about 35 percent of total Group sales, rose sharply, also because of the acquisitions, by 32.8 percent to 812 million euros. Sales revenue in the EMEA2 region that contributed the highest share of around 40 percent to total Group revenue amounted to 935 million euros, up 28.4 percent. Generating around 25 percent of Group sales, the Asia | Pacific region recorded sales revenue totaling 588 million euros, a gain of 29.6 percent. (All figures in sales revenue growth in constant currencies)

Key financial indicators

Sartorius invested substantially in expanding its capacity in 2020 in order to meet high demand. The ratio of capital expenditures (CAPEX) to sales revenue1 remained in the double digits, at 10.3 percent, despite strong sales growth (previous year: 12.3 percent). Equity rose at year-end from 1,093 million euros to 1,402 million euros. The equity ratio of the Group continued to remain at a solid level of 29.9 percent even after closing of the acquisitions and the increased balance sheet total due to a significantly expanded cash position (December 31, 2019: 38.1 percent). Net debt to underlying EBITDA1 increased as expected, from 2.0 at year-end 2019 to 2.6 for the period ended December 31, 2020.

More than 10,600 employees

At the end of 2020, the Group employed 10,637 people worldwide. Compared to the prior-year headcount, this number was thus 1,601 higher. The increase resulted primarily from hiring additional production staff at the company's manufacturing sites with especially high capacity utilization. At the end of the reporting period, around 7,100 people were employed in the EMEA2 region, more than 1,900 in the Americas and about 1,600 in the Asia | Pacific region.

Business development of the divisions

Both divisions contributed significant rates to sales growth. The Bioprocess Solutions Division that offers a wide array of innovative technologies for manufacturing biopharmaceuticals expanded at an exceptionally dynamic rate in the reporting year, with sales up 34.4 percent to 1,783 million euros (reported: +32.0 percent). In addition to strong organic growth across all product categories and geographies, pandemic effects added up to an estimated 12 percentage points of which the majority was attributable to additional sales in connection with the ramp-up of production capacities for coronavirus vaccines and Covid19 therapeutics. Close to 5 percentage points of the division's growth was due to consolidation of the most recent acquisitions.

Order intake1 developed even more strongly than sales revenue, soaring 56.4 percent in constant currencies (reported: +53.5 percent) to 2,238 million euros, with the pandemic effects described above having a positive impact of around 17 percentage points.

Underlying EBITDA1 of the Bioprocess Solutions Division was 576 million euros, up 46.5 percent very significantly above the prior-year figure of 393 million euros3. Due to economies of scale and pandemic-related underproportionate cost development to some extent, the division's respective margin was up year over year from 29.1 percent3 to 32.3 percent. Currency headwinds had a slightly negative impact, while the most recent acquisitions did not have any significant effect on the division's earnings margin.

The Lab Products & Services Division specializing in equipment and technologies for life science research and pharmaceutical laboratories achieved a sales increase in 2020 of 18.1 percent to 553 million euros (reported: +16.1 percent). Acquisitions contributed about 15 percentage points; the net impact of various countervailing pandemic effects added up to minus 1 percentage point. Thus, the division was confronted in the first half with an extremely challenging economic environment, especially in China and the USA, due to the pandemic. This led to a decline in sales revenue in some product segments. In the second half, rebound and catch-up effects increasingly set in. In particular, demand was high for products such as diagnostic membrane and pipette tips used as part of coronavirus testing. The division's bioanalytics portfolio that includes the protein analytical business acquired from Danaher also grew dynamically. Order intake rose even more strongly than sales revenue, climbing 26.4 percent (reported: +24.1 percent) to 598 million euros.

Underlying EBITDA1 for the Lab Products & Services Division rose by 13.2 percent from 103 million euros3 a year earlier to 116 million euros in the reporting year; the corresponding margin reached 21.0 percent relative to 21.6 percent3 in the previous year. The main reason for the slight decline was the weaker capacity utilization at some plants in the first half of the year due to the pandemic, while the most recent acquisitions had a positive impact of a good 2 percentage points on the division's margin. Exchange rates did not have any significant effect on the division's earnings margin.

Forecast for 2021

Sartorius plans to grow profitably in 2021 as well. Consolidated sales revenue is thus projected to increase by about 19 percent to 25 percent. Initial consolidation of the acquisitions is expected to contribute about 5.5 percentage points to this growth, and the impact of the pandemic-related businesses on Group revenue is difficult to estimate at the present time and is likely to amount to up to 6 percentage points. Regarding profitability, the company forecasts that its underlying EBITDA1 margin will be about 30.5 percent, up from 29.6 percent a year earlier.

For the Bioprocess Solutions Division, the Executive Board expects sales to grow between 22 percent and 28 percent, with consolidation of the most recent acquisitions likely to contribute about 6 percentage points and the pandemic effects up to 8 percentage points. For the division's underlying EBITDA1 margin, management forecasts a moderate increase to around 33 percent (previous year: 32.3 percent) after the underproportionate cost development as a result of the pandemic had additionally increased this margin in the prior year, especially in this division, and now that corresponding effects resulting from pent-up demand are included in this projection.

The Lab Products & Services Division is projected to increase its sales revenue by 10 percent to 16 percent, with the most recent acquisitions expected to contribute around 5 percentage points to growth. Pandemic effects are not anticipated unless laboratories will be closed again as part of potentially very extensive lockdowns. For the division's underlying EBITDA1 margin, a substantial increase to about 23.0 percent is forecasted (previous year: 21.0 percent).

All forecasts are based on constant currencies, as in the past years. In addition, the company assumes that the global economy will increasingly recover as the current year progresses and that supply chains will remain stable.

Mid-term targets up to 2025 updated

As early as 2018, management presented its strategy and long-term targets for the period of 2020 to 2025. The targets for 2025 have now been updated and partly raised, given the results achieved in the Bioprocess Solutions Division in 2020 and the resulting increase in the baseline values, as well as expectations of future organic growth in this segment.

Accordingly, Sartorius now plans to increase its consolidated sales revenue to about 5 billion euros in the five-year period up to 2025 (previous target: around 4 billion euros). The company intends to achieve this increase in both divisions primarily through organic growth as well as additionally by acquisitions. The Group's underlying EBITDA1 margin is forecasted to rise to around 32 percent (former guidance: around 28 percent). For the Bioprocess Solutions Division, the company now projects sales revenue of around 3.8 billion euros (former guidance: approximately 2.8 billion euros), with an underlying EBITDA1 margin of around 34 percent (former guidance: around 30 percent). The outlook for the Lab Products & Services Division remains unchanged, with sales revenue forecasted at around 1.2 billion euros and an underlying EBITDA1 margin at about 25 percent.

These projections are based on the assumption that on average the margins of future acquisitions will initially be somewhat below and, after integration, at a level comparable to those of the Group's existing businesses, and that there will be no relevant changes in the key currency exchange rates.

Management points out that the dynamics and volatilities in the life science and biopharma sectors have increased over the past years and the coronavirus pandemic has further amplified this trend, so that multi-year forecasts show even higher uncertainties than usual.

1 Sartorius publishes alternative performance measures that are not defined by international accounting standards. These are determined with the aim of improving the comparability of business performance over time and within the industry.

Order intake: all customer orders contractually concluded and booked during the respective reporting period

Relevant / underlying EBITDA: earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and adjusted for extraordinary items

Relevant net profit: profit for the period after non-controlling interest, adjusted for extraordinary items and non-cash amortization, as well as based on the normalized financial result and the normalized tax rate

Ratio of net debt to underlying EBITDA: quotient of net debt and underlying EBITDA over the past 12 months, including the pro forma amount contributed by acquisitions for this period

CAPEX ratio: investment payments in relation to sales revenue for the same period

2 EMEA = Europe, Middle East, Africa

3 Sales revenues and margins of the divisions in the comparable period adjusted to reflect the reallocation of two small product segments

This press release contains forward-looking statements about the future development of the Sartorius Group. Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Sartorius assumes no liability for updating such statements in light of new information or future events. This is a translation of the original German-language press release. Sartorius shall not assume any liability for the correctness of this translation. The original German press release is the legally binding version.

Follow Sartorius on Twitter @Sartorius_Group and on LinkedIn.

Current image files

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Financial calendar

March 26, 2021 Virtual Annual Shareholders' Meeting

April 21, 2021 Publication of first-quarter figures (January to March 2021)

July 21, 2021 Publication of the first-half figures (January to June 2021)

October 20, 2021 Publication of nine-month figures (January to September 2021)

Key performance indicators for fiscal 2020



Sartorius Group Bioprocess Solutions[1] Lab Products & Services[1] In millions of , unless otherwise specified 2020 2019  in % Reported  in % cc[2] 2020 2019  in % Reported  in % cc[2] 2020 2019  in % Reported  in % cc[2] Sales Revenue and Order Intake Order intake 2,836.3 1,939.5 46.2 49.0 2,238.1 1,457.6 53.5 56.4 598.2 481.9 24.1 26.4 Sales revenue 2,335.7 1,827.0 27.8 30.2 1,782.6 1,350.5 32.0 34.4 553.0 476.5 16.1 18.1  EMEA[3] 935.1 733.4 27.5 28.4 698,5 524.8 33.1 33.8 236.6 208.6 13.4 14.7  Americas[3] 812.2 629.9 28.9 32.8 651.3 501.1 30.0 33.7 160.9 128.7 25.0 29.1  Asia | Pacific[3] 588.4 463.7 26.9 29.6 432.9 324.5 33.4 36.5 155.5 139.2 11.7 13.4 Earnings EBITDA[4] 692.2 495.8 39.6

575.9 393.1 46.5

116.3 102.7 13.2

EBITDA margin[4] in % 29.6 27.1



32.3 29.1



21.0 21.6



Net profit for the period[5] 299.3 209.4 42.9

















Financial Data per Share Earnings per ordinary share[5] in  4.37 3.06 43.0

















Earnings per preference share[5] in  4.38 3.07 42.9

















1 Sales revenues and margins of the divisions in the comparable period adjusted to reflect the reallocation of two small product segments 2 In constant currencies abbreviated as "cc" 3 Acc. to the customer's location 4 Relevant / underlying EBITDA: earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and adjusted for extraordinary items 5 After non-controlling interest, adjusted for extraordinary items and non-cash amortization, as well as based on the normalized financial result and the normalized tax rate































A profile of Sartorius

The Sartorius Group is a leading international partner of life science research and the biopharmaceutical industry. With innovative laboratory instruments and consumables, the Group's Lab Products & Services Division concentrates on serving the needs of laboratories performing research and quality control at pharma and biopharma companies and those of academic research institutes. The Bioprocess Solutions Division with its broad product portfolio focusing on single-use solutions helps customers to manufacture biotech medications and vaccines safely and efficiently. The Group has been annually growing by double digits on average and has been regularly expanding its portfolio by acquisitions complementary technologies. In fiscal 2020, the company earned sales revenue of some 2.34 billion euros. At the end of 2020, nearly 11,000 people were employed at the Group's approximately 60 manufacturing and sales sites, serving customers around the globe.

Contact

Petra Kirchhoff

Head of Corporate Communications

+49 (0)551 308 1686

[email protected]

SOURCE Sartorius AG

Related Links

https://www.sartorius.com/en


Madam C. J. Walker, born Sarah Breedlove (18671919), was an inventor, businesswoman, philanthropist, and political activist who founded the Madame C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company, which sold and manufactured hair care and beauty products for African Americans and people of African descent across the world.

The first American woman to become a self-made millionaire, by 1918 she had turned her company into the nations largest African Americanowned business, employing more than 25,000 women as agents who sold the companys products door to door. The same year, the company reported sales of more than $250,000 per year (approximately $6 million in 2014 dollars). The companys success promoted the growth of African American beauty shops across the country, which served as autonomous social, political, and economic spaces for black women.

Walker was inspired to develop her first hair product in 1904 after suffering from alopecia, a scalp ailment that causes hair loss. She began by selling products designed by another prominent African American businesswoman, Annie Turnbo Malone (18961957), who taught Walker how to manage a business. In 1906 Walker moved to Colorado and founded her company, producing shampoos, pomades, and heated combs. The company later expanded to produce hair strengtheners, toiletries, fragrances, and facial treatments. Walker sold her products door to doorfirst locally, then throughout the South and Southeast, and eventually throughout the United States, the Caribbean, and Central America. She advertised in African American newspapers and started a mail-order business, which her daughter, Lelia, ran.

Walker was also known for developing new marketing techniques that transformed the industry. She was one of the first to use direct sales marketing (a method of selling products that relies on face-to-face contact and personal demonstrations).

In 1908 she moved to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, which was easily accessible to cites in the Northeast with large populations of Black women. It was also home to the steel industry, which she drew on to manufacture her new steel combs. There she opened Lelia College to train her agents. In 1910 she moved to Indianapolis and built a factory employing 3,000 workers, renaming the company the Walker College of Hair Culture and Walker Manufacturing Company.

In 1916 she moved to New York and continued overseeing the business, leaving the day-to-day operations to her attorney Freeman Ransom (18841947) and factor forelady Alice Kelly, a former school teacher. In 1917 she held the Madam C. J. Walker Hair Culturists Union of America convention, where she presented agents with awards for both business success and political activism.

In 1917 she built a posh, ornately decorated villa in Irvington-on-Hudson, New York. She died there in 1919 at age 51. She was posthumously inducted into the National Business Hall of Fame and National Womens Hall of Fame and was honored with a U.S. postage stamp in 1998.

Source: Walker Becomes First Female Self-Made Millionaire in America. Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History, edited by Thomas Riggs, 2nd ed., vol. 3, Gale, 2015, pp. 1429-1430. Gale In Context: High School, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3611000963/SUIC?u=edwa30873&sid=SUIC&xid=a246811b. Accessed 5 Feb. 2021.

Compiled by the Edwardsville Public Library.
Its wild to think Harrison Ford almost didnt star as Indiana Jones. In fact, producer George Lucas was against casting Ford after they worked on Star Wars together. But the stars aligned, Ford put on the fedora, and a cinematic icon was born. Of course, that was decades ago. So is Ford  now in his late 70s  still up for starring in Indiana Jones 5? Heres what we know.

Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Ark | CBS via Getty Images

Is Chris Pratt going to be the new Indiana Jones?

No, Chris Pratt will not be playing Indiana Jones anytime soon. This is the most easily debunked  and most commonly mentioned  rumor about the future of the Indiana Jones franchise. And its easy to see why. Both of Pratts major franchises are heavily influenced by Fords.

Guardians of the Galaxys Peter Quill, for instance, feels blatantly inspired by Fords Han Solo. And Pratts Jurassic World character, Owen Grady, is very much in the same vein as Indiana Jones. So its not much of a stretch for the internet to assume Pratt might star in a reboot.

Yet, all indications point against a potential reboot of the Indiana Jones series. If anything, Lucasfilm  which Lucas sold to Disney in 2012  has doubled-down on its commitment to a direct sequel. The first installment since 2008, this fifth entry would likely be the last.

RELATED: Veteran Indiana Jones Star Suggests He May Return for the Final Film

Harrison Ford is committed to reprising the iconic role

Although Pratt wont be taking over the whip anytime soon, Ford does believe the Marvel Cinematic Universe would be a good source of inspiration for Indiana Jones 5. In 2020, the actor expressed his admiration for how the MCU has sustained an ongoing series.

While Indy wont be searching for Infinity Stones in his next adventure (probably), Indiana Jones 5 could take some inspiration in pleasing modern audiences. Moreover, Fords comments show just how committed he is to deliver what fans want to see with his fifth movie in this role.

2008s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull left a sour taste in the mouths of many fans. But it seems Lucasfilm and Ford  who was confirmed for Indiana Jones 5 in December 2020  are determined to get the series back on track this time.

RELATED: Steven Spielberg Made This Indiana Jones Movie to Apologize for Temple of Doom Disaster

Logan director James Mangold will direct Indiana Jones 5

The still-untitled Indiana Jones 5 is currently set for release on July 29, 2022. But when Fords Indy does return, it wont be with series director Steven Spielberg at the helm. In February 2020, Spielberg confirmed he wouldnt be returning for the next movie.

In his absence, Lucasfilm has hired James Mangold (Logan, Ford v Ferrari) to take over the directors chair. Spielberg himself chose Mangold as his successor, according to Variety. Production on Indiana Jones 5 still has a while to go, but fans are closer than ever to seeing it.
STOCKHOLM, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Crunchfish AB ("Crunchfish") announces its enrolment into a leading international payment network's partner program with its Digital Cash solutions. As a technology partner, Crunchfish will get access to specifications and toolkits enabling integration with their payment network.

Crunchfish's patent pending Digital Cash solutions are built on a two-tier offline vs. online settlement architecture. As a technology partner, Crunchfish will work with solutions architects and have access to specifications and toolkits enabling Digital Cash development, integration and certification with their payment network. Crunchfish is sponsored by the payment network's innovation team in India into this program.

"To be invited into this partner program is an important milestone for the company and a testimony of Crunchfish's technology prowess. It suggests that Digital Cash is a promising solution that may become an integral part of digital payments of tomorrow.", says Crunchfish's CEO Joachim Samuelsson.

For more information, please contact:

Joachim Samuelsson, CEO Crunchfish AB

+46 708 46 47 88

[email protected]

Ulf Rogius Svensson, IR & Marketing Manager

+46 733 26 81 05

[email protected]

Vastra Hamnen Corporate Finance AB is the Certified Adviser

Email: [email protected]

Telephone +46 40 200 250.This information is information that Crunchfish AB is obliged to publish in accordance to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was provided by the contact person above for publication on February 18, 2021.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

https://news.cision.com/crunchfish/r/crunchfish-enrolled-to-leading-international-payment-network-s-partner-program,c3289000

The following files are available for download:

https://mb.cision.com/Main/14959/3289000/1374815.pdf 210218 - Crunchfish enrolled to leading international payment networkas partner program https://news.cision.com/crunchfish/i/digital-cash-partner6,c2878729 Digital Cash Partner6

SOURCE Crunchfish
Aid to the Church in Need says late founder may have sexually assaulted woman in 1973

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The Catholic human rights group Aid to the Church in Need recently confirmed an earlier report that the organizations deceased founder may have sexually assaulted a woman who worked for the charity in 1973.

Born in the Netherlands in 1913, Father Werenfried van Straaten founded Aid to the Church in Need in 1947 and led the group until his passing in 2003.

ACNs International Executive President Thomas Heine-Geldern released a statement last week in response to a report by Christ & Welt, a supplement of the German newspaper Die Zeit.

The supplement had published a 2010 letter by a woman claiming that she had been sexually assaulted in 1973 by van Straaten when she was 23 years old.

Heine-Geldern said he is dismayed by the serious accusations and that ACN considered the allegation plausible. However, the question of guilt remains open as by the time the allegation was made the accused was deceased.

The woman concerned expressed the wish for confidentiality. ACN respected this wish, stated Heine-Geldern, in an English translation of his remarks. The charity is unaware of any other allegations of sexual violence involving Father van Straaten.

According to Heine-Geldern, the unnamed accuser was awarded 16,000 euros (the rough equivalent of $19,500) as financial aid in recognition of the suffering she endured.

"Potential victims are rightly paid financial assistance if the facts of the crime appear credible after an examination, even if there is no further clear evidence and the accused can no longer be questioned," the organization explained in a question-and-answer document. "Most sexual offences take place without witnesses, so the possibilities of legal evidence are often lacking."

In the question-and-answer page, ACN notes that the organizations leaders were unaware of how the 2010 letter got into the possession of the newspaper.

The charity noted that the woman worked for ACN at the time of the alleged sexual assault and that the allegation was not made until seven years after van Straaten died.

ACN deeply regrets the serious allegations and [condemns] any kind of [behavior] of which Father van Straaten has been accused in the article, noted the Q&A page.

Since 2011, decision-making and control structures have been put in place to avoid misconduct, abuse and to foster a collegial working culture.

According to its website, ACN supports over 5,000 projects in about 149 countries.

The organization was originally going to hold a celebration in honor of its founder in Cologne Cathedral in Germany on Jan. 30 but had to cancel due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Since 2011, ACN was elevated to the status of a pontifical foundation by Pope Benedict XVI in recognition of the group's decades of charity.

"The charitys internal structures and operating procedures underwent a thorough-going overhaul," the ACN statement last Wednesday reads. "A new management structure was put in place. Safeguarding guidelines for the prevention of sexual abuse were also implemented and established as indispensable funding criteria necessary for all ACN projects."
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection has scrapped anti-dumping duties it slapped on Minh Phu Seafood JSCs frozen shrimp products and refunded the levies it had paid.

The company, one of Vietnams biggest shrimp processors, announced on February 17 that it had received a communication from the agency on February 11. It will continue to export frozen shrimp to the U.S.

The company has been refunded the anti-dumping duties it temporarily paid following the October order.

On October 13, the agency had concluded that MSeafood Corporation, a subsidiary of Minh Phu, was using shrimp originating from India for export to the U.S., and imposed the same anti-dumping duties as shrimp exported by India.

The companys CEO, Le Van Quang, said it had complained to the agency because it had an effective tracking system that proved it was not using shrimp from India for exports to the U.S.

Its separation and traceability method has been approved by the U.S.s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The company has stopped importing shrimp from India despite a shortage and instead itself set up high-tech shrimp farming areas.

It has two such farms in the southern provinces of Kien Giang and Ba Ria-Vung Tau with a total area of 900 hectares.
She will soon welcome her first child with her husband, Chandler Powell.

And ahead of her daughter's arrival in late March, Bindi Irwin has revealed the 'random' food cravings she's experienced throughout her 'extraordinary' pregnancy.

The wildlife conservationist, 22, told The Bump she had all manner of 'interesting' cravings, including seaweed and lettuce wraps.

'Random but delicious!' Bindi Irwin (pictured) has revealed the 'random' food cravings she's experienced throughout her 'extraordinary' pregnancy, including seaweed and lettuce wraps

'I have experienced some interesting food cravings like seaweed and lettuce wraps -random but delicious!' she said.

The mother-to-be then detailed the difficulties she'd faced during her pregnancy because of her short stature.

'At about 5' 2" I've always been quite small, so carrying our daughter has definitely brought challenges as she continues to grow,' Bindi told the publication.

'Reaching down to tie my shoes or pick up an animal is quite difficult now. That's for sure!'

Struggle: The mother-to-be also spoke to The Bump the difficulties she'd faced during her pregnancy because of her short stature. Pictured with her husband, Chandler Powell

Elsewhere in the interview, Bindi revealed how her late father, Steve Irwin, had inspired her daughter's nickname, Baby Wildlife Warrior.

She said her dad had been the first person to use the term 'Wildlife Warrior', so she couldn't think of a better placeholder name for her little one.

Bindi added that Steve would have been 'the best grandfather'.

How sweet: Bindi told The Bump her dad 'would have been the best grandfather' to her child. She is pictured with Steve Irwin in an undated photo

Steve died in September 2006 at the age of 44 after being pierced in the chest by a stingray barb while filming a documentary in Batt Reef, Queensland.

The former Dancing with the Stars contestant announced her pregnancy in August.

She and Chandler, 24, had married in a small ceremony at Australia Zoo in March last year, right at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
France's National Assembly on Tuesday approved legislation designed mainly to counter a rise in Islamism in towns and cities which the government says threatens national unity.

The legislation did not single out any particular religion, but it cracked down on practices such as forced marriage and virginity tests.

It included tough measures against online apologists for acts of violence, stricter surveillance of religious associations, and tighter restrictions on educating children outside mainstream schools.

France's Muslim population is estimated to number about five million people, many whose family origins lie in Algeria or other parts of its former empire.

The country has suffered a wave of Islamist militant attacks in recent years, and tackling religious extremism, French identity and domestic security will be big issues in next year's presidential election.

Presented to parliament on the 115th anniversary of the law that enshrined the separation of state and religion in France, the bill has been branded by some on the left as an attack on Islam and as too weak by the far-right and some conservatives.

The legislation represented a "powerful offensive" by the secular state, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said. "It's a tough text...but necessary for the Republic," Darmanin told RTL radio ahead of the vote.

The bill passed by 347 votes to 151 in parliament's lower house, where President Emmanuel Macron's centrist ruling party and its allies hold a majority. The legislation now moves to the Senate, where the centre-right opposition dominates.

The debate around the law became more charged after the Oct. 16 beheading of a schoolteacher, Samuel Paty, by a teenage Islamist who said he wanted to punish him for showing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad in a class on free speech.

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen has accused Darmanin of not tackling radical Islam head on.

"You are restricting everyone's freedom to try to modify the freedoms of a few Islamists," she told Darmanin in a debate last week, referring to the curbs on home-schooling.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:17:44|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Iranian authorities announced that they will close borders with Iraq in the southwestern Khuzestan province over the transmission risks of new variant of COVID-19, Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) reported on Thursday.

"From Saturday, Iran will close the borders of Shalamcheh and Chazzabeh for one week for passengers' entrance," the Khuzestan province governor, Qassem Soleimani Dashtaki, was quoted as saying.

During this time, the Iranian officials will try to set up facilities for rapid testing and temporary quarantine in the two border points, he said.

Iranian health authorities have warned of the rise of new wave of coronavirus in the country and have adopted particular protective measures in the Khuzestan province.

Iran's health ministry reported 8,066 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, raising the total nationwide infections to 1,550,142.

The pandemic has so far claimed 59,264 lives in Iran, up by 80 in the past 24 hours, said the health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari during her daily briefing.

Of the newly infected, 578 were hospitalized, said Lari.

A total of 1,324,231 people have recovered from the disease and been discharged from hospitals, while 3,679 remain in critical condition.

According to the spokeswoman, 10,274,529 tests for the virus have been carried out in Iran by Thursday. Enditem
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Winter Storm Coverage Area Reduced

By National Weather Service

PADUCAH - The National Weather Service in Paducah has reduced the scope of the winter storm warning for a portion of western Kentucky until 6 p.m. today.Any additional snow accumulation should end around noon, but a slight chance of a wintry mix with some freezing drizzle is also possible this afternoon.Ballard and McCracken counties are no longer officially in the warned area; they are now part of a winter weather advisory with southern Illinois. Northwest Tennessee counties have also been removed from the winter storm warning, and reduced to an advisory for the rest of the day.In our entire region this morning, plan on hazardous travel conditions to continue while temperatures are still in the 20s until sunshine can take effect.Temperatures are still expected to recover into the 30s on Saturday, and 50 by Sunday.On the Net:
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The genome sequencing of the samples of persons infected with the UK variant of SARS-CoV-2 in India has revealed that the mutations in it do not push the patients towards severity of Covid-19 disease or enhance the transmissibility, so far.

Besides, the symptoms that arrived with the contraction of the specific variant was also found similar to variant circulating in the country, top officials at National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) told IANS.

Dr Sujeet Kumar Singh, Director, NCDC, said that the symptoms of the UK variant are similar to the common strain circulating in India and in other parts of the world. "As of now, there is no evidence that the symptoms from the UK strain push towards severity of the illness or are distinct in nature compared to the common strains," he said.

He also said that the UK strain was found with at least 70 per cent enhanced transmissibility in European nations, however, such a case has not been detected in India so far. "In contrast to the situation in Europe, we have found no spike in the UK strain among the people infected here or the enhanced rate of transmission. The spread here was not found as expeditious as it was detected elsewhere," Singh informed.

NCDC is the nodal agency in the country for disease surveillance facilitating prevention and control of communicable diseases.

Dr Suresh Kumar, Director, Delhi government-run Lok Nayak Hospital, the only facility in the national capital where the patients of the UK variant are treated, told IANS that most of them had mild symptoms of the disease such as low-grade fever and cough. However, a few needed ICU assistance as well.

"We had 26 patients of the UK strain. While most of them exhibited mild symptoms, two experienced severity and were admitted to ICU for a few days. They were given remdesivir and have been discharged. Currently, we have only eight such patients in the hospital," he added.

First detected in the southeastern part of England, the highly contagious British variant of coronavirus, also known as B.1.1.7, is raging there whereas, it has spread to 86 other countries including India. So far, 187 people have been found infected with the UK variant in India.

Besides, five more patients have been found infected with two separate variants of coronavirus in India - four from a variant that emerged in South Africa (SA) and one from another variant that emerged in Brazil.

Officials at Ministry of Health and Family Welfare told IANS that the patients who contracted the UK, South African and Brazilian variants have been traced in 18 states and Union territories. To protect the identity of the patients and sanctity of the privacy, the details of those states/UTs cannot be revealed.

Meanwhile, Dr Singh said that nothing concrete could be said about the South African and Brazilian variants since the country does not have substantial figures to infer anything. "Only five of the infections have been detected till now. Unless and until you have a valid sample size, you cannot infer anything. A large data is required to derive any conclusion," he added.

Speaking further on the virus' mutation, Dr Singh informed IANS that thousands of mutations were found in India as well where the transmissibility was observed to enhance as much as 30 per cent. "We have detected over 6,000 mutations so far and a few mutants were noticed with an enhanced prevalence of up to 30 per cent. However, whether these mutations have sustained or effective transmission is not proven conclusively," he added.

Dr Singh also explained that a mutation finds relevance only when it creates an impact in the community. "From a public health perspective, the data of genome sequencing where mutation is found relevant if it impacts the severity of transmissibility of the infection. Because, as a nature, a virus is bound to replicate and mutate with the spread. A clinically and statistically valid association with the mutations needs to be established," he said.

He also said that the government has kept an eye on each spike. "Not only in the districts where the UK and other strains have gone, but anywhere, where an unusual trend of spike in cases is seen, be it Kerala, Maharashtra or Punjab. We are doing representative genome sequencing there," he added.

When asked if the mutations in the virus or onset of a different variant could have led to a rise in new cases in Kerala and Maharashtra, Dr Singh said that it could be a possibility. "However, we lack correlation of the data at this point and without that, nothing substantial can be concluded," he said.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - The Very Good Food Company Inc. (CSE: VERY) (OTCQB: VRYYF) (FSE: 0SI) ("VERY" or the "Company") is pleased to announce new retail distribution with Quality Foods owned by the Jim Pattison Group; and additional distribution points with Sobeys Inc. through its Safeway retail network. These partnerships are a result of VERY's efforts to scale distribution in line with production capacity.

Expanded Distribution



Quality Foods has agreed to distribute The Very Good Butchers brand, increasing VERY's retail network by 14 locations. Quality Foods is a premier Vancouver Island grocer that has operated as a community staple since 1986. In 2017, The Jim Pattison Group acquired the wholly-owned grocery chain and added it to their existing portfolio of brands which include boutique banners such as Urban Fare and larger Western banners like Save-on-Foods. These additional 14 stores will initially stock The Very Good Burgers, Smokin' Burgers, Taco Stuff'er and British Bangers.

CEO Mitchell Scott commented: "The Quality Foods placement is an exciting development for VERY as it provides an opportunity for further expansion across a larger network of stores owned and operated by The Jim Pattison Group such as Save On Foods. We plan to become an established brand in both Canada and the US by aggressively building relationships with national grocery banners, in addition to independent grocers."

Furthermore, Sobeys has agreed to expand product placements into its top ten Safeway locations within the next 60 days. Sobeys is Canada's second-largest retailer; with over 1,500 stores operating under various banners of which 183 are Safeway locations.

CEO Mitchell Scott stated: "The growing relationship with Sobeys is demonstrative of the positive response retailers are receiving from consumers. We expect a similar trajectory for all of our retail partnerships."

Fiscal 2020 Financial Results Update

The Company provided an update on the filing of its fiscal 2020 financial results. VERY expects to file its annual financial statements and related filings for the year ended December 31, 2020, by April 30, 2021, in accordance with the 120 day deadline for venture issuers.

About The Very Good Food Company

The Very Good Food Company Inc. is an emerging plant-based food technology company. Our mission is to use progressive food technology to create plant-based meat and other food products that are delicious while maintaining a wholesome nutritional profile. To date we have developed a core product line under The Very Good Butchers brand.

For further information, please contact:

Mitchell Scott

Chief Executive Officer and Director



Investor Relations:



Edge Communications Group

Invest@verygoodbutchers.com

1-855-472-9841

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information. Such forward-looking statements or information are provided for the purpose of providing information about management's current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Any such forward-looking information may be identified by words such as "proposed", "expects", "intends", "may", "will", and similar expressions. Forward-looking information contained or referred to in this news release includes, but is not limited to: the distribution of the Company's products in Quality Foods stores and the potential for further expansion across a larger network of stores owned and operated by The Jim Pattison Group; product placements into the top ten Safeway locations and the expected timing therefor; the Company's expectations as to the positive development of its retail partnerships; and the expected timing for filing of the Company's fiscal 2020 financial results.

Forward-looking statements or information are based on a number of factors and assumptions which have been used to develop such statements and information, but which may prove to be incorrect. Certain assumptions in respect of continued strong demand for our products; that added production capacity will enable us to increase our sales volume, that we do not experience material interruptions or supply chain failures as a result of COVID-19, our ability to retain key personnel, the availability of labour, and changes and trends in our industry or the global economy are material assumptions made in preparing forward-looking statements or information and management's expectations. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to: negative cash flow and future financing requirements to sustain operations; dilution; limited history of operations and revenues and no history of earnings or dividends; competition; economic changes; and the impact of and risks associated with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic including the risk of disruption at the Company's facilities or in its supply and distribution channels. The forward-looking information in this news release reflects the current expectations, assumptions and/or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company.

Any forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, the Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74821
There are so many different ways that you can hug a person. Obviously, each type of hug is going to have a little different meaning to it,...
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

A virtual forum to highlight the winning research papers of the third edition of the King Hamad Prize for Agricultural Development was held under the patronage of Shaikha Maram bint Isa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Secretary-General of the National Initiative for Agricultural Development.

The King Hamad Prize was launched by Her Royal Highness Princess Sabeeka bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, wife of HM the King, Chairperson of the Advisory Board of the National Initiative for the Development of Agricultural Sector, as an initiative to create a competitive environment among agricultural projects owners, farmers and researchers to advance the sector.

The forum, held in cooperation with the University of Bahrain, lasted two hours and featured four papers and a Question and Answer session. In his welcoming speech, Professor Riyad Hamzah, president of the University of Bahrain, thanked Shaikha Maram for her patronage of the forum that reflects the interest of Bahrains leadership in the agricultural sector and its development.

The sector has a crucial role in achieving food security for Bahrain as one of the tributaries of sustainable development derived from the Bahrain Economic Vision 2030 that aims to build a better life for Bahrainis at all levels, he stressed.

Professor Waheeb Al Nasser, head of Best Agricultural Research and Studies Committee, expressed his pleasure to participate in the forum aimed to present and highlight the winning research.

The Best Agricultural Research and Studies Committee that I have the honour to the chair since the launch of this award in 2015 has sought to enhance the participation standards and the judging criteria, he said.

Al Nasser said that a major enhancement was to give the opportunity to researches from various countries to compete after the participation was confined to Bahraini researchers and to residents in the Kingdom in the first edition.

Starting with the second edition, researchers from Arab countries could apply, he said.
DUBLIN, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Asia-Pacific Automation and Process Control Systems Market, 2020" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The report has independently analyzed and profiled 12 automation and process control system suppliers and plotted them in this report.



It compares the performance of these companies and positions them based on their scores on the Growth and the Innovation axes. Suppliers' most recent innovations and their key growth areas are discussed; the analyst's recommendations to ensure continued market growth and leadership are also provided.



Most countries in Asia-Pacific face challenges in their efforts toward industrialization. However, some companies are able to offer robust solutions to help governments and the private sector overcome these problems.



Another key challenge faced by developing countries in this region is related to infrastructure, and this problem is compounded by the lack of a skilled workforce, resulting in delays in technology transfer.



Most of the companies profiled in this report have a strong base across Asia-Pacific and view the region as key to their growth. Many of these companies also partner with leading research institutes and other organizations to ensure that technology can be effectively delivered and used in the automation and manufacturing domains.



Companies included in this analysis are medium-sized businesses and top-tier organizations that offer automation products, such as programmable logic controllers (PLCs), distributed control systems (DCSs), supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems, human-machine interface (HMI) systems, and process safety systems.

Key Topics Covered:



1. Strategic Imperative and Growth Environment

Strategic Imperative

Growth Environment

Automation and Process Control Systems Market

Competitive Environment

2. Companies to Action

ABB

Advantech Co., Ltd.

Delta Electronics, Inc.

Emerson Electric Co.

Hitachi, Ltd.

Honeywell International Inc

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation

OMRON Corporation

Rockwell Automation, Inc.

Schneider Electric

Siemens

Yokogawa Electric Corporation

3. Strategic Insights



4. Next Steps: Leveraging to Empower Key Stakeholders

Report Empowers the CEO's Growth Team

Report Empowers Investors

Report Empowers Customers

5. Empowers the Board of Directors

Analytics

Benchmarking Future Growth Potential

Legal Disclaimer

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/sfxfy6



Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



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President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Haliru Nababa as the new Controller General of the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS), the Service Public Relations Officer (SPRO), Francis Enobore, announced in a statement, on Thursday, in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mr Nababas appointment is, however, subject to Senates confirmation in line with the provisions of the New Act establishing the NCoS 2019.

Mr Enobore noted that Mr Nababa had headed many formations, including Officer in-Charge of the Wurno Satellite Custodial Centre, Sokoto State; Nguru Custodial Centre, Yobe State; Mubi Custodial Centre, Adamawa State, and Sokoto Central Custodial Centre, Sokoto State from 2016 to 2019.

Mr Nababa had his First School Leaving Certificate from the Demonstration Primary School, Sokoto, in 1975. He attended Government Secondary School, Tangaza, where he obtained his West African School Certificate in 1980.

He then proceeded to the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, where he graduated in 1988, with a Bachelors degree in History, and a Diploma in Criminology from the same university in 1996.

Mr Nababa joined the Nigerian Prisons Service, (NPS) as it was then, on Aug. 13, 1990 as an Assistant Superintendent of Prisons.

He rose through the ranks and was promoted to the rank of Assistant Controller General of Corrections on Jan. 1, 2018.

On Aug. 26, 2020 he was appointed as Deputy Controller General of Corrections, covering duties in the Directorate of Finance and Accounts.

Until his new appointment, Mr Nababa was the Head of the Directorate of Finance and Accounts.

(NAN)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hosted a COVID-19 workshop with members of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). During the meeting, all countries including Pakistan supported PMs five proposals, asking for a structured discussion for regional cooperation to take them forward.

PM Modi had proposed to create a special visa scheme for doctors and nurses of the SAARC nations allowing them to travel quickly within the region during health emergencies on the requirement of the receiving country. Moreover, the PM had also sought the civil aviation ministries of the member nations to coordinate a regional air ambulance agreement for medical contingencies. A regional network for promoting technology-assisted epidemiology for preventing future pandemics was another proposal that the Prime Minister put forward. He had also strongly vocalized the need to strengthen regional solidarity outside of the pandemic and encompassing other challenges as well.

The PM's address was well received with all member nations agreeing over the need for such cooperation on a regional basis for fighting future pandemics. Also, all countries (except Pakistan which has not received COVID-19 vaccines from India) thanked India and PM Modi for the supply of vaccines and various medicines, equipment, and training, earlier in the pandemic.

Also countries (except Pakistan which has not received vaccines) thanked India and PM for Indias supplies of vaccines and earlier of various medicines, equipment and training: Sources on workshop on Covid-19 management with 10 neighbouring countries https://t.co/shs3EDiadz  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

Read: PM Modi To Address COVID-19 Workshop For 9 Neighbouring Countries, Pakistan To Participate

Read: India To Convene Workshop On COVID-19; SAARC Nations To Attend Meet On Feb 18

India hosts Coronavirus workshop

India hosted an international workshop on COVID-19 management titled-- 'Experience, Good Practices & the Way Forward' on February 18 with countries namely - Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Mauritius, and Seychelles in attendance.

Last year in March amid the pandemic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had initiated a meeting with the Heads of governments from SAARC to discuss the impact of Coronavirus in the region and how the South Asian nations could come up with a common strategy to tackle it. Here PM Modi had also proposed the SAARC Corona Fund with India contributing $10 million to it. While it was attended by Heads of all the SAARC nations, Pakistan Prime Minister had not participated in the meeting and had sent his special adviser Zafar Mirza instead.

Emphasising its 'neighbourhood first' policy, India has sent millions of doses of the COVID-19 vaccines as grants to SAARC member nations. To date, India has supplied its 'Made in India' vaccines to Bhutan, Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Seychelles Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Mauritius. Pakistan on the other hand sought its vaccines from all-weather friend China which it later claimed was 'not effective for people over 60 years of age.' China had donated half a million doses of Sinopharm vaccines to Pakistan in the first week of February.

Read: SAARC Health Professionals Meet To Discuss Coronavirus Measures Postponed

Read: Full Potential Of SAARC Can Only Be Realised In Atmosphere Free Of Terror: PM Modi
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Supreme Court on Thursday said the possibility of a conspiracy against former Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi cannot be ruled out, as it closed an inquiry set up after sexual harassment charges were levelled against him in April 2019.

A bench comprising Justices S.K. Kaul, A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian said the Intelligence Bureau Director had said, in a report, that then Chief Justice Gogoi had taken serious view in connection with the finalisation of the National Register of Citizens, and there were strong reasons to believe some people were unhappy with this decision.

Against the backdrop of Justice Gogoi's view on the NRC and his attempts to streamline the top court registry, the bench noted that there exists a reason to believe these decisions may have led to a conspiracy being hatched against him. Justice Gogoi is currently a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha.

The top court had asked its former judge, Justice A.K. Patnaik, to look into the allegations made by lawyer Utsav Bains that there was a larger conspiracy against Chief Justice Gogoi due to decisions taken by him. Allegations were made that middlemen and fixers working with disgruntled court officials were working against the judges.

The bench noted that the Justice Patnaik report indicates that existence of a conspiracy against Chief Justice Gogoi cannot be ruled out. The bench also added that two years have passed, and it is unlikely that there is any possibility that electronic evidence can be recovered.

Closing the case, the bench emphasised that it is of the view that no true purpose would be served to continue with the case. "Pleadings are closed and suo motu disposed of. The report be put in sealed cover," it said.

The top court stressed that the committee was only set up probe a larger conspiracy to frame judges. Justice Kaul observed that the three-member committee headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde has already gone into the merits of the sexual harassment allegations and submitted a report in the matter.

According to the report, due to limited access to records and material, it was also not possible to find corroboration for the allegations.

The bench noted that the report opines that it cannot really enter into whether the decisions of the Chief Justice on the judicial side led to this conspiracy.

Bains, meanwhile, said: "It's a vindication of my stand that there was a conspiracy against former CJI Gogoi. I welcome the honourable Supreme Court observation vindicating my stand that there was a conspiracy against him." The observations from the top court came during the hearing on the suo moto case looking into a larger conspiracy against Justice Gogoi after sexual harassment charges were levelled against him.
The living conditions of migrants stuck in Bosnia have somewhat improved after the country's military erected tents and allowed several humanitarian organisations to regularly distribute supplies.

The newly erected tents house around 1,000 people.

But in the makeshift camp of Lipa, near Bosnia's northwest border with EU-member Croatia, the lack of running water and adequate medical care has lead to cases of scabies and other sanitation-linked illnesses.

The camp was gutted by a fire last December leaving around 1,000 people without shelter, while local authorities around Bosnia refused to provide them with alternative accommodation.

For weeks after the fire, migrants in Lipa were left to fend for themselves despite the freezing weather, prompting the European Union to sharply criticise Bosnia's neglect.

Under pressure, Bosnian authorities sent in the military to erect heated tents in which hundreds of migrants are now crammed.

The EU supported the setting-up of provisional shelter in Lipa, but the bloc's top migration official, Ylva Johansson, has voiced frustration with the failure of local authorities to provide migrants with alternative, "dignified" housing.

Johansson, who serves as European Commissioner for Home Affairs, will visit Lipa on Thursday, as part of her visit to Bosnia to discuss migration management with the country's top officials.

Migrants come to Bosnia with the aim of reaching Croatia before moving on into Western Europe.

Many have complained about violence at the hands of Croatian police, and being pushed back at the border, which is illegal under international refugee law.

Bosnia has been widely criticised in recent years for mishandling the arrival of thousands of people, many fleeing war and poverty.

The politically unstable and impoverished Balkan country is still recovering from its own war in the 1990s.

(Disclaimer: This story is auto-generated from a syndicated feed; only the image & headline may have been reworked by www.republicworld.com)
Martin Scorsese, the 78-year-old American filmmaker and film preservation advocate, has an article in the March issue of Harpers about Federico Fellini. Fellini, he writes, was the cinemas virtuoso, in whose films sound and image play off and enhance one another in such a way that the entire cinematic experience moves like music, or like a great unfurling scroll.

But thats not why youre reading this, is it?

Scorsese can get lots of people Very Mad Online by making simple factual statements about what the corporate consolidation of the American film industry is doing to American art and culture. He did it in 2019, when he wrote in the New York Times that risk-averse modern film franchises [are] market-researched, audience-tested, vetted, modified, revetted and remodified until theyre ready for consumption, a pattern that squashes individual artistic expression while crowding out other options in the theatrical marketplace. Presumably at least some of the people who were angry at Scorsese for comparing Marvel movies to theme parks then are the same people who will soon eagerly pony up to visit the Marvel Studios Theme Park Universe.

In his Harpers article, he makes a parallel point about streaming. (Its worth reiterating that, in this era of unparalleled corporate mergers, Scorsese is vilifying the same people when he talks about superhero movies and when he talks about streaming. Marvel and Disney+ are under the same corporate umbrella; the DC universe and HBOMax are both subsidiaries of AT&T; and streaming services born out of the tech world, rather than from mergers between telecoms and legacy studios, have their own off-brand franchises.) This time around, Scorseses argument is that through streaming platforms, the art of cinema is being systematically devalued, sidelined, demeaned, and reduced to its lowest common denominator, content.

Heres the crux of the thing:

[T]he people who took over media companies [mostly] knew nothing about the history of the art form, or even cared enough to think that they should. Content became a business term for all moving images: a David Lean movie, a cat video, a Super Bowl commercial, a superhero sequel, a series episode. It was linked, of course, not to the theatrical experience but to home viewing, on the streaming platforms that have come to overtake the moviegoing experience, just as Amazon overtook physical stores. On the one hand, this has been good for filmmakers, myself included. On the other hand, it has created a situation in which everything is presented to the viewer on a level playing field, which sounds democratic but isnt. If further viewing is suggested by algorithms based on what youve already seen, and the suggestions are based only on subject matter or genre, then what does that do to the art of cinema?

Look, I havent checked Twitter, I assume that some piggies are once again angry at Scorsese for seeming to turn up his nose at the smell of their slop, but Im struggling here to say something more than Hes right and he should say it. Because he is right: When everything from Sunrise to La Strada to 2001 is now pretty much wrung dry and ready for the Art Film swim lane on a streaming platform, that makes it harder for the next Fellini, or the next Scorsese, to unfurl their scrolls across the hearts and minds of an audience hungry to be changed. And he should say it: It doesnt have to be this way. Developing a sense of discernment about art, discovering distinctions and navigating affinities, rather than letting it all blend together in a soylent-y mush, is one way a person teaches herself to be curious about the world.

Curating, like the work of the distributors and exhibitors who showed Fellini films in the Village, isnt undemocratic or elitist, Scorsese writes: Its an act of generosityyoure sharing what you love and what has inspired you. This, indeed, is how work carves out a lasting space in our social consciousness. When enough people share in their love of a piece of art, that art becomes part of a community. Theres no inherent power imbalance at play in the exchange of enthusiasm or insight from one person to another. And if there is, take it up with studio head, streaming platform developer, newspaper owner and future President-for-Life of Mars Jeff Bezos.

To Scorsese, who has lived with movies ever since he was an asthmatic boy with an active imagination, who stayed inside watching films instead of playing sports, film is a living art. Scorsese is not afraid of a modern world that has passed him by; to the contrary, he remains a filmmaker thrillingly attuned to the vital currents in American culture, from our Icarus-like grandiosity (The Wolf of Wall Street) to our nostalgia, conspiratorial mindset and stunted masculinity (The Irishman). The Harpers essay begins like a screenplay, with a flashback: CAMERA IN NONSTOP MOTION is on the shoulder of a young man walking through Greenwich Village in New York, drinking in the theater marquees advertising films by Bergman and Truffaut. Its touching and sad to see Scorsese, once that ardent, agitated young man, treat Fellini in this essay as both the quintessential cinematic artist, and as a figure from history  and to reckon, implicitly, with his own impending consignment to the same antiquities wing.

I guess to some, Scorseses complaints about the death of cinema, about algorithms superseding the mystical powers of human connection, might just sound like an out-of-touch fogey. Why, you used to hear similar crankiness about what the tech industry would do to commerce through Amazon (which has destroyed the livelihoods of countless local small business owners); what it would to socialization through Facebook (the worlds largest distributor of child abuse images, and the proximate cause of a genocide in Myanmar); what it would do to the media through Twitter (a shitswamp, just an absolutely terrible place). The promise of the tech industry  of automation, artificial intelligence, machine learning  was that it would take over our labor. In fact its taken over our leisure. Amazon warehouse workers piss into bottles because the bathroom is too far away to get to on their breaks, but at least they dont have to think too hard about what to watch on TV when they go home.

Scorsese winds his essay up towards a rallying cry: Great films are among the greatest treasures of our culture, and they must be treated accordingly. How? How do we keep all art from being blended into the same soylent-y mush? I dont know, and neither does he. In 2019, Scorsese wrote that hes certainly not implying that movies should be a subsidized art form. He seems, like a good liberal, to place his hopes on benevolent intentions and virtuous incentives in the marketplace of ideas. Well see how that goes. In the meantime, Martin Scorsese has earned the right to shoo these kids off his lawn. Theyre trampling the flowers.

The post Martin Scorseses Right: Big Tech Is Killing Cinema appeared first on InsideHook.
WASHINGTON -- The United States needs to step up its engagement with the Western Balkans if it wants to counter Chinese and Russian influence in the region, the former president of Croatia said.

Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, who served as president of the Balkan nation from 2015-20, also criticized Europe for dragging its feet on regional integration.

If you want to really prevent others from political interference in a certain area, then you have to be involved yourself, Grabar-Kitarovic said, referring to the United States, during a discussion hosted on February 17 by Stanford Universitys Hoover Institution.

I must say that I've been disappointed by the sort of [lack of interest] that I've seen in the past years in the Balkan region from the administrations of both President Donald Trump and his predecessor Barack Obama, she said.

Washington and Brussels have been seeking to integrate the nations of the Western Balkans into the European Union and NATO to bring stability to a region rocked by ethnic fighting in the 1990s.

However, Grabar-Kitarovic said the process has been too slow and that it's creating a vacuum that is being filled by third forces that are not necessarily benevolent at all times, a possible reference to China and Russia.

The United States and EU have expressed concerns over investments by Beijing in the Western Balkans as well as Kremlin disinformation and political influence activities in the region.

As an example, Grabar-Kitarovic called the decision to invite Bosnia-Herzegovina into NATOs Partnership for Peace program rather than directly into the military alliance an unnecessary delay that opens the door for adversaries to claim that the region isnt good enough for Western organizations.

The former president highlighted the importance of Bosnias stability to Croatias own security. Bosnia, which borders Croatia, is threatened with secessionist movements.

Grabar-Kitarovic said the Chinese are taking a very smart approach in their relations with the Western Balkans.

They show that they value you, that they will talk to you, she said, pointing out that a Croatian leader hasnt had a White House meeting since 2006, when George W. Bush was president.

The feeling that we are all gettingis if you are not a big country, or if you are not a problem country, or if you are not bringing big money to the table, you dont have an entrance to the White House, she said.

She said Washington has been dragging its feet on a double-taxation treaty with the country that would improve trade, and that she could not remember the last time a company from the United States made a big investment in Croatia.

"What I would like to see is more U.S. engagement, and a lot more active role" in the region, she said.

The United States has promised to invest up to $1 billion into the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund, which seeks to back projects that help the 12 EU nations located between the Baltic, Black, and Adriatic seas improve their transport, energy, and digital infrastructure connections.

Grabar-Kitarovic, along with Polish President Andrzej Duda, launched the Three Seas Initiative in 2015.
[February 17, 2021] Molina Healthcare of Texas Helps Members Endure Difficult Winter Storm

Molina Healthcare of Texas ("Molina") is actively reaching out to and supporting its members, providers, and employees who may be impacted by the bitter storm gripping much of Texas. "As Texans continue to struggle with the severity of this winter storm, Molina is taking steps to assist our members during this difficult time," said Anne Rote, president of Molina Healthcare of Texas. "Molina employees and providers are working around the clock to help our members get needed services and resources." During this event, members who have needs that arise because of the severe weather may reach out to Molina for assistance. Molina is providing the following support for members and providers: Allowing emergency refills for medications that require prior authorization along with early refills for prescriptions;

Working with our members and providers to ensure those impacted have access to needed care;

Providing access to ou 24x7 Nurse Advice Line as well as telehealth providers;

Tracking all employees to ensure their safety and well-being; and

Working with state and local authorities as well as community organizations to support recovery efforts.



member and provider portals around the clock. Molina members can visit our website or call 866-449-6849 for more information. About Molina Healthcare of Texas

Since 2006, Molina Healthcare of Texas has been providing government-funded care for low-income individuals. As of December 31, 2020, the company served approximately 357,000 members through Medicaid, CHIP, Medicare, Medicare-Medicaid (Duals) and Health Insurance Exchange programs, with service areas across Texas. For more information, visit MolinaHealthcare.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217006059/en/

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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

The World Health Organization on Thursday urged COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers to make good on their commitments as the planet's poorest countries await their first doses.

WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the Covax facilitythe global COVID-19 vaccine procurement and distribution effort ensuring poorer countries can access doseswas now ready to begin.

Around 336 million AstraZeneca-Oxford doses and 1.2 million Pfizer-BioNTech dosesthe only two vaccines with WHO approvalare set to start being shipped out later this month through Covax.

"At the beginning of the year I issued a call to action to ensure that vaccination of health workers was under way in all countries within the first 100 days of the year," Tedros told a news conference.

Friday "marks the half-way point, and we have made progress, but we are not there yet.

"With the emergency use listing of two versions of the AstraZeneca vaccine this week, Covax is ready to roll out vaccines and is waiting for several manufacturers to make good on their commitments," he said, without elaborating.

Concerns for small states

On Monday, the WHO gave the seal of approval to the AstraZeneca vaccine being manufactured in plants in India and South Korea, meaning it can now be shipped out via Covax.

The facility is set to issue its final distribution list for the first wave of deliveries next week. The first doses will be delivered by the end of February, with the bulk in March.

Around 145 economies are set to receive enough doses to immunise 3.3 percent of their collective population by mid-2021.

During his news conference, Tedros noted that countries in Europewhich have been striking their own deals with manufacturers - were aiming to vaccinate 70 percent of their populations in a similar same time frame.

Trinidad and Tobago's Prime Minister Keith Rowley, chairman of CARICOM, the 15-member Caribbean Community, voiced fears that small states, lacking bargaining power, would be shut out of the global vaccination drive.

'Invisible destroyer'

"As there is the understandable rush to receive the vaccines and inoculation of our various populations, we are more than a little bit concerned that there is, or is to be, hoarding and price-gouging as well as undue preference in some quarters," Rowley told the WHO press conference, via video-link.

"We are all yoked to an invisible destroyer. It is my hope and plea that... on this occasion, the rich take care of the poor.

"All we ask as members of the family of nations is that we not be forgotten, ignoredor worse, taken advantage of in this business of life and death."

The WHO launched its annual Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan for 2021 on Thursday, saying $1.96 billion was needed to fund another year of battling the pandemic.

The plan's six objectives are to suppress transmission; reduce exposure; counter misinformation; protect the vulnerable; reduce death and illness; and accelerate equitable access to vaccines, diagnostics and therapeutics.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2021 AFP
With rising user adoption for Voice search and Smart speaker usage, Google Assistant in partnership with Modev, USA and Agrahyah Technologies is presenting VOICE Talks India series. The online event is scheduled to be held on 25th February, 2021 at 11a.m.

VOICE Talks is a global community that brings the industry players together. The Indian version of VOICE Talks has been on-going since September 2020 and the next event titled Voice For Marketers is all about helping decision makers on they can use voice technology for growing their brand, engaging audience and more.

The theme for this edition is Voice For Marketers. Attendees can expect to hear from marketing gurus at Google, get access to case studies, and hear from international agencies that have worked with the worlds best known brands to launch award-winning Voice campaigns. Voice For Marketers will feature hot startups from India and SE Asia talking about building personality-led Voice apps, showcase work done by early adopters like Swiggy in India, and share insights from tech evangelists, audio content creators and ecosystem creators.

Upcoming event on 25th February 2021, at 11 am by signing up http://bit.ly/VoiceTalksIN

Speakers at the 3rd edition of VOICE Talks include:

Sapna Chadha, Senior Country Marketing Director, Google India and Southeast Asia, Google

Nithya Thadani, CEO, RAIN

Abhilash Murthy and Chan Yin Yin, Co-Founders, botdistrikt

Madhusudhan Rao, VP of Engineering - Consumer Tech and FinTech, Swiggy

Moneka Khurana, Country Head, MMA India

Lakshya Sivaramakrishnan, Program Lead, Women Techmakers India

Harshit Sharma, Director, FusionHawk.io

Sunil Kumaran, Country Head - Product, Marketing & THWINK, BIG FM

Sreeraman Thiagarajan, Co-Founder & CEO, Agrahyah Technologies

If you are a brand owner, creative marketer, developer, social media specialist, ad agency representative, or media planner who is looking to create a strategic roadmap for your business on Voice platforms like Google Assistant and Alexa, then VOICE Talks is a must-attend free online webinar series hosted by industry experts in this domain.

Mark your calendars to attend the event.
A Facebook employee warned the company was misleading advertisers by inflating their potential online audience with 'wrong data', a California lawsuit claims.

The social media giant is being sued by a San Francisco small businessman who claims that it overstated its 'potential reach metric', which informs companies of the potential online audience for an advert on the site.

Newly unsealed court papers from the suit claim that bosses at the social media giant chose not to address the problem for years after it was raised in 2018 because it would have a 'significant' impact on revenue.

The fraud suit is set to go to trial after the tech giant made a failed attempt to have it thrown out for alleged breach of contract by the businessman.

It comes as Facebook finds itself under fire in Australia for banning residents from accessing and sharing news in protest at a new law which would have forced the site to pay for the content it hosts.

A Facebook employee warned the company was misleading advertisers by inflating their potential online audience, newly released internal emails show

The tech giant has denied the claims that it counted duplicate accounts in its advertising estimates, calling them 'without merit' and argue that advertisers only pay for the clicks that are actually generated.

The unredacted lawsuit revealed a Facebook product manager who was in charge of potential reach suggested changing the metric in 2018 to make it more accurate, according to the Financial Times.

Internal emails show his proposals were denied by executives at Facebook because the 'revenue impact' would be 'significant, according to the court filing.

The product manager replied saying 'it's revenue we should have never made given the fact it's based on wrong data', the documents showed.

Other employees also voiced their concerns about the metrics, according to the filing.

The documents had been sealed because they were commercially sensitive for Facebook.

But US District Judge James Donato ruled that unsealing the filings was in the public interest.

The lawsuit filed by the small business owner cites research that suggests Facebook was quoting potential reach figures in US states and demographics that were even bigger than their respective populations.

Facebook his been fighting a class-action lawsuit against a small business owner since 2018 over allegations it knowingly overstated its 'potential reach metric'

Facebook says the metrics are only estimates and advertisers only pay for actual clicks and impressions on adverts.

But the lawsuit alleges that companies allocate a large chunk of their budget for online advertising because of the potential reach suggested by the metric.

Internal Facebook research also found that removing duplicate accounts from the data would cause a 10 per cent drop in the number, the filing claims.

In 2019, Facebook altered the metric but the lawsuit claims that as of 2020, it still hasn't removed the fake and duplicate accounts.

A Facebook company spokesperson told MailOnline: 'These allegations are without merit and we will defend ourselves vigorously.

'These documents are being cherry-picked to fit the plaintiff's narrative.

'"Potential reach"' is a helpful campaign planning tool that advertisers are never billed on. It's an estimate and we make clear how it's calculated in our ads interface and Help Center.'

Online marketing agency Crowd Siren previously sued Facebook over similar allegations that the social media company was misleading advertisers about the average time users spent watching videos.

Facebook only counted video views that lasted at least three seconds and ignored those of shorter durations, artificially extending the average length of each view,

The claimant said Facebook knew back in early 2015 that the metric was wrong but did not acknowledge it until September 2016.

The filing alleged that Facebook engaged in a PR campaign to deflect attention from the errors, citing internal emails.

Facebook allegedly paid a $40million settlement over the lawsuit.
Defence Minister Linda Reynolds says she did not pass on the report of an alleged sexual assault against her former staffer Brittany Higgins out of concern for her welfare and privacy.

In a statement to Parliament, Senator Reynolds said she was deeply sorry some of her actions added to Ms Higgins distress.

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds became emotional during question time after earlier delivering her statement to Parliament. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Ms Higgins says she was raped in March, 2019, by another staffer of Senator Reynolds in the Defence Ministers office after security guards let them into the building late the previous night.

The former Liberal staffer this week told of her distress when Senator Reynolds and the Ministers then-acting chief of staff, Fiona Brown, set up a meeting on April 1 about the matter in the same room where the alleged rape took place.
Chambers giving a vaccine to Bob McGarry in Kilkenny, completing prep work between jabs, and approaching a car to administer another dose of the vaccine. PHOTO: DYLAN VAUGHAN

Delighted over-85-year-olds rolled up in cars yesterday for the countrys first drive-through Covid-19 vaccination clinic.

Dr Frank Chambers of the Ayrfield Medical Centre in Kilkenny and his team were able to administer the vaccine while the patients remained in the car.

All the patients had to do was produce a bare arm for the short time to get the shot. One recipient was 98 years old. For some, it was their first outing in nearly a year, since the pandemic hit in March.

The relief and joy at finally getting a first dose of the jab was added to by the convenience  with spring sunshine brightening the mood.

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The car is an underestimated waiting room for a lot of people, Dr Chambers said.

There is great convenience for parents. We started this in September for the flu vaccine and noticed it improved uptake, particularly for the childrens vaccine.

It is great for the 85 and older age group and a relative or neighbour can drive them here.

Once the patients were vaccinated they were able to be driven to another area and stay in their cars while they were observed for 15 minutes by a nurse and doctor.

We have over 1,300 patients over 70, including 74 over 85 years old, Dr Chambers said.

We will do it in two half days and complete it on Thursday.

He said the drive-through clinic was also used for taking blood tests and doing respiratory assessment of Covid-19 patients.

We have done it in the snow and at -2C with doctors wearing ski gear.

The roll-out to the 85-year-olds and over ramped up yesterday after more GPs received supplies of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

There are 72,000 people in the 85 and older age group and they will get a second dose in 28 days.

The hope is to have all over-70s vaccinated by the middle of May.

Dorothy Lanigan (84) from Kilkenny city, who was one of the first to get the vaccine at Ayrfield Medical Centre, said the drive-through was a great system.

I did not have to get out of the car and it moves fast, she said.

A car park attendant was also on duty to steer all the cars to the right location.

I have not been out much since Christmas but the vaccine will make a difference, she said.

"I am looking forward now to going for a walk and doing grocery shopping.

Dorothy, whose husband Mick is a former Fianna Fail Senator, said she has been sticking to the rules and family have had to keep their distance.

She hopes that the vaccine will allow her to see her nine grandchildren.

The vaccine is peace of mind and I would love to see more people get it, including school children and college students, she added.

A small number could not attend yesterday but a reserve list meant that others in the next age cohort who were ready were vaccinated instead.

Its important to ensure there is fairness in administering it to the next oldest group, said Dr Chambers.

Speaking at a public lecture organised by the Irish Gerontological Society on getting vaccine-ready, Trinity College Professor Luke O Neill said he expected that visits to nursing homes would be allowed soon in a controlled way after vaccination.

He told broadcaster Olivia OLeary that with the roll-out of the vaccination we will be like children blinking into the light over the next three months or so and the relaxing of restrictions would be on a step-by-step basis.

HSE chief clinical officer Dr Colm Henry said the early reports reveal Israel is showing a fall in hospitalisations and illness after vaccination.

I would echo the word caution, there is much we dont know. As to making a leap going back to the way life used to be, it will be a journey of steps and one to proceed with caution, he said.

This virus knows nothing else other than to jump between people.

He said a list of people who are housebound is being drawn up in conjunction with GPs and work is being finalised with the national ambulance service to ensure nobody is left behind.

If somebody cannot be transported to a vaccination site the vaccine will be brought to them, he added.

The vaccinations of these people will be done in the same timeframe as other over-70s.

The latest figures for vaccinations nationally yesterday showed 180,192 first doses of Covid-19 vaccines had been administered up to last Sunday.

The number of second doses is 91,750. It brings the total doses given to 271,942.

On Sunday, 2,700 first doses were given to patients, plus 10 second doses.

The European Union yesterday it agreed to buy a further 300 million doses of Modernas Covid-19 vaccine and was injecting almost 250m into efforts to combat virus variants.

The news came only hours after Pfizer and BioNTech said they had signed a deal to deliver an additional 200 million vaccine doses to the bloc.

The contract with Moderna provided for an additional purchase of 150 million doses in 2021 and an option to purchase 150 million more doses in 2022.
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WLFI) - Governor Eric Holcomb has made it a priority to outfit Indiana State Police with Body Cameras in 2021. He has also called for a third-party review of all use of force practices. Since the death of George Floyd in May of last year, law enforcement agencies across the country have been looking at their policies and practices.

We are really at a crossroads of policing in America and we have this innate opportunity to make it better, said State Police Superintendent Doug Carter. We do that through the relationships that we establish, we do that through our efforts, we do that through recognizing that we arent superhuman and that we are going to make mistakes.

Indiana state police troopers currently do not wear body cameras while on the job. Governor Eric Holcomb made it his priority for all ISP troopers to have body cameras by the spring of 2021. It is something Superintendent Doug Carter was not always in favor of but reconsidered when talking to younger officers on the front lines.

"What changed me is young Indiana state troopers out there that say please let us have this technology, added Superintend Carter. Why? Because they are scared to death that even if they do the right thing they are going to be wrong."

Carter says he always took a cautious approach to body cameras, especially since some people think that implementing their use creates 100 percent transparency.

There is a misnomer that it is the be all end all and it will provide complete transparency to any police agency in any situation we find ourselves in and nothing could be further from the truth.

Carter still does have his concerns over the use of body cameras. He says they only show part of the story since they are strapped to the front of an officer. His worry is if a threat to an officer were to come from behind them, it would not be seen on camera and could be misunderstood from video evidence.

Most people who are critical of these processes have never been in a physical altercation let alone a deadly force encounter, added Superintendent Carter. Remember police go to these threats they dont create them.

However he does think adding the body cameras could help with recruiting, especially as younger people begin applying to be police officers.

"They want that technology they want to have the availability of that technology to substantiate what they do," said Superintendent Carter.

Body cameras have existed in some form since 2010. However, they were not as high-tech as they are now.

"By 2014 our agency in West Lafayette was the first police body camera agency in Indiana fully deployed," said Jason Dombkowski a body camera expert.

Dombkowski is the former West Lafayette police chief and an expert on body cameras who works for a company called Bodyworn. The company makes high-tech body cameras for police officers. The cameras are able to automatically record depending on each police agency's policies. He says that good policy is important when a police agency adopts the use of body cameras.

"As we go down that road there is a lot more concentration on policy and policy-based recording, said Dombkowski. Having systems that can automatically record to your agency's policy is a big factor these days to make sure that you have the video when you are supposed to have the video for accountability and transparency."

In the state of Indiana, a video that is considered beneficial to a criminal case has to be stored for 190 days. No other state in the country requires that length of storage. Storing that video is expensive and a task that has taken ISP a long time to get set up.

"There are still places in Indiana that don't get a really good internet connection so we had to come up with a cloud-based storage solution, added Superintendent Carter.

Carter hopes that by implementing the use of body cameras the publics trust can be restored.

"What I do not want is for the next generation to have to say the things that I am saying to you and that is that I am sorry, added Superintendent Carter. We own some of this discord in our profession we own some of the mistrust."

Superintend Carter said that reviewing ISPs use of force policies is also an important step in regaining the public trust. He believes the use of force should be consistent with every police agency in Indiana. However, he is not in favor of banning chokeholds.

I dont understand why we would eliminate a tactic when the bad guy can do it to us, said Superintendent Carter. I cannot imagine not giving that tool to a young trooper at 2 in the morning middle of nowhere no one is coming and thats all they have left. I am not going to prohibit that.

Carter says that body cameras will be on all 800 Indiana State Police Troopers by the end of spring. He says that over the next five years it will cost millions of dollars for them to add them to their agency.
Americans need to get their kids back in school. Where there are powerful teachers' unions, though, the teachers have discovered the joys of a bunny slipper commute, a minimal workday, and a full paycheck. When NBC's Savannah Guthrie pressed Kamala Harris on the new administration's plan to restart classroom learning, Harris replied with non-responsive, meaningless, double talk. Had she been auditioning for an Irwin Corey homage, it would have impressive. As it was, it showed both an administration and a vice president that are incompetent.

When it comes to educating children in 2021, there are a few important facts: the CDC acknowledges that schools are not disease vectors and teachers can safely return even if they're not vaccinated. America's kids are deeply depressed and the young ones are missing out on important education milestones, especially minority children.

Teachers in places with strong unions are refusing to go back to school. In Chicago, they have Mayor Lori Lightfoot over a barrel; in San Francisco, the city is suing the teachers.

The Biden administration is changing its story on an almost daily basis when it comes to schools reopening. It's so bad that even the Associated Press has taken notice:

President Joe Biden is in a political firestorm over how and when to get more schools open amid the coronavirus pandemic, with Republicans seizing on confusion surrounding Biden's goal to reopen a majority of schools within his first 100 days to paint the president as beholden to teachers' unions at the expense of American families. His administration in recent weeks has sent muddled and at times contradictory messages about Biden's goal. On Tuesday night, the president said his 100-day goal was to have most elementary schools open five days a week, seeming to conflict with his own press secretary, who had said last week that schools would be considered "open" if they held in-person classes even one day a week.

On Wednesday, Kamala Harris appeared on NBC's Today Show with Savannah Guthrie and succeeded in making things worse. That's where Irwin Corey comes in. He was a comedian whose shtick was to pose as an expert who would then inundate people with a meaningless wall of words:

Faced with Guthrie's probing questions, Kamala spouted streams of pointless platitudes that would have made Irwin Corey proud.

When Guthrie noted that the CDC has tied school openings to a county's infection rate, creating a scenario in which 90% of schools cannot open, Kamala blathered about how everyone wants schools to open. Guthrie pressed on, trying to get a statement about the CDC guidelines, especially when contrasted with the CDC's admission that schools are safe for both students and teachers. Kamala again produced a torrent of words about wanting schools to open.

Guthrie tried again, this time asking about Biden's shifting promises regarding school openings. Kamala babbled that kids really need to be in school and they're suffering emotionally and developmentally when they're not. Again, it was non-responsive, as well as telling parents something they already know.

Gamely, Guthrie switched to the vaccination question, pointing out that the CDC has said teachers do not need a vaccine to return to classrooms but that the teachers nevertheless are refusing to teach. She asked Kamala to "reassure" teachers that all is well. Kamala responded by saying the Biden administration wants teachers to be a priority (presumably, a priority in the vaccination queue). Once again, she didn't answer the question.

At the end of the interview, one is left with three explanations for Kamala's bizarre performance: she's really stupid, she's too uninformed to answer the questions, or she's desperately and clumsily trying to cover for the fact that the Biden administration cannot control the teachers because it's beholden to the teachers' unions. The fact that Kamala's senior adviser and chief spokesperson, Symone Sanders, also couldn't answer the school re-opening questions suggests that the third option is the correct one. Because, really, they can't all be that stupid, can they?

CNNs John Berman confronts VP spokeswoman Symone Sanders on the administrations position about whether teachers should be vaccinated before kids go back to school: Its not a trick questionpic.twitter.com/FMhekdJQGR  Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) February 17, 2021

At the end of the day, Biden is weak. He has no functional plan because he has no political power or moral suasion over teachers. Smart school districts should copy Reagan's approach to the air traffic controllers and fire teachers who won't return to classrooms. Then give parents vouchers equal to the cost of their child's year in public school, which parents can then spend on private schools or pod learning (hiring tutors for groups of children).

Image: Kamala Harris on the Today show. YouTube screen grab.
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Spirit Halloween recognizes that every donation, no matter the size, helped achieve this goal. This year marks more than $77 million raised since the program's creation in 2007, with Texas Children's Hospital hitting $2 million in total donations and 11 other partner hospitals hitting the $1 million mark.

In a year with so much change and uncertainty, Spirit of Children's commitment to Child Life & providing critical support for hospitalized children remained unwavering. Even with most children isolated in their rooms to keep them safe and well, the company delivered one-of-a-kind care packages to children in 147 pediatric hospitals across the U.S. and Canada in October. Each care package contained an assortment of costumes, activity books, crayons and treat bags. This month the money raised throughout the Halloween season will be presented to each partner hospital through virtual check presentations.

"For us, bringing a sense of normalcy to some of the toughest times a child and their family go through has always been at the heart of our organization and this year, we are floored by the outpouring of support from our guests, vendors and employees," said Steven Silverstein, CEO, Spirit Halloween. "The majority of donations are raised in Spirit Halloween stores and we want to extend our heartfelt gratitude to our customers for showing us that generosity doesn't stop, even during a pandemic. Thanks to your support, we were able to exceed our fundraising goal, a huge feat in a challenging year, reinforcing how important this funding is for local hospitals and communities."

Child Life departments have a tremendous impact on the hospital experience for young patients and their families by providing all non-medical treatment and healing through play, making their stay more comfortable. The 2020 funds will be used by Child Life Departments to hire additional Child Life staff, provide full-time specialists in the emergency department, purchase educational and sensory items used for distraction and calming during procedures and to create dedicated playrooms, teen lounges and separate family spaces for long hospital visits.

"We deeply appreciate Spirt of Children's ongoing support of our patients, especially as we reach this tremendous milestone," said Mary Tietjens, assistant director of clinical support services at Texas Children's Hospital. "This generosity allows our Child Life Department to purchase toys, games, crafts and electronics for children of all ages. This support is critical as play in a hospital setting provides the opportunity for kids to be kids and helps create many needed joy-filled moments."

To learn more about Spirit of Children, please visit SpiritofChildren.com.

About Spirit Halloween

Spirit Halloween is the largest Halloween retailer in the United States and Canada with over 1,400 seasonal locations. Celebrating 38 years in business, Spirit is the premier destination for all things Halloween, offering one-stop shopping for everything including costumes, accessories, makeup and decor. Spirit's broad selection, engaging animatronics and fun, interactive experience caters to all ages from kids to teens and adults. To find the latest products and styles, visit spirithalloween.com.

About Spirit of Children

At the heart of Spirit Halloween is Spirit of Children, a program which focuses on making hospitals less scary for kids and their families. Since its inception in 2007, Spirit of Children has raised more than $77 million for the Child Life department at hospitals across the United States and Canada. Donations to Spirit of Children stay within local communities, with 100 percent of funds going to Child Life Services. For the 2021 Halloween season, Spirit of Children will be supporting more than 147 hospitals across the country, with a goal to raise a record $13 million. Spirit encourages customers to help make a difference in a child's life this Halloween season by donating at their local Spirit Halloween or spreading awareness via Facebook and Instagram using #SpiritofChildren and #MoreCowbell in their photos. For more information, please visit: www.SpiritOfChildren.com.

Media Contacts:

Erin Springer: Spirit Halloween Public Relations

[email protected] | 609-645-5619

Stephanie Kayser: Crossroads Public Relations

[email protected] | 816-384-6570

SOURCE Spirit Halloween

Related Links

https://www.spirithalloween.com


New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks at a news conference in New York City on Sept. 8, 2020. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

GOP Senators Call for Investigation of Cuomos Potentially Criminal Actions

Nine Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee are calling on the panels chairman, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) to convene public hearings on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomos potentially criminal placing of CCP virus patients in nursing homes.

The call for hearings follows media reports that one of Cuomos top aides, Melissa DeRosa, admitted to New York state legislators that the governor and his staff purposely withheld information about CCP virus patients sent to nursing homes, where the disease rapidly spread to the aging residents of the facilities.

The CCP virus is also known as the novel coronavirus.

DeRosa said in a video conference call obtained by the New York Post, We were in a position where we werent sure if what we were going to give to the Department of Justice, or what we give to you guys, what we start saying, was going to be used against us while we werent sure if there was going to be an investigation.

As a result, nearly 15,000 individuals died in the nursing homes, the state was forced to acknowledge, but Cuomo and his staff had only acknowledged 8,500 in official reports.

We now know the Cuomo administration actively concealed the level of admissions and intentionally underreported these admissions in a way that callously and recklessly put facility residents in danger and resulted in an unknown number of deaths, the GOP lawmakers told Durbin in a Feb. 17 letter.

The Associated Press now reports that the number of admissions was greater than 9,000 COVID-19 patients40 percent higher than what the state health department previously released, the senators said.

That so many people needlessly lost their lives because of the failed policies of Governor Cuomos administrationan administration that many have lauded over the past yearis tragic and deserves a full investigation and accounting.

These new revelations, however, that Governor Cuomos administration withheld information from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and intentionally misled federal officials to avoid political accountability is more than irresponsible: It is very possibly criminal.

Those who deliberately withheldor directed others to withholdmaterial information from [DOJ] may be guilty of obstruction of justice, violating the False Claims Act, and numerous other criminal violations.

The nine signers of the letter included Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the ranking Republican, as well as Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Ted Cruz and John Cornyn of Texas, Mike Lee of Utah, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee.

The letter signers told Durbin theyll challenge Justice Merrick Garland, President Joe Bidens nominee to be attorney general, to open a full DOJ investigation.

But a DOJ probe would be conducted behind closed doors, and the letter signers believe the Judiciary Committee should convene public hearings to ensure timely and public accountability for those who played politics with COVID-19 at the expense of the lives of American senior citizens, the signers said.

Holding hearings on potential federal criminal activity related to the reckless endangerment of American seniors in a global pandemic would send a strong signal that you take [DOJ] oversight and the lives and rights of American seniors seriously, the signers told Durbin.

Cuomo has become something of an international celebrity as a result of his daily briefings on his actions. He was awarded an International Emmy in November 2020 by the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

The Governors 111 daily briefings worked so well because he effectively created television shows, with characters, plot lines, and stories of success and failure, the academys president and CEO, Bruce Paisner, said in a statement announcing his groups decision to give the award to the New York governor.

People around the world tuned in to find out what was going on, and New York tough became a symbol of the determination to fight back, Paisner said in the statement.

And during the 2020 presidential campaign, Biden described Cuomos actions during the pandemic as sort of the gold standard. More recently, however, Biden has appeared to be putting some distance between himself and Cuomo.

Contact Mark Tapscott at Mark.Tapscott@epochtimes.nyc
SCHENECTADY  A list of 13 police reform demands from a community group will likely make for a spirited debate when Schenectadys advisory panel meets again Wednesday to discuss the document and other potential policy changes.

At issue is whether the recommendations from the group, All of Us, to address what it describes as police brutality, state sanctioned violence and abuse of power should be separate and stand on its own from a police department Power Point presentation in the draft report that will soon be forwarded to the City Council for their review.

Among other things, the group is calling for all assets seized by law enforcement to be returned to the community; the automatic firing of police and correction officers for any racist correspondences online, in writing or during private conversations; a ban on shooting at moving vehicles; and anti-racism training for everyone working in law enforcement or in a detention facility.

On Wednesday, the Rev. Phil Grisgby insisted the dictates should be included in the appendices in the report.

I believe that part of the context of why were here is because of community demands that were made and I feel its important to list those in the document, said Grigsby, former executive director of what is now known as Schenectady Community Ministries.

Police Chief Eric Clifford asked the panel to explain the difference between the demands being in a Power Point presentation the department put out earlier this year with responses to each of them, versus by themselves in the draft report.

Clifford also wondered who All of Us spoke to before coming up with the demands and said leaders of the group refused to meet with him to discuss those demands.

Mikayla Foster, who serves on the panel and is also a member of All of Us, disputed that contention.

She said the group had conversations with hundreds of people in the streets and social media among other platforms, and that the goal of the 13 demands was to gather anecdotes, stories, and lived experiences from those marginalized by policing in our community and how they have affected them.

Theyve been out for months and months and weve adapted them to the new stories that we hear, the new lived experiences because we want to be as authentic as possible when representing our community and its voices, she added.

All of Us, which came into greater prominence over the summer during Black Lives Matter protests, was founded by Jamaica Miles and Shawn Young.

Miles told the Times Union the group would focus on issues and changes needed in Schenectady, her hometown.

Foster also wanted to know about potential policy changes that may come out of the process.

Clifford said the command staff has made changes to current policies.

The use of force policy has been updated, and we are considering creating policy to cover certain things, but as far as actually changing policies, off the top of my head, I dont think we have any that we need to change right now to meet the emerging themes that have come out of these conversations, but I may be wrong, he said, adding that may change depending on the contents of the Finn Institute and feedback from council members, and that any recommended policy change will be thoroughly reviewed.

Still, the police chief cautioned the panel that a change to an given policy may affect others and threaten the recent state accreditation that required the department to retool many of its policies and practices.

Mayor Gary McCarthy said it remains to be seen how best to feature the list of the 13 demands on the executive summary, hard copy and the digital format of any document the city ultimately submits to the state for approval.

Clifford said it would make more sense for the demands to stand alone if All of Us could provide supporting documents, especially signatures from people in the neighborhoods, and the methods the group used in soliciting input from the community.

When we see them, well know that the community signed them and wants them, added Clifford.

Councilwoman Carmel Patrick agreed with Clifford.

Foster assured the group that she could furnish that data before Wednesdays meeting.

(@FahadShabbir)

Hong Kong will begin to give the COVID-19 vaccine to its residents for free on Feb. 26 as the first 1 million doses from Sinovac Biotech will arrive on Friday afternoon

HONG KONG (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :Hong Kong will begin to give the COVID-19 vaccine to its residents for free on Feb. 26 as the first 1 million doses from Sinovac Biotech will arrive on Friday afternoon.

At a press conference on Thursday, Patrick Nip, Secretary for the Civil Service of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government, said that people in priority groups, including medical workers and the aged, can book their first shots online from next Tuesday.

Nursing home staff, public service providers such as street cleaners, postmen and disciplined force members, workers in cross-border transport, including truck drivers and crews, will also be the first to get the vaccine.

Apart from the Sinovac vaccine, 1 million doses of the vaccine developed by Fosun Pharma and BioNTech are expected be shipped to Hong Kong by the end of this month.

As the vaccines are about to come in succession, the inoculation will be carried out in phases, Nip said.

The HKSAR government has secured a total of 22.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines, enough to cover Hong Kong's 7.5 million population, as each person needs to take two jabs.

Longtime CNN anchor Brooke Baldwin announced that she will be leaving the network in mid-April.

Baldwin shared the news with viewers on Feb. 17, saying: For a decade Ive never taken for granted the enormous responsibility and privilege Ive had to work with some of the most talented producers and photojournalists and correspondents and anchors out there I wanted to be part of the best of the best in cable news and journalism, and, as a native Atlantan, this would be my hometown dream. Little did I know, I would not only go one to fulfill that dream, I would flourish in this environment and land my own two-hour show in the afternoon at the age of 31.

Brooke Baldwin at the DVF Awards | Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Following the news of her exit and Baldwins own admission that she doesnt have another job lined up, some fans wondered what her net worth is. Others wondered who will take over her afternoon time slot and who will co-host future New Years Eve specials with fellow anchor Don Lemon. Here are the answers to those questions and more.

Are Don Lemon and Brooke Baldwin really friends?

Not a ton is known about Baldwins life behind the camera but viewers have seen her let loose on the occasion while co-hosting CNNs New Years Eve countdowns alongside Lemon. Some have questioned if the two are really as close as they appear

In 2018, Baldwin spoke to Variety and stated that she and Lemon are actually very good friends. Don and I are amazing friends off camera, she said. I think there was a hot tub from a couple years ago. There was the ear piercing. Don always comes to play. I think what people enjoy about us, if you talked to us off camera, it would be the exact same as on camera. We almost forget that we are on live television when we have a heart-to-heart about relationships, which can be dangerous.

Don Lemon and Brooke Baldwin attend CNN Heroes | Mike Coppola/Getty Images for CNN

Theres no word yet on who will co-host the NYE countdowns in the future with Lemon or if Baldwin will return for the role. What is know is who will replace her in the weekday afternoon spot after her departure.

In a press release, that network revealed that Victor Blackwell and Alisyn Camerota will take Baldwins place on CNN Newsroom from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. ET.

Whos net worth is higher?

After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2001, Baldwin moved to Virginia where she began working in broadcast journalism. She also worked in West Virginia as a morning news anchor and a lead reporter at the WTTG network in Washington, DC.

Baldwin joined CNN in 2008. According to Celebrity Net Worth, her annual salary as an anchor is $4 million and her estimated net worth is $10 million.

Don Lemon and Brooke Baldwin pose for photo the American Museum of Natural History | Mike Coppola/Getty Images for CNN

RELATED: Is Alec Baldwin Related to CNN Anchor Brooke Baldwin?

Lemon attended Louisiana State University before transferring to Brooklyn College in New York where he studied journalism. He worked for Fox News affiliates while still in college and after graduation, was a correspondent for NBC in Philadelphia and Chicago. Lemon also served as an investigative reporter for an affiliate in St. Louis.

He joined CNN in 2006 and like Baldwin, reportedly has an annual salary of $4 million. Celebrity Net Worth noted that Lemons estimated net worth is more than Baldwins at $12 million.
An 86-year-old man convicted of killing a south Alabama police officer has died in prison.

Donald Lewis Owen, convicted in the 1980 shooting death of Chickasaw Police Officer John Dotson, died at 1:51 a.m. Monday at William Donaldson Correction Facility, according to the Jefferson County Coroners Office. At the time of his death, said Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates, Owen was under the care of prison medical and died of natural causes.

The deadly shotgun shooting happened April 8, 1980 when Dotson was issuing a traffic citation to Owen, who was 45 at the time. Testimony showed Owen had left work at a Mobile paper company and stopped at a bar where he drank four to eight beers. After leaving the bar shortly after 2 a.m., he was stopped by Dotson on Highway 43 in Saraland. Reports said the slain officer was still clutching the citation in his hand when he was found with gunshot wounds to his face and torso.

Owen was found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to life without parole. In 1989 and again in 1992 he received new trials and was sentenced to life without parole each time.
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / February 18, 2021 / Byte , the marketing technology (martech) agency of choice for fast-growing digital platform brands, has today announced that it has joined international digital agency Dept. Together, both agencies will strengthen end-to-end digital services for clients across the globe.

As one of the Financial Times Fastest-Growing Companies in Europe , Byte's position as a trailblazing martech agency specializing in ad campaigns, AR, automation and chatbots has attracted long-term clients that include Spotify, ASOS and Just Eat Takeaway. In 2020, Byte grew its global revenue by 20%, adding a number of high-growth clients to its roster, including TikTok and Twitch.

Dept is known for helping brands like BOSE, Mizuno and Patagonia to grow and accelerate their digital business by combining creativity, technology and data. Byte was attracted by Dept's digital DNA, culture and ambitious growth plans. With Dept's significant footprint of 27 offices around the world, Byte now has the opportunity to provide a full-service digital offer to its global clients.

Dimi Albers, CEO at Dept, said, "Alex, Jamie and the team have established a high reputation for innovative advertising campaigns, pioneering AR effects and advanced chatbots. Their ability to grow fast while operating at the intersection of creativity, technology and data makes this a perfect mix, and we can't wait to start working together on some of the best brands in the world."

Byte's Founding Partner, Alex Miller, said: "We've become part of Dept to accelerate global growth and supercharge our tech offerings with access to over 500 engineers across the world. We're excited to help Dept achieve its vision of becoming the leading digital agency in the world."

Byte's Founding Partner, Jamie Kenny, added: "Byte will retain the innovative and entrepreneurial spirit that our clients love, while Dept's mantra of being 'big enough to cope and small enough to care' really resonates with our approach."

Now part of Dept, Byte's branding and management team will continue as before. Byte's Founding Partners - Alex Miller and Jamie Kenny - will work closely with Dept's Board of Directors, in addition to its UK and U.S. teams.

Backed by investment firm The Carlyle Group , Dept is one of the fastest-growing digital agencies in the world, driven by organic growth and acquisitions. In 2020, San Diego-based digital agency BASIC joined Dept, along with renowned Danish strategic design agency Sorthvid and premiere Swiss agency Hinderling Volkart .

International technology investment firm GP Bullhound acted as an exclusive financial advisor to Byte for this transaction.

About Byte : Byte is a fast-growing independent martech agency that combines technology with creativity, data, strategy and paid media to crack brands' business problems through a variety of marketing solutions like ad campaigns, AR, automation and chatbots. Listed in the prestigious 2020 Sunday Times Tech Track 100 , ranked 33 in the FT 1000: Europe's Fastest-Growing Companies and featured in LinkedIn's Top 25 StartUps , the company's clients include ASOS, Just Eat Takeaway, Spotify and TikTok. Founded by Alex Miller and Jamie Kenny in 2014, Byte's 150-strong team now spans London, New York and Berlin. Byte is a Facebook Premium Marketing Partner, Official Snapchat Lens Creator Partner and TikTok Effect Partner.

About Dept: Hi, we are Dept - a digital agency for creativity, technology, and data. We help our clients build and accelerate their digital business by creating leading digital products, services, and campaigns. Our team of over 1,750 thinkers and makers spans 13 countries across Europe and the Americas. We proudly work for top brands like Samsung, Bose, Bugaboo, Indigo Ag, Triumph Motorcycles, Netflix and more. www.deptagency.com .

Press contact: Kristin Cronin, kristin.cronin@deptagency.com

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SOURCE: Dept

View source version on accesswire.com:https://www.accesswire.com/630441/Dept-Accelerates-Global-Growth-With-Marketing-Technology-Agency-Byte
STAMFORD  City officials are warning residents to take proper precautions amid a winter storm that is expected to dump 5 to 9 inches of snow on the region over 24 hours.

Mayor David Martin declared a snow emergency Wednesday night, and urged residents to have a preparedness plan to deal with any emergencies.

Martins spokesperson Arthur Augustyn said crews started pre-treating Stamford Wednesday night into Thursday morning in preparation for the storm.

Its roughly the same as the storm we saw last week, and we got through that one OK so I imagine well be getting through this one pretty okay as well, Augustyn said.

Crews began plowing around 9 a.m. Thursday as soon as snow began to accumulate. Augustyn said the team of plow drivers will work around the clock as long as snow continues to fall.

The storm is expected to bring 3 to 6 inches of snow to the region by the evening hours of Thursday, with an additional 1 to 3 inches overnight, for a total of 5 to 9 inches by Friday night. The heaviest snows are expected around late Thursday morning into the late afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Snowfall then could reach up to one inch an hour.

Sgt. Jeffrey Booth, supervisor of Stamford Polices Traffic Unit, said theres been a slightly higher number of accidents since the snow started Thursday. Since midnight, the city has seen at least 10 accidents  most of which he said occurred after 10:30 a.m. when the snow started sticking.

Booth advised residents to stay at home and off the roads unless it is absolutely necessary to go out.

Road conditions can deteriorate quickly and be dangerous, he said.

Booth also warned drivers with four-wheel drive not be lulled into a false sense of security.

Just because someone has some type of four-wheel drive vehicle doesnt necessarily mean its any safer to drive, he said.

Stamfords Office of Public Safety urged home-bound residents to develop a plan in case of any emergencies.

Organize a plan for you and your family should there be an emergency  especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Your plan should include how family members can contact one another, where to meet, and alternative housing options if you need to relocate from your home, a spokesperson said.

Public safety officials also warned of potential carbon monoxide poisoning in the event of power outages caused by the storm. They reminded residents that any portable generators used must must be stored outside  advice that also applies to grilling devices.

Using generators or grills indoors or enclosed spaces (such as large tents) can create a lethal build-up of carbon monoxide. Always run generators outdoors, away from doors, windows, or air intake vents, as far from your home as possible, they said.

As of 1 p.m. Thursday, there had been no reported power outages in Stamford.

In the event there are outages, the city is offering a warming shelter in the lobby of Stamford Government Center, 888 Washington Blvd., which is open to residents 24/7.

In anticipation of Thursdays storm, Stamford Public Schools announced it would be a distance learning day for all students. The district hasnt announced its plans for Friday yet.

The citys snow emergency will be in effect Wednesday night until 8 p.m. Friday.

During the emergency, residents will not be allowed to park on streets labeled as Emergency Snow Routes. Residents will be allowed to park for free in the Bell Street, Bedford Street and Summer Street garages until the winter storm emergency is lifted.

As a result of the snow emergency, many testing sites for COVID-19 have been temporarily closed throughout the city.

Testing locations at Stamford High Schools Hillandale Parking Lot, 845 Canal St., 60 Palmers Hill Road, 805 Atlantic St. will all be closed until further notice, according to the citys website.

Stamford Hospital and the Tully Health Center will still offer drive-thru testing. That service is by appointment only and those wishing to be tested need a doctors order.

To check on other locations, visit the city of Stamfords COVID-19 testing website.

City officials encourage Stamford residents to visit the citys winter weather and snow resources page, and to sign up for CT Alerts, to stay informed.

Downed power lines or outages should be reported to Eversource at 1-800-286-2000.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 00:01:08|Editor: huaxia

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DHAKA -- More than 1.5 million people in Bangladesh have so far taken the first doses of COVID-19 vaccine paving the way for the Asian country to contemplate re-opening educational institutions.

The Bangladeshi government is planning to administer COVID-19 vaccines to 16.9 million people from varied high-risk groups on a priority basis. (Bangladesh-COVID-19-Vaccination)

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KATHMANDU -- Nepal has granted approval to the COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co. Ltd, under Sinopharm, for the emergency use in Nepal, the country's drug regulator said.

It is the second COVID-19 vaccine to get approval from the Department of Drug Administration, the Nepali drug regulator, after the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford and pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca received such approval a month ago. (Nepal-China-Vaccine)

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NEW DELHI -- India's COVID-19 tally rose to 10,950,201 on Thursday, as 12,881 new cases were registered during the past 24 hours, the latest data from the federal health ministry showed.

According to the official data, the death toll mounted to 156,014 as 101 COVID-19 patients died since Wednesday morning. There are still 137,342 Active Cases in the country, while 10,656,845 people have been discharged so far from hospitals after medical treatment. (India-COVID-19)

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JAKARTA -- The death toll from landslide in Indonesia's East Java province rose to 18 after five more bodies were found on Thursday, an official said.

"Today we found five victims, one in sector B and four in sector A. From the results of the autopsy, three were males and two females, including adults and children," the East Java Search and Rescue (SAR) Agency's Head Hari Adi Purnomo said as quoted by Antara news agency on Thursday. (Indonesia-Landslide) Enditem
The Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz Announces Investigation of Sonic Automotive, Inc. (SAH) on Behalf of Investors

The Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz is investigating potential claims against the board of directors of Sonic Automotive, Inc. ("Sonic" or the "Company") (NYSE: SAH) concerning whether the board breached its fiduciary duties to shareholders.

If you are a shareholder, click here to paticipate.







On or about October 7, 2020, Sonic's Chief Executive Officer ("CEO"), David Smith (News - Alert) , was charged with assault and felony assault by strangulation, in addition to misdemeanor offenses. Sonic's Board of Directors issued a statement that the company "remains steadfast in its support of [its] CEO."

Our investigation concerns whether the Company's board of directors breached its fiduciary duties to shareholders and/or grossly mismanaged the Company in connection with the above alleged misconduct.

Follow us for updates on Twitter (News - Alert) : twitter.com/FRC_LAW.

If you still hold Sonic shares purchased before June, 2020 and wish to discuss this matter with us, or have any questions concerning your rights and interests with regards to this matter, please contact Frank R. Cruz, of The Law Offices of Frank R. Cruz, 1999 Avenue of the Stars, Suite 1100, Los Angeles, California 90067 at 310-914-5007, by email to info@frankcruzlaw.com, or visit our website at www.frankcruzlaw.com. If you inquire by email please include your mailing address, telephone number and number of shares purchased.

This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and ethical rules.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218006085/en/
ROCHESTER, Minn. - The Rochester City Council has denied changes to the City Charter that would have removed decision-making power from the park and library boards.

Council members vote 6-1 to reject the changes proposed by the Charter Commission, with Council Member Shaun Palmer being the only dissenting vote.

Had it passed, the boards would have lost budgetary authority and the ability to hire and fire directors, among other powers.

Presidents of both the park and library boards have spoken out against the proposed changes, arguing they would make their boards less responsive and not solve any existing problems.

Proponents say the boards have been given extraordinary powers that should be left in the hands of elected leaders.
In the framework of the Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS) of Egypt Vision 2030, Egypt has been in the process of designing a detailed industrialisation action plan. The goal is to lift the country up into the ranks of the top 30 industrial performers within ten years. To this end, the government has been working to furnish a robust infrastructure and it has significantly increased the number of manufacturing permits it has issued. Efforts are under way to streamline the process, eliminate bureaucratic overlap between ministries, promote coordination between the relevant agencies and other such actions needed to facilitate the progress of the industrialisation vision.

The House of Representatives is currently formulating a strategy to achieve a number of goals. Those include high targets for the volume and quality of exports and sourcing the raw materials necessary for designated manufactures. In their discussions in parliament, lawmakers emphasised the need to encourage greater levels of investment in Egypt. According to the chairman of the Houses Industry Committee, the aim is to more than quadruple the volume of exports from the current level of $23 billion to $100 billion. He urged a focus on the more profitable industries. For example, he said, Egypt produces 50,000 tons of casting while Germany produces 5.3 million tons, and the price per 20,000 tons has risen to a billion dollars. He also advised increasing production of edible oils, of which Egypt currently importing 1.4 million tons a year at a cost of $600 million. He added, we need to think outside the box.

Boosting domestic production and increasing export rates are the highest priorities of the Ministry of Trade and Industry anyway. That is why it launched a national programme to expand domestic production with the aims of augmenting the added value of locally manufactured goods and increasing the rates of import substitution. In its initial phase, the programme has targeted a number of goods and products to be produced locally in sufficient quantities to meet the demands of the local market. At the same time, the political vision attaches great importance to the task of increasing export volumes in all sectors, but especially those in which Egypt enjoys a competitive edge, so that we can stand a better chance of reaching the $100 billion export volume target.

The government is currently studying a variety of proposals for facilitating export procedures and overcoming hurdles in the way of the smooth flow of Egyptian exports abroad, especially to African markets which are among the primary targets in the Ministry of Trade and Industrys plan to increase exports. The ministry has adopted an ambitious plan to develop and expand industrial zones throughout the country, Minister of Trade and Industry Nevine Gamea said recently. In addition to 13 new industrial complexes that have been established across the country, containing more than 4,000 manufacturing units fully equipped with all the necessary utilities and facilities, seven more complexes were proposed last year, offering an additional 1,657 fully equipped units of different sizes. There is a high demand for the units that are already available in seven governorates for rent or purchase with unprecedented facilitated terms. The demand is especially high among entrepreneurs with small or micro projects.

IMF Executive Director Mahmoud Mohieldin believes that, in the light of Egypts development efforts during the past three years and the economic stability the country has achieved, to which international rankings and indexes bear testimony, Egypt has the ability to build an industrial base from the groundwork laid by the national megaprojects. Addressing the Egypt Can with Industrialisation conference last week, he underscored the need to focus on import substitution and exports. There are products produced locally for self-sufficiency and others that are produced for export, he said. Therefore, there is no need to have a single policy. In fact, diversity is of the essence if Egypt is to attain the goal that the political vision has set for export volume. Encouraging decision makers to focus more on exports than imports, Mohieldin suggested that they should discuss policies that would give greater support to export trade with the Central Bank. On the whole, the IMF director was optimistic. He believed that Egypt would be able to reach the $100 billion target.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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Ukraine will start vaccination against coronavirus (COVID-19) with the AstraZeneca vaccine manufactured in India, vaccination will start before the end of the week, Health Minister of Ukraine Maksym Stepanov said.

"I think that the first thing we will start getting vaccinated with is the vaccine manufactured by AstraZeneca, which is produced by the Serum Institute (India)," he said on the air of the Ukraine24 television channel on Wednesday evening.

Stepanov said that 500,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine should be delivered to Ukraine by the end of the week.

"By the end of the week, it should be in Ukraine. The issues of logistics, shipments directly from India, aircraft freight and others are settled," he said.

He also said the Crown Agents British procurement agency deals with logistics issues, but the Health Ministry is in constant communication with the Serum Institute vaccine manufacturer.
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Bengaluru has the highest proportion of employers41 per cent, followed by Mumbai at 29 per cent and Delhi 24 per cent (AFP)

CHENNAI: Job prospects of freshers have started brightening up. Around 15 per cent companies, especially those in the technology space, have indicated plans to hire freshers, which is up from 6 per cent and 9 per cent during the pandemic.

During the lock-down and unlock phases the intent to hire freshers among companies had dipped to the lows of 6 per cent and 9 per cent respectively. This, however, has improved to 15 per cent for February-April 2021. This, however, is nowhere near the prepandemic levels when 38 per cent companies had the intent to hire, finds a report by Teamlease Services. Bengaluru has the highest proportion of employers41 per cent who have an intent to hire, followed by Mumbai at 29 per cent and Delhi 24 per cent. The report analyses insights gathered from 815 employers, across 18 sectors and 14 cities in India.

Information technology, telecommunications, e-commerce and technology start-ups seem to be the leaders in terms of hiring intent. Some of the jobs which need fresh hands include business developmentsales pro-fessionals, graphic designers, digital marketing associates, content writers and web developers. For these jobs, employers expect freshers to possess domain skills like spreadsheet skills, product/service marketing, data analytics, web development and mobile app development.

Hence, most popular courses freshers can take up to improve their employability are of auto-mation, software development and graphics design. For the period February-April, 2021, freshers hiring intent has improved by 2.5 times from the

lockdown period...what stood out was the growing focus on specialised skills that employers expect from fresh job entrants, said Shantanu Rooj, founder and CEO, TeamLease EdTech.

Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
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KYIV, Ukraine  Two journalists in Belarus were convicted Thursday of violating public order and sentenced to two years in prison after they covered a protest against authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Katsiaryna Bakhvalava, 27, who also goes by the last name of Andreyeva, and Daria Chultsova, 23, both of the Polish-funded Belsat TV channel, were arrested in November after police broke down the door of a Minsk apartment where they doing a live stream of a demonstration in the Belarusian capital.

Addressing the court before the verdict, Bakhvalava vowed to continue working for building a Belarus that wont have political repressions.

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................................................................

Im not pleading. Im demanding acquittal for me and my colleagues, she said, referring to other jailed journalists.

The two were charged with organizing actions rudely violating public order  accusations they denied.

The U.S. Embassy condemned the political convictions and egregious prison sentences for the journalists and urged authorities in Belarus to cease the persecution and prosecution of journalists and media outlets for covering the news.

The United States reiterates that Belarusian authorities have a commitment to protect and uphold fundamental freedoms, especially those of assembly, speech, and the press, it said in a statement.

More than 400 journalists have been detained in Belarus in the last six months, and at least 10 have faced criminal charges and remain in custody.

We consider the sentence politically motivated, its goal is to scare all journalists to prevent them from fulfilling their professional duty to cover socially important events in the country, the Belarusian Association of Journalists said. That effectively amounts to a professional ban.

The International Federation of Journalists denounced the ruling as shameful and totally unfounded.

Todays verdict is a clear attack on press freedom and we all stand together against this mockery of justice, federation president Younes Mjahed said in a statement.

Belarus has been rocked by protests after official results from the Aug. 9 presidential election gave Lukashenko a sixth term in office by a landslide. The opposition and some poll workers have said the election was rigged.

Authorities in the Eastern European nation have responded with a sweeping crackdown on the demonstrations, the biggest of which attracted up to 200,000 people. Human rights activists say more than 30,000 people have been detained since the protests began, with thousands brutally beaten.

The United States and the European Union have responded to the election and the crackdown by introducing sanctions against Belarusian officials.

After the verdicts, Polish President Andrzej Duda asked the countrys diplomats to convey strong criticism of the crackdown on freedom of speech and civil rights to the Belarusian authorities, according to his top aide, Krzysztof Szczerski.

He noted that Poland is urging its EU partners to respond to the suppression of basic rights and freedoms in Belarus.

In a strongly worded comment, the head of the Belsat TV in Poland said sentencing the journalists was proof that the political terror in Belarus is being tightened, and she harshly criticized the EU for a muted response.

Our employees must operate as if in a war and they suffer measurable losses, Agnieszka Romaszewska-Guzy said in an opinion piece posted on the Belsat website. They pay with their personal freedom for promoting free speech.

She vowed to take the European Union out of its slumber and make sure that politicians take real steps instead of only offering words of indignation over the developments in Belarus.

I am very critical of actions taken so far, as being rather a pretense and hypocrisy, Romaszewska-Guzy said.

___

Follow all AP stories about developments in Belarus at https://apnews.com/Belarus.



Associated Press writer Monika Scislowska in Warsaw contributed.
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President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on stage after speaking to supporters at Joint Base Andrews before boarding Air Force One for his last time as President in Joint Base Andrews, Md., on Jan. 20, 2021. (Pete Marovich/Pool/Getty Images)

Trump: Biden Either Lying or Mentally Gone on Vaccine Gaffe

Former President Donald Trump has lambasted his successor, President Joe Biden, as being either dishonest or mentally gone after Biden falsely claimed that the United States did not have a CCP virus vaccine when he assumed office.

He was either not telling the truth or he was mentally gone, one or the other, Trump told Newsmax TV on Wednesday.

Hes getting lit up on that one, he said, referring to the social media backlash over Bidens statement. Could he be joking? Because, frankly, that was a very dumb statement.

During a CNN town hall on Feb. 16, Biden told the host, Its one thing to have the vaccine, which we didnt have when we came into office, but a vaccinatorhow do you get the vaccine into someones arm? Earlier during the same event, Biden spoke of 50 million vaccine doses being available when he came into office.

Biden received a full course of a two-dose vaccine before he took office on Jan. 20. The United States had administered 1 million doses by Dec. 24 last year.

In a wide-ranging interview, Trump shared his first assessment of the new administration, criticizing Biden over his approach to communist China and illegal immigration.

The whole thing is so ridiculous. We had China exactly where we wanted them, Trump said.

Trump gave several interviews on Feb. 17 in the wake of the death of his friend and conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh. During the Newsmax interview, he spoke at length about the 2020 election, calling it rigged and stolen.

Really bad and dishonest things happened, Trump said, pointing out that he received 75 million votesmore than any incumbent president in history.

When they say stop the steal, theyre not just kidding. Its a disgrace. Its like a third-world country with the election. So we have to get that straightened out and I think get to the bottom of what happened  both going forward but we also have to go back, Trump said.

Trump also weighed in on his ban from social media, saying that Parler, a social media platform, wanted to bring him on. He noted that his Twitter audience alone was larger than the total audience of Parler, making it mechanically impossible to come onto the platform.

Trump confirmed that he missed being president but would not say if he would run in 2024.

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The Proud Boys are a far-right white nationalist organization based in Canada that was recently designated a terrorist entity by the Canadian government. This designation, however, will not stop violent extremists from attacking Canadian values.

Opinion

The Proud Boys are a far-right white nationalist organization based in Canada that was recently designated a terrorist entity by the Canadian government. This designation, however, will not stop violent extremists from attacking Canadian values.

This is a moment in time where extremism now pervades social media. This change has been so gradual that we have not noticed our tacit involvement each time we post or pass on softly violent memes and slogans wrapped in humour.

The criminal justice system will be unable to weather this storm unless it adjusts its approach to understanding the true nature of social movements and determining whether terrorist designations are the most appropriate means of dealing with social movements that express soft violence.

Soft violence describes harmful activities that stop short of actual physical violence. It takes the form of culturally nuanced, inexplicit cues that reinforce perceived power disparities. Specific clothing, memes and symbols are all types of recorded social violence activity associated with right-wing extremists.

Addressing soft violence

While groups like the Proud Boys are undoubtedly violent in intention, they are softly violent in their expression. This soft violence demonstrates the creeping normalization of extremist sentiment in our communities.

To receive a terrorist designation, an oganization must meet three criteria: it must intend or have committed physical harm; it must intend to impact decision-making by policy-makers and or intimidate citizens; and it must be driven by ideological beliefs. The danger of physical harm to citizens must be clearly demonstrated with "reasonable grounds" that it has carried out, attempted to carry out, participated in or facilitated terrorist activity.

Groups that plan, conduct and execute physical harm driven by ideological beliefs are just the tip of the iceberg. Neo-Nazi groups such as the Atomwaffen Division and The Base  also designated terrorist organizations by the Canadian government  fit this designation: they sell guns and train militias for race wars, and utter and disseminate hate speech.

Visible minority

These organized right-wing extremist groups are the violent visible minority, and a small part of the much larger movement of sympathizers and supporters.

Extremists thrive in environments where they can easily cultivate an identity that is fixated on maintaining the dominance, authority, legitimacy and superiority of the white race. Misogyny and ultra-nationalism are extensions of these constructs of what white well-being and white welfare should look like.

Groups like the Proud Boys recruit and spread their messages through non-offensive affiliations where grievances align. These destructive, inward-looking, nationalistic, race-dominant, regressive beliefs can lead to oppression, community strife and dehumanization.

This is especially true in an uncertain pandemic, where lockdowns lead to an increase in time spent online and conspiracy theories and anger at restrictions prevail.

From soft to extreme

My research studies a dataset of more than 94 million extremist transactions to examine how online activity may be a confident predictor of the escalation to violence, based on the degree of usage of softly violent mass identity manipulators, like memes and visual cues.

In particular, I look at how these mass identity manipulators strengthen the bonds of violent transnational social movements. My research lab is currently tracking 16 Canadian Facebook groups with over a quarter million followers who engage with extremist rhetoric.

When other platforms are considered, Canadian support for these groups might number in the millions. These followers make up a range of segments within extremism  violent transnational social movements are often elements within broader social movements.

Many of the groups we are examining are actually derivatives, splinters or rebrands of known extremist groups. Elements of the Proud Boys have already refashioned into a new incarnation called Canada First, effectively sidestepping their terrorist designation.

The Three Percenters, a far-right militia movement, have created a group called Canadian Sheepdogs, which has more than 400 followers. The Aryan Guard became Blood and Honour, but three of its members who were charged in racially motivated assaults in Vancouver allegedly joined the Asatruu Folk Assembly. The Quebec Soldiers of Odin splintered into the Northern Guard. The Wolves of Odin, Canadian Infidels and The Clann all emerged from the Edmonton Soldiers of Odin.

Alleged neo-Nazis like Gabriel Sohier Chaput have shown that Canadians are highly influential on message boards and forums. The activity of right-wing extremist groups in Canada is a real and present danger.

Effects of designation

It is a positive sign that the Canadian government has asserted that violent extremists will be held accountable for their activities, but the punitive measures are incidental at best. The Proud Boys as an organization will not be able to hold property or be named as a charitable foundation.

The members of the group, however, are free to join other groups because they have not been named individually, and expressing nuanced hate is not a crime or a terrorist offence. These groups, like other extremist violent transnational social movements, raise money through crowdfunding  being designated a terrorist organization will limit their ability to do so.

This is possibly the single positive tangible benefit of this action.

A consideration for the justice system may be to focus on more appropriate penalties and legislation for criminalizing individuals who incite violence both on and offline. Stopping the normalization of extremism is the direction we need to move. But without addressing the environment, there will always be an endless supply of groups waiting to take the Proud Boys place.

Candyce Kelshall is an adjunct professor at the Buckingham Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies, University of Buckingham.

This article was first published at The Conversation Canada: theconversation.com/ca.
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While stating that Kamala Harris and her family will uphold the highest ethical standards, Deputy White House Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said that according to the policy of the White House, the US Vice President's name should not be used in connection with any commercial activity.

This announcement from Sabrina Singh comes after the White House had earlier asked Meena Harris, niece of Vice President Kamala Harris, to stop "using her aunt to boost her brand," according to the Los Angeles Times.

White House asks Harris' niece to not use her aunt's name

After Joe Biden and Kamala Harris had won the US Presidential Elections of 2020, the transition team's ethics lawyers told Meena that she could no longer produce clothing or write new books with her aunt's name or likeness, said a White House official. The official further informed that the White House had said that Vice President Aunty sweatshirts, Harris-themed swimsuits and other products previously sold, were not allowed under this new rule.

Earlier, US local media had written "Meena's problem goes global" and had also accused her of wading into India's internal politics. This came after a series of tweets by Meena in regards to the ongoing farmers' protest in India helped provoke a response from the Indian government. Not only this, some supporters of India also said that Meena's opinions on the ongoing protest have added an unexpected wrinkle to India-US relations because US President Joe Biden is seeking to engage with the country's leader.

READ | 'Landmark Moment': Glass Portrait Of Kamala Harris Unveiled At Lincoln Memorial

Reacting to such tweets posted by Harris' niece, the White House had described these tweets as an expression of views of a private citizen. One of many tweets said that what is happening in India is terrifying, Meena had written in one of her latest tweets on India as she retweeted a news story about the arrest of climate activist Disha Ravi.

In recent weeks, there has been a sudden spurt in India-specific tweets by Meena. She has also come out in open in support of farmers protesting against the recently enacted agricultural laws and arrest of individuals related to it. According to PTI sources, the White House believes that her tweets are unlikely to have any impact on India-US relationship, to which the Biden administration gives top priority. After Kamala Harris became the Vice President of the United States of America, her niece has been in several news reports. Before the election, she had been panned for sharing a 'Navratri is Lit' post where her aunt's head was on a poster of Goddess Durga.

Some recent tweets by Meena Harris

Im choosing to stay because I support peaceful protest, and any government claiming to be democratic while silencing dissent should concern all of us. https://t.co/a0d6BTINhb  Meena Harris (@meenaharris) February 11, 2021

READ | 'Visiting Auntie': Kamala Harris' Niece Shares Wholesome Video Of Daughter At White House

This is not just Indias fight. In a world grappling with rising authoritarianism, propaganda, human rights abuses, and anti-democratic practices, quashing right-wing nationalism is in everyones best interest. @simranhttps://t.co/Dq6xkgdZ2o pic.twitter.com/CdlxWEKSKJ  Meena Harris (@meenaharris) February 12, 2021

Weird to see a photo of yourself burned by an extremist mob but imagine what they would do if we lived in India. I'll tell you23 yo labor rights activist Nodeep Kaur was arrested, tortured & sexually assaulted in police custody. She's been detained without bail for over 20 days. pic.twitter.com/Ypt2h1hWJz  Meena Harris (@meenaharris) February 5, 2021

READ | Under White House Lens For Mooching Off US VP, Meena Harris Questions Disha Ravi's Arrest

Disha's arrest closely follows that of 23 yo activist Nodeep Kaur, who's now been detained for nearly a month. #freenodeepkaur #freedisharavi https://t.co/nN3gl0fB6M  Meena Harris (@meenaharris) February 14, 2021

Indian officials have arrested another young female activist, 21 yo Disha Ravi, because she posted a social media toolkit on how to support the farmers' protest. Read this thread about the sequence of events and ask why activists are being targeted and silenced by the government. https://t.co/ycUgDEqwdF  Meena Harris (@meenaharris) February 14, 2021

READ | White House Pulls Up Meena Harris For Misusing Aunt Kamala's Image To Build Own Brand
[February 18, 2021] Arch Grants Surpasses $20 Million Milestone In Its Sustained Impact Campaign

Arch Grants announced that it has reached a milestone in its Sustained Impact Campaign by raising $21.5 million in gifts and commitments. The Campaign will allow Arch Grants to scale its model for attracting and retaining entrepreneurs to St. Louis in an effort to drive local and regional economic development for the long-term. While Arch Grants will continue to raise funds, money raised to date will begin to be distributed in 2021. Arch Grants estimates that at least $600,000 will go toward additional grants and relocation assistance through its Global Startup Competition in 2021, and another $400,000 will go toward the recently announced Growth Grants program to provide up to $100,000 in follow-on funding to selected Arch Grants companies that need additional capital to scale. Arch Grants awards $1 million in non-equity grants annually to twenty startups who commit to remaining in or relocating to St. Louis for at least one year. This campaign milestone enables Arch Grants to increase its annual grantmaking by more than 50% in 2021, to at least $1.55 million. "Since 2012, Arch Grants has funded 173 companies with $9,000,000 in grants and given hundreds of entrepreneurs access to our robust and enthusiastic network as they grow their businesses in St. Louis. Arch Grants companies have generated over $400,000,000 in revenue, raised over $307,000,000 in follow-on capital, and created over 2,000 jobs in Missouri to date," said Arch Grants Executive Director Emily Lohse-Busch. "Moreover, Arch Grants Founders represent the diversity we need to continue to build a vibrant community and thriving economy. This is a unique moment for St. Louis to scale an inclusive, robust ecosystem, and Arch Grants' Sustained Impact Campaign will go a long way toward making that a reality."



To date, over 70% of the companies that Arch Grants has funded are led or co-led by persons traditionally underrepresented in the startup sector - women, people of color, immigrants and/or veterans. "My family and I know first-hand that St. Louis is a strong and vibrant community from which to start a successful business. That's why I am particularly proud to see the St. Louis region coming together in bold new ways to enable diverse startups to grow, scale and succeed in St. Louis. Through this significant new investment, Arch Grants will be able to increase the scale of its groundbreaking model to further grow our economy and help St. Louis be a national leader for generations to come. I look forward to a continued strong partnership between Arch Grants and Greater St. Louis, Inc," said Andrew Taylor, Executive Chairman of Enterprise Holdings and Founding Chair of Greater St. Louis, Inc.

"The Sustained Impact Campaign delivers on the founding vision of Arch Grants; it ensures that we can continue to build a pipeline of promising high growth St. Louis companies and continue to increase the scale at which we attract and retain them," said Jerry Schlichter, Arch Grants Founder and Board Chair. "As Chancellor at Washington University in St. Louis, I saw firsthand what pulls young people away from the city after they graduate, and also saw what is successful in making them stay. Arch Grants represents exactly the type of activity that we need to grow our region, and their impressive statistics speak for themselves. This Sustained Impact Campaign will solidify Arch Grants as a major contributor to St. Louis' future economic success," said Dr. Mark Wrighton, Arch Grants Sustained Impact Campaign Co-Chair and Washington University Chancellor Emeritus. "We need to continue to look for new ways to uplift Arch Grants companies and increase the multiplier effect that generates wealth creation at an unprecedented pace and scale." The goal of the Arch Grants Sustained Impact Campaign is to continue to attract and retain a steady and increasing pipeline of startups who will help drive and sustain St. Louis' economy for years to come. About Arch Grants Arch Grants' mission is to fuel economic growth in St. Louis and the region by providing funding and wraparound services to startups that headquarter in St. Louis for at least one year. Every year since 2012, hundreds of early-stage start-up founders participate in Arch Grants' Global Startup Competition to receive $50,000 in non-dilutive grant funding, concierge networking and fundraising support, referrals, discounts and pro-bono professional services, and access to a growing talent recruitment pipeline as a result of Arch Grants' partnerships with universities, non-profits, businesses, and government entities. The new Growth Grants program announced in 2020 provides additional funding to a select group of growing Arch Grants Companies who commit to staying in St. Louis to scale. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005313/en/

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(Natural News) Much of the conversation surrounding the benefits of 5G is geared toward the consumer side of the technology. People will be able to download videos at lightning speed and will be more connected than ever, proponents claim, although there are serious questions regarding its safety. However, some of the most important 5G applications are not civil at all  the technology will be used extensively in the military domain.

Some of its military uses are outlined in the Defense Applications of 5G Network Technology report, which was published by the Defense Science Board. This federal committee gives scientific advice to the Pentagon. Their report states: The emergence of 5G technology, now commercially available, offers the Department of Defense the opportunity to take advantage, at minimal cost, of the benefits of this system for its own operational requirements.

The 5G commercial network that is being built by private companies right now can be used by the American military for a much lower cost than if the network had been set up exclusively for military purposes.

Military experts expect the 5G system to play a pivotal role in using hypersonic weapons. For example, it can be used for new missiles that bear nuclear warheads and travel at speeds superior to Mach 5. These hypersonic weapons, which travel at five times the speed of sound and move a mile per second, will be flying at high altitudes on unpredictable flight paths, making them as hard to guide as they will be to intercept.

Huge quantities of data need to be gathered and transmitted in a very short period in order to maneuver these warheads on variable trajectories and allow them to change direction in milliseconds to avoid interceptor missiles.

5G for defense

This type of technology is also needed to activate defenses should we be attacked by a weapon of this type; 5G automatic systems could theoretically handle decisions that humans wont have enough time to make on their own. Military bases and even cities will have less than a minute to react to incoming hypersonic missiles, and 5G will make it easier to process real time data on trajectories for decision-making.

There are also important uses of this technology in combat. 5Gs ability to simultaneously link millions of transceivers will undoubtedly facilitate communication among military personnel and allow them to transmit photos, maps and other vital information about operations in progress at dizzying speeds to improve situational awareness.

The military can also take advantage of the high-frequency and short-wavelength millimeter wave spectrum used by 5G. Its short range means that it is well suited for smart military bases and command posts because the signal will not propagate too far, making it less likely that enemies will be able to detect it.

When it comes to special forces and secret services, the benefits of 5G are numerous. Its speed and connectivity will allow espionage systems to reach unprecedented levels of efficiency. It will also make drones more dangerous by allowing them to identify and target people using facial recognition and other methods.

Like all technology, 5G will also make us highly vulnerable. The network itself could become an attractive target for cyber-attacks and other acts of war being carried out with cutting-edge weaponry. In fact, the 5G network is already viewed as critical infrastructure and is being carefully protected before it is even fully built.

While the focus on 5Gs dangers to human health and the environment is absolutely warranted, it is also important not to lose sight of the military implications of 5G. After all, it is not just the United States that is developing this technology for military purposes; our enemies, like China and other countries, are also making great strides in this realm.

Sources for this article include:

GlobalResearch.ca

TechRadar.com
Health workers treating a Covid-19 patient in intensive care. Carlos Rosillo

The Spanish Health Ministry reported 10,829 new coronavirus infections and added 337 Covid-19 fatalities to the overall death toll on Wednesday. The latest data consolidates the positive trend in terms of the epidemiological figures, but the situation remains delicate across Spain.

With a 14-day cumulative number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants above 250, the country continues to be above levels considered to be critical. The number of victims is still rising and now exceeds 66,000, according to the Health Ministrys official death toll. This figure could be as high as 90,000, if the excess mortality detected since the beginning of the pandemic is taken into account, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE).

Hospitals continue to be under a lot of pressure, with more than 18,000 Covid-19 patients currently admitted and 3,909 of these in ICUs

In recent days, the most notable conclusions to draw from the governments data is that the fall is being noted at a very different speed according to each region, and that these differences do not seem to be attributable to the situation seen in each region one or two weeks ago.

The 14-day cumulative number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants in the country as a whole has fallen from 584 last Wednesday to 350 in the latest report, which is a drop of 40%. In La Rioja, Extremadura, Murcia, Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha and Castilla y Leon the fall has been above 50% over the same time period, while in the Balearic Islands it was 45%.

At the other end of the scale, the fall since last Wednesday is 15% in the Canary Islands, 25% in the Basque Country, and in Catalonia, Aragon, Madrid and Cantabria, it is around 30%.

While no expert has gone so far as to offer a conclusive explanation for this difference, there are some hypotheses that could account for them. In the case of the Canary Islands, with an incidence of 126 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, the low levels  within the context of Spain as a whole  mean that it is difficult for the incidence rate to fall at the same speed as it is in other regions.

Less-restrictive coronavirus measures, which are in place in regions such as Madrid  which currently has the worst coronavirus data, apart from the North African exclave city of Melilla  may also be a reason for the slower fall in the figures.

Unlike other parts of Spain, Madrid has not closed its bars and restaurants despite high infection rates. Jaime Villanueva

But the newest theory for these differences was suggested on Wednesday morning by the public health secretary of the Catalan government, Josep Maria Argimon: the more contagious strain of the coronavirus first identified in the United Kingdom, known as B.1.1.7.

It seems as if the curve is flattening, he explained, in reference to the recent trends seen in the region, and that is not good news. Argimon proposed the theory that the more-infectious nature of the UK variant, which is thought to have originated in the English county of Kent, is seeing the downward trend lose momentum. This strain is more and more prevalent in Catalonia and now accounts for one in every three new infections, according to data offered by the regional government.

This explanation coincides with what has happened in other regions, such as Madrid and Cantabria, where the variant also accounts for a substantial proportion of new infections and the fall in incidence is also slower.

The 14-day cumulative number of coronavirus cases per 100,000 inhabitants has fallen from 584 to 350 in a week, but remains at extreme risk levels

Whatever the case, Spain continues to be at incidence levels that the Health Ministry considers to be an indicator of extreme risk, above 250 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. It is also in a very bad situation in terms of dealing with a new spike in cases. The countrys hospitals continue to be under a lot of pressure, with more than 18,000 Covid-19 patients currently admitted and 3,909 of these in intensive care units (ICUs).

This is 14% of total hospital beds, and 36% of ICU beds, percentages that are falling a lot slower than the incidence, as happened in the second wave. In the last week, these figures have barely fallen five and six points, respectively.

The unease over the spread of the B.1.1.7 variant coincides with the announcement made by a number of regions, including Madrid and Castilla-La Mancha, of a certain relaxation of the current restrictions in place. Health Minister Carolina Darias has called for caution when making these decisions and called on the regions that are planning on relaxing measures to keep them in place, Pablo Linde reports.

A very prudent deescalation is necessary, she said. If we look back at what has happened in other waves, we need to learn. The minister pointed to regions such as Madrid that are around 500 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, calling for responsibility. Darias refused to predict whether it would be possible to relax the restrictions at Easter, as was permitted during the Christmas holiday season. The objective is to get below 50 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, and until we get there, we cant consider any other question, she said.

English version by Simon Hunter.
Posted Wednesday, February 17, 2021 4:50 pm

A Randle man is being held in the Lewis County Jail with bail set at $500,000 for allegedly attempting to strangle a woman in Chehalis last week.

William J. Coe, 40, was booked around 2:40 a.m. on Feb. 12 and charged with second-degree assault, domestic violence, after Lewis County Sheriffs Office deputies responded to a report of an assault at a Chehalis address. The victim stated that she was trying to sleep but Mr. Coe was being loud by turning up the TV and breaking items, according to Lewis County Superior Court documents.

When she confronted Coe about the noise, Coe allegedly became upset and grabbed her by the throat and she was unable to breathe. A neighbor reportedly came over to help the victim, and as the two were leaving, Coe allegedly struck (the victim) on the side of his head with his fist.

Deputies noted that the victims observable injuries were consistent with her statement.

Lewis County Superior Court issued a protection order for the victim and set Coes bail at $500,000 cash or bond. He is scheduled for arraignment and trial setting on Thursday.
John Richard Cookson is a fellow at Defense Priorities. He previously worked for the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, CNN and The National Interest.

On Friday, President Joe Biden is expected to bring his "America is back" message to a virtual session of the Munich Security Conference. But America is not back, as such. It never really left Europe.

The U.S. military presence on the continent, currently near 70,000 personnel, is more or less where it was four years ago and still in excess of what is needed.

Earlier this month, Biden announced that the Trump administration's uncompleted plan to withdraw 12,000 U.S. troops from Germany has been paused pending a review. The withdrawal should go forward, but not because it represents a substantial change -- in fact, the opposite.

Beneath the misleading headline, President Donald Trump's plan was minor, not at all worth the piqued reaction it received from some foreign policy professionals on both sides of the Atlantic. It should proceed as a way for the White House to show allies that a strong U.S. commitment to NATO is independent from the number of troops stationed in Europe.

What is in the plan? First off, 5,600 of the 12,000 troops in the planned drawdown would leave Germany but remain in Europe, with most going to Poland, Italy or Belgium. Moving some U.S. troops from Germany to allied countries bordering the country changes nothing in terms of overall European security.

Europe-wide security is what is important to consider when making deployment decisions, not the number of U.S. troops stationed in any one country at any one time. In all, the paused plan calls for reducing the number of permanent deployments in Europe by only 6,400 troops, which is less than 10% of the total personnel there now.

Moreover, many of the U.S. troops "coming home" on paper would in fact return to Europe, only on a rotational rather than a permanent basis. The planned redeployment of a couple thousand troops -- set against the tens of thousands staying in Europe and the hundreds of thousands already drawn down since the Cold War -- is mere tinkering, nothing decisive or even meaningful in terms of security.

Many Americans seem to grasp what some in Washington have not. U.S. support for NATO, and for the Article 5 obligation at its core, does not stand or fall over a few thousand troops stationed abroad. According to the 2020 Chicago Council Survey, a majority of Americans say they support NATO. A majority (57%) also favor the Trump administration's decision to decrease the number of U.S. troops in Germany, and an additional 16% favor removing U.S. troops from the country altogether.

The substance of the withdrawal proposal needs to be separated from the man who proposed it.

Trump was sharply criticized for his behavior toward allies, and much of it was well earned. His relationship with German Chancellor Angela Merkel was reportedly so frosty that some commentators suggest a straight line between it and the decision to remove troops from Germany. That may be true, but it does not pertain to the question before the Biden administration today in Europe, which is about security -- not personalities.

Divorced from the messenger, the message stands: Fewer U.S. troops are needed in Europe because threats there are limited and diminishing. Russia is the only country that could threaten the territory of NATO allies, but Moscow is not what it once was.

Russia's economy is feeble, and its frustrated citizens have taken to the streets in protest. Talk of significant cuts to defense spending is rife as the Kremlin seeks to channel more spending into social programs ahead of elections later this year. Russia is simply not poised to mount a large-scale territorial conquest of Europe. Moreover, the misdeeds the Kremlin does perpetrate, below the threshold of provoking war, are not deterred by plus or minus a few thousand U.S. ground troops in Europe. Because the Cold War-era raison d'etre for NATO no longer exists, the U.S. no longer needs to garrison Europe so heavily.

Not only is much of Europe secure, but many NATO allies are wealthy and capable of spending more on their defense. Removing some U.S. troops might encourage European allies to spend more, making the alliance stronger overall. Especially in the near term, unpausing and finishing the minor troop withdrawal ahead of the German elections in September could help make defense spending a more prominent campaign issue.

However, if Biden spikes the paused troop-withdrawal plan before the elections, German politicians -- confident in continuing to free ride on Washington -- might either ignore the issue or argue to cut Germany's defense spending even further. Spiking the plan could also make any future troop redeployments much more difficult politically, keeping U.S. troop numbers in Europe fixed for no other reason than inertia.

Finally, even if European allies are slow to spend more on defense as the U.S. withdraws some troops, the reductions would still free up American resources over time for higher priorities, such as spending at home or beefing up its military presence elsewhere.

-- The opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Military.com. If you would like to submit your own commentary, please send your article to opinions@military.com for consideration.
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New Jersey is asking a judge to force Smith & Wesson Brands Inc. to hand over internal documents, the latest twist in an ongoing legal fight over how the gun manufacturer advertises to residents.

The state first demanded marketing information in October. The Massachusetts-based company sued soon after, arguing that it wasnt obligated to provide anything.

The gun manufacturer claims that it is above the law  that it can deceive consumers and potential consumers of its products without consequence, the state attorney generals office wrote in court documents filed Friday.

The states subpoena was lawful and a court should enforce it, a deputy attorney general wrote.

A spokesman for New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal declined comment. Smith & Wesson representatives did not respond to a request for comment, nor did they comment on their lawsuit earlier.

The subpoena came after Grewals office asked outside lawyers to help investigate how gun companies promote their products.

Smith & Wesson said in its lawsuit that this all amounted to an unconstitutional fishing expedition designed to weaken the Second Amendment.

Grewals office pushed back, saying last week that state law allowed them to dig into anyone advertising within New Jersey.

The review was not about the product Smith & Wesson sells, but the representations and omissions in its marketing and advertising, state officials argued in court documents, and the investigation has shown that some ads may misrepresent the impact owning a firearm has on personal safety.

Some Smith & Wesson ads also promoted carrying concealed firearms without mentioning that New Jerseyans needed a permit to conceal carry, state officials wrote.

Grewals office asked that Smith & Wesson be held in contempt of court for ignoring the subpoena.

The state has some of the toughest gun laws in the nation, and New Jersey has previously gone after outside groups that overstepped local laws.

The State Police also track what types of weapons are used in crimes, and Smith & Wesson guns have topped recent lists, according to state data.

Some reports listed SMITH & WESSON OR SWAZILAND as the top manufacturer linked to gun crimes. A State Police spokesman said the inclusion of the word Swaziland was a computer error, and the newest report from November listed only Smith & Wesson as the top manufacturer.

In September 2019, the state brought on the New York-based firm Lovell Stewart Halebian Jacobson, LLP to support litigation and an investigation Regarding Gun Manufacturers Deceptive or Misleading Advertising, according to a retention agreement obtained by NJ Advance Media through a public records request.

Grewals office declined to provide more details about the firms potential fee, arguing that it was allowed to withhold information that could reveal legal strategy or privileged material, a records custodian wrote.

However, there were no invoices to report as of Jan. 12, Grewals office added.

Smith & Wessons previous lawsuit is ongoing, according to federal court records. Fridays brief was filed in New Jersey Superior Court in Essex County and can be read here:

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Blake Nelson can be reached at bnelson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @BCunninghamN.

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The incidence of surgical site infections after an operation is an important quality indicator for hospitals. An overview from six European countries published in 2017 documented increased costs and, in some cases, significantly poorer surgical outcomes due to SSIs. The European Center for Disease Control (ECDC) and authorities in the U.S. have therefore defined criteria for recording and documenting the rate of surgical site infections per procedure. Swissnoso has issued binding guidelines for Switzerland based on these criteria. The study investigated to what extent surgical site infection rates correlate with the audit results in Swiss hospitals.

Seek and you shall find: low SSI rates with low audit score

The study was able to establish a clear correlation between a low surgical site infection rate and the results from on-site surveillance quality audits (audit score). The better a hospital scored on the 50-point audit, the more infection cases had been detected or reported. This was true for all three surgeries studied (knee and hip implants as well as colorectal surgeries). According to the study's lead author Andrew Atkinson: "The study shows that the quality of the respective surveillance systems must be systematically considered when interpreting surgical site infections - and this independently of the type of surgery and infection rate."

What exactly was measured?

The study analyzed 81 957 hip and knee surgeries from 125 hospitals and 33 315 colorectal surgeries from 110 hospitals. At least two external audits per hospital were carried out to assess surveillance quality. The study was based on the Swissnoso guidelines. The detailed audit results were ranked in an overall score between 1 and 50. The audits were carried out by three specifically trained investigators.

Results in detail

The following values refer to the median of the results. The SSI rate for knee and hip implants was 1.0% with an audit score of 37. As expected the infection rate for colorectal surgery was much higher at 12.7% with a slightly higher audit score of 38. It appeared that higher infection rates correlated with higher audit scores. A discernible range of scores among hospital types could be observed, with private hospitals forming a cluster in the lower range of audit scores and infection rates.

How can a possible systematic error be corrected?

The research team makes a specific proposal for future evaluations and national comparisons of surgical site infection rates. A computational correction (normalization) and inclusion of the audit score are proposed for discussion. Prof. Jonas Marschall summarizes: "For the first time, this study provides us with a basis for rendering the number of infections more comparable and better understood throughout Switzerland. Now we have to work hard to establish regular comparisons among Swiss hospitals even more meaningful and the incentive to be at the forefront even greater."

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Genetic variation is like money in the bank: the more you have, the better your chances of survival in the future. Population bottlenecks decrease genetic variation, especially in endangered species. An individual's genome comprises the events that have impacted genetic variation over time, and relatively recent sequencing technologies allow us to read and interpret genetic variation across the genome. Although tigers have received significant conservation attention, little is known about their evolutionary history and genomic variation. This is especially true for Indian tigers, and with 70% of the world's tigers living in India, such understanding is critical to tiger conservation.

A team of researchers from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Stanford University, and zoological parks and NGOs across the world recently completed a three-year project to gain insights into genomic variation in tigers and the processes that have sculpted it. The work, just published in Molecular Biology and Evolution, reiterates that tiger subspecies are genetically distinct and reveals that although Indian tigers have the highest total genetic variation, some individuals are inbred. Simulations based on the genomic data suggest relatively recent divergences between subspecies, and intense population bottlenecks. Analyses also indicate adaptation to cold environments in Russian far east tigers, and potential selection on body size in Sumatran tigers.

The team sequenced whole genomes from 65 individual tigers from four subspecies, with a specific aim to enhance genomes from wild tigers in different habitats in India. They used these data to conduct a variety of population genomic analyses that quantify genetic variability, and investigate the partitioning of genetic variation, possible impacts of inbreeding and founder events, demographic history (including population divergence) and possible signatures of local adaptation.

They found that total genomic variation in Indian tigers was higher than in other subspecies. However, several individual tigers in India had low variation, suggesting possible inbreeding and founding bottlenecks. Tigers from northeast India were the most divergent/different from other populations in India. "Given our results, it is important to understand why some Bengal tigers appear inbred and what the consequences of this are," says Anubhab Khan, co-first author, NCBS.

The history of tiger populations from across their current range shows recent divergences between tiger subspecies, within the last 20,000 years, which is concordant with a transition from glacial to interglacial climate change and increasing human impacts across Asia. These findings are in sharp contrast to an earlier study by ShuJin Luo and others in 2018 that suggested much older divergence times. The recent divergence between populations will need to be investigated further with expanded datasets and analyses of more tiger genomes.

The data and analyses also suggest strong bottlenecks in all tiger populations, highlighting the importance of population size decline on the erosion of genetic variation. "Most studies focusing on species of conservation concern use limited numbers of specimens to try to gain understanding into how genomic variation is partitioned. It is clear from our work here, and a growing number of other studies, that it is crucial to increase our sampling efforts and use caution when interpreting results from limited sample sizes," comments Ellie Armstrong, co-first and co-corresponding author, Stanford University.

Genomes of tigers in the Russian far east suggest adaptation to the cold, while those of Sumatran tigers suggest selection based on body size. Co-senior author Elizabeth Hadly of Stanford University says, "The tiger is an excellent example of the myriad historic events that sculpt species' genomic diversity and points to the importance of understanding this diversity as we attempt to stave off extinction of our most precious species on Earth. While some populations demonstrate the importance of adaptation to local conditions, other evidence suggests that particular populations may suffer the effects of climatic change in the Anthropocene." Such information will be critical to the success of genetic rescue efforts, which should take local adaptation into consideration.

'I have worked on Indian tiger genetic variation for over a decade and always wondered how they compared to other wild tigers. Our study reveals that while the total variation in Indian tiger genomes is high, they have also been dramatically shaped by population bottlenecks. The genomic variation of Indian tigers continues to be shaped by the ongoing loss of connectivity. Population management and conservation action must incorporate information on genetic variation. I hope doing so will help India maintain the gains in tiger conservation achieved so far,' says Uma Ramakrishnan, co-senior and co-corresponding author, NCBS.

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New Delhi, Feb 19 : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday announced financial assistance of Rs 1 crore to the families of two deceased corona warriors.

Noting the loss that families of Om Pal Singh and Raj Kumar have faced is irreplaceable, he said that the financial assistance would give them some relief.

"The past one year has been very tough for all of us. But during this one year amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the Covid warriors of Delhi fought this battle from the front," he said.

Kejriwal said that he visited the family of the Om Pal Singh, who was the Principal of the government boys senior secondary school, Kalyanpuri, but working at a hunger relief centre run by the Delhi government during the pandemic and the lockdown.

"Unfortunately during the work, he got affected by Covid and then lost his life. Today I also visited the family of late Raj Kumar who was a security guard at the Rajiv Gandhi Hospital. He was a frontline worker and he got affected by Covid and lost his life." "Today, I want to salute all the Covid warriors of Delhi. During the Covid-19 pandemic, they have worked relentlessly for the citizens of Delhi. The Delhi government has already announced that we will provide Rs 1 crore to the families of Covid warriors who have lost their lives during Covid duty."

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
In early February, Mr. Biden signed a major disaster declaration for the Navajo Nation to provide more federal funding to support vaccine distribution, medical staffing and resources. With the help of the additional resources, Mr. Nez said the tribe had been able to administer 98 percent of the vaccine doses it was given.

Mr. Nez said he would now like to see the administration focus on aging infrastructure.

Our roads, our bridges, our water lines, our electricity lines: Here on the Navajo Nation, 30 to 40 percent of our people dont have running water, 30 to 40 percent of our people dont have electricity, he said. So if theres going to be a major emphasis on infrastructure, we want Navajo Nation to get running water and electricity.

Esther Lucero is the chief executive of the Seattle Indian Health Board, a community health center that serves more than 6,000 urban American Indians and Alaska Natives. She said she hoped to see significant investment in the current public health system for Native Americans.

The Indian Health Service, based in Rockville, Md., consists of 26 hospitals, 56 health centers and 32 health stations. The hospitals range in size from four beds to 133. The agency is broken into a dozen service regions across the country, each one serving tribes living in that area.

For decades, the Indian Health Service has been underfunded, understaffed and routinely criticized for providing inadequate care to the 2.2 million members of the nations tribal communities. Its performance during the pandemic came under especially intense criticism.

We have to put together an aggressive budget formula to get the Indian Health Service fully funded, Ms. Lucero said. Providing additional funding to the 12 tribal epidemiology health centers, for example, was key to maintaining and tracking health care data about their citizens, she said.

The intersection of federal land use and environmental and energy policy is also at the heart of the tribal agenda for the new administration. Mr. Biden is facing calls to shut down the Dakota Access pipeline after a court ruled that the Trump administration broke the law when allowing for its construction. That would mean victory for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, which touches North and South Dakota. The pipeline crosses just north of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.
IRELAND is on course for a fourth Covid-19 vaccine, at some stage next month or in April, if the Johnson & Johnson jab is approved.

Already Pfizer BioNTech, Moderna and Oxford AstraZeneca vaccines are available here.

Despite the constraints on supply, its a situation we could not have imagined last spring, when expectations that even one vaccine might be available were tempered.

There are even more possible vaccines on the near horizon to add to the armoury. That said, most of those may not be available until the end of the year.

Read More

However, there are hopes that Ireland could be in line for around one million doses of vaccines per month between April and June, which would significantly ramp up the proportion of the population protected.

The European Commission has advanced purchase agreements for more vaccines which are in various stages of development:

CureVac

There is a contract for around 225 million doses of the CureVac vaccine, with an option for another 180 million doses to be supplied to EU member states when it is proven to be safe and effective against Covid-19.

Member states can also decide to donate the vaccine to lower and middle-income countries or redirect it to other European countries.

It launched its phase-three trial in December and results are due soon. It has also teamed up with another company, Bayer, to increase production of the vaccines. It is unlikely to be available until the end of this year.

Sanofi-GSK

The plan is for the EU to purchase 300 million doses of this vaccine. However, trial results in early December did not match expectations when the response from older people was disappointing.

The hope was to have it approved by the second half of the year.

Clinical trials are ongoing and it is not expected to be available until the end of this year.

Novavax

Exploratory talks have been concluded to purchase Novavax vaccines. It is still unclear when the manufacturers will be ready to submit an application to the regulator for approval, but they could be the next to do so.

There could then be a gap in approvals for several months.

The envisaged contract for this vaccine would provide 100 million doses initially, followed by another 100 million. In trials, the vaccine has been shown to be 89.3pc effective. It is given in two doses.

Preliminary analysis showed it was 85.6pc effective against the more infectious UK variant of the virus which now accounts for 90pc of cases here. It also showed good coverage against the South African virus strain. The European Medicines Agency is doing a rolling review of the vaccine trial results.

Valneva

Exploratory talks have also finished on the purchase of 30 million doses of the Valneva vaccine, with the option of another 30 million. The French company expects the vaccine to be available at the end of this year. It is still in clinical trials.

It can be kept in a normal fridge, making it easy to roll out.

Vaccine outlook

The Government is hopeful of getting around one million vaccines per month over April, May and June. Most of these would be two-dose vaccines, so one-million per month would cover 500,000 people.

The Johnson & Johnson vaccine, which could be approved in the coming weeks, is a single-dose jab.
Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free

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Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
A meeting of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) will take place on February 23, during which a report on the situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine will be presented, Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the UN Serhiy Kyslytsia said.

"You asked why Russia each time organizes this unpromising conversation for it since each time it happens a week or two before the events, when the Ukrainian side calls a meeting of the General Assembly. This time it is held on February 23. One of the agenda items there is a report on the situation in the occupied territories of Ukraine. Here is the answer to your question. Russia, by its actions, is trying to undermine the authority of the General Assembly. And many countries are not happy with this," Kyslytsia said in an interview with LB.UA, published on Thursday.

He also noted that during the meeting on February 23, Ukraine intends to raise the issue of holding the "Russian Donbas" forum in the temporarily occupied part of Donbas.

"We are talking about this with our partners, with the UN Secretariat. This issue is reflected in our materials that we send to other missions. Will Ukraine therefore convene a meeting of the Security Council? No, it will not: this is not the level of the problem, which requires the direct involvement of the Security Council. Will this become part of our work on the development of new documents already at the next session? Yes, it will. Will we talk about this during the General Assembly meeting on February 23? Yes, we will, we will talk," he said.

Kyslytsia also added that on February 23, a briefing will be held under the chairmanship of the leadership of the Ministry for the Temporarily Occupied Territories for the member states of the entire UN, and not just for the Security Council, on the situation in Donbas and Crimea.

He stressed that the Ukrainian representation to the UN is constantly discussing the issue of the full launch of the Crimean Platform on the basis of the UN.

"Therefore, I see the great potential of the Crimean Platform so that we have the opportunity to interact with our partners throughout the year in many areas that relate to our resolutions. This is the issue of labeling goods, migration, illegal passportization, changes in the ethnic composition of the population, issues of the fight against COVID-19, etc. The Crimean Platform has its own added value," he said.
The Ukrainian side says it is concerned that the IAEA is unable to evaluate the environmental status in Russia-occupied districts.

Ukrainian delegates to the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) on the settlement of the situation in Donbas say the Russian Federation makes it impossible for International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to enter the occupied districts of eastern Ukraine to assess the environmental status.

The Ukrainian delegation to the TCG made this statement in a Facebook post on February 17, adding that a new meeting was held at the level of the chairmen of the delegations via videoconference.

Read alsoU.S. State Dept: Russian proxies' plans to flood coal mine in Donbas, site of nuclear test, could threaten drinking water

The Ukrainian representatives emphasize that efforts to agree on sending IAEA inspectors to the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Luhansk have not yet yielded results, since the Russian side makes it impossible for the TCG to pass a decision on this issue.

"Boris Gryzlov (representative of the Russian Federation) could not answer a direct question from the chairman of the Ukrainian delegation about the admission of the IAEA's inspection to the occupied territories," it said.

The Ukrainian side reiterated its concern over the fact that the issue of IAEA inspectors' access to the temporarily occupied territories had not yet been resolved. The organization's senior officials sent a corresponding request in December 2020.

It also says that Ukraine reserves the right to appeal to the international community, governments and organizations to increase pressure on Russia to ensure the conduct of the said inspection so that Ukraine could be able to fulfill its obligations under the Agreement between Ukraine and the IAEA for the Application of Safeguards in Connection with The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Protocol additional to this Agreement.

Environmental disaster in Donbas

Ukraine asks the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to send specialists to the occupied territory of Donbas to assess the environmental situation.

Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories Oleksiy Reznikov warns against an environmental disaster in the Russia-occupied part of Donbas in a few months. "In 1979, the Soviet government handled a nuclear explosion with 0.3 kilotonnes of TNT inside the Yunkom coal mine, which is now part of the area occupied by Russia. After the explosion, the radioactive capsule was maintained dry by pumping water out of the coal mine to prevent radioactive elements from getting onto the surface and into the groundwater," Reznikov said.

He says it is known that the Russia-controlled occupying authorities in Donbas stopped pumping water out of the mine two years ago, and now radioactive water enters the soil layers where drinking water is. They also shut down dozens of other mines where water pumping was suspended.

Reporting by UNIAN
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Irvine, Calif. -- An interdisciplinary team of biologists and mathematicians at the University of California, Irvine has developed a new tool to help decipher the language cells use to communicate with one another.

In a paper published today in Nature Communications, the researchers introduce CellChat, a computational platform that enables the decoding of signaling molecules that transmit information and commands between the cells that come together to form biological tissues and even entire organs.

"To properly understand why cells do certain things, and to predict their future actions, we need to be able to listen to what they are saying to one another; mathematical and machine learning tools enable the translation of such messages," said co-senior author Qing Nie, UCI Chancellor's Professor of mathematics and developmental & cell biology.

"Just like in our world, where we are constantly bombarded with information, all cells experience a lot of molecular words coming at them simultaneously," added co-senior author Maksim Plikus, UCI professor of developmental & cell biology, "What they choose to do is dependent on this steady flow of molecular information and on what words and sentences are being heard the loudest."

To use CellChat to translate molecular messages between cells, researchers feed in a single-cell gene expression, and out comes a detailed report on signaling communication features of a given tissue or organ.

"For each distinct group of cells, CellChat shows what significant signals are being sent to their neighbors and what signals they have the ability to receive," Plikus said. "As an interpreter of cellular language, CellChat provides scientists with a valuable insight into signaling patterns that guide function of the entire organ."

In developing CellChat, the researchers in UCI's NSF-Simons Center for Multiscale Cell Fate Research - including postdoctoral fellows Suoqin Jin, Christian F. Guerrero-Juarez, Raul Ramos and Lihua Zhang - borrowed heavily from machine learning tools and social network theory, which allows the platform to predict a higher level meaning of cellular language and identify contextual similarities that are otherwise not obvious. It breaks down the immense complexity of cellular communication patterns.

Cells produce modifier molecules to add emphasis to a certain command, transforming "do this" to "do this now." CellChat automatically calibrates the strength of signaling communication between cells by considering all significantly present modifier molecules. As a result, its translation becomes more nuanced and helps to minimize inaccuracies that plague other similar yet less sophisticated computational tools.

Beyond the purely fundamental research enterprise of interpreting these biological messages, Nie said CellChat can also be used to compare communication networks in different states of an organ, such as sickness and health. Calling it a "Google Translator for the lexicon of cells," Nie said one of tool's most significant capabilities is that it can be used to uncover molecular drivers in a broad spectrum of maladies including cancer and autoimmune disorders.

"In our paper, we showcase the power of CellChat using atopic dermatitis, a human skin condition, but the tool can be used on any tissue with the same success," Plikus added.

###

CellChat is available as an open-source application at https:/ / github. com/ sqjin/ CellChat . Researchers from National Taiwan University and Yale University also contributed to the study.

About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is ranked among the nation's top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 36,000 students and offers 222 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $7 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit http://www. uci. edu .

Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UCI faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists.
KALAMAZOO, MI  A man accused of sexually assaulting and killing 13-month-old Meilani Hart last summer at a Portage apartment will now stand trial.

Jacob Britton Emmendorfer, 27, is charged with homicide, child abuse and first-degree criminal sexual assault related to the childs death. Emmendorfers case was bound over to Kalamazoo County Circuit Court on Wednesday, Feb. 17 by Kalamazoo County District Judge Richard Santoni.

Im not sure many human beings can look at exhibit number four and come away unchanged, Santoni said, referencing a photo of the childs injuries introduced as evidence at the hearing. Unspeakable things happened to this child. ... This was not an accident.

Related: Kalamazoo man charged with sexually assaulting, killing 13-month-old at Portage apartment

Over the course of a four-hour preliminary hearing Wednesday, the judge listened to testimony from the childs mother, Angel Hart, Portage Police Detective Derek Hess and Dr. Jared Brooks, a pathology fellow with the Western Michigan University School of Medicine  as well as arguments from Kalamazoo County Assistant Prosecutor Christin Mehrtens-Carlin and Emmendorfers defense attorney Randall Levine.

Levine argued prior to the start of the hearing that he needed more time to prepare for the case, partly in light of new DNA evidence received yesterday that excluded his client as the perpetrator.

Mehrtens-Carlin contested while there was DNA evidence that excluded Emmendorfer to a degree, she disagreed with Levine in terms of what that proves.

Levine, to objections from Mehrtens-Carlin, also alluded to an active case involving Angel Hart and her three older children who had been removed from her care, because the children and parents were violent.

Its typical dysfunction and those people just happened to be in the home on the day of the alleged offense, Levine said to the court.

Related: Police investigate suspicious death of toddler in Portage

Police and fire rescue personnel responded to Harts Milham Meadows apartment at 10 p.m. on Aug. 12, the day in question. Upon arrival, they found the child unresponsive. Meilani Hart was then transported to Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo, where she was pronounced dead hours later.

Angel Hart, Emmendorfers ex-girlfriend, told the court the two of them got into an argument that evening, prompting her to leave the apartment. She testified that when she returned she found Emmendorfer in the room they shared, holding her unresponsive child, who she described after taking the child from him as being a dead weight, her head hanging backwards.

She said Emmendorfer tried to revive the child by bathing her in a sink, while she called 911.

The child, who was determined to have died as the result of multiple injuries, Brooks testified, had 26 discrete bruises inside her intestine, torn blood vessels and bruising inside her labia and anus.

As we are all aware this is not the time to prove beyond a reasonable doubt, but that these crimes were probably committed and the defendant probably committed them, Mehrtens-Carlin said. The only adult in the house was the defendant.

Levine argued that there was no evidence that Emmendorfer was the person who caused those injuries and that it was inappropriate to suggest circumstantially that all of the injuries occurred during a short period of time while Hart was not home, when Brooks stated the injuries could have occurred days prior.

Its easy, because the accusations are so horrific here to easily jump to the false conclusion that hes sick and that hes some kind of a weird sex perpetrator, Levine told MLive afterward. That is not fair.

When all the evidence will become known it will become clear he did not victimize this child and the child was traumatized by someone else.

Related: Portage woman sentenced to 2 years in prison in death of boyfriends daughter

Meilani Harts death was the second of a small child to occur at the Portage apartment complex in 2020. In March, Royalty Houston-Hooper was killed by a woman who police said was dating the childs father.

Tranaya Spencer, 22, pleaded no contest in December to one count of manslaughter and one count of third-degree child abuse. She was sentenced Jan. 4 to two years in prison.

Also on MLive:

Son charged with two counts of open murder in death of Portage couple

Western Michigan president: Southwest Michigan First CEOs policy positions dont align with WMUs values

Over just 10 days, Michigan sports bettors wagered $115 million online in January
A human rights lawyer, Joyce Opoku Boateng, has opined that it will be illegal to shut down an office of the LGBTQI group which has popped up in Ghana.



According to Madam Boateng, though the customs and laws of Ghana frown on the act, these individuals have rights which must be respected.





I dont think it will be right for anyone to invade their office and attack them because they have not met to engage in sexual activities.



Every human being when youre born has a fundamental right that no one can take away from you. But we have our norms and culture that frown upon certain things, she argued on Accra-based Starr FM.



To her, the practice can only be criminal when members are caught in the act but not when explicitly expressing their views on the issues.



If you are caught in the act of having unnatural carnal practice then thats criminal but when someone expresses his/herself, thats not criminal because the law is not against that. Assuming someone dresses like a female and you go and beat up the person, its a clear case of assault, she added.



Her views come on the back of calls from the Executive Secretary of the National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values, Moses Foh-Amoaning, for the government to shut down a new LGBTQI office in Accra.



The group is reported to have organised a fundraiser which was attended by several diplomats including the Australian High Commissioner who pledged to support the group.



With indications of further activities lined up, Mr Foh-Amoaning demanded the police shut down their operations.



Meanwhile, the Secretary of the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Council, Reverend Emmanuel Bariga, has maintained they will do everything possible to resist the act which he described as devilish.

Source: adomonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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A New Jersey school that bills itself as the only college preparatory boarding and day school for young women who learn differently will be closing its doors at the end of this school year.

Officials for Purnell School, an independent, not-for-profit private school established 57 years ago in Pottersville  a community that straddles Hunterdon and Somerset counties  announced on Wednesday that the school will close on June 30 due to challenges related to the competitive landscape.

Though we continue to believe Purnell School offers a unique learning platform that successfully supports individual student needs, we lack the funds necessary to make the significant changes that would sustain and strengthen our program in order to remain competitive into the future, said Martha Gallo, co-chair of Purnell Schools board of trustees, in a press release shared with NJ Advance Media.

Anne M. Glass, head of school, emphasized that the decision to close the school was made with deep regret.

We know this is a disappointment to our current students and well over 1,400 alumnae who called our school home, she said in the release.

She added that the school, which educates students in grades 9 through 12, will continue all of its academic and student life programs through to the summer, and is committed to transitioning its student body to other schools that meet their individual strengths and interests in the fall.

Purnells staff and faculty will provide one-on-one assistance and support for each family as they move through every step of the process and into the next chapter in their education, the press release states.

The school is also working to ease the transition for our current faculty and staff, according to Glass.

Many alumnae and community members of the Purnell School expressed their sadness about the schools closing on its Facebook page, where officials publicized the announcement.

It is with heavy hearts that we announce Purnell School will cease operations at the end of this academic year on June... Posted by Purnell School on Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Betsy Bostick, graduate of the Class of 2006, told NJ Advance Media she was heartbroken, describing the schools community as an extension of my family.

The faculty at Purnell really fostered curiosity and pushed us to pursue our passions, Bostick said. I am now an educator because the French teacher helped me develop a love of languages. I hope that I am passing along the torch that the teachers at Purnell gave to me.

Dominique Domi Waldron graduated from the school in 2005 and later worked in its Alumnae Office. Stating that most of her fond memories occurred at Purnell, Waldron underscored that the school will always be a very special place.

As a low-income scholarship student, it was the first time I was able to experience the world, Waldron said. It challenged me to become a better person and paved the way for my future.

Never would I have thought that a small school in Pottersville would have such a lasting impact on me. I will always cherish the remarkable friendships and bonds, she added.

Tracey Elliott, a graduate of the Class of 1983 and member of the schools board of trustees, said she was devastated by the major, major decision.

It really was the most remarkable experience of my lifetime to spend three years on that campus, and to now have it go away and not have other girls be able to have the same experience as I did really saddens me, Elliott said. I just think with the financial stability of the school and student enrollment going down as it is, it could not sustain its spot in the world.

Purnell School reopened its campus this fall in officials shared belief that in-person education and social interaction is superior to remote learning, the latter of which was practiced throughout the majority of the spring 2020 semester in face of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the release stated.

There were no positive cases of COVID-19 at the completion of the schools fall semester, according to the release.

The school was founded in 1963 by Lytt and Sis Gould, Hap Johnson, Carroll Boynton and Ethel Stringfellow to educate and celebrate girls with different learning styles and abilities. The first class of 18 students was welcomed to the 83-acre campus on Basset Farm in September 1965.

Over time, Purnells mission was slightly altered to support girls who learn differently. In 2016, the school found the Learning and Wellness program to provide integrative and holistic support focused on the entire childs social-emotional and academic needs.

Purnell School is a member of the National Coalition of Girls Schools, National Association of Independent Schools, The Association of Boarding Schools, Learning Disabilities Association of America, and the International Dyslexia Association. It is also accredited by the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools, the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, and STEM.org.

Beth Crandall, a graduate of the Class of 2009, said Purnell School wasnt perfect, but it was truly magical  to the extent that she found it difficult to believe that it wouldnt last forever.

The tight-knit faculty and student community gave so many students a loving family that they didnt necessarily have back home. The campus was unbelievably beautiful in all seasons  Ive never spent more time outside than I did when I was at Purnell, Crandall said. The school just gave us so many chances to find our best selves, and Im so grateful for that.

When an institution like Purnell touches you in the way that its touched so many women in the past 57 years ... its genuinely hard to believe that it could ever slip away.

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Caroline Fassett may be reached at cfassett@njadvancemedia.com.

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Consumer spending in the Chinese capital Beijing surged during the week-long Spring Festival holiday, partly because the number of people who stayed in the city for the most important Chinese festival of the year was twice the usual number.

People visit Tiantan (Temple of Heaven) Park in Beijing, capital of China, Feb. 17, 2021. (Xinhua/Ju Huanzong)

Sales of products from 100 major enterprises reached 5.47 billion yuan ($846.9 million) during the holiday from Feb. 11 to Feb. 17, up 43.1 percent year-on-year, according to the latest statistics from the Beijing Municipal Commerce Bureau.

Data from the municipal bureau of culture and tourism showed that Beijing recorded over 6.63 million visits made by tourists during the holiday, an increase of 3.5 times over the same period last year. Among the total visits, more than 1.72 million were made by tourists from other parts of China, up 96.5 percent year on year. The citys tourism revenue came to 4.25 billion yuan, up 2.9 times year-on-year.

The daily passenger volume in Beijings 22 major downtown shopping areas, including Wangfujing and Xidan, soared by about 90 percent from a year earlier.

The capital issued e-vouchers worth 40 million yuan to residents who answered the governments call to stay put during the holiday via six e-commerce platforms, including JD.com, Suning, and Meituan.
Photo: (Photo : Screenshot from Instagram)

A North Carolina dad receives the good news that his daughter is cancer-free.

The father, Sheriff Barry Glosson, received the news as Valentine's day gift from his daughter, Victoria Glosson.

The entire revelation of Victoria's recovery was captured on video by Victoria herself. She asked her dad to guess what she was saying while he has loud music playing through his earphones.

The now-viral video has been viewed thousands of times, and people enjoy the wholesome father and daughter encounter.

ALSO READ: Father and Daughter Duo Work to Clean Waterways in Florida

The daughter is cancer-free.

Victoria was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma while she was in college. While studying, the daughter had to undergo treatment. For a year and a half, Victoria battled cancer.

In an interview, she shared how determined she was to go through that phase of her life, even if it was sometimes excruciating. She said, "I had to get Neulasta shots after chemotherapy to keep my white blood cell counts up. Those shots hurt, and it was like every bit of your bones were breaking."

It was just recently that the daughter is cancer-free. When she learned about this, she was shocked and ecstatic. It was a long journey for the daughter, and reaching that point was incredible for her.

Along with that, she received her nursing degree and is now excited to work at the frontlines, fighting COVID-19. She is set to work at the emergency department of a hospital in Greensboro.

ALSO READ: Missouri Teen Saves Mom by Donating His Kidney

The North Carolina dad receives good news.

After learning that she is cancer-free, she immediately wanted to tell her dad the news. However, she tried to put a twist to it.

In the viral video, Sheriff Glosson is seen with earphones. Then the daughter is trying to tell him that she is already cancer-free.

It took the dad some time to realize what his daughter was saying.

Victoria even had to repeat the message several times.

At first, the dad said, "I'm cancer-free," nonchalantly. Then he asked, "Did you have a PET scan?"

Even before his daughter was able to answer, he started jumping with joy. He immediately hugged his wife.

Indeed, it was a joyous moment for the family.

A lot of netizens were celebrating with the family some of them sent their congratulations to the daughter. Others were admiring the kind of relationship the father and daughter have.

ALSO READ: Dad Tricks Baby to Say "Dada" by Changing Nursery Rhyme Lyrics

The father and daughter bond

Since Victoria was diagnosed with cancer, her father has been very supportive.

It was Sheriff Glosson who would drive his daughter to her clinical during college.

In an interview, the North Carolina dad said, "I saw my daughter go through the toughest battle of her life... It was so scary to watch my daughter live this nightmare."

He added that the joy he feels is indescribable.

ALSO READ: Viral Video: Father and Daughter Duo Dancing Together
IF you have absolutely no urgent or emergency need to be outdoors today, then remain at home.

Should you take a chance and decide to tempt fate, then it may most likely result in you being stopped and questioned by police officers and members of the Defence Force, or even find yourself charged and taken before a court.
K. A. Turner has been elected president of the Alabama Press Association.

Turner, a 40-year veteran of newspapers in Alabama, is senior editor for Alabama Media Groups print publications, which includes The Huntsville Times, The Birmingham News and Mobiles Press-Register. She is only the sixth woman elected to the leadership of the group since 1871.

Kelly Ann Scott, vice president of content for Alabama Media Group, called Turner one of the best journalists in Alabama.

Her experience, journalism skills and leadership are remarkable, Scott said. Were thrilled to be working with her in this role.

An Auburn native, Turner grew up in Montevallo and was a graduate of the University of Montevallo. She has held leadership positions at the Shelby County Reporter, The Outlook in Alexander City and The Selma Times-Journal. Joining what became Advance Local in 1999, Turner started in Huntsville, then moved to Mobile before returning to Birmingham in 2012 as director of state news for Alabama Media Group.

Turner said her career has given her an immense respect for the men and women who work constantly to gather and share information in their communities. These folks are business owners and employers. They are caretakers and change-makers in their communities.

Our industry is evolving, but for communities large and small in Alabama, the newspapers and their various products continue to be the most reliable and trustworthy source of information for readers, Turner said. The work we do matters. I look forward to working with the APA staff to support these journalists and newspaper staff members every way we can.

Dee Ann Campbell, publisher of the Choctaw Sun-Advocate in Gilbertown was elected first vice president, and Darrell Sandlin, publisher of The TimesDaily in Florence was elected second vice president.

New board members elected were: Dennis Palmer, publisher of The Selma Times-Journal, Robert Blankenship, publisher of The Andalusia Star-News, and Patrick Graham, owner of The Jackson County Sentinel in Scottsboro, The Sand Mountain Reporter in Albertville and The Fort Payne Times-Journal.

The APA Journalism Foundation elected Kendra Majors, regional editor of The Greenville Advocate, The Luverne Journal, The Lowndes Signal, The Demopolis Times, The Selma Times-Journal and associated digital and print products, as president.
Scientists, environmentalists and fishing groups are against the idea of releasing the radioactive water of the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea.

By Robin Gomes

Catholic bishops in South Korea and Japan have issued a joint statement opposing the Japanese governments decision to dump radioactive water from the damaged Fukushima nuclear power plant into the sea.

On 11 March 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck off the north-eastern coast of Japan, triggering a 15-metre tsunami. It seriously damaged the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station. The meltdown was considered the worst nuclear accident since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.

Years of debate have followed regarding the disposal of liquid from the crippled plant, which includes water used to cool the facility. Japanese authorities have now decided to release a million tonnes of treated water into the sea. The initial plan was to start releasing the water from 2022 but a final decision has not been made, according to Japanese media.

Tritium contamination

Most of the radioactive isotopes have been removed using a complex filtration process called the Advanced Liquid Processing System (ALPS). But one isotope, tritium, cannot be removed, so water has been stored in huge tanks that will fill up by 2022, the BBC reported.

Scientists, environmentalists and fishing groups have opposed the idea of releasing the contaminated water into the sea, citing possible risks.

We oppose the release of water containing tritium, a radioactive material that has been purified and treated, into the ocean, said a joint statement by the Justice and Peace Commissions of the bishops conferences of Korea and Japan, the Korean bishops ecological and environmental committee and the Japanese bishops denuclearization subcommittee for peace.

The statement drew the attention of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, the minister of economy, trade and industry, the minister of environment, the minister of reconstruction and the secretary of resources energy resources.

The bishops of the two countries expressed concern that the report from the Japanese government makes no mention of the effects that the ALPS-treated water has on marine life, the marine environment and human health. They said that the treated water contains tritium, which is a radioactive material. Secondary treatment of radionuclides remaining in the treated water, they said, is still in the testing stage, and no definite results have been obtained, the bishops said.

Rather, we can say for sure that once released into the ocean, radioactive material is irreversible, they said, adding, It will have impacts on humans and nature. It will cause greater anxiety and damage to people around the world.

Concern for future generations

We have a responsibility to hand over to future generations a global environment where we can truly live safely and with peace of mind, the bishops wrote, pointing to Pope Franciss 2015 encyclical, which urges solidarity for the coming generations.

Since the world has been given to us, we can no longer view reality in a purely utilitarian way, in which efficiency and productivity are entirely geared to our individual benefit, the Pope says. Intergenerational solidarity, he points out, is not optional, but rather a basic question of justice, since the world we have received also belongs to those who will follow us.

A Greenpeace report released in October said that the contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant contains "dangerous levels of carbon-14", a radioactive substance that it says has the "potential to damage human DNA".

Korea radioactive spill

In a separate statement, the Korean bishops' ecological and environmental committee expressed concerns about the recent tritium leak at the Wolseong nuclear power plant in Gyeongju in South Korea.

On Jan. 7, Korean media reported a radioactive leak from the plant, prompting Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Company to investigate. The initial results exposed a wide range of radioactive contamination in the plant and adjacent areas

The Korean Church demanded the government "conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the leakage and immediate follow-up measures for radioactive leaks in all nuclear power plants." (Source: UCANEWS)
Jason Sudeikis is reportedly growing close to former page 3 model Keeley Hazell.

According to reports on Wednesday, the actor, 45, and model, 34, have been friends for years, and have recently been seen enjoying several outings together following his split from ex Olivia Wilde, who is now dating Harry Styles.

Despite claims Jason finds Keeley 'incredibly attractive', their potential romance is said to only be in its early days and he is not ready to jump into a new relationship.

New flame? Jason Sudeikis 'is growing close to former Page 3 model Keeley Hazell following split from ex Olivia Wilde', it was reported on Wednesday

Speaking to The Sun, a source claimed: 'Jason has always found Keeley incredibly attractive, and has told pals he's had a crush on her since her Page 3 days.

'When Jason found out about his wife and Harry, Keeley was one of the people whom he turned towards. During this time he was understandably devastated, but she was brilliant and incredibly supportive.'

'He invited her to join him for a dinner with mates in LA, and their flirty banter quickly set tongues wagging. They have met up since, but obviously it's all very early days.'

Claims: The actor, 45, and model, 34, have known each other for years as friends, and have been seen enjoying several outings together

Early days: Despite claims Jason finds Keeley 'incredibly attractive', their potential romance is only in its early stages and he is said to not be ready to jump into a new relationship

The source did, however, add that Jason feels it is 'too soon' to get into another relationship and he is in 'no rush' to do so.

MailOnline has contacted Keeley's representatives for comment, a spokesperson for Jason declined to comment.

Jason and Keeley first met each other while filming Horrible Bosses 2 together in 2014, and are understood to have been friends ever since.

The claims comes hot on the heels of further reports that Olivia's new romance with Styles is going from strength to strength.

Split: Olivia and Sudeikis enjoyed a seven-year engagement before announcing their split in November. The pair share son Otis, six, and daughter Daisy, four

The pair recently wrapped filming together of their new move Don't Worry Darling.

Olivia and Harry are set to be heading to England soon, DailyMail.com understands, now that the film has wrapped.

The director and the musician will be reuniting with her children son Otis, six, and daughter Daisy, four, who have been staying in the UK with their father.

Sudeikis is currently in London already filming season two of Ted Lasso so they will soon be reunited.

Travel: It was recently claimed Olivia and new beau Harry Styles are set to be heading to England soon to reunite with her children (pictured) who have been in the UK with their father

Olivia has moved into the temporary home Styles was using while in Los Angeles to shoot her movie Don't Worry Darling.

The couple met while she was directing him in the motion picture which wrapped principal photography this past weekend.

And on Valentine's Day she was seen shifting her belongings into Harry's home, which the New York Post reports is actually owned by his manager Jeff Azoff.

Heating up! Olivia and Harry recently wrapped filming of their new movie Don't Worry Darling and things appear to be heating up between them

Olivia and Sudeikis enjoyed a seven-year engagement before announcing their split in November, and have been focusing on prioritizing their children amidst their parting.

Initially it was said that things between the pair were 'amicable' and they were learning to transition out of the relationship.

Yet a source told People in January that Sudeikis was pointing the finger at Styles.

'Jason feels that the timeline that Olivia and Harry would like people to believethat she and Jason split ages ago, long before she became involved with Harryis simply not accurate.'

Sudeikis started to sense that things were going south after she and Styles began filming in September: 'None of it happened until she began filming with Harry,' the insider shared.

Styles snagged the role after she booted Shia LaBeouf over what she deems a 'no a**holes policy,' onset, swiftly replacing him to play lead actress Florence Pugh's husband in the film.

Broken home: Sudeikis started to sense that things were going south after Olivia and Styles began filming in September, (pictured in January 2020)

The movie also stars Dakota Johnson and Chris Pine, with Wilde sharing snaps on Sunday from behind the scenes of filming as she gushed over her cast and called it her 'happiest place.'

Throughout the duration of the multi-month filming process (despite a few halts over COVID-19 scares), she and Harry shared some intimate moments while working closely together, with sources saying they had 'obvious' chemistry.

By January they stepped out publicly as they packed on the PDA and held hands as they attended his manager Jeff Azoff's wedding, with sources saying at that point they had been dating for a few weeks.

New reports continue to confirm that the pair are very much together, both 'very happy' in the relationship with it seeming 'very serious.'

Keeley previously dated David Walliams and the pair were pictured reuniting back in November.

Reunited: Keeley was pictured enjoying a night out with her ex, British TV star David Walliams back in November

The pair had headed to the private members' club George in London's Mayfair for a fun night out.

The dinner date came after it was reported in July that David moved Keeley into his home for nine months following her return home from America, though sources claimed at the time they were just close friends.

A source told The Sun of their dinner date at the time: 'David and Keeley really seemed to enjoy each other's company, and were very tactile in the restaurant.

'Once they left, she cuddled up to him as she braved the cold depths of a November night.'

Earlier that year, Keeley revealed she was looking for a new man in her life, as well as a new line of work as she told her followers: 'Looking for a job and a boyfriend. Not sure where I'm going wrong.'

David and Keeley were regularly spotted together on the London social circuit towards the end of the Noughties.
A speed bump for autos, not a pot hole. NXP and Infineon make automotive sector chips in Austin, and there will be further knock-on effects for the auto sector. Global chip shortages have forced automakers to drop production lines, prioritize higher margin vehicles, store semi-assembled cars, and shutter entire plants. GM last week extended cuts for three North American plants, while Ford is predicting 1Q production could drop by 1020%. Industry forecaster AFS predicts volume cuts could reach 1.3mn globally. The medium-term view is more encouraging. While we expect automakers' 1H earnings to reflect lost volume, margin prioritization should help cushion earnings, and pent-up demand should help offset lost production volume into year-end. We think the shortages are unlikely to hit electric vehicle (EV) production, with sufficient stockpiled chips on hand for the big players. We like select global automakers given their exposure to the cyclical recovery and to the still nascent EV segment, while in Asia we see particular value in the EV component supply chain.

More urgency for semi supply chain diversification. Long before the auto semi shortage, US-China tensions over 5G put chip self-sufficiency on the radar for policymakers. The US's share of the global chipmaking market fell to around 12% last year from 37% in the 1990s, according to the SIA chip lobby group, which is pressing the Biden administration to enact competitive subsidies that support domestic chip production and research. According to the White House, President Joe Biden is expected to sign a chip-focused executive order in the coming weeks, and his team has held high level talks with officials in Taipei. Europe, which is heavily reliant on US and Asian producers, is reportedly exploring joint funding options to build an advanced domestic foundry with the help of Taiwan's TSMC and South Korea's Samsung. While commitments are not fully clear, a surge in government-supported capital expenditures would be a boon for equipment makers and other beneficiaries in our 5G investment thesis.

Climate resilience will get another boost. The events in Texas offer another risk data point for companies that must increasingly factor outlier climate and weather events into their business planning and agenda. Energy efficiency and climate resilience are all too often overlooked areas within greentech, and both stand to benefit from regulatory-led changes. In addition, the pressure on Texass power system underscores the growing importance of smart grid technology to manage and maintain systems. Read more on greentech here and sustainable investing here.



So we believe that the current power outages in parts of the US are likely not only to have an impact on semiconductor supply chains, but also to highlight the need for substantial new investments in an area that is becoming of increasing strategic importance.
WEST SPRINGFIELD  Advertising may be taking to the skies above Route 5 if town councilors support a petitioned zone change.

William Fennell, an attorney representing 19 petitioners from West Springfield, spoke at Tuesdays council meeting about their proposal for an overlay zone to allow digital billboards in the retail district of Riverdale Street (Route 5) and on industrial land facing Interstate 91 near the Holyoke city line.

A separate group of 13 residents sent a letter in opposition. Town councilors seemed receptive to the proposal, but wanted to make sure Riverdale Street isnt overwhelmed by flashing advertisements.

I dont think any of us would want Vegas, or signs all over the place, said Council President Brian Griffin.

Allowing billboards could be a boost to the towns property tax base, Fennell said, noting these kinds of signs can be valued at $750,000 to $1 million, despite taking up a footprint of only 250 square feet. That value would be taxed annually, like any other business. Digital billboards are also required by state law to set aside 15 hours per month to display public service messages, and are used for public outreach during emergencies, including storm warnings and Amber Alerts.

The petitioners are proposing four zones where billboards would be allowed: along the west side of Riverdale Street south of I-91, roughly from Cals restaurant to the Cinemark theaters; along the east side of Riverdale opposite the first zone; along the east side of Riverdale north of I-91, from Hayes Prosthetics to Outback Steakhouse; and covering four industrial properties on the east side of Interstate Drive near the Holyoke city line. Billboards in this last district would be visible from I-91.

There is a gap in the Riverdale Street district because state laws prohibit billboards within 500 feet of highway entrance ramps, Fennell said. The state also prohibits electronic billboards from being sited within 1,000 feet of each other. He said the petitioners dont foresee a demand for traditional billboards along Riverdale Street, and would not object to an amendment allowing electronic billboards only.

Although the town cant directly limit the number of billboards to be permitted, Griffin said the council could amend the proposal to widen the buffer zone, ensuring that only one digital billboard can be built in each of the four districts.

The petition effort was led by Thomas McNulty of Rogers Avenue.

Opponents said in their letter that while the proposed billboards would be on business land, adjoining residential neighborhoods could have their views spoiled by 150-foot-tall advertising signs. By comparison, the Agri-Mark tower on Riverdale Street is 92 feet tall.

Fennell said because the billboards along Riverdale Street would be targeted to drivers on the local road, he expects them to stand about 50 feet off the ground. A billboard off Interstate Drive, directed to fast-moving highway traffic, would be higher.

The opposition letter, which was read at Tuesdays meeting by Melissa Hensen of Beauview Terrace, also expresses concern that digital billboards will become a distraction for drivers, leading to more crashes and congestion on busy Route 5.

Under state law, the images on a digital billboard cannot change more rapidly than once every 10 seconds. Councilor Michael Eger said thats still too distracting, and he hopes the town can impose a more restrictive limit.

A representative from Big Y wrote to the council supporting the billboard district, stating the supermarket company hopes to put up a billboard on land adjacent to I-91 in town. In addition to its grocery store on Memorial Avenue, the company owns the Table & Vine liquor store on Riverdale Street, adjacent to the proposed billboard district and close to an I-91 exit.

The council is expected to vote on the proposal at its next meeting, March 1.

Also Tuesday, the council unanimously approved an ordinance allowing neighborhoods to request speed humps on residential streets, and a resolution opposing an internet data cap for Comcast customers in town.

The council voted 7-2 in favor of a temporary economic development administrator to seek grants and serve as an advocate for businesses recovering from the COVID-19 economic downturn in West Springfield.
A top Georgian opposition leader called on Thursday for snap parliamentary polls after the prime minister resigned over plans to arrest him, deepening a political crisis that has gripped the Caucasus nation since elections last year.

Giorgi Gakharia, a 45-year-old with the ruling Georgian Dream party who was prime minister since 2019, said he was stepping down because of disagreement in the government over enforcing a court order to arrest Nika Melia.

The move to detain Melia -- the chairman of the United National Movement of exiled ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili -- sparked outrage in the opposition and warnings from Georgia's Western allies.

At a news conference on Thursday, Georgian Dream chairman Irakli Kobakhidze said the party leadership decided to nominate Defence Minister and former PM Irakli Garibashvili to take over as prime minister.

Speaking to journalists outside his party's headquarters, Melia ridiculed Garibashvili's candidature as "comical," saying his appointment "means Georgian Dream is over and snap polls are imminent".

"Power will change in Georgia peacefully and very soon," Melia said.

- 'Wrong direction' -

Georgians watched the unfolding crisis with anxiety and some expressed disillusionment with the country's political class.

"It is unclear to me what the government is doing for the country's priority -- the European and Euro-Atlantic integration," 44-year-old interpreter Ketevan Charkhalashvili told AFP.

She added that people are "anxious that things are going in wrong direction".

"Corruption is flourishing and you don't know which party or politician to trust," said 24-year-old filmmaker Ana Bedia.

With opposition party leaders gathered at the UNM headquarters in Georgia's capital Tbilisi and television reports showing riot police mobilising nearby on Thursday morning, Gakharia said he could not enforce the court order and would resign.

Story continues

A court in Tbilisi on Wednesday ordered Melia placed in pre-trial detention after he refused to pay an increased bail fee ahead of hearings in a case related to anti-government demonstrations in 2019.

He has been charged with "organising mass violence" during the protests and is facing up to nine years in prison.

Melia, 41, rejects the case as politically motivated and his supporters have vowed to obstruct police if they move to arrest him.

The detention order has raised the stakes in the crisis over October's parliamentary elections, which the opposition denounced as rigged after Georgian Dream claimed victory.

Opposition members have refused to take up their seats in the new parliament and demanded new elections.

The interior ministry said it had "temporarily postponed the planned detention" of Melia in connection with the prime minister's resignation.

Melia is accused of fomenting violence during protests that erupted in Tbilisi in June 2019 after a Russian lawmaker addressed parliament from the speaker's seat, a controversial move in a country where ties with Moscow remain strained after a brief war in 2008.

The rallies saw thousands of protesters clash with police who used tear gas and rubber bullets against the crowds.

Georgia gained its independence with the 1992 collapse of the Soviet Union and in the decades since has been divided between its longstanding relationship with Moscow and efforts to seek closer ties with the West.

- 'Dangerous situation' -

The European Union in a statement urged "both the authorities and the opposition in Georgia to act with utmost restraint and responsibility to avoid further escalation".

The US embassy in Tbilisi said on Twitter that the crisis "must be resolved peacefully", urging restraint on all sides.

"The current dangerous situation following the Melia ruling stems from decades-long problems with the electoral system and the judicial system," it said.

In power since 2012, Georgian Dream has seen its popularity fall over its failure to address economic stagnation and perceived backsliding on commitments to democracy.

im/acl/txw
It was another sweltering day in Phoenix, and Tommy Espinoza, an Arizona native and president and CEO of Raza Development Fund, knew something was different. He was right. While Arizonas summers have always been hot, August 2020 was the hottest month ever recorded in Phoenix, and the citys temperatures topped 110 degrees for more than 50 days in 2020.

[T]here are times when they close the airports and ask people not to go out. We have offices downtown, and Ive crossed the street when the black tar moves beneath you since its 11920 degrees. You cannot ignore this anymore. I was not a big climate change believerbut now youve got to say, wait a minute, you really cannot ignore this, Espinoza said.

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Welcome to Americas Heat Belt, the southernmost part of the country and home to the fastest-growing and most diverse population in the countryas well as some of its highest temperatures and most costly disasters. While we cant say that this weeks staggering cold temperatures in Texas and elsewhere in the South were caused by climate change, it is certainly a harbinger of the wild and unpredictable weather that altering the Earths climate will bring. The future has arrived early for this part of America, and despite the pandemic and other simultaneous crises, communities here are increasingly motivated to set aside partisan politics in order to implement a broad spectrum of climate policies. But the scope of the issues and the required scale of the response necessitate a decisive role for the federal government, one guided by the unique encounters and opportunities of those living on the front lines of change.

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We spoke to Espinoza as part of a project to explore conditions related to federal climate policy in this part of the country. New America partnered with Arizona State Universitys Ten Across initiative, which engages the U.S. Interstate 10 corridor, from Los Angeles to Jacksonville, Florida. (ASU and New America are partners with Slate in Future Tense.) Together, we convened community leaders in many of the cities within and adjacent to the Ten Across transect to discuss what it means to be on the forefront of the environmental, economic, and social changes imminent for the rest of the country.

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Many interviewees told us they are particularly concerned about the increasing frequency and intensity of the various climate change threatsheat, drought, wildfire, hurricanes, flooding. These mounting threats force Heat Belt residents to take temporary refuge elsewhere or, in a growing number of cases, to retreat permanently from areas that were once relatively safe. Since 2016, Houston has had three 500-year rain events. In 2020 alone, Phoenix did not simply surpass days above 110 but did so by 40 percent. Californias 2020 wildfires scorched twice the number of acres as the previous record, and Louisiana experienced an unprecedented five hurricanes in a single season.

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Hurricanes and other natural disasters exact a heavy toll. In fact, 2020 was a record-breaking year, with 22 disasters costing more than $1 billion each. The previous record was 16 billion-dollar disasters. Many of the top counties for Federal Emergency Management Agency emergency declarations are found in the Heat Belt, and the region now accounts for 65 percent of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations total estimation of historical U.S. billion-dollar weather and climate disasters. The region also has some of the highest state poverty rates in the country. All of this translates to large populations suffering the worst cost in lives, livelihood, and stability, while struggling to recover from each successive shock. In a climate-changed future, the most vulnerable will likely become permanently displaced people looking for new homes and, in turn, placing pressures on communities that may have previously been spared.

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Climate change is increasingly a lived experience for those Americans who call the countrys Heat Belt their home. Our interviewees suggested that personal encounters with mounting risk is eroding any remaining sense of climate skepticism. For many in this region, climate change has already arrived, requiring immediate action to sustain their community, even if that means retreat. As John Davies, CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, observes, People who live in this world see it every day outside their windows: where there used to be land, there is now water. They understand. Many interviewees spoke of leveraging this growing sense of urgency to prepare for what are now predictable extremes.

The Gulf Coast, for example, has seen a wide range of catastrophes over just the past few decades, prompting the creation of planning documents like Louisianas Coastal Master Plan and the formation of organizations like the Greater Houston Flood Mitigation Consortium and the Water Institute of the Gulf. These collaborative initiatives translate the latest science into politically neutral and durable tools that empower local decision-makers.

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Local, state, and federal actors are collaborating in such efforts to relocate the mostly Native American population from Louisianas Isle de Jean Charles in Terrebonne Parish, where subsistence, erosion, and sea-level rise have caused the community to lose 98 percent of the land surrounding their homes. As Andrea Calvin, chief scientist at Adaptation Strategies, mentioned to us, the states Coastal Master Plan helped drive projects to move these communities, and a Department of Housing and Urban Development grant helped enable the realization of those projects. These local initiatives are concrete demonstrations of how the urgent motivations and insights of local stakeholders can drive federal resources toward meaningful action.

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Similarly, in the West, an impending crisis pressed local stakeholders to begin addressing the realities of living in the drier, hotter realities that climate change is already delivering. Nearly 40 million people rely on the Colorado River system, which is experiencing a historic 16-year dry period with models suggesting that flows could fall by as much as 55 percent by 2100. In response to this mounting emergency, the federal government used its convening power to bring the seven Colorado River basin states and Mexico together over a seven-year period to develop the Drought Contingency Plan and with its adoption in 2019, a critical stopgap measure in anticipation of looming water shortages.

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Locally led approaches to addressing climate change acknowledge the values and realities closest to the community. Understanding what they need, building the public will and receptivity, and creating durable solutions all rely significantly on the human elementsomething state and local officials are well positioned and equipped to accomplish. Tallahassees Chief Resilience Officer Abena Ojetayo explained, We build capacity by looking first to the most vulnerable. When you do, you cant help but talk about equity and cohesion, distribution of infrastructure, and access to opportunity. If you take care of those, you often solve the problems of resilience for the community at large.

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Many who joined our conversations in this part of the country echoed the need for consistent and coordinated federal leadership and financial support on issues their communities are already tackling but often struggle to find the means to fully realize. This effort must acknowledge and build upon the efforts of these state and local jurisdictions that are not allowing conventional boundaries, sectors, or precedent to limit their thinking or their actions. As Camille Manning Broome, who heads the Center for Planning Excellence in southern Louisiana, puts it, Climate change leadership will come from the local level, where its actually felt. We have so much need and opportunity in our transition. Its so big that we need commitments and resources at a national level. But the changes and the motivesthose are local.

Based on our interviews, we believe policy driven from the bottom up is perhaps the most efficient and effective route to necessary, durable change. These stories and the countless others like them must inform policies that overcome the limitations of arbitrary borders and political constructs. This is the chance to recommit to the value of governance at the federal level, to the benefit of all citizensespecially those in communities that are conspicuously vulnerable and can alert the rest of the country to what lies ahead.

Future Tense is a partnership of Slate, New America, and Arizona State University that examines emerging technologies, public policy, and society.
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Despite dropping case and hospitalization numbers, the Ohio Department of Healths coronavirus alert map on Thursday remained exactly the same for the fourth consecutive week - with the same 84 counties on red alert.

This is because new case totals in all but one Ohio county remain above what the health department describes as a rate of high incidence. The threshold for this is 100 new cases per 100,000 people over the last two weeks, excluding incarcerated individuals.

See related story: See how dramatically Greater Cleveland counties have improved in measures in Ohios coronavirus alert system

The rates across Ohio this week range from a 99.4 per 100,000 in tiny Vinton County to 442.1 per 100,000 in Brown County.

In the Greater Cleveland area, Lorain County has the highest rate (308.2 per 100,000), followed by Lake (295), Summit (289.1), Portage (285), Geauga (263.8), Medina (262.6) and Cuyahoga (239).

In comparison, these rates five weeks ago on Jan. 14 were: Lorain (774), Lake (762.5), Summit (724.8), Portage (667.8), Geauga (604.4), Medina (647.6) and Cuyahoga (673.4).

The alert designations were not affected by the states recent addition of more than 4,000 deaths from November and December, deaths that had previously gone unreported because of a data processing failure by the Ohio Department of Health.

The alert system does not factor in deaths, but rather tracks new caseloads, hospitalizations and trips to doctors offices and emergency rooms.

The red alert designation, according to the states advisory system, means there is a public emergency for increased exposure and spread, and that people should exercise a high degree of caution.

Counties dont reach the red alert level until they meet at least four of seven measures being tracked. But once flagged as a red alert county, a county does not drop to a lower level until the two-week rate for new cases per 100,000 is below 100.

The only orange counties - for the 10th consecutive week - are Gallia, Hocking, Monroe and Vinton.

Beginning with Dec. 24, the red counties have been the same with the exception of two weeks in mid-January when Hamilton County was listed at the higher concern level of purple.

Cuyahoga met two of the seven criteria again this week - new cases over the last two weeks, and a case share of more than 50% outside of congregate living facilities.

All 88 counties were flagged for having more than 50 new cases per 100,000 people over the last two weeks, and 80 of the 88 counties were flagged for having a share of more than 50% outside of congregate living facilities.

The Thursday, Feb. 18, coronavirus report card for Cuyahoga County.Ohio Department of Health

The advisory system

Heres a closer look at the advisory system Gov. Mike DeWine introduced in early July.

* 1. New cases - Alert triggered when there are 50 new cases per cases 100,000 residents over the last two weeks.

* 2. Increase in new cases - Alert triggered by an increase in cases for five straight days at any point over the last three weeks. This is based on the date of onset of symptoms, not when the cases are reported.

* 3. Non-congregate living cases - Alert triggered when at least 50% of the new cases in one of the last three weeks have occurred in outside congregate living spaces such as nursing homes and prisons.

* 4. Emergency rooms - Alert triggered when there is an increase in visits for COVID-like symptoms or a diagnosis for five straight days at any point in the last three weeks.

* 5. Doctor visits - Alert triggered when there is an increase in out-patient visits resulting in confirmed cases or suspected diagnosis for COVID-19 for five straight days at any point in the last three weeks.

* 6. Hospitalizations - Alert triggered when there is an increase in new COVID-19 patients for five straight days at any point over the last three weeks. This is based on the county or residence, not the location of the hospital.

* 7. Intensive Care Unit occupancy - Alert triggered when ICU occupancy in a region exceeds 80% of total ICU beds and at least 20% of the beds are being used for coronavirus patients for at least three days in the last week.

Rich Exner, data analysis editor for cleveland.com, writes about numbers on a variety of topics. Follow on Twitter @RichExner. See other data-related stories at cleveland.com/datacentral.

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Jonah Bank President to Speak with UW MBA Students

Kim DeVore, president and a founding director of Jonah Bank of Wyoming, will speak with University of Wyoming Master of Business Administration (MBA) students Friday, Feb. 19.

DeVore will meet virtually with first-year, full-time MBA students as they prepare for the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Collegiate Program Case Competition. Her program will focus on preparing a company for an unpredictable crisis.

UW President Emeritus Dick McGinity is the faculty member leading the student team as part of his MBA Decision Making course. While there is a smaller team for the actual competition, all members of the MBA cohort are involved in case preparation leading up to the ninth annual competition April 16.

The Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Collegiate Program Case Competition exposes students to a thought-provoking business ethics case similar to situations they might face in their professional careers. The competition helps build on the principle-based ethical framework central to decision-making in a complex business environment.

DeVores career began through DECA while she was still in high school. Since then, she has filled almost every role within banking, and she was recognized as the 2015 Wyoming Woman of Influence in the banking and finance industry. DeVore is active in several community organizations in Casper.
ByteDance is a great role model for all global, high-tech companies on how to foster and protect innovation, and were honored to welcome them into our community," said Ken Seddon, LOT Network CEO.

LOT Network, the international community of the worlds leading high-tech companies committed to protecting its members from costly litigation from patent assertion entities (PAEs, also known as patent trolls), announced today that ByteDance has joined its 1,200+ member organization. In doing so, the company is taking proactive measures to protect itself against potential litigation from PAEs, and inoculating themselves from a pool of over 3 million patents.

"Innovation is core to the culture at ByteDance, and we believe its important to protect our diverse technical and creative community," said Lynn Wu, Director and Chief IP Counsel, Global IP and Digital Licensing Strategy at ByteDance. As champions for the fair use of IP, we encourage other companies to help us make the industry safer by joining LOT Network. If we work together, we can protect the industry from exploitation and continue advancing innovation, which is key to the growth and success of the entire community."

Beyond research and development, ByteDance is at the forefront of utilizing technologies to advance its business model, policies and processes. ByteDance leverages artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other online technologies to create products and services that inspire users' creativity and enrich their lives.

ByteDance is a great role model for all global, high-tech companies on how to foster and protect innovation, and were honored to welcome them into our community," said Ken Seddon, LOT Network CEO. "Their commitment to protecting themselves, and expanding protection to our ever-growing community, with the addition of nearly 10,000 global patent assets, demonstrates a dedication to safeguarding innovation. ByteDance is sending a strong message that innovation should be protected with patents, and that the global powerhouse and the entire LOT Network community should be protected from patent assertion entities.

With over 3 million patents in the network and counting, the non-profit's membership roster is filled with global tech leaders including Google, Microsoft, and Amazon. Putting protective measures in place -- like LOT Network membership -- demonstrates a spirit of collaboration with companies worldwide on IP matters. It also further signals that ByteDance is protected from the potential high-cost of patent litigation from PAEs.

ByteDance and all LOT Network members agree that if, and only if, any members patent assets fall into the hands of a PAE, the company provides a license to all other network members, thereby immunizing them against PAE litigation from those assets. Members retain all other traditional uses of patents  including selling them, or using them to sue other companies.

# # #

About LOT Network

LOT Network is an international community of the worlds leading high-tech companies committed to protecting its members from costly litigation from patent assertion entities (PAEs). LOT Network currently protects more than 1,200 members in 36 countries from litigation from over 3 million worldwide patents and counting. Members include market leaders such as IBM, Toyota, JP Morgan Chase, Canon, Google, Tesla, Disney, Cisco, Amazon, Microsoft, BP, Alibaba, and Dow, as well as innovative companies across all high-tech industries.

About ByteDance

Founded in 2012, ByteDance's mission is to inspire creativity and enrich life. With a suite of more than a dozen products, including TikTok, Helo, and Resso, as well as platforms specific to the China market, including Toutiao, Douyin, and Xigua, ByteDance has made it easier and more fun for people to connect with, consume, and create content. ByteDance's investors include Coatue, General Atlantic, KKR, Sequoia Capital, SIG, and Softbank.
Feb. 18, 1931

Spaghetti party busted

A free spaghetti dinner at The Maples was raided and Henry Kessler was left holding the pasta bowl.

The free dinner was well advertised throughout Scranton on Feb. 17 with a car adorned with large placards inviting people to The Maples in the true Italian style with the meal on the house. The Maples, formerly known as the Hollywood, was a roadhouse located near the Ackerly Fairgrounds in Glenburn Twp.

When state police arrived at the roadhouse at 11 p.m. on Feb. 17, they found the free spaghetti dinner in full swing  people dancing the foxtrot to the sounds from a jazz band and waiters carrying plates of steaming plates of pasta to waiting guests.

As soon as the police were spotted the place cleared out fast. Left to take the fall for the party was Henry Kessler, 24, of Hickory Street.

Kessler was charged with violating prohibition law and held on $1,000 bail.

The police also seized gin, beer and other unspecified liquors on their raid.

New roads proposed

Willis Kemmerer, president of the Lackawanna Motor Club, delivered a proposal for two new highways the evening of Feb. 17 in the lounge at the Scranton Chamber of Commerce.

Worthington Scranton, president of the Chamber, gave a brief introduction to the proposal but Kemmerer then went into the details.

The proposed roads would be a new highway to connect Scranton to Carbondale and another to connect Scranton to Daleville.

Kemmerer said that the Chamber, county, state and city governments and the Motor Club all needed to work together to ensure that the proposed highways were built.

Scranton Dry Goods sale

Entire stock of fur coats was half off, prices started at $39.50, spring dresses were $8.44, mens pajamas were 99 cents, 50-piece dinnerware set was $5.99, Aquatax Rayon shower curtains were $1.99 and all cigarette accessories were half off. In the grocery department, sirloin steak was 26 cents per pound, smoked hams were 25 cents per pound, store made angel food cake with orange icing was 31 cents, and loose leaf tea was priced between 33 cents and 39 cents per pound.
Simon Thomson, CEO of Cairn Energy, sought swift enforcement of the over-$1.2 billion arbitration award, during his meeting with top finance ministry officials in New Delhi on Thursday.

India is preparing to file an appeal against the award at The Hague. We had a constructive dialogue and the dialogue is ongoing I cant comment more on the meeting, he said, after meeting Ajay Bhushan Pandey, CBDT Chairman P C Mody, and other tax officials.

The energy major has been building pressure on India to honor the arbitration award and has filed a case in the US, the UK, and The Netherlands over implementation of the December 21 award.

Meanwhile, New Delhi has time till March 21 to file an appeal in accordance with a 90-day window. Thomson had, however, sought a meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Before the meeting, Thomson said the firms shareholders wanted the matter to be resolved quickly as the award has been granted. We are pleased it has come to an end and the award has been granted Our shareholders want it to be resolved quickly which is why were here, said Thomson.

The government had lost an international arbitration case to energy giant Cairn Plc under the retrospective tax legislation amendment.

The company had, in a letter to the Centre last month, threatened seizure of the Indian governments assets if New Delhi failed to pay the award. Cairn had got an order from a Dutch lower court on implementation of the award, which would enable the UK firm to identify commercial Indian assets that can be seized, such as aircraft and ships, among others.

The case pertains to the Rs 24,500-crore tax demand on capital gains made by the oil major in reorganising its India business in 2006-07.

It also includes the reversal of dividend as well as tax refund that the government had seized, and shares that the I-T department had sold to recover part of the demand.

India had argued, during the Cairn arbitration, that non-compliance to tax was not covered under international treaties and that the amendment in the Finance Act, 2012 (retrospective amendment), was only clarificatory in nature. The verdict was given by a three-member panel chaired by Laurent Levy. The final hearing was held in Paris in December 2018.
Even so, the characters disconnection from each other also tends to disconnect them from the viewer, making the films transatlantic crossing aboard the Queen Mary 2 a long and languorous affair.

Gene Siskels old baseline for a movie worth watching - that it be more interesting than a documentary of the same actors having lunch - becomes a higher hurdle to clear the more seasoned and stellar the cast.

Meryl Streep is the headline, Candice Bergen is getting the Oscar buzz and Dianne Wiest makes the cast a real embarrassment of riches. And yet Steven Soderberghs shipbound, partly improvised microbudget drama feels a bit at sea.

Streep plays novelist Alice Hughes, a vain, manipulative woman with streaks of obliviousness and insecurity. Unable to fly, shes taking the boat to Britain so she can accept a literary award in person. Shes also taking nephew Tyler (Lucas Hedges) as a general dogsbody, and her old college friends, Roberta and Susan (Bergen and Wiest), who she hasnt seen for many years. Not invited is Alices agent, Karen (Gemma Chan), who nonetheless sneaks aboard, hoping to get her bosses an update on Alices latest novel.

If the stowaway plot seems farcical, well, Let Them All Talk is ostensibly a comedy-drama. Not that its terribly funny. Perhaps thered be more laughs if Soderbergh had commissioned a more traditional script from celebrated short-story writer Deborah Eisenberg (Soderbergh had Eisenberg flesh out and structure his premise for the film and had her aboard the ship to advise the actors, but the actors improvised much of the dialogue).

Meryl Streep and Lucas Hedges in Let Them All Talk. Credit:Foxtel

The elephant in the stateroom is that Roberta blames Alice for ruining her life by using her, barely disguised, as a character in a book. Not that theyre going to have it out immediately. Roberta, who is miserable in her job selling lingerie in a department store, takes spiteful enjoyment in declining Alices invitations to spend time together and instead focuses on trying to charm wealthy men. Susan, who works as an advocate for women in prison, is bemused by them both, and Wiest is essentially relegated to being a foil for the others.

Bergens performance is frequently delicious, Streep is wonderful in the way that she creates and reacts in her opaquely pinched character, and Soderbergh clearly enjoys the grand architecture of the ship. But its hard to shake the feeling that it would have better if there was a script to stick to.
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New study "raises hopes" that the BCG vaccination could be used against COVID-19 infection

The tuberculosis (TB) vaccine Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) could protect newborns against a variety of common infections, such as upper respiratory tract infections, chest infections and diarrhoea, according to a new study in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

The research is the first of its kind to rigorously investigate the full range of illnesses BCG could protect infants against. It suggests that vaccinating all babies on the day of birth with BCG could reduce neonatal infections and death in areas with high infectious disease rates, potentially saving thousands of lives a year. The results also increase the possibility that the vaccine might be used to protect children and adults against COVID-19 and other new infectious diseases.

Led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) through the MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, and funded by the Wellcome Trust, the study involved a randomized control trial of 560 newborns in Uganda, who were monitored for a range of illnesses.

After six weeks, infection rates from any disease were 25% lower in the group who received the vaccine at birth, compared to the group that had not yet received the vaccination. Particularly vulnerable groups such as low birth weight babies, and boys, seemed to be protected the most. Importantly, BCG appeared to protect against mild, moderate and severe types of infections.

Sarah Prentice, lead author from LSHTM, said: "Nearly a million babies die every year of common infections so we urgently need better ways to protect them. Our research suggests that ensuring that BCG is given at birth could make a big difference in low income countries, potentially saving many lives."

In the study, healthy Ugandan infants were randomly assigned to receive BCG at birth or at six weeks of age. The infants were followed-up by doctors, blinded to the intervention, for 10 weeks to look for episodes of any type of illness or infection.

The research team then compared how often infants in the two groups presented to doctors with infections of any kind, except TB, to see whether having BCG made a difference. They also took blood samples from both groups, to look at differences in their innate immune system, the body's first line of defence against infections.

Infants who had been vaccinated with BCG at birth presented to doctors with any kind of infection 25% less often than infants who had not. Protection from BCG didn't seem to be against one specific type of infection, but for all types, such as common colds, chest infections, and skin infections.

After the group receiving BCG at six weeks had been vaccinated, there was no difference in the rates of infection between the two groups - the delayed group's immunity 'caught-up' once they'd received BCG.

Hazel Dockrell, Professor of Immunology at LSHTM and one of the co-authors of the study, adds: "It's very exciting to think that BCG vaccination might help keep newborns safe against other dangerous infections, in addition to providing protection against TB. Although BCG is recommended at birth in many countries, it is often delayed due to logistical difficulties. Ensuring that the vaccine is given on day one, in areas with high rates of infectious disease, could have a major impact on infections and deaths in the newborn period."

The team can't definitively say why BCG offered this additional non-specific protection, but the research showed evidence of changes in the innate immune system of vaccinated infants, which may suggest that BCG boosts the immune system to work better against any infection.

This has led the researchers to suggest that it could provide protection in the early stages of novel outbreaks, such as COVID-19 or Ebola, before specific vaccines have been developed.

Further studies are already underway to explore whether BCG could play a role in the response to COVID-19, with large trials involving health care workers and the elderly. The Director General of WHO Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus has co-authored an article expressing interest in the possible use of BCG for protection against COVID-19.

Dr Prentice said "Since the findings show that BCG seems to offer wider protection against a range of infections, our study also raises hopes it might be useful in protecting the general population against COVID-19 and future pandemics - though we will need to see the results of other, more specific studies to know for sure."

The researchers also believe it is worth investigating whether reintroduction of BCG in countries where it is no longer in routine use, such as the UK, is beneficial, not for its effects against TB, but to protect vulnerable infants in neonatal units against other infections.

The authors acknowledge limitations of their study. As it was relatively small, it was not possible to show an effect of BCG on numbers of deaths from infections in the study participants. Also, because the study was only conducted in Uganda, it cannot be certain that these extra, beneficial effects of BCG would be seen in other settings. However, previous studies conducted in West Africa have shown a reduction in neonatal deaths following BCG at birth, to a similar extent as the reduction in infection rates seen in this study.

###

For more information or interviews, please contact press@lshtm.ac.uk.

A copy of the embargoed paper is available upon request.

Once published, the article will be available here: http://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(20)30653-8/fulltext

Notes to Editors

Publication

Sarah Prentice, Beatrice Nassanga, Emily L Webb, Florence Akello, Fred Kiwudhu, Hellen Akurut, Alison M Elliott, Rob J W Arts, Mihai G Netea, Hazel M Dockrell, Stephen Cose, for The Delayed BCG Study Team. BCG-induced non-specific effects on heterologous infectious disease in Ugandan neonates: an investigator-blind randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Infectious Diseases. DOI:10.1016/ S1473-3099(20)30653-8.

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a world-leading centre for research, postgraduate studies and continuing education in public and global health. LSHTM has a strong international presence with over 3,000 staff and 4,000 students working in the UK and countries around the world, and an annual research income of 180 million.

LSHTM is one of the highest-rated research institutions in the UK, is partnered with two MRC University Units in The Gambia and Uganda, and was named University of the Year in the Times Higher Education Awards 2016. Our mission is to improve health and health equity in the UK and worldwide; working in partnership to achieve excellence in public and global health research, education and translation of knowledge into policy and practice.
Nathaniel Rateliff, Charli XCX, Devendra Banhart, HAIM, Portugal. The Man, others add exclusive Bandsintown PLUS livestreams

Subscription music livestream platform Bandsintown PLUS has announced a new round of intimate and interactive online performances.

Bandsintown PLUSs HD audio and video, hosted chats, and live Q&As offer fans and artists the shared live, intimate and communal musical experiences they have missed during the pandemic.

Newly announced exclusive performances and live fan Q&As include Arlo Parks, Buck Meek, CHAI, CharliXCX, Chelsea Cutler, Dam-Funk, Devendra Banhart, ELIO, Emily Alyn Lind, FayeWebster, Gabriel Garzon-Montano, HAIM, Japanese Breakfast, Jealous of theBirds, Los Lobos, LP, The Microphones, Mt. Joy, Nathaniel Rateliff, Nicole Migilisof Hundred Waters, ODIE, former Bandsintown Big Break artist Peach Pit, Portugal. The Man, Skullcrusher, Sylvan Esso, Tank and the Bangas, and Whitney, as well as a show with serpentwithfeet celebrating their new album Deacon on release day.

Still to come in February are Bandsintown PLUS shows with Wallows, The Undercover Dream Lovers, Abhi The Nomad, Poolside, Brijean, Little Dragon, Diamond Thug, Fleet Foxes (solo), and Lomelda.

For $9.99 a month fans get an All Access Pass to over 25 live shows produced exclusively for Bandsintown PLUS. Each features a live chat and host that provides commentary, bringing together a virtual community of music lovers.

Subscribers can also participate in live Q&As with artists following most shows that provide an intimate, direct-to-artist experience not normally available at in-person concerts. You can sign up for Bandsintown PLUS at plus.bandsintown.com.

Artists Love Bandsintown PLUS

Artists are embracing the platform as well, We found our Bandsintown PLUS show was a great way to connect with fans right now, said Dave 1 of Chromeo.

The Bandsintown team has been so supportive of my career from the very beginning so I was hyped to be a part of Bandsintown PLUS debut lineup which had a cool mix of artists that I admire as well, says Omar Apollo.

Since launching last month, guest hosts like Talkhouse Podcast host and producer Elia Einhorn have presented Phoebe Bridgers performing a live acoustic set with Ethan Gruska; Jeff Tweedy performing with his two children followed by a rare fan Q&A; Chromeo performing a special set of fan requests from their Burbank studio followed by Ian Isiah singing a live rendition of AUNTIE, the album produced by Chromeo; Adrianne Lenker of Big Thiefs first solo livestream where she performed while her grandmother painted alongside her; Empress Of performing after Chrome Sparks from the studio that he visually converted into a stylish flower nursery; a green-screen performance by Claud featuring original illustrations; and an explosive live show with Omar Apollo, a Bandsintown 2018 Big Break artist who has since signed with Warner Records and released his debut album Apolonio to critical acclaim in 2020.

Sign up for Bandsintown PLUS at plus.bandsintown.com.

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Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) is weighing options to launch its off-roader Jimny in India, said an official. "We are currently evaluating whether the feasibility of it being launched in the domestic market. As you may recall, we had shown this Jimny at the Auto Expo in February 2020, and we got some really nice response. And we are currently studying the various aspects of the marketing as to when, if at all, we can launch that vehicle in India," MSI executive director (Marketing and Sales) Shashank Srivastava said in an investor call. The country's largest carmaker had commenced exporting the model from India last month.

Jimny has been in the global market for over 50 years. The current generation of the vehicle was launched in 2018 by SMC in Japan and has emerged as a popular choice globally. It was showcased at the 2020 Auto Expo at Greater Noida. The vehicle is powered by a 1.5-litre petrol engine and comes with 5-speed manual transmission and 4-speed automatic transmission options.

Jimny has been in the global market for over 50 years. The current generation of the vehicle was launched in 2018 by SMC in Japan and has emerged as a popular choice globally. It was showcased at the 2020 Auto Expo at Greater Noida. The vehicle is powered by a 1.5-litre petrol engine and comes with 5-speed manual transmission and 4-speed automatic transmission options.

View Full Image Jimny has been in the global market for over 50 years (Maruti Suzuki)

The three-door, four-wheel drive, all-terrain vehicle, Jimny is being exported to Latin America, the Middle East and African markets from India as the company's parent Suzuki Motor Corporation looks to make the country a global production hub for the model.

The company had stated that there is a large customer demand worldwide well beyond Suzuki Japan capacity for this model and Indian manufacturing will supplement capacity to meet this global demand.

Asked about the potential volumes of Jimny in the export markets, MSI executive vice-president corporate and government affairs Rahul Bharti said the company has just started the export of Jimny, and it needs to go further into time to understand how the business is and what kind of volumes it is able to get.

As of now, he said,"It is a small addition to our exports. And in our overall volume, the fraction would be even smaller. So how much it impacts? I think we still need to take some time and understand. But overall, in terms of volume percentages it is not very high."

(With inputs from agencies)

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The European Union has given Hungary a two-month deadline to change a law pushed through parliament by right-wing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government that forces nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to disclose foreign donors.

The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, sent a letter to Budapest on February 18 saying it had two months to implement changes after the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled last year that the 2017 law "introduced discriminatory and unjustified restrictions" in breach of fundamental rights, including on personal data protection and freedom of association.

The law, nominally meant to increase transparency of NGO finances and combat money laundering, requires NGOs that receive more than 7.2 million Hungarian forints ($27,000) of foreign funding annually to register as such and make the distinction public.

"The commission considers that Hungary has not taken the necessary measures to comply with the judgment, despite repeated calls from the commission to do so as a matter of urgency. As a result, the commission is asking Hungary today by letter of formal notice to take and implement all required measures to remedy the situation. Hungary has two months to reply to the concerns raised by the Commission," a notice on the EC's website said.

"The court case was part of an infringement procedure through which the commission takes on EU countries violating the bloc's laws. If Budapest fails to abide by the ruling, the commission could ask the CJEU to impose financial fines," it added.

Critics say the measure targeted Hungarian-born U.S. billionaire philanthropist George Soros, a harsh critic of Orban.

Orban has accused NGOs funded by Soros of political meddling. Soros has rejected the campaign against him as distortions and lies meant to create a false external enemy to distract Hungarians.

Because it "establishes a difference in treatment between national and cross-border movements of capital," the legislation amounts to a restriction on the free movement of capital, the CJEU said in its 2020 ruling, adding that it creates "a climate of mistrust towards the associations and foundations" targeted, and may dissuade donors.

Hungary had argued the law enhanced transparency, holding that the restrictions apply indiscriminately and not only to organizations likely to have a significant influence on public debate.

The EU has taken Hungary to court in several cases, accusing the government of muzzling the media and academics.

With reporting by Reuters and dpa
U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have spoken by phone amid reports of a strained relationship between the two countries following Netanyahus close ties to the Trump administration.

A statement released on February 17 by the Israeli leaders office said the two leaders discussed the Iranian threat as well as other issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

Netanyahu was one of the last leaders of a U.S. ally to receive a call from Biden since the U.S. presidents January 20 inauguration.

Netanyahu had close ties with Bidens predecessor, Donald Trump, who pushed what was seen as a heavily pro-Israel agenda that angered many Arab nations, along with some U.S. allies in Europe and elsewhere.

The prime minister is facing a tough fight in a legislative election scheduled for March 23. The relationship with Washington is of crucial importance to Israeli voters.

Netanyahus office was the first to announce the conversation and released a photo of a smiling prime minister holding a phone to his ear. The one-hour conversation was warm and friendly, his office said.

The two leaders noted their long-standing personal connection and said that they would work together to continue strengthening the steadfast alliance between Israel and the U.S., the statement said.

It added that topics included the Iranian threat of developing nuclear weapons, efforts to fight the coronavirus pandemic, and the desire to expand Israel's new deals establishing relations with Arab nations.

During his presidential campaign, Biden criticized Trumps decision to pull out of the landmark 2015 nuclear accord that Iran signed with world powers. Netanyahu adamantly backed Trumps move, which involved reinstating crushing sanctions on Iran, Israels main rival in the region.

Biden has publicly stated that Iran must adhere to its commitment under the 2015 deal before his administration will discuss the possibility of lifting sanctions.

Tehran, under the deal with the United States, China, Russia, Germany, France, and Britain, agreed to curbs on its uranium-enrichment program in return for the lifting of sanctions. Iran has always denied pursuing nuclear weapons, saying its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes.

Since Trump abandoned the agreement and reimposed sanctions, Tehran has gradually breached the deal's terms.

With reporting by AP and AFP
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 02:06:37|Editor: huaxia

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HELSINKI, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Finland is on high alert over the new coronavirus variants. The government has extended the restrictions on entry into Finland and has ordered the closure of bars with immediate effect especially in the capital region, which is hit hardest by the coronavirus.

On Thursday, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health (STM) said in a press release that the number of COVID-19 cases had remained at a rather high level nationwide in the past four weeks. Between 2,300 and 2,700 new infections are diagnosed weekly.

In Uusimaa, Finland's most populous region in the south, which includes the capital Helsinki, the epidemic situation has turned for the worse.

According to the STM, the incidence rate of coronavirus in the Helsinki and Uusimaa hospital districts has almost doubled in four weeks, while in almost all other hospital districts, the incidence rate has decreased.

Taneli Puumalainen, chief physician at the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), said on Thursday that residents of the Uusimaa region should not travel to other parts of Finland unless absolutely necessary.

The THL has also recommended that bars, pubs and nightclubs in the metropolitan area be closed completely as soon as possible for more than three weeks, until March 14.

According to the Ministry of the Interior's press release issued on Thursday, the government decided to extend the current restrictions on entry into the country until March 18, arguing that the coronavirus pandemic continues unabated and that sufficient measures to replace "internal border controls" are not yet available.

The term "internal border traffic" refers to the movement between Finland and other countries belonging to the border-free Schengen area. Finland currently restricts entry from all Schengen countries except Iceland.

Of particular concern to the Finnish authorities is the fast-spreading new COVID-19 variant first identified in Britain. To date, 450 cases of the new virus variants have been confirmed in Finland. Of these, 427 were cases of the variant identified in Britain.

Earlier on Thursday, local media reported that researchers had discovered a new, "unique" variant of the coronavirus in the south of Finland. The THL has yet to confirm this discovery.

At a press conference on Thursday, Puumalainen said it had to be ascertained whether a similar mutation had not been found elsewhere.

Liisa-Maria Voipio-Pulkki, director of strategy at the STM, noted at the press conference the need to act fast to identify and suppress the more contagious virus variants.

The THL said on Thursday that Finland had diagnosed 614 new COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, taking the nationwide tally to 52,209. The country reported two more deaths, raising the national death toll to 725.

As the world is struggling to contain the pandemic, vaccination is underway in Finland and other European countries with the already-authorized coronavirus vaccines.

Meanwhile, 250 candidate vaccines are still being developed worldwide -- 69 of them in clinical trials -- in countries including Germany, China, Russia, Britain and the United States, according to information released by the World Health Organization on Feb. 16. Enditem
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday that the demand of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to release Alexey Navalny was an unacceptable attempt to interfere in Russia's domestic affairs, also noting that the ECHR partiality was raising concerns

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday that the demand of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to release Alexey Navalny was an unacceptable attempt to interfere in Russia's domestic affairs, also noting that the ECHR partiality was raising concerns.

Earlier this week, the ECHR called on the Russian government to release the opposition figure, whom a court in Moscow sentenced to 3.5 years behind bars early this month, replacing a suspended sentence with a real one in the Yves Rocher fraud case. Russian Justice Minister Konstantin Chuychenko said that the demand was unenforceable a priori, since the Russian law envisions no legal grounds for the release.

"You know, Justice Minister Chuychenko actually expressed our stance yesterday. This is an illegitimate decision and a very significant attempt to interfere in Russia's domestic court processes, which we believe is unacceptable," Peskov told reporters, asked if Russia could withdraw from the ECHR in light of this demand, and if Russia had concerns regarding potential sanctions by the Council of Europe.

Russia does not seek confrontation, but is concerned over the ECHR's political prejudice, the Kremlin spokesman continued.

"We do not seek any confrontation. On the other hand, we have many questions regarding such decisions, the haste and the prejudice, which I believe is obvious," Peskov added.
Bindi Irwin is due to give birth to her first child in a matter of weeks.

And the 22-year-old conservationist revealed this week how her late father Steve Irwin had inspired her unborn daughter's nickname.

Bindi also told The Bump her dad 'would have been the best grandfather' to her child.

Candid: Bindi Irwin revealed this week how her late father Steve Irwin had inspired her unborn daughter's nickname. Pictured in her baby's nursery

Bindi said her little girl's nickname was 'Baby Wildlife Warrior', and explained: 'My dad was the first person to create the term Wildlife Warrior.'

Bindi, who will give birth around March or April, added that Steve would have been in his element as a grandfather.

'My dad would have been the best grandfather,' she said. 'I always joke that if he was still here we'd never see our baby because he'd take her on all kinds of adventures!'

How sweet: Bindi also told The Bump her dad 'would have been the best grandfather' to her child. She is pictured with Steve in an undated photo

Bindi said she was looking forward to sharing her father's legacy of conservation with her daughter when she's old enough to understand it.

Steve died in September 2006 at the age of 44 after being pierced in the chest by a stingray barb while filming a documentary in Batt Reef, Queensland.

Bindi also said her mother Terri was looking forward to becoming a grandmother and will go by the name 'Bunny' once the child arrives.

Signature: Bindi said her little girl's nickname was 'Baby Wildlife Warrior', and explained: 'My dad was the first person to create the term Wildlife Warrior.' Bindi is pictured with her parents

Thrilled: Bindi also said her mother Terri was looking forward to becoming a grandmother and will go by the name 'Bunny' once the child arrives

Bindi said she'd decorated the baby's nursery with bunnies and woodland animals to pay tribute to her mother.

The former Dancing with the Stars contestant announced her pregnancy in August.

'Baby Wildlife Warrior due 2021,' Bindi wrote on Instagram, as she and her husband Chandler Powell posed with a tiny Australia Zoo uniform.

'Chandler and I are proud to announce that we're expecting! It's an honour to share this special moment in our lives with you,' she added.

The couple married in a small ceremony at Australia Zoo in March last year.
With so much of the year ahead still clouded by lingering restrictions and doubts over travelling, youd be forgiven for wondering whether you should just write off that flagship smartphone you were planning for your big trip and those commutes back to the office. Can a mid-range (250-500) handset do the job instead?

Google Pixel 4a 5G

Price: 390

Strengths: superb cameras, lots of specifications

Weaknesses: bland physical design, no zoom lens

Summary: The Pixel 4a 5G model was a bit of a bargain at its original 490 price tag and it is a seriously good deal at its new 390 price. Its core specifications are great, mostly matching Googles more expensive (and smaller-screened) Pixel 5 and other good smartphones. It uses the same Snapdragon 765 chip, for example. It has the same 128GB of storage. And it uses exactly the same cameras as the senior Pixel phone. On this last point, I cant speak highly enough of the Pixel cameras, in general, at this price point. Google has absolutely nailed its computational photography abilities, squeezing extraordinary shots out of its main, rear 12-megapixel wide camera and the secondary 16-megapixel ultrawide lens.

It has a larger 6.2-inch display than the 6-inch screen Pixel 5 or the 5.8-inch display of the similarly-priced Pixel 4a. It also has a headphone jack, a rarity among phones and something thats missing on the Pixel 5.

Oppo Reno 4 Z

Price: 310

Strengths: most affordable 5G phone, good screen and storage

Weaknesses: so-so cameras

Summary: The most recent big-brand entrant into the Irish smartphone market has launched with an ultra-affordable 5G phone that has some pretty competitive other specifications. These include 128GB of storage, 8GB of Ram and a nice big 6.5-inch screen that has a pretty astonishing 120hz rate (usually unheard of at this pricepoint) for smooth scrolling. It also has a dual-lens front camera, but this is more for extra depth-sensing (when you try its portrait mode) than an extra ultra-wide lens.

If it has one compromise, it might be that its battery is arguably not quite up to supporting a 6.5-inch 120hz display amd it could use another 500mAh. That said, this is still a really good phone for what youre paying. Theres little doubt that 2021 will see lots of mid-range and budget 5G models, but this is one of the few in the category that does it right now.

Samsung A51

Price: 379

Strengths: best mid-range screen, nice design

Weaknesses: slightly basic cameras, moderate battery life

Summary: If you like the look of the high-end Galaxy smartphones but just cant justify the cost, Samsungs mid-range A51 is a realistic alternative at under half the price. Its biggest strength is its gorgeous, high-end 6.5-inch Amoled screen. This is easily the best display of the models reviewed here today, even if its still a slight notch below the flagship screens. It also has plenty of storage (128GB). Where youll see a compromise is in the rear cameras, which, although competent, arent up to flagship standards. Theres also no wireless charging and the casing is plastic rather than glass. The A51 has medium-grade 4,000mAh battery life which should see you through a day easily enough, but no more.

Huawei P Smart 2021

Price: 239

Strengths: great battery life, huge screen

Weaknesses: no Google Play Store

Summary: If youre looking for a bargain of a smartphone, Huaweis new P Smart 2021 ticks most (though not all) boxes. It has a nice, large, colourful 6.7-inch screen, lots (128GB) of storage, a really fast charger and a whopping 5,000mAh battery for extra long life. It also has a 3.5mm headphone jack port, which relatively few phones now include, and manages to avoid being a fingerprint magnet, despite its glossy rear casing. Its rear quad-camera camera system is pretty good, although Im not sure that two separate macro and depth lenses makes up for the absence a zoom lens. The big trade-off is that this phone, like almost all new Huawei phones, has no Google Play Store, meaning you have to get lots of your mainstream apps in a more roundabout way from the likes of Petal Search.

Apple SE

Price: 490

Strengths: most affordable iPhone

Weaknesses: less storage and smaller screen than rivals

Summary: While Apples entry-level iPhone is near the top of the mid-range budget with physical specifications that are below many of its rivals, its still popular for those who have integrated other Apple products and services into their daily or weekly routines. That includes the Apple Watch, which is (by far) the most popular smartwatch out there and is used as much for things like (limit-free) contactless payments in shops and Fitness+ or Time To Walk as it is for notifications and music. As for the phone itself, its for those who dont see a need for the latest cutting-edge specifications, with a relatively small 4.7-inch screen, medium battery life, single (though very good) rear camera and 64GB of storage (at this price point). One unforeseen advantage that it has over its pricier iPhone stablemates is a TouchID button rather than FaceID, which makes it quicker to unlock when youre wearing a mask.
The Grenfell Tower fire of June 14, 2017, which killed 72 people

June 14, 2017: A major fire broke out in Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey residential tower block in North Kensington, London which caused the deaths of 72 of the 293 people believed to be in the tower that night.

June 15: Prime Minister Theresa May announced an inquiry into the causes of the fire. In a statement to Parliament on June 22, she vowed: 'No stone will be left unturned by this Inquiry.'

June 29: Mrs May revealed that Sir Martin Moore-Bick, a retired judge, would lead the public inquiry.

PHASE ONE: The events on the night of the fire

June 4, 2018: Evidential hearings began, with the first week seeing open statements on behalf of the key organisations and the presentation of reports by key expert witnesses.

The appointed expert witnesses were:

Dr Barbara Lane, a fire safety engineer from Arup

Colin Todd, a fire safety consultant from CS Todd & Associates

Professor David Purser, from Hartford Environmental Research

Professor Edwin Galea, Professor of Mathematical Modelling at the University of Greenwich

Dr Ivan Stoianov, Senior Lecturer in Water Systems Engineering at Imperial College London

Dr J. Duncan Glover, from Failure Electrical

Professor Jose L. Torero, Director of the Center for Disaster Resilience, University of Maryland, USA

Professor Luke Bisby, Professor of Fire and Structures at the University of Edinburgh

Professor Niamh Nic Daeid, from the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification, University of Dundee

Rodney Hancox, Director, Gas Distribution Solutions

Steve McGuirk, former Chief Fire Officer of Greater Manchester, Cheshire and South Yorkshire, former President of the Chief Fire Officers Association, and former Lead Adviser to the Local Government Association

June 25 to October 2: Evidence from the firefighters and fire officers was heard.

Watch Manager Michael Dowden, the initial incident commander, admitted that he had been unsure how to respond when the fire began climbing up the side of the building.

Several firefighters reported being in life-threatening situations and experiencing trauma after being unable to rescue residents.

Other issues discussed included communications problems, the sheer amount of smoke, the stay put policy that was eventually abandoned, equipment shortages, and missing fire safety features in the building such as floor plans.

September 27: Dany Cotton, LFB's Commissioner, said the disaster was as unexpected as 'a space shuttle landing on The Shard.' She also said that 'I wouldn't change anything we did on the night.'

October 2019: PHASE ONE REPORT

Sir Martin's 1,000-page Phase One report concluded that systemic failures by LFB caused a greater number of deaths in the tower fire.

The report also found that fire chiefs' slavish adherence to the controversial 'stay put' policy prevented residents from escaping.

Its key findings included:

Cause of blaze: It started due to an electrical fault in a fridge-freezer in flat 16 on the fourth floor. Flat owner Behailu Kebede will be absolved of any blame.

More than 200 survivors and bereaved families are suing Whirlpool, which supplied the Hotpoint model in the flat.

Brigade training: The LFB's preparation and planning for such a fire was 'gravely inadequate'. Experienced incident commanders had 'no training' on the dangers of combustible cladding or on how to evacuate a high-rise block.

At the scene: Firefighters displayed 'extraordinary bravery' but incident commanders failed to recognise that a full evacuation may have been necessary.

If the decision to evacuate had been made it would have 'resulted in fewer fatalities'. Crucial information was not shared by senior officers.

Control room: There were 'shortcomings in practice, policy and training'. Call handlers did not always obtain the necessary information and were unaware of when to tell residents to evacuate.

Commissioner: The report criticised the LFB's commissioner for her 'remarkable insensitivity' after she told a hearing in September 2018 she would change nothing about its response to the fire.

Inferno's spread: The 'principle reason' that the flames spread so quickly up the tower block was due to the rain screen panels which 'acted as a source of fuel'.

The insulation boards behind the cladding panels also accelerated the fire's spread. These features were added during a refurbishment several months before the fire.

Building design: The failures of the building's safety design were 'rapid'. Many lobbies filled with fire 26 minutes after it started.

But Sir Martin said stairs were 'not absolutely impassable' over an hour into it.

Regulations: The tower's external walls failed to comply with building regulations. There is 'compelling evidence' the walls did not 'accurately resist the spread of fire' but 'actively promoted it'.

December 6: Dany Cotton announced her early retirement effective from December 31 after 32 years of service.

PHASE TWO: The circumstances and causes of the fire

January 28, 2020: The second phase of the inquiry opened with statements from lawyers for:

Studio E, the architects of the 2015-16 refurbishment

Rydon and Harley Facades, the buildings

Celotex, who had made the combustible insulation

Arconic, who had supplied the ACM panels

Lawyers for Rydon introduced emails that showed that Celotex knew that their combustible insulation product was not safe to use with ACM panels as a suitable fire barrier was not available.

They also produced internal emails from Arconic from 2011 showing that the fire-rating of their Reynobond PE (polyester filled) panels had dropped to class E from class B and so were 'unsuitable for use on building facades' in Europe.

The combustible cladding panels made by Arconic, which contained the flammable polyethylene core, were chosen as part of an attempt to cut 454,000 from the budget.

The architect, builders and fire engineer who worked on the refurbishment knew the cladding system would fail in the event of a fire more than two years before the blaze, in conditions where the fire flamed through windows.

The lawyers for Celotex introduced an email thread where Daniel Anketell-Jones of Rydon discusses the need for a fire stop in the cavity and this was copied and discussed by the other organisations involved.

After the companies' opening statements were read, Richard Millett criticised them for failing to admit any mistakes.

February 6: The chairman ruled that the inquiry should be suspended until at least February 24 to allow Attorney General Geoffrey Cox time after witnesses involved in the tower's refurbishment asked for confirmation that any evidence given will not be used against them in any criminal proceedings that might take place.

March 3: The inquiry resumed, with evidence from Studio E. Studio E associate Bruce Sounes explained he had 'no knowledge' of rapid fire spread and had not read regulatory guidance about how to the design cavity barriers that were intended to stop fire spread and which failed at Grenfell. He had also not heard of Lakanal, or that aluminum cladding could burn.

An email was produced from Kate Cooney of Exona, four years before the project was signed off, suggesting that they had concerns about the safety of the (FF/MoE) Means of Escape shaft.

March 9: Neil Crawford, the lead architect for Studio E, revealed that Studio E had been on the point of terminating Exona in 2012 for failing to adequately scrutinise early proposals, and that a promised report on the safety of the revised cladding never arrived.

March 16: Following Prime Minister Boris Johnson's statement on the coronavirus pandemic, the panel decided on the same day to suspend hearings.

July 6: Phase Two resumed. The inquiry heard claims that during the planning process Simon Lawrence, a key executive of Rydon, failed to respond to concerns that the cladding might be dangerous and that it could lead to a repeat of the Lakanal House tower fire in South London in 2009 which caused the death of six people.

Project emails show that Rydon, Exova, and the architects Studio E discussed the fire safety of the cladding before its installation, including warnings it might fail.

Tony Pearson, of Exova, told the architects: 'If significant flames are ejected from the windows, this would lead to failure of the cladding system, with the external surface falling away and exposing the cavity.'

The inquiry was told that in November 2014, an official at KCTMO asked Simon Lawrence to clarify the 'fire retardance of the new cladding' but that Lawrence did not respond.

The inquiry also heard that Studio E manipulated its fees to avoid the contract being put out to open tender.

July 13: Building Consent was explored. RBKC were adamant that the new wall structure must include fire stopping barriers with a two-hour rating. However, Studio E architects found this unnecessary claiming the job was done by the cavity barriers.

July 20: Simon Lawrence, an executive of Rydon, the principal contractor, explained he knew that RBKC was attempting to save 800,000 on the job and to win the contract offered to save 293,368 by switching from the originally specified zinc cladding to the plastic-filled aluminium panels.

The bid was accepted and Mr Lawrence was not aware of the increased danger and hadn't researched it.

July 21: David Gibson, head of capital investment from KCTMO [the landlord] recalled raising the panel safety issue with Mr Lawrence who said the plastic-filled panels were inert. MR Lawrence denies having said so.

July 22: The enquiry began to examine the contractors onsite behaviour. It heard that the contractors referred to the residents who criticised their workmanship as rebels and aggressive rebels. There were also claims that the residents had threatened the contractors, who were using inappropriate behaviour and language on site.

September 21: Evidence was given by the project manager Ben Bailey, the son of the owner of Harley, who were sub-contracting for Rydon.

He was not aware that changing materials for the project required consent from Rydon which had not been obtained. He also said the only assessment of its performance that he saw was of its thermal insulation, not its fire performance - and he was not aware that it was his job to check that.

Mr Bailey said that had no training in understanding building regulations or in keeping up-to-date with industry codes of practice for the design and installation of cladding and windows. He said it was never his role to be considering the fire performance of the materials.

September 29: John Hoban, senior building control surveyor at the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC), reported councillors had signed off substantial cuts to the building control department. It was 'swamped' with work as austerity-driven cuts slashed the staff numbers. The key surveyor was left managing handling 130 projects.

The council-owned tenant management organisation, the architect, main contractor and cladding contractor assumed the council's building control department was ensuring that refurbishment did comply with the building regulations.

Mr Hoban had received no training or technical industry guidance and said reading professional magazines was considered as their continuing professional development. He had also not read the document about the fire performance of external thermal insulation for walls of multistorey buildings known as BR135.

It detailed a 1999 cladding fire in Garnock Court in Irvine, Scotland, and explained with pictures the rapid fire spread through cladding, and he was not aware of the guidance differentiating between non-combustible panels made from materials such as cement and combustible panels, including aluminium panels which may melt and create molten debris.

Mr Hoban identified two problems that afflicted his department and had led to the fire safety aspects of the cladding being missed. These were the austerity cuts between 2013 and 2017, that had lead to 10 experienced officers being replaced by one graduate trainee, and the stripping back of building regulations and enforcement bylaws together with a weaker building act.

October 6: The owners of the block, RBKC, had delegated all responsibility for maintenance to the TMO, the landlord, and deny any responsibility for the disaster.

October 16: The first contractor appointed reported that it couldn't do the job for the amount tendered and it was to require a further 1.5million. The second contractor appointed was Rydon. Rydon's refurbishment manager, Stephen Blake, and Peter Maddison, the TMO's director of assets, had a longstanding professional relationship.

At an un-minuted meeting in March 2014, TMO and Rydon agreed how a further 800,000 could be shaved off a contract awarded to Rydon - this could be contrary to EU tendering law, being named value engineering. Rydon was given the contract.

October 26: Mr Maddison explained he was not aware that the panels were flammable. A further 50 per cent reduction had been extracted from the manufacturer, and Rydon had reduced its price by a further 800 000.

November 4: The inquiry started to examine the manufacturing, safety, testing and marketing of the cladding products. Barristers for the victims, in their opening statements repeated the charges that:

Arconic, which made the cladding sheets that were the main cause of the fire's spread, obtained a certificate for its plastic-filled panels on 'a false premise' by supplying test reports for a more fire-retardant version of the product.

Celotex, which made the bulk of the combustible foam insulation used, displayed a 'widespread culture  of ignoring compliance', which included distorting a full-scale fire test of its materials. A former Celotex manager who had been involved agreed that the company's actions were 'deliberately misleading and dishonest', saying he had been made to 'lie for commercial gain' with the approval of Celotex's senior executives.

Kingspan, which made the rest of the insulation, carried out tests that involved either 'concealing components in a manner designed to facilitate a pass and/or using materials that were not as described in the test reports'.

It was claimed by the barristers that the companies viewed the safety certificates as marketing tools and of little other importance.

Evidence was produced that the three manufacturers were aware of the deficiency of their product and worried about preventing these facts damaging their marketing and sales.

November 11: It was revealed in a conflict of interest statement that the Ministry of Housing awarded a 600,000 research grant to a consortium whose members include a fire testing specialist Eric Guillaume, whose research was funded by Kingspan, and Jose Torero, a fire engineer who has publicly opposed outright bans on combustible materials, subsequent to the tower fire.

November 16: Jonathan Roper, a former assistant product manager for Celotex, who worked on two fire tests of the foam panels and the subsequent sales plans, said the company behaved in a 'completely unethical' way. When the first test failed, they re-tested inserting additional fire retardant panels.

A senior technician, Ivor Meredith, responsible for safety tests on combustible insulation used on Grenfell Tower, had 'a serious drug habit' and fell asleep at work, the inquiry heard.

November 30: The inquiry learned that Kingspan director Philip Heath had said, in 2008, that consultants who raised concerns about the combustibility of its product could 'go f**k themselves', and that they were 'getting me confused with someone who gives a dam [sic]'.

December 8: The inquiry saw evidence that in November 2016, Kingspan technical staff had acknowledged internally that Kingspan was selling its Kooltherm K15 foam insulation product as less flammable than it really was.

A version of K15 had correctly tested safe in 2005, but Kingspan had changed the formula for a more flammable foam; marketing it on the old safety certificate. Kooltherm K15 was present in the cladding that caught fire.

December 9: The inquiry learned that after the Grenfell fire, Kingspan had invested in a smear campaign against rival companies' products. The campaign involved secretly using non-standard test rigs to artificially create the appearance that non-flammable rival products might in fact be flammable, and hiring lobbyists to push the results before the Ministry of Housing and other MPs.

December 14: Grenfell United delivered a letter appealing to the French Ambassador, Catherine Colonna, to exert moral pressure on three key witnesses from Arconic who refused to testify.

February 9, 2021: Debbie French, a former sales executive at Arconic who had sold the panels to Grenfell, explained that Arconic also sold a fire retardant version of the panel - but the default version of the panel, which was cheaper, was highly flammable.

February 17: Claude Schmidt, Arconic's president, spoke of the two versions of the Reynobond PE panel, the rivetted version and the cassette version, and that the regulatory document issued by the British Board of Agrement (BBA) in 2008 did not distinguish between the two types of Reynobond panel.

Under cross-examination, Mr Schmidt confirmed that Arconics should have informed the BBA about the test.
President Joe Biden pauses to speak with reporters as he walks to Marine One for departure from the South Lawn of the White House in Washington on Feb. 12, 2021. (Alex Brandon/AP Photo)

Biden Speaks to Israeli Prime Minister for First Time Since Taking Office

President Joe Biden on Wednesday spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, marking the first time the two leaders conversed since Biden took office last month.

During the phone call, Biden affirmed his commitment to Israels security and expressed a desire to strengthen all aspects of the U.S.-Israel partnership, including defense cooperation, the White House said in a statement.

The two leaders also discussed security issues posed by Iran, the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians, as well as the United Statess continued support for peace agreements to normalize relations between Israel and Arab nations, in what is commonly referred to as the Abraham Accords. This agreement, which was brokered by former President Donald Trump, serves to establish new cooperation and normalization between the United States, Israel, and Arab countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sudan, and Morocco.

Together, they affirmed their shared interest in continued strategic cooperation to confront the many challenges facing the region, the statement said.

While speaking to reporters at the oval office on Wednesday, Biden called the phone call a good conversation.

Meanwhile, Netanyahus office said the conversation went for about an hour and was very warm and friendly.

The two leaders noted their longstanding personal connection and said that they would work together to continue strengthening the steadfast alliance between Israel and the US, a statement from Netanyahus office said.

That statement also revealed that the two leaders also spoke about combating the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus pandemic, where Biden commended Netanyahu on his leadership against the virus, which causes the disease COVID-19.

The White House has repeatedly fielded questions in the last few weeks about their decision to leave out Netanyahu in Bidens first round of calls to allies.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki on Tuesday affirmed that Israel is an ally while adding that members of the Biden administration have already spoken with counterparts in Israel. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in January spoke with his Israeli counterpart Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi in January. Meanwhile, the White House said national security adviser Jake Sullivan spoke with his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben Shabbat also in January.

Israel is, of course, an ally. Israel is a country where we have an important strategic security relationship. And our team is fully engagednot at the head-of-state, yet, level quite yet, but very soon. But our team is fully engaged, having constant conversations at many levels with the Israelis, Psaki said.
A 2001 pamphlet by Mrs. Glen Carson Henry titled McDonald & Environs published by the Bradley County Historical Society in Cleveland, Tn., gives a history of the McDonald area's early hotels.

From around the 1880s to about 1933 there were six hotels and resorts that were erected to take advantage of the mineral spring water prevalent in McDonald.

The area became well known for its summer resort hotels, springs and cabins and it was claimed that there are more springs in Bradley County than any other East Tennessee county.

Baugh Springs, Mineral Springs, Powder Springs, Lauderback Springs and Tucker Springs were all widely visited resorts and each has its own unique history.

These areas became popular summer vacation spots and were available to accommodate the citizens to get out of the city and enjoy the fresh country air and fine spring water for both recreational and medicinal purposes.

Each of the five springs contained a wide variety of minerals which resulted in them being used for the treatment of different ailments.

A map prepared by Ed Townsend in March 1997, which is included in Mrs.

Glen Carson Henrys book, lists the location of the six hotels on pages 44 and 45.

Baugh Springs was located about five miles northwest of the McDonald community in the extreme western part of Bradley County at the base of White Oak Mountain. There were two springs and it had rental cabins instead of a hotel.

The springs contained iron, arsenic, magnesium sulfur and other minerals.

It was popular with health seekers from Tennessee and other states.

The meaning of the springs had some mystique about it as to original owner Michael Baugh, who was murdered by three individuals while he was serving as Justice of the Peace. They were convicted and hung in Bradley County.

The 1957 movie Wild River included some scenes filmed at Baugh Springs and featured Montgomery Clift and actress Lee Remick.

As recently as 1997 one of the small rental cabins remained in a decaying state along the creek bank although the spring had been covered by trees that had been blown over.

Lauderback Springs Hotel - located at an elevation of 1,100 feet - was near three springs that produced chalybeate (made of iron) waters.

In 1905 the Lauderback Springs Hotel was built on a spur on top of White Oak Mountain three miles southwest of McDonald.

It was a two-story building with 29 rooms, a basement and wrap around porches but no electricity.

Several different springs bubbled up and contained a variety of minerals, while one poured forth cool water with no ingredients.

On one occasion a murder trial was held by Chattanooga Judge Sam McReynolds whose wife was staying at the hotel because of her health. It was held in the hotel living room.

Hotel visitors came by train from Chattanooga to the McDonald depot. Because of the steep elevation they were met by a horse-drawn surrey that carried them to and from the hotel.

The hotel operated until 1942-1943 and was a popular location with delicious family-style menus and weekly square dances. For years Lauderback Springs was the central gathering place for the young people of the McDonald area, especially on Sunday afternoons.

The hotel burned on Friday night, July 29, 1960.

Mineral Springs Inn was located three miles west of McDonald on U.S. Highway 11 (Lee Highway and 18 miles east of Chattanooga on what was the Southern Railroad line.

The hotel was built around 1910, had 23 rooms and cabins and a dome pavilion.

It was open year around and its main amenity was its location next to the railroad line.

There were more than 40 springs in the complex and an investigation and analysis revealed that there was a greater variety of mineral substances in the springs than were found in any other site in the United States.

From 1910 to 1912 Mineral Park was the site of the encampment of the Ocoee Baptist Association and attracted over 500 members to its meetings.

Due to the popularity and success of the various spring resorts in Bradley there was a major expansion with the sale of lots.

As business declined, Mineral Park Springs was sold through an auction of property which consisted of the hotel, springs, 10 cabins and adjoining property that included 60 acres of lots. The total parcel of 99 acres sold for slightly more than $12,000.

Many plans were considered to renovate and develop the springs but the era of the hotel came to an end on March 2, 1933, when the facility burned.

Although grown up in weeds, it was reported in 1947 that the springs were still open.

However, in another alleged sign of progress, in 1982 a bulldozer covered up the springs while preparing a utility line.

Powder Springs was located about 10 miles of Tucker Springs and continued mineral water containing chiefly iron, which was thought to be good for stomach trouble.

It was not heavily developed and consisted primarily of log cabins situated about three-fourths of a mile in dense woodland.

Two large rustic two-story cabins were located about two and a half miles east of McDonald across Bryer Creek. It was alleged Bryer was a deep creek and was enjoyed for swimming.

Popular as a resort in the 1920s, it later became a popular camping area for Boy Scouts.

Tucker Springs was occupied by Cherokee Indians in 1837. The Tucker Springs Hotel was allegedly built sometime after the Civil War and it and the springs were named after the great-grandmother, Polly Hagler Tucker, of the Summerfield Johnson family that today owns the large Bendabout Farms.

The Tucker Hotel opened in June 1887 near the two springs on the property to accommodate the public. One was a chalybeate spring and the other was freestone.

The two-story hotel was built on a hill just east of the springs. There were also a number of cabins that were privately owned nearby.

It was a popular locale and enjoyed a brisk business that resulted in a three-story hotel opening in June 1891.

Grand balls were held and the hotel expanded services.

The hotel company was also concerned about the educational and spiritual interests as well as the physical well-being of its patrons.

Elaborate plans were proposed, and some came into being while others did not.

There were a few unfavorable events in the history of the hotel. In 1893 several policemen were arrested for misbehaving and in 1897 three Negro men were arrested for breaking into the hotel and stealing jewelry items.

A post office designated as Tucker in 1892 was renamed Tucker Springs in October 1903.

A railroad depot had been established around the turn of the century by the Southern Railroad but was removed around the 1920s though trains continued to run.

Perhaps the largest event at the hotel was on June 11, 1896 when over 8,000 members of the Chattanooga Grocers travelled by train to the area and had their annual picnic.

Unfortunately, the area had its share of shady dealings. In the Prohibition Era in 1924 and 1925 some of the five-gallon milk containers sent to Chattanooga by rail were filled with four gallons of illegal whiskey.

Eventually the property was sold to a black ministers association around 1921 but they were unable to pay for the facility and it lay idle until 1939 until it was purchased by Summerfield Johnson. Thus it returned to the original family. It has been preserved and maintained as a model showplace.

Each of the five springs described herein are part of the rich historical fabric of Bradley and Hamilton counties.

* * *

Jerry Summers



(If you have additional information about one of Mr. Summers' articles or have suggestions or ideas about a future Chattanooga area historical piece, please contact Mr. Summers at jsummers@summersfirm.com)
Credit: Shutterstock

Citizen science is ripe with benefits. Programs can involve hundreds, sometimes thousands, of volunteers who collect reliable, long-term and geographically widespread data. These people donate their time for a cause (or just for fun).

For biodiversity conservation, these kinds of data are invaluable to enable important large-scale projects, from assessing wildlife recovery after bushfires to shedding light on how warming oceans threaten fish.

But we've found the benefits of citizen science extend well beyond data collection.

In a new research paper, we show how our environmental citizen science program TurtleSAT is not only an important source of knowledge and skill development, but also influences participants' attitudes and behaviors towards the environment.



Saving the turtles

TurtleSAT has so far engaged more than 1,600 volunteers who collect observations of freshwater turtles. Almost 10,000 sightings have been registered since it launched in 2014. The data will ultimately help turtle conservation and management across the country.

Turtles live in most freshwater habitats across mainland Australia, from wetlands to rivers, and are a vital component of the ecosystem. For example, in previous research, we revealed turtle scavenging can remove fish carcasses from the water five times faster than natural decomposition, dramatically improving water quality.

A large freshwater turtle in Queensland. Citizen scientists throughout the country are learning to record turtle sightings and stopping turtles dying on roads or from predators. Credit: TurtleSAT

But turtle numbers have been in steep decline since the 1970s, mainly due to fox predation, road collisions, diseases and poor water quality.

The benefits of the TurtleSAT app to scientists have been clear from the start. Most recorded turtle sightings (alive and dead) have involved turtles crossing roads and nests that are either intact or have been destroyed by foxes.

This has allowed researchers and communities to identify road death and nesting hotspotsand then do something about it.

Creating environmental stewards

However, the benefits to participants were less clear. So, we surveyed them to gauge any changes in behavior or attitudes since they got involved.

Of the 148 participants who responded, most (70%) said they've learned more about turtles and feel like they're helping them by participating. After one of our school workshops, for example, a parent told us she didn't know turtles could live outside the ocean until her daughter began participating in TurtleSAT.

After learning about the turtle population decline, 39% of respondents started restoring habitats, 35% protected nests and 30% implemented pest management mechanisms, such as fox control and predator exclusion fences.

A citizen scientist removing a freshwater turtle from a road in Victoria. TurtleSAT users are trained to safely remove turtles from roads before theyre hit. Credit: TurtleSAT

Importantly, 70% of respondents said participating in the program made them more worried about turtles than they were before.

These findings show how a mostly self-directed project can provide benefits to citizen scientists, while also providing a platform for them to contribute to the conservation of animals they love.

Local issues motivate action

Citizen science programs link the fields of science and the humanities to create an educated and informed public that knows how to solve problems and, most importantly, care enough to do so.

One reason many people aren't motivated to address climate change and other global issues is the effects are relatively distant from their day-to-day living.

Most people aren't forced to confront the specifics of climate change (such as extreme weather disasters) in their everyday lives, and so can treat it as an abstract concept. Simply put, this doesn't motivate people to act.

Citizen science programs, however, can show how climate change does actually affect participants. They become equipped with the information and tools to make significant positive changes to their local area and, most importantly, see direct outcomes.

Major weather events such as bushfires often occur away from populated areas, and so can feel like a distant issue to many people. Credit: Shutterstock

For example, when citizen scientists spot migratory birds in their neighborhood, it can help researchers develop long-term databases to evaluate whether changes in migration timing can be attributed to average spring temperature changes.

Likewise, we're monitoring the timing of turtle nesting with TurtleSAT, as many turtles in eastern Australia are cued to nest in late spring. Similar research found Loggerhead sea turtles were nesting earlier due to warmer ocean temperatures.

This knowledge wouldn't have been possible without long-term citizen science data.

Local action, global significance

Making a difference at a local level can even address global issues, such as extinction risks. Citizen science may now re-define the phrase "think global, act local" to "think local, act local, network global."

The I Spy a Wollemi Pine survey, for example, encourages people from all around the world to log sightings of Wollemi pine. These trees are cultivated in many countries, but fewer than 1,000 remain in the wild.

The simple act of paying attention to nearby trees means scientists can learn what environments the Wollemi pine can tolerate, and better protect it from extinction.

Most recorded turtle sightings on TurtleSAT have involved turtles crossing roads. Credit: Shutterstock

Joining in is easy

Technology advances have largely driven the explosion of citizen science projects over the last decade. Most people have a computer, camera and GPS in their pockets when they carry their smartphone, so taking part in a citizen science project has never been easier.

If you're interested in joining a project, you can jump on board one that's already established, or even develop your own for a common environmental issue in your local area.

You can search for citizen science programs through the Australian Citizen Science Project Finder. To help you get started, check out:

WomSAT: if you have a passion for wombats and are concerned about road mortality and disease (such as mange)

Frog ID: a fantastic app where you can record frogs croaking in the night and an expert will identify the species for you

Sea Slug Census: snorkelers and divers can upload photos and discuss the identities of some of these weird and wonderful creatures

1MillionTurtles: thanks to the success of TurtleSAT, we're launching a community conservation program where people can actively help restore declining turtle populations.

Explore further Citizen scientists sought to help save turtles from extinction

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Police in Franklin County, Kentucky, are searching for a woman who left nine puppies outside an animal rescue facility last weekend in frigid temperatures.

The puppies were left on the porch of LIFE House for Animals in Frankfort around 10:30 p.m. Saturday, according to the Franklin County Sheriffs Office. When they were discovered at 7:30 a.m. the next day, five had frozen to death.

The basket containing the newborn puppies had a blanket inside, but no other protection from the cold weather, according to the sheriffs office.

Frankfort saw a high temperature of just 28 degrees on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

The remaining puppies were taken by volunteers to Ohio and united with a female dog who was able to nourish them, the sheriffs department wrote in a Facebook post. At this time they continue to be cared for by volunteers.

Police say the unidentified woman who left the puppies outside of the facility faces animal cruelty charges.

Anyone with information related to identifying the woman is asked to contact the sheriffs office at 502-320-3306.

Domesticated animals must be provided with adequate shelter, food and water, the officials said. You must take into account the severity of the weather and provide shelter that will protect the animal from the elements; such as wind, rain, heat, cold or otherwise.

Kentucky storm updates: Snow totals up to 6 inches. New snow recoats Lexington roads

Struggling along. Kentucky county deals with widespread power outages, frigid cold.

Carbon monoxide from generator kills 1, hospitalizes 2 after Laurel County outage

New winter storm warning for much of Kentucky; Boyd County woman dies of hypothermia
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Homegrown Twitter-like platform Koo has garnered over 10 lakh new users in just one week, surpassing the 40 lakh-figure in nearly 10 months of its arrival, as Twitter was caught in crosshairs with the Indian government over its direction to remove nearly 1,400 controversial accounts.

Koo, a favourite among several Union ministers, including IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad who is at the forefront of the government's war with Twitter, has reached 4.2 million users within no time.

According to data analytics platform Statista, as of January 2021, the micro-blogging platform Twitter had an audience reach of 69.3 million users in the US.

Japan and India were ranked second and third with 50.9 and 17.5 million users, respectively.

The fast-growing vernacular platform Koo describes itself as a personal updates and opinion sharing micro-blogging service.

The app won the Atmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge held in August last year and Prime Minister Narendra Modi encouraged Indians to use the Koo app in his 'Mann Ki Baat' speech too.

However, Koo also found itself in the midst of several controversies including a data leak row and Chinese investment.

Koo Co-founder and CEO Aprameya Radhakrishna denied that there was any data leak.

"Koo is an India registered company with Indian founders. Raised earlier capital 2.5 years ago. Latest funds for Bombinate Technologies is led by a truly Indian investor 3one4 capital. Shunwei (single digit shareholder) which had invested in our Vokal journey will be exiting fully," Radhakrishna said in an earlier investment.

Koo has raised $4.1 million as part of its Series A funding.

Infosys veteran Mohandas Pai's 3one4 Capital is the latest addition to the investors on board, according to the company, and Accel Partners, Kalaari Capital, Blume Ventures and Dream Incubator also participated in the round.

"We have got more love than we expected. Our systems are facing more load than ever. Thank you for placing your trust in us. Our team is working on overdrive to fix it. We request your patience and support through this time. Let's do this together," Radhakrishna had said.
Histopathology of gastrocnemius muscle from patient who died of pseudohypertrophic muscular dystrophy, Duchenne type. Cross section of muscle shows extensive replacement of muscle fibers by adipose cells. Credit: Public Domain

New research gives hope medics might eventually be able to earlier diagnose and better treat a devastating and lethal muscle wasting disease.

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is caused by a genetic mutation and affects one in every 5,000 boys born. Because the affected gene is on the X chromosome, girls can develop the disease, but only very rarely (1 in about 50 million).

Children with the condition will need a wheelchair by their teenage years, and most will die in or before they reach their 30s.

Now, for the first time, researchers have found evidence of disease early origins, which could lead to better and more accurately targeted treatments to slow its progress down. They modeled the disease to look at its development, from its initial trigger and first manifestation.

The study is co-authored by leading expert in Duchenne muscular dystrophy Professor Darek Gorecki, at the University of Portsmouth and a team of French scientists from I-STEM (INSERM UMR861, AFM-Telethon) in France.

It is published in the Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle.

Previously, it was widely believed Duchenne muscular dystrophy starts in myofibrescells involved in contraction making up the bulk of any muscle.

Therefore, research for a treatment in this disease has long been focused on myofibres and how to deliver therapeutics to them.

But this new work has found it begins much earlier, in developing cells destined to become muscle cells.

Professor Gorecki said: "To diagnose this rare but devastating disease earlier might give clinicians and research scientists a window in which to help slow its progress.

"Most of the boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy are diagnosed between the two and five years old by which time the damage to their bodies is already significant. This delay in identifying the condition may be preventing therapeutic interventions that could help slow disease progression."

The researchers found In Duchenne muscular dystrophy there are a range of abnormalities in myogenic cellsthese cells do not have a role in muscle contraction, like myofibres, but are critically important for normal muscle growth but also regeneration in a disease.

Professor Gorecki said: "The current canon on the origins of Duchenne appears incorrect and lots of the effort spent looking for ways to ease or slow its progression has unfortunately come to naught, it appears because we've been looking at the right cell but at the wrong time.

"The reason this matters is that if these myogenic cells malfunction, damaged muscle could not be repaired. And any repaired myofiber will eventually need to be replaced, which will not happen without myogenic cells."

If rather than looking at myofibres, scientists knew to focus their attention on myogenic cells, there is a better chance treatments could be designed, which would correct these errors in myogenic cells and this will eventually lead to healthy myofibers and therefore produce better therapeutic results.

Professor Gorecki said: "Perhaps it is time to consider restarting the Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Newborn Screening program? The sooner the biomarkers of this disease can be spotted, the better, both for understanding the disease and for the opportunity to develop and apply treatments to try and mitigate its effects."

Explore further Early promise for therapy against Duchenne muscular dystrophy

More information: Virginie Mournetas et al. Myogenesis modelled by human pluripotent stem cells: a multiomic study of Duchenne myopathy early onset, Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle (2021). Virginie Mournetas et al. Myogenesis modelled by human pluripotent stem cells: a multiomic study of Duchenne myopathy early onset,(2021). DOI: 10.1002/jcsm.12665
Ken Branca

Harsh winter weather contributed to San Antonio police responding to more than double their usual amount of calls on Tuesday, the department confirmed.

Yesterday, officers responded to 6,807 calls for service compared to their usual average of 3,196 call for service on Tuesdays, said SAPD Sgt. Matthew Brown. He said their increase in calls were weather-related with accidents, hazardous roadways and stranded motorists.
Despite the fact that the yield on the benchmark bonds of Mexicos Pemex is so high that it would typically mean a company is on its way to default, investors are buying bonds of the state-owned oil firm, certain that the government will not leave one of its most important assets to default on its bonds.

Asset managers who hold Pemex bonds are confident that despite the continuous worsening of the oil firms finances, the government, especially the government of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, will never allow the firm to default, the managers told Bloomberg this week.

Lopez Obrador, a leftist populist, came to power with the promise to increase state support for Pemex and make the state-run major the pillar of a turnaround for the countrys declining oil production.

Pemexa heavily indebted companyrelies on issuing bonds to finance and refinance its maturities, and the financial situation at the Mexican state oil firm has further deteriorated since oil prices crashed in March last year.

Despite mounting debts and declining crude production, Pemex is focused on a US$8-billion refinery, Dos Bocas, planned for Lopez Obradors home state of Tabasco. The planned refinery was a key campaign pledge of the president to reduce Mexicos reliance on fuel and refined product imports, most of which come from the United States.

This particular administration and this particular president has been a longstanding supporter and a champion of the nationalization of the oil and gas industry in Mexico, Pramol Dhawan, responsible for emerging markets at Pimco, a large holder of Pemex debt, told Bloomberg, noting that it is very unlikely the government would let Pemex default on its bonds.

The Mexican government is mulling over additional tax relief measures for Pemex to help it reduce the biggest debt load in the global oil industry, deputy finance minister Gabriel Yorio said at the end of last year.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
USITC headquarters in Washington D.C. /Yonhap



By Kim Yoo-chul



U.S. President Joe Biden is expected to review a final ruling by the United States International Trade Commission (USITC) in favor of LG Energy Solution (LGES) in a multi-billion dollar battle with Korean rival SK Innovation (SKI) over the alleged misappropriation of intellectual property on electric vehicle (EV) batteries.



The USITC imposed the full 10-year ban requested by LGES on SKI. But the commission also granted SKI a "grace period" to supply batteries to Ford for four years and to Volkswagen for two years. That ruling will take effect if the U.S. president formally accepts the commission's ruling.



But two factors seem to be at play affecting Biden's ultimate decision.



He could veto the ruling if administration officials believe it could hurt the best interests of American consumers. But the U.S. president could also accept the ruling to set a precedent supporting his hardline stance on China's alleged intellectual property abuses.



Given the USITC's decision to allow SKI to sell its products for "certain periods," the prospect of Biden accepting the commission's final ruling seems to be more likely, according to observers.



"Biden is better known as a strong opponent of [U.S. President Donald] Trump's trade policies. However, considering Biden's repeated focus on protecting intellectual property, the Biden administration is widely expected to continue its hardline stance against China's alleged abuses, while asking Washington's allies to join this agenda," a patent expert in Seoul said by telephone.



From that standpoint, the LGES-SKI battle is becoming complicated, as it involves "political issues" between Beijing and Washington rather than being a dispute between two companies. Trump failed to see progress toward a "Phase Two Agreement." But Biden's focus on the importance of intellectual property is unlikely to change during the next round of trade talks between the world's two economic powerhouses.



There have been two cases in which U.S. presidents intervened in conflicts between private firms: Samsung Electronics' victory against Apple, back in 2013, when the Korean tech giant clinched a "patent-infringement victory" over Apple, and another Samsung case in 1987 when then U.S. President Ronald Reagan vetoed a ruling involving Samsung's DRAM chips, which could have disrupted the entire PC market. The rationale behind those decisions was based on the belief that the rulings would hurt the "public interest."



But the landscape has changed due to the U.S.-China trade dispute initiated by former U.S. President Donald Trump, who said China's intellectual property violations had a significant impact on U.S. companies. The Washington-Beijing "Phase One Trade Agreement" signed in January of last year covered some intellectual property issues, including the "normalization of China's systems for ntellectual property and its enforcement."



Plus, a recent report released by the Congressional Research Service said China's failure to protect and enforce intellectual property rights is "harming U.S. IP rights holders."



SKI has the option of bringing the issue to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. But both LGES and SKI are Korea's top-tier manufacturing companies which are aggressively foraying into the highlylucrative and promising EV business. As a result, patent experts said a compromise would be a mutually acceptable solution.



Both SKI and LGES are contributing a lot to the regional economies of the U.S. SKI is investing billions of dollars into EV plants in the U.S. state of Georgia, some of which are under construction, while LGES has been operating EV plants in the U.S. states of Michigan and Ohio with the U.S. government providing various tax and administrative incentives.



SKI said it would begin discussions with LGES for a possible settlement before and after the presidential assessment interval; while LGES also said it does not want to see the dispute escalating into the "worst-case scenario."


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A laboratory study released on Wednesday suggests that the South African variant of Covid-19 may reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer-BioNTech SE coronavirus vaccine by two-thirds, and it is not clear if the shot will be effective against the mutation, the companies said.

However, the companies expect their Covid-19 vaccine will still work against the variant.

The study found the vaccine was still able to neutralise the killer virus and there is not yet evidence from trials in people that the variant reduces vaccine protection, the firms stated.

Still, they are making investments and talking to regulators about developing an updated version of their mRNA vaccine or a booster shot, if needed.

For the study, scientists from the companies and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) developed an engineered virus that contained the same mutations carried on the spike portion of the highly contagious coronavirus variant first discovered in South Africa, known as B.1.351. The spike, used by the virus to enter human cells, is the primary target of many Covid-19 vaccines.

Researchers tested the engineered virus against blood taken from people who had been given the vaccine, and found a two- thirds reduction in the level of neutralizing antibodies compared with its effect on the most common version of the virus prevalent in US trials.

Their findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

Because there is no established benchmark yet to determine what level of antibodies are needed to protect against the virus, it is unclear whether that two-thirds reduction will render the vaccine ineffective against the variant spreading around the world.

However, UTMB professor and study co-author Pei-Yong Shi said he believes the Pfizer vaccine will likely be protective against the variant.

"We don't know what the minimum neutralizing number is. We don't have that cutoff line," he said, adding that he suspects the immune response observed is likely to be significantly above where it needs to be to provide protection.

That is because in clinical trials, both the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and a similar shot from Moderna Inc conferred some protection after a single dose with an antibody response lower than the reduced levels caused by the South African variant in the laboratory study.

Even if the concerning variant significantly reduces effectiveness, the vaccine should still help protect against severe disease and death, he noted. Health experts have said that is the most important factor in keeping stretched healthcare systems from becoming overwhelmed.

More work is needed to understand whether the vaccine works against the South African variant, Shi said, including clinical trials and the development of correlates of protection - the benchmarks to determine what antibody levels are protective.

Pfizer and BioNTech said they were doing similar lab work to understand whether their vaccine is effective against another variant first found in Brazil.

Meanwhile, Pfizer and BioNTech said in a statement that there's no real-world evidence that the South African variant can elude their shot. Still, they said theyre getting ready to develop an updated vaccine or booster if need be.

Moderna published a correspondence in NEJM on Wednesday with similar data previously disclosed elsewhere that showed a sixfold drop antibody levels versus the South African variant.

Moderna also said the actual efficacy of its vaccine against the South African variant is yet to be determined. The company has previously said it believes the vaccine will work against the variant.

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His 2019 season of Married At First Sight is currently airing on E4 in Great Britain.

But not all the resulting attention for groom Mike Gunner is welcome, based on the 45-year-old's angry reaction on Wednesday to a UK tabloid's coverage of his love life.

Taking to Instagram, the reality TV star lashed out at The Sun over their headline claiming his earlier post about new girlfriend Sonja Marcelline was actually a 'harsh dig' at ex Heidi Latchman.

Umbrage: Former Married At First Sight groom Mike Gunner [seen here in 2020] reacted angrily on Wednesday to a UK tabloid's coverage of his love life

The cosmetic tattooist's original post gushed over Marcelline, with Mike writing it was 'nice to have a girl who gets me.'

The Sun interpreted it as Mike having 'taken a swipe at his ex wife Heidi Latchman,' with whom he had a famously fraught relationship.

But Gunner angrily challenged that interpretation, writing, 'Thanks @thesun newspaper for being unimaginative and hurtful with your assumptions.'

'So you know, I wrote that caption to compliment my girl, not to criticise my ex.'

He concluded, 'Seriously, what an obvious-lazy narrative. You went to university to learn to write this garbage? #trolls'.

Offended: Taking to Instagram, the reality TV star lashed out at The Sun over their headline claiming his earlier post about new girlfriend Sonja Marcelline was actually a 'harsh dig' at ex Heidi Latchman

Fraught: During their season, Mike infamously told Heidi 'I'm not your therapist' on their honeymoon when she tried to open up to him about her past. Mike and Heidi seen here in 2019

During their season, Mike infamously told Heidi 'I'm not your therapist' on their honeymoon when she tried to open up to him about her past.

When later asked during the MAFS Grand Reunion if the former couple were still in touch, he said: 'I've tried, but she doesn't message back.'

However Gunner has since moved on, recently debuting his new relationship with Marcelline.

It was on Tuesday that he opened up about their romance - saying he was happy to finally 'have a girl who gets me'.

Alongside a photo he posted of himself and the American beauty cuddling at the beach, Mike told his Instagram followers Sonja had a 'gentle and kind' nature, and 'warm' hugs.

Former Married At First Sight groom Mike Gunner recently debuted his new relationship with Sonja Marcelline, and on Tuesday, the electrician-turned-cosmetic tattooist, 45, opened up about their romance - saying he was happy to finally 'have a girl who gets me'

'Nice to have a girl who gets me,' Mike captioned the post. 'I'm pretty direct and often my filter gets clogged but she likes that about me.

'Her hugs are warm and she's gentle and kind.'

Mike added that his girlfriend was also not shy about putting him in his place when it was necessary.

'She puts me in my place when I need it but also sees my soft side,' he said. 'I need that.'

'She puts me in my place when I need it but also sees my soft side,' Mike said of Sonja. 'I need that'

Mike, who starred on the sixth season of MAFS and was paired with ex-'wife' Heidi Latcham, debuted the couple's romance on February 10.

Alongside a picture of the couple spending a night out with friends, Mike wrote: 'My girl.'

Sonja has a Master of Science from the University of West Florida, and divides her time between Queensland's Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

'My girl': Mike, who starred on the sixth season of MAFS and was paired with ex-'wife' Heidi Latcham, debuted the couple's romance on February 10

She debuted their relationship on Instagram on Sunday - uploading her very first picture of them together in celebration of Valentine's Day.

While the post was only captioned with a single red heart emoji, it spoke a thousand words as the couple appeared to be overjoyed in each other's company.

They were spotted smiling ear-to-ear in the picture, while they closely laid next to one another on a beach.
Washington: The Biden administration said on Friday (AEDT) it was ready to join talks with Iran and world powers to discuss a return to the 2015 nuclear deal, in a sharp repudiation of former president Donald Trumps maximum pressure campaign that sought to isolate the Islamic Republic.

The administration also took two steps at the United Nations aimed at restoring policy to what it was before Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018. The combined actions were immediately criticised by Iran hawks and are likely to draw concern from Israel and Gulf Arab states.

US Secretary of State Tony Blinken. Credit:Bloomberg

In addition to signalling a willingness to talk with Iran, the administration also reversed Trumps determination that all UN sanctions against Iran had been restored. And, it eased stringent restrictions on the domestic travel of Iranian diplomats posted to the United Nations.

The State Department announced the moves following discussions between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his British, French and German counterparts, and as Biden prepares to participate, albeit virtually, in his first major international events with world leaders.
Autonomous submarines made with next-generation harvesting systems for energy might be on the horizon. These systems will be added to robotic machines that might be a reality as the technology gets better.

Sweet concept art. This will be interesting to watch. That is, if theyll let us.  https://t.co/RwWCMmPW9J  Strikepod Systems (@Strikepod) February 5, 2021

One of the trends that the US Navy is pursuing is unmanned underwater vehicles for different applications. Aside from unmanned surface vehicles, there are more developments exclusive to the US Navy.

Manta Ray needs little amount of fuel

A week ago, DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) gave the contract to aerospace giant Northrop Grumman and the defense company Martin Defense Group. These companies will be collaborating to design and engineer the ultra-next generation Manta-Ray unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) for the US military, reported Eurasian Times.

One of the crucial components of the robot UUV is given to Metron to provide a new kind of power source. The robot sub will have a system that will allegedly create its power to keep it running indefinitely. One of the objectives of energy harvesting systems is to allow them to go on missions for a long time.

Reasons for adapting these kinds of submarines (UUV) give the US Navy an advantage in anti-submarine warfare (ASW). This will be a serious capability as more adversaries add more submarines to their arsenals. One system on Trial is the Sea Hunter that tracks and detects enemy subs with an AI. It is projected to sail for long periods with no human assistance.

More money was poured into the project to continue the development of the advanced Manta Ray. Once the project is realized, the first autonomous submarines units will be tested and evaluated for the intended mission.

Also read: Five Iranian Fuel Tankers Entered Venezuela Waters Despite US Ships' Warning

UUV's development objectives are developing how to create an effective energy system, UUV robustness, stopping biofouling, corrosion prevention, and navigation control as components. The last is to navigate smartly and avoid objection, which is robotic intelligence.

More details on the next generation Manta Ray

The Commander Kyle Woerner, who heads the program for the Manta Ray UUV program. The research and development will be for the future models of unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). Once the technologies are mastered it will lead to more possibilities in the future.

He cited the companies working on developing all the Manta's components and taking the approaches into account. Developing the UUVs endurance for indefinite operation time is a significant goal. Overall, the problem in R and D is how to get to a solution.

The Manta should be sonar equipped with a towed sonar assembly to scan for enemy subs and other equipment. Sometimes acoustic sensors will be sunk to the seabed and electronic warfare equipment (ECW).

However, the UUV should have artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities to decide how to act against the enemy or friendly subs. Smart unmanned systems like the Manta Ray will be the future.

It will have a biomorphic shape that is not cigar-shaped like other subs. The body is related to how the robot can recharge itself better from the sea.

Stealth influence design to keep it invisible to sonar to make it undetectable. A low drag design to make it move fast in the water too. According to the program leader, the Manta Ray design will be the first in Autonomous submarines.

Related article: Iran to Develop Unmanned Underwater Vehicle (UUV) Increasing Its War Fighting Capacity

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Health Minister Greg Hunt and health experts warn conspiracy theories and misinformation could thrive on Facebook following the social media giants irresponsible and dangerous ban on Australian media content just days out from the nations COVID-19 vaccine rollout.

Mr Hunt said he was deeply and profoundly concerned by Facebooks decision, which affected the pages of some state and territory health departments as well as hospitals and health charities, blocking access to vital health, COVID and vaccine-related public information.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says theres a risk vaccine misinformation could spread. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

There is a risk that if you cannot have accurate information, that those who wish to promulgate falsehoods and fictions can do so without a response, he said.

Australian Medical Association president Dr Omar Khorshid said blocking news organisations and health pages at such a critical time was a huge issue.
Huawei will introduce the Mate X2 on February 22. A rumor suggested the company is moving away from the outward fold and the new device will have an inward fold, and now a leaked teaser once again confirms it - Huawei will indeed adopt the design that Samsung Galaxy Fold initially brought to the world.

The poster is accompanied by a famous Albert Einstein quote Knowledge is limited, imagination embraces the entire world. There are also the words Huawei Mate X2 in a new body on the bottom, obviously pointing to the fact well see the new form factor.

The Huawei Mate X2 will be powered by Kirin 9000 chipset, and we expect it to bring 66W fast charging over the wire. Having a bareback panel thats not obstructed by the screen itself might mean the phone could have wireless charging as well - probably 50W, given the Huawei Mate 40 Pro phones have it as well.

The launch is set to take place in China and we can only hope for a global launch to follow soon.

Source (in Chinese)
Pune, India, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global ERP software market size is set to reach USD 71.63 billion by 2026, exhibiting a CAGR of 8.5% during the forecast period. Integration of Internet of Things (IoT) with business processes is expected to emerge as the central growth driver for this market, finds Fortune Business Insights in its new report, titled Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Component (Software, Services), By Business Function (Financial Management, Human Capital Management, Supply Chain Management, Customer Management, Inventory, and Work Order Management, Others); By Enterprise Size (SMEs, Large Enterprises), By Deployment (Cloud, On-Premises, Hybrid); By End-use (Manufacturing, BFSI, IT and Telecommunications, Retail and Consumer Goods, Healthcare, Transportation and Logistics, Government, Others), and Region Forecast, 2019-2026. IoT is a form of Artificial Intelligence-based technology that allows inanimate objects to get interconnected with each other and transmit data over the internet. When embedded in ERP solutions, IoT facilitates data collection, collation, analysis, and processing for businesses, empowering them to make informed decisions and strategize. For example, IoT makes possible the origination of orders from multiple sources for the Quote to Cash (Q2C) process. Moreover, one of the important ERP software market trends is the improvement in communication between vendors, suppliers, and end-consumers, which is boosting the uptake of ERP solutions in organizations.

According to the ERP software market report, the value of the market stood at USD 38.15 billion in 2018. Besides this, the report provides the following information:

Panoramic overview of the industry trends;

In-depth analysis of the market drivers and challenges;

A comprehensive study of the regional and competitive dynamics; and

Microscopic research into the various market segments and accurate computation of market values.





Request a Sample Copy of the Global Market Research Report: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/request-sample-pdf/enterprise-resource-planning-erp-software-market-102498





Market Restraint

Dearth of ERP Expertise to Impede Growth

Although enterprise resource planning promises high efficiency and enhanced productivity, it has a high initial price for setting up, making it difficult for small and medium scale enterprises to implement it. Even large, financially-strong organizations find it tedious to adopt ERP software as managing it requires expertise and currently, there is a shortage of such professionals in the IT sector. Not every company is equipped with the necessary wherewithal to train its employees in handling ERP, and any kind of wrong training might have counterproductive results. Therefore, the implementation of this technology has not yet achieved the traction that it should have, in spite of offering a host of advantages to businesses.

Regional Analysis

Rapid Adoption of ERP Solutions to Drive the Market in North America

The market size in North America in 2018 stood at USD 14.36 billion and the region is poised to dominate the ERP software market share in the coming years. One of the major reasons for this is the high adoption rate of AI-based technologies such as IoT, Machine Learning, and cloud computing among organizations in the region. Furthermore, many companies are implementing ERP solutions to streamline their processes in a bid to elevate efficiency through advanced automation of routine tasks, which is augmenting the enterprise resource planning software market growth.

Expansion of the BFSI, logistics, and manufacturing sectors will be the major factor accelerating this market in Asia-Pacific, as per the ERP software market analysis. In addition to this, growth in the IT industry will further propel the market in this region.





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Competitive Landscape

Rising Collaborations Among Players to Intensify Market Competition

The ERP software market players are increasingly partnering with each other and other organizations to develop novel and sustainable solutions for consumers. This is helping them reinforce their position as industry leaders and at the same time, expand their global footprint. Apart from this, companies are also focusing on enhancing their manufacturing capacity to cater to the rising demand for advanced ERP solutions.

Industry Developments:

November 2019: Michigan-based software company Plex Systems launched its shop floor-specific designed product, Plex Manufacturing Execution Suite (Plex MES) . The offering is a cloud-based suite made up of packages to deliver smart manufacturing solutions to industries.

Michigan-based software company Plex Systems launched its shop floor-specific designed product, . The offering is a cloud-based suite made up of packages to deliver smart manufacturing solutions to industries. October 2019: SYSPRO, a South African software development firm, collaborated with Clean Energy Smart Manufacturing Innovation Institute (CESMII) to provide smart manufacturing software and solutions to manufacturing companies across the US. The partnership is part of a community-driven project that brings together academia, governments, and industry to promote sustainable manufacturing and R&D practices.

List of Companies Covered in the Report:

PLEX SYSTEMS (United States)

Acumatica, Inc. (United States)

Epicor Software Corporation (United States)

Unit4 (Netherlands)

Oracle Corporation (United States)

Rootstock Software (United States)

QAD, Inc. (United States)

Sage Group plc (United Kingdom)

SAP SE (Germany)

SYSPRO (South Africa)





Have any Query? Speak to Analyst at: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/enquiry/speak-to-analyst/enterprise-resource-planning-erp-software-market-102498





Major Table of Content for ERP Software Market:

Introduction Definition, By Segment Research Approach Sources

Executive Summary

Market Dynamics Drivers, Restraints and Opportunities Emerging Trends

Key Insights Macro and Micro Economic Indicators Consolidated SWOT Analysis of Key Players

Global Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software Market Analysis, Insights and Forecast, 2015-2026 Key Findings / Summary Market Size Estimates and Forecasts By Component (Value) Software Services Consulting Implementation and Integration Support and Maintenance By Business Function (Value) Financial Management Human Capital Management Supply Chain Management Customer Management Inventory and Work Order Management Others By Enterprise Size (Value) SMEs Large Enterprises By Deployment (Value) Cloud On-Premises Hybrid By End-User (Value) Manufacturing BFSI IT and Telecommunications Retail and Consumer Goods Healthcare Transportation and Logistics Government Others By Region (Value) North America Europe Asia Pacific Middle East and Africa Latin America







TOC Continued ..!!





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Digital Signature Market Size, Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Component (Software, Hardware, and Services), By Deployment (Cloud, and On-Premises), By Enterprise Size (Large Enterprises and Small & Medium Enterprises), By Industry (BFSI, IT and Telecommunications, Government, Healthcare & Life Science, Education, Retail, Real Estate, and Others), and Regional Forecast, 2020-2027

Video Conferencing Market Size, Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Component (Solution and Services), By Conference Type (Telepresence, Integrated, Desktop, and Service-based Video Conferencing System), By Deployment (Cloud, On-premises), By Enterprises Size (Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Large Enterprises), By Application (Small Rooms, Huddle Rooms, Middle Rooms, and Large Rooms), and Regional Forecast, 2020-2027

Team Collaboration Software Market Size, Share & COVID-19 Impact Analysis, By Component (Solution, Services), By Deployment (Cloud, On-Premises), By Enterprise Size (SMEs, Large Enterprises), By End-User (Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI), IT and Telecommunications, Manufacturing, Retail and Consumer Goods, Healthcare, Transportation and Logistics, Education, Others), and Regional Forecast, 2020-2027





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Bexar County leaders said they have many questions about utility outages and local preparedness for a major winter storm, but right now theyre just trying to meet residents most critical needs.

Aside from a temporary refuge downtown at the citys Convention Center and a 50-cot warming shelter at the Judson High School Gymnasium in Converse, the county has set up a site at the Fire Marshals office on the South Side that can hold at least 20 people.

Bexar Countys Office of Emergency Management also has placed 88 people needing uninterrupted electrical service for medical reasons at local hotels. People needing that special service can dial 311 for help.

Meanwhile, visibly frustrated council members as well as Mayor Ron Nirenberg grilled the citys two top utility executives  Paula Gold-Williams of CPS Energy and Robert Puente of San Antonio Water System  in a sprawling three-hour emergency council meeting over gaps in power and water service that have left hundreds of thousands of residents without heat and thousands more trying to gain access to drinking water.

Our residents expect and deserve better, said Nirenberg, who sits on the boards for both city-owned utilities. I think my colleagues agree that we intend to do all we can to ensure that we arent in this vulnerable situation the next time a cold wave hits our city.

The county also expected to have public works crews on a rotating 24-hour shifts at least through Thursday, with another harsh cold front forecast overnight, possibly unleashing more ice and snow.

On ExpressNews.com: Wolff says upgrades should make rodeo safer

Even though we have warmer temperatures today and a bit of a thaw, whatever is still thawing right now will freeze over again tonight, Thomas Peine, the countys assistant public information officer, said Wednesday.

Commissioner Justin Rodriguez said his office has placed almost a dozen people in hotels, using county community development resources. One was an at-home kidney dialysis patient; another, a senior who was sleeping in her car with her dog, because it was warmer than her house.

Were just scrambling like everybody else to try and make sure that people survive this, Rodriguez said.

In regard to power outages that began late Sunday, he said there needs to be more transparency and accountability for state utility regulators and CPS Energy about the need for those outages and about the seeming lack of equity in the way theyre managed.

Why is it that a cold front like this basically drops us to our knees? It should not be that way, Rodriguez said.

Commissioners Tommy Calvert and Rebeca Clay-Flores also have had their staffs hustling to reach people in severe need, particularly seniors and the disabled.

Calvert said he worked with the city to move 190 seniors from the Fair Avenue Apartments to the Grand Hyatt after they had been in the cold for three days.

I dont think there was enough planning. Theres still not enough communication, Calvert said.

Frankie Gonzales-Wolfe, chief of staff for Clay-Flores, said the South Side Precinct 1 has a lot of people suffering, partly because of failures at the state and local levels to plan for a major winter storm.

City and county leaders had promised after a record 13.5-inch snowfall in 1985 that the community would be better prepared.

We didnt learn from the mistakes, Gonzales-Wolfe said. State leadership has really failed us big time.

The Mission Del Lago neighborhood on the South Side hasnt has power since Sunday, Gonzales-Wolfe said. The county is trying to arrange for water deliveries to residents without service. People who need to stay at the countys South Side shelter can call (210) 335-0335.

On the North Side, Precinct 3 Commissioner Trish DeBerry was worried about residents in Timberwood Park who have lacked electricity at least since Monday and begun reporting water outages early Wednesday.

Even flamingos and alligators at the San Antonio Zoo, in her precinct, had to be moved indoors to a meeting room after a pump that maintains constant temperatures failed, she said.

On ExpressNews.com: Commissioners discuss rodeos COVID-19 precautions

DeBerry said she wants the CPS Energy board enlarged to include a county appointee.

Its frustrating, because the county has no representation on the CPS board, despite the fact they service my constituents, she said.

Thats one of many issues she said shell raise once the cold spell passes.

Right now, (Im) just trying to help people make it through, DeBerry said.

Staff Writer Joshua Fechter contributed to this report

shuddleston@express-news.net
Over 342,000 healthcare workers are now protected from the coronavirus infection in India after they got their second and final dose of the vaccine. India began giving the second dose on 13 February, four weeks after vaccinations began. This period has seen a marked decline in new infections, though that trend appears to be breaking in Maharashtra after fresh spikes this week.

The pace of vaccinations is gradually picking up, but government data on the second doses may be of concern. While 786,000 persons had received their first dose in the first five days of the vaccination drive, only 43% of them turned up for the second dose in the five days after 13 February.

Meanwhile, the total number of vaccine doses given in India reached 9.4 million as of 17 February. Nine states have given at least one dose to more than 75% of their healthcare workers, with Bihar (85%), Tripura (82%), and Odisha (82%) leading the way, the health ministry said. This is less than 50% in eight states, including Tamil Nadu and Punjab.





As a share of population, Delhi (12 doses per 1,000 population) has the best coverage as of Wednesday, followed by Jammu and Kashmir (12), Uttarakhand (11) and Gujarat (11). Nationally, this figure stands at only 6.8, even though Indias total vaccination count is the fourth highest in the world. Israel has already vaccinated more than 30% of its population, shows data from Our World in Data.

View Full Image Graphic by Mint





One reason India lags is that it has prioritized only healthcare and frontline workers in the first phase. A much larger section of the populationthe elderly and those with comorbid conditionsare due to start getting their shots in March.

N.K. Arora, a member of a government task force on the vaccinations, said the slow pace was a deliberate attempt" to look for hiccups.

The government also said the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunization will examine the World Health Organizations recommendation of increasing the gap between the two doses to eight to 12 weeks in the Indian context.

As vaccinations carried on, Indias overall count of infections continued to decline further. The country added fewer than 80,000 cases in the last seven days, marking an eight-month low. As many as 42% of these cases came from Kerala, and another 30% from Maharashtra.









The fully-vaccinated population share is 4.5% in the US and 3% in Denmark.





The spurt in Maharashtras cases has worried state authorities. From fewer than 2,500 daily cases just two weeks ago, the state is again adding more than 3,000 new daily cases. The positivity rate has risen to 6.7% over the last week, much higher than the national average of 1.7%.

Six districts in the state recorded more than 1,000 new cases in this period, with Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, and Amravati going past the 3,000 mark, data compiled by howindialives.com on Wednesday evening showed. Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has warned of a lockdown if residents flout safety protocol.

The spike comes around a month after gram panchayat elections in the state saw a 79% turnout.

Kerala had faced a similar spike after local body polls in December

This makes Punjab the state to watch out for in the coming weeks. The state has just concluded municipal elections.





Half of all 654 deaths in the last week were in Maharashtra (37%) and Kerala (17%). Punjab recorded the third highest number of deaths (47). With this, the national toll has reached 156,014 as of Thursday morning. Around 10.66 million patients have recovered, while 137,342 remain under treatment.

The surge in Maharashtra is not the only big risk India faces. Four cases of the South African strain of the virus, said to be highly contagious and resistant to vaccines, have been detected in India.

Vaccine hesitancy is also a risk, some of it evident after the lower-than-expected numbers on the second vaccine dose and with slower pace in some states. A study by researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Johns Hopkins University has found that vaccine acceptance has seen a decline in India in recent months, from 77% in August 2020 to 68% in January.

This assumes significance as India prepares to enter the second phase of its vaccination drive. The countrys generosity in exporting vaccines has got global fame, but it still needs to push its own pace and build more public confidence to contain the virus in time and keep risks at bay.

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A store clerk shot and injured a man attempting to rob a North Side convenience store, San Antonio police said.

Police said a man was allegedly stealing items from the Isom Food Mart, located at 534 Isom Road, at around 10:30 p.m., when the clerk approached the man. The suspect pulled out a gun but was chased out of the store by the clerk, according to police.

The clerk shot the suspect once in the neck as he ran out of the store, police said.

A female drove the suspect to a nearby LA Fitness parking lot where they called for help.

The suspect was transported to University Hospital in critical condition.
By Robert D. Atkinson





While U.S. President Joe Biden has only been in office about two months, there are already signs that suggest how his administration's priorities could affect South Korea.



The most important thing to understand is that U.S. policy will not return to the status quo that existed before President Donald Trump. Since the Cold War, U.S. trade policy was largely crafted to achieve broad foreign policy goals, even at the cost of U.S. economic competitiveness.



For decades, the most important priorities were to assure global security and to constrain the Soviet Union. In recent years, priorities have included fighting Islamic terrorism, as well as issues such as human rights and climate change.



But today, America's relative economic and technological strength is so diminished from where it was even 20 years ago that it can no longer afford that approach.



President Trump would not have been inclined to pursue such a policy, anyway. He was determined to put America's economic self-interest first. That determination led him, rightly, to push back against systemically unfair Chinese economic and trade practices, though he did so largely by embracing protectionism and unilateralism.



The Biden administration will not be a second Trump term  but neither will it be a third Obama term. We can expect the new administration to continue pushing back against China's unfair trade and economic practices  but instead of doing so unilaterally, it will rely more on allies and the World Trade Organization.



If Korea engages in U.S.-led WTO cases  and if it supports overall WTO reform  then it will demonstrate its commitment to a strong U.S. partnership.



It is clear that the last U.S. administration's go-it-alone approach did little to change China's behavior, but it did enable firms in other countries, including Korea, to take U.S. market share in China. For this reason, Biden will be looking for allies to step up to the plate, and this will put Korea in a difficult position.



On the one hand, Korea has strong national security and economic interests in staying tightly aligned with the United States. On the other hand, China has made clear, including with its so-called "wolf warrior" diplomacy, that it is willing to punish countries that don't comply with its wishes. It will be a challenge to avoid incurring the "wrath of Xi" while making it clear that Korea is allied with the United States in pushing back against Chinese economic and military aggression.



The Biden administration may also push for new sector-based trade agreements, such as an e-commerce agreement, an environmental goods and services agreement, and a new information technology agreement, where Korean support and partnership will be critical.



However, the administration is unlikely to push for major new country-based trade agreements or even to join existing ones that Korea is a member of, such as the CPTPP. Rather, the overarching economic focus for the president will be at home, where he will seek congressional approval to enact his "Build Back Better" plan, including requirements to produce more in the United States, coupled and increased public investments in industry and competitiveness.



Already the president has issued an executive order to expand the Buy American program, to ensure the federal government and its contractors procure a greater share of goods and services produced domestically. This will make it harder for Korean companies to sell to the U.S. unless they have onshore production facilities. While it's unclear what the administration will do with regard to tariffs and quotas, including on the steel industry, it is clear that the administration's instincts are not anywhere near as protectionist as the Trump administration's were.



Republicans and Democrats both are interested in ensuring there are robust domestic supply chains, especially to respond to the China threat, so there will be broad agreement that firms in allied nations should invest in the United States if they want access to the U.S. market. Semiconductors are a prime example.



The recent announcement by chipmaker Intel that it has fallen behind its next-generation chip targets and is considering buying chips from other companies  presumably Taiwan's TSMC  is making many U.S. officials, especially in the national security establishment, increasingly worried about relying on foreign chips. We are seeing the same concern in batteries, a critical technology for the military and for next-generation electric vehicles.



As such, Korean companies may face the same kind of pressure that Japanese companies faced in the late 1980s and 1990s: If they do not continue to establish facilities in the United States, their market access could be limited. Leading Korean companies like Hyundai, LG, and Samsung have all made investments in the United States, and some have announced new commitments.



Those kinds of decisions will likely to go a long way toward ensuring strong two-way trade between our two nations. And while the Biden administration probably will strictly apply the CFIUS program that governs foreign investment in the United States, its focus will be almost exclusively on adversaries, particularly China, and not on friends and allies like Korea. (CFIUS stands for the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.)



U.S. trade and economic policy over the next four years will likely be quite different than it was prior decades, but it is clear that both the United States and Korea have strong interests in maintaining a solid and open trading relationship.





Robert D. Atkinson (@RobAtkinsonITIF) is president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), the world's leading think tank for science and technology policy.




YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 17, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan traveled to Shirak province to discuss ongoing and forthcoming programs and strategic issues. Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Suren Papikyan, Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan, Chief of Staff of the Office of the Prime Minister Arsen Torosyan, Shirak province Governor Hovhannes Haroutunyan, Mayor of Gyumri Samvel Balasanyan, the deputy governors and other officials attended the meeting, the PMs Office told Armenpress.

Before discussing the agenda, Prime Minister Pashinyan said: It is crucial for the state and the local government to act in sync in order to complete the process of post-war social, psychological, and economic recovery. Last year we witnessed a tangible shift in Shirak province and in the city of Gyumri, in particular. The coronavirus and the war changed the situation to some extent. Now not only must we ensure that the ongoing programs are completed properly, but that there are new programs and incentives developed. The situation and the overall environment has to be changed in practice, so that the Republic of Armenia, as a whole, and Shirak province, Gyumri, in particular, might enjoy a situation satisfactory for all of us. On the way here I recalled our motto: Let us rebuild Armenia anew. This slogan, which we adopted back in the pre-crisis period, is now more relevant both in the direct and figurative sense of the word. We must formulate the task as follows: We must rebuild Armenia, Shirak province and Gyumri in a new way. I am pleased to state that the process of rebuilding Gyumri in a new way has been launched and is going on. This is a good example that we should follow up.

The Governor and the Deputy Governors reported back last years results. They noted in particular that due to the global pandemic and the war, the programs provided for in the region were implemented by 80-90%. They assured that both the unfinished programs and the ones planned for 2021 will be completed this year.

Last year the region carried out subvention programs for the development and improvement of community infrastructure to a total cost of 3.3 billion drams. Communities have already submitted applications for 62 subvention programs for the current year to an estimated total cost of 4.4 billion drams.

Highlighting the effective implementation of subvention programs both in Shirak province and across the country, in general, the Premier stressed the need for daily monitoring and control to ensure appropriate quality of work.

Given the peculiarities of the past year, we need to implement large-scale capital programs nationwide with renewed ardor and energy. Adequate funding will be made available for any good, effective, meaningful project that may help create a positive mood in the country. All companies and investors should be encouraged to implement projects conducive to maximum economic result, simultaneously ensuring proper quality standards and efficiency of construction activities, Nikol Pashinyan said.

The Premier noted that the Government is prepared to provide incentives and help investors in building lifeline infrastructure, such as asphalt paving, gas and water supply networks. In this way, we will encourage capital investments that will yield good economic results and generate new jobs, the Head of Government said.

Coming to the progress in agricultural activities, Governor Hovhannes Haroutunyan advised that last year only 47,000 out of 78,000 hectares of arable land were cultivated in the region. In cooperation with the Ministries of Economy and Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, the regional administration continues to endeavor towards increasing the coverage of cultivated land by encouraging the creation of modern orchards and greenhouses.



In turn, Mayor of Gyumri Samvel Balasanyan noted that about 70 modern buses will be delivered to the city by this yearend, which will help drastically improve the municipal transport network. As part of a subvention program, photovoltaic panels will be installed in the city, which will help save a large amount of energy at the facilities under the jurisdiction of the municipality.

31 streets were repaired in Gyumri after 2019 under several subvention programs, 37 streets were repaired with funds available from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Some 180 kilometers of roads - 70% of local streets - will be rehabilitated in Gyumri by the end of 2022. According to Samvel Balasanyan, in cooperation with the World Bank, the citys lighting network will be improved this year. Work is underway to ensure a twenty-four-hour water supply in the city. The Mayor advised that bus stops are being repaired in Gyumri, while the problem of sanitation has been completely solved. The city is provided with all necessary equipment. In parallel, works are underway to repair and expand the area of Friendship Park to 7.2 hectares. Concerning the construction of the North-South highway, those in charge reported that the construction of the Talin-Lanjik and Lanjik-Gyumri sections will be continued this year.

Speaking about the COVID-19 crisis, the Governor assured that the situation is under control. There are currently 48 COVID-19 patients in the region, with a total of 265 cases reported in January.

The meeting next focused on issues related to housing problems in Gyumri and the needs of Artsakh people who moved to Shirak province following the war. The heads of regional divisions of the Prosecutors Office, the Investigative Committee and the police made reports, presenting progress in the field of law enforcement.

The residents of Mastara, Ashnak, Nerkin Bazmaberd and Ujan communities stopped the Prime Ministers convoy on the Gyumri-Yerevan highway and expressed their support for the head of government.


February 18, 2021 would have been Toni Morrisons 90th birthday. As we approach the anniversary of a global pandemic that has changed our lives in every way, it seems a fine time to dive back into the world of Toni Morrison. The questions she asked in a 2002 lecture seem wholly relevant now, almost 20 years later: To what do we pay greatest allegiance? Family, language group, culture, country, gender? Religion, race? And if none of these matter, are we urbane, cosmopolitan, or simply lonely? In other words, how do we decide where we belong? What convinces us that we do?

In everything Morrison wrote, she offered narratives that revealed the journeys of characters, specific but universal, flawed and imperfect, with a deeply American desire for freedom and adventure. One might say that because her characters were almost exclusively African-American, the quest to be free  in mind, body and spirit  was the consistent adventure. She was also a masterful crafter of windows; when you opened a book of hers, the worlds you entered were so rich with detail, you could feel the molecules around you change as if youd just taken a long flight and were descending onto the tarmac in a town or city where youd never been.

Ill say this. Reading Morrison can be daunting. She won the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer, the Presidential Medal of Freedom. She was, and will remain for lifetimes to come, one of the finest writers to craft narrative in the English language. As Dwight Garner wrote when she died in 2019, Morrison had a superfluity of gifts and, like few other writers of her era, bent language to her will. Her prose could be lush, or raw and demotic, or carefree and eccentric, often on a single page. She filtered folklore, biblical rhythms, dreams, choral voices and a steep awareness of history into her work. In the best of her 11 novels  she transmuted the basic matter of existence into profound works of art.

One of the greatest joys of Toni Morrisons work is knowing that you will never get it all on the first read. In her Nobel Prize speech, she famously said, We know you can never do it properly  once and for all. Passion is never enough, neither is skill. But try.

She was talking, ostensibly, about writing and writers. But I think it also applies to readers, her readers in particular, the millions of people around the world who have read and re-read her books. To read Toni Morrison is to know that from her brilliant opening lines to the stunning last pages that leave you shook that you will likely never match her wit and wisdom, but what joy there is in trying!

As someone who had the privilege of interviewing her several times over the last decade of her life, I think I can say with confidence that she wanted all of us  intellectuals and romance readers, book club aficionados and those of us who binge TV more than books  to get in where we fit in. Creatively, Toni Morrison set a large and lavish table of literature. If youre new to her work, or havent read her in a long while, here are some thoughts about where to start.
Thank you for reading!

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UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

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Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

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European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

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2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is seemingly already returning from a very short  and very inconsiderate  family vacation.

Millions of Cruz's constituents lost power earlier this week thanks to a massive winter storm that struck the state. Hundreds of thousands of households still didn't have electricity as of Thursday morning, while many more Texans were dealing with burst pipes and other consequences of the deep freeze.

But on Wednesday night, Cruz was seen boarding a plane with his family headed to Cancun amid a storm that had already killed several Texans  as well as a pandemic that had killed thousands. Democrats spent a good 11 hours ridiculing Cruz's terribly timed travel before, on Thursday morning, a person who appeared to be Rafael "Ted" Cruz was spotted on the upgrade list for a Cancun-to-Houston flight.

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Texas Democrats have already been demanding Cruz's resignation with the craftily named "FledCruz.com." After all, Cruz himself had called out "hypocritical" Democrats and other officials who'd urged constituents to stay home during the pandemic  while out of the country themselves.

As of Thursday at 11:30 a.m. ET, Cruz and his team have not commented on the trip.

More stories from theweek.com

5 outrageously funny cartoons about Ted Cruz's Cancun getaway

American politicians hide behind the palace walls

SNL tries to coax apologies out of Ted Cruz, Andrew Cuomo, Gina Carano in latest cold open


Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The Chinese are continuously building structures in the Panganiban Reef despite the area being inside the Philippines exclusive economic zone (EEZ), satellite images from American tech firm Simularity revealed.

In the software companys latest South China Sea Rapid Alert Report released on Tuesday, seven sites appeared to have changed from May 7, 2020 to February 4, 2021 based on their satellite imagery.

For instance, Site 1 has an ongoing construction activity of a cylindrical-shaped antennae mount structure that started in early December 2020. Last May 2020, the area is only an empty lot.

Meanwhile, Site 2 has a new and large radome cover and possible fixed radar structure over it. In the previous satellite image last May, the site has unidentified structures built which has been cleared since the construction of the new structures around October to November 2020.

Satellite images revealed structures in Site 4 and Site 7 have been removed as of February this year. There is no indication of additional construction activities in the area.

On the other hand, construction equipment is seen in Site 5 and Site 6 in the February 2021 satellite photo. A rectangular area in both sites is seen in the satellite imagery, indicating possible portside works.

Maritime law expert Jay Batongbacal said the new radar facilities are being completed by China as early as October 2020.

"Since October 2020, new radar facilities being completed, construction equipment and barracks moving around, areas probably being cleared for more planned buildings," Batongbacal said in his social media post.

Panganiban Reef, known internationally as Mischief Reef, is one of the territories claimed by the Philippines in its successful 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration case against China since the area is within the nations 370-kilometer EEZ.

The reef is located 250 kilometers west of Palawan island over the West Philippine Sea.

China does not recognize the Philippines international tribunal victory, asserting its nine-dash claim over the entire South China Sea. The Chinese have also been embroiled in territorial disputes with other countries like Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, and Taiwan because of their historical claim.

In previous years, the Chinese transformed reefs within the Philippine EEZ into artificial islands that housed bases or settlements. These reefs include Kagitingan (Fiery Cross), Calderon (Cuarteron), Burgos (Gaven), Mabini (Johnson South), Zamora (Subi) and McKennan (Hughes).


Michael Anton wrote The Flight 93 election on the then upcoming 2016 presidential election under the pseudonym Publius Decius Mus. Published by the Claremont Review of Books on September 5, it proved to be the most consequential essay on the election because Rush Limbaugh took it up and read from it on his September 7 show that year. When Anton returned in 2020 with The Stakes and the American Mind essay The coming coup?, Rush took it up as well (video at bottom).

Continuing our preview of the current (Winter) issue of the Claremont Review of Books, we turn to Antons essay The continuing crisis. Here is the opening of the essay:

Five people died in the chaos on Capitol Hill on January 6. An unarmed 14-year veteran of the Air Force, Ashli Babbitt, was shot point-blank by a Capitol Police officer. Four others, one of them another Capitol Police officer, apparently died of medical emergencies. All of these deaths were tragic and unnecessary. At least one of them, and possibly two, may have been the result of criminal actsthough early reports of Officer Brian Sicknick being beaten with a fire extinguisher are now being, as they say, walked back. His family says he died of a preexisting medical condition and have asked the media to stop politicizing his death. Further complicating the official narrative, Officer Sicknick was an avid supporter of Donald Trump.

If it turns out that Officer Sicknick was attacked by a protester, the legal system willas it shouldavenge his death. But the shooting of Babbitt will be investigated and almost certainly found justified or, at most, regrettable but no ones fault except her own. That might even be the correct outcome, and we pray, whatever the verdict, it will be the result of a fair or judicious legal process. Recent experience, however, more than suggests that those perceived as supporting present ruling arrangements are, and will be, treated much more gently than those seen as opposing them.

A full understanding of what happened that Wednesday would begin with the ruling classs decades-long betrayal and despoliation of what would eventually come to be called Red or Deplorable or Flyover America. But the more proximate cause was the 2020 electioneasily the highest intensity such contest of my lifetime. Each side felt that the stakes were existential. The accuracy of those feelings doesnt matter; their existence was enough to drive events.

As an incumbent seeking a second term, President Trump-even after the COVID lockdowns had tanked Americas previously supercharged economy-seemed to have a lot of things going for him: near-unanimous support from the base, high primary turnout even though he faced no opposition, a seemingly unified party, approval ratings not far from Barack Obamas in 2012. According to Gallup, in September 2020 56% of Americans reported doing better than they had four years priora level that, in ordinary times, would all but guarantee an incumbents re-election.

But these were not ordinary times. It was also easy to seeand many friends and supporters of the president did see, and warned aboutshoals ahead. The Democrats used the pandemic as an excuse to accelerate and intensify their decades-long effort to loosen and change American election practices in ways that favor their party. In the spring, they began openly talking about staging a coup: literally using the military to yank Trump from power. Its one thing to hold a war game and plot in secret about a presidents ouster, but why leak the result? Only if you want the public prepared for what otherwise would look like outrageous interference in our democracy. Democrats and their media allies also, and for the same reason, assiduously pushed the so-called Red Mirage narrative: the story that, while you are likely to see Trump way ahead on election night, he will certainly lose as all the votes are counted. This was less a prediction than preemptive explanation: what you see might look funny, but let us assure you in advance that its all on the up-and-up.

In response (or lack thereof) to the other sides assiduous preparations, the president, his staff, his campaign, and his party committed four serious errors of omission.

Last month, 66-year old German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced she will step down from her position later this year after leading the country for 15 long years. One of the leading leaders of Europe, she will also make way for a new leader of her centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

Not only did she last long, but the Merkel era was layered with political tenacity and robust economic growth when much of Europe was in strife and recession. Merkel is not an exception in the political firmament. Outside of royal rulers (like Queen Elizabeth II) and many dictators, ...
Brazil today (February 18) said its pavilion at the upcoming Gulfood 2021 will have a large contingent of 42 companies showcasing the countrys best-in-class food and beverage products.

Brazilian companies will be taking part at Gulfood 2021 which opens on February 21 and will run till February 25, under the auspices of the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil).

Marcio Rodrigues, the Agribusiness Manager of Apex-Brasil said: Brazil today is the largest producer and exporter of Halal protein in the world, we also are the second largest exporter of agricultural products to the Middle East. Only in 2020 the Brazilian exportation figure reached around $9 billion. There are perspectives of growth resumption in important countries that at-tend the trade show. We have a strong presence in meat and animal protein, besides sugar, soy and corn. We have a good participation in the market with live animals, coffee, cotton and some others. It is worth mentioning that we have had several new markets opened by the Ministry of Agriculture for the region in recent years, which opens new opportunities. Among the main sec-tors with potential to expand sales to those markets are juices, dairy products, honey, organic and functional foods, besides processed and packaged foods.

Attracting thousands of buyers from across the world, Gulfood presents the main market trends on food and beverage and facilitate trade mobilization. The show also attracts decision makers in trade as well as influencers from the Arab region, Apex-Brasil said.

The United Arab Emirates are among the priority markets mapped by Apex-Brasil. Besides, the fair covers many buyers from other big and relevant markets also from that region (Middle East and North Africa) such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Algeria and Egypt. Dubai is a hub to the region, con-sidered a trade and supply platform for exporters seeking new sales in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia, Rodrigues said, adding that Brazils business in the region has jumped to $1.4 billion in 2019 from $645 million in 2015.

Apex-Brasil said despite the Covid-19 circumstances impacting the number of participants at the expo, the relevance of Gulfood 2021 stays intact.

Market studies conducted by Apex-Brasil indicated that food sub sectors presented a $10.8 billion opportunity for Brazilian products in imports from countries in the region and $4.2 billion in Brazilian exports to these markets. The Brazilian participation correspond to the significance of these sub sectors and 38.9 per cent of the companies at the Brazilian pavilion cater to this segment.

Apex-Brasil has its own office in Dubai to leverage the opportunities and further expand the presence of Brazilian companies.

The UAE is one of the priority markets for Apex-Brasil and Gulfood attracts buyers from major and relevant markets of Middle East and North Africa (MENA), such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Algeria and Egypt. Dubai is acclaimed as a regional trading hub and a re-export platform for businesses seeking to grow in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia.

Apex-Brasil said the progressive diversification of the country's economy has also helped grow business seamlessly reducing its vulnerability to oil price movements in comparison with other Gulf states, which gives more security to Brazilian exporters and trade to be based in the country.TradeArabia News Service

Forgive my fathers killers: Rahul Gandhi

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the killing of his father Rajiv Gandhi in 1991 brought him tremendous pain but he nursed no anger or hatred towards those responsible for it and he pardoned them. During an interaction the Congress MP had with students of a state-run women''s college here, a pupil posed,"your father was killed by the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) what are your feelings about these people? and he answered by saying violence cannot take away anything.

"I don''t have anger or hatred towards anybody Of course, I lost my father and for me it was a very difficult time," he said, adding, it was similar to having one''s heart severed. "I felt trememdous pain, but I don''t feel anger, I don''t feel any hatred or any anger. I forgive," he said to rounds of applause. To the next question related to his political innings despite losing his father and grandmother, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, he said, "violence cannot take away anything from you... my father is alive in me...my father is talking through me."

Rahul Gandhi attacks PM Modi, alleges nobody can get justice without fearing consequences

Gandhi interacted with students of Bharathidasan Government College for Women and asked them to not address him as ''sir'' and instead call him ''Rahul,'' while most addressed him as Rahul ''Anna'' (elder brother). He earlier had a dialogue with people from the fishermen community here. Answering a question on his friends and ''girl friends,'' he said he had plenty of friends including those both with political background and people who shared similar interests.

When the student repeated the question on girl friends, he said, "we leave that for another day." To a student who said she could not pursue engineering though she loved it, he advised her to chase her dream and assured her of support and he would speak to her parents if she wanted.

Though most parties supported the release of seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) had opposed it. Rajiv Gandhi was killed on May 21, 1991 by a woman suicide bomber at Sriperumbudur near Chennai in a poll rally. The LTTE was defeated in the 2009 civil war in Sri Lanka.

TNCC chief K S Alagiri had said a few months ago that if the Rajiv case case convicts were to be set free, a demand would arise for the release of all "murder convicts" who had spent over 25 years in prison. "If the court announces the release of seven Rajiv case convicts, we will accept it. However, political parties rooting for their release is unacceptable," Alagiri had said. The Tamil Nadu government had in 2018 recommended to Governor Banwarilal Purohit to release them and the ruling AIADMK and main opposition DMK, both of whom strongly support freeing them, have had verbal duel over the matter.
(CNN)  New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has been pleading with lawmakers for support and even threatening political retribution against Democrats who have criticized him in an aggressive effort to contain political fallout from revelations that his administration had concealed the full extent of nursing home-related deaths during the COVID pandemic.

Describing an alleged exchange with the governor that has not been previously reported, Democratic Assemblyman Ron Kim told CNN that he received a call on his cell phone from the governor last week as he was bathing his children at home.

"Gov. Cuomo called me directly on Thursday to threaten my career if I did not cover up for Melissa [DeRosa] and what she said. He tried to pressure me to issue a statement, and it was a very traumatizing experience," Kim said. Cuomo proceeded to tell the assemblyman that "we're in this business together and we don't cross certain lines and he said I hadn't seen his wrath and that he can destroy me," according to Kim.

Cuomo's adviser denied that the governor threatened to destroy Kim.

DeRosa is a top aide to the governor who came under fire last week after she told state lawmakers in a private virtual meeting that the state had delayed sharing with the legislature the full scope of the COVID-related death toll of New York's nursing home residents because of concerns about a potential federal investigation by the Department of Justice. (The governor's office has since released a partial transcript of the call.)

Kim, a progressive representing Queens who has been among the most vocal critics of Cuomo's handling of nursing homes during the pandemic and believes his own uncle died from a presumed case of COVID in a nursing home last year, participated in that virtual call. During the meeting, Kim said he called on the governor to apologize to family members of those who died in assisted living facilities. When the New York Post first reported on DeRosa's controversial comments, he was one of the participants quoted in the piece criticizing those remarks.

"No man has ever spoken to me like that in my entire life," Kim said of his phone call with Cuomo. "At some point he tried to humiliate me, asking: 'Are you a lawyer? I didn't think so. You're not a lawyer.' It almost felt like in retrospect he was trying to bait me and anger me and say something inappropriate. I'm glad I didn't."

Kim's wife told CNN that she had overheard parts of Kim's phone call with Cuomo last week, and described the governor as "loud" and "angry." She said she heard Cuomo say, "Who do you think you are?" as well as the words, "my wrath," and that immediately after the phone call, her husband told her: "The governor threatened to destroy my life."

Kim later told CNN's Erin Burnett on "OutFront" Wednesday evening that his wife was in tears after the governor's call.

"My wife, you know, that night was very, very troubling because we couldn't sleep, and she's telling me, 'What did you do to us? Stop what you're doing. Please.'

"She was -- she feared for my future, for my life. That's the kind of shock that this governor gave to my family, and his administration should be apologizing to me right away, not spinning and distracting us from getting to the truth," he said.

Cuomo's efforts to reach Kim appeared to continue through the weekend. Kim said he received multiple calls from a "No Caller ID" number, followed by messages from Cuomo aides saying that the governor would like to speak with him again. Kim said he did not return the phone calls. He has since hired a lawyer, telling CNN that he believed this was necessary following Cuomo's first call which made him feel that the governor had asked him to lie about what had happened in last week's virtual call. He said he has informed the governor's office that any outreach should be made through his counsel.

When CNN first reached out to Cuomo's office for comment for this story on Tuesday, communications director Peter Ajemian did not directly respond to or deny Kim's allegation of threats from the governor in a written statement. Late Tuesday, Ajemian said the office would send a clarifying statement. Ultimately, the office sent a statement from senior adviser Rich Azzopardi late Wednesday morning that said: "Kim's assertion that the governor said he would 'destroy him' is false."

"The Governor has three witnesses to the conversation. The operable words were to the effect of, 'I am from Queens, too, and people still expect honor and integrity in politics,'" Azzopardi said.

Around the same time that Azzopardi's statement was sent to CNN, Cuomo began a previously scheduled press conference call on the coronavirus, and discussed his office's "long and hostile relationship" with Kim.

Cuomo said Kim's political animus dates back to a 2015 bill to reform nail salons that the governor proposed and that Kim initially backed, but later opposed. Cuomo cited a New York Times report from that year that examined financial contribution's that Kim received after he flipped his position. In that article, a top Cuomo aide was critical of Kim.

Kim said on Wednesday that he "100%" stood by his allegation that Cuomo had threatened to destroy him. He said he did not recall Cuomo making a specific reference to Queens, but that Cuomo had asked him last week on the phone, "Mr. Kim, are you an honorable man?" before proceeding to suggest that the honorable thing for Kim to do would be to put out a statement of support.

Kim also rejected Cuomo's suggestion that he had ulterior motives for criticizing Cuomo on nursing homes-related COVID deaths, saying he was deeply disappointed by the governor's handling of the matter during the pandemic.

"There's no undoing here. They have blood on their hands," Kim said. "We're talking about his record of performance in the last 10 months."

Azzopardi's statement also said that Cuomo had called Kim last week to take issue with Kim's comments in the initial New York Post story, suggested that Kim issue a new statement and that the assemblyman had agreed to do so. When no statement came, Azzopardi said, Cuomo's office followed up and did not get a response.

Kim told CNN that he did not agree to issue a new statement, and that the initial New York Post story did not misquote and misinterpret him.

In the days since the New York Post story, Kim has been outspoken in accusing the Cuomo administration of criminal wrongdoing and a cover-up. On Tuesday, he and other Democratic New York legislators wrote a letter to colleagues in the Assembly accusing Cuomo of obstruction of justice and seeking support in stripping the governor of some of the expanded executive powers he has had during the pandemic. (State Democrats had already been in active discussions to draft a bill to do this, with a vote likely to take place early next week, a source had previously told CNN.)

Kim is not the only lawmaker to have received fierce pushback and even threats from Cuomo and his top aides since last week, according to three additional Democratic New York lawmakers. All spoke to CNN under the condition of anonymity because they were afraid of retribution from the governor.

They said the administration had aggressively lobbied legislators to speak up in support of his handling of the nursing homes-related deaths, and that threats were made against those who are considering a vote to strip Cuomo of his emergency powers.

All three legislators said they were aware of outreach from the governor in which he clearly suggested or explicitly threatened political retaliation if they did not stand by him. One of them, a New York state senator who said they had not been contacted by Cuomo but heard directly from multiple colleagues whom Cuomo had reached out to, said the governor threatened those colleagues with retaliation  including warning some that he could ruin their political careers if they supported weakening Cuomo's executive powers.

In other cases, the administration was persistent in asking lawmakers to come to Cuomo's defense, including by releasing supportive statements regarding last week's virtual meeting.

A member of the New York assembly said they had heard from multiple colleagues who received messages from the administration suggesting language that legislators could release after DeRosa's controversial comments were made public. Members were encouraged to say that the virtual call had been productive and that legislators were reassured that their requests for information would be prioritized going forward, according to this assembly member who described similar messages that multiple colleagues had received from members of the administration.

Cuomo has received widespread bipartisan criticism on his handling of nursing homes-related deaths during the pandemic. His office did not deny allegations that Cuomo threatened other New York legislators.

In a written statement to CNN, Ajemian, the Cuomo communications director, did not deny that Cuomo made threats to other legislators.

"The threats here came from some legislators who, according to a media report, threatened to use subpoenas and investigations as leverage in the budget process," he said.

Cuomo is up for reelection next year.

A Siena College poll released Tuesday showed that only 39% of New York's voters believe the governor has done an excellent or good job when it comes to making all data about COVID-19 nursing home deaths available, while 55% believe he's done a fair/poor job. The governor continues to receive high marks on his overall handling of the coronavirus pandemic, however: 61% of New York voters said in the survey that they approved of his response to the pandemic. The poll was conducted before DeRosa's comments came out last week, but after the New York attorney general's report came out last month that said the New York State Department of Health undercounted COVID-19 deaths among nursing home residents by approximately 50%.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Cuomo said 'he can destroy me': NY assemblyman alleges governor threatened him over nursing homes scandal."
After arriving at the apartment, police obtained Orays phone number from her son and contacted Oray, who told police she was already on her way home. About 45 minutes after the call, Oray surrendered to police without incident and was released on a recognizance bond, said Joliet police Sgt. Dwayne English.
Mr Fletcher said he was particularly concerned about North Shore Mums page

A federal minister has bizarrely spoken of his concern for a local mum's Facebook group that was shut down after the social media giant banned all news content in Australia.

Facebook on Thursday blocked Australian users from viewing or sharing all domestic and international news on the site, effective immediately.

The move is in response to the government's proposed Media Bargaining Code, which would force tech companies like Facebook and Google to negotiate with news providers to use their content.

Crucial government information pages including the weather bureau, health departments and police agencies were also blocked temporarily in Facebook's botched rollout.

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said he was particularly worried about the North Shore Mums page based in his electorate after it too was included in the ban.

'I have spoken this morning to the operator of North Shore Mums, which is a well-known Facebook page in my own electorate,' he said.

'Like a number of similar services around Australia, her page, her Facebook page, has been blocked, and that is of significant concern.'

The MP for Bradfield on Sydney's upper-north shore was widely mocked on social media for the bizarre mention.

The Sydney MP was widely mocked on social media for expressing his concern for the mum's group when dozens of key government pages had also been taken down on Thursday morning by Facebook

The North Shore Mums group is run by Sydney mum Rachel Chappell (pictured second from left) and has more than 22,000 likes on Facebook

'I was doing OK with this until I knew the North Shore Mums lost their Facebook page,' one person wrote sarcastically.

'Not the North Shore mums! Oh the humanity,' another said.

The Facebook group is run by Sydney mum Rachel Chappell and has more than 22,000 likes on the social media platform.

Mr Fletcher insisted the government will not back down and said Facebook could either abide by Australia's laws or leave the country.

He said the government 'will be proceeding' with the new law, which passed the House of Representatives on Wednesday night and looks set to pass the Senate within days.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg slammed Facebook's decision to remove Australian news from the social media network as 'wrong, unnecessary and heavy-handed'

FACEBOOK'S CHANGES TO NEWS IN AUSTRALIA Facebook has restricted publishers and social media users in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content. What does this mean for Australian news organisations? Australian news organisations will be restricted from sharing or posting any content on Facebook Pages Admins will still be able to access Page insights and Creator Studio on their Facebook pages Facebook said they will continue to provide access to other standard services, including data tools and CrowdTangle What does this mean for international news organisations? International news organisations can still post on Facebook but Australian users will not be able to see the content or share it What does this mean for Australian Facebook users? Australian Facebook users will not be able to view or share Australian or international news content What does this mean for international Facebook users? International Facebook users will not be able to view or share Australian news content on Facebook Advertisement

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg earlier said the social media giant was 'wrong' in its controversial decision, which he believes will 'damage its reputation here in Australia'.

'Their decision to block Australians' access to government sites - be they about support through the pandemic, mental health, emergency services, the Bureau of Meteorology - were completely unrelated to the media code which is yet to pass through the Senate,' he said.

'What today's events do confirm for all Australians is the immense market power of these media digital giants.

'They loom very, very large in our economy and on the digital landscape.'

Facebook has banned publishers and users in Australia from posting and sharing news content as the Australian government prepares to pass laws that will require social media companies to pay news publishers for sharing or using content on their platforms

Mr Frydenberg said the Morrison government remains committed to legislating and implementing the code.

He added the government did not know the ban would come into force on Thursday.

'We certainly weren't given any notice by Facebook,' he said.

It comes after the treasurer spoke with Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Sunday - and again in the wake of Thursday's news.

'I spoke to him over the weekend, but I also spoke to him this morning. We had a pretty lengthy conversation, around half an hour, and it was constructive,' he said.
(@FahadShabbir)

ABU DHABI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 17th Feb, 2021) The Federal public Prosecution has clarified that a person who is infected with the COVID-19 should inform the health authorities.

In a tweet posted on its accounts on social media platforms, the Public Prosecution said it is mandatory for a person infected with COVID-19 to visit the Ministry of Health and Prevention or other health authorities to receive medical treatment so as to enable the authorities to stem the spread of the infection.

The Public Prosecution referred to Articles 32 and 33 of the Federal Law No. 14 of 2014 concerning the Prevention of Communicable Diseases, which read, "Upon knowing that he/she is infected with one of the diseases mentioned in Table 1 of this law, the infected person and his/her close contacts should go to the ministry or health authorities to receive medical treatment, advice and awareness of the risks of infection and the ways of transmitting the infection.

The infected person must also adhere to the preventive measures, implement prescriptions and adhere to instructions given to him/her, to prevent the transmission of infection to others."

According to Article 38 of the same law, whoever violates any provisions of these articles shall be subject to imprisonment and/or a fine of not less than AED10,000 and not more than AED50,000.

The Public Prosecution said that it is publishing these legal tweets as part of its keenness to promote the legal culture and awareness among members of the community and help to stem the spread of the virus.
New Delhi:

Senior JD(U) leader and MP Sharad Yadav on Thursday met Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi after his party president Nitish Kumar took oath as Bihar CM and formed a government with support of BJP in the state.

Sharad Yadav has also called a meeting of party leaders who are upset with Nitish Kumars decision. The meeting will be held at his residence at 5 pm.

Earlier in the day, the leader had refused to talk to media person when they had approached the senior leader for his reaction on BJP-JD(U) tie up.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi hit out at Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for joining hands with the BJP, alleging that he had returned to the communal forces for his selfish political motives.

Also Read: Unhappy Sharad Yadav says NDA-JD (U) tie up will send wrong message in Bihar

Gandhi, whose party was part of the Grand Alliance in Bihar that was deserted by Kumars JD(U) last evening, said that he was aware that it was being planned for the last three-four months.

He (Nitish) had joined hands with us in the anti-communal fight, but Nitish Kumar, for his personal politics, joined hands with those against whom he had fought, said a seething Gandhi.

Also Read | Rahul Gandhi on Nitish Kumar: 'People switch their loyalty for political gains'

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
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If you think social media is a cesspool, Mary Lee knows that its even worse than that.

Her story, recounted in Anna Moenchs play Sin Eaters, starts like the internet did: with the promise of a brighter, improved future. Mary (Bi Jean Ngo) and her partner, Derek (David M. Raine), are celebrating; she has finally landed a new job, and in tech at that. So what if she found the gig on Craigslist, its temporary, it pays $20 an hour, and she doesnt know exactly what her duties will entail? Its money, which the couple need to move out of their Staten Island hovel.

Sin Eaters, presented on-demand by Theater Exile in Philadelphia, kicks off as a standard domestic dramedy. Derek, who has artistic aspirations, sulks a bit when Mary Lee points out that it would be easier for them to find a new place if they had two incomes, and suggests he should go back to catering.

Darker waters, however, are churning underneath the banter. Noises from the neighbors bleed into the couples apartment, alternately gross and ominous. The petulant Derek has an unwelcome passive-aggressive streak. At one point, he adjusts a home surveillance camera on the ceiling, and its unclear whether Mary knows its there.
The Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs has announced that they have postponed the detention of opposition MP and the head of the United National Movement Nika Melia following the recent resignation of Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia.

Gakharia stated earlier today that he resigned because he failed to make an agreement with the ruling Georgian Georgian Dream party over Melias issue.

Tbilisi City Court ruled yesterday that Melia be remanded into custody for failure to post bail, per the request of the countrys Prosecutors Office.

Parliament suspended the MP status of Melia on February 16, allowing the prosecution to demand his arrest claiming the latter has not posted bail for his release in a case that dates back to the June 2019 protests.

A Number of opposition politicians and activists gathered at the UNM headquarters yesterday to support Melia. They said they would not allow the police to arrest Melia, Agenda.ge reported.
[February 18, 2021] Objective Paradigm Announces David Morgan as New Chief Executive Officer

Objective Paradigm, LLC ("Objective Paradigm" or the "Company") is pleased to announce efforts to expand their family of specialized staffing and recruiting services firms that will be led by new Chief Executive Officer, David Morgan. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217006100/en/ David Morgan, CEO of Objective Paradigm (Photo: Business Wire) David brings a wealth of leadership and domain expertise to this role, having led multiple staffing organizations through significant growth and development. His capabilities include extensive IT staffing leadership experience, exceptional operational acumen, and strong financial orientation. David has a deep understanding of how to create value for clients through the combination of operational scale and a performance-driven culture. David is taking the helm of the Objective Paradigm family of staffing and recruiting services firms at a critical point in their continued evolution. Objective Paradigm, Talution Group, and Objective ERP have developed a specialized array of offerings catering toward servicing clients' needs for hiring people with specific skills through tailored services. "In considering the next endeavor in my career, I knew I wanted to build an organization that was focused on meeting the increasingly specialized needs of clients," said Morgan. "Ryan Pollock and Kevin Krumm share this same vision, and having known both of them for over 15 years, and having a high regard for the organization they built, this represented the perfect opportunity for us to work together. I look forward to working with our talented team to build on the foundation that has been laid and develop specialized brands to deliver unique value to the clients and candidates we serve." David's amiliarity with the Company's current leadership team and strategy will allow him to integrate quickly, a major benefit in being able to quickly ramp up value to clients and candidates. Kevin Krumm, the Company's former CEO and 18-year veteran, will assume the COO role while founder Ryan Pollock will move into the Chief Revenue Officer role.



"Clients rely on our team of talented recruiting and sourcing professionals to present them with highly sought-after people. Whether it's financial markets, ERP, or Salesforce expertise, for their contract or direct-hire needs, our clients need the best available talent quickly. The addition of David Morgan means we're going to be able to serve more clients across a broader landscape." Kevin Krumm also remarked, "Many years ago we became determined to be the most respected and effective recruiting firm for every client and candidate we work with; David brings us even closer to realizing that vision." "At the end of the day, we always refer to ours as a relationship business," Ryan Pollock said. "It is fitting that the development of one of those relationships over many years has allowed us to bring David in to lead our team into the next chapter of growth for this relationship business. I'm confident that Objective Paradigm, Talution Group, and Objective ERP's clients, candidates, and especially our teams of talented people across all of our service groups will benefit from David's leadership and expertise."

About Objective Paradigm, LLC. Objective Paradigm (OP) is a leading provider of recruiting and staffing services to innovative companies across the US. Together, the family of OP companies, Talution Group and Objective ERP provide direct-hire and temporary staffing places as well as dedicated recruiting and sourcing services. OP's services teams bring their strategic and tactical expertise to become the de facto internal recruiting and sourcing machines for clients. Through these various delivery models, they provide specialized talent with expertise in the ERP, Salesforce, high-growth start-up, cryptocurrency & digital assets, and the financial markets domains. From enterprise organizations to high-growth start-ups, our teams are dedicated to ensuring 'wins' for both our clients and our candidates. Objective Paradigm is repeatedly recognized by Crain's Chicago as one of the best places to work in the Chicago area. We serve clients across the country with our team of internationally recognized experts in sourcing strategies and technology. The team is positioned for rapid growth and to hire dedicated professionals capable of delivering exceptional results. For more information about Objective Paradigm, please visit www.oprecruiting.com. For more information about our career opportunities, visit https://careers.oprecruiting.com. Additionally, please visit Talution Group www.talution.com and Objective ERP www.objectiveerp.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217006100/en/

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A shut cafe in Munich, Germany. Countries are relying on vaccines to tame the pandemic, but some Germans have shunned the AstraZeneca jab after confusion over guidance for administering it

Doctors and public health officials pleaded with Germans Thursday to take up AstraZeneca vaccines against the coronavirus after muddled communication about the efficacy of the British-made jabs hit demand.

Despite a raging debate about a sluggish EU rollout of vaccines, German healthcare facilities have reported several hundred thousand AstraZeneca vials sitting unused and rampant no-shows at scheduled appointments.

Officials in Italy, Austria and Bulgaria were also starting to signal some public resistance to the British vaccine, and France's Health Minister Oliver Veran got the jab live on television to drum up support.

"If you are given the choice between AstraZeneca now or another vaccine in a few months, you should definitely take AstraZeneca now," implored Carsten Watzl, general secretary of the German Society for Immunology.

"Saying the AstraZeneca vaccine is second-class is scientifically and from a public health perspective dead wrong," he told the daily Augsburger Allgemeine.

Health Minister Jens Spahn echoed the message, calling all three vaccines approved in the EUAstraZeneca, BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna"safe and effective" despite varying levels of efficacy.

AstraZeneca has been shown to be about 60 percent effective in trials, while studies point to around 95 percent efficacy for the latter two products.

However the British jab has the advantage of not requiring deep-freeze storage, with a regular refrigerator sufficing.

Barrier tape lies on the ground next to bouncers at a children's playground in Munich

Misleading coverage

The image problem stems largely from confusion around German guidance last month for the vaccine developed by British-Swedish pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca in partnership with Oxford University.

Citing a lack of data about efficacy in the elderly, Germany's vaccine commission said AstraZeneca was recommended only for people aged 18 to 64 years old.

The decision had been preceded by contradictory German media coverage about the jab.

Business paper Handelsblatt and Bild daily had reported that efficacy among above-65s was below 10 percentclaims that were firmly rejected by the German government and the company.

Even British Prime Minister Boris Johnson came out to defend the jabs, which have already been widely used in Britain on older people.

But this month South Africa suspended its vaccine rollout after a study found the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab failed to prevent mild and moderate illness caused by a variant found in the country which has since spread to Germany.

Graphic on Covid-19 vaccines authorised by one or more medical agencies

The mixed messaging had a lasting impact.

Nearly 740,000 AstraZeneca doses have been delivered to Germany's 16 states but only 107,000 had been used by Thursday, the Robert Koch Institute for disease control reported.

In the state of Saxony, which has some of Germany's highest infection rates, more than 2,500 available appointments were going unfilled this week, the Red Cross said, citing doubts about the AstraZeneca vaccine as the main cause.

And Brandenburg state surrounding Berlin said it would make the jabs available to police officers, who are lower on the vaccine priority list, because AstraZeneca vials were going unused.

'Catastrophic communication'

Spahn said officials were working to make sure none of the precious jabs went to waste, as a poll for the Tagesspiegel newspaper showed that only one in three Germans under the age of 65 was ready to get the AstraZeneca vaccine rather than wait for another product.

With more than 60 percent of Germans saying they want to get vaccinated, opposition politicians blamed the government for undermining faith in AstraZeneca.

A health professional poses with a test cassette used for an antigen rapid test for Covid-19 at a testing center in Berlin

Kordula Schulz-Asche of the Greens party told Welt daily that scepticism was spreading even among healthcare givers "which can be blamed on a truly catastrophic communication strategy" from Berlin.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has pledged that all Germans will receive an offer for their first jab by September 21 at the latest.

But with production problems and logistical hiccups slowing the vaccine drive, officials are increasingly telling Germans that beggars can't be choosers when it comes to which shot they get.

Germany has reported some success in reducing new infections thanks to a three-month partial lockdown. On Thursday, it recorded 10,207 new cases of COVID-19 in the previous 24 hours and 534 deaths.

But the decrease in new cases is stagnating and highly infectious virus variants are on the march, with the UK mutation now accounting for more than one in five infections.

And as of Wednesday, only 3.6 percent of the population had received the first of the necessary two jabs of any vaccine.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2021 AFP
They were once associated with youngsters but thanks to lockdown, the hoodie is fast becoming a go-to choice for all ages - and even hit the Valentino catwalk last month.

While it may have been dazzled in gold sequins, cape-sleeved and paired with long cream leather gloves as part of the Spring Summer 2021 Haute Couture collection, an increasing number of people have been opting for a combination of both comfort and style in recent months.

Since the start of the year, sales of hoodies at Marks & Spencer are up 115 per cent compared with the same period of 2020,' The Telegraph has reported.

So, after years of steering away from the comfy garment, celebrity stylists Rochelle White and Lucas Armitage have spoken exclusively to FEMAIL to advise how adults can pull off a hoodie - including elevate with a smart coat and opt for a fun colour to add personality to a look.

A hoodie dazzled in gold sequins, cape-sleeved and paired with long cream leather gloves hit the catwalk as part of the Valentino Spring Summer 2021 Haute Couture collection for Paris Couture Week SS21

In January this year, Katie Holmes was spotted out in Brooklyn, New York, wearing a bright orange jumper with a pair of dark casual trousers (pictured)

Jennifer Lopez was seen out and about with Alex Rodriguez in December 31, 2020 wearing a black version with a pair of Timberland boots

Lily Allen out and about in London on 18 January 2021, donning a black hoodie with leggings and trainers

'The humble hoodie has become a staple over lockdown, its universal appeal comes from its comfort and the fact its such a flattering garment the helps hide any lockdown weight gain,' explained Lucas.

'For a long time the hoodie was seen as a garment with a street and youth appeal but now it's popular at M&S popular with an older audience.'

In January 2021, Hilary Duff was spotted in New York pairing an oversized hoodie with a smart coat - a styling tip which Lucas strongly advises for the older generation.

'I always love to style up a hoodie by keeping the hoodie the only casual element in a loon so elevate with a smart coat,' hesaid. 'If you're going to wear trainers keep them more smart looking than sporty.'

In January 2021, Hilary Duff (pictured) was spotted in New York pairing an oversized hoodie with a smart coat - a styling tip which stylist Lucas strongly advises for the older generation

Actress Jodie Turner-Smith is seen walking in Soho on January 20, 2021 in New York City (pictured)

Lucas says that Isabel Marant has long been the go to lux brand for cult status hoodies (pictured left) but added that Miss Pap does a great range of hoodie for those looking to get the look on a budget

In January this year, Katie Holmes was spotted in Brooklyn, New York, wearing a bright orange jumper with a pair of dark casual trousers, while Jennifer Lopez was seen out and about with Alex Rodriguez in December 31, 2020 wearing a black version with a pair of Timberland boots.

So when it comes to colour options, is there any particular rule that adults should follow?

'Keeping things black will always work but opting for a fun colour pop option can add personality to a look,' explained Lucas. 'Until spring hits a fleece is the hoodie of choice for hipsters.'

Rochelle added: 'Hoodies can be worn under denim and leather jackets and even rocked with a rainfall jacket or mac, to create that layered, textured look.'

'Grey or stone-coloured hoodies look great with and under denim jackets or even with bomber jackets, while black hoodies are best paired with camel-coloured jackets.

Lucy Hale pictured on February 05, 2021 in Los Angeles, California donning a grey hoodie and shorts

A model walks the runway wearing ENNSTORE with TREND JEWELRY during the Flying Solo show on February 13, 2021 in New York City

A street style guest at Altuzarra Street Style, Fall Winter 2020, Paris Fashion Week, France on 29 February 2020

'As for logos and patterns, that's down to personal preference. I much prefer plain or natural colour hoodies or maybe a bold/statement colour, but if you like a pattern or even a logo, find what works for you.'

But the expert warned that the length of the garment should also be considered - especially when pairing with a coat.

'Never wear hoodies that are longer than the jackets themselves as it is never good to see a hoodie hanging out the bottom,' she continued. 'Longer hoodies work well with the macs and waterfall jackets, but avoid anything longer than mid thigh for length, as it will end up looking like a jumper.'

But while hoodies have recently been cropping up increasingly more on the catwalk, Lucas advises that they can be bought without a hefty price tag.

'Isabel Marant has long been the go to lux brand for cult status hoodies but we have seen hoodies pop up on many catwalks including Valentino,' he explained. 'But Miss Pap does a great range of hoodies for those looking to get the look on a budget.'
Workers are seen next to a cage with mice inside the P4 laboratory in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, on Feb. 23, 2017. (Johannes Eisele/AFP via Getty Images)

Wuhan Lab Eligible to Receive US Taxpayer Funding Through 2024, NIH Confirms

The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) is authorized to receive taxpayer funding for animal research until January 2024, the National Institute of Health told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The WIV is at the center of widespread speculation that COVID-19 could have entered the human population in China due to an accidental lab leak. Researchers at the lab were studying bat-based coronaviruses prior to the outbreak, a project partially backed by $600,000 in U.S. taxpayer funds routed to the lab through the nonprofit group EcoHealth Alliance.

The president of EcoHealth Alliance, Peter Daszak, was the sole U.S. member of the World Health Organization (WHO) delegation that investigated the origins of the pandemic on the ground in China in January and February. While the WHO delegation has yet to release a report on their findings, Daszak said the White House should blindly accept their conclusion that its highly unlikely the virus could have leaked from the WIV.

Daszak also said American intelligence, which indicates researchers at the WIV became infected with COVID-like symptoms before the first known cases in December 2019, shouldnt be trusted.

EcoHealth Alliances work researching bat-based coronaviruses in China was funded by a $3.7 million grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in 2014, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The grant was terminated by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in April amid criticism over EcoHealth Alliances relationship with the WIV. The NIH said in a letter the nonprofits work in China did not align with program goals and agency priorities.

Security personnel gather near the entrance of the Wuhan Institute of Virology during a visit by the World Health Organization team in Wuhan in Chinas Hubei province, China, on Feb. 3, 2021. (Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)

The NIH told EcoHealth Alliance in July it would restore the grant if it met certain conditions, one of which was to arrange for an independent team to investigate the WIV to determine if it had possession of the SARS-COV-2 virus prior to the first known cases in December 2019.

Daszak told NPR that the NIHs conditions were preposterous.

Im not trained as a private detective, Daszak said. Its not really my job to do that.

However, the WIV still has an active Foreign Assurance on file with the NIH Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare, which enables it to continue receiving taxpayer funds to engage in animal research, according to the NIH Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare.

A NIH spokeswoman told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the WIVs Foreign Assurance was approved on Jan. 9, 2019, and is currently set to expire on Jan. 31, 2024.

The spokeswoman did not confirm whether the WIV is currently receiving direct or indirect taxpayer funding for research activities involving animals. EcoHealth Alliances last known subgrant to the WIV was in May 2019, according to USASpending.Gov.

EcoHealth Alliance received a new $7.5 million grant from the NIH to help establish a Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases. Daszak told NPR that the funds his organization received from the new grant will not be used for any research in China.

The president of the nonpartisan watchdog group White Coat Waste Project, Anthony Bellotti, told the DCNF that EcoHealth Alliance should be defunded entirely for funding reckless gain-of-function animal experiments that may have led to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Were urging Congress and the White House to defund EcoHealth now and secure independent investigations into whether their treacherous gain-of-function animal experiments at the Wuhan Institute of Virology led to the COVID outbreak.

By Andrew Kerr

From The Daily Caller News Foundation
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Sarin gas released when troops destroyed caches of Iraqi chemical weapons during the Gulf War is the likely cause of the so-called 'Gulf War Syndrome' affecting a quarter of a million veterans.

The condition was previously thought to be caused by exposure to debris from depleted uranium munitions.

It has been recorded in thousands of armed forces personnel from the UK, US and other allied nations and has a range of acute and chronic symptoms.

Sufferers complain of fatigue, headaches, joint pain, indigestion, insomnia, dizziness, respiratory disorders and memory problems.

Scientists believe the root cause appears to be down to neurological impairment.

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Sarin gas released when troops destroyed caches of Iraqi chemical weapons during the Gulf War is the likely cause of the so-called 'Gulf War Syndrome' affecting a quarter of a million veterans

SARIN: ONE OF THE MOST DEADLY CHEMICAL AGENTS The nerve agent Sarin was used in the alleged chemical weapons attack that killed up to 1,300 people in Damascus in 2013. Sarin is colourless, tasteless and odourless, unlike mustard gas which smells of rotten onions or garlic. It is one of the most toxic of the known chemical warfare agents, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Once a person has breathed in Sarin, death can occur within one to 10 minutes if there is no treatment. If it is drunk, the victim can survive for up to 18 hours. A fraction of an ounce of the nerve agent on the skin can be fatal. Exposure to the gas causes pupils to shrink to pinpoint sizes and foaming at the lips. Symptoms include paralysis, loss of consciousness and respiratory failure. Treatment needs to be given straight away and antidotes include Atropine and pralidoxime chloride. Syria is believed to have one of the largest arsenals in the world of chemical weapons, including Sarin and mustard gas. Advertisement

University of Portsmouth researchers tested the urine of 154 afflicted veterans to examine levels of residual depleted uranium in their bodies.

The study, published in Scientific Reports, 'conclusively proves' that none of them have ever been exposed to depleted uranium, the researchers say.

Testing took into account the predicted decay in depleted uranium levels caused by the body's metabolism.

Professor Randall Parrish said: 'For decades, medics and scientists have been looking for the elusive cause of Gulf War illness.

'That depleted uranium is not and never was in the bodies of those who are ill at sufficient quantities to cause disease will surprise many, including sufferers who have, for 30 years, suspected depleted uranium may have contributed to their illness.'

After ruling out the radioactive substance as the origin of the mysterious condition, Professor Parrish says the most likely cause is in fact low-level and widespread exposure to sarin nerve agent.

Sarin gas is categorised by the US Centres for Disease Control as 'a human-made chemical warfare agent classified as a nerve agent. Nerve agents are the most toxic and rapidly acting of the known chemical warfare agents.'

Large amounts of the gas  which was first developed in 1938 in Nazi Germany as a pesticide  were released following the destruction of Iraqi chemical weapons caches in January 1991.

Sarin is a clear, colourless and odourless liquid which easily becomes a gas and belongs to a group of chemicals known as organophosphates.

'All nerve agents cause their toxic effects by preventing the proper operation of an enzyme that acts as the body's 'off switch' for glands and muscles,' the CDC states.

'Without an 'off switch,' the glands and muscles are constantly being stimulated. Exposed people may become tired and no longer be able to keep breathing.'

The more of the gas a person is exposed to, the worse the manifestation of the disease.

While the exposure to sarin gas from the Iraqi enemy most likely is to blame for the Gulf War Syndrome, the researchers also say the liberal use of pesticides as insect repellent may also have been an 'own goal' and compounded the damage from sarin gas and contributed to the prevalence of the condition.

DEET and permethrin were liberally given to soldiers to fend off swarms of mosquitoes causing a malaria outbreak at the time.

Gulf War Syndrome has been recorded in thousands of armed forces personnel from the UK, US and other allied nations and has a range of acute and chronic symptoms

Large amounts of sarin gas  which was first developed in 1938 in Nazi Germany as a pesticide  were released following the destruction of Iraqi chemical weapons caches in January 1991

The US Department of Defence estimates 700,000 US military personnel deployed to the Persian Gulf were given access to these pesticides.

More than 250,000 cans of permethrin were sprayed onto clothes to reduce the risk of malaria and more than 50,000 sticks of DEET were used as repellent.

It is thought 44 per cent of all service members were exposed to high levels of the chemicals during the war.

'The plausibility of the link between depleted uranium and the illness has bubbled along now for nearly 30 years, but we would argue it's time to look elsewhere,' Professor Parrish says.

'Being able to debunk the alleged connection between this illness and this radioactive substance allows the medical community to focus more clearly on what the likely cause(s) actually are.'

The Royal British Legion said its research suggests up to 33,000 UK Gulf War veterans could be living with the syndrome, with 1,300 claiming a war pension for conditions connected to their service in the Gulf.

Andy Pike, head of policy and research at the Royal British Legion said: 'Whilst we welcome further research that helps to improve our knowledge of the experiences faced by Gulf War veterans, there has been little meaningful research published in the UK concerning effective treatment for those suffering from Gulf War illnesses.

'It is likely this lack of understanding has had a serious impact, leaving many veterans living with debilitating conditions 30 years after the end of combat operations.'

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: 'We are indebted to all those who served our country in the Gulf wars and have already sponsored significant research into the effects of this conflict on veterans.

'Although we have no plans to conduct further studies, we continue to monitor any Gulf War research that is published around the world.'
West Bengal Chief Minister has pointed out towards a "conspiracy" behind the bomb attack in West Bengal's Murshidabad district that left her Labour Minister Jakir Hossain seriously injured.

Without taking names of any particular party or individual, Banerjee levelled allegation that some people were "pressurising" Hossain to join their party. The West Bengal government on Thursday also handed over the investigation into the attack to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Banerjee held even the Indian Railways responsible for the incident since it took place on its premises as crude bombs were hurled on Hossain by unidentified people on Wednesday night while he was walking towards Nimtita Railway station in Murshidabad to board a train for Kolkata.

"Railways are to be blamed for the blast at Murshidabad where Minister Jakir Hossain was injured. It was a planned conspiracy to kill him. Not a responsibility of State government, Railways and Centre are to be blamed," Banerjee said.

The Chief Minister's statement came after she along with senior Trinamool Congress leaders went to the state-run SSKM hospital here to inquire about the health of the Minister. Hossain was shifted to the SSKM Hospital on Thursday morning and admitted to the Trauma Care Unit where a medical board has been formed to look into his health condition.

Hossain suffered injuries in one hand and a leg but his condition was said to be stable, and doctors stated that he is out of danger. The Minister was waiting at platform number 2 of the station to catch the train to Kolkata at around 10 p.m. when the attack took place.

At least two other persons, who were with the Trinamool Congress MLA of Jangipur, were also injured in the incident that comes during the build-up to the Assembly elections in the state due in April-May this year.

(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 security guard who found Brittany Higgins in a ministerial suite one Saturday morning took the first step on a path that should have taken Higgins to total safety and Parliament to a total culture change. The path took them into a wilderness instead. First, to insecurity for Higgins in a career she had set her heart on. Second, to almost two years of inaction by the government on a chronic problem that lay before its eyes.

The accountability for the failure is simple. It goes directly to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, even though he says he did not know of the rape allegation until Monday this week, and, in particular, Defence Minister Linda Reynolds as the most senior person who knew, early on, that this was about rape.

Brittany Higgins. Credit:Facebook.

The woman from the Parliamentary Security Service, whose name we do not know, did the right thing. She chose to make a welfare check early on March 23, 2019, because she knew someone had slept over in Reynolds office. Security knew two of the ministers advisers had come in late the previous night and the man had left hours later, while the woman had not.

What we know now is that Higgins distress was clear. Her words are the starting point in the entire debate, and she says she had woken at one point with the man on top of her. The first thing that sort of awoke me was I was in pain. My leg was kind of being crushed, Higgins told journalist Lisa Wilkinson on The Project on Monday night.
This is loyalist killer Michael Stone - pictured for the first time since being freed from jail - enjoying a seaside walk.

The security-conscious Milltown Cemetery bomber was seen putting on a bulletproof vest after arriving. He then embraced his wife Karan before the pair, arm in arm, walked the seafront with their dog.

Stone (65), who appeared to have a security tag on his left arm, was dressed in jeans, trainers, a black T-shirt and flat cap.

Before he and his wife headed off for their stroll, Stone put on a coat and - mindful of the Covid-19 pandemic - a Union flag-themed face mask.

He was also seen walking with the aid of a crutch.

Expand Close Michael Stone and his wife Karan take a walk together following his release from prison / Facebook

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They are the first pictures to emerge since Stone was controversially released on parole last month.

The killer, who was not due for release until 2024, was freed on January 26.

The move infuriated victims, who have taken a legal challenge over the decision by parole commissioners.

An onlooker said Stone appeared relaxed as he strolled along the seafront, enjoying this week's sunnier weather.

One of Northern Ireland's most notorious terrorists, Stone was jailed for life following a gun and grenade attack at Milltown Cemetery.

He attacked the funerals of IRA members, shooting and lobbing grenades into the crowd in March 1988.

Mourners had been attending the joint funerals of three IRA members, Daniel McCann, Sean Savage and Mairead Farrell, who were shot dead by the SAS in Gibraltar.

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Stone's attack killed three people - civilians Thomas McErlean (20) and John Murray (26), and 30-year-old IRA man Kevin Brady.

After his arrest, he admitted to three other murders, including killing Catholic milkman Patrick Brady (36) in south Belfast in 1984.

He also admitted the killings of joiner Kevin McPolin in Lisburn in 1985 and bread delivery driver Dermot Hackett near Drumquin in Co Tyrone two years later.

Stone was released in 2000 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.

However, he was sent back to jail in 2006 after an attempt to murder Sinn Fein leaders Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness at Stormont.

He entered Parliament Buildings armed with explosives, knives and an axe, but bizarrely claimed the episode was an act of performance art.

He was told in 2013 that he must serve the rest of the 30-year tariff on his life sentence.

Stone, a father of nine, married his third wife Karan in a ceremony at Maghaberry Prison in 2016.

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Whatsapp Michael Stone and his wife Karan following his release from prison

Last November the Court of Appeal overturned a decision that he must remain behind bars until 2024, with judges ruling that the six years he spent out on licence should count towards the 30-year tariff.

It infuriated relatives, with Deborah McGuinness, the sister of Milltown victim Mr McErlean, saying she was afraid Stone would approach her family.

She has launched a judicial review into the lawfulness of the decision to free him, with parole commissioners ordered to disclose the reasons.

Since his release, Stone has been keeping a low profile, with these photographs marking his first public sighting in years.
A PROTESTER accused of attacking an activist in clashes outside Leinster House has been further charged with brandishing the national flag as weapon.

Gardai intervened following a face-off between groups against Covid-19 restrictions and a counter demonstration on September 12 last at Kildare Street, Dublin 2.

Michael Quinn (29), of Malone Flats, Market Street, Ardee, Co Louth, was charged in October with assault causing harm to Ruth ORourke, better known as Izzy Kamikaze, on Sept. 12 last.

The offence is contrary to section three of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act.

He appeared again at Dublin District Court today.

Detective Garda Cathal Feeley charged the accused with an additional offence: production of the Irish tricolour attached to a piece of wood as a weapon capable of inflicting serious injury.

Mr Quinn made no reply to the new charge.

Judge Walsh noted the Director of Public Prosecutions has directed trial on indictment. A book of evidence was served by Detective Garda Feeley on Mr Quinn who did not address the court.

Judge Walsh told him he was being for trial to the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court where he will face his next hearing on April 15.

Earlier, the court had heard it was alleged at 1.10pm the defendant arrived at Kildare Street to take part in a protest.

At 3pm, the injured party was noticed, the court heard.

It was alleged Mr Quinn, and some other people, approached and struck the injured party on the head with a large plank of wood which had a tricolour attached to it, resulting in injuries to the head.

It was deemed that the case was too serious to be dealt with at District Court level.

Mr Quinn, who is on disability benefit, has to stay away from the Dublin 2 area as a condition of bail. He has not yet indicated how he will plead.

On the day of the protests, people gathered on Kildare Street, Dublin 2, to hear speakers condemn restrictions aimed at preventing the spread of covid-19.

Also in attendance were a group of counter-protesters including LGBT+ activist Ms Kamikaze. Videos of the scene appeared online.

Why freeze in the dark with the rest of Texas when you can jet set to a beach resort in Mexico for some quality time in the sun?

Now-viral photos on social media show Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) on a flight from Houston to Cancun with his family Wednesday evening as his home state is crippled by a killer winter storm that knocked out power to millions, leaving Texans in the dark and without heat.

Cruz seems to believe there isnt much for him to do for the millions of fellow Texans who remain without electricity/water and are literally freezing, tweeted David Shuster, a former MSNBC anchor who broke the story.

Just confirmed @SenTedCruz and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before. Cruz seems to believe there isn't much for him to do in Texas for the millions of fellow Texans who remain without electricity/water and are literally freezing. pic.twitter.com/6nPiVWtdxe  David Shuster (@DavidShuster) February 18, 2021

Shuster tweeted a photo of Cruz boarding a plane while wearing a mask and with carry-on luggage.

Cruz seems to believe there isnt much for him to do for the millions of fellow Texans who remain without electricity/water and are literally freezing, Shuster tweeted.

Cruz did not immediately confirm or respond to the reports of his jaunt.

The photos do not conclusively show that Cruz was headed south of the border but Twitter users posted numerous clues like airport signs suggesting that he was on a United Airlines flight from Houston to Cancun Wednesday afternoon.

Colleague Paul Steinhauser confirms GOP TX Sen Ted Cruz traveled to Cancun amid the TX storm/power outages. GOP Source: the photos speak for themselves  Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) February 18, 2021

The Dallas Morning News reported that the plane Cruz was on landed in Cancun Thursday morning: Shortly after the flight landed, he retweeted a tweet from (Texas) Gov. Greg Abbott noting that 1.6 million customers had power restored on Wednesday.

Cruz is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve, said Beto ORourke, who narrowly lost to Cruz in 2018, on MSNBCs Morning Joe.

Cruz and other Texas Republicans were already under fierce attack for failing to prepare for the catastrophic winter storm and Arctic blast that has virtually brought the nations second-most-populous state to its knees.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (AP Photo/LM Otero, 2020)AP

Abbott and his allies who control all statewide offices in the GOP-run state are accused of ignoring warnings that the states power grid was highly vulnerable to a brutal winter storm.

About 600,000 remain without power as temperatures struggled to get back above the freezing mark. At least 24 have been killed across the South.

Abbott called for an investigation Tuesday of the grid manager, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. His indignation struck a much different tone than just a day earlier when he told Texans that ERCOT was prioritizing residential customers and that power was getting restored to hundreds of thousands of homes.

But hours after those assurances, the number of outages in Texas only rose, at one point exceeding 4 million customers. This is unacceptable, Abbott said.

Snow and ice grips a neighborhood in East Austin on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021. Thousands of Texans are without power. (Bronte Wittpenn /Austin American-Statesman via AP)AP

The grid began preparing for the storm a week ahead of time, but it reached a breaking point early Monday as conditions worsened and knocked power plants offline, ERCOT President Bill Magness said. Some wind turbine generators were iced, but nearly twice as much power was wiped out at natural gas and coal plants. Forcing controlled outages was the only way to avert an even more dire blackout in Texas, Magness said.

By Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News (TNS). The Associated Press contributed to this report.

More:

US needs to brace itself for more deadly storms, experts say

U.S. needs to have better planning for likely increase in extreme weather: scientists

PennDOT tightens travel restrictions on central Pa. highways during Thursday storms
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
PARIS  Stepping up its attacks on social science theories that it says threaten France, the French government announced this week that it would launch an investigation into academic research that it says feeds Islamo-leftist tendencies that corrupt society.

News of the investigation immediately caused a fierce backlash among university presidents and scholars, deepening fears of a crackdown on academic freedom  especially on studies of race, gender, post-colonial studies and other fields that the French government says have been imported from American universities and contribute to undermining French society.

While President Emmanuel Macron and some of his top ministers have spoken out forcefully against what they see as a destabilizing influence from American campuses in recent months, the announcement marked the first time that the government has moved to take action.

It came as Frances lower house of Parliament passed a draft law against Islamism, an ideology it views as encouraging terrorist attacks, and as Mr. Macron tilts further to the right, anticipating nationalist challenges ahead of elections next year.
Complementing local acute care services, the future hospital will offer physical, occupational and speech therapies, and 24-hour nursing care, to restore functional ability and quality of life. It will care for residents of southern Maryland recovering from debilitating illnesses and injuries including strokes and other neurological disorders, brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, amputations and complex orthopedic conditions.

"At Encompass Health, our mission is to provide high-quality rehabilitative care that makes a meaningful difference in the lives of our patients," said Barb Jacobsmeyer, executive vice president and president of inpatient hospitals for Encompass Health. "This future hospital will become an integrated part of the local healthcare system and provide residents with access to care that is customized for their needs."

"Providing Bowie residents and the broader community with services to meet their rehabilitation needs is a welcome addition to Prince George's County," said Nathaniel Richardson, Jr., president and chief executive officer at University of Maryland Capital Region Health. "Patients will have new choices and the convenience to have quality services offered in the county where they reside."

The hospital will feature all private patient rooms, a spacious therapy gym with advanced rehabilitation technologies and an activities of daily living suite, cafeteria, dining room, pharmacy and therapy courtyard.

The planned hospital, once opened, will become part of Encompass Health's national network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and home health and hospice agencies. Encompass Health, the nation's largest owner and operator of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, currently operates 137 inpatient rehabilitation hospitals across the country including one in Salisbury, Maryland.

About Encompass Health

As a national leader in integrated healthcare services, Encompass Health (NYSE: EHC) offers both facilitybased and homebased patient care through its network of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, home health agencies and hospice agencies. With a national footprint that includes 137 hospitals, 241 home health locations, and 82 hospice locations in 39 states and Puerto Rico, the Company provides highquality, cost-effective integrated healthcare. Encompass Health is ranked as one of Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For. For more information, visit encompasshealth.com , or follow us on our newsroom , Twitter and Facebook .

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements contained in this press release which are not historical facts, such as those relating to the likelihood, timing and effects of the completion of this hospital project, are forward-looking statements. In addition, Encompass Health may from time to time make forward-looking public statements concerning the matters described herein. All such estimates, projections, and forward-looking information speak only as of the date hereof, and Encompass Health undertakes no duty to publicly update or revise such forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Such forward-looking statements are necessarily estimates based upon current information and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. This hospital's actual results or events may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors. While it is impossible to identify all such factors, factors which could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated include, but are not limited to, any adverse outcome of various lawsuits, claims, and legal or regulatory proceedings that may be brought by or against this hospital; the possibility this project will experience unexpected delays, including in connection with the regulatory review and approval process; the continued spread of COVID-19, including the speed, depth, geographic reach and duration of the spread; the actions to be taken by Encompass Health and this hospital in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; the ability to successfully complete and integrate this project consistent with Encompass Health's growth strategy, including realization of anticipated revenues, cost savings, and productivity improvements arising from the related operations and avoidance of unforeseen exposure to liabilities; changes in the regulation of the healthcare industry at either or both of the federal and state levels; competitive pressures in the healthcare industry and Encompass Health's response thereto; this hospital's ability to maintain proper local, state and federal licensing; potential disruptions, breaches, or other incidents affecting the proper operation, availability, or security of Encompass Health's or its partners' information systems; this hospital's ability to attract and retain nurses, therapists, and other healthcare professionals in a highly competitive environment with often severe staffing shortages and the impact on this hospital's labor expenses from potential union activity and staffing shortages; changes, delays in (including in connection with resolution of Medicare payment reviews or appeals), or suspension of reimbursement for Encompass Health's services by governmental or private payors; general conditions in the economy and capital markets; and other factors which may be identified from time to time in Encompass Health's SEC filings and other public announcements, including Encompass Health's Form 10-K for the year ended Dec. 31, 2019 and Form 10-Q for the quarters ended March 31, 2020, June 30, 2020 and Sept. 30, 2020.

Encompass Health contacts:

Media: Hillary Carnel | 205 970-5912

[email protected]

Investor Relations: Crissy Carlisle | 205 970-5860

[email protected]

SOURCE Encompass Health Corp.

Related Links

http://www.encompasshealth.com


Texas senator Ted Cruz said he has no defence for his earlier tweets mocking a California power outage after the power grid failed in his own state, leaving millions of people in the dark following a deadly snowstorm.

In earlier tweets that resurfaced after the power cut in Texas, the Republican senator had taken a dig at Democrats over Californias power cuts last summer, alleging that it was a failure of the administration.

California is now unable to perform even basic functions of civilisation, like having reliable electricity, he tweeted last August, responding to a message from the California governors office that urged residents in the state to conserve energy during a heatwave as the state experienced power blackouts.

Biden/Harris/AOC want to make CAs failed energy policy the standard nationwide. Hope you dont like air conditioning! he said.

The posts have been widely shared during the current power crisis in Texas, and Mr Cruz finally responded to the criticism on Twitter saying: I got no defence. A blizzard strikes Texas & our state shuts down. Not good. Stay safe!

Texas has been struggling in the dark since Monday in the midst of a freezing winter storm, that has left at least 23 dead as part of severe weather across the country.

Several parts of the US are witnessing historically low temperatures, which in Texass case added immense pressure to the electricity infrastructure leading to a power grid failure. Most deaths attributed to the storm have been recorded in Texas, Louisiana, Kentucky, North Carolina and Missouri.

As of Thursday, nearly 3.4 million people were still without electricity, and some also lost water services. Questions are also being raised about why the administration was ill-equipped to deal with a storm.

Texas officials have urged 7 million people  a quarter of the population of the nations second-largest state  to boil tap water before drinking it following days of record low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and froze pipes, according to the Associated Press.
Mortgage brokers and banks have reported a surge in Ulster Bank homeowners making inquiries about switching providers.

The mortgage holders fear the bank will announce a shut-down on Friday and their home loan will end up in the hands of a vulture fund.

Its parent NatWest has been reviewing Ulster Banks position in the Irish market for five months now, with most analysts expecting the bank to announce a slow wind-down of the bank.

Brokers at MyMortgages.ie said they have received an influx of calls from Ulster Bank mortgage holders asking whether or not they should move their mortgage to a different lender.

Read More

Head of credit with MyMortgages.ie Joey Sheahan said mortgage holders want a greater sense of security.

He said no immediate action was required, but this could be the perfect opportunity for thousands of mortgage holders to review their current contract with a view to switching to a better rate.

Although the future of Ulster Bank is still unclear, even if they do decide to exit the Irish mortgage market, they will still have a duty of care to current customers and obligations to fulfil in that regard, so mortgage holders should not be worried or anxious, he said.

That said, it would be prudent to look at this time as a chance to review your current position mortgage-wise  primarily, what rate you are paying, and how this compares to what is currently being offered in the market.

He said the arrival of Avant Money to the market, which has rates as low as 1.95pc for those with a lot of equity in their homes, has prompted those with mature mortgages to consider switching.

Broker Michael Dowling of Dowling Financial in Dublin said new customers were reluctant to take out a mortgage with Ulster Bank as they fear the loan will end up in the hands of a vulture fund.

They are asking is it safe? Who will own my loan in a year? Will I end up with a vulture fund?

He said there was a definite reluctance for customers to go with Ulster Bank despite it having good home-loan products. One major Irish bank, which did not want to be named, said it is seeing a surge in inquiries from companies asking about moving their business banking to it.

Ulster Bank has almost a quarter of SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) business banking.

Some of these firms will now be in arrears on loans as repeated lockdowns have meant they have been unable to trade for long periods.

The banker said: We are seeing inquiries on the business side. They are waiting to see what is announced. There will be a long lead-in if Ulster Bank does decide to close, but people are looking at the options.

A spokesperson for Permanent TSB said it was seeing a general uplift in enquiries across the board, from both retail and SME customers.

The Irish League of Credit Unions said the likely closure of Ulster Bank and the expected culling of some Bank of Ireland branches meant people should consider using credit unions instead.

Credit unions are well placed to provide a range of banking services including personal loans, mortgages, SME loans, and, in an increasing number of credit unions, full current account and debit card

services.
Our team recognizes the challenges and emotional difficulties that you may be experiencing at this time. We extend our most sincere sympathy if you have experienced the loss of a loved one.

Grieving is always difficult, and we recognize the COVID-19 pandemic creates additional challenges and needs. The Virtual Family Assistance Center Call Center is available to provide emotional support and to assist you in finding the resources that you need. Please contact the organizations listed on this page, request a call back or call us directly to explore options.

If you have questions, please contact us at CondolenceCare@redcross.org.

For national resources and resources for residents of other US states and territories, please click here.
Like a professional paratrooper, President Joe Biden took off running once he hit the ground. He had used his time well while confined at home during the Covid-19 lockdown, getting a head start both after receiving the Democratic Party nomination early on and when he won the election, having left it to the political process to deliver the fruit of the ballot box when the time came. And so, on 20 January, Biden was all set to take the oath of office.

He had been wise to remain aloof from the crisis that hit with the storming of the Capitol building on 6 January, the subsequent second impeachment of former president Trump and the hearings in the Senate. He explained that he knew from long experience as a senator that, as chief executive, he should keep a respectful distance from the affairs of the legislative authority. In all events, he had a lot on his plate: the coronavirus pandemic, economic straits and an array of social issues over which US opinion was sharply divided, not least those related to the countrys history of racism.

The moment Biden stepped into the Oval Office, he was therefore ready to sign as many executive orders as he could, undoing actions taken by his predecessor. Many of those orders came as no surprise as he had previously indicated he would issue them, especially those regarding foreign policy and universal concerns, as was the case with rejoining the Paris Climate Accord and the World Health Organisation.

There was nothing gradual in his approach. One moment he moved to reengage with Europe and revive the Western alliance, the next he sent cautionary signals to his countrys international adversaries, China and Russia. To these, moreover, he added a major diplomatic offensive against a region many had thought lay at the bottom of his list of priorities: the Middle East.

As diverse as his actions towards this region may seem, they generally fall under the heading of Iran and reversing Trumps decision to withdraw from the nuclear accord with Tehran. Biden hopes to return to that agreement once certain conditions are met. He certainly understands how multifaceted and complex the problems in this region are.

In the course of his career he has personally had a long and multifaceted experience with the region, starting from Washingtons engagement in matters of war, peace and revolution in the 1970s, through the USs failed interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq and the nuclear accord with Iran, which ultimately facilitated the expansion of Iranian military and sectarian influence in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen. Of course, he would be just as aware of developments on the Palestinian-Israeli front due to Trumps support for Israeli faits accomplis as he would be of the succession of sanction regimes Trump imposed on Iran.

It is said that the immediate instinct of every newcomer to the White House is to stay clear of this region, but at the same time American leaders and their advisers realise that if Washington doesnt bring its diplomacy to the Middle East, this region will bring its wars and crises to Washington. The adage apparently applies to Biden. Having determined not to embroil the US in another military conflict here, he wants to return to the nuclear agreement with Iran.

However, the situation surrounding that agreement has not remained unchanged since Trump withdrew from it. In response to Trumps sanctions, Tehran resumed certain activities that would make it easier and quicker to produce a nuclear bomb. At the same time, its tests of missiles and drones have progressed to increasingly advanced levels. Meanwhile, it still has its greatest weapon: the influence it wields through the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in Iraq, the Alawis in Syria, Hizbullah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. All the ingredients for war are there. Israel will not remain silent and the response will not be a bouquet of flowers.

So Biden had no choice but to act. His first step was to appoint Robert Malley as his special envoy to Iran. Malley headed off to Europe to consult with allies to obtain necessary support and advice on the Iranian question. Step two was to cool down the situation in Yemen by halting military aid to Saudi Arabia that could be used in the war against the Houthis. To balance this, Biden committed to protecting Saudi Arabia against any aggression on its territory. To facilitate the arrival of relief to Yemenis affected by what Washington has joined in to declare a humanitarian catastrophe, Biden also revoked Trumps terrorist designation of the Houthis.

The central question remains how to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Iran is not interested in lengthy discussions. As Tehran sees it, Washington was the one to withdraw from the agreement so now it can rejoin it after lifting sanctions. For the US, it is not so simple. It wants to return to the agreement but it also wants to dial back the Iranian uranium enrichment and missile development programmes to how they stood before. Washington also wants Tehran to stop exploiting the anarchy in the region. In short, there are huge differences between the two sides.

But Washington has many cards it can leverage, beginning with sanctions. It can lift or lighten a few of these to lure Iran to return to the negotiating table, whether bilaterally or in the P5+1 (five permanent Security Council members plus Germany) framework. In addition to promoting an acceptable end to the war in Yemen, it can further bring down regional tensions on the Palestinian-Israeli front.

The Palestinians may not be able to obtain anything new, but at least they can expect the resumption of aid, recognition and representational rights. With regard to other questions concerning the Arab-Israeli conflict, everything will remain as it is, except for the matter of recognising the legitimacy of the Israeli annexation of the Golan. In any case, the situation as a whole is positive, especially given that the steps the Arabs have taken towards normalisation with Israel have a logic of their own.

Bidens diplomatic offensive involves a myriad details. Like all US diplomatic drives, there is a strong likelihood that it will produce results that had not been anticipated when it started. Non-Arab regional powers will draw up plans, make preparations, communicate with various parties and take certain steps. Iran, for example, wants to keep the Arabs away from negotiations on the Iranian nuclear programme.

It also wants direct talks with plenty of scope for deceit and insincerity as it manoeuvres to have the sanctions lifted and retain the gains it achieved in uranium enrichment and missile development when it returns to the previous agreement. Israels bottom line is clear when it comes to Iran: Tehran must not have a nuclear or military capacity capable of threatening Israel. Meanwhile, it would like to keep up the impetus of the peace and normalisation processes with Arab countries while maintaining the status quo with the Palestinians and the Golan Heights.

The Arab countries concerned need a counterstrategy, one that stimulates the use of the collective Arab bond in order to respond to new conditions. These conditions result from a situation in which US assistance may be contingent on Washingtons intervention in their domestic affairs and its inclination to appease terrorist forces. Before too long, as a result, the Arabs really had better put their heads together.



*The writer is chairman of the board, CEO and director of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against Coinseed, a company that purported to offer a mobile investment application that enabled users to invest in digital assets, and its co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Delgerdalai Davaasambuu, in connection with Coinseed's offer and sale of digital asset securities.

According to the SEC's complaint, filed in federal district court in Manhattan, from at least December 2017 to May 2018, Coinseed and Davaasambuu sold digital asset securities called "CSD tokens" to hundreds of investors, including investors based in the US. The complaint alleges that Coinseed and Davaasambuu did not file a registration statement for the offering, and that the offering failed to satisfy any exemption from registration. The complaint further alleges that by failing to file a registration statement, Coinseed denied prospective investors the information required for such an offering to the public. As alleged, through the offering Coinseed raised at least $141,410.

The SEC's complaint charges Coinseed and Davaasambuu with violating the registration provisions of Sections 5(a) and 5(c) of the Securities Act of 1933. The SEC seeks permanent injunctive relief, disgorgement plus prejudgment interest, and civil penalties.

The SEC's investigation was conducted by Amy Mayer and Sandeep Satwalekar in the New York Regional Office. The litigation will be led by Mark Sylvester and Ms. Mayer. The case is being supervised by Lara Shalov Mehraban. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Office of the New York Attorney General.




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A Nigerian businessman, who once appeared on the cover of Forbes magazine, has been jailed for 10 years in the US over a cyber fraud scam that led to the theft of about $11m (8m).



Obinwanne Okeke, also known as Invictus Obi, used Nigerian-based companies to defraud people in the US.

His companies used phishing emails to steal funds from victims.



In 2016 Forbes Africa listed Okeke among the most influential business people under the age of 30.



From around 2015 to 2019, he was part of a group which engaged in a conspiracy to conduct various computer-based frauds, including creating fake websites, the US Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Virginia said in a statement after he was sentenced.



It added that the 33-year-old, who was arrested two years ago, used "subterfuge and impersonation" to lure his victims.



Okeke's Invictus Group companies were also accused of working with conspirators to create profiles of hundreds of victims including people in the US's Eastern District of Virginia.



In one phishing attack in 2018 the fraudsters managed to gain access to the email of a manager at Unatrac Holding Limited, the export sales office for Caterpillar's heavy industrial and farm equipment.



They made fraudulent wire transfers to the value of nearly $11m, and moved the funds overseas.



Okeke's sentencing demonstrated the US authorities' determination to pursue international cybercriminals no matter where they committed their crimes, said the statement from the Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of Virginia.

Source: BBC









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[February 18, 2021] ACM SIGGRAPH Announces Leadership for 50th Annual Conference, 2021 Dates

CHICAGO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ACM SIGGRAPH has selected Erik Brunvand, of the University of Utah, as chair of its 50th annual SIGGRAPH conference. Brunvand is a professor in the University of Utah's School of Computing, where he has been on faculty since 1990. ACM SIGGRAPH selects the University of Utah's Erik Brunvand as chair of 50th annual conference, announces 2021 dates. Brunvand first attended the SIGGRAPH conference in 2006 and has since found a home among the community. As a contributor and creator, Brunvand has presented work in many storied programs, including the conference's Courses, Talks, Labs (formerly Studio), Art Gallery, and Educator's Forum venues. As a volunteer, he has served on the SIGGRAPH 2017, 2018, and 2020 committees, and is currently the inaugural chair of ACM SIGGRAPH's Distinguished Educator Award committee. "Not only does Erik have a passion for the history of our industry, but his background also represents the breadth of subject matter that the conference covers. In his years in computer graphics, Erik has touched everything from research to art to education, which makes him a perfect fit to lead the celebration of 50 years of SIGGRAPH," said SIGGRAPH Conference Advisory Group Chair Mikki Rose. Fueled by a love of designing and building  whether physical machines or virtual simulations  Brunvand approaches teaching by ncouraging his students to explore computer science and engineering from a wide variety of perspectives. His research has involved computer architectures optimized for application-specific tasks and, since the early 2000s, has centered on ray tracing and GPU efficiency. He holds a Ph.D. in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University. Brunvand will follow SIGGRAPH 2022 Conference Chair Munkhtsetseg Nandigjav of Savannah College of Art and Design. The 2022 event is planned for Vancouver next summer.



"I'm a huge fan of computing history and how that informs research and industry practice going forward," shared Brunvand. "I am thrilled to lead the planning of SIGGRAPH's 50th anniversary year, and I am looking forward to finding new ways to bring the community's rich and wonderful history to life." In addition to Brunvand's appointment as 2023 chair, ACM SIGGRAPH is pleased to announce new dates for the SIGGRAPH 2021 virtual conference. Live events and "can't miss" scheduled sessions will take place throughout the week of 913 August; additionally, participants will have the opportunity to explore on-demand content at their convenience from 2 August through 29 October. Submissions for many conference programs, including the Computer Animation Festival Electronic Theater, Real-Time Live!, and Posters, are now open.

For more information on ACM SIGGRAPH visit SIGGRAPH.org. About ACM, ACM SIGGRAPH and SIGGRAPH Conferences

ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, is the world's largest educational and scientific computing society, uniting educators, researchers, and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources, and address the field's challenges. ACM SIGGRAPH is a special interest group within ACM that serves as an interdisciplinary community for members in research, technology, and applications in computer graphics and interactive techniques. SIGGRAPH conferences, held in North America and Asia, are the world's leading annual interdisciplinary educational experiences showcasing the latest in computer graphics and interactive techniques. Learn more about the upcoming SIGGRAPH 2021 conference. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/acm-siggraph-announces-leadership-for-50th-annual-conference-2021-dates-301231257.html SOURCE SIGGRAPH

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Germany's BioNTech said Thursday it still intends to provide Taiwan with coronavirus vaccine doses after the island's health chief warned "political pressure" had scuppered a deal with the company.

Taiwanese health minister Chen Shih-chung said Wednesday that negotiations with the German firm to acquire five million Pfizer/BioNTech shots fell through in December "because someone doesn't want Taiwan to be too happy".

His comments raised concerns China might be trying to hinder Taiwan's inoculation drive.

Authoritarian Beijing regards democratic and self-ruled Taiwan as its own territory and tries to keep the island diplomatically isolatedincluding keeping it locked out of the World Health Organization.

In a statement on Thursday, BioNTech said discussions to supply Taiwan with doses were still ongoing.

"BioNTech is committed to help bringing an end to the pandemic for people across the world and we intend to supply Taiwan with our vaccine as part of this global commitment," it said.

The brief statement did not address Chen's comments or explain why the December deal did not materialise.

BioNTech has struck a deal with the Shanghai-based Fosun Pharmaceutical Group to bring the vaccine to China, including Taiwan.

Beijing has a long history of pressuring both Chinese and international companies when it wants to punish Taiwan.

It the first comments on the issue, China's foreign ministry on Thursday accused Taiwan of "carrying out political manipulation and hyping up political issues".

"We wish to provide necessary assistance Taiwanese compatriots in their fight against the epidemic," spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters, without addressing whether China had played any role in the delayed December deal.

Foson has not responded to requests for comment.

Taiwan has survived the pandemic largely unscathedwith fewer than 940 confirmed cases and nine deaths so farby closing its borders early, imposing strict quarantine measures and rolling out effective tracing.

But it has struggled to locate adequate vaccine supplies and only recently announced a supply of five million doses by American pharmaceutical giant Moderna and 200,000 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine via COVAX.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2021 AFP
In a new interview, Taylor Swift explained how the 2018 midterm election inspired her to take a political stance after years of avoiding it.

Swift, in an emailed interview with Vanity Fair, explained the moments captured in the documentary Miss Americana, when her candidate in the 2018 Tennessee Senate race, Democrat Phil Bredesen, lost to Republican Marsha Blackburn. In that moment, she was inspired to write her song, Only the Young."

Almost the entire process of creating that song, I was fighting back tears because I was so sad about the results of the midterm elections in my state and the losses faced by superb Democratic candidates in states like Georgia and Texas, the 31-year-old pop star told the outlet, referring to Stacey Abrams defeat in Georgia and Beto ORourkes loss in Texas. I didnt want the defeat and hopelessness I felt for our countrys future to get the best of me. I didnt want to weep. I wanted to have hope. Writing Only the Young helped me push through that moment in my life and gave me the hope to keep fighting for what I believe is right.

The tune, directed at young people, captures the moment the world learned of the election outcome and includes a call to action: "They aren't gonna help us/Too busy helping themselves/They aren't gonna change this/We gotta do it ourselves," she sings.

The lyrics also reference a "...big bad man and his big bad clan/Their hands are stained with red."

In the months that followed the release of the song, she allowed California congressman Eric Swalwell to use it in a voter turnout video. She said that while she initially had been hesitant to get involved in politics, shes since found her voice.

As a country musician, I was always told its better to stay out of (politics), Swift told Vanity Fair. The Trump presidency forced me to lean in and educate myself. I found myself talking about government and the presidency and policy with my boyfriend (actor Joe Alwyn), who supported me in speaking out. I started talking to my family and friends about politics and learning as much as I could about where I stand. Im proud to have moved past fear and self-doubt, and to endorse and support leadership that moves us beyond this divisive, heartbreaking moment in time.

Story continues

Taylor's Swift's new beau, Joe Alwyn (Getty Images)

Swift rarely speaks publicly about Alwyn, though she has previously said they always bonded over music. The two have even collaborated on songs, though you wont find Alwyns name in the credits because he wrote under a pseudonym, William Bowery.

According to Vote.org, Swift inspired about 65,000 people to register to vote after she endorsed two candidates in that fateful 2018 election.

"In the past Ive been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now," the then-28-year-old wrote at the time, denouncing Blackburn. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love.

(CNN)  Hundreds of people have put nearly 10 years of work into developing NASA's most advanced robotic explorer yet, the Perseverance rover, and the moment is almost here.

The rover is scheduled to land on Mars Thursday at 3:55 p.m. ET (Friday at 4:55 a.m. in the Philippines)..

Perhaps some of the hardest work was readying the mission during its final stages before launch in July during a pandemic. Much like the mission's name, her team persevered to make it happen and launch the rover rather than accept a delay that would be costly both in loss of science and money.

The rover carries a tribute to health care workers around the world. The 3-by-5-inch aluminum plate, installed on the left side of the rover chassis, shows Earth supported by the ancient symbol of the serpent entwined around a rod to represent the global medical community. A line represents the rover's trajectory from Central Florida to Mars, according to NASA.

"We wanted to demonstrate our appreciation for those who have put their personal well-being on the line for the good of others," said Matt Wallace, Perseverance deputy project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, in a statement.

"It is our hope that when future generations travel to Mars and happen upon our rover, they will be reminded that back on Earth in the year 2020 there were such people."

Perseverance also carries the names of nearly 11 million people etched on three silicon chips. She is a robotic scientist exploring Mars on behalf of humanity, and she'll be able to share what she sees and hears through 23 cameras, including video, and two microphones.

Along for the ride is Ingenuity, the first helicopter that will fly on another planet.

"I'm just in awe because we're a day out from landing in this ancient lake bed in search for potential ancient life," said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator NASA's Science Mission Directorate. "It is a culmination of decades of work by NASA and the international community."

Perseverance's journey

Conversations began about the Perseverance rover, then known as the Mars 2020 mission, soon after the Curiosity rover landed in 2012, said Steve Jurczyk, NASA's acting administrator.

Missions begin with the science. Mars 2020 was designed to focus on investigating potentially habitable places on Mars that could have supported ancient life, as well as exploring the geological and climate history of the planet, he said.

She would be modeled on Curiosity's design, but weigh a little heavier, move a little faster and stand a little taller. And she would need a new set of scientific instruments to investigate if life was once possible on Mars, and if so, search for evidence of that ancient life.

Perseverance  "Persy" as her team affectionately calls her  would also be going to the most intriguing, yet most treacherous, landing site yet in Jezero Crater. Full of hazards, like cliffs and boulders, it was once the site of an ancient lake and river delta 3.9 billion years ago.

Previous NASA rovers, like Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity, have "followed the water" to learn more about what Mars was like in the past. The Viking mission intended to look for life on the red planet, but scientists at NASA have learned more since then about Mars, as well as how life forms and exists on Earth, which helps them hypothesize what it may do on other planets.

"We know that the experiments that we designed probably weren't quite the right way to go about that exercise," said Lori Glaze, director of NASA's Planetary Science Division. "Perseverance is the first real astrobiology mission and one of its main purposes is to seek out those signs of past life on Mars."

Landing on Mars

Perseverance will land herself on Mars Thursday. She's received her commands and she's ready to go, her mission team confirmed Wednesday.

Due to the time delay between Earth and Mars, Perseverance is on her own during the "7 minutes of terror" of landing. She plunges into the atmosphere at 12,000 miles per hour and has to slow down, using parachutes and retrorockets, to 0 miles per hour seven minutes later when she reaches the surface.

Her team will anxiously be watching for the data she relays back through the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to know if she landed safely or not. Then, the real journey begins as the rover explores Jezero Crater for the next two years.

While Perseverance is very autonomous, she still needs to talk to her teams on Earth before driving on Mars, shooting lasers at rocks or collecting samples. Her teams, with members spread across the globe, will transition to "Mars time," beginning their days about 2 p.m. local time on Mars. For many, especially those at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, this means getting up later in the day and working into the night.

"Mars days are 40 minutes longer than the Earth days, so you're always shifting by 40 minutes every day and that gets you jetlagged," said Jennifer Trosper, Perseverance deputy project manager. "But we do this because we want to be very efficient with the mission."

Basically, Perseverance's teams need to be awake when the rover is awake.

Trosper has worked on all five rover missions, and she finally broke down and bought a sleep mask this year, so she's ready to be on Mars time for a while.

"We're really looking forward to the landing tomorrow," Jurczyk said.

"The team has done an amazing job. They always do, and particularly, being able to launch in July, and now landing in these really challenging times. It's just going to be an amazing mission, between the scientific knowledge we're going to gain and the technology it will demonstrate. And then the caching samples for the Mars Sample Return mission, we're planning to launch in 2026 and return samples by the early 2030s. This is going to be a truly incredible mission."

The agency has been sending missions to explore Mars since 1965, sharing images and knowledge gained about our fascinating neighbor. Mars has been one of the most accessible places in our solar system to send missions. But it also has a mysterious history and it may have once been a lot of like Earth -- meaning it's a great place to search for ancient life.

"Mars is the most Earth-like planet in our solar system," Jurczyk said. "That's really intriguing because by studying the geological and climate history of the planet and how it evolved, we can also inform how Earth has evolved and how it will evolve in the future."

The capable robots exploring Mars now lay the groundwork for landing human missions on the red planet in the future, Jurczyk said.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "After years of prep, NASA's Perseverance rover is ready to land on Mars Thursday."
It turned out that the pause in executions would last only until the government had the will to end it. A few months into Mr. Trumps term, his Justice Department began taking steps to cloak the identities of pharmaceutical manufacturers and testing laboratories. With their brand names hidden  and their profits protected  those companies set about compounding and testing pentobarbital, a drug commonly used to euthanize animals. By summer of 2020, the government was ready to deploy its new stock of poison.

Lawyers for the condemned scrambled to enter last-minute appeals on behalf of their clients.

But the Supreme Court, now dominated by Trump appointees and other right-wing justices, began denying appeals and vacating stays  sometimes in the middle of the night, always without comment. They cast aside questions about inmates intellectual competence, their degree of involvement in the underlying crime, their youth at the time of the crime and their horrific childhood abuse.

We felt like wed dodged this bullet for so long, Paul Enzinna, one of the lawyers who won the stay in 2006, told me, but now here it comes.

Daniel Lewis Lee, a white supremacist convicted of the 1996 slaying of a gun dealer and his family during a robbery, was the first to die  despite the vociferous objections of his victims relatives. The court vacated Mr. Lees stay of execution around 2 a.m. on July 14; Mr. Lee was declared dead by 8:07 a.m.

Wesley Purkey, who kidnapped, raped, and murdered a 16-year-old girl in 1998, was the next to die. A Federal District Court had stayed his execution because there was significant evidence that he had advanced Alzheimers disease. But the Supreme Court scuttled the injunction without explanation and cleared the way for killing him, at 2:45 a.m. on July 16. Mr. Purkey was dead by 8:19 a.m.

On it went  midnight reversals, executions carried out beneath a shroud of unfinished litigation, the questions about the cruelty of lethal injections left unresolved.

Rather than permit an orderly resolution of these suits, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in a dissent issued before the execution of the last to die, Dustin Higgs, the government consistently refused to postpone executions and sought emergency relief to proceed before courts had meaningful opportunities to determine if the executions were legal. Throughout this expedited spree of executions, this court has consistently rejected inmates credible claims for relief. The court has even intervened to lift stays of execution that lower courts put in place, she added, thereby ensuring those prisoners challenges would never receive a meaningful airing.
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A number of space companies are developing rockets to be the first to send tourists into orbit, but the latest new comer to race plans to do so with a massive balloon.

Spanish startup Zero 2 Infinity plans to float civilians some 130,000 feet above the surface using a helium balloon measuring 420 feet in diameter.

The entire journey would lasts for six hours three hours for decent, an hour in space and one to come back to Earth.

Zero 2 Infinity has been working on the idea since being founded in 2009, but is getting closer to opening tickets sales to the public for $132,483  other companies are charging no less than $250,000.

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A number of space companies are developing rockets to be the first to send tourists into orbit, but the latest new comer to race plans to do so with a massive balloon

Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin both have their sights set on space tourism and have made major headway in the market.

However, none have actually been successful, which leaves room for other companies to join the race.

Zero 2 Infinity conducted its first test in 2012 by sending a humanoid inside the capsule attached to the balloon and let it float up into orbit, Business Insider reports.

Then five years later, the firm deployed its first prototype called 'Bloostar,' which was a two-stage craft consisting of a balloon and rocket.

Spanish startup Zero 2 Infinity plans to float civilians some 130,000 feet above the surface using a helium balloon measuring 420 feet in diameter

The balloon successfully carried the rocket up to the altitude mark, where it was able to ignite its engines allowing it to float in space.

CEO Jose Mariano Lopez-Urdiales told El Economista: 'We have the capsule, the permits, the insurance, the stratoport. What is missing is a purely question of financing.'

'Spain has everything to be a leader in space tourism: it has the companies and the technology.'

Passengers will be given two days safety training and be served their favorite meal while aboard.

Zero 2 Infinity has been working on the idea since being founded in 2009, but is getting closer to opening tickets sales to the public for $132,483  other companies are charging no less than $250,000

Passengers will be given two days safety training and be served their favorite meal while aboard

Scientific experiments will also be carried out, including measuring the atmosphere and levels of pollution prior to each launch.

Zero 2 Infinity is not the only company looking to use balloons as the propeller to space.

Space Perspective announced in June that it is develop its Spaceship Neptune' that holds nine people and a mini bar, all of which will be encased in large windows.

The startup plans to launch tourists 10,000 feet into the stratosphere inside a pressurized capsule attached to a massive balloon.

Musk's SpaceX has already signed up three civilians for a trip to the International Space Station who are willing to pay $55 million each

Blue Origin is also planning to take adventures to the final frontier, but these trips would only last for a few hours and cost around $200,000

Unmanned test flights are set to begin in early 2021 and the firm hopes to sell tickets starting in 2024 for $125,000, which is more than $10,000 cheaper than Zero 2 Infinity.

However, it may be interesting to see how the cheaper alternatives will stand up to the powerhouses in the space.

Musk's SpaceX has already signed up three civilians for a trip to the International Space Station who are willing to pay $55 million each.

Blue Origin is also planning to take adventures to the final frontier, but these trips would only last for a few hours and cost around $200,000.
Brandon Russell had a tattoo of a radiation symbol on his arm when he enlisted in the Florida National Guard in 2016.

The three-bladed symbol didn't raise alarms at the time, but should have been a warning sign. Russell was the co-founder of a dangerous neo-Nazi group called the Atomwaffen Division, considered one of the deadliest in the country. The tattoo represented "atomwaffen," which means "atomic weapon" in German.

The soldier was later sentenced to five years in prison after bomb-making materials were found in his Florida apartment. But when he was asked while chatting on the now-defunct Iron March website in 2016 whether he was worried about being "found out" during Army basic training, he gave a troubling response.

Read Next: The Air Force Just Retired the First B-1B Bomber

"I was 100% open about everything with the friends I made at training," Russell wrote on Iron March, which has been linked to violence worldwide. "They know all about it. They love me too cause im [sic] a funny guy."

The ability for troops with extremist ideologies to serve openly in the military ranks is under renewed scrutiny after the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol that left five dead, including a federal police officer. Several veterans, reservists and a National Guard member have been charged for their alleged roles in the mob, and federal prosecutors say some of those people have ties to anti-government groups such as the Oath Keepers.

A 59-page Pentagon report that was submitted to members of Congress in October and obtained by Military.com this week shows the reach some white supremacist groups have in the military ranks. While the number of overall cases is low, the report states that the combination of extremist affiliations and military experience is a national security concern "because of their proven ability to execute high-impact events."

Roll Call first detailed the report's findings Tuesday, saying that the Defense Department is under threat from domestic extremists.

Of particular concern, the report adds, are groups that advocate white supremacy or nationalistic ideologies and want to recruit military personnel or infiltrate the ranks themselves "for the purpose of acquiring combat and tactical experience."

"Military members are highly prized by these groups as they bring legitimacy to their causes and enhance their ability to carry out attacks," the report states.

The military has struggled to assess the scope of the problem of white supremacy in the ranks. Experts testifying before Congress last year noted that the Defense Department had no reliable data on the number of service members or prospective recruits being separated or barred from enlisting over their extremist views.

Rep. Pete Aguilar, a California Democrat, later added language to the annual defense bill requiring the military to study how it screens for extremist views. Aguilar, who sits on the Defense Appropriations subcommittee, told Military.com in an email Wednesday that the report "confirms that white supremacists are using our military not just for training, but to give validity to their causes and even recruit our service members into their organizations."

"We have to do more to stop these hateful extremists from infiltrating our armed services," he said.

Aguilar will introduce legislation this week that, if passed, would require the DoD to act on all seven recommendations in the report. That includes working with the FBI to analyze potential enlistees' tattoos, making security clearance questions more specific, and adding new tracking codes to military separation forms to note extremist ties.

"This legislation is about keeping our brave service members safe from violent extremists," Aguilar said. "I want to make sure the DoD's recommendations are codified so that we have a consistent standard to screen for white supremacists and other extremists no matter what the country's political climate looks like."

The report notes that the Defense Department had begun work to implement most of the seven recommendations, though officials did not immediately respond to questions about how much progress they have made. The recommendation about adding identifiers to discharge forms if troops are separated for reasons tied to domestic extremism is still under review, according to the report.

Another proposal included in the report that wasn't among the seven formal recommendations is the need to check social media accounts, which are "perhaps the 'loudest' indicator of white supremacy/white nationalism involvement."

Challenges remain when it comes to conducting the checks, though. Not only can extremists hide content behind strong privacy settings or anonymous posts, there are also concerns about personal privacy and civil liberties.

Anyone who's not affiliated with the Defense Department must consent to allowing the military to conduct what the report calls "publicly available electronic information collection." Searching all prospective enlistees' social media postings could also be a lot of work, the report notes.

"Human analysts cannot effectively and efficiently search the Internet on the hundreds of thousands of people each year that undergo DoD background vetting," it states.

The Defense Department recruits about 400,000 applicants annually. About a quarter-million of them sign contracts to join the military.

Aguilar noted that tackling the screenings will require cooperation from other government agencies. There are commercial social media search and collection capabilities that might be available to the Defense Department, the report adds.

Russell's not the only service member to reference his extremist ties online, it notes.

A sailor used the Iron March website to try to recruit a dozen people to join the Atomwaffen Division. An Army specialist used the messenger platform Discord to share a recruitment poster for the supremacist group Identity Evropa. A Marine member of that same group also revealed his full name and service affiliation on Discord.

The Army specialist and Marine are no longer in uniform. It's unclear whether the sailor who tried to recruit people on Iron March is still serving.

The report also cites the case of Air Force Master Sgt. Cory Reeves, an alleged member of Identity Evropa who posted racist memes and spread far-right propaganda. Reeves was demoted to technical sergeant in 2019 and was initially allowed to remain in the service. The Air Force later announced it was taking steps to discharge him.

An Army Reserve physician, a lieutenant colonel, is also listed as being a member of the group, which later rebranded as American Identity Movement. It was not immediately clear whether the officer is still in the Reserve.

The report notes that other white supremacists in the military who didn't have ties to specific groups were planning violent actions. Coast Guard Lt. Christopher Paul Hasson was sentenced in 2020 to 13 years in prison after prosecutors claimed he was plotting to kill members of the media and lawmakers.

And in May, three self-proclaimed members of the Boogaloo movement, which the report calls militia extremists, were arrested and charged after allegedly planning to incite violence during a Las Vegas Black Lives Matter protest. The three men, an Army reservist and two veterans, "were arrested while in possession of Molotov cocktails," the report adds.

Recruiters play a critical role in keeping extremists from joining the military and further training and coordination with other federal agencies to spot tattoos and other warnings are needed, the report says.

"Without it," it adds, "DoD risks enlisting personnel who are detrimental to the good order and discipline of the military and who, in more serious cases, may become insider threats who use their authorized access to DoD facilities to cause harm to the Unit, the Service, or the United States."

-- Gina Harkins can be reached at gina.harkins@military.com. Follow her on Twitter @ginaaharkins.

Related: US Soldier Charged with Planning Deadly Ambush on His Army Unit, DOJ Says
Rome: Incoming Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has easily won a confidence vote in Parliaments upper chamber after vowing to do whatever it takes to lead Italy out of the coronavirus pandemic and rebuild its economy into a more sustainable and equitable one for future generations.

The Senate voted 262-40 with two abstentions to back Draghis technical-political government, which he formed at the request of the President to steer the country through the health and economic crises. A confidence vote in the lower Chamber of Deputies on Thursday was also expected to give Draghi broad backing, since he has secured support from across the political spectrum.

Italys new Prime Minister Mario Draghi in the Senate in Rome before submitting his government to a vote of confidence. Credit:AP

Draghi told senators they had a once-in-a-lifetime chance to rethink and rebuild the country, urging them to unite behind his government, which he vowed would be environmentally conscious, staunchly pro-European and orientated towards technological and digital reforms.

Today, unity isnt an option, its an obligation, Draghi said to applause as he outlined his government program. An obligation guided by what unites us all: love of Italy.
Egypt is expected to direct more investments into the Democratic Republic of the Congo amid Egyptian efforts to have greater influence in the country.

The Egyptian and Congolese governments signed a series of agreements in various fields, including in infrastructure, energy and drinking water, during the visit of Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi to Cairo on Feb. 2.

The two governments inked an agreement to build the Tshipuka solar park in Congo. As per the agreement, the solar parks construction was entrusted to a consortium composed of the Egyptian company Hassan Allam Construction  a subsidiary of Hassan Allam Holding, a leading, privately owned engineering, procurement, construction, building materials and utility development company  and Power Generation Engineering and Services Company  a privately held engineering consultancy based in Egypt focusing on the civil engineering, electrical engineering and energy sectors.

The $19.7 million photovoltaic power station in Tshipuka aims to resolve Kasai-Oriental provinces electricity problems by generating 10 megawatts of clean and sustainable energy.

The Congolese government has also signed with Egyptian companies an agreement to build a drinking water plant on the Lubi River in Sankuru province in central Congo, according to the AFRIK 21 website, which focuses on the environment, sustainable development and green economy sectors in Africa. The drinking water plant aims to increase the supply of drinking water to the provinces residents.

Tshisekedi welcomed the role Egyptian businesses play in Congo, particularly in the construction, energy and infrastructure sectors. In a press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Feb. 2, Tshisekedi said an agreement was reached to boost Egyptian investments in Congo and trade exchange between the two countries.

He added that he is looking forward to establishing a new administrative capital in his country, similar to Egypts new administrative capital, to counter the problem of rapid population growth in Kinshasa.

The Africa Report reported Feb. 4 that the Congolese government entrusted the Egyptian consortium Income to build the Kitoko mega project, which consists of building a 300-square-kilometer (116-square mile) smart city in Congo. The planned city, which the Congolese government hopes will help ease traffic congestion in Kinshasa, will be located 40 kilometers (25 miles) east of Kinshasa and 15 kilometers (9 miles) from NDjili International Airport.

Urbain Manoka, a Congolese economist, told Al-Monitor, The projects signed within the framework of the partnership between Egypt and the DRC [Congo], are of great importance for the DRC; not only will this improve the daily life of the Congolese in specific areas such as energy [and] infrastructure, but also ... some jobs may be created.

Manoka added, Investment is the factor par excellence of the DRCs economic growth. It creates income and is one of the main engines of economic activity. A volume of over 50% of inflows [were invested] in sectors linked to basic infrastructure and agriculture, because the country favors investments in the secondary sector, [which is considered a] creator of added value."

Egypt is also taking part in infrastructure projects in Congos information technology sector. On Dec. 20, Benya Capital (formerly known as Fiber Misr), a leading Egyptian-based information and communications provider, signed an agreement with Congos Ministry of Post, Communications and Digital Economy to build a national fiber optic network that would digitally connect all cities across the country.

Attiya Essawi, a writer focusing on African affairs for Al-Ahram daily, told Al-Monitor that these projects would boost Egypt's economic and political influence in Congo and improve its reputation among the peoples of Congo and Africa.

Essawi said the planned infrastructure projects in Congo will allow Egyptian companies to further invest in a country whose poor infrastructure requires billions of dollars in investments.

Essawi said Egypt is providing Egyptian companies with an opportunity to reap returns by investing in Congo, which would subsequently serve the national economy. Furthermore, Cairo aims to strengthen political ties with Kinshasa so as to ensure that Congo will remain by its side in the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam crisis.

Egypt is relying on Tshisekedi to support it in the dam file, after Congo took over the chairmanship of the African Union on Feb. 7. The African Union has been brokering the tripartite talks between Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia over the dam since last year.

Addressing the 34th ordinary session of the African Union on Feb. 6, Sisi said he is confident that the African Union under Tshisekedis chairmanship will reach an agreement on the dam crisis that takes into account the three countries interests and safeguards Egypt's rights to Nile waters.

South Africa was chair of the African Union for 2020, but its efforts to broker a deal to break the deadlock in the faltering negotiations over the dam were unsuccessful. The talks have been suspended since Jan. 10.

Ethiopia is looking forward to the dam serving as the largest hydropower station in Africa. Egypt and Sudan, however, fear that their share of Nile water will drop significantly due to the dam, which would affect their development prospects.

Ethiopia and some upstream countries have called for a reconsideration of the countries shares of the Nile water. Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi signed the Entebbe Agreement in Uganda about sharing the Nile river's resources in 2010. This treaty reassesses the Nile water shares allocated to the rivers two downstream countries, Egypt and Sudan, under the 1929 and 1959 agreements that set their respective shares at 55.5 billion cubic meters and 18.5 billion cubic meters. While Sudan and Egypt do not recognize the Entebbe Agreement, Congo has not signed it yet.

Essawi said Egypt has managed so far to keep Congo from recognizing the Entebbe Agreement, and has even won Congo's support for Egyptian demands to safeguard its share of the Nile water and position in the dam crisis.

Egypt seeks a binding agreement on the dam before the first phase of filling the dam's reservoir kicks off in July. Essawi, however, questions Congo's ability to bring about a breakthrough in the crisis in light of Ethiopia's intransigence and Congo's lack of diplomatic means to pressure Addis Ababa.

Essawi added, The good bilateral Egyptian-Congolese relations will prompt Ethiopia to question the DRCs neutrality in the mediation process. It may indirectly accuse Kinshasa of favoring Egypt at the Ethiopians expense.
Former President Donald Trump has largely been quiet since leaving office Jan. 20, but he is reportedly considering getting involved in a California gubernatorial election later this year if the efforts to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom are successful.

The signature math to this point suggests it would be more surprising if the petition does not qualify, which would then trigger a special election with two questions on the ballot: 1. Should Newsom be recalled? 2. If he is recalled, which candidate should replace him?

On Wednesday, Bloomberg TV's Kevin Cirilli reported that Trump is "carefully eyeing and weighing" whether he should "inject some of the Trump political machine into a potential California governor runoff election."

It's notable that the former president's reported interest is in the runoff and not the signature gathering process, suggesting he may be interested in endorsing a candidate for governor. If more than 50% of voters opt to recall Newsom, whichever candidate receives a plurality of votes on the ballot's second component would become governor.

To this point, former San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer and businessman John Cox are the biggest names to announce their intentions to run for governor, though former Trump Cabinet official Richard Grennell is also reportedly considering a bid. As a former administration official, Grennell appears the likeliest to receive Trump's backing should he run.

Cox was Newsom's opponent in 2018, and lost by 23 percentage points (61.9% to 38.1%) while presenting himself as Trump ally, faring worse than fellow Republicans Neel Kashkari in 2014 (a 20 percentage point loss) and Meg Whitman in 2010 (12.9 percentage point loss).

It's possible  if not likely  that Trump's involvement could do more harm than good for recall organizers, if their sole goal is removing Newsom from office.

Faulconer, who governed as a moderate in San Diego, sidestepped questions about Trump's potential involvement during a Wednesday campaign appearance in front of San Francisco's soon-to-be-renamed Abraham Lincoln High School.

The former mayor's team shared an internal poll (though internal polls are never to be 100% trusted) with Politico purporting to show slightly more voters favor a recall at this stage (this finding conflicts with other polling), but Newsom's best political strategy is to tie the recall to the deeply unpopular Trump, who lost the state by nearly 30 percentage points in November.

In a shot at Grennell, Faulconer's team highlighted findings from the poll that found that 52% of voters are less likely to support the recall "if a leading candidate to replace Newsom was a former Trump official."

The Newsom team has clearly been leaning into that strategy. Spokesperson Dan Newman repeatedly refers to the recall organizers "pro-Trump, anti-vaccine extremists" and members of the California Democratic Party have taken criticism for likening the recall to the Jan. 6 Capitol riots.
As with many small businesses when the pandemic hit, sales fell to the ground at the Winnipeg satellite communications hardware company, Solara Remote Data Delivery.

As with many small businesses when the pandemic hit, sales fell to the ground at the Winnipeg satellite communications hardware company, Solara Remote Data Delivery.

Tom Tessier, a former satellite engineer at Magellan who founded the company 15 years ago, has high praise for the federal governments Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy program, crediting it with making it possible for him to keep his 10-person staff on the job.

Flare is proving popular with truckers and boaters who often find themselves out of range of cellular phone service.

The company makes a rugged satellite phone unit, called the Field Tracker, that is virtually indestructible with an international customer base including defence units in countries as far away as New Zealand and Nigeria and Italy.

But because the device is durable, it doesnt lend itself to repeat sales.

Last March, just before the pandemic forced a worldwide shutdown, Solara launched a new product called Flare, a small unit that connects by Bluetooth to smartphones allowing them to function as a satellite phone when they are out of cell tower range.

It is half the cost of the Field Tracker  $499 versus $1,199  and includes a large battery that can recharge a smartphone.

"We surveyed our customers and the two things that most worried them was losing cellphone connection and charging the smartphone batteries," Tessier said. "The Flare can handle both."

After getting his staff back on the job with the CEWS  many were temporarily laid off  Solara has now relaunched the Flare as well as developing a remote data collection business in conjunction with a company called eMission LLC out of Alexandria, Va., that has connections with all sorts of international organizations such as UNESCO with potential remote data collection projects.

In the last few weeks, Solara has sold "hundreds and hundreds" of the Flare device and Tessier is optimistic about the coming year.

"Im calling it our renaissance year," he said. "Ive heard of other companies who had been operating in very low activity who are now picking up like we are."

While the Field Tracker required some amount of technical savvy, the Flare was designed for ease of use.

The app looks like any texting app and it, too, is as rugged as the Field Tracker.

Tessier said hes "getting lots of traction with truckers," fishing guides and boating enthusiasts are also buying it.

The Flare is being carried by the North West Companys Northern Stores and discussions are taking place with electronics retailers such as Best Buy and Visions Electronics, and in the future he hopes to have presence in the cellphone retail chains as well. Boat dealerships in Florida are carrying it and there is a real potential for a much broader consumer market than exists for the Field Tracker.

Although he sells hardware, Tessier has effectively built a small telephone company. Solara handles all his customer satellite texting traffic and all the billing for the satellite time plans through its own server operations in Winnipeg and Montreal.

And because his customers dont necessarily use a lot of satellite time  he confesses that the Iridium satellite service can be expensive  he is working with a Toronto company called Kepler Communications that has launched a couple of satellites in the past year.

"We are helping them get going and if we use their service it will cut our customers satellite time costs significantly," he said.

As well, over the past year Solara has started up its data collection business allowing operations such as the International Institute for Sustainable Developments Experimental Lakes Area to collect data from sensors via satellite connections.

"It means folks dont have to paddle out to the sensors and download data onto a USB stick," he said. "It can be done remotely."

Solara has done a good job innovating at its own pace while not compromising on the quality of its products.

"Theres cheaper stuff out there, but people buy for safety," he said. "The way I put it is, do you buy the budget parachute or one that you know that will really work?"

martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca
Watch: Vaccine data 'so good' it points to lockdown ending earlier

COVID vaccine data 'so good' that it points to 'earlier unlocking', Sage adviser tells MPs

UK is third in the world in terms of vaccine doses per 100 people

However, NHS boss urging caution against 'relaxing restrictions prematurely'

Boris Johnson says England's lockdown will be eased 'in stages'

Visit the Yahoo homepage for more stories

Coronavirus vaccine data is so good that it points to an earlier end to the UKs lockdowns, MPs have been told.

Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) adviser Professor Mark Woolhouse said every aspect of the UKs vaccine rollout has gone so well that ministers should bring forward their plans to begin easing restrictions.

As of 15 February, 16.12 million doses had been administered in the UK. According to Oxford Universitys Our World in Data website, the UK is third in the world in terms of doses administered per 100 people.

Scotland will ease its lockdown on Monday with the reopening of schools, while Englands road map out of lockdown will be shared by Boris Johnson on the same day.

Prof Woolhouse, appearing before the House of Commons science and technology committee on Wednesday, said the vaccine data points to an earlier unlocking than initially planned.

He told MPs: We dont want to be overly focused on dates, not at all. We want to be focused on data.

The point Id make about that is the data are going really well. The vaccination rollout is exceeding most peoples expectations, [take-up of the vaccine] is turning out to be very high.

The third thing that is very good about the data is the actual performance of the vaccine. Transmission-blocking potential is key and so is its ability to protect against death and disease and to keep people out of hospital. All those numbers are looking really good.

Prof Mark Woolhouse: 'Right now you should be looking at earlier unlocking because the data is so good.' (Parliamentlive.tv)

Though official studies on the effectiveness of the UKs vaccine rollout have yet to be released, one data analysis by The Guardian found COVID deaths have fallen 62% among over-80s since 24 January, the point at which a third of that age group had some level of immunity against the virus.

Story continues

Prof Woolhouse, who is professor of infectious disease epidemiology at Edinburgh University, concluded: If youre driven by the data and not by dates, right now you should be looking at earlier unlocking because the data is so good.

As well as the reopening of schools, which is the top priority of all UK leaders, Prof Woolhouse suggested outdoor activities should be opening up first because there is "very, very little evidence that any transmission outdoors is happening in the UK".

However, one NHS boss urged caution earlier on Wednesday, saying the vaccine rollout alone can't justify a relaxation of restrictions.

Read more:

Schools in Scotland back from Monday in first easing of COVID lockdown

20 areas where high streets are at risk of being 'hollowed out' by COVID

Chris Hopson, chief executive of the NHS Providers organisation, has set out four "tests" for easing England's lockdown: getting COVID case numbers down, reducing pressure on the NHS, further strides in the vaccination programme, and an effective strategy to control future outbreaks.

Hopson told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: We had 500 COVID patients in hospitals in September and yet, 15 weeks later, we had 34,000 patients, and we were perilously close to overwhelmed.

"So, what that says to you is that you just need to be really careful before you start relaxing the restrictions prematurely.

The prime minister, asked about the easing of England's lockdown during a visit to a mass vaccination centre in Wales, said Monday's "road map" will be "based firmly on a cautious and prudent approach".

Boris Johnson poses with a vial of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine as he visits a vaccination centre at Cwmbran Stadium in Cwmbran, south Wales, on Wednesday. (Geoff Caddick/AFP via Getty Images)

Johnson, who has previously said it will be 8 March "at the earliest" before restrictions are eased, said this will be done in "stages".

He also suggested hospitality businesses will be among the last to reopen  just as they were when the first lockdown was eased last summer.

Some lockdown-sceptic Conservative MPs are piling pressure on the PM to open up more quickly, calling for all measures to be lifted as soon as the vulnerable are vaccinated.

Watch: What you can and can't do during England's third national lockdown
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin delivers a speech during the launch of the special terrestrial Education TV channel (Source: Bernama)

Kuala Lumpur  Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin on February 17 launched the special terrestrial Education TV channel DidikTV KPM, which can be viewed from 7am to midnight daily.

The setting up of the special channel was an effort by the education ministry to increase access to quality education for five million students nationwide, the state-run news agency Bernama said.

In his speech at the channels virtual launch, Muhyiddin said the government is aware that education is one of the sectors most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. It is a difficult situation and the ministry had to close schools during the Movement Control Order (MCO) period.

DidikTV KPM will be able to assist in the implementation of home-based teaching and learning, especially for students who do not have access to online education.

Broadcast programmes are based on the education ministrys curriculum and co-curriculum, as well as news on the world of education, edutainment programmes and student-generated content, the Malaysian PM added.

As of February 16, Malaysia had reported 269,165 COVID-19 cases and a death toll of 983, as well as four-digit new infections daily.

Stringent preventive measures are being in place, including a limit on inter-state or inter-district movement and closure of educational establishments.
But those declines, while unusual, were small  measured in small fractions of a year. Researchers knew there would be a decline last year, but the sheer magnitude in the first six months left them reeling: The drop brought life expectancy to the lowest level since 2006. The last major decline was 2.9 years between 1942 and 1943, after the United States entered World War II, Dr. Arias said.

Researchers say Thursdays numbers are important because they are a numeric representation of the magnitude of the current coronavirus crisis. They may not represent a trend that will continue in the future, but they speak volumes about the sheer scale of the suffering many American communities are experiencing in the present, like the Brightmoor neighborhood in Detroit, where the Rev. Semmeal Thomas, 60, pastor of the City Covenant Church, has been helping his congregation come to terms with grief.

He said about 10 people he was close to have died from Covid-19, including his 40-year-old niece, who had just married and was working on her Ph.D., and the wife of his close friend, who was in her 60s. A number of middle-aged people in his church have died too. Some had pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension, but they were managing them.

If Covid had not come, Ruthie Harris would still be here, Jackie would still be here, Michael would still be here, Taisha would still be here, he said. It has given us, in the African-American community, this tremendous sense of grief.

Covid-19 hit Black and Hispanic Americans harder than white Americans. People in those first two groups who died from the virus were also more likely to be younger, slicing into the life expectancy figures more deeply, Dr. Bassett said. She said the coronavirus mortality rate for Black people between the ages of 35 and 44, for example, was ninefold greater than for white people in the same age group, according to data from last February through July.

Over all, the death rate for Black Americans with Covid-19 was almost two times higher than for white Americans as of late January, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the death rate for Hispanics was 2.3 times higher than for white Americans.

The 2.7-year drop in life expectancy for African-Americans from January through June of last year was the largest decline, followed by a 1.9-year drop for Hispanic Americans and a 0.8-year drop for white Americans.
No additional controlled electricity outages are anticipated but Xcel Energy urges customers to continue conserving energy through the weekend.

The company conducted multiple controlled outages around the areas it serves in Texas and New Mexico earlier this week in an effort to conserve the available energy resources, which experienced troubles as a result of heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures.

The temperatures were causing wellheads to freeze prompting production to go offline causing power generators to idle during a time of high demand, an Xcel spokesperson explained to The Herald this week. At the request of the Southwest Power Pool, which oversees the balance of the power market Xcel is a part of, Xcel Energy implemented rotating controlled outages for both residential and commercial customers around the region prompting school and some business closures.

While the company does not anticipate any more controlled power outages, it does expect the high energy demands to continue with the low temperatures.

The power pool has regained generation in other states, meaning they can operate the integrated electrical system at a higher capacity to meet electricity demand that is still high because of cold temperatures, said David Hudson, president of Xcel Energy  New Mexico, Texas.

Xcel Energy is back to operating at capacity and expects to continue doing so unless the need arises for an emergency repair. The announcement notes that any maintenance on key transmission lines will be put off until temperatures rise again allowing for normal operations.

Here are some steps energy customers can take to aid the energy conservation efforts:

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Zoompass Holdings Inc. (OTCQB: ZPAS) ("Zoompass" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its subsidiary, BlockLine Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (https://blocklinetech.com) has entered into a platform development and maintenance agreement with Titan Digital Exchange ("Titan"), a SEC and FINRA compliant cryptocurrency exchange for issuing STO's and trading pairs.



Zoompass' BlockLine Solutions Pvt. Ltd. is responsible for designing, implementing and maintaining Business to Business (B2B) blockchain based technologies. Per the agreement, BlockLine Solutions Pvt. Ltd. will provide backend infrastructure of the platform. Additionally BlockLine Solutions will receive revenues from Titan DX based on an annual revenue sharing model, providing Zoompass with a highly scalable source of annual revenue.



The agreement allows Zoompass to achieve a number of its strategic initiatives, discussed in the Corporate Update provided on February 2, 2021, that include but are not limited to being a leader in Blockchain as a Service (BaaS) as well as cryptocurrency exchange focused verticals.

Zoompass is in the position to assist institutional and retail cryptocurrency investors with technological advancements allowing for mainstream adoption. These types of partnerships allow the Company to leverage its expertise to create future arrangements including but not limited to: licensing, strategic partnerships and joint ventures.

TitanDx.CA was launched in Canada as beta mode on 29th September 2020 to selected investors and associated users and now supports more than 20+ market pairs and accepts nine key trading crypto currencies (including BTC, LTC & ETH).

Titan currently operates an OTC trading desk and plans to further expand its userbase by migrating existing offline OTC investors to the TitanDx platform.

About Titan Digital Exchange Inc (TitanDx): Titan Digital Exchange Inc. based in Los Angeles California, is a SEC and FINRA compliant crypto exchange for issuing STO and crypto trading pairs. TitanDx cryptocurrency exchange and OTC trading platform is built on cutting-edge technology which provides industry-grade trading experience for its customers, integrates with Titan's banking relationships and leverages Titan's extensive experience in meeting regulatory compliance.

About BlockLine Solutions Private Ltd: BlockLine is a subsidiary of Zoompass Holding Inc. BlockLine is an expert in successfully designing, developing and delivering turnkey blockchain as a service technologies including cryptocurrency exchange and trading platforms via the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model.

About Zoompass:



Zoompass is a global innovator in the SaaS world, focused on deploying blockchain and digital solutions including exchange solutions utilizing existing and new protocols as well as asset tokenization solutions. The company continues to buildout its digital payment infrastructure for onboarding and offboarding as well as its next generation web-based technologies and software solutions for both private and public sectors.

Contact:

Manny Bettencourt

mbettencourt@zoompass.com

Zoompass Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements contained within this release are considered to be forward-looking under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and are subject to risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the risk that any projections or guidance, including revenues, margins, earnings, or any other financial results are not realized, the impact of changes in tariffs, adverse changes in the global economic conditions, significant volume reductions from key contract customers, financial stability of key customers and suppliers, and availability or cost of raw materials. Forward-looking statements can often be identified by words such as "anticipates, " "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "believes," "seeks," "estimates," "may," "will," "should," "would," "could," "potential," "continue," "ongoing," similar expression, and variations or negatives of these words. These forward-looking statements are not guaranteeing of future results and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those expressed in any forward-looking statement. Additional cautionary statements regarding other risk factors that could have an effect on the future performance of Zoompass are contained in the Company's Form 10-k filing for the fiscal year ending in December 31, 2020, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74852
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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.

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Read our full Opinion Policies here. Updated on 10/7/2020
Foreign Minister Marise Payne was curiously reticent to confirm Nick Greiners appointment as Australias Consul-General to New York. But any mystery surrounding the former NSW premier and federal president of the Liberal Partys appointment blew out the window when Greiner touched down in New York earlier this month and was promptly installed at the Consul-Generals residence.

Have been here 10 days and at Beekman [Place], Greiner happily told CBD on Thursday morning. Beekman Place is, of course, the address of the Consul-Generals rather enviable home on Manhattans East Side with views of the East River and more than a dozen ambassadorial and government neighbours. Heck, even Australias newly appointed ambassador to New York Mitch Fifield sits across the corridor from Greiners.

Mitch Fifield and Nick Greiner Credit:John Shakespeare

Hopefully Fifield was apprised of Greiners arrival before his fellow Liberal colleague arrived. Luckily, Paynes office was prepared to confirm his arrival on Thursday afternoon, praising the former Liberal federal president for his extensive and diverse experience as ideal to promote Australias strengths as a natural trade and investment partner to business leaders in New York and the northeastern states.

The Consul-General also promotes Australias innovative and world class creative industries, education and the arts, she added.

As reports of Senator Ted Cruz's family vacation trip to Cancun were confirmed Thursday morning, it didn't take long for eagle-eyed social media users to spot a hypocritical tweet from the Houston native.

In December, Cruz responded to a CNN story reporting that several Democrat politicians weren't following the same COVID-19 precautions they were preaching to their constituents.

FLYIN' TED: Ted Cruz flies to Cancun while his home state freezes

At the time, Cruz tweeted: "Hypocrites. Complete and utter hypocrites. And don't forget @MayorAdler who took a private jet with eight people to Cabo and WHILE IN CABO recorded a video telling Austinites to 'stay home if you can ... this is not the time to relax.'"

In November, Austin Mayor Steve Adler recorded a video urging the city's residents to stay home due to COVID-19, but Adler was vacationing in Cabo San Lucas when he recorded the message.

Two months after tweeting about Adler and other Democrat politicians, Cruz also flew to Mexico as more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in the Houston area were without power and dealing with freezing temperatures. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s on Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Similar throwing-stones-in-glass-houses tweets came back to haunt Cruz earlier in the week. As the Arctic blast shut down much of the power grid in Texas, peopled pointed out Cruz's tweets from the summer where he mocked California for enduring rolling blackouts during a heat wave. As California suffered, Cruz pointed out: California is now unable to perform even basic functions of civilization, like having reliable electricity." Six months later, the same could be said for Texas.

To Cruz's credit, he didn't try to defend those tweets. On Tuesday, he responded to the outrage over his old tweets by saying "I got no defense. A blizzard strikes Texas and our state shuts down. Not good. Stay safe!"

A day later, Cruz was on a plane to balmy Cancun, and he hasn't tweeted since.
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Yanukovych's lawyers fail to appear in Kyiv's court for considering their own claim

Former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych's lawyers did not appear in Kyiv's Court of Appeal for considering their own complaint.

According to the Advocacy Advisory Group on Facebook, the ex-president's defenders ignored the meeting at which it was supposed to consider the lawyers' appeal against the decision of the Pechersky District Court of Kyiv dated May 4, 2020 on choosing a preventive measure to Yanukovych in the form of detention.

"The court granted the motion of the prosecutor's office to attract a lawyer from the center of the free legal aid to defend Yanukovych," the message posted on Thursday says.

It also indicates that the next meeting on this issue will begin at 10:30 on February 25.
PITTSBURGH, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The United Steelworkers (USW) union issued the following statement as workers prepare to mark the anniversary of the Pasta de Conchos mine disaster that took place Feb. 19, 2006:

Fifteen years after an explosion killed 65 workers at the Pasta de Conchos mine in Sabinas, Mexico, justice has still not been served.

One of the worst mining disasters in the country's history, the incident became still more horrifying when the mine's owner, Grupo Mexico, called off the search for survivors after only five days and sealed all but two of the victims' bodies inside the mine.

Not only did this disaster demonstrate the deep need for labor reform, it also laid bare the stark inequalities in Mexico.

Yet there has still been no investigation or prosecution of government or company officials, despite evidence that inspections at Pasta de Conchos prior to the explosion revealed major safety hazards.

Grupo Mexico is controlled by German Larrea, one of Mexico's richest men, with current family assets of $24.6 billion according to Forbes. Through his company he controls a global empire including mines, railroads, wind farms, toll roads and construction projects.

Larrea, who owes his fortune to the privatization of the mining industry under the neoliberal government of President Carlos Salinas de Gortari, at the time of the disaster was engaged in a bitter struggle against the national mineworkers' union led by Napoleon Gomez Urrutia. Shortly after the disaster, Gomez was forced to leave the country when the government brought criminal charges against him after he accused it and the company of "industrial homicide."

The governments of the PAN and PRI parties continued this anti-union campaign, while blocking any serious investigation of the disaster and denying fair compensation to the families of the workers.

Today, under a progressive government led by Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, there have been important changes. The government compensated the families of the Pasta de Conchos victims and has taken steps to meet their other key demand  the recovery of the workers' bodies, which remain entombed in the mine.

Napoleon Gomez was cleared of all charges and in 2018 returned to Mexico as a Senator in Lopez Obrador's MORENA party, where he has led the fight for labor reforms including ratification of ILO Convention 176 on Safety and Health in Mines.

The government is implementing labor law reforms required by the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA). But it has done little to help workers at three other Grupo Mexico mines who have been on strike since 2007. In fact, the Mexican Supreme Court may rule shortly on the company's attempt to have one of the strikes declared illegal, which could be a major setback for workers' rights.

Meanwhile, a Grupo Mexico-led consortium just won a major concession to build part of the government's signature Mayan Train tourism project.

Grupo Mexico's impunity hasn't hurt only Mexican workers. In the United States, the National Labor Relations Board last month issued a consolidated complaint against Grupo Mexico's ASARCO subsidiary for multiple unfair labor practices at its operations in Arizona and Texas, which include bad faith bargaining, unilaterally changing working conditions and failing to reinstate workers returning from an unfair labor practice strike.

As we remember the victims of Pasta de Conchos, workers in Mexico and the United States demand that German Larrea and Grupo Mexico be held accountable by both of our governments.

The USW represents 850,000 workers in North America employed in many industries that include metals, mining, rubber, chemicals, paper, oil refining, the service, public and health care sectors and higher education. For more information: www.usw.org.

CONTACT: Ben Davis, 412-562-2501, [email protected]

SOURCE United Steelworkers (USW)

Related Links

http://www.usw.org


She was posted as Lt Governor incharge after former IPS officer Kiran Bedi was removed from office through a Presidential order

Puducherry: Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, who has been given additional charge of Puducherry, will be sworn-in at a function in Raj Nivas here on Thursday. A communication from the government said that she will be sworn in at 9 am. She has been posted as Lt Governor incharge after former IPS officer Kiran Bedi was removed from office through a Presidential order on Tuesday. Bedi was the Lt Governor here since May 2016. Soundararajan arrived here today evening and sources said she offered worship at a Pillayar temple in the neighbourhood of Raj Nivas. Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, accompanied by Deputy Speaker M N R Balan and Government whip R K R Anandaraman met her at Raj Nivas and felicitated her. A delegation of legislators belonging to the opposition and headed by leader of the opposition and former Chief Minister N Rangasamy (AINRC) called on her and presented bouquets.

Earlier, an official of the union territory handed over the warrant of appointment to the Telangana Governor at Hyderabad. Krishna Kumar Singh, Spl.Resident Commissioner, Puducherry, called on the Telangana Governor at Raj Bhavan and handed over the Warrant of Appointment "to discharge the duties as the Lt Governor of Pondicherry," a Raj Bhavan press communique said in Hyderabad. Puducherry has had four women as Lt Governor earlier, including Kiran Bedi. This is the first time in the history of Puducherry that a Tamil speaking person has been posted as Lt Governor. Outgoing Lt Governor Kiran Bedi was given a farewell guard of honour by Puducherry Police outside Raj Nivas.

Sources said Bedi however would remain in Raj Nivas as per her desire till Saturday.

Two members of the public sustained injuries with one suffering fatal injuries when shot by members of the gardai last year.

That is according to new figures provided by the Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee.

In information provided to co-leader of the Social Democrats, Catherine Murphy TD on foot of a written Dail question, Minister McEntee said last year gardai discharged firearms on 17 occasions.

This was more than a five fold increase on 2019 when firearms were discharged three times.

Minister McEntee said the discharge of firearms included the 40mm launcher used by the armed support units, which is a non-lethal weapon.

Currently, the Garda Ombudsman is carrying out an investigation into the shooting of George Nkencho, on December, 30, at Manorfields Drive, Hartstown, west Dublin.

In her letter to Ms Murphy, Ms McEntee said the number of times a taser was deployed by officers last year was 34 - an increase of six on the 2019 total of 28.

However, the use of pepper spray by Gardai reduced by 6pc to 907 last year.

In total, gardai opted to use force options made up of firearms, pepper spray and taser 958 times last year.

The minister revealed the Garda Dublin Metropolitan South Central division last year was the area where officers deployed force options the highest number of times.

Read More

Ms McEntee said the use of force options in the division made up 14pc of the 958 times force was used.

This second highest division in terms of force options deployed was Cork, accounting for 8pc of the total.

The figures show Dublin South Metropolitan Garda Division was ranked third where the use of force options accounted for 7pc of the total with the Dublin Metropolitan North Central accounting for 6pc of the total.

Donegal is the division ranked at number five in terms of the force levels accounting for 5pc of the overall total.

In total, force levels at six separate Garda divisions in Dublin accounted for 39pc of the overall total last year.

Garda divisions at Limerick, Galway and Tipperary each accounted for 4pc of the overall total.

Dublin Metropolitan East Division, along with Cavan/Monaghan, Laois/Offaly, Kildare, Kerry each accounted for 3pc of force levels.

Sligo/Leitrim, Wexford, Meath, and Westmeath each accounted for 2pc while Clare, Mayo and Longford/Roscommon each accounted for 1pc.

Speaking last month on the issue of Garda force, President of the Garda Representative Association (GRA), Frank Thornton said:The GRA is proud of Irelands policing-by-consent model and would not want that to change, but crime in Ireland is becoming ever more violent, so there needs to be a commensurate policing response.

He said figures from last year show well over 200 Gardai were maliciously injured on duty.

Mr Thornton said: We have been shot at, rammed, dragged along roads buy cars, assaulted with a variety of actual and improvised weapons and punched, kicked, bitten and spat at. Our members have suffered internal injuries, broken bones, cuts needing multiple stitches and more.

"Some of these were life-threatening incidents that can lead to life-changing injuries. He added: This shows the dangers our members face daily. As critical frontline workers, gardai are as entitled to protective equipment as much as anyone else and the GRA regards non-lethal weapons and body cameras as safety equipment that should be available to every frontline garda for their own safety but also for public safety.
[February 18, 2021] UnionTrack, Inc. Promotes Two Labor Veterans To Lead Company

ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- UnionTrack, Inc., the North American SAAS leader in member engagement software, has promoted two long-time veterans of the labor movement to senior roles within the company, enabling Ken Green, the company's founder and CEO, to work more closely with union leaders and chart future product features that meet the needs of growing unions. Brad Schmelzer will serve as UnionTrack's president. Schmelzer will create, communicate, and implement the company's vision, mission, and overall direction. As president, he will oversee financial operations and marketing, while looking for both internal and external opportunities for expansion, tracking trends and new standards in the industry and in the Labor movement. "Brad is the right leader for UnionTrack," said company founder and CEO Ken Green. "His extensive experience in IT operations management and as a senior leader with one of the largest and most diverse unions in North America makes him the perfect choice to take over regular management of our team and our company." Mr. Schmelzer joined UnionTrack in 2017 as a program manager and was promoted to Chief Operating Officer in January 2020. In his time with the company, he has overseen the deployment of UnionTrack Engage to more than 1,000 customer locations and managed several large client accounts. He joined UnionTrack from the 600,000-member International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMA), where he was Director of Information Systems. Brad holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Systems from Saint Leo University and is a proud 19-year union member.



Christopher Nee has been named the company's Chief Operating Officer and will be responsible for the company's day-to-day operations including project planning and execution and oversight of the Development, Support and Engineering group. He will also play a lead role in deploying UnionTrack Engage software to new clients. "Chris is a proven leader who understands our team, our technology and our client base better than anyone," said Green. "He has been with us through thick and thin, has seen us grow from the beginning, and has earned his place on the company's senior leadership team."

Mr. Nee joined the company in 2011 with more than two decades' experience in systems support and management of network infrastructures, nearly all of which was spent directly supporting labor unions. He previously served as Director of Information Technology at the Transportation Communications Union's Rockville headquarters, directly supporting 100 end users and providing dedicated support to the union's Executive Staff. Chris holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business and Finance from Mount Saint Mary's University and has been an active union member for 20 years. About UnionTrack, Inc. UnionTrack, Inc., is a privately held, veteran owned, Maryland based company specializing in next-generation member management and engagement software. UnionTrack's mission is to leverage the power of today's connected devices to provide the best configurable labor union management software package available today. The company nearly 25 years of experience in application development and process enhancements working with trade and labor unions and membership-driven associations. This knowledge has culminated in the development of the UnionTrack Engage platform which combines the best in software processes for member engagement, dues and per capita payments, bidirectional member communications, organizing, and grievance tracking - all in one single, modern, cloud-based platform. For more information, visit us at www.uniontrack.com. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/uniontrack-inc-promotes-two-labor-veterans-to-lead-company-301231320.html SOURCE UnionTrack, Inc.

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Advertisement

Fake German heiress Anna Sorokin bundled up with a fur coat as she continues to live it up in swanky Manhattan hotel after being released from prison.

Sorokin wore the black fur coat draped around her shoulders underneath a pale pink tracksuit as she left The Nomad Hotel in New York City on Wednesday.

She also wore large sunglasses and a black facial covering to protect against the spread of Covid-19.

The 29-year-old spent her first weekend of freedom living it up in Manhattan hotel and shopping at Sephora after being released from prison eight months early last week - and making sure it was all caught on camera.

Sorokin - who went by the name Anna Delvey while duping people out of $275,000 before her 2017 arrest - was released from Albion prison in upstate New York on February 11.

In 2019, she was sentenced to a minimum of four years behind bars for duping friends, banks and hotels by posing as a European heiress to steal their money.

Fake German heiress Anna Sorokin bundled up with a fur coat as she continues to live it up in swanky Manhattan hotel after being released from prison

Sorokin wore the black fur coat draped around her shoulders underneath a pale pink tracksuit as she left The Nomad Hotel in New York City on Wednesday

The 29-year-old spent her first weekend of freedom living it up in Manhattan hotel and shopping at Sephora after being released from prison eight months early last week - and making sure it was all caught on camera

She has been staying at The Nomad Hotel - where rooms are $260-a-night - and shared photos of wine and caviar in her suite

Anna Sorokin, who claimed to be a German heiress, is pictured in court in April 2019. She spent her first weekend of freedom living it up in Manhattan hotel and shopping at Sephora

She was given time served for the 18 months she spent in Rikers Island before her trial, then was freed early due to COVID-19 and good behavior.

Immediately after leaving prison, Sorokin set up new social media accounts and reconvened with friends in Manhattan.

She has been staying at The Nomad Hotel - where rooms are $260-a-night - and shared photos of wine and caviar in her suite.

She was followed around by a German TV camera crew and reporter, and also posted on her own social media accounts about what she was doing.

She was given time served for the 18 months she spent in Rikers Island before her trial, then was freed early due to COVID-19 and good behavior

Immediately after leaving prison, Sorokin set up new social media accounts and reconvened with friends in Manhattan

Sorokin bundled up with a fur coat as she continues to live it up in swanky Manhattan hotel after being released from prison

In 2019, she was sentenced to a minimum of four years behind bars for duping friends, banks and hotels by posing as a European heiress to steal their money

She and one of her friends were seen buying make-up at Sephora on Sunday. A videographer trailed their every move.

She also asked fans on social media to tune in to a 'live' video where she promised a no-holds-barred Q&A but then disappointed them by only filming herself in the bathtub and not answering any questions.

How long Sorokin will be able to stay in the country remains a mystery.

She is a German citizen and has no legal status in the US but has never been deported. ICE did not immediately respond to inquiries about her status on Monday morning.

She tweeted that she wouldn't leave until 'black people have reparations'.

Anna Sorokin, aka Anna Delvey, leaves prison on February 11 with her attorney (right) and a German reporter (left) who trailed her for the weekend

One of her first stops was to get her hair done at Valentino Jet Salon. It was filmed as part of the TV special

Sorokin, wearing a $1,000 Canada Goose coat, perused clothes after having her hair cut

Sorokin standing beneath a neon sign that reads 'It is OK for me to have everything I want' and right, with German TV reporter Daniela Hoffmann

Anna Sorokin, aka Anna Delvey, was released from prison on Thursday. She checked into The Nomad Hotel over the weekend

Delvey and her friend went shopping at Sephora in Nomad to stock up on make-up and skincare

Sorokin declined an interview with DailyMail.com when she was released from prison on Thursday, saying she wasn't 'ready'.

But she spent the weekend with a German reporter who trailed her through the city, and has also been filming with the videographer for an unspecified project.

Netflix has already paid her $320,000 to consult on a series about her crimes.

She used most of the money to pay off her victims.

Cheers to the weekend: Sorokin and her friend drank a variety of wines in their suite

Posing for documentary: A film crew was in the convicted felon's hotel room to document her every move

Room service: Sorokin ordered yogurt, berries and granola for herself in the hotel

Sorokin told fans on Sunday she'd do a 'FULL Q&A' on Instagram live

When it came down to it, she said she was having 'tech problems'. She then just showed them her bathtub

Sorokin said she won't leave the US until 'they give Black people reparations'. Her legal status is unknown

Sorokin duped friends, hotels and even banks into giving her money between 2016 and 2017.

She pretended to be the daughter of a mysterious oil baron in Europe and lived an exorbitantly expensive lifestyle in Manhattan without ever actually paying for it.

It came crashing down in 2017 after she took a friend, a Vanity Fair photo editor, to Marrakesh with her, racked up thousands in charges at hotels and then gave the photo editor the $62,000 bill, promising to pay her back.

Sorokin also convinced banks to give her huge overdrafts, and would convince luxury hotels into giving her the keys to rooms, promising to pay later.

She always denied the charges and said she intended to create an arts club in New York that would be her legacy.

Sorokin is the daughter of a Russian truck driver.

Her parents say she left them to go to live in Paris and London years ago, and that they have had no contact with her.

Sorokin pleaded not guilty and maintained her innocence throughout trial, insisting it was all a misunderstanding.

Her trial took place in Manhattan in 2019 and included tantrums from Sorokin over her wardrobe.
2021 was the year that I was going to get rid of my gas stove. For a while now, my husband has been convinced that when I cook (which I do, often and at great length), the air in the house gets thick, and he feels sick. Late last year, I finally had to admit to myself that he might be right: When I spend two hours in the kitchen with the gas stove going, I dont feel so great either. So I got an induction hot plate and an Instant Pot, added them to our countertop alongside our big toaster oven and electric kettle, practiced cooking like I live in an RV, and began keeping an eye out for sales on induction ranges.

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Last year was also the year when news sites across the internet began to publish great pieces arguing that we should phase gas stoves out of our lives. (Never before has an unpopular and annoying position held by my husband been so clearly supported by so much evidence presented by such fine journalists.) In 2020, Jonathan Mingle, Rebecca Leber, Sabrina Imbler, and Bill McKibben made clear and forceful arguments in Mother Jones, the Atlantic, the New Yorker, Undark, and in Slate: Gas stoves are bad for your health; they are bad for the climate; their gold-standard culinary reputation has been partially manufactured by shady PR firms employed by an industry determined to resist home cooks drift toward electrification. They should, in short, fade away, like the scent of butane on a cleansing breeze.

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However, in Texas 

Staying someway steady at 49 degrees in my house. The whole 2-3 hours on, 5-6 hours off thing is not fun. Luckily I have a gas stove so I boiled water & put it in jugs to help warm up blankets. Im from the north and know how to deal with cold.

I feel for those who are struggling  Dr. Andrew McGregor (@admcgregor85) February 17, 2021

Cooking is the number one way youre polluting your home, Shelly Miller, an environmental engineer who studies air quality, told Leber. We ran a piece in December of last year, by Mingle, that summarized the results of four decades of research: Stoves and furnaces that burn natural gas produce particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and formaldehyde, and can be connected to high rates of childhood asthma and elevated risk of heart attacks and other respiratory problems. Possibly, Mingle found, people who had been exposed to high levels of nitrogen dioxide (like what you get when you are around a gas stove day in and day out) are more susceptible to dying from COVID-19. Every piece on the topic has a sentence like this one, from Mingles: Gas appliances can produce levels of air pollution inside homes that would be illegal outdoors in the United States. (That problem can be surmounted with good ventilation, but the right exhaust hood is pricey and not required by building regulations, so almost nobody has one, least of all renters who move from place to place. An above-the-stove fan, like what we have, is basically useless.)

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And yet, down south 

18+ hours without power. Luckily, we have a gas stove, running water, plenty of food, and blankets. But the roads are really slick and I worry about those nearby who are less prepared for a cold weather event of this proportion. Yall hang in there. XO  Anne Halsey (@anne_halsey) February 16, 2021

Gas cooking and heating is not just bad for you; its bad for everyone. Writing in the New England Journal of Medicine in January of 2020, Philip J. Landrigan, Howard Frumkin, and Brita Lundberg summed it up: Gas is associated with health and environmental hazards and reduced social welfare at every stage of its life cycle. Emissions from buildings powered by oil and gas make up 12 percent of our national total every year, which is why cities across the United States are exploring policies discouraging gas hookups in new houses, and why a lot of climate hawks argue that we should be electrifying everything. Electricity has an increasing potential to become clean, as we transition to solar or wind, and an electric house can follow suit as the grid shifts over; a gas house will be stuck with gross old gas.

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Even so 

I lost power for a week in October (in Maine) a couple years back. When it got really cold, I had a gas stove so I would light it with a match and just boil water for a little while. Running the stove or the oven (if you can light the pilot light) made a huge difference.  NanoPierogi (@NanoPierogi) February 16, 2021

As an avid home cook, with a father whos also one, I learned early on that you have to have a gas stove (which is why I resisted my husbands revelation for so long). But many professional chefs (as Mother Jones Tom Philpott found in a 2019 piece) are exploring the possibilities of transitioning to induction. Induction, Ive found in the couple months of using my hot plate, is nifty: It feels more technical than gas, with the beep-beep of its digital keypad and its cold blue light, but I find I dont mind. Its easy to control, and it boils water very quickly. I havent bought a full range yet because they are not cheap, and part of me is still dithering.

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Why havent I made the leap? Because 

big ups to my gas stove this morning. Yes its dark but I still made this sandwich pic.twitter.com/jRe1jH4qtN  Dell Cameron (@dellcam) February 15, 2021

Advocates of switching from gaswho, I must reiterate, are correct on so many pointshave another hurdle to clear, and one thats been thrown into frigid relief by the winter storm crisis currently gripping Texas and much of the American South and Midwest. They must address the indisputable fact that having a gas stove is a significant advantage in an emergency when the power is out. Its one of the only choices a typical homeownersomeone who cant afford to go off the grid with solar power (I wish) or have a whole-house generatorcan make that will soften the blow of a power outage. While you shouldnt try to heat your house with your gas stove when the power is out (thats dangerous), just being able to cookor boil water when water treatment plants fail (as they have in parts of Texas)is a real blessing.

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Things should be done by the government, and could be done, so that such outages are less likely to happen. The grid should be made more resilient, infrastructure should be kept up (and should be better winterized), administrators should be better prepared for the increasing chaos of climate changefueled weather events. But it feels like I have little control over any of that, right now, in the midst of a brutal winter. What I can do is keep my old, dirty, disgustingand potentially clutch, in a crisisgas stove. Someone, please (sincerely, Im all ears!), tell me why Im wrong.

Associate features editor

Margaret Button is the associate editor of Berkshires Week and writes a weekly food. She has been with The Eagle since 2014. Maggy can be reached at mbutton@berkshireeagle.com and on Twitter at @ButtonMaggy.
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Kim Bong-jin (45) and his wife Sul Bo-mi are joining the Giving Pledge, a campaign to encourage the world's wealthiest people to contribute majority of their wealth to philanthropic causes.

The founder of Woowa Brothers, which operates Korea's largest food delivery app Baedal Minjok, has pledged to donate half of his personal wealth to charity.

The pledge was started in 2010 by Bill Gates and his wife Melinda as well as Berkshire Hathaway chief Warren Buffett. Donors wishing to join must be worth at least US$1 billion and pledge to donate more than half of their wealth to charity.

So far, 239 people from 24 countries have joined, including Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Kim and Sul are the first Koreans.

In 2018 and 2019, Kim donated W7.1 billion to the Community Chest of Korea, setting a new record for an individual (US$1=W1,107). The money is being used to offer scholarships and help delivery workers cover medical and living expenses.

Kim founded Woowa Brothers in 2010 with an investment of only W30 million and sold off the company to Berlin-based Delivery Hero for US$4 billion in 2019. The German company agreed to pay Woowa Brothers 1.9 billion euros in cash and 40.1 million of its own shares.

At the time, Kim's stake in Delivery Hero stood at 9.9 percent and was worth around W480 billion. But the value surged 2.5 times since then due to the explosive demand for food delivery in lockdown and is now apparently worth more than W1 trillion. That means he is expected to donate more than W550 billion to charity under the pledge.
World Health Organization investigators are honing their search for animals that could have spread the new coronavirus to humans, identifying twoferret badgers and rabbitsthat can carry the virus and were sold at a Chinese market where many early cases emerged.

Members of a WHO team probing the pandemics origins say further investigation is needed into suppliers of those and other animals at the market, some of which came from a region of China near its Southeast Asian borders where the closest known relatives of the virus have been found in bats.

Team members say they have yet to establish all the creatures sold, legally or illegally, live or dead, at the market in the Chinese city of Wuhan that was tied to the first known cluster of cases in December 2019.

Chinas National Health Commission and foreign ministry declined to comment.

The WHO team is juggling multiple competing hypotheses and still isnt sure if the virus first jumped from animals to humans at the market or if it was circulating elsewhere first. But working with the available evidence, they are gaining a stronger understanding of which animals could have plausibly been vectors.

WHO investigators also want China to conduct widespread testing of its mink farms, following the discovery that the virus had spread back and forth between mink and humans in Europe.

Continuing uncertainty over how, when and where the virus first spread to humans is feeding international tensions, with the U.S. and China trading accusations that they are hindering the WHOs investigation.

The WHO team recently made a four-week trip to Wuhan, after months of negotiation, but its access to local scientists and their data depended on cooperation from Beijing, which has repeatedly suggested the virus originated outside China.

The market remains a focus of the probe because it was tied to the earliest known cluster of infections and because WHO scientists believe the virus most likely originated in bats and spread to humans via another animal, possibly on a farm or at a market. Many scientists have suggested that the virus could have spread via Chinas illegal wildlife trade.

Peter Daszak, a zoologist on the WHO team, said in an interview that ferret badgers were among carcasses found in freezers at the market, and that while they tested negative, they were capable of carrying the virus.

It provides a pathway for how the virus could have gotten into Wuhan," Dr. Daszak said.

Ferret badgers, which live mainly in southern China, are from the same family of mammals as weasels and otters, and they are often hunted and traded for food or fur, despite being a protected species.

Dr. Daszak said rabbits were also present in the market, and they turn out to be quite susceptible to SARS-CoV-2."

Marion Koopmans, a Dutch virologist on the WHO team, also identified ferret badgers and rabbits as the animals there that are thought to be capable of carrying and spreading the virus.

Identifying the animal that likely first infected a human is a critical step in the investigation as it could help to trace the virus to its original reservoir, most likely a bat colony, and help prevent it from spreading again to humans, scientists say.

Dr. Daszak said supply chains for the 10 stalls selling wild animals in the market included wildlife farms in the southern Chinese provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi and Yunnan, which borders Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar.

That was a critical finding, he said, because two close viral relatives of SARS-CoV-2 were found in bats in Yunnan province. And pangolinsscaly, ant-eating mammalswith similar viruses were found in Guangxi and Guangdong provinces.

But he and other team members said that the investigation needed to look also at other countries, especially in Southeast Asia, where similar coronaviruses had recently been found, including Thailand and Cambodia.

I do think its quite feasible that an animal could have come across the border," he said. Its also possible that a frozen carcass could have been shipped over."

Although the virus can survive for long periods when chilled or frozen in laboratory experiments, it is also weakened when frozen and thawed and its unclear whether it remains infectious afterward, many scientists say.

The WHO team still didnt know if other animals that could carry the coronavirus, including civet cats and raccoon dogs, were actually sold at the market, team members said.

They also said they had tried in vain to establish whether there were live mammals there. Dr. Daszak said during the Wuhan mission the team was told repeatedly there werent. We dont know if thats true," he said, adding that vendors could have been selling wildlife illegally.

Former vendors, and the manager of a company that began disinfecting the market shortly before it closed on Jan. 1, 2020, have told The Wall Street Journal they saw carcasses and caged live mammals, including dogs, rabbits and badgers.

WHO and other scientists say any infected animal or meat might have been sold weeks earlier or removed from the market before Chinese authorities arrived, especially if it was illegal wildlife.

Chinese authorities who started taking samples from the market on Dec. 31, 2019, say they found traces of the virus in environmental samples taken from sewers, stalls and other surroundings, but not in any of the animal specimens.

Liang Wannian, the head of a Covid-19 expert panel of Chinas National Health Commission, said last week there were no positive results in antibody tests on 1,914 samples from 35 different species of wild animals, and in PCR testswhich detect genetic material from the viruson 50,000 samples from 300 different wildlife species in China.

Dominic Dwyer, an Australian microbiologist on the WHO team, said in an interview that it makes sense to include Southeast Asian and other countries in the search. But it doesnt mean that theres an interpretation that thats exactly where it came from, or that it didnt come from China," he added.

Dr. Dwyer said more work needed to be done to establish exactly what animals were sold at the Wuhan market, legally and illegally.

Just because a wildlife trade is illegal, doesnt mean it doesnt happen, and thats tricky," he said. Theyve got to avoid the kind of thought process of saying its illegal therefore it wouldnt have happened. Youve still got to follow these things up."

He and other team members also said that China needed to conduct widespread testing of its mink farms, even though they are mostly in its north. China hasnt reported any mink outbreaks, and I think thats an area they need to do some work over," Dr. Dwyer said.

Dr. Koopmans said that the virus spreads too quickly through mink to make it an ideal reservoir for the virus, though closer examinations of newborn mink, whose immune systems respond differently, could potentially change that assessment.

Peter Ben Embarek, the WHO team leader, said in an interview published in Science magazine on Sunday that investigators wanted to do more systematic studies, particularly in China, on other animals susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, including minks, foxes and raccoon dogs.

He and other team members also said it was unlikely that the virus first entered Wuhanas Chinese officials suggestvia other kinds of frozen food imports because there were no widespread Covid-19 outbreaks in food factories elsewhere in the world at the time.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text

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The Worcester Regional Transit Authority Advisory Board voted Thursday morning to extend the suspension of fare collection through June.

The motion passed 8-0, with an abstention coming from WRTA Advisory Board chairperson William J. Lehtola. As it stands, fares will resume on July 1.

The discussion Thursday morning centered around the allocation of the $37.2M the WRTA received in COVID relief funds from the CARES Act. Advocates for a fare-free system, many from the Zero-Fare WRTA coalition, have been promoting using the funds to continue a suspension of fare collection.

WRTA Administrator Dennis Lipka, however, argued the funds are better served financing a five year plan and detailed some of that plan, which was discussed in a finance subcommittee last week.

Lipka advocated that the administration was in need of resuming fares on March 20  with the fare suspension in place until then, Lipka says, more than $3M of the CARES Act money the WRTA was awarded from federal government will already have been spent.

Its pretty clear that we understand completely that we know we can use CARES Act funds to replace lost revenue because of a suspension of a fare policy, Lipka said.

Citing Brockton as an example of an RTA that has resumed fare collection safely, he added, Its pretty clear that weve got pretty good evidence that the fare collection operation is not a way pandemic virus spreads substantially.

With that in mind, we think its proven at this time to move forward with the resumption of the fare policy and stop using the CARES Act money for replacement of fare revenue, he continued. And, moving forward, to continue the sustenance of the operating budget of the WRTA.

Congressman Jim McGovern, a longtime champion of public transportation, thanked the board Thursday for its swift action in suspending fares at the beginning of the pandemic and for keeping the policy in place throughout the pandemic.

He noted, however, that public transit systems are relied upon by vulnerable populations, many of which are essential workers, who will need the buses for transportation to receive COVID vaccines.

The bottom line is the people in our community who are being hit hardest by the pandemic are often the same people who rely most heavily on our transit system, he said. Ideas like covering fares are not just about extending a hand to those in need. Theyre just as much about helping us crush the virus and recover faster because essential workers [that] commute on transit who live downtown are going to need to ride the bus to get to be vaccinated.

The last thing we need is for shots not to get in the arms of people because they couldnt get to where they needed to go, he added.

Kristiana Lachiusa, the communications manager for Livable Streets Alliance, a Metro-Boston based transportation advocacy organization, encouraged the WRTA to stick with a fare-free policy as well.

You may not recognize it, but leaders across the state and across the country are looking to Worcester as a model for more equitable and efficient transit, Lachiusa said. I encourage you to keep going. This is serving as important proof of concept effort that is a critical step towards making the case for sustaining funding for this type of program to be put into place more permanently in Worcester and more broadly for other transit systems across the state.

Board member Bob Spain pushed back on the idea of allocating the funds in a five year operational manner.

Its actually an eight year plan because it really started with 2020, all the way through 27, said Spain. So your intent is to spend these dollars in different fiscal years for money that was meant to be temporary. I dont think thats a great way to do business.

This is a temporary situation, he added. We have temporary funds. Lets use them to give the people a break. And were still in great shape to run our system.

Worcester Councilor-at-Large Gary Rosen, who is a WRTA board member, hinted at state legislation that might be filed soon that would provide funding for zero-fare pilot program in Worcester.

I expect were going to hear more about it soon, Rosen said. But my colleagues on the board today, please understand that we can use the CARES Act money for helping our riders out. The RTA, of course we have financial problems, every single RTA in the country does, but we have CARES money for that for the next several years.

Riders, Rosen argued, are in an even worse financial situation.

Our riders have even more, even worse, financial problems than we do, he said. ...So Im saying if we can extend the fare free right through June 30 the end of the fiscal year, and then we take another look.

Spains motion to continue the zero fare through June 30, with a resumption on July 1, was then presented to the board, and passed with a 8-0 vote.

A push for a permanent fare free bus system in Worcester has gained considerable momentum over the past two years. At the helm of advocacy is Zero Fare WRTA, a coalition formed after the Worcester Regional Research Bureaus Implications of a Fare-Free WRTA report published in May of 2019. The coalition is made up of citizens advocating and organizing for a Worcester public transit system that is efficient, frequent, convenient and free, the group says.

The Mass. Audobon Society recently vocalized its support for an extension of the WRTAs fare free policy as well.

We recommend extending the fare-free policy until more information is available about Federal and State level subsidiaries that may become available due to the commitment of President Biden and his administration to addressing climate change impacts, Deborah D. Cary, manager of community advocacy and engagement for Mass. Audubon, wrote in a letter to city officials.

Last March. Senate President Emerita Harriette Chandler addressed city officials in a letter, stating, As Worcester continues to undergo a renaissance, there has never been a better time to undertake a zero-fare approach to the [Worcester Regional Transit Authority]. It has been shown to dramatically increase ridership across demographic groups and destigmatize the use of public transit, bringing with it numerous benefits. Increased ridership offers potential for increased pedestrian traffic in our downtown and commercial districts, generating more lively, walkable areas and increased foot traffic for our businesses.

A panel discussion on implementation of a fare free bus system in Worcester was held in December of last year featuring Senator Chandler, State Rep. David LeBoeuf, Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu, Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera and Worcester Regional Research Bureau research associate Tom Quinn.

The conversation we are having now, I imagine is very similar to what it was like when people first started public libraries, Wu told the panel. ...In this case, we have a lot documentation. We have proof from Lawrence. We have research in Worcester. And we have a whole lot of energy in Boston to back it up as well...The pandemic, in fact, is not the moment to ease off because we are experiencing financial hardships everywhere. It is the moment to dig in and say, This is forcing us to reimagine. This is forcing us to rethink how we pay for things and how we invest in things people desperately need.

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PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A veteran Federal agent, who was shot by his own holstered Sig Sauer P320 semi-automatic service handgun, has filed a $10 million lawsuit in United States District Court alleging his injuries were the result of the gun's potentially deadly design defects that allow it to suddenly fire without the user touching, let alone, pulling the trigger. Plaintiff-Agent Keith Slatowski, of suburban Philadelphia, is the latest casualty of the sidearm. He is jointly represented by trial attorneys from Bagnell Law, LLC, of Westport, CT, and Saltz Mongeluzzi & Bendesky P.C., of Philadelphia. The complaint, filed in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, is believed to be the first such filing in Pennsylvania.

Jeffrey S. Bagnell, who has represented numerous victims nationwide of Sig Sauer's P320, said the complaint (Slatowski v. Sig Sauer, Inc. 2:21-cv-00729, 02/17/2021) is brought on behalf of "an exemplary, highly trained public employee, former Marine, husband and father of four, who is lucky to be alive. He is hopeful that this latest incident will finally result in Sig Sauer recalling the P320." He added, "There are hundreds of thousands of these guns in circulation now  in the holsters of police and in households of private citizens  and we believe, based on the disturbing number of incidents to date, that they present a serious safety risk to their owners and those around them."

The complaint, which includes claims of defective design, deceptive marketing practices, and negligence, details how 48-year-old Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent Slatowski, while preparing to fire his service weapon on September 21, 2020, at a government firing range, was suddenly shot with a 9mm round without touching the trigger. Introduced in 2014 by the New Hampshire-based manufacturer, the modular P320 features a striker-fired mechanism that replaced the tradition double-action hammer.

According to the complaint, "the bullet struck him in his upper right hip and exited out the back of his lower thigh, causing substantial injury, maceration of tissue, blood loss, and nerve damage," according to the complaint. While the manufacturer expressly warrants the gun will never fire  holstered or not - unless "you want it to," the complaint alleges it discharged "without the trigger being pulled." The agent's physical and psychological injuries are detailed in the complaint.

"To this day I'm shocked that a firearms manufacturer would design, build and sell a lethal weapon knowing it could fire without the most highly trained soldier, agent, or civilian ever touching the trigger," said Agent Slatowski following the complaint filing. "I also cannot believe that the gun maker repeatedly has blamed the victims for their own negligence, as if me, the sheriff's deputy in Virginia whose leg was shattered, the special forces operative in Canada, on and on, were all at fault, as if we intended to shoot ourselves. They don't confront the fact their gun is prone to defective firing and somebody's going to get killed unless they're recalled and fixed."

Robert Zimmerman, of SMB https://www.smbb.com, and Mr. Bagnell's co-counsel, said that Agent Slatowski, who is unable to work and undergoing further treatment for his debilitating injuries, recognizes the importance of the justice system to hold Sig Sauer responsible for its actions. Unlike manufacturers of other consumer and workplace products, such as automobiles, industrial equipment and machinery, and household appliances, gun makers have not fallen under the jurisdiction of federal safety agencies, such as the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

"Everyone can agree that a gun should not discharge unless it is intended. Tragically, that is what happened here when this product defectively discharged a bullet into the leg of a highly trained and well respected law enforcement officer. As outlined in the complaint, Sig Sauer has claimed that the P320 meets 'federal government standards for gun safety', which is all part of its spin campaign to cover up its failure to protect its customers and the public from harm. Instead of doing the right thing  recalling the gun and making it safe for every owner  it has repeatedly put profits over safety. Mr. Bagnell is widely recognized at the forefront of litigators successfully representing victims of the defective P320. It was ideal to partner with him in this case given our firm's extensive experience and results in litigating complex product liability cases regionally and nationally. As a team, we're working to hold Sig Sauer accountable for its actions at trial." SMB's Larry Bendesky and Scott A. Fellmeth are also counsel-of-record.

Mr. Bagnell https://www.bagnell-law.com last year filed a nearly identical complaint (Jinn vs. Sig Sauer, Inc.,1:2020cv01122) in the Southern District of New York on behalf of a Homeland Security Investigations special agent who in 2019, while training at a Bronx firing range, was wounded when his service P320 defectively fired a round. His other P320 victims include former Loudon County, Virginia Sherriff's Deputy Marcie Vadnais (her career ended in 2018 when, without touching the trigger, her holstered gun fired, shattering her leg), said, "These un-commanded discharges of P320s have happened all over the country. Only blocks from where this lawsuit is being filed, a SEPTA Transit Police Officer's P320 fired while he was on duty in Suburban station in August 2019. It was only sheer luck that neither he nor nearby bystanders were hit. It is not okay that this keeps happening."

The complaint also states that defendant's conduct was so egregious that is goes "beyond all possible bounds of decency, and be regarded as atrocious, and utterly intolerable in a civilized community."

SOURCE Saltz Mongeluzzi

Related Links

https://www.smbb.com/


 "'My Bewildering Brain Toils in Vain': Traumatic Brain Injury, the Criminal Trial Process, and the Case of Lisa Montgomery" | Main | "Rigging the jury: How each state reduces jury diversity by excluding people with criminal records" 

February 18, 2021

DEPC event on "Criminal Justice Reform in Ohio" and original resources on "Drug Sentencing Reform in Ohio"

I am very excited that next week the Drug Enforcement and Policy Center (DEPC) at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law is hosting a virtual panel discussion, titled "Where Do We Go From Here?: Criminal Justice Reform in Ohio" at 2pm on February 24, 2021. Here is the description and run down of the exciting event:

Ohio has a long history of criminal justice reform and drug sentencing reform, and yet few can be pleased that Ohio still has the 12th highest incarceration rate in the country and one of the highest rates of overdose deaths. With the passage of HB1 and the failure of SB3 at the end of 2020, many are left wondering what can and cannot be achieved through legislative reforms in Ohio. Please join us for a discussion of Ohios recent reform history, what we might expect in the near future, and how research and experience in other states can inform reform efforts in the Buckeye State. Panelists Speakers:

Sara Andrews, executive director of the Ohio Criminal Sentencing Commission

Gary Daniels, chief lobbyist at the ACLU of Ohio

Micah Derry, state director for the Ohio chapter of Americans for Prosperity

Andrew Geisler, legal fellow at The Buckeye Institute

Kyle Strickland, deputy director of race and democracy at the Roosevelt Institute and senior legal analyst at Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity Moderator:

Douglas A. Berman, executive director of the Drug Enforcement and Policy Center

I am also quite pleased to note that the link in the above description takes folks to this original resource page titled "Drug Sentencing Reform in Ohio." Here is some of the discussion and resources to be found at that page:

Since 2014, seven states have enacted reforms that have defelonized low-level drug offenses: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut Oklahoma, Oregon, and Utah. In late 2020, the Ohio House of Representatives opted not to join this growing list by declining a vote on Senate Bill 3 which sought to reclassify some low-level drug offenses from felonies to misdemeanors. Its origins can be traced back to the ambitious, but ultimately failed, 2018 Issue 1 ballot initiative. The constitutional amendment initiative included language aimed at reclassifying as misdemeanors those offenses related to drug possession and use, prohibiting courts from sending people back to prison for non-criminal probation violation, and reallocating savings created from lowering prison populations toward drug treatment services. Like SB3, Issue 1 was vehemently opposed by judges and prosecutors around the state. Though SB3 stalled, an array of other criminal justice reforms were enacted in the last General Assembly of 2020, including House Bill 1. HB1 allows more wrongdoers to potentially benefit from alternative dispositions and record sealing. Some argued that the passage of HB1 addressed sufficiently some of the concerns driving support for SB3.... In addition to organizing [the Feb 24 panel] event, DEPC has gathered a variety of other resources to aid in understanding the complex evolution of criminal justice and drug sentencing reforms in Ohio, including a visualization of Ohio incarceration rates and a timeline of Ohio reforms since 2010. Please see below for commentaries and writings on current and past drug sentencing reform efforts in Ohio, DEPCs prior events focused on Ohios criminal justice reforms, and research aimed at answering some of the most important questions raised by proponents and opponents alike.

February 18, 2021 at 01:51 PM | Permalink

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She announced her engagement to Blake Shelton in October.

Yet Gwen Stefani - like many brides around the world - has had to put the brakes on her wedding plans due to the global coronavirus pandemic, as she detailed the strains she has faced in a new interview with Wonderland Magazine.

The No Doubt frontwoman, 51, looked incredible in a cover shoot as she reflected on her lengthy career, her new music and life in lockdown with her extended family and husband-to-be, who she could not resist 'bragging about'.

Wow! Gwen Stefani - like many brides around the world - has had to put the brakes on her wedding plans due to the global coronavirus pandemic, as she detailed the strains she has faced in a new interview with Wonderland Magazine

Gwen looked phenomenal in the accompanying shoot to go with the words, as she posed in a series of couture gowns which paid homage to her edgy style.

While she was certainly dressed to the nines for the shoot, she shed light on her wholly less glamorous day-to-day life behind the scenes.

Gwen revealed she has spent lockdown in Oklahoma with Blake, her brother and sister-in-law's family and her three kids.

She spoke of homeschooling in the pandemic with her sons Kingston, 14, Zuma Nesta Rock Rossdale, 12, and Apollo Bowie Flynn, six, who she shares with ex-husband Gavin Rossdale, who she split from in 2016 after 14 years of marriage.

Her love: The No Doubt frontwoman, 51, looked incredible in a cover shoot as she reflected on her lengthy career, her new music and life in lockdown with her extended family and husband-to-be, who she could not resist 'bragging about'

Oh my! Gwen looked phenomenal in the accompanying shoot to go with the words, as she posed in a series of couture gowns which paid homage to her edgy style

In October, Gwen and Blake became engaged after five years of dating during their Oklahoma lockdown among their beloved family.

She announced the news with a photo on social media where she was kissing the country crooner as she held up her left hand to show off her ring.

In her new chat Gwen, who has recorded her fifth studio album Let Me Reintroduce Myself in lockdown, lamented her thwarted wedding plans.

Wow! While she was certainly dressed to the nines for the shoot, she shed light on her wholly less glamorous day-to-day life behind the scenes

She said: 'I would love to get married, but I want my parents there, so that's hard to plan. We have three kids in school and at home on Zoom, so hopefully that will end for them. But there's not a lot of plans, I just want to put this record out!'

Speaking about what the pandemic had made her evaluate, she said: 'There was an amazing need to have a pause, I think, that we didn't even know could be possible'.

She also gushed over Blake and his success, saying: '[Hes] kind of a phenomenon over here. Hes had 28 number one radio hits and has been on The Voice for 20 seasons. Not to brag, but'

Oh my! She looked sensational in a sexy reclining shot

Rock on! She was blinged up in another shot

On working on her music in lockdown, she went on: 'I wasn't planning on it, but someone said they were writing on Zoom, and I said 'Shoot, I'll try it.'

In November, Gwen and her fans marked 15 years since the release of Love. Angel. Music. Baby. her debut solo studio album, which was also the name of her clothing line alongside another clothing line she created at the time.

Speaking of the hectic time in her life, she said: ''I had just started L.A.M.B., my clothing line and a line called Harajuku Lovers...

Way back when: While working on her follow-up album, she was also hit with her divorce from Gavin and ongoing guilt about being a working mother in 2016

'I had two babies  that's a lot of creating! I didn't know that people would love it and I'm so grateful for that. It was the most creative time in my life.'

While working on her follow-up album, she was also hit with her divorce from Gavin and ongoing guilt about being a working mother in 2016.

She said: 'Everyone knows what happened next. Life exploded in my face and then everything was changing.'

The new issue of Wonderland Magazine is out now
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
A midstate woman convicted of causing her brother-in-laws heroin overdose death has failed to convince a state appeals court to overturn a prison sentence that could conceivably keep her behind bars for the rest of her life.

In upholding Justina Heiseys 14- to 30-year prison term, the Superior Court judges rejected the 59-year-old Lancaster County womans argument that she shouldnt have been found guilty of a drug delivery resulting in death charge.

Heisey stressed that she and an accomplice warned her brother-in-law not to take so much of the Cloud 9 heroin they bought for him in Philadelphia. Instead, he snorted two bags of the drug, four times the amount the pair recommended that he use, Heisey contended.

Judge Maria McLaughlin discounted that argument in the state courts opinion. She cited prior rulings by her court that heroin is so dangerous that merely providing it to someone constitutes a degree of recklessness sufficient to support a drug delivery resulting in death conviction.

Justina Heisey

Northern Lancaster County Regional Police said Heisey personally delivered the heroin to her brother-in-law, a 48-year-old Manheim man, in 2017. McLaughlin cited a text message Heiseys accomplice sent to the victim as they were heading back from Philly with the heroin.

Let me tell you its 20 times better than anything weve ever had before. I dont want you doing more than half a bag at a timeIt made me almost pass out from snorting the whole bag, that message read.

LOL. I cant wait, the victim replied.

Heisey claimed on appeal that the victim would not have died if he had followed the dosage she and her accomplice recommended. McLaughlin countered that the warning given to the victim cannot excuse the recklessness of providing the heroin to him in the first place.

Heiseys argument that she isnt a drug dealer and needs comprehensive rehabilitation instead of long-term warehousing in prison gained no traction with the state judge.

McLaughlin found the sentence imposed on Heisey by county Judge Merrill Spahn Jr. was reasonable given Heiseys history of criminal convictions dating as far back as 1980 and her chronic drug abuse. Heiseys criminal record includes a DUI-related involuntary manslaughter conviction in 1991, McLaughlin noted.
This undated electron microscope image made available by the U.S. National Institutes of Health in February 2020 shows the Novel Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, yellow, emerging from the surface of cells, pink, cultured in the lab. Also known as 2019-nCoV, the virus causes COVID-19. The sample was isolated from a patient in the U.S. On Thursday, March 5, 2020, Tennessee's Department of Health Commissioner Lisa Piercey confirmed the state's first case of the new coronavirus. (NIAID-RML via AP)
RIP to a legend and a patriot, Rush Limbaugh. Not many people can say they revolutionized and stayed at the top of an industry the way he did. My condolences to his family.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Hong Kong: Use of Sinovac vaccine authorised

The Secretary for Food & Health (SFH) today authorised the COVID-19 vaccine by Sinovac Biotech (Hong Kong) for emergency use in Hong Kong in accordance with the Prevention & Control of Disease (Use of Vaccines) Regulation.

The Advisory Panel on COVID-19 Vaccines had earlier submitted its recommendations to the SFH. It considered that under the current epidemic situation, the benefits of authorising the use of Sinovac's vaccine to protect against COVID-19 outweigh the risks.

Having regard to the advisory panel's advice and taking into account the threat to public health posed by the virus, the SFH considered that the authorisation is necessary and is in the public interest.

She has exercised powers conferred upon her under section 3 of the regulation to authorise the use of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine in Hong Kong for a specified purpose.

To ensure that the relevant vaccine continues to fulfil the criteria of safety, efficacy and quality, the SFH has attached conditions to the authorisation, including requiring the applicant to execute a risk management programme, continue to provide the latest clinical data and laboratory analysis certificates for each batch of vaccines, as well as timely updates of quality reports.

The expert advice on vaccines given by the advisory panel has been uploaded to the Food & Health Bureau's website, the Government said.

According to the information provided by the vaccine supplier, the first batch of about one million doses of the Sinovac vaccine will be delivered to Hong Kong shortly.

The citywide vaccination programme led by the Government will be launched as soon as possible after the vaccine shipment is received and all necessary quality assurance procedures are completed.

The Government noted that it will actively follow up on the emergency use authorisation and supply schedule of the remaining vaccines already purchased and make arrangements for vaccine administration.

It will also continue to adhere to the vaccine procurement strategy and make advance purchases of vaccines which fulfil the criteria of safety, efficacy and quality, including those that are still under development, to ensure the availability of different types of vaccines for the city.

The Government added that its work in vaccine administration will be based on scientific evidence and adheres to the principles of openness and transparency to enhance the public's confidence in vaccines.

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
A Senior Lecturer at the Department of Political Science of the University of Ghana, Dr Seidu Alidu, has advised politicians to exercise restraint in their public utterances.



He said it was also important that politicians gauged their attitude and disposition in public.



According to him, the public was always watching the attitude and public statements of politicians and public officers, saying that any untoward comments or behaviour would go a long way to haunt the officers.



Our politicians need to exercise a lot of restraint in a politically charged atmosphere because anything they do or say will always be remembered by the public at some point in time and they will not be forgiven for any bad attitude they put up, he told the Daily Graphic in a telephone interview.



His comments come on the back of recent apologies rendered by some Members of Parliament (MPs) and Ministers of State in the public space for comments which they could not substantiate.



Apologies and retraction



At the Appointments Committee of Parliament last week, the Minister designate for Energy, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, apologised and retracted an allegation he made against former President John Dramani Mahama that he bussed students and parents to the Black Star Square on September 17, 2017 to cause confusion during the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) for students.



The nominee, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh, told the Appointments Committee of Parliament that he did not have any evidence to prove the allegation that Mr Mahama gave GH20 and GH50 to some students and parents to go to the square to stage fainting spells and collapse just to make the government unpopular.



The Minister designate for Communications, Mrs Ursula Owusu-Ekuful, was also asked to apologise to her colleague MP, Mr Collins Dauda, for her pronouncements she had made against the latter.



She was also cautioned to be mindful of her choice of words and public pronouncements.



Similarly, the MP for Asawase Constituency, Mr Mohammed-Mubarak Muntaka, has apologised for any harm done to the image and reputation of the justices of the Supreme Court after he alleged that a justice of the apex court tried to bribe a National Democratic Congress (NDC) MP-elect to influence her in the election of a Speaker of Parliament on January 7, 2021.



Effect



Dr Alidu indicated that those temperaments and public pronouncements by some MPs were becoming one too many and that was not healthy for the countrys politics, and such individuals would pay for them dearly.



Apart from denigrating the reputation of individuals and groups as a result of such comments, the political scientist emphasised that the public will also see you as someone who is not truthful and honest.



It becomes so embarrassing, even though that is decent politics, for you to eat back your words after denigrating the image of someone or a group after you are confronted in future with the same pronouncements, he added.



Dr Alidu said that politicians ought to always be guided that the public would always hold them accountable and responsible for anything they did or said, and should be mindful of same.









Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video

The skeletal leftover of a vicious female horse found concealed in a large age-old lake in Utah and assumed to have been traced back 16,000 years ago to the earlier ice age, a recent research discovers it is only 340 years old.

In 2018, landscapers uncovered the bone in a Lehi, Utah backyard, which was originally dated to a time concluded to be about 11,700 years ago. But after what's remaining of the horse was examined, researchers found that the mystery was a domestic horse that existed much quite recently.

Lehi Horse

The original age of the hoofed beast continually suggest that she was vicious; this kind of horses existed in North America for around 50 million to 10,000 years ago, vanishing during the same timebother huge animals involving dire wolves, short-faced bears, giant sloths, and mammoths took off into extinction at the climax of the previous ice age. Research indicates a mixture of human interaction and climate change resulted in their passing.

Yet, the recent research implies that this horse which died when it was just 12 years old is domestic, going back to the post-Columbian era after the Spanish initiated the domestic horse called Equis Caballus to the Americas beginning in the 16th century. Several indigenous populations who inhabited the Americas quickly intermixed these European horses into their society and economies, the scientists jotted down in the examination.

This female horse recognized as Lehi horse was no different, it was possibly trained, taken care of, and rode by the original individuals who resided now in Utah. Likely by a member of the Shoshone or Ute. Professor of anthropology at Colorado University and lead author of the study William Taylor explained, in an extraordinary archaeological account, this Lehi horse proves to us that the initial connection between horses and the Indigenous population made known things now taken down in any history in Europe.

ALSO READ: 77 Abandoned Animals Rescued and Receiving Treatment

The Historical Mistake

The error came about because the original people buried the horse in a hole contained by lake remnants going back 16,000 to 14,000 years ago. Regardless, recent radiocarbon locating of the real clues and bones from the Lehi horse's DNA and anatomy now indicate that the female horse existed more previously, though because the sample given by the radiocarbon is not exact. We only can say that it was sometime in 1680 that the Lehi died. Possibly before the settlers from Europe moved permanently into the Salt Lake country around the mid 19th century.

Equus Vaballus

The professor and his colleagues also found the Lehi's spine fractured which suggests somebody had continually ridden on the horse either with a soft saddle pad or bareback, jumping on the horses' lower back. The fractures are sort of detail that is quite unusual in vicious animals.

The professor disclosed that when they had a good look and discovered other clues, involving incredibly genetic data and terrible arthritis, this assisted in verifying the idea that the female horse was domestic and not ice age vicious beast called Equus Vaballus.

RELATED ARTICLE: Study: Horses, Other Mammals Are Shrinking as Climate Heats Up

For more news, update, stories about horses and similar topics don't forget to follow Nature World News!
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  When it comes to discussions on how long students' summer vacation should be, Education Secretary Leonor Briones says calls for academic ease and the impact of a prolonged absence of classes must be balanced.

When asked about the department's reported plans to shorten the break and extend the school year, Briones explained her position on the matter.

"We are very careful in calibrating itong bakasyon [this vacation]. Kasi nakabakasyon na sila ng anim na buwan, magdagdag na naman tayo ng bakasyon," said Briones, who proceeded to ask whether this would help the youth's calls for academic ease.

[Translation: They (children) have already been on vacation for six months. Do we need to add more?]

Academic ease involves the implementation of measures aimed at helping teachers and students adjust better to new modes of learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the suggestions forwarded by advocacy groups are lessening school requirements and allowing asynchronous classes for those unable to attend them on time, given problems like internet connectivity.

"Kung yan ay makakatulong dahil hingi nila ang academic ease  tumahimik na yung academic freeze, na hindi na nila pinu-pursue yung pag-close ng classes  ay gagawin namin. Pero siguro hindi sobrang haba," said the Education chief, citing the impact of a lengthy vacation on parents, teachers, and learners.

[Translation: If that (extending vacation) will help achieve academic ease  calls for academic freeze have quieted down  then we'll do it. But not too long.]

For instance, Briones said she had been receiving feedback on kids still preferring actual teachers to educate them, and the atmosphere of a school. Teachers likewise have had to adjust and provide lessons under distance learning, with parents also taking on the role of educating their children while face-to-face classes remain prohibited, she added.

Groups reject extended school year

Teachers and students have expressed their opposition to the Department of Education's idea of extending the school year and cutting the summer break to just two weeks, saying learners and educators are already burned out.

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers on Thursday said the department should instead focus on easing the workload.

"The difficulties of many students in keeping up with the lessons while both learners and teachers are burned out is a clear proof that the current curriculum and the over-all learning design being implemented are not sufficiently attuned to their real situation under the health and economic crisis," ACT Secretary General Raymond Basilio said in a statement.

The group was reacting to DepEd Usec. Diosdado San Antonio's proposal to extend the academic year, and short the two-month summer break to just two weeks, during an interview with GMA's '24 Oras'.

ACT cited consultations with teachers who relayed their struggle of keeping up with distance learning requirements, stressing that on top of teaching, they have to print and collate modules as well, and deliver them to the students' homes. They do not even have vacation or sick leave benefits, and the 8-hour work shift is "heavily disregarded", it added.

"They are being treated as tireless workhorses by the DepEd while they themselves also experience the stresses brought about by the pandemic and the economic crisis to their families," the group said.

The National Union of Students in the Philippines also rejected the proposal. The group said apart from economic problems that come with using gadgets, the distance learning setup has also severely affected learners' mental health.

"Pagod na pagod at sadlak na sa hirap ang mga estudyante dulot ng palpak na distance learning!" NUSP President Jandeil Roperos said.

[Translation: The students are exhausted and suffering due to the failed distance learning system.]

Netizens also shared their frustrations with DepEd, flooding social media with angry statements. It was among the top 2 trending topics on Twitter in the country on Thursday.
The fake "NKR" regime, created by Armenia on the land of Azerbaijan, is spreading messages in the media about the intention to give the Russian language the "official" status in those Azerbaijani territories that are now in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeepers. Since the representatives of the separatist group remain the puppets of Yerevan, there is no doubt that this idea is a new project of the supporters of the occupation of Azerbaijani Karabakh, who are trying with all their might to neutralize the results of the Karabakh war.

Let us recall the results of the Karabakh war - Azerbaijan, defending its own territorial integrity, inflicted a crushing defeat on the aggressor country Armenia during the hostilities on its land, the Armenian occupying forces were defeated and put to flight, as a result of which the RA leadership was forced to peace and capitulated. The territories of Azerbaijan, which had been under occupation for about three decades, were liberated. According to the tripartite Statement of November 9, 2020, by the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia, all refugees and internally displaced persons can return to their homes, all borders previously closed due to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict are unblocked.

Of course, the adherents of Armenian fascism, the criminal doctrine of the national superiority of Armenians over other peoples, did not want to accept such an obvious collapse of their plans to build a mythical "Great Armenia" at the expense of the territories of neighboring states. In Armenia itself, a campaign for the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and revenge was launched, which has been unsuccessful to this day, since the forces organizing it were overthrown by the Armenian people during the "Velvet Revolution" less than three years ago and now have no significant support in the country. The second hotbed of revanchism was kindled by the same forces in Karabakh, in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeepers, where the Armenian population lives today, expecting full reintegration into the economic and social life of Azerbaijan.

Military revenge of the supporters of the occupation of Karabakh and the separatists is impossible: firstly, most of them died, secondly, they are surrounded by superior forces of the Azerbaijani army, thirdly, the supply routes of weapons are cut off, and fourthly, their zone of residence is under the control of Russian peacekeepers and the Russian-Turkish Monitoring Center. Therefore, their leadership chose the tactics of political revenge - through attempts to legitimize the "NKR", whose illusory nature did not grow after the end of the Karabakh war only because it was already 100%.

On the one hand, the work on lobbying in the parliaments of different countries and their regions of legally worthless resolutions on "recognition" of the fake regime was intensified - starting from France in mid-November and ending in distant Australia in mid-February. On the other hand, attempts to "rapprochement with Russia" have begun, and the project of giving the Russian language the "official" status in the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeepers refers precisely to this direction. The purpose of such a project is obvious - hindering the post-war stabilization of the situation in the South Caucasus.

First of all, it should be noted that "NKR" is an undoubtedly illegitimate and non-existent entity, the reality of which is not officially recognized even by its creator Armenia. Therefore, one of the tasks now facing the revanchists is to give the separatist group at least some semblance of existence, at least in words. Hence the numerous interviews given by field commanders and Yerevan actors living in the Azerbaijani Khankendi - the more they are heard and seen in the information field, the greater the chance that someone will think that there really is a fake regime. Any discussion around the "state attributes" of a fake regime, which, of course, cannot have it, is also suitable for this task.

The state language is one of the mandatory attributes of any state. And today, talking about the dialogue on giving the Russian language the status of "state" or "official", the separatist group first of all conveys to the information field the idea that it already has its own "state language". Meanwhile, the zone of responsibility of the Russian peacekeepers is the territory of Azerbaijan, in which, like in other regions of the country, the state language is Azerbaijani and no other. Also, only the Azerbaijani leadership can make any decisions on language policy within the internationally recognized borders of the Republic of Azerbaijan (again, this is recognized by all countries of the world, including Armenia). Formally, such actions of the fake regime are legally null and void.

At the same time, the portrayal of the separatists' "state activity" negatively affects the implementation of the trilateral Statement, since in this way they show that they do not want to be reintegrated into the life of Azerbaijan, refuse any measures to reduce tension between the Armenian and Azerbaijani communities of Karabakh, moreover, are looking for opportunities to increase this tension. In the future, such tactics cannot lead to anything but a new conflict, and this is a direct violation of the November Statement, according to which the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict is over and cannot be reanimated.

Also, separatists and their sponsors in Armenia and the Armenian diaspora directly create problems for the Russian peacekeeping mission, making it difficult to stabilize Armenian-Azerbaijani relations. Speaking about the status of the Russian language in the Azerbaijani region, supporters of the occupation of Karabakh actually harm Russia's interests in the South Caucasus.

This alone determines the failure of the second task of the fake regime - the transition to the Russian protectorate. Russia has no other interests in the presence of a peacekeeping mission in Azerbaijan, except for the normalization of interethnic and interstate contacts in the South Caucasus. The only thing that Moscow needs is for Baku and Yerevan to live a peaceful life like ordinary neighboring states with open borders and established conflict-free economic and humanitarian relations.

The protectorate over Karabakh not only does not help this, but also creates a new and very big Caucasian problem for Russia - the conflict with Azerbaijan. Today, Russian-Azerbaijani relations are an example of mutually beneficial cooperation, to the construction of which Moscow is constantly striving with all its neighbors, and everything that can spoil such relations harms it directly.

Thus, the fake "NKR" regime created by Yerevan on the land of Azerbaijan may well declare through the media that the Russian language has been given the "official" status, but this will in no way help the supporters of the occupation of Karabakh bring revenge closer and will only strike a blow at Russian foreign policy in the post-Soviet space ... The enemies of peace in the South Caucasus, pretending to be Russia's friends, in fact act as its enemies too.
Relief pitcher John Schreiber, designated for assignment six days ago when the Tigers signed Nomar Mazara, has been claimed off of waivers by the Boston Red Sox.

Schreiber, 26, grew up a Tigers fan in the Downriver community of Rockwood and attended Carlson High School in Gibraltar.

Drafted in the 15th round out of the University of Northwestern Ohio in 2016, Schreiber had a sterling minor-league career and earned a promotion to the big leagues in 2019. He posted a 6.28 ERA in 28 2/3 innings over the last two seasons, but struck out 33 batters and walked just eight.

To open up a spot for Schreiber, the Red Sox placed pitcher Chris Sale on the 60-day injured list. Sale underwent Tommy John surgery last spring and wont be back on the mound until this summer.

Schreiber becomes the fifth Tiger to be claimed on waivers this winter, joining right-handed pitcher Anthony Castro (Toronto Blue Jays), outfielder Troy Stokes (Pittsburgh Pirates), infielder Sergio Alcantara (Chicago Cubs) and outfielder Travis Demeritte (Atlanta Braves)

Castro and Stokes were subsequently waived again by their new teams, cleared waivers and were outrighted to the minor leagues.

Alcantara was waived by the Cubs earlier Thursday; if he clears waivers, the Cubs will be able to keep him in their minor-league system.

TIGERS OFFSEASON ADDITIONS

Nov. 20: Selected the contracts of left-handed pitcher Joey Wentz and right-handed pitchers Alex Faedo, Alex Lange and Matt Manning.

Dec. 10: Selected outfielder Akil Baddoo in the Rule 5 Draft.

Dec. 23: Signed right-handed pitcher Jose Urena.

Jan. 5: Signed outfielder Robbie Grossman.

Jan. 29: Formally announced signing of catcher Wilson Ramos.

Feb. 5: Re-signed infielder Jonathan Schoop.

Feb. 12: Formally announced signing of outfielder Nomar Mazara.

TIGERS OFFSEASON SUBTRACTIONS

Nov. 20: Released infielder Brandon Dixon, who will pursue a job in Japan.

Dec. 7: Right-handed pitcher Anthony Castro was claimed by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Dec. 23: Designated catcher Eric Haase for assignment. He cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Toledo.

Jan. 5: Designated outfielder Troy Stokes Jr. for assignment. He was claimed by the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Jan. 29: Designated infielder Sergio Alcantara for assignment. He was claimed by the Chicago Cubs.

Feb. 5: Designed outfielder Travis Demeritte for assignment. He was claimed by the Atlanta Braves.

Feb. 12: Designated right-handed pitcher John Schreiber for assignment. He was claimed by the Boston Red Sox.

TIGERS FREE-AGENT SIGNINGS

Major League (5): RHP Jose Urena, OF Robbie Grossman, C Wilson Ramos, IF Jonathan Schoop, OF Nomar Mazara.

Minor league (20): LHP Ian Krol*, C Dustin Garneau*, LHP Locke St. John, LHP A.J. Ladwig, RHP Henry Martinez, RHP Zac Shepherd, IF Isrrael De La Cruz, LHP Miguel Del Pozo*, LHP Robbie Ross*, RHP Andrew Moore*, IF Yariel Gonzalez, 1B Aderlin Rodriguez*, RHP Erasmo Ramirez*, LHP Derek Holland*, IF Drew Ward, IF Greg Garcia*, IF Renato Nunez*, RHP Brad Markey, RHP Pedro Payano, RHP Cale Coshow.
A special visa scheme for doctors and nurses and a regional agreement for medical contingencies across and two East African island nations were among the suggestions made by Prime Minister at a workshop on managing Covid-19 on Thursday.

Modi, in his virtual address, said that over the past year a lot had been achieved through regional health cooperation, and urged: Can we now think of raising our ambition further?

The Prime Minister floated the suggestion to create a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying data about the effectiveness of Covid-19 vaccines among our populations.

He said, Can we similarly create a regional network for promoting technology-assisted epidemiology, for preventing future pandemics? And, beyond Covid-19, can we also share our successful public health policies and schemes?

The special visa scheme could enable medical professionals to travel quickly within the region during health emergencies, on the request of the receiving country, Modi said.





ALSO READ: Indian mission in Sri Lanka denies Trincomalee oil tanks deal off

Besides India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles and Sri Lanka took part in the workshop.

Modi said when Covid-19 struck, experts voiced concerns about India owing to its dense population, but it met the challenge with a coordinated response. In March last year, we were the first to come together for recognising the threat and committing to fight it together. Many other regions and groups followed our early example.

Giving the example of the Covid emergency response fund to meet the immediate costs of fighting the pandemic, Modi said India shared its resources from medicines and PPE kits to testing equipment. We shared the most valuable commodity  knowledge  through collaborative training of our health workers...This spirit of collaboration is a valuable takeaway from this pandemic.

He said the region as a whole had managed to achieve one of the lowest fatality rates in the world. The hopes of our region and the world are focused on rapid deployment of vaccines. In this, too, we must maintain the same cooperative and collaborative spirit.

Addressing the experts and health officials of immediate and extended neighbourhood countries, Modi said that Indias Ayushman Bharat and Jan Arogya schemes could be useful case studies for our friends in the region.

Suggesting that such collaboration could become a pathway for greater cooperation in other areas, he added, After all, we share so many common challenges  climate change, natural disasters, poverty, illiteracy, and social and gender imbalances... But we also share the power of centuries-old cultural and people-to-people linkages.

He told the participating nations to focus on all that united them to overcome other challenges, too.
Then-Chinese Vice Chairman Xi Jinping (R) and then- U.S. Vice President Joe Biden speak with Chinese business leaders at the Beijing Hotel in Beijing, on Aug. 19, 2011. (Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

Will There Be a New China Policy From the Biden Administration?

Commentary

Among the challenges that President Joe Biden is facing, the issue of U.S.China relations is undoubtedly on top of the list.

Some panda-hugging political elites had hoped that Biden would, as soon as he was sworn in, reverse the Trump-era confrontation, and return to the Obama-era honeymoon phase. However, so far, Biden has been taking a quiet and no action approach toward China, despite its repeated aggressive moves.

This has made Beijing quite anxious.

Whether Biden likes it or not, the Trump administration has long-lasting influence on U.S.China relations. During the fourth year of Trumps presidency, tensions escalated into a cold war. Can Biden reverse this trend? In fact, Beijings intentions and actions are a crucial determining factor, regardless of what Biden thinks.

Will USChina Cold War End Shortly After It Starts?

Many of Bidens Cabinet members and White House staff are Obama-era officials. These panda-huggers created the so-called honeymoon period with Beijing, resulting in the rise of the CCP. The panda-huggers definitely wont admit their mistakes. Naturally, they want to end the tensions with China and return to an era of dialogue and cooperation.

Thats exactly what the CCP wants.

The panda-hugging officials and scholars share one common trait: They dont like and dont understand cold wars. They didnt understand the Soviet Union back in the day and arent interested in knowing more. Additionally, most panda-huggers dont have a military background, so they dont know how to handle the U.S.China conflict.

Some of the panda-huggers even wish that the conflict would end, so that they dont have to face it. On Jan. 14, The Diplomat published an article titled The U.S. Strategic Framework for the Indo-Pacific: 3 Curiosities. Holding to the typical geopolitical mindset, the article criticizes the Trump administrations U.S. Strategic Framework for the Indo-Pacific, saying that it ignored the importance of Mongolia in the region.

Then, on Feb. 1, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof wrote an opinion article titled Bidens Nightmare May Be China. Kristof stated that the United States would most likely be drawn into perhaps the most dangerous confrontation with another nuclear power since the Cuban missile crisis, and that the criticisms reflect a hardening toward Beijing across the political spectrum that leaves little room for diplomacy. That makes me nervous.

Due to the mistakes in China policy during the Obama administration and those before it, the United States isnt prepared for this confrontation. There was only one report on military readiness, published in 2016 by the RAND Corp. The report, War with China: Thinking Through the Unthinkable, pointed out that among the published research literature on how U.S. preparedness in case of war with China, none offered detailed and serious analysis. Thats a huge omission. This statement remains true even now.

With Biden as president, will the tense U.S.China situation relax a bit? The world is watching. When the CCP panda approaches the panda-huggers with a sharp knife in hand, what will they do? Continue to hug the panda? The fact is that the panda-huggers will be forced to face the reality that the panda is actually a red tiger that was being fed by the United States.

CCP Wants New Relationship With US

Since Biden became president, the CCP has been eager to see changes in three aspects. One is the removal of tariffs, so that China can continue exports to the United States. Another is the removal of investment bans against Chinese companies, so that they can continue to raise funds in the United States. Third is the removal of import restrictions on U.S.-origin sensitive technology, so that the CCP can continue acquiring intellectual property.

But aside from delaying some restrictions on Chinese-military-linked companies, Biden has been following the Trump route in all other areas.

Even before Biden entered the White House, Beijing ordered Cui Tiankai, Chinese ambassador to the United States, in December 2020 to arrange a series of high-profile meetings between U.S. officials and Chinas top diplomat, Yang Jiechi. Ultimately, they seek to arrange a meeting between Biden and Xi.

The CCP sent a series of strong messages via official speeches and its mouthpiece media.

On Jan. 26, former Chinese Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan told a Hong Kong forum on U.S.China relations that a new round of trade talks should be negotiated and that U.S. tariffs should be removed. On Jan. 28, Le Yucheng, Chinas vice foreign minister, said it was imperative for the United States to reverse the wrong course when it comes to its China policy. On Jan. 29, Chinas Vice Chair Wang Qishan appealed for greater cooperation and fewer clashes during a video conference with U.S. business leaders and former officials. On Feb. 2, Chinese diplomat Yangs speech during an event at the National Committee on U.S.China Relations clearly indicated Beijings desire to drive the Biden administrations China policy.

Yang said that the Trump administration adopted misguided policies on China, and so, the United States should now work on four things: 1. Correct all mistakes by the Trump administration; 2. Resume normal exchange of students, and remove restrictions on Chinese state-run media and companies; 3. Stick with the one-China policy; 4. Start cooperation for mutual benefit.

Beijings strong rhetoric drew a red line for Bidens China policy. The first three items were flat-out demands, while the fourth is about cooperation, a word used by Yang 24 times during his speech. Yangs entire speech was arrogant and demanding; he even scolded the United States and warned it not to mention the issue of U.S. national security to Beijing.

Military Standoff Continues in the Pacific

So far, the Biden administration has acted indifferently to the CCPs pressures. Its main concern is the Indo-Pacific region.

The CCP has intensified its military maneuvers in the Indo-Pacific region in recent weeks, while its navy has been advancing its strategic nuclear submarines deep into the Pacific.

To reach the mid-Pacific region, Beijing needs to break through the South China Sea island chain, in order to hide and strike suddenly. The main base for the CCP navys submarines is the Yulin Habor near Sanya city, on Hainan island. There are three deep-sea routes from there to the mid-Pacific, which are heavily guarded by the U.S. Navy. To the northeast of Sanya is the Bashi Channel (southwest of Taiwan), which is the shortest route to the United States. Therefore, the waters southwest of Taiwan have become an important zone for both powers.

Since October 2020, the CCPs submarines have been active in that region. From Jan. 2 to Jan. 9, then from Jan. 11 to Jan. 20, and from Jan. 22 to Jan. 31, the CCP navy sent anti-submarine aircraft to an area frequented by U.S. submarines. In response, on Jan. 23, the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group entered the South China Sea to conduct routine operations.

The CCP isnt just trying to advance its submarines through the Bashi Channel, but is also using unmanned underwater vehicles in the Laut Jawa Sea in Indonesia for underwater mapping. The purpose is to open up the southern route, so military vehicles can move from the Laut Jawa Sea through northern Australia to the mid-Pacific.

Under the CCPs verbal coercion and military provocations, the Biden administration has no choice but to follow Trump-era-like policies, at least for now.

Dr. Cheng Xiaonong is a scholar of Chinas politics and economy based in New Jersey. Cheng was a policy researcher and aide to former Party leader Zhao Ziyang, when Zhao was premier. He also served as chief editor of the journal Modern China Studies.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
Fulton County Elections Director Richard Barron addresses the media regarding the ballot count, at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Ga., on Nov. 5, 2020. (Tami Chappell/AFP via Getty Images)

Fulton County Elections Director Remains in Job After Vote

Commissioners in Georgias largest county deadlocked on Feb. 17 in a vote to remove its elections director, allowing him to remain in his job for now.

The Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections voted a day earlier to remove Director Richard Barron, and sent its recommendation to remove Barron from the Board of Commissioners.

The seven-person board voted 33, with Commissioner Natalie Hall abstaining, on whether to accept the recommendation, so the motion failed.

Commission Chair Robb Pitts told WSB-TV, We need to get an opinion from the county attorney as to whether its properly before us or not, but the bottom line though right now is Mr. Barron is still the director.

Every other county in the state relies on its elections board to make decisions on officials, but Fulton County, which includes most of Atlanta, requires the commissioners to approve recommendations from the board.

Election board members who voted to remove Barron cited a slew of errors and improper procedures that popped up during elections in recent years.

There were no chain of custody forms being used as ballots moved from room to room, mass optional policy putting essential staff at unnecessary risk, no process to sufficiently protect spoiled and rejected ballots in the mailroom, using an outdated version of easy vote to check in voters, poor record-keeping for election net, persistent chain of custody issues, ballots that were being delivered to State Farm Arena in unsecured mail carts, which the monitor noted was very concerning, technology issues abounding during the recount, the server crashing on Nov. 29, said Dr. Kathleen Ruth, a Republican member, recounting issues that a monitor uncovered in a review of the most recent elections.

Others defended Barron, including Aaron Johnson, a Democrat.

Name tags sit at the entrance of the sorting room where election workers process absentee ballots, at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, on Nov. 2, 2020. (Megan Varner/Getty Images)

Resoundingly it was, yes, things were bad, but we need to give him  he made up for it  and give him an option to stay, or at least give the next board the option of making this decision that were putting on down, Johnson said.

Commissioners on Feb. 17 questioned whether the elections board should decide on who directs elections.

Because it did not go their way, all of a sudden were on a slippery slope. Well, thats why we have the county attorney for, Commissioner Khadija Abdur-Rahman said, WSB-TV reported.

Abdur-Rahman, Pitts, and Marvin Arrington Jr., all Democrats, voted to keep Barron. Liz Hausmann, Bob Ellis, and Lee Morris, all Republicans, voted to approve the elections boards recommendation.

Theyve stated publicly various reasons why they think change is necessary, Ellis said during the meeting, before the vote. Things have emanated out of a consent decree that the county is under, the monitoring report thats come back from the monitors about the performance, things theyve observed, they talk about health and safety issues, chain of control, custody issues.

Hall, a Democrat, didnt respond to a request for comment.

The board is expected to take up the matter again at its next meeting on March 3.
ICE Announces Narrower Priorities for Immigration Enforcement, Deportation

WASHINGTONDepartment of Homeland Security (DHS) officials announced new interim guidelines on Feb. 18 for handling the arrest, detainment, and deportation of illegal immigrants.

DHS said the three priority criterianational security, border security, and public safetyoutlined in the interim guidelines are effective immediately for all Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions.

Any ICE agent who encounters an illegal immigrant who falls outside of the three categories must get pre-approval from their field office before taking any action.

The first category, national security, includes illegal immigrants who have engaged in or are suspected of engaging in terrorism or espionage, or if their apprehension, arrest, or custody is otherwise necessary to protect the national security of the United States, according to a DHS official on a background media call on Feb. 18.

We are requiring officers and agents to determine whether a noncitizen poses a threat to United States sovereignty, territorial integrity, national interests, or institutions.

The DHS on Jan. 21 issued a memo to suspend deportations of illegal aliens for 100 days, with the exception of those who have either engaged in or are suspected of terrorism or espionage.

The second category, border security, puts illegal immigrants who entered the country after Nov. 1, 2020, as an enforcement and removal priority.

The third category, public safety, includes illegal immigrants who pose a threat to public safety and theyve been convicted of an aggravated felony as that is defined in statute, or if theyve been convicted of an offense for which an element was active participation in a criminal street gang, a DHS official said.

Previously, ICE had also placed a priority on illegal aliens who had pending charges.

DHS officials said the guidelines dont exempt anyone who is in the United States illegally, however, ICE agents must seek pre-approval from their leadership first and consideration must be given to the following criteria: The nature and recency of a non-citizens convictions, the type and length of sentences imposed, whether the enforcement action is otherwise an appropriate use of ICEs limited resources, and other relevant factors, including mitigating factors, a DHS official said.

The mitigating factors, the official said, include consideration as to whether someone might be suffering from serious physical or mental illness. We want them [ICE] to think about ties to the community, whether the individual has family here in the United States, U.S. citizen family members, and other considerations.

The official said the new guidelines are to help ICE focus its limited resources on cases that the public cares about.

The official said ICE arrests arent expected to drop under the new guidelines.

Its just a question to us of reallocating resources to the cases that really, truly matter.

In fiscal 2020, ICEs Enforcement and Removal Operations removed almost 186,000 individuals, of whom 92 percent had criminal convictions or pending criminal charges, according to ICEs end-of-year report. ICE also conducted more than 103,000 interior arrestsjust under 30 percent fewer than in fiscal 2019, due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Approximately 90 percent of those arrested had a criminal conviction or charge, according to the report. Those arrested included aliens with criminal charges or convictions for 1,837 homicide offenses, 37,247 assault offenses, and 10,302 sexual assault or sex offenses.

The new guidelines place priority on those who have been convicted of an aggravated felony, not those with pending charges.

The department expects the interim guidelines to be superseded by agencywide guidelines in about 90 days.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 16:28:32|Editor: huaxia

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NEW DELHI, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Indian farmers on Thursday began countrywide stop train protests against the three controversial farm laws, officials said.

Reports from various places like Punjab, Haryana, Karnataka and Bihar said hundreds of farmers took to railway tracks in a bid to stop the plying of trains.

The four-hour nationwide protest is an attempt to give pressure to the government to repeal three agriculture laws.

The stop train protest was announced last week by an alliance of farmer unions spearheading the agitations.

Indian railways have deployed 20 additional companies of police force across the country ahead of the protest.

Thousands of farmers have been protesting for the past over two months near India's capital city Delhi, demanding a complete repeal of the federal government's three controversial farm laws.

The Indian government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been defending the laws as major reforms for the wellbeing of farmers.

Eleven rounds of talks between protesting farmers and the federal government have failed to end the ongoing stalemate. Enditem
Rome, N.Y. -- A 40-year-old Rome man has been arrested Tuesday and accused of breaking into a house and choking a woman inside, according to New York State Police.

Christopher M. Hildenbrandt was charged with first-degree burglary, first-degree criminal contempt and criminal obstruction of breathing, police said.

Hildenbrandt grabbed the woman by the throat as she tried to run out of the house, according to police.

He was taken to the Oneida County Jail and arraigned.

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Chris Libonati via the Signal app for encrypted messaging at 585-290-0718, by phone at the same number, by email or on Twitter.
Finishing Phukets Provincial Hall off to a good start, says Vice Governor

PHUKET: The latest attempt to complete Phukets still-unfinished new Provincial Hall is off to a good start, Phuket Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee reported today (Feb 18).

constructioneconomics

By The Phuket News

Thursday 18 February 2021, 01:51PM

The B196mn contract to complete the new Phuket Provincial Hall, which has sat for years unfinished on the south side of Phuket Town, is already ahead of schedule, said Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee. Photo: PR Phuket

The B196mn contract to complete the new Phuket Provincial Hall, which has sat for years unfinished on the south side of Phuket Town, is already ahead of schedule, said Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee. Photo: PR Phuket

The B196mn contract to complete the new Phuket Provincial Hall, which has sat for years unfinished on the south side of Phuket Town, is already ahead of schedule, said Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee. Photo: PR Phuket

The B196mn contract to complete the new Phuket Provincial Hall, which has sat for years unfinished on the south side of Phuket Town, is already ahead of schedule, said Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee. Photo: PR Phuket

The B196mn contract to complete the new Phuket Provincial Hall, which has sat for years unfinished on the south side of Phuket Town, is already ahead of schedule, said Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee. Photo: PR Phuket

The B196mn contract to complete the new Phuket Provincial Hall, which has sat for years unfinished on the south side of Phuket Town, is already ahead of schedule, said Vice Governor Vikrom Jakthee. Photo: PR Phuket

Provincial officials met with representatives of the new contractor  named only as the Wall and Tesco joint venture (literal translation from the Thai    )  at the currently used century-old Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday (Feb 17). Vice Governor Jakthee explained.

Already the project is 1.9% ahead of schedule, he said.

V/Gov Vikrom explained that the meeting yesterday was the second meeting between the contractor and officials to confirm the progress made in completing the construction contract, which he now revealed stood at B196 million  down from B198mn as reported by Phakaphong Tavipatana, Phuket Governor at the time, on Sept 6, 2019.

At that time, with Governor Phakaphong in Sept 2019 requesting an extra B38mn to complete works unfinished by the initial contractor Chun Eaw Co Ltd, the total cost of the project had blown out to B647mn.

The original contract for building the new Provincial Hall, signed on Sept 9, 2014, stood at B450mn.

V/Gov Vikrom also yesterday confirmed, as if without question, that under the contract with Wall and Tesco the new provincial hall is expected to be completed by next year  not this year as touted in only December.

The contract starts from Dec 14 last year and lasts until June 22, 2022, he said.

At this stage, about 18.12% of the work [to be done by Wall and Tesco] was scheduled to be complete, but about 20.02% has been done, so the work completed is about 1.9% ahead of schedule, V/Gov Vikrom said.

Sixty-four of 555 days of the construction [under the Walls and Tesco contract] have been completed so far without any problems, he added.

The contractor came on the construction site Dec 21 last year, and the [construction] foreman went to examine the hall building on Dec 24. There will be another examination in accordance with the project schedule in the future, V/Gov Vikrom said.
Photo: Ben Blackall/HBO Max

Black characters and other characters of color should also have the right to die tragically in sweet, poignant stories about nightmarish moments in history. Thats a slightly off-center place to begin a review of Russell T Daviess often beautifully moving limited series Its a Sin, about the AIDS epidemic in London. But the series follows several young people throughout the 1980s and early 90s as they experience the horrific toll of HIV and AIDS in the gay community, and one of the shows foundational ideas is that the marginalization and shame of queer communities is key to what made the AIDS epidemic so devastating.

The seriess five episodes, which have already aired in the U.K. and hit HBO Max this Thursday, build toward a big closing thesis-statement-type monologue from Jill (Lydia West), the best friend of the shows protagonist Ritchie (Olly Alexander). Its your fault, Jill tells Ritchies mother Valerie (Keeley Hawes). Valerie made her son feel shame for who he is, Jill tells her, and that shame, the sense that gay life was embarrassing and less than fully human, is what fueled the diseases spread. The wards are full of men who think they deserve it. They are dying, Jill tells Valerie, and a little bit of them thinks, Yes, this is right. I brought this on myself; its my fault. The marginalization of queer people in the U.K., the mainstream refusal to see queer lives as valuable and joyful, was a crucial cause of AIDSs terrible impact.

For many of the main characters, Its a Sin is a really wrenching, beautiful exploration of that idea, and the series begins with a kaleidoscopic, ensemble approach to its story. Theres closeted Ritchie, who moves to London from his small town on an island off the coast of England; theres bashful Colin (Callum Scott Howells), who gets his first job in a fancy menswear store; and theres Roscoe (Omari Douglas), who leaves home after his family tries to convert him with prayer and community shaming. They all eventually become friends with Jill, and especially in the first episode, theres a sense that these stories will be three interwoven threads with relatively equal weight throughout the series. Ritchie and Colin are white; Roscoe and Jill are Black.

To fully explain the shows preferences, its priorities in what kinds of characters get to be heroic martyrs and what characters watch sadly from the sidelines, Id have to spoil it, to lay out exactly who dies and when and how. Im not going to do that. In spite of my frustrations with the series, Its a Sin is very much worth watching. Douglas, Howells, Alexander, and West are all fantastic. So many parts of the series are fun and funny and charming, and especially for American audiences, a story of the AIDS crisis based in London may bring a new facet to a story thats often told as mostly about New York and San Francisco. But its a show about young gay people and the AIDS epidemic. Some of them are going to die. And Its a Sin has a pretty noticeable pattern about who dies and who does not, a pattern thats familiar from a seminal AIDS work like Angels in America, and yet one Its a Sin has not managed to escape from many decades later.

Its a knotty issue given the long and thorough history of Black characters who get chucked to the sidelines of fiction as easy death fodder. Its not hard to see the problem of a science-fiction show or a horror movie where characters of color get eaten by the aliens in sad but ultimately meaningless ways and meanwhile all the white protagonists survive. For the most part, though, the genre of Its a Sin is tragedy, and in tragedies, the characters who die are the ones whose lives are most valued, whose sacrifices are considered most meaningful and most sad. Its a Sin does a disservice to its Black characters and other characters of color (including Ash, an Indian man played by Nathaniel Curtis) in two different directions. On one side, shielding the characters of color from the worst ramifications of AIDS comes off as treating them with kid gloves, handling their stories as if they cant shoulder the full brunt of the tragic weight. On the other side, the inevitable arc of a story like Its a Sin gives more attention to characters who die. It has to in order to fully emphasize how sad and cruel everything is. The characters who survive become corollary players, necessary background voices of mourning for those whove been lost. Its not hard to see Its a Sins decision to shift most of its harshest outcomes onto white characters as an attempt to be graceful toward the characters of color. But its a choice that mistakes well-intentioned sidelining for grace.

Im picking at this one frustrating element of Its a Sin because its worth picking at, and because it suggests that something is not fully realized in the seriess thesis about shame, marginalization, and humanity. But its also worth highlighting the things in Its a Sin that succeed where this one part falters. The show is painfully great at depicting terror and willing blindness in the early 80s. Ritchie and his friends start to hear rumors but want so badly to ignore them, and the physical symptoms of AIDS-related illness start to loom over life like hovering Swords of Damocles. The idea that AIDS is a New York crisis becomes a shield and a huge problem in London. It seems like a sickness thats too far away to worry about, but the distance also means that when Jill does want to learn more, she has no resources and no way to access new research. Its a Sin is also a heartrending picture of the way gay men start to simply disappear, whisked away into locked hospital wards or taken home by their families to die, totally cut off from their friends and loved ones.

The shows best quality, and the thing that saves Its a Sin from being an unrelenting dirge, is that it refuses to slide into regret or underplay its characters joy. Early parts of the series, where Ritchie, Roscoe, and Colin all move to London, are incredibly fun. Theres a deliberate decision to make the beginning of this story about how glorious and freeing it is for these characters to have a community, to love sex, to feel loved and seen for the first time in their lives. Yes, theres a cloud over it all. AIDS is coming; the viewers know it and the characters do not, and its hard not to watch a happy sex montage and wonder if Its a Sin is showing us the moment one of these characters gets infected. But its easy to imagine a version of this show that cuts this early part short, a version where one sex scene is all we get, or where the background music is something much more doom-filled than a disco remix of the Hallelujah chorus and the William Tell Overture. Its a Sin does not want to skip over how joyful their lives are. Even later, when things start to get really bad, the series insists on returning to that idea. AIDS is not a moral judgment, and the horror of it does not make their joy something evil.

Happily, although Its a Sin hoards its tragedy for certain kinds of characters, it is more willing to distribute even shares of its delight. Its what saves the series for me. Characters like Roscoe and Jill are so frustrating  the series does not care enough about exploring their inner lives or letting them share the spotlight. But it does let them share in the joyful parts. Its not enough, but its not nothing.

*A version of this article appears in the March 1, 2021, issue of New York Magazine. Subscribe Now!
American social network company Twitter has introduced voice messages to direct messages as a new feature for users in India, Brazil, and Japan.

The new feature allows users to send a voice DM (Direct Message) or a voice clip to the Twitter contact, according to The Verge.

As per a Twitter report, this feature will be launched in an organized way, so it is conceivable that some of the users won't see the feature appear immediately. The micro-blogging users can send as long as 140 seconds in length voice messages in private talks. This component is as of now being tested in India, Brazil, and Japan and will be accessible for both iOS and Android users.

The Verge reported that to utilize this new feature, a user has to simply open the chatbox of the concerned contact, tap on the voice icon placed in the bottom right corner and begin recording. Once a user has recorded the voice message, he should next tap on the stop icon to wrap up.

The user likewise will have the alternative to hearing the audio prior to sending and erasing it. After the approval, the last step will be to tap on the send icon to send it.

Manish Maheshwari, managing director of Twitter India, upon the announcement of the feature, said, "India is a priority market for Twitter and that is why we're constantly testing new features and learning from people's experience on the service here."

Adding to this very aspect, Alex Ackerman-Greenberg, product manager for direct messages at Twitter, added, "We hope letting people record and send voice messages as DMs will enhance their conversational experience by adding convenience and expression."

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Rush Limbaughs widow Kathryn is set to inherit the $51million Palm Beach property he called his permanent home after quitting New York City in 2010, according to reports.

Limbaugh, who died on Wednesday aged 70 after a year-long battle with lung cancer, first picked up the estate as a vacation home in 1998 for only $3.98million, Fox Business reports.

According to a recent estimate on Zillow, the property is now worth almost 13 times as much after he and his 44-year-old wife transformed the property when they decided to relocate for good.

The couple added three additional structures to the house, originally built in 1992, after buying up surrounding land.

Limbaugh also relocated his business and radio show to Florida, which he hosted just a mile away from the house, and he was located close to friend President Donald Trump whose Mar a Lago estate is along the same eight-mile Palm Beach stretch.

The $51million Palm Beach property where Rush Limbaugh lived since 2010

Reports say widow Kathryn will inherit the home after his death Wednesday. They are pictured together in February 2020 after Limbaugh received the Presidential Medal of Freedom

The main house has seven bedrooms, 12 baths and a private elevator, as well as a two-storey library.

On the grounds, there is a pool, a putting green, and a private beach on part of the estates two acres along the oceanfront.

As well as the main home, there are four guest houses and a 24-hour guard station.

It was believed the home had been targeted in 2012 when the bomb squad was sent in to examine a suspicious package. It was found not to be hazardous.

The radio host had initially left Florida for NYC in 1988 to build his career but abandoned the Big Apple again just over two decades later after the city enacted a tax hike.

Limbaugh had owned a Fifth Avenue condo with 10 rooms and a view of Central Park while he lived in Manhattan, which he sold for $11.5million.

The host was worth a cool $600million around the time of his death after earning an estimated $33million a year for much of his career.

He was the second highest-paid radio host in 2019 just behind Howard Stern.

In January 2020, just before he announced his cancer diagnosis, Limbaugh renewed a contract with Premiere Radio Networks for $70million annually.

In April last year, Forbes ranked him as the 11th highest earning celebrity of the year. He was estimated to be receiving $85million a year at the time.

The publication said that he first ranked among the worlds highest-paid entertainers in 1994 at No. 36 with pretax earnings of $25 million.

Limbaigh first bought the house, pictured, for $3.98million in 1992

The couple moved their permanently in 2010 after NYC increased its taxes

The estate, pictured, includes four guest houses, a putting green and a private beach

Forbes also estimates that his career-long pre-tax earnings looked close to $1.1billion before his personal spending and professional costs.

The Rush Limbaugh Show was broadcast across more than 650 radio stations on Premiere Radio Networks and attracted 15 million listeners.

As well as his radio earnings, Limbaugh added to his massive fortune by streaming videos of his radio show for a fee and publishing seven books, including a five-title children's series "Rush Revere he wrote with wife Kathryn.

They also included New York Times best sellers, The Way Things Ought to Be and See, I Told You So.

In 2008, Forbes named Limbaugh among their most generous celebrities after he donated $4.2 million in the previous year to the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation.

His annual Cure-A-Thon broadcast has raised more than $47 million over the years to support the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of America, according to the website FoundationGuide.org.

Rush Limbaugh with fourth wife, Kathryn Rogers, at the Andrea Bocelli concert at The Mar-a-Lago Club on February 28, 2010 in Palm Beach, Florida. She announced his death Wednesday

The day after revealing he had cancer, Limbaugh was invited by President Trump to attend his State of the Union where he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He is pictured alongside his wife Kathryn and First Lady Melania Trump as the speech

His family shared a tribute to him on Facebook on Wednesday soon after his death was first announced by his fourth wife, Kathryn, on his radio show, as pictured above

It is not known if any of Limbaughs three ex-wives will receive any of his fortune or if Kathryn, his wife of 11 years, will inherit his full estate.

Limbaugh had no children.

Rush Limbaugh in his senior year book from Central High School in Cape Girardeau, 1969

Kathryn had announced her husbands death on Wednesday on his radio show, which he first began in 1988, stating, I am most certainly not the Limbaugh that you tuned in to listen to today.

I, like you, very much wish Rush was behind this golden microphone right now, welcoming you to another exceptional three hours of broadcasting,' she told shocked listeners.

'For over 32 years, Rush has cherished you, loyal audience, and always looked forward to every single show. It is with profound sadness I must share with you directly that our beloved Rush, my wonderful husband, passed away this morning due to complications from lung cancer.'

Limbaugh recently told President Trump that he was married to an angel.

'Every time I spoke to him, he would tell me how great she was, Trump told Fox Wednesday during his first post-White House interview after he dialed into the network on hearing of his friends death.

She took such great care. He was very brave  I mean he in theory could have been done four months ago, really. He just, he was fighting til the very end. He was a fighter, he added.

The couple had married in 2010 at a lavish ceremony that included a performance from Elton John.

Limbaugh was more than 20 years Kathryns senior and had met her while he was still married to his third wife.

She is a direct descendant of former President John Adams

His first marriage was 1977 to Roxy Maxine McNeely, who he met while the pair worked at WHB, a radio station in Kansas City, Missouri. She was a sales secretary.

In a 1993 interview with The Seattle Times, she recalled how it was simply 'over one day', a year into the marriage.

'We just sat down one day and decided our marriage was over. It was mutual, nothing ugly,' she said.

'I don't see him married with kids. He devotes so much time and energy to what he does that there's nothing left for anyone else. Hindsight is always clearer, but I just don't think he has the energy for a relationship.

'We were just getting started, two people that ended up together.

'Now, looking back, I think he was happier on his own. Relationships are hard for Rush. People are hard,' she said.

Rush Limbaugh at his studio at WABC Radio in New York City on December 14, 1988 (left) He later moved the show to Florida, where he was most popular, and right, in the 1990s

Limbaugh married Kathryn Rogers in a lavish ceremony in 2010. Pictured in 2008

Limbaugh married Michelle Sixta (left) in 1983, but they divorced in 1990. He was married to third wife Marta (pictured together, right) between 1994 and 2004

But he moved on with Michelle Sixta. The pair married in 1983. She was a student when they met, and he had already started making a name for himself in Sacramento.

The pair stayed together until 1988 when, after moving to New York together, they split and divorced in 1990.

Among the reasons given was that she was active and social, preferring being outside than at home, where Rush reveled in air conditioning in front of his computer.

Rush didn't marry again until 1994, when he married aerobics instructor Marta Fitzgerald.

They were together until 2004.

He died the know with Kathryn in 2010 and she stayed by his side during his cancer diagnosis.

She was standing beside him as he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom during Trumps final State of the Union just a day after he had announced his illness on his radio show.

Limbaugh died in his Palm Beach home Wednesday due to lung cancer.
Flanked by Mayo Clinic doctors Andrew Badley and Melanie Swift, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar appeared in Rochester today to declare war on the deliberate campaigns of misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccines sweeping social media platforms. During her afternoon news conference, Minnesota's senior Senator pointed out the danger inherent in the lies.

"If every night people go home and see a bunch of lies on the internet, they start believing it," the Senator said emphatically. "I know that because I was just in the middle of the capitol when a bunch of people believed a bunch of stuff they saw online and invaded the Capitol."

Klobuchar says the mega-companies running social media platforms need to be responsible.

"At some point, these companies have some responsibility here," she said. "They have made a lot of money off of us and our data  It's not censorship, they're businesses and they have to protect us from bad information. Your TV station cannot allow fake information. The newspapers have rules that govern them. They can't pretend it's anything goes. We have seen what happens with false information about elections. You can just look at the broken windows and glass at the Capitol."

Klobuchar sounded an optimistic theme, though. She is encouraged by the fact that roughly 16 percent of Minnesota residents have been vaccinated. For his part, Dr. Andrew Badley believes the vaccines have the potential to protect for a long time.

"We anticipate that we will have immunity against the Sars-Cov-2 virus for months to years," the doctor said after this reporter asked him how long the vaccines last. "We just haven't been able to study it long enough to know if that's the case."

Senator Klobuchar has introduced a measure billed as "The Covid-19 Disinformation Task Force Act," that would allow Homeland Security to coordinate the Federal analysis of false vaccine information.
Fozzy Group, the second largest retailer in Ukraine in terms of turnover, has requested permission from the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) to acquire control over the assets of Furshet Retail Group.

"On granting permission to Silpo-Food LLC to directly acquire control over assets - real estate objects, equipment and inventory balances, which together provide retail trade in consumer goods of daily demand and are held by Furshet Group on the right of ownership and the right to use," according to the agenda of the AMCU on Thursday.

According to the information on the Furshet website, the chain currently includes 25 stores in various regions of the country, including 11 in Kyiv.

The sole shareholder of the company is PrJSC Anthousa Limited (Great Britain) with a charter capital of UAH 2 million, the supervisory board of which is headed by member of Kyiv City Council Ihor Balenko.

As reported, the Economic Court of Dnipropetrovsk region on January 18 opened proceedings on bankruptcy of the subsidiary Retail Center, which owns the Furshet supermarket chain and introduced a moratorium on satisfying creditors' claims and a procedure for disposing of the debtor's property.

Fozzy Group is one of the largest Ukrainian retailers with about 690 outlets throughout the country. As of 2019, the total area of Fozzy Group stores was more than 1 million square meters.
Photo: (Photo : Jessica Lewis / Unsplash)

Parents may question their own capacity when homeschooling kids. Parents without a degree, in particular, may wonder if they are fit to teach their child at home, given that skeptics may question the parents educational attainment as a barrier or hindrance to the child's learning. But how important is the parent-teacher's own educational attainment to their child's homeschooling success?

Homeschool Policy on Parent Qualifications

In North Dakota, Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Virginia, homeschooling parents are required a high school diploma and or GED. These are basic educational qualifications for parents who wish to homeschool their kids, especially parents of children in grades 9-12.

Still, a majority of states in the U.S. do not require any educational qualifications for the homeschooling parents, Responsible Homeschooling revealed.

ALSO READ: Tips on How to Homeschool From Your Apartment

Homeschool Parents Educational Attainment Does Not Pose a Problem in Homeschooling Kids

Texas home school coalition's public policy director, Jeremy Newman, revealed that parents educational attainment does not affect the outcome of the homeschooling kids, Epoch Times reported. Instead, what is of more significance to the homeschooling child's success is their learning environment.

A homeschool parent's resourcefulness can make up for the lack of a Ph.D, for example. The homeschool expert said there are many resources that homeschool parents can tap into when facilitating the learning environment-which is their main job.

Indeed there are many resources on the internet for the beginner homeschool parent. Whether you are a parent who is looking into homeschooling for the first time or a novice homeschool parent in their first few months of homeschooling, many homeschooling parents have documented and shared their journeys online for many parents to learn from.

ALSO READ: Prince George Would Rather Do Princess Charlotte's Homeschool Projects

Homeschooling Kids Puts Them at an Advantage

The homeschooling expert added that regardless of the academic levels of the parents, homeschooled students are able to score in the 75th to 85th percentile on just about every subject. Further, homeschooled kids score 25 to 35 percentile points higher than public school students on the same standardized tests.

Homeschooled kids have an advantage over their learning environment. "This advantage gives homeschooled kids a greater chance at success," the homeschool expert revealed. The expert also stressed the amount of effort that goes into creating such a learning environment, which can be credited to the parents.

Parent-led homeschool education is arguably one of the fastest-growing type of schooling in the United States. This type of education adapts to the individual learning styles of every student. In 2020, the homeschooling population jumped from 5 million to 9 million homeschooling kids. Among minority groups and non-white, non-Hispanic families, homeschooling saw a 41 percent increase.

Due to the pandemic, parents found a different path to managing the education of their children. They discovered remote learning as well as part-time homeschooling. As for parents who are new to homeschooling, the homeschool expert advised, "Start small with a few hours a day, testing and figuring things out on the way-what works and what does not."

ALSO READ: How Do Homeschool and Virtual School Compare?
NEW DELHI : Heres a list of top 10 stocks that could be in focus on Thursday:

Bharti Airtel: The Sunil Mittal Company will acquire 20% stake in its direct-to-home (DTH) subsidiary Bharti Telemedia Ltd from a Warburg Pincus entity for 3,126 crore, which will be discharged primarily via issuance of 36.47 million equity shares of Airtel at a price of 600 per share; and up to 10,378 million in cash.

IndusInd Bank: Hinduja Group's IndusInd Bank is expected to get a capital boost from promoters by Thursday after a successful rights issue in which they have raised 2,021.45 crore. The rights issue was necessitated to infuse residual capital into the bank in lieu of conversion of warrants issued to them in 2019 worth over 2,695 crore into equity.

Future Retail: Amazon has approached the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) urging it not to allow convening of any meeting of Future Group's shareholders or creditors for approval of its proposed 24,713 crore deal with Reliance Industries.

Housing Finance Companies: The Reserve Bank of India has announced a slew of directions related to maintenance of liquidity coverage ratio, risk management, asset classification and loan-to-value ratio, among others, for housing finance companies.

Dish TV: The board of directors of the company has approved raising of funds aggregating up to 1,000 crore.

Vedanta: India Ratings and Research has revised the outlook for Vedanta Ltd to stable from negative and also affirmed the company's long-term issuer rating. The long-term issuer rating of the company is 'IND AA-'. Instruments with rating 'IND AA' carry very low credit risk.

Magma Fincorp: Adar Poonawalla-controlled Rising Sun Holdings Pvt Ltd along with two other individuals have made an open offer to buy an additional 26% stake in non-banking financial company Magma Fincorp for a consideration of more than 1,391 crore.

NALCO: The company's 749 crore buy-back offer will open on 25 February and close on 10 March. National Aluminium Company Limited had proposed a buy-back offer of up to 13.02 crore fully paid up equity shares of 5/- each at a price of 57.50 per equity share for an aggregate amount not exceeding 749.10 crore.

Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers: State-run Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Ltd has paid a dividend of 117.51 crore to the government for the 2019-20 fiscal and an interim dividend of 49.65 crore for the current financial year. The total dividend paid amounts to 167.16 crore.

MRP Agro: The equity shares of the company will be listed on the exchanges today. Incorporated in 2018, MRP Agro Limited is primarily engaged in trading and import and export of food grains, fly-ash, and coal products.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 01:45:40|Editor: huaxia

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Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a virtual open briefing of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) related to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution, in Beijing, capital of China, Feb. 17, 2021. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

BEIJING, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday made four proposals for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and making new contributions to safeguarding peace.

He put forward the proposals at a virtual open briefing of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) related to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

Wang proposed adhering to putting people first and enhancing global cooperation in the fight against COVID-19; fully implementing the UNSC resolutions and creating a favorable environment for fighting the pandemic; solving the vaccine deficit and increasing assistance to developing countries; and strengthening coordination and giving full play to the role of the United Nations system.

China has taken concrete actions to promote the fair distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, he stressed, adding that China has never sought any geopolitical goals in carrying out international cooperation on COVID-19 vaccines, never calculated any economic gains, and never attached any political conditions.

"What we think about most is to let the vaccines become accessible and affordable public goods for the people of all countries," Wang said.

China will continue to work together with all parties and enhance cooperation on vaccines and pandemic prevention and control, Wang said.

The open briefing was convened with the theme of ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines in contexts affected by conflict and insecurity. Delegates of the UNSC members and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres attended the virtual meeting. Enditem
Genesis Alkali recently donated a work vehicle to the Green River High School automotive department. Two others are expected in April. From left to right are Vice-President of Manufacturing of Genesis Alkali Fred von Ahrens, Dayne Vaught, Aaron Walker, GRHS Auto Instructor Justin Milles, Director Corporate Communications and Public Affairs of Genesis Alkali David Caplan, and GRHS Principal Darren Heslep.

The Green River High School automotive department will get three vehicles to work on courtesy of Genesis Alkali. One of the three vehicles was delivered last week, while the other two will be sent in April.

Darren Heslep, Green River High School's principal, said the donations stemmed from a desire to purchase simulators for the automotive classes, but the idea was quickly nixed. Heslep said each simulator would cost approximately $20,000 and wouldn't be ideal for group learning. Heslep said the idea to find vehicles that could be donated to the high school came about and credited Superinte...
Credit Union Awareness LLC announced today that the AI-driven, consumer consideration campaign, Open Your Eyes to a Credit Union, is headed to Montana. The launch comes as thousands of credit union advocates and executives in the United States prepare for CUNAs Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC), the credit union industrys premier advocacy event.

What better way to celebrate credit unions today than to continue to share the amazing opportunities credit unions have to offer consumers, said Chris Lorence, Credit Union Awareness Executive Director. Open Your Eyes to a Credit Union is a first of its kind digital influencer campaign designed to dispel commonly held myths about credit unions while increasing consumer consideration for credit unions as their best financial partner. We are thrilled to bring this credit union driven campaign to Montana, and grateful to the Montana Credit Union League for their enormous support for opening consumers eyes to credit unions in Montana.

Open Your Eyes to a Credit Union has gained over 1,106 supporting organizations that have pledged more than $52 million. The campaign has launched in twenty-five states and is expected to launch in at least 5 other states in the upcoming months.

Men once selling their own kidneys face charges for brokering trade

Tran Xuan Hiep (L) and Nguyen Duy Phuong at a police station in Hanoi, February 2021. Photo by Hanoi police.

Hanoi police are probing two kidney traffickers who have grown rich via exorbitant interest.

Tran Xuan Hiep, 30, and Nguyen Duy Phuong, 33, are under investigation for "trading human body parts," an offense punishable with life imprisonment.

Investigators said the two men, both Hanoi residents, had once sold their own kidneys and thus having experiences in the process and required procedures for illegal kidney trade.

The two relied on social media to source kidney donors and scouted hospitals to find patients in dire need of the organ.

They purchased kidneys priced at VND230 million ($10,000) each, resold for VND1.1 billion a piece.

Kidney donors were housed and looked after in rented premises in Hanoi while awaiting their operation.

Any successful deal brought them VND200-300 million.

In early February, the two traffickers agreed to sell kidneys to two patients at a hospital in Hanoi when apprehended by police.

An investigation subsequently uncovered four more donors looking to profit from trading their organs.

Hiep and Phuong told police they had already conducted several successful kidney trades.

More than five million people have chronic kidney disease in Vietnam, and 100,000 have to receive dialysis daily, official data shows.

Social insurance only funds the cost of dialysis, so those who need a transplant have to pay for it.

Then, those with kidney failure have to register to wait in line for a legal kidney, which normally takes several months or even more due to a serious donor shortage. This has prompted many kidney patients to gradually lose hope and turn to the black market. In many cases, donors and receivers have no information on each other.

In Vietnam, where organ donation is considered a taboo as many believe one should die wholly prepared for the afterlife, black market kidney transactions like Binh and Tien's are not rare.

According to police, kidney traffickers usually conduct 30-50 deals per year.

Ukrainian law enforcement officers have served Deputy Defense Minister of Russia, Head of the Main Military-Political Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces Andrey Kartapolov with charges of encroaching on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine, conducting an aggressive war and violating the laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder.

"According to the investigation, the Colonel General in January and February 2015, while holding the post of Chief of the Main Operations Directorate, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, by prior conspiracy with other persons from among the leadership of the Russian Armed Forces, in order to violate the territorial integrity of Ukraine, carried out planning and coordination of the actions of units of the Armed Forces of the aggressor state and the irregular illegal armed formations under their control to seize the city of Debaltseve and adjacent settlements," the Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) press service said on Thursday.

At the same time, the State Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) indicates the name of the colonel general Andrey Kartapolov.

Law enforcement officers also said that in August 2014, Kartapolov, along with other representatives of the Russian Armed Forces command, provided planning and control of Russian units during the invasion of Ukraine.

He also participated in organizing the treacherous murder of Ukrainian servicemen near the town of Ilovaisk during their exit from the so-called green corridor under the "guarantees" provided by the Russian leadership, and also ensured the further armed occupation of other settlements of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

For the commission of the incriminated crimes, the Criminal Code of Ukraine provides for the maximum punishment in the form of life imprisonment.
Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free




In the first episode, graduation day is approaching and Archie learns that he will have to repeat his senior year, but Principal Weatherbee allows him to be part of the final year's ceremony. Jughead's family is in turmoil: after the big reveal that Jellybean is the voyeur, FP decided to go back to Toledo with Gladys. The ceremony is nothing so memorable, but it was a great moment.





Archie and Veronica decide to spend the last night together and the day after, the gang graduates. Archie decides to join the Army. The perfect storyline for Archie and his random life decisions. The gang buries a time capsule at Riverdale High. Meanwhile, Cheryl is not going to college and she breaks up with Toni. A series of weird narrative choices.





Betty reveals to Jughead that she kissed Archie. Jughead goes back to Betty's house after she leaves for Yale. One year later, Jughead is the only one at Pop's. This episode felt like closure and it was well written. One of the best episodes in a while. It was also sad to see Jug's disappointment when his friends don't show up. They say their final goodbyes and they swear they would meet a year from that day. Life changes and the gang stops talking. Veronica goes on holiday with Hermione,reveals to Jughead that she kissed Archie. Jughead goes back to Betty's house after she leaves for Yale. One year later, Jughead is the only one at Pop's. This episode felt like closure and it was well written. One of the best episodes in a while. It was also sad to see Jug's disappointment when his friends don't show up.





In "Purgatory", seven years have gone by and Archie comes back to Riverdale where he finds Toni performing with Fangs and Sweet Pea. She is pregnant and reveals to Archie that so much has changed since he left and she shows him around town. Hiram wants to clear out Riverdale for his benefit.





Betty is in the FBI in Quantico, and she is still traumatized by being held captive by the Trash Bag Killera result of a mission that went wrong. Veronica is married to her husband, Chad, who is a controlling Hiram-like-figure. She defines herself as the "she-wolf of wall street" and apparently, they are in 2021. Time is relative, Albert Einstein stated.





they haven't talked for 7 years? Why is everyone returning to Riverdale, only because Archie is calling? What the heck was Toni's performance? I am not so optimistic about this new setting. In New York, Jughead has the most stupid breakup ever, when his girlfriend moves out. Back in Riverdale, Cheryl has been avoiding Toni and she hides in Thornhill with Nana Rose. Archie calls all his friends back: Betty, Jughead, and Veronica, all decide to go to Pop's to meet him. Meanwhile, Lynette Squeaky Fields is a waitress and the first victim of a new mysterious killer. This episode is weird: the characters look the same and don't appear to be almost at-all different, but there is a big-time jump. Shall we buy that with mobile phones and the internet? Why is everyone returning to Riverdale, only because Archie is calling? What the heck was Toni's performance? I am not so optimistic about this new setting.





And you? What do you think of "Graduation" and "Purgatorio"?

Times are a-changing in Riverdale. The gang is graduating and moving on with their lives. And - we are moving on in time. With, the TV series decides to take a turn, is it a good one? Let's discuss it.
Too many pressures on cops

Mayor Fulop, stop dismantling the police!

You need to revisit the process of how individuals become police officers. After the initial application, the civil service test is taken and scored. The number of recruits needed in any city or town are divided. Top scores, military service status and diversity are considered. Then those who make the cut begin a rigorous training program -- both educational and physical.

At any point along the line, if the individual does not make a passing score, they are dropped out of the program. The point being: to be a police officer, you either have the right stuff or youre out.

They are not appointed to fulfill political or social pressures. Yet they are overseen by those who cater to the everchanging whims of social justice and catchy phrases, saying that this would develop better relationship and transparency with the public.

Police are consistently under scrutiny for every action and reaction. They are expected to be social workers and psychiatrists and, of course, politically correct in all they do -- and make these critical decisions in a microsecond.

Based on all these requirements, the police do a hell of a job. The powers that be ought to be supportive and not critical just to placate popular opinion. Foremost, the promotion process for the chief of police position should be left to the civil service, not the mayor, to ensure a merit system.

Edward Rutkowski, Bayonne

Council abdicated its duty

Jersey Citys council committed an egregious error by awarding the $6,7 million contract to upgrade the pedestrian plaza on Newark Avenue. Holding public office is a public trust. The citys council violated that sacred trust by abdicating its independence and impartiality.

The council is supposed to be the honest broker -- the trusted stewards -- of -- and for -- public resources. The people of Jersey City have placed financial responsibility and fiscal integrity in the councils hands.

Yet, despite that trust, the council decided that the expenditure of $6.7 million for a pedestrian plaza is a must fund during a pandemic.

That said, given the current environment, I am sure that the $6.7 million could have been used to resource a much higher priority.

Taking this a step further, the city council should be independent. The non-partisan objectiveness enables the council to make those decisions that truly benefit the city and its constituents. Without the independence to make crucial decisions that impact the city, the council regresses to nothing more than a mere rubber stamp.

In reality, a partisan council is a bizarre form of feudalism, each council member enjoys the privileges of a fiefdom -- just as long as the council person remains loyal to the sovereign.

Come to think of it, the people of Jersey City have experienced this urban feudalism in the past during the times of Frank Hague and John V. Kenny. Of course, we didnt call it feudalism. Instead, we called it a political machine.

Havent we outgrown the era (or is that error?) of political machine type politics?

John DiGenio, Jersey City

Trump should start third party

I totally agree with the Opinion piece in last Mondays Jersey Journal on a three-party system.

Most people are fed up with the two parties we have now. Trump can start a third party now with 74 million voters already on his side. Trump should come out swinging now at the Biden administration and the Democrats about these policies they are pushing through Congress and executive orders. They are very harmful to the country -- 12,000 jobs gone on the first day, probably another million jobs gone by the end of the year by shutting off oil and gas drilling permits; million more jobs gone by raising minimum wage to $15 an hour; crisis at the Southern border.

There will be plenty more angry voters that Trump can add to the 74 million followers he has now.

As your guest columnist, Yonel Pierre, said in his article, the time is now for a new third party. I think it was a great opinion, Yonel, one of the best Ive seen in the left-leaning Jersey Journal in a long time.

Mike Armstrong, Bayonne

Send letters to the editor and guest columns for The Jersey Journal to jjletters@jjournal.com.
Send a note to President Biden.

Thats Sen. Elizabeth Warrens message to students and former students grappling with student loan debt  many of them trying to make ends meet and pay off loans on a high school diploma-level salary.

Its crushing the bones of a lot of people out there, the Massachusetts Democrat told thousands who joined a virtual town hall on Wednesday night.

Prompted by a question from Thalia Sass, who took out loans to work on a doctoral degree at Brandeis University and become a scientist, Warren told viewers she was all-in on the issue, repeatedly pressing the Biden administration to use its authority to cancel up to $50,000 in student loan debt.

It doesnt have to go through Congress, Warren said. The authority is already there, in law, for the president and the Secretary of Education to cancel out this student loan debt. And President (Barack) Obama used it ... President (Donald) Trump used it to cancel some student loan debt. I would like to see President (Joe) Biden do it.

The move would make a difference in the lives of in tens of millions of Americans and help give our entire nation a stronger future, Warren argued.

Warren made the case that eliminating a big chunk of student loan debt wouldnt only help students like Sass, but would boost the entire economy and invest in the future at a time when Americans are suffering through the COVID-19 pandemic.

She noted that about 40% of those with student loan debt dont have a college degree for a variety of reasons, whether economic or family-related, challenging commutes or affordability.

She added that two out of every three graduates of state schools end up with student loan debt because they just cant make it. Our state schools dont get enough taxpayer support so people can graduate without debt.

Last week, Warren, alongside Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and others pushed Biden to slash student loan debt.

She also said the issue was directly tied to racial injustice, arguing there is no single act the president of the United States can take that would have a bigger impact on helping close a racialized wealth gap.

Cutting up to $50,000 in student loan debt could close the Black-white wealth gap by about 25 points, Warren said.

If we can persuade the president, we can do this one fast, Warren said Wednesday night. Im all-in on this one.

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Saudi Arabia s ultimatum for global companies to move their regional hubs to Riyadh by 2024 or lose business is the kind of decision making that has made some wary of investing there.

The millions of dollars in costs, sudden policy changes and arbitrary legal rulings mean companies will need to weigh the risks of moving there with the potential rewards Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmans economic overhaul promises.

Also Read | Why bitcoin wont become like money

Saudi Arabia said this week state contracts would go only to companies with regional hubs in the country to stop economic leakage." It gave few details, fueling the kind of uncertainty many regional executives say complicate their dealings with the worlds top oil exporter.

Some businessmen say Saudi Arabia is a sleeping giant thats waking up, with a consumer market three times the size of the United Arab Emirates, planned mega-projects worth hundreds of billions of dollars and a young, rapidly-changing society thats almost unrecognizable from the ultra-conservative kingdom of five years ago.

But one manager at a multinational headquartered in Dubai, the Gulfs main business hub, said companies know the political tide can turn fast in Saudi Arabia. The lack of legal recourse they have makes them vulnerable as most contracts come via the state so its difficult to chase unpaid money, he said. Like others he spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity.

Companies have mostly looked past Saudi Arabias arrests of businessmen and royals in what it called a crackdown on corruption, and the killing of a dissident columnist in 2018. Yet sudden shifts like tripling value-added tax create uncertainty and cost.

Overreach and Incentives

Saudi officials are frustrated by the consultants and executives working on Saudi projects who based themselves in Dubai, business-oriented city that draws in millions of foreign workers.

Its a combination of desperation and a little bit of overreach" said Ryan Bohl, a Middle East analyst at Stratfor Worldview. Its going to be hard to convince multinationals and regional giants to pick sides," he said, predicting Riyadh would make exceptions and find ways for companies to function in both.

A Saudi government presentation to investors seen by Bloomberg said officials were working on an attractive incentive package" for Riyadhs King Abdullah Financial District, set to become a special economic zone. Subject to final approval, sweeteners include a 50-year exemption from 20% corporate tax and a waiver of rules around hiring Saudis for at least 10 years. The presentation also touted the potential exemptions to Saudi laws based on investor needs and an easier work permit system.

Dubai shouldnt underestimate the willingness of companies to follow the money, a Dubai businessman said. The Saudi plans mean Dubai has to be inventive and stop relying on a model of charging fees and making the city more expensive to do business in.

The UAE is taking the regional challenge seriously and has made reforms to try to attract and keep foreigners as the pandemic batters the tourism and logistics sectors.

Workarounds

Executives at several international companies said theyd seek workarounds.

A manager at a global food company with regional headquarters in Dubai said they could name a second Mideast hub in Riyadh, or ask local Saudi partners to do so under their names. An advertising executive said their firm would open a Saudi office because of more work but keep Dubai as the regional base.

At the kingdoms flagship investment conference last month 24 companies including Pepsico and Bosch said theyd signed preliminary agreements to locate regional hubs in Riyadh, though theyre waiting for the details before firming up commitments.

The time frame of three years probably recognizes that this will be a big shift for corporations," said Nuno Gomes, head of Middle East Career business at consultancy firm Mercer, estimating the additional costs of being in Riyadh can amount to 15%-25%.

Saudi officials realize the scale of the challenge, and are rolling out changes like a planned overhaul of the judicial system. Rumors are even circulating that a long-standing alcohol ban may be relaxed.

We need to also create for those expats that we attract a great living environment," Fahed Al-Rasheed, head of the Royal Commission for Riyadh City, said in an interview. So your spouse needs to be able to work. Your children need to have the best international schools and thats something that we have, and were working on."

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Researchers used DNA sequences from high-resolution experiments to train a neural network called BPNet, whose "black box" innerworkings were then uncovered to reveal sequence patterns and organizing principles of the genome's regulatory code. Credit: Illustration courtesy of Mark Miller, Stowers Institute for Medical Research.

Researchers at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, in collaboration with colleagues at Stanford University and Technical University of Munich have developed advanced explainable artificial intelligence (AI) in a technical tour de force to decipher regulatory instructions encoded in DNA. In a report published online February 18, 2021, in Nature Genetics, the team found that a neural network trained on high-resolution maps of protein-DNA interactions can uncover subtle DNA sequence patterns throughout the genome and provide a deeper understanding of how these sequences are organized to regulate genes.

Neural networks are powerful AI models that can learn complex patterns from diverse types of data such as images, speech signals, or text to predict associated properties with impressive high accuracy. However, many see these models as uninterpretable since the learned predictive patterns are hard to extract from the model. This black-box nature has hindered the wide application of neural networks to biology, where interpretation of predictive patterns is paramount.

One of the big unsolved problems in biology is the genome's second codeits regulatory code. DNA bases (commonly represented by letters A, C, G, and T) encode not only the instructions for how to build proteins, but also when and where to make these proteins in an organism. The regulatory code is read by proteins called transcription factors that bind to short stretches of DNA called motifs. However, how particular combinations and arrangements of motifs specify regulatory activity is an extremely complex problem that has been hard to pin down.

Now, an interdisciplinary team of biologists and computational researchers led by Stowers Investigator Julia Zeitlinger, Ph.D., and Anshul Kundaje, Ph.D., from Stanford University, have designed a neural networknamed BPNet for Base Pair Networkthat can be interpreted to reveal regulatory code by predicting transcription factor binding from DNA sequences with unprecedented accuracy. The key was to perform transcription factor-DNA binding experiments and computational modeling at the highest possible resolution, down to the level of individual DNA bases. This increased resolution allowed them to develop new interpretation tools to extract the key elemental sequence patterns such as transcription factor binding motifs and the combinatorial rules by which motifs function together as a regulatory code.

"This was extremely satisfying," says Zeitlinger, "as the results fit beautifully with existing experimental results, and also revealed novel insights that surprised us."

For example, the neural network models enabled the researchers to discover a striking rule that governs binding of the well-studied transcription factor called Nanog. They found that Nanog binds cooperatively to DNA when multiples of its motif are present in a periodic fashion such that they appear on the same side of the spiraling DNA helix.

"There has been a long trail of experimental evidence that such motif periodicity sometimes exists in the regulatory code," Zeitlinger says. "However, the exact circumstances were elusive, and Nanog had not been a suspect. Discovering that Nanog has such a pattern, and seeing additional details of its interactions, was surprising because we did not specifically search for this pattern."

"This is the key advantage of using neural networks for this task," says Ziga Avsec, Ph.D., first author of the paper. Avsec and Kundaje created the first version of the model when Avsec visited Stanford during his doctoral studies in the lab of Julien Gagneur, Ph.D., at the Technical University in Munich, Germany.

"More traditional bioinformatics approaches model data using pre-defined rigid rules that are based on existing knowledge. However, biology is extremely rich and complicated," says Avsec. "By using neural networks, we can train much more flexible and nuanced models that learn complex patterns from scratch without previous knowledge, thereby allowing novel discoveries."

BPNet's network architecture is similar to that of neural networks used for facial recognition in images. For instance, the neural network first detects edges in the pixels, then learns how edges form facial elements like the eye, nose, or mouth, and finally detects how facial elements together form a face. Instead of learning from pixels, BPNet learns from the raw DNA sequence and learns to detect sequence motifs and eventually the higher-order rules by which the elements predict the base-resolution binding data.

Once the model is trained to be highly accurate, the learned patterns are extracted with interpretation tools. The output signal is traced back to the input sequences to reveal sequence motifs. The final step is to use the model as an oracle and systematically query it with specific DNA sequence designs, similar to what one would do to test hypotheses experimentally, to reveal the rules by which sequence motifs function in a combinatorial manner.

"The beauty is that the model can predict way more sequence designs that we could test experimentally," Zeitlinger says. "Furthermore, by predicting the outcome of experimental perturbations, we can identify the experiments that are most informative to validate the model." Indeed, with the help of CRISPR gene editing techniques, the researchers confirmed experimentally that the model's predictions were highly accurate.

Since the approach is flexible and applicable to a variety of different data types and cell types, it promises to lead to a rapidly growing understanding of the regulatory code and how genetic variation impacts gene regulation. Both the Zeitlinger Lab and the Kundaje Lab are already using BPNet to reliably identify binding motifs for other cell types, relate motifs to biophysical parameters, and learn other structural features in the genome such as those associated with DNA packaging. To enable other scientists to use BPNet and adapt it for their own needs, the researchers have made the entire software framework available with documentation and tutorials.

More information: Shrikumar, A. et al. Base-resolution models of transcription-factor binding reveal soft motif syntax. Nat Genet (2021). Journal information: Nature Genetics Shrikumar, A. et al. Base-resolution models of transcription-factor binding reveal soft motif syntax.(2021). doi.org/10.1038/s41588-021-00782-6

Today's roundup of crime news considers the latest allegations from the courthouse along with attempts from po-po to improve their image whilst newsies field more community concern.



Tragic Kansas City Cold Case Now Charged

Murder charges filed in 2017 shooting of Kansas City 3-year-old who was killed in his car seat Nearly four years after he was fatally shot, murder charges have been filed in the homicide of 3-year-old Marcus Haislip III. Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two first-degree assault charges have been filed against Derrick D.

Zoom Chat Seeks Solutions

Gun Violence in Missouri: Seeking Solutions (February 2021) The first digital program of the year in our series 'Gun Violence in Missouri: Seeking Solutions', will focus on public health solutions to gun violence across the state of Missouri.

Search Concludes In Tragedy

Human remains found in Clay County identified as missing woman from Independence The Clay County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday it has identified human remains found late last week in a rural part of the county.Authorities said the remains were found near Cameron and Easley roads and they belong to 45-year-old Alesha Jane Reade of Independence, Missouri.Police said Reade was last seen on Feb.

More Deets On New Policies For P0-Po Confronted With Mostly Peaceful Kansas City Rioters

KCPD proposes nixing 'less-lethal' crowd control measures KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department has proposed no longer use "less-lethal weapons, munitions, or chemical agents" to disperse or control crowds, according to a draft document presented Tuesday to the KCPD Board of Police Commissioners.

Local Search For Answers & Justice After Homicide

"It was just so unbelievable" victim's mom said as police look for woman who may have answers in metro homicide KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Police are looking for a woman they believe holds the key to a metro homicide case. Someone shot and killed 24 year-old Kashawn Haskell April 29, 2020. Police found her body next to a vehicle in a parking lot near East 82nd Street and Troost Avenue.

Show-Me Suspect Creeper Charged With Horrific Misdeeds

Missouri man charged with sexually assaulting girls after lengthy investigation ST. CLAIR, Mo. (KMOV.com) - A Missouri man is accused of sexually assaulting two girls in St. Clair, Missouri. The afternoon of Jan. 21, 2020 officers were called to a mobile home in the 300 block of E. Springfield Road for a report of a man sexually assaulting two girls.

Kansas City Newsies Talk Emergency Response

Report your 911 concerns to KCTV5 News KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- KCTV5 News will be investigating your concerns when it comes to 911. We are looking at the hold times people encounter when calling for help in Kansas City, Missouri. We will have a special report Thursday at 10 p.m. on the hold times for the entire 2020 calendar year.

Developing . . .

An Indian engineering firm, Lutech- Pratibha, says no fewer than 200 indigents of Bauchi State were employed while executing the States Government water project.

The firms project manager, Nanda Kumar, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Bauchi.

Mr Kumar disclosed that only five Indians are presently working in the company, saying the large number of the local employees were responsible for the peaceful coexistence between the management of the firm and the state, especially the people of Gubi community, where the company was located.

The community has been very cooperative. One thing we did to the community is that we gave them employment.

We have employed about 200 people here and we only have five key personnel from India. All others are here and most of them are from this area, thats a good gesture, he said.

Mr Kumar explained that the main objective of the company in Bauchi was to rehabilitate and expand the states water treatment plant as envisioned by the present administration of Governor Bala Mohammed.

He said the project was the part of state governments efforts to meet the peoples demand for water in the state, adding when completed 7.5 million litres of clean water would be supplied to Bauchi metropolis and environs on a daily basis.

He explained part of the companys mandate was to expand the water treatment plant from 45,000 cubic meters per day to 75,000 cubic meters per day.

According to him, additional 30,000 cubic meters per day will be added in order to meet the current and future water demand of Bauchi state.

In the expansion of the treatment plant, we are to expand the plant from 45,000 cubic meters per day to 75,000 cubic meters per day.

(An) addition of thirty thousand cubic meters per day would need to be put in, to meet the current demand of Bauchi and probably the future demand of Bauchi as well.

He said the company was also mandated to rehabilitate plant which design capacity is above 45,000 cubic meters per day but the running capacity is around 37,000 cubic meters per day.

Once we rehabilitate the plant, aesthetically, it will look very nice and the running capacity will augment the design capacity.

The job is almost at 100 per cent at completion stage, he said, adding that the said the people of the state would begin to enjoy well treated quality water when completed.

He assured the residents of the state that they would start receiving pipe-borne water by the end of March, 2021.

An employee, Abubakar Sulaiman, told NAN that residents of the area were grateful to the company and the state government for engaging the firm to handle the project.

Mr Sulaiman said and others like him could now afford to feed their families from their earned wages.

Another employee, Mustapha Abdullahi, called on other foreign organisations working in the state to emulate the Indian companys good working relationship with its staff.

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(NAN)
Bombay High Court on Wednesday (February 17) questioned a social worker who has challenged an upcoming film being made on the life of late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput. The court asked if the social worker knows the content of the film that is still in pre-production.

Manish Mishra had filed an appeal claiming that film maligns the reputation of Rajput and is based on distorted facts. This is not the first time Manish filed a plea against the film, Nyaay: The Justice which is being produced by Sarla Saraogi. Earlier on December 22, 2020, the Dindoshi Civil Court had dismissed his interim plea for an injunction against the makers.

The Dindoshi Civil Court had said, "Investigation in respect to the said matter is yet to decide about the correctness of either suicide or murder."

Meanwhile, Mishra reached out to the High Court after the civil court's dismissal. His petition informed the High Court that the production has begun and urged the court to restrain Saraogi from releasing, exhibiting, displaying and advertising the film.

Justice Prithviraj Chavan questioned Mishra's locus standi to file a suit and his personal interest. "How do you know what they are going to do?''

Mishra's advocate Chetan C Agarwal said his client is "businessman, social worker and a fan and follower" of Sushant Singh Rajput. Agarwal said, "How can they say it is not touching the investigation or distorting facts? The title itself shows."

On the other hand, the producer's advocate Ashok Saraogi argued that "It (title) can be for anything. The producer has not touched upon the police investigations into the actor's death." He also noted that the civil court had asked, "Unless the film is released, how can it be said that it shows distorted facts?"

Justice Chavan posted the hearing in the first week of March citing that there is no urgency and added, "If someone is doing something correctly, there is no need to be afraid."

ALSO READ: Rhea Chakraborty's Lawyer On Bombay HC Dismissing Sushant's Sister Priyanka's Plea: Satisfied With The Verdict

ALSO READ: Sushant Singh Rajput's Dhoni Co-Star Sandeep Nahar Dies By Suicide, Shares Suicide Note On Social Media
Edison, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 02/18/2021 -- A new business intelligence report released by HTF MI with title "COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Industry Market Report-Development Trends, Threats, Opportunities and Competitive Landscape in 2020" is designed covering micro level of analysis by manufacturers and key business segments. The COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market survey analysis offers energetic visions to conclude and study market size, market hopes, and competitive surroundings. The research is derived through primary and secondary statistics sources and it comprises both qualitative and quantitative detailing. Some of the key players profiled in the study are SAP AG, Perceptive Software Inc, Oracle, Dassault Systemes, Polyspot & Sinequa Inc, HP Autonomy, Lucidworks, Microsoft, Expert System Inc, Coveo Corp, Esker Software Corp., IBM Corp & Marklogic Inc.



What's keeping SAP AG, Perceptive Software Inc, Oracle, Dassault Systemes, Polyspot & Sinequa Inc, HP Autonomy, Lucidworks, Microsoft, Expert System Inc, Coveo Corp, Esker Software Corp., IBM Corp & Marklogic Inc Ahead in the Market? Benchmark yourself with the strategic moves and findings recently released by HTF MI



Get Sample Report + All Related Graphs & Charts @ : https://www.htfmarketreport.com/sample-report/2771587-covid-19-outbreak-global-enterprise-search-industry-market



Market Overview of COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search

If you are involved in the COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search industry or aim to be, then this study will provide you inclusive point of view. It's vital you keep your market knowledge up to date segmented by Applications [Retail, Healthcare, Banking & Financial Services, Government & Commercial Offices & Others], Product Types [, Large Enterprises, Medium Enterprises & Small Enterprises] and major players. If you have a different set of players/manufacturers according to geography or needs regional or country segmented reports we can provide customization according to your requirement.



This study mainly helps understand which market segments or Region or Country they should focus in coming years to channelize their efforts and investments to maximize growth and profitability. The report presents the market competitive landscape and a consistent in depth analysis of the major vendor/key players in the market along with impact of economic slowdown due to COVID.



Furthermore, the years considered for the study are as follows:

Historical year  2015-2020

Base year  2020

Forecast period**  2021 to 2026 [** unless otherwise stated]



**Moreover, it will also include the opportunities available in micro markets for stakeholders to invest, detailed analysis of competitive landscape and product services of key players.



Enquire for customization in Report @: https://www.htfmarketreport.com/enquiry-before-buy/2771587-covid-19-outbreak-global-enterprise-search-industry-market



The titled segments and sub-section of the market are illuminated below:

The Study Explore the Product Types of COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search Market: , Large Enterprises, Medium Enterprises & Small Enterprises



Key Applications/end-users of COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise SearchMarket: Retail, Healthcare, Banking & Financial Services, Government & Commercial Offices & Others



Top Players in the Market are: SAP AG, Perceptive Software Inc, Oracle, Dassault Systemes, Polyspot & Sinequa Inc, HP Autonomy, Lucidworks, Microsoft, Expert System Inc, Coveo Corp, Esker Software Corp., IBM Corp & Marklogic Inc



Region Included are: North America (Covered in Chapter 7 and 14), United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe (Covered in Chapter 8 and 14), Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, Others, Asia-Pacific (Covered in Chapter 9 and 14), China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, India, Southeast Asia, Others, Middle East and Africa (Covered in Chapter 10 and 14), Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria, South Africa, Others, South America (Covered in Chapter 11 and 14), Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, Chile & Others



Important Features that are under offering & key highlights of the report:

 Detailed overview of COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search market

 Changing market dynamics of the industry

 In-depth market segmentation by Type, Application etc

 Historical, current and projected market size in terms of volume and value

 Recent industry trends and developments

 Competitive landscape of COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search market

 Strategies of key players and product offerings

 Potential and niche segments/regions exhibiting promising growth

 A neutral perspective towards COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search market performance

 Market players information to sustain and enhance their footprint



Read Detailed Index of full Research Study at @ https://www.htfmarketreport.com/reports/2771587-covid-19-outbreak-global-enterprise-search-industry-market



Major Highlights of TOC:

Chapter One: COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market Industry Overview

1.1 COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search Industry

1.1.1 Overview

1.1.2 Products of Major Companies

1.2 COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search Market Segment

1.2.1 Industry Chain

1.2.2 Consumer Distribution

1.3 Price & Cost Overview



Chapter Two: COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market Demand

2.1 Segment Overview

2.1.1 APPLICATION 1

2.1.2 APPLICATION 2

2.1.3 Other

2.2 COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market Size by Demand

2.3 COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market Forecast by Demand



Chapter Three: COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market by Type

3.1 By Type

3.1.1 TYPE 1

3.1.2 TYPE 2

3.2 COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search Market Size by Type

3.3 COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search Market Forecast by Type



Chapter Four: Major Region of COVID-19 Outbreak- Enterprise Search Market

4.1 COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Sales

4.2 COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Revenue & market share



Chapter Five: Major Companies List



Chapter Six: Conclusion



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Key questions answered

- What impact does COVID-19 have made on COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search Market Growth & Sizing?

- Who are the Leading key players and what are their Key Business plans in the COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search market?

- What are the key concerns of the five forces analysis of the COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search market?

- What are different prospects and threats faced by the dealers in the COVID-19 Outbreak-Global Enterprise Search market?

- What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?



Thanks for reading this article; you can also get individual chapter wise section or region wise report version like North America, Europe or Asia.



About HTF Market Report

HTF Market Report is a wholly owned brand of HTF market Intelligence Consulting Private Limited. HTF Market Report global research and market intelligence consulting organization is uniquely positioned to not only identify growth opportunities but to also empower and inspire you to create visionary growth strategies for futures, enabled by our extraordinary depth and breadth of thought leadership, research, tools, events and experience that assist you for making goals into a reality. Our understanding of the interplay between industry convergence, Mega Trends, technologies and market trends provides our clients with new business models and expansion opportunities. We are focused on identifying the "Accurate Forecast" in every industry we cover so our clients can reap the benefits of being early market entrants and can accomplish their "Goals & Objectives".
(UroToday.com) Data from the landmark ALSYMPCA trial1 found that the targeted alpha therapy Radium-223 prolonged overall survival in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).1 However, there is little data to guide clinicians as to the appropriate sequence for use of Radium-223 in men with mCRPC with regards to other life-prolonging therapies. At the 2021 ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium (ASCO GU), Dr. Lawrence Mbuagbaw and colleagues presented results of their real-world study evaluating clinical outcomes of patients when Radium-223 was used early (second-line) or late (third or later lines) among men with mCRPC.

For this study, the authors used administrative databases in Ontario (Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, 2012-2017) to estimate overall survival from the start of second-line life prolonging therapy, and event free survival (time from start of second-line life prolonging therapy to start of fourth-line or death) using counting process models, comparing two cohorts of patients: early Radium-223 (2nd line) versus late Radium-223 (3rd or later line). Life prolonging therapies included Radium-223, docetaxel, cabazitaxel (post-docetaxel), abiraterone, and enzalutamide. The study design is as follows:





All models were adjusted for relevant fixed and time-varying covariates, including age, PSA, hemoglobin, Charlson Comorbidity Index, use of bone health agents, prior systemic treatments, Gleason score, TNM score, ADT and standardized pain score.

Data from 598 men in Ontario with mCRPC who received at least two lines of life-prolonging therapy, including Radium-223 in second-line or later were analyzed (early Radium-223 n=253, 42.3%; late Radium-223 n=345; 57.7%). The mean age at the start of first-line life-prolonging therapy was 72.2 years (SD8.8). Patients in the early Radium-223 cohort had a longer time from diagnosis of prostate cancer to receiving first-line life-prolonging therapy, a longer time from start of first-line to start of second-line life-prolonging therapy, and were less likely to receive docetaxel. The median number of Radium-223 cycles was 5 (range 3-6) and 4 (range 3-6) and the mean number lines of total life-prolonging therapy was 2.7  0.9 (2.0 - 7.0) and 3.8  0.9 (3.0 - 7.0) in the early and late Radium-223 cohorts, respectively. The number of lines of life-prolonging therapy received, percentage of patients receiving each life-prolonging therapy at any time, and first-line treatment utilization (stratified by early versus late Radium-223 use) is as follows:







Overall survival was better in the early Radium-223 cohort compared to the late Radium-223 cohort (HR 0.79 95% CI 0.66-0.95):











Event free survival was better in the early Radium-223 cohort compared to the late Radium-223 cohort (HR 0.71, 95% CI 0.58-0.86):











Additionally, time to first hospitalization (HR 0.61, 95% CI 0.48-0.76) and time to first emergency department visit (HR 0.78, 95% CI 0.61-1.0) was longer in the early Radium-223 cohort.

Dr. Mbuagbaw concluded his presentation discussing real-world outcomes of utilization of Radium-223 in Ontario, Canada with the following take home messages:

Patients who received Radium-223 in second-line versus third-line or later had better outcomes

Additionally, patients who received Radium-223 early received less chemotherapy, but had better survival

The selection of patients who may benefit the most from Radium-223, and the optimal timing of the Radium-223 in the sequence of treatments, are being evaluated in a larger Canadian study including data from four Canadian provinces (REACTIVATE NCT04281147).

Presented by: Lawrence Mbuagbaw, MD, MPH, Ph.D., McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada

Co-Authors: Jennifer Lowther, Richard M. Lee-Ying; McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada; Bayer, Inc., Mississauga, ON, Canada; Tom Baker Cancer Center, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

Written by: Zachary Klaassen, MD, MSc  Urologic Oncologist, Assistant Professor of Urology, Georgia Cancer Center, Augusta University/Medical College of Georgia, Twitter: @zklaassen_md during the 2021 ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium (ASCO GU), February 11th to 13th, 2021

References:

1. Parker C, Nilsson S, Heinrich D, et al. Alpha emitter radium-223 and survival in metastatic prostate cancer. N Engl J Med2013;369(3):213-223.
LOS ANGELESNew legislation from three Senate Democrats would create the broadest exceptions to online speech protections yet proposed.

After more than a year of threats to Section 230, the First Amendment of the Internet, under the Donald Trump administration, Democrats in the United States Senate have introduced a new bill to reform the 25-year-old law in ways that, according to one top free speech lawyer, appears to be a new idea to destroy Section 230.

Speaking February 11 at the #interNEXT2021 conference, attorney Corey Siverstein said that the proposed law would rewrite all of Section 230, and if you are in any way making money in relation to something being posted, you would have no ability to assert Section 230.

Section 230 is the passage in the 1996 Communications Decency Act that protects online platforms from legal responsibility over user posts  a provision that is important for any type of free expression on the internet, but in particular for adult content which is the frequent target of censorship.

But what is this new proposed law? A law that would  as Eric Goldman of the Technology & Marketing Law Blog put it  could disrupt the Internet we know and love, and reshape the Internet dramatically, in ways that would stun and anger most Americans.

Introduced in January by Senators Mark Warner of Virginia, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota  all Democrats  the Safeguarding Against Fraud, Exploitation, Threats, Extremism and Consumer Harms Act, or Safe TECH, at would create six new exceptions to Section 230 protections, that is, cases in which an internet provider or platform would indeed be legally liable for third-party content.

Currently, there are four recognized exceptions to Section 230s free-speech shield. Most notably, in 2018, Congress passed the FOSTA/SESTA law, which carves out an exception for posts that allegedly promote sex trafficking.

The law also does not apply to Intellectual Property claims, federal and state privacy law claims, and federal criminal cases. But the Safe TECH Act creates another six exemptions, as well as three types of actions taken by an online platform that would cause it to forfeit its protections. The wide-ranging new carve-outs would have the effect of crippling Section 230 to the point where the law could be rendered ineffective.

Perhaps the most significant change to Section 230 that would be imposed by Safe TECH is a provision that would strip protections in cases where, the bill says, the provider or user has accepted payment to make the speech available or, in whole or in part, created or funded the creation of the speech.

While a tweet by Warner appeared to say that the provision was aimed at online advertising, which he called a key vector for all manner of frauds and scams, the language of the bill itself makes no such specification.

A good lawyer could argue that this covers many different types of arrangements that go far beyond paid advertisements, U.S. Naval Academy cybersecurity law professor Jeff Kosseff told the site TechCrunch. Platforms accept payments from a wide range of parties during the course of making speech available to the public. The bill does not limit the exception to cases in which platforms accept payments from the speaker.

The provision could apply directly to adult sites, which accept payment for subscriptions or memberships that allow them to make their content available.

Just about everything you can imagine is commercial in some way, unless theyre posting pet videos or grandparents visiting their grandchildren, said First Amendment attorney Lawrence Walters, at the #interNext2021 panel, going on to call the Safe TECH Act as dumpster fire.

In addition to the exception for accepting payment, the law would also create exceptions to Section 230 for claims of cyberstalking and harassment, as well as for wrongful death and antitrust actions  and gotr cases in which a platform fails to remove content that is likely to cause irreparable harm. How such the irreparable harm of any particular content would be determined is not made clear by the bill.

Photo by Thomas Ulrich / Pixabay

PRINCE GEORGE, Va., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hollingsworth Companies have pre-graded the site and are starting construction of a 650,250 square-foot speculative building in Southpoint Business Park located in Prince George County. This will be the 12th and largest facility developed by The Hollingsworth Companies in Southpoint, which has provided the community with facilities supporting hundreds of jobs and millions of dollars in investments.

Spec Industrial Building SouthPoint Business Park, VA

With this new facility, Southpoint Business Park will have 1,600,000 square feet of industrial space suitable for high-growth manufacturing and distribution companies located along I-295, only minutes from I-85 and I-95. The spec building will be a concrete tilt-wall comprising 40 feet in clear height, 60- by 60-feet column spacing, 142 dock doors and 177 trailer drops.

While there are "build-to-suit" projects in Virginia exceeding 1,000,000 square feet, this will be the largest speculative building in the market. Speculative buildings are developed to provide immediate occupancy and lure large site-selection projects. Since the building will be completed with up-fits, target clients can take occupancy in less than 60 days, compared to build-to-suit projects which can take up to two years for land acquisition, site work and building construction.

"We are extremely excited about the construction of this new, speculative development in Southpoint Business Park. Buildings of this caliber will attract industrial prospects quickly, and are of immediate support to the local and regional economy ultimately increasing prosperity," explains Keith Boswell, President and CEO of Virginia's Gateway Region Economic Development Organization (VGR). "This latest Hollingsworth building of 650,250 square feet in Prince George County will result in a company that will create additional jobs and investment, an increased tax base and will boost the region's prosperity, while giving us another tool to help us in our continuing efforts to diversify our economy and to assist anyone in the Gateway Region who wants a job, can get one."

"We appreciate Hollingsworth responding to the demand for industrial facilities needed for the expansion of our community now and over the horizon," Boswell concluded.

Joe Hollingsworth, CEO of The Hollingsworth Companies, stated: "In spite of the economic pressure of COVID-19, we are very bullish on the Richmond metropolitan statistical area, and specifically the Gateway Region and Prince George County markets. We've successfully grown our business on the belief that American manufacturing will continue to prosper, and the Southeastern United States will lead this growth." He went on to say: "I would like to thank the community for being willing to invest the time, effort and money into being a true partner in making this park successful. It is my belief that the next eight years will be the best economic period of our lives," Hollingsworth said.

About The Hollingsworth Companies



The Hollingsworth Companies is the largest non-urban industrial real estate developer and construction firm in the Southeastern United States with 125 tenants and 18 million square feet of industrial space spread across 17 states. The Hollingsworth Companies has facilities located in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. For more information about The Hollingsworth Companies, contact Tom Mann, Senior Vice President of Industrial Real Estate by phone or email.

About Virginia's Gateway Region

Virginia's Gateway Region is the regional economic development organization that markets the cities of Colonial Heights, Hopewell and Petersburg, and the counties of Dinwiddie, Prince George, Surry and Sussex. VGR focuses its efforts on new and existing business investment and job creation.

Press Contacts:

Tom Mann

865-719-6884

[email protected]

Jill Vaughan

804-363-7175

[email protected]

SOURCE The Hollingsworth Companies
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 16:42:43|Editor: huaxia

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LAGOS, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Nigeria's security forces said that they are working to rescue students abducted on Wednesday morning in the north-central part of the country.

In an attack on the Government Science College, a boarding school in Kagara town of Niger State, one student was killed and 42 others -- 27 students, three school staff and their 12 family members -- were abducted by gunmen.

In a statement reaching Xinhua on Thursday, Mohammed Yerima, an army spokesperson, said the troops are currently in pursuit of the gunmen to ensure the safe return of the kidnapped.

"The Nigerian army in line with its constitutional mandate wishes to reassure the public that troops in operational synergy with sister security agencies are in hot pursuit of the criminal elements to ensure the safe return of the kidnapped victims," the statement said.

Speaking at a meeting on Wednesday in Minna, capital of the state of Niger, Inspector-General of Police Mohammed Adamu said a lot of strategies have been put in place to deal with the situation.

Adamu, who is part of the federal government team in the state, told the gathering that the police are "working in synergy with other security agencies within the communities" to ensure that the kidnapped people are freed unharmed.

The police chief also said the police have deployed four units of mobile police force to the state and are working with the secret police to reinforce security in the state. Enditem
New confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Carolina have once again surpassed 1,400. This comes after two consecutive days of new cases dipping below 870.

The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reported 32 more confirmed deaths on Feb. 18 as the state nears a total of 7,300 total deaths since the start of the pandemic.

As of Feb. 18, 539,461 people in the Palmetto State have been vaccinated against the virus. People who qualify for Phase 1A and wish to be vaccinated can go to scdhec.gov/vaxlocator or call 1-866-365-8110 to find a nearby vaccine location.

Statewide numbers

New cases reported: 1,451 confirmed, 342 probable.

Total cases in S.C.: 431,074 confirmed, 63,970 probable.

Percent positive: 10 percent.

New deaths reported: 32 confirmed, 8 probable.

Total deaths in S.C.: 7,277 confirmed, 878 probable.

Percent of ICU beds filled: 76.8 percent.

How does S.C. rank in vaccines administered per 100,000 people?

44th as of Feb. 17, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Hardest-hit areas

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In the total number of newly confirmed cases, Greenville (205), Pickens (169) and Spartanburg (172) counties saw the highest totals.

What about the tri-county?

Charleston County had 86 new cases on Feb. 18, while Berkeley counted 35 and Dorchester had 20.

Deaths

Ten of the new confirmed deaths reported were among people age 35 to 64, one was an individual age 18 to 34 and the remainder were patients age 65 and older.

Hospitalizations

Of the 1,137 COVID-19 patients hospitalized as of Feb. 18, 265 were in the ICU and 152 were using ventilators.

What do experts say?

The CDC encourages folks to continue to wear a mask, avoid crowds, stay 6 feet from others and avoid poorly ventilated spaces.

Dr. Linda Bell, DHEC's chief epidemiologist, said now is not the time to relax these prevention measures.

The CDC released guidance Feb. 10 recommending that wearing two well-fitting masks on top of each other enhances their effectiveness.

People who are out and about in the community are advised to be tested for COVID-19 once a month or sooner if they develop symptoms or have been around someone who has tested positive for the virus.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
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Shakir Haciyev was in his 30s when war forced him to flee his village, southeast of Nagorno-Karabakh, in the early 1990s.



The arrival of ethnic Armenian forces in Asagi Seyidahmadli, in Azerbaijan's Fuzuli district, cost Haciyev his home and his job with the local government.



For more than a quarter of a century, he was one of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced Azerbaijanis who dreamed of someday returning to their homes in the seven districts around Nagorno-Karabakh occupied by Armenian forces.



Last autumn, when an Azerbaijani military offensive recaptured the war-ravaged territory where Haciyev's village once stood, he was on the verge of seeing his dream fulfilled.



A Russian-brokered cease-fire on November 9 ended the deadliest fighting in decades, with Armenian forces agreeing to vacate all remaining territory -- outside of Nagorno-Karabakh itself -- that they occupied in Azerbaijan.

So on November 28, at the age of 65, Haciyev packed into a Toyota with his daughter Zibeyda Adilzade, his brother Firudin Haciyev, and another man named Zulfugar Huseynov.



They were among the first of Azerbaijan's internally displaced people (IDPs) who tried to return to the recently regained territory around Nagorno-Karabakh.



But Haciyev never made it home. On a road near the ruins of his former village, their car struck an anti-tank mine laid by retreating Armenian forces. All four of them were killed.



Dozens Killed Or Maimed



The Prosecutor-General's Office in Baku says dozens of Azerbaijani servicemen and IDPs have been killed or maimed by land mines since the cease-fire.



Most civilian victims were trying to see what remained of their former towns and villages in and around Nagorno-Karabakh.



In fact, they violated Azerbaijani law by venturing into territory that remains closed off to civilians until unexploded ordnance can be cleared.



In many cases, they traveled on uncleared roads or cut across open fields to avoid Azerbaijan's military checkpoints.



The government in Baku has asked IDPs to be patient while mine clearance goes forward and it attempts to restore some basic infrastructure such as living accommodations and electricity supplies.



On February 14, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev visited four of the retaken districts -- Fuzuli, Zangilan, Lachin, and Cabrayil -- to launch major infrastructure projects aimed at supporting the return of IDPs.



Those projects include housing, manufacturing facilities, social services, agricultural infrastructure, power plants, and railway links.

Aliyev has vowed "to revive the liberated lands and return our internally displaced people to those lands as soon as possible."



"We have big plans," Aliyev said at the launch of a hydroelectric power plant in the Lachin district on February 14. "We will try to complete the demining work as soon as possible and assess the damage. At the same time, infrastructure projects have already been launched."



Meanwhile, Azerbaijani IDPs tell RFE/RL they are eager to go back to their former towns and villages and start rebuilding.



Many say they are only awaiting government word that demining work has made it safe enough to allow their return.

Zabila Mammadova was a schoolteacher in the town of Susa before the war. She knows that one of her two houses there was destroyed while the town was controlled by Armenian forces, who call it Shusi.



"We've been waiting almost 30 years for Susa to be liberated so we can return -- or how should I say it? -- to run back there," Mammadova tells RFE/RL.



"It's true that it's difficult to return in the current situation," she says, "but perhaps our president will create all necessary conditions for us (IDPs)."

Another IDP, Zamin Taghiyev, says he is ready to return to Susa regardless of what awaits him.



"Of course I want to return there," Taghiyev says. "Everything there, even if it's now in ruins, is good for me."



Safety First



To be sure, the task of clearing mines and unexploded munitions from the battlefields in and around Nagorno-Karabakh is massive.



Idris Ismayilov, the operations chief of the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA), estimated in December that it could take up to 10 years to completely demine all of the territory retaken by Azerbaijan.



But Ismayilov said he expects enough explosives to be removed within three to five years to allow the safe return of hundreds of thousands of displaced Azerbaijanis.

The worst-affected areas are along the fortified former front lines where land mines had been laid since the early 1990s to create a buffer zone between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces -- particularly near Tartar and Agdam, and in the districts of Fuzuli and Cabrayil.



In interviews with RFE/RL, military experts from both Azerbaijan and Armenia have described the ground in those areas as being covered with "carpets of land mines."



Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a December 11 report that much of the unexploded ordnance left by recent fighting is from both sides' use of cluster bombs.



Cluster munitions scatter small bomblets that are meant to explode on impact. But HRW says they have a high failure rate, "leaving duds that act like anti-personnel land mines for years and even decades."



Unexploded munitions also pose a grave safety threat in the formerly occupied districts of Azerbaijan that border Armenia. But the problem there is thought to be smaller.



That suggests Azerbaijani IDPs from the districts of Kalbacar, Lachin, Qubadli, and Zangilan will be allowed to return sooner than others.



Rehabilitation



Ghulam Isaczai, the United Nations' resident coordinator in Azerbaijan, says he expects the government in Baku to allow a "phased" return of IDPs after "a safe and secure environment" can be created.



"In terms of the larger and older group of IDPs, their return very much depends on creating safe and appropriate living conditions," Isaczai tells RFE/RL. "Currently, the presence of mines and unexploded ordnance is a major impediment to the rehabilitation of these areas and the return of the IDPs."



For now, Iscazai says, it is essential for mine-risk education and public-awareness campaigns to target "the IDPs who are desperate to return to their former villages and towns."



He says the government's mine-awareness programs will help "to discourage the population from uncontrolled and unauthorized return -- as well as future risk of exposure."



"We are pleased that the government has prioritized mine action, which the UN and other international actors are now supporting," Isaczai says.



On February 2, the United Nations released $2 million from its Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to support the return of Azerbaijan's IDPs.



Isaczai says about $700,000 of that disbursement has been allocated to the UN Development Program (UNDP) "to coordinate mine clearance activities" led by Azerbaijan's government.

"A safe environment is also needed for the recovery and reconstruction of affected areas -- including rebuilding of key infrastructure and rehabilitation of agricultural activities such as farming and livestock, one of the main sources of livelihoods for the IDPs," Isaczai says.



Recent photographs released by Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry from the worst-affected areas show that, with the absence of vegetation during the winter months, many land mines are now visible on the ground. But that is expected to change in the spring when they become covered with foliage.



"A crucial early step would be a quick land and aerial survey of mine and unexploded-ordnance contamination in all affected areas using modern survey methods and technology before the onset of spring," Isaczai says. "This will help the government to prioritize areas and land for mine-clearance activities and their phased release for civilian use."



Expanded Demining



Since November, President Aliyev has been expanding the capacity of the state demining agency beyond the 500 specialists it had employed before the Russian-brokered cease-fire.



Within days of the November agreement, Russia's military sent a unit of deminers with trained dogs to search for and defuse mines and unexploded munitions in areas where Russian peacekeepers are deployed.

Weeks later, Azerbaijan announced the arrival of 136 mine-clearance experts from Turkey's military -- along with metal detectors and protective equipment for deminers.



The Turkish troops began in early December to train more Azerbaijanis to clear mines.



The head of the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry's Engineer and Fortification Service, Major-General Anar Karimov, says 20 "MEMATT" mine-sweeping vehicles supplied by Turkey also have been successfully tested and are being deployed in some of the most heavily mined areas.



On January 15, Aliyev issued a presidential decree that restructured ANAMA, the government's civilian demining agency set up in 1998 by his father, the late President Heydar Aliyev.



The decree created a new public legal entity called the Mine Action Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan that is taking over ANAMA's "rights and obligations," as well as its property.
Reed Exhibitions, organiser of the annual Arabian Travel Market (ATM) showcase in Dubai, has announced the return of Arabian Travel Week (ATW) between May 16 and 26, 2021 in a hybrid format.

The in-person ATM event to take place from May 16 to 19, while a virtual event will run for a week after that, said a statement.

This week-long festival of events is dedicated to travel professionals from all over world, to collaborate and shape the recovery of the Middle East travel industry, through exhibitions, conferences, breakfast briefings, awards, product launches and networking events, Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director ME, Arabian Travel Market.

Essentially, Arabian Travel Week will provide a pivotal platform for the regions travel and tourism industry, whether participating in-person at the events or virtually, over the course of 10 days  it will put a spotlight on Dubai, the UAE, GCC and of course the wider MENA regions tourism sector, she added.

Now in its 28th year and working in collaboration with Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) and Dubais Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM), ATM 2021 will play an integral role in Arabian Travel Week.

There will be a whole host of in-person seminars on ATMs show floor specifically designed to support, inspire and innovate all travel and tourism professionals, looking at the latest trends in technology, sustainability and profiling the next generation of global travellers, said Curtis.

There will also be an array of high-profile keynote speakers and world-class technology experts lined up for the Travel Forward Theatre, providing industry-leading insights and discussing the latest technologies and trends that will shape the future of travel.

Other notable features of Arabian Travel Week and in-person at ATM include ILTM Arabia 2021, buyer forums with networking dedicated to key source markets including Saudi Arabia, India and China, a hotel summit, the responsible tourism programme and the International Tourism & Investment Conference (ITIC) summit.

Ibrahim Ayoub, Group CEO, ITIC & Invest Tourism Ltd said: We are delighted to host in partnership with ATM, our ITIC Middle East Tourism Investment Summits, in-person on Wednesday, 19th May and followed by our virtual summit, a week later on Thursday, 27th May. We will bring together hospitality, tourism and financial services leaders to discuss how the Middle Easts travel and tourism industry can position their businesses to be ready for the post COVID-19 recovery, through instituting and making strategic investments to rebuild the sector.

This years theme of A New Dawn for Travel and Tourism has never been more relevant nor important - this message of recovery will be integrated into all of the show verticals and planned activities, added Curtis.

To complement the four-day in-person show, for the first time, a new hybrid format will mean a virtual ATM running a week after to reach a wider audience than ever before. ATM Virtual, which made its debut last year, proved to be a resounding success attracting 12,000 online attendees from 140 countries.

It is imperative that we include a virtual element to Arabian Travel Week because many industry professionals from around the world, may not be able to attend the in-person event for 2021.

Indeed, it would also be impossible for us, at this moment in time, to even begin to speculate on how effective the vaccine rollout will be and subsequently when governments around the world will start to withdraw their travel restrictions, said Curtis.

ATM Virtual will feature comprehensive webinars, live conference sessions, roundtables, speed networking events, virtual digital influencers speed networking session, one-to-one meetings, destination briefings, as well as facilitating new connections and offering a wide range of online business opportunities.

A highlight on Arabian Travel Weeks agenda and part of ATM Virtual is Arival Dubai @ ATM. This event will feature a series of sessions covering current and future trends for operators of tours and attractions.

Douglas Quinby, CEO of Arival said: "Arabian Travel Market has long been the event that gathers the global travel community around the Middle East, and its role in the revival of our industry is more important than ever. We are partnering with ATM to create a special virtual forum that assembles leading voices from tours and attractions, as well as technology innovators, from across the region to help our industry chart a path of resilience and resurgence in 2021 and beyond."

The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), the worlds premier business travel and meetings trade organisation, will also be participating at ATM Virtual for the first time. The GBTA will deliver the latest business travel content, research and education to drive the post-pandemic recovery and support growth in business travel.

The show will strictly adhere to all DWTCs stringent health and safety guidelines and will set out to provide a touchless and seamless experience. The team at DWTC are working hard to ensure that all events run safely and have implemented a range of measures including an enhanced cleaning regime, improved air circulation, multiple hand sanitiser stations and temperature checks.-TradeArabia News Service

Australia Post is selling out of items that have absolutely nothing to do with mail and would be more at home on the shelf of Kmart.

Surprisingly popular items grabbed from the shelves while waiting to send a parcel include bras, air fryers, cat toys, and even screw drills.

Thousands of Australians are turning to the postal service rather than from big retailers, and the postal service is rushing to keep up with demand.

Australia Post has on offer several popular items that sell out across the country

Australia Post is rushing to meet demand of popular items they sell at their post offices

In the past three months, more than 15,000 air fryers ranging from $50 to $129 have been sold (pictured)

The SaraMia bra, described as 'supportive and flattering', is for sale at just $39.95 at Australia Post.

More than 15,000 of the SaraMia bra have been sold since they hit the shelves news.com.au reported.

A cat toy known as Flippity Fish sold for $24.95 was bought by more than 8,000 people before it sold out in just two weeks.

Australia Post also tried its hand at selling a popular kitchen item, the air fryer.

In the past three months, more than 15,000 air fryers ranging from $50 to $129 were sold.

Other unusual items that are selling like crazy include screw drills, contour pillows, and cheap phones.

Other unusual items that are selling like crazy include screw drills, contour pillows and cheaper phones

Australia Post executive general manager Nicole Sheffield explained the reason behind the sales.

'I think that the post office is like the general store in many towns,' she told News Corp.

'There isn't a JB Hi-Fi to get a gadget or phone from or a Kmart to find an air fryer that is affordable.

'Our products are affordable and we have millions of customers visiting post office shops to send or pick up a parcel and when they get there they see a broad range of products and services.'

She also said that some smart gadgets were on offer to help customer's lives easier.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Australia Post for comment.
ATLANTA, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Atlanta-based nonprofit TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation will host a second virtual national forum addressing the subject of "Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Survivorship" on Wednesday, February 24th, from 7  8:30 p.m. ET.

The second virtual forum addressing Racial Disparities in Breast Cancer Survivorship will take place on Wednesday, February 24, from 7-8:30 p.m. ET. The nonprofit organization TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation will host the event, and Dr. Lisa VanHoose, PT, will serve as moderator. The event's focus will be on community engagement.

"The goal in hosting this series of virtual forums is to discuss the magnitude and causes of racial disparity in breast cancer survivorship and propose solutions to improve health equity," said Dr. Marilyn Pink, Executive Director at TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation. "This particular forum our focus will be on community engagement, and it comes on the heels of a very successful first one held at the end of October where we had more than 200 participants."

Significant short and long-term physical and emotional consequences of breast cancer reduce quality of life for all breast cancer patients. Black women experience a higher incidence of these issues. Rehabilitation and exercise significantly reduce these issues, increase quality of life, and decrease breast cancer recurrence, but very few women and men receive this care. The lack of access to specialized breast cancer rehabilitation care is magnified in minority patients, resulting in even greater health inequity.

Dr. Lisa VanHoose, PT - Associate Professor, University of Louisiana Monroe, will serve as the event's moderator.

Panelists for this forum will include the following experts:

*Dr. Prisca Collins, PT  Associate Professor, Florida Southern College, Lakeland, Florida

*Jemea Dorsey, MS, BA - Chief Executive Officer, Center for Black Women's Wellness Atlanta, Georgia

*Consuelo Ross, CPN  President and Founder, Surviving the Odds, Inc. Kansas City, Missouri

The audience for this forum includes physicians, rehabilitation professionals and other providers working in the oncology field, as well as stakeholders in health equity and breast cancer survivorship.

To register - registration is free - sponsor or secure more information, visit https://myturningpoint.org/racial-disparities-in-breast-cancer-survivorship

Sponsors and partners include the Academy of Oncologic Physical Therapy, American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers (NAPBC), Henssler Financial, Alice Stubblefield Memorial Sponsorship, Blue Ridge Area Health Education Center, Champions for Change Sponsorship, JScreen, Educata, Georgia CORE (Center for Oncology Research & Education), Atlanta Business Chronicle, Grady Health System, My Style Matters and Beyond the Ribbon.

There will be two additional forums on the subject, including one on Wednesday, April 28, from 7-8:30 p.m.

About TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation

TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation is a nonprofit healthcare organization that improves the quality of life for individuals impacted by breast cancer by providing and advocating for specialized and evidence-based rehabilitation while eliminating socioeconomic, racial, cultural, and geographic barriers to care. Since it was founded in September 2003, there have been more than 40,000 patient visits.

Media contact:

Jill Binkley

[email protected]

678-936-0361

SOURCE TurningPoint Breast Cancer Rehabilitation, Inc.

Related Links

https://myturningpoint.org


On 15 February 2021, His Excellency Mr Chen Hai, Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar was interviewed by Voice, Eleven, 7Day, Myanmar Times and Frontier on the current situation in Myanmar. The full text is as follows:

Q: How does China view the current situation in Myanmar?

A: As a friendly neighbor of Myanmar, China pays great attention to what is happening in Myanmar recently. We noticed Myanmar's domestic dispute regarding the election for some time, but we were not informed in advance of the political change in Myanmar. Both the National League for Democracy and the Tatmadaw maintain friendly relations with China. The current development in Myanmar is absolutely not what China wants to see. We hope that all parties of Myanmar could handle differences properly under the framework of the constitution and laws and maintain political and social stability. Recently, the UN Security Council adopted a press statement, which expressed deep concern about the declaration of the state of emergency and the detention of State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint and others, called for the immediate release of all those detained and encouraged the pursuance of dialogue and reconciliation in accordance with the will and interests of the people of Myanmar. China, a Security Council member, took part in the discussion, and we believe that all sides of Myanmar are well aware of it.

China and Myanmar are neighbors that cannot move away from each other. Friendly neighbors wish each other well. We hope that all things go well in Myanmar, rather than becoming unstable or even falling into chaos. Many countries in transition are overcoming difficulties and challenges through their own efforts, and exploring development paths suitable for their own circumstances. We hope that all parties of Myanmar could handle the current problem through dialogue and consultation properly and lead the country back on track as soon as possible.

Q: The international community widely called for Tatmadaw to release Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders immediately. What role would China play in this regard?

A: The National League for Democracy, chaired by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, maintains good relations with China, and commits to jointly promoting building a China-Myanmar community with a shared future, the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) and other practical cooperation with the Chinese side. We keep an eye on the situation of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and others. The UN Security Council's press statement reflects the common position of the international community, including China.

China supports the mediation efforts by ASEAN and the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General on Myanmar. China is also playing a constructive role, with promoting peace and dialogue at its core. The military and the political parties are all members of the Myanmar family, all of whom should take the historical responsibility of maintaining national stability and development. What Myanmar needs is reconciliation and unity, instead of confrontation and division, which, we believe, is the common wish of the Myanmar people. We hope that all parties of Myanmar could handle differences through dialogue and consultation properly. Actions taken by the international community should be conducive to Myanmar's political and social stability, and avoid exacerbating tensions.

Q: As a neighbor of Myanmar, what role can China play in resolving the current problems?

A: The Chinese side sincerely hopes that Myanmar enjoys social stability and national development. We believe that, currently, the most important thing for Myanmar and its people is to work together to find an effective solution to the domestic political crisis. It is crucial to bridge differences through communication and dialogue, bringing the country back on track. This requires the Myanmar military, political parties, and all sectors of society to keep in mind the fundamental and long-term interests of Myanmar, find a political solution through political dialogue with political wisdom, and maintain political and social stability. China has been and will continue playing a constructive role to this end.

Q: Recently, Myanmar society has launched the "Civil Disobedience Movement" (CDM). There have been large-scale gatherings of people in front of the Embassy of China in Myanmar for several days. What is the comment of the Embassy?

A: We have noticed that a large number of Myanmar citizens have staged demonstrations in the streets in recent days. Some people petitioned in front of Embassies and international organizations in Myanmar, including the Embassy of China. We understand their aspirations. And we also mentioned their reasonable demands when we strove to promote dialogues among different parties of Myanmar. At present, Myanmar faces a severe domestic situation, of which confrontations may be further intensified. We hope all parties could stay calm and restrained, refraining from doing things that may intensify conflicts and escalate tensions. Under the current situation, violence should be avoided, and basic rights of people need to be protected.

Q: How do you view the current China-Myanmar relations?

A: Although the change of political situation in Myanmar is its internal affair, there is no doubt that it will have spillover effects on Myanmar's relations with its neighboring countries. As a friendly neighbor, we have always been taking the interests of the two peoples into consideration and dealing with it prudently. For example, the China-Myanmar bilateral cooperation, border trade included, which is closely related to the livelihoods of thousands of households in Myanmar, has been affected to a certain extent. Relevant Chinese authorities and local governments have overcome difficulties and spared no efforts to stabilize border trade and other cooperation, so as to help stabilizing the Myanmar people's livelihoods. For another example, China and Myanmar have carried out effective anti-epidemic cooperation, and both sides are discussing on vaccine procurement which is vital to the life and health of Myanmar people. Let's take a look at another example. There have been some emotional remarks on China and China-Myanmar cooperation projects spreading on Myanmar's social media recently, and even some fake news. We have made clarifications in a timely manner, in an effort to inform the general public of the real situation and maintain the friendship between the two countries. We oppose any attempts of making use of Myanmar's domestic affairs to undermine friendly cooperation between China and Myanmar, for this will ultimately harm Myanmar's own interests.

Q: Recently, there has been some rumors on social media,claiming that "Chinese aircraft transported technicians to Myanmar", or "China is helping Tamattaw building firewall." What is the truth of the above-mentioned matters?

A: We have noticed these rumors, including the so-called Chinese aircraft transporting technicians to Myanmar, China helping Myanmar building an internet firewall, and Chinese soldiers appearing on the streets of Myanmar. For the record, these are completely nonsense and even ridiculous accusations. These aircraft are normal cargo flights between China and Myanmar, whose frequency has dropped from 15-18 flights per day before the pandemic to about 5 flights per day now. They carry seafood and other exports from Myanmar to China. China has always been an important export market for Myanmar's agricultural and aquatic products. It is rumored initially that the flights carried technical personnel, illustrated with pictures deliberately cutting off the words "cargo flight". Then, someone hyped that the flights carried the so-called "weapons". Afterwards, there were even fake pictures showing that what in the flights was dipping sauce. These are totally inconsistent and malicious. We hope such rumors will not recur. If so, it only proves to have manipulation and instigation by forces with ulterior motives behind the scenes. The Chinese people are also concerned about these remarks, many of whom are complaining about them. We sincerely hope that the Myanmar people can distinguish right from wrong and guard against political manipulation, so as to avoid undermining the friendship between the two peoples.
Egypt has approved Libyan Airlines resumption of flights to Egypt after a suspension of flights of over a year, as Cairo begins to pave the way towards further political and diplomatic ties with the new interim Libyan government elected earlier this month.

In statements to Ahram Arabic news website, the Head of Egypt's Civil Aviation Authority, Ashraf Noweir, said that the authority has approved the resumption of the Libyan airliners trips to Egypt starting Thursday.

The first trip by Libyan Airlines will take off on Thursday afternoon from Benghazis Benina International Airport to Alexandrias Borg Al-Arab airport, Noweir said.

He added that next week will see more trips by the airliner from Tripolis Mitiga International Airport to the Mediterranean city of Alexandria.

The move comes one day after Egypt announced it sent to Libya this week a delegation to explore the possibility of resuming a diplomatic presence in the Libyan capital Tripoli as well as the consular presence in Benghazi.

Egypt shut its embassy and consulate in Libya in January 2014 after the kidnapping of four Egyptian staff from the embassy by gunmen and an attack on the consulate.

Both incidents came amid the violent turmoil Libya had been mired in since 2011 following the ouster and murder of its leader Muammar Gaddafi on the heels of a NATO-backed uprising.

The interest in resuming an Egyptian presence in the neighbouring country comes on the back of the latest developments, which culminated in the election of an executive authority to guide the country until legislative elections are held by the end of the current year.

Egypt has been pushing for a political settlement in Libya for years, calling for a ceasefire, a complete disarming of militias, an end to foreign intervention in the country, as well as a fair distribution of wealth between various regions in the country.

In June, Egypt proposed a peace initiative dubbed the Cairo Declaration, which was based on the conclusion of an earlier Berlin conference. The Cairo Declaration proposed a ceasefire as well as the election of a new leadership council.

In a critical step towards unifying the nation, various delegates from Libya's warring factions selected, earlier this month, a new unified interim executive authority comprising four leaders to guide the oil-rich country through to the national elections in December.

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Mayor de Blasios decision to paint Black Lives Matter on public streets doesnt mean a pro-Donald Trump group can post its own message on the pavement, a judge ruled Thursday.

Manhattan Federal Judge Lorna Schofield ruled that Black Lives Matter painted on Fifth Ave. outside Trump Tower and other streets over the summer constituted speech by government  and that the citys decision to paint those words did not give others the right to paint messages of their own.

That meant that the Virginia-based Women for America First did not have the right to paint: Engaging, Inspiring and Empowering Women to Make a Difference! on city streets, the judge said. The obscure group reportedly played a role riling up Trump supporters before the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

The city adopted a message of social consequence and disseminated it during a time of social unrest. Black lives matter. It is plainly evident that these words  which affirm the value of Black lives  have meaning separate and apart from any organizations or movements of the same name, Schofield wrote.

Seeking permission for a street protest is a different matter than painting a slogan on pavement, as street surfaces are not a public forum where free speech protections apply, the judge added.

Women for America First does not seek to congregate and share messages with the public in New York City streets. Plaintiff seeks to paint a message on New York City streets, Schofield wrote in the 21-page ruling.

The city Law Department praised the decision.

The city itself has a right to select the views that it wants to express, said Law Department attorney Diana Murray.

Women for America First sued in July, claiming the city had wrongly denied them a permit to write their empowering message on the street. The city cant pick and choose which political messages to allow on the street, the group argued.

Ronald Coleman, attorney for Women for America First, said he had not yet decided whether to appeal.

We are pretty disappointed, of course, he said.

Women for America First was the original organizer of the rally that preceded the riot at the U.S. Capitol. It also sponsored cross-country bus tours to promote the lie that the November election was stolen from former President Donald Trump.
New Delhi: Indian rice exports gained momentum this week after an additional port was opened in the country's biggest rice-handling facility, potentially easing congestion.

Waiting periods at the Kakinada Anchorage Port had reached up to four weeks, compared with about a week normally, because of congestion at the port.

"From Saturday (February 13) we have started using Kakinada deepwater port," said B.V. Krishna Rao, president of the Rice Exporters Association of India, adding that this will reduce waiting times and accelerate overall exports.

Rao said that exporters' resulting savings in demurrage fees could be passed on to farmers and overseas buyers.

India's 5% broken parboiled variety of rice eased to $395-$401 a tonne from last week`s multi-year high of $402-$408.

Thailand's 5% broken rice narrowed to $540-$560 a tonne on Thursday, still near 10-month highs.

"There's muted demand and less supply in the country. There`s not much demand from overseas either because our prices are higher than competitors`," one Bangkok-based trader said.

Vietnam`s 5% broken rice fell to $505-$510 a tonne on Thursday as harvests in the Mekong Delta gathered pace, down from $510-$515 before the Lunar New Year holiday.

Traders said they are buying more rice from farmers in expectation of rising demand from importers, pushing domestic prices of un-husked paddy to a 10-year high of between 6,200 and 7,000 dongs per kg.

The productivity of the winter-spring crop in the Mekong is relatively high, they added.

Domestic prices in Bangladesh rose by 35% in 2020 amid low supply and increased demand during the pandemic, according to the United Nations` Food and Agriculture Organization.

The government has initiated imports of 2 million tonnes of rice and also lowered import duty on rice from 65.5% to 25%.

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What A Difference A Day Makes

It took only one day, one inauguration, for the shift between pessimism and optimism. Just one day to anticipate new opportunities, new possibilities. The skies opened up on the day that President Joe Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris of the inauguration, and the sun of truth and light shone in.

I had a mixtape running through my brain. The Fifth Dimension, Let The Sun Shine In; Nina Simone, Here Comes the Sun; Nina Simone, Young Gifted and Black; McFadden and Whitehead, Aint No Stopping Us Now. You could not have wiped the grin off my face if you had a Brillo pad. The inauguration met my expectations. Biden spoke hope and reconciliation. Harris spoke history and healing. The highlight of the inauguration for me, though, was young Amanda Gorman, the Poet Laureate, at 22, the youngest poet laureate ever.

There have been many times in the last few years when I wished that Dr. Maya Angelou was alive. Sometimes its personal  Id like her advice, her words, her soothing. Sometimes its political  Id like to know what she thinks. But on Inauguration Day, I wanted her to see a brilliant young lady stand on her shoulders, to watch Amanda Gorman recite her poem The Hill We Climb. It is a complex, hopeful, alliterative, and aspirational poem that declared that our country is not broken but unfinished. What shone through her appearance was not only her bold words but also her shining presence. Nina Simone. To Be Young Gifted and Black.

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While the substance of inauguration was most important, those of us who are fashionistas had plenty of eye candy. Jill Bidens light blue outfit. Kamalas purple (a combination of blue and red), Michelle Obamas bold maroon with a striking belt, and the monochromatic look that many of the women rocked. The presence of women, especially Black women, was also notable. Minnesota senator Amy Klobuchar was part of the Presidential Inauguration Committee (PIC) and opened the ceremony. Firefighter Andrea Hall spoke and signed the Pledge of Allegiance. Black girl magic was in the house. My mixtape is running through my head.

The symbolism was stunning, but it was far more critical that President Biden hit the ground running, and he did. He signed 17 executive orders, reversing some of the most onerous declarations of his predecessor. He dissolved the 1776 Commission, an odious truth-erasing propaganda body charged with developing patriotic education. Replete with lies, peppered with quotes by Dr. Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln, neither of whom would have cosigned the report, the previous administration had the utter audacity to release this madness on Dr. Martin Luther Kings birthday holiday. One of the final slaps in the face from the deranged leader.

Hours before Biden offered his stirring and hopeful speech, the previous president, who defied precedent and declined to attend his successors inauguration, the former president slunk out of Washington, designing his departure with a 21-gun salute and an exit on Air Force One. It was a pitiful party, sparsely attended and suffused with gloomy moods. The former presidents deputy press secretary, Hogan Gidley, described the departing ceremony as a funeral and said, In many ways, the country died. No, Hogan, the country was reborn with hope and joy, and a commitment to turn the hope and enjoyment of the inauguration into a reality

What a difference a day makes. We have gone from a history-denying administration into a history-affirming one. We have moved from an administration that attacked workers and the environment to an administration that fights for them. To be sure, the Biden-Harris administration is walking a legislatively narrow tightrope, with a narrow margin in the House of Representatives and just a one-vote margin in the Senate. Suppose Biden can work the bipartisan magic he promised to attempt. In that case, there will be more vaccines into arms and more relief for those whose economic status has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

These early days of the Biden-Harris administration are hopeful, inspirational days. They must also be workdays. There is much that must be done, many obstacles to clear. The previous administration did lots to cement their gains with last-minute executive orders and appointments. Many of these obstacles can be removed. The Biden-Harris team has, so far, been productive and resilient. They must continue that relentlessness moving forward. What a difference a day makes! Oh, happy day.

Dr. Julianne Malveaux is an economist and author. She is available for lectures and workshops. You may reach her at juliannemalveaux.com.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Congress will contest around 93 seats in the West Bengal Assembly election in alliance with the Left and Indian Secular Front, sources said, as seat sharing talks among the alliance partners continued on Thursday.

The Congress last time had contested 92 seats and won 44 in which about 20 MLAs crossed to the ruling TMC. The Congress is the second largest party in the outgoing Assembly holding the Leader of Opposition's post.

The Congress and Left had missed the earlier seat sharing deadline which was January 31. The party is now pressing its state unit to finalise the seat sharing agreement so that the preparations for the election could be started immediately. The main focus of the party will be on quality of seats and not quantity, unlike in Bihar where the party contested 70 seats but won only 19.

The Congress has set up a committee to chalk out a seat sharing agreement with the Left parties, which includes Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Abdul Mannan, Pradeep Bhattacharya and Nepal Mahato.

The Congress-Left alliance want to make the Assembly polls a triangular contest and not only between TMC and BJP but the BJP has placed itself as the main opposition party after winning 18 seats in Lok Sabha polls.

The TMC is eyeing a third term in West Bengal, however many leaders including close aides of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee have switched sides to the BJP, even as the saffron party is upbeat about the polls and central leaders of the party are visiting the state frequently.
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A pro-Biafra group, IPOB, has said that the flying of a military helicopter over the Orlu community in Imo State on Wednesday was a declaration of war against the Igbos.

A video posted on Twitter showed the helicopter flying at low level, while a voice from the background is heard laughing over it.

What is happening in Nigeria? the voice from the background is heard saying, in the clip.

Jeff Ojinika, a former member of the House of Representatives, told PREMIUM TIMES, Thursday afternoon, he got a distress call around 6 p.m. on Wednesday about two military helicopters carrying out aerial bombardment in some communities situated between Imo and Anambra States.

Mr Ojinika had represented Orlu in the House of Representatives.

People were running, women, and children. There was crying everywhere, said Mr Ojinika who spoke from outside Imo State.

PREMIUM TIMES has not come by any evidence to show that the military helicopters fired at the people.

Apart from saying in its statement, Thursday, that the Nigerian government has activated its final solution to the Biafran question with the helicopter gunship in Orlu, IPOB did not say the helicopter opened fire on the people.

IPOB said the government has crossed the line of no return and that the only option left for the Igbos was to defend their ancestral land.

The statement was signed by Chika Edoziem, the head of IPOBs directorate of state.

The police spokesperson in Imo State, Ikeokwu Orlando, however, said the police were not aware of any military operation in the state.

READ ALSO: 67 IPOB members regain freedom after five months in detention

The Commissioner of Information in the state, Declan Emelumba, said there was no military operation in the state.

There was air surveillance somewhere around yesterday or so, Mr Emelumba told PREMIUM TIMES, Thursday afternoon. It wasnt even in the Orlu area, it was in a neighbouring local government to Orlu, but it was basically in Anambra.

IPOB, which enjoys great following in the South-east, has been agitating for an independent state of Biafra, and has frequently clashed with security agencies, including the Nigerian Army.

Orlu made headlines in January when the Nigerian Army staged an operation in the area after a reported clash with members of the Eastern Security Network, a security arm of IPOB.
PITTSFIELD  A data point moved in the right direction Thursday in Pittsfields COVID-19 battle. The number of deaths attributed to the coronavirus fell by more than a dozen.

The story behind that is an unhappy one, though, for the citys leader.

This week, Mayor Linda Tyer asked her health team to review the number of COVID-19 deaths associated with the Springside Rehabilitation and Skilled Care Center. An outbreak at the nursing home in January infected 133 residents and staff, prompting the state to send in a National Guard medical corps and an epidemiologist.

As the outbreak grew, Tyer and city health officials offered help to Springside and its for-profit owner, BaneCare. In mid-January, Tyer asked for a daily video call with Springside officials so the city could monitor the outbreak.

Any time that we have an outbreak of this magnitude at a long-term care facility its upsetting and alarming, she said in an interview at the time. Once it starts, its very difficult to get it contained.

Tyer said this week that the request for open communication with BaneCare went unanswered. There was this unwillingness to trust that we were there to help them. We felt we needed to have a good handle on the situation so we could assess the impact on the community. Im just disappointed that we didnt have an open line of communication.

A month later, the worst is over at 255 Lebanon Ave., Springsides home. An official reports that the disease has been eradicated from the nursing home.

Nancy Zappolo, a vice president with BaneCare, maintains that the facility and its corporate parent were transparent about the number of cases, by listing them on a website.

During our time of outbreak, we were in near daily communication with the Pittsfield Board of Health and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) epidemiologist, Zappolo said in an email, when asked for comment on the mayors view that the company was unresponsive.

We are more than willing to meet any requests made by the Mayors office, she said.

Their definition is different than ours, Tyer said, when advised of Zappolos response. We continued to receive resistance when we asked for data. There were a lot of unanswered questions.  I just feel like they were not in touch and not being forthcoming and are trying to gloss over it.

As she did in January, Zappolo said the institution prefers to report data in methods required by the state and federal governments, particularly when it comes to the number of deaths. In statements to The Eagle in early January, Zappolo had declined to say whether Springside had seen any COVID-19 deaths.

We refer individuals to the DPH website because DPH reports the deaths for each nursing home in a uniform manner which we think reduces misinterpretation or confusion, Zappolo said this past week.

As of Thursday, the state Department of Public Health listed 22 resident deaths at Springside. BaneCares daily web report said that no residents or staff members have the disease any longer; of the 133 cumulative positive cases, 89 were residents and 44 were staff members.

Tyer acknowledges that BaneCare might have satisfied statutory requirements on reporting cases and deaths. It doesnt mean our public health officials should be excluded from that, from the day-to-day details at Springside, she said. We needed to have an understanding of what the potential community spread could be.

Springside COVID-19 deaths listed between 3 and 12; antibody therapy through BMC continues PITTSFIELD  Residents of a Pittsfield nursing home sickened with COVID-19 continue to receive a potentially life-saving therapy, with new tre

Through January, several people with family members at Springside expressed similar frustration with the lack of information made available by BaneCare.

Pamela Scolforo lost her mother, Alberta Mary Harris, on Jan. 7. Harris death certificate lists COVID-19 as a secondary factor, with cardiopulmonary arrest as the principal cause of death. Scolforo said she felt stonewalled by the nursing home about her mothers status and about the home more generally.

The information I got was not the total truth, she said, referring to BaneCare. First, they told me no staff has it.

Carolyn Villanova, of Pittsfield, says her mother, a Springside resident for about three years, lived through a COVID-19 case during the outbreak. While Villanova received robocalls from the home, she feels that it could have communicated better with families.

I dont really believe what Im told from there. I think they play things down, she said. There needs to be much more oversight of nursing homes in Massachusetts.

New death count

This week, Tyer and her health team determined, when reviewing reports used to provide totals on the citys COVID-19 dashboard, that they had overstated the number of deaths associated with Springside.

On Thursday afternoon, that dashboards listing of 85 COVID-19 deaths in Pittsfield was revised downward, to 72. Tyer said the higher tally accidentally counted one report of deaths involving Springside twice.

Tyer said BaneCares approach to sharing information differed sharply with Berkshire Healthcare Systems, which she said provided timely data on cases and deaths at the Hillcrest Commons Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Pittsfield. The disease is blamed for 42 deaths at Hillcrest.

We didnt feel we had easy access to the leadership team at Springside, Tyer said. No matter how much outreach we made, and we did, consistently, attempts to connect with Springside were rebuffed.

Id like to hear from BaneCare management why they didnt feel that the local Board of Health should have information about what was happening in their facility, she said. I feel like BaneCare didnt feel any obligation to me or the Board of Health to explain what was happening in there.
Toolkit: Masterminds abroad, foot-soldiers in India infiltrated the protests to wreck havoc

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: The sole intention of the banned outfit Poetic Justice Foundation is to spread unrest in the country. The outfit took advantage of the ongoing farmers' protest and created networks to incite violence, the police probing the toolkit case have learnt.

Sources tell OneIndia that all the instructions to the foot-soldiers in India came from abroad. The specific instruction was to create unrest and also begin a disinformation campaign, the investigations have also found.

A Zoom meeting held before January 26 is also under the scanner. The police say that the protests were discussed at the meeting held virtually and around 70 persons took part in it. While 26 from abroad attended the meeting, the rest were from India.

Disha, Nikita, Shantanu, PJF were part of WhatsApp group to discuss creation of toolkit

During the probe, the police learnt that Disha Ravi had created a WhatsApp group called International Farmers' Strike on December 6. Nikita Jacob, who sought anticipatory bail before the Bombay High Court joined the group five days later. The police also found that members of the pro-Khalistan group, Poetic Justice Foundation had also joined the group. One Puneet from PJF had prior to this reached out to Nikita Jacob and Shantanu on Instagram, following which the WhatsApp group involving Disha Ravi was formed.

This group was created to discuss the modalities on the creation of the toolkit. Muluk was added to the group on December 6, the police also found. Further the police also revealed that the three suspects had joined a Zoom call meeting on January 11 that was organised by the PJF.

The toolkit that was tweeted by Greta Thunberg was created by the pro-Khalistan outfit, Poetic Justice Foundation and was meant to amplify fake news and other falsehoods.

A section of this toolkit document mentioned action points under the title prior action, such as digital strike through hashtag on January 26. On Republic Day, the farmers' protest turned violent and one person died, while scores of police personnel were injured.

What is toolkit, how is that linked to farmers' protest?

The Delhi Police said that there was a mention of physical action on January 26 and a plan to enter Delhi for the farmer rally and returning to the border. These details came out following the arrest of Disha Ravi from Bengaluru. The police also have a warrant against two others, Nikita Jacob and Shantanu. Both have been accused of creating the toolkit along with Disha Ravi.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 8:28 [IST]
Limited (OIL) on Thursday said it has decided to bid for acquiring 61.65 per cent stake of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) in Limited (NRL) in consortium with Engineers India Limited (EIL).

The bid will be submitted through a formal process. ElL will take the minority stakeholding in the consortium.

"The exact percentage of the stake of OIL and EIL will depend on the extent of right of first offer (ROFO) to be exercised by government of Assam which already holds 12.35 per cent stake in NRL," said in a stock exchange filing

NRL is the largest customer of OIL's crude produced from its North Eastern fields.

"The acquisition is expected to improve the synergy in OIL's portfolio," the company said.

"This would enable in diversifying the business into downstream oil and gas operations," EIL said in a seperate filing.

For the quarter ended December 2020, the company reported a Rs 889.69 crore consolidated profit, up 25 per cent higher from Rs 709.39 crore bottom line reported by the company in the same quarter a year earlier.

Crude oil production in the December quarter has remained flat at 0.748 million tonne. Meanwhile natural gas production for the quarter has marginally reduced to 673 million standard cubic meters (MMSCM).

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In times of peril, many people may seek comfort in their faith. The COVID-19 pandemic is no different. It has been divisive on physical, social and political fronts, but still the Athens LGBTQ community have found support and unity in their churches.
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Immigration and Customs EnforcementBy LUKE BARR, ABC News

(WASHINGTON) -- The Department of Homeland Security has announced it seized 10 million counterfeit 3M N95 masks, including some possibly headed for hospitals for use by frontline health care workers.



New DHS Secretary Ali Mayorkas announced the bust, done in coordination with 3M, the U.S. maker of N95 masks, at a Wednesday news conference, and urged caution.



We just implore the public to be aware of websites or individuals, selling products claiming to prevent treat diagnose or cure COVID-19, where a pharmaceutical product information with grammatical errors or misspellings some indicative that they do not come from a legitimate business source, Mayorkas said.



Agents from the department's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit seized one million masks at a warehouse in western Maryland on Wednesday.



Other seizures occurred in 12 states over the last few weeks, officials said.



"Since the start of the pandemic our agents have also been investigating fraudulent coronavirus test kits counterfeit items, financial scams and fake medicines," Mayorkas said.



HSI Global Trade Investigations Division Director Steve Francis said the majority of the counterfeit masks come from China and said that if they were to be used by health care workers it could be very dangerous.



Not only do they give a false sense of security but how dangerous is the unexposed forgiving, how dangerous is the exposed individual? Mayorkas said.



HSI notified about 6,000 suspected victims of the fraud, including hospitals, medical facilities and others who may have purchased medical masks from the illicit dealers, urging them to immediately stop using the masks and to contact HSI immediately, a news release said.



Mayorkas also said that Americans are in a "vulnerable" time with COVID-19, and agents won't be resting to prevent criminals from trying to exploit that.



"Criminals exploit our vulnerability for a quick buck is something that we will continue to aggressively pursue," he said.



Copyright  2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
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Melbournes lockdown 3.0 bubble is about to burst in a multicultural explosion of music, theatre, dance and comedy.

Sangam  a festival of performing arts from South Asia and its diaspora  offers cultural vibrancy from Bollywood dancing workshops and tasty vegan treats to masters of classical Indian music.

The inaugural festival in 2019 went for three days. The pandemic scotched plans for 2020, but the creative incubation period it compelled has fuelled an ambitious expansion.

The Flowering Tree, part of the Sangam Festival 2021.

Sangam now runs for four weekends across four venues  Abbotsford Convent and Dancehouse in inner Melbourne, Bunjil Place and The Drum Theatre on the citys south-eastern fringes  and features over 120 artists.
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Hospitals in Texas were being evacuated after patients were left without water or power as the winter storm continues to leave the power grid crippled with millions still without electricity - and another storm was set to roll through.

St. David's South Austin Medical Center and Dell Children's Medical Center, both in Austin, Texas, are transferring patients to other hospitals, according to local news reports.

All facilities in the area are under strain with another storm set to roll through the area, meaning no hospital was able to accept a large number of transferred patients.

Ambulances line up outside of St. David's South Austin Medical Center in preparation to transport patients in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday

A patient at St. David's South Austin Medical Center is prepared for transport in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday

Texas uses its own power grid and has done since the 1970s. The energy-rich state wanted to use its own resources but also sit beyond federal energy regulation. Other states to the north of it share resources. Oklahoma has been just as affected by Winter Storm Uri but because it pools resources with neighboring states, it hasn't run out of power

Because of the weather emergency, power outages and water failures, no one hospital can accept all of the patients that need to be transferred, according to David Huffstutler, the CEO of St. David's HealthCare, KUT reported.

St. David's is without water pressure and is also losing heat because water feeds the facility's boiler.

The hospital has just under 300 patients.

Other hospitals were facing similar issues, with toilets that can't flush and no heat.

Some even had to transport human waste in trash bags because of the lack of water, KVUE reported.

Officials with the hospitals said they were working with the city and other medical officials to transport patients home or to other facilities in the area, where possible.

Because of the weather emergency, power outages and water failures, no one hospital can accept all of the patients that need to be transferred

Seven million Texans are also under boil water notices after the deadly storm compromised water filtration systems there - a problem exacerbated by the lack of power in many homes.

Another blast of ice and snow forecast Wednesday threatened to sow more chaos, with more than three million people reported to be still without power.

Texas is even struggling to clear its roads of snow in comparison to neighboring Arkansas as yet another blast of icy weather sparked more chaos.

Footage taken by professional storm chaser Charles Peek shows cars on the Texas side of Stateline Road dealing with icy driving conditions while those on the Arkansas side drive on a cleared roadway.

Texas is even struggling to clear its side of road compared to neighboring Arkansas. Footage taken by professional storm chaser Charles Peek shows Stateline Road in Texarkana, which straddles the line between both states, on Tuesday as cars on the Texas side the street deal with icy driving conditions while those on the opposite side in Arkansas drive on a cleared roadway

Dallas, Texas: Leonel Solis and Estefani Garcia use their car to heat their home. The couple, who lost power on Sunday, have been using electricity from a neighbor's generator and heat from their car to stay warm

 Slide me  Infrared imaging shows just how much power has been lost to Houston in the last few days; from February 7 to 16

Sharing the image Peek tweeted: 'Big difference in #Arkansas and #Texas snow removal in #Texarkana', a city that straddles both states.

His colleague Mike Seidel also posted the footage from earlier this week, writing: 'Can you guess what state has snow plows? It's the AR side of State Line Ave. that's clear. The TX side is #snow covered.'

Meanwhile, it's not just snowplows that are an issue: The race is on to restore power to millions of Texans facing subzero temperatures as stunning infrared images taken from space show just how far the blackouts have stretched.

More than three million people in the state were left without power for the fourth day in a row - and for the vast majority, it is because of forced blackouts by energy agency ERCOT.

Texas, which relies on its own electricity supply and grid, and is unprepared for winter conditions, has buckled so much so that Beto O'Rourke said on Wednesday that it was a near 'failed state'.

Texans covered in blankets wait in line for more than an hour to fill propane tanks to heat their homes in Houston on Wednesday. Millions across the state remain without power after a historic snowfall and single-digit temperatures created a surge of demand for electricity to warm up homes unaccustomed to such extreme lows, buckling the state's power grid and causing widespread blackouts

Richardson, Texas: Carlos de Jesus takes a selfie in front of the frozen fountain at the Richardson Civic Center after a second winter storm brought more snow and continued freezing temperatures to North Texas on Wednesday

Southwest Arlington, Texas: After seeing a posting on Facebook, LaDonna (no last name given) drove from Johnson County, Texas to collect some of the dumpsters-full of ice cream thrown out at a Southwest Arlington, Texas, Kroger store, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Arlington TX. LaDonna said she's collecting the frozen goods for her neighbors. Rolling power outages this week have forced businesses to clear merchandise that needs refrigeration

The Texas city of Kyle, south of Austin, asked residents Wednesday to suspend water usage until further notice because of a shortage. 'Water should only be used to sustain life at this point,' the city of 45,000 said in an advisory. 'We are close to running out of water supply in Kyle.'

Problems first began with Winter Storm Uri - an unprecedented weather system that is sweeping the country. Every other state in the storm's path has been able to withstand it because they operate on a shared power source which means that if one state's supply goes down, it can draw from the shared reserve.

The outages are the widest Texas' grid has suffered - but hardly a first in winter.

Some 600,000 had power switched back on by 6am and even more were turned back on before lunchtime but millions remain in the dark and without heating. With ongoing, forced blackouts in being carried out in different parts of the state, it is difficult to track exactly how many people don't have it and where they are in real-time.

ERCOT - which is in charge of managing the distribution of all of the energy in Texas and maintaining its grid - underestimated the storm so didn't produce enough reserve energy beforehand and now, plants can't produce more power because they were unprepared for the bad weather.

The agency claims it predicted that peak energy demand would be 67 gigawatts but it reached 69 gigawatts on Sunday night - the first night of the storm. The agency then cut the power across the state by close to half - reducing it to just over 40 gigawatts. Each gigawatt powers some 500 homes.

What compounded the sudden demand for energy was that ERCOT didn't anticipate not being able to produce more energy during the storm.

The vast majority of the state's energy (40 percent) comes from natural gas, and the plants that produce it are propped up by an infrastructure that, unlike other states, cannot withstand severe winter weather; pipes have frozen in subzero temperatures and wells have been blocked with snow. It is preventing the fossil fuels from being pumped from the ground to the plants and into homes and businesses.

The system was forecast to move into the Northeast on Thursday. More than 100 million people live in areas covered by some type of winter weather warning, watch or advisory, the weather service said.

'There's really no letup to some of the misery people are feeling across that area,' said Bob Oravec, lead forecaster with the National Weather Service, referring to Texas.

Seven million Texans are under boil water notices after the storm compromised systems - a problem exacerbated by the lack of power in many homes. Another blast of ice and snow threatened to sow more chaos Wednesday

Fort Worth, Texas: Gas stations such as this 7Eleven/Exxon on Highway 377 can not get deliveries of fuel, having run out on Sunday and not expecting another shipment until next week

Dallas, Texas: Houses covered with snow on Wednesday afternoon as millions throughout the state were still without power

Desperate Texans waited for more than an hour in freezing rain to fill propane tanks in Houston on Wednesday as more than 3million people remain without power. Some 600,000 had power switched back on by 6am Wednesday and even more were turned back on before lunchtime but millions remain in the dark and without heating. With ongoing, forced blackouts in being carried out in different parts of the state, it is difficult to track exactly how many people don't have it and where they are in real-time.

Carlos Mandez waits in line to fill his propane tanks Wednesday in Houston after the CEO of ERCOT - the Texas energy agency responsible for the deadly blackouts that have driven people to burn furniture and accidentally poison themselves with carbon monoxide just to stay warm - said he had no idea when power would be restored but claimed his agency managed to avoid an even bigger catastrophe by switching it off

Frozen: More than 4million people in Texas were without power yesterday afternoon in subzero temperatures for the fourth day in a row.

ERCOT switched off millions of people's power on Monday which reduced usage from around 70,000 megawatts to (70 gigawatts) to just over 43,000 megawatts (gigawatts). 1 gigawatt (1,000 megawatts) is enough to power 500 homes

ERCOT says that had it allowed the power to continue being used, the entire grid would have gone down and it would have taken longer to get up and running than the current, forced outages will. The explanation has fallen on deaf ears in Texas, where millions want to know why the crisis wasn't averted

ERCOT CEO Bill Magness - who made $880,000 in 2018 - claimed on Tuesday night that the situation could be worse. He refused to take responsibility for the fact his agency didn't upgrade systems to make sure plants would withstand the cold, and instead chalked the whole crisis down to a 'supply and demand imbalance'

Now, ERCOT has deliberately switched off people's power to try to stop them from draining any remaining reserves.

It has created a diabolical situation in the face of freak weather in the southern state where temperatures on Tuesday plummeted to -2 F - the lowest they have been since 1903- and where eight inches of snow have fallen in some parts.

The nationwide death toll from the storm is 31.

It's unclear how many people have died in Texas so far but the death toll there includes a mother and daughter who died from carbon monoxide poisoning because they left a car running in their garage to stay warm, and a grandmother and three children who died after the fire they were using to keep warm spread throughout their house in Sugar Land.

There are delays to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution and many doses that were being stored are under threat because the freezers storing them can't operate without power.

The outages have crippled water pressure which also threatens drinking water supply. It is a particular problem in hospitals, where pressure is dwindling.

There are also fears that without any new gas becoming available soon, prices are about to skyrocket by as much as 20 cents per gallon.

People are also being told to boil water before they drink it or use it for cooking because it is no longer safe, due to the shortage in power plants.

Many can't - because they do not have power - and stores where they could buy bottled water are closed or empty. Governor Greg Abbott on Tuesday night called the situation 'completely unacceptable' and ordered a full investigation into how ERCOT had failed the state so drastically.

A Texan looks for information on his cell phone as he rest at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on Wednesday as winter storm Uri prompted countless people sought warmth in pop-up shelters after rolling black-outs left millions without heat and power

An apartment complex in Dallas, Texas, where icicles have formed on ceiling fans

A long line of cars snakes out of the H-E-B gas station and into the supermarket's parking lot Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021 in Brownsville, Texas

Natural gas runs in the home of Cynthia Valadez off of East Cesar Chavez Street in Austin on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021

Customers wait outside at a Home Depot in Pearland, Texas to enter the store to buy supplies on February 17, 2021. The store has no power so is only letting one person at a time

City of Richardson workers close a water main valve for a pipe that burst due to extreme cold in a neighborhood Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Richardson, Texas. Millions remain without power in the record-breaking cold, mostly in Texas

Brett Saint, right, and Joetta Myers sit on a sofa inside a Gallery Furniture store which opened as a shelter Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Houston

People line up to fill their empty propane tanks Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2021, in Houston. Temperatures stayed below freezing Tuesday, and many residents were without electricity

BETO O'ROURKE - WE'RE NEAR A FAILED STATE Beto O'Rourke, the failed Senate hopeful and former Congressman, said on Tuesday night that Texas was close to becoming a 'failed state' because of the energy crisis. 'We've seen that extraordinary spike in demand and then the same storm has caused real challenges to the delivery of electricity to the supply, with wind turbines freeze and can't run, the storm blows through and there's .. you have problems with the equipment at some of these plants, they trip off and have to get fixed. 'There's a number of factors where a storm like this that's been so historic and we haven't seen much precedent for, pushes the system where demand up and supply down... the only way we can keep it in control is to do outages.' He said that if ERCOT hadn't switched power off, the systems would have completely broken and wouldn't have been able to be turned back on, but he also failed to give a firm answer on when that will happen. 'If we had let the system go into a stage where a blackout would happen, we wouldn't be talking about when are we going to restore the power, when are we going to turn it back on. We would be talking about rebuilding portions of the electric system. We wouldn't be able to do this in days. 'The goal today is to find ways to get as many Texans back on as we possibly can,' he said. Magness admitted that the agency knew the storm was coming and tried to prepare for it but that the crippling of the infrastructure hindered the efforts. Advertisement

Gov Abbott also blamed renewable energy and wind turbines for the disaster, telling Fox's Sean Hannity on Tuesday night: 'This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America.

'Our wind and our solar got shut down, and they were collectively more than 10 percent of our power grid, and that thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power on a statewide basis... It just shows that fossil fuel is necessary,' he said.

The disaster in Texas has happened because of failures in both fossil fuel production and renewable energy.

On Tuesday night, ERCOT CEO Bill Magness said he thought his agency had actually avoided an even bigger problem by taking the steps they have.

In an interview with CBS Austin, he said: 'The reason why is these outages have to exist is the electric system has to be managed where supply and demand have to be balanced all the time.

'These outages, while they are extremely difficult and we are tying to get them to end as fast as we can, are a controlled method of making sure we don't lose the system - that we don't have a much bigger, catastrophic event on the system.'

He refused to take responsibility for the fact that the reason supply is down is because the plants were unprepared, and even seemed to boast about Texas's response to the crisis.

'If you have a big imbalance between the supply and the demand, you can have catastrophic failures of the system, blackouts like we've seen in some parts of the country but haven't seen here in Texas that can take a very long time to repair.'

He also said that the same amount of energy was being used now as it is in the summer, when Texans use their air conditioners.

'What we saw this time was the demand side with the storm the temperatures, all the snow, has brought power demand higher in Texas than it's ever, ever been - even close during the winter - we're using electricity at a rate that Texas uses it in the summer time when we're pumping all our air conditioners.

'I know there were certainly efforts to plan, and then we saw some events when the storm blew in that made it a lot more challenging.'

Last night, Governor Abbott fumed that the blame lies with ERCOT and that an investigation must be launched.

'The Electric Reliability Council of Texas has been anything but reliable over the past 48 hours... Far too many Texans are without power and heat for their homes as our state faces freezing temperatures and severe winter weather. This is unacceptable,' Abbott said.

He has been criticized for seeming to sidestep the crisis.

'You can always count on Greg Abbott to pass the buck when he fails,' Julian Castro, the Mayor of San Antonio, tweeted.
[February 18, 2021] Formcraft Releases WorkforceDiagnostics to Help Leaders Build Data-Driven Workplace Strategies

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Formcraft is pleased to release WorkforceDiagnostics, a 6-week diagnostic program that improves the way businesses build workplace strategies. Leaders looking to create a workplace that empowers the needs, desires, and working habits of their unique team will benefit from investing in this program. Formcraft Managing Director Owen Druckenmiller, together with a team of workplace strategists, developed the program. Customers will take part in three segments: the leadership vision and insights workshop, a multi-part survey, and delivery of strategic brief and scenario forecasts. Learn more about the full scope . Formcraft's WorkforceDiagnostics analyzes businesses from the ground upwith a special focus on personnel. By providing real-time data, Formcraft's program gives leaders the tools to create a safe return-to-work strategy and increase employee happiness, prductivity, and retention.



As a design-led firm, Formcraft delivers effective, empowering workspaces. WorkforceDiagnostics sets the company apart because it's an analytical system that removes any guesswork for customers. After completing the assessment, customers receive data-driven solutions that take their workplace strategy to the next level. "As the workforce is given the chance to take the survey and have the opportunity to be heard, they will have a more positive attitude toward design changes and the final workplace design that is reflective of a culture that they themselves helped to create," says Donna McDaniel, senior interior designer at Formcraft.

WorkforceDiagnostics is available to businesses of all sizes looking to invest in informed return-to-work strategies in the greater Philadelphia region. Formcraft also offers scenario planning and test fit outs based on the results of the diagnostic program. "WorkforceDiagnostics gives leaders of organizations the data needed to understand their team's capacity and bandwidth of working from home and their overall ability to work in a more agile environment. It assumes a work-from-home component will be part of the real-estate strategy, and allows the workplace strategy team to create a blended environment that supports the business," says Druckenmiller. About Formcraft

Formcraft is the premier office design and renovation firm serving the greater Philadelphia region. Headquartered in Center City Philadelphia, Formcraft is a design-led integrated project delivery firm offering workplace strategy, architecture, design and construction services to take your project from start to finish. We design and build dream offices for businesses in technology, finance, life sciences, healthcare, industrial, communications, transport, insurance, and professional services industries. Media Contact:

Philip Lock

Principal, Formcraft

philip.lock@formcraft.net

215.645.0325 (office) View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/formcraft-releases-workforcediagnostics-to-help-leaders-build-data-driven-workplace-strategies-301231281.html SOURCE Formcraft

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India chief Amit Agarwal has responded to the ongoing controversy over the organisation Reuters story that alleged that the e-commerce giant dodged Indian regulators in circumventing local laws on foreign direct investment (FDI) in e-commerce. The story talked about how has for years given preferential treatment to a small group of sellers on its India platform, publicly misrepresented its ties with the sellers and used them to circumvent increasingly tough foreign investment rules that affect e-commerce.

The story is unsubstantiated, incomplete, factually incorrect. has always been and remains compliant with all Indian laws, said Amit Agarwal, global senior vice-president and country leader for Amazon India, in a letter addressed to the employees. We haven't seen the documents and Reuters hasn't shared provenance to confirm veracity- the details are likely supplied with malicious intent to create sensation and discredit us.

He said the company remains committed to its pledge to digitise 10 million micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMES), enable $10 billion in exports and create incremental 1 million jobs by 2025.

Amazon has so far committed over $6.5 billion to the India market. Agarwal said the truth is that it takes the responsibilities of its customers and selling partners very seriously. The company has made substantial investments to digitize hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs and businesses, helping them scale nationally and globally. The firm recently launched the STEP programme to make it easier for selling partners to track and improve their performance on Amazon with a clear roadmap to progress across different levels of benefits irrespective of their size or duration on the marketplace.

We are single-minded focused on using technology to digitally empower businesses of all sizes, in a fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory manner, so that they can realise their true potential, said Agarwal.

The firm said it is aware of the governments focus on small traders and works hard to bring the benefits of digitization to them. Its I have Space and Amazon Easy programmes allow neighbourhood stores to grow with the company, as logistics partners, pickup points, and customer experience centres. In 2020, the firm launched Local Shops on Amazon enabling a digital presence for local stores. In a short time, tens of thousands of shops have blurred the lines between online and offline.

We are committed to the vision of a Digital India (one that is driven by digital empowerment and digital inclusion), and driven by the mission of meaningfully transforming daily lives, said Agarwal.

In the 7 years since its launch, Amazons India marketplace has grown to over 7 lakh thriving selling partners from across the country. More than a million artisans are renewing their art forms with Amazon. Over one lakh kirana stores are part of its ecosystem. The exports from Indian brands on its global selling programme has already crossed $2 billion.

The company is digitizing distribution, which is benefitting small and medium businesses. It is inventing with voice, video, payments, language and machine learning to make Amazon accessible to hundreds of millions of customers. Just in 2020, over 1.5 lakh businesses went online with Amazon. Over 30,000 offline local stores joined in the last few months. Over 50,000 new SMBs joined using local languages.

We created more than 200,000 jobs during an otherwise challenging year, said Agarwal. This week we also announced our first device manufacturing line in India, in Tamil Nadu.

He said mobile internet and e-commerce will be a social and economic leveller for India.

I feel humbled that we are meaningful catalysts, with more customers and selling partners relying on us than ever before, said Agarwal. We should hold our heads high and take pride that the work we are doing today will be acknowledged in future years as having transformed lives and livelihoods of hundreds and millions of Indians, and a critical enabler that unleashed Indias potential in the 21st century.

Amazon and its rival Flipkart have faced court cases related to probe by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for alleged anti-competitive practices. The deny the allegations. These kinds of courtroom battles have been backed by trade bodies  the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) and Delhi Vyapar Mahasangh (DVM)  and are expected to have a bearing on the upcoming e-commerce policy, according to people familiar with the matter. It has also been reported that India is planning to tighten foreign investment rules, which might affect e-commerce companies, including Amazon and Walmart. It was reported in January that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated a probe against Amazon for alleged violation of the foreign exchange law and rules of the country.

Meanwhile, CAIT, which represents 70 million traders, urged the government to ban the local operations of Amazon, after the Reuters reported the US e-commerce firm has for years given preferential treatment to a small group of sellers on its India platform. It said a time-bound investigation should be ordered into the alleged malpractices. The CAIT has also said that Walmart-owned Flipkart is also indulging in similar practices and therefore an investigation is also needed to interrogate business practices of Flipkart as well.

CAIT national president B C Bhartia and secretary general Praveen Khandelwal said that taking new revelations into account, CAIT will approach Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and will demand immediate action on Amazon. The lawyers team of CAIT is also examining all legal possibilities and are expected to pursue legal action soon.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:09:52|Editor: huaxia

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National intangible cultural heritage inheritor Fu Zhao'e (C), her daughter (L) and her grandson make ox-themed paper-cutting works for the Chinese Lunar New Year in Yinchuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 6, 2021. Chinese people love the color red and they regard red as a symbol of happiness and prosperity. They buy red decorations for the Spring Festival as a way to wish good luck for the next year. In northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, intangible cultural heritage artworks in red have heightened the atmosphere of Spring Festival. With distinctive ethnic features, most paper-cuts of Hui ethnic group are inspired by local life. Artists use only scissors and pieces of red paper to depict various and vivid figures. People now use paper-cuts to decorate houses, and believe they can bring good luck and happiness to the family. Chinese knot is a traditional threaded craft for blessing. Its shape is regarded as a symbol of reunion, amity and peace. First as a decorative addition to clothing, Chinese knot is later used to decorate their houses as well. As China's young people now have strong confidence and appreciation of their own culture, more and more young people are willing to learn traditional Chinese culture and carry forward it. (Xinhua/Yang Zhisen)
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BRUSSELS/FRANKFURT/PARIS (dpa-AFX) - U.K. stocks fell in choppy trade on Thursday as a slew of disappointing earnings reports overshadowed gains in miners on the back of a jump in commodity prices. The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 20 points, or 0.3 percent, at 6.690 after closing 0.6 percent lower the previous day. Anglo American, Antofagasta and Glencore climbed 2-3 percent as copper prices jumped to their highest in nearly a decade on concerns over a market deficit, driven by tight supply and strong demand. Barclays Group tumbled 3.5 percent after its 2020 annual profit fell by half. Smith & Nephew plunged 5.2 percent. The medical technology business reported that its fiscal 2020 profit before taxation declined to $246 million from last year's $743 million. Pharmaceutical company Indivior lost 2.5 percent. The company reported a fiscal 2020 net loss of $148 million compared to net income of $134 million, prior year. Royal Dutch Shell gave up 1.3 percent. The company said it has reached an agreement with Canadian energy company Crescent Point Energy Corp. to sell its Duvernay shale light oil position in Alberta, Canada for a total consideration of $707 million or C$900 million. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
The United States is not yet ruling out the possibility that the origin of the COVID-19 came from a laboratory leak in China, despite the World Health Organization's (WHO) finding that the virus outbreak most likely initially infected humans through an animal host.

Officials continue to sort through the intelligence about the Chinese government's initial handling of the outbreak, American and Western officials told NBC News.

A spokesman for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said the agency is standing by a public statement it released last April, saying that American intelligence agencies would continue to probe emerging information and intelligence to determine if the outbreak began through contact with infected animals or a result of a lab accident in Wuhan, NBC News reported.

U.S. officials have not made public any evidence proving a lab accident, while most scientists who have studied the matter said that such a scenario is unlikely.

However, President Joe Biden's administration has faulted China in recent days for what they said was a lack of transparency around the virus' origins. They have also criticized how the WHO last week presented the initial findings of a visit to Wuhan.

Related story: Growing Evidence Shows COVID-19 Leaked From Wuhan Lab, Contrary to China's Claims

WHO Investigation on W hether COVID-19 Virus Leaked From Wuhan Lab

After visiting three labs in China, WHO investigators said that they found no signs that a lab accident could have caused the outbreak. A WHO researcher said the organization was pausing any further inquiry into that theory.

Last week, Peter Ben Embarek, WHO food safety and animal diseases expert, said their initial findings suggest that the coronavirus likely spread from an animal to humans.

Embarek noted that the lab incidents hypothesis "is extremely unlikely to explain the introduction of the virus to the human population."

"Therefore it is not a hypothesis that we advise to suggest future studies... into the understanding of the origin of the virus," he said in a Fox News report.

The Wuhan Institute of Virology has collected extensive virus samples, which led to claims it may have caused the initial outbreak by leaking the virus into the surrounding community. China has strongly rejected that possibility and has promoted other theories that the virus may have originated elsewhere.

The WHO team was composed of experts from 10 countries, with a mission to determine the origins of the virus. It is believed that the coronavirus originated from bats before being passed to humans through another species of wild animals, such as a pangolin or bamboo rat, considered by some people in China to be an exotic delicacy.

Embarek further noted that transmission through trade-in frozen products was also a possibility. According to a Newsweek report, tracing the origin of a new virus is not easy as it took researchers at the Wuhan more than a decade to trace the 2002-2003 SARS virus to remote bat caves in Yunnan province.

In early February, China's Academy for Military Medical Sciences said it was impossible for them to scientifically determine whether the COVID-19 outbreak was caused naturally or accidentally by a laboratory incident.

The Chinese government's initial analysis showed that a natural outbreak of SARS-CoV-2, a new coronavirus that causes COVID-19, likely emerged from Wuhan city's Huanan Seafood Market.

Read also: Experts Suggest Novel Coronavirus Originated From Lab in Wuhan


Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A research team led by Inselspital, Bern University Hospital and the University of Bern found a correlation between the frequency of infections after surgery and performance in quality audits. Lower surgical site infection rates correlate with a lower audit score. In other words, looking more closely reveals more reported infections. Recommendations for possible correction are presented.

The incidence of surgical site infections after an operation is an important quality indicator for hospitals. An overview from six European countries published in 2017 documented increased costs and, in some cases, significantly poorer surgical outcomes due to SSIs. The European Center for Disease Control (ECDC) and authorities in the U.S. have therefore defined criteria for recording and documenting the rate of surgical site infections per procedure. Swissnoso has issued binding guidelines for Switzerland based on these criteria. The study investigated to what extent surgical site infection rates correlate with the audit results in Swiss hospitals.

Seek and you shall find: low SSI rates with low audit score

The study was able to establish a clear correlation between a low surgical site infection rate and the results from on-site surveillance quality audits (audit score). The better a hospital scored on the 50-point audit, the more infection cases had been detected or reported. This was true for all three surgeries studied (knee and hip implants as well as colorectal surgeries). According to the study's lead author Andrew Atkinson: "The study shows that the quality of the respective surveillance systems must be systematically considered when interpreting surgical site infectionsand this independently of the type of surgery and infection rate."

What exactly was measured?

The study analyzed 81 957 hip and knee surgeries from 125 hospitals and 33 315 colorectal surgeries from 110 hospitals. At least two external audits per hospital were carried out to assess surveillance quality. The study was based on the Swissnoso guidelines. The detailed audit results were ranked in an overall score between 1 and 50. The audits were carried out by three specifically trained investigators.

Results in detail

The following values refer to the median of the results. The SSI rate for knee and hip implants was 1.0% with an audit score of 37. As expected the infection rate for colorectal surgery was much higher at 12.7% with a slightly higher audit score of 38. It appeared that higher infection rates correlated with higher audit scores. A discernible range of scores among hospital types could be observed, with private hospitals forming a cluster in the lower range of audit scores and infection rates.

How can a possible systematic error be corrected?

The research team makes a specific proposal for future evaluations and national comparisons of surgical site infection rates. A computational correction (normalization) and inclusion of the audit score are proposed for discussion. Prof. Jonas Marschall summarizes: "For the first time, this study provides us with a basis for rendering the number of infections more comparable and better understood throughout Switzerland. Now we have to work hard to establish regular comparisons among Swiss hospitals even more meaningful and the incentive to be at the forefront even greater."

More information: Andrew Atkinson et al, Surveillance quality correlates with surgical site infection rates in knee and hip arthroplasty and colorectal surgeries: A call to action to adjust reporting of SSI rates, Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology (2021). Andrew Atkinson et al, Surveillance quality correlates with surgical site infection rates in knee and hip arthroplasty and colorectal surgeries: A call to action to adjust reporting of SSI rates,(2021). DOI: 10.1017/ice.2021.14

Provided by Inselspital, Bern University Hospital
"K9 Arlo of the Thurston County Sheriff's Department is a shining example of the dedication, selflessness and loyalty that working dogs exhibit in the line of duty," said AKC Executive Secretary, Gina DiNardo. "He risks his life each and every day to protect his community and we are honored to recognize him with a Paw of Courage award. We wish him a speedy recovery as he heals from his recent injury."

K9 Arlo is a two-year-old German Shepherd Dog working to serve the Thurston County Sheriff's Office with his partner, Deputy Turpin since late 2019. As deputies attempted to make contact with a vehicle that was driving recklessly this past January, a pursuit initiated. When law enforcement made contact with the driver, shots were fired, and the suspect and K9 Arlo were both struck. Arlo was rushed to the emergency veterinarian with two bullet wounds  one in his shoulder and another in his hind leg. One bullet was discovered to be lodged near Arlo's spine, requiring a major surgery.

Using the social media app, TikTok, Deputy Turpin has gained 65,000 followers for K9 Arlo, contributing to the $40,000 raised for his care. K9 Arlo is now home with his partner, Deputy Turpin and is expected to make a full recovery from his injuries.

Any dog is eligible to receive an AKC Paw of Courage; the award is not specific to purebred dogs. Paw of Courage awards can be presented to Police K-9s, Military Working Dogs, Therapy Dogs, Service Dogs and other canines that work to make the lives of the people around them safer, easier or just simply happier. To nominate a dog for a Paw of Courage award, click here.

About American Kennel Club

Founded in 1884, the American Kennel Club is a not-for-profit organization which maintains the largest registry of purebred dogs in the world and oversees the sport of purebred dogs in the United States. The AKC is dedicated to upholding the integrity of its registry, promoting the sport of purebred dogs and breeding for type and function. Along with its more than 5,000 licensed and member clubs and its affiliated organizations, the AKC advocates for the purebred dog as a family companion, advances canine health and well-being, works to protect the rights of all dog owners and promotes responsible dog ownership. More than 22,000 competitions for AKC-registered purebred and mixed-breed dogs are held under AKC rules and regulations each year including conformation, agility, obedience, rally, tracking, herding, lure coursing, coonhound events, hunt tests, field and earthdog tests. Affiliate AKC organizations include the AKC Humane Fund, AKC Canine Health Foundation, AKC Reunite and the AKC Museum of the Dog. For more information, visit www.akc.org.



AKC, American Kennel Club, the American Kennel Club seal and design, and all associated marks and logos are trademarks, registered trademarks and service marks of The American Kennel Club, Inc.

SOURCE American Kennel Club

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www.akc.org


[February 17, 2021] SWI BREAKING ALERT: ROSEN, A TRUSTED AND LEADING LAW FIRM, Encourages SolarWinds Corporation Investors with Large Losses to Secure Counsel Before Important Deadline - SWI

WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, reminds purchasers of the securities of SolarWinds (News - Alert) Corporation (NYSE: SWI) between October 18, 2018 and December 17, 2020, inclusive (the "Class Period"), of the important March 5, 2021 lead plaintiff deadline in the class action first filed by the firm. SO WHAT: If you purchased SolarWinds securities during the Class Period you may be entitled to compensation without payment of any out of pocket fees or costs through a contingency fee arrangement. WHAT TO DO NEXT: To join the SolarWinds class action, go http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-2012.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action. A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than March 5, 2021. A lead plaintiff is a representative party acting on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. WHY ROSEN LAW: We encourage investors to select qualified counsel with a track record of success in leadership roles. Often, firms issuing notices do not have comparable experience or resources. The Rosen Law Firm represents investors throughout the globe, concentrating its practice in securities class actions and shareholder derivative litigation. Rosen Law Firm has achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company. Rosen Law Firm was Ranked No. 1 by ISS Securities lass Action Services for number of securities class action settlements in 2017. The firm has been ranked in the top 3 each year since 2013 and has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors. In 2019 alone the firm secured over $438 million for investors. In 2020 founding partner Laurence Rosen was named by law360 as a Titan of Plaintiffs' Bar. Many of the firm's attorneys have been recognized by Lawdragon and Super Lawyers.



DETAILS OF THE CASE: According to the lawsuit, defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (1) since mid-2020, SolarWinds Orion monitoring products had a vulnerability that allowed hackers to compromise the server upon which the products ran; (2) SolarWinds' update server had an easily accessible password of "solarwinds123"; (3) consequently, SolarWinds' customers, including, among others, the Federal Government, Microsoft, Cisco (News - Alert) , and Nvidia, would be vulnerable to hacks; (4) as a result, SolarWinds would suffer significant reputational harm; and (5) as a result, defendants' statements about the Company's business, operations and prospects were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages. To join the SolarWinds class action, go to http://www.rosenlegal.com/cases-register-2012.html or call Phillip Kim, Esq. toll-free at 866-767-3653 or email pkim@rosenlegal.com or cases@rosenlegal.com for information on the class action.

No Class Has Been Certified. Until a class is certified, you are not represented by counsel unless you retain one. You may select counsel of your choice. You may also remain an absent class member and do nothing at this point. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff. Follow us for updates on LinkedIn (News - Alert) : https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-rosen-law-firm or on Twitter (News - Alert) : https://twitter.com/rosen_firm or on Facebook (News - Alert) : https://www.facebook.com/rosenlawfirm. Attorney Advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217006035/en/

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Deborah Knight was rumoured to have had a strained relationship with Karl Stefanovic after replacing him as host of the Today show in 2019.

But the pair brushed their supposed feud aside on Friday when they reunited to co-host the Channel Nine breakfast show.

The 48-year-old journalist was all smiles as she posed for a selfie alongside Karl, 46, while filling in for Allison Langdon.

No hard feelings! Deborah Knight posed for a selfie with Karl Stefanovic as she co-hosted the Today show on Friday, two years after their rumoured feud

Deborah wrote in the caption: 'Nice to hang with this crazy kid. Rare @thetodayshow time with @karlstefanovic.'

Karl had been kicked off the Today show in December 2018 after his personal life was blamed for falling ratings.

Deborah was drafted in to replace him alongside Georgie Gardner the following year.

But viewers didn't warm to the female co-anchors and ratings plunged even further, prompting Nine to axe Georgie and Deborah and rehire Karl a year later alongside Allison.

Recovering: The 48-year-old journalist was filling in for Allison Langdon (pictured), who is recovering from an injury she sustained while filming a watersports segment earlier this month

Allison recently underwent surgery after seriously hurting her knee while filming a watersports segment for the Today show on the Gold Coast earlier this month.

During the pre-recorded segment, the co-host 'badly' injured her leg hydrofoiling - a relatively new watersport also known as foil surfing.

She has been off work since then, with Leila McKinnon filling in on most days.

In the past: Two years ago, Karl was accused of comparing Deborah to a horror film character after she replaced him on the Today show

Two years ago, Karl was accused of comparing Deborah to a horror film character after she replaced him on the Today show.

KIIS FM radio host Kyle Sandilands said on air in January 2019 that Karl had texted him a photo of Freddy Krueger after he'd invited him to join Today hosts Deborah and Georgie Gardner for an in-studio interview.

Freddy is the antagonist from the Nightmare on Elm Street series of films.

But Karl told Daily Mail Australia at the time that Kyle had totally misrepresented their SMS exchange, and insisted he had not been referring to Deborah and Georgie when he sent the photo of Freddy Krueger.

'Kyle and I were talking about a former Russian president, not the Today show cast,' Karl said. 'He has a fertile, funny and disturbing imagination. I don't know how Jackie [Henderson, Kyle's radio co-host] puts up with him.

'For the record, I wake up with Today, not KIIS. And Kyle can KIIS my a**.'

While his statement was lighthearted, behind the scenes Karl was reportedly furious with Kyle for sharing their private texts on air.

Feud? KIIS FM radio host Kyle Sandilands (pictured) said on air in January 2019 that Karl had texted him a photo of Freddy Krueger after he'd invited him to join Today hosts Deborah and Georgie Gardner for an in-studio interview

Kyle also clarified that his exchange with Karl had simply been misunderstood.

He told Daily Mail Australia that Karl had sent him the picture of Freddy Krueger, but insisted that the image referred to him, not Georgie and Deborah.

'Karl sent back the picture of Freddy Krueger which was his way of laughing off the suggestion and insinuating I was evil for inviting him on the show with his Today host replacements,' he said.

'That picture of Freddy Krueger was directed at me, not the girls. It was all meant in good fun.'
Cybereason, the leader in future-ready attack protection, today announced a partnership with Oxygen DMCC, the Dubai-based leader in AI-powered cybersecurity and mobility solutions, enabling enterprises across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) to detect and end cyber attacks on endpoints anywhere on their networks.

Oxygen has built a reputation across the region as a flexible, fast, reliable, and responsive solution provider. The company has been able to forge a strong base of committed channel partners and established lasting relationships with end-users through its customer-focused approach to sales and presales.

As part of the agreement, Oxygen has committed resources to support Cybereasons growth, both in channel reach and technical expertise. Initial presales support will include in-depth demos as part of a series of product-awareness campaigns to promote Cybereason solutions in the MENA region.

Cybereason was among the first vendors in the region to deliver a viable endpoint protection platform, said Tarek Kuzbari, Regional Director for the Middle East and Turkey, Cybereason. We also delivered great value for organizations with our endpoint detection and response solution, made available through Oracles Second-Generation Cloud in Jeddah and Dubai. The cloud-based platform addresseS key issues of scalability, data residency and compliance with which MENA organizations have been struggling. Oxygen has both the track record and expertise to boost our go-to-market strength in the region.

Partnering with Cybereason  a company with an enviable track record in endpoint protection and incident response  will allow enterprises to take an operation-centric approach to detecting malicious activity earlier based on subtle chains of behavior that stop malicious activity before they escalate to a major security event, said Khalid Laban, CEO, Oxygen DMCC. We are starkly aware of the volatility of the threat landscape, and we know that to face threat actors on an equal footing requires strategic partnerships between expert entities.

Oxygens territories under the agreement will be the GCC, North Africa, Levant, and Turkey, targeting all scales of business, including telecoms providers and managed security service providers (MSSPs). Key verticals to be targeted include government, FSI, oil and gas, healthcare, retail and hospitality.

Cybereason recognizes that defenders are in a daily battle for their privacy and security. Trust is a chain that we work diligently to strengthen, and we shall continue to ally ourselves with fellow specialists that can deliver peace of mind to the region, Kuzbari added.

About Oxygen

Oxygen offers a comprehensive vendor product portfolio and systems solutions that are already compatible to the next generation of service assurance and security assurance solutions. Placing AI under the Oxygen umbrella and portfolio of products and services allows Oxygen Middle East to both intensify and complement its focus on visual-related technology practice for integrator partners. Oxygen is aligned to help integrators establish and expand their Artificial Intelligence practices as well as capitalize on convergence, all while enabling them to break into new, complementary technologies and vertical markets to create net new business opportunities.

About Cybereason

Cybereason is the champion for todays cyber defenders providing future-ready attack protection that unifies security from the endpoint, to the enterprise, to everywhere the battle moves. The Cybereason Defense Platform combines the industrys top-rated detection and response (EDR and XDR), next-gen anti-virus (NGAV), and proactive threat hunting to deliver context-rich analysis of every element of a Malop (malicious operation). The result: defenders can end cyber attacks from endpoints to everywhere. Cybereason is a privately held, international company headquartered in Boston with customers in more than 30 countries.

Learn more: https://www.cybereason.com/

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Media Contacts:

Bill Keeler

Senior Director, Global Public Relations

Cybereason

bill.keeler@cybereason.com

(929) 259-3261
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World's Most Popular Qualitative Research Brand Adds Innovative Reference Management Knowledge Organization Solution

QSR International, the leading developer of qualitative data analysis (QDA) software, today announced it has acquired Swiss Academic Software, maker of Citavi, the only all-in-one reference management and note taking app that will intuitively streamline analyzing sources and organizing notes in one location. The transaction further solidifies QSR's standing as the market leader in research tools and technology.

QSR International is a growing innovator of software and services that enable the academic and the professional research communities to accelerate their work and quality of research outcomes. Citavi is a strong, likeminded business that serves that same vision, and moves QSR another step closer to offering a full suite of tools to support researchers at every stage of the research process.

Citavi joins QSR's product suite, alongside NVivo, the latest version of its popular research tool used by health, government, non-profit, academic and commercial researchers worldwide, as well as its Sonia student placement solution. Citavi enables researchers to search resources from around the world, create tasks, analyze texts, save quotations and ideas, create outlines for drafts, and write reports, articles, or books faster and more efficiently than ever. Citavi's capabilities will integrate perfectly with NVivo's leading QDA solution to provide a robust set of powerful research tools.

"With so many researchers continuing to advance their critical work under the challenging conditions of our day, it has never been more vital to provide a full suite of tools that supports the researcher at every step of the research journey," said Chris Astle, CEO of QSR International. "The combination of NVivo and Citavi raises the bar for research tools. With our NVivo qualitative data analysis suite and now, Citavi's reference and knowledge management and note-taking solution, we provide a full breadth of capability while providing a platform for researchers to work individually or as a team through each step of the research process."

"Citavi is already a sought-after tool among researchers in our key markets in Germany, Austria and Switzerland," said Thomas Schempp, Citavi co-founder. "With the launch of our new cloud-based solution to complement our longstanding desktop software, we look forward to introducing Citavi and accelerating our growth in new markets both as a standalone reference management tool as well as a complement to NVivo."

The synergies between QSR International and Citavi extend beyond just the companies' formidable research tools, however.

"We see this as a powerful next step toward forging a truly global research community by combining NVivo's extensive network of users with Citavi's user base concentrated in Germany, Switzerland and across Europe," Astle said. "With researchers increasingly working remotely in recent times, we believe it is important to double down on our commitment to supporting the research community by creating an expanded virtual forum where members can learn, grow, contribute and collaborate to drive best practice in research."

Free trials of both NVivo and Citavi are available online at www.qsrinternational.com and www.citavi.com, respectively.

About QSR International

QSR International offers solutions that support the innovators and problem-solvers of today and the leaders of tomorrow. With a decades-long history of supporting those who uncover rich insights to address large-scale problems with NVivo, as well a commitment to preparing students for a rapidly changing world with Sonia, QSR offers a portfolio of technology solutions that empower real world change.

Headquartered in the United States, QSR International also maintains offices in Australia and throughout Europe. Learn more at www.qsrinternational.com

About Swiss Academic Software

Swiss Academic Software is a Switzerland-based software company. Its flagship product Citavi combines reference management and knowledge organization. With Citavi you can search resources from around the world, create tasks, analyze texts, save quotations and ideas, create outlines for drafts, and write reports, articles, or books faster and more efficiently than you ever thought possible.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005148/en/

Contacts:

Media Contact

Zoe Gaylard

Head of Marketing

QSR International

+1 617-607-5111

z.gaylard@qsrinternational.com

For more information on NVivo:

www.qsrinternational.com/nvivo
The founder of a racial equality charity has been dropped from her role at Leeds Beckett University after the charity's Twitter account sent a vile racist slur at a black Tory commentator.

Aysha Khanom, founder of The Race Trust and an RE teacher at Manchester Academy School, was let go from her role as adviser to the university after a post from her charity's Twitter account branded mixed-race political pundit Calvin Robinson, who is of Afro-Caribbean descent, a 'house n***o'.

Mr Robinson, who works as a political advisor and commentator, had appeared on BBC's The Big Questions to discuss race and racism in the UK before a furious row broke out.

Following the heated discussion, a tweet appeared from The Race Trust's account directed at the pundit which read: 'Calvin Robinson does it not shame you that most people see you as a house n***o?'

Aysha Khanom, an Religious Education teacher at Manchester Academy who founded the The Race Trust and worked as an advisor to Leeds Beckett University

The Race Trust faced a furious backlash after the post which branded the mixed-race political pundit, who is of Afro-Caribbean descent, a 'n***o'

Speaking on Sunday's programme, Mr Robinson explained how he personally had seen a rise in racist attacks this year from some people who considered his Black identity to be incompatible with his Conservative views.

He said: 'There has been increasing racism this year, I personally have experienced more racism this year than I have in my entire adult life.

'That's because of Black Lives Matter and critical race theory being pushed. This idea that there's an appropriate way to be black.

'For example I have been called bounty, uncle Tom, house n***o for not having the right opinion.'

Following his appearance on BBC's The Big Questions Ms Khanom tweeted from her personal account: 'Calvin Robinson and Kehinde Andrews on BBC big question this morning. Please somebody deal with this man!'

Conservative political advisor and commentator Calvin Robinson, who was branded a 'house n***o' by a racial equality charity who tweeted the racial slur at him

A spokesperson for Leeds Beckett University said: 'we have terminated all association [with Aysha Khanom] with immediate effect'

Several social media users accused Ms Khanom of sending the 'house n***o' tweet from The Race Trust's twitter account herself.

However, The Race Trust denies that its founder sent the tweet from the account, the Twitter account has since been deleted.

A spokesperson for The Race Trust said: 'We have investigated the tweet and subsequently the employee who sent out the tweet is no longer part of our organisation. We accept this was an ill informed tweet and have taken the appropriate steps to deal with it hence the delay in our response.

'The tweet was deleted when it came to our attention and therefore has been removed and the account has been temporarily removed.

'This was not posted by Aysha Khanom or the current employees and we do not share the same view as the one post. We have apologised as has Aysha Khanom.'

Ms Khanom tweeted from her personal account, which has since been deleted. Writing 'somebody deal with this man!'

Mr Robinson told the MailOnline today: 'I'm not in favour of cancel culture, but I do think what Aysha and the Race Trust said was wrong.

'It worries me, what is she teaching in schools and universities under the banner of 'racial equity'.

'I'm all about forgiveness, but I haven't seen any remorse from Aysha or the Race Trust.

'It's hurtful, but I'm glad these divisive ideas are being exposed for what they are: bigoted.'

Social media users flocked to the young activist's defence following the tweet.

One person wrote: 'That is a disgusting tweet. As Calvin said on TV yesterday.

Mr Robinson explained how he personally had seen a rise in vile racist attacks this year from some people who considered his Black identity to be incompatible with Conservative views

(left to right) Calvin Robinson with Michael Gove, Nicky Morgan and Justine Greening

'He experienced more racism and hatred in the last year than he has all his life. These people are trying to divide not unite!!'

Another added: 'Shocking behaviour. Truly despicable.'

One social media user wrote: 'This insult actually makes my stomach flip. I could weep, I really could.'

The Race Trust vows to 'change the language and understanding of the social construct of race', its website claims: 'We only believe there is only one Human Race.'

Twitter users hit back at the tweet from The Race Trust, writing 'This insult actually makes my stomach flip'

The Trust's 'mission' section adds: 'We hope to facilitate and aid schools and organisations in increasing racial literacy of staff and students.

'We hope to provide young people with the confidence to achieve their potential in the comfort of their own skin.'

Responding to the slur, Mr Robinson said: 'There seem to be elements in our society that want to divide us.

'It's sad because in this country people have equal opportunities, we can become anything we wish if we work hard and focus.

A spokesperson for The Race Trust said: 'We have investigated the tweet and subsequently the employee who sent out the tweet is no longer part of our organisation.'

The about page of The Race Trust's website reads: 'We believe there is only one Race, the Human Race'

'It's very telling that every time I share a message of unity, these divisive forces attack me for it. Every time I say we're stronger together, they try harder to split us up.'

A spokesperson for Leeds Beckett University stressed that Ms Khanom has never been employed by them.

The spokesperson said: 'Aysha Khanom is not an employee of Leeds Beckett University and we have terminated all association with immediate effect.

'The university strongly condemns the use of racist language.

'We stand united against racism and in our support for anyone who experiences racism.'

New Delhi:

JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar became the chief minister of Bihar for the sixth time as he jilted an uncomfortable ally in the RJD and joined hands again with the BJP after four years, yet again demonstrating his political manoeuvrability.

Often referred to as the Chanakya of Bihar politics, Kumar, 66, quit as the CM of the politically crucial state last evening and readily accepted BJP's support to continue in power, a move that could have a bearing on the 2019 Lok Sabha polls as it is seen as a major setback for efforts to forge opposition unity to stop the BJP juggernaut.

Kumar led the 'Mahagathbandhan' (Grand Alliance) that comprised his JD(U), the RJD and the Congress to a stunning victory few thought possible after being bruised and bloodied in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Kumar, who first became the chief minister on November 24, 2005, was sworn in for a fifth term on November 20, 2015.

Read more: Nitish Kumar sworn as Bihar CM, Sushil Modi his deputy

But the uneasy alliance lasted for barely two years with corruption allegation against the kin of RJD chief Lalu Prasad proving to be the last straw.

The going was never easy for Kumar as the RJD lost no opportunity to press that it was the major partner in the alliance.

For the cool, suave and workaholic Nitish, he knew his association with 69-year-old Prasad, whom he called his 'Bade Bhai', would be the main point the BJP-led opposition could always score off, but he countered it with an answer to anything and everything thrown at him.

Soft-spoken, sharp and articulate, Kumar, who speaks in a measured tone, had an answer ready with a subtle fact that he himself "had been with the BJP but never been coloured, and in any case Lalu is and remains a socialist."

Persuasive, sometimes adamant, Kumar is known to carry strong likes and dislikes and never forgets a slight -- a trait for which Prasad described him as having 'aant mein daant' (teeth in his belly).

Working with his new tactician Prashant Kishor, a key strategist for the BJP in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Kumar worked a carefully crafted soft campaign template for Bihar in the 2015 Assembly elections.

He invoked only his work, the potential of the next government with him, the slights to Bihar and his own self, strident appeals to Bihar's 'Asmita' (pride) and speaking for himself as the lone Bihari against the 'Bahari' (outsider), a veiled reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Even Sushil Kumar Modi, the tallest BJP leader from Bihar and once his deputy and friend, acknowledges Kumar to be avisionary who changed Bihar.

Read more: Match fixed between BJP and Nitish, says Lalu | 10 top quotes

His breakaway from the BJP in June 2013 stunned the nation, as did his resignation from the chief minister's post after the JD(U)'s massive Lok Sabha defeat in May 2014 and elevation of his protegee Jitan Ram Manjhi as chief minister and then pulling the latter down to assume power again in February 2015 for a fourth term.

Kumar is also widely known as the 'Sushashan Babu' (Good governance man) and 'Vikas Purush', whom even critics credit with turning Bihar around.

Following the age-old proverb enemy's enemy is friend, the JD(U) leader whose party won just two of the state's 40 seats in the Lok Sabha poll, joined hands with Prasad to halt bete noire Narendra Modi's juggernaut in Bihar in the 2015 Assembly polls.

Prasad and Nitish, friend-turned-foe in state politics, sank their differences to revive an alliance that began over 40 years ago with the students' agitation, which soon turned into a pan-India movement led by veteran socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan.

Though Prasad got lucky in his very first outing in the electoral arena, winning Lok Sabha poll in 1977, it took Kumar, an electrical engineer from NIT Patna, then known as Bihar College of Engineering, eight more years to get elected to the state Assembly for the first time in 1985, after having lost twice.

Though as different as chalk and cheese, Kumar backed Prasad in bagging the chair of the Leader of Opposition in the assembly in 1989 and again when he challenged Ram Sundar Dasand Raghunath Jha, nominees of Prime Minister V P Singh and Chandra Shekhar respectively, for the chief minister's post after Janata Dal came to power in Bihar in 1990.

Kumar, who won the 1989 Lok Sabha polls from Barh, shifted his focus to Delhi, getting elected to the lower house in 1991, 1996, 1998 and 1999.

He became Minister of State for Agriculture in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government and then briefly the Railway Minister in 1999. He resigned after the train tragedy at Gaisal in West Bengal in 1999 in which nearly 300 people were killed.

Kumar again became Railway Minister in 2001 and continued till 2004 during which he was credited with introducing several reforms in the public sector behemoth like Internet ticket booking and Tatkal system of instant booking.

The Godhra train burning incident in February 2002, which provided the spark that led to communal riots in Gujarat, occurred during his tenure at Rail Bhavan.

The JD(U) stalwart reworked his social engineering strategy and made a rainbow coalition of OBCs, EBCs, Mahadalits and minorities that helped him sweep Bihar in November 2005 elections, thereby uprooting 15 years of uninterrupted Lalu-Rabri rule.

Bihar became a completely 'dry state' last year banning sale and consumption of all kinds of liquor in a move seen as fulfillment of a poll promise to women by Kumar.

Read more: Rahul Gandhi attacks Nitish, says he was aware about his plans

Kumar's passionate pitch for prohibition citing the adverse affects of domestic violence and broken families besides economic and health costs had earned overwhelming support from women for the ruling JD(U) in the 2015 Assembly polls. He reiterated his commitment while announcing the ban.

Kumar's backing to BJP presidential candidate and former Bihar Governor R N Kovind by breaking ranks with the opposition and his support of the Modi government's demonetisation drive had triggered speculation that he was warming up to the saffron party.

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
Yet another snowstorm is expected to slam New Jersey with up to 12 inches of snow in some parts of the state on Thursday before clearing out on Friday.

The forecast is prompting schools across New Jersey to call for a snow day or switch to a virtual learning day. Many school districts are already operating on virtual learning plans or a hybrid of in-person and online classes due to the coronavirus outbreak and some have elected to continue with virtual classes.

Heres a list of schools that have made announcements related to weather in the county. It will be updated as additional announcements are made:

SCHEDULE CHANGES:

Andover Regional: all-remote

Frankford: all-remote

Franklin Borough: all-remote

Green Township: all-remote

Hamburg: all-remote

Hampton Township: all-remote

High Point Regional: all-remote

Kittatinny Regional: all-remote

Lenape Valley Regional: all-remote with 2-hour delay

Newton: all-remote

Ogdensburg: all-remote, early dismissal

Sparta: all-remote

Stanhope: all-remote

Stillwater: all-remote

Vernon: all-remote

CLOSURES
Denton, TX (76205)

Today

Cloudy in the morning, then thunderstorms developing later in the day. High 79F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Thunderstorms. Potential for heavy rainfall. Low 66F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. 1 to 2 inches of rain expected.
(CNN)  COVID-19 variants are threatening to cause another surge of infections, health officials warned Wednesday, and it's now more important than ever for Americans to continue practicing safety measures that work against the spread of the virus.

"The continued spread of variants that are more transmissible could jeopardize the progress we have made in the last month if we let our guard down," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during a White House briefing.

But by lowering cases, the US will give "fewer opportunities for the variants to spread and fewer opportunities for new variants to emerge," she added.

It's a warning that's been repeated by multiple experts recently as the country's tally of variant cases keeps climbing while more state leaders are opting to loosen Covid-19 restrictions.

Among the most concerning strains is the highly contagious B.1.1.7 variant, first identified in the UK, that the CDC has previously warned could become "the predominant variant in March." The agency has reported more than 1,270 cases of the variant across 41 states and Washington, DC.

But the US has two powerful tools that can help against its spread and move the country further out of the pandemic's tunnel, Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN on Wednesday night.

"The two ways that we can counter that is one, continue to do the kinds of public health interventions that we talk about all the time," he said.

That includes the universal wearing of masks, social distancing, staying away from crowded areas and regular hand washing.

"But also, as the weeks and months go by, as you vaccinate more and more people, you have a vaccine that works against this variant," Fauci added. "So if we roll out the vaccine ... and get as many people vaccinated as quickly as we possibly can while we maintain the public health measures, we should be in good stead."

It won't be easy, he cautioned, because of the variant's transmissibility -- which is why "we have to act quickly on that," Fauci said.

And lab studies offered more encouraging news this week, suggesting the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines can protect against Covid-19 variants.

When the general public will get a shot

But while the country continues to grapple with vaccination challenges -- including the frigid weather that has slowed deliveries this week -- many Americans who aren't currently in priority groups are wondering when they'll get their shots.

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden said 600 million COVID-19 vaccine doses would be available to the country by the end of July, "enough to vaccinate every single American." His promise echoes earlier announcements that the US was on track to have enough vaccines for 300 million Americans by the end of July.

But actually vaccinating all those people will likely take longer.

"(The vaccines will) be available in July," Fauci told CNN. "It may take an additional couple of months actually, maybe toward the end of the summer, to get everybody vaccinated."

Just how long it will take will depend on "the efficiency with which you get doses into people's arms," he added.

US and state leaders have in the meantime worked to boost their vaccination numbers and increase efficiency -- by measures like adding more vaccinators to their rosters, launching vaccine events, opening mass vaccination sites and creating partnerships with companies and pharmacies.

On Wednesday, Kroger announced its health care division, Kroger Health, has administered more than 380,000 COVID-19 vaccines across 25 states to groups including essential health care workers, elderly populations and educators.

About 1,300 Kroger Health pharmacies are receiving and administering shots, the release said, and once all 2,200 pharmacies begin getting vaccine doses, they will be able to administer nearly 500,000 vaccinations every week.

Kroger Health also announced a new scheduling tool for vaccinations, which can manage "more than 250,000 requests daily" and will allow people to check vaccine eligibility.

Here's how many people have been vaccinated

So far, according to CDC data, more than 40 million Americans have received at least their first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine. Both of the vaccines that have so far received a green light for the US market -- Pfizer and Moderna -- require two doses.

More than 15.4 million people have been fully vaccinated, CDC data shows. That's roughly 4.6% of the US population.

Between 75% to 85% of the US population would need to be vaccinated for the country to reach herd immunity, Fauci said, adding the percentages are "purely an estimate."

"You don't know what herd immunity really is until you reach a certain level and then when you get below it, then you start getting infections for the community," Fauci said. "We know exactly what it is for measles, we don't know what it is yet for (COVID-19). But I imagine it's somewhere between 75 to 85%."

Fauci also said he hopes that by the time vaccine doses become widely available for the American public, enough people will get in line to get a shot in order for the country to be able to reach the herd immunity percentages.

"That's the reason why we're putting a big push on getting out and extending ourselves into the community, particularly the minority community, to address what some people (would) refer to as vaccine hesitancy," Fauci said.

CDC director warns against travel

Meanwhile, amid the repeated warnings for Americans to continue taking safety measures, the CDC director also urged the American public to avoid travel, even domestically.

"Don't travel," Walensky said during a JAMA livestream Wednesday, highlighting the advice is especially important because of the circulation of variants. "We really, really would advocate for not traveling right now."

Walensky was asked about whether there would be any guidance or recommendations from the CDC on Covid-19 testing prior to domestic flights.

"We don't have the tests now to make that really easy and possible ... for people who are trying to travel," she said. "You shouldn't be traveling anyway."

She said the agency is asking people to abide by traveling guidelines like quarantining and testing afterward as variants circulate and the country works to scale up its testing capacity.

But the US has instead recently seen some of its busiest air travel days since the holidays.

The TSA reported it screened more than 967,000 people at airports on Monday and a further 738,000 people on Tuesday.

"If you choose to travel, please wear a mask," TSA spokesperson Lisa Farbstein reminded travelers in a tweet.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "COVID-19 variants could fuel another surge. Fauci says we have two powerful tools against them."
PM warns vaccine critics

THAILAND: Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday (Feb 17) warned critics of the governments vaccination programme that they would be held responsible if their comments affected the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines.

CoronavirusCOVID-19drugshealth

By Bangkok Post

Thursday 18 February 2021, 08:51AM

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha counters opposition criticism on the second day of the censure debate, which touched on the governments COVID record, arms procurement schemes and the closure of a goldmine in Phichit. Photo: Chanat Katanyu.

Gen Prayut hit back at an MP from the opposition Move Forward Party (MFP) who had questioned the governments delivery of the vaccine, saying the issue should not be politicised.

He said: I am concerned that comments on the vaccines will cause problems. I dont want it to be politicised. You have to be careful. If we cannot get what has been agreed upon because of this, you must accept responsibility.

He said the government was trying to solve the economic problems caused by the pandemic and fully appreciated the extent of peoples suffering.

This is because we have [real] information. We do not surf on social media alone, said Gen Prayut. Having power does not mean I can issue any orders [I like]. But I have to listen to doctors and make sure vaccines arrive as soon as possible. I dont want any delay.

However, I insist Thailand has done a better job of controlling COVID-19 than several other countries, and were still trying to do even better.

The premier said he had received information that as many as 80% of Thais wanted to be vaccinated while 10% had doubts and the rest were against it. The vaccines will gradually arrive and the situation will improve when Thailand can produce its own COVID-19 vaccines, Gen Prayut said, stressing those most in need would get the first jabs.

He also welcomed news that the first locally made vaccine would enter its first phase of human trials on March 1 and involve 210 participants. The second trial is due to begin by April on 250 participants and the final trial is expected to begin by the end of this year.

The Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) has been working on the project with its international partners, including the global Programme for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York. Together they have developed a pilot NDV-HXP-S vaccine and lab tests have been showing promising results.

The GPO and Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University are now working to prepare the pilot vaccine for the human trial, raising hopes the country will soon be able to produce its COVID-19 vaccine at a rate of 25-30 million doses per year, Gen Prayut said.

During yesterdays no-confidence debate, Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn, an MFP list MP, criticised Gen Prayut, Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul for being slow to procure vaccines.

He also questioned the governments over-reliance on one company. According to an estimate from the government, if the vaccine rollout is too slow by one month, the economic losses will amount to about B250 billion a month, Mr Wiroj said.

Therefore, each day the government delays its rollout, the country will lose B8.3bn, or B347 million per hour.

The vaccination is not only about preventing the outbreak - its importance also lies in ensuring a faster economic recovery and easing the plight of Thais nationwide.

Thailand has lagged behind many other countries in the region which have already started vaccinating, Mr Wiroj said. He also asked why the government had not bought vaccines from Chinese company Sinopharm which used the same technology as another Chinese company, Sinovac.

Sinopharms vaccine was registered for general use on Dec 31 last year and its efficacy in third-phase human trials were as high as 79.34%, Mr Wiroj said, adding Sinovacs vaccines had not even produced results from third-phase human trials.

Mr Wiroj also criticised the government for not joining the World Health Organisations Covax vaccine programme, pointing out many wealthy countries had joined the programme, including Canada, Australia, Norway and many members of the European Union.

On Sunday, government spokesman Anucha Buraphachaisri responded to reports that Thailand was the only Southeast Asian country to skip the WHOs Covax scheme, saying that as a middle-income country it was not eligible for free or cheap vaccines.

If Thailand wanted to join the Covax programme, it would have to pay full price for vaccines and that carried the further risk of the country having to pay in advance without knowing the source of the vaccines or their delivery dates.

Thailand decided against joining the programme to pursue its own deals because the government is not allowed to spend money on vaccines which have not been proven to be effective.
Comedian Sylvester Sil Fox has sued the Director of Public Prosecutions and the State for damages over a decision to prosecute him for sexual assault.

The 87-year-old was cleared of the allegation last year after a judge found the complaint was contradicted by CCTV.

Mr Fox has now initiated proceedings in the High Court claiming the prosecution was taken without reasonable or probable cause.

The DPP should have seen from the footage I was innocent but they put me into court and ruined my life, he told the Irish Independent.

It was very wrong what the DPP did to me. I knew I had done nothing wrong and yet I was dragged before the courts for almost a year.

Why did they put an 86-year-old man through that? Covid was rampant at the time and I still had to go to court. It was in all the papers. I lost a lot of friends and lost a lot of work.

In the proceedings the veteran entertainer has claimed his constitutional right to a good name was breached and that he suffered serious reputational damage. I am taking this case because I dont want to see another innocent person having to go through what I did, he said.

Mr Foxs lawsuit could lead to scrutiny of decision-making in the Office of the DPP.

Civil actions against the DPP following an acquittal are extremely rare.

Suing for defamation is not possible as the DPP is entitled to absolute privilege in the course of a prosecution.

Similarly, a complaint of malicious prosecution would be unsustainable unless there is evidence of malice.

Instead Mr Foxs claim is based upon on his constitutional rights to liberty, privacy and his good name.

He also claims to have been damaged by reckless infliction of emotional distress as a result of the commencement and maintenance of the prosecution.

Mr Fox was prosecuted at Dublin District Court last year after a woman claimed he put his hand on her groin and tickled her vagina for 30 seconds while she was having her photo taken with him in a pub on December 17, 2018.

The charges were thrown out after a judge viewed CCTV and concluded there was no indication anything untoward occurred.

In a plenary summons his lawyers said the comedian suffered serious reputational damages arising from false allegations, in circumstances where any reasonable consideration or review of the CCTV evidence would militate against a prosecution.

The proceedings were initiated on Wednesday against the DPP, the Garda Commissioner, the Minister for Justice and the Attorney General.

Mr Fox is being represented by Belfast law firm KRW Law.

Partner Kevin Winters told the Irish Independent that, in response to pre-action letters, the defendants had denied the allegations. We have now issued a plenary summons in the High Court to take the case forward, he said.

During the trial, the District Court heard Mr Fox, from Templeogue in Dublin, was asked to pose for a photo with a middle-aged woman who was on a Christmas night out with friends at Harrys On The Green in Dublin city centre.

The woman claimed that as her friend took the photo Mr Fox put his hand on to her lap and groin and that he tickled her vagina. She claimed she was stunned and confronted him later, but he responded that she was being ridiculous.

After CCTV was shown to her, the woman accepted it took three seconds to take the photograph and not 30 as she had claimed. The trial heard that her friends at the table did not see what she alleged.

After reviewing CCTV footage and having given careful consideration to the womans evidence, Judge Paula Murphy said a jury properly directed could not convict on the evidence before the court.

The conflict between the evidence of the complainant and the CCTV was a significant issue, Judge Murphy said.

The woman had accepted the footage showed Mr Foxs hand on the table the entire time it took for the photo to be taken. Despite this she still maintained he had sexually assaulted her.

In the footage, there is no indication something untoward occurred, the judge said.
In his new role, Bennett will oversee the site design, installation and construction of Volta's charging stations, as well as manage supply chain and field operations. He primarily will focus on the continued growth and quality of the company's extensive EV charging network in the United States.

Bennett brings more than a decade of experience working in various EV, clean energy, and climate-related capacities. While at Tesla, he managed daily operations of the company's global charging business, including customer experience, product launches and product innovation workflows. He was responsible for customer revenue, product functionality, energy supply contracts and construction streamlining.

"Drew is one of the rare individuals who has done an exceptional job of shepherding a charging network from nascency to maturity," said Scott Mercer, Founder and CEO of Volta. "His talent and proven track record will be tremendous assets in our mission to deliver a re-imagined fueling infrastructure."

Unique to the EV market, Volta's business model centers around evolving spending habits caused by the move to electric vehicles by building a charging infrastructure that reinforces desired behaviors at each location. Volta's charging stations feature large eye-catching digital displays that function as a sophisticated media network, providing brands a way to reach millions of shoppers moments before they enter a store. These sponsor-supported charging stations provide energy to customers who are able to plug in their vehicles where and when they shop. Volta's business partners who choose to have Volta charging stations installed report an increase in spend, dwell time and engagement on site. Currently located in 23 states and over 200 municipalities, Volta's approach has gained significant acceptance and penetration in the market.

"Every day, more U.S. consumers recognize the EV revolution is at hand," said Bennett. "I believe Volta's model is unique, providing a closer and more valuable interaction between consumers and the businesses that host charging stations. I couldn't be more excited to put my experience to work to help take Volta to its next stage of growth."

Prior to Tesla, Bennett worked as a regulatory analyst for customer-facing energy efficiency and renewables programs at Xcel Energy and in various roles at the Izaak Walton League of America and the Natural Resources Defense Council. Accustomed to evolutions in policy and consumer preference, he specializes in balancing optimization with continuous change management and innovation.

About Volta

For over a decade, Volta has been building a nationwide electric vehicle charging network to drive the world forward. Named after Alessandro Volta, the inventor of the electric battery, Volta's award-winning charging stations benefit brands, consumers, and real-estate locations by providing valuable advertising space to businesses and free charging to drivers. Strategically located in places where consumers already spend their time and money, Volta's chargers are among the most used electric vehicle charging stations in the United States. Headquartered in San Francisco, Volta is bringing to communities the means of building a sustainable fueling network for the 21st century. To learn more, visit www.voltacharging.com .

SOURCE Volta

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Voters are set to have to show photographic ID in order to vote at polling stations from 2023 in a bid to crack down on fraud.

The new plans will be set out in a new Electoral Integrity Bill which will be announced in the Queen's speech in spring in a bid to get rid of electoral fraud.

Library cards, driving licences and passports will be accepted under the new system, differing from now when voters simply state their name and address.

Those without a form of photographic ID will have to get in touch with their local council who will provide them with a free document allowing them to vote.

Voters are set to have to show photographic ID in order to vote at polling stations from 2023 in a bid to crack down on fraud

An estimated 3.5million voters may not have photo ID in the UK.

And critics argue that it will disproportionately negatively affect marginal groups such as ethnic minorities.

Voter rights group, the Electoral Reform Society, has called the new plans a 'dangerous plan to deny people the vote.'

Labour's shadow minister for democracy, Cat Smith, told The Sun: 'It doesn't matter how the Government dresses it up, these plans will make it harder for working class, older and black people to vote. Giving people a say at the ballot box helps make our democratic country what it is, and we must not do anything to undermine that.'

The new plans will be set out in a new Electoral Integrity Bill which will be announced in the Queen's speech in spring in a bid to get rid of electoral fraud

In 2019 there were just 34 allegations of voter fraud out of 58million votes. And of them one led to a conviction and another to a caution.

Photo ID has been required in Northern Ireland since 2003.

A Cabinet Office spokeswoman told The Telegraph: 'We will be introducing new measures, as part of the Government's manifesto commitment, to prevent the potential for voter fraud in our electoral system.

'This will further strengthen the integrity of UK elections and will include ID checks at the polling station and rules that prevent abuse of postal and proxy votes.'
[February 18, 2021] Lleida.net hires Bondo Advisors for the international search of potential inorganic growth targets

MADRID, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Spanish traded company Lleida.net (BME: LLN) (OTCQX: LLEIF) (EPA: ALLLN) has hired Bondo Advisors to identify and negotiate potential acquisitions of companies that could add value to its inorganic growth plans. One of Lleida.net's key strategies for the coming years contemplates the possible purchase of companies, worldwide, that could fit within its business model. The company, which has a capital of more than ninety million euros and 100 employees, is one of the European leaders in the certified electronic notification, contracting and signature industry. "In addition to focusing on internationalisation and intellectual property, we are open to the possibility of acquiring companies that fit our business model, are attractive to the market, and add value to the industry," explained Sisco Sapena, who founded the company in 1995. Bondo Advisors is an M&A advisory firm that focuses on mergers and acquisitions in the technology, Internet and media sectors. It is led by Joshua Novick, Fernando Garate, Pablo Perez Garcia-Villoslada and Jesu Mera.



"Certified electronic contracting, signature and notification services are experiencing strong demand, a growing trend that is set to continue over the next few years. At Bondo Advisors, we are excited to accompany Lleida.net, a reference and leader in this market, in the consolidation of this sector", explained Pablo Perez Garcia-Villoslada, founder and director of the boutique. Lleida.net is listed in Spain, France and the United States.

The company went public on BME Growth (the former MAB) in 2015. Subsequently, in 2018, it was listed on Euronext Growth in Paris. At the end of 2020, it was listed on the OTCQX Best Market segment in New York. Last year, the company's shares increased in value by 940 per cent in one of the biggest rises in the European stock market. Yesterday, the company announced that it has passed the 3,000 shareholder mark, according to official market data. It holds more than 200 patents in e-recruitment and e-notification, granted by more than 50 countries on five continents, and its intellectual property portfolio is one of the largest in the industry worldwide. Today, more than 75 countries recognise the legal validity of its electronic methods as a means of certifying legal notices in procurement processes Contact: The Paloma Project, Media

rpl@thepalomaproject.com

+356 7946 7486

https://Lleida.net View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lleidanet-hires-bondo-advisors-for-the-international-search-of-potential-inorganic-growth-targets-301230742.html SOURCE Lleida.net

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New Delhi:

Thousands of shikshamitras and police officials suffered injuries after a scuffle broke between the security forces and protesters at Uttar Pradeshs Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath home-constituency Gorakhpur on Thursday.

Shikshamitras numbering in thousands had gathered at Panth Park in Gorakhnath University to protest the July 25 Supreme Court verdict declaring appointment of 1,38,000 shikshamitras out of 1,72,000 as assistant teachers as illegitimate.

The protesters in large numbers raised anti-slogans against BJP, Yogi and the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Police resorted to lathi-charge only after the shikshamitras pelted stone and started creating ruckus on the city roads, damaging government and public properties, said Rajeev Rautela, Gorakhpur District Magistrate to the media.

Senior police officials present at the university campus tried to negotiate with the protesters not to take the roads.

The protest turned violent after the protesting shikshamitras took the roads to march towards the Gorakhnath Mutt  a temple of the Nath monastic group in the Nath tradition.

The protest turned violent after the police tried to stop the protesters advancing towards the Gorakhnath Mutt. The police resorted to lathi-charge after the protesters forced themselves over the barricades and pelted stones at police personnel on duty.

All roads moving towards Gorakhnath Mutt were barricaded by the security force. A large number of security forces dodged the police and managed to reach the mutt. At the same time a large number of protesters sat at dharna at Dharmsala Bazaar, which led to huge traffic jam in the city. To disperse the protester and normalise situation police resorted to firing water-canon.

Police said more than hundreds of shikshamitras have been arrested. While, the Shiksamitras claimed that they were peacefully protesting and marching to the Gorakhnath Mutt when security forces resorted to lathi-charge. They also claimed that more than 100 of shikshamitras including women have suffered serious injuries due to the police lathi-charge.

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Victoria is on high alert after coronavirus fragments have been detected in sewage in areas where there have been no active cases - sparking concerns the virus might have spread undetected.

The virus fragments have been found in wastewater in suburbs in south-east Melbourne, health authorities warned on Friday.

Testing of samples from Wantirna South and Boronia on February 15 and Carrum Downs, Langwarrin, St Kilda, Caulfield and Caulfield North on February 16.

Health workers assist quarantining guests as they leave the Holiday Inn on Flinders Street in Melbourne on February 16 (pictured) after a water leak

People exercising at South Melbourne Beach (pictured above) on the last day of a 'short and sharp' lockdown on Wednesday

Classes resumed in Victoria on Thursday (pictured) after a strict five-day lockdown was lifted

Currently the only active cases are in Melbourne's western suburbs along with one case in Greater Dandenong - with authorities concerned about how the virus has made its way to the southeast of the city.

The Department of Health said the wastewater samples contained 'weak detections' of the virus.

The discovery coincides with three new virus cases being found in Victoria on Friday after 21,292 tests were processed on Thursday.

The state's number of active cases has grown to 27.

Victoria recorded no locally-acquired infections on Wednesday as residents were freed from a brutal Stage Four lockdown.

People return to the Melbourne CBD on Thursday after a five-day lockdown ordered by Premier Daniel Andrews lifted

SUBURBS AFFECTED People who live in the following suburbs or who have visited on these days and have any symptoms should immediately get tested: Wantirna South or Boronia from February 13 to 15, including parts of Bayswater, Ferntree Gully, Knoxfield and Tremont; Carrum Downs or Langwarrin from February 13 to 16, including parts of Skye; St Kilda East or Caulfield North from February 13 to 16, including parts of Balaclava, Caulfield and Elsternwick. Advertisement

The stay-at-home order, only allowing people to leave home for essential work, shopping, care and exercise, was repealed along with the 5km travel rule.

Face masks are still mandatory indoor and outdoors if social distancing cannot be followed, and Victorians will only be allowed to have five guests in their houses.

Shops, bars, pubs and restaurants can also reopen on Thursday and 20 people can gather outside.

Premier Daniel Andrews said on Wednesday he was able to lift the 'short, sharp circuit breaker' lockdown thanks to the low infection numbers - but some rules must stay.

The health department has expanded their wastewater testing program recently to include 37 new sites in the past week.

'Fragments of the virus detected in wastewater may be due to a person with COVID-19 being in the early active infectious phase or it could be because someone is continuing to shed the virus after the early infectious period,' the health department said.

People were spotted not wearing masks in Melbourne's CBD (pictured above) on Wednesday
New Delhi:

The students of JNU must take an oath of protecting the shine of Indias pride and nationality, a BJP MP said on Thursday while supporting a demand by the Vice Chancellor to install a battle tank inside the campus.

Meenakshi Lekhi, raising the issue during zero hour in the Lok Sabha, also criticised attempts to create a controversy following the call by the Jawaharlal Nehru University vice chancellor Jagadesh Kumar to install the tank.

She said anti-India slogans like India will be broken were raised inside the campus and such activities cannot be allowed to continue.

It is very unfortunate. A controversy is being created following the vice chancellors views. The JNU is run by tax-payers money. Anti-India slogans were raised inside the campus. It is an insult of those protecting the border, Lekhi said.

The BJP MP from Delhi said the JNU students should take an oath that they will protect the countrys pride and nationality.

Justifying the JNU vice chancellors demand, she said replica of aircraft were installed at various places including schools and students find them very interesting.

There was an aircraft in my sons school. It was encouraging for the students. There is nothing wrong in the VCs demand, she said.

On July 16, while participating in an event at the JNU to celebrate the Kargil Vijay Divas, requested minister of state for external affairs V K Singh to install a tank inside the campus.

The JNU VCs demand drew widespread criticism from a number of political parties as well as some students of the university.

During the zero hour, YSR Congress MP Renuka Butta demanded intervention by the central government in probing the drug racket busted recently in Hyderabad.

She alleged that a number of high-profile people may have been involved in the racket and there must be thorough investigation into it.

She said children and youth were being dragged into the racket and added that drugs can even be ordered online.

It is a very serious problem, she said.

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Guwahati, Feb 19 : Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said here on on Thursday that the Central government is willing to talk to the farmers protesting against the three farm laws, and denied any link between BJPs loss in the Punjab civic polls and the farmers' protest over the farm legislations.

Tomar, who is also BJP's election in-charge for poll-bound Assam, reiterated that the government has always called for clause by clause discussions with the farmers on the three Central farm laws.

"For several years, we have fought elections in Punjab in alliance with the Shiromani Akali Dal. But in the recent municipal polls, both the BJP and the Akali Dal fought separately. This has no link with the ongoing farmers' protests," Tomar told the media.

The minister added that the recent Union Budget has proposed a number of schemes for the welfare of the farming community.

With Assam going to the polls in April-May this year, the Congress and other anti-BJP parties are all set to make the farmers' agitation a poll issue.

Tomar said that there is pro-incumbency in favour of the ruling BJP in Assam and the party is all set to come back to power with a thumping majority.

"BJP would attain its target of 100 plus seats in the Assembly polls. In the last five years, the people of Assam have witnessed a positive change. Before 2016, there was hardly any development in the state. Corruption was at its peak and there was no law and order when the Congress was at the helm of affairs," the BJP leader said.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text

SELBYVILLE, Del., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the latest report "Steam Autoclaves Market by Product (Table Top, Vertical, Horizontal, Floor Standing, High Pressure), Technology (Gravity Displacement, Pre-vacuum, Steam Flush), Application (Medical, Dental, Laboratory), End-use (Hospitals, Clinics, Healthcare Companies, Research and Academic Institutions), Regional Outlook, Price Trends, Competitive Market Share & Forecast 2027", by Global Market Insights, Inc., the market valuation of steam autoclaves will cross $4.1 billion by 2027.

Major steam autoclaves market players include STERISHRED, Astell Scientific, Belimed Deutschland GmbH, BMM Weston Ltd., CELITRON Medical Technologies, Consolidated Sterilizer Systems, Dental X, Getinge Infection Control AB and LTE Scientific Ltd.

Growing adoption of the Central Sterile Supply Department (CSSD) in the healthcare establishment of emerging economies will spur market growth. The Central Sterile Supply Department is involved in receiving, processing, storing, controlling and distributing the professional non-sterile and sterile equipment and supplies for all units of the hospital in order to provide the safety and care of patients under strict quality control. Exponential increasing hospital-acquired infections (HAI) in hospitals has identified the importance of CSSD. Thus, hospitals are establishing an adequate set-up of CSSD and strict quality control processes with the latest technology to combat HAIs. In addition, Europe has witnessed a reduction in the post-surgical purulent complications' incidences post CSSD arrangements. Therefore, these factors are potentially augmenting the demand for steam autoclaves.

Request for a sample of this research report at https://www.gminsights.com/request-sample/detail/500

The floor standing product segment in the steam autoclaves market is anticipated to expand at a 10.2% growth rate till 2027, led by the size and power suitable for conducting the sterilization process and ease of operation. Floor standing autoclaves are economical and compact for usage in pharmaceuticals and laboratories. These autoclaves also offer a wide range of options required in the sterilization process. Thus, the demand for floor standing autoclaves is increasing at a rapid pace.

The steam flush segment accounted for more than USD 504 million in 2020, impelled by the dynamic air removal during while sterilization. Steam flush autoclaving is majorly preferred because it is cost-effective and timesaving. Additionally, steam flush autoclaving is highly efficient because sterilization is not affected in the event of an air leak into the sterilization chamber.

The steam autoclaves market for laboratory application is estimated to attain a CAGR of 10% through 2027 propelled by growing interest in biomedical research. Autoclaves are largely used in medical laboratories to sterilize laboratory instruments and equipment. Moreover, laboratory autoclaves deliver high-quality performance.

Research and academic institutions were valued at USD 310 million in 2020 owing to education provided in academic institutions regarding the advantages and applications of autoclaves. Research-grade autoclaves are required in research institutions for conducting experiments involving microorganisms. Therefore, an increasing number of research and academic institutions are fueling the demand for steam autoclaves.

Brazil's steam autoclaves market is predicted to register a growth of over 10.5% during 2021 to 2027 on account of the increasing number of measures being taken for the proper disposal of biomedical waste to prevent the spread of infectious diseases. Improving healthcare facilities and a growing number of biopharmaceutical companies in the region are the major factors contributing to the growing demand for steam autoclaves in Brazil. Furthermore, the rising acceptance of CSSD is additionally contributing to the market demand.

Request for customization of this research report at

https://www.gminsights.com/roc/500

Some of the major players operating in the steam autoclaves market are STERISHRED, Astell Scientific, Belimed Deutschland GmbH, BMM Weston Ltd., CELITRON Medical Technologies, Consolidated Sterilizer Systems, Dental X, Getinge Infection Control AB and LTE Scientific Ltd. among others. These major leaders are focusing on several strategic new product launches to enhance their market presence.

Table of Contents (ToC) of the report:

Chapter 3 Steam Autoclaves Market Insights

3.1 Industry segmentation

3.2 Industry landscape, 2016 - 2027

3.3 Industry impact forces

3.3.1 Growth drivers

3.3.2 Industry pitfalls & challenges

3.4 Growth potential analysis

3.4.1 By product

3.4.2 By technology

3.4.3 By application

3.4.4 By end-use

3.5 COVID-19 impact analysis

3.6 Regulatory landscape

3.6.1 U.S.

3.6.2 Europe

3.7 Porter's analysis

3.8 Competitive landscape, 2019

3.9 PESTEL analysis

Browse Complete Table of Contents (ToC) at

https://www.gminsights.com/toc/detail/steam-autoclaves-market

About Global Market Insights, Inc.

Global Market Insights, Inc., headquartered in Delaware, U.S., is a global market research and consulting service provider, offering syndicated and custom research reports along with growth consulting services. Our business intelligence and industry research reports offer clients with penetrative insights and actionable market data specially designed and presented to aid strategic decision-making. These exhaustive reports are designed via a proprietary research methodology and are available for key industries such as chemicals, advanced materials, technology, renewable energy, and biotechnology.

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Global Market Insights, Inc.

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Steam Autoclaves Market Growth Predicted at 9.7% Through 2027: GMI

Major steam autoclaves market players include STERISHRED, Astell Scientific, Belimed Deutschland GmbH, BMM Weston Ltd., CELITRON Medical Technologies, Consolidated Sterilizer Systems, Dental X, Getinge Infection Control AB and LTE Scientific Ltd.

Related Links

Sterilization Equipment Market

Medical Waste Management Market

SOURCE Global Market Insights, Inc.
FALLS CHURCH, Va. (AP)  A federal judge in Virginia is letting a British family move forward with its lawsuit in the U.S. against an American woman who invoked diplomatic immunity when she was accused of fatally injuring a teenager in a car crash.

Anne Sacoolas and her husband, Jonathan, were stationed in central England in August 2019 when British authorities say 19-year-old Harry Dunn was struck by a car driving on the wrong side of the road.

British authorities pursued criminal charges against Anne Sacoolas but she claimed diplomatic immunity and left the country, with the support of the U.S. government. The Sacoolases are now living in northern Virginia.

Dunns family filed a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Alexandria last year. The Sacoolases asked a judge to dismiss the case, arguing it should be heard in England instead.

In an order rejecting that request, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III said a civil trial in the United Kingdom would not be an adequate forum because the Sacoolases have made clear that they have no intention of returning to the country.

The U.S. governments refusal to waive diplomatic immunity provoked anger in the United Kingdom. At the time, it was believed that Anne Sacoolas was able to claim immunity because her husband was a U.S. intelligence officer stationed at RAF Croughton, a military base in central England used by U.S. forces.

But at a pretrial hearing earlier this month in Alexandria, Anne Sacoolas lawyers revealed that she too was a government employee for an intelligence agency at the time of the crash, though his responses about her specific role were vague. Ellis, in his order, said it appears that she worked for the State Department.

Her status as an employee, rather than as a spouse, could actually weaken her claims to immunity under the agreement between the two countries.

According to the lawsuit, Anne Sacoolas was driving her Volvo SUV on the wrong side of the road near the Croughton base when she struck Dunn. The lawsuit said shed been living in England for several weeks by then and should have been acclimated to driving on the left side of the road.

The lawsuit alleges that she did not call an ambulance, and that it was a passerby who arrived several minutes later who called for help.

In court, Anne Sacoolas lawyer says she admits she caused the crash and takes full responsibility.

In response, Ellis wrote: Accepting full responsibility doesnt mean you run away; it means that you stay there and face it. So I think you shouldnt overplay the `full responsibility card.

The Dunns lawyer, Agnieszka Fryszman, praised the judges ruling. Anne Sacoolas motion to transfer the case to England was simply unfair. She confirmed she would never return to England to participate in any trial, so we are glad the judge rejected what was in effect an effort to evade accountability for her actions.

In a statement, Harry Dunns mother, Charlotte Charles, said her family wants the truth about what happened to Harry.

Any parent who has lost a child can relate to the added pain that comes without having any accountability, and we are ready to move forward and finally get long overdue answers.

The Sacoolases lawyer did not immediately return a call and email Tuesday seeking comment.

Copyright 2021 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Hallmark CEO touts 'seismic' shift in number of LGBT characters on its programs

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The CEO of Crown Media Family Networks, the parent company of the Hallmark Channel, recently boasted about the "seismic" shift in the number of LGBT characters appearing on the network's original programming.

According to Deadline, Wonya Lucas, president and CEO of Crown Media Family Networks, discussed the network's efforts to expand representation of the LGBT community in its programming during a virtual question-and-answer session last week: "I'm proud of the progress this team is making to expand diversity in our programming and it is nothing short of seismic."

Michelle Vicary, executive vice president of programming for Crown Media Family Networks, expressed excitement about the movie "Mix it Up in the Mediterranean," which features the network's "first gay lead."

Lucas' comments come more than a year after the cable network, long known for its family-friendly programming, came under fire for its failure to include LGBT characters in any of its 40 original holiday-themed movies in 2019. In response to the criticism, Vicary vowed that the network was "looking at pitches for LGBTQ movies."

At the same time, the conservative group One Million Moms expressed concerns about an ad for the jewelry website Zola.com featuring two lesbians kissing each other at the end of their wedding ceremony that the Hallmark Channel aired. The group circulated a petition calling on the network to keep its content family-friendly.

While Hallmark initially removed the ad following complaints from the conservative group, it was reinstated shortly thereafter as a result of criticism by LGBT advocacy groups. Citing concerns that "Hallmark is no longer family friendly," One Million Moms called for a boycott of the network.

Last summer, Hallmark released a statement, saying, "Diversity and inclusion is a top priority for us and we look forward to making more programming announcements in the coming months, with projects featuring LGBTQ storylines, characters, and actors." Later last year, a prominent theologian warned that Hallmark movies were being used as an "engine" to advance the LGBT "moral revolution."

Albert Mohler Jr., president of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, discussed the Hallmark movie "The Christmas House" on an episode of his daily podcast "The Briefing" in December. Mohler described "The Christmas House," which featured a male same-sex couple, as an example of Christmas-themed romantic comedies being "completely transformed and accommodated to the demands of the new moral revolutionaries."

"In a fallen world, with a spirit of rebellion and revolution against a biblical worldview and a biblical morality, the fact is that the romcom is now being used as an engine for this moral revolution to turn the world upside down," he said. "If it doesn't end right according to the dictates of the LGBTQ revolution, then these days the movie's not going to get made."

Hallmark is not the only cable channel known for family-friendly programming to face criticism for including LGBT storylines in its programming. The latest reboot of Nickelodeon's classic children's cartoon "Blues Clues" features the title anthropomorphic blue dog singing the "ABC Song" that features a nod to the LGBT community.

The song, which was published on the show's YouTube channel Thursday, has yet to air on television. It features words to represent all 26 letters of the alphabet and the word "pride" was chosen to represent the letter "P." As she announced that "P is full of pride," the letter "P," emblazoned in rainbow colors, appeared in the background alongside the multiple "pride flags" associated with each of the various sexual orientations.

Nickelodeon's decision to promote the pride flags on children's programming comes just two months after the cable channel launched the "trans youth acting challenge" that will enable transgender or nonbinary youth to submit audition tapes for a chance to take a "Zoom master acting class" with transgender actor Michael D. Cohen, who has appeared on the network's live-action programs "Henry Danger" and "Danger Force."
One of the biggest impact of the pandemic on the Indian information technology (IT) industry has been the acceptance of a hybrid workforce model offering the kind of radical flexibility required to build organisational resilience.

While industry body National Association of Software and Service (Nasscom) is working on a framework to address this workforce and the implications it will have on several aspects of the industry, many industry players have taken the first step towards embracing this paradigm shift.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)  with the largest employee base of 469,000  had started to work on this shift with its open agile workspaces a few years ago, where many of its centres have morphed into collaborative places.

Rajashree R, chief marketing officer, TCS, said with employees being able to work from anywhere, these office spaces may well become collaborative centres. If you walk into some of our centres, you will see more collaborative workspaces, hot seats, and the ability of teams to move around, said Rajashree.

TCS was among the first players to have called out in April 2020 about a 25/25 model: By 2025, 25 per cent of TCS workforce would work out of its facilities, without spending more than 25 per cent of their time in a TCS office.

With an employee base of 4.47 million, close to 90 per cent of the Indian is working from home since the pandemic hit the global economy and countries went into lockdown mode.

In a hybrid working model, we will look at the best practices for a hybrid offering: Which jobs can be done remotely and which cannot, build a framework that will illustrate the jobs related to potential for working in a hybrid offering. Key focus is the human resources (HR) teams. How will performance management get done in a hybrid offering, how culture building is happening, how employee engagement is taking place, said Debjani Ghosh, president, Nasscom.

Even as the industry grapples with the new normal, Nasscom has created a workforce that is working closely with the government agency to look into issues like changes in labour law as people continue to and incorporating gig workers into IT/business process management (BPM) industry.

We have seen in Silicon Valley several start-ups ready to make their employees work from any place they want to. With distributed workforce a reality, we will need to address this. We should also look at how gig workers can be incorporated into the industry. Some of the issues we need to look into are how do we make sure a gig worker working for us is not working with competitors, background checks that need to be put in place and so forth, said Keshav Murugesh, chief executive officer (CEO) of New York Stock Exchange-listed BPM firm WNS.

Murugesh also pointed out that many will also have to relook at the infrastructure needs as they embrace this shift. We have realised that some of the physical infrastructure is not good for social distancing, said Murugesh, who was former Nasscom chairman.

Industry experts are of the opinion that Covid-19 has thrown down a challenge that may well see HR practices being revolutionised.

Its not like we can have three hours of townhall followed by high tea. Crisp, clear, and succinct is the way to go in terms of messaging. For example, its a struggle to get people to switch on their videos in the morning. Once it took us 15 minutes to get everyone to switch on their screens, shared Anuranjita Jumar, founder and CEO, WiT-ACE  a company that focuses on increasing womens participation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

The virtual world also raises questions on collaborative tools. Rajashree pointed out that perhaps TCS has taken a lead when it conceptualised Secure Borderless Workspaces (SBWS)  an operating model framework that allows organisations to take full advantage of their talent ecosystem to maximise business opportunities.

SBWS is not about working from home. Its the future of the way we will work. Within that, the talent Cloud will create a fungible talent model where people are able to work anywhere. We are replicating ambient awareness in the virtual model. SBWS is a 360-degree model, said Rajashree.

The biggest impact of this virtual workforce is the falling of barriers in terms of where you are born and live. So many people miss out on opportunities because of these constraints. Once these constraints are removed, it will be revolutionary and beneficial for humanity in the long run, said Rajashree.
With talent on loan from God, Rush Limbaugh used to mock-brag on his show. Now the loan's been called, as the man who remade talk radio went off to meet his maker after a tough battle with lung c
The termination of Keystone Pipeline was slammed by South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, calling its termination against American energy independence. It is stating that emphasizing renewable energy is a big mistake.

One of many state governors aired opposition to the termination of this critical infrastructure for U.S. energy. Last elections, he was asked what he would do, but this is the answer. So, now everyone knows.

Anti-America moves by the White House

According to South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who strongly objected to Biden's executive order on the XL Pipeline's cancellation. Saying it was damaging to her state's economy and more of a kneecapping of America's energy independence. She added that the new administration, unlike the previous one, has a flawed energy policy to boot, reported the Epoch Times.

Governor Noem talked to Fox News last Wednesday that having multiple energy sources is crucial for energy production and availability. She shot back at Biden, who wants to stop coal, oil, and gas in his executive orders is dangerous for the long term. One of the reasons why Trump got support is the practicality that green energy is not reliable yet. But, the Democrats have built an agenda on pushing it.

We need an all-of-the-above energy approach. I support wind and solar, but they arent consistent enough to be our primary source of energy. They cant provide enough power to heat our homes during the winter, and were seeing that play out across the country right now. pic.twitter.com/IGfVBSO1B5  Governor Kristi Noem (@govkristinoem) February 17, 2021

She stressed that the USA's energy is essential and without dependence on other providers of crucial energy. She cited the government should support all energy production, not just green energy as the administration prefers. If several sources are available, then problems of other states will be avoided.

Also read: Biden: No Family Members to Be Involved in Any Government Decisions

Mentioning that wind energy is a good alternative but unreliable as a significant investment. Instead of keeping a range of other options that provide electricity when needed, keep the power grid running. If the power goes out because of wrong sources, people will suffer.

Biden decides to kill U.S. energy independence

On January 20, the day he took office, he signed the infamous and ill-advised executive order approved by President Trump. It shut down the Keystone Pipeline project and sent aftershocks, even took away jobs and affected state economies. The administration claims it is avoiding the climate crisis, but many doubt that is the main reason.

The alleged claim by the administration that it will be a start of better opportunities was shot down by many lawmakers. Noem shot back that many have lost incomes and the oil industry allegedly sabotaged to give a Democratic agenda prominence. Many call his order misguided and unrealistic to punctuate its adverse effects.

Noem said that the canceled pipeline has affected jobs in her state, ripped communities that would have benefited the state. Infrastructure like pumping stations was already built, but the executive order stopped everything. Adding businesses that would have earned from workers lost possible income.

The pipeline is not environmentally unsafe.

The governor criticized that the pipeline will not be destructive for the environment because it transports oil safely and efficiently. If Biden would have allowed it, then oil gas would be cheaper.

One Democrat, Joe Manchin (West Virginia), sent a letter to the president on February 9 and said the Keystone Pipeline termination is a mistake. It would be the safest way to transport oil, gas to support American jobs for many. Many Democrats cheer for their energy agenda getting pushed by the White House, but many opposed the move as political.

Related article: Sen. Kennedy on Biden's Energy Policy: Anti- American, Destroys U.S. Energy Independence

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A coalition of more than 50 homeless advocate organizations and a city supervisor is pressing the San Francisco mayors office to acquire hotels to house the homeless and move more people into permanent housing.

The coalition wants to seize the moment, with a change in federal policy bringing in more reimbursements for a pandemic-era hotel program and an economic recession emptying even more hotels, to prioritize addressing the homelessness crisis amid other pressing needs and a looming budget deficit.

We have the opportunity here to do something meaningful in the near term to get more people off the streets, Joe Wilson, executive director of the nonprofit Hospitality House who was also formerly homeless, said during a news conference Wednesday. It would be unconscionable to not take advantage of that opportunity.

The city, which purchased two hotels last year with $74 million from a state program, is looking into buying more. At least 70 hotels responded to a city request for information from potential sellers.

We need more places for people who are homeless to safely get off the streets, and purchasing and converting hotel rooms is one creative way we can make that happen, Mayor London Breeds spokesman Andy Lynch said. The biggest obstacle we face with this idea is identifying the ongoing funding needed for staffing, counselors and other operations, but were hopeful we can work with our state and federal partners to make it happen.

During the pandemic, the city has run a shelter-in-place hotel program that leased rooms for homeless people who are elderly, medically at risk or exposed to or infected with COVID-19. In a letter sent to Mayor London Breeds Office Wednesday, the coalition pushed the city to also house homeless individuals still on the street whove been waiting for permanent housing. It further challenged the city to purchase hotels that it said could be converted into studios at a fraction of the price and time of building new affordable housing. San Francisco Supervisor Ahsha Safai urged the same in a recent resolution.

Im looking for a more permanent solution, Safai said.

The city leased its first shelter-in-place hotel for vulnerable homeless individuals in April and expanded to 25 hotels at its peak. More than 2,250 people have been housed in hotel rooms, with around 1,800 currently sheltered. The citys Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing has pledged that no one in a hotel as of mid-November who participates in a rehousing program will exit onto the street.

Earlier this month, the Biden administration announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency would fully reimburse cities for pandemic-related emergency programs, such as testing and shelters like hotels. That was an increase from 75% under the Trump administration and brought in an extra $20 million last fiscal year. This fiscal year, the city projects it will receive $431.2 million from FEMA, with $196.9 million for hotels.

FEMA money helps, but the controllers office said the hotel program provides some enhanced services that arent eligible for reimbursement and serves clients who dont meet guidelines. Funds also cant be used to purchase buildings.

Reimbursements do free up more city funds siphoned to support the roughly $20 million-a-month program. The city also could use funds from business tax Prop C to buy hotels. Safai said as much as $150 million is available.

Krista Gillette, who lives in a hotel, said Wednesday she is in line for permanent housing, but knows many others still on the streets.

They really do want to be housed, Gillette said. They have no desire to try to continue to live in tents or to try to figure out where were going.

Mallory Moench is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mallory.moench@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @mallorymoench
Thursday, February 18, 2021

In one of the scene's in Oliver Stone's film JFK, a distraught David Ferrie is put up in a hotel room, and confesses to Garrison investigator Lou Ivon. Here is the scene (page 89-91);

Ferrie: I haven't slept since that shit article came out. Why'd you guys have to get me involved, Lou?

Lou: Did we get you involved? Or did Shaw, Dave?

Ferrie: Cocksucking faggot. He got me by the balls.

Lou: What do you mean?

Ferrie: Photographs, compromising stuff. He'll use them, too. Agency plays for keeps. I knew Oswald. He was in my Civil Air Patrol unit. I taught him everything. He was a wannabe, you know. No one really liked him. Thought he was a snitch. But I treated him good. He talked about his kid. He really wanted  to grow up with a chance. But, what's this? What's going on? Don't let him in.

Lou: No one's comin in here.

Ferrie: Black. Give it to me. Black. My neck is killing me. I've had cancer for years. Been working with mice to find a cure.

Lou: Did you work for the CIA?

Ferrie: You sound like it's a remote experience in ancient history. You don't leave the Agency. Once you're in, they got you for life.

Lou: And Shaw?

Ferrie: Shaw's an untouchable. Highest clearance. Shaw, Oswald, the Cubans, all Agency.

Lou: Ruby?

Ferrie: Jack was a pimp. A bagman for the Dallas mob. Ran guns to Castro when he was on our side. Castro was almost with us till we tried to whack him. Everybody keeps flipping sides. It's fun and games.

Conspiracy books echo this scene. Here is Joan Mellen (page 104-105):

Bill Davy has a similar story (page 66):

But, did this really happen?

Jim Garrison wrote about this in his first book, A Heritage of Stone (page 128):

This certainly contradicts the scene in JFK. Here is an article from the Santa Cruz Sentinel from February 23, 1967.

Note the quote in the fifth paragraph in the first column: "Ferrie was on the brink of providing information that could have been important."

And, Lou Ivon in his oral history at the Sixth Floor Museum does not confirm the conspiracy scene. Here are my notes - "put up Ferrie in a hotel for a couple of days; Ferrie was very intelligent; scared for his life; he snuck off from the hotel; mentioned Oswald and pamphlets; rambled on about a lot of things."

And so it is not surprising to see this note about the JFK scene in the official screenplay (page 88):

"At times, however, we had to put words in Ferrie's mouth to write this scene and used our best judgment based on Ferrie's biography."

Bottom line: Ferrie never confessed while at the hotel. The scene is a complete fiction.
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French President Emmanuel Macron spoke on Sunday via videoconference at a meeting of the Sahel G5, which includes the five countries in the region participating in the French and German-led military intervention: Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Chad.

Macron used the speech to reject rumours of an imminent withdrawal or scaling down of the French military occupation of the Sahel. Significant changes will no doubt be introduced to our military force in the Sahel at the appropriate time, but they will not happen immediately, he said. A French withdrawal, to massively reduce the number of men, which is an option I have studied, would be an error.

French soldiers of the 126th Infantry Regiment and Malian soldiers, March 17, 2016. (Wikimedia Commons)

France invaded Mali in 2013 against separatist and Islamist forces that came from Libya after the 2011 NATO regime-change war in that country. There have been more than 4,100 French troops stationed there for almost eight years, increased to 5,100 troops by Macron one year ago.

The French army has waged the war under the cynical banner of the fight against terrorism and the defence of the local population. In reality, it is a brutal neo-colonial war aimed at subjugating the resource-rich and geo-strategically critical region.

The Sahel contains uranium deposits that supply France for its energy production, as well as the major French drone base in Niger. The region is situated in a geographically important area of western Africa, which contains not only the third largest gold deposits in the world, but where European imperialism is seeking to hold back the growing economic and diplomatic influence of China.

The war has been marked by a series of military setbacks for the French occupying forces in recent months, including the deaths of another two French soldiers on January 2 when their car was struck by an improvised explosive device.

Macron did not refer in his speech to the continuing reports of war crimes committed by the armies with which France is jointly operating and who were participating in Mondays summit. The reports include evidence of acts of collective retribution against entire towns accused of harbouring sympathizers with Islamist groups, and of tacit backing for ethnic sectarian massacres against the predominately Muslim, Peuhl (or Fulani) communities.

On December 21 last year, AFP leaked selected portions of a United Nations report accusing the Malian army of committing war crimes. The report was transmitted by the Security Council but was immediately dropped and has not since been commented upon by the French government.

The document is almost 350 pages long. According to the AFP report, the authors claim to have reasonable grounds to believe that the Malian army has committed war crimes. It cites one incident in 2017, which occurred during a joint operation involving French and Malian army troops.

On May 2 around 4pm, many people, principally Peuhl men, were arrested, and were violently beaten by Malian soldiers with batons, to force them to admit that they belonged to armed extremist groups, [the troops] threatening to kill them if they did not admit. It claims that three men were killed on the scene.

However, this is only one of countless reports of war crimes by the occupation.

On November 1, Liberation published a report based on witness testimony claiming that the Malian army massacred 24 people in a single village eight days earlier, in the town of Liebe.

Multiple witnesses accuse the army of responsibility in the massacre, it states. Between 15 and 20 vehicles of the Malian forces arrived in Liebe in the mornings, [the witnesses] state. Soldiers rapidly opened fire. Six victims were tied up, their eyes blindfolded, before being shot, according to one survivor The method indicates summary executions The witnesses state that the troops then set fire to houses and continued to shoot indiscriminately at the townspeople. Half of the victims were aged over 50, and three were aged over 70.

The attack is reported to have been retribution following a terrorist attack by Islamist forces one week earlier near Sokura, 50 kilometres away from Liebe, which killed 10 civilians and 11 soldiers.

Last July, Human Rights Watch released its own report, based on interviews with 23 people from Djibo, a town in the north of Niger, 45 kilometres from the border with Mali. More than 180 graves were discovered in Djibo over several months last year, all believed to have been people killed by security forces between 2019 and 2020.

The occupying troops are also widely reported to be collaborating with local militia, in particular groups from the ethnic Dogon community. The local security forces are reported to have armed and backed the Dogon militia and turned a blind eye to sectarian massacres of ethnic Peuhl communities.

A series of increasingly horrific ethnic massacres have taken place in the past two years, including the killing of over 150 people by Dogon militia groups in the town of Ogossagou in 2019. For Paris, these attacks serve not only to intimidate and terrorise the local population, but to provide a human rights justification for the maintenance of a permanent occupation force.

Last August, the Malian government was overthrown in a military coup. The military government was immediately given the support of Paris and announced that it was calling on Malian troops to continue their support in the French-led international occupation of the country.
(Katy Kildee/kkildee@mdn.net)

Following the snow event on Feb.15-16, city crews have worked around the clock to clear major streets, state trunklines, and thoroughfares in Midland.

At 1 p.m. Tuesday, crews began plowing local streets beginning with Wednesday's refuse routes. Once Wednesday routes are completed, plows will move to Thursday, then Friday, then Monday, etc. Residents who live on a court will see some delay in plowing times due to the need for additional equipment to safely and effectively move snow in these streets.
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The Ekiti Government on Thursday denied reports alleging that its tax officials locked up a private primary school in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, and made the pupils of the school suffer for hours.

The Commissioner for Information and Values Orientation, Wale Omole, denied the allegation in a statement he made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ado Ekiti.

NAN reports that some social media reports, earlier on Wednesday, had claimed that officials of the State Revenue Service locked the gate of a private nursery and primary school in Ado Ekiti over alleged failure of the school management to pay its income tax.

In the reports, it was alleged that pupils within the school could not leave the environment, and were without food and water up till very late hours of the day.

Parents , who were said to have come to pick their children upon hearing the incident, were also allegedly disallowed from taking their children home because the gate was locked.

But the commissioner reacting, described the reports of school children being locked up over refusal of their school management to pay tax as incorrect, saying the present government would never do such to young children under any circumstance.

According to him,  The attention of the government of Ekiti State has been drawn to a viral video alleging that enforcement officers of the Ekiti State Internal Revenue Service sealed off a private school, with children inside.

 The circumstances surrounding this event are being investigated and a comprehensive statement will be issued once concluded.

 At this material time, the referenced school has been visited by the officials of government and we can confirm that it is untrue that children are being held.

 Without prejudice to the outcome of the investigation which will be made public very soon, the government assures the public that it is totally unacceptable for children to be maltreated in any way in Ekiti State, and state government will not condone such.

He said the Gov Kayode Fayemi-led administration had been consistent in the fight against discrimination of any kind, and had remained committed to ensuring schools are safe spaces for learning and for moral instruction.(

(NAN)
Gucci sales fell over Christmas as the collapse in super-rich tourists heading to London, Paris, Milan and New York hit business in its 100th year.

The brands owner, French luxury group Kering, has promised a revitalising marketing drive, with fashion events in growth markets such as China.

Gucci accounts for 60 per cent of revenues and 80 per cent of profits at Kering and has been one of the industrys top performers in recent years.

Sales slump: Gucci's owner, French luxury group Kering, has promised a revitalising marketing drive, with fashion events in growth markets such as China

But it faltered in the final three months of last year, as rivals such as LVMHs Louis Vuitton soared.

Sales fell 10.3 per cent on a like-for-like basis, worse than the 4 per cent drop predicted by analysts, sending Kering shares down by 7.2 per cent.

The pandemic has stopped consumers travelling abroad, but a rebound in demand in Asia has helped some high-end brands.

Revenues more than doubled and profits treble between 2015 and 2019 thanks to a successful makeover under quirky creative director Alessandro Michele.

But recent poor performance has fuelled speculation that Kering, which also owns brands such as Saint Laurent, might buy smaller names to boost its portfolio.

Billionaire boss Francois-Henri Pinault dismissed short-term worries, saying: We still have a priority for organic growth, starting with Gucci, where were far from maturity.

Gucci will launch more temporary pop-up stores to ensure it is in always on mode and is lining up product launches to coincide with this years 100th anniversary.

Kering revenue fell 8.2 per cent to 3.5billion in the last three months of 2020, as the wider business was hit by lockdowns.

Online business grew sharply, accounting for 13 per cent of sales in 2020, up from 7 per cent a year earlier.
Peoria shoppers can now find a lineup of 2021 Hyundai Elantra models in the Earnhardt Hyundai of Avondale showroom.

The 2021 North American Car of the Year is available now to Peoria and Avondale shoppers at Earnhardt Hyundai of Avondale. The 2021 Hyundai Elantra was named the winner in this years awards, making this the second time the sedan took home the title. With this award in its back pocket, the 2021 Elantra is in high demand in Avondale and local shoppers are lucky enough to find plenty of new 2021 Hyundai Elantra models in stock at Earnhardt Hyundai of Avondale.

The four-door-coupe look of the 2021 Elantra has stolen the hearts of Peoria drivers and with a combined fuel economy rating of more than 50 MPG for the hybrid model variant, the list of reasons why this sedan earned the top 2021 North American Car of the Year award is seemingly endless.

The 2021 Hyundai Elantra offers segment-first wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, an available Digital Key, two available 10.25-inch multimedia screens, SmartSense safety and convenience technologies and more.

Earnhardt Hyundai of Avondale offers No Bull pricing, available savings and incentives and more. Prospective buyers can shop for a new Elantra from the dealership online or in person. No Bull Express brings the entire shopping experience online, allowing customers to shop from the safety and comfort of their home.

Anyone can view the entire lineup of new models at Earnhardt Hyundai of Avondale on the dealerships website, earnhardthyundai.com. The dealership is located at 10401 W Papago Fwy in Avondale, AZ, and is open seven days a week. Members of the Earnhardt Hyundai of Avondale team can be reached by phone at 833-331-0148 to assist with specific inquiries or the online shopping experience.
HACKENSACK, N.J., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD), a US nonprofit organization leading the fight to end Duchenne muscular dystrophy (Duchenne), and Duchenne UK, a UK-based patient organization, are pleased to announce Professor Kanneboyina Nagaraju at Binghamton, the State University of New York, as the recipient of their Joint Research Grant Call of 2020. The full title of the research project is "Targeting the innate immune system to block acute inflammatory and chronic immune response to transgene and AAV vector in DMD". Professor Nagaraju's research will receive funding from the organizations in the amount of $350,000.

These are promising times for research into Duchenne muscular dystrophy (Duchenne). Several companies are now testing an approach that uses a shortened dystrophin gene to replace the faulty dystrophin gene in Duchenne. This is known as gene transfer using micro-dystrophin, or more commonly, gene therapy. The companies are using viruses known as AAVs (adeno-associated viruses) to deliver the therapy.

However, challenges exist in getting this treatment to the entire Duchenne population. This is mainly because of immune responses: some patients have pre-existing antibodies to the AAVs. This means they will not, currently, be able to have the treatment because their bodies will recognize the virus and stop it from delivering the micro-dystrophin to the cells. In addition, as gene therapy is a new treatment, it is not yet clear if another dose will be required at a later stage, and it is not currently possible to re-dose with the same AAV.

This is why Duchenne UK & PPMD launched a call for projects last year that would specifically address this challenge.

The organizations received a large number of proposals, and three were taken forward for final review from a panel of highly qualified, specialized scientists. They looked at a wide variety of factors, including significance to the Duchenne community, and the ability to translate the research into treatments for patients.

Professor Nagaraju's research is looking at blocking the mechanism by which the body is able to recognise an AAV virus and mount an immune response to it. Importantly, he is using medicines that are already in use in humans, in an approach known as repurposing.

If this approach were successful, it would allow more micro-dystrophin to get to the cells, potentially requiring a lower dose of the AAV than is currently being administered in the trials. It may also allow patients who have already been dosed with gene therapy to receive further doses. Further to this, by using repurposed drugs, this treatment should be more easily transferable to patients. Professor Nagaraju believes that "targeting initial immune recognition pathways is one way to improve efficacy and safety profiles of AAV mediated gene therapy".

PPMD's Founding President & CEO, Pat Furlong, and Duchenne UK's CEO, Emily Crossley explained in a joint statement: "Supporting patients and accelerating innovative research is at the heart of what we do at Duchenne UK and PPMD. We are pleased to partner with each other and award this grant. Gene therapy is offering great promise, but there are challenges associated with the immune response which are limiting the rate of progress and a barrier to ensuring all patients can have access to these potentially transformative therapies. We would like to thank all those who participated and supported our Joint Grant Call and are very much looking forward to working with Professor Nagaraju on this vitally important project for the Duchenne community."

To learn more about PPMD's innovative research agenda and our investment portfolio, visit PPMD's website.

About Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy

Duchenne is a fatal genetic disorder that slowly robs people of their muscle strength. Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD) fights every single battle necessary to end Duchenne.

We demand optimal care standards and ensure every family has access to expert healthcare providers, cutting edge treatments, and a community of support. We invest deeply in treatments for this generation of Duchenne patients and in research that will benefit future generations. Our advocacy efforts have secured hundreds of millions of dollars in funding and won four FDA approvals.

Everything we doand everything we have done since our founding in 1994helps those with Duchenne live longer, stronger lives. We will not rest until we end Duchenne for every single person affected by the disease. Join our fight against Duchenne at EndDuchenne.org. Follow PPMD on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.

About Duchenne UK

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is a devastating muscle-wasting disease. It is the most common and severe form of Muscular Dystrophy. Diagnosed in childhood, it mainly affects boys. There is currently no cure. Started by families affected by the disease, Duchenne UK has one clear aim  to end Duchenne.

Duchenne UK are funding research that's focused on getting treatments to those affected now  as well as pushing for an effective treatment in the future.

Duchenne UK connects leading researchers with industry, the NHS and patients to challenge every stage of drug development, from research to clinical trials to drug approval. They connect families with each other to create a network of mutual support and to pool resources, knowledge and experience.

For more information about Duchenne UK: visit www.duchenneuk.org.

SOURCE Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD)

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan discussed the implementation of agreements on Nagorno-Karabakh, the Kremlin said on Wednesday.

"[They] discussed practical issues of the implementation of the statement of the leaders of Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan on Nagorno-Karabakh of November 9, 2020, along with the agreements reached at the trilateral summit in Moscow on January 11, 2021," the statement says.

The Kremlin pointed out that the talks touched upon a range of pressing bilateral issues. "It was agreed to continue contacts at various levels," the Kremlin added.

In the meantime, the Armenian governments press service said that the leaders touched upon the return of prisoners of war, adding that the two leaders also focused on bilateral cooperation and further development of allied cooperation.
UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
A gas explosion in the Bronx has left at least ten people injured, including children and one firefighter, after the powerful blast flung the doors and windows of a home out into the street.

The explosion occurred around 3.30pm on Thursday on Paulding Avenue in the Morris Park section of the New York City borough, on the second floor of a three-story townhouse.

Units from FDNY, NYPD Special Operations and ConEdison rushed to the scene, according to NYPD Chief of Department Terrence Monahan, who warned residents to expect a 'heavy police presence' and avoid the area.

Firefighters advised dispatch that up to ten people were injured, with two suffering life-threatening wounds, according to emergency radio traffic. Children were believed to be among the critically injured.

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A gas explosion in the Bronx has left at least ten people injured, including children a and one firefighter, after the powerful blast flung the doors and windows from the home

The explosion occurred around 3.30pm on Thursday on Paulding Avenue in the Morris Park section of the New York City borough, on the second floor of a three-story townhouse

Units from FDNY, NYPD Special Operations and ConEdison rushed to the scene, according to NYPD Chief of Department Terrence Monahan

One of the injured people was a firefighter who suffered minor injuries. Two others suffered from serious injuries, and four others suffered minor injuries.

The fire was under control and search and rescue complete by about 4.30pm.

ConEd workers and firefighters continued assessing the building for potential gas leaks.

There was no initial information on what caused the gas build-up in the residence.

One of the doors from the house was seen dangling from power lines across the street from the home, after the powerful blast blew it away

Firefighters advised dispatch that up to ten people were injured, with two suffering life-threatening wounds, according to emergency radio traffic

A massive emergency response was mobilized, and the seriously injured were rushed to nearby hospitals

The fire was under control and search and rescue complete by about 4.30pm

Photos and videos from the scene show the extent of the devastation.

One of the doors from the house was seen dangling from power lines across the street from the home, after the powerful blast blew it away.

A massive emergency response was mobilized, and the seriously injured were rushed to nearby hospitals.

There was no initial information on what caused the gas build-up in the residence

The Department of Buildings said inspectors were en route to conduct a structural stability inspection of the building following the explosion

New York City Emergency Management said in an alert to expect road closures

'Expect road closures, traffic delays, mass transit disruptions & emergency personnel near Paulding Avenue & Poplar Street, The Bronx. Use alternate routes,' New York City Emergency Management said in an alert.

The Department of Buildings said inspectors were en route to conduct a structural stability inspection of the building following the explosion.
The 30 per cent of Australians who rely on Facebook as their primary source of news will have to find it elsewhere or live a fact-free life following the Big Tech behemoths decision on Thursday to purge journalism from its site.

Overnight, Facebook has removed access to its users from any site that smells like news: not only local major mastheads such as The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, but also specialist sites like The Conversation and global leaders such as The New York Times.

News blackout ... Facebook is ignoring the public interest while acting in self-interest. Credit:iStock

It also seems Fire and Rescue NSW, the Bureau of Meteorology, MS Research Australia, Doctors without Borders and state health departments are among many placed on the blacklist, showing the scope of the Mark Zuckerberg edict from Silicon Valley.

This is an arrogant and reckless move that will be dangerous for all Australians who are relying on an evidence-based response to a global pandemic, but also self-destructive to Facebook. While Facebook argues it does not make much money from news in its network, it is wilfully turning a blind eye to its value. News provides the facts and evidence to anchor what it claims is a ubiquitous digital experience.
Bonzer and Quigley got Cassie Moore through the night.

After days without power in the Houston suburb of Jersey Village, the 35-year-old writer and educator could see her breath in the house. Her plants were dying. So Moore and her husband built a tent with living-room curtains in front of their gas fireplace. They slept in shifts Tuesday night -- with their two Australian shepherds sharing their body heat.

"It's not the safest option, but it was between that and sitting in the car and freezing," Moore said. "You're really relying on yourself. Every single person I talk to is in survival mode."

The winter blitz and power outages that have crippled Texas are testing the boundaries of rugged individualism across the Lone Star state, forcing many residents to take basic needs into their own hands. Ice made roads impassable. Electricity went out, and with it the heat. Burst pipes deprived them of water.

In all, more than 7 million Texans are under orders to boil water after power outages robbed utilities of the ability to keep pumping, which allowed pressure to drop to levels that allow bacteria to proliferate. The freezing temperatures wrecked the plumbing in houses built for 100-degree summers. (Indeed, a pipe burst in the dining room of a reporter as he typed this story.)

Danny Surman's water has been off since Monday morning, when he woke up to frozen pipes in the Houston suburb of Texas City. When the 5-gallon jugs he bought at Lowe's ran out, he refilled them at his sister-in-law's until she also lost service. Since then, he's been capturing rain in buckets.

"It's kind of a pain hauling this water around to flush the toilets, wash your hands, everything, and you don't realize just how many things you rely on it for around the house," the 29-year-old teacher said.

Rachel Riskind, who lives in the Crestview section of central Austin with her boyfriend, said she "started filling up everything I can find" on Wednesday after reports that potable water might stop flowing. "You don't want to end up drinking the toilet tank," she said.

Riskind, 46, who works for a real-estate firm, said the couple's electricity first failed Sunday night and has been intermittent ever since. They propped open the gas oven door for heat, "which I know you're not supposed to do, but it was just freakin' cold in here."

The high in Austin was forecast to be 34 degrees Thursday.

It's unclear when the service might return. Oncor, which distributes electricity across North Texas, told customers to be prepared for extended outages as the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which runs the grid, attempts to resuscitate it.

There was widespread anger at those who run the electric system, which is separate from those of other states to insulate it from federal oversight. Municipal utility workers in the capital of Austin have encountered threats as they worked to restore damaged power infrastructure.

"Some of our crews are reporting incidents of harassment, threatening them and even throwing things at them," Austin Energy said in a tweet. "I know people are extremely frustrated. But please, I beg of you, do not approach AE crews."

The devastation has been deadly. The storm has been blamed for more than a score of deaths, and the toll isn't limited to humans.

Primarily Primates, a nonprofit sanctuary in San Antonio, said at least 12 animals, including monkeys, lemurs and one chimpanzee, died after it lost power early Monday. Employees and volunteers have used heaters and generators to keep remaining animals safe and have transported some to the San Antonio Zoo, according to a statement on the organization's website.

On South Padre Island, residents have been rescuing cold-stunned sea turtles and taking them to a convention center, the Associated Press reported. Ed Caum, executive director of the South Padre Island Convention and Visitors Bureau, told the news service that more than 3,500 had arrived. "We know we're going to lose some," he said.

Remedios Cue and her husband lost power for about 50 hours in their home in Euless, between Dallas and Fort Worth. The temperature dropped to a low of 40 F. They retreated to the bed."When we couldn't stand it anymore, we'd go out to the cars, warm up and charge our phones," said Cue, 60, a preschool teacher. Her husband heated water on the outdoor grill and warmed up a sandwich in a skillet thrust into the fireplace."There was no warning," she said. "No one said, 'Prepare for this.'" Some neighbors have yet to get electricity back, but things were looking up for Cue on Wednesday afternoon. The power came back on -- and she got her first shot of coronavirus vaccine.
Archbishop says Biden shouldn't call himself 'devout' due to pro-choice views

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A prominent Catholic Church archbishop has stated that President Joe Biden should not be considered a devout Catholic due to his pro-choice public policy stances.

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities, made his remarks in an interview with The Catholic World Report published Saturday.

The president should stop defining himself as a devout Catholic, and acknowledge that his view on abortion is contrary to Catholic moral teaching, said Naumann.

It would be a more honest approach from him to say he disagreed with his Church on this important issue and that he was acting contrary to Church teaching.

Nauman went on to tell CWR that he believes when Biden says he is a devout Catholic, we bishops have the responsibility to correct him.

Although people have given this president power and authority, he cannot define what it is to be a Catholic and what Catholic moral teaching is, Naumann continued.

What he is doing now is usurping the role of the bishops and confusing people. Hes declaring that hes Catholic, and is going to force people to support abortion through their tax dollars. The bishops need to correct him, as the president is acting contrary to the Catholic faith.

When asked his opinion about a Florida priest denying Biden communion in 2019 over the then candidates stance on abortion, Naumann said that he believes Biden has the responsibility not to present himself for Holy Communion.

When Catholics receive the Eucharist, they are acknowledging the Real Presence of Jesus, and also belief in the teachings of the Church, explained the archbishop.

President Biden doesnt believe in the Churchs teachings on the Sanctity of Human Life, and he should not put the priest in the situation where he has to decide whether or not to allow him to receive the Eucharist. He should know that after 78 years as a Catholic.

Last year, Biden became the second Roman Catholic in United States history to be elected president, the first being John F. Kennedy in 1960.

During the election season, the Biden campaign touted their candidates Catholic beliefs, noting that he regularly attended Mass and often spoke about his beliefs to others.

A campaign ad released last September involved a woman who belonged to Bidens parish in Wilmington, Delaware, speaking about his beliefs and practices.

Joe Biden has been part of our parish for more than 40 years, she explained in the ad last year. Even now, when Joes back home, we see him at Mass on Sunday. You can tell how important Joes faith is to him. Its what motivates everything: Joes beliefs, his values, the kind of president Joe would be.

Also ahead of the election, Biden maintained in an op-ed for The Christian Post that biblical values, including the commands to love God and to love one's neighbor as oneself, "have kept me grounded in what matters most."

"My Catholic faith drilled into me a core truth  that every person on earth is equal in rights and dignity, because we are all beloved children of God," he wrote.

"As Christians, I know there is much more that unites us than divides us."

Critics of this faith promotion have pointed to Bidens position on abortion, which contradicts official Catholic teaching. This has included Biden promising to codify the United States Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade.

Soon after taking office in January, Biden issued an executive order rescinding the Mexico City Policy, which prohibited funding of overseas family planning groups that advocated for or performed abortions.

In January, Naumann and Bishop David J. Malloy, chairman of the Committee on International Justice and Peace, issued a joint statement denouncing the rescinding of the policy.

It is grievous that one of President Bidens first official acts actively promotes the destruction of human lives in developing nations. This Executive Order is antithetical to reason, violates human dignity, and is incompatible with Catholic teaching, read the statement in part.

We and our brother bishops strongly oppose this action. We urge the president to use his office for good, prioritizing the most vulnerable, including unborn children.
The Jacksonville Public Library is hosting a free program on how to use Google tools.

The applications allow creation of such things as forms, slideshows and spreadsheets. In addition to basic universal tools, Google offers applications for students and small businesses.
Eastern newt populations in the northeastern United States and southeastern Canada are at greatest risk of infection with a new skin-eating fungus, Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal), according to a study published February 18 in the open-access journal PLOS Pathogens by Matthew Gray of the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture, and colleagues.

Bsal was discovered killing salamanders in the Netherlands in 2010, and since then, the pathogen has spread to other European countries. Bsal is believed to be from Asia and is being spread through the international trade of amphibians, but it has not yet arrived in North America. As a proactive strategy for disease control, Gray and his colleagues evaluated how a range of environmental temperatures in North America could affect the invasion risk of Bsal into a widely distributed salamander species -- the eastern newt.

The results show that eastern newt populations are at greatest risk for Bsal invasion in the northeastern United States, higher elevations of the Appalachian Mountains, and southeastern Canada - more northerly regions compared to previous assessments. Changes in eastern newt susceptibility to Bsal infection associated with temperature are likely an interaction between pathogen replication rate and host immune defenses, including changes in skin microbiome composition and the host's ability to produce Bsal-killing proteins on the skin. The study provides new insights into how latitude, elevation and season can impact the epidemiology of Bsal. According to the authors, the results suggest that climate change will likely impact Bsal invasion probability, and strategies that manipulate the microclimate of newt habitats could be useful in managing Bsal outbreaks.

The authors conclude, "Our findings will help natural resource organizations entrusted with the management of wildlife diseases target high risk areas for Bsal surveillance in North America, and effectively respond to an outbreak if one occurs."

###

Peer-reviewed; Experimental study; Animals

In your coverage please use this URL to provide access to the freely available article in PLOS Pathogens: http://journals. plos. org/ plospathogens/ article?id= 10. 1371/ journal . ppat.1009234

Citation: Carter ED, Bletz MC, Le Sage M, LaBumbard B, Rollins-Smith LA, Woodhams DC, et al. (2021) Winter is coming-Temperature affects immune defenses and susceptibility to Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans. PLoS Pathog 17(2): e1009234. https:/ / doi. org/ 10. 1371/ journal. ppat. 1009234

Funding: MJG, DLM, DCW, and LAR-S received funds from the National Science Foundation Division of Environmental Biology (Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases Program, https:/ / www. nsf. gov/ funding/ pgm_summ. jsp?pims_id= 5269 ) Grant #1814520. DCW and LAR-S were partially supported by the U.S. Department of Defense Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (https:/ / www. serdp-estcp. org/ ) Grant #W912HQ-16-C-0033). MJG and DLM were supported by U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (https:/ / nifa. usda. gov/ program/ hatch-act-1887-multistate-research-fund ), Hatch Project #1012932. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
Jameson encourages people to take St Patrick's Day Time Off

Jameson is pledging to help 1,000 people in the US take some well-deserved time off to celebrate St Patrick's Day (17 March).

The Irish whiskey brand is encouraging people to take some SPTO (St Patrick's Time Off) and is offering $50 each to 1,000 lucky people to help them celebrate the Irish holiday.

Jameson will use the month leading up to St Patrick's Day to promote SPTO. It is also providing a number of ways for people to celebrate the holiday safely, including a virtual global concert featuring musician Jessie Reyez, a 'Hometainment' kit to create an at-home bar experience, and a number of cocktail recipes.

To help get the word out, actors/comedians Retta Sirleaf (Parks & Recreation, Good Girls) and Joe Lo Truglio (Brooklyn Nine Nine) have lent their talents for a public service announcement-style advert, encouraging fans to take up the SPTO pledge.

Fans around the world can tune in on St Patricks Day to watch the "Jameson Connects Jessie Reyez with Friends" global livestream concert, which will also feature up-and-coming Irish acts such as Kojaque and Denise Chaila.

Those inspired by Retta and Joe's message can pledge to take a #JamesonSPTO online where they'll receive a special Drizly code and enter to be among the 1,000 people to win $50 for their St Patrick's Day celebrations. Each winner will also see $50 donated in their name to the Restaurant Workers' Community Foundation, on top of the $150,000 Jameson is donating to the organisation.

18 February 2021 - Bethany Whymark
Dublin (Ireland), Feb 18, 2021 (SPS) - Front Line Defenders has strongly condemned the increased harassment by Moroccan authorities against Sahrawi human rights defenders living in Western Sahara over the past few months.

Front Line slammed the physical surveillance of prominent human rights defenders, and the use of Excessive force to disperse peaceful protests, ill-treatment of political prisoners and impose arbitrary disciplinary measures against human rights defenders during their work.SPS

125/090/TRA
The NSW government says it will be forced to delay funding to bushfire-affected communities if it is made to release documents detailing the first round of a $177 million bushfire relief scheme.

The upper house on Wednesday night passed a motion ordering the government to produce papers outlining how it chose bushfire-affected regions to receive fast-track funding under a state and federal program last year. Most of the funding was given to Coalition-held seats.

Upper house Greens MP and chairman of the Public Accountability Committee David Shoebridge. Credit:Kate Geraghty

Deputy Premier and Minister Responsible for Disaster Recovery John Barilaro recently defended the scheme at a parliamentary inquiry, saying areas that missed out did not meet the criteria.

Greens MP David Shoebridge said the government needed to be transparent about why projects in bushfire-hit areas such as the Blue Mountains were rejected.
Facebook has begun blocking news organizations, users, and other organizations in Australia from sharing news and other links on the social media platform. The declaration comes as Australia is slated to make the new "media code" as its law. The law seeks to correct the bargaining imbalance between digital giants, including Facebook and Google and newsrooms.

Facebook's Response to Media Code

The Facebook pages of Australia's Queensland, ACT Health, South Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology, and the WA Fire and Emergency Services have been blocked after the social media giant barred Australians from sharing news. The pages were barred as the social media platform followed through on its threat to bar Australians from sharing news on its platform in response to the proposed media bargaining code. The pages, which provide important government, health, and weather information and alerts, were prohibited on Thursday, reported The Epoch Times.

The decision to yank news content from its Australian platform was watched by the world. The abrupt move sent shockwaves through the global publishing community. It prompted the United States' largest media industry body to tout it as "misguided." The News Media Alliance ensured its support for US legislation similar to that being introduced in Australia.

According to the alliance president and CEO David Chavern, "It is misguided for Facebook to restrict the sharing of high-quality journalism on its platform. It is well-established that in the absence of real news, misinformation, disinformation and hate speech flourish -- a problem Facebook is all too familiar with. Prioritizing news on its platform is a solution that would be mutually beneficial to both publishers and Facebook. Facebook's abrupt action will hurt its users and, ultimately, backfire," reported Financial Review.

Also Read: Australian MP Receives One Week Suspension After Facebook Deems His Posts as COVID-19 Misinformation

The social media giant also reportedly blocked its own official page briefly. Many non-profit pages, including the Kids Cancer Project, Council to Homeless Persons, and other major organizations like the Australian Council of Trade Unions, were also affected. Australian citizens were prohibited from accessing news in their Facebook feeds after a spiraling of the proposed media bargaining code. This would require Google and the company to negotiate commercial deals with news outlets whose links drive traffic to their websites.

According to Save the Children CEO Paul Ronalds, the charity had been dependent on the platform to communicate with members and supporters. "We also use Facebook as an important fundraising tool to reach generous supporters who want to support the world's most vulnerable children." He added every minute that their page is down is another minute that their message is not communicating about the needs of children," reported Reuters.

Although a number of the pages have now been reinstated, Facebook stated it would reverse pages "inadvertently impacted" by their sudden and dramatic move. Other charity groups, involving the 1800Respect for domestic violence and a series of health organizations working with Indigenous Australians also found their pages blocked on Thursday. Questions are posed in Australia regarding the reason they were pulled down by Facebook in the first place.

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.


Moscow: Foreign Secretary Shri Harsh Vardhan Shringla is on an official visit to Moscow from 17-18 February 2021 for the India-Russia Foreign Office Consultations.

Foreign Secretary called on the Russian Foreign Minister H.E Mr. Sergey Lavrov yesterday (February 17). He handed over a letter of invitation from the External Affairs Minister of India Dr. S. Jaishankar to Foreign Minister Lavrov to visit India at a mutually convenient date. Foreign Minister Lavrov accepted the invitation and expressed his desire to visit India at an early date.

During consultations with the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister H.E. Mr. Igor Morgulov yesterday, the two sides reviewed important aspects of bilateral relations and also exchanged views on regional and international issues. Both sides agreed on a roadmap for high-level exchanges this year, including the Annual Bilateral Summit.

Foreign Secretary also had an in-depth exchange of views with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister H.E. Mr. Sergey Ryabkov today on multilateral issues focused particularly on disarmament and non-proliferation matters.

During his interaction at the Russian Diplomatic Academy the Foreign Secretary highlighted the importance of the India-Russia partnership in the global context. Foreign Secretary also had an enriching exchange of views with experts from prominent Russian think tanks today on bilateral as well as topical global issues.

The visit of Foreign Secretary was preceded by Foreign Office Consultations on UN Security Council (UNSC) matters and policy planning at DG level between the two sides on 15 February 2021 in Moscow.

The visit has been useful in further strengthening the close, strategic, special and privileged partnership between India and Russia by identifying an intensive plan of action for bilateral relations this year; agreements on new drivers of our strategic relations, including Russias keenness to invest in India under the Atmanirbhar programme; as well as close coordination on the multilateral front in the context of Indias current tenure as a non-permanent member in the UNSC and the BRICS Presidency.

Live TV
BIG RAPIDS, MI -- A 22-year-old Ferris State University student severely injured in a Jan. 17 on-campus apartment fire has died.

Alisha Jaynes died Feb. 15, according to Mecosta County sheriffs deputies.

Firefighters pulled Jaynes from the bathroom of an apartment on Cardinal Court about 5 p.m. Jan. 17 after someone called 911 to report smoke coming from an apartment building. She was unconscious.

FSU police initially tried to get into the apartment, as firefighters were headed to the scene, but could not because the door was obstructed.

Jaynes was taken to Spectrum Health Big Rapids before being transferred to Spectrum Health Butterworth hospital in Grand Rapids. She had burns and smoke inhalation.

Sheriffs investigators said she was on life support.

Police said Jaynes was an organ donor.

Family members previously created a GoFundMe page to help with medical expenses and travel costs for her mother to be with her at the hospital.

According to the page, Jaynes was studying human resources and was a member of a cheer team.

The FSU Office of Housing and Residence Life posted a Facebook message Wednesday, Feb. 17 about Jaynes death.

As an on-campus resident, her loss is felt deeply in our community. Our hearts and condolences go out to her family, her friends, her cheer team, and all Bulldogs right now, according to the post.

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The National Youth Organizer of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), Henry Nana Boakye says the legal team of the 2nd Respondent in the ongoing 2020 election petition is going to alert the Supreme Court about the scandalous and contemptuous comment from the legal team of the petitioner.



Dr Dominic Ayine, a Spokesperson for the petitioner in the ongoing 2020 election petition has described the ruling of the Supreme Court to quash the application of the petitioner to reopen his case and also subpoena the Chairperson of the 1st Respondent to be cross-examined as a predetermined agenda of the Supreme Court against the petitioner.



Dr Ayine also expressed dissatisfaction at the fact that the Supreme Court claim "there is only one issue to be determined". Dr Ayine also expressed dissatisfaction at the fact that the Supreme Court claim "there is only one issue to be determined".



" . . these are germane issues under the constitution of Ghana and to reduce the petition into a single issue petition is rather unfortunate and smacks of a predetermined agenda to rule against the petitioner in this matter," he said.



Reacting on Okay FMs 'Ade Akye Abia' Morning Show, Nana B as he is popularly called said that the comment of Dr Ayine is rather scandalous and contemptuous, making the Supreme Court appear before the public as an institution which is set to shield wrongdoing.



To him, the Bolgatanga East Member of Parliament and a former Deputy Attorney-General who ought to respect and protect one of the arms of government is instead insulting the Judiciary with his predetermined agenda comment.



This is scandalous and contemptuous . . . again if he says that Jean Mensa has done something wrong and the Court is encouraging her to the point that the Court is covering up for her or shielding the wrongdoing of the Chairperson, it is again scandalous and contemptuous because the court is not there to cover up for anyone who has done something wrong, he pointed.



This impression he has created is bad; he has scandalised the Supreme Court . . . you can criticise the ruling of the Court based on certain authorities and case law you have which are contrary to the positions of the judges of the Supreme Court on the application you have filed, but to say the Court has a 'predetermined agenda' is an insult and cast slur on the sanctity of the Judiciary, he chided.



He, however, made it clear that the legal team of the 2nd Respondent will alert the Supreme Court on the happenings so as to call Dr Dominic Ayine to explain to the Supreme Court judges his predetermined agenda comment.



 . . if the Supreme Court is not aware of what is happening, we will remind or alert the Supreme Court about it. If he says the Court has a 'predetermined agenda', he has to explain to the Court what he meant by that, he indicated.

Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com









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German conglomerate ended talks to sell its steel division to Britain's Steel due to differences over value, the latest setback in efforts to consolidate the European sector.

Steel, led by commodities tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, last month submitted a firmed-up non-binding bid for Thyssenkrupp's steel unit, Europe's second biggest in terms of sales, which sources said included commitments to protect jobs and sites.

"We regret this step because we perceived Steel as a serious partner in the process," Chief Financial Officer Klaus Keysberg said in a statement.

Thyssenkrupp's move to terminate talks shifts the focus to the group's two other scenarios for its steel division: keeping it or spinning it off to shareholders. Both would entail major additional cost and job cuts.

Shares in the company were down 4.8%.

"The steel business of needs to be realigned and adjusted," the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach foundation, Thyssenkrupp's top shareholder, said.

"Thyssenkrupp has no time to spare."

The move comes after Sweden's SSAB last month abandoned plans to buy the Dutch operations of India's Tata Steel, a sign of just how challenging consolidation is in a sector plagued by overcapacity.

In an internal memo to staff, Keysberg said differing views over the value of the division, financing structure and guarantees were the key reasons to end discussions.

"Overall, ideas were so far apart that continuing discussions wouldn't have gotten us any further," Keysberg said in the memo.

Liberty Steel's bid assumed a negative equity value for Thyssenkrupp's steel division of more than 1.5 billion euros ($1.8 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.

Recent broker reports were more optimistic on the back of first-quarter results released last week, putting that number somewhere between 400 million euros and zero.

Liberty Steel, Europe's fourth-largest steelmaker, earlier this week made a new offer addressing some of the concerns, one of the people said.

Gupta told German business paper Handelsblatt on Thursday that Liberty Steel was prepared to resume negotiations with Thyssenkrupp, saying it was incomprehensible why the German group called off the deal without serious negotiations.

($1 = 0.8306 euro)

(Reporting by Christoph Steitz, Tom Kaeckenhoff and Arno Schuetze in Frankfurt; Editing by Nick Macfie, Matthew Lewis, David Evans and Jane Merriman)

(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.)
Ithmaar Bank, a Bahrain-based Islamic retail bank, said it continues to focus on customer-centric growth and on becoming the Islamic retail bank of choice as it announced its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2020.

The announcement, by Ithmaar Bank Chairman Prince Amr Al Faisal, follows the review and approval of the Board of Directors of the banks consolidated financial results.

Ithmaar Banks financial results show a net loss attributable to equity holders for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020 of BD11.11 million compared to a net loss of BD4.02 million reported for the same period in 2019.

Total net loss for the three-month period ended December 31, 2020 was BD10.26 million compared to the BD2.80 million net loss reported for 2019. The results are mainly due to prudent impairment provisions, recognised largely as a consequence of the ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic.

The quarterly results contributed to a net loss attributable to equity holders for the year ended December 31, 2020 of BD15.29 million compared to the net loss of BD1.35 million reported for 2019. Total net loss for the year ended December 31, 2020 was BD10.97 million compared to the net profit of BD2.48 million reported for 2019, the bank said.

On behalf of the Ithmaar Bank Board of Directors, I am pleased to report that, despite the unprecedented challenges of 2020, the bank continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience and remains resolutely focused on becoming the Islamic retail bank of choice in the Kingdom of Bahrain, said Prince Amr. As a result, the bank continues to show stable, customer-centric growth in key areas while setting the stage for brisk growth when markets return to some sense of normalcy, he said.

Perhaps the clearest testimony to the banks resilience and continued growth is the fact that it is reporting increased operating income for 2020, one of the most challenging years in decades, said Prince Amr. Operating income increased by 4 percent, growing to BD87.02 million for the year ended 31 December 2020, compared to the BD83.59million reported for 2019, he said.

Income from unrestricted investment accounts also increased by 11 percent, growing to BD91.60 million for the year ended 31 December 2020, compared to BD82.55 million for 2019, said Prince Amr. This growth demonstrates continued customer confidence in the Bank, despite the extraordinary market conditions of 2020, he said.

Ithmaar Banks results include significant impairment provisions, which increased by BD12.81 million in 2020 compared to their 2019 levels due the ongoing global pandemic, said Prince Amr. Despite these prudent provisions, the Bank reported a net loss, before overseas taxation, of BD1.10 million for the year ended 31 December 2020 compared to net income of BD12.89 million reported for 2019, he said.

In September 2020, Ithmaar Holding, Ithmaar Banks parent company, and the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait (BBK), signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the potential acquisition by BBK of Ithmaar Banks Bahrain operations as well as specific assets of IB Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ithmaar Holding. The plans, which are subject to due diligence by both parties, will require shareholder and regulatory approvals.

When implemented, the plans will lead to bolstering the already well established Ithmaar Bank brand and position it to better capitalise on opportunities for growth. The plans are in line with Ithmaar Holdings strategy of creating value for its shareholders.

Our shared vision, of the becoming the Islamic retail bank of choice, was put to test by the trials of 2020  and I am pleased to report that, not only did we manage to continue our customer-centric growth, but we emerged stronger than before, said Ahmed Abdul Rahim, the bank CEO. This, in turn, helps highlight the fact that Ithmaar Bank is a growing, resilient bank, as reflected in the increased operating income, that continues to invest in the future and plays a key role in the community, he said.

A good reflection of customer confidence in Ithmaar Bank is the steady growth in equity of unrestricted investment accountholders by 20 percent to reach to BD1.28 billion at 31 December 2020 from BD1.06 billion in year 2019, as well as the increase in customers current accounts by 16 percent to reach to BD661.7 million at 31 December 2020, compared to BD572.5 million in year 2019, said Abdul Rahim.

The Bank continued during 2020 to build on the far-reaching digital initiatives it had recently launched, including a sophisticated Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution, an innovative Mobile Banking services application and various branch services automation and other customer-facing solutions. This is, of course, in addition to our ongoing focus on continuously developing our products and services while further enhancing our customers Islamic banking experience, he said.

In October 2020, the bank launched special financing offers for Mazaya programme beneficiaries to purchase villas at the Danaat Al Lawzi development, located at the West of Hamad Town. Similar offers were launched for the Deerat Al Oyoun development in Diyar Al Muharraq and other key developments in the kingdom. The special financing offers are designed exclusively for beneficiaries of the Mazaya programme, Bahrains social housing scheme that aims to help eligible Bahraini nationals buy their first homes. As part of this programme, citizens are offered government-subsidised financing to help them buy their homes.

In June 2020, despite the economic slowdown by the global Covid-19 pandemic, Ithmaar Bank announced the opening of a new branch in Hamad Town, effectively relocated the Al Hamalah branch to a new, better and more accessible location with ample parking facilities.

Earlier in 2020 year, Ithmaar Bank, in collaboration with Mastercard, launched a new service that allows Ithmaar Bank customers to transfer money from Bahrain to various countries around the world almost instantly. The service, called IthmaarSEND, is provided to customers directly from the Ithmaar Bank eBanking platform and offers a faster, simpler and more secure way of transferring money to almost anywhere in the world, through mobile phones, tablets or any other internet-connected device.

Ithmaar Bank owns 67% of Faisal Bank Limited in Pakistan, which began to expand significantly in the past few years, reaching 576 branches in most cities at the end of 2020, with a noticeable increase in the its financing, deposits and investment accounts portfolios, it said.  TradeArabia News Service

Despite the reports about a rising number of COVID-19 cases, Tanzania seems to be shunning coronavirus vaccines and placing its bets on herbal medicine instead

JOHANNESBURG (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th February, 2021) Despite the reports about a rising number of COVID-19 cases, Tanzania seems to be shunning coronavirus vaccines and placing its bets on herbal medicine instead.

Earlier in the week, Health Minister Dorothy Gwajima said the ministry had no plans to procure vaccines.

"The ministry has no plans for vaccines. The vaccines must first be approved by the department of health. We do not know when vaccines will arrive, though Tanzania is part of the COVAX facility for Africa," Gwajima said.

The official told the Tanzanian people that should the government provide vaccines, it would adhere to protocols deemed necessary.

"We usually have to get the governments' confidence in a health product safety," Gwajima stated.

The ministry is following the lead of Tanzanian President John Magufuli, who has often voiced skepticism regarding the use of vaccines. The country has not logged a single new case since May 9 of last year, and in June, the president declared Tanzania COVID-free thanks to citizens' prayers, which he considers more effective against the pandemic than lockdowns and social distancing.

Tanzania currently counts 509 COVID-19 cases, as well as 183 recoveries and 21 fatalities, but there are reports that things may be worse than the official numbers show. On February 10, the US Embassy in the country issued a health alert, citing an increase in coronavirus cases.

"The U.S. Embassy is aware of a significant increase in the number of COVID-19 cases since January 2021. The practice of COVID-19 mitigation and prevention measures remains limited. The Tanzanian government has not released aggregate numbers on COVID-19 cases or deaths since April 2020. Healthcare facilities in Tanzania can become quickly overwhelmed in a healthcare crisis. Limited hospital capacity throughout Tanzania could result in life-threatening delays for emergency medical care," the embassy said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the country is instead promoting a product developed by research scientist Hamis Malebo from the National Institute for Medical Research, called Covidol, believed to provide effective protection against coronavirus disease. According to Malebo, the medicine improves and strengthens the immune system and protects against infection.

The Council Chairman of Tanzania Traditional and Alternative Medicine, Edmund Kayombo told Sputnik that when it comes to vaccines they would play it by the ear to see responses to vaccination across Africa.

"We are searching for the best way and the best way will be to hear how our neighbors, Burundi, Rwanda and Kenya will respond to the vaccine. The government has encouraged that we use the herbal concoction called Covidol," Kayombo said.

According to Siphamadla Zondi, an affiliate at the University of Johannesburg, Tanzania has already gone it alone when it comes to the response to COVID-19.

"First, it decided to be skeptical about basic information on the virus when all countries raised alarm about the disease. They stayed calm, free from panic and didn't rush into measures most taken as advised by the WHO and Africa Center for Disease Control. It is no wonder that when the attention shifted to the acquisition of vaccines, Tanzania didn't join the rush, but decided on its own route to immunity, the indigenous medical knowledge system," Zondi told Sputnik.

When asked whether Tanzania's decision is political or ideological, Zondi said that "Tanzania has been critical of the information coming from the world about the virus."

"It is also because it wants to be self-reliant in its response to the virus and all other challenges that accompany and follow it. Its leadership does tend to buck trends on a number of subjects and this is not new or surprising," the expert stated.
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HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. and NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Vistex joins client Reservoir in announcing the success of their first joint data validation exercise for the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC)'s Data Quality Initiative (DQI). In preparation for the launch year of the MLC's music clearance and royalty distribution services, Vistex and Reservoir teamed up to test this critical, foundational service.

The MLC created DQI to provide an integrated way for music rights owners to verify that their owned and administered catalogs matched those records held by the MLC. This verification is vital to ensure the accurate and timely clearance of music, and the receipt and distribution of royalties to music rights holders.

Working closely together, Vistex provided the software tools allowing Reservoir to be one of the earliest adopters of this initiative. Reservoir is a global, independent music company representing more than 130,000 copyrights and 26,000 master recordings, performed by a wide range of artists from Hoagy Carmichael and John Denver to Ariana Grande and Young Thug. This exercise will now pave the way for Reservoir to benefit from MLC's services with the peace of mind that its repertoire will be accurately represented.

"We work very closely with our customers on industry needs to ensure that they are always provided with the tools to lead in their respective sectors. The Data Quality Initiative gave us a fantastic opportunity to assist with this groundbreaking new service and support Reservoir, who were very eager to engage with this. Reservoir has been a long-time partner of Vistex, and it was a pleasure to work with VP of Royalties & Copyright Administration Richard Scott DePerto and his team," said Amos Biegun, Global Head of Rights & Royalties at Vistex.

"Having Reservoir's rights completely and accurately reflected in the MLC's new database from its launch on day one was our goal, and Vistex delivered the functionality that will allow us to move forward with certainty. The success of this initiative will usher in a consistent and accelerated revenue stream for Reservoir and our songwriters," added Reservoir President and Chief Operating Officer, Rell Lafargue.

"This is a brand-new service mandated by the U.S. Copyright Office, and we are looking forward to engaging further with our customers and the MLC to ensure further success for all involved," concluded Biegun.

For more information on Vistex and Reservoir, please visit their websites Vistex.com and Reservoir-Media.com.

Press inquiries only, please:

Vistex

Alex Dehnert, Director of Marketing

P: (847) 490-0420

E: [email protected]

Reservoir Media

Suzanne Arrabito, Director of Marketing and Communications

P: (212) 675-0541

E: [email protected]

SOURCE Vistex

Related Links

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As India's first centralised AC railway terminal at Bengaluru is all set to be inaugurated, Union Railway Minister Piyush Goyal today shared a few pictures of it and they look stunning.

The railway terminal at the city's Baiyappanahalli area, named after Bharat Ratna Sir M. Visvesvaraya, is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities and claims to have an airport-like aura. South Western Railways had earlier informed that the terminal would be ready by the end of February.

Earlier in the day, publishing the pictures of the terminal, the Railway Minister took to Twitter to say: Have a glimpse of the upcoming Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminal in Bengaluru, Karnataka, equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.

Have a glimpse of the upcoming Sir M. Visvesvaraya Terminal in Bengaluru, Karnataka, equipped with state-of-the-art facilities.



View on Koo: https://t.co/NrovriSqi0 pic.twitter.com/pRwu2zG38O  Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) February 18, 2021

Take a look at India's first centralised AC railway terminal at Bengaluru's Baiyappanahalli

The 314-crore station building of 4,200 sqm will cater to a daily footfall of 50,000. A foot over-bridge along with two subways will link all platforms. The terminal has seven platforms apart from eight stabling lines and three pit lines. Every day, 50 trains can be operated from the terminal. The escalators and lifts will connect seven platforms to facilitate passenger movement.

Sir M. Visvesvaraya terminal which is said to be designed in the lines of Bengaluru airport will have an upper-class waiting hall, a VIP lounge with a digital real-time passenger information system, and a lavish food court. It will also have its own water recycling plant of 4 lakh-litre capacity

The sprawling parking area would be able to accommodate as many as 250 cars, 900 two-wheelers, 50 autorickshaws, five BMTC buses and 20 cabs.

Currently, 164 pairs of express trains and 109 pairs of passenger trains are being operated from KSR Bengaluru City and Yeshwantpur terminals. The new terminal, which was sanctioned in 2015-16, is expected to help SWR operate more trains from Bengaluru.

View Full Image The terminal will provide airport-like experience

View Full Image The  314-crore station building of 4,200 sqm will cater to a daily footfall of 50,000

View Full Image M. Visvesvaraya Terminal has seven platforms

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The Health Ministry has approved the import of 204,000 doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine this month to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

This would be the first batch out of 30 million doses of vaccine that Vietnam had previously ordered to buy. The vaccine is developed by British-Swedish company AstraZeneca in collaboration with Oxford University.

The Drug Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Health on Wednesday allowed AstraZeneca Vietnam Company Limited to import the doses under emergent circumstances to help fight against Covid-19 pandemic which has turned more complicated in Vietnam.

Truong Quoc Cuong, Deputy Minister of Health, said the producer had announced that the batch would arrive in Vietnam on February 23, but then changed it to February 28 due to procedure issues.

"Whether the vaccine batch would arrive in Vietnam as scheduled depends on the producer's completion of procedures and flight arrangement," Cuong said.

The health ministry on February 1 approved AstraZeneca vaccine for domestic inoculation. Currently, this vaccine is licensed for one-year circulation or conditional import in the Philippines, Thailand, the U.K., Vietnam and some other countries to help fight Covid-19.

The ministry earlier said doctors and other staff in frequent contact with Covid-19 patients or suspected infectees will be among the first to be vaccinated.

Other people on the priority list will be the elderly and those with chronic diseases that make them more vulnerable if they get infected, and officials in the diplomatic service. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said importing Covid-19 vaccines should be a foremost priority of the government, while calling for quick research progress on domestic Covid-19 vaccines as well. Vietnam is also expected to receive 4.9 million vaccine doses by the end of this month, provided via Covax, a global mechanism for developing, manufacturing and procuring Covid-19 vaccine candidates and help member countries access vaccines as they become available.

Vietnam has four domestic Covid-19 vaccines developed by Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology JSC, the Institute of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals, the Vaccine and Biological Production Company No. 1 and the Center for Research and Production of Vaccines and Biologicals.

Nanocovax, produced by Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology JSC, has finished its first phase of human trials and is expected to begin the second one this month. Covivac of the Institute of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals is expected to commence human trials this month as well.

Vietnam has been struggling with a wave of Covid-19 outbreak since January 28 after 55 clean days in a row, with 737 community transmissions recorded in 13 localities, including major cities Hanoi and HCMC.
A research team led by UMass Lowell is pioneering a new 3D imaging technique to better detect breast cancer and other diseases, including COVID-19.

The noninvasive medical technology uses specialized contrasting dye that recognizes breast cancer cells, allowing practitioners to better visualize human tissue inside the body. The dye amplifies the X-ray signal in tumors when used together with a state-of-the-art computed tomography (CT) scanner, called a "photon-counting spectral CT," which produces multi-colored, 3D images.

"The contrast agents, combined with spectral CT and machine learning, could lead to a more precise diagnosis of the disease and assist significantly in early intervention," said UMass Lowell Chemistry Assistant Prof. Manos Gkikas, who is leading the project, which is funded by a three-year, $750,000 grant from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center.

Other team members include UMass Lowell's Hengyong Yu, professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Mary Rusckowski, associate professor of radiology at UMass Medical School in Worcester. MARS Bioimaging Ltd., a leader in photon-counting spectral CT technology, is providing $210,000 in additional funding to support the research as an industry partner.

UMass Lowell doctoral students Shayesteh Tafazoli, Dayang Wang and Yongshun Xu, all of Lowell, are contributing to the work under the direction of Gkikas and Yu.

"To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time this type of combined research is being done. It highlights the importance of X-ray CT in medicine, a field where UMass is strong," said Gkikas, who lives in Boston.

Breast cancer is the most common type and the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in American women, according to the American Cancer Society. The organization estimates about 281,550 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in U.S. women this year. Many cases are discovered when the disease is at an advanced stage, making earlier detection and diagnosis key to improving patients' outlook and chances of survival.

"Detecting early signatures of this terrible disease will significantly improve the rate of survival of patients. Prof. Manos Gkikas and his collaborators are pursuing novel ideas that have the potential to yield new technologies that could save many lives. I am pleased to see work being conducted by researchers from different colleges at UMass Lowell and from our sister campus UMass Medical School," said Noureddine Melikechi, dean of UMass Lowell's Kennedy College of Sciences.

The research team believes the combined use of the specialized dye and the colored 3D X-ray images generated by spectral CT will revolutionize medical imaging, according to Gkikas.

"This can assist radiologists in discriminating between healthy and cancerous tissues. They can use those images to determine if a cyst or a tumor requires further examination or biopsy," Yu said. "The resulting data can then be amplified even further using image reconstruction algorithms and machine learning, enabling us to track a tumor's progression in primary breast cancer."

Unlike conventional contrasting agents, the specialized dye being developed by the research team can specifically target cancer cells and remain in the body for an extended time, which would improve the accuracy of diagnoses, according to Gkikas.

In our approach, we are designing contrast agents that could stay in the body for a prolonged period. They can accumulate at the cancer site and enhance the CT signal to better visualize the tumor," Manos Gkikas, Chemistry Assistant Professor, University of Massachusetts Lowell

The imaging would also allow practitioners to track a tumor's progression in primary breast cancer. In addition, the researchers hope to expand the technology to one day detect secondary, metastatic cancers that have spread beyond their primary site to other tissues or organs in the body. Such metastatic cancers can sometimes emerge anywhere from four to 10 years after treatment of the original cancer, according to Gkikas.

"In combining the expertise of our researchers across disciplines and institutions, we have established a unified front working to defeat breast cancer. The researchers are also aiming to use this method to detect COVID-19 and other diseases. We look forward to developing the many ways this cutting-edge technology could help save lives," said James Sherwood, dean of UMass Lowell's Francis College of Engineering.

In a separate project funded by UMass Lowell, Gkikas is applying the imaging technique to detect COVID-19 and track the progress of lung inflammation in patients coping with the disease.
IDEMIA, the world leader in Augmented Identity, today announced that will present its FY 2020 financial results and 2021 budget to investors on Friday February 19, 2021.

Pierre Barrial (President & CEO), Didier Fontaine (COO) and Laurent Lemaire (CFO) will be presenting the financial results and taking questions the same day at 3:00 pm CET (2:00 pm London Time / 9:00 am New York Time).

For more information, please refer to our website: https://investors.idemia.com/

About IDEMIA

IDEMIA, the global leader in Augmented Identity, provides a trusted environment enabling citizens and consumers alike to perform their daily critical activities (such as pay, connect and travel), in the physical as well as digital space.

Securing our identity has become mission critical in the world we live in today. By standing for Augmented Identity, an identity that ensures privacy and trust and guarantees secure, authenticated and verifiable transactions, we reinvent the way we think, produce, use and protect one of our greatest assets  our identity  whether for individuals or for objects, whenever and wherever security matters. We provide Augmented Identity for international clients from Financial, Telecom, Identity, Public Security and IoT sectors. With close to 15,000 employees around the world, IDEMIA serves clients in 180 countries.

For more information, visit www.idemia.com / Follow @IdemiaGroup on Twitter

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217005791/en/
The story behind Fatima Shaiks new book, Economy Hall: The History of a Free Black Brotherhood in New Orleans, is enough to make you believe in fate.

When the old building that housed Economy Hall was torn down in Treme, its contents were largely headed to the dump, but a friend had second thoughts and asked Shaik's father, educator Mohamed Shaik, to rescue some of the records and books.

Twenty-four books on a dump truck on the way to the garbage, Fatima Shaik said. And he rescued them and put them in the closet and they were there for about 50 years."

Eventually, Shaik started looking through the books, handwritten in French, and found they revealed the most prosperous Black community in the South prior to the Civil War: the Societe dEconomie et dAssistance Mutuelle.

During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, her father had to evacuate his home, and the books narrowly escaped floodwaters  another sign to Shaik to get busy.

And there was one more: A record of a seance in which the spirit of a departed member spoke from beyond to say, You who see us, write  the friends are always there.

Absolutely, when I read that, I thought OK, Im doing it, Shaik said, feeling she was destined in a certain way, because the books fell into her fathers hands. Destiny is a funny thing  you get it, but then you have to hold on to it. Its around us all the time, destiny or opportunity, or as the Catholics call it grace. Then you have to grab that moment of grace and do something with it. 

She did. She fell in love with the handwriting of the Economys secretary, Ludger Boguille, all 3,000 pages of it. He was the most prolific secretary, she said. "He began in 1857 and was there in the 1870s. His handwriting was so gorgeous  all the flourishes and stars  so well organized, and the journals read like a novel. You can feel the passion. When people are speaking excitedly, he puts exclamation points!!!

In Boguille (1820-1892), Shaik found the perfect example of a complex man whose life reveals the life of his society. He grew up the son of a cabinet maker. He was New Orleans born, classically educated, and by 1840, he already had a school of his own in Faubourg Marigny, as well as a teaching position at the famed Couvent School of the time.

He had two wives and three sons, boys named for poets. He joined the Native Guards when they were a Confederate militia, was one of the first Black officers in the United States, was present at the Mechanics Institute riots and barely escaped with his life, and ran for public office.

He was active in the Freedmens Bureau after the Civil War and became part of the Equal Rights League, started by Frederick Douglass in Syracuse, New York, and he and went on to work with the Louisiana Republican Party. In short, he packed a lot of living into his long life.

Started in a building at the auspicious intersection of Great Men and History streets (now Kerlerec and Dauphine), the Economy Hall brotherhood was much more than a social organization.

To be sure, the men celebrated holidays together, held elaborate balls, and in its final incarnation, the hall was known primarily as a musical venue. But the free people of color who founded the place were professionals who supported each other, who advocated for civil rights, who took care of each others families, attended each others funerals, who placed a high value on education and who were present at many of the major events of the period. They believed in civic pride, in civic vertu.

Boguilles radicalism, Shaik says, was organic.

His father was probably involved in the Haitian Revolution; he (the father) was 14 years old and it began in his hometown. Ludger was around all of these people whod been Haitian revolutionaries. He grew up around people in the Battle of New Orleans and was in the Civil War. He knew what equality meant and knew what it meant to him.

After three childrens books  "The Music of Our Street, On Mardi Gras Day and Melitte  and two works of adult fiction  "The Mayor of New Orleans, Just Talkin Jazz, and What Went Missing and What Got Found  Shaik was ready to take on a big work of nonfiction.

As a writer, youre always looking for a good story  and there are so many good stories here, she said. It was there on the face of it: those exclamation points, census records, and real estate records. Then I could picture the houses they lived in and families they had. The passion came through in my own discovery and in the people themselves, because I could see how much they loved freedom.

I think I was in love with Boguille because of the way I grew up in New Orleans, she said. In my family there was a real spirit of giving. We were always raising money for church or school or helping some neighbor, and that was just part of family life. Where do these values come from?

"Economistes were always talking about taking care of each other, and giving money that they raised to the neighbor next door, the widow with two children, the blind man on the corner. I could see where that spirit came into my family, my community. I wanted people to understand where that came from.

Shaik is the founder of the communications department at St. Peters University in Jersey City, New Jersey. Before that, she was a daily journalist for the Miami News and The New Orleans Times-Picayune, and an editor for McGraw Hill. She lives in New York with her husband, the artist James Little. Before the pandemic, she spent a portion of each year in New Orleans visiting extended family and friends.

She connects iconic sites with past historical events. For example, I can't walk on Rampart Street in front of Congo Square without thinking of the suicide of an Economiste. I never could walk past the slave quarters in the city without a feeling of sadness.

To see the city through her eyes is the gift of a passionate historian.

Once I put together the narrative from all of these pieces of evidence, I saw clearly how beautifully I was nurtured  how so many of us were in New Orleans, nurtured by communities that cared to show us the beauty in our world and its possibilities, she said. Look at the lives that went before us! How much they cared about the next generation and the creation of a just world!

Susan Larson hosts The Reading Life on WWNO.
Twenty-one outstanding scientists. Eight years of financial support. One tight-knit community.

Today, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) announced the selection of the 2020 Hanna Gray Fellows, a cohort of 21 early career researchers who are taking on some of the biggest challenges in the life sciences, such as understanding the innerworkings of the brain or the complexities of the immune system. By unlocking basic principles, their work could one day ease symptoms in patients with chronic pain, treat kids suffering from pediatric leukemia, and spark new therapeutics for emerging infectious diseases.

"These promising researchers are poised to do groundbreaking work and ready to inspire the next generation of scientists," says HHMI President Erin O'Shea. "HHMI is excited to welcome our new Hanna Gray Fellows into our community and to support them in their career journeys, as individuals and as a network of leaders changing the face of science."

As of 2021, HHMI has committed more than $105 million to increasing academic faculty diversity through the Hanna H. Gray Fellows Program, which currently includes 64 fellows (61 postdocs and three early career faculty) and 62 faculty mentors. That investment continues to grow through regular competitions.

The new cohort of Hanna Gray Fellows represents 18 institutions across a broad swath of the United States, from California to Missouri and Michigan to New York. They join a growing community of Hanna Gray Fellows, all at a critical time in their academic careers - the postdoctoral training phase through the transition to becoming a principal investigator. Each fellow will receive up to $1.4 million over eight years.

The impact of becoming an HHMI Hanna Gray Fellow can be immediate, says 2018 Hanna Gray Fellow Melanie McReynolds, a biochemist at Princeton University: "This is a real commitment to each fellow and their science. People begin to take you seriously because they know HHMI has invested in you."

In 2016, O'Shea, then HHMI's chief scientific officer, spearheaded the Hanna H. Gray Fellow Program's development. The program aims to increase diversity in science by recruiting early career scientists who represent a variety of racial, ethnic, gender, ability, and other underrepresented backgrounds.

In keeping with HHMI's basic science mission, the program gives fellows the freedom to explore new scientific territory and follow their curiosity, seeking answers to challenging scientific questions. In addition, HHMI staff work to purposefully build a community that can provide professional development and interactive support. After becoming a fellow, "all of a sudden I had a community that looks like me and we're all successful scientists," says 2017 Hanna Gray Fellow Christopher Barnes, a structural biologist at the California Institute of Technology who will start his own lab at Stanford University in the fall.

Fellows can connect with each other and HHMI Investigators during annual science meetings and other events held by HHMI, though the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the program to get creative. Last summer, fellows attended a virtual mentor training workshop, and recently, a virtual seminar for one fellow's practice job talk. That type of practice, along with advice from HHMI scientific officers on job opportunities, "is a major strength of the program," says 2019 Hanna Gray Fellow Angela Phillips, an evolutionary biologist at Harvard University.

The COVID-19 pandemic delayed the selection of the 2020 cohort until December 2020. A competition for the 2022 cohort of Hanna Gray Fellows will open late this summer. McReynolds says she has already been speaking to interested grad students. "This is an opportunity of a lifetime that could set the trajectory of your career," she tells them. "So what are you going to do about it?"

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About the Hanna H. Gray Fellows Program

The Hanna H. Gray Fellows Program represents HHMI's commitment to supporting talented early career scientists who have the potential to become leaders in academic research. By selecting individuals from groups underrepresented in the life sciences, HHMI seeks to increase diversity among academic faculty. Fellows' successful careers will inspire future generations of scientists from the United States' diverse talent pool.

The Hanna H. Gray Fellows Program is named for Hanna Holborn Gray, former chair of the HHMI trustees and former president of the University of Chicago. Under Gray's leadership, HHMI developed initiatives that foster diversity in science education. HHMI continues to carry forward this work on college and university campuses across the US.

The Hanna Gray Fellows will:

Follow their curiosity

In keeping with HHMI's long-standing approach to support "people, not projects," fellows have the freedom to change their research focus and follow their curiosity for the duration of the award. The competition is open to researchers and physician-scientists dedicated to basic research in all the biomedical and life science disciplines.

Join a vibrant scientific community

The program provides opportunities for career development, including mentoring and networking with others in the HHMI scientific community. Fellows will also attend an HHMI Science meeting each year. This year's 21 fellows join 43 current Hanna Gray Fellows selected in 2017, 2018, and 2019, during the program's first three years.

Receive support during a critical career stage

Fellows will receive funding for their postdoc training and may continue to receive funding during their early career years as independent faculty. In total, fellows may receive up to $1.4 million each and be supported for up to eight years. Applicants may obtain more information and eligibility requirements at http://www. hhmi. org/ programs/ hanna-h-gray-fellows-program .

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute plays an important role in advancing scientific research and education in the United States. Its scientists, located across the country and around the world, have made important discoveries that advance both human health and our fundamental understanding of biology. The Institute also aims to transform science education into a creative, interdisciplinary endeavor that reflects the excitement of real research. HHMI's headquarters are located in Chevy Chase, Maryland, just outside Washington, DC.

2020 Hanna Gray Fellows

Biafra Ahanonu, PhD

University of California, San Francisco

Mentor: Allan Basbaum, PhD

James R. Allen, PhD

Massachusetts General Hospital

Mentor: David Langenau, PhD

Nicolas Altemose, PhD, DPhil

University of California, Berkeley

Mentor: Gary Karpen, PhD

Steve Bonilla, PhD

University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus

Mentor: Jeffrey Kieft, PhD

Maria Angelica Bravo Nunez, PhD

Harvard University

Mentor: Andrew Murray, PhD

Kyle Card, PhD

Cleveland Clinic Foundation

Mentor: Jacob Scott, MD, DPhil

Ava Carter, PhD

Harvard Medical School

Mentor: Michael Greenberg, PhD

Willow Coyote-Maestas, PhD

University of California, San Francisco

Mentor: James Fraser, PhD

Morgan Gilman, PhD

Harvard Medical School

Mentor: Andrew Kruse, PhD

Leah Guthrie, PhD

Stanford University

Mentor: Justin Sonnenburg, PhD

Autumn Holmes, PhD

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis

Mentor: Michael S. Diamond, MD, PhD

Kalli Kappel, PhD

Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

Mentor: Aviv Regev, PhD, and Feng Zhang, PhD

David Martinez, PhD

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Mentor: Ralph Baric, PhD

Edgar Medina, PhD

University of Massachusetts Amherst

Mentor: Lillian Fritz-Laylin, PhD

Evert Njomen, PhD

The Scripps Research Institute

Mentor: Benjamin F. Cravatt, PhD

Vanessa Punal, PhD

University of Michigan

Mentor: Josie Clowney, PhD

Sofia Quinodoz, PhD

Princeton University

Mentor: Clifford Brangwynne, PhD

Valeria M. Reyes Ruiz, PhD

Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Mentor: Eric P. Skaar, PhD

Marissa Scavuzzo, PhD

Case Western Reserve University

Mentor: Paul Tesar, PhD

Zuri Sullivan, PhD

Harvard University

Mentor: Catherine Dulac, PhD

Guillaume Urtecho, PhD

Columbia University

Mentor: Harris Wang, PhD
Warriors center Kevon Looney, sidelined since spraining his left ankle in a February 2 loss to the Celtics, has rejoined the Warriors for segments of practice and is planning on suiting up with the club during Golden States impending road trip, per Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link).

Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle details the import of the big mans return to the lineup in a new piece. I always joked that I never hurt my ankle, Looney said after incurring the injury. I guess karma caught up with me.

Theres more out of California:
Maritime Consortium launch Crewcare app to improve seafarer well-being

Marking a significant step forward in seafarer welfare, a group of established maritime entities have joined forces to build a digital platform aimed at improving the emotional well-being of the worlds 1.7 million seafarers.

Launched yesterday, the Safebridge CrewCare app  jointly developed by volunteer group Container Shipping Supporting Seafarers (CSSS), maritime EdTech company Safebridge, data analytics company Motion Ventures, and the Universities of Manchester and Plymouth  encourages seafarers to open up about their feelings and thoughts to mitigate the risk of depression and suicide. In 2017, the UK P&I Club revealed that suicide was the top cause of seafarers deaths, accounting for 15% of all fatalities at sea. Prof. Capt. Ralph Becker-Heins, CEO, Safebridge, said: Safebridge recognises seafarers as the global maritime industrys beating heart, without whom international trade would grind to a halt. Whether it is with our #BeSafe campaign, our series of interviews giving seafarers a louder voice, or now with the CrewCare app, we continue to support our seafarers. This latest solution is the next logical step towards a future where every single seafarer is able to more closely interact with those ashore, taking greater care of his or her well-being. Commenting on the combined expertise and synergy of the organisations involved in the development, Emmanolia Kolias, Global Sales Leader, Safebridge, said: Each organisation participating in this project collectively applied its knowledge, expertise, and capabilities to contribute to the CrewCare app's vision and success. As a result, CrewCare makes it possible to create a real-time connection between crew managers and their seafarers, offering the level of support that goes far beyond career development. The app facilitates crew managers' ability to monitor the status of the seafarers' well-being, general health, and COVID-19 risks but also gives them the power to take immediate action and offer direct support to those in need. We all know that Seafarers' access to support is critical, and this app allows crew managers to precisely achieve that and ensure that seafarers make it home safely, said Kolias. The app incorporates a professionally qualified questionnaire based on techniques medical practitioners use to make decisions when presented with a patients symptoms. An algorithm rates the multi-choice answers given to rate the mood of the seafarer from 1 (low risk) to 10. If a user scores 9 or 10, then that person is identified, and actions can be taken by the ship management company to mobilise appropriately qualified personnel in support of the individual. Philip Eastell, CSSS founder and the driving force behind the CrewCare initiative, said: Where concern exists there is now an opportunity for seafarers to get help. The app is a very low-key diagnostics tool set up to ensure that those seafarers struggling to cope receive the care they need. Eastell believes that the quality and quantity of the data will also provide the industry with more substantive, meaningful statistics than the limited happiness-type indices developed by other organisations. We are hoping that the shipping lines will recognise the importance of this application, he said. The app combines features and functionalities derived from Motion Ventures and Safebridge platforms to offer a single central point for assessing, monitoring, and responding to seafarers' health and well-being needs. It also features an integrated communications function and affords access to the 24h International Seafarers Welfare and Assistance Network (ISWAN) helpline SeafarerHelp. Roger Harris, CEO, ISWAN, said: We welcome this application and the many benefits it will bring to seafarers and ship managers alike, especially during the current crew change crisis when many seafarers are suffering from increased anxiety and stress. Valentinos Steliou, Product Manager, Safebridge, added: The industry has been looking for a solution that caters to the well-being of all our seafarers for some time now. The CrewCare App enables forward-thinking companies to provide their seafarers with a smart tool designed not only to manage their seafarers' well-being but also to help them provide the requisite care. This app allows ship managers to take positive action and provide support where and when it is needed.





India: 23 forced conversion cases filed in 23 days of new anti-conversion law

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Police in Indias central state of Madhya Pradesh registered 23 cases of forced conversion in the first 23 days of the implementation of a new and strict anti-conversion law, according to media reports, indicating that the ongoing persecution of religious minorities is likely to further intensify.

Twenty-three cases were registered under the newly passed Freedom of Religion Ordinance 2020 in January in Madhya Pradesh, the states interior minister, Narottam Mishra, who is from the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, said, according to The Times of India.

The ordinance, which came into force on Jan. 9 and will affect mostly Muslim and Christian minorities, was passed under the pretext of love jihad, a term coined by Hindu nationalists to claim that Hindu women were being lured into marriage by Muslim men for conversion to Islam  a claim that has not been substantiated.

We maintain that this is a serious issue and such forces are active across the country. An effort has been taken in Madhya Pradesh to stop them, Mishra added.

An equal number of Muslims and Christians have been arrested under the ordinance, according to Matters India.

Among those arrested under the law is Chhatar Singh Katre, a teacher from a village in the Balaghat area, who had organized a prayer meeting on Jan. 27 to celebrate the admission of his daughter to college, the U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern said.

Police arrived before the meeting began and arrested Katre and two other Christians, it said. All three were charged with violating the new anti-conversion law for luring and coercing people into changing their religion.

My father organized the meeting for me and now he is in jail for no reason, Kalyani Katre, Katres daughter, was quoted as saying. The case was registered against him and two others on the complaint of a person who was booked 10 years ago for assaulting and harassing my father and others for participating in a religious program.

The ordinance replaces the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act of 1968, which presumes that Christian workers force or give financial benefits to Hindus to convert them to Christianity.

While these laws have been in place for decades in some states, no Christian has been convicted of forcibly converting anyone to Christianity. These laws, however, allow Hindu nationalist groups to make false charges against Christians and launch attacks on them under the pretext of the alleged forced conversion.

Similar anti-conversion laws have also been enacted in the states of Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.

Most recently, the northern state of Uttar Pradesh approved an anti-conversion law that experts warned would incite more religiously motivated violence as attacks on Christians and other religious minorities continue to escalate.

Some of these laws state that no one is allowed to use the threat of divine displeasure, meaning Christians cannot talk about Heaven or Hell, as that would be seen as forcing someone to convert. And if snacks or meals are served to Hindus after an evangelistic meeting, that could be seen as inducement.

The ICC previously noted that Indias own population data proves that the conspiracy of mass conversions to Christianity is a false claim. In 1951, the first census after independence, Christians made up only 2.3% of India's overall population. According to the 2011 census, the most recent census data available, Christians still only make up 2.3% of the population.

Attacks and curbs on Christians have been on the rise since the BJP won Indias 2014 general election.

Since the current ruling party took power in 2014, incidents against Christians have increased, and Hindu radicals often attack Christians with little to no consequences, noted Open Doors World Watch List last year, which ranked India as the 10th worst country for Christians.

The view of the Hindu nationalists is that to be Indian is to be Hindu, so any other faith  including Christianity  is viewed as non-Indian. Also, converts to Christianity from Hindu backgrounds or tribal religions are often extremely persecuted by their family members and communities, Open Doors said at the time.

Last year, India denied entry visas to representatives of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom who had planned to investigate reports of persecution of Muslims and Christians following the release of its report that designates India as a Country of Particular Concern.

In a statement to The Christian Post, advocacy group The Federation of Indian American Christian Organizations of North America said at the time it was deeply disappointed India did not receive the CPC designation in 2020.

The national government allowed violence against minorities and their houses of worship to continue with impunity and engaged in and tolerated hate speech and incitement to violence, FIACONA said. The Indian government headed by the Hindu nationalist BJP party continues to claim so conveniently that all such violence against Christians in India is isolated incidents and not the policy of the government.
Pennsylvania movie theaters ditch mask mandate

Three chain movie theaters have announced that masks are no longer mandatory for moviegoers who have been vaccinated against coronavirus.


Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 02:02:06|Editor: huaxia

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GAZA, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Hamas-run health ministry in the besieged Gaza Strip announced on Wednesday that it has received the first batch of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine.

"Today, we received the first batch of the coronavirus vaccines for the first time since the outbreak of the disease in the Gaza Strip," said Muneer al-Borsh, director of the Hamas-run health ministry's pharmaceutical department.

He said the shipment contains 2,000 doses of vaccines and will be enough for the vaccination of 1,000 people.

"The shipment of the vaccines was sent to the Gaza Strip through the Israeli-controlled commercial crossing point of Kerem Shalom, in coordination with the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah," al-Borsh noted.

At Kerem Shalom, Majdi Dhair, director of the Hamas-run health ministry's health care, told reporters that the vaccination campaign in the Gaza Strip will start on Thursday morning.

Dhair said the first batch of vaccines will be used for the medical staff in intensive care units, patients who have transplanted organs, elderly people and patients with chronic diseases.

"We still don't have any information on more shipments of vaccines to the Gaza Strip, home of more than 2 million population," he added.

Israel on Monday refused to allow the coronavirus vaccines into the Gaza Strip, causing the Palestinian government to appeal for an international intervention into the issue, before Israel lifted the ban on Wednesday.

The Gaza Strip, which has been under tight land, sea and air blockade by Israel since 2006, has recorded a total of 53,871 COVID-19 cases since the outbreak of the pandemic in Palestine in March 2020. Enditem
Actor and Jewellery designer Neelam Kothari Soni has been spending time in the Maldives with her husband and television actor Samir Soni and their daughter Ahana. The family seems to be having a rejuvenating time in a luxury beach resort in Maldives and Neelam has been updating her followers with glimpses from her fun family vacation. From swimming to water sports, boat rides, luxury dining, and fishing, the family made the most out of their trip on the holiday island.

Also Read: Neelam Kothari Soni's Early Life, Career And Other Details You Must Know

Take a peek in Neelam Kothari Soni's photos from the Maldives

The family has been staying in the popular Lily Beach Resort and Spa in the Maldives. In her latest Instagram story and posts from their Maldives adventures, she added pictures from their fun fishing trip. Samir Soni looked excited to go on fishing with his daughter. The fishing trip seemed to be successful as in another image Samir was seen with a fish trapped in his hook. Neelam Kothari wrote in the caption "Catch of the day" with a laughing and fish emoticon. Check out the Instagram post-

The family took off to the Maldives 6 days ago in a private jet as per Neelam Kothari Soni's photos on Instagram. After that, Neelam has been sharing breathtaking pictures from the island and their adventures together. A day after they reached, she posted a picture of her by the pool in the resort and the background showcased the beautiful view of the beach. Neelam captioned the post When you wake up with this view.. its like heaven on earth. Check out her posts.

Also Read: Neelam Kothari Soni Shares Her Wedding Picture; Highlights Her Bond With Maheep

On the occasion of valentines day, the family kicked off the romantic day with breakfast inside the pool. Neelam, Samir, and Ahana posed in a swimming pool with their breakfast tray floating on the water. In the picture, the swimming pool overlooked the beautiful beach and coast of Maldives and gave followers the vibe of the luxurious stay at the resort. Check out the post here-

After that Neelam has been posting pictures from their time on the Maldives islands, coast, the resort, and their water adventures. She shared a string of images of family time in the luxurious resort. She uploaded a video clip of her getting "Sun Kissed" by the vast pools of the resort and she was later seen having fun in the water of the beach. Check out the posts here-

Neelam Kothari and Samir Soni went on a boat trip on one of their trip days. One could feel the soothing beach vibe in the air by just looking at the pictures of the luminous blue-green water of the sea in the Maldives. They were seen having a fun boat ride and the family enjoyed the serene beauty of nature during the sunset in the middle of the sea. She also added a picture of her with Samir enjoying luxury dining in a restaurant. Check out their post here-

In her last post from the trip last night, she added a picture of her sun-bathing at the beach coast. She also added a group image with husband Samir Soni and the crew members from the Lily resort to thank them. She wrote in the caption "Im gonna miss this place so much!!!" She added the thank you note and complimented their resort, food, and hotel members to make their trip special and made them feel at home. Check out the post-

Also Read: Neelam Kothari's Net Worth: Know All About The 'Khudgarz' Actor's Jewellery Stores & More

Alia Bhatt, Sonakshi Sinha, and other celebs at Maldives

It was not just Neelam Kothari and Samir Soni who had fun on their vacation in the Maldives. Many Bollywood celebrities went on vacation recently and the Maldives seems to be their preferred vacation. Earlier this year, Sara Ali Khan was seen holidaying with her brother and mother on the island. About a week ago Alia Bhatt was seen having fun with her friends and sister on the beaches of Maldives. On new year's eve, Ishan Khatter and Ananya Pandey were also seen having fun in the Maldives.

Image Source: Neelam Kothari's Instagram

Also Read: Neelam Kothari Soni Thanks Everyone For Wishes As She Celebrates Birthday On Social Media

Get the latest entertainment news from India & around the world. Now follow your favourite television celebs and telly updates. Republic World is your one-stop destination for trending Bollywood news. Tune in today to stay updated with all the latest news and headlines from the world of entertainment.



CII has asked the government to allow companies to vaccinate their employees and family members for Covid 19.

CII asked the government to consider industry participation in ramping up the vaccination programme.

"It is suggested that for ensuring faster rollout and for providing confidence to workers at the workplace, business enterprises could be permitted to vaccinate their employees and immediate family members. Enterprises could also assist in the vaccine rollout for surrounding communities on a CSR basis as well," it said.

It is estimated that such a programme could benefit an additional 100 million workers in the formal sector and local communities by providing access to the vaccine. While contributing to the Government's program, Industry would fully comply with all the guidelines instituted by the Government.

CII also suggested that private providers, with appropriate checks and balances, be allowed to vaccinate and support the Government to both utilize the available vaccines as well as amplify the number of vaccinations with all necessary norms and compliances.

The exercise will allow the Government to reach its identified target priority groups quicker, which will be critical for getting the workforce back to work and the economy back on track.

As all vaccines have a finite period of longevity and the matter of possible expiry of many of these vaccines is of national concern, it is recommended that all stakeholders must contribute in a manner that all vaccines available in the country are well utilised and well in time.

"By opening the vaccination process to private sector, the large cohort of those willing to take the vaccines would enable full utilization of the vaccines within the expiry period," CII said.

"Industry can supplement and contribute to the Government's program with appropriate checks and balances, throughout the envisaged three phases, so as to further reach out the vaccine to those sections of the population who can contribute to the economic revival of the country," stated T.V. Narendran, President Designate Chairman of CII's Vaccine Task Force.

Taking cognizance of the fact that the second phase of inoculating those over 50 years will be a particularly challenging task, with requirements for significantly increased vaccinating sites and vaccinators, CII has come out with three key recommendations.

--IANS

san/in

(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.)
New Delhi, Feb 18 : With just months remaining before the assembly polls in West Bengal, the BJP, engaged in a bitter fight against the ruling Trinamool Congress, is planning more than 1,500 rallies in the state.

These rallies will be addressed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Ministers, and Ministers of the BJP ruled states, senior national and state leaders of the party.

Polls for 294 seats West Bengal assembly will be held in April-May this year.

While addressing a public meeting at Kakdwip on Thursday during Poribortan Yatra, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, "Big rallies will be held at assembly level. Over 1,500 sabhas (public meetings) will be held and workers from each and every booth will participate in it." A BJP leader associated with preparations of the party's programme in West Bengal said that focus will be on reaching out to each and every voter of the state and establishing direct communication with them.

"Five to six rallies will be held in each assembly constituency and senior party leaders will address it," he said.

Another BJP leader pointed out that the party has plenty of leaders occupying different positions in government or organisation and they will address these rallies in West Bengal.

Sharing the initial plans for the rallies, the BJP leader said that the Prime Minister will hold rallies in clusters of few parliamentary seats, while senior union ministers will address rallies at a parliamentary constituency level or in a cluster of few assembly seats.

"Senior leaders, ministers in the party-ruled state governments will address the rally at the assembly level. They will also hold multiple rallies in a particular assembly seat as per requirement at the ground level," he added.

Apart from big rallies, the party will also focus on holding smaller rallies to reach out voters in small groups."The party is drawing plans to hold small rallies of a few hundred or thousand people during the run up to the Bengal assembly polls," the party leader said.

Riding high on the Lok Sabha results in the state in 2019 in which the party had won 18 of West Bengal's 42 seats, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to dislodge the Mamata Banerjee government. It has set a target of winning more than 200 seats in West Bengal.

Several leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress have joined the party in the state in the last few months.

(Shashi Bhushan can be contacted at shashi.b@ians.in)
A GROUP of six unfinished houses on a 0.7 acre site in Clondalkin, Dublin 22, have been sold for 1.415,000 or 165,000 over the 1.25m guide price quoted by Savills.

Located on the southern side of Station Road in Clondalkin at a property known as 1 to 6 Station Grove, the three bedroom, red brick, two storey houses included a terrace of three houses, a pair of semi-detached houses as well as one detached house.

John Swarbrigg of Savills, who was handling the sale, said that the site offered potential for an additional six units as per previous grants of planning permissions.

The sale took pace on the Offr.io specialist property auction platform.

The existing houses are located to the north of the site, with the remainder of the 0.7 acres comprising a greenfield site.

With access from Station Road, the flat site is bound by Station Road to the north, James Connolly Park to the west, Station Road Business Park to the east and Ballymanaggin Lane to the south.

As well as being in an established residential location, the property is located close to the intersection of Station Road with Station Road Business Park.

Amenities such as Clondalkin Town Centre and the Mill Shopping Centre are located within 1km of the property.

In addition a number of schools are located within 1km including St Peters School, St. Johns NS, Colaiste Chilliain. Gaelscoil Chluain Dolcain, Our Lady Queen of the Apostles and Moyle Park College.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - BELGRAVIA HARTFORD CAPITAL INC. (CSE: BLGV) ("Belgravia" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it intends to undertake a Normal Course Issuer Bid ("NCIB") commencing on February 23, 2021.

Mehdi Azodi, President and CEO, stated, "The Company's management and board of directors believe that from time to time the market price of Belgravia's common share price does not reflect the underlying value of the business and current assets, and that the purchase of common shares for cancellation at such times is a prudent corporate measure that will increase the proportionate interest in the Company and further shareholder value. The purpose of the NCIB is to facilitate this process."

As of February 17, 2021, the Company had 401,792,516 common shares issued and outstanding. Under the terms of the NCIB, Belgravia may acquire up to 20,089,626 of its common shares, representing 5% of its issued and outstanding common shares. Such common shares will be purchased only when and if the Company considers it advisable. The Company has appointed Leede Jones Gable to coordinate and facilitate its NCIB purchases.

The NCIB will terminate on the earlier of February 23, 2022 and the date on which the maximum number of Common Shares that can be acquired pursuant to the NCIB have been purchased. All shares purchased by the Company will be purchased on the open market through the facilities of the CSE and/or alternate Canadian trading systems at the market price at the time of purchase. Any common shares purchased pursuant to the NCIB will be cancelled by the Company.

About Belgravia Hartford

Belgravia Hartford Capital Inc. is a Canadian publically traded investment holding company which invests in public and private companies in legal jurisdictions and under the rule of law. Belgravia and its investments are high risk business ventures and expose shareholders to financial risks.

For more information, please visit www.belgraviahartford.com

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain information set forth in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements include statements that use forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "expect", "anticipate", "believe", "continue", "potential" or the negative thereof or other variations thereof or comparable terminology. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding planned investment activities & related returns, the timing for completion of research and development activities, the potential value of royalties, and other statements that are not historical facts. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the control of the Company, including, but not limited to, changes in market trends, the completion, results and timing of research undertaken by the Company, risks associated with resource assets, the impact of general economic conditions, commodity prices, industry conditions, dependence upon regulatory, environmental, and governmental approvals, and the uncertainty of obtaining additional financing. Readers are cautioned that the assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be imprecise and, as such, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements.

For More Information, Please Contact:

Mehdi Azodi, President & CEO

Belgravia Hartford Capital Inc.

(250) 763-5533

mazodi@blgv.ca

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74862
Sadiq Khan today risked the wrath of anti-lockdown Tory MPs and hospitality bosses as he demanded Boris Johnson reject calls for a swift easing of national curbs.

The Mayor of London urged the Prime Minister to ignore 'shouting and hectoring' from Conservative backbenchers as he prepares to unveil his exit roadmap on Monday.

Mr Khan said Mr Johnson must 'learn the lessons of the mistakes made in the past' when the Government has previously eased lockdown.

Mr Johnson has said his roadmap will be 'based firmly on a cautious and prudent approach' to ease restrictions in 'such a way as to be irreversible'.

But many Tory MPs are adamant that the success of the nation's vaccination drive should allow the PM to lift rules quickly.

Mr Khan's intervention came after Mark Woolhouse, an Edinburgh University expert in infectious disease, said the latest data suggested there could be an 'earlier unlocking'.

Meanwhile, an Imperial College London surveillance study - the largest in the country - found infection rates are halving every two weeks, with cases set to fall to 1,000 a day by the second week of April.

Shaun Bailey, the Tory candidate running against Mr Khan in May's mayoral election, said: 'The Prime Minister has been clear that he will follow the advice of experts, not politicians  regardless of whether they're backbenchers or Sadiq Khan.

'So this was a pointless demand from a Mayor who has shown little interest in making things happen.

'Instead of attacking the government, Sadiq Khan should work with ministers to support the businesses that are struggling in lockdown. This is what London's businesses need.'

Boris Johnson, pictured during a visit to south Wales yesterday, will unveil his lockdown exit roadmap on Monday

Mr Johnson will today reportedly receive a dossier of data which will help shape the final version of his roadmap out of lockdown.

It is thought the document will set out a phased approach for reopening society amid fears hospitality firms may not be allowed to return to normal until as late as July.

Asked if he expects the PM to display caution in the exit strategy, Mr Khan told LBC Radio: 'I think it is really important, I know all of us are frustrated and want to get out of this lockdown as soon as possible.

'But we learnt the lessons of the mistakes made in the past and I will give you some stats which give you an idea of the scale of the challenge we face.

'Back in June last year when the Prime Minister announced that we would be coming out of lockdown when you compare the numbers of people in hospital versus now, at the moment as I speak to you we have six times as many more people in hospital now than last June when lockdown was eased.

'We have eight times as many people on ventilators in London now than last June and I'm afraid the really sad news, 15 times as many deaths.

'So what I'd hope the Prime Minister would do is learn the lessons of the mistakes made in the past and when he announces the roadmap on Monday, make sure he follows the data and the science rather than the shouting and hectoring from his backbench MPs.'

Mr Khan said the 'health of individuals and the health of our economy are inextricably linked'.

He added: 'I am as impatient as the next person in getting our businesses reopened, supporting our businesses, but we have got to make sure this virus is properly suppressed before we do so.'

Mr Johnson is facing mounting pressure to speed up the easing of lockdown after he yesterday suggested pubs, bars and restaurants will be the final parts of the economy allowed to fully reopen.

It is thought lockdown rules could be eased at four-weekly intervals after a 'limited' loosening at the Easter holiday, with the hospitality sector likely having to wait until early May for the green light to resume restricted trading.

But Tory MPs believe venues should be able to immediately resume trading on Covid-secure terms at Easter, labelling the prospect of lockdown rules still being in place as late as July as 'ridiculous' and arguing it would be impossible to justify if the vaccine roll-out continues its success.

Steve Baker, a member of the 70-strong anti-lockdown Covid Recovery Group of Tory MPs, pointed to Professor Woolhouse's comments to pile the pressure on Mr Johnson.

He said: 'Boris Johnson today rightly confirmed he will focus on 'data, not dates' for easing restrictions as our recent letter suggested.

'As Professor Woolhouse, a senior government scientific adviser, says, the data are looking so good that Britain may open earlier.'

There are growing fears that many pubs will close for good unless lockdown rules are eased soon.

The hospitality industry has rejected the claim it is a 'significant area of transmission' and is calling for venues to be reopened at the same time as non-essential retail.

UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls said: 'We know that hospitality businesses are safe and all the data has shown we are not a significant area of transmission.'

Richard Bailey, chairman of the Thwaites pub group, told The Sun: 'Once again the pubs of this nation will be made a scapegoat in the reopening plan.'


FILE - Dolly Parton arrives at the 61st annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 10, 2019, in Los Angeles. Parton turns 75 on Jan. 19. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File) PHOTO:Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File

Dolly Asks TN Not to Put Her Statue at Capitol

By The Associated Press

NASHVILLE - Dolly Parton is asking Tennessee lawmakers to withdraw a bill that would erect a statue of her on the Capitol grounds in Nashville.

Given all that is going on in the world, I dont think putting me on a pedestal is appropriate at this time, Parton said in a statement issued Thursday.

Democratic Rep. John Mark Windle introduced the bill last month that aims to honor Parton for all that she has contributed to this state."

Aside from her status as a music icon, Parton is a lifelong philanthropist. She founded the Imagination Library, which mails books to children under the age of 5 across the world to improve child literacy, and her million-dollar donation to Vanderbilt University helped develop the highly effective Moderna coronavirus vaccine. Her advocacy for racial justice was recently celebrated in a mural in Nashville.

In advocating for the statue, Windle said, At this point in history, is there a better example, not just in America but in the world, of a leader that is (a) kind, decent, passionate human being? (Shes) a passionate person who loves everyone, and everyone loves her.

In her Thursday statement, Parton thanked the legislature for their consideration of the bill and said she was honored and humbled by their intentions.

Although she asked lawmakers to withdraw the bill for now, Parton said "I hope, though, that somewhere down the road several years from now or perhaps after Im gone if you still feel I deserve it, then Im certain I will stand proud in our great State Capitol as a grateful Tennessean.
There was so much anticipation worldwide for a vaccine that could be effective against Covid-19 that most countries put in place strict rules for qualification to receive the vaccine. In India, 11 states agreed to begin administering the vaccine in January, and were worried that people might try to get the shot out of turn.

A month into Indias vaccination drive, when the earliest recipients are due for their booster shots, it appears the numbers of eligible frontline workers showing up to get inoculated is only reducing. Experts are concerned that this could affect the rate at which we achieve herd immunity.

As it happened, the three states that started vaccination on January 16Bihar, Telangana, and Tamil Naduhad dismal reports about the turnout. In Tamil Nadu, only 99 of a planned 600 doses were administered on the first day. A month on, the daily turnup at government hospitals is sometimes as low as 10 people.

While two vaccinesCovishield, which has seen four trials across the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa with 24,000 participants; and Covaxin, manufactured by Bharat Biotech in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)are being given in India, the majority of centres are using the Covaxin.

Among the reasons for hesitation among healthcare workers is the three-page consent form they have to sign, with such daunting clauses as one that states they will be monitored for adverse effects, and also the lack of published data about the efficacy of Covaxin. The Phase 2 trial of the vaccine had less than 400 participants. Although the company states that the Phase 3 trialwhich is ongoinghas 26,000 participants, its safety and immunogenicity data has not been made available, and the speed with which it was given approval by the government has raised eyebrows.

The official word is that the vaccine has been approved for restricted emergency use. Can mass vaccination be termed restricted emergency use? It is only fair that people who are taking a vaccine be aware of the side-effects for which they must be prepared. It is particularly important after news broke out that 29 elderly people died in Norway after receiving the Pfizer vaccine. The efficacy of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine Covishield has also been questioned.

Under such circumstances, it is quite natural for healthcare workers, who have endured nearly a year without the vaccine, to want to wait out the next few months.

However, the slow rate of vaccination is not helping the cause, with pockets in Bombay and Bangalore erupting with new cases. There are several options ahead of Bharat Biotech and the government.

Naturally, the most sensible would be to publish all available data about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine. The hesitation of the company to do this, in combination with the speed of government approval, has made people wonder whether the approval might be politically motivated. Efficacy data about the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine, which is being manufactured in India as Covishield, was published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet in December. The vaccine has demonstrated an efficacy of 70 percent in the Phase 3 trials. The trial period, lasting from April to November 2020, was relatively short. Reliable data about short- and long-term side effects in specific populations could not possibly have been collected over such a small duration. Covaxin went into Phase 3 trials as late as November 2020. The withholding of data may well be seen as lack of transparency.

If the government cannot force Bharat Biotech to make the results of the trials public, there is another option to ensure widespread vaccinationthe creation of back-up lists. With educational institutions opening up, students and teachers remain vulnerable to transmission. The administration of the vaccine to the elderly and otherwise immunocompromised population is expected to begin in March. However, if the turnout at the centres is low, we are only losing time that could prove to be precious by going with a single list and no backups. Why not start vaccinating other vulnerable populations, irrespective of age?

Of course, the awareness campaign must be more widespread, coherent, and detailed. Decades after vaccination against polio began in India, the country was declared polio-free by the World Health Organisation in 2014. But in 2018, polio vaccines were found to be contaminated with the virus, sparking panic among takers and prospective takers. There is a group of people, often parents of small children, who are anti-vaccination. Worse, there are those who believe the pandemic is a conspiracy by governments and big businesses, pharma companies included.

For as long as we are content to complain about reluctance without taking proactive steps to boost the numbers, status quo will persist for months. And clusters of cases will continue to erupt.

More Columns by Nandini Krishnan:

Revolution or romance: The social media illusion

Covid 19: The paranoia is important

Hathras: The power of silence

How could we not lose Kashmir?

SPB: A personal loss



Nandini is the author of Invisible Men: Inside India's Transmasculine Networks (2018) and Hitched: The Modern Woman and Arranged Marriage (2013). She tweets @k_nandini. Her website is: www.nandinikrishnan.com
Phillips Carbon Black said that the company has commissioned two specialty black lines at Palej, Gujarat for production of wide range of specialty black products.

The company said that the two specialty black lines totalling about 32,000 MTPA are for servicing the growing needs of customers.

The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 17 February 2021. Shares of Phillips Carbon Black fell 1.05% to settle at Rs 197.60 yesterday.

The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 212.4 on 09 February 2021. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 54.2 on 24 March 2020.

Phillips Carbon Black, a part of RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, is India's largest carbon black manufacturer.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two men have now been charged with capital murder in last years abduction and killing of an 18-year-old who vanished while walking in Auburn.

The Lee County Sheriffs Office on Wednesday said Marcus Okeef Wigley, 35, and Taharra Jaquay Brunson, 41, are charged in the death of Thomas Anthony Green. Both men were previously arrested by Auburn police on kidnapping charges in connection with Greens disappearance and since had made bond on those charges.

Green, was reported missing to Auburn police on Sunday, Sept. 6 2020. He was last seen by a friend early Saturday, Sept. 5.

Thomas A. Green (Auburn Police)

Police later released video of Green trying to go into a convenience store in the 800 block of Martin Luther King Drive and then leaving after he realized the business was closed. Authorities did not say when the video was taken.

Sheriffs officials said Green was walking near the area of Foster Street and Clark Avenue in Auburn about 1:30 a.m. when he was assaulted and abducted by three Black males. According to witnesses at the scene, the trio put Green in the back seat of a dark SUV and drove away. Brunson and Wigley were identified by witnesses as two of the suspects who took part in the assault and abduction.

On Sept. 10, Greens body was located in a wooded area in the Waverly community of northeast Lee County. He appeared to have suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

Wigley and Brunson were arrested that day on the kidnapping charges, and both were released the following day after posting $50,000 bond. Brunson Sept. 17 was arrested on a probation violation charge and has since remained in the Lee County Detention Facility.

Shortly before 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Wigley was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals, sheriffs deputies and Auburn police in the 1200 block of Amy Court in Auburn. He was arrested on the new capital murder charge.

Both men are now being held without bond. Authorities say the case remains under investigation and more charges and additional arrests are expected. Anyone with information regarding the case is asked to contact the Lee County Sheriffs Office at 334-749-5651 or Central Alabama Crime Stoppers at 334-215-STOP (7867)
Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Libya and head of UNSMIL, Jan Kubis, congratulated the Libyan people on the 10th anniversary of the February 17 Revolution, urging them to seize the opportunity to build a viable, united, and "independent" state
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Despite data showing another weekly decline in U.S. crude stockpiles, and outages in Texas due to frigid temperatures, crude oil futures settled lower on Thursday amid prospects of the oil cartel increasing crude production. More than 4 million barrels a day of U.S. oil output is now offline as Texas oil producers and refiners remain shut due to icy cold weather that's frozen well operations and led to widespread power cuts. Traders were betting on speculation that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies may decide to incrase crude output. The agency and its allies, collectively known as OPEC+, are scheduled to meet in the first week of March. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March ended down $0.62 or about 1% at $60.52 a barrel, despite having surged to a fresh 13-month high earlier in the session. Data released by U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) this morning showed crude inventories declined by 7.258 million barrels last week, falling more than three times the expected decline. Distillate stockpiles were down 3.42 million barrels last week, more than twice the expected drop. The EIA report also said gasoline inventories increased 672,000 barrels last week, less than an expected increase of 1.379 million barrels. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
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Coronavirus is wreaking havoc on schools, stores, businesses and events. With in-person concerts, talks, comedy shows, food festivals and other gatherings cancelled, we have turned our events column into an events/nonevents column. It will remain this way as long as social distancing and stay-at-home orders are in effect.

During this difficult time, please consider contributing to your local arts organizations or to individual artists and performers.

Get a courtesy carwash from FX's Snowfall. Celebrate Donnie Darko's 20th anniversary. Attend a cinema panel on Black identity. Peep an Asian American virtual film fest. Learn about herbs for nerves. Cook in the kitchen with My Morning Jacket's Patrick Hallahan.

Friday, Feb. 19 - Sunday, Feb. 21



Snowfall Neighborhood Car Wash

NCM Car Wash

3601 W. Slauson Ave., Hyde Park

To celebrate the fourth season premiere of its series Snowfall, FX hosts a themed carwash with lights, music, design and effects inspired by the series. Set in L.A. in the 1980s during the first crack epidemic, the crime drama returns on Feb. 24. Reservations for the car wash are required as this is a contactless event. FX is also teaming with Official Black Wall Street to highlight the show and a selection of Black-owned L.A. businesses.

COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Fizaa Dosani hosts the latest installment of 'Your Late Night Show Tonight' on Nowhere Comedy Club's Zoom. (Courtesy of Nowhere Comedy Club)

Friday, Feb. 19; 7 p.m. PST



Your Late Night Show Tonight

Comedian, actor and writer Fizaa Dosani hosts a late night talk show, changing the format as she sees fit. There might be monologues, music, elephants or lasers. Who knows? Dosani's guest is fellow comic Taylor Tomlinson. Watch on the Nowhere Comedy Club's Zoom.

COST: $10 - $50; MORE INFO

Friday, Feb. 19 - Sunday, Feb. 21



Nomadland

Hollywood Legion Drive-In

2035 North Highland Ave., Hollywood

Watch the critically acclaimed film from Chloe Zhao (director of 2017's The Rider), starring Frances McDorman as a woman who decides to live the life of a nomad following the economic collapse of her small town. Ticket price is per car and includes unlimited popcorn, one soda and one candy for each passenger.

COST: Starting at $65 per car; MORE INFO

Friday, Feb. 19; 4:30 p.m. PST



RISK! Livestream

The storytelling night joins the 2021 First Person Arts Anthology Festival, which focuses on shared experience through storytelling, memoir and documentary. Hear tales from Jenice Matias, Ray Christian-Dickens, Gabriel Pages, Dave Emanuel and host Kevin Allison. Content warning: RISK! Shows feature true, uncensored tales from storytellers' lives and may include difficult topics.

COST: $25 - $29; MORE INFO

The next installment of The Robey Theatre Company's online series of Evening Conversations features Blair Underwood. (Courtesy of The Robey Theatre Company)

Friday, Feb. 19; 6 p.m. PST



An Evening Conversation with Blair Underwood

The Robey Theatre Company's next installment of its conversation series features actor Underwood appearing via Zoom. He'll discuss the current and future state of the theater as well as the pandemic's effect on the performing arts and social justice. A Q&A follows the discussion.

COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Friday, Feb. 19; 6 p.m. PST



Seek Treatment LIVE(stream)! A Valentine's Day Post Mortem

Dynasty Typewriter presents a live taping of the fun and flirty podcast hosted by Catherine Cohen and Pat Regan. They'll recap the Valentine's weekend and talk about boys, sex, dating and love.

COST: $10 - $15; MORE INFO

Friday, Feb. 19 - Thursday, Feb. 25



Blithe Spirit (2021), Nomadland, Amigo Skate, Cuba

Cinelounge Drive-In

Lot adjacent to 1625 N. Las Palmas Blvd., Hollywood

First-run movies opening on the big screen this week include a new adaptation of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit starring Dan Stevens, Isla Fisher, Leslie Mann and Judi Dench; Chloe Zhao's Nomadland; and Vanesa Wilkey-Escobar's documentary Amigo Skate, Cuba about a group smuggling skateboards into Cuba. (They're considered contraband in the communist country.)

COST: Tickets start at $29.99; MORE INFO

Listen to a poetry slam inspired by the work of Vera Lutter, whose work is on view in the exhibition 'Museum in the Camera' at LACMA. (Vera Lutter installation, photo  Museum Associates/LACMA)

Friday, Feb. 19; 6 p.m. PST



Poetry Slam Inspired by Vera Lutter

LACMA holds a virtual poetry slam inspired by the museum's exhibition Vera Lutter: Museum in the Camera. From February 2017 to January 2019, the New York-based artist was in residence at LACMA, creating a new body of work (via camera obscura) that focused on the museum's architecture, galleries and collections. The poets will present work on themes including memory, food, time and the abstract. The slam takes place on Instagram Live.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Cynthia Erivo poses with the Rising Star Award backstage during the American Black Film Festival Honors Awards Ceremony on Feb. 23, 2020. (Amy Sussman/Getty Images)

Saturday, Feb. 20; 11 a.m.



Black Identity Through Cinema Panel

The American Cinematheque co-presents a live Q&A with the African American Film Critics Association. Panelists include Cynthia Erivo, Shaka King, Philippe Lacote, Franklin Leonard, Ekwa Msangi, Euzhan Palcy and Kemp Powers. The event examines Black identity through the panelists' varied careers in cinema.

COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Saturday, Feb. 20; 7:30 p.m. PT



Donnie Darko 20th Anniversary

The Frida Cinema Pop-Up Drive-In

First American Title Company

Parking Structure Rooftop

8 First American Way, Santa Ana

The Frida teams with Film Threat to screen Richard Kelly's 2001 sci-fi cult classic starring Jake and Maggie Gyllenhaal, Patrick Swayze, Drew Barrymore, Mary McDonnell, Katharine Ross and Noah Wyle.

COST: $30; MORE INFO

Learn about herbs that will help soothe your anxiety and de-stress with an online program through the Arboretum. (Alice Henneman via Creative Commons/Flickr)

Saturday, Feb. 20; 10 a.m. PST



Zoom Herbs for the Nerves

The Arboretum holds an online workshop to discuss plants and herbs that can soothe nerves and calm anxiety, which plenty of us need right about now. Learn about plants as healers and get tips for self-care. Recipes from instructor Irena Stathis are included in the class.

COST: $20 - $25; MORE INFO

Saturday, Feb. 20; 5 p.m. PT



Silent Trailers Livestream

Podcasting duo Keith and The Girl holds its popular movie-themed game show with panelists Tom Scharpling, Andy Kindler, Aparna Nancherla, Baron Vaughn and Mike Cannon. The panel competes against host Keith Malley who attempts to decipher his co-host Chemda's descriptions of movie trailers. She has nearly no celebrity knowledge while Keith has seen almost every movie ever made.

COST: $10; MORE INFO

Saturday, Feb. 20; 11 a.m. PT



Trailblazer: Delilah L. Beasley

The Autry has teamed with the arts nonprofit Clockshop for a live, online panel discussion of historian and newspaper columnist Delilah Beasley and her book, The Negro Trail-Blazers of California (1919). The program examines the critical role of Black women historians and archivists as well as Beasley's documentation of the lives and accomplishments of Black people.

COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Saturday, Feb. 20; 4 p.m. PT



Los Angeles Plays Itself

Later on Saturday afternoon, The Autry also hosts a virtual screening and watch party for Thom Andersen's 2003 documentary, which uses film clips to explore the relationship between movies and the city of Angels. Register for a free virtual screening through LACMA (or watch on Kanopy.com with a public library card or college email address). Join in a live Twitter watch party using the hashtag #LAonFilm.

COST: FREE screening with RSVP; MORE INFO

The silent film 'The Toll of the Sea' starred Anna May Wong, the first Asian American movie star. (Courtesy UCLA Film & TV Archive)

Saturday, Feb. 20 - Sunday, Feb. 28



UCLA Asian American Studies Center Film Festival

The UCLA Film & Television Archive presents a slate of powerful films over two weekends that delve into issues facing Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. Viewers can also tune into discussions with filmmakers, actors, scholars and community leaders on themes from films that carry into the real world. The festival opens on Saturday at 3 p.m. with a program on Anna May Wong that includes a screening of Anna May Wong: The First Asian American Movie Star followed by the 1922 silent film The Toll of the Sea with musical accompaniment provided by Cliff Retallick.

COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Richard Heller Gallery is presents I'll Wake Up Older, the first solo show in California from Hunter Potter. (Courtesy of the gallery and artist)

Saturday, Feb. 20 - Saturday, March 27



Hunter Potter: I'll Wake Up Older

Richard Heller Gallery

Bergamot Station

2525 Michigan Avenue, B-5A, Santa Monica

The gallery presents Potter's California solo debut, an exaggerated and overly nostalgic portrayal of growing up in small town America where people were categorized as athletes, stoners, scholars, etc. The gallery is currently open by appointment only but the works can be viewed on Facebook, Artsy, Instagram and its website.

COST: FREE; MORE INFO

The Skirball Cultural Center presents a virtual conversation with artist and activist Ai Weiwei. (Photo courtesy of Ai Weiwei Studio)

Sunday, Feb. 21; 11 a.m. PST



A Conversation with Ai Wei Wei

The Skirball Cultural Center presents a virtual talk with the artist, filmmaker and political activist in advance of the exhibition Ai Weiwei: Trace. He'll chat with curator Yael Lipschutz about his art and social justice work and how the two often intertwine. The discussion premieres on the Skirball's YouTube channel.

COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

My Morning Jacket's Patrick Hallahan has a new cooking show that debuts this week. (David Boone)

Sunday, Feb. 21; 3 p.m. PST



In the Kitchen with Patrick Hallahan

Hallahan, drummer for My Morning Jacket, debuts his new three-episode cooking show with recipes, demos, stories and surprise guests. He'll share tips and tricks to help maximize ingredients and make the most of your food budget. This week's menu includes roasted spatchcocked chicken with vegetables and brown butter grits. Additional episodes will follow on Feb. 28 and March 7.

COST: Tickets start at $25 for one episode; MORE INFO

Through Monday, March 15



Intersect 21

This new online art fair brings together 21 galleries from Southern California, the Middle East and North Africa with each one presenting 21 works. The fair explores the similarities and differences in contemporary art, design and photography from around the world. Participating SoCal galleries include Peter Blake, Edward Cella and Timothy Yarger Fine Art. The art can be viewed on the Intersect 21 website through Feb. 22 then continues heads to Artsy through March 15.

COST: FREE to view; MORE INFO

A meerkat sits on rocks at the Los Angeles Zoo on August 26, 2020. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

Ongoing



Los Angeles Zoo Reopening

Los Angeles Zoo

5333 Zoo Dr., Griffith Park

The L.A. Zoo has reopened -- with a few new rules. Advanced, timed-entry reservations are required for all guests, including members. Make sure to stay one zebra-length away from other visitors. And masks are required for everyone above the age of 2.

COST: $17 - $22; MORE INFO

Film Streaming Pick



Two of Us

France's official selection for the Academy Awards is a love story between two retired women, played by Barbara Sukowa and Martine Chevallier. Their friends and families think they're just neighbors but they've secretly been in love for decades when an unforeseen event turns their lives upside down. The feature debut from director Filippo Meneghetti is in French with English subtitles. Available on demand.





Dine & Drink Deals

Who doesn't miss going out to eat or stopping by a bar for a drink? Here are a few options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  President Rodrigo Duterte has certified as urgent proposed measures that would ensure availability of national funds to compensate Filipinos in case they die or experience serious side effects after receiving COVID-19 shots.

Vaccine czar Carlito Galvez Jr. announced on Thursday in a Malacanang briefing that Duterte issued the certification for Senate Bill 2057 and House Bill 8648, both of which provide for the establishment of an indemnity fund and speedy procurement of vaccines in the country.

"Magandang balita po, pinirmahan na po ng ating mahal na Pangulo ang pagsertipika ng panukalang batas as urgent...magandang balita po, pinirmahan na niya as urgent iyong mga Senate [and House] bill na makikita nating makakatulong sa atin," he said.

[Translation: Good news. Our beloved President has certified these measures as urgent...good news, he already signed as urgent these Senate and House bills that would definitely help us.]

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said his office has yet to confirm whether the certification of urgency was indeed signed, but Galvez stressed that he has already made the confirmation with Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go, a close confidante of Duterte.

Senator Sonny Angara on Tuesday sponsored Senate Bill 2057 or the proposed COVID-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021, consolidating all bills related to COVID-19 vaccines previously filed by other lawmakers. The measure seeks to provide 500 million for the COVID-19 National Indemnity Fund which will be sourced from the contingent fund of the national budget. State insurance agency PhilHealth was tasked to oversee its administration.

House Bill 8648 or the Emergency Vaccine Procurement Act of 2021, which also considers other COVID-19 vaccine-related provisions, has not specified the amount needed for an indemnification fund for adverse events. Both of these legislative measures ensure a smoother procurement and administration of vaccines in the country.

LGUs will soon be allowed to advance payments for COVID-19 vaccine

In the same briefing, Galvez said Duterte will also issue a signed a memorandum order within the day which allows local government units to procure and make advance payments for COVID-19 vaccines.

"Pwede na po nating ipahayag na baka ngayong hapon, kapag dumating iyong signed memorandum, ipapalabas na po iyong memorandum order," Gavez said. "Ito po ay magandang balita lalo na't malapit na ang advanced payment natin sa AstraZeneca."

[Translation: We can already announce that this afternoon, when the signed memorandum arrives, we can issue the memorandum order. This is good news especially now that we can soon make our advanced payment with AstraZeneca.]

RELATED: LGUs announce signing deals for advance purchase of AstraZeneca vaccines

House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco lauded this move, noting that this is an "important step" in the government's COVID-19 fight, as LGUs have recognized that "any delay would have serious consequences on how we move forward from this pandemic."

"The President's signing of the memorandum will also help our LGUs transition to some kind of normalcy as we aim to further open the economy to help the business sector reopen and reemploy those who have been displaced by the pandemic," Velasco said in a statement.

Shares of were locked in upper circuit for the second straight day, up 10 per cent at Rs 201, also its 52-week high on the BSE in Thursday's session after the government approved a Rs 12,195 crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for telecom gear manufacturing in India. The stock has gained 20 per cent in the past two trading days, surging 44 per cent thus far in the month of February.

designs, develops and sells high-performance and cost-competitive networking products to telecommunications service providers, internet service providers, utilities, defence and government entities in over 75 countries. Tejas' products utilise programmable, software-defined hardware architecture with a common software code-base that delivers seamless upgrades of new features and technology standards. It is ranked among top-10 suppliers in the global optical aggregation segment and has filed over 349 patents.

The for telecom gear will cover manufacturing of equipment such as core transmission products, 4G, 5G radio access network and other wireless gear. Under the for telecom equipment, the government will give 4-6 per cent incentive to eligible companies on incremental sales of manufactured goods for five years. Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) will get a 4-7 per cent incentive in the first three years of production.

The for telecom gear will lead to an incremental production of around Rs 2.4 trillion, with exports of around Rs 2 trillion in the next five years. Key beneficiaries include Tejas Network and Sterlite Technologies, the brokerage firm ICICI Securities said in a note.

The stock of was trading 3 per cent lower at Rs 203, after hitting a low of Rs 197 in intra-day trade today. It hit a 52-week high of Rs 212 on Wednesday when it rallied 12 per cent.
When falling in love, humans often pay attention to looks. Many non-human animals also choose a sexual partner based on appearance. Male birds may sport flashy feathers to attract females, lionesses prefer lions with thicker manes and colorful male guppies with large spots attract the most females. But bats are active in the dark. How do they attract mates? Mariana Munoz-Romo, a senior Latin American postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) and National Geographic explorer, pioneers research to understand the role of odors in bat mating behavior.

"Aside from their genitalia, most male and female bat species look identical at first glance. However, a detailed examination during mating season reveals odor-producing glands or structures that are only present in male bats. Long interested in this understudied sexual difference, and working with long-nosed bats, Leptonycteris curasoae, in Venezuela, Munoz-Romo discovered that males exhibit an odorous dorsal patch in the mating season consisting of a mixture of saliva, feces, urine and/or semen that seems to attract reproductive females.

Later in Panama, Munoz-Romo investigated the "perfumes" from smelly crusts that male fringe-lipped bats, Trachops cirrhosus, meticulously apply to their forearms during mating season. These studies deepened her interest in odor and its role in bat mating systems, and her conviction that odor may be bats' secret weapon to choosing a mate in the dark."

Studies across a range of mammalian species show that just by smelling a potential mate, an individual can assess its sex, age, sexual receptiveness, health, social status, group membership and identity. This is a whole lot of personal information in one sniff, suggesting that odor may be a more important factor for mate choice and reproduction.

Alongside STRI staff scientist Rachel Page and renowned Boston University bat ecologist, Thomas H. Kunz, Munoz-Romo combed through all published articles on the topic. Together, they found reports of odor-producing structures in 121 bat species from 15 different bat families. This represents nearly 10% of all known bat species and over 70% of bat families. Odors come from very different parts of bats' bodies, from their heads and mouths to their wings or genitalia. Not only are chemical signals potent and effective for communication in dark conditions, they also do not impede the bats' ability to fly.

"We believe that these key factors--nocturnality and powered flight--combined with scent-producing glands common across mammals, promoted the evolution of a great diversity of the odorous displaying structures we find in bats," Munoz-Romo said.

Although researchers know very little about these structures so far, the new review of the subject opens up promising new avenues for bat research. There are potentially many more odor-related structures waiting to be discovered.

"Future investigations should consider the importance of the timing of odor production and sexual behavior, because most of these traits are displayed during a specific and usually short time of the year--the mating season," Munoz-Romo said. "Answering new questions about the nature and development of the odorous traits, as well as understanding which traits female bats prefer, are key to understanding why differences between males and females evolved. We also want to understand the chemistry of bat perfumes--what compounds make them attractive."

In another recent publication, Munoz-Romo, Page and colleagues suggest that the size of the odorous crusts found on the forearms of male T. cirrhosus allow females to evaluate potential mates during the time of year when they were fertile.

"While differences between males and females (sexual dimorphism) in bats have long been overlooked, new tools are giving us an ever-expanding window into their previously cryptic social lives," Page said. "The patterns revealed here sharpen the focus of investigations going forward, in particular highlighting the importance of seasonally present odor-producing glands and soft tissues. With so many bat species still to be studied, it will be extremely exciting to see what lies on the horizon. We only wish that our dear friend and colleague, Tom Kunz, whose insight inspired this work, had lived to see the publication of this review."

###

Members of the research team are affiliated with STRI, Universidad de Los Andes (Venezuela) and Boston University. The work supporting this review was funded by these three institutions at different points in time.

MINSK -- Two journalists for Belsat, a Polish-based satellite television station aimed at Belarus, have each been sentenced to two years in prison for reporting live from a rally in Minsk in November, a move seen by the European Union and rights watchdogs as being part of an ongoing crackdown on independent media.

On February 18, Judge Natallya Buhuk of the Frunze district court in the Belarusian capital, sentenced Katsyaryna Andreyeva and Darya Chultsova after finding them guilty of "organizing public events aimed at disrupting civil order."

Andreyeva, 27, and Chultsova, 23, in their last statement in the courtroom, again rejected the charges against them, calling them politically motivated as their only reason to be at the protest was to do their job as reporters.

Crisis In Belarus Read our coverage as Belarusians continue to demand the resignation of Alyaksandr Lukashenka amid a brutal crackdown on protesters. The West refuses to recognize him as the country's legitimate leader after an August 9 election considered fraudulent.

Andreyeva also demanded the "immediate release" of herself, Chultsova, and "all political prisoners in Belarus."

The sentencing drew international condemnation, with EU foreign affairs spokesman Peter Stano denouncing a "shameful crackdown on media."



"EU strongly condemns and calls for reversal of sentencing of Belsat TV Katsiaryna Andreyeva and Daria Chultsova for just doing their jobs. We call on Belarus authorities to respect fundamental freedoms and stop targeting journalists," Stano tweeted.

The two journalists were arrested on November 15 while they were covering a rally in Minsk commemorating Raman Bandarenka.

Bandarenka died from injuries sustained in a vicious beating by a group of masked assailants -- whom rights activists say were affiliated with the authorities -- during one of the weekly rallies demanding the resignation of authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

Lawyer Syarhey Zikratski, a member of the two journalists' defense team, called the sentences "absurd," emphasizing that journalistic activities cannot be defined as the "disruption of civil order."

"The journalists just covered a protest action. We all followed their reports and heard how they did it. The words they used were just a description of what was happening there and were wrongfully used as the basis of the charge against them," Zikratski said.

Andreyeva's husband, Ihar Ilyash, who is also a journalist, said the trial had a predetermined outcome given that the judge was just following the prosecutors' orders.

"Now, all of us journalists must report even more about the facts and truth to fully destroy this terrorist regime," Ilyash said after the sentences were pronounced.

Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya praised the two journalists in a tweet for remaining strong after their sentences were pronounced.

"Just look at Darya and Katsyaryna -- strong, smiling, and saying goodbye to their loved ones from behind bars. Lukashenka can't break us," Tsikhanouskaya wrote.

Belarusian human rights organizations have recognized Andreyeva and Chultsova as political prisoners and demanded their immediate release and the dropping of all charges against them.

The sentencing of Andreyeva and Chultsova is "one of many ways Belarus's government has retaliated against journalists for reporting on peaceful protests and human rights violations," Anastasia Zlobina, coordinator for Europe and Central Asia at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.



She said at least seven other journalists were behind bars in Belarus awaiting trial on similar criminal charges.



Earlier this week, Belarusian authorities raided the homes and offices at least 40 journalists and human rights defenders.

Lukashenka, who has run the country since 1994, was declared the landslide victor of an August 9 presidential election.

However, outrage over what was seen by both the opposition forces and the general public as a rigged vote has sparked continuous protests since, bringing tens of thousands onto the streets with demands that the longtime strongman step down and a new election be held.

Security officials have cracked down hard on the demonstrators, arresting thousands, including dozens of journalists who covered the rallies, and pushing most of the top opposition figures out of the country.

Several protesters have been killed in the violence and some rights organizations say there is credible evidence of torture being used by security officials against some of those detained.

Lukashenka has denied any wrongdoing with regard to the election and refuses to negotiate with the opposition on stepping down and holding a new vote.

The European Union, the United States, Canada, and other countries have refused to recognize Lukashenka, 66, as the legitimate leader of Belarus and have slapped him and senior Belarusian officials with sanctions in response to the falsification of the vote and the postelection crackdown.
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Canada has begun to accelerate its vaccine rollout after delivery disruptions became a major political headache for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

In an update by public-health officials Thursday, the government announced the pace of deliveries of both the Pfizer Inc.-BioNTech SE and Moderna Inc. shots is ramping up as of this week.

As many as 14.5 million of Canada's 38 million people should be inoculated by the end of June, according to an updated timeline, up from the 13 million the government expected previously. Should vaccine candidates from AstraZeneca Plc, Johnson & Johnson and Novavax Inc. win regulatory approval, the tally could climb to 24.5 million.

Canada has administered shots to just 3.5% of its population so far, according to Bloomberg's vaccine tracker. That puts it behind all but Japan -- which didn't start offering jabs until this week -- among Group of Seven nations. The U.K. and U.S. are at the head of the pack, inoculating 24.7% and 17.3% of their citizens to date.

Trudeau, who is weighing weather to trigger an election this year to win back his parliamentary majority, has repeatedly promised every Canadian who wants a vaccine will receive one by the end of September.

Canada received more than 403,000 doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech shot this week, health officials said, with 475,000 doses expected for the week of Feb. 22. The company is set to deliver 444,000 doses every week in March, for a total of 4 million shots by the end of the first quarter.

Moderna will ship the country 168,000 doses next week and a further 1.3 million by the end of March, spread out over two deliveries.

Provinces have been getting impatient with the delivery delays, which were caused in part by vaccine nationalism in both the U.S. and Europe. Quebec Premier Francois Legault said he's anxious to unveil plans for mass vaccination, including which locations have been picked for them.

"We're just missing the vaccines," the premier told reporters in Quebec City Thursday. "I have a phone call tonight with Mr. Trudeau and I'll ask him again about how many doses will we receive each week in the next few weeks."
SAN DIEGO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SEAL Awards today announced the winners of the 2020 SEAL Business Sustainability Awards , celebrating their leadership, transparency, and commitment to sustainable business practices.

Global brands like Burberry, Cisco, Colgate Palmolive, and Diageo were among those selected for the SEAL Organizational Impact Award. Selected by combining two premier ESG data sets - the CDP A-List  and the Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA, now part of S&P Global ESG Scores ) - the 2020 SEAL Organizational Impact Award honors the 50 most sustainable companies globally.

Dow, General Motors, and Salesforce were among the organizations whose sustainability initiatives were recognized with a SEAL Environmental Initiative Award.

"Over the past five years, corporations have increased their investment in sustainable business practices, thereby raising the bar for ESG excellence," commented Matt Harney, SEAL Awards' Founder. "Our mission at SEAL is to rigorously assess and then celebrate extraordinary sustainability leadership. We're honored to present these 2020 Sustainability Award winners."

The event featured two distinct sustainability award categories:

SEAL Environmental Initiative Award

This award honors specific environmental and sustainability initiatives. Key criteria for selection included: Impact Metrics, Innovation, Sharing of Insights, and Investment Levels.

The Environmental Initiative winners were:

Dow, Kashi, and Berry Global

Edifecs

Footprint

Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation

Gaia Herbs

General Motors (Honored For 2 Initiatives)

GFL Environmental

Gousto

Green Standards

Hypergiant Industries

Nugget Markets

Pathwater

Salesforce

Solo New York

ZenWTR

Zorch

Selected Environmental Initiative Award Winner Perspectives:

Dow, Kashi, and Berry Global: "We are honored to receive the SEAL Award for our breakthrough accomplishment with Berry Global and Kashi on the development of the fully recyclable package for the Bear Naked brand," said Nestor de Mattos, North America Commercial Vice President Dow Packaging and Specialty Plastics. "Together, we designed an innovative solution that not only protects the product but is easily recyclable at over 18,000 retail locations nationwide ultimately reducing plastic waste in the environment. At Dow, we are committed to continue collaborating with our partners to drive improvements in industries processes and deliver a sustainable future."

General Motors: "We are honored to receive SEAL Business Sustainability Awards for our commitment to source 100 percent of our electricity from renewable sources by 2030 in the U.S., and for our goal of using 100 percent sustainable packaging by 2030," said Deborah Wahl, Chief Marketing Officer, General Motors. "We are committed to putting every driver in an electric vehicle on a scale previously unseen with a vision of zero emissions so that our children will inherit a healthier planet, which is why we're committed to go all-electric by 2035. We have the solutions, capability, technology and scale to put everyone in an EV, and our recently revealed brand identity and campaign are designed to reflect this."

Salesforce: "At Salesforce we believe business can be a powerful platform for change, and we know that companies that buy renewable energy can play an important role in accelerating the transition to a clean and renewable energy future," said Patrick Flynn, VP of Sustainability at Salesforce. "We are honored to receive the SEAL Business Sustainability Award for our contributions to sustainability and innovative initiatives that aim to create systemic change at a scale the planet will notice. Salesforce was one of the first cloud companies to make a 100% renewable energy commitment, and we are proud to say we will reach that goal this year from new, additional renewable energy that we are helping bring to the grid."

SEAL Organizational Impact Award

This award recognizes overall corporate sustainability performance and represents the 50 most sustainable companies globally.

Winners were selected by combining and ranking the aggregated results of two rigorous, world-class sustainability assessments - specifically, the recently released 2020 CDP A-List  and the Corporate Sustainability Assessment (now part of the S&P Global ESG family).

The Organizational Impact winners were:

ACCIONA

Allianz

Asahi Group

ASE Technology

AstraZeneca

Atos

British American Tobacco

Burberry Group

Cisco

Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company

Colgate Palmolive

Deutsche Telekom

Dexus

Diageo

EDP

Enagas

Endesa

Enel

Engie

Ferrovial

First Financial Holding

Fubon Financial

HP

HP Enterprise

Iberdrola

Konica Minolta

Koninklijke KPN

Koninklijke Philips

LANXESS

Leonardo

METRO

Nanya Technology Corp

Naturgy Energy Group

Nippon Telegraph & Telephone (NTT)

Owens Corning

Pirelli

PTT Global Chemical

Red Electrica

Ricoh

Schneider Electric

Shinhan Financial Group

Signify

Snam

Stanley Black & Decker

& Decker Swiss Re

Taiwan Mobile

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing

Terna Rete Elettrica Nazionale

True Corp

UBS Group

UPM-Kymmene OYJ

ABOUT THE SEAL AWARDS

SEAL (Sustainability, Environmental Achievement & Leadership) Awards is an environmental advocacy organization that honors leadership through our business sustainability awards & environmental journalism awards while funding research and pursuing our own environmental impact campaigns.

SEAL Awards is not affiliated with the CDP, CSA, or S&P Global.

SOURCE SEAL Awards


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On February 16, the National Assembly approved President Emmanuel Macrons anti-separatist law, also known as the law to strengthen respect for the principles of the Republic. By imposing strict state control of the Muslim faith and a principle of collective responsibility on associations and political parties in order to facilitate their rapid banning by the police, the law aims to effect a drastic and reactionary transformation of social and political life.

Macron with French Army Chief of Staff General Pierre de Villiers in 2017 [Credit: Etienne Laurent/Pool Photo via AP, File]

Macrons La Republique en Marche party and the Democratic Movement (MoDem) voted in favor of the law. Unsubmissive Frances 17 deputies voted unanimously against the law, though they had voted for many of its articles in parliamentary commissions; so did Les Republicains (The Republicans). Most French Communist Party and Socialist Party deputies abstained, as did neo-fascist deputy Marine Le Pen. By a vote of 347 to 151, with 65 abstentions, the Assembly approved the law, which will now go to the Senate for approval in March.

The fundamentally undemocratic and fascistic nature of this law emerges in the remarks made the same day by Minister of Higher Education Frederique Vidal. The anti-separatist law goes hand in hand with a frontal assault on academic freedom and freedom of conscience.

Vidal confirmed that the government will ask the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) to investigate all ongoing university research in France to assess its ideological acceptability: Yes, I will indeed ask for an assessment of all the research taking place in our country, whether it is research on post-colonialism for example. She called for measures to combat the radicalization of opinions and statements.

Vidal was developing comments she had made Sunday on CNews, where she announced that she would ask the CNRS to investigate and root out Islamo-leftism in all currents of research in France. She called for a distinction to be made between what is academic research and what is political militancy and opinion.

The Conference of University Presidents (CPU) reacted by publishing a communique to denounce Vidals statement. It states: The CPU expresses its astonishment at the new sterile polemic on the subject of Islamo-leftism in the university. Islamo-leftism is not a concept. It is a pseudo-notion for which one would seek in vain even the beginning of a scientific definition, and which it would be appropriate to leave, if not to the animators of CNews, more broadly, to the far right that has popularized it.

The CPU also criticized the misuse of the CNRS, whose mission is in no way to produce evaluations of the work of teacher-researchers, or to clarify what is political militancy or opinion. The CPU demands at the very least urgent clarifications, both of what are the ideological bases of such a request, and as to the form of the request, which sets up the CNRS in opposition to the universities.

Nevertheless, the government and the CNRS are moving quickly to implement the ideological evaluation of university research by the state. CNRS representatives told Le Monde that the CNRS is discussing with the cabinet to clarify the ministers expectations. Le Monde added that the ministry had confirmed, without providing further details, that the objectives will be defined in the coming days.

Law professor Noe Wagener stated: Deputies of the presidents party, in addition to those of The Republicans party, now firmly believe that higher education has become a hotbed of separatism. ... The idea that there is academic work that is bad, because it is dangerous for social life, has become entrenched in their minds and may lead to legislative initiatives that restrict academic freedom.

Terrified by rising social anger against austerity and capitalism, and against herd immunity policies on the pandemic, Macron is trying to brand opposition as thought crime. If it uses the terms used by neo-fascist polemicists such as Michel Onfray or Eric Zemmour to evaluate academic research, it is because it is aiming at the same targets as them: opposition to the wars waged by Paris in the Islamic world, as well as to militarism and the police state. Its target is not only researchers, but the entire working class.

The government says nothing about the sanctions it wants to impose on academics its inquiry finds guilty of Islamo-leftism. But such an evaluation would inevitably have the character of a witch hunt: academics denounced by the government would be equated with criminals complicit in terrorism and therefore enemies of the people, though it is self-evident that they have carried out no terrorist acts.

The official presentation of the anti-separatist law as a defence of republican principles is a fraud. Drafted under the authority of Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, a former sympathizer of the far-right monarchist Action Francaise party, it undermines the 1905 law on secularism and separation of religious and state affairs, by subjecting the Muslim faith to strict state control. Associations that the law threatens with potential dissolution, including political parties, are also effectively under orders to conform to the anti-separatist diktat.

This is not a defence of the international principles of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity laid out for people of all races and origins by the French Revolution of 1789. This law was inspired by forces that are in fact conscious enemies of the democratic principles established during the American and French revolutions in the 18th century: they aim to impose anti-social and murderous policies in the interest of the financial aristocracy, despite rising working class opposition.

As is often the case in France, this reactionary measure was inspired by intellectuals linked to power and trained by petty-bourgeois, anti-Trotskyist organizations.

Vidals proposed measure echoes a call to the government to censor universities, the so-called Manifesto of the 100, made in November 2020 by a group of right-wing intellectuals including Marcel Gauchet, Pierre-Andre Taguieff, and former Education Minister Luc Ferry. Gauchet was a student of Claude Lefort, the co-founder of the group Socialisme ou Barbarie, which broke with the Fourth International and with Marxism in 1949. Today, they relentlessly elevate racial and ethnic criteria in order to promote right-wing, nationalist opposition to Marxist class politics.

Their manifesto appeals to anti-Americanism, French nationalism, colonialist hatreds and barely disguised white nationalism to justify university censorship. They write: Nativist, racialist and decolonial ideologies (transferred from North American campuses) are alive and well, feeding a hatred of Whites and France; and sometimes violent political militancy attacks those who still dare to oppose anti-Western dogmatism and the multiculturalist orthodoxy.

They continued, As the wearing of the Muslim veilamong other symptomshas spread in recent years, it is time to give things their right names and also to become aware of the responsibility, in the current situation, of ideologies that have originated and spread throughout the university and beyond. The importation of Anglo-Saxon ideologies, intellectual conformism, fear and political correctness are a real threat to our universities.  We therefore ask the Minister to put in place measures to detect Islamist aberrations.

If the adoption of such measures by the government shows above all its weakness and panic in the face of rising working class anger, it would be a fatal error to minimize the dangers of dictatorship posed by the anti-separatist law and the censorship proposed by Vidal, Gauchet and others. It is essential to politically mobilize the workers and youth against this attempt to stifle freedom of opinion and democratic principles, by waging a socialist struggle against the financial aristocracy and all its political servants.
Donostia , Feb 17, 2021 (SPS) - The Spanish Basque Socialist Party (ESB) has condemned the campaign of repression by the Moroccan occupation forces against Saharawi militants in the occupied territories of Western Sahara.

The party denounced the barbaric repression against the activist Sultana Khaya and her sister El Ouara within their own house and the international silence towards the Sahrawi population in the occupied cities.

The Spanish Basque Socialist Party is closely following the latest developments concerning human rights violations in occupied Western Sahara, noting the Moroccan occupier's violation of the ceasefire agreement since November 13, it reaffirmed SPS

125/090/TRA
Sir Timothy Berners-Lee, the British computer scientist known as the inventor of the World Wide Web, says Australian plans to make digital giants pay for journalism could set a precedent that renders the Internet as we know it unworkable.

Specifically, I am concerned that that code risks breaching a fundamental principle of the web by requiring payment for linking between certain content online, Berners-Lee told a Senate committee scrutinizing a bill that would create the New Media Bargaining Code.

It's a question dividing proponents and critics of the proposed Australian law: does it effectively make and pay for clicks and might it be the beginning of the end of free access?



The battle is being watched closely in the European Union, where officials and lawmakers are drafting sweeping new digital regulations.

contends the law does require it to pay for clicks. regional managing director Melanie Silva told the same Senate committee that read Berners-Lee's submission last month she is most concerned that the code requires payments simply for links and snippets.

The concept of paying a very small group of website or content creators for appearing purely in our organic search results sets a dangerous precedent for us that presents unmanageable risk from a product and business-model point of view, Silva said.

regional vice president Simon Milner agreed that the potential cost for news under the code was entirely uncapped and unknowable.

Uniquely, Australia's code includes a negotiation safety net. An arbitration panel would prevent digital giants from abusing their dominant negotiating positions by making take-it-or-leave-it payment offers to news businesses for their journalism.

In the case of a standoff, the panel would make a binding decision on whose best-offer wins.

Peter Lewis, director of the Institute's Center for Responsible Technology think tank, said the monetary value of public interest journalism has yet to be established.

The reason it's such as ephemeral process, if you like, is that no one's ever tried this before, Lewis told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

How do you value fact-based news absent advertising? News has always been valued on the back of how much ads that the outlet can sell. Because Google and have dominated the advertising market and taken that out of the equation, we're now trying to work out the value of public interest journalism, Lewis added.

Google has reacted to the threat of compulsory arbitration by stepping up negotiations on licensing content agreements with Australian media companies through its own News Showcase model.

Facebook responded Thursday by blocking users from accessing and sharing Australian news.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg amended draft legislation after weekend talks with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Alphabet Inc. and its subsidiary Google, to make it clear the platforms would not be charged per news snippet or link.

We never intended that . . . if the arbitrator was overseeing a deal between a television station and one of the digital platforms, that they would make that digital platform pay 2 cents, for example, for every click over the forthcoming year, Frydenberg said. That was never the intention. It was always the intention was to have a lump sum payment and that's what we have made explicit in the code.

Dan Stinton is managing director of Guardian and New Zealand which is negotiating a licensing deal through Google's News Showcase.

Stinton said Google has benefitted from news through engagement with search users who link to journalism, the consumer data Google collects from publishers and from its revenue share from ads that are published with news articles.

Google have been prosecuting an argument that they're being asked to pay for links in Search and that is not the case, Stinton said.

They're not stealing published content, but I do believe they are using their market power to preference their own businesses to the detriment of publishers and that's not right, Stinton said.

It's not just paying for links and snippets within search, it's paying for the entire benefit that Google receives, he added.

Google has reached pay deals with more than 450 publications globally since it launched News Showcase in October.

The EU's executive Commission has proposed new rules aimed at taming the biggest digital gatekeepers. Proposals working their way through negotiations among lawmakers from the 27-member bloc's parliament could be amended to include elements of Australia's model.

Britain, which recently left the EU, is planning similar digital reforms that include shaking up the relationship between online platforms and news publishers.

There's definitely an influence from Australia, said Angela Mills Wade, executive director of the European Publishers Council, a lobbying group for media companies. It is being closely monitored by all who have a stake in the outcome.

Publishers in European countries already can request payments from tech companies for using their stories under recently revamped copyright rules. France was the first country to adopt those rules into national legislation and Google initially balked at payments. It changed its tune when a court ordered it into negotiations that resulted in a deal with a group of French publishers.
Kremlin on Wednesday said that there were no legal grounds to release Moscows critic Alexei Navalny, rejecting a call from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) that asked for Putin's political rivals immediate release. Earlier on February 17, a Strasbourg-based court ruled that Russia must free the jailed opposition figure Alexei Navalny as his life was in danger under detention. In a statement to Russias Interfax news agency, Moscows Justice Minister Konstantin Chuychenko said that ECHRs demands were highly unreasonable and unlawful and depict clear and gross interference in Russias judiciary system and domestic matters. Furthermore, calling the EU courts demand deliberately unenforceable Chuychenko said that the ruling contradicted Russias interest and was not in accordance with the countrys law.

Earlier, giving the verdict on Navalnys release, the EU human rights court had warned Moscow, saying that the non-compliance of the European human rights convention would be considered a breach of international law. However, Russia called the EU courts decision a western meddling in the countrys internal issue. Kremlin had earlier initiated a trial of the anti-corruption campaigner Navalny in Russias makeshift court for slandering WWII veterans, following his sentence for flouting the suspended parole in 2014 on embezzlement case conviction, for which, a Moscow court handed him a 2.5-year prison term.

Read: Navalny Team Announces New Protest, Kremlin Reax

Read: 'President Putin Looking Forward To India-Russia Summit, Date To Be Decided': FS Shringla

Detention politically motivated

According to Russias state-run agency, TASS, Russia sentenced Navalny for "discrediting the honour and dignity" of the 95-year-old war veteran who was filmed in a pro-Kremlin video that surfaced online. The political contender, according to the prosecutors, had launched controversial tweets, describing the ex-military personnel "the shame of the country," corrupt lackeys and traitors. Navalny was arrested on Jan. 17 after his arrival in Russia, following his recovery in Germany from the Soviet era nerve toxin Novichok poisoning. The opposition leaders detention, which the supporters called politically motivated by Russian President Vladimir Putin, led to widespread nationwide protests as citizens congregated on the streets in several thousand, demanding Navalnys release.

Read: European Human Rights Court Demands Russia Release Navalny

Read: Former Russia Track President Banned In Doping Cover-up Case
Dok je bio predsednik, Donald Tramp je imao imunitet od krivicnog gonjenja. Ali, sada kao graanin vise ne uziva tu zastitu, a pravni problemi se gomilaju.

Samo tri dana posto ga je Senat oslobodio odgovornosti za podsticanje pobune na Kapitol hilu 6. januara, Trampa je za to tuzio demokratski kongresmen Beni Tompson iz Misisipija. Tompson optuzuje Trampa, njegovog advokata Rudija ulijanija i jos dve ekstremno desnicarske grupacije da su skovali zaveru kako bi podstakli pobunu i sprecili potvrivanje pobede Dzoa Bajdena u Kongresu.

Iako ova tuzba deluje kao prva u nizu, Trampovi pravni problemi nisu ograniceni samo na nerede u Kongresu. U toku je istraga u Njujorku, a vode se i drugi procesi za koje se ocekuje da traju godinama, kaze Sara Tabervil iz organizacije Projekat za nadzor vlade.

"Najveca opasnost za njega je sto vise ne uziva mehanizme zastite, ni pravne ni politicke".

Portparol bivseg predsednika Dzejson Miler, ocenio je da su tekuce istrage i tuzbe "striktno politicke i u skladu sa onim sto rade demokrate".

Demokrate u Kongresu najavile su nezavisnu komisiju koja treba da istrazi nerede na Kapitolu, ali jos nije sigurno da ce ona biti formirana.

Predsednik Bajden je rekao da ce to pitanje ostaviti na resavanje dolazecem sekretaru za pravosue Meriku Garlendu, koji ce odluciti ima li osnova da pravno goni Trampa.

O Trampu se trenutno vodi nekoliko istraga.

Dzordzija

Fani Vilis, tuziteljka okruga Fulton u Dzordziji, istrazuje da li je Tramp prekrsio zakon kada je pritiskao clanove izborne komisije u toj drzavi da preokrenu ishod izbora u njegovu korist.

Tramp je 2. januara razgovarao telefonom sa sekretarom drzave Dzordzije Bredom Rafenspregerom i od njega trazio da mu "pronae dovoljno glasova da promeni ishod glasanja".

U pismu zvanicnicima u Dzordziji 10. februara, tuziteljka Vilis je napisala da je istraga protiv Trampa prioritet za njenu kancelariju i da se istrazuju razlicita krivicna dela: od iznude, preko izborne prevare do pretnji clanovima izborne komisije.

Bivsa federalna tuziteljka Kimberli Vil ocenila je da se istraga "ozbiljno razvija".

"Zato sto imamo dokaze i prilicno je jasno sta se desilo".

Njujork

Drzavna tuziteljka Njujorka Letisa Dzejms i tuzilac sa Menhetna Sajrus Vens dzunior istrazuju Trampovu organizaciju zbog navodnih finansijskih malverzacija.

Vens istragu vodi na osnovu izjava Trampovog bivseg advokata Majkla Koena koji je bivseg predsednika optuzio da je namerno snizavao vrednost svojih nekretnina kako bi platio manji porez. Proslog meseca, tuziteljka Dzejms trazila je od Trampove organizacije da joj dostavi dokumenta u vezi sa tim.

Vens vodi jos jednu, odvojenu istragu, na osnovu Koenovih izjava da je 2016. platio dvema porno glumicama da cute o aferama sa Trampom. Koen je odsluzio zatvorsku kaznu zbog izbegavanja placanja poreza, krsenja zakona o finansiranju kampanje i laganja u Kongresu.

Iako Tramp tek treba da preda dokumenta u Vensovoj istrazi, deluje da se i ona razvija, a navodno njegova kancelarija angazuje i forenzicke eksperte da pomognu u istrazi.

Distrikt Kolumbija

Tuzilac Distrikta Kolumbija Karl Rasin istrazuje Trampovu ulogu u neredima 6. januara, potrveno je za Glas Amerike.

Rasinove nadleznosti su, meutim, ogranicene na lokalne zakone, pa se tako istrazuje uloga bivseg predsednika u krsenju propisa o zabrani pobune. Prema zakonima Vasingtona, podsticanje ili ucestvovanje u pobuni je prekrsaj kaznjiv sa najvise sest meseci zatvora.

Kimberli Vil smatra da ce, iako je rec o prekrsaju, to ostaviti trag u biografiji bivseg predsednika.

Donalda Trampa tuzili su i za klevetu. Aktuelni proces protiv njega vodi bivsa kolumnistkinja magazina El, I. Dzin Kerol, koja je Trampa tuzila posto je demantovao njene navode da je silovao, uz obrazlozenje da "ona nije njegov tip".

Samer Zervos, ucesnica rijalitija Segrt, tuzila je Trampa zbog toga sto je nazvao "lazovom" posto ga je optuzila za napastvovanje 2007.
A local man whose mother lived in a Good Shepherd Home for 25 years has thanked the Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown for showing a level of compassion that has been missing for decades.

However, Robert OConnor also made it clear that the Catholic Church still has to make amends for the hard labour and psychological torture inflicted upon his mother, Bridget, and thousands more women across Ireland.

Bridget OConnor was a mother of four children.

Its believed that she had those children taken away, and put into care homes, because they were conceived outside of marriage.

Robert was told that his mother was referred to the Good Shepherd Home and Laundry on Dungiven Road in 1956.

But the Good Shepherd Sisters who ran the home said they had no solid information to confirm that as fact.

Mr OConnor received a phone call in 1981 informing him that his mother had died while still resident in the Good Shepherd home.

That news came as a shock as he had presumed her dead after several attempts to gather information through the Good Shepherd Sisters were disregarded.

Subsequently, Bridget OConnor was buried under the wrong surname of Conway in a plot with 18 other residents at Ardmore cemetery.

That error was only corrected on the headstone after Mr OConnor mounted legal action.

In a recent story published in the Derry News, Mr OConnor questioned how many other women from Good Shepherd homes were buried under false names.

Bishop Donal McKeown met with Mr OConnor and his wife Kathleen over the weekend where he assured him that he will help the family to find answers.

He said: I have no doubts whatever that this is a most distressing situation for the gentleman. I dont know whether he ever knew his mum when she was alive.

But he knows who his mother was - and he sees the sad circumstances in which she lived her life.

The problem of the name on the headstone just compounded his anger at how mum lived and died.

He faces a lack of information regarding how she ended up in the Laundry and why she stayed there with the nuns all her life.

I hope that he can get some further information to help him. And I assure you that I will do what I can to help. I will meet him whenever and if he wants.

This man deserves all the healing that he can be offered.

RESPONSIBILITY

Mr OConnor expressed his gratitude to the Bishop but added that questions remain over the treatment of women in mother and baby homes and their burials.

I would like to thank Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown for his kind response to the plight of my mother and the treatment inflicted on her and all the women who were enslaved in the Good Shepherd laundry in Derry, Mr OConnor said.

The Bishop has shown more compassion and understanding compared to the responses of the Good Shepherd nuns.

The Catholic Church still owns responsibility to make amends for the historical abuse of the women whose only crime was to have a child outside of marriage and not alone of their own making.

To have their child taken away and a life-long punishment of hard labour, psychological torture seemed the only answer that the Good Shepherd nuns had.

Even in death the question still remains how many of these women are buried without their true names.

This is the first time I have been treated with respect by the Catholic Church in long journeys to find the truth for my mother and the rest of the women who were in that institution.

I have to say again thank you to the Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown.

The Derry News previously contacted the Sister of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd.

The Sisters were asked whether it was common practice to bury residents under the wrong name and why they were placed in communal graves that were sometimes unmarked.

In response, a spokesperson said: You will be aware that an Independent Investigation has been announced, which will have our fullest co-operation - and we will be dealing directly with them on all related matters.

Should any persons who spent time in any of our services, or a family member, wish to contact us directly, we will assist as best we can - and we also encourage them to make contact with the Independent Investigation, when it is established."
LAGOS, Nigeria and NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- B&S POWER HOLDING PTE, a Singapore based renewable energy corporation, and SUNNYFRED GLOBAL, a Nigerian investment entity, have concluded arrangements in collaboration with other stakeholders and Technical Partners, to Design, Develop, Finance and Construct West Africa's Largest Solar Photovoltaic Farm in Nigeria - THE ASHAMA 200MW/HR SOLAR PV FARM.

The Solar Photovoltaic Project is located on about 304 Hectares of Land in Ashama Village, Aniocha South of Delta State in Nigeria.

According to a statement from GREENPLINTH AFRICA, Consultants & Strategic Partners to the Project Promoters, a Media Chat & Project Roadmap Presentation would take place on Thursday, 25th February 2021 by 11am (WAT) at SHERATON HOTEL Lagos, Nigeria.

The event with the theme "Sustainable and Affordable Energy Access for Communities in Nigeria" will highlight the importance of the Ashama Solar Photovoltaic Project to the host community, state, the nation and the continent in general.

The Media Chat and Project Roadmap Presentation would be chaired by Prof. Abubakar Sani Sambo, Vice Chancellor, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto; Chairman, Ministerial Policy and Technical Advisory Committee on Environment in Nigeria and Former Director-General, Energy Commission of Nigeria.

Distinguished Speakers, Technical Partners and Strategic National and international Stakeholders would join B&S POWER HOLDING PTE and SUNNYFRED GLOBAL to present the ASHAMA 200MW/HR SOLAR PV Project to the general public.

According to the World Bank, over 80 million Nigerians are without access to electricity and millions more suffer from poor service despite efforts by the Federal Government to provide electricity in the country. And also about 60 Million of these Nigerians spend more than N1.6 Trillion on fossil fuel generators yearly. The Federal Government of Nigeria however expects renewable energy to fill a substantial portion of the electricity poverty gap in the country.

In Africa, Power is Inaccessible, Unaffordable, and Unreliable for most people. This traps people in poverty; students find it difficult to read after dark, clinics cannot refrigerate vaccines and businesses have shorter operating hours.

Today, more than 25 African countries face an energy crisis. The African continent is well endowed with energy resources, but most remain untapped.

Photo(s):

https://www.prlog.org/12858647

Press release distributed by PRLog

SOURCE GreenPlinthAfrica
At least 58 people have died nationwide during days of frigid winter storms that have left many roads impassable, disrupted vaccine distribution and blanketed nearly three-quarters of the continental United States in snow.

The worst damage was in Texas, where the storm overwhelmed the power grid, causing rolling blackouts and problems with the water supply. On Friday, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which operates the states grid, said it would end emergency conditions as power is restored to households around the state.

About 13 million Texans were told this week to boil their water for safety reasons, and cities across the state were opening water distribution sites.


Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 22:55:50|Editor: huaxia

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BEIRUT, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A senior official of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Thursday that Arab countries need to boost their cooperation in different ways to recover from the repercussions of COVID-19 pandemic.

"For instance, Arab countries must help each other in securing the biggest number of vaccines which have become conducive to ensure social stability," Jihad Azour, director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the IMF, said during an online dialogue hosted by the Carnegie Middle East Center.

Dubbed "where is the MENA economy headed," the dialogue aimed at highlighting challenges facing the Arab region amid COVID-19 outbreak and the steps that must be taken to accelerate recovery from the pandemic.

Azour explained that some countries are not able to secure vaccines before 2022. "These countries must be supported," he said.

Azour said that countries in the Arab region need five to 10 years to recover from the pandemic by creating 30 million job opportunities for the young people who constitute two thirds of the total population in the Arab world.

The official added that Arab governments must finance small and medium-sized enterprises, increase financial inclusion, and boost social support. Enditem
Gov. Eric J. Holcomb, the Indiana State Department of Health and other state leaders will host their media briefing to provide updates on COVID-19 and its impact on Indiana.

Posted: Feb 18, 2021 10:31 AM
Alabamas state pre-K program has come a long way in a decade.

In 2012, a group of state educators, advocates and parents kicked off a 10-year campaign to expand the states voluntary pre-kindergarten program, which began in 2000, and reach more students. At the time, only 6% of Alabamas 4-year-olds had access to a high-quality, educational program.

Now, an estimated 37% of children have access, according to a report released Wednesday by The Alabama School Readiness Association, and the First-Class Pre-K has been named best in the country by the National Institute for Early Education Research for 14 years. Access is increasing  but more work needs to be done in order to get all students in the state access to a program by the 2025-26 school year, according to the group.

Gov. Kay Iveys proposed 2021 budget, currently under consideration by the legislature, includes an additional investment of $24.4 million in First-Class Pre-K, for a total of nearly $150 million. That would increase the number of staff and sites available, and allow an estimated 3,000 children on waiting lists to enroll, bumping access up to 44% of Alabama 4-year-olds.

The group also is asking for additional funding for child care quality and resources for families and schools to build up young children within the classroom and at home.

Pre-K has proven again and again to be such a fantastic corrector of inequities for children coming into school ... and weve got to invest in high-quality child care, in order prepared to prepare children to be ready for pre-K and kindergarten, said Stephen Woerner, executive director for VOICES for Alabamas Children and a member of the task force. So, it is an important investment in early learning, starting at birth. These are not separate issues; theyre part of a continuum to help prepare children for school.

A recent survey of research on the impact of pre-K found that kids who attend public preschools and receive evidence-based instruction by trained professionals are much more prepared for future schooling than those who dont.

Investments in child care infrastructure in Alabama will help prepare children for pre-K while also supporting a range of providers for future First Class Pre-K expansion, according to the group.

In a virtual press conference, some advocates also expressed support for Rep. Pebblin Warren, D-Tuskeegee, who has again introduced a bill for universal kindergarten. It still allows pathways for parents to enroll their children in private kindergarten programs or homeschool, but will encourage more children to be prepared for first grade, they said.

READ MORE: Alabama lawmaker proposes mandatory kindergarten

We think this is a positive step in supporting our missing students and their return to school, said Matt Smith, vice president of policy at A+ Education Partnership, referencing an estimated 3,000 children who are not in kindergarten this school year.

Rep. Terri Collins, R-Decatur, said she supports the additional funding, as well as some form of universal kindergarten. Warrens bill was tweaked in committee and is now before the full House.

Advocates said state businesses have difficulty recruiting workers to come to Alabama because of a lack of child care and educational options, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only worsened matters for many families who have lost income or day care providers. Expansion of public pre-K and additional support for private and at-home options makes good business sense, too.

Theres a whole range of things that make it very reasonable and beneficial for our state to engage in this, said Bob Powers, co-chair of the task force.

Associated Press file photo

Texas's current winter crisis is making its rounds on national news networks. Rachel Maddow reported on the struggles San Antonio is sharing with the rest of the state in the wake of winter weather.

The MSNBC host highlighted the power outage plight and how the inconsistence in energy is affecting the elderly community. Wednesday's issue of the San Antonio Express-News was used on the show.
Power grid operator: Texas isn't "out of the woods yet," but system is stabilizing was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

Sign up for The Brief, our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

The operator of Texas' power grid said Thursday that it has made significant progress in returning energy to the state's system and is no longer having to order electricity providers to cut power to homes and businesses.

But many people across the state remain without power due to more local problems in the electrical system. And in a growing crisis, millions of people across the state have had their water service disrupted because of the winter storm.

During a virtual news conference Thursday, Electric Reliability Council of Texas CEO Bill Magness said the state isn't "out of the woods yet"  but that he thinks "we're in a glide path."

"We're still in very cold conditions, so we're still seeing much higher than normal winter demand," he told reporters. "If we do hit a bump and have some generation have to come back off, we may have to ask for outages but if we do, we believe they'll be at the level where they could be rotating outages."

Temperatures are expected to rise well above freezing across much of the state on Friday, which could further help the electricity situation.

It's unclear how many people currently are lacking power in the state, though the number has declined significantly in the past 24 hours. ERCOT officials said those without electricity still are more likely to have been affected by ice storm damage on power distribution systems or are on systems that need to be manually restarted by crews after they were forced to shut down. Some large industrial facilities that voluntarily went offline are also still without power.

The improved situation is evident by the number of outages some of the biggest local power providers were reporting Thursday afternoon: 11% of Austin Energy customers are facing outages, compared to the 40% on Monday, and CPS Energy, which serves customers in the San Antonio area, reported that less than 1% of its customers were facing outages.

Oncor Electric Delivery, Texas largest utility, provides power for almost 4 million customers across Texas. It indicated outages were still affecting more than 150,000 people in its system. The progress comes after many Texans went days without power as temperatures were well below freezing.

As power returns for some, a new challenge has taken its place, however: As of Thursday morning, more than 13 million Texans were faced with water disruptions.

Cities across the state have required residents to start boiling water before using it for drinking, bathing or cleaning. Major cities including Houston, San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth, Galveston and Corpus Christi, as well as a handfuls of cities in eastern, central and northern parts of Texas have all issued boil-water notices. Many Texans have had no running water at all for at least a day or more.
KYIV. Feb 18 (Interfax-Ukraine) - India may soon make a big economic leap and Ukraine should develop relations with it more, Kost Bondarenko, the head of the Ukrainian Policy Foundation, political scientist and historian, has said.

"India, as a future superstate, which within the next ten years could make a very serious economic leap - and it already demonstrates a large number of points that can form the basis of its development - should also be of interest to Ukraine," Bondarenko said at a press conference entitled "Eastern Vector of Ukrainian Diplomacy" at the Interfax-Ukraine agency.

In turn, international political scientist Anton Kuchukhidze pointed out that Turkey is a promising direction for Ukraine.

"I think that Turkey can become for Ukraine not only a good trade partner in terms of trade, which is not fully formed and its potential is not fully used. Turkey is considered the largest hub in Asia not only for Asia, but also for Africa. Taking into account the level of bilateral cooperation of Turkey both in Asia and in Africa, I think that this could be a good bridge for Ukraine, for building economic ties with African states," he explained.

The expert also stressed the need to create a number of forums, such as "Ukraine-Central Asia," "Ukraine-Asian-Pacific Region," "Ukraine-Islamic World."

"Through such stable forums for dialogue, it would be possible to advance the economic agenda," Kuchukhidze added.

At the same time, Bondarenko noted that both the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine and the President's Office have an understanding of the need to establish bilateral or multilateral relations between Ukraine and Asian states.

"The last visit of the president of Ukraine to the United Arab Emirates gave rise to a discussion on where and what the interests of Ukraine in this region are. But this region is not limited to only the United Arab Emirates," he said.

Bondarenko stressed that for 30 years in Ukraine there has been an imbalance towards relations with the West.

"I think that Zelensky's visit to the UAE and the fact that a big eastern trip is now expected (at least, a trip to the countries of the East has been announced) can break the situation of imbalance that we have observed over the past years, and possibly decades," he said.

In addition, the expert drew attention to the need to revise the false, in his opinion, policy of delimiting the activities of Ukrainian diplomatic missions and trade and economic missions, which each work in isolation from each other and are subordinate to different ministries.
"We have been delivering production ready solutions to our Tier-1 customers for several years and many of them are selected for OEM programs globally. Now customers will have greater confidence in their ability to rapidly scale their production capability by using these solutions

Marben Products, S.A.S, today announced the companys plans to provide an advanced cellular vehicle-to-everything (C-V2X) solution featuring Marbens software capabilities validated on Qualcomm Snapdragon Automotive 4G and 5G Platforms. The validation of the latest Marben C-V2X software platform with the Snapdragon 4G and 5G Platforms, as well as with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 2150 Platform with Qualcomm Aerolink Communication Technology, is designed to support global automakers and Tier-1 suppliers commercialization for next-generation telematics solutions featuring C-V2X capabilities. The solution is designed to support companies in the automotive ecosystem who not only utilizes wireless platforms from Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., but also those who utilize Marbens C-V2X software, with the necessary applications, security and stack to manage vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) and vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) use cases.

Marbens cost-effective software solution has been proven in multiple field test environments and is supported by various players in the C-V2X software and hardware ecosystem. Marbens C-V2X platform has been used to demonstrate basic safety use cases, Vulnerable Road User (VRU), Red Light Violation Warning (RLVW), Left Turn Assist (LTA), and many other safety and mobility applications throughout the U.S., Europe and China, and has the flexibility to expand on any future use cases presented by consortiums or standard bodies. Marbens V2X solution is compliant with MISRA, a coding standard required by automotive customers, as well as is compliant with ASPICE, a practice followed to develop software focused on ensuring the quality of the product.

The work weve done with Qualcomm Technologies results in a C-V2X solution that is readily available to customers who are ready for mass production. With MISRA and ASPICE compliant MARBEN C-V2X software solution and scalability and availability of Qualcomm Technologies platforms, we ensure with automotive grade stringent requirements for our end customers, said Devang Naik, Director of Engineering  Marben Products SAS.

We have been delivering production ready solutions to our Tier-1 customers for several years and many of them are selected for OEM programs globally. Now customers will have greater confidence in their ability to rapidly scale their production capability by using these solutions, said Vish Emani, Vice President  Marben Products SAS.

About Marben Products

Marben is the global leader of communication solutions for the Telecommunication, Transportation and Automotive markets. For over three decades, equipment manufacturers and software editors have chosen Marben to embed best-of-breed communication software to optimize total cost of ownership.

Marben's evolutionary software allows automotive industry to deploy intelligent, automation and safety applications quickly. Marben's software solutions deliver interoperable, efficient and robust solutions to help accelerate its customer's time to market.

Over hundreds of thousands of Marben software products are deployed each year. Worldwide, Telecom and Automotive companies such as Bosch, Ciena, Cisco, Continental, Ericsson, Ficosa, Fujitsu, HP, LG Electronics, Nokia, Oracle, Renault, Sirius XM, Valeo, Visteon, WNC

With offices spread over three continents: Europe, North America and Asia, Marben is committed to providing best-in-class service and support to its customers worldwide.

Phone: + 1 678 779 3581

https://www.linkedin.com/company/marben

https://twitter.com/MarbenProducts

E-mail: info@marben-products.com

Qualcomm and Snapdragon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Qualcomm Incorporated. Aerolink is a trademark or registered trademark of Onboard Security, Inc.

Qualcomm Snapdragon and Qualcomm Aerolink are products of Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.
Aviation authorities have ordered carriers to refuse transporting passengers who flout Covid-19 prevention measures like medical declarations.

The move came in the light of a new Covid-19 wave that reemerged in Vietnam on Jan. 28 before hitting 13 localities and major airports - Tan Son Nhat in HCMC and Van Don in the northern province of Quang Ninh.

The Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam asked airports to impose social distancing between passengers and increase buses to transfer passengers from terminals to planes.

Air passengers are required to submit compulsory medical declarations, wear face masks, disinfect their hands as well as keep a safe distance and avoid gathering in crowds.

Airport staff in direct contact with passengers must have anti-splash goggles and be regularly tested for the coronavirus. They need to install Bluezone, a Bluetooth-based app that helps determine if a person has come into contact with a Covid-19 patient.

The aviation industry has been ramping up a series of measures to prevent the risk of virus spread at large airports.

Passengers arriving at Tan Son Nhat from Hanoi, Quang Ninh and Hai Phong, all virus-hit areas, are randomly chosen for Covid-19 testing.

Earlier, dozens of employees at Van Don International Airport were diagnosed with Covid-19, prompting authorities to temporarily shut down the airport. Then, a series of staff at Tan Son Nhat, the countrys largest airport, were found infected with the coronavirus caused by a Rwanda variant.

Due to the impacts of the new wave that appeared just a couple weeks before Tet, the countrys biggest holiday, Vietnamese airports only received 815,000 passengers during the Lunar New Year holiday, down 66 percent year-on-year.
The coronavirus vaccine is so coveted in the US that two women in Florida went to extremes on Wednesday to get inoculated: they dressed as if they were elderly, health officials said.

The women, both younger than 45, wore bonnets, gloves and glasses to disguise themselves as older than 65, the cut-off age to be prioritised to get the coronavirus vaccine in Orlando, according to Raul Pino, the director of the health department in Orange County. He attributed the deception to growing interest in the vaccine, giving the example of the women while explaining how high demand was in the area.

Two women were caught trying to pass as elderly to be able to get their second COVID-19 vaccine. Credit:Virginia Star

This is the hottest commodity that is out there right now so we have to be very careful, Pino said on Thursday.

The geriatric guise is the latest instance of people trying to jump the queue to get vaccinated from the deadly virus. Last month, authorities identified a wealthy Canadian couple who had posed as locals in a remote Indigenous community to take doses meant for elders. An Indiana health department issued a warning earlier this month against what they called a substantial lack of morality after people had lied to vaccination site workers about their addresses, jobs and ages.

The Florida womens costumes may have succeeded before - both had the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention card indicating they had received their first doses. Pino said he did not know how they could have been previously vaccinated, but on Wednesday workers at the site at the Orange County Convention Centre caught on.

Once the staff at the site noticed the discrepancy with their birthdays listed on their driver licences, the women, 44 and 34, were referred to deputies, who issued trespass warnings against them, the Orange County Sheriffs Office said.

The women, whom The Washington Post is not identifying because they have not been charged, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday evening.

They did not get their second shot, and security at the site was heightened in the wake of the incident, said Kent Donahue, a spokesman for the health department.

Pino said there had been a few cases of people trying to trick health workers into getting vaccinated, including a man who had the same name as his elderly father.

As we are engaged in this process trying to move quickly, some people could squeeze in, so its probably higher than we suspect, he said of the number of people who might lie to get vaccinated.

Asked if it was frustrating to him that the two women skipped the queue, Pino said it wasnt up to him to determine who should be next in line, referring to the prioritisation scale set up by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican.

Our job as a health department is to vaccinate as many people as possible, Pino said.

DeSantis was criticised this week after he unveiled a pop-up clinic offering vaccines in an affluent, mostly white neighbourhood of Manatee County, Florida.

The state has been allocated 3.4 million doses and administered more than 2.5 million first doses, according to data compiled by the Post.

Orange County has vaccinated more than 200,000 people, Pino said, adding that the county is increasing its capacity to keep up with desire in the community.

Its great to see that demand, he said. We havent had any lack of willing arms to get vaccinated... we have people faking to be old to get vaccinated.
Another Alabama man has been charged in the January riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Phillip Andrew Bromley, a 47-year-old nurse anesthetist from Sterrett, is charged with unlawful entry of a restricted building and disorderly conduct, according to federal court records made public Wednesday.

Bromley was among the crowd that forced its way into the building while the joint session of Congress was underway to certify the vote count of the Electoral College in the 2020 presidential election.

Bromley was standing eight feet from Air Force veteran Ashli E. Babbitt, 35, when she was shot and killed during the chaotic events that Wednesday, documents state.

FBI Special Agent William Novak stated in federal charging documents that Bromley was shown on video footage published by on the ProPublica website under What Parler Saw During the Attack on the Capitol. The website contains numerous videos that appear to have been recorded on Jan. 6 in and around the Capitol building.

One of the videos was titled 4:26 p.m. Near Capitol and in that video that a man who identified himself as Phillip Bromley chronicled the events that he witnessed that day. Listen,' he tells the man recording him, everybody needs to know the truth.

Bromley described how he breached the right side of the building and went inside. Eventually, he said, he came to two large glass doors and said he talked with SWAT officers, reminding them of their oath. Moments later, he said, a gunshot went off and a woman was shot in the neck. He said it did not look like a survivable wound.

She was eight feet in front me,' Bromley said. They shot her and shes dead.

The person who recorded Bromley identified himself as a pastor and asked to pray with Bromley, which he did. Bromley appeared emotional during the prayer.

The agent included surveillance videos that showed Bromley inside of the Capitol building and a copy of his drivers license photo obtained through the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency for comparison and identification. Bromley, who is not accused of being armed with any weapon, is charged with two federal misdemeanor crimes.

Bromley made an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge John H. England III Wednesday and was released on $5,000 bond. The government, court records show, did not object to Bromleys bond.

Bromley is being represented by Richard Jaffe and Michael Whisonant of Jaffe, Hanle, Whisonant, and Knight in Birmingham. The attorneys released this statement to AL.com. " We are in the process of evaluating the substance of the Governments proof. Mr. Bromley is a well-respected member of the community who served his country and has no prior criminal record whatsoever. We are pleased the Court chose not to detain Mr. Bromley and look forward to examining the Governments evidence once we receive discovery.
WASHINGTON  A Nicaraguan woman with stage 3 breast cancer; a deaf Central American man who could not understand how to navigate the immigration system; a Cuban man who had not seen his newborn son. All were denied entry to the United States by the Trump administration's "Remain in Mexico" policy.

Now, under the Biden administration, Customs and Border Protection has granted parole, allowing entry to the United States for these and other immigrants with extreme circumstances as they await their asylum hearings.

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed to NBC News that it has begun the process of granting parole on a case-by-case basis even before the Biden administration officially begins to process the tens of thousands of asylum seekers awaiting entry to the U.S. in cities like Matamoros, Mexico.

After more than two years developing investigation-based recommendations and policy guidance concerning the civil rights implications of making asylum-seekers wait in Mexico, a DHS spokesperson said, [The] Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties is working with other DHS components to implement Executive Orders related to DHS asylum and border policies to ensure compliance with civil and human rights protections and considerations,

Paroles into the United States conducted by U.S. Customs and Border Protection continue to be handled on a case-by-case basis.

One official, who could not give exact numbers, said "a steady stream" of parole applicants has recently been allowed to enter the U.S.

The Nicaraguan woman spoke to NBC News on the condition of anonymity, afraid that revealing her identity could lead to harm if she is eventually deported. She fled political violence in Nicaragua and traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border with her then 4-year-old daughter and waited for entry from October 2019 until February 2021.

"When I first got there, I cried too much. Because, first of all, it was so dangerous," she said. She described hearing gunfire at night as she huddled with her daughter in the home of a woman who took them in. "We didn't know what was going to happen next."

One morning soon after her arrival, she and her daughter waited more than four hours on a bridge between Matamoros and Brownsville, Texas, hopeful that they would be able to enter the U.S. and make their claim for asylum. They were turned back.

"I remember when we were walking back on the bridge, [my daughter] started crying," she said. "She didn't understand. 'I thought today was going to be the day I see my Grandma.'"

Related: Starting Feb. 19, immigrants forced to "Remain in Mexico" under Trump will be allowed to live in the U.S. while waiting for asylum rulings.

Then she started experiencing pain in her breast and was diagnosed with stage three cancer.

"(The doctor) told me, 'Your breast cancer is in stage 3. You cannot play with this. You have to get help now," she said, "or you're going to be counting your days of life.'"

The diagnosis did not help her gain access or any special protection under the Trump administration, even though U.S. immigration attorneys from the advocacy group Project Corazon were advocating on her behalf.

Then, earlier this month, her lawyers brought her good news. Because of her medical condition, she would be allowed to live with her mother in the U.S. while she waited for her day in court to present her asylum case.

Image: Woman and daughter arrive in United States from Nicaragua (NBC News)

Now, she is living with her mother in Miami, a reunion that brought tears of joy for them both.

"it was the happiest day of my life when I saw my mom, and I could hold her," she said. "And I don't have to stress that something is going to happen to me, my daughter."

She said her daughter, who is with her in Miami, is most excited about starting school.

Related: "The fact that a family is now reunited does not eliminate the trauma it has already endured," said Lee Gelernt of the ACLU.

But finding medical help without legal status in the U.S. or health insurance has proven to be another challenge. She has still not seen a U.S.-based doctor.

"I called one organization. They told me they will work on sending me a letter for an appointment. Because I'm an immigrant, it's hard for me. Very hard."

The Biden administration has said it will start processing people who have been waiting under "Remain in Mexico" on Friday, beginning with those who have been waiting the longest and those who are deemed most vulnerable. But so far it remains unclear how those in need of medical care for chronic conditions will be treated once they are admitted.
Poor man to get surgery thanks to support

A poor man in the northern province of Hai Duong has received over VND100 million from the public to cover surgery fees for a head injury.













Pham Dinh Luan has received over VND100 million from the public to cover surgery fees for a head injury.

Pham Dinh Luan, 26, was seriously injured in a traffic accident in 2014. His skull was broken and he suffered from traumatic brain injury.



Luan had undergone a surgery that saved his life but his health was still very weak after that with a deformed head.



At that time, doctors from the Vietnam-Germany Hospital said that Luan needed to place a titanium sheet into the broken side of the skull. However, his poor family could not afford the cost so he was taken home and has lived in constant pain.



According to Luan's mother, Ho Thi Lan, Luan usually destroys furniture and beats her when he has a seizure. Sometimes he even walks out to attack other people.



"My husband left us 10 years ago and my two daughters live far away so they cant help," she said. "Now I only wish that I have enough money to continue the treatment for him."















Luan and his mother



After the story of the young man was shared on Dantri/DTiNews Online Newspaper, many readers sent money to support the family.

Lan said that she has received over VND100 million (USD4,348) from kind donors which is probably enough to cover the surgery costs for her son.



"Luan recently came to the hospital but doctors said that he's too weak and needs to improve his health in order for them to carry out the surgery," she said. "Now I'm trying to nurse him so that he can have good health for the surgery."



The woman also sent her thanks to kind donors for supporting her son.
Agartala, Feb 18 (UNI) BJPs organisational secretary of northeast Ajay Jamwal arrived here last evening along with RSS regional in-charge Ullas Kulkarni, amid controversy triggered by Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb's statement that Union Home Minister Amit Shah during his stint as BJP's national president had once said though the party had come to power in several states, Nepal and Sri Lanka were still left.

Last night, Jamwal and Kulkarni held discussions with the Chief Minister and met with the party leaders over organisational issues, ongoing squabble between two factions of the party, dissidence against the Chief Minister and infighting among the workers in different parts of the state.

Jamwal's sudden draws significance as he reached the state without notice a day after official complaints from Nepal and Sri Lanka. Chief Minister's controversial comments has put BJP, especially Union Home Minister Amit Shah on a tight spot. Moreover, while referring to Shah's comments, Biplab mentioned the presence of Jamwal in the discussion on BJPs expansion plan beyond boundaries, said a senior leader.
Sen. Ted Cruz is being called out for flying to Cancun while his constituents are freezing, without power and water.

A viral photo of someone who looks a lot like Cruz boarding a flight to Mexico circulated on Twitter Wednesday evening. FOX News journalist Chad Pergram tweeted around 9 a.m. Wednesday that his colleague Paul Steinhauser confirmed Cruz traveled to Cancun. According to Pergram's GOP Source, "the photos speak for themselves."

However, Cruz's office has not confirmed, according to multiple CNN reporters. The Associated Press reported Cruz traveled to Cancun for a long-planned family trip but was expected to return immediately.

See the photo below for yourself:

READ ALSO: Sen. Ted Cruz has no defense after old tweets mocking California power outages resurface

Many Texans are criticizing the leader for leaving his state during an unprecedented wintery storm that has left millions suffering. San Antonio native and U.S. Congressman Joaquin Castro even chimed in on the matter.

"Please don't spread misinformation. Ted Cruz flew to Cancun," Castro tweeted in response to someone who said he flew to Acapulco.

READ ALSO: Twitter calls out Stephen King for 'shameful' tweet about Texas' winter crisis

Sports journalist Jemele Hill also tweeted about Cruz, writing that he should take a private jet the next time he wants to "slink away" to Cancun.

"Pro tip for Ted Cruz: Next time you want to slink away to Cancun while millions of your constituents are without heat, water and basic necessities, rent a private jet my guy. Last minute usage of frequent flyer miles will get you caught every time," Hill tweeted.

Cruz going to Cancun left him not only trending on Twitter but also Mexicans, which puzzled many.

"How Ted Cruz escaping to Cancun, Mexico when he don't even like Mexicans. Math ain't matching." @itsafronomics tweeted.

How many gray Come and Take It masks can there be, really?

Priscilla Aguirre is a general assignment reporter for MySA.com | priscilla.aguirre@express-news.net | @CillaAguirre
Republicans have attacked the White House over its school reopening policy, claiming the administration is listening more to the teachers unions than science.

'It's clear the Biden Administration's policy is "follow the teachers unions"not "follow the science,"' wrote Republican Rep. Steve Scalise, a member of House GOP leadership, on twitter.

Teacher unions want vaccinations for educators before classes resume in person while the administration said that is a 'priority' and not a requirement. Scalise was one of the Republican House members who introduced the Reopen Schools Act last month.

Florida's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis also attacked Democrats for 'putting politics and special interests ahead of what the evidence and observed experience says.'

He also claimed the administration was listening to the teachers' unions instead of the science, saying the White House is 'putting politics ahead of whats right for kids.'

White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain took to Twitter to fire back.

'Schools closed under President Trump, and they will reopen under President Biden,' he wrote.

And White House press secretary Jen Psaki dismissed the Republicans' criticism when asked about at her press briefing on Thursday.

'Kids are not Democrats or Republicans,' she said.

'The president wants schools to open, five days a week. He wants kids to be in school. Teachers want kids to be in school, and he also believes that teachers should be prioritized,' she said.

Republicans have attacked the White House over its school reopening policy with Republican Rep. Steve Scalise and Florida's Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis slamming Biden administration

White House chief of staff Ron Klain fired back at Republican critics

The Republican attacks comes as the White House deepened the confusion on the school reopening process Wednesday with statements that vaccination for teachers are a 'priority' but not required.

The final decision, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, is up to the states.

'Neither the president nor the vice president believe it is a requirement,' Psaki said of teacher immunizations ahead of school reopenings.

'At the same time, the president and vice president also believe that teachers should be prioritized,' Psaki continued. 'That's up to states to determine.'

Psaki faced repeated questions on the administration's policy on school openings as the White House has been asked to clarify its standing on the issue after neither President Joe Biden nor Vice President Kamala Harris would give a direct response when asked about teacher vaccinations.

The subject has become a national debate as kids continue to hold classes online due to the coronavirus pandemic, school districts look to resume in-person classes and teachers express concern about their safety.

As the administration pushes for schools to resume in person, teachers' unions have demanded access to vaccines before returning to the classroom. And the Education Department is in want of a leader during this as Biden's nominee for education secretary, Miguel Cardona, has yet to be confirmed by the Senate.

The White House deepened the confusion on the school reopening process by saying teachers don't need to be vaccinated in order for in-person classes to return but then called the issue a 'priority.'

White House Press secretary Jen Psaki said teachers don't need to be vaccinated in order for in-person classes to return but then called the issue a 'priority'

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rolled out its long awaited guidance on school reopenings last week, recommending universal mask usage and social distancing but not vaccination.

The CDC also called vaccination for teachers a 'priority' but not a requirement.

But neither President Biden, during his CNN town hall Tuesday night, nor Harris on NBC's 'Today Show' on Wednesday morning, would say 'yes' or 'no' that teachers must be vaccinated before schools reopen.

'It's about needing to be able to socially distance, smaller classes, more protection, and I think the teachers and the folks who work in the school, the cafeteria workers and others should be on the list of preferred to get a vaccination,' Biden told CNN's Anderson Cooper.

'Teachers should be a priority,' Harris said repeatedly in her interview - and came under fire from anchor Savannah Guthrie as she evaded the question.

Guthrie asked Harris: 'Can you reassure teachers listening right now that it is safe to go back to school even if they are not vaccinated if these public health measures, like distancing and masks, are being implemented?

'Teachers should be a priority along with other front line workers and we're going to make them a priority,' Harris said in reference to many states keeping teachers lower on the vaccination priority order than front line workers like medical employees, firefighters and law enforcement.

'But if they're not vaccinated, is it safe for them?' Guthrie pushed.

'Well, I think that we have to decide if we can put in place safe measures,' Harris said, then deflected to talking about the $1.9 trillion America Rescue Plan.

Harris eventually appeared to concede that regardless of whether teachers are vaccinated or not, they should return to the classroom so schools can reopen.

In contrast, on CBS This Morning, Biden's chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said directly that getting every teacher vaccinated within the timeline of wanting to reopen schools is 'non-workable.'

Vice President Kamala Harris said Wednesday that 'teachers should be a priority' in getting the coronavirus vaccine, but said regardless of whether they are vaccinated, schools should reopen

Harris was on TV to promote the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which she claims would help get schools back open, while also addressing the issues of 2.5 million women put out of work by the pandemic, which she claims is a 'national emergency' in itself

'I think if you are going to say that every single teacher needs to be vaccinated before you get back to school, I believe quite franklythat that's a non-workable situation,' the nation's top infectious disease expert and member of Biden's COVID-19 advisory board told CBS News on Wednesday.

'I think teachers should absolutely be priority among those who we consider essential personnel, and you should try and get as many teachers as you possibly can vaccinated as quickly as you possibly can,' he continued.

But Harris said the $1.9 trillion relief package being worked out in Congress right now would help reopen schools.

'It's going to be safer for our schools to reopen when we can get our schools the infrastructure needs like helping them with their ventilation systems, helping them create social distancing with barriers  the things that are necessary to get them opened in a safe way,' she said in making the argument for the passage of the latest COVID-19 bill.

'I don't want to beat it to death,' Guthrie cut off Harris, 'but I know that there are teachers listening and the CDC has said they don't need to be vaccinated to go back to school '

Harris cut in with a terse: 'We think they should be a priority.'

'I believe they should be a priority, the president believes they should be a priority,' she said.

Harris said the nearly $2 trillion bailout plan would also address the issues of 2.5 million women put out of work by the pandemic, which she claims is a 'national emergency' in itself.

'This is a big problem, I mean the issue of 2.5 million women out of the workforce is a national emergency as far as I'm concerned. So a national emergency  a big problem  requires a bit solution,' Harris told NBC anchor Savannah Guthrie.

Many of these women were put out of work by school closures, as some had to ease up on their careers to take over the at-home and virtual education of their children in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The vice president remained on-message during her live interview with Guthrie, keeping her focus on the latest bailout bill and reassuring teachers they should go back to school.

Harris dodged several other questions thrown her way in the Wednesday morning interview, including refusing to weigh in as a former prosecutor on whether Donald Trump could face criminal prosecution for his actions related to the January 6 Capitol attack.

'You know, right now I'm focused on what we need to do to get relief to American families and that is my highest priority, it's our administration's highest priority,' Harris said when asked about the current rift in the Republican Party.

That didn't stop Guthrie from pushing the issue to get Harris to deviate from her talking points.

Harris didn't budge, responding: 'I haven't reviewed the case through the lens of a prosecutor, I'm reviewing the case of COVID in America through the lens of being the Vice President of America.'

Biden's vice president reiterated that the administration's goal is to get as many kindergarten through 8th grade students back to in-person learning within the first 100 days of his administration.

'Our goal is that it would be five days a week,' Harris continued as other comments have suggested it would only be one-day-per-week in-person classes.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not made it a requirement for teachers to get vaccinated before they return to the classroom.

Some teachers remain hesitant to return to teaching their students in-person if they do not first receive either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine against COVID-19.

States have introduced tier programs for vaccination distribution that lists priorities for who can get the shot at what point in time. At the top of every state's list is front line and healthcare workers.

Beyond that, the priority list varies from state to state.

Biden's administration maintains his goal of getting 100 million vaccines in the arms of Americans in his first 100 days is on track for success.

The president and vice president will meet with labor leaders Wednesday to discuss the American Rescue Plan, which is continuously expanding and could require Harris' tie-breaking vote in the Senate to pass.

Biden said during his televised town hall on Wednesday that he believes the country will be close 'at the end of the first 100 days' to getting half the country's younger kids back in school.

President Joe Biden said his administration's goal is to get kindergarteners through eighth graders back in school five days a week by the end of his first 100 days in office  opposed to his press secretary suggesting it could only be one-day of in-person classes each week

He said the goal was five days a week  opposed to 'a mistake in the communication' earlier that caused rumors to swirl the administration was only working toward one-day-per-week in-person schooling.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki seemed to dramatically scale back the administration's goal of reopening half of U.S. schools by the end of the president's first 100 days. She suggested open could mean only one day a week.

'His goal that he set is to have the majority of schools  so, more than 50%  open by day 100 of his presidency,' Psaki said during a press conference last week. 'And that means some teaching in classrooms. So, at least one day a week. Hopefully, it's more.'

Her comment attracted criticism because the bar was so low.

'The administration doesn't have to exert much effort to meet this goal,' Jonathan Butcher, an education fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, told the Associated Press.

Biden clarified Wednesday evening that the goal is to get kids back in the classroom five-days-a-week and said schools might even opt to push classes into the summer 'like it's a different semester.'

When CNN's Anderson Cooper mentioned the one-day-a-week caveat, Biden pushed back.

'No, that's not true,' Biden said, explaining that the actual administration goal was getting kids in classrooms closer to full-time.

During the town hall, Biden also interacted with a second grader at the town hall.

He told her not to be scared and explained as a child 'you're the safest group of people in the whole world' in terms of mortality from the coronavirus.

Biden made the point to the youngster that it's also not good for kids to be out of school.

'That's kind of a scary thing too,' the president said. 'You don't get to go to school, you don't get to see your friends.'
ALBANY, Ore.  Brenton Wade Richmond of Lebanon will spend 50 years to life in prison for the murders of his former girlfriend and the man she was seeing at the time.

Thursdays sentence followed three days of emotional testimony by family members as well as experts in Linn County Circuit Court.

Brenton Wade Richmond Brenton Wade Richmond

A Linn County judge ordered Richmond to serve 25 years to life in prison on each of two counts of second-degree murder with the sentences to be served consecutively.

MORE: SENTENCING HEARING UNDERWAY IN LEBANON DOUBLE HOMICIDE

Tammy Hopper and Erik Jacobs were killed in Hoppers home on Feb. 7, 2019. Their bodies were found two days after they were killed, the same day that Richmond was arrested at the Mexican border in San Diego.

Richmond, 50, pleaded guilty in January to two counts of second-degree murder.

Prosecutors wanted Richmond to receive two life sentences with a minimum of 25 years each, served one after the other. The defendants lawyers asked for a shorter sentence.
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Fianna Fail Senator for Louth, Erin McGreehan has welcomed the announcement by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage on the allocations and targets under the Energy Efficiency Retrofitting Programme for Social Housing.

The first allocation for Louth County Council is 967,316 to retrofit 36 houses.

Commenting on the Louth allocation announced, Senator McGreehan said, The retrofitting of 36 homes in Louth is excellent news.

"By retrofitting the nations housing stock we will not only reduce energy bills but it will contribute hugely to the reduction of our national energy consumption, thereby helping to mitigate climate change.

This is part of the move towards reaching our targets in relation to Carbon reduction.

The Louth Senator added, Retrofitting is so important to reduce the reliance on fossil fuel, both for environmental reasons and health reasons. I do believe that there needs to be a huge investment into retrofitting private homes. Green loans and grants need to be facilitated in order to ensure that we leave no one behind and at risk of a trap of fuel poverty.

Also announced today was the first step by Minister Eamon Ryan towards a nationwide ban on the sale and burning of smoky coal.

Senator McGreehan commented, Smog is incredibly detrimental to our health, its fantastic to see the Government develop the policies that will combat air pollution and deliver cleaner air, ultimately protecting public health.

Commenting on the Louth allocation announced, Senator McGreehan said: The retrofitting of 36 homes in Louth is excellent news.

"By retrofitting the nations housing stock we will not only reduce energy bills but it will contribute hugely to the reduction of our national energy consumption, thereby helping to mitigate climate change.

This is part of the move towards reaching our targets in relation to Carbon reduction.

The Louth Senator added: Retrofitting is so important to reduce the reliance on fossil fuel, both for environmental reasons and health reasons.

"I do believe that there needs to be a huge investment into retrofitting private homes.

"Green loans and grants need to be facilitated in order to ensure that we leave no one behind and at risk of a trap of fuel poverty.

Also announced today was the first step by Minister Eamon Ryan towards a nationwide ban on the sale and burning of smoky coal.

Senator McGreehan commented: Smog is incredibly detrimental to our health, its fantastic to see the Government develop the policies that will combat air pollution and deliver cleaner air, ultimately protecting public health.
SALEM, Ore.  With more and more districts bringing students back into the classroom, Gov. Kate Brown issued a statement on Thursday.

As of today, 116,749 Oregon students have returned to in-person learned, more than doubling the total from eight weeks ago, Brown said.

Elementary students will be coming back to the classroom next month in many districts, including Salem-Keizer, the second-largest school district in the state with more than 17,000 elementary students. By the end of April, most Oregon elementary students will be learning in person.

I am thrilled to see so many of Oregons school districts and teachers working hard to help return our children to the most effective learning environment: in-person, personalized education. Now, middle and high school students must get the same chance, so that all students have the opportunity to benefit from in-person instruction, regardless of the community in which they live, Brown said.

The state will be providing resources to schools such as rapid tests for on-site COVID-19 testing to help get students back into classrooms. About $500 million in federal relief will be used to implement safety standards and buy personal protective equipment for staff and students, Brown said.

She added "the science is clear" and said with the proper protocols in place, theres very little risk of transmission in schools.

Our students only grow up once. We cannot let the school year end with the class of 2021 never having set foot in Oregon high schools. I know that some have had their doubts. But we can do this, by continuing to work together. It is within our power to provide every Oregon student the opportunity for in-person instruction this school year, Brown said.
OTTAWA - There is compelling evidence that a single dose of COVID-19 vaccines may provide almost as much protection as giving two doses, Canada's deputy chief public health officer said Thursday.

Deputy chief public health officer Dr. Howard Njoo responds to a question during a news conference, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - There is compelling evidence that a single dose of COVID-19 vaccines may provide almost as much protection as giving two doses, Canada's deputy chief public health officer said Thursday.

Dr. Howard Njoo said the advisory committee of federal and provincial public health officers is having an active discussion about whether Canada would be better served to delay the second doses of vaccines in a bid to give protection to more vulnerable people quicker.

"These are what I would call early data in terms of a vaccine effectiveness or studies," he said. "And the indications are that there's a good level of protection after just one dose."

Canada intends to vaccinate three million people with two doses by the end of March.

More than 990,000 Canadians have received at least one dose, and about one-third of those have also received their second doses.

Quebec's immunization committee went as far Thursday as to recommend nobody get a second dose until a first dose is injected into everyone in six high-risk groups, including people over 70, health-care workers, and people who live in long-term care homes and retirement residences.

The committee reported that single doses have been 80 per cent effective at preventing COVID-19 so far among long-term care residents and health workers who were vaccinated.

Questions about delaying the second doses arose almost as soon as vaccinations began in December, prompting a whirlwind of debate among scientists about the ethics of "going off label."

Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna's vaccines  the two currently authorized in Canada  were tested by giving two doses, 21 days and 28 days apart respectively.

But Dr. Danuta Skowronski, the epidemiology lead for influenza and emerging respiratory pathogens at the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, said data show two weeks after one dose of either vaccine, the protection against COVID-19 was almost as good as what was found after two doses.

Skowronski and Dr. Dr. Gaston De Serres from the Institut national de sante publique du Quebec made the case in a letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine this week.

Moderna reported itself that two weeks after one dose, those who got the vaccine were 92 per cent less likely to develop COVID-19 symptoms.

Pfizer and BioNTech, whose vaccine uses similar genetic technology to Moderna's, said their vaccine was 52 per cent effective after one dose, but 94.5 per cent effective after two.

Skowronski said Pfizer started measuring illness as soon as the injections were given, which she said is "unreasonable."

"It's basic vaccinology that you don't expect the vaccine to activate the immune system instantaneously," she said, in an interview with The Canadian Press.

Skowronski said if you wait two weeks to start counting infections, there were 92 per cent fewer infections of COVID-19 among those who got one dose of the vaccine, compared with those who got the placebo.

At that level of protection, she said "we need to get a first dose into our priority populations, and the most vulnerable of those at greatest risk of severe outcomes and the precious resource of our front-line health-care workers."

She said the second dose should eventually be given but said there isn't a maximum time she would put on how long to wait.

Pfizer has issued caution about adjusting the dosing schedule but said the decision to do so rests with local authorities.

"We at Pfizer believe that it is critical for health authorities to carry on surveillance on implemented alternative dosing schedules to ensure that vaccines provide the maximum possible protection," the company's statement reads.

Canada's National Advisory Committee on Immunization said in January that the recommended schedule should be followed wherever possible but that delaying a second dose up to six weeks could be beneficial, particularly with a shortage of supplies and a fast-spreading virus.

Skowronski said waiting six weeks instead of three or four for a second dose won't do much.

"That's not maximizing coverage that we need to undertake with the scarcity of the vaccine that is available now."

Several provinces have been delaying the second doses a couple of weeks, particularly as deliveries of both Pfizer-BioNTech's vaccine and Moderna's slowed to a crawl in mid-January.

Those delays appear to be over. Pfizer says it will ship nearly three million doses over the next six weeks, and Moderna promises to ship more than 1.4 million.

With the two authorized vaccines, and the two-dose schedule followed, Canada expects to vaccinate 14.5 million people by the end of June and all Canadians who want to be immunized by the end of September.

A new vaccination schedule issued Thursday shows if the other three vaccines currently being reviewed get approved by Health Canada, 24.5 million Canadians could be vaccinated before Canada Day.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.

There was a queue for blessed ashes at Grange church on the Cooley Peninsula in Co Louth. Pictured after receiving their ashes from their mum are sisters Aoibhinn and Cliona Carroll. Photo: Ciara Wilkinson

A socially distanced line of people waited this morning to collect their takeaway ashes from one of Irelands oldest churches to mark the start of Lent.

Father Malachy Conlon blessed the 1,000 individual containers during morning mass at the Church of St James, Grange, on the Cooley Peninsula in Co Louth.

The ashes were placed in large open baskets in front of the altar for people to collect and take home with them.

I got two  one for me and one for my neighbour who cant get to the church, said Pat Halpenny (79) from Ballagan.

It is not the first time Fr Malachy Conlon has adapted to the restrictions brought by Covid-19. Last year he used a vehicle similar to the Pope mobile to travel through the parish and bless parishioners while observing social distancing on Holy Thursday.

One of the many homes he stopped outside was the Halpennys, and Pat said: We are very lucky to be living in Cooley with this priest. What he did last year was unbelievable, he stopped at the house for a few seconds so you got a blessing from a distance off him.

Mr Halpenny said lockdown is not easy for him.

I was a man that went out and visited people, I loved visiting people and that is all knocked to the head. I am trying to abide by the rules and staying in, he said.

Three generations of the Finnegan family from Mucklagh, Carlingford, were among the first to collect their ashes.

Doriena Finnegan was joined by her mother Ann and her two children, Muireann (10) and son Teddy (2).

To collect the ashes, you went in one door and sanitised your hands as you went in. Then up to the altar, collect the ashes and out the other door and you sanitised again, said Doriena.

There was a little note for each family to just take one container. I will see if my neighbours got them and if they didnt I will run back up and get some more for them.

She said the benefits of having the effort made by the church at Lent is important. For the older generation, for my mother and that, they need that ritual, they need that in their lives.

Her mother said: Fr Malachy is one of the nicest priests that has ever come to Cooley parish. He does go above and beyond, will do anything for anyone  just ring him and he makes himself available.

They also recalled last April, and Ann said, We stood at the gate and he blessed us all.

The family said a prayer in their car after collecting their ashes. As for Lent, Doriena said she will be on the phone a bit more.

She said: I think that, given the way things are, we should just all try and reach out to each other more, maybe contact someone you havent reached out to in a while.

Fr Malachy said the decision to provide the 1,000 individual containers came along after, we talked about how best we might deliver sealed packs of blessed ashes and the idea of an envelope was floated around, but this way is much cleaner and can be sanitised.
Migrants walk to climb into the back of lorries bound for Britain while traffic is stopped upon waiting to board shuttles at the entrance to the Channel Tunnel site in Calais, northern France, on Nov. 19, 2020. (Denis Charlet/AFP via Getty Images)

UK Police Rescue 3 Migrants Suffocating in Refrigerated Lorry

British police rescued three suffocating migrants on Wednesday from inside a refrigerated lorry, after the men rang the police for help.

The migrants called police from inside the lorry, saying that they were suffocating and struggling to breathe.

A hunt for the vehicle was launched and officers from both Essex Police and the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, and Hertfordshire Roads Policing Unit tracked the lorry down the A14 and M11.

The lorry, believed to have travelled from France, was found at Brampton Hut services just before 1630 GMT.

The three men, who were safe and not injured, were transferred to the immigration services.

The case highlights that slavery and trafficking are real and police need the publics help, Cambridgeshire police said in a statement issued on Thursday.

The police called on the public to look out for warning signs and call 999 when they spot abnormalities.

The warning signs include hearing banging from the inside of a lorry, and seeing people stealthily emerging from or going inside of the back of a lorry.

The police say members of the public should immediately call 999 and take a note of the vehicle registration number if they notice any of these signs.

Human smugglers often hide illegal immigrants inside UK-bound lorries to evade customs checks, a practice that puts the migrants lives in great danger.

In October 2019, 39 Vietnamese men, women, and children were found to have suffocated to death in the back of a refrigerated truck as they tried to make their way to Britain.

Tran Thi Hien, mother of Anna Bui Thi Nhung, one of 39 Vietnamese people found dead in a truck in England in October 2019, cries while following an ambulance carrying her daughters coffin during the funeral ceremony at her village in Nghe An province, Vietnam, on Nov. 30, 2019. (Kham/Reuters)

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Twitter at the time that he was appalled by the deaths.

Last month, seven men were sentenced to a total of 93 years and eight months in prison after they were found guilty of manslaughter of the Vietnamese migrants.

In 2000, 58 Chinese migrants were found dead in the back of a truck in Dover, England. The driver was later found guilty of manslaughter.

Jack Philips and Lily Zhou contributed to this report.
However, Mr Weimar said health authorities had cleared about 500 of the 1507 primary contacts associated with the Grand Hyatt outbreak. Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said close contacts needed to remain vigilant. This isnt over yet  all known contacts of cases or exposure sites need to stay in quarantine for the full 14 days to wrap this up, Professor Sutton said via Twitter. Loading

Victoria Police on Friday revealed that 62 fines were handed out for breaches during the states five-day lockdown, which ended on Wednesday. A 50-year-old St Albans man was also arrested and charged after operating his gym Campbellfield gym during lockdown on Tuesday. He will appear at court at a later date. A spokesperson for the force said compliance was overall good during the circuit-breaker and the fines issued were only for the most blatant or deliberate breaches. Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd said Victorian authorities were working to make sure all contacts of the three new cases found on Friday were traced. Obviously, the Victorian authorities will be acting very swiftly to make sure that all the contacts of these people have been followed up and are also in isolation and arranging to get tested, Professor Kidd told ABC radio.

No new cases were reported in hotel quarantine on Friday, while half-a-dozen testing sites closed due to high temperatures. Mr Weimar urged people in several Melbourne suburbs to be on the lookout for symptoms after several unexpected wastewater detections were picked up in surveillance sites. Those locations are Wantirna South and Boronia, which includes Bayswater, Ferntree Gully, Knoxfield and Tremont; Carrum Downs and Langwarrin, including Skye; and St Kilda East and Caulfield North, including parts of Caulfield, Balaclava and Elsternwick, Mr Weimar said. Weve been talking about over a number of weeks now weve again stepped up the granularity of our wastewater sampling across the metropolitan area.

Although we have no obvious connections between the new locations that are flagged up and any known positive cases, we are therefore asking people in a couple of areas to be prepared and be vigilant for any potential symptoms they may have. Several testing sites across Melbourne were forced to close early due to the heat. Locations included Dandenong, Greensborough and Pakenham. Testing sites closed due to heat Monash Health - Carroll Lane, Dandenong - Drive Through, Dandenong

Banyule Community Health - Greensborough

Monash Health - IYU Recreation Reserve, Pakenham

Darebin Arts Centre, Preston

Wyndham City Council Civic Centre, Werribee

Shorten Reserve Car Park, West Footscray Mr Weimar said that although the wastewater detections were unexpected, he was not excessively worried. Loading

If youre in those catchment areas, and feel you have any reason to be concerned about any symptoms you might be showing, no matter how slight, we really would ask you to come and get tested today, Mr Weimar said. We see these detections coming up. At this point in time, its an isolated set of detections, so were not excessively worried. COVID-19 vaccination plan Front-line coronavirus workers who are most likely to come into contact with the virus are first in line to be vaccinated under the federal COVID-19 vaccination plan. Trained health professionals will administer doses of the Pfizer vaccine to hotel quarantine and health hotel workers, airport and port workers, high-risk front-line health staff and public sector residential aged care staff and residents from Monday.

Mr Foley said the state governments priority was supporting the Commonwealth project to ensure the vaccine was deployed as quickly and safely possible. Whether they work in hotel quarantine, at the airport, or a specialist COVID ward  we need to keep Victorians most at risk of infection safe, while they continue to keep Victorians safe, he said. Following the arrival of the vaccine, health hubs will deliver the jabs at dedicated sites throughout the state, including hospitals and quarantine hotels. There will also be a site at Melbourne Airport and mobile outreach teams. Loading

Moomba cancellation reversed Melbourne lord mayor Sally Capp said on Thursday that reduced crowd numbers due to COVID-19 restrictions led her to make the incredibly difficult decision to cancel the festival for the first time in its 66-year history. But the decision to cancel the event was overturned on Friday and the festival is set to proceed with a revised program designed to meet COVID-19 safety requirements. We have been working closely overnight with the events industry and the Victorian government to ensure we can deliver a reimagined Moomba 2.0, the lord mayor said. Before the backflip, Major Events Minister Martin Pakula said he had expressed his disappointment to Cr Capp and got the sense the council would change course.

The council made the call to not go ahead with this years festival despite the Chief Health Officer having approved a COVID-safe plan for the yearly event, Mr Pakula said. Front-line COVID-19 staff went unpaid for weeks The Department of Health has admitted that front-line COVID-19 staff were not paid in the weeks leading up to the latest lockdown.

The department said the pay issue arose after the recruitment of an additional 204 employees to respond to the border permit exemptions and increased call volumes associated with the NSW and Queensland border closures. When the Department of Health became aware that a number of staff working in the border permit team had not received payment, they acted quickly and arranged for off-line payments to be made to the majority of staff, a spokesman said. The department said the issue in no way impacted the states response to the pandemic. Whitten Oval could become COVID vaccination hub Loading

Whitten Oval has been touted as a possible location for Melbournes first mass coronavirus vaccination hub under a proposal that would mean the sports stadium in the citys west hosting thousands of Victorians for immunisation. Medical groups recently visited the West Footscray oval, home to AFL club the Western Bulldogs, finding it had optimum air flow and was close to health services, making it an ideal location for a vaccination centre. Mukesh Haikerwal, of the Australian Medical Association, who is leading discussions about setting up the hub, estimated the stadium could allow for about 450 people to be vaccinated per hour. His highly successful coronavirus respiratory clinic in Altona North, also in the western suburbs, will soon be converted into a vaccine clinic, with a plan to vaccinate 16 people an hour. With Rachel Clun, Melissa Cunningham, Rachael Dexter
Pennsylvania movie theaters ditch mask mandate

Three chain movie theaters have announced that masks are no longer mandatory for moviegoers who have been vaccinated against coronavirus.
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. The ministry of emergency situations reports that some roads are closed in Armenia due to weather conditions.

Berd-Chambarak highway, the Vardenyats Pass, the roads leading to Amberd Fortress and Lake Kari are closed.

Bagratashen-Noyemberyan highway is closed for trucks.

The roads of Shirak and Tavush provinces are partly covered with clear ice.

Snowfalls are reported in Tavush, Gegharkunik, Aragatsotn and Shirak provinces. The ministry urges drivers to visit these provinces in case of strict necessity.

The Georgian authorities inform that the Stepantsminda-Lars highway is closed for all types of vehicles.

Drivers are urged to use snow tires.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
ELK CITY, Idaho, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Therapeutic Solutions International, Inc., (OTC Markets: TSOI), announced today its spin-off company, Campbell Neurosciences Inc, successfully completed a 30-patient clinical trial assessing blood levels of an inflammatory cytokine as a predictor for suicidal ideation.

The clinical trial, which is registered on the Federal Clinical Trials website (#NCT04606875)1, assessed levels of inflammatory marker in 10 patients with no history of suicide (Group 1), 10 patients with suicidal ideations (Group 2), and 10 patients with suicidal ideations who attempted suicide in the last 6 months (Group 3). Results demonstrated that patients in Group 1 had 7.62.4 pg/ml of cytokine, whereas Group 2 had 28.9 6.3 pg/ml and in Group 3 had 45.8 7.7 pg/ml.

"This is the first step in the important journey to develop the first blood-based test for suicidal ideation" said Kalina O'Connor, President and CEO of Campbell Neurosciences. "The Campbell Score is named after my mother, Kathleen Campbell, who was a victim of suicide. These data support our original purpose for starting the Company, which is to prove that suicide is a disease and not a choice."

"The current data fits well into the paradigm that many mental illnesses possess an inflammatory component" said Dr. James Veltmeyer, Chief Medical Officer of the Company. "Miss O'Connor did an excellent job of summarizing existing clinical data supporting the association between inflammation and mental diseases in a pre-publication paper titled "Suicide: An Immunological Disorder?2" added Dr. Veltmeyer"

"By establishing a blood-based test, the Company aims to provide a new weapon for psychiatrists to use in their war against the second largest killer of young people between 15 to 34 years of age" said Famela Ramos, Vice President of Business Development of Therapeutic Solutions International. "As the parent company of Campbell Neurosciences, we have started discussions with various stakeholders in the mental health space with the idea of initiating wide-scale implementation of the Campbell Score."

"The interplay between the immune system and the brain has been known for a while but not acted upon in any significant manner until now" said Timothy Dixon, President and CEO of Therapeutic Solutions International. "As an immunotherapy company, we are proud at this initial success of our phase 2 clinical trial, because it preliminarily validates what we have been thinking all along: that the immune system can be used as a stethoscope for what is happening in the brain."

About Therapeutic Solutions International, Inc.

Therapeutic Solutions International is focused on immune modulation for the treatment of several specific diseases. The Company's corporate website is www.therapeuticsolutionsint.com, and our public forum is https://board.therapeuticsolutionsint.com/

1 Correlation of Campbell Score With Suicidal Ideation - Full Text View - ClinicalTrials.gov

2 Suicide: An Immunological Disorder?



[email protected]

SOURCE Therapeutic Solutions International, Inc.
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An international hitman who murdered an Israeli in a London hotel over a 200,000 gambling debt has died after testing positive for Covid-19 in jail.

Michael Antoneli, 69, was serving a life sentence for his part in the 2004 killing of 46-year-old Israeli drug dealer Simon Turkov.

Antoneli and fellow assassin Andrei Melnikov, then 32, were found guilty in July 2005 after a trial at the Old Bailey.

Turkov, who was married and had a family in Poole, Dorset, was smothered with a pillow at the Marriott Hotel in Marble Arch in March 2004.

Michael Antoneli, 69, was serving a life sentence for his part in the 2004 killing of 46-year-old Israeli drug dealer Simon Turkov

The pair were handed a minimum sentence of 20-years.

Antoneli tested positive for coronavirus at maximum security Long Lartin jail, near Evesham, Worcestershire, on the 15th January.

His condition deteriorated and he was transferred to a local hospital six days later - dying in the early hours of 15th February.

The Old Bailey was told that Antoneli and Melnikov had killed Simon Turkov (pictured above) on a day trip to Britain on the 28th March 2004

Antoneli's next-of-kin were at his bedside.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: 'HMP Long Lartin prisoner Michael Antoneli died in hospital on 15 February.

'The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been informed.'

The Prison Service said it could not confirm the cause of death which was a matter for the coroner.

The Old Bailey was told that Antoneli and Melnikov had killed Turkov on a day trip to Britain on the 28th March 2004.

The prosecution said the victim owed 200,000 to a man in Belgium and the hit was ordered as revenge.

Antoneli and Melnikov checked into the Marriott Hotel in Marble Arch after arriving in Dover on a ferry from Calais.

The court heard that Melnikov then walked outside to a nearby phone box and called Turkov's mobile phone.

Turkov then turned up in a taxi looking 'anxious' and 'agitated', according to the taxi driver.

Melnikov and Turkov were captured on CCTV embracing in the hotel lobby and drinking coffee and whiskey before going up to the room, the court heard.

While inside Melnikov (pictured above) and Antoneli wrapped duct tape around Turkov's ankles and suffocated him with a pillow

While inside Melnikov and Antoneli wrapped duct tape around Turkov's ankles and suffocated him with a pillow.

They then took his blood-stained jeans, Versace belt and jacket from him and left his body in the bath.

Richard Whittam, prosecuting said: 'A pathologist later identified marks on the ankles consistent with tape on the outside of the jeans constraining him.

'He had not died of natural causes. He is likely to have died from manual asphyxiation and there was DNA matching that of Mr Turkov on the pillow.'

Antoneli and Melnikov left the hotel separately but drove back to Dover together in a Mercedes.

They were seen dumping evidence by motorist Michael Runter as he washed his car at the Tollgate service station near Gillingham.

Mr Whittam said: 'The front passenger got out of the vehicle and what drew Mr Runter's attention was he appeared to be wearing some yellow Marigold gloves.'

'He opened the boot and one door and took out a yellow carrier bag and walked over to a rubbish bin.'

Melnikov dumped Turkov's bloodstained clothes in the bin, along with other items from the hotel room, including the swipe card for the door.

Mr Runter found the items inside the wheelie bin and called police, who took the door card back to the hotel room and discovered Mr Turkov's dead body in the bath.

Antoneli and Melnikov got a ferry back to Calais that day.

Antoneli, who had Israeli and Greek passports, was arrested in Belgium on the same day. Melnikov, who had an Israeli passport, was arrested in Tel Aviv on 29 July 2004.

Both denied murder but were found guilty and were handed mandatory life sentences. After serving their sentence, they were to be deported.

Mr Turkov had been convicted in Israel for cocaine smuggling and escaped from prison.

The court was told he was a heavy gambler and lost about 200,000 between September 2003 and March 2004.

Although married, he lived with a Russian mistress in London's Belgravia.

After the case Det Insp Chris Jones said Mr Turkov was involved in criminal activity and owed Antoneli money.

'But that does not mean anyone had the right to take his life,' he said.

'This was a calculated murder which these two men thought they could just come into this country and commit before disappearing.'
Shocking bodycam footage shows the moment police breaking up an illegal party are charged by teenagers trying to flee without paying 800 fines.

Hampshire Police were investigating a house in Portsmouth after receiving reports of a gathering when they came across the group of lockdown rule-breakers.

But as officers started to take attendees names and issue them with fines, stunning video shows the revellers try to charge past the police and make a run for it.

The party at an Airbnb property in the city saw 19 people each handed 800 fixed-penalty notices - more than 15,000 in total - just a day after the charge increased from 200.

Police body-cam footage shows how revellers were 'pushing and shoving' officers breaking up the party at 10.20pm.

In the video clip, an officer says: 'Right, everyone's going to be leaving one at a time, so we can process you guys and get your details. I don't want people charging out.'

But just five seconds later the same officer has to say 'stop pushing out' as more people surge to the front door in a bid to escape.

The short-lived push ends and 19 revellers, who police said were mostly in their late teens to early 20s, were told to pay up for the January 30 party.

In the video clip, an officer says: 'Right, everyone's going to be leaving one at a time, so we can process you guys and get your details. I don't want people charging out.' But just five seconds later the same officer has to say 'stop pushing out' as more people surge to the front door in a bid to escape

Hampshire's Assistant Chief Constable Maggie Blyth today said: 'This party is not a one-off, we're increasingly seeing reports of gatherings of people from multiple households as some members of the public are struggling to observe the national restrictions in place.

'Not all these gatherings are of this size, but they are all breaching the current Health Protection Regulations and putting lives at risk.

'The message is simple, stay at home.

'We're releasing this video to demonstrate just how serious incidents like this are. The transmission vectors available for the virus in circumstances like this are numerous.

'The people attending this party were putting themselves and their loved ones at risk from Covid-19, not to mention the wider community. It's actions like this that place increased and unnecessary pressure on the NHS.

'Anyone who does not follow the Health Protection Regulations faces enforcement action.

The party at an Airbnb property in the city saw 19 people each handed 800 fixed-penalty notices - more than 15,000 in total - just a day after the charge increased from 200

'It's disappointing that the minority are flouting the regulations when the vast majority of people in our communities have made such a concerted effort in such challenging times.'

Dozens of patrol cars descended on the property after outraged locals complained to police about large numbers of young men and women turning up at the house in the North End area of the city.

One neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous, said many of the women - believed to be in their teens and early 20s - looked like they were 'dressed for a nightclub'.

He said: 'It is this shameful behaviour that brought us to lockdown, and it is the attitude that will keep us here for far longer than is necessary.'

The person who booked the Airbnb stay has since been suspended from the short-stay lettings company's platform.

Three men were arrested at the party.

A 27-year-old arrested over criminal damage has been told he faces no action. Another man, also 27, has been bailed until March 5 after being held on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker. A third man, 24, faced no action over a public order offence.

Hampshire police and crime commissioner Michael Lane today said: 'I'm offended that people don't understand the significant risks they put themselves into.

'They need to behave appropriately, not just within the lines of the law but to stay safe.

'Some of the people running away are abusive in their behaviours, they get themselves into trouble and put themselves at risk.'

Hampshire police have issued 592 fines since March 27 last year - 109 in the November lockdown and 71 in the period that covers the latest lockdown that started in January.

National Police Chiefs Council figures, that run up to January 17, show the force has fined 27 businesses.

Some 92 per cent of Covid-19 infections in Portsmouth are made up of the more transmissible Kent variant.

Hampshire police received 28,085 reports to its Covid-19 breach report online between April 2 last year and February 4 this year and officers were sent to 7,387 Covid-19 incidents within Hampshire between February 27 and February 4.
Danny Dyer shared a sweet snap with grandson Santiago on Thursday.

Taking to Instagram, the EastEnders star, 43, looked every inch the doting grandfather as he posed with his daughter Dani's baby son.

Danny's eldest child Dani welcomed her first child with boyfriend Sammy Kimmence in January.

So sweet: Danny Dyer looked every inch the doting grandfather as he shared a sweet snap with grandson Santiago on Thursday

For the photo, Danny sweetly cradled his newborn grandson Santiago as he held his hands while sitting on the sofa.

The actor captioned the photo with: 'This grandson of mine....'

Danny's 1.3 million followers were quick to react to the sweet snap as they shared their well-wishes to the Dyer family.

One person said: 'Definitely your double, Danny... congratulations to you all, his a little stunner.'

Father and daughter: Danny's eldest child Dani welcomed her first child with boyfriend Sammy Kimmence in January (Danny and Dani pictured together over the summer)

So cute! Danny's 1.3 million followers were quick to react to the sweet snap as they shared their well-wishes to the Dyer family

A different fan put: 'The cutest oh my god .'

Another follower commented: 'Absolutely perfect' while a different account added: 'Enjoy! And congrats .'

It comes after Dani looked every inch the glowing mother as she cradled her son in an adorable snap she shared on Valentine's Day.

The former Love Island star, 24, shared a photo of herself giving Santiago a kiss as she called him: 'Mummy's little Valentine'.

Heartwarming: It comes after Dani looked every inch the glowing mother as she cradled her son in an adorable snap she shared on Valentine's Day

Dani donned a blue crop top for the post along with a pair of navy pyjama bottoms while she wore her blonde locks in a ponytail.

The adorable snap comes soon after Dani furiously fired back at mum-shamers who accused her of dressing Santiago in too many layers.

Dani had earlier shared a sweet snap of the tot wrapped up in a navy padded suit as they prepared to head on a walk.

Not impressed: Dani fired back at mum-shamers on Saturday, who accused her of dressing Santiago in too many layers

However, she faced criticism for how she dressed her boy and soon called out the trolls on her Instagram stories as she defiantly declared: 'I won't overheat my child!'

The cute snap of Santiago saw him resting peacefully in his outerwear while in his pram, with the little one donning a grey and white hat with his name embroidered on it.

She wrote on the image: 'Happy 3 weeks baby boy. Mummy loves you more than you will ever know.'

Speaking directly to the camera a short while later, Dani bemoaned the amount of comments she received over her son's outfit.

Cute: The Love Island winner, who welcomed her first child last month, had earlier shared a sweet snap of the tot wrapped up in a navy padded suit as they prepared to head on a walk

First Valentine's: Dani shared a sweet snap with boyfriend Sammy and their son Santiago

She said: 'Also before anyone gets upset, it's mad now the amount of DMs I get as a new mum, from the mums and stuff.

'My child was not in the car in his outfit, okay? In the pram so whatever you wanna call it... He just goes on walks with that outfit on.

'I'm not going to overheat my child, don't worry about it. So yeah...'

Over her online rant, she wrote: 'He had been on a walk in that pram suit.. I wouldn't overheat my child in the car.'

'I've become obsessed with how to feed my baby!': Dani spoke candidly about comparing herself to other breastfeeding mothers on her Instagram Story

Dani has been keeping fans updated on her journey through motherhood and recently opened up about the challenges of breastfeeding.

The reality star was recently asked by a fan online: 'How is feeding going? Are you breast of bottle?'

She responded: 'I've been doing a mix of both but it took a while for my milk to really come through..

'I always wanted to just exclusively breastfeed but it didn't end up that way. I breastfeed as much as I can but do use Aptamil milk when I feel like he isn't settled.

'If my milk decides to come through more then I definitely will just breastfeed but I think you have to take it step by step xx'.
Majority state owned AIB is set to announce the outlines of an up to 5bn deal to buy Ulster Banks business and corporate loan book on Friday morning.

Sources have confirmed the bank is ready to strike a deal as soon as Ulster Bank parent NatWest confirms its intention to exit the Irish market.

Also state owned Permanent TSB is preparing a separate offer for Ulster Banks small SME loans and potentially for mortgages, but that bid is less advanced. Other small lenders are understood to also be in the mix.

Crucially the Government is understood to be supportive of the plans, which will copper fasten state control of the banking system in the medium term despite a policy that favours privatisation. That policy is trumped by the desire to ensure stability in the banking sector, it is understood.

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Permanent TSB is likely to need fresh investment from government to complete a deal and any consolidation will require sign off by competition authorities here and potentially in Brussels as well as the Central Bank. The sale of any one part of Ulster Bank will take months to complete.

NatWest CEO Alison Rose will announce her banks financial results for 2020 on Friday morning when she is expected to confirm the plans to exit the Republic of Ireland market.

However, a rapid move to sign post to the public a managed takeover of the core elements of Ulster Bank would end months of uncertainty for 1.1 million bank customers.

A deal will make AIB definitively the biggest bank in the country, and secure a needed source of non interest fee income for the lender. Buying what AIB chief Colin Hunt is understood to see as the jewel in Ulster Banks crown, its corporate lending book, will not interfere with his separate plan to buy Goodbody Stockbrokers, it is understood. That deal, which needs sign off from the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe is still on track to be agreed within weeks, sources said.

In the longer terms an Ulster Bank carve up between existing players will mean the already crowded Irish banking sector will become even more heavily concentrated, but with EU banks reluctant to enter the market here the likely alternative would be a sell off of Ulster Bank assets to US vulture funds.

Either way customers of all banks will end up having to pay a price for the closure of Ulster Bank.

Some 22bn in retail and business deposits will be searching for a home if Ulster closes, and with banks already having too much cash they are likely to levy negative interest on large cash deposits.

Diarmaid Sheridan, banking analyst at Davy Stockbrokers, said the fact that 21.6bn in retail and business deposits would need to be switched to other institutions meant it was likely receiving banks would impose negative rates on large deposits.

Banks and credit unions here have 125bn in household savings, with the European Central Bank imposing negative rates on them for depositing spare funds with it.

This has seen banks levying negative rates on large corporates, pension funds and credit unions, while AIB is planning to impose negative rates on individuals with deposits of more than 1m.

Online bank N26 currently charges a 0.5pc negative rate on new customer deposits in excess of 50,000, while most credit unions cap savings and EBS limits deposit amounts.

Daragh Cassidy of price comparison site Bonkers.ie said most banks were likely to run a mile from accepting any new savings.

Some of the banks already charge negative rates on larger corporate deposits and Id expect negative rates to become a widespread feature for retail customers too, unfortunately, he said.

Jon Shapley, Houston Chronicle / Staff photographer

A man wearing no shoes, socks or shirt was found dead Thursday morning in the parking lot of a north Harris County strip mall. There were no signs of trauma and officials suspect the man's death was weather-related, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies responded shortly before 7 a.m. to the 3700 block of Aldine Mail Road near John F. Kennedy Boulevard where the body was discovered, said Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, who went to the scene.
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), continues to spread globally. The total number of infections has reached 109.88 million globally with 61.88 million reported as recovered.

The rapid spread of the pathogen and the increasing number of cases highlight the need for an effective and safe vaccine. As vaccination efforts roll out in many countries, new types of vaccines, like deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) vaccines, are under research..

Researchers at the Department of Pharmacy, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, in Brazil, explained the functionality and efficacy of DNA vaccines in pandemic scenarios. They also provided a summary of the DNA vaccines being tested in clinical trials.

The study is published in the journal Life Sciences.

What is a DNA vaccine?

Among technologies available for vaccine development, DNA vaccination is an alternative to traditional vaccines. Discovered in the 1990s, these vaccines have gained scientists' interest across the globe due to their ability to elicit humoral and cellular immune responses.

In this type of vaccine, a gene from a virus or bacterial is used to stimulate the immune system. When the DNA vaccine is administered to a patient, their cells' machinery produces a viral or bacterial protein, which the immune system recognizes as a foreign body. From there, the immune system will remember the foreign body and can detect it the next time it enters the body, preventing illness.

The basic working principle behind DNA vaccines involves using a DNA plasmid that encodes for a protein that came from the pathogen, in this case, SARS-CoV-2. Plasmid DNA (pDNA) is inexpensive, stable, and safe, allowing the non-viral platform to be considered a good option for gene delivery.

DNA vaccines in clinical evaluation

When the SARS-CoV-2 emerged in late December 2019, many scientists started to study the virus's genome. By January 2020, the complete genome of the virus was published. To develop effective vaccines, understanding the virus's genome structure is essential.

During infection, antibodies are stimulated and produced against both the N and S proteins of the virus. The N protein covers the viral genome and is involved in releasing virus particles in cells. Meanwhile, the S protein plays a pivotal role in pathogenesis by binding to the host cell through its receptor-binding domain (RBD). It kickstarts the infection process by allowing the virus to enter the host cell for invasion and replication.

All DNA vaccines being tested in clinical trials for COVID-19 use the S protein as the antigen.

Overall, there are 250 vaccines in development to combat the coronavirus pandemic. Of these, 181 are in preclinical development, while 69 are undergoing clinical evaluation.

Among the vaccines in clinical evaluation, ten vaccines are DNA-based. Among these, one vaccine is in the phase 3 trial, the nCoV vaccine by Zydus Cadila. Vaccines at the phase 2/3 trial stage include the INO-4800+electroporation by Inovio Pharmaceuticals and the AG0301-COVID19 vaccine by AnGes/Takara Bio/Osaka University. The DNA-based vaccine under the phase 1/2 trial includes the GX-19 vaccine by Genexine Consortium.

Meanwhile, the Covigenix VAX-001 vaccine by Entos Pharmaceuticals Inc., CORVax - Spike (S) Protein Plasmid DNA Vaccine by Providence Health & Services, bacTRL-Spike oral DNA vaccine by Symvivo Corporation, GLS-5310 vaccine by GeneOne Life Science, Inc., Covigen vaccine by the University of Sydney, Bionet Co. and Technovalia, and the COVID-eVax by Takis/Rottapharm Biotech is in phase 1 human trials.

One of the vaccines, called AG0301-COVID-19, uses a two-immunization scheme, the first with a low dose and then a high dose. Both shots are administered through the intramuscular route within a two-week interval.

Another vaccine, the INO-4800+electroporation, was developed by Inovio Pharmaceuticals, which has previously developed experimental vaccines against the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). The current vaccine against COVID-19 induced both cellular and humoral immune responses observed within days after a single immunization in mice and guinea pigs during its preclinical testing.

During the vaccine's phase 1 human trial, it was administered intradermally through electroporation. In this trial, the vaccine showed that it induced neutralizing antibodies, blocking SARS-CoV-2 S protein binding to the host cell angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor.
Amaravati, Feb 18 : Following the third phase of panchayat elections in Andhra Pradesh, political parties have resumed their own calculations on the number of sarpanch posts they won. The Telugu Desam Party claimed that it bagged 1,069 sarpanch posts while the ruling Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) claimed that it breached the Kuppam fortress.

According to TDP, the opposition party won 1,069 sarpanch posts compared to YSRCP's 1,393 and Janasena and Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) alliance's eight victories by 12.30 a.m. on Thursday morning.

Contradicting the TDP's claims, YSRCP leaders claimed that the ruling party won 2,442 sarpanch posts, compared to TDP's 501 and others winning 145, out of a total of 3,221 sarpanch posts.

As per YSRCPs calculations, 579 sarpanch posts went for unanimous elections in the third phase of the four phase panchayat polls.

YSRCP leaders have also claimed that the ruling party supporters won the majority sarpanch posts in Kuppam constituency, represented by former chief minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu for decades.

The ruling party leaders claimed that YSRCP aligned candidates won 74 sarpanch posts out of 89 in Kuppam constituency, relegating TDP supporters to only 14 panchayats.

The TDP leaders have been bagging the constituency in Assembly elections since 1985 and Naidu first won it in 1989.

Naidu won Kuppam seven times at a stretch, including serving as chief minister for three terms.

YSRCP candidates won sarpanch posts in Gudipalle, Adavibadaguru, Urlobanapalle and others which were known to be mostly belonging to TDP supporters.

In the panchayats where TDP won, YSRCP leaders alleged that the margin was wafer thin.

Despite the conflicting claims by both the parties, cadres from both sides indulged in fireworks to celebrate their 'triumph'.
SARLAT-LA-CANEDA, France, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- France's largest rural incubator-accelerator, UNIQORN, today announced that it has finalized an agreement with EarthTones Media, an American technology startup in the digital music space. EarthTones is the world's first micro concert live streaming app and interactive social network powered by blockchain.

The Startup Supercup UNIQORN EarthTones Music

EarthTones was designed for independent music creators and fans around the globe. The highly innovative startup leverages mobile live streaming video technology, blockchain-based security and payment structures, and a global musician/fan network to create an independent music community, a musician-owned app, and the social live music streaming platform of tomorrow.

Ryan Nichols, founder of EarthTones Media stated: "We are extremely excited to be accepted into UNIQORN's groundbreaking incubation and acceleration program and to be able to count on Dom Einhorn as our lead investor. We feel confident that we have chosen the perfect partners in UNIQORN and Dom to help us grow and thrive."

In addition to his personal investment, Dom Einhorn, UNIQORN'S Founder and CEO, will join EarthTones Media's Advisory Board. UNIQORN will also finance part of EarthTones' marketing initiatives via a strategic media investment. The U.S. based startup will also participate at the Startup Supercup, a large technology investment event held in Sarlat-la-Caneda, France, on October 1-3, 2021.

"EarthTones embodies the very DNA of what we are looking for in an incubation and acceleration candidate: proof of concept, early traction, an excellent management team along, and a massive addressable market. We look forward to being EarthTones' long-term strategic partner and are proud to integrate them into our new 'incubator within the incubator' dedicated to "DeFi," i.e. decentralized finance," said Einhorn.

Decentralized finance ("DeFi") is an experimental form of finance that does not rely on central financial intermediaries such as brokerages, exchanges, or banks to offer traditional financial instruments, and instead utilizes smart contracts on blockchains, the most common being Ethereum.

UNIQORN recently made headlines for its innovative incubation and acceleration programs, which put a heavy emphasis on post-PoC (proof-of-concept) business acceleration strategies that leverage UNIQORN'S proprietary customer acquisition platform, MOBCAST, along with more traditional, tried and trusted public relations and investor relations initiatives.

About EarthTones

The vast majority of independent music creators and fans around the world are dissatisfied with the engagement limitations and corporate greed of today's music streaming services, as well as the antiquated recorded music industry as a whole! EarthTones is the next-gen, all-encompassing solution for global independent artists and fans that enables mobile H.D. music live streaming from any location, interactive engagement, P2P networking, direct payments from fans, and complete ownership for musicians. EarthTones is backed by the decentralized power and transparent security of the Ethereum Blockchain - making it a next-generation, user-owned global music platform like no other.

About UNIQORN

UNIQORN is the largest rural incubator-accelerator of its kind in the world. Located in Southwestern France (Sarlat-la-Caneda), its mission is to give entrepreneurs and their families their lives back while helping them build game-changing technology startups. Startups are provided a complete ecosystem for success, with direct access to proven funding sources, top-notch legal and accounting representation, access to the world's most generous business incentives and - most importantly - a dedicated sales and marketing accelerator that will put a startup's product or service on the fast track to success.

CONTACT

UNIQORN SAS

Dom Einhorn

Phone: +33 6 37 04 74 12

Email: [email protected]

SOURCE UNIQORN Incubator-Accelerator

Related Links

https://uniqornincubator.com/



Chandigarh: A 34-year-old youth Congress leader Gurlal Singh Bhullar was allegedly shot dead in Faridkot, Punjab on Thursday (February 18) evening, as per police officials.

SP Faridkot said, Two unidentified motorcycle-borne men fired around 12 shots at Mr. Bhullar near Jublee Chowk in Faridkot district, ANI reported.

He later died at a hospital, added the official.

Punjab: Youth Congress leader Gurlal Singh shot dead by bike-borne assailants in Faridkot today. "Two unidentified men fired more than 10 rounds at him. An investigation into the incident is underway," SP Faridkot says pic.twitter.com/niYCE9MKmQ  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

Bhullar was the president of the Faridkot district Youth Congress.

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At the onset of the pandemic, researchers warned that half of California's child care slots could disappear permanently.

We wanted to know how close that prediction was to coming true almost a year later, so LAist requested the number of permanent and temporary closures, broken down by county, from the agency that licenses child care, the California Department of Social Services.

As of Jan. 25, 3,122 California child care providers had reported permanent shutdowns.

Child care has been a precarious business in recent years. L.A. County and the state as a whole have consistently lost child care slots since 2014. So far, the number of permanent closures between March of 2020 and January 2021 hasn't exceeded the number of closures from the previous year.

But, says Chris Ringewald, the director of research and data analysis at Advancement Project California, "that's not getting at the full picture of the hardships for the field right now."

For example, more than 8,300 licensed child cares have temporarily closed at some point during the pandemic. It's still unclear how many will be able to stay in business.

"It really shows us that child care was struggling before the pandemic," said Keisha Nzewi, public policy director at the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network. "The pandemic has really shone that bright light on the instability of our childcare system."

SOME SCHOOLS CLOSE WHILE OTHERS BRACE FOR THE STORM

One of the schools that shuttered permanently was Fair Oaks Preschool in Pasadena.

The nonprofit's lease at a local church ended in June. Former director Elizabeth Brown said they looked at dozens of potential properties and took out two federal loans to stay afloat, but it ran out of money last October.

"If you can't get children to enroll due to the fact that the families are scared, understandably, that revenue just isn't going to come in," Brown said.

For curriculum specialist Shireen Kassis Ciccone, the school's shutdown meant the loss of a job and child care for her 3-and-a-half-year-old daughter, who still asks "When can I go back to school?"

"I'm kind of torn up," Ciccone said. "What do I do? We can't afford to put her in care."

The average cost of preschool in L.A. County is $10,303 a year. Perhaps more scarce than even affordable child care was the certainty that Fair Oaks gave the family.

"I felt like I didn't have to question too much... whether I was doing the right thing for her or not," Ciccone said.

Two custom-made puppets make guest appearances in St. Mary's Richard Tufenkian Preschool's online instruction. (Chava Sanchez/LAist)

Of the 34,000 child care providers that continue to operate during the pandemic, the majority are doing so at limited capacity- 99% of centers and 78% of home-based child cares reported to the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment that they had fewer children enrolled than before the pandemic. In the same survey, 77% of open providers reported a loss of income.

St. Mary's Richard Tufenkian Preschool in Glendale is licensed for up to 200 kids, but currently only has about 110 students.

Public health guidelines limit the number of kids in each classroom. In L.A. County, the cap is 14 students.

Director Arsine Aghazarian had to furlough about two-thirds of the center's 30 remaining employees when the school closed during the most recent surge of coronavirus cases.

"We don't have really big reserves," Aghzarian said. "But it is meant to be for the rainy days and I guess this is really a storm coming in."

The school started a virtual Armenian education program for the first time, which attracted a few students from out of state. Parents have also adapted their fundraising to the pandemic. On "Worry-Free Wednesdays" families can buy take-home versions of the school's specialties like harissa and borscht. Other days there are "busy boxes" of kid-friendly crafts for sale.

Director Arsine Aghazrian talks to a parent during the weekly meal fundraiser that Tufenkian preschool organizes in their parking lot. (Chava Sanchez/LAist)

"I think this helps us keep in touch, so that next year, hopefully, when school resumes we may be able to find some normalcy again," said mom and parent support committee co-chair Karineh Aboulian.

Still, overall revenue is down and the costs to operate are up. Aghazarian estimates the 45-year-old school can stay afloat for maybe six more months running this way.

"This year has been really servicing our community, trying to engage the families as much as possible into our program rather than moving away from us," she said.

SURVIVAL HINGES ON FINANCIAL SUPPORT, IF PROVIDERS CAN ACCESS IT

Melissa Rodriguez and her family don't eat in their dining room. For the last 11 years, the space was a Lego construction zone, an art studio and a play area.

Rodriguez's Orange County home is a licensed child care for up to eight kids at time.

She stayed open throughout the pandemic, but attendance fluctuated, until there were no kids.

Some parents started working from home, others lost their jobs or couldn't afford to pay for child care anymore. So for now, Rodriguez is out of the child care business.

"I didn't get to make that decision. I didn't get to say 'I'm done, I'm burned out, I'm over it,'" she said. "The world said, 'OK, you're done. Good luck. Figure it out.'"

Melissa Rodriguez sits for a portrait in the packed-up play area of her Orange County family child care. (Chava Sanchez/LAist)

Family child care homes have accounted for the majority of Califronia's permanent child care closures in recent years- a 33% decline since 2008.

Family child care is often more affordable and flexible than center-based care. Rodriguez charged a flat rate of $46 a day for 7am to 5.30pm care.

Do the math for a full year and that's 25% lower than the average annual cost of infant and toddler care in Orange County, according to a recent report from the area's First 5 organization.

"I'm proud of what I built," Rodriguez. "I don't feel like parents should have to pay their entire paycheck to get good care for their kids."

Melissa Rodriguez still keeps the sign for her business in her front yard. (Chava Sanchez/LAist)

Child care advocates say the industry's survival depends on financial support from the government. Nationwide, they called for $50 billion to stabilize the industry. There's been $13.5 billion dedicated to child care between two federal coronavirus relief bills passed last year.

"We were already not covering the full cost of care before the crisis, the pandemic, and the costs have only gone up," said Vickie Ramos Harris, director of educational equity for Advancement Project California.

California has funneled $518 million into child care programs since the start of the pandemic. The largest chunk of money - $235 million - is paying for essential worker family child care.

Local jurisdictions, including the City of Los Angeles, L.A. County and Orange County created their own grant programs for providers.

Gov. Gavin Newsom's proposed budget includes $55 million for COVID-19 related child care support, and $500 million for expanding the state's transitional kindergarten programs.

At a Feb. 3 statewide meeting of the Early Childhood Policy Council, frustration about the budget spilled over in comments from providers and advocates.

"We've really been sharing what's needed now during this crisis as well as in the future," said San Diego child care center CEO Robin Layton. "This proposed budget does not reflect the need."

One long-standing issue is that California bases the rate it pays providers to care for children from low-income families and essential workers on data collected in 2016, despite the availability of more recent information.

"Our house is burning now. I mean, we are losing total infrastructure," said Denyne Micheletti Colburn, CEO of the California Alternative Payment Program Association.

California leaders are still working out how to spend close to $1 billion in federal money for child care included in December's coronavirus relief act.

Melissa Rodriguez has put many of the toys the children used away in a corner of her backyard. (Chava Sanchez/LAist)

The logistics of getting that money into the hands of providers presents its own challenges.

"If we create processes that make it difficult for these very overtaxed workers to go and do all the work they already do, and then do complicated application processes, we're not actually providing them the resources that they need," said Ramos Harris from Advancement Project California.

Throughout the pandemic, critical information about safety guidelines and funding opportunities have sometimes failed to reach every sector of the state's fractured early childhood system.

"I'm pretty sure I qualify for a few things," Rodriguez said."I just don't know how to get to any of it."

Rodriguez would like to reopen her child care, but doesn't know what the next step is.

"I feel like we have such an important job when people need us, like to care for their kids, but then we just get forgotten in the background," Rodriguez said.
Brazils second-largest city, Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday halted its mass vaccination campaign after it ran out of COVID-19 shots and scrambled to demand assistance from Brazils federal government. The country had earlier pledged to manufacture 100 million doses of the AstraZeneca, domestically, amid the supply shortages and the vaccination shipment delays from the manufacturers. However, in a situation that spread grimly on Wednesday, AP reported, that the Brazilian health authorities had to stall the administration of the second COVID-19 dose among the vulnerable elderly high-risk group after doses finished. In a statement issued later, Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes said that the additional COVID-19 vaccine shots were not expecting to be delivered anytime soon, probably by next week. We are ready and we have already vaccinated 244,852 people, Paes said on Twitter. We just need the vaccine to arrive, he added, regretting the inconvenience.

Many other states, such as Salvador, in the northeastern state of Bahia, and Cuiaba, in Mato Grosso state, had to adapt to similar strategies after the shots ran out and people were turned away from their second routine jab, Brazilian newspaper O Globo reported. Mayors and governors, in turn, criticized Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for the lackadaisical response to the coronavirus pandemic, whose severity he had downplayed since the start. The Brazilian president had also, for days, mocked about the efficacy of the vaccines. Brazils Health Ministry this week struck an agreement with Sao Paulo states Butantan Institute to procure 54 million doses in addition to a contract for 46 million doses signed on Jan. 7. This contract, like the first, was a struggle. It was only signed yesterday, with countless comings and goings, countless changes in the clauses, said Dimas Covas, director of the Butantan Institute.

[Sao Paulo Governor Joao Doria, right, and Butantan Institute Director Dimas Covas give a news conference at a vaccination center. Credit: AP]

Read: WH Boosts Vaccine Supply; Supports Riot Commission

Read: EU To Buy 300 Million More Doses Of Moderna Vaccine

Supply run-out was 'speculated'

Amid a critical shortage of COVID-19 jabs that led to the suspension of inoculation drive even in Bahia states capital Salvador, mayors and governors had earlier sought to turn to their own vaccine supply plans. Fearing that the Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro would make no efforts to restart the stalled mass vaccination campaign, Brazils governors and mayors pushed to ramp up their own states vials supply, amid speculations that Brazils two biggest cities, Rio and Sao Paulo will soon run out of doses. Sao Paulos Joao Doria, a former Bolsonaro ally, criticized the Brazilian government for procuring 100 million CoronaVac shots from Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac, condemning the delay in delivery that has hampered the Latin American countrys vaccination goals.

Read: Apple Redesigns 'syringe' Emoji To Be Less Graphic To Support COVID-19 Vaccine Drive

Read: 'It Was Challenging': 90-year-old Woman Walks 9kms Amid Winter Storm To Get COVID Vaccine
Cyan Nardiello babysits kids at both Disney World and Universal Orlando. Cyan Nardiello

College student Cyan Nardiello created a theme-park babysitting business called Once Upon a Nanny.

She charges $25 per hour to watch kids at Disney World, Universal Orlando, and other resorts.

Speaking with Insider, Nardiello shared what her days are like as a theme-park nanny.

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Cyan Nardiello has a magical dream job - and she created it herself.

The Florida-based college student began working as a nanny about two years ago. At the time, she got permission to take one of her clients to Disney World for an afternoon, and their one-time trip later turned into a weekly visit.

Nardiello has since turned her babysitting job into a childcare company called Once Upon a Nanny, which helps local residents and vacationing families find care for their kids at Disney World, Universal Orlando, and other theme-park resorts.

Here's how Nardiello combined two things she loves - babysitting and theme parks - to become what she describes as a paid "fairy god nanny."

Cyan Nardiello turned her love for theme parks into a babysitting business

Nardiello, who grew up in New Jersey, began visiting Disney World and Universal Orlando with her family when she was 13. She told Insider that Disney World in particular became her "favorite place ever," and she knew she wanted to live closer to the destination when she got older.

"When I was applying to colleges, I typed in 'closest college to Disney' and the University of Central Florida popped up," she said. "I never looked at or applied to another school. I love it."

During her first year at college, she became a nanny for a child who was 7 years old at the time. On the child's last day of school, Nardiello asked if she could take them to Disney World in celebration, and a tradition was born. The two started visiting Disney World together after school, and Nardiello later started sharing videos of their trips on TikTok.

Story continues

Once clips of their adventures gained millions of likes and views on the app, Nardiello knew she had created something special.

"I decided to make a business out of it before someone stole my idea," she told Insider. "I wasn't really planning on making Once Upon a Nanny what it is, but I realized that there's a demand for it."

A typical day in her life includes riding theme-park attractions, swimming in resort pools, and more

Nardiello works with a few local families approximately once or twice per month.

Most of her customers, however, are families on vacation at one of the Florida resorts. They'll sometimes hire Nardiello as a nanny for a single day, or they'll book her services for the entirety of their trips.

"If the family I'm working for wants an extra set of hands, I'll stay with them through the park," she said. "I can also take the children to do age-appropriate activities while parents go on bigger rides or drink around the world at Epcot."

If parents want to have a date night during their vacation, Nardiello can help with that, too. She told Insider that she offers in-hotel services that include taking kids to the pool or playing board games in their room.

"These vacations are expensive, and I believe parents should be able to have just as much fun as their children," Nardiello said.

Cyan Nardiello and the 9-year-old she watches at Disney World. Cyan Nardiello

Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted her nannying job.

Nardiello says she and her employees - who she hired to help her keep up with recent demand - adhere to theme-park safety guidelines. She also says they explain to the children they're watching that it's important to wear masks.

To ensure general safety while on the job, Nardiello also has parents fill out informational sheets so that she's aware of their allergies, temperaments, and more.

Nardiello visits Disney World every week - and she makes good money doing so

Between her job and her personal passion for Disney World, Nardiello says she visits the theme park between two and four times per week.

"I'm there a lot," she said. "It's always as much fun as the first time I went."

Nardiello says she doesn't think she'll ever get tired of visiting, but in order to differentiate her trips to the resort, she sometimes creates activities to do in the theme parks.

"I took the 9-year-old I nanny to Magic Kingdom last week, and we did a 'mountain challenge,'" she said. "We rode Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, and Splash Mountain, and then as a bonus, we did the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train."

Of course, riding classic attractions in Magic Kingdom sounds fun in and of itself, but Nardiello also gets paid to do so. She charges $25 per hour, and specific time slots can be booked on her website.

She added that she's hoping to expand Once Upon a Nanny to have a branch of the babysitting service at every Disney park.

The college student says anyone can pursue a job like hers if they have the proper skills

Nardiello said she thinks that prospective theme-park nannies need "good childcare experience" and the right certifications, such as from babysitting and child-care courses offered through the American Red Cross.

In addition to getting to spend so much time in the places she loves, Nardiello said one of the best parts of her job is connecting with families.

"Parents will reach out and say: 'Our kids can't stop talking about the time they got to go to Disney with a fairy god nanny,'" she said.

To learn more about Once Upon a Nanny, visit Nardiello's website and Facebook page.

Read the original article on Insider
I dont think hes going to be in the picture. I dont think he can. Hes fallen so far. Thus spoke Nikki Haley -- former South Carolina governor, former ambassador to the UN, and now presidential aspirant -- exposing once again her self-serving bona fides. In denigrating Donald Trump, the establishment Republican ended up revealing to Trumps loyal base of 75-80 million supporters just how much she is motivated by opportunism. Also, just how out of touch she is with the rank and file.

Haleys betrayal of President Trump took the form of a forceful condemnation: We need to acknowledge he let us down. He went down a path he shouldnt have, and we shouldnt have followed him, and we shouldnt have listened to him again. And we cant let that ever happen again. The timing of the tirade couldnt have been more opportune: for maximum political effect, she released it just before Trumps legal team presented his defense.

Making common cause with Democrats and disaffected Republicans, she held Trump responsible for the January 6th Capitol riot, disingenuously telling members of the Republican National Committee that the president will be harshly judged by history. Does she believe her own words, or is this political theater? She was surely privy to Trumps several recordings, importuning followers to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard. She would also have been aware of other events that exonerated Trump from the false charges of fomenting a so-called insurrection. Many publications reported that planning for the Capitol attack occurred openly online for weeks. Known Antifa members disguised in MAGA attire played a part in the riots, as did at least one prominent Black Lives Matter activist . Despite knowing this, she chose to blame the president for political advantage.

Haley gratuitously stated that shes deeply disturbed by Trumps actions since the election, adding, The person that I worked with is not the person that I have watched since the election. She gave no credence to evidence of election fraud but made this insidious statement: I understand that genuinely, to his core, he believes he was wronged.

This was not the first time the former ambassador used her political pulpit to slur the president. In 2017, she referenced a maliciously mischaracterized episode to proclaim that Trump was wrong with his words in Charlottesville. Again, it has been repeated often enough that Trump unequivocally observed that there were very fine people on both sides of the Robert E. Lee Park-naming protest and distinctly stated, Im not talking about the neo-Nazis and white nationalists because they should be condemned totally.

There are many recent examples of Haleys political opportunism. At the time of the June 2020 hoax involving black NASCAR driver Bubba Wallace, she tweeted, We should all stand with @BubbaWallace today against the cowards who secretly put the noose in his garage stall. An FBI investigation determined the item in question was nothing but an ordinary garage door-pull.

All this is of a piece with Haleys attempts to set herself apart from other Republican contenders as a champion of minority rights by taking issue with the partys approach to minorities, and emphasizing the hurt imposed by symbols such as the Confederate flag after previously having been a supporter of the flag. In 2015, she spuriously criticized the partys approach to minorities, The problem for our party is that our approach often appears cold and unwelcoming to minorities. Thats shameful and it has to change.

As part of her political machinations to craft and refine her neocon image, Haley resigned from a short tenure on the board of directors at Boeing when it was announced that the company was seeking federal support to weather the coronavirus crisis. Although a view that was at direct odds with her actions as South Carolinas governor, she ascertained that opposition to government bailouts of private business would be a more advantageous position to take with her potential base.

In 2014, during her second term as governor, Haley had approved generous state-backed incentives for several corporations in South Carolina. These, in turn, had contributed to her campaign. Her Democrat opponent, Vincent Sheheen, had charged that taxpayers are getting ripped off and nobody knows it. Since her incentives policy gave dismal results in terms of job creation and tax revenue, Sheheen had said, If private businesses get incentives, we should hold them to a strict standard to deliver on them.

Haleys endorsement of Kelly Loeffler, a relative unknown, over GOP Rep. Doug Collins in the 2020 Georgia senate race, too, smacks of opportunistic game playing. Signaling distance from Trump, Haley said of Loeffler, The Presidents style is not Kellys style. Even so, to gain traction from the coattails effect from the president, who supported Loefflers candidacy, she emphasized Loefflers agreement with Trumps results for jobs and wages.

Its speculated that Haleys endorsement of Loeffler may have been motivated by potential future political benefits. Loefflers husband Jeffrey Sprecher is a GOP insider and CEO of a company that owns the New York Stock Exchange. He is a well-connected mega-donor who, along with his wife, gave $1,500,000 to Mitt Romneys Super PAC in 2012. He could well serve as a useful source of funding for a presidential run.

Early this month, Haley hired Betsy Ankney , an experienced political operative, and launched a Super PAC called Stand for America. Super PACs are essentially vehicles meant to accumulate funds before declaration of candidacy. They allow for unlimited donor contributions that dont have to be reported to the Federal Election Commission until a candidate declares intent to run for office. The stated goal for Stand for America is the winning back of GOP majorities in the House and Senate.

During the lead-up to the 2016 Republican primary, Haley endorsed amnesty candidate Marco Rubio, author of the 2013 Gang of Eight immigration bill, which expanded refugee resettlement and the issuance of green cards and H1-B guest worker visas. And with a nod to illegal immigration, she had added, No one who is willing to work hard, abide by our laws, and love our traditions should ever feel unwelcome in this country. She also took a shot at Donald Trump, saying, During anxious times, it can be tempting to follow the siren call of the angriest voices. We must resist that temptation. But two weeks before the 2016 election, perhaps to retain political relevance, she changed tack. Conceding it wasnt an easy decision, she said shed vote for Trump even though she found his campaign embarrassing and a stomach churner.

As governor  an office the virtual unknown achieved only after a rally endorsement by former Alaska governor Sarah Palin catapulted her from last place to the lead -- Haley had supported former President Obamas plan to bring refugees from Syria, Iraq, and Central America to South Carolina. Much to the surprise of uninformed communities, who were unknowingly footing the bill, an influx of refugees appeared in the state. Residents, understandably concerned about potential extremist activities after a spate of terrorist attacks in Europe, filed a lawsuit to end the governors cooperation with the federal resettlement plan. Additionally, the attorney for the lawsuit pointed out an unusual increase in green cards granted to Central American minors without proof that they were under threat in the countries of their origin.

Clearly, Haley shifts her views when expedient. Her calculated post-election remarks about Trump, after years of working for him in the political spotlight and taking part in his election campaign, reveal her as the ultimate opportunist, who will do whatever it takes to gain political advantage and advance her career.

Although circumstances and opportunities do change, especially in Washington, it appears for now that rather than Trump having no future in the GOP, as Haley proclaims, it may in fact be Haley who will find herself sidelined.

Image: TVnewsbadge


ASEAN member states, including Vietnam, have agreed to set aside $10.5 million from the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund to purchase vaccines for their citizens on the basis of equal distribution to all 10 countries.

Vietnam's representative - Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung - at the sixth meeting of the ACC Working Group on Public Health Emergencies (Photo: VNA)

The agreement was reached during the sixth meeting of the ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC) Working Group on Public Health Emergencies, held via video conference on February 18.

The fund has to date received commitments of over 15 million USD in support from ASEAN members and their partners.

Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Quoc Dung backed spending part of the fund to buy vaccines for the people of ASEAN.

He emphasised the need for each country to determine its demand in order to build the blocs vaccine supply plan.

The official also welcomed a proposal from Brunei - Chair of ASEAN this year - to use global multilateral mechanisms such as COVAX.

He affirmed that Vietnam is completing procedures to announce a list of contributions to the ASEAN Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies, and will coordinate with others to select the host of an ASEAN Centre for Public Health Emergencies and Emerging Diseases (ACPHEED).

Vietnam will also work closely with other members and the ASEAN Secretariat to carry out the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework along with efforts to control the pandemic towards sustainable recovery in the region, Dung added.

The 6th meeting of the ACC Working Group on Public Health Emergencies is held in the form of video conferencing

Delegates at the meeting focused on effectively implementing pandemic response initiatives approved by ASEAN leaders at the 37th ASEAN Summit last November under Vietnam's chairmanship, and agreed to step up the ASEAN Committees synchronous approach to pandemic control and sustainable and comprehensive economic recovery.

They pledged to efficiently put into operation the ASEAN Regional Reserve of Medical Supplies to ensure capacity in meeting the urgent demand for medical supplies in public health emergencies.

The implementation of the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework has seen progress in all three pillars, with 24 out of 183 initiatives completed and 127 expected to be carried out in 2021.

ASEAN countries also agreed to soon build an ASEAN travel corridor, an initiative of Indonesia, to facilitate essential travel of people amid the pandemic.

ACPHEED will be put into operation shortly, with support from Japan, they added./.VNA
The sixth series of the BBCs documentary Hospital focuses on Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, one of the largest trusts in the UK, between August and December 2020 and covering the rise of the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Royal Free Trust includes Barnet Hospital, Chase Farm Hospital and the Royal Free Hospital in London.

Royal Free Hospital, London (courtesy: Matt Brown-WikiCommons)

The series provides a harrowing portrait of the impact of the coronavirus on individuals, families and the National Health Service (NHS). The introduction to each of the six episodes highlights the unprecedented situation in which the trust found itself during the first wave, having treated almost 2,000 COVID patients. Scenes highlight the emotional toll on staff, shown in tears in some cases. Health workers explain, Basically we are at breaking point here and It actually feels like a field hospital.

The first episode aired in November 2020, at the commencement of the second lockdown and before filming of the entire series had finished. It explores the impact of COVID-19 on elective surgeries, and patients whose situations have worsened by not having access to medical care during the first wave. The programme reveals the widespread fear of setting foot in medical premises at all and the increased incidence of various conditions, such as patients suffering from cardiac arrest. Hospitals makers point to the 1.5 billion [US$2.1 billion] going toward renting space in various hospitals in London so that NHS surgeons can carry out surgeries in hospitals considered COVID-safe in order to highlight the ability of the private sector to profit at the taxpayers expense during the pandemic.

To try and clear the backlog, the number of surgeries leaps from 13 to 107 in a single day. This is just one of the elements of strain on the NHS throughout 2020. The fourth episode opens at Barnet Hospital on September 2. Sally Dootson, Director of Ops, says, The hospital is full, and its the 2nd of September, but feels like middle of winter. As the hospital moves into full capacity protocol, the policy is to speed up discharges and free up beds.

Barnet Hospital serves one of the oldest populations in London, with over 100 care homes in the borough. It was also one of the hardest-hit hospitals in the first wave.

Each episode follows the stories of three new patients. They face waiting for surgery, treatment for various debilitating conditions and, increasingly, infection with COVID-19a trend clearly seen from the fourth episode onward as the second wave of the pandemic begins.

The series follows various members of the hospital staff, some throughout, some intermittently. What comes over most strongly is the diligence with which they care for their patients under difficult circumstances.

The series highlights the severity of the virus, including its impact on those who survive the disease. David, a 69-year-old hardware shop owner, who was fit and had not been to see his GP for over 20 years, is one of 60,000 patients in the UK suffering from the long-term impacts of COVID-19. Five months after his diagnosis, David is still being treated in a neurological unit, having hadas a result of the virustwo strokes, a heart attack, organ failure and perforation of the gut. Many patients suffer blood clots on the brain, due to the fact that COVID increases clotting.

Betty, 93, becomes infected at her care home and dies from COVID-related pneumonia a month after departing the hospital. This is not a virus that one can simply take on the chin, as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson suggested in his announcement of the criminal herd immunity policy pursued by the government.

Sarah Stanley, Divisional Directory for the Trust, says, I can only see an end coming when the vaccine is actually live and up for us to use so I think this winter is going to be worse than March to May. I am terrified now already. We are dancing every day in a sort of major incident style trying to make capacity and I dont see it at the moment decreasing in any shape or form.

The BBC series makes no mention of factors outside of the immediate care situation, including the government's herd immunity policy. No consideration is given as to why the first wave was not the only wave, why a wave was allowed to occur at all or why the NHS was so overwhelmedbecause, in fact, the interests of the financial elite were put before the lives of the working class.

Nevertheless, what the series shows amounts to a devastating indictment of the governments policy during the pandemic and the impact of decades of cuts on the NHSfacts that will not be lost on Hospitals many viewers.

The lack of testing for COVID-19 is made abundantly clear. The Royal Free hospital only had 13 rapid-response tests a day for the first couple of episodes, until November 2020, when that figure rose to a still meagre 40 a day.

Staff shortages are highlighted, with the intensive care unit matron, Mohammad Noor, explaining, Staffing is a challenge both medically and nursing. Stanley observes that there are vacancy rates of up to 20 percent to begin with. The burden on staff is huge.

In the first episode, an X-ray machine fails. It becomes clear that the machine should be replaced, but the funds are not available. A conversation in regard to the funding issues faced by the Trust raises the governments financial assistance for the first wave, assistance that stopped by the end of summer. The Trust was then still 36 million in deficit.

Episode three highlights the resulting reliance of NHS trusts on private patient units (PPU) to try and cover the shortfall in finances. The Royal Free has a private ward on the 12th floor, which brings in 20 million a year. The ward is turned over to COVID patients during the first wave, unlike at private hospitals.

The series ends by asserting that vaccinations are giving people the hope this pandemic is over, as one elderly lady comments. The reality is not so clear cut. While the vaccine is being distributed in record numbers, vast numbers of people are still getting infected and the ineffectual third national lockdown has not eased the pressure on the NHS. Indeed, the fact that there are currently three vaccines authorised and being administered to the population underscores the criminal response of the government in failing to curb the spread of the virus, especially with the growing threat posed by new strains, from South Africa, Brazil and the UK itself.
After much back-and-forth, Sophie Hermann and Tom Zanetti finally got amorous during the latest edition of Celebs Go Dating.

The latest episode of the E4 show saw everyone in the mansion tasked with singling out one other person they'd like to spend their last day with.

Unsurprisingly, Tom and Sophie sent their potential suitors packing and opted to spend the finale with each other.

Kiss and tell? After much back-and-forth, Sophie Hermann and Tom Zanetti finally got amorous during the latest edition of Celebs Go Dating

Following this, the pair were seen giddily fawning over one another before heading out to join the rest of the cast for the penultimate evening's drinks.

But before they could, Sophie could resist temptation no longer, yanking Tom into the bathroom with her and slamming the door.

With cameras disallowed in there, all that could be heard was a smacking of lips as they duo finally shared a smooch.

At the end of the evening, Tom walked Sophie to her bedroom - being the only participant to have her own quarters - and enjoyed another kiss goodnight before letting her go to bed.

Rendezvous: Sophie could resist temptation no longer, yanking Tom into the bathroom with her and slamming the door

Goodnight kiss: At the end of the evening, Tom walked Sophie to her bedroom - being the only participant to have her own quarters - and enjoyed another kiss goodnight before letting her go to bed

In the previous episode, the pair were sent off on dates with other people, but ultimately ended up flirting with each other in the bedroom, engaging in some x-rated, cake-themed flirting.

While Tom had been on a yoga-themed outing with his date, Sophie had decorated a cake with her's.

And this led to some raunchy chat between the pair as they debriefed their respective suitors.

Kostlich! Things got tasty between Sophie and Tom on Tuesday's Celebs Go Dating

Talking about the cake Sophie brought back with her, Tom said: 'I loved eating your cake, your cake tasted so nice!'

This left Sophie blushing, branding him 'gross'.

But relentless Tom went on: 'You've got the tastiest cake, it was so yummy!'

Options: The pair were sent off on dates with other people

Taking the cake: They ultimately ended up flirting with each other in the bedroom at the end of the episode

Meh! While Tom had been on a yoga-themed outing with his date, Sophie had decorated a cake with her's

Sophie couldn't help but join in, asking if he liked her 'frosting'.

She somewhat killed the mood when she asked if Tom had tried her date's 'rosette'.

Asking about his yoga excursion, Sophie demanded whether Tom had kissed his date, having returned with foundation all over his cheeks.

Tom insisted he hadn't and described her as 'bubbly'.

Not fussed: Sophie was left unfazed by her date

Nein danke! She retained that Tom was her favourite date of the series

Talking about the cake Sophie brought back with her, Tom said: 'I loved eating your cake, your cake tasted so nice!'

'That's what I'd say about a good fizzy drink! Fun, bubbly, sweet!' Sophie mocked, adding: 'But would I want to f**k it, or marry it?'

The duo were told on Monday's instalment that they'd have to test the waters with other suitors during a session with dating experts Anna Williamson and Paul Carrick Bronson.

They asked the would-be couple how things were going, with Tom declaring he was pleased Sophie had stopped being 'stand-offish' and that he felt they were more 'intertwined' - comparing her to Bambi.

Coy! This left Sophie blushing, branding him 'gross'

News: The duo were told on Monday's instalment that they'd have to test the waters with other suitors during a session with dating experts Anna Williamson and Paul Carrick Bronson

Sophie asserted that the date was the best she'd had in the house thus far.

However, both of their faces fell when Anna and Paul informed them that two new suitors would be dropped into the mansion to romance them, in order to test their feelings for one another.

This is sure to rock the boat, after the pair have been getting closer.

On Sunday their 'mate date' turned into the real deal for the unlikely duo, with Tom visibly nervous around 'The Duchess'.

Besotted: Tom declared that he was pleased Sophie had stopped being 'stand-offish' and that he felt they were more 'intertwined' - comparing her to Bambi

Update: The pair were asked how things were going

Bad news: Both of their faces fell when Anna and Paul informed them that two new suitors would be dropped into the mansion to romance them, in order to test their feelings for one another

Earlier in the episode, Tom was seen approaching the Made In Chelsea star, telling her he was 'scared' of her.

'I'm not intimidated by many people but The Duchess I do find scary... I can't read her,' he was seen telling the camera before suggesting he and Sophie have some time to themselves.

Self-declared 'girl's girl' Sophie laid down the stipulation that Tom would need to be honest with any of the other girls in the house hoping to romance him.

Later in the episode, they enjoyed caviar and champage, with Tom trying the decadent fishy treat for the first time.

'That tastes like a fish's a**hole!' was his analysis.

Liebe liegt in der luft? On Celebs Go Dating on Sunday night, Tom finally mustered the courage to ask Sophie out on a date

Besotted: What was intended as a 'mate date' soon turned into the real deal for the unlikely duo, with Tom visibly nervous around 'The Duchess'

Yet things got a tad more serious when he opened up to Sophie about becoming a father at just 17 years old.

'I was really really happy, I fell in love with him the day he was born,' he told her. 'I worked as a scaffolder, a brick-layer, a roofer, I did everything I could to make sure he had a prom and a car...'

Sophie asked if having a child so young left Tom feeling he had missed out in life, to which he replied: 'The only thing I wish I had was that I always wanted to get married...'

Different strokes: 'I was still playing with Barbies at 16!' Sophie admitted, comparing their very different backgrounds

Gedichtvorlesung: Tom also recited a poem he'd written about Sophie - featuring a line in her mother-tongue, German

He also spoke of having little money when he grew up and how he started providing for the rest of his family as young as 14.

'I was still playing with Barbies at 16!' Sophie admitted, comparing their very different backgrounds.

Tom also recited a poem he'd written about Sophie - featuring a line in her mother-tongue, German.

'That is the sweetest thing...' she said, clearly moved by the gesture.

Overwhelmed? 'That is the sweetest thing...' she said, clearly moved by the gesture

Sweet: Earlier in the episode, Tom was seen approaching the Made In Chelsea star, telling her he was 'scared' of her

Later in the episode, she was seen telling Kimberly Hart Simpson and Chloe Ferry about the date.

'This is what you've wanted - to be happy!' Chloe exclaimed.

Sophie also admitted it was the best date she had been on during her time on the show thus far.

Celebs Go Dating: The Mansion continues at 9PM on Thursday on E4.
Lake Michigan has 45 miles of shoreline in Northern Indiana that we could open up to new businesses, residential areas and tourism attractions. This legislation would boost our states economy and help our lakefront communities not only recover from the financial burden of the pandemic, but also grow and thrive in the years to come.
Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help
PROPERTY professionals continue to work remotely and at reduced levels of activity. The key to unlocking high-margin areas such as investment sales will be the ability of overseas purchasers to travel here and inspect property, and that is some way off. Domestically focused markets will reopen sooner, as viewing restrictions are eased.

But this hiatus does offer an opportunity for thinking and innovating, something we are normally too busy to do. Are we merely hoping to survive and go back to doing everything the same way as soon as possible? Or is there opportunity in the change that the world is experiencing?

Property generally, and particularly estate-agency, have been slow to change. With the exception of a burst of online marketing and conveyancing over the last five years, the same services are provided in much the same way as fifty years ago.

Photo taken on Feb. 1, 2021 shows a resting place for federal parliamentarians blocked by the military in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar. (Photo by U Soe/Xinhua)

Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Chen Hai said that all parties should avoid using violence in the current situation and the basic rights of people need to be protected as Myanmar citizens took to the street recently.

"The current development in Myanmar is absolutely not what China wants to see," Chen said as he took questions from Myanmar's media on Monday in response to the current situation.

"We hope that all things go well in Myanmar, rather than becoming unstable or even falling into chaos," said Chen.

The Myanmar military took control on February 1. After the military takeover, Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, 75, was detained and later charged with violating the import/export law for having walkie-talkies in her home.

For the country to get back on track, Chen said that it "requires the Myanmar military, political parties, and all sectors of society to keep in mind the fundamental and long-term interests of Myanmar."

The Chinese ambassador called on all Myanmar parties to "handle the current problem through dialogue and consultation properly."

"What Myanmar needs is reconciliation and unity, instead of confrontation and division, which, we believe, is the common wish of the Myanmar people," Chen said.

Chen noted that China has "noticed Myanmar's domestic dispute regarding the election for some time, but ... not informed in advance of the political change in Myanmar."

The ambassador added that the National League for Democracy, chaired by Suu Kyi, maintains good relations with China, committing to jointly promoting the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC) and other practical cooperation with the Chinese side.

China has kept an eye on the situation of Suu Kyi and others, the ambassador said, while stressing that "China has been and will continue playing a constructive role to this end."

Rumors about Chinese involvement denied

The Chinese ambassador also denied that China helped the Myanmar military, such as "Chinese aircraft transported technicians to Myanmar," or "China is helping Tamattaw building firewall."

"For the record, these are completely nonsense and even ridiculous accusations. These aircraft are normal cargo flights between China and Myanmar," Chen said. "They carry seafood and other exports from Myanmar to China."

"We hope such rumors will not recur," Chen added. "If so, it only proves to have manipulation and instigation by forces with ulterior motives behind the scenes."

BOSTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the AMR Action Fund announced its first initial close with non-pharmaceutical industry investments of more than US$140 million from the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation, the European Investment Bank (supported by the European Commission), and the Wellcome Trust. This adds to the initial investment from more than 20 leading biopharmaceutical companies that established the Fund as announced in July 2020. With this significant financial commitment from global foundations and development banks, the AMR Action Fund becomes the world's largest public-private partnership supporting the development of new antibiotics. It demonstrates the type of commitment and collaboration across sectors that is urgently needed to address the global threat of antibiotic-resistant infections  also called antimicrobial resistance, or AMR.

"We need innovative solutions to avert the looming health crisis posed by AMR, which threatens to make even common medical procedures potentially deadly," said Christoph Boehringer, Chairman of the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation. "The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation is committed to fighting the greatest global health threats of our time and we are proud to join this broad alliance of charitable organizations, development banks, and biopharmaceutical companies. We are confident the AMR Action Fund will enable researchers and scientists to bring innovative antibiotics to patients suffering from severe bacterial infections." The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation is supporting the AMR Action Fund with an investment of US$50 million.

Each year 700,000 people die due to the uncontrolled rise of superbugs resistant to antibiotics. In some of the most alarming scenarios, it is estimated that by 2050 AMR could claim as many as 10 million lives per year. Antibiotics are the foundation of modern medicine. Without a stable pipeline of new antibiotics, this foundation is at risk of crumbling.

The AMR Action Fund [www.AMRactionfund.com] is a ground-breaking partnership that aims to bring 2 to 4 new antibiotics to patients by 2030. These treatments are urgently needed to address the rapid rise of AMR which has the potential to undermine every aspect of medicine today. The Fund will invest in clinical research of innovative new antibiotics that are addressing the most resistant bacteria and life-threatening infections. While the new coronavirus was practically unknown until early January 2020, AMR is a threat we know, and we must take collective action now.

"Systemic market failure has left antibiotic innovation starved of financing, meaning potentially lifesaving products are unable to make it to the patients who need them. Wellcome is taking steps towards fixing this by contributing 50 million (US$66.8 million) to the AMR Action Fund. This fund will provide a lifeline for companies navigating the expensive and technically complex later stages of antibiotic development. We are particularly pleased that the Fund will place an emphasis on equitable access and responsible stewardship which is crucial to solving this global health challenge," said Jeremy Farrar, Director of the Wellcome Trust. "But this is only part of the solution. We also need governments to simultaneously put in place long-term policy measures such as incentives and reimbursement reforms. The AMR Action Fund is buying time for the antibiotic pipeline. It is now up to governments to use this time wisely and take decisive action to fix the market."

"AMR is rendering treatments ineffective, therefore it is crucial to develop a steady pipeline of new and innovative antibiotics," said Werner Hoyer, President of the European Investment Bank. "It's high time that we create partnerships to foster research and improve access to innovative technological solutions that help to prevent and control AMR. Backed by the European Commission, the European Investment Bank is proud to invest 20 million (US$24.1 million) in such a partnership to drive antibiotic innovation. But to preserve and protect public health, more investment in the antibiotic pipeline should be supported and additional solutions must be created to address market failures. The European Investment Bank is ready to play its role by crowding-in additional investors."

With its investments, the AMR Action Fund is working to bridge the funding gap between the discovery of urgently needed antibiotics by innovative biotechs and patients. However, the antibiotic pipeline is fragile, and while additional funding is a short-term solution to this pressing issue, longer term policy changes are needed to incentivize and strengthen a constant flow of innovation.

"As experts and policymakers from around the globe emphasized at the AMR Action Fund's launch in July, this is an urgent issue that stakeholders across all sectors must come together to address," said Henry Skinner, Chief Executive Office of the AMR Action Fund. "We're thrilled to be working with the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation, the European Investment Bank, and the Wellcome Trust to expand the reach of the AMR Action Fund. We call on other investors from all sectors to join us in our efforts to ensure there is a sustainable pipeline of new antibiotics to fight superbugs."

The Fund will soon take its first steps to begin assessing investment opportunities in biotech companies focused on developing new antibiotics that address the highest priority public health needs, make a significant difference in clinical practice, and save lives. For more details on the AMR Action fund, visit www.AMRactionfund.com.

About the AMR Action Fund

The AMR Action Fund is an initiative from over 20 leading biopharmaceutical companies, global charitable organizations, and development banks that seeks to invest over US$1 billion to bring 2-4 new antibiotics to patients by 2030. The AMR Action Fund will strengthen and accelerate antibiotic development by investing in companies developing innovative antibacterial treatments. It will also work with governments to ensure there is a sustainable pipeline of new antibiotics to fight the highest priority bacterial threats.

The concept of the AMR Action Fund was developed by the IFPMA and its member biopharmaceutical companies, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, the European Investment Bank, and the Wellcome Trust. Investors in the AMR Action Fund include: Almirall; Amgen; Bayer; Boehringer Ingelheim; Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation; Chugai; Daiichi-Sankyo; Eisai; Eli Lilly and Company; the European Investment Bank (with the support of the European Commission under Horizon 2020, the 2014-2020 European Union research and innovation program); GlaxoSmithKline; Johnson & Johnson; LEO Pharma; Lundbeck; Menarini; Merck; Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany; Novartis; Novo Nordisk; Novo Nordisk Foundation; Pfizer; Roche; Shionogi; Takeda; Teva; UCB; and the Wellcome Trust.

About the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation

The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization committed to the promotion of the medical, biological, chemical, and pharmaceutical sciences. It was established in 1977 by Hubertus Liebrecht (19311991), a member of the shareholder family of the Boehringer Ingelheim company. With the Perspectives Programme Plus 3 and the Exploration Grants, the Foundation supports independent junior group leaders. It also endows the international Heinrich Wieland Prize as well as awards for up-and-coming scientists. In addition, the Foundation is funding institutional projects in Germany such as the Institute of Molecular Biology and the department of life sciences at the University of Mainz or the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg.

About the European Investment Bank

The European Investment Bank is the European Union's bank. It is the long-term lending institution of the European Union and is the only bank owned by and representing the interests of the European Union Member States. The European Investment Bank works closely with other EU institutions to implement EU policy. This investment into the AMR Action Fund was made possible by the InnovFin Infectious Diseases Finance Facility, a joint initiative with the European Commission.

About the Wellcome Trust

Wellcome supports science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone. We support discovery research into life, health and wellbeing, and we're taking on three worldwide health challenges: mental health, global heating and infectious diseases.

CONTACTS

Silas Holland, Interim Director of External Affairs, AMR Action Fund

[email protected]

+1 202 329 0936

SOURCE AMR Action Fund
The head of diversified miner South32 cant see Chinas ban on Australian coal imports ending any time soon.

Weaker coal prices contributed to an 8 per cent dent in South32s revenue, down from $3.21 billion to $2.94 billion from July to December 2020.

South32 mines coal in the Illawarra region of NSW.

This drop was driven largely by lower realised prices for its metallurgical coal, which took a $US145 million hit due, in part, to Chinas trade spat with Australia and an ensuing ban of Australian coal imports in October.

South32 chief executive Graham Kerr echoed comments from BHP boss Mike Henry earlier in the week that he did not expect the ban to end any time soon, though he was still bullish about metallurgical coal in the medium to long-term.
Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
New Delhi: The Delhi Police on Thursday tightened security in several parts of the national capital, especially near railway tracks, in view of the "rail roko" (rail blockade) called by the farmer groups protesting against the Centre's new agri laws, officials said.

According to a senior police officer, additional staff has been deployed at several points near railway tracks and patrolling has also been increased.

Delhi Police

Though there is no information on whether rail blockades will take place inside the national capital, police have made adequate security arrangements, another officer said.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions which is spearheading the protest, last week had announced the rail blockade to press for its demand to repeal the legislations.

Farmers' protest

The SKM had said that the blockade will be held across the country from 12 pm to 4 pm.

The railways have deployed 20 additional companies of the Railway Protection Special Force across the country, with focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, in the wake of the "rail roko" call.
The Luxembourg government has sold 40% of its shares in the engineering company Paul Wurth, according to a report by the Luxembourg Wort.

In its article, the Wort conveys that the shares were sold to SMS Group, Paul Wurth's German parent company.

The Luxembourg government owned the shares together with the State Bank and Savings Fund (Banque et Caisse d'Epargne de l'Etat) and the SNCI bank (Societe Nationale de Credit et d'Investissement). This means that the Luxembourgish company is now fully in the hands of German shareholders.

Paul Wurth became part of SMS Group in 2012. The German company has been struggling financially for some amount of time and is planning massive job cuts.
The United Nation Commission for Social Development (UNCSocD) adopted a resolution highlighting the inputs of the latest three editions of the Egyptian World Youth Forum, held in Sharm El-Sheikh city from 2017 to 2019.

The decision, adopted during the 59th session of the UNCSocD held on Wednesday, classified the Egyptian forum a platform for addressing the youth issues at the regional and international levels.

Egypts Permanent Mission to the United Nations has succeeded in garnering the support of the UN for the countrys World Youth Forum (WYF) in addressing youth issues regionally and globally during CSocD59.

The CSocD, one of the bodies of the UN Economic and Social Affairs Department, adopted on 16 February  in conjunction with the resolution sponsored by Egypt and presented by Senegal, Cape Verde, Portugal, and Kazakhstan with a special reference to the three WYF editions that were held in Sharm El-Sheikh starting from the year 2017  the forum as one of the international platforms to discuss youths issues.

Egypt's Permanent Representative to the UN Mohamed Idris stated that youths issues were currently a top priority on the UN agenda, and that the inclusion of this special reference to the WYF in the Csocs resolution reflected the Egyptian efforts made during the past years in terms of youth empowerment.

It also comes as a recognition to the contributions of the three editions of the forum which tackled contemporary issues related to youth and their role in achieving the 2030 sustainable development agenda, he stated.

The Egyptian mission managed to include the special reference to the WYF in the resolution with the support of several African states' missions. This move is expected to promote the results of the WYF and enhance its position internationally as the CSoc prepares for its annual Youth Forum.

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Netflix updated its parental controls last year seeing how the pandemic increased screen time. In India, the screen time among kids from the age group of 5 to 10 increased by 100% since last year, according to an OLX survey. To make its parental controls more accessible, Netflix has launched a step-by-step guide for Indian parents in Hindi.

Netflix has created shareable illustrations of its parental control tools in Hindi, Bahasa Indonesia, Malay, Japanese, Korean, Thai and Vietnamese. These graphics have step-by-step guides for these parental tools -

How to set up a kids profile

How to choose maturity ratings or block specific series and films

How to lock profiles on your account using a protected PIN

How to turn autoplay on or off

How to access viewing history for a childrens profile

Netflix parental controls step-by-step guide in Hindi. (Netflix)

Streaming services encourage more diversity in storytelling, including lesser told stories, to suit different moods of the audience. We believe that its important to give consumers the freedom to choose what they want to watch and the tools, including synopsis, maturity age rating and parental controls, to make the best viewing decisions for them and their families, a Netflix spokesperson said.

ALSO READ: How to keep Netflix safe for your kids

Parental control tools across different streaming services are used by 74% Indian parents, according to data from Family Online Safety Institute Survey, 2020. The survey also found that 58% of Indians feel that parents and caregivers have the most responsibility in managing their childrens online experiences.

ALSO READ: How to change your Netflix interface from English to Hindi

Netflixs parental control tools include PIN protection for individual profiles so kids dont have access to them, filter titles that are not age appropriate, and remove series or films so they dont show up anywhere in that profile.
Dame Julie Walters among those who signed open letter asking for visa-free travel for creatives working in the European Union

The National Theatre has shelved plans to tour mainland Europe due to Brexit.

Actors and musicians must now apply for visas and work permits to perform on the Continent following the UKs departure from the European Union.

Potential additional costs for documents and a lack of clarity around social security contributions as a result of the Brexit deal means regrettably it is currently not financially viable, the National Theatre said.

A spokesman told the BBC: Were awaiting further details of ongoing negotiations in this area and hope that in future we will be able to return to mainland Europe.

However, due to the amount of time needed to plan a tour, we are not able to commit to European touring until we have clarity around these points.

The National Theatre has postponed plans to tour mainland Europe due to Brexit which makes touring 'financially unviable' company has said, citing potential added costs and uncertainty

More than 100 members of the union Equity, including Dame Julie Walters, signed a letter urging Boris Johnson to negotiate with the EU to allow creative practitioners to visit Europe visa-free for work.

Culture Minister Caroline Dinenage said there were a lot of obstacles to overcome after arts figures told MPs that Brexit had created an absolute crisis.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Close on the heels of two US carrier groups conducting joint exercises in the South China Sea last week, another guided-missile destroyer "asserted navigational rights and freedoms" in the Spratly Islands claimed by China in the South China Sea Wednesday.

The USS Russell (DDG 59) conducted Freedom of Navigation Operation in the South China Sea, upholding the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea recognized in international law by challenging unlawful restrictions on innocent passage imposed majorly by China in the region.

Analysts say that the steady movement of US warships is sending a clear signal to China that the Biden administration is not softening its tough stance in the South China Sea. It is also a signal to Washington's regional allies especially those in the ASEAN, who have maritime disputes with China in the South China Sea, that US will stand by them during their frictions with Beijing.

Significantly, a recent annual survey conducted by ISEAS Yusof-Ishak Institute on Southeast Asia showed that 61.5 per cent of respondents favour aligning with the US over China if the region was forced to pick sides. That's an increase from 53.6 per cent who chose the US over China in the same survey a year ago. The survey made a significant disclosure about China's close allies Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand switching sides preferring the US.

Located in Southeastern Asia, the Spratly Islands consist of more than 100 small islands or reefs surrounded by rich fishing grounds - and potentially by gas and oil deposits.

China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines each claim sovereignty over some or all of the Spratly Islands. China, Vietnam, and Taiwan require either permission or advance notification before a foreign military vessel engages in "innocent passage" through the territorial sea.

Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group had conducted dual carrier operations with the Nimitz in the contentious South China Sea on February 9, hours after the US President Joe Biden and Indian PM Narendra Modi had renewed their support for a free and open Indo-Pacific and "a stronger regional architecture through the Quad" sending a clear signal to counter China's muscle flexing in the region.

Beijing says it respects the freedom of navigation and overflight enjoyed by all countries in the South China Sea in accordance with international law but opposes any attempt to undermine China's sovereignty and security and disrupt regional peace and tranquility under the pretext of "freedom of navigation".

As USS Russell sailed in the Spratly Islands on Wednesday, Washington asserted yet again that unlawful and sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea pose a serious threat to the freedom of the sea, including freedoms of navigation and overflight, free trade and unimpeded commerce, and freedom of economic opportunity for South China Sea littoral nations.

"The United States challenges excessive maritime claims around the world regardless of the identity of the claimant. The international law of the sea as reflected in the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention provides for certain rights and freedoms and other lawful uses of the sea to all nations. The international community has an enduring role in preserving the freedom of the seas, which is critical to global security, stability, and prosperity," said a statement from the 7th Fleet.

Under international law as reflected in the Law of the Sea Convention, the ships of all States -including their warships - enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea. The unilateral imposition of any authorization or advance-notification requirement for innocent passage is not permitted by international law.

The US Navy said that its forces operate in the South China Sea on a daily basis, as they have for more than a century.

"They routinely operate in close coordination with like-minded allies and partners who share our commitment to uphold a free and open international order that promotes security and prosperity." Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9 consists of USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11, the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG 52), Destroyer Squadron 23, and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Russell (DDG 59) and USS John Finn (DDG 113)

CSG 11 consists of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68), Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17, guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59), the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, USS Sterett (DDG 104), and Destroyer Squadron 9 and CSG 11 staffs.

The 7th Fleet is the US Navy's largest forward-deployed fleet and employs 50 to 70 ships and submarines across the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. It routinely operates and interacts with 35 maritime nations while conducting missions to preserve and protect a free and open Indo-Pacific region.

(This content is being carried under an arrangement with indianarrative.com)
(CNN)  In a region where respect, or the lack of it, is as powerful as a physical punch, President Joe Biden's press secretary just landed a sharp jab on the jaw of Saudi Arabia's heir apparent.

When answering a question Tuesday about when Biden would talk to the desert kingdom's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known as MBS, Press Secretary Jen Psaki replied: "We've made clear from the beginning that we're going to recalibrate our relationship with Saudi Arabia."

"And part of that is going back to engagement, counterpart to counterpart. The President's counterpart is King Salman, and I expect that, in appropriate time, he would have a conversation with him. I don't have a prediction of the timeline on that."

Whether strict protocol or intended diminution of MBS's ranking, the move reflects Biden's public disapproval of the ruler in waiting whom the CIA concluded would have known of plans that resulted in the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018.

On the campaign trail, Biden said he would treat Saudi Arabia as a "pariah." His NSA pick, Avril Haines, says she will make public a report on Khashoggi's brutal murder at the hands of Saudi agents inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Psaki may have also been diplomatically indicating an end to the cozy and corner-cutting relationship which MBS enjoyed under former President Donald Trump. The unpredictable prince often bypassed the State Department through phone calls and dinners with Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law and special adviser on the Middle East.

That MBS has been put on notice so publicly will be an embarrassment he can't hide, but it doesn't mean he won't be in on Biden's calls with the King.

MBS is the power behind the monarchy and the vision shaping the country's future. To assume that MBS won't know what Biden says to the King or won't help shape replies would be an underestimation of his sway.

A stark recent example of MBS's power behind the throne played out late mid-November last year. Israeli sources leaked that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had met with MBS in the kingdom, marking a massive diplomatic shift between the two countries. Multiple Saudi ministers denied it publicly and privately. Experienced Saudi watchers believe this was because MBS had not told his father about the hugely sensitive visit and needed to cover his tracks.

But perhaps what interests President Biden is not the impact the diplomatic putdown will have inside the kingdom, but how it will resonate around the rest of the world.

A central theme of his maiden presidential foreign policy speech earlier this month was the upholding of human rights, and the power that flows from it.

"Defending freedom. Championing opportunity. Upholding universal rights. Respecting the rule of law. And treating every person with dignity. That's the grounding wire of our global policy. Our global power. That's our inexhaustible source of strength," he said.

With that strength, Biden plans to harness the help of allies to contain China, his biggest foreign policy challenger.

"We'll confront China's economic abuses, counter its aggressive, coercive action to push back on China's attack on human rights, intellectual property, and global governance," he continued.

As outlined by Australia's ex-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in a recent Foreign Affairs article, Biden will use his "Democracy Summit" this year to focus on China's abuse of Uyghur Muslims and other human rights violations in an effort to crimp Beijing's growing power.

"The [Chinese Communist Party's] diplomatic establishment fears that the Biden administration, realizing that the United States will soon be unable to match Chinese power on its own, might form an effective coalition of countries across the democratic capitalist world with the express aim of counterbalancing China collectively. In particular, CCP leaders fear that President Joe Biden's proposal to hold a summit of the world's major democracies represents a first step on that path," Rudd wrote.

Little surprise then that getting tough on Saudi, a friend and relative minnow in the sea of challenges he faces from China, has sprung so readily from Biden's playbook.

Telling the Saudis that he'd no longer back their war in Yemen, including selling precision-guided bombs that helped make that military campaign possible, was one of Biden's first foreign policy shakeups. He said he'd only support them diplomatically.

Several Saudi sources have recently indicated all remains well in the long term US-Saudi relationship. Indeed, well-placed insiders speaking several months ago said they anticipated they'd hit a rough patch once Biden got to the White House, but expect to recover after that.

In the meantime, MBS does seem to be bending amidst Biden's human rights blitz. He's ordered judicial reforms, in part to protect human rights, and remove inequities in how laws are interpreted. High-profile activists, including Loujain al-Hathloul, have been released from detention, although they still face onerous restrictions.

But lesser known figures remain locked up and a key partner in the Obama-Biden White House, former Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, remains under house arrest, according to sources familiar with the situation. How MBS addresses those detentions foretells how far the Crown Prince is willing to bend, and how far Biden is willing to go in pressuring the Saudi government.

For now the message has been heard, and absorbed. A counter-punch is unlikely. Saudi Arabia's relationship with the US spans generations of presidents and kings. This could be the wobble most Saudis were expecting.

This story was first published on CNN.com 'What's behind Biden's snub of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman'
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  The 76-year-old New Jersey man arrested in connection with the crash that killed a Staten Island boy in front of a Brooklyn Yeshiva school early in January had no idea what had happened, his lawyer told the Advance/SILive.com Thursday.

Yehiel Guzi of Little Mountain Road in Old Tappan, N.J., was behind the wheel of the van that hit Yoshi Balaban, 4, of Pleasant Plains, on Jan. 4 and drove away despite [knowing] or having cause to know, that personal injury has been caused to a person, according to the indictment filed in Brooklyn state Supreme Court.

The crash occurred at about 9 a.m. on 67th Street near 20th Avenue in Bensonhurst, police said.

Balaban was pronounced dead at the scene while a 6-year-old boy who also lives on Staten Island was rushed to Maimonides Medical Center in critical condition. The older boy survived.

My client had no idea what had happened until he arrived back at the school and spoke with authorities, attorney Jonathan Rosenberg said. He really had no idea about the horror about what had happened, which makes it a tragedy for everyone involved especially the child whose life was lost in the accident.

The Yeshiva school had hired Guzi to drive kids from Staten Island to the facility, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.

This is a very tragic case because it involves an accident where there were no intentions of wrongdoing and it is one of those things that we pray never happens to anybody close to us, Rosenberg added.

Guzi has been charged with criminally negligent homicide, leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death and acting in a manner injurious to a child less than 17 years of age, according police and the indictment.

He was arraigned Tuesday in Brooklyn state Supreme Court and was released on his own recognizance, according to a spokesperson for the Brooklyn district attorney.

He is due back in court on April 8, the spokesperson added.

Hours after the incident, family of the 6-year-old convened at the hospital.

According to the boys older brother, he was asking for the child who was killed.

He was asking, Wheres my friend, why didnt they bring him here? said Dovi Berenbaum, 23, of Eltingville.

Balaban was a cherished member of the Staten Island community and a super cute kid, said Rabbi Shloma Eidelman outside of the childs funeral.

Hes not my grandkid, but he was a cute kid, said Eidelman. Every parent would wish to have a child like that.

When a kid leaves to go to school and the next thing you hear is that hes run over and no longer with us, its a tragedy for the parents, its a tragedy for the community, said Eidelman.
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Facebook's decision to remove Australian news from the social media network has been slammed as 'wrong, unnecessary and heavy-handed' by Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who revealed the government wasn't given any notice by the tech giant.

The social media site announced on Thursday that Australian users and publishers would be restricted from viewing or sharing domestic and international news on the site, effective immediately.

The move is in response to the proposed Media Bargaining law, which would force tech companies like Facebook and Google to negotiate with news providers to feature their content.

Mr Frydenberg said the social media giant was 'wrong' in its controversial decision, which he believes will 'damage its reputation here in Australia'.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has slammed Facebook's decision to remove Australian news from the social media network as 'wrong, unnecessary and heavy-handed'

Facebook has banned publishers and users in Australia from posting and sharing news content as the Australian government prepares to pass laws that will require social media companies to pay news publishers for sharing or using content on their platforms

'Their decision to block Australians' access to government sites - be they about support through the pandemic, mental health, emergency services, the Bureau of Meteorology - were completely unrelated to the media code which is yet to pass through the Senate,' he said.

'What today's events do confirm for all Australians is the immense market power of these media digital giants.

'These digital giants loom very, very large in our economy and on the digital landscape.'

Mr Frydenberg said the Morrison government remains committed to legislating and implementing the code.

'We want the digital giants paying traditional news media businesses for generating original journalistic content,' he said.

'This is critical to sustaining public interest journalism in this country, and this is world-leading.'

Facebook also blocked important government information pages including the weather bureau, health departments and police agencies.

In the process, charities and community groups have been targeted in the widespread censorship blitz.

Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook's CEO, has previously held talks with Treasurer Josh Frydenberg - leaving him under the impression the social media giant was willing to enter into a commercial arrangement - something Thursday's shock decision turns on its head

The social media giant claims it has been left with no choice, arguing the bargaining code is poorly worded.

'As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted,' a Facebook spokesman said in a statement.

'However, we will reverse any pages that are inadvertently impacted.'

Mr Frydenberg said the government did not know the ban would come into force on Thursday.

'We certainly weren't given any notice by Facebook,' he said.

It comes after the treasurer spoke with Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Sunday - and again in the wake of Thursday's news.

'I spoke to him over the weekend, but I also spoke to him this morning. We had a pretty lengthy conversation, around half an hour, and it was constructive,' he said.

FACEBOOK'S CHANGES TO NEWS IN AUSTRALIA Facebook has restricted publishers and social media users in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content. What does this mean for Australian news organisations? Australian news organisations will be restricted from sharing or posting any content on Facebook Pages Admins will still be able to access Page insights and Creator Studio on their Facebook pages Facebook said they will continue to provide access to other standard services, including data tools and CrowdTangle What does this mean for international news organisations? International news organisations can still post on Facebook but Australian users will not be able to see the content or share it What does this mean for Australian Facebook users? Australian Facebook users will not be able to view or share Australian or international news content What does this mean for international Facebook users? International Facebook users will not be able to view or share Australian news content on Facebook Advertisement

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher is seen at a press conference on Thursday afternoon as the government responds to Facebook's controversial move

'I think there's some differing interpretations as to how the code would work. And we talked through some of those elements.

'And we're happy to help clarify some of those issues with Facebook.'

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher told Thursday's press conference that he has been in contact with local community groups who have fallen victim to Facebook's move.

Mr Fletcher said North Shore Mums, a Facebook group in his electorate, was blocked by the social media giant.

'That is of significant concern. So, we are very clear that we think this is the wrong action by Facebook,' he said.

Facebook has since restored the pages of some state and territory health authorities, emergency services and the Bureau of Meteorology after they were caught up in the news ban.

Queensland, SA and ACT Health and the WA Fire and Emergency Services were among the pages blocked.

Mr Frydenberg (pictured during Thursday's press conference) said the government did not know the ban would come into force on Thursday. 'We certainly weren't given any notice by Facebook,' he said

How have news outlets responded? Daily Mail Australia: 'So much for Facebook's commitment to free speech. 'We are astonished by this inflammatory move which is a blatant and clumsy attempt to try and intimidate the Australian government into watering down the provisions of the ACCC code. 'We trust Canberra's politicians stand firm and call Facebook's bluff by passing the legislation unchanged and enforce it to the letter of the law.' Nine: 'It is unfortunate Facebook have taken this position and it will indeed inhibit us from sharing our quality news and information with Australians. Nobody benefits from this decision as Facebook will now be a platform for misinformation to rapidly spread without balance. This action proves again their monopoly position and unreasonable behaviour,' a spokesperson said. 'But today's statement does not mean Facebook will not have to abide by the Federal Governments proposed code. Value has already been transferred and Facebook has benefited from our content for many years. We should be able to access their monopoly platform and have the right to monetise our content as a result. 'We have been negotiating with Facebook in good faith and we remain willing to do a deal with them that provides a mutually beneficial outcome and ensures quality information is available to all Australians on their platform.' ABC: 'ABC News is Australia's number one digital news service and the nation's most trusted news outlet,' said Managing Director David Anderson. 'The ABC's digital news services will always remain free and accessible to all Australians on the ABC website and via the ABC News app, providing independent and reliable news, information and analysis. 'Despite key issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic having ongoing effects on all Australians, Facebook has today removed important and credible news and information sources from its Australian platform. 'We will continue our discussions with Facebook today following this development.' Advertisement

The pages, which provide crucial health, emergency and weather information and alerts, were restored about noon on Thursday.

The Tasmanian and ACT government pages are still down.

Other pages that were blocked include arts organisations, community groups and registered charities.

Facebook said it didn't intend its ban on sharing news content to impact government pages.

As Facebook restricts the sharing of news, Google is striking deals in Australia to pay for journalism.

News Corp has become the latest publisher to sign an agreement with Google.

The internet giant has already struck deals with Seven West Media and Nine Entertainment, and is in talks with public broadcasters ABC and SBS, as well as Guardian Australia.

The three-year Google deal with News Corp goes beyond the Australian market, extending to the publisher's titles in America and the UK.

No other news publisher has reached a single deal with Google across multiple countries.

The media bargaining code is before the Senate after clearing the House of Representatives overnight.

Australian Facebook users can't even share content they find interesting with friends and family, and those overseas can't read or access any content from Down Under either (stock image)

Mr Frydenberg thanked Google during Thursday's press conference for the 'very constructive discussions' the search-engine has been having with stakeholders.

The treasurer referred to the recent announcement from Google and News Corp.

'It follows on from the announcement by Channel Seven and Google, and the reports of the successful negotiations between Channel Nine and Google,' he said.

'This digital code, this new media bargaining code, is very important microeconomic reform.'

Mr Fletcher said the government 'certainly' want Google and Facebook to stay in Australia - as long as they respect the nation's rules.

'But at the same time if you're doing business in Australia you need to comply with the laws made by the elected Australian Parliament,' he said.

Just like the treasurer, Mr Fletcher welcomed the agreements reached between Google and three Australian news media businesses.

'And I certainly endorse what the Treasurer has said about this very unfortunate decision by Facebook, this very unfortunate action they've taken,' he said.
BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) - At 7.30 am ET Thursday, the European Central Bank releases the account of the monetary policy meeting of the governing council held on January 20 and 21. Ahead of the release, the euro traded mixed against its major counterparts. While it fell against the pound, it was steady against the rest of major rivals. The euro was worth 127.59 against the yen, 1.0830 against the franc, 0.8658 against the pound and 1.2068 against the greenback at 7.25 am ET. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Check out the news you should not miss today:

Society

-- Vietnam on Thursday morning reported no COVID-19 case, keeping the countrys tally at 2,329 with over 1,600 recoveries, according to the Ministry of Health.

-- The Ho Chi Minh City Center for Disease Control on Wednesday announced that the city has basically controlled the COVID-19 infection cluster involving Tan Son Nhat airport staff, while monitoring people returning from epicenters after the Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year) holiday with random COVID-19 tests conducted at bus and train stations.

-- Police in Hanoi are investigating a case in which a 47-year-old Korean man died leaving a suicide note in an apartment in Bac Tu Liem District. He was negative for COVID-19.

-- Some 19,624 newborns were delivered during the seven-day Tet holiday from February 11 to 17, the Vietnam News Agency reported on Wednesday, quoting the Agency of Health Examination and Treatment at the Ministry of Health.

-- A local real estate group on Wednesday handed over to the Ho Chi Minh City administration an automatic COVID-19 testing machine worth nearly US$230,000 which is able to release results after only 2.5 hours for 96 samples at the same time, or 30 to 40 percent faster than current testing measures.

Business

-- A total of 960 enterprises in Vietnam imported and exported their goods from February 10 to 16 with a total value of $1.67 billion, a 53 percent increase compared with the same period last year, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

-- Ho Chi Minh City recorded 1,800 visitors booking hotel rooms during the Tet holiday from February 9 to 17, the municipal Department of Tourism reported after summarizing figures from 22 of the 124 local 3- to 5-star hotels, the Vietnam News Agency reported on Wednesday.

Lifestyle

-- A group of students in the Mekong Delta region have run a project titled 'Green River' in order to reduce plastic pollution in local rivers, starting with giving free recycle bins to sellers on the famous Cai Rang floating market in Can Tho City, raising public awareness, and collecting river trash with a remote-control machine last year.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
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Amanda Burke covers Pittsfield City Hall for The Berkshire Eagle. An Ithaca, New York native, she previously worked at The Herald News of Fall River and the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise. Find her on Twitter at @amandaburkec.
New Delhi: At the meet on COVID-19 management led by India, Prime Minister Modi's proposals for visa regime for doctors, air ambulance pact has got support from all the participating countries including Pakistan. Indian initiative involved 10 countries in all-Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka. Seven of these, barring Mauritius and Seychelles, are members of the SAARC grouping.

Indian Prime Minister had made 5 proposals in total. "Can we consider creating a special visa scheme for our doctors and nurses, so that they can travel quickly within our region during health emergencies, on the request of the receiving country? Can our Civil Aviation ministries coordinate a regional Air Ambulance agreement for medical contingencies?" said PM Modi.

"Can we create a regional platform for collating, compiling and studying data about the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines among our populations? Can we similarly create a regional network for promoting technology-assisted epidemiology, for preventing future pandemics? And, Beyond COVID-19, can we also share our successful public health policies and schemes?" he added.

The proposals will be taken for a "structured discussion" for regional cooperation. The meet was a workshop on sharing best practices and took place at the level of Health Secretaries. Pakistan, which participated under SAARC umbrella, was represented by Special Assistant to Pak Prime Minister (SAPM) on health Faisal Sultan.

A source said, "All agreed that there was a need for such cooperation on a regional basis for fighting such pandemics."

All countries, barring of course Pakistan lauded India for sending COVID-19 vaccines, whereas Pakistan did not request any India-made vaccine. This year, India gifted COVID-19 vaccines to countries in the region, which include Bangladesh with 20 Lakhs doses, Myanmar with 17 Lakhs doses, Nepal with 10 Lakhs, Bhutan with 1.5 Lakhs, the Maldives with 1 Lakh, Mauritius with 1 Lakh, Seychelles with 50000, Sri Lanka with 5 Lakhs and Afghanistan 5 Lakhs.

In March of Last year, the Indian Prime Minister called for a SAARC meeting on the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the key outcomes of the meet was the establishment of the SAARC emergency fund, with India contributing $10 million to it.

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Nadlac Border Crossing Point (PTF) authorities caught two groups of 38 migrants from Afghanistan and Pakistan trying to cross the state border fraudulently into Hungary on foot on Wednesday night, according to AGERPRES.

Border guards were conducting a mission to prevent illegal migration when they noticed, about 200 meters from the border line, several people walking through the field, "with the intention of crossing the border into Hungary," according to a press statement released on Thursday by the Arad Border Police.

The group consisted of 22 adults and children, and during the investigation, the police discovered a second group, in the same area, consisting of 16 people.

"The people were picked up and transported to the headquarters for investigation. Thus, the border police established that the people in question are three nationals of Pakistan and 35 nationals of Afghanistan, aged between 5 and 34 years. It has also been established that there are asylum seekers in Romania," reads the statement, adding that investigations are continuing into the case.
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Dramatic pictures capture the moment a zebra reared helplessly in a desperate attempt to escape from being eaten alive by a pride of eight lions at a national park in Zambia.

The 880-pound zebra wriggled and kicked desperately as the pack of hungry beasts sank their teeth into the prey's body and feasted on it while it still lived.

One of them proceeded to bite down on the zebras neck, forcing the poor creature to lie there, as the blood-soaked lions devoured it all within 30 minutes.

The scene, which was not unusual for predators like lions, was captured at the South Luangwa National Park by photographer Peter Geraerdts who watched the zebra's ordeal from just 50 feet away.

Dramatic pictures, shot by photographer Peter Geraerdts, capture the moment a 880-pound zebra reared helplessly in a desperate attempt to escape from being eaten alive at the South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, southern Africa

The 880-pound zebra can be seen wriggling and kicking helplessly as the pack of hungry beasts sank their teeth into the prey's body. Pictured, the pride of lions all tucked in to devour their prey as the poor zebra lay there helplessly

The dramatic scene, which was not unusual for predators like lions that often eat their prey alive, was captured at the South Luangwa National Park by photographer Peter Geraerdts who watched the zebra's ordeal from just 50 feet away

A zebra is pictured rearing helplessly in a desperate attempt to escape from being eaten alive by a pride of eight lions at a national park in Zambia. One lion is seen biting down on the zebra's neck to stop it from wriggling

The lions pinned the poor creature down so it couldn't escape. The beasts devoured the poor creature within just 30 minutes
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Senior Chinese diplomat Yang Jiechi will visit Qatar, Uganda, Zambia and Kuwait at the invitation of the governments of the four countries, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said Thursday.

Yang, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, will pay the official visits from Feb. 19 to 23, Hua said at a regular press briefing.
Vichar Ratanapakdee was well-known in his San Francisco neighborhood for his hour-long walks each morning, a ritual that kept him vibrant and healthy during the year of the pandemic.

An 84-year-old immigrant from Thailand, Ratanapakdee had recently received the coronavirus vaccine and was walking in the Anza Vista neighborhood the morning of January 28 when a man ran across the street and violently shoved him to the ground in what San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin called "a horrific, senseless attack."

Ratanapakdee never regained consciousness after the deadly assault, his daughter, Monthanus Ratanapakdee, recalled, fighting back tears. A police officer told her they found him on the street, and he sustained brain hemorrhaging.

"He never wake up again," she said. "I never I see him again."

A 19-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and elder abuse in the case, according to the district attorney.

But Ratanapakdee's family said the attack was more than an example of someone preying on the vulnerable and elderly. They called it a hate crime -- despite a lack of evidence pointing solely to anti-Asian bigotry -- and part of a months-long spike in hate and violence against the community.

"This wasn't driven by economics," said Eric Lawson, Ratanapakdee's son-in-law. "This was driven by hate."

Reports of hate have risen during the pandemic

Though rights groups don't know the exact cause of the increase in violence against Asian Americans, a clear pattern of targeted hate has emerged in the year the pandemic has decimated US cities.

In fact, Stop AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) Hate has received more than 2,800 firsthand reports of anti-Asian hate across 47 states and Washington, DC, since March 19.

In Oakland's Chinatown neighborhood, police said a man violently shoved three unsuspecting people on January 31, injuring a 91-year-old man, a 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman.

A 28-year-old man was charged with three counts of felony assault for the attacks, according to charging documents. The man was placed on a psychiatric hold February 1 for a separate incident in which he was again assaulting people, the documents state.

More than 20 assaults and robberies have been reported in Oakland, according to officials. In Portland, dozens of Asian-owned businesses have been vandalized in recent weeks.

Last week, Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley announced the creation of a special response unit focused on crimes against Asians, and particularly older Asians.

"The rapid increase in criminal acts targeted against members of the Asian community, particularly Chinese Americans, who live and work in Alameda County is intolerable," she said.

A 31-year-old San Francisco resident, Haskell Allen, was arrested Sunday night and booked on charges of aggravated assault with force, elder abuse with great bodily injury, battery with great bodily injury, inflicting great bodily injury on elder during a felony, committing a felony while on pre-trial release, violation of a stay-away order, and injuring a person due to perceived race, police said.

He was accused of pushing down an 83-year-old Asian man on Sunday morning, causing serious injuries, according to San Francisco police. The victim, who was not identified, told police he was walking in the city's Tenderloin District "when an unknown male approached him and without provocation pushed him to the pavement."

Police said Allen was on probation and had a court order to stay away from the area of the attack. It's unclear if Allen has an attorney.

Advocates attributed the rise of anti-Asian hate in the US in part to former President Donald Trump, who repeatedly referred to the coronavirus as the "China virus" and "kung flu" during the pandemic. In some reported hate incidents, perpetrators repeated the former President's language.

Russell Jeung, a professor of Asian-American studies at San Francisco State University, said Trump's rhetoric has had a lasting and disturbing impact. He decided to chronicle thousands of hate incidents on Stop AAPI Hate because US government agencies weren't keeping track.

"We needed to document the racism directed towards Asians because mainstream society doesn't believe that we face racism and we need us to document what was happening and we needed to identify the trends," he said.

Jeung said racism and assaults have created "a climate of fear and anxiety" in many Asian American communities.

There is no uniform crime data on anti-Asian incidents connected to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, a Pew research study from last June found nearly a third of Asian Americans said they'd been subject to racist slurs or jokes since the pandemic began, while 26% said they feared someone might physically attack them.

Volunteers escort elderly Asian Americans

In the San Francisco Bay area, volunteers have taken to the streets to offer escorts for elderly residents and advice on communicating with law enforcement officers.

"You want to take that rage and ... do something," volunteer Derek Ko said. "And this is what we're doing."

Monthanus Ratanapakdee said she was familiar with the hate even before her father was fatally assaulted in late January.

She recalled people saying, "You bring the Covid, screaming, spit[ting] on us ... but we just walk away."

Lawson said the spate of hate incidents and assaults have affected the once teeming streets of mostly Asian American enclaves.

"There's less people on the street, definitely less Asian people," he said. "I'm in Chinatown a lot and it's been dead... It was starting to pick back up and then ... this happened."

Lawson said Ratanapakdee's family will be having conversations and looking around the room for him.

"There's an empty spot in the room," he said. "I keep looking over to see if ... he's listening."

Monthanus Ratanapakdee lamented not being able to say goodbye to her father. But she said he would be proud his family now tells his story in order to protect others in their community.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 19:19:27|Editor: huaxia

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ASWAN, Egypt, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- At least four Sudanese were killed and 46 others injured in a bus-truck accident in southern Egypt Thursday, an official medical source said.

"The bus carrying Sudanese nationals, at Aswan-Abu Simbel road, has been hit from behind by a truck carrying construction materials," Chairman of Aswan Ambulance Authority Mohamed al-Diekhily told Xinhua.

The number of deaths may rise because several people are in serious conditions, he added.

Some 16 ambulances rushed to the scene, and the wounded have been transferred to Aswan Public Hospital.

Road accidents are common in Egypt due to broken roads, poor maintenance and high speed of the driver.

However, over the past few years, Egypt has been upgrading its road network, building new roads and bridges, and repairing existing ones to reduce traffic accidents.

In October last year, the Egyptian Ministry of Planning and Economic Development said deaths from road accidents in the country dropped by 44 percent in 2019-2020. Enditem
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An award-winning Downton Abbey producer with terminal cancer has been spared jail for undoing his trousers to perform a sex act behind a woman after she repeatedly refused his sexual advances, a court heard.

Chris Croucher, 39, made a series of sleazy advances on the woman during a Christmas party around Soho on December 18 2019.

Fueled by alcohol and cocaine, 'sex pest' Croucher tried to kiss her and repeatedly requested a 'foursome', Southwark Crown Court heard.

The screenwriter, who has worked on movies with Hollywood A-listers Scarlett Johansson, Natalie Portman and Kirsten Dunst, appeared in court via videolink.

Croucher, who the court was told has terminal cancer, was spared jail after admitting sexual and common assault.

But the defendant was handed a community order, a three-month curfew and was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register.

Award-winning Downton Abbey producer Chris Croucher, 39, made a series of sleazy advances on a woman during a Christmas party on December 18 2019, including undoing his trousers to perform a sex act behind her. (Pictured: In 2011, left, with actress Penny Ryder, director Chris Foggin and actress Judi Dench)

Croucher met the Duchess of Cambridge when she visited the cast and crew of Downton Abbey at Ealing Studios in London

Prosecutor Iestyn Morgan said Croucher had polished off several bottles of Rose wine at their group lunch before the party visited several Soho bars, including members club Quo Vadis.

When the group reduced to just four people - the two victims, Mr Croucher and another man - he tried to kiss his victim.

But she drew back and made it clear his advances were not welcome, the court heard.

'When they left Quo Vadis he was leaning on her, holding her hand,' said Mr Morgan.

Southwark Crown Court heard he is suffering from terminal cancer. Croucher was spared jail after admitting sexual and common assault. Pictured: At an event in 2018

'He was saying in her ear he wanted to have sex with her.'

The producer got progressively drunker as the evening progressed and when he missed his train home, Croucher started touching the victim in the lift.

He was told to back off, but he continued asking the women for 'a threesome, or a foursome'.

'He was making jokes but it also appeared serious,' Mr Morgan said. 'The victim got up but he was following her. He took his top off, he pushed her against the wall and said 'let's have sex','

Mr Croucher continued making explicit sexual comments before the second woman told him 'not to talk to her like that'.

'As [the victim] was leaning over [to get her phone], Mr Croucher was standing behind her.

'He is described as [performing a sex act] or touching himself whilst the victim was bending over in front of him. Her friend shouted at him to stop.'

When the victim pushed past him and tried to leave he tried to follow her, and she eventually had to hide in a shop when she saw him stumble after her outside.

'As his trousers were undone he was too slow to follow her, she was able to get away,' said the prosecutor.

The court heard Croucher also violently shook the second woman when she tried to help him into a taxi.

In an impact statement, the sexual assault victim said she had struggled to maintain friendships or trust men since the incident.

The defendant was handed a community order, a three-month curfew and was ordered to sign the Sex Offenders Register at Southwark Crown Court (pictured, stock photo)

She described being plagued with mental health problems, nightmares and intrusive thoughts about that night.

Francesca Levett, defending, said that while her client didn't remember much of the evening, he offered an 'unreserved apology' to both women.

The barrister said that Croucher felt 'shame' and 'shock' at his behaviour during the incident.

Ms Levett said that Croucher, who went on to join Alcoholics Anonymous, and added: 'He is thoroughly ashamed of himself and he has done his best to make amends since.'

The barrister added that Croucher had now lost his job and is reliant on benefits.

Croucher, who had missed several previous hearings due to his health, was now suffering from 'terminal' cancer, with tumours now in his heart and lungs.

'His only option now is palliative care,' said Ms Levett.

Judge Philip Bartle, QC, said the impact statement of the victims made for 'ghastly' reading and that Croucher had behaved like a 'sex pest' on the evening in question.

Croucher worked on the Emmy award-winning show Downton Abbey as well as The Other Boleyn Girl starring Scarlett Johnasson and Natalie Portman.

He was also an associate director on Wimbledon, with Paul Bethany and Kirsten Dunst.

Croucher, of Haselemere, Surrey, admitted sexual assault and common assault.

He was given a 12-month community order with a three-month 9PM-9AM curfew, and order to continue attending his AA meetings.

The judge also placed him on the sex offenders' register for five years.
February 17, 2021





Meetings are a normal part of business life. They are necessary for making sure that everyone is present at scheduled meetings on time. However, meetings can be a burden if there are problems with attendance or rescheduling. Meeting room reservation software provides ways to schedule meetings including web-based application, mobile application, and quick book application. All of these meeting management services provide an easy to use, quick, and hassle-free method to book meeting facilities and staff.







Web-based meeting room booking software allows attendees to login to the website and reserve meeting facilities and spaces. The software provides them with the ability to reserve meeting room spaces via the internet. The attendee only needs to enroll with their name and email address to reserve the meeting room. The attendee is then sent a confirmation email containing the confirmation link for them to print out and show to the landlord or management office.

Mobile phone apps are another way to manage meeting rooms. There are several companies that provide mobile phone applications for business meetings and office work. These mobiles applications are easy to load and run from any location. They allow office managers to monitor rooms and spaces which are reserved for meetings or conference calls. This is an ideal way for workplace management personnel to manage spaces which are used by employees. It also provides the opportunity for employees to update their personal contact details about workplace vacancies and new assignments.

Video conferencing is another option that is available when using booking app for meeting experience. Video conferencing is an interactive visual communication technology, which is used to communicate with people in other locations. This helps improve the quality of service and the efficiency of workflow. It is simple to set up and it is beneficial when many employees are participating in a meeting.

Customized signage is also available. These customized signage can be placed on meeting room screens or walls. They are easily customizable and the size can be adjusted according to the size of the room. They are perfect for flexible use and the content can include the name of the business, contact information, website address, logo, message, etc.

Video conferencing has grown tremendously over the past few years. Some of the best meeting room booking solutions integrate video conferencing with meeting room scheduling software. Some systems also allow users to share visual presentations through social media sites. This integration allows customers to send presentations, videos, and slides to their clients or prospective clients. A well-chosen video conferencing integration will help increase efficiency and reduce costs.

The third area where you can take advantage of an outlook booking system is via the outlook calendar. You can make your calendar more flexible by integrating your outlook software with your meeting room reservation software. This will allow you to make use of the same system for all three tools. You can set reminders, set meetings, and even mark items as complete if you prefer.

You can also take advantage of the third area where meeting room booking software integration can be made possible - with social media. Some of the best solutions integrate with popular social media sites such as Twitter (News - Alert) , Facebook, LinkedIn, FourSquare, and others. This integration can be used in many different ways. You can post new listings, send messages, update blogs, etc. Any of these actions will make it possible for your business to grow organically based on what your followers tell you.

Another way that you can take full advantage of the booking, appointment, and visitor management features built into your meeting room booking software is through using a print tool. Your appointment info and visitor data will be printed right onto custom business cards or white boards. This is a quick, easy way to keep all of your business cards current while providing a convenient way for customers and prospects to locate your place of business. In addition, this printable data can be imported directly into a CRM system, which can then be shared with other departments, including payroll and accounting, giving you a complete overhaul of your workflow.

Finally, another way in which integration with your appointment calendar, guest books, and storefront is useful is with workflow automation. Workflow automation takes the guesswork out of booking appointments, making it possible for you to take care of everything automatically. You can do everything from create new contacts and assign them to staff, to setting up wayfinding between the different rooms, and even setting up reminders so you never miss an event. No matter what your needs may be, there is a way to integrate your booking system with these tools.

When you're ready to make the plunge into integrating your business with advanced technology, you'll find a number of quality room booking software solutions on the market. These applications are designed to simplify the complex task of managing multiple meeting rooms. They allow you to create, download, manage, and print wayfinding, attenuation, and reservation information in one place, quickly and easily. With an effective room finder and other tools like workflow automation and the ability to integrate with your CRM, you'll be able to serve each of your clients more efficiently than ever before.
The minister who first heard about the alleged rape of former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins has broken down in tears in parliament.

Ms Higgins broke her silence this week after allegedly being sexually assaulted by an unnamed government employee in Senator Linda Reynolds' office in March 2019 after a night out with colleagues.

During question time in the senate on Thursday, Senator Reynolds was asked about Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton's community grants.

But the unrelated query prompted Senator Reynolds to become visibly emotional.

'If I could ask, if I could have indulgence, to answer on Monday,' she said through tears.

'I think I'd be in a better position to answer on Monday. If you could give me a minute? Can I take it on notice.'

During question time in the senate on Thursday, Senator Reynolds was asked about Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton's community grants - which prompted tears about the rape claims

Ms Higgins broke her silence this week after allegedly being sexually assaulted by an unnamed government employee in Senator Linda Reynolds' office in March 2019

Senator Reynolds' rare show of emotion comes after Ms Higgins slammed claims the government has been backgrounding journalists in a bid to undermine her and 'muddy the waters'.

Amid claims the Prime Minister's Office is briefing reporters in an apparent attempt to smear her now partner, a former public servant, Mr Higgins said if they are true it 'speaks to the systematic problems of this place' - and needs to stop.

'I knew personally that when I decided to put my name and face to this there would be repercussions for me. But I think it's unfair if they are starting to try and take this out on loved ones,' Ms Higgins told Guardian Australia.

'It silences people and I think it's gross.'

Network 10 political editor Peter Van Onselen claimed on ABC radio on Thursday the PMO 'has been backgrounding that her partner, her now partner, has a vendetta, or a gripe might be the better way to put it, against the government because of him being a former public servant'.

Mr Van Onselen took to Twitter to claim the backgrounding was being carried out 'in a bid to muddy the waters'. Daily Mail Australia contacted the Prime Minister's Office for comment.

Former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins pictured with Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Ms Higgins slammed claims the Prime Minister's Office was providing background briefings in an apparent attempt to smear her current partner

Ms Higgins - who was 24 when she was allegedly raped - released a statement late on Wednesday blasting Prime Minister Scott Morrison for what she described as his 'victim blaming' rhetoric.

'I have only been made aware of key elements of my own sexual assault as a result of coming forward publicly with my story,' Ms Higgins said.

'I didn't know that security guards let me into Minister Reynolds' suite. I didn't know that a security guards (sic) came into the office multiple times seeing me in a state of undress.

'I didn't know they were undertaking an internal review into how the matter was handled at the time. I didn't know that they debated calling an ambulance at the time of the incident.'

Ms Higgins is reportedly planning to pursue her rape allegation with authorities. She told Network Ten she initially decided not to pursue a police complaint as she felt her job was on the line.

'I didn't feel like I had a choice,' she said.

In October 2019 - when Ms Higgins was working under Employment Minister Michaelia Cash - a media request was made to Ms Reynolds' office asking for more information about the rape allegations.

As the two politicians' staffers scrambled to come up with a response to the press inquiry, Senator Cash called Ms Higgins to reassure her the situation was 'under control'.

'Brittany, it's Michaelia. Just checking up on you - you looked absolutely gorgeous on Saturday,' she said in the 30 second-long message obtained by news.com.au.

'I really hope you had a lovely time at the Federal Council. Hoping everything is OK.

'Look, Daniel has got everything under control. I promise you. And just remember. We are with you every step of the way. OK? Sleep tight. I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.'

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds (left) told the Senate this week that the staffer had been 'terminated' following a 'security breach'. Until recently Ms Higgins worked for Employment Minister Michaela Cash (together in Parliament's Great Hall on right)

Senator Cash has denied knowing about the alleged sexual assault until this year, saying until then all she knew of was an incident happened in Ms Higgins' previous role that she wanted to keep secret.

'At the end of January this year, Ms Higgins advised the Minister and COS that the March 2019 matter had become an issue and that she wished to resign and leave Canberra,' a spokesman for the senator said.

Mr Morrison has apologised for Ms Higgins' treatment and has asked his department's secretary to lead a review of the complaints process.

Mr Morrison has also appointed Liberal backbencher Celia Hammond to review cultural problems around the treatment of women.

'The government regrets in any way if Ms Higgins felt unsupported through this process,' a statement published earlier this week said.

The Liberal staffer accused of raping Ms Higgins has since checked himself into hospital.

The staffer - who hasn't been charged or investigated by police - reportedly left his home on Sydney's north shore on Wednesday evening to seek psychiatric care.

Ms Higgins (pictured) told Network Ten she initially decided not to pursue a police complaint as she felt her job was on the line

The Daily Telegraph reported that he was not suicidal, but was concerned with his mental state.

Ms Higgins' alleged assailant left Canberra for Sydney following the incident with Minister Reynolds telling Parliament he was 'terminated' because of a 'security breach'.

During a tearful interview with The Project on Monday, Ms Higgins claimed that her alleged attacker had landed 'a good job' in Sydney and 'just kind of got to keep going.'

Daily Mail Australia understands he now works for a major multinational. The former policy hand also recently deactivated his Twitter account where he used to rail about politics.

For confidential crisis support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14
A medical worker attends a training session to learn how to give coronavirus vaccine shots at the Korean Nurses Association in Seoul, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. AP



South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases stayed in the 600s for a second consecutive day on Thursday as infections at a slew of manufacturing plants and hospitals surged, prompting authorities to guard against a potential virus resurgence.



The country reported 621 more COVID-19 cases, including 590 local infections, raising the total caseload to 85,567, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.



The country added six more deaths, raising the total to 1,544.



The daily caseload remained in the 300s from Saturday to Monday due mainly to less testing over the holiday that began Thursday of last week, but it bounced back to 457 on Tuesday and shot up to 621 on Wednesday, the highest in more than a month.



Health authorities said they were closely monitoring the latest uptick in new virus cases to figure out whether it is an early sign of a virus resurgence or the result of the increased testing after the holiday season.



A series of infections at industrial factories and hospitals have posed challenges to the country's antivirus efforts, especially after social distancing rules were eased for business owners Monday.



A boiler factory in a central region has reported 129 cases in four days after the first case was identified, and a plastic factory in Namyangju, 20 some kilometers east of Seoul, reported 115 cases en masse Wednesday.






Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - The Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), Jan Kubis, has pledged the Mission's full support to ensure the convening of a parliamentary session and the approval of the Presidential Council and the Government of National Accord, comprising the Executive Authority, to take up and carry out their missions

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Covid-19 vaccines should be available to all: Vietnam to UN

Vials are seen in front of a displayed AstraZeneca logo in a illustration photo taken October 31, 2020. Photo by Reuters/Dado Ruvi.

The international community should unite to ensure global access to Covid-19 vaccines, Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh told a United Nations meeting.

Countries need to cooperate in implementing effective pandemic response and vaccination strategies, treating Covid-19 vaccines as a mutual asset of the international community, ensuring affordable vaccines for all and giving priority to groups at high risk of infection and those on the front lines in the fight against the pandemic, the deputy PM, who is also Vietnams Foreign Affairs Minister, said as he attended an online meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday.

The event saw participation of the U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres, the prime minister of the Islands of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, foreign ministers of the U.S., China, India, Ireland, Kenya, Mexico, Norway, representatives of the U.N. Security Council, and leaders of several international organizations.

Minh called on countries to increase their contributions to Covid-19 Vaccines Global Access, or Covax, a global mechanism for developing, manufacturing and procuring Covid-19 vaccine candidates and helping member countries access vaccines as they become available, to enable the distribution of vaccines to developing countries and people in conflict zones.

He also asked the U.N. council to strengthen the implementation of Resolution 2532, considering it a prerequisite for the U.N. and other stakeholders to distribute vaccines for humanitarian purposes.

Adopted on July 1, 2020 the resolution is part of the U.N.s response to the pandemic, demanding "a general and immediate cessation of hostilities in all situations on its agenda," while calling on all parties engaged in armed conflicts to "engage immediately in a durable humanitarian pause for at least 90 consecutive days."

He said the international community needs to continue to unite and strengthen multilateral cooperation to effectively coordinate joint efforts on pandemic prevention, affirming Vietnam would continue to contribute its best to the joint efforts to overcome the pandemic.

On Feb. 15, the World Health Organization approved the emergency use of two versions of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca in collaboration with the University of Oxford, "giving the green light for these vaccines to be rolled out globally through Covax," WHO said.

Of the 128 million vaccine doses administered so far, more than three quarters are in just 10 countries that account for 60 percent of the global gross domestic product, UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore and WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a joint statement on Feb. 10.

As of today, almost 130 countries, with 2.5 billion people, are yet to administer a single dose.

"This self-defeating strategy will cost lives and livelihoods, give the virus further opportunity to mutate and evade vaccines and will undermine a global economic recovery," read the statement.

International NGO Oxfam said in September wealthy nations representing just 13 percent of the worlds population have already cornered more than half (51 percent) of the promised doses of leading Covid-19 vaccine candidates.

Vietnam has ordered 30 million doses of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine within the first half of this year. The country is also stepping up negotiations with the U.S.s Pfizer and Moderna, along with other vaccine manufacturers in Russia and China. The country is set to receive the first batch of 204,000 doses soon.

Covax also announced last month it would provide between 4.9 million and 8.2 million vaccine doses to Vietnam within the first half of this year.

Vietnam has four domestic Covid-19 vaccines under development by Nanogen Pharmaceutical Biotechnology JSC, the Institute of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals, Vaccine and Biological Production Company No. 1 and the Center for Research and Production of Vaccines and Biologicals.

To date, more than 2.44 million people have died of Covid-19 worldwide after over 110.43 million infections.
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Amazon has approached the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) urging it not to allow convening of any meeting of Future Group's shareholders or creditors for approval of its proposed Rs 24,713 crore deal with Reliance Industries.

Amazon had last week filed an application before the Mumbai-bench of the NCLT.

The NCLT has reserved the order over the scheme of arrangement that entails the consolidation of Future Group's retail and wholesale business and transferring it to Reliance Industries in the Rs 24,713 crore deal that was announced in August last year.

Amazon, in its application -- a copy of which was seen by PTI -- informed the NCLT that it has filed an SLP (special leave petition) before the Supreme Court against an order of the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court dated February 8.

Also Read: Amazon vs Future Retail: E-comm giant moves SC against Biyani's deal with Reliance

The high court had on February 8 lifted the 'status quo' granted over the deal by a single-member bench of the court.

Amazon has asked NCLT to "refrain from directing any meetings of the shareholders and creditors of the companies from considering such scheme, pending the proceedings in SIAC Arbitration...".

The US-based e-commerce major also asked for restraining Future Retail from taking any steps to further the deal with Reliance until the final award is granted in the Singapore arbitration.

"The Applicant (Amazon) also fears that the petition (by Future) seeks to mislead this tribunal into breaching the order passed by the Emergency Arbitrator dated October 25, 2020, in SIAC...," it said.

Amazon and Future did not respond to e-mailed queries on the matter.

Also Read: Amazon demanded $40 million to forego its right of first refusal: Future Group

The Future-Reliance deal has already received clearance from CCI, SEBI and bourses. The scheme of arrangement is now awaiting nod from the NCLT and shareholders.

Amazon had dragged Future Group to arbitration at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) in October last year, arguing that Future had violated a contract with it by entering into the deal with rival Reliance.

On October 25, 2020, SIAC passed an interim award in favour of Amazon that barred Future Retail from taking any step to dispose of or encumber its assets or issuing any securities to secure any funding from a restricted party.

Earlier this year, a three-member tribunal comprising Singaporean barrister Michael Hwang, Albert van den Berg and Jan Paulsson was formed at the SIAC to pass a final order.
Members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation on Thursday repeated calls for a COVID-19 vaccination pre-registration list as the state opens the door to more appointments, describing the mornings state website crash as an unacceptable glitch for untold residents trying to schedule a shot.

The states online booking portal  vaxfinder.mass.gov  was unavailable for more than two hours Thursday, just as residents older than 65 and those with multiple health conditions officially became eligible for appointments.

Massachusetts is not only the Bay State, but also the Brain State. Its where the internet was born, Sen. Ed Markey told MassLive after the state site was back up. We know that volume is high as vaccine eligibility expanded today, but its unacceptable that months into vaccine distribution, residents cannot log on. It needs to be fixed immediately with the same ingenuity and quickness with which we dedicated ourselves in developing a vaccine.

In an interview with GBH Thursday afternoon, Gov. Charlie Baker acknowledged a failure by state officials to adequately prepare the website for a surge of visitors. My hairs on fire about the whole thing, he told GBH, pledging to resolve the issue quickly. I cant begin to tell you how pissed off I am.

The crash came days after the Massachusetts congressional delegation called on Baker to streamline the appointment process with consistent rules and a centralized pre-registration system. Every member of states delegation signed the letter, except for Rep. Richard Neal, who wrote his own letter to Baker calling for a registration list and improved vaccine access in Western Massachusetts. State leaders also recently called for an inquiry into the vaccination rollout

Rep. Katherine Clark, who led the delegation letter sent to Baker last week, said its hardly a surprise Massachusetts residents are eager to be inoculated. Since the pandemic began, officials have confirmed 533,024 total COVID-19 cases across the state as of Wednesday. Newly reported case totals have trended downward for weeks, but state and federal officials have still looked to ramp up vaccination.

What we need is a system that matches the volume, Clark tweeted after the temporary crash. With a waitlist, residents wouldnt have to flood a website every minute or hour, or be scrambling from link to link. We need to do better.

Its no surprise #MA residents are eager to be vaccinated. What we need is a system that matches the volume. With a waitlist, residents wouldnt have to flood a website every minute or hour, or be scrambling from link to link. We need to do better. https://t.co/yGnSKYNCaw  Katherine Clark (@RepKClark) February 18, 2021

Many website users have complained that they had to work through multiple pages entering information only to find the previously available appointment slot hadnt been held, forcing people to start over.

Absolute colossal failure, one user tweeted of the website. Constant crashes, application failures, appointments that get lost mid-way through registration. Surely, someone in the Baker administration could have foreseen this. Totally unacceptable.

Rep. Jim McGovern noted that the state is supposed to be a national leader in health care and technology.

People shouldnt have to spend their entire morning refreshing a website just to get a vaccine appointment, he said in a statement to MassLive. In our letter to Governor Baker earlier this week, we predicted that the slow and inequitable deployment of vaccines in Massachusetts would only be exacerbated by increased demand as appointments open up to additional eligibility groups. Unfortunately, that appears to be what happened today.

McGovern reiterated that a centralized pre-registration system with multiple access points, including phone assistance, could notify residents when an appointment is available at a convenient location instead of requiring everyone to inundate a website or travel long distances to get the vaccine.

I continue to hear from constituents, family, and friends who are having a very challenging time navigating this process, he added. Its frustrating and unacceptable. We can and must do better.

Baker called on federal lawmakers to press the Biden administration to get more vaccine doses to states and to help expand the eligible window for vaccine appointments. He said if state officials had a better picture of allocations in the coming weeks they could make sure we dont run out anywhere, and provide extended enrollment windows of two or three weeks to make it easier for people to plan and schedule appointments.

If the federal government could approve a third vaccine beyond the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna Inc. vaccines, and not just incrementally increase what they give us every week but dramatically increase what we get every week, that would help, Baker said.

Asked about coming under fire for his pandemic response, Baker said its critical to focus on the public health and economic crises, not the swordplay of politics.

I have a job thats way more complicated than I thought it was going to be, he acknowledged. People have all sorts of thoughts on how well Im doing or how well Im not doing. That is nothing compared to people whove lost everything just because they were on the wrong side of the COVID arc. Its important for us in public life to remember that.

Baker noted that at least 20,000 appointments at vaccination sites in Danvers, Dartmouth and Springfield were filled Thursday after the crash was resolved.

As of Thursday, more than 930,000 first doses of the vaccine have been administered; nearly 330,000 residents have received a second dose and are fully vaccinated, according to the state Department of Public Health.

Eighty-three percent of the doses that have been shipped to providers so far have been reported as administered, DPH said Thursday.

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Announcement of Periodic Review: Moody's announces completion of a periodic review of ratings of Banco Nacional de Bolivia S.A.Global Credit Research - 17 Feb 2021New York, February 17, 2021 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has completed a periodic review of the ratings of Banco Nacional de Bolivia S.A. and other ratings that are associated with the same analytical unit. The review was conducted through a portfolio review discussion held on 9 February 2021 in which Moody's reassessed the appropriateness of the ratings in the context of the relevant principal methodology (ies), recent developments, and a comparison of the financial and operating profile to similarly rated peers. The review did not involve a rating committee. Since 1 January 2019, Moody's practice has been to issue a press release following each periodic review to announce its completion.This publication does not announce a credit rating action and is not an indication of whether or not a credit rating action is likely in the near future. Credit ratings and outlook/review status cannot be changed in a portfolio review and hence are not impacted by this announcement. For any credit ratings referenced in this publication, please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for the most updated credit rating action information and rating history.Key rating considerations are summarized below.Banco Nacional de Bolivia S.A.'s (BNB) B2 long-term local and foreign currency deposit ratings reflect the bank's b2 baseline credit assessment (BCA). The BCA incorporates the bank's leading position in the Bolivian banking system, its strong funding profile based on core deposits -although with concentration on institutional deposits similarly to its local peers- its good asset quality track record and a well-diversified loan book. These strengths are counterbalanced by the challenging operating conditions and negative asset quality pressures -which were affected by the political turmoil in Bolivia since 2019 and more recently due to the pandemic- negative pressures on profitability due to declining margins and high credit costs, and moderate liquidity buffers. Moody's assesses a high probability of support from the Bolivian Government (B2) to the bank in the case of stress, although the bank's ratings receive no uplift as its BCA is positioned at the same level of the Bolivian sovereign rating.This document summarizes Moody's view as of the publication date and will not be updated until the next periodic review announcement, which will incorporate material changes in credit circumstances (if any) during the intervening period.The principal methodology used for this review was Banks Methodology published in November 2019. Please see the Rating Methodologies page on www.moodys.com for a copy of this methodology.This announcement applies only to EU rated, UK rated, EU endorsed and UK endorsed ratings. Non EU rated, non UK rated, non EU endorsed and non UK endorsed ratings may be referenced above to the extent necessary, if they are part of the same analytical unit.This publication does not announce a credit rating action. For any credit ratings referenced in this publication, please see the ratings tab on the issuer/entity page on www.moodys.com for the most updated credit rating action information and rating history. Marcelo De Gruttola Vice President - Senior Analyst Financial Institutions Group Moody's Latin America ACR Ing. Butty 240 16th Floor Buenos Aires City C1001AFB Argentina JOURNALISTS: 1 800 666 3506 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 M. Celina Vansetti-Hutchins MD - Banking Financial Institutions Group JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653 Releasing Office: Moody's Investors Service, Inc. 250 Greenwich Street New York, NY 10007 U.S.A. JOURNALISTS: 1 212 553 0376 Client Service: 1 212 553 1653  2021 Moodys Corporation, Moodys Investors Service, Inc., Moodys Analytics, Inc. and/or their licensors and affiliates (collectively, MOODYS). All rights reserved.CREDIT RATINGS ISSUED BY MOODY'S CREDIT RATINGS AFFILIATES ARE THEIR CURRENT OPINIONS OF THE RELATIVE FUTURE CREDIT RISK OF ENTITIES, CREDIT COMMITMENTS, OR DEBT OR DEBT-LIKE SECURITIES, AND MATERIALS, PRODUCTS, SERVICES AND INFORMATION PUBLISHED BY MOODYS (COLLECTIVELY, PUBLICATIONS) MAY INCLUDE SUCH CURRENT OPINIONS. MOODYS DEFINES CREDIT RISK AS THE RISK THAT AN ENTITY MAY NOT MEET ITS CONTRACTUAL FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS AS THEY COME DUE AND ANY ESTIMATED FINANCIAL LOSS IN THE EVENT OF DEFAULT OR IMPAIRMENT. SEE APPLICABLE MOODYS RATING SYMBOLS AND DEFINITIONS PUBLICATION FOR INFORMATION ON THE TYPES OF CONTRACTUAL FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS ADDRESSED BY MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS. CREDIT RATINGS DO NOT ADDRESS ANY OTHER RISK, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: LIQUIDITY RISK, MARKET VALUE RISK, OR PRICE VOLATILITY. CREDIT RATINGS, NON-CREDIT ASSESSMENTS (ASSESSMENTS), AND OTHER OPINIONS INCLUDED IN MOODYS PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT STATEMENTS OF CURRENT OR HISTORICAL FACT. MOODYS PUBLICATIONS MAY ALSO INCLUDE QUANTITATIVE MODEL-BASED ESTIMATES OF CREDIT RISK AND RELATED OPINIONS OR COMMENTARY PUBLISHED BY MOODYS ANALYTICS, INC. AND/OR ITS AFFILIATES. MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS DO NOT CONSTITUTE OR PROVIDE INVESTMENT OR FINANCIAL ADVICE, AND MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT AND DO NOT PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS TO PURCHASE, SELL, OR HOLD PARTICULAR SECURITIES. MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLICATIONS DO NOT COMMENT ON THE SUITABILITY OF AN INVESTMENT FOR ANY PARTICULAR INVESTOR. MOODYS ISSUES ITS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS AND OTHER OPINIONS AND PUBLISHES ITS PUBLICATIONS WITH THE EXPECTATION AND UNDERSTANDING THAT EACH INVESTOR WILL, WITH DUE CARE, MAKE ITS OWN STUDY AND EVALUATION OF EACH SECURITY THAT IS UNDER CONSIDERATION FOR PURCHASE, HOLDING, OR SALE.MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS, AND PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT INTENDED FOR USE BY RETAIL INVESTORS AND IT WOULD BE RECKLESS AND INAPPROPRIATE FOR RETAIL INVESTORS TO USE MOODYS CREDIT RATINGS, ASSESSMENTS, OTHER OPINIONS OR PUBLICATIONS WHEN MAKING AN INVESTMENT DECISION. 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Zac Efron has been living in the NSW coastal town of Byron Bay for almost a year.

But despite being one of the biggest stars on the planet, the Hollywood hunk, 33, has left a lasting impression on the locals.

According to one Byron Bay resident, Zac is 'so lovely' and always friendly to waitstaff in the hospitality industry.

'So lovely': Despite being one of the biggest stars on the planet, Zac Efron, 33, (pictured) has left a lasting impression after meeting locals

The fan also described Zac as a 'super chilled down to earth guy'.

The post was shared to Celeb Spellcheck, a profile dedicated to correcting influencers' bad spelling, who asked their 126,000 followers if they've had any memorable celebrity encounters.

Zac has been quietly living in the beachside town of Byron Bay since March 2020, after escaping the escalating COVID-19 pandemic conditions in the U.S.

Kind: According to one Byron Bay local, Zac was 'so lovely' and always friendly to waitstaff

Nice guy! The post was shared to Celeb Spellcheck, a profile dedicated to correcting influencers' bad spelling, who asked their 126,000 followers if they've had any memorable celebrity encounters

He is believed to have met girlfriend Vanessa in July, when she was working as a waitress at Byron Bay's trendy General Store cafe.

He has also been embracing life Down Under and was recently living in a $140,000 caravan while filming the Stan Original movie Gold.

In August, Daily Mail Australia revealed that Zac had cancelled his scheduled flight home to Los Angeles.

Location: Zac has been quietly living in the beachside town of Byron Bay since March, after escaping the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S

'He was only planning to fly home if he had to,' a source revealed. 'He didn't really want to go back to America.'

Zac had purchased the plane ticket several months earlier in case his application for a visa extension was denied by the Department of Home Affairs.

But it seems his request to have his tourist visa extended from three months to 12 months was granted, hence why he cancelled his trip home.

Gold will be available on Stan in Australia later this year.
Then-President Donald Trump boards Air Force One at Valley International Airport after visiting the U.S.Mexico border wall, in Harlingen, Texas, on Jan. 12, 2021. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

We Had China Exactly Where We Wanted Them, Trump Says, in Criticizing Bidens Policy

Former President Donald Trump on Feb. 17 expressed dismay at the Biden administrations stance toward China, pointing to the Biden familys business ties with the regime in Beijing.

When asked about President Joe Bidens comments on Feb. 16 that appeared to repeat Chinese Communist Party (CCP) talking points used to justify the governments repression of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, Trump noted the controversy surrounding Bidens son, Hunter, and his dealings with China.

His familys involved with the Chinese, certainly, a long time and a lot of money, Trump said in an interview with Newsmax. The whole thing is ridiculous: We had China exactly where we wanted them.

Hunter Biden attracted scrutiny during last years election season after a former business partner disclosed to media outlets a trove of text messages, some of which demonstrated his close ties to a Chinese billionaire. Other messages suggested Joe Biden was aware of his sons business activity, although candidate Biden denied knowledge of his sons dealings.

The revelations prompted concern about foreign influence on U.S. policy.

Federal investigators are currently probing Hunter Bidens tax affairs, including reportedly his business dealings with China. While he also holds a stake in a Chinese private equity firm, the White House press secretary said earlier this month that the younger Biden has been working to unwind his investment.

During the final year of Trumps presidency, the administration escalated its pushback on an array of threats posed by the CCP. For example, it imposed sanctions on Chinese officials over rights abuses in Xinjiang and Hong Kong, banned U.S. investment in Chinese companies that aid the military, and rallied allies to exclude Chinese tech giant Huawei from their 5G mobile networks.

Trumps remarks came a day after Biden, during a CNN Town Hall event, said that he brought up with Chinese leader Xi Jinping the regimes abuses in Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and Taiwan during a two-hour phone call. He said his counterpart was focused on maintaining a united, tightly controlled China.

Biden said he pointed out to Xi that no American president can be sustained as a President if he doesnt reflect the values of the United States.  He gets it. Culturally, there are different norms in each country and their leaders are expected to follow.

The presidents comments about different norms attracted criticism from Republicans and rights activists who accused him of lending legitimacy to the CCPs rights abuses in Xinjiang, where more than a million Uyghurs are currently detained in concentration camps. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo designated the atrocities a genocide, a move that Biden officials have expressed agreement with.

Responding to those remarks, Pompeo said Biden was echoing Chinese propaganda.

That languagethat its just a set of different normsthats the Chinese propaganda line. They want you to think, this is just a quiet nation [that] may have a little bit of a different system, Pompeo said on Fox Business.

The truth of the matter is, they are trying to wipe out an entire people, he said.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) said the presidents comments indicated that his stance is all talk and no action.

Joe Bidens message to Xi was clear: I have to criticize you publicly but will work with you privately, NRSC spokeswoman Priscilla Ivasco said in a Feb. 17 statement. But, in doing so, he rationalized Xi Jinpings human rights abuses in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the genocide against the Uyghurs. 

Biden also said during the event that the Chinese regime would face repercussions over its human rights violations.

Top officials in the Biden administration have broadly indicated that the United States would continue taking a tough line toward the CCP and seek to work with allies to achieve this. The White House is reviewing Trump-era China policies and has yet to announce concrete plans on how to deal with the regime.

Meanwhile, the Chinese regime has called on the new administration to reset the United States approach to China and warned it not to interfere in its internal affairs, including Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
Some were cautious, others were craving company, but there was a sense of relief on the streets as Melburnians returned to the CBD on Thursday after the states five-day snap coronavirus lockdown.

Trams and trains were up to half full as people completed their first working day after the lockdown, called on Friday to control a coronavirus outbreak that leached out of hotel quarantine.

Melburnians re-emerge from lockdown into a sun-drenched city on Thursday. Credit:Paul Jeffers

Melburnians trickled back into the CBD, many still wearing masks even though they are no longer mandatory all the time outdoors, as shops and businesses reopened.



Grace Forde knows the changing face of the city more than most after working at chocolatier Koko Blacks Swanston Street coffee stand throughout the pandemic.
Egypts President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi discussed on Thursday the latest developments of the interim period in Libya with newly designated Libyan Prime Minister Abdel-Hamid Dbeiba in Cairo, the Egyptian presidency announced.

According to the Egyptian presidency, PM Dbeiba, who is currently on a visit to Cairo, expressed his countrys appreciation for the recent Egyptian efforts to solve the Libyan crisis through different avenues. Dbeiba said these efforts have resulted in converging the different Libyan points of view.

The PM also praised Egypts support for Libyan institutions in fighting terrorism and radical groups.

Dbeiba also said that the new Libyan government is looking forward to having a full partnership with Egypt and emulating its successful development experience, especially with regards to restoring security and stability and implementing reform and developments plans.

From his side, President El-Sisi asserted that Egypt is keen to support the Libyan people in enforcing stability and security in their country, and that Egypt is ready to offer its full expertise in helping the people of Libya.

According to the Egyptian presidential spokesperson Bassam Rady, El-Sisi and Dbeiba agreed to exchange visits in order to transfer the expertise to the Libyan government and to continue consultation concerning the areas in Libya where Egypt will provide help, especially the services and security sectors, in addition to economic cooperation.

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and head of the Egyptian General Intelligence Service Abbas Kamel also attended the meeting.

This is the first official foreign visit for the new Libyan prime minister.

On Wednesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said that Egypt is looking into the possibility of reopening its embassy and consulate in Libya following seven years of closure.

He also said that an Egyptian delegation made up of representatives from the foreign ministry and security bodies was sent to Libya earlier this week to explore the possibility of resuming the Egyptian diplomatic presence in the Libyan capital Tripoli as well as the consular presence in Benghazi.

Egypt hosted several UN-sponsored rounds of talks in Hurghada between the different Libyan rival factions in past months, before they chose a new interim government in Geneva two weeks ago.

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It was about a year ago when the first cases of infection with the coronavirus reached the European continent from China. Not even in their worst nightmares could European leaders have projected that this virus of Chinese origin would tear through their countries and cause the highest death rates since World War II. But the virus ripped through the continent in an unprecedented manner, and there is still no end in sight.

What exacerbated the situation in Europe was the fact that the great economic powerhouses of the continent were among the worst affected by the pandemic, including Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Spain. Each of these countries was badly hit, and each saw several million of their citizens contract the disease. In fact, these five countries have been among the top 10 most-affected in the world, exacerbating an already dire economic situation in Europe.

INFERNAL LOCKDOWNS IN BRITAIN: The UK has been the worst-affected European country by the coronavirus, with nearly four million infected people and over 116,000 deaths by 13 February this year.

The UK has been in the eye of the storm of the coronavirus pandemic from its early days, and it has been having very negative impacts on its economic performance. The countrys leaving the European Union in the so-called Brexit has added to its economic burdens, and it has seen the biggest contraction of its GDP in more than three centuries, according to official estimates. British GDP shrank by a record nine per cent in 2020, associated with a skyrocketing number of bankruptcies, before it grew again by four per cent.

These horrific numbers were not eased by the restrictions introduced by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, which aimed to rectify his complacent attitude in the early days of the outbreak, along with the ludicrous suggestion that the virus should be let to take its course in the UK in order to build up herd immunity among its citizens. That suggestion was one of the early blunders that led to the current situation.

However, there is now some good news coming from Britain, in the shape of government figures showing that it has now successfully vaccinated 13 million people against Covid-19, which is a sign that the government is again taking control of the situation. At the moment, the UK is experiencing its third lockdown aiming to halt the spread of Covid-19 in the course of just one year.

The third lockdown was expedited by the discovery of a mutated form of the virus spreading in Britain. According to some medical experts, the appearance of the new mutation may undermine the vaccines now being used to contain the spread and protect people against the virus.

Added to the above is the fact that the British public has been growing restless because of the continued lockdowns that have taken the British economy by storm. A large part of the British public is not prepared to entertain the thought of an indefinite lockdown until there is an effective vaccine or cure for the virus and its various mutations.

This is a situation that Johnson cannot do much about apart from introducing safety measures for those who decide to resume their activities after the lifting of the lockdown.

UNPRECEDENTED RIOTS IN HOLLAND: The situation is not much better in some other European countries, including Holland.

Holland, normally one of the most peaceful European countries, has seen a wave of rioting and clashes between protesters calling for the lifting of the lockdowns and the security forces. It has been described as the worst wave of violence in the country for over four decades.

The riots spread from one city to another like wildfire, and they were not concentrated in Amsterdam, but instead moved to Eindhoven, The Hague, Rotterdam and major cities across the country. The unprecedented wave of violence was organised through social media by mostly young protesters. It did not take long for what were originally protests to turn into major riots, with shops looted and cars burned in several areas.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte initially followed the Johnson modus operandi of resisting the mandatory wearing of masks or the introduction of rigid health measures in the country in the early days of the outbreak. The results of that complacency were the infection of over one million Dutch citizens with Covid-19 and the deaths of over 14,000. Since Hollands population is about 17 million, these numbers are alarming. They forced Rutte to take measures such as the closing of businesses and schools and the introduction of lockdowns.

The Dutch government resigned in January over its response to a child welfare benefits scandal, and Rutte is now serving as prime minister of a caretaker government until the election of a new one. The situation remains unstable, as the public is growing restless and more and more wary of government actions.

UNENDING POLITICAL CRISIS IN ITALY: In Italy, the situation has not improved much over what it was a year ago.

Italy was the first European country to be hit by the virus, and the initial response from the government of former prime minister Giuseppe Conti was not adequate to stop the outbreak. Italy has seen nearly 2.7 million infections and over 93,000 deaths from the virus, and the economic recession aggravated by the pandemic did not help the former Conti government.

A split over how to spend 209 billion Euros of emergency EU funding led to the fall of the 66th Italian government since World War II. Mario Draghi became Italys new prime minister on 12 February, and now he will have an uphill battle in kick-starting the ailing economy, controlling the virus outbreak and regaining the lost confidence of the Italian public in its politicians.

Many Italians are now struggling to provide basic needs for their families, and these include food as children are going hungry as a result of people not working for months in some cases as a result of the lockdowns in the country. Those who work for daily wages are doomed in this kind of situation, and bankruptcies and a lack of cash in the hands of many are growing problems.

Meanwhile, Germany and other European countries under lockdowns have been facing a similar fate, with shops, bars, restaurants, hairdressers and all sorts of businesses that rely on a daily influx of clients being closed.

As a result of this, Europe is now suffering its worst winter since World War II, and there is little to stop the anger and despair felt by its citizens aside from occasional news of vaccines against Covid-19 arriving to save the day.

As much as the lockdowns seem to be ideal precautionary measures to some politicians, many European citizens believe that they are slowly killing them, ending their lives as they know them.

For many desperate European citizens, the lockdowns will not matter much if they have no businesses or jobs to go back to after they are lifted thanks to the massive waves of bankruptcies in Europe. For the first time in many years, it is becoming hard to be a European citizen, though, in fairness, it has also been hard to be a European leader in these trying times with the fate of millions relying on your decisions.

The writer is a political analyst and author of Egypts Arab Spring and the Winding Road to Democracy.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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New Delhi:

A number of clashes broke out between CPM and BJP workers on Thursday late night in Thiruvananthapuram.

The CPM party workers vandalised the BJP state committee office. Activists of both parties attacked houses of rival group councillors and damaged their vehicles.

CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnans house was also attacked by the BJP party workers.

Last Sunday, a similar clash had taken place between BJP and CPM activists which left four people injured in the incident at Powdikonam. The incident had occurred at Vattavila Junction.

BJP state committee office vandalised, CPM state secy Kodiyeri Balakrishnan & many BJP & CPM councilors houses attacked, vehicles damaged. pic.twitter.com/3eKOO1rnIL  ANI (@ANI_news) July 28, 2017

Also Read | Kerala: 9 CPIM workers injured in blast RSS office attacked in Kannur after 9 CPIM workers injured in blast

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YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. 9094 servicemen of the Armenian military were wounded in action during the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh War, the general prosecution announced today at a consultation on the military prosecutions activities.

The final death toll isnt yet available because of the ongoing identification of bodies and the search operations.

But the prosecution noted that in 2020 the bodies of 3389 servicemen were identified.

Speaking on the criminal cases related to the war, Prosecutor General Artur Davtyan said that it is necessary for a deep, comprehensive and fully objective investigation to give legal assessments to the Turkey-backed Azerbaijani war of aggression, the gross violations of international humanitarian law against servicemen, civilians and towns of Armenia and Artsakh, the Azeri crimes against humanity and use of prohibited munitions, as well as deployment of international terrorists by Azerbaijan.

Other issues related to the military were also discussed at the meeting.

Defense Minister V. Harutyunyan said that revealing all circumstances concerning the war is of urgent necessity.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
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During a hearing yesterday morning at the French Senate, Dominique Senequier, Chairman of Ardian, indicated that she was not working on a proposed offer competing with that of Veolia (Paris:VIE), which is currently being examined by the French Market Authority (AMF).

The Group would also like to correct some of the comments made against Veolia by Dominique Senequier, which distort the reality of what Veolia is and the project it is carrying out.

Ms. Senequier questioned the French roots of Veolia, a company founded in France 168 years ago, listed on the Paris Stock Exchange, with nearly 50,000 of its employees working in France out of a total of 170,000 worldwide.

The presentation that was made of Veolia by Ardian's managers during this Senate hearing, seeking to portray our Group as a player without any roots and with little concern for France's industrial sovereignty, is particularly dishonest, especially in view of Ardian's history and recent developments. While Ardian is indeed owned by its employees, and first and foremost by Dominique Senequier herself, the funds managed by her company are overwhelmingly from foreign investors, notably American and non-European funds. The requirements of these funds in terms of return on investment, as well as the length of time the assets are held, are hardly compatible with the activities carried out by Veolia or Suez. The case of Saur, a large company competing with Veolia in France, acquired by a consortium of investment funds, of which Ardian was a member, which was over-indebted within a few years, to the point of finally being placed under the protection of the commercial court, is eloquent from this point of view.

Similarly, by distorting Veolia's communication about Suez's "strategic assets", the Chairman of Ardian attempted to reduce the industrial dimension of the combination project carried by the Group. In this respect, she demonstrated a certain bad faith by claiming, firstly, that she did not understand that Veolia could condition its offer, as is systematically the case, on the non-disposal of Suez's main assets, but also by asserting that Veolia had no interest in Suez's activities in France. Clearly a candidate for the takeover of Suez Eau France, Mrs. Senequier cannot ignore the fact that one of the reasons why part of these French assets will have to be sold by Veolia is the need to maintain competition.

The successive hearings of Thierry Deau, founder of Meridiam, a declared candidate for the takeover of Suez Eau France, and then of Dominique Senequier, highlighted the very strong difference in approach between the two options presented. One, supported by Meridiam, is clearly industrial since it provides strong guarantees (ownership of the assets for at least 25 years, preservation of employment and social benefits, doubling of investment, etc.) for the employees and customers of Suez Eau France. The other one, supported by Ardian and the American fund Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), which did not wish to answer the senators' questions, is clearly financial, as no serious guarantees have been provided.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005411/en/

Contacts:

Group Press Relations

Laurent Obadia Sophie Gaucher

Cell. +33 6 79 42 12 06

sophie.gaucher@veolia.com

Analysts Investors

Ronald Wasylec Ariane de Lamaze

Tel. 33 1 85 57 84 76 84 80

investor-relations@veolia.com
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz flew to the Mexican resort city of Cancun with his family, Fox News reported on Thursday, as millions of his fellow Texans struggled through a deadly deep freeze, sparking a slew of criticism.

The Republican lawmaker, 50, faced widespread criticism as photos circulated on social media showing him in an airport line, in a passenger lounge, aboard an airliner and departing an airport in Mexico. It was unclear when the photos were taken and Cruzs Senate office did not respond to multiple queries.

Fox News said Cruz flew to Cancun with his family, quoting an unidentified Republican source who said: The photos speak for themselves.

Cruzs social media pages and official website made no mention of the photos. He ran unsuccessfully for president in 2016.

Read More

Hours before the Fox News report, photos began circulating on social media that a journalist said had shown him flying to Mexicos Caribbean coast, where temperatures were to be above 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 Celsius).

Just confirmed @SenTedCruz and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort theyve visited before. Cruz seems to believe there isnt much for him to do in Texas for the millions of fellow Texans who remain without electricity/water and are literally freezing. former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted shortly after midnight.

Millions of Texans remained paralyzed by power and water outages after a winter storm and freezing temperatures that hampered efforts to restore full power.

With 2.7 million Texas households still without heat, leaders warned of a domino effect on infrastructure as the lack of power cut off water supplies, strained the ability of hospitals to treat COVID-19 patients and isolated vulnerable communities with frozen roads still impassable.
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Ukraine intends to complete the dam on the North Crimean Canal, which will exclude the possibility of supplying water to the temporarily occupied peninsula until Russia returns it to Ukraine, permanent representative of the President of Ukraine in Crimea Anton Korynevych says.

"They intend to complete the dam on the North Crimean Canal in Ukraine. As this should maximally exclude the ingress of water into the Crimea, temporarily occupied by Russia. It should also improve melioration measures of Kherson region," the press service of the Permanent Mission of the President of Ukraine to the ARC quotes Korynevych on its Facebook page on Wednesday, February 17.

According to him, now there is a need to complete the dam at the 107th kilometer of the canal.

At a meeting with head of the North Crimean Canal Serhiy Shevchenko on Wednesday, February 17, Korynevych said that "Ukraine will not restore the water supply to the peninsula until the moment of its de-occupation."

The meeting participants also discussed issues important for the functioning of the canal, in particular, the need to strengthen the structures.

As reported, Ukraine's Permanent Representative to the UN Serhiy Kyslytsia said that the resumption of the Dnieper water supply to the annexed Crimea can be discussed only when Russia officially makes such a request to Ukrainian authorities, and also recognizes itself as an occupying country.
The UK government has imposed sanctions on senior generals in the Myanmar administration following the military coup.

The country has put in place travel bans and asset freezes on three key figures in the military regime in response to human rights violations.

Further safeguards have also been put in place to prevent UK aid money indirectly supporting the military government.

It comes after Myanmars elected leader Ms Suu Kyi and members of her government were detained as the military took over in a coup at the start of this month.

The UK has repeatedly called for the release of Ms Suu Kyi, who has been kept under house arrest and charged with minor offences relating to the alleged importation of walkie-talkies without the proper licence and for shaking hands during the coronavirus pandemic.

The UK condemns the military coup and the arbitrary detention of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political figures, Dominic Raab, the British foreign secretary, said.

We, alongside our international allies will hold the Myanmar military to account for their violations of human rights and pursue justice for the Myanmar people.

The UKs new sanctions are against three members of the Myanmar military: the minister of defence, Mya Tun Oo, the minister for home affairs, Soe Htut and deputy minister for home affairs, Than Hlaing.

Myanmars military and police have committed serious human rights violations, including violating the right to life, the right to freedom of assembly, the right not to be subject to arbitrary arrest or detention, and the right to freedom of expression, a UK government statement said.

The UK already has sanctions in place against 16 other individuals from the Myanmar military.

Canada also announced sanctions against nine Myanmar military officials on Thursday, saying the coup has led to mass detentions, the use of force and restrictions to democratic freedoms.

We work alongside our international partners who call for the restoration of the democratically-elected government, Marc Garneau, the countrys foreign minister, said.

He also called for the release of those unjustly detained in the military takeover.

The new sanctions were announced as protesters returned to the streets of Myanmar on Thursday after a night of armed intimidation by security forces in Mandalay, the countrys second biggest city.

Earlier this week, Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister, repeated his call for the release of Ms Suu Kyi and called fresh charges brought against her fabricated.

Mr Johnson tweeted: We stand with the people of Myanmar and will ensure those responsible for this coup are held to account.

Protesters have turned out in droves since the coup was carried out, defying an order banning gatherings of five or more people to demand the return of democracy.

Washington imposed new sanctions on the Myanmar military last week and has urged other UN members to follow suit.

Additional reporting by agencies
WASHINGTON - Democrats will formally file President Joe Biden's immigration bill on Thursday, facing steep odds as they attempt to create the first major path to U.S. citizenship for undocumented immigrants in nearly 35 years.

The bill is the centerpiece of Biden's broad strategy to forge a more humane immigration system, and it would grant legal status to approximately 11 million people, mostly from Mexico and Central America.

The legislation faces significant hurdles in a divided Senate still reeling from the impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump, who often tapped into anti-immigration rhetoric to fire up his campaign rallies.

Biden has expressed hope for passing a bipartisan measure, and the U.S. Citizenship Act marks the first major effort since the Senate passed a massive immigration overhaul in 2013 and that effort died in the House. But it is unclear how aggressively he will court Republicans needed to pass the Senate.

The U.S. government has not passed a major citizenship bill since 1986, when amnesty legislation signed by Republican President Ronald Reagan legalized nearly 3 million undocumented immigrants.

"If Republicans want to come forward and work on immigration, I think the president is open to working with anyone who wants to get something done and get a bill to his desk," said a senior administration official, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity Wednesday to discuss the early negotiations. "We're open to a conversation with anyone about this, but we think this is a much more comprehensive way to deal with this issue than just simply a wall."

Biden indicated at a CNN town hall Tuesday night that he is open to alternate routes to citizenship - such as stand-alone bills that would legalize smaller groups of immigrants such as farmworkers - but he called the bill "a reasonable path to citizenship."

Republicans have signaled little support for Biden's approach. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a backer of the 2013 bill, called the latest measure a "blanket amnesty." Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, who voted with Democrats to convict Trump, touted his own measure this week that would increase the minimum wage "while ensuring businesses cannot hire illegal immigrants."

"We must protect American workers," Romney said in a tweet Tuesday.

Biden's bill includes some enforcement provisions such as increased border technology to interdict drug traffickers and smugglers, higher penalties for employers who exploit undocumented laborers in the United States, and increased funding for immigration courts.

But E-Verify, which checks a person's legal status to work in this country, "will not be mandatory" for U.S. employers, and Biden has said he would not expand the border wall.

Mainly the bill takes an expansive approach: It promotes integration of immigrants and refugees, reduces years-long backlogs to immigrate to the United States, and creates two major pathways to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.

Farmworkers, immigrants who arrived in the United States as children, and people with temporary protected status - granted to those whose homelands are deemed too dangerous to return to - would have the fastest route to naturalization. They would immediately become eligible for green cards and could apply for citizenship after three years.

Millions of other undocumented immigrants would be allowed to apply for citizenship after eight years, longer than the current five-year requirement but shorter than the path the Senate approved in 2013.

All applicants must pass background checks and have been in the United States as of Jan. 1, a requirement intended to discourage a migration surge to the southwestern border.

Biden has characterized his bill as a way to reimagine immigration in the United States after the Trump administration clamped down on it, and the measure addresses details such as replacing the word "alien" with "noncitizen." Where his predecessor often cast immigrants as criminals, Biden's White House calls them "neighbors, colleagues, parishioners, community leaders, friends, and loved ones."

Biden tapped the children of immigrants to shepherd his immigration bill through Congress. Bill sponsors are Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., the sixth of seven children raised by Mexican immigrants in Southern California, and Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., the son of Cuban immigrants raised in a tenement in Union City, N.J.

Advocates for immigrants cheered plans to formally introduce the bill, the broad outlines of which Biden sent to Congress on his first day in office, but said they doubted it would pass. Democrats hold the House, but they need at least 10 Republican votes to reach the 60-vote threshold to pass the Senate.

Advocates and dozens of lawmakers are urging Senate Democrats to instead legalize at least 5 million undocumented immigrants this year through the budget reconciliation process, which requires a simple majority to pass. That group would include essential workers, immigrants who arrived as children and people with temporary protected status.

Erika Andiola, an immigrant from Mexico whose relatives faced deportation under the Obama administration, called the Biden bill "a good symbolic gesture, but it's not enough to protect people like me, my family and my community."

Frank Sharry, executive director of America's Voice, an advocacy organization, said passing citizenship through reconciliation is "the best shot we have this year."

"There is a point where Joe Biden is going to have to decide," said Nicole Melaku, executive director of the National Partnership for New Americans, a coalition of immigrant advocacy groups. "There is a moment where every disposable tool in his toolbox will need to be pulled out whether or not Republicans come along."

Senior administration officials who promoted the bill late Wednesday repeatedly declined to say whether they are considering using the reconciliation process to pass citizenship.

"It's just too early to speculate about it right now," the aide said.

- - -

The Washington Post's Matt Viser contributed to this report.

Holding company with a variety of synergistic businesses as subsidiaries

Well-positioned to become a major player in the medical and recreational cannabis sectors

Highly scalable business model that allows for revenue generation from a variety of sources

What Heritage Cannabis does:

Heritage Cannabis Holdings Corp ( ) is a seed-to-sale, vertically integrated cannabis business with five operating subsidiaries. As the parent company, Heritage is focused on providing the resources for its five current operating subsidiaries to advance their products or services to compete domestically and internationally.

Based in Toronto, the company currently has two Health Canada approved licenced producers, through its subsidiaries Voyage Cannabis and CannaCure Corp, which are both regulated under the Cannabis Act Regulations.

CannaCure brings a 122,000 square foot facility that acts as a flexible space to allow for partnership opportunities, such as toll manufacturing and co-branding optionality. The Fort Erie, Ontario facility has a total indoor grow space of nearly 25,000 square feet.

Meanwhile, with a strong emphasis on cannabis oils, Voyages offerings include a full and unique line of cannabis products for both the medical and recreational markets. The subsidiary also has a fully licensed indoor production facility with 13 acres under ownership that is zoned for cannabis cultivation. The company operates under a seed-to-sale model that encompasses production through to retail, for both medical and recreational use.

Another subsidiary, Purafarma Solutions provides extraction services and specializes in the development of medicinal grade cannabis formulations for pharmaceutical, recreational and cosmeceutical markets. Purefarma is sought after to perform extraction by licensed producers, many of which do not have the extraction capability to meet market demands or their contractual commitments.

Meanwhile, BriteLife Sciences Ltd adds critical medicinal cannabis expertise to the companys arsenal. The subsidiary is developing various medical-related proprietary branded products and partnerships with industry leaders in the therapeutics space.

Heritage's final subsidiary, Endocanna Health Inc, is a biotech company that provides personalized, scientifically-based resources, tools and solutions to support an optimal outcome for consumers when incorporating cannabinoid products into their health and wellness goals.

How is it doing:

Heritage Cannabis is preparing to launch new recreational and medical products in Canada and the US in 2021. The company said it is hoping to see products listed in Quebec by 2Q 2021.

In the US, Heritage subsidiary Opticann is preparing an ecommerce launch of ArthroCBD, a 25 mg softgel formulated using VESIsorb, which provides 4.5-times the absorption of other oral CBD products. Another three topical products formulated with VESIsorb for the treatment of eczema, psoriasis and local pain are being prepared for launch to reach retail over-the-counter consumers at national retailers like CVS, Walgreens, Rite-Aid, Kroeger, Walmart and .

The cannabis company also recently said it had started shipping derivative products under its RAD brand to both British Columbia and Alberta for sale across authorized channels in the provinces. It has also applied for a flower sales licence from Health Canada to support the planned launch of RAD Reefer and RAD Doobies.

As of February, Purefarma and Pura Vida products were made available on the genetics site, myDNA.live. The site identifies how an individuals specific genetic makeup interacts with cannabinoids and terpenes. The EndoDNA test, which is available on endodna.com, guides individuals based on these results and provides genetically aligned product recommendations, which will offer individuals a more optimal experience with cannabis.

A month earlier, Heritage said it received the first order from the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) for the aforementioned Purefarma and Pura Vida products. With these orders, the company now has three brands available in Ontario, including its recently acquired Premium 5 brand that has been available at the OCS since December 2020.

Premium 5 is a premium provider of Cannabis 2.0 hydrocarbon and solventless concentrates in Canada for which Heritage paid C$21 million in a stock deal.

Across provincial lines, Heritage announced in December that it had received its first order from Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis in order to sell its products in the province. Alberta customers will be able to purchase all seven vape cartridge products offered by Heritage.

Elsewhere, the company is working to expand into Brazil after striking a deal in December with pharmaceutical CBD product importation group CannaBR Exports Corp.

Heritage has also established contracts with minimum order quantities to deliver CBD products in bulk to CannaBRs large distribution network in Brazil with the option to establish long-term distribution contracts.

CannaCure Corp has also entered into a binding letter of intent with Entourage Participacoes SA for a three-year extraction and finished product supply agreement for the distribution of pharmaceutical products in Brazil.

Inflection points:

Getting products listed in Quebec by 2Q 2021

Continued sales growth in Alberta and elsewhere

Exporting to Brazil

$12 million financing to purchase biomass, packaging materials and equipment

What the boss says:

Heritage Cannabis CEO Clint Sharples has said he is excited to grow the company's presence in North America and abroad.

Following on our recent announcement of a bulk CBD product supply agreement in Brazil, we are pleased to be further expanding our reach beyond Canada and the US with our full-spectrum, high-quality extractions and medical softgel capsules, Sharples said in a January statement.

The Brazilian market for pharmaceutical cannabis and hemp products is in a high growth phase and the Agreement with Entourage Phytolab will facilitate Heritages growth in 2021.

Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com

Follow him on Twitter @andrew_kessel
The company is seeking to increase geological confidence in areas currently categorised as indicated and inferred mineral resources

PLC ( ) said the next stage of its exploration and drilling programme has started across its primary flake graphite projects in Madagascar.

The company informed investors that SRK Mining Services (India) will oversee the company's Stage II exploration and drilling programme and update the mineral resource statement (MRS) for the Vatomina and Sahamamy projects in Madagascar.

The company said it was confident that SRK's expertise and professionalism will allow it to take advantage of the previously identified exploration targets and open extensions to establish additional mineral resources at the projects.

Across the Vatomina and Sahamamy projects over a period of six months, the company plans to carry out around 10,000 metres of auger drilling, roughly 1,000 metres of trenching and some 5,000 metres of diamond core drilling.

Tirupati aims to update the SRK competent persons report later this year. The current report was published in June 2020 and was contained in the company's listing prospectus.

"In line with our rigorous step by step strategy, we continue to multitask work programmes and progress the development timelines of our primary flake graphite projects in Madagascar in a cost-effective and time-efficient manner across our portfolio. Through engaging SRK to oversee the implementation of our Stage II Programme, as well as aid us in carrying out a resource definition exploration programme, we have committed to enhancing our mineral resource base at Vatomina and Sahamamy, which will further underpin our ambitious development plans for our primary operations in Madagascar, said Shishir Poddar, Tirupati's chief executive.

With our in-house capabilities including a diamond core drilling rig and the expert geological team, we plan to deliver the additional exploration activities at industry-low costs, creating shareholder value on a continued basis, Poddar added.

Shares in Tirupati were up 3.8% at 82p following the announcement.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18) Placing the entire country under the most relaxed form of community quarantine can help restore up to 1.6 million jobs, the Trade Department said Thursday.

In an interview with CNN Philippines, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said there is a high probability for over a million jobless Filipinos to slowly get back to work under the proposed shift to a nationwide modified general community quarantine or MGCQ.

Yung benefit kung magkaroon pa ng MGCQ, sa job generation, yung nabibitin pa natin na 1.6 million, malaking chance na makabalik sila unti-unti, Lopez told The Source. However, he stressed the data may still be affected by other factors such as age restrictions.

[Translation: The benefit of the MGCQ in job generation, those 1.6 million, theres a big chance they can return to work.]

The National Economic Development Authority floated the proposal earlier this week during a meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte and other government officials, citing the need for the country to recover from huge economic losses. Acting NEDA chief Karl Chua said further extending the lockdown would only worsen hunger and poverty.

While the idea was welcomed by economic officials, some lawmakers and health experts expressed concern over the possible threat this may cause, especially with COVID-19 cases still rising in some areas.

RELATED: 'Risky, premature': OCTA Research warns vs placing entire PH in MGCQ

Senator Migz Zubiri, in a previous interview with CNN Philippines, also urged the government to wait for the vaccine rollout before considering further easing restrictions in the rest of the country.

Lopez said the proposal is still being studied by the chief executive, and may be discussed in the next Cabinet meeting.

However, he noted it may be time to give the remaining part of the economy a chance to slowly open up and rebound amid the health crisis.

So we really have to really look into further relaxation, but still very strict on enforcement and health protocols, he added.
Jailed Samsung chief Lee Jae-yong has been barred from gainful employment in his sprawling business empire.

The Justice Ministry said Tuesday that it notified Lee, who is serving two-and-a-half years in jail for bribing ex-President Park Geun-hye with money embezzled from Samsung, that he is barred from paid employment at Samsung while in prison.

If a person is convicted of embezzlement or breach of trust, they cannot be employed in any businesses related to the crime for five years after their jail term ends or two years after their probation ends.

But Lee can subvert the ban because he has worked without pay for the last four years, which means he is strictly speaking not an employee. He is also not listed on the conglomerate's board of executives for 2019.

Lee can also apply to the ministry to review the ban and make an exception.
Right now 25-year-old internationally famous hottie Kendall inspires this peek at pop culture, community news and top headlines.



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Local Power Down

KC residents asked to conserve as energy emergency raised to Level 2 The Southwest Power Pool raised the energy emergency to Level 2 Wednesday evening."At 6:20 p.m. Central time on Feb. 17, SPP declared an Energy Emergency Alert (EEA) Level 2. The alert will remain in effect until further notice.

Kansas City, Kansas Burning Sensation Tonight

Fire at KCK home spreads to neighboring house near Central Avenue KANSAS CITY, KS (KCTV) -- The Kansas City, KS Fire Department says a fire spread from one house to another near Central Avenue on Wednesday evening. Firefighters reported to the scene of 36 S. Pyle Street in KCK on a two-alarm fire. While on scene, the fire spread from that home to a neighboring home.

Westside Standoff Postscript

Following standoff, officers determine no shooting on Wednesday evening KANSAS CITY, MO (KCTV) -- The police were engaged in a standoff in the 2300 block of Jarboe on Wednesday evening. The police received a 911 call from the location at 4:19 p.m. The person on that 911 call told police that there had reportedly been a shooting and multiple people had been shot.

Hotness Sparks Debate

Kendall Jenner Is Being Accused Of Photoshopping Those Images That Caused Body Insecurity Among Fans And It's Sparked Another Debate "It's not body-shaming to tell people that Kendall is photoshopped in those pictures. Like, yes, she is sexy, but she also quite literally doesn't look like that irl." Posted on February 15, 2021, at 6:46 a.m. ET

Trending: Governments Hope To Take Control Of News

Facebook Blocks News In Australia Over Government Plan To Force Payment To Publishers Facebook said on Wednesday that it is preventing people inside Australia from accessing news stories on its platform. Facebook users elsewhere will not be able to view or share news stories from Australian outlets. The moves are a response to proposed legislation that would force social media platforms to pay Australian news organizations for links shared on its sites.

GOP Slap Fight With MAGA Just Getting Started

Trump-McConnell rift threatens GOP's Senate hopes Following Trump's call for Republicans to move on from McConnell, POLITICO on Wednesday reached out to all 16 Republican senators running for reelection in 2022 to ask if they supported the Kentuckian as majority leader. Only two responded. "Leader McConnell has my full support and confidence," Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the No.

Student Debte Life Lesson: AOC Picks Fight With Prez

AOC hits Biden on $50K student debt, says Schumer has her back New York progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took on President Biden Wednesday after he flatly rejected her proposal to forgive $50,000 in student debt per person. Ocasio-Cortez, a far-left Democrat who represents parts of the Bronx and Queens, noted that even Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer backs her idea.

Soldiers Decline COVID Vaxx

Overnight Defense: One-third of service members decline coronavirus vaccine | Biden to take executive action in response to Solar Winds hack | US, Japan reach cost sharing agreement Happy Wednesday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I'm Ellen Mitchell, and here's your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter. THE TOPLINE: A high-ranking military official on Wednesday said that a third of service members have declined to receive the coronavirus vaccine .

SAVE KANYE!!!

Kanye West Is 'Not Doing Well' Amid Split from Kim Kardashian: 'He Knows What He Is Losing' Says Source The rapper has had limited contact with his estranged wife and kids By all accounts, Kim Kardashian and estranged husband Kanye West are heading towards divorce - and a source close to the rapper tells PEOPLE that he is struggling as reality sets in.

New Honcho Debuts On The Nice Side Of The Bridge

New Clay County Sheriff Will Akin talks past hardships, moving forward with the community Newly-elected Clay County Sheriff Will Akin is not new to the sheriff's office, where he has worked for years. He's lived in the area since Dec. 1, 2012, but he shared glimpses of a much longer journey, growing up in California, with 41 Action News.

Local Vaxx Cooperation

JCDHE, Heart to Heart International screen volunteers to administer COVID-19 vaccines KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Heart to Heart International is partnering with the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment to screen volunteers who will administer COVID-19 vaccines. "The scale of this phenomenon is unlike anything we have seen," Brian Sink, vice president of volunteerism and staffing engagement for Heart to Heart International, said.

KC Temps Rise

Thursday's high will climb to about 22 degrees Hide Transcript Show Transcript SNOW AND STILL SOME FLURRIES ARE OUT THERE, BUT AS WE ARE CLEARING OUT FROM THE CLOUDS, NOW WE HAVE TO FOCUS OUR ATTENTION ON THE TEMPERATURE TREND, THAT WILL GO DOWN FROM THE UPPER TEENS TO THE LOWER TEENS TO NEAR 10 BY MIDNIGHT OR SO.

And this is the OPEN THREAD for tonight . . .
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Marcio Jose Sanchez / Associated Press

The California Department of Motor Vehicles is alerting drivers of a security breach that potentially leaked millions of drivers' registration records.

A billing contractor, the Seattle-based Automatic Funds Transfer Services, was hit by a ransomware attack in early February. The DMV has worked with the organization since mid-2019 "to correct and verify vehicle registration addresses," according to the department.
by Nimala Carvalho

The three minors had gone out to gather forage near the family farm. They had their hands and feet bound. Police: perhaps victims of poisoning. It is not the first case of gender-based violence in the area. Bishop Nayak: A brutal crime. Dalit women victims of continuous discrimination "

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - Two Dalit girls aged 16 and 13 were found dead near the family farm in the Unnao district (Uttar Pradesh). A 17-year-old was found still alive in the same field: she is hospitalized in serious conditions.

The three young Dalits (outcast) belong to the same family: the eldest are sisters; the 13-year-old is their cousin. Family members say they found the girls last night: they had their hands and feet tied with their clothes. The three children had gone off to collect fodder for the cattle. Given the delay in their return, the parents started looking for them.

The police have opened an investigation. According to Sureshrao A Kulkarni, head of local law enforcement, the victims may have been poisoned. He explains that doctors found traces of a whitish substance in their mouth.

For Msgr. Sarat Chandra Nayak, bishop of Berhampur (Orissa) and head of the Disadvantaged Caste and Tribal Office of the Bishops' Conference, what happened to the three girls is a brutal crime. He points out that it is an act devoid of humanity, performed by a depraved mind.

The Unnao area has already had cases of violence against women. In 2019, a rape victim was burned alive shortly before testifying in court for the violence she suffered: she did not survive the burns. The same year, a local parliamentarian from the Bharatiya Janata Party (Hindu nationalist) was convicted of sexual assault.

It is often Dalit girls who are victims of rape. Dalit women - says Msgr. Nayak - are discriminated against threefold. For their caste status, for gender and for the different economic treatment they receive at work. Christian Dalits are also persecuted for their faith.

The attackers, says Msgr. Nayak, target against Dalit women because they think they enjoy a kind of impunity: The system does not help the lower castes. It is also an internal problem in families, where women are discriminated against on the basis of a patriarchal concept of society.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Chakana Copper Corp. (TSXV: PERU) (OTCQB: CHKKF) (FSE: 1ZX) (the "Company" or "Chakana"), has added a second drill rig to its Soledad project located in Ancash, Peru in order to accelerate both the exploration and resource drilling programs. The Board of Directors has approved an expanded 26,000m drill program for the 2021 calendar year, with 16,000m of resource drilling for inclusion in the Company's Soledad maiden resource estimate expected later this year. Resource drilling will focus on recent discoveries at Paloma East, Paloma West, and Huancarama (Fig. 1). Resource drilling is expected to also be completed on Breccia 7 (Bx 7), a previous discovery announced in 2019 (see news release dated July 29, 2019). An additional 10,000m of scout drilling will be allocated to test numerous high quality exploration targets that have already been identified. Resource definition drilling includes both step-out and in-fill core holes in close proximity to known mineralization of possible economic interest.

Currently, one drill rig continues to conduct scout drilling on the west side of the Huancarama Breccia Complex where recent drilling has confirmed a blind breccia pipe immediately north of the H5 breccia body exposed at surface (Fig. 2). A total of twenty-five drill holes have now been completed at Huancarama. Once scout drilling is completed, this drill rig will focus on resource definition drilling at Huancarama. The second drill rig has been deployed to the Paloma area where resource drilling has been initiated at Paloma East (Fig. 3). Resource drilling is also planned for Paloma West, and additional exploration drilling will be conducted in the greater Paloma area. A third drill rig dedicated to exploration drilling is scheduled to arrive on the property in early April 2021.

David Kelley, President and CEO commented: "Adding a second drill rig at Soledad, to accelerate the project, is an exciting development. We are now fully funded for our 26,000m drill program in 2021 with $9.3 million in treasury. We look forward to releasing additional exploration results from Huancarama, and resource drilling results from Paloma in the near future."

About Chakana Copper

Chakana Copper Corp is a Canadian-based minerals exploration company that is currently advancing the high-grade copper-gold-silver Soledad Project located in the Ancash region of Peru, a highly favorable mining jurisdiction with supportive communities. The Soledad Project consists of mineralization hosted in tourmaline breccia pipes. A total of 37,606 metres of drilling has been completed to-date, testing ten (10) of twenty-three (23) confirmed breccia pipes with more than 92 targets identified throughout the Project area. Chakana's investors are uniquely positioned as the Soledad Project provides exposure to several metals including copper, gold, and silver. For more information on the Soledad project, please visit the website at www.chakanacopper.com.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

(signed) "David Kelley"

David Kelley

President and CEO

For further information contact:

Joanne Jobin, Investor Relations Officer

Phone: 647 964 0292

Email: jjobin@chakanacopper.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-looking Statement Advisory: This release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of Chakana to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements or information relates to, among other things, the interpretation of the nature of the mineralization at the Soledad copper-gold-silver project (the "Project"), the potential to expand the mineralization, and to develop and grow a resource within the Project, the planning for further exploration work, the ability to de-risk the potential exploration targets, and our belief in the potential for mineralization within unexplored parts of the Project. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations and beliefs but given the uncertainties, assumptions and risks, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward- looking statements or information. The Company disclaims any obligation to update, or to publicly announce, any such statements, events or developments except as required by law.





Figure 1 - View looking north showing breccia pipes and occurrences within the northern Soledad cluster. Pipes that have been drilled in previous campaigns are shown in red. Targets shown in green are the focus on this 15,000m drill campaign. Other pipes and occurrences remain to be tested by drilling. Additional breccia pipes occur on the south half of the property and are not shown here.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2172/74809_75866e4b54a5186f_001full.jpg





Figure 2 - Drone image looking north-northeast at the Huancarama Breccia Complex showing drill rig set up on the west side of the complex.

To view an enhanced version of Figure 2, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2172/74809_75866e4b54a5186f_002full.jpg





Figure 3 - Drone image looking east showing second drill rig initiating resource drilling at Paloma East (prominent outcrop in center of image). Note the Hercules mine in the upper right side of the image (1.5 km distant).

To view an enhanced version of Figure 3, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/2172/74809_75866e4b54a5186f_003full.jpg

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74809
United Oil & Gas Plc (UOG) describes itself as a rapidly-growing full-cycle AIM-listed oil and gas company with the energy and capability to build on its track record of delivery.

The company is focused on low-risk production and development projects in Egypt, Italy, and the UK, and high-impact exploration in Jamaica.

In early 2020, the company acquired a 22% non-operating interest in the Abu Sennan asset. Located in the prolific hydrocarbon-producing Western Desert region of onshore Egypt, it comprises 7 development concessions.
"Community engagements, counter-radicalisation, the police initiatives in sports, employment opportunities, counselling, and community bond schemes for potential terrorist recruits,"Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Anantnag, Sandeep Chaudhary told a group of 24 diplomats from foreign missions on the second day of their visit to the Union Territory."How police dealt with challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, maintaining a balance between addressing people's problems and enforcing COVID-19 restrictions," Superintendent of Police (SP) East Srinagar, Sheema Nabi, who hails from Kashmir, briefed the delegation on the second day of their visit to Jammu and Kashmir."Jammu and Kashmir Police (JKP) reached out to local people, addressed their issues, and got their cooperation. Human touch and outreach helped the JKP to deal with unprecedented challenges," Nabi added."The army briefing focused on infiltration pattern, Pakistan's role, atrocities of Baramulla in 1948, tunnels, use of drones, number of Pakistani terrorists killed: which are 54 per cent in the decade. The decrease in infiltration and recent terror incidents. Pakistan's role in recruiting through Information Warfare (IW), social media use in Indian Army and role in making terrorists surrender," said the sources."The briefing also discussed the issues like 72 surrenders in 2020, infiltration from Line of Control (LOC) and support of Pakistan Army in helping infiltration, harbouring terrorists, training camps, seized weapons supplied by Pakistan, killing of moderate Kashmir voices by terrorists" the sources added.As per the sources, other issues discussed in the meeting were Post 370 - no loss of life in Special Forces' actions, marked reduction in stone pelting, peacefully conducted District Development Council (DDC) elections, initiatives of citizen connect, and outreach to the public, 44 Army goodwill schools having 10,000 students in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, assistance to the population of far-flung areas, glimpses of tourism, culture, and achievements of Kashmiri people.Later, they will attend lunch hosted by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. The diplomats are also scheduled to meet civil society representatives today. On Wednesday, the delegation had interacted with representatives of civil society and the government in Srinagar.Foreign diplomats from Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Malaysia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and the European Union are on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir.The latest visit of foreign envoys comes in the backdrop of District Development Council polls, which saw huge participation and restoration of 4G mobile internet in the entire region after 18 months, which many see as a return of full normalcy in the Union Territory.This is the first visit by foreign diplomats to Jammu and Kashmir since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two batches of foreign diplomats had earlier visited Jammu and Kashmir in January and February last year after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.In January last year, envoys of 15 countries including the then US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster and diplomats from Vietnam, South Korea, Brazil, Niger, Nigeria, Morocco, Guyana, Argentina, Philippines, Norway, Maldives, Fiji, Togo, Bangladesh, and Peru visited Jammu and Kashmir to see first-hand the efforts being made by the government in the region.In February last year, 25 foreign diplomats, including those from Germany, Canada, France, and Afghanistan, visited Jammu and Kashmir to witness the ground situation in the region. (ANI)

More and more large manufacturers have decided to set production facilities in Vietnam.

The news in late 2020 that Foxconn, a vendor of Apple, would be relocating a part of its iPad and MacBook production line to Vietnam has created excitement.

Previously, Apple decided to make wireless headphones in Vietnam. Other Apple vendors such as Luxshare and Pegatron have also released plans to scale up investment in Vietnam with thbillions of dollars.

Unlike Samsung, Apple doesnt directly run manufacturing plants. Instead, it cooperates with vendors all over the world to produce and assemble Apple products. The vendors are OEM (original equipment manufacturers). The vendors decision to increase investment in Vietnam is based on Apples demand.

Before the investment shift, Apples senior managers had many working sessions and surveys in Vietnam on the manufacturing and assembling of its products.

Like other big investors, the first requirement Apple set for Vietnam agencies related to administrative procedures, including customs procedures and import quality examinations.

According to Apple, to fulfill the procedures for more than 10 consignments of goods within the day, the supply chain has to prepare more than 2,000 pages of documents and spend 15-20 hours a day to prepare dossiers to apply for product quality examination and other necessary documents.

Besides Apple, many other big investors are also planning to choose Vietnam as their new destination. A lot of negotiations are being conducted and Vietnam may receive multi-billion dollars worth of investment.

In January, Vietnam welcomed a series of big projects, including the Singaporean invested Kodi New Material Vietnam factory, capitalized at $270 million. Receiving the investment registration certificate on January 15, the factory will make tablets and laptops in Bac Giang province.

The provincial authorities have also granted an investment registration certificate to the Chinese invested JA Solar PV Vietnam, capitalized at $210 million.

Meanwhile, Da Nang has welcomed the United States Enterprises project on making semiconductor materials with capital of $110 million.

According to Nguyen Van Toan, deputy chair of the Vietnam Association of Foriegn Invested Enterprises (VAFIEs), the US and Japan are encouraging their enterprises to relocate production bases to home countries or third countries to cope with the upheavals in the global economy.

Toan said other countries, including India and Indonesia, are competing with Vietnam by offering clean land at reasonable costs.

When investors consider destinations, they weigh matters such as investment environment, transport infrastructure, labor force, electricity supply, import/export and local materials, Toan said.



Quality of capital

Vietnam in the last decade has witnessed dramatic changes in attracting high-quality FDI capital. Foreign invested projects registered recently are mostly in hi-tech fields, especially Samsung and LG electronics manufacturing projects in Bac Ninh, Thai Nguyen and Hai Phong.

Vietnam has made its mark on the worlds technology map with made-in-Vietnam products, becoming a big electronics production base in the world.

However, Vietnam can only undertake assembling, the production link that brings the lowest added value in the global supply chain. Vietnamese enterprises still have to struggle to squeeze into global supply chains to become vendors of large manufacturers. The manufacturers, when coming to Vietnam, usually bring satellite enterprises, and do not use local vendors.

Experts said that Vietnam needs to change the situation when receiving the new FDI wave, or it will be only a temporary destination for big investors

and will lack power for sustainable development.

Dang Duc Anh, deputy director of NCIF (the National Center for Socio-Economic Information and Forecast), said in order to attract big investors and join high added value chains, Vietnam needs to settle the bottlenecks in workforce quality and infrastructure.

When investors want to renovate supply chains, they will look at the fundamentals of a country to build the chains. If Vietnams fundamentals cannot meet the requirements, it will not be able to attract investment in modern industries with high added value.

Luong Bang

Digital economy predicted to reach $43 billion by 2025 Vietnams digital economy is expected to reach $43 billion by 2025, according to the e-Conomy Southeast Asia report from Google, Temasek and new partner Bain & Company.
TECO 2030 (earlier post) is aiming to establish Norways first large-scale production of fuel cells, optimized to be the heart of hydrogen-powered ships and other heavy-duty installations.

Our ambition is to build an advanced innovation center combined with a giga factory, meaning that we will produce fuel cells with a capacity of 1200 megawatts, or 1.2 gigawatt, per year. This corresponds to several hundred million euros in annual turnover. This will be the first volume production of fuel cells in Norway and a hub for the Norwegian hydrogen industry. We are optimizing fuel cells from the bottom up for heavy-duty marine use. We combine a best-in-class fuel cell solution with a long history of being a trusted engineering partner to leading companies in the global maritime industry. Tore Enger, CEO of TECO 2030 ASA





TECO 2030 Fuel Cell Innovation Center

Fuel cell development is done in collaboration with Austrian engineering company AVL, the worlds largest independent company for development of powertrain systems. AVL will also contribute to the planning and construction of the factory.

TECO 2030 plans to deliver a marine hydrogen solution that is more efficient, compact and durable than fuel cells based on modified automotive stacks. The partnership with AVL has already resulted in bringing to production the TECO Future Funnel, a complete exhaust gas cleaning system. The plan is to start fuel cell production in 2022.

In addition to AVL, TECO 2030 has already established partnerships with high-quality industrial players such as the main Austrian electricity company Verbund, the large Dutch inland shipping company Chemgas, and the seventh-generation innovative Dutch shipyard Thecla Bodewes. TECO 2030 will continue forging such partnership as a platform for the energy transition in the marine industry.

TECO 2030 primarily wants to establish the fuel cell gigafactory in Eastern Norway, probably in Viken, Vestfold or Telemark counties. The company is assessing potential locations. An important factor will be proximity to competence clusters within technology and shipping. The gigafactory may create 500 jobs within research and development, pilot production and full-scale industrial production.

Expected investment is nearly 100 million over approximately ten years. Financing alternatives are being evaluated. TECO 2030 has, through the Norwegian state enterprise Enova, applied for support under the IPCEI Hydrogen program and is optimistic regarding a positive response.

TECO 2030 originates from the TECO Maritime Group, which has provided technology and service to the global shipping industry for more than 25 years. TECO 2030 was listed on Euronext Growth Oslo in the fall of 2020.

TECO 2030 focuses on one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time: How to combine ever-increasing shipping volumes with reduced emissions? The companys vision is emission-free shipping, with hydrogen-based fuel cells in a leading role. The company also provides optimal emission reduction for traditional fuel vessels. The TECO 2030 Marine Fuel Cell System is based on a modular design, enabling system configuration in the multi-megawatt scale. It is compact and suitable for retrofits as well as newbuilds.

TECO 2030 is a partner in the project Green Hydrogen @ Blue Danube, together with players such as Siemens, Bosch, AVL and Verbund, where hydrogen generated from solar and wind power will be produced in Romania and transported on barges along the Danube to industrial buyers in Austria and Germany. TECO 2030 will supply fuel cells for hydrogen-powered tugboats pushing the barges along the Danube.

The trend towards reduced maritime emissions is accelerated by upcoming global emission legislations. IMO, the International Maritime Organization, targets carbon emission cuts of 40% by 2030 and 70% by 2050, compared to 2008 values. Total greenhouse gas emissions are to be reduced by at least 50% by 2050. Additionally, for rivers and waterways, zero and low emission zones are being proposed to reduce emissions to river cities.
The Centre has said that the Covid-19 vaccination coverage in the country has crossed 94 lakh-mark, ranking India at the third position after USA (55.2 million doses) and the UK (16.12 million doses).

"India is third globally, after the US and the UK, in highest cumulative vaccination numbers," the Union health ministry said today.

The US and the UK have completed over 60 days of vaccination while India has completed 31 days since the inoculation drive began on 16 January.

Till 8 am today, the cumulative vaccination coverage of healthcare workers (HCWs) and frontline workers (FLWs) against coronavirus in the country has crossed 94 lakh, the ministry said.

The daily coronavirus positivity rate has also seen a constant decline in the last seven days. From 1.89% on February 1, it has dropped to 1.69% on Thursday, it said.

A total of 94,22,228 vaccine doses have been given to beneficiaries through 1,99,305 sessions till 8 am on February 18, as per the provisional report.

These include 61,96,641 HCWs (first dose), 3,69,167 HCWs (second dose) and 28,56,420 FLWs (first dose).

The administration of the second dose of coronavirus vaccination started on February 13 for those beneficiaries who had completed 28 days after receipt of the first dose.

The vaccination of the FLWs started on February 2.

As of day 33 (February 18) of the coronavirus vaccination drive, a total of 4,22,998 vaccine doses were given across 7,932 sessions.

Of which, 3,30,208 beneficiaries were vaccinated for the first dose and 92,790 received the second dose.

The ministry said 58.20% of those who have received the second dose are concentrated in seven states while Karnataka alone accounts for 14.74% (54,397 doses).

India's cumulative recoveries have surged to 1.06 crore (1,06,56,845) on Thursday, the ministry said.

"Rising recoveries along with contained daily deaths have ensured a sustained fall in the COVID-19 active caseload," the ministry underlined.

India's present active cases (1,37,342) constitute just 1.25% of the total infections with 11,987 patients having recuperated in a span of 24 hours, it said.

The distribution of new cases depicts a positive picture. Only two states have registered more than 1,000 new cases during the period, it said.

Sixteen states and UTs have not reported any coronavirus deaths in the last 24 hours, it said.

These are Delhi, Odisha, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Lakshadweep, Manipur, Meghalaya, Sikkim, Ladakh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Tripura, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Arunachal Pradesh.

In a span of 24 hours, only one state has recorded more than 20 deaths, the ministry said.

Kerala and Maharashtra account for 75% of the new cases, 72% of new recovered cases and 55% of new deaths, it said.

According to the ministry, 85.14% of the new recovered cases are concentrated in six states.

At 4,932, Kerala has reported the maximum number of single-day recoveries while 3,853 people recovered in Maharashtra followed by Karnataka (537).

A total of 12,881 new daily cases have been recorded in a span of 24 hours.

The ministry said 86.61% of the new cases are from six states.

Kerala continues to report the highest daily new cases at 4,892 followed by Maharashtra (4,787), while Tamil Nadu reported 454 new cases.

Meanwhile, 101 fatalities were recorded in the last 24 hours, officials said, adding that five states account for 76.24% of the new deaths, it said.

Maharashtra saw the maximum casualties (40) followed by Kerala (16) and Punjab (10), it said.

Meanwhile, with the coronavirus numbers in Maharashtra showing a spike over the last two weeks, the state has reintroduced some restrictions on the assembly and movement of people. The state government has warned that it could even bring back the lockdown if it was felt necessary.

With agency inputs

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CHICAGO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Everspring Inc., a leading provider of education technology and services to universities seeking to build or expand their online capabilities, today announces a partnership with the University of Notre Dame to build a series of professional education courses for the Pulte Institute for Global Development, part of Notre Dame's Keough School of Global Affairs.

The courses, which are part of a new Data for Development (DfD) digital certificate, will focus on the best practices of data use in the development context; including how to collect and analyze data for monitoring, evaluation and learning activities for humanitarian and global development activities. The online curriculum  developed by Dr. Paul Perrin, the Pulte Institute's Director for Evidence and Learning  will leverage Everspring's sophisticated learning design technology and digital course development expertise to deliver the content in an engaging, self-paced format. "One of our goals at the Pulte Institute is to help development professionals implement solutions at a local level. Our partnership with Everspring should help us achieve this goal," said Perrin.

"We are increasingly looking for ways to broaden our accessibility, bringing Notre Dame to a community of lifetime learners across the globe," said Camille Rudge, Director of Continuing Education at Notre Dame. "It is our hope that Everspring's instructional design expertise and breadth of technology will help us to bring courses like Data for Development to life."

Initially, the courses will be created for Chemonics International: a Pulte Institute partner which brings significant experience designing innovative solutions to address intractable development challenges. Since 2018, Chemonics has been actively working to provide employees even greater access to accredited, master's-level education programs to further enhance their skills, advance their careers, and increase development impact. The DfD courses, which will be delivered on Everspring's custom-configured EmergingEd platform, will allow both partners to offer continuing education to a global market of development professionals.

"Our joint vision is for everyone everywhere to have access to continual learning and higher education that is right for them," said Chemonics' President Jamey Butcher. "We are excited about this collaboration with Notre Dame and Everspring, which will help us realize that vision."

With the increased need for skill development and continuing education in today's workforce, many universities are seeking to meet the needs of working professionals with short courses and certificates that tap into a university's wealth of faculty expertise and subject-specific content and that can be delivered to adult professionals in an online format. Everspring combines instructional design and interactive course best practices with their user-friendly EmergingEd platform, to provide universities with seamless course delivery.

"Everspring is excited to partner with the Pulte Institute to develop this technology-forward professional development program using our EmergingEd digital learning platform," said Beth Hollenberg, president and co-founder of Everspring. "Working professionals need practical, expert-led programs that help them master the skills they need to compete in our increasingly skills-based economy. To be able to get those skills from a world-class university like Notre Dame, with the benefit of Everspring's proven instructional design, presents an exciting combination."

About the Pulte Institute for Global Development

The Pulte Institute for Global Development  an integral part of the Keough School of Global Affairs at the University of Notre Dame  works to address global poverty and inequality through policy, practice, and partnership. The Institute is dedicated to conducting meaningful outreach which combines the world-class research of Notre Dame with global partners to design, implement, monitor, and evaluate projects that promote rights-based, growth outcomes for the world's most vulnerable. For more information, visit pulte.nd.edu.

About Everspring

Everspring is a leading provider of education technology and services solutions for higher education. Our advanced technology, proven marketing approach, and robust faculty support and instructional design services deliver outstanding outcomes for our university partners, powering their success online. Everspring offers a range of full-service turnkey solutions, as well as standalone fee-for-service offerings, and innovative self-service products that enable universities to establish themselves as leaders in the digital delivery of higher education. Based in Chicago and recently named one of the " Best Places to Work ," Everspring serves a growing number of colleges and universities, nationwide.

Visit www.everspringpartners.com for more information. Don't just go digital. BE DIGITAL.

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$2.5 million grant will support Michigan's rural healthcare workers and employers

$2.5 million grant will support Michigan's rural healthcare workers and employers

USDOL H-1B Rural Healthcare Grant Program funds will help address healthcare workforce shortages

February 16, 2021

Contact: Mike Murray, 517-275-1820



LANSING, Mich.The Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) today announced it has been awarded a $2.5 million federal grant to address healthcare staffing shortages in rural communities throughout the state.

The funding is through the U.S. Department of Labors H-1B Rural Healthcare Grant Program which supports employment and training programs in healthcare occupations serving rural populations. Over the next four years, the grant will support the addition of more than 430 new healthcare workers for rural communities throughout Michigan.

These funds will support the efforts of Michigan Rural Enhanced Access to Careers in Healthcare (MiREACH), which reaches into rural communities to address critical healthcare workforce shortages, LEO Acting Director Susan Corbin said. Ensuring our states rural healthcare providers are able to find high-quality talent will improve their ability to provide lifesaving and community-supporting services.

LEO will lead MiREACH, a collective and supportive network of employer-led collaboratives, to identify targeted healthcare occupations based on employer demand and feedback, design training responses, and implement workforce solutions for rural communities. To address critical healthcare workforce shortages in Michigans 57 rural counties, LEO will engage Michigan Works! Northeast Consortium (NWNEC), Upper Peninsula Michigan Works!, West Michigan Works! (WMW) and Workforce Intelligence Network (WIN), which represents six Michigan Works! Agencies in southeast Michigan.

Michigans rural communities need more workers with in-demand skills to significantly improve access to healthcare as well as strengthen their local economies, said Stephanie Beckhorn, LEOs Director of the Office of Employment and Training. This funding will help create pathways to in-demand, high-wage jobs for Michigan workers while providing the skilled talent our healthcare employers need to support the communities they serve.

The Coronavirus pandemic has increased the need for healthcare workers, particularly in rural areas where that need was already acute. The grant program aims to help individuals gain the skills necessary to provide needed services, fill vacancies and allow employers to find skilled workers more readily.

"We recognize rural healthcare employers face significant challenges related to worker shortages and the efforts of this grant will create sustainable employment and training programs in healthcare occupations serving our rural populations, said John Barnas, Executive Director of the Michigan Center for Rural Health (MCRH). As a sustaining partner, MCRH is committed to serve as a resource to LEO as they continue forward with this effort."

Questions regarding the grant can be directed to LEOs Sector Strategies team at LEO-TDL@michigan.gov.

Information on the U.S. Department of Labor grant program can be found on the agencys website, https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/grants/apply/find-opportunities.

To learn more about LEOs efforts to promote a flexible, innovative and effective workforce system within Michigan, visit Michigan.gov/Workforce.
Google is rolling out a bunch of new educational tools for students and teachers who are using Google Meet. According to the official blog, the new features include new emoji reactions, end meetings, and mute all functions for teachers and students.

COVID-19 pandemic has not only trapped us inside our homes but also limited workers and students to work or attend their classes from homes.

Though over time, Google has added a ton of new features to Google Meet, the new update surely would give more functionality to students as well as teachers. It will basically improve the virtual experience of both students and teachers.

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Coming back to the features, Google is adding the ability to determine who is on the roster and will allow only those people to join the meetings. It will prevent unwanted guests to enter video calls. Google will roll out this feature later this year.

Teachers will be automatically made the host of the meetings, to give them more control over who can join the meeting, even if there are multiple instructors.

For administrators, Google Meet is getting an improved audit log feature. This will allow the admins to better investigate and tweak potential security problems.

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Google Meet also gets Mute-all controls for teachers to shush unruly kids

While conducting classes via Google Meet is the safest way during this pandemic time, it also gives students the freedom to do unruly things as they are in the comfort of their homes.

It becomes difficult for a teacher to continuously monitor each of the students. So for this, Google is adding a Mute-all control for teachers. With a tap of a button, the entire class will be shush-ed or can be made silent. This feature will roll out in the coming weeks.

Google Meet is also set to get some moderation controls for better access. Additionally, Google Meet will also let teachers control their end meetings for all participants.

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Teachers will also get the ability to send transcripts to students that miss classes or cant attend the classes. This would allow them to keep up with the class without missing on learning.

Google is also improving Google Meets reliability and performance on low bandwidth and slow internet connections. This is a nice move as strong internet is not present everywhere.

Talking about one of the best additions among all these features is the emoji reactions. This adds a fun and interactive way for students to engage in the online class.

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There will be a hand button at the bottom of the screen which pops open a panel of reactions. These emojis are controllable by administrators, to prevent misuse and to be used when required.

Study from Zambia shows many more deaths than official reports suggest

The impact of covid-19 in Africa has been vastly underestimated, warn researchers in a study published by The BMJ today.

Outside of South Africa, this is the first study to provide systematic surveillance data capturing the impact of covid-19 in Africa.

Their findings are based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results for 364 deceased people of all ages at the University Teaching Hospital morgue in Lusaka, Zambia between June and September 2020, enrolled within 48 hours of death.

The findings show that covid-19 deaths accounted for 15-20% of all sampled deaths - many more than official reports suggest and contradicting the widely held view that covid-19 has largely skipped Africa and had little impact.

They also show that covid-19 deaths occurred across a wider age spectrum than reported elsewhere and were concentrated among people aged under 65, including an unexpectedly high number of deaths in children.

The absence of data on covid-19 in Africa has fostered a widely held view that the virus has largely skipped Africa and had little impact. However, this may be an example of the "absence of evidence" being widely misconstrued as "evidence of absence."

To address this evidence gap, a team of international researchers set out to measure the fatal impact of covid-19 in an urban African population.

Deaths were stratified by covid-19 status, location, age, sex, and underlying risk factors.

Overall, the virus was detected in 70 (19%) of people. The average age at death was 48 years and 70% were men.

Most deaths in people with covid-19 (73%) occurred in the community and none had been tested for the virus before death. Among the 19 people who died in hospital, six were tested before death.

Among the 52 people with data on symptoms, 44 had typical symptoms of covid-19 (cough, fever, shortness of breath), of whom only five were tested before death.

Covid-19 was identified in seven children, only one of whom had been tested before death.

The proportion of deaths with covid-19 increased with age, but 76% of people who died were aged under 60 years.

The five most common underlying conditions (comorbidities) among people who died with covid-19 were tuberculosis (31%), high blood pressure (27%), HIV/AIDS (23%), alcohol misuse (17%), and diabetes (13%).

Understanding the true extent of covid-19's impact on Africa is critical, say the researchers. Not only is there a moral imperative that the world acknowledges suffering wherever it exists, if Africa is seen as posing little threat, this could put it at a lower priority for access to covid-19 vaccines.

This is an observational study using data from one city, in one African country, over a short three month span, and the researchers point to several limitations, such as relying on the accuracy of medical chart data and being unable to identify deaths indirectly due to covid-19, such as from heart attacks or strokes.

However, this was a well-designed study, carried out by researchers with a high level of experience in postmortem sampling and data collection, which minimised the potential for false positive results.

As such, the authors say that contrary to expectations, covid-19 deaths were common in Lusaka, and the majority occurred in the community where testing capacity is lacking.

Yet few who died at health facilities were tested, despite presenting with typical symptoms of covid-19. Therefore, covid-19 cases were under reported because testing was rarely done, not because CV19 was rare, they explain.

If these data are generalizable, the impact of covid-19 in Africa has been vastly underestimated, they conclude.

###

Peer reviewed? Yes

Evidence type: Observational

Subjects: People with covid-19
Amid the nationwide stir and condemnation over government officials getting secretly vaccinated against COVID-19, Peru's foreign minister on Monday announced her resignation. Elizabeth Astete stepped down over increased public angst and outrage for disregarding the planned coronavirus inoculation campaign for the frontline health workers, after 1 million of the total 23.1 million doses of the Pfizer vaccines, procured by the country, arrived last week. Ahead of Perus initiative to administer jabs to 31.9 million population, a report of government scandal emerged after former President Martin Vizcarra, dismissed from Congress last year in November over corruption allegations, told a local newspaper that he had received Sinopharm vaccine secretly.

President of Peru, Francisco Sagasti, told the local television channel America that his finance minister Astete has resigned following a report about  jeopardy to the enormous effort of many Peruvians working on the front line against COVID. Sources of Associated Press confirmed that the Peruvian leader acknowledged citizens anger regarding the unexpected situation, further stating, that the health minister Pilar Mazzetti, also resigned last week for concealing the information after the incident came to legislators' notice.

Read: COVID-19: Oxford Vaccine Creator Calls For Donations To Help Global Inoculation

Read: Orban Lashes Out At EU For Slow Vaccine Rollout

[Peru's first 1 million doses of vaccines arrive at the airport. Credit: Twitter/@FSagasti]

[Credit: Twitter/@FSagasti]

I can assure you that this decision will not affect the arrival of the committed vaccines or the ongoing negotiations to guarantee vaccines for all Peruvians, for which our government will continue to work tirelessly, Perus President said on Twitter, amid speculations about vaccination campaign being affected due to corruption.

Outgoing finance minister apologizes

Peruvian President, Francisco Sagasti, assured citizens, saying, All the agreements on clinical trials with vaccines in Peru were made prior to the Transitional and Emergency Government that I have the honour to preside, further indicating that his government, more than ever, was focused on transparency and firmness. He informed, that the resignation for the health minister was handed to the vice minister of public health, Luis Suarez Ognio, and he received Chancellor Elizabeth Astete's letter of resignation, on February 15.

Sagasti further announced Health Minister Oscar Ugarte as the new health minister, additionally dismissing all ministers who secretly received the Chinese jab. A probe was underway to identify all politicians who were vaccinated in the month of September with the first dose of the Sinopharm vaccine, according to sources of the Associated Press. The outgoing finance minister, Astete, apologized for taking the due on Jan. 22. I am aware of the serious mistake I made, which is why I decided not to receive the second dose, she said.

Read: EU's Anti-fraud Body Warns Against COVID-19 Vaccine Scams

Read: UK Health Sec On 'vaccine Passports' For Travellers
A large cache of weapons used by militants in the southern Syrian provinces of Homs and Deir ez-Zor was discovered by the country's government troops with the support of Russian Aerospace Forces drones, a spokesman for the Russian Armed Forces group in Syria said.

"As a result of reconnaissance and search operations of the Syrian government forces with the support of unmanned aerial vehicles of the Russian Aerospace Forces in the desert area in the east of the province of Homs, a large cache was discovered, used by militants to conduct terrorist activities in the provinces of Homs and Deir ez-Zor," the spokesman said.

"Four militants in two pickup trucks with heavy machine guns, who were discovered near the cache and apparently guarded it, were killed during the operation," Sputnik cited him as saying.

The cache contained 36 assault rifles and light machine guns, seven large-caliber machine guns, a mounted grenade launcher with 28 grenades, an anti-tank guided missile system, 87 mines and grenades, about 40 kg of explosives and over 22,000 rounds of ammunition, including those produced by NATO countries. The militants also kept in a cache about 45 kg of medicines, some of which had also been brought from abroad, and 350 kg of food.
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This study provides the most detailed mapping yet of how summer temperatures in 20 urban centers in California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas affected different neighborhoods between 2018 and 2020. Credit: Study authors.

Acres of asphalt parking lots, unshaded roads, dense apartment complexes and neighborhoods with few parks have taken their toll on the poor. As climate change accelerates, low-income districts in the Southwestern United States are 4 to 7 degrees hotter in Fahrenheiton averagethan wealthy neighborhoods in the same metro regions, University of California, Davis, researchers have found in a new analysis.

This study provides the most detailed mapping yet of how summer temperatures in 20 urban centers in California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas affected different neighborhoods between 2018 and 2020. The researchers found even greater heat disparities in California than in other states. The largest disparities showed up in the Riverside and San Bernardino County urban areas.

The unequal impact on Latino communities was especially apparent, the authors said. In Los Angeles on a hot summer day, for example, the most heavily Latino neighborhoods were 6.7 degrees hotter than the least Latino neighborhoods.

"This study provides strong new evidence of climate impact disparities affecting disadvantaged communities, and of the need for proactive steps to reduce those risks," said the study's lead author, John Dialesandro, a doctoral student in geography in the Department of Human Ecology.

The authors said that lower socio-economic groups often have less access to cooled housing, transportation, workplaces and schools. Excess heat can cause heat stroke, exhaustion, and amplified respiratory and cardiovascular issues.

It has long been known that paved surfaces of urban areas absorb and retain solar radiation, increasing urban temperatures. The surrounding suburbswith more plant life, parks or proximity to bodies of waterwill be cooler, creating heat islands in the denser areas.

"There is a strong need for state and local governments to take action to mitigate heat disparities by reducing paved surfaces, adding drought-tolerant vegetation, and encouraging building forms that increase shade and reduce temperatures," Dialesandro said.

The study was published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. Co-authors include Noli Brazi, assistant professor, and Stephen Wheeler, professor, each in the Department of Human Ecology, and Yaser Abunnasr, Department of Landscape Design and Ecosystem Management, American University of Beirut.

Researchers looked at U.S. Census data for each area studied, focusing on median household income and percentage of Latinx, Black and Asian populations in each. They also looked at education levels attained. They then assessed radiant and atmospheric temperatures recorded by satellite on the warmest summer days and nights in those cities over a two-year period.

On average, the poorest 10 percent of neighborhoods in an urban region were 4 degrees hotter than the wealthiest 10 percent on both extreme heat days and average summer days, the study said.

California's urban regions had much larger temperature differences between the wealthiest and poorest neighborhoods compared with regions in the rest of the Southwest. The greatest differences were seen in Palm Springs, Bakersfield and Fresno. The smallest differences were seen in Sacramento.

On extreme heat days, the poorest California neighborhoods in each region were nearly 5 degrees hotter, on average, than the wealthiest neighborhoods. This compares to about 3 degrees difference in average temperatures for other Southwestern cities when comparing wealthier and poorer neighborhoods.

The largest differences occurred in the Inland Empire and Palm Springs areas in Riverside and San Bernardino County, where disparities in average temperatures between wealthier and poorer differed by more than 6 degrees.

"Programs to increase vegetation within disadvantaged neighborhoods and reduce or lighten pavements and rooftops could help reduce thermal disparities between neighborhoods of different socioeconomic characteristics," the authors said.

While neighborhoods populated by Blacks in Southern California showed some disparities in temperatureabout 1 to 2 degrees, when compared with white neighborhoodsthis difference was not statistically significant. Black populations throughout Southwestern metropolitan areas are relatively small, authors said, meaning that findings on this demographic dimension were less pronounced.

Explore further Study links historical housing disparities with dangerous climate impacts

More information: John Dialesandro et al, Dimensions of Thermal Inequity: Neighborhood Social Demographics and Urban Heat in the Southwestern U.S., International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2021). John Dialesandro et al, Dimensions of Thermal Inequity: Neighborhood Social Demographics and Urban Heat in the Southwestern U.S.,(2021). DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18030941
The border flashpoint between India and China is showing the activity of the Chinese moving out. This was recently captured by satellite photos taken.

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) reveals they are moving away from the flashpoint in the Himalayan border. Both the Indian Army and PLA had been engaged in the area since summer last year.

China is leaving the disputed border

New Delhi's new intelligence reports show the Chinese camp getting dismantled and their vehicles driving from the disputed border. This comes after several months of standoffs that led to extreme tensions between the two nations. These images released on Wednesday from satellite photos were reported by the Epoch Times.

Two nations with nukes decided to go with a plan to leave the area, return troops, tanks, and other equipment stationed on the Pangong Tso Banks. The flashpoint is near a glacier lake in the Ladakh region, where engagements occurred the past few months.

Satellite images

Images of the Chinese pullout from the Pangong Tso at its north tip show troop movements last Tuesday via Maxar Technologies. The Chinese were leaving their temporary shelters in more than one camp on the border in the images. Until late January, they were still standing but were removed recently.

To comply with the Chinese military pullout at the border flashpoint between India and China, an Indian official in Delhi said the Indian army did the same thing, reported Reuters. The official declined to be identified by the outlet.

Also read: China Unhappy About Border Rebuffs and Calls India on Supporting Exiled Tibetan Leaders

The Indian defense minister Rajnath Singh spoke to the government and revealed both armies decided to withdraw troops in stages. He added the pullback of both forces would be coordinated and checked to make sure both comply. The troops are leaving the disputed region to ease the tension for both nations that is needed.

Commanders of both India and China will meet once the border is demilitarized. Discussions to follow will to remove other military camps from the Ladakh frontier.

How tensions began and de-escalated

All the tension started at the high-altitude border in April; India charged that Chinese troops were spilling into the Indian side. This side is the high frontier on the Line of Actual Control, a de facto border. But China said it did not cross over and was in its territory.

On June 20, the tempers went high when India said 20 of its troopers died in the engagement. On the other, China had never revealed how many Chinese soldiers were killed on that day in hand to clashes. A first skirmish in the Galwan, Ladakh with no death until that occasion.

Cooler heads in Beijing and Delhi tried to prevail, but the diplomatic and military talks did not settle. This February, there was an agreement reached, and the first pullout for both nations. It should succeed, or more tension will be met later.

One Indian official stated that all troops to the north and south of Pangong Tso where the tension needed to be removed were camped out. De-escalation starts there, he pointed out, of all equipment and troops as well. Outlets have been showing pullback of all men and equipment of the PLA.

Related article: India's Commandos Ready to Face Martials Trained Chinese Army

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Industry Leader in Customizable Yard and Dock Management Solutions "Ive always been aware of the importance of our role. In my past experience, we are often overlooked and not called upon until there is already a problem to manage. At C3, our team is present during the entirety of large-scale client-facing projects; it makes a world of difference." Nataly Silva

In 2020, the Canadian company began the monumental task of transferring its entire global client base to a brand new HTML5 platform. The new platform showcases many new features - including a state-of-the-art Progressive Web Application (PWA) - that would require training and constant client support to ensure the smoothest possible transition.

As a Customer Success Manager for the last 20-years, Ive always been aware of the importance of our role. However, in my past experience, Ive seen that we are often overlooked and not called upon until there is already a problem to mitigate or manage. We are more than damage control agents; we are the bridge between the clients and the company we represent. At C3, the Customer Care team is present during the planning, execution and post-mortem of large-scale client-facing projects, and it truly makes a world of difference. - Nataly Silva, Customer Success Lead at C3 Solutions.

Nataly Silva, C3s Customer Success Lead since 2019, was at the forefront of this paper thanks to the leadership she portrayed throughout one of the most challenging projects the company has ever seen.

Click here to read, Rolling Out a Major Product Transition Across the Globe.

C3 Reservations, C3s Online Dock Scheduling System, streamlines the scheduling process by improving dock productivity, expanding visibility on scheduled appointments and measuring vendor compliance.

C3 Yard, C3s Web-based Yard Management Solution empowers yard managers by providing visibility on yard assets, optimizing the flow of trailers from gate to gate and automating yard driver task assignment.

About C3 Solutions

C3 Solutions is an information technology company specialized in yard management (YMS) and dock scheduling (DSS) systems. Since its founding in 2000, C3 has gained clients confidence worldwide and across many industries, including retail, grocery, distribution, manufacturing, and parcel post.

C3 is proud to continue providing paperless, automated, and touch-free business solutions to aid in the growing need for global environmental sustainability; and the overall health of our communities, clients, and employees.

Headquartered in Montreal (QC), Canada and privately owned, C3 is dedicated to developing, implementing and supporting the most complete yard management and dock scheduling products on the market today. http://www.c3solutions.com
[February 17, 2021] Microsoft DEM Revenue Grows by 17% Sequentially over Q2 as Martello Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2021 Results

40% of the Company's $4.6 million in total revenues in Q3 FY21 was generated by the Microsoft DEM business, demonstrating growing customer demand.

/NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION OR DISSEMINATION DIRECTLY, OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES./ OTTAWA, ON, Feb. 17, 2021 /CNW/ - Martello Technologies Group Inc., ("Martello" or the "Company") (TSXV:MTLO), a leading developer of enterprise digital experience monitoring ("DEM") solutions for thousands of customers around the world, today released financial results for the three months and nine months ended December 31, 2020. Martello software makes the user experience for cloud applications and services such as video conferencing and unified communications (UC) both reliable and productive. Most of Martello's revenue is derived from two market segments, UC performance analytics for Mitel customers, and DEM solutions primarily for Microsoft 365 users. Martello's DEM solution suite includes Microsoft user experience monitoring software (Gizmo) and digital experience analytics software (iQ), which combined, are defined herein as Martello's Microsoft DEM revenue. Martello's legacy product revenue is derived from its Live Maps and Domino products. "As Martello completed the integration of GSX, we saw growth in our Microsoft DEM business in the third quarter of fiscal 2021, and we continued to generate high margin recurring revenue", said John Proctor, President and CEO of Martello. "Our previously described focus on the growing market for Microsoft DEM solutions resulted in growth both in Microsoft users on our platform and Microsoft DEM revenue, compared to the second quarter of fiscal 2021. With more than 2 million Microsoft users relying upon Martello DEM in Q3 FY21 to stay productive whether at home or the office, we are making product investments to address the IT challenges of remote work. These investments, as well as those to enhance product scalability, are expected to create valuable competitive differentiators for Martello and access to new indirect sales channels for our DEM solutions." Q3 FY21 Highlights In Q3 FY21, Martello completed the integration of GSX and made progress on key DEM product innovation initiatives which are expected to expand the Company's addressable market and increase the number of Microsoft users on Martello's platform. At the end of Q3 FY21, there were 2.17 million Microsoft users on the Company's DEM platform.





Revenue of $4.63M was 61% higher in Q3 FY21 than the $2.88M reported for the same quarter in the prior year, and continued to diversify, with the following year over year segment performance:

was 61% higher in Q3 FY21 than the reported for the same quarter in the prior year, and continued to diversify, with the following year over year segment performance: The acquisition of GSX contributed $1.88M to the year-over-year increase, and 41% of total revenues (nil in Q3 FY20).

to the year-over-year increase, and 41% of total revenues (nil in Q3 FY20).

Mitel UC performance analytics revenue increased by 5% or $.10M , contributing 42% of total revenues (56% in Q3 FY20).

, contributing 42% of total revenues (56% in Q3 FY20).

IT Service Analytics revenue decreased by $.23M or 23%, contributing 17% of total revenues (30% in Q3 FY20). The decrease in this segment was due to the shift from perpetual to recurring revenue, and an expected revenue decline from the legacy product (Live Maps) in this segment.





or 23%, contributing 17% of total revenues (30% in Q3 FY20). The decrease in this segment was due to the shift from perpetual to recurring revenue, and an expected revenue decline from the legacy product (Live Maps) in this segment. Sequential results from Q2 FY21 to Q3 FY21 offer further insight into the trajectories of Martello's key DEM solutions and declining legacy product lines:

Microsoft DEM revenue grew by 17%, representing 40% of total revenue in the quarter (36% in Q2 FY21).



Legacy product line revenue declined by 16%, offsetting DEM growth. Legacy product revenue as a whole represented 17% of total revenue in Q3 FY21 (21% in Q2 FY21).





In Q3 FY21, monthly recurring revenue ("MRR") reached $1.49M , a 64% increase over Q3 FY20 MRR of $0.91M , excluding the discontinued NPM segment, and a 4.9% sequential increase compared to Q2 FY21. The year over year increase in MRR is due in part to the addition of acquired GSX revenues, which contributed $0.61M in MRR in Q3 FY21 as well as increased royalties from UC performance analytics. These increases were offset by reduced license and maintenance and support revenue primarily related to legacy products. MRR is a non-IFRS measure and represents average monthly recurring revenues earned in a fiscal quarter. The MRR measure offers insight into the predictability of Martello's current and future revenue streams.





, a 64% increase over Q3 FY20 MRR of , excluding the discontinued NPM segment, and a 4.9% sequential increase compared to Q2 FY21. The year over year increase in MRR is due in part to the addition of acquired GSX revenues, which contributed in MRR in Q3 FY21 as well as increased royalties from UC performance analytics. These increases were offset by reduced license and maintenance and support revenue primarily related to legacy products. MRR is a non-IFRS measure and represents average monthly recurring revenues earned in a fiscal quarter. The MRR measure offers insight into the predictability of Martello's current and future revenue streams. The recurring portion of total revenue was 96% in Q3 FY21, compared to 94% in Q3 FY20.





Gross margin remained strong and stable, decreasing slightly to 93% in Q3 FY21, compared to 94% in Q3 FY20.





Operating expenses increased by 53% or $1.89M to $5.45M in Q3 FY21, compared to $3.56M in Q3 FY20. The increase reflects $1.99M in GSX operating expenses, including $0.34M in amortization of intangibles (nil in FY20). Excluding the impact of GSX, operating expenses decreased by 3% between Q3 FY20 and Q3 FY21. This was due to decreases in Sales and Marketing and General and Administrative expenses, partially offset by an increase of $0.12M in Research and Development. Expense decreases resulted from the implementation of strategic cost reduction initiatives early in FY21, related to uncertainties around the COVID-19 pandemic.





to in Q3 FY21, compared to in Q3 FY20. The increase reflects in GSX operating expenses, including in amortization of intangibles (nil in FY20). Excluding the impact of GSX, operating expenses decreased by 3% between Q3 FY20 and Q3 FY21. This was due to decreases in Sales and Marketing and General and Administrative expenses, partially offset by an increase of in Research and Development. Expense decreases resulted from the implementation of strategic cost reduction initiatives early in FY21, related to uncertainties around the COVID-19 pandemic. Adjusted EBITDA (a non-IFRS measure) in Q3 FY21 was a loss of $0.26M , compared to a loss of $0.84M in the same period of FY20. The improvement in Adjusted EBITDA is due to the sale of the NPM segment in Q2 FY21 as well as the implementation of temporary measures related to COVID-19 risks, including reduced travel and event expenses and reduced salaries for a portion of the reporting period.





, compared to a loss of in the same period of FY20. The improvement in Adjusted EBITDA is due to the sale of the NPM segment in Q2 FY21 as well as the implementation of temporary measures related to COVID-19 risks, including reduced travel and event expenses and reduced salaries for a portion of the reporting period. Loss from operations increased by $0.29M to $1.13M compared to a loss of $0.84M in the same period of FY20. Amortization of GSX intangibles increased expenses, while revenue increased and was partially offset by other operating expenses related to GSX.





to compared to a loss of in the same period of FY20. Amortization of GSX intangibles increased expenses, while revenue increased and was partially offset by other operating expenses related to GSX. In addition to the items above, the Company incurred higher interest expense in Q3 FY21 as compared to Q3 FY20, due to a higher rate and balance on the term loan facility established earlier in FY21.





The Q3 FY21 net loss of $1.46M ( $0.01 per share) has increased from $1.33M in the same period in FY20 ( $0.00 per share) as a result of the items outlined above. In addition, Q3 FY20 included a loss from discontinued operations of $0.51M (nil in Q3 FY21).





( per share) has increased from in the same period in FY20 ( per share) as a result of the items outlined above. In addition, Q3 FY20 included a loss from discontinued operations of (nil in Q3 FY21). The Company divested the assets of the NPM segment in Q2 FY21. The results of the NPM segment are reported as discontinued operations for all periods presented in the financial statements, and herein, except where indicated.





Year-to-date total revenue increase by 48% to $12.36M compared to $8.34M for the same period in the previous year. Gross margins reported year-to-date were 94%, stable compared to gross margins of 94% reported for the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA year-to-date was a gain of $.24M compared to an adjusted EBITDA loss of $2.31M for the first three quarters of FY20.









compared to for the same period in the previous year. Gross margins reported year-to-date were 94%, stable compared to gross margins of 94% reported for the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA year-to-date was a gain of compared to an adjusted EBITDA loss of for the first three quarters of FY20. The Company's cash and short-term investments balance was $4.05M at December 31, 2020 , compared to $5.9M at March 31, 2020 . Although there is significant global economic uncertainty resulting from COVID-19 which may further impact operations, at this time the Company believes operations can be funded by available cash and other available funding sources. Outlook Martello's mission is to be a leading vendor in the enterprise DEM market, making every user's digital experience exceptional and productive. The Company's DEM solutions give IT teams actionable intelligence to proactively deliver a positive digital experience for users.

Martello had 2.17 million Microsoft users on its platform as of December 31, 2020. In Q2 FY21, the Company reached 2 million Microsoft users and is targeting to increase this number by 60% by the end of FY22. Having completed the integration of GSX in Q3 FY21, Martello is well positioned to accelerate Microsoft user growth in FY22. According to Gartner in a July 2020 report, more than 50% of enterprises using Microsoft 365 will use a third-party monitoring tool to manage the user experience by 2024, up from just 10% today. The report recognizes Martello among just three companies that provide this solution today with a focus on Microsoft 365. To drive this growth and support the initiatives outlined herein, Martello will continue to make the necessary investments in product development, customer success and indirect sales channel development. Product Development Martello recognizes that product innovation is important to the Company's successful growth in FY22 and beyond. Projects in development through Q3 FY21 were focused on improving the scalability and differentiation of Martello's DEM solution, to expand the Company's addressable market. Cloud-Based Multitenancy - The latest evolution of cloud-based multi-tenancy capabilities for Microsoft DEM will be available in Q2 FY22, unlocking the indirect channel of MSPs, and their small and medium sized enterprise clients. Multi-tenancy allows a Martello managed service provider ("MSP") to view and manage multiple customers from a single instance of Martello's software, rather than logging into multiple instances. As a result, Martello can onboard MSPs and their customers easily and cost-effectively in the future, to drive additional revenue growth in FY22 and beyond. Work from Anywhere Solutions (Real User Monitoring and End to End Network Path Visualization) - Recognizing the increasingly distributed nature of today's workforce, Martello's Microsoft DEM product program is focused on meeting the demands of the 'work from anywhere' digital workforce. By adding Real User Monitoring, expected to be released in Q2 FY22 and end-to end network visualization capabilities, expected to be released in Q1 FY22 to its DEM platform, IT teams can quickly pinpoint whether problems are related to the cloud provider, ISP, or the user's network. This allows for better IT support of remote workers. These new capabilities, when combined with Martello's existing synthetic monitoring and digital experience analytics, differentiate Martello's DEM platform from competitors' offerings. As more enterprises deal with the challenges of remote workers, the addition of these capabilities is expected to increase the number of Microsoft users on Martello's DEM platform and increase the average cost per user over time. Sales Activity Martello's DEM platform improves the Microsoft 365 user experience for its customers, with a set of solutions that combine acquired products (Gizmo, iQ) with new product capabilities developed organically. Martello's total addressable market for its DEM solution includes the more than 200 million global users of Microsoft 365, representing approximately a million enterprises worldwide (Statista, April 2020). Martello's sales strategy is focused on winning large enterprise sales deals, cross-selling and upselling its DEM solutions to its existing customer base and developing the Company's indirect sales network. In Q3 FY21, Martello announced the following enterprise sales deals: A global financial institution in Asia purchased a Gizmo subscription for more than 85,000 users, supporting their migration to Microsoft 365. This deal was won through a joint effort with Microsoft via their Co-Sell program.

purchased a Gizmo subscription for more than 85,000 users, supporting their migration to Microsoft 365. This deal was won through a joint effort with Microsoft via their Co-Sell program. A European mechanical engineering company renewed their subscription for 5,000 Microsoft 365 users and added 2,000 more users to a new two-year subscription.

One of the world's largest Microsoft partners signed a partnership deal with Martello earlier in the year, which resulted in the addition of almost 50,000 users in Q3 FY21 alone. Both Savision BV (Vantage Dx Analytics - IT Service Analytics) and GSX (Vantage Dx Monitoring  Microsoft 365) were acquired by Martello with certain products which support legacy third-party technology. As a result, Martello is seeing declines in these revenue streams with some customers migrating to Martello's newer software platforms on renewal. In Q3 FY21, this amounted to a 16% decline in this legacy revenue stream from the prior quarter. In the short-term, Martello's overall growth rates will continue to be partially offset by a decline in the revenue related to these legacy products. There are minimal expenses related to this revenue. Partnerships and Indirect Sales Channels Martello has developed indirect sales channels for its products and is focused on expanding its MSP network. Having onboarded one of Microsoft's largest MSPs in 2020, the Company is actively recruiting new MSPs for its Microsoft 365 DEM solution. As these new MSPs are onboarded, the Company expects meaningful growth in the number of Martello DEM users. Sales from the OEM relationship with Paessler have remained strong, with organizations from a broad range of industries such as healthcare, government and telecommunications choosing their unique large enterprise monitoring and analytics solution, in subscription deals from 1-3 years in length. Via the Microsoft Co-Sell program, the Company's Microsoft Gold partner status and other initiatives with Microsoft, Martello is further extending its reach across Microsoft globally. Martello's Co-Sell Prioritized status, provided to a select subset of Co-Sell vendors, entitles Martello to promote and showcase its solutions to millions of customers in Microsoft's commercial marketplace, access Microsoft marketing channels, and jointly sell innovative solutions to create valuable customer relationships. This provides greater access to Microsoft's enterprise, corporate and small and medium accounts, to grow Martello's partner and customer base and increase users on the Martello platform. The Company's relationship with Mitel remains strong, with activities focused on growing Mitel Performance Analytics (MPA) sales in several key Mitel offerings. Martello is also working on strategies to sell iQ and Gizmo to Mitel customers and partners. Many of Mitel's channel partners also provide Microsoft 365 to their customers and can benefit from Martello's single vendor solution that monitors the performance of a customer's unified communications and productivity tools, maintaining the reliability of both. The early DEM solution that Martello has delivered to thousands of Mitel customer networks globally since 2010 has given Martello in-depth knowledge of and insight into managing the performance and user experience of real-time cloud services. This has provided the Company with a competitive advantage as it pursues its goal of DEM market leadership. Conference Call Details Martello will host a conference call with John Proctor, President & CEO and Erin Crowe, CFO at 8:00 AM Eastern Time on Thursday, February 18, 2021. Canada/USA Toll Free: 1-800-319-4610

International Toll: +1-604-638-5340 Callers should dial in 5  10 min prior to the scheduled start time and simply ask to join the Martello call. An audio recording of the call will be available on February 18, 2021 at https://martellotech.investorroom.com/quarterly-results. The financial statements, notes and Management Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A") are available under the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com , and on Martello's website at www.martellotech.com . The financial statements include the wholly-owned subsidiaries of Martello. All amounts are reported in Canadian dollars. Three institutional investment firms provide research coverage of Martello. The Company does not endorse the research of third-party institutions. Upcoming Activities The second issue of Martello's quarterly Investor Newsletter will be sent to subscribers in March 2021. To join the mailing list, complete the Subscribe form on Martello's website. About Martello Technologies Group Martello Technologies Group Inc. (TSXV: MTLO) is a technology company that provides digital experience monitoring (DEM) solutions. The company's products provide monitoring and analytics on the performance and user experience of critical cloud business applications, while giving IT teams and service providers control and visibility of their entire IT infrastructure. Martello's software products include Microsoft 365 end user experience monitoring, unified communications performance analytics, and IT service analytics. Martello is a public company headquartered in Ottawa, Canada with employees in Europe, North America and the Asia Pacific region. Learn more at http://www.martellotech.com This press release does not constitute an offer of the securities of the Company for sale in the United States. The securities of the Company have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, (the "1933 Act") as amended, and may not be offered or sold within the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration under the 1933 Act. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking statements". Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as: "anticipate," "intend," "plan," "goal," "seek," "believe," "project," "estimate," "expect," "strategy," "future," "likely," "may," "should," "will" and similar references to future periods. Examples of forward-looking information contained in this news release include, among others, statements with respect to accelerating user growth by providing performance and user experience monitoring; and the expectation to increase the number of Microsoft end users by 60% during fiscal 2022. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on our current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of our business, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control. Our actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, the following: Continued volatility in the capital or credit markets.

Our ability to maintain our current credit rating and the impact on our funding costs and competitive position if we do not do so.

Changes in customer demand.

Disruptions to our technology network including computer systems and software, as well as natural events such as severe weather, fires, floods and earthquakes or man-made or other disruptions of our operating systems, structures or equipment.

Delayed purchase timelines and disruptions to customer budgets, as well as Martello's ability to maintain business continuity as a result of COVID-19.

and other risks disclosed in the Company's filings with Canadian Securities Regulators, including the Company's annual information form for the year ended March 31, 2020 dated December 24, 2020 , which is available on the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking statement made by us in this news release is based only on information currently available to us and speaks only as of the date on which it is made. Except as required by applicable securities laws, we undertake no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. SOURCE Martello Technologies Group

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The UK's training mission to Ukraine, Operation ORBITAL, has proposed that Ukrainian sailors train on Royal Navy ships, the Ukrainian Navy's press service has reported on Facebook.

"In Odesa, during a coordination meeting between representatives of the Ukrainian Navy and the headquarters of the ORBITAL mission, members of the ORBITAL mission, the proposal was made to conduct training of boat crews and inspection teams of the national fleet on Royal Navy ships this year," the report reads.

The parties discussed the expansion of training, instruction and mentoring for instructors of the 198th Navy Training Center, Diver School, Marine School and the training of the flight crew of the Marine Aviation Brigade as part of the UK's military training mission to Ukraine.

Denmark, Sweden, Canada, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are due to join the UK's training mission in 2021.

Operation ORBITAL was established in 2015 following Russia's occupation of Crimea and in a demonstration of the UK's unwavering support to Ukraine.

This year the Ukrainian Armed Forces plan to take part in 22 multinational exercises, including eight exercises in Ukraine and 14 exercises abroad.

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry is working with partners to improve the skills of Ukrainian servicemen in such military training missions as JMTG-U (Joint Multinational Training Group - Ukraine), ORBITAL (the UK's training mission to Ukraine), UNIFIER (the Canadian Armed Forces' training mission) and LMTG-U (the Lithuanian Armed Forces' training mission).

Photo credit: Ukrainian Navy
A group of 24 foreign envoys, who are on a two-day visit to the Union Territory, will visit Jammu on the second day of their tour on Thursday.

The Delegation of diplomats from foreign missions, including the European Union will be briefed by Army and Police in Srinagar today, after which the group of envoys will call on the Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir High Court, in Jammu.

They will also attend a lunch hosted by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. The diplomats are also scheduled to meet civil society representatives today.

On the first day of their visit to the Union Territory, the 24-member delegation of foreign diplomats had interacted with representatives of civil society and the government in Srinagar.

There was a consensus among foreign envoys of 24 countries who are on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir that there were free and fair elections in the Union Territory, which is the biggest attestation to the empowerment of democracy, said Srinagar Municipal Corporation Mayor Junaid Mattu.

"The visiting dignitaries were apprised of the landmark elections of DDC and urban local bodies. They wanted to know the ground realities. Elected representatives from all political opinions and parties participated. The key issue discussed was the decentralisation of power and planning and empowerment of the grassroots representatives," he said.

Foreign diplomats from Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Malaysia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and the European Union are on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir.

The latest visit of foreign envoys comes in the backdrop of District Development Council polls, which saw huge participation and restoration of 4G mobile internet in the entire region after 18 months, which many see as a return of full normalcy in the Union Territory.

This is the first visit by foreign diplomats to Jammu and Kashmir since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two batches of foreign diplomats had earlier visited Jammu and Kashmir in January and February last year after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

(ANI)

Also Read: J-K: Foreign diplomats receive traditional welcome in Budgam
The celebration of the Chinese New Year remains a difficult time for Christians in China, particularly for those who are in prison and cannot be with their families and those whose loved ones have gone missing.

Chinese New Year is usually a time for families to gather. However, while everyone else took part in the Chinese New Year celebrations, which began on February 12, many Christians in China are not able to join the festivities. On the other hand, the holiday is a tough time for them, according to persecution watchdog International Christian Concern.

During this season, believers who have been incarcerated for their faith remember that they cannot be with their families and loved ones. Other believers remember their loved ones who have gone missing, presumably taken by the authorities, and who they haven't heard from in a long time.

Some of the incarcerated Christians who spent the Lunar New Year away from their homes include ERCC Pastor Wang Yi, Qin Derfu, Pastor Zhang Shaojie, Pastor John Cao, Hu Shigen, and Christian activists Gao Zhisheng and Zhang Zhan.

Pastor John Cao was taken into custody for trumped-up charges for his work in the Wa state of Myanmar. His mother wrote him a poem, which captures the pain of the Christians in China who have been separated from their loved ones. She wrote,

"The sense of New Year is thick, but so are my tears I have not heard my filial son's call for his mother He is chained and does not have freedom But God must watch over him."

For ERCC members, the authorities' harassment continues even in the midst of the Chinese New Year festivities. One ERCC member, Chen Yan, said a man followed her around when she went out on Feb. 11, according to a separate report from the International Christian Concern.

Another ERCC member, Jia Xuewei, returned home on Feb. 12 to find that the keyhole of his door knob was filled with toothpicks so that he could not insert his key, making it difficult for him to enter his house, China Aid reports.

Jia Xuewei had been previously targeted by the CCP. In October 2020, authorities had shut off his utilities, a tactic they often use to force Christians out of their homes. To get by, Jia Xuewei taught himself to adapt wilderness survival skills in his own home, using candles for light, eating cold meals, and taking cold showers.

During the colder months, other ERCC members welcomed him into their homes, fed him hot meals, and gave him a warm place to sleep and access to hot showers.

Authorities have targeted ERCC since 2018. From that time on, the church leaders and members have been continually harassed with no letup, even during the Lunar New Year, the most important holiday in China.

Early this year, police officers and government officials conducted a raid on a homeschool being run by ERCC. The church's pastor, Wang Yi, was sentenced to nine years in prison for "subversion of state power" and "illegal business operations" in 2019. He was previously being held at Chengdu Detention Center but was transferred to an unknown location last year.
Starmer is facing questions about why Labour remains below the Conservatives in the polls

He plans to model himself on former Labour PM Clement Attlee, who defeated Winston Churchill in the general election held following the Second World War

The Labour leader will address claims he is not up to the job of prime minister in a major speech today setting out his vision for the country

Sir Keir Starmer will attempt to style himself as the new Clement Attlee today by vowing to rebuild Britain after the pandemic.

The Labour leader will address claims he is not up to the job of prime minister in a major speech setting out his vision for the country.

He plans to model himself on former Labour PM Mr Attlee, who defeated Winston Churchill in the general election held following the Second World War.

Sir Keir will describe next month's Budget as a fork in the road, and say: 'This must now be a moment to think again about the country that we want to be. A call to arms  like the Beveridge Report was in the 1940s.'

The Beveridge Report paved the way for Mr Attlee's government to create the welfare state and the NHS.

Labour leader Keir Starmer will address claims he is not up to the job of prime minister in a major speech today setting out his vision for the country

Sir Keir will say there is 'a chance to diagnose the condition of Britain and to start the process of putting it right,' adding: 'That's the path I would take in the March Budget. To begin a new chapter in the history for our country.'

In another reference to Mr Attlee's administration, he will say: 'The age in which Government did little but collect and distribute revenue is over.

'I believe people are now looking for more from their Government  like they were after the Second World War.'

Starmer plans to model himself on former Labour PM Clement Attlee (pictured), who defeated Winston Churchill in the general election held following the Second World War

Sir Keir is facing questions about why Labour remains below the Conservatives in the polls. And last night his 'reset' speech was dismissed as not radical enough by the Left-wing of his party.

Andrew Scattergood, co-chairman of the pro-Jeremy Corbyn Momentum group, said it had 'no ambition, little substance'.

He added: 'We can't win in 2024 by promising to be better managers of the same system.'

Sir Keir, the former Director of Public Prosecutions, was expected to bring his experience as a lawyer to forensically cross-examine Boris Johnson in the Commons.

But earlier this month he was humiliated by having to admit he had made a mistake at Prime Minister's Questions.
February 18 : Shahid Kapoor and South actress Raashi Khanna are shooting in Goa for their forthcoming web series, directed by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK of Go Goa Gone fame. The team, it seems, has a lot of fun on the sets.

Over the past few weeks, a trend called 'Pawri Ho Rahi Hai' is creating a lot of buzz on social media. The trend has been started by an influencer, and netizens as well as Bollywood celebs are caught in the funny trend. They are sharing funny videos of the same on social media. The latest Bollywood actor to join the bandwagon is Shahid Kapoor.

The Kabir Singh actor took to his Instagram profile and shared a hilarious video today. He is seen taking on the Pawri trend ahead along with Raashi, Raj, and DK. Shahid took it to a level higher as he gave a hilarious Akshay Kumar twist to it. #fakers faking feku .... better words were never said, the actor captioned the post.

In the behind-the-scenes video, Shahid can be seen chilling on the sets with the cast and crew. The actor along with Raashi, Raj and DK can be seen recreating the 'Pawri Ho Rahi Hai' trend in a hilarious manner. Shahid makes it even funnier as he sings Akshay and YoYo Honey Singh's song, Party All Night in between, and instead of saying party, Shahid is seen saying 'Pawri' as he makes funny gestures while keeping up with the trend. As soon as the video was posted, fans went berserk and started commenting with laughter emoticons on the comment section, making the video viral.

Raashi also shared the same video on her Instagram handle and wrote, We are such hard workers..There are none like us!

With the web series, reportedly called Gavar as a tentative title, Shahid will debut in the digital space. The web series also stars Vijay Sethupathi in an integral role. The action thriller will be premiered on Amazon Prime as its original. Shahid will also be seen in Jersey, which also stars Mrunal Thakur and Pankaj Kapur. The film will be released on November 5, 2021.
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Chinese steelmakers looking to replenish steel scrap stocks after returning from their new year holiday on Thursday February 18 have raised bid prices for both domestic and imported material, sources told Fastmarkets.

On the first day back after the holiday, a Shandong mill raised its tender for heavy scrap by 50 yuan per tonne on Thursday to 3,050 ($472) yuan per tonne delivered, excluding value-added tax, a trader in eastern China said.



Chinese bid prices for bulk imports of heavy recycled material (HS) supplied from Japan also increased on Thursday.



Fastmarkets daily price assessment for steel scrap, heavy recycled steel materials, cfr China was $465-470 per tonne on Thursday, up $5 per tonne from the previous assessment on February 10 - prior to the Chinese New Year break - of $460-465 per tonne cfr.



Two Chinese mill sources said that bids for Japanese HS were at $450-460 per tonne cfr China on Wednesday, but trading sources said that buyers would be willing to go up to $465-470 per tonne cfr.



The previous deals heard into China before the new year break were for HS material from South Korea at $460-465 per tonne cfr.



A Japanese scrapyard source said the bid price from China was "aggressive" given it is higher than the fresh bid price given by South Korea, where a large steelmaker launched a public tender for Japan HS at 44,500 ($420) per tonne fob on Tuesday. That would work out to around $435-440 per tonne cfr after adding freight costs.



Although bids from China have increased, Japanese offer prices have increased even more sharply in recent days.



Offers from Japan were heard at $490 per tonne cfr on Thursday, but many sellers are unwilling to name a price currently given the rising steel scrap markets across Asia.



We have received very few offers from Japanese suppliers - they are watching to see how the market changes, a trader in Japan said.

And while some Chinese mills raised their bids to replenish inventories, there was also some trepidation on the Chinese buyer side.



People are watching Chinas domestic changes, so no price negotiations [are likely to] take place [on Thursday], an steelmaker source in eastern China told Fastmarkets.



The Chinese steel markets, meanwhile, were buoyed on Thursday by the release of positive financial data, with the futures market and physical steel prices both pushing higher.



Fastmarkets' price assessment for steel reinforcing bar (rebar) domestic, ex-whs eastern China was 4,450-4,480 yuan ($688-693) per tonne on Thursday, up by 170-180 per tonne from February 5.

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KANSAS CITY, MO--Researchers at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, in collaboration with colleagues at Stanford University and Technical University of Munich have developed advanced explainable artificial intelligence (AI) in a technical tour de force to decipher regulatory instructions encoded in DNA. In a report published online February 18, 2021, in Nature Genetics, the team found that a neural network trained on high-resolution maps of protein-DNA interactions can uncover subtle DNA sequence patterns throughout the genome and provide a deeper understanding of how these sequences are organized to regulate genes.

Neural networks are powerful AI models that can learn complex patterns from diverse types of data such as images, speech signals, or text to predict associated properties with impressive high accuracy. However, many see these models as uninterpretable since the learned predictive patterns are hard to extract from the model. This black-box nature has hindered the wide application of neural networks to biology, where interpretation of predictive patterns is paramount.

One of the big unsolved problems in biology is the genome's second code--its regulatory code. DNA bases (commonly represented by letters A, C, G, and T) encode not only the instructions for how to build proteins, but also when and where to make these proteins in an organism. The regulatory code is read by proteins called transcription factors that bind to short stretches of DNA called motifs. However, how particular combinations and arrangements of motifs specify regulatory activity is an extremely complex problem that has been hard to pin down.

Now, an interdisciplinary team of biologists and computational researchers led by Stowers Investigator Julia Zeitlinger, PhD, and Anshul Kundaje, PhD, from Stanford University, have designed a neural network--named BPNet for Base Pair Network--that can be interpreted to reveal regulatory code by predicting transcription factor binding from DNA sequences with unprecedented accuracy. The key was to perform transcription factor-DNA binding experiments and computational modeling at the highest possible resolution, down to the level of individual DNA bases. This increased resolution allowed them to develop new interpretation tools to extract the key elemental sequence patterns such as transcription factor binding motifs and the combinatorial rules by which motifs function together as a regulatory code.

"This was extremely satisfying," says Zeitlinger, "as the results fit beautifully with existing experimental results, and also revealed novel insights that surprised us."

For example, the neural network models enabled the researchers to discover a striking rule that governs binding of the well-studied transcription factor called Nanog. They found that Nanog binds cooperatively to DNA when multiples of its motif are present in a periodic fashion such that they appear on the same side of the spiraling DNA helix.

"There has been a long trail of experimental evidence that such motif periodicity sometimes exists in the regulatory code," Zeitlinger says. "However, the exact circumstances were elusive, and Nanog had not been a suspect. Discovering that Nanog has such a pattern, and seeing additional details of its interactions, was surprising because we did not specifically search for this pattern."

"This is the key advantage of using neural networks for this task," says ?iga Avsec, PhD, first author of the paper. Avsec and Kundaje created the first version of the model when Avsec visited Stanford during his doctoral studies in the lab of Julien Gagneur, PhD, at the Technical University in Munich, Germany.

"More traditional bioinformatics approaches model data using pre-defined rigid rules that are based on existing knowledge. However, biology is extremely rich and complicated," says Avsec. "By using neural networks, we can train much more flexible and nuanced models that learn complex patterns from scratch without previous knowledge, thereby allowing novel discoveries."

BPNet's network architecture is similar to that of neural networks used for facial recognition in images. For instance, the neural network first detects edges in the pixels, then learns how edges form facial elements like the eye, nose, or mouth, and finally detects how facial elements together form a face. Instead of learning from pixels, BPNet learns from the raw DNA sequence and learns to detect sequence motifs and eventually the higher-order rules by which the elements predict the base-resolution binding data.

Once the model is trained to be highly accurate, the learned patterns are extracted with interpretation tools. The output signal is traced back to the input sequences to reveal sequence motifs. The final step is to use the model as an oracle and systematically query it with specific DNA sequence designs, similar to what one would do to test hypotheses experimentally, to reveal the rules by which sequence motifs function in a combinatorial manner.

"The beauty is that the model can predict way more sequence designs that we could test experimentally," Zeitlinger says. "Furthermore, by predicting the outcome of experimental perturbations, we can identify the experiments that are most informative to validate the model." Indeed, with the help of CRISPR gene editing techniques, the researchers confirmed experimentally that the model's predictions were highly accurate.

Since the approach is flexible and applicable to a variety of different data types and cell types, it promises to lead to a rapidly growing understanding of the regulatory code and how genetic variation impacts gene regulation. Both the Zeitlinger Lab and the Kundaje Lab are already using BPNet to reliably identify binding motifs for other cell types, relate motifs to biophysical parameters, and learn other structural features in the genome such as those associated with DNA packaging. To enable other scientists to use BPNet and adapt it for their own needs, the researchers have made the entire software framework available with documentation and tutorials.

###

Other contributors to the study included Melanie Weilert, Sabrina Krueger, PhD, Khyati Dalal, Robin Fropf, PhD, and Charles McAnany, PhD, from Stowers; and Avanti Shrikumar, PhD, and Amr Alexandari from Stanford University.

This work was supported in part by the Stowers Institute for Medical Research and the National Human Genome Research Institute (awards R01HG009674 and U01HG009431 to A.K. and R01HG010211 to J.Z.) and National Institute of General Medical Sciences (DP2GM123485 to A.K.) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Additional support included the German Bundesministerium fur Bildung und Forschung (project MechML 01IS18053F to Z.A.) and a Stanford BioX Fellowship and Howard Hughes Medical Institute International Student Research Fellowship (to A.S). Sequencing was performed at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research and University of Kansas Medical Center Genomics Core supported by the NIH awards from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (U54HD090216), Office of the Director (Instrumentation S10OD021743), and National Institute of General Medical Sciences (COBRE P30GM122731). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

Lay Summary of Findings

DNA is well known for encoding proteins. It also contains another code--a regulatory code--that directs when and where to make proteins in an organism. In a report published online February 18, 2021, in Nature Genetics, researchers from the lab of Julia Zeitlinger, PhD, an Investigator at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research, and collaborators from Stanford University and Technical University of Munich describe how they have used explainable artificial intelligence to help decipher the genome's regulatory code.

The researchers developed a neural network whose innerworkings can be uncovered to reveal regulatory DNA sequence patterns and their higher-level organizing principles from high-resolution genomics data. The Zeitlinger Lab anticipates that the predictive models, rules, and maps generated using this type of approach will lead to a better understanding of natural and disease-associated genetic variation in regulatory regions of DNA.

About the Stowers Institute for Medical Research

Founded in 1994 through the generosity of Jim Stowers, founder of American Century Investments, and his wife, Virginia, the Stowers Institute for Medical Research is a non-profit, biomedical research organization with a focus on foundational research. Its mission is to expand our understanding of the secrets of life and improve life's quality through innovative approaches to the causes, treatment, and prevention of diseases.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of Wahkiakum VFW Post No. 5297, whose charter was signed on January 7, 1946, after young servicemen, who had returned to the community from foreign locales after World War II decided to form a local branch of the VFW, or Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S.

Cathlamet resident Tom Irving, who is 98, was one of the charter members.

People wonder why there were so many of us, Irving said. We had people that worked down at the lumber mill and at the box factory, where they made cheese boxes.

He remembers the boys from Puget Island who went in the Navy because theyd grown up working on fishing boats with their fathers and the young men who arrived in Wahkiakum County after the war, thanks to Franklin Delano Roosevelts Civilian Conservation Corps.

Irving doesnt remember exactly who it was, but the fellows of Wahkiakum decided a young ensign who had attended a reserve officer training program at the University of Washington would be responsible for the formation of their local chapter.

In the evening we would get together to have the meetings. We would reminisce and have a tall glass, Irving said. It was sociable. The guys in the Navy wanted to get the salt out of their mind, and the guys that served in the Army wanted to get the jungle out of theirs.

We would sit and talk, Irving continued. Some serviceman might have had an experience, but hed be quiet. He wouldnt say nothing. But the next couple of months, boy, hed tell a little bit. It was an out.

A bit of healing perhaps, surrounded by other men who knew and understood something that other friends and family could not.

While the meeting might be held once a month, there was always a chance members might run into a buddy at one of the local watering holes where they held their meetings in Cathlamet, like the Wiseway Tavern or Jims Cafe, or even Silvermans in Skamokawa.

The Wiseway Tavern is where Marias is today, according to Irving. Jims Cafe was in what is now referred to as the Saloon.

We always talked about it, but we didnt have the funds to build a hall, Irving said.

Irving graduated from Wahkiakum High School in 1941. He was drafted, but his work on his fathers dairy farm was deemed necessary, and an uncle, who was on the draft board, was able to secure him two deferments.

One day, his uncle showed up at the farm and said, I cant defer Tom any more. Hes got to go.

For awhile, Irving worked in a logging camp in Alaska, harvesting spruce.

That kind of went out the window, Irving said. My brother had been at Washington State College, and he had three semesters in. They put him in 1A, and he decided it was time to get out of here. He didnt want to go into the service. He went to Alaska and went to work for the U.S. Navy. They were building a big Naval Base in Kodiak at the time. He went up there and got a job as a timekeeper.

Irving followed him there, and worked with a crew collecting garbage.

In 1943, he joined the Army's Sixth Infantry Division.

I was inducted in Fort Lewis, and they sent me to Fort Riley in Kansas, which was a horse cavalry at the time, Irving said. They thought I was a farm boy, so Id make a good stable boy. While I was there, they abandoned the horses and went to mechanization.

So Irving learned to drive all manner of vehicles, like jeeps, armored cars, trucks, and half-tracks. He learned everything about them, but not how to fix them. They had mechanics for that.

Irving had always assumed that this part of the midwest was flat, but hell never forget doing night maneuvers in the hills of Kansas.

They always put the jeeps behind and the big trucks up ahead, Irving said. You didnt have any lights except for the small single ones on the back of each vehicle. You had to keep those in your sights or youd get lost. Those trucks would come to a hill and they could hardly move, but boy when they got to the top of the hill in that wheat country, down the other side theyd go, and the poor guys in those jeeps would get lost some of the time.

After training, he went home for a couple weeks before reporting to Ford Ord, California. He and the other troops were sent to Angel Island, in the San Francisco Bay, where they were given a series of vaccinations.

We got on the ferry and headed back to San Francisco, Irving said. The troop ship was on one side of the dock and the trains were on the other side. One guy said, Oh were going to be stationed in the states! The USO was there playing patriotic music, and we got off that ferry boat, and walked across the dock onto that troop transport.

About 5,000 troops were loaded onto that old passenger liner. It took them 31 days to travel from San Francisco to Australia.

From there, they went to New Guinea to try and take back the high positions established by the Japanese.

After that he went to Luzon as part of General Douglas MacArthurs return to the Philippines.

We had six men in an armored car, and a jeep in front with two men and a jeep behind with two men, Irving said. We had a 37 millimeter cannon. We were the reconnaissance for three infantry divisions on the march to Manilla. The Japanese had destroyed the highway and we had to go out through the rice paddies, and reconnect to the highway. We had to make a new path.

They traveled all the way from Lingayen Gulf to Manilla.

The next big jump, Irving said, was supposed to be Tokyo, but instead they went to Korea. To this day, he wonders why.

When he came home, it was back to work on his fathers farm. Eventually, he and his wife, Cora, who were married for 72 years, purchased their own dairy farm on Puget Island, where they raised three children.

Irving is still active with the VFW. Recently he shared his wartime experience with students at Wahkiakum High School during their Veterans Day Assembly. While the VFW has become less of a social experience for him, hes grateful to the VFW and the access to information about a myriad of issues, including veterans benefits.
Filmmaker Iwai Shunji / Courtesy of Media Castle





By Kwak Yeon-soo







Japanese filmmaker Iwai Shunji, who is best known among Korean cineastes for his hit 1995 melodrama "Love Letter," is returning with another sentimental film that tells a story through letters. Letters have been a fixture in his films, adding an element of narrative and inducing a retro feeling that blends well with his nostalgic plots.







"Back in my school days, it was common to exchange letters with friends and express one's feelings through love letters. In my mid-20s, I thought that someday I would tell a tale about the beauty of written words. I wanted to portray letters as something special, not simply an element that brings back old memories," Iwai said during an online press conference with Korean reporters, Wednesday.







"We now live in an era of social media, where we talk to or join conversations with complete strangers. Just like the evolution of social media has been fueled by human will to communicate with others, I think letters are a symbol of history. They still carry a certain allure even to this day because we pour our hearts into them."







When her sister Misaki dies, Yuri (Matsu Takako) goes to her high school reunion to tell friends the heartbreaking news. However, she is mistaken as her sister and decides not to correct them. There, she meets novelist Kyoshiro (Fukuyama Masaharu), a senior she had a crush on back in high school. But he was in love with Misaki, and is still in love with her. After the reunion, the two begin exchanging letters, with Yuri continuing to impersonate Misaki.







Then, one of Kyoshiro's letters is sent to Misaki's parents' house and later into the hands of the deceased's daughter Ayumi (Hirose Suzu) and Yuri's daughter Soyoka (Mori Nana), who is staying with her cousin over the summer break. The girls write back, also pretending to be Misaki. The scenes begin to switch between the past and present, with Hirose and Mori playing the younger versions of their characters' mothers.







A scene from "Last Letter" / Courtesy of Media Castle





Iwai revealed that the film's starting point was filming "Chang-ok's Letter" (2017), another tale that centers on the beauty of exchanging letters. It was filmed in Korea and starred Bae Doo-na.







"Chang-ok's Letter was a short film, but I extended the storyline and added more elements to recreate a new story which became the motif of Last Letter. It's fun to make a two-hour film, but also rewarding to recreate my original stories. For instance, I really liked turning my 2014 romance drama Hana and Alice into the animated version The Case of Hana & Alice with a little plot twist," he said.







On reuniting with "Love Letter" stars Nakayama Miho and Toyokawa Etsushi after more than two decades, he said "It was nice to finally work with them again after such a long time. Back in 1995, I thought we could meet again very soon, but later realized that casting and scheduling don't always work the way I want them to. After shooting, Nakayama Miho told me that she wants to do more projects with me. I hope so too."







Asked if the massive success of "Love Letter" holds him back from making films, he said "Not at all. I made Love Letter with a comfortable state of mind, but it unexpectedly received so much love from Asia including countries like Korea and China. Actually, the success gave me a lot of strength to carry on as a filmmaker. I think I'm really lucky that my first feature film was so successful and popular with Asian audiences."







"Last Letter" will hit local theaters, Feb. 24.







A yoga instructor forced to spend nearly a year running classes from the tight confines of her narrowboat home has seen her businesss video sessions attract students from around the world.

People in the United States, Australia, New Zealand and across Europe have tuned in to follow Harriet McAtee, who broadcasts from her floating residence on the River Thames in Oxford, and her colleagues.

The 30-year-old Australian initially saw her income plummet as the coronavirus pandemic plunged the country into its first lockdown last year, but she quickly adapted by moving her work online.

She took over a charitys yoga teacher training business in April and has since seen it grab the attention of yoga enthusiasts thousands of miles away.

Harriet performs a Utthita Parsvakonasana pose (Victoria Jones/PA)

We can sometimes be in a session and weve got nearly every time zone covered I never thought that would happen, Ms McAtee said.

She added: I ran a class end of last year and there was a student in Australia who was getting up at 3.30 in the morning.

Getting ready for an online class involves regular rearranging of furniture on board her 72ft-long narrowboat, while yoga poses are adapted to accommodate the limited space.

Ms McAtee explained: The narrowboat is 6ft wide and I am 6ft tall. When I extend my arms out I can touch the wall and the window. So I cant extend my arms fully.

The ceiling is 63 so I cant lift my arms up above my head. So theres a little bit of movie magic that happens when Im broadcasting on Zoom to get my whole body in the frame.

So its tight, but Ive adapted and I make light of it when Im teaching on Zoom.

I think my students really like that I live and teach on a narrowboat, its a bit different.

Harriet performs an Anjali Mudra pose during a class (Victoria Jones/PA)

Originally from Brisbane, Ms McAtee has lived in the UK for five years, and leads Nourish Yoga Trainings team of six who deliver classes for students and teachers to an average of 10 people a day.

She emphasised their approach to yoga draws on a bit of everything and their focus on inclusivity allows them to work with pregnant women, those with mental health conditions or people who might find mainstream yoga challenging.

Ms McAtee said: This is a time when everybody is stuck at home and its nice to feel like youre doing something and connecting with people, theres a real sense of community, which I think people really need.

When life one day returns to normal she said she looks forward to being in the same room as students again.

Online learning is different she admits, even though it still brings lots of benefits, with things like touching, chanting or hearing breath not the same over Zoom.

The pandemic and its accompanying restrictions have been really tough for yoga teachers, Ms McAtee said, with studios closing.

The first lockdown saw her own income halve overnight, with her admitting it was pretty stressful to get her business up and running online.

Harriet said the response from students had been heartwarming (Victoria Jones/PA)

Praising her team, she said the heartwarming response from students had inspired her.

When its been the deepest darkest days of lockdown and motivation has been low, I touch back into how incredible the community of people that I get to work with is and thats always a source of inspiration, she said.

Life under lockdown on her narrowboat, a former floating restaurant, has at times been tough, but Ms McAtee has been able to spend time with a support bubble.

Busy towpaths at a previous mooring made social-distancing challenging, and she misses her amazing collection of friends and interacting with her students.

But she added: I wouldnt want to be anywhere else other than my boat during lockdown. Its such a great way to live, its such a good lifestyle.

Yeah, it can be a bit cold in winter, and the mud is annoying, but to be able to look out my window onto the river and into nature is pretty incomparable.
Politicians from Derry and the wider north west region today held a virtual meeting with Taoiseach Micheal Martin to discuss development plans for the area.

Mr Martin met members of the North West Strategic Growth Partnership and North West Regional Development Group.

The virtual meeting took place at the invitation of councillors of the North West Regional Development Group, in the context of an ongoing collaborative approach by Derry City and Strabane District Council and Donegal County Council.

The meeting was attended by Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District Council and Co-Chair of the NWSGP, Cllr Brian Tierney, An Cathaoirleach of Donegal County Council and Co-Chair of the NWSGP, Cllr Rena Donaghey; the Chair and Vice Chair of the North West Regional Development Group, Cllr Sandra Duffy (Derry City and Strabane District Council) and Cllr Ciaran Brogan (Donegal County Council), as well as the Chief Executives of Derry City and Strabane District Council and Donegal County Council, John Kelpie and John McLaughlin, along with senior Government and Council officials.

The purpose of the virtual meeting was to directly discuss with the Irish government a range of updated regional priorities for the region.

Mayor Tierney said the meeting was hugely important.

The meeting allowed us to showcase their success to date in working collaboratively to resource and co-ordinate activities to release the full potential of the region as a net contributor to the economy of both jurisdictions and the important role they play in allowing for thematic working and investment.

We were delighted today to get an opportunity to outline to the Taoiseach the really positive work that is going on in this region at the minute and the important role the Irish Government plays in facilitating this and that we are keen for that relationship to continue and develop further.

Cllr Duffy, Chair of the North West Regional Development Group, said a key focus of the meeting was the emphasis on the existing shared objectives and partnership working arrangements already in place between the two jurisdictions.

She said: We emphasised to the Taoiseach that in everything we do there is collaboration on a cross regional basis.

Whether it is in education, business or tourism, the two Councils and Government are working collaboratively to ensure what we achieve is sustainable and brings benefits and opportunity to everyone.


Mumbai, Feb 18 : Bollywood actress Sunny Leone has shared some words of wisdom along with a clip she shared on social media.

On Thursday, Sunny posted a slow-mo video on Instagram. In the clip, Sunny is seen dressed in a mustard jumpsuit and is posing for the camera as she slowly falls into the pool.

She wrote alongside the picture: "Poise is important even when you are falling down." Currently Sunny is in Kerala shooting for MTV's youth based reality show Splittsvilla.

Last month, she kickstarted the first schedule of her first fictional web show Anamika in the city. The series is billed as a 'gun-fu' action thriller directed by Vikram Bhatt.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of former Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif, has asked Prime Minister Imran Khan to speak to the relatives of the missing Baloch people who are protesting in Islamabad against forced abduction, torture, and harassment. Maryam Nawaz said that the republic of Pakistan has placed Imran Khan in power and now, it is his duty to listen to these people.

Maryam's fierce attack on Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan came amid the growing atrocities against the minority communities of Pakistan. The protest is being held in Islamabad in a bid to highlight the plight of minority communities in the illegally occupied regions of Pakistan. Pakistan's Inhuman atrocities in Balochistan are never exposed as there is a total media blackout. Voice for Baloch Missing Persons or VBMP's peaceful protest camp has been going on in Quetta.

Protest in Pakistan's Islamabad

Enforced disappearances have been used as a tool by the Pakistani state to silence the oppressed people of Balochistan. Enforced disappearances have been a long stain on Pakistan's human rights record. Hundreds of political leaders, activists, Engineers, doctors, lawyers are missing in Balochistan for years. Baloch nation is facing the worst Human rights abuses by Pakistani forces and agencies in this modern era, where a plethora of human rights organisations exist.

Also Read: Pakistan Health Infra Inadequate: MHA Denies Pilgrims Nod For Saka Nankana Sahib Centenary

Also Read: Pakistan Likely To Remain On FATF's 'grey List' Until June, Plenary Meetings From Feb 21

According to a report released by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, there has been an increase in cases of Baloch women being targeted by security forces. Human rights observers have noted that the absence of explicit legislation criminalizing enforced disappearances in domestic law only aggravates the situation. Baloch women and even children are being detained by forces in their local army camps, some of them get released after a few days, but before that, they are harassed and tortured.

Maryam Nawaz's fierce attack on Pakistan Prime Minister

PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz on Monday said that she will stay in the country despite the government's open offer to go abroad treatment for her father. Maryam told reporters at her residence in Umra Raivid in Lahore, "If someone from the government comes to my house and offers me to go abroad, I will reject it straight away. I know that some ministers are saying that if Maryam is allowed to go abroad then the opposition's campaign (against the government) will be weakened, but I want to make it clear that I am in my country. I will not leave and will not request to remove my name from the list of those who are not allowed to go abroad."

Also Read: Sri Lanka Cancels Imran Khan's Speech To Its Parliament; Visiting Pakistan PM Embarrassed

Also Read: 'You'll Be Surprised': Maryam Nawaz Claims Imran Khan Govt 'begging' Opposition For Talks


Utilities in Southeast Texas made progress on restoring services to thousands still without power and water after persistent, extreme winter weather, but are still asking for help while making repairs.

Entergy had reported smooth progress on Wednesday morning in returning power and an end for rotating outages for at least the foreseeable future, but more sleet and ice in the north end of its Texas service area forced it to give a serious warning.

Entergy Texas, working with (the Midcontinent Independent System Operator), will continue to monitor the situation, as weather conditions will still pose challenges this morning and in the coming days, representatives wrote in an update. Wintry weather could cause additional outages.

By the afternoon, the non-profit grid manager MISO had issued a public appeal to conserve energy as other areas impacted by the weather added to the already strained supply it has been trying to manage since the weather event started.

MISO and Entergy asked that customers conserve energy between 5 and 10 p.m., the same period that it was forced to initiate more blackouts the night before, and its outage list grew slightly from 32,000 to more than 33,600 customers by the afternoon.

Fewer than 1,000 customers were still without power in Jefferson County, almost all of whom were on the Beaumont network, but northern communities in Hardin and Tyler counties fared worse. More than 2,400 customers were still without power on the Silsbee network covering those areas.

At the same time, several cities in Southeast Texas were dealing with boil water advisories and extremely low pressure due to leaks in the system.

The cities of Beaumont, Groves, Nederland, Port Neches, Beaumont, Port Arthur and Orange were all under boil water advisories due to low pressure by Wednesday night, and the city of Pinehurst had requested citizens conserve water so it didnt fall into a similar situation.

Groves, Nederland and Port Neches used the regional alert system found at STAN.com to update residents about progress with differing results.

Groves had made slow improvements in the pressure situation but still asked residents to report leaks, and Port Neches reported its underground reserve tanks had filled and water pressure could improve steadily leading into the next day.

Nederland, on the other hand, reported no progress since the boil water advisory announced the day before, and asked residents to conserve water.

By Wednesday night, Beaumont announced to residents that its system still suffered from low pressure, and the city was closing all services except the landfill. It would consider whether services would reopen Friday, representatives from the city wrote in a statement.

Beaumonts municipal water system was still working overtime to keep water flowing, city officials said, but broken lines in residences and at businesses were drastically hurting pressure.

Carol Riley, an officer with the Beaumont Police Department and acting emergency spokesperson, said the city needed help to resolve the issue.

We need everyone using the 311 line if they need help with leaks, especially if they dont know how to turn off the meter, she said. The request to conserve water wasnt as much about dripping pipes as it was shutting off those leaks.

Riley said the 311 line may be inundated, as workers have been receiving high volumes of calls regarding everything from roads to COVID-19 vaccines, but people needing help with leaks should keep trying.

Warmer weather on Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning began thawing lines across the city, which will inevitably cause more bursts and leaks.

Public works crews are prioritizing elderly residents and people with disabilities who might need help finding or turning off their meters. The city is also asking business owners who might not have been able to check their properties in the last several days to check for leaks when they can.

Residents can use the 311 line, email 311@beaumonttexas.gov or download the Beaumont 311 app to their devices.

jacob.dick@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/jd_journalism
At first, scientists advised governments to test, test, test. Now, vaccines are available, and countries should be steaming ahead to administer the jabs. How is Luxembourg's vaccination strategy developing? Our colleague Pierre Weimerskirch took a look at recent numbers.

The first 9,750 doses of the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine arrived in Luxembourg in December. On 16 February, 25,918 jabs had been administered - 19,622 of them received a first vaccine, 6,296 a second. This week, however, Luxembourg has 52,650 vaccines in stock, allowing 26,325 people to be vaccinated.

More vaccines will become available in the upcoming weeks. Luxembourg will have obtained 150,000 doses by the end of March if producers are able to comply with their delivery schedules. Meanwhile, Johnson & Johnson have applied for EU approval. This would make it the fourth vaccine available in the EU.

Read also: EU buys up to 300 million more Moderna jabs

Read also: Vaccination campaign enters second phase next week

The following graph outlines Luxembourg's vaccine stock between late December and the end of March. The blue line indicates how many people received their first jab, the red line measures the number of second doses administered. The green line presents the number of available doses by the end of March.

Now that the Ministry of Health has decided to adapt the schedule for the AstraZeneca vaccine, increasing the interval between the first and the second dose from 4 to 10 weeks, Luxembourg could speed up its vaccination campaign. To date, the ministry plans to have vaccinated 71,355 people until the end of March 2021.

Early studies have shown that individuals infected with Covid-19 may only require one dose of the vaccine, as the infection quasi replaces a first jab, and the second vaccine would act as a boost. Current data on the BioNTech/Pfizer vaccine also indicate a possible extension of the interval.
COLUMBIA  The South Carolina House passed a strict bill to ban most abortions in the state on Feb. 17, sending the measure on a path to Gov. Henry McMaster's desk, where it likely will become law as early as Feb. 18.

The House Republican majority overrode the objections of Democrats, who dramatically walked out of the chamber at the beginning of the debate before later returning.

The 79-35 vote sets the bill up to clear a final procedural hurdle on Feb. 18 and send it to McMaster, who has repeatedly vowed to sign it into law. Top lawmakers in the Senate and House are planning to ratify the act shortly after it passes so McMaster can sign it as soon as that day.

That will kick off certain legal challenges, following the playbook of close to a dozen states that have passed similar bills, all of which have been held up in the courts. The legislation, known by supporters as the "fetal heartbeat" bill, would ban abortions after around six to eight weeks of a pregnancy.

Though the bill will not take effect unless those court cases are resolved, state Rep. John McCravy, the Greenwood Republican who has championed the effort for years, said the overwhelming vote sends a message to the U.S. Supreme Court and beyond that a majority of South Carolinians want to crack down on abortion.

"It's encouraging to all the pro-life people who are out there, and it tells the rest of the nation that we stand for life," McCravy said. "We want to save as many lives as possible, and the quicker this is passed, the quicker it will go into effect."

The vote followed an impassioned day of legislative theatrics, featuring multiple lawmakers from both parties storming out of the chamber at various points, only to return later after colleagues invoked obscure parliamentary rules compelling them to attend.

Dozens of Democrats walked out of the South Carolina House chamber as the debate began, saying they would refuse to participate in a process they view as fundamentally flawed by debating or voting on the bill.

SC House Democratic caucus now walking out of chamber in protest of abortion ban. @RepRutherford says they wont participate in debate or vote. #scpol pic.twitter.com/WJqAMAs3LD  Jamie Lovegrove (@jslovegrove) February 17, 2021

"We do not have time to debate unconstitutional abortion bans," S.C. House Minority Leader Todd Rutherford, D-Columbia, said. "Providing COVID relief and improving the vaccination rollout should be our priority right now."

But after a news conference detailing their opposition to the bill, most of them returned to the floor hours later to speak and vote against it.

"Today is a sad day," state Rep. Justin Bamberg, D-Bamberg, said in the news conference. "It's a very sad day, and all I can do is continue to pray for the state of South Carolina, pray for our women and pray for our families."

Two Democrats, state Reps. Russell Ott of St. Matthews and Lucas Atkinson of Marion, voted for the bill. Two Republicans, state Rep. William Cogswell of Charleston and Jerry Carter of Clemson, voted against it.

During the period that most Democrats were out of the chamber, Republicans began wiping out all of their amendment proposals and moving the bill toward passage. Dozens of lawmakers went on to deliver lengthy speeches for and against the bill, prolonging the debate by several hours.

The Senate passed the bill last month, as Republicans capitalized on their expanded majority in that chamber to overcome Democratic objections that had blocked their efforts to pass similar bills in previous years.

The House already approved a similar measure by a 70-31 vote in 2019, prompting both Republicans and Democrats alike to acknowledge that it was inevitably going to pass again in 2021.

A small handful of Democrats remained in the House chamber throughout the debate, including state Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, the longest-serving member.

"You love the fetus in the womb, but when it's born is when we get a different reaction," Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, told Republicans, saying she was tired of continuing to debate abortion bills repeatedly over the years.

Freshman state Rep. Kimberly Johnson, D-Manning, chided her colleagues for walking out, saying that if Democrats are going to leave during debate of every bill they disagree with, "there is no need to drive to Columbia every day."

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"Walking out is not the answer," Johnson said. "You need to be heard, and you need to make sure your constituents are heard."

In a teary speech, state Rep. Melissa Oremus recounted how friends had encouraged her to get an abortion when she got pregnant at 16. But Oremus, R-Aiken, said that after hearing a heartbeat at her ultrasound, she realized that she "had a human being inside of me."

Anti-abortion activists say their goal is to get the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse or at least significantly amend their landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which found that women have a constitutional right to abortion access with some restrictions.

So far, the high court has shown some reluctance to consider drastic abortion bans. The justices have yet to take up a Mississippi law that would prohibit abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy, a less extreme measure than the South Carolina bill.

The South Carolina law includes a few exceptions for cases of rape or incest, if the life of the mother is in danger or if the fetus has a fatal anomaly that would render it nonviable outside the womb.

The rape or incest exception includes a provision that would require physicians to report those cases to the local sheriff and the state health agency, including the name and contact information of the woman.

That measure drew condemnation from South Carolina's lone female sheriff, Charleston County's Kristin Graziano, who argued it would re-traumatize rape victims.

South Carolina's current law bans abortions after around 20 weeks, but it ties the fetus age to conception, rather than a womans monthly cycle. Since this date cannot be scientifically pinpointed, the ban actually refers to what doctors consider a gestational age of 22 weeks.

About an hour before the House convened, a small group of protestors rallied in front of the Statehouse building, urging lawmakers to reject the bill.

"They're trying to push this bill through while everything is really loud right now, hoping people won't be paying attention," said Anika Roldan, an 18-year-old from Irmo. "I just want it to get to a point where we're loud enough so that they hear what we're saying."

Holding large banners that read "Laws Off My Body," "Abortion is Healthcare" and "We Won't Go Back," several rallygoers were only willing to give their first names  a nod, they said, to the requirements that would be placed upon women to reveal personal information about themselves in cases of incest and rape.

"We really just want to show our force and solidarity with women in South Carolina and across America," said a woman who identified herself only as Amy. "What's happening in that building isn't right."

The bill also drew some pushback from the right, as conservative groups urged lawmakers to strip the exceptions from the bill.

But other anti-abortion groups and GOP leaders opposed changing it because they feared it would slow down the process by forcing the House and Senate to reach an agreement before the bill could become law.

State Rep. Jonathon Hill, R-Townville, encouraged Republicans to change the bill and make it a complete abortion ban. After his colleagues voted to cut off the amendment process, he threw a stack of papers on to the House floor and stormed out of the chamber.

House Speaker Jay Lucas, R-Hartsville, scolded Hill for the "childish" display and said security would remove any members who acted similarly. House Majority Leader Gary Simrill, R-Rock Hill, said lawmakers could censure Hill, but he said they were wary of giving him an opportunity to frame himself as a "martyr."

"The public is now getting to see what the bodys already seen," Simrill said. "Sophomoric antics."

[February 18, 2021] Beyond Limits Expands AI Offerings to Deploy Sensor Placement Technology for Water Utilities

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Beyond Limits, an industrial and enterprise-grade AI technology company built for the most demanding sectors, today announced it will be expanding its artificial intelligence (AI) offerings to include sensor placement technology. A standalone AI application for leak detection in utilities water distribution networks, the new product uses physics-based models and deep learning architectures to identify critical sensors, detect and locate leaks, and recommend optimal location of pressure sensors for improved operations and maintenance capabilities.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates water utilities lost roughly $2.6 billion each year as of 2016. Current losses are expected to be even higher due to aging infrastructure, sub-optimal sensor placement and ineffective maintenance, making water loss monitoring, prevention, and remediation among the top financial and operational priorities for utilities providers. Many global utilities however lack the knowledge and resources to address these challenges. The acceleration of digital transformation efforts in the industrial sector has led to an exponential increase in the number of sensors generating massive amounts of data, said AJ Abdallat, CEO of Beyond Limits. But this data is difficult to gather, manage, store and analyze. Beyond Limits new sensor selection application allows utilities providers to focus on the most valuable feedback data from their network, reducing the cost and complexity of intelligent systems while more effectively identifying which sensors are most valuable and immediately alerting users to anomalies like gas or water leaks or servicedisruptions.



The technology also offers a range of applications for managing and optimizing utilities operations, from power plants and electrical grids, to refineries and manufacturing sites. Currently, Beyond Limits sensor framework has been licensed to The Carnrite Group for deployment, and will initially be implemented in a multi-million dollar agreement with Xcell Security House and Finance S.A. for the companys cognitive power plant. Were always looking for innovative ways to create value for our clients, said Alan Carnrite, Founder & CEO of The Carnrite Group. Beyond Limits sensor placement technologies will allow companies spanning the utilities, power and energy industries to operate more efficiently, optimally place sensors and more effectively detect leaks. This is a perfect example of a technology solution that not only makes business sense but helps advance environmental sustainability goals.

For more information, please visit www.beyond.ai/solutions/power-natural-resources/ About Beyond Limits Beyond Limits is an industrial and enterprise-grade artificial intelligence company built for the most demanding sectors including energy, utilities, and healthcare. Beyond traditional artificial intelligence, Beyond Limits unique Cognitive AI technology combines numeric techniques like machine learning with knowledge-based reasoning to produce actionable intelligence. Customers implement Beyond Limits AI to boost operational insights, improve operating conditions, enhance performance at every level, and ultimately increase profits as a result. Founded in 2014, Beyond Limits leverages a significant investment portfolio of advanced technology developed at Caltechs Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA space missions. The company was recently honored by CB Insights on their 2020 List of Top AI 100 most innovative artificial intelligence startups and by Frost & Sullivan for their North American Technology Innovation Award. For more information, please visit www.beyond.ai About The Carnrite Group The Carnrite Group is a management consulting firm focused on the energy, power and utilities, and industrials sectors. From offices in Houston, Texas and London, United Kingdom, Carnrite deploys its expertise on projects globally, helping clients address issues ranging from corporate strategy to human capital, organizational change to navigating the energy transition. Carnrite is the dedicated, practical business partner with the ability to tackle the complex. Learn more on Carnrite's Website: https://carnritegroup.com/

Contact Information: Ed Cruz LEWIS for Beyond Limits 619-308-5245 beyondlimitspr@teamlewis.com

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"Texans running out of food as weather crisis disrupts supply chain" was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans  and engages with them  about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

Sign up for The Brief, our daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news.

The state's week of weather hell started with a deadly 133-car pileup outside of Fort Worth. A winter storm unlike any Texas has ever seen quickly followed, and seven days later, millions are without power and reliable water.

And now Texans are running out of food. From farm to table, freezing temperatures and power outages are disrupting the food supply chain that people rely on every day.

MEANWHILE: Senator Ted Cruz accused of flying to Cancun as home state of Texas froze

Across the state, people are using up supplies they had stockpiled and losing more as items start to spoil in dark refrigerators. Some are storing their remaining rations in coolers outside, and trips to the grocery store often do little to replenish pantries.

It was out of meat, eggs and almost all milk before I left, Cristal Porter, an Austin resident, said about her local Target which she visited Monday. Lines were wrapped around the store when we arrived.  Shelves were almost fully cleared for potatoes, meat, eggs and some dairy.

Two days later, one of Porters neighbors went to that same Target, and the store was completely out of food, with no sign of additional shipments arriving or employees restocking shelves.

With grocery stores across the state shuttered for lack of power, supermarkets that remain open have seen supplies dwindle, shortages that ripple over to food pantries that count on grocery store surplus to keep their own shelves stocked.

Meanwhile, fruit and vegetable crops in the Rio Grande Valley have frozen over in what The Produce News described as a Valentines Day produce massacre. School districts from Fort Worth to Houston have halted meal distributions to students for the next several days, and Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller said dairy farmers around the state are pouring $8 million worth of milk down the drain every day because they can't get it to dairies.

Celia Cole, the CEO of hunger-relief organization Feeding Texas, said that so far, eight food banks have asked the state for extra help feeding their communities. Several food banks affiliated with Feeding Texas have also started providing food supplies to emergency warming shelters in the states major cities. Wednesday afternoon, the Central Food Bank of Texas canceled its deliveries scheduled for Thursday in Austin and Rockdale.

The Food Banks fleet, equipment, facilities and operations have been adversely impacted by the extremely low temperatures, and hazardous road conditions are hindering our staff and volunteers from getting to our building safely, the organization announced in a media alert. These conditions are also keeping us from distributing food safely.

Food pantries also rely on donations from retail stores and grocery chains like Kroger and H-E-B, so when shelves run bare at the stores, there is less to share with the food pantries, Cole added.

For Texas residents, disruptions to the food supply chain, often combined with continued power outages, mean eating non-perishable canned goods or leftover items, like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Porter has used a camping stove to make hot meals since losing her power, while others have resorted to heating their food in the fireplace. Andrez Rodriguez in Mission told The Texas Tribune that he hasnt had power for over 80 consecutive hours now, and had to throw out most of the supplies left in his fridge before going to his brothers home for a warm meal.

I only come to sleep at my house to make sure nothing gets stolen, Rodriguez said.

Residents around the state have also taken to social media to share their stories about struggling to find food or an open grocery store. Wes Wilson, a producer for KXAN News in Austin, tweeted a video of the line for fast food takeout in downtown Austin Wednesday afternoon and said there is a significant food shortage in this city right now.

WHERE TO GET WARM: Here are the warming centers and shelters now open in the Houston area

Meanwhile, officials said Wednesday that disruptions to the states long-term food supply could present even more problems. Miller said livestock growers across Texas are out of feed, while a lack of available natural gas has caused some chickens and calves to freeze to death.

All of the milk processing plants are full, they cant get enough electricity to run, and if they could, they cant get enough natural gas to pasteurize the milk, Miller said. So grocery store shelves are basically empty. Theres no dairy products flowing to Kroger or H-E-B or places like that, so were as bad as it was when COVID hit, could possibly get worse.

Citrus and vegetable farms in the Rio Grande Valley also anticipate massive losses. Dale Murden, president of Texas Citrus Mutual, said 60% of the regions grapefruit crop and 100% of the late orange crop will be lost. With the area producing 230,000 tons of grapefruit per year, farmers in the Valley are expecting to lose an estimated 138,000 tons of that crop.

There are also 40 different vegetable varieties grown in the area, including cilantro, kale and dill. Those will be affected by the storm, as well.

I'd say if youre looking for Texas citrus, [the effect] is going to be immediate, Murden said. If youre looking for Texas vegetables its going to be immediate.

Between the current strain on grocery stores and the potential for huge damages to the states agricultural sector, this storm could hamper food access for weeks to come. Miller and Cole emphasized that its impossible to know the extent of the losses until power returns, but the food supply will continue to drain unless farmers and stores get electricity back soon.

Theyve been very, very badly hit  the agricultural sector, generally by the pandemic, so theyre already struggling, Cole said. And so I think although the impact if the power gets restored quickly might not be huge in absolute terms, its hitting a sector thats already reeling from the pandemic.

Disclosure: Feeding Texas, H-E-B and Texas Citrus Mutual have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.
February 17, 2021





Historically, palladium has been of lesser value than most precious metals. However, newfound interest in the metal, particularly within the automotive industry, has caused a sharp uptick in its prices.

Just last year, palladium prices soared far beyond the price of gold. An ounce of palladium now costs between $2,000 and $2,500, while a decade ago, investors could expect to pay around $300 for an ounce of the precious metal. An ounce of gold currently costs between $1,500 and $2,000.







Palladium is incredibly scarce, which contributes to its high prices. The metal is 15 times rarer than platinum and 30 times as rare as gold. Because of the meteoric price rise, palladium is gaining attention from investors that buy palladium online.

Palladium is a recent infatuation, and many investors find themselves wondering whether palladium coins or bars are the better options. The answer lies in the type of investment being made, along with personal preference. In either case, palladium looks poised to remain a worthy investment for years to come.

Palladium Coins

Palladium coins are relatively new. Palladium itself was only discovered in 1803.

Although countries like Canada and Australia have been minting palladium coins for several years, the United States only started in 2017 with the American Palladium Eagle coin. In some cases, palladium coins are issued as collector items.

Palladium coins are government-issued and have a face value that allows them to be used as legal tender. The face value of a coin is different from the intrinsic value of the coin itself. Face value refers to the coin's worth when used in a financial transaction. As precious metals' spot prices continually change, coins are often worth more than their face value.

For example, the Canadian Palladium Maple Leaf coin has a face value of $50, but its current intrinsic value is more than $2,000. The Palladium Maple Leaf is one of the most highly traded palladium coins and the Palladium American Eagle, and the Palladium Russian Ballerina.

Palladium Bars

More often than not, palladium bars are issued by private mints; The Royal Canadian Mint is one exception. Unlike coins, palladium bars do not have a face value, meaning their worth is solely tied to the metal's spot price. They cannot be used as legal tender.

Palladium bars are meant to be bought and sold in bulk. They cannot be used in financial transactions and are meant to be traded based on the metal content's value.

Palladium bars often come stamped with the mint's name and the bar's metal content. Some mints forge logos onto the bars to differentiate them from competitor bullion.

The primary way to make an earning through palladium bars is through premiums. Investors who purchase palladium bars impose premiums on top of the metal's spot price and then sell the bars for cash.

What's the Difference?

When investing in palladium coins or bars, the interest lies solely in the metal content. Bullion is fashioned into either coins or bars to provide a convenient distribution method and more clear denominations.

Whether you purchase coins or bars, in both cases, you own the physical metal. The main difference between the two is the selling point. Palladium coins tend to sell at a higher price point because they are easily recognizable and easier to trade.

Which One Should I Purchase?

Both palladium bars and coins are worthy investments. In general, coins have higher liquidity and are easier to trade, but large bullion bars tend to have lower premiums. Institutional buyers or investors purchasing large quantities of palladium should opt for bars to take advantage of lower premiums, while coins are better suited to the average investor.

One important note is that palladium has yet to reach the popularity of gold or silver, so coins may be more difficult to sell. Regardless, purchasing palladium coins or bars is a great way to diversify an investment portfolio. Demand for palladium is ever-increasing, so investments should hold steady for several years.?
Woitel was last seen on surveillance cameras entering his Mission District apartment building Jan. 8, , according to a report from Scott Williams, a private investigator hired by Woitels family. There was no footage of Woitel leaving the building, the investigator said. Williams added that he searched Woitels apartment and attic on Feb. 1 but did not find anything.
Dr Thom also found no substance to claims that a senior official within DPS asked staff to amend incident reports to delete information about what took place on the Friday night and Saturday morning. The extraordinary review was ordered by House of Representatives Speaker Tony Smith and Senate President Scott Ryan in June last year after the anonymous tip, which also made allegations on matters beyond the events in Senator Reynolds suite. The two presiding officers, who are responsible for Parliament House, also sent the accusations to the Australian Federal Police, which checked with DPS on the way the incident in March 2019 was handled. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video In a sign of the concern over a cover-up, the AFP inquiries included whether there was any criminality such as any attempts to conceal or interfere with a suspected crime scene in Parliament.

Loading The AFP was able to establish that both DPS and Parliamentary Security Services staff were involved in the response to this incident and that there were no disclosures of sexual assault made on the day of the incident and therefore actions taken by them were not in response to a suspected crime, the AFP concluded in a written response. Irrespective of the absence of criminality, the AFP liaised heavily with DPS regarding this incident and the way in which it was handled. The findings debunk claims that security officials knew of a sexual assault on the day, failed to respond and ordered a steam-cleaning. The review does not conclude there was a special steam-cleaning of the suite. The standard cleaning was due on the Sunday but was done on the Saturday because the Department of Finance, which manages the ministerial wing of the building, was told of the late-night access.

As revealed in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age on Wednesday, the department told Senator Ryan of the security breach in the building on March 27 and told Mr Smith on April 8. Neither of the presiding officers discussed this with the Prime Ministers office, the Department of Parliament Services said. Only on April 18 did the department become aware there might be a sexual assault allegation because the AFP asked on that day for the footage to be released to help the ACT Policing Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Team investigate the events. The decisions by Senator Ryan and Mr Smith ensured the CCTV footage, which was viewed by the AFP in April 2019, remained stored when it would otherwise have been routinely deleted and is available if the AFP seeks access to it for a formal investigation. Mr Smith and Senator Ryan were not aware of Ms Higgins or her allegation of rape until they were contacted by journalists from The Project on Network Ten last Friday. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has apologised to Brittany Higgins, inset, over her treatment in Parliament House. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

As recently as Friday, 5 February, 2021 the presiding officers were advised by the AFP there was no active investigation into the events of 26-27 March 2019, the department said in a statement late on Wednesday. On 12 February, following receipt of a media inquiry, the presiding officers contacted the AFP and were advised that Ms Higgins had since approached the police and indicated she wished to proceed with a complaint and it was an open investigation. The reviews by the AFP and Dr Thom shed more light on the handling of the CCTV files at a time when Ms Higgins fears many people saw footage she was not allowed to see. I didnt know that security guards let me into Minister Reynolds suite. I didnt know that a security guard came into the office multiple times seeing me in a state of undress, Ms Higgins said on Wednesday. I didnt know they were undertaking an internal review into how the matter was handled at the time. I didnt know that they debated calling an ambulance at the time of the incident.

A current senior staffer to the Prime Minister and my former chief of staff refused to provide me with access to the CCTV footage from that evening and continually made me feel as if my ongoing employment would be jeopardised if I proceeded any further with the matter. The continued victim-blaming rhetoric by the Prime Minister is personally very distressing to me and countless other survivors. Senator Reynolds and her chief of staff at the time, who has since moved to Mr Morrisons office, did not ask to see the CCTV footage, according to the review of the events. The footage does not show Ms Higgins or her colleague inside the office of Senator Reynolds because cameras are not located inside suites. Those who know the rules over CCTV in the building said it was likely to show the two people entering the building on the Friday night and going to Senator Reynolds office. Security guards saw the man exit the building while his female colleague remained in the ministers suite. This led to a female security guard checking the suite on the Saturday and finding Ms Higgins.

Loading The man was fired on the Tuesday over the security breach. Only on the subsequent Thursday did Ms Higgins tell Senator Reynolds chief of staff she had woken to find the man on top of her, the key point at which it was clear there was an allegation of rape. Mr Morrison on Wednesday made an appeal to all sides of politics to back an independent review because it would be done at arms length from the government. It will run alongside a review run by Liberal MP Celia Hammond and another review by Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet deputy secretary Stephanie Foster. It is my expectation that this review would be conducted at arms length of government, consult widely across parliamentarians and their staff, the departments and agencies that support our work, he wrote to opposition parties and crossbench MPs. Senators are divided on whether the Finance and Public Accounts committee should intensify its probe into the department that runs Parliament House, the Department of Parliamentary Services.
MONSON  The board of selectmen on Tuesday voted 2-1 to name Jennifer Wolowicz interim town administrator.

She is currently South Hadleys deputy town administrator.

According to the Monson boards vote, the offer to Wolowicz is contingent on the parties successfully negotiation a labor contract.

Three applied for the job.

During her interview Tuesday, Monson selectmen chairman Richard Smith asked Wolowicz if she was looking to get out of South Hadley, where she has been employed 15 years.

I am looking to advance myself, she responded, adding that she had recently earned a masters degree in public administration.

Monson Town Administrator Evan Brassard departs next week to become Grafton town administrator.

Carter Terenzini and Ted Kopak were the other finalists for the Monson position.

Monson selectmen are also in process of searching for a permanent administrator, with an appointment on that by late springtime expected. This job was posted with an annual salary of $115,000.

In addition to her municipal duties in South Hadley, Wolowicz is on the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority Board of Directors, which is an appointment by the Massachusetts governor.

She was appointed to that role in 2013.

Prior to the promotion to Deputy Town Administrator in South Hadley, she was the Personnel Officer/Chief Procurement Officer.

Wolowicz earned an Associates Degree in Business Management at Holyoke Community College, a Bachelors Degree in Business Management at from Elms College and Masters of Public Administration from Westfield State University.

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SAN DIEGO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Shareholder rights law firm Johnson Fistel, LLP has launched an investigation into whether the board members of Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc. ("Waddell & Reed" or the "Company") (NYSE: WDR) breached their fiduciary duties in connection with the proposed sale of the Company to Macquarie Group ("Macquarie").

On December 2, 2020, Waddell & Reed announced that it had entered into a definitive merger agreement with Macquarie. Under the terms of the deal, Waddell & Reed stockholders will receive only $25.00 for each share of Waddell & Reed common stock they own.

The investigation concerns whether the Waddell & Reed board failed to satisfy its duties to the Company shareholders, including whether the board adequately pursued alternatives to the acquisition and whether the board obtained the best price possible for Waddell & Reed shares of common stock. Nationally recognized, Johnson Fistel is investigating whether the proposed deal represents adequate consideration, especially given analysts' projections for future earnings and revenue growth.

If you are a shareholder of Waddell & Reed and believe the proposed buyout price is too low or you're interested in learning more about the investigation, please contact lead analyst Jim Baker ( [email protected] ) at 619-814-4471. If emailing, please include a phone number.

Additionally, you can [Click here to join this action]. There is no cost or obligation to you.

About Johnson Fistel, LLP:

Johnson Fistel, LLP is a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm with offices in California, New York, and Georgia. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in shareholder derivative and securities class action lawsuits. For more information about the firm and its attorneys, please visit https://www.johnsonfistel.com. Attorney advertising. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.

Contact:

Johnson Fistel, LLP

Jim Baker, 619-814-4471

[email protected]

[Click here to join this action]

SOURCE Johnson Fistel, LLP

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Edward McKinley - Times Union, Albany, N.Y. (TNS)

Albany, N.Y.  A state assemblyman who has been a frequent critic of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomos nursing home policies during the coronavirus pandemic told CNN that the governor had called him last week and threatened his political career.

Cuomos confrontation with Assemblyman Ron Kim of Queens  the Assembly sponsor of a measure to strip the governor of the emergency powers he has held for a year  continued Wednesday when, during a midday conference call with reporters, Cuomo attacked Kim over a New York Times article from six years ago involving the lawmaker and nail salons.

Cuomos unusual outburst toward the assemblyman followed a tweet posted by Kim earlier in the day that questioned whether the governor had bowed to the health care industry: Gov. Cuomo pushed for blanket COVID legal immunity for unprepared nursing homes in the budget (which I voted against) and it passed by one vote. Question remains: Who got to Gov Cuomo? Why did he take industry language and stuck in budget last minute?

Cuomos aggressive posture on Wednesday was a marked difference from his more conciliatory tone in a news conference Monday in which he acknowledged that nursing home data was released to the public too slowly  although even then he had stopped short of offering an apology. A reporter on Wednesday asked Cuomo whether it was appropriate for him to use incendiary rhetoric to attack another elected official, to which he offered a long response that boiled down to yes.

Kim, whose uncle died from COVID-19 symptoms in a Queens nursing home, posted a response on Twitter Wednesday afternoon: The governor can smear me all he wants in an effort to distract us from his fatally incompetent management. But these facts are not going away because they are the facts  unacceptable facts that hold him accountable.

Cuomo said Wednesday that his administrations actions with nursing homes were fully above board, and that they had informed the Legislature their requests for information last August were on pause until the administration complied with parallel requests from the Department of Justice. Cuomo said the criticism of him that has emerged is fueled by disinformation and political animus from Republicans. The governor said there was no need for an investigation into his administrations lack of transparency over nursing home data, because he freely admitted that they did not provide full information to the Legislature until recently.

The governors only admission of wrongdoing was this: There was a void in information, and that void created confusion for people, and my administration created that void.

State Attorney General Letitia James, in an independent investigative report released last month, found that Cuomos health department had undercounted nursing home deaths. In a related matter, Cuomos office stonewalled requests for information from the media, independent groups and from the Legislature for many months. A state Supreme Court justice ruled that his administration had violated the provisions of the Freedom of Information Law by slow-walking requests for the information.

Kim, who has been critical of Cuomo on the nursing home question for months, is a fellow Democrat.

But Cuomo said that his takeaway from the experience is that his administration needs to more proactively bat down disinformation, whether it be from political opponents or on Twitter.

Kim told The New York Times and CNN that the governor threatened him in a Thursday call last week after Kim was critical of Cuomo in a New York Post story. Kim recounted the governors conversation as: Were in this business together and we dont cross certain lines and he said I hadnt seen his wrath and that he can destroy me.

Richard Azzopardi, Cuomos senior advisor, denied the governor made those remarks, although Kims wife told CNN she had overheard some of the conversation.

In a statement Wednesday afternoon, Azzopardi said Kim and the governor have a long and hostile relationship.

" Mr. Kim is lying about his conversation with Gov. Cuomo Thursday night. I know because I was one of three other people in the room when the phone call occurred. At no time did anyone threaten to destroy anyone with their wrath nor engage in a coverup, Azzopardi said. Thats beyond the pale and is unfortunately part of a years-long pattern of lies by Mr. Kim against this administration. We did ask for Mr. Kim to do the honorable thing and put out a truthful statement after he told the governor he was misquoted in a news article, which he said he tried to correct but the reporter refused. Kim said he would correct the story and then broke his word. ... Instead over the last six days he has baselessly accused this administration of pay to play and obstruction of justice.

The New York Times reported that Cuomos threat was to publicly attack Kim, which happened Wednesday.

I understand this is politics and you dont need facts but this is a kind of blatant deception, Cuomo said of Kim, before saying that he believed Kim had unethically and potentially illegally engaged in a 2015 pay-to-play scheme where he used his political position to protect the business interests of nail salons that donated to his campaign. Cuomo added it was a continuing racket because hes still doing it.

Cuomo acknowledged that he called Kim on Thursday, and the governor claimed that Kim told him he had been misquoted, and that Kim would offer a public statement to that effect. Kim issued no such statement and The Post said Wednesday that Kim told the paper after Cuomos Wednesday call that the assemblyman had not been misquoted in the original article.

I have been open and candid when I have disagreements with someone politically. I have had ongoing disagreements with elected officials in the past, Cuomo said. My office more than me has had a long and hostile relationship with Assemblyman Ron Kim.

CNN also reported that three unnamed lawmakers had received other threats from Cuomo to support him over nursing homes and to oppose efforts to strip his emergency powers, to which Cuomos communications director responded: The threats here came from some legislators who, according to a media report, threatened to use subpoenas and investigations as leverage in the budget process.

Cuomo, back in August, had this to say about making political threats: You can say many things about me. A hollow threat are not two words that tend to come to mind.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Ohio State University will hire a minimum of 350 tenure-track faculty over next ten years, focusing on hiring from underrepresented backgrounds, promoting research in social justice and equity and boosting research dollars overall.

President Kristina Johnson, in her first State of the University speech on Thursday, also said the university would work over the next decade to ensure OSU students graduate debt free. Johnson began her term in August 2020. The speech highlighted the challenges the university and its students faced with the pandemic, but focused on the universitys future investments.

OSU needs to replace its vice president and provost and chief academic officer, Bruce McPheron, who will be stepping down to rejoin the faculty. Johnson said when the new provost is in place, these 350 tenure-track faculty is the most urgent priority, She noted that since 2008 undergraduate enrollment went up by more than 5,800, but 219 tenure-track faculty left.

I want every single Ohio State student to be able to look across the lecture hall or seminar table and understand immediately that their dreams are valid and achievable, Johnson said in the speech.

The hiring plan includes:

-- 150 faculty who are Black, indigenous or people of color or are from underrepresented backgrounds

-- 50 who conduct research in social justice and equity issues within their fields

-- 150 scholars in high-demand fields with high student-faculty ratios and where class sizes are more than 50. Johnson used the example of the Fisher College of Business.

-- 50 faculty in emerging fields of leading-edge research, but Johnson did not specify which fields.

Johnson also highlighted the universitys plans for addressing the cost of college, a continuing national discussion highlighted by the ongoing discussions with Congress and President Joe Bidens administration over canceling part of student debt. She did not highlight strategies for making OSU the first university to offer a bachelors degree at zero debt within the speech.

OSU also will look at further increasing the minimum stipend for graduate students, who are often conducting research or teaching classes at the same time as taking classes. The minimum stipend recently increased $4,000 to $21,280 by fall 2021.

Johnsons speech follows the Columbus Innovation District announcement on Wednesday, a partnership between Ohio State University, Nationwide Childrens Hospital and JobsOhio. The project, the third announced in Ohio, is $1.1 billion dedicated to expanding research and development, focused on health care and biosciences. OSU will invest $650 million in new buildings as part of the project, WOSU reported.

Previous education news and coverage:

-- Ohio State proposes increase in tuition and fees for new first-year students

-- Cleveland State long-time academic leader will rejoin faculty in fall

-- Kent State president shares what fall semester could look like, approaching normal

-- Community college enrollment drops during coronavirus: What campuses are doing to support students in a pandemic
Police fired guns and sprayed teargas to disperse anti-coup demonstrators who were blocking tracks at a railway station in Myanmars second-largest city Wednesday, as military junta opponents clogged streets with vehicles in a widening protest movement vying for the support of civil servants.

Police in Mandalay fired about 40 shots toward anti-military protesters, now in their 12th day of protests against the Feb. 1 military takeover, as demonstrators occupied train tracks near employee housing at the citys central railway station.

First there were three, and then five shots, and then six shots, followed by several rounds at once, said the local resident who declined to be identified for security reasons as he described the shooting.

The smoke [from the gunfire] reached our houses and came in through the windows, so that we had to use fans to ventilate the rooms, but the smell of gunpowder caused our eyes to tear up, said the resident, who was a block away from the area where the shooting occurred.

We saw sparks when they fired shots into the air, he said. They were cracking down the employees who were blocking the rail service when the authorities were trying to operate it.

Video footage obtained by RFA from citizen journalists showed nighttime gunfire in Mandalay and red and grey smoke rising from the protest sites as demonstrators screamed out against the shooting. It is unclear if the bullets were live shells or rubber, or whether any protesters were arrested, injured, or killed.

Another round of gunfire erupted at 8:45 p.m. local time, but residents could not go out to confirm what happened because of a dusk-to-dawn curfew, the resident said.

Reports on social media that RFA has been unable to confirm said the junta was planning to replace striking railway employees nationwide with soldiers who would operate trains.

A similar scene played out Sunday in Kachin states capital Myitkyina, where security forces turned a water cannon on hundreds of mostly young men who were chanting and beating oil drums outside a power plant, then fired barrages to disperse them in a showdown that was livestreamed by protesters on Facebook.

Mandalay, a city of 1.5 million, as well as the much larger commercial center Yangon and the capital Naypyidaw, have been the main theaters of a dozen days of expanding mass rallies that routinely draw hundreds of thousands of well-organized and orderly protesters into city streets across the country of 54 million people.

Anti-junta protesters use their bikes to block a thoroughfare in Myanmar's largest city, Yangon, Feb. 17, 2021. Credit: RFA





Hearing for civil servants begins

The campaign demanding a reversal of the Feb. 1 coup that deposed Aung San Suu Kyi and her democratically elected government is struggling for the hearts and minds of the countrys one million civil servants. Protest supporters are enticing them to join marches, while the government and the military are threatening to terminate and prosecute those who stopped working and join demonstrations.

Eight civil servants from the Township Cooperative Department of Lewe, including a department head, who were arrested Monday for participating in demonstrations near a market in Naypyidaw, appeared in court on Wednesday.

They are charged with violating Section 188 of Myanmars Penal Code which prohibits civil servants from refusing to follow orders, and face up to one month in prison or a 20,000-kyat (U.S. $14) fine.

Each day, more civil servants from government agencies join protests, with about 1,000 people on Wednesday demonstrating against the junta and holding a prayer ceremony in Naypyidaw for a young woman who died last week after being shot in the head by police.

We want to be freed from the military dictatorship, said a protester who did not want to be identified. We do not want to be back under military rule.

The former Burma was ruled by the army for nearly 50 of its 72 years of independence from Britain.

The protests by bank employees seem to be quite effective, the demonstrator added. The protests by the banking sector will stop the countrys money flow and affect the government economy.

Some Naypyidaw demonstrators held a prayer service for Mya Thwe Thwe Khaing, the protester who was shot in the head on Feb. 9 near Thabyegon roundabout in the capital. Her family decided to take the 20-year-old woman off life support, though a doctor at the hospital told RFA that physicians were told not to do so just yet.

We are having a prayer service for our sister, said a young man at the service. After this we, the residents of Lewe and the people of Naypyidaw together with more government employees, will continue our peaceful protest.

Anti-military protesters display signs during a mass demonstration in Myanmar's largest city, Yangon, Feb. 17, 2021. Credit: RFA





For the sake of future generations

Large anti-coup protests continued to be held in other parts of Myanmar, a country the size of Texas or France, as hundreds of thousands protesters filled roads in dozens of cities.

Demonstrators roamed through towns, including Yangon, Mandalay, Magway, Mawlamyine, and Pathein, while drivers of vehicles of all sizes and types blocked transportation routes, claiming that their cars had broken down. Youths painted We Want Democracy in large letters on the surface of main roads.

Nilar Thein, an 88 Generation activist who spoke at a rally on Yangons Sule Pagoda Road, encouraged civil servants to forego work to show their opposition to the military regime.

Every house, every family, has young children, and their future is at stake, she said. And every house has a government employee. I would sincerely like to request all these government employees to stay home and not go to work for the sake of our future generations.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in front of the United Nations office in the commercial hub, while others stopped their cars in the middle of roads in various townships and opened their hoods, pretending to have engine trouble to block traffic.

In Mawlamyine, capital of Mon state in southeastern Myanmar, tens of thousands of people staged a sit-in protest in front of the Myanma Economic Bank.

We, the students, do not want a military dictatorship, said one young protester at the scene. We feel like we have been bullied. We cannot just stand and watch the unlawful arrests of our government leaders.

Another unnamed protester urged all civil servants to take part in the civil disobedience movement until Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other top officials from the democratically elected government are released.

In northern Myanmars Kachin state, over 50,000 people took part in anti-military demonstrations in the capital Myitkyina, where police and some troops guarded government banks. Similar protests were also held in the towns of Waingmaw and Hpakant, though on a smaller scale.

Protests in the towns of Pathein in Ayeyarwady region, Mandalay, and Magway in Magway region, each drew more than 100,000 people. Farmers joined the protest in Magwe, driving along roads in a convoy of tractors.

Local organizations have sprung up to raise funds and provide food and lodging for civil servants who have joined the civil disobedience movement across the country and refuse to go to work in defiance of the junta.

Reported by Soe San Aung and RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Kyaw Min Htun, Khin Maung Nyane, and Ye Kaung Myint Maung. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin.
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"Billions of people around the world live under constant assault from diseases like malaria, shigella, hookworm, tuberculosis, and Lassa fever, yet Wall Street and Silicon Valley typically pay little attention to these widespread challenges," said Glenn Rockman, managing partner at Adjuvant Capital. "As viruses like Ebola, Zika, and SARS-CoV-2 have clearly demonstrated, wealthy countries are vulnerable to these pathogens as well. Our new fund will finance cutting-edge research so we are better prepared for threats old and new alike, with the ultimate goal of saving or improving millions of lives by bringing urgently-needed drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, and medical devices to market."

Adjuvant has already backed 14 companies developing technologies for high-impact indications ranging from rare conditions, such as melioidosis, to widespread global emergencies, such as COVID-19. Each Adjuvant investment includes binding commitments to make any successfully commercialized products broadly accessible to underserved populations in low- and middle-income countries.

Diverse Coalition of Investors Committed to Global Health

To finance these ambitious goals, Adjuvant has assembled a unique coalition of conventional and catalytic investors, many of whom are also contributing scientific advice and emerging markets expertise. These investorswhich include traditional asset managers, multinational biopharmaceutical companies, development finance institutions, and some of the world's largest foundationsall hope their balance sheets can increasingly support the march toward a safer, healthier, more equitable global community.

"A wide array of private, public and philanthropic partners have come together to help ensure the most promising health technologies and services are available to people most in need," said Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. "There is an important role for investment capital to play in stimulating innovation and making markets work for the poor, so that everyone has the chance to live a healthy, productive life."

In addition to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Adjuvant's investors include Anthos Fund & Asset Management, Beacon Pointe Advisors, CDC Group, the Children's Investment Fund Foundation, Dalio Philanthropies, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, ELMA Investments Ltd., the Ford Foundation, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Global Health Investment Corporation (with funding from the Government of Germany through KfW), Laerdal Million Lives Fund, Merck, Novartis, RockCreek, Sonanz, and The Sorenson Impact Foundation, among others.

Lutz Hegemann, Group Head for Corporate Affairs & Global Health at Novartis, noted that: "As a company focused on science-based innovation to address some of society's most challenging healthcare issues, we are pleased to invest in Adjuvant Capital as part of our holistic global health strategy. Novartis is committed to systematically integrating access strategies into how we research, develop, and deliver our new medicines to as many people as possible. Our investment in Adjuvant Capital complements these efforts, which we can only achieve through collaborations across sectors and industries."

"Merck's investment in Adjuvant's new fund demonstrates our commitment to impact investing as a creative and sustainable approach to improve healthcare for underserved populations globally. We are pleased to join the team at Adjuvant and the other partners and investors who share a common goal to advance promising scientific platforms to improve global health," said Julie Louise Gerberding, MD, MPH, Executive Vice President and Chief Patient Officer, Strategic Communications, Global Public Policy and Population Health at Merck.

Deploying Capital at a Rapid Pace, with a Rich Pipeline of New Opportunities

Highlights from Adjuvant's young portfolio include several companies poised to develop new solutions for rabies, yellow fever, group B streptococcus, non-hormonal contraception, chikungunya, herpes, respiratory syncytial virus, HIV, and COVID-19. Although based in the U.S., Adjuvant pursues the most promising technologies and talent globally, with investments in Nigeria, Bangladesh, and China, in addition to collaborations in India and Western Europe. Recent financings include:

New York -based Codagenix, which is using computational biology to "rationally design" vaccines for intractable public health challenges;

-based Codagenix, which is using computational biology to "rationally design" vaccines for intractable public health challenges; California -based ChromaCode, which is leveraging machine-learning and artificial intelligence to significantly increase the throughput of existing molecular diagnostic equipment;

-based ChromaCode, which is leveraging machine-learning and artificial intelligence to significantly increase the throughput of existing molecular diagnostic equipment; Lagos -based 54gene, which is using pan-African genetic data to drive discoveries in drug and vaccine development; and,

-based 54gene, which is using pan-African genetic data to drive discoveries in drug and vaccine development; and, Beijing -based Yisheng Biopharma, which is addressing chronic supply issues in the rabies vaccine market.

"Accelerating the widespread availability of emerging public health innovations is a smart business decision that has the potential to benefit millions of people, especially women and girls, in low-income countries," said Jenny Yip, managing partner at Adjuvant Capital. "We firmly believe that our investment model represents an innovative way to benefit both our investors and society at large."

Why Adjuvant's Investors Committed to this Fund:

Compiled here is a collection of quotes from select investors describing why they invested in Adjuvant's debut fund. With remarkable consistency, these investors express a shared vision for reducing health inequities by championing solutions for the most burdensome and the most neglected challenges, with the goal of bringing better health care to all by making affordable, effective solutions more widely accessible.

***

"Anthos Fund & Asset Management is proud and excited to be part of Adjuvant's new $300 million Global Health Technology Fund at a time when global health is a top priority for the world. The impressive management team and diverse group of Limited Partners are completely aligned on scaling and measuring impact while achieving a compelling financial return. We look forward to starting the journey together with Adjuvant bringing global health solutions to those who need it most."

 Dimple Sahni // Managing Director Impact Funds Portfolios // Anthos Fund & Asset Management

***

"Beacon Pointe Advisors is pleased to partner with Adjuvant Capital to provide our clients the opportunity to invest alongside renown mission-driven organizations in an effort to achieve a positive impact on global health with concurrent prospects of strong financial returns."

 Michael Dow // Chief Investment Officer // Beacon Pointe Advisors

***

"Access to healthcare for all is a fundamental part of CDC's mission. As a development finance institution, we have an important role to play in helping to deliver this using our patient capital. COVID-19 has shone a light on the need to strengthen healthcare ecosystems across the globe, and especially in developing countries. Investing in Adjuvant Capital is a crucial part of this journey; investing in world-class, tech-backed healthcare solutions will help bring vital medication to those who need it most."

 Nick O'Donohoe // Chief Executive Officer // CDC Group

***

"The Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) is proud to have been an early investor in Adjuvant's debut fund. Our belief in its strategy of backing new, innovative and price appropriate solutions to neglected diseases  which tend to disproportionately impact people in low and middle income countries (LMICs)  is today more relevant than ever. The Fund's strategy strongly aligns with our own belief in promoting health equity for the most economically disadvantaged, particularly children and women in LMICs. Adjuvant's impressive management team have been able to build a mission-aligned portfolio at significant pace, that is eminently scalable on both impact and return measures, which is the essence of impact investing."

 Imraan Mohammed // Head of Impact Investing // The Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF)

***

"We were very excited to encounter and ultimately invest with Adjuvant based on our efforts at the foundation to find investments that advance our core mission objectives in medical research and healthcare, while earning attractive returns to support our future grantmaking. Adjuvant's strategy offers promise to achieve those goals and so far they are delivering."

 Jeffrey Heil // Chief Investment Officer // Doris Duke Charitable Foundation

***

"There is a misconception that impact investing requires financial return concessions. We have long believed the opposite can be true, where mission-driven investment strategies can outperform traditional benchmarks, especially when a nuanced understanding of both the investment's clinical potential and the market into which the investment will be exploited are fully understood and carefully considered as part of one's due diligence. We hope Adjuvant will demonstrate that interventions creating tangible, long-lasting health benefits for all are not incompatible with traditional financial return objectives."

 Thomas McPartland // Chief Executive Officer // The ELMA Philanthropies Services (U.S.) Inc. and member of the Board of ELMA Investments, Ltd.

***

"We are excited to partner with Adjuvant Capital to provide greater access to promising health technologies across the Global South. This is a much-needed step towards reducing inequality in all its forms and will provide critical medical solutions for millions of people worldwide."

 Roy Swan // Director, Mission Investments // Ford Foundation

***

"The Global Health Investment Corporation, with the generous support of funding provided by the Government of Germany through KfW Development Bank, is pleased to support Adjuvant's new fund, which builds upon the impact investment model pioneered by the Global Health Investment Fund, and seeks to identify products and technologies that will improve global health and generate sustainable financial returns."

 Labeeb M. Abboud // Chairman // Global Health Investment Corporation

***

"At this critical time, bringing together the private sector, innovation, and new technologies, means having the ability to change the course of global health and save lives. IFC is excited to invest in Adjuvant's new fund, working together in emerging markets to create quality, accessible health care for all."

 Stephanie von Friedeburg // Interim Managing Director and Executive Vice President, and Chief Operating Officer // IFC, a member of the World Bank Group

***

"We are excited to support Adjuvant Capital as one of a select group of major investments that advance the MacArthur Foundation's Catalytic Capital Consortium initiative. Adjuvant is tackling some of the world's most pressing global health challenges, while also attracting conventional investors that are new to global health investing through a powerful, blended finance structure fueled by catalytic capital."

 Debra Schwartz // Managing Director, Impact Investments // John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation

***

"Our mission is to invest in globally scalable technologies with the potential to meaningfully impact mortality by improving healthcare access, quality and outcomes for all populations regardless of demographics or geography. Adjuvant's investment thesis is perfectly aligned with these goals, and we are very bullish about the opportunity to save lives by financing the development of new and improved public health tools."

 Jeff Trost // Managing Partner // Laerdal Million Lives Fund

***

"RockCreek shares the mission with Adjuvant to develop novel global health solutions and deliver these technologies equitably- including the COVID-19 crisis. RockCreek looks forward to continuing this journey with Adjuvant motivated by our mutual belief in bringing vaccines, drugs and devices to underserved communities globally."

 Afsaneh Mashayekhi Beschloss // Founder and CEO // RockCreek

***

"Sonanz was founded with the belief that there is enormous untapped investment opportunity in essential sectorssuch as healthcare, financial services, agriculture and environmental technologiesacross growth markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Adjuvant is a natural partner for us in our healthcare vertical, and we share their conviction in the unseen value in this sector."

 Andreas Nilsson // Founder & Managing Director // Sonanz

***

"We are excited to partner with Adjuvant Capital to continue their efforts to fund innovative solutions to neglected, high burden infectious diseases, as well as women's and child health issues. The Adjuvant team has the potential to generate strong returns for investors, while funding game-changing healthcare solutions that have the potential to drive substantial social impact. Adjuvant's commitment to democratizing access to quality healthcare and investing in health equity is something we are incredibly proud to be a part of."

 Jim Sorenson // Founder // The Sorenson Impact Foundation

***

About Adjuvant Capital

Headquartered in New York, with offices in San Francisco and Zurich, Adjuvant is a global life sciences investment company built to accelerate the development of new technologies for the world's most pressing public health challenges. Backed by prominent healthcare and emerging market investors, Adjuvant draws upon its global network of scientists, public health experts, biopharmaceutical industry veterans, and development finance professionals to identify new investment opportunities. Adjuvant invests in companies developing promising new vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics and medical devices targeting high-burden infectious diseases, maternal and child health, antimicrobial resistance, and malnutrition, with a commitment to make these interventions accessible to those who need them most in low- and middle-income countries. For more information, visit adjuvantcapital.com .

IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES

This document is for information purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, an offer or solicitation with respect to the purchase or sale of any security, including an interest in any investment fund managed by Adjuvant. Interests in any such fund are not registered with any regulatory authority, are offered pursuant to exemptions from such registration, and are offered exclusively to certain qualifying investors pursuant to applicable fund offering documents. The testimonials included in this document are provided by persons invested with Adjuvant Capital who have agreed to provide commentary and are not directly or indirectly compensated by Adjuvant Capital for doing so.

SOURCE Adjuvant Capital
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Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
Three people charged in the murder of a Hudson County high school student are another step closer to going to trial.

Heavenley Cherry and Izmae Tinker-Trent, both 19, and Jahquell Carter, 25, all of Jersey City, were indicted by a grand jury Feb. 11 in the shooting death of 17-year-old Tyeah Garner on July 6 last year, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez announced Thursday. They were initially charged in late July.

The indictment charges Cherry with murder, conspiracy to commit murder, possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes and unlawful possession of a weapon. Tinker-Trent is charged in the indictment with hindering a murder investigation.

Carter is charged in the indictment with murder as an accomplice, conspiracy to commit murder, possession of a weapon for unlawful purposes, unlawful possession of a weapon and resisting arrest by flight. A motive for for the shooting has not been provided by the prosecutors office.

Garner, a Lincoln High School student, was shot in the head just after 10:30 p.m. on Rutgers Avenue near New Street in Jersey City. She was taken to the Jersey City Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead at 4:36 a.m. on July 7.
SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- For the first time, aficionados of fine antique and contemporary tribal and textile art can attend San Francisco's 35th Annual San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show virtually. In response to COVID-19, the organizers have taken the showusually held at Fort Mason in San Franciscoonline this year.

On offer from Pace African & Oceanic Art at the Virtual San Francisco Tribal and Textile Art Show, a Senufo seated figure from the Ivory Coast (height of 14 5/8 inches). On offer from Chris Boylan Oceanic Art out of Sydney, Australia at the Virtual San Francisco Tribal and Textile Show. This fighting shield is from the Wahgi Valley in the Western Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea circa 1980-1990. These are older shields, re-painted with the cult hero "Phantom" by young warriors. The Phantom comic was available from the 1970s onwards, and he was celebrated as "The Man Who Cannot Die". This shield has a height of 5 feet 6 inches and a width of 2 feet.

The 35th San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show is a preeminent international art fair devoted exclusively to top-tier works from Africa, Asia, Australia, Oceania, and the Americas. Over 60 national and international galleries and exhibitors will offer a wide range of objects and artifacts, making this the perfect event for collectors, designers, and enthusiasts alike.

This year's show brings together both U.S. and international dealers, offering attendees a unique opportunity to view and purchase rare and hard-to-find pieces at a wide range of prices. The celebrated Belgian gallery Didier Claes will show, among other things, pieces from its world-class collection of ibejiwooden carved memorial figures of twins by the Yoruba people of southwest Nigeria. Oceanic Arts, based in Sydney, Australia, will have extraordinary human-size Captain Marvelthemed shields from New Guinea that are featured in a new catalog and exhibit also on view at the show. Pace African & Oceanic Art, a New Yorkbased art gallery specializing in the sale of important antique African art from Central and West Africa and Oceanic art from the islands of the Pacific, will have among its offerings a Enufo seated wood figure from the Ivory Coast. Thousands of items, including baskets, paintings, photography, jewelry, extraordinary textiles, and more, will be available to delight fairgoers.

Going forward, the organizers have decided to permanently add a virtual edition for this show but plan to open up the physical fair at Fort Mason as soon as possible.

VIRTUAL ACCESS TO EXHIBITORS AND EXPERTS

Besides viewing individual pieces online during the show, attendees can also participate in Virtual Exhibitor Conversations that will work like Zoom office hours, allowing showgoers to talk directly with the experts and ask them questions. There will also be a robust lineup of virtual talks available for free.

35th San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show Virtual Benefit

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST  Noon to 7 p.m. EST  5 p.m. to midnight GMT

For those interested in a first look at the material and also in philanthropy, the show has a Benefit Preview on Wednesday, February 24, 2021. Tickets are $25, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go to Blessingway, a nonprofit created in 2016 and administered by Mark and Linda Winter, operators of the Toadlena Trading Post, with a mission to offer aid to the Navajo Nation. The proceeds, which run through Native Art New Mexico, will go to a program that distributes hundreds of COVID relief packages monthly to the Dine people, including flour, coffee, canned goods, and PPE, as well as feed for sheep and livestock.

General Admission Show

Cost: Free

Hours: Show opens at 10:00 a.m. PST on Thursday, February 25, 2021, and remains open until midnight PST on the night of Sunday, February 28, 2021.

To register for the show and for a complete list of exhibitors, visit the website of the San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show, at https://sanfranciscotribalandtextileartshow.com .

Media Contact:

Clare Hertel

505-670-3090

[email protected]

SOURCE San Francisco Tribal & Textile Art Show
Anyone who tries to lobby a teacher in the hope of achieving favourable grades for a Leaving Cert student this year will be breaking the law.

It is one of the measures to be included in legislation being introduced to support the twin-track approach to assessing 63,000 school-leavers in 2021. Lobbying by parents and students was actively discouraged last year and principals were advised to report any such incidents to the education authorities.

The Government signed off on arrangements for Leaving Cert 2021 yesterday, after intensive negotiations between the Education Department and the education partners. The deal includes cancelling the Junior Cycle exams, for the second year in a row. Separately, Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said it is likely that junior and senior-infant pupils will return to school on March 1, along with Leaving Cert students.

Read More

Speaking at the Fianna Fail parliamentary party meeting last night, he said fifth-year students may also return to school on that date, based on the spread of the virus.

The meeting heard other classes at both primary and secondary level will return to school very slowly and in line with public health advice.

Sources at the meeting said provisional plans on phased school reopenings will go before the Covid-19 Cabinet sub-committee meeting today.

Under the Leaving Cert plan, students may opt to receive a version of calculated grades and also to sit traditional exams, which will begin on June 9. Students must decide whether to sit the written papers without knowing their calculated grades. The results of both will be issued around the same time.

If they choose to sit the exams, and there is a difference in the grades awarded for one or more subjects, they will get the higher grade for each of those subjects. This year, the calculated grades will be called the State Examinations Commission (SEC)-Accredited Grades, which will be based on teacher assessments to be accumulated up to May.

Teachers estimated marks for students will go through an in-school alignment process to ensure fairness and then feed into a national standardisation process for which the Education Department will seek tenders for an algorithm. It will not use the same provider as last year.

Oral and practical exams will take place, but only for those students who choose to sit the written papers. Education Minister Norma Foley has signalled that the orals will likely be held over two-days during the Easter break,

The department has also confirmed that exam-related coursework will go ahead in the relevant subjects, with additional time provided for its completion. Similar to the orals, coursework components will not form part of the accredited grades process.

In some subjects, practical exams will not go ahead because of public health considerations and there will be more information on this as soon as possible.

Schools will administer the orals and practicals, but will not be responsible for awarding the marks. In an example of how they will work, teachers will record students doing an oral and will send it to the SEC for grading. Ms Foley said all stakeholders had worked extremely hard to get to this point. I have listened carefully to all, and we have worked together to find solutions.

There has been a broad welcome for the proposals, with the Irish Second Level Students Union (ISSU)  which called for choice in assessment  is delighted with the clarity. Meanwhile, a High Court judge will rule in coming weeks on the lead challenge over the calculated grades process adopted for Leaving Cert 2020. Mr Justice Charles Meenan said yesterday that he was adjourning some 60 other actions to March 10.
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Are the tech oligarchs more powerful than most of the nations of the world? Based on the actions of Facebook hours ago, it appears that Mark Zuckerberg thinks they are.

We are seeing a test case unfold as Australia, the continent-sized advanced nation with a population of 25 million, has been blindsided by Facebook during a dispute over legislation requiring tech giants including Facebook and Google to compensate Australian news outlets for content they feature. Australian news media have seen "a 75% decline in advertising revenue since 2005, according to the government," and with their survival in question, the government there has sought a cut of the vast advertising profits reaped by the Big Tech firms that feature their content.

Alexis Carey of News.com.au reports:

Facebook has responded to a proposed new law by banning Australian users from reading or sharing news on its platform. The stunning decision was made in retaliation to Australia's proposed new Media Bargaining law, with the federal government pushing forward with a plan to force social media giants to pay for news content.

Facebook's abrupt high-handed ban contrasts sharply with Google, which started coming to terms with Australia's demand. The New York Times reports:

Facebook and Google have fought hard to prevent the Australian law  which is expected to pass this week or next  from forcing their hands. But on Wednesday, the two companies sharply diverged on how to head off that regulatory future. Google began the day by unveiling a three-year global agreement with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp to pay for the publisher's news content, one of several such deals it has announced recently where it appears to be effectively capitulating to publishers' demands. Hours later, Facebook took the opposite tack and said it would restrict people and publishers from sharing or viewing news links in Australia, in a move that was effective immediately.

Australia's prime minister is reacting with anger. The Guardian:

The Australian government has been blindsided by Facebook suddenly blocking all news on the platform in Australia but says the "heavy-handed" move will not stop parliament from passing landmark laws to force tech giants to pay for journalism. (snip) Facebook is opposed to the federal government's proposed news media code, which has already passed the lower house of parliament and is expected to soon pass the upper house. The prime minister, Scott Morrison, took to Facebook on Thursday to argue the platform's show of strength would "confirm the concerns that an increasing number of countries are expressing about the behaviour of BigTech companies who think they are bigger than governments and that the rules should not apply to them". "Facebook's actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing," Morrison wrote on Facebook. "They may be changing the world, but that doesn't mean they run it." The federal communications minister, Paul Fletcher, warned that companies that operate in Australia "need to comply with the laws passed by the elected parliament of this nation".

Facebook is not backing down, as the Associated Press reports:

"The proposed law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content," Facebook regional managing director William Easton said. "It has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia. With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter," Easton added.

The "heavy hearted" move came as shock to the Australian government:

The announcement comes a day after Treasurer Josh Frydenberg described as "very promising" negotiations between Facebook and Google with Australian media companies.

Australia's Prime Minister Morrison was not amused, as The Guardian reports:

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, took to Facebook on Thursday to argue the platform's show of strength would "confirm the concerns that an increasing number of countries are expressing about the behaviour of BigTech companies who think they are bigger than governments and that the rules should not apply to them". "Facebook's actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing," Morrison wrote on Facebook. "They may be changing the world, but that doesn't mean they run it." (snip) The treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, condemned Facebook's decision to block Australians' access to government pages in the middle of a pandemic  including on bushfires, mental health, emergency services and even the Bureau of Meteorology  saying they were "completely unrelated" to the proposed news media bargaining code.

The heavy-handedness of Facebook extended to the details of implementation of its ban. Via The Guardian:

The social media platform, used by 18 million Australians, prevented the sharing of news and wiped clean the pages of media companies, including the public broadcaster's television, radio and non-news pages, and inadvertently wiped community, women's health and domestic violence support pages in the process.

We are extremely concerned that NATSILS has been blocked by #FacebookAustralia, so have some of our members. This is a human rights issue, silencing the voices of Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people, our representative peak bodies. This is how we connect with community. pic.twitter.com/EsUeoKZ2mG  NATSILS (@NATSILS_) February 18, 2021

Facebook is not taking responsibility but is reversing the ban.

Facebook blamed the government's definition of news content in the media bargaining code for the "inadvertent" blanket ban on government pages on Facebook  an interpretation the government rejects. "Government pages should not be impacted by today's announcement," a Facebook spokesperson said. The company said it would reverse the ban on those pages. "The actions we're taking are focused on restricting publishers and people in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content," Facebook said. "As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted."

Facebook enjoys a near monopoly because almost everyone is already on it. But if it drives away its audience in Australia, it may find that MeWe or another competitor can step up and replace it, especially if nationalist sentiment is aggravated by its high-handed attitude. The very universality of the internet means that people in other nations, particularly the English-speaking world, can learn about the experience of Australia and follow suit.

For once, the media are not on the side of the oligarchs. They have been stripped of their command of advertising markets and are not available to propagandize for Facebook the way they propagandize for other projects of the oligarchy. This situation bears close watching in the days ahead.

[February 17, 2021] Funding Societies crosses S$2B in SME Lending

SINGAPORE, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Funding Societies, Southeast Asia's largest SME digital financing platform, today announced that it has achieved S$2 billion in disbursals of business financing to small and medium sized enterprises across the region. This milestone comes as the platform enters its sixth year of operations. The amount is partly crowdfunded by over 200,000 retail investors on its platform and has been disbursed through more than 3.7 million loans. As a result, more than 65,000 SMEs through Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia have received access to funding from the FinTech that they are otherwise unable to receive from traditional financial institutions. Funding Societies recorded S$850 million in disbursals in 2020 alone, while its overall platform default rate remained under 2% through the pandemic. Digital financing platforms like Funding Societies provide quick, short-term financing to SMEs who are looking for customisable repayment schedules. According to Ernst & Young's 2020 ASEAN SME Transformation Survey, 68% of the surveyed 1,200 SMEs across the six largest ASEAN countries - Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam - are open to non-traditional lenders. The core appeals are speed and convenience; SMEs prefer the much faster and flexible loan approval process as well as an electronic know-your-customer (KYC) procedure, which typically do not require asset security or a visit to the bank branch.



Based on Funding Societies' 2019 regional Impact study, which surveyed the FinTech's impact on Singapore's, Malaysia's, and Indonesia's economies, 72% of the respondents said their revenues would decrease if not for Funding Societies' business financing. 84% of the surveyed small businesses had used the financing as working capital to pay for overheads, inventory, and business equipment, which were all crucial in their efforts to sustain operations. Kelvin Teo, Co-founder and Group CEO of Funding Societies, said, "We're thrilled to reach this major milestone before we even realised it. It is a momentous occasion and encouragement for us. There is much more to do, as we continue to serve the needs of SMEs and Investors in the region."

The Asian Development Bank estimates an annual trade financing gap of US$150 billion in Asia, and 60% of companies rejected for trade financing did not proceed with the trade because of the lack of funding. In a measure to mitigate its portfolio risk in 2020, Funding Societies tightened its credit underwriting criteria to ensure only quality notes were crowdfunded, and focused on enterprises that were likely to thrive during the pandemic. These priority sectors included healthcare, medical supplies, and transportation to name a few. The FinTech saw an 18% growth in platform investors from January of 2020. "We're grateful to raise Series C funding last year, enabling us to further help SMEs even amidst uncertain times," Teo continued. Funding Societies recently launched in Thailand, its fourth market, making it the only SME digital financing platform to be licensed in four countries throughout Southeast Asia. The Fintech has more plans to further expand its domestic and regional presence in the near future. About Funding Societies Funding Societies | Modalku is the largest SME digital financing platform in Southeast Asia. It is licensed in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, and backed by Sequoia India and Softbank Ventures Asia Corp amongst many others. It provides business financing to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which is crowdfunded by individual and institutional investors. In 5 years, it has helped finance over 3.7 million business loans with over S$2 billion in funding. It was given the MAS FinTech Award in 2016, the Global SME Excellence Award at the United Nations' ITU Telecom World in 2017, KPMG Fintech100 in 2018, Brands for Good in 2019, recognised by IDC as amongst the 5 fastest growing FinTechs in Singapore, and the Stevie Award in 2020. https://fundingsocieties.com/ Media Contact Glennice Yong

Senior PR & Communications Executive

Funding Societies

glennice.yong@fundingsocieties.com

+65 9155 4662 SOURCE Funding Societies

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The deputy defense minister faces life imprisonment if found guilty in Ukrainian court.

Ukrainian security officials say Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Andrei Kartapolov, is now a suspect in the criminal case probing the enemy seizure of Debaltseve and the killings in the so-called Ilovaisk Cauldron where Ukrainian military suffered heavy losses after being lured into withdrawal from the zone of hostilities and then brutally attacked despite promises to hold fire.

That's according to the SBU press office.

The security agency noted that the charges had been pressed under several articles of the Criminal Code:

Art. 110 P. 3 (Encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine);

Art. 437 P. 2 (Conducting an aggressive war);

Art. 438 P. 2 (Violations of laws and customs of war, combined with premeditated murder).

In January-February 2015, the Russian official held the post of Chief Main Operations Directorate, Deputy General Staff Chief of the Russian Armed Forces. He planned and coordinated the actions of the aggressor power's troops and proxy forces on seizing the strategic railway hub of Debaltseve and nearby settlements. The SBU believes that the official acted in a conspiracy with other officials who are part of Russian military command.

Detectives say in August 2014, the suspect, along with other representatives of the Russian army command:

Was engaged in planning and control of Russian units' activity during the invasion of Ukraine;

Was complicit in the treacherous killing of Ukrainian soldiers outside Ilovaisk during their withdrawal via the so-called "green corridor" under the "guarantees" of Russian leadership; and

Ensured further armed occupation of other settlements in Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

The case is being investigated under the guidance of the Office of the Prosecutor General.

If found guilty in court, the suspect faces life in prison.

Ilovaisk tragedy

At the end of August 2014, after days of fierce fighting in the area of Ilovaisk in Donbas, units of the Anti-Terrorist Operation forces were surrounded.

Russian military opened massive fire at Ukrainian convoys that were retreating along the green corridor previously agreed as a safe zone.

According to official data, 366 Ukrainian soldiers were killed, about 450 wounded, and 300 taken prisoner.

At the same time, the parliamentary ad hoc commission investigating the Ilovaisk tragedy estimated the total death toll at nearly 1,000.

On August 14, 2017, the Prosecutor General's Office released the results of an investigation, stating that the main culprit of the Ilovaisk tragedy was the Russian military command.

Read alsoRussian armed forces' military aggression only factor leading to Ilovaisk tragedy  prosecutor's officeOn August 21, 2020, the Office of the Prosecutor General stated that the only factor that led to the tragic events outside Ilovaisk was the military aggression of the Russian Armed Forces.

Within the investigation into Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine, 110 persons, including 68 citizens of the Russian Federation, 21 officials among them, were brought to criminal responsibility (in absentia) for committing said crimes. The convicts have been put on the wanted list.

Also, 48 indictments were forwarded to court for 51 persons, while 35 individuals have been sentenced, including 13 Russian nationals - three military servicemen with the Russian armed forces among them.

Reporting by UNIAN
There were no casualties in the past day.

The Command of Ukraine's Armed Forces has reported four violations of the latest ceasefire agreement committed by Russia-controlled armed groups in the Donbas warzone on Wednesday, February 17.

"In the past day, February 17, four ceasefire violations were recorded in the Joint Forces Operation (JFO) zone," the press center of the Ukrainian JFO Command said on Facebook in an update as of 07:00 Kyiv time on February 18, 2021.

Read alsoRussia blocks IAEA inspectors' visits to occupied Donbas  Ukrainian delegates to TCGIn particular, the Russian occupation troops fired proscribed 82mm mortars and anti-tank grenade launchers toward Ukrainian positions near the village of Novomykhailivka, as well as automatic and anti-tank grenade launchers were used near the village of Slavne.

Also, the Russian Federation's armed formations fired hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers and heavy machine guns near the village of Pivdenne, while automatic grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and sniper rifles were used near the village of Shumy.

The Joint Forces fired back, the report said.

The violations were reported to OSCE representatives through the Joint Center for Control and Coordination (JCCC) on the ceasefire and stabilization in Donbas.

There were no casualties in the past day.

Since midnight, enemy forces have not attacked Ukrainian troops.

The Ukrainian military say the situation is under full control.

Donbas ceasefire: Background

Participants in the Trilateral Contact Group (Ukraine, Russia, and the OSCE) on the peace settlement in Donbas on July 22 agreed on a full and comprehensive ceasefire along the contact line from 00:01 on Monday, July 27, 2020.

On the very first day of the newly-agreed truce, Russia's hybrid military forces mounted three attacks on Ukrainian positions in Donbas, eastern Ukraine. Ukraine has reported more such violations over the latest period.

Reporting by UNIAN
McVities biscuits owner Pladis has said it will eliminate non-recyclable black plastic from its products in the UK and Ireland by June.

The London-based company, the international snacks arm of Turkeys Yildiz Holding, said the move is part of a package of measures to support its sustainability targets.

Other new initiatives, which come just over two years since Pladis commited to the UK Plastics Pact, include the elimination of all PVDC film by June 2021, a continued commitment to prioritising the development of sustainable packaging solutions across best-selling lines, and reducing CO2 emissions from transportation.

Sylvain Cuperlier, head of sustainability at Pladis, said: As part of our commitment to the UK Plastics Pact, weve been working hard to transition our rigid plastic trays from black to recyclable cloudy rPET, which contain a minimum of 30% recycled content.

Were pleased to announce that the last black trays were produced in late December and we will complete this transition by the summer, after which there will be no more Pladis-produced black plastic in the market. This will save 80 million plastic trays from landfill every year.



Pladis has also increased the amount of recycle-ready monopolymer film used across the business  it now represents 64% of all packaging film  and removed 35% of PVDC film, cited by the UK Plastics Pact as a problematic plastic.

As part of its drive to prioritise sustainable packaging, Pladis has overhauled the packaging for many of its best-selling lines.

"Shoppers will have noticed the changes we've been making as they purchased their favourite festive biscuits in the lead up to Christmas," said Cuperlier.

Thematic Reports Are you worried about the pace of innovation in your industry? GlobalData's TMT Themes 2021 Report tells you everything you need to know about disruptive tech themes and which companies are best placed to help you digitally transform your business. Find out more

"Last year, we made some important adjustments to our best selling McVitie's Victoria assortment, including downsizing the card outer and incorporating a fully-recyclable cloudy plastic tray."
Basically, Jupiter acts as a kind of pinball machine, said astrophysics undergraduate student Amir Siraj on the new theory hoping to help better understand the demise of the dinosaurs.

Harvard University astronomer Abraham Loeb and 21-year-old Siraj, published a new theory on the apocalyptic event that saw the extinction of the dinosaurs in the nature research journal, Scientific Reports.

The Chicxulub impactor. which is widely viewed as the asteroid that ended the dinosaurs existence, piled into Earth roughly 66 million years ago, leaving behind a crater off the coast of Mexico that spans 93 miles and goes 12 miles deep. The impact led to the dramatic extinction of the dinosaurs as well as almost three-quarters of the plant and animal species then living on Earth. The impact site is known as the the Chicxulub crater.

The background impact rates of main-belt asteroids and long-period comets have been previously dismissed as being too low to explain the Chicxulub impact event, states the study by the Harvard University academics.

They theorized that a large icy sphere of debris, called the Oort cloud, in orbit at the edge of our solar system was knocked off course by the gravitational pull of Jupiter which sent them towards the sun. The suns tidal force broke apart pieces of the rock and increased the chance of fragments being sent towards Earth.

Basically, Jupiter acts as a kind of pinball machine, said Siraj in an interview with EurekAlert!. Jupiter kicks these incoming long-period comets into orbits that bring them very close to the sun.

The impact rate of tidally disrupted LPCs with energies comparable to that of the Chicxulub impactor, with the impact rates of intact LPCs and MBAs for reference, in addition to the range of rates that would explain the observed Chicxulub impact, including 95% Poisson errors. Most LPCs and 10% of MBAs are assumed to have a carbonaceous chondritic composition

Siraj is also co-president of Harvard Students for the Exploration and Development of Space and is pursuing a masters degree at the New England Conservatory of Music.

Siraj and Loebs theory suggests that the piece of cometary shrapnel, that broke off due to the suns tidal force, created the Chicxulub crater.

These types of fragments cross the Earths orbit and hit our planet roughly once every 250 to 730 million years, according to the study. The Harvard study revealed new calculations that show that roughly 20% of long-period comets become sungrazers.

In a sungrazing event, the portion of comet closer to the sun feels a stronger gravitational pull than the part that is further, resulting in a tidal force across the object, said Siraj. You can get whats called a tidal disruption event, in which a large comet breaks up into many smaller pieces. And crucially, on the journey back to the Oort cloud, theres an enhanced probability that one of these fragments hit the Earth.

Loeb asserts that the paper provides a basis for explaining the occurrence of the event.

We are suggesting that, in fact, if you break up an object as it comes close to the Sun, it could give rise to the appropriate event rate and also the kind of impact that killed the dinosaurs, Loeb added.
February 17, 2021





The property industry is now one of the world's most prosperous enterprises. It's hard to imagine that we had to find a house for ourselves relying on word-of-mouth advertisements, property brokers, and newspaper classifieds just a few years ago. The advancement of technology has led to the expansion and transformation of the real estate industry. Whether you adjust comfortably or not, technology continuously advances, requiring us all to comply, eventually. The launch of listing hubs has taken the industry by storm. Developers are now recruiting technology firms to market their properties better.







If you are house hunting, you can now check out listings and study area facilities and market rates from afar. This is made possible as real estate agencies are now equipped with instruments such as 360-degree videos, drone imaging, virtual reality, and tours on FaceTime (News - Alert) . Some real estate agents fail to keep up with such dramatic shifts, while others explore new technologies to catch up. To the home buyer, the universe of future homes or knowledge that they have not had prior access to is immersive, and at times daunting.

Statistics

On average, these are the general statistics for this rapidly growing industry:

Over 90 percent of realtors are now using social media to advertise listings.

More than 90 percent of buyers are now using the internet to carry out their search.

At least 50 percent of prospective buyers utilise a mobile application or website to search for a home of their choice.

Over 40 percent of buyers begin the purchase process for a new home by searching online.

How Technology Assists in the Buying Decision

Construction Technology

The demand for low-cost housing is increasing in some countries with lower environmental impacts. Therefore, property developers ultimately have to take into account the use of creative construction techniques. Emphasis includes modular construction and prefabricated architectural materials for the off-site construction and on-site installation of a building. In 2014, a business headquartered in China, Winsun, designed a 3-D printed home. This innovation brought about savings of up to eighty percent on structural costs and sixty percent on labour in comparison to conventional building methods. These are only a couple of the creative concepts property developers pursue internationally to reduce expenses.

Drone Photography

Offering prospective buyers an aerial view of the property is a rare and convincing way to grasp their attention. Drone photography is predominantly useful for estates or vast properties as it offers the spectator a detailed outline of the sprawl. Drone photography is suitable for any property type because it offers a greater intimacy in conjunction with virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

The Internet of Things (IoT)

The IoT is a major element of intelligent homes and house automation. This includes the automated operation of things around the home with a portable device or voice control from electricity to curtains. Smart home technologies have transformed the property industry. It is now a property developer's game-changing technique. Contractors are attracting buyers with ready homes on the internet rather than offering a house-shell. It is anticipatory that property agents may soon begin to use IoT for property searches.

Home Listings

Another thing that totally altered the way sellers and potential buyers viewed the method of searching for the property was the arrival of online home listings that acted as a meeting spot for sellers and buyers. Equipped with all the essential details, such as hospitals, schools, parks, shopping malls, and other surrounding facilities and services, a potential buyer is now better informed. Having all this knowledge before viewing the property physically equips you as a buyer with important information to govern your decision. It also makes it easier to eliminate properties that would otherwise have consumed your time, only for you to arrive on site and decide it is not the neighbourhood for you.

Artificial Intelligence

Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the technology of machines learning how to enhance their performance based on trends or past knowledge. To adequately control costs, produce greater yields, and mitigate risk using algorithms programmed to anticipate and consider individual investor interests, these programs are put to use by property investors. The real estate analysis software improves how potential investors align preferred properties and enhances the broker's work.

Big Data

Much as today's big stories are VR and AI; big data may steadily be discontinued from conversations. Still, it remains as important in real estate as ever. Big data will have a great deal of impact on the market, from making business decisions to building improved customer interactions. Real estate firms often obtain a vast volume of data from repositories without examining the sector's dynamics or customer behaviour.

Any real estate company trying to approach the best buyers needs to know who they are, where they are, what they want to order, and how they can easily access them. Big data is a significant factor in improving the real estate process and an indispensable method for targeting purchasers. It will increase productivity unequivocally while enhancing customer support for property service companies.

Quick Sale Property

Above all, with all these technology upgrades, there is one crucial part of the home buying or home selling process that can be a colossal hindrance: the paperwork, valuations, solicitors, and cost implications of it all. Plus, as it can be time-engaging, you may want an option that will afford you a fast process.

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Amid the ongoing discussion about Khalistan in India, on Thursday we bring you the answers to questions like what is Khalistan and how its objectives are dangerous for India's national unity and integrity. Let us tell the history and current situation of Khalistan and also how the idea of Sikhistan took the form of Khalistan.

We want you to share this analysis on social media platforms because there is only one way to defeat hate and that is through the right information and correct history. Let us start by telling the viewers of DNA and readers of Zee News the meaning of Khalistan.

READ | Pieter Friedrich, alleged mastermind of toolkit case, denies involvement in Khalistan movement

Khalistan means 'The Land of Khalsa' i.e. a separate nation for the Khalsa or a separate nation for the Sikhs. Khalsa was founded in the year 1699 by Gobind Singh, the 10th Guru of the Sikhs. Khalsa means pure but over time, the idea was changed and it got politicised.

To understand this, today we will reverse some pages of history and for this, you will have to go back 100 years with us. This is in the year 1920 when India was fighting for independence from the British. During this time a movement was started and its name was Gurdwara Reform Movement. This was a very influential movement and its aim was to free the Gurdwaras of India from the Udasi Sikh Mahants, who were considered as Akali Hindu Mahants of that time. However, the Udasi Sikh sect was founded by Sri Chand, the elder son of Guru Nanak Dev himself.

READ | Pro-Khalistan terrorist arrested from Maharashtra's Nanded

Under this movement, more than 30,000 Sikhs were imprisoned during the struggle between 1920 and 1925. 400 Sikhs were killed and about 2,000 Sikhs were injured. At the same time, the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee was formed in 1920 after a meeting of 10,000 Sikhs and today, this committee has the management of Gurdwaras in India.

This movement lasted for five years and at that time hundreds of gurdwaras--including the Golden Temple in Amritsar and the Nankana Sahib Gurdwara in Pakistan, had gone from Udasi Sikh mahants to the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee. By 1925, the British accepted most of the demands of the struggling Sikhs, after which the movement ended.

READ | Farmers' protest: Centre asks Twitter to remove over 1000 Pak-Khalistan accounts spreading rumours

However, an important thing associated with this movement is that while this struggle was going on, the Sikhs had divided into three parts. First, there were those who wanted to free the gurudwaras from Udasi Sikh mahants. Others were those who, even after the end of this movement, continued to fight for India's independence. The third were those who made it the political platform of Sikh communalism. The people who did this started an effort to show Sikhs separately from Hindus and Muslims, and from here the demand for a separate Sikh country was born and for this, the word Sikhistan was used.

READ | Pro-Khalistan groups hold protest in Washington in support of farmers protesting against farm laws

There were two major reasons behind the feeling of alienation in the minds of Sikhs for Hindus. The first was that the Hindu community was more influential in society and the second reason was the weak position of Sikhs in government jobs and politics.

In the Lahore session of the Congress in 1929, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru first demanded full Swaraj and pledged to liberate India from the British. But the Lahore session of the Congress was also opposed and there were three groups doing so. The first group belonged to Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who believed that there should be a separate country for Muslims. The second group belonged to Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar, the architect of the Constitution of India, who was fighting for the rights of Dalits.

The third group belonged to Master Tara Chand, who said if separate seats were reserved for Muslims in India, the seats should be reserved for Sikh minorities on this basis. He was a founding member of the same Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, which was formed to liberate the gurdwaras. He opposed the Lahore session on two big issues. The first point was that he wanted the Congress not to ignore the Sikhs and secondly, he was afraid that the role of Sikhs in political participation would be very limited because the population of Sikhs was very less against Hindus and Muslims even at that time. For these reasons later demand for a separate country for Sikhs arose and it is said that the idea of Khalistan came into existence from here. However, the word Sikhistan was used instead of Khalistan.

During the movement for India's independence, the demand for a separate Sikh country arose many times but when India became independent in 1947, it had two parts. The first was India and the second was Pakistan. During partition, in the united Punjab where Sikhs had a large population, its western part moved to Pakistan and East Punjab became part of India and this broke some Sikhs' dream of a separate country.

Angry Akali leaders made communal principles, the centre of Sikh politics. Akali leaders said right from the beginning that it is not possible to separate religion and politics from Sikh ideology. These people then also said that only they can express the rights of the Sikh community and not only this, they constantly talked about discrimination against Sikhs in independent India, which was wrong.

However, the result was that in 1953 Master Tara Chand, who was then the face of the Akali Dal and the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee, told the Sikhs that the British have left but we have not got independence. For us, freedom means only that our rulers have turned black from the whites. Sikhism and our freedom are being crushed under the guise of democracy and secularism.

Another important point is that after independence, a part of India which was called PEPSU i.e.Patiala and East Punjab States Union was incorporated in Punjab in 1956. At the time when all this was happening, Sant Fateh Singh started a movement called Punjab Suba. Its purpose was to create a separate state of Punjabi speaking people. But at that time the government did not accept this demand because at that time it felt that a separate Sikh state was being dreamed under the cover of the demand of this state and the Constitution of India does not allow it on the basis of religion.

However, it was only after 10 years that the government changed its attitude and former prime minister late Indira Gandhi divided Punjab into three parts in the year 1966. The first part is what today is called Punjab. The second part was Haryana and the third part was the hilly areas, which were handed over to Himachal Pradesh. Apart from this, Chandigarh was made a union territory and the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana.

It was only after this partition of Punjab that a new twist took place in the politics of Khalistan. This was the period when the word Khalistan began to be used more. After the partition of Punjab, the Akali Dal put many demands before the government. Even at that time, there was a government of Indira Gandhi in the country. In 1973, the Shiromani Akali Dal formed a committee of 12 people, who passed Anandpur Sahib Resolution. There were three big demands for this resolution. The first demand was that the rivers of Punjab--Sutlej and Beas water be divided again. The second demand was to completely hand over Chandigarh to Punjab. The third demand was those districts of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan, where Sikhs have a high population, they should be included in Punjab. These districts are--Dalhousie, Pinjore, Kalka, Ambala, Una, Karnal, Sirsa, Tohana, Hisar, Ganganagar.

When the Anandpur Sahib Resolution passed, the Shiromani Akali Dal's political situation in Punjab had weakened considerably. In such a situation, the leaders of the Akali Dal could not put much pressure on the government of Indira Gandhi. The most important thing is that the Akali Dal used to claim representation of all Sikhs but in the elections held between 1952 and 1980, the Akali Dal did not even get an average of 50 per cent votes in Punjab. It was due to this political failure that the separatist ideology started strengthening in Punjab. The demand for creating a separate country named Khalistan for the Sikhs gained momentum. This was the same period when terrorism started in Punjab and Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale became its poster boy.

It is to be noted that both Indira Gandhi and Punjab Congress president Giani Zail Singh in the early days supported Bhindranwale because, through Bhinderwala, Indira Gandhi wanted to further weaken the Akali Dal in Punjab. But this step of Indira Gandhi proved to be the biggest mistake for her.

Between 1980 and 1984, hundreds of innocent people were killed in Punjab in broad daylight and there was an attempt to create conflict between Hindus and Sikhs. Bhindranwale initially targeted the Nirankaris and those opposing Khalistan and after this, journalists, leaders, police and people of the Hindu community also came under attack.

By July 1982, Bhindranwale had become so strong that it had strengthened its roots in the Golden Temple of Amritsar and by June 1984, the situation had become so bad that Indira Gandhi had no choice but to leave the Golden Temple free from Khalistani separatists. Such was the first use of the Army on such a large scale in the internal matter of the country.

On June 5, 1984, the Indian Army had to entre the Golden Temple and it was called Operation Blue Star. The operation ended on June 10 afternoon, in which 83 soldiers were martyred, 249 jawans wounded and 493 Khalistani terrorists killed, including Bhindranwale.

There was anger among Sikhs against Indira Gandhi after Bhindranwale was killed and she was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards on the morning of October 31, 1984. After this, there were large-scale riots against the Sikhs in the country, and big leaders of the Congress were also accused of being involved in these riots. After these riots, gradually the demand for Khalistan in India started to weaken.

In August 1985, by signing an agreement with the then prime minister late Rajiv Gandhi, Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harchand Singh people agreed to join electoral politics. Despite this, however, terrorist attacks continued in Punjab. On June 23, 1985, Air India's Kanishka aircraft was blown up by terrorists during an air flight, killing 329 people.

On August 10, 1986, the 13th Army Chief of India, General Arun Sridhar Vaidya was assassinated. Because he was the Army Chief of India during Operation Blue Star and on August 31, 1995, former Punjab CM Beant Singh was killed in a car bomb blast.

However, it is to be understood that in view of the violence and terror in Punjab, President's rule was imposed in 1987 and after this, in the year 1992, Vidhan Sabha elections were held in Punjab. The important thing is that despite the 1984 Sikh riots and subsequent terrorist incidents, Congress was successful in forming the government in Punjab. Beant Singh became the chief minister but on August 31, 1995, he was also killed in a car bomb blast.

Today, many Sikhs have rejected the idea of Khalistan in India. But Khalistani organizations sitting abroad still plot to break India into pieces. These organizations also get open support from Pakistan and Canada has become a safe land for them. This is the reason why the movement in India is against agricultural laws, but Khalistan is being discussed more as Khalistan is at its root.

However, Sikhs have a glorious history in defence of India. This thing is bad for our enemies and they create a lot of conspiracy to defame and mislead Sikhs in India. We think you have to identify this conspiracy today. We sincerely hope that by reading this analysis, you must have understood Khalistan and its demand and also why Khalistan is an anti-India idea.
Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) are holding five suspects that have been terrorising taxi drivers in Kiambu county.

The suspects; Peter Njoroge Kirika, John Muchoki Gatuhu, John Kimani Nganga, Peter Mwangi Murima and Benson Itimu Kariuki are said to be behind a spate of carjackings in Githurai, Ruiru and Kirigiti, targeting Little Cab drivers.

Investigations by the DCI revealed that one of the gang members hails a cab as a passenger and thereafter commanders the vehicle to a secluded area where his accomplices join him.

So organised are the gang members, that one of them poses like the usual cab passenger but once inside the cab, he squeezes the drivers neck from the back seat and commandeers the car, the DCI said.

The gang then assaults the cab driver, robs them of their valuables before vandalizing the vehicle.

In one such instance, on February 10th, one of the thugs using a fake identity requested to be taken to Kirigiti from Githurai Kimbo, to allegedly pick his ailing mother who needed urgent medical attention. The unsuspecting cab driver then set off for the journey but on reaching Kirigiti where they were supposed to pick an ailing woman, a male adult emerged & entered the vehicle instead.

The vehicle was then comandeered to Sasisni coffee bushes where three more thugs emerged. They vandalised the vehicle making away with the headlights & tail lights, side mirrors, mirror switches, car battery and the spare wheel. No sooner had detectives completed their investigations on this incident, than the gang carjacked two other cab drivers in a similar fashion, robbing them of their valuables before vandalising their vehicles & abandoning them in Mwihoko, Githurai in the dead of the night. However, on Monday following intelligence leads, Githurai and Ruiru based detectives apprehended the criminals, said the DCI.

Three of the suspects are ex-convicts for various capital offences, including robbery with violence and murder.

The gang is said to have a specialised mechanic who vandalizes a vehicle within minutes of a carjacking and a customer relations expert, who lures unsuspecting taxi drivers to their trap.

A vehicle used by the gang, assorted keys, screw drivers, and sacks for carrying vandalised motor vehicle parts were also recovered, the DCI noted.

Also recovered were original identity cards belonging to victims of crime, which are used to register SIM cards and lure unsuspecting cab drivers. Also found, was a mobile phone for making taxi requests.

Detectives on Wednesday also recovered a vandalised vehicle, a Toyota Ractis of registration plate number KCX 716G, in Githurai area.

The DCI sleuths are also hot on the heels of the crooked businessmen who profiteer from the sale of vandalized vehicle parts.

Meanwhile, the five suspects were arraigned Tuesday and remanded for ten more days to allow detectives to complete investigations.
Burma Myanmars Military Regime Brings Charges of Incitement Against Ousted NLD Ministers

Mandalay residents gather in front of Aung Myay Thar Zan Township Court, calling for the release of its chief minister Dr. Zaw Myint Maung and Mayor U Ye Lwin on Thursday. / Zaw Zaw / The Irrawaddy

The military opened cases against two ousted chief ministers and a regional minister of National League for Democracy this week, accusing them of incitement against the regime, which seized power from Myanmars democratically elected government on Feb. 1.

On Thursday, detained Mandalay Region Chief Minister Dr. Zaw Myint Maung, who is also the vice chairman of the NLD, was charged with incitement at the Aung Myay Thar Zan Township Court.

The assistant director from general administration department, Daw Nwe Ni Khine, brought the accusation. According to court records, she told the Aung Myay Thar Zan Township court that the charge is the result of five statements issued by the NLD in the past two weeks.

These statements incite the public to go against the state or stability, therefore, the plaintiff filed against Dr. Zaw Myint Maung under the article 505 [b] of the Penal Code, according to the court.

While a court hearing was in session on Thursday morning, citizens of Mandalay gathered in front of the Aung Myay Thar Zan Township court, to show solidarity with Dr. Zaw Myint Maung and Mandalay Mayor Dr. Ye Lwin. The hearing was conducted through videoconference. The court continued the case for Dr. Zaw Myint Maung to next Monday (Feb. 22).

There is no charge yet against Mayor Dr. Ye Lwin, who resigned from his position following the coup.

During the pre-dawn coup on Feb. 1, the military detained the NLD government leaders and have started filing different charges, beginning with the President U Win Myint and the State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

The regime charged the duo under Natural Disaster Management Law for allegedly breaching COVID-19 restrictions during the election campaign and filed additional charges against Daw Aung San Suu Kyi under Import and Export Law, accusing her of possessing illegally imported walkie-talkies.

Following the militarys takeover of power, millions of Myanmar citizens across the country have taken to the streets to show their opposition to the regime.

The protesters at Aung Myay Thar Zan Township Court on Thursday echoed the nationwide call for the release of the detained leaders, denouncing the military regime and urging the coup makers to respect the outcome of the election, which the military claims was the result of electoral fraud.

On Wednesday, Mandalays ousted regional minister for natural resources and environmental conservation, U Myo Thit, was also charged with incitement at the Chan Aye Thar Zan Township Court.

The regime also filed the same charge against Rakhine State Chief Minister U Nyi Pu and will hear the case on Feb. 22. U Nyi Pu was initially detained during the Feb. 1 pre-dawn coup and then placed under house arrest. But he was re-arrested on the night of Feb. 10.

News about other detained chief ministers including Daw Nang Khin Htwe Myint of Karen State and U Myint Naing of Sagaing Region both of whom were re-arrested on Feb. 8, is limited. Their families are concerned about their safety.

As of Wednesday, the military had detained 495 individuals, including the elected lawmakers and members of the NLD, election commissioners, anti-coup protesters and civil servants involved in the civil disobedience movement, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). Of that total, 460 are still being detained and few have been formally charged.

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Johna Little works overnights, finishing her shift just before 6 a.m.

By 8:05, shes sitting next to her son, helping him log on to his laptop for first grade at Shawmont Elementary in Roxborough. Samir is bright but needs help staying on track for virtual school, so Little spends her day with him. Little does her best, and catches catnaps when she can, but shes exhausted all the time, and worried that her boy is missing too much by not being in the same room with his teachers.

Samir is one of 9,000 Philadelphia students scheduled to return to Philadelphia School District schools on March 1, though reopening is up in the air amid a standoff between the district and city teachers, who say schools arent yet safe for return.

While parents, educators, union officials, and advocates have been organized, vocal, and clear on their position that schools arent ready to reopen, those on the other side say their voices are being drowned out. They point to other schools reopening as evidence that it can be done. They say that children are suffering with buildings closed and that the strain of virtual learning on families, especially those of essential workers and those in vulnerable communities, is a problem.

Across the country, parents are generally becoming more comfortable with the idea of their children returning to in-person school; one national poll released last month found that about 46% of all parents were very or somewhat comfortable with their children returning to buildings, an increase from a few months before. Another poll found a plurality of Americans  47%  said the reopening of schools in their community is happening at just the right pace, with 27% saying its not happening quickly enough and 18% too quickly.

But the reopening calculus in urban districts is different; families of color often lack trust in school systems that have failed them for decades, and the Philadelphia School Districts long history of buildings with environmental problems weighs on many parents minds as they decide whether to send their children back into classrooms. Like Philadelphia, Chicago and Los Angeles have not opened for a single day of in-person learning since March.

Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. told City Council on Wednesday that he feels great urgency to return vulnerable students to school as quickly as their parents feel comfortable, both for academic and social-emotional reasons.

The research shows that children of color have fallen behind the most, Hite said, adding that COVID-19 losses are risking their future in the process.

 READ MORE: In public protest, thousands of Philly teachers pushed back against reopening schools

In Philadelphia, most parents who could choose to return their children to school two days a week opted to keep them at home; just a third of the 32,000 eligible students are slated to return.

Still, Little, who works in quality control, is hopeful shell soon be able to drop Samir off at school for his first day at Shawmont since last March, when he was still in kindergarten.

She said school staff have assured her the conditions are right for return, and she hopes her son can make up some of the academic ground she worries hes lost. Theres also relief that, at least for two days a week, her family can regain a little normalcy.

Parents are very excited, said Little. Virtual learning is a lot on parents.

Lexi Peskins third grader isnt eligible to return to school yet, but shes frustrated by pushback around reopening and afraid what it means for her daughters prospects of returning to McCall Elementary in Center City.

Im getting increasingly worried that were never going to be in school, Peskin said. Her daughter struggled without access to peers, so Peskin enrolled her in a child-care center program that supports elementary kids virtual learning, and that has helped, but its not the same as traditional school.

I think my daughters teacher is working extremely hard; I dont think shes slacking or not taking this seriously, said Peskin. I just think the medium doesnt work. And I think the union knows it doesnt work.

School the way it operated pre-COVID is an impossibility, Peskin knows. But suburban and private schools, day cares, and preschools have made it work, and she believes theres some way to do the same in Philadelphia, if the teachers union backs away from its demands, which Peskin believes are vague and prohibitive.

We need to come up with a solution, and just saying, This other district has more resources is not a solution, said Peskin.

Peskin and others take seriously the advice of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Philadelphia Public Health Department, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, and other agencies, all of whom say schools can reopen with COVID-19 protocols in place.

The issue is so polarizing that many parents are afraid to speak out on the issue. Several interviewed by The Inquirer declined to be identified for fear of retribution. The parents generally worried about a narrative that painted pro-school-reopening parents as anti-teacher and the notion that parents who wanted their children back in school just wanted a break from them.

West Philadelphia parent Syrita Powers, mother of three children who attend district schools, signed up to send her youngest back to school as soon as it reopens.

All three of Powers girls have special needs, and the pandemic has been especially tough on the family. Powers worries about sending Logan, her second grader, back to Barry Elementary  the girl has autism and is nonverbal and requires assistance on the bus, going to the bathroom, and performing many other tasks.

 READ MORE: CDC gives new road map for schools without requiring schools to reopen

But I know that she needs to be in school, said Powers, whose oldest and youngest attend Barry and whose middle child attends Heston Elementary, also in West Philadelphia. She lost the skills we worked so hard on. For children with disabilities, all this time away is not good for them.

Still, Powers is concerned she hasnt yet received answers to many questions about what school will be like when Logan returns. And she has sympathy for teachers safety concerns; the district has a shaky environmental record and is taking heat for ventilation issues, particularly in more than 30 schools that lack mechanical ventilation and will rely on window fans to circulate air.

They had 11 months to get this together, Powers said of the district. Why wasnt everything taken care of?

Dave Becker has two children who attend Central High School and as of now have no return date in sight. But Becker is less concerned about his kids return, he said, and more alarmed that younger children and vulnerable kids may continue to go without the option to get back into buildings.

We cant keep prolonging this, said Becker. I think this is our own Flint water crisis developing right here. Teachers are right to want to be in safe schools, but the question is, Is now the right time to be fighting for maintenance and school upkeep in the middle of the pandemic?
The Prairie provinces are the main source of Canadas natural resources and global exports. They produce more than 98.9 million metric tonnes of export cargo that flows through the Port of Vancouver.

From this port the provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba ship about $78 billion worth of exports each year. However, representation on the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (VFPA) Board of Directors fails to represent this regional diversity. Currently, the Prairie Provinces are represented by 9% of the board  although these provinces are responsible for 85% of the ports export value.

There are significant opportunities for export growth but the port is challenged by points of congestion and land constraints, which could affect the long-term sustainability of the port.

Provinces should be fairly represented to ensure that the specific needs of each region are reflected in our world-class export infrastructure. In short, the representation on the VFPA Board needs to be balanced.

To more fairly reflect the economic realities of the 11-person VFPA Board, it should be restructured in the following manner:

The federal government appoints 2 members.

The provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba each appoint 2 members recommended by port users.

The municipalities that border the port authoritys jurisdiction appoint one member.

The competitiveness of the Port of Vancouver is tremendously important to Western Canada and the entire country. This newly structured board would better reflect the needs of exporters, help grow our economy, and create jobs across Canada at a time when its needed most.

During meet with Antony Blinken, Jaishankar thanks US for strong support

India recognised by US as important part of conversation on Afghanistan: Jaishankar

Foreign minister Jaishankar to take part in 3rd Quad ministerial meeting today

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will join his counterparts from the US, Japan and Australia on Thursday under the framework of Quad coalition to deliberate on ways to enhance cooperation in the Indo-Pacific in the backdrop of growing Chinese assertiveness in the region.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the ministers will exchange views on regional and global issues especially practical areas of cooperation towards maintaining a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region.

It will be the third ministerial meeting of the foreign ministers of Quad member countries and the first after the Joe Biden administration took charge in Washington. It will be held in the virtual format.

Assam's all-round development is central to success of Act East Policy: Jaishankar

The evolving situation in the Indo-Pacific region in the wake of China''s increasing military muscle flexing has become a major talking point among leading global powers. The US has been favouring making Quad a security architecture to check China''s growing assertiveness.

"The third India-Australia-Japan-USA ministerial meeting will be held on February 18 with participation of the respective foreign ministers," the MEA said in a brief statement.

It said the meeting will provide an opportunity to continue the useful exchange of views from their last meeting in Tokyo in October last.

"The ministers will exchange views on regional and global issues especially practical areas of cooperation towards maintaining a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region," it said.

"They will also discuss ongoing efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, addressing global climate change and other issues of mutual interest," the MEA said.

In the midst of growing global concern over China''s expansionist behaviour, the foreign ministers of the Quad member nations met in Tokyo on October 6 and reaffirmed their collective vision for a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific.

The foreign minister of the four countries held their first meeting under the ''Quad'' framework in New York in September 2019.

In November 2017, India, Japan, the US and Australia gave shape to the long-pending proposal of setting up the Quad to develop a new strategy to keep the critical sea routes in the Indo-Pacific free of any influence.

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Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 10:05 [IST]
New Delhi:

As many as 122 children who had gone missing from Kota and Bundi districts, have been rescued under an ongoing special drive, 'Operation Muskan III', officials have told.



They also told that many of these children have been reunited with their families under the moth-long initiative, they told.



In-charge of the anti-human trafficking cell in the district, Dharmraj Singh Ranawat told that as many as 70 minors have been rescued in Kota, out of whom 42 were working as labourers.



In Bundi, 43 children have been rescued, said in-charge of the district's anti-human trafficking cell Kaniz Fatima.



She said 11-year-old Pooja and her brother (8) were allegedly forced to work as bonded labourers for over a year by a woman identified as Suman Sharma (60).



The boy was rescued on July 22 from Ramganjbalaji after he managed to flee Sharma's home. Based on his information, officials of the anti-human trafficking cell rescued his sister and arrested the accused woman, Fatima said, adding the two siblings were reunited with their mother.



The accused was on Monday produced before a local court that sent her to judicial custody, she said.



'Operation Muskan III' started on July 1 across Rajasthan to rescue children who had either gone missing or fled home.

(With PTI inputs)

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Prysmian Group, a world leader in the energy and telecom cable systems industry, has signed a new framework agreement with Reseau de Transport dElectricite (RTE), Frances Transmission System Operator, confirming its role as major partner of the French TSO in its plan of upgrading and developing national power girds.

Prysmian, which has been awarded with the largest share of the agreement, will be responsible for supplying, jointing and testing some high voltage alternating current (HVAC) cable systems for underground grid connections from 90 kV up to 400 kV.

The framework agreement will cover the period 2021-2023, with two potential optional additional years.

To support the upgrade of Frances power grids, Prysmian Group will leverage its French centres of manufacturing excellence, located in Gron and Montereau.

These plants employ more than 1,400 people and are renowned for the production of high voltage cables and P-Laser technology.

By supplying high-performing, innovative and sustainable state-of-the-art cable-system solutions, Prysmian Group significantly contributes to the development of smarter and greener power grids, enabling the European Energy Transition, and building a more connected future, said the statement.

This framework agreement confirms Prysmian Groups primary role in supplying RTE with HV cable systems, consolidates their long-term and successful relationship, and highlights once again RTEs trust in Prysmian, it added.

Laurent Tardif, CEO of Prysmian Group South Europe Region, said: We are proud to have the opportunity to play a key role in the upgrade of such a strategic infrastructure for our country, by making available our Made-in-France cable technology."

Based on our long-term partnership, over the last years Prysmian has already provided RTE with innovative, efficient and sustainable power transmission cable solutions, both submarine and terrestrial, he added.
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Keir Starmer stood in front of a Union Jack backdrop today as he set out his economic vision for the future, days after being urged to undergo a 'patriotic rebrand' to win over lost Labour voters.

The Opposition leader warned Boris Johnson not to 'waste the sacrifices of the last year' with a botched rebuilding of the UK economy, backed by a muted, pastel rendition of the UK national flag.

The major speech came after Sir Keir was last month told to put clear daylight between himself and his hard Left predecessor Jeremy Corbyn in the eyes of the electorate.

A leaked report at the start of February suggested he makes 'use of the flag, veterans' to convince disaffected former voters who fled at the 2019 election that Labour reflects their values.

The Labour leadership seem to have taken the advice to heart already, with Sir Keir and senior shadow ministers Anneliese Dodds and Rachel Reeves seen against the backdrop of the union flag for speeches and party political broadcasts even before the report came out.

The Labour boss warned the PM and Chancellor Rishi Sunak against hiking taxes or implementing a new wave of austerity in a 'roadmap to yesterday' as he sought to reboot his leadership.

He called for the March Budget to avoid short-term measures to balance the books and invoked post-war Labour prime minister Clement Attlee to say that Britain should be rebuild with a longer-term, futuristic vision.

However, the faint pastel-hued Union Jack backdrop today was too vivid for some. Plaid Cymru's Westminister leader Liz Saville Roberts complained on Twitter that he was 'draped in the union jack (sic) ... with no mention of Wales'.

Sir Keir's pastel-shaded backdrop of the flag was barely discernible to the TV cameras

Sir Keir, who has faced accusations of a lacklustre first year in charge of the party, also criticised the policies of predecessor Jeremy Corbyn as he set out to woo businesses, saying they were not 'something just to be tolerated or taxed'

The Labour leadership seem to have taken the advice to heart already, with Sir Keir and senior shadow ministers Anneliese Dodds and Rachel Reeves seen against the backdrop of the union flag for speeches and party political broadcasts even before the report came out.

Mr Attlee heavily defeated Winston Churchill in the general election held following the Second World War and went on to build the NHS and other major arms of the welfare state.

In another idea from the time Sir Keir also suggested the formation of a 'British recovery bond', with echos of the 'war bonds' that helped finance the war effort.

Sir Keir, who has faced accusations of a lacklustre first year in charge of the party, also criticised the policies of predecessor Jeremy Corbyn as he set out to woo businesses, saying they were not 'something just to be tolerated or taxed.'

He today described next month's Budget as a fork in the road, saying that 'the public finances must be returned to sustainability over the medium to long-term not in the short-term'.

'So this is no time for a second wave of austerity. And this is no time for tax rises on businesses and families either,' Sir Keir said in the speech broadcast live from Labour headquarters.

'That would waste the sacrifices of the last year. And it would choke off our recovery.'

And in a nod to late Labour former prime minister Sir Harold Wilson, who said the party is 'a moral crusade or it is nothing', Sir Keir said: 'Our moral crusade now is to address the inequalities and injustices that this crisis has so brutally exposed - and to build a better, more secure future.'

He called for the March Budget to avoid short-term measures to balance the books and invoked post-war Labour prime minister Clement Attlee to say that Britain should be rebuild with a longer-term, futuristic vision.

Attlee (pictured), defeated Winston Churchill in the general election held following the Second World War and went on to build the NHS and the rest of the Welfare State

The Labour boss warned the PM and Chancellor Rishi Sunak against hiking taxes or implementing a new wave of austerity in a 'roadmap to yesterday' as he sought to reboot his leadership.

Labour's flag fails Labour has sometimes had a tricky relationship with national flags. Emily Thornberry was accused of holding the working class in contempt after and sacked from the Labour frontbench in 2014 for appearing to mock a family home sporting the St George's Cross. Ms Thornberry, Sir Keir's current shadow international trade secretary, sparked a storm when she claimed she had 'never seen anything like it' in a showing a terraced home in Rochester. The Kent home had three England flags and a white van parked in the drive. Ed Miliband fired her from his top team for the comment made during the World Cup in Brazil. However a year later she was welcomed back by Jeremy Corbyn, who appointed her shadow employment minister. Advertisement

Sir Keir said there is 'a chance to diagnose the condition of Britain and to start the process of putting it right,' adding: 'That's the path I would take in the March Budget. To begin a new chapter in the history for our country.'

The pandemic was made worse because 'the foundations of our society have been weakened over a decade', he added.

'We've the worst death toll in Europe and the worst economic crisis of any major economy.

'Now, I've said a lot about the incompetence of the Government's handling of the pandemic and I make no apology for that.

'They have been slow at every stage. They've ignored advice. They haven't learnt from their mistakes.

'Yet a Government out of its depth is not even half the story.

'The terrible damage caused by the virus to health and to prosperity has been made all the worse because the foundations of our society have been weakened over a decade.'

In another reference to Mr Attlee's administration, he added: 'The age in which Government did little but collect and distribute revenue is over.

'I believe people are now looking for more from their Government  like they were after the Second World War.'

Sir Keir Starmer said he would create a 'new partnership' between Labour and businesses, announcing plans to offer 100,000 start-up loans if he comes to power.

War bonds: Patriotic loans to help pay for the defeat of the enemy A war bond is a fundraising measure that has commonly been used during conflicts including both world wars. In essence it is a patriotic loan from a member of the public to the Government to bankroll the 'war effort'. It provides the Government that issues them with a ready source of cash to pay for items like tanks, aircraft and other materiel. They usually see members of the public pay a set price for a bond that pays them a set rate of interest over a pre-determined number of years. This means that the holder makes money during the term of the bond. When it ends, which is called 'reaching maturity', they are repaid the price of the bond in full. War bonds provide the Government that issues them with a ready source of cash to pay for items like tanks, aircraft and other materiel So the taxpayer makes money through buying the bond and being paid the interest, although often the interest rate was not huge. Historically, advertising campaigns were run to suggest it was a patriotic duty to buy them, rather than promoting huge financial returns. Silent movie star Charlie Chaplin helped promote US Liberty Bonds during the First World War. What the Government gets through a massive bond issue is a massive supply of ready cash, which is vital for huge spending projects like a war, or huge postwar rebuilding. But they can often take a long time to fully repay. Britain's First World War debt was only repaid in full in 2015  more than 100 years after the outbreak of the conflict. The Government repaid some 1.9billion still owed to more than 100,000 people who held war bonds issued in 1917 to help fund the military effort. The Government was paying 3.5 per cent in interest to the 120,000 people who bought the bonds. The Debt Management Office estimated that Britain has paid some 5.5 billion in total interest on the loans since 1917. Low interest rates six years ago meant mean the Government was able to pay off the debt by issuing new bonds which pay a much lower rate of interest. Advertisement

The party leader said in an online speech: 'If we're honest, for too long Labour has failed to realise that the only way to deliver social justice and equality is through a strong partnership with business - under my leadership, that mind-set will change.

'A new partnership with business - one where we have high expectations of business and where business can have high expectations of Labour - is pivotal to my leadership and to my vision of the future.

'That's why, if I was prime minister, I'd back a new generation of British entrepreneurs by providing start-up loans for 100,000 new businesses across every region of the UK.

'For too long, businesses have been concentrated in too few parts of our country - this doesn't reflect where our talent lies and it stifles potential.'

He backed the creation of a 'British recovery bond' to help provide money for investment in communities.

The Opposition leader said the move was in response to the Bank of England suggesting the 'vast majority of savings built up during the pandemic won't be spent'.

Federation of Small Business (FSB) chairman Mike Cherry said: 'The past 12 months have been incredibly difficult for all small firms right across the country as well as the wider economy, which is why it's especially welcome to see the Leader of the Opposition's pro-enterprise proposals to help people start their own businesses.

'Small firms are the backbone of the country and without vital support for them including key help for entrepreneurs we won't be able to get the country's economic engine roaring once more.

'In particular we are pleased to see the adoption of proposals to really drive start-up creation, which we have proposed in to policymakers in Government and across Parliament by building on the success of Start-up Loans and the New Enterprise Allowance.

'As we enter the recovery phase of this crisis, it's small firms that will be in the driving seat for jobs and growth.'

Sir Keir is facing questions about why Labour remains below the Conservatives in the polls. And last night his 'reset' speech was dismissed as not radical enough by the Left-wing of his party.

Andrew Scattergood, co-chairman of the pro-Jeremy Corbyn Momentum group, said it had 'no ambition, little substance'.

He added: 'We can't win in 2024 by promising to be better managers of the same system.'

Sir Keir, the former Director of Public Prosecutions, was expected to bring his experience as a lawyer to forensically cross-examine Boris Johnson in the Commons.

But earlier this month he was humiliated by having to admit he had made a mistake at Prime Minister's Questions.

Amanda Milling, co-chairwoman of the Conservative Party, said: 'Keir Starmer said this speech would deliver his big vision for the future of the country, a ''policy blitz'' with ideas to rival Beveridge and relaunch his failing leadership. But there are only two new policies  one taken from the Conservatives and the other from the CPS, the think tank co-founded by Margaret Thatcher.

'After 10 months of Keir Starmer all Labour has to offer is others' ideas, empty rhetoric and calling for things the Government is already doing.

'The Conservatives are getting on with the job and rolling out the vaccine and delivering on our commitments to the British people.'
A valuable hoard of ancient Viking artefacts including a gold arm-ring and a 'massive' silver brooch believed to have been buried over 1,000 years ago has been discovered on the Isle of Man by a metal detectorist.

The rare collection, likely to be worth several thousand pounds, was officially declared treasure by the Island's Coroner of Inquests Jayne Hughes and is set to go on display at the Manx Museum in Douglas.

The internationally significant find, which also includes at least one silver armband among other precious items, was buried around AD 950.

It was discovered on private farmland in the north of the island in December last year by metal detectorist and retired police officer Kath Giles, who admitted she knew she'd come across 'something very special'.

A valuable hoard of ancient Viking artefacts including a gold arm-ring (pictured) and a huge silver brooch buried over 1,000 years ago has been found on the Isle of Man by an amateur metal detectorist

'I'm so thrilled to have found artefacts that are not only so important, but so beautiful!' she said.

'I knew I had found something very special when I moved the soil away from one of the terminals of the brooch, but then I found parts of the pin, the hoop and underneath, the gorgeous gold arm-ring.

'I knew straight away that it was a significant and exciting find.'

The gold arm-ring is made from three plaited rods of gold, with both ends merging into a flat lozenge-shaped band that has been decorated all over with a stamped design of groups of three dots.

Any discoveries of archaeological interest on the Isle of Man must be reported to Manx National Heritage within two weeks. If items are legally classified as treasure, they belong to the crown and the finder is rewarded.

Allison Fox, curator for archaeology for Manx National Heritage said: 'We received a telephone call from Kath late last year, and with Kath's help, we were able to document the site and ensure there were no further objects remaining in the ground.

The rare collection was officially declared treasure by the Island's Coroner of Inquests Jayne Hughes and is set to go on display at the Manx Museum in Douglas

'The arm-ring is a rare find. Gold items were not very common during the Viking Age. Silver was by far the more common metal for trading and displaying wealth.

'It has been estimated that gold was worth 10 times the value of silver and that this arm-ring could have been the equivalent of 900 silver coins.'

The silver brooch is a type known as a 'thistle brooch of ball type'. It is large  the hoop is c.20cm diameter and the pin is c.50cm long.

Although bent and broken and with just some small pieces missing, the brooch is complete. It would have been worn at the shoulder to hold heavy clothing such as a cloak in place, with the point of the pin upwards.

The brooch is one of the largest examples of its type ever discovered. It has intricate designs on the pin and terminals and as with the arm-ring, the accessory would have been an immediate visual indicator of the wealth of the owner.

The rare collection was discovered on private land late last year by metal detectorist Kath Giles, who admitted she knew she'd come across 'something very special' (pictured left to right: finder Kath Giles pictured with Allison Fox, MNH Curator for Archaeology holding the newly discovered silver 'thistle brooch')

It may not have been for everyday use. The type is thought to have originated in the Irish Sea area  it is possible that the brooch was made on the Isle of Man.

The hoard also included the remains of at least one decorated silver armband, cut in antiquity.

In the past, similar items of Viking jewellery have been valued at 1,500 per piece, with a larger collection of treasure found in Lancashire in 2011 deemed to be worth 110,000.

Both whole and cut items of Viking Age gold and silver jewellery have previously been discovered on the Island. Most of these have been the result of deliberate deposition of 'hoard' material, presumably buried during a time of threat, with the intention by the original owner to reclaim the artefacts at a later stage.

However, this arm-ring and brooch are the first of their type to be found on the Island and add significantly to the picture of wealth circulating on the Island and around the Irish Sea area in general over one thousand years ago.

Earlier discoveries of Viking Age gold arm rings from the Island include one found with the Ballaquayle Hoard in Douglas in the 1890s, which was much simpler in design.

The internationally significant find, which also includes at least one silver armband (pictured) among other precious items, was buried around AD 950

Three Viking Age gold finger rings have previously been discovered on the Isle of Man and one complete gold ingot. These suggest that there may have been some gold-working on the Island during the Viking Age and that the Island was home to some particularly wealthy people back then. This gold arm-ring reinforces these theories.

Allison explained: 'Vikings arrived on the Isle of Man in the 800s, firstly trading and eventually settling.

'Kath's hoard can be dated on stylistic and comparative grounds to around AD 950, a time when the Isle of Man was right in the middle of an important trading and economic zone.

'But elsewhere to the east and west, Viking rule was coming to an end and perhaps this encouraged further Viking settlement on the Island.

'The Viking and Norse influence remained strong on the Island for a further three hundred years, long after much of the rest of the British Isles.

'The arm-ring, brooch and cut armband are all high-status personal ornaments and represent a large amount of accumulated wealth. Finding just one of these items would be of significance.

'The fact that all were found together, associated with one single deposition event, suggests that whoever buried them was extremely wealthy and probably felt immediately and acutely threatened.'

She added: 'Manx National Heritage would like to sincerely thank both the finder and landowners for all their support and assistance with this remarkable discovery.'

The location of the find and details of the landowner will remain confidential to protect the integrity of the find site.

The 'Kath Giles' hoard will go on display in the Viking and Medieval Gallery at the Manx Museum from today prior to valuation and further conservation work.

The Isle of Man lifted its lockdown rules earlier this month following a 25 day circuit-breaker after an outbreak of Covid-19 cases around New Year.

However, seven new cases of coronanvirus, including a ferry crew member, have been detected on the Island today - six of which were found through the contact tracing process.

All have been told to self-isolate, a government spokesman said. Chief Minister Howard Quayle is holding a briefing this evening to address the Island's response, but a further lockdown is currently not on the cards.


Samsung Galaxy A72 4G has made another early appearance on the web ahead of the official launch. This time around the phone has been spotted on Thailands NBTC certification website. The listing does not reveal specifications of the phone but does hint at its imminent launch.

Samsung Galaxy A72 4G will reportedly come with a 6.7-inch display with full HD+ resolution and 90Hz refresh rate. It will have an AMOLED panel. The phone is rumoured to come with a quad-camera setup, which will be comprised of a 64-megapixel primary sensor, 12-megapixel ultrawide sensor, 8-megapixel depth sensor, and 2-megapixel macro sensor. On the front, it is said to come with a 32-megapixel sensor.

Other leaked features of Samsung Galaxy A72 4G are 5,000mAh battery, 25W charging support, USB Type-C, microSD card support, and IP67 certification for water and dust resistance.

According to reports, Samsung Galaxy A72 (both 4G and 5G versions) will launch in India next month. The smartphone will also be accompanied by another A-series phone, Galaxy A52.

Samsung is also reportedly working on 4G and 5G iterations of the Galaxy A52. The 5G version will come with Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G processor. The 4G variant will have the Snapdragon 720G processor. Galaxy A52 5G will also differ with a higher refresh rate screen as compared to 90Hz on the Galaxy A52.

Common features of the two models are rumoured to be 6.5-inch full HD+ AMOLED display, a 4,500mAh battery with support for 25W fast charging and a 3.5mm headphone jack, quad-camera setup with a 64-megapixel primary sensor, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens, a 5-megapixel sensor and 2-megapixel sensor.
(CNN)  A winter storm and lengthy cold snap have crippled power facilities in Texas and caused about 2.3 million outages as of Wednesday evening, leaving residents in the cold and dark for several days.

The lack of power to about a quarter of the state has created a widespread emergency, with families huddling in homes or cars without heat, burst water pipes, failing water systems and gasoline shortages.

Barbara Martinez said she had been burning firewood to try to heat her suburban Houston home, which had been without power from early Sunday until Tuesday.

"We got power for four hours and then it went off again and it stayed off for a few hours, came back for like two hours then went away," she said Wednesday morning. "It's currently off."

The outages cover the areas served by Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, from the counties bordering Mexico up to those touching Oklahoma, and from Houston in the east to rural Big Bend in the west. Yet areas outside of ERCOT's coverage zone, including the eastern border with Louisiana, the northwest panhandle and El Paso in the west, are basically unaffected.

Texas officials pointed the blame at the power company and called for investigations. US Rep. Marc Veasey, a Democrat who represents parts of Fort Worth and Dallas, said he's learned from an industry executive that the power grid was just minutes from failing on Monday before state agency officials initiated emergency rolling outages.

"I want people to know that we were minutes away from the entire grid crashing," he told CNN's Ed Lavandera, criticizing ERCOT and Republican leaders for not better preparing for the freeze.

"They certainly could have taken some precautions that would have prevented what we're having to deal with now," Veasey said.

An ERCOT spokesperson did not immediately return a CNN request for comment. But earlier Wednesday, CEO Bill Magness said the issue largely was a lack of energy supply as the cold weather shuttered power facilities. ERCOT's controlled power outages, he said, had in fact averted the system's collapse.

"If we had waited, and not done outages, not reduced demand to reflect what was going on, on the overall system, we could have drifted towards a blackout," he said. "People feel like what we're seeing feels like a blackout, but the blackout that can occur if you don't keep the supply and demand in balance could last months."

The power issues are likely to continue, especially given that the cold temperatures will last for another day or two. Over 21 million people, or nearly 70% of Texas's population, are currently under some sort of winter weather alert.

The controlled outages have created rotating power issues as ERCOT has tried to spread around the pain, pushing people to rely on warming centers or the kindness of neighbors.

"We have power for about 30 or 15 minutes and then we get a blackout for about five to six hours," said Eder Lemus of San Antonio.

The pipes in his house froze, so he, his wife and three children are relying on others for water.

"As of now, we are using a neighbor's faucet to refill a bucket of water to drain our toilets," he told said. "When and if the lights come back on, we try to take showers and refill our drinking water gallons so that we can stay hydrated."

Gov. Greg Abbott said that he has spoken with both the lieutenant governor and the state House speaker, and that an investigation of ERCOT is slated to begin next week.

"ERCOT is an independent private entity that, candidly, I have both investigated and prosecuted before when I was attorney general of Texas, and we're now investigating again," Abbott said. "I'm not suggesting any way that there's been any criminal activity or anything like that, but it is something that needs to be looked at."

Abbott said a news conference Wednesday that 6,000 megawatts have been added to the state's grid -- enough power for about 1.2 million households.

There will be additional onboarding coming from the South Texas Nuclear Project and additional operations will increase from coal-produced power, Abbott said.

These sources will add more than 2,000 megawatts to the grid and provide additional power for about 400,000 homes, according to Abbott. About 17,200 megawatts of renewable generated power remain out on Wednesday afternoon, due to "freezing of the wind, or because of lack of sun for the solar," Abbott said.

Why the system is failing

The widespread outages stem from a weather disaster coupled with an unprepared infrastructure.

A winter weather system brought unusually frigid temperatures to much of the central US over the past few days, including in Texas, the country's energy leader. The deep freeze caused demand for power and heating to skyrocket even as it knocked out the state's natural gas, coal, wind and nuclear facilities, which were not ready to function in such cold weather.

The lack of winter preparedness has long been an issue for ERCOT's power system. About 10 years ago, a bitter cold snap caused over 3.2 million ERCOT customers to lose power during Super Bowl week. A 350-page federal report on the outages (PDF) found that the power generators' winterization procedures were "either inadequate or were not adequately followed."

When asked on Wednesday why ERCOT hasn't mandated more winterization to prevent outages, ERCOT's senior director of system operations Dan Woodfin said it was not required.

"I guess the role of ERCOT is not necessarily to mandate those kind of things," he said.

Woodfin said the company's annual spot checks to ensure generators are following best practice winterization plans were done virtually this year due to the pandemic.

Compounding the issue is that Texas's electric system of ERCOT is isolated from the rest of the country, partly as a way to avoid federal regulation. So it cannot simply import power from elsewhere to make up for the shortage.

"When it comes to electricity, what happens in Texas stays in Texas," said Dan Cohan, associate professor of environmental engineering at Rice University. "That has really come back to bite us."

And with temperatures not expected to rise above freezing until Friday, officials worry about how residents will cope without utilities. "I share the frustration of every Texan regarding the loss of power during this winter storm. Millions of people without power during this arctic blast is life-threatening and unacceptable," Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said.

When asked if leadership of ERCOT should resign, Gov. Abbott said the company had failed.

"They showed that they were not reliable," Abbott said. "These are experts. These are engineers in the power industry. Government has to rely upon on these specialists to be able to deliver in these types of situations."

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is preparing to begin distributing 60 generators, millions of liters of water and tens of thousands of blankets in Texas, according to a FEMA source. More shipments are expected in the coming days and weeks.

Weathering the storm without power, heat or water

Meanwhile, many Texans are pinning their hopes of staying warm on backup generators and warming centers. Some people have turned to unconventional heat sources such as stoves, grills or gas generators -- which raises the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

In Harris County, 14 residents have been taken to the hospital with carbon monoxide poisoning and seven of those were children, according to a tweet from the Cy-Fair Fire Department.

Houston officials said Tuesday a woman and girl died from carbon monoxide poisoning after trying to stay warm using a car in a garage.

Water issues have also become widespread as pipes have frozen and power outages hampered water treatment plants. The mayor of Waco urged residents to conserve water after the city's two plants had issues, and McMurry University in Abilene allowed campus residents to use water from the campus swimming pool to flush their toilets.

Sandra Erickson said her home in Friendswood, just outside of Houston, got so cold that the pipes burst, causing the ceiling in three different rooms to collapse.

"This is like a hurricane catastrophe," she told CNN.

San Antonio Fire Department confirmed to CNN that the power outages and cold weather were affecting their ability to put out fires. Fire Department spokesperson Joseph Arrington said that firefighters had to change tactics when responding to a fire at an apartment complex early Wednesday.

"Our normal attack would involve multiple hoses and lots of water on the fire, so we've obviously just had to adjust," he said.

This story was first published on CNN.com "Texas grid was 'minutes' from failing, lawmaker says"
KALAMAZOO, MI -- New flight restrictions have been placed in advance of President Joseph Bidens Friday visit to Portage.

The presidents planned visit on Thursday to the Pfizer facility just south of the airport on Portage Road was postponed due weather. Bidens plane will be landing at Kalamazoo/Battle Creek International, Airport Director Craig Williams said.

The new flight restrictions are for private airlines, and run from 1:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Williams said. These restrictions are similar to what was set for in the original plans for the presidents visit on Thursday. Its unlikely the restrictions on Friday will impact commercial flights at the airport, Williams said.

Portage Mayor Patricia Randall and City Manager Joe La Margo will greet the president when he lands, La Margo said.

Related: Portage beaming with pride in anticipation of Bidens Pfizer visit

Both the mayor and city manager were required to be tested for COVID-19 beforehand. They were tested on Wednesday and forwarded their results to the White House, La Margo said.

State Rep. Christine Morse, D-Texas Township, will also be in attendance on the tarmac, according to a news release from the state lawmaker and former Kalamazoo County commissioner.

President Bidens visit is an honor for our community and the state of Michigan as a whole, Morse said in a statement. Pfizer and their Portage manufacturing facility have been instrumental in the manufacturing and distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine across the U.S. and world, serving as a beacon of hope and pride for Michiganders and all Americans alike.

While that is all something to be proud of, the work is far from finished, and our battle with this devastating disease rages on. I am excited by President Bidens plan to ramp up vaccine distribution and the instrumental role Pfizer will have in this monumental step toward our return to normalcy.

Related: Bidens visit to Michigan Pfizer facility highlights focus on vaccine distribution, economic relief

Though a detailed schedule of Bidens Michigan visit has not yet been released, the president is expected to tour the plan where the COVID-19 vaccine is being produced and to talk with workers there.

Pfizer workers of past and present said they are excited to see their colleagues work recognized by the president, calling the Pfizer employees role in vaccine production an honor and one of the most important things they have accomplished in their lifetime.

More on MLive:

Pfizer workers, past and present, cheer on vaccine maker ahead of President Bidens Portage visit

Pfizer reports $15 billion in revenue from coronavirus vaccine

Gov. Whitmer gets first-hand look at COVID-19 vaccine production inside Pfizers Portage plant

China will face repercussions if it continues to perpetrate human rights abuses against its people, U.S. President Joe Biden said Tuesday, including Uyghurs in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), where Washington has said authorities are carrying out genocide and crimes against humanity.

Speaking at a town hall on CNN, Biden told moderator Anderson Cooper that he had made clear to Chinese President Xi Jinping during a two-hour call earlier this month that the U.S. will continue to speak out against rights violations in the XUAR and that Chinas aspirations of becoming a global leader will be stymied for as long as it refuses to reverse course.

There will be repercussions for China, and he knows that, Biden said, without providing details, but suggesting such actions might largely amount to a pressure campaign.

What Im doing is making clear that we, in fact, are going to continue to reassert our role as spokespersons for human rights at the U.N. and other agencies that have an impact on their attitude, he added.

China is trying very hard to become the world leader and to be able to get that moniker and be able to do that, they have to gain the confidence of other countries. And as long as they are engaged in activity that is contrary to basic human rights, its going to be hard for them to do that.

Cooper had asked Biden specifically about Chinas policies in the XUAR, where authorities are believed to have held up to 1.8 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in a vast network of internment camps since early 2017.

Chinese officials have said the camps are centers for vocational training, but reporting by RFAs Uyghur Service and other media outlets shows that detainees are mostly held against their will in cramped and unsanitary conditions, where they are forced to endure inhumane treatment and political indoctrination.

In one of his last acts in office, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last month said he had determined China is committing genocide and crimes against humanity in the XUAR against Uyghurs and other ethnic groups, and that Beijing and the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) must be held to account.

The new Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, has endorsed the designation, suggesting that President Joe Bidens administration will pursue a more forceful approach in holding China accountable for its abuses in the region.

Emily Horne, the spokesperson for Bidens National Security Council, recently told the Washington Examiner that President Biden has called the oppression of the Uyghurs a genocide, and he stands against it in the strongest possible terms.

On Tuesday, Biden told Cooper he had come to know Xi well as a result of meeting with him often when the two were vice presidentsprior to Xis ascendance to Chinas presidency in 2013and that his counterparts central principle is that there must be a united, tightly controlled China, which he uses as his rationale for the crackdown in the XUAR.

I pointed out to him that no American president can be sustained as a president if he doesnt reflect the values of the United States, Biden said, adding that he will not back down from calling China out for its abuses.

Tony Blinken speaks in Wilmington, Delaware, Nov. 24, 2020. AP Photo

A position of strength

Bidens comments came on the same day that Blinken discussed the delicate balance the new U.S. administration must maintain in charting future relations with a government it has labeled guilty of genocide.

He acknowledged that former U.S. President Donald Trump was right to take a tougher line on China, including slapping sanctions on several top Chinese officials deemed responsible for rights violations in the XUAR, including regional party secretary Chen Quanguo, under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act.

The move, which marked the first time Washington had sanctioned a member of Chinas powerful Politburo, followed Trumps enactment in June of the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020 (UHRPA), which passed nearly unanimously through both houses of Congress at the end of May. The legislation highlights arbitrary incarceration, forced labor, and other abuses in the XUAR and provides for sanctions against the Chinese officials who enforce them.

But Blinken said he believes that Trumps approach to China did not produce results.

The common denominator has to be approaching China from a position of strength, not weakness. And that strength comes from a few things, he told Mary Louise Kelly on All Things Considered.

It comes first and foremost from working in close coordination with allies and partners who may be similarly aggrieved by some of Chinas practices. When were in the business of picking fights with our allies instead of working with them, that takes away from our strength in dealing with China.

Blinken said that in pulling back from global engagement, as Trump did in favor of more domestically focused policies, China fills in and takes our place, leaving the U.S. in a position of weakness, not strength.

Were in a position of strength when we actually stand up for our values, when we dont say its okay for China to create concentration camps for Uyghurs in Xinjiang or to trample on democracy in Hong Kong, he said, referencing reports that Trump told Xi he approved of his policies of mass incarceration in the region during the 2019 G20 meeting in Japan.

Blinken recognized that continuing to work with a genocidal regime will be a challenge but said that the U.S. must be able to do so while continuing to hold China to account for its actions.

We have been leading the effort now and bringing human rights and democracy back to the heart of our foreign policy, he said.

When it comes to China and what its done in Xinjiang against the Uyghurs or what its been doing to democracy in Hong Kong, we're standing up, speaking out, and working with others to do the same.

Blinken dodged a question on whether the U.S. should participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing but suggested that Washington should at the very least work towards ensuring products made at home arent being used to oppress people in Xinjiang and that no imports include products made with forced labor in the region.

The Munich-based World Uyghur Congress (WUC) exile group welcomed the statements by Biden and Blinken on Wednesday but called for concrete action against China.

While consistently raising these concerns is highly relevant, were hoping the Biden administration will now take meaningful actions to stop Chinas Uyghur genocide, WUC President Dolkun Isa told RFA.

Isa said the U.S. should formally announce its opposition to Beijing hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics if it doesnt end its policies in the XUAR and urge its allies to do the same, while taking additional steps in international fora.

The U.S. should make it clear at the U.N. Security Council and U.N. Human Rights Council that Chinas Uyghur genocide is contrary to the founding U.N. Charter and U.N. Declaration of Human Rights and will not be accepted by the international community in the 21st century, he said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at a press conference in Ottawa, Dec. 10, 2020. The Canadian Press via AP Photo

Canada weighs designation

The clarifications on U.S. policy towards China came on the same day that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country is weighing whether or not to label the abuses in the XUAR as genocide.

Its a word that is extremely loaded and is certainly something that we should be looking at in the case of the Uyghurs, Trudeau told a news conference on Tuesday.

I know the international community is looking very carefully at that and we are certainly among them, and we will not hesitate from being part of the determinations around these sorts of things.

Trudeau said there is no question that there are serious rights violations taking place in the region, but he urged caution in making a designation that would require Canada to take more significant steps against China.

When it comes to the application of the very specific word genocide, we simply need to ensure that all the Is are dotted and the Ts are crossed in the processes before a determination like that is made, he said.

The international community in general  takes very, very seriously the label of genocide and needs to ensure that when it is used, it is clearly and properly justified.

A week after the U.S. designation, Canadas opposition Conservative Partys shadow Ministers for Foreign Affairs and International Development & Human Rights issued a statement saying that their party is deeply concerned about the genocide of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in China.

Canadas Subcommittee on International Human Rights had earlier joined the Trump and Biden administrations in concluding that Chinas government is committing acts of genocide and other crimes against humanity, including systematic population control, sexual violence, and mass detention.

Last week, lawmakers in Belgiums Chamber of Representatives submitted a resolution calling on their government to label abuses in the XUAR as genocide, prompting an immediate protest from Beijing demanding that the proposal be tabled.

Reported by RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by Alim Seytoff. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
Neither Daniel Ricciardo nor Lando Norris will be McLaren's "number 1" driver, team boss Andreas Seidl insists.

Ricciardo, a decade older than team incumbent Norris and with seven grand prix wins under his belt, is arriving to replace Carlos Sainz for 2021.

But Norris, 21, said at the launch of McLaren's new car that he hopes to take on more of a leadership position this year.

"I don't believe Daniel is a big step above anything that Carlos has achieved, and there is more pressure on him because he has been in Formula 1 for longer. He has to come in and perform very well," Norris said.

However, Seidl said McLaren's drivers will not be divided by hierarchy.

"As long as I am team boss, there will be no defined number 1," he told the German broadcaster n-tv.

"That is not necessary or beneficial for the dynamic in the team," he added.

Seidl said he is "very happy" with McLaren's new driver lineup.

"It will be a very strong one," he insisted. "Lando is almost now a McLaren veteran, and Daniel is a reference that we have been missing in the last two years.

"He has proved in the past that he can win races with the right material," said Seidl.
JACKSON COUNTY, Mississippi -- Mississippi State University has received approval to build a state-of-the-art aquatic food research facility in Jackson County.

The Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center will be located on four acres inside the Sunplex Light Industrial Park off Mississippi 57 near Ocean Springs and will be the first of its kind on the Mississippi coast. The announcement was made by MSU, the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning, and Jackson County officials.

Mississippi States Northern Gulf Aquatic Food Research Center will accelerate technology innovation and contribute to the diversification of Jackson County and the entire Mississippi Gulf Coast economy, said Melton Harris, President of the Jackson County Board of Supervisors.

Supervisor Randy Bosarge noted the Jackson County Economic Development Foundations role in bringing the center to Sunplex.

The Sunplex Technology Park was developed with the specific intention of recruiting high-growth, technology-oriented investments such as this, which is another example of multi-level partnerships that the foundation has been successful in achieving over the years, Bosarge said.

The research center is being funded in part through the RESTORE Act, administered through the Mississippi Department of Environment Quality. The center will provide the Gulf Coast seafood industry with safety testing and quality assurance.

The center will be constructed in three phases, with the first phase including a biosafety laboratory and analytical chemistry lab for measuring chemical residues in water and aquatic food products. Currently, those types of testing are done in other states.

Phases two and three will include a commercially equipped pilot plant for processing, shelf-life research and product development. An incubator space to work in partnership with the industry will be an adjacent addition for transfer technology developed in the safety of the pilot plant.

MSU president Mark Keenum noted the centers potential impact on food safety and the blue economy -- a term used to describe sustainable use of ocean resources while maintaining coast water quality.

This is an exciting venture for our university as it couples economic development with food safety and security, two strategic research initiatives at Mississippi State, Keenum said. Our faculty, staff and students are driven to find efficient and effective ways to feed the world while also bolstering our states economy.

Mississippi is the nations top producer of catfish and the states seafood industry added in excess of $234 million to Mississippis economy in 2019, employing nearly 5,000 people.

The new research center, a project in the universitys Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, is intended to help rebuild and strengthen the regions seafood industry and economy.

Mississippi States decision to locate its largest Mississippi Gulf Coast facility in the Sunplex Technology Park demonstrates that Jackson County is growing and becoming more diverse, adding university research and technology components that will complement our well-established manufacturing assets, said George Freeland, Executive Director of the Jackson County Economic Development Foundation.

The new center will bring together teams of scientists from among the MSU system and other Northern Gulf region universities; federal entities including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture; state departments of Marine Resources and Health; as well as the private sector.

For more information about the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, visit www.mafes.msstate.edu.
"We are pleased to add these two highly talented business leaders to our Board who each have a unique set of skills and perspectives that will significantly strengthen our team, particularly in this era of heightened focus on ESG and health and safety," said Stanley Black & Decker Chairman George W. Buckley. "Both Jane and Mojdeh have extensive experience leading global businesses and operations, backed by their strong engineering base and mindset. The Board looks forward to their contributions toward advancing and supporting the company's long-term growth trajectory and focus on delivering top-quartile financial performance, innovation and elevating its commitment to social responsibility."

In her current role at Dow, Palmieri oversees an industry-leading portfolio of businesses, including Polyurethanes, Chlor-Alkali & Vinyl, Construction Chemicals and Industrial Solutions. In addition, she has executive oversight for the company's business in Asia Pacific. Palmieri has held a variety of accelerating leadership positions in her 25 years with Dow, including the company's building and construction, automotive and solar businesses. Palmieri earned her bachelor's in mechanical engineering from Virginia Polytech Institute and State University, and she has been recognized for her ongoing sustainability contributions with Green Building & Design's prestigious Women in Sustainability Leadership Award.

Poul currently leads 3M's Health Care Business Group, serving the global healthcare industry through medical solutions, oral care, separation and purification sciences, health information systems, and food safety businesses. Poul joined 3M in 2011 and has held global leadership roles across the organization, including Executive Vice President of Safety and Graphics Business Group, President of 3M Canada and Vice President of Infection Prevention Division. Prior to 3M, Poul held leadership roles of increasing responsibility with Medtronic and Boston Scientific, two leading global medical technology companies. Poul earned a bachelor's and master's in mechanical engineering from the University of Louisville and an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She was most recently recognized through Modern Healthcare's 2020 list of 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare and Healthcare Technology Report's Top 25 Women Leaders in Medical Devices of 2021.

About Stanley Black & Decker

Stanley Black & Decker is a purpose-driven, $14.5 billion revenue industrial organization. Stanley Black & Decker has 53,000 employees in more than 60 countries and operates the world's largest tools and storage business, the world's second-largest commercial electronic security services company, a leading engineered fastening business as well as Oil & Gas and Infrastructure businesses. The company's iconic brands include BLACK+DECKER, Bostitch, CRAFTSMAN, DEWALT, FACOM, IRWIN, LENOX, Porter Cable and STANLEY. Stanley Black & Decker is a company for the makers and innovators, the craftsmen and the caregivers, and those doing the hard work to make the world a better place. Learn more at www.stanleyblackanddecker.com.

SOURCE Stanley Black & Decker

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[February 17, 2021] Parkopedia Launches Dedicated Japan Business

- Parkopedia announces the launch of its Japanese subsidiary, 'Parkopedia Japan Limited' based in Tokyo - Tomohiko Ishibashi has been named as Representative Commercial Director of Japan - Data collection services have now been brought in-house to deliver a heightened level of quality and accuracy for Japanese drivers - The new Parkopedia Japan business website is now available at: https://business.parkopedia.com/ja LONDON and TOKYO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Parkopedia, the world's leading parking service provider with headquarters in London, UK, has announced the launch of its Japanese subsidiary 'Parkopedia Japan Limited' registered in Tokyo, Japan. The launch follows the continued growth of Parkopedia's automotive business in Japan, with major Japanese OEM brands including Toyota, Honda, Mazda, and Subaru already working with Parkopedia in various geographies globally. In Japan, Apple Maps, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen Group drivers already use the parking services provided by Parkopedia, which cover over 1000 cities and towns nationwide. The service has been integrated into selected vehicles since 2019, providing static and dynamic parking data after the initial launch with Apple Maps in 2018. The launch of the local Japanese business further strengthens Parkopedia's commitment to its Asian customers and drivers. It joins other Parkopedia global business sites including Europe, USA and China as Parkopedia looks to roll out its end-to-end product portfolio across major markets in 2021.



As part of its Japanese expansion, Parkopedia has also announced the appointment of Tomohiko Ishibashi as Representative Commercial Director of Parkopedia Japan, effective immediately. Tomohiko has extensive experience in the mapping and automotive industries, having worked with location-based and ride-sharing service businesses, in addition to roles in Silicon Valley working within the technology industry. Tomohiko will lead Parkopedia's operations in Japan and will report to Hans Puvogel, Parkopedia's COO. With Parkopedia Japan, Parkopedia has brought the Japanese parking data collection in-house to address growing driver demands for a seamless premium parking experience. The move aims to provide a heightened level of data quality and accuracy that is unprecedented in the Japanese market. Parkopedia will bring its vast global experience with aggregated in-car payment solutions to Japan, working with OEMs to better serve their drivers.

Commenting on the announcement, Eugene Tsyrklevich, Founder and CEO of Parkopedia, said: "I'm delighted to launch our business in Japan and at the same time, welcome Tomohiko to Parkopedia as we continue to scale our operations. We truly believe that Japan should be at the forefront of this industry as a proven technology leader, and features some of the largest automotive brands and customer bases globally. Our ambition is to continue to best serve all our clients and drivers around the world, and this launch, combined with our experience and product quality will only bring us closer to that goal for the Japanese market." Notes to Editors The Parkopedia Japan business website is available at: https://business.parkopedia.com/ja About Parkopedia Parkopedia is the world's leading parking services provider used by millions of drivers and organizations such as Audi, Apple, BMW, Ford, Garmin, GM, Jaguar Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Peugeot, Sygic, TomTom, Toyota, Volkswagen, and many others. Parkopedia is available in 15,000 cities across 89 countries globally, covering over 70 million parking spaces, helping drivers take the pain out of parking. Parkopedia helps drivers find the closest, cheapest, or available parking to their destination, pay in selected locations, and navigate directly to the parking space. Parkopedia is also a founding member of the Autonomous Valet Parking consortium, developing highly detailed parking maps and corresponding algorithms to help self-driving vehicles navigate to an open parking space and park autonomously. Visit business.parkopedia.com for more information. Japan Business Representative

Tomohiko Ishibashi

Commercial Director

Parkopedia Japan Limited

T: +81-90-9837-3698

E: tomohiko.ishibashi@parkopedia.com

W: https://business.parkopedia.com/ja Media Contact

Adam Calland

Marketing Director

Parkopedia

T: +44(0)7838219129

E: adam.calland@parkopedia.com

W: https://business.parkopedia.com/ Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1439009/Parkopedia_Logo.jpg

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Washington, D.C., Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Leading Muslims, government officials, and parliamentarians around the world have joined a growing outcry at the unjust confiscation of properties owned by Baha'is in the farming village of Ivel in Iran. The ruling to allow Iranian authorities to confiscate the properties, clearly motivated by religious prejudice, was recently upheld in an appeals court and has left dozens of families internally displaced and economically impoverished.

The American Islamic Congress(link is external), the Canadian Council of Imams(link is external), Chair of the Virtues Ethics Foundation and one of the leading Islamic scholars in the United Kingdom Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra(link is external), the All India Tanzeem Falahul Muslemin(link is external), and the All India Saifi Association(link is external) have all issued statements in support of the Baha'is in Ivel, expressing grave concern about the confiscation of the properties.

We are calling for the Higher court in Mazandaran and all responsible personnel to take action and to help the Bahai community in Ivel get back their properties, reads the statement from the American Islamic Congress. Echoing these sentiments, the Canadian Council of Imams writes, We are deeply concerned by the ruling issued by an Iranian Court to confiscate the properties of 27 Bahais in the farming village of Ivel. Shaykh Ibrahim Mogra from the United Kingdom specifically called upon Irans Chief Justice, Ebrahim Raisi, to address this injustice, adding that Islam does not permit a government to confiscate land from citizens just because they follow a different religion.

The sight of Muslim leaders around the world coming to the aid of their Baha'i friends in Iran in an extraordinary wave of support is a powerful signal to the Islamic Republic that their co-religionists around the world condemn their actions, says Diane Alai, Representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva. Statements of support from leading Muslims for the Baha'is in Ivel, who have lived there for more than 150 years with their Muslim neighbours, show that the Iranian governments invocation of Islamic law is a thin veil covering its persecution of the Baha'is. Ms. Alai added.

Story continues

In a further sign of international support for the Bahais in Iran, government officials around the world have condemned the Iranian court decision. The Canadian Foreign Minister, Marc Garneau, says(link is external) his government is concerned by the ruling, urging Iran to eliminate all forms of discrimination based on religion or belief. The call has been echoed by officials in Germany(link is external), the Netherlands(link is external), Sweden(link is external), the United Kingdom(link is external), Brazil(link is external), the United States(link is external), the European Parliament and the United Nations(link is external). In Sweden, 12 members of parliament and elected representatives have also strongly called on Iran(link is external) to return the lands of the Bahais of Ivel.

Stop confiscating Baha'i properties in the village of Ivel, states Jos Douma(link is external), the Netherlands Special Envoy for Religion or Belief. Andat lastrecognize Baha'i[s] as a religious community. The German Federal Government Commissioner for Global Freedom of Religion, Markus Grubel, also called(link is external) for Iran to recognize the Baha'is as a religious community in the country and to end the discrimination and persecution of Baha'i communities.

South Africas Legal Resources Centre, an organization known for its human rights work during apartheid, has also issued a letter(link is external) condemning the property confiscations.

Confiscation of Baha'i-owned properties in Ivel began in the early years after the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran. In 2010, properties belonging to some 50 Baha'is in Ivel were burned and demolished, driving them away from their ancestral farms and homes.

The Baha'is in Ivel have repeatedly appealed for their rights in the past, filing complaints with the authorities at all levels and taking legal action to reclaim their lands, to no avail.

The world is watching and is appalled by the Iranian governments blatant injustices towards the Baha'i community, says Ms. Alai. The innocence of the Baha'is is more evident than ever to the international community, and Iran is being held accountable for the gross injustices it has inflicted on the Baha'i community in Iran. The government must take the necessary steps to not only return the lands to the Baha'is in Ivel but to end the systematic persecution of the Baha'is throughout the entire country once and for all.

Background

The fresh support comes after a former Canadian prime minister and more than 50 others in Canadas legal community signed an open letter to the head of Irans judiciary, Ebrahim Raisi, expressing deep concern over the confiscations.

The ruling to confiscate the properties was made in a Special Court for Article 49 of the Iranian Constitution, which allows the Iranian government to seize any properties in the country. Article 49 states that the ruling must be carried out by the government after investigation, research and proof through Islamic law.

However, despite the requirements of law, numerous court rulings and official documents reveal the discriminatory motives behind the confiscations. The seizure of properties is part of Irans systematic persecution of the Baha'is, reported extensively by the United Nations.

In October 2020, despite many efforts by the Baha'iswhose lawyers were denied the chance to see files related to their case, to prepare their defensean appeals court upheld the ruling by the Special Court. The ruling allowed the Execution of Imam Khomeinis Order, a foundation under Irans Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to sell the lands owned by the Baha'is.

Confiscation of Baha'i propertiesholy places as well as individual propertieshas been part of Irans systematic campaign of economic, cultural and social persecution against the Baha'is. It has been part of a four-decades long effort to destroy the Baha'i community as a viable entity in the country.

Confiscation of Baha'i-owned properties in Ivel began in the early years after the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran. Baha'is were also denied access to health clinics and other institutions, which they had helped to establish; teachers found various means to persecute Baha'i pupils, including by failing them in their exams; the 100-year old Baha'i cemetery in the village was confiscated and sold for conversion into residential property; and in 1983, more than 130 Baha'is were locked in a local mosque, held captive for three days without food and water, and pressured to recant their faith.

CONTACT: James Samimi Farr U.S. Baha'i Office of Public Affairs 202.833.8990 jsamimifarr@usbnc.org




To say Eoghan Corrys life is hectic would be a major understatement but the respected travel writer revels in the thrills of exploring the world. When Covid-19 hit, the industry was decimated. Eoghan was grounded, his travels brought to an abrupt halt.

Surrounded by the beauty of his native Straffan, he has had to adapt to a new way of living until the industry starts back up again.

The industrious Corry is never short of things to do but these lockdowns have also afforded him time to reflect.

How have you been coping with life during lockdown?

As the industry I love crumbles around me, lockdown has some blessings. I have time to think and look back on the high-octane lifestyle I used to live, until that very last return flight from Colombia last March, when the first masks were being worn in the airports by people wary of a new virus in China.

I am locked down in a beautiful part of north Kildare, the plain of the Liffey and the range foothills of Lyons and Oughterard, surrounded by green fields, canal and glorious Liffey.

The local swans have grown a bit tired of me photographing them. They do not seem to appreciate how much I have worked to make them Instagram celebrities.

What is your daily routine?

There has been a lot of media as an interviewee (when can we book again?), a lot of processing of data and scenarios, a lot of interviewing and a lot of meetings on Zoom, optimistically clicking on a link in the hope it will bring me into the right meeting.

Even the ballad sessions I love and could never get to are now online, so I can attend them, singing Covid parodies (nine long months I spent in lockdown).

I was tied up in the governments Tourism Recovery Task Force for most of 2020 and chaired the international demand section, unpaid, but with a warm feeling of contributing to the solution.

It was hugely interesting. I took on an unexpected new role as advisor and confessor to the travel industry. Even airlines CEOs and industry leaders were phoning me to find out what was going on, days running into each other, after midnight and before dawn.

Travel outbound and tourism inbound are both bleeding and many of the key players occasionally get despondent. It can be a little like Pieta House at times.

The aviation guys crack me up.

Nothing phases them. For them it is all: lets get back in the skies, grow the market share, take advantage of weaknesses in the opposition.

That has been a revelation. A lesson to us all.

What do you miss most from our pre-Covid lives?

To paraphrase LP Hartley, pre-Covid was a foreign country, in my case a foreign country a week, sometimes more than one. Lots of early mornings at the airport, breakfast in the lounge, snatch sleep on the aircraft, and straight into the destination review or the event.

It was great and I loved it. But I never got time to review what happened because each day hit me as soon as the previous one was over. I am looking back on photographs, thousands of them, for the first time, and reliving some very pleasant experiences by unlocking the detail of memory I had forgotten.

Commercially it has been disastrous.

Finances were in negative for all of 2020, and getting that turned around is going to be a lot trickier than I expected.

I ended up working very hard in the anticipation of what would come at the end of it.

As a travel writer, how do you see the next 12 months panning out for the industry?

Travel and tourism are going to need some luck to get restarted, inbound or outbound  luck with testing, vaccines and, above all, infection rates across Europe and the world.

When the storm abates, there will be a huge seat sale by airlines and travel companies, and the question is whether the consumer will be confident enough to take the bait.

For home holidays, self catering is the product whose day has come.

The big stadium stuff like festivals is at least another year away. Bookings will be very very late, making it difficult to plan for customer and service provider alike. But this is an industry that gets beaten up by weather, strikes and other disruptions, and recovers. It is just that this one has gone on longer than most.

If you could travel one place in the world right now, where would it be and why would you choose that location?

Back to the beautiful Faroe Islands. What a great place to be locked down, and it has the lowest infection rate in Europe. It brings out the inner Viking in us all.

Have you any aspirations for when the lockdown ends?

I am surprised how little I have written. I wrote three books in 2009, when I was travelling to 35 countries and endlessly in the air. And none in 2020.

I have lots of incomplete written material, including the Kildare GAA history, for which a lot of work has been done but that has only reminded me of the huge amount still to do.

It is a repeat of my very first book, published when I was 20, and I am looking forward to seeing it between the sheets, so to speak.
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will sell the one million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine it bought from India to its sister countries in the African Union, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize has said.

Mkhize spoke on Wednesday after he and President Cyril Ramaphosa joined 18 health care workers in Cape Town to receive the first Johnson & Johnson vaccines to boost confidence in the country's vaccination programme.

These new vaccines replaced the old ones delivered by the Serum Institute of India after it was found that they offered limited efficacy against the new variant of coronavirus that has emerged in

A million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine were delivered to from India last month and a further 500,000 were due to be delivered this month to be used in the first phase of rolling it out to health care and other priority workers.

But South Africa decided against starting the first phase of its vaccine rollout using those vaccines after studies showed that it had limited efficacy against the new strain of the virus.

Explaining why South Africa had rushed to grab the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it became available, Mkhize commended the role of the Indian government in this.

"We knew that the whole world was actually scrambling for these vaccines, so we needed to make sure that we had them on our side. The fact that South Africa and India have a very good relationship would have actually assisted us in getting consideration, particularly seeing that the country was going through a bit of a difficult time, so I'm very grateful to the Indian government, the minister said.

"Although (the Serum Institute of India) is supposed to be a private company with some relationship with the government, at the same time we do understand that there has been lots of consultation with the government of India in preparation for those doses, Mkhize said.

He said the one million doses of the vaccine already delivered from India were still valid till the end of April, and have been offered to the countries in the African Union.

"When we were indicating that we might want to dispose of this, we have had inquiries that have come from no less than 25 countries who actually wanted access to those doses. South Africa will then get its returns. There will be no wasteful expenditure. We'll get our money back because it will be actually sold, Mkhize said, as he dismissed reports that the vaccines would be donated or sold at half price.

The vaccination campaign started as South Africa emerges from the peak of a second wave which saw stricter lockdown regulations introduced in December last year.

Despite a gradual reduction in infections and deaths, there were still 1,210 new COVID-19 cases and 219 deaths reported overnight.

(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 ruling Liberals, who announced nine months ago they were banning assault rifles, seem to have decided on second thought these weapons arent so bad after all. Owners can keep their assault rifles, as long as they keep them locked up.

The ruling Liberals, who announced nine months ago they were banning assault rifles, seem to have decided on second thought these weapons arent so bad after all. Owners can keep their assault rifles, as long as they keep them locked up.

The government will buy assault rifles from owners who want to get rid of them, Public Safety Minister Bill Blair announced this week. He believes that severe restrictions imposed by Bill C-21, the firearms bill presented to Parliament this week, will encourage owners to sell their guns to the government.

Gun control advocates are not pleased. They argue that the kinds of people who go out and commit mass murder with assault rifles in Montreal, in Portapique, N.S., or anywhere else in Canada are not likely to be dissuaded by a federal law saying they were supposed to keep their assault rifles under lock and key.

When someone has already decided to murder their neighbours and take or lose their own life, who imagines they are going to worry about violating the gun-storage regulations?

Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair (Patrick Doyle / The Canadian Press files)

The optional buy-back program comes as part of a package of measures aimed at curbing gun trafficking. Criminal penalties for gun smuggling and trafficking will be increased. A court process will be created allowing anyone to ask for confiscation of weapons from persons who pose a danger to themselves or others. Municipalities, with the permission of their provincial governments, will be empowered to ban handguns.

The practical effects of these measures in curbing gun violence in Canada are open to debate. In a highly mobile society, banning a class of weapon within the city limits of one municipality is unlikely to discourage criminal gangs and gun traffickers. Increased criminal penalties may drive up the price for smuggled weapons.

The political effect, however, may be pronounced. While the Liberals are at least gesturing in the direction of gun control, the Conservatives want to defend the interest of law-abiding gun owners and the New Democrats want to deal with the profound underlying causes of gun violence.

This leaves the Liberals with the upper hand among urban voters in British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec who are anxious about gun crime: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his colleagues at least seem to care; the others prefer to change the subject.

Opinion polling last May, when the government announced the list of assault weapons it intended to ban, showed massive support among city-dwellers in Ontario and Quebec, where the Liberal party needs to keep support and the Conservatives and New Democrats need to find some. Voters in Prairie provinces, where the Liberals are already weak, were not much interested in seeing the government ban firearms.

Assault weapons  high-capacity rifles designed for use by infantry in combat  are an object of fascination for some gun owners because of their engineering and their awesome power. They are also an object of horror for people who see themselves as more likely the victim than the operator of such a weapon. They are rarely used in crimes in Canada, but the few occasions are notorious because of their high body counts.

Gun-owner groups are constantly on the lookout for authorities who, they are convinced, plan to take their guns away. The Liberals were, indeed, planning to take their guns away, but apparently that now seems to be more trouble than its worth. Theyve opted for the gradual method instead.
Ever since Kapil Sharma and Sunil Grover went their separate ways (after mid-air brawl), there have been rumours of their reunion. Recently, there were reports that the comedians might reunite as it was said that Sunil might return to The Kapil Sharma Show, courtesy Salman Khan, who is the producer of the show. However, there was no official confirmation about the same. It was surprising, as just a few days ago, Kapil Sharma had revealed that the show will be going off-air and the report of Sunil Grover returning to TKSS started doing the rounds!

However, a TOI report suggests that Sunil has no plans to return to the show and the actor-comedian hasn't received any call from Salman Khan as well.

A source close to Sunil was quoted by the leading daily as saying, "It is really unfair to take away the appreciation Sunil Grover got for his performance in his recent web series by pushing stories about Kapil Sharma show."

The source further added, "Grover has not received any phone call from Salman Khan asking him to return to the show."

After parting ways, Sunil has been busy with live shows, films and web series. The actor was recently seen in Tandav and his next show Sunflower, which is directed by Vikas Bahl will start streaming soon. Apparently, Sunil will also be going to the USA with Salman for a stage show.

On the other hand, Kapil too is busy with his show and will be seen in Netflix's show, the announcement of which was made by the comedian-actor a month ago. The actor is also busy personally, as he and his wife Ginni Chatrath welcomed a baby boy, a couple of weeks ago.

Also Read: Sunil Grover To Make A Comeback On The Kapil Sharma Show: Report

Also Read: Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain's Nehha Pendse Reacts To Trolls; Says I'm Not Kapil Or Bharti Who Make People Laugh


PARIS (dpa-AFX) - Bouygues (BOUYY.PK) reported that its net profit attributable to the group for fiscal year 2020 dropped to 696 million euros from last year's 1.18 billion euros, reflecting the group's resilience during the Covid-19 crisis.



Current operating profit was 1.22 billion euros, down 454 million euros from the prior year.



Sales were 34.7 billion euros, down 9% or 8% like-for-like and at constant exchange rates compared to the prior year.



The company said its board will ask for the approval of the payment of a stable dividend of 1.70 euros per share at the Annual General Meeting on 22 April 2021. The ex-date, record date and payment date have been set at 4 May, 5 May and 6 May 2021 respectively.



In 2021, the Group's sales and earnings should be well above those of 2020, although without reaching those of 2019. In 2022, group current operating profit should return to the same level of 2019 or be slightly higher.



The 'Ambition 2026' plan targets to be achieved by 2026 are sales from services of more than 7 billion euros;EBITDA after Leases of around 2.5 billion euros.



The company said it would separate the functions of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, as of 17 February 2021. Martin Bouygues will be Chairman and Olivier Roussat, previously Deputy CEO, is appointed Chief Executive Officer.



The company has appointed two new Deputy CEOs to assist Olivier Roussat in his duties.



Edward Bouygues, Director of Strategy at Bouygues Telecom, will be responsible for telecoms development, CSR and innovation for the Bouygues group. He will also be appointed Chairman of Bouygues Europe.



Pascal Grange, Senior Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer, is appointed Deputy CEO. He will continue to serve as Chief Financial Officer of the Bouygues group.



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He set hearts fluttering with his charismatic lead performance on Netflix's hit period romance series Bridgerton.

And now Rege-Jean Page is being serenaded by Shonda Rhimes for the 2021 TIME100 Next list.

The 51-year-old writer and producer sounded almost like one of his lovestruck fans as gushed about the 31-year-old actor, calling him 'finer than fiction' and 'better than any dream.'

Praised: Rene-Jean Page, 31, was serenaded in the pages of the TIME100 Next list by his Bridgerton producer Shonda Rhimes, 51; Page seen in 2018 in LA

'You might dream of him, the one we call the Duke of Hastings,' she began. 'But in reality, Rege-Jean Page is finer than fiction and better than any dream.'

The Scandal creator went on to describe Page as a 'rare actor, one who brings an intensity, an intelligence and a precision to his work, providing endless depth to any scene.'

She continued, writing that the actor's enveloping performances build 'a vibrant world for us to enter, making it impossible to imagine any other actor playing the role.'

Rhimes concluded the short tribute by adding that 'Rege is a singular talent whose prospects are limitless.'

Effusive praise: 'You might dream of him, the one we call the Duke of Hastings,' Rhimes began. 'But in reality, Rege-Jean Page is finer than fiction and better than any dream'; seen in 2019

Star to watch: The Scandal creator went on to describe Page as a 'rare actor, one who brings an intensity, an intelligence and a precision to his work, providing endless depth to any scene'; still from Bridgerton

'Today, he may be our duke. By tomorrow not even I can dream big enough to imagine,' she wrote.

Page stars on Bridgerton as Simon Basset, the Duke of Hastings.

His chemistry with his costar Phoebe Dynevor, who plays Daphne Bridgerton, has been widely acclaimed, and the series as a whole earned an 89 percent fresh rating among critics sampled by Rotten Tomatoes.

Page and Dynevor were so convincing as fictional lovers that rumors cropped up that the two must have dated while filming the Netflix series, though the actress put that chatter to bed earlier this week in an interview with You Magazine.

'Id love to say there was really something between us. But no, it has always been strictly professional,' she said.

'There was so much pressure on us to get it right that it was all about the work. We have a really professional working relationship,' continued. 'Im glad for that, actually. It would be very complicated if it went further.'

Perfect matches: Page stars on Bridgerton as Simon Basset, the Duke of Hastings. His chemistry with his costar Phoebe Dynevor, who plays Daphne Bridgerton, has been widely acclaimed; seen together in January in London

Rising star: Prior to starring in Brigerton, Page was best known for appearing in the 2016 miniseries version of Roots and the ABC legal drama For The People; pictured in 2016 in NYC

Oddly, when Page was asked about a potential relationship during a January interview with Access Hollywood, he avoided giving a straight answer.

'I think that everything you need to know is on camera,' he said, before praising the show's 'beautiful scripts.'

Prior to starring in Brigerton, Page was best known for appearing in the Tessa Thompson drama Sylvie's Love, along with the 2016 miniseries version of Roots and the ABC legal drama For The People.

He'll be introduced to a new audience this weekend when he hosts Saturday Night Live for the first time.

More to come: Bridgerton is the most recent success for Rhimes, who also worked with Page on For The People. Her next series is about a the Russian-born fraudster known as Anna Delvey; seen in 2018

Bridgerton is the most recent success for Rhimes, who also worked with Page on For The People.

Next up, she'll be writing and producing the series Inventing Anna for Netflix.

The show, which she also created, is based on the New York Magazine article How Anna Delvey Tricked New Yorks Party People, about a Russian-born woman who pretended to be a wealthy German heiress in order to defraud New York socialites.
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She never had any trouble speaking her mind on The Bachelorette.

And Clare Crawley shut down one hater on Instagram who had a problem with her latest Instagram post.

A photo of Clare's newest hairstyle prompted one frustrated user to remark in the comments section, 'Ughh give it up already! No one cares!'

Hitting back: Clare Crawley shut down one hater on Instagram who had a problem with her latest Instagram post

Clare, 39, shot back at the troll with a short yet sassy response.

'Clearly you do,' she replied, along with a hair flip emoji.

Ever since splitting from fiance Dale Moss a few weeks ago, Clare has been experimenting with her hair.

After her break-up, the blonde went for a head full of pink hair, followed by the shorter beach waves she debuted on Wednesday.

'Clearly you do': Crawley left a short yet sassy message in response to a troll, annoyed by her latest post

Making waves! Crawley showed off her shorter beach waves on Instagram

The new look came not long after Clare was spotted hanging out with her ex Dale in Nokomis, Florida.

The former couple were spotted enjoying drinks at Nokomo's Sunset Hut on Tuesday, where Clare kept a low profile with dark sunglasses.

Sources told TMZ that Clare and Dale 'downed a couple of Moscow mules as they hung out by the bar for about 45 minutes, then they left together and walked down the waterfront.'

The ex factor: Crawley was recently spotted hanging out with her ex Dale Moss, following their shock split (pictured November 2020)

Though they did not pack on the PDA during their get together, the pair looked more than comfortable, while grabbing a seat at the quaint bar - they 'even hugged a few times.'

Dale famously unveiled that he and Clare had called off their brief engagement via a 'mutual' statement, which he shared to Instagram on January 19.

Despite Dale saying the statement was 'mutual,' Clare claimed she only learned he would be announcing the devastating news after he posted it.

It was originally love at first sight for Clare, who instantly thought Dale was her future husband when she first met him on the most recent season of The Bachelorette.

The couple did ultimately wind up getting engaged, and Clare even left the show early in order to be with him, paving the path for Tayshia Adams to step in her place as The Bachelorette.
A Public Relations Member at the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, Emmanuel Appiah has said the facility will give Funny Face who was recently ordered to seek an examination at the facility the best of care.



He said what the comedian needs now is the show of love and not insults and attacks as some have directed at him.



The Ofankor court has committed comedian Benson Nana Yaw Oduro Boateng to the psychiatric hospital for two weeks.



The Ofaakor Circuit Court presided by Ebenezer Osei Darko has ordered Ghana Police to send Funny Face to Accra Psychiatric Hospital explaining that he does not sound normal.



The judge said Funny Face could be having a mental crisis and possibly going through depression.



Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5Fm, Mr. Emmanuel Appiah indicated that he [Funny Face] is not the only personality to be experiencing depression.



He said even Prince Harry in the United Kingdon suffered depression.



He said MzVee, a musician recently came out to share her experience with depression and so Funny Face is not the first and wont be the last.



He said it is not easy to be a star and depression sets in if care is not taken you would be facing problems.



"No matter what Funny went through, he will recover. We will put in everything we know to help him recover, Mr Appiah said.

Source: Rainbowradioonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.  Purdue University's Presidential Lecture Series will return on Wednesday (Feb. 24) with a virtual discussion on "American Democracy: Where Do We Go From Here?" featuring former U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp.

Purdue President Mitch Daniels will moderate an hourlong discussion among Ryan, Heitkamp and members of the Purdue University Political Discourse Club and other student political organizations. The discussion will be held at 6 p.m. ET via a livestream on Purdues YouTube channel. The event is free and open to the public, although registration here is recommended.

This event is conceived and co-sponsored by the Purdue University Political Discourse Club, a nonpartisan student organization that provides a platform for students to have civil political discussions.

Launched in 2014, the Presidential Lecture Series exposes Purdue students and the broader community to inspiring ideas, courageous leadership, and models of civic engagement and civil discourse.

We are fortunate to have these two admirable public servants join us for this important discussion, and I applaud the students of the Political Discourse Club for their partnership in fostering this type of civil discourse on our campus and a healthier political process overall, said Purdue President Mitch Daniels.

Ryan, as a representative from Wisconsin from 1999 to 2019, chaired two major House committees  the Ways and Means Committee and the Budget Committee -- and served as the 54th speaker of the House from 2015-2019. He was the 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee, running alongside Mitt Romney.

Today, Ryan is on the board of directors of Fox Corp. Hes also a guest lecturer in political science and economics at the University of Notre Dame. In 2019, he founded the American Idea Foundation to connect local community organizations to researchers and policymakers.

Heitkamp was a U.S. senator from North Dakota from 2013-2019. She had been the states attorney general from 1992 to 2000 and tax commissioner before that. In addition to Senate committee assignments in agriculture and banking, she sat on the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Heitkamp worked with former Sen. Joe Donnelly of Indiana in 2019 to launch One Country Project, an organization helping Democrats connect with rural voters. Heitkamp also is a visiting Pritzker Fellow at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics and a contributor to both ABC News and CNBC.

Receive invitations for future Presidential Lecture Series events by signing up online.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to todays toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 5 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at https://purdue.edu/.

Writer: Kelsey Lefever, kschnied@purdue.edu

Media contact: Matthew Oates, 765-586-7496 (cell), oatesw@purdue.edu, @mo_oates
Foreign Affairs Minister Bogdan Aurescu will be visiting Chisinau on Friday, on the occasion of Romania's granting free humanitarian aid to the Republic of Moldova, consisting of medical and protective equipment to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a release sent to AGERPRES by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, this new aid is in line with Romania's "constant" action for the direct benefit of citizens of the Republic of Moldova, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Minister Aurescu will meet with Moldovan President Maia Sandu and Acting Prime Minister Aureliu Ciocoi, Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, and will participate in the public event delivering the humanitarian support from Romania.

"The visit is an opportunity to reconfirm the special relationship between the two states, as well as to assure the citizens of the Republic of Moldova that Romania remains a solid partner, that constantly maintains and honors their commitments. Among the topics of discussions on the agenda of the meetings are the state of bilateral relations, bilateral strategic interconnection projects, as well as the continuation of the European path of the Republic of Moldova and the reform process," the MAE release reads.

On 12 February, the National Committee for Emergency Situations adopted the Decision on the granting of international assistance free of charge to the Republic of Moldova, the supplementation of emergency stocks with products, materials and sanitary equipment needed in the vaccination process and the modification of the list of countries/areas/territories with high epidemiological risk. According to this, Romania will provide the Republic of Moldova, free of charge, 1.5 million surgical protective masks, 100,000 FFP3 protection masks, 100,000 complete outfit and 100,000 single-use gloves, worth 11,188,600 lei.
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

The tuberculosis (TB) vaccine Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) could protect newborns against a variety of common infections, such as upper respiratory tract infections, chest infections and diarrhoea, according to a new study in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.

The research is the first of its kind to rigorously investigate the full range of illnesses BCG could protect infants against. It suggests that vaccinating all babies on the day of birth with BCG could reduce neonatal infections and death in areas with high infectious disease rates, potentially saving thousands of lives a year. The results also increase the possibility that the vaccine might be used to protect children and adults against COVID-19 and other new infectious diseases.

Led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) through the MRC/UVRI & LSHTM Uganda Research Unit, and funded by the Wellcome Trust, the study involved a randomized control trial of 560 newborns in Uganda, who were monitored for a range of illnesses.

After six weeks, infection rates from any disease were 25% lower in the group who received the vaccine at birth, compared to the group that had not yet received the vaccination. Particularly vulnerable groups such as low birth weight babies, and boys, seemed to be protected the most. Importantly, BCG appeared to protect against mild, moderate and severe types of infections.

Sarah Prentice, lead author from LSHTM, said: "Nearly a million babies die every year of common infections so we urgently need better ways to protect them. Our research suggests that ensuring that BCG is given at birth could make a big difference in low income countries, potentially saving many lives."

In the study, healthy Ugandan infants were randomly assigned to receive BCG at birth or at six weeks of age. The infants were followed-up by doctors, blinded to the intervention, for 10 weeks to look for episodes of any type of illness or infection.

The research team then compared how often infants in the two groups presented to doctors with infections of any kind, except TB, to see whether having BCG made a difference. They also took blood samples from both groups, to look at differences in their innate immune system, the body's first line of defence against infections.

Infants who had been vaccinated with BCG at birth presented to doctors with any kind of infection 25% less often than infants who had not. Protection from BCG didn't seem to be against one specific type of infection, but for all types, such as common colds, chest infections, and skin infections.

After the group receiving BCG at six weeks had been vaccinated, there was no difference in the rates of infection between the two groupsthe delayed group's immunity 'caught-up' once they'd received BCG.

Hazel Dockrell, Professor of Immunology at LSHTM and one of the co-authors of the study, adds: "It's very exciting to think that BCG vaccination might help keep newborns safe against other dangerous infections, in addition to providing protection against TB. Although BCG is recommended at birth in many countries, it is often delayed due to logistical difficulties. Ensuring that the vaccine is given on day one, in areas with high rates of infectious disease, could have a major impact on infections and deaths in the newborn period."

The team can't definitively say why BCG offered this additional non-specific protection, but the research showed evidence of changes in the innate immune system of vaccinated infants, which may suggest that BCG boosts the immune system to work better against any infection.

This has led the researchers to suggest that it could provide protection in the early stages of novel outbreaks, such as COVID-19 or Ebola, before specific vaccines have been developed.

Further studies are already underway to explore whether BCG could play a role in the response to COVID-19, with large trials involving health care workers and the elderly. The Director General of WHO Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus has co-authored an article expressing interest in the possible use of BCG for protection against COVID-19.

Dr. Prentice said "Since the findings show that BCG seems to offer wider protection against a range of infections, our study also raises hopes it might be useful in protecting the general population against COVID-19 and future pandemicsthough we will need to see the results of other, more specific studies to know for sure."

The researchers also believe it is worth investigating whether reintroduction of BCG in countries where it is no longer in routine use, such as the UK, is beneficial, not for its effects against TB, but to protect vulnerable infants in neonatal units against other infections.

The authors acknowledge limitations of their study. As it was relatively small, it was not possible to show an effect of BCG on numbers of deaths from infections in the study participants. Also, because the study was only conducted in Uganda, it cannot be certain that these extra, beneficial effects of BCG would be seen in other settings. However, previous studies conducted in West Africa have shown a reduction in neonatal deaths following BCG at birth, to a similar extent as the reduction in infection rates seen in this study.

Explore further Elderly people protected against respiratory infections by BCG vaccine

More information: Sarah Prentice, Beatrice Nassanga, Emily L Webb, Florence Akello, Fred Kiwudhu, Hellen Akurut, Alison M Elliott, Rob J W Arts, Mihai G Netea, Hazel M Dockrell, Stephen Cose, for The Delayed BCG Study Team. BCG-induced non-specific effects on heterologous infectious disease in Ugandan neonates: an investigator-blind randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Infectious Diseases. DOI:10.1016/ S1473-3099(20)30653-8 , Journal information: Lancet Infectious Diseases Sarah Prentice, Beatrice Nassanga, Emily L Webb, Florence Akello, Fred Kiwudhu, Hellen Akurut, Alison M Elliott, Rob J W Arts, Mihai G Netea, Hazel M Dockrell, Stephen Cose, for The Delayed BCG Study Team. BCG-induced non-specific effects on heterologous infectious disease in Ugandan neonates: an investigator-blind randomised controlled trial.. DOI:10.1016/ S1473-3099(20)30653-8 , www.thelancet.com/journals/lan  (20)30653-8/fulltext

Official White House Photo by Adam SchultzBy MICHELLE STODDART and LAUREN KING, ABC News

(WASHINGTON) -- This is Day 30 of the administration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.



Here is how events are unfolding Thursday. All times Eastern:

Feb 18, 6:30 pm

US ready to accept invitation for talks with Iran



The State Department has announced the U.S. is "ready" to accept talks with Iran and the other remaining parties of the Iran nuclear deal "to discuss a diplomatic way forward on Iran's nuclear program," according to spokesperson Ned Price.



The EU's deputy foreign affairs official Enrique Mora tweeted earlier Thursday that the body was ready to play facilitator again and host Iran and the P5+1 -- the permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany, who negotiated the nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA.



The announcement from Price comes after Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Thursday morning with his French, British, and German counterparts and presented a unified front on the way forward on Iran. In a statement, they notably agreed that Iran must return to compliance with the nuclear deal and then negotiate with the parties to "strengthen the JCPOA" and "address broader security concerns related to Iran's missile programs and regional activities" -- something Iran says it won't do.



The Biden administration is also rescinding moves by former President Donald Trump to restrict Iran at the United Nations. As a gesture of good will, it is easing the travel restrictions on Iran's diplomats in New York and withdrawing the Trump position that the U.S. had snapped back U.N. sanctions.



Offering to meet -- and that potential first meeting -- "may not necessarily be a breakthrough," said one official on a briefing call with reporters. "We're not going to hype it for what it isn't. But it is a step. Until we sit down and talk, nothing's going to happen. ... But if we don't take that step, the situation is going to go from bad to worse."



-ABC News' Conor Finnegan

Feb 18, 5:26 pm

Biden to travel to Michigan, participate in virtual G7 conference



Biden will once again take his message about COVID-19 vaccinations and relief on the road Friday, traveling to Kalamazoo, Michigan, to tour a Pfizer vaccine manufacturing plant. The trip was originally scheduled for Thursday but was postponed.



Before he travels to Michigan on Friday, the president will participate in a virtual G7 conference. Biden plans to announce that the United States will contribute a total of $4 billion to a U.N.-backed program seeking to distribute COVID-19 vaccine doses to people in the poorest countries in the world, according to senior administration officials.



White House press secretary Jen Psaki gave a preview of Bidens scheduled address to G7 leaders during a press briefing Thursday, suggesting that he will take his main domestic agenda and apply it on the world stage.



President Biden will focus on a global response to the COVID pandemic, including coordination on vaccine production, distribution and supplies, as well as continued efforts to mobilize and cooperate against the threat of emerging infectious diseases by building country capacity and establishing health security financing, Psaki said.



The president will also virtually the Munich Security Conference on Friday.



-ABC News' Molly Nagle and Ben Gittleson

Feb 18, 4:01 pm

Democrats introduce Biden's immigration reform bill



Congressional Democrats on Thursday unveiled sweeping immigration reform legislation, which essentially consists of a roundup of immigration priorities President Joe Biden laid out on his first day in office.



The reform proposal is the most ambitious effort so far to counteract the Trump administration's hardline border policies.



The U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 would create an eight-year path to citizenship for the 11 million undocumented people in the country. The measure provides funding for more immigration judges and support staff to help with the backlog of asylum seekers. The bill provides for increased security at ports of entry focused on detecting drugs and other contraband.



Counties and municipalities will be able to petition for additional work visas as needed under the reform bill. The bill would also remove the word "alien" in the immigration code and replace it with "noncitizen."



It would end the three and 10-year bans on reentry for undocumented immigrants who voluntarily leave the country, reform the legal immigration processes by no longer counting spouses and minor children against a country's share of allotted visas and would increase from 55,000 to 80,000 the number of diversity visas issued for countries with low rates of immigration to the U.S.



-ABC News' Cecilia Vega and Quinn Owen

Feb 18, 3:43 pm

Power restored to some in Texas, but 600,000 remain without, White House adviser says



White House deputy national security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall joined White House press secretary Jen Psaki in a White House press briefing with an update on the winter storm and power outages in Texas.



Sherwood-Randall said Biden held a call with governors on Tuesday to offer whatever federal help was needed, including approving emergency declarations in Texas, Oklahoma and processing a new request from Louisiana to allow FEMA to offer immediate assistance.



Sherwood-Randall noted that as of Thursday morning, numbers of those without power in Texas have fallen from in the millions to around 600,000 but stressed that due to the nature of the storm, residents would likely still experience rolling power outages as officials work to restore power across the state. When asked for additional specifics on what FEMA had provided to Texas, Sherwood-Randall said FEMA has made 60 generators and fuel available to support critical sites like hospitals and water facilities. It has moved in 729,000, liters of water, more than 10,000 wool blankets, 50,000 cotton blankets and 225,000 meals.



Psaki addressed the winter storms impact on the vaccination effort, saying the administration was staying in close contact with partners.



We're also working with our partners to move on scheduled deliveries whenever possible and to search shipment operations through the end of the week into the weekend. We're in conversation about extended hours and additional appointments to try and reschedule shots given the storm, Psaki said.



Psaki said Biden had spoken with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott two days ago to convey his commitment to helping and stressed that the president was being kept aware of the unfolding situation Thursday while working from the White House. She did not commit to a visit from Biden to the region due to the strain a presidential trip can put on local resources.



-ABC News' Molly Nagle



Feb 18, 3:35 pm

Psaki addresses immigration reform bill



White House press secretary Jen Psaki discussed the newly revealed immigration reform bill which would provide a pathway to citizenship for 11 million immigrants during a virtual press briefing Thursday.



Psaki wouldnt say whether the White House supports the idea of splitting up the bill's proposals to get them through Congress and recognized that proposed bills do not always look exactly like final bills that get signed -- indicating either a recognition that some priorities might be dropped or that the bill could be split.



Pressed on why the administration unveiled the bill Thursday when the White House has consistently made clear its sole legislative focus is COVID-19 relief, Psaki said the negotiation process can begin while the White House pushes COVID-19 aid.



-ABC News' Sarah Kolinovsky



Feb 18, 1:33 pm

Harris calls economic plight of women a 'national emergency' during roundtable discussion



Harris hosted a virtual roundtable Thursday with women lawmakers and community leaders to highlight the disproportionate impact of the economic downturn on women. Harris and the congresswomen delivered brief opening remarks citing statistics that illustrate the impact on women, calling once again for passage of the administration's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 rescue plan.



"In one year, the pandemic has put decades of the progress we've collectively made for women workers at risk," Harris said, pointing out that 2.5 million women have dropped out of the workforce, and one in four female small business owners have had to shut their doors.



Harris also touched on the child care crisis.



"Many of you are working mothers, many of you are caring for your own parents sandwiched between two generations. And all of you are a voice of women who have been severely impacted by this pandemic," Harris said. "Which is why you know, it has created a perfect storm for women."



Harris summed up the economic plight of women as a "national emergency."



"Our economy cannot fully recover unless women can participate fully. So, I believe, I think we all believe, this is a national emergency," Harris said.



Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., was among the participants in the roundtable who said passing Biden's COVID-19 relief plan could help.



"The American Rescue Plan really shows a commitment to women as equal partners in our economy and our country's future," Murray said.



-ABC News' Sarah Kolinovsky



Feb 18, 1:13 pm

Pelosi discusses investigation into Texas power outages



In a press briefing Thursday morning, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi discussed the proposed congressional commission to investigate the Capitol riot on Jan. 6 and the possibility of investigations into Texas power outages.



Pelosi that the "9/11-style" commission that would investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection must be "strongly bipartisan" and confirmed that Democrats have sent their commission proposal to Republicans to review.



"For this to work it really has to be strongly bipartisan," Pelosi said.



Pelosi said she consulted with the former 9/11 commission members about how to structure a review of the Jan. 6 insurrection. She also said the commission needs to have subpoena power.



On the Texas energy crisis, Pelosi said the House Energy and Commerce Committee will be investigating. She also confirmed that her daughter, who lives in Houston, is without power but is safe.



"I believe that the [House] Energy and Commerce Committee will be taking up some form of, when I say investigation, I mean a look into it to see how things could have turned out better and will turn out better in the future," Pelosi said.



Pelosi also said she thinks teachers should be vaccinated depending on how bad the COVID-19 virus is in their respective regions but did not say she thought it was a requirement for schools to reopen.



"I want everybody to be vaccinated and I certainly want our teachers to be. But depending on what the situation is in their area, it may or may not be necessary," she added.



On the new immigration bill introduced by Democrats Thursday that is supported by the White House, Pelosi said she doesn't think it will be necessary to get it through both chambers using the reconciliation process, which Democrats are using for the COVID-19 relief bill, but she left the door open to that possibility. Pelosi said a piecemeal approach is possible.



"How it happens through the legislative process remains to be seen," Pelosi said.



-ABC News' Mariam Khan

Feb 18, 9:37 am

Federal offices in Washington closed for weather

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management announced that all federal offices in Washington, D.C. are closed Thursday because of extreme weather.



A briefing at the State Department scheduled for Thursday was cancelled and the press briefing with White House press secretary Jen Psaki will be by phone. Many other government operations will continue virtually.



Feb 18, 9:15 am

Democrats expected to release immigration reform bill, Biden trip postponed

Biden will receive his daily intelligence briefing and a COVID-19 response briefing today, both of which are closed to the press. This comes after the president's trip to visit a Pfizer vaccine production plant in Michigan, originally scheduled for Thursday, was postponed until Friday. White House press secretary Jen Psaki will give a virtual briefing at 12:30 p.m.



On Capitol Hill, Democrats are planning to unveil an immigration reform bill, which will include immigration priorities Biden laid out on day one of his administration. The bill, which does not have bipartisan support, would establish a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants in the U.S., provide more funding to alleviate the backlog of asylum cases and the border and include funding for border security.

However, it seems now the Democrats do not have the bipartisan support in Congress they'd need to pass the legislation, so questions remain if they will have to water down the bill, or pass it in many small parts. Setting aside these concerns, administration officials tell ABC News they are more concerned with getting the legislation introduced.



Copyright  2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
QINGDAO, China, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SOS Limited (NYSE: SOS) (the "Company" or "SOS"), an emerging blockchain-based and big data-driven marketing solution provider announced today that it has entered into a securities purchase agreement with certain accredited investors to purchase $86,000,000 worth of its American Depositary Shares ("ADS") and warrants in a registered direct offering priced at-the-market under the NYSE rules.

Under the terms of the securities purchase agreement, the Company has agreed to sell 8,600,000 ADSs and warrants to purchase 4,300,000 ADS. The warrants will be exercisable immediately upon the date of issuance and have an exercise price of $10.00. The warrants will expire five years from the date of issuance. The purchase price for one ADS and one corresponding warrant will be $10.00. The gross proceeds to the Company from the registered direct offering are estimated to be $86,000,000 before deducting the placement agent's fees and other estimated offering expenses. The registered direct offering is expected to close on or about February 22, 2021, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions.

The Company intends to use the proceeds from the offering to develop its recently launched cloud cryptocurrency mining and cryptocurrency security and insurance business as well as for working capital and general corporate use.

Maxim Group LLC is acting as sole placement agent in connection with this offering.

The securities described above are being offered by the Company pursuant to a shelf registration statement on Form F-3, as amended (File No.: 333-252279) previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") , and declared effective on February 8, 2021 and an additional registration statement pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. A prospectus supplement related to the offering will be, filed with the SEC and available on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the prospectus supplement relating to the offering may be obtained, when available, by contacting: Maxim Group LLC, 405 Lexington Avenue, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10174, by telephone: at (212) 895-3500.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of, these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction.

About SOS Limited

SOS is an emerging blockchain-based and big data-driven marketing and solution provider, with a nationwide membership base of approximately 20 million in China. Recently, SOS started to get ready to roll out its cryptocurrency mining business and plans to develop insurance and security management solutions for digital assets and cryptocurrencies. The core infrastructure of SOS' marketing data, technology and solutions to insurance and emergency rescue services is built on big date, blockchain-based technology, cloud computing, AI, satellite, and 5G network, etc. SOS Limited, through its operating subsidiary, SOS Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("SOS") is a high-technology company providing a wide range of services to its corporate and individual members, including marketing data, technology and solutions for emergency rescue services. SOS transforms digital technology into data-driven operations through the research and development of big data, cloud computing, Internet of Things, blockchain and artificial intelligence. We have created a SOS cloud emergency rescue service software as a service (SaaS) platform with three major product categories, including basic cloud (medical rescue card, car rescue card, financial rescue card, mutual assistance rescue card), cooperative cloud (information rescue center, intelligent big data, intelligent software and hardware), and information cloud (News Today, E-Commerce Today). This system provide marketing-related data, technology solutions, and technology-driven big data to clients such as insurance companies, financial institutions, medical institutions, healthcare providers, auto manufacturers, security providers, senior living assistance providers and other service providers in the emergency rescue services industry. For more information, please visit: http://www.sosyun.com/

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements made herein are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "believe," "expect," "estimate," "plan," "outlook," and "project" and other similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. Such forward-looking statements include timing of the proposed transaction; the business plans, objectives, expectations and intentions of the parties; SOS's estimated and future results of operations, business strategies, competitive position, industry environment and potential growth opportunities market acceptance of our products; the ultimate impact of the current Coronavirus pandemic, or any other health epidemic, on our business, our research programs, healthcare systems or the global economy as a whole; our intellectual property; our reliance on third party organizations; our anticipated financial and operating results, including anticipated sources of revenues; our assumptions regarding the size of the available market, benefits of our product offering, product pricing, timing of product launches; management's expectation with respect to future acquisitions; statements regarding our goals, intentions, plans and expectations, including the introduction of new products and markets; and our cash needs and financing plans and etc. These forward-looking statements reflect the current analysis of existing information and are subject to various risks and uncertainties. As a result, caution must be exercised in relying on forward-looking statements. SOS may not realize its expectations, and its beliefs may not prove correct. Due to known and unknown risks, our actual results may differ materially from our expectations or projections. All forward-looking statements attributable to the Company or persons acting on its behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these factors. Other than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not assume a duty to update these forward-looking statements.

Additional information concerning these and other factors that may impact our expectations and projections can be found in our periodic filings with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019. SOS's SEC filings are available publicly on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. SOS disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

SOURCE SOS Limited

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http://www.sosyun.com


SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Rock, a truly multimodal communication platform that combines both asynchronous and synchronous ways of communicating, today announced a $1.2 million pre-seed round. The round was led by Section 32, a venture capital firm founded by Bill Maris, and with participation from angel investors Manik Gupta (ex-Uber Chief Product Officer), Aadil Mamujee (Head of Product at Automattic/WordPress.com) and Marc Vanlerberghe (ex-Google VP and former CMO of Medallia). The capital will support the company's global growth ambitions to deliver on its mission  to empower anyone to work from anywhere in times when many companies and individuals make longer-term decisions to shift to a more distributed way of working.

Rock is an intuitive and easy-to-use productivity platform that enables distributed teams to communicate and collaborate more effectively with each other. It integrates messaging, tasks, notes, and platforms such as Zoom and Google Drive into one tool so teamwork becomes more seamless and productive.

"We recognize that remote work is here to stay, and we support Rock's long term vision to build a productivity platform that simplifies how we work, is accessible to anyone and increases productivity for every individual, project, or team irrespective of where they are," said Bill Maris, founder of Section 32 and founder & former CEO of Google Ventures  an early Slack investor.

Rock has created the first truly multimodal communication platform that combines both synchronous and asynchronous ways of communicating to boost productivity for distributed teams. As a result, there is no need to switch between different apps to get work done since all communication and collaboration can happen within Rock. With Rock, cross-organizational work happens more seamlessly as part-timers, freelancers, and other external partners who are now more commonly part of an extended team can have access to the same information as everyone else.

Rock launched in November 2020, and as the workplace undergoes a major transformation due to an ongoing pandemic, it has experienced accelerated growth and demand for its services. Rock is currently being used by thousands of users and hundreds of teams across 26 countries, from the U.S. to India, through the U.K. and Kenya, serving startups, marketing teams, agencies, non-profits, and organizations that work with external partners.

"The challenges faced by distributed and remote teams today have been significantly accelerated by the ongoing pandemic. People are working longer hours, they have more meetings, and it's more difficult to disconnect because communication still mostly happens in real-time using platforms, which were never intended to be used by distributed teams," said Kenzo Fong, CEO and co-founder of Rock.

"We believe that communication should be asynchronous by default, and synchronous when needed, allowing anyone to respond at their own pace while saving video calls and real-time conversations for more complex topics. This is why Rock brings both asynchronous and synchronous ways of communicating together. It removes the pressure to respond right away to instant messages and notifications and to always be online. With Rock, you can organize all your projects, keep things simple and keep your team productive."

"Everyone has been affected by remote work, and Rock has huge potential in rethinking our daily workflow by offering technology that helps us be more productive. With companies shifting towards a distributed workforce my hope is that productivity tools like Rock will also open up new opportunities for people outside of the traditional Silicon Valley innovation hub," said Manik Gupta, angel investor and ex-Chief Product Officer at Uber.

"As someone who leads a distributed product development team, I'm a believer in the need for reimagined tools that power distributed work. These tools should be more asynchronous, enable transparency and connect previously siloed workstreams. Rock fits the bill and I'm excited about the product vision shown by the team," said Aadil Mamujee, angel investor and Head of Product at Automattic/WordPress.com  a fully distributed company.

Rock is a distributed-first company with a team spread across 10 countries and 7 time zones. The founding team of Rock consists of Kenzo Fong , CEO and co-founder at Rock (ex-Google, ex-Android, ex-Uber Executive) and Ming Li , CTO and co-founder at Rock, (ex-Google and Bytedance). Further information at rock.so .

About Rock

Rock enables multimodal collaboration in a remote and distributed world of work. It helps organize and simplify any project across time zones and borders by combining messaging, tasks, files, video calls, and notes in one place. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Rock's mission is to empower anyone to work from anywhere. Rock is available on the web, iOS and Android. For more information, visit rock.so .

Press contacts

[email protected]

SOURCE Rock

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Several parents and teaching staff have reacted to a decision taken by the education directorate in Mersch, which sees 6-year-old pupils obligated to wear masks.

Their 5-year-old classmates, meanwhile, will not have to wear face coverings in class. Several concerned parents and teachers have questioned the decision, taken by the regional education directorate for Mersch.

Note: Luxembourg is divided into 15 educational regions, and the one for Mersch (region 12) also encompasses Bissen, Fischbach, Larochette, Lintgen, Lorentzweiler, Nommern, Steinsel and Walferdange.

The Covid legislation states that anyone aged six and above has to wear masks where applicable - i.e. broadly in public places where a physical distance of two metres cannot be guaranteed.

However, a recent Ministry of Education communique states that an exception is made for children aged six who are in "cycle 1". Minister of Education Claude Meisch also recently held a press briefing, in which he confirmed that the mask obligation applies to pupils from cycle 2 and up.

Local guidance in Mersch goes a step further, and a document seen by RTL Today confirms that, in the Mersch encatchment area, no exception is made for 6-year-olds in cycle 1. This creates a situation in which some pupils will have to wear a mask, while their younger classmates will not.

One parent with whom RTL Today spoke confirmed that they had been told that their child would have to wear a mask when they return to school next week. In their class as a whole, only three out of 14 pupils have turned six and will thus have to wear a mask, while their 11 other classmates will not.

While the guidance issued for schools in Mersch states that an exception is indeed made for pupils in cycle 1, it further adds that the exception is not applicable if they are aged six and over. In making this decision, they refer to article 3 of the covid law, which states that that the obligation to wear a mask does not apply to minors under the age of six.

We have reached out to the the Ministry of Education and Mersch education directorate for comment.

19 February update - Mask mandate from Cycle 2 onwards, confirms Education Minister

On Friday, Claude Meisch issued a statement emphasising that the mask mandate applies from cycle 2 onwards.

The minister said that it would not make sense to have a mask mandate for some children and not for others in the same class.

Masks in schools are seen as a necessary evil as they allow classes to take place in person, despite their inconvenience. Pupils are only allowed to remove them when they are eating or drinking or during physical exercise
Pressure to maintain wood supply contracts set before bushfires swept through the states forests is behind new tensions between the state-owned logger and the environmental watchdog, internal documents suggest.

On Wednesday the Environment Protection Authority revealed Forestry Corp had notified that it intended to resume logging in the South Coast forests under the same rules that existed before the fires, breaking an agreement between the two agencies to abide by new conditions after the fires.

Conservation activists Joslyn van der Moolen and Nick Hopkins measure the girth of the known tallest spotted gum in the South Brooman State Forest in NSW. The area was burnt by bushfires last summer but it is still being logged. Credit:Janie Barrett

The EPA responded that it intended to increase its surveillance of Forestry Corp logging operations, and it is understood to have also taken outside legal advice.

Letters between the agencies and EPA emails and briefing notes drafted since the fire suggest tensions have been increasing for months, and that the environmental watchdog is concerned that Forestry Corp is being pushed by Deputy Premier John Barilaro to deliver on commercial contracts at the expense of endangered species.

The March on Washington: Keepers of the Dream premieres tonight, Feb. 18, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on National Geographic. You can also stream it on FuboTV (free trial), Sling or Hulu + Live TV.

Transport back to 1963 in this documentary about the March on Washington, when 250,000 people gathered in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., to protest racial discrimination. It was here that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his iconic I Have A Dream speech.

The film traces the Civil Rights Movement from his speech to 2020. Last summer, massive crowds gathered at the Commitment March demanding police accountability, voting rights and other pressing facets of a modern civil rights agenda. Throngs of people extending all the way from the Lincoln Memorial to the Washington Monument gathered.

The documentary ponders Kings statement that the future of the Civil Rights Movement would be the struggle for genuine equality  a much more difficult struggle.

What channel is Nat Geo on?

You can find which channel Nat Geo is on by using the channel finders here: Verizon Fios, AT&T U-verse, Comcast Xfinity, Spectrum/Charter, Optimum/Altice, DIRECTV and Dish.

Where can I watch The March on Washington: Keepers of the Dream if I dont have cable?

You can watch it on FuboTV, a streaming service that offers you access to your favorite TV shows, live sports events and much more. Theres a 7-day free trial when you sign up. You can also watch it on Sling ($35/month) with their Blue package, or on Hulu + Live TV.
The good news is, older adults were less likely to experience vaccine reactions, the data shows. Among those age 55 and up in the Pfizer trial, 22 percent experienced fever after the second dose, and 3 percent had a temperature after the first dose.

Schaffner recommends not making any big plans for the day after your scheduled vaccine appointment.

2. You should avoid taking pain relievers before your shot

If you've been hearing stories about second-dose side effects, you may be tempted to take a pain reliever before your appointment.

That's not a good idea, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), unless you've been advised to do so by your doctor. Pain relievers taken preemptively ahead of a shot could dampen the effectiveness of the vaccine, Poland and Schaffner say.

However, it's OK to take acetaminophen (Tylenol) or a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug like Advil or Motrin after your vaccine to treat side effects such as pain, fever, chills or headache.

3. The timing between doses doesn't need to be exact

The second dose of the Pfizer shot is supposed to be given 21 days after the first; for Moderna, the recommended interval between doses is 28 days.

However, if you can't get an appointment on the exact day  or if you have to miss your scheduled appointment for some reason  the CDC does allow some wiggle room. Although the agency recommends trying to stick to the suggested interval, it says the second dose can be given up to six weeks after the first.

If your appointment is scheduled earlier than the recommended date, ask for a later appointment, Schaffner advises. Your immune response will work perfectly well if you take more time, he says. But if you do it too early, the second dose may not invoke an optimal response.

4. Your second dose should be from the same manufacturer as your first

Doctors are already hearing from patients asking if they can get their second dose from a different manufacturer, often because they realize the other type of vaccine is offered at a location that's more convenient. But the CDC recommends against it: The Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are not interchangeable with each other or with other COVID-19 vaccine products, the CDC says. The safety and efficacy of a mixed-product series have not been evaluated.

The CDC does allow the mixing of Pfizer and Moderna shots in exceptional situations, such as when the vaccine used for someone's first dose is no longer available due to a supply shortage, or if it's unclear which vaccine they got for their first dose.

5. A rash at the injection site isn't a reason to skip your second dose

If you experienced a rash at the injection site three to 10 days after getting your first shot, that doesn't preclude you from getting your second shot, the CDC says, although it recommends getting it in the other arm.

A small number of people have developed such rashes, sometimes called COVID arm, after vaccination. Doctors say it's likely a mild allergic reaction that can be treated with an over-the-counter antihistamine such as Benadryl.

In guidance released Feb. 10, the CDC says the reaction is not believed to represent a risk for a more severe allergic reaction when you get your second dose.

6. You should temporarily avoid all other vaccines

It might be time for your shingles or Tdap vaccine, but you should hold off if you are between COVID-19 vaccine doses. Because there's no data on the safety and efficacy of COVID vaccines administered at the same time as other vaccines, the CDC recommends avoiding other immunizations in the two weeks before and after both doses. Holding off also helps prevent confusion about the cause of a reaction if you experience one.

The CDC does allow exceptions in circumstances where avoiding the vaccine would put you at risk, such as a tetanus shot after a wound or a hepatitis shot during an outbreak.

7. Full immunity is not immediate

It takes two weeks after your second dose for your body to build full protection to the virus. After that, you should have almost zero chance of developing severe disease if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19, Schaffner says. The CDC also says you no longer have to quarantine if you're exposed to someone with COVID-19  as long as you meet these criteria: you don't have symptoms and it hasn't been more than three months since your second vaccine dose.

One possible exception is immunocompromised people, Schaffner says. They will get some level of immunity, he says, but they may not reach the 95 percent because their immune system is already somewhat compromised, no matter how strong these vaccines are.

8. You still need to wear a mask

Experts are divided about whether it's OK to hug your grandchild or gather socially with other vaccinated people after you're fully immunized.

But they agree you should continue to wear a mask and practice social distancing in public. For one thing, there's a small chance you could get sick even after you've been vaccinated.

In addition, it's possible that you could still carry the virus and silently transmit it to others who haven't been vaccinated, even if you don't develop symptoms.

And there's one more reason. Until the country reaches herd immunity  the point when a significant portion of the population becomes immune to a disease  it's important for everyone to wear a mask to stop the spread of the virus, Schaffner says. If we have some people walking around maskless and others not, people left and right are just going to discard their masks, he says. We are not ready yet for that for society. Let's all stick to masks a little longer until we get the all clear.

Michelle Crouch is a contributing writer who has covered health and personal finance for some of the nation's top consumer publications. Her work has appeared in Reader's Digest, Real Simple, Prevention, The Washington Post and The New York Times.
A 42-year-old man died early Thursday after authorities say he jumped off an interstate overpass in Hoover.

Hoover 911 received a call a 11:52 p.m. about a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 65 southbound near the Interstate 459 interchange. Additional callers reported that the driver of the wrecked vehicle was walking toward the overpass and was climbing over the railing, said Lt Keith Czeskleba.

Officers and Hoover Fire medics arrived on scene to find the man standing on the guardrail, threatening to jump onto the interstate below. Police shut down both I-65 and I-459 while a negotiator attempted to convince the male climb down.

After 30 minutes of talking with the male, he jumped from the guardrail onto the ground below. Medics transported him to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead at 1:08 a.m. He was 42-years-old and lived in Gadsden.
Lucknow, Feb 18 : Samajwadi Party legislators staged a protest outside the Vidhan Bhawan on Thursday, before the Budget Session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly began.

The legislators who arrived on bicycles to protest against rising prices, sat below the statue of Chaudhary Charan Singh and expressed their solidarity with the agitating farmers.

Some of them carried sugarcane sticks to protest against the state government's refusal to increase the minimum support price of sugarcane this year.

Samajwadi Party MLC Rajesh Yadav came on a tractor with a bundle of sugarcane sticks and was taken into custody by the police.

Another MLC Udaiveer Singh told reporters: "We will continue to protest inside and outside the Assembly and no amount of force can break our resolve." The Budget Sessions will continue till March 10 and the opposition has decided to corner the government on several issues, including farmers' protest, law and order situation.
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The Alabama Department of Public Health said Thursday that a Madison County resident is one of eight people in Alabama who have tested positive for the UK variant strain of coronavirus.

No other information about the person has been released, including when they tested positive or their medical condition.

Stay with WAAY 31 for updates.

See the departments full news release below:

The Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) is partnering with several private and commercial laboratories in the state to expand its ability to identify COVID-19 strains that are known to be more transmissible and may sabotage current progress of reducing cases in the state.

To date, eight variant strain cases of the highly transmissible COVID-19 B.1.1.7 variant have been identified in Alabama residents, but only a couple of the cases had out-of-state travel prior to illness onset which indicates this variant strain is already circulating in Alabama. Cases were identified in residents of Autauga, Jefferson, Madison, Mobile and Montgomery counties. The cases that have been identified correspond with the counties where a small portion of laboratories is collecting specimens for sequencing, so there is much yet to be determined about the variants spread. The variant was first identified in the United Kingdom.

At this time, many infectious disease experts and the CDC have indicated that the current vaccines should be effective against the strain. However, this is still being studied. Currently, the B.1.1.7 variant has not been definitively linked to worse outcomes of the disease.

As this variant is recent to the United States, it is important to follow the outcome of persons infected with this variant. If a patient presents with recent taste or smell disorder, or clearly presents with COVID-19 illness, and tests negative for SARS-CoV-2, providers are asked to collect a specimen as soon as possible for submission to the ADPH Bureau of Clinical Laboratories or a laboratory that performs sequencing.

ADPH advises the public to continue practicing the usual mitigation standards with emphasis on correct and consistent use of face masks of washable, breathable fabric such as cotton, practice social distancing, and wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

For general information about COVID-19, visit https://www.alabamapublichealth.gov/covid19/index.htmlor call the COVID-19 Information Hotline number at 1-800-270-7268.
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South Africa: Authorities probe sulphur stench

Government will conduct a joint operation to check up on the Sasol Secunda Operations, which are believed to be the possible source of the sulphur stench experienced in parts of Gauteng and Mpumalanga since the weekend.

The Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (DEFF), together with Gert Sibande District Municipality in Mpumalanga, will visit the Sasol Secunda Operations on Thursday.

The stench is likely a combination of elevated levels of sulphur dioxide and hydrogen sulphide. While there are many sources in the area that could be contributing to these elevated levels, the District Municipalitys Air Quality Officer has been informed that the Sasol Secunda Operations is experiencing stressed conditions, as the facility started ramping up operations, the department said.

From the ambient air quality monitoring observations on the South African Air Quality Information System (SAAQIS), sulphur dioxide ambient levels, while elevated, have remained in compliance with ambient standards in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Mpumalanga.

The pollutant causes an odour nuisance even at concentrations far below those that cause health hazards. People who are sensitive to unpleasant odours are likely to experience headaches and nausea, the department said.

As part of the continuous investigations, authorities are in the processes of requesting the Sasol Secunda Operations facility to account in terms of Section 30 of National Environmental Air Quality Management Act (NEMA) and to put mitigation measures in place, should they be found to be the source of the smell.

Section 30 of NEMA relates to the control of environmental incidents, such as leaks or the uncontrolled release of a hazardous substance that may cause harm to people and the environment.

Once the investigations are completed, the authorities will decide on any further course of action.  SAnews.gov.za

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
Facebooks ham-fisted ambush take-down of the social media pages of Australian news sites and other organisations mark a world-first experiment that may cause a significant backlash, an expert says.

It comes as Queensland Health warned the drastic action, which led to its own page being inadvertently shuttered, could have hindered the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out, while there were concerns people fleeing domestic violence may be left without vital support.

Domestic violence service DVConnects Facebook page was also swept up in the shut-down. Credit:Facebook

On Thursday, the social media giant enacted a sweeping shutdown of traditional media organisations Facebook pages but several critical government pages were also caught-out.

University of Queensland law and marketing associate professor Sarah Jane Kelly said Facebooks actions were the first of its kind in the world, which was watching to see how it would play out.
As more than a million Houstonians struggled with no power, no heat and no water in freezing temperatures since Monday's winter storm, chefs stepped up to help the community as they've done many times before  from hurricanes to the coronavirus pandemic.

On Tuesday, chef Chris Williams of Museum District restaurant Lucille's drove to the Power Center in Southwest Houston, where he operates a kitchen for his nonprofit, Lucille's 1913. The kitchen had been broken into, but there was still a more pressing issue: feeding people in need.

Williams  with the help of his brother Ben, his father Connie, his nieces and pastor Rudy Rasmus  cooked 150 meals in the Power Center kitchen on Tuesday. The team delivered the food to residents of Temenos housing in East Downtown and Project Row Houses in Third Ward.

On Wednesday, the Williams crew cooked another 200 meals and brought them to Gallery Furniture, which owner Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale turned into "warming centers" for people to take shelter and grab a hot meal.

The Houston restaurant industry activated as soon as temperatures dropped. On Monday evening, Turkey Leg Hut set up its food truck at the George R. Brown Convention Center Downtown, which was providing shelter to those who had already lost power and heat, and gave out free food to people.

World Central Kitchen, chef Jose Andres' organization that feeds people during disasters, partnered with Burns Original BBQ and Street to Kitchen on Wednesday. The Houston barbecue institution prepared more than 700 chopped beef sandwiches to be delivered to senior homes across the region, from north Houston to Webster. The East End Thai restaurant brought 400 meals to Gallery Furniture's warming center.

Bakfish Brewing's taproom did not have power on Wednesday, but the Pearland brewery decided to give out its reverse osmosis water (which is used in brewing) to anyone who came up with a container to fill. Reverse osmosis water does not need to be boiled, which is useful as the city of Houston issued a boil notice on Wednesday morning that is still in effect.

On HoustonChronicle.com: What you need to know about Houston's boil water notice

On Wednesday, staff at the Pearland location of Killen's Barbecue distributed 1,500 free barbecue sandwiches to people who couldn't cook at home. On Thursday starting at 11 a.m., Killen's Burgers in Pearland will hand out burgers and fries on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Boombox Taco also helped on Wednesday, handing out more than 2,000 tacos to eight apartment complexes in southwest Houston.

The Lucille's team said it's planning to distribute 1,000 more meals on Thursday and Friday to residents of Acres Homes and other Houston neighborhoods.

Andres confirmed on Twitter that the World Central Kitchen operation would keep running in Houston on Thursday.
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Uganda's opposition National Unity Platform party has petitioned the U.N. Human Rights Office over alleged human rights violations and state-inspired abductions.

Relatives say their loved ones remain missing after they disappeared in the lead-up to January's contested election. Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni, who was reelected to a sixth term, has called the abduction reports false and claims only terrorists were arrested.



The National Unity Platform party headquarters was filled Wednesday with relatives of people whove been reported missing before, during and after the January elections.



Crying mothers and former abducted young men shared their stories.



Ayebare Halima, mother of a three-week-old infant and another child, described how on Jan. 24 seven police officers came to her home and arrested her at gunpoint. She said she was then taken to police headquarters in Naguru, where she was threatened and questioned about the whereabouts of her husband, Kenneth Mukasa Seguya.



Ayebare said she was pregnant when police officers questioned her. Once they were done, she said they told her to go home but warned that if they failed to find her husband, they would arrest her instead. She said, three days later, her husband called and told her he had been arrested. Ayebare said her husband was then brought home, where police officers took People Power branded T-shirts, some jackets and red berets. She said they then left and took her husband, and she still doesnt know where he is, or even if he is alive.



Ayebare said one of the arresting officers gave her a number she could call if she wanted to know where her husband was being taken. When she called, however, the officer who answered then insulted her and warned her never to call the number again.

National Unity Platform officials report that more than 300 of their members countrywide remain missing. It is for this reason party president Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as Bobi Wine, is petitioning the United Nations Human Rights Office in Kampala. He said it is painful that Ugandans have no local human rights institution that can come to their rescue.



General Museveni feels like Uganda is his compound. Uganda is his property. He has the right to pick and kill anybody at his will. He has the right to torture anybody, to murder anybody. But we say, he does not. And that is why, we are petitioning the United Nations, Wine said.



However, Museveni in a security address on Saturday said the alleged disappearances do not reflect the culture of the current regime or army leadership. According to Museveni, the heavy deployment ahead of the elections was because he heard of plans by some law breakers to disrupt the elections.



And in the case of Kampala, we also brought a commando unit, which had distinguished itself in fighting in Somalia. And which had destroyed ADF (Allied Democratic Forces) it was deployed in the Kampala area. And this group quickly defeated the terrorists who had started operating here. They killed a few, who had tried to attack them and arrested scores of those law breakers, Museweni said.



Heavy security was deployed and roadblocks were set up on the route leading to the U.N. Human Rights Office in Kampala. Six journalists sustained head injuries after being beaten by military police officers as they camped outside the offices.



A U.N. Human Rights officer, who requested anonymity when speaking to VOA, said the office would not comment about the petition since the cases are confidential.




US President Joe Biden's chief medical advisor Anthony Fauci told that by the "End of summer, beginning of Fall" is the earliest that US kids under the age of 16 years could get Covid-19 vaccine shots.



Fauci was responding to a question on the state of play of age de-escalation trials during a press availability.

Nearly 30 days in, President Joe Biden is now promising that a majority of elementary schools will be open five days a week by the end of his first 100 days in office.





"We've already started what's called age de-escalation studies. You do a Phase 1 or Phase 2 A trial, going from 16 to 12, 12 to nine, nine to six, and you show that a vaccine is safe in those individuals and B, you induce an immune response that's comparable to the level of the immune response that you showed was effective in a normal adult population," Fauci explained.



Fauci's comments on vaccines for kids come at a time when Americans are not only getting a strong dose of sunny news, but also a lot of alternative scenarios on school reopening's.



Nearly 30 days in, President Joe Biden is now promising that a majority of elementary schools will be open five days a week by the end of his first 100 days in office. So far, the patchwork of virtual or hybrid school arrangements across the country has been chaotic at best.



Last week, the nation's premier public health agency released its long-awaited guidance called "operational strategy" for getting students back to classrooms in the middle of a pandemic that has killed more than 4,90,000 people in the homeland.



Frustration is peaking among the key stakeholders: Teachers, parents and students. Reacting to the latest round of assurances, a high school student from Union County, New Jersey, said, "Why can't they just tell us when the vaccine is coming instead of giving us colour coded charts!"



Biden's Covid-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said on Wednesday that the country has enough vaccines to vaccinate 300 million people by the end of July 2021. The new government is averaging 1.7 million shots per day, based on the latest seven-day average of vaccination progress.







Source: IANS Pfizer and Moderna, the two companies whose vaccines have emergency use authorization in the US, are approved for use in the over 16 and over 18 age groups, respectively."We've already started what's called age de-escalation studies. You do a Phase 1 or Phase 2 A trial, going from 16 to 12, 12 to nine, nine to six, and you show that a vaccine is safe in those individuals and B, you induce an immune response that's comparable to the level of the immune response that you showed was effective in a normal adult population," Fauci explained.Fauci's comments on vaccines for kids come at a time when Americans are not only getting a strong dose of sunny news, but also a lot of alternative scenarios on school reopening's.Nearly 30 days in, President Joe Biden is now promising that a majority of elementary schools will be open five days a week by the end of his first 100 days in office. So far, the patchwork of virtual or hybrid school arrangements across the country has been chaotic at best.Last week, the nation's premier public health agency released its long-awaited guidance called "operational strategy" for getting students back to classrooms in the middle of a pandemic that has killed more than 4,90,000 people in the homeland.Frustration is peaking among the key stakeholders: Teachers, parents and students. Reacting to the latest round of assurances, a high school student from Union County, New Jersey, said, "Why can't they just tell us when the vaccine is coming instead of giving us colour coded charts!"Biden's Covid-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients said on Wednesday that the country has enough vaccines to vaccinate 300 million people by the end of July 2021. The new government is averaging 1.7 million shots per day, based on the latest seven-day average of vaccination progress.Source: IANS

"By the time we get to the end of the summer, the beginning of the Fall, we would hope that we would have at least one of the candidates available for children...By the time we get to the end of the summer, unless we get into some issue with safety and immunogenicity. We don't anticipate that that will be the case," Fauci said.

ROME, FEB 18 - Luna Rossa has won its battle to have racing in the Prada Cup final against INEOS TEAM UK resume this weekend. The competition, the winner of which gets to take on Team New Zealand in the 36th America's Cup, was suspended this week after Auckland went into a COVID level 3 lockdown for 72 hours. Organizers and the British team had been in favour of postponing racing further, even though the area has dropped down to level 2. They said the aim of the postponement would have been to give time for the alert to drop to level 3, which would have enabled spectators to see it live. The Italian team, on the other hand, wanted to get back in the water as soon as possible after taking a 4-0 lead in the first-to-seven series. As result the organizers have backed down and the action will resume on Saturday. (ANSA).
Monday morning, Shawna Rodrigues looked out her front window at Portlands wintry scene and saw a group of people trying to free a mans car from a snowbank.

She grabbed her hat, gloves and a shovel, and joined the push.

Worried her new engagement ring might fall from her finger, Rodrigues put it in a ring-keeper necklace around her neck before she headed outside. The necklaces are designed to slip over a pear-shaped pendant and secure a ring.

Apparently, they dont always work.

The neighbors freed the mans car, but he made it about 350 feet down Southeast 76th Avenue before getting stuck again, at a stop sign at Division Street. Neighbors again dug him out and sent him on his way. When Rodrigues went back inside, she realized her ring was gone.

We ran out into the snow and started searching, and neighbors from multiple houses came out, she said. I had neighbors who downloaded metal detector apps on their phones trying to search in the snow, and we had no luck.

Her fiance bought a metal detector, but the couple really didnt know how to use it. After an evening of fruitless searching, a few people suggested she contact The Ring Finders.

Shawna is a friend of mine, and she knows Ive written several stories about lost and found wedding rings. She asked if I had heard of the Ring Finders and whether I thought it would be worth a shot.

Yes, try The Ring Finders, I replied. They may be able to help!

Shawna Rodrigues' engagement ring is platinum with an alexandrite center stone.Samantha Swindler/The Oregonian

The Ring Finders website provides a directory of metal detecting specialists who, usually for a fee, help people find lost jewelry across 22 countries. Metal detector users pay to be listed on the map or to claim a territory. In the Portland area, your local Ring Finder is Del Witters of Lyle, Washington.

Witters retired from a military career, spending nine years with the U.S. Army and 17 years with the Coast Guard. He flew search and rescue helicopters until he retired in 2008.

You could say the man loves the hunt.

But he also loves the return.

Fortunately, with my military pension, I have enough to live on, he said. I dont do this as a job. It pays for my tools, essentially. So, what I get out of it is the return, the smiles and the hugs.

Witters joined the Ring Finders in 2014, but hes been metal detecting as a hobby since 1973. Hes also a diver, trained to search for metal objects underwater. He gets hired for about 20 ring searches a year.

Every time I go out, I have the optimism of finding the ring, Witters said. He claims a success rate of 100%  with an asterisk.

I like to tell people my success rate is 100% if the ring is in the search area, he said. The key is, is it where people think they lost it?

Witters has spent hours searching for a ring, only to be told later it was found inside a coin jar, or inside the house, or in a completely different place than hed been asked to search.

My true success, I think, is quite high, Witters said. But as far every time I get called out to do a ring search and every time I find a ring and return it to somebody? I think its about 30%.

(He later did some actual calculations and determined his success rate on searches was about 60%  he was short-changing himself!)

Witters arrived at Rodrigues house Tuesday morning and assessed her slushy street. The good news was the short, dead-end road hadnt been plowed. The search area included the street and sidewalks in front of about eight houses.

A quick-thinking neighbor had laid a window screen on top of the nearest storm drain, but Witters thought the ring was too heavy to be carried away by melting snow.

If the ring had fallen on this neighborhood block, he was confident he would find it.

I wouldnt be spending my time doing this if I didnt have a good idea that I could find it, he said.

Rodrigues and her fiance, Robie Lawrence, first met as teenagers at Phoenix High School in Southern Oregon. They dated, but life took them to different colleges and in different directions. Decades later, they were both living in Portland and reconnected.

On their two-year anniversary last month, Lawrence proposed with a Tacori brand platinum ring, its blue-purple alexandrite center stone surrounded by diamonds. He presented it inside a wooden box carved with the words, It was always you.

We know its just a ring, and its just an object, Rodrigues said. We are very important and dear to each other, and we have each other, which is more important, but that ring was really important to us. We were both very devastated.

Metal detectors work by creating a magnetic field around a coil, which is moved over the search area. When that magnetic field interacts with a piece of metal, a small amount of electricity is generated in a receiver coil connected to a loud speaker  enough to produce clicks or beeps.

The louder the beeps, the closer the metal.

A little more than an hour after beginning the search, and following a few false alarms from his beeping detector, Witters bent down near the stop sign off Division Street and picked up a ring.

Shawna Rodrigues with Del Witters, a member of the Ring Finders who used a metal detector to find her lost engagement ring.Samantha Swindler/The Oregonian

How about that? he said as he held it up to Rodrigues  who immediately screamed, jumped up and down, and wrapped Witters in a hug.

Thank you so much! she repeated between sobs. She called her fiance at work. She showed the neighbors.

She cried. And, yes, I cried too.

That was a great reaction, Witters said. That was a good one, and thats what keeps me coming back.

-- Samantha Swindler, @editorswindler, sswindler@oregonian.com
Otto Rudolf De Vries has been helping workers in Manila since 1991. Accused of taking part in protests organised by terrorist groups, he must leave the country within 30 days. His expulsion falls under Duterte's disputed anti-terrorism law.

Manila (AsiaNews) - The Philippine government has cancelled the permanent resident visa of a Dutch lay missionary, ordering him to leave the country within 30 days.

Otto Rudolf De Vries, a 62-year-old Church worker from the Diocese of Rotterdam (Netherlands) arrived in the Philippines in 1991 to work as a lay missionary in Prelature of Infanta, Infanta (Quezon province), to defend workers' rights.

He is accused of involvement in illegal political activities, in particular taking part in protests led by the Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education and Research (EILER) and the Kilusang Mayo Uno labor center (May 1st Movement), two organisations described in the expulsion order as having links with the communist underground movement.

The Dutch missionary, who says that he was not notified of the order, found out only earlier this month when he went to renew his immigration visa.

The order cancelling the missionarys permanent residence is dated 27 November but refers to an intelligence report that dates back almost a year.

I was not notified of any proceedings and was not able to refute the malicious allegations of [the intelligence agency], he said.

For the past 20 years, De Vries has been staying in an urban poor community in Pasig, a city within the Metro Manila area. He works as a volunteer researcher for EILER, an organisation dedicated to labour issues, especially child labour.

Father Eric Adoviso, head of the Ministry for Labor Concerns of the Archdiocese of Manila, has urged the government to reconsider its decision in light of De Vries contribution to the understanding of the plight of workers.

The lay missionarys story should be seen against the backdrop of suspicion towards social activists generated by President Rodrigo Dutertes new anti-terrorism law, a source told AsiaNews. Under the new legislation, it easier to charge any dissenting voice with terrorism.

De Vriess situation is similar to that of Sister Patricia Fox, an Australian missionary. The superior of the Religious of Our Lady of Zion too was forced to leave the Philippines in late 2018 after 27 years in the country. Like the Dutch missionary, she was charged with taking part in protests; in her case, in support of farmers and tribal communities in Mindanao.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 04:07:55|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affair Mark Lowcock warned Thursday that Yemen is speeding toward the worst famine the world has seen in decades.

Malnutrition rates are at record highs. Across Yemen, more than 16 million people are going hungry, including 5 million who are just one step away from famine, he told the Security Council in a briefing.

About 400,000 children under the age of 5 are severely malnourished. Those children are in their last weeks and months. These are the children with distended bellies, emaciated limbs and blank stares -- they are starving to death, he said.

The lack of funds for humanitarian operations in 2020 has led to the closure of many aid programs, said Lowcock. As a result, many hungry families in the north are getting only half as much food aid as they should. The United Nations had to close lots of facilities providing water, sanitation and health services. Many more are under threat of closure because agencies cannot afford to continue the support that keeps them running.

The UN response plan for 2020 received about 1.9 billion U.S. dollars, half of the funds it got the previous year, he said.

This year's response plan will need about 4 billion dollars, roughly the same appeal for 2019. Donors met nearly 90 percent of funding requirements for 2019 and the United Nations managed to prevent famine in Yemen, said Lowcock.

He called for generous donations at next month's high-level pledging conference for Yemen.

There is an important opportunity right now to help Yemen move toward lasting peace. Preventing famine is essential to making that opportunity have a chance to be realized, he said. "The world will have wasted the current opportunity for peace if a massive famine is allowed to take hold."

Lowcock welcomed the decision of the new U.S. administration to reverse the designation of the Houthi rebels in Yemen as a foreign terrorist organization, as well as Washington's intention to prioritize diplomacy to end the war and to deal with the humanitarian crisis. Enditem
Associated Press

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Sunday that flags at all federal buildings be flown at half-staff to honor more than 200 children whose remains have been found buried at what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school  one of the institutions that held children taken from families across the nation. The Peace Tower flag on Parliament Hill in the nation's capital of Ottawa was among those lowered to half-staff. To honor the 215 children whose lives were taken at the former Kamloops residential school and all Indigenous children who never made it home, the survivors, and their families, I have asked that the Peace Tower and all federal buildings be flown at half-mast, Trudeau tweeted.
Funcinpec spokesperson Phan Sithy held a press conference on January 19 to make a major announcement for the royalist party. Prince Norodom Ranariddh will return as president of the near-irrelevant political party and lead it into the 2022 commune election and the 2023 national ballot.

The prince has kept a low profile after a fatal car accident in Preah Sihanouk that killed his wife, Ouk Phalla, and left the former prime minister seriously injured in June 2018. Since the accident, the prince has shuttled between Phnom Penh and Paris, France, to get treatment and recuperate.

His return to politics has raised questions if the Funcinpec party can attract its old vote base - which was loyal to Ranariddh's father, late King Norodom Sihanouk and founder of the party. Another lingering suspicion is whether Ranariddh and Funcinpec will be used as a prop by the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party to support the latter's dubious claims of having a multiparty, liberal democracy in the country.

Phan Sithy dismissed both suggestions. The party does not have a loyal voter base, he claimed, because there was grassroots support for Funcinpec.

After we went to visit the people as part of our experiment, we saw that people still have the prince and the royalist party Funcinpec in their hearts, he said.

But past electoral performances are at odds with Phan Sithys claims. The party won zero seats in the 2018 national election, garnering no more than 6 percent of the popular vote. This was a slight improvement from the 3.6 percent vote share it had in 2013 - again when it did not win a single parliamentary seat.

Funcinpec enjoyed a fleeting presence in the National Assembly in 2017 after the Cambodia National Rescue Party was dissolved, accepting 42 of the CNRP's 55 seats in parliament. Similarly, Funcinpec got around 230 commune positions when the CNRPs 5007 local seats were redistributed in 2017.

The drop in electoral fortunes is in stark contrast to the UNTAC-administered 1993 election, when Funcinpec won the most seats in the National Assembly, only to be forced into a power-sharing arrangement with Hun Sen.

Em Sovannara, a political science professor in Cambodia, said the Ranariddh-led party had likely lost the voters confidence after it did not hesitate to accept the redistributed CNRP seats.

"I think there is no support for him if he comes back, Em Sovannara said. The political values of this party politicians have drifted away from the hearts of the people, he said.

Sovannaras views are also reflected in the tenuous relationship Ranariddh has had with his party. The prince was made party president in 1992 and led it to victory in the 1993 elections. He also oversaw the splintering of the party and loss of senior leaders, most notably Funcinpecs Finance Minister Sam Rainsy during the first National Assembly mandate.

He left the party in 2006, following factionalism, to form the Norodom Ranariddh Party, winning two seats in the 2008 general election. He then returned to Funcinpec in 2015, leading the party to a winless election in 2018.

Phan Sithy continued to dispute that the partys fortunes were waning, pointing to the 400,000 votes they received in 2018, putting them in second place.

They were behind the CPP, which got 4.8 million votes and were unable to muster enough votes to leapfrog the nearly 600,000 spoiled ballots  many of which were protest votes for the dissolved CNRP.

With regards to the current political events, I still think that the royalist party Funcinpec would be able to garner votes in this mandate because the situation seems to be beneficial for our party, he said.

Phan Sithy added that Prince Ranariddh would return to Cambodia ahead of the 2022 commune election to lead the partys campaign to increase its commune chief tally.

Ear Sophal, professor of diplomacy and international affairs at Occidental College in Los Angeles, said Funcinpec lacked the electoral might to challenge the CPP, unlike the CNRP which was an electoral threat for the ruling party.

I do not believe the princes political party is a real opposition party. Its an extension of the ruling party, plain and simple, Sophal said.

So far, the CPP only dissolved the CNRP, which means that it was the CNRP that scared the CPP the most.

Sophal alleged that it was likely the CPP could bankroll Funcinpecs electoral campaign, an allegation quickly dismissed by party spokesperson Phan Sithy.

The princes return has not rattled existing or new parties hoping to take on the mantle of the principal opposition to the CPP.

Ou Chanrath, a close Kem Sokha ally and who recently founded the Khmer Reform Party, dismissed Funcinpecs and Ranariddhs prospects at the upcoming elections.

He said the princes acceptance of the CNRPs National Assembly seats, following its dissolution, had hit Ranariddhs reputation with voters. He also questioned Ranariddhs ability to campaign and muster support for Funcinpec.

The ordinary person is already aware of who can challenge [the CPP] and lead an opposition party, Ou Chanrath said.

Meach Sovannara, another former CNRP official, questioned if Ranariddh would be able to resonate with Cambodias young voters  many of whom were a critical vote base for the CNRP in 2013 and 2017. Meach Sovannara, another former CNRP official, questioned if Ranariddh would be able to resonate with Cambodias young voters  many of whom a critical vote base for the CNRP in were 2013 and 2017.


WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Effective January 1, 2021, independent insurance agency Ensurise LLC announced its merger with the insurance brokerage operations of Howard Eales, Inc.

Currently in its fourth generation of leadership, Howard Eales has provided dedicated risk management services to its business and individual clients for over 65 years. Under the direction of brothers Ken, John and Michael Luhman, the firm has developed particular expertise in advising on transportation, contractors, bonding and high-value personal lines risks.

"After deciding to take the next step, we evaluated multiple alternatives and potential partners," said Ken Luhman, President of Howard Eales. "It became clear to us that Ensurise offered a unique approach to partnership that could not be found elsewhere. They know our region well, and can relate to our priorities and our history. We look forward to growing together for many years to come."

"Howard Eales has a rich history going back more than half a century, and we are excited to partner with the Luhman family and the entire Howard Eales team  one that is highly respected for their expertise, insurance knowledge, advisory capabilities and ability to handle difficult and complex risks," said Jonathan Nobil, Managing Member of Ensurise. "They have strong relationships in the Washington area, and this partnership reflects the type of growth that Ensurise is committed to as it builds a 'local and long-term' organization and presence."

Howard Eales will continue to operate from its Washington D.C. location.

About Howard Eales, Inc.

Howard Eales is an independent, full-service insurance brokerage firm focused on protecting business owners and private residents and providing the most competitive rates on the best coverage available in the Washington D.C. area. Founded in 1956, it is in its fourth generation of leadership as a trusted advisor to its clients. For more information, please visit www.howardeales.com.

About Ensurise LLC

Ensurise is an independent insurance brokerage organization that partners with high quality insurance agencies in Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. The company brings a differentiated approach to agency perpetuation and is committed to delivering superior risk management services to its clients. For more information, please visit www.ensurise.com.

SOURCE Ensurise LLC

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Turkey: Can Washington and Ankara find common ground on Syrian Kurds?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to expand military operations against Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants in Iraq and Syria after a local leader of the group reportedly ordered the execution of 13 Turkish hostages on Feb. 13. The PKK claims the hostages were killed in airstrikes by the Turkish military.

Background: The PKK, founded in 1984, is considered a terrorist organization by the United States, Turkey and the European Union. It maintains bases in the mountains of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, on the Turkish border. The US-aligned Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) include Syrian Kurdish groups linked to the PKK. The 13 hostages killed this week included Turkish soldiers, policemen, civilians and perhaps intelligence officials abducted between 2015-2017.

The Inside story: Turkey hoped to hit two birds with one stone with its combined military and rescue operations in Iraqs Gara mountains that began on Feb. 10, according to this scoop from Metin Gurcan: The goal was to rescue the captives and kill or capture top PKK commanders Murat Karayilan and Duran Kalkan, who were supposed to travel to Gara for a meeting in the same cave, according to human intelligence Ankara had obtained. The PKK, however, appeared to have gotten wind of the plan and the meeting was canceled at the last minute, well-placed sources told Al-Monitor. Still, the PKK in the area had no time to escape as the first stage of the operation began around 3 a.m. Feb. 10 with about 40 Turkish F-16 jets bombing the area, backed by armed and surveillance drones. It was at this point that the local PKK leader is believed to have executed the 13 captives.

Not acting like allies: The killing will add pressure to already-strained relations between Turkey and the United States. At his confirmation hearing on Jan. 19, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Turkey is not acting like an ally and called Turkeys purchase of the Russian S-400 missile defense system, which triggered US sanctions on Turkey, unacceptable.

Hey West! Erdogan slammed the initial US response to the PKK killing of the hostages as ridiculous, adding, If you want to continue our alliance globally and within NATO, then you must stop siding with terrorists, as Amberin Zaman reports. He was reacting to a Feb. 14 US statement that was cautious on culpability: If the reports of the death of Turkish civilians at the hands of the PKK, a designated terrorist organization, are confirmed , it read. In a phone call with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu the next day, Blinken dropped the if and placed blame squarely on PKK terrorists for the murders. But even that was not quite enough for Erdogan. The next day, Erdogan responded. Hey, West! Where are you? Why do not you raise your voice? Why do you remain silent? When something like this happens over there, you make a fuss. The July 15 incident took place, you remained silent. And now this incident happened, you still remain silent.

CHP blames Erdogan: Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of Turkeys main opposition Republican Peoples Party (CHP), said Erdogan is responsible for our 13 martyrs. On Feb. 15, Erdogan jailed more than 700 members of the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party (HDP). There is widespread speculation that Erdogan may now go along with the increasingly vocal demands of his far-right ally Devlet Bahceli to shut the HDP down in a bid to consolidate nationalist votes that have been shifting to the conservative IYI, or Good Party, writes Amberin Zaman.

Our take: The challenge for the Biden administration is whether this crisis can be channeled into an opportunity to address the seemingly irreconcilable differences with Turkey over the S-400s and the Syrian Kurds. Otherwise, the downward spiral in relations is likely to continue. Erdogan is making this a with us or against us moment. Defense Minister Hulusi Akar floated some form of quid pro quo on Turkish deployment of the S-400 if the United States would reevaluate its cooperation with Syrian Kurdish forces, as Diego Cupolo reported here  although the US appeared to rebuff Akars bid on the S-400s. Fehim Tastekin has the scoop here on how Turkey is pressing Baghdad and Erbil for a more expansive operation against the PKK in Iraqi Kurdistan and Sinjar. The SDF-aligned Kurdish forces are also in Erdogans sites, now more than ever.

Israel: Netanyahu will be his own Iran envoy

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus appointment of national security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat as Israels special envoy on the Iran nuclear issue is a sign that the prime minister will keep the Iran file close and likely be source of friction with the Biden administration.

Netanyahu is not interested in another nuclear agreement, writes Ben Caspit. He is convinced Israels prospects of swaying the Americans on the matter are doomed and therefore does not attribute crucial importance to the identity of his envoy. As usual, he relies mostly on himself. He is apparently keen on restoring the Iran nuclear program to the top of the agenda ahead of the elections and formation of Israels next government and assuming the classic confrontational pose he adopted during the Obama administration.

Read more: Ben Caspit and Rina Bassist have the scoop on Ben-Shabbats appointment.

Syria: Idlib sees expansion of radical groups

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which has been tagged as a terrorist group by the United States and the UN Security Council for its links to al-Qaeda, has over the past year, possibly in coordination with Turkey, sought to portray itself as a more moderate, Islamist, Syrian nationalist opposition group, especially compared to more radical splinter groups such as Ansar Al-Tawhid. The group's leader, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, even recently appeared in a snappy blue blazer in an interview with PBS reporter Martin Smith. The question is whether HTS can rein in these new groups and what it means to their support in Idlib.

Khaled Al-Khateb has the story here from Idlib.

Cool thing from Gaza: One-legged gymnastics star keeps jumping barriers

Mohammed Aliwa, 18, did not lose hope despite losing his right lower leg after being shot by Israeli snipers in 2018 while taking part in protests against Israel in Gaza. When he received his prosthesis, Aliwa began practicing parkour, a gymnastics-like activity aiming to overcome obstacles by moving, running, jumping and climbing from one point to another.

Check out the report (with video!) by Hana Salah.

In case you missed it: Gayle Lemmon discusses Daughters of Kobani

Gayle Tzemach Lemmon discusses her new book, The Daughters of Kobani, which tells the story of the women who fought on the front lines of the war against the Islamic State in Syria, in the latest On the Middle East podcast with Amberin Zaman. You can listen to it here.

What were reading: IMF Consults on Iraq

The International Monetary Fund released a statement on its latest consultations in Iraq, concluding that the economy is expected to gradually recover and the imbalances to narrow, although the outlook remains challenging.  Political constraints ahead of the parliamentary elections, renewed bouts of social unrest, or security risks could undermine the reform efforts, putting macroeconomic stability at risk. You can read the report here.
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A former Lackawanna County Prison contract employee will serve time in federal prison for her role in a conspiracy to provide drugs and other contraband to inmates.

U.S. District Court Judge Malachy E. Mannion sentenced Brenda Cruise, 50, of Dunmore, to one year in federal prison Wednesday. Her address was not available.

Cruise pleaded guilty in September 2019 to conspiracy to provide contraband to inmates in prison. She admitted to providing suboxone, marijuana, synthetic marijuana and tobacco on several occasions in 2018 and taking $1,100 in payments for helping smuggle contraband.

Cruise will serve two years of supervised release after completing her prison sentence.
Mr. McConnell needs to be returned to his top role after the 2022 elections to become the longest-serving Senate leader in history in 2023, a goal the legacy-minded Kentuckian would no doubt like to achieve. And there is no imminent threat to his leadership position, though one senator said privately that a challenge could have been incited had Mr. McConnell split with the 42 other Republican senators who voted to acquit Mr. Trump.

Mr. McConnell has been conspicuously silent since the attack by Mr. Trump. He made no effort to walk back his Saturday speech or a subsequent op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, but, characteristically, he now also appears uninterested in further inflaming the fight by punching back at Mr. Trump. David Popp, a spokesman for Mr. McConnell, declined to comment on Wednesday.

His Republican allies quickly circled around him, speaking in the void of his silence.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia said that Mr. McConnell was on very solid ground and that she had come away from conversations with him convinced he was moving forward with eyes open, prepared for the slings and arrows that taking on a vindictive former president would attract.

Hes not exactly a stream-of-consciousness communicator. He is very circumspect, very disciplined in his speech, and I think the speech he gave on the floor regarding former President Trump came right from his heart, Ms. Capito said in an interview. She added, His classic technique is to put it out there, say what he thinks and keep moving forward.

Senator John Thune of South Dakota, his No. 2 whom Mr. Trump has already promised to target next year, said in a statement that Mr. McConnell had my full support and confidence.

Senator John Cornyn of Texas said Mr. McConnell had expressed his horror at what had occurred. I think it genuinely offended him what happened in the Capitol that night, Mr. Cornyn said. Obviously, he spoke his mind.

Mr. Trump spoke his mind as well. In his Tuesday broadside that attacked Mr. McConnell in sharply personal terms despite their close collaboration over the past four years, Mr. Trump urged his party to abandon the Kentucky Republican. He also threatened to initiate primaries against Republican Senate candidates he believed were not sufficiently supportive of his agenda.

A drowning wallaby has been saved in a joint rescue by a local ferry captain and his brave passengers.

Central Coast Ferries Senior Master Daniel Rond, spotted the wallaby struggling against the outgoing tide in Cockle Creek, near Empire Bay in Brisbane at about 9.50am on Thursday.

Mr Rond said he initially mistook the struggling animal for ocean debris.

Local Brisbane man Craig Hillman rescued a drowning wallaby in Cockle Creek, near Empire Bay at about 9.50am on Thursday (pictured)

'One of the locals and myself were aboard my vessel and we looked up the channel. We thought it must have been a log, then maybe a dog, and as we got closer we saw it was a wallaby,' he told The Daily Telegraph.

But Mr Rond and local Craig Hillman, knew they had to act quickly to rescue the wallaby.

'We looked and each other and we knew it wasn't going to survive much longer,' he said.

A local ferry skipper and his passengers spotted a wallaby struggling to stay afloat in Cockle Creek in Brisbane on Thursday morning (pictured)

The two man dried off the scared wallaby and checked for any injuries before wild life services arrived (pictured)

'Craig jumped in and brought the animal to shore, his wife Jo contacted the Australian wildlife group who checked it out.'

Brisbane local Craig Hillman cradled the terrified wallaby in his arms and dried him off before checking for any injuries.

A local wildlife service was called and released the animal into nearby bushland.

Mr Rond said this is the second time he's witnessed a wallaby in the water since 1996.
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The Executive has some incredibly difficult decisions to make on Thursday as Northern Ireland plans its pathway out of the latest lockdown.

Whether schools can reopen on March 8 will be at the top of the agenda for Education Minister Peter Weir and his Executive colleagues.

The Belfast Telegraph takes a look at five things that will need to be considered when it comes to pupils returning to the classroom.

Home schooling

Parents have been trying to handle the difficulties of home schooling over the last six weeks.

Already dealing with all the complexities that Covid-19 has brought to everyone's lives, home schooling has become harder to bear for many.

Secondary school pupils have been left to their own devices with the use of Google Classroom and other platforms.

The Executive will be aiming to put an end to home schooling without delay to give pupils the best chance of achieving the highest grades possible.

Lessons from the first lockdown gave parents a taste of what to expect but the Executive will know that nothing beats face-to-face learning.

Special school safety

Belfast's Fleming Fulton became the first special school in Northern Ireland to scale back on attendance last month after cutting down to two days a week.

The school cited the increasing number of Covid cases in the community as the main reason for the decision.

It went against Mr Weir's instructions that special schools should remain open to all students. The Executive will be very aware of the structure school can bring to the lives of those with special needs and will be desperate to allay fears of the virus spreading within those classrooms.

Teacher vaccinations

Depending on which expert you speak to, the opinion on what steps should be taken regarding the reopening of schools can be very different.

The Public Health Agency says schools are not a major source of virus transmission, while health expert Dr Gabriel Scally and teaching unions believe teachers must be vaccinated before schools reopen.

However, that is much easier said than done as the demand for Covid vaccines is outstripping supply.

The Department of Health has said that it is focusing on priority groups.

"There are tens of thousands of people in public facing occupations in Northern Ireland," said the department.

"If they are all to receive vaccine prioritisation now regardless of their age or health condition, then many people who are clinically vulnerable will have to wait longer for their jabs."

How the R rate could be affected

Chief Medical Officer Dr Michael McBride has said a return to school too early will inevitably end with a rise in the R rate, with infections possibly rising by as much as 50%.

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Elsewhere, the chair of the British Medical Association in Northern Ireland Dr Tom Black, stated that opening schools will increase the R number anywhere between 0.3 and 0.6, "so we couldn't afford to do that at the moment" he said.

Dr Black suggested that one possible pathway to the reopening of schools would be to open the gates of primary schools on March 8.

This will then allow the Executive to see what effect that will have before making any decision regarding secondary schools.

Mental health and wellbeing

Children have been trapped in their homes since the Christmas holidays and the Executive will be very aware of the mental health difficulties that can bring.

Parents' wellbeing will also be taken into consideration as to whether schools should reopen.

Not only have pupils been missing out on their vital education, but not being able to see their friends and socialise on a daily basis will have caused huge concern.

Sports is another important aspect of school life that many children will be missing out on - a great opportunity to make lifelong friends - so the Stormont Executive will be hoping any change to the Covid regulations will be a positive step forward.
In a move to strengthen economic and commercial partnerships in the healthcare sector, India is encouraging ASEAN companies to participate in the virtual India-ASEAN Healthcare Expo and Summit that is scheduled to be held between February 22-24.

The expo will be organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) with support from the ASEAN-India Business Council (AIBC). The purpose of this expo is to connect prominent business leaders, top industrial executives, regulatory agencies, and key stakeholders in the healthcare sector as well as senior government officials in India and ASEAN. The AIBC will assist ASEAN companies during the expo and arrange business-to-business (B2B) meetings.

Co-chairman of the ASEAN-India Business Council (AIBC) Datuk Ramesh Kodammal said that the trade fair will be a good opportunity for ASEAN companies to explore business deals with India, and consequently contribute towards strengthening the economic and commercial partnerships between the healthcare, medical devices, and pharmaceutical sectors of the two regions.

Comparing India and ASEAN healthcare markets

Indias healthcare market

Indias rising health awareness is a major driver of its growing healthcare market, which is expected to be worth US$372 billion by 2022 (growing from US$160 billion in 2017).

In particular, Indias pharmaceutical sector is the largest producer of vaccines in the world and by 2024, is expected to be worth US$65 billion. India could also become the worlds second largest manufacturer of COVID-19 vaccines after the US, as per industry analysts. India could be a strong trading and investment partner to ASEAN in this sector; the drugs and pharmaceutical sector is among the top 10 sectors attracting foreign direct investment into India.

In the healthcare industry, India allows 100 percent FDI under the automatic route for greenfield projects. For investments in brownfield projects, up to 100 percent FDI is also permitted, but under the government approval route.

For medical devices, India is among the top 20 global markets; the market is expected to increase at a 35.4 percent CAGR to reach US$50 billion in 2025 from around US$11 billion in 2020. (To know more, see Medical Devices in India: Key Considerations for Foreign Investors, Importers.)

Out of ASEANS 10-member countries  Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam are Indias top five trading partners, with Malaysia and Singapore specializing in medical trade. In 2019, the total value of trade between India and ASEAN amounted to US$842 million, and trade with Singapore was the highest at US$27.85 billion.

ASEAN healthcare market

Along with Malaysia and Thailand, Singapore is home to around 100 healthcare centers, all of which have been accredited by the Joint Commission International (JCI), considered the global gold standard for patient care and safety. Nearly one-third of the global 11 million medical consumers, including Indians, travel to ASEAN to access the regions private hospitals, consequently becoming a major source of income for these hospitals.

Malaysia, however, has established itself as ASEANs preferred destination for medical tourism due to its 40 percent lower charge of medical fees compared to the US and UK, increasing private investments by its government, and the overall efficiency of its private healthcare system.

In 2019, Malaysia was visited by over a million medical tourists and gained a total revenue of over US$433 million. These achievements were possible due to the establishment of the Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) by the Ministry of Health in 2005, which dedicated itself to designing, facilitating, and promoting the countrys healthcare travel industry by the enforcement of public-private partnerships both at home and abroad. A public-private partnership refers to the long-term arrangement between two or more public and private sectors.

Additionally, Malaysias pharmaceuticals sector was valued at US$1 billion in 2019 and covers about 100 companies in three categories  generic drug manufacturers, over-the-counter (OTC) manufacturers, and research-based pharmaceutical manufacturers. Generic drug manufacturers meet 30 percent of Malaysias domestic demand, with the rest being covered by imports.

Indias medical tourism industry

Yet, India has also established itself as a medical tourism destination in recent years. India has expanded its e-tourist visa regime to include medical travel. Medical attendant visas are also issued to ease the travel process for medical tourists and the extent of duration could be up to six months.

In 2015, India ranked the third most popular medical tourism destination in the world, with the industry valued at US$3 billion. The number of foreign tourists coming into the country on medical visas was nearly 234,000 that year  the top sending countries from the Middle East, central Asia, and Africa. By 2017, the number of medical tourists had increased to about 450,000.

According to a joint NATHEALTH-PwC industry report from 2018, the cost of medical treatment in India was less than 1/10th that in the US. As per industry analysts, the medical tourism segment generated approximately INR 4 billion (US$53.36 million) per month in the Delhi National Capital Region alone (pre-pandemic).

Scope for bilateral trade and commercial engagement

The two regions, India and ASEAN, thus have ample scope to do business with each other  cooperation in technology, public healthcare, and pharmaceuticals to mention a few key sectors. This has become more important as the pandemic underscored the need for urgency to strengthen and diversify industrial supply chain linkages, promote knowledge sharing, and align industry best practices.
In the last 5 years alone, it has obtained a dozen appellate decisions on behalf of workers, testified and advised on new legislation protecting injured workers in all fields, and has been in the forefront of helping those injured in motor vehicle collisions, personal injury, and by medical malpractice, from minor instances to life-changing catastrophic injuries and death claims throughout the state.

In 2021, Twelve (12) attorneys at BSGF&D were named as Super Lawyers & Rising Stars, recognized in Workers' Compensation, Personal Injury, Medical Malpractice and Trusts & Estates. Additionally, founding Partner Ken Berman was named 2021 Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers, and the firm itself has been named as One of the Best Law Firms in America By U S News & World Report.

Pace Setters for Workers' Compensation Law

For 30 years, the team at Berman, Sobin, Gross, Feldman & Darby LLP has been the leader in the advancement and evolution of Workers' Compensation law in Marylandin the courts, at seminars to labor organizations, and before legislative committees in Annapolis.

"We are truly privileged and humbled by the trust placed in us by thousands of workers and injured individuals throughout the state over the last 3 decades. We look forward to continuing to zealously and fairly represent them in the future" said Founding Partner Ken Berman.

Throughout its existence, and noticeably even in the last 5 years alone, the firm has secured several dozen appellate decisions which have enabled injured workers and their dependents to be compensated. BSGF&D was also active in promoting and enacting legislation for public safety employees who develop cancer due to their exposures at work. Currently they are assisting to get legislation passed to provide coverage for those who have been stricken by COVID 19.

One of BSGFD's founding partners wrote the authoritative 2-Volume, seminal treatise on Workers' Compensation Law in the state of Maryland. This published treatise has been relied upon and cited by judges in their published decisions, lawyers and Workers' Compensation Commissioners throughout the state.

About Berman, Sobin, Gross, Feldman & Darby LLP



Berman, Sobin, Gross, Feldman & Darby LLP is a workers' compensation and personal injury law firm practicing in Maryland and Washington, D.C., and handles medical malpractice and FELA and FRSA cases throughout the Mid-Atlantic. The firm went from one small office in Gaithersburg, to now having offices in Gaithersburg, Lutherville, Frederick, Largo, Baltimore, Annapolis, Columbia, and Cumberland, with plans for future office expansion.

Contacts

Berman, Sobin, Gross, Feldman & Darby LLP

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Finnish scientists claim to have found another coronavirus variant which shares some of the same mutations as other troublesome strains.

Only one case of the virus  temporarily named Fin-796H  has been spotted so far but experts have admitted they are unsure how widespread it is.

Finland said was unlikely the variant emerged there, given the country's low infection rate. The Scandinavian nation has recorded just 51,000 cases and 700 deaths since the pandemic took off.

Finnish researchers who made the discovery said the variant shared some mutations seen in the Kent and South African strains but in a combination they called 'unique'.

They did not reveal what the mutations were but they aren't thought to be changes which make those strains any more infectious or immune-resistant.

British scientists today insisted the emergence of the strain was no reason to panic. Dr Simon Clarke, an infectious disease researcher at the University of Reading, told MailOnline: 'There's no evidence there's anything to worry about yet.'

It comes as surge testing for the South African B.1.351 variant  which makes jabs slightly less effective  was rolled out to yet more postcodes, as ministers seek to stop the strain becoming established on British soil. Health bosses announced door-to-door testing will be rolled out in Leeds.

Public Health England (PHE) today revealed they had spotted another 18 cases of the mutant strain, taking the total number of cases seen in Britain to 235.

Finnish scientists claim to have found another coronavirus variant which shares some of the same mutations as other troublesome strains (file)

No10's top scientific advisers still insist the current crop of jabs should prevent severe illness and deaths against all new strains currently circulating, even if they don't stop people falling ill.

As long as vaccines serve their main purpose of taking pressure off the NHS, Britain should finally be able to safely ease its way out of the relentless cycle of lockdowns.

Covid vaccines 'may be less effective against South African variant' The coronavirus vaccines developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna may be less effective against the highly contagious variant first detected in South Africa. In two new studies, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, the vaccines seemed to generate enough antibodies to neutralize the virus. But the study of the Pfizer shot found that it offered roughly two-thirds less antibody protection. And the Moderna study found a six-fold decrease in antibody response against the variant from its vaccine. The findings raise concerns that the companies may need to develop a booster shot to add protection against the variant that is now in 10 U.S. states. It comes the heels of news from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Wednesday that Bristol variant of the virus - which has the same makeup of the UK variant with an additional mutation - has been detected for the first time in the U.S. Advertisement

Boris Johnson is set to unveil his roadmap out of the national shutdown on Monday, where he will also reveal data showing how effective the jab roll out has been.

Taru Meri, from Vita Laboratories, told local media in Finland today: 'Details about the infectivity and potential resistance of this strain to vaccines are not yet known.

Professor Ilkka Julkunen, a virologist at the University of Turku, told Yle: 'I would not be hugely worried yet.

'We do not have clear information that this strain would be more easily transmitted or that it would affect the immune protection brought about by already having had the virus or having received a vaccination.'

Petri Auvinen, research director of the University of Helsinki's Institute of Biotechnology, told the newspaper the finding was not a major concern because new variants of the coronavirus were simply 'a matter of time.'

The researchers said regular PCR tests - the gold standard Covid tests around the world - will not be able to detect the new variant.

This is also the case with the South African variant, which can only be confirmed through lab analysis. Whereas the swabs do pick up the Kent strain.

The PCR test looks for three genes present on the original virus that came out of China, the S gene, N gene and ORF1ab.

Health officials are able to spot the Kent strain with regular PCR because that variant is missing the S gene.

But the South African version is harder to track because it shares all three genes with the original strain so PCR results cannot differentiate between the two, meaning researchers need to manually sequence each sample in a laboratory.

Kent Covid variant sweeping the world may be more infectious than original strain because it leaves patients sicker for longer, scientists say

Britain's Kent Covid variant could be more infectious because people stay sicker for longer, scientists now believe.

More than 50 countries have already spotted the mutant B.1.1.7 strain, which evolved to become up to 70 per cent transmissible than the original virus.

But researchers from Harvard University believe it may actually be because it leaves patients infectious for longer.

They found patients infected with the new variant were ill for 13 days, compared with eight days for the original SARS-CoV-2 strain.

The study  not yet published in a medical journal  used data from 65 players and staff in the US National Basketball Association who had contracted Covid.

People normally only get a test when they have symptoms but the NBA test daily and continue to do so after a positive swab, to monitor the full extent of the virus.

The Kent variant was first detected in in September 2020 and its rapid spread across the country spooked No10 into tougher action in December.

As well as being more infectious, studies also suggest the variant is slightly deadlier. But all the evidence suggests current vaccines work against it.

What do we know about the Kent variant? Name: B.1.1.7, formerly VUI-202012/01 Where did it come from? The variant was first found in Kent and can be traced back to September 2020. Scientists noticed that it was spreading in November and it was revealed to the public in December. What makes it new? The variant, which is a version of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus that causes Covid-19, has a series of mutations that change the shape of the spike protein on its outside. The main one is known as N501Y. This appears to make it better able to stick to the cells inside the body and makes it more likely to cause infection and faster to spread. How did that happen? Viruses, particularly ones spreading so fast and in such huge numbers, mutate all the time. To reproduce they basically force living cells to copy and paste the viral genetic code, and this can contain errors that lead to slightly different versions of the virus. Often these mutations make no difference but, if they make the virus stronger, they can stick around for further generations and become the norm. What can we do about it? Nothing much. People who catch the virus won't know which type they have, and it will still cause the same symptoms and illness. Officials can try to contain it by locking down the areas where it is most prevalent, but if it is stronger than other versions of the virus it will eventually spread everywhere and become dominant as long as people continue to travel. Will our vaccines still work? Yes, it's very likely they will. Scientists on SAGE are fairly sure the mutations the Kent variant carries do not significantly affect how well the immune system can handle it. People who have a vaccine modelled on an older version of the virus, or who have been infected with Covid-19 before, are likely to be immune to it. This is because the main mutations are only on one part of the spike protein, whereas the immune system is able to target various other parts of the virus. Advertisement

Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in California, told The Times they first thought the extra infectiousness of the UK variant was because of a 'higher viral load'.

It's thought that the amount of virus particles someone has inside them  known as the viral load  determines how sick they will be. Studies also suggest a high viral load makes people more likely to infect others.

However, the new data suggests it is related to 'longer duration of infections'.

The study of the 65 players and staff found that the seven who were ill with the new variant were ill for 13 days.

In comparison, the 58 who were infected with the old strain were sick for eight days.

Those who tested positive with the old variant took two days from when Covid was detected to reach peak viral load and another six days until it was undetectable.

Meanwhile, those infected with the Kent variant took five days from when the virus was detected to reach peak viral load and then eight days until it could no longer be detected.

Dr Jenny Rohn, a biologist at University College London, told how the findings have 'serious implications' given the current quarantine period of 10 days.

It suggests Britons infected with the Kent variant - which is the most dominant strain in the UK - may need to quarantine for longer, if the findings are proven true in further studies.

Professor Sharon Peacock, head of the Covid-19 Genomics UK (Cog-UK) Consortium said the Kent variant 'is going to sweep the world, in all probability'.

There are fears the variant has started to mutate further to become more like the one that evolved in South Africa, which is better able to resist immunity developed by past infection or from the current vaccines.

It comes after a hybrid version of coronavirus surfaced in California after the British Kent variant and a strain found in the US merged together inside an infected person.

The variant, not yet named, has only been spotted once but scientists fear there are likely to be more cases.

Experts are worried because it carries mutations which appear to make it able to spread faster and also to slip past some of the immunity made from past infections or vaccines.

It was formed from the Kent Covid variant and a Californian variant called B.1.429.

Scientists in the US claim they merged in a 'recombination event', the New Scientist reports. This happens when two different versions of the virus infect the same cell and then swap genes while they are reproducing, giving rise to a new variant.

Researchers have warned in the past that these events are possible but said they are 'unlikely' because they require very specific conditions and the coincidence of mostly uncontrollable events. They are more likely to happen during huge outbreaks.
Natural gas fuel improved enough that Xcel Energy did not have to conduct controlled outages on Wednesday. But the company urges customers to continue conserving energy through at least Thursday.

Electric customers have done a fantastic job responding to calls for energy conservation, and we can see the results as morning peak energy use has fallen, said David Hudson, president of Xcel Energy  New Mexico, Texas. The natural gas delivery issues are still persisting, however, and were expecting another night of really low temperatures.
Keanu Reeves John Wick director raved about the actors level of dedication to his movie roles, calling it incredibly rare. Reeves has his own theory about why he puts so much time and effort into preparing for movies  he says he has no life.

Keanu Reeves | Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Lionsgate

John Wick director praised Keanu Reeves for his dedication

During a 2017 interview with Esquire, Reeves John Wick director, Chad Stahelski, explained how Reeves commits a lot of time to learn everything he needs to for a role.

That level of dedication is incredibly rare, Stahelski explained. It has nothing to do with being lazy or work-shy. Its a choice. Its about what level of commitment an actor or an actress is willing to make for a project.

Keanus all or nothing, the director shared. Hes willing to give up six months of his time to train for a role. Some people would try and get another film in, or work two.

Stahelski knows first-hand that level of commitment, as he was Reeves stunt double in The Matrix films. Reeves trained for six months for The Matrix to become an expert at learning everything necessary to play Neo.

Stahelski noted, When I first met him hed had surgery and he was doing kung-fu in this big, cold warehouse with a neck brace on. I knew he was a serious guy. That set the standard for the rest of our relationship. 

Keanu Reeves loves preparing for movies and claims he has no life

The director said that Reevess level of commitment can apply to anything because Reeves makes becoming an expert in any area a priority.

He pointed to a video of Reeves training to learn his John Wick skills. That YouTube footage is four months worth of three-gun training. In a non-movie way, what Keanu is doing in that video is competitively impressive, he explained. Real guns, real bullets, hitting real targets. If you told him to go learn how to crochet, hed go and be an expert in that. Thats just what hes like.

Reeves had a pretty simple explanation for why he commits so hard, sharing that its part of the pleasure of doing movies. Plus, he explained, he has no life, so pouring himself into his work isnt that big of an ask.

Yeah. I dont have anything better to do! I have nothing going on! I have no life! Its just going to work and preparation, he said.

RELATED: Keanu Reeves Revealed the Only Reason Why He Returned for The Matrix 4

Reeves trained seriously for other roles

Reeves has impressed other directors with his preparation for roles over the years. When he turned down the opportunity to do Speed 2, he performed Hamlet at a theater in Winnipeg, Canada. His director Lewis Baumander recalled that Reeves had all of his 1,476 lines memorized as well as the other actors lines.

Kenneth Branagh, who directed Reeves in Much Ado About Nothing, had plenty of praise for Reevess work ethic as well. He practiced some speeches while doing press-ups. His incredible keenness reminded me of an army cadet, he recalled.
Two recent discoveries showed odorous structures in adult male Curac?aoan long-nosed bats (Leptonycteris curasoae) and fringe-lipped bats (Trachops cirrhosus), created by smearing bodily fluids. Credit: Mariana Munoz-Romo and Paul B. Jones.

When falling in love, humans often pay attention to looks. Many non-human animals also choose a sexual partner based on appearance. Male birds may sport flashy feathers to attract females, lionesses prefer lions with thicker manes and colorful male guppies with large spots attract the most females. But bats are active in the dark. How do they attract mates? Mariana Munoz-Romo, a senior Latin American postdoctoral fellow at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) and National Geographic explorer, pioneers research to understand the role of odors in bat mating behavior.

"Aside from their genitalia, most male and female bat species look identical at first glance. However, a detailed examination during mating season reveals odor-producing glands or structures that are only present in male bats. Long interested in this understudied sexual difference, and working with long-nosed bats, Leptonycteris curasoae, in Venezuela, Munoz-Romo discovered that males exhibit an odorous dorsal patch in the mating season consisting of a mixture of saliva, feces, urine and/or semen that seems to attract reproductive females.

Later in Panama, Munoz-Romo investigated the "perfumes" from smelly crusts that male fringe-lipped bats, Trachops cirrhosus, meticulously apply to their forearms during mating season. These studies deepened her interest in odor and its role in bat mating systems, and her conviction that odor may be bats' secret weapon to choosing a mate in the dark."

Studies across a range of mammalian species show that just by smelling a potential mate, an individual can assess its sex, age, sexual receptiveness, health, social status, group membership and identity. This is a whole lot of personal information in one sniff, suggesting that odor may be a more important factor for mate choice and reproduction.

An adult male northern ghost bat (Diclidurus albus) showing uropatagial glands, which are especially prominent in males during the breeding season. Credit: Manuel Sa?nchez-Mendoza.

Alongside STRI staff scientist Rachel Page and renowned Boston University bat ecologist, Thomas H. Kunz, Munoz-Romo combed through all published articles on the topic. Together, they found reports of odor-producing structures in 121 bat species from 15 different bat families. This represents nearly 10% of all known bat species and over 70% of bat families. Odors come from very different parts of bats' bodies, from their heads and mouths to their wings or genitalia. Not only are chemical signals potent and effective for communication in dark conditions, they also do not impede the bats' ability to fly.

"We believe that these key factorsnocturnality and powered flightcombined with scent-producing glands common across mammals, promoted the evolution of a great diversity of the odorous displaying structures we find in bats," Munoz-Romo said.

Although researchers know very little about these structures so far, the new review of the subject opens up promising new avenues for bat research. There are potentially many more odor-related structures waiting to be discovered.

The visored bat (Sphaeronycteris toxophyllum) displaying a visor-like structure in the forehead. Observations indicate that the loose skin on the males' chins can cover their faces. Credit: Marco Tschapka

"Future investigations should consider the importance of the timing of odor production and sexual behavior, because most of these traits are displayed during a specific and usually short time of the yearthe mating season," Munoz-Romo said. "Answering new questions about the nature and development of the odorous traits, as well as understanding which traits female bats prefer, are key to understanding why differences between males and females evolved. We also want to understand the chemistry of bat perfumeswhat compounds make them attractive."

In another recent publication, Munoz-Romo, Page and colleagues suggest that the size of the odorous crusts found on the forearms of male T. cirrhosus allow females to evaluate potential mates during the time of year when they were fertile.

"While differences between males and females (sexual dimorphism) in bats have long been overlooked, new tools are giving us an ever-expanding window into their previously cryptic social lives," Page said. "The patterns revealed here sharpen the focus of investigations going forward, in particular highlighting the importance of seasonally present odor-producing glands and soft tissues. With so many bat species still to be studied, it will be extremely exciting to see what lies on the horizon. We only wish that our dear friend and colleague, Tom Kunz, whose insight inspired this work, had lived to see the publication of this review."

Explore further Male bats with high testosterone levels have large forearm crusts when females are fertile

More information: Mariana MunozRomo et al, Redefining the study of sexual dimorphism in bats: following the odor trail, Mammal Review (2021). Mariana MunozRomo et al, Redefining the study of sexual dimorphism in bats: following the odor trail,(2021). DOI: 10.1111/mam.12232
ALBANY  A man who threatened to attack Troy police in Facebook Live videos following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis was sentenced in U.S. District Court on Wednesday to eight months in jail  time he has already served.

Jhajuan Sabb, 21, who on June 5 threatened to throw bricks at the Troy police station and police cars during a large protest planned for June 7, pleaded guilty in November to making an interstate transmission of a threat to injure another person. He was sentenced virtually Wednesday by Senior U.S. District Judge Lawrence Kahn.

"I understand what I said was wrong and I apologize for that," Sabb told the judge. "I'm ready to just go home and back to the community and do what I have to do to pick my life back up and head in the right direction."

On three videos he made before the protest, Sabb said was going to brick the police station and all the cop cars. Sabb said if police approached him during the demonstration he would drive a vehicle into them, he admitted in his plea agreement. Sabb had his shirt off in the videos and, according to the prosecution, was smoking pot.

Sabbs attorney, Assistant Federal Public Defender Michael McGeown-Walker, told Kahn his clients remarks, while wrong, reflected Sabbs frustration with his past encounters with police and the treatment of the Black community in general. Floyd was killed in Minneapolis by a police officer who kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

I think it is worth noting that these statements were made directly after the death of George Floyd and the conflict that has been ongoing, frankly, for centuries now between the African-American community and the police, the attorney told the judge.

McGeown-Walker said there were any number of people charged with roles in the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, who participated in a violent uprising and are charged with misdemeanors and could face less supervised release.

These things were actually carried out, he said. Mr. Sabb never did actually carry out any act of violence here. Nothing of the sort happened in this instance.

The plea agreement said Sabb's video traveled from the defendants phone in Troy to Facebook servers in California and then back to other computers and devices in Troy, including Troy police computers. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett asked the judge to impose the time served sentence, saying it was appropriate under federal sentencing guidelines, which are two to eight months.

Kahn sentenced Sabb to the eight months the defendant spent behind bars since his arrest in early June. The judge imposed three years of supervised release but said he could shorten the supervision to as little as a year depending on Sabbs behavior over the next year.

"You're still young. You've got a long life ahead of you," the judge told Sabb. "I'm hoping that when this is over, you're not going to come back again. ... I'm expecting that you've learned the hard way that that you've got to be careful even about how you talk, certainly what you do."
A newlywed couple from South Korea are undergoing counselling after they discovered the one-way glass at their five-star hotel was see-through and guests had seen them naked.

The unnamed couple had been on their honeymoon at the Grand Josun Jeju Hotel, on the island of Jeju, the largest island in South Korea, when they discovered the mirrored windows inside the hotel's sauna were visible to guests on the outside.

The husband, who later posted a complaint about the 520-a-night hotel, claimed that his wife had used the second-floor sauna on several occasions during their stay and had not used a towel after staff told them the windows were mirrored.

Local police received a complaint February 13 and said they would be checking CCTV footage, The Korean Times reports.

A newlywed couple had been on their honeymoon when they discovered the mirrored windows inside the hotel's sauna were visible to guests on the outside. (Stock image)

In an online thread, the husband claimed he and his wife had been taking a walk around the hotel on their last day when they made realised the sauna's interior was visible.

'While taking a walk around the hotel on the last day of our stay, we discovered the interior was visible from the outside. We could even see the writing on a thermometer inside the sauna', The Korean Times quotes the man as saying.

'My wife and I are currently undergoing psychotherapy as we were so shocked after realising that we had taken a shower and used the bathroom that was visible from the outside,' the man added.

When the couple confronted bosses at the hotel they were told that staff had not pulled down the blinds 'by mistake'.

The couple had been staying at the Grand Josun Jeju Hotel, on the island of Jeju, the largest island in South Korea

Bosses at the hotel they were told that staff had not pulled down the blinds 'by mistake'. Pictured: A swimming pool inside the hotel

The newlyweds claimed that the one-way glass had also not been used for the hotel's shower booths and bathrooms and that staff refused to notify other guests about the incident.

In a message on the hotel's website, Josun Hotels & Resorts said: 'We deeply apologise for causing inconvenience to customers due to the omission of glass barrier coatings  in some areas of the women's sauna'.

A spokesperson from Josun Hotels & Resorts told The Korean Times: 'We have so far used the blinds flexibly in accordance with the time and weather, but (following the incident) we changed our policy to pull down the blinds at all times.'

The official also said the hotel was cooperating with the police in their investigation.

The Lancaster County Natural Gas Authority, in the spotlight after the Post and Courier reported on how it spends ratepayers money, defended its actions Tuesday, including the purchase of a $2,247 shotgun as a retirement gift for its top executive.

Other spending included $96,000 for two convention trips that included spouses, expensive meals and plenty of sight-seeing and resort recreation.

LCNGA General Manager Rocky Hudson said his agency has done nothing to conceal its finances or spending activities from its customers.

At the end of the day, I can stand firm and say that we have done nothing illegal, unethical or corrupt, Hudson said Tuesday.

The LCNGA is one of five S.C. natural gas authorities. The others are in Chester, York, Newberry and Pickens/Anderson counties.

The Post and Courier partnered with community newspapers across the state, including The Lancaster News, to closely examine self-regulating agencies that supply everything from fire protection to natural gas and electricity to millions of South Carolinians.

More than 12,000 pages of spending records, including those of LCNGA, were examined in the first installment of the series Uncovered, which was released Sunday.

Hudson discussed the investigations findings, including retired General Manager Tim Thorntons shotgun, with TLN. He also talked about how the authority communicates with the public, as well as its board makeup, which is appointed by the governor at the recommendation of the local legislative delegation.

Gas conferences

Hudson confirmed the Post and Couriers reporting on board members attendance at a 2018 American Public Gas Association conference in Portland, Ore. Ratepayers picked up the expenses for spouses who attended.

Board members from Chester and York also went to the conference. Together, the three agencies racked up more than $160,000 in total expenses. Combined, the three authorities are known as Patriots Energy Group.

The gas associations 2019 conference was held in Stowe, Vt., and it cost the three local agencies $130,000.

Hudson said the LCNGAs share of those expenses were $46,000 for the Portland conference and about $50,000 for the Vermont trip.

Uncovered notes that the Lancaster and York delegations spent $1,545 on a zip-line adventure during the Vermont conference.

Hudson said roughly 800 people attend the annual events. The American Public Gas Association canceled its 2020 conference in Chicago due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hudson said the LCNGA has always paid conference expenses for spouses, because spouses are included in APGA programs.

While we are in classes, they have different things lined up for spouses. They dont go out shopping. They have a breakfast every morning for spouses and have programs for spouses and they interact. We think its vital that spouses attend, Hudson said.

David Knight, chair of the LCNGA board since 2017, said he agrees with Hudson. Knight, retired public information officer for the Lancaster County School District, has been a board member since 1989.

Other members of the board are Steve Sherrill (vice chair), Audry Curry (secretary), David Funderburk, Betty Cauthen, Dwight McPherson, Tracy Caldwell, Bruce Brumfield and Robin Hensel.

The boards members, Knight noted, are not paid by the gas authority.

Our board volunteers hours and hours and hours of time. Time spent at those meetings, and especially those conferences, helps educate us about what a gas company should be doing and about coming issues, Knight said.

Were just laypeople, and its important for us to be educated about what we are supposed to do.

The shotgun

Uncovered notes that the LCNGA board spent $2,247 for a Miroku 20-gauge shotgun in 2019 as a retirement gift for Tim Thornton.

Thornton worked for LCNGA for almost 23 years and was named its general manager in 2001.

A spokesman for the agency, not named in the article, told the Post and Courier the gift was a small amount to pay to show appreciation for a job well done.

Hudson, the authoritys former chief financial officer, was named general manager after Thornton retired.

Hudson said that in 2001, when former General Manager Troy Elmore retired, the the authority gave him an $800 bass fiddle as a gift.

I am the third general manager since the 70s. When Troy retired, he received a gift and when Tim retired in 2019, he received a gift. This was not a one-time thing. It had been done before for the top executive, Hudson said.

Knight said Hudson was directed by the board to purchase a retirement gift for Thornton.

That is correct, Knight said.

While elected officials must report expenses and gifts to the S.C. Ethics Commission, members of appointed bodies, such as the nine-member LCNGA board, do not. A loophole in state law allows it to go unchecked.

We report everything we are required to report, Hudson said.

$7.3M expansion

When the states five natural gas authorities were created in the 1940s, by law they were required to turn over any profits to the municipalities they serve.

In Lancaster County, that would be the city of Lancaster and the towns of Heath Springs, Kershaw and Van Wyck.

During the last three years, the LCNGA had $7.1 million in net earnings but didnt turn over any of it to the four municipalities, as pointed out in Uncovered.

Hudson acknowledged that, as did Paul Dillingham, the attorney for LCNGA as well as the Chester and York natural gas authorities.

Dillingham told the Post and Courier there is no surplus revenue to turn over to the municipalities.

Hudson said while he could not speak for the Chester and York gas boards, the LCNGA has spent $7.3 million on expansion in the last three years, in effect churning those profits back into the authoritys operations.

The authoritys customer base, Hudson said, increased from 21,200 in 2015 to 27,500 in 2020.

I would say that 80-90% of it is in Indian Land, but this year, we can now see it coming closer to Lancaster, Hudson said, noting that planned growth is now extending down the U.S. 521 corridor to the Shiloh Unity Road area.

Since the start of the current fiscal year on July 1, 2020, Hudson said LCNGA has already spent almost $1.5 million on construction. The construction cost of a natural gas line is at least $50,000 a mile, he said.

In the last three years, Hudson said the authority has constructed 65 miles of gas lines.

It can get really expensive. When I came here in 1997, we had 9,000 customers. We now average adding over 1,000 customers a year, Hudson said.

Public notices

The states Freedom of Information Act requires all public bodies to post agendas and keep minutes of all meetings, whether any action is taken or not.

Hudson said the board agendas and board meeting dates are always posted at the LCNGA headquarters on Kershaw Camden Highway. The agency also has offices in Indian Land and Kershaw.

The board meets every two months on the last Thursday of the month. While those meetings are always open to the public, Hudson said, seldom does anyone attend except board members.

Since I have been going to board meetings, in all these years, weve only had two people show up, he said.

The LCNGA, he said, launched an updated website, lcngasc.com, last year that allows it to post public information.

But when checked last week, the website listed no meeting dates for 2021. Calling that an oversight, Hudson said meeting dates for this year are now online.

However, the minutes from past board meetings and financial statements are not.

Knight said the LCNGA board will take a hard look at our policies and practices to see if they should be posted on the website.

If we see anything we need to change, we will definitely do that, Knight said.

Until that determination is made, Hudson said that information is available to anyone who asks for it.

We dont have anything to hide. If you request it, Ill send it to you  budgets, meetings, everything. All you have to do is ask for it, Hudson said.

Follow reporter Greg Summers on Twitter @GregSummersTLN or contact him at (803) 283-1156.


[February 17, 2021] Daffodil Software Appraised at CMMI Level 3

GURGAON, India, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Daffodil Software, a leading custom software engineering company, today announced that it has been appraised at level 3 of the CMMI Institute's Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) is a model that enables organizations to measure, build and improve their capabilities, resulting in an improvement in the overall performance. It is tailored for organizations to help them improve their processes and bring them at par with globally accepted standards and nomenclatures. This framework is adopted by the leading Information Technology organizations, as a benchmark for quality standards. An appraisal at maturity level 3 indicates that the organization is performing at a "Defined" level. At this level, processes are well characterized and understood and are described in standards, proedures, tools, and methods. The organization's set of standards processes, which is the basis for maturity level 3, is established and improved over time.?



"Daffodil always had a strong software delivery process as customer satisfaction is our primary goal. This certification is a stamp of validation to our processes and commitment to our clients," said Yogesh Agarwal, CEO of Daffodil Software. He also added, "This certification will help Daffodil compete at a global level with larger and high fidelity projects, coupled with existing certification such as ISO/IEC 27001 for Information Security Management, ISO 9001 for a quality management system and ISO 20000 for IT Service Management." Daffodil Software joins an elite list of software development companies who have achieved a Level 3 rating of the CMMI in India. On an aggressive growth path, Daffodil is set to ramp up its technical capabilities and workforce to serve its growing customer base.

About?CMMI?Institute ? CMMI?Institute is the global leader in the advancement of best practices in people process, and technology.?CMMI?Institute's promise is to inspire cultures of continuous improvement that elevate performance and creates a sustainable competitive advantage. About Daffodil Software For more than 20 years, Daffodil Software has been a trusted software technology partner to organizations across the globe. With its roots into innovation, tech agility, & time-proven processes, their team of 800+ technologists strive to shape the tech industry and help businesses elevate their value proposition through technology. For more information, visit https://www.daffodilsw.com/ Logo : https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1089491/daffodil_software_Logo.jpg

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Posted Wednesday, February 17, 2021 4:53 pm

Monday, the 36th day of the state legislative session, was the first major cutoff for bills making their way to the governors desk. With the exception of major finance bills, proposed legislation had to pass out of committee and be read on the floor of the House or Senate. Lawmakers will now leave behind a whole host of bills that did not clear the hurdle.

As is expected in a Legislature with both chambers controlled by Democrats, the first round of fallen bills includes several Republican-backed proposals.

Heres a look at what made it and whats out.

Dead

House Bill 1029, Rep. Jim Walshs bill to severely restrict the governors emergency powers, was given a public hearing, but never made it to a committee vote. The bill resonated with Washingtonians frustrated by Gov. Jay Inslees pandemic restrictions. Supporters characterized the bill as a constitutional question, hinging on how to balance the executive and legislative branches of government. No Democrats signed onto the bill.

Senate Bill 5037, the product of a partnership between Senate Minority Leader John Braun, of Centralia, and moderate Democrat Sen. Mark Mullet, of Issaquah, would have forced public schools to reopen under certain metrics. Centralia School District Superintendent Lisa Grant planned to testify as other for the bill, citing concerns over local control. And state officials said putting reopening metrics in statute would make it hard to form policies based on emerging data.

Senate Bill 5114, also sponsored by Braun and Mullet, would have allowed businesses to fully reopen under Phase 2 of the states reopening plan. Frustration with Inslees pandemic restrictions similarly fueled lengthy public testimony in support of this bill, although health care workers offered firm opposition to what they said would overwhelm hospitals.

Alive

House Bill 1152, which would create regional public health districts, received pushback from Lewis County commissioners and Public Health Director J.P. Anderson. In its current form, local boards of health would be altered to include more voices from medical professionals and community members, and nine regional health jurisdictions would be created. The bill was introduced at Inslees request, and aims to depoliticize and bolster funding for public health.

House Bill 1356 would, with some exceptions, prohibit public schools from using Native American imagery as logos or mascots. The state Legislatures only Native American member, Rep. Debra Lekanoff, is sponsoring the bill, which received support from several tribal members as well as the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. District 19 representatives were split on the bill, which would impact Toledo, Kalama and dozens of school districts across the state.

House Bill 1336, which would allow public utility districts to offer internet directly to residents, received support from Lewis County officials and public utility districts across the state. It was voted out of committee well before cutoff, enjoying bipartisan support.

House Bill 1263, Rep. Peter Abbarnos bill to fund rural infrastructure, would create a grant program aimed at large projects, and has been described as a potential game changer by Lewis commissioners. The bill has only Republican sponsors, but received bipartisan support in voting the bill out of committee.

Alive: Police Reform

Several bills addressing police brutality, accountability and transparency are still winding through the state Legislature. The topic has been identified as a priority for many lawmakers, especially after high-profile police killings around the state and country. But locally, officials have expressed concern over many of the proposals.

This session, Lewis County commissioners have looked to Chehalis mayor and former police chief Dennis Dawes for his opinion on policing bills, which he has characterized as more sinister initiatives presented under the guise of police reform. While Dawes has said hes pro-reform, he has described reform as policies that need a little tweaking.

House Bill 1203, for example, would require most local jurisdictions to create community oversight boards. Originally, county commissioners objected to the bills since-removed requirement that 5% of police budgets go toward the oversight boards. It was a huge huge funding issue, Commissioner Lindsey Pollock said.

Dawes went further, arguing that civilians should not cast judgement on some cases of police violence.

Theres times when the wrong decision is made in the heat of the moment. I just dont know how somebody thats never been in that situation is going to be able to kind of grasp on what happened in that instant, he told commissioners.

House Bill 1202 would authorize the attorney general to investigate and bring civil action against officers with a pattern of misconduct. It would also make it easier for people to bring legal action against abusive officers, and requires that successful plaintiffs get their attorneys fees reimbursed.

That provision, Pollock argued, would provide additional incentive for people to pursue the process. Commissioner Gary Stamper contended it would make Washington an easy target, while Dawes argued it would lead to a number of suits against law enforcement agencies.

House Bill 1054 would prohibit certain police tactics, including K9 apprehension, the use of certain military equipment, firing at moving vehicles and chokeholds, which have come under fire for being used in several police killings. Its a bill Dawes characterized as very scary.

Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza has made few comments about specific bills, but has asked commissioners to listen to what Mayor Dawes has to say about proposed legislation.
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HARRISBURG  When Pennsylvania passed a new formula to distribute money for public schools in 2016, it was hailed as a major step toward equity and away from an arbitrary system built on decades-old enrollment data.

Prior to today, Pennsylvania was one of only three states in the nation without a fair funding formula, Gov. Tom Wolf said at the time. We still have a lot of work to do in order to restore funding, but we are now closer to resolving the inequity in Pennsylvanias school funding distribution.

But nearly five years later, many of the disparities it aimed to address remain.

Part of the issue: Only a fraction of state education funding actually goes through the formula, designed to help poor and underfunded districts. Most of the public school subsidy is distributed using an approach called hold harmless, which guarantees districts never lose state funding regardless of enrollment changes.

An average shrinking district saw funding increase by $3,200 per student over the last three decades, according to a January report from Public Citizens for Children and Youth, a nonprofit led by a member of former Gov. Ed Rendells cabinet. Per-pupil funding in an average expanding district, meanwhile, has grown by just $1,000.

More than 80% of the states Black, Hispanic, or Latinx students attend growing school districts, according to the report.

But the hold harmless policy is not solely to blame for the inequities in the states system. Pennsylvania ranks 47th in the nation for the share of K-12 public education funding that comes from the state, a path that began after the state stopped reimbursing school districts for 50% of their costs in the 1980s.

Wolf this month proposed a billion-dollar solution, helping growing schools in urban centers with higher costs while also protecting shrinking rural districts.

Advocates for public education championed the move, but its a bridge that would rely on a hefty tax increase on high earners  a nearly impossible sell to many in the legislature, who say households are already hamstrung by increasing property taxes to pay for their schools.

 READ MORE: Wolf asks for tax increase on Pa.s top earners amid pandemic; GOP pans proposal as irresponsible

The fair funding formula determines a districts share of state dollars based on factors like enrollment, students learning English or experiencing poverty, and median household income. But just 11% of the states $6.2 billion education budget went through the formula in fiscal year 2019-20.

Wolf now wants to distribute a record $6.4 billion through the formula, while also spending $1.15 billion more to ensure no school district loses funding.

That new money would come from raising the states personal income tax rate, which currently is 3.07%, to 4.49%. According to the Wolf administration, only the top one-third of earners would pay more, because the proposal expands exemptions and tax forgiveness.

When you run the existing money through the formula, it creates a situation where some districts are large losers, said Greg Thall, a budget specialist for the Wolf administration. The governor doesnt believe that any district should lose revenue.

Wolfs plan requires buy-in from Republicans who control the General Assembly. GOP lawmakers in key committee positions told Spotlight PA they agree that more money should go through the formula  though theres a difference of opinion on exactly how much  but oppose Wolfs pitch to raise taxes in order to prevent any school district from losing state dollars.

The hold harmless policy, first implemented in 1992, locked in enrollment numbers that in the decades since have greatly changed in some areas  and disproportionately harmed students of color in growing urban districts.

That, in turn, puts the burden on municipalities to raise property taxes. York City, a district with a high poverty rate, would have to nearly triple its property tax rate to make up for its state funding shortfall, according to the Public Citizens for Children and Youth report.

If youre getting less funding from the state than you should, that means you probably have to put in more for property taxes than you should have to, Sen. Scott Martin (R., Lancaster), chair of the Senate Education Committee, said.

Donna Cooper, executive director of Public Citizens for Children and Youth, said growing districts are just waiting for their shot because we keep pouring money into these other districts. Her organizations analysis found that shrinking districts receive $590 million for students they no longer educate.

 READ MORE: Pennsylvania schools need an additional $4.6 billion to close education gaps, new analysis finds

Still, Cooper said she isnt in favor of eliminating hold harmless without supporting low-wealth, rural districts that have benefited from the policy.

Those students really need an awful lot of educational input to be able to get to college and succeed, and maybe sadly have to move away from their communities because there arent jobs there, she said.

Wolfs $1.15 billion pitch shows just how much these shrinking districts stand to lose. One quarter have poverty rates of 20% or more and would lose $332 million, according to the nonprofits report.

There are other ways to make public school funding more equitable, Cooper said, without harming rural districts with no tax base. But any approach would require the state to increase funding  and that money has to come from somewhere.

Rep. Curt Sonney (R., Erie), chair of the House Education Committee, brushed off Wolfs plan to raise the personal income tax and said the current approach works over time. The issue, he said, is how school districts use their funds.

A large part of the problems that districts face are quite frankly from bad decisions being made somewhere along the line, not necessarily amongst those today, but it could have been bad decisions 20 years ago, said Sonney, whose school districts would lose money if hold harmless was eliminated.

Martin, of Lancaster County, represents districts that would both benefit and lose money, but he favors eliminating the provision wholesale, as it keeps the funding model out of whack.

Quite frankly, I really believe that hold harmless in the end will continue to morph or alter what every school district is getting per student, Martin said. So I see the disparity, potentially, even continue to be an issue  where you have schools that are growing, who will continue to feel like theyre not getting their fair share, versus schools that will continue to get more on average per student than they do.

100% ESSENTIAL: Spotlight PA relies on funding from foundations and readers like you who are committed to accountability journalism that gets results. Become a member today at spotlightpa.org/donate.
(Photo : Screenshot from YouTube/ OFS Gadgets) The newest budget phones, Motorola Moto G30 and Motorola Moto G10.

Motorola has recently introduced Moto G30 and the Moto G10, the newest smartphones that will be released to Europe. Surprisingly, you can get these budget phones for less than $200 Find out how they vary when it comes to specs and other features.

The New Nokia

The smartphone market has been growing throughout the years, with new features that boost the product's edge over its counterparts. Motorola, a consumer electronics company now initially released its new products to the European market, which boast their inexpensive prices but high-quality specs.

According to Slash Gear, Motorola deserves to be named the 'new Nokia,' since the company is now impressing a wide range of consumers through their devices that lately invaded the selling ground. Lately, it caught up with other smartphones mostly dominated by Apple and Samsung so the chance is more people will explore a new environment for handheld devices.

What Does Moto G30 Offer?

First, the Moto G30 smartphone relies on its powerful Octa-core processor, specifically a Kryo 260 CPU clocked at 1.8 GHz and 2 GHz Quad Core. Moreover, it uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 Chipset for better AI performance and improved camera enhancement.

It also supports Android v11 OS, which Motorola announced in Dec. 2020 that it wants to update its phones to the latest Google OS version. It boasts its faster refresh rate screens that will make your gaming experience a flawless one.

For its RAM and internal storage, it has 6GB and 128 GB space respectively. When it comes to screen resolution, it has 720 x 1600 pixels and for the density, it has 270 pixels. You will love its IPS LCD display, a much better version compared to the LED screen, so using it for a long time will not cause an eye strain.

For the camera, you will enjoy its 64 MP Primary Camera. In addition, it has two 2 MP: one for the Depth Camera and the other one for the Macro Camera. For a wide-angle shot, its 8MP will continue to amaze you for an ultra-wide scope, Gadgets Now reported. It is also powered by a 5000 mAh battery with a 20W fast charge support.

For its price, it costs 179 or $216.

What Does Moto G10 Offer?

Its 6.5 inches LED display will welcome you upon purchase. It is run by Qualcomm Snapdragon 460 SoC but for the storage, it has lesser RAM of 4GB but has the same internal storage at 126 GB.

The camera features a 48MP main sensor, and two 2MP sensors: macro and bokeh. For wide-angle photography, it has an 8 MP sensor. It also has a 5000 mAh battery with a 10W fast charge support. For the Indian release, a much compact battery of 6,000mAh with a 15W fast charge support will be released in April.

It will come to European stores at 149 or $180. Currently, Moto G30 and Moto G10 are now available in German and UK Motorola stores. If you are eyeing to buy a budget phone for a limited budget, wait for the official release of these two phones in your country.

Read Also: Google Pixel 6: Price, Release Date, Features and MORE!



Related Article: Sony Xperia 5 III: Specs, Price, Release Date, Leaks, and Everything You Need to Know!

This article is owned by Tech Times.

Written by Joen Coronel

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
During Joe Bidens campaign for president, he said he was going to transform the country. Was it clear what he meant by that? The mainstream media presented Biden as a moderate. However, moderates are not usually in the business of transforming. So, it would have been wise to ask the candidate what he meant.

Was Bidens promised transformation merely a reprise of Obamas change slogan? Was he just planning to roll back Trumpism and return to the Democrat priorities of the Obama years  healthcare, education, immigration, and the environment? Orwas he going to pack the court, pursue a Green New Deal, enact reparations for slavery, and abolish fracking, as conservative pundits warned?

Was Biden more sincere while assuring national audiences he was a kind and decent grandfatherly type who wants whats best for everyone? Or were his true intentions on display when he was talking to supporters of Sanders and Sharpton, environmental lobbyists, gun control activists, and other leftist special interest groups?

We never got answers to these questions, largely because they werent asked. On the rare occasion that he was asked hard questions, he didnt really answer them.

Now that Joe Biden is president, though, he has unveiled the hidden things of his transformational intentions. It has become clear that the Far Left is steering the president and the country away from anything resembling its founding, away from any moorings to common sense and basic decency.

For example, although Americans do not list transgender issues among their top ten concerns and it seems unlikely that it was ever a priority for Joe Biden before he began to show signs of cognitive deterioration, within the first hours of his administration he took an unpopular executive action allowing men to use the ladies room and to compete in womens sports. Both things surely make the U.S. the laughingstock of the world. One wonders what the IOC would say if the USOC came to them with a plan to let American men compete in womens events at the Olympics if they identify as women.

In other early actions, the Biden Administration clearly indicated its intention to open the border and to treat illegal immigrants like super-citizens, unaccountable to the law. It must leave international heads of state perplexed. America had clearly grown stronger under Trumps immigration and border policies.

The nations of the world know that they need a free United States to bolster their economies, protect weaker countries, and provide a competitive alternative to the stagnancy and futility of socialism. Many international leaders have noted with grave concern the blatant, bewildering censorship of all that represents the considered and historically-informed opinions held by half of America. On top of that, there is a soviet-style movement to punish and degrade anyone who supports Trump. The rest of the world is not rejoicing at this.

For their part, Washington Republicans pose as Trump defenders, but in this virulent post-election political atmosphere, way too many of them have failed to take up the Trump voters cause. Worse yet, many seem to have formally joined the anti-Trump movement. Who would have guessed that seven Republican senators would join every Democrat in voting for Trumps conviction on the weakest article of impeachment imaginable?

Perhaps career politicians on the right were secretly just as concerned as Democrats were when Trump took on the establishment, which he did on behalf of patriots who recognize that they are essentially being ruled by an oligarchy. In his inaugural address, President Trump made this remarkable pronouncement:

For too long, a small group in our nations capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost. Washington flourished  but the people did not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered  but the jobs left, and the factories closed. The establishment protected itself, but not the citizens of our country. Their victories have not been your victories; their triumphs have not been your triumphs; and while they celebrated in our nations Capital, there was little to celebrate for struggling families all across our land.

For decades, Joe Biden has been the avatar of this dynamic. Trump went on to remind us that America belongs to its citizens and to proclaim that he was returning its governance back to them. He had no idea the measures the oligarchy would be willing to take to maintain their power.

When the oligarchs yelled, You are not above the law, at Donald Trump, well-informed people knew what they meant: We are the ones who are above the law, not you. We will never be held accountable for our lawlessness and corruption, but no evidence will be needed to investigate and prosecute you for things that we do. And we will make sure you are not reelected, no matter how Machiavellian we must show ourselves to be.

The press was in on the cover-up of Bidens low character and leftist intentions while they sold us a decent centrist. There were many who warned that Biden and Harris would make a hasty charge toward leftist goals that have been in the wacky column for generations.

While the mainstream poured out visceral hatred for Trump at the expense of factual reportage, investigative journalists on the right used verifiable information to make their case. Now, there are many with buyers remorse with New Mexico serving as just one example. Will they begin to pursue information outside the mainstream?

Conservative journalists warned that Biden and the Democrats would pursue statehood for Washington, D.C. The mainstream either ignored or derided the claim, but now there are a record 38 sponsors in the Senate for the measure, which passed the House last year under the radar. Abolishing the filibuster cant be far behind.

With regards to packing the Supreme Court, Biden dodged questions and said that voters dont deserve to know his position. Only conservative journalists sounded the alarm. Now we know they were right: Biden has announced a commission to look into expanding the high court.

Biden assured Rust Belt states that he was not an enemy of their energy-driven economies. But he immediately canceled the Keystone Pipeline and Kamala Harris told coal miners they would be able to get a better job deactivating abandoned land mines once their jobs were gone.

Contrary to promises of centrism, we already have measures in congress for a federal takeover of elections (H.R.1) and for more gun control (H.R. 127).

We know now what kind of transformation Biden meant during the campaign: A radical, authoritarian transformation, one that provides a more meaningful division between rulers and subjects, as poetically symbolized by the hideous wall that Democrats erected around the capital.

Sometimes storm waters change the course of a river. This is a tempest. It will be a major undertaking to hold the banks of our constitutional republic.

Reese Daniels is a pseudonym.

IMAGE: Joe Biden. YouTube screengrab.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 10:26:18|Editor: huaxia

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ZAGREB, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Croatia could purchase Sputnik V, the Russian vaccine against COVID-19, before the European Medicine Agency (EMA) approves it, Croatian Health Minister Vili Beros said Wednesday.

The national Agency for Medicinal Products and Medical Devices can evaluate the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine at the national level and it has already been requested to do so, said Beros.

"It is in the interest of every government to take care of its citizens' health. It is not illegitimate to search for other sources of vaccine outside the European Union (EU), especially when delivery within the EU is not going well," Beros said in an interview on the national radio HRT.

He noted that Russia is expecting EMA's approval possibly in early April, and that there is growing evidence that the Russian vaccine is effective but that more data is needed to prove its safety.

Russian Ambassador to Croatia Matvej Sidorov told the national news agency HINA on Wednesday that Russia is ready to deliver the vaccine in two to three weeks.

"We are ready to push delivery through our diplomatic channels," he said.

Up to 502 new COVID-19 cases were reported over the past 24 hours, bringing the nationwide tally to 238,501, Croatian Institute of Public Health reported on Wednesday. Enditem
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Striking pictures have documented an intense training session for the Chinese military's bomb disposal team.

Not for the faint-hearted, the gruelling drill on Thursday required participants to complete bomb-searching and bomb-defusing tasks under challenging conditions.

In one of the images, a courageous technician, donning a full-face helmet and protective clothing, appears to hold an explosive device while standing on a balance beam as a giant fireball erupts behind him.

Not for the faint-hearted: A Chinese soldier is seen undergoing training in front of a fire while standing on a balance beam

As careful as possible: Another picture shows a trainee cautiously carrying some parts during the drill in China on Thursday

Another trainee is photographed carrying a board with smoke-shrouded parts on top during the drill in the southern province of Guangxi.

The military exercise aimed to improve the 'technical and tactical levels' of the servicemen from the mobile detachment the People's Armed Police of Guangxi, reported state newspaper People's Daily.

All attendees were the troop's bomb disposal specialists, the report said.

According to Xinhua, China's armed police force is part of the nation's official armed forces and run by the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Central Military Commission.

Mission possible: The military exercise reportedly aimed to improve the 'technical and tactical levels' of the servicemen

Tough tasks: The training comprised bomb-searching and bomb-defusing tasks for the troop's bomb disposal specialists

The news comes after the Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered his soldiers to step up training and be ready for war 'at all times' last month.

The leader urged members of the Chinese People's Liberation of Army, the world's largest army, 'not to fear death' in a mobilisation order signed by him on January 4.

The country's two million or so soldiers 'jumped into action' upon receiving their leader's instruction to get themselves prepared for combat, reported China's state media.
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.  Roswell police arrested a man on Wednesday who is accused of fatally shooting another man earlier this month in Roswell.

Jeffrey Contreras, 25, is charged with an open count of murder, tampering with evidence and possession of a firearm by a felon in the Feb. 5 death of 57-year-old Anthony Vasquez.

Contreras is also a suspect in the Jan. 22 death of Johnny Pacheco Jr., 26, according to the Chaves County Sheriffs Office.

Authorities believe Vasquez helped Contreras dispose of Pacheco Jr.s body and, during the investigation, CCSO deputies told detectives that Contreras may be cleaning up so there are no witnesses in the case.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Magistrate Court:

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Police responded to a shooting around 7:40 a.m. in the 600 block of Missouri and found a woman screaming for help outside an RV. Inside the RV, Vasquez had been shot in the back and he later died at the hospital.

Detectives found multiple bullet holes in the RV, one that went through Vasquezs pillow, and five 9mm bullet casings outside the RV. A nearby security camera caught a white SUV pull up before several gunshots are heard and the SUV drives off.

One acquaintance of Contreras told detectives he was the first person that comes to mind in Vasquezs killing due to them being involved in Pachecos death. Another said Contreras had told her he had to finish what he started and knew where Vasquez slept in the trailer.

On Feb. 15 Contreras and a woman were arrested at the Roswell Inn Motel. The woman told police she had driven Contreras the night of the homicide and, afterward, she took him to his cousins house in Albuquerque where he left the gun.

State Police searched the cousins home in Albuquerque and found the 9mm rifle with a 50-round drum magazine and bullets, with red coating, that matched those found at Vasquezs homicide. They also found a silencer for the rifle.

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During a visit to Cairo by Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Nayef bin Falah al-Hajraf on Feb. 7, Egypt agreed with the GCC on the need to contain Iranian influence in Yemen, to reach a political solution to the Yemeni crisis without regional interference and to back US and international efforts in this respect.

Gulf security is part of Egyptian national security, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said during his meeting with Hajraf.

In another meeting with Egypts Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Hajraf called on Iran to end its interference in Yemen and support for the Houthi militia in order to reach a peaceful settlement to the Yemeni war.

Shoukry concurred and expressed his countrys rejection of regional interference in Arab affairs.

Both officials praised the US administrations decision to appoint an American envoy to Yemen, which would contribute to reaching a political solution to the Yemeni crisis.

On Feb. 4, US President Joe Biden announced the end of US support for the Saudi-led military offensive in Yemen and named Timothy Lenderking as his special envoy to the war-torn country.

Saudi Arabia has led since 2015 a military coalition in support of the internationally recognized government in Yemen battling the Iranian-backed Houthis. The war in Yemen  which erupted in 2014 after Houthi rebels took control of the capital, Sanaa  has so far killed tens of thousands of people and caused the worlds worst humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations. Meanwhile, Houthis have repeatedly fired ballistic missiles and explosive drones from Yemen toward Saudi airports and oil facilities throughout the war.

Hassan Haridi, former assistant to the Egyptian foreign minister, said the situation in Yemen is complex due to regional interference and the Yemeni conflict has turned into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran rather than an internal Yemeni conflict. He urged the international community to intervene decisively and called for enforcing UN Security Council resolutions to instill peace and stability in the region.

Haridi told Al-Monitor via phone, There is a consensus between Egypt and the Arab Gulf states on rejecting Iranian interference in Yemen. Irans acts threaten Saudi national security and aim to bargain with the US to ease its economic sanctions over Tehrans nuclear program.

He noted that the Egyptian-Gulf consensus should encourage the international community to step up efforts to stop the war in Yemen and support the newly appointed US envoy to pressure Tehran to halt its interference, settle the crisis politically and stop the war.

Haridi argued that Biden's policy toward Iran differs from that of his predecessor, Donald Trump. Biden relies on diplomatic openness and not just on economic sanctions, which have not succeeded in persuading Tehran to relinquish its nuclear ambitions, he said.

Arab countries ought to unify their visions and ranks to preserve Arab national security from any Iranian threats, whether in Yemen or in other countries, Haridi said. Egyptian-Gulf relations are witnessing great momentum, especially after Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates on one hand and Qatar on the other signed a reconciliation pact in the Saudi city of al-Ula (in January). This is likely to strengthen an Arab consensus in the coming period to confront any regional interference, whether by Iran or Turkey.

Rakha Hassan, member of the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, told Al-Monitor that Egypt rejects any moves that compromise the security of the Gulf, which is part of its national security. There is an Arab consensus to confront any attempts to threaten the Arab national security whether in Yemen, Syria, Iraq or Libya, and to reject regional interventions, whether Iranian or Turkish, he said.

Hassan said there is a current US inclination, supported by the Arab Gulf states and Egypt, to settle the Yemeni crisis politically and stop Iranian interference in the region. This was manifested in (Bidens) decision to appoint a US envoy to Yemen in order to advance the political process, stop the war and implement UN Security Council Resolution 2216, the 2011 GCC Initiative and the outcomes of the (2015) Riyadh Conference on Yemeni reconciliation.

He added, The US administrations decision to remove the Houthi militia from the list of terrorist organizations is a message of appeasement, well received by the Houthis, that confirms the desire to settle the Yemeni crisis politically and peacefully. The Yemeni war has been lingering on for six years, and the Yemeni people are paying a high price for it as they reel under a crippling humanitarian tragedy. This war requires all parties to shoulder their responsibility to instill stability and security in the region. There is a Saudi-Arab will to endorse the US inclination to end the war and engage in peace negotiations.

Salah Abdullah, a former member of the parliamentary foreign relations committee, described the new US administrations inclination to stop the war in Yemen as a good and important step in line with the Egyptian-Gulf vision to keep Iran away from Yemen and Bab al-Mandab Strait, and to stop its interference in the global trade movement passing through the Suez Canal.

Abdullah told Al-Monitor over the phone, As part of their efforts to end Iranian interference in Yemen, Egypt and the Gulf may exercise economic pressure on Iran, whose economy is already suffering under US sanctions imposed because of its nuclear ambitions. Such a move could force Iran to stop its interference in Yemen and its threats to Arab national security. The Egyptian-Gulf consensus may also facilitate the work of the new US envoy by pressuring Houthis into accepting peace, ending the war and breaking ties with Tehran.

Abdullah argued that Iran is supporting the Houthis in Yemen to pressure Saudi Arabia to bargain with the United States to alleviate the sanctions that are burdening the Iranian economy.

The Egyptian-Gulf consensus (in Yemen) sends a message to Tehran that any threat to the Gulf is unacceptable and will not be allowed in order to preserve Arab national security, he added.

Abdullah ruled out an escalation in Yemen in light of the new inclination by the Biden administration to end the war and push diplomatic efforts to instill peace and stability in the region.
Credit: Samsung

Samsung Electronics has announced on its Newsroom webpage the development of a new kind of memory chip architecture called high-bandwidth memory, processing-in-memoryHBM-PIM. The architecture adds artificial intelligence processing to high-bandwidth memory chips. The new chips will be marketed as a way to speed up data centers, boost speed in high performance computers and to further enable AI applications.

Computer engineers have long been working to remove the bottlenecks that arise in computers due to the need to shuffle data back and forth between a computer's CPU and its memory chips. Most efforts to do so have involved adding small amounts of fast memory caches to the CPUsunfortunately, doing so increases energy consumption, leading to more heat production. In this new effort, the team at Samsung has taken the opposite approachgiving memory chips the ability to take on some of the processing. With the new HBM-PIM, Samsung has placed what it describes as "a DRAM optimized AI engine inside of a memory bank." This reduces the processing load on the CPU by offloading some of its work to remote databanks. Not only is the workload reduced, but the speed of processing is increased due to a reduction in data movement.

Specs for the HBM-PIM include a PCU running at 300MHz controlled by the host CPU using conventional memory commands. With this approach, the PCU can be instructed to carry out FP16 calculations directly inside of the DRAM unit. Notably, the HBM-PIM can operate as normal RAM when a system is running applications that have not been written for it.

Samsung notes that when they tested the new technology with their existing HBM2 Aquabolt systems, system performance doubled and energy consumption was reduced by 70%. They also noted that installing HBM-PIMs in existing systems would not require any other changes to in-place hardware or software. Their HBM-PIM technology is currently being tested with previously developed AI accelerators created by AI solution partnersthey expect to see the results in the first half of this year.

Representatives of the company will be presenting a paper they have written describing the new technology at this year's International Solid-State Circuits Virtual Conference.

Explore further Samsung brings cutting-edge ultraviolet light technology to DRAM production

 2021 Science X Network
[February 18, 2021] Smart & Final Increases Efficiencies for Its Suppliers and Ecosystem of Distribution Centers

DALLAS, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Symphony RetailAI, the leading global provider of integrated AI-enabled marketing, merchandising and supply chain solutions for FMCG retailers and manufacturers, announced today that Smart & Final is implementing Symphony RetailAI Vendor Portal and upgrading to the latest version of Symphony RetailAI Warehouse Management System (WMS).

Smart & Final, the smaller, faster grocery warehouse store, is one of the longest continuously operating food retailers in the United States and operates under two banners: Smart & Final and Smart & Final Extra!. The retailer wanted to update its IT infrastructure to reduce impacts to the flow of information and products to its distribution centers. To do this, it upgraded its Symphony RetailAI WMS solution to the latest version throughout six key distribution centers, which will lead to significant optimization of its warehouse processes. This project was a complicated undertaking, said Vishal Kumar, Group VP of IT, Smart & Final. However, the execution was very strong, limiting business interruption and delivering a really solid product to our distribution centers. Also, through implementing Symphony RetailAI Vendor Portal, Smart & Final will realize enhanced data and process collaboration for retailer and trade partners products, purchasing, distribution, inventory assortments, promotions, and forecasts, while gaining a single view of all this activity via a vendor dashboard. Its one thing to talk about how a project will go, but its another to state how it went, said Raju Keertipati, VP, Product Management and Analytics Platform, Smart & Final. The flawless execution builds a lot of confidence for the next distribution centers on the list. Its not just about what software does in the short term that makes it valuable to the organization, said Chris Koziol, CEO, Symphony RetailAI. The upgrade to our latest and state-of-theart WMS solution will support Smart & Finals trajectory of growth far into the future, which means it can focus on what counts  the day-to-day business of getting products in the hands of its customers.



Now that its distribution centers and warehouses are modernized and upgraded, Smart & Final is looking to deploy Symphony RetailAI Supply Chain and WMS Insights. Learn more: Warehouse Operations and Inventory Management

About Symphony RetailAI

Symphony RetailAI is the leading global provider of role-specific, AI-enabled revenue growth management solutions and customer-centric insights for retailers and CPG manufacturers across the entire value chain. Our proven, industry-leading, AI-enabled software, coupled with the industrys only conversational natural-language AI interface, CINDE, provides key users with proven prescriptive and preemptive recommendations that make it easy to identify end-to-end growth opportunities, activate plans and realize measurable profit and revenue growth. Our solutions are specific to key decision-maker roles focused on profitable growth across the retail value chain from source to consumer. With our strong global partner ecosystem, we serve more than 1,200 organizations worldwide  including 15 of the top 25 global grocery retailers, 25 of the top 25 global CPG manufacturers, thousands of retail brands, and hundreds of national and regional chains  all through the Microsoft Azure Cloud. Symphony RetailAI is a SymphonyAI company. More at Symphony RetailAI. About SymphonyAI

SymphonyAI is building the leading Enterprise AI company for the digital transformation of the business enterprise, across the most important and resilient growth verticals, including life sciences, healthcare, retail, consumer packaged goods, financial services, manufacturing and media. In each of these verticals SAI businesses have many of the leading enterprises as clients. SAI is backed by a $1 billion commitment from Dr. Romesh Wadhwani, a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist. Since its founding in 2017, SymphonyAI has grown rapidly to a combined revenue run rate of more than $300 million and over 2,200 talented leaders, data scientists, and other professionals. More at SymphonyAI. About Smart & Final

Smart & Final is the smaller, faster grocery warehouse store, headquartered near Los Angeles in Commerce, California. Smart & Final's 254 store locations offer quality products in a variety of sizes, saving customers time and money without a membership fee. Its larger format stores, Smart & Final Extra!, combine the warehouse store with traditional grocery offerings like farm-fresh produce and natural and organic options, to provide a one-stop shop for all. In business since 1871, Smart & Final remains committed to giving back to its communities through employee volunteer opportunities and donations to local nonprofits. Media Contact

Adrienne Newcomb

Ketner Group Communications (for Symphony RetailAI)

adrienne@ketnergroup.com



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Miranda Kerr spoke about her organic beauty line and how she spent Valentine's Day with her husband, Evan Spiegel, in an interview with Kyle and Jackie O on Thursday.

The Australian supermodel, 37, revealed she was 'still in lockdown' in the Los Angeles home she shares with the billionaire Snapchat co-founder, 30, and their children, Hart, two, and Myles, one.

The self-confessed 'homebody' also said Evan had 'spoiled' her on February 14.

Her man: Miranda Kerr spoke about her organic beauty line and how she spent Valentine's Day with her husband, Evan Spiegel, in an interview with The Kyle and Jackie O Show on Thursday

Radio host Jackie 'O' Henderson, asked the Sydney-born beauty if Evan had done 'anything amazing for Valentine's Day'.

Miranda replied: 'He spoiled me with wonderful flowers and we had a lovely dinner at home. It was beautiful.'

The catwalk star also said Evan 'works harder than any other man I know'.

'Homebody': The supermodel, 37, revealed she was 'still in lockdown ' in the LA home she shares with the billionaire Snapchat founder, 30, and their children, Hart, two, and Myles, one

She said the tech entrepreneur wakes up 'at 5:30 every morning', which prompted radio host Kyle Sandilands to cheekily point out that he gets up even earlier.

However, Kyle conceded that his workday finishes at 11am, while Evan often clocks up more than 13 hours a day.

Evan and Miranda married in 2017, after two years of dating.

Intimate: Miranda said of her Valentine's Day with Evan, 'He spoiled me with wonderful flowers and we had a lovely dinner at home. It was beautiful'

Mother-of-three Miranda also spoke about the philosophy behind her beauty line, KORA Organics.

'I just really have a strong feeling about putting healthy, powerful skincare out there for everyone to be able to use,' she told Kyle and Jackie O.

'I look at KORA as a way to help people. Their mind, body and their skin.'

The Australian/U.S.-based company was co-founded by the supermodel in 2009.
Facebook Has Pulled Its Big Gun and Fired on Australia: Former Facebook Executive

The former chief executive officer for Facebook Australia and New Zealand, Stephen Scheeler, said the social media giant has pulled out a big gun and fired on Australia by banning users from viewing and sharing news on the platform.

The news ban, which has spilt over also to affect government and emergency services, is the social media giants retaliation to the Morrison governments impending News Media Bargaining Code.

Clearly Facebook believes this issue in Australia is a big enough battle they have to win so in order to scare the horses weve seen a big gun come out and get fired, he said.

A Facebook message has appeared above the status update field on Facebook in Australia after the platform restricted posting Australian news links. (The Epoch Times)

Scheeler thinks Facebook is not being a good corporate citizen and going beyond normal negotiations, which has affected services that give Australians very practical and essential information.

If this was a Chinese company not an American one doing the same thing wed be up in arms saying it was an attack on democracy, Scheeler told Sky News.

Scheeler continued, saying Facebook feels not enough value is being put to the organisation with the new bargaining code by the Australian government. Therefore, the decision was to pull down news altogether to not be covered by the code.

I think Facebook may eventually regret this day, he said.

Major news outlets including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, The Age, and The Epoch Times, discovered on Thursday morning that the tech giant had implemented an outright ban across their Facebook pages.

However, a swathe of non-media related Facebook pages were also caught in the crossfire, with websites for the state Queensland Health Department, the national Bureau of Meteorology, members of Parliament, and even non-profit organisations such as 1800 Respect and trade unions saw their pages wiped.

Facebook has restricted Queensland Healths Facebook page in its move to restrict sharing Australian news on its platform. (The Epoch Times)

This throws a monkey wrench into Australian democracy, Scheeler said.

This is more than just your news feed not having your favourite news; this is drilling into the heart of how we share information in a free democracy like Australia.

Daniel Y. Teng has contributed to this article.
The Australasian College for Emergency Medicine has previously explained these complex, interlinked problems, and their urgency. But what it all means, quite simply, is there are not enough beds in our WA hospitals and EDs to accommodate all the sick and injured people who come to us for help every day. And this is very dangerous. If you, or a friend or family member have an accident, or become very ill, and seek help at a hospital that is access blocked then you, or they, are 10 per cent more likely to die. Access block is a health and hospital-wide issue manifest in the ED with overcrowding. The consequences are drastic, affecting all patients.

Ideally, hospitals should be 85 per cent full of patients  this gives wiggle room to deal with the complexities of managing patients in the 21st century and the predictable peaks and troughs of emergency admissions. But today, and every day, the hospitals in WA are close to 100 per cent full  or worse. Loading WA is the wealthiest state in Australia. But we have less hospital beds per capita than other states. The Australian Medical Association WA has said we need 440 more beds just to ensure we are at equal capacity to our poorer interstate counterparts. The last five months have been the busiest in history in EDs. Weve repeatedly communicated our growing concerns to the state government, publicly and privately. Recently, they said they couldnt engage, citing the election caretaker period.

Fine. But that doesnt stop them outlining their plans should they win. After ACEM publicly called on parties contesting the election to release plans to fix ramping, Zak Kirkup and Liberal Party of WA did so. They committed $240 million to various services, should they win. We welcome their plan to invest in community services. We appreciate that they understand ramping is a symptom of hospital and indeed health system overcrowding. We are glad that they have provided a plan. But, it is not enough. It is more of the same: politicians again talking about improving community services as ramping and hospital crowding gets worse. Weve had more than a decade of politicians and health management insisting hospital overcrowding will be fixed if only we can improve things in the community. Things have just steadily worsened.

Community services and managing demand for ED and hospital services are certainly needed. But they will not solve the problems of ramping and access block, because the people we are treating are too sick or too hurt to be treated at a community level. Loading Hospital access block is categorically not about patients who should see their GP. To say this obfuscates the problem as such patients with mild ailments neither need a bed (in ED) nor admission to hospital. It is a frequently posed excuse that fudges responsibility for the problem from federal (responsible for GP funding) to state (responsible for hospital funding). So what will solve the problem?

I am becoming increasingly convinced that the solution is very simple. We need more hospital beds to put people in and more staff to look after them. Ideally, we build another hospital the size of Royal Perth. The Liberals promised $240 million. We probably need about six times that. And we can afford it. Other states with considerably less wealth are building new hospitals. Why arent we? Recently, I had a lovely elderly patient, nearly 100, in the ED. She had fallen and broken her hip. The hospital was so full that I had no space to see her. She was stuck in the waiting room  in agony  for five hours. This is the human face of these issues. It is the elderly woman with a broken hip, sitting in pain, in the wealthiest state in a wealthy country, because there is no room.

So, we, the emergency physicians of WA  the doctors who are responsible for caring for you when you need it the most  call on Mark McGowan and the Labor Party, who are up for election, to tell us how, and when, they are going to fix this if re-elected. Dont tinker at the margins. Dont say people should just see their GPs. We need more hospital beds. We need more staff. And we need them now, before the next leak of COVID-19, and before another elderly woman  it could be your grandmother  sits in pain for five hours. Or, worse, dies because there was no capacity in the healthcare system of this wealthy state to provide the care she needed. In the past 18 months we have seen patients die after ramping in other Australian jurisdictions. If things dont change, its a matter of when, not if, the same happens here. The worst part? All the warning signs are there. We can, and must, do something about it.
One of Australias most senior air force officers warned that changes proposed by the former chief of Defence Science and Technologys aerospace division, scientist Dong Yang Wu, threatened the operational capability of the nations military aircraft.

Defence Department documents reveal Dr Wus 2017 proposals to outsource structural integrity testing of aircraft and focus on future technologies were opposed by Air Vice-Marshal Catherine Roberts, who said they were not an area that can be compromised or degraded.

Former chief of the Defence Science and Technology aerospace division, Dong Yang Wu.

Dr Wu, a Chinese-Australian scientist with no previous Defence experience who was recruited from Boeing China, was appointed to the position of chief of aerospace at Defence Science and Technology, part of the Department of Defence, in 2017 ahead of two internal candidates. She left two years later for undisclosed reasons.

It is unclear to what extent the changes proposed by Dr Wu in her 10-year plan for the division were adopted. A Defence spokesman said the Defence Science and Technology groups ability to support structural integrity tests, fatigue tests and conduct forensic investigations were retained, under Dr Wus proposals. Changes under the reforms included expanding partnering with industry and academia to support structural and fatigue-testing, the spokesman said.
Donville Barrow slowly shuffled into the University of Bridgeports Wheeler Recreation Center Tuesday afternoon, aided by the cane in his right hand, to get his COVID-19 vaccine shot.

Employees from Bridgeport Hospital checked him in and escorted him to one of the 20 vaccination stations set up on the basketball court. Within minutes, he was sitting in an observation area, his first dose completed.

The 83-year-old city native had been reluctant to get vaccinated until some buddies got it, so I decided Id take a shot at it too, Barrow said as he placed a light blue sticker that said Im vaccinated. Crush COVID-19 on his sweatshirt.

I didnt even feel it. Testing was much worse than this, when they were sticking that Q-tip up my nose, Barrow said.

Barrow, who is Black, lives on Wells Street, a short drive from the college campus, and the proximity of the clinic was one of the reasons he decided to get vaccinated.

Barrow and other city residents are the very people officials are struggling to reach with vaccines  for while the state remains among the best in the country in terms of overall vaccinations, it hasnt been as successful getting shots to the people who have been disproportionately impacted by COVID  those who are Black and Hispanic.

In fact, concerns about vaccine equity are so strong that the state Department of Public Health plainly spelled out in a recent memo to its vaccinators that A disproportionate share of COVID-19 vaccine has gone to wealthier and whiter residents.

At the epicenter of the racial disparity issue is Bridgeport, the states largest city and the place where state officials are now concentrating their efforts.

Bridgeport: A case in point

Bridgeport, where non-Hispanic whites make up about 20 percent of the population, has ranked near the bottom in terms of percentage of the population that has received a shot, according to data released by the state Department of Public Health.

Since those number were released two weeks ago, the state has assigned two DPH employees, including a former local health director, to work with city officials. Interim DPH Commissioner Deidre Gifford has held multiple meetings, including one over the weekend, with both city officials and vaccinators to determine what can be done to increase the number of vaccination clinics in the city.

City officials have balked at the states numbers, arguing that the percentage of people vaccinated will naturally be lower because of the citys larger population. But when measured by the number of doses administered, Bridgeport compares favorably with other cities such as Hartford, New Haven and Norwalk.

At a City Council meeting last week, Bridgeport Director of Emergency Services Scott Appleby said the state wasnt giving the city enough vaccine doses.

Give me 3,500 doses, and well get it done in five weeks, he said, adding that part of the problem is that the vaccines were going to hospitals, which were vaccinating non-Bridgeport residents.

The blame-the-state mantra has angered some state officials, who believe the city fell behind because its health director quit in mid-January and because the city was slow to roll out a vaccine plan with only one large clinic, at Central High School, two days a week. The city held its first mobile vaccine clinic Tuesday, vaccinating about 38 residents at the Grant Street apartments.

By contrast, New Haven has held numerous mobile clinics at senior centers and apartment complexes across that city.

The obstacles in Bridgeport dont stop there. One of two federally qualified health centers, Optimus Health Care, which was instrumental in conducting mobile COVID-19 testing clinics last spring, has been hamstrung by staff shortages and has been running vaccine clinics for only two weeks at one senior center.

In addition, several religious leaders whose churches hosted testing sites in the spring said they are surprised no one has reached out about doing the same with vaccines.

Meanwhile, the state has given large hospital systems most of its vaccine allotment for mass vaccination clinics  a good way to vaccinate lots of people quickly, but not necessarily the way to reach the minority populations in inner cities who have less access to computers and transportation.

In an interview Tuesday Appleby said the state is not running the citys health department  in fact, an interim director, Terron Jones, was named over the weekend. He added, We know our community and its needs better than anyone.

Appleby acknowledged that Health Director Lisa Morrisseys resignation on Jan. 15 was a setback.

We finalized our vaccine plan on Jan. 16, Appleby said. The problem we had was getting everybody to sit back down at the table and talk about getting vaccine to Bridgeport residents. Every entity at that time was working on their own individual plans, and that doesnt necessarily cover only Bridgeport residents.

Appleby said that in many instances, clinics run by St. Vincents Medical Center in Bridgeport, which is owned by Hartford HealthCare, and Bridgeport Hospital, owned by Yale New Haven Health, were drawing people from outside of the city because they serve the surrounding communities as well.

We understand that the state wants to give vaccine to a provider with a larger patient base and that can do large numbers of shots, and Im not saying that 75-year-olds from from Shelton or Milford shouldnt get shots  but some of those doses should be earmarked for Bridgeport residents, Appleby said.

A lot of Im gonnas'

Sen. Marilyn Moore, D-Bridgeport, who wrote a letter to Gifford a few weeks ago asking the state to step in and help the city figure out how to develop and implement a comprehensive vaccine plan.

Moore said the whole vaccine rollout reminds her of when Bridgeport lagged behind in testing while other cities already had functioning mass testing sites. While she is encouraged the city has hired someone with a public health degree to oversee the health department, Moore wants to see more than just talk.

Everyone says they are gonna do something. Im gonna do this, Im gonna do a mass clinic,' Moore said. Theres a lot of Im gonnas, and nothing is getting done to vaccinate the people that need it.

But help is on the way.

In the past week, state and city officials, community leaders and vaccination partners have been meeting to discuss how to get shots into the arms of Bridgeport residents.

Besides Yale New Haven Healths mass vaccination clinic at the University of Bridgeport, Hartford Hospital is planning to open one on March 8 at Sacred Heart University. Hartford Hospital also is taking over the clinic at Central High School as of Monday, Feb. 22.

But Dr. James P. Cardon, chief clinical integration officer at Hartford HealthCare, said it will take more than mass clinics to solve the problem.

We recognize the mass vaccination sites will work for some people, but they arent going to solve the issues that we have in our cities, Cardon said. Mass vaccinations are not going to address a lot of these communities  thats where we need to spend our time and attention. We need to go find and hold peoples hands and help them get vaccinated.

Little silos

With the hospitals taking over the larger vaccination clinics, the city can focus on holding more mobile pop-up clinics targeting certain areas, Appleby said.

The city held its first mobile clinic Tuesday at the Grant Street apartments, where about 38 people were signed up for shots. By contrast, New Haven officials have already conducted about half a dozen mobile clinics at senior centers and apartment complexes across that city.

Bridgeport officials have scheduled mobile clinics at Washington Heights and the Barnum House that already have at least 50 residents signed up for vaccinations.

All of our plans are linked now. Were not doing this in our own little silos anymore, Appleby said. Everyone is now focused on getting shots to everyone.

Cardon said Hartford HealthCare plans to work with city officials to run mobile clinics as well. He said hospital officials have reached out to the Bridgeport Diocese about using some of its churches.

We have to work with trusted leadership, which are faith-based communities, or the social services that are already there who touch these people everyday, Cardon said. We are asking what do we need to do to help reach people. We arent going to tell you what to do, but mold ourselves into what would work for you.

Cardon said reaching the most vulnerable populations in the big cities is the biggest challenge vaccinators face.

It is going to be completely unacceptable to get to the other side of this and realize that we missed it, Cardon said. Theres no reason we cant do it. We know where our problems are, we know what the challenges are to do it. Weve got to educate, reassure and create a sense of real trust and then make sure we are providing real access to the vaccine.

Staff constraintsIn the spring, Optimus Health Care played a key role in expanding COVID testing, bringing its mobile van to several church parking lots, but it has been underused so far in the vaccine roll-out.

As one of two federally qualified health centers in the city, Optimus will soon be getting vaccine doses directly through a federal government program, although how much it will receive is unknown at this point.

The center just started doing clinics at the Hall Neighborhood Senior Center a couple of weeks ago because they have had a hard time hiring staff, according to its director, Dr. Catherine Rivera.

We have a big need because we have a high population of clients that are underserved, Rivera said.

At the senior center, the staff helps the residents fill out the paperwork and sign up for the clinics. Rivera said she runs two vaccination teams at each clinic, which total 16 to 20 people.

We all want to do more, but right now we are limited by staff constraints, Rivera said.

Appleby said he learned of Optimus staffing issues in a call earlier this week with Rivera and DPH officials.

We can get them personnel, if you let us know, Appleby said. We have a medical reserve corps as well as a Sacred Heart medical reserve corps that we can activate if we need to.

Appleby said Optimus is a key partner in reaching people the city needs to vaccinate, since many of them are their clients. He said there are plans to have Optimus open a mass vaccination site at Harding High School.

No pleasure in all these funerals

Mount Aery Baptist Church on Frank Street, in the center of The Hollow neighborhood, was one of the first churches in the state last spring to host a COVID-19 testing site in its parking lot, but Pastor Anthony L. Bennett said no one has approached church officials about doing something similar with vaccinations.

It seems as though the numbers of people getting tested went up when they used the churches, and if it was true then, it would probably be true with the vaccine now, Bennett said.

Mount Aery has between 1,500-2,000 members, and Bennett said the discussions about the vaccine are mixed.

There are some people who are clearly hesitant to get vaccinated, and then there are members who are eager to get it because it is one step closer to bringing some normality to their lives, Bennett said.

But Bennett said right now there isnt much access in The Hollow, as he doesnt know of one clinic that has been held there. Bennett has started telling people to go the Walgreens on nearby North Avenue, which just started vaccinations last week.

Bennett said mass vaccination sites at the other end of the city wont help people near his church and more outreach needs to be done in the community, whether it is through Optimus or other mobile clinics.

A lot of us take for granted our mobility, but there are many people who dont have transportation, and it is a challenge to think they will go to the University of Bridgeport or to Central High School to get a shot, Bennett said.

Mount Aery just suffered a COVID-19 death that was close to home. A long-time church deacon, Primus Jackson III, recently died of COVID. He was 68. There have been others.

There is no pleasure in doing all of these funerals, Bennett said.

The pastor did have some good news. He recently spoke to a long-time parishioner who got vaccinated when a team from the city came to her house to give her the shot.

But she lives in New Haven.
Houston, TX, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dr. Mae Jemison is already in the history books: NASA astronaut, first woman of color in space, physician in developing countries, engineer, educator, schools named in her honor and even the first real astronaut to appear on Star Trek.

Now Dr. Jemisons book, Find Where the Wind Goes: Moments From My Life 2nd edition is set to energize a new generation. Available now for pre-order and in bookstores on February 23, Find Where the Wind Goes shares candid, humorous and heartfelt stories of life events from her childhood to becoming who she intended to be  space explorer, scientist, dancer and positive force. Dr. Jemison states, I wrote this book to share with my 16-year-old self some of the adventures she would have in life, and just as important, clues to how she made it through.

In the 2nd edition of Find Where the Wind Goes, Dr. Jemison adds details to stories that are highlighted with 16 graphic-novel style illustrations she collaborated with artist Michael Ocasio and Studio NYC to create. Expanding on her childhood and her time at NASA, she offers new musings on the present, from civil unrest to what shes learned from cats. With camaraderie and respect for the intellect of the reader, Dr. Jemison writes of going from a fear of heights as a child to dancing in orbit on the Space Shuttle Endeavour.

Chronicling growing up on the Southside of Chicagotagging along with her brother and sister, going to dance class and libraries, navigating science projects and gang territories, starting engineering at Stanford University at age sixteen, medical school, and working in Africa Dr. Jemison takes the reader on an amazing journey as she tested the limits, hers and others, especially adults.

There are so many parallels between when I was growing up and the world teenagers find themselves in today human rights, social justice, an explosion of science and technology, space exploration, growing awareness and connections across the globe, evolving music and art, and individuals asserting their rights to participate, said Dr. Jemison. My story is about finding who you intend to be and trying to assert who you are as a teen as the world is changing around you. I hope my story provides some clues to making it through while keeping your smile, integrity and hopefulness.

Find Where the Wind Goes 2nd edition is the first project from Dr. Jemisons new company, Signal Hill Road Publishing, the first independent Black-owned, woman-owned publisher focused on the connections between science, culture, technology and social issues.

Find Where the Wind Goes is available for pre-order at all major booksellers including Indiebound, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Walmart, and releases in hardcover on February 23, 2021.

Review copies of Find Where the Wind Goes are available to accredited media upon request.

ABOUT DR. MAE JEMISON

Dr. Mae Jemisona physician, engineer, educator, social scientist, entrepreneur and former NASA astronautwas the first woman of color in the world to go into space. Today, a leading voice for science literacy and social responsibility, Dr. Jemison is a member on global non-profit and Fortune 500 Boards. Dr. Jemison leads the 100 Year Starship global initiative to ensure that the capabilities for human interstellar travel exist within the next 100 years while every step of the way enhancing life here on Earth. She founded two technology companies and the non-profit Dorothy Jemison Foundation for Excellence which designed and implemented the international science camp The Earth We Share, training hundreds of teachers and thousands of students nationally and worldwide. She was the Area Peace Corps Medical Officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia in West Africa, and an Environmental Studies Professor at Dartmouth College. A member of prestigious National Academy of Medicine and the National Womens Hall of Fame, Dr. Jemison is the recipient of many awards and multiple honorary doctorates. She was the first real astronaut to appear on the Star Trek television series, in 1993 was one of People Magazines Worlds Fifty Most Beautiful People and is a LEGO mini figure. Growing up in Chicago she entered Stanford University at age sixteen, earning degrees in Chemical Engineering and African and Afro-American studies. Dr. Jemison earned her medical degree from Cornell University. She resides in Houston and adores cats.

ABOUT SIGNAL HILL ROAD PUBLISHING

Signal Hill Road Publishing, LLC (SHRP) is a new company dedicated to publishing books and products highlighting the inescapable interconnection between science and culture, technology and societal aspirations, people and responsibility. Black-owned and woman-owned by Dr. Jemison and partners Jason Batt and Todd Walton, SHRP is dedicated to showcasing diverse voices to publish Stories to elevate and ideas that dare. Inspired by Signal Hill, standing high above the port city of Freetown, Sierra Leone on the coast of West Africa where Dr. Jemison lived as the Area Peace Corps Medical Officer, Signal Hill Road itself twists and turns and provides a beautiful view of city, beaches, and the Atlantic Ocean that flows all the way to the Americas.

Attachments

The term RINO, an abbreviation for Republican in Name Only, has been used for yearswithin the Republican Party. It is meant to be derogatory. I have never seen a definition or had it explained to me. So, I started thinking of what it might mean. In doing so I fell back to looking at Republican presidents who traditionally were considered the titular head of the party. Their biographies are the bedrock of the Republican Party.

Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president. He freed the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation. He opposed the Know Nothing Party, which was against Irish and German immigrants and was anti-Semitic. He passed the 13th amendment to our Constitution, banning slavery in our country. He kept the Confederate battle flag out of Washington. Was he a RINO?

Ulysses S. Grant was the second Republican president. He took office after his predecessor was impeached. Grants predecessor did not attend his inauguration. As a general, Grant defeated the insurrection by the southern states leaders, also known as the Civil War. He prevented the Confederate flag from reaching the Capitol. He instituted martial law in the South to stop the Ku Klux Klan and the Rifle Clubs from lynching Blacks and Republicans. Was he a RINO?

Theodore Roosevelt was a Republican president at the turn of the last century. He invited a Black man to dinner in the White House. He projected the United States to global prominence by sending ships of the United States Navy around the world. He mediated the peace treaty between Russia and Japan for which he received the Nobel Peace prize. He established the National Parks. He built the Panama Canal. Was he a RINO?

Dwight D. Eisenhower was a mid-20th century Republican president. As a general, he defeated the fascists in World War II. He integrated southern schools. He built the interstate highway system. He founded the United States space program. Was he a RINO?

Richard Nixon was a Republican president. When he lost the close 1960 election to John F. Kennedy, he decided not to contest the results for the good of the country. Later as president, he opened the door to China and made detente with the Russians. He ended the Vietnam war. He ended the draft. He established the Environmental Protection Agency. When the House Judiciary reported articles of impeachment, he resigned his office. Was he a RINO?

Ronald Reagan was a Republican president. He called the Soviet Union the Evil Empire. He held the Soviet Union back from its ambitions for empire. He reached across the aisle to Democratic House Speaker Tip ONeill to enact a comprehensive immigration reform bill that provided a path to citizenship. He rallied the world behind America as the shining City on the Hill. Was he a RINO?

George H.W. Bush was a Republican president. He ended the Cold War with victory for the Western democracies. He repelled the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. He signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). In defeat, he graciously handed the presidency to his successor. Was he a RINO?

George W Bush was a Republican president at the beginning of the 21st century. He rallied the nation after 9/11. He reached across the aisle to Sen. Edward Kennedy to enact No Child Left Behind. In a peaceful transfer of power, this Bush graciously handed the presidency to the nations first Black president. Was he a RINO?

The Republican Party grew out of the ashes of the Whig Party. The abolitionists within the Whig Party evolved into Republicans. The faction of the Whig Party that were racists, anti-Semites, anti-German and anti-Irish went to the Know Nothing Party. Todays Republican Party seems to be at a crossroads, similar to what faced the Whig Party.

I am a proud Republican. My fellow Republicans would do well to remember the proud history of the Grand Old Party and ask themselves: Am I a real Republican or a Republican in Name Only?

Thomas Quirk is a life-long Republican who attended his first Republican National Convention in 1968. He is a retired civil trial lawyer who has represented the Texas Republican Party and candidates in election matters.

Hong Kong greenlighted emergency use Thursday of a Covid-19 vaccine developed by Chinese drugmaker Sinovac Biotech Ltd. after approving the Pfizer-BioNTech shot last month.

The first batch of 1 million doses of the vaccine will arrive at Hong Kong from Beijing Friday by air transport arranged by Cathay Pacific Airways, the company said.

Sinovacs inactivated vaccine, known as CoronaVac, requires two shots given 28 days apart. The vaccine won conditional-use approval from Chinas National Medical Products Administration earlier this month. Outside China, it has won emergency-use authorization in Turkey, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and Laos, according to the company. Zimbabwe also is set to register the vaccine for approval soon.

Hong Kongs health secretary, Sophia Chan, said the vaccine met the "safety, efficacy and quality requirements specified in Hong Kong emergency situations" and the benefits outweigh the risks.

The Hong Kong governments expert advisory panel recommended approval of CoronaVac after reviewing new data from Sinovac showing an efficacy rate of more than 62% when two doses are administered. That is higher than the 50% rate reported last month by Brazils Butantan Institute, which partnered with Sinovac on trials in the country. Tests in Indonesia and Turkey showed effectiveness rates ranging from 65% to more than 90%.

Hong Kong is set to begin vaccination of the public Feb. 26, starting with people older than 60 and front-line workers. Online reservations will open Feb. 23.

The city government said it placed orders for 22.5 million doses of vaccine for its 7.5 million population from developers including BioNTech, Sinovac and AstraZeneca, although it has not yet approved the AstraZeneca shot. A first batch of 1 million doses of BioNTech vaccines are expected to arrive by the end of this month.

The city government said 2.4 million people are qualified for first-batch inoculation while vaccine supplies will be enough for 1 million people by the end of February.

Read more

In Depth: Why Vaccines Wont Soon End the Covid-19 Pandemic

The city government plans to set up a HK$1 billion ($129 million) fund to offer compensation to people who suffer adverse reactions from the vaccination as part of efforts to encourage the public to take the shots.

Hong Kong recorded a total of 10,812 Covid-19 cases as of Thursday, with 197 deaths. The city relaxed social distancing rules Thursday after more than two months of strict lockdown measures.

Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com).

Download our app to receive breaking news alerts and read the news on the go.
We have an opportunity to modernize our grid with increased efficient use of renewable and alternative energy sources. A smart decentralized grid with distributed storage will not only improve the power networks efficiency, but could also prevent millions from going without power in the next severe weather event.

Paul F. Schleicher

Aachen, Germany

To the Editor:

Senator Ted Cruz flew with his family to Cancun this week as millions of Texans shivered through a winter storm that turned deadly after vast swaths of the states fragile electrical grid got knocked offline by freezing temperatures and snow. Mr. Cruzs tone-deaf trip to Mexico is the perfect analogy for the states Republican leadership at this moment.

I have friends in Austin who are seething mad at the state leaders who are shirking any responsibility and instead blaming renewable energy sources for the current debacle. For years, these same leaders have arrogantly touted a dangerously unregulated power grid, but now the chickens have come home to roost. It remains to be seen if voters across the state will remember this moment when it comes time to cast ballots.

Cody Lyon

Brooklyn

To the Editor:

As Texas and other states deal with blackouts, the authorities should look to Canada, which is even colder and for much longer periods every year, and where no such problems exist. Our whole infrastructure and home construction are light-years better for both summer and winter.

Last year our furnace broke down because a simple safety switch failed, and it was 40 below zero Fahrenheit. Not a problem for us. We have two natural gas fireplaces, and they kept the house toasty warm as if nothing had happened to the furnace.
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The global rose oil market size is expected to reach USD 442.0 million by 2025, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc., expanding at a CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period. The market is driven by rising demand for the natural and organic ingredients in the fragrance and cosmetic industry. Moreover, various antimicrobial and anti-bacterial properties are anticipated to increase the product demand in the pharmaceutical sector over the forecast period.

The market is driven by shift in the consumer preference towards the organic products used in the cosmetic industry. Moreover, proven skin benefits provided by the rose oil in curing various diseases is a key factor fueling the market growth. Rose oil also helps in curing depression and irritation, thereby maintaining a good wellness state of a body.

Rose oil has also been used by the fragrance companies in the manufacturing of various products. It is believed that rose aroma provides calmness and relaxation to the mind due to its pleasing aroma. This is one of the reasons why rose oil cultivated by the conventional method has higher demand in the fragrance and perfume industry.

Browse Details of Report @ https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/rose-oil-market

Various strategic initiatives such as product launches, mergers and acquisitions, and capacity expansion are adopted by many manufacturers to retain their position in the market. Some of the key players in the market are Sigma-Aldrich, Inc.; Ernesto Ventos SA; Alteya Organics, LLC; Givaudan SA; Firmenich International SA; Symrise AG; V. MANE FILS SA; Robertet SA; International Flavors & Fragrances Inc.; and BERJE INC. Production of raw material for rose oil is highly concentrated in Bulgaria and Turkey only.

Rose Oil Market Report Highlights

 Organic products are projected to ascend at the fastest CAGR of 8.7% over the forecast period

 The fragrance and cosmetics application segment dominated the global market with an overall share of 70.1% in 2018

 Europe dominated the global rose oil market in 2018, accounting for 40.2% share of the global revenue. This trend is projected to continue over the next few years

 Asia Pacific is anticipated to witness the fastest growth in the coming years due to increasing disposable income in India, South Korea, China, and Japan.

Rose Oil Market Segmentation

Grand View Research has segmented the global rose oil market on the basis of product, application, and region:

Rose Oil Product Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2015 - 2025)

 Organic

 Conventional

Rose Oil Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million, 2015 - 2025)

 Fragrance & Cosmetics

 Pharmaceuticals

 Food & Beverages


Roads have reopened and power is expected to be restored Friday morning to nearly every Entergy customer as warming temperatures signal the near-end of a nightmarish winter week.

By noon Thursday the Texas Department of Transportation had reopened all Beaumont roads, and Entergy signaled that most outstanding power outages could be resolved as soon as Thursday night.

Entergy is still working on restoring power in its service area, but most of Jefferson and Orange counties had service returned by Thursday afternoon.

By 3 p.m., there were about 8,000 Entergy customers without power, down from 11,700 early in the day. Almost 20,000 people had been in the dark the night before when the utility asked for customers to keep conserving power as it dealt with new issues from sleet at the northern end of its multi-state territory.

Representatives with Entergy said workers would be shifting focus to the Conroe and Huntsville area, where over 12,000 customers combined were still out of power.

In the meantime, the companys grid manager extended its advisory for utilities to prepare for potential outage order until Saturday.

Along with downed lines and energy issues, the utility is also battling issues with sensory equipment used to help customers track outages in the area on its website.

We continue to experience a delay in reflecting restoration status on the outage map, causing temporary discrepancies in information presented and available through two-way text and outage reporting status updates, representatives wrote in an update. We are working to correct the issues and apologize for the inconvenience.

A final bluster of frozen rain swept the region Thursday morning, but rising temperatures melted ice and snow off a majority of roads.

Temperatures were expected to plunge back into the 20s overnight Thursday, said National Weather Service meteorologist Andy Patrick, but a warming trend and dry conditions will begin Friday.

One last freeze is in the forecast for Friday night before a mild weekend with highs in the 60s and lows in the 40s.

While elecricity is returning, water systems across the region continue to experience problems.

Boil-water notices are in effect for many cities across the region resulting from issues with water pressure caused by thousands of pipes in schools, homes and businesses that ruptured during the hard freeze.

As officials work to identify leaks and balance the low-water pressure, homeowners and school officials are beginning to make assesmnets and repairs.

Nederland reported modest progress in restoring pressure to its city system, but was still asking for residents to conserve water as of Thursday evening.

Groves was able to make further progress with its system issues, but officials said another 36 hours would be needed before regular service could possibly be restored.

Officials in Port Neches said crews made significant progress on restoring pressure, but still asked for water conservation so it could end the boil water notice.

Beaumont also was still under a boil water advisory Thursday afternoon with no projected end, but water pressure had started to stabilize in some areas.

The city also decided to open public offices Friday, which it had closed during the storm while water was still out for most of the area.

Residents across the region are still dealing with leaks in their homes and business, which contributed to the issues with municipal water systems, and caused some extensive home damage.

The Texas Department of Insurance urged residents to document their damage with photos and videos, and contact their adjusters as soon as possible if they experienced water damage. TDI also warned of fraud.

Jefferson County had to issue its own fraud alert Thursday, warning residents to be on the lookout for door-to-door contractors or people soliciting repair work.

Officials are urging everyone to conserve water and electricity as services are restored.

Buna ISD delayed opening their schools for the rest of the week as Special Service Director John Blim and others worked to repair and replace pipes that burst amid the freezing temperatures.

Weve had multiple pipes bust at our elementary and high schools, Buna Superintendent Donny Lee told The Enterprise. This has caused our heaters to go out and water to leak in multiple places.

Repairs are expected to be made in time for school to open as scheduled on Monday.

Busted pipes have also caused Little-Cypress Mauriceville to cancel classes as crews work to repair weather-related damage.

As the dangerous weather conditions continue and converge with both power and water crises across the state, the Texas Education Agency has taken the relatively rare step of extending missed-day waivers into next week for schools that have to remain online or remain closed due to damaged facilities or loss of power.

Many schools and colleges across the region do not plan on opening until Monday, with some like Silbee and Nederland asking students to attend school virtually as power permits.

isaac.windes@hearstnp.com

twitter.com/isaacdwindes

jacob.dick@beaumontenterprise.com

twitter.com/jd_journalism
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 07:18:13|Editor: huaxia

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A worker loads goods to be shipped to China inside a bonded warehouse in Cork, southern Ireland, Feb. 18, 2021. The first batch of Irish products to be exhibited at the upcoming China International Consumer Products Expo is ready for shipment from Ireland's southern port city of Cork to China's Hainan Province, where the event will be held, sources told Xinhua on Thursday. (Association of Chinese Enterprises in Ireland/Handout via Xinhua)

DUBLIN, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The first batch of Irish products to be exhibited at the upcoming China International Consumer Products Expo is ready for shipment from Ireland's southern port city of Cork to China's Hainan Province, where the event will be held, sources told Xinhua on Thursday.

"Part of the exhibits have been loaded into a 40-foot container at a bonded warehouse nearby Cork Port this morning and it is ready to go soon," said Weng Jianglai, a member of Association of Chinese Enterprises in Ireland, which is authorized by the China International Consumer Products Expo, also known as Hainan Expo, to be responsible for exhibitors recruitment in Ireland.

Weng said a total of 13 Irish or Ireland-registered companies have confirmed their attendance to the expo with more likely to join in.

According to Weng, an Ireland Pavilion will be set up at the Hainan Expo to display a variety of Irish products to Chinese consumers, ranging for world-known Irish Whiskey, infant formula milk powders to high-quality agri-food and tourism products.

"Our recruitment work has received strong support from the Chinese embassy in Ireland, the Irish embassy in China and Enterprise Ireland, demonstrating the great importance attached by both sides to Hainan Expo," said Weng.

Enterprise Ireland is an Irish state-agency responsible for helping local companies market their products overseas.

Scheduled to be held in Haikou, capital city of Hainan Province, on May 7-10, Hainan Expo aims to speed up the construction of Hainan Free Trade Port and demonstrate China's firm commitment to further opening-up and sharing business opportunities with the rest of the world, according to the expo's official website.

Chinese authorities last year released a master plan for the Hainan Free Trade Port, aiming to build the whole of Hainan Island into a globally influential, high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.

Under the plan, a zero-tariff system will be fully implemented in the province before 2025, according to a promotion brochure released by organizers of Hainan Expo.

"All the products to be displayed by Irish exhibitors at Hainan Expo will be exempt from import duties, import VAT and consumption tax," said Weng, adding that this holds a special attraction for Irish exhibitors.

Besides, exhibitors said that they see a huge potential in the Chinese market, particularly the growing demand for Irish high-quality consumer products in China, according to Weng.

Data from Ireland's Central Statistics Office showed that the bilateral goods trade between Ireland and China has witnessed a rapid growth over the last few years.

In 2020, China was Ireland's fifth largest trade partner in the world and largest trade partner in Asia, both in terms of exports and imports, according to the Central Statistics Office.

Ireland exported a total of 10.56 billion euros (about 12.8 billion U.S. dollars) worth of goods to China last year, up 18.25 percent from 2019, while its imports from China amounted to 6.21 billion euros, up 18.52 percent year-on-year.(1 euro=1.21 U.S. dollars) Enditem
LONDON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Today S&P Global has released two additional levels of ESG information that inform a company's ESG Scores, providing deeper layers of insights and expanded transparency. An additional 400 data points have been made available for each company, based on their applicability and relevance to informing a company's overall scoring assessment. The additional data points will help markets better understand companies' environmental and social impact as well as its governance standards.

S&P Global has almost 10,000 ESG Scores, allowing investors to bring ESG information together with over 200 other datasets including point-in-time financials, Trucost Environmental Data, Panjiva Supply Chain Intelligence, people data, ownership, corporate relationship, key developments, and more.

Sonia Kim, Head of ESG Product Development at S&P Global, said, "We are excited to offer this deeper level of granularity to our clients. The additional data points will be particularly helpful for the investors who are increasingly seeking to integrate sustainability performance into their investment decisions, as well as for the companies looking to meet the fast evolving regulatory and reporting mandates for ESG disclosures."

Sonia added, "We are committed to bringing more transparency and rigor into the analysis of ESG risks and opportunities, while also serving companies who seek to measure their own performance against industry peers and sustainability goals."

The additional data points will provide clients with a better understanding of companies' environmental reporting disclosures, biodiversity commitments, its direct and indirect CO2 and greenhouse emissions, waste/hazardous disposal, energy consumption and water usage.

For the Social dimension it will now be possible to determine whether companies in their social reporting activities disclose safety policies, human rights commitments, code of ethics and whether social reporting disclosures have been independently audited.

The new data sets will also provide greater insights on the Governance & Economic dimensions and help obtain better understanding of companies' codes of conduct and policies addressing anti-crime, corruption & bribery, governance of the board and executive compensation, ownership, diversity, materiality disclosures, risk and supply chain management, and tax strategy and reporting.

The Corporate Sustainability Assessment is based on 730 Question level scores which inform the 125 Criteria Scores across the E, S and G Dimensions. With access to the 400 new data points it will be possible to further drilldown on the criteria scores for enhanced transparency.

S&P Global ESG scores are available to clients on the Market Intelligence Platform and also to the public through S&P Global's new ESG website.

About S&P Global Market Intelligence

At S&P Global Market Intelligence, we understand the importance of accurate, deep and insightful information. We integrate financial and industry data, research and news into tools that help track performance, generate alpha, identify investment ideas, perform valuations and assess credit risk. Investment professionals, government agencies, corporations and universities around the world use this essential intelligence to make business and financial decisions with conviction.

S&P Global Market Intelligence is a division of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI), the world's foremost provider of credit ratings, benchmarks and analytics in the global capital and commodity markets, offering ESG solutions, deep data and insights on critical business factors. S&P Global has been providing essential intelligence that unlocks opportunity, fosters growth and accelerates progress for more than 160 years. For more information, visit www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence.

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After returning in the fall to film a fourth season set in New Orleans following a three-year hiatus from the city, the documentary series Nightwatch plans to unveil its newest episodes next month, officials announced Wednesday.

The A&E Network series latest season, focusing on the Crescent Citys paramedics, is set to premiere March 25 at 9 p.m. The network will tee up that premiere with specials on March 11 and March 18 highlighting memorable moments from past seasons while also introducing the first responders it will focus on this time around.

In a statement, A&E officials said each one-hour episode of Nightwatch will document New Orleans Emergency Medical Services crews as they respond to street violence, medical emergencies and disasters while navigating the deadly coronavirus pandemic. The paramedics and emergency medical technicians spotlighted on the show work 12-hour overnight shifts, which can be grueling.

'Nightwatch' returning to New Orleans to film city's paramedics on the job The A&E Network's documentary series "Nightwatch", which chronicles first responders on the job, will return to film a fourth season set i

Dr. Emily Nichols, director of New Orleans EMS, said she is excited the show has returned to document the beauty and resilience of a city that has made significant economic and emotional sacrifices while enacting measures aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.

Its an honor to feature our outstanding health care providers who have given so much of themselves prior to and throughout the pandemic, Nichols said.

Produced by the companies 44 Blue Productions and Dick Wolf Reality, Nightwatch aired three seasons set in New Orleans between 2015 and 2017. But the city nixed filming arrangements with both Nightwatch and The First 48"  an A&E show which chronicled homicide investigations  after a New Orleans murder suspects attorney accused The First 48 producers of withholding footage that could benefit the defendant.

The production company Kirkstall Road Enterprise swore in court that it had no extra tape. But the suspects attorneys later recovered footage of an interview with a friend of the murder victim that prompted the judge overseeing the case to excoriate city officials for letting shows like The First 48 embed with the police.

The head of programming for A&E, Elaine Frontain Bryant, said in a statement Wednesday that she was glad Nightwatch would have the opportunity to again come to New Orleans to showcase the raw and emotional stories of first responders and those they keep safe.

A&Es announcement Wednesday contained a link to a trailer for Nightwatchs new season. The network also said New Orleans EMS paramedics Holly Sherman and Titus Tero, known for their previous appearances on Nightwatch, would host the March 11 and March 18 specials.
Practicing Sankofa: Seasons of Struggle and Change

We move through February and March to celebrate Black History Month I and II as naturally and necessarily as men and women meet and merge for joy and life, and seasons change and bring some new and needed good into the world. Our history is a self-conscious and sustained struggle for growth, transformation and transcendence to ever higher levels of human life in ever-expanding realms of human freedom and human flourishing. And it is important always to reaffirm the reasons and relevance of our celebrating it these months and engaging it as a life practice every day. For history, above all, is the struggle and record of a people in the process of shaping their world in their own image and interests. This means resisting all attempts and acts to deny them freedom, justice, security of person, peace, human flourishing, and rightful access to and enjoyment of the goods of the world. And it means directing their lives toward good and expansive ends which enable them to flourish and come into the fullness of themselves.

So, we take history seriously and engage it for good reasons, embracing it, not only as what we study and celebrate, but also as ways to understand and assert ourselves in dignity-affirming, life-enhancing and uplifting ways. Here, to engage is best defined by the Swahili word, kujitumbukizato throw oneself deeply into. First, then, we study and celebrate, indeed engage history to learn its lessons, for as Min. Malcolm X taught, Of all our studies history is best qualified to reward our research. Secondly, we engage history to absorb its spirit of human possibility. For as the Hon. Marcus Garvey taught, What humans have done humans can do. Thirdly, we engage history to extract and emulate its models of human excellence and achievement, for as Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune taught we are heirs and custodians of a great legacy and must bear the burden and glory of that legacy with strength, dignity and determination. And finally, we, as an African people, engage history in order to honor the moral obligation to remember those who opened the way and created place for us to walk and live-in dignity in the world. For as Mrs. Fannie Lou Hamer taught us, there are two things we all must care about: never to forget where we came from and always praise the bridges that carried us over.

It is out of this understanding of history that we must constantly ask ourselves, how can we use our past to inform and improve our present and lay the foundation for a more expansive future? The Akan word for the historical quest which is inspired and informed by these questions is sankofa which means to return and retrieve it. In a word, we must reach into the past, recover its richest lessons, most instructive models and best practices, and put them in the service of the present and future.

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For this is our duty: to know our past and honor it; to engage our present and improve it; and to imagine a whole new future and to forge it in the most ethical, effective and expansive ways. In the midst of this sacred narrative we know as Black history, there are three modal or defining periods which offer us memories, lessons, models and a sense of human possibility which are most instructive, although there are other periods of similar instructiveness.

The first period is the classical period of African history in the Nile Valley Civilizations, c. 3900 BCE to 300 BCE. Here we become fathers and mothers of human civilization, introducing some of the basic disciplines of human knowledge, earning the name among surrounding nations as the navel and light of the world. We do wonders in and for the world, not just the awesome pyramids and exquisite temples, but also the science, math, geometry, physics and astronomy which made them possible. We teach the love of learning and its unbreakable link with life, calling humans rekhyt, wise and knowing beings, and calling our schools and libraries, houses of life, thus linking the quality of life with the quality of learning.

But equally important and impressive is our ancestors spiritual and ethical teachings which served as an original source for so many of our essential concepts in human moral development. Among these are: humans as bearers of dignity and the images of God; the concept of judgment and justification after death; the essentiality of service; the obligation to heal and repair the world (serudj ta); and the obligation to care for the vulnerable. The lessons here are clear: knowledge, creativity and social and moral excellence are indispensable to what it means to be African and human in the world.

The second period is the Holocaust of Enslavement. By holocaust is meant an act of genocide so morally monstrous it is not only against the targeted people themselves, but also a crime against humanity. Far from being a case of trade or business gone bad with collateral damage, it is a unique event of horrific and morally monstrous destruction of human life (tens of millions), human culture (cities, towns, villages, great works of art, music and literature), and human possibility (extraction from our own history and denial of our humanity). But as horrendous as our Holocaust was, it nevertheless seared into our consciousness lessons and challenges of continuing and compelling importance. They are: 1) to remember and bear constant and uncompromising witness to the horribleness of our Holocaust; 2) to raise up and honor the legacy of those whose struggles and lives are our lessons; 3) to hold the oppressors and enslavers accountable thru the struggle for reparations in the fullest sense of the word; and 4) to continue the struggle against all forms of enslavement and oppression on the personal and collective levelsin our lives, society and the world.

The third modal period of Black History is the Reaffirmation of the 60s. It is a time of reaffirming both our Africanness and our social justice tradition in speaking truth to the people and to power, seeking justice for the vulnerable and devalued, and struggling for the liberation of the oppressed everywhere. We also expanded the realm of freedom in this country and like our ancestors in ancient Egypt, we linked life with learning and demanded a relevant education which joined campus and community and aided the struggle for a just society and good world. In this overall process, we launched and won with our allies struggles that reshaped U.S. society and posed a paradigm of liberation for people in this country and the world. Indeed, in this country and around the world, people in struggle borrowed from and built on our moral vocabulary and moral vision and posed our struggle as a model to emulate.

Our lessons and challenges here, then, are: to continue the struggles of the 60s to end racism, classism, and sexism; to create a free and empowered community; a just and good society and a good and sustainable world; and to pose in practice a new paradigm of human life and human flourishing. Thus, in meeting these ancient and ongoing obligations of our history, we truly honor our past, improve our present and forge a future worthy of the life-affirming ways and teachings of our ancestors.

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Dr. Maulana Karenga, Professor and Chair of Africana Studies, California State University-Long Beach; Executive Director, African American Cultural Center (Us); Creator of Kwanzaa; and author of Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community and Culture and Essays on Struggle: Position and Analysis, www.AfricanAmericanCulturalCenter-LA.org; www.OfficialKwanzaaWebsite.org; www.MaulanaKarenga.org
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Turkey: anti-ISIS raid, eight foreigners arrested 'Social-media terrorist propaganda', Syrians and Iraqis arrested

(ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, 18 FEB - A new anti-ISIS raid took place in Turkey on Thursday morning, in which anti-terrorist police in the southern province of Adana near the Syrian border arrested eight suspected foreign jihadists, with a ninth person still being sought.



The suspects are five Syrians and four Iraqis accused of spreading terrorist propaganda through social media, said Anadolu.



On Wednesday, security forces arrested various other foreigners suspected of having ties to the self-styled Islamic State. (ANSAmed).




Hisar: Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Rakesh Tikait on Thursday reiterated that the farmers protesting against the Centres farm laws will not return home until their demands are met.

Addressing a "mahapanchayat" at Kharak Poonia village of Hisar, Tikait told farmers to be ready to sacrifice their standing crop for it. Tikait said the government should not be under the impression that the movement against the laws will end as farmers will go to their villages to harvest their crop.

Even if you have to set your standing crop on fire, you should be prepared for it. The government should not harbour this impression that farmers will return home. We will harvest crops and continue our agitation at the same time, he said.

Farmers are camping in Delhi for past 3 months. Govt thought farmers would return within 2 months. We'll not return. We'll reap our crops & march towards Kolkata. Be ready to stay away from your home for a month to go to Kolkata: BKU's Rakesh Tikait at a farmers' meeting in Hisar pic.twitter.com/vZSzbKUgBn  ANI (@ANI) February 18, 2021

"There will be no 'ghar wapsi' till then," he said. Tikait also asked farmers to be ready for the next call of the unions spearheading the stir.

Keep your tractors filled with fuel and facing towards Delhi's direction. You can get a call to move at any time, that will be decided by the committee (farmers unions), he said.

Tikait said after Haryana, they will be holding panchayats in other parts of the country, including West Bengal, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. While earlier farmers had given a call for a tractor rally in Delhi, Tikait said the next time, they will go to the national capital with their agricultural implements.

Addressing the gathering, Haryana BKU chief Gurnam Singh Chaduni alleged, "If new agricultural laws are implemented, crops will be purchased at arbitrary prices and farmers will be forced to even sell their land."

Thousands of farmers have been protesting since late November at the Delhi borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, demanding a rollback of the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that these laws will pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the "mercy" of big corporations.

However, the government has maintained that the new laws will bring better opportunities to farmers and introduce new technologies in agriculture.

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Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Its big news but you probably didnt read about it on Facebook. The social media giant has followed through on its threat to ban all Australian media content both here and internationally as it rails against the federal governments new plan to make Google and Facebook pay for news. In the early hours of Thursday morning, just after the proposed media bargaining code passed the lower house, Facebook hit the nuclear option  news links could no longer be shared and publishers could no longer post from their Facebook pages. There have already been some strange effects. Along with banning traditional media outlets such as the ABC, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, scores of government agencies were caught in the net, including health departments, fire and rescue and the Bureau of Meteorology. Even scientific journals and satirical news sites such as the Betoota Advocate felt the sting. Many fake news and conspiracy sites, meanwhile, still appear free to post. Of course, as Facebook scrambles to iron out kinks in the new algorithm, loopholes have emerged too. The ABC news messenger bot continues to toil away behind enemy lines and for a while the ban seemed no match for the true rulers of the internet: cats. Up until Thursday evening, you could still post a news link if it was accompanied by a photo of a cat. While the federal government was caught off-guard by the ban itself, it vows it wont back down on the code. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says he will continue discussions with Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg but rejected the companys claim it had no choice but to go through with the ban in the face of an unworkable law. So why has Facebook banned news in the middle of a pandemic? Will misinformation, conspiracy theories (and cat photos) fill the void  and what will that do to Australia? Or will Facebook back down and reverse its ban? Facebook has made good on its threat to ban news from its platform but is the change for good or will negotiations yet prevail? Credit:Artwork: Stephen Kiprillis

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What exactly is banned? If youre a news junkie, prepare to see a lot more of your friends pets and brunches from now on. Media outlet pages, big and small, still exist but all their posts have vanished. Most news links cannot be shared, even in groups. On Thursday, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher personally contacted the manager of his local North Shore Mums Facebook page when it went down, too. Also on the list of un-newsy accounts affected is Small Steps for Hannah, a charity set up to help stop domestic violence in the wake of the horrific murders of Queensland woman Hannah Clarke and her three children  the ban hit on the eve of first anniversary of the crime. And, three weeks out from the West Australian election, the Premier Mark McGowan escaped the block while his opponent Zak Kirkup did not. (McGowan himself has since compared the ban to the oppressive censorship of North Korea). Even Facebooks own official page on the platform could not post on Thursday morning. University of Sydney vaccine expert Professor Julie Leask said the timing of Facebooks mass blocking couldnt be worse  just three days out from the start of Australias COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Facebook has said it will restore pages inadvertently caught up in the blackout, including those of hospitals and health departments, and many are already regaining the ability to post. But health experts say banning news is itself dangerous at such a critical time and the federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has called for its immediate reversal.

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Apart from the brief loophole of posting unrelated photos, tech experts say getting around the ban isnt as simple as using a virtual private network (VPN) set to another country as the ban applies globally to all Australian news. Even New Yorkers cant find our explainers on Facebook. Facebook media pages such as The Sydney Morning Heralds have been blocked from posting and news links can no longer be shared on the platform. Credit:Credit: Wolter Peeters So why has Facebook blocked news? Facebook is already sometimes dismissed as a den of misinformation, strident opinions (and cat photos) but at least a third of Australians get their news from the site, too. Facing criticism about the spread of conspiracy theories and extremism on the platform, in recent years Facebook has vowed to do more to combat fake news as well as to support media outlets, from which both it and Google have now carved off the lions share of the advertising market. (For every $100 spent on advertising in 2019, $53 went to Google, $28 to Facebook and just $19 to all other websites and ad tech.) Enter Australias new media bargaining code. The plan, which is expected to become law in the coming days, is proposed as a backstop to even the playing field amid the market monopoly of Google and Facebook and to protect public interest journalism. If the companies cannot reach a fair deal to pay media outlets for their content, they will be forced to go to arbitration.

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Media companies say their content helps Google and Facebook make money by offering the reliable, fact-checked information users are looking for. The tech giants say the internet should stay free and that publishers benefit from the click-throughs from their sites. And, with the rest of the world watching Australias code closely, both companies fear it could trigger copycat regulation forcing them to pay for news all around the globe. Google made its own big threat earlier this year when it flagged it might turn off search for Australian audiences entirely. But it has since begun signing multi-million-dollar annual content deals with the big media companies (including Nine, the owner of The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald) which is meant to be spent on journalism. Google had already reached deals with smaller companies such as The Saturday Paper and Australian Community Media, which owns The Canberra Times and a suite of regional mastheads. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Facebook argues that while Google is inextricably entwined with news and picks up articles without permission to improve its search results, publishers actively post content to Facebook by choice to grow their own audiences. They get more out of it than Facebook. Catching up on news is, it says, just a small part of what people do on its platform. The company was in talks with publishers almost right up until the ban but negotiations stalled due to concerns about the codes penalties (which could see the platforms fined up to 10 per cent of revenue for non-compliance). Announcing the ban on Thursday, Facebook Australias managing director, William Easton, acknowledged that the government had already made some amendments to make the code more palatable to the tech giants but said it still fails to understand how our services work. This legislation sets a precedent where the government decides who enters into these news content agreements and, ultimately, how much the party that already receives value from the free service gets paid. Some in the tech community have also branded the media code as a shakedown, fearing charging for links could open the floodgates and break one of the founding principles of a free and open internet. But others say Google and Facebook have already changed the landscape. They now control huge swathes of the internet. And they curate links and news to suit their own advertising goals, often lifting out detailed previews from the articles which can lead to less click-through and so less revenue for media organisations.

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While Easton stressed on Thursday that Facebook remained committed to combating misinformation, particularly during the pandemic, AAP fact-checkers working with the platform report their own articles have been blocked, too, in the blackout. Fact-checking still appears on posts flagged by the site as misinformation but users can no longer post a link to refute it themselves. AAP was still trying to get the matter resolved on Friday. Frydenberg, who has hailed the media bargaining code as a historic step to keep Australias media ecosystem sustainable, slammed the Facebook news ban on Thursday: Facebook was wrong. Facebooks actions were unnecessary. They were heavy-handed and they will damage its reputation here in Australia, he said. We certainly werent given any notice by Facebook. But he was in talks with Mr Zuckerberg again on Friday and has said discussions will continue to see...if we can get them back to the table. Is Facebook allowed to ban news? What about free speech? As a private company, Facebook is entitled to curate the content on its platforms. The government cannot force it to overturn the news blackout, and users can really only complain or leave. But the move has revealed more about the companys capacity to monitor content than it perhaps would like. In the wake of the Christchurch mosque shooting and other acts of extremist violence, Facebook has claimed it is too difficult to entirely remove conspiracy theories and the extremist content which helps radicalise users.

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The COVID-19 pandemic's heavy toll on older Americans highlights the need to strengthen the nation's safety net for people in need of long-term services and supports, an Oregon Health & Science University researcher and co-authors argue in a new report published by Milbank Quarterly.

The report proposes a system of universal coverage to support the long-term care of all older Americans.

"This approach would protect against financial catastrophe and end the current system that is based on the need to be financially destitute in order to access coverage via Medicaid," the authors write. "Such an approach would benefit both individuals and families and would also create a far more stable and more generous funding stream to providers."

Walt Dawson, D.Phil., assistant professor of neurology in the OHSU School of Medicine, said he believes the pandemic could be an inflection point to improve the U.S. system of long-term services and support.

Dawson, also a senior Atlantic Fellow of Equity in Brain Health with the Global Brain Health Institute, studies the public policy implications of Alzheimer's disease and other dementiasincluding the financial impact on families and the public programs that finance care.

The report lays out a series recommendations to repair what it characterized as a fragmented and patchwork system of long-term services and supports for older Americans living with physical and cognitive impairments.

Long-term recommendations

Universal coverage: The report calls for establishing universal coverage for all Americans' long-term care needs through Medicare. "Universal coverage is essential to achieving greater equity in access and coverage, but it is also essential to the fiscal viability of the financing mechanism (e.g., everyone pays into the system)," the authors write.

Creating an age-friendly health system: The report calls for better collaboration between public health, health care systems and long-term care to safeguard the health and safety of older adults.

Near-term recommendations

Improved reporting of COVID-19 infections: The report calls for improving a "lack of publicly available information" nationally about COVID-19 infections among people receiving long-term services and supports and the workforce caring for them.

Support for unpaid caregivers: Family caregivers could be identified through Medicare and compensated at the rate of home health aides. In addition, the report calls for improved lines of communication between acute care facilities and other forms of long-term services and support.

Equitable treatment: The Medicaid reimbursement system should provide resources to support independent long-term care and home care providers who often care for the most vulnerable and medically fragile older adults.

"Although these are not new problems, the pandemic has exacerbated and amplified their impact to a point that they are impossible to ignore," the report concludes. "The opportunity for reform is now."

Explore further Report calls for easing access, improving home health for older adults

More information: Walter D. Dawson et al, COVID19: The Time for Collaboration Between LongTerm Services and Supports, Health Care Systems, and Public Health Is Now, Milbank Quarterly First published: 16 February 2021 Journal information: Milbank Quarterly Walter D. Dawson et al, COVID19: The Time for Collaboration Between LongTerm Services and Supports, Health Care Systems, and Public Health Is Now,First published: 16 February 2021 doi.org/10.1111/1468-0009.12500
He had a supporting role in Martin Scorsese's Netflix movie The Irishman playing opposite Robert De Niro.

And now Jesse Plemons is reuniting with both the director and the actor for the big-budget Apple Original Film, Killers of The Flower Moon, THR.com reported Wednesday.

Scorsese has cast Plemons, 32, in a major role as the lead FBI agent investigating a string of murders of Osage Nation Native Americans in 1920's Oklahoma in the based-on-a-true story crime thriller.

Major role: Jesse Plemons has been cast in a leading role in Martin Scorsese's Apple Original Film, Killers Of The Flower Moon. He'll star as the lead FBI agent investigating a string of killings of Osage Nation Native Americans in 1920's Oklahoma in the true crime story

Plemons is best known for his roles in FX's Fargo, AMC's Breaking Bad and NBC's Friday Night Lights.

In Killers Of The Flower Moon, De Niro stars as powerful Oklahoma rancher William Hale.

Leonardo DiCaprio, originally expected to take the lead role now filled by Plemons, has chosen instead to play Hale's nephew Ernest Burkhart

Last week, It was announced that Scorsese has tapped actress Lily Gladstone for the female lead of Mollie Burkhart, the Osage wife of DiCaprio's character.

It's a major breakthrough for Gladstone, 34, who is relatively unknown, and who is descended from the Blackfeet and Nez Perce tribes.

Co-stars: Plemons, 32, had a supporting role in Martin Scorsese's Netflix movie The Irishman playing opposite Robert De Niro (pictured) and will reunite with De Niro in the new film

Based on a true story: Scorsese is directing the big-budget thriller about the so-called Reign Of Terror that started after oil was discovered on Osage Nation tribal lands

Scorsese collaborators: De Niro stars as powerful Oklahoma rancher William Hale while Leonardo DiCaprio plays Hale's nephew Ernest Burkhart, who is married to an Osage woman

Big break: Earlier this week, Scorsese tapped Lily Gladstone, 34, (pictured in 2018) as the female lead Mollie Burkhart, the Osage wife of DiCaprio's character

Killers Of The Flower Moon is adapted from David Grann's best-selling true crime book of the same name.

The killings became known as the Reign Of Terror and became one of the first major cases to be investigated by the then newly-formed FBI.

The murders began after oil was found on land belonging to the Osage Nation.

According to local news outlets in Oklahoma, filming is set to take place from spring to late summer in the Tulsa, Bartlesville and Osage County area.

A virtual casting call for extras was announced last month.

The production is reported to have an estimated budget of $200 million and will be Scorsese's first film since the 2019 Netflix hit The Irishman.
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New Delhi, Feb 18 : The farmers four-hour 'rail roko' protest over the three farm laws had "minimal or negligible" impact on train operations across the country and passed off without any untoward incident, railway officials said on Thursday.

Railway Ministry spokesperson DJ Narain said, "The rail roko agitation passed off without any untoward incident. There was negligible or minimal impact on running of the trains across the country." He said that the train movement in all the zones is normal now.

The official said the majority of the zones have not reported a single case of any stoppage of trains by the agitators.

He said that North Central Railway, South Eastern Railway, Southern Railway, South Eastern Railway, North Frontier Railway, Central Railway and South Western Railway did not report any untoward incident.

The spokesperson said that a few trains were stopped in some areas of some zonal railways but now train operations are normal.

"While dealing with the rail roko agitation, utmost patience was exercised by all concerned," he added.

In view of the four-hour long rail roko protest, the Railway Protection Force (RPF) had deployed 20 companies in the states of West Bengal, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Earlier in the day, at least 25 trains in Northern Railway zone were regulated in the wake of the farm unions' four-hour 'rail roko'.

In Bihar, the protestors had stopped trains at Sachiwalay Halt in Patna, at Arrah, Rohtas and Bihar Sharif railway stations.

The impact of the rail roko was also visible in several parts of Rajasthan, as farm leaders were seen standing on the engine at the Gandhinagar railway station in Jaipur. The farmers also blocked the railway tracks in Chomu.

In Uttar Pradesh, the impact of the 'Rail Roko' call had negligible impact. Farmers made efforts to stop trains in Meerut, Ballia, Prayagraj, Mathura, Bahraich, Bijnor, Amethi and Aligarh but their efforts were thwarted by alert policemen.

In Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar, farmers blocked the railway tracks.

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For months, California Ripped Fitness has defied COVID-19 mandates in the name of constitutional liberties and kept its indoor operations intact, to the chagrin of community members.

But the San Jose gym has finally shut down its indoor operations, following months of legal threats by Santa Clara County and a fine that has snowballed to $1 million.

"They have submitted a compliance statement indicating they are no longer operating indoors and are complying with all public health orders," Santa Clara County said in a statement to SFGATE. "The County is pleased that California Ripped Fitness has decided to come into compliance, and we will be working with them on an agreement to resolve the outstanding fines."

"Most gyms have been operating in compliance with the state and local Orders," the statement read.

Since December, the county has filed multiple citations against the gym for violating social distancing guidelines and not enforcing masks, as well as operating indoors. Dozens of complaints from residents were also filed.

"This protest and choice of the people to peaceably assemble is protected by the 1st Amendment," a sign posted outside the gym read at the time, per the Bay Area News Group. "No government, state, or county can violate our constitutional rights, nor can they punish, fine or cite us, contradicting the Constitution we're protected by!!!"

The sign also invoked the Fifth Amendment amid its other dubious claims.

At the time, the gym's owner told Bay Area News Group that the gym has not experienced any COVID-19 outbreaks.

It is unclear if the gym will have to pay the totality of the fine. But if it does reopen again, the gym will face legal action and more fines.

Santa Clara County has reported nearly 108,000 cases and 1,682 deaths as of Thursday; its weeklong rolling average of cases has declined since January, when it peaked at more than 1,400 cases on average. Still, the gym is in one of the county's hot spots  reporting a higher case rate than other neighboring ZIP codes.

This business is also located in a part of our community that is highly impacted by COVID-19," Michael Balliet, the county director of community and business engagement, previously told SFGATE in a statement.

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.
New Beginning works with local authorities to refurbish houses and apartments

The Irish Social Housing Fund (ISHF) and New Beginning have sold 55 social housing homes in Dublin for just over 20m to UK-based Principal Real Estate.

The homes are let to Dublins local authorities on 25-year leases.

As of last year, the IHSF, which was founded by debt-advisory firm New Beginning, has invested more than 100m in equity to buy 400 houses and apartments that it works with local authorities to refurbish. The homes are then offered at discounted rents for social housing.

ISHF was founded in conjunction with investment firm Roundshield.

New Beginnings chief executive and co-founder is barrister Ross Maguire. He established the venture in 2010 to assist people with distressed mortgages.

Principal Real Estate Europe is part of Principal Financial Groups dedicated property business, Principal Real Estate Investors, which manages or sub-advises more than $85bn in property assets around the world.

Giles Smith, the head of fund management at Principal Real Estate, said that there was already an acute requirement for social housing in Ireland, which has been intensified during the pandemic.

This transaction is among the first of our institutional acquisitions in the Irish social housing sector, simultaneously meeting investor demand for long-term CPI-linked income of investment-grade credit quality while also supporting the Irish governments policy aim of drastically increasing social housing provision where it is most needed, he said.

Last year, ISHF refinanced its portfolio to secure an additional 30m in financing from AIB to buy about 100 homes.

New Beginning also planned the launch of a second fund that will be used to help developers deliver additional homes.

Those units will be bought by the fund and then leased for social housing.

Last year, AIB launched a 300m social housing fund to bankroll the construction of 2,000 homes across the country.

The new fund is expected to be fully allocated over two years.

The development funding can be provided at higher gearing levels than for private schemes, based on purchase contracts from local authorities and approved housing bodies.

AIB chief executive Colin Hunt said the bank had allocated all its initial 100m social housing fund. He said that the bank had already allocated more than 500m to help deliver social housing properties.


By Christine Flowers



One of my favorite allegories is the one about the frog in the pot of water, who got used to the slowing rising temperature of a warming pot and ended up boiled to death.



In some ways, I feel as if society has been on the menu for quite some time now. But here we are, in 2021, and life is very different from the way it was when I was born in 1961. It all happened incrementally, while very few of us noticed that the temperature was rising in the societal pot.



The most obvious example is abortion. Who would have thought 60 years ago that a pregnant woman could decide she didn't want to have a child, and that with very few exceptions, no one could stop her from becoming un-pregnant?



Back then, abortion was hidden in the shadows because we thought it was a shameful, cruel and immoral act. Now, though, it's completely legal. Not only that, the "choice" is celebrated by the daughters of women who chose life. We even have a president who wants to codify abortion in our laws.



Of course, not all women approach it that way. For some, it is a soul-searching struggle to reconcile their desire to be child-free with the scientific certainty that they are carrying a human child. But the fact that society has reached a place where women are even given the option of destroying their offspring is a sign that our morality evaporated in the heat of that boiling water.



Then we have the idea that you can identify as something you are not. We can choose our pronouns to reflect the gender that we think we are, as opposed to the gender objectively evidenced by our biological plumbing. The "experts" have gotten around this problem by creating a pretextual distinction between "sex" and "gender," and stared at us with straight faces as they dared us to contradict them.



And because we have been in the pot too long, and we haven't noticed the bubbles dancing around about us as the steam rises, we just pretend that made up pronouns like "they" and "their" for a single, confused human being is totally normal.



And then we have the politicians. Kennedy told the enslaved East Germans that he was a Berliner. Johnson signed legislation, defying his Democrat brethren, that recognized the humanity of Black Americans. Nixon opened the lines of communication with Communist China. Carter fought bravely for peace at Camp David. Reagan dared Gorbachev to tear down that cursed wall.



These are the people I remember. But slowly, and almost imperceptibly, those men were replaced with people like Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, who make openly bigoted and anti-Semitic comments and are allowed to continue in office.



They were replaced with Maxine Waters, who urged her followers to harass their ideological opponents. They were replaced with a woman like Marjorie Taylor Greene, who was a bully at the age of 46 and is still a bully at the age of 48.



And they were replaced with the people who voted for them, all of them, in defiance of decency.



Years ago, even in the shadow of McCarthy, I seriously doubt we would have let such low-information, morally vacant people fill our public offices. And the fact that I chose women in the litany of shame does not mean that they are the only ones at fault. It just means that as a woman, I am particularly embarrassed that members of my gender (or sex, or shared pronouns) have shown themselves to be so mediocre.



There are so many other things that prove to me just how effective incremental change can be in destroying a society. We used to say that the color of skin was less important than the content of character, and now if you don't say the correct incantation of "Black Lives Matter" you will be ostracized.



If you do not believe that critical-race theory should be force fed to little kids in schools, making white children feel the burden of a guilt for which they were never responsible, you are a bigot.



If you voted for the wrong man, you are a domestic terrorist (or you think like one). If you actually do storm the Capitol, your friends will make excuses. And if you write or say things people don't like, they will try to shut you up. In the old days, you just choked on your morning muffin and wrote a letter to the editor.



We got to this place because we were too lazy to check out the thermostat. Now it's too late.



Christine Flowers (cflowers1961@gmail.com) is an attorney and a columnist for the Delaware County Daily Times. Her article was distributed by Cagle Cartoons Inc.




UK new flagship set to be named after the late Prince Philip

US man who said he shot neighbor over loud music found guilty of attempted murder

Lamborghini company to be sold for $11.5bn?

China spacecraft docks with future space station

Lawyer: Armenia acting PM Pashinyan grossly abuses administrative resources during Lori Province visit

UN urges to investigate escalation of violence in Colombia

Malaysia to open mega-centers for vaccination against coronavirus

Police find  5 million in cash in London apartment

French citizen to face trial in Iran on spaying charges

Over 60 children in UK undergo surgery due to TikTok challenge

Iranian Central Bank governor dismissed

Armenian opposition: The one who liberated Artsakh will not go to debates with the one who sold it

Iranian energy ministry: Iraq to allocate $ 125 million of frozen funds for vaccines

No new COVID-19 cases reported in Artsakh

Iran and Iraq to intensify cooperation and are ready for joint investment projects

Armenia ex-PM says at least 2 more secret documents signed but not published yet

Indonesia frees Iranian tanker 4 months later

Mortar shelling in Afghanistan kills at least 10 civilians

Fire breaks out at West Virginia oil refinery in US

Second President of Armenia meets with residents of Ararat province

Iran ready to help improve the defense capability of Syria

Armenian acting PM invites ex-presidents for debates

European Parliament head proposes to strengthen sanctions on Russia

UK PM gets married in London

Armenia reports COVID-19 new 81 cases: 4 people die

EU countries invite US to issue joint statement against Russia

2 people die in Armenia road accident

Nigeria: Students taken hostage a month ago are released

61 quakes recorded in Congo per day

Syrian MFA: EU lost credibility due to blind obedience to US policy

Armenia ex-minister of emergency situations hospitalized with heart attack

Mher Grigoryan: Clarification of border points is possible only after withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia

Suspicious deal: Whether there was profit from buying DNA IDs?

Armenia ex-president says current authorities are trying to blame Russia for defeat in war

4 people killed in Afghanistani bus attack

Robert Kocharyan: This war could not have happened, it was a consequence of the policy of the authorities

Kocharyan: I have to ask people how it happened that overwhelming majority elected this leader

Armen Gevorgyan presents 'Armenia' bloc program: We offer the concept of a working country

Biden's administration proposed to leave unchanged amount of financial support to Armenia

US Embassy in Baku calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release Armenian POWs

Luxembourg MFA calls on Azerbaijan to immediately release all Armenian prisoners

Russia peacekeepers climb to Armenia Gegharkunik Province village positions

Biden strongly condemns manifestations of antisemitism in US

Iran intensifies its diplomacy amid Armenia-Azerbaijan border tensions

Armenia acting PM on forthcoming snap parliamentary elections: We hope to get 60% of votes

Lukashenko accuses West of destabilizing situation in Belarus

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief on snap elections: No legal basis for postponing, suspending any function

Armenias Pashinyan is met by Yerevan district residents chanting against him

We are ready to be fully engaged in negotiation process to resolve Karabakh issue, says Armenia acting PM

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan gives interview to Russia TV channel

Armenia acting premier: We are ready to start withdrawing troops at any moment

Canada MFA expresses concern over 6 Armenian soldiers capture by Azerbaijan troops

There are omissions in registration documents of political forces that applied to Armenia Central Electoral Commission

Armenia Central Electoral Commission chief: There is activeness in Yerevan for the past day or two

Three new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Group of US Congress members threaten Azerbaijans Aliyev regime with sanctions

Chicago mayor is sued for allegedly refusing interview with white reporter

Iran exports oil to US for first time after long interval

"Armenia" bloc top 50 MP candidates are announced

42 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Sri Lanka public beach is covered in charred plastic pellets due to fire in container ship

US preparing list of targeted sanctions on Belarus authorities

China believes it will own America by 2035, Biden says

15 al-Shabab militants killed in Somalia

Newspaper: Armenia political forces that applied for running in election impatiently await CEC decision

Newspaper: Changes are expected in Artsakh

California prisoner who considers himself Satanist beheads cellmate, dismembers his body

Newspaper: Armenia acting PM's "mutually beneficial" proposal to collapse state system?

Armenia National Security Service Reserve Officers' Union members meet with His Holiness Karekin II

EU is ready to help Armenia and Azerbaijan with border delimitation and demarcation

ARF-D member on Nikol Pashinyan: 103 years ago Armenia's founding fathers would have executed him for treason

Iran President hails brotherly ties with Azerbaijan

Robert Kocharyan on years of his leadership in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia

Situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border is still tense, more on COVID-19 in Armenia, May 28 digest

"Armenia" alliance of political parties paying tribute to founder of First Republic Aram Manukyan

Yerevan.today: Armenia acting PM not greeted at ruling party's headquarters, citizens call him 'capitulator'

Russia MOD reports on maintenance of ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia acting MOD meets with Russian counterpart in Moscow

Armenia 2nd President: I see possibility of restoring borders of Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast

We can provide our army with some key, modernized weapons, says Armenia ex-President Kocharyan

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: Captives issue is not one that any opposition force can resolve

OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

Armenia acting PM: Process of return of POWs will intensify after upcoming elections

Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

Armenia acting PM: We're not going to escalate situation for 30% of Sev Lake

Armenia 3rd President visits Vanadzor, pays tribute to heroes of Battle of Gharakilisa (PHOTOS)

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan lays flowers at Battle of Karakilisa memorial (PHOTOS)

Armenia acting PM: Solution to captives issue is matter of time

Shoygu to Harutyunyan: Russia, Armenia strengthen military cooperation

Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

Catholicos of All Armenians visits Sardarapat Memorial, again separate from state officials

MOD dismisses Azerbaijan statement on Armenia army firing toward Nakhchivan

Jerusalem Post: Israel prepares for a new war with Hamas
Pakistan is unlikely to exit the Financial Action Task Forces (FATFs) grey list until June, despite the country trying to seek backing from the member nations before the plenary meeting of the global terror financing and money laundering watchdog scheduled for next week, stated media report on Wednesday. The FATFs Plenary and Working Group meetings will be taking place from February 21 to February 26 in Paris, where the decision of Pakistans position will also be determined. Pakistan was placed in FATFs grey list in June 2018 and since then has been unsuccessful in implementing 27 action points essential for its re-designation.

Earlier in October 2020, the officials had said that Pakistan will remain on the 'grey list' till February 2021 as it remained unsuccessful in fulfilling the six key obligations of the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog that include failure to take action against two of India's most wanted terrorists Maulana Masood Azhar and Hafiz Saeed. After the last FATF meeting, FATF president Marcus Pleyer said at a virtual press conference from Paris, "Pakistan remains in the increased monitoring list or the grey list."

Read - Pakistan Police Seek Arrest Of 2 Christians Over Blasphemy

Read - 2 Days After Pulwama Attack Anniversary, Rahul Gandhi Attacks PM; No Mention Of Pakistan

Pak FM sounded optimistic about FATF outcome

As per a report in The Express Tribune newspaper, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi sounded optimistic about the outcome of the upcoming FATF meeting but officials admitted that the nation would remain on the grey list until at least June. It also noted that Islamabad has been seeking support from the member nations for an on-site visit. If this crucial step is agreed upon by the member states, it can enhance Pakistans chances of getting off the grey list.

"If agreed, the FATF on-site visit will help Pakistan come out of the grey list by June this year," a senior Pakistani official dealing with the matter was quoted by news agency PTI citing another report.

Over the past few days, the Foreign Office has been inviting ambassadors and diplomats of FATF-member countries to brief them about the substantive progress made by Pakistan to implement the 27-point action plan, the report said, quoting officials familiar with the development.

Financial Action Task Force or FATF is an inter-governmental organisation and was founded in 1989 on the initiative of the G7 countries to develop the policies that are required to combat money laundering. It was in 2001 when the organisations mandate was expanded to include terrorism financing. The FATF currently has 39 members including two regional organisations the European Commission and Gulf Cooperation Council. India is a member of the FATF consultations and its Asia Pacific Group.

Read - Hasan Ali Leads Pakistan Team's Winning Celebrations In 'Pawri Meme' Style: WATCH

Read - Nawaz Sharif Finally Cornered? In UK, Ex-Pakistan PM's Passport To Expire; Options Limited


[February 18, 2021] OM1 Artifical Intelligence (AI) Shared Decision Aid Demonstrates Significant Improvement In Decision Quality And Surgical Outcomes For Knee Osteoarthritis

BOSTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- OM1, a leading real-world data (RWD), health outcomes and technology company, today announced the publication of clinical trial results in JAMA Network Open demonstrating its tool, OM1 Joint Insights, positively impacts decision quality, shared decision making, patient experience, and functional outcomes in adults with knee osteoarthritis (OA). AI SHARED DECISION AID DEMONSTRATES IMPROVEMENT IN DECISION QUALITY AND SURGICAL OUTCOMES FOR KNEE OSTEOARTHRITIS In the U.S., more than 30 million adults live with painful, immobilizing joint pain due to osteoarthritis, and more than one million total knee (TKR) and hip replacement (THR) surgeries are performed yearly. The treatment of musculoskeletal conditions in general, and osteoarthritis in paticular, is characterized by a high health resource burden and substantial variability in choice of treatment and outcomes. TKR and THR procedures are primarily performed for pain relief and increased mobility.



The randomized clinical trial (RCT) examined the impact of the OM1 Joint Insights tool, an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled decision aid, including patient education, preference assessment, and personalized predictions of clinical outcomes compared to education only on decision quality, patient satisfaction, and functional outcomes among individuals with knee OA considering total knee replacement (TKR). Leveraging predictive models based on hundreds of thousands of past joint replacement surgeries, the OM1 Joint Insights tool generates personalized predictions of patients' likelihood of benefit and risk of serious complications from TKR. Joint Insights can also provide patients with education about knee OA and treatment options, test patient comfort with making a decision about surgery, and simulate benefit under different conditions.

"Advances in applying AI technologies to robust clinical data are enabling rapid advancement in generating personalized outcomes information," said Dr. Richard Gliklich, CEO of OM1. "This tool complements and augments the physician-patient decision-making process, giving a more quantitative, personalized picture of how each patient might respond to each possible treatment." For more information, visit www.om1.com. Contact Renee Hurley

Head of Marketing, OM1

617-620-9571

rhurley@om1.com About OM1 With specialization in chronic conditions, OM1 is a health outcomes, data, and technology company using big clinical data and AI to better understand, compare, and predict patient outcomes. OM1's real-world evidence platforms, clinical registries and AI technologies enable clients to accelerate research, measure and benchmark health outcomes and to personalize patient care. Learn more at OM1.com. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/om1-artifical-intelligence-ai-shared-decision-aid-demonstrates-significant-improvement-in-decision-quality-and-surgical-outcomes-for-knee-osteoarthritis-301231185.html SOURCE OM1

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[February 18, 2021] Artist K Ryan Henisey Launches New Online Space for LGBTQIA Taste Makers

Artist K Ryan Henisey launched Queer Quarterly, an e-based publication and website, with a call for LGBTQIA artists and writers. Submissions for art, essays, and more are available online with no cost for review. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218006073/en/ Artist K Ryan Henisey performs at the installation of his 2019 solo exhibit, "Installations." (Photo: Business Wire) "The magazine is about queer experience and I want it to reflect queer peoples," insists Henisey. "Queer Quarterly is a place to explore queer thought, art, and theory made by LGBTQ thinkers and creators." Henisey is no stranger to place-making. As head of the artist cooperative TAG Gallery, Henisey created scholarships for artists, overhauled the galery's annual programming, and instituted experiential changes across the organization's brand.



"What we've accomplished under Ryan's leadership is especially inspiring," adds TAG artist and Vice President Scott Lewallen, aka Skut. "But his real accomplishments are in the artists' community he's shaped at TAG. Ryan also increased our gay and lesbian membership from two to twenty-five percent, paving a way for other LGBTQ artists." Lewallen, co-founder of Grindr and seasoned experience-designer and creative director, debuts new art at TAG April 2021. "It takes a team to make magic happen," responds Henisey, "and a team focused on LGBTQIA experiences is exactly what Queer Quarterly is going to create."

Henisey explains the e-magazine will be built through grassroots collaborative efforts, collecting the best in queer art and thought. Electronic issues will publish without cost to readers, syndicating across Henisey's websites between issues. "And as the magazine grows," Henisey continues, "we plan to give back to all levels of contributors. As we build revenue generators, Queer Quarterly will eventually grow to a platform that pays artists for their work." Submission deadlines and requirements for Queer Quarterly are available on the magazine's website. K Ryan Henisey (@kryanhenisey) is an award-winning Los Angeles artist and founder of Pattern & Matrix, providing press and creative services for artists and organizations. Henisey's fine art has displayed in institutions throughout Southern California, at the Garroxta Museum in Spain, and most recently in Guangzhou, China. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218006073/en/

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Some 51 percent of Americans are either hesitant or opposed to the vaccine. (cortex-film/Shutterstock)

The Clamor and Concern Over the COVID Vaccine

While some wait with bated breath, others worry about the unprecedented nature of the vaccine

President Joe Biden recently announced his wartime strategy to confront COVID-19. His weapon: vaccines. The battle plan builds on former President Donald Trumps arsenal of 400 million vaccines, with a purchase of an additional 200 million more shots so all Americans can get both their recommended doses faster.

To date, more than 60 million vaccine doses have been distributed in the United States and more than 10 million people have received their first of two doses.

Priority favors health care workers and those most at risk from infection, but people at the back of the vaccine line worry their turn for a jab wont come fast enough. Bidens purchase aims to alleviate supply concerns by providing enough doses for all 300 million Americans by the end of summer 2021.

But how many doses may go unclaimed? Health officials urge everyone to get vaccinated for COVID-19, but some are not so sure they want it.

This wary cohort is a sizable segment of the population. According to the latest COVID-19 Vaccine Monitor by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 51 percent of Americans are either hesitant or opposed to the vaccine. Most of this group is taking a wait-and-see approach and watching for any problems that emerge in those who get the shot first.

One in five U.S. adults draw a deeper line in the sand, saying they will either definitely not get the new vaccine, or they will concede only if required for work, school, or other activities.

In California and Ohio, about half of frontline workers in hospitals and nursing homes are refusing the vaccine. And the U.S. Department of Defense reports that many service members are also refusing the shot, but wont say how many are opting out.

Even some seniors are either on the fence about the shot or simply refuse it altogether. A survey of people 65 and older found that 16 percent of seniors are unsure they want it, and 6 percent say they definitely wont get it.

For those eager to get their shot, the people who reject it are puzzling, because the push to take the vaccine is so well-publicized and the pitch so compelling. This government-endorsed medical intervention promises protection from a virus linked to millions of deaths, and health officials warn that restrictive social measures could last forever without it.

However, the reasons for refusing the vaccine have compelling features of their own.

New Kind of Shot

The Kaiser survey breaks down those for and against the COVID-19 vaccine by race, age, and political identity. These demographic divisions invite speculation and reveal some curious patterns. But for other groups, the line is crystal clear. For example, those suspicious of vaccines in general will obviously be suspicious of this one.

But the shot designed for the COVID-19 virus (also known as SARS-CoV2) has features that give even those who are otherwise supportive of vaccines cause for concern.

Traditional vaccines work by injecting a weak version of a pathogen to trigger an immune response. The goal is to prime the body to protect itself should it ever face a full-blown infection in the future. The formulation and application of this procedure has evolved dramatically over the past few decades, but the basic principle has been around for a few hundred years.

By contrast, the shots developed to protect against COVID-19 takes a form our ancestors would never have imagined. This new technology influences our immune mechanism at the genetic level. Because these vaccines act on our messenger RNA, they are known as mRNA vaccines.

Before COVID-19, scientists were already researching mRNA vaccines for other diseases in clinical trials. But emergency measures inspired by the pandemic sped up the approval process for candidates designed to protect against SARS-CoV2. Trials were run last year to monitor short-term health effects, but since the public rollout began only a month ago, the long-term impact remains a mystery.

This mRNA vaccine technology is designed to mimic natural viral infections in a way that the immune system recognizes, without the dangers of exposing the body to a genuine infection. In the case of SARS-CoV2 vaccine, it programs your cells to mimic the signature spike protein found on the surface of the COVID-19 virus, thereby programming your immune system to defend itself against this familiar form whenever it comes in contact with the real virus.

Thats what the shot is designed to do, anyway. However, some worry that this still experiential technology may have unintended consequences. One common concern is that mRNA vaccines could alter your DNA. However, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), this is false.

The mRNA from a COVID-19 vaccine never enters the nucleus of the cell, which is where our DNA is kept. This means the mRNA cannot affect or interact with our DNA in any way. Instead, COVID-19 mRNA vaccines work with the bodys natural defenses to safely develop immunity to disease, states the CDC.

This response is found on the CDCs list Myths and Facts about COVID-19 Vaccines.

Another common point of confusion the health agency addresses is the question of who should take the shot, and who can go without. The CDC says just because someone may have developed an immunity to the virus, doesnt mean they are adequately protected. People who have tested positive for SARS-CoV2 and recovered are still urged to get the vaccine.

At this time, experts do not know how long someone is protected from getting sick again after recovering from COVID-19. The immunity someone gains from having an infection, called natural immunity, varies from person to person. Some early evidence suggests natural immunity may not last very long, states the CDC.

To drive this point home, in December 2020, the CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices issued a report claiming that Pfizers study of its mRNA vaccine proved that it was highly effective for people whod already had COVID-19.

But Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) discovered that the CDC was promoting false information. When Massie examined the Pfizer trial, he found that it clearly didnt demonstrate a benefit for those with evidence of prior SARS-CoV2 infection as the health agency reported.

The congressman confronted the CDC in a private call, and the agencys principal deputy director, Dr. Anne Schuchat acknowledged the mistake, and apologized for the delay in fixing it. However, as of this report, the CDCs claim remains unchanged.

In a series of tweets, Massie says that the public needs to know that the CDC is misrepresenting the results of the Pfizer trial. Adding that the very meaning of science has been perverted for this virus.

Baseless claims with no quantification are being made by the government, repeated by the media, and accepted by public, Massie wrote on Twitter.

As our understanding of mRNA vaccines continues to evolve, the CDCs claim that the shot doesnt influence DNA may prove wrong as well.

An article published in the January edition of Nature Genetics finds that DNA stability will change if RNA is chemically modified.

Lead researcher Arne Klungland explained to Phys.org that several research groups are now working together to study what effect this can have on the DNA molecule.

We already know that R-loop areas are associated with sequences of DNA containing active genes and that this can lead to chromosomal breakage and the loss of genetic information, Klungland said.

Weighing the Risks

There would be no controversy if vaccines were shown to be 100 percent risk free, but even the most dedicated vaccine supporter has to admit that this medical intervention can do harm. The debate is about how much risk vaccines pose compared to the benefit they deliver.

In several surveys identifying the number of people who are suspicious of the COVID-19 vaccine, the most common concern is side effects. Drugmaker trials showed that reactions do occur, but they were typically mild. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration report from December 2020 on the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, the most common adverse reactions were injection site reactions, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, joint pain, and fever.

Experts add that these reactions, particularly after the second shot, are a good sign, signaling that immune protection is kicking in.

However, since the public roll out of the shot, there has also been evidence of severe and unanticipated symptoms that may be associated with the COVID-19 vaccine. According to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), out of nearly 10,000 reports linked to the COVID-19 shot as of Jan. 29, VAERS has recorded 501 deaths, 1066 hospitalizations, 147 cases of anaphylaxis, and 128 cases of Bells palsy.

VAERS is the primary mechanism for reporting adverse vaccine reactions in the United States, but keep in mind that their numbers may only reveal a small portion of the real story. A 2010 study by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that fewer than one percent of vaccine injuries are reported to VAERS.

More than 80 percent of people who test positive for COVID-19 have no symptoms, and most of the remaining group has mild symptoms. COVID-19 has an over 99 percent survival rate for people from zero to 70 without any treatment.

But as health experts remind us, not getting vaccinated carries risks, too. The disease can have serious, life-threatening complications, particularly for those who have two or more comorbidities, especially obesity and diabetes. And if you get sick, you could compromise the health of friends, family, or anyone else you may come in contact with.

So its a gamble, but officials say the odds are in the vaccines favor. According to the CDC, clinical trials of all vaccines must first show they are safe and effective before they can be authorized or approved for use, including the ones for COVID.

The known and potential benefits of a COVID-19 vaccine must outweigh the known and potential risks of the vaccine, states the CDC.

However, the risk that remains is all yours. The federal government has granted COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers immunity from liability if serious reactions occur. Likewise, government regulators and private companies that make the SARS-CoV2 vaccine mandatory for employees are also protected from litigation in the event of harm.

Considering the Unknowns

While health officials are generally in lockstep support with the new vaccine, many independent doctors say the risk it carries is still too great. One of these doctors is board-certified emergency physician and founder of Americas Front Line Doctors (AFLD), Dr. Simone Gold. In a recent lecture discussing The Truth About the COVID-19 Vaccine, Gold says the medical establishment ignores serious concerns that hang over this experimental biological intervention. One of these concerns include the lack of independently published animal studies for a product that has been rushed to market.

Gold criticizes the tremendous failure that has been observed in creating previous coronavirus vaccines but the SARS-CoV1 vaccine relies on a different anagram. Those shots utilized recombinant modified vaccinia Ankara (rMVA), which is not the same as the mRNA technology used in Pfizers and Modernas products designed to protect against SARS-CoV2.

In terms of speed, the new COVID-19 vaccine is a miracle, and is one of the points of concern raised by critics.

In a Q & A for Johns Hopkins Medicine, Lisa Maragakis, M.D., M.P.H., senior director of infection prevention, and Gabor Kelen, M.D., director of the Johns Hopkins Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response, say that such concerns miss an important point.

The mRNA technology used to develop the COVID-19 vaccines has been years in development to prepare for outbreaks of infectious viruses. Thus, the manufacturing process was ready very early in the pandemic.

COVID-19 vaccines created with mRNA technology allows for a faster approach than the traditional way vaccines are made, they write.

When it comes to whether somebody should get the shot, Johns Hopkins encouraged people to talk to their doctor and consult other health care organizations, but said the decision is ultimately up to each person.

You alone make the decision about whether to get a COVID-19 vaccine.

Edmonton, Alberta--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) -Altiplano Metals Inc. (TSXV: APN) (WKN: A2JNFG) ("Altiplano" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update of the civil works and site preparation progress at the Company's copper-gold-iron processing plant. The facility is located at El Penon, near La Serena, Chile and approximately 15 km from the Company's Farellon Copper Gold mine.

Alastair McIntyre, CEO, comments, "I am pleased to report that the work at the APN El Penon Processing Plant is progressing well. We have completed most of the required civil work in preparation for the next phase of assembling the plant. We anticipate this phase will begin shortly pending final permitting approval. I am also pleased to report that the Company has purchased a new magnetic separator and tailings dewatering circuit designed to increase productivity and minimize our environmental footprint. This circuit will convert 45% of the tailings into high value saleable iron with the recovery of approximately 1,850 tonnes/month of 61.5% Fe 2 O 3 through a magnetic separation process. In addition, the dewatering circuit will reduce our freshwater consumption by 75% further improving efficiencies."

To date the Company has completed the following work:

Purchased and transported the crushing and flotation plant to the plant site, including: bin for 120 tonnes of material for crushing. 3 crushers. 5 conveyor belts. 2 bins for milling process (each for 60 tonnes of capacity). Two mills of 1500 x 3000 tonne capacity @ up to 9 t/h. Two hydrocyclone separators for material size selection. Two flotation units with 15 cells each. All the control panels, pumps and motors included.

Completed 10 hectares of land preparation - surveying, leveling, removing rocks and vegetation.

Perimeter enclosure fence completed with 24/7 security monitoring.

Power lines and transformers installed with an electrical capacity of 1 MW.

Excavation for water lines has begun.

Trucking road and 2500 tonne capacity storage pads completed.

Concrete bases have been completed to support the construction of the warehouse and plant including concrete bases to support the two ball mills.

Magnetic separation plant and a tailings drying process for copper concentrate and iron concentrate has been purchased and will be installed at a later date.

On final permitting approval, the remaining work on the construction phase involves:

Completion of the crushing plant, including installation of crushers, conveyor belts and bins.

Installation of the cells for the flotation plant.

Final tailings dam construction.

Installation of the magnetic separator and the tailings dewatering/drying plant.

Construction of offices, spare warehouse, washrooms, analytical laboratory, etc.

Final connection to power and water supplies.

Figure 1. Conceptual image of the MIll





To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4303/74751_344482d7046fab2c_001full.jpg

Figure 2. Conceptual image of the Mill





To view an enhanced version of Figure 2, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4303/74751_344482d7046fab2c_002full.jpg

Figure 3. Copper Gold Iron Concentrate Process





To view an enhanced version of Figure 3, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/4303/74751_344482d7046fab2c_003full.jpg

Figure 4. A Series of Images from the Processing Facility Construction Site





To view an enhanced version of Figure 4, please visit:

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Altiplano's engineering and design team has prepared a schematic video to illustrate the facility on completion. This can be viewed through this hyperlink. Viewers are cautioned that video is conceptual in nature and that the final working facility may differ from the presentation.

COVID-19 Update: The Government of Chile announced that its borders reopened to visitors on November 23, 2020 (https://chile.travel/en/coronavirus); however, travel to the country is permitted with some limitations and requirements. The health and safety of our employees, contractors, visitors, and the local community remain our top priorities. Altiplano continues to follow the COVID-19 guidance issued by the Federal and Provincial Governments of Canada and Chile. Mine site safety and hygiene protocols (such as: disinfection points for hand washing and supply of face masks) remain in place in order to keep employees and stakeholders safe and to limit any spread at site or within the broader community

About Altiplano

Altiplano Metals Inc. (TSXV: APN) is a Canadian mining company focused on the acquisition and development of near-term cash flowing assets and exploration projects of significant scale. Altiplano's goal is to grow into a mid-tier producer of copper, gold and silver with immediate plans of generating profits from three cash flowing projects in 2021. Management has a substantial record of success in capitalizing on opportunity, overcoming challenges and building shareholder value.

John Williamson, B.Sc., P.Geol., a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical contents of this document

Altiplano is part of the Metals Group of companies, managed by an award-winning team of professionals who stand for technical excellence, painstaking project selection and uncompromising corporate governance, with a proven ability to capitalize on investment opportunities and deliver shareholder returns.

www.metalsgroup.com

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

/s/ "John Williamson"

Chairman

For further information, please contact:

Alastair McIntyre, CEO

alastairm@apnmetals.com

Tel: (416) 434-3799

Jeremy Yaseniuk, Director

jeremyy@apnmetals.com

Tel: (604) 773-1467

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the (TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address exploration drilling, exploitation activities and events or developments that the Company expects are forward-looking statements. A qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify any historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves and the issuer is not treating the historical estimates as current mineral resources or mineral reserves. The Farellon mine was previously in production dating back to the 1970's with a reported historical production (to a depth of 70 m) yielding approximately 300,000 tonnes at an average grade of 2.5% copper and 0.5g/t gold. This material was processed locally and sold to ENAMI. Altiplano is relying upon past production records, underground sampling and related activities and current diamond drilling to estimate grade and widths of the mineralization to reactivate production. The decision to commence production on the Farellon deposit is not based on a feasibility study of mineral reserves demonstrating economic and technical viability and there is increased uncertainty and economic and technical risks of failure associated with any production decision. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, continuity of mineralization, uncertainties related to the ability to obtain necessary permits, licenses and title and delays due to third party opposition, changes in government policies

regarding mining and natural resource exploration and exploitation, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on the Company, investors should review the Company's continuous disclosure filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74751
[February 18, 2021] NTT DATA and Spartan Medical Enable Colorado State University Pueblo Students to Get Back to Class Safely

NTT DATA Services, a digital business and IT services leader, is teaming up with Spartan Medical, Inc., a service-disabled veteran-owned business that provides advanced medical technologies, to deliver COVID-19 testing and tracing services to multiple government agencies and public sector organizations. Among those is Colorado State University Pueblo (CSU Pueblo), which is working with Spartan Medical and NTT (News - Alert) DATA for COVID-19 testing, contact tracing, and other healthcare services. CSU Pueblo has implemented technology from NTT DATA to expand testing and contact tracing capabilities, offering an easy, HIPAA-compliant app to track and manage all COVID-19 related data and activity in one place, including scheduling appointments, push notifications and capturing test results. As a result, CSU Pueblo has scaled and vastly expanded its testing capabilities, delivering approximately 1,000 new tests each week and preventing anyone from entering its campus if they have not received a negative COVID-19 test result. In addition, the college has been able to get student athletes back on the field. "With approximately 2,100 students and employees currently living, learning, and working on campus, CSU Pueblo is committed to ensuring everyone receives the benefits of in-person learning while keeping students, faculty and staff safe from the virus," said Dr. Donna Souder Hodge, Chief Strategy Officer and COVID-19 Director, CSU Pueblo. "Having a safe option for in-person learning is important, but the health and wellness of our campus community remains our top priority. The level of testing we can offer now at CSU Pueblo would not be possible without NTT DATA's support and technology expertise and Spartan's programming solutions." Each week, CSU Pueblo students are required to book a test via the NTT DATA Smart Back-to-Work solution, and then 15-Minute Rapid Antigen tests are administered by Spartan Medical (in the event of a positive result, a confirmatory PCR (News - Alert) test is administered). When a test result is positive, the campus COVID-19 team is alerted via a secure dashboard, and a team immediately begins the contact tracing process of any students or staff the individual may have potentially exposed. As an additional precaution, all on-campus individuals coplete a daily self-assessment of health (symptoms, exposure, etc.), with the app issuing a green or red QR code to present at checkpoints across campus before they can enter facilities.



"While we all hold out hope that vaccine distribution will become more widely available soon, we understand the return to in-person learning cannot wait for everyone," said Tim Conway President, Public Sector, NTT DATA Services. "CSU Pueblo is an excellent example of the use of technology to help keep students in the classroom and athletes on the field. We're thrilled to partner with Spartan Medical to make this happen for CSU Pueblo, and with the success of NTT DATA's solution for COVID-19 testing we are now working on ways to support our government clients as well." Spartan has been awarded multiple contracts with government agencies and public sector institutions to administer COVID-19 testing and safety measures. The company uses NTT DATA's proprietary, HIPAA-compliant scheduling and self-assessment health platform to enable patients to schedule tests in advance and provide all necessary demographic information as required by the CDC.

"Many K-12 schools, universities and businesses are looking for a turn-key operation to address all of their COVID-19 testing needs," said Vince Proffitt, President of Spartan Medical. "By adopting a customer-centric approach and using technology from NTT DATA to stream-line our COVID-19 testing services, we have developed a model that is both user-friendly and rapidly scalable to other institutions across the United States." With the success of NTT DATA's scheduling solution for COVID-19 testing the company is now working to support government clients to effectively schedule citizens for vaccines. To learn more about NTT DATA's work enabling COVID-19 safety, testing and contact tracing for the public sector, please visit: Pandemic Response Portfolio. About Colorado State University Pueblo Colorado State University Pueblo (CSU Pueblo) is a state-funded, four-year, public university located in Pueblo, Colorado, and is one of three campuses of the Colorado State University System. CSU Pueblo is a regional comprehensive, doctoral-granting, and designated Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) serving approximately 4000 students. CSU Pueblo's mission is "to measure success by the resilience, agility, and problem-solving abilities of our diverse student population and the ways in which our graduates are able to navigate work in a rapidly changing world." To learn more about CSU Pueblo, visit us online at https://www.csupueblo.edu/. About Spartan Medical Spartan Medical Inc. was founded in 2008 by a former Air Force Intelligence Officer to provide an extensive portfolio of advanced medical devices and technologies from premier partners, focused on the needs of the VA and DoD surgeon. Spartan Medical is considered a top priority vendor in the VA as a CVE certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), and has been awarded 600+ Federal Government contracts including multi-year Blanket Purchase Agreements at over 30 major military treatment facilities with 13+ years of flawless performance. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Spartan Medical has assembled a Comprehensive COVID-19 Testing Solution providing best-in-class products and services for K-12 schools, universities and local, state and federal governments. To learn more about Spartan Medical visit us at https://spartanmedspine.com/. About NTT DATA Services NTT DATA Services is a digital business and IT services leader. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, we are the largest division of trusted global innovator NTT DATA Corporation, a top 10 provider and part of the $109B NTT Group. With our consultative approach, we leverage deep industry expertise and leading-edge technologies powered by AI, automation and cloud to create practical and scalable solutions that contribute to society and help clients worldwide. Our global team delivers one of the industry's most robust and integrated portfolios. This includes consulting, applications, data intelligence and analytics, hybrid infrastructure, workplace, cybersecurity and business process services to help organizations accelerate and sustain value throughout their digital journeys. Visit www.nttdataservices.com to learn more or @NTTDATAServices. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005244/en/

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Theres maybe nothing more emblematic of San Francisco than the Victorian home. Without these historic structures, delighting everyone from tourists to longtime residents, would the city still feel the same?

For Skeeter Jones, a craftsman focused on restoring the fronts of these famous structures, his whole job is ensuring that Victorian homes remain the architectural and historical fixture of the city. From restoring original, lost details to reconstructing what disappeared in a stucco transformation, Jones may be the only person in the city that does exactly what he does, approaching facade restoration like an artist approaches a canvas.

Hes lost track of how many facades hes restored, but Jones knows its more than 100 by now, a feat considering he may only complete a few each year. San Francisco has its own distinctive style that's different from everywhere else, Jones said. The redwood makes it unique.

Jones, now 69 years old, came to the Bay Area in the 1970s and started working in construction. He didnt love the grunt work and eventually ended up doing a special project for a man in Walnut Creek to hand carve a front door. He said this led to his interest in carpentry, but since San Francisco was a real union town back then, he headed to New England to apprentice and learn to build homes there. After a few cold winters he headed back west, just in time to catch the citys renaissance of the Victorian home.

In the 1950s and 1960s, the trend had been to strip the historic Victorians of their ornamental nature, covering the elaborate exterior carvings with stucco or aluminum siding. By 1982, as residents began embracing the original designs, Jones started Clearheart Fine Design and Building, and he said word just started spreading that he was the guy to restore Victorian facades. It was sort of a small town back then, he said. Word got around that I was doing this. I never really advertised.

Courtesy of Skeeter Jones/Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE

He works mainly by himself  he only brings someone in to do painting  and does everything from conception to historical research to hand carvings. He then works from the inside out  he has a special order of completing the restoration since many of the intricate elements overlap with each other on the facade and he said its important to work in a particular way.

When Mission resident Doug McDowell called Jones to work on his house in 2014, it took three years before Jones was able to fit him into the schedule. He falls in love with his projects. He has people that come to him with their projects and if he doesn't like their vision hell tell them no, McDowell said. ... For the most part, I let him have artistic license. I respect him as not just a builder or designer but as an artist.

McDowell said he bought his ugly home when it was in poor shape, but he felt like restoring it back to its Victorian exterior was like giving back to the city in some way. Hes an artist, McDowell said. He drew up some plans that were beautiful. He took over my garage and carved everything and replicated the detail that had been lost or ripped off.

But for every embellished detail, Jones has to show historical photographic proof to various city departments to get approval. The city wants to ensure historic accuracy and avoid any conjecture when reviewing a new exterior home design. Since there werent as many photos taken then, Jones spends time pouring over historical records, sometimes searching in the backgrounds of police photos for tiny home details.

Once the pandemic began last year, it made the process even slower. Jones said he applied for a permit to restore a portico on a home in October 2020, complete with the required photograph proof, and its still not approved in February 2021. Sometimes the hard labor is the easiest part, he said. Its harder to get permission to do it.

Courtesy of Skeeter Jones/Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE

Timing can lag, but sometimes designs can be outright denied. Hes concerned that facade restoration has gotten so difficult that it could ultimately ruin the character of the city. Before, I could take off the asbestos shingles and the stucco and see the scars on the building and put on a facade and everything was fine, he said. Maybe in the '90s I guess they got more strict and it's nearly impossible now. ... For the homeowner there's just no incentive to keep the character of San Francisco anymore.

At around $100,000 to restore a facade, its not cheap either.

While Jones isnt the only person to specialize in facade restoration in the city, some would say theyre a dying breed of craftspeople. Chris Yerke, 56, does facade restoration in addition to overall historic remodeling, and has started an apprenticeship program in hopes of training the next generation of these types of artisans. No one trains people to do this anymore, Yerke said. It can be a bit of a roundabout journey. You can make a good living as an artisan and there's not a lot of us left. I don't see many young guys.

Yerke said he thinks preserving these homes is integral in preserving part of San Franciscos cultural legacy. Its unfortunate that a lot of period houses have been bought up in the last 10 years by a different generation thats turning them into IKEA light, he said. Once they've been ruined it is rare that someone puts them back. Im humbled and grateful that some people are spending the money to put things back just for the sheer love of it.

Jones agrees, and said that the knowledge of this art is dying and theres not enough demand for apprenticeship programs. He said even his own two sons, one whom worked with him briefly, say its too expensive to live in San Francisco and do that kind of work.

Some [homeowners] really do care, though. Maybe they moved here and they got some of the feel of the place and they want to preserve some of the history and now their house is worth a lot, Jones said. Cities are dynamic. Theyre always changing.
The Hershey Company said today it is taking another step toward Reeses for all.

Organic Reeses Peanut Butter Cups in milk and dark chocolate will land on store shelves this month.

The Reeses brand is quite literally finding ways for everyone to enjoy that same sought-after taste only achieved with a true and unmatched Reeses chocolate and peanut butter combination.

From Big Cups with Pretzels, THiNS, Zero Sugar, Reeses Crunchers, Dark, Mini Cups, Dark PB Cups, Mini Cups, Crispy Crunchy Bar, Nutrageous Bar, Outrageous Bar  the brand is officially inviting organic eaters to join the party. NOW introducing, Organic Reeses cups.

The new organic cups will be available nationwide.

Were continuing to expand our product line so there is a Reeses cup for nearly everyone, said Eric Newton, brand manager Reeses Organic. When consumers go down the candy aisle or shop online, we want everyone to have an option to choose from, and we arent settling until everyone can enjoy a Reeses product.

Organic Reeses Peanut Butter Cups will be available in a 1.4-oz pack with a suggested price of $1.99. The company said the candy is certified USDA Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified, and Rainforest Alliance Certified.

Also available this month will be the new Organic Hersheys milk chocolate and special dark chocolate bars in a 1.55-oz pack for a suggested price of $1.99.

READ MORE
1. Roads. The citys roads are a mess. Significant resources are needed to fix them.

2. Public safety. The crime rate is too high. Police pay and resources come first.

3. More city programs. The city must invest more in city programs and services.

4. Comprehensive plan. The city needs to focus on rebuilding and rebranding.

5. Cut city spending. City officials must get serious about trimming the budget.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 18:55:50|Editor: huaxia

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WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- American businesses would be significantly impacted with hundreds of billions losses in foregone GDP and capital gains and U.S. productivity and innovation undermined if the United States and China were to fully decouple, a new report showed Wednesday.

The United States would forgo 190 billion dollars in gross domestic product (GDP) annually by 2025, if 25-percent tariffs were expanded to cover all two-way trade, according to the analysis by U.S. Chamber of Commerce's China Center in partnership with Rhodium Group.

If decoupling leads to the sale of half of the U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI) stock in China, U.S. investors will lose 25 billion dollars per year in capital gains, and models point to one-time GDP losses of up to 500 billion dollars, showed the report titled "Understanding U.S.-China Decoupling: Macro Trends and Industry Impacts."

The report identified the potential costs of a U.S.-China decoupling from two perspectives: the aggregate costs for the U.S. economy across trade, investment, people, and ideas, and the industry-level costs in civil aviation, semiconductors, chemicals, and medical devices.

"If we were to try to cut off everything or the preponderance of our economic engagement with China would be so expensive that it would make everyone, even the most hawkish Americans and national security professionals, very uncomfortable," said Daniel Rosen, founding partner of Rhodium Group, at a virtual release event for the report.

On industry-level costs, full decoupling would lead to tremendous U.S. output losses for strategic U.S. industries, weakening their ability to sustain jobs, research & development (R&D), and global technology leadership, the report said.

Among the industrial losses it listed, the U.S. aircraft and commercial aviation services would suffer output losses ranging from 38 billion to 51 billion dollars, plus job losses between 167,000 and 225,000.

For the U.S. semiconductor industry, a loss of access to Chinese customers would cause 54 billion to 124 billion dollars in lost U.S. output, risking more than 100,000 U.S. jobs, and 12 billion dollars in R&D spending.

"We did this study largely to suggest that the degree of interconnectedness between the United States and China creates a very complex relationship, such that efforts from the United States or China to decouple, to disengage actually, have perhaps unintended consequences," said Charles Freeman, senior vice president for Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.





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Leaders of the Visegrad Group of nations pushed for faster deliveries of vaccines to their Central European countries to help fight the deadly COVID-19 pandemic in the region.

The leaders of Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland on February 17 said they support buying vaccines from producers regardless of geopolitics, as long as they are safe and effective.

Leaders of the four Central European nations -- Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic -- gathered at the Wawel Castle in the Polish city of Krakow to mark 30 years of their Visegrad Group (V4), an informal body of political and economic cooperation in the region.

Hungary is the first and only European Union country so far to administer Russia's Sputnik V vaccine before it receives approval from the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

RFE/RL's Coronavirus Crisis Archive Features and analysis, videos, and infographics explore how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the countries in our region.

Questions were earlier raised about the safety and efficacy of the Russian vaccine, but peer-reviewed, late-stage trial results published in The Lancet medical journal this month showed the two-dose regimen of Sputnik V was 91.6 percent effective against symptomatic COVID-19, about the same level as the leading Western-developed vaccines.

There is no Eastern or Western vaccine, there is only a good or a bad vaccine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban told a news conference. It is not good to be too political about the health security of the people.

Orban in the past has criticized the EU for its slow rollout of vaccines in the bloc. Orban has been repeatedly criticized by EU leaders in Brussels for his authoritarian governance in his country.

The Hungarian leader has defended his governments decision to unilaterally seek vaccines, without EU approval, from Russia and China. Hungarian health authorities last month approved vaccines from China's state-owned company Sinopharm, as well as Russias Sputnik V vaccine.

Slovak Prime Minister Igor Matowic and Mateusz Morawiecki of Poland backed Orbans comments.

European Council President Charles Michel, who attended the event, said bloc leaders will next week discuss ways of increasing vaccine production and of speeding the inoculation process.

Michel praised the group's development and role in the EU but stressed the group must be based on principles of democracy, in comments that appeared to be directed at Hungary and Poland.

All four countries are EU and NATO members. Hungary and Poland have often been criticized by Brussels for what is seen as political interference in areas like the judiciary and media freedom.

In a letter for Poland's Interia.pl news platform and for the Hungarian daily Magyar Nemzet, Orban said the role of Central European nations is to help protect the EU against outside attacks but also against internal tendencies to build an empire while guarding their own independence.

The V4 nations understand their share of responsibility for the future of Europe" based on Christian values, Orban wrote.

The V4 was founded in February 1991 from a declaration of cooperation that then-Presidents Lech Walesa of Poland, Vaclav Havel of then-Czechoslovakia, and Jozsef Antall of Hungary signed in Visegrad, Hungary.

Poland holds the groups 12-month rotating presidency, which it will hand over to Hungary on July 1.

With reporting by AP and dpa


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HBO's documentary series The Lady and the Dale just wrapped up over the holiday weekend, exploring the life of 1970s Los Angeles trans woman/con artist Elizabeth Carmichael. She almost revolutionized the car industry with her company, Twentieth Century Motor Car Corporation, and its eco-friendly Dale car... if it weren't for her criminal history creeping into her approach to business.

The series was co-directed by Nick Cammilleri and Zackary Drucker -- Cammilleri told LAist about his decade of digging into Carmichael's story, along with how it brings both Carmichael and trans history to life.

He first learned about her story in 2011, when he watched a 1989 Unsolved Mysteries episode -- the episode had helped lead to her arrest. He wanted to know more, but found little written about it. So he started following the trail, trying to get court transcripts from Carmichael's trial -- but those records were either missing or sealed, with Cammilleri needing a court order to find out more.

"I just couldn't figure out why I couldn't find anything, and it took me years. I really got upset, because I wanted to know everything," Cammilleri said.

WHO WAS ELIZABETH CARMICHAEL?

Carmichael was known for pulling various scams under a male identity before transitioning. She served overseas in Germany, as well as moving around the country regularly. She was arrested for counterfeiting in Los Angeles in 1961 -- then jumped bail and went on the run with her wife and children in 1962.

Carmichael even faked her own death when moving on from her previous identity, including shooting up her own car and leaving the bullet-riddled wreck for authorities to find. She began her transition in 1966, eventually re-emerging and going on to promote the Dale -- before her past caught up with her.

Cammilleri thought early on that it might make a good screenplay, but when he found out there was another script out there that hadn't been made, he decided to go in a different direction. And even though he'd never made one before, he started filming with the aim of creating a documentary.

His goal, Cammilleri said, was to prove that there really was something to the car that Carmichael was developing -- that it wasn't just another scam.

Elizabeth Carmichael posing next to the Dale automobile. (Courtesy HBO)

"If the car was fake, then there was no point in doing this documentary," Cammilleri said. "There's a character arc, if that car is real. Because that means that that's a person who's seeking redemption."

DOCUMENTING A TRANS WOMAN'S STORY

Not being a part of the LGBTQ community, Cammilleri worked with Zackary Drucker as his co-director, who was brought on by producer Jay Duplass and his production company. The story wasn't well-known within the LGBTQ community, according to Drucker, who says she felt that it had to do Carmichael's criminal history.

"Zackary has the lived experience of a trans woman. I'll never know that life, and there's no way I could get up to speed on that fast enough for this," Cammilleri said. "Zackary came at it being like, 'This is a trans story,' and I came at it like, 'This is a Liz story.'"

Drucker told Cammilleri that she didn't think there had ever been four hours of television devoted to a single trans person before.

Cammilleri was fascinated with her as an entrepreneur and working mother -- while Drucker was fascinated with Liz as a trans woman and a trans mother, as well as what that means in trans history. Carmichael had raised five children alongside a woman who she told others was her secretary -- as well as having another five children with four previous wives.

Elizabeth Carmichael with her family. (Courtesy HBO)

Cammilleri couldn't understand why the 15,000 pages of court documents he was going through kept referring to Carmichael as a man.

"At the time, I didn't know a lot about it. So I was like, why do they keep saying she's a man? I never understood that -- she clearly lived and died as a woman," Cammilleri said. "[Zackary] helped me understand a few different things -- one of them, that the trans community is widely accepted in the mob/mafia, and basically organized crime in general."

Cammilleri noted that trans women have historically found places outside of society to operate. Trans historian Susan Stryker explains in the documentary the ways that being trans may have been part of what led Carmichael into being a career criminal, both before and after her transition.

"If you're not being the person that you understand yourself to be, you don't often follow that normative life path," Stryker says in the series. "If you feel that interacting with people and institutions and the public and the government is something that, at every step, it invalidates who you are as a person, maybe you're resentful about that, and maybe you engage in more so-called 'antisocial behavior' out of those unresolved feelings that are based on your transness."

For trans women, who sometimes don't fit society's definition of what a woman should look like, it can also be hard to find work due to the discrimination they face, Stryker notes in the documentary.

"You have to make ends meet, however you're going to do it," Cammilleri said.

Carmichael struggled to find a job as a woman, before finally finding an opportunity to work in real estate. She moved on to working in marketing, where she met Dale Clifft -- inventor of a three-wheeled car with low gas consumption. She worked with him to create, and market, the Dale.

CREATING AN ECO-FRIENDLY CAR ALMOST 50 YEARS AGO

The Dale was a three-wheel vehicle, whose design was meant to save fuel during the '70s oil crisis. She promised that it could deliver 70 miles to the gallon, even promoting it as a possible giveaway on The Price Is Right before they'd even created a working version of it. As it was being developed by her new Burbank auto company, utilizing the same San Fernando Valley community that had spent the past decade designing for NASA and Boeing, she would regularly make numerous other claims that the tech couldn't back up just yet.

The new 1970s version of Carmichael pretended to be a widow taking on the Detroit auto industry, while also claiming to hold engineering degrees from institutions with no record of her. All that big talk led to scrutiny from the media and the car industry.

As she refused to play by the rules, she was arrested for fraud and business code violations before the Dale was ever released to the public. Her criminal past and her previous life living as a man came to light in a time when that revelation was even less accepted than it is today.

Elizabeth Carmichael (Courtesy HBO)

She went on the run once more, for more than a decade, but was found living under a false identity and put on trial after that Unsolved Mysteries episode. She was sentenced and served 18 months in a men's prison, before living out her days as Liz Carmichael once more.

In his quest to tell her story, Cammilleri got hold of a scrapbook of articles from the trial, the jury foreman's notebooks -- and even the blueprints for the Dale.

"Once I saw the blueprints, I was like, 'Holy crap, this is real,'" Cammilleri said.

He'd worked from the outside in, starting with the information that was publicly available before ultimately meeting and doing interviews with Carmichael's family.

"There's a picture of the Dale car that is one of the only two things that Liz kept with her as she moved from house to house," Cammilleri said.

And she was ultimately arrested in an interesting location: Dale, Texas.

Elizabeth Carmichael with her family. (Courtesy HBO)

While Carmichael died from cancer in 2004, the film uses interviews with her family and those who knew her, audio recordings of Carmichael, and a handcrafted animation style that breathes life into her and her wild existence.

"It allows Liz to touch every single person in the series in a very personal way, which I think gives her the most agency in her own story," Cammilleri said.

Cammilleri wants viewers to take away an understanding of the sacrifices that Carmichael made in order to survive as a trans woman. He also hopes it leads to people asking questions about how the prison system works, with the way that Carmichael's counterfeiting in the early 1960s had repercussions over and over again throughout her life.

"It's this echo," Cammilleri said. "We penalize people all the time. We make sure that they're always a criminal."

He also wanted to show how the effects even go through generations -- one of her children ended up barely able to fill out a job application, due to being on the run with his parents and not going to school.

You can learn about Carmichael's full story in the documentary -- all four parts of The Lady and the Dale are available on HBO Max now.
AMHERST  Work is underway to renovate Emily Dickinson homestead and museum to restore house where she lived and wrote, to how it was in 19th century.

The Museum is committed to providing visitors with an increasingly authentic experience of the homes and grounds inhabited by the Dickinson family, and this restoration will have a profound impact on that experience. It will not only triple the amount of restored space in the Homestead accessible to guests, but also add critical details to their understanding of Dickinsons daily life, the Museum Executive Director Jane Wald in a press release Wednesday.

Born in 1830, the now-famous poet, who died at age 55, and whose artistry was not widely recognized while alive -- and who lived her life in Amherst -- started becoming well-known when the nearly 2,000 poems she wrote was first published in 1890, four years after her death.

A gift from the late William McC. Vickery, Amherst College, class of 1957 is funding the restoration with money from National Endowment for the Humanities.

Trustees of Amherst College own the property that is superintended by a separate, 18-person board of governors, for upkeep, operations and management.
[February 18, 2021] GBLT Corp. Receives USD $2.7 Million Follow-On Order from European Mass Merchandiser for Private Battery Label

TORONTO and DUEREN, Germany, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - GBLT Corp. (TSXV: GBLT) (OTCQB: GBLTF) (FSE: 4G9) ("GBLT" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has received a follow-on order of USD $2.7 million from one of Europe's biggest mass merchandisers to provide private label batteries. This merchandiser had previously placed an order for USD $4.8m as announced on January 21st, 2021 and has now placed a follow-on order due to overwhelming customer demand. In addition to AgfaPhoto branded batteries and mobile energy products, GBLT delivers private label batteries that vendors can brand their own. This is often done to provide an alternative to more expensive, brand-named batteries for consumers that are seeking a cheaper product. This allows retailers to solidify their own brand awareness with consumers. "Demand for private label batteries has vastly exceeded our expectations in the early parts of 2021 as mass merchandisers are seeing unprecedented demand for mobile energy products in the face of lockdowns," said Dr. Thilo Senst, CEO of GBLT Corp. "With smaller retailers unable to remain open due to lockdown restrictions, GBLT's client list of large big-box retailers has seen an increase in demand for these products even well beyond what they had initially planned for. We anticipat continued growth in demand for our products well into the future for our AgfaPhoto branded mobile energy solutions."



About GBLT: GBLT Corp., through its operating company, GBT GmbH, designs, manufactures and supplies mobile storage, battery and personal protection equipment to some of the largest retail chains across the globe. GBT is also an official licensee for Kodak mobile storage systems and AGFAPHOTO mobile energy products. The Company's personal protection equipment is primarily sold throughout Europe under Dr. Senst brand, which is owned and operated by GBT GmbH.

For more information, please visit www.gbt-international.com and www.gbltcorp.com. Forward-Looking Information Certain statements in this news release, which are not historical in nature, constitute "forward looking statements" within the meaning of that phrase under applicable Canadian securities law. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements or information concerning the Company's proposed activities under the Agreement, the Company's ability to achieve sales, commercial or otherwise, from its products, and the expectations of the Company regarding funding payments due pursuant to the Agreement. These statements reflect management's current assumptions and expectations and by their nature are subject to certain underlying assumptions, known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results, performance or events to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. Except as required pursuant to applicable securities laws, the Company will not update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. More detailed information about potential factors that could affect financial results is included in the documents filed from time to time with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities by the Company. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward looking statements. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider

(as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. SOURCE GBLT Corp.

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The finger-pointing began immediately: It was the freezing of the wind turbines that foolishly replaced traditional sources. No, fossil fuels were at fault. No, Texas's deregulated power market, unique in the country, had allowed companies to skimp on maintenance and upgrades.

As the hours ticked by and millions more were plunged into frozen darkness, a more sober reality emerged. The greatest forced blackout in U.S. history, as this event has almost certainly become, was the result of a systemic and multifaceted failure. There are no promises of when power will be restored and little likelihood that the episode won't be repeated in a corner of the country hard hit by climate change.

"This feels like a technical design failure," said Michael Webber, who founded the Webber Energy Group at the University of Texas at Austin and serves as chief science and technology officer at French utility Engie.

Power plants weren't fully weatherized, wiping out generation capacity. The ones that were still standing struggled to get enough fuel, with shale wells experiencing so-called freeze-offs. Many wind turbines stopped spinning. Texas, with a grid notoriously isolated from the rest of the U.S., was unable to call on neighboring states for help.

Still, as the pressure dropped last week and frigid air descended from the north, some saw what was coming and felt as if they were witnessing a train crash. They lay part of the blame on ERCOT, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which manages the flow of power to consumers and says the extreme nature of the weather made it hard to be ready.

"We were woefully unprepared for this kind of cold," said Texas state Rep. Ron Reynolds, D, whose own house is without power. "They got caught with their pants down and now millions of Texans have no power. This is a matter of life and death."

ERCOT officials couldn't say when power would be restored. "I know it's frustrating we can't offer a time certain, but it's a process we're engaged in to get the grid back in balance," ERCOT CEO Bill Magness said during a news conference Tuesday.

Adam Sinn, owner of Aspire Commodities LLC, a power and gas trader, was one of those wondering why so little was being done. He said that a week ago, when the seven-day outlook hit, ERCOT's own projections showed too little supply to meet soaring demand.

"We were looking at this week thinking, they are going to have to cut 10,000 megawatts of consumers," he said. "I really think ERCOT is to blame on this one." He said there were spare megawatts that weren't brought online. For example, Vistra Corp., a large generator, had 4,000 megawatts offline for maintenance in four plants that could have been turned on quickly, he said, citing data from Genscape Inc.

Sinn said ERCOT either failed to order the megawatts back on or was told not to, which should have generated publicity so residents could prepare.

ERCOT and Genscape didn't respond to requests for comment. Vistra declined to comment.

If ERCOT knew what was in store, it wasn't apparent in its messaging to Texans. Over the weekend, recommendations from its official Twitter account included closing the blinds and unplugging unused kitchen gadgets. "Laundry on Valentine's Day?" it said in another post. "No."

On Tuesday, Dan Woodfin, a senior director for ERCOT, attributed the main factors to frozen instruments at natural gas, coal and nuclear plants. He and other ERCOT officials said they believed generators had prepared better for such cold.

ERCOT's authority is somewhat limited. In 2011, the last time freezing weather caused rolling outages, it released recommendations for power generators but could not require they be followed, said Adrian Shelley, Texas office director of Public Citizen, an advocacy group.

Federal energy regulators also issued a 357-page report that recommended generators winterize their equipment, including insulating pipes.

"The financial incentive isn't there to harden that infrastructure," he added. "From a generator perspective, the only incentive is to bring energy to market as cheaply as possible."

Power prices spiked on several days to the price cap in Texas -- a staggering $9,000 per megawatt-hour.

A 100-megawatt wind farm in the state that might have normally made almost $40,000 over a two-day period in February could reap more than $9.5 million on Monday and Tuesday alone, Nicholas Steckler, a power-markets analyst at BloombergNEF, said. On Monday, electricity sales likely totaled $10 billion, according to Wood Mackenzie.

While some pointed to wind power as a culprit, as of early Tuesday wind shutdowns accounted for 3.6 to 4.5 gigawatts -- or less than 13% -- of the 30 to 35 gigawatts of total outages, ERCOT's Woodfin said. Gas produced 35% of the power in January.

Others said Texas's problems were wide-ranging.

"Everyone wants to blame someone, so they blame ERCOT," Webber said. "But if the gas can't come out of the ground, is that ERCOT's fault? If we have sloppy building codes that don't properly insulate homes, is that ERCOT's fault?"

He suggests a combination of upgrades and expansions nationally at a cost of trillions of dollars over decades. Roughly 10% of that will need to take place in Texas. That's a lot of money, which is why little was done the last time Texas saw a major test of its grid in the cold a decade ago.

Texas lacks the long-term planning processes that other parts of the country employ. In the east, grid operators run capacity markets that act like insurance policies. Generators are paid to guarantee that their supplies will be available on the most extreme hot and cold days. If they don't show up, they face stiff penalties. Texas has instead left it up to prevailing prices and industry.

That deregulated and competitive nature of the markets stands to exacerbate massive price run-ups. More than 100 electric suppliers compete for customers who churn power companies like credit cards. They take big risks to attract new customers, offering incredibly low rates and allowing unlimited power use on weekends. But when the wholesale markets backfire, they bail on them.

The state also refuses to connect its grid with neighbors in part out of fear that the system will fall under federal oversight and regulation. But its politicians are coming to realize that independence has a down side.

Natural gas played an outsize role in the disaster. As early as last Thursday, Energy Transfer LP sent a warning to customers on its Transwestern natural gas pipeline: It was going to be cold, and if producers' shipments were to deviate from their normally scheduled flows, they needed to let the operator know.

Maybe the North Dakota oil field could withstand frigid temperatures, but the infrastructure that connects the Permian Basin in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico is exposed to the elements. Drilling liquids freeze inside pipes, forcing wells and gas processing plants shut.

By Friday, temperatures had dropped to 24 degrees in Dallas. Texans were told to start conserving energy. Physical gas prices soared to more than $500 in Oklahoma from less than $4 at the start of the week. As of Tuesday, they had doubled to roughly $1,000 per million British thermal units. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, R, asked a major gas exporter to limit their intake.

All of this is to speak nothing of the human toll.

"It's mentally draining, the constant thought of wondering, 'When will the power come back on, how can I get us out of this situation?'" said Alton McCarver, 30, an IT worker who led his family into his Dodge Charger for hours at a time to blast the heater and charge phones. "It's been an uphill battle to stay warm."
A new AstraZeneca vaccine batch, consisting of 163,200 doses, will arrive on Thursday at the "Cantacuzino" National Institute for Medical-Military Development Research, the National Coordinating Committee for Vaccination against COVID-19 Activities (CNCAV) informs, according to AGERPRES.

"The transport is provided by the producing company, and the vaccine doses will be brought to Bucharest by land. The doses will be stored at the National Storage Center, and in the next period they will be distributed to the existing regional centers nationwide. The National Storage Center of vaccines against COVID-19 within the 'Cantacuzino' Institute is fully authorized and endorsed by the National Authority for Medicines and Medical Devices of Romania (ANMDMR), the national authority that has competence in the field of medicinal products for human use," the CNCAV release states.

Following the receipt of the authorization from ANMDMR, the 'Cantacuzino' National Institute for Medical-Military Development Research may carry out, as a wholesale distributor, operations of possession, custody and delivery for medicines that are required additional criteria such as: products in accordance with: art. 806 of Law 95/2006 on healthcare reform, republished: immunological drugs, respectively products with cold chain distribution (which require handling at low temperatures).

The CNCAV recalls that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recommended on January 29 the granting of a conditional marketing authorization for the vaccine against COVID-19 developed by AstraZeneca.

The AstraZeneca vaccine is the third vaccine against COVID-19 available for vaccination campaigns in the member states of the European Union.
People visit an ancient cultural street in Tianjin, north China, Feb. 17, 2021, the last day of this year's Spring Festival holiday. (Photo by Sun Fanyue/Xinhua)
The Jefferson Parish Coroner's Office has identified the person killed in a double shooting in Terrytown Saturday night as Kevin Harris, 16, of New Orleans.

The second victim, a 25-year-old man, was taken to the hospital in critical condition with a gunshot wound to his back, according to Capt. Jason Rivarde, a spokesman for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office. He is expected to survive his injury.

One shot dead, another critically hurt in Terrytown, JPSO says A shooting in Terrytown on Saturday night ended with one person dead and another in critical condition at an area hospital, according to the J

The shooting occurred about 7:45 p.m. in the 900 block of East Monterey Court (map). Sheriff's deputies found Harris and the 25-year-old man lying on the ground outside of an apartment.

Harris was pronounced dead at the scene with multiple gunshot wounds, according to the Coroner's Office.

Investigators have not released any other information about the investigation.

Anyone with information about the shooting death of Kevin Harris is asked to call the Sheriff's Office investigations bureau at 504-364-5300. The public can also call Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111 or toll-free at 1-877-903-7867. Callers do not have to give their names or testify and can earn a reward of up to $2,500 for information that leads to an indictment.
Rep. John Katko is facing the first organized pushback from within his own party over his vote to impeach former president Donald Trump for inciting a violent mob to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

A group of about 40 Republican and Conservative party leaders and donors met privately at a Syracuse restaurant last week to discuss whether to continue supporting the congressman or to back a primary opponent.

Those who met for dinner at Strada Mia 313 felt angry, betrayed, and ready to abandon their support for the fourth-term congressman, according to four people who attended the meeting.

I was shocked, said Jim Quinn, vice chair of New Yorks Conservative Party, who was one of the guests. I didnt think there were that many Republicans upset about it. Everybody who spoke at that meeting was highly upset. Nobody came to his defense. Not a single person backed him up.

The group of influential backers held off on making any decisions, but at least two county political committees in the 24th Congressional District are moving forward with actions to punish Katko for his vote.

The full membership of the Cayuga County Republican Committee plans to meet Saturday in Auburn to consider whether to formally censure Katko, said Roberta Massarini, the party chair.

Separately, the Wayne County Conservative Committee voted unanimously for a resolution expressing no confidence in Katko, whom the party had backed in his four previous elections.

The committees Jan. 16 resolution said it would never support Katko again for any elected office. The state Conservative Party plans to wait before deciding whether to take similar action that could deny Katko the partys ballot line in the 2022 election.

Katko, R-Camillus, last month became the first House Republican to publicly rebuke Trump and announce that he would vote to impeach him for inciting insurrection at the Capitol, a violent clash in which five people were killed.

Katko was among only 10 House Republicans who broke ranks and voted to impeach Trump on Jan. 13.

Only seven Republican senators found Trump guilty in a vote Saturday after his impeachment trial.

Since then, at least seven of the 17 Republicans have faced censure or some form of rebuke from their state or county GOP leaders.

Massarini, the Cayuga County Republican chair, and other party leaders interviewed by syracuse.com said that Katko called them in advance of his impeachment vote, knowing it would be controversial.

He did give me a courtesy call to say he was voting that way, Massarini said of Katko. I expressed my displeasure, right from the start, to say he was disenfranchising the 19,000 voters in Cayuga County who voted for the president.

Mike Garlock, chairman of the Wayne County Conservative Committee, said he tried to change Katkos mind before the impeachment vote in a series of phone calls and text messages.

Ive always supported John, and I think hes a great guy, Garlock said. I begged him not to do it. I guess he just figured he could weather it out.

He said Katko was already on thin ice with conservatives over his votes with Democrats on a series of high-profile bills  the reason almost half of his committee members didnt want to support the congressman in last years election.

After Katko voted for impeachment and to rebuke GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Feb. 4, the negative reaction among Wayne County conservatives was swift and unanimous, Garlock said.

Theres no talking to any of them, he said.

Garlock was among at least five Conservative Party leaders invited to join a larger group of Republicans at the dinner meeting Feb. 10 at Strada Mia 313. The group met as the U.S. Senate moved forward with Trumps impeachment trial.

He described the meeting as a bunch of guys throwing ideas around and exploring the possibilities of coming up with another Republican candidate.

Garlock said the exclusive group included campaign donors to Katko and former Onondaga County Republican Committee Chairman Tom Dadey.

Dadey recently changed his voter registration, dumping the GOP for the Conservative Party, said Bernie Ment, the partys chairman in Onondaga County.

The meeting was organized by Tim Niedzwiecki, owner of an East Syracuse-based demolition contractor, and hosted by James Ranalli, CEO of auto parts distributor United Auto Supply and the co-owner and operator of Strada Mia, according to Ment and other attendees.

Niedzwiecki, asked for comment about the meeting, told syracuse.com in an email: I am not a political figure and have no desire to be pulled into the political scene.

Ranalli could be not be reached. He donated more than $5,000 to Katkos last campaign for Congress, according to Federal Election Commission records.

Ment said said the purpose of the meeting at Strada Mia was to see how much support remained for Katko and if there was interest in fielding a Republican primary challenger.

I can tell you right now there was a lot of animosity in there for John, Ment said. He has rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. There are donors who said they would never support him again.

Ment declined to disclose the names of any potential challengers discussed by the group.

Katko, aware of the pushback, asked to meet with the Onondaga County Conservative Party, Ment said, adding that he told Katko it might be better to wait until March or April before addressing his members.

Right now, tempers are very, very high, Ment said. The whole impeachment issue is still sitting on the front-burner for a lot of people.

So far, the Onondaga County Republican Committee has steered clear of the controversy over Katko. The county is home to almost 70% of the registered voters in the four-county 24th District.

Onondaga County GOP Chair Benedicte Doran said the committee is focused on nominating candidates for 2021 local elections, preparing to circulate petitions for those races and winning in November.

Katko declined through a spokesman Wednesday to comment on the political fallout since his impeachment vote.

He said last week that he and his family members have been targets of vitriol and nastiness from Trump supporters since his vote.

Its one of the toughest votes Ill ever take, but its one of the proudest votes I took, Katko said. He added, There are some times that you have to take a vote even if you know it will cost you your job. This is one of them.

Jerry Kassar, chairman of the New York State Conservative Party, said he has encouraged party leaders in Central New York to wait for tempers to cool before passing judgement on Katko.

Kassar said he spoke to Katko before the impeachment vote and made it clear how it would be viewed.

There are some votes that are line in the sand votes and thats about as close to a line in the sand vote youre going to get  impeaching the president, Kassar said. He knew how strongly the party felt about this.

MORE ON REP. JOHN KATKO

Katko: GOP is bigger than Trump, must embrace other views to survive

John Katko has preached bipartisanship in Congress for years. That may finally pay off

Capitol riots left cops bloodied, ragged and shell shocked, Katko says

Katko among 11 House Republicans who vote to rebuke Marjorie Taylor Greene

Katko: US Capitol attack was much worse than people realized

Rep. John Katko: Establish national commission to investigate US Capitol attack

Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact Mark Weiner anytime by: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751

At a time when most major companies are working on plans to cut their carbon emissions, one of the darlings of green investing is working to increase its emissions footprint.

You read that right. Thanks to its explosive expansion in China and a planned car plant in India, Tesla Inc. is in the process of not just increasing the total sum of its emissionsa pretty inevitable consequence of growth in our current carbonized worldbut increasing the amount of pollution each of its vehicles generates, too.

Thats because carmakers emissions arent just a product of the energy consumed in their factoriestheyre a result of the pollution their products pump out while theyre being driven around. Thanks to all the gasoline and diesel that gets burnt over the lifetime of the cars they sell, Volkswagen AG is responsible for more greenhouse gases than oil producer Total SE. Toyota Motor Corp.s footprint exceeds that of BP Plc. And Cummins Inc., which makes engines for commercial vehicles, has a higher total than Exxon Mobil Corp.

Electric vehicles like those sold by Tesla are at a substantial advantage on that front. As my colleagues Liam Denning and Elaine He have written, theyre so much more efficient in converting produced energy into vehicle power, that even in coal-heavy grids like Chinas, theyre more efficient than the gasoline equivalent.

The differences from one country to another, however, are substantial.

Take the lifecycle emissions calculator produced by Transport & Environment, a European non-profit organization dedicated to zero-carbon transport. A current-model large car with a battery produced and charged in an average EU country emits about 88gm of carbon dioxide per kilometre, compared to 284gm for a petrol-powered equivalent. In a country with a low-carbon grid like Sweden or France, that drops to 50gm or less.

If you use a proxy for a high-emissions grid like those in China or India, though, the picture changes substantially. A car with its battery made in China and charged up in Poland, where coal makes up about two-thirds of the electricity mix, as it does in China and India, puts out 193gm per kilometre.

An essential element of the climate potential of electric vehicles is that theyre able to switch to lower-carbon fuels over the course of their lifetimes, as heavily-emitting power plants are disconnected from the grid and replaced with renewables. That process is likely to be quite rapid in developed countriesbut in the two countries where Tesla hopes to catch the next leg of growth, China and India, its going to be unusually slow.

As a result, the more cars Tesla sells in China and India, the more the intensity of its emissionsthe emissions per vehicle sold, or per dollar of revenuewill rise.

Perhaps this doesnt matter. Any electric vehicle sold anywhere in the world is likely substituting for one powered by petrol or diesel. What the climate needs is for the market share of battery-powered vehicles to increase vis-a-vis conventional ones. If that means a lot get sold in markets where the immediate greenhouse benefits are less than they are in the US and Western Europe, its still, on balance, a plus.

Even so, this is the sort of information the climate-focused investors whove driven Teslas stock price so high ought to be given, so they can make their own decisions about how their shareholdings reflect their own emissions-reduction commitments.

Thats not the case at Tesla. Not only does it not disclose the Scope 3 emissions (those dominated by emissions from the cars it sells), it doesnt even lay out Scope 1 (from on-site power consumption) or Scope 2 (from purchased electricity). Nor does it disclose its electricity consumption, and its behaviour indicates that, for all the rhetoric, this isnt exactly a priority. Four years after production started at its Gigafactory battery plant in Nevada, the solar panels that were to cover its roof and help make it independent of Nevadas gas-fired grid are still only gradually being added.

Companies that make products to accelerate the transition to clean energy while providing scrappy documentation of their own carbon footprint may be better than the alternativeones that provide exemplary historic disclosures but only the vaguest assurances about how their net-zero commitments are going to be met.

Still, a clean-energy business with a market cap roughly equivalent to the S&P 500s entire oil and gas sub-index should be capable of producing the information to help investors make their own minds up. Teslas slapdash emissions disclosure is a stain on an otherwise impressive record. A company that thrives on the power of the sun shouldnt hide the footprint of its own operations in a shadow.

David Fickling is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering commodities, as well as industrial and consumer companies

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ING to leave Czech retail banking market by end-2021

Customers will receive a welcome offer from Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic

ING is announcing today that it intends to withdraw from the retail banking market in the Czech Republic. Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic has agreed to prepare a welcome offer for ING's retail customers in the Czech Republic.

In March, customers will receive an invitation from Raiffeisenbank to move to this bank over the coming months. The ambition is for ING to stop all its retail activities in this market by the end of 2021. ING will remain active in the Czech Republic as a provider of wholesale banking products and services.

ING has been present in the Czech retail banking market for more than 20 years, offering savings accounts and mutual funds. Currently ING serves around 375,000 local retail customers. Globally, ING supports more than 39 million retail and wholesale customers in 40 markets.

The agreement with Raiffeisenbank has been secured to ensure ING's customers in the Czech Republic can continue to meet their banking needs. ING customers will receive the option to move their savings and investments to Raiffeisenbank at preferential conditions. The agreement between ING Czech Republic and Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic is pending regulatory approval.

"We continuously evaluate our activities, including assessing whether they are likely to achieve the preferred scale in their market within a reasonable time frame. In this context we have decided to exit the Czech retail market, sharpening the focus of our business portfolio. We are confident that our customers are well -served by the attractive offer from Raiffeisenbank, which has a proven customer-centric and digital track record," said Aris Bogdaneris, member of the Management Board Banking and head of Challengers & Growth Markets at ING Group.

Currently the retail operations in the Czech Republic employ approximately 225 FTE. ING will build on its track record in supporting its employees with finding employment outside the bank.

Note for editors

For further information on ING, please visit www.ing.com. Frequent news updates can be found in the Newsroomor via the @ING_newsTwitter feed. Photos of ING operations, buildings and its executives are available for download at Flickr. ING presentations are available at SlideShare.

Press enquiries Investor enquiries Christoph Linke ING Group Investor Relations +31 20 576 43 15 +31 20 576 6396 Christoph.Linke@ing.com (mailto:Christoph.Linke@ing.com) Investor.Relations@ing.com (mailto:Investor.Relations@ing.com)





ING Profile

ING is a global financial institution with a strong European base, offering banking services through its operating company ING Bank. The purpose of ING Bank is empowering people to stay a step ahead in life and in business. ING Bank's more than 57,000 employees offer retail and wholesale banking services to customers in over 40 countries.

ING Group shares are listed on the exchanges of Amsterdam (INGA NA, INGA.AS), Brussels and on the New York Stock Exchange (ADRs: ING US, ING.N).

Sustainability forms an integral part of ING's strategy, evidenced by ING's leading position in sector benchmarks by Sustainalytics and MSCI and our 'A-list' rating by CDP. ING Group shares are included in major sustainability and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) index products of leading providers STOXX, Morningstar and FTSE Russell. In January 2021, ING received an ESG evaluation score of 83 ('strong') from S&P Global Ratings.

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Elements of this press release contain or may contain information about ING Groep N.V. and/ or ING Bank N.V. within the meaning of Article 7(1) to (4) of EU Regulation No 596/2014.

ING Group's annual accounts are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as adopted by the European Union ('IFRS-EU'). In preparing the ?nancial information in this document, except as described otherwise, the same accounting principles are applied as in the 2019 ING Group consolidated annual accounts. The Financial statements for 2020 are in progress and may be subject to adjustments from subsequent events. All ?gures in this document are unaudited. Small di?erences are possible in the tables due to rounding.

Certain of the statements contained herein are not historical facts, including, without limitation, certain statements made of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on management's current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to di?er materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results, performance or events may di?er materially from those in such statements due to a number of factors, including, without limitation:.

This document may contain inactive textual addresses to internet websites operated by us and third parties. Reference to such websites is made for information purposes only, and information found at such websites is not incorporated by reference into this document. ING does not make any representation or warranty with respect to the accuracy or completeness of, or take any responsibility for, any information found at any websites operated by third parties. ING speci?cally disclaims any liability with respect to any information found at websites operated by third parties. ING cannot guarantee that websites operated by third parties remain available following the publication of this document, or that any information found at such websites will not change following the - ling of this document. Many of those factors are beyond ING's control.

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Attachment
Just over one quarter of Australians are unwilling or uncertain about getting the COVID-19 vaccine, potentially delaying achieving herd immunity. Credit: University of Melbourne

Just over one quarter of Australians are unwilling or uncertain about getting the COVID-19 vaccine, potentially delaying achieving herd immunity, insights from the latest Taking the Pulse of the Nation Research Insight reveal.

Willingness among Australians to get the COVID-19 vaccine has fallen dramatically over the past four months (from 74.4 percent last October to 66.2 percent in early February 2021), according to the survey, with participants citing concerns about effectiveness, safety, and side effects.

As the rollout of the first round of vaccinations across Australia approaches, Professor Anthony Scott, Professorial Fellow at Melbourne Institute and author of the research insight, said the increase in both vaccination hesitancy and refusal was a worrying trend, and suggested it could result in a delay in achieving herd immunity.

"For the safety of our community, especially the most vulnerable, it's vital that herd immunity is achieved as soon as possible," Professor Scott said.

"This means having a high enough proportion of the population who are immune to protect those who aren't immunefor the most part from vaccinationotherwise restrictions on our freedoms could continue indefinitely.

"Consistent and targeted communications from all levels of government have to play a central role in addressing community anxiety about the vaccine."

The fortnightly survey, led by Melbourne Institute: Applied Economic & Social Research, tracks changes in the economic and social wellbeing of Australians during the pandemic.

The 26th wave of the survey was conducted from 16 February 2021. Survey participants cited concerns about effectiveness, safety, and side effects as reasons for their uncertainty.

The data showed a drop among all population groups to get the vaccine, with the most significant change recorded among unemployed Australians (73 percent in October 2020 to 60 percent in February 2021) and those with high levels of mental distress (83 percent to 67 percent).

People in these sub-groups who wanted the vaccine were also less likely to be willing to wait for at-risk Australians to be vaccinated first.

One in four Australians do not believe the vaccine works, or are worried about side-effects, while women (28 percent) were more likely than men (23 percent) to hold these views.

People from Tasmania (37 percent) were more likely to hold these beliefs compared to those from other states (NSW lowest likelihood at 21 percent), and those aged 25-34 years (35 percent), 50-54 years (32 percent) and 55-64 years (30 percent) were also more likely compared to those aged over 75 (10 percent) to hold concerns. A small percentage of people who said they would refuse the vaccine did so because they believe they're at lower risk of contracting the virus, even though vaccination benefits others. This was mainly comprised of individuals living in rural areas, aged 18-24, from Western Australia or dissatisfied with government COVID-19 policy.

Professor Scott said communicating the benefits of vaccination to groups unwilling or uncertain about the vaccine was vital, to put COVID-19 behind us and avoid more lockdowns. But, he said, it could not be a one size fits all approach.

"Our results suggest that more public education around how and why the vaccine works might help allay concerns and improve participation and these communications must be targeted," Professor Scott said.

"For example, the results show us that it is important to reiterate how vaccinations benefit not just individuals but the broader community by preventing transmission to others."

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak
President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday signed the awarding decree of the EU Chief Negotiator for the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union, Michel Barnier.

According to the Presidential Administration, the president awarded the Star of Romania National Order in the rank of High Officer to Michel Barnier as a sign of "high appreciation for the exceptional personal contribution to supporting the European project, for the decisive role played in the successful conduct of negotiations between the European Union and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, for the respect and friendship shown to our country".

West Bengal minister Jakir Hossain was seriously injured after unidentified attackers hurled a crude bomb at him in Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad district on Wednesday night, police said.

At least two other persons, who were with the Trinamool Congress MLA of Jangipur, were also injured in the incident which occurred ahead of the assembly election in West Bengal due in April-May this year.

Jakir Hossain

Senior minister and TMC leader Malay Ghatak held "political rivals of the party" responsible for the attack, while Sabhadhipati of Murshidabad Zilla Parishad Mosharaf Hossain, who was expelled from the TMC earlier in the day, claimed that it is the result of the party's internal feud.

Hossain, the minister of state for labour, was waiting at platform no 2 of the station to catch a train to Kolkata at around 10 pm when he was attacked, a senior police officer of West Bengal Police said.

"We have started an investigation," he said adding that a large police contingent was posted at Nimtita railway station.

Jakir HossainThe minister and the two other injured persons were taken to Jangipur Sub-divisional Hospital, he said.

An official of the hospital said that the minister suffered "injuries on his legs and lower abdominal part. We are trying to stabilise him before shifting him to a hospital in Kolkata."
Podolyak says it's not time for resignations yet.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an anti-crisis communications adviser to Head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak, says there are no grounds for a government reshuffle yet.

"It seems to me the Cabinet of Ministers has not yet maximized its tenure," he told the RBC Ukraine news agency in an interview.

Read alsoGovernment bill on new procedure for appointing NABU chief submitted to parliamentAt the same time, Podolyak believes some governmental posts should be strengthened.

"For example, as of today there is a wide gap in the Energy Ministry's history, the absence of a minister...," he added.

More news reports

Reporting by UNIAN
Egypt and Sudan are in talks to launch Just Meat, a selling branded meat as both countries agree to set up two meat industry plants in Egypt.

The Egypt government in a statement said both sides agreed to set up one plant in south of the valley and the other in Cairo.

The two factories will sell Just Meat. Egypts Holding Company for Food Industries and Sudans Al Ategahat al Mtadeda Company are the two sides on the agreement.

Both countries have been cooperating in the field of meat for six years, the statement also said.

The new deal according to Dr. Ahmed Awad, Chairman of the Sudanese Trends Company, will contribute to increasing the supply of meat in Egyptian markets

Aside from the catering industries, both countries also agreed to cooperate in the trade of goods including sugar and oilseed crops.

Egypt, Arab Finance reports, is establishing an industrial zone in Sudan to facilitate the implementation of joint projects.
Researchers from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the state's only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, evaluated the frequency of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, on various environmental surfaces in outpatient and inpatient hematology/oncology settings located within Rutgers Cancer Institute and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, an RWJBarnabas Health facility.

The study revealed extremely low detection of SARS-CoV-2 on environmental surfaces across multiple outpatient and inpatient oncology areas, including an active COVID-19 floor.

Andrew M. Evens, DO, MSc, FACP, associate director for clinical services and director of the Lymphoma Program at Rutgers Cancer Institute and medical director of the oncology service line at RWJBarnabas Health, is senior author of the work, which has been published in the February 18 online edition of Cancer.

Patients harboring hematologic malignancies, which are cancers that affect the blood, bone marrow, and lymph nodes, have demonstrated a potential higher mortality rate due to the virus. While COVID-19 is transmitted person to person through respiratory droplets, it has been hypothesized that there is a potential risk of SARS-CoV-2 spreading via contact with contaminated surfaces and equipment, especially in healthcare settings, creating additional concern for patients with blood cancers.

For patients with blood cancers who may be at higher risk of developing complications from the virus, our findings provide a layer of assurance that these patients are safe when frequenting high impact areas where they receive their cancer care. The results of this study help us further understand how COVID-19 is transmitted in hematology/oncology and other medical settings, and confirm that strategies like enhanced cleaning and disinfecting policies are extremely effective." Andrew M. Evens, DO, MSc, FACP, Associate Director for Clinical Services and Director of Lymphoma Program, Rutgers Cancer Institute

Dr. Evens is also a professor of medicine at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Environmental swabbing took place in two outpatient clinics including the malignant hematology and medical oncology units and infusion suites as well as inpatient areas which included the leukemia/lymphoma/CAR T-cell unit, and an inpatient unit caring for patients actively infected with COVID-19.

Surfaces were sampled on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from June 17, 2020 through June 29, 2020. Areas included waiting rooms, infusion areas, bathrooms, floors, elevator banks, doors, and exam rooms, computer equipment, pneumatic tubing stations, pharmacy benches, and medication rooms. Medical equipment was also swabbed from these areas including intravenous poles, chemotherapy bags, vitals monitor, telemetry stations, and linen carts.

Analysis of the 130 samples collected were separated into three categories: patient/public areas (85), staff areas (22), and medical equipment (23). In the two outpatient clinics and inpatient leukemia/lymphoma/CAR T-cell unit, no SARS-CoV-2 was detected on any swabbed surfaces.

In the inpatient COVID unit, one patient/public sample was positive for detection of SARS-CoV-2 in an area where a patient with recent infection was receiving treatment. Thus, the overall positive test rate for SARS-CoV-2 across all surfaces in the combined outpatient and inpatient hematology/oncology units was a low 0.5 percent.

The authors note study limitations including the inability to analyze the complete surface area of the varied locations, which may have reduced sensitivity. In addition, researchers did not attempt to culture SARS-CoV-2 from the one positive sample; it is unknown if it contained live virus. Continued studies are needed to monitor rates of virus transmission and the environmental factors involved in the propagation of the SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Senior Assam minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has got people talking on Twitter for a particularly controversial reason.



On Thursday, one of his statements garnered immense response on the micro-blogging site, as the minister gave an all-new definition of who a Hindu is supposed to be.

If you stand with Bharat in a clash between Bharat and Gita, then you are a Hindu, Sarma was quoted as saying.

If you stand with Bharat in a clash between Bharat and Gita, then you are a Hindu: Himanta Biswa Sarma  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) February 17, 2021

This didn't go down well with most people on social media.



Well, heres how people on the micro-blogging site reacted to the ministers eye-opening remark:

Did this genius say it actually  Apurva Mirajkar (@apurvasays) February 17, 2021

I thought this guy was sane

Hope this is something lost in translation

Dharma will be above everything  Jay Patel (@JayPatelw) February 17, 2021

Another stupid statement from BJP minister. Hindus will/should stand for Geeta first. One sided secularism by hindus is poisonous  Suzuki-gun gorilla  (@zurakoutaro) February 17, 2021

This is not one sided secularism.

Nation is and should be above everything. For most of the Muslims, the case is opp.  Ananya  (@AnanyaLodh) February 17, 2021

There can never be clash between Gita and Bharat.....both are the result of same ideology or hypothesis.....



There may be clash between Bharat and India and we will stand with Bharat only.  assignment-jeevi   (@suryaroxx99) February 17, 2021

2015 tak congress mein tha.. kuch to after-effects rahenge hi   Saurabh Trivedi (@SaurabhTheAce) February 17, 2021

As you all already know, this isnt the first time where ministers blatantly make such statements.

On Wednesday, the minister said that he communicated to state BJP chief Ranjeet Kumar Dass a year ago that he did not wish to contest the 2021 assembly election. He, however, said that if the party decides to field him to contest the poll likely to be held in March-April, he will honour the decision.

The BJP leader did not disclose the reason for his unwillingness to fight the election.

"On my birthday on February 1, 2020, I gave a letter to Ranjeet Dass saying that I don't want to fight the 2021 assembly polls. This is not known to my wife or son or any family member till now. I am making it public for the first time," Sarma said according to the reports.

Let us know what you think about the ministers statement in the space below.

The coronavirus vaccine is so coveted in the US that two women in Florida went to extremes on Wednesday to get inoculated: they dressed as if they were elderly, health officials said.

The women, both younger than 45, wore bonnets, gloves and glasses to disguise themselves as older than 65, the cut-off age to be prioritised to get the coronavirus vaccine in Orlando, according to Raul Pino, the director of the health department in Orange County. He attributed the deception to growing interest in the vaccine, giving the example of the women while explaining how high demand was in the area.

Two women were caught trying to pass as elderly to be able to get their second COVID-19 vaccine. Credit:Virginia Star

This is the hottest commodity that is out there right now so we have to be very careful, Pino said on Thursday.

The geriatric guise is the latest instance of people trying to jump the queue to get vaccinated from the deadly virus. Last month, authorities identified a wealthy Canadian couple who had posed as locals in a remote Indigenous community to take doses meant for elders. An Indiana health department issued a warning earlier this month against what they called a substantial lack of morality after people had lied to vaccination site workers about their addresses, jobs and ages.

The Florida womens costumes may have succeeded before - both had the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention card indicating they had received their first doses. Pino said he did not know how they could have been previously vaccinated, but on Wednesday workers at the site at the Orange County Convention Centre caught on.

Once the staff at the site noticed the discrepancy with their birthdays listed on their driver licences, the women, 44 and 34, were referred to deputies, who issued trespass warnings against them, the Orange County Sheriffs Office said.

The women, whom The Washington Post is not identifying because they have not been charged, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday evening.

They did not get their second shot, and security at the site was heightened in the wake of the incident, said Kent Donahue, a spokesman for the health department.

Pino said there had been a few cases of people trying to trick health workers into getting vaccinated, including a man who had the same name as his elderly father.

As we are engaged in this process trying to move quickly, some people could squeeze in, so its probably higher than we suspect, he said of the number of people who might lie to get vaccinated.

Asked if it was frustrating to him that the two women skipped the queue, Pino said it wasnt up to him to determine who should be next in line, referring to the prioritisation scale set up by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a Republican.

Our job as a health department is to vaccinate as many people as possible, Pino said.

DeSantis was criticised this week after he unveiled a pop-up clinic offering vaccines in an affluent, mostly white neighbourhood of Manatee County, Florida.

The state has been allocated 3.4 million doses and administered more than 2.5 million first doses, according to data compiled by the Post.

Orange County has vaccinated more than 200,000 people, Pino said, adding that the county is increasing its capacity to keep up with desire in the community.

Its great to see that demand, he said. We havent had any lack of willing arms to get vaccinated... we have people faking to be old to get vaccinated.
Rome: The mysterious death of a brilliant young Italian doctor has taken a dark new twist with claims that he was murdered by the Sicilian mafia.

Attilio Manca, 34, was found dead at his home in Viterbo, central Italy, in 2004, supposedly of a heroin overdose.

Monica Mileti, his friend, was convicted of administering the dose and jailed for five years. But this week an appeals court in Rome acquitted her of any involvement in the urologists death. Suspicions have turned instead to Cosa Nostra, Sicilys mafia network.

Attilio Manca, 34, was found dead at his home in 2004. He had previously treated a mafioso boss in hiding. Credit:Antimafiaduemila.com

Fabio Repici, a lawyer representing the victims parents, said they had always suspected their son was murdered.
[February 17, 2021] Mark Redford Named Vice President, Operations & Supply Chain for Palma Ceia SemiDesign - Former Arm Executive

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Palma Ceia SemiDesign, a fabless semiconductor company specializing in wireless connectivity solutions, announced Mark Redford has joined the company as vice president, Operations & Supply Chain. Redford, who most recently managed emerging technologies at Arm, has responsibility for Palma Ceia's semiconductor production. He reports to Executive Vice President, Program Management Kevin Steptoe. "Mark brings a tremendous track record to his role at Palma Ceia. His experience spans Asia, North America and Europe, where he garnered operating experience across R&D, operations, corporate strategy, business development and product management," Steptoe said. "With Mark on board our chip production is in good hands." At Arm, Redford served as vice president in charge of Emerging Technology, where he was responsible for new technology concepts and businesses. His sphere of activity included emrging domains such as memories, low-power system solutions, and mergers & acquisitions opportunities.



Other experience includes serving as a senior vice president with NXP Semiconductors, vice president/general manager at CSR plc, vice president/general manager at PDF Solutions, and vice president R&D at Chartered Semiconductor. He has also held non-executive director and board observer positions with companies such as Spin Memory and Agile Analog. "This is a great time to join Palma Ceia, as we bring chips such as the PCS1100 to market," Redford said, referring to Palma Ceia's recently announced chip for Wi-Fi 6E applications. "I really look forward to delivering such products as new connectivity standards like Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi HaLow begin to take off."

Redford holds a Ph.D. in Semiconductors from the University of Edinburgh and a BS degree with Honours in Electronics from the University of Dundee. About Palma Ceia SemiDesign Palma Ceia SemiDesign (PCS) is a fabless semiconductor company and leading provider of communication semiconductors and IP for next-generation Wi-Fi and cellular applications. With a focus on emerging Wi-Fi and LTE standards, particularly for IoT (Internet of Things), PCS targets the design of ICs for broadband, wireless, medical and automotive applications. Palma Ceia SemiDesign solutions are differentiated by low power, high performance and ease of integration. Headquartered in the Cayman Islands, the company has design and sales support centers in Cambridge (United Kingdom), mainland China, Hong Kong, and McKinney, Texas (United States). PCS is soon expanding to provide direct support for Israel, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. Visit Palma Ceia SemiDesign on the web at pcsemi.com. Palma Ceia SemiDesign and the Palma Ceia SemiDesign logo are trademarks of Palma Ceia SemiDesign, a Cayman Islands corporation, and are protected by trademark laws of the United States and other jurisdictions. All other product and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Contact:

Milan Lazich

milan.lazich@pcsemi.com

1-650-464-1132 Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/738312/Palma_Ceia_SemiDesign_Logo.jpg SOURCE Palma Ceia SemiDesign

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New Delhi, Feb 18 : Protests have been continuing for nearly three months on Delhi's borders against the new farm laws. Roads at the Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur borders have been closed due to the agitation. Police and security personnel have been deployed and vehicles leading to the protest venues diverted.

Because of this, the entire transport system has been destabilised. Movement of trucks to Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir has been affected because of the protests. Trucks have to take a much longer route to make an entry in Delhi.

Rajendra Kapoor, chairman, Delhi Goods Transport Organisation told IANS, "It is very difficult to assess the damage due to border closures but it can be said that there is just 60 per cent work at the moment." "Customers from outside Delhi are not able to come here. Vehicle drivers are reluctant to come to the place and are apprehensive. No wonder the quantum of work is low. " He further said, "While vehicles are taking more time to come from outside Delhi, the route becomes longer. One needs to spend 15 per cent more diesel to come into Delhi." Giving an example, Rajendra Kapoor said, "The cost of coming from Mumbai to Delhi was Rs 25,000 and now after the closure of borders it comes to about Rs 28,000. " In fact, before the agitation, there were 50 to 60 thousand commercial vehicles every day, but now only about 25,000 to 30,000 vehicles are able to enter Delhi due to closure of roads due to demonstrations.

Farmers have been protesting on various borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against three newly enacted farm laws. Eleven rounds of talks between the government and the farmers so far have proved inconclusive.
Stewart, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - Decade Resources Ltd (TSXV: DEC) ("Decade" or the Company) announces that it has received check assays for the first 2 drill holes on the Del Norte property. Results were first announced in a February 11 2021 press release based on ICP results. Results for silver from the re-check fire assaying show appreciable enhancement of values versus the initial ICP results. Based on the enhanced silver results, the Company is re-issuing the results from the intersections. For DDH DN20-01 check assays indicate an increase from 386 g/t Ag eq to 1078 g/t Ag eq in the Kosciuszko zone. Results of check assays for DDH DN20-02 confirm the initial results. A table showing the check assay results are shown as follows:

DDH # From

(m) To(m) Width

(m) Au g/t Ag g/t Ag g/t

eq DN20-01 162.69 164.69 1.8 4.50 754.0 1078.0* DN20-02 167.72 171.45 4.34 0.78 42.68 98.9*

Analytical values have been rounded.

*Silver-equivalent values for gold and silver only (no base metals), calculated assuming 100% metal recovery. Assumptions: US$25/oz silver, US$1800/oz gold: 1:72 ratio.

The Company is presently check assaying any enhanced ICP silver values using fire assay methods. Once check results are obtained, the Company will report them.

A map showing the various silver rich zones in the central portion of the Del Norte property has been included. The objective of the past years exploration program was to confirm past results, expand the area of mineralization and follow up on some previous geological interpretations.

Ed Kruchkowski, President of the Company comments, "The Company was very successful in not only confirming previous results but outlining numerous silver rich areas for further exploration. The property has numerous different mineralization styles and the Company focused on the silver bearing veins and breccias. At the start of the program there were 2 main silver bearing trends outlined and at the conclusion of 2020 exploration, the Company had defined 6 different systems. The zones show great continuity and grades over long distances. At the start of this year's exploration, historic drilling had indicated a possible wide zone of mineralization based on the Company's interpretation, that was named the Argo zone. It does not outcrop and is at depth just to the west of the LG vein. Shallow holes did not intersect this zone but the deeper holes were successful in confirming the zone as well as indicating the presence of appreciable mineralization. Work in 2021 will aim at expanding the area of this deeper mineralization as well as testing new zones."

Analysis were performed by Activation Laboratories Ltd in Kamloops BC.

Ed Kruchkowski, P. Geo., a qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 is responsible for the contents of this release. E. Kruchkowski is not independent of Decade as he is the president of the Company.

Decade Resources Ltd. is a Canadian based mineral exploration company actively seeking opportunities in the resource sector. Decade holds numerous properties at various stages of development and exploration from basic grass roots to advanced ones. Its properties and projects are all located in the "Golden Triangle" area of northern British Columbia. For a complete listing of the Company assets and developments, visit the Company website at www.decaderesources.ca which is presently being updated. For investor information please call 250-636-2264 or Gary Assaly at 604-377-7969.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DECADE RESOURCES LTD.

"Ed Kruchkowski"

Ed Kruchkowski, President

"Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release."

"This news release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements."





Del Norte Project



To view an enhanced version of this map, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/3615/74811_decadefigure1.jpg

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74811
AUSTIN, Texas  For the Republicans who have run Texas state government for years, trying to undermine the Democrats who lead the states largest cities has been a blood sport for years. They have sought to overrule local officials on disputes involving everything from pandemic restrictions and plastic bag bans to protections for immigrants.

But this week, the collapse of the states power grid gave Democrats a chance to turn the tables. With the state reeling from a rare winter storm that caused widespread power outages, Democrats have mobilized public anger over the Republicans oversight of the energy industry, opening a new front in their battle to erode the partys dominance of every statewide office and both chambers of the legislature.

While Democrats have made important inroads in recent election cycles, Texas Republicans have staved off the kind of game-changing gains that flipped states like Arizona and Georgia.
By Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana



Tomorrow marks the entry into force of a new international agreement promoting paperless trade, a timely reminder of how the COVID-19 pandemic has brought digital solutions to regional development challenges into the limelight.



Paperless trade across borders has proven an effective way to mitigate trade disruptions since the onset of the crisis, enabling commerce to continue while limiting physical contact. Yet, despite the increasing acceptance of electronic documents across borders, implementation of cross-border paperless trade remains low according to the United Nations Global Survey on Digital and Sustainable Trade Facilitation for Asia and the Pacific.



Across Asia and the Pacific, governments must move from time-consuming paper-based processes to electronic and traceable trade procedures that can significantly enhance competitiveness and address new challenges associated with e-commerce and the digital economy. In doing so, our region can also recover some of the $200 billion in illicit financial flows that sharply reduce the capacity of governments to put in place support measures for vulnerable groups.



At the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), in 2016, member states adopted the Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific to accelerate trade digitalization  the electronic exchange of trade-related data across borders  while leaving no one behind.



More than 25 countries worked together to develop the treaty, which is now open for accession to all 53 members of ESCAP. The five countries that have ratified or acceded to the treaty  Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, China, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Philippines  represent a diverse group of countries spanning the wider Asia-Pacific region but all are committed to regional cooperation in this critical area. Armenia and Cambodia signed the treaty in 2017 while several other ESCAP members are in the process of completing their accession this year, before implementation of the agreement starts in earnest in 2022.



But we must do more to realize the transformative potential of trade digitalization.



First, we need to fully use the Framework Agreement to provide a region-wide multilateral intergovernmental platform, a dedicated space for developing and testing legal and technical cross-border paperless trade solutions that build on national, bilateral, and subregional initiatives. This treaty marks the beginning of a new journey, one focused on turning cross-border paperless trade into reality through cooperation, testing, innovation, and implementation.



Second, we have to ensure that the Framework Agreement is catalyst for those countries that become a party to it to implement key measures featured in the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), including Single Windows and other actions requiring the use of information and communication technologies.



Third, we recognize that the Framework Agreement is an inclusive and highly flexible cooperation and capacity building opportunities that countries can participate in regardless of their levels of development and digitalization. The estimates presented in the most recent regional trade facilitation report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and ESCAP suggest that the Framework Agreement can help reduce trade costs by more than 20 percent in most of the region's developing countries. So, this is particularly important now when many bilateral or regional deals exclude some of the least developed countries.



I encourage all ESCAP member states to join the treaty as soon as possible and demonstrate political will. There is no deadline for acceding to the treaty but doing so early on will ensure a seat at the table when the Parties formally discuss the implementation of priorities. The benefits of cross-border paperless trade multiply with the number of countries involved. So, the more countries on board, the larger the development gains for all. It is time to accelerate the excellent bilateral and subregional paperless trade initiatives that have emerged across the Asia-Pacific region to build truly seamless and resilient supply chains as we recover better together in the post-COVID-19 era.





Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana is under-secretary-general of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCAP.






TOKYO, Feb 18, 2021 - (JCN Newswire) - MITSUBISHI MOTORS CORPORATION (MMC) announced that the OUTLANDER PHEV has closed out 2020 as Europe's best-selling plug-in hybrid SUV. A total of 26,673 units were sold across Europe in 2020, and the OUTLANDER PHEV became the second best-selling plug-in hybrid across all segments(1).The OUTLANDER PHEV is the flagship model which embodies MITSUBISHI MOTORS' expertise in electrification, SUV and all-wheel control technologies. The vehicle delivers a quiet, smooth yet powerful acceleration unique to electric vehicles (EVs) with eco-friendly technologies. The OUTLANDER PHEV is sold in more than 60 countries since the launch in 2013, and its global cumulative sales volume has reached 270,000 units as of December 2020."We are pleased that the OUTLANDER PHEV has been chosen by many customers in Europe where people are highly eco-conscious and the popularity of electrified vehicles is growing rapidly," said Takao Kato, chief executive officer of MMC. "Our mission is to provide attractive products with a sense of security to customers around the world by further strengthening our environmental technologies and 4WD technologies. We are also committed to contributing to the development of a sustainable society with our 2030 target--raising the proportion of electrified vehicles in the total sales to 50 percent with not only plug-in hybrids but with EVs and hybrid EVs."The OUTLANDER PHEV can be used as an EV in daily life and as a hybrid vehicle for long trips, allowing drivers to enjoy motor driving without worrying about recharging. The twin-motor 4WD combined with S-AWC (Super-All Wheel Control) system enables handling with peace of mind in various weather and road conditions.The two on-board power outlets with a maximum 1,500 watts can supply power from the traction battery to electronic appliances for outdoor leisure and as a reliable source of electricity in an emergency. Since the OUTLANDER PHEV can generate its own power, it can supply power to home using the vehicle-to-home (V2H) equipment up to 10 days(2) to a general household when fully charged and fueled.(1) Source: JATO Dynamics Limited(2) Amounts and durations of power supply were calculated by MMC--assuming average household power usage is approximately 10kWh/day, excluding the conversion efficiency of a V2H equipment. The power supply function may vary by market.About MITSUBISHI MOTORSMITSUBISHI MOTORS CORPORATION is a global automobile company based in Tokyo, Japan, which has a competitive edge in SUVs and pickup trucks, electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.Since the Mitsubishi group produced its first car more than a century ago, we have demonstrated an ambitious and often disruptive approach, developing new vehicle genres and pioneering cutting-edge technologies. Deeply rooted in MITSUBISHI MOTORS' DNA, our brand strategy will appeal to ambitious drivers, willing to challenge conventional wisdom and ready to embrace change. Consistent with this mindset, MITSUBISHI MOTORS introduced its new brand strategy in 2017, expressed in its "Drive your Ambition" tagline - a combination of personal drive and forward attitude, and a reflection of the constant dialogue between the brand and its customers. Today MITSUBISHI MOTORS is committed to continuous investment in innovative new technologies, attractive design and product development, bringing exciting and authentic new vehicles to customers around the world.Source: Mitsubishi MotorsCopyright 2021 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
ING to leave Czech retail banking market by end-2021

Customers will receive a welcome offer from Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic

ING is announcing today that it intends to withdraw from the retail banking market in the Czech Republic. Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic has agreed to prepare a welcome offer for INGs retail customers in the Czech Republic.

In March, customers will receive an invitation from Raiffeisenbank to move to this bank over the coming months. The ambition is for ING to stop all its retail activities in this market by the end of 2021. ING will remain active in the Czech Republic as a provider of wholesale banking products and services.

ING has been present in the Czech retail banking market for more than 20 years, offering savings accounts and mutual funds. Currently ING serves around 375,000 local retail customers. Globally, ING supports more than 39 million retail and wholesale customers in 40 markets.

The agreement with Raiffeisenbank has been secured to ensure INGs customers in the Czech Republic can continue to meet their banking needs. ING customers will receive the option to move their savings and investments to Raiffeisenbank at preferential conditions. The agreement between ING Czech Republic and Raiffeisenbank Czech Republic is pending regulatory approval.

We continuously evaluate our activities, including assessing whether they are likely to achieve the preferred scale in their market within a reasonable time frame. In this context we have decided to exit the Czech retail market, sharpening the focus of our business portfolio. We are confident that our customers are well -served by the attractive offer from Raiffeisenbank, which has a proven customer-centric and digital track record, said Aris Bogdaneris, member of the Management Board Banking and head of Challengers & Growth Markets at ING Group.

Currently the retail operations in the Czech Republic employ approximately 225 FTE. ING will build on its track record in supporting its employees with finding employment outside the bank.

Note for editors

For further information on ING, please visit www.ing.com. Frequent news updates can be found in the Newsroom or via the @ING_news Twitter feed. Photos of ING operations, buildings and its executives are available for download at Flickr. ING presentations are available at SlideShare.

Press enquiries Investor enquiries Christoph Linke ING Group Investor Relations +31 20 576 43 15 +31 20 576 6396 Christoph.Linke@ing.com Investor.Relations@ing.com





ING Profile

ING is a global financial institution with a strong European base, offering banking services through its operating company ING Bank. The purpose of ING Bank is empowering people to stay a step ahead in life and in business. ING Banks more than 57,000 employees offer retail and wholesale banking services to customers in over 40 countries.

ING Group shares are listed on the exchanges of Amsterdam (INGA NA, INGA.AS), Brussels and on the New York Stock Exchange (ADRs: ING US, ING.N).

Sustainability forms an integral part of INGs strategy, evidenced by INGs leading position in sector benchmarks by Sustainalytics and MSCI and our A-list rating by CDP. ING Group shares are included in major sustainability and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) index products of leading providers STOXX, Morningstar and FTSE Russell. In January 2021, ING received an ESG evaluation score of 83 ('strong') from S&P Global Ratings.

Important legal information

Elements of this press release contain or may contain information about ING Groep N.V. and/ or ING Bank N.V. within the meaning of Article 7(1) to (4) of EU Regulation No 596/2014.

ING Groups annual accounts are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as adopted by the European Union (IFRS-EU). In preparing the nancial information in this document, except as described otherwise, the same accounting principles are applied as in the 2019 ING Group consolidated annual accounts. The Financial statements for 2020 are in progress and may be subject to adjustments from subsequent events. All gures in this document are unaudited. Small dierences are possible in the tables due to rounding.

Certain of the statements contained herein are not historical facts, including, without limitation, certain statements made of future expectations and other forward-looking statements that are based on managements current views and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to dier materially from those expressed or implied in such statements. Actual results, performance or events may dier materially from those in such statements due to a number of factors, including, without limitation: (1) changes in general economic conditions, in particular economic conditions in INGs core markets, including changes aecting currency exchange rates, (2) the eects of the Covid-19 pandemic and related response measures, including lockdowns and travel restrictions, on economic conditions in countries in which ING operates, on INGs business and operations and on INGs employees, customers and counterparties, (3) changes aecting interest rate levels, (4) any default of a major market participant and related market disruption, (5) changes in performance of nancial markets, including in Europe and developing markets, (6) changes in the scal position and the future economic performance of the United States, including potential consequences of a downgrade of the sovereign credit rating of the US government, (7) consequences of the United Kingdoms withdrawal from the European Union, (8) changes in or discontinuation of benchmark indices, (9) ination and deation in our principal markets, (10) changes in conditions in the credit and capital markets generally, including changes in borrower and counterparty creditworthiness, (11) failures of banks falling under the scope of state compensation schemes, (12) non-compliance with or changes in laws and regulations, including those nancial services and tax laws, and the interpretation and application thereof, (13) geopolitical risks, political instabilities and policies and actions of governmental and regulatory authorities, (14) INGs ability to meet minimum capital and other prudential regulatory requirements, (15) outcome of current and future litigation, enforcement proceedings, investigations or other regulatory actions, including claims by customers, (16) operational risks, such as system disruptions or failures, breaches of security, cyber-attacks, human error, changes in operational practices or inadequate controls including in respect of third parties with which we do business, (17) risks and challenges related to cybercrime including the eects of cyber-attacks and changes in legislation and regulation related to cybersecurity and data privacy, (18) changes in general competitive factors, (19) the inability to protect our intellectual property and infringement claims by third parties, (20) changes in credit ratings, (21) business, operational, regulatory, reputation and other risks and challenges in connection with climate change, (22) inability to attract and retain key personnel, (23) future liabilities under dened benet retirement plans, (24) failure to manage business risks, including in connection with use of models, use of derivatives, or maintaining appropriate policies and guidelines, (25) changes in capital and credit markets, including interbank funding, as well as customer deposits, which provide the liquidity and capital required to fund our operations, (26) the other risks and uncertainties detailed in the most recent annual report of ING Groep N.V. (including the Risk Factors contained therein) and INGs more recent disclosures, including press releases, which are available on www.ING.com .

This document may contain inactive textual addresses to internet websites operated by us and third parties. Reference to such websites is made for information purposes only, and information found at such websites is not incorporated by reference into this document. ING does not make any representation or warranty with respect to the accuracy or completeness of, or take any responsibility for, any information found at any websites operated by third parties. ING specically disclaims any liability with respect to any information found at websites operated by third parties. ING cannot guarantee that websites operated by third parties remain available following the publication of this document, or that any information found at such websites will not change following the  ling of this document. Many of those factors are beyond INGs control.

Any forward looking statements made by or on behalf of ING speak only as of the date they are made, and ING assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information or for any other reason.

This document does not constitute an oer to sell, or a solicitation of an oer to purchase, any securities in the United States or any other jurisdiction.

Attachment
The former guitarist of an indie pop band will fight accusations he sexually assaulted a teenager, claiming he accidentally made contact with the girl while swinging his arms as he walked along a crowded footpath in Melbournes CBD.

Christian OBrien, formerly with the band Alpine, is alleged to have intentionally sexually touched the 15-year-old girl on the bottom as he passed her on the footpath on Little Bourke Street on August 2, 2019.

The 38-year-old musician was charged with sexual assault by Victoria Police after a public appeal for information about the incident in January last year.

Guitarist Christian O'Brien from Australian indie rock group Alpine.

The girl was in the city on a school excursion walking with friends at the time of the incident.

Aswan : , Feb 18 (IANS) At least four Sudanese were killed and 46 others injured in a bus-truck accident in southern Egypt on Thursday, an official medical source said.

"The bus carrying Sudanese nationals, at Aswan-Abu Simbel road, has been hit from behind by a truck carrying construction materials," Chairman of Aswan Ambulance Authority Mohamed al-Diekhily told the Xinhua news agency.

The number of deaths may rise because several people are in serious conditions, he added.

Some 16 ambulances rushed to the scene, and the wounded have been transferred to Aswan Public Hospital.

Road accidents are common in Egypt due to broken roads, poor maintenance and high speed of the driver.

However, over the past few years, Egypt has been upgrading its road network, building new roads and bridges, and repairing existing ones to reduce traffic accidents.

In October last year, the Egyptian Ministry of Planning and Economic Development said deaths from road accidents in the country dropped by 44 percent in 2019-2020.
Back on the sidewalk, my husband, Ed, and I continue down the deserted block, looking for more uncovered windows. Many homes have their shades drawn, or even boarded-up windows. Others have their porches wrapped in thick sheets of plastic, preventing you from getting too near. Like this stately white home with black trim that catches my eye. I walk up to its hermetically sealed porch to read the small sign leaning against one pillar. It proudly lists the five families who have owned it since its construction in 1897, along with their dates of ownership. The homes current owners, the Mitchells, bought it in 1994.

We're just days away from the premiere of tvN's brand new drama "Vincenzo," and we sure can't wait to see Song Joong Ki and Jeon Yeo Bin's chemistry onscreen!

"Vincenzo" Short Synopsis

The upcoming tvN drama stars Song Joong Ki as Vincenzo Cassano, who was adopted by an Italian family when he was only eight years old. He is of South Korean descent but flew to Italy after being adopted. He grew up and became an Italian lawyer and Mafia consigliere.

One day, he flew back to his home country (South Korea) because of a conflict between the mafia organizations. When he arrives in South Korea, he ends up crossing paths with the straightforward Lawyer Hong Cha Young (portrayed by Jeon Yeo Bin). She is an attorney who will do whatever it takes to win her case. Vincenzo Casano eventually falls in love with her.

Another character in the drama is Jang Joon Woo (played by 2PM's Taecyeon) he is an intern who will join forces with Vincenzo Cassano and Lawyer Hong Cha Young in using their own evil methods to take down villains who cannot be punished by the court of law.

Song Joong Ki and Jeon Yeo Bin Talks about their Experiences Working Together

In light of the drama's upcoming premiere, Song Joong Ki and Jeon Yeo Bin talked about their experience working with one another on the filming set.

Song Joong Ki praised his co-star Jeon Yeo Bin by expressing that she is an actress whose acting is very unique. Jeon Yeo Bin is fun to watch, and her acting skill is something that he hasn't seen before. As an actor, he feels jealous of her talent in so many ways. She's the co-worker that makes him feel very motivated.

Song Joong Ki also added that while they are working together on the filming set, he really enjoys witnessing Jeon Yeo Bin's acting in person. Viewers can definitely look forward to her charms as well!

On the other hand, Jeon Yeo Bin shared her thoughts and commented that Song Joong Ki is the person who fits perfectly for the role of Vincenzo. Song Joong Ki was able to instantly gain her trust while they are acting together. Sharing her thoughts about her character as Cha Young, the actress stated that her character is someone who continually pushes other people's buttons, and Song Joong ki was able to help her to express the character in many ways.

Jeon Yeo Bin also shared how she feels about their chemistry. She added that the qualities that Cha Young lacks could be found in Vincenzo and vise versa. And because of that element, as the story progress, the two characters will eventually influence one another more and more, their chemistry will blossom even more.

The drama drops a new striking poster of Song Joong Ki And Jeon Yeo Bin that dramatically reads: "Not a negotiation, but a warning. Evil punished through evil."

Please don't miss "Vincenzo's" premiere on February 20 at 9 p.m. KST.

You might be interested in: Song Joong Ki and Jeon Yeo Bin Start to Show Chaotic Yet Cute Chemistry in New Stills for tvN's Upcoming Drama 'Vincenzo'

Kdramastars owns this article

Written By Liza Parker


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Burma Myanmar Military's New Education Minister Faced Finance Probes

Dr. Nyunt Pe, the new education minister in the military's State Administrative Council.

Myanmars military regime has appointed Dr. Nyunt Pe, a former rector who was accused of misuse of university funds three years ago, as education minister in its State Administrative Council (SAC).

He was also the director-general of the Department of Monitoring and Evaluation at the Ministry of Education in Naypyitaw under the ousted National League for Democracy (NLD) government. But the 60-year-old retired from the director-general position about three months ago.

Dr. Nyunt Pe, an ethnic Rakhine who has a PhD from a Japanese university, worked at Pathein University for more than a decade. He was accused of misusing funds in three consecutive fiscal years from 2015 to 2018 when he was the rector at Pathein University in Ayeyarwady Region. He was moved to the ministrys monitoring department in late 2017. The regional government found he misused funds in May 2018.

He was also investigated by the Presidents Office in September 2017 for misuse of funds that he reportedly collected from Pathein University students for the Japan-Myanmar education symposium two months earlier, the Ayeyarwady regional social affairs minister Dr. Hla Myat Thway told the media at the time.

Pathein physics students denounced Dr. Nyunt Pes appointment by the military on Tuesday.

Social media users who say they know about Dr. Nyunt Pe said his appointment makes them lose hope. One commenter, who said they used to work at Patheins botanical department, said farmers were forced to buy liquid fertilizers formulated by Dr. Nyunt Pe in cooperation with the military in the early 2000s. Dr. Nyunt Pe studied botany.

A university teacher, who said they worked closely with Dr. Nyunt Pe in Pathein, told The Irrawaddy on condition of anonymity on Wednesday about the fertilizer issue and Dr. Nyunt Pes close relationship with the military.

He said: Dr. Nyunt Pe is a good person and academic, who has expertise in his field. But it is hard to see how he can [develop the education sector under the military].

A university teacher protesting in Yangon told The Irrawaddy: Besides him joining the SAC as a minister he has a history of bad behavior, so how can we trust him?

The NLDs education minister Dr. Myo Thein Gyi has been under house arrest since the Feb.1 coup. By Tuesday the regime had detained 452 people, of which about 30 have been released, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

Nationwide rallies against the regime started on Feb. 6, joined by civil servants, including health care, teaching, transport and engineering staff.

You may also like these stories:

Myanmar Journalists Leave Jobs in Face of Military Regime Restrictions on Media Freedom

Six More Myanmar Celebrities to Face Arrest for Support of Civil Disobedience Movement

Will Myanmars Uprising Succeed This Time?
A Hong Kong court on Thursday denied a further bail application, sending pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai back to a top-security jail to await trial.



Lai, who founded the Next Digital media conglomerate, faces two charges of "collusion with foreign powers" under a draconian national security law imposed on Hong Kong by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from July 1, 2020.



He was previously denied bail after the prosecution argued that he could reoffend.



Lai was rearrested on a separate "collusion" charge on Wednesday, and High Court Justice and national security judge Anthea Pang ordered him back behind bars.



"I am not satisfied that there are sufficient grounds to believe that he will not continue to commit acts that endanger national security," Pang told the court, and said she would publish her reasoning at a later date.



She also declined to lift restrictions preventing the media from reporting the details of bail applications, saying that they could still report the results.



Unusually for Hong Kong, the public gallery section of the court was closed to members of the public, and only family members and journalists were allowed to attend the hearing in person.



Members of the public were allowed to watch a live feed of the proceedings, however, and had a non-transferable band placed on their wrist rather than the usual paper ticket.



Lai appeared calm on arrival at court in a Correctional Services Department vehicle on Thursday, and waved and made heart shapes with his hands to supporters outside the court as he left.



His family wept and hugged each other after the decision was announced.



Veteran democracy campaigner Alexandra Wong, who became a familiar sight during the 2019 protest movement waving the British flag, called out "Hang in there, Mr. Lai!" as he was taken back to Stanley Prison.

'Cavalier attitude'



Wong, who was waving a yellow umbrella symbolizing demands for fully democratic elections, said the arrangements seemed to have been made to cause deliberate confusion.



"They took a very cavalier attitude to handing out passes, telling people when and where to wait, and what to do when they reached the head of the line," Wong told RFA.



"Why did they make everything so different from regular court cases?" she said. "There was no consistency, and they kept moving the goalposts."



Outspoken Cardinal Joseph Zen was also among Lai's supporters outside the High Court, while pro-China protesters shouted slogans calling Lai a "traitor," and demanding "severe punishment."



Thursday's decision came after Lai's legal team made repeated challenges to his continued detention, and he was briefly released on bail after a successful appeal at the High Court, before the city's Court of Final Appeal ruled that the High Court was wrong to let him out of custody.



Police in Hong Kong rearrested Lai, who was already awaiting trial on another count of "collusion with foreign powers," on suspicion of "conspiracy to assist offenders" and "conspiracy to collude with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security."



Lai's Apple Daily newspaper reported that he was accused of helping Andy Li, who was among 12 fugitives to board the boat on Aug. 23, 2020.

Assistant also arrested



A 29-year-old legal assistant, Chan Tze-wah, was also arrested on the same charges, the second of which is under the National Security Law for Hong Kong imposed on the city by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from July 1, 2020.



At a hearing in West Kowloon Magistrates Court on Wednesday, prosecutors said Chan had colluded with media tycoon Jimmy Lai, activist Andy Li, and others in requesting "a foreign country or an external institution, organisation or individual to impose sanctions or blockade, or engage in other hostile activities against the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region or the Peoples Republic of China."



Chan also stands accused of colluding with Lai in aiding Li to flee to Taiwan, "without lawful authority or reasonable excuse and with intent to impede his apprehension or prosecution."



Like others awaiting trial under the national security law, Chan was remanded in custody ahead of his next hearing on April 14.



All 12 speedboat fugitives were later detained en route by the China Coast Guard, in an operation believed to be supported by Hong Kong government aircraft, and 10 were handed jail terms for their involvement in an "illegal border crossing."



Two who were under 18 at the time of their arrest were handed back to the Hong Kong authorities following a behind-closed-doors hearing.



Reported by Lau Siu Fung for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
A funeral worker walks carrying a casket lowering device after a burial at the Westpark Cemetery, amid the COVID-19 outbreak, in Johannesburg, South Africa on Dec. 24, 2020. (Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo via Reuters)

Updates on CCP Virus: Nevada Has 1st Confirmed Case of South Africa Variant

Nevada health officials have confirmed the states first known case of a coronavirus variant that was originally identified in South Africa.

The Nevada State Public Health Laboratory said Thursday the mutated version of the virus was confirmed a day earlier in a sample traced to a person who traveled from South Africa and began showing symptoms of COVID-19 when arriving in Reno.

Experts say its another reason Nevadans need to not let their guard down as the state relaxes restrictions on businesses and public gatherings.

Some Federal Courthouses in New York Require Double-Masking for Entry

Anyone seeking to enter federal buildings in some New York areas is now required to wear two masks or a properly fitted FDA-authorized KN95 mask, according to a new policy.

You are required to wear either: (i) one disposable mask underneath a cloth mask with the edges of the inner mask pushed against your face; or (ii) a properly fitted, FDA-authorized KN95 (or N95) mask, according to a public memo (pdf) published last week.

Gaiters, bandannas, or masks with valves/vents are not acceptable face coverings. If you do not have the approved mask(s), a screener will provide one. No one will be admitted without the proper mask(s).

GOP Senators Call for Investigation of Cuomos Potentially Criminal Actions

Nine Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee are calling on the panels chairman, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) to convene public hearings on New York Gov. Andrew Cuomos potentially criminal placing of CCP virus patients in nursing homes.

The call for hearings follows media reports that one of Cuomos top aides, Melissa DeRosa, admitted to New York state legislators that the governor and his staff purposely withheld information about CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus patients sent to nursing homes, where the disease rapidly spread to the aging residents of the facilities.

Africa Deaths Near 100,000 After Second Wave

Africas total reported death toll from the CCP virus was approaching 100,000 on Thursday, a fraction of those reported on other continents, but rising fast as a second wave of infections overwhelms hospitals.

The continents reported deaths, at 99,800, compare favorably with North America, which has registered more than half a million, and Europe, which is approaching 900,000, a Reuters tally shows.

UK Study Reports Strong Decline in Infections

CCP virus infections in England have fallen significantly since January, according to a study data published on Thursday.

Imperial College Londons latest REACT-1 study report found that CCP virus infections, which cause the disease COVID-19, fell by more than two-thirds from the last report in January.

Turkey to Start Gradual Normalization in March: Erdogan

Turkey will begin a gradual return to normal life on a province-by-province basis from March, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, adding that nationwide weekend COVID-19 lockdowns would be lifted in some provinces based on infection rates.

Turkey imposed curfews, weekend lockdowns, and other curbs in December in the face of rising cases. It plans to reopen schools nationwide on March 1, and its vaccination programme has so far administered shots to nearly 5.7 million people using shots developed by Chinas Sinovac Biotech Ltd.

US Seizes Over 10 Million Phony N95 Masks

Federal agents have seized more than 10 million fake 3M brand N95 masks in recent weeks, the result of an ongoing investigation into counterfeits sold in at least five states to hospitals, medical facilities, and government agencies.

The most recent seizures occurred Wednesday when Homeland Security agents intercepted hundreds of thousands of counterfeit 3M masks in an East Coast warehouse that were set to be distributed, officials said.

One-Third of Troops Turning Down Vaccine: Pentagon

About one-third of U.S. military troops have turned down the vaccine for the CCP virus, said the Pentagon on Wednesday.

Maj. Gen. Jeff Taliaferro, a top official in the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the military has a two-thirds acceptance rate for the CCP virus vaccine.

Our initial lookand this is of course very early datais acceptance rates are somewhere in the two-thirds territory, Taliaferro said in a hearing. And of course, it varies by different groups.

UK Variant Not Causing Worse Illness in Children

The CCP virus variant first identified in the UK does not cause more severe disease in children than variants circulating earlier in 2020, new data suggest.

Doctors at Kings College Hospital in London compared 20 children hospitalized for COVID-19 during the pandemics first wave and 60 hospitalized during the second wave, when most infections were caused by the new variant.

Mark Tapscott, Lorenz Duchamps, Alexander Zhang, Jack Phillips, The Associated Press, and Reuters contributed to this report.
AUSTIN, Minn., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE: HRL), a leading global branded food company, today reported results for the first quarter of fiscal 2021. All comparisons are to the first quarter of fiscal 2020 unless otherwise noted. Operating free cash flow is presented as a non-GAAP metric.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY - FIRST QUARTER

Volume of 1.2 billion lbs., down 1%

Record net sales of $2.5 billion , up 3%

, up 3% Pretax earnings of $277 million , down 5%

, down 5% Operating margin of 10.9%, compared to 11.8% last year

Effective tax rate of 19.7%, compared to 16.3% last year

Diluted earnings per share of $0.41 , down 9% compared to last year

, down 9% compared to last year Cash flow from operations of $206 million , up 9%

, up 9% Operating free cash flow1 of $165 million , up 27%

EXECUTIVE COMMENTARY

"We delivered record sales as all four segments generated top-line growth," said Jim Snee, chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer. "Brands such as SPAM, SKIPPY, Hormel Black Label, Applegate, Columbus and Jennie-O all delivered exceptional growth. A key reason for our success was a result of the work of our One Supply Chain team members. They improved production efficiencies, integrated new capacity and leveraged strategic partnerships to increase production without compromising employee or food safety. I'm proud of the entire team as we remain on track to deliver sales and earnings growth this year in spite of challenging operating conditions."

"Our balanced business model continues to perform well," Snee said. "We delivered extraordinary earnings growth from our Grocery Products and International segments this quarter, as we continue to see elevated consumer demand for our center store retail products. Our retail businesses in Refrigerated Foods and Jennie-O Turkey Store also showed earnings growth, but declines across our foodservice businesses and incremental supply chain costs related to the pandemic negatively impacted profitability."

OUTLOOK

"I am increasingly optimistic about generating sales and earnings growth in fiscal 2021," Snee said. "As such, we are setting our full year earnings per share guidance at $1.70 to $1.82 per share, which does not include the expected impact from the acquisition of the Planters snack nuts business. The Planters acquisition is exciting and a perfect strategic fit for our company."

"Our retail and deli teams have momentum going into the second quarter even as some of our retail businesses, especially Grocery Products, have very difficult comparisons due to the extremely high levels of demand we experienced last year," Snee said. "The International segment is poised to have a record year led by the continued strength in our China business, branded exports and our global partnerships. The strides we have made in our global e-commerce business are also expected to continue to pay off this year and into the future. We expect continued improvement throughout our supply chain as labor availability improves and pandemic-related expenses begin to subside."

"We expect a recovery in our foodservice business, given the acceleration in shipments during recent weeks. We are closely watching the foodservice industry trends during the recovery and preparing for rapid changes in demand," Snee said. "Jennie-O Turkey Store is proactively taking price increases across all categories in order to offset rapidly increasing grain costs. While I am confident in our pricing power and expect margins to stabilize in the back half of the year, continued escalation in grain prices will require additional actions."



Fiscal 2021 Outlook* Net Sales Guidance (in billions) $9.70 - $10.30 Earnings per Share Guidance $1.70 - $1.82 *Does not include the estimated impact from the acquisition of the Planters snack nuts business.

COVID-19 RESPONSE

"Employee safety remains our top priority as a company," Snee said. "We know that even with vaccines being distributed across the country, we must remain vigilant. As the pandemic evolves, we continue to adjust and refresh our awareness campaign, called KEEP COVID OUT!, in order to maintain relevancy with our team members."

In the first quarter, the company absorbed approximately $15 million in direct incremental supply chain costs primarily related to lower production volumes and enhanced safety measures in its production facilities. The company estimates most of the incremental supply chain costs are temporary and will be minimized after the pandemic subsides.

PLANTERS ACQUISITION

"We were very excited to announce the definitive agreement to acquire the Planters snack nuts business last week," Snee said. "The Planters business adds another iconic brand to our portfolio while meaningfully increasing our presence in the snacking space. This strategic acquisition is perfectly aligned to our long-term growth strategy of building strong brands, delivering insights-driven innovation and intentionally building balance in our business."

"The Planters business also complements our existing snacking portfolio primarily focused on social snacking occasions with products such as Hormel Gatherings party trays, Herdez salsas and sauces, Wholly guacamole and Columbus charcuterie," Snee said. "We believe there is a compelling opportunity to share insights across our existing brands and the Planters brand to drive growth for our total company."

The company will acquire the business for an effective purchase price of $2.79 billion. The transaction provides a tax benefit valued at $560 million equating to a purchase price of $3.35 billion in cash. Adjusting for the tax benefit, the 2020 EBITDA multiple was 12.5x. The proposed transaction is expected to close in calendar Q2 2021, subject to regulatory review and approval. The acquisition includes the Planters, NUT-rition, Planters Cheez Balls and Corn Nuts brands. Net sales for the Planters business were approximately $1 billion in calendar year 2020. See the press release dated Feb. 11, 2021, for additional details.

SEGMENT HIGHLIGHTS  FIRST QUARTER

Refrigerated Foods

Volume down 2%

Net sales up 1%

Segment profit down 16%

Strong retail and deli sales growth more than overcame significant declines from foodservice. Growth was led by brands such as Hormel Black Label, Sadlers, Applegate, Columbus and Hormel pepperoni. Segment profit declined due to lower foodservice sales, a decrease in commodity profits and incremental supply chain costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grocery Products

Volume up 4%

Net sales up 7%

Segment profit up 35%

Volume and sales growth were driven by strength across many center store products, including the SPAM family of products, SKIPPY spreads, Hormel Compleats meals, Hormel chili and Herdez salsas and sauces. Segment profit increased due to higher sales, improved mix and higher earnings from our MegaMex business.

Jennie-O Turkey Store

Volume down 2%

Net sales up 1%

Segment profit down 30%

Sales growth across the entire retail portfolio, led by double-digit growth of Jennie-O lean ground and Jennie-O Oven Ready products, and strong holiday sales of whole birds more than offset significantly lower foodservice sales. The decline in foodservice sales, increased supply chain costs related to the COVID-19 pandemic and higher freight expenses were the primary drivers of the decline in segment profit.

International & Other

Volume down 5%

Net sales up 13%

Segment profit up 61%

Sales increased due to broad-based strength across branded businesses, including continued growth in China and robust sales of SPAM luncheon meat and SKIPPY peanut butter. The significant increase in segment profit was due to improved results for branded exports, an accelerating recovery in China and higher income from our partners in the Philippines, South Korea and Europe.

CHANNEL HIGHLIGHTS  FIRST QUARTER

In an effort to add an increased level of disclosure and clarity to the nature and timing of our revenue, net sales have been disaggregated into sales channels, which can also be found in the upcoming Form 10-Q. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent changes in consumer behavior continued to drive higher and sustained retail sales in each of the company's segments. Deli channel sales increased on strong demand during the holidays for branded grab-and-go items. Foodservice net sales were impacted by regional shutdowns during the quarter and remained below year-ago levels. International sales increased due to growth from branded exports and an accelerating recovery in China.

U.S. retail net sales up 13%

U.S. deli net sales up 7%

U.S. foodservice net sales down 17%

International net sales up 9%

SELECTED FINANCIAL DETAILS

Income Statement

Selling, general and administrative expenses were flat compared to the prior year.

Advertising spend was $34 million , down 3% compared to last year.

, down 3% compared to last year. Interest and investment income increased during the quarter. Higher investment income partially offset the additional interest expense from the bond issuance in the prior year.

Operating margin was 10.9% compared to 11.8% in fiscal 2020. The decline for the quarter was due to lower sales and profitability for the company's foodservice businesses.

The effective tax rate was 19.7% compared to 16.3% last year. Last year's rate benefited from a large volume of stock option exercises during the quarter.

Cash Flow Statement

Cash flow from operations was $206 million , up 9%.

, up 9%. Operating free cash flow 1 was $165 million , up 27%.

was , up 27%. The company paid its 370th consecutive quarterly dividend on Feb. 16, 2021 , at the annual rate of $0.98 per share, a 5% increase over the prior year.

, at the annual rate of per share, a 5% increase over the prior year. Capital expenditures in the first quarter were $40 million compared to $58 million last year. The company's target for capital expenditures in fiscal 2021 is $260 million . Large projects include a new dry sausage facility in Nebraska , Project Orion and other projects to support growth of branded products.

compared to last year. The company's target for capital expenditures in fiscal 2021 is . Large projects include a new dry sausage facility in , Project Orion and other projects to support growth of branded products. Share repurchases for the quarter totaled $9 million , representing 0.2 million shares purchased.

, representing 0.2 million shares purchased. Depreciation and amortization expense in the first quarter was $51 million , compared to $49 million last year. The full-year expense is expected to be approximately $210 million .

Balance Sheet

The company announced the acquisition of the Planters  snack nut business last week, with an expected close in calendar Q2, 2021, subject to regulatory review and approval. The company expects this acquisition will responsibly leverage its balance sheet without compromising its disciplined capital allocation policy. The acquisition is expected to be financed through a combination of cash on hand, short-term debt and long-term debt.

snack nut business last week, with an expected close in calendar Q2, 2021, subject to regulatory review and approval. The company expects this acquisition will responsibly leverage its balance sheet without compromising its disciplined capital allocation policy. The acquisition is expected to be financed through a combination of cash on hand, short-term debt and long-term debt. Cash on hand increased to $1.8 billion from $1.7 billion at the beginning of the year.

from at the beginning of the year. Total debt is $1.3 billion .

. Working capital increased to $2.2 billion from $2.1 billion at the beginning of the year.

PRESENTATION

A conference call will be webcast at 8 a.m. CST on Feb. 18, 2021. Access is available at www.hormelfoods.com by clicking on "Investors." The call will also be available via telephone by dialing 888-317-6003 and providing the access code 9922621. An audio replay is available by going to www.hormelfoods.com. The webcast replay will be available at noon CST, Feb. 18, 2021, and will remain on the website for one year.

ABOUT HORMEL FOODS - Inspired People. Inspired Food.

Hormel Foods Corporation, based in Austin, Minn., is a global branded food company with over $9 billion in annual revenue across more than 80 countries worldwide. Its brands include SKIPPY, SPAM, Hormel Natural Choice, Applegate, Justin's, Wholly, Hormel Black Label, Columbus and more than 30 other beloved brands. The company is a member of the S&P 500 Index and the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, was named on the "Global 2000 World's Best Employers" list by Forbes magazine for three straight years, is one of Fortune magazine's most admired companies, has appeared on Corporate Responsibility Magazine's "The 100 Best Corporate Citizens" list for 12 years in a row, and has received numerous other awards and accolades for its corporate responsibility and community service efforts. The company lives by its purpose statement - Inspired People. Inspired Food. - to bring some of the world's most trusted and iconic brands to tables across the globe. For more information, visit www.hormelfoods.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains forward-looking information based on management's current views and assumptions. Actual events may differ materially. Please refer to the cautionary statements regarding "Forward-Looking Statements" and "Risk Factors" that appear on pages 5-9 in the company's Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Oct. 25, 2020, which can be accessed at hormelfoods.com in the "Investors" section.

Note: Due to rounding, numbers presented throughout this news release may not sum precisely to the totals provided, and percentages may not precisely reflect the absolute figures.

1 COMPARISON OF U.S. GAAP TO NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASUREMENT

The company defines the non-GAAP adjusted financial measurement of operating free cash flow as cash provided by or used in operating activities from continuing operations (a GAAP measure) less capital expenditures. The company views operating free cash flow as an important measure, because it is one factor in evaluating the amount of cash available for discretionary investments.

The company believes this non-GAAP financial measurement is useful to investors as it provides insight into the company's liquidity position. Non-GAAP measurements are not intended to be a substitute for U.S. GAAP measurements in analyzing financial performance. This non-GAAP measurement is not in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and may be different from non-GAAP measures used by other companies.

The tables below show the calculations to reconcile from the GAAP measure to the non-GAAP adjusted measure.

RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP MEASURE











OPERATING FREE CASH FLOW (NON-GAAP) In thousands

Thirteen Weeks Ended

January 24,

2021

January 26,

2020

% Change Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Operating Activities $ 205,686



$ 188,418





Purchases of Property and Equipment (40,363)



(58,211)





Operating Free Cash Flow $ 165,323



$ 130,207



27.0



HORMEL FOODS CORPORATION SEGMENT DATA Unaudited In thousands













Thirteen Weeks Ended



January 24,

2021

January 26,

2020

% Change Net Sales











Grocery Products

$ 577,599



$ 540,626



6.8

Refrigerated Foods

1,367,077



1,351,790



1.1

Jennie-O Turkey Store

333,321



330,128



1.0

International & Other

183,150



161,890



13.1

Total

$ 2,461,147



$ 2,384,434



3.2





























Segment Profit











Grocery Products

$ 92,202



$ 68,435



34.7

Refrigerated Foods

141,171



167,343



(15.6)

Jennie-O Turkey Store

26,940



38,551



(30.1)

International & Other

32,204



19,952



61.4

Total Segment Profit

292,517



294,280



(0.6)

Net Unallocated Expense

15,547



4,199



270.3

Noncontrolling Interest

112



81



38.8

Earnings Before Income Taxes

$ 277,082



$ 290,162



(4.5)

















HORMEL FOODS CORPORATION CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS Unaudited In thousands, except per share amounts













Thirteen Weeks Ended



January 24,

2021

January 26,

2020 Net Sales

$ 2,461,147



$ 2,384,434

Cost of Products Sold

2,010,977



1,916,014

Gross Profit

450,170



468,421

Selling, General and Administrative

196,380



195,521

Equity in Earnings of Affiliates

14,228



7,588

Operating Income

268,018



280,488

Interest and Investment Income (Expense)

17,291



13,251

Interest Expense

(8,227)



(3,577)

Earnings Before Income Taxes

277,082



290,162

Provision for Income Taxes

54,687



47,209

Effective Tax Rate

19.7 %

16.3 % Net Earnings

222,395



242,953

Less: Net Earnings (Loss) Attributable to Noncontrolling Interest

112



81

Net Earnings Attributable to Hormel Foods Corporation

$ 222,283



$ 242,872











Net Earnings Per Share







Basic

$ 0.41



$ 0.45

Diluted

$ 0.41



$ 0.45











Weighted-average Shares Outstanding



Basic

539,913



535,075

Diluted

547,444



544,815











Dividends Declared per Share

$ 0.2450



$ 0.2325



HORMEL FOODS CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION Unaudited In thousands













January 24,

2021

October 25,

2020 Assets Cash and Cash Equivalents

$ 1,751,541



$ 1,714,309

Short-term Marketable Securities

17,520



17,338

Accounts Receivable

706,654



702,419

Inventories

1,086,660



1,072,762

Income Taxes Receivable

8,997



41,449

Prepaid Expenses

21,356



18,349

Other Current Assets

8,935



12,438

Total Current Assets

3,601,663



3,579,063











Goodwill

2,617,589



2,612,727

Other Intangibles

1,073,455



1,076,285

Pension Assets

189,852



183,232

Investments In and Receivables From Affiliates

304,867



308,372

Other Assets

272,239



250,382

Net Property, Plant and Equipment

1,898,265



1,898,222

Total Assets

$ 9,957,932



$ 9,908,282





















Liabilities and Shareholders' Investment Accounts Payable

$ 558,523



$ 644,609

Accrued Expenses

50,901



59,136

Accrued Workers Compensation

28,643



25,070

Accrued Marketing Expenses

133,042



108,502

Employee Related Expenses

204,191



252,845

Taxes Payable

45,897



22,480

Interest and Dividends Payable

137,583



132,632

Current Maturities of Long-term Debt

258,690



258,691

Total Current Liabilities

1,417,469



1,503,965











Long-term Debt - Less Current Maturities

1,043,050



1,044,936

Pension and Post-retirement Benefits

555,220



552,878

Other Long-term Liabilities

161,988



157,399

Deferred Income Taxes

224,477



218,779

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss

(360,869)



(395,250)

Other Shareholders' Investment

6,916,596



6,825,576

Total Liabilities and Shareholders' Investment

$ 9,957,932



$ 9,908,282



HORMEL FOODS CORPORATION CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS Unaudited In thousands





Thirteen Weeks Ended



January 24,

2021

January 26,

2020 Operating Activities







Net Earnings

$ 222,395



$ 242,953

Depreciation and Amortization

51,043



49,329

Decrease (Increase) in Working Capital

(62,585)



(102,839)

Other

(5,167)



(1,025)

Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Operating Activities

205,686



188,418











Investing Activities







Net (Purchase) Sale of Securities

(206)



(16)

Purchases of Property and Equipment

(40,363)



(58,211)

Proceeds From Sales of Property and Equipment

1,461



1,114

Decrease (Increase) in Investments, Equity in Affiliates, and Other Assets

(193)



(3,391)

Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Investing Activities

(39,301)



(60,504)











Financing Activities







Repayments of Long-term Debt and Finance Leases

(2,165)



(2,019)

Dividends Paid on Common Stock

(125,516)



(112,249)

Share Repurchase

(8,837)





Other

1,765



36,353

Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Financing Activities

(134,754)



(77,915)

Effect of Exchange Rate Changes on Cash

5,600



1,519

Increase (Decrease) in Cash and Cash Equivalents

37,232



51,518

Cash and Cash Equivalents at Beginning of Year

1,714,309



672,901

Cash and Cash Equivalents at End of Quarter

$ 1,751,541



$ 724,419



SOURCE Hormel Foods Corporation
Posted Wednesday, February 17, 2021 8:22 am

Both state and federal officials are in agreement that K-12 schools in Washington can return to in-person instruction safely by following protocols intended to stop the spread of COVID-19, Gov. Jay Inslee says.

During a Feb. 16 press conference the governor laid out the case for school districts statewide to begin or expand their efforts in getting students back into classrooms, citing recently-updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention alongside the efforts of Washington districts that have already begun transitioning their school populations back to brick and mortar.

Inslee said the CDC guidance broadly aligns with Washington states own guidance, where if safety protocols are put into place, reopening schools can be safe.

I think that the CDC, in effect, has confirmed what our educators have discovered, which is that this can be done safely Inslee remarked. He said that educators returning to the classroom in the wake of a pandemic were exploring uncharted territory in a vein similar to famed explorers Lewis and Clark, finding solutions and changes in procedure to allow for safe in-person instruction.

They are doing this safely, they are doing this efficiently, and they are doing this with a resounding confidence that this is the best way to educate our children, Inslee said, adding those districts were also offering an option for remote learning for families uncomfortable with the return to buildings for instruction.

Inslee acknowledged that districts provided more than just instruction for students.through avenues such as nutrition, adding that rural communities often struggled with remote access for virtual classes. He spoke of a desire to see districts statewide return to education the way we know best, which is in-person instruction

If these students can safely return to class  and the science says unequivocally that they can  we should, I believe, feel a sense of urgency to answer this paramount duty to our students, Inslee said.

With the new CDC guidance and national research, Inslee said that the success he has seen in Washington state districts that had reopened was not an aberration, noting that some 200,000 students who have been able to return to some form of in-person instruction statewide.

This is the experience across the United States, where multiple scientific journals have confirmed that this is a relatively low-risk environment, and these risks can be mitigated by the safety protocols that we have embraced, Inslee said, pointing to a study out of Wisconsin that suggested the in-school environment might be safer than out of school with regard to COVID-19 transmission.

Though he acknowledged a desire to see all essential workers in the state vaccinated from COVID-19, the governor added that the CDC made very clear that mass vaccination of our teachers is not a prerequisite to going back to school.

In an effort to build confidence in districts that in-person instruction is feasible, Inslee announced the expansion of a COVID-19 testing program for schools. The governor said the program, developed by the Washington State Department of Health, was initially piloted in 13 school districts last year. He announced about 50 districts would now be participating in the program beginning in February.

Inslee said participating districts would receive support from the Health Commons Project, a nonprofit organization. Sarah Sutton, project manager for the project, said the organization has been working with Washington communities since the beginning of the pandemic for low-barrier, evidence-based testing services.

Schools that volunteer to be a part of the program will be assigned their own testing strategist by the program, Sutton said, that will help to design a program tailored to each district.

Its important to know that there is no one correct way to do COVID testing in schools, Sutton noted. She said that although at first the implementation of a testing program may seem overwhelming for districts, it is doable.

Inslee said the financial impacts of implementation of the testing programs should not be a problem for districts due to federal and state funding avenues. He said the testing program was not necessary for districts to return to in-person instruction, but its a way to help build confidence where educators (and) parents would like to have those confidence measures in place."
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Having lost Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh after the last general elections and Goa without even getting to re-establish its rule there, the Congress is proving somewhat inept at keeping its flock together in the face of the allure of defections. (Photo: Pritam Bandyopadhyay)

The removal of Kiran Bedi as lieutenant governor of Puducherry is only a subplot in a long political drama in the Union territory. The larger plot is the use of the political toolkit named Operation Kamal (Lotus) to destabilise the Congress government of V. Narayanasamy by engineering the defection or resignation of MLAs. That it happened with finality at a time when the polls are probably just a couple of months away is incidental to a pattern of inducements from the national ruling party succeeding in bringing down an elected non-BJP government. With the resignation of four MLAs, the government is in a minority in the 30-member Assembly and the chief minister would be expected to put in his papers and assume the role of a caretaker till the polls or face a trust vote, which he would lose.

Moving Kiran Bedi out is like manoeuvring a piece on the chessboard. She was far more powerful than a pawn in playing her role as the trusted lieutenant who did not allow an elected government to function smoothly in carrying out even welfare programmes. So obstructive was she of administration and policy execution leading to courtroom battles and awkward power tussles in the public domain that those defecting to the BJP may have also complained that her presence could be a negative factor in the election campaign. As a career-long stickler for the letter of the law, Ms Bedi had mastered the art of obstruction and may have been guilty of trying to run a parallel power centre in the Raj Nivas, which is possible in the set-up of a Union territory even if it has a government elected by the people.

The shifting of the lieutenant governor and placing a seasoned political figure like the Telangana governor Tamilisai Soundararajan temporarily in charge may smoothen the run-up to the polls but the people would be deciding who will rule Puducherry for the next five years. With heavy anti-incumbency said to be weighing against the Congress, its staunch southern ally, DMK, has been increasingly chary of continuing with the arrangement.

The current scene only increases the desirability of aligning with the NR Congress of former CM Rangasamy, who becomes a major player in the Tamil-speaking former French colony that goes to the polls along with Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and West Bengal this summer.

Having lost Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh after the last general elections and Goa without even getting to re-establish its rule there, the Congress is proving somewhat inept at keeping its flock together in the face of the allure of defections. The coincidental visit of Rahul Gandhi at a time of trouble for the Puducherry government may not have done much to enhance the prospects of keeping the alliance together. Facing a poll after a tumultuous four-and-a-half years spent bickering over the differences between the CM and the lieutenant governor may just mean that a weakened Congress would be facing a big challenge. Of great interest would be who the voters would choose in this scenario.

Some wealthy residents in Southampton village have raised concerns over the Shinnecock Indian Nation's plans to legally build a casino on its reservation.

The 800-member tribe plan to build the 76,000 sq-ft casino in the 900-acre sovereign territory that sits along Shinnecock Bay, receiving the green light from the U.S. National Gaming Commission after a 20-year journey.

The Shinnecock tribe has teamed up with Tri-State Partners on the venture, getting approved to build Class 2 facility that will include a bingo parlor, 1,000 lottery terminals and 30 Texas Hold'em table games, a decision that has been met with some optimism but mostly pessimism from those in the surrounding community.

'I think it it will definitely create more traffic and chaos,' resident Jeffrey Thompson told CBS2.

The Shinnecock tribe has teamed up with Tri-State Partners on the venture, getting approved to build a Class 2 facility that will include a bingo parlor, 1,000 lottery terminals and 30 Texas Hold'em table games

The 800-member tribe plan to build the 76,000 sq-ft casino in the 900-acre sovereign territory that sits along Shinnecock Bay

Southampton resident Arak Sya added: 'It's already hectic. It's already traffic in this village. So, it's the last thing this village needs.'

Jay Schneiderman, town supervisor for the village, called on the federal government to do additional reviews of impacts on noise, traffic, air and water.

'This is not economic development that I can support. I've never supported gambling. I don't think it's the right use, particularly at this property,' Schneiderman said. 'It would be hard to find a worse property to locate a gaming facility.'

State Assemblyman Fred Thiele expressed hope that the nation would consider a different location.

Southampton residents have expressed optimism but most have been pessimistic. 'This is not economic development that I can support. I've never supported gambling. I don't think it's the right use, particularly at this property,' Jay Schneiderman, town supervisor for the village, said. 'It would be hard to find a worse property to locate a gaming facility'

'I recognize their rights with regard to casino gaming, but up until now they've always attempted to pursue another site,' said Thiele.

There are others in the community, however, who are far more supportive of the tribe's efforts.

The Shinnecock Nation has made several attempts to build a casino in neighboring Hamptons Bay, Calverton, Belmont Park and at the Nassau Coliseum site. Those efforts had proven futile

'For the business, it's going to be very good,' one resident said.

'It's their property, so why not?' another person said.

'I'd like to learn more about it,' another added.

The Shinnecock Nation has made several attempts to build a casino in neighboring Hamptons Bay, Calverton, Belmont Park and at the Nassau Coliseum site. Those efforts had proven futile.

The casino will offer on-site and remote parking, according to Jack Morris, principal of Tri-State Partners, Newsday reports. Casino access will come from the Montauk Highway, and some critics believe the project will add massive congestion to the two-lane freeway. It is being built in what would have been a medical marijuana facility.

Bryan Polite, chairman of the Shnnecock Nation's council of trustees, said that the casino and other projects developed by the tribe will help 'ensure the nation can be self-sustaining.

Bryan Polite, chairman of the Shnnecock Nation's council of trustees, said that the casino and other projects developed by the tribe will help 'ensure the nation can be self-sustaining

Polite said that the casino would help fund a new tribal police force and court system, social welfare programs and help balance the tribe's government - which he noted had all been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

'It will fundamentally transform the way of life on Shinnecock,' he said.

Polite added at a Wednesday news conference: 'For over 350 years, others have profited from our name while we must fight to develop economic projects on our own sovereign territory.

'We have been sued by individuals and governments time after time, we have had encroachment by our surrounding neighbors, and we have been unfairly maligned over the years by the forces that would see us extinct. But we are here today to announce the Shinnecock Nation and its people continue to fight to exist.'

Polite said that the casino would help fund a new tribal police force and court system, social welfare programs and help balance the tribe's government - which he noted had all been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic

'It will fundamentally transform the way of life on Shinnecock,' Polite added of the casino

Polite added that Southampton has 'grown and prospered while the Shinnecock Nation has endured systemic socio-economic disenfranchisement,' calling the disparities 'stark' between the two communities.

While the casino will be wholly owned by the Shinnecock Nation, Tri-State Partners and the Seminole Tribe of Florida have assisted in providing outside funding and strategic planning. The Seminole Tribe owns the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino chain.

The Florida based nation said that it 'supports the efforts of the Shinnecock Nation to secure the right to open a gaming facility to provide the Nation with much needed economic development.

The Seminole added that gaming has been a 'vital tool for economic development and self determination for Indian tribes across the country.'

Polite said construction is expected to begin this summer and will take 12 to 14 months to finish.

Once complete, the Shinnecock Indian Nation hopes to build a hotel and resort as well as a gas station and convenience store on Sunrise Highway.
(UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 17th Feb, 2021) ABU DHABI, 17th February 2021 (WAM) The UAEs Mars mission (Hope Probe) has enhanced the UAEs soft power and its efforts to revive the knowledge hub status of the Islamic world as it used to be in the past, according to academic experts.

The Hope Probe, launched in July 2020 was successfully inserted into orbit around Mars on 9th February, marking the Arab worlds entry to the global space race and placing the UAE as the first Arab nation, and the fifth in the world, to reach the Red Planet.

"It has bolstered the UAEs scientific and economic aspirations as a transitioning smart power and reinforced its regional power status," said Dr. Narayanappa Janardhan, a Senior Research Fellow at the Emirates Diplomatic academy (EDA) in Abu Dhabi.

The UAEs policy of moderation, tolerance and womens empowerment have already served it well abroad, acting as soft power tools, he added.

In February, Brand Finances global soft power index 2020 had ranked the UAE first in the middle East and 18th globally.

About the importance of soft power, Dr. Janardhan cited that American pop music and university culture have made an influence across the globe.

China has started Confucius Institutes around the world, inviting students from everywhere to China and launched tv channels to promote their country.

The value of Bollywood, yoga, biryani and chicken tikka masala have acted as soft power tools for India, he explained, adding that space is a 21st century diplomatic tool and the UAE is utilising it well.

"While the United States and Russia are key partners, the UAE has expanded its Look East policy beyond oil, trade and expatriates to include Asian allies in space collaboration DubaiSat-1 in 2009 and DubaiSat-2 in 2013 with South Korea; India launched the UAEs first nanosatellite, Nayif-1, in 2017; Japan aided KhalifaSat launch in 2018 and Hope Probe in 2020; and China is offering satellite-enabled 5G technology," Dr. Janardhan explained.

Another expert said the success of the UAE's Hope Probe demonstrates the country's ability to marshal its resources to put itself at the cutting edge of space innovation.

"The Hope Probe testifies not only to the abilities of the country's scientists, but also to its ability to work towards realising an ambitious vision for future space exploration for the benefit of humanity," said Dr. Stephen Blackwell, Director of Research and Strategic Studies at the think-tank TRENDS Research & Advisory in Abu Dhabi.

He pointed out that the UAE is already known worldwide for its use of new generation technologies in government, business and science.

Dr. Blackwell explained that the concept of soft power relates to the general attractiveness of a country's lifestyle, culture and achievements across all sectors.

Achievements, economic strength, social stability and prosperity, and technological capabilities are other important factors in enhancing a countrys soft power and reputation. Through highlighting progress and demonstrating a positive influence, soft power can give countries a significant global profile, he noted.

Dr. Janardhan pointed out that the UAEs space programmes, especially the Hope Probe, have a pan-Arab appeal, too. "It invokes past Arab and Islamic achievements in mathematics and astronomy."

Saudi Arabia and Egypt had also established their own space agencies in 2018 and 2019, respectively.

Saudi Arabia had established pan-Arab satellite operator Arabsat in 1976 and sent the first Arab astronaut to space in 1985 with American help.

The UAE established the first pan-Arab Space Coordination Group in 2019 by encouraging 11 Arab countries to develop "813," an earth monitoring satellite "named after the year in which the famed Arab House of Knowledge reached its peak," Dr. Janardhan noted.

Among others in West Asia, Israel now has launch capabilities after establishing its space agency in the 1980s; Iran launched satellites with Russian help in the 1990s, then launched its own after 2003 and graduated to space reconnaissance capabilities and testing military rockets; and Turkey entered the race in 2018.
BOISE - Idaho Governor Brad Little issued an expanded statement Thursday morning on the proposal from Congressman Mike Simpson related to salmon recovery and dam removal.

My position on the lower Snake River Dams has not changed. I remain unconvinced that breaching the dams is a silver bullet for salmon recovery. Breaching the dams would have devastating impacts on Idahoans and vital segments of Idahos economy," said Little.

We must continue to find creative, consensus-based solutions that help salmon thrive and foster a strong Idaho economy. Last year, I signed an agreement with the Governors of Washington, Oregon, and Montana, stating Idahos commitment to working collaboratively on a regional level to advance our shared goal of successful salmon recovery and economic prosperity. I am also proud of the work of my Salmon Workgroup  a diverse group of stakeholders that worked for 20 months to come up with dozens of pragmatic recommendations that promote healthy salmon populations and thriving river communities in Idaho. It was the first time that broad interests worked collaboratively to help shape Idahos policy on salmon and steelhead. While a lot remains to be done, I am confident we are moving in the right direction."

I have immense respect for Congressman Simpson and all the work he has done on behalf of the people of Idaho. We may not see eye to eye on this issue, but I am committed to continuing to work with local and regional stakeholders and the entire Idaho congressional delegation to improve salmon returns and ensure Idaho industries not only remain whole but are better positioned for the future, Governor Little said.
Samajwadi Party legislators staged a protest outside the Vidhan Bhawan on Thursday, before the Budget Session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly began.

The legislators who arrived on bicycles to protest against rising prices, sat below the statue of Chaudhary Charan Singh and expressed their solidarity with the agitating farmers.

Some of them carried sugarcane sticks to protest against the state government's refusal to increase the minimum support price of sugarcane this year.

Samajwadi Party MLC Rajesh Yadav came on a tractor with a bundle of sugarcane sticks and was taken into custody by the police.

Another MLC Udaiveer Singh told reporters: "We will continue to protest inside and outside the Assembly and no amount of force can break our resolve."

The Budget Sessions will continue till March 10 and the opposition has decided to corner the government on several issues, including farmers' protest, law and order situation.
By Devika Krishna Kumar, Gary McWilliams and Jennifer Hiller

HOUSTON (Reuters) - Texas oil producers and refiners remained shut for a fifth day on Wednesday after several days of blistering cold, and the governor ordered a ban on natural gas exports from the state to try to speed the restoration of power.

The cold snap, which has killed at least 21 people and knocked out power to more than 4 million people in Texas, is not expected to let up until this weekend.

Governor Greg Abbott directed Texas natural gas providers not to ship outside the state until Sunday and asked the state energy regulator to enforce his export ban.

"That will also increase the power thats going to be produced and sent to homes here in Texas," Abbott said at a news conference Wednesday.

The ban prompted a response from officials in Mexico, which relies on imports via pipeline from Texas. More than 40% of U.S. natural gas exports come from Texas.

Texas produces more natural gas and oil than any other U.S. state, and its operators, unlike those in North Dakota or Alaska, are not used to dealing with frigid temperatures.

The state accounts for roughly one-quarter of U.S. natural gas production, about 27.8 billion cubic feet per day, but it consumes only part of that, shipping the rest to other states or via pipeline to Mexico, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Texas' energy sector has been hit hard by the cold, with about 4 million barrels per day (bpd) of daily refining capacity shuttered and at least 1 million bpd of oil production out as well.

Natural gas output also slumped. At this time a week ago, Texas was producing about 7.9 billion cubic feet per day, but that fell to 1.9 billion on Wednesday, according to preliminary data from Refinitiv Eikon. Natural gas accounts for half of Texas' power generation.

Christi Craddick, chair of the Texas Railroad Commission, the state's oil and gas regulator, said late Wednesday the agency had received the governor's request and was reviewing it.

Story continues

The request set up a game of political football, according to a person familiar with the matter, between groups that do not have the authority to interfere with interstate commerce.

U.S. gas pipeline exports to Mexico dropped to 3.8 billion cubic feet (bcf) per day on Wednesday, down from an average over the past 30 days of 5.7 bcf, according to data from Refinitiv, about three-quarters of which comes from Texas.

Mexico's economy minister, Tatiana Clouthier, said Wednesday she had contacted the U.S. government's representative in Mexico, seeking to guarantee supplies of natural gas for Mexico during the cold snap.

"By not acting together, the results could be more complicated," she said on Twitter.

One cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) loaded at Freeport LNG in Texas on Wednesday had been slated to sail to Mexico, according to Refinitiv Eikon data. The tanker remained off the coast of Texas. A Freeport LNG spokeswoman declined to comment.

Operations at Cheniere Energy's Corpus Christi plant, the state's largest LNG producer, were halted by weather disruptions this week. A spokesman declined to comment on the governor's order.

Overall, daily U.S. natural gas production is down by roughly 19% from the end of last week to 71.9 bcf per day on Wednesday, according to preliminary Eikon data.

With more snow expected in key oil-and-gas production areas like the Permian and northern Louisiana, production is expected to stay offline through Friday, said Anna Lenzmeier, energy analyst at BTU Analytics.

"The second half of this week is shaping up to be just as tumultuous as the long weekend, and natural gas prices could continue to top triple digits before the weekend," she said.

Several Texas ports, including Houston, Galveston and key LNG exporting sites at Freeport and Sabine Pass were closed due to weather, according to U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Jonathan Lally.

One bcf of gas can supply about 5 million U.S. homes per day.

Producers in the Permian Basin, the largest U.S. oilfield, said electrical outages were the main issue, and that until power was restored, restarting any frozen equipment would be challenging.

Roughly 1 million bpd of crude production has been halted, according to Wood Mackenzie analysts, and it could be weeks before it is fully restored.

The supply disruptions drove further increases in oil prices, which ended the session up more than 1.5%. U.S. natural gas climbed to a more than three-month high after rising more than 10% on Tuesday.

The freeze has also sent Canadian natural gas exports to the United States soaring to levels last seen in 2010, said IHS Markit analyst Ian Archer.

Net Canadian exports have jumped above 7.5 bcf a day for the last couple of days and Archer estimated they were close to 8 bcf per day on Wednesday.

"We are seeing just absolutely huge withdrawals and exports to the U.S.," Archer said.

Graphic-U.S. natural gas production slumps https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/ce/gjnvwzalmpw/Pasted%20image%201613575433245.png

(Reporting by Devika Krishna Kumar in New York and Gary McWilliams in Houston; Additional reporting by Stephanie Kelly, Laila Kearney and Scott DiSavino in New York, Nia Williams in Calgary and Arpan Varghese and Diptendu Lahiri in Bengaluru; Editing by Matthew Lewis, Leslie Adler and Kim Coghill)
Most Chinese working in the cities return to work today after a 7-day public holiday of Spring Festival. The annual Spring Festival, which also marks the start of Chinese New Year, traditionally begins with the second new moon following the winter solstice, usually in January or February. Like westerners on Thanksgiving and Christmas, people across China return to their hometown to reunite with family and friends. However, the sudden outbreak of COVID-19 last year halted the largest holiday mobilization in the world. In response to the crisis, in late 2019, local governments launched lockdowns and behavior restrictions that reduced short-term economic and social activity. Despite the negative aspects of the pandemic, reduced human activity provided a unique opportunity for atmospheric scientists to study the impact of an unprecedented intervention on air quality.

COVID-19 lockdowns have reduced carbon dioxides, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxides, all byproducts of fuel combustion used in transportation and manufacturing. These gases are closely linked to human activity, so not surprisingly, their atmospheric concentration responds quickly to economic change. Studies are showing significantly reduced airborne ammonia as well, despite the believed-to-be strong link to agricultural sources, especially in rural areas.

"We don't think this finding is surprising as the major source of ammonia in urban Beijing was found to be combustion sources rather than agricultural emissions," says atmospheric scientist Dr. Yuepeng Pan of the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Still, some researchers are startled by the substantial decrease of ammonia amid lockdowns, given that idle agricultural activities during Spring Festival holidays typically reduce ammonia levels. In an earlier study published in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences, Dr. Pan and his group tracked and corrected isotopic signatures of ammonia sources with updated active sampling. They found that that non-agricultural emissions contributed to 66% of ammonia in urban Beijing.

While debate continues regarding ammonia sources in the urban atmosphere, the lockdowns that canceled Spring Festival celebrations provided an unprecedented opportunity to check whether fossil fuel combustion is a major source of ammonia in the air within urban regions. Ideally, relatively low ammonia concentrations should be observed if vehicular emissions are reduced due to travel restrictions during the Spring Festival.

"In addition to nitrogen isotopic evidence, the new finding in lockdowns offers additional insight for the prioritization of future clean air actions on ammonia reduction," said Dr. Pan. However, quantifying this unique scenario remains challenging as meteorological processes may mask the effective change in observed ammonia concentrations.

Pan and his collaborators introduced machine learning algorithms to models that separated these meteorological influences. They confirmed that the actual atmospheric ammonia concentration dropped to a new minimum during the 2020 Spring Festival at both urban (Beijing) and rural (Xianghe) sites. In a scenario analysis without lockdowns, ammonia concentration calculations were 39.8% and 24.6% higher than the observed values in 2020 at urban and rural sites, respectively. Their recent findings are published in Atmospheric Research.

"Future control strategies should consider the emissions of ammonia from the transportation, industrial and residential sectors, considering that agricultural emissions are minor in cold seasons." remarked Pan.

The significant difference between the two sites indicates a larger reduction of ammonia emissions in urban areas than rural areas due to lockdown measures of COVID-19 which have reduced human activity.

###

LG U+ joins O-RAN as the 28 th operator member

operator member O-RAN Open Summit (virtual) on February 25, 2021 will brief on O-RAN's progress and outlook

7 O-RAN demos to be presented at MWC Shanghai 2021 and the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition

As of January 2021, the O-RAN ALLIANCE welcomes LG U+ as its 28th operator member. With strong support by its expanding number of contributors, the alliance now counts more than 260 companies from around the globe, building a foundation and unifying the Radio Access Networks (RAN) industry towards open, intelligent, virtualized and fully interoperable RAN solutions.

O-RAN Open Summit (Virtual) Complements the O-RAN Demos at MWC Shanghai 2021

For latest updates on the evolution of open RAN, the O-RAN ALLIANCE invites interested industry participants to the O-RAN Open Summit. This compact virtual event will open with operator executives delivering a summary of O-RAN's progress and developments. Subsequent keynotes and panel discussions with major O-RAN players will summarize the achievements and next steps in the O-RAN specification effort, testing and integration, and delivery of open software for the RAN.

The O-RAN Open Summit virtual event is scheduled for February 25, 2021 from 9:00-11:00pm China Standard Time (8:00-10:00am EST, 14:00-16:00 CET). For more information and to join the summit free of charge, please visit our website.

O-RAN Demonstrations at MWC Shanghai 2021 and at the O-RAN Virtual Showcase

Two O-RAN demonstrations are planned to be presented at the MWC Shanghai 2021:

Sageran is demonstrating a complete O-RAN white-box small cell solution based on an x86 platform with an FPGA Accelerator card that showcases a stand-alone end-to-end use case using white box hardware for an indoor cell which supports MIMO with 4T4R. The demo is hosted at MWC Shanghai 2021 by Sageran, booth N2.C114 , as well as at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition.

is demonstrating a complete O-RAN white-box small cell solution based on an x86 platform with an FPGA Accelerator card that showcases a stand-alone end-to-end use case using white box hardware for an indoor cell which supports MIMO with 4T4R. The demo is hosted at MWC Shanghai 2021 by Sageran, booth , as well as at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition. VIAVI and Rohde Schwarz are jointly demonstrating validation of open fronthaul performance. As network operators adopt disaggregated, multi-vendor networks, rigorous testing of performance and interoperability must accompany conformance testing. This demo showcases generation and delivery of typical standards based testcase IQ data to the O-RU utilizing the Lower Layer Split Option 7.2x fronthaul interface with the VIAVI TM500 O-RU Tester. Moreover, uplink and downlink fronthaul logs are captured, and RF signal generation and capture are performed using the Rohde Schwarz VSG and VSA hardware with VSE Software for RF and IQ signal analysis. Testcase workflow is simplified for the end user utilizing the VIAVI O-RU Test Manager, providing a single point of test control. The demo is hosted at MWC Shanghai 2021 by VIAVI Solutions, booth N1.B137, as well as at the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition.

5 more virtual demos for MWC Shanghai 2021 have enriched the O-RAN Virtual Exhibition:

ITRI is demonstrating traffic steering xApps and Near-Real-Time Radio Intelligent Controller platform utilizing E2 procedures to monitor cell and UE metrics generated by RAN simulator and to offload some UE to neighbor cells such that the A1 policy is guaranteed.

NVIDIA and VMWare are jointly demonstrating PoC of Aerial 5G gNB Layer-1 orchestration on VMWare telco cloud platform. This demo showcases NVIDIA Aerial SDK as cloud native function, with docker containers and Kubernetes manifests. Aerial cuBB onboarded to VMWare telco cloud platform offers service agility, operational efficiency and reduced CAPEX/OPEX through MANO.

Viettel is demonstrating an end-to-end-solution based on Intel server (Xeon-D) with NIC (XXV710-DA2T) that is integrated with an outdoor micro O-RU via an Open Fronthaul Interface. The base station connects with EPC and Viettel's eNB perform a complete NSA (Option 3X) white-box base station solution and ready for Commercial Deployment. The integrated system is verified using a commercial UE through the attach and speed test.

Altiostar has teamed up with Airtel and NEC to demonstrate interoperability testing and integration of massive MIMO radio units (O-RU) and virtualized distributed units (O-DU) running on commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) servers. The demonstration features a commercial end-to-end Open Fronthaul interface based on O-RAN specifications.

Parallel Wireless is demonstrating 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G O-RAN based macro Open RAN to expand and modernize cellular networks with reduced TCO simplified maintenance. It's been proven in rural in 50+ networks globally and is now scalable for urban 2G 3G 4G while unleashing the full 5G potential.

About O-RAN ALLIANCE

The O-RAN ALLIANCE is a world-wide community of more than 260 mobile operators, vendors, and research academic institutions operating in the Radio Access Network (RAN) industry. As the RAN is an essential part of any mobile network, the O-RAN ALLIANCE's mission is to re-shape the industry towards more intelligent, open, virtualized and fully interoperable mobile networks. The new O-RAN standards will enable a more competitive and vibrant RAN supplier ecosystem with faster innovation to improve user experience. O-RAN based mobile networks will at the same time improve the efficiency of RAN deployments as well as operations by the mobile operators. To achieve this, the O-RAN ALLIANCE publishes new RAN specifications, releases open software for the RAN, and supports its members in integration and testing of their implementations. For more information please visit www.o-ran.org.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218006088/en/

Contacts:

O-RAN ALLIANCE PR Contact

Zbynek Dalecky

pr@o-ran.org

O-RAN ALLIANCE e.V.

Buschkauler Weg 27

53347 Alfter/Germany
GAZA - The United Arab Emirates sent 20,000 doses of the Sputnik Covid vaccine to Gaza, through Egypt, and the doses are expected to arrive very soon, said Israeli public radio Kan.



It said the initiative was taken by Mohammed Dahlan, a political rival of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, also in view of upcoming legislative elections for the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in May 2021.



Kan said Dahlan - a former leader of the al-Fatah party in the Gaza Strip and now a businessman active in the Gulf - has secured a commitment from the Emirates to send additional quantities of vaccines to Gaza in the coming months.



The news has thus far not been confirmed in Gaza.



Meanwhile, the local health ministry specified that on Wednesday 2,000 doses of the Sputnik vaccine sent by the PNA arrived from Ramallah, not just 1,000 doses as Israeli authorities had announced.



These are the first Covid vaccines to arrive in the Gaza Strip since the start of the pandemic.



The vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 from Pfizer will be delivered to Ukraine in late February - early March, said head of health programs of UNICEF Ukraine Andriy Slavutsky during a training session on the supply and logistics of vaccines in Kyiv on Thursday.

"Currently, negotiations are underway on the documentation. There is one document that Ukraine is still awaiting. But according to preliminary information, the Pfizer vaccine should arrive in late February or early March," he said.

Slavutsky told how the vaccine supply to the regions will take place.

"The vaccine will be supplied to Ukraine from the manufacturer by UNICEF. In Boryspil, the logistics company could take the vaccine at any time of the day, whose capacity allows them to receive the amount of vaccine that will be delivered. Then these vaccines will be transferred to the company's central warehouse, after which they will be delivered to the regions in trays with dry ice. Each tray will contain 195 vials, one vial is designed for six doses of vaccine. The mobile team will receive a daily number of doses - 96 or 102 (16 or 17 vials) daily," he said.

As reported, the Ministry of Health planned to start vaccination against COVID-19 using two vaccines - produced by Pfizer/BioNTech (117,000 doses to be received under the COVAX mechanism) and AstraZeneca (1 million doses for direct purchases from the state budget and 2.2-3.7 million doses received under COVAX). Both vaccines have already been submitted for registration in Ukraine.
By Chang-rae Lee

Riverhead. 496 pp. $28

- - -

The perfect place to hide from your past may be suburban New Jersey. That's what Tiller, the young narrator of Chang-rae Lee's new book "My Year Abroad" thinks, anyway. In his sixth novel, Lee records the adventures of this college dropout in a wild tale that moves coolly between satire and thriller.

Twenty-year-old Tiller is supposed to be in college on an overseas program, but unbeknown to his dad, he has spent the last few months on a series of bizarre adventures in Asia. Upon their conclusion, he shacks up with a new girlfriend, Val, and her son, who are in a witness protection program and share Tiller's penchant for hiding in plain sight. Entrenched in her own secrets, Val does not pry into Tiller's troubles as he attempts to process recent tumultuous events that have left him "smashed to raw bits."

The best way to forget your problems? Find a whole new set of them. The seemingly sweet Tiller gets wrapped up in Val's troubles, nonchalantly slashing the tire of a sinister man looking for her. That he is capable of such an action regardless of the consequences, he explains, is a result of whatever happened to him during his time in Asia, as he is a changed person, capable of darkness and unafraid of death.

"My Year Abroad" is quite a departure - in tone, language and backdrop - from Lee's previous novel "On Such a Full Sea" (2014). Indeed, it is unlike anything from Lee's canon of work - "Native Speaker" (1995), A Gesture Life" (1999), "Aloft" (2004) - a testament to the Pulitzer-nominated author's virtuosity. While the story of "Sea" was told by a poetic plural narrator and meandered through a hazy dystopian landscape, "My Year Abroad" is set in the present day and punctuated by the colorful and vibrant language of a college kid. Lee's tenure at Princeton for many years has no doubt provided him with much material about the preoccupations of a young person in a New Jersey college town.

As Tiller reveals through flashbacks, it was a chance encounter with a fascinating character named Pong Lou that led to an extraordinary turn of events for him. Pong, a Chinese immigrant, is a Big Pharma chemist by day and a rollicking creative entrepreneur by night. He is simultaneously humble and ruthlessly enterprising. The son of artists destroyed by the Red Guards in Maoist China, he has climbed the lowly onion-peeling immigrant ranks of an American Chinese restaurant to arrive at the pinnacle of prosperous New Jersey life as a business owner. Spotting a shining potential in Tiller, Pong whisks him off on international ventures as an assistant. Pong becomes a hero to Tiller, who is running, perhaps, from the sad tatters of his family life, which has been defined by his mother's inexplicable and abrupt abandonment of him and his father.

Pong's greatest appeal as a character lies in the gentle way that he encourages Tiller to explore new undertakings as they travel through Asia - forming an inevitable contrast to Tiller's father, who is well-meaning but seemingly sleepwalks through fatherhood, bewildered as he is from being forsaken by his wife. Some of the most heartbreaking scenes in the novel are those that capture how terribly the father and the son communicate with each other, and all the things left unsaid in the spirit of love and protection.

To the adrift and hungry Tiller, Pong is a revelation. "It was partly the booze talking, for certain, but mostly, I see now, it was that I was tucked in a new groove, this easy-time mixtape of apprenticeship and comradeship and partnership, of being happily equal and unequal at once, which I guess is as good as any definition of being comfortable with someone which in turn makes you feel like you belong in the world and kindles the idea that a little part of the world might someday belong to you."

Thrust into bewildering situation after bewildering situation as Pong convenes with his various business partners in Asia, Tiller discovers he has preternatural talents that he never imagined, including a gift for karaoke which will serve him in unexpected ways. Lee paints Shenzhen, Macau and finally an unnamed valley in Guangdong as the pulsing backdrops for the kinds of very real fortunes being made in China today, and the wild ambitions and audacious brutality of a menacing cast that aspire to them.

As the narrative hurtles toward a shocking and cinematic climax, Tiller's funny and naive observations keep the reader rooting for this wonderfully magnetic lost soul and his enigmatic mentor. Through Tiller's sweet vulnerability and his steadfast grasp on hope, Lee tells a story of what it means to be plucked from darkness into the light of recognition, and in doing so, explores the fundamental human desires to be seen and to love.

- - -

Frances Cha is the author of the novel "If I Had Your Face."
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - PeakBirch Logic Inc. (CSE: PKB) (FSE: KYH2) (OTC Pink: KTNNF) ("PeakBirch" or the "Company") and Halo Collective Inc. ("Halo" ) (NEO: HALO) (OTCQB: HCANF formerly AGEEF) (FSE: A9K) are pleased to announce a partnership to bring new line of nutraceutical, non-psychoactive mushroom products to market. They combine the functional attributes of mushrooms and cannabinoids without the hallucinogenic properties.

Figure 1: Mock-up of Hushrooms Line-up. The triad of formulations will be available for purchase at shroommart.com.



To view an enhanced version of Figure 1, please visit:

https://orders.newsfilecorp.com/files/7304/74740_a629ac3874b98b4c_001full.jpg

PeakBirch is using its expertise in e-commerce and online presence to bring these innovative products to market. This offers the consumer a greater choice and ease of access to an innovative emerging space of wellness consumables. Product formulations will be spearheaded by manufacturing expert, Nightingale Remedies, a premier consumer-driven Cannabinoid company specializing in product development & manufacturing (holding cGMP license. Halo Collective's manufacturing know-how and product design expertise will deliver an exceptionally high quality product aimed at consumers looking for alternative therapies and greater wellness.

CEO of Halo Collective, Kiran Sidhu commented, "Our industry is only in the preliminary stages of the future of wellness. Functional mushrooms will provide an initial avenue for consumers to experience the therapeutic benefits of mushrooms. We anticipate developing active psilocybin compounds via DNA synthesis of naturally occurring psylocibin using genetic clustering. We anticipate this manufacturing approach to be cost-effective and at the same time provide a wider spectrum with predictable modulated dosing."

This collaboration will provide the means to manufacture and distribute the highest quality cGMP functional mushroom products. The initial product line, Hushrooms, will include three unique products, Rise, Mellow, and Tranquil. They combine terpenes, CBD, CBG, CBN, non-psychedelic cannabinoids, and mushroom extract in different combinations for each product. These unique functional benefits allow a targeted and non-psychoactive experience for consumers. The Hushrooms line of products will be available via PeakBirch's specialist mushroom sales channel, 'Shroommart.com'.

This new partnership is at the forefront of a substantial growth potential in the mushroom market. According to Data Bridge Market Research, the functional mushroom market is expected to make substantial strides between 2021 and 2028. Data Bridge Market Research anticipates the market will grow with the CAGR of 7.22 percent and reach USD $555.94 billion globally by 2028. Analysts have cited the increasing use of the ingredient by the nutraceutical sector to propel this growth.

CEO of PeakBirch, Marc Mulvaney commented. "We are so excited to enter into the legal mushroom market with our product partner Halo, and manufacturing partner Nightingale Remedies. This partnership provides us the opportunity to develop an online marketplace for premium mushroom products at shroommart.com. We plan to launch on Shroommart in Q1 2021."1

To learn more about PeakBirch's new collaborative agreement with Halo, please contact PeakBirch using the information below.

CONTACT



Marc Mulvaney, CEO

Phone: (725) 218-3097

Email: investors@peakbirch.com

About PeakBirch

PeakBirch is a multi-brand management company providing services & related products to the cannabis industry that believes its strong focus on and investment in marketing, brand, education to help customers make sound purchasing decision, strategic brand partnerships, and a delivery software technology will create a business with the potential to generate a significant and sustained return on invested capital over the long-term.

Information on the Company and its many products can be accessed through the links below:

PeakBirch.com

About Halo

Halo is a leading, vertically integrated cannabis company that cultivates, extracts, manufactures and distributes quality cannabis flower, oils and concentrates, and has sold approximately eight million grams of oils and concentrates since inception. Halo continues to evolve its business and scale efficiently, partnering with trustworthy leaders in the industry, who value the Company's operational expertise in bringing top-tier products to market. Current growth includes expansion in key U.S. markets, the United Kingdom, Africa, the Republic of Malta in partnership with MedCan Ltd., and planned expansion into the Canadian retail market.



Halo is led by a strong, diverse and innovative management team with deep industry knowledge and blue-chip experience. The company is currently operating in the U.S. in California, Oregon and Nevada. The Company sells cannabis products principally to dispensaries under its own brands Hush, Mojave, Exhale, and under partnership or license with OG DNA Genetics, Terphogz (doing business as Zkittlez), Winberry Farms and FlowerShop.



As part of continued expansion and vertical integration in the U.S., Halo boasts several grow operations throughout Oregon and California. In Oregon, the Company has a combined seven acres of outdoor cultivation, including East Evans Creek, a six-acre grow site in Jackson County, and Winberry Farms, a one-acre grow site in Lane County. In California, the Company is building out Ukiah Ventures, a planned 30,000-square-foot indoor grow, processing and manufacturing facility, including up to an additional five acres of industrial land to expand. Halo has also partnered with GMH to purchase Bar X Ranch in Lake County, California, with plans to develop up to 80 acres of cultivation, which would comprise the largest grow in Northern California.



Recently, the Company has entered into a non-binding letter of intent with Red Light Holland Corp. for the purpose of creating a joint venture to become a licensed psilocybin manufacturer to supply psilocybin products to licensed service centers in the State of Oregon.



Internationally, the Company is currently cultivating cannabis at Bophelo Bioscience & Wellness (Pty) Ltd ("Bophelo") in Lesotho, South Africa, which holds one of the largest marijuana cultivation licenses in Africa with a future capacity of up to 495 acres. To further Halo's global presence, the Company recently acquired cannabis-based product for medicinal use ("CBPM") importation and distribution licensing in the United Kingdom via cannabis suppliers Canmart Ltd. Halo expects the cultivation and manufacturing operations of Bophelo, combined with the importation and distribution capabilities of Canmart, to drive growth of a well-positioned business to serve the U.K. market.



About Nightingale Remedies



Nightingale Remedies is a premier consumer-driven Cannabinoid company specializing in product development, production, distribution and retail placement. Production facilities operate at the highest levels of compliance including cGMP and FDA approved to ensure that safe quality products are delivered to consumers in the fast-growing Hemp space. The custom product formulation is offered to companies looking to enter into the hemp products business. Our development team includes a compounding pharmacist with 30 years of experience, a field experienced chemist, and several naturopathic and Medical Doctors. Nightingale Remedies advocates for hemp accessibility with an emphasis on health and wellness benefits.



Information on the Company and its many products can be accessed through the links below:



Nightingale-remedies.com

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its regulations services provider have reviewed or accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

This news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward-looking. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include the cost of goods to be sold under the Company's drop-shipping model, changes in government regulations or enforcement, the ability for the Company to expand its US operations or expand to international markets, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under the applicable laws. This press release contains forward-looking statements. The use of any of the words "anticipate", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "project", "should", "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which the forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking statements address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements speak only as of the date of this press release. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks various risk factors discussed in the Company's listing statement under the Company's profile on www.sedar.com.

____________________

1 https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/reports/global-functional-mushroom-market

Not for Distribution to U.S. Newswire Services or For Dissemination in the United States

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74740
Admin gears up as Hisar farmers get set to protest today

Punjab MLA Navjot Singh Sidhu hoists black flag at his residence in support of protesting farmers

Farmers' Protest: Farmers call for 'rail roko' protest today

India

oi-Ajay Joseph Raj P

New Delhi, Feb 18: In a recent development, the railways has deployed as many as 20 additional companies of the Railway Protection Special Force across the country with focus on Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal ahead of the four-hour rail roko protest called as part of the farmers' agitation against the three farm laws passed in September.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions spearheading the protest, last week announced the rail blockade to press for its demand to repeal the legislation. On Wednesday, Director-General, Railway Protection Force, Arun Kumar appealed for peace and said they will liaison with district administrations and have a control room to monitor the protest.

PM Modi to address Combined Commanders Conference in March

Here is all you need to know:

a. Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal will be their focus.

b. The SKM had said that the rail blockade will be held across the country from 12pm to 4pm.

c. Northern railways is expecting the rail roko to be concentrated in Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh.

d. No decision was immediately taken on train movement in the backdrop of the blockade.

e. They have identified around 80 trains which run through potentially sensitive areas and most of them would have crossed them before 12pm.

f. Railway unions, which had earlier supported the farmers' movement, have distanced themselves from the rail roko protest.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 10:49 [IST]
The US Justice Department has charged three North Korean hackers with the 2017 WannaCry attack that crippled the NHS.

Prosecutors also accused them of a cyber breach targeting a Hollywood studio and the attempted theft and extortion of more than $1.3billion (930million) in cash and Bitcoin from banks and firms.

The newly unsealed indictment charges Jon Chang Hyok, Kim Il and Park Jin Hyok with crimes including conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud.

It also lists them as members of the Reconnaissance General Bureau, Pyongyang's spy agency, and says they were acting under orders from the hermit regime.

This wanted poster released by the Department of Justice shows Kim Il (left) and Park Jin Hyok (right), who prosecutors say is a member of a North Korean military intelligence agency and carried out hacks at its behest

Federal authorities said they unleashed an global ransomware campaign, which saw them target Sony Pictures in retaliation to the 2014 Hollywood movie The Interview, which depicted a fictionalised assassination of Kim Jong Un.

The breach crashed the company's network and resulted in the leak of confidential emails from executives.

The trio were also charged in relation to the WannaCry attack, which spread through email, and severely affected 81 UK hospital trusts and hundreds of GP surgeries, locking staff out of their computers.

Nearly 20,000 hospital appointments were cancelled as a result of the May 2017 hacking, which demanded money from employees.

Doctors and nurses had to revert back to using paper and pen, and technology like MRI machines couldn't be used.

Ransomware is malicious malware that infects computers, locks users out of files and demands money in order to unlock them.

Jon Chang Hyok, who prosecutors say is one of the hackers behind a sweeping ransomware campaign

Park was previously charged in 2018 in a criminal complaint linking him to the hacking team responsible for the hack of Sony Pictures and the WannaCry global ransomware attack, among other acts.

Alarmingly to US officials, all three defendants worked at times from locations in Russia and China.

Law enforcement say the prosecution highlights the profit-driven motive behind North Korea's criminal hacking, a contrast from other adversarial nations like Russia, China and Iran who are generally more interested in espionage, intellectual property theft or even disrupting democracy.

As the US announced its case against the North Koreans, the government was still grappling with hacks by Russia of federal agencies and private corporations that officials say was aimed at information-gathering.

Assistant Attorney General John Demers, the Justice Department's top national security official, said: 'What we see emerging uniquely out of North Korea is trying to raise funds through illegal cyber activities.'

He added: 'They use their cyber capabilities to try to get currency wherever they can do that, and that's not something that we really see from actors in China or Russia or in Iran.'

None of the three defendants is in American custody, and though officials don't expect them to travel to the US anytime soon for prosecution, Justice Department officials in recent years have found value in indicting foreign government hackers - even in absentia - as a message that they are not anonymous and can be identified and implicated in crimes.

The trio were also charged in relation to the WannaCry attack, which spread through email, severely affected 81 UK hospital trusts and hundreds of GP surgeries, locking staff out of their computers

The indictment says the hackers engaged not just in cybertheft but also in 'revenge-motivated computer attacks, at times executing commands 'to destroy computer systems, deploy ransomware' or otherwise render victims' computers inoperable.

'The scope of these crimes by the North Korean hackers is staggering,' said Tracy Wilkison, the acting US Attorney in the Central District of California, where Sony Pictures is located and where the indictment was filed.

'They are the crimes of a nation-state that has stopped at nothing to extract revenge and to obtain money to prop up its regime.'

Wilkison would not say how much money the hackers actually received. But the indictment does charge them in connection with a theft from Bangladesh's central bank in 2016 involving wire transfers 'totaling approximately $81million to bank accounts in the Philippines and $20million to a bank account in Sri Lanka,' and with multiple other multi-million-dollar ATM cashouts and cyber extortion schemes.

All told, the conspirators 'attempted to steal or extort more than $1.3 billion,' according to the indictment.

To empty the cryptocurrency accounts of victims, the cyberthieves seeded malware posing as cryptocurrency-trading software on legitimate-seeming websites to trick victims, according to an alert published by the FBI and other US agencies.

Once infected, a victim's computer could be entered and controlled by remote access. Later, hackers used other techniques including phishing and social engineering to infect victims' computers.

At the same time, prosecutors unsealed a plea deal with a dual US-Canadian citizen who investigators say organized the sophisticated laundering of millions of dollars in stolen funds.

Ghaleb Alaumary, 37, of Ontario, Canada, agreed to plead guilty in Los Angeles to organizing teams of co-conspirators in the US and Canada to launder funds obtained through various schemes.
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A former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has criticised former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, for visiting former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Mr Saraki, who heads the PDP Reconciliation and Strategy Committee, visited Mr Jonathan in his Abuja residence following speculations that he (Jonathan) was planning to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Speculations were raised about Mr Jonathan planning to dump the PDP after allegedly meeting some chieftains of the APC.

Mr Saraki was accompanied on the visit by other members of the committee, including a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Pius Anyim, former governors Ibrahim Shema, Liyel Imoke and Ibrahim Dankwambo of Katsina, Cross River and Gombe states respectively.

After the visit, the former senate president advised those disturbing Mr Jonathan to defect to forget the thought, saying the former president remained a PDP man.

But in a tweet Thursday, Mr Fani-Kayode expressed surprise that Mr Saraki, who allegedly rebelled against Mr Jonathan in 2014 and possibly leading to his defeat, was the same person now advising the former president not to leave the PDP.

Interesting to note that the man that led the team to GEJs house to appeal to him not to leave the PDP yesterday is the same man that led the rebellion against him and the defection of Governors from the same party in 2014 and cost him the 2015 presidential election. What an irony! Mr Fani-Kayode said in the tweet.

PREMIUM TIMES attempts to seek further clarification from Mr Fani-Kayode were not successful as the former minister, according to his network provider, was on another call all through.

The former ministers statement comes nearly a week after his (Fani-Kayode) meeting with two APC governors  Mai Mala-Buni (Yobe) and Yahaya Bello (Kogi).

The meeting triggered speculations that he was planning to dump the PDP for the APC.
Noting that the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted minorities and made them vulnerable to extreme poverty, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Thursday urged the community to address the drivers of structural discrimination, including those rooted in the history of colonialism.

Qureshi was virtually speaking at a meeting of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) on Reimagining Equality: Eliminating Racism, Xenophobia and for all in the Decade of Action for SDGs, the Foreign Office (FO) said.

The minister said that reducing systematic inequality and eliminating racism, including its contemporary manifestations, were at the heart of the UN Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development.

He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had disproportionately impacted minorities, making them more vulnerable to extreme poverty and unemployment, as well as led to higher rates of infection and mortality.

Qureshi urged the community to address the structural drivers of discrimination, including those rooted in the history and legacy of colonialism.

The minister called upon the community to recommit to upholding the fundamental principles of human rights and guaranteeing substantive equality for all.

He also proposed, inter alia, the forging of a global alliance against the rise and spread of Islamophobia as well as other violent nationalist and racist groups.

The special meeting was convened under Pakistan's presidency of ECOSOC, and was aimed at addressing the linkage between structural racism, discrimination, inequalities and the pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals with a special focus on building those inter-linkages that help in a better response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts, according to the FO.

In addition to the UN Secretary-General, other speakers at the meeting included President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa and the Vice-President of Costa Rica.

(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.)
Vietnamese Ambassador to Switzerland Le Linh Lan attended a webinar on Vietnam as a main speaker at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW ) on February 16.

Participants attend a webinar on Vietnam hosted by the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (Photo: VNA)

The event, which was held within the framework of the Webinar Week of the Explore ASEAN Project, focused on how ASEAN can handle consequences caused by the COVID-19 crisis through collaborative efforts and transparent and effective communications.

Apart from studying ASEAN's digital transformation, the project has also focused on technological solutions to respond to climate change, towards sustainable development. Vietnam and two other ASEAN countries - Singapore and Thailand - were selected as key research countries in the project.

Speaking at the seminar, Lan emphasised the high determination and consensus of the Vietnamese Government and people in the fight against COVID-19, saying that Vietnam has successfully controlled the pandemic.

Vietnam has achieved a "dual goal" of keeping the pandemic under control and maintaining economic growth, with its GDP growth expanding by 2.91 percent in 2020 as many countries in the world falling into serious economic recession, she said.

The world's financial institutions are optimistic about the economic growth prospects of Vietnam in 2021, the ambassador added.

Referring to factors that strongly support economic recovery in the coming time, Lan emphasised positive effects from the signing of a series of new generation free trade agreements (FTAs) between Vietnam and its partners, particularly the EUVietnam FTA (EVFTA) which is expected to support the post-COVID-19 economic recovery in countries.

In November 2020, as the Chair of ASEAN 2020, Vietnam successfully promoted the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement, with the aim of liberalising trade and investment and strengthening economic cooperation among 15 Asia-Pacific economies, including 10 ASEAN member countries and five partners, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea, Lan said.

The above-mentioned factors help reinforce Vietnams comparative advantage to strongly attract the shifting wave of investment flows and global production and supply chains to Vietnam amid impacts of the US-China trade war and the COVID-19 crisis, the diplomat stressed.

Regarding economic cooperation between Vietnam and Switzerland, the ambassador affirmed that opportunities and potential for the two sides in the coming time still remain huge.

According to the diplomat, Switzerland is an important trade partner and the 6th largest European investor in Vietnam with a total investment of about 2 billion USD, focusing on processing, manufacturing, and electricity industries. Vietnam is home to nearly 100 Swiss enterprises and groups.

Since 2012, Vietnam and the EFTA states, including Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein, have officially negotiated a FTA. Currently, the two sides are speeding up their negotiation process in a bid to sign the deal in 2021.

Lan also updated participants on Vietnams policies on investment attraction, development prospects, and strategies to respond to climate change in the time to come.

Initiated by FHNW University in 2001, the "Explore ASEAN" Project aims to provide students with knowledge about ASEAN economies and promote connection between businesses and training institutions, thus contributing to strengthening economic cooperation between Switzerland and ASEAN countries./. VNA
In a rescue operation carried out on February 17, the Afghan National Army commandos have freed 23 security personnel from a Taliban-run prison in northern Kunduz province, reports Pajhwok Afghan News. The special operation was launched in Kabuli Qishlaq village of Haqtash district Wednesday night. No armed clash took place following the raid as the militants manning the Taliban hideout fled before troops' arrival, said Omar Haqtash, a local official. The Taliban, as of now, has not raised any comment on the rescue operation and is yet to comment.

Details awaited

After the people were freed, they received medical treatment and were then shifted to an army camp. The Taliban is responsible for controlling around two-thirds of Afghan territory. This includes all districts around the capital. More details on the incident are awaited.

Read: Afghanistan: At Least 10 People Killed And Several Injured In Separate Attacks

On the same day of this incident, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that the military alliance will only leave Afghanistan when security conditions allow. This was his comment in response to the deadline for withdrawing troops set out in a peace deal with the Taliban nears. According to the reports by AP, NATO has just sent under 10,000 troops in the country. This is being done to train and advise the Afghan security forces. Also, President Joe Biden is reviewing his predecessors 2020 deal with the Taliban. The deal involves a May 1 deadline for a final US troop withdrawal.

Read: ECHR Backs Germany, ISAG Over Taliban-hijacked Tanker Bombings In Afghanistan's Kunduz

Our presence in Afghanistan is conditions based, and the Taliban has to meet their commitments, said Stoltenberg. He further said, The main issue is that the Taliban has to reduce violence, Taliban has to negotiate in good faith and Taliban has to stop supporting international terrorist groups like Al Qaeda. We will only leave when the time is right and the focus now is how we can support the peace talks.

Read: Kabul University Attack: President Ghani Vows Revenge, Warns 'wild Enemy Of Afghanistan'

Also Read: Afghan Officials Arrest 10 'spies' From Chinese Intelligence Network With Taliban Contacts

(Image Credits: AP)
Seiko Hashimoto, the Cabinet minister in charge of the Tokyo Games and a former Olympic athlete, has emerged as the Tokyo Organising Committees sole candidate to replace Yoshiro Mori, who stepped down last week over his sexist remarks, media reports said Wednesday.

The organizing committees selection committee is expected to ask Hashimoto to accept the position after a third and final meeting Thursday, but it is unclear if she will accept the role. Hashimoto has said on multiple occasions that she is not interested in leaving her current position to replace Mori, the 83-year-old former prime minister who said during a meeting earlier this month that women are competitive and talk too much.

Several names were floated as the candidate selection panel held meetings Tuesday and Wednesday. On the first day, the organizing committee said it would choose a single candidate based on five criteria: a deep knowledge of the Olympic and Paralympic Games; an understanding of its principles concerning gender, inclusivity and diversity; work experience; knowledge of the Tokyo Games; and management skills.

The selection panel, chaired by honorary chairman Fujio Mitarai, is slated to hold another meeting Thursday.
OMAHA, Neb., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Insurance defense firm, Sodoro + Mooney + Lenaghan , is proud to provide employment law support to companies of all sizes. Their experienced attorneys can proactively help craft detailed employee policies that provide upfront protection for employers, as well as strong legal support for employee disputes and claims.

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SOURCE Sodoro + Mooney + Lenaghan

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[February 18, 2021]

BeeCruise's E-commerce Site "Buyee" Presents "Japanese Stamps Special Feature" for Half-price International Shipping Fee Until Sunday, February 28

TOKYO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- BeeCruise Inc., a subsidiary of the BEENOS Group, will host a "Japanese Stamps Special Feature" on its e-commerce site "Buyee" to bring the charms of Japan to Taiwanese and Hong Kong customers. A promotional campaign offering a half-price international shipping fee is underway from Friday, February 12, to Sunday, February 28, 2021.

Image: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/prwfile/release/M105591/202102151019/_prw_PI1fl_HGEEG4zw.jpg

Buyee's "Japanese Stamps Special Feature" page features Japanese stamps with subjects such as Ukiyo-e print art, sumo, national treasures, and food. Even with the current travel restriction times, customers can still enjoy Japanese culture through these stamp. Items from famed carmaker Nissan as well as original FurBaby goods with adorable dogs and cats are also on offer. The half-price international shipping fee promotional campaign is taking place until February 28, 2021. Purchase these special, uniquely Japanese items in the comfort of each customer's own home.







Please Visit:

URL: https://media.buyee.jp/pr/special_recommended_stamp/cht

Product Examples: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/release/202102151019?p=images

Campaign Overview

Half-Price International Shipping Fee Promotion

Period: February 12 (Fri.), 12:00 a.m. - February 28, 2021 (Sun.), 11:59 p.m. (JST)

Details: A coupon will be issued for half off international shipping fees from Japan.

*Please note that if the number of issued coupons reaches the upper limit, this period may be subject to change.

International support provided by Buyee

- Website translation: Japanese, English, Chinese (traditional and simplified)

- Payment options: PayPal, Alipay, UnionPay, major credit cards

- Multilingual customer support: Will mediate between the customer and e-commerce site in Japanese, English and Chinese (traditional and simplified)

- Shipping methods: EMS, SAL, Priority Mail International, sea mail, DHL, etc.

- Insurance services: Buyee's original-quality assurance and shipping protection services available

SOURCE BeeCruise Inc.
Pfizer has failed to deliver 10 million Covid jabs to the EU that were due in December in the latest blow to the bloc's supply following its row with the UK over AstraZeneca.

Brussels today admitted that it was one-third short of the supply it had expected from the US firm.

It's the latest setback for the EU's flailing vaccine rollout which last month saw Brussels launch bitter attacks on Britain and UK-based manufacturer AstraZeneca, accusing the pharmaceutical giant of reneging on contractual obligations.

Newly-unchained Brexit Britain has now administered 24.3 vaccination doses per 100,000 people, while the EU has managed just 5.19 per 100,000.

Newly-unchained Brexit Britain has now administered 24.3 vaccination doses per 100,000 people, the US has vaccinated 17 per 100,000, while the EU has managed just 5.19 doses per 100,000.

The gulf prompted former Belgian PM and EU cheerleader Guy Verhofstadt to concede this week that the bloc's vaccine efforts had been a 'fiasco.'

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has tried to shift blame onto the vaccine makers for not delivering enough doses.

She even threatened a hard border in Ireland to block vaccine exports to Britain.

But the EU's failings are because it invested less, failed to order enough doses and its approval for the drugs took longer than the US and the UK.

Pfizer delivered 4.8 million doses to the EU this week, taking the total of the two-dose jab to around 28 million, a Brussels official said.

But this is 10 million short of the supply which had been promised at the start of the year.

A second EU official involved in talks with vaccine makers confirmed the shortfall but said the companies had committed to delivering those doses by the end of March.

Pfizer declined to comment, saying schedules of its deliveries were confidential.

EU officials have said that Pfizer committed to delivering 3.5 million doses a week from the beginning of January, but the larger supply seen this week suggests the company is increasing supplies to make up for the earlier shortfall.

About 5 million doses will be delivered next week and in the first week of March, one of the officials said.

Last month Pfizer warned the world to expect delays to the deliverance of its doses as it upgraded its factory in Belgium.

It said that these delays could last into late February but that the supply should improve by March.

It prompted President von der Leyen to seek assurances from Pfizer at the time as member states reacted angrily to the news.

On Monday, Verhofstadt - who famously campaigned with the Liberal Democrats touting slogans including 'B*****ks to Brexit' - blamed the Commission for the lack of doses on the Continent.

The MEP released a Facebook video to admit 'the inconvenient truth behind the vaccination fiasco of the EU.'

Verhofstadt said: 'If you believe in Europe, if you love Europe, it's your duty to be the most vocal critic, especially when Europe falls short of its potential and our expectations.

'That's exactly what's happening now with the vaccinations. It's a fiasco.'

This week, Pfizer delivered 4.8million doses of its vaccine to the EU, taking the total of the two-shot vaccine to around 28million, according to an EU official and a source familiar with the matter (file image of vials containing the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine)

He blamed the contracts between the EU and the drug manufacturers, a dismissal of Ms von der Leyen's explanation last week that Brussels had simply been 'too optimistic' regarding production and delivery.

The EU boasts of having secured access to more than 2.3 billion doses, but its failure to get supplies has been blamed in part for the sluggish pace of the roll-out.

Brussels failed to strike a deal with AstraZeneca until three months after Britain ordered the jabs, a delay which the firm says is responsible for the UK continuing to be fully supplied while shipments are held up on the continent.

Similarly, the EU did not make an agreement with Pfizer until soon after the first trial results were reported in November, whereas Britain and the US had deals last July.

London and Washington also spent more money from public coffers investing in the development of a vaccine than Brussels did.

Seeking to relieve its supply problems, the EU caused further chaos last month by imposing export controls which briefly threatened to undermine the hard-won Brexit agreement on Northern Ireland.

Britain was the first country in the world to approve the Pfizer jab on December 2, while the EU's bureaucratic government was only able to approve it on December 21.

The following day Pfizer said it would ship 12.5 million doses by the end of the month.

An EU source claimed the Pfizer doses were included in the delivery target set for the first quarter of 2021.

It was not immediately clear how the difference in schedules came about, but it highlights the complexity of supply deals as governments around the world scramble to secure shots to curb the pandemic.

The EU has two contracts with Pfizer for the supply of 600 million vaccine doses.

The shortfall comes as yet another blow to the EU which has also seen delays in its deliveries of the Britain-based AstraZeneca jab and the US Moderna vaccine (stock image)

Despite delays in its own supplies of vaccines, the European Commission has approved all requests for export of Covid-19 vaccines.

Between January 30 and February 16 the EU gave the green light to 57 requests for vaccine export to 24 countries, including Britain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a Commission spokeswoman said on Wednesday.

Before their monitoring scheme was set up, the EU had already exported millions of vaccine doses to Israel, Britain and Canada among others, according to customs data cited in a EU document seen by Reuters.

Countries with a high number of inoculations are already vaccinating people not among the most vulnerable, while many of those most in need elsewhere have not received a shot.

The World Health Organisation has set the target of inoculating 20% of poor countries' population by the end of the year.
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Copyright  2021 Albuquerque Journal

New Mexico is expecting a boost in its COVID-19 vaccine supply next week as the federal government continues to push allocations to states.

Announcement of the anticipated increase  22% over two weeks ago  was made by Health Secretary-designate Dr. Tracie Collins on Wednesday as the state is now administering nearly 11,000 doses a day, up from about 9,000 a day in early February.

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At the same time, 64% of those in the 1A top priority group, which includes health care workers and first responders, have received at least their first dose of vaccine, Collins said. Vaccination of that group began in December.

She said the state is still prioritizing that 1A group, then those 75 years old plus, followed by those 16 and older with a chronic health condition. A little more than 300,000 New Mexicans have received at least an initial dose of the two-dose vaccine regimen.

The focus is on those who are at the highest risk, Collins said at the COVID-19 public update.

Under the states phased-in plan, the next group to be eligible for a vaccine would be frontline essential workers who cant work remotely, such as educators and grocery store employees. Then, vulnerable populations in congregate settings, to be followed by adults 60 and over.

As soon as we can get more vaccine doses and we can get through those groups, at least 60%, then we can open it up to the next group, Collins said. She said she couldnt predict when that might be.

Meanwhile, vaccination appears to be driving down the daily incidence of COVID-19. For instance, there were 281 new cases and 12 additional deaths reported Wednesday.

Bernalillo County had the most cases, at 120, and the top three zip codes with the highest new case counts in the state were located on Albuquerques West Side and in the citys far Northeast Heights north of Interstate 40.

The vaccine now seems to be reducing new cases somewhere between 20% and 24%, said Dr. David Scrase, secretary of the state Human Services Department and lead adviser to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on the states pandemic response, at Wednesdays update.

This is the most exciting thing thats happening, I think, in the state right now for those of us who have been working on the pandemic for such a long time, Scrase said. He added that mask-wearing (ensuring the mask is tight on the face), along with quarantines of those potentially exposed and social distancing, are still important tools to reduce COVID-19 spread.

But the threat of new strains of the virus still looms.

What makes us all nervous is that some variants that were seeing around the world seem like they may be resistant to treatment or resistant to the vaccine itself, Scrase said. Thats going to be a big problem for us. For now, though, the more people we can get vaccinated, the better we are. We are monitoring that closely.

Scrase also predicted that, with the fewer positive cases, more of the states counties would soon move from the strictest red level restrictions to yellow level, which relaxes some of the capacity restrictions on businesses and permits limited indoor dining. Red signifies very high risk.

The state reevaluates the county designations every two weeks.

Our modeling suggests a fair number of additional counties next week (will go yellow), assuming theres no big change in things, but well see, Scrase said.

More than half of the states 33 counties have moved into the yellow or green designation, which requires the fewest restrictions.
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Turn on your T.V., and you are bound to come across a religious show with someone declaring they speak for God. Go to your local bookstore, and there I'm sure you will find several books written by people who say they have received divine revelations from God. Jump on YouTube, and you will definitely see videos of preachers proclaiming, "Thus saith the Lord."

This barrage of "prophetic words" from thousands of voices has undoubtedly caused many Christians to become confused. In one camp, you have Christians who get caught up in the sensationalism of prophetic words espoused by the Word of Faith movement. In another camp, you have Christians who doubt prophecy altogether because they lack the faith to understand its intended purpose in the body of Christ. While still, some don't know what to believe.

Therefore, let's turn to the Bible to see what it has to say about prophets.

The first thing we notice from Paul is that there are prophets in the church today. Recorded in Ephesians 4:11-13, Paul mentions the prophet's office in the church. And not only that, but Paul also describes the gift of prophecy in 1 Corinthians 12:10. As a matter of fact, the gift of prophecy is mentioned more than any of the other spiritual gifts. You can find it in these passages: Romans 12:6, 1 Corinthians 12:27-29; 13:1-3, 8; 14:6, and in Ephesians 4:11.

That said, it's vital to understand that the prophet's office in modern times is not the same as Old Testament prophets. Before Jesus came to earth, God raised up prophets (Hebrew, nabi, "to utter") or seers (spokesmen) as national leaders who spoke with specificity and with 100% accuracy in their prophecies (Deut. 18:20-22; Jer. 23:28, 31-33). But after the ascension of Christ to heaven and the completion of the written Word, God utilizes his modern prophets in different ways than he did with Samuel, Daniel, and Isaiah. The writer of Hebrews clears this up when he opened his letter with these words: "Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world" (1:1-2).

Furthermore, according to 1 Corinthians 14:3-4, a prophet's primary role now is to edify, comfort, and uplift the church. However, that does not mean predictive prophecy is not exercised among some prophets of God. Like Agabus (in Acts 11:27-28), there are times when a prophet will give a prophetic word from God about the future. That is why we are not to neglect prophecy in the church (1 Thessalonians 5:19-21). But again, the primary purpose of the gift of prophecy in the church age is to encourage and exhort one another (1 Cor. 14:31). Prophets are not called by God to generate visions that others in the church cannot judge (1 Corinthians 14:29).

Therefore, we are not to look to prophets for new revelation but for exhortation according to Scripture's illumination.

In closing, here are six indicators to help you distinguish between a true prophet and a false prophet.

A true prophet's word will come to pass. A false prophet's predictive word will not come to pass (Deut. 18; Jer. 23). A true prophet never gives a word that contradicts the Bible. A false prophet will twist Scripture to validate a dream or vision they had. For example, false prophets will take prophecies explicitly intended for Israel and apply them to the United States  directly contradicting God's promises in the Bible. A true prophet does not brag or is greedy for gain. A false prophet brags about receiving a "prophetic word" or vision from God as if they are divinely anointed and exploits the church for financial gain. A true prophet's ministry aligns with what the Bible teaches. A false prophet talks more about their heavenly visions and "prophetic words" than they teach contextually from the Holy Bible. Lamentations 2:14, "Your prophets have seen for you false and deceptive visions; they have not exposed your iniquity to restore your fortunes, but have seen for you oracles that are false and misleading." A true prophet edifies the church and points people to Jesus Christ. A false prophet doesn't call people to repentance but shares messages that appeal to their wants and desires. 2 Timothy 4:3-4, "For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths." A true prophet's defense comes from the Holy Spirit. A false prophet continually tells people they are not a false prophet.
A $2.5 million government report into the cashless debit card is inconclusive on whether it reduces harm from alcohol, drugs and gambling, but has found people on the welfare cards are ashamed and embarrassed.

'It's ostrich policy - put your head in the sand,' Labor MP Linda Burney told reporters in Canberra on Thursday.

'We do not believe there should be mandatory, universal application of a cashless debit card because people are on Centrelink benefits.'

Labor MP Linda Burney (pictured) said: 'We do not believe there should be mandatory, universal application of a cashless debit card because people are on Centrelink benefits

A report on the cashless welfare card system (pictured) was inconclusive on whether it reduces harm from alcohol, drugs and gambling

Social Services Minister Anne Ruston made the decision to extend the trial sites without any evidence and without waiting for the report, Ms Burney said.

Commissioned in 2018, the University of Adelaide's report on the cashless debit card looked at whether alcohol and drug use, violence and gambling reduced during trials of the card in Ceduna, East Kimberley and the Goldfields but found no conclusive evidence.

'In many cases we found the reality to be more complex and nuanced than can be expressed as clear cut answers,' research head Kostas Mavromaras said in the report.

Ms Burney said the research 'tells us nothing and is a complete waste of time'.

Greens Senator Rachel Siewert said the card is 'racist and discriminatory' and should be abandoned.

'These trials were always about targeting First Nations peoples, stigmatising people on income support and those with addiction issues rather than addressing the underlying causes of disadvantage,' Senator Siewert said.

'The evaluation itself notes the difficulty in evaluating the so-called trials because they were never set up to be properly evaluated.'

Senator Ruston has said the continuation of the cashless debit card program is in direct response to calls from community leaders who say it is ensuring more money is being spent on essentials.
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Georgia Giorgi Gakharia has resigned, he announced his decision during a press briefing.

I decided to leave my position. Of course, I believe and want to believe that this step will help to reduce polarization in our countrys policy as I am convinced that polarization and confrontation between us is the biggest risk for our countrys economic development future and on the path of overcoming all kinds of crises, the Georgian PM said.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
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London, Feb 19 : Another 12,057 people in Britain have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,083,242, according to official figures released on Thursday.

The country also reported another 454 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 119,387. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test, Xinhua news agency reported.

The latest figures were revealed as more than 16.4 million people in Britain have been given the first jab of the coronavirus vaccine. Vaccine Minister Nadhim Zahawi has said the government would "not rest" until the vaccine was offered to all over-50s by the end of April.

Earlier on Thursday, a study showed that the number of people infected with coronavirus in England has dropped by more than two thirds since January, but infections still remain high.

Infections have fallen across the country and several areas experienced a substantial decline, including London and the South East, where five times fewer people are now testing positive compared to previous findings in January, according to data from the REACT (REal-time Assessment of Community Transmission) study of Imperial College London.

But infections are still high with around one in 200 people testing positive, said the study based on swab tests by almost 85,000 people between February 4 and February 13.

England is currently under the third national lockdown since outbreak of the pandemic in the country. Similar restriction measures are also in place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to unveil his "roadmap" out of lockdown on Monday next week.

Latest updates on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
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Francis Schaeffer described how ideas escape the ivory towers of universities and think tanks eventually to shape how ordinary people think, speak, and view their world. In 2020, one idea made that journey in record time. Not that long ago, conversations involving Critical Race Theory were largely relegated to academic papers, classroom discussions, and scholarly journal articles. Today, dialogues about CRT can be found across social media, in corporate boardrooms, and even in the Church.

As a theory, CRT descends from European and North American philosophical traditions, particularly Marxism and Postmodernism. Like these worldviews of its intellectual ancestry, CRT sees the world in terms of power dynamics. In this way of thinking, social evils such as poverty, crime, or oppression result not from universal human frailties but from Euro-Americans intent on securing and increasing their economic and social power. Based on this metanarrative, equality and justice demand privileging the stories of those kept out of power. CRT sees members of the oppressed group as morally right, and members of the oppressor group as morally wrong.

CRT, like any worldview framework, should be evaluated. That, however, is easier said than done, even in the Church. Advocates often point to common ground between Critical Race Theory and the Christian worldview (for example, the commitment to justice and human dignity), and label any critiques of CRT as convenient ways to avoid confronting injustice and racism (which may not be true, but often is).

Many Christian critics, myself included, are specifically concerned with how CRT conflicts with a Christian worldview, particularly in areas of identity and morality. Not everyone agrees. Recently on Twitter, a defender of CRT boldly tweeted, Whoever told you CRT is a worldview was either lying to you or didnt know what they were talking about. Of course, assuming malice or greed is a way of dodging the question rather than making an argument.

Another Twitterer offered a different response, If CRT is bad because its a secular worldview and we must only derive our worldviews biblically then I better not see a TRACE of Aristotle or Plato in your worldview either, brother. This one is a slightly more clever way of missing the point or, specifically misunderstanding what it means for a worldview to be biblical. To have a Christian worldview is to hold views that are consistent with the Bible, not to only have views that are in the Bible. The problem with Critical Race Theory is not that it isnt found in the Bible; its that it offers a very different explanation of humanity, sin, and redemption than the Bible does.

Like the postmodernism that birthed it, Critical Race Theory can be considered a worldview. It does more than just offer a handful of specific ideas about race and society; CRT offers a complete framework of beliefs, a universalizing story of the world. CRT describes who we are, whats wrong with the world, and prescribes how to fix it and what better would be. In other words, like Christianity, CRT answers the basic questions any worldview does. Except, the answers CRT provides are very different than those Christianity offers, even if both worldviews recognize the world is broken by evils such as racism and injustice.

Critical Race Theory has critical errors. By simplistically reducing evil to power dynamics and external social realities, CRT denies moral agency and the redemptive potential of entire groups of people because of their racial identity.

At the same time, those who oppose Critical Theory must do more than simply write off all its concerns. Like Marxism, Critical Theory is something of a Christian heresy, taking the Christian themes of human dignity and justice and a world remade, and re-orienting these causes under new management. Most pertinently, CRT is slipping into the space where the Church belongs but is too often absent.

If we dont want unbiblical explanations of life and justice sweeping through the Church or culture, wed better make sure we communicate and embrace the full ramifications of Christian truth for society, and then act justly and love mercy. If we rob our Faith of its social implications, we are no longer talking about Christianity. Such a personalized, privatized moral system may make us feel better, but it will never stand up to the rival worldviews of our day.

Over the next four Tuesday nights, The Colson Center is hosting an online course taught by Dr. Thaddeus Williams, on his book, Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth. This is the book Ive been waiting for,the book that carefully and biblically walks through a Christian view of justice. Dr. Williams carefully explains not only why theories like CRT arent true, but what the Bible asks of Christs followers when it comes to justice. Space is limited. Register today at breakpoint.org/Williams.

Because, the best antidote for the failings of Critical Theory and its inadequate worldview is for the Church to understand and live consistently with the Bible.

Originally posted at breakpoint.org
Photo: Bertrand Guay/AFP via Getty Images

Facebook took an unprecedented step on Wednesday by blocking all news articles from being shared in Australia after a new law was proposed there that would require online platforms to pay news sources for displaying and linking to their work. As a result, when any of the nations estimated 11.4 million Facebook users go to the page of a news outlet, they see an empty feed.

The action taken Wednesday is a major escalation between the big online platforms like Facebook and Google and the Australian government as the nation attempts to address the bargaining-power imbalances with digital platforms and media companies, as Australian treasurer Josh Frydenberg said earlier in February. And while Google also took an aggressive stance when the proposal was first introduced in December, the company announced Wednesday that it had reached a revenue-sharing agreement with the Australian giant News Corp. to continue to show its news items in searches. Meanwhile, Facebooks managing director for Australia and New Zealand, William Easton, said the proposed policy has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia. With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter.

For most of its existence, Mark Zuckerbergs massive social-media network has been reluctant to block political content in the United States and only recently retreated from this approach with a tentative plan to scale back such content in the wake of the Capitol riot  and its indefinite ban of Donald Trump. With the move taken in Australia, Facebook has shown just how massive a change it is willing to make if a precedent-setting financial hit is on the line.

Unnao : , Feb 18 (IANS) The preliminary post mortem report on Thursday of the two Dalit girls who were found dead in their field on Wednesday night, has confirmed "death due to poisoning".

According to official sources, further tests were being carried out to ascertain the kind of poison that caused the death.

Meanwhile, the third girl, who is undergoing treatment at the Regency Hospital in Kanpur, continues to remain critical.

District Magistrate Unnao, Ravindra Kumar, has sent a letter to the private hospital informing that the entire cost of the girl's treatment would be borne by the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister's Relief Fund.

Activists of the Bhim Army had for sometime gheraoed the hospital demanding that the girl be shifted to Delhi for advanced treatment. They were later dispersed but police presence has now been increased at the hospital.

Sources said that local villagers staged a dharna in the village where the incident took place as a protest but were sent back by the police. Barricades have been set up near the houses of the victims and no one is being allowed to meet the bereaved families.
A special Scottish visa could help address population decline north of the border, according to Scottish government advisers.

Experts advising Nicola Sturgeons administration said a post-Brexit visa for Scotland could encourage migrants to move to rural parts of the country struggling with depopulation.

Boris Johnsons government has previously rebuffed the idea of different immigration rules for different parts of the UK  saying it would be too complicated for employers.

However, the expert advisory group on migration said the UKs new points-based system could still be changed to encourage migrants with the relevant skills to move to Scotlands rural areas.

The group also recommended that the UK government consider relaxing conditions on its post-Brexit skilled worker visa so employers in Scotland could have their own shortage occupation list.

Recommended EU citizens who left UK because of pandemic set to lose right to live in Britain

The advisory group made clear any Scotland-specific immigration scheme would have to identify jobs seen as crucial for rural areas  and should not simply be aiming to achieve replacement migration.

The report states: It should be targeted to attract migrants with the skills and profile that would best address socio-economic challenges created by population decline.

Figures released last August showed more areas with a decreasing population than increasing in parts of the Western Isles and Angus in the far north of Scotland.

A UK government spokesperson responded to report by saying Downing Street did not want to create an economic migration border between Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Nicola Sturgeon and her minister Mike Russell wants to rejoin Erasmus scheme (PA)

The proposals come as Ms Sturgeons government vowed to keep fighting to remain part of the EUs Erasmus student exchange scheme.

Earlier this week European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen made clear it was not possible for Scotland to rejoin. The only possibility for the UK is to associate as a whole, or not at all.

However, constitution secretary Mike Russell told MSPs on Wednesday: Lets not give up. There may be all sorts of possibilities we can look at.

The Holyrood minister added: Weve got lots of friends in the European parliament who are very, very keen that we continue to have some association.
NEW DELHI : The detection of the South African variant of coronavirus , believed to be highly contagious and resistant to vaccines, in four people who travelled to India last month has alarmed health experts. The discovery of the mutant strain, one of several that have emerged in the past year, in India threatens to undermine the progress the country has made in the past few months. Mint delves into the impact of the mutated virus on vaccines.

What is the South African strain?

In December, two announcements of mutations in the novel coronavirus were announced. Apart from the prominent mutation discovered in the UK, there was another one found in South Africa. Both were similar in the sense of having mutations over the spike protein of the virus through which the pathogen attaches to human cells. It was especially a cause of concern as most vaccines being developed are targeting the spike protein gene, alterations in which could render them less effective.

View Full Image Mutation threat

Are the vaccines less effective against the mutant variant?

Studies have shown that vaccines developed against the original strain are less effective against the mutant variants, particularly the one from South Africa. Initial studies were conducted only in the laboratory and did not involve human volunteers. They also focused on the UK strain.

Most vaccines showed they worked against the UK variant of the virus. However, efficacy studies conducted in South Africa showed that vaccines were less effective against the variant found there. Results from Moderna suggested its vaccine is still effective against the South African strain, though there may be some impact on the strength and duration of the protection. Efficacy trial results of Novavax and Johnson & Johnson also showed that their vaccines could protect against the strain, though the efficacy was significantly lower.

The biggest impact was seen on the AstraZeneca vaccine when a study of about 2,000 people supported by its co-developer University of Oxford showed that the vaccine offered minimal protection" of only 10.4% efficacy against mild disease caused by the South African variant. This was sharply lower than the 53-90% efficacy observed against the original strain depending on the quantum of doses and interval between them. Considering the small sample size, the results, which are not peer-reviewed, are not reliable.

Following the Oxford-supported study, the South African government has halted the use of the vaccine supplied by Serum Institute of India. The country is switching to the vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson. In January, J&J had said that a single dose was 57% efficacious against the South African variant.

What about Indian vaccines?

AstraZenecas vaccine is contract manufactured by Serum Institute under the brand Covishield, which is expected to be significantly less effective against the new variant. It is one of the two vaccines so far rolled out in Indias covid-19 immunization programme, the other being Bharat Biotechs Covaxin.

Covaxin was shown to be effective against the UK variant of the virus in the pre-print of a laboratory study, but Bharat Biotech has not conducted a similar study against the South African variant.

Serum Institute will also contract manufacture Novavaxs protein subunit vaccine under the brand Covovax, and this vaccine has shown a 60% efficacy against the South African variant, which though lower than against the original variant is still higher than the 50% cutoff for overall efficacy.

Is this a cause of concern?

As only four cases have been found in India, this is not a major cause of worry. It may be a cause of concern if the spread of the South African variant is not contained in India. However, even then, it would depend on the progress of covid-19 vaccination and the choice of covid-19 vaccines that are available over time, especially those that are effective against the new strain.

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 OF Republicans want former President Donald Trump to play a prominent role in the Republican Party, according to Quinnipiac University Survey

There was a national poll that found that 75% of Republican respondents said Trump should play a major role in the GOP going forward

87% of Republicans said they think Trump should not be barred from holding future office

A good majority of Republicans dont want to walk away from President Trumps platforms - so how do we keep 75 million people happy moving forward and keep the party intact? The Republican party needs to embrace the Trump message even if they dont embrace the man.

We Support:

-Lower taxes

- Legal immigration

-The Border Wall

-Less government

-Fewer regulations

-America First policies

We Oppose:

- Defunding Police

- Burning down cities

- Tearing down statues

Thanks to President Trump, our party has overseen the revival of the Rust Belt and manufacturing jobs. We brought in blue collar workers, workers producing hydrocarbons, more African Americans, Latinos, gays, and believers in the importance of the Second Amendment. The Republican party needs to work to continue these gains and continue to keep those segments of our communities engaged.

Most of us understand that a third party would ensure that Democrats would win every future race. But when we have Republican representatives making the statements they have recently, it is important to note that it is that kind of rhetoric that further divides the party. We must keep in mind that the majority of Republicans still appreciate what President Trump did for this country.

Right now, the truth is that those in the party who criticize the person that brought positive change to this country are the ones who are divisive and are not correctly reading the majority of Republicans. They recoil at the populist direction of the party of Trump because they still don't get his appeal and they've been used to being in the minority so long that they see that as their role. Trumps platforms win; lower taxes, China, the wall, the economy, useless regulations, the Middle East, and Jerusalem the capital of Israel, to name a few.

The left mocked his aspirations. Trump liked winning and so did 75,000,000 voters. It's not a personality cult as his detractors would have you believe. It's about policy and results; results that upset the inside the beltway dwellers and their nice lucrative deals with K Street lobbyists and other special interests.

The Republican Party needs to see the problems from which Washington corruption benefits and address them head on. When government gets to the size and partisanship that this one has grown to, it becomes a coherent organism. Organisms have immune systems and tTrump was an invasive species.

We dont need a third party; we need a Trump policy party. The days of the this is the way weve always done it are over. That train is leaving the station, you can be on it or left behind at the station.

President Trump astonishingly remade this party to be what the Democrats always claimed they were but were not. There is no turning back in the face of socialism. People with the courage to push back harder than they are pushed are the only hope for the future of this country. The old GOP is obsolete. It can never again be the party of people who just want to go along to get along. Third parties are self-defeating. You need a majority of House and Senate seats to accomplish lasting change. It would take many years for a third party to make that happen.

The Democrats would love nothing more than to divide the Republican Party. But all Republicans in office would do well to correctly assess the current sentiment of the majority of the Republican Party. To understand the Trump voter, because the Trump voter demands action and results. We are now the party of the working class. We must reassure those who joined us by the millions that we will remain the party of the working class. We will not betray their trust in us. As Margaret Thatcher said to a previous president, this is no time to go wobbly, George. We need to refuse to be cowed by entities from the left. They would never moderate. The Trump voter can smell weakness. We must remain proud of the accomplishments of the last 4 years.

A step in the right direction was taken by Columbiana County (Ohio) Republican Chairman, State Republican Committeeman David Johnson. Mr. Johnson proposed an America First Resolution to the Columbiana County Republican Central Committee, and it was unanimously adopted at their meeting three weeks ago. (Copy of resolution below.)

Since then, other Ohio counties have been adopting similar such resolutions. The reason for this Resolution was simply to galvanize support among the base of the Party who very strongly support Donald Trump and his America First platform.

They will be championing the America First platform in every race in their county - from the townships and municipalities to the courthouses to the state house and beyond.

They expect it to be their rallying cry moving forward - take back America!

Rose Tennent of Pennsylvania has been a prominent figure for 20 years as a syndicated conservative political talk show host. 2020 Delegate Candidate for PA 14th District. www.roseunplugged.com @rose_unplugged
Dr. Kabria Baumgartner

In this months episode of the NEPC Talks Education podcast, NEPC Researcher Christopher Saldana interviews Dr. Kabria Baumgartner about her book, In Pursuit of Knowledge: Black Women and Educational Activism in Antebellum America. Baumgartner is an assistant professor of American studies, a faculty member in the Womens Studies Program, and a faculty affiliate in the History Department at the University of New Hampshire. Her work focuses on the social and political realities that have shaped African American activism in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Saldana and Baumgartner discuss the educational experience and educational activism of Black women in the northern Antebellum America. Professor Baumgartner explains that her own experiences motivated her interest in understanding what it meant to be a Black women in pursuit of knowledge prior to the civil war. In In Pursuit of Knowledge, she shows how, despite deep-rooted racism and resistance, Black women acquired educational opportunity, moved into important community advocacy positions, enacted educational change, and ultimately, established greater educational opportunity for future generations of Black students.

Baumgartner recounts the challenges she faced in uncovering the histories of Black women in Antebellum America. She explains, for example, that 19th century record keepers often neglected to maintain the historical records of Black women because they were deemed unimportant. However, through a careful analysis of letters, diary entries, and other written records, Baumgartner pieced together elaborate histories of the educational experiences of Black women. She tells, for example, the history of Sarah Harris and Prudence Crandall, who together integrated the Canterbury Female Seminary in 1833. According to Baumgartner, this was a watershed event in the history of Black womens educational activism because the racially integrated female seminary became an early center for a network of Black female activism that grew throughout the northern U.S.

Although they faced racial violence and resistance, Black women adopted a range of protest strategies to enact educational change. Baumgartner notes that Black women wrote editorials, engaged in public speaking, organized and distributed petitions, filed litigation to outlaw segregation, took up educational opportunities, and instilled in their children and students values such as kindness, industry, and self-discipline that would prepare them to lift up their communities in the future.

A new NEPC Talks Education podcast episode, hosted by Christopher Saldana, will be released each month from September through May.

Dont worry if you miss a month. All episodes are archived on the NEPC website and can be found here.

NEPC podcast episodes are also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher, under the title NEPC Talks Education. Subscribe and follow!

The National Education Policy Center (NEPC), a university research center housed at the University of Colorado Boulder School of Education, produces and disseminates high-quality, peer-reviewed research to inform education policy discussions. Visit us at: https://nepc.colorado.edu
KYODO NEWS - Feb 18, 2021 - 15:34 | All, Japan, Coronavirus

Japan expanded its COVID-19 vaccine rollout beyond the Tokyo metropolitan area on Thursday, with health workers set to be inoculated at 100 hospitals across the country by next week.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga inspected the program at the Tokyo Medical Center, the first institution to begin administering Pfizer Inc.'s vaccine the previous day.

"I felt that health workers are placing much hope on vaccinations," he said after speaking with staff at the state-run hospital. "I hope to deliver vaccines to people nationwide as soon as possible."

Hospitals in Ibaraki, Nagano and Okayama were set to begin vaccinations on Thursday as the country seeks to inoculate an initial group of 40,000 health workers before expanding to other parts of the population.

No severe side effects were reported Wednesday among the 125 people inoculated at eight hospitals in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The Tokyo Medical Center said it plans to give shots to about 60 people per day and complete vaccinations of 800 individuals by the end of March.

Of the initial group of 40,000 health workers, 20,000 are taking part in a study of potential side effects caused by the vaccine, with data gathered by the health ministry's research team due to be released every week.

The participants are being asked to keep daily records for seven weeks after receiving the first of two shots. The shots will be administered three weeks apart.

Vaccination of a further 3.7 million front-line health care providers is to begin in March, followed by 36 million people aged 65 or older from April, according to the country's vaccination timetable.

People with pre-existing conditions and those working at elderly care facilities will be next in line, followed by the general population.

Japan trails about 80 countries in starting its coronavirus vaccination rollout, as the country requires additional clinical trials on its own population to ensure safety before approving the vaccines.
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The new European data protection law requires us to inform you of the following before you use our website:

We use cookies and other technologies to customize your experience, perform analytics and deliver personalized advertising on our sites, apps and newsletters and across the Internet based on your interests. By clicking I agree below, you consent to the use by us and our third-party partners of cookies and data gathered from your use of our platforms. See our Privacy Policy and Third Party Partners to learn more about the use of data and your rights. You also agree to our Terms of Service.
Kathmandu, February 18

Nepal has approved the emergency use of Vero Cell, a Covid-19 vaccine made by China.

This is the second Covid-19 vaccine approved by the government after Covishield produced in India.

The government was under pressure to approve the Chinese vaccine as soon as possible as the Beijing government was preparing to donate a half-million doses of Vero Cell vaccines to Nepal.

Nepal has not purchased any Covid-19 vaccine so far as it is highly dependent on donors although it has recently decided to buy two million doses of the vaccines from India. So far, it is using the vaccines from one million doses donated by India under its #VaccineMaitri programme.

It has been nearly one month since the country launched the first vaccination drive, but the vaccines have not reached the common people yet.

Feb. 17The Rochester City Council voted 6-1 on Wednesday to deny proposed changes to the authority of the city's library and parks boards, but left the window open for future tweaks to how the two boards operate.

"I spent most of the day brutally torn here," council member Nick Campion said before voting against the Charter Commission recommendations.

He said he supports some of the proposed goals, but also sees two boards that appear to be working well and meeting the needs of the city.

The Charter Commission split 9-5 last month to propose changes that would eliminate the boards' oversight of department heads and shift fiscal responsibility to the City Council. The goal, supporters said, was to set up the boards as advisory boards, rather than policymaking boards.

"We believe in many cases, it reflects current practice," Charter Commission Chairman Fran Bradley told the City Council Wednesday.

Commission member Kathy Meyerle agreed that the proposed changes wouldn't diminish the work of the boards, but she said she also saw support lacking on the council, and recommended sending the proposal back for tweaks.

Rochester Mayor Kim Norton said such efforts are already underway in a different form as she works with all the city's boards and commissions to look at potential changes to how they operate. She said some concerns about the library and park boards will be part of the ongoing discussion.

"We are looking at that," she said. "Those will be brought forward."

At the same time, council members voiced concerns about changing the city's home-rule charter, which sets key guidelines for city operations.

"I take changes to the charter as a major event," said council member Patrick Keane.

Council member Shaun Palmer, who cast the lone vote against denying the commission proposal, said he believes some changes, including authority over hiring and firing related department directors, need to be addressed. He suggested following Meyerle's suggestion to send the issue back to the commission.

While a charter change requires unanimous support of the council to be made under the current proposal, the charter commission also has the option to seek a change through a public vote on the issue.

This article will be updated.
[February 18, 2021] Green Enterprise and Weedmaps Announce Information, Education & Empowerment Summit

Green Enterprise, produced and operated by Digital Venture Partners and Black Enterprise, along with Weedmaps, the leading online tech platform for cannabis businesses and consumers, announced today its first Information, Education & Empowerment Summit. The two-day virtual event will bring together entrepreneurs, politicians and thought leaders to discuss the challenges facing BIPOC in the emerging cannabis industry and pathways to success. The event will take place February 22-23 and feature a combination of panel discussions covering a wide range of topics, from entrepreneurship to cannabis marketing to building an inclusive industry. "Since the inception of Green Enterprise our goal has been to bring authentic stories to illustrate the successes achieved by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color operating within the emerging global cannabis industry. Our work with Weedmaps has already shown amazing progress in supporting our work to establish Green Enterprise as an authority in Black Cannabis media", said Andrew Farrior, Producer of Green Enterprise. "While also bringing an exciting dynamic to our distribution partnership with Black Enterprise, Weedmaps is working with my partner Ryan Rapaport and I to educate and empower entrepreneurs from all backgrounds." As part of the summit, presenting sponsor Weedmaps will facilitate a special panel discussion examining barriers to access and exploring ways for groups in the social equity space to work together and leverage resources. The discussion will also include how social equity-qualified businesses can access the benefits of WM TEAL (Together for Equity, Access & Legalization) -- an initiative that provides tools and resources to eligible businesses in the cannabis industry. "We are excited for the opportunity to work with Green Enterprise to produce this important event and continue to share our company's commitment to building an equitable industry," said Juanjo Feijoo, Weedmaps executive. "As legalization continues to move forward across the country and as the cannabis industry grows, we have a responsibility to not only address the wrongs inflicted on minority communities through the War on Drugs, but also create a more inclusive economy at scale. The challenges are many, but creating a forum for ope discussion and education with key industry decision makers is more often than not the necessary catalyst for real change to occur."



Covering topics such as social impact, entrepreneurship, as well as economics and investing, the full schedule is available at GreenEnterprise.live, and the panel discussions are as follows: Reversing the Damage of The War on Drugs

Women Leading The Cannabis Conversation

Together for Equity, Access, & Legalization

Understanding New Cannabis Laws

The Importance of Black Ownership & Empowerment in the Cannabis Industry

A Conversation Around Black Cannabis Advocacy

Black Cannabis Dispensary Entrepreneurs

The Crossover: How to Enter the Cannabis Industry

A Cannabis Marketing Conversation

Raising Capital for Your Cannabis Startup

Don't Get Got! Finding Affordable Capital & Avoiding Predatory Contracts

Non-plant Touching Cannabis Business For more information on attending the summit, visit https://www.greenenterprise.live/.

About Black Enterprise Black Enterprise, your ultimate source to build Wealth for Life, is the premier business, investing, and wealth-building resource for African Americans. Since 1970, Black Enterprise has provided essential business information and advice to professionals, corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and decision makers, on entrepreneurship, careers, and financial management and related topics. A multimedia, digital-first company, Black Enterprise also produces video and podcast programming, business and lifestyle events, Web content, apps, and other digital media. Visit www.blackenterprise.com for more information. About Digital Venture Partners DIGITAL VENTURE PARTNERS (DVP) is a majority minority-owned venture company that has content and brand partnerships with multiple mainstream media platforms, as well as investments in multiple black-owned cannabis startups. DVP curates projects and content that spotlights stories of minority entrepreneurship and culture. The company and it's founders have been featured in publications such as The Associated Press (News - Alert) , FORTUNE, and more. DVP works in partnership with Black Enterprise to produce, manage, and expand the Green Enterprise series as an authority in black cannabis media. About WM Holding Company, LLC WM Holding's mission is to power a transparent and inclusive global cannabis economy. Now in its second decade, WMH has been a driving force behind much of the legislative change we've seen in the past 10 years. WM Holding Company, LLC ("WM Holding" or "WMH" or "the Company"), parent company of Weedmaps and its WM Business SaaS (News - Alert) offering, is the leading technology and software infrastructure provider to the cannabis industry. Founded in 2008, WMH is the leading two-sided marketplace and SaaS provider to the cannabis industry, comprising the Company's B2C marketplace, Weedmaps, and its B2B software, WM Business. The Company's cloud-based SaaS solutions provide an end-to-end operating system for cannabis retailers. These tools support compliance with the complex, disparate and constantly evolving regulations applicable to the cannabis industry. Underlying this compliance functionality is a proprietary and sophisticated rules engine that is a core underpinning of the WM Business SaaS platform. Through its website and mobile apps, WM Holding provides consumers with the latest information, data and availability of cannabis products, facilitating product discovery and driving sales for our customers. The Company holds a strong belief in the power of cannabis and the importance of enabling safe, legal access to consumers worldwide. Since inception, WMH has worked tirelessly, not only to be the most comprehensive platform for consumers, but to build the software solutions that power businesses compliantly in the space, to advocate for legalization, social equity, and licensing in many jurisdictions, and to facilitate further learning through partnering with dozens of subject matter experts on providing detailed, accurate information about the plant. Headquartered in Irvine, California, WMH employs approximately 400 professionals around the world, including in Denver, New York, Ontario, Canada and Barcelona, Spain. Visit us at www.weedmaps.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005889/en/

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A CORK woman is marking three years of being cancer-free with a new baby and a fundraiser for the charity that was her safe place while she was sick.

Nuala OBrien was just 23 when she by chance discovered that she had cancer after a fall on a night out.

The Glanworth native cut her hand went to A&E where a student staff member she got chatting to asked if she could practice conducting a chest X-ray.

The X-ray would reveal that 23-year-old Nuala had Hodgkins lymphoma.

Diagnosed with stage 2 cancer, Nuala was told that if it had not been detected when it was, she may not have lived to see her birthday which was just six months away.

They said that because I had no symptoms and how fast it was growing, I probably wouldnt have seen my birthday in the April, so I was lucky I fell when I did, she said.

When she was first diagnosed, her family had been persuading her to attend the Cork Cancer Care Centre, but she had been reluctant.

However, after a relapse, she decided to try it out and it quickly became her safe place.

I was only 23 when I first got diagnosed and I didnt know anybody else that had cancer, she said.

Nuala O' Brien celebrating three years cancer-free with her son, Shay.

When I was out in public and I was out with other people, I was the only sick person and it was really obvious that I was sick and people would give you a look and people are always asking how you are getting on whereas when you get into the centre, everyone is like that and no one talks about being sick.

The Cork Cancer Care Centre was founded in 2011 and acts as a home away from home for those who have touched by cancer, with a number of supports for families and individuals.

It was kind of like a safe place that you could go and be normal and not have everyone feel sorry for you, she added.

During her treatment, Nuala had experienced menopause at just 24-years of age.

I was told I would never have kids and I was put straight on hormone replacement therapy patches just to help with the side effects of menopause.and then I just kind of accepted that I could never have kids.

However, shortly after celebrating her second year of being cancer-free, she discovered that she was pregnant with baby Shay.

Each Valentines Day, Nuala marks her anniversary of being cancer-free by raising money for the centre and this year, she celebrated the three-year mark alongside her seven-month-old son, Shay.

Over the past number of years, she has experienced a lot of unexpected changes in life, but her support for the Cork Cancer Care Centre will continue throughout the years of celebrating the important milestone.

Its a charity that I know forever will be really, really close to our hearts and that we will always be doing as much as we can for them because they have done so much for us. Donations can be made on @togetherwearestandinguptocancer on Facebook or on corkcancercarecentre.ie.
Advertisement

Having a whale of a time will be almost guaranteed at this amazing new marine observatory.

Not only will it take the shape of a whale, but the partially submerged structure will offer visitors stunning underwater views of the surrounding tropical sea life.

It will be built at the end of the Busselton Jetty, 1.2 miles (1.9km) from the shore in Geographe Bay, Western Australia, a popular spot for watching southern right, humpback, pygmy and blue whales. Renderings show how visitors will be able to peer through huge windows to admire the unique underwater ecosystem where 'the cold waters of the Southern Ocean meet the warm waters of the Indian Ocean'.

A rendering showing the amazing whale-shaped marine observatory that will be built at the end of Busselton Jetty in Geographe Bay, Western Australia

When built, the AU$30million (16.7million) observatory, called the Australian Underwater Discovery Centre (AUDC), will be the worlds largest natural marine observatory with a 900-square-metre (9,687-square-foot) interior. It will replace the existing smaller underwater observatory close to the jetty.

The centre has been designed by London-based Baca Architects in collaboration with marine subcontractor Subcon and project engineers CoreMarine - the firm that delivered the jaw-dropping submerged Norwegian restaurant Under.

According to Baca Architects, the cetacean design is an 'abstract interpretation' of a whale in Geographe Bay performing a 'spy hop', the term used to describe the animal taking a peek at life above the water.

Inside, Baca Architects says visitors can 'embark on a unique journey towards the ocean-floor-level observatory', which is 26ft (8m) below the surface. There will also be a 'unique underwater dining experience'.

It adds: 'Passing through an art gallery and exhibition spaces on the descent, the circulation is accentuated by the cetacean's eye - a large partially submerged structural glass window, which recalls a whale peeking up above the ocean surface.'

When built, the AU$30million (16.7million) observatory, called the Australian Underwater Discovery Centre (AUDC), will be the worlds largest natural marine observatory with a 900-square-metre (9,687-square-foot) interior. The ocean floor level observatory will be 26ft (8m) below the surface

There will also be underwater galleries and a Marine Parks Discovery Zone, which 'will be committed to improving awareness, understanding and support for all of Australias marine parks and their management'.

The whale's body will be formed from concrete with a composite roof. The designers add: 'Concrete was chosen for the base as it is an inherently heavy and durable material that performs well in the harsh environmental conditions experienced in marine and coastal applications.'

In addition, the 'massive windows' will be made from bonded acrylic and will be up to 18ft (5.5m) tall and 39ft (12m) long.

Baca Architects also points out that 'the surface treatments and underwater art galleries are designed primarily to create a new and thriving habitat for fish and corals in Geographe Bay'.

The centre has been designed by London-based Baca Architects, which says the cetacean design is an 'abstract interpretation' of a whale in Geographe Bay performing a 'spy hop', the term used to describe the animal taking a peek at life above the water

Visitors will be able to peer through huge windows to admire the unique underwater ecosystem where 'the cold waters of the Southern Ocean meet the warm waters of the Indian Ocean'

The design 'has to withstand cyclonic storm surges', says Baca Architects, 'so the head of the cetacean is oriented into the prevailing weather rather like the bow of a ship, specifically for the dissipation of 6.5-metre-high (21ft) waves'

It adds: 'The outer surface is being designed by Subcon to be a living (bio-receptive) structure that enables barnacles and algae to graft on just as they do on whales. This living building will gracefully age and integrate into the unique ecosystem beneath the jetty, whilst providing critical habitat for fish and corals which inhabit Geographe Bay.

'The cetacean is designed to both integrate into this ecosystem and most importantly, to engage visitors in a better understanding and appreciation of what lies below.'

It is envisaged that the concrete body of the whale will be pre-cast in a neighbouring shipyard and then towed out to the site to be submerged in location and secured to the seabed.

However, the site presents some serious challenges for the design and installation teams.

Baca Architects explains: 'Not only is it 2km (1.2 miles) from the shoreline, it is also exposed to the marine environment of the Indian Ocean to the north and west.

'The pier is at 18ft (5.5m) above the mean sea level and the water depth is 22ft (7m) below.

'Amongst other potential challenges, the design has to withstand cyclonic storm surges, so the head of the cetacean is oriented into the prevailing weather rather like the bow of a ship, specifically for the dissipation of 6.5-metre-high (21ft) waves.'

Construction on the observatory should start in the middle of next year, with the centre aiming to open by December 2022.

Busselton Jetty chairman Barry House says: 'This is as authentic as it gets because people are in the tank and the fish are looking in. By adding underwater dining, underwater sculptures, marine art and other features, this project will enhance Bustleton Jettys 155-year-old experience.'

Construction on the observatory at the end of Busselton Jetty, pictured, should start in the middle of next year, with the centre aiming to open by December 2022

Mr House explains that people are turned away from the current observatory at its peak times because only 44 people can fit in each hour.

He adds: 'In 2017, we started looking at how to meet the growing demand and conducted feasibility studies and market research to determine how best to harness our unique marine offering and meet our environmental goals.'

He also claims that the construction of the new Australian Underwater Discovery Centre will create work for 200 people and says that further down the line, 'thousands of jobs will be created over the coming years as cafes, hotels, service stations, retail stores, bus companies, trade agencies all prosper, returning some AU$200million (111.6million) in economic benefit in Western Australia'.

Jetty Chief Executive Lisa Shreeve adds that the current underwater observatory will become 'a marine research centre promoting clean oceans and feature public interaction with a world-class research laboratory to educate people about ocean climate change'.

The project is being funded by a combination of federal and state government grants and contributions from Busselton Jetty Inc and Busselton City Council.
Reiterating the United States's aim to defeat COVID-19 and any future pandemics, State Secretary on Wednesday (local time) said that America will work with partners around the globe to strengthen and reform the (WHO).

Speaking at the UN Security Council (UNSC) briefing on the COVID-19 and Vaccine Access, Blinken emphasised that US President Joe Biden will work as a partner to address global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

"President Biden's first National Security Memorandum made clear that the United States will once again serve as a global health leader. The United States believes that multilateralism, the United Nations and the are essential - not just as an effective COVID-19 health and humanitarian response, but also building stronger global health capacity and security for the future," he said.

Hours after being sworn in, President Joe Biden on Wednesday (local time) informed United Nations Director-General Antonio Guterres about the US' decision to re-join the

Blinken said that global leaders cannot afford to waste time after the recent outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Guinea.

He said, "We must defeat COVID-19 and prevent future pandemics. To that end, we will work with partners around the globe to strengthen and reform the WHO; to support the Global Health Security Agenda; to build sustainable preparedness for biological threats; to create a warning system that will allow us to respond more rapidly with testing, with tracing, with PPE needed to save lives."

Blinken stated that the US plans to provide significant financial support to COVAX through Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and also strengthen other multilateral initiatives involved in the global COVID-19 response - for example, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.

As the US is the "single largest contributor" to the response to COVID-19, Blinken confirmed to the UNSC that by the end of February the US intends to pay over 200 million in assessed and current obligations to the

"We need to continue implementing Security Council Resolution 1325 and redouble our efforts to implement Council Resolution 2475. We must support the secretary-general's various COVID-19 policy briefs on gender, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable and marginalised groups. These groups must be included as decision-makers at all levels, following the principle of 'nothing about us without us'," he said.

While emphasising the need to expand access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines, the US urged the countries to not allow "an use of the vaccine as an excuse to violate human rights or fundamental freedoms".

"To better understand this pandemic and prepare for the next one, all countries must make available all data from the earliest days of any outbreak. And going forward, all countries should participate in a transparent and robust process for preventing and responding to health emergencies, so the world learns as much as possible as soon as possible. Transparency, information sharing, access for experts - these must be the hallmarks of our common approach to what is truly a global challenge," he added.

(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.)
NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The ongoing pandemic has inflamed and highlighted a separate but very connected public health crisis that has been growing all around the world for decades. Rates of mental health issues like depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress have been steadily climbing for years, and the pandemic has made things worse by increasing stress and anxiety, severing social supports, and tying up healthcare resources. This mental health environment has highlighted the need for new, innovative, and often underexplored treatments and therapies. Companies like Pure Extracts (OTCPK:PRXTF) (CSE:PULL), Revive Therapeutics (OTCPK:RVVTF) (CSE:RVV), Tryp Therapeutics (OTCPK:TRYPF) (CSE:TRYP), Mydecine Innovations Group Inc. (OTCPK:MYCOF) (CSE:MYCO), and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) are working to move these treatments forwards in hopes of one day ending the mental health crisis.

Pure Extracts Advances Psychedelic Research and Development

Canadian extraction company Pure Extracts (CSE:PULL) (OTC:PRXTF) (XFRA: A2QJAJ) uses cutting-edge CO  and ethanol extraction and production to create highly accurate doses that the Company believes will accelerate the production of commercial psilocybin products. The Company has built out an EU-GMP compliant extraction lab just north of Whistler, British Columbia, and is currently preparing its application for a Health Canada Dealer's Licence under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, which will allow the company to produce, distribute, and sell psilocybin products.

Pure Extracts is helping to advance one of the most promising forms of experimental therapy today in psychedelic assisted psychotherapy. Therapy involving psychedelics used under medical supervision in a safe, clinical environment has gained significant traction in recent years because it has shown effectiveness in situations where conventional therapies and medications have failed. This treatment has shown promise for treating post-traumatic stress disorder, treatment-resistant depression, and end-of-life anxiety for patients with terminal illnesses. Companies like Pure Extracts are working to develop substances like psilocybin into precisely dosed and reliable extracted products suitable for clinical use.

On December 30, Pure Extracts announced that it would be partnering with the Toronto Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology (TIPT) for a study on the formulation and manufacturing of psilocybin-based active treatments for oral tablets, capsules, and a nasal gel. The study will be conducted by Pure Extracts scientific advisor Dr. Alexander MacGregor, and will focus on formulating, manufacturing, and clinical bioavailability testing for rapid onset psilocybin dosage forms. Data from this study will be invaluable for clinical trials by both Pure Extracts and its pharmaceutical customers. Dr. MacGregor is a leading expert in pharmaceutical technology and novel drug delivery systems and has received several global patents in the field of medical treatments and pharmaceutical drug delivery technologies.

"Having the support of TIPT, one of Canada's premiere pharmaceutical R&D companies, while waiting to receive our Dealer's License from Health Canada is invaluable," Pure Extracts CEO Ben Nikolaevsky said in the Company's release. "We are very excited to be laying the groundwork for our move into the controlled substances world of psychedelics and to be furthering our knowledge-base in psilocybin and associated novel delivery mechanisms."

Development in Innovative Mental Health Treatments

Mydecine Innovations Group Inc. (CSE:MYCO) (OTC:MYCOF) has been a leading innovator in the development of psychedelic treatments, developing the first psychedelic-focused telehealth platform among numerous consumer and clinical-grade psilocybin-infused products. On January 28, the company announced that it is sponsoring a study on neuron level response to psilocybin at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Led by Principal Investigator Dr. Jaylyn Waddell, the study aims to gain an understanding of the "heightened plasticity that permits the therapeutic response to psilocybin in order to obtain a better understanding of when, where and how psilocybin is most appropriate for use in human therapeutics."

In 2020, Revive Therapeutics (CSE:RVV) (OTCPK:RVVTF) engaged in a research partnership agreement with Reed Research Group out of the University of Wisconsin-Madison on an oral thin-film psilocybin delivery system. In November, Revive announced that after several months of prototyping on a wide range of dosage forms, the company had completed development of the product with psilocybin dosage forms ranging between 1 mg and 20 mg.

In early February, clinical-stage pharmaceutical company Tryp Therapeutics (CSE:TRYP) (OTCPK:TRYPF) announced that the company had brought on renowned psychedelic scientist, Dr. Robin Carhart Harris, to help lead the company's Scientific Advisory Board. Tryp is currently running a program examining psilocybin for neuropsychiatric disorders and developing a synthetic form of psilocybin for clinical use.

Multinational pharmaceutical and CPGs giant Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) received approval from the FDA in 2019 for Spravato, a ketamine-derived nasal spray for treatment-resistant depression. The approval marked the first materially new treatment for depression to hit the market in decades.

Research and development into innovative mental health treatment is more important now than ever, and companies like Pure Extracts are helping advance the future of mental health at a time when new solutions are desperately needed.

To find out more about Pure Extracts, click here.

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TBILISI -- Georgias ruling party has nominated Irakli Gharibashvili to take over as prime minister hours after Giorgi Gakharia handed in his resignation following a court ruling that ordered the arrest of the head of the Caucasus country's main opposition force.



The governing Georgia Dream party named the Paris-educated Gharibashvili, 39, who was serving as defense minister in Gakharia's cabinet before the prime minister stepped down on February 18.



Gharibashvilis appointment needs to be confirmed by parliament, which is boycotted by the opposition.



Speaking "on behalf of all opposition parties," Nika Melia, chairman of the opposition United National Movement (ENM), said government representatives should "sit at the negotiating tableand start negotiations on new early elections."



The developments come a day after a Tbilisi court granted a prosecution request to place Melia in custody in a case denounced by the opposition as a political witch-hunt.

The court ruling came amid a political crisis in Georgia that followed parliamentary elections in October that independent monitors say were marred by irregularities. All the opposition parties are boycotting parliament, refusing to assume their mandates.

Gakharia announced he was resigning during a televised address in Tbilisi because of disagreements within his own team over the decision to arrest Melia.

"I made the decision to leave my post. Of course, I believe and want to believe that this step will help reduce polarization in the political space of our country, because I am convinced that polarization and confrontation between us is the greatest risk for the future of our country, its economic development, and overcoming all types of crises," he said.

Gakharia warned that Melia's arrest could lead to the further escalation of the political crisis and threaten the well-being of the countrys citizens.



"Unfortunately, I could not reach a consensus with my team on this issue. I decided to resign," he said.



Following Gakharias resignation, the Interior Ministry issued a statement saying they had temporarily postponed detaining Melia, who is accused of organizing "mass violence" during 2019 anti-government protests, a charge he rejects as politically motivated.



The 41-year-old politician faces up to nine years behind bars if convicted.

In a statement, the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi said it "appreciates the restraint shown by the authorities and the opposition in responding to the events surrounding the Melia case."



"It is imperative that all those involved commit to de-escalating the current tensions so that a way forward can be agreed upon," it added.



Gharibashvili was a political unknown before former Prime Minister and billionaire tycoon Bidzina Ivanishvili named him interior minister in October 2012. The move came after Ivanishvili's Georgian Dream party routed supporters of former President Mikheil Saakashvili.



In November 2013, Gharibashvili became the youngest head of government in Europe when he was appointed prime minister, a post he held until December 2015, when he stepped down amid waning support for the Georgian Dream party.

On February 16, parliament voted to suspend Melia's immunity from prosecution, paving the way for his pretrial detention.

The prosecution's motion followed his refusal to pay an increased bail fee of 40,000 laris ($12,000). The opposition leader initially posted bail in 2019 but the amount was increased after he publicly removed his electronic-monitoring bracelet during a postelection rally in November 2020.
Transact, the leader in innovative payment solutions for a connected campus, today announced its team in Chennai, India is now 70 people strong. Transacts Chennai location opened in 2019 and sits on the footstep of Chennais IT highway and serves as the companys IT product development hub.

Today, 70 IT professionals are located in the 8,000-square foot office that includes agile collaboration spaces for team members. The office is comprised of teams that include a range of junior and senior roles across product development, implementation services, central IT, marketing, sales operations, and HR. The development team made up of software engineers, QA specialists, development managers works closely with their global counterparts to collaborate on innovative development.

An edtech and proponent of continuing education, Transact offers competitive benefits and opportunities for team members to continue their personal development through courses and certifications. In addition, team members share a philosophy of social responsibility and participate in monthly Joy of Giving activities to support a nearby orphanage and senior living home.

The exceptional talent pool here in Chennai made it easy to add people with diverse, technical skills and create an incredibly strong hub for IT product development, said Srinivasagopal Raman, general manager and site leader of Transact Chennai. With Transact locations around the globe, we are truly able to innovate around the clock. For those of us with a growth and development mindset, it is very fulfilling.

Transact processes nearly $50 billion in annual education-related payments each year and serves more than 1,300 educational institutions representing 12 million students. A leader in the payments industry, Transacts software services include tuition and fee bill presentment and payment, student payment plans, and point-of-sale transactions for both on- and off-campus.

For more information about Transacts leading integrated payment solutions, campus ID solutions, and campus commerce solutions, visit www.transactcampus.com.

About Transact

Transact is the leader in innovative payment solutions for a connected campus. Its highly configurable, mobile-centric campus technology ecosystem simplifies the student experience across the full spectrum of student life. Transacts offerings include integrated solutions for tuition and other student expense payments, multi-purpose campus IDs, and campus commerce. With a long-standing reputation of serving the higher education community, Transact proudly assists millions of students each year with its innovative products and solutions. For more information, visit www.transactcampus.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210217005835/en/
U.S. Speaker of the House Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) speaks during a weekly news conference in Washington on June 4, 2020. (Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images)

House Aims to Vote on COVID-19 Relief Bill by End of Next Week: Pelosi

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said House Democrats will attempt to vote on President Joe Bidens $1.9 trillion stimulus package by the end of next week.

At the same time, there is communication with the Senate as to what the Byrd rule will allow in the bills as we go forward, Pelosi said on Feb. 18, referring to the reconciliation processa way in which Democrats can approve a package with a simple majority of 51 votes instead of 60.

If the measure isnt passed, federal unemployment benefits could end for millions of Americans who lost their jobs due to lockdown orders initiated by various state and local governments over the past year. The $300 per week federal unemployment supplement and a provision that expands eligibility are slated to expire on March 14.

The legislation also authorizes the distribution of $1,400 stimulus payments to most Americans and up to $3,600 per child to households each year. Also included are $350 billion to state and local governments and $170 billion to public schools and universities; about $20 billion will be used to create a national vaccination program.

Republicans and some Democrats have said the bill is too costly, saying that some people shouldnt be eligible for stimulus payments.

The House bill also will include a plan to increase the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025, a proposal thats opposed by Republicans and some moderate Democrats in the Senate.

Left-wing Democrats have touted the minimum wage increase as a critical boost to hourly employees, with some Republicans said that states should be the ones that make that decision.

Frankly, given the makeup of the Senate, this is our best opportunity and the right moment in the midst of this pandemic to give millions of workers a long-overdue raise, Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), chair of the Progressive Caucus, said on Feb. 18, Business Insider reported.

The Internal Revenue Service, meanwhile, said that all $600 stimulus payments that were authorized in late December have been sent out.
The Main Investigation Directorate of Russias Investigative Committee in the North Caucasian Federal District has identified three individuals suspected of the involvement in the attack on military servicemen in Chechnya in 2000, a criminal case has been opened, the Investigative Committee has said.

"the investigation of the criminal case opened in 2000 after the armed attack on officers of the Perm Region Main Internal Affairs Directorate and military servicemen by members of illegal armed groups led by Shamil Basayev and Emir Khattab continues. During the investigation, evidence of three individuals involvement in the commission of that crime has been obtained. A criminal case has been opened against them and against unidentified individuals under Section 317 of Russias Criminal Code (encroachment on the life of a law enforcement officer)," TASS cited the report as saying.

The investigation established that "these individuals and other members of various illegal armed groups, at least 200 people in total, encroached on the life of officers of the Perm Region Main Internal Affairs Directorate and military servicemen of the commandants office of the security zone of Chechnyas Vedensky District" on March 29, 2000.

According to the Investigative Committee, as a result of the attack, members of illegal armed groups who were part of a crime syndicate deliberately caused the death of 33 law enforcement officers. Another 10 officers of the Perm Region Main Internal Affairs Directorate were taken prisoner and subsequently killed. Health and moral damage was inflicted on 102 employees of the Perm Region Main Internal Affairs Directorate and military servicemen as a result of the shootout.

"Investigative and other activities involving the suspects aimed at establishing their role in the crime are currently underway. These individuals were earlier convicted of criminal offences," the Investigative Committee said.
New Delhi, Feb 18 : Food and Beverage Company Haldiram's has entered into India's health food biz to tap into the rising consumption of healthier food and beverages.

Accordingly, the company has tied-up with South African nutritional food brand Futurelife.

The company said that these nutritional food products will be available across key states in North India.

Besides, these products will be available across Haldiram's outlets as well as other retail platforms like Amazon, Big Bazaar, Flipkart, Milk Basket, Big Basket and Grofers.

The two companies launched a range of four products: 'Smart Foods, Smart Oats and Ancient Grains, Crunchy Granola and High Protein'.

"At Haldiram's, we are not only seeing an increasing consumer preference in India for health foods but also a growing inclination to try new, non-traditional food products," said A.K. Tyagi, Executive Director, Haldiram's.

"We are equally excited about our partnership with FUTURELIFE and are eagerly looking forward to retailing their products across our retail stores across North India."
Hard-to-detect strain of coronavirus found in Finland: Pharmaceutical Company

HELSINKI, Feb 18 (Sputnik) A new strain of the coronavirus, Fin-796H, which is hard to detect by at least one type of a PCR test, has been discovered in Finland, the Vita Laboratories company said.

Several coronavirus strains have been detected across the world so far, with the British, South African, Brazilian and Japanese ones being the most notorious.

Vita Laboratoriot Oy and the Institute of Biotechnology at the University of Helsinki have detected the previously unknown strain of the coronavirus in a sample from southern Finland. The mutations in this strain make it hard to detect it with at least one of the WHO-recommended PCR tests. This discovery may have a significant impact on determining the spread of the disease. The SARS-CoV-2 virus [strain], preliminarily called Fin-796H, has features of both British and South African strains, the company said in a statement on late Wednesday.
She was forced back into her daily routine of homeschooling her children after Melbourne went into a five-day lockdown on February 12.

And as restrictions start to ease in the city, Rebecca Judd has expressed excitement over returning to her favourite shopping centre, Chadstone.

The footy WAG, 38, told her 830,000 Instagram followers on Wednesday she would be at Chadstone at 9am the following day when its doors reopen.

'See you there': As Covid restrictions start to ease in Melbourne, footy WAG Rebecca Judd has expressed excitement over returning to her favourite shopping centre, Chadstone

'@chadstone_fashion is back from 9am tomorrow. See you there,' she captioned her post, alongside a photo of the shopping complex.

Rebecca also revealed she would be visiting Paul Bram Diamond Jewellery, a business for which she is an ambassador.

'Showroom reopening tomorrow. 10am - 5.30pm,' she wrote.

The five-day stage-four lockdown was enforced by Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews earlier this month amid fears the hyper-infectious UK strain of Covid-19 was spreading 'at light speed' after leaking from a quarantine hotel at Melbourne Airport.

Retail therapy: She told her 830,000 Instagram followers on Wednesday she would be at Chadstone at 9am the following day when its doors reopen. Rebecca also revealed she would be visiting Paul Bram Diamond Jewellery, a business for which she is an ambassador

Family time: During the recent lockdown in Victoria, Rebecca and her husband, retired AFL player Chris Judd, were forced to homeschool their four children, son Oscar, nine, daughter Billie, six, and twin boys Tom and Darcy, four

During the lockdown, Rebecca and her husband, retired AFL player Chris Judd, were forced to homeschool their four children, son Oscar, nine, daughter Billie, six, and twin boys Tom and Darcy, four.

When the lockdown came into effect, Rebecca shared a video to Instagram of Billie sitting in the family's lounge room while learning remotely via an iPad.

It was a big moment for her youngsters, who had initially been scared to leave the comfort of homeschooling for the real thing after the previous lockdown was lifted in October.

Back to homeschooling! When the lockdown came into effect, Rebecca shared a video to Instagram of Billie sitting in the family's lounge room while learning remotely via an iPad

Rebecca said on The 3pm Pick-Up that her eldest son, Oscar, was particularly concerned about socialising with people outside his family.

She told her co-host Katie 'Monty' Dimond that her children were apprehensive about being around other kids.

'My Oscar said, "I feel excited, but a bit nervous to talk to people",' she explained, adding: 'They hadn't socialised with anyone but our family unit for so long.'
He was the wartime Prime Minister regarded by many to be the greatest Briton who ever lived.

Sir Winston Churchill's leadership during the fight against Nazi Germany was symbolised by the indomitable spirit he championed in his numerous speeches to the British public.

But far from the symbol of strength which he represents, a new book details how the politician suffered from a barrage of ailments throughout his life.

Winston Churchill's Illnesses 1886-1965, by Allister Vale and John Scadding, sets out chapter by chapter each of the injuries, afflictions and accidents which befell Sir Winston.

Among them was the donation of a skin graft to help a wounded colleague while fighting at the famous Battle of Omduran in 1898 and the three bouts of pneumonia and a stroke suffered while in office.

New book Winston Churchill's Illnesses 1886-1965, by Allister Vale and John Scadding details how the wartime Prime Minister suffered from a barrage of ailments throughout his life. Pictured: Sir Winston in Marrakesh, Morocco, while recovering from a bout of pneumonia in 1944

The authors of the book, both of whom are doctors, have accessed previously closed medical archives to write their account.

Sir Winston's great-grandson, Randolph Churchill, says in the book's foreword how it was 'remarkable' how Sir Winston was able to 'continue to function as Prime Minister' whilst battling his various illnesses.

He adds that Sir Winston's reaction to being unwell 'demonstrated his personal courage, resilience, his sense of duty and his determination to continue to serve in high office.'

Below, MailOnline details some of Sir Winston's most significant illnesses and injuries which are revealed in Vale's and Scadding's book.

Skin graft in 1898 after the Battle of Omdurman

In 1898, the then 23-year-old Churchill was serving with the 21st Lancers - a cavalry regiment in the British Army  in Sudan.

While fighting, the young Lieutenant Churchill served as a war correspondent for newspaper the Morning post.

It was after the Battle of Omduran in September 1898  in which Churchill participated in the last cavalry charge in history  that the future politician had skin taken from his arm to patch a wound suffered by a fellow Lieutenant, Richard Molyneux.

Churchill recounted how Molyneux had suffered a 'horrible gash' and that the army doctor told him he would have to take skin from him.

He wrote: 'There was no escape, and as I rolled up my sleeve he added genially 'Ye've heeard of a man being flayed aloive? Well, this is what it feels loike'.

It was after the Battle of Omduran in September 1898  in which Churchill participated in the last cavalry charge in history  that the future politician had skin taken from his arm to patch a wound suffered by a fellow Lieutenant, Richard Molyneux

'He then proceeded to cut a piece of skin and some flesh about the size of a shilling from the inside of my forearm.

'My sensations as he sawed the razor slowly to and fro fully justified his description of the ordeal.

'However, I managed to hold out until he had cut a beautiful piece of skin with a thin layer of flesh attached to it: This precious fragment was then grafted on to my friend's wound.

'It remains there to this day and did him lasting good in many ways. I for my part keep the scar as a souvenir.'

Churchill's personal doctor from 1940 - Lord Moran  recorded in 1954 how Churchill, who was then in his second stint as Prime Minister, showed him the scar following the death of Molyneux.

'That's where I gave some skin for grafting to Dick Molyneux after the battle of Omdurman  it hurt like the devil', Moran said Churchill told him.

After pointing out Molyneux's funeral in that day's paper, Moran said Churchill added, 'He will take my skin with him, a kind of advance guard, into the next world'.

A Serious Accident in December 1931 in New York

When in New York giving lectures with the aim of trying to recoup some of the money he had lost on the stock market, 57-year-old Churchill had a serious accident.

The future Prime Minister was staying in the Waldorf Astoria hotel when on December 13 he was phoned by his friend Bernard Baruch, who asked him to meet him with mutual acquaintances at his home.

But unsure of the house number, he asked the taxi driver to drop him off in the street so he could walk across the road to knock on what he thought was the correct house.

It was then that he was hit by car as he crossed the road.

Writing in the Daily Mail about what happened, Churchilll said: 'Suddenly upon my right I was aware of something utterly unexpected and boding mortal peril.

Churchill was hit by a car in New York in December 1931. He suffered lacerations to his head and face. He is seen above with bandages

'I turned my head sharply. Right upon me scarcely its own length away, was what seemed a long dark car rushing forward at full speed  Then came the blow.'

He said that besides the shock of the collision, he suffered 'indescribably violent' concussion.

Churchill was treated at Lenox Hill Hospital where lacerations on his head were stitched together. He also suffered two cracked ribs and lung damage.

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According to his surgeon, his injuries included: 'a three inch jagged laceration of Churchill's forehead from the bridge of his nose up deep to bone; a laceration of the nose and right nostril; fractures of both nasal bones with dislocation of Churchill's nose to the left.'

Churchill was discharged from hospital on December 21 and continued to recover in New York until December 30.

Vale and Scadding say it was 'remarkable' that Churchill recovered from the 'potentially fatal' accident without any lasting ill-effects.

An Attack of Paratyphoid Fever in September 1932 in Austria

Following his recovery from his accident in New York, Churchill developed what is described as a 'persistent fever' after beginning a drive from Germany to Venice.

He was in Germany after being commissioned to write articles for papers including the News of the World.

Beginning on September 2, the fever got worse when Churchill was staying at a hotel in Salzburg.

He was admitted to a Sanitorium where he was diagnosed with paratyphoid fever, which is also known as enteric fever.

Paratyphoid fever is very similar to the better-known typhoid.

It varies in that is is caused by a different variant of the Salmonella bacteria.

It was reported in The Times newspaper that the cause of the illness was thought to be from drinking contaminated water, possibly in Bavaria.

By September 18, the doctor treating Churchill said he was free of fever and on the way to complete recovery.

After leaving the Sanitorium, he arrived back at his Kent home, Chartwell, on September 23.

His official biographer Martin Gilbert says Churchill discharged himself from medical care, against expert advice.

It proved to be a foolish decision because just four days later, on September 27, Churchill suffered a relapse while in London.

Nurse Dorothy Pugh was seconded from London's St Mary's hospital to help to care for Churchill when he suffered from pneumonia in 1943 and 1944

He was found to be bleeding internally as a result of a paratyphoid ulcer. He then missed the Conservative Party conference and was not discharged from a nursing home in the capital until October 10.

However, the future PM became well enough to continue the work he had started on a biography of his relative, the Duke of Marlborough.

Bouts of Pneumonia

Churchill was first struck down by pneumonia in 1886. He would catch the lung infection four more times before his death in 1965.

On three of those occasions, the politician was serving as Prime Minister.

The first time, in February 1943, the then 68-year-old Churchill had just returned from Algiers, Algeria, in what was then Allied territory during war with Nazi Germany.

Churchill is pictured above leaving the nursing home in which he was treated in 1932 after suffering from paratyphoid fever

His daughter Mary Churchill recorded how her father had 'developed a temperature'.

General Sir Alan Brooke, the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, reported how the PM was 'in bed with fever'.

His doctor Lord Moran told him his lungs were inflamed. He was told by Dr Geoffrey Marshall, from Guy's Hospital, that he would need to 'relinquish conduct of affairs for a fortnight'.

Churchill replied, 'How dare you, the war is at a critical stage'.

However, Churchill did as he was told when Dr Marshall told him, 'you know what we call this illness, we call it old man's friend because you fade away so gradually that you arrive in the next world before you know you have left this one!'

On being told that he really was 'as ill as that', Churchill agreed to rest and it was not until late March that he had recovered.

Vale and Scadding note that the mortality rate for pneumonia for people of Churchill's age was 20 per cent.

In December that year, the PM was struck down again by the infection while in Carthage.

Churchill was first struck down by pneumonia in 1886. He would catch the lung infection four more times before his death in 1965. Pictured: Churchill's temperature chart when he developed pneumonia in Carthage in December 1943

Churchill fell ill with pneumonia three times while serving as Prime Minister. Pictured: His temperature chart when he fell ill with the lung infection in London in February 1943

His then assistant private secretary John Colville noted in his diary how 'I discovered that Churchill was seriously, perhaps mortally, ill with pneumonia at Carthage and that I was to escort Mrs Churchill to his bedside.'

The PM's condition prompted Labour's Clement Attlee, to issue a statement.

Overall, his fever lasted six days but he once again recovered.

Churchill had pneumonia for a final time as PM in August and September 1944.

He fell ill again with the condition in 1958  after his second stint as Prime Minister had ended in 1955 - when he also suffered from jaundice and atrial fibrillation.

The results of the electrocardiogram (ECG) which was performed on Churchill when he suffered from chest pain in February 1942

Acute Stroke in June 1953 in London

Churchill's most famous ailment is perhaps the stroke he suffered in 1953 at the age of 79, while in his second stint as Prime Minister.

Three weeks after after the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, Churchill suddenly slumped in his chair while hosting the Italian Prime Minister at dinner in Downing Street.

His daughter Mary Soames noted that earlier in the dinner her husband Christopher Soames had told her to 'guard him from the people, as he was having difficulty with his speech'.

She described how others had noted his unsteadiness and slurring but put it down to alcohol.

Winston Churchill's Illnesses 1886-1965, by Allister Vale and John Scadding

She added: 'We escorted my father upstairs to his bedroom, and there he seemed to feel, and to be, much better.'

Lord Moran was unable to come to his aid that night but the following day diagnosed a stroke.

Although he had ordered the PM to stay in bed, Churchill still chaired that day's Cabinet meeting and ministers noticed that anything was seriously wrong.

However, the PM was persuaded not to answer questions in the House of Commons that afternoon and he was sent to recover at Chartwell.

Churchill also ordered that news of his illness be kept from ministers and the public, knowing that he would be forced to resign if they found out.

Anthony Eden, the then deputy PM, was also gravely ill.

On July 24, just over six weeks after his stroke, Churchill began to do some light work once more.

He admitted to the Queen in August that he may have to resign.

However, after a trip to Balmoral, Churchill went to the South of France to recuperate and his condition rapidly improved.

After a trip to Balmoral, Churchill went to the South of France to recuperate, and his condition rapidly improved.

He then returned to give a well-received speech at the Conservative Party conference in Margate

Churchill's Terminal Illness in January 1965 in London

Churchill, then nearing his 90th birthday, went to the House of Commons for the final time in July 1964, nine years after leaving office for the second time.

He suffered a final stroke in on January 12 1965. He spent the last two weeks of his life at his London home, near Hyde Park, and died on January 24, surrounded by his family.

Winston Churchill's Illnesses 18861965: Courage, Resilience and Determination, by Allister Vale and John Scadding, is published by Pen & Sword and was released in October.

Churchill's doctor Lord Moran reads a statement outside his London home, in Hyde Park Gate, in January 1965 during the former Prime Minister's final days
Opinion Article

18 February 2021

Cruising into the new decade of hospitality, one ever-present concern is the need for occupancy, especially with group and corporate guests slow to return amidst ongoing COVID concerns. But as we all look to further segment leisure to find those hidden pockets of revenue, we must concurrently apply the time-honored mantra, "It's easier to keep a customer than it is to get a new one." Alas, it's the age-old battle of customer acquisition versus customer retention.

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While your CRM has proven vital for the former, back-of-house communications via management software can help with the latter. You can use these platforms to win back returning guests over spending a daunting amount on top-of-funnel advertising and preferred channel placements in order to acquire new ones. The problem in making this a reality is often that the level of customer service we deliver isn't anything special or memorable.

Especially now that the only real source of travelers is domestic or that of drive-to markets, we cannot rely on 'trial' - advertising speak for new guests derived from testing certain promotional offers or inventory distribution vectors. Compounding this is the push for touchless service to prevent viral spread, which means less personal contact to reinforce positive sentiments in the guest experience as well as less direct supervision of associates to make sure they are doing as expected.

Double Deviations

What I stress is that going beyond what's expected in small but meaningful ways can not only help you win customers for life but also help to convert brand advocates who will sing your praises for long after their stay. As humans are largely fear-based creatures, the opposite is also true; transgressions by a hotel will not just lose you those guests who feel slighted but they may go out of their way to protect their friends or family from staying with you. Word of mouth works both ways.

While we focus on training and honing the guest experience to prevent the latter cases from ever occurring, running a hotel has too many variables to perfectly control, particularly in the rapidly changing world that is COVID. Management software thus becomes instrumental in error recovery, preventing what we call a 'double deviation'.

For hospitality, this term encompasses the mindset of a rational traveler who understands that, from time to time, stuff happens. However, these reasonable guests also assume that the culpable property would then go out of its way to ensure that the mistake is corrected or fairly compensated. Double deviations occur when the initial error isn't properly addressed or, worse, the hotel screws up again.

One cursory look at any property's one- or two-star reviews on TripAdvisor will show you the harmful effects of double deviations. A lack of corrective action on the hotel's part leads to umbrage and other negative emotions which cast the entirety of the experience in a disgusted tint. For instance, an uncorrected issue with housekeeping can quickly cloud a guest's judgment so much so that they then complain about how noisy the HVAC was or that the F&B was disappointing.

When used effectively, management software can put a blaring red alert on any guest who encountered an error so that extra caution is taken with this individual for the rest of their onsite journey and so these harmful double deviations are avoided.

Look at Amazon

One pinnacle of examples to demonstrate the meaning of excellent customer service (and customer retention) is Amazon. With everything rosy in hindsight, it's all too easy to overlook the innumerous obstacles that this company had to surmount on its path to becoming 'The Everything Store'. Even when it was in the weeds of online book sales, Amazon realized that expansion would be impossible without putting in the work to reduce its double deviations to zero, lest it lose the ability to gain new customers due to acrimonious word of mouth and a general lack of trust.

To this day, I vividly recall a scenario several years ago when a computer part I ordered through Amazon somehow 'fell off the back of a truck'. Navigating through the website's internal complaint system, within 48 hours of identifying the lost package I received a phone call from a local customer sales rep who was fully up to speed on my situation. Speaking in a friendly manner, she asked a few qualifying questions then ordered a replacement without any additional charge. The issue may have been their fault or it may have stemmed from their unidentified delivery partner, but the fix was easy as pie.

A Hotel Example

Here's another one that's a bit closer to home for us hoteliers. I remember a hotel stay in Vienna where I left my credit card at the front desk at check-out, a not-uncommon thing to do especially when you're also saying goodbye to the general manager or another senior manager. I only discovered this dire situation when I was well on my way to the airport. Calling the property, I was pleasantly surprised that they had already dispatched another one of their cars 'in chase' with the card in hand. Clearly, this instance goes well beyond the expected service levels, and yet whenever life takes me back to the opulent Austrian capital you can bet your chair that I'll be looking to book at this property.

While this is a positive example, let me restate that customer service is a double-edged sword. Just imagine my chagrin if the front desk agent had simply apologized then told me that there was nothing he could do. Despite the issue clearly being my fault, how would this have changed my emotional perception of the hotel? Would I still have a lasting five-star memory of the place? The customer isn't always right but the customer is still in the driver's seat. Quality assurance is a continuous process in both ensuring you get it right the first time and having a clear system of empowerment in place for your team to quickly resolve issues autonomously.

For awhile now, I've touted COVID as the 'great technology reset' for the hotel industry, but this should also entail a revolution in service delivery. Especially with a leaner team on the books for next few years encompassing remote workers and fewer supervisors to bolster accountability, the only way to win the guest service game and grow revenues is with a solid backbone of management software.

Look at how your tech stack can heighten service delivery by expediting communications amongst employees and between departments. Then to make real gains, also examine your policies and practices for preventing any double deviations from occurring, utilizing your back-of-house apps to empower team members to correct problems on the spot and to alert others so that can hopefully convert distraught guests into customers for life.
On February 8th in 1967, the legendary musician and Hollywood star purchased no fewer than three brand-new GMC pickups from Guy Caldwell Motors in Senatobia, Mississippi. Chassis number CS1570DPC9205A is one of those half-ton trucks, documented in the 1996 book Hurry Home, Elvis! by Donna Lewis, the daughter of Circle G Ranch foreman George Lewis.Offered by GAA Classic Cars with a letter of authenticity from the Elvis Presley Enterprises, the workhorse in the photo gallery was sold by Vernon Presley in 1968 to Haynes Motors in Maryland, according to a copy of the bill of sale. A copy of the title application is also included, listing Haynes as the second owner of the green-painted pickup after Elvis Aaron Presley.Heading to auction on February 27th in Greensboro, North Carolina, the standard-cab pickup was repaired by the head mechanic at Haynes, driven for a few years, then sold to Mr. Richards in Pensacola, Florida. In 1986, the half-tonner was bought by a family for use in an Elvis-themed museum.The five-digit odometer currently shows approximately 83,000 miles (133,576 kilometers), which are believed to be the original miles. Professionally restored four years ago with the period-correct paint, the RWD truck rocks an inline-six engine under the hood, a column-mounted stick shift, and the signatures of Jay Leno and Blake Sheldon on the dashboard.Straight as an arrow in every respect and completely free of rust, this rare piece of Elvis Presley miscellanea and American automotive features too many new parts to list and original parts boxed up and ready to go. According to GAA, the truck runs and drives very well.

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Celiac disease afflicts millions of Americans, most of whom are undiagnosed, and is second only to end-stage renal disease in perceived burden by patients and caregivers. Despite these appalling facts, the federal government has never been a major funder of celiac disease research. As a direct consequence, celiac disease is the most prevalent autoimmune disease with no FDA-approved treatments. For the second consecutive year, the Celiac Disease Foundation will host the Patient Education & Advocacy Summit, this year on March 4, 2021, with a primary goal of training a new cadre of Celiac Disease Foundation State Advocacy Ambassadors who can, in turn, engage patients and legislators from their communities in the struggle to accelerate research for treatments and a cure. The Summit, with more than 1500 registered attendees, will be virtual to protect patients and presenters.

The FY2020 as well as the FY2021 appropriations legislation for NIH included report language drafted by the Foundation urging the world's largest biomedical research entity to devote sufficient resources to research both treatments and a cure for celiac disease. And while we have seen momentum growing at NIH regarding celiac disease research, we have yet to see an increase in research spending towards the disease. We must continue, therefore, to demand measurable and impactful results. The 2021 Summit is a crucial tool in the Foundation's range of strategic efforts to secure adequate investments in research that will lead to improvements in the lives of those impacted by the disease.

The 2021 Summit will feature leading celiac disease researchers Joseph A. Murray MD, Mayo Clinic, Edwin Liu, MD, Colorado Center for Celiac Disease, Benjamin Lebwohl, MD, Columbia Celiac Disease Center, Jocelyn Silvester, MD, PhD, Harvard Celiac Research Program, and Ritu Verma, MD, University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center.

The Summit will also include presentations from researchers on the front line of developing drugs to treat celiac disease -- Francisco Leon, MD, PhD, Provention Bio, Daniel Leffler, MD, Takeda, Jennifer Sealy-Voyksner, PhD, ImmunogenX, and Kristin Neff, Anokion -- as well as presentations from Lisa Stewart, PCORI Senior Engagement Officer, Congressional representatives, and more.

"We have all witnessed with awe the capacity of the NIH to effectively deploy research to resolve a public health emergency like COVID-19. We are asking that a fraction of that same energy be committed to treating and curing celiac disease," states Marilyn G. Geller, CEO of the Celiac Disease Foundation. "We are mobilizing all our resources, including the powerful voices of our patient advocates and research community, to urge Congress and NIH to commit to tangible, substantial increases in celiac disease research funding."

The virtual 2021 Patient Education & Advocacy Summit is funded by a PCORI Engagement Award to Convene Patients with Celiac Disease to Improve Patient-Centered Outcomes Research (PCOR) and sponsored by Provention Bio, 9 Meters Biopharma, Takeda, Glutenostics, Kanyos Bio, ImmunogenX, Schar, Cabinet Health, and Labcorp.

About the Celiac Disease Foundation

The Celiac Disease Foundation is the nation's leading patient advocacy organization for celiac disease. Since its founding in 1990, the Celiac Disease Foundation continues to champion many battles: federal funding for celiac disease research and labeling standards for gluten-free foods, widespread patient and provider education, access to mainstream gluten-free products, improved diagnostic tools, and accelerated development of therapeutic treatments and a cure. For more information, visit celiac.org .

Contact:

[email protected]

SOURCE Celiac Disease Foundation

Related Links

https://celiac.org



Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 11:06:54|Editor: huaxia

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WELLINGTON, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- A dry run of the end-to-end process shows New Zealand's COVID-19 vaccination program is ready to roll from Saturday, when the first border workers will receive the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, COVID-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins said on Thursday.

The trial run took place in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch on Wednesday, ahead of the vaccination program formally kicking off on Saturday. The first batch of COVID-19 vaccines arrived in New Zealand on Monday. The vaccine will be offered to border and managed isolation workers, with the first immunizations given out to those working in the Auckland region.

"Officials have been working on logistics for months, and the dry run gave them an opportunity to stress test the system, identify any gaps and put plans in place for any event," Hipkins said in a statement.

Testing included things such as vaccines being dropped and technology systems being temporarily unavailable, and included the arrival of a thermal protection box used to transport the vaccine to validate the safe and secure handover process, according to the minister.

"The final steps in preparing for the first border workers to receive their vaccines on Saturday and for the start of the overall programme, will include the vaccinators who will vaccinate the border workers receiving the vaccines themselves. This will take place tomorrow," Hipkins said.

"While our workforce modelling shows we only need 100 vaccinators to immunise everyone who works at our border, we already have more than that who have completed the necessary training to administer the Pfizer vaccines, and hundreds more set to complete it in coming weeks," he added. Enditem
After Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson tied the knot in an intimate ceremony last fall, the couple found a heartfelt way to tell the world they were 'Jost married.'

Rather than break the news through their representatives or giving it to one media outlet, the news was announced on social media by the food charity Meals On Wheels America, giving it worldwide attention during the pandemic.

'Scarlett wanted to figure out a way of doing something that had another kind of meaning or could potentially help in some way,' Jost recently told The Associated Press while promoting his latest film, Tom And Jerry.

They did good: After Colin Jost and Scarlett Johansson tied the knot in an intimate ceremony last fall, the couple found a heartfelt way to tell the world they were 'Jost married.' Rather than break the news through their representatives or giving it to one media outlet, the news was announced on social media by the food charity Meals On Wheels America. Seen in 2020

Hilarious: The photo was of the Staten Island Ferry outside New York with cans tied to the end and the wording Jost Married; Colin grew up on Staten Island

The co-anchor of the 'Weekend Update' segment at Saturday Night Live says the couple wanted to make a difference with their happy news.

'We talked about places that we would love to help, and Meals On Wheels was at the top of our list, just getting very basic food to people that need it seems like the most basic way to help,' he said.

News of the wedding was shared on the Instagram account for Meals On Wheels America. 'We're thrilled to break the news that Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost were married over the weekend in an intimate ceremony with their immediate family and love ones,' the note said.

It was added the couple was following COVID-19 safety precautions as directed by the CDC. 'Their wedding wish is to help make a difference for vulnerable older adults during this difficult time by supporting @mealsonwheelsamerica.,' it was added. 'Please consider donating to celebrate the happy couple by clicking the link in our bio.'

Just vote: In late October, the actress spoke about the importance of voting; seen with Colin in March 2020 in New York

The photo was of the Staten Island Ferry outside New York with cans tied to the end and the wording Jost Married; Colin grew up on Staten Island.

Meals on Wheels provides meals across the country for those in need.

And he also told Entertainment Tonight on Wednesday that he did not plan any of the wedding.

'I dont pretend to know much about things or have taste in things,' Jost revealed. 'Im very happy to rely on someone who has a lot better taste and knowledge of things. Thats sort of what Ive learned in general in my life. Ive never been like, "Oh, should I wear this shirt?"  I never know, so I always would rather someone else tell me.'

Wedding details: They took only 'weeks' to plan their surprise nuptials; seen in 2018

Nice location: The site added that the two said 'I do' at her historic four bedroom home located in the New York suburbs which she purchased for $4M in 2018; here is a look at the Palisades in New York

In November a source told People they took only 'weeks' to plan their surprise nuptials.

The site added that the two said 'I do' at her historic four-bedroom home located in the New York suburbs which she purchased for $4M in 2018.

'They only planned the wedding for a few weeks,' a source told the site. 'Just close friends and family attended.'

It was added: 'They wanted a quiet, private ceremony with their close friends and family, and they pulled it off.'

The setting was idyllic. In 2018, the Horse Whisperer star bought a house near the Hudson River for $4M.

Good heart: 'Scarlett wanted to figure out a way of doing something that had another kind of meaning or could potentially help in some way,' Jost recently told The Associated Press; seen in 2020

His hit show: Jost does the Weekend Report on Saturday Night Live

The white home, which was built in 1953, has a colonial feel with hard wood floors and French windows.

More importantly, the backyard is spacious with a brick patio and a stunning view of the Hudson River as well as a large swimming pool and cabana house which was large enough to host a reception.

The two have also been seen since the wedding, and both were sporting brand new wedding bands - she is her neighborhood and he on SNL.

The two started dating in 2017 and then became engaged in May 2019. He presented her with an 11-carat engagement ring which she flashed in July while at San Diego Comic-Con.

Not drawn out: 'They only planned the wedding for a few weeks,' a source told the site. 'Just close friends and family attended.' Seen in April 2019

The Match Point actress has been married twice before: to Ryan Reynolds from 2008 until 2011 (he is now wed to Blake Lively). And to French journalist Romain Dauriac from 2014 until 2017. Together they share daughter Rose Dorothy Dauriac, aged six.

This is a first marriage for Jost who has been a Weekend Update co-anchor on SNL since 2014.

Colin and Scarlett started dating in 2017, but the couple first crossed paths in 2006, when he was a writer on SNL, and she was hosting the show.

Plans for their wedding day was thrown into chaos in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

'This is not the time to get all your elderly, at-risk relatives together in one big group,' Jost recently told Andy Cohen. 'I don't know when that moment will be.'

During his appearance on Ellen, the A Very Punchable Face author addressed rumors he is planning to leave SNL, insisting he doesn't have a 'timeline' in mind, and for the moment, he's just grateful to be working.

Past husbands: The Match Point actress has been married twice before: to Ryan Reynolds from 2008 until 2011 (he is now wed to Blake Lively). And to French journalist Romain Dauriac from 2014 until 2017. Together they share daughter Rose Dorothy Dauriac, aged six.

He said: 'I don't have a real timeline. I just mean, like I started to potentially psychologically brace for the concept of leaving, which I hadn't really done. Certainly quarantine makes you appreciate having any job.'

Meanwhile, Colin previously admitted he was 'so scared' of marriage before getting engaged to the Hollywood actress.

He said: 'I'm getting married and it's such a crazy thing. I was so scared of marriage for so long because every time I talked to someone who just got married, or was about to get married, is like, 'Oh my God, you got to do it ... What could go wrong?' Then you talk to someone who's been married for five years, and they're like, 'Don't rush into it ... you have your whole life ahead of you.'

In Jost's latest film, a new version of Tom And Jerry that combines animation with live action, Jost plays a groom in an elaborate high-profile wedding at a ritzy hotel.

Shot before his own nuptials, Jost picked up a little something from the experience.

'My character obviously is going overboard in an attempt to both please his bride and impress her father,' Jost said. 'Learning about communication and trying to anticipate what your partner wants or needs in different moments I think is the most important lesson I learned.'


More than 100 business leaders have called for the Treasury's new northern campus in 'overlooked' Teesside.

In a letter to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, they warned that choosing Newcastle, Leeds or Manchester would simply move London jobs and 'would not be levelling up' at all.

Signatories include firms such as PD Ports, Thirteen, Teesside University, Cleveland Cable Company, Wilton Group and Middlesbrough College, who collectively employ tens of thousands of staff.

Teesside steelworks in Redcar, Teesside which closed in 2015, is to become a business park. Business leaders have called for the Treasury's new northern campus to be built in the area

The letter talks of a 'golden opportunity to give our region a much-needed, long overdue economic boost'.

It adds: 'We have the first-class skills and a wide range of outstanding businesses to service a Government department.

'We firmly believe transferring Treasury jobs, and the related investment, from one thriving city (London) to another thriving city (Newcastle, Leeds or Manchester) would not be levelling up.

'Teesside and the Tees Valley has been overlooked for the North's cities too many times before, so we call on you to give us this chance.'

Sunak has proposed moving 800 officials to the Treasury North hub, with other departments expected to follow.

A decision could be announced in the Budget on March 3. Treasury officials visited potential sites in Teesside last summer.
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Marcilia Lopes, 85, a fixture of the Portela samba school who hasnt missed a Carnival for decades, looked relieved after she got her first dose of the Chinese-made CoronaVac vaccine.

She has been so scared of catching the virus for the past year that she refused to leave home for anything. On her birthday, she asked her children not to even bother buying a cake  she was in no mood to celebrate. So Ms. Lopes is missing her beloved Carnival this year, but stoically.

Im at peace, she said. Many people are suffering.

Brazils coronavirus outbreak has been among the most severe in the world. It has killed more than 239,000 people here, second only to the death toll in the United States, and several Brazilian states are grappling with large caseloads.

As a second wave took hold in recent months, local officials across the country canceled the traditional Carnival celebrations, which normally bring in hundreds of million of dollars in tourism revenue and create tens of thousands of temporary jobs.

Marcus Faustini, Rio de Janeiros secretary of culture, said that as painful as it was to slog through carnival season without revelry, there was no responsible way to adapt the megaparty for this era of social distancing.
D-Wave demonstrates performance advantage in quantum simulation of exotic magnetism

BURNABY, BC - (February 18, 2021) -- D-Wave Systems Inc., the leader in quantum computing systems, software, and services, today published a milestone study in collaboration with scientists at Google, demonstrating a computational performance advantage, increasing with both simulation size and problem hardness, to over 3 million times that of corresponding classical methods. Notably, this work was achieved on a practical application with real-world implications, simulating the topological phenomena behind the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics. This performance advantage, exhibited in a complex quantum simulation of materials, is a meaningful step in the journey toward applications advantage in quantum computing.

The work by scientists at D-Wave and Google also demonstrates that quantum effects can be harnessed to provide a computational advantage in D-Wave processors, at problem scale that requires thousands of qubits. Recent experiments performed on multiple D-Wave processors represent by far the largest quantum simulations carried out by existing quantum computers to date.

The paper, entitled "Scaling advantage over path-integral Monte Carlo in quantum simulation of geometrically frustrated magnets", was published in the journal Nature Communications (DOI 10.1038/s41467-021-20901-5, February 18, 2021). D-Wave researchers programmed the D-Wave 2000Q system to model a two-dimensional frustrated quantum magnet using artificial spins. The behavior of the magnet was described by the Nobel-prize winning work of theoretical physicists Vadim Berezinskii, J. Michael Kosterlitz and David Thouless. They predicted a new state of matter in the 1970s characterized by nontrivial topological properties. This new research is a continuation of previous breakthrough work published by D-Wave's team in a 2018 Nature paper entitled "Observation of topological phenomena in a programmable lattice of 1,800 qubits" (Vol. 560, Issue 7719, August 22, 2018). In this latest paper, researchers from D-Wave, alongside contributors from Google, utilize D-Wave's lower noise processor to achieve superior performance and glean insights into the dynamics of the processor never observed before.

"This work is the clearest evidence yet that quantum effects provide a computational advantage in D-Wave processors," said Dr. Andrew King, principal investigator for this work at D-Wave. "Tying the magnet up into a topological knot and watching it escape has given us the first detailed look at dynamics that are normally too fast to observe. What we see is a huge benefit in absolute terms, with the scaling advantage in temperature and size that we would hope for. This simulation is a real problem that scientists have already attacked using the algorithms we compared against, marking a significant milestone and an important foundation for future development. This wouldn't have been possible today without D-Wave's lower noise processor."

"The search for quantum advantage in computations is becoming increasingly lively because there are special problems where genuine progress is being made. These problems may appear somewhat contrived even to physicists, but in this paper from a collaboration between D-Wave Systems, Google, and Simon Fraser University, it appears that there is an advantage for quantum annealing using a special purpose processor over classical simulations for the more 'practical' problem of finding the equilibrium state of a particular quantum magnet," said Prof. Dr. Gabriel Aeppli, professor of physics at ETH Zurich and EPF Lausanne, and head of the Photon Science Division of the Paul Scherrer Institute. "This comes as a surprise given the belief of many that quantum annealing has no intrinsic advantage over path integral Monte Carlo programs implemented on classical processors."

"Nascent quantum technologies mature into practical tools only when they leave classical counterparts in the dust in solving real-world problems," said Hidetoshi Nishimori, Professor, Institute of Innovative Research, Tokyo Institute of Technology. "A key step in this direction has been achieved in this paper by providing clear evidence of a scaling advantage of the quantum annealer over an impregnable classical computing competitor in simulating dynamical properties of a complex material. I send sincere applause to the team."

"Successfully demonstrating such complex phenomena is, on its own, further proof of the programmability and flexibility of D-Wave's quantum computer," said D-Wave CEO Alan Baratz. "But perhaps even more important is the fact that this was not demonstrated on a synthetic or 'trick' problem. This was achieved on a real problem in physics against an industry-standard tool for simulation--a demonstration of the practical value of the D-Wave processor. We must always be doing two things: furthering the science and increasing the performance of our systems and technologies to help customers develop applications with real-world business value. This kind of scientific breakthrough from our team is in line with that mission and speaks to the emerging value that it's possible to derive from quantum computing today."

The scientific achievements presented in Nature Communications further underpin D-Wave's ongoing work with world-class customers to develop over 250 early quantum computing applications, with a number piloting in production applications, in diverse industries such as manufacturing, logistics, pharmaceutical, life sciences, retail and financial services. In September 2020, D-Wave brought its next-generation Advantage quantum system to market via the Leap quantum cloud service. The system includes more than 5,000 qubits and 15-way qubit connectivity, as well as an expanded hybrid solver service capable of running business problems with up to one million variables. The combination of Advantage's computing power and scale with the hybrid solver service gives businesses the ability to run performant, real-world quantum applications for the first time.

###

The paper published today is available here in Nature Communications. A Medium post about the work can be found here.

About D-Wave Systems Inc.

D-Wave is the leader in the development and delivery of quantum computing systems, software and services and is the world's first commercial supplier of quantum computers. Our mission is to unlock the power of quantum computing for the world. We do this by delivering customer value with practical quantum applications for problems as diverse as logistics, artificial intelligence, materials sciences, drug discovery, cybersecurity, fault detection, and financial modeling. D-Wave's systems are being used by some of the world's most advanced organizations, including NEC, Volkswagen, DENSO, Lockheed Martin, USC, and Los Alamos National Laboratory. With headquarters near Vancouver, Canada, D-Wave's US operations are based in Palo Alto, CA and Bellevue, WA. D-Wave has a blue-chip investor base including PSP Investments, Goldman Sachs, BDC Capital, NEC Corp., and In-Q-Tel. For more information, visit: http://www. dwavesys. com .

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.


This is not about discussing the demerits of democracy, which is a form of governance that has come to stay. What we are considering is the need to reduce the cost of governance. The presidential system of government that we are running is too expensive, and it will lead us to nowhere.

COVID-19 is ravaging our land and destroying the economy, which has been highly underperforming. The country has continued to slip backwards. There is a shortfall in our oil revenue. Nigerias foreign capital inflow has sunk to $9.68 billion, the lowest in four years. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Nigerias economy is at a critical juncture and has urged that the value added tax (VAT) should be increased.

The central government has hinted that it would fund the budget from other means apart from oil, which is the countrys economic mainstay. There is even a discussion by the government to commence the sale of assets in ten state owned corporations, a move that will generate about $800 milion. There is the urgent need for us to cut our coat to our sizes. If you cut your coat according to your situation, you limit what you do to the account of your resources. Action should suit circumstances or resources. Is there any need for us to sustain the bicameral system of legislature we are operating now?

Bicameralism is the practice of having a legislature divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single group. As of 2015, about 40 per cent of worlds national legislatures are bicameral, and about 60 per cent are unicameral.

The bicameral system of the legislature means running the Senate and House of Representative side by side. Experts have listed the advantages and disadvantages of the bicameral system: These sort of legislatures make it possible for better laws to be made in a country, since bills are properly debated in the two chambers. It is difficult for the executive arm to dominate both chambers, and the second chamber usually reduces the work load of the upper house. The bicameral legislature gives room for the equal and adequate representation of the people in a federal state. The second chamber of the bicameral legislature tends to check and prevent the hasty and ill-considered passage of bills, unlike in the case of a unicameral legislature. Also, the second chamber corrects any faulty legislation coming from the first chamber. Typically, bicameral legislatures protect the interests of minority groups, as they make it possible for public opinion to be properly expressed on issues concerned before bills are passed, by delaying the bills in the two chambers. Bicameral legislatures result in the division of labour in certain aspects of the functions performed by the legislatures, between the two chambers. These legislatures create room for more politically and administratively experienced people to be useful in the act of law making. The second chamber of a bicameral legislature checks the excesses and guides against the tyranny or dictatorship of one chamber.

The Disadvantages of a Bicameral Legislature

The second chamber of a bicameral legislature may be used as a dumping ground for political rejects at polls, if its membership is by nomination or appointment. A bicameral legislature encourages the duplication of functions, since both chambers perform essentially the same functions; hence bicameral legislatures could be a waste of a lot of public funds, as the government will try to maintain the two legislative chambers and the paraphernalia that go with them. A bicameral legislature is not good for passing bills in times of emergency because of the delays that result from having to gather consensus through the two chambers. Many legislators would seek to go through bills before they are passed, and bicameral legislatures could lead to unnecessary rivalries, in terms of which of the two houses is superior to the other. In these types of legislature, most of the members in the second chamber are advanced in age and are mostly inactive. The appointment rather than election of members into the upper house, as it is done in Britain, is undemocratic.

In spite of all its advantages and disadvantages, can our economy sustain the presidential system of government that we are running now? Countries with unicameral legislatures include Armenia, Bulgaria, Denmark, Hungary, Monaco, Ukraine, Serbia, Turkey, and Sweden. Unicameral systems became more popular during the 20th century and some countries, including Greece, New Zealand, and Peru, switched from a bicameral to a unicameral legislative system. Also, Ghana, a neighbouring country, has a unicameral legislature. That does not make the countries less democratic than we are.

This is not about discussing the demerits of democracy, which is a form of governance that has come to stay. What we are considering is the need to reduce the cost of governance. The presidential system of government that we are running is too expensive, and it will lead us to nowhere. The high costs of governance has made it next to impossible to have good roads, hospitals, schools, and other requisite infrastructural facilities in the country. Something has to be done in terms of reducing these costs.

Apart from bicameralism or unicameralism, there is also the need to address whether or not we can continue with the presidential system of government, which has given too much powers to the central government. This is not about the perpetual constitutional amendments that have given opportunities to the deputy Senate president and the deputy speaker of the House of Representatives and members of their committees to make gains since 1999. It is about whether this presidential system of government suits us or not. We adopted this system in haste, and it has proven faulty and fallacious. This is why it has not been working and it can not work, no matter how long we practice it. Certainly the presidential system is not the major cause of our problems but it has worsened our crises. There was no consultation with the people on the new adventure, and no mandate of the people. The house has fallen but we can pretend that it has not. Yet, we can still do something about it if we are determined to. For example since 1978, all countries in Latin America have either changed or replaced their constitutions. Why should our situation be different?

On March 19, 2011, a constitutional referendum was held in Egypt. In April 1993, a referendum was held in Eritrea. Even Kenya has held three referendums on their constitution. There have been several referendums in Morocco, most of which pertain to the constitution. A constitutional referendum was held in Bangladesh on September 15, 1991. The current constitution of Iraq was approved by referendum on October 15, 2005. The present constitution of the Philippines was approved through a plebiscite in 1987. We can quote many countries where there have been many constitutional referendums.

Lets go back to how we adopted the presidential system of government. After overthrowing General Yakubu Gowon (GCFR) in a military coup, the then head of state, Brigadier Murtala Mohammed (GCFR), on July 30, 1975, announced that his government would come out with a political programme.

Lets take Chile as an example.

There were jubilant scenes in Chile on October 26 last year, according to a BBC report, after an overwhelming majority voted in support of rewriting Chiles constitution, which dates to the military rule of General Augusto Pinochet. With almost all the ballots counted, 78 per cent had voted yes in a referendum that was called after mass protests against inequality. President Sebastian Pinera praised the peaceful vote. He said it was the beginning of a path that we must all walk together.

Right-wing President Pinera agreed in November 2019 to hold the referendum after a month of huge and almost daily protests across Chile, which saw more than a million people take to the streets in the capital, Santiago.

The protests, which had originally been triggered by a fare hike on the Santiago metro, drew a wide variety of Chileans, who banded in anger over the high levels of inequality in Chile. One of their key demands was the reformation of the old dictatorship-era constitution, which they argued entrenched inequalities by putting the private sector in control of health, education, housing and pensions. The referendum, which was originally due to be held in April, was postponed to October due to the coronavirus pandemic. The referendum asked Chileans two questions: First, if they want a new constitution; and secondly, what kind of body they would want to draw it up.

With almost all the votes counted, more than 78 per cent of the people voted in favour of a new constitution.

An overwhelming majority of 79 per cent also voted in favour of the new constitution being drawn up by a body which will be 100 per cent elected by a popular vote, rather than one which would have been made up by 50 per cent of members of Congress.

President Pinera acknowledged that the current constitution had been divisive and urged Chileans to work together so that the new constitution is the great framework of unity, stability and the future.

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He also praised the democratic nature of the vote: Today citizens and democracy have triumphed; today unity has prevailed over division and peace over violence. And this is a triumph for all Chileans who love democracy, unity and peace, without a doubt.

As the results came in, the word REBIRTH was projected onto a building in downtown Santiago.

The new constitution will then be put to the Chilean people in another referendum in 2022.

Lets go back to how we adopted the presidential system of government. After overthrowing General Yakubu Gowon (GCFR) in a military coup, the then head of state, Brigadier Murtala Mohammed (GCFR), on July 30, 1975, announced that his government would come out with a political programme. On October 1, 1975, in a broadcast to the nation, Brigadier Murtala Mohammed declared that, One important subject before us is, of course, the question of a political programme. I promised in my last address to announce a programme, and the government has since then given considerable thought to this matter. The ultimate aim is to forge a viable political system, which will be stable and responsive enough to needs and realities of this country. This is not an exercise that begins and ends in the mere drafting of a constitution. Viable political institutions only emerge from hard experience and practice and the corporate experience of all is what matters. It is, therefore, my belief that our immediate task is to set the stage for this corporate effort to work on a new constitution. Whatever the outcome, the decision has to be made democratically, openly and by all. With this in mind, the Supreme Military Council has approved a five programme designed to ensure a smooth transition to civil rule by those elected by the people of the country.

A few days later, the central government named a 50-man constitutional drafting committee headed by Chief Frederick Rotimi Alade Williams. Other members of the committee included: Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Dr. C.S. Abshiya, Dr. K. Abayomi, Alhaji Abdul-Rasaq, Dr. I. D. Ahmed, Chief R.O.A. Akinjide, Dr. S.C. Aleyideno, Mr. A. Al-Hakim, Dr. A.Y. Aliyu, Professor S.A. Aluko, Mr. P.R.V. Belobo, Mr. S.M. Angulu, Alhaji Ardo Buba, Alhaji Nuhu Bamali, Alhaji Mamman Daura, Prof. T.S. David-West, Prof. U.P. Diejomuoh, Mr. D.D. Dimka, Professor B.J. Dudley, Professor E.C. Emovon, Alhaji S. Gaya, Mr. R. Gbadamosi, Dr. T.O. Idris, Mr. Bola Ige, and Professor O. Ikime. Also, Mr. S. G. Ikoku, Alhaji I. Imam, Mr. K. Isola-Osubu, Alhaji Aminu Kano, Alhaji S.M. Liberty, Mr. M.A. Makele, Chief K.O. Mbadiwe, Chief I.I. Murphy, Professor B.O. Nwabueze, Professor G.A. Odenigwe, Dr. P. Okibo, Alhaji Femi Okunnu, Dr. S. Osoba, Dr. Oye Oyediran, Dr. Tahir Ibrahim, Alhaji Talib Ahmed, Dr. M. Tukur, Mr. G.P. Unongo, Dr. Y.B. Usman and Dr. Obi Wali.

At best, however, constitutions, like all man-made artefacts, are by nature transitory. Like all doctrines and philosophies, they best fulfil the role for which they are intended only when viewed and applied in human terms, with adequate allowance being made for our frailties.

Chief Awolowo (GCFR) declined to serve as a member of the committee.

Shortly therefater, the committee was inaugurated at the Nigeria Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Victoria Island, Lagos. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Major General Joe Garba and the then Director General of the Institute of International Affairs, Professor Bolaji Akinyemi were present at the event. In his speech at the ocassion, Brigadier General Murtala Mohammed said, We have decided to adopt the presidential system of government. The We he was referring to was the Supreme Military Council, which he headed. General Murtala Mohammed gave the committee some guidelines on the thinking of government that it should seriously consider: We are committed to a federal system of government and a free democratic and lawful system of government that guarantees fundamental human rights. The Federal Military Government is committed to the emergence of a stable system of government through constitutional law. This we trust can best be achieved through the creation of viable political institutions which will ensure maximum participation and consensus and orderly succession to political power. Considering our recent political experience, any constitution devised should seek to, (a) eliminate cut throat political competition based on systems or rules of winner-takes-all. As a corollary, it should discourage electoral malpractices; (b) it should also discourage institutionalised opposition to the government In power and, instead develop consensus politics and government based on a community of all interests, rather than the interests of sections of the country; (c) firmly establish the principle of public accountability for all holders of public office. All public office holders must be seen to account openly for their conduct of affairs, eliminate overcentralisation of power in a few hands and as a matter of principle, decentralise power wherever possible as a means of diffusing tension.

The powers and duties of the leading functionaries of government must be carefully defined; considering our past difficulties over population counts, we should endeavour to devise measures that will have the effect of depoliticising population census in the country, which, as we all know, has caused interminable dispute at home and grave embarrassment on more than one occasion.

(a) Genuine and truly national political parties. However, in order to avoid the harmful effects of a proliferation of national parties, it will be desirable for you to work out specific criteria by which their number would be limited. Indeed the Supreme Military Council is of the opinion that if, during the course of your deliberations and having regard to our disillusion with party politics in the past, you should discover some means by which government can be formed without the involvement political parties, you should be feel free to recommend; (b) An Executive Presidential system of Government in which the President and Vice-President are elected, with clearly defined powers, and are accountable to the people. We feel that there should be legal provisions to ensure that they are brought into office in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of the country; and the choice of members of the Cabinet should also be such as would reflect the federal character of the country. (c) An Independent Judiciary is to be guaranteed by incorporating appropriate provisions in the Constitution as well as by establishing institutions, such as the Judicial Service Commission. (d) Provision of such corrective institutions as the corrupt practices Tribunal and Public Complaints Bureau; and (e) Constitutional restrictions on the number of states to be created.

The committee was given a whole year to complete its task from 1975 to September 1976.

To re-emphasise the position of the Supreme Military Council, General Olusegun Obasanjo (GCFR), while opening the first sitting of the Constituent Assembly on October 6, 1977 said, Your task which is clearly established and defined is to assist in giving the country a new Constitution by deliberating on the draft Constitution before you and passing it to the Supreme Military Council for promulgation into law valuable time will be saved by sticking to your Terms of Reference as closely as possible. May I emphasise that the purpose of your being here is to discuss the draft constitution already produced by the Constitution Drafting Committee and to come out with your recommendations. These will then be taken to the Supreme Military Council. Therefore, a Decree on the subject of Constitution for the Federal Republic of Nigeria will be considered and promulgated to usher in the new Constitution.

Thus, constitutions, by their very nature, can never be permanent. At best, they serve as guidelines for human societies to shape their ways of life. They must thus be firm and unambiguous, for all to see and know how they fit in and where and what limited rights, duties and responsibilities are enjoined on them in consonance with the good of all. Constitutions must thus be versatile and yet carry clear-cut provisions which are adequate and commonly understood but sufficiently flexible to accommodate and not hinder genuine national interests. A country needs a good and workable constitution, within which the aspirations of the generality of its people and their divergent differences can be accommodated and made effective. In countries like our own where rapid changes are taking place all the time, the temptation for an equally rapid turnaround or changes in the provisions of the constitution must be recognised and checked. The corollary to this is to avoid undue resistance to admitting changes where they are due and desirable.

At best, however, constitutions, like all man-made artefacts, are by nature transitory. Like all doctrines and philosophies, they best fulfil the role for which they are intended only when viewed and applied in human terms, with adequate allowance being made for our frailties. Legal minds and authorities on constitution-making might not agree with this down-to-earth approach and analysis but it is difficult to question its validity, in as far as it relates to creating and maintaining sound human relations in a community as diverse as ours.

That was how the presidential system of government was forced on us by the military. There was no plebiscite or referendum on the Constitution. We must change it by all means necessary.

Eric Teniola, a former director in the Presidency, writes from Lagos.
[February 18, 2021] New TeamSuccess Customer Success Solution Focuses on Increasing Revenue

DALLAS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- With increasing revenue as its primary focus, TeamSuccess boldly repositions the role of B2B customer success software in the industry, announces TeamSupport, the award-winning B2B customer support software solution, of its groundbreaking new customer success product, now available. "This is the first solution to fully realize the revenue potential of customer success." TeamSupport CEO Pete Khanna introduces the product, saying, "Through proactive features that improve your existing customer relationships, this is the first solution to fully realize the revenue potential of customer success." Industry research suggests that the shift to subscription-based services fundamentally changes the financial relationship with customers to pay-as-you-go from pay-upfront-to-own products. For revenue to continue to flow, customers must continue to use the products. Khanna goes on, "It is no longer sufficient to only satisfy customers. Support and Success must work hand in hand to deliver positive customer experiences that help sustain existing relationships. All resulting in increase product adoption and use, decreased churn, and ultimately a positive impact on annual recurring revenue and lifetime value of the customer."



Industry research organizations like the Customer Success Association call it Value Management functionality which states that the mission of customer success is to increase sustainable proven value for both the customers and the company. Being able to monitor the return on investment (ROI) for the customer is therefore a vital capability. Value Management functionality should also include:

Deep churn analysis and reporting,

Tracking and reporting on up-sell and cross-sell potentials and actuals, and

Analysis of sales pricing, commitments and deal quality. TeamSuccess is the second new product innovation released by TeamSupport in recent months. TeamInsights, made available December 2020, is the company's new customizable reporting and analytics dashboard. More information can be found at TeamSuccess.com. About TeamSupport

TeamSupport is an award-winning customer support software company built specifically for the unique needs of B2B (business-to-business) companies. Created by industry experts, the company has built the single source B2B solution from customer support to success. With an emphasis on streamlined collaboration among teams and built around the entire B2B customer, rather than focused on each individual contact or ticket, TeamSupport stands alone as a mission-critical support and success cloud-based software solution created for B2B businesses who need to help other businesses address and resolve customer support issues and enable success. The TeamSupport suite of solutions includes TeamInsights, a customizable reporting and analytics dashboard and TeamSuccess, the first solution to fully realize the revenue potential of customer success. TeamSupport is headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Learn more at TeamSupport.com. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-teamsuccess-customer-success-solution-focuses-on-increasing-revenue-301230723.html SOURCE TeamSupport, LLC.

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[February 18, 2021] Voyager Digital Schedules Fiscal 2021 Second Quarter Results and Business Update Conference Call

CSE: VYGR

OTCQB: VYGVF

Borse Frankfurt: UCD2 - Conference Call for Monday, March 1, 2021 at 5:00 p.m. ET - NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - Voyager Digital Ltd. ("Voyager" or the "Company") (CSE: VYGR) (OTCQB: VYGVF) (FRA: UCD2), a publicly-traded, licensed crypto-asset broker that provides investors with a turnkey solution to trade crypto assets, today announced that it plans to release financial results for its fiscal 2021 second quarter ended December 31, 2020, after market close on Monday, March 1, 2021. The Company will conduct a conference call the same day at 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) to review the results as well as provide an overview of the Company's recent milestones and growth strategy. To access the conference call, please dial (877) 375-4189, or for international callers, (973) 935-2046. A replay will be available shortly after the call and can be accessed by dialing (855) 859-2056, or for international callers, (404) 537-3406. The passcode for the live call and the replay is 2567844. The replay will be available until March 14, 2021. A live webcast of the conference call can be accessed via the Investor Relations section of the Voyager website at https://www.investvoyager.com. For more information on Voyager Digital, please visit https://www.investvoyager.com . The Voyager app is available for Android and iPhone . About Voyager Digital Ltd.

Voyager Digital Ltd. is a crypto-asset broker that provides retail and institutional investors with a turnkey solution to trade crypto assets. Voyager offers customers best execution and safe custody on a wide choice of popular crypto-assets. Voyager was founded by etablished Wall Street and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs who teamed to bring a better, more transparent, and cost-efficient alternative for trading crypto-assets to the marketplace. Please visit us at https://www.investvoyager.com for more information and to review the latest Corporate Presentation.



Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. No securities regulatory authority has either approved or disapproved of the contents of this press release. Certain information in this press release, including, but not limited to, statements regarding future growth and performance of the business, momentum in the businesses, future adoption of digital assets, and the Company's anticipated results may constitute forward looking information (collectively, forward-looking statements), which can be identified by the use of terms such as "may," "will," "should," "expect," "anticipate," "project," "estimate," "intend," "continue" or "believe" (or the negatives) or other similar variations. Because of various risks and uncertainties, including those referenced below, actual events or results may differ materially from those reflected or contemplated in such forward-looking statements. Forward looking statements are subject to the risk that the global economy, industry, or the Company's businesses and investments do not perform as anticipated, that revenue or expenses estimates may not be met or may be materially less or more than those anticipated, that trading momentum does not continue or the demand for trading solutions declines, customer acquisition does not increase as planned, product and international expansion do not occur as planned and those other risks contained in the Company's public filings, including in its Management Discussion and Analysis and its Annual Information Form (AIF). Factors that could cause actual results of the Company and its businesses to differ materially from those described in such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, a decline in the digital asset market or general economic conditions; changes in laws or approaches to regulation, the failure or delay in the adoption of digital assets and the blockchain ecosystem by institutions; cybersecurity breaches, a delay or failure in developing infrastructure for the trading businesses or achieving mandates and gaining traction; failure to grow assets under management, an adverse development with respect to an issuer or party to the transaction or failure to obtain a required regulatory approval. In connection with the forward-looking statements contained in this press release, the Company has made assumptions that no significant events occur outside of the Company's normal course of business and that current trends in respect of digital assets continue. Readers are cautioned that Assets Under Management and trading volumes fluctuate and may increase and decrease from time to time and that such fluctuations are beyond the Company's control. Forward-looking statements, past and present performance and trends are not guarantees of future performance, accordingly, you should not put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, current or past performance, or current or past trends. Information identifying assumptions, risks, and uncertainties relating to the Company are contained in its filings with the Canadian securities regulators available at www.sedar.com . The forward-looking statements in this press release are applicable only as of the date of this release or as of the date specified in the relevant forward-looking statement and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after that date or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. The Company assumes no obligation to provide operational updates, except as required by law. Readers are cautioned that past performance is not indicative of future performance and current trends in the business and demand for digital assets may not continue and readers should not put undue reliance on past performance and current trends. All figures are preliminary and unaudited and subject to final adjustment. All figures are in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted.



View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/voyager-digital-schedules-fiscal-2021-second-quarter-results-and-business-update-conference-call-301230844.html SOURCE Voyager Digital (Canada) Ltd.

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EDWARDSVILLE  Two new department heads were approved Wednesday by a divided Madison County Board.

Adam Walden was approved as Madison County engineer, replacing Mark Gvillo, who retired in November. Michael Bold was named the countys facilities director, taking over from Rob Schmidt, who left to work for the Madison County Transit District in July.

Voting against both appointments were Democratic board members Michael Doc Holliday and Bruce Malone of Alton, Matt King of East Alton, Chris Hankins of Pontoon Beach, Jack Minner of Edwardsville, Nick Petrillo of Granite City and Gussie Glasper of Madison.

Board Member Jim Dodd was absent.

During discussion on Walden, Minner objected to jumping over someone with more experience and King was concerned about the cost of appointing replacements.

When Bold was considered, Minner attempted to discuss his work record, but Mick Madison said because Bold is a current county employee it could not be discussed in open session.

This smacks as a political hire to me, Minner said.

Madison noted Schmidt wrote a letter of recommendation for Bold, something several board members was important.

Bold has been a craftsman in the Facilities Department since 2018, according to information from County Board Chairman Kurt Prenzlers office. Prior to that Bold was a property manager for RP Development responsible for site selection, selecting contractors and securing building and zoning permits.

He was interim director of facility at Greenville Regional Hospital in Greenville, plant operations manager for St. Elizabeths Hospital in Belleville and facility/ordering supervisor at Hospice of Southern Illinois.

Walden is an Illinois licensed professional engineer with 15 years of experience. In 2007, he joined Madison County as an engineer and, in 2017, was promoted to township engineer. Before joining the county he worked for Juneau Associates Inc. as an engineer.

His experience included preparing professional plans, supervising and monitoring construction projects, preparing projects reports, advisor to township road commissioners, maintaining motor fuel tax account for the 21 townships maintenance program, reporting conditions of the county and township bridge structures and engaging with the public to resolve complaints.

Walden holds various certifications including licensed professional engineer, IDOT bridge inspection team leader, MFT accounting, IDOT Contract administration, documentation and pile driving. He has a bachelors degree in civil engineering from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and is a member of the East-West Gateway Council of Governments executive advisory committee and the Illinois Society of Professional Engineers.

The board also approved several other appointments.

Cedric Irbyis was named to the Madison County Mental Health Board, replacing Paul Malcharek. Jon Walker was reappointed to a new six-year term on the Sheriffs Merit Commission. Board Member Victor Valentine, D-Edwardsville, was appointed to complete the term of Circuit Clerk Tom McRae on the countys Park & Recreation Grant Commission. McRae, who had to resign that position because it is reserved for a sitting county board member, was named to another spot on the board, replacing Ron Parente.

Kenneth Mueller was reappointed to a three-year term on the County Ditch Drainage and Levee District. Linda Kunzis was appointed to the unexpired term of new Madison County Board Member Ryan Kneedler, R-Collinsville, on the Collinsville Fire Protection District board. David Dwight Darden was approved to completed the unexpired term of resigning Moro Fire Protection District Board member Robert Whipkey.
The bodies of three workers were found overnight at ArcelorMittal South Africa's Vanderbijlpark Works, after the collapse of a coke battery stack at the steel plant the previous morning, the company said on Thursday. Africa's biggest steel producer, majority owned by Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal SA, said a portion of the stack fell on to a control room where the three were working. "The company has launched an investigation into the cause of the incident. All relevant authorities have been notified and have been on site," ArcelorMittal South Africa said in a ...



Other recent or upcoming novels set during World War II

Eternal by Lisa Scottoline

Set in Rome during Mussolini's reign, this latest from Scottoline (known for her best-selling thrillers) focuses on three friends, Sandro, Marco and Elisabetta, while they grow to adulthood and their way of life is threatened by war and fascism. (Available March 23)

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

Three young female code breakers at the famed Bletchley Park, each very different, are torn apart by a treacherous secret. The story jumps forward from 1940 to 1947, when the trio rejoin to contend with the past. (Available March 9)

The Girl From the Channel Islands by Jenny Lecoat

A big fiction debut about a Jewish refugee who flees to the British Channel Islands and ends up working as a translator for the occupying Germans, inspired by Lecoat's parents real-life story of living under Nazi rule on the islands.

The Last Green Valley by Mark Sullivan

Also based on a real-life story, this novel by the author of the wildly popular 2017 novel Beneath a Scarlet Sky focuses on the Martels, a Ukrainian family who fled Europe during Stalin and Hitler's terrorizing reigns and began a long, arduous migration to freedom in Montana. (Available May 4; Read our excerpt here.)

The Venice Sketchbook by Rhys Bowen

Caroline's great-aunt Lettie leaves her a sketchbook, three keys and a final whisper: Venice, requesting that her ashes be scattered in the city where she was an art teacher during the war. The story takes us back to those troubled days, by the author known for mysteries and romantic novels. (Available April 13)

The Paris Apartment by Kelly Bowen

Another story set in the present and looking back in time at an older generation's secret wartime life. Here a young woman who inherits a Parisian apartment undisturbed since WWII discovers clues about her grandmother's intriguing past. (Available April 20)

The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray

A history-sweeping story encompassing the French Revolution and both world wars, about Adriene Lafayette, the wife of the Marquis de Lafayette, and the lives of two women who had dramatic experiences decades later in her ancestral home in Auvergne. (Available March 30)

Courage, My Love by Kristin Beck

Two women in Nazi-occupied Rome are drawn to the Resistance, contending with heart-stopping danger and determined to protect the people they love. (Available April 13)

The Last Night in London by Karen White

A present-day freelance journalist, Maddie Harlow, looks back on the glamorous, treacherous early life of a local woman named Precious who was a fashion model during the Blitz in London. (Available April 20)

When We Were Young by Jaclyn Goldis

A debut novel about three generations of women from a Jewish family and their romances  from Sarah in Corfu during the war in 1942, to her daughter Bea in 2004 and modern-day Joey, Sarah's granddaughter, in Florida.

The Woman With the Blue Star by Pam Jenoff

A young woman, Sadie, in the Krakow Ghetto hides from the Nazis with her parents in the sewers beneath the city. Sadie befriends a wealthy Polish girl and the two are challenged as danger grows. (Available May 4)

The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles

A woman, Odile, is a librarian at the American Library in Paris who helps smuggle books to their Jewish patrons when the Nazis occupied Paris. A young girl in Montana uncovers her story decades later and makes some surprising connections. The author worked at the library herself, and the story is based on real-life events there.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (REUTERS)

Joe Bidens administration has expressed its hope of recalibrating US relations with Saudi Arabia while suggesting it considers King Salman to be the US presidents equal and not his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), who is widely considered to be the kingdoms de facto ruler.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki was asked at her daily briefing on Tuesday to follow up an answer she had given at a session a week earlier on whether the US still considers Israel and Saudi Arabia to be its allies.

She answered affirmatively on Israel and said Mr Bidens first call with a Middle Eastern leader will be with the countrys prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

On Saudi Arabia, Ms Psaki said: You know, weve made clear from the beginning that were going to recalibrate our relationship with Saudi Arabia and that  you know, President Biden  one of the questions there was also, just to go back to the context of it  whether he would be speaking with MBS.

And part of that is going back to engagement, counterpart to counterpart. The presidents counterpart is King Salman, and I expect that, in appropriate time, he would have a conversation with him. I dont have a prediction of the timeline on that.

She continued: Ill also say that, you know, we have  Saudi Arabia is in a position where theyre defending themselves from threats from the region. They have critical self-defence needs, and we will continue to work with them on those, even as we make clear areas where we have disagreements and where we have concerns. And thats certainly a shift from the approach of the prior administration.

While Donald Trump preferred to deal with MBS and made his first overseas trip as president to Riyadh, Ms Psakis comments are likely to be seen as an attempt to step back from the influential crown prince, accused by US intelligence officials of having ordered the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018.

Story continues

Avril Haines, Mr Bidens new US director of national intelligence, pledged during her Senate confirmation hearing last month that she would absolutely provide Congress with an an unclassified report on Khashoggis assassination.

This is a slapdown of MBS, who the administration views as reckless and ruthless, Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told Bloomberg.

The promise to deal primarily with King Salman has attracted a mixed response, however.

They cant get anything done if they dont deal with MBS, said Ali Shihabi, a Saudi businessman with links to the royal family, in conversation with Politico.

The king is functioning, but hes very old. Hes very much chairman of the board. Hes not involved in day-to-day issues. Eventually, theyre going to want to be talking directly to MBS.

The US and Saudi Arabia have enjoyed largely positive bilateral relations since a diplomatic channel was first established in 1933, agreeing on opposition to the Soviet Union and uniting on regional oil industry interests but also disagreeing significantly on issues from Israel to George W Bushs War on Terror.

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Bidens first Netanyahu call will be soon, says White House as he is accused of sidelining pro-Trump Israeli leader
While Advance-Design trucks might never receive the same cult following as other Chevy models from the era (such as the Tri-Fives , for example), that doesnt mean they arent valued as great classic companions for work and fun, or even as benchmarks for impressive custom projects This 1952 Chevy 3100 hasnt gone down the modification route and instead is probably searching for a future owner who values originality above all. We really cant verify the background of this particular example thats on sale at the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, showroom of Gateway Classic Cars simply because the seller doesnt provide much info about its whereabouts over the past 69 years.But that doesnt matter that much since the gallery above speaks a thousand words all by itself. As far as we can tell, this truck with 42,443 undocumented miles (71,500 km) hasnt spent much of its life running around and doing the daily chores. Or maybe it did all that and was fairly recently treated to a proper restoration that makes it look almost as if were back in the 1950s.No matter the case, the 52 impresses with its subtle silver, gray and black looks. As per tradition, theres lots of chrome to make this workhorse truck feel just a tiny bit more stylish, and the decidedly noire looks arent interrupted by anything else than a few splashes of color  noticeably the red Chevrolet lettering up front, the hood ornament, and (above all) the woodgrain inside the bed.The devil is in the details, as always, so truck aficionados will certainly notice the neat touches brought by the steel wheels with hub caps or the interior treatment that carefully matches the exterior color mix. Under the hood sits a 235ci (3.9-liter) six-cylinder engine thats paired to a three-speed manual gearbox operated via the column-mounted shifter. Well see if all that is enough for someone to shell out $29k, as per the asking price
To the Editor:

There is no Antifa organization. Antifa means anti-fascist. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Democrats and Republicans, including FDR and Dwight Eisenhower, respectively, united to fight the fascist leaders in Tokyo, Berlin and Rome. Thousands of people in Schuylkill County, including my father, volunteered to serve in World War II. Following the victory, communism expanded into Eastern Europe and later China. Once again, Democrats and Republicans formed a consensus to contain the Soviet Union and its satellites.

Our country stands for freedom and democracy embodied in our Constitution. We abhor dictatorships on both the left and right. In fact, Article 1 of the Constitution gives the most powers to the Legislature. Our founders feared a single strong leader, and gave little direct responsibilities to the president in Article 2.

Our freedom of speech and assembly is guaranteed in the First Amendment. The majority of protesters who participated in BLM marches last year were peaceful. However, insurrectionists and arsonists infiltrated the peaceful groups in the evening and attacked businesses and public buildings. Those people should be arrested. Thousands of people also gathered in Washington on Jan. 6. The majority were peaceful. However, white supremacists also infiltrated that march and stormed the Capitol. They wore military outfits, carried plastic handcuffs easily accessible from Amazon, batons, tasers, bear spray. Clearly those people did not intend to be part of a peaceful protest, and it was all caught on camera.

However, everyone is missing the main point. This was all based on a lie espoused by Donald Trump and his private lawyer, Rudi Giuliani, that the election was rigged. Republican Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell summed it up after his acquittal vote, They (the insurrectionists) had been fed wild falsehoods by the most powerful man on Earth because he was angry hed lost an election ... There is no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day. McConnell also sent a hidden message to his fellow Republicans, Dan Meuser and Dave Argall, sadly, many politicians sometimes make overheated comments or use metaphors that unhinged listeners may take literally.

The election was over 100 days ago. Argall still has not told his constituents the truth. The Republican Legislature passed Act 77 allowing for mail-in ballots. He voted for that measure. In fact, he received over 11,000 mail-in votes in Schuylkill County.

Donald Trump gained votes in Philadelphia compared to 2016. The Republican commissioner in Philly told 60 Minutes that fraud did not occur. Republican judges overturned Giulianis 60-plus lawsuits because there was no evidence.

Our country will not heal until this lie is buried. Once again, Democrats and Republicans need to unite to protect our democracy against enemies both foreign and domestic.

Todd Zimmerman

Secretary

Schuylkill County

Democratic Committee

The acquisition was sealed on the eve of the NSDC meeting where more sanctions against media assets could be considered.

Petro Poroshenko, the fifth president of Ukraine who is now a member of parliament and leader of the European Solidarity party, says he has acquired Pryamiy TV channel, which formally officially belonged to the former head of the Kyiv City State Administration, Volodymyr Makeienko.

The deal was sealed today, February 18, 2021, Poroshenko said on the air of the newly acquired media asset.

"Two hours ago, we signed an agreement, I paid money, a lot of money ... it's millions and millions in order to cover the channels debts. Two hours ago, in the state register, the entry on the ultimate beneficial owner of the Pryamiy TV channel has been changed. For two hours it's already Prime Essets Capital, an entity that is 100% owned by Petro Poroshenko," the ex-president said.

It is worth noting that the acquisition was completed ahead of the upcoming meeting of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, which had been scheduled for Friday, February 19.

Read also"Freudian slip" as Putin comments on Ukraine's move to ban pro-Russian TV channelsIn the broadcast, Poroshenko addressed incumbent President Volodymyr Zelensky, who had earlier enforced sanctions on media assets security officials believe had been spreading Russian propaganda narratives: "[T]omorrow, at the NSDC, you may impose sanctions against 'terrorist Poroshenko'. But I strongly recommend that you take a close look at how [disgraced ex-president Viktor] Yanukovych ended when he tried so hard to close Channel 5 [another media asset owned by Poroshenko]. Let me tell you, he finished badly," Poroshenko said.

Background

Petro Poroshenko has been tailing Volodymyr Zelensky in presidential ratings, polls say.

After losing the election in 2019, Poroshenko has been targeted in a number of criminal investigations, some of which are still pending.

Poroshenko has resurfaced and come to an international spotlight in 2020 when a Ukrainian MP Andriy Derkach, whom the U.S. Treasury later designated as a Russian agent and put on sanctions list, made public what he claimed were recordings of the then-president's phone talks with Joe Biden at the time when the latter held a vice president's post.

Zelensky's ban on pro-Russian media outlets

President Volodymyr Zelensky on February 2 enacted a package of sanctions put forward by the National Security and Defense Council, effectively blocking a number of media assets, including 112 Ukraine, ZIK, and NewsOne TV channels that had been multiple times accused of preaching pro-Russian rhetoric, formally owned by Taras Kozak  an MP and ally of Vladimir Putin's crony Viktor Medvedchuk.

Commenting on own move, President Zelensky said he strongly supports freedom of speech, but not "propaganda financed by the aggressor country."

SBU security service chief Ivan Bakanov said, "There is a big difference between freedom of speech and outright anti-Ukrainian rhetoric. Freedom of speech ends where signs appear of encroachment on territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine."

U.S. diplomats in Ukraine have supported the move and called for joint efforts "to prevent disinformation from being deployed as a weapon in an information war against sovereign states."

Meanwhile, the European Union's External Service said it was "assessing the implications" of the ban on TV channels.

Following the ban on pro-Russian TV channels, NSDC Secretary Oleksiy Danilov saud the authorities could introduce restrictive measures against more media assets if evidence was found proving they worked to the detriment of Ukraine's national security, playing in the hands of the adversary.

Reporting by UNIAN
(Photo : Youtube/Samsung) Samsung laptop Galaxy Book

Samsung is reportedly developing two new laptops, the Galaxy Book Pro and Galaxy Book Pro 360, which both includes OLED displays and will be compatible with the company's S Pen stylus.

Samsung's new OLED screen laptop

According to SamMobile, the Galaxy Book Pro 360 is said to be available with 5G connectivity. The laptops were also first revealed in a Bluetooth certification filing that was announced in January.

SamMobile's report does not give any details about the specs of the OLED displays like the resolution or refresh rates that might be available.

Also Read: Adata XPG's Xenia Xe: UltraSlim Gaming Laptop Specs, Price, and MORE

But given that the Samsung laptops will be available with 13.3-inch and 15.6-inch screens, it seems unlikely that they will use the 14-inch 90Hz OLED displays that Samsung Displays stated it would be manufacturing starting on March.

These would not be the first of Samsung's set of laptops to support the S Pen. In 2020, Galaxy Book Flex 5G, Samsung's first 5G laptop, had an S Pen built in. However, it comes after Samsung announced a new pair of S Pen styluses together with the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

Samsung has a standard S Pen that is sold separately from the phone, and later this year, a S Pen Pro is rumored to be released. The S Pen Pro is an ungraded version that adds Bluetooth and air gesture support. In January, Samsung stated that it is planning to bring S Pen support to more device categories.

Beyond the screens and S Pen support, the new Windows laptops are rumored to be powered by Intel Core i5 and i7 CPUs. The Galaxy Pro 360 is said to be a convertible 2-in-1 laptop, with a 360-hinge to allow the screen to be flipped around and used like a tablet.

If the reports about the upcoming devices are true, the two new laptops will join a list of other laptops that are announced by the tech company.

Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2

The Galaxy Chromebook 2 is an Intel-powered Chromebook with a QLED display and stylus support that was announced in January. The laptop is rumored to be released in the first quarter of 2021, it has no AMOLED screen or any included stylus.

The Chromebook 2 still has the unique color of its predecessor but on paper the Chromebook 2 different, it is not fancy nor flashy, it is not pushing the boundaries of the category and is said to be just a regular Chromebook, according to The Verge.

The Chromebook 2 is thicker and heavier than its predecessor, it is 2.71 pounds and .55 inches thick. The Chromebook 2 has an FHD, a 1920 x 1080 QLED screen. The QLED panels, despite the same name, are not OLED panels, they are LED-backlit LCD screens that use Samsung's quantum-dot technology, according to Business Standards.

Although the feature is not as impressive, it does mean that the screen is bad. The Chromebook 2 is the first Chromebook to have a QLED display and QLEDs are very good. Samsung says that one can produce more than a billion colors. There is no built-in stylus, no keyboard deck camera and no fingerprint sensor.

Due to this, fans of Samsung are waiting what the two new laptops can offer and the tech giant is yet to release more details about the laptops.

Related Article: Samsung Galaxy Book S Review: Not Balanced with Cheap-Looking Keyboard? Is It Still Worth the Price?

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Sieeka Khan

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

The majority of aircraft have been grounded for the past year, leaving travel agents struggling to keep their businesses afloat. Photo: Aidan Crawley/Bloomberg

Despite being recognised as the industry hardest hit by the pandemic, there has been no bespoke financial assistance given to Irish travel agents.

That was the message delivered to Transport Minister Eamon Ryan and Minister Hildegarde Naughton this week by a delegation from the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA).

The ITAA represents over 100 travel agents responsible for some 3,500 jobs in Ireland. It met Ministers to discuss urgent business supports for a sector whose members have grown increasingly angry in recent weeks at the dire impact of the pandemic and travel restrictions on their businesses.

Irish travel agents are responsible and always put the health and safety of our customers first," said Pat Dawson, CEO of the Association.

However, if we are prevented from trading as a direct result of restrictions, then we urgently require tailored business supports to ensure that we are in a position to open once again when the threat of Covid-19 has passed.

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"We are calling for a bespoke response with specific supports as a consequence of being closed for over a year on public health grounds linked to international travel.

The Department of Transport said Ministers acknowledged the particularly difficult situation facing the travel industry" at the Tuesday meeting, "especially with the prospects for this summer looking less favourable than everyone might have hoped for before Christmas.

The Ministers assured the Association that the Government was fully committed to continuing to provide financial support right across the economy, and that it would be reviewing the current range of supports in the coming weeks to consider what was needed to keep those supports working through the rest of this year."

Travel agents are in an unusual and unique position, the ITAA added, having continued to reschedule bookings in line with travel restrictions while taking little or no income.

Currently, travel agents are in receipt of the EWSS (Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme), and are entitled to CRSS (Covid Restrictions Support Scheme) from Level 4, which the ITAA feels is inadequate as it fails to address the unique issues faced by the Irish travel industry, Mr Dawson said.

Whilst we appreciate the schemes that the Government has put in place, there is no differentiation between businesses that have been able to open for intermittent periods, businesses which are down only 30pc (for EWSS) and 75pc (for CRSS), and travel agents who have been down 90pc consistently since March 2020 with no respite.

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Last fall, North Seattle College asked affordable housing developers to pitch the college on developing a portion of its 63-acre campus at 9600 College Way N. in Licton Springs. The notion was a ground lease, with part of the development to include some space for the college to use. The project wouldn't be student housing, the college said at the time.

Now Bellwether Housing and VIA Architecture have filed a two-building, 200-unit plan that would go on the southwest corner of the campus, at North 92nd Street.





. . .
William Walter Ahmo was born on Dec. 11, 1975  one month before me.

William Walter Ahmo was born on Dec. 11, 1975  one month before me.

We had different lives, but they were intertwined.

His father, who died when he was two years old, was from Crane River, which is next to Peguis First Nation, where my family is from.

His mother comes from Sagkeeng and the well-known Fontaine family  the same background as my daughter. The former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Phil Fontaine, is his uncle.

SUPPLIED Will Ahmo, pictured holding son Emory, died while an inmate at Headingley Correctional Institution on February 14.

He was Ojibwa (Ahmo means bumblebee) and had close family ties to the bear and wolf clans  also the same as me.

Those are just some of the connections.

In the 1990s, Ahmo was charged with a misdemeanour and appeared in front of my father, Murray Sinclair, when he was still a judge.

Just after that, Williams mother got a job working with my mother.

Even later than that, I worked alongside his brother in the child welfare system.

In the Indigenous world, this basically makes us "cousins."

I even believe one night I met my cousin during our weekly Mama Bear Clan patrols, as part of a large group of men who shared food at the Neeginan Centre. I dont know for sure.

Heres what I do know for sure after meeting his family this week: Will was a proud son, brother, and father who raised an incredible young man who is attending the University of Manitoba.

His most important role in life was as a grandson to his grandmother Verna, who taught him about faith and how to pray. Her death in 1989 was so traumatic to him, that it led to many of the troubles he experienced throughout his life.

SUPPLIED Will Ahmo, right, with his son Emory.

He had a very hard upbringing in a community rife with sexual abuse as a result of residential schools. He witnessed rape, assaults, and much addiction as he grew up.

This led to him suffering from addictions as he tried to cope with the violence. He got into trouble with the law.

It also led to him becoming an uncle to hundreds of people who lived on the streets of Winnipeg and Ottawa.

His son told me a story about how Will got a new jacket as a gift and gave it to someone who lived on the streets the very next day.

One night, Ahmo offered a couple from Poplar River his apartment when they were stranded and broke in Winnipeg.

Almost all the time, his family said, he gave away money to people he thought needed help.

"He told me one time he was worried for our people," his mother, Darlene, explained to me, "and that I should worry about them, not him  even though I always did."

Speaking about his mother, she and I have 45 mutual friends on Facebook, but had never met until I contacted her for this column. I told her I was shocked by the number of connections I had to her son and she said this "happened all the time" with him.

"Everyone seemed to have a story about Will," she said.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES Ahmo died on Feb. 14, seven days after an incident with guards at Headingley that resulted in him being rushed to the intensive care unit at Health Sciences Centre.

Their last conversation was when Ahmo was in Headingley jail. He told her that guards treated inmates as "less than human" and then  as if knowing what was going to happen  he said to her: "If anything happens to me, Ill be OK."

"The next thing I know, hes in hospital," Darlene said, "and no officials will tell us what happened."

Ahmo died on Feb. 14, seven days after an incident with guards that resulted in him being rushed to the intensive care unit at Health Sciences Centre. As a result of COVID-19 restrictions, he couldn't have visitors.

In a statement, the family described the incident as "suspicious" and said: "We have heard disturbing reports about the behaviour of correctional officers prior to his death."

The RCMP is investigating, but the family is demanding an independent investigation and won't make further statements about the incident while they wait for more information.

They shared that Ahmo had suffered serious brain damage that required he be placed on life-support. After doctors told the family he would have no quality of life, they were permitted to visit to say goodbye.

In statement to the media, Manitoba Justice said it recognizes "any death in custody" is serious and requires an investigation but cannot comment until the RCMP concludes its investigation.

Ahmos family, in the meantime, states: "Will has been taken from us We will fight to make sure the truth comes out. We will fight to ensure that the guards who did this to Will, and the ones who failed to protect him, are held accountable for their actions and inactions, and we will fight to make sure that no other family has to go through what we are now going through."

niigaan.sinclair@freepress.mb.ca
An independent report into Belfast City Council's handling of the cremation of IRA man Bobby Storey has found no evidence the service was handled differently due to his connections to Sinn Fein (Liam McBurney/PA)

An independent report into Belfast City Council's handling of the cremation of IRA man Bobby Storey has found no evidence the service was handled differently due to his connections to Sinn Fein, the Belfast Telegraph understands.

The report, which runs to more than 100 pages, is also believed to have found no evidence of political influence on council chief executive Suzanne Wylie over the cremation.

Conducted by barrister Peter Coll, the probe investigated how Mr Storey's relatives were treated differently to eight other families whose loved ones were cremated on the same day as the IRA man on June 30 last year.

The other families were kept at the gates of Roselawn Crematorium, while up to 30 mourners were allowed inside to attend the service for Mr Storey.

On Thursday the report was presented to the families affected and council party group leaders. The report is due to be published later this afternoon.

Read More

Speaking following the meeting, Sinn Fein council group leader Ciaran Beattie said his party were effectively exonerated by the report.

"First and foremost, I want to acknowledge the grief and suffering of all the families involved and all of those who have lost loved ones during this pandemic," he said.

"In this report, Peter Coll has made it clear that there was no political interference at Roselawn Crematorium or in the operation of council's policy at the facility and I welcome that.

"There was a lot of misinformation put into the public domain which only added to the hurt and grief of all the families involved and that has been addressed in this report.

"I understand and acknowledge that this was an extremely difficult issue for council staff and workers to deal with in the face of the unprecedented challenges presented by the pandemic and hopefully the publication of this report will address the concerns raised.

"All of the families involved, including the Storey family, were put through more grief and trauma by the controversy created around this and I hope that with the publication of this report their questions will be answered, and they can now grieve in peace."

Last summer an internal council report conducted by city solicitor John Walsh found "no political intent" in the decision-making around the service.

However, the report said the decision by the council's director of city and neighbourhood services, Nigel Grimshaw, to allow up to 30 mourners to attend the Storey cremation was made in the context of managing potential issues if numbers arrived and demands for access were made.

Mr Grimshaw said it was a "mistake for which he takes responsibility" and he regretted how it affected the other families. Six months ago he retired from his council role by mutual agreement.
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Coronavirus cases have dropped to levels seen before the second wave spiralled out of control, official figures reveal today.

Test and Trace figures show 106,474 new Covid patients tested positive for the virus in England in the seven-day spell ending February 10  a 30 per cent drop week-on-week. By comparison, more than 300,000 patients were spotted during the darkest days of the crisis in January.

Weekly infections sat at around the 100,000 mark in October, when the outbreak began to spread rapidly, and during the first week of December, when England's third national lockdown was lifted.

It came as testing for the South African B.1.351 variant  which makes vaccines slightly less effective  was rolled out to yet more postcodes today, as ministers seek to stop the strain becoming established on British soil. Door-to-door testing will be rolled out in Leeds.

The promising fall in infections comes as Boris Johnson faces growing clamour for a speedier lifting of lockdown measures. The PM is set to unveil his 'roadmap' back to normality on Monday, with his 'prudent' approach set to make pubs and restaurants among the last places to reopen.

Business chiefs and politicians have demanded an accelerated timeframe to save firms from collapse, amid fears that restrictions might last for months, citing the success of the vaccine rollout and significant falls in deaths and infections. Even one of No10's scientific advisers yesterday said the data was 'pointing in the right direction' for some brutal curbs on daily freedoms to be eased soon.

But despite swathes of data showing the worst of the second wave is now behind Britain, there are still hints the decline in infections has started to slow.

Britain yesterday confirmed 12,718 new cases, which was only a tiny drop (2.3 per cent) on the week before. And a symptom-tracking app has claimed infections are rising in parts of the UK, including Scotland, Northern Ireland, Yorkshire, the North East and the East Midlands.

Any turn in the trend could be devastating now, with the Government inching closer to finally lifting lockdown for good. But doctors and scientists say they want infection and hospital numbers as close to zero as possible before draconian restrictions end.

Test and Trace data shows there were 106,474 new cases identified in the week to February 10, at the same levels as in October as the brutal lockdown drives down cases

PIMLICO PLUMBERS BOSS SAYS MOST PEOPLE 'WOULD CRAWL NAKED ACROSS SNOW FOR A COVID VACCINE' Pimlico Plumbers boss Charlie Mullins today confirmed all new starters at his 50million business would have to take a Covid jab to get a job. The outspoken owner - who is worth at least 70million - has thrashed out the new papers with his lawyers to make the booster mandatory for all new hires. And he said he doubted many would object to the new terms, adding 'people would crawl across the snow naked to get a vaccine at the moment'. His firm is exploring how it might modify existing staff contracts although he insisted no one would be forced to receive a vaccine or be fired over the issue. The 'no jab, no job' concept has attracted much debate in recent weeks, with care home operator Barchester Healthcare among the other firms which have said all new recruits must be vaccinated unless they have a medical reason not to. Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi has said it is 'up to businesses what they do', but trade union Unison has said it 'is totally unacceptable' for firms to pressure staff into taking the jab. But Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has also refused to rule out a 'no jab no job' Covid policy, telling LBC radio yesterday that it is a decision for employers. And Care Minister Helen Whately told BBC Radio 4 today that the Government's policy was to 'make sure that health and social workers can get the vaccine and have all the information they need, and can get it really easily'. Mr Mullins, 68, said: 'We've obviously been talking to our lawyers and they're very happy that we can add this proposal to any new workers that start with us once the vaccine is rolled out. Advertisement

In other developments today:

Patients and MPs urge Boris Johnson to declare 'long Covid' an 'occupational disease' and pay compensation to frontline staff;

Airline industry demands roadmap to recovery so they can plan for summer getaways;

Vaccine passports are branded 'unworkable' to help save struggling pubs and clubs because drinkers in their 20s won't get jabs until later this year;

Minister Helen Whately hints there WILL be localised restrictions to stop the spread of Covid variants when national curbs are eased;

South African Covid-19 variant could reduce protection by two thirds, says Pfizer.

Test and Trace data showed that the number of people getting swabs for the virus remained high compared to the week before, suggesting there was a fall in infections.

Almost 3million people got tested for the virus at least once, which was a drop of 4 per cent on the previous week.

As many as 191,242 close contacts of those who had the virus  which had been near infected individuals for 15 minutes or more  were identified by the system, 27 per cent fewer than the previous week.

Of these 93.6 per cent were reached by tracers and asked to self-isolate, helping to curb the spread of the disease.

The time taken to turnaround tests done at sites increased slightly, however, compared to the previous week. Eighty-five per cent got results in 24 hours, lower than the 86.3 per cent the week before.

The turnaround time for home testing kits also increased, from 34 hours to 35 hours. But the time taken to get results from satellite tests shrunk from 34 to 33 hours.

Boris Johnson had previously promised that all Britons would receive their results within 24 hours.

And Department of Health bosses today said the average distance people travel for a Covid test is now under two miles.

Surge testing was also rolled out to Leeds today, with people in the LS8 postcode, including parts of Harehills and the area just north of Easterly Road where the SA variant variant was found, being 'strongly encouraged' to take a test when offered, whether or not they have symptoms.

Announcing the expansion of surge testing, a spokesman for the Department of Health said: 'People living within this targeted area are strongly encouraged to take a Covid-19 test when offered, whether they are showing symptoms or not.

'People with symptoms should book a test in the usual way, and those without symptoms should visit their local authority website for more information'.

They added: 'Positive cases will be sequenced for genomic data to help understand Covid-19 variants and their spread within these areas.'

Earlier this week the department said targeted testing regimes would be set up in parts of Norfolk, Southampton and Woking in Surrey.

Efforts in Manchester to track down examples of the more transmissible Kent variant were also being expanded following deployment of testing teams last week.

It comes as figures today showed coronavirus infection rates have plummeted by more than two thirds since January, in proof that lockdown has worked even against the fast-spreading Kent variant of the virus.

The country's largest surveillance testing study found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January.

Results from the REACT study, led by Imperial College London and commissioned by the Government, revealed 0.51 per cent of the population had the virus between February 4 and February 13, down from 1.57 per cent.

The testing of 85,400 people during this time revealed the R rate  the average number of those infected by each person with the virus  was estimated to be 0.7, meaning the epidemic is shrinking. The figures revealed a 'marked drop' in prevalence compared to last month, and a 'reassuring level of decline'.

The country's largest surveillance testing study has found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January  the prevalence fell from 1.36 per cent to 0.44 per cent

The data shows that prevalence fell across all age groups, but research now suggests the virus is now spreading the most among primary school children and young people. Experts warn that reopening schools would need to be done 'carefully' in light of the study data, which shows Covid is most prevalent among five- to twelve-year-olds and those aged 18 to 24

The R rate of the virus  the number of people infected by each person with coronavirus  is now at its lowest point in more than six months, the Imperial College estimates suggest, at 0.72, meaning the outbreak is shrinking

The proportion of people infected with the virus, also known as the prevalence, has come down in all regions of England in the past six weeks, the study found. Darker areas have more people testing positive for coronavirus  the map on the left represents mid-January, and the map on the right mid-February

PREPARE FOR POSTCODE LOCKDOWNS, WARNS MINISTER HELEN WHATELY Minister Helen Whately today hinted postcode lockdowns will be imposed by the Government to stop the spread of dangerous coronavirus variants when national curbs are eased. The measures are said to be under consideration in Whitehall as Boris Johnson prepares to unveil his lockdown exit strategy on Monday next week. Ms Whately appeared to confirm that localised shutdowns will be part of the Government's tool chest moving forward as she said ministers had 'learnt during the summer about how to manage localised outbreaks'. Meanwhile, the Social Care Minister also delivered a boost to families as she suggested care home visiting rules could be loosened within weeks thanks to the success of the UK vaccination drive. Combatting the emergence and spread of new variants of the disease is viewed by ministers as crucial to staying out of national lockdown and to protecting the vaccine roll-out. The Government has already used door-to-door testing and a tougher stay at home message in some areas to try to eliminate variants. And it is thought the localised crackdowns will be a key part of the Government's approach in the coming months. A senior Government source told The Times: 'Clearly it is not a problem at the moment because of the existing lockdown restrictions. 'But there is a big question about what you do when lockdown does start lifting and we see variants that we have concerns about. 'It is definitely something that we're aware of that will need to be considered. But we need to work out exactly what the mechanisms are that we need to have in place.' Advertisement

The positive news will pile more pressure on Boris Johnson  who was last night facing a growing clamour for the speedier lifting of lockdown.

Amid fears that Covid restrictions might last for months, business chiefs and politicians demanded an accelerated timeframe to save firms from collapse. Also warning of the social cost of lockdown, they cited the vaccine roll-out success and significant falls in deaths and infections.

It comes after bosses from leading UK airlines today called on Boris Johnson to outline a recovery road map for the industry so they can plan for the summer, as passengers arriving from Spain and the US could be added to the 'red list'.

The chief executives of British Airways, easyJet, Jet2.com, Loganair, Ryanair, Tui and Virgin Atlantic warned that the Government should provide a clear indication of intent that aviation will restart in the coming months.

They said that without this, the UK faces a year of limited global connectivity, and the economic recovery will be hindered. Airlines also called for more economic support to stimulate and strengthen any recovery when it comes.

The firms said the Prime Minister's lockdown announcement next Monday should include a road map for airlines and consumers to help them plan for the summer and pave the way for the safe reopening of international travel.

UK health officials will decide this week if those arriving from the two countries should isolate for ten days in one of the 16 quarantine hotels approved by the Government in an effort to stop the mutant variants from spreading.

But daily Covid-19 case rates are falling in the US, down to a rolling seven-day average of 77,093 yesterday from 217,703 a month ago; and in Spain, down to 11,939 from 28,829. In the UK, they are down to 12,323 from 46,339.

Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said the decision on whether to add Spain and the US to the 'red list' will depend on how the UK Government defines 'high risk'  in terms of variants or cases.

It comes as bosses from British Airways, easyJet, Jet2.com, Loganair, Ryanair, Tui and Virgin Atlantic today called on the Prime Minister to outline a recovery road map for the industry so they can plan for the summer.

The Cabinet Covid Operations Committee will make their decision using evidence from the Joint Biosecurity Centre. It comes after analysis carried out by the World Health Organisation found dozens of countries where the highly-infectious South African and Brazilian variants had been found were not on the Government's high-risk list.

They included Austria, Denmark, France, Greece, Japan, Kenya, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada and the US. Both Spain and the US have seen new mutations of Covid-19 transmitted locally and are close to South America and Portugal, which are both already on the UK Government's 'red list'.
India stood up Chinas disruptive use of technology and my way or no way attitude: CDS

India-China came close to war last year: Northern Command chief

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Feb 18: India and China came close to a full fledged conflict last year during the jostling between rival soldiers for Laddakh's Kailash Range heights towards the end of August 2020, Northern Command Chief Lt. General Y K Joshi said.

"We were on the edge, absolutely on the brink, war was actually averted", he said. On the number of Chinese soldiers killed during the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15 last year, he said that it could be as high as 45.

Rapid disengagement at LAC as Chinese dismantle tents, move back armoured vehicles

Speaking to CNN-News 18, he said that there were situations after Indian troops surprised the PLA by occupying the Kailash Range heights to the south of Pangong Tso on August 29-30 and even moved up tanks there, which could have blown up into an armed conflict.

Those were very tense and challenging moments for us, he said even as the disengagement process in the Pangong Lake area is underway.

For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications

Story first published: Thursday, February 18, 2021, 14:15 [IST]
Narayanpur : , Feb 18 (IANS) Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday had lunch at the home of a refugee family in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas, a few days after announcing on the campaign trail that the Centre will roll out the contentious Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) after the Coronavirus pandemic.

During his visit to the state to flag off the BJP's yatra, Shah had lunch at the residence of Subrata Biswas, a refugee from Bangladesh.

"Had lunch at Subrata Biswasji's home in Narayanpur village, South 24 Parganas (West Bengal). I thank Biswasji and his family from the bottom of my heart for such warmth and hospitality," Shah tweeted.

A BJP leader said that ancestors of Biswas arrived in West Bengal from East Pakistan, now known as Bangladesh and have been living in poverty ever since.

Earlier this month, Shah had announced that the process of giving citizenship under the CAA would begin as soon as the Covid-19 vaccination drive ends.

The raking of the CAA issue regularly by the BJP and especially by Shah has all set to polarise the upcoming polls in the state and the party believes it will help in consolidating the votes of those who are against illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.

BJP's raking up the CAA issue in the state has criticism from its political rivals. "Shah's decision to have lunch with a refugee family whose ancestors moved to West Bengal from Bangladesh will clear doubts about its implementation in our rivals' minds. The BJP is committed to implement CAA and it will do it in the future," said a party leader.

A BJP leader said that today's lunch with refugee family establishes the party's commitment to give citizenship under the new law. "The Home Minister having lunch at a refugee family shows that the government is concerned about their plight and will address it the coming days despite opposition from political rivals," he said.
With petrol prices crossing Rs 100 in Rajasthan's Sri Ganganagar, people in border areas are rushing to neighboring Punjab to buy the fuel, where it's Rs 10 cheaper.

A number of people, from truck and taxi drivers to commuters from Rajasthan's Sri Ganganagar, drive to Punjab's Abohar for cheaper fuel.

Sri Ganganagar, a bordering district of Rajasthan, which touches Pakistan on one side, has Punjab as its neighbour on the other.

The huge surge in fuel prices has created a complication for petrol pump dealers in Sri Ganganagar. The petrol prices in the district cost Rs 100.7 per litre, with the premium variety costs over Rs 103. In comparison, petrol in Punjab's Abohar was being sold at a rate of Rs 91.15 per litre on Wednesday.

The rate of diesel in Sri Ganganagar on Wednesday was Rs 92.7 per litre while it was Rs 82.22 per litre in Abohar.

Abohar is only a 5 kilometres drive from Sri Ganganagar.

Everyday scores of people drive down to Abohar solely for the purpose of getting their petrol and diesel tanks filled.

Petrol and diesel pump dealers in Sri Ganganagar rue the fact that they have been losing out on business as people drive to Abohar to save money spent on fuel prices.

Also read: PM Modi calls for lower import dependence as petrol prices touch Rs 100

Also read: 'Sensitive, not for disclosure': 35 out of 4 lakh sellers on Amazon sold two-thirds of total goods
Aitkin County sheriffs arrest "water protectors" during a protest at the construction site of the Line 3 oil pipeline near Palisade, Minn., on Jan. 9, 2021. (Kerem Yucel/AFP via Getty Images)

Texas Power Crisis Puts Keystone XL Cancellation in Perspective

Rolling blackouts in Texas have put the importance of oil pipelines into perspective, business executives say.

Ryan Palazzo, a former chief operating officer of a pipeline construction company and a resident of Houston, received text messages on Feb. 15 about rolling blackouts to protect the states electricity grid, which was strained by a massive winter storm that brought record-low temperatures and heavy snow. Millions have been affected since.

Its not because theres not enough natural gas. Its because of the switch to renewables. Theyre not able to, in the short term, keep the grid stable. Its unfortunate, but energy is essential to everything that we do, said Palazzo, who was laid off in November, right after the election.

Following the cancellation of the Atlantic Coast natural gas pipeline in July 2020, the owner of his company had a strong sense that the Keystone XL (KXL) project would be canceled as well and decided to downsize, according to Palazzo.

Bidens executive order revoking the KXL permit was obviously targeting a certain industry without real basis, Palazzo said. In fact, a political rather than a logical move, contrary to life here in America.

Ryan Palazzo, a pipeline operations executive with 30 years of experience in the industry, speaks with The Epoch Times via video link. (Screenshot via The Epoch Times)

Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) data show that Texas has consistently increased electricity generation by wind farms, to 25 percent of total electricity capacity in January 2021 from 3 percent in 2007. Last year was the first that renewable sources generated more electricity than coal in Texas.

This record cold is not only compelling customers to increase their power usage to stay warm; its also icing wind turbines and straining our natural-gas powered resources, Commissioner Arthur DAndrea of the Public Utility Commission of Texas said in a statement calling for energy conservation on Feb. 14.

Theres no magic or silver bullet when it comes to energy, Palazzo said. Renewable energy, in particular wind and solar, is intermittent. A solar power plant uses 100 times the amount of land as a traditional power plant, while a wind power plant requires up to 1,000 times more. They also need rare-earth metal components, which take a significant amount of mining.

The [pipeline] spills are very, very, very rare. I think the public has just not been educated and honestly, havent taken the time to learn the facts about the renewables and what we do in the oil and gas, Palazzo said.

In addition to KXL, Canadian company Enbridges pipelines, known as Line 5 and Line 3, also face protests and lawsuits. Line 5 passes the Straits of Mackinac, connecting Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. Environmental organizations are urging the Biden administration to cancel Line 3, arguing that it is another KXL. Both KXL and Line 3 are oil-sands pipelines.

Line 5 in Michigan doesnt just deliver products from Canada to Canada through Michigan. Also, 65 [percent] of the propane in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan comes from Line 5. Texas is having a cold wave. Imagine what it feels like in Michigan today. So, its a very serious issue, said Maryscott Greenwood, CEO of the CanadianAmerican Business Council, at a forum organized by the Macdonald-Laurier Institute on Feb. 16.

Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) data show that Texas has consistently increased electricity generation by wind farms, to 25 percent of total electricity capacity in January 2021 from 3 percent in 2007. (Source: ERCOT)

Financial Challenges

These are challenging days for Josh Williams, a pipeliner with 20 years in the industry. Union pipeliners have to keep working hours at a certain level to qualify for a benefits package that includes health insurance and 401(k) retirement accounts.

I lost my insurance six months ago, he told The Epoch Times.

He said that his local union has a first-in and first-out job coordination system. Williams shared a union document showing that as of Feb. 12, 1,768 welders, 257 journeymen, and 1,990 helpers are on the wheel, indicating that many people are currently out of a job and looking for one. If a person is at 1,001 on the list, he will need to wait for the first 1,000 to get jobs before its his turn. Therefore, the outlook to clear the bar appears bleak.

Some jobs require pipeliners to cover the cost of travel to the job site before they start earning an income. Williams said that he also knew friends who had to choose between nice Christmas gifts for their kids versus spending the money to travel to a job. Some decided to stay home; others chose to sacrifice Christmas to get to another job.

Disappointment With Union

Williams expressed disappointment with the United Association (UA), the parent labor union of which his local is an affiliate. He said that the UA endorsed candidate Joe Biden during the election and sent members letters urging them to vote for him.

You cant vote for somebody thats going to shut your work down. You just cant do that. Nobody in their right minds will do that, he said.

For some, the reality didnt set in until the first week of the Biden administration, according to Williams. He said that some were confused by mixed messages on the Keystone XL pipeline and fracking during the election and thought Biden would back unions because unions donate a lot of money to his campaign.

On Feb. 16, Gary Doer, a former Canadian ambassador to the United States, said at a forum organized by the Ottawa-based Macdonald-Laurier Institute that Biden committed to canceling KXL during the primary season, while trying to secure the nomination.

I do think its unfortunate that the building trade delegates in the Democratic Party werent able to have as much power at the time in May of last year than the environmental lobbyists, particularly with the threat of [Sen. Bernie] Sanders still staying in the race, he told The Epoch Times.

He said Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should focus on protecting Line 5 and Line 3.

A local political action committee to get signatures to petition governors and organizations worked, but not as well as it should have, Williams said.

On Feb. 8, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed an executive order to protect the states oil and gas industry against federal overreach and dismissal of Oklahomas constitutional ability to properly determine how to best develop its own natural resources.

As a resident of Poteau, Oklahoma, Williams welcomed his governors action.

The governors executive order pretty much told the administration: Stay out of Oklahomas gas and oil industry business. It supports thousands and thousands of families just in Oklahoma, he said.

Way of Life Under Attack

He [Biden] was attacking our profession, our industry, our lives, everything, Williams told The Epoch Times.

The big thing for me is the camaraderie, the family atmosphere, the brothers. Its a brotherhood; its a sisterhood.

The big thing on every job is when youre away from your family, your immediate family, this is our family away from home. You build a lot of relationships; you get to meet new people. When I go to these jobs and projects, I try to find these guys names and become friends with them. And we all have the same interests at heart, every one of us.

Not having this is taking away his way of life, he said.

Palazzo, whos overseen 3,500 miles of various pipelines over his career, knows that the pipeliners have a demanding job, often working 60 hours a week. Yet, they still find time to help local charities.

A lot of times, they dont even ask corporate. They would take care of it themselves, he said.

He recalled that in Ohio when COVID-19 first hit, pipeliners organized food drives for the elderly, and donated N95 masks to local medical facilities. They also prepared food for local first responders and medical personnel to stop by and pick up, all on the pipeliners own initiative.

The goal is always when you go in and do a project, you want to be a good neighbor, you respect the community and try to make it a better place while you are there, he said.
Dehradun (Uttarakhand): Amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Uttarakhand government has decided to limit the Kumbh Mela 2021 for 30 just days.

According to Chief Secretary Om Prakash, the state government took the decision to prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection. A notice wil be issued in this regard by the end of March stating that Kumbh Mela 2021 will be held for just 30 days beginning April 1 to April 30.

The state government fears that the Kumbh Mela become a hot spot of the virus and hence the duration of the mela has been reduced.

Earlier, the Haridwar District Magistrate C Ravishankar said that pilgrims will need passes to attend Kumbh.

"Pilgrims will need passes for Kumbh and the passes will be issued only after submission of a negative RT-PCR test report, medical certificate, and identification proof. Those without passes will be denied entry," said Ravishankar.

He also informed that the district administration has demanded 70,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the personnel posted on duty to ensure their safety. The Kumbh administration has also put cameras at the Ganga Ghats to monitor the crowd.

The Maha Kumbh is celebrated in a cycle of 12 years at four river-bank pilgrimage sites across India. The fair will conclude in the last week of April.
Durians falling from trees are collected in nets on a farm in Malaysia, where a long lockdown has slowed domestic demand and left traders more reliant on China's appetite for the world's smelliest fruit.

Grown across tropical Southeast Asia, fans love the "king of fruits" for its bittersweet flavours and creamy texture although critics compare its odour to rotting garbage, and it is banned from many hotels and on public transport.

A first lockdown in Malaysia did not do too much damage to demand but a serious Covid-19 resurgence has prompted authorities to re-impose curbs for a longer period, hitting the economy again and hammering the durian industry.

With the roadside stalls where people usually eat the fruits largely empty of customers, sales have plummeted.

"Compared to last year, the local sales are not as good," Eric Chan, a trader and managing director of Dulai Fruits Enterprise, told AFP.

On the farm in Raub, outside Kuala Lumpur, some of the precious fruits are caught in nets stretched out under trees to ensure they don't suffer any damage.

Many are destined for China, where the virus emerged but which has largely tamed its outbreak and is once again recording economic growth.

"If there are no exports, or when there is no stock for the export, I think (such a scenario) will collapse the whole industry," said Top Fruits managing director Tan Sue Sian.

The trade in durians has exploded over the past decade, largely driven by China's growing appetite, with prices of the once cheap fruit selling for 60 ringgit ($14) or more a kilo.

The fruit was once exported to China only as pulp and paste but in 2019 officials there allowed the shipment of frozen whole fruits, in a further boost to the industry.

Durians can be found in Malaysia at all times of the year, though the fruit has bumper harvests at certain times.

pl/sr/dan
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that the the 9/11-style commission to probe the January 6th Capitol riot will have subpoena power  giving it the ability to force testimony and documents and testimony from any reluctant individuals.

'It will have subpoena power,' Pelosi told reporters in the Capitol Thursday, days after informing colleagues that she is going ahead with legislation to probe the MAGA riot.

The power is could be critical to prying information from lawmakers who may have first-hand knowledge of key events during, before, and after the Jan. 6th riot.

Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy's phone call with President Donald Trump amid the riot by Trump's supporters already featured in Trump's Senate impeachment trial.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has told colleagues there will be a 9/11 style commission on the Jan. 6 MAGA riot. She said Thursday it will have subpoena power

Subpoena power can allow the commission once constituted to demand documents from the administration related to deployment of the National Guard, from D.C. Police and the Pentagon about the emergency response, as well as from Capitol Police and federal law enforcement about what they know about the perpetrators.

Even when a subpoena is not issued, the threat of a potential subpoena can encourage compliance with requests for information.

A group of Democratic lawmakers wrote Capitol Police officials requesting information on Republican lawmakers they said appeared to providing Capitol 'reconnaissance' tours to groups on Jan. 5th, the day before the riot. That is also the type of information a MAGA riot commission could choose to pursue.

'I do not know what members they are referencing,' Pelosi said Thursday when asked for the names of the lawmakers.

McCarthy himself has called for a 9/11-style commission.

'It is our responsibility to understand the security and intelligence breakdowns that led to the riots on January 6 so that we can better protect this institution and the men and women working inside it,' he told The Dispatch. 'A commission should follow the guidance of Tom Kean and Lee Hamilton to be both independent and bipartisan, and to preserve that integrity it must be evenly split between both parties.'

The commission that will probe the Capitol riot will have subpoena power to obtain documents and testimony

That panel featured 10 members, with the minority and majority in both chambers each getting to select two members.

McCarthy was reportedly furious with Trump the day of the riot. He since took a trip to Mar-a-Lago to meet with the former president, as did Minority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana, Politicao reported Thursday.

The McCarthy call while the riot raged appeared to show Trump siding with the rioters over McCarthy, according to a statement by Rep. Jamie Herrera Beutler.

The House Democratic impeachment managers elected not to call witnesses in the Trump impeachment trial, but they did leave the start of a trail for the fact-finding commission, which requires legislation to be established and receive funding.

The Sept. 11th Commission, which Pelosi is consulting as the basis for what will be created, had broad subpoena power to obtain testimony and documents, and used it on at least one occasion to pry loose information from the Federal Aviation Administration.

'If you are an official at any level of the government  reading 70 percent want a full accounting and youre in a job that in any way reports to the public, [if] youre not cooperating it does look bad,' said Al Felzenberg, who served as a spokesman for the Sept. 11th commission.

The commission will be able to pick up on evidence introduced at the Senate impeachment trial of Donald Trump's call with Rep. Kevin McCarthy. Managers did not interview McCarthy about the matter

A 9/11-style commission will probe the Jan. 6 Capitol riot

'If you have nothing to hide theres no reason no to testify,' he told DailyMail.com.

'Who they were and why they were there and what kind of preparation they made in their own communities would be something Id want to know. 'What happened?. How many people? How did they get there? Where did they come from?'

'Clearly one of the motives of the people who got into the building was to stop the tally. you cant have that in a democracy. You cant have attempted coups like that,' he said.

Leadership sources told The Hill the bill creating a commission would likely come up this week.

The 9/11 panel was led by a presidential appointee, with House and Senate leaders choosing its members. A challenge will be maintaining enough bipartisan cooperation to have it be effective  following a riot that featured a major party schism over the impeachment that followed.

In a statement after the conclusion of the impeachment trial, where Trump was acquitted 57 to 43, Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin said what happened was not an armed insurrection, while Minority Leader Mitch McConnell denounced Trump only to have the president fire back at his former partner as a 'political hack.'

The panel 'will look at the facts related to the Jan. 6 domestic terror attack. Certainly the president doing nothing to stop the attack, even after the urging of the Republican House leader, would be a relevant part of the inquiry,' said Rep. Ted Lieu of California, who served as an impeachment manager.

McCarthy, as minority leader, could get to appoint members to the commission under the 9/11 model. He called for its creation early, saying 'It is our responsibility to understand the security and intelligence breakdowns that led to the riots on January 6.'

Former Chair Thomas Kean (L) and former Vice Chair Lee Hamilton (R) of the 9/11 Commission testify before National Security, Emerging Threats, and International Relations Subcommittee of the House Government Reform Committee during a hearing June 6, 2006 on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC. The commission had subpoena power

According to a CNN account of his call with Trump, McCarthy was furious with the president, telling him: 'Who the f*** do you think you're talking to?'

Rep. Herrera Beutler said McCarthy told her about the call after it happened. 'When McCarthy finally reached the president on January 6 and asked him to publicly and forcefully call off the riot, the president initially repeated the falsehood that it was antifa that had breached the Capitol, she said in a a statement introduced at trial.

'McCarthy refuted that and told the president that these were Trump supporters. Thats when, according to McCarthy, the president said: Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.

Pelosi referenced the commission in a letter to colleagues Monday, where she also wrote about impeachment and a Capitol security review. 'It is clear from his findings and from the impeachment trial that we must get to the truth of how this happened,' she said.

Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton each testified before the Sept. 11th commission, both doing so in private rather than in open session.

chief Antonio Guterres on Wednesday (local time) slammed the "wildly uneven and unfair" distribution of vaccines and said that only 10 countries have administered 75 per cent of all vaccinations and demanding a global effort to get all people in every nation inoculated as soon as possible.

According to a report by Al Jazeera, Guterres, while addressing a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council, said 130 countries have not received a single dose of vaccine.

"At this critical moment, vaccine equity is the biggest moral test before the global community," he said.

The UN chief called for an urgent 'Global Vaccination Plan' to bring together those with the power to ensure fair vaccine distribution - scientists, vaccine producers and those who can fund the effort - to ensure all people in every nation get inoculated as soon as possible, Al Jazeera reported.

He urged the leading economic members of G20 to establish an emergency task force to bring together "the pharmaceutical companies and key industry and logistics actors".

Earlier on Wednesday, US State Department Secretary Antony Blinken at the Security Council (UNSC) had emphasised the need to expand access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines.

He also urged the countries to not allow "usage of the vaccine as an excuse to violate human rights or fundamental freedoms".

"To better understand this pandemic and prepare for the next one, all countries must make available all data from the earliest days of any outbreak. And going forward, all countries should participate in a transparent and robust process for preventing and responding to health emergencies, so the world learns as much as possible as soon as possible. Transparency, information sharing, access for international experts - these must be the hallmarks of our common approach to what is truly a global challenge," he added.

(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.)
Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
A woman who targeted a charity shop as part of a stealing spree in Belfast city centre has been jailed for six months.

Ann McClorey took jewellery, clothes, handbags, cosmetics and children's shoes from four stores targeted on the same day.

The 42-year-old also stole KitKat chocolate bars and tins of rum in separate raids.

McClorey, with an address at Waring Street in the city, admitted five counts of theft, burglary and possessing a Class C drug.

Belfast Magistrates' Court heard she was detained at an Oxfam shop on July 31 last year.

Goods valued at 55 had been stolen from the store.

Prosecutors said she had targeted branches of Monsoon at Victoria Square, Boots in the CastleCourt shopping centre, and TK Maxx at Donegall Arcade earlier that day.

More than 230 worth of stock was taken in total.

In November last year McClorey was arrested again following a further spate of shoplifting.

She stole four KitKats valued at 3.60 from Centra on Donegall Square West.

When detained later at a bus station the chocolate bars were located beside her.

The burglary involved defying an exclusion order to enter at Tesco Express on Royal Avenue, where she stole five tins of Captain Morgan Spiced Rum.

During later searches a Pregabalin tablet was discovered in a bag located in her bra.

A Crown lawyer told the court: "She said she didn't remember what had happened as she was off her head."

Defence barrister Turlough Madden argued that his client was not shoplifting to sell on the stolen goods.

"She resides in hostel accommodation and leads an isolated lifestyle," he said.

"It doesn't appear that she gained anything from this type of shoplifting."

But Judge Liam McStay held: "The spree in Belfast city centre could hardly be passed off as an opportunistic crime."

Citing McClorey's previous record of 27 thefts, he imposed a total sentence of six months custody.
WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Krispy Kreme, the home of the Original Glazed Doughnut, is running a one-day-only 'The Mars Doughnut' promotion on Thursday to commemorate the day NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover makes a monumental landing on Mars. Krispy Kreme will celebrate the occasion with delicious special edition 'Mars doughnut' that will be available at its shops across the U.S and Canada on February 18, 2021, the day when the Rover makes its final descent on the Red Planet. The Mars Doughnut looks like the red planet and will be a chocolate kreme-filled doughnut dipped in caramel icing with a red planet swirl and sprinkled with chocolate cookie crumbs. The Mars Doughnut will only be available on Thursday. This limited-edition doughnut is available in shops and online for one day only and is now open for orders. Doughnut fans can also order a limited-edition Mars dozen, which is a balance of six iconic Original Glazed doughnuts and six Mars doughnuts. Further, Krispy Kreme is giving out a free Mars Doughnut to all those who were selected in NASA's 'Send Your Name to Mars' program. They are asked to bring along the boarding pass from the Mars 2020 Mission and issued through NASA. NASA's Mars Perseverance Rover will land inside Mars' Jezero Crater after a journey of seven months covering 293 miles. The car-sized rover's seven-minute entry into Mars' ultra-thin atmosphere will begin at 3:48 p.m. EST on Thursday. The Perseverance Rover was launched on July 30 aboard the Atlas V-541 rocket from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida as part of the Mars 2020 Mission. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Prime Minister Hun Sen and his government issue a decree to better manage the flow of news and network traffic, ostensibly to protect the countrys traditions, morals and national security. In reality, the goal is to manage and repress dissent. For activists, the decree threatens more and more people.

Phnom Penh (AsiaNews/Agencies)  Beijing is providing Cambodia more than economic aid, as the South-East Asian nation adopts its model of information control to suppress all forms of dissent on the Internet, blocking topics and news at the source.

Prime Minister Hun Sen and his government have issued a decree to manage online traffic and news information, ostensibly to protect national security and maintain order.

Human rights groups and other NGOs warn that this will have a negative impact on privacy, freedom of speech, and the protection of personal data.

The main element of the governments decree is a China-style Internet gateway designed to control and monitor the Internet.

The 11-page decree announced on Wednesday seeks to control internet connections to help maintain Cambodias social order.

The gateways operator will support the authorities with measures to prevent and disconnect all network connections that affect national income, security, social order, morality, culture, traditions and customs.

Prime Minister Hun Sen and his government have been criticised abroad recently for their campaign of repression against the opposition, which has strengthened the ruling partys power monopoly and left its rivals facing charges and trials.

Cambodias gateway, analysts and experts say, is similar to that of China, its main ally in the Asia-Pacific region. Increasingly, Cambodias relationship with the Asian giant is overtaking that with the United States and the European Union.

Economic ties trump rights and freedoms with the novel coronavirus favouring greater state monitoring at the expense of privacy.

With respect to COVID-19, Hun Sen did his utmost at the start of the pandemic, when its scope was not yet clear, to maintain the friendship with Beijing, despite the dangers to public health.

With the new law, service providers will have to provide the correct identity of users, and could lose their operating licence and have their bank accounts frozen if they fail to do so.

Chak Sopheap, executive director of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights, said the law had implications for free speech, privacy, data protection and public information, and Cambodias legal framework offered little protection for digital freedoms.

The last few years have seen a sharp increase in the number of citizens being threatened, harassed and even prosecuted for their use of the Internet and for exercising their right to free speech, he said.

A copy of the Brattleboro Reformer stating that public schools are closed in Vermont rests outside of the Bellows Falls Middle School on Monday, March 16, 2020.
Minister for Education Norma Foley pictured at the Dept of Education in Dublin.(Photo: Frank McGrath)

Students could be banned from sitting state exams if their parents lobby teachers on calculated grades for the Leaving Cert, Education Minister Norma Foley said today.

Minister Foley said her department is looking at legislation to be brought in to sanction students whose parents participate in lobbying. It will also protect teachers from being sued over grades.

We are looking to bring in legislation to prevent the canvassing of teachers and also to confirm that teachers will be indemnified in the process as well as they were last year, the minister said on RTE Radio Ones Claire Byrne Show.

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It should not happen, its not acceptable and we will do all we can to ensure that it wont happen.

When asked if criminal sanctions will face students or their parents, Minister Foley said no, but it will be considered an offence.

We want to bring in legislation to prevent the canvassing of teachers and there will be sanctions for that, she said.

What's currently being worked through, I suppose in terms of sanctions that are already in existence. is where students can be barred from a particular exam or from a state exam.

When asked if its fair to punish students for the actions of their parents, Minister Foley replied: Consideration will have to be given by parents not to interfere with the professionals, the teachers.

"Ive every confidence that they wouldnt do that.

Under the Leaving Cert plan announced yesterday, students can opt to receive a version of calculated grades and also to sit traditional exams, which will begin on June 9.

Students must decide whether to sit the written papers without knowing their calculated grades and the results of both will be issued around the same time.

If they choose to sit the exams, and there is a difference in the grades awarded for one or more subjects, they will get the higher grade for each of those subjects.

The Leaving Certificate 2021 timetable was published today.
"Happy Endings" star Adam Pally is looking for a satisfying conclusion to placing his New York City home on the market. The five-bedroom abode with panoramic views is available for $4,095,000.

The actor paid $3.2 million for the luxury apartment in 2017. Featuring five bedrooms and three bathrooms, the meticulously and thoughtfully renovated residence on a high floor offers gracious entertaining and comfortable living, according to the listing.

Upon entry, the foyer leads to the corner living and dining space. Along with views, the living area features a wood-burning fireplace, an eye-catching gold-tone light fixture, and custom built-ins. Herringbone-pattern wood floors run through the main living space.

A chef's eat-in kitchen includes Miele and Sub-Zero appliances, a wine cooler, built-in coffee maker, double ovens, and a large pantry.

Set apart, the two bedroom wings offer maximum privacy and a flexible layout. A new owner could opt to convert some of the rooms to office or study spaces. The primary bedroom comes with an en suite marble bath, four closets, and city views.

Details include high-beamed ceilings, prewar accents, walnut flooring, custom built-ins, and plentiful closets.

Located in the London Terrace Towers in the Chelsea neighborhood, the building was designed in 1930 by Farrar & Watmaugh. The apartment complex encompasses an entire city block, with four corner buildings and around 710 apartments, both for rent and purchase.

The high-rise, minutes from the High Line elevated park, has been home to many notable residents, including Bill Hader, Chelsea Clinton, and Tim Gunn of "Project Runway."

Amenities include full-time door attendants, a rooftop terrace, indoor pool, fitness center, on-site garage, bike storage, basement laundry, and resident manager.

Previously, Pally and his wife, Daniella Liben Pally, owned a home in the Fairfax area of Los Angeles, which they sold in 2013 for $1.62 million, according to the Los Angeles Times. Listed for $1.7 million, the Spanish-style home from 1927 featured 2,400 square feet of living space, including three bedrooms, an office, fireplace, dining room, and French doors leading out to a pool.

The New York native has brought his brand of humor in shows such as Happy Endings, The Mindy Project, and Making History. Pallys numerous film appearances include Iron Man 3 and Band Aid. He had a voice role in Sonic the Hedgehog.

Curtis W. Jackson with Brown Harris Stevens holds the listing.

The post Actor Adam Pally Selling Posh Pad in NYC's Chelsea Neighborhood for $4.1M appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 01:43:42|Editor: huaxia

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ANKARA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation, the Communication Directorate of the Turkish Presidency said on Thursday.

The two leaders discussed steps to develop relations between Turkey and Russia, along with regional issues, the presidency said in a written statement.

The Turkish leader told Putin that experts from Turkey and Russia could meet with their Azerbaijani counterparts to make the road and railway lines in Nagorno-Karabakh, as part of the ceasefire deal, more efficient.

Erdogan noted that the Turkish-Russian Joint Center in Aghdam province has successfully fulfilled its task of monitoring and controlling the ceasefire, according to the statement. The Turkish leader emphasized that joint efforts should be made in all issues to preserve the ceasefire.

Resolving the Syrian crises is a common interest of the two countries, Erdogan said. He also said the opportunity for peace and stability in Libya should not be wasted.

A joint Turkish-Russian observation center to monitor the cease-fire in Nagorno-Karabakh began operating on Jan. 30.

On Nov. 10, 2020, Armenia and Azerbaijan ended a 44-day Nagorno-Karabakh conflict after a cease-fire was reached under the mediation of Russia. Enditem
DETROIT -- A search and rescue mission conducted on the Detroit River Wednesday is unlikely to be successful according to police after a man fell through the ice on the Detroit River. According to the Associated Press, the man was on the ice with others when he began jumping up and down.

The man then fell through the ice around 5 p.m. and rescue crews have been unable to find him since.

U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Jeremiah Schiessel said a successful rescue is not likely as crews suspended their search overnight.

Its not looking like this will have a good outcome, Schiessel said.

The Coast Guard was unable to get to the spot where the man fell in because the ice was too thin. The Coast Guard is expected to make a decision Thursday on if the rescue attempt will start again.

The identity of the man is currently unknown.

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State-run Oil India (OIL) and Engineers India (EIL) will jointly bid for acquiring Bharat Petroleum Corporation 's (BPCL) 61.65% stake in Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL), the companies said today.

The bid will be submitted through a formal process.

The Assam government will increase its stake to 26%, while Engineers India Ltd will be a new shareholder with a minority stake, and the refinery will become a subsidiary of Oil India which currently holds 26% stake in the refinery.

"The exact percentage of the stake of OIL and EIL will depend on the extent of Right of First Offer (ROFO) to be exercised by Government of Assam which already holds 12.35% stakes in NRL," said an OIL statement.

NRL is the largest customer of OIL's crude produced from its North Eastern fields.

"The acquisition is expected to improve the synergy in OIL's portfolio," the company said.

The deal is likely to happen by March, N. Vijayagopal, director, finance, BPCL had said on 9 February.

The sale of BPCL is key in achieving government's 1.75 lakh crore disinvestment target set for the upcoming financial year.

Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta Group and private equity players like Apollo Global, and I Squared Capital have expressed their interests in BPCL.

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All international travellers coming/transiting from flights originating from the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East will be required to declare their travel history of past 14 days, the Central government said in its standard operating procedure (SOP) on Wednesday.

According to the guidelines issued by the Centre for international arrivals, from February 23, the passengers will have to submit a self-declaration form (SDF) for COVID on the online Air Suvidha portal before the scheduled travel.

Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, India is following point-of-entry procedures for identifying international travellers, particularly at-risk travellers to India through multi-pronged strategy of thermal screening and testing.

All the travellers arriving from/transiting through flights originating in United Kingdom, Europe or the Middle East will be mandatorily subjected to self-paid confirmatory molecular tests on arrival at the Indian airports concerned, the guidelines stated.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) in consultation with the Ministry of Civil Aviation has reviewed the situation with regard to point-of-entry actions required to minimise the risk of importation of mutant strains of

While filling SDF the passengers will need to select whether they plan to disembark at the arrival airport or take further flights to reach their final destination in India.

The government said that keeping in mind the testing requirements for passengers from UK, Brazil and South Africa, who have to take connecting flights, airlines should keep the passengers informed about the need for the transit time of a minimum of 6-8 hours at the entry airport (in India) while booking the tickets for connecting flights.

"All the passengers arriving from the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East shall be carrying negative RT-PCR Test report for which test should have been conducted within 72 hours prior to undertaking the journey. The same also shall be uploaded on the online portal (www.newdelhiairport.in). Airlines to allow boarding only those passengers who have filled in the SDF on the Air Suvidha portal and uploaded the negative RT-PCR test report," the statement said.

The airlines will need to identify the international travellers arriving from/transiting through the United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa (during past 14 days) and segregate them in-flight or while disembarking to facilitate the authorities to follow the due protocol in respect of these travellers.

Travellers from Brazil, South Africa and the United Kingdom, testing positive (either at the airport or subsequently during home quarantine period or their contacts who turn positive) will be isolated in an institutional isolation facility in a separate (isolation) unit coordinated by the respective state health authorities.

(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.)
Few drivers commented during two public hearings Wednesday about two proposed toll increases on the eight Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission spans between New Jersey and Pennsylvania that were driven by a $14.5 million revenue loss.

A proposed $2 increase in cash and toll-by-plate concerned Jeff Laurenti, of Trenton, who called it a super hit on low-income workers who travel between the two states for work the hardest. That rate is now $1.

My concern is about equity and poor workers who dont have the means for an E-ZPass account, they will be hit with $3, he said. Conversion to E-ZPass isnt possible for workers at the bottom of the ladder.

Laurenti asked commissioners to reconsider that increase.

We should not punish the poor for not being rich enough to afford E-ZPass, he said.

The only other comment was made during the morning hearing by John Oliphant, of Fairfax, Virginia, who was concerned about privacy issues with the toll by license plate feature.

Drivers will have one more opportunity to comment online between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., Thursday. After pre-registered attendees comment, the hearing will be open to anyone listening on the Zoom call who wants to voice an opinion.

Drivers can use this link to join the Zoom meeting from a computer or smartphone or can call the numbers listed on the commission website, here. They also can leave a comment on a form on the website until 4 p.m., Friday, Feb. 26.

Before the hearings, commission officials detailed how badly the coronavirus pandemic cut into the agencies revenue after traffic dropped as people worked from home and traveled less.

In April in one week, we saw a 50% drop in toll revenues, that was a $1 million loss, said Joseph Resta, DRJTBC executive director in a video presentation.

While traffic and revenue recovered from late May on, commission toll revenue never returned to pre pandemic levels, he said. Similar to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the DRJTBC was unsuccessful in effort to secure federal CARES act grants to cover toll revenue losses

Traffic and revenue losses have continued into 2021, with toll collections in the first six weeks of the year falling short of projections, Resta said.

Any deferral or delay would necessitate steeper toll increases, he said.

The Commission also has to use toll revenues to support 12 other free bridges between the two states thats the DRJTBC is barred from putting tolls on.

We are the only bi-state toll agency with such a mandate, Resta said.

Proposed 2021 rate changes would raise the $1 E-ZPass toll for Class 1 passenger vehicles (two axles and less than 8 feet high) by 25 cents to $1.25. That class includes cars, SUVs and light trucks. The current $1 cash toll for Class 1 passenger vehicles would be increased by $2 to $3.

Those rates are for the seven Commission toll bridges that accept E-ZPass and cash toll payment: the Trenton-Morrisville (Route 1), New Hope-Lambertville (Route 202), Interstate 78, Easton-Phillipsburg (Route 22), Portland-Columbia (Routes 611, 46, and 94), Delaware Water Gap (I-80), and Milford-Montague (Route 206) bridges.

The existing $1 surcharge for Class 1 vehicles with a bumper-hitch trailer in tow would increase by $1, to a $2 toll, in addition to the tow vehicle toll.

Drivers using the Scudder Falls (Interstate 295) Toll Bridge, which opened in July 2019 will see less of an impact. The current $1.25 E-ZPass toll for Class 1 passenger vehicles will not increase. The toll-by-plate rate for Class 1 vehicles will increase to $3 from the current $2.60.

Drivers who use E-ZPass will see either a reduction or elimination of those discounts at all eight toll bridges under the proposed 2021 toll increase. By 2024, all E-ZPass discounts will be eliminated. E-ZPass customers will pay half the cost of toll by license plate customers.

The proposed increase would be implemented on April 3, if approved by the board of commissioners at a March 29 meeting.

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Larry Higgs may be reached at lhiggs@njadvancemedia.com.
LISBON (dpa-AFX) - Portugal's producer prices continued to decline in January, figures from Statistics Portugal showed on Thursday. The producer price index decreased 3.0 percent year-on-year in January, after a 4.0 percent decline in December. Excluding the energy group, producer prices remained unchanged in January, after a 0.7 percent fall in the previous month. Prices for energy declined 14.5 percent annually in January and those of intermediate goods decreased 0.4 percent. Meanwhile, prices for investment goods gained 1.2 percent. On a month-on-month basis, producer prices increased 2.2 percent in January, following a 0.1 percent rise in the prior month. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX

Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann.
Information Minister Designate Kojo Oppong Nkrumah has provided a detailed update on the progress of the Right to Information (RTI) since it was passed into law in March 2019. According to him, 455 out of 526 RTI officers have been trained to occupy Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as part of a continuous effort to equip officers to make the implementation of the RTI successful and to ensure efficient compliance of the law by public institutions.



Taking his turn at the Appointments Committee on Thursday, February 2021, the Ofoase Ayirebi legislator emphasized that the training of the RTI officers was meant to educate them on the RTI Act 989 in order to equip them on the legalities of the law and how they are to operate within the framers of the law.



He said, specifically on RTI, if I may have some liberty Mr Chairman to speak on it briefly, the law assented to in 2019 took effect in 2020. We have done a number of things. First, we have created the RTI division at the Information Ministry. We have trained and deployed RTI officers to Ministries, Departments and Agencies across the country as well as MMDAs and then independent constitutional bodies. We had a road map that records 26 different activities to execute for the implementation of RTI.



Mr Chairman, I am happy to inform the committee that currently about 18 of those activities have been completed, 5 are ongoing are not due to be executed yet. In terms of training and work, for example, Ministries, Departments and Agencies out of 526 officers that we need to train, we have trained 455 who are on the job today responding to RTI requests that are coming in, he added



Providing updates on the number of RTI officers trained across all districts in the country, the Minister-Designate for Information noted that 483 out of 552 personnel have been trained so far. This he explained that so far, a number of requests for information have been received with the majority of them granted access



Across the districts, out of 552 that we are supposed to train, we have train 483 and they are working today. At the end of 2020, the RTI units across government have received 56 requests, have responded to all of them granting access to 44 of them, about 2 of them were transferred, 4 of them were referred, 1 application was withdrawn, 1 was denied and is now on an application for review, he said.

Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In response to the threat of mis- and disinformation on democracy and public health, Voto Latino, the largest Latinx voter registration organization in the U.S., and Media Matters for America, the nation's premier media watchdog organization, are announcing the launch of the Latino Anti-Disinformation Lab. The collaborative effort will work to better understand and strategically combat misinformation at all stages and on all mediums, seeking primarily to influence Latinx individuals.



The Latino Anti-Disinformation Lab will be chaired by Voto Latino co-founding President and CEO Maria Teresa Kumar, Media Matters for America President and CEO Angelo Carusone and former Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez. It will, for the first time, establish the systems and network necessary to help combat mis- and disinformation that further polarizes and isolates Latinx voters.



The need for this initiative is clear. In the months leading up to the 2020 general election, voters were subject to higher levels of mis- and disinformation than ever before. Spanish and English language voter fraud misinformation, fear mongering tactics, and disinformation about COVID-19 spread throughout the media and on mainstream social platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Whatsapp, YouTube, and other online communities. This included a significant increase in false information targeting communities of color, disproportionately impacting Spanish-speaking audiences over the age of 40.

"For decades, disinformation has been a weapon that corrupt governments in failing states use against their own people," said Voto Latino's Maria Teresa Kumar. "But now that same weapon is aimed at the most vulnerable in the United States, exploiting some officials' moral weakness and social media's deliberate lawlessness to sow greater distrust of our critical institutions than ever before. The spread of lies around the COVID vaccine is proof positive that disinformation has become a life and death issue if not curbed and addressed."

The Latino Anti-Disinformation Lab is the largest investment in combatting disinformation in Latinx communities to date. It will combine Media Matters' media intelligence and disinformation expertise with Voto Latino's deep knowledge of Latinx communities and digital-first savviness to inoculate impacted audiences across all mediums against targeted misinformation. As part of this effort, Media Matters will expand its monitoring of Spanish-language media and online communities, which a dedicated team will analyze to produce research that will catalyze strategic communications actions for Voto Latino. Voto Latino will invest heavily in data and infrastructure needed to effectively identify and communicate with at-risk Latinx voters.

"Whether its public health, political campaigns or policy debates - the way the media approaches the issue will greatly influence the outcome," said Media Matters President Angelo Carusone. "The right-wing sphere has spent years building a misinformation machine to target the Latinx community, which has resulted in a rising tide of disinformation. Despite how overwhelming it may seem, it is both possible and absolutely necessary to confront misinformation head on. This partnership will provide an essential check on that rising tide of disinformation."

In addition to Media Matters and Voto Latino, former DNC Chairman Tom Perez, the son of first-generation immigrants from the Dominican Republic, will lend his voice and support to the effort to combat misleading information targeting the Latinx community.

"Misinformation targeting the Latino community is a very real and growing threat. We've got to address this threat head on with a substantial, focused, and concerted effort. That's why I am so excited to be a part of this Voto Latino/Media Matters partnership. It leverages Media Matters' unique capacities and expertise at media monitoring and research with Voto Latino's extraordinary organizing and strategic communications capabilities," added Tom Perez. This is the kind of lasting investment in communications infrastructure within the Latino community that is necessary to respond to the threat of misinformation as well as harness durable political and civic power."

Voto Latino is a grassroots political organization focused on educating and empowering a new generation of Latinx voters, as well as creating a more robust and inclusive democracy. Through innovative digital campaigns, culturally relevant programs and authentic voices, we shepherd the Latinx community towards the full realization of its political power.

Media Matters for America is a nonprofit media watchdog dedicated to monitoring and exposing conservative misinformation. Through real-time monitoring, comprehensive research and analysis, and rapid response work, Media Matters combats lies, propaganda, and extremism to ensure that all Americans have access to truthful information.

CONTACT:

Danny Friedman, [email protected]

Laura Keiter, [email protected]

SOURCE Voto Latino

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NORFOLK, Va., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) today announced it has terminated plans to build a rail transfer facility on the site of the former Chattahoochee Brick Company in Atlanta.

"We accepted from the beginning that we had a special responsibility to develop this site in a socially and environmentally responsible way, given the atrocities that once took place there," said James A. Squires, chairman, president and CEO. "We believe our project presented an opportunity to create a long-overdue memorial to the painful legacy of the site, and at the same time reshape its future by building new river trails and putting the long-abandoned land back into productive use in a way that benefits the regional economy."

Norfolk Southern's decision comes after the City of Atlanta filed a petition for preliminary injunction last week with the federal Surface Transportation Board. Although the company believes the City's action lacks legal merit, Norfolk Southern listened to the community and has no interest in protracted litigation if the City opposes the project.

"We pride ourselves on being a good corporate citizen in the communities where we operate," said Squires. "In this case, that means walking away from the project despite our very best efforts to work with the community on the responsible development of the site."

Throughout 2020, Norfolk Southern worked closely with local elected officials, held multiple meetings to listen to the concerns of community stakeholders, and incorporated that feedback into plans for the site.

Norfolk Southern had offered to work with community representatives to design and build a memorial, at the company's expense, to ensure the history of the site is never forgotten. The company also expressed support  and conducted site tours with stakeholders  for creating public-access trails on the site along the Chattahoochee River and Proctor Creek, as many environmental and community groups advocated.

In addition to complying with rigorous environmental standards for site redevelopment, Norfolk Southern was working with the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, through the voluntary Georgia Brownfields Program, to perform extensive environmental remediation of the property.

The company also engaged outside experts to perform an archaeological and historical survey, as well as archaeological excavation in certain areas. No evidence was found of a cemetery on the site, but given the site's tragic legacy, the company committed to exercise great care as development continued.

The company will complete the necessary work to stabilize and secure the site and then withdraw.

About Norfolk Southern

Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) is one of the nation's premier transportation companies. Its Norfolk Southern Railway Company subsidiary operates approximately 19,300 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every major container port in the eastern United States, and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers. Norfolk Southern is a major transporter of industrial products, including agriculture, forest and consumer products, chemicals, and metals and construction materials. In addition, the railroad operates the most extensive intermodal network in the East and is a principal carrier of coal, automobiles, and automotive parts.

SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation

Related Links

http://www.nscorp.com


New Delhi, Feb 18 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the NITI Aayog's sixth Governing Council meeting on Saturday in which Ladakh will take part for the first time as a Union Territory (UT).

The agenda of the meeting includes deliberations on agriculture, infrastructure, manufacturing, human resource development, service delivery at grassroots level, and health and nutrition.

The Prime Minister will attend the meeting at 10.30 a.m. via video conferencing.

The Governing Council presents a platform to discuss inter-sectoral, inter-departmental and federal issues. It comprises the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers of States and Union Territories (UTs) with legislatures, and Lt Governors of other UTs.

"The sixth meeting will witness the entry of Ladakh for the first time, in addition to the participation of Jammu and Kashmir as a UT," said a statement from the Prime Minister's Office.

This time, other UTs headed by Administrators have also been invited to join, it said, adding the meeting will also be attended by the ex-officio members of the Governing Council, Union Ministers, Vice Chairman, Members and CEO of NITI Aayog, and other senior officials of the Central government.
Dunamaise Arts Centre recently launched it brand new virtual thread Dunamaise on Air that features what it says are lots of wonderful arts events on video and podcast to enjoy from the comfort of home.

A Word in Your Ear is one of those threads that features a series of plays by local playwrights that were devised under the mentorship of Laois Writer in Residence David Butler.

Six plays, which were written by Colette Wrafter, Dan Hyland, Joe Murphy, Frances Harney, Sheelagh Coyle and David Corri, are now available to listen to on media platforms like Spotify, iTunes and on the arts centres podcast channel dunamaiseonair.podbean.com/

Funded by Creative Ireland Laois, Laois County Council and the Arts Council, the Word in Your Ear podcasts were recorded on the Dunamaise stage in December 2020.

Locally-based drama group members were invited to put together and develop short, 15 minute plays which were prepared over a number of weeks.

The plan was to perform the plays on the stage for audiences, however, due to Covid-19 restrictions, the decision was made to prepare them for podcasting.

Creative Ireland Laois funding commitment was so valuable in supporting the writers, even at a distance, and we were glad to link them with our audiences and creative participants, said Michelle de Forge, Director of Dunamaise Arts Centre.

The writers and actors adapted brilliantly to online mentoring and rehearsals. Online streaming is very new to us at Dunamaise but it was actually a really fun experience to have the participants come in for audio recordings last December.

"While nothing replaces the energy exchanged between a company of actors on stage and a live audience gasping, laughing or tearing up in unison at live theatre, were so glad to have this means of connecting our wonderful creative talent in Laois with our well-loved and heartily-missed audience members. We are grateful to our funders, Creative Ireland Laois, Laois County Council and the Arts Council; to Writer-in -Residence David Butler; to the playwrights and actors and to the Dunamaise team for bringing the podcasts to life in Dunamaise on Air, said Ms De Forge.

The theme music for A Word in Your Ear was composed, played and recorded by Ballyfin native Pianoman Tom.

For more details see www.dunamaise.ie or search for Dunamaise on Air on www.podbean.com or wherever you find your favourite podcasts!

Dunamaise Arts Centre gratefully acknowledges the financial assistance received from Creative Ireland Laois, the Arts Council and Laois County Council.

Podcast Details:

Episode 1: Available to download from 4 February 2021

Lemony Drizzly, written and directed by Dan E. Hyland.

Cast:- Chuck: Alan Conroy, Mr Marwood: John "Banjo" Quin, Bella: Marie Brennan

Jimmy, written and directed by Colette Wrafter

Cast:- Jimmy: Joe O Neill, Peter: Rory Corcoran, Kathleen: Colette Wrafter. Music paradoxes and palindromes by Blueberry Rouge.

Episode 2: Available to download from 11 February 2021

Where the Truth Lies, written and directed by Frances Harney

Cast:- Timmy Crawley: Sean Connolly, Seamie Sweeney: Ken Molloy, Bar Maid Nancy: Jo Fitzpatrick Kelly, Cissy McEvoy: Geraldine Fitzpatrick, Maisie McEvoy Sweeney: Aoife Harney

Decisions, written and directed by Sheelagh Coyle

Cast:- Julia: Sheelagh Coyle, Nurse: Frances Harney, Consultant: Dan E. Hyland, Old woman: Geraldine Fitzpatrick

Episode 3: Available to download from 18 February 2021

Rita, Sue and Dad Too, written and directed by Joe Murphy.

Cast - Rita: Dawn Knight, Susie: Cleo Knight, Jim: Eamonn Delaney, Mark: Joe Murphy

Whats in a Name, written and directed by David Corri.

Cast - Aiden Corrigan: Joe Murphy, Tom Whelan: Jane Doheny, Joe McGrath: Kevin Lalor-Fitzpatrick, Owen Slowey: Bernard OReilly, Major Williams: Colman Young

Further information about the playwrights:

Dan Hyland, Writer and Director of Lemony Drizzly

Dan is a writer, director and actor for the Clodiagh players. In 2019, he directed The Lonesome West, with Mullingar Theatre Lab and helped take it to the final of the all-Ireland where it went on to perform in Frankfurt, Germany. Dan constantly writes and is waiting to have his musical "Sally's Place" produced. Set in New York, he hopes to bring some glitz and glamour back to the stage when this virus has taken it's final bow. Dan has regular zoom calls with fellow actors to keep sane during the pandemic.

Colette Wrafter, Writer and Director of Jimmy

Jimmy was written by Colette Wrafter She holds a BA in Design for Stage and Screen, Production Design from IADT, and recently graduated with an MA in Broadcast Production. Her first play was chosen to be part of the Scene and Heard Festival in Smock Alley Theatre (2019) Colette was nominated for the Headline Student Journalist Award with a radio piece that took a deep dive into both the pervasiveness and lived realities of mental illness and disability in the prison system in Ireland. She is currently in preproduction of a short film to be shot in Portlaoise.

Frances Harney, Writer and Director of Where the Truth Lies

Frances Harney is a retired primary teacher who lives, with her husband Liam, in Ballyfin. She is an examiner with The Leinster School of Music and Drama and the in-house storyteller at Ballyfin House Hotel. She has given drama workshops in many third level institutions and Education Centres and has directed cultural events for Laois County Council.

Frances runs a very successful speech and drama school and has written and directed over 30 plays for children and teenagers. Many have been performed in Dunamaise Arts Centre. She also writes and directs, large cast, full length comedies for her local drama group 'Ballyfin Players'. Her memoir piece 'Keeping in Touch' has been published by Harper Collins in the compilation ' A Day from My Life'. She has also had short stories published by The Leinster Express.

Sheelagh Coyle, Writer and Director of Decisions

Sheelagh Coyle is a native of Athlone but has lived in Mountmellick since 1974. She first became involved in drama with the Macra na Feirme Drama Group where she took part in many one act and three act productions as an actor and director and won some acting awards at the Laois Drama Festival. In recent years she joined the Ballyfin Players under the direction of Frances Harney. Her play Decisions tells her own personal story following a cancer diagnosis in 2004. Sheelagh plays the main character, Julia, in the play with contributions from three other characters.

Joe Murphy, Writer and Director of Rita, Sue and Dad Too

Joe has been involved in amateur drama for more years than he care to remember with Laois groups Open door and Fourth Wall and others in too many productions to mention. He has performed on the wonderful stage of the Dunamaise theatre for several years. But writing is a relatively new interest for Joe. He has always loved comedy and particularly tv sitcoms. Whether it's the classic US shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Frasier or the BBC shows like Fawlty Towers and Dad's Army. So this is his attempt of sorts at a homage to those great shows. He has learnt a lot from the expertise of David Butler and his talented fellow participants in great venture.

David Corri, Writer and Director of Whats in a Name

David Corri is a Dubliner but married into the Slieve Blooms and lives in Portlaoise with his wife Siobhan and daughter Eimear. He is a stage director and actor with Fourth Wall Laois Theatre Group. He has previously directed and played with Open Door, Porterhouse Players, Droichead Nua Players, Reps (Harare) and the Little Theatre (Dar-es-Salaam).

Plays included David Hares Secret Rapture, Niel Simons Chapter Two, J B Keanes The Field, Big Maggie, and Sive, Hugh Leonards Da and Philadelphia Here I Come, Ray Cooneys It Runs in the Family, Joseph Kesselring Arsenic and Old Lace, Mary OMalleys Once A Catholic, and Patrick Pearses Iosagan.
Axios

At least two were killed, and 20 to 25 others injured, when three people got out of an SUV carrying assault rifles and handguns and started "shooting indiscriminately into the crowd" outside a concert in Miami early Sunday, according to a police statement and the Miami Herald. Why it matters: It's the second shooting during Memorial Day Weekend in Miami this year  seven people were shot, with one of them dying, in the city on Friday night. The killings come as the country has experienced a spate of mass gun violence during 2021. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Details: Investigators with the police's homicide bureau are looking for the perpetrators in the Sunday morning shooting. Police say they got back into the SUV  a white Nissan Pathfinder  and fled the scene. Eight of the victims were transferred to hospitals in Miami-Dade and Broward. Twelve other victims "were self transported" to hospitals in the area, per the statement. One of the victims was in critical condition.What he's saying: This type of gun violence has to stop, said Miami-Dade Police Director Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III, per the Herald. Every weekend it is the same thing. This is targeted, this is definitely not random.I am at the scene of another targeted and cowardly act of gun violence, where over 20 victims were shot and 2 have sadly died. These are cold blooded murderers that shot indiscriminately into a crowd and we will seek justice. My deepest condolences to the family of the victims. Alfredo "Freddy" Ramirez III (@MDPD_Director) May 30, 2021 Editor's note: This post is being updated as further details are revealed.More from Axios: Sign up to get the latest market trends with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free
The Trump Organization turned over some of those records last month, though the prosecutors have questioned whether the company has fully responded to the subpoena, the people with knowledge of the matter said.

Mr. Trump won an acquittal in his second impeachment trial last week, but remains the focus of at least two state criminal investigations. Besides the inquiry in Manhattan, prosecutors in Georgia are scrutinizing Mr. Trumps effort to persuade local officials to undo the election results there. His departure from office has left him without the shield from indictment that the presidency provided.

The Manhattan district attorneys office has not accused Mr. Trump of wrongdoing and it remains unclear whether Mr. Vance, whose term ends in January, will ultimately bring charges against Mr. Trump or any Trump Organization employees.

The Trump Organization declined to comment, but in the past, lawyers for the company have said that its practices complied with the law and have called the investigation a fishing expedition.

Mr. Pomerantz, 69, was sworn in earlier this month to serve as a special assistant district attorney, according to Danny Frost, a spokesman for the district attorney, who otherwise declined to comment on the inquiry. Mr. Pomerantz will work solely on the Trump investigation.

The hiring of an outsider is a highly unusual move for a prosecutors office, but the two-and-a-half-year investigation of the former president and his family business is unusually complex. And Mr. Vance, whose office has had a few missteps in other white-collar cases, had already hired FTI, a large consulting company, to help analyze Mr. Trumps financial records.

Prosecutors are scrutinizing whether the Trump Organization artificially inflated the value of some of his signature properties to obtain the best possible loans, while simultaneously lowballing the property values to reduce property taxes, the people with knowledge of the matter said. The prosecutors are also looking at the Trump Organizations statements to insurance companies about the value of various assets.

Howard Johnson by Wyndham continues its expansion in Southeast Asia with the opening of Blue Bay Sihanoukville following successful openings for the brand in China and South Korea. Howard Johnson by Wyndham is a globally recognised brand with hotels in more than 320 locations across three continents: North America, South America and Asia. The 522-key upscale hotel is the latest addition to Wyndham Hotels & Resorts' portfolio of over 1,500 hotels across the Asia Pacific region.

"We are delighted to celebrate Wyndham Hotels & Resorts' entry into Cambodia with the opening of Howard Johnson Plaza by Wyndham Blue Bay Sihanoukville. Across Asia Pacific, we are committed to growing our portfolio in amazing destinations  such as Sihanoukville  and we are confident that the hotel's prime location by the beach, along with its excellent amenities, will make it one of the most desirable places to stay in the city," said Joon Aun Ooi, President, Asia Pacific, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.

"This is an incredible milestone opening for Wyndham and we look forward to continuing our strong growth momentum. Through our robust pipeline of franchise and management contracts across the region, we anticipate more than 100 openings in Southeast Asia in the next 3-5 years. This will further strengthen our value proposition for Wyndham Rewards members as well as that for our owners and partners," he added.

Seafront Style with Five-Star Facilities

Howard Johnson Plaza by Wyndham Blue Bay Sihanoukville is a stunning 36-storey upscale hotel comprising 322 contemporary rooms and suites with city and sea views, perfectly positioned at Independence Beach, close to the centre of Sihanoukville and overlooking the sparkling sea.

Guests can unwind in style in the hotel's guestrooms, which feature plush bedding, marble bathrooms with rain showers and, in some rooms, sea-facing balconies with spa tubs. For the ultimate indulgence, the hotel's Presidential Suite offers an extensive 200 sqm of space with loft-like interiors and flexible open space, suitable for families or romantic getaways. Boasting an air of tranquillity, guests can savour glittering views of the Gulf of Thailand from the private bathtub or entertain friends and family in its spacious living and dining area.

Howard Johnson Plaza by Wyndham Blue Bay Sihanoukville also offers plenty of opportunities for guests to relax and unwind at the hotel with leisure and wellness facilities including an outdoor swimming pool with panoramic sea views, a well-equipped fitness centre, a spa, and a duty-free retail outlet. The hotel is also home to three dining outlets, including: Andaman Sea, the all-day dining restaurant serving international favourites alongside Sichuan, Cantonese and Hunan cuisine; the Private Dining Room, serving local, Chinese and Western specialties; and the Infinity Lounge, which serves a refreshing array of beverages and cocktails.

Visitors who want to explore the local area can take advantage of an onsite tour desk or request for professional services at the business centre. Guests staying on club floors can also enjoy bespoke amenities at the dedicated club lounge offering daily breakfast as well as cocktails and canapes every evening. The hotel is also directly connected to the region's largest shopping mall and a major gaming centre, while the soft sands of Independence Beach are just moments away.

Discover the Wonders the Cambodian Riviera

Sihanoukville is a serene seaside town and fishing port on the Cambodian coast and the capital of Sihanoukville Province. The coastal city is home to a string of sandy beaches, including Independence Beach, Victory Beach, Ochheuteal Beach, Otres Beach and Serendipity Beach, which offer an exotic blend of warm, clear seas, palm-fringed sand, and exhilarating water sports. The city is also the gateway to Cambodia's idyllic offshore islands, such as Koh Rong, which offer pristine landscapes and spectacular snorkelling activities. The new hotel is located just 26km away from Sihanouk International Airport, while the Cambodian capital city, Phnom Penh, is 225km away.

All of Wyndham's hotels in Southeast Asia participate in Wyndham Rewards, the world's most generous rewards program with more than 30,000 hotels, vacation club resorts and vacation rentals worldwide.

About Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: WH) is the world's largest hotel franchising company by the number of properties, with over 8,900 hotels across nearly 95 countries on six continents. Through its network of approximately 796,000 rooms appealing to the everyday traveler, Wyndham commands a leading presence in the economy and midscale segments of the lodging industry. The Company operates a portfolio of 20 hotel brands, including Super 8, Days Inn, Ramada, Microtel, La Quinta, Baymont, Wingate, AmericInn, Hawthorn Suites, Trademark Collection and Wyndham, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts is also a leading provider of hotel management services. The Company's award-winning Wyndham Rewards loyalty program offers 86 million enrolled members the opportunity to redeem points at thousands of hotels, vacation club resorts and vacation rentals globally. For more information, visit www.wyndhamhotels.com.

About Howard Johnson by Wyndham

Part of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Howard Johnson by Wyndham is one of the world's most iconic and well-known hospitality brands, spanning more than 320 hotels across North, Central and South America as well as parts of the Middle East and Asia. Most locations offer free Wi-Fi and complimentary Rise & Dine breakfast as well as a host of other amenities including swimming pools, fitness centers and more. Guests can also earn and redeem points with Wyndham Rewards, the brand's award-winning loyalty program, when they join for free at www.wyndhamrewards.com. If you are interested in developing a Howard Johnson by Wyndham hotel, please visit development.wyndhamhotels.com.

Contacts:

Abigail Foo

Senior Manager, Brand Marketing, PR & Communications

South East Asia and Pacific Rim

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

M: +65 9067 8040

[email protected]

Scott Carman

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

+1 (973) 753-6590

[email protected]

SOURCE Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

Related Links

http://www.wyndhamhotels.com


Forty-four percent of new home buyers now begin their home search online as opposed to through referrals, according to the National Association of Realtors. The same organization found that 35 percent of brokers say they are relying on virtual tours to sell homes. And yet, despite technology shifting the power dynamic from brokers to buyers in the real estate industry, real estate commissions  notoriously higher in the United States than in other developed countries  havent budged.

A series of lawsuits might change that.

Even as median home prices have climbed in every major market across the United States, and buyers, especially millennials, are doing more of the legwork involved in home searches, commission rates for real estate brokers have held steady. Paid by the home seller, these rates are often as high as 6 percent  3 percent paid to the sellers agent and 3 percent to the buyers agent.

Across much of Europe and Asia, commission rates are significantly lower  in Singapore and the United Kingdom, for example, agents generally earn 1 to 2 percent on sales.
MADRID - A court in northeast Spain upheld a new conviction sentencing Catalan rapper Pablo Hasel to two-and-a-half years in prison, said Efe press agency.



It said Hasel, whose real name is Pablo Rivadulla Duro, had already been incarcerated last Tuesday after being found guilty of "terrorism apologia" and "contempt of the monarchy and State institutions".



The new sentence handed down by the court of Lleida is instead tied to another trial in which he was on the stand for threatening a witness in a trial against municipal police officers in the Catalan city.



The rapper must spend nine months in prison for the sentence on terrorism apologia and insults, after social media messages in which he praised terrorist groups, such as members of the pro-independence ETA, and insulted the Spanish Crown.



Thursday's sentence allows for the possibility of an appeal to the Spanish Supreme Court.



The arrest of Hasel, who had a prior criminal record, split Spanish public opinion and fired a debate on the limits of freedom of speech.



Protests in Barcelona, Madrid, and other cities broke out in clashes with police and dozens of arrests and injuries.


[February 18, 2021] Dallas TX, Suffolk County NY, and Virginia Beach VA use Salesforce for their COVID-19 Economic Assistance and Recovery WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- 2020 was a challenging year to which several local government agencies rose to the occasion to ensure their citizens were being served. Counties are working tirelessly to improve resident - government interactions across every channel and Cities are serving residents while empowering employees to excel at their jobs. Both are enabling cross-agency collaboration and empowering a remote workforce to provide faster, easier, smarter government services. Suffolk County New York , City of Virginia Beach Virginia , and City of Dallas Texas were among the list of local governments who drove and continue to drive their digital initiatives forward. Suffolk County NY launched their 311 call center taking a phased approach, enabling their platform to also be utilized when the County was hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Suffolk 311 system became the way the County managed their response with citizens and businesses. The County also launched their citizen facing self service web portal as another channel for citizens and businesses for COVID-19 response. Suffolk is re-opening and expanding departments using 311 to include Human Services. Suffolk has 63 active Service Request types configured in the 311 Capsule including service request types for Covid-19. The county is required to provide shared services for other jurisdictions within the County. Users can be alerted to which jurisdiction owns that specific issue at that location. The multi-jurisdictional functionality allows for more flexibility and configurability of the distribution of tickets could be adjusted as things evolve. Multi-jurisdictional functionality also provides the ability to track constituent issues to meet needs and security options to limit views of information as required by the county. Dallas, Texas ranked in the top 10 most populous cities in the United States, needed to rapidly implement enterprise level, scalable, Low Code/No Code platform-based solutions to provide uncompromised customer service to the Public and a safe environment for their employees. The City of Dallas successfully launched three critical applications to aid with tackling and providing the technology support needed for city employees to serve their constituents during COVID-19. Success for The City of Dallas means, city wide proactive reporting, public appointment scheduling with city departments online, and increasingly digitized forms and applications. City of Dallas departments currently leveraging these solutions include 311, Community Care, and Code Compliance. These apps play a crucial role in supporting the city as they continue to serve their constituents during these challenging times. Virginia Beach, one of the nation's top award winning digital cities, placed third in the Annual Digital Government survey in 2020. When the City sought an off-the-shelf, configurable software-as-a-service system to aid in COVID-19 relief, they turned to the recently purchased 311 Capsule CRM solution and repurposed that traditional 311 solution project to meet their urgent pandemic response needs. Launched on time and on budget by Incapsulate, the City has remotely deployed this project in multiple phases, prioritizing COVID-19 response. The first phase focused on short-term rentals and COVID-19 donations and disaster relief. Virginia Beach equipped their Emergency Communications and Citizen Services operations with the ability to review and accept community-based donations of personal protective equipment (PPE) and supplies. In the second phase, the City implemented COVID-19 a suite of Financial Relief Applications ( Public Utilities Payment Assistance ) and the Board of Commissioner Online Appointment Scheduler. Virginia Beach is leveraging the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system for two COVID-19 relief fund programs: City Services Bill Pandemic Relief , VA State CARES relief and Emergency Debt Repayment Plan. Citizens who lost their jobs or income due to COVID-19 may use the online portal to submit and track their applications for assistance. Departments are empowered to collaborate on application review, validation and approval. The reporting process is streamlined by collecting and processing applicant progress reports digitally. Virginia Beach also implemented Incapsulate's Remote Appointment Scheduling Application, which helps digitize the delivery of mission-critical services provided by the City's Commissioner of the Revenue. The latest phase includes the City's COVID-19 Vaccine Management System. The City of Virginia Beach stands ready to support the Virginia Department of Health's vaccination program, as the system integrates with the State of Virginia's Vaccine systems. Residents are able to pre-register online and input their information to generate a request for the vaccine that is then sent to the state health department. Online notifications are then sent to residents to schedule an appointment. The city also provides relevant information on the availability of the vaccine, who is eligible and where they can go to get vaccinated. In 2021 local government agencies continue to rise to the occasion to ensure their citizens are being served. As we have seen with Suffolk, Dallas and Virginia Beach; cities and counties are working tirelessly to improve resident - government interactions across every channel. They continue to enable cross-agency collaboration and empower a remote workforce to provide faster, easier, smarter government services. About Incapsulate

Since 2008, Incapsulate has helped organizations realize true digital transformation and achieve lasting results with the Salesforce Platform. With expertise in a wide range of cloud-based technologies, agile methodologies, digital analytics, and mobile solutions, we serve clients ranging from the Fortune 500 companies to Federal, State & Local governments across the United States. As of January 1st, 2021, Incapsulate has over 200 employees, with over 450 Salesforce Technical Certifications, and an additional 50 technical certifications in other cloud platforms. Incapsulate is a Certified Partner of Mulesoft, Vlocity, Tableau, Clariti, Box, Google Cloud Platform, Amazon Web Services and ESRI. Headquartered in Washington DC, Incapsulate has additional offices in Boston, Toronto, Ahmedabad, and Hyderabad. For more information please contact Incapsulate at

info@incapsulate.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/dallas-tx-suffolk-county-ny-and-virginia-beach-va-use-salesforce-for-their-covid-19-economic-assistance-and-recovery-301230785.html SOURCE Incapsulate

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Executive Officer, Daniel Stencil presents Parks Commissioner, Greg Jamian with award. Mr. Jamians support and dedication to the Parks system and programs through the years has been truly appreciated and his contributions will be enjoyed by many for generations to come", states Daniel Stencil, Executive Officer for Oakland County Parks and Recreation.

Executive Officer, Daniel Stencil of the Oakland County Parks and Recreation system recently presented area businessman and civic leader Greg Jamian, with a recognition award for Gregs service to the Countys Park system. Stencil, a Nationally known Parks and Rec Administrator said Mr. Jamians support and dedication to the Parks system and programs through the years has been truly appreciated and his contributions will be enjoyed by many for generations to come. Mr. Jamians contributions included his insight and support for Oakland Countys new Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) Park, as well as, encouraging the community to overwhelmingly approve the first Parks Millage increase, which will protect the land and programs for years into the future.

Jamian said, although the popular television show Parks and Rec, available on NBC Universal service Peacock, glorifies the day-to-day responsibilities in working in the Parks system in its American political satire mockumentary, I can attest that it is hard, serious work to be a conservator and protector of our open lands and nature programs, a responsibility that I love and will cherish

Jamian, the President and CEO of AmeriCare Medical has learned to balance his fast paced, corporate life with what he says is everyones civic duty, to serve people, as he does every day in his Home Healthcare Business for over 40 years. Stencil stated, We are thankful for Gregs leadership, hard work and friendship, he will be missed.

For over four decades, AmeriCare Medical, Inc. is a Michigan locally owned and operated company that provides integrated health care solutions to hospitals, assisted care facilities and private homes throughout State. AmeriCare Medical, Inc. is the parent company of AmeriStaff Nursing Services, Sun Medical Equipment and Rx iV Infusion Pharmacy. AmeriCare Medical's goal is to offer the best care with strong clinical management supporting it. We provide peace of mind and dignity, for the family and patient by offering the convenience of a one stop shop for all your home healthcare needs.

For more information visit: http://www.americaremedical.com

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:58:14|Editor: huaxia

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LUSAKA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Zambia's First Lady Esther Lungu on Thursday expressed concern at the slow decline in new HIV infections among young people in the country.

The Zambian first lady said there was need to upscale programs and awareness on HIV/AIDS among the youth in the country in order to address the situation.

In remarks delivered during a Virtual National Adolescent and Youth HIV Surge 2021 Indaba, the Zambian first lady attributed the slow pace of the decline in new infections among young people to low comprehensive knowledge among young people aged between 15 and 19 years.

The meeting was held under the theme, "Adolescents Voices for HIV".

According to her, there was a need for the young people to commit themselves to end new infections, adding that there has been a shift in the pandemic in the last five years with about two out of five new infections being in young people.

"We need enhanced access to HIV services as well as comprehensive knowledge about the epidemic in order for the youth to be well equipped to effectively fight the disease," she said.

Health Minister Jonas Chanda said stigma and discrimination for people living with HIV/AIDS were still a reality in the country which must be fought.

The Zambian minister however said the country has recorded remarkable progress in HIV/AIDS response and has continued to invest in health care in order to enhance access to quality services. Enditem

Essays from the winners of the Cell Press and Cell Signaling Technology (CST) Rising Black Scientists Awards appear February 18 in the journal Cell. The winners, undergraduate Olufolakemi "Fola" Olusanya (@fola_olusanya) of Howard University and postdoctoral fellow Chrystal Starbird (@drstarbird) of Yale University, write about their personal missions to create a more supportive future for the next generation of Black women scientists. The essays were selected from a pool of over 280 submissions by an academic advisory board of leading Black voices in the life science community and the Cell Press editorial team.

"Recognizing that success in science is driven not only by talent and motivation but also by access to a strong support network and opportunities, Cell Press and CST came together to create an opportunity to support innovative and driven young Black scientists on their career journeys," says Anne Kitson, Managing Director, Cell Press and The Lancet. "We are honored to recognize these brilliant young women and look forward to supporting more inspiring Black scientists like them in the future."

Undergraduate winner describes the science of Black womanhood

"Black womanhood is inherently scientific," writes Olusanya in her essay, "Still we rise," describing the "protocols" she learned in her mother's kitchen and the chemistry it takes to nourish Black hair--as well as the crimes committed against Black women in the name of science.

Today, Olusanya is a senior at Howard University, where she is majoring in biology and minoring in chemistry and psychology. She currently works in the labs of Karl Thompson at Howard University and Maureen A. Carey at University of Virginia, but looks forward to pursuing her PhD in microbiology and intends to dedicate her research to studying the role of environmental racism in the structure of the human microbiome. "Once I've mastered all I can," she writes in her essay, "I want to work to pass my science on to the next generation of young Black women."

Post-graduate winner shares her fight to be heard

In Starbird's essay, "Transforming myself and academia for good," she writes, "Science was comforting. It was rational. It did not care if you were poor or rich, fat or thin, white or Black; the answers were the same for everyone." She notes that once she made it to college, it quickly became clear that "the academic world of science was not logical," and describes the challenges she has faced throughout her academic career to be heard, credited, and valued.

Starbird received her PhD in chemical and physical biology from Vanderbilt University and is currently completing her postdoctoral training in the lab of Kathryn Ferguson at Yale University. "It is my hope that in being honest about my experiences," she says of her winning essay, "that upcoming scientists can see that they too can have a career in science, regardless of the obstacles they may face in their own lives, and that we all can work together to make the science that we love more equitable and accessible for all."

Award winners selected based on personal voice and narrative quality

To be considered for the Awards, applicants were asked to submit an essay of 750 words or fewer sharing what inspires their science, the experiences that shaped their journey in the life sciences, and how they hope to contribute to a more inclusive scientific community.

The academic advisory board that selected the winning essays included Nicole Del Castillo, Director of the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Carver College of Medicine at the University of Iowa; Yvonne Fondufe-Mittendorf, Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky; W. Marcus Lambert, Assistant Dean of Diversity and Student Life and Assistant Professor of Education Research in Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine; Courtney J. Robinson, Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at Howard University; and Jelani C. Zarif, an Assistant Professor of Oncology (Prostate Cancer Program) at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine's Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center and a member of the Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.

The Awards seek to break down barriers by providing funds to support professional development. In addition to publication in Cell, Olusanya and Starbird will also receive a $10,000 award and $1,000 in scientific materials from CST.

"Increasing representation serves both science and the human community," said Michael J. Comb, PhD, President and Founder of Cell Signaling Technology. "We are thrilled and honored to be working with Cell Press to help enable talented, young, Black scientists to make positive impacts in their research careers. CST was founded over 20 years ago with the vision of providing tools to advance research and cure disease, so enabling access to science education and research opportunities is core to our mission. We hope and expect to see rapidly increasing diversity in science going forward."

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Cell, Olusanya, O.: "Still we rise"

https:/ / www. cell. com/ cell/ fulltext/ S0092-8674 (21)00074-X DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.01.031

Cell, Starbird, C.: "Transforming myself and academia for good"

https:/ / www. cell. com/ cell/ fulltext/ S0092-8674 (21)00075-1 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.01.032

Cell Press (@CellPressNews), an imprint of Elsevier, is a leading publisher of scientific research and reviews, with over 50 scientific journals across the life, physical, earth, and health sciences. We seek to support the scientific community and inspire future directions in research with our editorial excellence, commitment to innovation, unparalleled reach and visibility, and passion for advocacy. Visit http://www. cell. com/ .

To receive Cell Press media alerts, contact press@cell.com.

Cell Signaling Technology (CST) is a private, family-owned company, founded by scientists and dedicated to providing high quality research tools to the biomedical research community. Our employees operate worldwide from our U.S. headquarters in Massachusetts, and our offices in the Netherlands, China, and Japan. Cell Signaling Technology and CST are trademarks of Cell Signaling Technology, Inc.
Phoenix, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - The Stock Day Podcast welcomed ISW Holdings (OTC Pink: ISWH) ("the Company"), a diversified portfolio company comprised of essential business lines that serve consumer product demands. CEO of the Company, Alonzo Pierce, joined Stock Day host Everett Jolly.

Jolly began the interview by noting the Company's significant growth over the past few months, and commented on a recent release detailing their negotiations to purchase an additional 300 to 900 cryptocurrency miners. "What are the opportunities for growth for cryptocurrency mining?" asked Jolly. "It basically shows that we are true believers in the bitcoin opportunity," said Pierce. "We truly believe that this is the direction that our country is going into and we're happy to tag along."

Pierce then elaborated on the role of the healthcare industry, which has had a significant impact on the Company's growth since the start of the pandemic. "Basically, we were a care provider service to chronically ill patients," said Pierce. "Telehealth became even more paramount," explained Pierce. "Every essential business line that we are involved in all shadow one another, and now we are moving into the government agency billing formats," he shared. "This is where we feel we truly have grown."

"Are you accredited?" asked Jolly. "We have submitted the paperwork. Right now, we're just waiting to set up surveys," said Pierce.

Jolly then asked whether or not the Company has positioned themselves for diversification as a holding company. "We want to be a preferred direct vendor for revolutionary essential business services, so our focus in the holding company space is in telehealth, cryptocurrency mining, and supply chain management," shared Pierce. "We have some good partners who have come along and see the vision, and we continue to form these opportunities and mold them into real life opportunities."

"Where are we at in the process of uplisting to the OTCQB?" asked Jolly. "We've submitted the paperwork, we've submitted the disclosures, and we paid the fee," said Pierce. "We see this being forthcoming within the next couple of weeks."

To close the interview, Pierce encouraged listeners and shareholders to keep up-to-date with the Company's projects and announcements. "We constantly seek to drive shareholder value and growth by trying to come up with the best fits for the future of their investments, as well as for the company," said Pierce. "ISWH is certainly something that every shareholder should consider having in their portfolio."

To hear Alonzo Pierce's entire interview, follow the link to the podcast here: https://audioboom.com/posts/7803268-isw-holdings-discusses-significant-2021-growth-and-cryptocurrency-mining-expansion-with-the-stock

Investors Hangout is a proud sponsor of "Stock Day," and Stock Day Media encourages listeners to visit the company's message board at https://investorshangout.com/

About ISW Holdings

ISW Holdings, Inc. (ISWH), based in Nevada, is a diversified portfolio company comprised of essential business lines that serve consumer product demands. Our expertise lies in strategic brand development, early growth facilitation, as well as brand identity through our proprietary procurement process. Together, with our partners, we seek to provide a structure that meets large scalability demands, as well as anticipated marketplace needs. We are able to meet these needs through a variety of strategic innovative processes. ISWH is creating and managing brands across a spectrum of disruptive industries. It maneuvers its proprietary companies through critical stages of market development, which includes conceptualization, go-to-market strategies, engineering, product integration, and distribution efficiency. The company has also partnered with a well-known software development and consulting company, Bengala Technologies LLC, which is developing significant enhancements in the supply chain management space; and the partnership has a vitally needed patent now pending.

For more information, visit www.iswholdings.com

Forward Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements relate to future events or our future financial performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology including "could", "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential" and the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. While these forward-looking statements, and any assumptions upon which they are based, are made in good faith and reflect our current judgment regarding the direction of our business, actual results will almost always vary, sometimes materially, from any estimates, predictions, projections, assumptions or other future performance suggested in this report. Except as required by applicable law, we do not intend to update any of the forward-looking statements so as to conform these statements to actual results. Investors should refer to the risks disclosed in the Company's reports filed from time to time with OTC Markets (www.otcmarkets.com).

Company Contact:

info@ISWHoldings.com

Public Relations

EDM Media, LLC

https://edm.media

(800) 301-7883

About The "Stock Day" Podcast

Founded in 2013, Stock Day is the fastest growing media outlet for Nano-Cap and Micro-Cap companies. It educates investors while simultaneously working with penny stock and OTC companies, providing transparency and clarification of under-valued, under-sold Micro-Cap stocks of the market. Stock Day provides companies with customized solutions to their news distribution in both national and international media outlets. The Stock Day Podcast is the number one radio show of its kind in America.

SOURCE:

Stock Day Media

(602) 821-1102

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74834

Governor Ron DeSantis has threatened to pull one of his vaccine clinics in Florida after he was accused of prioritising wealthy, white residents over other population groups.

Manatee County announced on Tuesday that the Florida's Division of Emergency Management would host a "pop-up" vaccination site for residents to receive a Covid-19 vaccine.

But the pop-up site was selected for only two zip codes of the county: 34202 and 34211.

Mr DeSantis and his administration received backlash quickly after from Republicans and Democrats for prioritising the "whitest" people in the county to receive a vaccine.

"You're taking the whitest demographic, the richest demographic in Manatee County and putting them ahead of everyone else," said Manatee County Commissioner Misty Servia, a Republican, on Tuesday after the announcement.

"The optics are bad ... very bad  I'm really disappointed," she added.

Mr DeSantis addressed the controversy on Wednesday during a press conference. But instead of apologising, he threatened to distribute the vaccine doses elsewhere outside of Manatee County.

"If Manatee County doesn't like us doing this, then we are totally fine with putting this in counties that want it," Mr DeSantis said. "We're totally happy to do that."

Mass vaccination campaigns across the United States have exacerbated the disparities seen between wealthy communities and minority and poor populations.

White, wealthy residents have been vaccinated at a higher rate compared to African Americans and Latino Americans, despite these minority groups contracting and dying at higher rates from Covid-19 on average.

Critics said the state government directing the vaccines towards specific zip codes would only widen some of the disparities being witnessed in Florida and across the country.

Board of County Commissioners Chair Vanessa Baugh, a Republican, said the decision to place the pop-up clinic for a specific location "was done strictly by the governor who called Rex Jensen", adding they wanted it in Lakewood Ranch.

She was referring to Rex Jensen, the CEO of Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, the parent company of Lakewood Ranch. The wealthy community has houses valued between "$180,000s to more than $1million," according to its website.

Mr DeSantis denied that the zip codes were picked based on political or personal influence.

"It wasn't a choice about zip codes, it was a choice about where's a high concentration of seniors where you could have communities provide the ability for them to go on [to get vaccinated]," he said.

This pop-up vaccination clinic was one of several state-led facilities in Florida's "Seniors First '' initiative to get everyone over 65 years and older vaccinated in the state. Florida has set up several clinics targeted at senior living communities to reach this population group.

Democrats in the state have since released a press release accusing the governor for using politics when distributing the Covid-19 vaccines.

"Threatening retribution and less vaccine access for communities that criticise the vaccine rollout for its problems is shameful and inhumane," said Florida Democratic Party Chair Manny Diaz.

State Senator Annette Taddeo, a Democrat, has called the move "disgusting and unacceptable" when allocating "life-saving vaccines."

"The governor owes Manatee County residents an apology and a public statement reassuring the public that political games will not be used in the distribution of vaccines in our state. Period," she added.
Two years after the Oregon Legislature overhauled its handling of sexual harassment, Rep. Diego Hernandez has presented the biggest test to the new system. The Portland Democrat went to court last week in an effort to halt an imminent House vote to expel him from the Legislature and challenge the level of confidentiality provided to his accusers.

Hernandez, one of the Legislatures few Latinx lawmakers, faces what would be the first-ever expulsion vote by the Oregon House. He said in his lawsuit that the state official in charge of the process redacted documents to the point that none of his evidence was ever seen by the (House) Conduct Committee.

Allegations in his lawsuit add additional nuance to an already complex situation.

Acting Legislative Equity Officer Jackie Sandmeyer and independent investigators hired by the Legislature took pains to protect the privacy of the five women who made claims against Hernandez, most of whom were reluctant to cooperate with the inquiry.

The investigation report issued late last month referred to the three women who investigators concluded reasonably feared Hernandez would undercut their careers as subjects 1, 2 and 4, and Hernandez did not object to keeping their names confidential.

But the additional restrictions on information in the name of protecting victims confidentiality made it impossible for Hernandez to adequately defend himself, according to the lawmakers lawyer Kevin Lafky. One of the challenges of this process is anonymity, he wrote in the lawsuit.

Victims advocates say broad privacy protections are essential to lower barriers to people reporting alleged mistreatment by powerful politicians.

But through the lawsuit, Hernandez managed to make public a much more lightly redacted set of emails, texts and other first-hand evidence of his interactions with the women whom investigators and lawmakers concluded he harassed.

The date-stamped texts and emails  which Hernandez submitted for lawmakers to review, but which were completely redacted from their view  paint a more nuanced picture of his interactions with the women, each of whom was at least briefly in a romantic relationship with him, than the investigators report did.

The investigators reviewed those communications along with other evidence including interviews with 30 individuals. They determined two of the women sent the powerful lawmaker clear signals they wanted a purely professional and courteous relationship, so his ensuing contact was harassment or created a hostile workplace. They found that Hernandez subjected the third woman, whose job at the time also involved occasional work at the Capitol, to abusive and controlling treatment.

But the text of their private communications as provided by Hernandez, captured in screen shots, raises the question of whether lawmakers missed crucial information.

The biggest revelation in Hernandez lawsuit is his claim that a woman whose abuse allegations appear to have played a central role in triggering the legislative inquiry in April 2020 had recently texted him, professing her love for him and seeking to reunite.

He also documented at least one instance in which a woman who told investigators she avoided all in-person meetings with him except at the Capitol and began taking another person with her in those instances asked Hernandez via text if she could call him about an unspecified personal challenge he was dealing with. She then assured him via text that she wanted to talk to him.

I wasnt pulled in, the woman referred to as Subject 1 assured him. I reached out to you.

It is widely acknowledged that women and people generally who are subjected to harassment or face a hostile workplace sometimes remain friendly and considerate to the person or people who have harmed them. An instance of encouragement does not necessarily mean someone is seeking a romantic relationship.

But Hernandez, in his suit, contends he genuinely believed his interactions with the women, with one exception, were welcome. His livelihood, he says, should not be wrested from him when lawmakers have not been allowed to see his evidence.

A federal judge could decide by the end of this week whether to allow the Legislatures vote on whether to expel Hernandez, which would require a two-thirds majority of the House to vote yes to proceed. Meanwhile, a long list of elected officials including Gov. Kate Brown and other lawmakers have called for Hernandez to resign, as have public employee unions and other interest groups.

Rep. Diego Hernandez, D-Portland, in the House chamber in 2019. Beth Nakamura/Staff

Key among evidence Hernandez wants lawmakers to see, he says, are the text that the woman whom he dated for much of 2019 sent him less than two weeks before she filed the report against him plus the email the woman sent his new love interest the next day. The report she filed seems to have sparked the Capitol harassment investigation.

I love you, I hate that were not together, that were not communicating, that we got here, the woman referred to by investigators as Subject 2 wrote in a text message to Hernandez on Feb. 20, 2020. It feels wrong and unnatural, and I want you to know Im committed to fixing this, healing, growing with you and fighting for you. I miss my best friend and this person I love and care about so deeply.

He responded with a friendly but not remotely romantic Happy Belated Birthday text, according copies of texts he provided.

That same day, Subject 2 emailed the woman whod begun a relationship with Hernandez with the subject line Things you should know. In it, she made extensive claims that Subject 2 and Hernandez were still a deeply involved romantic pair who spent time with each others families, were physically intimate, frequently sexted and spent time together in public and private. Happy to send screenshots of all of this, Subject 2 wrote, according to a copy of the email that Hernandez gave investigators.

In his claim, Hernandez says that Subject 2s decision to inform authorities about his having thrown a phone toward her eight months earlier about 10 days after those exchanges shows that her disclosure was not motivated by concerns for her personal safety but as retribution for his having broken Subject 2s heart. Hernandez acknowledged to investigators and in his statement that he threw the phone and was plainly wrong in doing so.

Hernandez included approximately 150 pages of documents to support his claims, including a copy of the Legislatures human resources rule. He also included three copies of his response to the investigation: one that is unredacted that the court has since sealed, a second that is lightly redacted to remove names and other identifying information but which shows complete or near-complete screen shots of texts and emails, and the third much more heavily redacted version that the Legislative Equity Office turned over to lawmakers deciding Hernandez fate. That version fully blacks out every text, email and social media exchange.

Sandmeyer, the equity officer, blacked them out before giving his statement to lawmakers and the public to, as Sandmeyer explained it, protect the women who complained about his conduct.

The Oregonian/OregonLive asked Sandmeyer on Tuesday why they redacted all that correspondence. Sandmeyer declined to comment, noting the issue is in litigation.

In early March 2020, Subject 2 obtained a restraining order against Hernandez based on her allegations that Hernandez got drunk, engaged in threatening behavior and threw things, including his phone, at her, according to a news report later that month. Hernandez said in a tort claim notice filed last year that House Speaker Tina Kotek, a fellow Portland Democrat, told him in early April 2020 that he should resign from the Legislature and that she was in touch with the woman who filed the restraining order or a representative of the woman.

By May 4, two unnamed legislators, one of whom records show was Kotek, filed mandatory reports that Hernandez might have violated the Legislatures anti-harassment rules with two different women, an independent investigator told the House Committee on Conduct on that date.

The other woman whose experiences with Hernandez came to investigators attention through a mandatory report by a legislator was referred to in the investigators report and committee proceedings as Subject 1. In interviews with investigators and testimony to the Legislature, Subject 1 detailed how Hernandez continued to pursue a romantic relationship for months after they briefly dated in early 2017 and said she repeatedly made clear that she only wanted a platonic and professional relationship.

For most of 2017, Subject 1 worked as a Capitol lobbyist. In the fall, she was hired to run the House Democrats political operation, meaning she reported primarily to Kotek but also to other House Democratic caucus leaders, one of whom was Hernandez.

After a work-related conference that fall that the woman and Hernandez both attended, Hernandez sent Subject 1 a text about her behavior at the event. She perceived it to be a veiled threat to her job and left her feeling cornered, so she told Kotek about her history and experiences with Hernandez. Kotek instructed Hernandez not to speak to or otherwise engage with the woman again, and Hernandez said he complied.

In his response to legislators, Hernandez included communications with Subject 1 he believed supported his contention that he did not violate human resources rules. For example, he included a text message he sent after the conference, which both investigators and the woman described to lawmakers but whose full text was withheld from them. Other texts suggest he sent the text after previously calling the woman to voice his concerns about their working relationship.

The lengthy text reads in part: To be clear this isnt about you doing your job, I think your (sic) doing really well and will do really well. Youre the perfect person we need to lead (the organization)  My intent in communicating with you is more about how we are going to work together. I know you mentioned that it is uncomfortable for you as well, so I just want to check in and see how we can have a good working relationship  Im sharing this with you and no one else  I want to have a good working relationship with you and for us to be able to work comfortably with each other. I wanted to have this convo in person and still do.

As for the third woman, referred to in the investigative report and testimony as Subject 4, Hernandez said the investigators failed to note that she and another one of the women were extremely close relatives with the obvious potential for bias and collusion. Investigators determined that Subject 4 had a brief consensual intimate relationship with Hernandez in 2017, then felt pressured into restarting the relationship in mid-2018.

Hernandez did not provide documentation to refute that Subject 4 would have felt pressured to resume an intimate relationship in mid-2018. Instead, he stated that she invited him to her house to drink and work in April 2018, that Subject 4 and a group of friends invited Hernandez to a party at her house in May which he did not attend, and she sent him a birthday gift card in August 2018 addressed Happy Birthday to my favorite Leo.

Hernandez contends he was silenced during the entire investigatory period, which stretched for the better part of a year, because if he made public any information about the women, it could be considered retribution. Indeed, at least one of his social media posts contained information about the complainants  and Sandmeyer said in a Feb. 1 committee meeting that the post was being investigated as possible retaliation because it may contain information that could be considered to be harming to parties or identify them.

Hernandez also spoke about the case to journalists over the last year or issued statements about it in which he claimed that Kotek triggered the investigation to punish him for voting against a public pension reform bill  a claim Kotek refuted.

Speaker Kotek fulfilled her obligation as a mandatory reporter, which was motivated completely and exclusively by her desire to support a safe workplace for everyone in the Capitol, wrote Danny Moran, a spokesperson for Kotek, in an email Thursday.

Hernandez also said that Kotek and Sen. Sara Gelser, D-Corvallis, Karend him. Kotek and Gelser are white.

Two of the three women whom lawmakers determined reasonably worried that Hernandez might undercut their political careers if they declined his advances or, in one case, due to abusive and controlling behavior, identified as Latinx or non-white in their testimony.

The two Democrats and two Republicans on the House Conduct Committee met virtually with investigators, staffers, Rep. Diego Hernandez's lawyer and those presenting testimony for five women who accused him of misconduct. Hernandez was told he or his lawyer could appear -- but not both.

Hernandez and his lawyers noted that it wasnt until 2019 that the Legislature broadened the groups of people to which Capitol workplaces rules apply, so that everyone who spends time at the Capitol or interacts with legislators and their staff is protected by the prohibition against sexual harassment.

The 2016 version of the rule, in effect until that change, applied only to legislators and their staff, Hernandez noted and The Oregonian/OregonLive reported in late January. Only one of the five women who complained about Hernandezs conduct fell into that group, and her complaint was not upheld as a case in which Hernandez broke hostile workplace rules. Two of the three women determined to be victims complained solely about Hernandezs conduct prior to the rule change.

The investigators noted in their final report that Hernandez insisted that the anti-harassment rule only applied to lawmakers and legislative employees during nearly all the time he interacted with the women. Investigators noted that those rules nonetheless required appointing authorities or supervisors to take appropriate action to prevent, promptly correct, and report harassment, about which the appointing authority or supervisor knew or, with the existence of reasonable care, should have known.

The implication that it broadly required lawmakers or anyone else at the Legislature to report harassment is misleading, however. The rule only applied to supervisors of employees being harassed in their workplace, and Kotek only supervised Subject 1. Neither she nor anyone else at the Capitol was the supervisor of Subject 2 or Subject 4.

In his lawsuit, Hernandez complained the investigation was delayed by more than 200 days. Under the rule, it should have been completed in 84 days or else he should have been notified in advance that deadlines were being extended  a step he said never happened.

The investigation was allowed to drag on for months in a failed attempt to identify new subjects or witnesses, Hernandez lawyer wrote in the response to the legislative committee, filed with the lawsuit. The investigation was delayed through the 2020 election cycle.

The additional time did allow for three additional women to report what they said was misconduct and harassment on his part. Investigators and the House Committee on Conduct later found Hernandez broke anti-harassment rules in the case of one of those women.

Investigators acknowledged in their report that some of the delay was due to reluctance of a potential victim to participate in the investigation. They also wrote, Some delay was due to a two-month lag by Rep. Hernandez in providing documents, and some delay was due to unexpected professional/personal commitments of one of the investigators.

After an initial interview on August 19, 2020, investigators requested documents from Hernandez. He provided the requested documents on Sept. 5, investigators wrote. On Sept. 28, investigators requested documents that appeared to have been missing from his earlier submission. Hernandez provided those documents requested on Nov. 26, investigators wrote.

Investigators also said Hernandez refused to meet for a second interview unless he could first review confidential information from the women; investigators declined to provide it in advance of the interview. After they sent him their draft findings in December, Hernandez agreed to a second interview and submitted additional materials.

-- Hillary Borrud; hborrud@oregonian.com; @hborrud

I

t is 30 years since a small British production company completed what was to become the first of a very particular brand of television documentary. The Second Russian Revolution, produced by Norma Percy for Brook Lapping, chronicled Mikhail Gorbachevs attempts to reform the Soviet Union through the eyes of those who made the decisions as a country, and a whole system, spiralled out of control.

Since then, the same partnership has produced dozens of memorable TV documentaries, painstakingly constructed from eyewitness accounts of recent history. But their latest, Trump Takes on the World, may be the closest in spirit and substance to their first, not least because of the sense it conveys that everything, every day, is in flux and that the humans  for better or worse  can affect what happens, but not always in the way they intend.

The last of three parts airs on BBC Two next Wednesday (24 February). Thereafter, as the BBC will not hesitate to tell you, it will be available on the BBC iPlayer.
Some major hospitals across south Louisiana have been forced to reschedule coronavirus vaccine appointments as near-freezing temperatures linger and have caused delays in shipping.

Those delays have affected Ochsner Health System, the state's largest provider, and Our Lady of the Lake, which is Baton Rouge's largest provider, among others.

Dr. Joe Kanter, the state health officer, explained the problem in a social media post Wednesday evening. Kanter suggested people consider contacting their vaccine provider to see if they need to reschedule their appointments if they are supposed to receive their shot this week.

Pennington to be first mass coronavirus vaccine site in Baton Rouge Pennington Biomedical Research Center will be the first mass coronavirus vaccination site in Baton Rouge, Gov. John Bel Edwards' office announ

He added that anyone receiving a second dose of the vaccine should "definitely reschedule" because "getting it a few days late is OK."

At Ochsner, vaccine shipment issues will delay "approximately 500 scheduled appointments," according to spokesperson Katie Fauquier.

Vaccine news in your inbox Once a week we'll update you on the progress of COVID-19 vaccinations. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up

Fauquier said this adjustment will impact first-dose Moderna appointments at certain Ochsner Retail Pharmacies, but that anyone receiving their second vaccine dose or those scheduled to be vaccinated at Ochsner clinics and hospitals will be able to keep their appointments.

She added that those impacted will be contacted directly and then added to a priority waitlist to be rescheduled.

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Ryan Cross, spokesperson for Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, said in a statement that many vaccine appointments from Monday and Tuesday were rescheduled. But he said that "as of Wednesday we are proceeding with appointments and are prepared to add additional hours on the weekend to ensure all scheduled appointments for this week are completed."

As for Baton Rouge General, spokesperson Katie Johnston said that they have not had to cancel any appointments yet. However, she said the hospital is due to receive vaccine shipments Thursday, and if the inclement weather delays their shipment, the hospital will contact patients to reschedule for next week.

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DALTON, Ga.  A Texas fugitive who shot a Georgia deputy during a traffic stop last year, prompting a massive manhunt in the woods, has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to 25 years in prison.

Superior Court Judge Jim Wilbanks on Tuesday sentenced Dalton Lee Potter, 29, on numerous charges, including aggravated assault on a peace officer, The Chattanooga Times Free Press reported.

Potter was hauling explosives in a stolen trailer in northwest Georgia when deputies pulled him over on Sept. 6.

Potter fired several shots at Deputy Darrell Hackney and hit him once in the back, but authorities said the deputys ballistic vest took the brunt of the shot. Hackney was treated and released that same night, Whitfield County Sheriff Scott Chitwood said.

Hackney and another deputy returned fire, but Potter fled south on Interstate 75. He wrecked the truck and escaped into the woods on foot, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said. He was arrested after a three-day manhunt in Resaca, where hes also accused of shooting a resident.

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Resaca is about 75 miles (120 kilometers) northwest of Atlanta, and about 16 miles (26 kilometers) from the city of Dalton, where the deputy was shot.

Bert Poston, the district attorney for the Conasauga Judicial Circuit, said Potter has pending charges in Gordon County including another aggravated assault charge and pending charges in Texas.

A second Texas man, Jonathan Hosmer, 47, was also arrested in September after surveillance video recorded him leaving the scene of the truck crash. Its unclear why the truck was carrying explosives.

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OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs release statement on detention of 6 Armenian servicemen by Azerbaijan

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Armenia acting premier: We are 100% honest toward our country

Artsakh President pays tribute at Stepanakert memorial, Shushi Tank-Monument

Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan on Meghri corridor plan: Not beneficial to us now to discuss it as "corridor"

Acting PM: "Cement," "fittings" were stolen while constructing Armenia state "building"

Two new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh

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New Delhi, Feb 18 : Google has introduced the next era of G Suite for Education called Google Workspace for Education that includes all the products like Classroom, Meet, Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides and many more for 170 million students and educators worldwide.

The free edition G Suite for Education will be renamed to Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals.

"If you're currently using this edition, you won't see any changes besides a new name and new features. We'll keep building new solutions for this free version by listening closely to educators and their needs," said Shantanu Sinha, Product and Design Lead, Google for Education.

Education Fundamentals and Education Plus are already available today and institutions will be able to purchase Education Standard and the Teaching and Learning Upgrade starting April 14.

To support schools into the future and ensure fair distribution of this valuable resource, Google said it will implement a new pooled storage model and helping admins and school leaders manage their storage.

The new storage model will provide schools and universities with a baseline of 100TB of pooled cloud storage shared across all users - more than enough storage for over 100 million docs, 8 million presentations or 400,000 hours of video.

"This policy will go into effect across all Google Workspace for Education editions for existing customers in July 2022 and will be effective for new customers signing up in 2022," said Google.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court-mandated Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, which is overseeing the construction of Ram Temple in the holy city of Ayodhya, on Thursday (February 18) asked donors not to donate silver bricks anymore as the bank lockers overflow.

The trust revealed that they have received over four quintal (400 Kgs) of silver bricks from donors all over the country and it has been a difficult task to store these.

People from all across the country are sending silver bricks for use in the construction of the temple. We now have way too many silver bricks and as our bank lockers are overflowing we worry about the safety of these donations, said Champat Rai, General Secretary, Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.

The General Secretary further requested the donors to donate in cash, if they want to. As the construction is at a very initial stage and does not require such metal right now.

On the auspicious occasion of Basant Panvhmi, the trust initiated building of the foundation for the temple.

Meanwhile, As per the reports the donations for the construction of the temple have crossed Rs 1500 crore.

Trust treasurer Swami Govind Dev Giri said that an amount of Rs 1,511 crore has been deposited in the account of Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra so far.

For the construction of the grand Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, the whole nation is donating funds. We aim to reach 4 lakh villages and 11 crore families across the country during our donation drive. We are conducting the donation drive from January 15 and it will continue till Feb 27," Giri said.

Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teertha Kshetra Trust is conducting a mass contribution campaign for the construction of the long-awaited grand temple in Ayodhya. This campaign began on January 15 and will go on till February 27.

Two years back, on November 9, a five-judge of the Supreme Court bench led by then Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi ruled in favour of Ram Lalla and said that the entire disputed land spread over 2.7 acres will be handed over to a trust formed by the government, which will monitor the construction of a Ram Temple at the site.

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Naomi Osaka once again proved a road too far for Serena Williams in her quest for a 24th Grand Slam title. On Friday, on the Rod Laver court, the 22-year-old beat her 39-year-old opponent 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 15 minutes.

Serena started in a confident mood, breaking Osaka to take a 2-0 lead but Osaka regrouped the next five games. Serena held serve for 5-3 but Osaka served out the first set 6-3 in 39 minutes.

Osaka broke Serena at the beginning of the second set, forcing her opponent into errors with big and deep forehands. With the crowd allowed back into Melbourne Park, record-chasing Serena fed off their energy to level the second game at 4-4 but she destroyed all that good work by immediately handing the initiative and momentum back to Osaka with a double fault. Osaka served the match out at the first attempt and she will meet either Karolina Muchova or Jennifer Brady in Saturdays final.

Speaking afterwards, Osaka said I hit a lot of unforced errors in the first few games. I was really nervous and scared in the beginning and then I eased my way into it. For me the biggest thing is to just have fun.

Osaka added that she wishes either Muchova or Brady will be jittery in the final when she will be chasing her fourth Grand Slam title -what will be her second Australian Open title after the first which she won in 2019.
Associated Press

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Sunday that flags at all federal buildings be flown at half-staff to honor more than 200 children whose remains have been found buried at what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school  one of the institutions that held children taken from families across the nation. The Peace Tower flag on Parliament Hill in the nation's capital of Ottawa was among those lowered to half-staff. To honor the 215 children whose lives were taken at the former Kamloops residential school and all Indigenous children who never made it home, the survivors, and their families, I have asked that the Peace Tower and all federal buildings be flown at half-mast, Trudeau tweeted.


Minister Jakis Hossain and two others were injured after a crude bomb was hurled at them by unidentified miscreants at Nimtita railway station of West Bengal's Murshidabad district on Wednesday night.

Hossain, the minister of state for labour, was waiting at platform no 2 of the station to catch a train to Kolkata at around 10 pm when he was attacked, a senior police officer of West Bengal Police told news agency PTI.

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"We have started an investigation," he said adding that a large police contingent was posted at Nimtita railway station.

The minister and the other injured persons were taken to Jangipur Sub-divisional Hospital, he said.

Rival parties accused

An official of the hospital said that the minister suffered "injuries on his legs and lower abdominal part. We are trying to stabilise him before shifting him to a hospital in Kolkata."

Senior minister and TMC leader Malay Ghatak held "political rivals of the party" responsible for the attack, which has come ahead of the assembly election in West Bengal due in April-May this year.

When contacted, Ghatak told PTI that Jakir is a very popular leader in Murshidabad.

"He has successfully conducted rallies where thousands of people participated. It's the work of our political rivals. They wanted to kill Jakir," Ghatak said.

The TMC's Murshidabad district president Abu Taher Khan suspected the involvement of the BJP or the Congress, which was very strong in the district even a few years back, behind the attack.

However, Sabhadhipati of Murshidabad Zilla Parishad Mosharaf Hossain, who was expelled from the TMC earlier in the day, claimed that it is the result of the party's internal feud.

West Bengal Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who hails from the district, said, "Jakir is an honest leader unlike several others in the TMC in Murshidabad. I know him personally. I request the state government to arrest the culprits as soon as possible."

BJP national general secretary in-charge of Bengal Kailash Vijayvargiya and the party's state president Dilip Ghosh also condemned the attack on Hossain.

"I strongly condemn the crude bomb attack on TMC minister Jakir Hossain at Nimtita railway station, Murshidabad. I pray for speedy recovery of the injured," Vijayvargiya tweeted.

"This shows that West Bengal is not safe even for ministers. The law and order has totally failed," Ghosh said.

BJP leaders attacked

Meanwhile, in a separate incident, BJP District President North Kolkata Shibaji Singha Roy sustained injuries after he along with party leaders, including Suvendu Adhikari and Shankudeb Panda, was attacked allegedly by some persons at Kolkata's Phoolbagan.

He has been admitted to a hospital.

After the incident, Dr Sukanta Majumdar, Lok Sabha MP from Balurghat said that law and order is missing in West Bengal.

"Another murderous attack on BJP leaders by TMC goons near Phoolbagan. This time it was the trio of Suvendu Adhikari, Shanku Deb and Shibaji Singha Roy, who is grievously injured in the attack. Law and order was never there and is missing now," Majumdar tweeted.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-17 01:39:09|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- The top UN envoy for Iraq on Tuesday called for a free and safe environment for elections in Iraq scheduled for October 2021.

For credible elections to take place, it is imperative that parties and candidates operate in a free and safe environment. The same goes for members of the media. In this regard, recent incidents are highly troubling -- to say the least, said Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the UN secretary-general's special representative and head of the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq.

"I call on all parties, stakeholders and authorities to come together, to agree on a 'code of conduct' and to allow all Iraqi candidates to operate freely -- irrespective of ethnicity, gender, language, religion, belief or background," she told the Security Council in a briefing.

Any Iraqi who wishes to participate in these elections, as a candidate or campaigner, must be able to do so without fear of intimidation, attack, abduction or assassination. And it goes without saying: voters must feel entirely free to choose their preferred candidate, she said.

The Iraqi Council of Ministers, in consultation with the Independent High Electoral Commission, has decided on a new date for Iraq's elections: Oct. 10, 2021 -- four months later than originally planned. Parliament has passed the legislation necessary to finance the elections, and countrywide registration of candidates and alliances, as well as voter registration updates, are under way, she noted.

However, she said, parliament has not yet finalized the outstanding Federal Supreme Court Law. As this court certifies election results, further delays cannot be accepted.

Hennis-Plasschaert asked the Security Council to make a decision on electoral observation in Iraq as soon as possible.

"A request from the government of Iraq for electoral observation is currently before this council. I understand that a decision has not yet been made. But I would like to take this opportunity to emphasize the importance and also urgency of obtaining clarity."

"In this all-important election year, I am hopeful that Iraqis can continue to count on the council's steadfast support and solidarity," said Hennis-Plasschaert. Enditem

Photographer Catches Lucky Shot of Lion Seemingly With Cheetahs Whole Head in His Mouth

This incredible photograph of a lion has people doing a double-take online. At first glance, in the picture, the lion appears to have swallowed the entire head of another large African feline, a cheetah.

However, upon second glance, you can see that the image is actually an incredible optical illusionincredible enough to have caused a stir on Instagram.

Wildlife photographer Saeed Aljafar captured the lucky shot at Masai Mara National Reserve in Kenya. The 583-square-mile reserve is home to between 850 and 900 lions, as well as elephants, hippos, zebras, and yescheetahs too.

On Jan. 20, Aljafar posted the photo to Instagram, describing the encounter in the caption.

Cheetahs entered the lions territory in the late evening, he wrote. The male lion started pursuing them, attempting to get them out. While one of the cheetahs was sitting in the skyline, the lion remained to rest, and it appeared as though the head of the cheetah was inside the lions mouth.

The photographer, who has captured plenty of wild cats on camera throughout his 28-year career, captured the optical illusion with an 800-millimeter f/5.6 lens on his Nikon D5.

He was lucky to be in the right place at the right time, but it isnt uncommon to see lions and cheetahs near each other in the wild. Science Magazine reports that the two species coexist in the savannas of Africa, and cheetahs navigate dangerous lion territory with an incredible aptitude for staying safe.

In fact, scientists recently determined that while lions easily pick off wild dog populations, cheetahs do not face the same population declines when they live in proximity to a lions pride.

Experts surmise that this is due to the solitary nature of cheetahs; they simply do not attract as much attention as a pack of wild dogs.

This delicate dynamic is certainly present at Masai Mara National Reserve. From Aljafars observations, it was clear that the lions didnt want the cheetah in their territory, and the cheetah knew better than to press the matter.

According to the reserve, some of the other animals in the park are buffalo, Nile crocodiles, leopards, rhinos, and wildebeests.

Just adjacent to Serengeti National Park, the reserve has been a sanctuary for Kenyas wildlife for nearly 60 years. Two rivers, the Maasai Mara and Talek, run through the park, providing water to both the wildlife and the savanna grasslands that are vital to the animals survival.

Masai Mara National Reserve is a popular destination for safari-goers and tourists who want to witness herd migrations.

Chances are, any visitor can spot some amazing wildlife specimens on the reserve, though it may be far less likely anyone will capture such an astounding spectacle as this photographer did any time soon.

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MILFORD  Bird-watchers and nature enthusiasts will get a rare opportunity this spring, thanks to a winter storm, the Connecticut Audubon Society, and a group of dedicated donors.

In early February, a winter storm blew down the osprey nest and its supporting platform and 20-foot mounting pole at the Coastal Center at Milford Point. When that happened, the society lost its #1 online attraction, Osprey Cam. The 24-hour live stream from the camera had allowed a generation of viewers to observe the ospreys, also known as sea hawks, grow from eggs into 5-pound birds with 6-foot wingspans.

We had to fundraise for a replacement, get the supplies, and put it all back up on a pretty tight deadline, said Audubon Society Communications Director Tom Andersen.

The nest has been at the center for 20 years and is by far the top attraction on the society website, Andersen said. The pole and platform were replaced by Audubon Society member and osprey enthusiast Terry Shaw, with help from fellow members Ed Haesche and Deanna Broderick. The other equipment, including a infrared-capable cameras and a solar assembly, needed to be purchased. The donation drive hit its $6,000 goal within a few days.

Then there was the problem of installation. The platform was a few hundred feet from shore in a marsh at the Milford Point Coastal Center on Milford Point Road and will require the coordinated use of several boats to replace.

Right now we are on track to install the new pole and platform, and camera equipment on Feb. 27, Andersen said. Thats the day the tides will be best, so workers will have three hours in the morning and then three more in the afternoon to get out there and put it up.

The work must be completed by mid-March, because the ospreys winter primarily in Mexico and the Caribbean before returning north to breed, Andersen said. They are expected back in a few weeks, he said.

They return to the same platform every year, and if they return and the platform isnt there, theyll go somewhere else, he said.

A comeback

Osprey feed primarily on fish, making the Milford Point location ideal, Andersen said. In the wild, they typically live 7-10 years, although some examples have survived 25 years or more. It is possible, though unlikely, that one or both of the birds that currently call the Osprey Cam platform home have been there since the beginning, he said.

This year, with the platform there but the nest gone, Osprey Cam viewers will get a rare opportunity to see the birds build their nest.

When we first put the platform up 20 years ago, they came in and built their nest, he said. When they leave, the nest remains intact until they return. They may tend to it a little bit, but basically it gets reused every year. Now we get to see them build it.

Viewers also get to watch the birds tend between 1 and 4 eggs each year, and they watch the hatchlings grow.

The live stream averages about 32,000 views each year, and last year the eggs hatched at night, but people were online watching it in infrared, he said.

The interest in ospreys is a large part of the reason why the birds, once on the brink of extinction, have made such a strong comeback, Andersen said.

In the 1960s and early 1970s, they had trouble reproducing because of the insecticide DDT, Andersen said. When DDT got banned in 1972, it gave them a chance.

After a few years, the population began to recover. Then it began to thrive.

As the population rebounded, their range increased and they are no longer considered threatened. In Connecticut Audubon stewards counted 210 active nests in 2014. That number increased to over 500 in 2020. In 2015 Audubon stewards counted 356 fledglings. By 2018 the count was 725, and the society estimated the 2020 number at 744.

There are nests all over the place if you look for them, Andersen said. They nest in trees, but also on street lights and cell towers.

For a full list of known osprey nest locations, visit the society website, ctaudubon.org and follow the Osprey Nation link.
Cowabunga, dude! The 13th annual Captains Comic Expo returns to the Omar Shrine Center in Mount Pleasant Feb. 20-21, presented by Captain's Comics and Toys of West Ashley. This years special guest is Guy Gilchrist, the concept artist for the classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (1989) series. Gilchrist also was a concept artist with Jim Henson's "The Muppets" and "Muppet Babies" (1989).

Confession: The sole reason I am able to name all of the heroes on the half shell without difficulty is due to the 1990 rap song Turtle Power, recorded by hip-hop duo Partners in Kryme for the "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" original motion picture soundtrack.

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Leonardo, Michelangelo and Donatello  make up the team with one other fellow, Raphael  but you have to say it Raf-eye-yell for full effect like they do.

There won't be panels this year, but other guests include legendary Marvel comics artist Vic Carrabotta, who worked with Stan Lee back in the day; Corey "Roc Bottom" Davis, creator of Jet Boy and Shadowclub Karma; James C. Mulligan, gallery artist with Disney; and Bianca Roman-Stumpff and Kit Steele, gallery artists with Universal Studios, among others.

In addition to more than 125 tables of comic book dealers, toys spanning 50 years of comic book culture and genres, artists and crafters, there will be cosplay  the best part! Attendees aren't required to dress up, but for those that do "cosplay pros" will be around to assist "fans of all skill levels to improve their craft." You have to wear a mask while you're at the expo anyway, so you may as well step it up a notch. Furthermore, the Star Wars 501st Legion will have a cast of "Star Wars" characters poised and camera-ready.

Participating food trucks are Dog & Duck, 3 Matadors and Holy Rolly. The Blood Connection also will be onsite accepting blood donations, and the Captain's Comic Expo has teamed up with Lowcountry Orphan Relief to help raise funds for the local charity.

WHEN: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 20; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 21

WHERE: Omar Shrine Center, 176 Patriots Point Road, Mount Pleasant

PRICE: $15 one-day pass; $20 two-day pass; $50 VIP two-day pass; kids 10 and younger free with a paid adult

MORE INFO: 843-766-6611, captainscomicexpo.com

Find that lost shaker of salt on Monday

In honor of Feb. 22 being National Margarita Day, I went to nationalmargaritaday.com to get some info on this beverage holiday that pays homage to the tequila, triple sec and lime concoction. I found humor in the blog entry "Top 10 reasons tequila is good for your health." Let's go to school, shall we?

Allegedly, tequila aids in weight loss, whereas I would say that's just because you're too drunk to eat. The blog offers that you don't really get hungover with tequila, to which I would retort that you simply may have done it wrong. Tequila may be used to help treat colds, but please note this doesn't mean it can cure the 'rona. There are numerous other purported medical advantages to drinking tequila, but since I'm no doctor, I will stop here.

Here is a list of some places to celebrate National Margarita Day, based on my completely nonscientific inquiries on Google for "Best Margaritas in Charleston" and the local establishments that continued to show up numerous times (and appear to still be open and serving): Jalisco, Juan Luis, Juanita Greenbergs Nacho Royale, Los Reyes (formerly El Dorado), Mex 1 Coastal Cantina, Santis, SOL Southwest Kitchen, Taco Boy and Zia Taqueria. If you choose to celebrate at home, nationalmargaritaday.com has plenty of do-it-yourself recipes to choose from.

Charleston Jewish Film Festival goes virtual

The annual Charleston Jewish Film Festival has moved online for 2021, featuring free streaming of films and programs Feb. 18-March 9. Presented by The College of Charleston Yaschik/Arnold Jewish Studies Program, the Charleston Jewish Film Fest and the Savannah Jewish Federation, this year's lineup includes comedy, short films, a documentary and discussions on subjects ranging from civil rights to autism. A special Zoom program will feature students from the Sam Spiegel Film School in Jerusalem.

The first "event" on Feb. 18 will be a panel discussion on the classic Jewish film "Goodbye, Columbus" (1969), starring Richard Benjamin and Ali MacGraw. A multigenerational panel, led by professor Ezra Campbell, will cover mid-century assimilation, race relations and the sexual revolution of the 1960s in an assessment of the 50-year-old movie. For more information on the festival and how to register, go to facebook.com/CharlestonJewishFilmfest or email sbrettfilm@gmail.com
In addition to Malaga city, another 25 towns and villages across the province will be allowed to reopen their municipal borders from this Saturday as coronavirus mobility restrcitions are eased.

They are: Mijas, Benalmadena, Fuengirola, Alhaurin de la Torre, Cartama, Coin, Alora, Arenas, Arriate, Benarraba, El Burgo, Canillas de Albaida, Cartajima, Casares, Colmenar, Cuevas de San Marcos, Genalguacil, Guaro, Jubrique, Pizarra, Teba, Villanueva de Tapia and Yunquera.

All these localities last week registered an accumulated incidence of more than 500 infections per hundred thousand inhabitants in the last fourteen days, a limit set by the Junta de Andalucia to order perimeter lockdowns.

However, having lowered that rate, the high-impact public health alerts committee meeting today will decree their border re-openings from Saturday, a measure that will be published this Friday in the BOJA Official Gazette.

The Junta de Andalucia orders the perimeter lockdowns when the municipalities exceed 500 cases per one hundred thousand people and also decrees the closure of all non-essential activity when the incidence rate exceeds one thousand infections.

Perimeter lockdowns, which refer to the prohibition of entering or leaving a town except for justified reasons, should not be confused with home confinement, which is not contemplated by the current state of alarm.

To move from one municipality to another it is necessary that both the origin and destination localities are below 500 cases.
Lucia DeClerck has survived two World Wars, several presidencies, and now, two pandemics  both the 1918 influenza outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Ocean County resident recently recovered from the coronavirus after testing positive on Jan. 25, the day she turned 105. (She recovered from the Spanish flu when she was two years old.)

Im feeling good, she told NJ Advance Media on Friday. When asked how shes lived this long, DeClerck replied: Hard knocks, hard knocks, baby.

Living in Mystic Meadows Rehab and Nursing Center in Little Egg Harbor, the beloved resident experienced no symptoms while sick with the coronavirus, said administrator Michael Neiman. Employees at the facility spoke highly of DeClerck, describing her as a lovely person.

Shes just the sweetest, Neiman said.

Born in Maui, Hawaii, in 1916 to a Guatemalan mother and Spanish father, DeClerck was raised in Honolulu as an only child before being sent to a convent by her grandfather. After high school, she joined her mother, who had left Hawaii to cook for a wealthy family, in Wyoming.

DeClerck then moved to California as an adult. She met and married her first husband, and had three sons, Henry, Joe, and Phillip, before returning to Honolulu in 1963.

Lucia DeClerck when she was around 15.Provided by Lucia DeClerck's family

Nearly 30 years later, she moved to New Jersey while in her late 70s to be closer to her oldest child, Henry Laws III, and his family. She lived with Laws and his wife, Lillie Jean, for 14 years.

Lillie Jean recalled her mother-in-law drank a homemade concoction she stored in the back of the refrigerator. Coming from Hawaii, DeClerck believed in relying on plants and nature for health benefits, Lillie Jean said.

She didnt know all the ingredients in DeClercks drink, but knew the brown, root beer-looking color drink included aloe vera juice, apple cider vinegar, ginger, and a little bit of gin.

I would watch her and I would just shudder when she drank this stuff, Lillie Jean said of her mother-in-laws routine, who she described as a health freak.

When she got older, I started asking her, what did she put in that stuff? she said with a laugh. She was lasting better than we were.

But the Laws lived in a senior development in Waretown, which DeClerck found too quiet.

When people come to visit us, they say where are the people? Its so quiet, Henry Laws, 85, said. His mother preferred their previous home in Hillsborough, which had an active program for seniors.

So when she was 90 years old, DeClerck moved into a place Lillie Jean found for her at Stafford by the Bay in Manahawkin. She lived there by herself for a decade until she fell on Christmas Day, which triggered a hospital stay and a move to Mystic Meadows for rehab.

And she liked it so we just continued their residence there, Laws said.

A devout Catholic, DeClerck credits much of her longevity to her faith.

Pray a lot and (put) one step in front of the other, she said. And pray and pray and pray.

She had a priest come to the senior facility in Manahawkin on a weekly basis for Mass. When she moved to Mystic Meadows, she had the staff establish a chapel for her there, Lillie Jean said.

She always has a rosary in her hand, she said. Shes always praying.

A younger Lucia in Hawaii.Provided by Lucia DeClerck's family

DeClerck has always been active, Lillie Jean said, and only slowed down within the last year. She walked a mile every day until she was 101 years old, outlived all three of her husbands (two of which were named Henry), and has kept all of her original teeth.

Shes received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine  the first time she has received a vaccine, Lillie Jean said.

The family is postponing a birthday celebration until the pandemic is over, Laws said.

Im very happy to be here, DeClerck told NJ Advance Media. Thank you Jesus.

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Brianna Kudisch may be reached at bkudisch@njadvancemedia.com. Tell us your coronavirus story or send a tip here.
Thiruvananthapuram: The BJP in Kerala received a shot in the arm ahead of crucial Assembly polls with Metro Man E. Sreedharan announcing his decision to join the party.

The 88-year-old legendary engineer is set to join the BJP during the partys Vijay Yatra which will be flagged off by Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath in Kasargod on Sunday.

"I am joining the BJP with the belief that I will be able to do something for the state. I am not interested in becoming governor. The LDF and UDF are not able to do anything for the development of the state. They are only going for confrontation with the Centre. Kerala lacks an investor-friendly environment, he told media persons.

I have a good name in Kerala. I enjoy the goodwill of people. If a person like me joins BJP, more people will get attracted and join the party, he said.

Notwithstanding the fact that leaders of his age in BJP are now mainly confined to the marg darshak mandal, the party is likely to make an exception and field him in the forthcoming Assembly polls.



The Metro Man said the decision to join BJP was not taken hurriedly. For the past 10 years I have been in Kerala. I viewed the state from close quarters. I find that most political parties are shying away from working for the state. Instead they are prompted by their party and organisational interests, he said.

The architect of Konkan Railway and Delhi Metro which changed the face of public transport in the country, played a major role in starting metro rail in Jaipur, Lucknow and Kochi subsequently. After retirement from Delhi Metro in 2011, he has been confined to his native place Ponnani, Malappuram district.

Mr Sreedharan says he has many plans for the development of the state. Though he worked closely with the LDF government on a couple of projects, he feels that the Left rule has not been up to the mark. He believes only the BJP can usher in the required development.

He disclosed that he has discussed his ideas of development of Kerala with state BJP leaders and said that most of his ideas will be incorporated in the BJP manifesto for Kerala polls.

Though the BJP is not a major player in Keralas political landscape with just one MLA in the 140-member state Assembly, the party has been trying to break the highly polarised, bipolar politics involving mainly the CPM-led LDF and Congress-led UDF. The BJP did manage to secure 15 per cent vote share in the 2014 Assembly polls.

Earlier, BJP Kerala state unit president K. Surendran said Sreedharan's entry into the party would give a boost to the party.
Indian Banks' Association Chief Executive Officer Sunil Mehta on Thursday said pre-packaged resolution plan is a good concept which will help in speedier resolution of debt-ridden companies.

Under the current Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), a time-bound and market-linked resolution framework is permitted. An insolvency resolution has to be approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

As part of efforts to fast-track such cases, the government is considering introducing the provision of pre-packaged (pre-pack) corporate insolvency resolution plan wherein a restructuring plan would be agreed upon in advance between the company and its creditors.

The government has already floated draft framework for pre-packaged insolvency resolution process (PPIRP).

"As you have seen the law of IBC evolved during course of its implementation...pre-packaged insolvency process may also need certain amendment or changes even at the time of formation or post implementation," he said.

As per a draft pre-pack scheme, put out by the corporate affairs ministry, the government may begin by allowing this scheme for defaults from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1 crore and COVID-19 defaults. This can be followed by defaults above Rs 1 crore, and then defaults up to Rs 1 lakh.

Mehta further said one of the major challenges of the pre-packaged plan would be as to who will be the eligible candidate.

The other challenge would be bringing investors to the company at initial stage of problem rather than when there is a complete disruption, he said at a virtual conference organised by Assocham.

The process has a different evolution matrix, he said, adding, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) not only worked on several aspects of this segment but also organized series of such awareness programmes especially for the investors.

(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.)
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Britain's coronavirus outbreak has plummeted to its lowest levels since September  before the second wave spiralled out of control, official data revealed today.

Department of Health bosses recorded 12,057 new infections, marking a 10.6 per cent drop from last Thursday. Another 454 deaths were also announced, a 33 per cent fall on last week.

Separate Public Health England figures revealed cases among school-age children have plunged to their lowest levels in five months. Around 86 cases were recorded per 100,000 10 to 19 year olds in the week ending February 14  the lowest rate since September.

And in another sign the second wave is firmly in retreat, statistics showed Covid outbreaks shrunk in all but two local authorities in England last week. Only North East Lincolnshire and Tameside  out of 149 councils  saw a drop in infection rates.

The South East and South West also became the first regions to see their weekly infection rates drop below 100 cases per 100,000 since October.

Test and Trace data also revealed infections had plummeted by 30 per cent to their lowest levels since October. They recorded 106,474 new cases in the week to February 11, far below the more than 300,000 patients a week during the darkest days of January.

The encouraging fall in cases comes as Boris Johnson faces growing clamour for a speedier lifting of lockdown measures. The PM is set to unveil his 'roadmap' back to normality on Monday, with his 'prudent' approach set to make pubs and restaurants among the last places to reopen.

Business chiefs and politicians have demanded an accelerated timeframe to save firms from collapse, amid fears that restrictions might last for months, citing the success of the vaccine rollout and significant falls in deaths and infections. Even one of No10's scientific advisers yesterday said the data was 'pointing in the right direction' for some brutal curbs on daily freedoms to be eased soon.

Despite swathes of data showing the worst of the second wave is now behind Britain, Sadiq Khan today called for ministers to reject calls for a swift easing of national curbs. London's mayor urged the PM to ignore 'shouting and hectoring' from Conservative backbenchers as he prepares to unveil his exit roadmap.

However, there are hints that Britain's outbreak may no longer be falling as quickly. A symptom-tracking app has even claimed infections are rising in parts of the UK. Any turn in the trend could be devastating now, with the Government inching closer to finally lifting lockdown for good. But doctors and scientists say they want infection and hospital numbers as close to zero as possible before draconian restrictions end.

 Slide me  Only North East Lincolnshire and Tameside, in Greater Manchester, saw a rise in their coronavirus infection rate in second week of February (left). But the week before infections rose in six areas - Rutland, Calderdale, Middlesbrough, Bolton, North East Lincolnshire, and Hull (right)

Covid cases plunged in all age groups in the second week of February. Among 10 to 19-year-olds they hit levels not seen since September, amid mounting calls for schools to be reopened

Test and Trace data shows there were 106,474 new cases identified in the week to February 10, at the same levels as in October as the brutal lockdown drives down cases

WHICH AREAS HAVE SEEN THE SHARPEST FALLS IN COVID INFECTIONS IN WEEK ENDING FEBRUARY 14 This data is from Public Health England (PHE) and compares the change in the infection rate per 100,000 people from February 14, the latest date available, to a week earlier. Area Rutland Richmond upon Thames Lewisham Bracknell Forest Havering Croydon Windsor and Maidenhead Enfield Greenwich Southwark % (infection rate) -73.7% (122.72) -52.7% (79.29) -50.6% (77.49) -50.2% (97.1) -49.7% (95.16) -49.6% (98.26) -49.3% (73.31) -49.1% (86.28) -48.5% (88.21) -48.1% (72.77) Advertisement

In other developments today:

Angry pub bosses stormed out of a heated Government meeting after ministers accused them of leaking No10's highly anticipated road map out of lockdown, sources claim;

The coronavirus pandemic appears to be firmly in retreat around the world with every corner of the globe seeing infections fall except the Middle East, according to official figures;

Finnish scientists claim to have found another Covid variant which shares some of the same mutations as other troublesome strains, including the South African and Kent versions;

Companies demanding employees have a Covid vaccine before they are allowed to work might not be breaking the law with the demand, Justice Secretary Robert Buckland said;

Britons could enjoy quarantine-free holidays in Greece this summer as the two countries discuss vaccine passports, with tourism minister saying 'technical discussions are underway';

A British father-of-one tried to break out of a quarantine hotel near London Heathrow Airport this morning and has gone on hunger strike after claiming he is being held there 'under duress', MailOnline revealed;

More than 20million years of life have been lost early due to Covid, with experts estimating that the disease shaved 16 years off the lives of every coronavirus victim, on average.

Public Health England's data showed the infection rate among children aged 10 to 19 was at 86.2 per 100,000 in the second week of February, the latest available.

This is below every week since the seven-day spell ending September 26, when it was 53.4 per 100,000.

Covid cases also dropped in every age group and plunged by 38 per cent among the over-80s - who are most at risk of being hospitalised or dying if they catch the virus - to 129.6 per 100,000.

The infection rate was highest in 30 to 39-year-olds (192.5 per 100,000), followed by 20 to 29-year-olds (173.4 per 100,000) and 40 to 49-year-olds (162.9 per 100,000).

WHICH AREAS HAVE SEEN THE SHARPEST RISES IN COVID INFECTIONS IN WEEK ENDING FEBRUARY 14 This data is from Public Health England (PHE) and compares the change in the infection rate per 100,000 people from February 14, the latest date available, to a week earlier. Area North East Lincolnshire Tameside Donacaster Rotherham Bury Darlington Calderdale Barnsley Kingston upon Hull Redcar and Cleveland % (infection rate) +119% (111.5) +8.9% (195.15) -0.3% (185.32) -4.1% (213.25) -4.7% (200.53) -6.9% (189.13) -9.2% (178.29) -9.7% (172.97) -10.1% (147.05) -11.9% (189.57) Advertisement

PHE data also showed the East Midlands was England's Covid hotspot - the area with the highest number of infections - in the most recent week data is available after recording 176.7 per 100,000, but its cases still dipped by 23 per cent from the previous week. The South West had the lowest infection rate in England at 87.4 per cent, falling 30 per cent from the same time last week.

The infection rate only rose in two council areas: North East Lincolnshire, where they increased by 11.9 per cent to 111.6 cases per 100,000 residents, and Tameside in Greater Manchester, where they rose by 8.9 per cent to 195.2 per 100,000.

The sharpest drop in Covid infections was recorded in Rutland, which had been battling an outbreak in its prisons. Cases in the area plummeted by 73 per cent (122.7 per 100,000).

It was followed by the London boroughs of Richmond-upon-Thames where cases dropped by 52.7 per cent (79.3 per 100,000) and Lewisham where they fell by 50.6 per cent (77.5 per 100,000).

Bracknell Forest in Berkshire recorded the fourth biggest drop by 50.2 per cent (97.1 per 100,000), and Havering, also in London, saw the fifth highest by 49.7 per cent (95.2 per 100,000).

The smallest drops in Covid infections were recorded in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, where they only fell by 0.3 per cent (185.3 per 100,000).

It was followed by Rotherham, also in South Yorkshire, where they dropped by 4.1 per cent (213.3 per 100,000) and Bury, in Greater Manchester, where they dipped by 4.7 per cent (200.5 per 100,000).

In Darlington, County Durham, cases fell by 6.9 per cent (189.1 per 100,000) and in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, they fell by 9.2 per cent (178.3 per 100,000).

Public Health England's report from the previous week revealed infections fell in 144 out of 149 local authorities - or 97 per cent - in the seven days to February 7. Rutland saw the largest increase at the time, followed by Calderdale, and Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire.

Separate data from Test and Trace data published today revealed infections had now plummeted to levels last seen in October.

The country's largest surveillance testing study has found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January  the prevalence fell from 1.36 per cent to 0.44 per cent

The data shows that prevalence fell across all age groups, but research now suggests the virus is now spreading the most among primary school children and young people. Experts warn that reopening schools would need to be done 'carefully' in light of the study data, which shows Covid is most prevalent among five- to twelve-year-olds and those aged 18 to 24

The R rate of the virus  the number of people infected by each person with coronavirus  is now at its lowest point in more than six months, the Imperial College estimates suggest, at 0.72, meaning the outbreak is shrinking

The proportion of people infected with the virus, also known as the prevalence, has come down in all regions of England in the past six weeks, the study found. Darker areas have more people testing positive for coronavirus  the map on the left represents mid-January, and the map on the right mid-February

SADIQ KHAN WANTS A LONGER LOCKDOWN Sadiq Khan today risked the wrath of anti-lockdown Tory MPs and hospitality bosses as he demanded Boris Johnson reject calls for a swift easing of national curbs. The Mayor of London urged the Prime Minister to ignore 'shouting and hectoring' from Conservative backbenchers as he prepares to unveil his exit roadmap on Monday. Mr Khan said Mr Johnson must 'learn the lessons of the mistakes made in the past' when the Government has previously eased lockdown. Mr Johnson has said his roadmap will be 'based firmly on a cautious and prudent approach' to ease restrictions in 'such a way as to be irreversible'. But many Tory MPs are adamant that the success of the nation's vaccination drive should allow the PM to lift rules quickly. Mr Khan's intervention came after Mark Woolhouse, an Edinburgh University expert in infectious disease, said the latest data suggested there could be an 'earlier unlocking'. Meanwhile, an Imperial College London surveillance study - the largest in the country - found infection rates are halving every two weeks, with cases set to fall to 1,000 a day by the second week of April. Advertisement

They also showed the number of people getting swabs for the virus remained high compared to the week before, suggesting there was a fall in infections. Almost 3million people got tested for the virus at least once, which was a drop of 4 per cent on the previous week.

Additionally, contact tracers identified 191,242 close contacts of those who had the virus  which had been near infected individuals for 15 minutes or more , 27 per cent fewer than the previous week. Of these 93.6 per cent were reached by tracers and asked to self-isolate, helping to curb the spread of the disease.

The time taken to turnaround tests done at sites increased slightly, however, compared to the previous week. Eighty-five per cent got results in 24 hours, lower than the 86.3 per cent the week before.

The turnaround time for home testing kits also increased, from 34 hours to 35 hours. But the time taken to get results from satellite tests shrunk from 34 to 33 hours. Boris Johnson had previously promised that all Britons would receive their results within 24 hours.

And Department of Health bosses today said the average distance people travel for a Covid test is now under two miles.

Surge testing was also rolled out to Leeds today, with people in the LS8 postcode, including parts of Harehills and the area just north of Easterly Road where the SA variant variant was found, being 'strongly encouraged' to take a test when offered, whether or not they have symptoms.

Announcing the expansion of surge testing, a spokesman for the Department of Health said: 'People living within this targeted area are strongly encouraged to take a Covid-19 test when offered, whether they are showing symptoms or not.

'People with symptoms should book a test in the usual way, and those without symptoms should visit their local authority website for more information'.

They added: 'Positive cases will be sequenced for genomic data to help understand Covid-19 variants and their spread within these areas.'

Earlier this week the department said targeted testing regimes would be set up in parts of Norfolk, Southampton and Woking in Surrey.

Efforts in Manchester to track down examples of the more transmissible Kent variant were also being expanded following deployment of testing teams last week.

It comes as figures today showed coronavirus infection rates have plummeted by more than two thirds since January, in proof that lockdown has worked even against the fast-spreading Kent variant of the virus.

The country's largest surveillance testing study found just one in 196 people in England were infected with the virus during the first half of February, down from one in 64 the last time around, in January.

Results from the REACT study, led by Imperial College London and commissioned by the Government, revealed 0.51 per cent of the population had the virus between February 4 and February 13, down from 1.57 per cent.

The testing of 85,400 people during this time revealed the R rate  the average number of those infected by each person with the virus  was estimated to be 0.7, meaning the epidemic is shrinking. The figures revealed a 'marked drop' in prevalence compared to last month, and a 'reassuring level of decline'.

The positive news will pile more pressure on Boris Johnson  who was last night facing a growing clamour for the speedier lifting of lockdown.

Amid fears that Covid restrictions might last for months, business chiefs and politicians demanded an accelerated timeframe to save firms from collapse. Also warning of the social cost of lockdown, they cited the vaccine roll-out success and significant falls in deaths and infections.

It comes after bosses from leading UK airlines today called on Boris Johnson to outline a recovery road map for the industry so they can plan for the summer, as passengers arriving from Spain and the US could be added to the 'red list'.

The chief executives of British Airways, easyJet, Jet2.com, Loganair, Ryanair, Tui and Virgin Atlantic warned that the Government should provide a clear indication of intent that aviation will restart in the coming months.

They said that without this, the UK faces a year of limited global connectivity, and the economic recovery will be hindered. Airlines also called for more economic support to stimulate and strengthen any recovery when it comes.

The firms said the Prime Minister's lockdown announcement next Monday should include a road map for airlines and consumers to help them plan for the summer and pave the way for the safe reopening of international travel.

UK health officials will decide this week if those arriving from the two countries should isolate for ten days in one of the 16 quarantine hotels approved by the Government in an effort to stop the mutant variants from spreading.

But daily Covid-19 case rates are falling in the US, down to a rolling seven-day average of 77,093 yesterday from 217,703 a month ago; and in Spain, down to 11,939 from 28,829. In the UK, they are down to 12,323 from 46,339.

Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said the decision on whether to add Spain and the US to the 'red list' will depend on how the UK Government defines 'high risk'  in terms of variants or cases.

It comes as bosses from British Airways, easyJet, Jet2.com, Loganair, Ryanair, Tui and Virgin Atlantic today called on the Prime Minister to outline a recovery road map for the industry so they can plan for the summer.

The Cabinet Covid Operations Committee will make their decision using evidence from the Joint Biosecurity Centre. It comes after analysis carried out by the World Health Organisation found dozens of countries where the highly-infectious South African and Brazilian variants had been found were not on the Government's high-risk list.

They included Austria, Denmark, France, Greece, Japan, Kenya, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada and the US. Both Spain and the US have seen new mutations of Covid-19 transmitted locally and are close to South America and Portugal, which are both already on the UK Government's 'red list'.

Why IS Covid in retreat around the world? Global cases fell by 16% last week and have been in decline for over a month... even though experts say it's too early for vaccines to be working

The coronavirus pandemic appears to be firmly in retreat around the world, with every corner of the globe seeing infections fall except the Middle East.

World Health Organization (WHO) figures show the number of new Covid cases fell by 16 per cent worldwide last week to 2.7million. It marks the fifth consecutive week infections have dropped after peaking at more than 5million in the week ending January 4. Covid deaths are also falling.

Infections plunged fastest in Africa and the Western Pacific (down 20 per cent), followed by Europe (18 per cent), the Americas (16 per cent) and South-East Asia (13 per cent). MailOnline's analysis shows Myanmar was the nation that actually saw the biggest drop in cases, followed by Thailand and Sierra Leone.

The only WHO region to see Covid cases rise in the week up to February 14 was the Eastern Mediterranean, which mainly comprises of the Middle East, as well as parts of central Asia and North East Africa. Covid cases rose by 7 per cent there.

WHO director Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the fact cases and deaths were falling globally highlighted 'that simple public health measures work, even in the presence of variants'.

But experts are at odds as to why the key metrics are dropping universally around the world, despite immensely different lockdown tactics being deployed.

The roll-out of vaccines so far has been too patchy and not enough countries have access for the effects to be felt in the global data, according to Professor Simon Clarke, an infectious disease expert at Reading University. He told MailOnline seasonality 'was likely to be at least partly responsible' for the trend, adding: 'This time last year I was sceptical about the seasonal link but I think it's quite likely now.'

He said countries hit hard by the pandemic in the northern hemisphere, including in Europe and North America, are just emerging from the coldest months of winter, which could be slowing Covid's spread. Many of the hardest-hit nations in Europe have also adopted tough lockdowns to combat second waves.

The virus, like so many respiratory infections, thrives as people spend more time indoors and are forced into close contact with others. Fresh, breezy air and warm temperatures, on the other hand, cut the risk of transmission.

Professor Clarke suggested countries in the southern hemisphere, including Brazil and Mexico, are in the middle of their summers, where the warm weather could be making Covid's spread 'quiet'. He added a clamp-down on international travel may also likely to be fuelling the global decline.

Experts are at odds as to why the metrics have risen and fallen at the same time around the world, despite immensely different lockdown tactics being deployed.

Revealed: The nations that have seen the biggest drop in confirmed Covid cases COUNTRY Myanmar Thailand Sierra Leone Lesotho Portugal Gambia Afghanistan Zimbabwe El Salvador Eritrea Burkina Faso Sudan Malawi Eswatini Spain China Suriname French Polynesia Monaco Botswana Colombia Singapore Japan Comoros South Africa Uganda Mozambique Dom Republic Kazakhstan Tunisia % DROP -80.49% -73.85% -73.16% -57.17% -56.43% -55.78% -49.68% -49.26% -47.02% -46.07% -44.20% -43.04% -40.76% -40.39% -39.36% -38.48% -37.65% -37.60% -37.21% -35.61% -34.63% -33.93% -33.88% -33.15% -33.11% -31.25% -30.14% -29.68% -29.54% -27.33% CASES LAST WK 281 1,200 62 472 22,173 65 157 617 1,191 103 361 180 2,001 307 49,840 243 159 78 108 1,423 42,509 111 11,037 246 16,363 198 4,476 6,747 6,048 6,328 Source: World Health Organization figures on confirmed Covid cases in the week ending February 14, compared to the previous seven-day spell. It excludes nations that saw fewer than 50 cases over the week, such as Australia and New Zealand. Advertisement

The promising figures signal that the entire world is emerging from the other side of the second wave, which in many countries surpassed the peak of the initial outbreak last year.

The second wave was fuelled by variants that were far more infectious and even deadlier than the original strain, which meant previously-effective lockdown measures worked less well.

The Kent strain, for example, which cropped up in South East England in late December and has spread to nearly 100 countries, is up to 70 per cent more transmissible and 30 per cent more lethal than the Covid which first emerged in China. Variants with similar mutations in South Africa and Brazil triggered an explosion of infections in their respective continents.

WHO's latest report shows the total number of confirmed cases since the pandemic began is 108million. But poor testing capacity in developing nations means the true number will be higher and not everyone will suffer symptoms.

Figures show virus-related deaths dropped by double digits last week and were down in every part of the world, falling 10 per cent to 81,340. The latest update takes the pandemic death toll to nearly 2.4million.

The Kent variant  scientifically called B.1.1.7  was reported in 94 countries in the week to Monday, the WHO's latest report said, an increase of eight.

In half of those countries it's thought to be spreading in the community, as opposed to the other nations where the cases are all believed to have been imported.

The strain first spotted in South Africa  known as B.1.351  was recorded in 46 nations, up two, with community spread happening in at least 12 of them.

The Brazilian 'P.1' variant  which has yet to be spotted in Britain  was detected in 21 countries, up six, with human-to-human transmission occurring in at least two countries.

In its coronavirus updates, the WHO divides the world into six regions  Africa, the Americas, Europe, South-East Asia, the Western Pacific  which includes Oceania and neighbouring Asian countries such as Malaysia - and the Eastern Mediterranean region.

Broken down, Africa reported over 68,000 new infections from all strains and 2,500 deaths, according to the WHO's latest update, a 20 and 21 per cent decrease, respectively, compared to the previous week.

This is the fourth consecutive week the continent reported decreases in both new cases and deaths. The highest numbers of new cases were reported in South Africa (16,363 new cases, or 27.6 per 100,000 population), Zambia (7,027 or 38.2 per 100,000) and Nigeria, (6,422, or 3.1 per 100,000).

The Americas recorded the highest number of cases and deaths in the most recent week, with 1.3million and 44,000, respectively.

In the most recent week, the US recorded again recorded the most infections in the region (673,630, or 203.5 per 100,000 population), followed by Brazil (318,290, 149.7 per 100,000) and Mexico (66,083, 51.3 per 100,000).

Across Europe there were more than 960,000 cases and 28,000 deaths, falling 18 and 19 per cent, respectively, when compared to the previous week.

AFRICA: The continent reported over 68,000 new infections from all strain and 2,500 deaths, according to the WHO's latest update, a 20 and 21 per cent decrease respectively compared to the previous week

AMERICAS: The Americas recorded the highest number of cases and deaths in the most recent week, with 1.3million and 44,000, respectively

EUROPE: Across Europe there were more than 960,000 new cases and 28,000 deaths, falling 18 and 19 per cent when compared to the previous week

EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN: The Eastern Mediterranean region recorded more than 170,000 cases up to February 14, a 7 per cent increase compared to last week. The region reported just over 2,500 new deaths, a 9 per cent decrease

WESTERN PACIFIC: The region, which includes Australia and New Zealand, two counties to successfully pursue Covid-zero policies, saw the fewest number of people catch the virus over the past week

SOUTH-EAST ASIA: In South-East Asia over the past week, there were about 150,000 new cases, a decrease of 13 per cent compared to the previous seven days. The region reported over 2,300 new deaths, down 9 per cent

France (127,565, 195.4 per 100,000, Russia (104,602, 71.7 per 100,000), and the UK (97,271, 143.3 per 100,000) had the highest infection rates.

The Western Pacific region, home to Australia and New Zealand which successfully pursued Covid-zero policies, saw the fewest number of people catch the virus over the past week.

Just 49,000 cases were officially recorded in the seven-day period, 20 per cent lower than last week, and 1,100 deaths, a 13 per cent decrease.

The three countries reporting the highest numbers of new cases in the region this week were Malaysia (23,084 new cases, or 71.3 per 100 000, the Philippines (11,734, 10.7 per 100 000), and Japan (11,037, 8.7 new cases per 100,000).

In South-East Asia over the past week, there were about 150,000 new cases, a decrease of 13 per cent compared to the previous seven days. The region reported over 2,300 new deaths, down 9 per cent.

India (78,577 new case, or 5.7 per 100 000) had the highest number of infections, followed by Indonesia (63,693, or 23.3 per 100 000), and Sri Lanka (6,276, or 29.3 per 100 000).

The Eastern Mediterranean region recorded more than 170,000 cases up to February 14, a 7 per cent increase compared to last week. The region reported just over 2,500 new deaths, a 9 per cent decrease.

Iran (51,503 new cases, or 61.3 per 100 000), the United Arab Emirates (22,203, or 224.5 per 100 000) and Lebanon (19,156, or 280.7 per 100 000).

Do lockdowns really make a difference? How two US states with totally opposite Covid strategies both ended up with the same result Since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States, no two states have been more different in their approaches than California and Florida. In early March, California Gov Gavin Newsom limited gatherings, closed bars and indoor dining at restaurants, implemented mask mandates and implored residents to stay at home. Comparatively, Florida Gov Ron DeSantis has enacted few measures, lifting an ordinance that prevented people from operating businesses and restaurants as well as lifting COVID-19 related fines and penalties in September. Looser restrictions mean schools have not been shut down statewide and mask mandates have never been imposed. In November, he even criticized states like California with harsher restrictions and said he trusted his residents to 'use common sense.' In an interview on Fox News Business on Sunday, DeSantis argued that Florida 'focused on lifting people up' during the pandemic but 'lockdown states' are 'putting people out of business.' 'There's a whole bunch of things we've been doing for COVID, but at the same time, we've lifted our state up, we've saved our economy and I think we're going to be first out of gate once we are able to put COVID behind the country,' he told Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo. Over the course of the pandemic, California (left) has had a rate of about 8,499 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents while Florida has had about 8,306 (right) per 100,000. Currently, both are seing a rapid declines with fewer than 10,000 cases being reported every day. The dashed line represents the national seven-day average and the solid line represents California's and Florida's seven-day averages Both California (left) and Florida (right) have been recording anywhere between 10 and 20 deaths per million people over the last two months. Historically, Florida has recorded about 130 cases per 100.000 people and in comparison with 117 deaths per 100,000 in California. The dashed line represents the national seven-day average and the solid line represents California's and Florida's seven-day averages Both California (left) and Florida (right) have been recording anywhere between 10 and 20 deaths per million people over the last two months. Historically, Florida has recorded about 130 cases per 100.000 people and in comparison with 117 deaths per 100,000 in California. The dashed line represents the national seven-day average and the solid line represents California's and Florida's seven-day averages Despite these different approaches, both states ended up with roughly the same outcome. A DailyMail.com analysis shows that, over the last two months, the states have each seen cases, deaths and hospitalizations fall by about one-third. So were lockdowns necessary and did they work? The answer is a complicated one, but researchers say that they were beneficial in the early months due to our lack of knowledge about how COVID-19 spread and how to treat it. Studies have shown that stay-at-home orders and restrictions saved numerous lives, but that they might be less useful now as more of the population gains natural immunity through infection or immunity via vaccination - but that social distancing and masks are still necessary to continue driving down case and death rates. When looking at raw numbers, California appears to be doing worse than Florida. The Golden State has 3,399,878 total cases and 46,843 total deaths - both figures are the highest in the nation. By comparison, Florida is reporting 1,827,373 total infections and 28,779 fatalities. However, population size must be taken into consideration. California has about 40 million residents and Florida has about 22 million. When adjusted for this metric, the states have very similar case rates. According to The COVID Tracking Project, California and Florida are both reporting an average of between 200 cases and 400 cases per million people, and each have been seen declines over the last several days. Both states followed a similar curve with a spike in cases around January 1 - as the winter surge led to rapidly rising rates of cases and deaths - with infections starting to tail off a few weeks later. Advertisement
CHARLESTON, S.C., Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Joseph Bauer has arrived on the literary scene with the release of the political thriller, The Accidental Patriot (published by Archway Publishing), the first of a three-book series about an engineer who is propelled down a dangerous path after he is assigned to replace a murdered colleague to fulfill a secret government operation.

After the governments first choice to design a secret installation is discovered and murdered by foreign agents, the president turns to a lonely widower from Pittsburgh to take her place. Stanley Bigelows unusual engineering skills and solitary life make him suitable for the work, but Captain Tyler Brew, the Navy SEAL overseeing the project thinks otherwise.

Brew worries that Bigelows age, weight and lack of physical fitness will make him vulnerable to his predecessors fate. Despite round-the-clock protection by female FBI agent, L.T. Kitt, and a specially trained German shepherd from the witness protection program (Augie), the SEALs fears prove warranted. All while a terrorist offensive takes shape.

The call of service can come out at any age, Bauer says. This novel is educational, inspirational and is enjoyable to read.

The Accidental Patriot is a story of citizenship and service; loyalty and love; and how personal transformation happens in unexpected ways. For more details about the book, please visit https://www.archwaypublishing.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/775939-the-accidental-patriot .

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Attachment
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will consult chief ministers on key issues of agriculture, infrastructure building and manufacturing at the sixth governing council meeting of federal think tank NITI Aayog on Saturday.

The meeting will also discuss key social sector issues such as human resource development, service delivery at grassroot level and health and nutrition, an official statement said.

The meeting is significant as it coincides with a farmers' protest against three laws enacted last year opening up agriculture sector for private participation. The central government and farmer leaders have held several meetings but a resolution is still far away.

Also, the Central government is now trying to help the economy exit a devastating recession with higher infrastructure investments, incentives for local manufacturing and higher import tariff on various items that could be made in India.

States and the Centre will get the chance to decide on a coordinated approach on economic management. Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had promised in her FY22 budget speech earlier this month that the Centre will give funds to states to meet any shortfall in their capital spending plans. Infrastructure building is a key pillar of Narendra Modis vision of a self-reliant nation.

Other union ministers, vice chairman of NITI Aayog Rajiv Kumar and chief executive officer Amitabh Kant will also be part of the consultations.

"The NITI Aayog governing council presents a platform to discuss inter-sectoral, inter-departmental and federal issues," the statement said. It comprises the Prime Minister, chief ministers of states and union territories (UTs), with legislature and Lieutenant Governors of other UTs.

The sixth meeting will witness the entry of Ladakh for the first time, in addition to the participation of Jammu and Kashmir as a UT.

NITI Aayog does not have fund allocation powers but plays a key reole in policy making, development agenda setting and in evolving strategies for supporting emerging industries. NITI Aayog also closely tracks the performance of Centre and states on various aspects of sustainable development goals.

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The former stripper, 35, told Express.co.uk this week - as the show airs in Britain - that he 'feels sorry' for Sam, 28, over the way he's been edited on the show.

British viewers have been made to believe that Sam and Bronson's now 'ex-wife' Ines Basic had an affair on the show, but since it aired in Australia, Sam has long insisted that he didn't sleep with any of his co-stars.

Speaking out: Married At First Sight star Bronson Norrish said this week that he 'feels sorry' for former love rival Sam Ball for his edit on the show as it airs in the UK - despite THAT 'affair' storyline

'I kind of feel sorry for Sam, as he is the villain in the show,' Bronson told the publication.

Bronson added that Sam tried to do the right thing by warning him about his romance with Ines.

'Out of everyone in the show he did try and warn me about the affair,' Bronson said.

Remember that? Bronson added that Sam tried to do the right thing by warning him about his romance with Ines

'He pulled me aside before the affair started and let me know that Ines had contacted him, and that the producers were pushing forward and wanting them to have the affair.'

Bronson added that he couldn't speak to Ines about it afterwards, due to the producers.

Sam made headlines back in 2019 in Australia, for his on-screen 'affair' with Ines, despite having 'married' Elizabeth Sobinoff.

'He pulled me aside before the affair started and let me know that Ines had contacted him, and that the producers were pushing forward and wanting them to have the affair,' Bronson said

But he has long insisted that he never slept with anyone on the show.

Earlier this month, Sam called into UK's Talk Radio, and said that his 'womanizing' storyline on the show was set up by producers.

Sam was on MAFS and shown to have betrayed his wife Lizzie with Ines, but said: 'I was taken into a dark room by producers and told [the cheating storyline] was going to happen...'

'I threw [Ines] onto a bed and that was it... I actually went out for a night with the boys after that.'

Making headlines: Sam made headlines back in 2019 in Australia, for his on-screen 'affair' with Ines, despite having 'married' Elizabeth Sobinoff

Sam explained that he has been unable to speak out and defend himself because he was under contract.

'It's so binding, there's not much you can do at all. Your hands are tied. I couldn't talk out or do anything. I have literally been gagged for the last two years,' he said.

He also revealed that Ines had blocked him - despite Ines telling MailOnline that he dumped her.

Ines claimed they forged a plan to leave the TV experiment and start a new life together, but he ghosted her and they never spoke again.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment, in relation to this story.

PHILADELPHIA--A significant number of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) patients in a Penn Medicine-initiated clinical trial continue to be in remission five years after receiving the chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy Kymriah, researchers in Penn's Abramson Cancer Center reported today in the New England Journal of Medicine. The findings represent the longest follow-up, published data to date for CAR T cell therapies approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphomas.

Among 24 patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common form of NHL, who received the therapy after their cancers had come back following standard treatments, 46 percent achieved complete remission and 31 percent achieved progression-free survival at five years. Among 14 patients with relapsed or refractory follicular lymphoma, the second most common form of the disease, 71 percent achieved complete remission and 43 percent achieved progression-free survival at five years.

"We found that most of the patients who achieve a remission lasting one year remain in remission five years after being infused with CAR T cells. This is really exciting and demonstrates the durability of this approach," said lead author Elise A. Chong, MD, an assistant professor of Medicine in the division of Hematology-Oncology in Penn's Perelman School of Medicine. "Patients who do not respond to chemotherapy have another option that may offer them long-lasting remissions."

Co-authors of this research include senior author Stephen J. Schuster, MD, the Robert and Margarita Louis-Dreyfus Professor in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and Lymphoma Clinical Care and Research in Penn's Perelman School of Medicine and director of the Lymphoma Program at the Abramson Cancer Center, and Marco Ruella, MD,, an assistant professor in Hematology-Oncology at the Perelman School of Medicine and scientific director of the Lymphoma Program.

The team also studied the long-term persistence of CAR T cells, and found that 50 percent of the patients who experienced and remained in remission after the first year did not have detectable levels of the CAR19 transgene after five years, while only one of the 18 patients who had a relapse of lymphoma within one year after infusion had loss of the transgene. The results suggest that loss of CAR T cell presence may not be a frequent mechanism of resistance to the therapy.

The study results are a follow up to a study from the same clinical trial published in NEJM in 2017 by Schuster, among other researchers, that included patient outcomes collected at 28 months. The results of a global CAR T cell therapy trial in lymphoma patients, sponsored by Novartis and led in part by Penn, were also published in NEJM, which led to the FDA approval for Kymriah for the treatment of relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma after two or more lines of systemic therapy, including DLBCL, high grade B-cell lymphoma, and DLBCL arising from follicular lymphoma, in 2018. Kymriah is a registered trademark of Novartis.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma comprises approximately 30 percent of all NHLs, and there are an estimated 27,000 newly diagnosed patients with DLBCL in the U.S. each year. About 6,500 of those patients have relapsed or refractory disease after two or more therapies and may be eligible for approved CAR T cell therapies.

###

Editor's Note: The University of Pennsylvania has licensed some technologies involved in these studies to Novartis. Some of the scientists involved in these trials are inventors of these technologies. As a result of the licensing relationship with Novartis, the University of Pennsylvania receives significant financial benefit, and some of these inventors have benefitted financially and/or may benefit financially in the future.
In a universe of conservative kingmakers, Rush Limbaugh reigned supreme. The radio host, who died Wednesday at age 70, spent more than three decades on air peddling the incendiary rhetoric that would come to define the Republican Party. On Thursdays episode of What Next, I talked to Nicole Hemmer, a historian of right-wing media, about Limbaughs influence in the GOP and how he changed the way all of us, conservative and liberal, talk about politics. A portion of our conversation, condensed and edited for clarity, is transcribed below.

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Mary Harris: I found myself wondering, should we be doing a show on Rush Limbaugh? Is it better not to give more oxygen to him and his points of view?

Nicole Hemmer: I think about this a lot because of my work on the far-right and questions about whether to platform or to interview people who are extremists. I think its incredibly important to talk to experts on extremism and on conservative media, because I think we do have to understand the role that this plays in shaping our politics, in shaping our culture. Otherwise people might not even know where these ideas that theyre hearing or these phrases that theyre hearing come from. Hes an important political actor, and just as if Donald Trump dies tomorrow, youre going to do a show that talks about his impact. Rush Limbaugh looms nearly as large in American political history, and so we need to talk about him. What we dont need is to leave his rhetoric unanalyzed. And I think thats actually what wed be doing if we werent talking about it todaythat in the vacuum of analysis, there would be hagiography, a celebration of Rush Limbaugh on the right, and nothing really to counter it in terms of analysis from a nonconservative perspective. So I actually think its pretty important.

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Justin Peters wrote in Slate that Rush Limbaugh creates his own news universe. If youve watched a Trump rally, it seems to have references to information you dont know about, but everyone in the crowd does seem to know. Thats Rush, thats what he started.

Absolutely. He is the progenitor of this kind of totalizing conservative media ecosystem. There had been conservative media outlets who were doing the same kind of work, who were criticizing liberal media bias, as they put it, who were asking you only to trust conservative sources. That had been going on since the 1940s and 50s. But because Limbaugh was so big, because he had so many listeners, he was able to turn that into something much bigger and much more disconnected from reality, to create a whole universe of references, of authorities, of arguments and language that his audience instantly recognizes, that Donald Trump would instantly recognize and would co-opt, and that really have been the base of what weve seen happen in the conservative movement and in the Republican Party over the past several years.

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When did the Republican Party realize how powerful Limbaugh was and begin changing what they did to accommodate his listenership?

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It really happens in the early 1990s. At that moment, talk radio had not been a political force. It had been a curiosity at best. But he has become such a phenomenon that he not only has this radio show that millions of people are listening to, he has two bestselling books that immediately rocketed to the tops of the charts. And in the early part of the 1992 primaries, he was voicing support for Pat Buchanan, who was challenging George H.W. Bush. And so the Bush team is looking around and theyre like, We dont know how much power he actually has over voters, but we are going to need to treat him like he has a lot of power over voters, and we need to get him on our side. And so theres a way in which they turned their suspicion into a reality by believing that he could have a really powerful influence. They elevated him as a figure, inviting him to the White House. In 1994, when Republicans take the House of Representatives, they hail Rush Limbaugh. They call him a majority maker. They invite him to come to the introduction of the new Republican freshman class, and they make him an honorary member of their caucus because they believe that hes the one thats made the difference because hes the most popular conservative in the entire country at that point.

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Did any Republicans of that era express regret about courting Limbaugh?

Not really. There were certainly politicians who kept Rush Limbaugh at arms length. There were certainly ones who criticized him, like Michael Steele, who ran the RNC, who later apologized for it. Now, I think, because hes no longer in the incentive structure of the Republican Party and conservative media, he can speak more frankly about it. But, you know, if youre still in that incentive structure, if youre still reliant on Republican votes or youre reliant on conservative approval in order to make a livingso if youre working at a think tank or youre working in the media yourselfyoure hesitant to attack him because he has been held up as such a powerful figure that nobody really wants to cross him. And I think that really has dampened criticism of him from the right over the past 30 years.

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Is there one skit or moment from the show that really stands out to you because it explains how this show changed how we all talk?

The phrase feminaziyou dont hear it as much anymore, but there was a time in the 1990s and 2000s when even people who werent conservative sort of casually threw that word around. They might have done so ironically, but that they were adopting the language that he used seems pretty important.

Rush Limbaugh was a troll before there were internet message boards.  Nicole Hemmer

But there are also moments that I think are worth calling attention to, even though they might not be as well known. One of them is this parody song he used to play back in 2008 called Barack the Magic Negro. You know, we talk about those moments where he made fun of people with AIDS, when he made fun of women, when he made fun of Black people in the 1980s and 90s. But this was something that was still a core component of his show at its height. I mean, in 2008, he had just signed a new contract for eight years and $400 million. And the fact that he was doing these racist satires didnt seem to have much of an impact on his bottom line or the audience hunger for him.

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And then the other moment I want to point to is just in the last few months. He hasnt been on air very much, but he played a central role in saying that the election was fraudulent, saying that the attack on the Capitol was filled with antifa and not actually Trump supporters. In bolstering and spreading the big lies of the Trump administration, he was very much part of our politics until the very last moment, because weve seen over the past few months the consequences of the misinformation and conspiracies that flow through conservative media.

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Is there any argument that Rush Limbaughs brutal rhetoric sharpened the people who were arguing against him or somehow brought out the root of some of conservatisms beliefs and that that helps us address them more directly?

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I think probably not. Because I think that even though you could listen to Rush Limbaugh and say, OK, I definitely hear the nativism here, I definitely hear the emotional appeals to anger and to oppression and exclusion here, I definitely hear the anti-woman rhetoric, thats not actually how listeners to Rush Limbaugh hear his show. In fact, I would bet that you will get angry emails or I will get angry emails for even suggesting that Rush Limbaugh engaged in racism or misogyny.

Really?

Yes, absolutely. I tweeted about this earlier, so Ive already gotten a whole swarm of them. But there really is a rejection that he was anything less than a lovable person. They point to Limbaugh and say, You just dont understand him. You dont get that Barack the Magic Negro was satire. It was a joke that was making fun of the libs, not making fun of Black people. And that is the exact same kind of rhetoric that you heard with the alt-right, that you hear with the far-right today.

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It sounds like what you hear on 8chan.

Yes. And I think thats actually really important, because Rush Limbaugh was a troll before there were internet message boards. Triggering the libs was his ethos back in the 1980s and 1990s, and thats been part of what his show is and what his listeners respond to for three decades now.

People have the ability to just saturate themselves in this audio environment.  Nicole Hemmer

Did the show ever evolve, or did it stay pretty much the same?

It evolved some. He certainly would change with the politics of the Republican Party. For instance, he in the last few months was talking about why deficits dont matter and we should stop worrying about them, thats no longer part of our politics. Hes definitely leaned into were going to be the party of the working class and doing more tax on big business and big corporations. So there has been that kind of evolution. But in terms of the core of the way that he tries to entertain and connect with his audience and the power that he has within the Republican Party, I think that was pretty stable over the course of 30 years.

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He was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2020, and last year, at the State of the Union, Donald Trump gave him a surprise Medal of Freedom. What stood out to me was that he looked so different than he had in my memory. It was clear he was at the end of his life. And then he gets this standing ovation. As a viewer, it was kind of jaw-dropping to see politicians putting on such an act of loyalty to someone like him.

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He has been so important to so many politicians careers. He had the ability to elevate them in front of his audience. He had the ability to shine a spotlight on the things that they cared about, and had a real effect when he did those things. It highlights in part just how separate our media ecosystems have become, because I think that most Americans who are not conservative dont think of Rush Limbaugh much at all, and so you see him in these rare moments and he seems like a flashback from the past. But for so many conservatives, he is still a beloved figure at the center of their daily life. Somebody to tune into in some part of those three hours every day, like a friend who youve spent the last 32 years with. And over the course of the past year, it has become kind of a ritual on the show for listeners to call in and just share their memories in order to talk about how much hes meant to them. The show has given more time to that, knowing that Limbaugh was near the end of his life.

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Like a memorial service.

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Yeah, like a yearlong radio memorial service. And its important to realize that for millions of Americans, thats who Rush Limbaugh was.

We live in the world that Rush Limbaugh made, in a lot of ways. Whether its conservative talk radio shows, of which there are just dozens, whether it is podcasts, which are kind of the next generation for conservative audio consumers, people have the ability to just saturate themselves in this audio environment. Theres a real intimacy to audio. Theres an intimacy that you have with a host that you listen to over and over again. And that is something Rush Limbaugh had, but it is also something that all of these other hosts have as well. They might not be as big as Limbaugh, they might not make nearly as much money as Limbaugh made, but that conservative media ecosystem is not going to be knocked off its axis by Rush Limbaughs death. Its very much going to keep going because its become so central to the movement and to the Republican Party.

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Russia is set to operate the first direct trip to the Egyptian seaside resort towns of Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada on 28 February, after a five-year-plus suspension following the crash of a Russian flight in Sinai in October 2015.

The announcement was made by the head of Egypt's Civil Aviation Authority, Ashraf Noweir, who said that the Russian Nordwind Airlines will operate two trips a week to Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada as of 28 February.

According to Noweir, the Russian decision comes on the heels of the latest week-long tour by a Russian inspection delegation that inspected safety and protective measures at Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada airports.

The airport security measures at the Egyptian airports were commended by the Russian transport ministrys security inspectors, who led the inspection tour, said Noweir.

He added that Egyptian airports adopt all necessary security and air safety measures and are well-equipped with the latest inspection devices.

Russias flight suspension to Red Sea resorts has taken a heavy toll on Egypts tourism industry  a key source of hard currency  since Russian visitors were major contributors to the tourism market in the country prior to 2015.

In 2014, three million Russians visited the country, and in 2015, prior to the crash and the subsequent flight suspension, 2.4 million Russians visited Egypt.

Since 2015, Egyptian authorities have upgraded all safety and security measures at all of the country's airports.

As a result of the Egyptian efforts, Russia resumed flights to Cairo International Airport in April 2018, ending a 30-month suspension, but did not resume flights to Egypt's Red Sea destinations.

Over the past several years, Russian aviation and security experts have inspected safety measures at Egyptian airports, including Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada, on more than one occasion.

International flights between Egypt and Russia came to a halt in March 2020 in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak worldwide, but Russia resumed regular international flights to Cairo on 3 September, nearly two months after Egypt began a gradual resumption of regular international flights on 1 July.

Since July 2020, foreign tourists in groups have been allowed entry into the three coastal Egyptian governorates with the lowest coronavirus infection rates in the country  South Sinai, the Red Sea and Matrouh.

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by Vladimir Rozanskij

The new "hybrid" cold war between Russia and the EU began with the annexation of Crimea. Putin's imperial ambitions clash with China's claims. On Chinese social networks the hashtag Give us back Siberia is going viral.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - On February 15, in a press conference after meeting with his Finnish colleague Pekka Haavisto in St. Petersburg, Russian foreign minister Sergej Lavrov declared that "our relations with the European Union are falling apart, and not our fault ".

Lavrov explained that after the Ukrainian Euromaidan "coup" in 2014, the European Union showed its inability to control the situation, yielding to the Ukrainian rebels and later shifting all the blame to Moscow, issuing sanctions after the referendum for the annexation of Crimea and the rebellion of the Donbass separatists. And now Russia is ready to completely break off relations with Brussels, which it also accuses of supporting the protests in favour of Alexei Navalnyj's movement from outside.

In recent years, a new hybrid variant of the cold war between Russia and the West has arisen from the Ukrainian drama: great Russian counter-espionage activism in European countries; support for populist and sovereign parties by the Kremlin; intrusions by hackers and trolls into social networks in favour of Russian interests.

The hostility of Russia towards Europe leads to the propaganda of the imperial ambitions of the Putinian regime, and to the legalization of its territorial conquests.

But Russia's expansionist interests have met with an obstacle in the East: China does not look kindly on Russian activism, which risks creating obstacles to the Japanese economic growth projects. On the contrary, the Chinese themselves are beginning to have expansionist aims towards the West, to the detriment of the Russian territories: the slogan "Give us back Siberia" is becoming viral on Chinese social networks.

In the last 10 years, Chinas GDP has doubled, and a large middle class has begun to form, in addition to the small group of "regime oligarch" billionaires. The idea of recovering the "lost territories" spreads precisely as a result of the increasingly widespread well-being; and the Russian annexation of Crimea inspired the same idea on the Chinese side.

On Weibo, more and more users write that Putin's Russia sooner or later will have to voluntarily return one and a half million square kilometers of territory, torn up during the nineteenth century by the aggressive tsars with unjust negotiations. This interpretation has not been censored by the internal censors, also because it corresponds perfectly to the contents of Chinese school textbooks.

In fact, the Russian tsars made much wider claims than all the countries that divided up the Chinese territories in the 19th century. The Bolshevik regime did not change the imperialist attitude of the Tsarist regime towards China. Even the inhabitants of Buryatia (see photo: Lake Baikal), Russian citizens of Mongolian and Chinese ethnicity, have long been asking to be reintegrated in the Siberian federal region, and many would like to be re-annexed to China.

In 2020, the Chinese foreign ministry forced the Russian embassy to delete the explanation of the name of the city of Vladivostok, "Dominion of the East" from its website and to restore its Chinese name of Haishenwai () to the great Russian port center on the Pacific. And so, precisely the Russians, who demand the return of territories such as Crimea, have shown the Chinese how to recalim Ksibolia, the real name of Siberia, for Beijing.
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Udo Jude Ilo has announced the date for the public presentation of his latest book, Kasie, and the launch of the Natasha Ilo Foundation  a family initiative that immortalizes Natasha, the late daughter of Jude and Nkem.

A statement from the author said the event will hold as follows:

Date: February 23, 2021.

Time: 5:00 p.m.

Venue: Shehu Musa YarAdua Foundation, Abuja.

Kasie, a three-part book of poems, the author said,  Is a tribute to my little girl. I do not ever want the world to forget my daughter. In these words, here, I celebrate her short life. I celebrate my love for her and the joy she brought to my heart I hope that by reading this book (Kasie), it may comfort those going through pain and help others to understand the pain of loss, especially the loss of a child.

The Natasha Ilo Foundation, according to him, is borne out of a strong conviction that every child deserves to live a full healthy life. The Foundation he said, seeks to support childrens development by:

 Accelerating access to health

 Accelerating access to education

 Prevention of sexual and domestic violence.

Members of the media are invited to be part of the Kasie event and help promote the purposes of the project to the larger community.

Please note that to comply with COVID19 precautions, we require media personnel and all participants to confirm their attendance. You can do so by sending an email to natashailofound@gmail.com or call Kelechi on 09083041940.

Signed:

Udo Jude Ilo
Small is beautiful when it comes to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Taoiseach Micheal Martin has described it a potential game changer.

Just one jab is needed, as opposed to the two-dose vaccines we have already.

How effective is the Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine?

The vaccine is made by the US companys subsidiary Janssen and was tested on 44,000 people in the United States, South Africa and Brazil.

In the United States it had an efficacy of 72pc, and 66pc globally in a trial across various continents. It gave 85pc protection against getting sick from Covid-19, even in South Africa where there is a more infectious form of the virus.

What about protection from hospitalisation and death?

It gave 100pc protection against hospitalisation and death.

How effective is it in older age groups?

It was found to be effective in the over-60s. One of the reasons the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine was not used for the over-70s was that there was not enough evidence of its effectiveness in older people.

Does it need complicated storage?

No. It can be stored and transported at fridge temperatures of 2C to 8C.

What is the advantage of only one injection being needed?

It means deliveries will stretch much further than the two-dose vaccines already approved here. You get to twice as many people from one shot.

A one-injection vaccine also improves compliance, as there is no risk of a person failing to return for a second dose.

When will it be available here?

A formal application for approval was submitted to the European Medicines Agency this week. The process will take a number of weeks. It could be approved in March or April.

Will Ireland get many doses of the vaccine?

Ireland will receive around 2.2 million doses of the vaccine this year. That would be spread over many months, with a peak over the summer.

If approved, how many different vaccines in total would be licensed here?

Four. The Pfizer BioNTech vaccine is the most plentiful so far, followed by the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine. Supplies of Moderna vaccine have been arriving in small quantities, and half have to be held back as second doses.

How many vaccine doses are likely to be available here in the next quarter?

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly is hopeful of having around 4.5m doses between April and June. Any forecasts, however, are heavily caveated because of the uncertainties around supply.

How many people have been vaccinated here so far?

The figures up to last Sunday show 180,192 first doses of Covid-19 vaccines had been administered. The number of second doses is 91,750, so that is the level of people who are fully vaccinated.

It brings the total doses given to 271,942.

The breakdown shows 254,365 doses of Pfizer BioNTech have been administered, 14,185 of Oxford AstraZeneca and 3,392 of the Moderna vaccine.

What is happening at European Commission level to increase vaccine supplies?

The EU has agreed to purchase a further 300 million doses of the Moderna vaccine.

It allows for an additional purchase of 150 million doses in 2021 and an option to purchase 150 million more doses in 2022.

Earlier Pfizer BioNTech said a deal had been signed to deliver an additional 200 million vaccine doses to EU countries.

While the 27-nation EU bloc began vaccinating its 450 million citizens almost two months ago, it still lags far behind Britain, the United States and others in the share of population reached.

With a portfolio of up to 2.6 billion doses, the EU will be able to provide vaccines not just to citizens but also to its neighbours and partners.
[February 18, 2021] Blackmer Launches New Mobile App Designed to Simplify and Enhance User Experience

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Blackmer, part of PSG, a Dover (NYSE: DOV) company, and a global leader in specialty pumps and reciprocating compressor technologies, is pleased to announce the launch of the Blackmer+ mobile app. The new app, which is available to download for free on iOS and Android-powered smartphones and tablets, is designed to help save time and money by offering users support and assistance with efficient maintenance management for Blackmer pumps and compressors. "More than ever, customers are looking to lower operational costs and improve process efficiency. Timely maintenance on pumps and compressors can have a huge impact on achieving this goal," said Kyle Hicks, Product Manager, Blackmer. "Not only does the new Blackmer+ app put all the information users need about their Blackmer pumps and compressors right at their fingertips, but it also makes taking care of Blackmer products as easy as a click of a button. This is just another example of how Blackmer is dedicated to providing our customers with the leading-edge productivity tools they need to enhance and simplify their operations." The new app from Blackmer features an intuitive user interface and easily accessible dashboards that provide instant access to pump information. Users will be able to: Register any Blackmer pump or compressor with one-click by simply scanning or entering a serial number.

Connect to Blackmer factory support directly for all product information and questions.

Manage maintenance intervals for Blackmer equipment with calendar and email reminders.

Access Blackmer product documentation, including IOMs, part lists, specifications, perforance curves, and more.

Create personalized notes for all Blackmer equipment.



blackmer.com/blackmer+. For more information on Blackmer, please go to blackmer.com. For more information on PSG, please go to psgdover.com. About Blackmer:

Blackmer is the leading global provider of innovative and high-quality positive displacement, regenerative turbine and centrifugal pump, and reciprocating compressor technologies for the transfer of liquids and gasses. For more than a century, the Blackmer name has stood for unparalleled product performance, superior services and support, well-timed innovation and a commitment to total customer satisfaction. Supported by a worldwide network of distributors and original equipment manufacturers, Blackmer pumps and compressors are used in a multitude of applications in the Process, Energy and Military & Marine markets. Blackmer, headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA, is part of PSG, a Dover company. For more information on Blackmer, please go to blackmer.com. About PSG: PSG is a global pump and dispensing solution expert and leading manufacturer of pumps, systems and related flow-control technology for the safe and efficient transfer of critical and valuable fluids and materials. Headquartered in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, USA, PSG is comprised of several world-class brands, including Abaque, All-Flo, Almatec, Blackmer, Ebsray, EnviroGear, Griswold, Hydro Systems, Mouvex, Neptune, Quattroflow and Wilden. PSG products are manufactured on three continents, North America, Europe and Asia, in state-of-the-art facilities that practice lean manufacturing and are ISO-certified. PSG is part of the Pumps and Process Solutions segment of Dover Corporation. For additional information on PSG, please visit psgdover.com. PSG: Where Innovation Flows. About Dover: Dover is a diversified global manufacturer and solutions provider with annual revenue of approximately $7 billion. We deliver innovative equipment and components, consumable supplies, aftermarket parts, software and digital solutions, and support services through five operating segments: Engineered Products, Fueling Solutions, Imaging & Identification, Pumps & Process Solutions and Refrigeration & Food Equipment. Dover combines global scale, operational agility, world-class engineering capability and customer intimacy to lead the markets we serve. Recognized for our entrepreneurial approach for over 60 years, our team of over 23,000 employees takes an ownership mindset, collaborating with customers to redefine what's possible. Headquartered in Downers Grove, Illinois, Dover trades on the New York Stock Exchange under "DOV." Additional information is available at dovercorporation.com.?? PSG Contact:

Mark Pyk

(616) 475-9330

mark.pyk@psgdover.com

Dover?Media?Contact:

Adrian?Sakowicz, VP, Communications

(630) 743-5039

asakowicz@dovercorp.com

Dover Investor Contact:

Andrey?Galiuk, VP, Corporate Development and Investor Relations???

(630) 743-5131???

agaliuk@dovercorp.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/blackmer-launches-new-mobile-app-designed-to-simplify-and-enhance-user-experience-301231222.html SOURCE Dover

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As the Internet frothed with speculation and fury over Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's trip to Mexico, officials at the Houston Police Department confirmed that they'd handled security for the senator on Wednesday as he was heading out of the country.

"A member of Ted Cruz' staff contacted HPD on Wednesday afternoon," HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva said. "They stated would be arriving that afternoon and requested HPD assistance on his arrival."
Activists dont want so much of Chicagos $1.2 billion in relief going to cops, even to reimburse them.

The revelation that Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot spent $281.5 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds on personnel costs for the Chicago Police Department is prompting outrage from local activists and citizens alike.

We asked for assurances they wouldnt spend it all on police, Alderman Daniel La Spata said Wednesday. Thats the last thing people wanted, to infuse hundreds of millions more dollars into the police department right now.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is reportedly under fire for spending over $280 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds on personnel costs for the Chicago Police Department. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

The figure came to light after Lightfoot asked for City Council approval to transfer $65 million in unspent federal funds into the 2021 budget.

Activists have planned a news conference for Thursday to speak out against such a large portion of the $1.2 billion in coronavirus relief funds from the federal government going to Chicagos police department.

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Author-poet-professor Eve L. Ewing broke down the allocation in simpler terms on Instagram.

Lets do some math, wrote Ewing. Lets say the federal government gave Chicago $100 for COVID relief. This is the equivalent of the police getting $69.48, public health getting $4.47, the office of emergency management (which oversees 911 and 311 among other things) getting $1.98, family and support services (which includes youth services, senior services, support for unhoused people, support for vets, workforce support and more) getting 50 count em 50 cents.

A budget is a moral document, she concluded. And this right here? Is not right.

Read More: Ted Cruz spotted boarding flight to Cancun amid Texas power outage

The Office of Management and Budget stated on Wednesday that funds were reimbursed to the CPD for costs incurred early in the pandemic, including wellness checks on residents, airport security increases, plus security at the McCormick Place field facility and virus testing sites.

Furious Chicagoans quickly took to Twitter to push back against Lightfoots actions and the citys explanation. One wrote: The city of Chicago got $403 million in COVID relief money and Lori Lightfoot gave $280 million or 65% to the police. If that doesnt make you see that the police are actively depriving our city of resources and causing economic insecurity then idk what else to tell you.

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The mayor, a Democrat, had not directly commented by Thursday morning.

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The post Chicago mayor spent over $281 million in virus relief funds on police payroll appeared first on TheGrio.

Finnish judges began touring northern Liberia on Thursday as part of a first-of-a-kind trial of a warlord accused of committing atrocities during the country's civil war.

They are in the West African state to gather witness testimonies for a case against Gibril Massaquoi, a former senior member of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), a Sierra Leone rebel group that also fought in Liberia.

Massaquoi, a Sierra Leonean national, has lived in Finland since 2008, but was arrested there in March last year after a rights NGO investigated his war record.

A case against the 51-year-old began on February 3 in the northern European country, where he is accused of responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed between 1999 and 2003.

But in a historic move, the Finnish judges are also hearing evidence on Liberian soil -- the first time war-crime proceedings have taken place in the country.

Around a quarter of a million people were killed between 1989 to 2003 in a conflict marked by brutal violence and rape, often carried out by child soldiers.

Judges visited the northern village of Kamatahun on Thursday, an AFP journalist saw, and were due to continue on to the nearby village of Yandohun.

Fighters under Massaquoi's command are accused of committing atrocities in both places.

In Yandohun, people told AFP that they welcomed the trial. Fighters torched the village in the 1990s, they said, and took away residents for forced labour in neighbouring Sierra Leone.

Decades later, a dilapidated youth centre in the village still bears bullet holes.

"My father was shot dead before my eyes, right in front of this building," said Kerfah Kamara, 27. "I can never forgive my dad's killer".

Daouda Moimina, another villager, said he had been was kidnapped but survived the ordeal. He said many captives died.

Moimina also pointed to the one house in the village he said the fighters spared. It was scrawled with the warlike slogan "no die, no rest" -- meaning that only death brings respite.

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"The killers were living in this house. That's why they didn't burn it," he said.

- Murder and torture -

Finnish court documents consulted by AFP detail a litany of accusations of abuse committed or ordered by Massaquoi, including murder, rape, torture, enslavement and using child soldiers.

Atrocities against civilians were common during the war, with drugged-up fighters chopping off people's limbs.

The judges will gather testimonies in the capital Monrovia next week.

In Kamatahun, according to the court documents, witnesses said fighters raped at least seven women in a raid, and killed and dismembered some other villagers, whom they ate.

Massaquoi insists he was involved in peace negotiations elsewhere in the region at the time.

Judges, and lawyers for the defence and the prosecution, inspected Kamatahun and took photos, accompanied by local officials, according to an AFP journalist.

"The purpose of us being here is to show the court places where witnesses say things happened," Finnish state prosecutor Tom Laitenen told journalists.

- 'Monumental precedent' -

Very few people have faced trial for war crimes committed in Liberia, and none inside the country itself.

There are regular appeals to establish a war-crimes tribunal in the poor nation of 5 million people, where some ex-warlords remain powerful figures. President George Weah has resisted the calls, however.

A handful of Liberians, including former warlord-turned-president Charles Taylor, have nonetheless been tried and convicted outside the country.

Massoqui himself provided evidence to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2003, for the separate civil war in neighbouring Sierra Leone.

The former RUF member received legal immunity for his role in Sierra Leone's conflict in exchange for his evidence, and subsequently moved to Finland.

But he did not receive immunity for his alleged actions in Liberia, and Finnish police opened investigations in 2018 after a probe by rights group Civitas Maxima.

The group said in a statement this month that prosecuting Massoqui is a "groundbreaking step towards justice for the many victims of Liberias civil wars".

Crucially, Finnish law allows the prosecution of serious crimes committed abroad by a citizen or resident.

Civitas Maxima added that the judges travelling to Liberia could set a "monumental precedent in the ongoing struggle for accountability for the worlds worst atrocities crimes".

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A detail of Penelope after restoration, one of the applique needlework wall hangings of noblewomen at Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire, England. (Claire Hill/National Trust)

Remarkable English Renaissance Wall Hangings: The Noble Women

On the top floor of Hardwick Hall, five wall hangings of noblewomenZenobia, Lucretia, Cleopatra, Penelope, and Artemisiaonce adorned the high walls of Bess of Hardwicks small private chamber. These women were not only of noble birth but also of noble character, bringing to mind all 16th-century womanly virtues.

During the English Renaissance, stories from the ancient world inspired many educated people. In the 1570s, five wall hangings of noblewomen, featuring five ladies and their allegorical virtues, were made at Chatsworth House, in England. Here is a detail of Penelope. (Claire Hill/National Trust)

During the Renaissance, there was renewed interest in classical mythology and history, and the stories of Lucretia, Penelope, and Artemisia were quite popular, Elena Williams, senior house steward at Hardwick Hall, explained by phone. People like Bess and those who were educated would have known of these stories, so they would have recognized and understood the hangings, she said.

Architect Robert Smythson and Bess of Hardwick, also known as Elizabeth Talbot, Countess of Shrewsburythe second most influential woman in England, after Queen Elizabeth Icreated Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire, in the north of England, between 1590 and 1597.

Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire is one of the few surviving Elizabethan prodigy homes, country homes that were built to show wealth and great architectural design. (Chachu207/CC-BY-SA-2.5)

Hardwick Hall is one of only a few surviving Elizabethan prodigy houses, country homes that were built to showcase wealth and great architectural design, often at the expense of livability. Bess expressly designed Hardwick to hang her richly colored textilessuch as those of these moral exemplars.

Creating The Noble Women Needleworks

The Noble Women wall hangings were created in the 1570s, at Chatsworth House in Derbyshire, where Bess lived with her family. Bess always employed an embroiderer as part of her household staff. Its believed that the Chatsworth House embroiderer, under Besss direction, would have designed The Noble Women wall hangings, Williams said.

The composition of each applique wall hanging is the same: Three self-contained arches between two Ionic columns. The noblewoman is in the large central arch, flanked by the personifications of two of her virtues, who are each under a smaller arch.

The monogram initials on each wall hanging reflect Besss marriage to George Talbot, sixth Earl of Shrewsbury. The initials also represent the celebration of securing the family bloodlines, as Besss children from her second marriage married two of Georges children from his previous marriage.

Bess and George Talbots monogram. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

Its not known how long it took to make the embroideries, but under the embroiderers leadership, many members of the household staff helped to embroider and assemble the wall hangings.

Each hanging is richly decorated with applique embroidery, whereby different shapes are cut from a variety of fabrics and sewn together onto black linen, like a collage, to form figures and decorative elements. Each applique design, whether a noblewoman or an Ionic column, was then sewn onto the black silk wall hanging. The more complicated elements, such as the emblems at the center of the arches and the coats of arms were thought to have been workshop commissions.

An Ionic capital. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

An Ionic column. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

The coat of arms, on the right, is thought to have been embroidered at a workshop. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

Sumptuous fabrics were used for the wall hangings, including rich brocades with metal threads, silk velvets, and gold and silver cloth. Some of the opulent fabrics were from vestments, which were liturgical garments. Bess had previously been married to Sir William Cavendish, who worked as a commissioner for Henry VIII and was directly involved in the dissolution of the monasteries.

Interestingly, the religious motifs on the vestments were not used in the wall hangings but were cut away from the garments and stored for safekeeping, Williams explained. None of these fragments of vestments were noted in Hardwick Halls records, she added.

At the time the embroideries were being made, Bess and her husband George had a high-ranking house guest: Mary Queen of Scots. The devout Catholic queen was put in the Talbots care (both Protestants) by Queen Elizabeth I when she ordered her rivals house arrest.

The 5 Noble Women

Only four of the five Noble Women embroideries now survive, although a fragment of the Cleopatra still exists. The Cleopatra wall hanging, which once hung near the fireplace, was believed to have been substantially damaged, Williams explained. In 1760, when the wall hangings were moved down to the family rooms, the Cleopatra embroidery was not mentioned in the move. In the 19th century, when the needleworks underwent some repairs, its believed that the Cleopatra wall hanging was used to repair the other four.

With the exception of the Cleopatra, the most striking thing about the embroideries is that after all this time we can still see them in their entireties, Williams said.

Williams explained the stories and some of the symbols in the four surviving Noble Women applique embroideries.

Zenobias Noble Warrior Spirit

In the third century, Zenobia married Septimius Odaenathus, the king of Palmyra, Syria. After Odaenathuss assassination, she ruled the Palmyrene Kingdom as regent and then de facto ruler for her son. During her reign, she conquered some of the Roman Empires eastern provinces. Eventually she was subjugated when the Roman Emperor Aurelian reclaimed the eastern provinces.

Zenobia flanked by Magnanimity (L) and Prudence, circa 1570s. Linen background with applied silk velvet and gold cloth; around 10 feet, 8 inches by 13 feet, 7 inches. (Robert Thrift/National Trust)

In the Hardwick Hall embroidery of Zenobia, the warrior queen is flanked by her virtues: Magnanimity and Prudence. Magnanimity represents a great heart and mind, showing a willingness to face danger and take action for noble reasons. Experts believe that her noble actions might refer to her carrying on her husbands campaign and his work, Williams explained. Magnanimity holds a long staff, with a lion by her side, indicating, of course, bravery. To Zenobias left is Prudence, the ability to choose the right action at the right time. A snake, representing wisdom, wraps itself around Prudences right arm.

Lucretias Virtue

In the sixth century B.C., Sextus Tarquinius, the youngest son of the last king of Rome, was sent to Collatia, a town northeast of Rome. There are several versions of events. In one account, Sextus and Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus, son of the kings nephew, debated over which of their wives were more virtuous. To settle the debate, they both paid surprise visits to each wife to see what she was doing while her husband was away. Sextuss wife was enjoying a sumptuous banquet while Luciuss wife, Lucretia, was weaving with her handmaidens. Lucius therefore won the debate.

That night, Sextus snuck into Lucretias bed chamber to seduce her. He gave her an ultimatum. She could succumb to his advances, marry him, and become his queen. Or if she refused, he would kill her along with one of her servants and claim that he killed them for Luciuss honor after he caught them committing adultery. Lucretia stood firm in her devotion to her husband. Sextus raped her.

Lucretia summoned her father, husband, and two witnesses to inform them of the attack. While they were debating the right course of action, Lucretia took a knife and killed herself. The attack on Lucretia signaled the end of the Roman monarchy. Lucius Junius Brutus led Roman noblemen to expel the king and his family, resulting in the establishment of the Roman Republic.

Lucretia flanked by Chastity (L) and Liberality, circa 1570s. Linen ground with applied silk velvet and gold cloth; around 9 feet, 1 inch by 11 feet, 2 inches. (Claire Hill/National Trust)

In the Hardwick Hall embroidery of Lucretia, she looks down to her left where Liberaliter (Liberality) stands. Liberality is generous in her actions and thoughts and always believes the best of others. She holds a cornucopia overflowing with what is believed to be rare coins. The pelican in the background represents family loyalty and, again, generosity. In legend, the mother pelican is known to feed its blood to its young in times of dire need. Therefore, Christians have used the pelican to symbolize Christs sacrifice.

Above Liberality is the Hardwick stag. To Lucretias right stands Chasteti (Chastity) holding an olive branch to symbolize marital chastity. The unicorn behind her indicates virginity. Above Chastity is the Hardwick family coat of arms.

Artemisias Family Loyalty

In the fourth century B.C., Artemisia and her brother-husband, King Mausolus of Caria, created one of the seven wonders of the world, their Mausoleum at Halicarnassus. Both are buried in the mausoleum, but Mausolus died first. Artemisia, overwhelmed with grief, put her husbands ashes into her goblet of wine and drank it so that she could be her husbands living tomb.

Artemisia flanked by Piety (L) and Constance, circa 1570s. Linen background with applied silk velvet and gold cloth; around 10 feet, 4 inches by 15 feet, 6 inches. (Robert Thrift/National Trust)

In the Hardwick Hall embroidered hanging, Artemisia is holding a scepter and a goblet of wine that contains her husbands ashes. Constans (Constance) is on Artemisias right side, with a swan symbolizing marital loyalty or marital fidelity. The sword near Constance echoes the swans message of loyalty. Pietas (Piety), to Artemisias left, symbolizes family loyalty.

At Pietys breast is a small man, which refers to the tale of Pero and her father, Cimon. The story illustrates family loyalty under severe circumstances, as Pero breastfed her imprisoned father to save him from starvation. Theres also a stork that represents family loyalty.

Penelopes Wifely Devotion

In Homers Odyssey, Queen Penelopes husband, Odysseus, has been away from home fighting in the Trojan War for many years. Every day, suitors ask for Penelopes hand in marriage because Odysseus has been gone for so long and is presumed dead. Penelope doesnt want to remarry because, in her heart, she believes her husband is still alive and will return. To appease her suitors, she tells them that she cannot possibly decide who to marry until shes finished weaving a shroud for her father-in-law, Laertes. And each evening, she unravels the weaving shes done that day.

Penelope flanked by Perseverance (L) and Patience, circa 1570s. Linen background with applied silk velvet and gold cloth; around 9 feet 1 inch by 11 feet, 6 inches. (Claire Hill/National Trust)

In the Hardwick Hall embroidery of Penelope, she points the finger of her right hand skyward, in a gesture that says Wait! Her left hand rests on the roll of cloth shes woven, which will never be completed. The personifications of her virtues Perseverance and Paciens (Patience) flank her. Perseverance holds an eagle, which seems about to take flight from her arms. Patience, on Penelopes left, has a lamb pawing at her dress. The lamb often represents peace, humility, and innocencea reminder for Penelope as she waits for her husband.

Penelopes patience and perseverance pay off as Odysseus does return, after 20 years.

To find out more about the Hardwick Hall Noble Women wall hangings, visit NationalTrust.org.uk

Perseverance holds an eagleonly the tips of the wings are visible here. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

Patience, on Penelopes left, has a lamb pawing at her dress. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

Penelope touches her roll of woven tapestry. (Rachel Langley/National Trust)

Penelopes gesture says Wait! (Rachel Langley/National Trust)
State Sen. Adams Hinds told the State House News Service this month that he is developing a bill to study the possibility of making broadband a utility in the Bay State.

Google Pixel 6 will bring new features that could be better than those provided by its predecessors. Here are all the things you need to know about Google's upcoming high-end smartphone.

Toms Guide reported that Google Pixel 5, the latest Google smartphone, hasn't been out for that long. Why? Because the company was only shipping it since last October 2020. And now, another Google device is expected to arrive.

Google Pixel 6 was first speculated when the company's internal code names for its future smartphones were leaked in 2020. The codes are Oriole, Passport, and Raven. Rumors stated that Passport refers to Google's possible folding device. On the other hand, Raven and Oriole were believed to be referring to Google Pixel 6, which is expected to have a base model and an XL version.

Google Pixel 6's release date, price, and specs

The upcoming Google Pixel 6 is expected to arrive early in Oct. since Pixel 5 was previously released on October 30, 2020. Rumors also believed that Pixel 6 is not the only Google smartphone that could be unveiled this year. This means that another version of Pixel 5 is coming, but there is no confirmation yet if it'll be Pixel 5 Pro.

Read Also: Sony Xperia 5 II: A Very Capable and Awesome Phone for Today's Mobile Computing Tasks

Meanwhile, Pixel 6 is expected to cost around $699 up to $799. However, if people want a lower price, then Google has to make some compromises. These include putting in a less powerful processor.

When it comes to cameras, Pixel flagships have a high reputation. This means that Pixel 6 could also offer a great photography experience. However, it is still unclear if Google will include the popular telephoto lens feature. Although this is the case, Pixel 6 could still bring an advanced camera feature. Rumors stated that it could have an under-display front camera.

On the other hand, Google Pixel 6 might have a 120Hz refresh rate, which is better than its predecessors since they only have a 90Hz refresh rate. When it comes to the design, Google Pixel 6 might also have a camera setup similar to Apple's iPhone 12. Pixel 6 is also expected to have the same round edge as Pixel 5.

Pixel 5 Vs. Pixel 6

As of the moment, it is hard to tell which one is better than the other. Previously, many sources stated that Pixel 4 is better than Pixel 5 since the newer model is cheaper than its predecessor, which is expected if a company will put a lower price.

When it comes to the processor, Pixel 5 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G, which is not a very powerful chipset since there are more models that were released. On the other hand, Android Authority previously reported that Google did not integrate the telephoto lens on Pixel 5. Instead, the manufacturer decided to use a 16MP ultra-wide shooter.

Pixel 6 and Pixel 5's design could still be the same since rumors stated that the new product will still have round edges. It will depend on the hardware and features that Google will integrate to make Pixel 6 better than Pixel 5.

Related Article: Huawei MateBook 14 2020 AMD Review: Amazingly Classy, Powerful, and Feature-Packed
A South Australian teenager who breached Western Australias quarantine rules more than 20 times and lied on her G2G application has been sentenced to six months behind bars.

Isata Jalloh, 19, fronted Perths Magistrate Court via video link from Bandyup Womens Prison on Thursday afternoon, accused of walking out of her quarantine hotel on at least three occasions and having guests come in and out of her room numerous times.

Isata Jalloh, 19.

The teenager and her friend Banchi Techana made headlines last August after travelling to Perth without an exemption and then escaping hotel quarantine within hours of arriving to party with an amateur rapper in the southern suburbs.

Jalloh received a $5000 fine for that breach after her lawyer argued she had not understood the strict border policy in place at the time.
Homegrown Twitter-like platform Koo has garnered over 10 lakh new users in just one week, surpassing the 40 lakh-figure in nearly 10 months of its arrival, as was caught in crosshairs with the Indian government over its direction to remove nearly 1,400 controversial accounts.

Koo, a favourite among several Union ministers, including IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad who is at the forefront of the government's war with Twitter, has reached 4.2 million users within no time.

According to data analytics platform Statista, as of January 2021, the micro-blogging platform had an audience reach of 69.3 million users in the US.

Japan and India were ranked second and third with 50.9 and 17.5 million users, respectively.

The fast-growing vernacular platform Koo describes itself as a personal updates and opinion sharing micro-blogging service.

The app won the Atmanirbhar App Innovation Challenge held in August last year and Prime Minister Narendra Modi encouraged Indians to use the Koo app in his 'Mann Ki Baat' speech too.

However, Koo also found itself in the midst of several controversies including a data leak row and Chinese investment.

Koo Co-founder and CEO Aprameya Radhakrishna denied that there was any data leak.

"Koo is an India registered company with Indian founders. Raised earlier capital 2.5 years ago. Latest funds for Bombinate Technologies is led by a truly Indian investor 3one4 capital. Shunwei (single digit shareholder) which had invested in our Vokal journey will be exiting fully," Radhakrishna said in an earlier investment.

Koo has raised $4.1 million as part of its Series A funding.

Infosys veteran Mohandas Pai's 3one4 Capital is the latest addition to the investors on board, according to the company, and Accel Partners, Kalaari Capital, Blume Ventures and Dream Incubator also participated in the round.

"We have got more love than we expected. Our systems are facing more load than ever. Thank you for placing your trust in us. Our team is working on overdrive to fix it. We request your patience and support through this time. Let's do this together," Radhakrishna had said.

--IANS

na/ash

(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.)
At the National Health Digital Transformation Congress 2020, Novartis Vietnam (Novartis) was honored as one of 34 units that have made a positive contribution to the digital transformation of the health sector in the country.

Thanks to a long-term strategic vision, Novartis has been early aware of the significance of digital transformation in healthcare.

The year 2020 also marked many remarkable achievements of the pharmaceutical company.

Particularly, Novartis has pioneered the application of the Docquity platform to organizing activities and programs to provide updated knowledge for Vietnamese medical staff.

It is known that Docquity is an online community dedicated to health workers in Asia.

Moreover, Novartis has successfully partnered with health organizations and Hello Doctors to support public health awareness while cooperating with Samsung SDS in applying Brightics RA artificial intelligence technology to routine eye disease screening.

Notably, Novartis has partnered and sponsored healthcare organizations to successfully implement the program of Tam Diem.

This is a series of webinars held weekly to provide the latest scientific information for cardiologists.

Moreover, at the end of 2020, Novartis also officially launched MedHub  an online medical portal for health staff which is considered a significant milestone in the company's digital road map to improve customer experience.

Novartis, a pharmaceutical company, was honored in the digital transformation of the health sector.

We are very delighted and highly appreciate the recognition from the Vietnamese government, the Ministry of Health, and other authorities for Novartis continuous contributions toward the digitalization journey of Vietnams healthcare, said Amitabh Dube, country president at Novartis Vietnam.

We look forward to building the long-term, sustainable partnership and going hand in hand with Vietnams government in helping patients get more convenient, faster, and quality access to healthcare services.
The Federal Security Service (FSB) has detained members of the Hizb-ut Tahrir terrorist organization, outlawed in Russia, in ten regions of the country, the FSB said in a statement.

"The Federal Security Service, the National Guard and the Interior Ministry have carried out joint special operations in Crimea, Moscow, St. Petersburg, the Primorsky, Krasnodar, Bashkortostan, Dagestan, Oryol, Kaluga and Ivanovo regions, detaining members of the Hizb-ut Tahrir international terrorist organization," TASS cited the statement as saying.

According to the FSB, "the organizations members were active online, spreading the ideas of Islamic terrorism, based on intolerance towards other religions, among Russian residents, and recruited Russian Muslims into the ranks of the international terrorist organization."

Criminal cases have been opened against seven of those detained. The FSB pointed out that the organizations doctrine was aimed at establishing the so-called worldwide caliphate by overthrowing secular governments in military coups and "Islamic revolutions."

Banned Hizb ut-Tahrir propaganda materials, communication equipment and digital storage devices were seized from the homes of the detained suspects. A criminal investigation is underway.

Goons with clubs and machetes had established a makeshift checkpoint outside Tahrir Square in Cairo to beat pro-democracy protesters, and my heart sank when I saw the thugs intercept two frail women and menace them.

But the women, sisters named Minna and Amal, stood their ground that day during the Arab Spring a decade ago. I stepped forward to interview the women and also the thugs, who were holding straight razors and clubs with nails embedded; with violence oddly on pause for a joint interview, I asked Minna and Amal why they risked so much to seek political rights.

We need democracy in Egypt, Amal said simply. We just want what you have.

The quiet, indomitable courage of Minna and Amal is one of my most powerful memories from Arab Spring. There are so many like Minna and Amal who risk beatings, torture, rape and murder to stand up for democracy  and I keep wondering why we Americans, with nothing to lose, too often over the years have been unwilling to do the same.

The United States has been particularly complacent about human rights in Saudi Arabia. Loujain al-Hathloul, a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, has been imprisoned, tortured and sexually abused for trying to promote womens rights. Instead of championing her and other imprisoned activists, the Trump administration protected their persecutor, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, often known as M.B.S., even though he also presided over the murder of a Washington Post columnist. In his spare time, M.B.S. created the worlds worst humanitarian crisis, in Yemen.
Signup Open For Kynect Health Insurance

By The Associated Press

FRANKFORT - Gov. Andy Beshear is urging Kentuckians who lack health insurance to take advantage of opportunities now available to sign up for coverage.The sign-up window for government insurance markets runs through May 15.President Joe Biden ordered the markets that ended their annual enrollment periods in December to reopen.Beshear said the coronavirus pandemic shows how expanded health care in Kentucky has helped the Bluegrass State suffer fewer virus-related deaths than most states.Kentuckians needing help to enroll for health coverage can visit kynect.ky.gov.
Farmers in Buikwe, Uganda. Credit: Pecold | Shutterstock

Using state-of-the-art plasma technology to make cheap fertilizer for small farmers may sound like magic, but it has now become reality. Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) have built a small plasma-powered plant that produces nitrogen-based liquid fertilizer only using sun, water and air. "The plant is easy to set up, sustainable and very efficient," says TU/e researcher Fausto Gallucci, who together with partners in Africa, Germany and Portugal has done successful tests of the device in Uganda. "We now want to bring the mini-plant to the market, so that it becomes available to farmers around the world."

Feeding an increasing world population is a huge challenge. Forecasts say there will be 8.6 billion people on our planet in 2030, and almost 10 billion in 2050. Artificial fertilizers, in particular nitrogen-based fertilizers, play a key role in meeting this challenge.

Vital nitrogen

Nitrogen is one of the three main macronutrients used by plants to grow (next to phosphorus and potassium. In 2015 about one in every two humans was fed by food that was cultivated using nitrogen-based fertilizer, a proportion that is expected to increase over the coming years.

While widely available in the developed world, artificial fertilizers are not as common in the developing world. In Africa, where 60 percent of all farmers have less than one hectare of land at their disposal, farmers often don't have the money to buy the stuff. In addition, fertilizers are often produced by big multinationals, who only deliver in bulk and from central locations.

Low-tech

It is here that the Africa project of Leap-Agri comes in. It uses a small-scale reactor to make liquid nitrogen-based fertilizer that can be used by any farmer who has access to sunlight and water.

While the technology behind it is quite state-of-the-art, the application is very low-tech. "We sent a system based on our plasma reactor to the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) in Uganda that had never worked with plasma technology before, and they were able to produce fertilizer within a month," says Fausto Gallucci, professor at the department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry.

"Our system is small, simple and very fast. Once you switch it on, it is really a matter of seconds before it begins to produce fertilizer. This makes it also very flexible: you only run it when the sun is shining and you need fertilizer."

Cool plasma

So how does this device work? Professor Gallucci explains: "Our mini-plant uses plasma technology. Plasma, as you know, is the fourth state of matter and consists of ionized atoms and molecules. You may be familiar with it from lightning or neon signs, which both consist of plasma."

The plasma reactor that was tested in Uganda. Credit: Eindhoven University of Technology

The plasma used in the fertilizer plant is non-thermal: while the electrons that drive the reaction reach extremely high temperatures, the gas that surrounds can stay relatively cool. This of course saves energy.

It makes plasma technology an attractive alternative to the traditional way of producing nitrogen, the so-called HaberBosch process, which requires both high pressure and high temperatures. It is estimated that the Haber-Bosch process consumes 1 to 2% of the world total energy, emitting some 300 million tons of CO 2 every year into the air.

Fixing the nitrogen

Making nitrogen-based fertilizer in a plasma reactor involves a process known as nitrogen fixation. While 78 percent of the air consists of N2, the gas does not react with other elements (it is chemically inert). This makes it hard for plants to use.

Nitrogen fixation solves this problem. It converts the nitrogen (N 2 ) from the air into NOx, which in turn reacts with oxygen and water to form nitrate (NO 3 - ). This can then be used as an ingredient for liquid fertilizer.

"To get the conversion process started," explains Sirui Li, researcher in the group of professor Gallucci, "the N 2 molecules first have to be 'activated' by introducing an electrical charge. This ensures that the bonds that hold the nitrogen atoms together are broken, creating a plasma."

In the case of the Leap Agri mini-plant, the electricity for plasma generation is provided by solar energy, a cheap and sustainable source widely available in developing countries.

Efficient and accessible

The process is highly efficient: it produces a liquid fertilizer with a high level of nitrate that can be readily assimilated by plants. An analysis was made in Uganda by NARO researcher Stella Kabiri, who compared this fertilizer with other fertilizers on the local market. The result showed the nitrate content to be about 20 percent, which is 14, 42 and 51 percentage points higher than the solid fertilizers Ammonium nitrate, NPK and Urea respectively.

"More importantly, the liquid fertilizer can be produced on-site and on-demand, so that each farmer can choose exactly the amount of fertilizer and nitrate content that she needs for her crop and plot of land," says Sirui Li.

At present the cost of the mini-plant is still quite high (some 70,000 euros), but Gallucci expects the price will come down considerably once it is being produced on a larger scale. "One day, smallholders in Africa will be able to buy their own fertilizer unit, either individually or collectively as a village. The collective can then rent out the mini-plant to their members, or sell the fertilizer to other villages."

Explore further Producing fertilizer from air could be five times as efficient

Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 10:57:10|Editor: huaxia

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DAKAR, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Senegal on Wednesday night received the first batch of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine.

Senegalese President Macky Sall, First Lady Marieme Faye Sall, senior government officials, Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Xiao Han and representatives of the World Health Organization also attended the delivery ceremony at Blaise Diagne International Airport.

The first batch of 200,000 doses of vaccine were conveyed by a special flight of the national company Air Senegal from Beijing.

Speaking at the ceremony, President Sall first expressed his "sincere thanks" to his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the acquisition of these doses of vaccine.

He also thanked Ambassador Xiao for the follow-up of "this complex operation".

Apart from these 200,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine, Sall said that his country has started the process of acquiring other vaccines, and will receive 6.798 million doses in the coming weeks for mass vaccination.

The country plans to vaccinate 20 percent of its population, which is about 3.5 million people, in the first phase of mass vaccination.

Senegal has so far reported 31,771 COVID-19 cases with 26,095 recoveries and 769 deaths. Enditem

Jacinda Ardern has appealed to her millions of social media followers for help in tracking down the owner of a fluffy toy which was left behind at an airport.

The New Zealand Prime Minister was handed the lost bunny by airport staff when she was in Hamilton for a series of meetings in the hope her high profile might assist in reuniting the toy with its owner.

Ms Ardern posted a selfie on Thursday of her holding the bunny - which has been given the nickname 'wink' - three weeks to the day it became lost at the airport.

'Landed in Hamilton this morning and the airport team kindly let me use their board room for a couple of meetings. As I was leaving they introduced me to this wee bunny. It was found at the airport on the 28th of January and they've been looking for its owner ever since,' Ms Ardern wrote.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took to social media seeking the public's help to find the owner of a lost fluffy toy bunny

Ms Ardern revealed the bunny, which has been given the nickname 'wink', was left behind at an airport on January 28

Ms Ardern, who has her own young daughter Neve, highlighted how important it was for the child who had lost their bunny to once again have it in its hands.

'I think everyone who has a little person in their lives will know how important these precious things can be, so maybe you can help us find whoever 'wink' belongs to?,' she said.

'Wink' has been given its own airport lanyard, lost tag, mask and hi-visability jacket, although Ms Ardern hopes that will not render the toy bunny unrecogniseable.

'I think 'wink' has only acquired a name, safety jacket, mask and ID since living at the airport....hopefully that won't stop it being recognised,' Ms Ardern said.

Ms Ardern's Facebook post has been shared thousands of times while hundreds have commented across her social media pages.

'Awesome, Jacinda, every little person has a go to safe toy... I remember when my son lost his special toy. It was a mission to find, as he love to collect dog's, to this day I have kept those trinket and treasure as we see our child grow. Paintings and all. You are amazing,' one person commented.
"Today's announcement represents Toyota's continued commitment to our customers as well as our community," said TMMWV President Srini Matam. "We are thrilled to expand our Toyota family and continue our long-standing commitment to provide top-quality engines and transmissions for our customers."

The $210 million investment will upgrade TMMWV's current six-cylinder engine production line with new equipment and machinery, creating flexibility based on market demand for Toyota's vehicle assembly plants in the U.S. and Canada.

The 100 new jobs will create a third shift due to a significant increase in RAV4 engine production at the Buffalo site, increasing assembly of an additional 5,900 engines per month, or more than 70,000 engines per year.

The upgrade project and hiring will be complete in the second half of 2022. Information regarding available positions at TMMWV can be found at www.tourtoyota.com.

"Toyota's commitment to increase its investment in West Virginia and into our hard-working West Virginians prove they continue to be a wonderful business partner right here in the Mountain State," West Virginia Governor Jim Justice said. "This is such exciting news for West Virginia's business community as well as our families that businesses are choosing to grow their organizations here. Toyota is a wonderful example of how a global company can be successful right here in West Virginia."

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain in the U.S., with more than $28.4 billion direct investment in the U.S., nine manufacturing facilities, 10 including our joint venture with Mazda, nearly 1,500 independently owned dealerships and approximately 180,000 people working across the U.S.

TMMWV currently employs approximately 2,000 team members and has invested more than $1.8 billion into its nearly two million square-foot facility. TMMWV will commemorate its 25th anniversary this year. It annually produces nearly one million engines and transmissions for North American-assembled vehicles, including Avalon, Camry, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Lexus ES, Lexus RX350, RAV4, Sienna, and Sienna Hybrid.

Additional Quotes Available for Media Use:

United States Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.)

"Since Toyota first came to West Virginia more than 25 years ago, they have expanded their operations multiple times in Buffalo and proven to the country that our state has the skilled and dedicated workforce necessary for any company to be successful here. I have seen this dedication and strong work ethic of the Toyota Team Members firsthand during facility visits, and I'm glad that today's announcement will create new job opportunities for hardworking West Virginians to pursue," Senator Capito said. "I'm thrilled that the Buffalo engine plant is continuing to play a key role in producing the engines and motors that power U.S. vehicles as Toyota continues to develop and incorporate exciting new technologies into their fleet. West Virginia has a long and productive relationship with Toyota, and this announcement today further solidifies the company's commitment to investing in our state and our workers."

United States Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.)

"In 2005 as Governor, I had the opportunity to travel to Japan to meet with Dr. Toyoda and company officials and since then they have been a strong partner for West Virginia. I've had the pleasure of working with Toyota as they continue to build on their investments in the state, which now total more than $1.8 billion and support 2,000 good-paying jobs," said Senator Manchin. "Today's announcement of 100 new jobs and its continued investment in the state is testament to the team in Buffalo and the West Virginia workforce. The partnership between Toyota and West Virginia is stronger than ever and I look forward to continuing to work with Toyota officials to foster more long-term investments in our economy, communities and people."

Note: Toyota West Virginia assets including photos, videos, and b-roll footage are available at www.pressroom.toyota.com Search "TMMWV" for available assets.

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our nearly 1,500 dealerships.

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 36,000 in the U.S. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 30 million cars and trucks at our 9 manufacturing plants, 10 including our joint venture in Alabama that begins production in 2021.

To help inspire the next generation for a career in STEM-based fields, including mobility, Toyota launched its virtual education hub at www.TourToyota.com with an immersive experience and chance to visit many of our U.S. manufacturing facilities. The hub also includes a series of free STEM-based lessons and curriculum through Toyota USA Foundation partners, virtual field trips and more. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

Media Contacts:

Bethany Ross

304-812-4193

[email protected]

Kelly Stefanich

812-779-8268

[email protected]

SOURCE Toyota Motor North America

Related Links

www.toyota.com


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Eqip Glacier, a marine terminating glacier in Greenland. Credit: kaet44/Creative Commons

Two new studies suggest that recent estimates of global ice melt are conservative. In other words, ice is melting much more rapidly than experts thought. As a result, sea levels are rising faster as well.

The first study combines various observations from satellites, on-the-ground measurements, and model-based estimates to create a clearer picture of the state of Earth's ice between 1994 and 2017. Essentially, it captures a global tally of change in ice mass over that time period. The resulting measurements of ice loss and sea level rise fall in the upper range of scenarios forecast by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a body within the United Nations meant to provide objective science related to climate change. The IPCC's scenarios were laid out in their 2019 special report on oceans and the cryosphere, itself a recent overview of assessment work.

Faster sea level rise means that more areas will experience devastating floods sooner, and we are already seeing more of such events.

The second study zooms in on a particular region, rather than compiling measurements at the global scale. Focusing on Greenland, this study investigates how warmer ocean water affects marine terminating glaciersthose that end at the ocean. The authors identified at least 74 glaciers with retreats strongly influenced by warmer ocean waters, which expedite mass loss by undercutting a glacier's base. Thus, the rest of the glacier is weakened and can collapse. Importantly, glacial melt contributes to rising sea levels; icebergs calving as glaciers thin adds water to the oceans.

The authors of the first study emphasized that there is little doubt that the majority of ice loss is due to climate warming. In an interview with GlacierHub, Michael Zemp, director of the World Glacier Monitoring Service and a professor of glaciology and geomorphodynamics at the University of Zurich who is not affiliated with the study, stated that "Overall, the data show that climate change is happening and impacts are only increasing."

See the top and bottom illustrations. They show how the water thins the ice from below, making it easier for pieces to break off. Credit: Michael Wood et. al./Ocean forcing

Zemp also highlighted the complexity of systems in the cryosphere, emphasizing an important dynamic between the two studies in question. Broadly, the driving force of increased ice melt is climate warming. However, within glaciated regions around the world, there are specific characteristics that need to be taken into consideration.

For example, as the Greenland study demonstrates, the region's glaciers are losing mass much more quickly as the ocean waters melt them from below, making it more easy for pieces to break and fall off. As this regional phenomenon affects the glaciers so significantly, the study authors point out that "projections that exclude ocean-induced undercutting may underestimate mass loss by at least a factor of 2."

From the different characteristics of each region to the various measurement types (satellite, on-the-ground, modeling) to the time periods in which measurements are observed, models of the cryosphere have much to incorporate. Zemp notes that reports by the IPCC, which attempt to pull data from many different studies, can suffer as a result of the challenges of incorporating wide-ranging factors.

When asked how to reduce ice melt, Walter Immerzeel, a professor at Utrecht University, answered, "the only real option is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions ASAP. The re-entry of the U.S. in the Paris climate agreement is a hopeful sign."

Zemp's conclusion echoed Immerzeel's: "the response is not easy, but still very simple. We have to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the Paris Agreement will hopefully help with this."

Drang Drung Glacier in Zanskar Valley, India. Several nearby communities rely on glaciers in the area. Credit: Sandee Pachetan/Creative Commons

The Greenland study notes that from 2008-2017, there was a cooling period in the ocean near Greenland. Despite this cooling, grounded ice (ice on land) continued to retreat significantly. As a result of previous warming, the glaciers have already been removed from their state of equilibrium, meaning the balance between mass gain and loss is gone. Even if emissions stopped immediately, there would still be lingering effects and mass loss as a result of the damage that has already been done. If emissions stopped, global temperatures would still be high enough for ice to continue to melt.

"It [climate change] was already urgent, but these conclusions further emphasize this. We need to act now and invest in both mitigation (reducing emissions) and adaptation (being prepared for the impact)," Immerzeel told GlacierHub.

He also noted that increased ice melt has significant implications for communities which rely on glaciers as sources of fresh drinking water and water for irrigation. For example, villages in Peru rely heavily on the Cordillera Blanca mountain range. The mountains and glaciers provide a rich cultural history, economic benefits through tourism and water used for irrigation, tourist guesthouses and household consumption. As the glaciers melt, the traditions of the culture that rely on the glaciers disappear, and people's livelihoods are threatened by the impacts on tourism and agriculture and the sudden appearance of floods.

While certain damages are unavoidable, there can absolutely be more harm to come if significant action is not taken now. Whether action is undertaken to protect current vulnerable communities or future generations, reducing emissions can shrink the burden people will inevitably have to bear. Communities are being affected as glaciers melt and sea levels rise, but the extent to which these damages will occur is still uncertain and can still be changed if the right measures are taken.

Explore further Increasing ocean temperature threatens Greenland's ice sheet

This story is republished courtesy of Earth Institute, Columbia University http://blogs.ei.columbia.edu.

By Tracy Rucinski

(Reuters) - American Airlines Group Inc and JetBlue Airways Corp said on Thursday they are launching the first phase of their partnership with codeshares on nearly 80 routes from New York and Boston.

The joint announcement came even as the U.S. Department of Justice and attorneys general in New York, Massachusetts and other jurisdictions continue to review the proposed tie-up.

"American and JetBlue intend to cooperate with those investigations, but are proceeding with plans to implement this alliance," American said in its annual report released late Wednesday.

New York-based low-cost carrier JetBlue and international major American are hoping the partnership, announced in July, will give them more competitive heft in the U.S. Northeast as the industry recovers from the coronavirus pandemic, which has decimated travel.

"The alliance is also essential to getting our planes back in the air profitably and crewmembers working again," said JetBlue's head of revenue planning, Scott Laurence.

The two airlines are also introducing 33 new routes in the first phase of their alliance, which American's chief revenue officer, Vasu Raja, called "the first step to delivering the best customer proposition with the biggest network in New York and Boston."

Codesharing allows travelers to book with one airline for flights operated by a partner. The two airlines will also begin offering reciprocal benefits on their loyalty programs this spring.

Following a U.S. Department of Transportation review, American and JetBlue agreed to divest some slots at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) near Washington and will refrain from coordinating on some markets.

JetBlue pilots voted earlier this week to reject a tentative agreement that would have given the airline contractual relief to implement the partnership. JetBlue said it still planned to move forward.

The union representing American Airlines' pilots said on Thursday it was still analyzing the codesharing announcement.

(Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
By Cho Byung-jae



Will the U.S.-DPRK dialogue, which has remained dormant since the Hanoi summit in February 2019, resume with the launch of the Biden administration?



At the eighth party congress in January, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un revealed his stance on the issue. While he left the door open for potential dialogue, it was conditioned upon "the withdrawal of the U.S. hostile policy toward North Korea." At the same time, he assigned North Korea's military to "develop tactical nuclear weapons, improve the accuracy of ICBMs, and accelerate the development of hypersonic gliding flight warheads, nuclear submarines and SLBMs" or submarine-launched ballistic missiles.



The Biden administration has yet to come up with a specific North Korea policy. What Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at his confirmation hearing on Jan. 19 remains all that is known. Blinken, in close consultations with America's allies, is expected to review the entire approach toward North Korea to see what options there are, what would be effective in increasing pressure on North Korea to come back to the negotiating table, and what other diplomatic initiatives are available. It was a statement of principle that everything would be reviewed from top to bottom.



However, it is advisable for the Biden administration to outline a North Korea policy sooner rather than later. If left unattended, North Korea will be tempted to create a crisis with a new missile or nuclear test. If that happens, it will complicate US plans to immediately deal with critical issues such as China and climate change.



Secretary Blinken mentioned that additional sanctions could be used. However, the fact of the matter is, one of the most stringent sanctions regimes has been imposed against North Korea since 2016-17 and remains intact. If anything, North Korea's situation has been compounded by the outbreak of COVID-19, which has forced Pyongyang to close its borders completely. As a result, in 2020, trade with China, which used to account for 90 percent of North Korea's foreign trade, declined by 81 percent down to $540 million. Given how strained the country already is, it will not be easy to come up with new sanctions that will move the needle.



However, should the U.S. also consider diplomatic incentives that Blinken previously raised in his testimony, one of the most effective ways to sway North Korea could be renewing its commitment to the 2018 U.S.-North Korea Joint Statement. This may sound somewhat out of sync in light of the widespread criticism the statement received from the U.S. foreign policy community. However, it is worth noting that the statement was an agreement reached at the highest level.



The Rodong Shinmun, the official newspaper of the Worker's Party of Korea, praised the Statement, saying that the supreme leader Kim Jong-un "made sure that the joint declaration that assured the establishment of new DPRK-U.S. relations was adopted." By simply renewing the commitment from its end, the U.S. could press North Korea to keep its promise to refrain from nuclear or long-range missile tests, while freeing up time to develop a roadmap for the future.



The value of the statement is more symbolic than substantive. What it does is to specify three goals in principle: normalization of bilateral relations, peacebuilding, and denuclearization. Specifics were to be discussed in subsequent negotiations. South Korea will certainly support this initiative.



The U.S. is facing two proliferation issues at the same time, one with North Korea at the Eastern end of Asia and another with Iran at the Western end. Although President Biden pledged to return to the Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA), Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Zarif stipulated that in order to return to the agreement, the U.S. should first lift all sanctions against Iran that were imposed by the Trump administration.



Furthermore, in February, Iran's intelligence chief warned that if the U.S. does not lift the sanctions, Iran would rescind its pledge to forego nuclear weapons. Kim Jong-un has made similar requests to the U.S.



In his 2018 New York Times article, Secretary Blinken wrote that the Iran nuclear deal could serve as the best model for a deal with North Korea. The beauty of the Iran deal is its flexibility which accepted some degree of uncertainty in the future in exchange for the best option within practical reach. I hope the Biden administration tackles the North Korean issue with the same flexibility and determination.



During his visit to the Defense Department last month, President Biden promised to "bring a responsible end to wars that have dragged on for so long." It is likely that he had the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in mind. However, it would not be surprising to find out that he was also remembering a war which started 70 years ago and is still going on in the Korean peninsula.





Cho Byung-jae (bjcho81@gmail.com) is the secretary-general of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) and also a visiting professor emeritus at the Institute for Far Eastern Studies of the Kyungnam University. Cho was a career diplomat and his last position at the Foreign Ministry was the chancellor of the Korean National Diplomatic Academy.




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PHOENIX  A Senate committee has unanimously approved a measure that would legalize the use of test strips that can detect the presence of the potent opiate fentanyl.

The measure by Democratic Sen. Christine Marsh was prompted by the death of her 25-year-old son, Landon Marsh, last year. The Senate Health and Human Services committee approved SB1486 on Wednesday, and it now goes to the full Senate for consideration,

Marsh tearfully related how her recently married son had one night of being really stupid with his childhood best friend and took what he thought was a Percocet pill that turned out to be laced with fentanyl. He had been working otward a degree in mechanical engineering when he died.

And that one night of stupidity resulted in my sons death, Marsh said. And I contend that a night of stupidity should not result in death.

The test strips are now considered illegal drug paraphernalia.

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My bill simply legalizes a little strip of paper  that a person can use and it reveals whether there is fentanyl in that drug or not, Marsh said.

Marsh, a freshman lawmaker who represents parts of Phoenix and was a former teacher of the year, said her goal is to raise awareness of the dangers of fentanyl overdoses and save lives.

The state Health Services Department reports that since June 15, 2017, 8,559 people have died of opiate overdoses in Arizona. Many of those are from ingesting drugs laced with fentanyl.
Im a creature of ritual. Ive found that sticking to routines throughout the uncertainty of pandemic circumstances has enabled a sense of stability and purpose. I may not have been able to stick to my rituals so determinedly if I hadnt been kept in line by two furry housemates of the canine variety, Luca and Jet. In ensuring that I adhere to rituals that benefit their interests, theyve inadvertently kept me on track to nourish my own wellbeing and productivity.

Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership globally, with almost half of all households owning a dog. Dog owners, in my opinion, are a vital cog in the functioning of the economy, and ought to be subsidised and celebrated for the role we play. In owning Luca and Jet, I am regularly spending on dog food, collars, leashes, snacks, poop bags, grooming and veterinary visits. I am supporting a whole range of businesses that provide pet products and services, an industry worth over $12 billion in Australia.

The problem with dogs is that they are such good people, which is why it's so hard to explain the current situation to them Credit:iStock

Daily, I walk at least 1.5 hours and often more because dogs dont understand I dont feel like it. This enhances my fitness, my mental health, and my sense of belonging to my local community. It makes it less likely that Ill burden the health system with problems related to lack of physical fitness. I support community advocacy for more green spaces, for the maintenance of community spaces and the safety of my community. I have a vested interest.

Jet, the pineapple-sized moodle who is boss of the household, is a relatively new addition but shes learning our ways. Luca and I established a routine pre-pandemic that was non-negotiable rain, hail, blazing sun or COVID-19.

Other cannabis-focused startups are also looking at listing in London, including Grow Group, Cellular Goods, South West Brands, and Northern Leaf

Shares in London's cannabis companies are continuing to waft higher as investors rush to participate in this budding sub-sector

( ), which made it debut earlier this week, saw its shares 93% higher at 35.7p by Wednesday lunchtime, up more than fivefold from the 6.5p at which the company raised 6mln in its IPO.

The Tel Aviv-based group is the maker of the VapePod, an inhaler nicknamed the 'cannabis Nespresso', which provides metered dosages of its proprietary cannabis-based oil formulations to treat sleep disorders and relieve pain.

Shares in FastForward Innovations Ltd ( ), which has been cultivating a burgeoning cannabis section of its portfolio in recent weeks, were up 10% to over 12p in morning trading, close to a 52-week high.

FastForward took a 0.3% stake in Kanabo as part of its IPO and in recent weeks also invested A$1mln Aussie-listed Little Green Pharma as part of a placing and has backed South West Brands, adding to existing investments cannabis and hemp producer Emmac and hemp-based wellness firm Yooma.

Another recent listing is Europe-based MGC Pharmaceuticals PLC ( ), which raised 6.5mln of new cash last week and became the first cannabis-sector company to float on London's main market.

The shares are up 73% to 4.14p since listing, though were not included in Wednesday's rally.

MGC said this week it is expanding its research program into the use of cannabinoids in the treatment of aggressive glioblastoma brain cancer, with a similar nanoparticle delivery system to be used that is proving successful in another of its clinical trial into the treatment of COVID-19.

Other cannabis-focused startups are also looking at listing in London to benefit from investors' new craving, including , which last week struck a deal to import products from cannabis and pharma colossus Tilray, following the launch of a 6mln pre-IPO funding round at the end of last year.

But likely to be next on the cannabis IPO rank is , a consumer CBD brands business backed by David Beckhams DB Ventures and looking to raise 8mln in an IPO.

It will be jostling with South West Brands, the FastForward portfolio company whose boss recently said as part of its pre-IPO press push that it is aiming to launch The Hut Group of cannabis.

With less razzmatazz, Jersey-based grower is also eyeing listing as part of its aim to lead the development of a new pharmaceutical-grade hemp cultivation industry on its Channel Islands base.

Boss Ben Langley recently told Proactive that the European cannabis market is likely to develop in a more regimented and organised way than North America, where the addition of recreational weed complicates the story.
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Iranian authorities announced that they will close borders with Iraq in the southwestern Khuzestan province over the transmission risks of new variant of COVID-19, Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA) reported on Thursday.

"From Saturday, Iran will close the borders of Shalamcheh and Chazzabeh for one week for passengers' entrance," the Khuzestan province governor, Qassem Soleimani Dashtaki, was quoted as saying.

During this time, the Iranian officials will try to set up facilities for rapid testing and temporary quarantine in the two border points, he said.

Iranian health authorities have warned of the rise of new wave of coronavirus in the country and have adopted particular protective measures in the Khuzestan province.

Iran's health ministry reported 8,066 new COVID-19 cases on Thursday, raising the total nationwide infections to 1,550,142.

The pandemic has so far claimed 59,264 lives in Iran, up by 80 in the past 24 hours, said the health ministry spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari during her daily briefing.

Of the newly infected, 578 were hospitalized, said Lari.

A total of 1,324,231 people have recovered from the disease and been discharged from hospitals, while 3,679 remain in critical condition.

According to the spokeswoman, 10,274,529 tests for the virus have been carried out in Iran by Thursday.

Longford County Council planners have given the green light for the development of multi million euro 43 bed unit at St Joseph's Care Centre, Dublin Road, Longford town.

The Health Service Executive formally lodged their plans for the extension with the local authority on July 30 last year and planning permission has been granted this week with twelve conditions attached.

In 2017, government signalled its intention to undertake a near 12m upgrade of St Joseph's.

Also read: Vaccination centres needed in all three of Longford's municipal districts

The new development will entail the construction of a new single storey extension to provide a new 43 bed residential unit on the west side of the campus.

This will incorporate en-suite bedrooms, day rooms, dining rooms, activity and therapy rooms, staff support rooms, a new vehicular and pedestrian entrance to the Care Centre.

Also read: Putting the bus in business - a century serving Longford

It will also see the construction of a new single storey extension to provide a new energy centre, construction of a new single storey building complex to the south of the campus incorporating maintenance facilities, ESb transformer and external compound.

Also read: Residents and landowners unhappy about a lot of issues in relation to N4 Mullingar to Longford upgrade

Also planned is the part refurbishment of the existing residential/miscellaneous accommodation including construction of a new single storey link building connecting residential accommodation at the rear of the site to the main Care Centre building, construction of a new carpark on east side of the campus, reconfiguration of the existing access road network and associated landscaping works.

The HSE application includes the retention of the existing cabins to the front of the outpatients building and associated site works include the demolition of a St Teresa's residential unit, other residential/miscellaneous accommodation, maintenance buildings, ESB transformer building and existing central boiler house.

Bangladesh: Disaster-resilient shelters built in Coxs Bazar with IOM support

February 18,2021 | Source: United News of Bangladesh

When the monsoon season started in Coxs Bazar in 2020, boatman Pradip Shah Das in Teknaf Upazila and his family were forced to take shelter at their neighbours house. The house where I used to live was flooded. When the storm started, we had to find shelter elsewhere, recounted 37-year-old Pradip. Coxs Bazar is prone to cyclones, regular floods, tidal surges, river erosion and landslides, often affecting farm yields and prices. According to the District Administration, nearly 300,000 of the one million people living on vulnerable hill-areas in Coxs Bazar are at risk of landslides. Among the affected population are also vulnerable fishing communities like Pradips, whose livelihoods have been negatively impacted by a fishing ban on the Naf River, at the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, due to the recent crisis. Along with natural disasters, challenges related to safety, livelihoods and protection, have commanded a resilience-based multidimensional response for host communities.



Responding to the ongoing crisis, IOM is working to strengthen security and social cohesion between Rohingya refugees and host communities through its 12-month Safe Shelter programme, funded by the Government of Japan. The project aims to strengthen and support shelter initiatives in disaster-prone areas in Coxs Bazar, strengthen protection mechanisms and approaches in both camps and host communities, create livelihoods and women empowerment initiatives, and provide institutional capacity to Bangladeshi law enforcement. Capacity-building activities have been conducted for community members to ensure they make informed decisions on adequate shelter materials and construction techniques, followed by distribution of the first cash grant in order to purchase the shelter materials.



Pradips house has been upgraded through this programmeone of 1,000 families to have received the same type of support. Now I have a new house which is stronger than the previous one, Pradip said. During disasters, I used to take shelter at other peoples houses, but now people can take shelter at my house. To support families with the upgradation of disaster-resilient shelters, teams also conducted several technical training sessions for 450 local carpenters on shelter improvement and maintenance, incorporating Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) features. Mohammad Jamal, a former fisherman in Teknaf, has been trained in carpentry and now upgrading shelters for his fellow community members. I didnt know much about carpentry when I started, but I learned little by little. Not only do I have a more durable shelter now, but I have an income which helps me support my family, Jamal explained. To complement the activities of the shelter upgrade, IOMs Transition and Recovery Division will provide 500 vulnerable households livelihood activities based on their needs.



This activity will also support market-based livelihoods opportunities and enhance business capacities of existing cooperatives in Coxs Bazar, promoting greater financial inclusion of women, youth and persons with disabilities. Upgrading these shelters quality is a key part of our continuous support for vulnerable host communities affected by this humanitarian crisis, said Manuel Marques Pereira, IOM Deputy Chief of Mission in Coxs Bazar. We hope that these new disaster-resilient shelters and accompanying livelihoods support will empower host communities and boost the local economy, making those communities more resilient to crisis in the future.
(Natural News) Future technologies may soon be made from self-assembling materials, according to chemists from Trinity College Dublin. The team successfully created a new material that self-assembles into two-dimensional (2D) networks in a predictable and reproducible manner  a property that gives it the potential to be used in numerous applications.

As noted by its creators in an article published in the academic journal Chem, creating the material  which is based on negatively-charged atoms called anions  was especially challenging, as they had to effectively predict and reproduce its structure based on its environment.

Anions are widespread in our world, with many of them carrying out specific roles in nature  for both living and inanimate matter. But, because these processes are often mediated by specificity when any changes occur in these interactions the results can be of harm to life and the environment, Thorfinnur Gunnlaugsson, a professor of chemistry at Trinity and the senior author of the research, said, adding that their team was interested in imitating the way proteins and enzymes interact with anions in nature.

According to Gunnlaugsson, this endeavor  creating a material that does exactly what you think it will and what you need it to in different environments  posed a major challenge, mainly because environments are rarely always stable.

It is something of a dark art, but after a huge amount of work we have successfully created something that forms a controlled, hierarchical 2D network, and we are able to predict exactly how it will look in different environments, Gunnlaugsson said.

As described in the journal, the team created the material by first re-shaping a ligand or a substance that forms a complex with a molecule to serve a biological purpose, by tinkering with its molecular structure. (Related: Researchers develop unique, super-stretchy polymers that can self-heal.)

This, the team said, resulted in structural changes in which instead of capturing sulfate ions and holding them in cage-like structures, the resulting material  which they dubbed self-assembled 2D supramolecular materials  uses them as a type of glue.

As detailed in their paper, the Trinity team is now excited to explore the properties of this new material in order to consider its potential applications in the wider world.

So far, the team said, it is possible for self-assembled 2D supramolecular materials to make an impact in health, as these can be used in medical tasks such as targeted drug delivery.

In addition, these self-assembled 2D supramolecular materials can also have applications in the world of electronics, with some already speculating that the novel material holds the key to longer-lasting batteries and improved performance of high-value goods.

The project, according to the team, was supported by the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) and was done in collaboration with researchers from the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology at the University of Canterbury.

The potential of this work cannot be undervalued. It represents the work of many years and people in Professor Gunnlaugssons laboratory to evolve chemical methods to synthesize complex materials by design  thus allowing them to be applied in many fields, Mick Morris, the director of the SFIs Advanced Materials and BioEngineering Research (AMBER) center who helped fund the study, said in a statement.

Read more stories on scientific advancements by visiting Inventions.news.

Sources include:

ScienceDaily.com

Cell.com
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, called his trip to Mexico "a mistake" following a flurry of criticism as his state faced a major crisis and power outages.

Standing outside his home in Houston, with the chants of protesters audible, Cruz said his original intention was to stay through the weekend on a trip to Cancun with his daughters. His daughters had requested the trip, he said.

After losing power, huddling around the fireplaces and learning school was canceled, Cruz said his daughters told him they wanted to travel somewhere warmer. He and his wife decided to go along with them to be good parents, but "I started having second thoughts almost the minute I sat down on the plane."

"In hindsight, I wouldn't have done it," Cruz said, adding it had been his "intention to work remotely," but it became "more compelling" for him to return as controversy grew about the trip.

"Leaving when so many people were hurting didn't feel right and so I changed my flight to come back today," he said.

Cruz's office had declined to respond to queries from news outlets for hours as pictures of his trip first started circulating on social media.

Pictures of Cruz at the Houston and Cancun airports and on a plane first started circulating on Wednesday night, drawing the ire of his progressive critics as winter storms left many Texans without power in houses not designed to withstand the winter's cold.

About 325,000 customers in Texas were still without power Thursday evening after frigid temperatures kicked large shares of the state's power plants off its grid this week, leaving more than 4 million in the dark and triggering outrages.

Overnight temperatures were in the single digits early in the week. Austin's main weather station reported as much as 6.4 inches of snow this week, the most the city has seen in over 70 years.

In a statement issued early Thursday afternoon, Cruz said in a statement his daughters had wanted to take the trip to Cancun with their friends.

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"With school canceled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends. Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon," Cruz said.

The Houston Police Department confirmed Cruz's presence at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on Wednesday. Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo said in a statement the senator's staff had contacted the department and asked for assistance "upon the senator's arrival at the airport."

"HPD officers monitored his movements through the terminal," Acevedo said.

Cruz brushed off the criticism and said he was "just trying to be a good dad" in video of the senator at Cancun International Airport obtained by Al Dia and the Dallas Morning News.

"I'm also a senator and working hard to fight for the state of Texas," he said at the airport.

He arrived back in Houston later Thursday and was flanked by a police escort.

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More: Ted Cruz escaped to Cancun during a crippling Texas storm in a pandemic, and travelers have so many questions

Cruz had previously criticized Austin Mayor Steve Adler for flying to Cabo in a private jet while telling Austinites to stay home, writing in a Dec. 2 tweet, "hypocrites. Complete and utter hypocrites." The post began recirculating on social media as pictures of his trip to Mexico went viral.

In a Tuesday radio interview, Cruz told Texans to stay home amid the severe weather.

"Don't risk it. Keep your family safe and just stay home and hug your kids," Cruz said.

Cruz said in his statement he and his staff were "in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas."

Texas storms latest: The latest stories of winter storm hardship: 'I had no idea it was going to be this bad'

Texas' power grid: 'An electrical island': Texas has dodged federal regulation for years by having its own power grid

"Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?" wrote Democratic state Rep. Gene Wu, D-Houston, along with a picture of Cruz on an airplane.

Wu told USA TODAY he had not taken the photo, but it had been passed along to him by former congressional candidate Sima Ladjevardian, whose friend was on the flight with Cruz and sitting nearby.

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Tommy Vietor, former spokesperson for President Barack Obama, called Cruz's trip "callous and politically masochistic."

The liberal PAC American Bridge 21st Century called on Cruz to resign.

"Senator Cruz should do his constituents a favor and stay on the beach instead of getting paid by taxpayers to do a job he clearly has no interest in doing," American Bridge 21st Century President Bradley Beychok said in a statement.

More: Texas mayor who wrote 'only the strong will survive' amid deadly winter storm says he has resigned

Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa also said Cruz should resign, calling the trip "disturbing and disappointing."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sen. Ted Cruz flew to Mexico on vacation amid Texas winter storm
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By Cassandra Garrison

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - In Mexico City, one of the world's biggest cities, a product that many women relied on as a monthly necessity is gradually disappearing from the shelves: tampons with plastic applicators.

With a lifespan of nearly 150 years, the applicators join plastic bags, forks, cups, balloons and straws as single-use plastics that Mexico City has banned as it pushes forward with a greener agenda.

Women's groups, however, said the city's ban on the applicators is an attack on human rights and creates a phenomenon of "menstrual poverty" because alternative products, like organic tampons or silicone menstrual cups, are more expensive and often hard to find.

"A measure that might sound very progressive and well-intentioned with an environmental commitment is neglecting the needs of women," menstrual activist Sally Santiago told Reuters.

Mexico's 126 million people produce 6,000 tonnes of plastic waste a year, the government said. The city's plastics ban has also prompted controversy from industries that produce now-prohibited items. Producers argued that products should be regulated, but not banned.

Mexico City Environment Minister Marina Robles acknowledged the backlash to the ban on plastic tampons applicators, saying dialogue with women about the new law should stay open.

However, she said there are alternatives available, including tampons with cardboard applicators, menstrual cups and organic tampons.

"We made a comparison and even an analysis of the groups of women who use tampons and we believe that it can be perfectly covered with this other type of material," Robles said in an interview.

Plastic applicator tampons were still on the shelves of some Mexico City stores, Reuters found, while they had disappeared from others. A small supply of cardboard applicator tampons was available in one case, sold alongside those with plastic.

Robles said about 7% of merchants were still "lagging behind" but that officials believed compliance would increase.

Story continues

A box of organic tampons sold on the popular e-commerce site Mercado Libre had an average price equivalent to 51 to 100 pesos per tampon ($2.54 to $4.99), according to Anahi Rodriguez, spokeswomen for menstrual rights organization Menstruacion Digna Mexico.

At that price, alternative products could be out of reach for many women in Mexico, where more than 40% of the population lives in poverty, according to government data.

"This could be detrimental for people with lower incomes, which is worrying because school and work absenteeism could increase," Rodriguez said.

Companies should shoulder some of the responsibility to make tampons with cardboard applicators or no applicators more readily available in Mexico, Robles said.

She said city officials were in talks with producers for nearly two years about making more non-plastic alternatives available before the ban started.

"It seems to us that it is part of the commitments that entrepreneurs should assume," Robles said.

Even if alternative products are more readily available, the government is still removing an option from women, activists said.

"Although there are alternatives, if women's structural conditions are not optimal, we are facing a scenario of false freedom of choice," Santiago said.

(Reporting by Cassandra Garrison; Editing by Alistair Bell)
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg slammed Facebook's decision to remove Australian news from the social media network. Frydenberg revealed that the tech giant overlooked Australia.

Australia: Facebook news ban is 'wrong'

On Thursday, the social media site announced Australian users and publishers would be banned from viewing or sharing domestic and international news on its site immediately. The move comes in response to the recent bill on Media Bargaining, which will require tech giants such as Facebook and Google to agree to feature their content with news providers.

In his controversial decision, which he believes would damage his image here in Australia, Frydenberg said Facebook was 'wrong,' Daily Mail reported.

Their decision to block Australians' entry to government pages - be it support through the pandemic, mental health, emergency care, the Bureau of Meteorology - was totally irrelevant to the media regulation that the Senate has yet to pass,' he added.

The Morrison government is committed to legislating and enforcing the code, Frydenberg said. Facebook has blocked significant government data pages, including the weather office, health services, and police agencies.

In the meantime, in the widespread censorship blitz, charities and community organizations have been attacked.

Facebook's ban includes weather, poetry, and the app itself

As the country's government moves closer to requiring big tech firms to pay to link media outlets' content, Facebook followed through with its threat to block the posting of news links from and to Australian users.

The news media negotiating bargaining code would see internet firms such as Google and Facebook forced to pay media organizations for material on their sites, as per Mashable. Although Google initially threatened to withdraw from Australia over the legislation with bipartisan support, it instead reached deals via its News Showcase with thousands of platforms to pay them for content.

Read also: Twitter India Slammed by Government for Refusing To Ban Certain Accounts

But not only the state, national, and international news sources are affected by the ban. Government websites such as the Department of Meteorology, state departments, and health agencies are also involved; comedic news websites such as the Betoota Advocate' Onion-esque larrikin' local news as the Australian Council of Trade Unions; and even literary magazines.

Because of planned legislation in Australia to make tech giants pay for journalism, Facebook reported Thursday that it had blocked Australians from reading and posting news on the site. According to CBS News, Australian media will continue to publish news material on Facebook. Still, Australian users cannot access or share links and posts, the U.S.-based company said in a statement.

Australian users cannot post Australian or foreign news. Outside Australia, overseas users cannot post Australian information either.

Facebook regional managing director William Easton said, "The proposed law completely misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content."

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Forty-six years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that nine Ohio high school students suspended from school without hearings had been denied their 14th Amendment right to due process.

The decision in this landmark case, Goss v. Lopez, emphasized that the risk of error is not at all trivial [in school disciplinary matters], and it should be guarded against. The case ushered in changes across the country to ensure no child is unfairly deprived of a public education. Due process, which includes proper notice and a fair hearing, gives students an opportunity to defend themselves against mere allegations that could lead to their removal.

Yet, in 2019, two Montgomery students were expelled from their high school after being falsely accused of possessing a gun on school campus without any evidence or a fair hearing. Even after the students were acquitted of the charges in juvenile court, the district denied their return to school. The Southern Poverty Law Center recently settled a lawsuit on their behalf that requires Montgomery Public Schools to expunge the students expulsions from their academic records and provide them with educational services worth thousands of dollars to make up for the 14 months of lost education.

Unfortunately, this is not an isolated occurrence in Alabama. The SPLC has advocated for students who were pushed out of school without adequate due process protections in the city of Athens, Elmore County, Autauga County, Pike County, and other jurisdictions. Even as schools moved to remote learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic, students have continued to experience exclusionary discipline that kicks them out of virtual classrooms.

Because the Goss decision did not explicitly state what due process protections are required for expulsions and suspensions lasting 10 days or more, states were left to adopt their own requirements. Most states have passed laws to provide protections for their students that go well beyond what the case established. Alabama remains the only state in the Southeast with no uniform state law providing due process protections for its students.

The harm caused by exclusionary discipline  the blanket term for suspensions, expulsions, and other removals of students from the classroom  is deep and long-lasting. Exclusionary discipline damages students relationships with peers and educators, sets back academic progress, increases the likelihood that a student does not graduate, and contributes to the school-to-prison pipeline. It not only harms students opportunities to learn and thrive, but it can contribute to a negative school climate for all children that attend a school that relies on punitive practices.

Whats more, exclusionary discipline is often a response to highly subjective infractions like disruption and defiance. The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama recently found that these types of infractions were the most frequent for students across the state.

In Alabama, public schools rely heavily on suspensions, expulsions and law enforcement referrals to discipline children without consistent due process protections, which helps explain why the states out-of-school suspension rate exceeds the national average.

Exclusionary discipline can be particularly harmful to children of color because it is often unfairly applied. In Alabama, Black students are 3.7 times more likely to be suspended than their white peers, even though research shows that Black students do not misbehave more than white students. Only one-third of Alabamas public school students are black, yet they make up two-thirds of the states nearly 62,000 out-of-school suspensions, according to recent federal data.

Experience shows us that strengthening due process protections can help reduce the use of unfair exclusionary discipline. Within a year of implementing a sweeping settlement agreement in 2014 with the SPLC which included due process protections for students, and trainings and other supports for school personnel, Alabamas Mobile County public school system reported a 30% drop in exclusionary discipline. But these important and impactful protections shouldnt be dependent on which school district a student happens to attend  students all across Alabama deserve due process protections from the threat of exclusionary discipline. And educators and school communities need consistent, clear standards.

Last week, State Sen. Rodger Smiterman introduced SB 203 to provide a uniform statewide system of procedural due process protections for Alabama students facing suspension or expulsion for alleged violations of the student code of conduct or state law. If passed, this bill will ensure that the rights of all Alabama students are applied evenly regardless of where they attend school in the state, and we urge all state legislators to support it.

While Alabama has a long way to go to address the overuse of harmful exclusionary discipline, ensuring students have due process is an immediate step our state can take right now to mitigate its effects and ensure students have fair opportunities to continue their learning.

Tafelski is the senior supervising attorney for the Southern Poverty Law Centers childrens rights practice group in Alabama.

If Dave Ball of Washington County were just another internet crank, his benighted comments about Sen. Pat Toomeys well-considered vote to convict impeached former President Donald Trump would be so much noise.

But Ball is chairman of his countys Republican Party, and now a living example of how elements of the party have been degraded into a mere Trump cult.

Presented with clear evidence that Trump incited the mob that attacked Congress on Jan. 6  in furtherance of an effort to invalidate the presidential election votes of at least 2.6 million Pennsylvanians, no less  Toomey joined 50 Democrats and six of his fellow Republicans in voting for Trumps conviction.

Heres what Ball had to say Monday in an interview with KDKA TV in Pittsburgh: We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him to do the right thing, whatever he said he was doing. We sent him there to represent us, and we feel very strongly that he did not represent us.

That clearly is the view of many people on the Republican state committee, which is considering whether to censure Toomey for doing the right thing. That would follow the lead of state parties in several other states. The North Carolina GOP censured Sen. Richard Burr for his conviction vote, and the Utah state party appears committed to censuring Sen. Mitt Romney. The Utah petition to do so says Romney appears to be an agent for the Establishment Deep State.

Toomey already has announced that he will not seek reelection in 2022, and that he will not seek other office. So he did not have to ponder his political future when he voted his conscience, based on the evidence before his eyes and in the chamber where he and the rest of the Senate came under attack from the Trump mob.

Given his partys direction as voiced by Ball, Toomeys decision to leave is just as sensible as his vote to convict.
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Southern Gold, focused entirely on mining gold and silver in South Korea, has seven projects on the go and expects a transformative 2021.

The company is exploring seven projects and has made three new discoveries.

Southern Gold Ltd ( ) (FRA:UH4) is going all-in on its unique one-country mining strategy, with drilling for gold and silver ongoing at seven projects across South Korea.

The companys stated focus is to discover high-grade gold and silver deposits in South Korea, deploying a team of local Koreans targeting epithermal gold-silver  precious metals formed from hydrothermal fluids at shallow levels in the Earths crust.

It is actively exploring seven projects in South Korea, all well south of Seoul: Aphae, Weolyu, Deokon, Beopseongpo, Hampyeong, Dokcheon and Neungj.

On top of these, it has also made three new discoveries - Janghwal, Geum Mar and Daeam Valley - with initial assessments revealing that all three hold significant potential ahead of scout drilling to be undertaken in the first half of this year.

Current drilling program

Southern Gold is actively drilling at Aphae, conducting second-round drilling after a successful first round completed last year.

In the maiden drilling program, Southern Gold confirmed broad near-surface gold-mineralised breccia rocks and high-grade gold, with results highlighted by:

0.21 metres at 107.5 g/t gold and 166 g/t silver;

0.17 metres at 15.9 g/t gold and 23.7 g/t silver;

1-metre at 5.07 g/t gold and 13.8 g/t silver;

0.86 metres at 5.49 g/t gold and 59 g/t silver; and

0.18 metres at 5.92 g/t gold and 99 g/t silver.

Late last year, following these results, Southern Gold also conducted an innovative drone-based magnetic survey at Aphae, which unveiled a magnetic low trend along strike of first-round drilling, interpreted to be a continuation of the mineralised structure.

Excitement at Geum Mar and Deokon

In a new presentation this week, Southern Gold highlighted the exciting potential at Geum Mar and Deokon projects - no previous drilling has been undertaken at either target.

Deokon has two new targets, Nettle and Thistle, with a peak outcrop sample returning 8.56 g/t gold and 9,260 g/t silver at Nettle, while at Geum Mar a new vein outcrop has been discovered at Golden Horse returning 3.88 g/t gold with a nearby float sample of 24 g/t gold.

Sales interest

Southern Gold is also looking to offload its Gubong and Kochang joint venture with ( ) - in November Bluebird elected to purchase it from Southern Gold in full, but the window for purchase has lapsed.

The company is ready and willing to complete the sale and purchase of its JV interests and in late January BMV emailed a letter outlining, in general terms, alternative means by which the sale and purchase may be settled.

Southern Gold intends to consider these proposals and to maintain an open dialogue with BMV to see whether an acceptable agreement may be reached, telling investors that it expects to complete the sale by the end of June.

- Daniel Paproth
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Tyree Moorehead spent 18 years in prison for second degree murder which he committed when he was 15

A Baltimore convict and community activist has come up with what he says is solution to the city's soaring murder rate - paying killers not to shoot people.

Tyree Moorehead spent 18 years in prison for second degree murder which he committed when he was 15.

He was released from prison in 2012 and has since devoted his time to trying to work with criminals in Baltimore to reduce crime rates.

He told FOX 45 this week that he believes the way to lower the city's soaring shooting numbers is to pay criminals not to kill people.

'I can relate to the shooters, guess what they want? They want money.

'I've talked to these people, I've seen the shooters, its a small city, I know who the hustlers are,' he said.

He didn't give any more details as to how such a system would work.

Baltimore had the second highest murder rate in the US in 2018 and 2019 after St Louis.

New Orleans and Baton Rouge in Louisiana were second and fourth.

Chicago's gun violence problem is prolific but its number of murders there per capita has never put it in top five for deadliest cities in the US.

While Moorehead's strategy may seem radical, it has been done before.

In 2016, officials in Richmond, California, tested a program where they paid young offenders for staying out of trouble.

As part of that program, convicts or troubled youths could earn up to $1,000 if they completed a series of goals over a certain amount of time.

Community 'peacekeepers' - ex-cons - were used to enforce it and it lowered the city's murder rate to the lowest it had been for 30 years.

Baltimore police at the scene of a shooting on February 4. The city has some of the highest crime figures in America despite having a population of just 600,000

Police work near the scene of a shooting in Baltimore on Sunday, April 28, 2019. 2019 was the deadliest year on record for the city with 348 reported homicides

Baltimore police officials do not think it would be effective in their city, however.

'It could make it easier for people to get their hands on guns because they now have an influx of a different level of cash,' he said.

He added that the fact it was even being discussed shows how 'desperate' the city is to resolve its murder rate.

Baltimore saw more than 300 murders in 2020 which is around the same number as L.A. - a city where the population is four times larger.

In 2019, there were 348 murders in the city - 57 per 100,000 people - which was an all-time high.

It decreased slightly in 2020 to 50 per 100,000 but is still higher than average.
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Even as trade and economic relations between India and Ethiopia are booming, there is still huge scope to expand and diversify trade between the two countries, said Mr V. Muraleedharan, Minister of State for External Affairs said at an ASSOCHAM event held in New Delhi today.

"I invite Indian entrepreneurs to consider establishing high-quality educational institutions, of both technical and non-technical nature, in Ethiopia," said Mr Muraleedharan addressing an India-Ethiopia Business Forum organised by The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM).

The prestigious event organised in the honour of Mr Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister (PM) and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was the first physical high-level interaction organised by ASSOCHAM after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.

He said that economy of Ethiopia, the second-most populous African country which has been posting a double-digit growth rate for over 15 years together with its highly-educated, skilled populace and sound economic policies makes it an attractive investment destination for Indian entrepreneurs.

Highlighting the expansion in economic collaboration between India and Ethiopia, the Minister highlighted that despite Covid-19 global pandemic, Indian businessmen continued to explore investment opportunities in the African country. "During the last one year, we have had 35 new Indian investments in Ethiopia."

The Minister also expressed appreciation for Ethiopian government's effort in creating a congenial environment for foreign investments and in particular for facilitating Indian companies to invest in Ethiopia and carry on their business.

Today there are over 607 Indian companies in Ethiopia with a licensed investment of over $5 billion (bn) employing about 75,000 Ethiopian nationals. About 61 per cent of Indian investments are in manufacturing sector followed by agriculture (14 per cent).

He also said that Ethiopia is one of the largest recipients of India's concessional loans or lines of credit in Africa. "I am glad that our development partnership covers sectors such as rural electrification and the sugar industry and consists of a total of six lines of credit amounting to $705 million extended to Ethiopia."

The Minister added that state visit of Ethiopian deputy PM will deepen ties thereby leading to a robust and long-lasting relationship and India would continue to partner in country's growth story.

Sharing his perspective, Ethiopian deputy PM, Mr Mekonnen said that while bilateral trade ties between India and Ethiopia have reached $1.23 bn and over the years, although Indian exportable goods to Ethiopia has shown exponential growth, he rued that Ethiopia's export to India remains as low as before.

Inviting Indian businesses, the Ethiopian deputy PM informed about a ten-year economic development plan unveiled by his government with a vision of 'Ethiopia: An African Beacon of Prosperity.'

"We have also defined new frontiers of growth including digital economy, tourism, science and technology, human resource development and increase in productivity in agriculture and industry," said Mr Mekonnen.

He also assured facilitation from his government for prospective Indian investments.

In his welcome remarks, Mr Vineet Agarwal, president, ASSOCHAM said that India is looking to work more closely with the context of the recently ratified African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). "The FTA should enhance trade with Ethiopia and other African Countries."

The ASSOCHAM chief added, "We request the respective authorities and key stakeholders on both sides to expedite resolution of non-tariff barriers to provide a greater ease of doing business for industry members. This will help boost the trade potential between India and Ethiopia in the short term, even as newer areas for a more broad-based commercial engagement emerge in the post-COVID world order."

Sharing his perspective, ASSOCHAM's secretary general, Mr Deepak Sood said, "Ethiopia offers vast and diverse untapped scope for a range of business opportunities. This untapped potential is a call to India to forge stronger trade ties with Ethiopia, and within the region."

Amid others who addressed the ASSOCHAM event included: Dr Tizita Mulugeta, Ambassador, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia to India and Mr Rajeev Sharma, Acting Convener, India Business Forum (IBF).
LONDON (AP)  Britain is slapping sanctions on three of Myanmars military leaders over a coup that ousted the countrys elected government.

The Foreign Office said Thursday that the U.K. was imposing travel bans and asset freezes on Defense Minister Gen. Mya Tun Oo, Home Affairs Minister Lt. Gen. Soe Htut and Deputy Home Affairs Minister Lt. Gen. Than Hlaing for their roles in serious human rights violations during the coup.

The U.K. said Canada was taking similar action.

U.K. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab condemned the coup and said we, alongside our international allies, will hold the Myanmar military to account for their violations of human rights and pursue justice for the Myanmar people.

Even before the coup, Britain had imposed sanctions on 16 other members of Myanmar's military for human rights violations.

The British government said it was also ending aid programs that sent money to the Myanmar government, though it said aid would still reach the poorest and most vulnerable in Myanmar.

The U.K. is the ex-colonial ruler of Burma, as Myanmar was formerly known.

The Myanmar military seized power on Feb. 1 and detained national leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other pro-democracy figures.

The junta said the takeover was necessary because Suu Kyis government had failed to investigate fraud claims in elections her party won in a landslide; the election commission has dismissed those claims.

Since the coup, the junta has ratcheted up the pressure on protesters resisting the takeover, including violently breaking up some demonstrations and blocking internet access.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

A court in Belarus on Thursday sentenced two journalists to two years in prison on charges of fomenting protests against strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko, their employer reported

Minsk, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :A court in Belarus on Thursday sentenced two journalists to two years in prison on charges of fomenting protests against strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko, their employer reported.

Poland-based opposition television station Belsat reported that the journalists, Katerina Bakhvalova, 27, and Daria Chultsova, 23, had been sentenced for leading "group actions that grossly violate public order" while filming a protest in November.
LOCK HAVEN -- The Clinton County district attorney says he will seek the death penalty if the woman accused of killing her 9-year-old nephew and leaving him in a bathtub is found guilty of first-degree murder.

District Attorney David Strouse Thursday cited three aggravating factors that will permit him to seek the death penalty for Jamie Lynne Jackson: The killing occurred while in the perpetration of a felony; it was committed by mean of torture; and the victim, Anson Landon Mitchell Stover, was under the age of 12.

Strouse had to announce his decision on the death penalty before Jackson, 36, is arraigned in county court Monday. She is jailed without bail on charges that include criminal homicide.

There was testimony at Jacksons preliminary hearing that Stover, whose body was found Nov. 30, had injuries from head to toe.

The preliminary autopsy report lists two causes of death  blunt force injuries to the head and multiple blunt force injuries in general  city police Detective Richard Simpson testified at the preliminary hearing.

Brain damage, burns caused by cigarettes, black eyes, a cut on his penis and his fingers purple in color were among the injuries the detective cited. Stover weighed only 54 pounds, he said.

Photo provided by Provided by Clinton County DA David Strouse.

Jackson maintained in interviews she found her nephew on Nov. 28 in his room with tape wrapped around him that she cut off and then bathed and dressed him, Simpson said. The autopsy did not reveal any tape or tape residue, he testified.

Stover did not respond when she placed him in the tub but Jackson claimed she thought he was faking because he had done that previously, Simpson said she told him.

She admitted finding a little blood in his room that she removed when she shampooed the rug, he said.

The body was discovered when Officer Andrew Fisher went to Jacksons apartment in the 600 block of East Bald Eagle Street after receiving a phone call from her father who was traveling to Lock Haven from his home in New York.

Hugh Jackson said his daughter was hysterical saying she did not know what to do but threatened to kill herself if police showed up, the officer testified.

Stover was lying in a fetal position in the tub wearing clean, dry clothes, Fisher said. He noticed bruises on the back of the boys head, he said.

Stover was one of six children living in the apartment but was the only boy, Simpson said.

Jackson had gained temporary custody of Stover and his three sisters three years ago when their mother died. The other two girls are Jacksons.

Besides homicide, Jackson is charged with aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children, tampering with evidence, abuse of corpse and concealing the death of a child.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 17)  A Muntinlupa court has dismissed one of the three drug charges filed against detained Senator Leila De Lima.

The Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court Branch 205 junked De Lima's drug case with co-accused Jose Adrian Dera. Dera's demurrer was denied but he was allowed to post bail.

Dera was arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation in 2019 after being at-large for two years. He was supposedly De Lima's nephew who helped solicit money from convicted criminals for her election campaign in 2016.

But no link between the two accused was proven, and thus, it cannot be concluded that they agreed to engage in illegal drug trading, read the omnibus order.

As such, his demurrer to evidence must be denied as conviction is still possible. He has to answer why he introduced himself as an agent or relative of De Lima to Hans Tan and to explain the money he received from the inmates, it added.

In this case, the probability of accused Dera being convicted of the crime charged in the Information is not that strong, thus, his petition for bail must be granted.

However, the same court did not dismiss a separate drug case with co-accused Ronnie Dayan. De Lima's demurrer to evidence and petition for bail were both denied by the court.

Dayan was De Lima's former driver and bodyguard, whom she believes had been turned against her. Dayan claimed he also solicited money from suspected drug lord Kerwin Espinosa for De Lima's senatorial bid.

The prosecution was able to establish a direct connection between the two accused who worked and were often seen together, said the court.

The senator has to present her evidence on March 5.

De Lima has another drug case pending with Muntinlupa RTC Branch 256.

In a statement, De Lima maintained her innocence with regards to her other case with Dayan. She denied receiving any money and any involvement in the illegal drug trade.

Wala ring napatunayang pera, ni isang kusing, na napunta sa akin mula sa bentahan ng ilegal na droga. Puro tsismis. Puro haka-haka lang, she said.

[Translation: It has not been proven that I received money, not even one centavo, from the supposed illegal drug trade. They were all rumors, all speculations.]

Pag-aaralan ko at ng aking mga abogado ang naging desisyon ng korte sa Criminal Case No. 165, at maghahain tayo ng motion for reconsideration, added De Lima.

[Translation: My lawyers and I will study the courts decision on Criminal Case No. 165, and we will file a motion for reconsideration.]

With her acquittal in one of the cases, De Limas legal team is hopeful that it would translate to a positive outcome in the two other cases.

Yung pagkakabasura ng kaso na ito...sa tingin namin ay malaking epekto sa mga magiging sunod na laban namin. Dahil kahit papaano, napapatunayan natin na talagang basura lang yung mga akusasyon laban kay Senator De Lima, said Atty. Boni Tacardon, one of her counsels, during a press briefing.

[Translation: The dismissal of this case, we think, would have a huge effect on our next battles. Because at least, we have proven that the accusations against Senator de Lima are just rubbish.]

Meanwhile, another one of her lawyers, Atty. Rolly Peoto, said they will request the court to issue a subpoena to summon witnesses that would further prove De Limas innocence.

Naniniwala nga kami na dun pa lang sa nalatag namin sa aming demurrer, malinaw na yung pagiging inosente ni Senator Leila De Lima, dun pa lang sa mga testimonya ng testigo mismo ng prosekusyon, he said.

[Translation: We believe that Senator Leila de Limas innocence is very clear in the demurrer we filed. Its evident even in the testimonies by the witnesses of the prosecution.]

CNN Philippines Correspondent Anjo Alimario and Multi-Platform News Writer Vince Ferreras contributed to this report
Moving towards use of renewable energy to meet Indias energy requirements is one of the priorities of this Budget. (Photo: AFP)

The Union Budget 2021-22 presents a structured approach to put our country on the path of green recovery post the Covid-19 pandemic. The Budget has a long-term vision for this decade on environmental sustainability. It is marked by wisely planned investments in the control of air pollution, providing potable water, deep-sea biodiversity conservation and promoting renewable energy. These steps are reflected in the fact that the environment forms an integral part of many of the six pillars of the Budget.

The pillar on Health and Wellness has integrated air pollution management, waste and control of pollution, and investment in providing a potable water supply with a five-year plan. This indicates the adoption of the One Health approach by linking the health of humans, and biodiversity and ecosystem services. Air pollution in urban cities is becoming an extremely critical issue and, according to the Global Burden of Disease study, 1.67 million deaths were attributable to air pollution in India. The high burden of death and disease caused by air pollution and its accompanying adverse economic impact from loss of output could hamper Indias ambition to be a US $5 trillion economy by 2024. The gravity of the situation has been taken into account and the finance minister has done well by prioritising 42 urban centres with a million-plus population for acting on air pollution control with a budget of Rs 2,217 crores. This can help create the infrastructure to build science-based evidence, which can feed into the action plans for these urban centres under the National Clean Air Programme.

Indias urban population is expected to grow to 814 million by 2050, stressing our cities. There will be a need to boost the environmental infrastructure to mitigate the impacts of urbanisation. Issues of air quality, water availability, waste disposal and energy consumption must be addressed. Great forethought and meticulous planning have been put into increasing the depth and width of the Urban Swachh Bharat Mission 2.0 in five years with a substantial allocation of Rs 1,41,678 crores. The mission will integrate waste management, reduce single-use plastic, make for effective waste management from construction and demolition activities and implement bioremediation of all legacy dump sites. Investment in increasing public transport of about Rs 18,000 crores will further help in controlling air pollution.

Moving towards use of renewable energy to meet Indias energy requirements is one of the priorities of this Budget. It has planned an investment of Rs 2,500 crores in solar and renewable energy sources. The government has also announced a national hydrogen mission, to be launched in 2021-22, for generating hydrogen from green power sources.

India can take become a pioneer in green power sources with its continued investments in non-fossil based fuels. This builds a good momentum to meet Indias commitments in the Paris Agreement.

The government will launch a Deep Ocean Mission with a budget of Rs 4,000 crores for the next five years. This mission will refine our understanding of ocean depths, through mapping biodiversity and climate change issues and enabling technological research for ocean exploration along with implementing measures to conserve biodiversity. This should facilitate the adoption and implementation of nature-based solutions and build climate resilience.

It is encouraging to note that the Budget has also integrated substantial investments over the next five years in science and technology areas to encourage research on health and technology innovation. The proposed fund of Rs 50,000 crores over five years will ensure that the overall research ecosystem of the country is strengthened. This will address the national priority thrust areas of enhancing security and promoting well being.

India aspires to be self-reliant and a global manufacturing champion and, to meet this objective, substantial investment is required with respect to technology research. Moving in the right direction, an investment of Rs 1.97 lakh crores, over five years starting FY 2021-22 has been prioritised in 13 sectors. The focus is on enabling the harnessing of science, technology and innovation more effectively.

The major challenges of this decade are climate change, air pollution, biodiversity loss and availability of freshwater required for the health and wellness of humankind. Rebuilding the ecological infrastructure is critical.

The actions planned under this Budget will enable India to address these issues and build a better environment infrastructure. The planned investments will enable conservation of resources whose scarcity affects the poorest sections of society. For successful implementation, CII recommends that the government enable multi-level collaboration with industry, civil society, academia and institutions, among other stakeholders. The government also needs to ensure delivery of these actions through awareness creation at the sub-national level, supporting scientific data collection, technological innovation and uniform policy frameworks.

The government has taken bold steps towards integrating environment and climate change in the first Budget of the decade and CII is confident that this will enable inclusive and sustainable growth.
What it does

( ) has a portfolio of gold, copper and silver production and exploration assets in Azerbaijan.

Its key operations span three contract areas in Azerbaijan covering 1,062 square kilometres: Gedabek, Gosha and Ordubad.

Three additional contract areas covering 900 square kilometres are held in occupied territories which will be developed when the political situation allows.

In July 2020 it entered Ireland via a joint venture with .

How it is doing

In January, the firm said it will pay a special dividend of US$0.015 per share in March.

It also made a new copper-gold discovery at Zafer, within the central region of its Gedabek Contract Area in western Azerbaijan.

Work included a significant drill hole intersection of copper-gold mineralisation at 113 metres grading 0.5% copper and 0.7 grammes per tonne gold.

In 2020 it reported record revenues as higher gold prices offset disruption from coronavirus and the new outbreak of fighting between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

The AIM-listed groups Gedabek mine in Azerbaijan produced 69,000 ounces of gold equivalent ounces during 2020 compared to 82,800 a year earlier, but this decline was offset by a 26% rise in the average gold price achieved from sales to US$1,777 per ounce.

Revenues for the year topped US$100mln as a result, Anglo Asian said, while cash generation was also strong with the group paying off all of its debt and ending the year with net cash of US$21.2mln.

What the boss says: Reza Vaziri, chief executive

"I am delighted to announce the declaration of a special dividend in respect of 2020 of US$0.015 per ordinary share."

The company executed on its plans in the last quarter of 2020 and, helped by good metal prices, delivered the expected strong cash generation.

Video

Inflexion points
A mobile hospital for coronavirus patients has been deployed in Ivano-Frankivsk region. Most of the hospitals in Ivano-Frankivsk region that are supposed to receive COVID-19 patients are overcrowded. Over the past day, 646 new cases of COVID-19 infection have been identified. This is the largest number of patients among all regions of Ukraine.

According to the press service of Ivano-Frankivsk regional state administration, a temporary hospital for treatment of patients with COVID-19 has been deployed in Ukraine for the first time. The corresponding decision was made by the regional commission for emergency situations.

It is reported that the chief state sanitary doctor of Ukraine Viktor Liashko, who is in the Carpathian region on a working trip, held an extraordinary meeting of the regional commission on technogenic and environmental safety and emergency situations to stabilize the situation associated with the spread of coronavirus.

It is also reported that the mobile hospital will be created on the basis of Bohorodchansky hospital, Lysetsky hospital, Verkhovynsky multidisciplinary hospital and Zabolotivsky multidisciplinary hospital.

"The regional medical care system is not limitless. Therefore, without an introduction of more stringent anti-epidemic measures, the spread of coronavirus cannot be contained," Viktor Liashko said.

According to him, it is necessary to additionally deploy about 600 more beds in Carpathian region, to provide them with oxygen and qualified medical personnel.
An artist's rendering of the Legends Resort & Casino that Cherokee Nation Businesses hopes to build in Pope County, Arkansas. COURTESY
Cancer June 22-July 22 We are all craving a holiday but with the Sun moving into your sector of travel you in particular will be going a bit stir crazy. If you can, organise a weekend rural get away with a few of your closest friends and revel in nature. If its an impossible task escape with your mind through books and films. Leo July 23-August 22

The Sun has just entered your sector associated with other peoples money which is notorious for windfalls of all kinds from inheritances and generous gifts to legal wins and unexpected tax returns. You could also benefit from your partner getting a raise. As this is also your area of intimacy its time to open up and get real. Virgo August 23-September 22 The Sun makes its annual pilgrimage to your relationship sector infusing it with a hefty dose of energy and enthusiasm. So, if youve been neglecting your love life its time to take the initiative. Arrange a romantic dinner for two at home or whisk your partner away for the weekend. Single? This is the perfect time to get amongst it. Libra

September 23-October 22 Youre a wonderful team player with a good work ethic and today it receives an extra boost thanks to the Sun in your sector of productivity. This is a good time to put yourself out there and especially if youve been complacently coasting along. Dare to be different, go out on a limb and approach those at the top. Scorpio October 23  November 22 As one of the most intense signs you can often get stuck in your head, overthinking things, wondering if everything is perfect or what youve missed. Today the sun moves into your sector of creativity providing the perfect distraction, project or inspired vision that will draw your focus away from the left to the right side of your brain.

Sagittarius November 23-December 20 Ahhh, thats better! Over the next month the Sun moves into your home sector and although most Saggies enjoy going out youll be in your element. This is the prime time to get some new cushions, plants, plot a veggie patch or redecorate an outdoor area. Or if you want to takeout next level redecorate, refurbish or renovate. Capricorn December 21-January 19

If your usual brand of charisma has been failing to win over a tough critic, give it a month and they could be eating out of the palm of your hand! The dynamic Sun is visiting your sector associated with communication, boosting your self-expression and making it easier for you to get your point across. Aquarius January 20-February 18 Money matters will occupy your thoughts over the next month as the Sun moves into your finance sector. Obstacles have restricted your ability to clear debt or save will now dissipate and youll be able to navigate your way through with a fresh perspective and some great ideas about how to boost your income and lower expenses. Pisces
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UTICA, NY -- New York State Police arrested a Lewis County woman who was paid nearly $7,000 after allegedly filing an anonymous abuse complaint against herself, in order to collect paid leave.

Heather Race, 40, of West Leyden, is employed by the NYS Office for People With Developmental Disabilities in Oneida County.

The New York State Justice Center found that Race made the false abuse report in order to collect paid administrative leave while the complaint was investigated.

Investigators say Race received eight weeks of paid administrative leave totaling $6,934.76.

She is charged with grand larceny, offering a false instrument for filing and falsifying business records.

Race was arraigned in Lewis County and released on her own recognizance.
Its eerily quiet at NYC Health + Hospitals Gotham Health, Cumberland clinic in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, on Tuesday evening. So quiet that its hard to imagine that a line wrapped around the corner with people waiting patiently all day for a spare COVID-19 vaccine, just a few days ago.

The clinic says it's out of the first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine upon inquiry, which probably explains the lack of a line, as you can not take a second dose before the first. The city has been running low on first doses and is expecting to potentially run out of them by the end of this week. Multiple vaccination hubs around the city have delayed their openings several times due to supply shortages. Only one woman in her mid-thirties waited outside of the clinic with her young child, hoping that the clinic was lying about the possibility of first vaccine doses being unavailable to obscure the clinics growing reputation for administering any left over vaccines to those willing to wait for them. Whats the worst that could happen? I waste one or two hours of my day, she told City & State.

COVID-19 vaccine administrators in New York have been threatened with large fines, should they let any vaccine doses go to waste, yet its unclear how the city or state should reallocate unused doses. While state guidance says that hospitals and clinics should be using remaining doses solely for eligible individuals who may not have made an appointment, oftentimes there arent any individuals who fit the states eligibility profile available to receive them.

Some clinics and hospitals within the New York City area have begun administering leftover vaccine doses to individuals willing to wait outside, sometimes all day, to receive some of the spare doses that remain at the end of a full day of vaccinations, regardless of their eligibility.

Neither the citys Department of Health and Mental Hygiene nor NYC Health + Hospitals responded to a request for comment.

A 30-year-old man from Crown Heights, who has asked to remain anonymous to protect his identity, told City & State that he waited at the Cumberland clinic from 11:45 a.m. until around 6 p.m. on Friday, in order to receive any remaining inoculations available. He was number three on the line that day, which he estimates had over 40 people waiting on it. Only five extra doses of the Moderna vaccine remained at the end of the day, which meant he was able to score a coveted dose of the medicine. The trash was obviously the worst place that this vaccine dose could have gone  but my deltoid was arguably the second worst place, he said.

He was tipped off by a friend of his, who had gone to the clinic for an unused dose of the vaccine the day prior. According to the nurse who injected him with the vaccine  and made him an appointment for his second dose  theres been a line outside of the clinic every day since the city began distributing vaccines.

They didn't ask about eligibility in terms of people in the line with me when I was sitting in there (the clinic) filling out the forms or when I was about to get the shot; they asked me for various criteria that they were putting in the computer, a 25-year-old woman from the area, who asked to remain anonymous to protect her identity, who had also been to the Fort Greene clinic to receive one of its surplus vaccine doses, told City & State. They asked if I was an essential worker at that point but it wasn't a prerequisite.

I think it was definitely understood by everybody that I was in line with that we were all in the line because we wouldn't have been able to make appointments otherwise, she continued. And that therefore we had no right to a dose and that it was only if they haven't had extras.

The clinic did not return to a request for comment.

Vaccine hunters

Vaccine hunters, individuals ineligible for COVID-19 vaccines but seek them out under false pretenses or have driven to different neighborhoods and states for vaccinations have made headlines in recent weeks. However, unlike those hunting down a vaccine and manipulating the truth to get their hands on one, these individuals are merely taking advantage of the inevitable vaccine spillover that would otherwise go to waste.

I'm happy that I got a dose. I also feel frustrated that we live in a system where, you know ... I work from home and I'm a young person, so I'm definitely not somebody who needed the vaccine most, said the woman who had received a vaccine at the Cumberland clinic. At the same time, if it hadn't been me it would have been the other young, white people, who work from home, who were in line behind me.

However, this phenomenon isnt a new one. People all over the country have been patiently waiting outside of hospitals and clinics since the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines began in the hopes of lucking out and getting a spare dose. In January, chaos ensued when a media post falsely claimed that 400 extra doses of vaccines were available for walk-ins at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, driving hundreds of people to the vaccination hub.

After word started to spread of 400+ surplus vaccine shots in Brooklynpassed on by WhatsApp messages and screenshotsthis is what *part* of the scene looks like right now pic.twitter.com/cndF7r5zzc  Stephen Lurie (@luriethereal) January 14, 2021

While clinics and hospitals have not openly stated that extra doses may be available on any given day, individuals who have reaped the benefits of vaccine overflow have been sharing how they scored their dose by word of mouth.

A 23-year-old man from Harlem, who asked to remain anonymous to protect his identity, told City & State that one of his co-workers sent out a company email telling his colleagues about a walk-in clinic in the Bronx offering vaccines. The clinic took everyone with an appointment first, then a few hours later invited those without an appointment to come in without asking about their eligibility. I would assume that most people came because they weren't technically qualified but there were also a ton of people that had appointments, he said.

The rush to administer remaining vaccines

COVID-19 vaccines have short expiration dates; both Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccine viles will expire six hours after it has been punctured, making it somewhat difficult for healthcare professionals to quickly find eligible candidates for the medicine.

I'm glad New York State and other states are threatening people who violate the rules (regarding vaccine distribution) but I wish they would make up some rules about this problem  Despite all the committees, and commissions, and advisory groups, and expert opinions, I don't know any place that has laid out plans for distribution of excess vaccines, Dr. Arthur Caplan, one of the founding heads of the Division of Medical Ethics at New York Universitys Grossman School of Medicine, told City & State.

On Dec. 22, Dr. Hasan Gokal, a doctor in Houston, Texas, was faced with a dilemma at the end of an all-day vaccination event: he had an open vial of the Moderna vaccine and no one left to vaccinate. The vial had ten remaining doses left and a 6-hour expiration date. At the end of the night, after administering the final doses to eligible individuals he had one left and 15 minutes to spare before its expiration. Gokal made the decision to vaccinate his wife, who has a severe lung condition, pulmonary sarcoidosis, knowing that the dose would otherwise go to waste. Gokal was fired soon after filing paperwork that indicated he administered the vaccine to his wife and was additionally charged with stealing vaccine doses.

To punish a doctor for getting rid of excess vaccine is ludicrous. It's ethically ridiculous, Caplan said.

While Gokals case was soon dismissed by a criminal court judge due to lack of probable cause, it highlighted the uniquely difficult position that numerous medical professionals are facing when it comes to vaccine distribution. If no eligible individuals are around and available to receive a vaccine is it more prudent to toss the remaining doses or inoculate an otherwise ineligible individual? Probably not, according to Caplan and Dr. S. Matthew Liao, a professor and chair of NYUs bioethics program.

I understand why the state (New York) has this restriction, Liao told City & State. They're worried about fairness and theyre worried about people cheating the system. That's why we have prioritization and all these different policies but at the same time if it (the vaccine) is going to go to waste  this is, you know, a very precious commodity. There's a supply shortage right now, even as we speak, and we need to achieve herd immunity and try to get as many people vaccinated as possible.

Getting extra doses to eligible individuals

Still, the question of how to make the redistribution of these vaccine reserves more equitable lingers. City residents in zip codes with higher overall incomes have been vaccinated at higher rates than those in zip codes with lower incomes, despite being harder hit by the virus. And white people are being vaccinated at higher rates than Black and Latino people in the city since the rollout began. There are several reasons why many of the citys vaccine-eligible residents have yet to be inoculated from the disease, including being unable to take time away from work, having a lack of access to online vaccination appointment sign ups or being hesitant about the vaccine itself.

I don't feel guilty at all (about receiving the vaccine), the man from Crown Heights said. Because the way that it's structured right now, if you're an essential worker who needs to be at work you cannot wait in this line all day. No, of course not. Even getting an appointment online takes hours because you just have to keep refreshing the page

Liao suggested that making the availability of leftover vaccines more transparent to the public could help tackle the inequitable distribution of vaccines and lead to more eligible individuals gaining access to vaccine reserves. Kaplan recommended distributing vaccines on a more local level, making them available where most low-income individuals work and in places that are easy to get to by public transportation and at primary care sites. He also suggested making clear cut policies about dealing with excess vaccine supplies and defining the categories of people eligible for vaccines more clearly. However, both doctors agreed that it will be difficult to completely eradicate the inequalities that have led to the unequal roll out of vaccines at the end of the day.

Until the question of what to do with leftover vaccines is adequately dealt with by the city and state it seems likely that extra doses will continue to be picked up by so-called vaccine hunters.
Posted by Jay on at 09:00 AM CST

Marvel has sent out solicitations for their April 2021 titles, including 6comics and 3 Trade Paperbacks!Charles Soule (W)  STEVE McNIVEN (A/C)BOBA FETT BLACK ARMOR VARIANT COVER BY STEVE MCNIVENCRIMSON VARIANT COVER BY STEVE MCNIVENVARIANT COVER BY LEINIL FRANCIS YUACTION FIGURE VARIANT COVER BY JOHN TYLER CHRISTOPHERTHE STAR WARS COMIC EVENT YOUVE BEEN WAITING FOR! The notorious bounty hunter BOBA FETT has finally landed his greatest prize  HAN SOLO, frozen in carbonite for easy transport. Fett will bring the smuggler to TATOOINE to collect the massive bounty placed on Solos head by the fearsome crime lord JABBA THE HUTT. Sounds easy. What could go wrong?32 PGS./Rated T $3.99Charles Soule (W)  STEVE McNIVEN (A/C)SKETCH VARIANT COVER BY STEVE McNIVENTHIS YEARS BLOCKBUSTER STAR WARS COMIC EVENT IN DIRECTORS CUT FORM! BOBA FETT will stop at nothing to get the job done. Transporting his latest, greatest bountyHAN SOLOshould be an easy payday. But theres just one problem. A BIG one. And someone is going to pay for it Experience Charles Soulse epic, space-shattering story in Directors Cut format, complete with Steve McNivens mind-blowing black and white art and more incredible bonus features!48 PGS./ONE-SHOT/Rated T $5.99CHARLES SOULE (W)  RAMON ROSANAS (A)Cover by CARLO PAGULAYANCRIMSON VARIANT COVER BY CARLO PAGULAYANEMPIRE STRIKES BACK VARIANT COVER BY CHRIS SPROUSEARTIST VARIANT COVER BY TERRY DODSONACTION FIGURE VARIANT BY JOHN TYLER CHRISTOPHERPRELUDE TO WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS: THE HUNT FOR HAN CHEWBACCA has heard from an old friend with intelligence on the location of notorious bounty hunter BOBA FETT, known to be in possession of HAN SOLO. Along with LUKE SKYWALKER, the loyal Wookiee sets off in search of his lost friend, on an adventure to Nar Shadaa... the SMUGGLERS MOON! But will this mission prevent plucky astromech droid ARTOO DETOO from passing along a crucial message to Luke, one that will affect the fate of the entire Jedi Order...?32 PGS./Rated T $3.99CAVAN SCOTT (W)  ARIO ANINDITO (A)  Cover by PHIL NOTOVARIANT COVER BY BERNARD CHANGATTACK OF THE HUTTS! The HIGH REPUBLIC JEDI clash with HUTT forces. GAMORREANS! NIKTO! BATTLE RANCORS! STARLIGHT BEACON over-run by a creeping alien horror! Can VERNESTRA RWOH and her Padawan IMRI CANTAROS find a way to save Starlights infected masses? Plus, KEEVE TRENNIS learns the terrible secret MASTER SSKEER has been carrying for so long. Can she ever trust him again?32 PGS./Rated T $3.99ETHAN SACKS (W)  PAOLO VILLANELLI (A)Cover by MATTIA DE IULISCRIMSON VARIANT COVER BY MATTIA DE IULISEMPIRE STRIKES BACK VARIANT COVER BY CHRIS SPROUSEPRELUDE TO WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS: THE THREAT IN THE SHADOWS As VALANCE and his reluctant partner DENGAR race to intercept BOBA FETT and his precious cargo, who are the deadly pursuers that are after them? A dark secret from Valances past connection to HAN SOLO may get him killed all these years later. But who is the mysterious leader of an assassination squad that is driving Valance into a life-and-death confrontation with his old friend?32 PGS./Rated T $3.99ALYSSA WONG (W)  RAY-ANTHONY HEIGHT (A)Cover by SWAYCRIMSON VARIANT COVER BY SWAYVARIANT COVER BY RAY-ANTHONY HEIGHTPRELUDE TO WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS: THE INVITATION DOCTOR APHRA and SANA STARROS find themselves cornered by VUKORAH and the UNBROKEN CLAN! Can they pull off a daring escape--even if that means surrendering the NIHIL HYPERDRIVE? And what sets them on a collision course with one of the most deadly BOUNTY HUNTERS in the galaxy?32 PGS./Rated T $3.99GREG PAK (W)  GUIU VILANOVA (A)Cover by AARON KUDERCRIMSON VARIANT COVER BY AARON KUDEREMPIRE STRIKES BACK VARIANT COVER BY CHRIS SPROUSEPRELUDE TO WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS: RESTORATION Returned to the fold after his rebellion against the EMPEROR, DARTH VADER faces the horrors of reconstruction in the secret laboratories of CORUSCANT. As he blacks out under the knife, does he still dream of revenge against his master? Or do his thoughts drift towards his son  and the friends who make LUKE SKYWALKER so vulnerable? Dont miss this next critical new chapter in Vaders ongoing evolution - featuring the revelation of the first time the Dark Lord learned the name HAN SOLO!32 PGS./Rated T $3.99Written by ROB CHESTNEY, ALEXANDER FREED, JOHN JACKSON MILLER & MOREPenciled by ALEX SANCHEZ, DAVE ROSS, GEORGE FREEMAN, DAVID DAZA, ANDREA MUTTI & MORECover by BENJAMIN CARREThe Sith Empire has returned to the galaxy! Determined to crush the Republic that sent them into exile, the Sith launch an attack on the galaxys Outer Rim  with their sights set on the Core Worlds, the heart of galactic unity. The Siths Dark Council claims to want peace  but both sides have unleashed spies that could turn the tide of war! And on a frozen world, a lost tribe of Sith cut off from the galaxy is about to have its fate changed forever, as a rebellious outcast discovers ancient secrets that will lead him and his allies to the stars  and beyond! Collecting STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC #1-6, STAR WARS: THE OLD REPUBLIC  THE LOST SUNS #1-5, STAR WARS: LOST TRIBE OF THE SITH  SPIRAL #1-5 and material from STAR WARS TALES #17 and STAR WARS VISIONARIES.456 PGS./Rated T $39.99ISBN: 978-1-302-93087-5Trim size: 6-5/8 x 10-3/16Written by ETHAN SACKSPenciled by PAOLO VILLANELLICover by MATTIA DE IULISWith precious cargo and a price on his head, Valance must turn to the one person he can trust. But the Unbroken Clan has sent a unique and deadly pair of bounty hunters after him: No one in the galaxy can escape the combined cunning of 4-LOM and Zuckuss! Wounded and on the run, Valance reunites with a long-lost love in a secret rebel base  but the deadliest bounty-hunting duo in the galaxy is closing in, and they brought an army of Clone Warera battle droids with them! As Valance makes a desperate gambit to survive, hell risk the wrath of pirates in the Outer Rim and set himself on a collision course with his old rival Dengar! Plus: Bossk finds himself the hunted rather than the hunter on the forest world of Malastare! Collecting STAR WARS: BOUNTY HUNTERS #6-11.136 PGS./Rated T $17.99ISBN: 978-1-302-92084-5Trim size: 6-5/8 x 10-3/16Written by GREG PAKPenciled by RAFFAELE IENCOCover by INHYUK LEEDarth Vader failed to turn his son, Luke Skywalker, to the dark side. Vader sought revenge against those who hid Luke from him for all these years and in doing so nearly betrayed his master. It did not go unnoticed by Palpatine and now it is time for Vaders next lesson. Now, left battered and broken by his punishment, the Dark Lord drags himself across the scorched surface of Mustafar with vengeance on his mind! But as Vader closes in on the key to Palpatines greatest secret, the deadly assassin Ochi of Bestoon stands in his way. Vader and Ochi are in for the fight of their lives, with the fate of the Emperor in the balance  but how much of this deadly scenario is Palpatines grand plan? Collecting STAR WARS: DARTH VADER #6-11.120 PGS./Rated T $17.99ISBN: 978-1-302-92082-1Trim size: 6-5/8 x 10-3/16
Ukraine has taken all necessary steps to provide citizens with an effective COVID-19 vaccine, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal has said.

He said this at a meeting with the ambassadors of the EU countries in Kyiv on Thursday, February 18, according to the government's website.

"We have concluded enough contracts with manufacturers so that everyone can be vaccinated, and the necessary funds have been paid. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of vaccines today, and European Union countries have also experienced it. Everyone notes that the problem is the same - it is a shift in the delivery of vaccines," Shmyhal said.

He thanked the EU for funding the COVAX initiative, according to which Ukraine expects the first batch of vaccines in the amount of 117,000 doses, as well as more than eight million doses this year.

According to the Ukrainian Health Ministry, Ukraine is to receive 117,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine in February as part of the COVAX scheme, which is to be used for the vaccination of health workers. In total, Ukraine will receive eight million doses of COVID-19 vaccines within COVAX. Under the contract signed with China's Sinovac, Ukraine should receive 19 million doses of the vaccine from this manufacturer.

In addition, international development company Crown Agents, on behalf of the Government of Ukraine, concluded agreements for the supply of 12 million doses of AstraZeneca and Novavax vaccines.

op
MANCHESTER, N.H. and MONTREAL, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Newforma and Technology BIM One Inc. today jointly announced they have reached an agreement under which Newforma, a portfolio company of Battery Ventures, will acquire BIM One. With 122,000 users worldwide, Newforma is the pioneer in Project Information Management (PIM) for the design and construction industry. Newforma joins forces with Quebec-based BIM One (BIM One Consulting and its BIM Track SaaS coordination, collaboration, workflows and analytics product).

"I am extremely pleased to welcome the employees and clients of BIM One Consulting and BIM Track to the Newforma Holdings family," said Brock Philp, CEO of Newforma, "the Global AECO ecosystem is increasingly embracing BIM technology. Acquiring BIM One brings unparalleled BIM expertise and the industry-leading BIM Track software product to the Newforma family."

BIM One will continue to function as a standalone business with co-founder and CEO Jimmy Plante now reporting directly to Newforma's Brock Philp. Co-founder Carl Veillette, the rest of the BIM One leadership team, and their respective organizations, will continue to report to Mr. Plante.

"This acquisition demonstrates Newforma's commitment to continually evolve our technology offering as well to expand our reach across the AECO ecosystem," added Philp. "We are excited to see what additional value we can create for our growing list of mutual customers through a Connector between BIM Track and Newforma Project Center, but first and foremost, our goal is to support Jimmy and Carl in continuing the rapid growth of their business."

Jimmy Plante, co-founder and CEO of BIM One said, "We were attracted to Newforma as an acquirer because we share a software-agnostic approach that connects people to technology and fosters better project collaboration. Though we've focused on different areas of the collaboration problem, we have a shared mission of helping the industry solve interoperability issues. Joining forces with Newforma is sure to accelerate our growth as we continue to fulfill our missions as world-class technological leaders in the AECO industry," concluded Plante.

About Newforma

Newforma's industry-leading Project

Information Management (PIM) software streamlines communication, manages files and simplifies construction administration for architects, engineers, contractors, and owners. Our software will reduce the amount of time spent on administrative tasks, streamline project workflows and power real-time collaboration for project teams. Newforma software has more than 122,000 users in more than 1,200 firms. For more information, visit www.newforma.com.

About BIM One

Virtual Construction and Technology BIM One Inc.("BIM One") is a firm specializing in the optimization of digital processes for the AEC industry. They are composed of a multidisciplinary team of 90 employees based in Canada, the United States and Europe. The company has two brands:

BIM One Consulting

The software agnostic division of BIM One specializes in answering the needs of the construction industry by providing high-end technical and strategic services for BIM deployment within a digital transformation approach. Combining a wealth of industry-experienced leaders with today's technology, BIM One provides guidance and solutions in collaboration for today's organizations, enabling the most complex of building and infrastructure projects to meet their goals and objectives. For more information, visit www.bimone.com

BIM Track

BIM Track is the industry-leading web-based design and constructability issue management platform that empowers teams with improved coordination communication and issue-management workflows. BIM Track can be accessed using a browser, or directly in Revit, Navisworks, Tekla Structures, AutoCAD & more. More than 500 firms use BIM Track in 40 countries for better collaboration. For more information, visit www.bimtrack.co .

SOURCE Newforma, Inc. and BIM One
A U.S-based Yoruba actress, Oyinkansola Elebuibon, has debunked rumours making the rounds on social media that a popular Yoruba actor, Lateef Adedimeji, is the father of her baby.

A popular Instagram gossip blog on Tuesday alleged that the actress welcomed Adedimejis child in 2018 and in order to keep it a secret, quit acting and relocated to the U.S.

Adedimeji is currently in a relationship with his colleague, Oyebade Adebimpe.

Reacting to the allegations, the actress, who is the daughter of popular Ifa priest, Ifayemi Elebuibon, went live on Instagram to slam the purveyors of the rumour.

She said, I dont have a problem with anybody being a journalist or with anybody trying to make ends meet. Do you, but not by hurting others because, at some points, we need to sit back and think about the effects of what we do on the persons involved. It is easy to hide behind our keyboards to insult our leaders and people in the public space without knowing that we as individuals are not better than them in terms of what we do.

This is not the first time this will happen. The first time this person would post something about me, I was shocked but I just let it slide then because I felt my response would only strengthen the news.

The actress added that speculations came about because people, including some of her colleagues in the movie industry, have always wondered about her private life because she has chosen to set her personal life aside from social media.

I am not responding now because of me, as that is the price you pay once youre known because if that is not the case, why would everybody believe they are entitled to your private life? They want to know if you have a husband if you have a child they want to know. They want to know everything about you because you are a celebrity, she said

Think about it, does it make any sense for a woman to have a child for a man and keep the child away from him? Lateef is one of the successful actors we have in Nigeria. If I have a child for him, why will that be a shameful thing that I wouldnt be able to proudly say? If I am dating him, why will I be shy to say that? Am I that foolish? I must really look dumb to some people. If anybody is in a relationship with Lateef and hides it, they must have their reasons but how is that my business?

If I have a child for him, why would I hide it? Is he crippled or is he a married man that I will be ashamed to be with? Lateef did not even know that I was pregnant until I told him after I put to bed. It was my birthday and he called to wish me a happy birthday when I told him that I was in the hospital because I just delivered a baby and he was shocked, she said.

Surprise birthday

One of the inferences made by the blogger to back their claims was that the actress threw Adedimeji a surprise birthday party in 2019.

Elebuibon explained in her video that she only made a video to wish him a happy birthday at the request of his girlfriend and manager.

It was his girlfriend then, I am not sure if she is the current girlfriend, and his manager that reached out to me that they wanted to do a surprise birthday for Lateef and they wanted me to do a video wishing him happy birthday because they felt it would surprise him to see me.

The next thing I saw were stories that I gave birth in America and that I threw a surprise birthday party for Lateef. How? Maybe if I had spoken up then, it wouldnt have generated to this, she said.

Why she relocated

Explaining why she left her acting career in Nigeria and relocated to the United States, the actress said she was attacked by her Fulani security man and his friends in her home in February 2018.

The actress, who has always taken pride in being a traditional worshipper, was, however, forced to stay behind when she found out that her attackers went back to destroy everything in her house, which made her feel unsafe.

Elebuibon started acting at the young age of five when she appeared in an old Soap Opera aired on Osun State Broadcasting Corporation (OSBC).

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She also used to act alongside some of her siblings in her fathers signature epic movies.
Two Afghan policemen were shot dead in eastern parts of Kabul on February 17, officials said, in the latest such attack in the capital.

Police said unidentified gunmen opened fire on the pair's vehicle, killing them, while a security official said the two were father and son.

Kabul has seen multiple attacks with small magnetic bombs attached under vehicles and targeted assassinations in recent weeks against security forces, officials, judges, civil society activists, and journalists.

In a separate incident in the western province of Herat, a roadside bomb killed two officers and wounded three more.

TOLOnews said on February 17 that up to 340 people were either killed or wounded in security incidents in Afghanistan since the start of this month as a result of magnetic IEDs, roadside bombs, and targeted killings.

TOLOnews said 168 people were killed and 172 were wounded.

Afghan officials said this week they had arrested a network of militants that was responsible for the attacks.

Violence in parts of the country has increased recently as peace talks between the government and Taliban insurgents have largely stalled.

U.S. President Joe Bidens administration is reviewing how to handle the peace process, including a troop withdrawal.



With reporting by Reuters and TOLOnews.com
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is meeting with European allies Thursday to discuss ways to revive the Iranian nuclear agreement abandoned by the United States in 2018.

The foreign ministers of the E3  Germany, the United Kingdom and France  met in Paris on Thursday, with Blinken participating virtually. Their meeting comes as Iran prepares to limit snap inspections by the UNs International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) if sanctions arent lifted by next week.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas warned Thursday that talks are being significantly complicated at the moment because Iran obviously does not seek de-escalation but escalation  and this is playing with fire.

The more pressure is applied, the more difficult it gets to find a political solution, Maas said.

Iran has steadily breached its obligations under the nuclear agreement since President Donald Trump abandoned the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and reimposed harsh sanctions in 2018. Blinken said recently that public reports indicate Irans breakout time  the time it would take to amass the amount of fissile material needed to build a nuclear weapon  has been reduced to a few months. He warned that figure could drop to a matter of weeks if Iran continues lifting nuclear restraints in violation of the JCPOA.

The good news, of course, is that all of these steps are reversible and the path for diplomacy remains open, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said Wednesday, adding, Iran should provide full and timely cooperation with the IAEA.

If Iran returns to strict compliance, President Joe Biden has pledged to rejoin the landmark deal as a starting point for follow-on negotiations to address Irans ballistic missile program and regional activities. The Biden administration has pledged to consult with allies and partners before making any moves to reenter the multilateral agreement.

But Tehran and Washington have reached an impasse, with each side insisting the other make the first move. Irans leaders say they will only roll back their nuclear breaches if the United States lifts sanctions, which the Biden administration has repeatedly ruled out.

On Wednesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her concern with Irans JCPOA violations in a call with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, her office said. Merkel also said that "now was the time for positive signals that create trust and increase the chances of a diplomatic solution.
Indian student Rashmi Samant resigns as Oxford Student Union President after old racist social media posts emerge

Photo courtesy: LinkedIn/Rashmi Samant

22-year-old Indian student Rashmi Samant recently made history when she became the first Indian woman to be elected the President of the Oxford Student Union. However, just days after that she has been forced to step down from the post after old social media posts by her emerged which have been deemed to be insensitive and racist.

"In light of the recent events surrounding my election to the Presidency of the Oxford SU, I believe it is best for me to step down from the role. It has been an honour to be your President-elect," Samant said in a statement on Facebook earlier this week.

The 2020-21 officers of the Student Union also issued a statement saying that they "sincerely apologise for the hurt and discomfort caused by the actions of the President-elect".

"Oxford SU has a no-tolerance policy towards discrimination. Racism, transphobia, and antisemitism have no place in our organisation," the statement said.

CW: racism, transphobia, antisemitism.



Rashmi Samant, the SU President-Elect, has resigned from her position following social media activity which showed "repeated insensitivity".https://t.co/UPnbstHu7V  Cherwell (@Cherwell_Online) February 16, 2021

Samant, who hails from Udupi, Karnataka, is studying for an MSc in energy systems at Linacre College at Oxford University and had scored a landslide win in the Oxford Student Union election.

Her previous posts, which have been branded as hurtful and racists include a holocaust reference during a visit to the Berlin Holocaust Memorial in Germany in 2017 and an Instagram caption on a picture of herself in Malaysia that read "Ching Chang".

She also faced criticism from the Oxford LGBTQ+ campaign after a campaign post caption of hers separated women and trans women.

In an open letter Samant wrote, Though the recent developments might make it hard for you to believe the sincerity of my apologies, it deeply pained me to note that I have lost the trust that the student community reposed in me with their votes and belief in my manifesto owing to my mistakes.

Regrettably, I alienated people within our wonderful student community to the extent that they deem me unfit to be the leader they rightfully deserve. I sincerely apologise to every student who has been hurt by my actions or words and seek a chance to gain your trust in me again, she added.

The Student Union will now hold a by-election to elect a new president, with nominations re-opened.

Samant has reportedly returned to India with many of her social media accounts since deleted.
Featuring items from the Eirfield Art Studio Lodge in The Curragh, art from a private collector, and the contents of a Limerick home are among the lots going under the digital hammer on February 27.

Taking place online at easyliveauctions.com, the full catalogue is available to view on seaneacrettantiques.ie ahead of the February 27 auction date and bids can be made online.

According to auctioneer Sean Eacrett, it may seem easy to dismiss a vast collection of household furniture and bric-a-brac as old tat, but Eacrett would advise that the devil is in the detail - and the value is also.

A County Limerick house contents is such a case in point. For auction online with Sean Eacrett on February 27 of this month, a good portion of the 900 or so lots were turned down by several auction houses until the Laois auctioneer was approached to take a closer look.

There are at least nine or ten good quality items in this collection from Co Limerick, Sean says. Not least an early twentieth century Chinese Chippendale style mahogany display cabinet.

Sean Eacrett estimates the cabinet (pictured Lot 634) could fetch up to 5,000 in the online auction.

I think this may be a cabinet from Hicks of Dublin possibly turn of the century much sought after middle generation. It is not signed but that was common to Hicks of that time, it has all the features of the middle generation Hicks cabinets.

The highly glazed top is standing on carved tapered supports and a pergola stretcher base. Estimated c 1890 - 1910. It should adorn some stately home. (W 153 X D 48 X H 260).

A considerable collection from the Newbridge Presentation Brothers, originally of Ballyfin Demesne, will also go under the hammer on February 27.

Religion still sells, affirms Eacrett, describing lot 290 as a really good carved timber statue of Jesus with painted and gilt decoration, estimated at 200-300. (125h x 32w with accompanying timber statue of Our lady).

No monastery is complete without a refectory and there are ten to twelve any dinner services in porcelain and pottery, most complete. (Example Lot 463, 131 pieces approx.)

The February 27 online auction includes items from the Eirfield Art Studio Lodge in The Curragh on the estate of Sir Edmund and Lady Loader, along with art from a private collector.

The Laois based auctioneer says that in the housebound pandemic times there is a brisk trade in online auction bidding by retail clients who then sell on to sites such as Facebooks Marketplace. It is not only GameStop and Bitcoin that is attracting the armchair dealer.

Eacrett references the example of one retired couple with an interest in antiques having completely sold out of what they bought from him at their previous online auction.

Eacrett emphasises that if you are to try this yourself, always ask for a condition report on the item; as all auctioneers are obliged to provide one. For example, on Easylive.com auctions there is a button which says, ask a question about this item or enquire about this lot. The information will then be put up on the site for public view.

As people have a lot more time on their hands now, lot 125 from the Limerick house should be of particular interest to horologists or collectors.

A nineteenth century watchmakers cabinet with ivory knobs is on auction, filled with many intriguing watch works parts. (W 30 X 20 X H 27cms.) The estimate of 100-200 is probably good value to those with an interest.

More for the collectors in the number of cameras (Lot 126 including an antique Pentax cine camera in leather bag from Eirfield art Lodge. Est. 50 - 100.

Art dealers may be interested in the Con Campbells, from a private collector in Clare, (lots 49, 52, 108, 156, 157, 387, 453, est. 350-450, lot s109, 523, est. 400- 600). Also, a number of striking watercolours by Isobel George valued at a low 40-60 each; lots 653- 656.

Of particular interest; lot 263 a George Cole Sunset In Surrey oil on board est. 1500 - 2500.

There is also a very 'chancy' lot in the sale, says Sean referencing Lot 675. Sir Edwin Landseer, an 18th-19th Century coloured unframed engraving on paper laid on canvas Collie Dogs' after Sir Edwin Landseer, with signature in the margin E Landseer. If the provenance is correct it could be worth around 1000.

Good walnut furniture is rarity and there are some lovely examples in this auction; a Scandinavian cabinet, coffee table and veneered cocktail cabinet among the items to catch the eye.

A number of fine mahogany round supper tables (400-600 each) are quite attractive, while a good pair of 19th early 20th Century oriental urn tables with carved outline (lot 628) is estimated to fetch 400-600 each. (W 41 X H 30.5 cms.)

The collection also includes lot 576, one of a number of large wool carpets with multi borders and red and blue corners and centre motif, provenance 1900 or so. Est. 400-600.

The auction will take place from 10am on February 27 at easyliveauctions.com and the full catalogue is available to view on seaneacrettantiques.ie
ADEN (Reuters) - The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen has redeployed troops to the Marib region and increased air strikes to try to repel an advance by the Iran-aligned Houthi group, sources in the military and the internationally recognised government said.

Fighting in the gas-producing region has escalated as the Houthis try to take Marib city, the government's last stronghold in the north of Yemen.

The fighting threatens to displace hundreds of thousands and complicate renewed U.S. and U.N. efforts to find a political solution to the more than six-year-old civil war in Yemen.

A government source in Marib and a military source told Reuters that hundreds of fighters had arrived from Hadhramout and Shabwa in the south, where the Saudi-backed government is based, and from the suburbs of northern Sanaa province.

One resident said military reinforcements passed through Marib on Thursday and that coalition warplanes had carried out several air strikes.

Clashes could be heard from the frontline about 30 km (18 miles) to the west of the city, the resident added.

The Yemeni army said in a Twitter post on Thursday that coalition air raids had destroyed a Houthi missile launching pad in Makhdara, west of Marib city, and four ballistic missiles.

The United States urged the Houthis on Tuesday to halt their offensive and join international efforts to end the conflict, widely seen in the region as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Echoing the U.S. appeal, U.N. Yemen mediator Martin Griffiths said on Thursday "the quest for territorial gain by force threatens all of the prospects of the peace process."

The Houthis ousted the government from power in the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014, prompting the Saudi-led coalition to intervene months later. The Houthis deny being puppets of Iran and say they are fighting a corrupt system.

On Thursday, the Houthi-run Al Masirah channel said the movement's interior minister had ordered a wide deployment of security forces and rescue workers in Marib "to match military victories with security victories by protecting citizens".

Around 80% of Yemen's population relies on aid and millions are on the verge of famine.

(Reporting Mohammed Ghobari in Aden; Additional reporting by Maher Chmaytelli in Dubai; Writing by Ghaida Ghantous, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
New house church resource encourages Christians to walk in 'power of the Holy Spirit'

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About two years ago, God gave John Stewart Hill a vision.

God gave me this vision of connecting the body of Christ outside the brick and mortar walls, the Dallas-based author and entrepreneur shared with The Christian Post. The vision is really much bigger than just the house church movement; its what I would call the new church of Acts, where everyday Christians were truly walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Where God leads me, I will follow, he added.

In obedience to Gods call, Hill, who is also founder and CEO of The Good Contractors List, developed a site called FindAHouseChurch.com, a free resource for house churches, large churches that are starting small groups, churches that are unable to meet due to COVID, and for people seeking a smaller, more intimate church experience. The site has the stated aim of Connecting the Body of Jesus Christ (outside the walls) to fulfill the Great Commission and give to those in need.

In the wake of the pandemic, churches have been forced to largely flip the script, Hill said. He explained that while pastors have historically been in the spotlight, churches of the future will look more like equipping stations for the entire Body of Christ.

What I mean by that is, these talented ministers, prophets, pastors, and teachers will do what they're actually supposed to do, which is support the ministry of the multitude, he said.

Hill stressed that he is not anti-traditional church, adding he doesnt believe God has an Im right, youre wrong opinion on church. But he noted that due to COVID restrictions, many members of large churches across the U.S. have been joining together to watch services online anyway.

So I felt it was important to help people invest in a more intimate church experience, he said.

These smaller groups are becoming house churches themselves, using their churchs programming, but gathering in their homes.

In 2011, Hill suffered a catastrophic heart attack that damaged 40% of his heart. Since then, he said, hes lived to listen to the voice of God and answer His call.

The truth of the matter is, God speaks to us. I felt like the Lord was saying to me, There is a new sound when it comes to my church, he shared. I want everyone to know that they're important to the Body of Christ, that they do have a part to play. You dont have to have the credentials. You just need to love the Lord, and He will show up if you gather together in His name. Its so simple, yet weve made it very complicated.

FindAHouseChurch.com operates free of charge and allows users to create an account and search for terms they're interested in, such as meets on weeknight, Baptist church, or special needs ministry. Churches can also create a page sharing the styles and vision of their house churches.

With dark days for Christianity looming on the horizon, Hill said he believes its essential for the church to reflect Acts 20:20, in which the Apostle Paul speaks of the importance of preaching house to house.

Hill said that the Church in the West has become complacent and too comfortable  and COVID-19 has been nothing short of a wake-up call.

We need to wake up and realize that just checking off a list of 'what I did this week to be a good Christian isnt going to work. There's more to this Christian life than just showing up on Sunday and paying my tithes to a church, he emphasized. We have to be sold out, 100 percent for Jesus.

We need to wake up from our slumber, Hill added. While its still day, we need to use every tool that we can to connect each other outside of those traditional church buildings and place the focus back on discipleship.
Buoyed by strong exploration results and availability of funds, the company has planned numerous work programs this year aimed at increasing the resource base of its flagship Cue Gold Project.

A PFS for Break of Day and Lena deposits is being planned by the company.

( ) ( ) has set the stage for a key year in 2021 as it targets major high-grade systems and near-term production at its flagship Cue Gold Project in Western Australia.

The company plans to undertake various exploration activities this year to systematically test targets, make discoveries and grow the projects gold resource base.

In 2021 MGV also intends to begin a pre-feasibility study (PFS) for Break of Day and Lena deposits within Cue to define a clear path to the production.

At the Lake Austin JV project with ( ), Musgrave plans basement drill testing of gold targets in a bid to define a large economic gold system at this portion of the Cue Project.

Drilling plans

During the first, second and third quarters of the year, follow-up reverse circulation (RC) and aircore drilling of Musgraves new priority regional targets is planned within the Cue Project.

Resource definition and conversion drilling will also be carried out throughout the year while follow-up diamond drilling is planned at high priority targets within the JV with Evolution.

Resource and exploration upside

The Cue Project has a large system of more than 28 kilometres of shear zone and the current resource estimate totals 659,000 ounces.

With around $24 million cash in hand and zero debt, the company is well funded to carry out exploration activities in the current year.

The project also represents an opportunity for further discoveries through successful regional drilling programs.

Break of Day resource

The company has started pre-feasibility studies at Break of Day deposit, where just five loads host 85% of the current resource.

Additional drilling on the newly discovered White Light lode is ongoing and shallow oxide infill RC drilling on the Twilight and Velvet lodes has started.

Re-interpretation of the geological model demonstrates the potential for repetitions of the existing resource lodes.

Musgraves activities to upgrade the resource estimates are focusing more on near-surface high-grade ounces.

Current resources stand at 797,000 tonnes at 10.2 g/t gold for 262,000 ounces while the potential high-margin open-cut subject to feasibility includes Starlight & White Light with 360,000 tonnes at 13.9 g/t of which Starlight hosts 240,000 tonnes at 17 g/t for 131,000 ounces from 3 metres below the surface.

The most recent resource estimate increased overall gold grade by 42% on the 2017 estimate while indicated resources increased 58% and contained ounces 31%.

Other resources

The Lena deposit hosts a resource of 4.305 million tonnes at 2.3 g/t for 325,000 ounces.

There are also 8,000 ounces at the Leviticus deposit and another 22,000 ounces at Numbers taking overall Southern Area resources to 617,000 ounces.

The remaining Cue project resources are from the Northern Area where Hollandaire and Rapier South host 17,000 ounces and Jasper Queen and Gilt Edge 24,000 ounces.

Strong gold recoveries

Recoveries of 96-99% recoverable gold from conventional gravity and CIL processing have been achieved from metallurgical test-work at Break of Day and Lena.

Both deposits recorded high gravity recoveries of more than 70% in fresh rock, which is comparable to typical Yilgarn gold ores, suggesting low reagent use and reduced processing costs.

Work at JV

Musgrave has entered into an earn-in and exploration joint venture with Evolution Mining over the Lake Austin portion of the Cue Project.

Under the JV, Evolution can spend up to $18 million in the next five years to earn 75% interest in the project with a commitment to invest a minimum of $4 million in the first two years.

The company has identified multiple new high priority gold targets under variable thickness dune and lake cover.

Basement gold intercepts from Lake Austin North include:
Facebook shares have dipped by one per cent today as the company suffers the fallout of its move to block all news content in Australia.

It comes as Wall Street assesses the wider ramifications of its extraordinary decision to ban users in Australia from accessing news in a row over paying for content.

Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik, however, said investors were likely to judge Facebook's stand against the legislation as 'prudent', given the potentially wider implications of similar moves following in other big global markets.

'While I believe Facebook said that news links only account for 4% or so of content, the danger here is contagion if other countries pursue similar legislation with broader definitions of who is a publisher - could this spiral into Facebook paying influencers for their posts?', Shmulik said.

The fall was in line with moves in other major tech shares as Wall Street largely shrugged off outrage around the company's decision to block all news content in Australia.

Facebook shares have dipped by one per cent today as the company suffers the fallout of its move to block all news content in Australia

Australians searching Facebook for news today were instead shown notifications saying 'no posts' were available (Mark Zuckerberg, pictured)

Facebook users called for a boycott of the site today amid fury after it blocked news sites in Australia amid a row over paying for content

Australians searching Facebook for news today were instead shown notifications saying 'no posts' were available. Attempting to share news links brought up a message saying 'this post can't be shared'.

Facebook is facing down calls for a boycott with 'Delete Facebook', 'Boycott Zuckerberg' and 'Facebook We Need To Talk' trending on rival site Twitter as fury at the move spread around the globe.

The surprise escalation of the battle over a law which would require Facebook and Google to reach deals to pay news outlets was denounced by media, politicians and human rights groups as it became clear that official health pages and emergency warnings had been scrubbed along with news sites.

Critics blasted the decision, saying it will lead to the proliferation of conspiracy theories and misinformation - which Facebook claims to be tackling.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison accused Facebook of 'thinking they're bigger than the government' after the site cut off all news services in the country

Meanwhile the ban also led to a host of non-news sites being blocked, including health agencies providing information on Covid, emergency services warning about fires, domestic violence shelters, charities and food banks.

Facebook's fight with Australia comes amid a global push to force tech giants to pay for content, with similar laws under consideration in the UK, the EU and US.

Facebook has flagged commercial risks around copyright and content moderation consistently to investors in recent years, while successfully riding out the public relations fallout as its advertising revenue surged.

Along with Google owner Alphabet, it now controls more than half of the digital advertising markets globally.

The company's shares, up 33% last year even as the platform was widely criticized for its handling of hate speech and misinformation related to COVID-19, dipped 1% in pre-market trade in New York.

Like others of the 'stay-at-home' stock market winners from the past year's COVID-19 lockdowns, Facebook has soared in value and is now worth almost $800 billion. Filings show that in the past three months, company insiders have sold $788 million of shares.

Another analyst, Mirabaud Securities' Neil Campling, contrasted Facebook's 'PR disaster' with Google's unveiling this week of a multi-year deal for news content with Australian tycoon Rupert Murdoch's News Corp.

Users of rival Twitter gleefully took to posting memes calling for the site to be boycotted

Others posted images showing their Facebook accounts have been scheduled for deletion

The decision means Daily Mail Australia's nearly five million followers can no longer access our news content on Facebook

Furious Australian PM Scott Morrison said the move proves that big tech companies 'think they are bigger than governments and that the rules should not apply to them.'

He added: 'Facebook's actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing.'

'These actions will only confirm the concerns that an increasing number of countries are expressing about the behaviour of BigTech companies who think they are bigger than governments and that the rules should not apply to them.

'They may be changing the world, but that doesn't mean they run it.

'We will not be intimidated by BigTech seeking to pressure our Parliament.'

Mr Cicilline added: 'Threatening to bring an entire country to its knees to agree to Facebook's terms is the ultimate admission of monopoly power.'

Matt Stoller, of the American Economic Liberties Project, said: 'Facebook deleted huge amounts of important content on a critical piece of social infrastructure in order to threaten a democratic society's sovereign power.

'The details are complex, the underlying power play is simple.'

Australian politicians are currently debating new laws which would force big tech companies to compensate news outlets for stories they host on their platforms.

The move comes in protest at a new law in Australia which would force sites like Facebook to pay for the news content they host (pictured, CEO Mark Zuckerberg)

The law - the News Media Bargaining Code - was being debated by parliament this week, with ministers voting to approve it on Wednesday night.

The bill now returns to the Senate for final approval, where it is expected to pass quickly.

When it passes, it will become the first such law requiring tech giants to compensate publishers for hosting their content.

Facebook and Google have been leading opposition to it, saying it is 'unworkable' and unfairly targets their businesses.

At one point Google had threatened to quit Australia entirely if the law passed, but has since softened its stance and begun striking deals with news outlets.

Pakistan on Thursday urged India to let neutral international observers visit and assess the situation on ground by free interaction with the Kashmiri people.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri made the comments during the weekly briefing here.

Envoys from several countries, including member states of the European Union and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) visited Jammu and on Wednesday and Thursday to assess the ground situation in view of the efforts made to restore normalcy by strengthening democratically-elected local bodies.

India has told Pakistan that it has no locus standi to comment on internal affairs of India, asserting that the union territories of Jammu and and Ladakh have been and will remain an integral part of the country.

Chaudhri said that India should allow UN observers, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the OIC Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission, and the international media to visit Kashmir and assess the situation on ground by free interaction with the Kashmiri people.

Earlier this month, spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs Anurag Srivastava said that India desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan in an environment free of terror, hostility and violence.

To a question about India prohibiting the Sikh Yatris to visit Pakistan for religious purposes, he said Pakistan provides maximum facilitation to the Sikh Yatris from all over the world, including India, for visiting their religious sites in Pakistan.

We believe that India should also facilitate Sikh Yatris for visiting their religious sites in Pakistan, Chaudhri said.

On Wednesday, India denied permission to around 600 Sikh pilgrims to visit Pakistan, citing the security and COVID-19 situation in the country.

Chaudhri said that a workshop on Exchange of Good Practices in tackling COVID Pandemic and the Way Forward was organised for SAARC member countries plus Mauritius and Seychelles in a virtual format.

In line with its policy of enhanced regional and international cooperation in dealing with the pandemic, Pakistan is also participating in the said workshop and sharing its good practices with the regional countries, he said.

Responding to a question about Afghan peace process, the spokesperson said Pakistan desires that the developments made so far toward durable peace in Afghanistan should be preserved and built upon. He said all the stakeholders in Afghanistan should seize the opportunity of reaching a long-lasting peace.

He said Head of Afghan Massoud Foundation, Ahmad Wali Massoud, along with his delegation, who arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday, met Prime Minister Imran Khan who reiterated his longstanding position that there is no military solution to the conflict in Afghanistan and that a political solution is the only way forward.

The Prime Minister also underscored that all Afghan parties must work for reduction in violence leading to a ceasefire and conveyed that Pakistan would support whatever the Afghans agreed upon about the future of their country.

Chaudhri also said Prime Minister Khan is likely to visit Sri Lanka later this month. He said the two sides are currently working on the elements of the programme keeping in view the COVID-19 health related protocols.

(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.)

ST. PAUL, Minn., Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Johnson // Becker, PLLC is pleased to announce Stacy Hauer, a partner at Johnson // Becker, PLLC, has been appointed to the Plaintiffs' Executive Committee ("PEC") of the recently formed Elmiron MDL. The Elmiron MDL is centralized before the Honorable Judge Brian Martinotti of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey in MDL 2973: In re Elmiron (Pentosan Polysulfate Sodium) Products Liability Litigation, 2:20-md-02973-BRM-ESK. On February 16, 2021, Judge Martinotti issued Case Management Order 4, appointing Ms. Hauer to the PEC.

The Elmiron MDL involves the drug Elmiron, known as pentosan polysulfide sodium. Elmiron is marketed by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a member of the Johnson & Johnson family, to treat interstitial cystitis. Plaintiffs in those lawsuits allege damage to their retinas as a result of exposure to the drug, which is associated with permanent vision loss.

Ms. Hauer's experience makes her well suited for this position. Prior to law school, Ms. Hauer received her Master's degree in Medicinal Chemistry from the University of Minnesota through the College of Pharmacy. Ms. Hauer has been appointed by various state and federal courts to leadership teams during the last twenty years of her practice and she looks forward to continued representation of plaintiffs is this MDL as well.

Johnson // Becker, PLLC is a nationwide plaintiff's law firm with experience representing injured men and women in lawsuits against pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Johnson // Becker represents several individuals in Elmiron lawsuits who allege they have suffered permanent vision loss or eye damage after use of the drug Elmiron, including more than 50 cases filed in the Elmiron MDL.

To learn more about Johnson // Becker's mass tort cases, or to arrange a free, no obligation Elmiron eye damage case review, visit Johnson // Becker at https://www.johnsonbecker.com/drug-injuries/elmiron-lawsuit/ or contact Johnson // Becker at (800) 279-6386.

SOURCE Johnson // Becker, PLLC
Journalist Priya Ramani was the first to accuse former editor-turned-politician and junior external affairs minister, M.J. Akbar, of harassment, spurring more than 20 women to come forward and allege similar accusations. (IANS file photo)
South Dakota Governor Calls Bidens Abrupt Termination of Keystone Pipeline Dangerous

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said that President Joe Bidens recent executive decision to end the Keystone XL Pipeline project has not only hurt her states economy but is dangerous for Americas energy independence, adding that she would like to see the Biden administration prioritize all-of-the-above energy policy.

Ive always been a supporter of diversified energy, I think its critically important that we prioritize all forms of energy, Noem told Fox News on Wednesday. Biden has specifically gone after coal and oil and gas and I think thats dangerous.

We should be supporting energy thats generated here in the United States so we rely on our own sources but also, we dont put all of our eggs in one basket, we make sure it is diversified so we dont have the situation that weve got today in so many different states, Noem added.

You know Im a supporter of wind energy but its not consistent and thats why youre always going to need other forms of electricity to support the system and the grid so that families can make sure they can keep their houses warm.

Biden signed an executive order on Jan. 20 that halted the Keystone Pipeline project that former President Trump approved, saying it was part of his administrations larger agenda to tackle with the projected climate crisis.

Many lawmakers like Noem from states where many families are supported by jobs in the fossil fuel industry have criticized Bidens approach to pushing the United States toward a more carbon neutral economy.

Noem told Fox News that Bidens abrupt and sweeping cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline shortly after taking office on Jan. 20 had directly impacted jobs and devastated communities that were preparing for the arrival of residents and tax revenue in her state.

The White River weaves through the landscape near where the proposed Keystone XL pipeline would pass south of Presho, South Dakota, on Oct. 13, 2014. (Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

They had already built a couple of pumping stations they have the pipeline laid out ready to be installed, Noem said of the part of the pipeline passing through her state. And then when he pulled the permits, everything just stopped.

We had restaurants and motels and gas stations that had expanded, getting ready for the workers that were going to be here for the next several years building the pipeline. They were excited about the opportunities to get the property taxes and these local small schools from the pipeline. It was always going to be a source of revenue that would help them keep their roads fixed, keep commerce going, and make sure that their teachers could be well paid and a lot of these remote areas where economic development is a little challenging, she said.

Noem challenged the negative opinions of the pipeline and its environmental impacts, saying that it would provide a more efficient and environmentally clean way to transport fossil fuels that are currently being moved by rail and truck from Canada regardless of whether the pipeline gets built. In addition, Noem noted the project, when fully installed, would have brought down the cost of oil and gas for Americans.

Democrat Senator from West Virginia Joe Manchin in a Feb. 9 letter to the president contended that the pipeline is the safest mode to transport our oil and natural gas resources and they support thousands of high-paying, American union jobs.

I encourage you to reconsider your decision to revoke the cross-border permit for the Keystone XL pipeline and take into account the potential impacts of any further action to safety, jobs, and energy security, he added.

Many other Democrats have praised the Biden administrations climate agenda and want to quickly move toward alternative energy sources and away from fossil fuels.

Marty Durbin, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerces internal think tank the Global Energy Institute, said Bidens decision to halt the pipeline was not grounded in science.

The pipelinethe most studied infrastructure project in American historyis already under construction and has cleared countless legal and environmental hurdles, Durbin said in a statement. Halting construction will also impede the safe and efficient transport of oil, and unfairly single out production from one of our closest and most important allies.

Watch Next:

Climate Change Narrative Driven by Agenda of Political Control?

The Minister-designate for the Fisheries, Mrs Mavis Hawa Koomson, has apologised for her Rambo-style action which nearly marred the voter registration process in her constituency on Monday, July 20, 2020.



On that fateful day, Mrs Koomson, who is also the Member of Parliament for the Awutu Senya East Constituency in the Central Region, went to the Step to Christ polling centre at Kasoa after receiving information that people from outside the constituency were bussed to register there as voters.



After a misunderstanding broke up, the MP fired warning shots to defend herself.



Vetting



Appearing before the Appointments Committee of Parliament on Thursday, Mrs Koomson admitted that her action was unministerial, dishonourable, and consequently apologised.



She said, Mr Chairman, I want to take this opportunity to apologise to the people who were so scared on that day.



Mrs Koomsons apology followed a question by the MP for Gushegu, Mr Hassan Tampuli on events that led to the firing of a gun by the minister-designate.



Responding to the question, Mrs Koomson said although her actions were premised on the circumstances at the time, they were regrettable.



She also expressed the hope that such an incident would not repeat itself.



During the registration of voters there was an incident. But Mr Chairman, regrettably, it was an unfortunate incident which I wish it never happened. And I also pray that it never happens again in the history of our politics in Ghana.



It was in defence of myself because I felt my life was in danger with the circumstances that I found myself. That day, I thought I needed to save my life, she explained.



But Mr Chairman, I would also want to plead with this committee that the issue is before the police for investigations and I wouldnt want to say much about it, she added.



In a follow up question, the MP for Tamale South, Mr Haruna iddrisu, sought to find out why Mrs Koomson did not go to the polling centre with her bodyguard.



In her response, she said, that day the bodyguard was not with me. It was as early as 6am. She had then not reported for duty.



Calls for sack



Following the incident on Monday, July 20, several groups including IMANI, Occupy Ghana and the National Peace Council condemned the actions of Mrs Koomson and called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to sack her.



But the National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Mr Freddie Blay said calls for her dismissal were "pointless" and "absolutely needless".





Source: graphiconline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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Save Log in , register or subscribe to save articles for later. Normal text size Larger text size Very large text size Its big news but you probably didnt read about it on Facebook. The social media giant has followed through on its threat to ban all Australian media content both here and internationally as it rails against the federal governments new plan to make Google and Facebook pay for news. In the early hours of Thursday morning, just after the proposed media bargaining code passed the lower house, Facebook hit the nuclear option  news links could no longer be shared and publishers could no longer post from their Facebook pages. There have already been some strange effects. Along with banning traditional media outlets such as the ABC, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, scores of government agencies were caught in the net, including health departments, fire and rescue and the Bureau of Meteorology. Even scientific journals and satirical news sites such as the Betoota Advocate felt the sting. Many fake news and conspiracy sites, meanwhile, still appear free to post. Of course, as Facebook scrambles to iron out kinks in the new algorithm, loopholes have emerged too. The ABC news messenger bot continues to toil away behind enemy lines and for a while the ban seemed no match for the true rulers of the internet: cats. Up until Thursday evening, you could still post a news link if it was accompanied by a photo of a cat. While the federal government was caught off-guard by the ban itself, it vows it wont back down on the code. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg says he will continue discussions with Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg but rejected the companys claim it had no choice but to go through with the ban in the face of an unworkable law. So why has Facebook banned news in the middle of a pandemic? Will misinformation, conspiracy theories (and cat photos) fill the void  and what will that do to Australia? Or will Facebook back down and reverse its ban? Facebook has made good on its threat to ban news from its platform but is the change for good or will negotiations yet prevail? Credit:Artwork: Stephen Kiprillis

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What exactly is banned? If youre a news junkie, prepare to see a lot more of your friends pets and brunches from now on. Media outlet pages, big and small, still exist but all their posts have vanished. Most news links cannot be shared, even in groups. On Thursday, Communications Minister Paul Fletcher personally contacted the manager of his local North Shore Mums Facebook page when it went down, too. Also on the list of un-newsy accounts affected is Small Steps for Hannah, a charity set up to help stop domestic violence in the wake of the horrific murders of Queensland woman Hannah Clarke and her three children  the ban hit on the eve of first anniversary of the crime. And, three weeks out from the West Australian election, the Premier Mark McGowan escaped the block while his opponent Zak Kirkup did not. (McGowan himself has since compared the ban to the oppressive censorship of North Korea). Even Facebooks own official page on the platform could not post on Thursday morning. University of Sydney vaccine expert Professor Julie Leask said the timing of Facebooks mass blocking couldnt be worse  just three days out from the start of Australias COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Facebook has said it will restore pages inadvertently caught up in the blackout, including those of hospitals and health departments, and many are already regaining the ability to post. But health experts say banning news is itself dangerous at such a critical time and the federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has called for its immediate reversal.

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Apart from the brief loophole of posting unrelated photos, tech experts say getting around the ban isnt as simple as using a virtual private network (VPN) set to another country as the ban applies globally to all Australian news. Even New Yorkers cant find our explainers on Facebook. Facebook media pages such as The Sydney Morning Heralds have been blocked from posting and news links can no longer be shared on the platform. Credit:Credit: Wolter Peeters So why has Facebook blocked news? Facebook is already sometimes dismissed as a den of misinformation, strident opinions (and cat photos) but at least a third of Australians get their news from the site, too. Facing criticism about the spread of conspiracy theories and extremism on the platform, in recent years Facebook has vowed to do more to combat fake news as well as to support media outlets, from which both it and Google have now carved off the lions share of the advertising market. (For every $100 spent on advertising in 2019, $53 went to Google, $28 to Facebook and just $19 to all other websites and ad tech.) Enter Australias new media bargaining code. The plan, which is expected to become law in the coming days, is proposed as a backstop to even the playing field amid the market monopoly of Google and Facebook and to protect public interest journalism. If the companies cannot reach a fair deal to pay media outlets for their content, they will be forced to go to arbitration.

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Media companies say their content helps Google and Facebook make money by offering the reliable, fact-checked information users are looking for. The tech giants say the internet should stay free and that publishers benefit from the click-throughs from their sites. And, with the rest of the world watching Australias code closely, both companies fear it could trigger copycat regulation forcing them to pay for news all around the globe. Google made its own big threat earlier this year when it flagged it might turn off search for Australian audiences entirely. But it has since begun signing multi-million-dollar annual content deals with the big media companies (including Nine, the owner of The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald) which is meant to be spent on journalism. Google had already reached deals with smaller companies such as The Saturday Paper and Australian Community Media, which owns The Canberra Times and a suite of regional mastheads. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Facebook argues that while Google is inextricably entwined with news and picks up articles without permission to improve its search results, publishers actively post content to Facebook by choice to grow their own audiences. They get more out of it than Facebook. Catching up on news is, it says, just a small part of what people do on its platform. The company was in talks with publishers almost right up until the ban but negotiations stalled due to concerns about the codes penalties (which could see the platforms fined up to 10 per cent of revenue for non-compliance). Announcing the ban on Thursday, Facebook Australias managing director, William Easton, acknowledged that the government had already made some amendments to make the code more palatable to the tech giants but said it still fails to understand how our services work. This legislation sets a precedent where the government decides who enters into these news content agreements and, ultimately, how much the party that already receives value from the free service gets paid. Some in the tech community have also branded the media code as a shakedown, fearing charging for links could open the floodgates and break one of the founding principles of a free and open internet. But others say Google and Facebook have already changed the landscape. They now control huge swathes of the internet. And they curate links and news to suit their own advertising goals, often lifting out detailed previews from the articles which can lead to less click-through and so less revenue for media organisations.

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While Easton stressed on Thursday that Facebook remained committed to combating misinformation, particularly during the pandemic, AAP fact-checkers working with the platform report their own articles have been blocked, too, in the blackout. Fact-checking still appears on posts flagged by the site as misinformation but users can no longer post a link to refute it themselves. AAP was still trying to get the matter resolved on Friday. Frydenberg, who has hailed the media bargaining code as a historic step to keep Australias media ecosystem sustainable, slammed the Facebook news ban on Thursday: Facebook was wrong. Facebooks actions were unnecessary. They were heavy-handed and they will damage its reputation here in Australia, he said. We certainly werent given any notice by Facebook. But he was in talks with Mr Zuckerberg again on Friday and has said discussions will continue to see...if we can get them back to the table. Is Facebook allowed to ban news? What about free speech? As a private company, Facebook is entitled to curate the content on its platforms. The government cannot force it to overturn the news blackout, and users can really only complain or leave. But the move has revealed more about the companys capacity to monitor content than it perhaps would like. In the wake of the Christchurch mosque shooting and other acts of extremist violence, Facebook has claimed it is too difficult to entirely remove conspiracy theories and the extremist content which helps radicalise users.

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U.S. special envoy to Iran Rob Malley had an "in-depth exchange of views on the Iranian nuclear issue" with a Chinese vice minister on a call initiated by Malley, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Feb. 10. The Biden administration has not spoken publicly about the call.

The big picture: Renewing multilateral diplomatic efforts to stop Iran's nuclear program is Malley's mandate under Biden.

Background: During the Obama administration, gaining China's support was key to levying the multilateral sanctions on Iran that eventually helped bring Iranian leaders to the bargaining table, leading to the signing of the Iran nuclear deal.

But Trump withdrew from that deal and China resumed imports of Iranian oil last year.

What they're saying: When contacted by Axios, the State Department did not confirm the details in the Chinese announcement.

"Special Envoy Rob Malley is in the early stages of engaging Members of Congress, allies, partners, and others," a U.S. State Department spokesperson told Axios in a statement.

What to watch: On Feb. 21, Iran will begin blocking International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors unless the U.S. eases sanctions.

The bottom line: As long as China gives Iran an economic lifeline, it will be easier for Iran to withstand Western pressure.
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's annual interaction with students Pariksha Pe Charcha' will be held online this year in view of the COVID-19 pandemic. The interaction with students from classes 9 to 12 ahead of their exams will be held in March.

A tweet from Exam warriors said, Pariksha Pe Charcha is back. This time, the contest as well the event will be fully online and open to students all over the world. #PPC2021 will also include parents and teachers.

The tweet followed a tagline: Ignite the #ExamWarriors in you with PM Modi. Join the movement.

Pariksha Pe Charcha is back. This time, the contest as well the event will be fully online and open to students all over the world. #PPC2021 will also include parents and teachers. Ignite the #ExamWarriors in you with PM Modi. Join the movement. https://t.co/ZBnsB4ucXs  Exam Warriors (@examwarriors) February 18, 2021

Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank had earlier announced that the registration process of the fourth edition of the interaction has begun.

Questions related to dealing with examination stress from school students of classes 9 to 12 will be invited through the ''MyGov'' platform and selected questions will feature in the programme, the Education Minister said.

"I feel happy to share that the interaction every student was waiting for is back! Get ready to smile your way through exams with PM @narendramodi in #ParikshaPeCharcha2021," Nishank said in a tweet.

"In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year the interaction will be conducted online," he said in another tweet.

The registration for the programme began on Thursday and it will conclude on March 14. Students who will get to ask questions will be selected through a competition.

"There are different topics assigned for students, parents and teachers in the contest. The applicants can also pose their questions on this platform. The selected participants will be participating in the programme online from their respective state and UT headquarters and will be presented with a special PPC kit (Pariksha Pe Charcha kit)," Nishank said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday invited parents and teachers in this year`s interaction with students for the upcoming exams amid the pandemic."As our brave Exam Warriors start padding up for their exams, `Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021` returns, this time fully online and open to students all over the world. Come, let us appear for the exams with a smile and without stress," PM Modi tweeted.

"On popular demand, `Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021` will also include parents and teachers. It`ll be a fun-filled discussion on an otherwise serious subject. I call upon my student friends, their amazing parents, and hardworking teachers to take part in "Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021" in large numbers," PM Modi said in another tweet.

"As our brave #ExamWarriors start padding up for their exams, ''Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021'' returns, this time fully online and open to students all over the world. Come, let us appear for the exams with a smile and without stress! #PPC2021," the Prime Minister tweeted.

As our brave #ExamWarriors start padding up for their exams, Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021 returns, this time fully online and open to students all over the world. Come, let us appear for the exams with a smile and without stress! #PPC2021https://t.co/dsjq8y879s  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 18, 2021

"On popular demand, ''Pariksha Pe Charcha 2021'' will also include parents and teachers. Itll be a fun-filled discussion on an otherwise serious subject. I call upon my student friends, their amazing parents and hardworking teachers to take part in #PPC2021 in large numbers, he said.

During the programme, Prime Minister Modi will answer the questions and interact with students about how they can beat examination stress.

"The competition is open for school students of classes 9 to 12. Students can submit their responses to any one of the themes provided to them. Students may also submit their questions to the Hon`ble Prime Minister in a maximum of 500 characters, a government press release said.

It may be recalled that the first edition of the Prime Minister's interaction programme with school and college students ''Pariksha Pe Charcha 1.0'' was held at the Talkatora Stadium on February 16, 2018.

The third edition of the Prime Ministers interaction programme with school students `Pariksha Pe Charcha 2020` was held at Talkatora Stadium in New Delhi.

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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 06:58:20|Editor: huaxia

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BOGOTA, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Mass vaccination against COVID-19 kicked off on Thursday in Colombia's capital Bogota, the Colombian city with the most infections and deaths since the start of the pandemic in the South American country, said health authorities.

The vaccination drive began simultaneously at hospitals in Bogota and other major cities, with the immunization of healthcare workers on the frontlines of the pandemic.

Colombian Minister of Health and Social Protection, Fernando Ruiz, who was on hand for the vaccination process at Kennedy Hospital, stressed the importance of the first vaccine being applied at a public hospital.

Ruiz also thanked the mayor of Bogota, Claudia Lopez, for helping to facilitate the National Vaccination Plan, which aims to vaccinate more than 35 million Colombians in 2021.

"Mayor, thank you for joining this initiative to vaccinate 35.2 million Colombians ... we are going to protect our population of healthcare workers and our population over 80 years of age," Ruiz said of the start of the campaign.

Colombia reported 2,207,701 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 58,134 deaths from the disease as of Wednesday, according to the Ministry of Health. Enditem
Natwest is preparing to pull out of the Republic of Ireland after more than 100 years in the country in the second major shake-up under Alison Rose.

The banking group, formerly known as Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), operates under the Ulster Bank brand in Ireland where it is the third-largest lender.

But it is planning to sell its operations there, according to the Financial Times, as it focuses its efforts on the UK. It will keep using the Ulster Bank banner in Northern Ireland.

Natwest, formerly known as Royal Bank of Scotland, operates under the Ulster Bank brand in Ireland where it is the third-largest lender

The move comes just a year after Rose, who took over as chief executive in 2019, announced plans to slash Natwest's beleaguered investment bank and ditched the RBS name.

The shift may worry Natwest's customers in the Republic of Ireland, as they await to see who will buy the bank's sizeable loan book.

Last year it denied it was in talks with Cerberus Capital Management, an investment group branded a 'hound of hell' by MPs, which has become infamous for snapping up loans and squeezing borrowers to force repayments.

Irish politicians are putting pressure on Natwest to sell the loans to active lenders, to maintain competition and avoid the fate which has befallen some so-called mortgage prisoners in the UK.

Bank customers were locked into costly mortgages, unable to swap to a cheaper alternative, after their debt was sold to New York-based Cerberus  which is not licensed as a bank and so cannot offer new loans.

A spokesman for Natwest, which is due to release its full-year results today, said: 'We continue to evaluate the impact of Covid-19 and the challenges to the economy and we are reviewing our strategy appropriately and responsibly in light of these events.'

ANKARA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Feb, 2021 ) :Turkey on Thursday voiced concern over Thursday raids on the homes of Crimean Tatars. "We are concerned over the raids on the homes of our kin Crimean Tatar Turks and the detention orders issued in the morning hours of yesterday (February 17) in Crimea," said a Foreign Ministry statement.

"We call for an end to such practices against the Crimean Tatars, who are the fundamental constituents of the Crimean Peninsula," the statement added.It reiterated that Turkey does not recognize the illegal annexation of Crimea, and vowed to continue to stand by Crimean Tatars.

On Wednesday, Lyudmila Denisova, the Ukrainian parliament's human rights ombudswoman, said Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) raided homes of Crimean Tatars and detained six of them.

Denisova said the detentions were politically motivated.

Russian forces entered the Crimean Peninsula in February 2014, with Russia's President Vladimir Putin formally dividing the region into two separate federal subjects of the Russian Federation the following month.Crimea's ethnic Tatars have faced persecution since Russia's 2014 takeover of the peninsula, a situation Turkey has decried.Turkey and the US, as well as the UN General Assembly, view the annexation as illegal.
Some professions are best suited to the young. You seldom come across a professional gymnast in his 60s, for instance, or an air hostess in her 70s.

The comparatively recent profession of disc jockey was designed for young men or, much more rarely, women in their 20s.

When the pioneering pop station Radio Caroline first took to the air in 1964, its disc jockeys were all in their 20s.

It was the first time listeners had been able to hear non-stop music presented in an up-to-date way by young DJs and they loved it, recalled Tony Blackburn in his first volume of auto- biography, modestly titled The Living Legend.

At the age of 21, Blackburn was the youngest DJ of them all. By the age of 25, he boasted of earning 60,000 a year, which would be closer to 1 million now.

He particularly enjoyed driving back to his old public school, Millfield, and showing off to the pupils.

When the pop station Radio Caroline first took to the air in 1964, its DJs were all in their 20s

As a showbiz celebity I had the accessories to match . . . an E-type Jag and a gorgeous bunny girl in the shortest mini- skirt ever invented.

But time rolls on. A group photograph of the groovy young DJs at the opening of Radio 1 in 1967 now seems almost as distant as a photo of young men marching to the Somme.

Diddy David Hamiltons 2017 book, The Golden Days Of Radio One, ends with a list of what became of them all: John Peel, died October 25, 2004, aged 65; Ed Stewart, died January 9, 2016, aged 74; Dave Cash, died October 21, 2016, aged 74; Jimmy Young, died November 7, 2016, aged 95; and so on.

But one or two of those early DJs are happily still with us. Tony Blackburn is 78, and Hamilton is 82.

To some it might seem cruel to force them into a studio for two or three hours a day and make them gabble their cheery gibberish, just as they used to do, 50 or 60 years ago. Yet, oddly enough, this is what they seem to want.

Hamilton recently wrote an impassioned appeal, calling for the right to turn back the clock.

At the age of 21, Tony Blackburn (pictured) was the youngest DJ of them all on Radio Caroline

He is deeply upset that Radio 2 is playing the hits of the 1980s and 1990s, while forcing the hits of the 1960s and 1970s on to the back shelf.

Little wonder that many of my peers dont want to tune into the station any more . . . The hits that are being banished, after all, transformed the cultural landscape for ever. Their timeless lyrics and memorable melodies retain their potency to this day.

To back up his argument, he cites the music of The Beatles and the Rolling Stones.

This is a sensible tactic, though my memories of the music he used to play on his Radio 2 show revolve around the less feted songs of the time, such as Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree by Tony Orlando And Dawn, You Wont Find Another Fool Like Me by The New Seekers, Gimme Dat Ding by The Pipkins, and Grandad by Clive Dunn.

For decades now, pop music stations have faced criticism from assorted oldies that they no longer play the hits of their youth.

But, as radio stations go, when one door closes, another opens. Diddys CV bears testament to the extraordinary number of radio stations that have opened over the years, dedicated to playing the hits of yesteryear.

Back in 1988, he joined Capital Gold, moving to Melody FM and Classic Gold in 1994. At the beginning of this century, he joined PrimeTime Radio, which was part of the Saga group, directed at listeners in the autumn of their years.

In 2012, he was one of the first presenters on The Wireless, an internet-based radio station operated by Age UK.

Diddy David Hamilton was among one of the first radio disc jockeys at Radio 1 opening in 1967

And this month he helped launch Boom Radio, which plays music of the 1960s and 1970s.

The stations mission statement says: You were there in the 60s. In the 70s. Creating the culture of today.

'Breaking barriers. Shaking the system. Living fast. And having fun . . . Boy, youre still running. At full speed.

Personally, I think all those random full stops are a mistake, too reminiscent of someone catching their breath every few words.

But the important thing about all these OAP stations is not that they play songs by The Beatles and the Stones, which are available everywhere else.

No: its that they provide occupational therapy for our veteran disc jockeys, giving them the chance to sit in a padded room for a few hours each day, talking chirpy gobbledygook like Smashie and Nicey, just as they used to do in days gone by.

The free event will take place on the back end of about 18 acres of bowl-shaped property on County Road 150 South with a couple of food trucks and no alcohol after the BZA renewed a variance first granted for the event in 2018. The event took place that year and again the following year, drawing 500 and 700 people throughout the day, respectively.
Lindsey Graham has warned that the Republican Party cannot win back control of the Senate without Donald Trump.

His prediction came after the ex-president declared war on the GOPs most senior senator, Mitch McConnell, and branded him a dour, sullen, unsmiling political hack.

Mr Trumps mauling of the Minority Leader came after Mr McConnell blamed him for provoking the Capitol riot, just minutes after acquitting him at his Senate trial.

Now Mr Graham, the Republican senator from South Carolina, has urged his party to stick with Mr Trump ahead of the 2022 election cycle.

I know Trump can be a handful, but he is the most dominant figure in the Republican Party, Mr Graham said on Fox News.

Trump is the most consequential Republican in the party, said Mr Graham.

And he added that if Mr McConnell did not see that, then hes missing a lot.

A total of 57 senators voted to convict Mr Trump at his Senate impeachment trial, but the number was not high enough to reach the two-thirds supermajority needed.

The Republican Party hopes to take control of the Democratic-controlled House and Senate in 2022 and the White House in 2024.

And Mr Graham said he was concerned how the feud would undermine his partys attempts to regain power.

Theyre now at each others throat. Im more worried about 2022 than Ive ever been. I dont want to eat our own, he said.

And he added: We dont have a snowballs chance in hell of taking back the majority without Donald Trump, he said.

If you dont get that, youre just not looking.
Ranchi, Feb 18 : An Indian Oil Corporation engineer committed suicide in Jharkhand on Thursday, police said.

According to Police, Draupdi Kumari Patro alias Binni, 26, was working as an engineer at the Indian Oil Corporation in Kolkata. She committed suicide by hanging herself inside her home at Harhargutu under Bagbeda Police Station area of the East Singhbhum district.

Police have found a suicide note saying that she did not wish to get married.

Family members said that as she did not open the door in the morning, they broke it open and saw her hanging inside the room. Police was informed and they sent the body for post-mortem. Police also seized the laptop and mobile of the deceased.

Isabella Schultz was standing on the snowy Houston Street sidewalk Wednesday afternoon wearing a puffy purple coat and sporting heart-shaped stickers on her earlobes, unsure of where to go next.

The 38-year-old had just left the home of a family she had been staying with on and off for two years. The home lost power, and she went back to the downtown streets because she felt safe there.

Then Valerie Salas, director of homeless services at Christian Assistance Ministry, pulled up in her sedan and told Schultz to hop in.

Salas and other volunteers, including Morgan Handley with Centro SA, Gavin Rogers of Corazon Ministries and Rex Brien with SAMM Ministries, have been on the streets for several days, helping to bring homeless people into shelters and some hotels to protect them from the prolonged hard freeze. A few of the outreach workers are staying in hotels downtown so they can work late at night.

When the weather gets bad and people step back, we push forward, Salas said, being in constant contact with about 30 other outreach workers and partner agencies to find each client a warm place to stay.

On ExpressNews.com: Temperature is back above freezing - but snow is back in the forecast

A lot of temporary shelters are open because of the efforts of city staff, local nonprofits, the faith-based community and street outreach teams working together to get as many people inside as possible, said Billy Mahone of the South Alamo Regional Alliance for the Homeless.

As the need increases, more shelters have been opening up, Mahone said. The faith-based community has been huge in opening up their buildings. Volunteers have been great in serving at the facilities and allowing for their continued operation (the shelters). In some instances, volunteers have worked overnight to continue to serve our neighbors in need.

Tuesday night, 503 homeless people sought shelter, Mahone said.

About 200 went to churches, said Roland Martinez with the citys Department of Human Services, with about 52 people housed at the Travis Park Church and about 40 at Christian Assistance Ministrys emergency shelter at Grace Lutheran Church.

Other San Antonians also stepped up to help. Chef Tim McDiarmid, owner of The Good Kind Southtown, closed her restaurant Sunday because of the storm.

She began cooking meals for emergency shelters and partnered with Corazon Ministries to deliver hot meals to the one at Travis Park Church.

Haven for Hope welcomed about 120 people because of the cold weather. That was in addition to the shelters 1,000 regular clients in its hotel and campus, said to Celeste Eggert, the vice president and chief development officer at Haven for Hope.

On ExpressNews.com: How to help and get help in Texas as the winter storm causes power outages

But despite outreach workers best efforts, many people without shelter wanted to stay outside. One homeless man, Scott, 51, had a structure of blankets and wood under the bridges where Interstates 35 and 37 cross. Hes been staying there since June.

I have too much stuff out here, he said, worried his things would get stolen. He did accept some meals and batteries to power up his flashlight.

The original plan for Schultz was to go to the Convention Center, where many people are seeking shelter while their homes are without power. But she felt anxious and uncomfortable, so outreach workers decided to pivot their plans and tried to find her a hotel room.

Many San Antonians are helping the homeless while their own homes lack either power or water, with about 274,000 CPS Energy customers without power Wednesday morning.

The community effort has been incredible, even with everyone experiencing a degree of personal crisis on top of serving people experiencing homelessness, said Katie Vela, president of the South Alamo Regional Alliance for the Homeless.

On ExpressNews.com: Turns out Texans are far more vulnerable than they thought possible, like in a disaster movie

Even some shelters have experienced issues. Haven for Hope has had intermittent water shortages since Sunday. The only surety has been one faucet  now running 24 hours a day  in its warehouse providing water to the 22-acre campus, Eggert said.

We fill buckets of water and deliver them to restrooms all over the campus, Eggert added, with 75 staff members working and sleeping at the campus since Sunday to keep it running.

Haven for Hope also has plenty of bottled water and has had continuous power.

For those that want to help with the cold weather effort for the homeless, Corazon Ministries is asking for volunteers to sign up through its Facebook page at Facebook.com/CorazonMinistriesInc.
"Happy Endings" star Adam Pally is looking for a satisfying conclusion to placing his New York City home on the market. The five-bedroom abode with panoramic views is available for $4,095,000.

The actor paid $3.2 million for the luxury apartment in 2017. Featuring five bedrooms and three bathrooms, the meticulously and thoughtfully renovated residence on a high floor offers gracious entertaining and comfortable living, according to the listing.

Upon entry, the foyer leads to the corner living and dining space. Along with views, the living area features a wood-burning fireplace, an eye-catching gold-tone light fixture, and custom built-ins. Herringbone-pattern wood floors run through the main living space.

A chef's eat-in kitchen includes Miele and Sub-Zero appliances, a wine cooler, built-in coffee maker, double ovens, and a large pantry.

Set apart, the two bedroom wings offer maximum privacy and a flexible layout. A new owner could opt to convert some of the rooms to office or study spaces. The primary bedroom comes with an en suite marble bath, four closets, and city views.

Details include high-beamed ceilings, prewar accents, walnut flooring, custom built-ins, and plentiful closets.

Located in the London Terrace Towers in the Chelsea neighborhood, the building was designed in 1930 by Farrar & Watmaugh. The apartment complex encompasses an entire city block, with four corner buildings and around 710 apartments, both for rent and purchase.

The high-rise, minutes from the High Line elevated park, has been home to many notable residents, including Bill Hader, Chelsea Clinton, and Tim Gunn of "Project Runway."

Amenities include full-time door attendants, a rooftop terrace, indoor pool, fitness center, on-site garage, bike storage, basement laundry, and resident manager.

Previously, Pally and his wife, Daniella Liben Pally, owned a home in the Fairfax area of Los Angeles, which they sold in 2013 for $1.62 million, according to the Los Angeles Times. Listed for $1.7 million, the Spanish-style home from 1927 featured 2,400 square feet of living space, including three bedrooms, an office, fireplace, dining room, and French doors leading out to a pool.

The New York native has brought his brand of humor in shows such as Happy Endings, The Mindy Project, and Making History. Pallys numerous film appearances include Iron Man 3 and Band Aid. He had a voice role in Sonic the Hedgehog.

Curtis W. Jackson with Brown Harris Stevens holds the listing.

The post Actor Adam Pally Selling Posh Pad in NYC's Chelsea Neighborhood for $4.1M appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com.
Saying the agency wants to express solidarity with Black patients, New Orleans Emergency Services is offering employees the chance to wear a pin supporting the Black Lives Matter movement, officials announced Thursday.

The move, coming in the middle of Black History Month, echoes EMS previous decision to allow paramedics, emergency medical technicians and other employees the option to wear rainbow-colored badges and pins in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer communities.

Agency brass has said those Pride pins and badges were meant to signal to LGBTQ patients  who can sometimes be reluctant to seek help from first responders  that it was safe to call on the citys paramedics.

Dr. Emily Nichols, EMS director, said the new Black Lives Matter pins are likewise meant as a reminder to us and our patients that we are committed to providing compassionate, culturally sensitive, and socially equitable care.

Marches and demonstrations to support Black Lives Matter and bring awareness to police brutality against Black people were held across the U.S. last summer, including the New Orleans area.

The pins are in no way meant to diminish or dishonor the tireless work that our public safety partners perform each day, Nichols said in a prepared statement. We believe that attention to access and inequity on the front end is the best way to decrease the burden on all first responders and improve the well-being of our community long-term."

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

Nichols said EMS workers throughout the coronavirus pandemic have seen daily how the Black and Hispanic communities in New Orleans have been hit inordinately hard by the potentially fatal illness. That reality results from years of social and economic disparity, along with other factors such as racial discrimination and political persecution, Nichols said.

New Orleans EMS has tried to mitigate that in recent years by training its paramedics on unconscious bias as well as reaching out to marginalized communities in recent years.

'Nightwatch's' latest New Orleans-set season gets March 25 premiere date on A&E After returning in the fall to film a fourth season set in New Orleans following a three-year hiatus from the city, the documentary series Ni

In May 2019, those efforts led to the agencys appointing a liaison to the LGBTQ community, whose duties would include training first responders on health care conditions that frequently affect LGBTQ people.

Dr. Meg Marino, EMS deputy director, said research shows visual cues such as pins and badges, help patients understand that they are with treatment providers whom they can trust. So this year the agency decided to seek a symbol that would comfort Black people who may be reluctant to trust first responders, settling on a pin that features a black fist atop the base of the fleur-de-lis that is synonymous with New Orleans.

An EMS spokesperson said Marinos brother-in-law, local artist and comic book writer Christopher Marino, designed the pins at no cost to the agency. Employees can choose to wear them above their badges.

Unnao : , Feb 18 (IANS) Tied with 'dupatta', three minor girls were found in an unconscious state in Unnao's Baburaha village. Two of them were declared brought dead at the district hospital while the third was referred to a private hospital in Kanpur in a critical condition.

The girls, aged 13, 16 and 17, were found in their field on Wednesday night.

According to the police, the three girls had gone to their fields to cut grass on Wednesday afternoon. When they did not return till late evening, their family members went out to search for them and found them lying unconscious in the field.

The hands and feet of the girls were tied with their dupatta and they were frothing at the mouth, indicating that they had been given poison.

Their clothes, however, were intact.

The brother of the 16-year-old girl, in his statement to the police, said "I spotted my sister along with my two other cousins with their hands and legs tied." Superintendent of Police, Unnao, Anand Kulkarni, told reporters that the three girls are cousins. "A white substance was oozing out of their mouths, and was visible, when the police teams reached there," he said.

The two bodies have been sent for post mortem.

Family members have alleged murder. "Why would the girls tie their own hands and feet if they were committing suicide? It is a clear case of murder," said a family member.

Samajwadi Party MLC Sunil Singh Sajan, meanwhile, alleged that the Unnao police was trying to hush up the case. He has sought a probe by an independent agency in the matter.

"The incident proves that our daughters are not safe in this regime. Unnao, in the past three years, has witnessed a spate of similar incidents which is a matter of concern," he said.
Barclays became the first major British bank to resume its dividend as the lender's bosses predicted 'quite a strong' economic recovery.

In a boost for shareholders and pension pots, the bank said it would pay investors 1p per share for 2020, as well as announcing a 700million share buyback.

The return of the dividend came despite Barclays setting aside 4.8billion to cover bad loans, and warning more branch closures are on the horizon.

Barclays chief executive Jes Staley picked up a bonus of 1.4m but his total pay fell to 4m from 5.9m a year earlier

But while the UK's economic downturn has prompted caution among major lenders, Barclays' investment bank has been raking in money as it seeks to take advantage of increased market volatility.

The bank's bonus pool was up 6 per cent to 1.6billion, but top staff in Barclays International  which includes the investment bank  scooped a much larger percentage of that rise.

Their bonuses were up 24 per cent in total, and the average reward was 636,000.

Chief executive Jes Staley picked up a bonus of 1.4million but his total pay fell to 4million from 5.9million a year earlier.

Pre-tax profits at the whole of Barclays for 2020 fell to 3.1billion from 4.4billion a year earlier, hampered by the 4.8billion provision for loans which it thinks customers may become unable to repay.

While the economic slump has prompted caution among major lenders, Barclays' investment bank has been raking in money as it seeks to take advantage of increased market volatility

But at the investment bank, profits were up 35 per cent to 4billion  a relief for Staley, who had insisted on keeping the division, under pressure from activist investor Ed Bramson to sell it off.

Staley said that due to the better-than-expected performance, he felt comfortable resuming the dividend and launching the share buyback as another way to return cash to investors.

Regulators at the Bank of England have only recently lifted the ban on dividends, which they imposed last year because of fears banks would focus more on shareholder payouts than supporting the economy through the pandemic.

But despite the pain caused by coronavirus, Staley was bullish about the year ahead.

He said: 'I do think that when you and I can go back to a restaurant or a shop, spending will recover quite robustly.

'Once we are out of the pandemic and confidence returns, people will spend. I expect quite a strong recovery.'

Staley, 64, added that Barclays wanted to invest and expand to make sure it was ready for the 'new dawn' once the pandemic was over.

However, he said coronavirus had pushed even more people towards internet banking, which would mean more branch closures.

Staley said: 'At the margins, you'll see our number of branches decline but it'll be where there's absolute economic rationale for it and understanding by our customers.' The number of Barclays branches fell by 104 to 859 last year.

Shares in Barclays slid 4.4 per cent, or 6.86p, to 147.5p, as it seemed investors were hoping for a larger payout. Their disappointment may have been compounded by Staley's generous pay packet.

Towards the start of the pandemic, he had suggested that Barclays may look to cut down its office space, as staff adjusted to working from home.

But he said yesterday the bank would maintain a 'significant' presence in London's Canary Wharf, adding: 'No one has a crystal ball as to how this will all unfold, but right now there is no plan on our part to make a major real estate move.'
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)  Davion Mintz had 18 points, Jacob Toppin scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half and Kentucky blew a 17-point lead before holding on to beat Vanderbilt 82-78 on Wednesday night.

Isaiah Jackson had 15 points and nine rebounds, Brandon Boston Jr. added 12 points and three steals and Olivier Sarr had 10 points and four blocks for Kentucky (7-13, 6-7 SEC).

Scotty Pippen Jr. scored six points and Dylan Disu added five in an 11-5 spurt that pulled Vanderbilt (6-11, 2-9) within a point with 26 seconds left but Toppin, Boston and Devin Askew combined to go 8 of 8 from the free-throw line from there.

Disu had career highs of 29 points and 16 rebounds for the Commodores and Pippen finished with 21 points.

Kentucky scored the first 10 points and never trailed. Boston hit a 3-pointer and then took a steal coast-to-coast for a dunk 17 seconds later to spark a 15-3 run that made it 25-8 midway through the first half.

Issac McBride hit a 3-pointer to trim the Commodores' deficit to 12 at halftime and Vanderbilt scored 16 of the first 20 points of the second half to tie it at 46-all but Mintz answered with a 3-pointer and Kentucky led the rest of the way.

The Wildcats have won back-to-back games for just the second time this season. They won three in a row in early January.

___

For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP_Top25
Whats new: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged the world to reject vaccine nationalism and promote fair and equitable distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, adding that China has exported vaccines to 22 countries.

Speaking at a United Nations meeting on Wednesday, Chinas top diplomat said nations must cooperate, respect science and reject misinformation, with the Security Council leading by example.

Wang went on to call for the rejection of vaccine nationalism and for making doses more accessible and affordable. The needs of developing countries must be prioritized, and United Nations agencies should use their own shipping channels to resolve delivery challenges, he added.

Whats more: Wang said China is contributing 10 million doses to the global vaccine sharing initiative COVAX, has exported vaccines to 22 countries and is helping others to boost production capacities.

He also said that vaccines are powerful weapons to combat the coronavirus, but several problems must be addressed, including the need to boost production and improve distribution.

Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for fast news you can use.

Contact reporter Lu Zhenhua (zhenhualu@caixin.com)
In her first TV intv, @FKATwigs is opening up about her former relationship with Shia LaBeouf.



She accuses him of sexual battery, assault & inflicting emotional distress  allegations he denies.



Twigs told @GayleKing she's sharing her story to let others know they're not alone. pic.twitter.com/1LKx4oUiAQ  CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) February 18, 2021

FKA Twigs stood up for herself and survivors of intimate-partner violence in her first television interview discussing her allegations against ex Shia LaBeouf. The critically acclaimed musical artist detailed her accusations against the actor, whom she dated for almost a year after they met while filming his movie Honey Boy. But she is done answering questions that place the blame on victims. When CBS This Morning co-host Gayle King asked Why didnt you leave?, Twigs hardly dignified it with an answer. Im just gonna make a stance and say that Im not gonna answer that question anymore, because the question should really be to the abuser: Why are you holding someone hostage with abuse? she educated. And people say, Oh, it cant have been that bad or else you wouldve left. No, its because it was that bad I couldnt leave.

LaBeouf denied her allegations in a statement to the New York Times, in which he also admitted he has been abusive to himself and everyone around him. It just reminds me of some of the gaslighting that I experienced when I was with him, Twigs responded. The sort of taking some of the blame, but not all of it, and then denying it. Twigs said coming forward with her experience and filing a lawsuit against LaBeouf is all toward making sure other victims of abuse know they arent alone. The result, for me, is already happening, she said. I just couldnt carry it anymore. I felt like I was cracking, whereas now I feel like Ive handed back his dysfunction back to him, and its his.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-17 01:00:12|Editor: huaxia

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DUBAI, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) strongly condemned the "terrorist" attack that targeted various areas in Iraq's Kurdistan region and caused casualties, the official WAM news agency reported on Tuesday.

"The UAE strongly condemns these criminal acts and fully rejects all forms of violence and terrorism aimed at destabilizing security and stability in contravention of religious and human values and principles," WAM quoted a foreign ministry statement.

Several rockets hit the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq on Monday, killing a foreign contractor and injuring five others and a U.S. service member. Enditem
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SANTA FE  A bill that would scrap an allowable lower minimum wage for New Mexico high-school students is headed to the House after winning approval in the Senate on Thursday.

Senators voted 26-15 along party lines to pass the measure, Senate Bill 35, with majority Democrats voting in favor and Republicans in opposition.

The lower minimum wage  or training wage  for high-school students was part of a 2019 minimum wage compromise bill that was signed into law by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

While the statewide minimum wage is currently $10.50 per hour, its set at $8.50 per hour for high-school students.

Backers of the bill, sponsored by Sen. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, argued the lower allowable wage should never have been included in the 2019 law.

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Theres no reason for anybody to be paid less to do the same job as their counterparts, said Sen. Harold Pope Jr., D-Albuquerque.

But critics of the measure said, if approved, it would make it harder for high-school students with little work experience to get jobs.

Its not a punishment to anybody  its an advantage to them, said Sen. William Sharer, R-Farmington.

New Mexicos statewide minimum wage is set to gradually increase to $12 per hour by 2023, though cities and counties can enact even higher local rates.
Big Pharma is orchestrating the largest criminal syndicate in the history of the world as it knowingly supplies experimental drugs without informed consent of the patients. Informed consent is enshrined in law everywhere, including the Nuremberg code. Nobody is given the proper information to consent.  TN Editor

Companies in Britain have been tasking law firms to craft no jab, no job contracts that would bar prospective employees from being hired unless they have been vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus.

While the government has publicly claimed that it has no intentions of requiring domestic vaccine passports, ministers have admitted that private businesses may take up the mantle of imposing it on the British public.

Speaking to the Financial Times, law firms said that they have already been contacted by companies, including care homes and multinational corporations, which are looking to draw up contracts that would require employees to be inoculated against the virus.

One unnamed attorney told the paper that such requirements could be risky as they might trigger discrimination claims from people who refuse to take the vaccine on religious grounds, pregnant women, or those who have health conditions, such as allergies, which prevent them from taking the jab.

The lawyer did note that in sectors in which employees are surrounded by at-risk people, such as in care homes, so-called no jab, no job contracts may ultimately be defensible.

Some of the law firms contacted claimed that businesses have also begun inquiring about how to require that those already employed receive the vaccine.

However, companies seeking to change the contracts of people already employed would need to gain the consent of the worker, a partner at the law firm Lewis Silkin, James Davies, cautioned.

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said that there was no justification for businesses to require vaccines for employees, saying that mass testing would be a preferable option.

The chief executive of the human resource firm CIPD, Peter Cheese, said: The UK government hasnt made the vaccine compulsory, so neither can employers.

Mr Cheese added: Nor should they be restricting people coming into work based on whether they have had the vaccine.

On Tuesday, Britains vaccine minister Nadhim Zahawi said: Its up to businesses what they do, but we dont yet have the evidence of the effect of vaccines on transmission.

Zahawi had previously said that such a scheme would be wrong and discriminatory.

On Sunday, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said that the use of vaccine passports on a domestic level is being considered by the government in such places as supermarkets.

In January, the anti-Brexit founder of Pimlico Plumbers announced that he would be requiring his employees to be vaccinated, boldly pronouncing no vaccine, no job.

Charlie Mullins said that he will make it standard in employment contracts that youre required to have a vaccine, saying: We wont be employing people in the future unless theyve got a vaccine.

Read full story here

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Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Rosamund Pike has told how the UK 'feels very far away suddenly' as she navigates living in Prague in a post-Brexit climate.

The British actress, 42, explained how she moved to the Czech Republic with her partner of 10 years, mathematician and a businessman Robie Uniacke, 60, and their two sons Solo, eight, and Atom, six, while shooting The Wheel of Time.

The Gone Girl star said the family decided to relocate for the duration of filming to avoid a 'constant back and forth'.

But, rather than learning Czech during her European stint, Rosamund revealed her sons have been teaching her Mandarin.

Moving on: Rosamund Pike has told how the UK 'feels very far away suddenly' as she navigates living in Prague in a post-Brexit climate while appearing via video on an upcoming episode of The Graham Norton Show

But Rosamund Pike has admitted that the UK feels further away than ever after a spontaneous move to Prague post-Brexit.

Speaking on Friday's upcoming episode of the Graham Norton show, the actress said: 'I'm working here so we decided instead of the constant back and forth we would all up sticks and move here.

'It [the UK] seems further away now Brexit has happened. We feel like we are in a very different country and it feels very far away suddenly.'

Rosamund is currently filming as Moiraine the sorceress in The Wheel of Time, an adaptation of Robert Jordans cult novel series of the same name, hence the impulsive move abroad.

Relocation: The Gone Girl star (pictured in March) said her family decided to relocate for the duration of filming The Wheel of Time to avoid a 'constant back and forth'

When quizzed on whether she'd learned another language in lockdown, the actress said that Mandarin was the family favourite.

She revealed: 'My kids speak Mandarin, so they have been home-schooling me,

'I should really be learning Czech and I am aware of the irony of living in the Czech Republic and learning Mandarin!'

Rosamund is set to star in the Netflix comedy thriller I Care A Lot, which will be released on the streaming platform on Friday.

The award-winning actress plays the villainous Marla Grayson, who makes her living serving as a court-appointed legal guardian for the vulnerable elderly.

Working hard: Rosamund is set to star in the Netflix comedy thriller I Care A Lot, which will be released on the streaming platform on Friday

Plot: In I Care A Lot, the award-winning actress plays the villainous Marla Grayson, who makes her living serving as a court-appointed legal guardian for the vulnerable elderly

She told Graham Norton: 'I think it lets the audience off the hook  because at no point does my character asks you to care about her and she gives you completely free rein to dislike her.

'She doesnt give a damn. She is dastardly but fun to watch. All the characters in this film are deliciously unsavoury.'

The actress admitted filming wasn't all fun and games, explaining: 'There is an amazing underwater sequence, and they teach you in a very relaxed way and you think, "This is great, I can do this."

'Youve just got comfortable with the idea when they say, "We are not going to do any of that. We are going to take away your mask and your oxygen, were going to suspend the car in water and youre going to struggle to get out".

Thoughts: Speaking about her character, Rosamund said 'She doesnt give a damn. She is dastardly but fun to watch. All the characters in this film are deliciously unsavoury'

'I had the two most intense filming days of my life. As you are acting the panic, your sympathetic nervous system starts to react, and you get more and more adrenalised  its was exhilarating but also quite terrifying,' she said.

Born in Hammersmith, west London, raised in Bristol and educated at Oxford University, Rosamund is still a Brit at heart, with a penchant for 'tea and digestive biscuits'.

She said: 'About halfway through the afternoon I was allowed to come to the surface and because we were in England, across the tank came this inflatable tray with mugs of tea and digestive biscuits. It was the most welcome sight!'

The Graham Norton Show, BBC One, Friday February 19 at 10.45pm. Also available on BBC iPlayer.
The Uttar Pradesh Police is now going to start monitoring users who consume pornographic content online. The digital users of these users will be taken into consideration by the department. A team has been hired to monitor users who watch porn on their devices and will track data such as the number of times and duration one consumed this data. The new initiative has been undertaken under the UP Polices 1090 Women Power Line (WPL) service.

 Reuters

As reported by India Today, the monitoring team will get alerts if a user searches for porn on their device. Once the data has been gathered, the police will then reach out to the concerned person to prevent "crimes against women.



Speaking about the initiative, ADG Neera Rawat said, "In view of the increasing use of the internet, the powerline 1090 would reach out to people to prevent crimes against women."

"To study the analytics of the internet, a company named 'Oomuph' has been hired, which will keep an eye on what is being searched on the internet through data. If a person sees pornography, the analytics team will get the information Rawat added.

 Unsplash

Once a user searches for pornographic content, the person will receive a notification on his/her device. Police will also have a copy of the information as it will be stored in the Polices database. This data will be used to monitor crime cases for specific localities if needed.



The internet data will inform the 1090 team if a person is searching for porn. The team will then send 'awareness messages' to the person. By doing this, the crime will be stopped at the initial process itself. If a woman is still being molested, then 1090 will take action, ADG Neera Rawat said.

The UP Police have already tested the feature in six districts of the state and will start to roll out for the rest of the state. UP currently has 11.6 million internet users at the moment. According to the Times of India, the UP Police clarified that this initiative will not infringe the privacy of users and the message would appear on the sites of child pornography.

What do you think about this new initiative by UP Police? Are you comfortable with your private browsing data being tracked by the authorities? Let us know what you think about the new initiative and whether you will change your browsing habits if need be.

Source: India Today, TOI
Candace Cameron Bure's 'One Step Closer' Bible becomes bestseller on Amazon

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Hollywood actress and devout Christian Candace Cameron Bure celebrated the success of her recent Bible release, which has now become a bestseller and sold out on Amazon.

Bure took to social media to celebrate.

Wow!!! My new One Step Closer Bible is #1 in Christian Faith books on Amazon right now!! she gushed on Instagram Wednesday.

Im freaking out excited that so many of you want to read Gods word, dig deeper and know His truth. Gods word will never return void. Isaiah 55:11 Go God!!!

Bure, 44, posted the photo proof to her social media page.

So many people are reading the word of God and that just excites my heart so much, she echoed in an Instagram story.

As of Thursday morning, One Step Closer Bible was listed as the No. 5 bestseller in the Christian faith category on Amazon.com.

The One Step Closer Bible, a collaboration between Bure and DaySpring, features all 66 books of the Bible and a HelpFinder Index, an eight-page introduction and a question-and-answer session with Bure. She also shares the importance of Gods word in her own life.

In an earlier announcement about the new Bible, Bure explained to her almost 5 million followers that the Bible comprises "letters, narratives, poetry and, of course, the historical events."

Those are incredible, she said.

Each and every word is inspired, she added. That means breathed out by God Himself.

The One Step Closer Bible wishes to meet the reader's questions, needs, and concerns.

This is not the Fuller House stars first Bible release.

One Step Closer Bible follows a devotional Bible Bure released in 2019, special editing (In)Courage Bible, which was in the Christian Standard Bible translation. Her new release is in the New Living Translation. Bure explained why she chose that particular version this time around.

"The New Living Translation ... it's modern-day English. This stays incredibly close to the Greek and the Hebrew and all of that but using modern-day language so that's what the New Living Translation is, she shared in a video.

"This one I specifically, with my DaySpring team, designed and created it for new believers, or people that just haven't picked up the Bible in a long time and it feels overwhelming. It feels like a foreign language to you, you don't know where to start. I made this for you, she explained. But if you're a seasoned Christian, meaning you've been walking in faith for a long time, this Bible still for you [too], because it's the Bible! Its the whole Bible Old and the New Testament."
androdev Distinguished - BHPian



Join Date: May 2007 Location: bangalore Posts: 2,176 Thanked: 7,552 Times

Re: Mercedes CLA 200 CDI | 4 breakdowns in 5 years due to ABS sensors



If my memory serves me right, I had this error come up once and went away when I restarted the car. I ignored it as I didn't know much about this error back then. I did remind the dealership during the service visit and they told me it's due to weak battery. Battery was indeed weak and due for replacement but I think it was not the correct diagnosis, they were just too lazy to do a preventive under-warranty repair. The error cam back again after a couple of months (battery was new) and went away when I restarted the car. I could drive down all the way from Pondicherry to Bangalore without any issues. They replaced both the front axle sensors under warranty and haven't seen this problem since then.



Wheel speed sensors fail due to collection of road dust, grime, brake metal dust, etc. This is not a fully enclosed system because it requires one part to be fixed on the rotating wheel and another to be fixed on the chassis to sense the wheel rotation. Depending on the design, location, number of sensors and more importantly driving conditions (dust, mud, heavy braking, brake pad material) these sensors will fail with varying frequency. I have a theory that these sensors are magnetic-field based and heavy braking + soft brake pad material used by the German brands hasten the failure.



Unfortunately I don't have any solution for your problem but some understanding of the problem might be helpful :-) I would try to find out the following:



1. Don't you get any warning signs before it requires to be taken on a flatbed?



2. Is it a case of each sensor taking turn to fail at different times? Or same sensor repeatedly failing? You can ask the dealer to show you the diagnostic scan report to verify the sensor location and fault description to confirm this. You said it has done 49K km - what is the mileage at the time of each failure?



3. How is your braking habit, how often do you change brake pads? Is there correlation between the brake pads you change and the location of faulty sensors?



4. Insist on seeing the ABS sensor diagnostic scan report each time you send the car for schedule service so that you can do some preventive maintenance if required. I don't know the cost of replacing sensors but now that you know the "service life" of these sensors going by the history of your car, you could attempt to replace them after certain mileage.



5. Not many drivers are mindful of how excessively they brake because they don't bother to anticipate the traffic. Most drivers of German cars love to hold good speeds - if you don't anticipate traffic, your car will be begging for some 'mechanical empathy' :-)







Note that both front sensors are replaced at once (I suspect one of them is preventive maintenance)

Your case seems to be too extreme. This problem starts off as an intermittent one - ABS error shows up on the instrument cluster and then switching off/on engine will make it go away and the car drives normally. The problem should be attended to immediately after reaching home, etc. If unattended, things escalate and this error will stay on permanently. Not having a working wheel speed sensor affects lot of control modules and it is not safe to drive if engine restart doesn't restore normal brakes/steering functionality. From what I know, there are enough "warnings" given to the driver before things get that far.If my memory serves me right, I had this error come up once and went away when I restarted the car. I ignored it as I didn't know much about this error back then. I did remind the dealership during the service visit and they told me it's due to weak battery. Battery was indeed weak and due for replacement but I think it was not the correct diagnosis, they were just too lazy to do a preventive under-warranty repair. The error cam back again after a couple of months (battery was new) and went away when I restarted the car. I could drive down all the way from Pondicherry to Bangalore without any issues. They replaced both the front axle sensors under warranty and haven't seen this problem since then.Wheel speed sensors fail due to collection of road dust, grime, brake metal dust, etc. This is not a fully enclosed system because it requires one part to be fixed on the rotating wheel and another to be fixed on the chassis to sense the wheel rotation. Depending on the design, location, number of sensors and more importantly driving conditions (dust, mud, heavy braking, brake pad material) these sensors will fail with varying frequency. I have a theory that these sensors are magnetic-field based and heavy braking + soft brake pad material used by the German brands hasten the failure.Unfortunately I don't have any solution for your problem but some understanding of the problem might be helpful :-) I would try to find out the following:1. Don't you get any warning signs before it requires to be taken on a flatbed?2. Is it a case of each sensor taking turn to fail at different times? Or same sensor repeatedly failing? You can ask the dealer to show you the diagnostic scan report to verify the sensor location and fault description to confirm this. You said it has done 49K km - what is the mileage at the time of each failure?3. How is your braking habit, how often do you change brake pads? Is there correlation between the brake pads you change and the location of faulty sensors?4. Insist on seeing the ABS sensor diagnostic scan report each time you send the car for schedule service so that you can do some preventive maintenance if required. I don't know the cost of replacing sensors but now that you know the "service life" of these sensors going by the history of your car, you could attempt to replace them after certain mileage.5. Not many drivers are mindful of how excessively they brake because they don't bother to anticipate the traffic. Most drivers of German cars love to hold good speeds - if you don't anticipate traffic, your car will be begging for some 'mechanical empathy' :-)Note that both front sensors are replaced at once (I suspect one of them is preventive maintenance)
MARINA DEL REY, Calif., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LeaseLock , the world's leading insurtech platform for real estate, today announced that Stephanie Puryear Helling has joined the company as Director of Enterprise Accounts. She will focus on implementation and strategic growth initiatives for LeaseLock's industry-leading lease insurance product, the first AI-powered financial technology platform for enterprise real estate.

LeaseLock continues to build its core teams as the insurtech leader announced its $52M Series B raise.

Puryear Helling brings more than 25 years of industry experience to LeaseLock. She joins following a lengthy career at Greystar, where she served as the industry giant's senior director of operations, real estate strategic services for the past eight years. She previously worked as Greystar's national vice president of education and training, and served as Past President of the National Apartment Association Education Institute (NAAEI), and continues to serve on the NAAEI Board of Directors and Apartment Careers Committee, which directs education and outreach initiatives for the National Apartment Association (NAA).

"Stephanie's executive leadership experience and vision-driven approach are a welcome addition to the LeaseLock team," said LeaseLock CRO Ed Wolff. "She brings a proven track record in leadership development, change management, and project management to help take our operations to the next level and propel implementation of our first-to-market insurtech platform as it drives security deposits extinct."

As the only AI-driven financial technology platform for rental housing providers, LeaseLock deploys through native property software systems and back-office workflows to integrate into the online lease checkout. Operators market their communities as Zero Deposit, creating a seamless resident experience and conversion lift. Residents pay a small monthly fee to replace upfront security deposits while operators receive $5,000 in rent loss and damage coverage on every new lease with the standard coverage plan.

NMHC Top 50 operator LeaseLock clients include Greystar, Cushman & Wakefield, Avenue5 Residential, Harbor Group Management Co., LMC, and RKW Residential. Top ownership clients include Goldman Sachs, ColRich, GoldCor, Olive Tree, TruAmerica, White Oak, Trinsic, and Goodman Real Estate.

About Us

LeaseLock is the world's leading insurtech platform for real estate.

Our flagship lease insurance product leverages artificial intelligence to eliminate security deposits from enterprise operating infrastructurepowering a faster, simpler, more affordable rental transaction. LeaseLock seamlessly deploys within the native online leasing checkout, resulting in significant conversion liftwhile instantly generating industry-leading coverage for the property on every lease.

LeaseLock has insured over $1 billion in leases backed by insurance rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best. Our global investors include SoftBank Ventures Asia, Wildcat Ventures, Westerly Winds, Vertex Ventures US, Liberty Mutual Strategic Ventures, American Family Ventures, Moderne Ventures, and Mucker Capital.

Media Contact:

LinnellTaylor Marketing

Marlena DeFalco

Account Director

(303) 682-3943

[email protected]

SOURCE LeaseLock

Related Links

http://www.leaselock.com


Imogen Anthony launched into a worrying rant about people 'stealing' her food on Thursday night.

The ex-girlfriend of radio host Kyle Sandilands shared several videos on Instagram Stories about her online meal deliveries disappearing.

The dishevelled model, 30, didn't quite seem herself during the strange monologue as she claimed 'someone has it out for me'.

Is everything okay? Imogen Anthony, the model ex-girlfriend of radio host Kyle Sandilands, launched into a worrying rant about people 'stealing' her food on Thursday night

'Some idiot wants to keep stealing my food. This is the fourth time this has happened in the last two months. Some guy has got it out for me,' she said.

'This is really going to affect my quality of living because quite frankly if I don't have a steady stream of food delivery coming my way, there is only so much I can cook in an air fryer.'

She added: 'I am not a good cook. I can create something you've never seen before, but when it comes to food, I'm about as talented as a f**king bit of toast.'

Bizarre: She shared several videos on Instagram Stories about her online meal deliveries disappearing

She then changed the topic and complained about the drivers delivering her food.

Imogen said: 'You're going to call me crazy but I just ordered the same thing again because I really want the food and I want to see...

'At this point I'm demanding driver's licence[s] and passports because quite frankly I'm not feeling safe and I've been through enough PTSD the last year.'

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Imogen Anthony for comment.

'Some idiot wants to keep stealing my food': The dishevelled model, 28, didn't quite seem herself during the strange monologue as she claimed 'someone has it out for me'

In happier times: Kyle (left) and Imogen split in 2019 after eight years together

It comes after Imogen turned up the heat last Wednesday by showing of her toned physique in a completely see-through bodysuit.

She posed on her knees in front of a vintage lounge in a sizzling photo shared with her 180,000 Instagram followers.

Her sheer bodysuit featured snakes across the chest and a black panel over her nether regions, barely concealing her modesty.

'There are too many snakes in the city,' she wrote in the caption, perhaps referring to her reptilian-inspired outfit.

She may also have been alluding to her ex Kyle, who returned to Sydney earlier this month after a trip to Port Douglas with his new girlfriend, Tegan Kynaston.
A young Nigerian leaves his village at the end of the 1960s and goes to Denmark to study. There he meets his future wife. Together they move to Nigeria and start a family. But 16 years later, circumstances in a politically tense and unstable Nigeria force the family to go back. It may be better for the children to grow up and go to school in Denmark but the husband has reservations. He cannot imagine moving there permanently. Shortly before the family is about to leave Nigeria, he decides to stay. He starts a second family in Nigeria, but hides this from his Danish wife for fear of hurting her. His secret is only uncovered after thirty years of their long-distance marriage.

This documentary follows the individuals involved, who reflect in diverging ways on the part they played in the past and who would like to shape their lives differently in the future. During the course of filming, yet another truth comes to light. The protagonists in Denmark, Nigeria, Canada, Germany and the USA provide an atmospheric portrait of different generations and cultures in which diverse ideas of love, relationships and identity collide.
The Ghana Medical Association (GMA) has attributed the spike in COVID-19 deaths in the country to limited access to healthcare facilities.



The Association also lamented the inadequate number of medical personnel handling critical to severe COVID-19 cases and said it was contributing to the rising deaths.



Dr Justice Yankson, General Secretary of the Association, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said people kept losing their lives because there were no adequate COVID-19 Intensive Care Units (ICUs) with enough functional beds for patients.



We do not have enough specialised facilities to take care of people with severe coronavirus infections and the increase in deaths simply means more critical to severe cases are being recorded, but they do not receive the needed attention, he said.



Data on the Ghana Health Service (GHS) website, shows that a total of 85 COVID 19 deaths have been recorded in one week -from Monday February 8th to Monday February 15.



The data also shows that presently, 86 patients are in severe conditions and 29, in critical conditions.



Dr Yankson, said to manage the pandemic effectively, the Government needed to deploy adequate human resource and enough logistics across the country to handle the high severe to critical cases being recorded.



By now, we should have a well set up COVID-19 ICU with functional beds to attend to cases in all parts of the country.



The Ghana News Agency (GNA) gathered that only regions with Teaching Hospitals - Accra, Kumasi, Tamale, Ho and Cape coast, have COVID-19 ICUs with a maximum of five functional beds at each facility.



Apart from the above, the Ga East COVID-19 Treatment Centre in Accra has a 21-bed facility for COVID-19 treatment.



The Greater Accra Regional Hospital also has a 16-bed capacity COVID-19 ICU.



The Association said it was worrying the remaining eleven regions did not have functional COVID-19 ICU or skilled personnel to attend to patients with severe cases and said the situation must be addressed in time.



Dr Yankson said it would be suicidal if those regions started recording critical cases, and said it was time Ghana boosted its local health resources to contain the pandemic effectively.



He advised the public to take charge of their lives and protect themselves with all seriousness, while the Government played its part.



If we do not do the right things, we will continue perishing  that is the baseline, Dr. Yankson, said.



Coronaviruses are said to be a large group of viruses that are common among animals.



In rare cases, they are what scientists call zoonotic - they can be transmitted from animals to humans, according to the US center for Disease Control and Prevention.



They are said to be the cause of dangerous diseases with incubation period between 3-14 days.



The initial signs and symptoms of COVID-19 were fever, runny nose, body ache, sore throat and possibly a headache.



However, many different strains have been recorded and the symptoms have varied.



Scientists are still learning about the disease and believe that the virus began in animals. At some point, one or more humans acquired infection from an animal, and those infected humans began transmitting infection to other humans.



The disease spreads from person to person through infected air droplets that are projected during sneezing or coughing.



It can also be transmitted when humans have contact with hands or surfaces that contain the virus and touch their eyes, nose, or mouth with the contaminated hands.



COVID-19 was first recorded in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, but it has now spread throughout the world.



Scientists have since developed vaccines to minimise its spread.

Source: GNA









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U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents assigned to west Texas have rescued more than 200 undocumented immigrants after most of them were abandoned by human traffickers as Winter Storm Uri slammed the area.

A spokesman with the Big Bend Sector Border Patrol confirmed to DailyMail.com that border agents and local police discovered the dead body of a male migrant.

The victim's death was most likely a result of being exposed to the freezing weather.

His age and nationality have not been made public.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Big Bend Sector Border Patrol have rescued more than 200 migrants in west Texas who were mostly abandoned by human traffickers

CBP said that as many as 10 people were taken to region hospitals for treatment to extreme weather exposure, frostbite or other serious medical conditions.

The majority of the migrants were located between Saturday and Tuesday morning by Big Bend Sector agents in the towns of Sierra Blanca and Van Horn.

Most of the migrants were citizens of Ecuador, Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras.

CBP said the migrants called 911 for emergency assistance while others sought help by stopping motorists on highways.

People try to free their cars from the snow in Waco, Texas, on Monday after record snowfall blanketed the state and caused rolling blackouts

CBP also received missing persons reports from family members looking for their lost loved ones, prompting additional searches and lives saved.

The migrants were placed in custody of the Big Bend Sector Border Patrol, which provides border surveillance for 77 towns in Texas and each of the 78 border cities in Oklahoma.

The massive storm wrecked havoc across Texas, leaving close to 3.4 million residents without heat, electricity and running water for five days, including 1.4 million in Houston.

President Joe Biden declared an emergency in Texas and provided federal aid to the state. The crisis has sparked concerns about how the energy landscape may change amid the push to rely on renewable energy instead of fossil fuels.

On Thursdays, Biden is also scheduled to formally introduce legislation to Congress that is aimed at reforming the immigration system.

The bill features an eight-year path to citizenship for least 11 million people who were living in the United States unlawfully on January 1, 2021.

Undocumented immigrants will be eligible to receive a permanent residency card, or 'green card,' after five years if they meet certain requirements, including background checks, and will be allowed to apply for citizenship after three years.

Additionally, many undocumented immigrants with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals [DACA] protection, otherwise known as 'Dreamers,' who were brought to the United States illegally as children and people with Temporary Protected Status would immediately be eligible to apply for a green card and would have a three-year path to citizenship.

People wait in line to fill propane tanks Wednesday in Houston. Customers had to wait over an hour in the freezing rain to fill their tanks
[February 18, 2021] Avast Awarded "Top-Rated Product" of 2020 by AV-Comparatives

PRAGUE, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Avast (LSE:AVST), a global leader in digital security and privacy products, today announced that Avast Free Antivirus has been awarded "Top-Rated Product" status for 2020 by AV-Comparatives . Avast was recognized ahead of many paid-for alternatives. AV-Comparatives is an independent test lab known for its sophisticated testing of security software products. As well as receiving the "Top-Rated Product" accolade, Avast Free Antivirus scored highly in seven contributing tests - this included four "Advanced+" and three "Advanced" ratings. Avast Free Antivirus also achieved a joint Bronze Award for Advanced Threat Protection, and a joint Silver Award for Real-World Protection Test. "We're once again very proud to be recognized as a Top-Rated Product by AV-Comparatives, which the cybersecurity industry looks to as one of the leading independent antivirus testing institutions," said Michal Pechoucek, Chief Technology Officer at Avast. "COVID-19 has brought with it a new wave of cyber threats that target consumers. Our machine learning-based threat detection technology enables us to tackle these new and evolving threats and we will continue defending everyone's right to a safe internet." "Avast Free Antivirus has a modern interface with simple customization, making it easy to use for consumers. Its detection systems performed well and the programed actions were reliable. In this past year, cosumers have been targeted with a range of scams that are evolving faster than ever before," commented Andreas Clementi, Founder and CEO of AV-Comparatives. "Due to its strong performance during our in-depth testing process, we named Avast Free Antivirus a Top-Rated Product of 2020."



Each year, AV-Comparatives tests Windows compatible security products as part of its annual security report. All products were tested on: protection against real-world threats, protection against malware, protection against targeted threats, effect on device performance and number of false-positives flagged. The full report for 2020 can be found here: https://www.av-comparatives.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/avc_sum_202012_en.pdf

About Avast:

Avast (LSE:AVST), a FTSE 100 company, is a global leader in digital security and privacy products. With over 435 million users online, Avast offers products under the Avast and AVG brands that protect people from threats on the internet and the evolving IoT threat landscape. The company's threat detection network is among the most advanced in the world, using machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies to detect and stop threats in real time. Avast digital security products for Mobile, PC or Mac are top-ranked and certified by AV-Comparatives. Visit: www.avast.com. About AV-Comparatives:

AV-Comparatives is an independent organization offering systematic testing that checks whether security software, such as PC/Mac-based antivirus products and mobile security solutions, lives up to its promises. Using one of the largest sample collections worldwide, it creates a real-world environment for truly accurate testing. AV-Comparatives offers freely accessible results to individuals, news organizations and scientific institutions. Certification by AV-Comparatives provides an official seal of approval for software performance which is globally recognized. Visit: https://www.av-comparatives.org/consumer/ Media contact: pr@avast.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/avast-awarded-top-rated-product-of-2020-by-av-comparatives-301230625.html SOURCE Avast

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By Melanie Burton

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Fortescue Metals Group boosted its dividend payout on Thursday but a cost blowout at a key development project in Western Australia tarnished its ambitions to become a green energy powerhouse.

The world's fourth-largest iron ore miner now sees costs at its Iron Bridge magnetite project at $3 billion, $400 million more than its previous estimate as it postponed the timing of first production to the second half of 2022 from the first half.

Earlier this week, Fortescue announced the departure of its chief operating officer and two iron ore executives as part of a 12-week review of the high-grade ore project -- a major part of the miner's strategy to upgrade its products to win market share and meet China's growing preference for high grade ore.

"With the (review) ongoing, we have limited confidence in the new guidance," said RBC in a report, while Moody's termed the overrun, caused by increased labour and logistics costs, "credit negative."

The project is expected to deliver 22 million tonnes when fully ramped up.

The update on the project was made with the miner's first-half earnings report on Thursday in which it logged a 66% jump in profit, a record dividend and nudged up its annual shipment forecast.

"I think what has happened in the past 24-48 hours does give the market some pause on its plan to deliver on new projects, new technologies overseas," said analyst Glyn Lawcock of UBS.

"(But) the market was pleasantly surprised by the fact they got a good payout. I think the market has been concerned with the blowout in capex for Iron Bridge, the commitment to spend more on renewables and so that the dividend could be curtailed."

Joining peers BHP Group and Rio Tinto in feeding gains from strong iron ore prices back to investors, Fortescue declared a higher-than-expected interim dividend of A$1.47 per share, up from A$0.76 last year.

Story continues

China's focus on infrastructure last year drove a more than 50% rise in the price of iron ore.

GREEN AMBITIONS

Fortescue last year embarked on an aggressive plan to develop renewables projects around the world, called Fortescue Future Industries, and helmed by its billionaire founder and biggest shareholder Andrew Forrest, known as "Twiggy".

Forrest, Australia's second-richest person, saw his personal wealth grow by A$1.65 billion ($1.28 billion) on Thursday thanks to his 36.3% stake in the company.

Among those projects are ammonia and hydrogen, and technology to use hydrogen produced from renewables to make steel, now one of the world's most polluting industries.

Fortescue unveiled funding details for FFI, in an allocation of 10% of net profits after tax, or around $400 million, to fund renewable energy growth, and another 10% to fund other resource growth options.

Despite its green push, Fortescue has declined to follow peers Rio Tinto and Glencore which this week said they would set scope 3 targets to curtail customer emissions. Gaines said Fortescue was focused on cutting emissions on a "global scale."

Fortescue's first-half profit after tax was $4.08 billion, up from $2.45 billion a year earlier. This was in line with a consensus of $4.09 billion from 10 analysts compiled by research firm Vuma Financial.

It expects iron ore shipments to be in the range of 178-182 million tonnes for the financial year, up from a prior range of 175-180 million tonnes. Its shares climbed 1.9% to A$24.88.

($1 = 1.2897 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Sameer Manekar and Rushil Dutta in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Jacqueline Wong)


In just over a weeks time from now, NASAs control room will be counting some very anxious minutes as its package to Mars will begin its final descent onto the red planets surface. The few nervous minutes will decide if the years of preparation and a near six and a half month journey to Earths neighbour will amount to everything that the US space agency planned with its 2020 Mars mission.

Dr Swati Mohan (Image: Twitter/ @DrSwatiMohan)

The landing of the Mars Perseverance rover and its accompanying mini helicopter 'Ingenuity' at Jezero Crater will mark a crucial stage of the mission, mainly because of a combination of problems that the engineers will not be able to do anything about. Everything will be done by the computers onboard.

It is, hence, bound to be an anxious affair for the NASA engineers. The concern will be even more so for the person leading the development of attitude control and the landing system of the Mars 2020 rover - Dr Swati Mohan.

In a recent tweet, Dr Mohan counted the days to Perseverances landing on the surface of Mars. The date and time will be the moment of truth for Dr Mohan, who has led the attitude control system of Mars 2020 mission during operations and was the lead systems engineer throughout development.



This is not her first mission with NASA. Dr Mohan has previously worked on multiple missions including Cassini (mission to Saturn) and GRAIL (a pair of formation flown spacecraft to the Moon).

But since the beginning of the NASA Mars 2020 project in 2013, she has been associated with the project as the Mars 2020 Guidance, Navigation, and Controls Operations Lead, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, CA. Her journey to the position is an interesting one too.

As per her profile at NASA, Swati Mohan emigrated from India to the United States when she was 1 year old. She was raised in Northern Virginia / Washington DC metro area. Dr Mohan completed her B.S from Cornell University in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, and her M.S. and Ph.D from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Aeronautics/Astronautics.

Dr Swati Mohan (Image: NASA)

Things were not always headed this way for Dr Mohan though. Actually, I wanted to be a pediatrician until I was about 16 years old, she says. I was always interested in space, but I didn't really know about opportunities to turn that interest into a job.



When I was 16, I took my first physics class. I was lucky enough to have a great teacher, and everything was so understandable and easy. That was when I really considered engineering, as a way to pursue space.

Science-fiction helped build this curiosity too. I remember watching my first episode of "Star Trek" at the age of 9, and seeing the beautiful depictions of the new regions of the universe that they were exploring, Dr Mohan recalls. I remember thinking "I want to do that. I want to find new and beautiful places in the universe."

Culminating the decades of interest into pushing the boundaries for human understanding of our Universe, Dr Mohan now acts as the Mars 2020 Guidance, Navigation, and Controls (GN&C) Operations Lead. The GN&C subsystem is the "eyes and ears" of the spacecraft.

The system is meant to figure out how the spacecraft is oriented, and to make sure it is pointed correctly in space (solar arrays to sun, antenna to Earth). The team further has to maneuver the spacecraft to get it where they want to go.

Artist's render of NASA rover landing on Mars (Image: NASA)

During entry, descent, and landing on Mars, GN&C will determine the position of the spacecraft and will maneuver it to help it land safely. As operations lead, Dr Mohan is the primary point of communication between the GN&C subsystem and the rest of the project. I am responsible for the training of the GN&C team, scheduling the mission control staffing for GN&C, as well as the policies/procedures the GN&C uses in the mission control room, she explains.



So it is no wonder that Dr Mohan will be anxiously yet proudly looking at a monitor on February 18 as NASA takes its next step towards exploring the red planet.
State Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski joined officials from the state Department of Agriculture on Wednesday in making a case for increasing the state's dog licensing fee, saying the long stagnant charge has led to a $1.4 million deficit for the Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement.

During a virtual media briefing Wednesday, Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding urged lawmakers to increase the annual dog licensing fee from $6.50 to $10.

Under a proposal by Pashinski, D-121, Wilkes-Barre, the lifetime licensing fee would also increase from $31.50 to $49, while licenses for the disabled and those 65 or older would cost $7 per year or $33 for the animal's lifetime.

Redding said the increase is direly needed because the fee has not been raised in 25 years. The 57-employee Bureau of Dog Law Enforcement currently has an operating budget of $8.6 million but only generates $7.2 million in fees, he said.
Striving to comprehend the unfathomable workings of Ian Bradys mind, the late mother of 12-year-old Keith Bennett compared him to one of the most chilling fictional psychopaths ever to haunt our screens.

She likened him to a monster who enjoyed tormenting his victims families, forensic psychiatrists and the police, every bit as much as murdering and cannibalising his prey.

He is like Hannibal Lecter, getting pleasure from mind games, declared Winnie Johnson, who died eight years ago without the consolation of recovering her sons remains from a makeshift moorland grave and giving him a dignified burial.

Unable to suck sufficient air into lungs diseased by a lifetime of chain-smoking, wracked with chronic back pain, and tormented by a maelstrom of mental illnesses, from schizophrenia to narcissism, the one surprise for Bradys nurses (whom he routinely mocked and abused) was that he had lived to see his 79th year

Describing how she had been driven to the brink of suicide by Bradys refusal to reveal where he had disposed of Keiths body after sexually violating him and strangling him, she said: He did his best to drive me mad, even though he was behind bars. I felt at times that his mind was in search of my soul.

Down the years, criminologists and investigative writers have theorised endlessly about what drove Brady  and his paedophilic accomplice Myra Hindley  to commit some of the most depraved acts in living memory.

Artist's impression of Brady. He was fed through a tube in his nose

Yet perhaps that simple assertion by Mrs Johnson  that he not only desired to kill and defile his helpless child victims, but to possess the very soul of their surviving relatives by any means in his power  comes closest to explaining the workings of his twisted psyche.

Certainly that would explain why Brady clung so resolutely to the two locked briefcases that he kept in a cupboard beside his bed, in Room 35 of the Ashworth Secure Mental Hospital, near Liverpool; and why, despite repeated entreaties, he refused to relinquish their contents until his death, on May 15, 2017.

Unable to suck sufficient air into lungs diseased by a lifetime of chain-smoking, wracked with chronic back pain, and tormented by a maelstrom of mental illnesses, from schizophrenia to narcissism, the one surprise for Bradys nurses (whom he routinely mocked and abused) was that he had lived to see his 79th year.

Over the years, however, I have spoken to many people who strove to understand the monster lurking behind that sardonic Glaswegian facade, including some who met him and believe they gained his confidence.

They are convinced he was sustained, during his 50-year incarceration, by the perverse thrill he derived from prolonging the anguish of Mrs Johnson, and Keiths brother Alan, and entrapping them in perpetual limbo.

When author Duncan Staff was writing Lost Boy, his acclaimed book about the Moors Murders, he interviewed forensic psychiatrist Malcolm McCulloch, who spent countless hours assessing Bradys mental condition after he was declared criminally insane.

According to Staff, whenever the professor tried to ascertain what became of Keith after Hindley lured him into her Mini-van, on that fateful day in June, 1964, and drove him into Bradys clutches up on Saddleworth Moor, the killer had a stock reply: I know. You dont know. You want to know and Im not going to tell you.

The body of one of Brady's victims was removed from Saddleworth Moor by detectives

McCulloch never succeeded in prising out the answer.

So is it to be found at last, in those two secured cases, which  on Bradys instructions  were handed to his long-time solicitor, Robin Makin? Duncan Staff, who met Hindley during his research and later used information she divulged to help police comb the moors for Keiths body, believes this is, at least, a possibility. The basic argument in my book is that this (the murder spree) was all about possession, and possession is about control, he told me yesterday. That is what motivated Brady, so having possession over Keith Bennetts whereabouts was really important to him.

Bradys urge to document his evildoing, and to keep macabre mementoes of each of the five (known) murders he and Hindley committed, also suggests that the cases might contain the missing clues to Keiths fate, he says. Indeed, though he was earning a modest clerks wage, Brady splashed out on an expensive camera specifically to photograph the children shortly before and after he murdered them.

After his arrest, police found nine pornographic pictures of his fourth victim, ten-year-old Lesley Ann Downey, whom he and Hindley abducted from a Christmas fair, in a left-luggage locker on a Manchester railway station.

They also retrieved the uniform he wore when murdering children, and an unforgettably harrowing, 16-minute tape-recording of Lesley pleading for her life.

Tellingly, perhaps, Brady had stored these sickening mementoes in locked suitcases.

Police search Saddleworth Moor for the bodies of the victims killed by Ian Brady and Myra Hindley. Third left is inspector Ron Dean who was in charge of police dogs

Detectives who worked on the investigation also believe he used his photographs as geographical markers that enabled him to remember the precise location of the murders.

Referring to the photos during the couples trial at Chester Assizes in 1966, the prosecutor memorably told Brady: They were tombstones of your own making, werent they? Long after the trial, when police launched a fresh hunt for bodies on the moors, it emerged that Brady and Hindley had kept other potentially meaningful souvenir photographs.

They had been left for safekeeping with Hindleys unwitting mother, but at Bradys insistence his former lover had them returned to him. Duncan Staff says Brady converted them into slides, which he showed to himself on an overhead projector, presumably gaining some grim form of gratification.

Years later, however, when police requested a warrant to search his room, they were denied permission on the grounds that prosecuting him for more murderers would not be in the public interest.

Their attempt to take possession of the locked briefcases after his death also failed, so they now rest with Mr Makin, the executor of Bradys will. Yesterday, the Liverpool-based solicitor  criticised by the High Court in October, 2017 for being secretive about how he intended to dispose of Bradys remains  did not respond to my request for comment on the Home Secretarys proposed Bill.

Striving to comprehend the unfathomable workings of Ian Bradys mind, the late mother of 12-year-old Keith Bennett (pictured) compared him to one of the most chilling fictional psychopaths ever to haunt our screens

Invited to justify his determination to carry out Bradys instructions to the letter, he has said: Im doing my job. As somebody said, Somebody has to do it. Ive tried to act for him appropriately, professionally and deal with really quite interesting and complicated matters, and also deal with an individual in a unique situation.

That is one way of looking at it. Bradys victims have quite another. Yesterday, Linda West, the wife of Lesley Anns brother, Terry West, told me: I dont know why he doesnt just hand them (the briefcases) over. I think his decision to hang on to them is twisted.

He should have been made to give them to the police. The law is an ass. But we are just hoping it is changed quickly and that something is found in those cases that will lead to Keith, and allow Alan to bury him with his mother.

It is a sentiment we all share. Yet given Bradys warped brain, we should be prepared for one final twist of the knife.

Perhaps, when the locks turn and the cases are opened, they will contain nothing at all.
New Fullerton City Council Cancels Plan for Retail Cannabis

Retail cannabis is no longer coming to Fullerton, California.

The Fullerton City Council voted 3-2 to rescind a previously passed measure at its Feb. 16 meeting, after citizens spoke up in favor of repealing the ordinance that would have permitted commercial cannabis sales within city limits.

Mayor Bruce Whitaker told The Epoch Times he felt relieved, adding the process was flawed from the beginning.

It was pushed a little bit too fast for the public, Whitaker said. In the end, its about government by consent, and I believe the prior council really didnt listen to the public that much.

The controversial commercial cannabis ordinance was originally adopted Nov. 17, 2020, with support from councilmembers Ahmad Zahra, Jesus Silva, and then-Mayor Pro Tem Jan Flory. But the composition of the council changed following the November election, with a majority now against supporting the ordinance as written, due mainly to outcry from residents.

Whitaker, newly elected Mayor Pro Tem Nick Dunlap, and Councilmember Fred Jung took issue with the construction of the ordinance and voted against it on Feb. 16, noting adamant opposition among their constituents, while councilmembers Silva and Zahra continued to support the measure.

The ordinance itself, to me, was flawed, Jung told The Epoch Times. It didnt have a residential buffer, which I found to be a nonstarter.

Jung added that the former council failed to engage the community through meaningful outreach efforts, so residents couldnt voice their concerns. They just had basically whats tantamount to study sessions, where theyd lecture the community on how good all of this is, he said.

Zahra, who offered the final comment before the vote, said the intent of the ordinance was to ensure public safety by controlling a growing industry.

This is not about bringing cannabis into the city, this is about trying to regulate it, just like any other substance that is being sold, he said. You create regulations to provide public safety for the consumers.

But Dunlap called the measure pretty shameful, and told The Epoch Times it was surprising that the former council couldnt figure out a better way to put something together and bring something forward.

Added Whitaker: I felt as though [the ordinance] was being pushed, basically; implemented above [residents] protests and above their concerns about it. And there was very little on the way of compromise.

Residents Say No

The Feb. 16 meeting resounded with pushback from Fullerton citizens, which has been a recurrent theme whenever the topic of retail cannabis arises. In January, the council postponed the measures implementation due to public outcry.

Nearly 50 people offered public comments, either in-person or via Zoom. Over 40 of those citizenswhich included parents, educators, business owners, community leaders, a pastor, a teenager, and a young boysupported repealing the ordinance.

I feel very frustrated and sad because we have spoken so much and it seems like were not being heard, said one resident in Spanish, through a translator. The resident then implored the council to make a decision that is appropriate for the community.

Christy Sims, a 40-year resident, presented a list of signatures to the council. I have in my hand here 869 very precious items. Please take to heart these 869 people who said, Please dont bring cannabis to our community, she said, adding that the signatures were gathered from folks throughout the entire citynot just one neighborhood.

Fullerton is a very unique city, and Id like to keep it that way, said Maureen, a Fullerton resident and former D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) instructor. I think the primary motivation for this is financial.  I hope that our citizens, and our families, and our children in this community take precedence over an unknown amount of money we might make.

Another resident brought the council five copies of a Newsweek opinion article from 2015 that documented the unexpected side effects of legalizing weed in Denver, Boulder, and De Beque, Colorado. The impacts included an increase in homelessness, drug-related school expulsions, and emergency room visits.

Legal Versus Illegal

Councilmember Silva, who voted in favor of the ordinance in November, argued that allowing retail cannabis would help shut down illegal operations in the city. He pointed to nearby Santa Ana and Bellflower as examples.

Thats exactly why we put this ordinance [in place]: to keep some of these illegal ones out of the communities of color, he said. This is why, when we voted on that ordinance, it was to put the dispensaries throughout the city, not just concentrated in the south [part of Fullerton].

But Dunlap questioned Silvas logic, calling it a flawed argument.

The point that youve made  is that for some reason, dispensaries need to be spread about the city, as though its going to cause problems in a particular district, said Dunlap. If it doesnt cause problems, and it doesnt create issues, then why the worry about where theyre located?

Dunlap, who served as a planning commissioner from 2016 to 2018, argued that permitting legal businesses wouldnt necessarily solve the problem of illegal dispensaries, adding that shutting them down was time-consuming and costly.

This idea that its going to somehow help with enforcement of existing bootleg dispensaries [is] nonsense, he said.

Moving Forward

Prior to the vote, Whitaker announced, Its time to erase the blackboard, adding that the cannabis issue had taken all the oxygen out of the room, certainly for the council.

This item has been an obstacle to so many of the priorities that we need to deal with, he said. And for that reason, I think it is a good time to remove that obstacle. Perhaps, somewhere down the road, we take up the issue again, but I think we have bigger fish to fry, as they say.

Jung also told The Epoch Times its time to move beyond the issue of cannabis, which has monopolized too many hours of precious time.

Theres clear and present dangers that exist right now for our city that we have to address, and we cant do any of that for the last two months. All weve been doing is dealing with this issue. So Im glad to be done with it, he said. I think we are now able to spearhead a much better path for our city going forward.

Dunlap added it was time to get the citys financial house in order, saying a top priority would be the budget, which has been afflicted with a number of woes, along with improving city roads. In 2017, the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) rated them the worst in the county.

Thats what residents here in town are really focused on and concerned with, Dunlap said.
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Erring on the side of science, Sen. James Lankford faced the Senate to deliver a speech on the hypocrisy surrounding abortion and "reproductive care," a euphemism for an act that literally takes the life of an unborn child and removes his or her body from the mother's womb.

Sen. Lankford began his 20-minute speech by citing how new car models now come with a reminder to check the back seat, after numerous incidents of parents leaving their children unattended in hot cars hit the news. Some of these incidents resulted in a child's death.

The Republican senator cited that while many are horrified and angered by parents who leave their children in hot cars, most barely bat an eyelash when it comes to abortion and "reproductive care."

CBN News reported that Sen. Lankford described abortion as the act of "paying someone in the clinic to reach into the womb with a surgical instrument to pull the arms and legs off of a child in the womb so that they will bleed to death in the womb and then suction out the little boy or girl's body parts one at a time. That's what reproductive care means."

Defending the sanctity of human life, Sen. Lankford questioned why abortion and "reproductive care" was normal while leaving a child in the backseat of a hot car is often touted in the news as a "tragedy."

He then presented to the Senate chamber several photographs of an unborn child at 24, 25, and 26 weeks' gestation. He then challenged the floor by pointing to the unborn child's distinguishable features such as his eyes, nose, and chin, asking, "Some people are afraid to answer the most obvious question. Is that a baby? That's really the only question. Is that a child?"

The Republican senator, who spent 13 years as the student ministries and evangelism specialist for the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma and youth programming director at the Falls Creek Baptist Conference Center in Davis, Oklahoma, posed another question in defense of the sanctity of human life. He asked the Senate floor, "Are all children valuable? Or are only some children valuable?"

According to Life Site News, Lankford, who has been senator fighting for the sanctity of human life since 2014, highlighted the unfortunate anniversary of Roe v. Wade, a decision that the Supreme Court made 48 years ago, which "resulted in the death of 62 million children."

He also criticized President Biden for wanting to pass a federal law that will allow abortion and "reproductive care" to be legal in all 50 states of America and will be funded by the taxpayers themselves.

He criticized Biden for retracting his decision that taxpayers should not have to pay for abortion while pushing for a new "reproductive care" policy that will make abortion "safe, legal, and rare" for those who want it and "demand taxpayers pay for it," Sen. Lankford said.

In the fight against abortion and "reproductive care," Sen. Lankford stressed that an unborn child is "a separate person, and science would confirm that. The science is clear."
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18) -- The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday certain conditions still need to be met before they decide on whether to authorize Russian firm Gamaleya's COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use in the country.

Food and Drug Administration Director General Eric Domingo said they are waiting for Gamaleya to submit a certificate of good manufacturing practice to ensure Sputnik V's quality.

"We need this (certificate of good manufacturing practice) so we are assured of the consistency of the quality of the product," Domingo said in a House hearing on the status of Gamaleya's emergency use authorization application.

But he added that they are "ready" to send a team to inspect Gamaleya's manufacturing plant so they themselves could issue the certification to Gamaleya. He said Gamaleya only needs to apply for a GMP or good manufacturing practice inspection so a team could go to Gamaleya's factory in Russia to do quality checking.

The official said they are also waiting for the vaccine expert panel to complete its review on the safety and efficacy of Sputnik V. But he said the assessment is now almost complete.

Domingo also asked the Russian Embassy in the Philippines to authorize the local representative of Gamaleya to sign the documents needed to hasten the EUA application process.

We need some documents of course to be attested to by the manufacturer and we know that the manufacturer is in Russia and its very difficult for some documents to go there and get here, Domingo said.

So maybe if the embassy can give some authorization, a letter that will allow FDA, that will assure FDA that their local representative here is authorized by the manufacturer Gamaleya to sign these documents for them, that will make it (application process) faster, he added.

Pfizer-BioNTech and AstraZeneca were the first two companies which received EUA for their COVID-19 vaccines from the country's drug regulators. Aside from Gamaleya, Chinese drug maker Sinovac Biotech, and the distributor of India-developed vaccine COVAXIN have pending EUA applications before the local FDA.

China promised to give 600,000 doses of Sinovac vaccine to the Philippines. The arrival of the vaccine was set on Feb. 23, but the shots cannot be used unless Sinovac is issued an EUA.

Domingo said he cannot give an exact date as to when the FDA could grant Sinovac an EUA, as they are still seeking clarifications on the efficacy rates of the Sinovac vaccine.

He said it is up to the Bureau of Customs whether it will allow the Sinovac vaccine to enter the country even if it is not registered. But Customs spokesperson Vincent Maronilla said they will just follow the protocols set by the FDA.

"Ang batas namin sinasabi (Our rules say), we will seize it (unlicensed products.) If FDA says ok release nyo na muna (we can release it) ... and that it will be stored at RITM (Research Institute for Tropical Medicine) until we issue an emergency use authorization, then we do that, Maronilla told CNN Philippines in an interview.
External Affairs Minister will on Saturday embark on a four-day visit to the Maldives and Mauritius, the two strategically key maritime neighbours of India in the Indian Ocean region.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said Jaishankar will visit the Maldives from February 20 to 21 and he will be in Mauritius on February 22 and 23.

"The External Affairs Minister's visit is testimony to the importance that India attaches to its close and friendly relations with the Maldives and Mauritius and is expected to lend further momentum to substantive cooperation and robust people-to-people ties," the MEA said.

In the Maldives, Jaishankar will call on President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and have substantive discussions with the ministers for foreign affairs, defence, finance, economic development and planning and infrastructure, the MEA said in a statement.

The external affairs minister (EAM) will also call on Speaker Mohamed Nasheed and meet with other political leaders.

"During this visit, EAM will review the entire gamut of our bilateral ties as well as progress of ongoing bilateral projects and hold discussions on the ongoing COVID situation, including India's continued assistance to the Maldives for its post-Covid economic recovery," the MEA said.

In Mauritius, Jaishankar will call on President Prithvirajsing Roopun and Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth.

He will also meet the minister of foreign affairs, regional integration and international trade and minister for land transport and light rail.

"The EAM will review all aspects of our bilateral relations, ongoing implementation of various infrastructure projects being carried out by India in Mauritius, and hold discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest including India's assistance to Mauritius," the MEA said.

It said both Maldives and Mauritius are India's key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region and occupy a special place in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'SAGAR' (Security and Growth for All in the Region).

(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.)
New Delhi, Feb 18 : The Supreme Court on Thursday issued notice on a plea of former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah challenging a Delhi High Court circular of April last year in connection with his divorce petition.

A bench headed by Chief Justice S.A. Bobde and comprising Justices A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian sought response from the Registrar General of the Delhi High Court on the plea. The High Court circular had mandated both parties in the case to agree for the final hearing through video conferencing mode.

The Delhi High Court had on November 3 last year dismissed Abdullah's plea challenging the April 26, 2020 circular. He had argued his matrimonial appeal challenging the 2016 trial court order, which dismissed his divorce petition, has not been listed for final hearing since February 2017.

The trial court had dismissed plea of Abdullah, who sought divorce from his estranged wife, saying he did not prove irretrievable breakdown of the marriage. Abdullah had they were living separately since 2009.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Abdullah, contended before the top court that the other side in the matter is not giving consent for the final hearing through virtual mode, but they are appearing in maintenance proceedings before the trial court.

To this, the bench replied: "Can we coerce someone to give consent?" Abdullah had contended that due to Covid-19 pandemic, there was restricted functioning of the courts, and his estranged wife, Payal Abdullah, did not give consent for hearing through video conferencing.

Sibal submitted before the top court that the matter is being delayed unnecessarily. After a brief hearing in the matter, the top court said it will hear the matter after two weeks.

The High Court had noted that lack of cooperation with his estranged wife cannot be a ground to challenge the April 26 circular. It said that its Registrar General, in the circular, had stated that amid the pandemic, a request for final hearing of pending matters will be entertained if both parties agree.
Scranton police arrested a man in connection with an arson on Capouse Avenue.

Henry Edward Scheitrumpf, 69, 824 Capouse Ave., Room 23, faces 21 counts of aggravated arson, one count of arson endangering persons and related charges.

City firefighters and police responded to 828 Capouse Ave., the Melba Bar and a rooming house, at 4:13 a.m. Wednesday for a reported structure fire, according to a criminal complaint. Firefighters arrived to find a fully involved dumpster fire against the rooming house.

Security footage showed Scheitrumpf, a tenant of the building, lighting garbage on fire in a plastic can and the dumpster. Twenty-one residents were inside the house, the complaint said.

His bail and preliminary hearing information werent immediately available.

A 22-year-old man has been sentenced to 18 months behind bars for his involvement in stabbing a police dog in the chest.

Kieran David Rocke ran from police after he and a friend were found with a stolen utility in Brisbane's Gordon Park suburb in February last year.

Officers and police dog Kaos tracked the 22-year-old and his friend, finding the pair about 15 minutes later.

Police dog Kaos (pictured) was stabbed after the dog tracked down Kieran David Rocke and his friend as they ran from police

The other man stabbed Kaos in the chest while the dog was biting the pair, a Brisbane court was told on Thursday.

Rocke pleaded guilty to wounding the dog, unlawful use of a motor vehicle and a raft of other charges.

Prosecutor Hamish McIntyre said Rocke's liability in injuring Kaos was significantly less than his co-offender, who is yet to be dealt with in court.

But Rocke knew his friend was carrying the knife.

Kieran Rocke (pictured left), 22, has been sentenced to 18 months behind bars for his involvement in stabbing Kaos in the chest

'You are a party to your co-offender's act because it was a probable consequence of failing to stop as directed by the police,' Brisbane District Court Judge Tony Moynihan said in sentencing Rocke.

His 'serious offending' also included driving dangerously in a police chase during which he drove through red lights at excessive speed before crashing into a bridge.

Defence barrister Ambyr Cousen said Rocke had a difficult childhood and had struggled with substance abuse issues since he was 11 years old.

'He was and remains, in my submission, a very young man who did have drug issues who is trying very hard to address that,' Ms Cousen told the court.

Kaos made a full recovery, returning to work after the stabbing.

Judge Moynihan sentenced Rocke to a head sentence of 18 months in jail, while ordering his parole release date be set at May 17.
A new climate transparency register will encourage big business to provide detailed progress to shareholders, supply-chain partners and the public towards their emissions targets, including reaching net zero by 2050.

Federal Energy Minister Angus Taylor has written to the chief executives of all ASX 200-listed companies, telling them while ambition was important ultimately achievement is what matters.

Minister for Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor wants big companies to say how theyre going to achieve their net-zero emissions targets. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The boards and senior management of Australias largest companies have increasingly responded to investor demands to commit to reducing emissions, with almost 20 of Australias largest firms including household names such as BHP, Qantas, Suncorp, Fortescue Metals, Woodside and Santos having set net zero aspirations within 30 years.

The Corporate Emissions Reduction Transparency report, to be modelled on the Australian Taxation Offices corporate tax reporting, will present data and information on voluntary targets and progress in achieving them.
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Given the extreme unlikelihood of the U.S. returning to the currently structured Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), and Irans unwillingness to renegotiate the deal any time soon, the Islamic Republic remains focused on three key areas where it can make money despite ongoing sanctions form Washington. Alongside the continued development of its huge West Karoun oil fields, the completion of the supergiant South Pars non-associated gas offshore sector (including the implementation of Phase 11 operations), and the finalisation of the crude oil transfer pipeline from Guriyeh to Jask, Irans core focus in the current sanctions environment is to optimise the output and revenues from its already world-scale petrochemicals sector,. This has always played a key role in Irans resistance economy model, the concept of generating value-added returns by leveraging intellectual capital into business development wherever possible. Irans petchems sector now accounts for over 30 per cent of all its non-oil exports and Tehran is planning to boost this further through the build-out of a number of dedicated petchems hubs.

A key advantage for Iran in pushing the petchems sector  aside from the ongoing financial, technology, and personnel support of China and Russia  is that from a legal perspective it has always occupied a grey area as far as sanctions have been concerned. When the previous set of major sanctions were at their height in 2011/12, Irans petrochemical industry was the subject of U.S. and E.U. sanctions, and the only way for Iran to sell such products legally was to customers outside the U.S. and E.U. At that time, secondary sanctions were in place in the U.S. on any person worldwide that purchased, acquired, sold, transported, or marketed Iranian-origin petrochemical products, or provided goods or services valued at US$250,000 or more (or US$1 million over a 12-month period) for use in Irans production of petrochemical products. In the E.U. there was a ban on the import, purchase, or transportation of Iran-origin petrochemical products, and on the export to Iran of certain equipment for use in the petrochemical industry. In stark contrast to the previous sanctions era, there are currently no E.U. sanctions specifically on Irans petchems sector and nor are there plans to impose them. Crucially as well, the U.S. cannot currently exert jurisdiction for primary sanctions unless U.S. persons are involved  notably U.S. banks and U.S. employees. Related: Oil Prices Soar As U.S. Oil Production Plunges 30%



In basic terms, a total of US$11.5 billion-worth of petchems projects will have been launched in Iran in the year ending 20 March 2021, according to Irans deputy minister of petroleum for petrochemical affairs, Behzad Mohammadi. These will add at least 25 million tons to the countrys annual production capacity, bringing it up to at least 90 million tons per year (mtpy), and within a hairs breadth of the 100 mtpy production target that is due to be achieved by the end of 2025. Irans Petroleum Minister, Bijan Zanganeh, further specified that this next major phase of the countrys petchems sector development will consist of 17 new projects in the next 12 months, which will enable a more than doubling of the value of it to Iran from US$12 billion in 2013 (when the first major phase was pushed) to US$25 billion by the end of next calendar year, and to at least US$37 billion by March 2026. At the same time, the ability to produce petchems will be boosted by dramatic increases in feedstock, according to a comment last week from the chief executive officer of Irans National Petrochemical Company (NPC), Behzad Mohammadi, last week. This will reach at least 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) by early 2026, and will be complemented by gas production gains already in progress in South Pars and other major gas fields. Already though, said Zanganeh last week, gas production in Iran has hit a record of over its key target point of 1 billion cubic metres per day (BcM/d)  at 1.04 Bcm/d  with nearly 70 per cent of this coming from the supergiant South Pars gas field. With these feedstock increases in place, Zanganeh stated last week that Irans petrochemical production capacity would reach 100 million tons per year by 2022.

It is to assist in and expedite this process further that Iran is building out a number of petchems hubs, to add to the current major centres in Bushehr and Khuzestan. According to Zanganeh last week, Iran has worked out plans to convert the western province of Kermanshah into the third petrochemical hub of the country to exploit the readily accessible gas supplies in the area, with at least US$500 million of investment accompanying this build-out in the upstream and downstream parts of it. The Kermanshah Petrochemicals Hub is to focus on the production of propylene (also called propylene or methyl ethylene), he added, as it is one of the most valuable industrial substances and Kermanshah already produces around 300,000 tons of polyethylene. Additionally, the landmark West Ethylene Pipeline passes through the province, which will run 1,660 kilometres from Assaluyeh in southern Iran to Tabriz in the northwest of the country, making it the longest ethylene line in the world. From March 2020 to March 2021about two million tons of ethylene will be transferred through the West Ethylene pipeline [and] Irans ethylene output will reach seven million tons per year by March 2021, according to Zanganeh. Related: Bidens Energy Plans Threaten Alaskas Oil Ambitions

In the same vein, the NPCs Mohammadi said last week that Qeshm Island  located to the south of the key petchems facility in Bandar Abbas, and at the farthest point east of the Strait of Hormuz where it turns south into the Gulf of Oman (with unbroken access then to the Far East and East Africa)  is ideally placed to also become a major hub of construction, development, production, and export of a variety of petrochemical products. He added that so far permits have been issued for the development of petrochemical industries in Qeshm Island, Special Parsian Economic Zone, Bandar-e-Jask, and Irans Mokran Coastal Region. This latter area is located in Baluchestan province in south-eastern Iran and south-western Pakistan, and also has a 1,000 kilometre coastal stretch along the Gulf of Oman from al-Kuh, Iran (west of Jask), to the Lasbela District of Pakistan (near Karachi). According to Iranian sources who work closely with the current government in Iran spoken to exclusively by OilPrice.com last week, these coastal routes east are a short-term measure to facilitate the full export capability of oil and gas via the originally intended Iran-Pakistan Pipeline (IPP). The original agreement for the IPP, signed between Iran and Pakistan in 1995, was predicated on the pipeline running from South Pars into Karachi but the most recent iteration of the route involves the gas running from Irans Asalouyeh and into Pakistans Gwadar and then on to Nawabshah. The latest projection of the cost of the pipeline is around US$3.5 billion, although USD2.5 billion of this has already been invested in the 900 kilometre stretch on Irans side that has already been completed. Pakistans 780 kilometre stretch has yet to make significant progress.

Given the geopolitical importance of both Iran and Pakistan to Russia and China, though, finding the money for the remainder of the project is unlikely to be a problem. For China, there is a threefold motivation. First, it plans to integrate the IPP into the US$50 billion-plus China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, with Gwadar earmarked to be a key logistical node in Chinas One Belt, One Road project. Second, it wants to keep Iran (and neo-client state Iraq) as key suppliers of oil and gas in the future. And third, it regards supporting those who the U.S. opposes (Iran and to a lesser degree Pakistan) as being a central plank of its foreign policy, over and above the short-term tactic of wrong-footing the U.S. in the paused but still ongoing trade war. The U.S. clearly sees it the same way, as it has from the start tried to stymie progress on the IPP. In January 2010, despite Iran being close to completing its side of the IPP pipeline, the U.S. formally requested that Pakistan abandon the project in return for which it would receive assistance from Washington for the construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal and for the importing of electricity from Tajikistan through Afghanistans Wakhan Corridor. Although the IPP agreement came back into effect briefly, July 2011 saw the U.S. interfere again in the corporate proxy shape of energy giant ConocoPhillips, which began mediating the notion of an LNG supply deal between Pakistan and then US ally Qatar. Ultimately, this formed the basis of the 15-year agreement for Qatar to export LNG to Pakistan, signed in February 2016 that continues to this day.

By Simon Watkins for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
DUBLIN, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Pneumococcal Vaccines Market and Forecast Analysis to 2024" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The value of the pneumococcal vaccines market will steadily grow over the forecast period due to increasing elderly populations across France, Spain, and the US, alongside continued short-term price increases in the lucrative US market. A brief period of increased growth is expected with the anticipated launch of the 20-valent vaccine, PF-06482077, which may replace Prevnar 13 and Pneumovax 23 in adults (from June 2021) and Prevnar 13 in infants (from H1 2023).



Overall, the biggest opportunity for short-term growth within the pneumococcal vaccines market is associated with increasing vaccination rates within the elderly in the US and Italian markets; however, the 2019 reversal of the original 2014 ACIP recommendation for Prevnar 13's use in the elderly population will hamper its growth in the US.



As the only vaccine routinely recommended for use in infants in the US, Japan, and five major European markets (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK), Prevnar 13 generates blockbuster revenues from this segment on account of large annual birth cohorts, high vaccination coverage rates, and its multi-dose schedule (2-4 doses are recommended depending on the market). However, Prevnar 13's high price point has resulted in very limited uptake in the elderly outside of the US, as the more affordable Pneumovax 23 is generally recommended for the elderly population, with the exception of Italy, where both vaccines are recommended.



The changing epidemiology of pneumococcal disease has begun to influence vaccine and dosing recommendations in the US and UK. Within the US, the ACIP has updated its vaccination guidance to remove its previous 2014 recommendation for the routine administration of a single dose of Prevnar 13 for all adults aged ?65 years. This change in stance was because the use of Prevnar 13 has caused a decline in invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) incidence among adults and children (due to both direct and indirect herd protection effects), thus reducing the socioeconomic rationale for the vaccine's routine use in the elderly.



Indeed, since the initial 2014 recommendation for Prevnar 13's use in the elderly, the incidence of IPD in the elderly has remained unchanged at five per 100,000 individuals, implying no clear population benefit of the previous recommendation. Additionally, within the UK, Public Health England has reduced the number of recommended doses of Prevnar 13 in infants from three to two based on the very low incidence of IPD caused by the 13 serotypes included in the vaccine, and the low carriage of the serotypes in the general population.



While the decision was not directly motivated by cost savings in the UK, it could serve as a model for other markets with low IPD incidence, as well as low-income markets where the high cost of Prevnar 13 acts as a major hurdle for the implementation of national vaccination programs.



From June 2021, Prevnar 13's market share in adults is expected to be cannibalized by Pfizer's 20-valent successor vaccine, PF-06482077, which could potentially void the need for separate Prevnar 13 and Pneumovax 23 vaccinations. In a Phase III study, the 20-valent vaccine has demonstrated non-inferiority to the 13 strains shared with Prevnar 13, in addition to non-inferior immunogenicity for six out of the seven shared strains with Pneumovax 23, with one serotype (8) narrowly missing non-inferiority criteria.



In addition, Prevnar 13 will also face competition in the infant segment for the first time from Merck & Co's 15-valent V114, which has broader serotype coverage and is expected to gain approval in the pediatric setting in mid-2022 (approval in adults is expected in Q4 2021, but PF-06482077 is expected to be preferred due to broader serotype coverage). To protect the company's market share in this lucrative segment, Pfizer is also investigating PF-06482077 in infants, and the publisher expects US and EU indication expansions to be granted in H1 2023.



As a pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine, Pneumovax 23 is not recommended for routine use in infants as it does not stimulate protective immunity in this age range, which is thought to be due to the inability of individuals aged &lessThan; 24 months to mount T-cell-independent humoral responses. The lack of an independent humoral response has resulted in Pneumovax 23's use being limited to the elderly, where its broad serotype coverage is attractive.



Pneumovax 23 sales are expected to grow through Q3 2021 due to the increasing elderly population in France, Spain, and the US. However, following PF-06482077's anticipated approval from June 2021, Pneumovax 23's sales could plummet if PF-06482077 gains recommendations for preferential use from national immunization advisory groups.



Strong adherence to immunization guidelines has resulted in high infant pneumococcal vaccination rates across the US, Japan, and five major European markets. However, key opinion leaders have stated that there is a significant unmet need to increase vaccination coverage rates in the "at-risk" populations, which are currently limited by lack of awareness of vaccination recommendations and patient eligibility among primary care physicians and patients. In addition, adolescents and younger adults tend to have less frequent contact with physicians than infants and the elderly, which limits opportunities to refer patients for vaccination.



Presently, there are six vaccines in clinical development, with Merck & Co's 15-valent V114 and Pfizer's 20-valent PF-06482077 both currently under regulatory review by the FDA for the prevention of pneumococcal disease in adults. Both vaccines possess broader serotype coverage than the currently recommended Prevnar 13, and hope to benefit commercially from serotype shift in pneumococcal disease incidence.



The overall likelihood of approval of a Phase I pneumococcal vaccine is 16.7%, and the average probability the vaccine advances from Phase III is 75%. Pneumococcal vaccines, on average, take 8.6 years from Phase I to approval, compared to 8.9 years in the overall infectious disease space.

Key Topics Covered:



OVERVIEW

Latest key takeaways

DISEASE BACKGROUND

Definition

Symptoms

Diagnosis

Risk factors

VACCINATION GUIDELINES

Vaccination guidelines in major markets

MARKETED VACCINES



PIPELINE VACCINES



KEY REGULATORY EVENTS

UK Adds Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine To Export Ban List

PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS



LICENSING AND ASSET ACQUISITION DEALS

Shionogi Acquires Global Rights To HanaVax's Nasal Pneumococcal Vaccine

CLINICAL TRIAL LANDSCAPE

Sponsors by status

Sponsors by phase

Recent events

VACCINE ASSESSMENT

Prevnar 13

Pneumovax 23

V114

PF-06482077

Phase II vaccines to watch

MARKET DYNAMICS



FUTURE TRENDS



CONSENSUS FORECASTS



RECENT EVENTS AND ANALYST OPINION

V114 for Pneumococcal Vaccines ( September 9, 2020 )

) V114 for Pneumococcal Vaccines ( June 22, 2020 )

) PF-06482077 for Pneumococcal Vaccines ( March 18, 2020 )

) V114 for Pneumococcal Vaccines ( May 8, 2019 )

KEY UPCOMING EVENTS



KEY OPINION LEADER INSIGHTS



UNMET NEEDS

Vaccines with broader serotype coverage to counter the threat of serotype shift

Low coverage in miscellaneous "at-risk" groups

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Prescription information

APPENDIX



For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/x7ylmr



Media Contact:

Research and Markets

Laura Wood, Senior Manager

[email protected]



For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470

For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630

For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900



U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907

Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

Related Links

http://www.researchandmarkets.com


"Charles Fishman see the future technology of water better than almost anyone else I know." Aric Olson, President Jain Irrigation, Inc.

Jain Irrigation, Inc., the world leader in irrigation technology, is proud to host author Charles Fishman in a special episode of its twice-weekly JAIN Irrigation Training Series free webinars titled THE BIG THIRST Author Charles Fishman Joins JAIN for a Timely Conversation About Water, on Friday, February 26, 2021, at noon Pacific Time. The webinar is open to the public and free to attend by registering online at https://jainsusa.com/training/the-big-thirst/.

February 2021 marks the tenth anniversary of the publication of THE BIG THIRST: The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water. JAIN Irrigation Training Series host Richard Restuccia will talk with Charles Fishman about what predictions THE BIG THIRST got right, where it missed and why the next ten years will be the most intense and innovative period for water in history. Theyll also discuss Fishmans most recent book, ONE GIANT LEAP: The Impossible Mission that Flew Us to the Moon, and lessons from the historic space program for the water industry.

The popular free JAIN Irrigation Training Series is a live twice-weekly webinar designed for agriculture dealers, landscape distributors, contractors, and other irrigation professionals presented each Wednesday and Friday. The recorded webinars' free streaming video playbacks are available on the Jain Irrigation, Inc. website and in audio podcast format for streaming or download through Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify iHeart Radio, Stitcher, and TuneIn. For more information, visit https://jainsusa.com/trainings/.

About Charles Fishman

Charles Fishman is an acclaimed author, journalist, and historian. His books include One Giant Leap, A Curious Mind (with Brian Grazer), The Wal-Mart Effect, and The Big Thirst. He is a three-time winner of the Gerald Loeb Award, the most prestigious prize in business journalism.

ABOUT JAIN IRRIGATION

Jain is a fully integrated global food/plant production company recognized by Harvard Business to be one of five global sustainability champions and the G-20 for lifting people out of poverty. Our irrigation manufacturing capabilities include everything from behind the pump to the flush valve at the end of the lateral and everything in between, including drip irrigation. We lead the industry in manufacturing technology, owning both our extrusion and mold manufacturing equipment providers. Jain conducts plant science research globally across various food crops and is staffed with some of the world's leading research scientists. With the Gandhi Library, Jain now houses the prominent collection of the world's best plant science knowledge in a single facility. Our agronomic knowledge is integrated from our world-class tissue culture operations through our food processing businesses. We research, educate, advance, manufacture, finance, propagate plants, and purchase produce for processing, all to fulfill the Jain mission, "leave this world better than you found it."
The Duchess of Cornwall speaks with members of staff during a visit to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham (Molly Darlington/PA)

The Duchess of Cornwall said she leapt for joy when receiving her Covid-19 jab and told hospital patients waiting for the vaccine that it doesnt hurt.

Camilla joined her husband the Prince of Wales on a visit to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham on Wednesday to learn about coronavirus vaccine trials.

The royal couple met clinical trial volunteers, as well as healthcare staff receiving their inoculations, in their first joint official public event for two months.

Clarence House confirmed last week that Charles, 72, and Camilla, 73, have had their first Covid-19 vaccinations, with the pair offering reassurance to patients during their hospital tour.

They met 50-year-old Nicki Cadwallader, who was receiving a jab as part of a trial for cancer patients.

Charles told her: Dont worry, it doesnt take too long.

Its a good thing. It doesnt hurt, Camilla added.

I was waiting for it to be done and they said it has been done. It was painless. It was brilliant.

Its very good when its over as you feel more secure. Panic over.

The duchess later told the vaccination trial staff: I leapt for joy. I didnt feel anything. Im eternally grateful for everything.

Expand Close The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall talk with Health Secretary Matt Hancock (Molly Darlington/PA) PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall talk with Health Secretary Matt Hancock (Molly Darlington/PA)

As the heir to the throne and his wife first arrived at the hospital on Wednesday, they were greeted at a distance by Health Secretary Matt Hancock and all wore face masks.

The University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust is believed to have treated the largest number of Covid-positive patients of any NHS trust in the UK  more than 12,500  with 10,000 of these discharged.

The trust has also recruited a large number of patients for the trials  12,000.

During their visit, Charles and Camilla unveiled a plaque which thanked staff for their incredible efforts during the pandemic.

In a speech, Charles noted he was a similar age to the NHS and joked: But the NHS has done a great deal better I can assure you than I have. As I am gradually falling apart.

Thanking staff, he said the NHS had masses of unsung and unseen heroes.

We owe them all such an enormous debt of gratitude, he said, adding: We are very lucky indeed to have you.

Expand Close The Prince of Wales during a visit to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham (Molly Darlington/PA) PA / Facebook

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Whatsapp The Prince of Wales during a visit to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham (Molly Darlington/PA)

Among the chemotherapy patients taking part in the vaccine trial is married mother-of-three and property developer Ms Cadwallader, of Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, who has been shielding since November since she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

She said: Im delighted. Ive been waiting for this day for a long time and Im so happy. I can get my life back.

She said people should not be hesitant about getting a jab, saying it would help her get back to normal again.

Im happy the country got it so quickly. This means the world to me. I cant wait to go back down the supermarket again, its the simple things, she added.

The royal couple also thanked volunteers who came forward for the clinical trial.

Harriet Nash, 69, said: I told the duchess I saw it on the NHS app and I wanted to do whatever I could to help.

Mr Hancock said: Thankfully there are signs we are on our way out. There is still a long way to go. Things are improving.

At this hospital, the number of patients with Covid has fallen from more than 1,000 at its highest, the biggest of any hospital group in the county, to under 600.

And the vaccination effort at this hospital hub has been one the best in the entire country.

Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki, left, talks with Bank of Korea Governor Lee Ju-yeol at the Korea Federation of Banks headquarters in Seoul, Thursday, before the beginning of a macroeconomic meeting. Yonhap



By Lee Min-hyung



Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki and Bank of Korea (BOK) Governor Lee Ju-yeol reaffirmed their stance to maintain an expansionary fiscal and accommodative monetary policy as the nation's economy remains vulnerable to the impact of a third wave of the coronavirus.



Thursday's meeting marked the first time in a year that the leaders of the central bank, finance ministry and two financial regulators gathered to discuss joint strategies for dealing with the impact of the pandemic. At the last meeting in February 2020, the officials pledged to join hands to tackle the emerging coronavirus crisis.



A year later, addressing the continuing impact of the pandemic remains at the top of their priority lists.






A Houthi rebel attack on the Yemeni government's last northern stronghold must stop, the UN envoy to the country said Thursday, warning of a potential humanitarian disaster.

"It puts millions of civilians at risk, especially with the fighting reaching camps for internally displaced persons," envoy Martin Griffiths told the UN Security Council by video conference, of the attack on the city of Marib.

"The quest for territorial gain by force threatens the prospects of the peace process," said Griffiths.

Short link:


LONDON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital payments platform, Wirex, today announced their partnership with Zero Hash to support their upcoming US launch. This will allow Wirex to launch their revolutionary product across the United States in April, giving over 300 million Americans instant access to crypto.

Utilizing the services of Zero Hash, a crypto trading infrastructure platform owned by Seed CX, Wirex, the London-based fintech will now be able to launch fully into 51 jurisdictions in the US.

The companies are shared advocates of the mass adoption of the digital economy. They also share the mission of empowering everyone to have straightforward access to crypto.

Wirex serves nearly 3.5 million people across more than 130 countries, in which they offer an award-winning product that allows users to buy, hold, exchange and sell up to 20 different traditional and cryptocurrencies from a single, and intuitive app. This is linked to a contactless crypto-enabled debit card, giving users the ability to spend crypto in over 61 million locations globally.

Wirex made headlines recently, by becoming only the second crypto-enabled company to receive Visa principal membership, and have imminent plans to launch X-Tras, upgrading their rewards scheme, Cryptoback. The feature will reward users up to 2% back in WXT on any purchases with their Wirex card.

Harold Montgomery, Managing Director of Wirex USA, has been leading the partnership and expressed his excitement about the upcoming launch: "Wirex has already proven hugely popular in other countries across the globe, so it's exciting that we have reached one of our last big milestones in the run up to our US launch. It's integral that we carefully select reliable and experienced partners such as Zero Hash for this to ensure that the Wirex product continues to give everyone cheap, seamless and safe access to crypto."

This was complemented by Edward Woodford, CEO of Zero Hash, who said: "We are pleased that Zero Hash is powering Wirex's US crypto expansion. Zero Hash provides the infrastructure enabling Wirex to rapidly expand into the United States, introducing an exciting product that is loved by clients globally to market there. Through the partnership, Wirex enables clients to seamlessly purchase and sell crypto, allows peer-to-peer crypto transfers and crypto rewards."

With an ambition to reach 10 million customers by the end of 2021, the highly anticipated US-wide launch in April this year will play a key role in helping Wirex achieve this.

About Wirex

Wirex is a worldwide digital payment platform and regulated institution that has forged new rules in the digital payments space. In 2015, the firm developed the world's first crypto-enabled payment card that gives users the ability to seamlessly spend crypto and traditional currencies in real life.

Wirex was created in 2014 by CEOs and co-founders Pavel Matveev and Dmitry Lazarichev, who identified the need to open up the esoteric world of cryptocurrencies and make digital money accessible for everyone. With the core aim of making it as easy as possible to use digital assets in everyday life, Wirex provides a trusted and cost-effective service for crypto and traditional currency transactions by incorporating the next generation of payments infrastructure integrated with cryptocurrency blockchains.

With over three million customers across 130 countries, the company offers secure accounts that allow customers to easily store, buy and exchange multiple currencies instantly at the best live rates on one centralised mobile app. Quick and simple money transfer options are available, as well as the freedom to spend 150+ traditional and cryptocurrencies in more than 61 million locations around the world using the Wirex card.

Wirex continues to develop the product in line with market developments, whilst adhering to regional regulations and securing appropriate licensing where it exists. A proven industry pioneer, Wirex introduced the world's first bitcoin reward programme, Cryptoback, which earns cardholders up to 1.5% back in bitcoin for every in-store transaction they make, as well as launching their own native utility token, WXT.

Wirex is based in London, with offices in Singapore, Kyiv, Tokyo, Toronto, Dallas, Dublin and Atlanta. With over $4bn worth of transactions processed already and rapid expansion into new territories, including the US and Japan, Wirex is uniquely placed to support and promote the mass adoption of a cashless society through creative solutions.

| wirexapp.com |

About Zero Hash

Zero Hash's mission is to empower innovators by delivering access to the financial system 2.0. Zero Hash enables developers and businesses to focus on building experiences and products. We power your favorite brokerage app or neo bank to offer BTC, provide the rails to the 2.0 payment processors, give platforms the ability to facilitate instantaneous cross border payments and eliminate complexity for moving assets for the world's largest liquidity providers.



Zero Hash is a FinCen-registered Money Service Business as well as a regulated Money Transmitter that can operate in 51 US jurisdictions. Zero Hash also holds a virtual currency license from NYDFS. In Canada, Zero Hash is registered as a Money Service Business with FINTRAC.

SOURCE Wirex

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Jailed drug traffickers who are appealing against their convictions because of their involvements with barrister-turned-informer Nicola Gobbo are still waiting for police to hand over documents they suspect could be crucial in their legal fights.

Four former clients of Ms Gobbo, who was their lawyer while snitching on them as a registered police informer, had their cases before the Court of Appeal on Thursday so court president Chris Maxwell could be updated on how the appeals were progressing. The men argue their convictions were tainted by Ms Gobbos connection.

Francesco Madafferi in 2009. Credit:Paul Rovere

Another four men, including crime boss Tony Mokbel, will have their cases appear for administrative hearings on Friday.

In separate hearings on Thursday, lawyers for Zlate Cvetanovski and Francesco Madafferi said they were waiting on police to disclose documents detailing the relationship Ms Gobbo had with others connected to the respective cases. Lawyers for two other jailed men, Rob Karam and Carmelo Falanga, said they were also awaiting documents to help boost their cases.
New Delhi: In Unnao girls' death case, the Uttar Pradesh police on Thursday (February 18) formed six teams to investigate the matter. Two girls of the same family were found dead in their agriculture field on Wednesday evening, while one other is in critical condition, said UP police.

The Superintendent of Police of Unnao, Anand Kulkarni, has said that there were no injury marks on the bodies and that prima facie it appeared to be a case of poisoning.

"As per investigation so far, statements of eyewitnesses and opinion of the doctor, a lot of froth was found at the spot. So, prima facie there are symptoms of poisoning. We're investigating the matter. Prima facie no injury marks found on bodies. Six teams formed for probe," Kulkarni was quoted as saying by ANI.

The three girls were found unconscious, tied with 'dupatta' in the Baburaha village. While two of them were declared brought dead at the district hospital, the third, who was in a critical condition, was referred to a private hospital in Kanpur.

The police said that the three girls had gone to their fields to cut grass on Wednesday afternoon but did not return till late evening. After this, the family went out looking for them and found the girls in the field. The girls were frothing at the mouth, indicating that they might have been given poison.

The police said they waiting for the post-mortem reports to determine their cause of death.

The law and order situation of the Unnao district has often come under scrutiny as several incidents of brutality have surfaced in the past.

In 2019, a rape victim was burned alive by five men outside the Sindupur village in Unnao district on her way to a court in Rae Bareli to attend a hearing.

With the Budget session of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly commencing on Thursday, the opposition is likely to corner the government over the law and order situation.

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Evidence that a sense of our physical selves can develop even without the sense of touch has been uncovered in a new study by researchers in the UK and the United States.

The research shows that if someone loses their sense of touch and 'proprioception' - their sense of body position - as an adult, they may learn compensatory skills using visual cues and conscious thought, or reasoning, to move their bodies.

Someone who has never had a sense of touch or proprioception, however, can find faster, unconscious ways of processing visual cues to move and orient themselves.

A team at the University of Birmingham collaborated with researchers at Bournemouth University and the University of Chicago on the study, published in Experimental Brain Research.

The team worked with two individuals - called Ian and Kim - who have had unique sensory experiences: Ian developed a complete loss of tactile sense and proprioception (sense of body position), together called somatosensation, below his neck after an autoimmune response to an illness as a teenager. Kim was born without somatosensation, lacking the sensory nerve fibres needed to feel her body.

The researchers were interested in learning how the human brain adapts to a loss of sensory information and how it might compensate if this information is not present in the first place.

"There are a lot of questions about how we form a sense of the body and of the self," said Peggy Mason, Professor of Neurobiology at the University of Chicago. "Body and self are very integrated, and your sense of your physical self is present when you close your eyes -- but without a sense of touch or proprioception, it really wouldn't be.

"Kim has a unique condition, where she is operating on vision, hearing, and the vestibular system. She doesn't have touch or proprioception and never has. Ian is in a very different situation, because he had these senses and lost them. We were interested in whether or not a person can take visual information that's not involved in visual perception and feed it into some place in the brain that is responsible for generating a sense of your body. Essentially, can you use that to have a sense of the body when you're seeing it?"

For the study, Kim and Ian came into the lab at the University of Birmingham, along with age-matched control subjects, to participate in a number of experiments designed to assess both their mental image of their bodies as well as their unconscious sense of their bodies in space. These included reporting on the shape and size of their hands by moving a cursor on a screen to locate landmarks like fingertips and knuckles, and estimating their 'reach' distance (the length of their arm).

The study found a number of similarities and, intriguingly, differences in how Kim and Ian performed in the experiments. In the hand experiment, for example, Kim's estimation of her hand shape and size was close to the control group's, being wider and shorter than her actual hand, whereas Ian's was much more accurate.

Lead researcher, Chris Miall, Professor of Motor Neuroscience at the University of Birmingham, says: "We think the differences between Ian's and Kim's responses relate to the visual control that both of them use to navigate their environment. For Ian, this is a very conscious process and he has learned to use visual cues to continually evaluate and monitor that environment. For Kim the process is much more unconscious. She still uses the visual information, but in a more instinctive and intuitive way."

Co-author Jonathan Cole, Professor of Clinical Neurophysiology at Bournemouth University, adds: "You and I have habits and skills that are not conscious, but Ian has to think about movement the whole time."

These results indicate that if someone loses their sense of touch and proprioception as an adult, they may be able to learn compensatory skills, using visual input and conscious thought to move their bodies. However, a person who never experiences somatosensation may be able to develop mechanisms to bypass the lack of sensation and instead use unconsciously processed visual information to exert motor control.

"What we can learn from this is that you might not do it in the way that others do it, but you will find a way to make a body schema," said Mason. "You will find a way to make a sense of yourself. Kim has found a way. It's not the way that you or I do it, or the way that anyone else on earth might do it, but it's absolutely critical to have that sense of self. You have to be located somewhere. We're not brains in vats!"

###

For more information, please contact Tony Moran, International Communications Manager, University of Birmingham on +44 (0)782 783 2312. For out-of-hours enquiries, please call +44 (0) 7789 921 165.

Notes to editor:

* The University of Birmingham is ranked amongst the world's top 100 institutions. Its work brings people from across the world to Birmingham, including researchers, teachers and more than 6,500 international students from over 150 countries.

* Miall et al (2021). 'Perception of body shape and size without touch or proprioception: evidence from individuals with congenital and acquired neuropathy'. Experimental Brain Research.
Connecticuts largest teachers union is ramping up efforts to convince state officials to prioritize COVID-19 vaccinations for teachers and school staff.

The Connecticut Education Association launched a campaign on Wednesday calling on the state to quickly inoculate educators.

The vaccine will bring another layer of protection, along with other mitigation strategies, to all of the staff who work with our children every single day, said Jeff Leake, CEA president.

The teachers argued that other states have already prioritized educators in their vaccination schedules and that getting vaccines into teachers arms in Connecticut would help address the constant need to shut down schools when teachers are forced to quarantine after exposure to the virus.

CEA kicked off the campaign with a news conference featuring five Connecticut Teachers of the Year winners. The union also premiered a public service announcement advocating for vaccinating teachers to keep schools safe and open.

Get teachers vaccinated as quickly as we possibly can, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nations leading infectious disease expert, said in the video. The idea of vaccinating teachers is very high up in the priority.

The Teachers of the Year said they all want to be with their students, but in-person teaching needs to be safe. The video ends with a link to a petition and the words Vaccinate educators now.

School staff are among the next groups eligible for vaccines, including front-line essential workers and people with preexisting medical conditions that put them at higher risk for COVID-19 complications, Gov. Ned Lamont said on Tuesday. The state has not released guidance regarding priorities within the broad groups.

A couple thousand teachers are already eligible for the vaccine because they are age 65 or older, a spokesperson for Gov. Lamont told reporters last week. But Connecticut is not among the more than half of states nationwide officially rolling out vaccinations to educators.

Teachers in many other states have been getting vaccinated for the past several weeks, yet here in Connecticut we havent even started, said Kristen Record, a physics teacher at Bunnell High School in Stratford and the 2011 Connecticut Teacher of the Year. This is really stunning to me.

If were going to prioritize in-person learning, then we need to prioritize getting vaccines into the arms of educators so that we can do our essential work safely, she said.

The public agrees. In a new poll by Morning Consult and Politico, most voters  55 percent  responded that states should wait to reopen schools until teachers have received a coronavirus vaccine, while 34 percent think they should not. A majority (54 percent) also trusts local teachers unions to decide whether or not to reopen schools.

But recent U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance prioritizes strategies including mask-wearing, hand washing and social distancing over vaccinations. The CDC said that officials consider giving high priority to teachers in early phases of vaccine distribution, but that access to vaccination should not be considered a condition for reopening schools for in-person instruction.

The CDC also advised that people who are fully vaccinated do not have to quarantine when exposed to COVID-19 within three months of being fully vaccinated and if they show no symptoms.

Why is that very important? said CEA Executive Director Don Williams. The number one cause of school closures in Connecticut is staff needing to quarantine. So when we vaccinate school teachers and staff, we reduce school closures and the disruption that it causes for students and their families.

If we want to keep our schools open in a way thats safe for students, staff and their families, we need to vaccinate everyone who works in our schools, he said.
Ukraine expects to get compensation from Iran for downing UIAs passenger plane within five years.

"We have truth on our side, we have the strength of arguments and norms of international law on our side. Sooner or later, justice will be restored, and I am definitely sure that all perpetrators will be brought to justice, and the Iranian side will pay appropriate compensation to the relatives of the victims, the airline and the state of Ukraine," Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Yevhenii Yenin said on the air of Ukraine 24 TV channel, Ukrinform reports.

When asked when the Foreign Ministry expects to get compensation, Yenin said: "It is extremely difficult to make forecasts, taking into account, in particular, internal political situation in Iran We can refer to the current practice. The average term of pre-trial negotiations lasts from 2 to 5 years. If we talk about litigation prospect, its from 5 to 10 years. We very much hope to settle this issue in a pre-judicial procedure. All the efforts of Ukrainian diplomacy and coalition partners are focused on the effective conduct of negotiations with the Iranian side."

As reported, on January 8, 2020, Ukraine International Airlines plane (Flight PS752) heading from Tehran to Kyiv crashed shortly after taking off from the Imam Khomeini International Airport. There were 176 people on board  nine crew members (all Ukrainians) and 167 passengers (citizens of Ukraine, Iran, Canada, Sweden, Afghanistan, Germany, and the UK).

On January 11, Iran admitted that its military had accidentally shot down the Ukrainian passenger jet. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) accepted full responsibility for the downing of the Ukrainian airliner.

On January 5, 2021, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Ukraine had received from Iran a draft technical report on the circumstances of the crash of flight PS752, and should prepare its comments by the end of February.

On February 16, Kuleba said that Ukraine expected to receive from Canada an audio recording, in which a man identified as Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discusses the possibility that the destruction of Flight PS752 was an intentional act.

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The government currently has no proposal to hike the prices of foodgrains sold through ration shops under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), Union Food Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday.

Currently, the government supplies highly subsidised foodgrains at Rs 1-3 per kg to over 81 crore people through public distribution system (PDS).

Under the NFSA, which was passed in 2013 during the previous UPA regime, there is a provision for revision of the issue prices of foodgrains every three years. However, foodgrains prices have not been revised since the introduction of the Act although economic cost has increased every year.

"At present, there is no such proposal before the food ministry to increase the prices of products given under the Food Security Act," Goyal said in a virtual press conference.

And, the PDS prices of rice, wheat and coarse grains will continue to be sold at Rs 3, Rs 2 and Re 1 per kg, respectively, he said.

The minister was responding to a query if the Centre has plans to hike the PDS rates as the Economic Survey 2021 has recommended increasing the prices of foodgrains sold under PDS to reduce food security bill.

The government supplies 5 kg of subsidised foodgrains to each person per month through 5.5 lakh ration shops. has been rolled out across the country since November 2016.

On the progress made in ration card portability, the minister said the work in this regard under the scheme 'One Nation, One Ration Card (ONORC)' began two years ago and today, the facility is available in 32 states and Union Territories.

Under the ONORC plan, beneficiaries can lift their entitled foodgrains from any electronic point of sale device (ePoS)-enabled fair price shops of their choice by using their existing ration cards with biometric authentication.

Goyal said, "Two years back, the work had begun when it was implemented in four states. In a short span of time, this facility has now been provided in 32 states/UTs covering about 69 crore beneficiaries."



About 1.5 crore beneficiaries are taking advantage of the ration card portability facility, he added.

Stating that four more states are expected to implement the ONORC by March 31, Goyal said, "The speedy work is in progress in Delhi, Assam, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal. Due to elections in Assam and West Bengal, there might be some delay of 2-3 months."



The central government is in regular touch with the rest of the states where ration card portability is yet to be implemented and encouraging them to put necessary systems in place, he added.

To ensure seamless service of ration card portability, a food ministry official said all ration cards given under the have been fully digitalised, Aadhaar seeding has been completed in 91 per cent of the ration cards and ePoS machines have installed in 4.9 lakh ration shops so far.

On a monthly basis, 70 per cent biometric transactions are happening at ration shops, he added.

On foodgrains procurement, the minister said there has been a substantial rise in wheat and paddy buying at minimum support price (MSP) directly from farmers in the past seven years.

During 2020-21, the MSP payment was at "all-time high" as Rs 75,000 crore worth of wheat was purchased from 43.46 lakh farmers, while Rs 1.72 lakh crore worth of paddy from 1.54 crore farmers, he added.

To ensure MSP reaches farmers, a senior food ministry official said states have been directed to make online payment via state or FCI portals.

Even Haryana and Punjab have been asked to ensure online payments to farmers are done through e-mode from the upcoming season, he added.

That apart, procurement through bio-authentication of farmers has been introduced in Uttar Pradesh. Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are also keen to adopt bio-authenticated procurement which will ensure transparency and tracking end-use beneficiary.

The ministry is also looking at monetisation of assets of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and the Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC), which will lead to large investments in modernisation of warehousing and storage infrastructure, he added.

(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.)
Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help
TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ - West Red Lake Gold Mines Inc. ("West Red Lake Gold" or the "Company") (CSE: RLG) (OTCQB: RLGMF) (FSE: HYK) announces that it has completed the initial stage of exploration on the southern portion of the 100 metre wide, north-east trending NT Zone which lies on the West Red Lake Gold Project within the prolific Red Lake Gold District of Northwestern Ontario, Canada.

During the previous two years, West Red Lake Gold completed 10,866 metres of shallow drilling in 40 holes within the NT Zone over a distance of 1 km from West Red Lake Gold's south property boundary along strike to the north-east. Several parallel gold zones containing high grade gold mineralization with surrounding lower grade, potential bulk tonnage gold mineralization, has been intersected from surface down to a depth of approximately 200 metres.

In the next stage of NT Zone drilling the objective is to explore and extend gold mineralization further along the NT Zone to the north-east for approximately 1 km where it intersects with the east-west trending Pipestone Bay St Paul Deformation Zone ("PBS Zone") and folds around to the west along the north side of the Rowan Mine Gold Deposit (see map). West Red Lake Gold is also drilling approximately 10 shallow holes to target gold mineralization above the first level of the Rowan Mine.

Drill Highlights of Southern NT Zone Exploration Drilling (including previous news releases of January 30, 2019; January 15, 2020; and September 24, 2020) plus results reported today.

January 30, 2019:

14.18 gpt Au over 7.8 m from 85.2 m to 93 m at a dip of -55

6.51 gpt Au over 9.3 m from 59.5 m to 68.8 m at a dip of -55

13.80 gpt Au over 1.8 m from 100.2 m to 102 m at a dip of -45

3.76 gpt Au over 5.6 m from 62.7 m to 68.3 m at a dip of -45

January 15, 2020:

12.14 gpt Au over 13.5 m from 82.5 m to 96 m at a dip of -45

9.14 gpt Au over 7.5 m from 232m to 239.5 m at a dip of -50

5.38 gpt Au over 21.0 m from 132 m to 153 m at a dip of -60

11.13 gpt Au over 3.0 m from 41 m to 44 m at a dip of -45

September 24, 2020:

7.92 gpt Au over 3.0 m from 312 m to 315 m at a dip of -47

Incl. 14.71 gpt over 1.5 m

5.91 gpt Au over 6.0 m from 106.5 m to 112.5 m at a dip of -72

7.34 gpt Au over 1.5 m from 106.5 m to 108 m at a dip of -45

February 18, 2021:

10.16 gpt Au over 1.5 m from 140.5 m to 142 m at a dip of -45

10.36 gpt Au over 1.5 m from 192.5 m to 194 m at a dip of -45

2.94 gpt Au over 12.8 m from 213.5 m to 226.3 m at a dip of -45

Incl. 10.34 gpt over 1.5 m

Mr. John Kontak, President of West Red Lake Gold stated "We are very pleased that the exploration drill program successfully outlined gold mineralization along the southern 1 km portion the NT Zone. These drill results demonstrate that the 2 km long north-east trending NT Zone holds significant exploration potential both along strike and to greater depth."

The 40 shallow holes reported in 2019, 2020 and today were drilled into the southern kilometer of the NT Zone which consists of a broad hydrothermal deformation zone comprised of ultramafic, mafic and felsic volcanics as well as iron formation. All the lithologies have undergone intensive pervasive hydrothermal alteration consisting of extensive sericitization, silicification and carbonatization. This results in a sequence of rocks consisting of predominately sericite, iron carbonate, silica / quartz and fuchsite. Sulphide mineralization, consisting of pyrite, pyrrhotite and sphalerite, is also associated with the alteration package.

Technical Information

The technical information presented in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Kenneth Guy, P.Geo., a consultant to West Red Lake Gold and the Qualified Person for exploration at the West Red Lake Project, as defined by National Instrument 43-101 "Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects" ("NI 43-101").

All drilling was completed using NQ size core. Gold analyses on the samples collected by West Red Lake Gold were performed by SGS Laboratories Ltd. Analysis consisted of a fire assay of a 50-gram sample with an atomic absorption finish. Samples assaying over 10.0 gpt Au are re-assayed with gravimetric finish. Samples noted to contain visible gold are analyzed via total metallic assay method. A rigorous Quality Control and Assurance Program is in place using control samples including blanks and standards.

The Rowan Mine property presently hosts a National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") inferred mineral resource of 4,468,900 tonnes at an average grade of 7.57 grams per tonne Au containing 1,087,700 ounces of gold with a cut-off grade of 3.0 grams per tonne (NI 43-101 Technical Report and Resource Estimate on the West Red Lake Project dated February 16, 2016 and filed on sedar.com). The inferred resource is located at the area of the historic underground Rowan Mine site and is situated within a 1.8 km strike length portion of the regional scale PBS Zone. The Rowan Mine Gold Deposit is located approximately 800 m northwest of the NT Zone.

About West Red Lake Gold Mines

West Red Lake Gold is a Toronto-based minerals exploration company focused on gold exploration and development in the prolific Red Lake Gold District of Northwest Ontario, Canada. The Red Lake Gold District is host to some of the richest gold deposits in the world and has produced 30 million ounces of gold from high grade zones. The Company has assembled a significant property position totalling 3,100 hectares in west Red Lake (the "West Red Lake Project") which contains three former gold mines located 15 km west of the Red Lake mine complex. The Mount Jamie Mine and Red Summit Mine properties are 100% owned by the Company and the Rowan Mine property is held in a 64%/36% joint venture with Evolution Mining Limited. The West Red Lake Project property covers a 12 km strike length along the Pipestone Bay St Paul Deformation Zone and the Company plans to continue to explore the property both along strike and to depth during 2021.

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About Evolution Mining

Evolution Mining is a leading, growth-focused Australian gold miner. Evolution operates five wholly owned mines - Cowal in New South Wales, Mt Rawdon and Mt Carlton in Queensland, Mungari in Western Australia, and Red Lake in Ontario, Canada. In addition, Evolution holds an economic interest in the Ernest Henry copper-gold mine in Queensland. FY21 Group gold production is forecast to be between 670,000 - 730,000 ounces at an AISC of A$1,240 - A$1,300 per ounce.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Certain statements contained in this news release constitute "forward looking statements". When used in this document, the words "anticipated", "expect", "estimated", "forecast", "planned", and similar expressions are intended to identify forward looking statements or information. These statements are based on current expectations of management, however, they are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this news release. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these statements. West Red Lake Gold does not undertake any obligation to revise or update any forward looking statements as a result of new information, future events or otherwise after the date hereof, except as required by securities laws.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities of the Company in the United States. The securities of the Company have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. Any failure to comply with this restriction may constitute a violation of U.S. Securities laws.

West Red Lake Project Diamond Drill Results Table

SOURCE West Red Lake Gold Mines Inc.

Related Links

https://www.westredlakegold.com/


Comments made by the president of the Scranton Federation of Teachers earlier this month perpetuated negative stereotypes and hurt many members of the community, Scranton school directors said in a statement released Thursday.

Whether perceived or intended, (Rosemary) Bolands words convey an image of our students and their families this board does not endorse, the statement reads. We are confident that the teachers who educate these students would not abide it either.

A petition online, signed by more than 250 people, calls for her to resign as union president. During Feb. 1 and 8 school board meetings, Boland spoke about the challenges the district faces with resuming in-person instruction.

We have children from families who are underserved by our medical community, nobody thinks about them, she said Feb. 1. Our black children, our brown children, our immigrant children, we dont know who in their family has had COVID. We dont know if theyve been vaccinated because we dont know any of that because nobody has documentation for that part of our population.

On Feb. 8, during a meeting in which public comment started at 11 p.m. and the board voted after midnight to resume in-person instruction for elementary students, Boland spoke about trying to control transmission of the virus.

Our students go home. They are not going home to the Donna Reed home, they are going home to homes in Scranton School District, she said. Do you know our students? Do you know our families? Do you know some of our students have been in Philadelphia? They have been in New York, so some member of a family could take care of them. Do you know theyve left the United States and that they have returned and there is no way we can figure out who has been or not has been positive with COVID.

Sarah Cruz, the first person of color elected to the school board, said while research shows members of minority communities are disproportionately affected by the coronavirus, white people can also get and spread COVID-19. The comment on Feb. 1 bothered Cruz, and Bolands words on Feb. 8 felt paralyzing.

My director title and status was stripped away, Cruz said Thursday, recalling how she felt the night of Feb. 8. I was just a dirty brown girl sitting at my immigrant mothers kitchen table.

Boland, in her 16th year as union president and whose membership elected her to another term this week, said Thursday she made those statements with the health and safety of students, staff and the community in mind.

If those words have been perceived by anyone as being hurtful, that was never the intent. That was never my intent to cause that kind of feeling. I want the people to know that, she said. The intent was to always step up and fight for our students.

Erica Tosh, the mother of four biracial children in the district and creator of the petition, wrote that Boland managed to make me feel like my children would be blamed for any spread of COVID if they returned.

A person who believes it is OK to make racist comments about my children should not be the head of the people teaching my children, Tosh wrote.

Cruz emailed Boland on Feb. 10, and the two met Wednesday to discuss the remarks. Solicitor John Audi listened to the conversation by phone.

It was hoped that a constructive conversation might endeavor to improve communication and acknowledge the impact words can have, according to the statement from the board. It was hoped that an opportunity to rectify the situation might be identified. Unfortunately, that was not the result.

Cruz said she explained to Boland why her words were perceived as being racist and said that for the good of the district and community, she should consider resigning as union president.

I do not ever project racism, Boland said Thursday. I detest that. My life is a testament to that. Im not a racist. If that is what they are perceiving, its very, very unfortunate. Im sorry they are perceiving it that way. I have a history of speaking up for kids, working for kids and working for parents my whole life.
Constructed from stainless steel, the cat-back center exhaust is manufactured - with pride - in Idaho. Mandrel-bent pipes with a diameter of 3.0 inches are complemented by 4.0-inch tips, which are finished as standard in blue oxide. Carbon-fiber and stainless-steel welded tips add $499 to the tally, while full carbon-fiber tips will set you back an extra $999.A monoblock design, the Aerolarri exhaust doesnt void the factory warranty, and its 100-percent street legal. The exhaust also features valve simulators that avoid check engine lights and a hanger bridge.Waterjet cut from 1/8-inch stainless steel and beautified by the companys logo in bold, stylized letters, the hanger bridge has grille-like openings that allow air to pass through, acting as a heat sink. If your neighbors are the kind of people who dont like even a hint of loudness in the morning, Aerolarri has very bad news for them. A set of race mufflers, which promise to reduce the volume by 20 percent, are described as very loud.If you believe that something looks out of place, youre not wrong because the tips on the demo vehicle are a little too far out. Chet Baigh, the owner of Aerolarri , explains that carbon-fiber tips are 0.5 inches shorter. We probably will set them a bit more inboard for the finals which the customers will get.In addition to the aftermarket, none other than General Motors is looking to bring back the center-exiting exhaust to the Chevrolet Corvette . Both the Z06 and the ZR1 have been photographed and filmed in this specification, but only time will tell if this configuration will see the light of series production.As a brief refresher, the Z06 will switch to a flat-plane crankshaft V8 powerplant inspired by the high-revving C8.R endurance racer. The ZR1 will differ in only one way under the hood, thanks to a couple of turbochargers.

The 2019 arrival of AW Texas in Cibolo, the worlds largest manufacturer of automotive transmissions, could be considered the feather in the cap of Cibolo City Manager Robert Herrera, who announced his resignation last month after nine years in the office.

Herrera will not be seeking an extension of his contract, which expires in May. At its Jan. 26 meeting, the Cibolo City Council hired an executive search firm to help seek out Herreras replacement.

The city of Cibolo has been a beacon of growth in the area and I am honored to have been an active role in that, Herrera stated. This city has been my home for a considerable amount of time, and I wish nothing but success for the current and future leaders of this city.

Herrera, a native San Antonian and John F. Kennedy High School graduate, had logged 33 years of experience in city management, including nine as city manager in Hondo, before arriving in Cibolo. He will pursue other career opportunities once his tenure ends May 14.

I am excited for this next chapter in my career and look forward to continuing my role as a public servant for years to come, he said.

Mayor Stosh Boyle said Cibolo has been the recipient of Herreras continued efforts to harness and direct the citys exponential growth.

Cibolo has been home to exponential growth over the last nine years under City Manager Herrera, Boyle said. We plan to use this growth as a building block to continue Cibolos success.

The arrival of AW Texas ended a two-year campaign to bring the firm to town. The firm, headquartered in Japan, will bring $400 million in capital investment with 900 jobs to its facility on Interstate 10. Current models estimate a net benefit of nearly $11 million in revenue to the city over 10 years, including annual salaries of $40 million at full operation.

Cibolo has also successfully partnered with the YMCA on Herreras watch. The organization opened a 26,400-square-foot facility with a ball field complex and plans to open a Miracle League Field in the near future.

During 2020, the city realized growth through the duration of the pandemic, according to a city press release on Herreras resignation. Under his direction, sales tax rose in 2020 and 18 new businesses chose to open their doors during uncertain times. Cibolo City Hall remained open and fully staffed during the emergency declaration enacted by City Council.

All of our employees are essential, and we are here to show the businesses and citizens of Cibolo that we continue our public service during trying times, Herrera said.

Herrera has over 30 years of progressive city management experience in municipal government. In addition to his city management experience, he remains active in state organizations. He currently serves as Place 1 Trustee and Chairman of the Finance Committee on the Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool (TMLIRP) Board of Trustees. Herrera is also a current member of the Texas City Management Association.

Council will recognize the city manager for his service to the community closer to the end of his contract.
Many fingers are being pointed over the blackouts that have left millions of Texans without power during the coldest temperatures to sweep the state in over three decades.

Elected officials are blaming renewable energy, utilities are blaming the Energy Reliability Council of Texas, ERCOT is blaming power distributor ONCOR. The fact is, its everybodys fault, said Bernadette Johnson, senior vice president, power and renewables at Enverus, the data analytics firm.

Its everything  a big chunk of renewable energy froze up; gas plants froze up, she said in a telephone interview.

Kirk Edwards, president and chief executive officer of Latigo Petroleum, agreed there were compression issues in West Texas oil and gas fields that prevented sufficient supplies from getting to the large gas plants that process the natural gas and ship it to end users  in this case, power plants.

Still, he told the Reporter-Telegram in a telephone interview, ERCOT dropped the ball. In the throes of the cold, demand was for 70,000 megawatts and Texas power plants were only able to generate 40,000 megawatts for ERCOT, he said.

We have to figure out how, in this state, to place a reliable baseload of electricity to address situations like this, he said. He added that supplies have to be placed around the state. You cant have a nuclear plant in Midland-Odessa, for example, while Dallas is in a blackout, he said.

With wind and solar projects receiving subsidies, he said its difficult for thermal energy  natural gas, coal or even nuclear  plants to compete. There needs to be a way for companies to receive a return on their investment before theyll build a $300 million power plant, he said.

Compounding the problem is that Texas network of pipelines is geared to moving gas outside the state to cold-weather areas. The folks buying natural gas are not Texas companies but out-of-state companies pulling gas out, Johnson said.

Edwards decried the fact that in West Texas, natural gas is still being flared to the tune of 350 million cubic feet a day.

Again, that makes the industry look foolish  we cant generate the electricity we need, but were burning natural gas, he said.

Weatherizing plants to withstand such frigid temperatures is not that costly, but creating the ability to move more natural gas to power generators is, Johnson said. Over-engineering the electric grid or the natural gas grid all have costs. And if that over-engineered capacity is never used, she noted people would complain about misused funds.

Those costs will ultimately be borne by consumers, whether its homeowners, commercial businesses or industrial facilities, Johnson said.

Edwards called for a 9/11-type inquiry into ERCOT after the storm has passed.

Because the situation is still ongoing, Johnson said there isnt enough information on what facilities went offline and why. But she said two things are already clear to prepare for the next event: Power facilities need a weatherization plan, and there needs to an increase in the reserve margin, which ERCOT is already doing  and financial incentives for companies to increase capacity and supply.

And renewables will continue to be part of the electric grid, she said, with 1.8 gigawatts of wind energy to come online this year and additional solar energy as well. That has ERCOT increasing its reserve margins to accommodate that extra power.

But flexibility is needed, and natural gas is the ideal fuel to back up renewables, she said, because a power generation plant can turn it on quickly and start generating power quickly.

While its easy to blame renewable energy or those who promote renewable energy, or elected officials or transmission companies or ERCOT, Johnson pointed out that This is a record event. No system in the country is immune to this. Some systems are more fragile, but no system is without risk.

While power grids design their grids for worst-case scenarios, she said the current storm is worse than even that design base.
Federico Chiesa gave Juventus hope in the Champions League as his late strike gifted them a crucial away goal in a 2-1 loss at Porto.

The Italian's 82nd-minute strike ended an unwanted run for Juve's forwards though, as he became the first player to score a goal in the Champions League's knockout rounds other than Cristiano Ronaldo since the Portuguese's 2018 arrival from Real Madrid.

Andrea Pirlo couldn't have asked for a worse start, and Rodrigo Bentancur will be enduring sleepless nights for his part in Porto's opener, which came after just 61 seconds.

Juventus looked to play the ball out from their own box, but it all went wrong as the Uruguayan's carelessness was exposed by the hosts' aggressive press. Inside his own box, Bentancur played a blind flicked pass towards Wojciech Szczesny, but Mehdi Taremi slid in to get there before the Pole and give the Portuguese side the lead.

Porto continued to press high, and La Vecchia Signora struggled to find a way to overcome it. They looked to implement a more direct approach, but Porto were equal to everything they had thrown at them.

Frustratingly for the Bianconeri, the second half started in the very same manner as the first, and the hosts were celebrating their second goal within a minute of the restart. A ball into the box from Wilson Manafa found Moussa Marega who, after taking a touch to set himself, beat Szczesny at his near post with an effort that the Juventus 'keeper might have done more with.

Federico Chiesa pulled one back for Juve int he final ten minutes, finishing excellently on an Adrien Rabiot cutback.

March 9 will see the two sides do battle again, and Juventus have a fighting chance thanks to Chiesa's late strike.
Igor Orel

In the coming years, Ukraine intends to start developing the Black Sea shelf, which, if the efforts see success, will add some 10-15 billion cubic meters of gas to annual output stats and make the country energy-independent.

Unfortunately, today, Ukraine is unable to pull off such an ambitious project on its own. The government needs billions of dollars in investments, as well as some more advanced technology.

Naftogaz is actively looking for partners

Therefore, National Joint Stock Company Naftogaz of Ukraine, granted by the government in late 2020 the right to explore and produce oil and gas on the Black Sea shelf, is actively looking for partners who would provide funding, technology, and experience to successfully implement the project.

The first company whose interest Naftogaz was able to draw was a Romanian firm OMV Petrom, where 51% of the stakes belong to Austria-based OMV, the largest energy company in Central Europe.

Ukrainian state energy holding has signed with their Romanian partner a memorandum of cooperation on gas exploration and production.

The agreement calls for the parties to analyse cooperation opportunities in promising oil and gas areas in the Ukrainian part of the Black Sea, which may lead to concluding more serious agreements on the joint development of the Ukrainian shelf.

Both parties will benefit from participation. Naftogaz gets one of the leading European energy companies as a partner, which will simplify attracting other potential investors and also accelerate project implementation.

Romania's involvement significantly reduces the risks associated with the Russian military presence in the region

Moreover, Romania is a NATO Ally and an EU member state, therefore, the involvement of a Romanian company in the project significantly reduces the risks associated with the Russian military presence in the region. In 2014, Russia occupied the Crimean peninsula and seized part of Ukraine's Black Sea shelf, as well as grabbed Ukrainian offshore drilling platforms.

In turn, OMV is expanding its presence in the Black Sea basin, which is in line with the company's strategy, also gaining access to one of the largest gas reserves in the said water area. According to various estimates, forecast resources on this part of the Ukrainian shelf amount to a whopping 1-2 trillion cubic meters of gas.

Besides, OMV Petrom has already received the right to explore and produce hydrocarbons on the Black Sea shelf of Georgia and Bulgaria.

In addition, back in 2012, the Romanian company together with the U.S.-based ExxonMobil discovered a large gas field 170 km off the coast of Romania on the Neptune block. From 2008 to 2016, companies invested $ 1.5 billion in exploration work in this block.

However, in 2019, amid changes in Romania's tax legislation and plunging gas prices, ExxonMobil, which had invested in Neptune some t $750 million, announced its intention to withdraw.

Global businesses are losing interest in hydrocarbon production in the Black Sea

That is, Romania, just like Ukraine, is faced with the fact that the world's largest oil and gas companies are losing interest in hydrocarbon production in the Black Sea.

Whereas for the region's countries, the development of the sea shelf remains a strategic task, the implementation of which can make Russia's energy dominance in Eastern Europe a thing of the past.

Therefore, it is extremely important that Ukraine boost its efforts in the international arena to involve in a large-scale project as many countries of the region as possible  the ones that today share the same problem of dependence on energy imports, primarily from Russia.

It's not only about the countries of the Black Sea basin, but also countries such as Poland, which in recent years has been trying to reduce dependence of its economy on Russian gas.

Joint implementation of energy and infrastructure projects will allow, economically and politically, to bring Ukraine closer to its neighbors, members of the European Union.

Rallying the countries of Eastern and Central Europe around the implementation of important economic projects could make the region more resilient in the face of external challenges, which is especially important today, as Russia's anti-European rhetoric is becoming more and more aggressive.

Ukraine is called to be the driver of these processes

Ukraine, which suffered from its northern neighbor's aggression more than others, can't allow itself taking a passive stance; it is called upon to be the driver of these processes, offering its neighbors projects that would unite the countries of the Baltic-Black Sea region and contribute to their overall economic development.

Joint development of the Black Sea shelf may become the first, and most ambitious, of such initiatives.

Ihor Orel
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As COVID-19 cases surge across the country, we appear to have another long winter ahead of us in 2021. In March of 2020, stay-at-home orders were put in place, schools closed, and many people were spending more time at home than ever before. While being home has offered benefits to some, others have been trapped in terrifying circumstances with no escape.

In March of 2020, domestic-violence hotlines prepared for increased call volume. What happened defied the predictions of most experts. There was a substantial drop in domestic-violence hotline calls, in some cases, up to a 53 percent reduction in call volume was observed. Did we suddenly see a huge decrease in intimate partner violence? This is unlikely. A more logical explanation is victims were unable to safely contact these services because of the close proximity of their abuser.

Let that sink in.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) can take many forms, including physical, verbal, emotional, and sexual abuse. On average, nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner in the United States. 1 in 4 women and 1 in 9 men experience severe physical violence, sexual violence, and/or intimate partner stalking. As a psychiatrist, IPV is alarmingly common among our patient population. When I began as a psychiatrist in training, I forced myself to soften the expressions of shock or horror that would emerge on my face while hearing my patients stories. Perhaps more concerning was when I stopped being shocked. Despite everything Ive heard and experienced in my clinical practice, I was completely unprepared for the events that occurred the weekend before Thanksgiving.

I was working the second of two consecutive call shifts at the hospital. I recall looking forward to a few days off and fantasizing about cooking my first meat-free Thanksgiving dinner. We were rounding on the patients and about to enter the COVID-19 unit. As we put on our personal protective equipment, my phone began ringing. As I was about to ignore the call, my sisters name came across the caller ID. Our relationship does not typically include casual phone chats, so with curiosity and some sense of alarm, I excused myself and cautiously answered the phone. I had an inclination that the call wasnt going to be good, but I was completely unprepared for what awaited me on the other end of the line.

Before any words even registered, I felt obvious panic on the other line. I was greeted by my sisters screams and my nieces cries. In her distress, my sister couldnt speak clearly to explain what was happening. Trying to stay calm, I tried to help her focus and communicate. All of my training regarding psychiatric interviewing and crisis intervention felt useless at this moment.

Finally, she said, I need your help. There is blood everywhere.

As I steadied my breath, I was uncertain regarding the specifics of the situation, but quite sure it was really bad. I asked if she had called my wife or parents since they were closer to her location and not currently working. My sister replied and said no one was answering and she needed help now. She then stopped crying long enough to explain that her husband had assaulted her, and she needed to go to the hospital. Feeling useless at that moment, I told her to hang up and call 911.

I felt helpless and conflicted. My instinct was to rush to my sisters house; but a rational part of me thought that inserting myself into an unknown domestic violence situation could be dangerous or make the situation worse. I also had a responsibility to my patients. After reaching out to my parents and wife, I completed my call shift. Sometimes the most difficult experience as a doctor is that you cant always be there for your family. Im still not sure I made the right decision in staying at the hospital, but ultimately, I hope my clinical efforts were more effective than the feelings of futility attempting to help a loved one address intimate partner violence.

How could we miss the signs that my only sister, part of a tight-knit family, was experiencing intimate partner violence? How could I miss it? Im a physician pursuing specialty training in psychiatry and, more importantly, a generally observant and thoughtful person. What are we not seeing among friends, family members, and patients? If my sister could be a victim, there must be countless others suffering in silence.

There are many barriers to reporting IPV, from legal ramifications to retaliation on the part of the abuser. As a result, most people do not seek help [source?]. Medical offices can be a safe place to discuss IPV, but we can easily miss the signs or fail to screen patients in this setting. Normalizing the screening questions for IPV can reduce stigma and open up a dialogue. Being mindful of signs of physical abuse while interviewing the person or conducting an exam may provide indications of IPV. Hospital or emergency settings offer opportunities to connect victims with social workers, shelters, and community services.

Be aware. COVID-19 restrictions may increase the risk of intimate partner violence. Abusers rely on power and control, and when they cant attain those due to loss of job, reduction in finances, and perceived loss of freedom, they may escalate abusive behaviors. Isolation is another technique the abuser can more easily access in light of COVID-19. Dont overlook the signs.

Garrett Rossi and Kristen Mazoki are psychiatry residents who blog at Shrinks in Sneakers.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
Essential workers, especially those of color, have suffered the greatest risk of death during the pandemic among all occupations, a new study of death records in California found.

Workers in the food and agricultural sector saw a 39% increase in their mortality rate since the pandemic began, according to an analysis by the University of California that looked at death certificate data for working-age adults in the last four years in California. But Hispanic and Black workers in the sector faced the most risk, with their mortality rates increasing 59% and 34%, respectively, while whites in the same jobs experienced a 16% increase in deaths.

The jobs with the highest increase in mortality were cooks (60%), packaging and filling machine operators and tenders (59%), and miscellaneous agricultural workers (55%).

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These are low-wage jobs that are predominantly filled by people of color, said Kate Duchowny,a postdoctoral scholar at the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of California, San Francisco, told Yahoo Money. They don't necessarily have proper workplace protections and or adequate personal protective equipment to shield them from doing the work that has kept the economy going.

Read more: Here's who qualifies for the extra $100 in weekly unemployment benefits

Other sectors with a high increase in mortality included transportation or logistics and facilities with a 28% and 27% increase respectively. Other occupations with increased death risk included bakers, construction laborers, production workers, and others.

While shutdowns worked well to slow and stem the spreading of the virus, the study found that people who have continued to work have seen a disproportionally higher risk of dying than workers who were able to stay at home.

'Not have the same social capital to demand the protections'

A restaurant adapts to the Covid-19 pandemic and stay at home orders by pivoting to take out and delivery. Photo: Getty Creative

Hispanic, Black, and Asian workers not only saw the highest increase of deaths in sectors that also had the greatest excess mortality growth overall, but also in sectors where the increase wasnt that sharp.

For instance, in the health or emergency sector, the overall increase in deaths during the pandemic was 19%. But the rate increase was 40% for Asians, 32% for Hispanics, and 27% for Black workers in that sector. By contrast, white workers in that sector saw just a 2% increase.

In nearly every occupational sector and every job in this study, we observed the greatest excess risk of dying among Latinos, followed by Black and Asian workers," Duchowny said. "There were small to moderate increases among white workers.

Read more: Here's what's in Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion 'rescue plan' that could help your wallet

The smaller increase in mortality among white health or emergency workers demonstrates that risks can be mitigated when workers are "adequately protected" with personal protective equipment (PPE) and workplace protections, according to Duchowny. But all workers must have access to PPE, no matter their seniority level, especially those of color whose communities have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

"They may not have the same social capital to demand the protections that they need in order to do their job," Duchowny said, "and are therefore suffering greater consequences in terms of COVID mortality."

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Denitsa is a writer for Yahoo Finance and Cashay, a new personal finance website. Follow her on Twitter @denitsa_tsekova.

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Baghdad, Feb 18 : Three paramilitary Hashd Shaabi members were killed and five others wounded in an attack by militants of extremist Islamic State (IS) group in Diyala province in Iraq, a security source said on Thursday.

The deadly violence took place late on Wednesday night when IS militants attacked the outposts of Hashd Shaabi's 28th Brigade near the town of Khanaqin, some 165 km northeast of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, Alaa al-Saadi from the provincial police told the Xinhua news agency.

The attack sparked a fierce clash between the two sides, and there are no immediate reports about casualties among the attackers, al-Saadi said.

Early Thursday, a joint force from the Iraqi army, police and Hashd Shaabi conducted a search operation to track down the attackers who fled the scene to a nearby rugged area, al-Saadi added.

Despite repeated military operations in Diyala, remnants of IS militants are still hiding in some rugged areas near the border with Iran, and in the vast areas extending from the western part of the province to the Hamreen mountain range in the north of the provincial capital Baquba, about 65 km northeast of Baghdad.

The security situation has been relatively improved in Iraq since the Iraqi security forces fully defeated IS militants across the country late in 2017.

However, sporadic deadly incidents still occurred in the war-ravaged country as IS remnants have since melted into urban areas or deserts and rugged areas, waging frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians.
OTTAWA - The Trudeau government is moving to repeal mandatory minimum penalties for drug offences and some gun-related crimes, saying they do not make Canadians safer and unfairly affect Indigenous and Black offenders.

Minister of Justice David Lametti responds to a question during a news conference about training for judges Monday, Oct. 19, 2020 in Ottawa. The Trudeau government has tabled legislation to repeal mandatory-minimum penalties for certain drug offences, saying they do not deter crime and unfairly affect Indigenous and Black offenders.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

OTTAWA - The Trudeau government is moving to repeal mandatory minimum penalties for drug offences and some gun-related crimes, saying they do not make Canadians safer and unfairly affect Indigenous and Black offenders.

Legislation introduced Thursday would also allow for greater use of conditional sentences, such as house arrest, counselling or treatment, for people who do not pose a threat to public safety.

In addition, it would require police and prosecutors to consider alternative measures for cases of simple possession of drugs, such as diversion to addiction-treatment programs.

The office of Justice Minister David Lametti says serious criminals deserve to be punished and kept away from communities.

But it says too many lower-risk and first-time offenders, including a disproportionate number of Indigenous and Black people, are being locked away due to policies that are proven not to deter crime.

The legislation is one of several measures the federal Liberals have promised to address systemic racism in the justice system.

The bill would give judges more discretion in sentencing, rather than the mandatory minimum sentences ushered in by Stephen Harper's previous Conservative government as part of its tough-on-crime agenda.

Under the Criminal Code, an offence punishable by a mandatory minimum penalty requires that the judge impose a sentence equal to or greater than the minimum term for that offence, even in cases where imprisonment is not appropriate.

Mandatory minimums have been widely criticized for exacerbating the disproportionate number of Black and Indigenous people who wind up jail.

Lametti told a news conference Thursday the planned measures would turn the page on an approach that has not worked.

"It was an approach that did not make our communities safer. It did not deter criminals. It did not make the justice system more effective or more fair," he said. "Its singular accomplishment has been to incarcerate too many Indigenous people, too many Black people and too many marginalized Canadians."

Indigenous adults are five per cent of the Canadian population but 30 per cent of admissions to federal custody. Black adults comprise three per cent of the population but 7.2 per cent of federal offenders.

The proposed changes would repeal mandatory minimums for 14 of the 67 offences for which minimums apply under the Criminal Code. Mandatory minimums for all six of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act offences punishable by minimum sentences would be scrapped.

Lametti's predecessor in the justice portfolio, Jody Wilson-Raybould, was tasked with reviewing mandatory minimum sentences but nothing ever came of it and the government has been facing mounting pressure to act.

Last June, the multi-party parliamentary Black caucus issued a call to action that, among other things, demanded the elimination of mandatory minimums. Lametti was among the signatories.

The HIV Legal Network welcomed the legislation but said it falls short by failing to simply repeal the criminal prohibition on personal drug possession, even while it acknowledges that drug use is a health issue and that criminalization causes harm and contributes to stigma.

The threat of a possible charge for simple possession is "still at play during any interaction between police and people who use drugs," the group said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has ruled out decriminalizing simple possession of illicit drugs but his government has been moving gradually in the direction of treating drug addiction as a public health issue rather than a criminal issue.

Consistent with the Liberals' approach, the director of public prosecutions issued new guidelines last summer instructing federal prosecutors to criminally prosecute only the most serious drug-possession offences and to find alternatives outside the criminal justice system for the rest.

Lametti indicated it was not his place to go further, saying only that he would like to see a health-care response to problematic addiction.

"We're going to try to move forward in the most efficient, productive and compassionate way possible."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.

The Junta de Andalucia decides today (18 February) which coronavirus restrictions will apply in each municipality across the region based on the incidence rate in each city, town or village.

After the outbreak of cases triggered by the Christmas and New Year holidays, towns across Malaga province have been battling to overcome this third and more explosive wave of the pandemic for two weeks.

The province this Wednesday registered an average cumulative incidence of 429 infections per one hundred thousand inhabitants in the last fourteen days.

Although the public health alerts committee will determine the situation in each municipality according to the incidence rate registered today, Thursday, the data published by the Andalusian Institute of Statistics and Cartography on Wednesday gave an idea of which localities will retain closed perimeters and which may be allowed to reopen their borders.

More than twenty municipalities that currently have border lockdowns registered rates below 500 infections per hundred thousand inhabitants on Wednesday: Alameda, Alhaurin de la Torre, Alora, Arriate, Benalmadena, Benarraba, El Burgo, Cartajima, Cartama, Casares, Coin, Colmenar, Fuengirola, Guaro, Jubrique, Malaga city, Mijas, Pizarra, Villanueva de Tapia and Yunquera.

In the event that the current contagion levels are maintained this Thursday, as seems likely due to the trend of recent weeks, the Junta can decree the opening of their municipal borders from Saturday morning, after the publication of the measure in the BOJA Official Gazette.

Non-essential

They are not the only towns where changes could take place. The regional government, chaired by Juanma Moreno, also orders the closure of all non-essential activities in the municipalities that exceed a thousand cases for every one hundred thousand people, a rate that yesterday only Archez, Benaojan, Canete la Real and Serrato surpassed.

If the incidence does not vary excessively, this Saturday businesses considered non-essential, such as hospitality and commerce, cold be able to open in four locations: Ronda, Algatocin, Montejaque and Villanueva del Trabuco. Since last week all have managed to drop below the incidence rate limit of one thousand cases set by the Junta, although they will continue to be closed at the borders as they are still above 500 cases.

It will be the first time in more than a month that people would be allowed to enter and leave cities such as Malaga, which yesterday registered a rate of 418 infections per 100,000 inhabitants.

This incidence rate is still high, in fact it is still considered "extreme risk" according to the levels agreed by the Ministry of Health and the regions, but it is far from the more than a thousand cases reached on 1 February, a figure that forced the closure of bars, restaurants and non-essential shops in the city until last Saturday.

Spains Interterritorial Council establishes several levels of risk: extreme when the rate exceeds 250 cases, high between 150 and 250 cases, medium between 50 and 150 and low between 20 and 50. The World Health Organisation considers that the pandemic is controlled when the low incidence of 50 cases is reached.
A CLOSE female associate of notorious Drogheda gangster Paul Crosby was one of two people arrested yesterday by gardai investigating the murder and dismemberment of a 17-year-old boy in January last year.

The 29-year-old woman was sitting in a taxi with Crosby when he was targeted by a gunman in Drogheda just a day after the boy was murdered.

The taxi driver was shot, but Crosby escaped injury in the incident.

Senior sources said the woman, who was detained at Balbriggan garda station last night, is suspected of "playing a central role" in the logistics of the murder, "particularly after the event".

Both she and a 23-year-old man from Drogheda, described as a "very minor player" in the Drogheda feud, are suspected of helping in the "clean up".

News of the arrests comes as it can be revealed gardai in Drogheda are "actively investigating" a Facebook group in which local criminals are selling bullet-proof vests.

The murdered juvenile cannot be named for legal reasons, but yesterday's arrests bring to seven the number of people arrested in the investigation - with two men already before the courts.

The 23-year-old man being detained at Drogheda garda station has few previous convictions and is not considered a significant player in the so-called 'Anti-Maguire gang' which carried out the murder.

However, the woman is well known to officers and has come to the attention of gardai for drug and motoring offences.

She is currently on bail on drug charges.

She is said to have a significant cocaine habit and be "deeply loyal" to jailed thug Crosby (25), who is serving a four-and-a-half-year sentence in Mountjoy Prison for the arson of a stolen car.

Gardai suspect Crosby may have key information about the events surrounding the murder of the tragic teen - in which his close associate Robbie Lawlor was a main suspect.

Crosby has not been arrested in relation to the 17-year-old's murder.

Lawlor, who was shot dead in Belfast last April, had been spotted in Crosby's company in the days surrounding the murder.

Just hours after the murder, Crosby was the target of a revenge attack.




President has picked a former Obama administration official to run the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The agency oversees government health insurance programs covering more than 1 out of 3 Americans and is a linchpin of the health care system.

If confirmed by the Senate, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure would be the first Black woman to head CMS, which has under its umbrella Medicare, Medicaid, children's health insurance and the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. The programs cover more than 130 million people, from newborns to nursing home residents.

Brooks-LaSure has a long track record in government, having held health policy jobs at the White House, in Congress, and at CMS during the Obama administration. Most recently she led the Biden transition's landing team for the Department of Health and Human Services, laying the groundwork for the new administration. Before her return to government service, Brooks-LaSure was a managing director at the Manatt Health consultancy.

Her nomination was confirmed by a person familiar with the decision, who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement.

CMS also plays a central role in the nation's $4 trillion health care economy, setting Medicare payment rates for hospitals, doctors, labs and other service providers. Government payment levels become the foundation for private insurers. The agency also sets standards that govern how health care providers operate.

Brooks-LaSure "gets the imperative of securing greater affordability for beneficiaries, taxpayers, and Medicare, Medicaid and the ACA marketplaces, said Chris Jennings, a longtime health policy adviser to Democrats. She is well-respected and liked by the department veterans who have worked with her in the past.

Years ago, Brooks-LaSure worked with Biden's nominee to run HHS, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra. She was a staffer on the House Ways and Means Committee and he was a senior member of the panel during the 2009-2010 drive to pass President Barack Obama's health care law. Senate committees will hold hearings next week on Becerra's nomination.

Under Biden, Brooks-LaSure will be expected to grow Obamacare enrollment by promoting HealthCare.gov and trying to persuade holdout states to adopt Medicaid expansion. She's also expected to roll back Trump administration policies allowing states to impose work requirements on Medicaid recipients, as well as insurance rules seen as undermining Obamacare.

Throughout her career, Brooks-LaSure has worked on Medicaid policy, and that program has now grown to become a mainstay of coverage for many low-income working people. At CMS she'll have to confront Medicare's long-term financial problems, aggravated by a decline in payroll tax collections because of COVID-related job losses.

Prescription drugs will be a tricky policy area for Brooks-LaSure. Biden wants to legally authorize Medicare to negotiate prices with drugmakers, but he may not be able to marshal enough support in a closely divided Congress. Brooks-LaSure will be tasked with finding ways to use the agency's rule-making powers to rein in prices.

Biden's pick was first reported by The Washington Post.

(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.)
SIRACUSA, FEB 18 - Italian police on Thursday arrested a 50-year-old man on suspicion of murdering the two male carers of his father in 2014, and disposing of their bodies. The carers' former employer, Giampiero Riccioli, has been charged with double homicide and destroying bodies. Alessandro Sabatino, 40, and Luigi Cerreto, 23, both from Caserta, disappeared from Riccioli's home near Siracusa on May 12 2014. They had worked in the villa at Contrada Tivoli for some time as the carers of his 80-year-old father. (ANSA).
A Texas mayor resigned after telling residents struggling to fend for themselves in a record-breaking storm that left most of the state without power on Tuesday.

Tim Boyd, the former mayor of Colorado City, write a message for people desperate for heat, water, and power, saying that only the strong will survive and the weak will perish.

"No one owes you [or] your family anything; nor is it the local government's responsibility to support you during trying times like this!" Boyd was quoted in a CBS News report.

Boyd further told residents to "sink or swim" as it is their choice. He also said that the City and County with power providers or any other service owes the residents nothing, adding that he is tried of people asking for a handout.

The former mayor further said people needing water services to think outside the box to survive and called people waiting in the cold, without any power supply "lazy." Authorities were telling people to stay home and avoid icy roads during the winter storm.

Related story: Woman, Girl Die From Carbon Monoxide Poisoning After Using Running Car to Stay Warm in Texas Freeze

Boyd Resigning

Boyd's post was not deleted but it was circulated widely on social media. He received criticisms for his statement and later announced that he quit his office in another Facebook post.

He then said in his recent Facebook post that he would never want to hurt the elderly or anyone that is in true need of help to be left during the storm, claiming that his statement only targets those who are able and too lazy to get up.

Boyd also said that his statement was made as a private citizen. He added that his wife had been fired from her job over the things that he said and that his family was facing "undeserved" harassment and death threats, according to a Seattle Times report.

The former Colorado mayor could not be reached for comment late Tuesday night. In addition, it was not immediately clear if he resigned before or after writing the said Facebook post.

Early Wednesday morning, he is still listed as mayor on Colorado City's website. The city council agendas showed that he had served in that role as recently as last week.

Winter Storm Crisis

Colorado City is home to around 4,000 people and below freezing temperatures are not uncommon in winter as winds swept across the plains. However, losing heat, power, water, and the inability to cook at the same time were an unpleasant experience for many residents.

Community members already were doing their best to help each out. They were also trying to access the emergency preparedness plan on Colorado City's official webpage, which led to an error message, according to critics.

Millions of people throughout the state of Texas were still without power on Tuesday after the state was covered with record snowfall over the weekend leading to Monday, according to a New York Daily News report.

The storm had brought deaths with those trying to keep warm, including a woman and a young girl dying due to what to authorities believe to be carbon monoxide poisoning.

Read also: Mexico's 4.7 Million Power Users Scrambling Without Any Electricity, President Points Finger to U.S.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 10:22:43|Editor: huaxia

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MEXICO CITY, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Mexico's Minister of National Defense Luis Cresencio Sandoval said Wednesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and will quarantine at home under medical supervision.

"I will continue my duties in quarantine from home, under medical treatment and relying on the officials of the National Defense Ministry in keeping with the chain of command," said the 61-year-old minister.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and several members of his cabinet have tested positive for COVID-19 since the outbreak of the pandemic in Mexico nearly a year ago.

Mexico's nationwide infections surpassed 2 million on Tuesday with more than 175,000 deaths from the disease, the world's third-highest COVID-19 death toll, after the United States and Brazil. Enditem

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SAN DIEGO, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- California-based - Gomez Trial Attorneys, today announced the filing of a major lawsuit against Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc. and its Culver-City based Double Tree by Hilton Hotel. The lawsuit arises out of a September 19, 2020 knife attack in the hotel's lobby area. On that date, a non-hotel guest wearing a hoodie entered the hotel's lobby and began threatening and confronting guests. Hotel employees hid rather than effectively summon security or the police. Some time later, the assailant confronted and then violently stabbed 24-year-old John Doe, rendering him quadriplegic. The assailant then escaped and remains at large.

"Hilton failed miserably to keep its guests and others safe that night," states lead attorney John Gomez. "September 19 wasn't the first time that criminals visited that hotel and Hilton knew full well that an effective and consistent security presence was absolutely necessary to protect guests and the public." The complaint, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges that Hilton and others were negligent in failing to provide security which would have prevented the attack and John Doe's terrible injuries.

The Culver City Police Department continues to investigate the incident while the suspect remains at large. Gomez Trial Attorneys requests that anyone with information regarding the suspect contact Detective Campos at the Culver City Police Department immediately at 310-253-6312 or email [email protected]. Attorney John Gomez further requests that anyone with information about this hotel or incident contact him at 619-237-3490 or [email protected].



Attached to this release is a copy of the complaint filed on February 16, 2021. A video of the attack is available upon request.



About Gomez Trial Attorneys

Gomez Trial Attorneys is a full-service personal injury law firm with multifaceted areas of experience including automobile accidents, worker safety, wrongful death, product liability, construction accidents, food poisoning, medical malpractice, government liability, dog bites, aviation accidents, business disputes, Actos lawsuits, bicycle accidents, and much more. Gomez Trial Attorneys is located at 655 West Broadway Suite 1700, San Diego, CA 92101. For inquiries or consultation with their lawyers, contact their team via phone at (619) 237-3490 or via email at [email protected]. Visit their website for additional information regarding their services.

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The Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development Minister-designate, Mr Dan Botwe, has denied his involvement in disenfranchising the people of Santrokofi, Akpafu, Likpe and Lolobi (SALL) in the 2020 parliamentary election.



He said the then Ministry of Regional Reorganisation and Development did not have the mandate to create constituencies under the 1992 Constitution.



He argued that the creation of constituencies was the responsibility of the Electoral Commission (EC) and the Local Government Ministry.



Vetting



Mr Botwe said that when he appeared before Parliaments Appointments Committee.



Prior to his appearance last Monday, a joint committee from Akpafu and Lolobi Traditional areas had petitioned the Appointments Committee to reject his appointment to head the Local Government, Decentralisation and Rural Development Ministry.



The joint committee, blamed Mr Botwe for playing a major role in the removal of Lolobi and Akpafu from the Hohoe Municipality despite their objection.



Mr Botwe, however, noted that the then Ministry of Regional Reorganisation could not be held responsible for the disenfranchisement of the residents of SALL.



Let me emphasise that the Ministry for Regional Reorganisation and Development for that matter as a former minister, we had nothing, absolutely nothing to do with the creation of districts or constituencies and so I have no business answering these questions unless for educational purposes.



When people have petitioned, you need to educate them on what they do not understand or deliberately dont want to understand what the constitution says. People may have a problem with the ECs decision not to let them vote in parliamentary elections. It is a matter for the EC but has nothing to do with the Ministry for Regional Reorganisation, he stated.



Decentralisation



Commenting on decentralisation, he said transferring power, functions and responsibilities of the central government to the local authorities was the right thing to do.



It is believed that, the more we do that, the more we have popular participation by our people in decisions that affect them and at the end of the day; it will lead to improvement of the quality of life of the people because they will determine what is good for them.



This is what persuaded our earlier governments to move the number of constituencies to 200, 230, and now 275, believing that the more people represent manageable units, they are able to know the people they are leading very well, interact better with them and understand them better, he stated.



For a long time, Ghana had 110 districts and finally as we speak now, we have 260 districts It is believed that these sizes of the units being it constituency or district makes it manageable and they can manage their people better, he said.



Traditional authorities



Mr Botwe also noted that the role of traditional institutions and authorities in national development and local government administration could not be over emphasised.



He said although the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936) did not clearly specify the role of traditional authorities, in practice, chiefs and traditional authorities played a major role in local governance.



All leaders in the country at all levels, from the presidency to the unit committee member, know the importance of our traditional leaders in national development, especially at the local level, he said.



He said the involvement of chiefs in the local government system would help avoid situations where chiefs refuse to release lands for national development.









Source: graphiconline.com









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A photo of the tanker truck being constructed for the Williamstown Fire District that was shown to the district's Prudential Committee on Wednesday.

Williamstown Fire District Building Committee to Choose Owner's Project Manager

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.  The Fire District's Building Committee could have a recommendation on an owner's project manager for its planned fire station project as soon as Friday afternoon.

Building Committee Chair Elaine Neely on Wednesday reported to the Prudential Committee that her panel received nine responses to the request for qualifications issued by the district and conducted interviews with three finalists last week.

Representatives from Construction Monitoring Services, Colliers Property Management and the Architectural Consulting Group met for about an hour apiece over Zoom with the Building Committee, which includes the representatives from the district and the community at large.

All three of the finalists have experience managing public safety building projects, including one, ACG, which served as the OPM on the recently completed Williamstown Police station.

It was not the only finalist to post local experience. Colliers served as OPM on Berkshire County projects that include the new Williams Inn and, as Strategic Building Solutions, Colegrove Park Elementary School in North Adams.

"Actually, any one of [the nine respondents] could have done the job," Neely said. "It was very difficult to narrow it down, and it will be even harder to choose how we rank the last three.

"We will give you our first ranking and our second ranking so that when we get into negotiating for fees, if we don't like the outcome with No. 1, we reserve the right to move on to No. 2 on the list."

Neely said she asked the members of the Building Committee to rank the three finalists after the interviews and that the numerical grades were very similar.

"If I had my choice, I could take a section out of each of the applications and put them together as one OPM," she said. "It's not that way.  It will be interesting to see what the outcome of Friday is."

While the district is a long way from putting a shovel in the ground on a new firehouse, it is getting closer to taking delivery on a $380,000 tanker truck, which district voters approved in June.

Assistant Fire Chief Mike Noyes shared photos of the truck being built for the district.

"The biggest thing is the tank system along with the vacuum pump," Noyes said. "We'll be able to fill this in three minutes and will be able to empty it even quicker.

"It's a big step for us. It's definitely what we need. South Williamstown [beyond the town's water line], this will be the second truck out of the station, backing up the first truck. Two years ago, we had a company come in and assess what we're doing, and this was the biggest recommendation they had."

In other business on Wednesday, Chief Craig Pedercini reviewed with the committee the six fire hydrants in town that are owned by the city of North Adams in light of recent issues the city has had with hydrant usage during fires.

There are three on North Hoosac Road and three in the White Oaks area, including one near the former Broad Brook School, Pedercini said.

Two of the three in the White Oaks area are redundant, he said; they are duplicated by town-owned hydrants in the vicinity.

The other four hydrants were cause for concern by members of the committee.

"Is there some kind of an agreement we can have or see of the [town] Water Department would be willing to take over these hydrants?" David Moresi asked. "None of the hydrants in North Adams are maintained. It's a big problem."

Pedercini said his understanding is that the North Adams water department is understaffed, and he knows that the Williamstown Water Department is always busy. He told the Prudential Committee he would reach out to the town department to see if an arrangement could be worked out.

"If [Department of Public Works Director Chris Lemoine] is open to considering doing that, whether we have to pay him for the service or North Adams does, I'd love to have the work done in Williamstown with Williamstown resources because North Adams is overwhelmed," Prudential Committee Chair Richard Reynolds said.

Pedercini in his monthly report also told the committee that the town will be facing two bridge projects in the next couple of years, one of which may impact how the district directs its truck.

The first, on Main Street across Hemlock Brook, is less of an issue for the Fire Department because it already avoids the span since its weight limit was dropped in recent years, Pedercini said.

Another Main Street bridge, across the Green River near East Lawn Cemetery, could present some issues. Pedercini said the Massachusetts Department of Transportation plans to maintain two-way traffic on the Route 2 bridge for most of the project, but there may be "four or five times" during a project several years in length that the bridge will be closed.

"We have to give thought to how we're going to respond to any calls on the east side of that bridge," Pedercini said.

At the end of Wednesday's meeting, district clerk Sarah Currie informed the committee about the schedule for the upcoming district election. Two members of the Prudential Committee, Moresi and Ed Mcgowan, are seeing their terms come to an end this spring. Nomination papers to run for the committee will be available on Feb. 22, and they need to be returned with the signatures of at least 32 voters by April 6. The annual district election and district meeting are scheduled for May 25.

He reminds Russia has been waging a real war against Ukraine.

Head of the Ukrainian delegation to the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) on Donbas Leonid Kravchuk has said about the need to call a spade a spade when speaking about the situation in Donbas.

"When we talk about the war in Donbas, we cannot say 'they provoke us and shoot, kill.' This wording looks weird. We must say 'they are waging a real war against Ukraine, violating the agreements on a comprehensive ceasefire,' and not 'provoking,'" he told Ukraina 24 TV channel.

Read alsoRussia-led formations hinder OSCE SMM monitors' work in Donbas  JCCC's Ukraine membersKravchuk stressed Ukraine should act actively and systematically, without making concessions.

"We will call a spade a spade, war is war, and not some kind of the Anti-Terrorist Operation, they do not provoke  they kill. We act tough where necessary and are flexible where necessary," he added.

Earlier, Kravchuk warned the Russian Federation's representatives that the Ukrainian side would continue consultations only if they had an effective, practical sense.

Other related news reports

Reporting by UNIAN
Unnao: The Uttar Pradesh on Thursday registered a case of murder based on the complaint of family members of the two girls who were found dead in a field in Unnao on Wednesday evening. According to reports, the Unnao Police has registered the murder case against unidentified persons under sections 302, 201 of the IPC. The FIR has been registered at the Asoha Police Station on the basis of the complaint filed by the victims' family.

The UP police chief earlier said that the cause of death of two of the three girls who were found unconscious in a field in Unnao district could not be ascertained, while poisoning has been confirmed in the third one, who is critical but stable at the moment.

News agency PTI cited UP Police chief H C Awasthi saying, Condition of the third girl found in a field in Unnao is critical but stable, the medical bulletin says it is a suspected case of poisoning.

The UP police chief further said that the cause of death of two Unnao girls could not be ascertained in the post-mortem. Their viscera has been preserved for chemical examination. Awasthi further informed that no injury marks were found on the bodies of two girls who were found dead in Unnao on Wednesday evening. A panel of three doctors earlier performed the autopsy of the two girls who were found dead in a field in Unnao, the state police chief said.

The third one, admitted in a critical condition to a Kanpur hospital, was being treated for suspected poisoning and is presently on the ventilator, Regency Hospital sources said, according to PTI.

Meanwhile, the case has triggered a political storm with the Opposition demanding a high-level inquiry into the incident. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has taken a serious note of the incident and sought a detailed report from the states DGP.

Yogi Adityanath has directed officials to ensure proper treatment of the teenager admitted in Kanpur hospital on government expenses, according to the government spokesperson.

Unnao Superintendent of Police Anand Kulkarni said there was a contradiction in the statements of the mother and brother of the girls and investigations were on. It may be noted that three girls, aged 15, 14 and 16, were found tied in a field in Babuhara village in Asoha, around 36 km south of Lucknow, on Wednesday evening by the villagers when they did not return after they left their house to take fodder for the cattle.

The villagers informed the police and rushed the girls to the hospital, where two of them were declared brought dead, while the other was rushed to the Unnao hospital and later referred to Kanpur hospital, the police said.

"Our investigation has found that bodies had no marks on them either in the hands or legs, suggesting that they were not tied, the Unnao SP had said earlier. Asked if an FIR had been lodged in this connection, the SP said the matter was being investigated and action would be taken as per the post mortem report, which was conducted by a panel of three doctors and video-graphed.

He added that the family members who were the first ones to reach the spot were being questioned. According to Kulkarni, the girl's brother had said the girls were tied with a 'dupatta' (stole), while her mother said on Thursday that it was around her neck.

On speculation that it was a case of honour killing, the SP said all aspects would be included in the probe and it would not be right to say anything on it at the moment. Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleged that the Uttar Pradesh government was not only suppressing the Dalit society but also crushing the honour and human rights of women in the state.

"The UP government is not only crushing Dalit society but also the honour and human rights of women. But they should remember that I and the entire Congress party will stand as the voice of victims and will endeavour to get them justice," she said in a tweet in Hindi.

BSP chief Mayawati expressed condolences to the affected family, describing the incident as "very serious and sad". "The BSP demands a high-level inquiry into the incident and strict punishment for the culprits," Mayawati tweeted.

Samajwadi Party MLC Sunil Singh Sajan has alleged that the Unnao police was trying to hush up the case. He has sought a probe by an independent agency in the matter.

Live TV

(With PTI inputs)
Toyota Texas /TNS

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas (TMMTX) will remain closed for production through Thursday to reduce water, energy use as San Antonio grapples with conserving essential resources during historic winter weather event.

The South Side plant, which produces the Tacoma and Tundra trucks, said Wednesday that the decision to pause production was made "for the safety of our employees and to minimize further stress on the city's infrastructure."

VICTORIA, BC, Feb. 17, 2021 /CNW/ - Through the National Shipbuilding Strategy, the Government of Canada is ensuring the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) has the vessels it needs to keep Canadian waterways safe and accessible, while generating significant economic benefits to communities across Canada.

Following an open and competitive process, Public Services and Procurement Canada, on behalf of the CCG, has awarded a $17.3-million contract to Allied Shipbuilders Limited, in North Vancouver, British Columbia, for vessel life extension (VLE) work on the Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) Sir Wilfred Grenfell.

The vessel will undergo VLE work, enabling it to take on a broader range of tasks, notably buoy tending and search and rescue. Work will include painting the hull and deck, updating navigation equipment and networks, installing a new cargo hold and hatch, replacing propulsion thrusters, modifying the ballast system and installing new machinery.

This contract was awarded under the repair, refit and maintenance component of the National Shipbuilding Strategy, which provides ongoing opportunities for shipyards and suppliers across Canada. The contract will help create or sustain up to 140 jobs.

Quotes

"The National Shipbuilding Strategy continues to help stimulate the Canadian economy, creating and sustaining marine sector jobs, while maintaining federal fleets. This contract will deliver necessary upgrades to the CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell, so the Canadian Coast Guard can continue to carry out its important work on the west coast."

The Honourable Anita Anand

Minister of Public Services and Procurement

"The Canadian Coast Guard operates coast to coast to coast performing critical duties from icebreaking to search and rescue missions. It is crucial Coast Guard members have the most effective, modern equipment to meet the intense demands of their job. Under the National Shipbuilding Strategy, we are proud to announce that the life of the CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell will be extended, thanks to the skilled work of the Allied Shipbuilders. This contract will create up to 140 good jobs for Canadians and help restore a vital part of our Coast Guard's fleet."

The Honourable Bernadette Jordan

Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

Quick facts

The project will commence in February 2021 , when the vessel will be towed to the supplier's facility in North Vancouver, British Columbia , for dry-docking. Work will continue until mid-July 2021 . The vessel will also be inspected by marine regulatory bodies.

, when the vessel will be towed to the supplier's facility in , for dry-docking. Work will continue until . The vessel will also be inspected by marine regulatory bodies. The CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell is based in Victoria, British Columbia , serving the Western Region.

is based in , serving the Western Region. The vessel was constructed in 1985 by Marystown Shipyard in Newfoundland . Originally built as an offshore support vessel, it was converted into a search and rescue vessel by the CCG, and entered the Coast Guard service in December 1987 .

. Originally built as an offshore support vessel, it was converted into a search and rescue vessel by the CCG, and entered the Coast Guard service in . In 1994, the vessel played an important role in the fishing conflict known as the Turbot War in the Atlantic Ocean.

As of December 2020 , the Government of Canada has awarded more than $17.34 billion of National Shipbuilding Strategy-related contracts across the country; approximately $7 .95 billion in contracts has been awarded under the repair, refit and maintenance pillar of the strategy.

, the Government of has awarded more than of National Shipbuilding Strategy-related contracts across the country; approximately .95 billion in contracts has been awarded under the repair, refit and maintenance pillar of the strategy. The CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell is named after Sir Wilfred Thomason Grenfell (1865-1940), a medical missionary to Newfoundland and Labrador , whose legacy includes the creation of hospitals, orphanages, social welfare centres, hospital ships and schools.

Associated links

Link to Buy and Sell

National Shipbuilding Strategy

CCGS Sir Wilfred Grenfell

Allied Shipbuilders Limited

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SOURCE Public Services and Procurement Canada

For further information: Cecely Roy, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Anita Anand, 343-549-7293, [email protected]; Media Relations, Public Services and Procurement Canada, 819-420-5501, [email protected]

Related Links

www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca


Antifa March in Seattle, Assaulting People and Damaging Businesses

A group of Antifa members and people connected to the Black Lives Matter movement marched in Seattle late on Feb. 17, assaulting people and inflicting damage on multiple businesses, according to reporters and other witnesses.

Video footage showed black-clad people assaulting others, who were recording the march, with ice and mace. Several clips showed one man riding a bicycle spraying a canister of mace at a small group who reporters said were leaving the march.

Katie Daviscourt of The Post Millennial news website reported that she was one of more than 10 people who were assaulted, and posted some videos of the violence.

While Seattle police officers were present at certain times during the night, they made zero arrests, even after witnessing the assaults themselves, she said in a tweet.

The Seattle Police Department told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement, During last nights protest one business had windows broken and several others were graffitied. No suspects could be identified at the time and no arrests were made. No 911 callers reported they were the victim of an assault related to this event, nor did any callers request medical attention.

Videos and photographs were also released showing damage to businesses, including a Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant.

Other people that night disputed the characterization of the event. One, an independent journalist who supports Antifa, said she threw a snowball at a livestreamer, but only after he had maced a crowd and followed her around. She also said he filmed the faces of the so-called black bloc, a core group of Antifa members.

One of the participants was identified by independent journalist and Antifa expert Andy Ngo as a known Antifa activist.

Participants had promoted the march with a post that stated, Stand up. Fight back, with a picture of a black fist outlined in red.

Marchers were upset about police officers late on Feb. 16 fatally shooting a man who was armed with a knife and had moved toward them. Around the time the march took place, police officials released body-camera video and audio of a 911 call related to the shooting.

The call indicated Port of Seattle officers alerting police that there was a suicidal subject with a knife to his neck. The man was described as a white male wearing a black coat and black pants.

The man, confronted by officers, refused to get down on the ground and surrender the weapon, according to the body-camera footage. As he moved toward the officers, they fired the fatal shots.

The officers were placed on administrative leave while the incident is under investigation.

Antifa has remained active this year, primarily holding events on the West Coast. Activists used snow to block police vehicles over the weekend in Seattle; in Portland, Oregon, last week, they smashed windows and threw snowballs at police officers.
As Senator Ted Cruz prepared to fly back to Texas from Cancun, he released a statement explaining why he left his home state while millions of its citizens sat at homes without power as an Arctic blast ravaged the state.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said he daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

TWITTER GAFFES: As Ted Cruz flies to Cancun, another hypocritical tweet comes back to haunt

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperature in Cancun is in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

A throng of media awaited Cruz - wearing a Texas flag mask - when he arrived at the Cancun International Airport to fly back home Thursday. He can expect the same when he lands back in Houston this afternoon.

Edward Russell of Skift, a media company for the travel industry, says he spoke to someone with United Airlines who says Cruz was originally scheduled to return from Cancun on Saturday, but rebooked his trip for this afternoon early Thursday morning.

Here is Cruz's full statement on his Cancun trip:

"This has been an infuriating week for Texans. The greatest state in the greatest country in the world has been without power. We have food lines, gas lines and people sleeping at the neighbors' houses. Our homes are freezing and our lights are out. Like millions of Texans, our family lost heat and power too.

"With school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends. Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon. My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas. We want our power back, our water on and homes warm. My team and I will continue using all our resources to keep Texans informed and safe."
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Motorola Solutions has consolidated its video security and analytics production into a newly renovated manufacturing facility in Richardson, Texas, with plans to expand staffing in the coming year.

The 136,000-square-foot facility opened in January and has been operational ever since, according to the company. It currently houses 250 employees, and the company said it plans to expand head count at the facility by at least 50 this year.

The manufacturing facility was renovated recently to produce the video camera equipment Motorola Solutions sells to schools, police, airports, manufacturers and other businesses.

The move follows Motorola's acquisitions of several firms specializing in security video and artificially intelligent video analytics over the past several years. The company is relatively new to the field.

"Our business is a growth business, and we continue to make sure we can fund that growth for future as we acquire more customers," Motorola Solutions VP of systems and infrastructure products John Kedzierski said.

Motorola acquired camera and analytics company Avigilon, which has an office in Dallas, for a reported $1 billion in February 2018 and Fort Worth-based license plate recognition camera and software maker Vigilant Solutions in January for $445 million.

In March 2019, it bought voice-over IP dispatch console maker Avtec. It also acquired Allen-based Watchguard in 2019, which designs and sells in-car video systems and police body cameras to law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and Canada.

It has also acquired two video security companies outside TexasCalifornia-based Pelco and Scotland-based IndigoVision. It plans to bring manufacturing from both companies to the new plant.

"We're excited to bring the manufacturing for both companies to Richardson, Texas. This facility represents not only the consolidation of our local manufacturing but also an expansion of our manufacturing footprint in the United States," Kedzierski said.

The facility will be a centralized U.S. hub for production of the company's NDAA-compliant cameras as well as research and development, he said.

"We're committed to building high tech products in the U.S. and providing high-skilled manufacturing jobs here. We're a supporter of the government's actions around NDAA and believe strongly in cybersecurity," Kedzierski said.

Motorola Solutions employs nearly 1,000 people across Texas. Its highest concentration of employees in the Dallas area.

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In the month since the U.S. Capitol was violently stormed by supporters of President Donald Trump, national media reports show tens of thousands of Republicans have officially left the party.

Its happening  on a much smaller scale  in the Lehigh Valley, as well.

Reports from the New York Times, NPR, The Hill and others have shown a surge of Republicans changing their party affiliation after the Jan. 6 violence in the nations capital. Of the states that track such changes, the reports note that some went to the Democrats but must chose to remain unaffiliated.

In Pennsylvania, between Jan. 1 and Feb. 8, almost exactly a month since the Capitol riot, the Republican party netted a loss of about 10,500 registered voters, according to statistics from the state department. Democrats gained about 2,000.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

When broken down by county, Lehigh and Northampton counties each saw between 300 and 400 Republicans leave their party, and Democrats each gain several dozen voters.

In the scheme of things, these numbers dont mean much on their own. In the November election, the Lehigh Valley had hundreds of thousands of registered voters among Pennsylvanias 9 million total.

But small shifts in the Lehigh Valley, especially bellwether Northampton County, can swing Pennsylvania, a crucial state in presidential election years including 2020.

And shifts in registration typically happen as major elections approach, not in January or February, which makes this recent phenomenon most troubling for the GOP, said Christopher Borick, a political science professor at Muhlenberg College in Allentown.

While the modest shifts away from the Republican Party in 2021 registration status are not earth-shaking, the defections certainly are a troublesome sign for a party that has traditionally been at a disadvantage in terms of registration numbers in the state, Borick said.

(Cant see the chart? Click here.)

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to lehighvalleylive.com.

Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com.
Her venue may not be able to accommodate larger events on Imagos calendar, she said, but I want to do whatever I can to help them. I know they poured their whole soul and heart into that building and what they provide for their clients.
A registered nurse prepares a dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine in Halifax on Monday, Jan. 11, 2021. A Montreal gerontologist says the decline in the number of new COVID-19 infections in the province's long-term care centres may be a preliminary sign that the Quebec's vaccination strategy is working. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan
A coroner today raised concerns over a snorkelling mask sold on Amazon after a British grandfather died of oxygen deprivation while on a dive during a visit to family in Western Australia.

An inquest heard decorator John Bazzoni bought a Gofun diving mask which claimed to be 'anti-fog' and 'anti-leak' online ahead of his trip to see his daughter Nicola Roman for Christmas in 2017.

But during a snorkelling trip to Lady Nora Island with his son-in-law Sean Roman, a police officer, on New Year's Eve, the 56-year-old from Andover, Hampshire, who had heart problems got into difficulties.

Father-of-three Mr Bazzoni was a 'poor swimmer' and had previously been helped from the water after panicking when water got into his snorkelling mask, an inquest at Winchester heard.

However, for this trip, Mr Bazzoni had bought a 180-degree full-face mask on Amazon as he believed this would prevent water getting in, which had previously happened with traditional masks.

Though Mr Bazzoni had once told his daughter that he 'couldn't think of a better way to die than snorkelling over coral in paradise', he exclaimed 'I can't do it' as water entered the decorator's mask and it became fogged up.

Mr Roman and his colleague Simon Harrison 'admirably' tried to rescue Mr Bazzoni - but the mask restricted his supply of oxygen and when he was pulled aboard a boat he was 'foaming at the mouth' and colourless.

Coroner Jason Pegg said Gofun are out of business and that there are 'concerns globally' that such full-face masks do not allow exhaled air to be purged through normal breathing, leading to a build-up of carbon dioxide.

A coroner today raised concerns over a snorkelling mask sold on Amazon after John Bazzoni died of oxygen deprivation during a visit to family in Australia

Mr Bazzoni used Amazon to buy a Gofun diving mask which claimed to be 'anti-fog' and 'anti-leak' ahead of his trip to see his daughter Nicola Roman for Christmas in 2017

Father-of-three Mr Bazzoni, pictured using a different snorkelling mask

The 'innovative' anti-fog snorkel mask that led to John Bazzoni's tragic death Pictured: Gofun mask as advertised on Amazon and 'currently unavailable' John Bazzoni died of hypoxia after panicking when he wore an ill-fitting snorkelling mask made by Gofun. Gofun, which the coroner said is no longer trading, had been selling its masks - available in blue, black, turquoise and pink - on Amazon. However, the website lists the mask - first available in May 2017 - as 'currently unavailable'. The retailer describes the mask as 'full face' with 'super wide breakage-proof view window' which provides '180 degree underwater view'. 'Super comfortable', the designer said 'medical liquid silicone and PC material makes it leak-proof and breakage-proof'. The description adds: 'Our innovative design features a separate breathing chamber that creates an airflow away from your main viewing visor that helps eliminates fogging and will keep you snorkeling longer. 'If the water temperature is over 40C it's normal to have minimal fogging. 'Dry top prevents water from getting in the snorkel mask and prevents gagging. No water enters your mask.' At the Winchester inquest into father-of-three Mr Bazzoni's death, Coroner Jason Pegg ruled: 'The mask restricted John's ability to breathe by causing a build-up of carbon dioxide in the mask, as a consequence of which John developed hypoxia. 'His swimming ability and sea conditions at the time contributed to his death'. Advertisement

Recording a verdict of death by misadventure, he said: 'John was swimming in the sea, wearing a full face snorkelling mask, when he got into difficulties.

'The mask restricted John's ability to breathe by causing a build-up of carbon dioxide in the mask, as a consequence of which John developed hypoxia. His swimming ability and sea conditions at the time contributed to his death.'

He continued: 'There are clearly causes for concern about the use of this mask, the Gofun snorkelling mask full face.

'As a coroner, I do have powers to make a Prevention of Future Deaths report; however, Gofun are no longer trading or selling this mask so I am unable to make a report as there is no-one I can properly write to about my concerns about using the mask.'

A post-mortem examination showed Mr Bazzoni died of hypoxia - oxygen deprivation - with a secondary cause of cardiovascular disease.

Mr Pegg, at Winchester Coroner's Court, Hampshire, said the mask is currently unavailable on Amazon.

Mrs Roman told the hearing she had warned her father about the dangers of the ocean and he had replied that 'he couldn't think of a better way to die than snorkelling over coral in paradise'.

In a statement, Mr Roman said he had jumped into the water to help Mr Bazzoni, after he began to wave for help while 20m from the boat and drifting further away.

He said: 'John stopped snorkelling, lifted his head out of the water and raised one of his hands. I think he called 'Sean, come here'. I didn't like John's voice - it was panicked.'

He said when he reached him, Mr Bazzoni grabbed hold of him, and added that he could see a cupful of water pooled in the face mask.

He said he supported him until his friend, Simon Harrison, also arrived and was able to take him back to the boat, by which time Mr Bazzoni had lost consciousness and died despite attempts to resuscitate him.

At the inquest, which was also attended by Mr Bazzoni's other daughters, Amy and Victoria, Mrs Roman paid tribute to their father, saying: 'Dad had a real joy for most aspects of life, apart from work.

'He was an adventurer, he enjoyed travelling, he loved us, myself and my sisters, and we were never in any doubt about that. He was a really fun person to be around and spend time with.'

Mr Roman tried the mask on in the days before Mr Bazzoni's death, but said he 'struggled to breathe' in it.

He said: 'I'm a competent snorkeller but when I tried on the mask I found it unpleasant and struggled to breathe. If I wore it for 10 minutes I think I would have been dizzy and out of breath.'

Mr Roman said he 'knew John to be a poor swimmer' and Nicola Roman, Mr Bazzoni's daughter, said on previous trips her husband had to help bring him back to shore.

Mrs Roman, who lives in beach resort town Broome, said her father usually swam with a 'pool noodle' - a foam floatation device.

She said: 'We had taken him snorkelling a few times. On a few occasions he panicked in the water. He was not a strong swimmer, he swam with a pool noodle.

But during a snorkelling trip to Lady Nora Island with his son-in-law Sean Roman, a police officer, on New Year's Eve, the 56-year-old, from Andover, Hampshire, got into difficulties

John Bazzoni with his three daughters Amy, Victoria and Nicola

'Most of the time when he panicked while snorkelling was because he had a moustache - it meant that water got in the mask.

'We had a spa outside [their home] and we tested the new mask in there, Sean didn't like it.'

Mrs Roman also paid tribute to her dad. She said: 'Dad was fun-loving, he had a real joy for most aspects of life. He was an adventurer, he was a real fun person to be around and spend time with.'

Previously, Mrs Roman, a mother-of-one, said: 'He really like to be outside, he really liked nature, he had never really seen much before being out of the UK but then he swam with whale sharks, with turtles; he did all sorts.

'He loved Australia; his house became a tribute to Australia with new bits such as kangaroo skin whenever he came back.'

Coroner Jason Pegg said there are 'concerns globally' that such full-face masks do not allow exhaled air to be purged through normal breathing, leading to a build-up of carbon dioxide

The inquest was told Mr Bazzoni, a painter and decorator who loved travelling, had been previously been diagnosed with heart problems which contributed to his death

Daughter Victoria Dixon, who lives in England, said: 'Victoria said: 'He always used to say that he was 'just a decorator' and play himself down a lot but he should be remembered as someone who was an adventurer and curious about the world.

'He had so many other interests; he couldn't just be defined by his job, he was a very intelligent man.'

Amy Bazzoni said: 'We knew if Dad was around, nothing was ever going to get too serious as he was fun. He was always the first one running up to the zipwire in the park.

'He was definitely a child at heart. He was going to make such an amazing granddad and for us we were really lucky he was our dad.'

Mr Bazzoni had his own business named JR Bazzoni Decorators for around 25 years before shutting up shop in the early 2000s to work with other companies.
Three men were rescued from suffocating inside a sealed refrigerated lorry after they phoned police to say they were struggling to breathe.

Cambridgeshire Police said the vehicle, believed to have travelled from France, was tracked along the A14 and the M11 with the help of Essex Police.

It was found at Brampton Hut services near Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, just before 4.30pm on Wednesday.

The lorry, believed to have travelled from France, was tracked to Brampton Hut services near Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire

The three men were found to be safe and uninjured, and their welfare will be handled by the immigration services.

A spokesman for Cambridgeshire Police said the driver was not arrested.

He added said: "Stories like this may be distressing, but highlight that slavery and trafficking are real and police need the public's help."

Police have urged people to dial 999 if they see people emerging from a lorry or HGV, if they hear banging from inside a lorry or if they see people entering the back of a lorry.

People should be particularly vigilant at service stations or lay-bys, and should raise the alarm if anything about the vehicle doesn't seem quite right - for example if produce is being thrown from it or something is being done to catch the attention of other motorists.

Anyone who sees any of the above is urged to call police on 999 and to take a note of the vehicle registration number.

Last year lorry driver Maurice 'Mo' Robinson, 25, of Craigavon in Northern Ireland pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese people who were found dead in the back of a refrigerated truck in Essex and was jailed for 13 years.

The bodies of eight females and 31 males, including 10 teenagers, were discovered in a trailer in an industrial park in Grays, Essex, in October 23.

The two ringleaders of the people-smuggling gang responsible, Ronan Hughes, 41, who ran a haulage company, and co-conspirator Gheorghe Nica, 43 were also jailed for 27 and 20 years respectively.
Perseverance is tasked with searching for telltale signs that microbial life may have lived on Mars billions of years ago

Mars may now be considered a barren, icy desert but did Earth's nearest neighbour once harbour life?

It is a question that has preoccupied scientists for centuries and fired up sci-fi imaginings.

After seven months in space, NASA's Perseverance rover is due to land on Mars on Thursday, in search of clues.

Why Mars?

Other planets or moons, could also harbour forms of life, so why pick Mars?

NASA says Mars is not just one of the more accessible places in the solar system and a potential future destination for humans, but exploring the planet could also help to answer "origin and evolution of life questions".

"Mars is unique across the entire solar system in that it is a terrestrial planet with an atmosphere and climate, its geology is known to be very diverse and complex (like Earth), and it appears that the climate of Mars has changed over its history (like Earth)," it adds on its Mars programme website.

Scientists believe that four billion years ago the two planets both had the potential to nurture lifebut much of Mars' intervening history is an enigma.

Mars exploration is not to find Martian lifescientists believe nothing would survive there nowbut to search for possible traces of past lifeforms.

Perseverance is tasked with searching for telltale signs that microbial life may have lived on Mars billions of years ago.

Ingredients for life

For life you need water.

A planet in what is known as the "habitable zone" around a star is an area in which water has the potential to be liquid.

If it is too close to the star the water would evaporate, too far away it would freeze (some call this the "Goldilocks principle").

But water alone is not enough.

Scientists also look for the essential chemical ingredients, including carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulphur.

Europa is one of Jupiter's four moons

And to stir it all up, they also look for a source of energy, said Michel Viso, an astrobiologist at CNES, the French space agency.

This could come from the Sun, if the planet is close enough, or from chemical reactions.

Martian fascination

Scientific enquiry of the red planet began in earnest in the 17th Century.

In 1609 Italian Galileo Galilei observed Mars with a primitive telescope and in doing so became the first person to use the new technology for astronomical purposes.

Marscompared to the "desolate, empty" moonhas long seemed promising for potential inhabitability by microorganisms, wrote astrophysicist Francis Rocard in his recent essay "Latest News from Mars".

But the 20th century presented setbacks.

In the 1960s, as the race to put a man on the moon was accelerating, Dian Hitchcock and James Lovelock analysed the atmosphere on Mars looking for a chemical imbalance, gases reacting with each other, which would hint at life.

There was no reaction.

A decade later the Viking landers took atmospheric and soil samples that showed the planet was no longer inhabitable and interest in Mars crumbled.

But in 2000 scientists made a game-changing discovery: they found that water had once flowed over its surface.

This rekindled interest in Mars exploration and scientists pored over images of gullies, ravines, scouring the Martian surface for evidence of liquid water.

More than 10 years later, in 2011, they definitively found it.

Scientists now think Mars may once have been warm and wet and possibly have supported microbial life.

"As the Sun did not always have the same mass, the same energy, Mars could very well have been also in this habitable zone early in its existence," said astrophysicist Athena Coustenis, of the Paris-PSL Observatory.

If life did exist on Mars, why did it disappear?

And perhaps more profoundly if life never existed, then why not?

A view of Saturn and Titan from Cassini in 2012

Further frontiers

There are always other areas to explore.

Jupiter's moon Europa, spotted by Galileo four centuries ago, may have a saltwater ocean hidden beneath its icy surface that is thought to contain about twice as much water as Earth's global ocean.

NASA says it "may be the most promising place in our solar system to find present-day environments suitable for some form of life beyond Earth".

Its tidal energy might also cause chemical reactions between water and rock on the seafloor, creating energy.

Future missions include NASA's upcoming Europa Clipper and the European probe JUICE.

Saturn's frozen ocean moon Enceladus is also considered a promising contender.

The American Cassini probe, orbiting the planet from 2004 to 2017, discovered the existence of water vapour geysers on Enceladus.

In 2005, NASA's Cassini spacecraft discovered geysers of icy water particles and gas gushing from the moon's surface at approximately 800 miles (1,290 kilometers)per hour.

The eruptions generate fine ice dust around Enceladus, which supplies material to Saturn's ring.

No mission is currently scheduled to Enceladus.

Another of Saturn's moons Titanthe only moon in the solar system known to have a substantial atmosphereis also of interest.

The Cassini mission found it has clouds, rain, rivers, lakes and seas, but of liquid hydrocarbons like methane and ethane.

NASA, whose Dragonfly mission will launch in 2026 and arrive in 2034, says Titan could be lifeless or harbour "life as we don't yet know it".

Explore further The quest to find signs of ancient life on Mars

 2021 AFP
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Syracuse, N.Y.  A government mistake may cost two Syracuse hospital nursing schools millions of dollars.

St. Josephs Hospital Health Centers nursing school has been asked to refund $10.5 million to the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMS for short.

Crouse Hospitals nursing school has to repay about $4 million.

They are two of about 120 hospital-based nursing schools nationwide being asked to refund overpayments to CMS that occurred between 2002 and 2018. A miscalculation by CMS caused the overpayments.

The hospitals say they shouldnt have to pay for the governments error, especially now during the Covid-19 pandemic when they are struggling financially and nursing staffs are stretched thin.

Some elected officials have asked CMS to give the hospitals a break. But the federal agency says it is required by law to collect the overpayments by June 22, 2022.

Meredith Price, St. Joes chief financial officer, said the hospital is talking to elected members of Congress and the Biden administration to find a solution that does not force hospitals to pay such a harsh penalty for the governments mistake.

Taking millions of dollars from nursing schools in the midst of a global health crisis that hit the nursing profession the hardest is a devastating blow to our community, our college and future nursing students, Price said.

Robert Allen, a Crouse vice president, said his hospital was surprised when it was asked to pay back $4 million because of a CMS miscalculation.

We had no indication or knowledge that the payments were not accurate, Allen said.

Both hospitals say they have no plans to cut nursing school enrollment as a result of the unexpected payments. Our focus is on maintaining and hopefully growing current enrollment volume, Allen said.

Price said St. Joes will have to make up for the revenue shortfall elsewhere in our system.

Upstate Medical University, which also has a nursing school, has not been asked to refund payments, said Kathleen Froio, an Upstate spokeswoman.

CMS said in an August letter its failure to make annual adjustments to federal payments to physician training programs inadvertently caused the overpayments to nursing programs.

CMS said in a statement its still calculating the total amount of overpayments owed by the 120-hospital based nursing schools. STAT, a heath news website affiliated with the Boston Globe, reported the overpayments to affected hospitals could add up to $1 billion.

CMS said hospitals will be allowed to repay the debts over time.

The affected hospitals are members of the National League for Nursing, a trade association.

This funding was accepted in good faith and used by these hospital-based nursing schools to support the education of nursing students who are badly needed to address the ongoing nursing shortage, that group said in a statement. We need to increase capacity at nursing schools overall--not reduce it.

In a recent letter to Congressional leaders, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and several other senators said the effort by CMS to recoup the payments is poorly timed.

Hospital based nursing schools serve as both employers and educators, and they provide highly trained nurses to many of the communities hit hardest by Covid-19, the letter says. Failure to act could put these schools at risk of closure or severe cutbacks at a time when we need them most.

James T. Mulder covers health and higher education. Have a news tip? Contact him at (315) 470-2245 or jmulder@syracuse.com
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The South African variant of Covid-19 may significantly reduce antibody protection from the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, as per a laboratory study, the pharmaceutical companies said. However, human trials are still to be conducted in this regard.

According to the study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, although the results indicated a reduction in neutralisation of virus with all the South African variant spike glycoprotein mutations, the vaccine was still able to neutralise the virus.

This finding is consistent with recent reports of the neutralisation of variant SARS-CoV-2 or corresponding pseudoviruses by convalescent or post-immunisation sera, the companies said in a statement on Wednesday.

Pfizer and the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) investigated the full set of South African variant (also known as B.1.351 lineage) spike mutations.

To this aim, three genetically engineered recombinant viruses were produced. One virus had the full set of spike glycoprotein mutations found in the South African variant and the other two had subsets of these mutations.

The viruses were tested against a panel of sera from 15 participants in the previously reported Phase 3 trial who had been immunised with the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine.

Pfizer-BioNTech said they are taking the necessary steps, making the right investments, and engaging in the appropriate conversations with regulators to be in a position to develop and seek authorisation for an updated mRNA vaccine or booster once a strain that significantly reduces the protection from the vaccine is identified, the company said.

Pfizer-BioNTech are currently evaluating neutralisation of SARS-CoV-2 with the Brazilian strain spike mutations, as well as mutations from other emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants, and they continue to conduct studies to monitor the vaccine's real-world effectiveness.

The pharmaceutical companies believe that the flexibility of BioNTech's proprietary mRNA vaccine platform is well suited to develop new vaccine variants, if required.

(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 Federation of African Journalists (FAJ), the pan-African organisation of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), notes with serious concern and condemns in the strongest terms, the continuing attacks on journalists and media freedom in Uganda by the security forces.

Several journalists suffered grave bodily injuries and psychological trauma on February 17, when the military police pounced on them as they covered the hand over of a petition against the deteriorating human rights situation in the country, to the United Nations Human Rights Office in Kampala, by National Unity Platform (NUP) leader Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu aka Bobi Wine.

Broadcast journalists John Cliff Wamala  NTV, Josephine Namakumbi - NBS TV, Joseph Sabiti -NBS and their print colleagues Irene Abalo - Daily Monitor and Timothy Murungi - New Vision among others, were left bleeding and with sprained limbs after they were chased and beaten military police.

FAJ takes not of the deteriorating environment for safety of journalists in Uganda and calls on President Museveni as Commander in Chief to be accountable and restrain his troops from engaging in unprovoked attacks against journalists and other citizens.

We note with concern that attacks against journalists which started during the campaigns for presidential elections continue to date and appear to have become an operational norm for Ugandan security personnel".

The public has a right to know and this is only possible when journalists can operate in an environment that is secure and free of threats from any quarters. We wish to remind Ugandan authorities that they have a duty to protect journalists and other citizens from the arbitrary the actions of the uniformed services, FAJ President Sadiq Ibrahim Ahmed, said in reaction to the events in Uganda.

The journalists were clearly identifiable and this attack represents a dangerous trend of targeted attacks against media that is gaining ground in Uganda. The federation wishes to remind the Ugandan government that journalism is not a crime.

FAJ also censures the continued human rights violations, including abductions, killings and detention in ungazetted places, of people perceived to be opposition supporters.

FAJ calls on the African Union and the wider international community to stand by journalists and the people of Uganda, to condemn and take action against the growing impunity and disregard for the rule of law by the Ugandan state.

We stand by our colleagues at the Uganda Journalists Union (UJU) who have taken a firm stance against these attacks which are a violation of article 29 of the Uganda Constitution which guarantees press freedom and other liberties as well as article 41 which guarantees the right to access to information, added FAJ president.

The Uganda Journalist Union (UJU) president, Lucy Anyango Ekadu,said there is no way journalists will continue working under such conditions when they are beaten and their equipment damaged. She also called on all journalists who have been beaten and their equipment destroyed to open up cases against perpetrators of crimes against the media.

"UJU is calling on partner organisations and journalists to consider imposing a complete blackout on covering all government events if their safety is not guaranteed", she stated.

IFJ General Secretary, Anthony Bellanger, said: "We are deeply concern about the continous attacks against press freedom in Uganda. Journalists shouldn't be suffering physical and psychological attacks just for doing their job. The govenrment must stop this outrageous harassment".
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Republican elected leaders want an investigation into New York Governor Andrew Cuomo. They are calling for Cuomo to be impeached and his emergency powers nullified.

Republican elected leaders want an investigation

New York GOP Chairman Nick Langworthy last week, in a press conference, called for impeachment proceedings against Cuomo to commence. The press conference focused on the GOP's response to a divulgement from one of Cuomo's top aides to withholding the tally of deaths in New York's nursing homes during the pandemic.

New York Post indicated the apology by Melissa DeRosa to Democratic lawmakers in a recorded meeting. The State GOP has long been speaking out against the executive order that led to nursing home patients being transferred back to their facilities from the hospital, reported WHCU.

New York Republican Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro called on Monday for impeachment proceedings and a criminal probing to be initiated against Cuomo over the alleged cover-up. According to Molinaro, "We've known all along that this is the most corrupted and least transparent administration in America. We now know it's also the deadliest," reported Fox News.

Cuomo reportedly undercounted the nursing homes' death toll by as much as 50 percent. Melissa DeRosa, his top aide, disclosed in a call last week that they concealed the real numbers.

State lawmakers in 1918 impeached and removed a NY governor from office for the first time. According to Jack O'Donnell, author of "Bitten by the Tiger," "It happened once under unusual circumstances which means impeachment is something that is very unlikely to happen," reported Spectrum News.

Also Read: New York City Restaurant Dining To Resume on Valentine's Day

Even though GOP lawmakers merely hold one-third of the seats in the state Legislature, they are hoping to oust Cuomo over concealing information. During a video conference with Democrats, DeRosa divulged "basically, we froze" over the summer after the state Senate called for a full tally of nursing home deaths. The state was facing inspection from the Department of Justice.

That legislative appeal arrived in September 2020. On August 26, 2020, the United States Department of Justice requested data from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Michigan governors about novel coronavirus responses in public nursing homes.

Republican lawmakers in Albany appear to be on a parallel path with Democrats in Washington. They are alluding that Cuomo is no longer fit to be governor. Unlike the Washington political drama, the next election in New York is over a year away.

Fourteen Democratic state senators have joined calls to revoke the sweeping emergency powers granted to Cuomo during the pandemic. According to state Sen. Jessica Ramos on Friday, the idea of making Cuomo the first governor to be impeached in over a century is being thrown around.

Cuomo was previously granted an Emmy award for what they called his "masterful" coronavirus press briefings. The media lauded such performances, underscoring his truthfulness and transparency. However, DeRosa privately apologized to Democratic legislators for repressing the number of fatalities in state nursing homes for fear that the real numbers would be used against them by federal prosecutors.

Related Article: New York Nurse First in US to Be Fully Vaccinated After Being Administered Final Shot

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
But in interviews, employment lawyers said that the case in Brooklyn was perhaps the first publicly known instance of someone losing a job over balking at getting vaccinated.

Employers are in a difficult position because on one hand, they have some duty to protect their employees and customers, and the virus is a very clear and dangerous disease that often has fatal consequences, said Lorie E. Almon, an employment and labor lawyer at the firm Seyfarth Shaw. On the other hand, workers understandably have concerns about new vaccinations of this sort.

Ms. Almon added: This is an issue that will come up over and over as the vaccine becomes more widely available.

Carolyn D. Richmond, a labor lawyer who advises the NYC Hospitality Alliance, an industry group that represents the citys restaurants and bars, said she believed that it was too early in the vaccine rollout for companies to dictate requirements because shots were still hard to get.

Pregnancy and vaccine  as soon as you hear those words in the workplace, you should stop to think if what you are doing is right or wrong, she said. It has to be generally available to the employee population and its not. None of us are having an easy time getting appointments.

Over the past year, Ms. Jacobsons personal story has mirrored that of many New Yorkers. She entered 2020 with reason for hope: a new job and a plan to start trying to have a child with her husband.

But with the pandemic enveloping the city, she lost her job in April at the Wing, a social club and co-working space for women with branches in New York and other cities. In August, she found a job as a waitress at the Red Hook Tavern.
Olvin, a London and New York-based tech firm, is aiming to help bricks and mortar retailers emerge from Covid-19 with the help of a new analytics platform designed to help firms optimize their real estate.

Almanac, has already won awards and recognition from Product Hunt and Lloyds. It provides predictive brick and mortar intelligence to hard-hit retailers crunching over a billion data points  from footfall and spend; to a variety of others, such as visitor profiles and affinity data between retail locations.

It uses AI to forecast future trends based on years of historical data and billions of ongoing interactions.

The dashboard lets businesses see the density of competition, the loyalty of custom and commercial partnership opportunities, enabling them to take better decisions on where to retain a real estate footprint.

The platform allows direct comparisons based on over 2000 name brands and 14 brick-and-mortar industries, to help businesses evaluate market share and unexploited commercial opportunity.

Almanac has been road tested with retailers, real estate firms and research businesses to create a best-in-class insights tool that can sit alongside a growing array of proptech platforms supporting on valuation, leasing, debt origination and inventory

Sam Amrani, founder at Olvin, a Forbes 30 under 30 founder, said:

Physical retail has been decimated and in many areas it wont come back. But in areas where its viable, we want to give people a fighting a chance and better use of analytics will help brick and mortar businesses increase store revenue, loyalty, and basket size by predicting demand while helping them save on costs, by optimizing store operations.

Retailers can currently sign up for a free two week trial at olvin.com.

After launching Olving in 2018, Amrani and his team rigorously tested Almanac in the wake of COVID-19 to provide retailers with accurate and actionable forecasts on footfall, trends and patterns in their local area.

The insight data is displayed instantly to brick-and-mortar businesses, with essential insights ranging from predictive foot-traffic to understanding the busiest trading times for a particular customer type.

The platform's unique network feature enables businesses to read between the lines, exposing the unseen relationships between stores that give unprecedented opportunities to create meaningful partnerships and connections with other stores. This powerful feature is one of many built specifically for businesses to thrive long after the pandemic is over.

For the past decade, the retail industry has experienced a significant decline, with the rise of e-commerce causing retail businesses to suffer. COVID-19 has exacerbated this decline, with an estimated 20,000 to 25,000 in the US in 2020. Research has shown that AI systems have the potential to boost retail profitability by almost 60%. Almanac is helping small retailers realize this potential.

Amrani added: One of the key reasons online firms were thriving before Covid was because of their data insights. Firms in the real world need to become as informed and agile as their online counterparts. Being able to look forward is as important, if not more, than looking back. This is why forecasting and predictive intelligence is at the heart of everything we do.

The public version was launched just before the holiday season and now boasts over 300 users leveraging its analytics suite each day. A UK version is set to be rolled out later this year.

Notes for editors

Awards

The company has already gained significant traction on the back of this launch, becoming the winner of best AI & ML product at the Product Hunt 2020 'Golden Kitty' Awards, chosen out of 16,000 other companies in this category.

Alongside this, it was voted the runner-up up at the prestigious UK National Business Awards.

About Almanac

Almanac is an AI-powered solution focussed on predicting consumer intent. It leverages billions of real-world data points in a powerful yet easy to use platform. This enables businesses of all sizes to understand what drives their customers in the real world.
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --

Key Takeaways:

RentSpree has partnered with insurance technology company Sure. Beginning February 16 , Sure will offer renters insurance to users directly on the RentSpree platform.

, Sure will offer renters insurance to users directly on the RentSpree platform. Property owners and agents will be able to notify tenants of insurance requirements and view policy details.

Tenants will be able to add a critical layer of protection over their personal belongings and themselves.

RentSpree, the leading tenant screening company, today announced its partnership with Sure, an insurance technology company. Beginning February 16, Sure will offer renters insurance to users directly on the RentSpree platform, with coverage backed by an authorized insurance company. In addition to the value it provides renters, the platform also facilitates high-efficiency workflows for property owners. It enables landlords to notify users of insurance requirements, track the status of tenant policies, and view critical policy details.

"Many owners and agents require renters insurance in their lease agreements due to the protection it provides to both parties," says Michael Lucarelli, CEO of RentSpree. "We're thrilled to be partnering with Sure so owners can be certain that tenants are able to meet these requirements with ease."

"Sure and RentSpree are reshaping the renter's experience with insurance," says Wayne Slavin, Co-founder and CEO of Sure. "Embedding insurance with our APIs into existing workflows for renter screening and management enables a smooth customer experience for both renters and property owners to seamlessly secure their assets."

Coverage is available for damages to personal property, bodily injury or damage to someone else's property, other personal property damage as a result of water backup of sewers or drains, and damages resulting from identity fraud. Additionally, in the event the property becomes unlivable, costs relating to housing and increased living expenses may also be covered.

When tenants have this coverage, they are significantly less likely to seek compensation from property owners in the event of a loss.

Renters insurance is an inexpensive way to protect both property owners and tenants against things that are outside their control and is available for users as of February 16, 2021.

More information about renters insurance on RentSpree: rentspree.com/renters-insurance/

About RentSpree:

RentSpree provides award-winning software known in all 50 states for its universal tenant screening process, renter management, partnership program, and rental screening API that enables any platform to incorporate an automated screening process in as little as one week.

About Sure

Sure, an insurance technology company, powers digital insurance programs for the world's most recognized brands and carriers. Its enterprise SaaS Platform and APIs accelerate digital transformation and embedded insurance distribution without the need for additional IT resources. Sure streamlines all aspects of digital insurance sales and service with features designed for each phase of the insurance lifecycle.

Founded in 2014, the company has customers around the globe and is headquartered in Santa Monica, California. To learn more about Sure, visit sureapp.com.

Content and associated insurance products are provided by Sure HIIS Insurance Services, LLC ("Sure"), a licensed seller of insurance. Products and services may not be available in all US states. The above does not in any way constitute an endorsement or referral by RentSpree of Sure's products or services.

SOURCE RentSpree

Related Links

http://www.rentspree.com



Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 19)  Persons with disability (PWDs) urged the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to let banks recognize the validity of PWD identification cards in opening bank accounts.

At the hearing of the House special committee on PWDs Thursday, Carmen Zubiaga of the group Angat PWD United said PWDs still have difficulty transacting with banks since most of them ask for several identification requirements.

She said some PWDs also experience discrimination when they're asked to open joint bank accounts even if they're capable of opening their own.

"This is also one of the empowering and raising awareness also to all banks who are still discriminating persons with disabilities by denying them access to financial services such as opening bank accounts and insisting that they have a joint account with somebody else," Zubiaga said.

"In the list of identification [cards], the senior citizens card is included as a national ID accepted in bank transactions but the PWD ID is not on the list. But it is of the same nature as the senior citizen card," she added.

Rachel Salva of the BSP's consumer empowerment group notes the concern of PWDs but said banks can require clients to present proof of their identity. She vowed to check the central bank's circulars on acceptable IDs for bank transactions.

"Identification documents are required from any person, including persons with disability," Salva said.

For her part, committee chairperson and Negros Occidental Rep. Ma. Lourdes Arroyo said banks should accept PWD IDs as valid since they are issued by the government.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 06:04:15|Editor: huaxia

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UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affair Mark Lowcock warned Thursday that Yemen is speeding toward the worst famine the world has seen in decades.

Malnutrition rates are at record highs. Across Yemen, more than 16 million people are going hungry, including 5 million who are just one step away from famine, he told the Security Council in a briefing.

About 400,000 children under the age of 5 are severely malnourished. Those children are in their last weeks and months. These are the children with distended bellies, emaciated limbs and blank stares -- they are starving to death, he said.

The lack of funds for humanitarian operations in 2020 has led to the closure of many aid programs, said Lowcock. As a result, many hungry families in the north are getting only half as much food aid as they should. The United Nations had to close lots of facilities providing water, sanitation and health services. Many more are under threat of closure because agencies cannot afford to continue the support that keeps them running.

The UN response plan for 2020 received about 1.9 billion U.S. dollars, half of the funds it got the previous year, he said.

This year's response plan will need about 4 billion dollars, roughly the same appeal for 2019. Donors met nearly 90 percent of funding requirements for 2019 and the United Nations managed to prevent famine in Yemen, said Lowcock.

He called for generous donations at next month's high-level pledging conference for Yemen.

There is an important opportunity right now to help Yemen move toward lasting peace. Preventing famine is essential to making that opportunity have a chance to be realized, he said. "The world will have wasted the current opportunity for peace if a massive famine is allowed to take hold."

Lowcock welcomed the decision of the new U.S. administration to reverse the designation of the Houthi rebels in Yemen as a foreign terrorist organization, as well as Washington's intention to prioritize diplomacy to end the war and to deal with the humanitarian crisis.

After years of conflict, the size of Yemen's economy has shrunk by more than a half. Salaries, jobs and livelihoods have all become scarce. COVID-19 has depressed remittances flows from abroad that millions of people were relying on, said Lowcock.

Because Yemen imports nearly everything, the exchange rate is a major factor in what people can buy. Today, the rial is trading about 890 to the U.S. dollar in the south -- about a quarter of its value before the war began. In the north, the rate is about three times higher than pre-conflict levels, he noted.

He called on Yemen's partners to work urgently with the government to devise a workable program for foreign exchange injections, which are the quickest way to bring down the exchange rate to more sustainable levels.

There is also a need to ensure essential commodities can reach the country through all ports, he said.

Fuel imports remain near record lows as a result of a months-long dispute between the parties over import revenue. That dispute is contributing to serious fuel shortages, mainly in the north. Right now, 13 commercial fuel ships are just outside Hodeidah port. On average, they have been waiting 75 days for permission from the government to berth, he noted.

Delivering aid in Yemen is much harder than it should be, said Lowcock.

In the south, challenges mainly include delays in signing project agreements or releasing equipment. Those challenges limit the ability of aid agencies to expand their operations in the south.

In the north, the problems remain more severe. Houthi authorities regularly delay routine processes. They regularly attempt to interfere with aid delivery and they regularly harass aid agencies and staff, he said. "This is unacceptable."

Lowcock expressed sadness and disappointment at the military escalation in Marib governorate.

Until recently, Marib had been relatively safe. Since 2015, about 1 million people have fled there to get away from the war in other areas. Many of these people have fled multiple times, he noted.

"So this escalation is extremely dangerous. It threatens to send hundreds of thousands of people again running for their lives at a time when everyone should be doing everything possible to stop famine," he said. Enditem
Posted Thursday, February 18, 2021 1:08 am

The Southwest Washington Equity Coalition (SWEC) is launching a monthly educational series of teach-ins called Advanced Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: Awareness, Action and Change (AREDI). The AREDI series will bring together community members, local leaders and elected officials to raise awareness of racial equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) opportunities in Southwest Washington, according to a news release.

The teach-in series will begin on Friday, March 19 at 10:30 a.m. with A Message of Resilience featuring a keynote from Rosalie Fish, a member of the Cowlitz Indian Tribe. The program also includes discussion from Cowlitz Tribe Member Tanna Engdahl, comments from Karin Edwards of Clark College and more.

The series will continue one Friday every month through February 2022 and feature talks from community champions in the areas of racial justice, health, public safety, food sovereignty and housing and homelessness. Each session focuses on local issues with the goal of creating awareness, promoting action and defining measurable change.

Community members are encouraged and invited to participate in the live events. However, each session will be recorded for later viewing. Those interested in purchasing tickets or learning more should visit the SWEC website at swecwa.org/teach_in/. Group rates are available, and early registrations receive a 5 percent discount when using the code EQUITY by March 12. Scholarships are available for students and those in need, according to the news release.
VISAKHAPATNAM: Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Wednesday asserted that his government is firm in opposing privatisation of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) and said he has suggested to the Centre how VSP can be turned around.

He was speaking to a Joint Action Committee of 14 trade unions, which called on him at the Visakhapatnam Airport lounge. The Chief Minister pointed out that he has already addressed a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi suggesting that captive iron ore mines in Odisha be allotted to the Vizag steel plant.

He pointed out that VSP started making losses after the lease period of mines from where it used to get iron ore ended. The same needs to be revived, he observed.

The CM pointed out that these mines still have 200 million tonnes of reserves. The lease could be revived within four months, he said. On mines in AP, he underlined that their ore was of low-grade quality and would not be of much use to Vizag Steel Plant.

In support of his revival proposal, he said while Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) holds 51 per cent shares, the remaining are held by LIC, Central government and Odisha Mining Corporation. He reiterated that apart from getting captive mines, VSPs loans could be converted into equity of the respective organisations. The interest burden would then come down and the plant will not need to repay `3,000 crore, he stated.

Jagan Mohan Reddy said to prevent further losses owing to interest, RINL  the formal title of VSP, could be listed on the stock exchange, post which banks will have the exit option through sale of their shares. He recounted that RINL has `12,000 crore long-term loans and another `10,000 crore loan was taken as working capital. These could be further converted into long-term loans. Another option is to go for public issue, he explained.

All these issues and suggestions have been mentioned in my letter to Prime Minister, Jagan Mohan Reddy told the JAC leaders. He regretted that some senior political leaders are alleging that no letter has been sent to the Prime Minister. May be the acknowledgement letter has not been sent to these leaders, he remarked.

The Chief Minister suggested another option. RINL has 20,000 acres of land of which around 7,000 acres remains unused. These lands could be converted into house plots and sold by RINL to mobilise funds for VSP. AP government will not object to such land conversion, he underlined.

On his meeting POSCO representatives, Jagan Mohan Reddy said he had indeed met them seeking their investments in Kadapa, Krishnapatnam and Bhavanapadu. They are not serious about Vizag steel plant, he stated. He emphasised that the steel plant is not under the control of state government. Still, his government will pressurise the central government into dropping its idea of privatising VSP. Our MPs will meet the Prime Minister to explain the seriousness of the issue. We will wait for the reply from PM office, basing on which we will pass a resolution in the budget session of AP Legislative Assembly, he announced.
Gucci has opened a new 6,500-square-foot store at Pioneer Place in downtown Portland.

The boutique is the luxury fashion brands first store in Oregon and features a wide range of mens and womens shoes, handbags, luggage, jewelry and other products. The store officially opened Feb. 12.

The new boutique is a boon for downtown Portland, which is struggling to recover from myriad challenges.

Foot traffic downtown plummeted last year as companies asked employees to work from home and tourism dried up amid the pandemic, leaving downtown businesses with a limited customer base. During the height of the holiday season in December, foot traffic in downtown was down more than 80% from the year prior.

Some downtown businesses, including the Apple store across the street from Pioneer Place, have not reopened since last summer when protests consumed the downtown core. Those protests have since dwindled, but sporadic vandalism and burglaries have continued, prompting some businesses to continue to leave plywood up.

But some retailers remain optimistic about the future of downtown. Shortly after Gucci announced its new store, online retailer, Findlay Hats, announced Wednesday that they would open their first retail location on Feb. 20 in Old Town.

-- Jamie Goldberg | jgoldberg@oregonian.com | @jamiebgoldberg
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Newly released US intelligence files show how close the Soviet Union came to launching a nuclear attack during a NATO weapons exercise in 1983.

The Communist bloc put fighter bombers strapped with nuclear bombs on high alert in East Germany during a 'war scare' prompted by a NATO exercise in Western Europe called Able Archer in November 1983.

Soviet leader Yuri Andropov made 'preparations for the immediate use of nuclear weapons' and forces were on 30-minute standby to destroy enemy targets in what was one of the tensest moments of the Cold War.

It was previously known that Able Archer 83 caused panic in the Kremlin but the new documents, which are included in a new edition of Foreign Relations of the United States released on Tuesday, show precise details of the Soviet response.

The volume documents the foreign policy decisions of Ronald Reagan's government and focuses on relations with the Soviet Union between January 1983 and March 1985.

It also reveals the lack of information given to US generals who were left mostly in the dark about the USSR's actions, and have since admitted they could have acted differently had they known the true scale of the threat.

Able Archer exercises were an annual event by NATO military forces that simulated conflict escalation towards a DEFCON 1 nuclear attack situation on the East.

Nuclear bombs were loaded on to one squadron of aircraft in each regiment by the Su-17 fighter bomber divisions

Newly released US intelligence files show how close the Soviet Union came to launching a nuclear attack during a NATO weapons exercise in 1983. Pictured: US Tomahawk nuclear cruise missiles en route to silos upon arrival at Greenham Common Air Base

Some historians believe Ronald Reagan, pictured in November 1983, changed his attitude towards the Soviet Union as a result of the Able Archer scare, towards a policy of rapprochement

How Able Archer nearly led to war The Able Archer nuclear release exercise was carried out by NATO for a number of years to test their preparedness for war. The exercises consisted of conflict escalation leading to a DEFCON 1 situation. In November of 1983, Soviet officials thought the US was using the exercise as a front for a surprise nuclear attack on the USSR. The exercise had some 'special wrinkles' that year such as US planes engaging in 'nuclear warhead handling procedures' and 'taxiing out of hangars carrying realistic-looking dummy warheads'. As Soviet spies were looking to detect signs of an attack, NATO were simulating one. They noticed that Western leaders were involved with the plans and a high rate of coded communications between the UK and the US was also intercepted around that time. But unknown to the Russians, the messages were actually regarding the US invasion of Grenada. In 1983's exercise, NATO used new procedures, new message formats and more sophisticated communication, prompting fears in the USSR. Soviet leader Yuri Andropov initiated Operation RYAN so the USSR would be in position to counter-strike against the 'surprise nuclear missile attack' that the US never actually intended to launch. The USSR placed its air forces in East Germany and Poland on higher alert and asked its military intelligence officers to be especially watchful for signs of nuclear war preparations. Advertisement

But in 1983, the exercise coordinated from Belgium used a heightened realism not previously seen by the Soviets, causing alarm in their ranks.

That year, NATO forces used a new coded communication system, radio silences and the involvements of heads of government including Margaret Thatcher.

The documents, seen by the Washington Post, show how Soviets responded by raising the alarm in the fighter-bomber divisions in East Germany.

All command posts were manned around the clock while the chief of the Soviet air forces, Marshal Pavel Kutakhov, ordered all units in the Soviet 4th Air Army in Poland to also be on alert.

Nuclear bombs were loaded on to one squadron of aircraft in each regiment by the Su-17 fighter bomber divisions.

An intelligence report about a squadron in Neuruppin showed that aircraft had an 'unexpected weight and balance problem' during the scare.

US intelligence analysts concluded this was because the squadron was carrying a 'warload' that it had never used before.

The aircraft were on 'readiness 3', giving them a 30-minute alert to 'destroy first-line enemy targets', the documents show.

Soviet forces had long feared NATO could use the cover of an exercise to launch an offensive.

During the Able Archer 83 exercise, Lt. Gen. Leonard H Perroots, a top US intelligence official, contacted his superiors over fears the Soviets were preparing to strike.

Gen. Billy Minter, commander in chief of the US Air Forces in Europe, asked if they should react, but Perroots initially said there was not enough evidence.

But Perroots became increasingly worried as more information came through about Soviet preparations.

He later wrote: 'If I had known then what I later found out I am uncertain what advice I would have given.'

The new documents feature in the new edition of Foreign Relations of the United States which covers dealings with the Soviet Union from January 1983 to March 1985.

The war scare came at a time of increased hostility between the US and the USSR as Ronald Regan ramped up the nuclear rhetoric. Pictured: US troops at Checkpoint Charlie

Soviet leader Yuri Andropov prepared a nuclear counter-strike in the tense Cold War moment

It includes a 1989 memorandum from Perroots, written at the end of his tour, to record his dissatisfaction with the handling of the war scare.

Perroots died in 2017 and believed he made the right decision not to escalate force but said he lacked full intelligence to make the call.

After the exercise was over, he learned the full extent of the Soviet response which included a standdown of all air forces in the region, meaning a pause in routine flying and preparations for a potential attack.

The standdown was not picked up at the time by Western intelligence agencies.

A 1990 report on the 'Soviet War Scare' by the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (PFIAB) was declassified by the US government in 2015.

It was released to the National Security Archive and though it cited the Perroots memorandum, it was not made public.

The review concluded that relations with the Soviet Union were placed 'on a hair trigger' in 1983 after the 'unprecedented' response to the NATO exercise.

The war scare came during a period of heightened tensions between the US and the USSR.

In 1981, Soviet leaders including Andropov and Leonid Brezhnev declared the US was secretly preparing a nuclear attack.

They launched Operation RYaN, a Russian acronym for 'Nuclear Missile Attack', with spies gathering information on how the US would carry out a strike.

In the bellicose early years of the administration of Ronald Reagan, the US escalated military rhetoric against the USSR and heavily built up its arsenal.

The US President declared the USSR an 'evil empire', while building up the Strategic Defense Initiative, prompting genuine fears in the East about their intentions.

This led to the paranoia surrounding Able Archer and their rapid response to the perceived threat.
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Disclaimer: I am sorry, this time round I shall not be able to tell you whether I am being serious or comical? I myself dont know.

In 1907 Wilhelm Von Osten, a German mathematics teacher demonstrated the numerical skill of his horse Hans - Clever Hans as it later came to be known throughout Germany - and caused a minor sensation.

But diligent scientific investigations proved that the horse was keenly observing his trainer and responding to the cues from his body language to nod at the correct answer.

The Clever Hans syndrome had its brief period of fame, but it did provide an important methodology in conducting animal intelligence experiments. Observer-expectancy effect is widely used in studies in animal cognition.

Every now and then the Indian voters vote one way or the other and the results naturally go in favour of one party/group or the other. Predictably, the results throw the commentators, analysts, strategists and believers in democracy into raptures. A lot of inspirational verbiage, heavy jargon and statistical tools like bar graph, pies, chart and scatter diagram are all yoked by violence together to establish, scientifically, the wisdom and the perspicacity of the voter.

The act of unseating the ruling charlatan is taken as an evidence of the maturing of democracy just as installing him five or ten or fifteen or twenty years earlier had then been declared an act of great maturity. It seems that the primal state of immaturity is the default position of the Indian voter, the state of equilibrium, the state of maximum entropy to which having shown its maturity on election eve, he quietly retires.



The fact of the matter is that the voters choices are no more intelligent than that of Clever Hans or the roadside fortune telling parrot.

The high costs involved and the mammoth organising capability required to make an all India presence, has already narrowed the choice of acceptable alternatives to the two major political alliances. The paid media has ensured that you dont know a thing about them for sure and you have to vote by blind instinct or prejudice. Those who know both could describe them only in the memorable phrase of Stalin: they are both worse.

The voters respond to certain inducements, blandishments or subliminal appeals. Loan waiver, free electricity, free laptop, free liquor, freedom to smooch in the Echo Park or Sanjay Gandhi Udyan (a great vote catcher among the young in Bihar sometime back), Mandir, Masjid, Mandal, Kamandal, caste, community, are some surefire formulas.

At the end of the day long association with power has the same effect as living in the same underwear for long: they both stink and need to be changed, purely in the interest of hygiene. Nothing clever or exciting about that! If you take elections for what they are  a farce, a masked ball, a carnival, you can enjoy them as the most memorable show on earth.

"Free elections", says the maverick thinker, commentator and polemicist Slavoj Zizek, "involve a minimal show of politeness when those in power pretend that they do not really hold the power, and ask us to decide freely if we want to grant it to them."

For full participation, the pretense must be taken very seriously. You must prattle in your dunces cap pretending it be a crown. (I remember a line of a song I heard as a child: "Mat kaho ki sir pe topi hai, ye kaho ki sir pe taj hai."

My generation was indoctrinated in this business of topi pahanna and pahnana as children. The would-be tormentor/oppressor/excoriator would appear behind the mask of a servant, a chowkidar, a benefactor, a reformer, a pauper and beg for your vote. The electorate must play his role of prince with all the seriousness at his command and having granted the supplicant  pauper - his vote be prepared to be heard no more. Those like me who can see the tree for the wood enjoy democracy as a farce, and those many who dont, suffer it as tragedy.

India Today magazine once referred to Manoje Nath, a 1973-batch IPS officer, as being fiercely independent, honest, and upright. Besides his numerous official reports on various issues exposing corruption in the bureaucracy in Bihar, Nath is also a writer extraordinaire expressing his thoughts on subjects ranging from science fiction to the effects of globalization. His sense of humor was evident through his extremely popular series named "Gulliver in Pataliputra" and "Modest Proposals" that were published in the local newspapers.
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New Braunfels, TX (78130)

Today

Widely scattered showers and thunderstorms early. Clouds lingering later. High around 85F. Winds SE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 30%..

Tonight

Partly to mostly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms developing overnight. Low near 70F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
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Seen in this photo, a pharmacist draws a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at the Brooklyn Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare nursing home in the Brooklyn borough of New York on Jan. 5. Eric Lee/Bloomberg/TNS
Hartford Police / Contributed Photo

HARTFORD  A Wednesday afternoon shooting landed one person in the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to police.

Patrol officers responded to the 400 block of Wethersfield Avenue around 4:30 p.m. for a report of a person shot inside an apartment.
MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- After experiencing an unprecedented year marked by a global pandemic, racial unrest and a turbulent U.S. presidential election, today's teens have shifted their thinking when it comes to their educational path after high school.

Their likelihood of pursuing a four-year degree has diminished substantially over the past eight months with only slightly more than half of Gen Z teens now considering it. In addition, 52 percent believe they can achieve professional success with education attained in three years or less, and just one-fourth believe a four-year college degree is the only route to a good job.

And while 62 percent want to forge their own educational path, many high school students feel uninformed about the options available, with 63 percent of teens wishing their high school provided more information about the variety of postsecondary schooling opportunities available.

The statistics were gathered over the past 12 months in three national surveys conducted by ECMC Group and VICE Media. The surveys were conducted in February 2020, May 2020 and January 2021 to uncover how high school students are thinking about and planning for their future education and careers amidst an ever-changing environment marked by virtual classrooms and economic upheaval.

"High school students and their families have faced a great deal of change in their lives over the past year, which is translating into uncertainty as they look to their career paths," said Jeremy Wheaton, president and CEO of ECMC Group, a nonprofit focused on helping students succeed. "While this shift in mindset isn't surprising, it is up to us as leaders and mentors to educate learners about their future opportunities, which includes raising awareness about the variety of postsecondary learning options that are available."

For those who have been following the discussion, it will not come as a shock that this demographic is extremely concerned about the cost of higher education. In fact, the number one thing teens would change about college is the price tag. Their second top concern is making sure the path they take directly connects them to a future career. Specifically, the top three things Gen Z teens are most concerned about:

50 percentgraduating with a high amount of debt

44 percentnot getting a job after they graduate

40 percentnot being prepared for a job after school ends

Additional findings include:

Gen Z teens want skills and quick paths to careers

61 percent believe a skill-based education (e.g., trade skills, nursing, STEM, etc.) makes sense in today's world

45 percent agree that a program they can complete in a shorter period of time (within two years) makes sense

Nearly 25 percent are more likely to attend a career and technical education school due to their experience with COVID-19

Gen Z teens want government and employers to play a role

50 percent believe the government should provide additional money to pay off student loans

39 percent believe the government should subsidize/pay off debt

39 percent believe the government should subsidize/pay for college

38 percent believe companies should provide formal education

37 percent believe companies should provide money to pay off student loans

COVID-19 has had a direct impact on their future education plans

53 percent are worried about their future

40 percent do not feel adequately prepared for the next grade

29 percent said the pandemic's financial impact makes it less likely they will attend a four-year college

24 percent said the financial impact will make them less likely to pursue any education beyond high school

"While the insights we uncovered illustrate a high level of indecision, they also demonstrate that today's teens are using a critical eye when it comes to analyzing their options and charting their future course," said Wheaton. "We must take this opportunity to hear their concerns and provide pathways that will meet their educational needs now and into the future."

The surveys are part of a new Question The Quo campaign, developed by ECMC Group to empower students to learn about the various higher education options available and to take the career path that's right for them.

Survey Methodology

ECMC Group, in partnership with VICE Media, conducted three national Question The Quo surveys. The first survey of 1,177 high school students was conducted Feb. 25-March 2, 2020; the second survey of 1,025 high school students was conducted May 14-20, 2020; the third survey of 1,001 high school students was conducted January 4-19, 2021.

About ECMC Group

ECMC Group is a nonprofit corporation focused on helping students succeed by creating, providing and investing in innovative educational opportunities. Headquartered in Minneapolis, ECMC Group and its family of companies are focused on advancing educational opportunities through financial tools and services; nonprofit career education and workforce training; and innovative, impactful and mission-aligned funding for innovative programs to help students achieve their academic and professional goals and to address the future of work. To learn more, visit www.ecmcgroup.org.

SOURCE ECMC Group

Related Links

ecmcgroup.org


A policeman aims a slingshot toward an unknown target during a crackdown on anti-coup protesters holding a rally in front of the Myanmar Economic Bank in Mandalay, Burma (also known as Myanmar), on Feb. 15, 2021. (AP Photo)

UK Sanctions Burma Junta Leaders After Coup

Britain is imposing asset freezes and travel bans against three members of the military regime of Burma (also known as Myanmar) for their roles in serious human rights violations during the coup, UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab announced on Feb. 18.

The measures, taken in tandem with Canada, are in addition to the sanctions against 16 members of the Burmese military already listed by the UK, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) stated in a press release.

Today the UK has sanctioned further individuals responsible for serious human rights violations against the people of Myanmar during the coup. We are clear we will act to hold those who violate human rights accountable. We stand with the #Myanmar peoplehttps://t.co/EG27nYGbOE  Dominic Raab (@DominicRaab) February 18, 2021

Burmas military seized power on Feb. 1 and arrested leaders of the civilian government, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint.

The British government accused Burmas military and police of committing serious human rights violations, including violating the right to life, the right to freedom of assembly, the right not to be subject to arbitrary arrest or detention, and the right to freedom of expression.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said, The UK condemns the military coup and the arbitrary detention of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political figures.

We, alongside our international allies, will hold the Myanmar military to account for their violations of human rights and pursue justice for the Myanmar people, he said in a Feb. 18 statement.

Police in riot gear march to take a position to block demonstrators at an intersection during a protest in Mandalay, Burma, on Feb. 9, 2021. (AP Photo)

The UK will impose sanctions on Burmas defence minister, Gen. Mya Tun Oo, for his responsibility for serious human rights violations by the military.

Lt. Gen. Soe Htut, Burmas home affairs minister, along with his deputy, Lt. Gen. Than Hlaing, will be sanctioned for his role in serious human rights violations by the countrys police force.

In addition to the sanctions, the government said it is stepping up its effort to stop UK businesses working with the Burmese military junta.

The Foreign Office and the Department for International Trade have launched an enhanced due diligence process to mitigate the risk of Burmese junta-related businesses operating in the UK and associated illicit money flows.

Also, the UK is putting in place further safeguards to prevent UK aid from indirectly supporting the military led government.

The government has axed official assistance to Burma in support of government-led reforms, and will ensure aid is reaching only the poorest and most vulnerable in the country.
Photo shows Chinese and U.S. national flags. (Xinhua)

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- American businesses would be significantly impacted with hundreds of billions losses in foregone GDP and capital gains and U.S. productivity and innovation undermined if the United States and China were to fully decouple, a new report showed Wednesday.

The United States would forgo 190 billion dollars in gross domestic product (GDP) annually by 2025, if 25-percent tariffs were expanded to cover all two-way trade, according to the analysis by U.S. Chamber of Commerce's China Center in partnership with Rhodium Group.

If decoupling leads to the sale of half of the U.S. foreign direct investment (FDI) stock in China, U.S. investors will lose 25 billion dollars per year in capital gains, and models point to one-time GDP losses of up to 500 billion dollars, showed the report titled "Understanding U.S.-China Decoupling: Macro Trends and Industry Impacts."

The report identified the potential costs of a U.S.-China decoupling from two perspectives: the aggregate costs for the U.S. economy across trade, investment, people, and ideas, and the industry-level costs in civil aviation, semiconductors, chemicals, and medical devices.

"If we were to try to cut off everything or the preponderance of our economic engagement with China would be so expensive that it would make everyone, even the most hawkish Americans and national security professionals, very uncomfortable," said Daniel Rosen, founding partner of Rhodium Group, at a virtual release event for the report.

On industry-level costs, full decoupling would lead to tremendous U.S. output losses for strategic U.S. industries, weakening their ability to sustain jobs, research & development (R&D), and global technology leadership, the report said.

Among the industrial losses it listed, the U.S. aircraft and commercial aviation services would suffer output losses ranging from 38 billion to 51 billion dollars, plus job losses between 167,000 and 225,000.

For the U.S. semiconductor industry, a loss of access to Chinese customers would cause 54 billion to 124 billion dollars in lost U.S. output, risking more than 100,000 U.S. jobs, and 12 billion dollars in R&D spending.

"We did this study largely to suggest that the degree of interconnectedness between the United States and China creates a very complex relationship, such that efforts from the United States or China to decouple, to disengage actually, have perhaps unintended consequences," said Charles Freeman, senior vice president for Asia at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Freeman said it requires "surgical efforts" to preserve U.S. interests when dealing with China, urging policymakers in Washington to avoid "sledgehammers" in China policies.
The Maryland Insurance Administration (MIA) has issued civil administrative orders carrying penalties of nearly $500,000 against five individuals and four companies for insurance fraud and acting as public adjusters without a license.

The administration noted in a press release that while many home repair and restoration services are honest and reliable, there are dishonest and predatory actors that lure homeowners into unnecessary or inflated repairs by suggesting that those repairs are covered by insurance. They then offer to act for the homeowner in negotiations with the insurer in violation of state licensing laws and often to the detriment of the consumer. Reports of these activities often follow disasters or storms and have spiked during the pandemic, the administration added in the release.

MIA Commissioner Kathleen Birrane warned consumers in the release that if someone shows up at your door, saying they are going to get you a new roof after a hail storm, or get your insurance company to replace your aging deck  think twice and do your homework.

After its investigations, the administration has imposed a combined $480,000 in administrative penalties in three administrative orders issued on February 17, 2021. The orders were issued against David Dallmer, a Pennsylvania resident, and Cornerstone Building & Restoration LLC, a Virginia company licensed to do business in Maryland. They were found to have violated eight provisions of Maryland insurance law relating to public adjusting activities, as well as insurance fraud.

The administration investigated Dallmer and Cornerstone in connection with home repairs submitted as insurance claims that were flagged by the special investigation units in two separate insurance companies. The MIAs investigation showed that Dallmer and Cornerstone were advising and purported to represent the homeowners in connection with those insurance claims, activities that require an individual to be licensed as a public adjuster. Dallmer is no longer licensed to act as an adjuster in Maryland, and Cornerstone has never held a license. Both have faced administrative action in other states for similar activities.

Dallmer and Cornerstone hold themselves out as insurance specialists on social media and advertising and encourage homeowners to engage them with the promise to get free replacement through your homeowners insurance coverage.

Cornerstone further encourages claims by effectively covering the homeowners out-of-pocket deductible by paying the homeowner amounts equivalent to the deductible to place lawn signs on the property, an illegal practice.

The administration has ordered Dallmer and Cornerstone to discontinue insurance-related business in Maryland. Dallmer was fined $60,000 and Cornerstone was fined $120,000.

Xpress Interior Design LLC, a company incorporated in Maryland, and Joseph Zacot, a Maryland resident and employee of Xpress, were sanctioned for eight violations of Maryland insurance law, including operating as public adjusters without a license. Additionally, investigators confirmed through video evidence that Zacot purposely damaged shingles on a homeowners roof to support a storm damage insurance claim.

The administration has ordered Xpress and Zacot to discontinue any insurance-related business in Maryland. Xpress has been fined $20,000, and Zacot has been fined $10,000.

In the third case, Sam S. Juma, David Lee, James Park, Royal Public Adjusters LLC, and Halo Construction and Restoration were penalized by the administration after an investigation resulting from six fraud referrals by insurance companies.

The administration has revoked the licenses of Chicago-based Juma and Royal Public Adjusters LLC for, among other things, allowing Halo, a Rockville company, and its owner Lee to operate Royals public adjusting business in Maryland, although neither Halo nor Lee hold public adjusting licenses themselves. The administration also sanctioned the parties for failing to disclose their financial affiliation and other deficiencies in disclosures and contract terms.

For that violation and others, in addition to revoking the public adjuster licenses of Juma and Royal Public Adjusters LLC, the administration ordered the individuals and companies to discontinue their insurance related operations in Maryland. An administrative penalty of $90,000 was imposed jointly against Lee and Halo and $5,000 against Park. Juma and Royal were jointly assessed a penalty of $175,000.

Public adjusters exist to represent the homeowner, often after significant damage to their home, to coordinate repairs needs and costs and manage the claim process with the insure on behalf of the homeowner, Birrane said in the release. Public adjusters are trained and experienced professionals who have to be licensed by the administration and who must follow strict rules related to disclosures, contract terms, and conflicts of interest with the MIA rigorously enforces.

The Parties in each of the cases have 30 days from the date of the order to request an evidentiary hearing if they wish to contest the orders or the penalties.

Source: Maryland Insurance Administration

Topics Fraud Numbers Maryland
Amazon, originally, was going to be a boon for Eastvale, Ike Bootsma, a former mayor of the town, told me when explaining why city officials first welcomed the warehouses. That, in part, was because of a California law passed in 2011 requiring internet retailers like Amazon to collect state sales tax on items bought by California residents, an initiative the tech giant pushed back against. Recently, the state has been requiring third-party sellers to pay sales taxes too. Those taxes are a multimillion-dollar windfall.

But Eastvale officials told me they hardly see that cash flow. Amazon sales taxes go to the state and are then redistributed back to the counties where the orders were processed. Each county divvies up the money based on a formula. The county of Riverside, home to Eastvale, will allocate funds based on which city brings in the most revenue. Cities with more retail outlets, restaurants, fuel stations and industrial centers tend to generate more taxable sales and receive the largest share of Amazon tax revenue. Since Eastvale is younger, with fewer restaurants and stores, it cant compete. Only a small amount of Amazons tax revenue trickles down. For the third quarter of 2020, Eastvale received 2.9 percent of those funds, according to Amanda Wells, finance director and treasurer for the city. Sales taxes have become especially critical under Proposition 13, which since 1978 has shielded homeowners  but also commercial properties  from property-tax increases.

Honestly its only fair for us to get the taxes, said Todd Rigby, another former Eastvale mayor and a current City Council member. Its not like Target or Costco, whose sales taxes go to the city. Bryan Jones, Eastvales city manager, said Amazon has hired local law enforcement on overtime to help alleviate traffic congestion during its peak shipping season. But Rigby and other officials said the city needs money to repair heavily trafficked roads. Amazon, Rigby said, is utilizing our services but not necessarily paying its fair share.

Eastvale and its neighboring cities do benefit from the infusion of jobs and tax money, Rigby said. We have a saying in Eastvale: Their success is our success. But he is also concerned about what the future will look like across the region as Amazon continues to automate its warehouses. We approved those projects based on an appreciation that there was going to be employment, Rigby said. The more they automate, the less jobs.

The Industrial Technical Learning Center (InTech) opened in the Inland Empire the same year that Eastvale got its first Amazon facility. Just as the region has become home to Amazons warehouses and transportation hubs, it has also become host to a number of schools and programs designed to prepare people for the day when Amazons automized factories replace traditional jobs. In one InTech session I visited, students learned how to repair mechanical arms and program machine systems.

Even though the very entry-level unskilled-labor jobs are going away because of robots, those are the sorts of jobs most people dont want to stay in for their entire lives, said Jon Fox, who coordinates work-force training through InTech. The schools goal is to provide skills to the next generation and teach them about opportunities in manufacturing and logistics as good potential long-term careers, Fox said, where they can make a good livable wage. The programming and repair jobs might not replace every job lost to automation, he added, but there are other jobs around that are being created.

Amazon officials told me the company encourages these kinds of training programs, as well as initiatives that will help its employees gain the skills to move into other industries, even if that means losing those workers when they land better jobs. In 2019, Amazon announced plans to spend $700 million to retrain about 100,000 of its 300,000 employees in the United States by 2025. The company has said it hopes to put them on the path to becoming I.T. technicians or coders. But several workers I spoke with who had been employed by Eastvales Amazon facilities told me the idea of going back to school to learn new skills, while they are struggling to raise kids and pay bills, was not feasible. These opportunities, they believed, were better for younger, more adaptable employees.
NEW YORK, Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- ColorComm, Inc., the nation's leading women's platform addressing diversity & inclusion across the communications, marketing, advertising, and media industries, will host the 4th Annual NextGen Fellows Program beginning April 8, 2021, with a summit & recruiting component to allow agencies, brands, and corporations to recruit students for internships and full-time positions.

ColorComm's 4th Annual NextGen Fellows Program will focus directly on current students and recent graduates of Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCUs). ColorComm's NextGen Fellows Program is a year-long program that provides mentorship, training, resources, and a direct pipeline for Fortune 500 companies to engage and hire the next generation of leaders. The Fellows Program is an exclusive program where applicants will be evaluated on how they give back to their community, their interests inside and outside of the classroom, and their plan to contribute to the communications industry.

The virtual programming and recruitment summit (held on April 8-9, 2021) will bring together the best and brightest HBCU students from across the nation, and will reach ColorComm's Community of more than 40,000 multicultural professionals.

"As an alumna of Spelman College, I know first-hand some the challenges HBCU students face to get their career started in the communications industry. The cutting edge 4th Annual ColorComm NextGen Fellows Program will help eliminate the barriers to entry by providing HBCU students and recent graduates with the tools to become successful, where they will learn how to add value to their roles and companies, and to the communications industry," said Lauren Wesley Wilson, Founder and CEO, ColorComm.

Participating HBCU Schools Include:

Alabama A&M University

Claflin University

Clark Atlanta University

Fisk University

Florida A&M University

Hampton University

Howard University

Morehouse College

Morgan State University

Prairie View A&M University

Spelman College

Xavier University of Louisiana

SOURCE ColorComm, Inc.

Related Links

https://www.colorcommnetwork.com


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SUPERVISOR HOLLY MITCHELL: POWER, PASSION AND PERSPECTIVE

A knowledge of the community, a passion for service and no-nonsense approach to making it happen is what makes her one of the most powerful women in Los Angeles politics.

Holly Mitchell was sworn-in to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Sunday, December 6, 2020. However, she says that between moving out of her Senate office, moving into her new Supervisors office, hiring a full staff, getting brought up to speed on exactly whats going on in the 2nd Supervisorial District, thanking voters and supporters and the holidays, all while remaining socially distant, she really didnt get down to business until January 1, 2021.

With Mitchells lets get down to business personality the newest member of Los Angeles Countys all-female Board of Supervisors didnt waste much time doing the peoples business.

Obviously, my office has been working diligently to get up to speed and to get help to the people in my district. Its about equity and justice for those who so desperately need the resources the county can provide to combat this pandemic, said Mitchell. She says that equity in resources is her main focus. She points out that the residents of her district have been disproportionately affected by Covid. She says her constituents are the people on the front lines.

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We are the health care providers, the grocery store workers, the service providers the people who most often are affected by this pandemic, said Mitchell. But, we are not getting our proportionate share of the resources. We need more testing, more vaccines because unfortunately we are also the ones most often dying from this disease.

Mitchell succeeds Mark Ridley-Thomas in representing the Second District, which runs from Wilshire Center to Carson, from Mar Vista to Lynwood. Mark Ridley-Thomas, who now serves as the Councilman for Los Angeles 10th Council District, left his seat because of term limits and Mitchell defeated former L.A. City Council President Herb Wesson to become the second African American Female to hold the high-powered seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

She knows that the seat she now sits in has a lot of influence, but she also realizes that because of the diversity and tremendous gaps between the haves and the have nots in her district, there is a lot of work that needs to be done. While responding to the pandemic is the major issue today in her district, she also realizes that economic empowerment, quality and affordable housing, and community concerns about gentrification are only a few of the other major issues her office will need to address.

Mitchell served almost 10 years in the California Legislature, three years in the California Assembly and seven years in the California Senate. During that time, she was one of the most progressive political leaders in the state. She was a powerful voice for criminal justice reform, an advocate for youth in the foster care system, and fought for greater services for those with mental illness. In the senate, she served as the chairperson for the powerful budget committee and was the key leader in fighting to keep funding in place for Martin Luther King Hospital when so many hospitals were targeted for major budget cuts in response to the fiscal challenges brought on by COVID-19.

Mitchell sees her role as a Supervisor much like she saw it as a member of the State Senate. My job is to bring resources and opportunity to my community, said Mitchell. She says that she has always been an advocate for those less fortunate. A very similar role as the one she played before she ran for elected office as the executive director of Crystal Stairs, a local non-profit organization committed to helping parents find childcare, training childcare providers on how to nurture and educate young children, and helping parents and providers bridge the affordability gap with child care subsidies.

When asked about housing in the county and people concerns about gentrification, Mitchell does not bite her tongue.

We need to say to Black and Brown people to stop selling your homes, said Mitchell. But, while that answer alone may not be something people want to hear, she does have a plan. She says that in order for us to maintain communities of color we have to understand and have a transition plan. We have to educate our people on what it takes to buy a home, maintain a home, have an estate plan and understand what effects not having a plan will do to our families, our communities and our future.

She says that she wants to provide incentives to homeowners to build accessory dwellings that low- and very-low-income tenants could rent, by reducing property taxes through subsidies or reducing or eliminating construction fees. She also wants to find ways to have more landlords accept rent vouchers.

Lastly, she wants to address economic empowerment by assuring that the developers and people building developments within our community look like the people who will buy, occupy and operate businesses in our community. She says that economic empowerment needs to come from within. We have to create economic opportunities for people in our community to be in the lead roles of development, that is a key factor in how we can move forward and uplift our community.

Mitchell also talks about creating a land trust. A public/private partnership which can purchase properties (at market rate) from sellers, transfer the property into the trust and then make the propertys more affordable for those in the community at re-sale.

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Mitchell ran a campaign she described as based on creating a more equitable, inclusive, and prosperous L.A. County and touted her accomplishments in 10 years in the state Legislature, which included passage of a package of criminal justice reform bills, and other legislation providing for transitional housing placement for foster youth to help prevent youth homelessness and extended access to mental health care services.

Holly Mitchell has very little energy for wasting time. Whether you start her clock on December 6th or January 1. Since ramping up, she has been doing the peoples business from day one. She has already taken local, state and federal government to task calling for an equitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine. She has also advocated for additional resources to be provided to the youth home where David McKnght-Hillman was brutally killed. She has pulled together members of the faith community to aid in a countywide movement to prevent and combat homelessness and she has pushed to expand protections for small property owners and wants to create pathways to homeownership for communities hit hardest by COVID-19.

Either way you look at it. Holly Mitchell is up to speed and running hard. She knows there is a lot of work to do and she is ready, willing and able to respond for those in need and those who need help the most.

Name: John Germain

Organisation: Duck Creek Technologies, Inc.

Job title: V.P. and CISO

Date started current role: August, 2017

Location: Chicago, IL

As Duck Creeks chief information security officer (CISO), John Germain is accountable for the strategy, direction, and management of the companys overall security program and capabilities, including those of Duck Creeks OnDemand services. Germain brings more than 15 years of experience as an information security professional to Duck Creek, and more than 25 total in IT. He has a strong background building and managing IT security programs for large, global organisations and is a well-respected leader in the community, having been named both a Top 100 CISO and a Top 25 Breakaway CISO Leader.

What was your first job? My first full time job was working at a film processing company. I worked in the finishing department where we took the processed film and put it into different types of media containers. If anyone can remember, slide shows used to be these single image film prints that would be put into a plastic slide sleeve. Part of my job was to drop the slides into a round tray by hand. I was the original PowerPoint guy.

How did you get involved in cybersecurity? Long story. At this film processing company, I ended up moving into the accounting department working in Credit and Collections. I had gotten my Associates Degree in Accounting and was working towards my undergrad while working full time. This was before PCs and Windows, but we did have a Wang VS 80 to run the accounting department. I kind of figured out how to use and maintain it as well as write some reports. After some time, we joined the PC age and I ended up running the IT Department. From there I did some consulting and then landed at a large Future 500 company running their network. I ended up running the whole infrastructure at a time when Information Security was just starting to emerge as a function.

They tapped me to be the lead for the security department and because the company was also a top 5 defense contractor, I ended up getting DoD TS clearance, working more with the classified part of our business. I grew the security organisation, building out a security operations capability as well as architecture and compliance functions. As the company grew, mainly through acquisition, a seasoned CISO was brought in to run everything, and I was put in charge of Security Operations and GRC.

After a few years, the company split up into three separate companies, and I was asked to make sure the three companies all separated securely and helped make sure that each company had a security function in place as they became independent organisations. I was also asked to be the CISO for one of the companies after the divestiture was completed. A year into that role, the CIO asked me take on all of the IT Infrastructure as well and I was also tagged to run the IT integrations for large acquisitions.

After a number of years, I decided to move on, and landed where I am now, as V.P. and CISO of Duck Creek Technologies, a leading SaaS provider for the property and casualty insurance industry. And I could not be happier.

What was your education? Do you hold any certifications? What are they? I have an associate degree in Accounting and a BA in Technical Management. I have also held a CISSP for about 13 years. Along the way I had have numerous certifications in different networking and computer technologies as well as completing a number of executive training programs.

Explain your career path. Did you take any detours? If so, discuss. So oddly enough I came out of high school pursuing a degree in Architecture. Like building houses type architecture. That lasted about 2 days because I was terrible at it, so I went after a degree in Accounting. My wife was in the Navy, so she would travel back and forth to the base every day, and I was working full time and going to school. Once I caught the IT bug, it pretty much consumed me.

My strengths were in networking and firewalls as well as directory services. We were using Novell at the time. I had a knack for solving complex issues, mainly because I was always curious about how things worked. I was always tinkering and asking questions trying to figure things out. Always reading and researching as well. I learned the basics of Solaris one night because we needed to add an email anti-virus solution when the Mellissa virus came out in 1999. And because I worked with firewalls so much, security just became a natural progression. I guess I saw it coming, and just tried to position and prepare myself as best I could to be ready for my time.

Was there anyone who has inspired or mentored you in your career? There is one person above others from a professional perspective that really got me started in my career. He taught me some of the basics of how to be successful, including the importance of values and treating everyone with respect. He also taught be a lot about how to be an effective communicator. He gave me opportunities to succeed and to fail, and believe me, I failed a lot. But most important, he taught me to stay true to my principles. That is one thing I have carried throughout my career and I have tried to pass on to others.

I think at times I may have missed out on opportunities because I would not compromise my principles, but in the end I feel like the things I have achieved are much more satisfying because I feel I have done it the right way. Along the way, there have been so many other people that have helped, inspired and motivated me. Especially my wife, who pushed me when I needed to be pushed and supported me during the difficult times. I am truly the person I am today because of her, my son and all the people who have supported me along the way.

What do you feel is the most important aspect of your job? For me it is building relationships. Cybersecurity is challenging because you need to partner and communicate with all parts and levels of an organisation. I spend quite a bit of time building those relationships so that I can gain their trust and respect. As any security expert will tell you, the people in the organisation are so important to the success of a security program.

I need to know that if I say that something needs to be changed or some action needs to be taken to mitigate an immediate risk, that it will be done without hesitation. And I need to know that people respect what I say and that it has meaning to them. That comes with building trust at all levels of the organisation. And my goal is to make sure that everyone I talk to knows that they are important, no matter where they are in the organisation, because they all are.

What metrics or KPIs do you use to measure security effectiveness? I tend to go with metrics that do one of two things. The first is a call to action, meaning I am showing you this information because we need to improve in this area and this is the data showing where we are, where we need to be, and how much is needed in terms of resources to get us there. I am a huge believer in governance, meaning we have a strong set of policies and standards to run the business. I try to measure our compliance to those polices and standards as a way to show where we have drifted from where we want to be. Think of risk heatmaps and control metrics. The second type of metric is to show the effectiveness of our investments in the security program. I want leadership to know that the program is successful. This can be done through audit type metrics and by measuring the maturity of the program over time against standards and even against peers.

Is the security skills shortage affecting your organisation? What roles or skills are you finding the most difficult to fill? It has not had a tremendous impact, but it is a concern for me. I have been fortunate to have built up a few connections over the years, and I think I have a decent reputation for being a good person to work with. And I think going back to what I said earlier, I treat everyone like they are important. To me, each person who works in my organisation is an individual and I try to treat them that way. And when I interview people, I am more interested in their fit as a person, both from their perspective and mine. I also look past what is written in a resume, and I look for some key traits that I like to see. Curiosity, eagerness, a little bit of an attitude but the ability to work easily with others. Those are all important to me. I feel like there are so many people with strong technical skills, but it is these other aspects that I feel can make for a good employee.

My goal, for anyone that works with me, is to guide their career as was done for me, and if they want to become a CISO as a career goal, then I will do what I can to make that happen.

Cybersecurity is constantly changing  how do you keep learning? I am way too much into the technology than I should be. I basically touch everything we use to secure our company. I guess I have never lost my own sense of curiosity and I am still tinkering with everything. I was given a nickname by someone a number of years back. Dim Mak. The Death Touch. If there was a way to break something, I would find it, most often on the first try. I cant tell you how many times someone on my staff would come to me with so much pride about something they had developed, and I would find a bug in it in about 5 minutes. I have never lost that need to understand how everything works.

Security is a huge challenge because the variables are so massive. And often times you dont even know what you are looking for. I am also involved in the security community and try to stay abreast of what is going on in the cybersecurity space by reading, talking to my peers and continuing to learn about the tools, processes and tactics used to fight off cyber-attacks.

What conferences are on your must-attend list? I tend to stick with Gartner conferences. Their annual Security & Risk Management Summit is usually pretty good. There is an annual Evanta Summit that I have been on the member board for a number of years. I will make every effort to attend that. The pandemic has made face-to-face meetings and conferences impossible, which is disappointing, but there are a number of groups trying to make the best of it. I recently joined the Cybersecurity Consortium, which is run by some of the most impressive security professionals that I have had the pleasure of meeting.

What is the best current trend in cybersecurity? The worst? I see more attention being paid towards awareness training, which is needed in my opinion. People are still a heavily targeted asset and the hardest to protect. We all just have a trusting nature and want to help, and attackers know how to take advantage of that. Things like zero trust, user behavior analytics, and artificial intelligence are all good ways to deal with managing the people risk, but in the end, people are the ones faced with what I call security moments several times a day every day. And we want people making the right decisions when they face those moments. That takes awareness.

The one area that still has not been well addressed very well is the concept of building for security. Technology is growing and evolving so rapidly, but we face the same challenges as we always have in security in trying to catch up as an afterthought. IoT technology is a prime example. The goal is cheaper and faster for this technology and often times security is sacrificed. The results of this can be pretty dangerous.

What's the best career advice you ever received? The best career advice I ever got was from my wife. She told me I was smart enough and good enough to accomplish anything I wanted to, and I should not be afraid to go out and do it. She talked me into quitting a job that I had stalled in and take a huge risk by making a career change when I was about 30.

What advice would you give to aspiring security leaders? Its important to know as much as you can about what your company does and how it operates. One of the harder parts about security is how much you must know so that you can have full context into the threats you are facing and what risks need to be prioritised. I often say a security professional must have knowledge an inch deep, but a mile wide. You have to know about legal concepts, regulatory impacts, human resources, finance, what your business does and how they do it. And you must of course know security as a subject matter expert for the company. And again, building relationships and being able to communicate at all levels is crucial.
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The Russian Arctic seems to be eating itself from the inside out as several massive holes continue to appear from time to time since 2013. Among the latest is the massive hole that appeared in the Siberian permafrost last year that had scientists baffled.



To unravel the giant craters' secrets, scientists have decided to explore and research the hole through drone photography, artificial intelligence, and 3D modeling.

Visiting the Siberian Crater

The Siberian hole's appearance last year was violent, blowing out methane gas and powerfully throwing ice and rocks in the surrounding area after finally leaving a circular scar on the ground, leaving nothing but an eerie, empty hole in the landscape.

In August 2020, a team of researchers decided to visit the crater.

"The new crater is uniquely well preserved, as surface water hadn't yet accumulated in the crater when we surveyed it, which allowed us to study a 'fresh' crater, untouched by degradation," said Evgeny Chuvilin, the lead scientist researcher at the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology's Center for Hydrocarbon Recovery in Moscow, as per CNN.

During the visit, the researchers were able to fly a drone into the crater for the first time.

Read More: X-Ray, Computerized Tomography Help Lay Out Gruesome Death of Egyptian Pharaoh

Capturing Images for 3D Modeling

According to the report, the drone was able to reach 10 to 15 meters from the surface and was able to capture 80 images, which was enough for the scientists to create a 3D model of the massive crater, which they believe is around 30 meters deep.

To control the UAV, drone pilot and study author Igor Bogoyavlensky from the Oil and Gas Research Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences said that he had to lie down the edge of the deep hole and then dangle his arm on edge for the control to connect with the drone and enable him to maneuver it.

However, Bogoyavlensky did say there were times when they thought they lost the drone, but thankfully, they have acquired enough data for their research.

Methane Gas Build-Up Confirmed

Based on the drone photographs and the 3D model they created, their hypothesis was confirmed: that there is methane gas built up in the ice's cavity, surrounded by unusual caverns and grottoes.

The methane build-up is causing a mound to appear on the lowest level of the hole, which grows in size before blowing up ice and other debris.

Nevertheless, scientists are still unsure of where the methane came from.

"Climate change, of course, has an impact on the probability of gas blowout craters appearing in the Arctic permafrost," Chuvilin said.

Through satellite imagery, the experts were also able to theorize when the crater appeared, saying that the mound would have exploded and created the crater sometime between May 15 to June 9, 2020, while it was discovered on July 16, 2020.

There are 17 craters in the area as of writing, but they are still uncertain as to how many there actually are and when the next one will appear.

The full details of the research by Chuvilin and the team have been published in the scientific journal "Geosciences."

Related Article: GoPro Accidentally Captures Strange, Mysterious Creatures Living Underneath Half Mile of Antarctic Ice

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Rush Limbaugh clinging to personal relationship with Jesus after sharing stage 4 cancer update

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Popular conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh declared that he is clinging to his faith in Jesus despite a new health update revealing his cancer is progressing.

I have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, Limbaugh said on his radio program Monday. It is of immense value, strength, confidence. Thats why Im able to remain fully committed to the idea that what is supposed to happen will happen when its meant to.

The iconic political commentator thanked everyone who has sent forth prayers and well wishes. He called the support a series of blessings.

There is some comfort in knowing that some things are not in our hands, theres a lot of fear associated with that, too, but theres some comfort. Its helpful to be able to trust and believe in a higher plan, added Limbaugh, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the State of the Union in February.

Really quite remarkable to hear @rushlimbaugh discussing his cancer setback and yet pointing out all of his blessings, "it's just a series of blessings." pic.twitter.com/CZg4V5YmAE  Heather Champion ? (@winningatmylife) October 19, 2020

The 69-year-old first revealed in February that he was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. Limbaugh admitted that at the time of his diagnosis he had zero symptoms and while he is still not in much pain, he has accepted that his recent scans revealed some progression of cancer.

The scans did show some progression of cancer, he said. Prior to that, the scans had shown that we had rendered the cancer dormant  thats my phrase for it. We had stopped the growth. It had been reduced, and it had become manageable.

He added, Its always the reality, and the knowledge, that that can change and it can come back because it is cancer. It outsmarts pretty much everything you throw at it. And this, of course, this is stage 4 lung cancer.

Limbaugh went on to say that his physician has since tweaked his chemotherapy treatment in hopes of keeping additional progression at bay for as long as possible.

He is keeping the hope that the growth can be reduced again.

If it happened once, it can happen again, the Missouri native declared.

While sharing the update with his millions of listeners, Limbaugh emotionally said, Its tough to realize that the days where I do not think Im under a death sentence are over.

We all know were going to die at some point, he added. When you have a terminal disease diagnosis that has a time frame to it, then that puts a different psychological and even physical awareness to it.


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The rapid expansion in the use of cloud technologies to support remote working during the COVID-19 pandemic has underscored that the U.S. government's increasingly high rate of cloud adoption will likely be sustained for the next several years.

In fact, 2020 was a "historic year" for federal cloud migration, according to Alex Rossino, senior principal research analyst at Deltek. Federal spending on cloud technology reached $6.8 billion in the 2020 federal fiscal year, more than double the level of 2017.

"I think that the federal market turned a corner in fiscal 2018 with the publication of the 'Cloud Smart' guidance. After that agencies began rapidly accelerating the migration of systems and use of SaaS capabilities. COVID-19 only added fuel to that fire," Rossino told the E-Commerce Times.

"Cloud Smart" is a Trump administration initiative to modernize information technology and generate cloud migration at federal agencies with an emphasis on security issues, technology procurement, and workforce improvement. The COVID-19 spurt in cloud usage also reflected a more trusting attitude toward the technology by federal purchasing officials who may have had some lingering concerns about cloud migration.

"COVID-19 quickly and unexpectedly rendered criticisms and concerns over IT modernization and cloud migrations largely irrelevant," said Juliana Vida chief technical advisor for the public sector at Splunk.

Those concerns focused on data security and lack of visibility into application performance and availability, she noted in a Web posting during a high point of COVID-19 contagion earlier this year. Agencies that had migrated to the cloud "demonstrated better abilities and agility to deal with the crisis, than those who were still on legacy systems," Vida noted.

Growth in Long-Term Cloud Spending

The short-term boost from the pandemic is just one factor supporting long-term cloud adoption at the federal level. Annual federal spending on cloud computing will grow from the $6.8 billion level in 2020 to $7.3 billion in 2021 and to $7.8 billion in 2022, according to Deltek's analysis

"Faced with aging information technology infrastructure that is increasingly unsecure, and urged by Congress and the White House to control spending while leveraging emerging technologies, federal agencies are turning to commercial cloud solutions as the best method of modernizing their environments," observed Rossino.

For fiscal 2021, which began on October 1, 2020, federal civilian agencies aim to spend $4.5 billion on cloud technologies, while Defense Department cloud spending will reach $2.1 billion. Intelligence agencies are budgeting $621 million for cloud investments in fiscal 2021.

Deltek's projections are based on detailed data gathering from various federal sources to supplement Office of Management and Budget figures which may not completely reflect all levels of cloud spending. For example, Deltek includes historic trends and cloud activities associated with data center and enterprise IT activities to develop its projections.

Within that context, cloud spending in the federal defense sector will grow by $65 million between 2021 and 2022 to a total of $2.2 billion. During that period, cloud spending by the U.S. Army will increase from $346 million to $380 million; from $921 million to $942 million for the U.S. Air Force, and from $563 million to $59 million for other defense agencies. U.S. Navy spending for cloud will decrease from $306 million in 2021 to $286 million in 2022.

Civilian sector cloud spending will reach $4.8 billion in fiscal 2022, a gain of $325 billion over 2021. The top civilian agency for cloud investments will be Veterans Affairs, where cloud spending will grow from $947 milllion to $962 million between 2021 and 2022. The next two highest civilian agencies will be the Department of Homeland Security with cloud investment growing from $602 million to $662 million between 2021 and 2022, and the Department of Commerce where cloud spending will grow from $488 million to $517 million.

Within the Defense Department there has been a decided turn to engage commercial cloud resources. The department's "in-house" spending for cloud in fiscal 2021 will amount to $41 million, while commercial cloud investments will reach $214 million, Deltek reported. "After years of planning, the Department of Defense appears to be firming up its commitment to commercial cloud, estimating that $300-million of its planned fiscal 2021 cloud budget will be spent with commercial providers," said Rossino.

The Deltek analysis noted several key factors related to the future development of cloud technology at the federal level:

As a Service: Spending on Software as a Service (SaaS) and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) will continue to grow across government, but investments for Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) appears to be leveling off in the market-leading civilian sector. This suggests many agencies may have already contracted sufficient commercial cloud infrastructure, but still require modernized SaaS capabilities.

Spending on Software as a Service (SaaS) and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) will continue to grow across government, but investments for Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) appears to be leveling off in the market-leading civilian sector. This suggests many agencies may have already contracted sufficient commercial cloud infrastructure, but still require modernized SaaS capabilities. Security: The growing number of FedRAMP compliant offerings is providing agencies with more secure choices. FedRAMP is the federal program which certifies security levels of cloud products. The General Services Administration (GSA) also accelerated its certification process so agencies can use GSA desired solutions.

The growing number of FedRAMP compliant offerings is providing agencies with more secure choices. FedRAMP is the federal program which certifies security levels of cloud products. The General Services Administration (GSA) also accelerated its certification process so agencies can use GSA desired solutions. Data Drivers: A growing focus on sound data management practices is helping agencies understand how to leverage cloud to their advantage.

Cloud Now an Essential IT Tool

Dan Tucker, vice-president at Booz Allen Hamilton, sees several factors driving increased federal investments in cloud technology -- almost to the point where cloud migration is no longer optional but is absolutely necessary. Cloud technology is just one of several IT modernization tools that will be needed in the future, along with improved data management, he notes.

"Certainly there's a requirement for public sector innovation and a need to accelerate the pace of addressing mission needs we haven't seen in generations. In the world of a global pandemic, the priorities have shifted and we're seeing necessity become either the mother of invention or the mother of adoption," Tucker said in an interview with Meritalk, an organization advocating federal IT modernization.

Tucker agreed that increased FedRAMP certifications have facilitated cloud adoption. He also noted that the availability of "low code" and "no code" SaaS platforms which reduce programming tasks are contributing to cloud migration.

"So, it likely stands that the expansion of accredited cloud service providers (CSPs), native services, combined with the proliferation of repeatable cloud engineering patterns, and the evolving landscape of managed SaaS providers will continue to accelerate the adoption of cloud" at the federal level, Tucker told the E-Commerce Times.

"There will be a continued need for cloud migration and cloud native development services across the federal landscape, with potential for more significant acceleration in the defense and intelligence communities," he said.

Small and Niche Providers Could Benefit

Federal cloud deployments will continue to feature major commercial offerings, but growing federal investment in cloud technology should benefit smaller players as well.

"I do see increased business opportunities for smaller companies with cloud-based offerings," Tucker noted. While the major CSPs are "continuously bringing their own services and tooling to market, they are also seeking to develop partnerships to bring the industry leading service options and technologies to their current and prospective customers," he said.

"This may show up as offering in their marketplace, a third-party platform with native integration capabilities, or some sort of strategic partnership which makes it easier or cheaper to procure the niche capability. At the end of the day, the CSPs make the revenue based on data storage and compute charges, so anything that they can do which results in keeping customers on their infrastructure will be seen as a return on investment, " Tucker explained.

"Small businesses must maintain good business relationships with large cloud providers and engineering firms because agencies are still more inclined to award cloud contracts to large businesses," noted Deltek's Rossino.

Federal government spending overall is currently subject to a "continuing resolution" in lieu of fiscal 2021 appropriations. But that is likely to be a speed bump in the overall upward trend of cloud investments, according to Deniece Peterson, director of federal market analysis at Deltek.

Investments in the technology have garnered strong bipartisan support in Congress. The upward "trajectory" of federal cloud spending will continue, "given its importance to modernization and the additional 'clout' it gained during the pandemic response," she said.

John K. Higgins has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2009. His main areas of focus are U.S. government technology issues such as IT contracting, cybersecurity, privacy, cloud technology, big data and e-commerce regulation. As a freelance journalist and career business writer, he has written for numerous publications, including The Corps Report and Business Week. Email John.



PARIS - France is weighing whether to give people who have recovered from covid-19 only one vaccine dose instead of two, a practice that if enacted here and followed by other countries could free up tens of millions of doses.

"It's likely that we'll see similar moves elsewhere, given that we're facing a shortage of vaccine doses," said Tobias Kurth, the director of the Institute of Public Health at Berlin's Charite hospital.

France's health advisory body has recommended that one shot provides sufficient protection, acting like a booster shot, for previously infected people.

"People who have already been infected retain an immunological memory," the advisory body said in a release justifying its changed guidance.

The nonbinding guidance still needs to be approved by the French government, which usually follows the body's recommendations, though it has been hesitant to deviate from standard practices in its coronavirus vaccination campaign.

In a statement last week, vaccine maker Pfizer cautioned that "we do not have any data regarding this approach and our study was designed to dose all participants regardless of previous infection."

But Florian Krammer, a professor of vaccinology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, said the one-dose recommendation in France was in line with results from recent research.

A study by Krammer and his colleagues, not yet peer-reviewed, found that previously infected people have an equal or even better antibody response after one dose than individuals who received two shots and had not had covid.

"We found that people who had covid before mounted a very, very strong and a very quick response after the first shot," he said.

The Mount Sinai paper's conclusions were based on limited data from 109 people, of whom over a third used to be infected with the coronavirus.

Separate work published this month by researchers from the University of Maryland, New York University and a group of Israeli researchers has come to similar conclusions.

The NYU team found that the response of previously exposed individuals to a second dose was "muted," raising the possibility that could be a waste of scarce resources.

"Of course, the official policy right now is to give two doses, but I think that should be up for discussion," said Krammer. "The data is very strong."

Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told The Washington Post last week he is aware of "very recent data" indicating that a single dose could induce "a very good immune response against the virus."

But he added that "since these data are very recent, I am not aware of any serious discussion" about a change in policy.

All the coronavirus vaccines currently approved by U.S. and E.U. regulators require two doses, though Johnson & Johnson has a single-shot candidate awaiting regulatory assessment.

The United States and the European Union have so far reported a total of about 50 million coronavirus cases, meaning that as many doses could be freed up if the French guidance were applied across the board.

"That's enough to vaccinate 25 million people, which is more than the population of some smaller countries," Krammer said.

In its guidance, France's health advisory body said anyone with the coronavirus should wait at least three months and ideally "closer to 6 months" after the infection to get vaccinated.

The recommendation to wait several months appeared intended to maximize the share of the population with at least some degree of protection, and it was made under the assumption that a prior infection provides a degree of immunity for up to six months, though the exact length remains uncertain.

The same assumption has triggered calls in some countries to move previous covid patients to the end of the vaccine line.

"To maximally preserve human life, we should prioritize our limited vaccine supply to those who have never had covid-19," Marty Makary, a professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, wrote in a Washington Post op-ed last month.

The French recommendation represents a more cautious approach. The body said that in terms of vaccinating previously infected people, it does not matter "how long ago the infection was" - an assessment shared by Krammer and his colleagues.

A one-dose vaccination "might still work if you're a few years down the line from an infection," he said.

At least one other country appears to be looking into single doses. Howard Njoo, Canada's deputy chief public health officer, told reporters last week that the country's national advisory committee on immunizations is "currently discussing" the question.

Some researchers cautioned that a one-dose strategy would pose logistical challenges, including the question how authorities would identify previously infected individuals.

France's advisory body recommended against antibody tests - traces of infection fade over time - but said either a PCR test or antigen test should be considered valid.

There's potential for a false positive test to result in some people receiving only one vaccine dose even though they never really had the virus.

Krammer suggested a solution could be to only apply changed guidance to people who tested positive for the virus and showed symptoms at the time.

"I don't think that we need to worry about false positives in that case," he said.

- - -

The Washington Post's Amanda Coletta in Toronto and Carolyn Y. Johnson in Boulder, Colo., contributed to this story.
Donald Glover is saying goodbye to FX. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he is on the move to Amazon, signing a huge development deal.

The outlet described the agreement as a "multi-year, eight-figure overall deal," which reportedly includes "a content channel of sorts that will spotlight Glover's work and other curated content."

Donald Glover, actor, writer, rapper and "Atlanta" creator, will executive produce other Amazon Prime projects. His brother Stephen, who also wrote and produced "Atlanta," also signed an overall deal with the company.

Additionally, one of the projects that they will be working on is called "Hive." It is rumored to revolve around a Beyonce-like figure, as per the outlet.

According to reports, the project has already started hiring a writing staff, and one of the people in the mix to work on the series is former President Barack Obama's daughter, Malia Obama.

No additional details were made available, and Amazon also declined to comment to the Hollywood Reporter.

Glover starred in the movies "Solo: A Star Wars Story," "The Lion King" and "Spider-Man: Homecoming," and on shows such as "Adventure Time" and "Community."

Donald Glover's 'Atlanta'

Despite Donald Glover's move, the FX series "Atlanta" is still set to return to its third and fourth season in the network.

Production forboth seasons is reportedly slated to start in March.

Its last new episode was aired nearly three years ago.

Additionally, the Hollywood Reporter mentioned that it's possible "Atlanta" would go beyond its fourth season because "Glover is said to have a carve-out in his Amazon deal," so he could continue working on the FX show.

'Mr. and Mrs. Smith'

This news comes after it was announced Donald Glover and Phoebe Waller-Bridge will be working on a reboot of the movie "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" as a series for Amazon.

The movie initially starred Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

Variety reported that the series, based on the 2005 hit, is due in 2022.

Head of Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke confirmed the news, saying in a statement: "Donald and Phoebe are two of the most talented creators and performers in the world."

"It's truly a dream for us, as it will be for our global audience, to have these two forces of nature collaborating as a powerhouse creative team."

The upcoming series is neither Glover nor Waller-Bridge's first project with Amazon.

Waller-Bridge created and starred in the Amazon series "Fleabag," which received six Emmys, including Outstanding Comedy Series in 2019, while Glover's musical movie "Guava Island" is also considered an Amazon Original.

See Now: Famous Actors Who Turned Down Iconic Movie Roles

News and commentary on organized crime, street crime, white collar crime, cyber crime, sex crime, crime fiction, crime prevention, espionage and terrorism.
[February 18, 2021] Radian Plans to Accelerate Digital Transformation Across the Mortgage and Real Estate Marketplace in 2021

Following the most transformative year of digital innovation in the company's history, Radian (News - Alert) Group Inc. (NYSE:RDN) Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Digital Officer and Co-Head of Real Estate Eric Ray predicted that digital innovation in the mortgage and real estate services sectors will continue to accelerate in 2021, driving new and better ways to manage credit risk and execute real estate transactions. "In so many ways, 2020 was a year of disruption, and we believe 2021 is set to be a year of transformation, powered by technology. Over the course of this year, data, analytics and technology are poised to transform legacy mortgage and real estate business models in even greater ways than we have seen over the past few years. The global pandemic has accelerated the demand and need for digital products and services, and we think it will continue to push our industry to deliver new and better ways to manage credit risk and execute real estate transactions. "For instance, we expect that artificial intelligence is on the cusp of fundamentally transforming the future of valuing and searching for a home; mortgage insurance pricing continues to evolve dynamically; and the title insurance approval timeline is expected to shrink even further. These advancements will allow lenders to develop deeper engagement with their existing and potential customers at the start of their home buying or selling journeys and create a more personalized experience. At Radian, we are at the forefront of advancing this exciting new future and looking forward to applying these technologies as we serve customers across the housing finance and real estate services ecosystem." A new video from Radian provides an overview of some of the company's recent technology-driven innovations that it plans to continue to build upon in 2021. Those innovations include: RADAR  Rates : Leverages Radian's proprietary modeling to dynamically analyze and customize mortgage insurance pricing. RADAR Rates launched in 2019 and was integrated into Radian's enhanced Rate Finder tool on the new radian.com website in 2020.

: Leverages Radian's proprietary modeling to dynamically analyze and customize mortgage insurance pricing. RADAR Rates launched in 2019 and was integrated into Radian's enhanced Rate Finder tool on the new radian.com website in 2020. Radian Ready : Offers unparalleled user experience and automation, powered by next-generation digital technologies and an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled decision engine.

: Offers unparalleled user experience and automation, powered by next-generation digital technologies and an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-enabled decision engine. MyRadian : Provides a simple, modern digital experience for valuations and asset management clients to place, track and manage orders 24/7.

: Provides a simple, modern digital experience for valuations and asset management clients to place, track and manage orders 24/7. Radian Home Price Index (HPI) : Combines the power of deep data resources, offered by Red Bell, a subsidiary of Radian Group Inc., valuations experience and advanced machine learning techniques to reinvent real estate market intelligence. Clients can use HPI (News - Alert) to manage risk, identify opportunities, support real estate transactions and track trends with the industry's most granular and timely look at housing markets.

: Combines the power of deep data resources, offered by Red Bell, a subsidiary of Radian Group Inc., valuations experience and advanced machine learning techniques to reinvent real estate market intelligence. Clients can use HPI (News - Alert) to manage risk, identify opportunities, support real estate transactions and track trends with the industry's most granular and timely look at housing markets. Robotic Process Automation (RPA): Utilizes a series of "bots" to help eliminate time-consuming, critical yet repetitive processes such as reviewing loan applications, sourcing broker price opinions and processing home closings. It enables Radian employees to spend more time on the most interesting, complex aspects of their jobs.



new HPI visualization and analysis tool, which enables users to quickly generate actionable intelligence on U.S. national and local housing market conditions with precision and granularity. Over the course of 2021, Radian's HPI - already the most comprehensive and timely measure of U.S. housing market prices and conditions - will increasingly leverage computer vision technology to glean even greater insight from data sources like photographs of home interiors. To preview some of the company's planned advancements in mortgage services, Radian's Chief Technology Officer, Mark Wai, will participate in a "Mortgage Disruption Outlook" panel at HousingWire's Spring Summit on March 4, 2021.

Forward-looking Statements All statements in this press release and the embedded weblinks that address events, developments or results that we expect or anticipate may occur in the future are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Exchange Act and the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In most cases, forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "anticipate," "may," "will," "could," "should," "would," "expect," "intend," "plan," "goal," "contemplate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "project," "potential," "continue," "seek," "strategy," "future," "likely" or the negative or other variations on these words and other similar expressions. These statements, which may include, without limitation, projections regarding our future performance and financial condition, are made on the basis of management's current views and assumptions with respect to future events. Any forward-looking statement is not a guarantee of future performance and actual results could differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statement. These statements speak only as of the date they were made, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Our ability to develop, launch and implement new and innovative technologies and digital solutions is subject to risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, challenges associated with new and rapidly evolving technologies and business environments, customer acceptance of our digital product and service offerings, the costs associated with the development and launch of these technologies and products, our failure to successfully integrate new technologies into our existing systems and the risk that our digital product and services offerings fail to operate as expected or planned or that expose us to additional cybersecurity or third party risks. We operate in a changing environment where new risks emerge from time to time and it is not possible for us to predict all risks that may affect us. The forward-looking statements, as well as our prospects as a whole, are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. For more information regarding these risks and uncertainties as well as certain additional risks that we face, you should refer to the Risk Factors detailed in Item 1A of our 2019 Form 10-K, and to subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other reports filed from time to time with the SEC (News - Alert) . We caution you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are current only as of the date on which we issued this report. We do not intend to, and we disclaim any duty or obligation to, update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information or future events or for any other reason. About Radian Radian is ensuring the American dream of homeownership responsibly and sustainably through products and services that include industry-leading mortgage insurance and a comprehensive suite of mortgage, risk, title, valuation, asset management and other real estate services. We are powered by technology, informed by data and driven to deliver new and better ways to transact and manage risk. Visit www.radian.com to see how Radian is shaping the future of mortgage and real estate services. Radian HPI is provided by Red Bell Real Estate, LLC, a subsidiary of Radian Group Inc. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005986/en/

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Legal practitioner, Fatimatu Abubakar has cautioned Ghanaians against flouting the COVID-19 safety protocols.



As the nation is saddled with the pandemic disease, it has become increasingly significant for every citizen to abide by the health instructions to prevent being infected and infecting others with the deadly disease.



COVID-19 has claimed 568 lives in Ghana and infected over 70,000 people across the country.



Due to the rapid rise of the disease, there have been incessant calls on Ghanaians to comply with the protocols but some people have decided to throw caution to the wind.



Speaking on Peace FM's ''Kokrokoo'', lawyer Fati advised the recalcitrant Ghanaians not to toy with the disease stressing there is no sense in dying when all it takes to live is to follow the protocols.



She called on the citizenry to guard their lives against the disease.



"We plead with you that any person who will tell you to follow the COVID safety protocols loves you and is protecting your life. When you're told not to hold funerals or organize birthday parties, don't do it. There will be another year where there will be no COVID and you can organize as many parties you want, but if you seek today's joy and forget about the many years ahead of you and contract the disease, I want to tell you it is not worth it," she pleaded.



Watch video below





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

Featured Video
Posing happily for photographs, these two young women look to be the picture of health.

But tragically, Latifah King, 27, and Kelly Smith, 31, both died of cancer after delays in treatment due to Covid lockdowns.

Young mother Miss Smith had her chemotherapy for bowel cancer paused for three months in the first lockdown.

Meanwhile, Miss King  who was at first told she had sciatica  was not able to see a doctor in person or offered any tests, and died a week after her diagnosis.

Their heartrending stories were revealed as scores of MPs today warn the Prime Minister that Britain is facing a cancer disaster that could cost tens of thousands of lives.

A group of 75 cross-party politicians say that as many as 100,000 people could miss out on cancer treatment due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, with many dying unnecessarily.

Latifah King (left), died of cancer last week at age of 27 while Kelly Smith, 31, (right) died from bowel cancer after her chemotherapy treatment was paused during the height of pandemic

They have written to Boris Johnson demanding the cancer backlog is tackled with the same political will as the vaccination rollout.

The Government have rightly moved heaven and earth to save lives from Covid  its time the same was done for cancer patients, the MPs say.

'She couldn't go to the GP and died a week after her diagnosis' By the time Latifah King was finally diagnosed with cancer, she only had days to live. The 27-year-old died last Wednesday after spending months in agony. Miss King was not able to see a doctor in person or offered any tests to check for cancer. Last night her twin sister said Latifah was brushed aside because the only killer they see right now is Covid. Miss King, from Leicester, developed debilitating pain in her legs in October, became bedbound and lost four stone. However, the pandemic meant she could only get a GP appointment via Zoom, and was misdiagnosed with sciatica. She took herself to A&E in December when the pain became unbearable and she had visible lumps from the tumours, but was dismissed and prescribed codeine. Miss King was finally admitted to hospital in January, when biopsies revealed she had cancer. It took until the start of February for her to be diagnosed with epithelioid sarcoma, an aggressive form of soft tissue cancer. She died at home one week later. Her twin Shanika told the Mail: If it wasnt a pandemic I believe more would have been done. 'Covid means other illnesses are getting pushed aside. Advertisement

Millions of people have been hit by disruption to cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment since Britain went into lockdown last March.

Some grieving relatives have suggested that cancer patients have become collateral damage, with the NHS focused on Covid.

The All Party Parliamentary Group for Radiotherapy, backed by leading cancer charities, say urgent investment is now needed to boost NHS capacity so staff can treat and diagnose more patients.

Chairman Tim Farron said: We are deeply concerned the Government has underestimated the scale and severity of the Covid cancer backlog.

'Without extra capacity, the backlog will not get cleared for many years and thousands of loved ones will die unnecessarily.

The MPs say 50,000 patients are thought to be living with undiagnosed cancer due to disruption caused by Covid-19.

This figure could rise as high as 100,000 by the time we emerge from the pandemic, their letter says. The question is not whether we should save Covid patients or cancer patients we can and should be able to save both.

Early diagnosis and prompt treatment is crucial to survival chances. Every four-week delay in cancer treatment increases the risk of death by ten per cent.

But last year saw the lowest number of people starting cancer treatment in England for ten years, with cancer surgery alone down by 21,700 in the first wave.

A staggering 330,000 fewer people saw a specialist for suspected cancer between March and December, as the Governments stay at home message put people off getting symptoms checked.

In todays letter to the PM and Chancellor, the coalition of MPs warn: Cancer lives are already being lost and we may lose as many as 35,000 patients and 60,000 life years to cancer as a result of the cancer backlog.

They are calling for a new national cancer recovery plan to bring down waiting lists and avoid a post-Covid cancer catastrophe.

Experts say funding is urgently needed for equipment such as advanced radiotherapy machines, which provide treatment more quickly, to help doctors clear the enormous backlog.

Extra capacity is essential because cancer services must run at 120 per cent of normal levels  at least  to make up for the shortfall.

Professor Pat Price, a leading oncologist and founder of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign, warned delays meant patients were coming forward with more advanced cancer than usual.

Mother was fighting cancer for three years Young mother Kelly Smith died after her chemotherapy was paused for three months during the first lockdown. The 31-year-old  who leaves six-year-old son Finn  was suffering from stage four bowel cancer but had been responding well to treatment. Before she died on June 13, the beautician said she was angry that her treatment had been halted, adding: I dont want to die, I feel like Ive so much more to do. Miss Smith, from Macclesfield, Cheshire, had been fighting bowel cancer for three-and-a-half years. Her family believe the decision to cancel her chemotherapy during the pandemic drastically cut short her life as it meant there was nothing to keep the cancer in check. After her death, Miss Smiths stepfather Craig Russell co-founded the Catch Up With Cancer campaign group. He said: Cancer patients have a right to life just as much as anybody who has Covid does, they shouldnt be regarded as collateral damage of the pandemic. The Government need to act now or well go from the Covid crisis straight to a new cancer crisis. Advertisement

She told the Daily Mail: We are going to be looking back in years to come at a Covid-caused cancer nightmare that led to as many cancer patients being lost unnecessarily as we lose to coronavirus itself.

It doesnt have to be this way. We can save both Covid and cancer patients. But that needs a change in approach, proper accountability and hard cash at the Budget for cancer services.

'We estimate by the end of the pandemic there could be a backlog of 100,000 untreated cancer patients.

These are people who since last April should have been diagnosed with new or relapsed cancer and had all their treatment but have not. Some still wont have been diagnosed. Thousands of people are going to die who didnt need to have done.

Professor Price added: There are straightforward steps such as replacing old radiotherapy machines or scanners that can help clear the backlog, to increase treatment and diagnosis rates.

Newer radiotherapy machines can do one round of treatment in 15 minutes, whereas older models take 45 minutes. That means you could treat three times as many people.

The letter was signed by MPs from all parties including Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey and former Tory minister Caroline Nokes.

They said the Spring Budget  due to be unveiled by the Chancellor on March 3  would be the ideal opportunity for investment in a new cancer recovery plan.

There are growing fears about the devastating knock-on consequences of the pandemic on treatment for other health conditions.

A record 4.52million people are currently waiting to start NHS treatment, with 242,000 waiting more than a year.

Michelle Mitchell, Cancer Research UKs chief executive, said: The Government must urgently make sure the NHS gets the funding it needs.

'This Spring Budget could be that moment to help give every person with cancer the timely diagnosis and treatment they deserve.

A Government spokesman said: Every death is a tragedy and our sympathies go out to everyone who has lost a loved one to cancer. Cancer diagnosis and treatment has remained a top priority throughout the pandemic.

An extra 1billion will be used to boost diagnosis and treatment in the year ahead.

'Institutionalised scaremongering is fuelling this cancer nightmare'

Commentary by Professor Angus Dalgleish

As the second wave of Covid-19 retreats, the devastating impact on cancer patients is becoming ever more apparent.

We are now facing a savage new health crisis, one which may prove even more destructive than the pandemic itself.

Life-saving operations have been postponed, vital treatments delayed and new cases missed as screening programmes have been cut back and GPs refer fewer cases.

The human cost  in terms of anxiety, pain, misery and death  are horrendous. As a fellow oncologist said to me this week: This is an absolute disaster. It is going to be far worse than Covid. I fear he is right.

The grim reality of the burgeoning crisis is spelled out in a letter signed by 75 MPs of all parties to the Prime Minister and the Chancellor  and backed by leading cancer charities  in which they warn that the current Covid-induced backlog could lead to at least 35,000 excess deaths.

Having rightly stated that cancer lives are already being lost, the MPs argue: The question is not whether we should save Covid patients or cancer patients. Every life is valuable and important. We can and should be able to save both.

Life-saving operations have been postponed, vital cancer treatments delayed and new cases missed as screening programmes have been cut back and GPs refer fewer cases (file photo)

Such a clear moral purpose has, tragically, disappeared in the imbalanced  and at times overblown  concentration on fighting Covid. I certainly welcome the attempt by dozens of our Parliamentarians to inject an urgent sense of perspective into the debate.

As a cancer specialist, I see daily the paralysis that has gripped the system and I have been warning of an imminent catastrophe  often on these pages  for months.

But I fear that the signatories to the letter are greatly underestimating the scale of the problem.

From the evidence I have seen, cancer referrals are down by no less than 50 per cent over the last quarter in many parts of the country, while cancer waiting times are now at their worst level on record.

After the first lockdown was lifted last summer, we made some progress in tackling the backlog.

But since the autumn, when piecemeal restrictions were imposed up and down the country before another national lockdown, I have witnessed an unfolding calamity as the figures for cancelled operations and waiting times again rose dramatically.

Since the autumn, when piecemeal restrictions were imposed up and down the country before another lockdown, figures for cancelled operations and waiting times again rose dramatically

There isnt a single NHS cancer specialist who hasnt witnessed the suffering caused by this crisis.

In one case in which I became involved, a young man in his thirties had contacted his GP about a lump in his neck, excessive sweating and sudden weight loss  all classic symptoms of lymphoma, a type of blood cancer.

Against the backdrop of the Covid lockdown, the GP did not conduct a physical examination.

Instead, the patient was offered a short telephone consultation and put on a course of antibiotics. Inevitably, the untreated lymphoma worsened.

By the time he was finally referred to the local cancer unit, the lymphoma had progressed to the terminal Stage 4.

It was the same story with another patient who showed signs of colorectal cancer. He endured a delay of several months before getting an accurate diagnosis. Again, sadly, it was too late.

Today the number of patients starting cancer treatment is at its lowest level for a decade

Such agonising ordeals are being repeated thousands of times nationwide.

Today the number of patients starting cancer treatment is at its lowest level for a decade, despite the huge rise in the British population.

The tragedy is that if cancer is caught early, patient outcomes can be very positive because of the huge advances made in surgery, screening, scans, and chemotherapy.

The dark days of 40 years ago, when a cancer diagnosis was likely to be a swift death sentence, have passed. Yet due to Covid hysteria we are squandering those gains.

There is another aspect to the crisis which illustrates the negative consequences of the Governments anti-Covid propaganda.

It is the incidence of cancer patients themselves cancelling their scheduled hospital operations because they fear catching Covid.

That might seem a bizarre overreaction given that Covid  even for vulnerable people  is rarely fatal, while untreated cancer is a certain killer.

But it shows the devastating impact of what I see as institutionalised scaremongering.

Too many people with diagnosable conditions have taken the message to stay at home and protect the NHS quite literally  thereby sacrificing their own health and fuelling the cancer nightmare.

The way out of this disaster is to end the lockdown, bring back normality to the NHS, and give tens of thousands of cancer patients the care they need.

The success of the vaccination programme, accompanied by the enormous drop in Covid infections, hospital admissions and deaths, means we are well-placed to adopt this course.

To prevent more suffering and grief, action must be taken now.

Angus Dalgleish is a professor of oncology at a London teaching hospital
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire as photos of him in an airport and a plane showing him flying to Cancun during the Arctic blast which has crippled his home state and especially his hometown of Houston, surfaced on Twitter.

The photos went viral late Wednesday night and Cruz sent out an official statement explaining the trip Thursday afternoon.

OPINION: Ted Cruz's tweets about California blackouts look really dumb right now

Earlier Thursday, Fox News confirmed Cruz took a trip to Cancun, saying "a Republican source told Fox News that the allegations Cruz was traveling to the Mexican city are true."

"The photos speak for themselves," the source told Fox News.

The Associated Press also confirmed the Cancun trip, reporting Cruz "went with his family for a long-planned trip to Cancun and was expected to return immediately, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share private conversations."

According to ABC News' verification producer Erin Calabrese, Cruz contacted Houston Police and requested assistance upon his arrival at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Wednesday.

In a statement released Thursday, Cruz said his daughters asked to go on a trip to Mexico with friends since school was canceled for the week, and he accompanied them on their flight.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Cruz said in a statement released before he boarded a flight back home to Houston.

At the time Cruz was awaiting his flight to Mexico, more than 1.3 million CenterPoint customers in Houston were without power. The temperatures in Cancun are in the 80s Thursday, while Houston is expected to dip back into the 20s by Friday morning, which has sparked outrage as people give Cruz new nicknames like "Fled Cruz" and "Flyin' Ted" - a takeoff on Donald Trump's former nickname for the Senator "Lyin' Ted."

Twitter user Juan Gomez shared the first photo of Cruz with his baggage at a United Airlines gate, adding "Well Senator Cruz is flying to Cancun while millions of Texans do not have electricity #Priorities #ThanksforNothingSenator."

Former MSNBC anchor David Shuster tweeted that he confirmed Cruz "and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before." His tweet included a photo of Cruz inside a plane. It's unclear how Shuster confirmed the story.

Keith Edwards - who was an advisor to Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff and worked with the Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump group - tweeted other photos of Cruz at the airport. He said the photos were sent to him by passengers on the same flight as Cruz.

Beto O'Rourke, who lost the Senate race to Cruz in 2018, appeared on MSNBC on Wednesday night and took a shot at Cruz, when talking about holding politicians accountable for their actions, including "the junior Senator from the state of Texas, who I understand is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve."

Texas State Rep. Gene Wu, a Houston Democrat, tweeted: Guess which US Senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?"
EDWARDSVILLE  Felony criminal charges recently filed by the Madison County States Attorneys Office include:

 Marcus W. Crum and Micky Crum, both of Columbus, Ohio, were each charged with unlawful possession of cannabis, both Class 4 felonies. The cases were presented by the Illinois State Police. On July 9 both allegedly were found to be in possession of between 100-500 grams of cannabis. Bail was set at $15,000.

 Montenez K. Gardner, 19, listed as homeless out of Granite City, was charged Feb. 17 with unlawful possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 12 Gardner allegedly was found to be in possession with intent to deliver Alprazolam. Bail was set at $30,000.

 Jaime T. Hernandez, 23, of Granite City, was charged Feb. 17 with unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Granite City Police Department. On Feb. 16 Hernandez allegedly was found to be in possession with intent to deliver more than 30 grams of cannabis. Bail was set at $30,000.

 Dana G. Melton, 50, of Caseyville, was charged Feb. 17 with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Collinsville Police Department. On Nov. 9 Melton allegedly was found to be in possession of less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $15,000.

 Richard J. Rable, 53, listed as homeless out of Collinsville, was charged Feb. 17 with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Collinsville Police Department. On Oct. 9 Rable allegedly was found to be in possession of less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $15,000.

 Jason W. Hawkins, 49, of Cottage Hills, was charged Feb. 17 with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Alton Police Department. On Feb. 16 Hawkins allegedly was found to be in possession of less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $15,000.

 Kevin A. Brown, 28, of Granite City, was charged Feb. 17 with unlawful possession of methamphetamine, a Class 3 felony. The case was presented by the Madison County Sheriffs Department. On Feb. 15 Brown allegedly was found to be in possession of less than five grams of methamphetamine. Bail was set at $40,000.
A shipment of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm arrives at Budapest Ferenc Liszt International Airport in Hungary on Tuesday, making the country the first member of the European Union to receive a Chinese vaccine. [Photo/Agencies]

Development cooperation set to enter new stage

Tshepo Heqoa's family was struggling to make ends meet amid a growing number of climate-related woes, such as drought, floods, pests and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently.

The 29-year-old lives in Koalabata, a small village in the Berea district of Lesotho in southern Africa, where farmers like him rely on cultivating soybeans, sugar beans, maize and wheat for a living.

"Life had been hard. My mother was a sole bread winner, and she had to pay for the tuition of my college education," he recalled in an online interview.

Heqoa was introduced to growing mushrooms in 2014 by his peers. But he found the technology difficult to grasp and had only occasional success.

A trip he made to China in 2018, one of the knowledge-sharing tours organized by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, took him to the China National Engineering Research Center at Juncao Technology in Fujian province. "I was blown away. I had a lot of ideas of what to do when I got home. I found the technology amazing and a way to improve livelihoods in many aspects of life," he said.

Inspired by the Chinese technology and with help from Chinese experts, Heqoa is now expanding his business from growing mushrooms to producing mushroom spawnthe substance that, like a seed, causes mushroom growth, which gave him revenue of about $1,500 in the past four months, a considerable amount in a country with a per capita GDP of $1,118 in 2019.

Heqoa's case is an example of China's ongoing efforts in international development cooperation. He was one of some 200,000 beneficiaries of training sessions and seminars for foreign officials and technical personnel and in-service education programs that the country hosted between 2013 and 2018.

With China on course to attain its goal of building itself into a moderately prosperous society in all respects this year, its international development cooperation is also set to enter a new stage, according to experts. Stronger emphasis will be given to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, a vision championed by President Xi Jinping in response to global challenges.

"The primary goal of China's international development cooperation will be to promote building a community with a shared future for mankind," said Xu Xiuli, dean of China Agricultural University's College of International Development and Global Agriculture.

She explained that the process would primarily involve enabling a better response to various challenges worldwide, including working together against shortcomings in trust, peace and development and improving global governance.

The next stage of China's international development cooperation is set to contribute more to solving global issues such as health challenges, food security and climate change, she said.

According to a white paper titled "China's International Development Cooperation in the New Era", issued by the State Council Information Office last month, China allocated 270.2 billion yuan ($41.8 billion) for foreign assistance in three categoriesgrants, interest-free loans and concessional loansbetween 2013 and 2018.

A total of 127.8 billion yuan in grants were allocated to help other developing countries build small and medium-sized social welfare projects and to fund such projects as those for cooperation in human resources development and emergency humanitarian assistance.

China has been providing development cooperation to other developing countries over the past seven decades, the paper said.

"China's approach to foreign assistance gradually coalesced around a set of principles emphasizing recipient countries' sovereignty and mutual benefit," said Cheng Cheng, chief economist at the Made in Africa Initiative, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to the industrialization of Africa.

With a set of reforms launched in recent years, "China seems to want to integrate into its foreign aid portfolio and the BRI a greater range of socially conscious development projects, in areas such as agriculture, public health and education", Cheng added.

Xu, the dean, said even though China is now the world's second-largest economy, it is still a developing countrya key factor that determines that its international development cooperation is conducted under the framework of South-South cooperation.

"Meanwhile, China has always given priority to providing the means for independent development while refraining from attaching political strings or pursuing political self-interest during the process," she said.

Many officials and experts have hailed the issuance of the latest white paper as a new starting point for China's development cooperation.

"This white paper comes at an opportune moment, as China is embarking on a new stage of its journey as an increasingly important provider of development cooperation," Beate Trankmann, United Nations Development Programme resident representative in China, said at an online seminar last month.

Trankmann said the white paper highlighted a few entry points for more detailed regulations, providing stepping stone toward enhancing the effectiveness and transparency of China's aid, a move she welcomed.

Barnaby Willitts-King, a senior research fellow at the Overseas Development Institute, an independent think tank, wrote that the white paper detailed not only China's role in COVID-19 response but also disaster relief and recovery, support for refugees and food security, which "reflected China's growing interest in engaging in humanitarian action".

A shipment of COVID-19 vaccines made by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinopharm is loaded on a plane in Beijing on Wednesday before being transported to Senegal. This is the first batch of vaccines exported by China to a sub-Saharan country in Africa. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Pandemic response

With the COVID-19 pandemic still posing an immense threat to the lives, safety, health and well-being of people worldwide as well as challenges to global public health security, China has made its contribution to a global community of health for all a priority in its future international development cooperation, as set out in the white paper.

Key measures include continuing to offer medical supplies to various nations, engaging in cooperation on medical technologies and working with the World Health Organization to help developing countries, especially in Africa, to fortify their public health defenses and improve the speed of their response and capacity for disease control.

On Wednesday morning, the first shipment of vaccines from China to a nation in sub-Saharan Africaa planeload of COVID-19 vaccines bound for Senegaldeparted Beijing Capital International Airport.

Zhang Jun, ambassador and permanent representative of China to the United Nations, wrote in an article last week that Chinese vaccine aid has been provided to 14 developing countries and will soon reach 38 more, as part of broader efforts to deliver on its pledge to make its vaccines a global public good.

The country is also slated to deliver 10 million doses of Chinese vaccines to COVAX, a UN facility that aims to ensure all countries have access to a safe, effective vaccine.

With the pandemic also causing a global economic downturn, causing the loss of 114 million jobs and increasing the number of poor people by 131 million worldwide, the importance of China's role in helping to attain the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda was also highlighted by analysts.

Promoting the implementation of the agenda was also listed as one of the priorities for China's international development cooperation.

"China will make eliminating poverty and improving people's lives its ultimate objective and implement more projects for improving living standards in developing countries, especially the least developed countries," the white paper said.

With his enterprise growing and more revenue coming in, Heqoa also expressed confidence in the future of his business.

"I have hired one employee and will be hiring more with time. My future plan is to be the director of the largest mushroom company in southern Africa and to help alleviate poverty by selling mushrooms in a very affordable way," he said.

Hu Meidong in Fuzhou contributed to this story.

China Daily app Feb 18, 2021

 
New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern and (R) Australian Prime Minster, Scott Morrison speak to media at a press conference held at Admiralty House in Sydney, Australia on Feb. 28, 2020. (James D. Morgan/Getty Images)

Aussie PM Rejects NZs Criticism Over Counter Terrorism Law

Diplomatic tensions between Australia and New Zealand have flared again after New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern criticised Australias counter-terrorism measures following the detention of a dual Australian-New Zealand woman and her two children in Turkey.

The woman is allegedly an Islamic State operative.

In a media statement on Feb. 16, Ardern said that the case had been known to authorities in Australia and New Zealand for some time, and that she believed given the woman had lived in Australia from the time she was six, it was wrong for Australia to let New Zealand shoulder the responsibility for the situation.

We believe Australia has abdicated its responsibilities in relation to this person and I have personally made that point to Prime Minister Morrison, Ardern said.

Our international obligations are important to New Zealand, she said. Where dual citizenship is involved, our view has been that its for New Zealand and Australia to resolve the most appropriate response and ensure that we do not strip citizenship and render someone stateless, especially when children are involved.

But Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said that due to a clause in Australias citizenship laws, the woman has renounced her right to citizenship.

The legislation that was passed through our Parliament automatically cancels the citizenship of a dual citizen where theyve been engaged in terrorist activities of this nature, Morrison said. And that happens automatically. And that has been a known part of Australias law for some time.

Under the 2015 Citizenship Amendment, a person aged 14 or older who holds dual nationality renounces their Australian citizenship if the person engages in international terrorist activities.

Australias interest here is that we do not want to see terrorists who fought with terrorism organisations enjoying privileges of citizenship, which I think they forfeit the second they engage as an enemy of our country. And I think Australians would agree with that, Morrison said.

However, the situation is made complicated by the womans young children who are not covered by Australian citizenship laws due to their parents activities.

In 2019, the Australian Human Rights Commission in a submission on the 2015 Amendment, recommended that children be exempt from the loss of citizenship despite their parents actions.

Likewise, in 2012, the United Nations (pdf) also called for Australia to ensure no child is deprived of citizenship on any ground regardless of their parents status.

New Zealand law professor Claire Breen said this is important. Breen noted in an article published by The Conversation that Australia and New Zealand are both signatories to the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and as such, these rights must inform any decisions made about the future of these two children.

For the children involved, a number of the conventions guiding principles underpin these rights, Breen said.

In particular, she noted that countries who have signed onto the convention are required to ensure the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment based on the status or activities of the childs parents.

These are rights, not privileges, Breen said.

Prime Minister Ardern agrees with this sentiment.

The welfare of the children also needs to be at the forefront in this situation, Ardern said.

These children were born in a conflict zone through no fault of their own. Coming to New Zealand, where they have no immediate family, would not be in their best interests. We know that young children thrive best when surrounded by people who love them, she said.

More than 60 Australian women and children are currently in detention camps in Syrias north-east since the collapse of the Islamic State in Syria in 2019.




Haiti - Politic : The Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie very concerned about Haiti





The Parliamentary Assembly of La Francophonie (APF) which brings together parliamentarians from 90 parliaments or interparliamentary organizations, says it is "very concerned about the deterioration of the political climate in Haiti and calls on all parties to use peaceful means to settle their conflicts."



The APF urges the Haitian political authorities as well as the representatives of the opposition "to renounce the confrontation and to privilege the dialogue to restore a climate of peace and security necessary for the good conduct of the various electoral processes, planned during the ten months, and the peaceful transfer of power."



Stressing that "the announcement of the electoral calendar represents an opportunity for a lasting return to democracy and political stability as well as the resumption of economic development."



Meanwhile, the APF is concerned about violent protests in Haiti, especially in Port-au-Prince. It invites the Haitian people to demonstrate peacefully so as not to accentuate the climate of tension and also expresses its deep concern at the upsurge in kidnappings and acts of violence perpetrated by armed groups.



The APF remains at the disposal of the Haitian authorities to support, in collaboration with its international partners, the preparation of the legislative elections and help in the establishment of a Parliament representative of the Haitian people and their aspirations.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















As millions of people across Texas struggled to stay warm Tuesday amid massive cold-weather power outages, Gov. Greg Abbott, R, directed his ire at one particular failure in the state's independent energy grid: frozen wind turbines.

"This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America," Abbott said to host Sean Hannity on Tuesday. "Our wind and our solar got shut down, and they were collectively more than 10 percent of our power grid, and that thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power on a statewide basis ... It just shows that fossil fuel is necessary."

The governor's arguments were contradicted by his own energy department, which outlined how most of Texas's energy losses came from failures to winterize the power-generating systems, including fossil fuel pipelines, The Washington Post's Will Englund reported. But Abbott's debunked claims were echoed by other conservatives this week who have repeatedly blamed clean energy sources for the outages crippling the southern U.S.

In fact, typically mild winters and a lack of state regulations in Texas combined to leave electricity providers unprepared for the extreme cold that has suddenly hit the state, The Post reported. Nearly every source of energy - from wind turbines to natural gas to nuclear power - have failed to some degree following a harsh storm that covered the region with thick layers of snow and ice.

Although renewable energy sources did partially fail, they only contributed to 13 percent of the power outages, while providing about a quarter of the state's energy in winter. Thermal sources, including coal, gas and nuclear, lost almost twice as many gigawatts of power because of the cold, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the state's electric grid operator. Critics have also noted that wind turbines can operate in climates as cold as Greenland if they're properly prepared for the weather.

Despite the much larger dip in energy from fossil fuels, Republican politicians have seized on the outages to attack the Green New Deal and Democrats' push to address climate change by reducing the consumption of fossil fuels.

In his Fox News interview, Abbott did not address the fact that most of the state'spower comes from fossil fuels and that ERCOT had planned to produce far more power from natural gas than became available as the cold set in, contributing a stunning deficit amid the freezing weather. On Tuesday, Abbott called for a state investigation into ERCOT's failings, saying the agency had been "anything but reliable" following the winter storm.

Abbott's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment late Tuesday.

The governor was not the only prominent Texas Republican to blame clean energy for the historic power outages. AfterFox News host Tucker Carlson inaccurately told viewers that the state's power grid had become "totally reliant on windmills," former Texas Gov.Rick Perry, who served as energy secretary under President Donald Trump, joined Carlson in railing against the Green New Deal, which has not been enacted in Texas or nationally.

"If this Green New Deal goes forward the way that the Biden administration appears to want it to, then we'll have more events like we've had in Texas all across the country," Perry said in another Fox News segment.

Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, shared a detailed accounting on Twitter of how the state's power grid failed, noted the roles that natural gas and nuclear power played -- but also used the moment to attack wind turbines on Tuesday.

"Bottom line: Thank God for baseload energy made up of fossil fuels," Crenshaw tweeted. "Had our grid been more reliant on the wind turbines that froze, the outages would have been much worse."

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., who has been a strong proponent of the Green New Deal proposal, slammed Texas Republicans early Wednesday.

"The infrastructure failures in Texas are quite literally what happens when you *don't* pursue a Green New Deal," she said in a tweet.

Texas Democrats also criticized Abbott in a statement Monday, calling out Republican leaders for allowing the power to go out in the state that produces the most energy in the nation.

"If we had a governor open to alternative sources of energy, Texas might be in a situation in which we have energy reserves to efficiently power our state, instead of the reckless leadership we have witnessed time and time again from Greg Abbott," the Texas Democrats said.

After Abbott's Fox News interview, MSNBC host Chris Hayes challenged the competing network over its coverage of Texas's energy crisis, playing a compilation of clips in which Fox blamed frozen wind turbines and lauded fossil fuels as the solution to the power outages.

Hayes noted that other sources of power had played a larger role in the widespread outages than renewable energy.

"It is just a lie that wind turbines, 'green energy' are the root causes of the problems in Texas right now," Hayes added.
Drishyam 2, the Mohanlal starrer is all set to get a grand release on Amazon Prime Video, soon. Prithviraj Sukumaran, the actor-filmmaker who has already watched Drishyam 2, heaped praises on the movie with his latest social media post. Prithviraj's take on the highly anticipated Mohanlal starrer is now winning the internet.

Read the actor-filmmaker's post here:

"Drishyam 2.

Been wanting to say something about the film for a long time now. Guess since the world premiere is just hours away..it's ok to not hold on any longer.

Following up a cult piece of cinema with a sequel is a huge responsibility. And with something like Drishyam, a film that pretty much changed the schematics of the entire industry, the pressure on a proposed 2nd part would have been immense (trust me..I know!). But how gloriously does Jeethu pull it off! Where do you take Georgekutty 6 years down the line? Has his incredible penchant for constructing and living a fictional story softened? Does he make a slip? Does he finally get outsmarted? Does time and law catch up? If you think you already know..you're in for one hell of a surprise!

Fantastically written and conceived..this is Jeethu's best film after Drishyam! He was the first person I called after watching it. I'm so so happy for you brother! And then, I walked over to my neighbouring apartment to meet a certain someone.

Now coming to the small matter of that certain someone..who goes by the name of Mohanlal. I'll say just this for now..

Class is permanent..I repeat..PERMANENT! Georgekutty is undoubtedly one of the most iconic characters of Malayalam cinema. Cheta..I cannot wait to direct you again and be directed by you! 

PS: Murali Gopy, the actor, has arrived. Subtle, brilliant. I say this after having watched the final edit of KURUTHI as well!" wrote Prithviraj Sukumaran in his post.

Coming to Drishyam 2, leading lady Meena and the rest main cast will reprise their respective roles in the second installment as well. The project is bankrolled by Antony Perumbavoor under the banner Aashirvad Cinemas.

Also Read:

Drishyam 2 First Review: This Mohanlal Starrer May Repeat The Magic Of The First Part!



Mohanlal And Jeethu Joseph Share Some Interesting Anecdotes From The Sets Of Drishyam 2


Documentary on China's anti-poverty fight to be aired

Women of the Miao ethnic group process clothes at a poverty alleviation workshop in Huawu Village, Xinren Miao Township of Qianxi County, Bijie City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, Feb. 3, 2021. (Xinhua/Ou Dongqu)

BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- An eight-episode documentary on how China fought and finally won the battle against absolute poverty will debut on the state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) on Thursday.

Produced by China Media Group, the documentary features the theories developed by China during the process and practices, and demonstrates China's anti-poverty policies, models and ideas.

Under the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), nearly 100 million impoverished rural residents have escaped poverty since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012.
Recently, it was reported that the To Live and Not Forget Holocaust Memorial in Yerevan, Armenia was vandalized by local anti-Semites, who sprayed over the Hebrew inscriptions on the monument. The World Jewish Congress condemned the anti-Semitic vandalism: It is horrible to see that the Holocaust memorial in Yerevan, Armenia was vandalized with vile anti-Semitic graffiti. The vandalism was condemned by the citys mayor.

According to Jewish Press, Rabbi Zamir Isayev also tweeted: What a disgrace! A monument to the victims of the Holocaust was once again desecrated in Yerevan. How can the Armenians justify the desecration of a Holocaust memorial by the fact that Israel sold weapons to Azerbaijan? Does this give someone the right to desecrate the memorial?

Following these developments, Arye Gut, who heads the Azerbaijan House in Israel, noted that fascism and neo-Nazism have long been the state ideology of Armenia, adding that this was not the first time that the Holocaust Memorial in Yerevan was vandalized: The popularization of fascism, antisemitism and neo-Nazis has become an integral part of Armenias state policy. What is even more outrageous is that the fascist ideology called Nzhdehism is included in Armenias educational institutions curriculum and generations are brought up on these values. Furthermore, he emphasized that Armenia also erected five years ago a monument in honor of the Nazi accomplice Garegin Nzhdeh: A sovereign nation has the right to memorialize whoever they wish as their national heroes. However, we should not be silent whenever a Nazi who perpetrated crimes during the Holocaust becomes some nations revered hero. The Jewish people will never forget the acts of cruelty committed by the 20,000 Armenian legionnaires led by Nzhdeh during World War II. The purpose of the Armenian Legion, led by Nzhdeh, was to raid the homes and destroy the lives of Jews, as well as others objectionable to the Nazi German army, he added. It was thanks to the Armenian Legion that the towns of Simferopol, Yevpatoria, Alushta, Kerch, and Feodosia, as well as other areas of Western Crimea, were completely expunged of Jews. It is therefore required of us not to be indifferent to the way modern Armenia elevates past figures who were clearly fascist and anti-Semitic to the rank of national heroes.

Perpetuating the memory of an Armenian fascist and anti-Semite is a shame and an insult to the memory of the Holocaust, he added. My grandfather lost all his family members to the Nazis in Ukraine. He survived only because he was away fighting against the Nazis with the Soviet Red Army. Due to this, he was not there to protect his family. For me personally, this vandalism causes unbearable mental anguish.

Israels Ministry of Diaspora Affairs just published its 2020 Annual Report, which noted an alarming increase in anti-Semitism following the Second Karabakh War: Official attacks accelerated into anti-religious attacks and claims that the Jewish people historically committed crimes against the Armenian people. The war in Karabakh led to extremist incidents, significant expressions of new anti-Semitism and disproportional attacks upon the State of Israel. Media reports that Israel provided weapons to Azerbaijan caused much anger among the Armenian population and there were demonstrations where participants chanted anti-Semitic slogans. Holocaust-era motifs were utilized. The Armenian Prime Minister accused Israel of supporting genocide.

Gut believes that the rising anti-Semitism in Armenia predated the Second Karabakh War and that the Armenians are just using Israels weapons sales as an excuse, for the Armenians did not react this way towards Russian and American arms sales to Azerbaijan: Nobody has forgotten how the Yerevan House of Writers presented The National System by Roman Episkoposyan in Russian and Armenian. In this book, the Turks are portrayed as the murder nation and the Jews as the destroyer nation. In the chapter on the Greatest Falsification of the Twentieth Century, the author declares the Holocaust is a myth.

Rabbi Israel Barouk wrote in Khojaly: A Crime against Humanity: In the aftermath of survival, in the face of efforts to revise and deny the most gruesome tragedy in human history, Jewish communities across the world know that our lives depend on Never Again to hold true now more than ever before. We live through the remnants of the Holocaust and for a day to come where the world will really prevent genocide before it happens.

Considering this, one must note that a bigoted perception of the other in Armenia not only leads to incidents like the above but also led to the Khojaly genocide in 1992. Former Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told British journalist Thomas de Wall 29 years ago: Before Khojaly, the Azerbaijanis thought that they were joking with us. They thought that the Armenians were a people who could not raise their hands against the civilian population. We needed to put a stop to that. And thats what happened. Gut stressed, It is impossible to imagine international acceptance for prominent Nazi war criminals, especially those who bragged about their crimes as respectable politicians. Shouldnt the perpetrators of Khojaly be held to the same standard?

In conclusion, Gut proclaimed: Modern Armenias policy is a ticking time bomb: Young people who grow up on such ideology will continue to live according to fascisms creed. Armenias state policy displays extreme disrespect for the millions of people who died fighting fascism in World War II, insulting their relatives and surviving veterans, especially the citizens of the former USSR who fought with exceptional merit to defeat fascism. Today, Israel hardly needs partners or allies like Armenia.
 Close Trump: Biden is lying or 'mentally gone on vaccines

Joe Biden said the world can't return to a Cold War with Russia and China and must seek ways to cooperate on global challenges like the Covid pandemic even as the two countries pose security risks to the western alliance.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Biden reaffirmed his commitment to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization while apologizing to European leaders for the last four years under Donald Trump.

That apology came with the Biden administration returning the US to the Paris climate accord, another reversal of Trump-era policies of the past four years.

The focus on foreign policy came as the Biden administration continued to face domestic crises in its first weeks, including unprecedented winter weather that delayed 6 million doses of Covid vaccine.

While Biden toured the Pfizer vaccine manufacturing plant in Michigan, Republican senator Ted Cruz stayed out of the spotlight after coming under intense scrutiny for fleeing Texas for the warmer climes of Cancun.

Congress continued going through its motions, with Democrat Joe Manchin announcing his opposition to the nomination of Neera Tanden to lead the Office of Management & Budget, Neera Tanden.

The White House has refused to withdraw her nomination, hoping instead to convince Republicans to confirm her post.

Trump himself, meanwhile, did things that were terrible when contradicted on the coronavirus pandemic, Dr Anthony Fauci has said in an interview.

Fauci said Trump entirely lost interest in tackling Covid-19 as it became clear he had lost Novembers presidential election.
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Australia helped the Philippine government draft a controversial national security law that human rights groups fear will be used by President Rodrigo Dutertes regime to suppress voices of dissent and prosecute political opponents.

Australian security agencies gave technical assistance with the drafting of the law, which is currently being challenged in the countrys Supreme Court and allows for the jailing of suspects without charge for weeks.

Rodrigo Dutertes government has been criticised over its human rights record. Credit:AP

The law came into effect last year just as President Dutertes government was battling outbreaks of COVID-19 and arresting people for not complying with a lockdown.

Civil society groups warn the Anti-Terrorism Act draws no lines between dissent and terrorism and provides Philippine security agencies with too much power to detain people without an arrest warrant.


During their trial the UK Government altered the law to allow juries to draw negative inferences from a suspect's silence

Martina Shanahan, one of the so-called 'Winchester Three', has died.

Ms Shanahan, originally from Dublin, Finbar Cullen and John McCann were found guilty at Winchester Crown Court of an IRA plot to kill former Secretary of State Tom King in 1987.

The three were convicted of conspiracy to murder and sentenced to 25 years in prison.

They were freed after serving two-and-a-half years when their convictions were quashed by the Court of Appeal.

During their trial the UK Government altered the law to allow juries to draw negative inferences from a suspect's silence.

It was ruled that their case may have been prejudiced by comments made by Mr King, who was a prominent supporter of the change, when he stated on TV that the trio should not have had the right to remain silent.

Sinn Fein MLA Martina Anderson, who spent time with Ms Shanahan in Durham Prison, said she passed away in Spain on Wednesday.

In a post on social media, Ms Anderson paid tribute to Ms Shanahan, describing her as "the best of us".

"I want to send deepest condolence to Gerry Hanratty, the love of Martina's life, their son Cian, both of whom have been a tower of strength to each other during these awfully sad few days," she said.

"Also sending my heartfelt sympathy to Deirdre Shanahan Whelan and Martina's extended family and friends whose hearts are crushed at the loss of Martina Shanahan. Thank you Gerry for allowing me to have a few moments of a yarn into Martina's ear yesterday, hearing her voice and telling her I love her meant the world to me and I will cherish that moment that you allowed me forever."

The trio's release from prison in 1990 was criticised by former Master of the Rolls Lord Denning.

"The Court of Appeal were wrong, and the judge and jury at Winchester," he said at the time.

"The Court of Appeal were wrong because they said that what we said was really a contempt of court which seriously prejudiced the trial.

"However, we had a complete defence to that: section five of the Contempt of Court Act 1981 gives us the right to comment on matters of general public interest if the risk of prejudicing particular legal proceedings is merely incidental to the discussion... Tom King and I were condemned unheard.

"British justice has been betrayed by the Court of Appeal. In my opinion, justice was done at Winchester Crown Court."
The Drug Administration of Vietnam under the Ministry of Health has approved the import of the first 200,400 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine of the UK for emergency use.

AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine of the UK (Photo: VNA)

This is the first batch of Vietnams order of 30 million doses of the vaccine bought directly from the manufacturer (with phased delivery throughout 2021), in addition to 4.88 million doses that the country is receiving under the WHO-led COVAX initiative aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, especially for poor and developing countries.

The batch is expected to be delivered by AstraZeneca Vietnam on February 28.

The company is responsible for the origin, quality of the imported vaccine and the vaccine is used for the right purposes and in a safe and effective manner, the administrations document approving the import noted.

Previously, Vietnamese health authorities have given emergency use approval for the COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca, the first COVID-19 vaccine to obtain such authorisation in the country.

Related agencies are still in talks with the company for larger supply to Vietnam to ensure inoculation for its near 100 million population.

Vietnam opted for the Oxford/Zeneca vaccine mostly because it could be stored at normal fridge temperatures of 2-8 degrees Celsius, instead of stringent super cold storage conditions like its Moderna and Pfizer counterparts, according to Le Van Truyen, Chairman of the Advisory Council for the Granting of Drug Registration Numbers.

The company has also cooperated with several countries in Europe and Asia to produce the vaccines, Truyen said.

Vietnam has one locally-made COVID-19 vaccine, Nanocovax, in the second phase human trials, with another expected to start at the end of February.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc at a recent cabinet meeting has said that importing COVID-19 vaccines must be considered the highest priority of the Government, as the country is battling its biggest wave of community infections, that has recorded over 700 cases since January 27./. VNA
Few Australians would have heard much about the dramatic schism at the Pacific Islands Forum last week, but its consequences for our region could be long-lasting and disastrous.

Fijis suspension from the forum in 2009 presented a serious political crisis for the institution. But through active Australian and New Zealand leadership, working with our Pacific counterparts, the forum held together. Nothing, however, compares in the forums history to the decision last week by its five Micronesian members  Nauru, Kiribati, Palau, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia  to voluntarily walk away from the institution. Even if a deal can be worked out before they formally exit a year from now, the fact is that Pacific regionalism will never be the same.

Kiribati has decided to leave the Pacific Islands Forum. Credit:Justin McManus

The challenge for the Australian government is to not just fiddle while Rome burns. These events have already shown the Morrison governments Pacific Step Up has been little more than a giant Pacific Stuff Up. Australias role in the region is to constructively and respectfully help our island neighbours navigate their collective future. The risk now is that the Pacific Islands Forum disappears altogether, thereby fracturing longstanding regional solidarity. If the forum implodes, Australia too would lose its formal seat at the table of the Pacific family. That would be strategically disastrous for Australia. And great news for Beijing.

Fifty years ago, when the South Pacific Forum (as it was known then) was established, Australia was only invited to attend as an observer. When Canberra pushed back, Fiji was instrumental in brokering an arrangement whereby Australia and New Zealand would be welcomed as full members, but with the implicit understanding they would not upset the consensus view.
President Donald Trump speaks at the CPAC convention in National Harbor, Md., on Feb. 29, 2020. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

CPAC 2021 Approaches With Trump as Possible Speaker

Former President Donald Trump has been invited to speak to the Conservative Political Action Conference in Florida next week, though it is not clear whether he has accepted the invitation.

American Conservative Union Chairman Matt Schlapp, who helps run the conference, said he extended the invitation himself.

Id love to see him come to CPAC, Schlapp told the Washington Examiner.

An official close to the planning process told The Epoch Times that Trump was invited last year.

Trump told attendees during his speech at the 2020 conference: God bless you. God bless America. And we will see you next year.

The official said planners dont know whether Trump is planning to attend. Were in sort of a wait and see moment, the official said.

Trumps team didnt return an inquiry.

Schlapp said he hopes having Trump speak will work out.

Ive always had good relations with him, weve always talked, and I hope we can make it work, he said. I think he deserves to be heard. I think even people who disagree with him will agree that he deserves to be heard. He should be uncanceled.

A social media post promoting the conference showed a picture of Trump.

Top conservatives regularly appear at the conference, which will take place in Orlando.

President Donald Trump speaks at the CPAC convention in National Harbor, Md., on March 2, 2019. (Samira Bouaou/The Epoch Times)

The venue is a change from the traditional Washington scene.

Were swapping D.C. lockdowns for sunshine and freedom, CPAC said in a previous tweet. Schlapp said via Twitter that the conference will be the place to be as conservatives plot, plan, and unite to defeat socialism in America.

Scheduled speakers include a number of officials from Trumps administration, including former Housing Secretary Ben Carson, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and former White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

Trump allies like South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and former acting national security adviser Richard Grenell are also slated to speak.

Lawmakers on the program include Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.), and Rep Mo Brooks (R-Ala.).

CPAC describes itself as the largest and most influential gathering of conservatives in the world.

Trump lay low after leaving the White House last month as the Senate mulled whether to convict or acquit him on a charge of inciting an insurrection. Some lawmakers, primarily Democrats, believed Trump sparked the Jan. 6 storming of the U.S. Capitol, while defenders pointed out that Trump encouraged supporters in a speech that day to go to the Capitol but to do it peacefully and patriotically.

Trump was acquitted, with 43 Republicans siding with him and seven against him.

Trump thanked lawmakers for acquitting him before criticizing the top Republican in Congress, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who gave a scathing floor speech condemning the former president.

Trump said the GOP can never again be respected or strong with political leaders like Sen. Mitch McConnell at its helm and said he would focus on backing primary rivals who espouse Making America Great Again and our policy of America First.

COLUMBUS, OhioOhio lawmakers are again introducing legislation to abolish the states death penalty  but this time, theres growing confidence that the measure has the bipartisan support needed to become law.

We know that the votes exist, said state Sen. Niraj Antani, a Dayton-area Republican, during a Zoom news conference with supporters of the measure. There are enough Republican votes to supplement the Democratic votes to get this done.

However, the bill so far is only getting tepid support at best from Senate President Matt Huffman and House Speaker Bob Cupp, whose support is needed for any legislation to pass the Ohio General Assembly.

Ohio House and Senate bills will be introduced in the near future that would replace all capital sentences with a sentence of life in prison without parole, said state Sen. Nickie Antonio, a Lakewood Democrat whos been a leading anti-death-penalty advocate in the legislature.

I think whats new is instead of an individual from the Republican side of the aisle (sponsoring an anti-death penalty bill), you are hearing about a team, Antonio said. There is a team right now that is dedicated to ending the death penalty in Ohio. ...And that team can only get larger.

Huffman and Cupp, both Lima Republicans, told reporters that while theyre in favor of having a legislative discussion about ending the death penalty, they hesitated to personally express support for the idea.

Cupp noted that while he served on the Ohio Supreme Court, he read transcripts of what death-row inmates did that got them a capital sentence.

Some of those things were so. horrendous you can almost not wrap your mind around them, Cupp said. And so, I think there is a role for the death penalty in those kind of cases.

However, Cupp indicated he remains open in general to further narrowing the use of the death penalty, as lawmakers did last session by banning executions of people with severe mental illness.

Huffman said Wednesday that hes been a death-penalty supporter his entire legislative career. However, he said he gave the go-ahead to hold legislative hearings on an anti-death penalty bill because I think its an important discussion.

Ohio is one of 28 death-penalty states, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. However, executions have effectively been on hold in the state since 2018 because of ongoing problems getting pharmaceutical companies to sell lethal-injection drugs to the state. Gov. Mike DeWine, a Greene County Republican who no longer describes himself as a death-penalty supporter, has said he will refuse to allow any more executions to take place in the state unless the Ohio General Assembly picks an alternative to lethal injection.

Huffman said he doesnt know how lawmakers would go about changing the states execution method. But he said that will be part of the discussion about the death penalty at the Ohio Statehouse.

We shall see what kind of support is generated in the Ohio Senate, he said.

In recent years, an increasing number of conservatives are turning against the death penalty for a variety of reasons, including religious grounds and concerns about the high taxpayer-funded expense of putting someone to death.

State Rep. Jean Schmidt, a Clermont County Republican, said when she served in the legislature 20 years ago, she was a death-penalty supporter. But Schmidt said she began to change her mind after meeting with Joe DAmbrosio, a one-time Ohio death-row inmate who was found to be wrongfully convicted.

It got me to thinking that we have to make sure that we never kill an innocent person, Schmidt said, noting that nine Ohio inmates scheduled to die have been exonerated. Life in prison without parole will be a hard punishment for those individuals that deserve it.

Read more Ohio politics and government stories:

Cleveland City Council president considers inquiry into whether FirstEnergy interfered with wind turbine project involving CPP

Former Ohio GOP Chairman Jane Timken launches bid for Senate

Sen. Sherrod Brown to boost Ohio priorities when he chairs his first Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee hearing

Ohio Senate will soon repeal House Bill 6 nuclear subsidies, top lawmaker says

Have scammers taken out unemployment benefits in your name? It can be hard to find out
TENOSIQUE, Mexico (AP)  The first Mexican shelter reached by migrants after trekking through the Guatemalan jungle has hosted nearly 1,500 migrants only six weeks into the year compared to 3,000 all of last year, even though it has halved its dormitory capacity due to the pandemic.

Latin America's migrants are on the move again.

After a year of pandemic-induced paralysis, those in daily contact with migrants believe the flow north could return to the high levels seen in late 2018 and early 2019. The difference is that it's happening during a pandemic.
Texas winter disaster delays Voddie Bauchams quest for heart failure treatment in Florida

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Prominent Southern Baptist author and preacher Voddie Baucham Jr., who recently revealed his struggle with full-blown heart failure, said he is trying to get to Florida for treatment but was still stuck in snow-ravaged Texas Tuesday night without power.

Stuck in Dallas last night as our final flight was cancelled. Stayed with family and there was only power from about 2-3AM. Then power came today for two hours, Baucham, who is a board member of Founders Ministries and founding faculty member of the Institute of Public Theology, wrote on Instagram.

We have made a pivot in our plans as our flight was canceled again today. Theres a flight from DFW to Jacksonville, FL tonight and, Lord willing, we will be on it. Then we will start our journey with the team at the Mayo Clinic.

It was still unclear Wednesday if the 51-year-old Baucham has yet left Texas.

Bauchams dilemma comes as almost 3 million households in Texas were still without power Wednesday morning after a historic winter storm hit the state. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo called the storm the winter version of Hurricane Harvey.

Hurricane Harvey, which hit Texas as a Category 4 storm on August 25, 2017, killed at least 68 people and caused about $125 billion in damage.

The state is getting ready for more winter weather in yet another snow blast, with a winter storm warning in effect for dozens of counties in the Dallas-Fort Worth area until Thursday morning. Around one to three inches of snow are expected, with up to six inches of snow northeast of the metro region.

Thomas Ascol, president of Founders Ministries who also serves as senior pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral, Florida, revealed Tuesday that the ongoing storm also snagged Baucham's efforts to return to the U.S. after he learned of his condition in Zambia. He serves as dean of theology at African Christian University in Lusaka.

He had to be actually put in the hospital for a little while to stabilize him there and made his plans to come to the United States.  [He] gets out of Lusaka to Johannesburg and his flight gets canceled in Johannesburg because of this massive weather event were having in the United States, Ascol revealed on his organizations weekly podcast The Sword and the Trowel.

He was supposed to fly in ultimately to Dallas, and the Dallas airport was shut down for a while. So, his connecting flights got canceled. So, hes stuck in Johannesburg feeling poorly. He can barely walk. I talked to him on the phone; he just sounded really, really weak. He was weak.

In announcing his illness last Friday, the founder of Voddie Baucham Ministries said he felt unwell at the end of a preaching tour this winter in Zambia before realizing he had heart trouble.

I thought I had just worked too hard (17 preaching dates in 18 days, 7 sessions the last 3 days, etc.). However, as it turns out, I was experiencing heart failure! he shared.

I had first noticed the symptoms at the end of December when Bridget and I returned to Dallas to bury her mother. I experienced fatigue, and shortness of breath, among other things. However, I chalked it up to traveling with heavy bags and restrictive masks (not the trifecta of a hereditary heart defect, last Februarys mysterious pneumonia, and untreated sleep apnea).

Ascol said he noticed Baucham appeared really tired during the National Founders Conference held Jan. 21-23 in Fort Myers, Florida. But no one was fully aware of what was happening at the time.

When he was here with us at the Founders Conference, he just seemed really tired. But he was in the tail end of a winter tour where he was preaching for several days. And then, we worked him hard here a lot. He didnt have much downtime with us, Ascol detailed.

Once he returned to Zambia and saw his family doctor, Baucham discovered he had some really serious problems with his heart.

Ascol also revealed that Baucham has been battling chronic kidney disease for many years and was hospitalized in Zambia for a while before he could travel.

A GoFundMe campaign set up by Ascol on Sunday has since raised more than $1 million to cover Bauchams medical costs, which are expected to exceed $1 million.

In Gods providence, weve just seen people rally around, Ascol said. Ive talked to more people than I can remember on Saturday whove offered help. And with this GoFundMe account that has been set up, people from all over the world have contributed to that. Ive had doctors from all over the world contacted me saying, We will help. ... Hes been hooked up with some really good doctors now.
In a significant development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a massive public meeting in Kolkata on March 7 to mark the concluding ceremony of Parivartan Yatra in West Bengal. The rally will take place at Brigade Parade Grounds in Hastings's Fort William on March 7.

Earlier, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said if voted to power BJP would constitute an inquiry into the siphoning off cyclone Amphan relief funds and book the culprits, alleging that the TMC government has introduced a "cut-money and syndicate culture" in West Bengal.

Shah said BJP's 'Parivartan Yatra' is not for changing a chief minister, an MLA or a minister but ending infiltration and transforming West Bengal into a developed state. "This is BJP's fight to make Bengal 'Sonar Bangla' (Golden Bengal). This fight is between our booth workers and the syndicate of TMC. It is not just our aim to bring BJP government after removing Mamata Banerjee's ministry."

"Our goal is to ensure that there is a change in the situation in West Bengal, a change in the condition of the poor of the state, a change in circumstances for women of the state," he said. "This 'Parivartan Yatra' is for ending infiltration and also for the transformation of Bengal. You vote for the BJP. Leave alone illegal immigrants, not even a bird from across the border will be allowed to enter the state," Shah said after flagging off the final leg of the five-phased Rath yatra in the state.

Criticising TMCs "cut money" culture, Shah said if voted to power, the government will probe corruption in disbursal of cyclone Amphan relief funds. "The central government had sent relief and funds post-Amphan for affected people. But, the TMC leaders siphoned off the funds and did not allow it to reach the affected people.

"If we are voted to power, the government will constitute an inquiry committee to probe corruption in disbursal of Amphan relief funds. All those who have indulged in corruption would be sent to jails," he said. Super cyclonic storm Amphan had caused widespread damage in West Bengal, Odisha and neighbouring Bangladesh in May 2020.

Shah also announced that the BJP will constitute 'Zero Casualty Task Force' to save lives from cyclones and environmental disasters if voted to power. Speaking on the controversy over 'Jai Shri Ram' slogan, Shah said, Bengal CM gets angry at the slogan due to her appeasement politics. "You get angry over it because you want to appease a particular section of the people for vote bank politics. Jai Shri Ram slogan is a symbol against anti-appeasement policies," he said.

Banerjee had on January 23 declined to speak at an event to celebrate Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's birth anniversary where "Jai Shri Ram" slogans were raised in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Flaying TMCs appeasement politics, Shah said it is under BJPs pressure that Banerjee is now seen worshipping Goddess Saraswati. "Should the Durga Puja not take place in West Bengal? Court permission needs to be obtained for it. Should the Saraswati Puja not be held here? She had stopped it. It was only after BJP's pressure that she was seen worshipping Goddess Saraswati. Didi, Bengal knows that you had stopped Saraswati puja in schools," Shah said.
The European Union is funding the establishment of the new vaccine research network VACCELERATE with a total of 12 million euros for three years. So far, 26 partner institutions from 21 European countries are involved in the network. The consortium is headed by the infectiologist Professor Dr. Oliver Cornely at the University of Cologne and Cologne University Hospital.

Vaccine-induced immunity against SARS-CoV-2 is considered the most promising solution to combat the pandemic. To build long-term herd immunity in Europe, as many people as possible need to be vaccinated. There is a high demand for vaccine trials since there are still many questions regarding, among other things, safety, efficacy, and the adaptation of vaccines in the face of virus mutations. This research will be coordinated through the newly established pan-European research network VACCELERATE. The platform will plan and conduct clinical trials and act as a single point of contact for all stakeholders - from health authorities to pharmaceutical vaccine developers.

Project leader Professor Dr. Oliver Cornely, infectiologist, Director of the Translational Research Chair at the CECAD Cluster of Excellence in Aging Research and Senior Physician at the Department of Internal Medicine I at Cologne University Hospital, said: 'VACCELERATE is designed as a pan-European backbone for a coordinated approach to vaccine research. We want to network facilities, pool expertise, and promote knowledge exchange among our currently 26 partners. Our goal is to plan and coordinate vaccine trials under one strategic scientific umbrella in all EU member states and other EU-associated countries.' An important step in establishing the network is to map capacities for clinical trial sites and laboratory facilities to identify suitable sites for vaccine trials in Europe. Cornely added: 'VACCELERATE will serve as the pandemic preparedness network, providing a structure beyond the current coronavirus pandemic to rapidly and effectively test vaccine candidates across Europe.'

Currently, VACCELERATE will be used primarily to plan, facilitate, and network phase II and III coronavirus vaccine trials. Phase II trials test the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of a new vaccine, as well as dosage. Phase III trials must demonstrate the efficacy of a new compound in large populations. For this purpose, it is compared with a placebo (a dummy medication) via random administration to volunteers. An application for approval of the tested substance can only be submitted to the European Union after successful completion of phase III testing.

In addition, VACCELERATE will provide quality assurance training and coordinate access to laboratory sites essential for phase II and III clinical trials. A Europe-wide volunteer registry for rapid patient recruitment is already under development. A harmonized European approach to vaccine trials will enable the development of training standards, the coordination of laboratory support, the establishment of standardized laboratory methods (known as assays), and uniform study protocols. In addition, the platform will also serve in an advisory function to various stakeholders such as research institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and health authorities planning coronavirus vaccine trials in Europe.

To obtain valid research results, VACCELERATE will moreover enable harmonized data collection, open data exchange, and data pooling for improved analysis within the research platform. Through VACCELERATE, the European Union aims to increase its vaccine development capacity in the medium and long term.

###


UPDATE: I killed both of them. Just arrest me, bro, corrections officer told cop after he shot girlfriend, her friend, authorities say

When Anna Shpilberg ended her engagement with Fabian Goni, he considered the breakup temporary and believed they would be together again. More than a year later, hes helping to plan her funeral while trying to make sense of the double-homicide that left her and her best friend dead in separate locations in Newark.

We were on a break, Goni, a landscaper from Randolph, told NJ Advance Media in an interview Thursday. She met this younger guy, but I still had her stuff in my house. I wanted her back. Im still in love with her.

The younger man, John Menendez, 23, who works as a Hudson County corrections officer, was charged this week with gunning down Shpilberg and her best friend, Luiza Shinkarevskaya. The women, both 40, and from Morris County, were found fatally shot about a mile apart in Newark on Tuesday night.

The Essex County Prosecutors Office has not released a possible motive, but noted Shpilbergs relationship with Menendez in announcing his arrest. Shinkarevskaya, of Riverdale, was found at 9:53 p.m. suffering from a gunshot wound in the 100 block of Haynes Avenue near Newark Liberty International Airport, according to the prosecutors office.

Shpilberg, of Randolph, was found dead at 9:55 p.m. in the passenger seat of her vehicle in the area of Edison Place and Bruen Street near Newark Penn Station, according to the prosecutors office.

Menendez is charged with two counts of murder and weapons offenses.

Both women had previously lived in Brooklyn, New York, having emigrated to the United States from the Ukraine when they were children, friends said.

Gonis sister-in-law told NJ Advance Media on Thursday that Shpilberg in recent months had been reaching out to the Goni family, trying to re-establish a connection lost about 14 months earlier when the wedding was called off.

I opened up my home to her. We were like a family to her, Claudia Marcela Goni said. She wanted to reach out and make peace. I was there for her.

Before her death, Shpilberg showed Goni a photo of Menendez.

I thought he was too young for her, Goni said. But it wasnt my business. We didnt talk about him after that.

On Valentines Day, Goni texted a photo of her baby to Shpilberg but didnt get a response. Goni said Shpilberg read the text two days later about 7 p.m. on Tuesday night. But there was no reply. Two hours later, Shpilberg  a mother herself  was found dead.

John Menendez, 23, of West New York is charged in the shooting deaths of Anna Shpilberg and Luiza Shinkarevskaya.Essex County Jail

Its so heart-breaking, Goni said. We connected and I really wanted her to be back in my life, in my house and around my family.

Fabian Gonis brother, Alex, said Shpilberg had visited their family around Christmas and brought her 15-year-old son from another relationship.

We were spending time together again. She was so sweet and this is so tragic, Alex Goni said.

Fabian Goni said Shpilberg will be remembered for her devotion to her son, her volunteer work and her passion for fine dining and fashion.

She loved going out to dinner and trying new restaurants, he said. She loved shopping. She knew everything about fashion.

A registered dental hygienist who worked at a practice in Staten Island, the Gonis said Shpilberg will be remembered most of all for how much she loved her son.

He was the biggest love of her life, Fabian Goni said.

While at a loss for a motive for the shootings, Goni described Menendez as controlling, and said he demanded that Shpilberg report to him regularly on her whereabouts.

He wanted texts and videos as proof of where she was, Goni said. Claudia Mercela Goni also said her friend sent regular texts and videos to Menendez during their visits.

At 56th Street Deli across from Menendezs apartment in West New York, worker Juan Hernandez remembers the corrections officer as easy-going regular who ordered a cheeseburger with peppers and onions.

Im from Guatemala, so he would always say, Hey Guatemala when he came in. Always a nice guy, no problems with him at all, Hernandez said. I cant believe this happened and that he was arrested for it.

Menendez remained in the Essex County Jail on Thursday, jail records show. A court date has not been set.

Anna Shpilberg, 40, of Morris County.Courtesy of Fabian Goni

Thank you for relying on us to provide the journalism you can trust. Please consider supporting NJ.com with a subscription.

Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Ground-breaking research led by University of Limerick has revealed for the first time that the immune system directly links personality to long-term risk of death.

The study sheds new light on why people who are more conscientious tend to live longer.

Results from the new international study published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity have found that the immune system plays a previously unknown role in the link between personality traits and long-term risk of death.

"Personality is known to be associated with long-term risk of death, it is a well replicated finding observed across numerous research studies internationally," explained Principal Investigator on the study Dr Paraic O Suilleabhain, from the Department of Psychology and Health Research Institute at University of Limerick, Ireland.

"The critical question is 'how'. We wanted to find out if a biological pathway such as our immune system may explain why this happens.

"Our personality is critically important throughout our lives, from early stages in our development, to the accumulation of the impact of how we think, feel, and behave across our lives, and in the years preceding our death. It is also becoming increasingly apparent how important personality actually is for our long-term health and resulting longevity.

For instance, it has been shown that people scoring lower on the personality trait of conscientiousness (a tendency to be responsible, organized, and capable of self-control) can be at a 40% increased risk of future death compared to their higher scoring counterparts. What is not clear is how this could happen, and importantly, what biological pathway might be responsible for this link," added Dr O Suilleabhain.

Led by Dr O Suilleabhain, this study was conducted with a team of collaborators from the Department of Psychology at UL, the Department of Psychology at West Virginia University, the Department of Psychology at Humboldt University Berlin, and the College of Medicine at Florida State University.

The researchers wanted to investigate if two biological markers which are central to the immune system may explain why personality traits are associated with long-term mortality risk. Specifically, they wanted to test if interleukin-6 and c-reactive protein which are known to play an important role in age-related morbidity may explain how our personality traits are related to how long we live. The study was drawing on data from the Midlife in the United States Longitudinal Study carried out on 957 adults who were examined over a 14-year period.

We found that part of the reason why people who score higher on the personality trait of conscientiousness live longer is as a result of their immune system, specifically due to lower levels of a biological marker called interleukin-6. There are likely further biological mechanisms that are yet to be discovered which will give a clearer picture of all the different ways that our personalities are so critical to our long-term health. These findings are very important and identify for the first time that an underlying biological marker directly links personality to long-term mortality risk. With replication, these findings provide an opportunity for future interventions to increase our longevity and health across the lifespan." Dr O Suilleabhain, Department of Psychology, UL
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The instructing team from SAS Australia will be heading back to Australia in coming weeks to begin quarantine ahead of Season 2 of the unflinching Seven series.

TV Tonight understands filming is due to begin in New South Wales in April, and will screen later this year.

That means the show will film in Autumn instead of Winter, unlike the extreme conditions faced by celebrities last year.

But Seven is buoyed by the talent pool available second time around.

Programming boss Angus Ross recently told TV Tonight, This show is a bit different in that you dont have to chase people to participate in it. They will come knocking on your door, because its quite a different experience, as we saw last year, versus most of the other reality offerings on on television.

Meanwhile Seven is also set to screen UK special Ant Middleton & Rebel Wilson: Straight Talking (pictured).

The unlikely pair travel to the Mexican wilderness for a journey of discovery with only a 44 vehicle and their backpacks as company.

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Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
The people of Illinois have much to be grateful for thanks to his dedicated public service, and the many sacrifices he and his family made to make a difference in our lives. I know how dearly he loves his wife Shirley, their children and grandchildren, and I hope that in this next chapter, his family can begin to make up for lost time, Pritzker said.
[February 18, 2021] CRN Names CRITICALSTART To Its 2021 MSP 500 List

PLANO, Texas, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CRITICALSTART, a leading cybersecurity provider of Managed Detection and Response (MDR) services , announced today that CRN , a brand of The Channel Company , has named CRITICALSTART to its 2021 Managed Service Provider (MSP) 500 list in the Security 100 category. The list, released annually, recognizes the leading North American solution providers that have demonstrated innovative and forward-thinking approaches to managed services. These services help end users improve operational efficiencies and navigate the ongoing complexities of IT solutions, while maximizing their return on IT investments. With cutting-edge approaches to delivering managed services, MSPs have become an integral part of the success of businesses worldwide. They help empower organizations to leverage complex technologies, keeping a strict focus on their core business without straining their budgets. CRN's 2021 MSP 500 list identifies the market's key managed services players who are setting themselves apart with best-of-breed solutions that provide the business outcomes customers need. The MSP 500 list is divided into three sections: the MSP Pioneer 250, recognizing companies with business models weighted toward managed services and largely focused on the SMB market; the MSP Elite 150, recognizing large, data center-focused MSPs with a strong mix of on-premises and off-premises services; and the Managed Security 100, recognizing MSPs focused primarily on off-premises and cloud-based security services. CRITICALSTART earned its place on the list for developing the industry's only cloud-based platform that resolves 99% of security events, helping liminate compromises and stop breaches. By integrating monitoring tools often overlooked by companies, CRITICALSTART's customers see a 100% ROI from using its one-of-a-kind comprehensive security solutions.



"Effective MSPs enable companies to focus on their core objectives while improving the quality and reliability of their cloud computing capabilities," said Blaine Raddon, CEO of The Channel Company. "The solution providers on CRN's 2021 MSP 500 list deserve recognition for their innovative and forward-thinking approaches to managed services, and the ability to optimize operational efficiencies and systems to maximize return on investments." "We are thrilled to be recognized by CRN as one of this year's top Managed Service Providers," said Rob Davis, founder and CEO of CRITICALSTART. "Our ability to provide our customers with end-to-end service and support that detects every alert and stops breaches before they start is a point of pride for our entire team, and we sincerely appreciate being recognized for what sets us apart in our industry."

The MSP 500 list will be featured in the February 2021 issue of CRN and online at www.CRN.com/msp500 . About CRITICALSTART CRITICALSTART is the MDR expert that leaves nothing to chance. Our mission is simple: detect threats and stop breaches by resolving every alert for our customers. We do this for enterprises through our award-winning portfolio of end-to-end security services, including MDR and Professional Services. Visit criticalstart.com for more information or follow us on Twitter , LinkedIn or Facebook . About The Channel Company

The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education, and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequalled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. www.thechannelcompany.com Follow The Channel Company: Twitter , LinkedIn, and Facebook .  2021. CRN is a registered trademark of The Channel Company, LLC. All rights reserved. Social: "We strive to make a safer cyber world, so we're thrilled to be named in @@[tags] 2021 MSP 500 List for Security 100. Read about the award and what our CEO Rob Davis had to say about how MSP's help empower organizations to leverage complex technologies. #CRNMSP500" LinkedIn: @The-Channel-Co @CRN

Twitter: @TheChannelCo @CRN

Facebook: @TheChannelCompany @CRNmag View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/crn-names-criticalstart-to-its-2021-msp-500-list-301230857.html SOURCE CRITICALSTART

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After Trump's impeachment acquittal, Sen. Mitch McConnell launched a brutal attack against Trump, blaming for events on January 6. On Tuesday, Trump responded with an even harsher attack on McConnell. Is this a clash of titans presaging the end of the Republican Party? I don't think so. I think it's an announcement that the Republican Party is at a crossroads and that the voters need to decide the party's future direction.

Outside the South, in the years immediately after WWII, the Democrat party represented the poor, blue-collar workers, and academics. In the South, the Democrats' anti-black racial obsessions, which reached back to the decades before the Civil War, meant that blacks who ought to have been Democrats (poor or blue-collar) were nevertheless Republican if they got the chance to vote.

Outside the South, Republicans represented business interests, the rich, the up-and-coming middle class, and the bigwigs in small towns across the nation. In the South, white Republicans were careful not to make waves among the racist Democrats, who responded with brutality to anyone who crossed them.

In the intervening decades, things have changed radically. Democrats now represent large corporations, the poor, the extremely rich, college graduates in the middle- and upper-middle classes, and minorities. This holds true across America, whether in the South or outside it. Regarding minorities, Democrats have re-worked their racial obsessions to convince minorities that the Democrats' harmful policies have the minorities' best interests at heart.

Democrats have achieved power by breaking their constituents into a multitude of special interest groups, assuring them that they are "intersectional" and are all imminent victims of Republican racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, transphobia, etc. The Democrats' ascension to control in D.C., which will result in inevitable vicious fights over political spoils, will prove that their interests are not intersectional. Now, though, they're a tightly bound political unit focused solely on achieving total power.

Meanwhile, the Republicans represent... Whoa. That's a bit more complicated.

On the one hand, the Republicans are trying to represent Wall Street and the Chamber of Commerce crowd. On the other hand, they are trying to represent small businesses, the working and middle classes, and blue-collar workers.

These two groups do have some important things in common. They are not obsessed with race. They do not believe that biological sex is a "fluid" concept defined by feelings instead of biology. They support the military. They believe in the rule of law. Many of them are traditionally religious.

The differences, though, are what have led to the fight between McConnell and Trump. McConnell's crowd is an internationalist crowd. Having Americans as factory workers is costly, and having them as the consumers offers only limited profits. The McConnell team seeks bigger labor and buyer markets.

The McConnell Republicans' dream world is one in which labor can be hired cheaply abroad in China or Mexico. Alternatively, if factories are going to stay in America, they want to have cheap labor at home, either through unlimited illegal immigration or by conferring instant amnesty on the tens of millions of unskilled, non-English-speaking illegal aliens already in the U.S.

McConnell's Republicans also want to have access to the Chinese marketplace. There's a lot more money in selling things to 1.4 billion Chinese than to 330 million Americans, especially because so many of the latter are broke and on drugs, thanks to their factories closing and the lockdowns' devastating effects on small businesses. If you want access to the Chinese marketplace, you must dance to China's tune.

Although their reasons are different, when it comes to open borders and dealing with China, there's not a lot of daylight between the McConnell Republicans' goals and the Democrat party's approach to our borders or to China.

The Trump contingent wants jobs to stay in America for Americans and (legal) immigrants. They also look at China as a dangerous enemy, one that takes their jobs and trade secrets, floods their markets with cheap goods and opiates, trains tech titans in the ways of tyranny, possibly interfered in the last election, and may deliberately have sent a dangerous virus to American shores.

Trump doesn't want to start a new party. The GOP has an enviable infrastructure across America. Therefore, he wants to energize Republicans to vote during the primaries for their vision of the GOP. Trump will stump for candidates who have traditional American social values, while also supporting strong borders and a strong policy against China. Meanwhile, the McConnell contingent will be throwing its weight behind candidates who support the Biden administration's open borders and subordination to Chinese interests.

If, like me, you are a Trump conservative, you have the power to take over the GOP, lock, stock, and mailing lists, turning it into a completely pro-American party. To do that, though, you must vote in your state's primaries. (This offer is not valid in California, which has open primaries, completely negating the Republicans' chances to have a say in their political destiny.)

Image: Trump and Mitch McConnell collage. Images by Gage Skidmore.
Since June 2007, Palestine has been speaking with multiple voices. In that fateful month, Hamas staged a coup to overthrow the national unity government, taking complete control of the Gaza Strip. Weeks later Israel laid siege to over two million Palestinians there on the pretext that Hamas is a terrorist organisation. Neither the overthrow of the Palestinian government nor the Israeli siege could give peace a chance. Rather, Palestinian politics became entangled in divisive confrontations between the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah and Hamas in Gaza, which had its ramifications in Arab and regional politics too. Iran sided with Hamas, so did Turkey to a lesser degree, while Arab countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia have done their best to steer a middle course between the two factions while trying to salvage the peace process, particularly the Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations.

These negotiations came to a standstill in April 2014 when the Palestinians refused to continue negotiating while the Israelis expanded their settlements in the West Bank. In retrospect, this withdrawal did not advance the Palestinian cause. Seven years have elapsed with three different American administrations in Washington and Israeli settlements have spread, so did the never-ending Israeli expropriation of Palestinian land. The last seven years have not empowered the Palestinians even if their motives for not resuming negotiations with Israel are justifiable. Their withdrawal made it easy for the Israeli government to claim, falsely, that there is no peace partner on the Palestinian side.

With a new American administration in Washington that marks a complete break with the previous one, the Palestinians need to unify their position and speak to the world with a single voice, expressing their willingness to resume peace negotiations with Israel. The peace narrative in the Middle East should not be left to Benjamin Netanyahu. That is why the first round of the Palestinian National Dialogue in Cairo, ten days ago, was a welcome development. Whether it will turn the page on Palestinian divisions remains to be seen. It is definitely worth the try. This round came on the heels of the call for elections in Palestine. Late last year Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) issued a decree that legislative and presidential elections should be held in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem (subject to an Israeli approval) in the summer, including the 700-member representative body.

The first round of the National Dialogue brought together 16 Palestinian factions including both Hamas and the Islamic Jihad, and it aimed to reach an agreement on the procedures governing the upcoming Palestinian elections. Fortunately, the conclusions reached so far are promising. What was termed a complete national partnership starts with holding the parliamentary elections next May, followed two months later by the presidential elections. It was agreed to respect the electoral schedule as well as the results of the elections, a concern for some. The future of peace between the Palestinians and the Israelis will depend on two factors: respect for the elections results and the commitment of the new, unified Palestinian government to negotiations without preconditions.

If the Palestinians surprise the world community with a viable democracy and a peaceful transfer of power occurs within the Palestinian Authority, said community  notably the European Union and the Biden administration  are likely to help the Palestinians tremendously, particularly in the framework of peace talks with the Israelis, regardless of the results of the Israeli elections scheduled for 23 March. The Biden administration came to the rescue of the two-state solution. Ten days ago American Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a revolutionary statement when he told an American news channel that the two-state solution is the only alternative to peace in the Middle East. The Palestinians should not waste this opportunity.

The Egyptian government has invited the Palestinian factions for a second round of talks next month, and in the meantime decided to open the Rafah border crossing indefinitely, a decision welcomed by the Palestinians. Some might see this as a kind of reward to Hamas for showing a much hoped-for flexibility in the Cairo talks early this month, and preparing for a unified Palestinian government after the elections in May and July 2021.

No one should underestimate the roadblocks on the way to setting up a unified government that would benefit from the allegiance of all Palestinian factions. In other words the question is how to protect such a government from the fractious politics of the Palestinian factions. One of the questions that the Palestinians should address is whether those factions will remain politically relevant if the Palestinian people in a free and fair election under international supervision choose an indivisible Palestinian government in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem (assuming Israel approves elections in the latter). Another major hurdle is the status of the Palestinian elections if the Israeli government decides to bar Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem from casting their votes. If this happens, and I hope it doesnt, will there be unanimity in accepting the elections as legitimate?

I wish the elections in East Jerusalem could be postponed till regional and international developments warrant them.

Another hurdle, no less significant, is Iran which is manoeuvering its way across the Middle East and in Yemen to reposition itself in a much stronger negotiating position in case talks with the Biden administration on the future of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (the Iranian Nuclear Deal of July 2015) should start. Iran could play the spoiler in the Palestinian elections, but it will not be alone. Israel might also want to ruin the elections in order to keep the Palestinians divided and keep the West Bank and the Gaza Strip separated, for the status quo serves the interests of both Iran and Israel.

The writer is former assistant foreign minister.

*A version of this article appears in print in the 18 February, 2021 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly

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AVON, Conn., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Most carriers retain less than 10% of their voluntary policies through conservation efforts, according to Eastbridge's Voluntary Conservation and Retention Practices Spotlight Report. While the barriers to improving retention rates vary, from a lack of tracking capabilities to reliance on plan administrator notification, limited employer-level strategies or limited time frames to port coverage, the most significant current challenges mentioned by carriers in their efforts to conserve and retain their voluntary customers are COVID-19 driven increased utilization of remote communication methods as well as reduced employer and employee access, receptiveness, and opportunities for education.

Despite challenges, most carriers are planning improvements to their programs in the next one to three years. Some of the initiatives mentioned include streamlining processes, introducing automation and more online self-service capabilities, along with improving employee education and communication frequency.

The report also looks at topics such as:

Voluntary platform type and portability differences by platform and product

Current conservation rates overall and by product, and changes to those rates in the last two to three years

Employee-level portability and conservation practices

Account-level portability and conservation practices

Commissions, loss ratios and persistency experience

The Voluntary Conservation and Retention Practices Spotlight Report is now available for purchase for $3,000. For more information or to purchase the report, visit the report page by clicking here, e-mail [email protected], or call (860) 676-9633.

Eastbridge Consulting Group, Inc . is a marketing advisory firm serving companies focused on the voluntary/worksite benefits market in the United States and Canada.



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There are poor souls who watch too much TV who claimed that participants in the Capitol riots were "patriots" or people who were motivated by something more than soul crushing boredom.

Just for the record . . .

SO-CALLED PATRIOTS QUICKLY TURN 'COMPLIANT' WHEN CONFRONTED WITH FED CHARGES!!! ONE LOCAL CAPITOL RIOT SUSPECT ATTEMPTS TO PIN THE BLAME TO PREZ TRUMP!!!

Lawyer-ing up is smart and the defense should play will in the national media at least.

Real talk, we kinda miss Prez Trump because the social media bully made a convenient villain easy to blame for every problem from global warming to stale cheese.



Deets . . .



The public defenders representing one of three local men arrested last week for participating in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol blamed former President Trump in a brief filed Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for Kansas. Essentially, the defense argues that Trump actively misled his supporters told the assembled rabble what they must do and then ratified their actions with praise on social media.

To be fair, a lot of folks arrested are taking a similar tactic so the dude isn't alone in his claims and offers an important perspective on the MAGA movement that will confront more serious challenges moving forward.



Check the links . . .

KCTV5: Attorney for Olathe man charged in Capitol Riot blames riot on former President Trump

KSHB: Attorneys for alleged Capitol rioter from Olathe blame Trump in detention memo

Developing . . .
Senator Ted Cruz was a leading Republican voice even before he ran for president in 2016 (Alex Brandon/AP)

Texas Senator Ted Cruz has acknowledged that he travelled to Mexico for a family holiday this week, leaving his home state as thousands struggled without power following a powerful winter storm.

The high-profile Republican, a potential White House candidate in 2024, said in a statement that he had accompanied his family after his daughters asked to go on a trip with friends, given that school was cancelled for the week.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, Mr Cruz said.

Expand Close Ted Cruzs office has declined to release any details about the family holiday (Alex Brandon/AP) / Facebook

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Whatsapp Ted Cruzs office has declined to release any details about the family holiday (Alex Brandon/AP)

My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas, Mr Cruz said.

We want our power back, our water on, and our homes warm.

The revelation drew immediate criticism from Democrats and Republicans in Texas and beyond as Mr Cruz, a key ally of former president Donald Trump, contemplates the possibility of a second presidential run.

The two-term senators current term expires in early 2025.

Thats something that he has to answer to his constituents about, state Republican Party chairman Allen West said when asked whether Mr Cruzs travel was appropriate while Texans are without power and water.

Im here trying to take care of my family and look after my friends and others that are still without power, Mr West said. Thats my focus.

Expand Close People wait in freezing rain to fill their gas cylinders in Houston, Texas, following widespread power cuts (AP Photo/David J Phillip) / Facebook

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Whatsapp People wait in freezing rain to fill their gas cylinders in Houston, Texas, following widespread power cuts (AP Photo/David J Phillip)

Hundreds of thousands of people in Texas woke up on Thursday to a fourth day without power, and a water crisis was unfolding after winter storms wreaked havoc on the states power grid and utilities.

Texas officials ordered seven million people  one-quarter of the population of the nations second-largest state  to boil tap water before drinking it, after days of record low temperatures that damaged infrastructure and froze pipes.

In Austin, some hospitals faced a loss in water pressure and in some cases, heat.

Mr Cruzs office declined to answer specific questions about the family holiday, but his staff reached out to the Houston Police Department on Wednesday afternoon to say the senator would be arriving at the airport, according to department spokeswoman Jodi Silva.

She said officers monitored his movements while Mr Cruz was at the airport.

Ms Silva could not say whether such requests are typical for Mr Cruzs travel or whether his staff has made a similar request for his return flight.

US Capitol Police officials and the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms have encouraged lawmakers and their staff to be conscious of potential threats and to consider advising law enforcement about their travel at airports and other transportation hubs.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Mostefa Souag, Al Jazeeras acting director general, speaks at the networks headquarters in Doha, Qatar, during a campaign for the release of detained journalist Mahmoud Hussein, Sept. 19, 2019.

Updated at 6:51 p.m. ET on 2021-02-17

A Bangladeshi court on Wednesday directed that an Al Jazeera documentary be removed from social media platforms in the country, telecom regulators said, a day after army chief Gen. Aziz Ahmed dismissed allegations made by the film against him and his brothers.

The chairman of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission said requests for the removal had been forwarded to Facebook and YouTube.

We have yet to get the High Court order to remove the Al Jazeera documentary from social media platforms, but we are not waiting for the written order to come, BTRC head Shyam Sunder Sikder told BenarNews. After being briefed by the lawyer representing us at the court, we have sent requests to the Facebook and YouTube authorities to remove the documentary.

We hope they would respect the court order, he said.

If Facebook and YouTube do not remove the documentary, we will find out what to do. Removing the contents from our side is a cumbersome process, Sikder added.

Meanwhile, the investigative unit of Qatar-based Al Jazeera defended the accuracy of its documentary, All the Prime Ministers Men.

In a statement released Wednesday, the unit said the documentary exposes how the head of the Bangladesh army helped two fugitive brothers, convicted of murder, to escape justice. One brother, Haris Ahmed, boasts that he can use police and paramilitary units to abduct rivals and earn a fortune in bribes thanks to his powerful family links.

As of late Wednesday, the documentary had been viewed nearly 7 million times on Al Jazeeras YouTube channel since it was published online and aired on the networks international cable TV channel on Feb. 1.

Al Jazeeras Investigative Unit stands 100 percent behind the accuracy of its journalism and the brave individuals who were prepared to take a stand against corruption at great personal risk to themselves and their families, the statement said.

Before the release of the investigation, Al Jazeera reached out to all parties involved, including the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the brothers of General Ahmed, senior members of the security forces and ministers. None responded to a detailed set of questions, it went on to say.

An expert on cybersecurity and information technology said Bangladesh could have a tough time getting rid of the documentary because government agencies cannot remove content from social media sites.

Al Jazeera has uploaded the documentary from its channel, so, YouTube and Facebook would only remove the documentary if Al Jazeera requests such removal, Tanvir Hassan Zoha told BenarNews.

What the government agencies can do is block some accounts that share the documentary. But people would be able to watch those from mobile phones and tablets, Zoha said. Again, the documentary has gone viral  it has spread in such a volume that this is almost impossible for Bangladesh authorities to remove from the social media platforms.

Petition filed

On Feb. 8, Supreme Court lawyer Enamul Kabir Emon filed a petition to ban Al Jazeera from broadcasting in Bangladesh and to remove the documentary from all social media platforms.

Two days later, the High Court appointed six senior lawyers to consider the petition.

A majority of the lawyers told court that the government should not block the Al Jazeera telecast as the Bangladesh constitution guarantees freedom of expression, Attorney General A.M. Amin Uddin told BenarNews.

Uddin said he disagreed with a majority of those lawyers who said the petitioner was not hurt by the documentary so it should not be removed from social media.

But I told the court that the documentary termed Bangladesh a mafia state. This word makes every citizen aggrieved, he said.

In other judicial action on Wednesday, a lawyer filed a petition in a Dhaka court to bring sedition charges against journalist David Bergman, whistle blower Sami, Tasneem Khalil and Al Jazeera acting director general Mostefa Souag, for their roles in the documentary. Bergman, Sami and Khalil, who is editor-in-chief of Sweden-based Netra News, were interviewed extensively for the documentary. The court did not immediately act on the petition.

The filing against the four has some meaning, though all of them have been living abroad. They will face the charges if they enter Bangladesh territory, Abdul Matin Khasru, one of the six lawyers on the panel, told BenarNews.

General speaks out

The documentary linked Gen. Aziz and at least one of his brothers to allegations of corruption, including a military purchase of Israeli-made surveillance equipment despite a Bangladeshi trade ban with the Jewish State.

The report led United Nations officials to call for an investigation earlier this month. The call came as Aziz was in the United States where he met with U.S. military and U.N. officials.

Addressing the documentary publicly for the first time on Tuesday, Aziz rejected its allegations against him and his brothers.

I want to assure you that such propaganda wont even cast a little bit effect on its chain of command. The Bangladesh Army is respectful to the constitution of Bangladesh, committed to upholding the constitution  loyal to the government and ready to follow any order of the government, Aziz said.

Al Jazeera reported that brothers Haris Ahmed had been living in Hungary and Anis Ahmed had been living in Kuala Lumpur following murder convictions, but had returned for the wedding of Azizs son in 2019.

Major Bangladesh newspaper Prothom Alo reported earlier this week that the brothers were pardoned one day before the wedding. The pardons had not been reported previously by Bengali media.

A third brother, Tofail Ahmed Joseph, received a presidential pardon in 2018 after serving more than a decade in prison and less than a month before Aziz received his appointment to lead the army. That pardon was publicized in the local media.

Aziz promised to hold a press conference with his brothers soon.
Two of the teenagers accused of a violent attack on a group celebrating Australia Day at City Beach have been released on bail, while another was ordered to stay behind bars.

The group of Perth teenagers were enjoying a gathering at the popular beach when they were bashed, robbed and had their heads stomped on after being ambushed by the violent mob.

WARNING: The below vision contains violent scenes.

Disturbing footage of the attack captured on a mobile phone showed the group of males repeatedly kicking and punching teenagers in the dunes at the popular beach on Tuesday night.
A fake modelling agency that allegedly facilitated the sexual abuse of thousands of children in Thailand has been shut down.

Danudetch 'Nene' Saengkaew, 28, arrested in Thailand after his business was linked to a global child exploitation ring being investigated by Australian police.

He was grabbed at his home in Pathum Thani province, just north of Bangkok, on February 11 by the Thai Department of Special Investigations after a tip-off from the Australian Federal Police.

The Thai citizen was charged with sexually assaulting children under 13, taking away children aged under 15 for indecent purposes, and many others.

Thai authorities said he was using the modelling agency as a front to access and abuse children, then record and distribute footage and images of the horrific crimes.

The Thai Department of Special Investigations have charged Danudetch Saengkaew, who goes by the nickname 'Nene' (pictured centre) with a range of offences, including sexually assaulting children under 13 and taking away children aged under 15 for indecent purposes

The alleged victims were all boys aged between six and 15, with many allegedly approached by the agent at their schools under the pretence of conducting a model search, according to a Channel News Asia report.

Saengkaew would then allegedly forge ties with the family before taking the children to his home office where they were abused and photographed.

Nene Modelling was one of Thaliand's top agencies, the DSI said, and worked with an estimated 8,400 child models and actors since 2013.

The agency produced materials for national advertising campaigns on TV and throughout the media and worked with many leading firms in the country's advertising industry, according to local news reports.

Thai authorities told local media outlets the victims included Thai children and 'thousands' from other countries, including Australia.

Saengkaew was first arrested last May after Thai authorities searched the modelling agency's headquarters while investigating the alleged activities of another man identified as part of a South Australian joint anti-child exploitation team investigation.

Police in Thailand said they seized several electronic devices with more than half a million files of child abuse material and charged the 28-year-old with possessing the illegal content.

Last week, Thai police searched Saengkaew's home, which was also used as the offices of the modelling agency, and charged him with the latest crimes.

A number of childrens costumes, toys, electronic devices and cartoon drawings allegedly used to groom and abuse his victims were also found by Thai authorities.

A team of investigators inspect a room inside Nene Modelling Agency allegedly used by Sangkaew to produce child sexual abuse materials

A number of childrens costumes, toys, electronic devices and cartoon drawings were seized by Thai Police

The international investigation - which started in Asia - has already led to the jailing of nine paedophiles in Thailand and Australia since May 2018, including Australia's worst paedophile Ruecha Tokputza.

It also led to the identification of more than 1,000 child victims, including the removal of numerous children from immediate harm in Australia and overseas.

Australian Federal Police Commander Peter Sykora said the latest arrest shows the impact of law enforcement agencies working together.

'There are no borders when it comes to protecting children and investigations are ongoing to identify and rescue victims wherever they are located,' he said.

SA JACET, which consists of Australian Federal Police and South Australia police officers, launched Operation Bayldon in late 2017 after a referral from Interpol.

With help from the Thai Department of Special Investigation, Interpol identified a website trading in pay-per-view child abuse material, featuring boys from Asia.

Police seized several items from his home which were displayed by Thai authorities at a press conference

Thai authorities were tipped off about the alleged offender after his business was linked to a s business was linked to a global child exploitation ring being investigated by South Australian Police. Pictured: Thailands department of special investigation team behind the probe

An administrator of the website, Thai national Tokputza, was found to live in Adelaide.

In January 2018, simultaneous police searches in Thailand and Adelaide led to arrests in both countries.

SA investigators reviewed more than 850,000 video and image files seized from the Adelaide-based site administrator, which showed him sexually abusing multiple children, including babies.

In May 2019, Tokputza was sentenced to 40 years and three months' jail in Adelaide - the longest sentence imposed for child sex abuse crimes in Australia at the time, with the judge branding him 'every parent's worst nightmare'.

The website's main administrator Montri Salangam, living in Thailand, was alleged to have abused 11 boys including his own nephew in some of the footage.

The one of the website's administrator Ruecha Tokputza (pictured), who abused at least 13 children with some as young as 15 months old, was sentenced to 40 years in prison

Thailand courts sentenced Salangam to 146 years in prison in June 2018 for charges including child rape, human trafficking, possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material.

Another man, working as a nursery school teacher, was also given 36 years in prison for the same charges.

Around the time Toputza was sentenced, Interpol's Operation Blackwrist tracked down the children that were often masked by the paedophiles in the footage, rescuing 50 from the child sex ring.

SA investigators shared information about other perpetrators and victims in Thailand with authorities there, leading to further international arrests.

SA Police Detective Chief Inspector Richard Lambert said the investigation led to the removal of children from further harm.
Asked for a response to Republican Ted Cruz of Texas travelling to Cancun as his state endures widespread power outages amid devastating winter storms and infrastructure failures, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that we expect that would be the focus of the states elected officials.

I dont have any updates on the exact location of Senator Ted Cruz, nor does anyone at the White House, she said on Thursday.

Our focus is on working directly with leadership in Texas and surrounding states on addressing the winter storm and the crisis at hand, she said. Many people across the state are without power, without the resources they need. We expect that would be the focus of anyone in the state or in surrounding states who is elected to represent them.

The federal government has sent generators to critical sites like area hospitals in the state, along with 729,000 litres of water, thousands of blankets and more than 225,000 meals, according to Deputy National Security Advisor Liz Sherwood-Randall.

Roughly 1 million people are still without power, including more than 600,000 homes in Texas, she said.

Extreme weather events  demonstrate to us that climate change is real and its happening now and were not adequately prepared for it, Ms Sherwood-Randall said.

Freezing weather in the state and surrounding areas has triggered power failures, as well as food shortages and water outages. At least 10 people have died, while thousands continue to sit in the cold and dark.

After widespread criticism condemning the Texas Republican for seemingly abandoning his state during the crisis on Wednesday night, as social media erupted with photos of the senator preparing to board a plane with his family, Mr Cruz said on Thursday that with school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends.

Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon, he said.

On Monday, Mr Cruz encouraged Texas residents to stay home and avoid travelling.

Dont risk it, keep your family safe and hug your kids, he told The Joe Pags Show on 15 February.

Ahead of his flight on Wednesday afternoon, his office requested Houston Police Department for assistance for his arrival at George Bush Intercontinental Airport.
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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.  One by one, they told stories of the painful ways in which loved ones died, the butchery of it all, the screaming, the indignity, the helplessness of final days, the relief that only came through ugly death.

Saturday, as the chill of a polar vortex descended outside, the state House Judiciary Committee took testimony via Zoom on a bill that if passed could allow terminally ill patients to die in a way less cold, less cruel.

When it was over, the committee voted 7-3 to send House Bill 47 to the floor. Then its the Senates turn to do what it will with the Elizabeth Whitefield End of Life Options Act, which Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has signaled she will sign.

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Its the third time the bill, modeled after similar laws in other states, has come before the Legislature, including 2017 when Whitefield, her voice raspy between gasps from a trach tube, testified about the dire need to give those like her facing a painful, certain death from a terminal illness the legal, physician-approved option to end their lives in peace, with a modicum of dignity and at a time of their choosing.

Whitefield, a longtime Albuquerque family law judge and attorney, did not live long enough to testify on behalf of the bill in 2019, her death Aug. 11, 2018, coming as painfully and gruesomely as she feared.

Despite checks and balances in the latest version of the bill, too much misinformation, misunderstanding, partisanship and discomfort with an uncomfortable subject remain.

During public comment, opponents of the bill aired concerns this was an easy way to commit suicide, that a person could be misdiagnosed, that elderly or disabled people would be picked off or that patients would feel pressured to die because their illness was a burden to family.

One suggested insurance companies might prefer a cheaper self-induced death to lengthy expensive treatment. One equated end-of-life drugs to those used in botched executions.

Proponents refuted those concerns. The patient must have a terminal illness, be of sound mind and able to self-administer the medication. Two licensed health care providers, at least one who must be a physician, must confirm the terminal illness  one confirmation is needed if the patient is in hospice.

If the patients mental capacity is in question, a mental health professional is required to make an assessment. Two witnesses, only one who can be a relative, are required when the patient signs the form asking to end his or her life.

Theres a 48-hour waiting period before the medication can be obtained. All assisting providers are protected from civil and criminal consequences, and are not forced to participate.

Most who addressed the committee advocated for passage, offering their own experiences with horrific death  the grandfather who slit his wrists and ankles rather than suffer another day with leukemia. The son who sobbed recalling his fathers searing cries to make the pain from cancer stop.

And then there was Erin Armstrong, the 39-year-old daughter of Rep. Deborah Armstrong, D-Albuquerque, who is a co-sponsor of the bill. She testified that she has fought cancer for 20 years but knows her battle may be nearing its end, the cancer having spread to her bones, lungs, liver, brain.

I desperately want to live, she said. But I want a measure of control of my own death.

Two of three Republican legislators expressed sympathy, saying they, too, had experienced loved ones deaths.

It tugs on our heartstrings, said Rep. Greg Nibert from Roswell. We dont want to see anyone suffering.

Then he joined with Republican Reps. James Townsend of Carlsbad and Zachary Cook of Ruidoso to vote against the bill.

Back in Albuquerque, those who had known and loved Whitefield, shook their heads at the misperceptions of the bill she had fought so hard to make law  not for her but for others who faced hard, horrible deaths.

She knew her death was going to be painful, she knew it was going to be difficult, said Annette Tapia Wihl, Whitefields friend and former paralegal. More than that, she didnt want anybody else to go through the hell she was going through.

Paul Thorne, Whitefields husband of nearly 33 years, had been with her through that hell, through all five cancers over 12 years to that last night when he struggled to suck out the fluids that were asphyxiating her from the hole in her neck.

She was so scared and so frightened, Thorne said as we talked this week, the anger still real over how after 2 years since her death the bill has yet to be passed. Her eyes were big as saucers, her skinny little arms with all those bruises from medication reaching to me. She kept saying, Paul, help me, help me.'

Earlier, she had come up with a solution: She wanted Thorne to stay with neighbors while she took enough medication to overdose and die. If he wasnt there, he couldnt be prosecuted, she told him.

But he refused. He wouldnt let her die alone.

There should have been an option like the one in this bill, he said. She didnt want to die, but she also didnt want anybody to die in such pain, alone.

He was there, as always, when she died, hours before she was supposed to speak at the annual meeting of the State Bar of New Mexico on the importance of the bill.

Her last words, he said, were Paul. Paul. Paul.

Her last wish was to see the passage of the bill that now bears her name.

May this be the year she finally gets that wish.

UpFront is a front-page news and opinion column.
CBRE says we're No. 5!

Miller

In an inaugural report, CBRE issued what it calls the U.S. Development Opportunity Index. That national analysis ranks cities in categories including multifamily, offices, retail and industrial. Seattle scored in the top ten for all those. Then, in the blended Opportunity index, CBRE placed Seattle at the No. 5 position. The top four were, in descending order, Atlanta, Dallas, Phoenix and Orlando. (Portland was No. 26, so there.) CBRE's John R. Miller said in a statement, Seattle's desirable lifestyle, highly educated workforce and continued job growth, particularly in the technology, e-commerce and life sciences sectors, are driving employers to need more capacity for their product and employees. Even in the most recent downturn, developers continue to bet on these strong fundamentals and are finding above-average returns in our market as a result.




CNN and NBC both paid "insurgent" and provocateur John Sullivan $35,000 for footage he took inside the Capitol building, The Daily Caller reports.



From The Daily Caller:

A left-wing activist facing criminal charges for his involvement in the Capitol riots received $35,000 from both CNN and NBC for footage he recorded of a Trump supporter being fatally shot inside the Capitol building, according to records he filed in federal court on Tuesday.



Lawyers for John Sullivan, a 26-year-old Utah native, disclosed the payments as part of the activist's argument that he was acting as a journalist in the Capitol rather than a rioter.



"Defendant is legitimately self-employed as a documentarian and it is oppressive to require that he not be allowed to continue his primary area of employment for an extended period of time," Steven R. Kiersh, the Sullivan lawyer, wrote in a court filing in which he argued for Sullivan to be allowed to continue using Facebook and Twitter.



Sullivan, who founded the social justice group Insurgence USA, was charged on Jan. 13 with illegally entering the Capitol, civil disorder, and violent or disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.



Prosecutors cited video that Sullivan recorded inside the Capitol in which he called for burning down the building, while egging on others who had broken into the building.



"We accomplished this shit. We did this together. Fuck yeah! We are all a part of this history," he said in a video cited by prosecutors.



"Let's burn this shit down," he also allegedly said.



[...] Sullivans lawyers filed invoices from CNN and NBC showing he was paid $35,000 for rights to air the footage. Sullivan also received $5,000 from a company called Left/Right Productions and $2,500 from Australia's ABC, according to the records.



Sullivan appeared for an interview with CNN's Anderson Cooper after the shooting, in which his footage was aired.

Sullivan is on tape calling for violence and smashing a window inside the Capitol building and many suspect he's an agent provocateur or a government informant:





I studied video shot by Sullivan (Jayden X) in the Capitol and compiled some moments of him zealously celebrating the invasion & instigating the mob all the way up to Ashli Babbit's shooting. Watch with audio on.



No committed BLM activist would say or do this  and he isn't one pic.twitter.com/uE5VmUf6mU  Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) January 14, 2021

BLM inc. threatening to rip the president out of the White House



They say they wont wait until the next election.



Theyre openly calling for a revolution.



This is domestic terrorism on full display, out in the open. They dont even try to hide it. pic.twitter.com/OyhNSzBEwu  Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) August 29, 2020

Seated w/Sullivan on CNN is Jade Sacker, a photojournalist who followed him into the Capitol to film his exploits as part of a documentary project. Here she's heard congratulating him - "We did it!" - and he says, "Is this not gonna be the best film you've ever made in yr life?" pic.twitter.com/KWLVfgKPA7  Max Blumenthal (@MaxBlumenthal) January 14, 2021



Both CNN and NBC have been labeling the Capitol protest an "insurgency" and calling for participants to be treated as domestic terrorists -- and yet they paid one of the main provocateurs $70,000 and CNN even promoted him on air!



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Two Vietnamese men have been arrested for brokering kidney deals for patients in need in Ba Dinh District, Hanoi.

Ba Dinh police caught Tran Xuan Hiep, 30, living down Thinh Hao 3 Alley in Hang Bot Ward, Dong Da District and Nguyen Duy Phuong, 33, residing on Ton Duc Thang Street in Cat Linh Ward, Dong Da District red-handed hosting four kidney sellers.

The arrest was carried out on February 2, after the Ba Dinh police had pursued an investigation into the case.

At the police station, Hiep and Phuong admitted that they were familiar with the procedure for kidney sales and receipt as they had been kidney sellers before.

The duo looked for people willing to sell their kidneys on social media, promising them VND230 million (US$9,964) per kidney once the transplant was successful.

After reaching consent with kidney sellers, the two kidney brokers would find patients who needed kidney transplantation at hospitals.

They said they had successfully brokered kidneys for many people.

Hiep and Phuongs latest deals before they were arrested were made on February 1 when they managed to broker two kidneys for two patients at VND1.1 billion ($47,647) each.

They pocketed VND200-300 million ($8,669-13,000) from each successful deal.

The two men are being investigated for trading human organs, an offense that can be punishable with life imprisonment.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!
Pierre Gasly still has a chance to return to a front-of-the-grid team, according to his current boss Franz Tost.

After struggling alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull in the first half of 2019, Frenchman Gasly, 25, returned to Alpha Tauri where last year he broke through to win the Italian GP.

Tost said he thinks Gasly will have an even "faster car this year".

"Of course we hope to win another race like we did last year - it has always been our goal," the Austrian told Italy's La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"But we know that under normal conditions it is not possible. In Monza we had a fast car and Gasly drove perfectly without making mistakes, but we were very lucky with Hamilton's penalty," Tost added.

Tost thinks Gasly's best chance of more wins is to keep performing at Alpha Tauri for now.

"I think he is happy to stay here," the Alpha Tauri boss continued. "He loves the team, and we love him.

"But if Pierre continues to race this season as he did in 2020, he will definitely have a chance to return again to Red Bull or go to another competitive team.

"He has everything you need to become successful," Tost added.
The city is giving $424,190 to 27 agencies that provide services addressing the needs of low- to moderate-income residents in five priority areas: emergency services for shelter, food and assistance; respite care, meal delivery and mental health counseling for seniors; financial counseling, education, child care, employment services and substance abuse services for self-sufficiency; programs related to people with physical, developmental or mental health disabilities; and mentoring, counseling, pregnancy prevention and education for youth.
While banh chung (a square sticky rice cake) is frequently seen at family meals in Vietnams north during the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday, banh tet (a cylindrical sticky rice cake) is found at most family meals in the south.

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Join us on a tour to Tra Cuon town in Kim Hoa commune, Cau Ngang district, in the Mekong Deltas Tra Vinh province to find out more.

Residents of Tra Cuon town in Tra Vinh province have little time to rest as Tet (the Lunar New Year) approaches. They are busy making banh tet (cylindrical sticky rice cakes) to meet increasing demand among consumers. The Lunar New Year often sees sales of banh tet soar by four or five times compared to normal days.

Unlike regular banh tet, which has a green crust, Tra Cuon cylindrical sticky rice cakes are much more colourful. The colours of green, purple, and red are often connected to different ethnic groups such as the Kinh, Hoa, and Khmer, who live harmoniously in the province. Creating such colourful cakes requires meticulous skills.

Tra Cuon town has a 70-year history of making banh tet and is now home to seven workshops producing the cakes year-round and several others that open as Tet approaches. Banh tet makers not only cling to traditional cakes but also introduce interesting variants for customers, such as banh tet with salted egg and mixed fillings.

Though customers now have more options for family meals during Tet, cylindrical sticky rice cakes remain a must-have for families in southern Vietnam. The cake makers in Tra Cuon are striving to pass down the art of making banh tet to the next generation, to continue to serve customers and preserve a Vietnamese tradition./. VNA
Peter Diamandis, seen in 2013, sought to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at a tech conference last month by creating an "immunity bubble." (Associated Press)

As Southern California last month reeled from a COVID-19 surge that overwhelmed hospitals, bottlenecked ambulance systems and killed thousands, a physician hosted a conference in Culver City.

Peter Diamandis, who is also an engineer, executive and scientist, believed he could create an "immunity bubble" and safely host a scaled-down version of his pricey annual tech conference.

Instead, the conference became a superspreader event that infected 24 people, including Diamandis, with the novel coronavirus.

"I thought creating a COVID 'immunity bubble' for a small group in a TV studio setting was possible," Diamandis, 59, wrote in a blog post last week. "I was wrong."

In a statement to The Times, Diamandis said none of the cases, including his, were serious, and "virtually all have fully recovered."

But the mistakes he made underscore the risk of indoor events and the importance of social distancing, masks and vaccines during a pandemic.

Diamandis, who has started more than 20 companies, including one dedicated to finding a vaccine for the South Africa coronavirus variant, has hosted the annual Abundance 360 Summit for nearly a decade.

The conference attracts executives and entrepreneurs from across the globe to discuss topics such as artificial intelligence, synthetic biology and robotics.

Diamandis knew the pandemic, which has killed more than 47,000 Californians, precluded hosting the conference at a Los Angeles-area hotel.

Months earlier, A360s parent company, Singularity University, canceled a large in-person gathering. But would-be attendees sick of living in isolation and willing to pay more than $30,000 inundated Diamandis and his team with requests.

"Having been socially isolated for almost a year, it was understandable that people wanted to connect in person," Diamandis wrote.

His team considered hosting an outdoor event, eventually opting to transform his XPrize Foundation offices in Culver City into a virtual television studio so hundreds could watch online and 30 could attend the three-day conference in person.

Story continues

Also in attendance were nearly 20 members of the support staff and instructors and a 35-person audiovisual team, Diamandis wrote.

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Diamandis believed he could create a COVID-free zone with polymerase chain reaction tests, considered by many to be the gold standard because they use genetic information to detect the virus.

Everyone was required to take a PCR test 72 hours before the conference started Jan. 23, then take another test when they arrived. A second swab was sent to a lab to confirm the results.

According to Diamandis, attendees were tested at least five times during the conference. At least four doctors were on-site. Intravenous vitamins and therapies that claim to boost immunity were provided.

"As a result, we felt awesome, we felt safe," Diamandis said. "But I was wrong."

Two days after the conference ended, a staff member tested positive.

Diamandis' team notified attendees of the outbreak and requested they quarantine, contact trace and retest.

About 25% of those in attendance tested positive. Only the audiovisual team, which was mostly isolated and always wore masks, was spared, Diamandis wrote.

Masks were not mandatory for attendees during much of the conference.

"I allowed myself a false (and dangerous) sense of security based on the belief that sequential PCR testing serves as a safety mechanism  which I can now tell you is a fallacy," Diamandis wrote.

Though the conference probably violated a Culver City coronavirus order, city officials do not plan to fine the company after the fact, Assistant City Manager Jesse Mays said in a statement.

"The city is focused on prevention and education," Mays said.

If city officials had known about the event in advance, they would have informed organizers about the prohibition against large indoor gatherings.

"If they insisted on proceeding, we would have taken additional steps up to and including legal action," Mays said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

The Ministry of Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning support all projects that promote the concept of community partnership for the benefit of citizens and residents.

During a visit to the plant nursery of Anwar Bu Hamad in Busaiteen, Minister Eng. Essam bin Abdullah Khalaf said that such project exemplifies a sense of national responsibility towards society.

The nursery project located on land adjacent to his residence aims to promote afforestation and increase green spaces in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Dr Khalaf affirmed the Ministrys support for the project to preserve the environment. The Ministry has many strategic projects. The primary goal of our projects is to serve the citizens as they are the true partners in maintaining cleanliness and promoting afforestation and greening, said the Minister.

Hamad is producing trees and flowers that he distributes for free to people who want to cultivate their homes or open spaces.

He also provides agricultural advice to those who wish to do so, free of charge, as his own way of promoting community partnership. Hamad expressed his thanks and appreciation to the Minister for his personal visit to the nursery and for providing all the support required for the continuation of his project. I also extend my sincere thanks to the Undersecretary for Municipal Affairs, Eng. Shaikh Muhammad bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, as well as the Director-General of Muharraq Municipality, Eng. Ibrahim Al Jowder, and all my supporters in this project, said Hamad.

Minister Khalaf also affirmed the Ministrys keenness to support projects for the development of walkways and waterfronts during his visit to Al Ghous Corniche in Muharraq.

He was with the Undersecretary for Municipalities Affairs, Eng. Shaikh Muhammad bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, and Director General of Muharraq Municipality, Ibrahim Yusef Al Jowder, they reviewed the development and maintenance works in the corniche.

The Minister pointed out that the process of developing waterfronts is an ongoing process with the municipalities. He added that large sums of money are pumped annually for the maintenance and development of public facilities such as parks and walkways.

The Ministry noted that it supports all efforts to preserve the safety of coasts, seafronts and corniches.
The information contained in this release was correct as at 31 January 2021 . Information on the Company's up to date net asset values can be found on the London Stock Exchange Website at

https://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-home.html.

BLACKROCK FRONTIERS INVESTMENT TRUST PLC (LEI: 5493003K5E043LHLO706)

All information is at 31 January 2021 and unaudited.

Performance at month end with net income reinvested.

One

month

% Three

months

% One

year

% Three

years

% Five

years

% Since

Launch*

% Sterling: Share price 0.8 26.8 8.1 -17.4 48.6 72.9 Net asset value -0.4 21.0 4.4 -14.1 43.7 76.0 Benchmark (NR)** -1.1 10.0 -5.5 -7.5 41.7 49.2 MSCI Frontiers Index (NR) -0.1 4.0 -2.2 -1.7 50.7 59.8 MSCI Emerging Markets Index (NR) 2.6 13.8 22.8 17.9 108.0 73.2 US Dollars: Share price 1.3 34.7 12.6 -20.2 44.0 52.9 Net asset value 0.1 28.5 8.8 -17.0 39.2 55.4 Benchmark (NR)** -0.7 16.9 -1.6 -10.7 37.2 32.5 MSCI Frontiers Index (NR) 0.4 10.5 1.9 -5.0 45.9 40.7 MSCI Emerging Markets Index (NR) 3.1 20.9 27.9 13.9 101.4 52.5

Sources: BlackRock and Standard & Poor's Micropal

* 17 December 2010.

** The Company's benchmark changed from MSCI Frontier Markets Index to MSCI Emerging ex Selected Countries + Frontier Markets + Saudi Arabia Index (net total return, USD) effective 1/4/2018.



At month end US Dollar Net asset value - capital only: 162.83c Net asset value - cum income: 163.97c Sterling: Net asset value - capital only: 118.57p Net asset value - cum income: 119.40p Share price: 119.50p Total assets (including income): 288.0m Premium to cum-income NAV: 0.1% Gearing: nil Gearing range (as a % of gross assets): 0-20% Net yield*: 4.4% Ordinary shares in issue**: 241,210,518 Ongoing charges***: 1.4% Ongoing charges plus taxation and performance fee: 1.4%

*The Company's yield based on dividends announced in the last 12 months as at the date of the release of this announcement is 4.4% and includes the 2020 final dividend of 4.25 cents per share declared on 11 December 2020 with a pay date of 12 February 2021. Also included is the 2020 interim dividend of 2.75 cents per share, announced on 28 May 2020 and paid to shareholders on 26 June 2020.

** Excluding 612,283 ordinary shares held in treasury.

***Calculated as a percentage of average net assets and using expenses, excluding Performance fees and interest costs for the year ended 30 September 2020.

Sector

Analysis Gross market value as a % of net assets* Country

Analysis Gross market value as a % of net assets* Financials 31.1 Indonesia 12.6 Consumer Discretionary 15.9 Saudi Arabia 11.8 Materials 15.1 Vietnam 8.6 Industrials 13.5 Philippines 7.8 Energy 9.8 Kazakhstan 7.3 Consumer Staples 8.2 Egypt 7.1 Real Estate 5.9 Thailand 6.8 Utilities 3.3 Greece 6.5 Communication Services 3.0 Chile 5.1 Health Care 2.4 Malaysia 4.5 Information Technology 2.2 Poland 4.1 ----- Turkey 3.8 110.4 Pakistan 3.6 ----- United Arab Emirates 3.3 Short positions -1.1 Qatar 3.2 ===== Romania 2.1 Hungary 1.9 Peru 1.6 Colombia 1.5 Pan Africa 1.5 Pan-Emerging Europe 1.4 Ukraine 1.4 Panama 1.4 Kenya 1.2 Nigeria 0.3 ----- Total 110.4 ----- Short positions -1.1 =====

*reflects gross market exposure from contracts for difference (CFDs).

Market Exposure



29.02

2020

% 31.03

2020

% 30.04

2020

% 31.05

2020

% 30.06

2020

% 31.07

2020

% 31.08

2020

% 30.09

2020

% 31.10

2020

% 30.11

2020

% 31.12

2020

% 31.01

2021

% Long 107.1 106.4 105.9 109.6 109.8 110.3 110.2 107.8 106.9 107.3 107.9 110.4 Short 3.8 2.5 2.6 2.5 1.5 1.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.1 1.1 Gross 110.9 108.9 108.5 112.1 111.3 111.4 110.2 107.8 106.9 107.3 109.0 111.6 Net 103.3 103.9 103.3 107.1 108.3 109.2 110.2 107.8 106.9 107.3 106.8 109.4

Ten Largest Investments

Company Country of Risk Gross market value as a % of net assets* Mobile World Vietnam 2.9 JSC Kaspi Kazakhstan 2.9 PTT Exploration & Production Public Thailand 2.8 Emaar Properties United Arab Emirates 2.8 Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa Indonesia 2.8 CP All PCL Thailand 2.6 Eastern Tobacco Egypt 2.5 LT Group Philippines 2.4 United International Transport Saudi Arabia 2.4 National Commercial Bank Saudi Arabia 2.3





*These percentages reflect portfolio exposure gained from both the equity holdings and exposure through contracts for differences where relevant.

Commenting on the markets, Sam Vecht and Emily Fletcher, representing the Investment Manager noted:



The Company's NAV returned +0.1%1 versus the Company's benchmark (the MSCI Emerging ex Selected Countries + Frontier Markets + Saudi Arabia Index ("Benchmark Index")), which returned -0.7% in January2. For reference, the MSCI Emerging Markets Index ended the month +3.1% and the MSCI Frontier Markets Index +0.4%2 over the same period (all performance figures are on a US Dollar basis with net income reinvested).

January saw mixed news. Many emerging economies continued to see a rebound in activity, whilst those in the western world were mainly plunged into further lock downs following a second wave of Covid-19. Concerns that emerged mid-month around new Covid-19 variants tempered the very strong market moves that we had seen in the first half of the month.

Smaller markets tended to fare better in January, catching up with the strong performance we had seen in larger markets at the end of last year, notably UAE (+12%), Egypt (+8%) and Pakistan (+5%).

Having seen fairly muted returns to our Egyptian positions in 2020, our patience has finally seen some reward. Eastern Tobacco rose 15% after reporting results that beat expectations with the company showing strong cost control. Orascom Construction rose 14% after signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Egyptian government to develop the first high speed rail line system in the country, an order value of $3bn.

Positions in Vietnam also performed well. Our long standing holding in Mobile World Group reached a new all-time high after reporting better than expected results showing that it's grocery division had grown to reach 20% of total sales. Tech company, FPT (+6%) also reported better than expected results on the back of a number of contract wins in their software outsourcing division.

On the opposite side of the ledger, increased Covid-19 restrictions have had a negative impact on a number of positions. Saudi Arabian gym operator, Leejam fell 8% as they were forced to close all their gyms for 10 days and the National Bank of Greece fell 14% giving up some of the 150% rally it had seen over the previous 2 months as lockdown restrictions were extended through January.

Over the month we rotated the portfolio somewhat, taking some profits in stocks which have recovered exceptionally well such as Ukrainian miner Ferrexpo and Panamanian airline Copa, whilst also adding new positions in stocks that are yet to see such a recovery such as Colombian Financial Bancolombia and Emirati real estate developer, Emaar Properties.

We continue to be positioned for a rebound in global economic activity which we expect to see over the next six months. We believe that the combination of strong liquidity, easy financial conditions and high levels of disposable income is a very powerful mix for earnings growth, a factor that has been scarce in emerging markets for an extended period. Even now, despite the strong bounce, we believe that frontier and small emerging markets contain some of the best valued companies globally with a number of markets still trading significantly below their average 10 year price to book valuations.

Sources:

1BlackRock as at 31 January 2021

2MSCI as at 31 January 2021

18 February 2020

ENDS

Latest information is available by typing www.blackrock.com/uk/brfi on the internet, "BLRKINDEX" on Reuters, "BLRK" on Bloomberg or "8800" on Topic 3 (ICV terminal). Neither the contents of the Manager's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on BlackRock's website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
Egypt has a gas export capacity of around 1 billion cubic feet (bcf) per day, the country's Petroleum Minister Tareq El-Molla said in an interview with Sky News Arabia on Monday.

I cant say Egypt exports this quantity on a daily basis, given the dramatic drops in the prices of liquefied natural gas that we have witnessed lately in parallel with the decline in oil prices but we can say we possess an export capacity of 1 billion cubic feet per day, he added.

Egypt has reached daily gas exports of 300 to 800 million cubic feet (mcf) per day, Minister El-Molla said.

Egypt has made a series of oil and gas discoveries in recent years, most notably the giant Zohr gas field.

The Zohr field, which is the biggest in the Mediterranean, was discovered off the Egyptian coast by Italys Eni oil company in 2015.

Speaking on oil-for-reconstruction mechanisms between Egypt and Iraq, El-Molla said that "the matter is still under discussion and has not yet reached a final deal."

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has hinted at an initial consensus between the two countries to establish an oil-for-reconstruction mechanism, under which Egyptian companies are to implement construction ventures in Iraq in return for providing Cairo with quantities of oil.

Madbouly made his statements following the Egyptian-Iraqi high committee meeting held in Baghdad in late October to boost cooperation between the two nations.

Short link:


Stocks to watch today: Here is a list of top stocks that are likely to be in focus in Thursday's trading session based on latest developments.

Share Market Live: Sensex rises 70 points, Nifty at 15,215; ONGC, IndusInd Bank, SBI top gainers

GAIL : Share buyback offer will open on February 25 and close on March 10.

Jubilant FoodWorks : The company appointed Ashish Goenka as CFO. Earlier he was with Bharti Airtel as Executive VP.

Jindal Stainless (Hisar) : India Ratings assigned A/RWE to company's credit facilities.

Bharti Airtel : The company will acquire 20 percent stake in Bharti Telemedia from Lion Meadow Investment Ltd, a Warburg Pincus entity.

Magma Fincorp : ICRA placed the rating on the company's long-term fund based term loans (AA-) on watch with developing implication.

Shree Cement : CARE reaffirmed the credit rating on company's commercial paper as A1+.

VA Tech Wabag : The company approved further investment in Ganga STP Project, a wholly-owned subsidiary.

Phillips Carbon Black : The company commissioned two specialty black lines at Palej in Gujarat.

Dish TV India : The company approved raising funds of up to Rs 1,000 crore.

NALCO : The company will open its share buyback worth Rs 749.1 crore on February 25 and close on March 10.

RPP Infra Projects : The company approved issuance of up to Rs 48 crore by way of a rights issue to the eligible equity shareholders.
A popular Brooklyn restaurant in New York fired a waitress after choosing not to get the COVID-19 vaccine amid worries that it might hurt her due to chances of getting pregnant.

A waitress refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine

Bonnie Jacobson, 34, said Red Hook Tavern management fired her on Monday as she declined to get the shot immediately. On Wednesday, the waitress told the NY Post, "It was shocking to me. I went through the stages: I'm hurt, I'm in shock - then I got mad."

Jacobson has been married since October 2019. She noted that she was not an anti-vaxxer and "fully supports" people being vaccinated. However, Jacobson wants to wait for further research on the COVID-19 vaccine's possible effect on fertility.

Having the vaccine is about me, the way I see it. This protects me. It's my decision if I don't get it, and I'm probably going to hurt myself,' Jacobson stated.

The available cOVID-1C vaccines have not been tested on pregnant women. They have also not been shown to affect pregnancy and are generally considered safe.

The US Disease Control and Prevention Centers (CDC) reports that being vaccinated is "a personal choice for pregnant women" and that expecting mothers should talk to their doctors about whether it's right for them. Earlier this month, restaurant workers in New York joined the list of individuals qualifying for the shot.

Read also: North Korea Attempts to Steal Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine Data, South Korean Lawmakers Say

A restaurant mandates workers to be vaccinated

Not long after, management emailed employees at the buzzy Brooklyn eatery to let them know they were qualified and later said the vaccination would be "compulsory" for all workers.

The only exception to the policy would be if your wellbeing or condition prevents you from receiving this vaccine," The Post reviewed the Friday email. New York restaurant employees and taxi drivers are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

In August, Jacobson started working at the restaurant after being let go from women's co-working space 'The Wing' at the initial of the COVID-19 pandemic. The waitress decided not to choose being vaccinated because there are not enough details or research on its effects on fertility. "Once there is more research to support that it does not affect fertility I would reconsider my position," Jacobson wrote.

However, on Monday, Jacobson heard that she was being kicked over her decision after doing a 13-hour shift on Sunday for Valentine's Day. Tavern management wrote to her saying that although they respected her decision, it was essential to get the shot and that "the employment will be terminated at this time."

The email said, "We are sad to see you go." "If you change your mind, don't hesitate to let us know, please."The New York waitress noted that she had worked extremely hard through the pandemic with the restaurant and learned to adjust to coronavirus restrictions, such as working "in the freezing cold" outdoors.

Read also: COVID-19 Vaccines for Children Coming, but Not for Many Months

Businesses could mandate workers to be vaccinated

While the US Equal Employment Opportunities Commission said in December that businesses could mandate employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19, employment lawyers said they hadn't heard of a case like Jacobson's before, as per WNBC, which first reported on her firing.

Employment attorney Felicia Ennis told the station, "This particular subject is a really hot topic right now." Ennis added that she has not heard of a company taking intense action.

On Wednesday, the restaurant said it was still asking employees to get COVID-19 vaccines but said it would change its policies for staff seeking an exception. Restaurant workers are among the first groups to receive the vaccine outside of the healthcare sector in New York, helping struggling businesses bring diners back.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunities Commission, which enforces regulations on inequality in the workplace, allows employers to require flu and other vaccinations. In December, the agency issued guidelines stating that businesses could require staff to be vaccinated but had to provide 'reasonable accommodation' to those with disabilities. The legality of requiring a woman who is already pregnant to get the vaccine may be uncertain due to some existing laws, as per Daily Mail.

Read also: CDC Waives Quarantine for Complete COVID-19 Vaccine Recipients Even After Exposure to Disease

@ 2021 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
The police has not closed investigation into the murder of Ahmed Hussein- Suale, a Ghanaian undercover investigative journalist and an associate of investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, Interior Minister Designate Ambrose Dery has assured.



Ahmed died on Wednesday, 16 January 2019 when unidentified men on motorbikes shot him three times, twice in the chest and once in his neck in his vehicle.



As it appears, news on police investigation into the murder is getting scanty, more than two years after his death, the Interior Minister Designate said on Wednesday in Osu- Accra that he is still in touch with the police on the investigation.



Just last Wednesday was the last time I asked for an update from the CID, Mr Dery told Parliaments Appointment Committee vetting him for the Interior portfolio.



He added: Its not the case that it has died.



Mr Dery, a lawyer and MP for Nandom, served in the first term of the Akufo-Addo Government, and President Nana Akufo-Addo has re nominated him to hold that same portfolio at the beginning of his second term.



The Interior Minister Designate was vetted for the position, as a requirement of the 1992 Ghanaian Constitution and the Standing Orders of the Parliament of Ghana.



The Appointment Committee, chaired currently by Mr. Joseph Osei-Owusu, First Deputy Speaker and MP for Bekwai Constituency, recommends to Parliament for approval of persons nominated by President for appointment as Minister of State, Deputy Minister, Members of Council of State, the Chief Justice and other Justices of the Supreme Court and any other persons specified under the Constitution or under any other enactment.



The Interior Minister Designates assurance during the vetting was in response to an observation by Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, a Member of the Committee and MP for North Tongu Constituency, that the killing of the journalist had affected Ghanas human rights credentials and press freedom rankings.



Mr Ablakwa wanted the Minister Designate to update the nation and what assurance there was on the matter.



Mr Dery said the matter was being pursued assiduously.



Other public interest murder cases that were being investigated were that of Ekow Hayford, the late MP for Mfantseman and the late J B Danquah.



In the case of the late J B Danquah, the Minister Designate said the current Government took off from the last Government.



He described the police as being capable of operating without the support of the army, saying, the police are competent and adequately motivated and resourced. We do not need the army, as he reacted to concerns on the presence of the military in civilian areas.



He however said the police needed the army from time to time which has led to joint operations, adding that as the Ministry develops the capacity the police, they army would increasingly be phased out.



The police, Mr Dery said would continue to take the lead when it comes to policing, and citing the recent fight on illegal mining, galamsey, and noted that the military had now withdrawn, and it had been left to the police.



He called on the House to continue to support the efforts to resource the security agencies and especially the police, as he emphasized that the soldiers go back and play their traditional role.

Source: GNA









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Prime Minister will chair the sixth meeting of the governing council of on February 20 at 10:30 am. through video conferencing.

"The agenda of the meeting includes deliberations on agriculture, infrastructure, manufacturing, human resource development, service delivery at grassroots level and health and nutrition," a government release said on Thursday.

The sixth meeting will witness the entry of Ladakh for the first time, in addition to the participation of Jammu and Kashmir as a union territory (UT).

Apart from that, other UTs headed by administrators have also been invited to join the meeting.

The meeting will also be attended by the ex-officio members of the governing council, union ministers, vice chairman Rajiv Kumar, CEO Amitabh Kant, and other senior officials of government of India.

The governing council presents a platform to discuss inter-sectoral, inter-departmental and federal issues. It comprises the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers of States and Union Territories (UTs), with Legislatures and Lt Governors of other UTs.

How Can You Get Health Coverage Under A Term Plan?

If there is one thing that the Coronavirus pandemic has taught us, it is that life is so unpredictable that it changes in the blink of an eye. Who would have thought that a virus originating in Wuhan, China, would rage all over the world and destroy economies and claim millions of lives globally over a span of a few months?

You often worry about losing your current income to the devasting effects of COVID-19, or your life itself to the deadly virus. This is the right time to invest in a life insurance plan that offers the additional benefit of COVID insurance.

Combining life insurance with health coverage? Its possible

Reputed insurance companies in India have expanded the scope of term insurance to include a health rider/coverage. These are known as combi plans (short for combination plans) that offer you the benefit of buying one insurance plan for life and health coverage, instead of going to two different insurers or buying two separate plans.

The first such plans were floated in the country in the year 2009. Since then, insurers have come a long way in offering life insurance policies that offer a health coverage component as well. But the best term plans have come post-COVID 19: insurance companies today offer term insurance with COVID cover. This is a boon for those looking to secure their families in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic that has already claimed scores of lives around the country.

What the COVID insurance plan does

At its core, a term insurance policy is one that pays a sum assured to the insureds family upon the policy holders unfortunate demise. The demise could be due to an accident or illness.

However, most people balk at taking term plans because there is only a death benefit in the plan, i.e. there is no payout or return of paid premiums in case the policy holder outlives the plan tenure.

But this minor niggle aside, a term policy goes a long way in offering financial support in the absence of your income. The sum assured is often a high one, to the tune of Rs 1 crore or more. At the same time, the premium payment is low, in the range of a few thousand Rupees.

Now take this term plan and combine it with COVID insurance: this combi plan covers death claims filed under demise due to the Coronavirus, and the payout is transferred to the insureds nominated next of kin. The family of the deceased must be able to furnish the death certificate ratifying the demise attributed to CVOID-19 from the local municipal body at the time of filing the claim.

The term insurance with COVID cover also offers another major benefit in the form of additional life coverage for the insureds spouse. This is an invaluable coverage that supplements the life of the working or home-carer spouse in the case of their unfortunate demise. It simply means that you end up insuring two lives without paying additional premiums to cover your spouse. If you were to calculate the loss of their work income or the loss to your income due to their absence from homemaker duties, you would appreciate the enormity of this benefit.

The premiums on term plans with a high sum assured are often discounted. However, do check the policy document carefully for this feature, because it is offered only by a few insurers in India.

Another health dimension that the COVID insurance term plan offers is that it waives off the balance premiums in case of diagnosis of any of 35 critical illnesses as listed in the policy terms. Again, do peruse the policy document for a complete list of the critical illnesses covered  illnesses outside of this list will not be considered for claims settlement. You must pay an additional premium for this benefit, but it ends up enhancing your life coverage significantly.

There are high discounts for choosing a high sum assured under this term plan.

You also get tax benefits under Sec 80C and Sec 10(10D) of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1961.

The best term plans with COVID cover offer non-medical underwriting option when you take coverage up to Rs 99,00,000.

You have the informationnow get the policy

Your investments adviser or insurance planner can list the best term insurance plans with COVID cover for your consideration. As with any other financial purchase, do ensure that you have all the relevant information about the product, from enhanced life coverage to premium terms, before you sign up for the policy. As with term plans, your premium will be lower if you are younger, enjoying good health and with a proven source of steady income. Once assured that you have the right policy at your fingertips, you can buy the plan online.
Months after a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by Amazon workers in New York City over COVID-19 safety measures, New Yorks attorney general filed suit in state court claiming the company failed repeatedly and persistently in its pandemic safety policies.

The New York action comes after months of scrutiny of select companies nationally during the pandemic, including last spring when Connecticut Attorney General William Tong signed a letter from his Massachusetts counterpart Maura Healey pressing Amazon and Whole Foods to improve their workplace policies.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson in Tongs office gave no indication of any imminent action against Amazon.

New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Amazon in New York state court under a law requiring employers to provide reasonable and adequate protection to the lives, health, and safety of their workers, singling out Amazon facilities in the New York City boroughs of Queens and Staten Island.

Amazons response to the pandemic continues to be deficient, James stated in her offices lawsuit. Amazon has cut corners in complying with the particular requirements that would most jeopardize its sales volume and productivity rates, thereby ensuring outsize profits.

Amazon is seeking a federal injunction against the New York lawsuit, detailing steps it has taken in New York and elsewhere amid 150 operational changes that far exceed what is required under the law.

In a conference call two weeks ago, the companys chief financial officer cited $11.5 billion as the cost Amazon has incurred to date dealing with COVID-19 across its distribution facilities, Whole Foods, and Amazon Web Services.

We continue to see productivity headwinds from physical separation and training of new employees, and of course investments in PPE for employees and enhanced cleaning for our facilities, said CFO Brian Olsavsky, speaking in early February. More than 700 employees are now being tested every hour, and globally weve built hundreds of COVID-19 testing sites in two labs. We are encouraging essential employees working at Amazon fulfillment centers, AWS data centers, and Whole Foods Market stores across the country to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at the earliest appropriate time.

Over the past four years, Amazon has become one of the largest employers in Connecticut with some 8,500 employees at last report at major order fulfillment centers in North Haven, Wallingford, Cromwell and Windsor, along with smaller distribution hubs in locales like Danbury, Orange, Trumbull and Stratford. The company currently lists nearly 70 job openings in Connecticut, including three positions focused on health, wellness, and safety in the workplace.

We care deeply about the health and safety of our employees, Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a corporate response to a Hearst Connecticut Media query for comment. We dont believe the Attorney Generals filing presents an accurate picture of Amazons industry-leading response to the pandemic.

Last October, Amazon published a state-by-state breakdown of COVID-19 rates in its workforce, with its estimate of nearly 20 cases for every 1,000 employees in Connecticut. At 2 percent, that was slightly above the case positivity rate for the state as a whole at that point.

Connecticut employers are now gearing up for greater numbers of employees returning to work as vaccinations become more widely available this spring. The Norwalk human resources training firm OperationsInc has signed up more than 500 managers for a free webinar next week on workplace safety considerations for companies that are staffing facilities back up as vaccinations increase. OperationsInc has added 10 staff itself since December to assist businesses.

When it starts to look like recalling our teams back to the office can be done somewhat safely, its imperative that all business leaders respect their responsibility to maintain a safe workplace, including meeting all state and local requirements, stated OperationsInc CEO David Lewis in an email. Employees are going to possess a heightened awareness of these guidelines, and will be more likely to call [employers] and even report any failures to keep things safe.

Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-842-2545; @casoulman
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

The First High Criminal Court has sentenced two men to 10 years in prison each for human trafficking charges.

The court also fined each defendant BD2,000 and ordered them to bear the repatriation expenses of the victims. Case details show that the defendants detained five women and forced them to practice prostitution.

In a statement, Public Prosecution, Trafficking in Persons Prosecution Chief Prosecutor Nasser Al Sheeb explained that the victims were tricked into coming to Bahrain through phony advertisements online promising them jobs with good pay.

Investigations indicated that the women were immediately detained by the defendants upon their arrival in Bahrain and they were forced to practise prostitution, while the defendants collected the money from customers.

Al Sheeb said police received a tipoff about the detained women and raided the location, rescued them and arrested the defendants.

The Public Prosecution began its investigations immediately after being informed of the incident, listened to the victims statements and ordered them to be accommodated at Expats Protection Centre in Northern Sehla.
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OTTAWA - The House of Commons will wait until Tuesday to debate whether to accept or reject Senate amendments to a bill that would expand access to medical assistance in dying.

A clock in the Senate chamber is pictured in Ottawa on Feb. 18, 2019. CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA - The House of Commons will wait until Tuesday to debate whether to accept or reject Senate amendments to a bill that would expand access to medical assistance in dying.

That leaves just three days before the court-imposed deadline for bringing the law into compliance with a 2019 Quebec Superior Court ruling that concluded it's unconstitutional to allow assisted dying only for people who are already nearing the natural ends of their lives.

And it runs the risk of missing that deadline, which has already been extended three times.

As originally drafted, Bill C-7 would expand access to assisted dying to intolerably suffering individuals who are not already near death.

Senators have approved five amendments to the bill, including two that would expand access even further than proposed by the government.

One would allow advance requests by people who fear losing mental capacity and the other would put an 18-month time limit on the bill's proposed ban on assisted dying for people suffering solely from mental illnesses.

Justice Minister David Lametti thanked senators Thursday for their "thorough and thoughtful work" on Bill C-7 but said the government is still evaluating their amendments.

"I am aware of the deadlines that are upcoming and, as always, I will leave no stone unturned in order to get to the (Feb. 26) date with the final conclusion," Lametti said.

However, it's not entirely up to the Liberals, who hold only a minority of seats in the Commons, to determine the fates of the amendments or the timetable for debating them. At least one opposition party will have to support whatever the government decides for the Liberals to go ahead.

Government House leader Pablo Rodriguez later announced that the Commons will debate the Senate amendments on Tuesday.

That means the government will have to give notice of a motion by Monday night indicating whether it accepts, rejects or wants to modify each of the five amendments. Opposition parties will be able to propose changes to the motion and debate could go on at length, barring the imposition of closure, which at least one opposition party would also have to support.

Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole signalled Thursday that his caucus, which was largely opposed to the original bill, does not intend to be rushed into a decision on the amendments.

"We have concerns about the inclusion of mental health on its own within a state-run assisted-death regime," he said.

"There's been a lot of concerns that the most vulnerable are being not heard in this legislation. The Senate has made several amendments. We're ready to sit at night, on the weekend to try to get this right for Canadians."

Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet said his MPs want to study the details but "believe that the Senate has come with something that is based on compassion" and that "the basic ideas (in the amendments) are good," albeit coming from an unelected institution that his party considers illegitimate.

Blanchet said his party is "comfortable," in principle, with the proposed 18-month sunset clause on the exclusion of people suffering solely from mental illnesses. But he was warier of the amendment on advance requests, saying the issue requires "finesse and sensitivity" and suggesting Parliament shouldn't rush into it.

He professed confidence that Parliament will be able to conclude deliberations on C-7 before next Friday's deadline. Still, Blanchet conceded he's worried that the Conservatives will try to drag out debate on the amendments, as they did when the original bill was debated in the Commons.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said his caucus will look closely at the amendments. But he reiterated that his party, which has long supported abolition of the Senate, isn't keen on accepting amendments proposed by it.

"In principle, we believe that on an issue as complex as medical assistance in dying, an unelected body like the Senate should not be expanding the legislation," Singh said in a statement.

"Those who are accountable to Canadians are elected members of Parliament. It is concerning when decisions that will directly affect the lives of Canadian families and their loved ones are being made by an unelected and unaccountable Senate."

If the Commons rejects any or all of the amendments, senators will then have to decide whether to defer to the elected chamber's decision or dig in their heels.

Theoretically, the bill could bounce repeatedly between the two chambers until they reach a resolution.

Sen. Stan Kutcher, a psychiatrist and a member of the Independent Senators Group who proposed the 18-month time limit on the mental illness exclusion, said he expects senators would take into account the reasons given by the government for rejecting any of the amendments and any compromises it might have to make to win the support of at least one opposition party.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.
Neil Woodford faces calls to open up about his new role with a US firm that bought stocks from his collapsed fund at knockdown prices.

The disgraced investor has relaunched his career by acting as an 'adviser' to Acacia Research on the stocks once held in his Equity Income fund.

The fact he is teaming up with Acacia  where backers include activist investor Starboard Value, whose boss Jeff Smith has been dubbed 'the most feared man in corporate America'  has raised eyebrows in the fund management world.

Disgraced fund manager Neil Woodford has relaunched his career by acting as an 'adviser' to Acacia Research on the stocks once held in his Equity Income fund

And it has angered critics at a time when the Financial Conduct Authority is investigating how the Woodford empire collapsed in 2019 and left hundreds of thousands of savers nursing heavy losses.

One British fund manager said he could not work out why Acacia, an experienced investor in the life sciences sector, would pay the fallen star for his services.

The manager, who wished to remain anonymous, said: 'It doesn't pass the sniff test very well in terms of how people would view it.

'If Woodford wants to profit from running those assets in part you think: 'Hmm, it doesn't sound very good. I can't understand why Acacia would want to hire him either.'

The comments came as it emerged that:

The US arm of Woodford's former employer Invesco is the second-largest investor in Acacia.

Katharine Wolanyk, a managing director at Burford Capital  a company where he held a stake  sits on the board of Acacia.

WG Partners, a bank which worked with Woodford on several deals, brokered the sale of Equity Income assets to Acacia.

Clifford Press, Acacia's boss, approached Woodford in December just weeks before their partnership was announced.

Jeff Smith, the boss of activist investor Starboard Value, has been dubbed 'the most feared man in corporate America

The relationships show just how deep the stock-picker's ties run. The Mail is not suggesting any wrongdoing. A spokesman for Woodford said he and Press did not know each other at the time Acacia agreed to buy assets from the collapsed fund last summer.

But one source described Press as a 'bit of an anglophile' who was so intrigued by the fund manager's story that he decided to get in touch.

When Woodford revealed his role with Acacia last weekend, Press said: 'I've met a few of the really legendary investors, and when I met Neil I knew I was standing in the presence of a truly exceptional investment manager.'

In late 2019 Starboard agreed to provide Acacia up to 290million to use for investments and acquisitions, working with it to spot opportunities.

Smith, who famously locked horns with then-Yahoo! boss Marissa Mayer in 2016, has led a string of campaigns for a strategic rethink at companies such as Ebay and pizza chain Papa John's.

Tory MP Kevin Hollinrake said the Acacia deal reminded him of so-called 'pre-packs', when business owners put their firm into administration to get rid of debts, having already agreed to buy it on the other side.

He said: 'It smacks of a pre-pack when Woodford's crashed and burned and lost money for investors, then comes out smelling of roses with some kind of new contract advising on elements of the same fund.

Offer: Clifford Press, Acacia's boss, approached Woodford in December just weeks before their partnership was announced

Transparency is very important, especially when there's still an investigation by the regulator going on.'

He said Woodford should explain how he landed the deal, what exactly he would do for Acacia, and what he would earn.

Investors in Equity Income were dismayed last year when biotech stocks from the fund were sold to Acacia for 224million, well below the price they had been valued at, by Link, which was winding up the fund and quickly trying to raise money to return to investors.

Acacia almost immediately sold some stocks, generating a bumper profit. But it held on to several, many of which have since jumped in value.

Woodford's own former investors missed out on all these gains, worth around 185million.

Jack Starmer, who had more than 5,000 invested, said: 'Woodford should let the dust settle, and he shouldn't be trying to capitalise on his mistakes.'

Woodford declined to comment. Acacia did not respond to a request for comment.
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[February 18, 2021] Essentia Water Announces More Than $1 Million in 2020 Donations

Essentia Water, the pioneer of ionized alkaline water in the U.S., today announced that it contributed more than $1 million to key initiatives in 2020, through its Believe+ Corporate Social Responsibility ( CSR (News - Alert) ) Platform. This represents its largest contribution to date, including monetary and product donations to organizations on the frontlines of COVID-19 relief and social justice & empowerment efforts throughout the U.S. The privately held company cited its internal Strategic Pillars as the guiding principles for its commitment to social responsibility. Working in partnership with its national distribution network, Essentia supplied over 750,000 bottles of water last year to more than 200 hospitals, first responders and meal service providers aiding their local communities during the height of the pandemic. The company also donated more than $200,000 along with product to its long-standing national partner organizations, After-School All-Stars and the American Red Cross. Essentia also forged new alliances through its largest single donation of a combined $300,000 to support the Black community in the wake of the social injustice crisis. Recipients included the National Urban League, Black Voters Matter and UNCF (the United Negro College Fund). "These unprecedented times called for us to give back to our communities more than ever, and we made it a top priority," said Scott Miller (News - Alert) , CEO, Essentia Water. "While I'm proud of our actions in 2020 during a very challenging year, we know there's no finish line whether we are talking about Diversity and Inclusion or giving back to our communities in need. As an organization, we must challenge ourselves to make a difference each day." Essentia has already begun its next wave of COVID-19 relief for 2021 through product and monetary donations. Some 23 truckloads, nearly 400,000 bottles of Essentia water will be distributed toin-need hospitals and first responders across the country with a similar, second wave effort planned for April.



At Essentia's home base of Seattle, the company is continuing to lend its humanitarian support through events like local Seattle-Based Chef and Two-Time James Beard Award Winner Edouardo Jordan's Soul of Seattle www.theseattlesoul.com. The event's mission is to highlight and celebrate Black chefs/restauranteurs and support the black community of Seattle and is in collaboration with Northwest Harvest (WA State's leading hunger relief agency). Essentia is also sponsoring After-School All-Stars' Puget Sound programs (free after-school enrichment programs) and UNCF (United Negro College Fund) Seattle. "We are dedicated to expanding our commitment in the focus areas of humanitarian support and environmental sustainability, where our actions and participation can have meaningful impact to help improve the world in which we live," said Kazumi Mechling, Sr. Vice President of Corporate Communications & Strategic Alliances, Essentia Water.

Mechling says Essentia plans on a future announcement reinforcing its dedication to environmental innovation. About Essentia Water, LLC: The first ionized alkaline bottled water offered in the United States, Essentia's philosophy is that a better you starts with a better water. Headquartered in Bothell, WA, Essentia Water, LLC pioneered ionized alkaline water in 1998 and is known for its unique ionization process. The brand is now distributed in nearly 90,000 retailers across the United States. It's the #1 alkaline water brand and the #1 selling bottled water brand in the natural channel1. To learn more about Essentia, please visit essentiawater.com or connect with Essentia on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. 1IRI/SPINS/WFM P13 2020 Ending 12/27/2020. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005976/en/

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Jointly administered by the Sobey Art Foundation (SAF) and the National Gallery of Canada (NGC), the Award celebrates the careers of emerging Canadian artists through prize money and recognition. The SAF and NGC are pleased to announce a return to an in-person exhibition of the five shortlisted winners after the annual show was cancelled last year due to the pandemic. The exhibition will be presented at the National Gallery during the fall of 2021.

The Sobey Art Award has also increased its long-list award amount from $2,000 to $10,000 per recipient, increasing the total purse from $240,000 to $400,000 annually.

The 2021 Award structure will be:

$100,000 to the overall winner as chosen by the jury,

to the overall winner as chosen by the jury, $25,000 to each of the four other shortlisted finalists

to each of the four other shortlisted finalists $10,000 to each of the 20 long-listed finalists

An independent jury consisting of curators from five regions (Atlantic, Quebec, Ontario, Prairies/North, and West Coast/Yukon), as well as two international jurors, will oversee the competition.

The NGC will accept nominations for the Award from recognized agents, artists, and institutions. The NGC will notify the sender by e-mail upon receipt of a nomination package.

Deadline for nominations is extended until Friday, March 19, 2021, no later than 6 p.m. EST

PLEASE MAIL NOMINATIONS TO:

2021 Sobey Art Award Nominations

c/o National Gallery of Canada

380 Sussex Drive

P.O. Box 427, Station A

Ottawa, ON, K1N 9N4

PLEASE SEND EMAIL NOMINATIONS TO: [email protected]

About the Sobey Art Foundation

The Sobey Art Foundation was established in 1981 to carry on the work of late entrepreneur Frank H. Sobey who was a dedicated collector of Canadian art. The Sobey Art Award, started by the Foundation, ran in 2002, 2004, 2006 before becoming annual in 2007. Since its start in 2002 the Award had an upper age limit of 40. This restriction has been removed for 2021 onward.

About the National Gallery of Canada

The National Gallery of Canada is home to the largest collection of contemporary Indigenous art in the world, as well as the most important collection of historical and contemporary Canadian and European Art from the 14th to 21st centuries. Founded in 1880, the National Gallery of Canada has played a key role in Canadian culture for well over a century. Among its principal missions is to increase access to art for all Canadians. For more information, visit gallery.ca and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.

FAQ

Since its inception in 2002, the Sobey Art Award has consistently sought the counsel of jurors and artists associated with its process to improve its annual program and Prize Structure;





Award has consistently sought the counsel of jurors and artists associated with its process to improve its annual program and Prize Structure; Each year, artists and jurors have provided valuable insights that have brought the program forward and ensured that it's best positioned to achieve its mission of advancing public engagement with contemporary Canadian art, both at home and around the world;





In recent years, the Sobey Art Foundation and the National Gallery of Canada have heard from some stakeholders that the definition of emerging has evolved to include a constituency of artists whose work finds a foothold after the age of 40;





have heard from some stakeholders that the definition of emerging has evolved to include a constituency of artists whose work finds a foothold after the age of 40; This is a particular sensitivity for the Sobey Art Award as Canada's pre-eminent contemporary national art prize, as artists from some regions are constrained in their public recognition while others benefit from the density of critical and exhibition opportunities provided by major urban centres;





Award as pre-eminent contemporary national art prize, as artists from some regions are constrained in their public recognition while others benefit from the density of critical and exhibition opportunities provided by major urban centres; In its aim to stand out as the world's most inclusive critical art award, the Sobey Art Foundation and the National Gallery of Canada have decided to eliminate all age barriers for nominations;





have decided to eliminate all age barriers for nominations; The nomination process is guided by professionals who work closely with their communities and who determine the artists whose work has recently enough found its foothold to be considered emerging;





Emerging artists, regardless of age, are recognized within their specific communities, and those who have not yet been recognized at a widespread level;





Since its inception, the Sobey Art Award has been a privately funded Art Award and will remain a catalyst for the careers of contemporary Canadian artists. Its goal has not changed.





Award has been a privately funded Art Award and will remain a catalyst for the careers of contemporary Canadian artists. Its goal has not changed. The Sobey Art Award has removed the age requirement. The SAA is not meant to be a lifetime achievement award.





Award has removed the age requirement. The SAA is not meant to be a lifetime achievement award. With recent changes to the Award to increase the prize structure for participants in the annual process, the SAF and the NGC's hope is that Canadian artists will not only receive critical acclaim around the world from the Sobey Art Award, but also much-deserved financial recognition for their work.

SOURCE National Gallery of Canada

For further information: For media enquiries only: Denise Siele, Senior Communications Manager, National Gallery of Canada, [email protected], (613) 298-1380; Bernard Doucet, Secretary, Sobey Foundation, [email protected] , (902) 921-1755

Related Links

http://www.gallery.ca/


STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Bobs Discount Furniture will be opening a 10,000-square-foot store in the space formerly occupied by Pier 1 Imports on Richmond Avenue in New Springville on March 4.

The store at 2385 Richmond Ave. will be Bobs Discount Furnitures first on Staten Island, and will also be its premiere location, featuring a new innovative experience center, which offers an enhanced customer experience, according to the retailer.

This will be the first Bobs Discount Furniture of its kind. ...We will have consultants who are offering the customers not just what they see in the store, but also connecting their online shopping wish list with the in-store experience and everything in between, said Richard Muniz, Bobs Discount Furniture Metro New York regional manager.

The new store will also have virtual room planners, he said.

The room planner will be there to assist customers at our experience center in the store. It will have a digital screen, and monitors where customers can actually decorate their room right there in the store, he added.

The new location will also include the endless aisle, which offers hundreds of of direct-to-consumer products available for purchase, said Muniz.

The Staten Island store, which will have about 25 employees, will be Bobs 140th store nationwide, and its 16th store in New York state. It will open as the company begins celebrating its 30th year.

In addition, the company said it will be fostering strong community relationships in the region, including donations of $2,500 to PS 42, Eltingville, and A Very Special Place, a not-for-profit organization offering programs and services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.

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By the thousands, US service members are refusing or putting off the COVID-19 vaccine as frustrated commanders scramble to knock down internet rumors and find the right pitch that will persuade troops to get the shot.

Air Force Major General Jeff Taliaferro, vice director of operations for the Joint Staff, told Congress on Wednesday that 'very early data' suggests that just up to two-thirds of the service members offered the vaccine have accepted.

That's higher than the rate for the general population, which a recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation put at roughly 50 per cent.

So far, almost 150,000 service members have been fully vaccinated, defense officials told lawmakers. There are about 1.3 million active-duty troops, according to The Washington Post.

If one-third of troops have refused and 150,000 have agreed to get the vaccine, that means some 75,000 soldiers have declined the offer so far.

Military leaders searching for answers believe they have identified one potential convincer: an imminent deployment.

Navy sailors on ships heading out to sea last week, for example, were choosing to take the shot at rates exceeding 80 per cent to 90 per cent.

Members of the United States military attend a press conference following the opening of a new large scale COVID-19 vaccination site at Cal State Los Angeles on Tuesday

The significant number of forces declining the vaccine is especially worrisome because troops often live, work and fight closely together in environments where social distancing and wearing masks, at times, are difficult.

The military's resistance also comes as troops are deploying to administer shots at vaccination centers around the country and as leaders look to American forces to set an example for the nation.

'We're still struggling with what is the messaging and how do we influence people to opt in for the vaccine,' said Brigadier General Edward Bailey, the surgeon for Army Forces Command.

He said that in some units just 30 per cent have agreed to take the vaccine, while others are between 50 per cent and 70 per cent.

Forces Command oversees major Army units, encompassing about 750,000 Army, Reserve and National Guard soldiers at 15 bases.

At Fort Bragg, North Carolina, where several thousand troops are preparing for future deployments, the vaccine acceptance rate is about 60 per cent, Bailey said.

Senior military officials said that as many as one in three US service members have so far refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine (like the one seen in the above file photo)

That's 'not as high as we would hope for front-line personnel,' he said.

Bailey has heard all the excuses.

'I think the most amusing one I heard was, "The Army always tells me what to do, they gave me a choice, so I said no",' he said.

Service leaders have vigorously campaigned for the vaccine.

They have held town halls, written messages to the force, distributed scientific data, posted videos, and even put out photos of leaders getting vaccinated.

For weeks, the Pentagon insisted it did not know how many troops were declining the vaccine.

On Wednesday they provided few details on their early data.

Officials from individual military services, however, said in interviews with The Associated Press that refusal rates vary widely, depending on a service member's age, unit, location, deployment status and other intangibles.

The variations make it harder for leaders to identify which arguments for the vaccine are most persuasive.

The Food and Drug Administration has allowed emergency use of the vaccine, so it's voluntary.

But Defense Department officials say they hope that soon may change.

'We cannot make it mandatory yet,' Vice Admiral Andrew Lewis, commander of the Navy's 2nd Fleet, said last week.

'I can tell you we're probably going to make it mandatory as soon as we can, just like we do with the flu vaccine.'

About 40 Marines gathered recently in a California conference room for an information session from medical staff.

One officer, who was not authorized to publicly discuss private conversations and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Marines are more comfortable posing questions about the vaccine in smaller groups.

The officer said one Marine, citing a widely circulated and false conspiracy theory, said: 'I heard that this thing is actually a tracking device.'

The medical staff, said the officer, quickly debunked that theory, and pointed to the Marine's cellphone, noting that it's an effective tracker.

Other frequent questions revolved around possible side effects or health concerns, including for pregnant women.

Army, Navy and Air Force officials say they hear much the same.

The Marine Corps is a relatively small service and troops are generally younger.

Similar to the general population, younger service members are more likely to decline or ask to wait.

In many cases, military commanders said, younger troops say they have had the coronavirus or known others who had it, and concluded it was not bad.

'What they're not seeing is that 20-year-olds who've actually gotten very sick, have been hospitalized or die, or the folks who appear to be fine but then it turns out they've developed pulmonary and cardiac abnormalities,' Bailey said.

One ray of hope has been deployments.

Lewis, based in Norfolk, Virginia, said last week that sailors on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, which is operating in the Atlantic, agreed to get the shot at a rate of about 80 per cent.

Sailors on the USS Iwo Jima and Marines in the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, who also are deploying, had rates of more than 90 per cent.

In this February 9, 2021 photo provided by the Department of Defense, Hickam 15th Medical Group host the first COVID-19 mass vaccination on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam

Bailey said the Army is seeing opportunities to reduce the two-week quarantine period for units deploying to Europe if service members are largely vaccinated and the host nation agrees. US Army Europe may cut the quarantine time to five days if 70 per cent of the unit is vaccinated, and that incentive could work, he said.

The acceptance numbers drop off among those who are not deploying, military officials said.

General James McConville, the Army's chief of staff, used his own experience to encourage troops to be vaccinated.

'When they asked me how it felt, I said it was a lot less painful than some of the meetings I go to in the Pentagon,' he said.

Colonel Jody Dugai, commander of the Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital at Fort Polk, Louisiana, said that so far conversations at the squad level, with eight to 10 peers, have been successful, and that getting more information helps.

At the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Brigadier General David Doyle, has a dual challenge.

As base commander, he must persuade the nearly 7,500 soldiers on base to get the shot and he needs to ensure that the thousands of troops that cycle in and out for training exercises are safe.

Doyle said the acceptance rate on his base is between 30 per cent and 40 per cent, and that most often it's the younger troops who decline.

'They tell me they don't have high confidence in the vaccine because they believe it was done too quickly,' he said.

Top health officials have attested to the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine.

Doyle said it appears peers are often more influential than leaders in persuading troops - a sentiment echoed by Bailey, the Army Forces Command surgeon.

'We're trying to figure out who the influencers are,' Bailey said.

'Is it a squad leader or platoon sergeant in the Army? I think it probably is. Someone who is more of their age and interacts with them more on a regular basis versus the general officer who takes his picture and says, "I got the shot".'
Neon White was a surprise announcement during today's Nintendo Direct livestream -- it's a stylish first-person platformer and action game about exterminating demons in a fantastical version of Heaven, and it's heading to Switch and PC this winter. That's not the most surprising part, though. It's developed by Ben Esposito, the creator of Donut County, an adorable game that serves as a love letter to Los Angeles, and OK KO! writer Ryann Shannon is working on the words.

NEON WHITE is a lightning fast first-person action game about exterminating demons in Heaven. Coming soon to Nintendo Switch and PC. Add to your Steam wishlist now: https://t.co/hS83acEDIE pic.twitter.com/rPxwyEotPB  Annapurna Interactive (@A_i) February 17, 2021

Neon White feels like a fresh approach to game development for Esposito, featuring rapid-fire mechanics and a mask-based, anime-inspired style. The protagonist is an assassin from Hell named White, who's in Heaven on a mission to eradicate a demon infestation and potentially earn a permanent place beyond the Pearly Gates. Players collect Soul Cards to attack enemies and perform powerful moves, and it all plays out from a lightning-fast first-person perspective.

Publisher Annapurna Interactive says Neon White has "a hellishly clever story that proves it's never too late to ask for forgiveness." In the same press release, Esposito is quoted as saying, Neon White is a first-person action platformer inspired by Y2K-era anime and cult-classic character action games. Our goal is to make the sickest game on the demo disc. Its wild and over the top, and its 100 percent earnest. Its a campy anime speedrunning game made for freaks, by freaks.

Neon White is available to wishlist on Steam now.
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 12:30:49|Editor: huaxia

Video Player Close

BEIJING, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- The following are the updates on the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

- - - -

MEXICO CITY -- Mexico's Minister of National Defense Luis Cresencio Sandoval said Wednesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and will quarantine at home under medical supervision.

"I will continue my duties in quarantine from home, under medical treatment and relying on the officials of the National Defense Ministry in keeping with the chain of command," said the 61-year-old minister.

- - - -

DAKAR -- Senegal on Wednesday night received the first batch of China's Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine.

Senegalese President Macky Sall, First Lady Marieme Faye Sall, senior government officials, Chinese Ambassador to Senegal Xiao Han and representatives of the World Health Organization also attended the delivery ceremony at Blaise Diagne International Airport.

- - - -

SEOUL -- South Korea reported 621 more cases of COVID-19 as of midnight Wednesday compared to 24 hours ago, raising the total number of infections to 85,567.

The daily caseload stayed above 600 for two straight days following the Lunar New Year's holidays last week when family members traditionally gather together to share food and have a talk.

- - - -

WELLINGTON -- New Zealand reported three cases of COVID-19 in managed isolation on Thursday. There are no new cases in the community after six community cases were found over the past few days.

The three new border cases have remained in managed isolation facilities in Auckland, according to the Ministry of Health. Enditem
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More than 100,000 Pennsylvanians could be forced to wait days or weeks longer for their coronavirus shots after mistakes made by vaccine providers and possible miscommunication from the state led to a massive shortage of doses, officials said Wednesday.

State health officials said they discovered only last weekend that some providers had been improperly using doses of the two-part Moderna vaccine, giving out their supply of second shots as first doses instead. They said the misuse of second shots had been going on for weeks, though they could not explain exactly why or how it happened, or why it went undetected.

To fix the problem, the state will distribute one weeks worth of second doses over the course of three weeks, officials said, meaning everyone whose appointments are affected by the shortage should be inoculated by mid-March. Pennsylvanians awaiting their second shots should receive them within six weeks of the date they got their first shots. Experts said the delay shouldnt impact the efficacy of the inoculations.

But the problem, which means tens of thousands of residents will have to wait longer to be fully vaccinated and others may have their first appointments rescheduled, became the newest snag in a distribution process that has frustrated many across the state.

While it wont impact Philadelphia, which is distributing the vaccine independently, it upended the already difficult process for providers around the region who have been told for weeks by the Department of Health that the supply was secure. In Montgomery County, for instance, 5,729 residents were scheduled to receive their second Moderna doses next week; the county will likely have to reschedule about half of them.

 READ MORE: Black Philadelphians arent getting their fair share of COVID-19 vaccines. Faith leaders and hospitals are hearing a call to fix that.

The shortage also raised questions about state oversight of vaccine providers and tracking of inoculation data. One Montgomery County pharmacist said the temporary shortage would cause chaos.

Were going to be spending the next day or two rescheduling, said the pharmacist, who asked not to be named for fear of repercussions and questioned how the error happened when the state requires all providers to report every shot within 24 hours of administering it. Its going to be painful to make those calls.

The sudden shortage is just one consequence of the scarce national supply of vaccine. As the federal government works to increase supply, Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon said the latest confusion was another symptom of the Trump administrations failure last year to coordinate a national vaccine distribution.

This whole building-the-airplane-while-flying  it is just not working well for anyone, said the Delaware County Democrat.

Discovering the shortage

State health officials would not say which providers made the mistake or how many, why the department did not notice the issue sooner, or how many second-dose shots were given out as first doses.

Spokesperson Barry Ciccocioppo said the problem became apparent when Health Department employees preparing the states weekly vaccine request to the federal government realized providers had asked for at least 57,000 more Moderna doses than the state had expected them to request. The state then realized some providers had been misusing the doses for more than a month.

Ciccocioppo said some may have been confused by state guidance or received vaccine shipments that werent clearly labeled.

The providers who misused the doses did not realize they were doing anything wrong, acting Health Secretary Alison Beam said, and officials are still trying to trace how it happened. She said controls were put in place to ensure it doesnt happen again, but she didnt define those steps beyond saying the state would improve communication with providers.

We are not here to have blame placed anywhere, she told reporters Wednesday. In fact, we want to make sure that, instead, all of us are focusing on the path forward.

State Sen. Maria Collett (D., Bucks and Montgomery) said she agreed with Beam that pointing fingers is a waste of time but said the Department of Health needed to address ongoing issues with the rollout, including ensuring a shortage could not happen again.

The delays, the confusion, the cumbersomeness, the appearance to the general public that things havent been fair, and now the discovery of major mistakes like this one, have eroded Pennsylvanians trust in the Departments ability to shepherd us through to the other side of the COVID crisis, which is where were all so desperate to be, she said in a statement.

Vaccine providers will contact anyone whose appointments must be rescheduled, state officials said; anyone who has an appointment and is not contacted should show up as scheduled.

Although the second shots are supposed to be given four weeks after the first shot  and both are necessary to effectively protect against COVID-19  the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said the second doses can be safely administered up to six weeks after the first shot. Everyone waiting for a second shot should receive one within that six-week window, the state said.

It is not going to mean the vaccine is going to work any less well for them, said Brianne Barker, a Drew University biologist who studies the immune response to viruses. People waiting for their second doses should continue to take full precautions, she said.

 READ MORE: A Pa. lawmaker helped hundreds of seniors get COVID-19 vaccines, but not everyone says thats fair

In Pennsylvania, up to 60,000 second-dose appointments may have to be rescheduled. In addition, up to 55,000 first doses may not be delivered to providers on time, meaning first-dose appointments could be affected as well.

The states planned fix should mean nobody misses a second dose and the states vaccine allocations will be back to normal by mid-March. Gov. Tom Wolf said he was satisfied with the solution.

We want to do what we need to do to make sure everyone who gets a first dose has a second dose ready for them, Wolf said. And thats what we did here.

Should have been more clear

Every week across Pennsylvania, vaccine providers request doses for the following week, asking for first and second doses separately. The state sends those requests to the federal government, which then directs vaccine makers to ship allotments directly to the providers  in separate boxes for first and second doses.

Ciccocioppo said some second-dose boxes delivered to vaccine providers in recent weeks werent clearly marked. He also said the Health Department should have been clearer about its guidance: Officials have been telling providers not to hold back first doses to create their own supply of second shots. Ciccocioppo speculated providers may mistakenly have interpreted that as instruction not to hold any doses, including those earmarked as second doses, in reserve.

We should have been more clear, he said. We meant Dont hold back first doses.

Health officials said they could have temporarily suspended first-dose appointments for a week and used those doses to fulfill the scheduled second shots, but said they did not want to cancel all first shots.

Were trying to provide the least disruption to people who already have gotten through to their providers and made an appointment for the first dose, Ciccocioppo said.

Still, it further frustrated local lawmakers and officials who have already asked the state for more transparency and solutions to other rollout problems.

I was surprised, furious, and disappointed when I got this news because we had been assured repeatedly that those second doses would be there for us, said Montgomery County Commissioners Chair Val Arkoosh, a physician. This is extremely disappointing.

 READ MORE: Philly Fighting COVID got a city contract while groups emphasizing racial equity didnt

Chester County Commissioner Josh Maxwell said the debacle was more reason for the state to concentrate its vaccine supply on the largest providers, such as counties and hospitals, who might have a better capacity to track doses.

He said the shortage meant vaccination delays for many people in his county, including EMTs, firefighters, and police officers who received their first doses a month ago.

Were frustrated, he said. Were just seeing too many of these vaccines get lost in the mix.

Contributing to this article were staff writers Oona Goodin-Smith, Jason Laughlin, Tom Avril, Rob Tornoe, Marie McCullough, and Ellie Silverman.
No other political party is a match to BJP: JP Nadda

India

pti-Madhuri Adnal

Dharamshala, Feb 18: Almost all political parties in the country are family-based with none of them matching the BJPs strength of over 18 crore people, including the worlds most accepted leader Narendra Modi, as its members, partys president J P Nadda said here on Thursday.

It is not easy to create a membership of over 18 crore people. No other political party has the power to reach even near this number, said Nadda, addressing a working committee meeting of the BJPs Himachal Pradesh unit here. We are a mass, cadre-based organisation with the worlds most accepted personality Narender Modi belonging to the BJP and this is our strength, said Nadda.

So there is no exaggeration when we say there is no match to the BJP, he added. We are lucky that we are the members of the right party, pursuing cultural nationalism with collective efforts and undergoing scientific growth, he added. Nadda told the working committee members that the BJP's strength is our unity and we should regularly make self-assessment for our own growth in the party.

Talking of the BJPs economic model antyodaya, Nadda said, It is based on the partys philosophy of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishvas and these three elements are ingrained in all schemes of the government. Talking of Himachal Pradeshs contribution to the organisational structure of the BJP, Nadda said the party owes its booth-based structural model of panna pramukh to the state and, accordingly, Himachal should go in for the 'panna committee model by 2022.

He said the BJP will soon have its own offices in every district of the country. Speaking on the occasion, partys state in-charge Avinash Rai Khanna echoed Naddas views saying the BJP is a political party with a difference, enabling even a tea seller to become the prime minister of the country.

Maa not respected, Maati not protected, nothing done for Maanush: J P Nadda

He said in Narendra Modi, for the first time the country is having a prime minister who calls himself the sevak (servant) of the country and who has ended the VIP culture. He said the country is on a consistent growth path since 2014 when the BJP assumed power in the Centre and there has been no scam in the last six years, unlike the Congress tenure, marred by a culture of looting the country.

On the occasion, Himachals former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal apprised the BJP workers of the partys history, dividing it into three phases  from its formation as Jan Sangh in October 1951 to its reincarnation as the Bhartiya Janata Party in April 1980 to its emergence as the majority party in 2014.

Dhumal elaborated how from winning only three Lok Sabha seats in the first general elections under Syama Prasad Mukherjee to its growth as the BJP from a two-MP party in the 1984 elections to the single largest party in 1996 elections under Atal Bihari Vajpayee to its eventual emergence as the majority party in 2014 and strengthening its position further in 2019 polls under Prime Minister Modi.
Cash runway until early March 2021

Beyond early March 2021 a capital infusion is required in which Calliditas has agreed to support Genkyotex

Regulatory News:

Genkyotex (Paris:GKTX) (Brussels:GKTX) (Euronext Paris Brussels: FR0013399474 GKTX), a biopharmaceutical company and the leader in NOX therapies, announces its consolidated financial results for the year ended December 31, 20201, in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), as adopted by the European Union. A summary of the consolidated financial statements is included below.

On December 31, 2020, Genkyotex had cash and cash equivalents of 1.6 million. The Company expects that its current cash position is sufficient to fund planned operations to early March 2021. After this date Genkyotex will be required to fund the ongoing operations with new capital. Calliditas Therapeutics, the majority shareholder of Genkyotex, has expressed its intent to participate in such future financings. Until such financing has occurred, Calliditas has expressed its willingness to support Genkyotex by way of a bridge debt financing to enable the Company to meet its liabilities as they fall due and to carry on its normal business without any significant curtailment of operations.

Given its stage of development, Genkyotex has not generated any sales to date, as all of its product candidates are in the Research Development (R&D) phase. The subsidies and Research Tax Credit (469 thousand) mainly correspond to the expected French Research Tax Credit for 2020.

R&D expenses are mainly driven by the impairment of the SIIL contract as a consequence of the impact of Covid-19 on the development timelines (negative impact of 5.8m), partially offset by the reduction of R&D costs due to the end of the Phase 2 clinical trial of setanaxib in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC)

G&A expenses increase by 0.7 M mainly due to fees incurred as part of the transaction with Calliditas AB.

Genkyotex recorded a consolidated net loss of -14.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to a net loss of -7.2 million at December 31, 2019.

Selected 2020 unaudited financial results

 thousands IFRS At December 31, 2020 At December 31, 2019 Income from customers agreement Research Development expenses (11,607) (6,305) Subsidies and Research Tax Credit 469 899 General Administrative expenses (2,885) (2,160) Other Income 38 142 Current operating loss (14,055) (7,425) Other operating expenses Operating loss (14,055) (7,425) Net loss for the period (14,060) (7,203) Net loss per share (in euros) (1.25) (0.88)

The consolidated statement of financial position and the consolidated income statement prepared in accordance with IFRS, as adopted by the European Union, for the year ended December 31, 2020 are included in appendix 1 of this press release.

2020 key highlights and outlook for 2021

Tender offer of Calliditas: On August 13, 2020, the Company announced the agreement by Calliditas to acquire 7,236,515 ordinary shares of Genkyotex, representing 62.7% of the share capital and voting rights from the Company's largest shareholders and management team. This block trade was finalized on November 3, 2020.



On December 17, 2020, the Company announced the results of the tender offer launched by Calliditas on all of its outstanding shares. According to the results published on December 16, 2020 by the Autorite des marches financiers (AMF), a total of 2,885,161 shares were tendered to the public offering. Following the close of the public offer, Calliditas held 10,121,676 shares of the Company representing 86.24% of the share capital and theoretical voting rights of the Company.

Phase 1 trial with setanaxib at higher doses: in January 2021, the Company reported positive data from its Phase 1 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and pharmacokinetics of setanaxib at dosages up to 1,600 mg/day.

Development strategy for setanaxib in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC): based on the Phase 1 trial data and interactions with US and European regulators in 2020, the Company recently announced that it plans to launch a pivotal and potentially registrational Phase 2/3 trial of setanaxib in patients with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) in the second half of 2021. The final design and protocol details are subject to feedback from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Phase 2 proof-of-concept study in patients with head and neck cancer: the Company recently announced that it plans to initiate a Phase 2 proof-of-concept study in patients with head and neck cancer before the end of the year. The trial will evaluate administration of setanaxib, targeting cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs), in conjunction with immunotherapy.

Orphan drug designation (ODD) for setanaxib in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC): setanaxib was granted orphan drug designation for the treatment of primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October and by the European Commission in December, following the positive opinion from the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

Phase 2 trial of setanaxib in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF): the Company announced on September 14, 2020, the enrollment of the 1st patient in a Phase 2 trial of setanaxib in IPF. This study is conducted in accordance with a protocol approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the relevant Institutional review board (IRB). This investigator-initiated study is being led by Professor Victor Thannickal of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and includes a consortium of five research centers of excellence in the United States. It is fully funded by an $8.9 million grant awarded to Professor Thannickal's team by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH). The aim of the study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of setanaxib dosed at 800 mg/day (400 mg BID) in 60 IPF patients receiving standard treatment (pirfenidone or nintedanib) over a period of 24 weeks.

Phase 2 trial of setanaxib in diabetic kidney disease (DKD): following the Company's Phase 2 trial with setanaxib in PBC, the DKD trial protocol was amended to increase the dose to 400 mg BID. To date, 29 patients have completed the full 48-week treatment and no safety signals have been identified. The DKD trial is being conducted primarily in Australia, with work ongoing to activate centers in New Zealand, Denmark, and Germany. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, investigators have taken steps to minimize patient visits to investigation centers, in accordance with applicable rules and recommendations, but investigators cannot exclude a possible slowdown in new patient enrollment in the study.

COVID-19 update

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company continues to closely monitor the evolution of the official guidelines and recommendations in order to protect its employees and contractors. The Company has also implemented strategies to mitigate the impact of the global shutdown on its business and operations.

To date, except for the impairment of the SIIL contract (see above), the COVID-19 pandemic has had a limited impact on the Company's operations. Genkyotex will continue to monitor the impact of the COVID19 pandemics on the conducting of clinical trials and discussions with health authorities and, depending on the evolution of the pandemic and of its potentially material impact on such trials and discussions, will keep the market informed.

About Genkyotex

Genkyotex is the leading biopharmaceutical company in NOX therapies, listed on the Euronext Paris and Euronext Brussels markets. Its leading platform enables the identification of orally available small-molecules which selectively inhibit specific NOX enzymes that amplify multiple disease processes such as fibrosis, inflammation, pain processing, cancer development, and neurodegeneration. Genkyotex is developing a pipeline of first-in-class product candidates targeting one or multiple NOX enzymes. The lead product candidate, setanaxib (GKT831), a NOX1 and NOX4 inhibitor has shown evidence of anti-fibrotic activity in a Phase II clinical trial in primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). Clinical trials in PBC and head and neck cancer with setanaxib are being planned in 2021 and investigator led studies in Type 1 Diabetes and Kidney Disease (DKD) and in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a chronic lung disease that results in fibrosis of the lungs, are ongoing.

For further information, please go to www.genkyotex.com

Disclaimer

This press release may contain forward-looking statements by the company with respect to its objectives. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs, estimates and expectations of Genkyotex's management and are subject to risks and uncertainties such as the company's ability to implement its chosen strategy, customer market trends, changes in technologies and in the company's competitive environment, changes in regulations, clinical or industrial risks and all risks linked to the company's growth. These factors as well as other risks and uncertainties may prevent the company from achieving the objectives outlined in the press release and actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements, due to various factors. Without being exhaustive, such factors include uncertainties involved in the development of Genkyotex's products, which may not succeed, or in the delivery of Genkyotex's products marketing authorizations by the relevant regulatory authorities and, in general, any factor that could affects Genkyotex's capacity to commercialize the products it develops. No guarantee is given on forward-looking statements which are subject to a number of risks, notably those described in the universal registration document filed with the AMF on April 30, 2020 under number D.20-0434, and those linked to changes in economic conditions, the financial markets, or the markets on which Genkyotex is present. Genkyotex products are currently used for clinical trials only and are not otherwise available for distribution or sale

Appendix 1 Statement of consolidated financial position and consolidated income statement as of December 31, 2020

The statement of consolidated financial position and consolidated income statement of Genkyotex S.A. were prepared in accordance International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), as adopted by the European Union. The auditors have completed their procedures on the consolidated financial statements. They will continue with the post-balance sheet event review until issuance of their audit report. The consolidated financial statements for the period ended December 31, 2020 were approved by Board of Directors on February 17, 2021 and will be submitted to the shareholders at the Shareholders' Meeting planned in June 2021.

GENKYOTEX 12/31/2020 12/31/2019 Consolidated Income Statement 12 months 12 months (in thousands of EUR) Sales Cost of sales Gross margin Research and development expenses Research and development expenses (11,677) (6,305) Subsidies 469 899 General and administrative expenses (2,885) (2,160) Other income 38 142 Current operating loss (14,055) (7,425) Other operating income Other operating expenses Operating loss (14,055) (7,425) Financial income (79) (190) Financial expenses 75 412 Pre-tax loss (14,060) (7,203) Income tax (expense) Net loss for the period (14,060) (7,203) Attributable to owners of the parent company (14,060) (7.203) Non-controlling interests Weighted average number of shares in circulation 11'284'380 8'146'178 Basic loss per share (EUR/share) (1) (1.25) (0.88) Diluted loss per share (EUR/share) (1) (1.25) (0.88)

GENKYOTEX 12/31/2020 12/31/2019 Consolidated Statement of Financial Position (in thousands of EUR) ASSETS Intangible assets 2,755 9,086 Property, plant and equipment 181 154 Non-current financial assets 28 29 Total non-current assets 2,964 9,270 Other current assets 1,559 1,500 Current financial assets Cash and cash equivalents 1,613 2,417 Total current assets 3,172 3,917 Total Assets 6,136 13,186 LIABILITIES AND EQUITY Equity Capital 11,736 8,683 Additional paid-in capital 4,991 126,118 Cumulative translation adjustments (2,732) (2,732) Accumulated other comprehensive loss (524) (697) Accumulated deficit attributable to owners of the parent (3,266) (114,332) Net loss attributable to owners of the parent (14,060) (7,203) Equity attributable to owners of the parent 2,657 9,836 Non-controlling interests Total equity 2,657 9,836 Non-current liabilities Employee benefit obligations 827 1.348 Non-current financial liabilities 53 17 Other non-current liabilities 141 Non-current liabilities 1,021 1,364 Current liabilities Current financial liabilities 122 848 Financial derivative 64 Trade payables 1,683 562 Other current liabilities 654 512 Current liabilities 2,458 1,986 Total Liabilities and Equity 6,136 13,186

1 Consolidated accounts were approved by the Board on February 17, 2021. The auditors have completed their procedures on the consolidated financial statements. They will continue with the post-balance sheet event review until issuance of their audit report.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005902/en/

Contacts:

GENKYOTEX

Alexandre Grassin

CFO

Tel.: +33 (0)5 61 28 70 60

investors@genkyotex.com



NewCap

Dusan Oresansky

Tel.: +33 1 44 71 94 92

genkyotex@newcap.eu
THE Mayor of Limerick, Cllr Michael Collins has become a grandfather for the second time.

His son Shane and wife Sharon have welcomed Rian Michael into the family fold after he was born at the University Maternity Hospital on the Ennis Road last week.

The young fellow weighed in at eight pounds and two ounces, Limericks first citizen said.

Mother and baby are home safe and well, Mayor Collins said, He is doing what all babies should be doing  eating and sleeping!

We are delighted. He is a lovely little fella. Its great for little Shane the first born to have someone to play with, the mayor told the Limerick Leader.

Although Shane and Sharon are in the same bubble, Mayor Collins took precautionary measures when welcoming the newborn baby into the family fold just outside Newcastle West.
WESTPORT  While its already enjoyed a long history in Westport, Calicothe design and fabric storeis celebrating a new grand opening in town.

We were at 1701 Post Road for 25 years, explained manager Jane Peck, who saw 17 of those years there herself.

This month, the 72-year-old national chain, which originally began selling seconds of designer fabrics in Bedford Village, N.Y., as Calico Corners in 1948, opened downtown at 224 Post Road East.

Its a great location because of the visibility, she said, noting the ribbon-cutting ceremony on Feb. 8 included a visit from State Sen. Will Haskell, as well as a range of officials, designers and industry professionals.

They decided to do this pre-COVID, she said, but amazingly we opened up the store right on schedule.

The corner building on the west side of Imperial Avenue, which originally housed Ed Mitchells and, in recent years, the State Cleaners, is now a new Calico store offering a range of design servicesboth in-person and virtual including, custom furniture, reupholstering, home furnishings and custom window treatments.

We do just about anything made out of fabric, Peck said.

The store no longer houses the bolts of fabric that they used to cut for samples and such, though the services and offeringsas well as the qualitywill remain the same.

I feel like our move makes us more updated, noted Shaun Amberg, a designer with the store for 13 years.

The new location still draws its loyal customer base as well as some new ones.

I know you can trust them in terms of quality and the value for your money, said customer Kathy Volpe, who just moved into Westport from Massachusetts and is decorating her new house.

When I built my house 25 years ago outside of Boston, I went to Calico, she said, where she had design work, window treatments and even new furniture created for her.

I was extremely happy with the quality, she said, adding the furniture is still in use at her other home on Cape Cod. All of the things they made for me still look perfect.

Peck said that business has been booming this year, owing to the pandemic.

We are seeing an increase in customers decorating their homes because theyre in their homes so much more, she said. Plus weve seen new homes, people moving into this area and they need to decorate their homes.

Store visits are by appointment, Peck said, though they can also come to homes directly to consult or work with a customer virtually.

We also allow people to borrow fabric and take them home for two days to see how you like something, she said, adding its a better option than just having the traditional tiny swatch to go on.

She noted that the retail nature of the store is part of what makes them unique. While customers can visit to simply buy a fabric or related item of interest, they can also involve their work and design team up to whatever level they need.

Were doing a lot of design work here (and) we do have a lot of products that we can offer to our customers, Amberg said. Its a great location.
Press Release

February 18, 2021 Vaccine rollout must be corrupt-free: Pangilinan THE pending vaccine procurement bill must include safeguards to prevent corruption and the use of the vaccine for political purposes, Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan said Thursday. "Madalas sa makupad na burukrasya nabubuo at nagbubunga ang kurakot. Kaya nga padulas ang tawag sa suhol. Sa panukalang batas na ito, sisiguruhin ng Senado na lahat ng perang nakalaan para rito ay mapupunta sa bakuna at pagbabakuna," he said in support of Senate Bill 2042 which also seeks to empower local government units (LGUs) to have a bigger role in the implementation of the program. He stressed that one critical key to speeding up the inoculation of Filipinos is working hand-in-hand with LGUs and the private sector to get the doses of protection to the people fast. "There is no doubt LGUs are stepping up and are initiating efforts to deliver the vaccine to their constituents. The national government should support them by clearing the bureaucratic roadblocks that cause the delays," Pangilinan said. "May mahalagang papel na ginagampanan ang LGUs sa pagbabakuna dahil anu't ano man, sila ang nilalapitan ng tao. Sila ang hinahanapan ng ayuda, sila ang pinagawa ng contact tracing, sila ang pinaghanda ng testing centers at laboratories, kaya't dapat nating suportahan ang inisyatiba nila na makahanap ng bakuna," he added. The senator has repeatedly called out the national government's vaccine program rollout for being slow and with uncertain timetables, putting more lives at risk by the day without the means to control the deadly Covid-19. "The spread of the Covic-19 variants and the new surge of infections are outpacing the lethargic action of the government when it comes to procuring the vaccines," he said. Pangilinan said the national government should pave the way for the LGUs' significant participation in the vaccine rollout from the procurement, training of personnel, and administering the vaccine to their constituents. "We are wondering why up to now, government officials tasked in the securing the vaccine could not yet ink a supply agreement for the delivery of the vaccines in the country," he said. He rued that the Philippines has lagged behind its Southeast Asian neighbors in vaccine procurement, amid the administration's pronouncements that it has the money and that it has been constantly talking with Chinese officials. Pangilinan also pushed for transparency in the rollout of the vaccine program such that the national government and the LGUs will make public the master list of those who will be inoculated to ensure that the priority and vulnerable sectors get the vaccine first. He said there should also be vaccine passports, which could be on paper and digital, as proof of inoculation of the Filipinos.
Ambassador of Belarus V.Brylev meets the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia

On February 17th, 2021, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Republic of Serbia Valery Brylev met with Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Serbia for Multilateral Cooperation Aleksandar Tasic.

During the conversation, the sides discussed issues of strengthening Belarusian-Serbian cooperation and mutual support at multilateral platforms.

The interlocutors emphasized the commitment of the two countries to the further development of friendly relations between Belarus and Serbia.

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Eleven men arrested in day of County Lines Action between North Wales and Merseyside officers

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Feb 18th, 2021

Eleven men have been arrested as part of a joint investigation into County Lines drug supply into the North Wales area.

Officers from Merseyside Police and North Wales Police took part in the operation yesterday, which took place as part of Project Medusa, a Merseyside-led initiative set up to tackle County Lines drug dealing and child criminal exploitation.

It total, 76 people were stop searched throughout the day which saw officers in both North Wales and Liverpool patrolling on foot and in both marked and unmarked cars, on the hunt for those involved in moving, dealing and selling drugs.

11 men were arrested on suspicion of a variety of offences including possession with intent to supply Class A, B and C drugs, possession of an offensive weapon, money laundering, drug driving and driving while disqualified.





20 people were dealt with for minor traffic offences and four vehicles were seized for their drivers having no insurance.

Three men were cautioned for possession of small amounts of cannabis.

15 people will voluntarily attend interview with police at a later date.

Inspector Katie Wilkinson said: Yesterdays activity comes on the back of the work were carrying out day in, day out to arrest those involved in this type of criminality and shut down County Lines.

The forces Project Medusa, which consists of different types of operational activity, continues to use a variety of tactics, including working in partnership with other forces, to effectively disrupt and in turn bring down these OCGs.

Those involved blight the communities they deal drugs in and its a sad fact that these criminals are known to target vulnerable people to do their dirty work on the ground, often coercing them with gifts and more often than not, violence.

Despite the global pandemic, it is business as usual for these criminals, who will carry out this type of activity, despite the restrictions that are in place, risking the health of everyone they come into contact with, when we should be doing all we can to halt the spread of the virus.

Ultimately everyone should be warned that if you get involved in crime, you risk facing the consequences. But when we identify vulnerable, exploited people during our enquiries, we ensure they are treated with sensitivity and understanding, and are offered the appropriate support. Our primary target is those who seek to use them for their own selfish gain.

Inspector Claire Shiland from North Wales Police said: Yesterdays arrests form just a part of our intensive work to tackle the issue of County Lines in north Wales.

Drug dealers do not recognise borders, and as such we will continue to work closely with our colleagues from Merseyside to target those criminals that bring misery to our communities by their activities.

Yesterdays co-ordinated operation saw officers from both forces strike from Flintshire to Conwy, and I would emphasize that this work continues day in, day out , as we strive towards making north Wales the safest place in the UK.

You can report any concerns to police on 999 if a crime is in progress, via 101, or our live webchat at https://www.northwales.police.uk/police-forces/north-wales-police/areas/live-chat/

You can also pass information via the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously, on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information
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Endorphina Celebrates The Chinese Year Of The Ox With New Golden Ox Online Slot

Published February 18, 2021 by Arthur M

The latest slot from Endorphina is timed to coincide with the Chinese New Year. Golden Ox is a 5-reel, 50-line game that's available in desktop and mobile formats.

The Chinese Year of the Ox begins on 12th February 2021, and to celebrate, Endorphina has just launched a brand new online slot. Golden Ox is a PC and mobile game played out over 5 reels and 50 lines, where players can discover wild substitutions, free games, and a gamble option.

Join The Celebrations

Lotus flowers, lucky koi fish, red lanterns, and firecrackers are among the classic Asian-inspired symbols on the 5 reels of the Golden Ox slot. The firecrackers deliver the top prizes, with 2x the stake returned when players land 5 of a kind across a line, while playing card emblems return smaller prizes when crossing any of the 50 paylines. These colourful symbols sit within a golden frame against a rich red backdrop.

The Golden Ox itself is a wild symbol that can step in if needed to complete a winning combination. A gold coin scatter symbol triggers 10 free spins and during the round, wild symbols lock in place for any remaining games. An extra 5 games are added on if at least 3 more scatters appear in a single free spin.

Taking The Gamble

Players can double winnings up to 10x in an optional gamble round. They need select from 4 face-down playing cards to beat a Dealers' card and can keep going on successful picks. A wrong pick ends the round and loses the triggering prize.

Golden Ox uses a highly popular theme and vivid colours to bring the Chinese New Year celebrations to desktop and mobile casinos using the Endorphina range. It's fully licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority and comes with an average return to players percentage of 96%.

Endorphinas CEO, Jan Urbanec, shares his thoughts on the new release: ''The release of the Golden Ox is another proof of our goal to reach large audiences with a variety of themes. A perfect game to start this year!
New Delhi/Kolkata, Feb 18 : The Indian Railways on Thursday described the bomb blast at West Bengal's Nimtita railway station as an "unfortunate" incident and said the law and order is a state subject and the state police was responsible for the same.

A railway ministry spokesperson here said that the unfortunate incident of blast happened in the premises of Nimtita station in Malda of Eastern Railway at 10.20 p.m.

"Indian Railways condemns the incident. Relief and rescue measures were immediately initiated by Railways. Injured persons were rushed by RPF and other Railway authorities to the near-by hospitals," the spokesperson said.

He said, "It may be noted that law and order is a state subject and state police is fully responsible for the same. Law and order on railway platforms is also under the purview of Government Rail Police (GRP) of state government." In the blast on Wednesday night at the Nimtita railway station, 25 people including West Bengal Minister Jakir Hussain were injured after some unidentified attackers hurled crude bombs at them at Nimtita railway station in Murshidabad district. Later on, 10 of the injured were moved to Kolkata hospital for treatment.

He said that the location comes under the jurisdiction of SRP Howrah and the GRP has registered a case.
Orange County Fire Authority Firefighter Dylan Van Iwaarden was released from Orange County Global Medical Center in Santa Ana, Calif., on Feb. 17, 2021, after receiving treatments from injuries sustained during last October's Silverado Fire. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Firefighter Injured in Silverado Blaze Released from Hospital

SANTA ANAOne of two Orange County firefighters critically injured during the Silverado Fire near Irvine in October was released from a hospital Feb. 18.

Dylan Van Iwaarden spent 114 days in the OC Burn Center at OC Global Medical Center in Santa Ana.

Van Iwaarden, 26, and fellow firefighter Phi Le, 31, were critically injured Oct. 26 while setting backfires to slow the spread of the blaze, which blackened 12,466 acres.

Orange County Fire Authority Firefighters clap for Dylan Van Iwaarden as he was released from Orange County Global Medical Center in Santa Ana, Calif., on Feb. 17, 2021, after receiving treatments from injuries sustained in last Octobers Silverado Fire. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Van Iwaarden underwent 17 surgeries and was placed in a medically induced coma and intubated at one point, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. He will now begin rehabilitation at UC Irvine Medical Center.

Firefighters held a clap line for their co-worker, who expressed gratitude for the support hes received.

Im so thankful for everybody being there for me, Van Iwaarden said. It was a tragic event, but Im getting better.

Van Iwaarden said he was ready to get going and keep moving on.

Le was released from the hospital last December. OCFA officials declined to discuss his condition at the request of his family.
Ahead of his meeting with Pope Francis on Thursday, the Apostolic Nuncio to Croatia describes the pain endured in the Balkan nation due to a pair of damaging earthquakes and the ongoing pandemic.

By Devin Watkins

Pope Francis met Thursday morning with Archbishop Giorgio Lingua, the Apostolic Nuncio to Croatia, in a private audience in the Vatican.

Speaking to Vatican Radios Alessandro Di Bussolo ahead of the meeting with the Pope, the Archbishop reviewed the situation in the Balkan nation, and expressed the Croatian peoples steadfastness in the faith.

I am presenting the Pope with a Croatia both very much alive and in pain, he said. It has been tested by the tragedy of two earthquakes over the past year: one in Zagreb (22 March 2020) measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale; the other in Petrinja (29 December 2020), in the Diocese of Sisak, measuring 6.4.

At least eight people died in the quakes, all but one in Petrinja, and thousands of buildings were heavily damaged.

Pained yet proud

Archbishop Lingua lamented the timing of the quakes, which took place as the country was entering its first Covid-19 lockdown and in the midst of its second.

These two tragedies added to the damage already inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic, which has severely crippled the tourism industry, which is the countrys primary resource, he said.

Despite these trials, said the Nuncio, Croatians are a proud people who have a well-organized and living Church.

Archbishop Lingua said certain tinges of clericalism are evident in the local Church. But, he added, Croatian Catholics foster a strong devotion to Our Lady and care deeply for the Pope and the Church of Rome.

Listen to our report

Difficulties facing migrants

Another issue facing Croatian society, admitted the Italian Archbishop, is that of lying along the so-called Balkan route taken by numerous migrants seeking to enter Europe.

The situation, he said, is very difficult and complicated Young people and adultsin some cases minorsare forced to endure harsh winters in deplorable conditions.

Yet now is not the time to point fingers, he added, but rather the time to seek solutions. I personally think that when we make decisions it is better to err on the side of an excess of generosity, instead of rigidity.

Archbishop Lingua said migrants along the Balkan route risk being doubly let down, both by their home countries and by the nations where they hope to settle.

They risk letting their hearts become embittered and despairing, he said, perhaps because they left their home country naively but with great hope If there is not even the slightest hope of a better future, disappointment could have serious negative consequences.

Apostolic Journey to Iraq

Before being sent to Croatia, Archbishop Lingua served as the Apostolic Nuncio to Iraq and Jordan for nearly 5 years, until 2015.

In view of Pope Francis upcoming Apostolic Journey to Iraq, the Archbishop recalled his time there, which saw the departure of many foreign troops and the rise of the so-called Islamic State.

I remember a suffering and strong Church, he said. I would like to highlight the strength of Iraqi Christians, who despite difficult times have kept the faith.

Sure to be a blessing

Archbishop Lingua added that the Popes visit will be a great blessing.

Perhaps there may be doubts about its success or the risks he runs, but I am sure that the Lord will assist the Holy Father and will be an important occasion to put into practice the message of Fratelli tutti.

Archbishop Lingua concluded the interview expressing his optimism regarding the future of Iraq.

I think several gestures are importantsuch as the Popes visit, international encouragement, and the construction of the university in Erbilin order to give young Christians reasons to remain there to witness to their faith."
Computer History Museum Honors Tech Legend Raj Reddy

February 18, 2021

The Computer History Museum (CHM) has announced that Raj Reddy, the Moza Bint Nasser University Professor of Computer Science and Robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, is among its 2021 Fellow Award honorees. CHM's Fellow Awards recognize extraordinary individuals for a lifetime of achievement in computing and technology.

"Being selected to be a Fellow of the Computer History Museum seems like you have become an antique," Reddy said. "I guess when you have been working with computers for over six decades you do become ancient!"

A visionary in artificial intelligence and robotics, Reddy has focused his career on how technology can serve society, particularly in education and in developing societies.

The founding director of CMU's Robotics Institute and a former dean of the School of Computer Science, Reddy developed the first system capable of recognizing continuous speech, and his research team developed many of the concepts underlying modern commercial speech recognition technology. These ideas were adopted in a variety of applied artificial intelligence systems.

His research interests extend beyond speech recognition to include robotics, human-computer interaction, innovations in higher education and efforts to bridge the "digital divide," particularly for people in developing nations. He initiated CMU's autonomous vehicle program, which subsequently has spawned numerous innovations.

Reddy also created the The Universal Digital Library, a free, online digital library that includes more than 1.5 million volumes, with book digitization centers in China, India, Egypt and the United States. He was instrumental in establishing in 2008 the Rajiv Gandi University of Knowledge Technologies, which enrolls thousands of low-income, gifted youth from rural southeastern India.

Reddy's contributions to science and statesmanship were recognized in 2006 by the National Science Board, which presented him its prestigious Vannevar Bush Award. In 1984, France awarded Reddy the Legion of Honor for his work in developing countries. He received computer science's equivalent to the Nobel Prize, the Association for Computing Machinery's Turing Award, in 1994 for his contributions to artificial intelligence.

Over its three-decade history, previous winners of the CHM Fellow Awards include CMU alumni James Gosling, Edward Feigenbaum, Charles M. Geschke and Ivan Sutherland and former faculty such as C. Gordon Bell. Other winners have included Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak, NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, software pioneer Rear Adm. Grace Hopper and World Wide Web creator Tim Berners-Lee.

Museum CEO Dan'l Lewin said the impact of the CHM Fellows can be seen in art, healthcare, education, government and myriad other fields and disciplines.

"Their professional and personal stories transcend generations and inspire us all," Lewin said.

Additional 2021 Fellow Award honorees include Raymond Ozzie, Andries van Dam and Lillian Schwartz. A series of virtual events will explore the story and impact of each honoree and the present and future of technology for humanity beginning with an event on March 18 that celebrates Ozzie.
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New Delhi, Feb 18 : In order to give an edge to the farmers 'protests against the farm laws, the farmers' organisations announced a 'rail roko' protest on Thursday.

The police have also increased the security along the border in wake of the "rail roko".

Speaking on about the movement, National Spokesperson of Bharatiya Kisan Union Rakesh Tikait told IANS in the day earlier: "Where the trains are running? Only one-two trains trains are being operated. We would also request to the government that run more trains".

"The government has stopped the trains since last eight months, public is facing trouble. Whichever the train would come, we would stop that and offer water and milk to the passengers along with offering flowers. And, we'll tell them that what problems are we facing," he said.

When the train stops, is it not that passengers are abused? In response to this question, Tikait said, "Who will misbehave? Whoever does will be prosecuted." Train Stop campaign will be peaceful. The passengers will be distributed gram, milk and water, he added.

Although the farmers organisations are calling this campaign symbolic, the police-administration and the Railways have made preparations to deal with it. At the same time security has been increased at Singhu, Tikri and other places where protesters are sitting.

However, the farmers sitting at the Ghazipur border will not shift anywhere.

National Convenor of Jai Kisan movement Yogendra Yadav has also said that we blocked the road at the time when the traffic is lowest and similarly, the train traffic remains low during day time as long distance trains mostly run at night.

The farmer organisations want to mount pressure on the Centre to roll-back the three farms laws that they are describing as anti-farmers.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
Investment will finance clinical trials and certification for an innovative retinal surgery robot

Montpellier, France--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - AcuSurgical, a startup developing a robotic assistant for vitreo-retinal surgery, announces a Series A funding of around 6 million euros. The round was led by institutional investors Merieux Partners and Supernova Invest, with participations from IRDI-Soridec and Sofimac Innovation. The round aims to finance upcoming clinical trials and CE mark certification.





Click image above to view full announcement.

AcuSurgical designs and builds a robotic surgical assistant dedicated to the treatment of retinal diseases such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) affecting over 300 million patients worldwide including one in three Europeans aged over 70. AcuSurgical's mission is to improve the precision and safety of current retinal procedures, augmenting the surgeons abilities and thus enabling new retinal surgeries. The aim is to treat the significative percentage of patients who today suffer from limited treatment options.

The innovative and unique robot was designed in collaboration with the LIRMM robotics laboratory, a joint research unit of the University of Montpellier and the CNRS (France) and vitreo-retinal surgeons at the Jean Monnet University in Saint-Etienne (France). The company recently signed a partnership with the Adolphe de Rothschild Foundation based in Paris.

"Our ambition is to enable innovative treatments for retinal disease that will open new perspectives for the numerous patients who today are impacted by these debilitating retinal conditions and who currently have limited options for treatment. We're proud of the confidence afforded to us by this strong group of investors. Their support will allow us to grow the team and reach key milestones towards certification and commercialisation of our innovative surgical robotics platform," says Christoph SPUHLER, CEO and co-founder of AcuSurgical.

"We are delighted to partner with such an experienced team and look forward to supporting Acusurgical bring to market an innovative platform that will improve ocular surgeries and open new procedures in ophthalmology," says Valerie Calenda, Managing Partner at Merieux Equity Partners. www.merieux-partners.com

"The robotics platform developed by AcuSurgical answers the needs of many retinal surgeons to perform complex procedures safely and reproducibly. We are very pleased to support this new venture and excellent team" says Celia Hart, General Partner at Supernova Invest. http://www.supernovainvest.com/

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Contact: Pierre-Antoine FOREST

Marketing Director

press@acusurgical.com

AcuSurgical was co-founded in 2020 by Christoph Spuhler, robotics professors Philippe Poignet and Yassine Haddab and vitreo-retinal surgeons and professors Philippe Gain and Gilles Thuret. The team is comprised of experts with significant previous experience in surgical robotics and ophthalmic medical devices. The company grew out of a collaboration between the co-founders and the LIRMM robotics laboratory accompanied by seed funding from the AxLR incubator. SATT AxLR specializes in the maturation and commercialization of innovative projects resulting from academic research.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74805
Minister asked to explain why Beef Taskforce has not convened since Christmas

Frustrations over a lack of clarity on the next sitting of the Beef Market Taskforce flared in the Dail yesterday.

In parliamentary questions, Michael Fitzmaurice independent TD for Roscommon-Galway urged Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue to consider live streaming taskforce meetings from now on, while Clare independent Michael McNamara demanded answers on why the stakeholder grouping has not sat since December 2020.

The heightened pressure to convene the taskforce comes as farmers have been hit with cuts in beef prices from between 40/hd and 60/hd for finished stock in recent weeks.

Deputy Fitzmaurice said: The price of beef has plummeted all of a sudden.

"It is as well to tell the minister straight out that there is speculation that some of the retail operators have told the factories to pull back to three days a week because there will be a shortage of cattle later  and the longer they hold back to three days a week, the more of an opportunity there will be to flood the market.

"This needs investigating but the taskforce is not sitting. Will the minister get the chairman of the taskforce to sit at least once a month?

"Farmers only hear what happens a month after the task force meets and they need to be able to see what happens live. That is important, said the deputy who requested a written response to his queries.

Question time

Meanwhile, Clare independent Michael McNamara also repeatedly asked the minister to explain why the Beef Taskforce has not met since December.

In response Minister McConalogue said: The beef task force plays a very important role.

"I know the role it plays. Why is it not meeting?, deputy McNamara replied. To this the minister said: it is continuing its work as well. It will be meeting again to continue that work."

Not satisfied with this answer the Clare politician continued: Why is it not meeting? It is a simple question. Why is it not meeting. Again Minister McConalogue reiterated: It will be meeting again to continue its work.

Disappointed still, deputy McNamara persisted: Why has it not met since Christmas." This time the minister responded: I have answered the question.

"The minister has not, stated the deputy, who then asked Cheann Comhairle Sean OFearghail to intervene saying: A Cheann Comhairle, could you direct the minister to answer the question.

To which Mr OFearghail replied: "No, I cannot direct the minister to do that.

Frustrated by the lack of clarity on the next sitting of the Beef Taskforce deputy McNamara contended: So what is the point in this charade of accountability and democracy.

"I know, said the Cheann Comhairle, suggesting that the deputy should go on with his next question. He might do better.

There was no further confirmation on a set date for the next convening of the cross stakeholder Beef Market Taskforce.

Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 05:30:54|Editor: huaxia

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ALGIERS -- Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Thursday announced an imminent dissolution of the the National People's Assembly, or the lower house of the parliament, ahead of holding early parliamentary election.

In a speech aired on the state run television ENTV, Tebboune said that he is due to dissolve the lower house of the parliament, noting that the "revendications outcried during the popular demonstrations" in 2019 have been included in the new constitution. (Algeria-Parliament-Dissolution)

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TEHRAN -- A senior Iranian official said Thursday that Iran will stop implementing the Additional Protocol of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) if the U.S. sanctions against Iran are not lifted in the coming days.

Amir Abdollahian, special assistant to the speaker of Parliament for international affairs, said that the deadline for the U.S. and European signatories to the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal to lift sanctions will expire in four days. (Iran-IAEA-Additional Protocol)

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ANKARA -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation, the Communication Directorate of the Turkish Presidency said on Thursday.

The two leaders discussed steps to develop relations between Turkey and Russia, along with regional issues, the presidency said in a written statement. (Turkey-Russia-Presidents)

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JERUSALEM -- Israel said on Thursday that it has begun developing a long-range ballistic missile interceptor, named Arrow-4, together with the United States.

"The Israel Missile Defense Organization, in the Directorate of Defense Research and Development of the Defense Ministry, and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency, have commenced the development of the Arrow-4 system," a spokesperson with the defense ministry said in a statement. (Israel-U.S.-Missile Development) Enditem
(Alliance News) - Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline PLC on Wednesday announced new gender and diversity targets for increasing representation at senior levels.

The company has set aspirational targets to increase ethnic diversity among US and UK senior leadership and further extended is gender diversity aspirational target in order to "drive further progress".

The company said it has already beaten a previous target for 37% vice president-level and above roles being filled by women. It will now extend this to at least 45% by 2025.

Moreover, it has introduced targets for racial and ethnic diversity in senior roles in its two largest employee populations, being the US and UK, which reflect those countries' demographics.

In the US, it is aiming for at least 30% ethnically diverse leaders by 2025-end, from the current level of 23%, while in the UK the target is at least 18% ethnically diverse leaders by the end of 2025, from 11% at present.

Glaxo noted that: "While the expectation is progress across all groups during that time, there will be a specific focus in the US to increase the percentage of Black or African American, and Hispanic or Latinx senior leaders and to increase the percentage of Black senior leaders in the UK year-on-year."

The targets, Glaxo said, are part of a broader commitment to diversity and inclusion and aim of increasing these across all different groups of people in the company's workforce.

Chief Executive Emma Walmsley said: "We have already made some good progress on our inclusion and diversity agenda, but there is still much more we can do. These new ambitions are the next step for us as we build a diverse workforce that represents the society we operate in and ultimately helps us provide more effective solutions for patients and consumers."

Shares in Glaxo closed 0.3% higher at 1,276.40 pence in London on Wednesday.

By Anna Farley; annafarley@alliancenews.com

Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Usha Rao-Monari (left), seen here with (l-r) Gary White and Matt Damon, co-founders of Water.org; Ricardo Tadeu, African Zone president of AB InBev; and Arianna Huffington, founder of the Huffington Post; at the World Economic Forum on Jan. 17, 2017 in Davos, Switzerland, has been appointed as an Under Secretary General and associate administrator of the UN Development Program. (Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images for Stella Artois)
She welcomed her first son Oliver with her on-screen - and now off-screen - husband Cameron Merchant in October last year.

But Jules Robinson had something else to celebrate this week, as she became the first Married At First Sight contestant to reach 500k Instagram followers on Thursday - beating Bondi influencer Martha Kalifatidis in the process.

Despite sharing a string of sponsored content, Jules, 38, has racked up a massive 533k followers on her social media page.

Sponsored at First Sight! Jules Robinson became the first MAFS contestant to reach 500k Instagram followers on Thursday - beating Bondi influencer Martha Kalafiditis in the process

Martha is not far behind with 492k followers, Elizabeth Sobinoff - who has appeared on the show twice - has 398k, while Jules' husband Cam also has an impressive 348,000.

Since appearing on the reality TV franchise, Cam and Jules have shared a string of cringeworthy paid-for posts on their respective pages.

In October, Jules shared three sponsored posts in just 24 hours, in an effort to help out new mothers with the task of juggling their busy schedules.

Catching up: Martha Kalifatidis (pictured on MAFS) is not far behind with 492k followers, while Elizabeth Sobinoff - who has appeared on the show twice - has 398k, while Jules' husband Cam also has an impressive 348,000

First off Jules promoted Urban Company, who offer a home deep cleaning service, and then offered her followers a code for $15 off their first booking.

Just hours later, Jules went on to promote Personally Picked - a company that creates personalised gift boxes.

Jules had received her own box containing children's books and beauty products, before panning her iPhone over the goodies while thanking and tagging the brand.

Around a similar time, she promoted Elevitaus - a pre-conception and pregnancy multivitamin - informing her fans she took them before and during her own pregnancy.

Lucky her! First off Jules promoted Urban Company, who offer a home deep cleaning service. She shared a video of an army of people getting to work on her own house

Paid partnership: Jules promoted Elevitaus - a pre-conception and pregnancy multivitamin, informing her fans she took them before and during her own pregnancy

In June, Cameron was trolled by fans after launching an IGTV series #DadCam, in which he tried out a string of new baby products.

While the video received mostly positive comments from Cam's fans, one follower left a nasty comment saying the clip featured too many sponsored products.

'How many paid sponsorships you can push into a 2 min video?' one fan wrote, while another responded: 'I counted 23.'

Despite a touch of negativity, the two are arguably the most successful couple to come out of the Australian franchise to date.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Senik took part in the first online travel conference "Ukraine - North Macedonia" on Wednesday.

"With the assistance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, during the event, a virtual signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation and Coordination in the tourism sector between the National Tourism Organization of Ukraine and the Agency for Promotion and Support of Tourism in the Republic of North Macedonia took place," the MFA press service said on Wednesday.

The memorandum is aimed at developing the tourism business and increasing the number of tourists in Ukraine and North Macedonia, promoting new tourism products, popularizing historical and cultural heritage, implementing joint projects, exchanging experience in matters of safety, quality and innovation in the tourism sector.

In an address to the conference participants, Senik said the development of the tourism sector will further enhance economic relations between Ukraine and North Macedonia: "Last year, North Macedonia ranked third among the countries of the Balkan region in terms of bilateral trade with Ukraine. Despite the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, we have managed to achieve high indicators over the past eight years. Development of the tourism sector should enhance further economic cooperation."

According to Senik, the establishment of a direct dialogue between the National Tourism Organization of Ukraine and the Agency for Promotion and Support of Tourism in the Republic of North Macedonia will make cooperation in tourism more systematic and mutually beneficial.

The diplomat said supporting the promotion of the Ukrainian tourism potential is among the key priorities of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's work in the economic area.
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Facebook's controversial ban on sharing Australian news has sparked fears about democratic fairness after a state opposition leader's page was blocked three weeks out from an election - but the Labor premier's profile remained intact.

Millions of Australians woke up to the shock news on Thursday that they are now banned from seeing and sharing local news on Facebook in response to proposed federal government laws to make tech giants pay media companies for the content they use.

Facebook pages providing the community with vital emergency, health and support updates were blocked in the wake of the announcement as its algorithm put in a blanket ban.

WA's Liberal opposition leader Zak Kirkup's page was also censored by Facebook ahead of the state election on March 13.

But Premier Mark McGowan's profile remains unscathed.

Mark McGowan (pictured) is to run again in the WA election on March 13 - and his page has been allowed to run as normal on Facebook, unlike his opponents

The Premier's Facebook page remained accessible on Thursday morning (pictured)

While Western Australians can no longer be updated on bushfire warnings through the Department of Fire and Emergency Services page, Mr McGowan's page - which boasts 359,000 followers - remains open.

His posts also remain accessible, including his latest rant slamming Clive Palmer on Wednesday night.

Mr Kirkup, on the other hand, has seen all his posts wiped from his Facebook page.

He initially appeared to cop the ban with a sense of humour.

'Alright time to reactive my MySpace account,' Mr Kirkup tweeted.

He's now working with the social media giant to get his Facebook page back up and running.

'It is very disappointing that weeks from an election Facebook removed our page. We are working with the company to have this error fixed as quickly as possible,' Mr Kirkup told The West Australian.

'In this day and age, more and more people are reliant on social media platforms for their news and information about current affairs.'

Pages for Perth Childrens Hospital and local councils including the City of Perth have also been caught up in the ban.

Zak Kirkup (pictured in Perth last week) was the first Australian politician to be censored by Facebook

Mr Kirkup woke up on Thursday morning to find his public Facebook page (pictured) blocked

But questions have been raised about democracy as the state election draws closer.

'The opposition leader's Facebook page is blocked. The premier's is still operating. Less than a month from an election, will commit to not posting on Facebook in the interests of fairness?,' Nine News deputy news director Adam Haynes tweeted.

Facebook claims it was left with no choice but to make the extraordinary move to ban Australians from accessing news on its platform.

'The proposed law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content,' the company said in a statement.

'It has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia.

'With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter.'

Mark McGowan (pictured with his family) is backed to remain Premier on March 13

The ban also impacted on the state's Department of Fire and Emergency Services page

The social media giant since apologised for the inconvenience for government Facebook pages.

'The actions we're taking are focused on restricting publishers and people in Australia from sharing or viewing Australian and international news content,' a Facebook spokesman said.

'As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of news content, we have taken a broad definition in order to respect the law as drafted.

'However, we will reverse any pages that are inadvertently impacted.'
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"While its an intensive and time-consuming process, it means that HydrantHub is your best repository of known hydrant locations. Well take what weve learned from the first 11 million and put it to use for our next million. - Michael Jolitz, CTO, HazardHub

HazardHub, the USAs fastest-growing supplier of geospatial risk data, a 2020 Gartner Cool Company, and 2020 Lloyds Lab participant  announces that the current release of their HydrantHub database now includes more than 11,000,000 fire hydrant locations in the United States.

Michael Jolitz, HazardHubs Chief Technology Officer and architect of HydrantHub explains, The race to 11 million hydrants has taken an enormous effort from our data team to locate and geocode fire hydrants. We spend hundreds of hours per week identifying sections of the country where we do not have hydrant data, then putting in the work to identify hydrant locations. While its an intensive and time-consuming process, it means that HydrantHub is your best repository of known hydrant locations. Well take what weve learned from the first 11 million and put it to use for our next million.

HazardHubs work in identifying fire protection factors shows that the presence of a fire hydrant is a critical factor in protecting properties. In fact, homes and businesses located more than 500 feet from a fire hydrant show 30% greater fire losses than those within 500 feet of a hydrant.

Currently, there is no other commercial provider of known fire hydrant locations that approaches HydrantHubs comprehensiveness, positional accuracy, and lightning-fast API access. HydrantHub is the only commercially available system that will tell you the number of fire hydrants within 1000 of a property  a key indicator of overall fire risk.

John Siegman, CCA of HazardHub adds, Our clients strive to be on the cutting-edge of underwriting and pricing excellence  HydrantHub is just one of a number of tools to help them get there. Every day we work to provide the highest-fidelity data possible for our clients. Adding our 11 millionth hydrant to HydrantHub means that our clients can feel comfortable in making underwriting decisions based upon the best data in the industry. Its an incredibly important undertaking for us that we are thrilled to continue. Most importantly, no dogs were harmed in the gathering of our hydrant locations, but there were a lot of walkies.

HydrantHub is available today via HazardHubs lightning-fast API and is no additional charge for all existing API clients.

About HazardHub

HazardHub is your insurance policy against property risk.

Air. Fire. Water. Earth. Man-Made. HazardHub is the only third-generation provider of property-level hazard risk databases spanning the most dangerous perils in the United States. HazardHub translates huge amounts of geospatial digital data into easy-to-understand answers, providing easy to comprehend risk scorecards that are used to make real-world decisions. Our team of scientists provides comprehensive, and innovative, national coverage for risks that destroy and damage property. With more than 30,000,000 results returned to the market, HazardHub is fast-becoming the industrys go-to vendor for property and risk data.

To learn more about HazardHub please visit http://www.hazardhub.com or reach us directly at support@hazardhub.com.


Stellar MLS has selected Eben Moran as the company's new Vice President of MLS Services. In his new role, Eben will lead the product and project management groups for Stellar MLS and consult with Stellar's leadership on innovative solutions for our customers and shareholders.

I am beyond excited to be joining Stellar MLS as the Vice President of MLS Services. Stellar MLS is a proven leader in the MLS space and the Real Estate industry, and I look forward to being part of this innovative organization and bringing my experience and voice to this remarkable team, Eben expressed.

Eben brings an esteemed blend of experience to the VP role, having spent more than 18 years in the industry as a licensed sales associate, broker, and most recently as an MLS executive in Florida. Eben is a proven business leader in the industry. He thoroughly understands the relationship between real estate professionals and their MLS, holding more than 20 committee and board appointments throughout his career.

Merri Jo Cowen, CEO of Stellar MLS, said, "We are very fortunate to bring such a talented professional to our Stellar team. His knowledge of the MLS industry and his expertise and passion for innovation make Eben an excellent fit for Stellar MLS."

About Stellar MLS

Headquartered in Altamonte Springs, FL, Stellar MLS (Stellar) is Florida's largest multiple listing service (MLS) company, with over 65,000 customers in Florida and Puerto Rico. Owned by 15 shareholder Realtor Associations, Stellar MLS offers a comprehensive suite of productivity and marketing tools to professionals in the real estate industry. To complement its core residential offerings, Stellar MLS operates a commercial information exchange called My Florida Commercial Real Estate, located at MFCRE.com. For more information on Stellar MLS, please visit StellarMLS.com.
[February 18, 2021] India's Trusted Online B2B Marketplace SOLV Launches Operations in Hyderabad

Move is part of SOLV's expansion plans in 2021 on the back of strong growth and demand from micro, small and medium businesses for its offerings. HYDERABAD, India, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- SOLV, India's trusted B2B e-commerce platform for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), today announced the launch of its operations in Hyderabad, the capital of Telangana and a hub of industrial activity in South India. Its presence in Hyderabad will enable SOLV to work more closely with the MSMEs of the state, bringing to them the benefits of digitalisation and accelerating their growth through a host of financial and business solutions tailor-made for the sector. This launch also marks the start of SOLV's expansion plan wherein it aims to scale and establish its operations in 200+ towns across India. SOLV has seen its customer base grow significantly with an 80% increase in transacting buyer base who buy over 250 tonnes of goods from the platform every day. The adoption of the platform was fast-tracked during the COVID-19 pandemic as MSMEs realised the importance of having a digital presence and SOLV now has over 50,000 small businesses exploring the benefits of using its platform, with many who have seen their revenue more than double by being a part of the SOLV's ecosystem of MSMEs. With a thriving network of Food, Grocery & FMCG retail outlets and many well-established wholesale markets like Begum Bazar, Malakpet Gunj, Kushaiguda and Shahpurnagar, Hyderabad's mature MSME sector is poised for the next level of growth, given the right resources and impetus. SOLV's full-stack, technology led e-commerce platform can provide it with the three key elements that help shape success for MSMEs, which they often struggle with: A strong trade network with access to new trusted buyersupplier ecosystem

Timely and easy access to finance

Simplified business support functions



SOLV is supported by a huge open network of financial services for the MSME ecosystem through pay-later and supply chain finance programs.

Speaking at a virtual launch event which was attended by representatives from industry bodies like FICCI FLO, FTCCI, and Hyderabad Kirana Merchant's Association, Rohit Dawer, Head, Commerce Sales, SOLV said, "We are excited to debut our pan India expansion plans with the city of digital MSMEs- Hyderabad. We look forward to collaborating closely with various industry bodies and trade associations in the state and work with them to bring about a large-scale digital transformation in the MSME sector. With the ease of trading goods in a trusted environment, financial flexibility and convenience of customised business solutions offered by our platform, MSMEs of Hyderabad can look forward to unlocking their growth potential and move the nation forward towards economic prosperity." Speaking at the launch, K. Mahesh Raidu, President, The Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry said, "MSMEs should take advantage of various initiatives announced by the Government of India. This is an excellent opportunity, with the focus on Atmanirbhar Bharat and exports, for the MSMEs to expand their horizons beyond the nation's boundaries especially through digitization. SOLV is an excellent platform in this regard, and we are hoping it will support MSMEs in their endeavours." Saritha Chilakapati, Head of Incubation, FICCI FLO, Hyderabad, said "Access to capital is very important for MSMEs and especially those which are being run by women. SOLV is an ideal platform for women entrepreneurs as they offer a lot of support under one roof. Again, technology is a boon for women entrepreneurs. It minimizes cost and helps us focus on our business. SOLV is an excellent platform in this regard." Mahesh Kumar Gupta, General Secretary, Hyderabad Kirana Merchants Association said, "SOLV is comprehensive, and we are looking forward to working with them to support our members which are looking at accessing capital and technology to make their operations more efficient." About SOLV: SOLV is a B2B marketplace for MSMEs. The SOLV platform facilitates commerce in a trusted environment, while easing access to finance and business services through one seamless digital experience for customers. SOLV, registered as Standard Chartered Research & Technology India Pvt. Ltd. is a fully-owned entity of the Standard Chartered Group, headquartered in London. https://www.SOLVezy.com/

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KYIV, Ukraine (AP)  Two journalists in Belarus were convicted Thursday of violating public order and sentenced to two years in prison after they covered a protest against authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Katsiaryna Bakhvalava, 27, who also goes by the last name of Andreyeva, and Daria Chultsova, 23, both of the Polish-funded Belsat TV channel, were arrested in November after police broke down the door of a Minsk apartment where they doing a live stream of a demonstration in the Belarusian capital.

Addressing the court before the verdict, Bakhvalava vowed to continue working for building a Belarus that wont have political repressions.

Im not pleading. Im demanding acquittal for me and my colleagues, she said, referring to other jailed journalists.

The two were charged with organizing actions rudely violating public order  accusations they denied.

The U.S. Embassy condemned the political convictions and egregious prison sentences for the journalists and urged authorities in Belarus to cease the persecution and prosecution of journalists and media outlets for covering the news.

The United States reiterates that Belarusian authorities have a commitment to protect and uphold fundamental freedoms, especially those of assembly, speech, and the press, it said in a statement.

More than 400 journalists have been detained in Belarus in the last six months, and at least 10 have faced criminal charges and remain in custody.

We consider the sentence politically motivated, its goal is to scare all journalists to prevent them from fulfilling their professional duty to cover socially important events in the country, the Belarusian Association of Journalists said. That effectively amounts to a professional ban.

The International Federation of Journalists denounced the ruling as shameful and totally unfounded.

Todays verdict is a clear attack on press freedom and we all stand together against this mockery of justice, federation president Younes Mjahed said in a statement.

Story continues

Belarus has been rocked by protests after official results from the Aug. 9 presidential election gave Lukashenko a sixth term in office by a landslide. The opposition and some poll workers have said the election was rigged.

Authorities in the Eastern European nation have responded with a sweeping crackdown on the demonstrations, the biggest of which attracted up to 200,000 people. Human rights activists say more than 30,000 people have been detained since the protests began, with thousands brutally beaten.

The United States and the European Union have responded to the election and the crackdown by introducing sanctions against Belarusian officials.

After the verdicts, Polish President Andrzej Duda asked the countrys diplomats to convey strong criticism of the crackdown on freedom of speech and civil rights to the Belarusian authorities, according to his top aide, Krzysztof Szczerski.

He noted that Poland is urging its EU partners to respond to the suppression of basic rights and freedoms in Belarus.

In a strongly worded comment, the head of the Belsat TV in Poland said sentencing the journalists was proof that the political terror in Belarus is being tightened, and she harshly criticized the EU for a muted response.

Our employees must operate as if in a war and they suffer measurable losses," Agnieszka Romaszewska-Guzy said in an opinion piece posted on the Belsat website. "They pay with their personal freedom for promoting free speech.

She vowed to take "the European Union out of its slumber and make sure that politicians take real steps instead of only offering words of indignation over the developments in Belarus.

I am very critical of actions taken so far, as being rather a pretense and hypocrisy, Romaszewska-Guzy said.

___

Follow all AP stories about developments in Belarus at https://apnews.com/Belarus.

-

Associated Press writer Monika Scislowska in Warsaw contributed.
INDIANAPOLIS, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- In recognition of Indiana state officials' efforts to promote support programs for family caregivers, the state has been selected to participate in a multi-state collaborative, Helping States Support Families Caring for an Aging America. This national initiative is led by the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) and aims to strengthen state-based opportunities to support family caregivers of older adults. The initiative is made possible by The John A. Hartford Foundation and The Michigan Health Endowment Fund.

Over the next two years, representatives from the Division of Aging will work alongside the Indiana Department of Health, Caregiver Homes from Seniorlink, and AARP. This Indiana coalition will join colleagues from seven other participating states, including Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Tennessee, Texas and Washington, to develop and enhance strategies that assist family caregivers. They will benefit from peer-to-peer learning opportunities, as well as technical assistance from CHCS and leading experts throughout this time. The initiative will focus on strengthening family caregivers' capacity to care for loved ones, including the use of new technologies, increased access to respite care, and formal training for family caregivers.

Since 2013, Caregiver Homes of Indiana, a subsidiary of Seniorlink, has worked with the Indiana State Division of Aging to provide Structured Family Caregiving (SFC). The program offers critical financial, educational, and emotional support to family members caring for Medicaid-eligible older adults at home.

SFC is one initiative at the center of Governor Eric Holcomb's pursuit of long-term care solutions that produce the best health outcomes for aging Hoosiers. Most recently, the state coordinated a Medicaid Expedited Eligibility Pilot to speed up Medicaid enrollment for those who need home-based services like SFC. This is in response to caregiver calls for help, as instances of caring for relatives and spouses at home rise during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The state of Indiana understands the valuable role of the family caregiver within the healthcare ecosystem," said Jennifer Trowbridge, Senior Director of Caregiver Homes in Indiana. "We're honored to be a part of this important initiative and for the opportunity to work in collaboration with the Division of Aging, Department of Health and AARP."

Family caregiving is an activity that spans generations  across all racial, ethnic, and cultural identities as well as income and education levels. Since 2015, the number of adults in the United States caring for a family member or friend age 50 or older has increased to more than 53 million individuals.

This is the second phase of the Helping States Support Families Caring for an Aging America initiative. CHCS will distill lessons from the states' efforts, which will be shared broadly with stakeholders across the country. For more information, visit www.chcs.org/supportingfamilycaregivers/.

About The John A. Hartford Foundation

The John A. Hartford Foundation, based in New York City, is a private, nonpartisan, national philanthropy dedicated to improving the care of older adults. For more than three decades, the organization has been the leader in building a field of experts in aging and testing and replicating innovative approaches to care. The Foundation has three priority areas: creating age-friendly health systems, supporting family caregivers, and improving serious illness and end-of-life care. Working with its grantees, the Foundation strives to change the status quo and create a society where older adults can continue their vital contributions.

About the Michigan Health Endowment Fund

The Michigan Health Endowment Fund [The Health Fund] is a philanthropic foundation that works to improve the health and wellness of Michigan residents while reducing healthcare costs. The Health Fund supports organizations across Michigan, from grassroots groups addressing local health challenges to large agencies working in every county. From the urban streetscapes of downtown Detroit all the way to the rural corners of the Upper Peninsula, its partners are doing innovative, evidence-based work to improve the health and wellness of Michigan residents.

About the Center for Health Care Strategies

The Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) is a nonprofit policy center committed to improving health care quality for low-income Americans. CHCS works with state and federal agencies, health plans, providers, and community-based organizations to develop innovative programs that better serve people with complex and high-cost health care needs.

About Caregiver Homes from Seniorlink

Caregiver Homes from Seniorlink is a tech-enabled health services company focused on keeping care in the home, where family caregivers play a pivotal role. The Company's solutions combine Vela, Seniorlink's collaboration technology, with evidence-based clinical protocols and the human touch of dedicated care teams working in partnership with family caregivers. Seniorlink's solutions lead to improved outcomes, cost savings and improved consumer engagement and satisfaction for health plans and providers. To learn more about Caregiver Homes of Indiana, visit https://info.seniorlink.com/indianacares4you.

SOURCE Seniorlink, Inc.
Kamala Harris' stepdaughter Ella Emhoff has appeared in her first designer fashion show, just three weeks after it was announced that she had signed with IMG Models.

The 21-year-old  who is the daughter of Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff, and his first wife, Kerstin  had turned the heads of fashion fans at President Joe Biden's inauguration on on January 20, where she wore an embellished Miu Miu coat.

Now the Parsons School of Design fine art student has nabbed her first high-profile modeling gig, storming the runway for Proenza Schouler in three different stylish looks.

Voila! Kamala Harris' stepdaughter Ella Emhoff has appeared in her first designer fashion show, just three weeks after it was announced that she had signed with IMG Models

Model moment: The 21-year-old stormed the runway for Proenza Schouler in three different stylish looks

According to Proenza Schouler's Instagram, Ella was styled by Brian Molloy, her hair  left in her natural curls  was done by Mustafa Yanaz, and her makeup was done by Diane Kendal

Pumped! Ella hasn't said much about the big debut, only thanking the brand on Instagram with a heart

Pandemic fashion show: According to Vogue, the fashion show was actually filmed two Sundays ago on Long Island

According to Vogue, the fashion show was actually filmed two Sundays ago on Long Island, but everyone involved  including designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez  kept Ella's involvement a secret until today, when video and imagery from the event was posted online.

Ella's first outfit included oversized gray slacks with a matching, below-the-knee gray coat, which were accessorized with furry shoes and a large tote.

She also modeled a black leather trench, and then had the honor of closing the show in a slinky black suit, worn with a button fastened at the chest and her stomach exposed.

According to Proenza Schouler's Instagram, Ella was styled by Brian Molloy, her hair  left in her natural curls  was done by Mustafa Yanaz, and her makeup was done by Diane Kendal.

'Ella, meanwhile, wrote on Instagram: 'Thank you thank you thank you @proenzaschouler, couldnt have worked with a better duo <3.'

She also participated in a Q&A with the designers on February 15.

Busy week! She also participated in a Q&A with the designers on February 15

Ella is pictured with designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez

The appearance marks her first professional modeling gig since signing with IMG last month

It's as yet unknown whether Ella has any other surprises up her sleeve, though New York Fashion Week ends this weekend.

The appearance marks her first professional modeling gig since signing with IMG last month, joining the ranks of Gigi Hadid, Kate Moss, and Alek Wek, who are also signed by the agency.

'It's not really about shape, size or gender any more,' said Ivan Bart, the president of IMG Models.

'Ella communicates this moment in time. There's a cheekiness and a joy she exudes.'

He said his response to seeing her at the inauguration was: 'Wow, she's communicating fashion.'

Ella said the approach from Bart took her back, even though she had been dabbling in modeling for a smaller agent.

'Ella communicates this moment in time. There's a cheekiness and a joy she exudes,' said Ivan Bart, the president of IMG Models.

Karlie Kloss (left) and Gigi Hadid (right) are among the famous faces to be part of the IMG lineup

'I was pretty surprised when everything with IMG was happening because when I was younger, I never saw that as being part of my timeline,' she told The New York Times.

'As someone who, like a lot of young girls out there, had self-confidence issues, it is intimidating and scary to go into this world that is hyper-focused on you and the body.'

She said she was encouraged by the diversity of models working today, and the opportunity to be 'part of that change.'

'I've obviously got a bigger platform now, and I'm excited to share a lot of things I really care about, and do some good,' she said, adding that she was 'excited to do things like wear fun clothes' and 'to bring a bit of Bushwick into the high fashion realm'.

She also hoped to fundraise for knitwear artists, adding: 'There are a lot of people out there that need a lot of help,' If I can do anything to help with that, I want to, and I think this opportunity will be really beneficial toward that.'

Attention! Most of the American public took notice of her at the inauguration

Ella, 21, seen posing with her father, Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, wore an embellished Miu Miu coat for the ceremony

Head-turning moment! The 21-year-old walked out with her brother Cole, 26, and quickly drew attention with her quirky sense of style

Hours before, Ella wowed in a preppy white shirt and tie tucked into a striped Thome Browne pleated skirt in the colors of the US flag as she posed with her mother and brother at the Lincoln Memorial on Instagram

Bart told the paper he noticed Ella at a fundraiser for Harris during the presidential primaries, and they began talking about the possibility of her joining IMG last summer.

Most of the American public, though, took notice of her at the inauguration.

Hours before the inauguration, Ella posed for pictures at the Lincoln Memorial with her mom and brother, Cole, and was already dressed to impress.

She went for a preppy, polished vibe, teaming a collared button-down-shirt with a patriotic red, white, and blue pleated skirt from Thom Browne's Fall 2020 collection. She topped it all off with a chic long coat, a necktie, and a small hand-held bag.

But it was at the inauguration ceremony itself that Ella caught international attention, walking out with her brother.

There, she turned heads in a mid-length wool Miu Miu coat, with a plaid pattern, a cinched waist, and pockets at the hips. At the top was a contrasting white collar and orange-gold crystal embellishments.

A similar coat in black costs $4,950.

Under her statement-making coat was a burgundy dress by designer Batsheva Hay

Underneath, she later revealed she was wearing a burgundy tea dress from independent New York designer Batsheva Hay.

Her looks have already caused a stir in the fashion world, with Teen Vogue calling her the 'cool girl' of the Biden-Harris administration, Vice branding her a 'slow fashion king,' and British Vogue saying the coat was the 'first viral moment' of the new Presidency.

Her brother even commented on the look, taking to Instagram to say he was behind the scenes with Ella 'The Coat' Emhoff.

Speaking to Vogue, Ella, who is in her final year at the Parsons School of Design in New York, explained how she had the bespoke look made.

'My mood board was very little girl, in a sense, a lot of scalloped collars and big silhouette shoulders and small buttons.

'I was going for something girlier, to embrace my feminine side  especially after that suit that I felt so great in  because, like, how many times do you prepare yourself to attend an inauguration? This momentous of an event deserves a momentous outfit,' she said.

Fans who have followed Ella on Instagram are familiar with her sense of style. She is currently studying textiles at Parsons in New York, and specialized in knitwear

AParsons School of Design art student, Ella lives in Brooklyn, New York

'I think the idea of sharing our parents with the world is kind of insane,' she admitted

As for the burgundy dress by Batsheva Hay she wore underneath her coat, she added: 'Something thats really important for me, especially with people I wear, is: I want to be able to see them as an artist and as a designer, and work with people who I really respect.

'I love New York for its fashion community, especially the parts that are created through Instagram, so working with a designer from that scene who was able to create something formal was perfect.

Fans who have followed Ella on Instagram are familiar with her sense of style. She is currently studying textiles at Parsons in New York, and specialized in knitwear.

'I think the goal is definitely to have my own knitwear brand, label, whatever you call it,' she told Garage. 'Setting up a shop, most likely online of where I can just have a bunch of different pieces that I'm constantly creating and doing my commission-based work and having that all be in a shop.

'Id like to try and stay a one-woman show, but I think as stuff has started ramping up with my knitwear, it's been harder. I'm only one woman, I can only make so many commissions while I'm also trying to just enjoy life.'
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has unveiled draft guidelines on credit default swaps (CDS). In the past too, the RBI has tried to launch a comprehensive CDS product but it never really took off. Heres a look at why that was the case and what has changed now.

What is a credit default swap (CDS)? It is a form of insurance that a bond investor buys against potential defaults by a corporation. The seller of the CDS is not necessarily an insurance company and the contract can be written (issued) by any permitted regulated financial entity, mainly banks. If the underlying bond ...
Thunder Bay, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 18, 2021) - White Metal Resources Corp. (TSXV: WHM) ("White Metal" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has completed its first drilling program on its 95% owned Taranis Copper-Silver Project (the "Project" or "Property"), located in northwestern Namibia and defined by Exclusive Prospecting Licence ("EPL") 7071. The reverse circulation ("RC") drilling program, which began January 19, 2021 (see Company news release January 14, 2021), consisted of 28 drill holes totalling 3,226 metres. The drilling program focused in the area that covers the historical mineral resources contained within the Okohongo Copper-Silver Deposit (the "Okohongo").

Michael Stares, President & CEO of the Company, stated, "The four week RC drilling program in Namibia was a success and will provide us with the necessary data and information to complete an NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate on the Okohongo copper-silver deposit. We look forward to receiving assay results by mid-March and announcing a resource estimate by April."

A total of 727 samples were submitted to Actlabs in Windhoek, Namibia for preparation and will be analyzed at Actlabs in Canada. Of the total samples, 619 are RC chip samples and 108 are blank, standard and duplicate samples submitted as part of the quality assurance/quality control program.

The Taranis Property (aka Okohongo Property), covering about 19 850 ha, includes the historical Okohongo Cu-Ag Deposit which has been outlined by historical drilling (see INV Metals news release dated August 3, 2011), showing it extends over 600 metres in strike length, 400 metres down-dip, and is interpreted to be open in all directions. The Okohongo, situated within the Kaoko Belt of northwest Namibia about 700 km northwest of Windhoek, is hosted by metasedimentary stratigraphy and is considered to be analogous with the stratiform sediment-hosted Central African Copperbelt deposits of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This deposit contains historical Inferred Mineral Resources of 10.2 million tonnes grading 1.12% Cu and 17.75 g/t Ag, using a 0.3% Cu cut-off (Table 1; INV Metals Inc. NI 43-101 Technical Report, Effective Date March 31, 2011).

Table 1. Historical Mineral Resources for the Okohongo Copper-Silver Project, Namibia.

Cut-off Specific Gravity Tonnes Cu (%) Ag (g/t) Cu (tonnes) Ag (ounces) Category 0.0 2.45 11 691 539 1.01 15.85 117 645 5,957,874 Inferred 0.1 2.45 11 682 796 1.01 15.86 117 640 5,957,640 Inferred 0.2 2.45 11 453 414 1.02 16.13 117 219 5,940,047 Inferred 0.3 2.45 10 196 456 1.12 17.75 114 046 5,818,534 Inferred 0.4 2.45 9 535 538 1.17 18.66 111 731 5,719,226 Inferred 0.5 2.45 8 705 239 1.24 19.73 107 993 5,522,454 Inferred 0.6 2.45 8 142 684 1.29 20.50 104 877 5,366,572 Inferred 0.7 2.45 7 366 110 1.35 21.61 99 810 5,116,714 Inferred 0.8 2.45 6 379 793 1.45 23.16 92 402 4,750,190 Inferred



source: NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Okohongo Copper-Silver Property in Northwest Namibia, INV Metals Inc.; Prepared By: Caracle Creek International Consulting (Pty) Ltd., South Africa, Effective March 31, 2011.

The Company is treating the tonnages and grades reported in Table 1 as historical mineral resources. The Inferred Mineral Resource estimate reported in Table 1 for the Okohongo Copper-Silver Deposit was prepared by qualified authors in 2011, conforming to CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves as outlined in National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. A Qualified Person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as current mineral resources and the Company is not treating the historical estimates as current mineral resources. Investors are cautioned that the historical estimates do not mean or imply that economic deposits exist on the properties. The Company has not undertaken any independent investigation of the historical estimates or other information contained in this news release nor has it independently analyzed the results of the previous exploration work in order to verify the accuracy of the information. The Company believes that these historical estimates and other information contained in this news release are relevant to continuing exploration on the Property.

Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Dr. Scott Jobin-Bevans (P.Geo.), Vice President Exploration and a Director of White Metal, who is a Qualified Person under the definitions established by the NI 43-101.

About White Metal Resources Corp (TSXV: WHM):

White Metal Resources Corp. is a junior exploration company exploring in Canada. For more information please visit the Company's website at www.whitemetalres.com.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of White Metal Resources Corp.

"Michael Stares"

Michael Stares

President & CEO, Director

For further information contact:

Michael Stares

684 Squier Street

Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, P7B 4A8

Phone: (807) 358-2420 Fax: (807) 475-7200

THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements."

Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to gold price and other commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/74833
Northern Irelands Covid-19 vaccination programme has been extended to include carers and more people with underlying health conditions.

GP practices and seven regional centres will deliver the jabs, and Stormont health minister Robin Swann said the process was ahead of schedule.

He added: The vaccination programme is making good progress and I am very pleased that we are able to announce these further extensions today.

It had been planned to begin vaccinating carers in early March. I am delighted that we are now able to bring this forward, on a staggered basis.

As ever, the rate of our progress through the eligible groups will depend on available supplies of vaccines.

Another six people in the region have died with Covid-19, the Department of Health said.

A further 297 have tested positive for the disease, and 434 are in hospital with the condition, with 53 in intensive care.

People aged 18 to 64 with underlying health conditions and their carers will be contacted by GPs for their inoculations.

The programme replicates those who receive the winter flu vaccine each year because of their conditions.

Carers aged 60-64, anyone aged 65-69 and those who received a shielding letter because they are clinically extremely vulnerable will be able to receive the jab at a regional vaccination centre.

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Anyone over 70 who has not yet had their first dose from their GP will be able to book an appointment at one of the seven regional centres.

A total of 447,685 vaccines have been administered in the region, the Department of Health said.

Stormont ministers will meet on Thursday to consider their next steps in easing the lockdown.

Since Christmas people have only been able to leave home for essential purposes and many school children have been confined to remote learning.

Non-essential retail has closed, along with leisure and hospitality industries.

Stormont education minister Peter Weir has said he expects a definitive decision around reopening of schools soon.
Rewilding: Beavers to be reintroduced in record numbers across Britain this year Trucker World

Perseverance will make sure it has a safe landing Phys.org. How to watch.

Exclusive: Whistleblower Accuses Exxon of Fraudulent Behavior for Overvaluing Fracking Assets For Years DeSmogBlog. From earlier this month, still germane.

Facebook reported revenue it should have never made, manager claimed FT. Accounting control fraud?

Facebook Blocks Charities, Government Pages in Australia News Spat Bloomberg

The Big Long The Refomed Broker

Polar Vortex 2021

How They Used to Clear Snowy Roads Before Snowplows and Trucks Were Invented Core77 (Re Silc).

#COVID19

China?

Decoupling denied: Japan Inc lays its bets on China FT

Southeast Asia would choose the U.S. over China if forced to pick sides, survey shows CNBC. Stupid headline. Southeast Asia wants to play all sides against each other and both ends against the middle. The very last thing they want to do is pick sides.

Biden Is Adopting a Militaristic Approach to the Far East The Nation

Myanmar

Cambodia sets up China-style Internet firewall The Star

Stay-at-home orders in Vietnam Covid-19 hotspot France24

Philippine Remittances See First Drop Since 2001 Bloomberg

India

Nigerias ecological emergency Africa is a Counrry

Mauritius

The devastation of the Mauritius oil spill is still unaddressed Al Jazeera

Syraqistan

UK/EU

New Cold War

Biden Transition

The Abruzzo Nomination is Great News For Labor Law Enforcement Labor Law Lite

After Pork Giant Was Exposed ror Cruel Killings, the FBI Pursued Its Critics The Intercept

Democrats in Disarray

Our Famously Free Press

Groves of Academe

What a Public-Information Act Request Revealed About My College President The Chronicle of Higher Education (dk: This is like all the terrible small college faculty stories Ive heard in the last 20+ years all rolled into one.) My worst imaginings. Iowa Auditor Rob Sand accuses regents of bad faith in keeping utilities deal secrets The Gazette

Imperial Collapse Watch

A Superpower, Like It or Not Robert Kagan, Foreign Affairs. Kagans gotta Kagan. A Culture in Despair Unpopular Front. Journalism/activism in France during the Dreyfus Affair.

Class Warfare

Its Not A Political Problem, Its A Propaganda Problem: Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix Caitlin Johnstone

Antidote du jour (via):

Bonus antidote (1):

KEEPING WARM: Thousands of cold-stunned sea turtles are inside the South Padre Island Convention Centre after volunteers rescued more than 3,500 of them from freezing temperatures amid a record-breaking winter storm. https://t.co/ZFy8N1HIht pic.twitter.com/sF0hWoThem  ABC News (@ABC) February 17, 2021

Bonus antidote (2):

My mom is retired, & she spends her winters volunteering at a sea turtle rescue center in south Texas. The cold snap is stunning the local turtles & theyre doing a lot of rescues. She sent me this photo today of the back of her Subaru. Its *literally* turtles all the way down. pic.twitter.com/xaDRNjLDoQ  Lara (@lara_hand) February 15, 2021

Volunteers of America!

See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.


NEW YORK, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Award winning market research company has published a report on the global respiratory virus vaccines market. As per the study, R&D on respiratory vaccines is focused on COVID-19 at the moment, however, the long-term outlook remains positive. Learning from the impact of COVID-19, governments around the globe are focusing on developing adequate treatment options for respiratory vaccines.

With over 110 million active cases globally, pharmaceutical companies are racing against time to introduce potential vaccine candidates. Breakthroughs have manifested themselves in the form of three final products: the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, COVAXINTM and Covishield. While inoculation procedures are underway across Europe and North America, the aforementioned candidates are anticipated to knock on the doors of all continents in the current financial year.

With worldwide supply chain disruptions experienced thraoughout 2020, leading manufacturers are seeking to diversify their supply chain bases. Since the past few decades, procurement from low-cost destinations comprised the primary expansion strategy for leading multinational firms. For instance, in 2020, Japan announced a US$ 2.2 billion fundraising to assist healthcare companies to shift their base away from China, followed by the US which deployed a similar tactic.

Countries such as Thailand, India, Vietnam and other South East Asian countries are the preferred destinations. Such initiatives are expected to assist respiratory virus manufacturers to enhance their research & development capacities in the long-run.

"The rapidly mutating nature of different virus species is leading to the emergence of numerous life-threatening respiratory diseases, with COVID-19 occupying center stage presently. This is prompting healthcare companies to augment their R&D capacities by initiating various clinical trials for new drug and vaccine candidates," says a Fact.MR analyst.

For more Insights into the Market, Request a Sample of this Report

https://www.factmr.com/connectus/sample?flag=S&rep_id=5199

Key Takeaways from Fact.MR's Respiratory Virus Vaccines Market Study

By type, inactivated/killed vaccines to experience strong growth through 2021

Intramuscular vaccine administration expected to remain the preferred mode due to rapid drug absorption

By indication, COVID-19 vaccinations to remain top priority throughout the current year

Demand for adult vaccine administration, especially geriatrics, is likely to remain elevated in the short-run

Hospitals are poised to be the primary respiratory virus vaccine end-users through 2031

US & UK to experience credible expansion, amid initiation of inoculation procedures amongst frontline health workers and high priority citizens

Germany emerges as a potential revenue hotspot, with companies such as Pfizer and BioNTech investing in COVID-19 vaccine development

emerges as a potential revenue hotspot, with companies such as Pfizer and BioNTech investing in COVID-19 vaccine development High incidence of respiratory diseases such as avian influenza and common flu is prompting pharmaceutical companies to invest in India

Competitive Landscape

Prominent respiratory virus vaccine manufacturers profiled by Fact.MR include, but are not limited to, Bharat Biotech, CSL Limited, Sanofi, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline Plc., Merck & Co. Inc., Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd. and Sinovac Biotech Ltd. Continuous research and clinical trials to verify the efficacy of potential vaccine candidates are driving business prospects for the aforementioned providers.

Presently, all manufacturers have reoriented their priorities by accelerating research capacities to develop an effective vaccine to eradicate the COVID-19 pandemic. For instance, Bharat Biotech and Ocugen Inc. successfully inked a definitive agreement for commercializing COVAXINTM, an advanced stage whole-virion inactivated COVID-19 vaccine candidate, for the United States market in February 2021.

Likewise, AstraZeneca has developed the Covishield vaccine which was granted the emergency use authorization across the UK in December 2020. The vaccine, formerly known as AZD1222, has been approved for the active immunization of individuals 18 years or older, with two doses recommended within an interval of 4 to 12 weeks.

Get Customization on this Report for Specific Country

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More Valuable Insights on Respiratory Virus Vaccines Market

Fact.MR, in its new offering, presents an unbiased analysis of the global respiratory virus vaccines market. The study divulges essential insights on the respiratory virus vaccines market on the basis of type (inactivated/killed vaccines, live-attenuated vaccines, and recombinant vaccines), route of administration (intramuscular, intranasal, and subcutaneous), indication (influenza, measles, mumps & rubella, and COVID-19), age group (adults and pediatric), and end user (physician offices, hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies/ stores), across major regions of the world (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa).

Key Questions Covered in the Report

What is likely to be the future outlook of the respiratory virus vaccines market?

How will the coronavirus pandemic shape respiratory virus vaccine development programs?

Why are the US & UK likely to dominate the global respiratory virus vaccines market in the long-run?

Why are manufacturers preferring inactivated vaccine candidates?

Which is the most preferred route of administration for respiratory virus vaccines?

Which key market players currently operate in the global respiratory virus vaccines landscape?

For Critical Insights on this Market, Request for More Info

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Dental Infection Control Products Market: Explore Fact.MR's dental infection control products market research report, offering an insightful coverage on multiple expansion trends for the present decade. The study incorporates details about the prominent growth trends present across key geographies and major segments, along with information about prominent manufacturers operating within the landscape.

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EDITORS NOTE: NJ Cannabis Insider is hosting a two-day business and networking conference March 9-10, featuring some of the states most prominent industry leaders. Tickets are limited.

A top New Jersey lawmaker has ended a weeks-long effort to compromise with Gov. Phil Murphy on underage penalties for marijuana use, saying again the governor should sign legal marijuana bills that passed late last year.

That could mean an end for the current push to launch a legal marijuana industry and to end arrests for possession, an endeavor that has already included several months of policy debate and has the support of 2.7 million voters. The proposed plan was the latest of several attempts  and the last one before a deadline on the bills.

Sen. Nicholas Scutari, D-Union, on Wednesday canceled a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on a bill addressing underage penalties and said he would abandon the effort due to a lack of support.

The plan was to impose fines and warnings for those under 21 caught with marijuana. In return, Murphy would sign two bills  one to launch a legal marijuana industry and another to halt arrests.

Underage penalties, all of those issues are explained in the original bills, Scutari said. All avenues to clarify it any further are exhausted.

Lawmakers had fast tracked the bill for passage this week and planned to vote on it Friday. That day also marks the deadline for the governor to act on the legislation.

Murphy has said he cannot sign the bill without uniform, civil penalties in place for underage use.

Murphy could also conditionally veto the bills and send them back to the Legislature, where lawmakers could vote to accept the changes. But Scutari said he did not think there would be enough senators willing to do that.

Im hopeful that theyll do the right thing and sign, Scutari said.

A spokesperson from Murphys office declined to comment on the update.

The two bills on his desk conflict each other. The legalization bill makes underage possession a disorderly persons offense similar to alcohol, but the decriminalization bill does away with all penalties.

New Jersey voters said yes to legalizing marijuana by a wide margin. But that didnt lead to change overnight. Instead, the vote gave lawmakers a mandate to get to work on bills to overhaul marijuana prohibition.

They did so two months ago. The bills have sat on Murphys desk since.

The deadline can be moved, but an Assembly voting session, now scheduled for Friday, would trigger it. And after weeks of talks, a few more days could be unlikely to move the bill forward in the Senate.

The Assembly has already moved its quorum by two weeks to give lawmakers more time to work out a compromise that will get Murphys signature on the bills. It was not immediately clear Wednesday afternoon if the Assembly would further extend the deadline.

Assemblyman Jamel Holley, D-Union, who sponsored the legalization bill, said in a statement the lower chamber had the votes to legalize marijuana for two years.

In the November election, a large majority of New Jerseyans demanded relief, he said. Our Governor promised this would be done in his first 100 days, we are now in his fourth year. State lawmakers in the Senate are mandated to follow the will of the people. Today, they failed again.

The Black Legislative Caucus opposed an initial cleanup bill, saying they believed police would disproportionately target Black and brown youth in enforcing fines.

But the newer plan offered lower fines and several protections for young people. Activists, attorneys and religious leaders testified on the bill Monday and gave their general support to the effort. It would have levied fines of $50 on those ages 18 to 20 caught with marijuana and escalating warnings for juveniles.

Our journalism needs your support. Please subscribe today to NJ.com.

Amanda Hoover may be reached at ahoover@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @amandahoovernj.
Google on Wednesday announced a built-in screen recorder for Chrome OS as well as a number of updates to its education-focused products.

Chromebooks  which last year were largely used as classroom tools for writing reports and working on projects  are now the main way many students go to school. As distance learning takes place around the world, educators and students have had to quickly adapt to teaching and learning through Chromebooks. And along the way weve updated features and tools to make learning from anywhere easier, reads Googles blog post.

To start off, Chrome OS is adding a screen recording tool in the latest Chromebook update in March, which will help teachers and students record lessons and reports in the classroom and at home.

Teachers have long recorded lessons to help students do homework and study for tests, but in the past year its become downright critical for virtual learning, adds Googles blog post.

Besides Chrome OS upcoming screen recorder, educators can gain access to Chrome Education Upgrade, which unlocks access to Google Admin Console, making it possible for schools to centrally manage massive fleets of Chromebooks.

Further, Google is also launching over 40 new devices, details of which has not been provided by the search giant. Having said that, these devices will include convertible Chromebooks that function likes a laptop and a tablet, and come with a stylus, touchscreen, and dual-cameras for students to take notes, edit videos, create podcasts, draw, publish digital books and record screencasts, and LTE connectivity option. Every new Chromebook is equipped to deliver exceptional Google Meet and Zoom experiences.

The company has launched a new guide to help you pick up the right model from the variety of Chromebooks that Google will be introducing.

As for its accessibility improvements for education products, ChromeVox, Googles full-featured screen reader for the OS, has new features including improved tutorials, the ability to search ChromeVox menus, and smooth voice switching that automatically changes the screen readers voice based on the language of the text.

Google is also making significant audio, video and reliability improvements to Meet on Chromebooks so it continues to work smoothly for everyone.

Additionally, the company is allowing parents and guardians to help support their childs learning, while also making sure they are safe online. It is making it possible for families to add a Google Workspace for Education account to their childs personal Google Account managed with Family Link. This lets children still log into the apps and websites they need with a school account, while making sure parents can still set guidelines for device and app usage.

Well continue to listen and evolve Google for Education products so they benefit educators, leaders and students. To learn more about all of the upcoming improvements to Chromebooks and Chrome OS, subscribe to our Chrome Enterprise Release notes, concludes Google.

I

could sense Ian Moores excitement when he messaged me out of the blue last August, to share that he had just raised funds for his own company. Having worn a good few hats in his time  editor-in-chief of VICE Denmark, creative director at LADBible, COO of Copenhagen distillery Empirical Spirits  I wondered what industry he had chosen to start up in. Food + marketplace + tech, he explained. OnlyFans for chefs. OnlyPans. OnlyFlans.

This was the genesis of Demi, a chef-led community platform  almost a social network  where customers and fans pay a monthly fee to enter into exclusive culinary group chats. OnlyFans was Moores first, and I think light-hearted, point of comparison, but the parallels are self-evident: on Demi, as with OnlyFans, Substack, Patreon and other subscription services, the chefs act as content creators, selling their expertise and their perspective, rather than selling their food. In turn, subscribers can ask questions to their favoured chefs, show off their own creations, and speak to other like-minded foodies.

The pandemic didnt prompt the idea, Moore says, but it did expedite it. His eureka moment came while cooking a meal for his in-laws, and texting his friend  a former head chef at three Michelin starred Maaemo in Oslo  for guidance on his presentation. I thought, there has to be something in this, he says. Turning away from the idea of a one-to-one, ask a chef kind of service, Moore thought about how best to recreate that open, friendly restaurant atmosphere hed enjoyed in pre-Covid Copenhagen, where you could just as easily ask the chef as you could the person sitting next to you about the dish you were eating.
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Residential support workers are being sought for a one-year fixed term contract with Dara Community Living in North Kildare/West Dublin.

ROLE SUMMARY

As part of a team, assist in creating a secure and stable environment for individuals with an Intellectual Disability and individuals with autism.

MAIN DUTIES

 Support Workers must have a full driver licence and be prepared to drive company vehicles

 Support Workers support each person in all areas of their lives  in their home and community.

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA

 Experience in the social care/intellectual disability sector preferably in residential and day service settings

 A commitment to people with disabilities, positive, flexible and energetic attitude

 Skills to support people with disabilities in ordinary places in the community

 Excellent communication skills  verbal and written

 Full, clean drivers license

 Available to do sleepover duties available to work daytime, evenings and weekend duty

 Comfortable with lone working

DESIRABLE

 Qualifications in the area of social care or health care support

JOIN OUR TEAM  BENEFITS

 Company pension with company contribution (including income protection and death-in service benefits)

 Excellent training and support and supervision from a line manager structure.  Employee Assistance Programme

 Free Parking

 Bike to Work scheme

 Option to join the Health Service credit union

HOW TO APPLY

Applications via cover letter and up to date CV to be forwarded to sarah@daracommunityliving.ie. Closing date for receipt of CV is no later than 5pm on Friday, 26th February 2021 Shortlisting will apply, only candidates shortlisted for interview will be contacted.

Dara Community Living is an equal opportunities employer.

Editorials represent the institutional view of the newspaper. They are written and edited by the editorial staff, which operates separately from the news department. Editorial writers are not involved in newsroom operations.
Two barley varieties grown on farms with separate environments in 2017 and 2018 in Athy, Co Kildare and Bunclody, Co Wexford have proven, it seems, that the influence of soil, microclimate and topography on barley growth does have an impact on the flavour of whisky.

The farms were part of an academic study which has provided conclusive proof of terroirs influence on whisky, settling an industry-dividing debate for both whisky drinkers and producers alike.

The concept of terroir  the French principle that factors such as soil, microclimate, and topography together can influence flavour characteristics - has long been accepted in other drinks categories such as wine and cognac, but has polarised whisky experts for years.

However, the peer-reviewed paper spearheaded by Waterford Distillery, proves that terroir can also be found in barley, and significantly, the single malt whisky spirit distilled from it.

Each sample of barley was micro-malted and micro-distilled in laboratory conditions to produce 32 different whisky distillate samples.

These were then tested by world-leading whisky lab analysts using the very latest analytical methods of Gas chromatographymass spectrometryolfactometry (GC/MS-O), as well as highly trained sensory experts.

Key findings included: 42 different flavour compounds, half of which were directly influenced by the barleys terroir; the sheltered inland Athy site had predominantly higher pH levels with increased amounts of Calcium (Ca), Magnesium (Mg) and Molybdenum (Mo) in its limestone based soil; the more exposed Bunclody site had lower pH levels with increased amounts of Iron (Fe), Copper (Cu) and Manganese (Mn) in its soil - which is based on a shale or slate bedrock.

Barley is what makes single malt whisky the most flavoursome spirit in the world, Mark Reynier, Founder and CEO of Waterford Distillery, said.

This study proves that barleys flavours are influenced by where it is grown, meaning - like wine and cognac - whisky taste is terroir-driven.

Critics claimed any terroir effect would be destroyed by the whisky-making process, saying there is no scientific evidence to prove that terroir even exists. Well, there is now.

Professor Kieran Kilcawley, Principal Research Officer at Teagasc, said utilised gas chromatography olfactometry enabled researchers to discern the most important volatile aroma compounds that impacted sensory perception of the new make spirit.

This research not only highlights the importance of terrior, but also enhances our knowledge of key aroma compounds in whisky, he added.

Meanwhile, Waterford is a global whisky brand that uses a terroir-driven approach for all its single malt whiskies, with barley from each of its 40 Irish farms harvested, stored, malted and distilled separately each year.

It has produced whisky from almost 100 different terroirs as Single Farm Origin distillations since it was founded.
Panaji (Goa): Veteran Congress leader and former union minister Captain Satish Sharma dies in Goa. The 73-year-old former Congress MP was the Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas from 1993 to 1996.

Born on October 11, 1947 in Andhra Pradesh`s Secunderabad, Sharma had pursued Airlines Transport Pilots Rating Course and received his education at Kansas city in USA. He became a member of Rajya Sabha in 1986 and later represented Amethi in 1991 in Lok Sabha.

Several Congress leaders expressed condolence on his death, Priyanka Gandhi, General Secretary of the Congress, expressed her grief at the news saying, "Captain, generous of heart, steadfast in friendship and loyal to the end. A life well lived. I will miss you deeply."

R.I.P. Captain, generous of heart, steadfast in friendship and loyal to the end. A life well lived. I will miss you deeply. pic.twitter.com/rGp2H86kdc  Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) February 18, 2021

While, party spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala said that Shrama epitomised dedication and loyalty. "Deeply saddened at the demise of Capt. Satish Sharma, Former Union Minister. Capt. Sharma epitomised dedication and loyalty. Condolences to the family and friends," Surjewala tweeted.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Sitaram Yechury paid his tributes to the leader saying, "Sad that Captain Satish Sharma departed. Long standing colleague in the Rajya Sabha, he was a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee that I chaired for many years. Deepest condolences to his family."
If you would like to know more about the Adidas America, Inc. lawsuit, please contact Attorney Jackland K. Hom today by calling (619) 255-9047.

The Los Angeles employment law attorneys, at Zakay Law Group, APLC and JCL Law Firm, APC, filed a complaint alleging that Adidas America, Inc. violated the California Labor Code. The Adidas America, Inc. lawsuit, Case No. 56-2021-00549844-CU-OE-VTA, is currently pending in the Ventura County Superior Court of the State of California. A copy of the Complaint can be read here.

The lawsuit alleges Adidas America, Inc. violated the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), which gives rise to civil penalties as a result of Adidas America, Inc.s conduct. PAGA authorizes aggrieved employees to file a lawsuit to recover civil penalties on behalf of themselves, other employees, and the State of California for Labor Code violations. PAGA allows aggrieved employees to step into the shoes of California state regulators to recover civil penalties, which means ordinary citizens are deputized as private attorneys general to enforce the Labor Code.

The complaint alleges Adidas America, Inc. violated the California Labor Code by failing to: (1) provide compliant meal and rest periods; (2) allow employees to take duty-free, off-the-premises rest periods; (3) pay all minimum, regular and overtime wages; (4) provide suitable seating; (5) provide accurate itemized wage statements; (6) pay employees for time spent getting their bags checked; and (7) timely pay earned wages.

If you would like to know more about the Adidas America, Inc. lawsuit, please contact Attorney Jackland K. Hom today by calling (619) 255-9047.

Zakay Law Group, APLC and JCL Law Firm, APC are employment law firms with offices located in Los Angeles and San Diego that dedicate their practices to helping employees and consumers fight back against employers and corporations for unfair employment practices. If you need help regarding wage and hour, wrongful termination, discrimination, and harassment issues in the workplace, contact one of their attorneys today.

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A 130-mile route in South Jersey that guides travelers from the Shore to Batsto and through quintessential Pinelands waterways has been designated as a National Scenic Byway by the Federal Highway Administration.

The designation announced Tuesday recognizes certain U.S. roads for their scenic, archaeological, cultural, historic, natural, or recreational aspects. States and regions use the designation as a marketing term to raise awareness for certain areas  and lure tourists.

In this case, the New Jersey Pinelands Commission oversees administration of what it calls the Pine Barrens Byway, and applied to have the loop designated as a National Scenic Byway with the FHA under the Department of Transportation.

Nancy Wittenberg, executive director of the Pinelands Commission, said in a news release that the designation bestows prestige and national and international recognition to the area.

She said it will enhance efforts to preserve the Pinelands through awareness, and could also provide an economic boost to local Pinelands communities through increased tourism and federal funding for projects that promote the Byway.

The New Jersey Department of Transportation operates a website to inform people about the Pine Barrens Byway.

The Pinelands Commission has created an online map people can use to plan trips along the byway. And it has limited copies of a 2021 Pine Barrens Byway wall calendar for free pickup at three locations within the Pinelands. Brochures are planned for this year.

The meandering Pine Barrens Byway runs mostly through the lower half of the one million-acre Pinelands National Reserve in Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May, Cumberland, and Ocean Counties, so it wont get drivers into the heart of the pristine Wharton and Brendan T. Byrne state forests. But it does run through locations along the picturesque Mullica and Wading Rivers and to the popular Batsto Village.

The byway traces back to 2005 and was an outgrowth of the Pinelands Rural Economic Development Program, which looked at ways to stimulate environmentally-minded growth in some towns.

Though not a continuous loop, the route has loops at either end, and runs from the east, at the coast, near Tuckerton and Bass River State Park, along a number of rural roads with plenty of natural scenery. It ends in a loop skirting Belleplain State Forest and Cape May National Wildlife Refuge, a magnet for birders.

The byway includes other state parks, rivers, and small communities with a stop for hiking along the 53-mile Batona Trail, which offers good viewing for bald eagles, red-tailed hawks, marsh hawks, ospreys, and other species.

Stops include the Tuckerton Seaport Museum, the Sam Azeez Museum of Woodbine Heritage, and various ghost towns. It has stops for blueberry and cranberry farms.

With the additions of the pine barrens route, New Jersey now has three National Scenic Byways; Pennsylvania also has three.
Cracow, 18 February 2021

Creation of matter in an interaction of two photons belongs to a class of very rare phenomena. From the data of the ATLAS experiment at the LHC, collected with the new AFP proton detectors at the highest energies available to-date, a more accurate - and more interesting - picture of the phenomena occurring during photon collisions is emerging.

If you point a glowing flashlight towards another one, you do not expect any spectacular phenomena. The photons emitted by both flashlights simply pass by each other. However, in certain collisions involving high-energy protons the situation is different. The photons emitted by two colliding particles may interact and create a pair of matter and antimatter particles. Traces of processes such as these have just been observed in the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at CERN near Geneva. Precise observations were carried out using the new AFP (ATLAS Forward Proton) spectrometer, developed with significant participation of scientists from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN) in Cracow. The Polish physicists, funded by the National Science Centre and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education, have been involved in the development of AFP detectors since the conception of these devices.

"Observations of the creation of particles of matter and antimatter from electromagnetic radiation go back to the beginnings of nuclear physics", says Prof. Janusz Chwastowski, head of the team of physicists at the IFJ PAN involved in the AFP detectors.

Indeed, it was February 1933 when Patrick Blackett (Nobel 1948) and Giuseppe Occhialini reported an observation of the creation of an electron-positron pair initiated by a quantum of cosmic radiation. The creation of matter and antimatter was therefore noticed earlier than the reverse process, i.e. the famous and spectacular positron annihilation. The first observations of the latter were made in August 1933 by Theodor Heiting, and three months later by Frederic Joliot.

"In the most commonly recorded events of creation, one photon transforms into a particle and an antiparticle. In contrast, the phenomenon we are studying is of a different nature. The particle-antiparticle pair arises here due to the interaction of two photons. The possibility of such processes was first reported by Gregory Breit and John A. Wheeler in 1934," continues Prof. Chwastowski.

As a charged particle, the proton moving inside the LHC beam pipe is surrounded by an electric field. Since the carriers of electromagnetic interactions are photons, the proton can be treated as an object surrounded by photons.

"In the LHC beam pipe, protons reach velocities very close to the speed of light. A proton and the surrounding field undergo the Lorentz contraction along the direction of motion. Thus, from our point of view, a proton moving at almost the speed of light is associated with particularly violent oscillations of the electromagnetic field. When such a proton approaches another one accelerated in the opposite directions - and this is the situation we are dealing with at the LHC - an interaction between the photons may occur", explains Dr. Rafal Staszewski (IFJ PAN).

At the LHC, collisions of highly energetic proton beams occur in several places, including the one located inside the giant ATLAS detector. If two photons collide, the result could be an electron-positron pair or a muon-antimuon pair (a muon is about 200 times more massive than an electron). These particles, which belong to the lepton family, produced at large angles with respect to the proton beams, are recorded inside the main ATLAS detector. Such phenomena have been observed at the LHC before.

"The point is, we have two more protagonists of two-photon processes! These are, naturally, the photon sources, i.e. the two passing protons. Thus we get to the essence of our measurement," says Dr. Staszewski and explains: "As a result of the photon emission, each proton loses some energy but, importantly, it practically does not change the direction of its motion. So, it escapes the detector together with other protons in the beam. However, the proton that emitted the photon has a slightly lower energy than the beam protons. Therefore, the accelerator magnetic field deflects it more, and this means that it gradually moves away from the beam. These are the protons we are hunting for with our AFP spectrometers".

Each of the four AFP tracking units contains four sensors: 16x20 mm semiconductor pixel plates, placed one behind the other. A proton that passes through the sensors deposits some energy and thus it activates the pixels on its path. By analysing all the activated pixels, the proton path and properties can be reconstructed.

The need to record protons only slightly deflected from the main beam means that the AFP spectrometers have to be inserted directly inside the LHC beam pipe, just a few millimetres away from the circulating beams.

"When you are operating so close to a particle beam with such high energies, you have to be aware of the risks. The smallest error in the positioning of the spectrometer could result in burning a hole in it. It would be very upsetting, but that would really be the least of our problems. The resulting debris would contaminate at least a part of the accelerator causing its shut down for some time," notes Prof. Chwastowski.

The measurements described here were carried out with AFP spectrometers placed at a distance of about 200 m from the point at which the protons collided.

"Protons interact at the LHC in many ways. As a result, the protons observed in the AFP spectrometers may originate from processes other than those associated with photon-photon interactions. To search for the right protons, we needed to have precise knowledge about the properties of each particle," emphasises PhD student Krzysztof Ciesla (IFJ PAN), who dealt with the initial analysis of the raw data collected by the AFP spectrometers in 2017 and converting them into information about the energies and momenta of the registered protons. The results of the proton energy measurements were then juxtaposed with the energies of the created lepton pair and, based on conservation principles, it was determined whether the observed proton could be the source of the interacting photon.

The measurements using the AFP spectrometers proved to be highly statistically significant, at nine standard deviations (sigma). For comparison, a five-sigma measurement is usually sufficient to announce a scientific discovery. So, the AFP spectrometers have successfully passed the test, proved usefulness of the method and provided very interesting, though still unclear, results. It turned out that theoretical predictions do not fully agree with the determined characteristics of the investigated interactions. Clearly there are hidden nuances in the two-photon processes observed in high energy proton-proton collisions that require better understanding and further measurements.

###

The Henryk Niewodniczanski Institute of Nuclear Physics (IFJ PAN) is currently one of the largest research institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences. A wide range of research carried out at IFJ PAN covers basic and applied studies, from particle physics and astrophysics, through hadron physics, high-, medium-, and low-energy nuclear physics, condensed matter physics (including materials engineering), to various applications of nuclear physics in interdisciplinary research, covering medical physics, dosimetry, radiation and environmental biology, environmental protection, and other related disciplines. The average yearly publication output of IFJ PAN includes over 600 scientific papers in high-impact international journals. Each year the Institute hosts about 20 international and national scientific conferences. One of the most important facilities of the Institute is the Cyclotron Centre Bronowice (CCB), which is an infrastructure unique in Central Europe, serving as a clinical and research centre in the field of medical and nuclear physics. In addition, IFJ PAN runs four accredited research and measurement laboratories. IFJ PAN is a member of the Marian Smoluchowski Krakow Research Consortium: "Matter-Energy-Future", which in the years 2012-2017 enjoyed the status of the Leading National Research Centre (KNOW) in physics. In 2017, the European Commission granted the Institute the HR Excellence in Research award. The Institute holds A+ Category (the highest scientific category in Poland) in the field of sciences and engineering.

CONTACT:

Prof. Janusz Chwastowski

Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences

tel.: +48 12 6628449

email: janusz.chwastowski@ifj.edu.pl

Dr. Rafal Staszewski

Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences

tel.: +48 12 6628361

email: rafal.staszewski@ifj.edu.pl

SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS:

"Observation and Measurement of Forward Proton Scattering in Association with Lepton Pairs Produced via the Photon Fusion Mechanism at ATLAS" ATLAS Collaboration Physical Review Letters 125, 261801 (2020) DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.125.261801

LINKS:

http://www. ifj. edu. pl/

The website of the Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences.

http://press. ifj. edu. pl/

Press releases of the Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences.

IMAGES:

IFJ210218b_fot01s.jpg HR: http://press. ifj. edu. pl/ news/ 2021/ 02/ 18/ IFJ210218b_fot01. jpg

A picture of the AFP detector taken during its installation in the LHC tunnel. The quartz time-of-flight detector is on the left, the silicon pixel detector - on the right. (Source: IFJ PAN)
Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-18 23:24:48|Editor: huaxia

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ASWAN, Egypt -- At least four Sudanese were killed and 46 others injured in a bus-truck accident in southern Egypt Thursday, an official medical source said.

"The bus carrying Sudanese nationals, at Aswan-Abu Simbel road, has been hit from behind by a truck carrying construction materials," Chairman of Aswan Ambulance Authority Mohamed al-Diekhily told Xinhua.

The number of deaths may rise because several people are in serious conditions, he added. (Egypt-Road Accident)

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WINDHOEK -- The Chinese government has decided to donate 100,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines at Namibia's request, Chinese ambassador to Namibia Zhang Yiming said Thursday.

Namibia has been listed among the priority countries for purchasing Chinese vaccines, Zhang announced at an event held in Windhoek.

"This fully reflects the high-level bilateral relations between our two countries," he said, adding that the two sides are coordinating closely to deliver the vaccines to Namibia as soon as possible. (Namibia-Vaccine)

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JAKARTA -- The death toll from landslide in Indonesia's East Java province rose to 18 after five more bodies were found on Thursday, an official said.

"Today we found five victims, one in sector B and four in sector A. From the results of the autopsy, three were males and two females, including adults and children," the East Java Search and Rescue (SAR) Agency's Head Hari Adi Purnomo said as quoted by Antara news agency on Thursday.

Earlier, 21 people were reportedly missing and two others survived the catastrophe, Purnomo said, adding that after five more dead victims were found, the rescuers were still searching for one more person who is likely buried by the landslide. On Wednesday, the SAR team found 13 dead victims. (Indonesia-Landslide-Death toll)

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MANILA -- The Department of Health (DOH) of the Philippines reported on Thursday 1,744 new COVID-19 cases, bringing the tally in the Southeast Asian country to 555,163.

The death toll climbed to 11,673 after 96 more patients died from the viral disease, the DOH said. Meanwhile, 412 more patients recovered, raising the total number of recoveries to 512,375. (Philippines-COVID19) Enditem
American rapper YK Osiris is on his exquisite Jamaican vacation at the Sandals Royal Resort in Montego Bay and is fully relishing every moment of it.

The Worth It rap star shared several photos and videos on Instagram, since he landed on the island some three days ago, which show him living it up at the resorts most sought-after bungalows over-the-water. The 22-year-old doesnt seem to be wasting any time soaking up the island vibe and culture.

On Monday, he went horseback riding along the ocean.

Tuesday, he was seen being pet and pampered by his private butler in the villas private infinity pool overlooking the water.

He also went on a little excursion to pet baby crocodiles. Mann I dont play with no damn animals they can have that no sir .. mi dont like it , he wrote in the caption to that video.

He has already learned the native lingo too, expressing some local dialect when speaking in his IG videos and in several captions on his photos, Mi a enjoy di beautiful weddah yuh zeet  and Paradise where Im at right now Its a blessing WAA GWAN .

YK also visited Floyds Pelican Bar later on in the evening to catch the sunset before returning to his bungalow where he danced away to his new Jamaican jam, Wayne Wonders No Letting Go. Why I love this song so much . Im just loving my life thats all, he captioned the (now-deleted) post.

In his IG stories, he wrote Mann Im coming back, as the song played.

Theres no telling just yet when this very lavish vacation ends.

The spectacular over-the-water villas at the Sandals Royal Resort will run anywhere from US$1200 per person, per night and features see-through glass floors for a never-ending view of the ocean, a Tranquility Soaking Tub , over-the-water hammock, private infinity pool, a personal butler, and private BMW transfers and loads more.

YK (Young King) Osiri is popularly known for his singles Worth It, Ride, Im Next (Freestyle), and Valentine. In 2019 he signed to Def Jam Recordings, and his single Worth It peaked at number 48 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was the lead single for his debut album, The Golden Child.
Montinique Monroe/Getty Images

Texas is dealing with more than power outages during the winter storm.

On Wednesday, SAWS announced during a City Hall meeting that the utility company would soon issue a boil water notice for the San Antonio area "out of an abundance of caution." However, the Alamo City isn't the only one issuing boil water notices.
ALBANY  Vaccine providers across the Capital Region and state were awaiting word Thursday on when delayed shipments of COVID-19 vaccine would arrive after storms in the South caused distribution hubs to temporarily close and vaccination clinics to be postponed.

Local health departments, pharmacists and other vaccine providers said they are being impacted by the delayed shipments, and some had to postpone second-dose clinics scheduled for the latter half of this week as a result.

Those postponements were complicated by the fact that the state Department of Healths electronic scheduling system sent reminder alerts to people scheduled for doses this week even after their clinics had been canceled.

Albany County, which postponed a second-dose clinic scheduled for Thursday due to the shipment delays, is conducting outreach on its own to make sure people are aware of the cancellations but officials there expressed frustration at the miscommunication Thursday.

Please, state Health Department, come on, we cant notify people were gonna have the second dose for them when its not here, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy said during a news conference Thursday. You know better than us, youre tracking this. We need to work together on this. Its continuity and we need that continuity to make sure we dont have people showing up Thursday.

On Thursday night, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the Health Department is working with all providers, including local health departments, hospitals, pharmacies and others to minimize the impact on their operations and reduce the number of appointments that must be rescheduled. In Cuomo's statement, he expressed optimism that the state is up to the logistical challenge and can expedite delayed shipments.

Local health departments in Albany, Columbia, Rensselaer and Washington counties announced they would be pushing second-dose clinics that were originally scheduled for this week into next week, though the rescheduled dates are still tentative in some cases.

Albany County Health Commissioner Dr. Elizabeth Whalen said she hopes to reschedule the county-run clinic planned for Thursday at the Times Union Center in Albany for Monday but is hesitant to do so until the vaccines are in hand.

While Cuomo has directed providers to wait until doses are in hand before scheduling clinics, local providers said Thursday that they took that to mean first doses, since the state has previously reassured them second-dose shipments are guaranteed.

Weve been told and reassured by many emails from DOH that you dont need to worry about second doses, said state Assembly member John McDonald, who owns Marras Pharmacy in Cohoes. What people did not anticipate and have no control over is the weather and that is what is putting us in this quagmire.

Albany County spokesperson Mary Rozak said second-dose appointments are automatically scheduled when people sign up for their first dose at a county-run clinic.

Our scheduling is done through the state CDMS system so those second-dose appointments that people got emails for, there is nothing we can do about that, she said.

Rozak said Albany County is reaching out directly to impacted individuals to ensure they dont show up for the canceled clinic.

People who were scheduled to receive their second dose at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy on Thursday, Friday and Saturday also had their appointments pushed into next week. The county announced the postponement Wednesday night, but on Thursday morning people woke up to emails from the states CDMS system reminding them of the appointments, according to emails obtained by the Times Union.

The state Department of Health did not directly respond when asked about the scheduling notification error. Sam Fuld, a spokesperson for the department, directed the Times Union to comments made by Cuomo during a press call Wednesday, in which he stated deliveries from the federal government may be delayed this week because of storms across the country.

They made that clear on the White House call this week, and we are experiencing that, Cuomo said. Not storms in New York, but storms at the transportation hubs. We also have potential of storms in New York starting tomorrow, lasting into Friday. This is a set of storms moving across the country and the state is acting appropriately but these are serious storms and people should take them seriously.

Rensselaer County officials said they expect to reschedule the second-dose shots for clinics already planned at HVCC next week, but are advising individuals to await confirmation from the county health department.

Residents are asked to hold off from calling the Health Department to give staffers time to contact all residents involved, the county wrote on its Facebook page Wednesday night.

Columbia County also announced it would be postponing clinics that had been scheduled for Thursday and Friday at Columbia Greene Community College in Hudson. The events have been rescheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 24, it said. While the date has changed, the health department is advising individuals who were registered for the clinics to arrive at their previously scheduled appointment times.

Health department representatives were working Thursday to contact individuals to confirm the rescheduled date, the department said.

Washington County announced Thursday evening that it had rescheduled a second-dose clinic for first responders due to the delay, and was tentatively planning to continue a clinic for people 65 years and older scheduled for this week in hopes supply would arrive by then.

"If we do not receive enough vaccine to progress with these events by mid-day (Friday), we will postpone this weekend's events and re-schedule upon receipt of the vaccine supply," the county said in its daily COVID-19 update.

Other area health departments and providers said they are still awaiting their shipments as well, but have not had to cancel any clinics yet.

The weather has caused shipping delays that are widespread and are affecting all vaccine locations, said Sue Ford, a spokesperson for Albany Medical Center, which serves as the regions vaccine hub.

Schenectady County spokesperson Erin Roberts said the county will reach out directly to affected individuals in the event any appointments need to be rescheduled. Warren County spokesperson Don Lehman said the county had tentative plans for clinics but has not formally scheduled them yet as the county health department does not like to send out actual online clinic links until the vaccine is in hand.

Meanwhile, FedEx and UPS  the two major transporters of vaccine in the U.S.  said they are picking up and delivering vaccine where it is safe to do so.

UPS shut down its Worldport hub in Louisville, Ky., on Monday evening due to inclement weather, but reopened it the next morning. Deliveries to the Northeast via ground and air networks have been occurring throughout the week, spokesperson Matthew OConnor said.

If a critical healthcare package is delayed because of weather, we make arrangements with our customers on how and when to complete that delivery, he said. In most cases, these packages can still be delivered as soon as roads are safely passable and businesses are open to receive them.

UPS has contingency plans in place to keep goods moving during storms, he said.

FedEx said Thursday that prolonged severe weather continues to impact much of its network nationwide, including its Memphis hub, and its ability to pick up and deliver in certain cities.

Where feasible, the company is rerouting shipments through secondary hubs in markets that are less impacted by the weather, said FedEx spokesperson Heather Wilson.

Customers with questions about their shipments should monitor the companys service alert page on fedex.com for updates, she said.

Officials are urging people not to worry about the efficacy of a delayed second dose if its only by a few days. Providers are advised to administer second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines three and four weeks out from the first shot, respectively. But the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that delays may be unavoidable and advises second doses not be delayed beyond six weeks as efficacy data after that point is limited.

We have a pretty big window to get those second doses and I dont want people who are due to get their second doses tonight to feel like if they have to wait until next week that is going to impair the efficacy of the vaccine, Albany County's Whalen said. It will not impair the efficacy of the vaccine."

Brendan Lyons contributed.
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Red Cross Seeks Donations After Winter Storms

By West Kentucky Star Staff

to ensure blood products are available for patient emergencies when help cannot wait.

Individuals are urged to make appointments to donate in the coming days and weeks by downloading the Red Cross Blood Donor App

, visiting

, calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device.

WESTERN KENTUCKY - After record-breaking cold and winter storms that forced the cancellation of more than 10,000 blood and platelet donations in parts of the U.S. in February, the American Red Cross is urging healthy individuals, especially those with type O blood, to give now

The Red Cross is testing blood, platelet, and plasma donations for COVID-19 antibodies. The test may indicate if the donor's immune system has produced antibodies to this coronavirus, regardless of whether an individual developed COVID-19 symptoms. Red Cross antibody tests will be helpful to identify individuals who have COVID-19 antibodies and may now help current coronavirus patients in need of convalescent plasma transfusions. Convalescent plasma is a type of blood donation collected from COVID-19 survivors that have antibodies that may help patients who are actively fighting the virus. Plasma from whole blood donations that test positive for high levels of COVID-19 antibodies may be used to help COVID-19 patients.

COVID-19 antibody test results will be available within one to two weeks in the Red Cross Blood Donor App or donor portal at RedCrossBlood.org. A positive antibody test result does not confirm infection or immunity. The Red Cross is not testing donors to diagnose illness, referred to as a diagnostic test. To protect the health and safety of Red Cross staff and donors, it is important that individuals who do not feel well or believe they may be ill with COVID-19 postpone donation.

Each Red Cross blood drive and donation center follows the highest standards of safety and infection control, and additional precautions  including temperature checks, social distancing and face coverings for donors and staff  have been implemented to help protect the health of all those in attendance. Donors are asked to schedule an appointment prior to arriving at the drive and are required to wear a face covering or mask while at the drive, in alignment with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention public guidance.







Upcoming blood donation opportunities:

Johnson County, IL

Vienna

3/15/2021: 12 p.m. - 6 p.m., Fellowship Baptist Church, 890 Senior Avenue

Pulaski County, IL

Ullin

2/24/2021: 10 a.m. - 2 p.m., Shawnee Community College, 8364 Shawnee College Rd.

3/9/2021: 2 p.m. - 6 p.m., Cross Road United Methodist Church, 1289 Ullin Ave

Calloway County, KY

Murray

2/25/2021: 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., St. John's Episcopal Church, 1620 West Main St

3/3/2021: 12:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., First Presbyterian Church, 1601 Main Street

3/11/2021: 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., St. John's Episcopal Church, 1620 West Main St

3/12/2021: 11 a.m. - 3 p.m., First Financial Bank, 210 North 12th Street

Carlisle County, KY

Bardwell

3/4/2021: 12 p.m. - 6 p.m., Bardwell Community, 65 John Roberts Drive

Fulton County, KY

Fulton

3/2/2021: 12 p.m. - 4 p.m., First Baptist Church, 115 Second St

Graves County, KY

Lowes

3/11/2021: 12 p.m. - 5 p.m., Lowes Elementary School, 6775 State RT. 440

Mayfield

2/23/2021: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., American Legion, 211 South 7th

2/26/2021: 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., CFSB Mayfield, 100 Dick Castleman Bypass

3/10/2021: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m., American Legion, 211 South 7th

Symsonia

3/4/2021: 11:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Symsonia Elementary School, 11730 State Route 131

Livingston County, KY

Smithland

3/5/2021: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., Smithland First Baptist Church, 237 Court Street

Lyon County, KY

Eddyville

2/26/2021: 10:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Lyon County Convention Center @ Lee S Jones Park, 172 Lee S Jones Park

Kuttawa

3/8/2021: 12:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., First Baptist Church Kuttawa, 316 Walnut Drive

Marshall County, KY

Benton

2/22/2021: 12 p.m. - 5 p.m., Central Elementary School Marshall County, 115 Jim Goheen Drive

3/1/2021: 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., CFSB Benton Banking Center, 221 West 5th Street

3/10/2021: 11 a.m. - 3 p.m., Briensburg Church of Christ, 2349 Benton Briensburg Road

3/11/2021: 11 a.m. - 3 p.m., Draffenville Pharmacy, 153 US-68

3/15/2021: 12 p.m. - 5 p.m., Woodmen Life, 1005 Poplar Street

Calvert City

2/23/2021: 2 p.m. - 7 p.m., Altona Baptist Church, 5817 US HWY 62

2/25/2021: 12:30 p.m. - 5 p.m., Calvert City Church of Christ, 4625 US Highway 62

3/8/2021: 12 p.m. - 6 p.m., Calvert City Civic Center, 991 E. 5th Ave.

Hardin

3/19/2021: 3 p.m. - 7 p.m., Hardin Baptist Church, 218 College Street

McCracken County, KY

Paducah

2/22/2021: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m., Trinity United Methodist Church, 6125 Blandville Rd.

2/24/2021: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., Concord United Methodist Church, 5178 Hinkleville Road

2/24/2021: 3:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m., Reidland Church of Christ, 5500 Kentucky Dam Road

3/1/2021: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., First Christian Church, 415 Audubon Drive

3/10/2021: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., Concord United Methodist Church, 5178 Hinkleville Road

3/14/2021: 1 p.m. - 5 p.m., Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 9701 Blandville Road

Hickman County, TN

Centerville

3/1/2021: 12:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m., Fairfield Church of Christ, 1860 Hwy. 100

On the Net:On the Net:






Rwandan government critic Paul Rusesabagina, best known for inspiring the film Hotel Rwanda, went on trial yesterday for terrorism charges after he was allegedly kidnapped and held hostage by authorities.

On the first day of proceedings, Mr Rusesabagina argued he could not be tried by a Rwandan court because he was a Belgian citizen.

Let me say for the fifth time that I am Belgian and not Rwandan. I was kidnapped and brought to Rwanda and I am being held here hostage. Kidnap itself is a crime, he told the court in Kigali, the capital city.

His family has raised concerns over the poor state of his health and the fairness of a trial they say is politically motivated in a country often criticised for human rights abuses.

Rwandas government denies the dissident was kidnapped, although officials have suggested he was tricked into boarding a plane he thought was headed for neighbouring Burundi. He mysteriously disappeared while on a layover in Dubai last August before unexpectedly appearing in handcuffs in his home country after being detained.

Mr Rusesabagina faces charges of forming an illegal armed group, sponsoring terrorism, murder and armed robbery. Authorities claim he had a role in a string of alleged attacks by National Liberation Front rebels in southern Rwanda along the border with Burundi in 2018.

He admits that he formed the rebel group, but denies any wrongdoing. The 66-year-old former hotel manager won worldwide fame for saving more than 1,000 people during Rwandas 1994 genocide. He sheltered the people in his Hotel Des Milles Collines as Hutu extremists of the Interahamwe militia went through the area killing perceived Tutsis and sympathisers.

His story became the basis of the Oscar-nominated 2004 movie Hotel Rwanda, in which he was played by the US actor Don Cheadle. Some survivors of the genocide have since claimed that he overblew his role in rescuing Tutsis and charged people money to be able to take refuge in his hotel.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 17, 2021 Contact: Erica Quealy, 517-582-2961 State task force urges new state policies to tackle root causes of poverty, bring opportunity to more Michiganders LANSING  Lifting millions of Michiganders out of poverty will require bold new initiatives, expanded state policies and a significant financial investment, according to a new report released today by the Michigan Poverty Task Force. The group presented its findings  a list of 35 policy recommendations  to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who created the task force in December 2019 to identify new ways state government can help low-income Michiganders transcend poverty and build a better life. The economic impact and hardships this pandemic has imposed on so many Michiganders only makes the work of this task force more critical, Gov. Whitmer said. These recommendations will help us ensure that Michigan families have access to the support they need. I look forward to working across the aisle and with our many stakeholders to implement the recommendations that have the biggest impact across our state. To further the Task Forces efforts and recommendations, Gov. Whitmer included a $1M appropriation to conduct research and planning that will help lead the way towards improving the effectiveness of state benefit programs and address the barriers limiting individuals ability to access these programs in her Fiscal Year 2022 budget recommendations. The task force, led by the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO), consists of leaders from 14 state departments, with input from the Legislature and philanthropy and community organizations who worked together throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to develop a comprehensive anti-poverty agenda for Michigan. The task forces approach to poverty eradication will not only lift the poorest Michiganders but will also help those whove seen their middle-class status slip away because of stagnant wages and an evolving job market, said Susan Corbin, LEO acting director. While many state government efforts are already in place to help Michigans poor, the Poverty Task Force offered 35 new policy recommendations organized in five main areas. Examples of the reports recommendations include: Benefits : Commission a comprehensive study on outcomes for former state assistance recipients and adopt a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) shelter stipend

Economics : Increase access to Michigans Earned Income Tax Credit; support and incubate childrens savings accounts; and expand the housing choice voucher pilot program between the Michigan State Housing and Development Authority and the Michigan Department of Corrections

Criminal Justice: Expand apprenticeship opportunities for inmates while incarcerated; and divert people with behavioral health needs away from the justice system

Health, Safety and Housing : Create child support pass-through to families who receive or have received cash assistance; and fund the Michigan Housing and Community Development Fund

Education : Expand the Great Start Readiness Program; expand Early Childhood Home Visiting and Maternal-Infant Health programs; increase income eligibility for child care; and expand school breakfast and breakfast-after-the-bell programs These recommendations are the first step toward restoring the states safety net and bringing opportunity to struggling families, said Kim Trent, LEO deputy director for prosperity and key staffer to the Poverty Task Force. Creating conditions that give every Michigander access to economic opportunity and prosperity is one of the most sacred duties of state government. Today, 43% of Michiganders earn less than the basic cost of living and 1 in 5 children live in poverty, according to the United Ways ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) report. To afford the basics, single adults need a salary of just over $21,000 and a family of four needs to earn over $61,000. The Michigan Association of United Ways commends the efforts of Governor Whitmer and the Michigan Poverty Task Force to undergo the critical work of better serving Michigans most vulnerable residents, said Mike Larson, president and CEO, Michigan Association of United Ways. We know that low wages, reduced work hours and depleted savings, combined with increased costs of living, have made for an uneven economic recovery in Michigan. In looking at real, measurable data identifying those who struggle to afford basic needs, we can better visualize ways to collaborate, shine a light and ultimately reduce the ALICE populationand the Poverty Task Force has set out to do just that. Lori Johnson, project director at the EightCAP Inc. Community Action Agency in Greenville and a member of the Michigan Poverty Task Force Advisory Council, said the task force has identified solutions to address poverty in all corners of the state. The comprehensive way the task force has approached issues will have a tremendous impact across Michigan, in communities large and small, urban and rural, Johnson said. Michigan League for Public Policy President and CEO Gilda Jacobs said the Michigan Poverty Task Force report is a starting point for further discussion and planning. We hope the recommendations will help the state better leverage existing resources, create pathways to new resources and build partnerships with external stakeholders to better serve struggling Michiganders, Jacobs said. Rev. Charles Williams II, Senior Pastor at Historic King Solomon Baptist Church and Michigan Chair for the National Action Network, added his support for the Task Force recommendations and their power to stem the tide of poverty. "Pastoring in a city with one of the largest poverty margins in the country, means I've seen what it does to individuals and communities firsthand. Although poverty has had a presence in society for quite some time, it doesn't mean we should ever stop working on it. The Governor's plan takes quality steps towards stemming the tide of poverty and increasing mobility for those who are stuck at the bottom," Williams said. EDUCATION POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS The policy recommendations from the Poverty Task Force are an important first step in assisting residents in the State of Michigan and I appreciate the fact that the ALICE population are considered in this work. From an early childhood perspective, these steps are necessary to continue to the work that has begun in this state and will continue to help our youngest residents and their families. Additionally, from a trauma perspective, these are the beginnings of a solid foundation to begin to address the trauma and build resilience in people across the state.  Gretchen Wagner, Bay-Arenac ISD early childhood education director HEALTH, SAFETY AND HOUSING POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS "As I talked to community leaders and legislators across the state in 2020, I repeatedly heard about the need for more housing resources. The Housing and Community Development Fund is a proven solution that simply needs a dedicated funding source. When funded, it has leveraged each state dollar into $11 of additional investment, creating jobs and homes for those in need."  Luke Forrest, Community Economic Development Association of Michigan executive director More information on the Poverty Task Force is available at Michigan.gov/LEO. ###
Just over half of people in Northern Ireland say they are completely following the Executives regulations (Andrew Matthews/PA).

Just over half of people in Northern Ireland say they are completely following the Executives regulations and guidelines on how to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Thats according to the findings of the fifth phase of NISRAs opinion survey, carried out between April 2020 and January of this year.

Based on 9,499 interviews with members of the public, the survey also looked at peoples feelings on how Covid had affected their lives, the use of face coverings and enforcement.

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It found that 60% felt they had enough information about government plans to manage the Covid outbreak while 54% said that they were completely following Stormonts regulations and guidelines on how to deal with the pandemic.

But stricter adherence was associated with increasing age with 71% of those aged 65 and over saying they were completely following the rules.

This was significantly higher than for those aged 45-64 years (59%) and those aged 16-44 years (41%).

Of those people who had not completely followed the rules, 54% said that they had not always abided by social distancing rules.

Some 34% of people admitted that they had visited family or friends when not allowed to do so.

One in 10 people said they had not worn a face covering in shops, had travelled further than restrictions allowed, had not followed restrictions to stay at home during a lockdown or had socialised in larger groups than those permitted under the guidance.

The use of face coverings outside the home has increased significantly from 28% in June to 95% in December.

Overall, 91% of people said they support the mandatory use of face coverings in shops and supermarkets.

Meanwhile, just 20% of those surveyed thought that police were strict in enforcing rules to help reduce the spread of coronavirus but just 48% felt they were lenient.

Almost three quarters of people (73%) said that they were worried about the effect the pandemic was having on their lives, but there appears to be growing optimism that life might return to normal in the next 12 months or so.

Just over half (53%) were concerned about children or young people in their household being back in school while 78% expressed concern about them catching the virus at school.

Of those who said that there had been cases in the first term in the school their eldest child attended, 90% felt that the school had done a good job in the handling the outbreak.

Elsewhere, one in five people (22%) said they were drinking more alcohol since the pandemic began while just over a quarter of people (26%) said they were drinking less.

The survey also asked people to rate their wellbeing, or "life satisfaction", and how anxious they are feeling.

This fifth phase suggests life satisfaction scores were significantly lower (7.47) amongst those interviewed between April 2020January 2021 than those reported by NISRA for the 2019/20 year (7.86).

Scoring for anxiety was significantly higher, up from 3.00 during 2019/20 to 3.31 during the survey period.
A group of 24 diplomats from foreign missions, including the European Union, who arrived in Srinagar yesterday, will visit Jammu on the second day of their tour on Thursday.

The envoys will be briefed by Army and police in Srinagar and then they will move to Jammu. Later, they will attend lunch hosted by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha. The diplomats are also scheduled to meet civil society representatives today.

On Wednesday, the delegation had interacted with representatives of civil society and the government in Srinagar.

Foreign diplomats from Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Malaysia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and the European Union are on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir.

The latest visit of foreign envoys comes in the backdrop of District Development Council polls, which saw huge participation and restoration of 4G mobile internet in the entire region after 18 months, which many see as a return of full normalcy in the Union Territory.This is the first visit by foreign diplomats to Jammu and Kashmir since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two batches of foreign diplomats had earlier visited Jammu and Kashmir in January and February last year after the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

In January last year, envoys of 15 countries including the then US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster and diplomats from Vietnam, South Korea, Brazil, Niger, Nigeria, Morocco, Guyana, Argentina, Philippines, Norway, Maldives, Fiji, Togo, Bangladesh and Peru visited Jammu and Kashmir to see first-hand the efforts being made by the government in the region.In February last year, 25 foreign diplomats, including those from Germany, Canada, France and Afghanistan, visited Jammu and Kashmir to witness the ground situation in the region.

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Greg Sukiennik has worked at all three Vermont News & Media newspapers and was their managing editor from 2017-19. He previously worked for ESPN.com, for the AP in Boston, and at The Berkshire Eagle in Pittsfield, Mass.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The COVID-19 pandemic has made evident how fragile our different systems are. The school sector has become one of the worst affected sectors all over the world.

From 15 to 26 March, the regional review on school safety in the context of Systemic Risk: the virtual Caribbean Safe School Initiative (CSSI) Pre-Ministerial forum will assess experiences of the education sectors COVID-19 response and recovery prior to and during the 2020 hurricane season. It will also discuss the need for coordinating policies and actions for prevention and mitigation to build education sector resilience.

The Pre-Ministerial Forum will also highlight the fact that ensuring school safety is the starting point for reactivating the economy while discussing the fiscal limitations that might impact the region due to the economic crisis resulting from the pandemic.

This event, which will set the agenda for the Third CSSI Ministerial Forum to be held in Sint Maarten in 2022, will promote a culture of disaster prevention, resilience, and responsible citizenship, generate understanding of disaster risk, support mutual learning, and share experiences; and encourage public and private stakeholders to actively engage in such initiatives and to develop new ones at the local, national, regional and global levels, as it is envisioned in the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.

The forum will host not only meetings between the Ministers of Education of the Caribbean region but also between permanent secretaries, national disaster management offices directors, inter-sectoral partners, educational practitioners, and youth organizations. The CSSI is integrated by 18 states and territories of the Caribbean region (CDEMA participating states), overseas territories, and CARIFORUM countries, making it an initiative of the wider Caribbean.

The opening session will be attended by Mami Mizutori, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction and Head of UNDRR, the Executive Director of CDEMA, Honorable Curtis King Ministry of Education of St. Vincent & the Grenadines, and Hon. Rodolphe E. Samuel Ministry of Education of St Maarten.

The virtual Caribbean Safe School Initiative Pre-Ministerial forum is organized by the Safe School working group of the education sector sub-committee of the Caribbean Disaster management coordination and harmonization council, with the leadership of the Government of Sint Maarten and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

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Germany's BioNTech SE plans to provide Covid-19 vaccine to Taiwan, the company said, after the island complained the firm in December pulled out of a deal to buy 5 million doses at the last minute, possibly due to Chinese pressure.

Taiwan Health Minister Chen Shih-chung on Wednesday said officials were on the verge of announcing the deal in December when BioNTech pulled the plug, though added that the deal was still pending and had not been torn up.

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While he did not directly say China was to blame, Chen implied there was a political dimension to the decision and that he had been worried about "outside forces intervening," hence his caution in discussing the planned deal publicly at the time.

In an emailed statement late Wednesday, the company said it was planning on providing the vaccine to Taiwan.

"BioNTech is committed to help bring an end to the pandemic for people across the world and we intend to supply Taiwan with our vaccine as part of this global commitment. Discussions are ongoing and BioNTech will provide an update."

China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, has repeatedly sparred with the island over the coronavirus pandemic.

Taiwan has been angered by China's assertion only it can speak for the island on the international stage about the subject, while Taiwan has accused China of lack of transparency.

BioNTech signed a deal with Chinese firm Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group Co Ltd to exclusively develop and commercialize COVID-19 vaccine products developed by using BioNTech's mRNA technology in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

In return, it agreed to pay up to $85 million in licensing fees and invest $50 million for a stake in the German firm.

BioNTech's development and distribution partner for the rest of the world is U.S. firm Pfizer Inc.

Taiwan announced late in December said it had agreed to buy almost 20 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine, including 10 million from UK drugmaker AstraZeneca, with the rest coming from the COVAX global vaccine programme and an unnamed company.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

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A California woman has sued her husband's employer for causing the spread of COVID-19 in their household in a first-of-its kind lawsuit.

Corby Kuciemba filed the lawsuit in an attempt to hold her husband's employer, Victory Woodworks Inc responsible for her getting the infection.

According to the lawsuit, which was obtained by Bloomberg, the company's failure to take basic precautions caused her husband Robert Kuciemba to contract the virus and unknowingly bring it home and infect his wife.

Corby Kuciemba has sued her husband's employer, Victory Woodworks (file image), for causing the spread of COVID-19 in their household in a first-of-its kind lawsuit

The complaint says the couple started experiencing symptoms of the virus just days after Robert finished up a project at a construction site.

According to the lawsuit, while at the site, Robert had been exposed to workers who had been infected with the virus. Workers at the company were allegedly moved from one site to another in the San Francisco area.

The Kuciembas tested positive for COVID on July 16, the complaint reads.

'Both plaintiffs were ultimately hospitalized after they developed respiratory symptoms from COVID-19. Mrs Kuciemba, who is 65, and a high risk individual due to her age and health, developed a severe infection and remained hospitalized until early August 2020,' according to their lawsuit.

The complaint also says that the Kuciembas also suffer from after-effects of the virus.

According to the suit, Victory Woodworks 'failed to properly screen employees for COVID-19' and 'failed to cleanse and sanitize the workspace'.

The suit also says that the company didn't 'provide personal protective equipment' nor did they 'implement a social distancing policy'.

The lawsuit called the company's actions 'malicious, oppressive and fraudulent', adding that Corby is entitled to recover punitive damages.

Bill Bogdan, a lawyer for the company, told Bloomberg: 'This is the first time someone is making the claim that if you have Covid and you live with someone who has a job, you can sue the employer for potentially having given you Covid.'

Their lawyer, Mark Venardi, said the case is similar to how a worker accidentally brings home asbestos fibers from his workplace that make his wife sick.

That particular situation is one in which California law holds the employer responsible.

'There is no material difference between the spouse bringing home a virus instead of a fiber,' Venardi told Bloomberg.

Another attorney for the couple, Martin Zurada, told Bloomberg that even if the husband didn't get sick with the infection, his wife still has an 'independent' claim because she spent weeks on a ventilator.

If US District Judge Maxine M. Chesney doesn't throw the case out, the couple's lawyers will have to prove that Robert contracted the virus at his workplace.

In addition, if the case goes forward it could serve as a barometer for similar lawsuit across the US.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attends a virtual open briefing of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) related to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution, in Beijing, capital of China, Feb. 17, 2021. (Xinhua/Yin Bogu)

BEIJING, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday made four proposals for fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and making new contributions to safeguarding peace.

He put forward the proposals at a virtual open briefing of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) related to the COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

Wang proposed adhering to putting people first and enhancing global cooperation in the fight against COVID-19; fully implementing the UNSC resolutions and creating a favorable environment for fighting the pandemic; solving the vaccine deficit and increasing assistance to developing countries; and strengthening coordination and giving full play to the role of the United Nations system.

China has taken concrete actions to promote the fair distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, he stressed, adding that China has never sought any geopolitical goals in carrying out international cooperation on COVID-19 vaccines, never calculated any economic gains, and never attached any political conditions.

"What we think about most is to let the vaccines become accessible and affordable public goods for the people of all countries," Wang said.

China will continue to work together with all parties and enhance cooperation on vaccines and pandemic prevention and control, Wang said.

The open briefing was convened with the theme of ensuring equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines in contexts affected by conflict and insecurity. Delegates of the UNSC members and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres attended the virtual meeting.

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We are living through a period that has stirred our collective national conscience about racial injustices and democratic literacy. This February, as we celebrate African American History Month, it feels especially important to honor and celebrate Black lives and the many contributions of African Americans to our society and culture.

At A&M-San Antonio, were in the midst of our month-long celebration, launched by a panel discussion and on-campus portrait exhibit, Living in My Skin, by former A&M System Regent and acclaimed San Antonio artist Lionel Sosa. The exhibit was accompanied by a panel discussion featuring Mr. Sosa and his collaborators who posed for portraits, as they shared their experiences living as Black men in San Antonio. Its clear that Sosas poignant art pieces and his inspiration opened an emotional space that Brandon Logan suggests, made us susceptible to listening, and learning about the lived experiences of men of color. I gained a deeper appreciation of the personal investment of time and deliberate actions that it takes to create an anti-racist society.

With the increased focus on combating racial and social injustices that have grown out of the events of 2020, its more important than ever for colleges and universities to offer experiences and encourage conversations that help us value diversity and recognize our own roles in advancing equity and inclusion. These values drive what we do at A&M-San Antonio. In 2017, I established the Presidents Commission on Equity (PCOE) to recognize the diversity within diversity, and to further our collective efforts towards a more inclusive society.

The work of creating an equitable environment is complex and challenging, and weve learned that representation matters. Our students, employees, and community members need to see themselves in every facet of the University community  among the student body, the faculty, and the staff. We embrace heritage months like African American History Month because they provide teachable moments and opportunities to engage in outwardly visible celebrations about the lives and contributions of those who, historically speaking, may have been overlooked.

The pandemic has uncovered the good, the bad, the still unknown, and unfortunately, the glaring inequities in our society. We see that in the disproportionate effects on health and economic security in communities of color. The Black community  and in particular, Black men  has been hit especially hard. A recent study by APM Research Lab found that COVID-19 is 2.1 times more likely to kill Black Americans than White Americans, and that within the Black community, men are affected at higher rates than women. Access to health care, the industry in which one works, financial flexibility, and educational levels all affect individuals success in fighting COVID-19, and we know those are also areas of inequity for communities of color.

Of course, as a university president, Im also looking at the effects of the pandemic on educational attainment. A recent article in the Harvard Gazette discusses the challenges facing Black students during the COVID-19 pandemic. We know a higher number of Black students will drop-out during this time. Students of color already battle preexisting challenges of inequities in finances and access to health care. Add the coronavirus, and you have a recipe for academic derailment.

For so many community members of color, the importance of making it to college is life-changing and disrupts intergenerational cycles of poverty. We know a college degree can change lives and ultimately communities, but it will remain out of reach for many if we are not vigilant. We have to do better, and as I lead our university into its next chapter of growth, that responsibility is top of mind.

We have virtual, hybrid, and in-person events celebrating African American History planned for the entire month of February listed on our A&M-SA website. As you explore your possibilities for 2021, please know that the A&M-San Antonio campus remains open. I invite you to join us for a virtual or scheduled in-person tour and discover what the University has to offer you. Check out www.tamusa.edu for updates and happenings on our campus. You can always find me on Instagram at @jagprezmatson or Twitter at @PrezMatson.

Cynthia Teniente-Matson, Ed.D, is president of Texas A&M University San Antonio.
PARIS (AP)  Top European and U.S. officials urged Iran on Thursday to allow continued United Nations nuclear inspections and stop nuclear activities that have no credible civilian use.

The foreign ministers of Britain, Germany and France and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that Iran's actions could threaten delicate efforts to bring the U.S. back into a 2015 deal between Tehran and world powers and end sanctions damaging Iran's economy.

Iran is playing with fire, said German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who took part in talks Thursday in Paris with his British and French counterparts. Blinken joined via videoconference.

Iran has said it will stop part of International Atomic Energy Agency inspections of its nuclear facilities next week if the West doesnt implement its own commitments under the 2015 deal. The accord has been unraveling since Donald Trump pulled the U.S. out of the agreement in 2018.

Blinken reiterated that if Iran comes back into strict compliance with its commitments ... the United States will do the same, according to a joint statement after Thursday's meeting that reflected closer trans-Atlantic positions on Iran since President Joe Biden took office.

The diplomats noted the dangerous nature of a decision to limit IAEA access, and urge Iran to consider the consequences of such grave action, particularly at this time of renewed diplomatic opportunity.

They said Irans decision to produce uranium enriched up to 20% and uranium metal has no credible civilian use.

The 2015 accord is aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Tehran denies it is seeking such an arsenal.

We are the ones who have kept this agreement alive in recent years, and now its about supporting the United States in taking the road back into the agreement, Maas told reporters in Paris.

The measures that have been taken in Tehran and may be taken in the coming days are anything but helpful. They endanger the Americans path back into this agreement. The more pressure that is exerted, the more politically difficult it will be to find a solution, he said.

Story continues

Irans threats are very worrying," British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said, stressing the need "to re-engage diplomatically in order to restrain Iran, but also bring it back into compliance.

The diplomats also expressed concern about human rights violations in Iran and its ballistic missile program.

In Iran, Rouhani expressed hope Thursday that the Biden administration will rejoin the accord and lift the U.S. sanctions that Washington re-imposed under Trump, according to state television.

Tehran has been using its violations of the nuclear deal to put pressure on the remaining signatories  France, Germany, Britain, Russia and China  to provide more incentives to Iran to offset crippling sanctions the Trump administration re-imposed after pulling out of the 2015 deal.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the president of the European Council spoke with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani this week to try to end the diplomatic standoff. The head of the IAEA is scheduled to travel to Iran this weekend to find a solution that allows the agency to continue inspections.

___

Geir Moulson in Berlin, Matt Lee in Washington and Masha Macpherson in Paris contributed.
Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.
Gurugram, Feb 18 : The Gurugram district reported no impact of the farmers' four-hour 'Rail Roko' demonstration on Thursday.

The Railway Protection Force (RPF), Government Railway Force (GRP) and the Gurugram police had stepped up security measures and deployed three additional companies along with huge police deployment across Gurugram to prevent any untoward incident.

A huge number of police personnel were deployed near the Adani Logistics company located near the railway track at the Patli railway station.

In Gurugram, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) leaders assembled at the railway tracks at 12.15 pm. During the protests, SKM president Chaudhary Santokh Singh said: "We are standing in solidarity with the farmers. Our agitation will continue until the Centre rolls back the three farms laws." Apart from this, to stop SKM leaders and protesters from reaching the railway tracks, two goods train were kept on the approach railway tracks at the Patli railway station while the two main railway tracks were opened for train movement.

The protesters walked on the approach railway track but were stopped from reaching the main railway tracks. The protesters sat on the approach tracks for just 15 minutes and later left the spot to sit in the premises of a temple located naer the railway tracks.

Speaking to IANS, station house officer (SHO), GRP, Bhupender Singh, said, "We have made additional deployment across all the railway stations in Gurugram and also coordinated with the state agencies and state police." He said that between 12 noon and 4 pm, the Bhuj-Bareilly Express, Jaisalmer-Jammu Tavi Express, Ashram Express and three other trains passed through Gurugram without any disruption.
Police have pounced on an alleged $14.7 million real estate fraud ring, carrying away not only financial documents but guns and poker machines.

The alleged scam involved a real estate agent and two others conspiring to publish false documents to obtain home construction loans.

Five businesses and homes were raided across the Illawarra on Wednesday with two 33-year-old men arrested in Wongawilli and Calderwood.

Police seized financial documents, poker machines, firearms, and electronic devices that will be forensically examined.

Police executed search warrants on Wednesday and allegedly seized poker machines (pictured)

Multiple firearms (pictured) were also allegedly seized by police following the search

They were charged with 19 counts of publishing false and misleading information to obtain advantage, dishonestly obtaining a financial advance by deception and participating in a criminal group to contribute to criminal activity.

A third man, 35, was arrested at Lake Illawarra Police Station and charged with nine counts of fraud.

Police will allege the 33-year-old men were using falsified documentation in an attempt to obtain a $14.7 million loan to build homes in Avondale.

They will also allege that the 35-year-old man used his position as a real estate agent to publish false contracts of sale.

Investigations are continuing and more charges are expected to be laid.

All three men were granted bail and are due to appear in Port Kembla Local Court on April 14.
ANN ARBOR, MI - Wait, what just happened here?

If you found yourself asking that question during or after the Wednesday, Feb. 17 Ann Arbor School Board meeting, you probably arent alone.

After a long and confusing deliberation between board members, AAPS trustees voted 5-2 in favor of directing Superintendent Jeanice Swift to present a plan to them next week allowing instruction to remain virtual for the remainder of the 2020-21 year, with the exception of those students with the greatest needs.

While questions remain about which students fall into the category of greatest needs, here are answers to some key questions surrounding students learning status for the remainder of the year.

Is Ann Arbor Public Schools remaining in virtual learning for the remainder of the current school year?

Board members will make that determination, likely at their Feb. 24 meeting.

What they voted on Wednesday night was to direct Swift to present a plan to them that would shift the districts focus away from trying to offer hybrid learning for all students and instead focus on getting students with the greatest need back into the classroom by March 22.

Here is the wording of the approved motion:

Redirect Dr. Swift to make a recommendation to modify our current school plan to allow instruction to remain virtual to the end of the school year, with the exception of serving those with the greatest needs (as clarified by our superintendent and school administrators) who would return to school by March 22, 2021. The implementation of this modified plan will be presented, discussed and voted upon by Feb. 24, 2021.

Which students would qualify as having the greatest needs?

Swift will ultimately decide which students are offered the chance for in-person instruction in a new plan shell bring to the board on Feb. 24. Board member Susan Baskett, who proposed the approved motion, said she wants the district to target in-person instruction for self-contained special needs students and struggling students most at risk of academic failure.

What is AAPS current return to school plan?

The district in January targeted an early March return to in-person classes. Students have remained in remote learning since last March.

This plan proposes bringing students back in stages, with the first stage including students in pre-kindergarten, young fives and kindergarten who have chosen the hybrid in-person learning model, as well as students with high-level specialized learning needs.

Also included were small groups of middle and high school students most in-need of in-person classes. Additional stages proposed bringing students back by grade level in one-week increments, with middle and high school students entering the hybrid format last.

Why were board members confused?

At first, multiple board members said they didnt understand if approving Basketts motion would mean the district was effectively offering virtual learning for the majority of students.

After several slight modifications to the wording, the motion was clarified to direct the superintendent to present a plan only offering in-person school for students with the greatest need, with the majority of the districts students remaining in virtual learning for the remainder of this school year.

Board members who voted against the motion - Jessica Kelly and Bryan Johnson - called the plan to shift the districts return-to-school plan rushed, a surprise and radical, without seeking community input and not including COVID-19 data.

I cant support it if were making a motion that has that kind of radical impact on that many people, sets a date without regard to the metrics that we previously adopted, without even regard to conversation of those metrics that we previously adopted, Kelly said. Im going to call it radical, because it is radical for tens of thousands of people.

How did the district get to this point and what happens next?

Last July, Ann Arbor Public Schools was one of the first major districts in the state to announce it would begin the school year in virtual learning

As COVID-19 cases began to increase locally, district leaders urged caution about providing in-person classes, leading to the development of community COVID-19 metrics to guide a decision to return to in-person classes.

AAPS continues to monitor community spread of the coronavirus. Washtenaw County remains one of nine Michigan counties still in the highest risk level based on their seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases, per state measuring metrics. This is despite a COVID-19 positivity rate of just 2.2% in Washtenaw County.

Swift announced in mid-January, after guidance and recommendation from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, that AAPS was targeting an early March return to in-person classes.

Wednesday nights meeting, however, appears to reverse that course, leaving more debate and discussion to come at the boards next meeting on Feb. 24.

READ MORE:

Ann Arbor School Board to vote on plan for most students to finish year virtually

Ann Arbor Public Schools holds off on return date to in-person classes

Vaccination frustration: Washtenaw County has states lowest percentage of vaccinated teachers
WASHINGTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- While American workers as a whole, particularly women, saw incremental growth in living-wage job opportunities in January, Black workers lost ground, according to an analysis by the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity (LISEP).

LISEP's January True Rate of Unemployment (TRU) report found that the rate of Black workers who are "functionally unemployed" increased from 30.2% to 30.7%. This paints a different picture than the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report, which presented an improving unemployment picture for Blacks in the workforce.

"While we are encouraged that the overall percentage of functionally unemployed Americans is slightly better, we remain concerned that the racial inequality gap is growing," said LISEP Chair Gene Ludwig. "There are still far too many American families suffering due to the inability to find a living-wage job, particularly among Americans of color."

Each month, LISEP issues the TRU report, which measures the percentage of American workers who are "functionally unemployed"  defined as those who are jobless, or who are seeking full-time work but unable to secure a position that earns above poverty-level wages. The TRU for January, at 24.4%, is a 0.7% improvement over the December report and the lowest since the 23.8% TRU in March 2020. By contrast, BLS reported an unemployment rate of 6.3% for January, an improvement over the 6.7% December rate.

The good news in the January TRU report includes gains for women in the workforce, who saw the biggest improvement, dropping from 30.4% in December to 28.5% in January. Hispanic workers also saw some improvement, from 31.6% to 29.9%, and White workers saw marginal improvement, from 22.7% to 22.3%. But Black workers were worse off, with TRU rising to 30.7% from 30.2%, while the BLS report presented an improving unemployment picture for Blacks in the workforce, dropping from 9.9% in December to 9.2% in January.

This, Ludwig said, is an indication that while more Black workers are finding jobs, they are largely low-wage positions that fail to lift workers above the poverty level.

"While we are inching closer to pre-pandemic employment levels, this simply is not good enough  Americans need jobs that can support a family," said Ludwig. "The pending COVID relief package is not only a necessity to relieve suffering among families across the nation, but it is an opportunity. It's an opportunity to begin closing the income inequality gap, address racial inequalities, and to build back an economy where everyone can participate, equally."

Meanwhile, some gradual reopening of the service industry seems to have aided in improving the TRU levels for workers with lower educational attainment levels. For those with less than a high-school diploma, the TRU improved by 2.6 percentage points, although it still remains exceedingly high, at 46.7%. For those with only a high-school diploma, the rate improved to 29.8%, compared to 30.5% in December.

LISEP issued the white paper "Measuring Better: Development of 'True Rate of Unemployment' Data as the Basis for Social and Economic Policy" upon announcing the new statistical measure in October. The paper and methodology can be viewed here . LISEP issues TRU one to two weeks following the release of the BLS unemployment report, which occurs on the first Friday of each month. The TRU rate and supporting data are available on the LISEP website at www.lisep.org .

LISEP was created in 2019 by Ludwig and his wife, Dr. Carol Ludwig. The mission of LISEP is to improve the economic well-being of middle- and lower-income Americans through research and education, and seeks to advance the dialogue around policy solutions to improve the well-being of all Americans.

In addition to his role as LISEP chair, Gene Ludwig is founder of the Promontory family of companies and Canapi LLC, the nation's largest financial technology venture fund. He is the CEO of Promontory Financial Group and chairman and CEO of Promontory MortgagePath, a technology-based mortgage fulfillment and solutions company. Ludwig is the former vice chairman and senior control officer of Bankers Trust New York Corp., and served as the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency from 1993 to 1998. He is also author of the book The Vanishing American Dream, which investigates the economic challenges facing low- and middle-income Americans. It was released in September 2020 by Disruption Books.

SOURCE Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity

Related Links

https://www.lisep.org/


General Assignment Reporter

Chris Mays is a general assignment reporter for the Brattleboro Reformer. He has been with New England Newspapers Inc. since 2012.
City of Richardson workers prepare to work on a water main pipe that burst due to extreme cold in a neighborhood Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Richardson, Texas. Water service providers in Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas and other states hit hard by frigid winter storms and mounting power outages are asking residents to restrict usage as reports of water main breaks, low pressure and busted pipes emerge. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

About 7 million people in Texasa quarter of the nation's second-most populous statewere told to boil their water or stop using it entirely as homeowners, hospitals, and businesses grappled with broken water mains and burst pipes, many in areas unaccustomed to dealing with sustained frigid temperatures.

Winter storms during the past week in the Midwest, Texas and the South forced water service providers to scramble to manage flows as sub-freezing temperatures presented serious problems.

The Texas city of Kyle, south of Austin, asked residents Wednesday to suspend water usage until further notice because of a shortage.

"Water should only be used to sustain life at this point," the city of 45,000 said in an advisory. "We are close to running out of water supply in Kyle."

In Memphis, Tennessee, the power and water company asked residents to reduce their water usage through Friday.

Memphis, Light, Gas & Water said in a news release that it is experiencing reduced pressure across its distribution system due to freezing temperatures this week.

The utility also said it is seeing reduced reservoir levels at pumping stations and several water mains have burst. MLG&W has asked customers to refrain from leaving the water running while rinsing dishes, take short showers and hold off on washing clothes until Friday. Officials also asked customers to save water by letting faucets drip, instead of streaming water, to prevent pipes from freezing over.

Nathan Bercy, with the City of Richardson water department, begins to open access to make repairs to a water main break due to extreme cold Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Richardson, Texas. Water service providers in Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas and other states hit hard by frigid winter storms and mounting power outages are asking residents to restrict usage as reports of water main breaks, low pressure and busted pipes emerge. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Oklahoma City officials said on Twitter that power outages and extremely low temperatures caused water service interruption and low pressure for customers. Crews helped turn off water for thousands of customers who had their private water lines break.

"Leave your cabinet doors open to allow warm air to circulate," the city said in a tweet. "Do not try to use open flames or boiling water to thaw pipes."

Three hospitals in Shreveport, Louisiana, lost water because of the storm, KSLA-TV reported. City fire trucks delivered water and officials were getting bottled water for patients and staff.

In the southwest Louisiana city of Lake Charles, hospitals were faced with the possibility they might have to transfer patients to other areas because of low water pressure that followed a power outage, Mayor Nic Hunter said.

Father John Szatkowski of St. Paul The Apostle Church sweeps water from a broken water line out of his church in Richardson, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Father Szatkowski and his staff found the flooding as they prepared for Ash Wednesday services. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

The weather also caused major disruptions to water systems in the Texas cities of Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Fort Worth, Galveston and Corpus Christi.

In Austin, residents were told Wednesday night to boil their water after the city's largest treatment plant lost power. Meanwhile, the city's fire department said it has received hundreds of broken water pipe calls since Monday. On Tuesday alone, the department fielded 685 calls about busted pipes.

In Houston, also, residents were told to boil their waterif they had power to do sobecause of a major drop in water pressure linked to the weather. Austin Water told residents in the southwest section of the city to boil water before using it for drinking or cooking.

Leaders in Austin and the Houston area asked residents to stop dripping water from their faucets because of a drop in water pressure.

Ambulances line up outside of St. David's South Austin Medical Center in preparation to transport patients in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Earlier in the day, hospital officials said some patients at the facility would be moved to other hospitals in the area after the building began losing heat due to low water pressure. (Bronte Wittpenn/Austin American-Statesman via AP)

Nueces Brewing Co. in Corpus Christi offered water to those experiencing shortages. Tap room manager Gwen Ponder said they plan to give out 2,000 gallons of filtered water originally intended for beer brewing.

"We are happy to do it," Ponder said. "These are strange times."

In Abilene, Texas, firefighters were hampered by low water pressure as they tried to extinguish a house fire, the Abilene Reporter News reported.

"They had to watch that house burn," City Manager Robert Hanna said at a news conference.

In Dallas, Gerry Gross tried in vain to reach the cut-off valve outside his home after a pipe burst and sent water pouring through the wall of his utility room. Dressed in a knit sweater and sweatpants tucked into his rubber boots, Gross, 60, struggled to use a wrench to pry open a metal cover in the sidewalk outside his home that covers the valve.

Father John Szatkowski of St. Paul The Apostle Church stands looking at his flooded atrium caused by a broken water line in Richardson, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Father Szatkowski and his staff discovered the flooding as they prepared for Ash Wednesday services. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Father John Szatkowski, front, of St. Paul The Apostle Church and Deacon Bob Bonomi, left, walk through the flooded atrium of their church in Richardson, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Father Szatkowski and his staff found the flooding from a broken water line as they prepared for Ash Wednesday services. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Father John Szatkowski, left at door, of St. Paul The Apostle Church makes a phone call as he stands looking at the flooded atrium of his church in Richardson, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Father Szatkowski and his staff discovered the flooding, from a broken water line, as they prepared for Ash Wednesday services. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

A patient at St. David's South Austin Medical Center is prepared for transport in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Earlier in the day, hospital officials said some patients at the facility would be moved over to other hospitals in the area after the building began losing heat due to low water pressure. (Bronte Wittpenn/Austin American-Statesman via AP)

Father John Szatkowski, left, of St. Paul The Apostle Church and Deacon Bob Bonomi, right, sweep water out of their church in Richardson, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Father Szatkowski and his staff found the flooding, from a broken water line, as they prepared for Ash Wednesday services. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Gross said he had been without power for 36 hours and the temperature inside his home had fallen into the 30s when the pipe burst. He got power back Wednesday but he has been unable to get a plumber to come to fix the leak.

Gross wrapped the pipe in duct tape to try to dam the flow into the room that holds his washer and dryer, but it continued to seep through.

"If I call the city, they'll just shut off the water completely and who knows when I'll get it back," he said. "It's kind of the Wild West out here."

Explore further Power outages linger for millions as another icy storm looms

 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Michael Gove and David Frost - Reuters/PA

Boris Johnson has replaced Michael Gove with a staunch ally to lead post-Brexit talks with Brussels.

Lord Frost, who led negotiations over a Brexit trade deal, was made a Government minister and will now chair the two critical committees dealing with UK-EU relations.

With talks over Northern Ireland expected to intensify, multiple Whitehall sources said the switch was made because Mr Johnson wanted a harder stance with Brussels.

One Government minister told The Telegraph that the Prime Minister wanted a "punchier" approach to be adopted. An ally of Lord Frost said he is "a tougher negotiator" than Mr Gove.

Lord Frost will lead the negotiations over the customs setup in Northern Ireland, which has become a source of intense friction between the UK and EU since Brexit.

The shake-up sees the peer become both a Government minister in the Cabinet Office and also a full member of Mr Johnson's Cabinet.

The 55-year-old will lead talks with Maros Sefcovic, the European Commission's vice-president, once he is in post on March 1 and will regularly answer questions in the House of Lords.

The two committees he will now chair are at the very centre of Britain's relationship with the EU now the UK is formally outside of the bloc.

The Withdrawal Agreement joint committee oversees issues relating to Britain's exit deal from the EU, most notably the Northern Ireland Protocol. The EU-UK Partnership Council deals with future relations on a wider basis.

Lord Frost  known as "Frosty" in Number 10  had been made national security adviser after Brexit negotiations were done, but that appointment fell through amid concerns over his limited security background.

Both Lord Frost and allies of Mr Gove, who is also a minister in the Cabinet Office, moved to play down any suggestions of a rift.

Lord Frost tweeted that he was "hugely honoured" to take the role and said: "I stand on the shoulders of giants, and particularly those of Michael Gove who did an extraordinary job for this country in talks with [the] EU over the past year."

Story continues

A Gove ally claimed that Mr Gove had always wanted Lord Frost to eventually lead the negotiations. He was leading one of the committees only on a temporary basis.

However, murmurings of discontent in Number 10 over how Mr Gove had been handling tensions with Brussels about the post-Brexit setup in Northern Ireland could be heard on Wednesday night.

One well-placed Government insider said that Lord Frost had been put in place because he would be firmer with Brussels, adding: "Frosty by nature has a tougher attitude. He is more Brexity. The PM wants him to be leading on this. To do that he needs to be the minister."

It was decided that both committees could only be chaired by a Government minister, hence Lord Frost's new role change.

The same source said Lord Frost had recently not attended a lengthy one-on-one meeting between Mr Gove and Mr Sefcovic, effectively being locked out of critical talks.

"Michael and Sefcovic met recently. It was a two-hour one-on-one and Frosty wasn't involved," the source said.

Reacting to the appointment, a senior Tory source said: "Finally Gove has been shunted. There's been a row building over who should be responsible for all the stuff on Europe. Gove's been clinging on to it all even though Frost always thought he was going to be running it. Frost is far more radical than Gove."

One member of the Gove inner circle pointed the finger at Lord Frost, suggesting he had been "grumbling" over Mr Gove leading the Brussels brief.

The change will free Mr Gove, still one of Mr Johnson's most trusted ministers, to continue to play a central role in the Covid-19 response as well as strengthening the Union. The switch will not happen until March, with Mr Gove meeting Mr Sefcovic on Wednesday to discuss tensions in the post-Brexit set-up in Northern Ireland.

The Northern Ireland Protocol attempts to avoid a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland by carrying out customs checks when goods cross the Irish Sea from mainland UK.

A senior Number 10 official said of Lord Frosts new role: "What the PM is calling it internally is minister for Brexit Britain  it's about making the most of the opportunities of Brexit, and that's Davids brief."
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President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky thanked representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for its work in Donbas.

He wrote about this on Twitter on the occasion of the 158th anniversary of the organization, Ukrinform reports.

Its 158 years since the first activists started the international movement to help wounded, known now as ICRC. Ukraine, where the only war in Europe is ongoing, is grateful for helping fix millions of lives in Donbas. The work of ICRC keeps faith that the peace will come soon, the President wrote.

ICRC in Ukraine, in turn, thanked the President for the congratulation and assured of commitment to the Ukrainian people.

The International Committee of the Red Cross is a humanitarian organization, which was established in Geneva (Switzerland) in 1863. The ICRC is now present in more than 80 countries.

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Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole on Thursday said if actors Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar do not take a standon the issue of fuel price hike, then screening of their films and shootings would not be allowed in the state.

Talking to reporters here, Patole said Bachchan and Kumar had tweeted about fuel price rise during the previous UPA government, but are now silent on the issue.

Nana Patole

The prices of branded or additive-laced petrol, which attracts higher taxes, have crossed the Rs 100-mark in some places, including Maharashtra. In Mumbai, petrol is now costing Rs 96.32 a litre and diesel Rs 87.32.

Patole said the common man has been affected a lot by the increase in prices of petrol and diesel.

Filmstars like Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar, through their tweets, had earlier criticised the fuel price rise during the Manmohan Singh-led government, he said.

Amitabh Bachchan

Why are they silent now on the rising petrol and diesel prices? he asked.

"If they do not take a stand now on the injustice meted out by the Modi government, we will not let any films (screening) or shootings of Amitabh Bachchan or Akshay Kumar in Maharashtra," the Congress leader said.

They should now play the same role and protest against the central government's "anti-national policy", as they did during Manmohan Singh's tenure, Patole said.
CLEVELAND, Ohio  When licensed professional counselor Tamara Ferebee meets with her Black female clients, they talk Black girl to Black girl.

Theres no need to explain why a Black person might feel anxious while driving, or how microaggressions in the workplace cause low self-esteem. They know what its like to open your social media and see a child who could be yours crying because police used pepper spray on her.

While some clients feel comfortable talking to a therapist of any gender or ethnicity, others prefer to confide in someone who looks like them. For people of color, it means that client and therapist are on the same wavelength because of shared cultural references.

This story is part of the ongoing cleveland.com series Coping Through COVID, which aims to help Northeast Ohio residents manage the stress of COVID-19 by examining the mental-health and behavioral-health aspects of the pandemic. The series tells individuals stories and explores various challenges and strategies with experts.

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the Black community disproportionately hard, not only in terms of severe cases of the illness, but also in mental health.

Having a therapist from the same community is more than just preference  its the most effective way to deliver needed help and avoid misdiagnoses.

Black adults (48%) and Hispanic or Latino adults (46%) are more likely to report symptoms of anxiety and/or depression than white adults (41%), according to a study released this month by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

You dont want to talk to someone who doesnt understand your culture, said Ferebee, associate executive director of human services administration, for the National Association of Black Counselors. The professional organization, based in Chester, Virginia, works to raise the number of black counselors in the United States.

Therapists who are people of color are more likely to understand race-based traumatic stress, or racial trauma. They are also more likely to recognize that Black people often describe mental health symptoms differently than the general population, and that misunderstanding cultural cues can lead to misdiagnosis.

There are always race-related overtones that make mental health problems a little larger and a lot heavier. We have to recognize that, said Nia Jones, a licensed master social worker with the Black Mental Health Alliance.

The Baltimore-based organization provides culturally relevant mental health education forums, training and referral services for Black and vulnerable communities.

For minority individuals who want a counselor of their race or ethnicity, the search is complicated by the low number of Black mental health professionals.

Less than 10% of the total number of mental health counselors in 2020 were African American, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

We need there to be more (therapists of color) to increase access, said Marsheena Murray, a child psychologist at MetroHealth Systems.

The website Sista Afya is filled with mental wellness information and resources for Black women. The COVID-19 pandemic has lead to more depression and anxiety in the Black community. This is a screenshot from the website.

Why cultural competency matters

When therapists and clients share a common culture, they spend less time trying to understand each other and more time getting to the nitty-gritty of interpersonal problems.

For instance, Ferebees Black patients commonly say, I feel some kind of way about that. It means, I feel upset or sad about something that happened in my family or friend group.

A white therapist might ask, How did you feel?

We dont have to do that, Ferebee said, referring to Black behavioral health professionals. I know, in the course of the conversation, it will come out how they feel.

When Ferebee prescribes exercise to Black women as a way to manage moods, she knows that many Black women dont like to sweat. Shell suggest walking in an air-conditioned mall, or using a stationary bike with fans mounted on it.

Often her clients confide that they didnt discuss childhood sexual abuse with their white therapists because they didnt want the therapist to form negative opinions about Black families, Ferebee said.

Jones understands destructive stereotypes in movies and television about Black women, such as the hypersexualized jezebel, the ever-helpful mammy or the angry black woman. These stereotypes have roots in slavery and are connected to racism and discrimination.

You dont spend time explaining it, Jones said. You spend time healing from it.

Culturally sensitive therapists of all ethnicities need to recognize the signs of race-based traumatic stress, or racial trauma. This refers to an emotional injury caused by encounters with racial bias and ethnic discrimination, racism, and hate crimes.

When they hear news accounts of Black people being shot by police or harassed while bird watching or walking in their neighborhoods, they feel as if the incident could have happened to them or a loved one, Jones said. The resulting racial trauma can express itself as depression, anger, recurring thoughts of the event, low self-esteem, headaches, chest pains, insomnia and hypervigilance.

More therapists of all races are being taught cultural sensitivity as part of their training, and that wasnt always true in the past, Murray said. Its a larger focus now, she said.

When misunderstanding leads to misdiagnosis

Its important for health care professionals to be trained to recognize depression and other mental health issues in Black men and women, even though the symptoms might sound different than expected.

Black people may be more likely to describe physical symptoms related to behavioral health problems, such as when Black women talk about aching all over or feeling tired when describing depression.

Many Black children are misdiagnosed with ADHD or bipolar disorder when actually they are suffering from untreated trauma, intermittent explosive disorder or PTSD, all disorders that can arise from growing up in a violent area, Ferebee said.

Intermittent explosive disorder is a lesser-known mental disorder marked by episodes of unwarranted anger or rage.

Black men who talk about symptoms related to mood disorders or PTSD are more likely to be misdiagnosed as schizophrenic, according to a 2018 article published in Psychiatry Online.

Health care professionals who are biased, whether consciously or unconsciously, or lack cultural competency can result in misdiagnosis and inadequate treatment for people of color, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

Mental health (providers) need to be culturally competent enough to look at the source of the behavior to interpret why the child is emotionally reactive  usually from trauma, Ferebee said.

Why there are so few therapists of color

Diversity has long been a problem in the mental health field.

A 2013 study found that only about 6% of psychologists, 13% of social workers and 21% of psychiatrists are minorities.

Attitudes in the Black community against seeking mental health treatment and using antidepressants also discourage young people of color from pursuing careers in behavioral medicine, mental health experts said.

If more Black people talked about having a therapist and the benefits of therapy, it would raise awareness of the profession in the Black community, Jones said.

The highest hurdle is the lengthy and expensive training required to become a licensed therapist.

In order to become a licensed independent social worker in Ohio, students must first earn a masters or doctorate of social work degree, have 3,000 hours of professional supervised practice in social work, pass a criminal background check, and pay more than $300 for the application fee and licensing exam.

The costs of prep courses for the licensing exam, and the exam itself, add to the burden.

In Northeast Ohio, its not necessarily easy to find a therapist of color, especially when patients also need a provider who takes their insurance, is accepting new patients and specializes in their problem area, MetroHealths Murray said.

Finding a therapist from a minority community is easier during the pandemic due to telehealth appointments, which can connect patients and therapists across regions, Murray said.

Hospitals and other providers offer names and photographs of counselors on their websites, making it easy to conduct an initial search, Murray said.

Professional organizations such as the Black Mental Health Alliance and the National Association of Black Counselors offer scholarships and training with the goal of encouraging more young people of color to enter the field. Its important to let people know that there are Black mental health professionals in their communities, Jones said.

If these efforts to diversify the profession bear fruit, it will be easier for patients to connect with a therapist who understands them.

How to find a minority therapist

Here are organizations that offer directories of therapists who are people of color or culturally competent, as well as information and educational materials:

Black Mental Health Alliance

Searchable database of culturally competent behavioral health therapists.

Black Therapist Network

Directory of black and Latino mental health therapists.

Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation

Nonprofit that works to erase the stigma surrounding mental illness in the Black community.

Brother Youre on My Mind

Online toolkit that provides Omega Psi Phi Fraternity chapters with the materials needed to educate fellow fraternity brothers and community members on depression and stress in Black men.

Mental Health America

Directories for LGBTQ, Latin, Black, Asian and Indigenous patients seeking therapists.

National Association of Black Counselors

The professional organization offers a searchable database of minority therapists.

Psychology Today

Searchable directory of African-American therapists

Sista Afya

Mental wellness information and resources for Black women.

The Steve Fund

Nonprofit that supports the emotional well-being of young people of color.

Therapy for Black Girls

Listing of mental health professionals across the country, podcast and an online support community.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks to reporters at a news conference outside the Supreme Court on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 9, 2016. (Gabriella Demczuk/Getty Images)

Texas Attorney General Announces Probe Into ERCOT Over Role in Blackouts

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has launched an investigation into the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the organization that operates the states power grid, alleging mishandling amid the brutal cold snap that has left millions of Texans shivering and in the dark.

ERCOT & other energy cos have slipped & fallen on their faces & its not the ices fault. They have left 3+ million homes w/o power for days, including my own, Paxton wrote in a tweet late Wednesday.

What do they do in response? Jack up prices, go silent, make excuses, & play the blame game. Its unacceptable! he added.

Paxton also commended officials, including Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott, on getting to the bottom of the power crisis.

Abbott told KTRK Houston in an interview Tuesday evening that the power outages amount to a total failure by ERCOT, and called for reform of the organization to be an emergency item for the 2021 legislative session. He also said top ERCOT leadership should resign.

Far too many Texans are without power and heat for their homes as our state faces freezing temperatures and severe winter weather, Abbott said, NPR reported. This is unacceptable.

Abbott also said he wants to get a full picture of what caused this problem and find long-term solutions.

ERCOT President and CEO Bill Magness said he welcomes the probe and is addressing the power supply and delivery problems, according to CBS Dallas-Fort Worth.

No Firm Timetable for Full Restoration of Power

Nearly 1.9 million customers in Texas still had no power Wednesday after historic snowfall and single-digit temperatures created a surge in demand for electricity to warm up homes unaccustomed to such extreme lows, buckling the states power grid and causing widespread blackouts.

ERCOT had restored enough electrical generating supply Wednesday to restore the lights to about 1.6 million households, the council announced Wednesday night.

Magness said the grid began preparing for the storm a week ahead of time, but it reached breaking point early Monday as conditions worsened and knocked power plants offline. Some wind turbine generators were iced, but nearly twice as much power was wiped out at natural gas and coal plants. Forcing controlled outages was the only way to avert an even more dire blackout in Texas, Magness said.

What were protecting against is worse, he said.

Still, Magness said ERCOT could not offer a firm timetable for when power might be fully restored.

What Happened In Texas?

Plunging temperatures caused Texans to turn up their heaters, including many inefficient electric ones. Demand spiked to levels normally seen only on the hottest summer days, when millions of air conditioners run at full tilt.

The state has a generating capacity of about 67,000 megawatts in the winter compared with a peak capacity of about 86,000 megawatts in the summer. The gap between the winter and summer supply reflects power plants going offline for maintenance during months when demand typically is less intense and theres not as much energy coming from wind and solar sources.

But planning for this winter didnt imagine temperatures cold enough to freeze natural gas supply lines and stop wind turbines from spinning. By Wednesday, 46,000 megawatts of power were offline statewide28,000 from natural gas, coal, and nuclear plants and 18,000 from wind and solar, according to ERCOT.

Every one of our sources of power supply underperformed, Daniel Cohan, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Rice University in Houston, tweeted. Every one of them is vulnerable to extreme weather and climate events in different ways. None of them were adequately weatherized or prepared for a full realm of weather and conditions.

The staggering imbalance between Texass energy supply and demand also caused prices to skyrocket from roughly $20 per megawatt hour to $9,000 per megawatt hour in the states freewheeling wholesale power market.

Gas-fired plants and wind turbines can be protected against winter weatherits done routinely in colder, northern states. The issue arose in Texas after a 2011 freeze that also led to power-plant shutdowns and blackouts. A national electric-industry group developed winterization guidelines for operators to follow, but they are strictly voluntary and also require expensive investments in equipment and other necessary measures.

ERCOT official Dan Woodfin said plant upgrades after 2011 limited shutdowns during a similar cold snap in 2018, but this weeks weather was more extreme.

Ed Hirs, an energy fellow at the University of Houston, rejected ERCOTs claim that this weeks freeze was unforeseeable.

Thats nonsense, he said. Every eight to 10 years we have really bad winters. This is not a surprise.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Protesting farmers sit on tracks after calling for a four-hour rail blockade as they continue their protest against the central government's recent agricultural reforms, in Sonipat on February 18, 2021. (AFP)

Chandigarh: Farmers on Thursday sat on railway tracks at many places in Punjab and Haryana as part of the 'rail roko' protest against the Centre's new agri laws, with officials stopping trains at stations as a precautionary measure.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions which is spearheading the protest, last week had announced the nationwide rail blockade to press for its demand to repeal the legislations and had said that the agitation will be from 12 pm to 4 pm.

In Punjab, protesters sat on tracks at many places on the Delhi-Ludhiana-Amritsar railway route, officials said.

Farmers blocked the Jalandhar Cantt-Jammu railway track in Jalandhar and in Mohali district also farmers blocked a rail track, they said.

In Haryana, protesting farmers, including women, squatted on rail tracks at many places, including in Ambala, Kurukshetra, Panipat and Panchkula districts, the officials said.

On the Ambala-Delhi railway section, a group of farmers led by Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader from Ambala, Gulab Singh, squatted on a rail track at Shahpur village, about 2 kilometres from the Ambala Cantt station.

"Our protest will continue in a peaceful manner till the farm laws are repealed," Singh said.

Security has been tightened in both Haryana and Punjab with personnel of the government railway police and the state police forces being deployed, officials said.

The Ferozepur division of the Northern Railways has decided to halt trains at stations so that passengers face less inconvenience during the 'rail roko' protest.

The officials said that the movement of trains is likely to be delayed because of the farmers' rail blockade. Train services will be resumed after following due security protocols once the agitation is over, they said.

In Haryana, besides railway police personnel, the Haryana Police has deployed its staff in large numbers near the protest sites and at various railway stations.

Divisional Railway Manager, Ambala Division, G M Singh said that no train has been cancelled in view of the 'rail roko' agitation.

Four trains were scheduled to pass from Ambala between 12 to 4 pm, railway officials said.

Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) members will block railway tracks at 22 places, including at Nabha, Mansa, Barnala, Bathinda, Ferozepur, Jalandhar and Tarn Taran, in Punjab, the organisation's general secretary Sukhdev Singh Kokrikalan said.

Thousands of farmers have been protesting since late November at Delhi's borders with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, demanding a rollback of the Farmers' Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020; Farmers' (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020; and Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020.

The protesting farmers have expressed apprehension that these laws would pave the way for the dismantling of the minimum support price (MSP) system, leaving them at the "mercy" of big corporations.

However, the government has maintained that the new laws will bring better opportunities to farmers and introduce new technologies in agriculture.
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Washington: Four weeks into his presidency, Joe Biden says he's still getting used to the trappings of the office.

Biden offered a frank description of what it's like to live at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. during his CNN town hall Tuesday night, referencing past presidents who have spoken of the building as a little like a gilded cage."

I get up in the morning and look at Jill and say, Where the hell are we?'" Biden joked, adding that he wasn't used to household staff waiting on him.

Also Read | Life lessons from Covidian era startups

I find myself extremely self-conscious," Biden added, saying he was unaccustomed to someone handing me my suitcoat."

Biden's working-class upbringing in Scranton, Pennsylvania, has long been a central part of his political brand. He most recently lived in a large house in the Wilmington, Delaware, suburbs.

The White House features a spacious lawn that has an unimpeded view of the Washington and Lincoln Monuments but is otherwise surrounded by high fencing and a small army of guards. Biden said it's totally different" from the vice president's residence, set on 80 acres and offering ample room to swim, explore and exercise in greater privacy.

The former vice president said he'd been in the Oval Office 100 times or more over the years but had never been to the residential areas of the White House.

Even if the residence still feels new, Biden suggested he's already settled deeply into the work of the presidency.

Sometimes, because things are moving so fast, not because of the burden, it feels like four years," Biden said. It's not because of the burden, it's because there's so much happening, that you're focused on, you're constantly focusing on one problem or opportunity."

Biden confirmed he had picked up the phone to talk with one or more of his predecessors but declined to say who.

He added: By the way, all of them have, with one exception, picked up the phone and called me as well."

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She never puts a foot wrong with fashion.

And Myleene Klass displayed her impeccable dress sense once more on Thursday as she sported a houndstooth jacket and grey suit trousers as she arrived at Global Studios to present her Smooth Radio show.

The radio host, 42, looked effortlessly stylish in her business attire as she sashayed through Leicester Square in London and headed indoors.

Impeccable dress sense: Myleene Klass sported a houndstooth jacket and grey suit trousers on Thursday as she arrived at Global Studios to present her Smooth Radio show

Myleene rocked a white shirt and complementing trainers as she clutched her mobile phone.

She added a touch of glamour with gold necklaces and a Gucci belt cinched at the waist.

The mother-of-three added a pop of colour with red lipstick, and she framed her visage with oversized tinted shades.

She also draped a black shoulder bag over her arm and styled her caramel tresses in a toussled wave.

Chic ensemble: The radio host, 42, looked effortlessly stylish in her business attire as she sashayed through Leicester Square in London and headed indoors

On the go: Myleene rocked a white shirt and complementing trainers as she clutched her mobile phone

The outing comes after Myleene shared a video of herself enjoying a 'massive snogfest' with her fiance Simon Motson on Instagram on Valentine's Day.

The radio presenter captioned the clip: 'Happy Valentines day. A massive snogfest all in the name of love and music. #justonekiss'.

The proud parent was also part of a star-studded Covid-19 campaign released last week.

Myleene appeared in in the public service announcement with 18-month-old Apollo, who she shares with Simon.

Expensive taste: She added a touch of glamour with gold necklaces and a Gucci belt cinched at the waist

Pop of colour: The mother-of-three sported a red lipstick and framed her visage with oversized tinted shades

Windswept beauty: She draped a black shoulder bag over her arm and styled her caramel tresses in a toussled wave

Love is in the air: The outing comes after Myleene shared a video of herself enjoying a 'massive snogfest' with her fiance Simon Motson on Instagram on Valentine's Day

In the family cameo, Myleene holds her adorable boy as she encourages Britons to 'please stay at home' to save lives during the ongoing pandemic.

Some of the country's biggest names lent their star power to the video, including TOWIE's Gemma Collins, 40, and Joey Essex, 30, actor Shane Richie, 56, and broadcaster Kate Garraway.

Kate, 53, whose husband Derek Draper is still in hospital with Covid-19, kicks off the moving clip telling viewers to 'please stay safe and stay at home if you can'.

TV and radio presenters Graham Norton, 57, and Angellica Bell, 44, then appear from their workplaces, with the former CBBC host saying: 'Please do stay at home if you can so we can be together soon'.
ROME, FEB 18 - Health Minister Roberto Speranza paid tribute to 90-year-old Life Senator and Holocaust survivor Liliana Segre after she had her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at a Milan hospital on Thursday. "A life that is an example for everyone. Even in the most simple gestures," Speranza said via Facebook. "Thank you Liliana Segre". (ANSA).
Libyans on Wednesday marked the 10th anniversary of their 2011 uprising that led to the overthrow and eventual killing of longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi.

The day comes as Libyans have their eyes on a recently appointed government tasked with leading the country through elections late this year.

Celebrations began late Tuesday in the capital, Tripoli, where people gathered in the citys main square amid tight security. The citys main streets and squares have been cleaned and decorated with banners and photos marking the anniversary. Festivities also rang out in other cities in the south.

Hassan Wanis, head of the general authority for culture in Tripoli, said celebrations and commemorative events were planned in the three regions of old Libya: Tripolitania in the west, Cyrenaica in the east, and Fezzan in the southwest.

Libya has become one of the most intractable conflicts left over from the Arab spring a decade ago. In the years that followed Gadhafis ouster, the North African country has descended into devastating chaos and has become a haven for Islamic militants and armed groups that survive on looting and human trafficking.

The oil-rich country has for years split between rival administrations: A U.N.-backed, but weak government in Tripoli  a city largely controlled by an array of armed factions  against an eastern-based government backed by strongman Gen. Khalifa Hifter, head of the self-styled Libyan Arab Armed Forces. Each is backed by foreign governments.

Over the past years, the country has seen devastating bouts of violence. The latest began in April 2019, when Hifter, who is backed by the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Russia, launched an offensive seeking to capture Tripoli. His campaign collapsed after Turkey stepped up its military support for the Tripoli administration with hundreds of troops and thousands of Syrian mercenaries.

Months of U.N.-led talks resulted in a deal in October that ceased hospitalities and called for the withdrawal of all foreign forces and mercenaries in three months and adherence to a U.N. arms embargo, provisions which have not been met.

The talks also established a Libyan Political Dialogue Forum, that earlier this month appointed an interim government - a three-member Presidential Council and a prime minister - that would lead the country through elections scheduled on December 24.

That government includes Mohammad Younes Menfi, a Libyan diplomat from the countrys east who hails from the tribe of anti-colonial hero Omar al-Mukhtar, as chairman of Libyas Presidential Council. Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah, a pragmatic, well-connected businessman from the western city of Misrata, was appointed as prime minister.

Dbeibah is still consulting to form his Cabinet, which needs a confirmation from the countrys divided parliament. Menfi arrived in Tripoli on Tuesday and met with Dbeibah and other officials.

In a report marking the anniversary, Amnesty International repeated its calls for holding accountable those engaged in alleged war crimes and serious human rights violations during the past ten years.

Unless those responsible for violations are brought to justice, rather than rewarded with positions of power, the violence, chaos, systematic human rights abuses and endless suffering of civilians that have characterized post-Gaddafi Libya will continue unabated, said Diana Eltahawy, the groups deputy director for MENA.

In the past years Libya has emerged as the dominant transit point for migrants fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East. Traffickers often pack desperate families into ill-equipped rubber boats that stall and founder along the perilous Mediterranean route.

Thousands drown along the way, while others end up detained in squalid smugglers pens or crowded detention centers if captured by authorities.

(AP)
Lucknow: The Budget session for 2021-22 of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly will commence on Thursday with an address by Governor Anandiben Patel to a joint sitting of both houses. State Finance Minister Suresh Khanna is slated to table the budget at 11 am on Monday. The session will continue till March 10.

An all-party meeting was also called by Speaker Hriday Narayan Dikshit on Wednesday ahead of the budget presentation. He sought cooperation from the leaders for the smooth running of the budget session. He had informed that the budget will be paperless and the finance minister will read out the Budget paper from a tablet.

"The state finance minister will read out the Budget paper from a tablet. All the members have been given tablets and necessary training," Dikshit had said. Ram Govind Chaudhary, Leader of Opposition in state Assembly has opposed the idea of the paperless budget saying that it would result in many people suffering financial losses or even losing their jobs.

"On February 18, the Governor will address the Assembly. The Chief Minister said that House should function properly. I oppose the paperless budget because Uttar Pradesh is a state of manpower. With the budget going paperless, there would be three losses. If everything goes paperless, farmers will bear losses as they grow raw materials for paper," he said.

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"At printing press, people will not have work as the paper will not be printed. If paper factories shut down, then lakhs of people will get unemployed. The state government sees only benefits of technology but it is not seeing who will suffer due to it," Chaudhary said.

During the Budget session, BSP will raise issues related to farmers` problems, law and order situation, and unemployment in the state.

"The Speaker called for an all-party meeting. Everyone put forth their views. MLAs will face problems due to a paperless budget. We will raise issues where the state government is failing. BSP chief Mayawati has directed us to raise farmers` problems, law and order, and unemployment," said Lalji Varma, Leader of BSP Legislature Party.

Samajwadi Party leader and MLC Sunil Singh Yadav alleged that BJP leaders and ministers had looted money allocated in the previous budgets.

"We are hoping that Uttar Pradesh will get something from this budget. This is the last budget of the BJP government. This budget should be paperless but not `vikasless` (without development). In the last 4 years, BJP leaders, ministers, and officials looted money allocated in the budget," he said.

On February 16, COVID-19 tests of all MLAs and MLCs were conducted in view of the pandemic.
We are on the cusp of truly incredible advances in the near future; its finally the time for homeowners to fully embrace these protective technologies to keep their homes safer. Ultimately, the big winner of these programs is the customer.

Hippo, the home insurance group leading a new standard of care and protection for homeowners, today announced the appointment of Dave Wechsler, formerly the lead of Comcast Xfinitys smart home and Internet of Things (IoT) strategy in emerging markets, as Vice President of Growth Initiatives. As the company pursues its mission to create better outcomes for homeowners, Dave will oversee the growth and development of Hippos industry-defining smart home program, including driving key initiatives that will create deeper levels of protection and smart home discounts for customers.

Hippo has the most widely adopted smart home program in the U.S. homeowners insurance sector,* providing homeowners with smart devices that equip them with the information to better protect their homes and access premium discounts on their home insurance policies. The companys innovative home insurance model is rooted in its vision to create a product that drives better outcomes for homeowners through the proactive use of technology and connected sensors. When small problems arise, Hippos smart home program enables homeowners to identify and solve them before they become big issues.

Hippo is peerless when it comes to helping homeowners identify potential problems. With more than 500,000 smart sensors shipped to customers we are eons ahead of others in this space, Dave Wechsler, VP of Growth Initiatives, said. I have been working as a partner of the Hippo team for several years and have been impressed by the companys use of smart home technology to transform the overall insurance ecosystem. Hippo was one of the first to advocate for the pairing of smart devices with a home insurance policy, which has proved critical for detecting events that cause the costliest home damages such as water and fire. We are on the cusp of truly incredible advances in the near future; its finally the time for homeowners to fully embrace these protective technologies to keep their homes safer. Ultimately, the big winner of these programs is the customer.

Dave has more than two decades of experience on the frontlines of smart home technology, most recently leading Comcast, the nations largest internet provider, with bringing the technology to emerging markets. In 2018, Dave led Comcasts official move into smart home insurance offerings  following a strategic and ongoing partnership with Hippo.

Dave has the unique expertise and proven track record that will drive our next stage of growth as we double-down on smart home innovation and the opportunities that lie ahead, said Daniel Blanaru, Chief Growth Officer at Hippo. As we utilize smart home insights gathered over the last three years, were in a prime position with Dave at the helm to build new offerings that give customers more flexibility and education to protect themselves, and take Hippos smart home program to the next level.

More than 70 percent of Hippo customers opt-in to Hippos smart home program. To date, the company has delivered more than 500,000 smart sensors to customers that detect potential issues like water leaks, smoke alarms, open doors and windows, and drastic temperature changes. To learn more about Hippos Smart Home Program, visit http://www.hippo.com/smart-home.

*Statement attributed to Matteo Carbone, founder of the IoT Insurance Observatory

About Hippo

Hippo is on a mission to transform home insurance for the modern household. The company brings homeowners closer to a modern home insurance experience with an efficient online purchase experience using trusted data sources, a smart home device kit included with eligible policies and more available coverage for possessions like appliances, electronics and home offices. Hippo Insurance Services is part of Hippos family of companies that brings together home wellness and home insurance for todays homeowners. Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, with insurance products available to over 70 percent of homeowners in the U.S., Hippo Insurance Services is a licensed property casualty insurance agent with products underwritten by various insurance companies. For more information, including licensing information, visit http://www.hippo.com.

Authorities have discovered a suicide note that they believe was written by a South Korean man who was found dead in a Hanoi apartment on Wednesday.

The mans body was found in a flat at the R2 building of the Goldmark City apartment complex at 136 Ho Tung Mau Street in Phu Dien Ward, Bac Tu Liem District at around 9:00 am on Wednesday.

Bac Tu Lien police later identified the body as B.S.W., a 47-year-old from South Korea.

B.S.W. entered Vietnam in 2014 and had not returned to South Korea since, according to police.

He was a director of civil construction and lived alone in his apartment in the Goldmark City complex.

Authorities blocked off the building where the man lived immediately after being notified of the incident.

Medical staff from Bac Tu Liem District also arrived at the scene to ensure the area was COVID-19-free.

Medical workers work at the R2 building of the Goldmark City apartment complex, where a South Korean man was found dead, in Bac Tu Liem District, Hanoi, February 17, 2021. Photo: Ha Quan / Tuoi Tre

During their investigation into the incident, the Hanoi Center for Disease Control sampled the man for COVID-19 testing and subsequently reported that he was negative for the novel coronavirus.

Colonel Le Duc Hung, head of the Bac Tu Liem District police department, confirmed on Wednesday afternoon that the South Korean man had left a suicide note.

According to preliminary investigation results, it is very likely that the man committed suicide," said Hung.

"He left a suicide note.

Authorities are still investigating the suicide motive.

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Good luck to staffers at the Baltimore Sun as it looks like they may escape the ruthless clutches of New York hedge fund Alden Global Capital, which has inked a $630M deal to acquire the papers parent company, Tribune Co.

Known for its voracious cost-cutting, media investor Alden slashes staff at its acquired newspapers to the bare bones.

A NewsGuild study found that Alden cut 71 percent of jobs at the papers that it acquired from 2012 to 2019.

The Sun attracted a last minute white knight in the form of The Sunlight for All Institute, a nonprofit formed by businessman and philanthropist Stewart Bainum, Jr.

The Institute has agreed to buy the Sun, Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Carroll County Times and several Baltimore area weeklies.

Baltimore mayor Brandon Scott hailed the deal as a win for Sun employees and a "more transparent, accountable Baltimore, while a spokesperson for Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan wished the Sun great success as it returns to being locally-owned, and continues to carry out the work of the free press.

A tip of the hat goes to the Save Our Sun campaign organized by the Washington-Baltimore News Guild and NewsGuild-CWA last year to attract a local owner for the 183-year-old paper.

That effort gained the support of Baltimore royalty including film director John Waters, The Wire creator David Simon, Orioles greats Brooks Robinson and Cal Ripken, author Laura Lippman and architect Janet Marie Smith.

Theres still hope for the Chicago Tribune and New York Daily News as Alden requires a vote by two-thirds of non-Alden affiliated shareholders to clinch the deal.

The Capitol Hill riot has dealt a major blow to Americas effort to promote human rights and democracy overseas, according to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.

There is no doubt that our ability to wave the banner of democracy and human rights to some extent has been tarnished by recent events, especially the egregious attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, he told NPR.

Blinken believes it is important for the US to pursue all legal remedies against those who ransacked the Capitol and put the lives of members of Congress in jeopardy.

"Were not trying to sweep in under the rug, he said. Were confronting it. And sometimes its ugly, sometimes its painful, but its incredibly powerful.

Blame it on programmatic advertising. Pfizer, developer of the COVID-19 vaccine, and the Centers for Disease Control place ads on websites spouting misinformation about the pandemic, according to a report from NewsGuard.

Kroger and Walmart, which are major distributors of the vaccine, also support the bogus sites.

Media companies dedicated to outing fake news sites also joined the fun as CBS News, NBC and MSNBC placed ads on COVID-19 misinformation sites.

The NewsGuard study found that from Feb. 2020 to the present, 4,315 brands ran more than 42K unique ads on websites flagged for COVID-19 misinformation.

Whats the harm? A London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine report found a drop in patients openness to a COVID-19 vaccination after they were exposed to misleading ads.

The NewsGuard study reports that that in most cases ads on misinformation sites were likely inadvertent, placed by algorithms on programmatic ad-buying platforms.

Marketers should take a hard look at where their dollars are winding up. Thats the least they can do to support the global effort to beat back the pandemic.
UTRECHT, Netherlands, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cycleon, industry-leaders in returns management, have further expanded their returns network in North America with the opening of a new warehouse facility in Waco, Texas. This additional location will facilitate a number of improved services that will further extend their returns solution in the region for both retail and online returns.

This new return center will help to shorten lead times in central USA by 20%. This is an exciting development as shortened lead times are beneficial for retailers, as well as customers. A quicker turnaround will improve refund times while also preventing item depreciation by supporting a faster and more efficient re-fulfillment process. It's also a step towards a more sustainable returns flow, with a central location requiring shorter transport distances than before.

The Waco facility will also increase Cycleon's overall operational capacity. Enabling them to process higher volumes of returns and perform additional value-added services. Activities such as item verification, grading, re-conditioning, rebagging, retagging, repacking and redeployment. All of which help to maintain the value of returned items, protecting profit margins for retailers. This process also engages with the circular economy by preventing items from becoming waste through Cycleon's smart routing tools.

"The opening of the Waco location is yet another successful steppingstone in our expansion in North America," says Managing Director of Cycleon, Jelle Schoenmaker. "We're excited to offer our returns solutions here to a whole host of new retailers and are of course looking forward to what the future holds in this market."

About Cycleon

Cycleon (part of the Reverse Logistics Group) are experts in product returns management. Their global platform and logistics network optimizes returns each step of the way. Cycleon provides seamless return experiences for both retailers and consumers and strives to reduce the environmental impact and cost of reverse logistics. Active in 80+ countries, and with 200+ partners, Cycleon provides returns solutions for leading brands in ecommerce, both fashion & apparel and electronics.

W: https://www.cycleon.com/



SOURCE Cycleon
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Sergio Perez looks set to get an early taste of life at the wheel of a Red Bull cockpit.

Reports suggest that the Mexican, arriving in 2021 to replace Alex Albon who struggled alongside Max Verstappen, will get a one or two-day hit-out - probably in the 2018-spec, Honda-powered Toro Rosso at Silverstone.

"It will be very difficult for him to find his way straight away in just one test," team boss Christian Horner, speaking after the three-day official pre-season test in Bahrain for March 12-14 was officially confirmed, told motorsport-total.com.

"Sergio does have the advantage of having a lot of experience. Of course we expect him to be close to Max and to challenge him - just as we had with Daniel (Ricciardo) and Max for three seasons," Horner added.

"Hopefully Sergio can play a really important role for the team in getting both cars close to the Mercedes on a consistent basis."
The federal government is promising to enact higher minimum wages and strict pro-union rules that will destroy the gig economy. Some of these rules are already in effect in blue states. The young will be especially hard hit.

Our youths need an opportunity to learn how to work and contribute to society. If they can't find a job, they will remain dependent and feel helpless, driving anger and despair.

Studying the history of communist countries shows that depriving people of the means to become productive in life, to achieve for themselves, is enervating to any society. Purposeless youths become troubled and cause discord. They engage in wanton destruction of the type that escalated in America in 2020.

Purposelessness makes causing trouble attractive because it scratches the itch of anger at not being in control of one's life. The appeal of anarchy when life is encumbered by too many senseless rules is understandable.

Anyone with children sees this dynamic. We parents give our children chores when they're little so they can learn to take responsibility for themselves and contribute to family life. We then encourage them to have summer jobs as they get older. When governments increase minimum wages, those jobs become scarce. For businesses, it's too expensive to pay the higher minimum wage to a teen trainee who is probably only half as productive as a more mature worker.

For years, our insane internship rules have prevented teens from doing any productive work without pay because the state doesn't want work taken from adult employees. The law states, in essence, that an intern can't do any task that someone being paid to work might do.

Obeying the law means an internship is an idle, meaningless exercise in lack of accomplishment. There are time limitations, as well, before the pay clock starts ticking.

All this rule-making normalizes idleness. Drugs, violence, and acting out will follow. Having a sense of purpose elevates every individual. If we don't give kids the opportunity to use what they're taught in school, or the tools to set realistic goals that can be achieved and become signposts for their future success, we turn them into selfish, unthinking adults, without a positive self-image or moral compass.

After WWII and before Vietnam, kids had a well mapped path: school, then college or trade school (and many public schools had shop classes for those not on a strict academic track), then perhaps an advanced degree or further trade training to increase earnings. Along the way, young people often worked to help pay for their schooling. The endgame was always to become self-reliant.

This track led to family life as a productive and responsible adult. Go back and watch any of the 1950s TV dramas and sitcoms, like Lassie or Leave It to Beaver. Now they seem so simplistic, so naive; back then, they were just normal. In all of them, kids had chores, and life was a purposeful journey to adult responsibility.

In 2021, we already have a large youth contingent making trouble  a problem we've exacerbated by closing schools. We've distanced ourselves from the sensible routines of life, with predictable results. As government creates more work rules, it escalates these issues. The rules, which are intended solely to enrich unions and other donor groups, prevent us from raising our children to be responsible.

The Democrat oligopolists want to force conformity of thought and action, but they are instead enforcing trouble. They thrive on control, which they'll never be able to achieve no matter how much they tighten the straight jacket buckles. Meanwhile, it becomes increasingly obvious that they care nothing for the lives of their "constituents."

Along with destroying young people's futures, eliminating the gig economy will make parents scramble to keep food on the table. People who have had children at home for the last year without relief have needed creative ways to care for them, and the flexibility of gig work gave that to them. They don't need to pay union dues and work on an imposed schedule, and the companies that employ them don't want that, either.

We need to take back the many things we've given up. We need to raise our kids knowing they can take care of themselves and, perhaps, help take care of us when we get old. To do that, our youths need permission to find meaning in life through work. We need fewer rules, not more.

The bottom line is that our representatives need to be made to represent us, and not the special interest groups that shower money on them. There are some who listen and work for us, but most do not. We need to make that the standard of judgment for all of them, regardless of party. We need to elect people who treat us as humans with self-respect, not as subjects.

Image: Teen mobs in Chicago. YouTube screen grab.
As Illinois kindergarten through high school teachers and staff line up for COVID-19 vaccinations, higher education faculty continue to wait for their shots.

The heads of colleges and universities in the state have asked Gov. J.B. Pritzker to move higher education faculty and staff into Phase 1B, but to no avail. Under the current plan, most college instructors wont be eligible to receive inoculations until Phase 1C.

A letter sent to the governor said without a strong signal that vaccinations will be available before the fall term, students are more likely to leave the state to attend college.

Eric Jome, director of media relations at Illinois State University in Normal, said the move would ensure a smooth opening for the fall semester.

And be a reassurance for students who are looking to make decisions about colleges in the fall, Jome said.

Jome said a limited number of staff members have been vaccinated, but only if they qualify under the current plan.

Darcie Shinberger, executive director of university communications at Western Illinois University, released a statement.

Universities are a part of the states population that can have a large impact in containing COVID-19 should faculty, staff and students get vaccinated. Vaccinating the members of a university community helps protect people both on and off-campus, and allows us to return to in-person learning and other activities that contribute to the economic health of the communities we serve.

While most universities and colleges continue to wait their turn, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has started vaccinating select faculty. Earlier this month, the school invited instructors teaching at least one class this spring to sign up for the vaccine, causing some confusion at other schools where the faculty isnt eligible.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advised states to include those who work in the education sector (teachers) in Phase 1B and advised that can include higher education workers. But it is up to the states to make the final decision.

The Illinois Federation of Teachers has sent a petition to the governor and the Illinois Department of Public Health urging them to revise the rollouts eligibility requirements. The petition was signed by more than 3,000 people.

.

Total cases in west-central Illinois counties as of Wednesday, according to individual county health departments, were:

Brown County

648 total, 635 recovered, seven deaths

Cass County

1,867 total, 1,824 recovered, 32 deaths

Eight new cases.

Greene County

1,354 total, 1,280 recovered, 46 deaths

11 new cases.

Jersey County

2,439 total, 2,336 recovered, 44 deaths

Macoupin County

4,437 total, 3,520 recovered, 107 deaths

Five new cases.

Morgan County

3,619 total, 3,427 released from restrictions, 97 deaths

11 new cases.

Pike County

1,651 total, 1,597 recovered, 47 deaths

Sangamon County

15,874 total, 211 deaths

17 new cases.

Schuyler County

645 total, 625 recovered, 16 deaths

Scott County

444 total, 424 recovered, one death

Statewide, 1,795 new cases of coronavirus disease and 24 deaths were reported Wednesday, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

There have been 1,166,717 cases and 20,057 deaths in Illinois.

There are calls for members of a California school board to be recalled after they were caught on camera making disparaging comments about parents.

The Oakley Union Elementary School Board conducted an online meeting via Webex on Wednesday afternoon so parents could dial in to discuss plans for their children to return to school amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Before the meeting began, several of the board members allegedly believed that no parents were on the call and proceeded to poke fun of them.

'Are we alone?' board member Kim Beede asked her colleagues, according to ABC7, who obtained vision of the meeting.

When the other members replied that they were, Beede jokingly imitated herself threatening parents who had written letters about school re-openings.

'B**ch, if you are going to call me out I am going to f**k you up! Sorry! That's just me,' Beede can be heard stating as the other board members laugh.

There are calls for members of The Oakley Union Elementary School Board to be recalled after they were caught on camera making disparaging comments about parents. Lisa Brizendine then implies that some parents think of teachers as babysitters

Board members Kim Beede and Richie Masadas were also caught on the call making disparaging comments

Board member Lisa Brizendine then implied that some parents think of teachers as their personal babysitters.

'They don't know what goes on behind the scenes. It's really unfortunate they want to pick on us. They want their babysitters back,' she stated.

During the conversation, a third board member, Richie Masadas, chimed in, alluding that parents wanted their kids back in the classroom so they could take drugs uninterrupted.

'My brother had a delivery service for medical marijuana and he delivered to parents while their kids were at school,' Masadas stated in the video, to the amusement of the other board members.

But parents who have obtained footage of the meeting certainly aren't laughing.

Board members Kim Beede and Lisa Brizendine are pictured

During the conversation, a third board member, Richie Masadas, implies that parents want their kids back in the classroom so they can take drugs uninterrupted

Irate parents have now signed a Change.org petition titled 'Oakley Union Elementary School District Board Members - Resign immediately or be recalled'.

'Parents were tuned in to learn if we will be sending our kids back to school soon and if not, why. There has been a lack of communication from the board and this was the first communication we heard,' the petition states.

'A recall would cost the district money that should be going to the kids. We are asking that the board members to resign immediately due to their egregious behavior. They should no longer represent the parents, teachers, and children in this school district.'

Several parents left comments, with one stating: 'My kids deserve better than this violent and uncaring bunch of bullies.'

More than 2,250 people have now signed the petition.

One distraught mom told ABC7: ' They see us writing letters monthly, weekly, to the board members, detailing our stresses and grief about distance learning. For them to say we are doing nothing and sitting home and smoking pot is far from the truth.'

'I thought the board members were also advocates for my child and had her best interests at heart and after last night's incident it really has me thinking that they don't.'

Irate parents have now signed a Change.org petition titled 'Oakley Union Elementary School District Board Members - Resign immediately or be recalled'

School Superintendent Greg Hetrick has since released a statement addressing the scandal.

'Last night at the Oakley Union Elementary School District Regular Board Meeting there were unfortunate and truly inappropriate comments made that were heard by many. These comments are not typical and more importantly they are not what the community should expect from our school district,' he stated.

'The comments made were not in alignment with our Vision and are definitely not what any of us stand for as leaders. I know that we lost trust with the community. I will not make excuses for what happened or why it happened. I am the superintendent. I am responsible and accountable and I am truly sorry for what took place.... I know that our students deserve better from us. I pledge to work collaboratively with stakeholders and community members to begin doing the important work that is needed to rebuild community trust in our district.'
They are protesting the social media giants decision to ban Australian news

The hashtags #DeleteFacebook and #BoycottZuckerberg are trending on Twitter as some Australians delete their profiles in protest at platform completely banning news from the platform.

Outraged users are sharing their final Facebook posts and asking friends to send their phone numbers before they delete the platform for good.

Facebook has banned Australian news outlets from sharing content, and has also inadvertently blocked charities, government agencies and smaller businesses.

The hashtags #DeleteFacebook and #BoycottZuckerberg are trending on Twitter as some Australian's delete their profiles to protest the platform's news ban. Pictured: Megan Bridger-Darling said she was going to delete her Facebook account

Former Deputy Mayor of Maribyrnong, Victoria, Megan Bridger-Darling posted on Facebook that she was deleting her profile (pictured)

Former Deputy Mayor of Maribyrnong, Victoria, Megan Bridger-Darling, deleted her Facebook account on Thursday and told followers they could find her on 'Twitter, email, phone, and occasionally in the news.'

'If Facebook won't support our journalists, I won't support them,' wrote Ms Bridger-Darling.

'I choose reliable news sources over a platform that benefits and enables anti-vaxxers, klan members, doxxers, fear-mongerers, and extremists to peddle their messages entirely unopposed.'

Outraged users are making their final Facebook posts and asking friends to send their phone numbers before the delete the platform for good. Pictured: Entrepreneur Jared Fitzclarence said he would not be buying Facebook ads until the platform paid for news

Western Australian man Jared Fitzclarence (pictured right) asked other business owners to stop paying for Facebook ads

Western Australia entrepreneur Jared Fitzclarence announced he would no longer be paying Facebook for advertising until news content was fully restored on the platform.

'I am making a commitment to immediately cease all paid advertising on any Facebook platform and to refrain from clicking on any paid advertisements,' he wrote.

'To all Australian entrepreneurs, I challenge you to do the same for your advertising budgets.'

One Newcastle man said he wanted his Facebook friends to delete Facebook with him, offended by the tech giant's decision to block pages issuing emergency warnings

A Newcastle man said he wanted his Facebook friends to delete Facebook with him.

'Bushfire warnings, flood warnings and Covid-19 warnings all turned off by Facebook in Australia,' he wrote.

'Facebook has turned off all Australian publishers because they object to laws being passed by a democratic government. [It] is time to send Mark Zuckerberg a message #deletefacebook.'

Another Australian posted that they were choosing Reddit over Facebook.

'So Australians are now gagged on Facebook. News, satire, health service, assistance service, hospital, fire services, weather, ABC Kids, even women's rescue services are being shut down or silenced,' they said.

'I'll be over at reddits r/Australia.'

Facebook has banned Australian news outlets from sharing content, and has also inadvertently blocked charities, government agencies and businesses. Pictured: CEO of Facebook Mark Zuckerburg

Another Australian said they would be using social media platform reddit instead of Facebook in a post on the platform (pictured)

PRIME MINISTER SCOTT MORRISON'S FULL STATEMENT Facebook's actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing. I am in regular contact with the leaders of other nations on these issues. These actions will only confirm the concerns that an increasing number of countries are expressing about the behaviour of BigTech companies who think they are bigger than governments and that the rules should not apply to them. They may be changing the world, but that doesn't mean they run it. We will not be intimidated by BigTech seeking to pressure our Parliament as it votes on our important News Media Bargaining Code. Just as we weren't intimidated when Amazon threatened to leave the country and when Australia drew other nations together to combat the publishing of terrorist content on social media platforms. I encourage Facebook to constructively work with the Australian Government, as Google recently demonstrated in good faith. Advertisement

Facebook is Australia's most popular social media platform, being used by over 17.1million Aussies in a four week period in 2019, according to research by Roy Morgan.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison slammed the tech giant's decision to block Australian news on Thursday.

'Facebook's actions to unfriend Australia today, cutting off essential information services on health and emergency services, were as arrogant as they were disappointing,' Mr Morrison wrote.

'We will not be intimidated by BigTech seeking to pressure our Parliament as it votes on our important News Media Bargaining Code.'

The proposed code has support from politicians across major Australian political parties.

Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young, who ferociously grilled Facebook and Google representatives in a senate inquiry last month, slammed the move.

'Blocking Australian news overnight, while allowing hate speech and dangerous conspiracy theories run rampant,' she said.

'Facebook has just confirmed it really is just FakeBook.'

Facebook said it made the choice to ban pages, including those providing mental health, domestic violence and emergency services support, 'with a heavy heart.'

'The proposed law fundamentally misunderstands the relationship between our platform and publishers who use it to share news content,' the tech company wrote in a blog post.

'It has left us facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia.'
Pimlico Plumbers boss Charlie Mullins today confirmed all new starters at his 50million business would have to take a Covid jab to get a job.

The outspoken owner - who is worth at least 70million - has thrashed out the new papers with his lawyers to make the booster mandatory for all new hires.

And he said he doubted many would object to the new terms, adding 'people would crawl across the snow naked to get a vaccine at the moment'.

He is now exploring whether he can modify existing staff contracts, although he insists no current employees would be forced to receive a vaccine or be fired over the issue.

Conciliation service ACAS advises an employment contract can only be changed if there is a 'flexibility clause' already within it; the employee agrees to the change; or a representative such as a trade union agrees to it. Mr Mullins said he is 'pretty much certain that 99 per cent of our staff would jump at the opportunity' to have the jab.

The 'no jab, no job' concept has attracted much debate in recent weeks, with care home operator Barchester Healthcare among the other firms which have said all new recruits must be vaccinated unless they have a medical reason not to.

Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi has said it is 'up to businesses what they do', but trade union Unison has said it 'is totally unacceptable' for firms to pressure staff into taking the jab.

But Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab has also refused to rule out a 'no jab no job' Covid policy, telling LBC radio yesterday that it is a decision for employers.

And Care Minister Helen Whately told BBC Radio 4 today that the Government's policy was to 'make sure that health and social workers can get the vaccine and have all the information they need, and can get it really easily'.

Mr Mullins, 68, said: 'We've obviously been talking to our lawyers and they're very happy that we can add this proposal to any new workers that start with us once the vaccine is rolled out.

Pimlico Plumbers boss Charlie Mullins confirmed all new starters would need jabs. He is pictured speaking on Channel 4 News last night

Boris Johnson at a vaccination centre this week cleaning a clear for the next patient to arrive

There are signs the UK's coronavirus vaccine roll-out may be slowing after fewer than 280,000 doses were administered yesterday

'We are in regular contract with our staff from our HR department and I think people would crawl across the snow naked to get a vaccine at the moment.

'We'll be using the new contacts two to three months from now.

What have Ministers said about 'no jab no job policies' this week? Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab (LBC, yesterday): 'The precise relations and communications between employers and employees are a matter that we would want to leave to responsible employers, but it's not the law of the land that you have to have the vaccine.'

(LBC, yesterday): 'The precise relations and communications between employers and employees are a matter that we would want to leave to responsible employers, but it's not the law of the land that you have to have the vaccine.' Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi (BBC Breakfast, yesterday): 'Well, I just think, it is obviously up to businesses what they do but I think at the moment we don't yet have the evidence of the effect of the vaccines on transmission.'

(BBC Breakfast, yesterday): 'Well, I just think, it is obviously up to businesses what they do but I think at the moment we don't yet have the evidence of the effect of the vaccines on transmission.' Care Minister Helen Whately (BBC Radio 4, today): The Government's policy is to 'make sure that health and social workers can get the vaccine and have all the information they need, and can get it really easily'. Advertisement

'When people come along for a job with us if they're not happy to sign that then that's their choice but they certainly won't be given a job with Pimlico Plumbers.

The comments, made in an interview with Radio 4, came as a legal director admitted he had been contacted by other clients exploring the concept.

Lewis Silkin's David Samuels said: 'A company could elect to put that clause in their contract.

'They might find resistance to it, people not wanting to sign up to it or saying somehow legally unfair that they're required to do so.

'I think at the beginning of the process that's not really going to make any difference for that employer.

'Where they may find difficulty is ultimately if they're challenged through some kind of legal process on the basis that individual says it's unfair legally for me to have that in my contract.

'Perhaps they'd say it discriminates against them because they can't have the vaccination or they can't get hold of the vaccination or something along those lines

'But there's nothing to stop the business in the first place putting it in the contract.

'I have certainly had enquiries about this, I can't say I have had clients hellbent on introducing this, but they want to understand if it would be possible in the right circumstances.'

The Government has pledged to vaccinate 15 million people in Britain by mid-February, with Boris Johnson promising that 200,000 doses would be administered per day by the end of the week.

Lewis Silkin's David Samuels said he had some clients ask about a jabs being in job contracts

The firm is also exploring how it might modify existing staff contracts, he said, although he insisted no one would be forced to receive a vaccine or be fired over the issue

Vaccinations will soon be available on the High Street, alongside in around 50 hubs which will be set up in venues across the UK in a bid to get the jab to as many Britons as possible.

Keep working at home, PM to tell employers Office staff are set to be told to keep working from home even as other lockdown restrictions are eased. Boris Johnson is not expected to give a firm date for when workers will return to their desks as he unveils his plans for a return to normality on Monday. It means the 'work from home if you can' message will continue to guide employers for the foreseeable future. Many large firms have already told staff they should work remotely, with some even delaying a return to the office until at least the end of the year. However, some studies claim that productivity is hampered as workers log in from their kitchen table rather than at their desk. Tory MPs urged the Government last night to provide clarity on when staff might be able to return to their offices. Former party leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said: 'We need to get people back to work as soon as possible. 'There are lots of reasons why work is important to our lives. It affects people's physical and mental wellbeing and there are issues around productivity. 'I would like to see as much detail as possible in the road map to help people to make plans. They need to know in advance.' Advertisement

Yesterday Mr Mullins told the BBC he was willing to pay for private immunisations for those at Pimlico Plumbers, should they become available.

He added he has set aside 800,000 to pay for inoculations for more than 400 workers.

'We wouldn't dream of forcing anybody but I'm pretty much certain that 99 per cent of our staff would jump at the opportunity,' Mr Mullins said on Thursday.

'Who in their right mind would turn down one needle or one jab that could save your life?'

Asked whether there was a contradiction between saying contracts could be modified to require vaccines while also saying no one would be forced out, Mr Mullins presented the issue as one of persuasion rather than coercion.

'It's not a contradiction because I think you'll find if you encourage people and advise them ... I'm happy to pay for anyone that works for us to have the vaccine,' he said.

The Pimlico Plumbers boss added he believes that private vaccinations will be available within a few months.

He also said he does not think people will find a 'no jab, no job' policy controversial.

'Nobody moans now you've got to get on a plane with a negative Covid test,' he said, referring to new rules requiring passengers arriving in Britain to provide proof of a negative test taken less than 72 hours before travel.

Many other countries have had such requirements for months.

However, despite Mr Mullins' plans to adopt a 'no jab, no job' policy, lawyers have suggested this move could lead to claims of discrimination or constructive dismissal.

Nick Wilcox, a partner at BDBF, told the Guardian that mandatory vaccinations 'could be an issue', advising employers to consult workers about jabs rather than imposing them.

Two-thirds of UK adults back idea of vaccination passports, poll finds Two-thirds of UK adults support the idea of vaccination passports despite legal and ethical concerns, a poll has revealed. More than 15 million adults have now received their first dose as the UK leads the way with its vaccine programme. The rapid rollout has prompted questions about whether the government should introduce vaccine passports for foreign travel - a move previously rejected by Nadhim Zahawi, the vaccine minister, over fears it would be discriminatory. A survey of 2,000 adults has revealed 68 per cent support vaccination passports for people heading out of the UK on holiday and business. And more than three quarters (77 per cent) think tourists entering the UK should also be able to provide proof they have been vaccinated. However, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has advised against their introduction due to the 'critical unknowns' regarding the efficacy of vaccination in reducing transmission. The WHO has also expressed concerns that while there is limited availability, preferential vaccination of travellers could result in inadequate supplies of vaccines for priority populations considered at high risk of severe Covid-19 disease. More than a third (34 per cent) of those surveyed by Medicspot admitted they were concerned that forcing people to have vaccination passports to go abroad would be a breach of human rights as it could discriminate against those who are waiting for the vaccine, cannot have it, or do not want it. It follows a petition against vaccine passports which has been signed by more than 145,000 people. A spokesperson for Medicspot said: 'Unfortunately the virus is here to stay, and authorities and the public will be looking at ways to live with it. The UK's vaccine rollout has been a brilliant success and the subject of vaccination passports is a sensitive subject which finds itself at the centre of a complex debate.' Medicspot, which provides fit to fly certificates that show people are Covid-19 free so they can travel abroad, looked at how the public views current regulations on international journeys. The survey found almost half (47 per cent) think the threat of 10 years in prison for lying about their travel to avoid a 10-day quarantine is a fair punishment, with just 37 per cent regarding it as harsh. And more than a fifth (21 per cent) would be happy to pay 1,750 to be quarantined after arriving in the UK from a country on a Covid red list. Two thirds (65 per cent) also support the use of an up-to-date fit to fly certificate saying they don't have Covid-19 so they can travel abroad. The research, carried out via OnePoll, showed more than three quarters (77 per cent) are really impressed with the UK's rollout of the vaccination - with just seven per cent not impressed. Half (49 per cent) of the public think the Covid-19 vaccine should be compulsory for all adults, while 16 per cent think it should only be compulsory for adults deemed 'at risk' by medical experts. Almost two thirds (63 per cent) thought it was a good idea for the NHS to use Sir Elton John and Sir Michael Caine to encourage people to get the vaccine. But despite the vaccine rollout, just a quarter think people will be able to attend public events like sports matches and music gigs this year. If these large-scale events do allow spectators, 72 per cent support the use of vaccine passports or an up-to-date certificate saying you don't have Covid-19 in order to attend. And overall, 74 per cent support the government's latest lockdown and its measures, with just 14 per cent opposed. Advertisement

Covid lockdown has left TWO MILLION people without work through furlough or job cuts - as one in four UK firms plan to fire staff at end of April if government support scheme is axed

Nearly two million people have been unable to work for at least six months after losing their jobs in the pandemic or being placed on furlough, a think-tank report has said.

The Resolution Foundation puts the figure at 1.9million  compared to official statistics showing 1.2million.

It says one in five of these people fear they will remain jobless or their roles will vanish when the taxpayer-funded furlough scheme stops on April 30.

Meanwhile, in a further blow to the jobs market, a quarter of British businesses have today said they expect to fire staff if Chancellor Rishi Sunak does not extend its furlough programme - which is due to expire at the end of April.

The Resolution Foundation report suggests a 'long Covid' in the labour market will add to the after-effects of the pandemic, which are expected to include high debt levels and mental health problems.

A report by the think tank Resolution Foundation estimates that around 1.9 million people have been unable to work for at least six months after losing a job or being furloughed in pandemic (pictured: Commuters on a tube in London this morning)

A graph showing the number of people in the UK who have been unemployed or furloughed for more than six months

A graph showing how many people have had some experience of unemployment of furloughing over the past year

A graph showing the number of people in the UK either partially or fully furloughed since the pandemic began

A graph showing the change in paid employee jobs in 2020 compared to February 2020 - before the first lockdown began

One in four UK firms plan to fire staff if furlough ends soon, say business chiefs A survey by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) found one in four companies will have to lay off staff unless furlough support is extended beyond April 30. Rishi Sunak is due to deliver his annual budget on March 3 and has promised to provide more support for jobs hit by the coronavirus pandemic. But he is also mindful that COVID-related spending has already pushed Britain's budget deficit to its highest since World War Two. The furlough programme cost 46billion up to mid-December - the government's most expensive single economic support measure. The BCC survery also showed sales had tumbled at 61 per cent of firms in the past three months and 23 per cent risk running out of cash. 'It is vital that the UK government keeps financial support going until firms can reopen and rebuild,' BCC Director General Adam Marshall said. He added: 'Pulling the plug now would be a huge mistake, and would be akin to writing off the billions already spent helping firms to survive.' Advertisement

Speaking about the report, Nye Cominetti, an economist at the think-tank, said: 'While the UK's economic prospects are finally looking up, job insecurity remains high, particularly among those who have spent long periods not working or who are currently furloughed.

The Chancellor must use his Budget to set out his own roadmap for phasing out the furlough scheme gradually and in a way that acknowledges where the risks of rising unemployment are highest  in sectors like hospitality.

'This would keep a lid on rising unemployment and encourage firms to bring back existing workers while tax breaks on hiring could help more people to move jobs too.'

Meanwhile, a survey by the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) found one in four companies will have to lay off staff unless furlough support is extended beyond April 30.

Rishi Sunak is due to deliver his annual budget on March 3 and has promised to provide more support for jobs hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

But he is also mindful that COVID-related spending has already pushed Britain's budget deficit to its highest since World War Two.

The furlough programme cost 46billion up to mid-December - the government's most expensive single economic support measure.

The BCC survey also showed sales had tumbled at 61 per cent of firms in the past three months and 23 per cent risk running out of cash.

'It is vital that the UK government keeps financial support going until firms can reopen and rebuild,' BCC Director General Adam Marshall said.

He added: 'Pulling the plug now would be a huge mistake, and would be akin to writing off the billions already spent helping firms to survive.'

Scientists urge ministers to agree on an 'acceptable' number of Covid-19 infections that the country could live with as a tolerable risk Scientists have pleaded with ministers to give them an 'acceptable' number of Covid infections that Britain is prepared to live with, said one government expert yesterday. Professor Dame Angela McLean said that a 'sensible discussion' was needed about a tolerable level of risk from Covid. 'One of the things we have cried out for again and again, is could somebody in a position of political power tell us what is an acceptable number of infections,' she said. 'We do need to decide what level we feel is acceptable, and then we can manage our lives with that in mind.' Dame Angela, chief scientific adviser to the Ministry of Defence and a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), was giving evidence to the Commons science and technology committee. Many of those worried about the collateral effects of lockdowns have already suggested that Britain must learn to live with the virus like it does with other illnesses. Another expert told the committee that the public will want their normal lives back once everyone has been vaccinated. Professor Sir John Bell, who advises the UK's vaccine taskforce, said: 'It's not plausible to imagine a world where we vaccinate the whole country and everybody believes they're still in the place that we were in six months ago.' The expert, who is regius professor of medicine at Oxford University, asked MPs to think about a situation where very few people died, no one was admitted to hospital and there was no long-Covid, which vaccines might have an impact upon. 'People will feel  with some justification in my view  that they would like to get back to a relatively normal way of life, and we are going to have to get used to that,' he said. Advertisement

A major leap in worklessness after the pandemic would end almost a decade of record high employment levels and introduce economic pressures and pains that have not been seen since the banking collapse of the late 2000s.

The Resolution Foundation report said that last month 700,000 workers had been unemployed for at least six months and a further 500,000 had been on full furlough, working no hours at all, for the same period.

But it said that because people have been moving between unemployment and furlough, the real number who had not worked since the summer of 2020 was 1.9 million.

A poll taken by YouGov among nearly 6,400 people late in January found that eight per cent of those in work were worried about unemployment over the next three months or had been told they would be redundant when lockdown lifts.

But among furloughed workers 21 per cent expect to lose their jobs.

Many such as retail workers have been unable to work since the third national lockdown in England was introduced in January.

Big brands such as Debenhams have already been lost on the High Street.

In one of the biggest blows to retail jobs since the pandemic began, it was announced thousands of jobs were to be lost when Debenhams collapse.

It was bought by Boohoo for 55million. However the firm said it would axe 12,000 jobs by making it an online-only operation.

High street chains such as Peacocks, Jaeger, Edinburgh Woollen Mill and Bonmarche have all gone into administration since the start of the pandemic.

Online giant ASOS recently acquired from the shell of Arcadia the brands and websites of Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge and the athleisure HIIT brands but the future of their stores remains unknown.

New data has revealed around 850 retail jobs have been lost each working day since the start of the year as retail experts warn this will be the 'tip of the iceberg' without further support from the Treasury.

New analysis from the Centre for Retail Research (CRR) shows 27,096 jobs have been shed and 1,023 stores have been earmarked for closure so far in 2021.

The research, which covers insolvencies by retailers with 10 or more stores.

On top of this, worrying figures show the affect of lockdown on towns and cities across the UK.

Latest figures from data group Springboard show year-on-year footfall figures for last February was down 61 per cent in England and Wales, 63 per cent down in Northern Ireland and 66 per cent down in Scotland.

The figures are similar in each are of England, with the south-east and south-west the only regions to see smaller drops - of around 55 per cent.

However central London saw the biggest drop, with footfall dropping 86.9 per cent compared to this time last year.

Though each country has different lockdown rules, the fall in footfall undoubtedly comes from non-essential shops are currently closed in all parts of the UK.

It comes as office staff are set to be told to keep working from home even as other lockdown restrictions are eased.

Boris Johnson is not expected to give a firm date for when workers will return to their desks as he unveils his plans for a return to normality on Monday.

It means the 'work from home if you can' message will continue to guide employers for the foreseeable future.

But ahead of any return, companies are reportedly drafting 'no jab, no job' contracts to force staff to get Covid-19 vaccinations.

Bosses in the care home sector as well as large international groups including an energy firm are making arrangements, top lawyers warned.

It comes as it emerged all adults could be offered two jabs by August because supplies are surging.

A table showing the fall in year-on-year change to footfall and and week-on-week change to footfall in each part of the UK

A table showing the fall in year-on-year change to footfall and and week-on-week change to footfall in different regions of the UK

A table showing the fall in year-on-year change to footfall and and week-on-week change to footfall by different types of shopping areas

Many large firms have already told staff they should work remotely, with some even delaying a return to the office until at least the end of the year.

However, some studies claim that productivity is hampered as workers log in from their kitchen table rather than at their desk.

Meanwhile, anti-lockdown Tories yesterday piled further pressure on Boris Johnson to lift restrictions, telling him experts say the numbers don't justify keeping Britain closed until July.

The Prime Minister has vowed to use 'data not dates' when deciding how and when to end the measures in place to control the spread of coronavirus, but is facing a growing backlash from business chiefs and MPs.

The vaccine rollout has helped slash the number of deaths and infections, but the PM is being regularly reminded of the social cost of lockdown, amid fears firms unable to open under current restrictions will soon collapse.

Mark Woolhouse, an Edinburgh University expert in infectious disease, told MPs yesterday that 'if you're driven by the data and not by dates, right now, you should be looking at earlier unlocking'.

Steve Baker, a member of the 70-strong anti-lockdown Covid Recovery Group of Tory MPs, used the professor's comments to pile further pressure on the Prime Minister to accelerate his plans.

He said: 'Boris Johnson today rightly confirmed he will focus on 'data, not dates' for easing restrictions as our recent letter suggested. As Professor Woolhouse, a senior government scientific adviser, says, the data are looking so good that Britain may open earlier.'

The Mail revealed yesterday that  under a blueprint discussed with industry chiefs  the hospitality, holiday and leisure sectors might not return to normal until July.

But the Prime Minister will today receive a dossier of data which will help shape his roadmap out of lockdown.

Despite his 'data not dates' pledge, the package of information will reportedly earmark the earliest possible opportunity to reopen shops and pubs, as well as a first look at the effectiveness of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab.

Those numbers will then be crunched in meetings with trusted aides and Cabinet ministers over the weekend, to add the finishing touches to his new masterplan, according to the Sun.

Pimlico Plumbers boss Charlie Mullins says 'no jab, no job' contacts for new staff will be rolled out Pimlico Plumbers boss Charlie Mullins today confirmed all new starters at his 50million business would have to take a Covid jab to get a job. The outspoken owner - who is worth at least 70million - has thrashed out the new papers with his lawyers to make the booster mandatory for all new hires. And he said he doubted many would object to the new terms, adding 'people would crawl across the snow naked to get a vaccine at the moment'. His firm is exploring how it might modify existing staff contracts although he insisted no one would be forced to receive a vaccine or be fired over the issue. Mullins. 68, said: 'We've obviously been talking to our lawyers and they're very happy that we can add this proposal to any new workers that start with us once the vaccine is rolled out. 'We are in regular contract with our staff from our HR department and I think people would crawl across the snow naked to get a vaccine at the moment. 'We'll be using the new contacts two to three months from now. 'When people come along for a job with us if they're not happy to sign that then that's their choice but they certainly won't be given a job with Pimlico Plumbers. The comments, made in an interview with Radio 4, came as a legal director admitted he had been contacted by other clients exploring the concept. Lewis Silkins' David Samuels said: 'A company could elect to put that clause in their contract. 'They might find resistance to it, people not wanting to sign up to it or saying somehow legally unfair that they're required to do so. 'I think at the beginning of the process that's not really going to make any difference for that employer. 'Where they may find difficulty is ultimately if they're challenged through some kind of legal process on the basis that individual says it's unfair legally for me to have that in my contract. 'Perhaps they'd say it discriminates against them because they can't have the vaccination or they can't get hold of the vaccination or something along those lines 'But there's nothing to stop the business in the first place putting it in the contract. 'I have certainly had enquiries about this, I can't say I have had clients hellbent on introducing this, but they want to understand if it would be possible in the right circumstances.' Advertisement

On Monday morning, it will be checked over by the full Cabinet, before being presented to MPs ahead of a press conference in which he will address the nation that evening.

This week Mr Johnson appeared to confirm a cautious timetable, saying he would take a 'prudent' approach and suggesting that pubs and restaurants would be among the last places to reopen.

An Imperial College London surveillance study - the largest in the country - found infection rates are halving every two weeks, with cases set to fall to 1,000 a day by the second week of April.

Piling the pressure on the Prime Minister, Sir Graham Brady, who chairs the 1922 committee of Tory MPs, said: 'The presumption should be that people are given back control over their own lives and we move from a world of arbitrary regulation to one where we are able to take responsibility for ourselves and each other.'

William Lees-Jones, owner of pub group JW Lees, which has 1,250 staff, said: 'Ministers just don't understand that this is an industry that is on its knees. Even after the end of March there will be a huge number of businesses that fail.

'We've invested in the pubs to keep them safe, the vaccine will make a massive difference, and if pubs are not open then people will meet up illegally.'

Clive Watson, of City Pub Group, said: 'While we fully support the Government's efforts to get the virus under control, we must get to a stage, once the over-50s have been vaccinated, where we start to lift restrictions so people can once again meet for a drink or a meal with friends.'

Experts yesterday called on ministers to decide what an 'acceptable' number of infections would be so that Britain could move on from the pandemic.

Professor Angela McLean, chief scientific adviser at the Ministry of Defence, said they were 'crying out' for clarity.

And Sir John Bell, who advises the UK's vaccine taskforce, said people wanted their normal lives back and would not accept certain coronavirus restrictions after everyone has been vaccinated.

Mr Johnson will be presented with the latest data as soon as this evening and will chair a meeting of senior Cabinet ministers over the weekend to finalise the plans for Monday's launch of the roadmap out of the national lockdown.

The Mail revealed that a blueprint discussed by officials and industry leaders would see rules eased every four weeks after a 'limited' loosening at Easter.

Hospitality would have to wait until early May for the green light to resume restricted trading, with the rule of six applying right through June and potentially into July.

On a visit to South Wales yesterday, Mr Johnson said his plan would 'be based firmly on a cautious and prudent approach to coming out of lockdown in such a way as to be irreversible'.

He added: 'There is obviously an extra risk of transmission from hospitality.'

It comes as Britain today confirmed 12,718 new coronavirus cases and 738 deaths amid signs that the country's outbreak may have stopped shrinking, with a symptom-tracking study suggesting infections are now rising in parts of the UK.
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The coronavirus pandemic forced millions of American workers to quickly transition to a work-from-home (WFH) setup, but not every worker had a turnkey office in their house or apartment.

So, many people bought new chairs, desks, and other office equipment out of pocket to accommodate their WFH arrangement.

Now some may wonder: Can I deduct those costs and others on my 2020 federal tax returns?

Read more: Here's how you should use your tax refund in 2021

The answer depends on the status of individuals, Lewis Taub, a certified public accountant and director of tax services at the New York office of Berkowitz Pollack Brant Advisors, told Yahoo Money. If theyre employees who work at a company or if they are self-employed.

Regular employees

Many companies allowed or even encouraged their employees to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic, but any expenses employees incurred to make the new setup work arent deductible on your federal income tax returns. Nor are any expenses related to your home office space, like utilities, insurance, or taxes.

Thats because the Tax Cut and Jobs Act, signed into law at the end of 2017 under the Trump administration, got rid of the unreimbursed business expense deduction for employees along with the home office deduction for employees.

A woman working from her computer at home is seen as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, Oxford, Britain, March 31, 2020. REUTERS/Eddie Keogh

Before that, employees could deduct unreimbursed business expenses  along with other miscellaneous expenses, which included home office costs  if they totaled more than 2% of their unadjusted gross income. Employees also had to itemize their taxes then to get the deduction.

Read more: Here's one way to protect yourself from tax identity theft

A handful of states  Alabama, Arkansas, California, Hawaii, Minnesota, New York, and Pennsylvania  do offer a deduction for unreimbursed employee business expenses on their state returns.

But this can be very limited, Taub said.

Workers should see if their companies can reimburse those expenses through an accountable plan that the employer sets up. Any reimbursement is not considered taxable income for the employee, Taub said, and the company can write it off on its own taxes.

Self-employed workers

Unlike company employees, self-employed workers have more opportunities to take deductions.

As a sole proprietor, any expenses related to your business, such as paper, printers, computers, and other equipment can be deducted as ordinary and necessary business expenses from self-employment income on Schedule C or Schedule F.

Self-employed people can also take a home office deduction if the person has a place thats used exclusively for business on a regular basis. It doesnt have to be a separate room  it can be in a corner of a room  but its exclusive use must be for business.

A woman works in a house while workers are forced to work from home and demand payback for extra home office costs during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Sassenheim, Netherlands October 2, 2020. Picture taken October 2, 2020. REUTERS/Eva Plevier

Read more: Here's where to get free tax prep help

It cant be the sofa at 2 oclock for meeting clients and at 6 oclock youre watching the nightly news on it, Taub said.

As part of the home office deduction, you can write off some of your utility expenses, taxes, insurance, repair, and depreciation. There are two ways to figure out how much to deduct:

Simplified option: You can deduct $5 per square foot  up to 300 square feet  of the portion of your home thats used for business.

Regular method: You determine the percentage of your homes floor space that you use for business and apply that percentage to eligible deductible expenses.

Where the home office deduction gets murky is for self-employed workers who had an office location pre-pandemic, but have been working from home since the outbreak began. The original office location may still be considered the primary place of business, according to Taub, if it hasnt been closed permanently.

If somebody doesnt want to go to the office but still has that office and has the potential to use that office, that wont work, he said.

Teachers

Many teachers across the country also worked from home, conducting class remotely. That may have involved buying a better laptop, ring light, microphone, or headphones.

Some of the money spent on these costs can be deducted using the educator expense deduction.

Linda Garmon tells her students they will be getting cameras from her home in Cambridge, MA on Sept. 21, 2020. (Photo by Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Qualified educators can deduct up to $250 of unreimbursed business expenses. If both spouses are eligible and file a joint return, they can deduct up to $500  but not more than $250 each. You also dont need to itemize your taxes to claim this deduction.

Eligible educators are kindergarten through grade 12 teachers, instructors, counselors, principals, or aides for at least 900 hours during a school year in a school that provides elementary or secondary education as determined under state law.

Yahoo Money sister site Cashay has a weekly newsletter.

Janna is an editor for Yahoo Money and Cashay. Follow her on Twitter@JannaHerron.

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Presume earlier order by centre made in consultation with state government extending Chief secretary''s tenure for threestate government extending Chief secretary's tenure for three months from June 1, stands: Mamata in letter to PM JRC

`Shocked and stunned by unilateral order' recalling Chief Secretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCHSecretary, West Bengal : Mamata Banerjee in letter to PM.SCH JRC

Mamata writes to Modi; requests rescinding orders recalling WB Chief Secretary to Delhi. Chief Secretary to Delhi.

As enterprise technology becomes more and more complex, the term observability is gaining traction among those tasked with managing the distributed infrastructure their companies increasingly depend on. Never has the old adage that you cant control what you cant measure been so relevant for people in the software business, with the need for observability becoming clear.

Back in March 2020, before the vast majority of the world knew what Reddits r/wallstreetbets was, or how much GameStop stock was trading for, the popular investing app Robinhood was struggling with regular service outages, blocking users from buying and selling shares of companies like Tesla, Apple, and Nike.

The outages, which cropped up a few times over the course of 2020, were caused by stress on our infrastructure, wrote Robinhood cofounders Baiju Bhatt and Vlad Tenev in a March 2020 blog post.

This is obviously bad for business, because Robinhood makes a small amount of money on every trade that flows through its systems, and its bad for Robinhoods reputation as a company that is trying to democratize the buying and selling of company stocks over the internet. Such outages can even lead to lawsuits from disgruntled users who missed out on selling at the top or buying at the bottom of the market.

For all those reasons, being able to spot those infrastructure stresses before they affect customers, or at least to limit the blast radius of such incidents, can quickly become a board-level priority for companies like Robinhood.

The complexity of modern cloud-based software has allowed businesses to scale their digital services effectively, but that complexity also creates bottlenecks and dependencies that can be hard to foresee or fix on the fly.

With thousands of microservices, hundreds of releases per day, and hundreds of thousands of containers, theres no way that the human eye can cope with that level of complexity, said Greg Ouillon, CTO for Europe, Middle East, and Africa at the monitoring vendor New Relic.

Observability promises to help harness todays IT complexity

Observability has its roots in the engineering principles of control theory, where the measure of how the internal state of a system can be observed using only its external outputs. In software specifically, it is a natural evolution of monitoring, taking the raw outputs of metrics, events, logs, and traces to build up a real-time picture of how your systems are performing and where issues might be cropping up. It is the means by which developers can start to peel back the black box encasing their complex systems.

The problem for most organizations is the sheer volume of data being generated by their large, distributed systems and thus the ability to find a scalable way to spot and react to issues quickly enough to stop users being affected.

Containers and microservices are so complex and the interactions are so vast, it is virtually impossible to make sense of it. As we add more instrumentation we get more data and no one can look at all that, said Josh Chessman, a Gartner analyst specializing in network and application performance monitoring. How do you find that needle in the haystack? That is what observability is about in the endfinding that and fixing it, because downtime costs money.

How the pandemic pushed observability forward

The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed cloud spending up across the board, which means more and more companies need to be able to monitor and remediate the underlying complexity that comes with the cloud. Being able to view the entire software stack is now a must-have within much more complex IT and development environments and during continued cloud migration and accelerated application modernization, said New Relics Ouillon.

Spiros Xanthos is the cofounder of the distributed tracing startup Ominition, which was acquired by the monitoring vendor Splunk in 2019. Having spent years working with the tools required to effectively observe modern, distributed software systems, he is now VP of product management, observability, and IT operations at Splunk, where he has seen customer interest in observability as an idea grow quickly in the past year.

In 2018, we saw many companies that are cloud-native and in the tech sector talking about observability, he said. Last year, we saw this becoming more mainstream, with large organizations adopting cloud-native technologies and becoming interested in observability.

British bank TSB has had its own well-publicized issues with customer-impacting technology, following its disastrous core banking system migration in 2018. Since then, the bank has had to grapple with regular IT outages, making reliability and incident response board-level priorities. We want to be architected for the cloud, where any failure is like the Netflix model, where there is no massive system outage and we limit anything to a handful of customers, said Suresh Viswanathan, TSBs chief operating officer.

TSB no longer owns and operates any data centers, so its call center system is in BTs cloud, its CRM is Microsoft Dynamics 365, and its core banking system is managed by IBM, to name just a few key partnersall linked together by a complex web of microservices and APIs. Thats a good example of where observability is needed.

In theory, we can replace any of those platforms, but as you roundtrip these transactions we dont have the instrumentation to know what goes pop [fails], Viswanathan said. So the bank is using the monitoring vendor Dynatrace to gain this instrumentation and visibility. Observability is not just a tool but a cultural journey as a firm, he said, so we can track what is happening in the hands of our customers and roundtrip that. This is important to be one step ahead of any problems.

Going beyond the three pillars of observability

Speaking at the first Dash conference in 2018, Datadog CEO Olivier Pomel outlined what are now commonly agreed upon as the three pillars of observability: metrics, traces, and logs. Taken individually, these pillars each represents a developers ability to monitor their systems. Once brought together, you can start to get to observability.

Developers have been doing those three things for a long time, so rebranding them is not particularly useful, said Dan Taylor, head of engineering at the popular travel booking company Trainline. For us, the crux of the issue is to go beyond those three technical pieces to looking at a system in a holistic way, rather than as individual components.

Trainline is a typically complex modern application, made up of interconnected microservices and hundreds of APIs for external travel companies to plug into its booking platform. This creates a whole host of dependencies that can be hard to observe in a consistent way, especially when you want to give developer teams autonomy over how they manage their software.

Its not about prescriptively telling them how much to log or what metrics are important, but bringing them to the understanding of their impact on customers and the business as a whole, Taylor said.

For most organizations, instrumentation is just the start. Being able to understand the value of that information and how it can help your customers and engineers is the more important part of the puzzle.

For example, at Porsche Informatik, an Austrian software company primarily serving the automotive sector, customers expect round-the-clock availability, which requires an understanding of the root cause of a problem before the customer sees the issue. We needed integrated monitoring of every component across our full stack, said Peter Friedwagner, head of infrastructure and cloud services at Porsche Informatik, during his session at this years Dynatrace Perform virtual conference.

The firm hosts a dealer management system used by 50,000 car dealers across Europe, where uptime is vital. It recently broke this monolithic on-premises application down into microservices hosted across containers using Red Hat OpenShift, both on-prem and in the Microsoft Azure public cloud. Understanding the communication patterns among those microservices as they cascade was, and still is, challenging for its developers. The hope is that observability tools will lead to that understanding.

Beware the observability buzzword

Observability a year ago was a useful term, but now is becoming a buzzword, said Gartner analyst Chessman, with plenty of vendors proving more than happy to co-opt the observability moniker.

As the need and demand for observability grows, some monitoring tool vendors are jumping on the bandwagonabout as fast as they did with devops a few years ago, the vendor Splunk notes in its own Beginners Guide to Observability, with at least some degree of self-awareness.

As engineering manager and technical blogger Ernest Mueller wrote back in 2018, No tool is going to give you observability and thats the usual silver-bullet fallacy heard from someone who wants to sell you something.

Instead, organizations have to work out their own path to better observability. Its like putting the cart before the horse to buy observability, said George Bashi, vice president of engineering infrastructure at Yelp.

Thats why the popular reviews sitewhich is primarily a highly distributed Python application running on Kubernetesbelieves in product ownership and empowering developers to be responsible for their own services. When a developer team owns something, the classic trade-off is performance, reliability, and cost. We put the data into the hands of those teams so they have the tools to make those decisions, Bashi said.

Whats next for observability

When you talk to anyone tasked with thinking about the observability of their systems, you get a common wish list, often topped with automated insights and remediation powered by machine learning.

TSBs Viswanathan wants tools that can apply intelligence to know the top issues and apply the home remedy kit, as it were, so the system is self-starting, without us noticing. That is where we want to go to.

This is also where the vendors want to go. We are finally close enough to machine-based intelligence for observability, said Splunks Xanthos. For the first time, we are able to apply machine intelligence to correlate effectively. If I can solve this once, we can move towards automated remediation.

The machines might not be ready to take over just yet, though. In her foundational book Distributed Systems Observability, software developer Cindy Sridharan preaches for engineer-led observability:

The process of knowing what information to expose and how to examine the evidence at handto deduce likely answers behind a systems idiosyncrasies in productionstill requires a good understanding of the system and domain, as well as a good sense of intuition.

The Holy Grail for anyone building out their observability capability is a system that can eventually spot and fix issues automatically, before engineers are even aware of it and regardless of the environment they are running. To get there, vendors will have to stand out on their ability to consolidate and make sense of those piles of data, with intelligence and automation capabilities layered on top of that instrumentation, said Gartners Chessman.
Patna:

Nitish Kumar was on Thursday sworn as the Chief Minister of Bihar for the sixth time, a day after he resigned, dumped coalition partner Lalu Prasad's RJD and joined hands with the opposition BJP to reclaim his post in fast-paced manoeuvres that redrew the political landscape of the state.

Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi administered 66-year-old Kumar the oath of office and secrecy at the Rajendra Mandapamat the Raj Bhawan in Patna.

Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi was also sworn in. The Governor has asked Kumar to prove majority on the floor of the House within two days, after the JD(U) walked out of the barely two-year-old alliance with the RJD and Congress.

Union Health minister J P Nadda and BJP leader Anil Jain were present at the brief ceremony where only Kumar and Sushil Modi were sworn in.

Kumar quit the post last night after a fall out with the alliance partner RJD over corruption charges against Lalu Yadav and some of his family members, including son Tejashwi, who was the deputy CM in the previous dispensation.

Read more: Nitish Kumar: Here is all you need to know about him

"Whatever decision we have taken will be in the interest of Bihar and of its people. It will ensure development and justice. It will also ensure progress. This is a collective decision. I ensure that our commitment is towards the people of Bihar", Kumar told reporters after the swearing-in.

With JD(U) returning to the NDA fold, the changed political equations are likely to impact the 2019 general elections. While the BJP is buoyed by the development, there is disquiet in the Opposition camp as it has jolted the efforts to forge a unity to take on the saffron juggernaut.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Kumar and said he looked forward to working together for Bihar's prosperity.

Nobody from the RJD or the Congress attended the swearing-in ceremony protesting over the "denial of chance" to the RJD, the single-largest party in the state assembly, to form government. In Delhi, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi lashed out at Kumar accusing him of acting for "selfish political motives".

"Bihar had given an anti-communal mandate but Nitish Kumar has gone back to them (the BJP) for his personal political gains", he said.

After taking oath, Sushil Modi said the development process will be back on track in the state with return of the NDA.

"The JD(U)-BJP alliance had earlier taken Bihar to new heights. At that point of time, the people of the state used to take pride in saying 'I am a Bihari'. But in the last 20 months something went wrong. But now the JD(U)-BJP alliance will again take Bihar to newer heights".

On RJD's claims that it has the numbers, JD(U) national spokesperson K C Tyagi said, "They should stop making tall claims and if they really have the numbers, let them prove it in the floor test. We have our numbers and we will prove it."

Read more: Sushil Kumar Modi: Here is all you need to know about him

The NDA alliance had submitted a list of 132 MLAs on Wednesday to the Governor. These include 71 of JD(U), BJP 53, RLSP 2, LJP 2, HAM 1 and three Independents.

In the 243-member Bihar Assembly, the RJD has 81 MLAs, the Congress 27 and the CPI-ML 03.

Tyagi said the decision of his party to form the Grand Alliance government in Bihar was "a mistake" and ruled out any possibility of a patch-up with the RJD.

"It was a mistake to forge an alliance with RJD. We had information that to save themselves from CBI cases, they were in touch with the union ministers in Delhi and were planning to topple the Nitish Kumar government", Tyagi said.

"We regret our decision to run the government with such a person (Lalu Prasad) for 20 months. We blame ourselves for committing a mistake of taking their MLA count from 22 to 80", he said.

Former Bihar chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi welcomed Kumar's decision to join the NDA.

"I congratulate Nitish Kumarji for his decision to join the NDA. If someone commits a mistake and has the guts to accept and rectify it, we should also welcome it and support that person", Manjhi said.

Kumar had unexpectedly resigned on Wednesday, but hours later joined hands with the BJP to reclaim the government in a stunning political manoeuvre that relegated his alliance partner RJD to the opposition.

The ostensible reason for Kumar to quit was his falling out with Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, the son of RJD supremo Lalu Prasad. Yadav is facing corruption charges but had refused to step down despite Kumar's exhortations.

Late on Wednesday night, Kumar accompanied by Sushil Modi and other NDA leaders had met the Governor to stake claim to form a new coalition ministry in the state after he broke away from Grand Alliance ministry of JD(U), RJD and Congress.

Tejashwi Yadav had led a protest march to the Raj Bhawan post-midnight and had met the Governor.

He had later told reporters that the swearing-in of NDA government was a "pre-planned conspiracy."

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A Colorado Springs day care operator who became infamous overnight when she was accused of hiding 26 toddlers behind a "false wall" to skirt state regulations won a delay in her trial Wednesday when her attorney argued a special prosecutor should be appointed because of a potential conflict of interest.

Defense attorney Josh Tolini requested a continuance in Carla Faiths trial after learning that an attorney pursuing a civil suit against her had access to one of her employees and co-defendants in the case during a two-hour interview at the Colorado Springs police headquarters.

Valerie Fresquez, one of three of Faiths employees charged with child abuse after authorities conducted a welfare check in November 2019 at Play Mountain Place, participated in the exit interview as part of a plea agreement, Tolini said.

According to Tolini, Fresquezs attorney left the room after 15 minutes, and, for an hour, the detective and prosecutor Andrew Herlihy stopped the interview to allow attorney Danny Kay to ask questions regarding the civil suit, Faiths finances and information not relevant to the criminal investigation, Tolini said.

Ive been doing this for over 20 years and Ive never seen anything like this, he said. Ive never seen an attorney leave a room while a client is being interviewed. We have a situation where the district attorney is enabling access for the civil attorney for a witness that we are denied access to.

He added: Im at a loss to understand any reason as to why Dan Kay would have been put on notice and allowed access in and allowed to ask questions of a witness for over an hour, he said.

Because Fresquez is considered a co-defendant in Faiths case, Tolini and the other employees attorneys are barred from interviewing her to gather additional information or potentially having her serve as a witness.

The attorneys for two other daycare employees Christina Swauger and Katelynne Nelson echoed Tolinis concerns and waived their clients rights to a speedy trial in order for the court to address the issue.

Youve got the civil attorney acting as kind of a defacto prosecutor in the case, said defense attorney Will Cook, who is representing Swauger.

Fourth Judicial District Judge Gregory Werner called the situation really unusual.

In 30 years of doing this, I havent seen this, either, Werner said.

Kay told The Gazette he had "every right in the world" to interview Fresquez for his civil suit.

"There's absolutely nothing improper about interviewing a witness for your case and for them to try to say it is improper is absolutely absurd," Kay said.

Kay said he asked Fresquez's attorney, who agreed that he could attend his client's exit interview "as a matter of convenience" to avoid having her interview twice. He denied the allegation that her attorney left the room while he asked her questions.

"She was being interviewed so I wanted to find out about what she had to say about her job at Play Mountain Place. That's what you do when you have a case, you try to either interview or depose all of the witnesses and it is neglectful not to do it," he said.

In December, Kay filed an 11-page complaint on behalf of 19 parents and their children who attended Play Mountain Place, alleging that Faith was negligent while providing care for their children, resulting in injuries and behavioral issues.

Wednesdays hearing comes nearly 15 months after police and a worker from the states Department of Human Services conducted a welfare check at Faiths day care east of downtown Colorado Springs, where she was authorized to care for six children.

Although Faith repeatedly told an officer that no children were in her care, the officer could hear childrens music and a childs cry from the basement at 838 E. Willamette Ave., an arrest affidavit stated. Another officer arrived on scene and discovered a small seam separating the false wall from the actual wall inside the Victorian home.

Faith, 58, was arrested on 26 counts of child abuse alleging recklessness, but without injury and attempt to influence a public servant, a felony, court records show.

Swauger, Nelson and Fresquez each face 26 charges of child abuse, all of which are misdemeanors, court records show. In addition, Swauger faces one count of attempting to influence a public servant and Nelson faces a charge of drug possession.

The judge scheduled the next hearing for April 7.
The artist Caledonia Curry (professionally known as Swoon) is bringing a house to Union Square.

Previously installed at Brooklyn Bridge Park and Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens, the mobile sculpture, The House Our Families Built, will be at the Manhattan squares north plaza on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. (it then moves to Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Feb. 27). This installation was commissioned by PBS as part of its storytelling project, American Portrait, which the network established with RadicalMedia to archive narratives about how we construct our identities as Americans.

Swoons House is actually the back of a truck that Swoon and her collaborator Jeff Stark repurposed into a life-size diorama. With its intricately carved roof, the structure is filled with quotidian items and inhabited by painted cutouts, like one of a mother holding a baby. From 10:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., actors will put on six 15-minute performances inspired by the stories depicted in the house, which seek to encourage people to investigate their legacies.

MELISSA SMITH

KIDS

Sit Back and Watch (or Get Up and Dance)
NATO Allies supported the proposal to update the 2010 Strategic Concept. Since its adoption the Alliance has faced a new security environment and Russia has turned from a potential strategic partner into an aggressor state.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said this at a press conference following the first day of the meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the level of Ministers of Defence held via secure teleconference on February 17, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

NATO's Strategic Concept was agreed back in 2010 and it has actually served us well. But, since then, the security environment we face has fundamentally changed... Back in 2010, we were working for, establishing, what we then referred to as a strategic partnership with Russia. Since then, we have seen Russia being responsible for aggressive actions against neighbours, the illegal annexation of Crimea and things have fundamentally changed, he said.

Stoltenberg noted that in the current Strategic Concept we are not addressing the shifting balance of power and the security consequences of the rise of China.

In addition, he said that climate change is a serious crisis multiplier and it really affects NATO security and needs to be addressed in a new strategic concept.

So we need to update our Strategic Concept. We need to recommit to our core values. And we need to use the Strategic Concept to further strengthen the bond between North America and Europe. So, this is an idea which is broadly supported by NATO Allies. And I hope that NATO leaders, heads of state and government, when they meet later on this year, will then agree to start the process, to task to me... to work on a revised and updated Strategic Concept for the Alliance, Stoltenberg summed up.

ish

US Adviser Jake Sullivan and his UK counterpart, Stephen Lovegrove, have discussed the situation in Afghanistan and Myanmar, as well as issues related to China and Iran, the White House said.

On Friday, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will hold the virtual summit of G7 leaders, in which new US President Joe Biden will take part.

" Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke by phone today with Stephen Lovegrove, incoming Advisor to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Sullivan expressed support for the United Kingdom's G7 presidency and welcomed the virtual leaders' summit later this week. They agreed on the need for continued coordination on shared foreign policy priorities, including Afghanistan, Burma [Myanmar], China, and Iran," the White House said in a statement on late Wednesday.

(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.)
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Gov. Greg Abbott is ordering natural gas producers not to export any supply out of state until Sunday, diverting that gas to power Texas troubled electric grid.

I have, earlier today, issued an order  requiring those producers that have been shipping outside of Texas to instead sell that gas to Texas power generators, Abbott said, speaking from the Alternate State Operations Center in Austin. That will also increase the power thats going to be produced and sent to homes here in Texas.

Millions of Texans have been left without electricity since early Monday morning, as the state saw a catastrophic failure of the power grid during this weeks severe winter weather and freezing temperatures. About 2.7 million customers were offline as of Wednesday morning, officials said.

Abbott said additional power is coming back online through the day, mostly from nuclear and coal sources. Electricity has already been restored to about 1.2 million households since midnight, Abbott said.

In a broad press briefing on the crisis, Abbott warned that Texas likely wont come out of the ultra-cold conditions until Saturday, and transportation will remain challenging until then.

He also encouraged homeowners to start reaching out to plumbers and insurance providers to address potential pipe bursts that could flood houses. Abbott said he will loosen some licensing requirements for plumbers to meet the expected demand.

Officials also touched on federal aid to the state, as the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced earlier Wednesday that it is sending generators, water and blankets to Texas, and also plans to ship in diesel.

Abbott spoke little of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the agency responsible for maintaining the states power grid, a day after he railed against the organization for a lack of transparency and poor emergency response. On Tuesday, Abbott made ERCOT reform an emergency priority item in the current legislative session, and he called on the agencys leadership to resign for their response to the crisis.

During a news conference on Wednesday, ERCOT President and CEO Bill Magness did not directly address Abbotts calls to resign, saying an assessment of whos to blame will be completed after we get the power back on.

Both chambers of the state Legislature plan to investigate the agency, with the state House of Representatives scheduling hearings as soon as next Thursday.

ERCOT has declined to give an estimate on when power will be fully restored, saying the best-case scenario would be reducing rolling blackouts to an hour or less by Thursday. Officials have been conserving electricity in an effort to avoid a total grid meltdown that could wipe out power for weeks.

cayla.harris@hearst.com
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  A push is underway in Cascade Township to connect 256 homes, in an area where toxic chemicals have contaminated dozens of wells, with municipal water service.

The township is seeking a $5 million state grant that would help cover the estimated $6 million cost of hooking the homes up to the city of Grand Rapids water system.

But, even if the township wins the grant, at least one hurdle remains: How will it pay for the remaining $1 million needed to complete the project?

The answer may be found in the outcome of negotiations between Gerald R. Ford International Airport and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE).

EGLE has determined that the pollution from the highly toxic fluorinated chemicals per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) was caused by the airports past mandated-use of PFAS-laden AFFF firefighting foam for training and emergencies, and it says the airport must help fix the problem.

The airport disputes that its liable for the contamination.

The wildcard in the whole puzzle is what is EGLE going to require of the airport, said Cascade Township Manager Ben Swayze. What are they going to contribute to this cleanup?

Hes hoping for a swift resolution. While the liability standoff between EGLE and the airport drags on, residents in the affected area, located between the airport and the Thornapple River, are clamoring for clean water, Swayze said.

The township has put pressure both on EGLE and the airport to work though that process, he said. Our residents that are in this area are clamoring for clean water. So, were trying to balance that issue with the fact that we dont want to wait a long time for this to play out.

Testing conducted by EGLE has determined that 40 homes in the area have PFAS levels above state standards, while another 222 had some detection of PFAS.

While the township initially wants to connect those homes to municipal water service, the end goal is to hook up all 475 homes in the neighborhood to municipal water.

Doing so would cost an estimated $13.2 million, according to the township. The Kent County Health Department has provided kitchen sink filters to homes with any level of PFAS detection.

The state has been investigating the presence of PFAS pollution in neighborhoods surrounding the airport since 2018. The chemicals are considered harmful at the low parts-per-trillion level in the bodies of people exposed and can increase the risk of kidney and testicular cancer, suppress the bodys immune system response and cause pregnancy complications and low birth weight.

They have been found at some level in public water serving about 1.9 million people in Michigan, as well as in groundwater supplies in and around Wolverine World Wides former tannery and waste disposal sites in northern Kent County.

On Oct. 9, EGLE sent a letter to the airport indicating that, based on its investigation, the airport was liable for the PFAS contamination. It said the airport must come up with a plan to fix the problem and ensure residents have access to safe drinking water.

The airport has since said EGLE lacks the technical data needed to demonstrate that the airport is liable. It also pointed out in a Jan. 4 letter to EGLE that federal law had mandated that airports use firefighting foam containing PFAS.

In addition, the airport said EGLEs request comes at a time when airports are facing extreme financial hardships because of the coronavirus pandemic, and that its prohibited from using federal grants or airport funding for non-aviation purposes.

We will continue to work with EGLE as we further investigate this issue, but by this cooperation the Airport does not admit any liability or wrongdoing, Casey Ries, the airports engineering and planning director, said in the Jan. 4 letter to EGLE.

We dispute EGLEs allegations that the Airport is liable for staff salaries and other costs documented in the VN (violation notice) Letter and dispute that those costs are reasonable or necessary.

Discussion with the airport over how to proceed are ongoing, said Abby Hendershott, the district supervisor in Grand Rapids of EGLEs remedial and redevelopment division.

Weve had a good working relationship with the airport through this, but were kind of at a stuck point here, she said. Were going to try to facilitate any and all options, but Im not sure how much more the airports going to be willing to do.

Hendershot declined to provide specifics on how EGLE will proceed with the airport. But, when speaking in general about EGLEs options in disputes with polluters, she said the agency could ultimately forward the case to the state attorney generals office if no progress is made.

Our emphasis as the state of Michigan and as the leaders in the country for PFAS investigations, its always crucial that our residents are protected and that they have drinking water that meets acceptable standards, Hendershot said. And thats not the case here.

Ries said the airports own investigation of the PFAS contamination is ongoing.

Were asking EGLE to fill the gap  what additional information do they have to make that conclusion, he said, when discussing EGLEs claim that the airport is liable for the contamination. Because the data we have today isnt in line with theirs.

The township expects to hear back about the grant by mid-April.

Township resident Tom Kozlik, who lives in the neighborhood affected by the contamination, says hes hopeful the township receives the grant. While his home tested negative for PFAS, he said hes concerned for the wellbeing of those whose homes have been touched by the contamination.

I think its a basic necessity to have fresh, safe water to drink, said Kozlik, 70.

State Sen. Winnie Brinks, D-Grand Rapids, wrote a letter in support of the townships request for the grant. The grant application was filed jointly with the city of Grand Rapids, which owns the water system the township would connect the homes with.

In the end, we need to figure out who is legally responsible for this, and they need to help pay for it, she said, when discussing the contamination and the approach needed to connect homeowners with safe water.

But I also believe that constituents shouldnt bear the brunt of that polluted water in terms of their health consequences, nor should they bear the bill for something they had no responsibility for.

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GULFPORT, Mississippi -- Moss Point Mayor Mario King and his wife, Natasha, will enter a guilty plea next week to one of the 14 federal fraud and conspiracy charges against them, according to both their attorney and filings in federal court this week.

The Kings were indicted last June on one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and 13 counts of federal wire fraud. Mario Kings attorney, Tyler Cox, told The Mississippi Press Thursday that prosecutors will dismiss 13 of the 14 counts in exchange for the Kings guilty pleas, but was not at liberty to divulge the count to which they would plead guilty and we will have no further comment until after sentencing.

The Kings are due in U.S. District Court next Wednesday for the formal acceptance of the plea deal, with sentencing typically following in 60-90 days. On Tuesday this week, they filed a notice of intent to change their pleas to guilty.

Should they plead guilty to the conspiracy charge, the Kings face a maximum penalty of five years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the U.S., along with a $250,000 fine, three years post-release supervision, and a $100 special assessment.

Each of the 13 counts of federal wire fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, along with three years post-release supervision, a $250,000 fine and $100 special assessment.

According to the indictment, which was handed down in June but sealed until mid July, the Kings used money raised through a 2019 gala charity fundraiser to instead pay for personal purchases, including the down payment on the purchase of a vehicle, cash withdrawals and the payment of credit card debts involving charges to complete the purchase of a personal pet.

According to the indictment, the Kings devised and intended to devise a scheme to defraud contributors to the Mayors Gala and to obtain money and property by means of materially fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises.

The indictment alleges the Kings began soliciting funds in late 2018 for a Gala to be held on March 23, 2019, in Moss Point. The written solicitation stated that the gala honors and supports organizations that are making a difference for the mental health community. Proceeds support the efforts of mental health in the City of Moss Point with a focus on the Moss Point School District, converting spaces into a therapeutic and innovative learning environment.

On March 4, 2019, the Kings appeared together on WLOX television and described the event, stating that funds from the Gala were to be used to create safe spaces for mental health counselling in the Moss Point School District.

The Kings had registered Rejuvenate LLC as a limited liability company with the Mississippi Secretary of States Office in April 2018. Natasha King was the registered agent and president of the LLC, while Mario King was listed as a member.

That same month, Natasha King opened a bank account for the LLC at Hancock (now Hancock Whitney) Bank. Natasha King was the signatory on the account. With the exception of a monthly paper statement fee, the account was dormant until December 2018, when the Kings began soliciting funds for the March 23, 2019 Mayors Gala. Funds were received in the form of checks, PayPal transfers and in-kind services.

The indictment alleges that those who contributed to the gala, either by purchasing tickets or making donations, were of the understanding the funds raised would go to the Moss Point School District. Instead, some of the funds were used to pay the cost of the gala, but the remaining monies went into the Kings pockets in the form of personal purchases and payments.

Included in the fraudulent use of funds outlined in the indictment:

On April 8, 2019, Natasha King used a debit card on the bank account registered to the LLC the Kings had formed through which they would collect donations and ticket money. She withdrew $2,000 to make a downpayment on a Cadillac XTC.

Less than two weeks later, Natasha King returned the Cadillac, received a check from the dealer for the $2,000 and then deposited that money into the Kings personal bank account.

On May 1, 2019, Mario King withdrew $1,000 cash from the LLC account, while on the same day Natasha King withdrew $2,700 from their personal checking account which had originated in the LLC account.

On May 12, 2019, Natasha King purchased a Volvo automobile with a downpayment of $3,700 -- $3,000 of which came from the gala proceeds.

A month later, the Kings paid off two credit card accounts with balances totaling $745 using funds solicited from the gala. The indictment notes that the credit cards had been used solely for the purchase of a Biewer Terrier from the Animal Medical Center in Hattiesburg in December 2018.

King was elected Mayor of Moss Point in 2017, taking 61 percent of the vote to defeat incumbent Billy Broomfield. He did not file qualifying paperwork to seek a second term in this years municipal election.
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Posted Wednesday, February 17, 2021 4:33 pm

Our state needs more affordable child care and high quality preschool. I am lucky that I was able to enroll my children in the Centralia College Early Learning Program. In the last year, I have transitioned from working to finishing high school and am now currently enrolled in college to become a medical assistant. When I first started going back to school, I was working 12-hour shifts throughout the night six days a week and taking classes during the day. I was miserable and still did not make enough to pay for child care and my bills but was doing what I needed to do to provide for my family. I know I am not alone in this struggle.

After the pandemic hit, the schools and daycares were closed, but I continued attending online classes for spring and summer. I lost my job but continued going to school while caring for my kids. When fall came around, I was able to attend classes in person and I was so stressed I had no idea what I was going to do. I could not afford child care, or afford a quality one. My son finally made it off a wait list for ECEAP. I was ecstatic. I really wanted my children to have a safe, stable place to be.

At this point I knew I was going to have to put one child in one child care and then the other in a different one. I wasnt sure how I would do that. My family support worker at ECEAP informed me they had a toddler program and they had space for my daughter. Not only do my children have a safe, affordable place to be, they have made incredible strides in all aspects of their development. ECEAP also sends me great parenting tips and tricks, and even send me updates on what my children do throughout the day. ECEAP has become part of my village, theyre the support I was searching for. Our area is a child care desert and high quality preschool and child care is hard to find and afford. ECEAP teachers deserve better pay for the work that they do. Children deserve opportunities. There is a great opportunity in the Legislature right now to do right by children, families, ECEAP staff and child care providers. I hope that the legislature will fund this program to expand and serve more families like mine.

Melleisha Silva

Centralia
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- FMS Solutions is pleased to announce it has partnered with New Heritage Capital, a Boston-based private equity firm that specializes in providing growth capital to founder-owned businesses.

As a market leader in software as a service (SaaS)-enabled business processing outsourcing (BPO) services targeting the independent retail business owner, FMS has been undergoing rapid growth and is beginning to develop and expand its service offerings.

This strategic partnership marks a new phase for FMS as it continues to develop industry-leading accounting solutions, payroll, and HR solutions that help independent retailers run their operations more effectively, reduce overhead and increase their bottom line.

"We chose to partner with New Heritage Capital because of their experience helping businesses grow and improve their service offerings while allowing us, the entrepreneurs behind FMS, to retain control of the operations," said Robert Graybill, FMS President and CEO.

Melissa Barry, a Partner at New Heritage Capital, added, "We are thrilled to partner with the entire FMS team to help them accelerate growth, continue to develop innovative products and provide customers with the highest level of quality and service. FMS has a great business with an incredible amount of opportunity to further expand, and we are excited to help fuel that future growth."

FMS Solutions Holdings LLC (FMS)  Since 1974, FMS has helped independent retail grocers succeed by transforming historic accounting activities into timely, accurate decision support tools. The company's keen understanding of the challenges the industry faces has positioned it as the National Grocers Association's (NGA) preferred provider of industry benchmarking, best practices and mission-critical decision support. FMS services organizations in more than 5,000 locations across North America, and the Caribbean, enabling them to improve profitability through better decision support.

New Heritage Capital  A Boston-based private equity firm with a twenty-year history of partnering with growing, middle market, founder-owned businesses. With its innovative investment structures like the Private IPO, Heritage provides founders with a combination of liquidity and growth capital while allowing founders to maintain control of their business. With decades of experience at managing growth, Heritage gives its partners the strategic, operational and financial guidance to help its companies reach their growth objectives.

To learn more about FMS, please call 877.435.9400 or visit www.fmssolutions.com

Media Contact:

Ledora Brown

813-352-1612 (Direct)

[email protected]

www.Newswire.com

SOURCE FMS Solutions
Esta manana, el ministro Oscar Ugarte, superviso el inicio de la segunda etapa de vacunacion contra la COVID-19 desde el Hospital Nacional Arzobispo Loayza. #PongoElHombro ???? pic.twitter.com/u9AZkjVuDa
New Delhi: Chinese oppression of Uighur Muslims in occupied East Turkistan (Xinjiang in China) has been known for years and has been well documented by human rights organisations, media houses and public institutions. Most recently, the United States has deemed China's abhorrent actions against the ethnic Muslim minority community as a modern genocide. A recent damning report by the Center of Global Policy also laid bare China's tactic of forcing Uighur Muslims to manually pick cotton in fields. Over the years, China has resorted to all kinds of torture on Uighurs including  physical torture, sexual abuse, and breach of other human rights.

The issue of the abuses against the Uighur community in Xinjiang is getting more attention in the aftermath of China's misinformation on COVID-19 outbreak in its initial phases. The international community has finally started taking cognizance of the situation of Uighur Muslims of East Turkistan and has begun to respond to Chinese human right abuses. Also, Chinese actions in the South China Sea and its recent unprovoked aggression against the Indian armed forces that led to the martyrdom of 20 Indian soldiers has turned the international sentiments against China.

India and East Turkistan have an age-old connection. Since the first century BC, both regions have been linked through socio-cultural and economic relations, as well as mutual exchanges. Indias trade and cooperation with East Turkistan began to dwindle after Chinas Peoples Liberation Army forcefully occupied the region in 1949 and brought it under Chinese rule. Interaction and trade with the region stopped after China forced India to close down its consulate in Kashgar in 1953 and this marked the end of a trade route and cultural connection that existed for hundreds of years.

Indian media houses have taken up the sensitive topic of Uighur abuses in varying ways. Indian media coverage on the issue of the plight of the Uighurs, from September 2020 till 05 February 2021 was analysed. During this period, only a few Indian media has covered about Chinese actions against Uighur Muslims and these can be reached out by a quick key word search of the words Uighur Muslims and 'Xinjiang.

On the other hand, major English media houses have not particularly covered the plight of Uighur Muslims in occupied East Turkistan. Online-only media platforms, that have also been growing in popularity in India and play a large role in keeping Indians well-informed, were also lacking when it came to content regarding the situation of Uighur Muslims. While searching for articles about the condition and treatment of Uighurs in China, these platforms only had three-six articles within the timeframe. These platforms also had some stories about the US, Canadian and UK officials condemning the treatment of Uighur Muslims in occupied East Turkistan, but then again, no stories highlighting the plight of the Muslim ethnic minority in China.

The Indian media's reluctance to antagonize China is due to the increase in the influence of China in India. This factor was brought to the forefront when late last year a leading Indian newspaper ran a full-page advertorial commemorating the National Day of the Peoples Republic of China. The advertorial was full of praises for China and its actions even at a time when the world is contending with Beijing's aggressive and expansionist actions and its countless human rights abuses across its occupied territories. The advertorial also gave China the chance to propagate its false narrative regarding the Ladakh stand-off with India and showcased China as a global power in counter-terrorism. The article was not well received by the Indian audiences and many users pointed out that the advertorial was pure Chinese propaganda. Both hidden and open advertisements are one of the ways the Chinese use to influence foreign media to push their narratives on to the international community.

Indian media's coverage on issues involving China has also been partial. Almost all large media houses have extensively covered the protests in Hong Kong but almost ignored or barely gave a passing mention to the abuses being suffered by Uighurs in East Turkistan. Despite 2500 years of harmonious history between India and the Uighurs of East Turkistan, they seem to be receiving notice only in passing.

Indian Medias complicated relationship with China is made more complex when India is directly involved. When Chinese aggressive actions on Indias border areas led to a tense stand-off between the two countries, the Indian media criticised the India Government for not taking a tougher stance against China. However, recent months have seen the Indian media fraternity claim that it is highly improbable that India will be able to decouple from China and that it should continue to try and resolve things through dialogue. This kind of inconsistency on how to tackle the growing threat of China has been an aspect that's still currently plaguing the Indian media.

Another way that Beijing has tried to influence foreign media (including Indian media) is by inviting foreign journalists. The participating journalists are hosted by the Chinese government and spend 10 months in one of Beijing's most luxurious residences, the Jianguomen Diplomatic Compound. Also, the journalists are given free tours every month to Chinese provinces. This practice has been going on since 2016. Prominent Indian media houses have also participated and sent their journalists and staff to China. An Indian correspondent accredited in Beijing has stated that this initiative by China is aimed at manipulating the quality of foreign media coverage. One important factor to note is the possibility of China offering similar bait to foreign politicians to influence their stance.

The starting of this initiative in 2016 is not a coincidence as it follows President Xi Jinpings call to Chinese and foreign media to tell China's story well. Moreover, the Belt and Road initiative announced in 2013, was also not fetching enough favourable responses for China. Aware of its growing negative perceptions in the world, Beijing is trying to influence and control how foreign media projects China to the world, in an attempt to deflect the international community from its abhorrent actions.

In recent years, the Chinese government under the leadership of President Xi Jinping has been obsessed with the concept of national unity. Jinping believes that for China to rise in the international community, its population must achieve national unity in terms of language, culture and even religion. Due to this faulty notion, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has actively carried out ethnic cleansing of minority communities like Turkic Uighur Muslims and other minorities. As per reports and mounting evidence, China has arbitrarily detained close to a million Uighur Muslims in internment camps that it has conveniently labeled as vocational training centers. The international community has also begun to take notice of the CCPs abysmal treatment of minorities and has responded through resolutions, motions and sanctions. Faced with such criticism, China has attempted to manipulate the narrative and brand any criticism of its treatment of Uighur Muslims as blatant Western propaganda.

In such an environment, with China actively trying to change the narrative by influencing foreign media, journalists and leaders, people must stay informed about the plight of the Uighurs in China so that the CCP is not able to act with impunity and continue its abuse of the Uighur community. We must not provide an opportunity to China to twist the narrative regarding its abhorrent treatment of Uighurs. The CCP has tried similar tactics with regards to the coronavirus. Chinas ploys to deflect blame and avoid criticism need to be met with accurate, factual and reliable information. The CCP wishes to keep its people as well as the rest of the world blind to its vile deeds, but the whole world has now become aware of China's true nature. CCP cannot be allowed to act with impunity and commit a genocide akin to the Jewish holocaust right in Indias backyard.

Live TV
Penelope Cruz looked ready for a sizzling summer on the Mediterranean while covering her latest magazine.

The 46-year-old bombshell, who lives in her native Spain, showed off her taut midriff by tying the hem of her white shirt into a knot for Marie Claire Greece.

She wore a couple of top buttons tantalizingly undone to hint at her nude undergarments as she shot her best smoldering stare at the camera.

Looking fab: Penelope Cruz looked ready for a sizzling summer on the Mediterranean while covering the latest Marie Claire Greece

Letting her luxurious hair down, she added a splash of dazzle to her look with jewelry that included hoop earrings and several bracelets.

She had a Spanish team working behind the scenes - Xavi Gordo took her cover shot and her hair and makeup was done by Pablo Iglesias, with hair by Lucero Hurtado.

In another cover image for the magazine she could be seen in a Mediterranean chic brown collared blouse and what appeared to be the same jewelry.

Penelope, who is married to her fellow Spanish actor and sex symbol Javier Bardem, recently also covered the February issue of Marie Claire in France.

Terrific: In another cover image for the magazine she could be seen in a Mediterranean chic brown collared blouse and what appeared to be the same jewelry

Her cover shots for the Greek edition happen to have also been part of her photo-shoot for the French version of the magazine.

In fact her interview in the Greek magazine is also a translation of the same conversation that appeared in the French version.

During that chat she discussed how lockdown enabled her to 'meditate more' and 'spend even more time cooking very healthily' for her children.

She also revealed that she and Javier - who share children Leo, 10, and Luna, seven - are careful not to let their careers seep into their family life.

Hot couple: Penelope is married to her fellow Spanish actor and sex symbol Javier Bardem, with whom she is pictured at Cannes in 2018

'Like any couple, we talk about our jobs, and consequently about our characters, about the way we handle this or that scene,' she clarified.

'Sometimes we exchange ideas, but when it comes to our jobs generally, we're not obsessed with work, we try to leave it at the door of the house.'

Penelope was also candid about the fact that 'I don't focus on what people think of me' and that when she gets extravagant praise 'in an incredible way, I try to keep my distance and don't believe the person 100%.'

Seen onscreen: She also revealed that she and Javier - who share two children - are careful not to let their careers seep into their family life; pictured in their 2018 film Everybody Knows

She quipped: 'As for negative remarks, I know nothing because I will never see what's on Google. That would truly be a very bad exercise for my mental health! I'm rightly concerned with the opinion of my family and friends.'

The Volver actress added: 'I'm of course thankful to the people who like my films and write to me, furthermore I try to respond to the maximum number of letters.'

Motherhood and age have contributed to her attitude as 'When I was young, the way others saw me, be it positive or negative, had an enormous importance.'

Glamorous as ever: 'Like any couple, we talk about our jobs, and consequently about our characters, about the way we handle this or that scene,' she clarified

She continued: 'But becoming a mother made me aware that this was the most important mission of my life and that I wanted to accomplish it as best I could.'

As she has grown older she has also adopted a different attitude to her work life, allowing herself more time to recharge.

'In my 20s, I was a total workaholic, I would even wake myself up in the middle of the night to respond to emails and things like that, and then I had to learn patience, rest, silence. The things that I appreciate a lot now,' she explained.
Since the pandemic, 41% of Black-owned businesses shuttered since February 2020 compared to 17% of white businesses. Tweet this

Black Restaurant Week's market expansion includes Toronto, the Gulf Coast, Pacific Northwest, Southeast, Carolinas, and Southwest regions.

Black Restaurant Week was founded in 2016 by three friends: Warren Luckett, Falayn Ferrell and Derek Robinson. It began as a one-city food experience in Houston. The mission: celebrate African American, African, and Caribbean influences in the culinary industry, educate consumers on the abundance of cultural cuisines and dispel ethnic untruths. In 2020, the organization showcased 670 Black-owned culinary businesses across the United States and generated an average of 34% sales increase. Black Restaurant Week supports restauranteurs, bartenders, chefs, caterers, and food trucks.

2021 campaign initiatives and virtual events include, but are not limited to:

Free entry-level business registration and inclusion in national culinary directory on Black Restaurant Week's website

Black-owned culinary marketplace retailing Black-owned curated food and houseware goods

Aroma Culinary Business Conference a day-long business development conference

Power of the Palate virtual national cocktail competition with Maker's Mark

NOSH Culinary Challenges include the "Vote or Pie" challenge and "The Pre-game" tailgate challenge engaging professional chefs and home cooks.

"The No Crumb Left Behind campaign is to ensure that we are helping as many culinary businesses stay afloat as the world recovers from the pandemic," stated Derek Robinson, Black Restaurant Week Marketing Director. "We are adding more activations and working with additional partners to present programming to serve our full audience of restaurants, bakeries, caterers, chefs, and food trucks."

Black Restaurant Week will host its restaurant week campaign in the following cities:

Northwest: Alaska, Oregon, Washington, Vancouver (February 19  February 28) Toronto (July 9  July 18) Southwest: Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Texas (March 12  March 21) Midwest: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Wisconsin (July 23  August 1) Houston (April 2  April 11) Los Angeles (August 6  August 15) Carolinas (April 23  May 2) Bay Area (August 20  August 29) Southeast: Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee (May 14  May 23) Atlanta (September 3  September 12) Northeast: Delaware, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania (June 4  June 13) Greater Washington DC: Maryland and Virginia (September 17  September 26) New York Tri-State: New Jersey and Connecticut (June 25  July 4) Gulf Coast: Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi (October 8  October 17)

Florida (November 12  November 21)

"We had phenomenal success last year with the regional campaigns and wanted to continue that model to help businesses nationwide," stated Warren Luckett, Black Restaurant Week Founder. "There were so many testimonials from restaurant participants of how this campaign helped keep their doors open."

This year's corporate partners include Pepsi, Grubhub, Maker's Mark, Stella Artois, and Bacardi. For more information about Black Restaurant Week, its events and participating restaurants, please visit: blackrestaurantweeks.com

*University of California, Santa Cruz, 2020

About Black Restaurant Week

Black Restaurant Week LLC is an annual, multi-city culinary movement celebrating the flavors of African American, African, and Caribbean cuisine nationwide. Black Restaurant Week partners with Black-owned restaurants, chefs, caterers, and food trucks to host a selection of culinary experiences aimed to expand awareness and increase support for Black culinary professionals. The organization was founded in 2016 by Warren Luckett, Falayn Ferrell and Derek Robinson. Connect with Black Restaurant Week on Facebook , Twitter & Instagram .

SOURCE Black Restaurant Week LLC

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Armenian acting Deputy PM: Discussion on issues possible only after withdrawal of Azeri troops from Armenia's territory

Armenia acting PM on Syunik roads, Russian military posts: This is only place where there are working nuances

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Putin congratulates Aliyev on Republic Day

Josep Borrell: A group of EU Ministers will visit Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan

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The 2019 arrival of AW Texas in Cibolo, the worlds largest manufacturer of automotive transmissions, could be considered the feather in the cap of Cibolo City Manager Robert Herrera, who announced his resignation last month after nine years in the office.

Herrera will not be seeking an extension of his contract, which expires in May. At its Jan. 26 meeting, the Cibolo City Council hired an executive search firm to help seek out Herreras replacement.

The city of Cibolo has been a beacon of growth in the area and I am honored to have been an active role in that, Herrera stated. This city has been my home for a considerable amount of time, and I wish nothing but success for the current and future leaders of this city.

Herrera, a native San Antonian and John F. Kennedy High School graduate, had logged 33 years of experience in city management, including nine as city manager in Hondo, before arriving in Cibolo. He will pursue other career opportunities once his tenure ends May 14.

I am excited for this next chapter in my career and look forward to continuing my role as a public servant for years to come, he said.

Mayor Stosh Boyle said Cibolo has been the recipient of Herreras continued efforts to harness and direct the citys exponential growth.

Cibolo has been home to exponential growth over the last nine years under City Manager Herrera, Boyle said. We plan to use this growth as a building block to continue Cibolos success.

The arrival of AW Texas ended a two-year campaign to bring the firm to town. The firm, headquartered in Japan, will bring $400 million in capital investment with 900 jobs to its facility on Interstate 10. Current models estimate a net benefit of nearly $11 million in revenue to the city over 10 years, including annual salaries of $40 million at full operation.

Cibolo has also successfully partnered with the YMCA on Herreras watch. The organization opened a 26,400-square-foot facility with a ball field complex and plans to open a Miracle League Field in the near future.

During 2020, the city realized growth through the duration of the pandemic, according to a city press release on Herreras resignation. Under his direction, sales tax rose in 2020 and 18 new businesses chose to open their doors during uncertain times. Cibolo City Hall remained open and fully staffed during the emergency declaration enacted by City Council.

All of our employees are essential, and we are here to show the businesses and citizens of Cibolo that we continue our public service during trying times, Herrera said.

Herrera has over 30 years of progressive city management experience in municipal government. In addition to his city management experience, he remains active in state organizations. He currently serves as Place 1 Trustee and Chairman of the Finance Committee on the Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool (TMLIRP) Board of Trustees. Herrera is also a current member of the Texas City Management Association.

Council will recognize the city manager for his service to the community closer to the end of his contract.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has urged the Supreme Court to send Olisa Metuh, an ex-spokesperson for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), back to prison.

Mr Metuh was jailed seven years for money laundering on February 25, 2020, but got out of prison in December after the Court of Appeal in Abuja nullified his previous trial and ordered retrial.

The Court of Appeal had without considering the merit of the money laundering charges, set aside the proceedings leading to Mr Metuhs conviction by the Federal High Court in Abuja on the grounds that the trial judge allegedly exhibited bias against the ex-spokesperson of the PDP and his legal team.

On December 24, 2020, a judge of the Federal High Court in Abuja, Nkeonye Maha, granted a N250 million bail to Mr Metuh and permission to travel abroad pending the commencement of his retrial.

But the EFCC, which seems not to be too keen about pursuing a retrial, on January 27, 2021, filed six grounds of appeal at the Supreme Court to challenge the December 16, 2020 verdict of the Court of Appeal which ordered the fresh trial.

PREMIUM TIMES on Thursday obtained copies of EFCCs notice of appeal and the two other ones filed in respect to the case.

Gross miscarriage of justice

The commissions lawyer, Sylvanus Tahir, who has led the prosecution team from the inception of the case in January 2016, argued that the judgment of the Court of Appeal occasioned a gross miscarriage of justice.

The anti-graft agency urged the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the lower court which nullified the judgment of the trial court and remitted the case back to the trial court for a fresh trial.

It also sought an order for the invocation/application by the Supreme Court of section 22 of the Supreme Court Act to do what the Court of Appeal ought to have done in going into the merits of the case as determined by the trial court to decide if the appeal should have been dismissed or not.

Other prayers sought by appellant are: An order de-nullifying the nullification of the judgment of the trial court by the court below and reinstating the conviction, sentences and fines imposed on the 1st respondent (Mr Metuh) by the judgement of the trial court.

An order committing/reinstating the 1st respondent back to the Correctional Centre at Kuje (Abuja) to complete his term of imprisonment.

The commission, however, put forward an alternative prayer which is an order setting aside the Court of Appeals judgment and another that the appeal be heard on merit by another panel of the Court of Appeal.

Conviction, Appeal Court verdict

The trial judge, Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in Abuja, had, after a four-year-long trial, convicted Mr Metuh and his firm, Destra Investment Limited, of money laundering.

While he sentenced Mr Metuh to seven years in jail, he ordered the winding up of the company and the forfeiture of its assets to the Federal Government.

The convicts were found guilty of laundering N400 million which they received fraudulently from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) then headed by Sambo Dasuki in 2014, preparatory to the 2015 general elections.

The judge also convicted them on other money laundering charges involving a $2 million cash transaction executed without going through a financial institution in violation of money laundering law.

Although Mr Dasuki was not prosecuted as a defendant in the case, the judge in his judgment indicted Mr Dasuki, the ex-NSA, for breach of trust and acts of corruption by his action of doling out N400 million to Mr Metuh from the ONSAs account without any legal basis.

The trio of Mr Metuh, his firm, Destra Investment Limited, and Mr Dasuki filed separate appeals against the trial courts judgment.

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A three-man panel of the Court of Appeal led by Stephen Adah, in its December 16, 2020 judgment refrained from making a pronouncement on the merit of the money laundering charges, but nullified the entire proceedings of the trial court on the grounds that they were tainted by the judges bias against Mr Metuh and his legal team.

In the instant case, the learned trial judge on record documented how he was worried by the act of the appellant and his counsel and the narrative suggests someone who has an axe to grind against the appellant and his legal team, the Court of Appeals judgment had read in part.

The court therefore ordered the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to reassign the case to another judge of the court, apart from Mr Abang, who passed the contested conviction, for a retrial.

EFCCs appeals

Dissatisfied with the Court of Appeals judgment, the EFCC on January 27, 2021 filed three notices of appeal against the separate verdicts of the Court of Appeal on Mr Metuh, Destra Investments and Mr Dasuki, a retired colonel.

Among its six grounds of appeal against the verdict on Mr Metuh, the EFCC argued that the decision of the lower court is unreasonable and unwarranted in the circumstances of this case.

The agency also contended that the Court of Appeal judges erred in law and occasioned miscarriage of justice by adjudging comments, remarks, views and opinion expressed by the learned trial judge in his judgment as amounting to bias.

The commission argued that such comments, remarks, views and opinion expressed by the trial judge in obiter dictum (a Latin phrase which can mean, said in passing), is not appealable.

The EFCC added, It is not every pronouncement made by a judge that can be made a subject of an appeal.

Grounds of appeal must be directed a ratio decidendi (the rationale for the decision) of a lower court.

Obiter dictum does not decide the life issues in the matter.

The comments, remarks, views and opinion of the learned trial judge came after the conviction of the appellant, hence it had no bearing on the merit of the case.

The learned trial judge was at liberty to make remarks and they did not detract from the judicial duties the court carried out.

The said remarks being merely a passing incidental by the way comment did not affect or embody the resolution of the issues before the trial court.

It added that nullifying the judgment of a trial court on account of comments, remarks, views and opinion expressed by a judge would set a bad precedent, as it would open the floodgate for frivolous appeals by a litigant as in this case merely on account of a learned trial judges obiter dictum which does not affect the resolution of the live issues before the court.

The commission submitted to the Supreme Court in another grounds of appeal that the court below without cogent evidence of judicial bias made out against the learned trial judge, declared as a nullity, the judgment of the trial court and consequently remitted the case back to the trial court for a fresh hearing.

In another grounds of appeal, the commission argued that the Court of Appeal, although an intermediate court, arrogated to itself the power of finality, an exclusive reserve of the apex court, by considering only two issues of bias submitted to it by parties and failing to consider the seven others which it termed or labelled as academic.

Failure of the court below to consider and determine all issues was a violation of the appellants right to fair hearing, the commission added.

Dasukis case

Meanwhile, the bulk of the grounds of appeal filed by the EFCC are the same in the separate notices filed in respect of cases concerning Mr Metuh, his firm, Destra Investment, and Mr Dasuki.

But in the notice of appeal of four grounds filed in respect of Mr Dasukis case, the commission argued that the appeal court caused a miscarriage of justice by dismissing its preliminary object dated July 7, 2020 against the ex-NSAs appeal.

The commission argued that Mr Dasuki not being an accused person or a party to the particular criminal proceedings, by virtue of section 243 of the Nigerian Constitution, there was no basis for him to file an appeal to the Court of Appeal.

Meanwhile, Mr Dasuki is still facing separate trials at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory in Maitama over alleged diversion of ONSAs funds ahead of the 2015 general elections.
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ABCFoo Fighters and Muse are among many artists taking part in a U.K. charity raffle to raise money for the #ILoveLive campaign in support of live music crew members amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Items contributed to the fundraiser include a Dave Grohl-signed snare drum, and a guitar autographed by Matt Bellamy.

Other artists who've donated items to the raffle include Iron Maiden, Mumford & Sons, Lindsey Buckingham and Two Door Cinema Club.

To enter, you can donate now via Crowdfunder.co.uk/I-Love-Live.

By Josh Johnson

Copyright  2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
There have been calls for a dog DNA database to be set up in Louth so people who dont clean up their pooches foul would have it delivered back to them along with a hefty fine.

Louth councillor Pio Smith asked the local authority to consider investigating the possibility of setting up a dog DNA database to tackle the problem of dog foul being left on streets and in parks across the county.

He said the initiative would allow dog dirt to be DNA tested and returned to the dog owner, along with a fine.

The Labour councillor, speaking at the recent Louth County Council meeting, said the scheme had been established in parts of Europe successfully and had cut down on dog foul litter by up to 90%.

Cllr Smith said: I know we issued 506 licences recently and I am wondering if the council can consider exploring the possibility of having a database of dogs in Louth so we can do DNA testing of the dog foul and return the dirt to the dog owner along with a hefty fine.

What we are doing at the minute simply isnt working and we need to change the way we are doing things.

DNA testing is done in different councils and I would suspect we would solve the problem fairly quickly.

There are a number of councils around London, France and Spain that do it and the results have been between a 70% to 90% drop in dog fouling and the cost was very minimal so I think it is something that we should consider.

It could also pay for itself if we built in the cost of the testing into the fine.

I am asking the council to investigate the possibility of setting up a dog DNA database.

Director of Environment Services Catherine Duff said she would discuss the dog DNA database with the Louth County Councils veterinary officer to see how that could be done or whether it could be done.

Obviously, this is an issue and an ongoing issue so I will certainly discuss any opportunities to tackle it, she continued.
[February 18, 2021] Locus Robotics Announces $150 Million In Series E Funding, Bringing Its Valuation To $1 Billion

WILMINGTON, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Locus Robotics , the leader in autonomous mobile robots (AMR) for fulfillment warehouses, today announces $150 million in Series E funding, led by Tiger Global Management and BOND . The round builds on support from existing investors including Scale Venture Partners and Prologis Ventures , the venture capital arm of Prologis , the global leader in logistics real estate. "This new round of funding marks an important inflection point for Locus Robotics," said Rick Faulk, CEO of Locus Robotics. "Warehouses facing ongoing labor shortages and exploding volumes, are looking for flexible, intelligent automation to improve productivity and grow their operations. Locus is uniquely positioned to drive digital transformation in this enormous global market." Locus will use the new investment to further expand its market opportunities around the globe and support ongoing research and development (R&D) to grow and enhance its award-winning, innovative warehouse technology solution. "Locus's innovative mix of proven technology, flexible design, and seamless scalability makes it an ideal choice to lead the digital transformation of the warehouse," said Griffin Schroeder, Partner at Tiger Global. "Facing rapidly growing ecommerce volumes, rising labor costs, and increasingly demanding customers, warehouse operators are seeking an automation solution that is flexible, scalable, and just works." "The Locus solution unlocks substantial productivity gains, while significantly lowering expenses, improving employee morale, and providing customers with unmatched visibility into warehouse operations," said Jay Simons, a general partner at BOND. "The platform is powerful enough to meet  and exceed  warehouse operators' needs today, tomorrow, and in the months and years to come." In a market of more than 20 billion square feet of warehouse space worldwide, and rising e- commerce volume, Locus helps operators effectively meet the industry's growing demand, while seamlessly managing today's often unpredictable olume shifts. Locus currently serves more than 40 customers and 80 warehouses around the world with its industry-leading solution. LocusBots have picked more than 300 million units, including 70 million units during the recent holiday season.



"The logistics industry is facing huge challenges as it struggles to cope with rapid increases in demand, and at the same time severe labor shortages," said Ash Sharma, Managing Director at Interact Analysis, a market research firm covering the intelligent automation sector. "Warehouses are massively under-penetrated today, but increasingly operators are seeing the huge benefits that warehouse robotics such as the Locus solution can bring. As a result, we expect that over a million warehouse robots will be installed over the next four years and the number of warehouses using them will grow ten-fold." Locus's proven, innovative, multi-bot solution for warehouse fulfillment incorporates collaborative, autonomous mobile robots that significantly improve productivity and deliver powerful, actionable business intelligence. Locus's strategic partnerships with industry-leading warehouse software companies leverage a powerful synergy that speeds systems integration and deployment.

"As businesses increasingly look for ways to deliver productivity and operational efficiencies into their supply chain, it has become critical that providers deliver on the promise of speed and reliability in their technology deployments," said John Santagate, VP of Robotics at Korber Supply Chain. "Through our strategic partnership with Locus Robotics, we continue to collaborate and innovate in order to deliver rapid results by driving down the time it takes from decision to use of Locus Robots in the warehouse." Locus customers worldwide include CEVA Logistics, DHL, Material Bank, Boots UK, GEODIS, Port Logistics Group, Verst Logistics, Radial, and others, who are doubling or tripling their fulfillment productivity with near-100% accuracy, while saving on operating expenses, and enhancing employee morale and safety. "Our users and partners depend on Material Bank, so we have to execute to perfection. Locus is flexible and powerful enough to deploy quickly in both our existing logistics facility as well as in our new, expanded location," said Adam Sandow, Founder and CEO of Material Bank. "Their innovative technology has helped us support increased demand, easily scaling for growth and delivering a fast ROI." "The decision to add Locus to our ecommerce fulfillment operations has proven to be an ideal choice as we have seen efficiency gains and productivity gains," said Branden McCauley, Engineering Project Manager at Radial. "The ease of use and associate support attributed to our ability to seamlessly scale up operations to meet the explosion of ecommerce volume over the past year, especially during peak times, without needing to change our workflows or adding labor costs." Locus's powerful business intelligence helps customers manage their business operations in real time. Accessible from anywhere, managers can review a wide range of dashboards using their phones or laptops, while employees can monitor performance on displays right on the warehouse floor. Locus's patented, proprietary software and intuitive user interface seamlessly integrate into both existing and new warehouse environments improving the efficiency of both inbound ("putaway") and outbound ("picking") fulfillment. Locus robots can be configured to carry a wide variety of items. Patented technology automatically recognizes workers, and the robot's large screen displays information in the worker's preferred language, facilitating greater productivity and reduced error rates. Locus's innovative "Gamification" feature displays individual performance statistics to help motivate workers to greater achievement. The Locus solution includes real-time analytics, dashboards, and reporting to customers to maximize productivity and support continuous improvement in the warehouse. About Locus Robotics

Locus Robotics' revolutionary, multi-bot solution incorporates powerful and intelligent autonomous mobile robots that operate collaboratively with human workers to dramatically improve piece-handling productivity 2  3x, with less labor compared to traditional piece handling systems. This award-winning solution helps retailers, 3PLs, and specialty warehouses efficiently meet and exceed the increasingly complex and demanding requirements of fulfillment environments, easily integrating into existing warehouse infrastructures without disrupting workflows, instantly transforming productivity without transforming the warehouse. For more information, visit www.locusrobotics.com.

About Tiger Global

Tiger Global Management is an investment firm that focuses on private and public companies in the global Internet, software, consumer, and payments industries. The Firm's private equity strategy was launched in 2003 and has invested in hundreds of companies across more than 30 countries, in all stages of funding  from Series A to pre-IPO. The venture business, currently investing its twelfth fund, aims to partner with dynamic entrepreneurs operating market-leading growth companies; examples include JD.com, Meituan, Facebook, LinkedIn, Spotify, Peloton, Credit Karma, Toast, Stripe, ByteDance, Stone, Warby Parker, Flipkart, Despegar, Ola and DiDi. Tiger Global was founded in 2001 and is based in New York with affiliate offices in Hong Kong, Beijing, Singapore and Bangalore. About BOND

BOND is a global technology investment firm that supports visionary founders throughout their entire life cycle of innovation and growth. BOND's founding partners have backed industry pioneers such as Airbnb, Canva, Docusign, DoorDash, Facebook, Instacart, JD.com, Peloton, Plaid, Ring, Slack, Spotify, Square, Stripe, Twitter, Uber, and Waze. MEDIA CONTACTS:

BRANDSTYLE COMMUNICATIONS

Samantha Granet / samantha@brandstyle.com View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/locus-robotics-announces-150-million-in-series-e-funding-bringing-its-valuation-to-1-billion-301230993.html SOURCE Locus Robotics

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New Delhi:

Three new crew members belonging to the Expedition 52/53 will reach the International Space Station (ISS) onboard the Soyuz MS-05 manned spacecraft after a Soyuz-FG carrier rocket will be launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Friday. The joining of three fresh crew members will boost the labs crew back to six and research with four crew including three NASA astronauts and a European flier available to operate experiments in the American segment of the laboratory.

The six will work on hundreds of experiments in biotechnology, physical science and Earth science aboard the International Space Station. The three Astronauts are Randy Bresnik of NASA, Sergey Ryazanskiy of Roscosmos and Paolo Nespoli of European Space Agency. The liftoff is scheduled for 03:41pm GMT (09 pm IST).

Sergey will occupy the Soyuz spacecrafts center seat during the launch and docking. Bresnik will be the Soyuz MS-05 spaceships board engineer, assisting Ryazanskiy with cockpit duties during the six-hour journey from liftoff to docking.

The crew will be welcomed on the International Space Station by expedition 52 Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin of Roscosmos, Flight Engineers Peggy Whitson and Jack Fischer of NASA.

The three will spend more than four months on the orbital complex. Ryazanskiy, Bresnik and Nespoli are scheduled to return to Earth Dec. 14 and will be replaced by another crew made up of two Americans and one Russian.

The crew will spend six hours in the Soyuz MS-05 spacecraft before docking in the space station's Rassvet module at 6 p.m.

Live coverage of the docking will begin at 5:15 p.m. on NASA TV.

ALSO READ | SpaceX Dragon spacecraft returns from International Space Station, brings back first ever Chinese experiment



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Michigans unemployment fund took a hit from the pandemic, but the states Unemployment Insurance Agency said Thursday its highly unlikely the money will run out in 2021.

States pay unemployed workers via a trust fund that employers pay into every year. The fund had $4.6 billion in it before the pandemic, but now sits at just more than $500 million  meaning about 89% of the fund has been drained in less than a year.

The good news is, employers pay into the fund quarterly, but the largest payment of the year is due April 25, while the revenue infusions get smaller each quarter after that until next April, per the UIA.

State leaders credit the states workshare program for helping keep the fund solvent. The program works with employers to offer limited hours to unemployed workers, reducing the amount of state benefits doled out.

RELATED: Michigan burned through 84% of its unemployment cash in 2020. What happens when its gone?

Republicans and business leaders have pushed for the state to dump millions of dollars into the trust fund  but Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has argued against it, calling it a giveaway of taxpayer money.

Business owners are frustrated because they have to pay more into the fund each year whenever it dips below $2.5 billion, and some blame Whitmers COVID-19 restrictions for the high unemployment rate.

The latest Senate Republican spending proposal includes $150 million for the trust fund.

If it dips below zero, Michigan would need to seek a federal loan to cover the benefits  like Ohio, California and Texas had to do in 2020. That doesnt affect benefits for recipients, but does add an additional cost for employers paying into the fund.

We are encouraged to hear the UIA projects the (trust fund) will not need to borrow funds in 2021, which means employers will avoid increased employment costs due to borrowing, said Mike Johnston, Michigan Manufacturing Association vice president in a news release. One of the best solutions to solvency is getting people back to work, through Work Share, and filling open positions in manufacturing through work search.

Michigans UIA paid more than $29 billion in benefits since the pandemic started, but only $5.1 billion came from state funds. The rest was provided through federal programs, like Pandemic Unemployment Assistance.

Unemployment spikes as federal programs start paying

The federal government passed a package in December allowing more people to receive unemployment benefits through the spring, but Michigan didnt get the program implemented until the final week of January.

That led to a big jump in total unemployment claims. For the week of Jan. 30, there were about 991,000 Michiganders getting unemployment pay, up 375,000 compared to the week prior. Its the most Michigan unemployment claims in a given week since mid-October.

Heres a look at how the number of unemployment claims in Michigan has changed over the past year. If you cant see the graphic, click here.

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A riot sparked by a gang inside Paraguays largest prison left at least six prisoners dead, including three who were decapitated.

The incident unfolded Tuesday after hundreds of inmates armed with knives took 18 guards hostage, including eight who were on-duty, at the Tacumbu National Penitentiary in Asuncion, the nations capital.

Video uploaded to social media showed security forces standing behind a closed gate as the fire raged inside a jail space while they fired what appeared to be rubber bullets at the prisoners.

Additional video showed inmates, including one who is armed with what looks like a knife, milling around outside a yard where several objects, including mattresses, were set on fire to protest the transfer of a convict.

At least 18 prison guards were held hostage during the revolt before the prisoners released them after the government agreed not to unleash a harsher assault on them.

The dead victims were identified as Carlos Casco, 25; Julio Gonzalez, 35; Roberto Rios, 49; Alexis Miranda, 24; and Fernando Ortiz, 26. Authorities did not provide an age for the sixth victim, Julio Shareamm.

A member of Paraguay's security force stands behind a closed gate inside the Tacumbu National Prison during Tuesday's riot that left six inmates dead, including three who were decapitated. The incident was sparked by infighting between members of the Rotela Clan, a Paraguayan mafia, after authorities discovered an escape plot involving their leader Armando Rotela and Orlando Benitez, who was allegedly a member of a gang tied to the Primeiro Comando da Capital, or First Capital Command, a Brazilian faction that is considered the largest criminal organization in Latin America

Inmates, some armed, stand near a fire that was set off during a riot at the Tacumbu National Prison in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Tuesday. Authorities said six inmates were killed during the uprising

Police guard the entrance to the Tacumbu National Penitentiary following a riot in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Tuesday

Inmates walk on the roof of Tacumbu National Penitentiary after they rioted and took control of the facility in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Tuesday. The government confirmed the deaths of six prisoners

Initial reports indicated that the rebellion was caused by members of the Rotela Clan, a Paraguayan mafia, and the Primeiro Comando da Capital, or First Capital Command, a Brazilian faction that is considered the largest criminal organization in Latin America.

However, Paraguays Minister of Justice, Cecilia Perez, told ABC Color that the uprising was generated by an internal fight between Rotela Clan prisoners after authorities learned of an escape plot involving their leader, Armando Rotela, and Orlando Benitez.

Benitez had been sentenced to 19 years in prison in January 2020 after he was found guilty for his involvement in a string of ATM robberies and the failed robbery attempt of an armored truck transporting cash on November 15.

Police officers in Asuncion, Paraguay, shield themselves during a clash with relatives of inmates outside the Tacumbu National Penitentiary

Riot police stand by inside the Tacumbu National Penitentiary in Asuncion, Paraguay, where six inmates were found dead following a riot

People gather outside the Tacumbu National Penitentiary in Asuncion, Paraguay. Inmates held 18 guards hostage and agreed to release them after the government promised not to unleash additional forces during a riot that left six prisoners dead

Benitez, who was an alleged member of a gang that was linked to the Primeiro Comando da Capital, was wounded in a shootout with the police responding to the truck heist.

It's unknown what kind of relationship Benitez has with Rotela since both prisoners were members of different factions.

Perez visited the prison Wednesday and met with leaders of the Rotela Clan, who eventually accepted the government's reasoning behind Benitez's transfer.

Orlando Benitez attempted to flee from the Tacumbu National Penitentiary in Asuncion, Paraguay, before officials busted his plot, which also included the leader of a gang

She also added that the Primeiro Comando da Capital was not involved in the deadly uprising because none of its gang members were housed at the Tacumbu National Penitentiary, which is largely influenced by the Rotela Clan.

Perez vowed that Paraguay's prison system would not fall under the control of gangs the way it tends to occur in Brazil, El Salvador and Honduras.

'Failure to relocate from Orlando is something you can't do. They cannot condition our work,' Perez said.

'There are many internal obstacles in the prison system, any measure can have an impact on the system. I am convinced that this was directed at me, due to all the internal problems that we handle, measures that we take that have to do with greater control, better management.'

February 18, 2021 Why Is Biden Creating Himself An Iran Quagmire? Since he came to power President Joe Biden has done nothing to revive the nuclear agreement with Iran. The JCPOA was breached by the U.S. in 2018 when then President Trump left the deal and renewed a 'maximum pressure' sanction campaign against Iran. For over a year Iran stuck to its commitment under the deal. It then began to gradually exceed some of the technical limits of the deal. Those step were legal under the JCPOA because the U.S. had left the deal. All of them are reversible. In response to the murder by Israel of Iran's top nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh the conservative parliament passed a law that compels the moderate government under the Iranian President Rohani to further reduce its adherence to the JCPOA deal. As part of this the Iranian government will soon reduce the ability of the international inspectors from the IAEA to observe parts of its civilian nuclear program. As the Ambassador of Iran to the UN announced: Gharibabadi @Gharibabadi - 16:11 UTC  Feb 15, 2021 Act of Parliament will be executed on time (23 Feb) and the IAEA has been informed today to ensure the smooth transition to a new course in due time. After all, goodwill brings about goodwill! The Biden administration demands that Iran fully come back under the restrictions of the deal, to agree to an extension of some restriction under the deal and to agree to talks about its missile programs and its role in the Middle East. Only after that, says the Biden administration, would the U.S. remove some of its sanctions. The demands are nonsense and have absolutely no chance of being fulfilled. It is the U.S. that is in breach of the deal. Biden could simply reenter it by lifting the sanctions Trump imposed. Iran had promised that it would follow through by coming back into the technical limits of the deal. But instead of agreeing to that the Biden administration is trying to create a more complicated process by coordinating its negotiation positions with Saudi Arabia, Israel and other opponents of the deal: Israels envoy to the United States suggested Tuesday that Israel may not consult with the new administration on its steps to reenter [JCPOA]. Biden has pledged to engage with allies and partners, including Israel, before making any moves to join the deal. But Reuters reports that some Israeli officials believe consulting with the Biden administration could backfire for Israel by falsely signaling its consent for any new deal that it still opposes. During informal talks held by the Trump administration with Iran the U.S. had made similar demands as Biden is now making. Iran has rejected all of them. Iran's missile force, built independently, is a deterrence against potential aggressors in its region. Since the Iranian revolution 43 years ago the country has been under various weapon embargoes. Its airforce has therefore no modern fighter jets. The Arab states in the Gulf Cooperation Council on the western side of the Persian Gulf have in total some 450 modern fighter jets in between them. Additionally the U.S. is keeping at times a hundred or more of its own fighter jets in the region. Iran has little ability to defend itself from a concerted bombing campaign. The only thing it can do is to threaten a response by extensive missile strikes on regional targets. Its missile force is thus a sheer necessity. To suggest that Iran should limit its missile force is a demand that would leave the country defenseless. A further prolonging of the time limits for restrictions under the JCPOA deal is likewise not agreeable. The JCPOA was negotiated in a long process during which both sides made concessions. That the U.S. is now coming back to unilaterally demand longer restrictions without offering anything new in return is unreasonable. Iran will not agree to any negotiation with the Biden regime unless the U.S. returns to the deal first. Its Supreme Leader has spoken: Khamenei.ir @khamenei_ir - 8:42 UTC  Feb 17, 2021 About the #JCPOA, promises were made by the other side. I am saying one thing: Weve heard many promises which were broken & contradicted in practice. Mere words don't help. This time only action! Action! If the Islamic Republic sees action from the other side, it will act too. In May 2021 Iran will elect a new president. The moderate Rouhani has failed to revive the Iranian economy. Rouhani negotiated and agreed to the JCPOA but was then betrayed by the U.S. with new devastating sanctions which brought more economic pressure. The conservatives in Iran have already won the 2020 parliament elections. (Note: The 'moderates' in Iran are neoliberals. The more hard line 'conservatives' are social-democrats.) The conservatives will likely win the presidency. Currently the former 'hardline' president of Iran Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, pictured below, has the highest voter approval of all potential candidates. Should the religious authorities allow him to run he is likely to win. U.S. diplomacy with Iran will then become even more difficult.

bigger It is hard to understand what the Biden administration is expecting to win by slow walking a return to the JCPOA. It practically guarantees that the Iranian side will become more hardline.

Keeping up the sanctions also guarantees that Iran will make new moves to counter those. It has reliable proxies in the region and there are many U.S. aligned targets and interests that can be hit. If Iran can not export oil because of U.S. sanctions why should it tolerate that Saudi Arabia can continue to export?

Without the U.S. rejoining the JCPOA Iran has all incentives to further increase its stockpile of enriched Uranium and to further increase its enrichment level. U.S. nuclear submarines run on 60% enriched Uranium. Why should Iran not build similar boats and enrich its stockpile to the necessary level? While Iran does not want nuclear weapons it could, like Japan, create and stockpile all the necessary ingredients. The time frame needed to become a nuclear weapon state would then be down to a weekend's project.

There is no chance to further increase the pressure on Iran without co-operation from Moscow and Beijing. While the Biden administration has talked with both on Iran there is no sign that they would (again) agree to limit their trade with Iran. This especially as Washington has declared itself to be hostile to both of them.

There is no reasonable way the U.S. can attack Iran or its nuclear program without risking intense damage to its own forces and to its allies in the region. Any attack would likely escalate into a wider war. Israel, a nuclear weapon state which is currently expanding its stockpile, would get involved and Iran's ally in Lebanon, Hizbullah, would use its missile force to destroy the economy of the Zionist entity. The above has all been well known for months. By not immediately reentering the deal the Biden administration is committing diplomatic suicide as has been laid out by many commentators. The Biden administration could have had an easy early foreign policy win by simply ending the sanctions on Iran and by returning to the JCPOA. Instead it is now creating a quagmire for itself that will consume most of its foreign policy energy. It is beyond me why it is doing so. ---

PS: After finishing the above I unfortunately found that I have neglected the advice given here: How to Write About Iran: A Guide for Journalists, Analysts, and Policymaker. I'll try to do better next time. Then again, MoA is not main stream media nor does it desire to become such. Posted by b on February 18, 2021 at 18:44 UTC | Permalink Comments next page  next page 
A student who is claimed to be Vladimir Putin's secret daughter said she is loving the 'limelight' after her identity was revealed by the opposition media in Russia.

But Luiza Rozova - a 17-year-old also known as Elizaveta Krivonogikh - refused to confirm or deny she is the Kremlin strongman's heiress.

She is allegedly the love child of the Russian leader from an extramarital relationship with Svetlana Krivonogikh, a cleaner-turned-multimillionaire.

Luiza Rozova (pictured left) who is claimed to be Vladimir Putin's (right) secret daughter said she is loving the 'limelight' after being outed by the opposition media in Russia

The Russian leader is said to have had an affair with Svetlana Krivonogikh (pictured) and fathered Elizaveta, 17, during his first term as president

Luiza was answering questions on Clubhouse, an invitation-only audio-chat social networking app, from among others journalist Andrey Zakharov, who broke the story about her for Proekt.Media.

Zakharov - who now works for the BBC Russian Service - asked Luiza: 'Have I caused you a bad trauma by my investigation?'

She replied: 'Oh no, not at all. My life was so stagnant, I am very grateful for the chance to be in the limelight, that people heard about my account.

'I'm not trying and never have to popularise myself.

'I am feeling very well indeed, don't worry about me.

'My life goes on, and all is well.'

Luiza - 18 next month - revealed for the first time that she is a student at a St Petersburg University.

She also appeared to accept that she would not travel to the West.

Luiza Rozova (pictured above) - a 17-year-old student also known as Elizaveta Krivonogikh - refused to confirm or deny she is the Kremlin strongman's heiress

During the interview, Luiza was asked about her thoughts on a chilling quote from Vladimir Putin suggesting that if the Russian secret services had wanted to kill his poisoned foe Alexei Navalny, they would have finished the job.

She replied by alluding to a conspiracy theory over coronavirus which claims it is a plot by elites to reduce the world's population.

She said: 'There is this thing - don't know if I'll say it correctly - it's called the golden billion.

'It's a society of super wealthy people who have arranged all this coronavirus gimmick.

'This means that they are killing people.

'Why if they can do this, a government cannot (too) - for a reasonable cause?

'I can't say that I am for it, but this exists, this is what we are living in.'

Zakharov asked her straight in the exchange - extracts of which have appeared in Otkrytye Media and elsewhere: 'Are you Vladimir Putin's daughter?'

She remained silent but female friends beside her said: 'We have agreed not to answer the most important question.'

She was told that people were only interested in her and what she said because there is 'flair' about her being Putin's daughter.

'You realise that the chatter of St Petersburg Gen Zs would interest no-one unless there is Putin's daughter among them. You understand it, and what will you do with it?

She snapped back: 'It looks like you know little about me.

'I have nothing to do with politics, I do what I like.

'Did you think that I would remove my account?

'To hell, no!

'I live my life, I like fashion.

'This is not my main passion, but I like it and I am not going to stop everything I've been doing in the past, how I lived and whom I saw because of your investigation.

'I like visuals, and will always like them.'

She revealed she is studying the management of art and culture in her home city St Petersburg.

Putin's relationship to Svetlana supposedly ended around the time he was first romantically linked to Olympic gold medal winning gymnast Alina Kabaeva (pictured with Putin in 2004)

Zakharov quizzed her over her apparent liking for an 'outward-looking Russia', suggesting that under her 'father' things were moving in the opposite direction including threats to block social media from the West.

Asked if she wanted to study abroad, as some of her friends have done, she replied: 'Of course not, I don't want to leave.

'I am very taken by the thought that there is a possibility to go to such a wonderful place like New York, or to fashion's boiling points like Milan and Paris.

'But I will, of course, stay in my country, in my native city.

'I might possibly go to Moscow, I like Moscow very much, too.'

She declined to be drawn on Putin's political direction.

'You can't answer any question this unequivocally,' she said.

'You are right that I live in my art world, it's true, I live in my bubble.

'I don't watch TV, sometimes I follow news on Telegram, but not too much.

'I watch fashion shows, I buy Vogue magazine.

'I like to go to a nearby restaurant, have tasty pasta and discuss the latest gossip and investigations with my friends.'

Her friends evidently cut the journalist from the Clubhouse chat at this point.

Her Instagram has jumped to 96,400 followers since the reports that she is Putin's daughter.

She posted an image from the Clubhouse discussion on her Instagram.

'People come to my account to comment that I show off brands. But I am not showing off, I simply like this kind of visual.'

Luiza was asked in an interview about her thoughts on a chilling quote from Vladimir Putin suggesting that if the Russian secret services had wanted to kill his poisoned foe Alexei Navalny (pictured leaving a police station in Moscow), they would have finished the job

In November a report in Proekt - or Project - suggested her mother Svetlana Krivonogikh, 45, had been Putin's lover in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The report claimed she now has a 76 million fortune and is a shareholder in Rossiya Bank - sanctioned by the West - with a property portfolio.

She was also reported to be the owner of 118-ft yacht Aldoga via her company Pulse, and an an 'erotic' nightspot in St Petersburg.

Svetlana Krivonogikh has not spoken on the claims, even as her daughter has come into the limelight on the web.

One Russian media claim was that the 4.9 million yacht had been seen under escort by Raptor-class Yunarmeyets Baltiki, a modern anti-sabotage naval patrol boat, in the Gulf of Finland.

Navalny claimed this was a 'humiliation' for the Russian navy.

Naval forces 'spend their lives and wear uniforms to guard Putin's mistress.

'What a humiliation to our fleet.'

Proekt consulted Hassan Ugail, a visual computing expert at Bradford University.

Face-recognition software allegedly showed a 70.44 percent similarity between Putin and the younger Krivonogikh, he said.

This amounted to 'a phenomenal resemblance to the Russian president'.

On social media Luiza earlier said 'London would be great' when asked where in the world she would like to live.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his then-wife Lyudmila Putin (pictured) in the Kremlin Palace in Moscow. They announced their divorce in July 2013

Putin's spokesman said when the story originally broke that the love child allegations were 'not very convincing' and 'de facto unfounded'.

Putin's relationship to Svetlana supposedly ended around the time he was first romantically linked to Olympic gold medal winning gymnast Alina Kabaeva, now 37, head of a major pro-Kremlin media company.

Putin has two adult daughters Maria, 35, and Katerina, 34, from his marriage to former Kremlin first lady Lyudmila Putina. The couple divorced in 2013.

State news outlet RT claimed today that Proekt was funded by three foreign non-profit foundations, two of which are directly controlled by the European and American authorities.

The 'golden billion' conspiracy theory regarding Covid-19 surfaced in Russia last year.

It involves a plot by the world's elites to carry out a 'strategic depopulation' on a global scale with an artificially engineered virus.
Oil is up, unsurprisingly as the storm, currently still in Texas and Louisiana sweeps up all the way to DC and New York. Outages are still about the same as yesterday and overnight natural gas exports from Texas have been banned. Fortunately the bad weather is scheduled to ease by the weekend.

WTI $61.14 +$1.09, Brent $64.34 +99c, Diff -$3.20 -10c, NG $3.22 +9c, UKNG 42.5p -1p

Oil price

Oil is up, unsurprisingly as the storm, currently still in Texas and Louisiana sweeps up all the way to DC and New York. Outages are still about the same as yesterday and overnight natural gas exports from Texas have been banned. Fortunately the bad weather is scheduled to ease by the weekend.

Elsewhere the weather in Russia isnt getting better and production remains down there and international markets stay tight endorsed by the API stats. We know that next weeks inventory numbers will be affected by current markets but last nights stats showed a draw of 5.8m barrels of crude with a gasoline build of 3.9m bs with distillates drawing 3.5m, not surprising at this time of the year.

PetroTal Corp

PTAL announce a 2021 Capital budget of $100m and a programme that will be fully funded for the recently announced US$100 million bond issue, supplemented with funds generated from operations and existing cash resources.

The drilling focused development programme is expected to start in March 2021 and continue through December 2021. The programme is designed to enable PetroTal to more than double production from Q1 2021 to Q4 2021, and complete phase two of the highly scalable central processing facility in Q3 2021. The company plan to:

Drill and complete three horizontal development wells, one deviated production well and a second water disposal well at the Bretana oil field and complete the second phase of CPF-2 in Q3 2021, taking overall fluid production capacity up to 124,000 barrels per day, sufficient to handle 24,000 barrels of oil per day.

Target average 2021 oil production between 11,000 and 12,000 bopd with a target 2021 exit range of 18,000 to 19,000 bopd, generate cash flow of approximately $90 million, based on a forecast Brent oil price of $50 per barrel flat giving total 2021 capital expenditures of $100 million, fully funded from proceeds of the recent $100 million bond issue, funds from operations and existing cash resources;

In addition to ongoing Environmental, Social and Governance initiatives, PetroTal has allocated over $1 million in operating and capital spending for specific community investments.

Based on the successful 2019 and 2020 drilling results, PetroTal will spud five new development wells at Block 95 costing approximately $7 million for the deviated well and between $12- $14 million per horizontal well. Four of these oil wells are expected to be producing in 2021, with the fifth well on production in February 2022. A second water disposal well is planned in May at an estimated cost of $9 million, providing an expected 50,000 barrels of water per day of additional disposal capacity and enabling oil production growth beyond 20,000 bopd.

Completion of CPF-2 in Q3 2021 for an estimated $12 million will boost fluid handling capacity to 124,000 barrels per day, sufficient for approximately 24,000 bopd. The additional investment will bring total investment in CPF-2 to $24 million, approximately $4 million less than the original estimate. Extensions to the loading dock to handle larger oil volumes and optimal integration of CPF-1 and CPF2 will require $3 million. Commissioning CPF-2 for commencement in Q3 2021 is designed to facilitate our Q4 2021 average oil production target of between 16,000 and 17,000 bopd.

Remaining notable capital investments include injection pumps, electrical infrastructure, and various field and security upgrades. These smaller capital items will complement the expected operational pace and fluids growth profile throughout 2021. In addition, a $1 million workover on the 4H well will commence in March that will result in a higher capacity pump being installed. The 4H well has been shut in since late January due to a transformer failure during the commissioning of the new crude oil power generation plant, thereby causing issues with the original pump. With the enhanced capacity pump, the estimated lost production of approximately 100,000 barrels of oil will be recovered in Q3 2021 and will lead to consistently higher production rates and a higher estimated ultimate recovery for the 4H well.

I think that it is worth taking as much of the detail from the statement with regards to the capital budget and drilling programme so that investors can realise just how detailed the plans are.

With this capital programme, PetroTal estimates 2021 average production of between 11,000 and 12,000 bopd, an increase from the 2020 average production of 5,675 bopd, and well above the Q4 2020 average production of 6,413 bopd.

The first 2021 development well is expected to be on production in April and increase oil production rates to pre-May 2020 shut-in levels of between 10,500 and 11,500 bopd, inclusive of base reservoir declines. In addition, before the end of June 2021, PetroTal will drill a water disposal well, resulting in H1 2021 average production of 9,000 to 10,000 bopd, equivalent to the Q1 2020 pre COVID-19 rate. Three additional horizontal development wells are expected on production through H2 2021 with the final well of the 2021 program drilled in late 2021 and on production in early February 2022. Production is expected to average between 14,000 and 15,000 bopd in H2 2021.

The $100 million bond offering, which closed on February 16, 2021, allows PetroTal to kickstart its 2021 capital program in March 2021 and immediately commence near term operations without working capital constraints. The 2021 capital budget has been planned conservatively and is fundable down to an unhedged $44/bbl Brent flat for the remainder of 2021. At $50/bbl Brent flat, the 2021 budget is substantially funded out of cash flow by 2021 year end, allowing PetroTal the flexibility to allocate additional liquidity from the bond issuance to the highest return weighted projects, while maintaining strong credit metrics.

With an enhanced risk management focus, PetroTal plans to implement a robust hedging program with an emphasis on protecting the 2021 capital budget and ensuring covenant compliance should oil prices fall materially from current levels. The program may include swaps, puts, and collars over the next twelve months production.

Manuel Pablo Zuniga-Pflucker, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented:

We are excited about our early achievements in 2021. As a management team, we overcame many unique challenges in 2020 and we are now positioned stronger than before the pandemic. With the successful placement of our three year bond, we can pivot into a forward leaning position operationally and have the financial confidence to execute what we do best, namely development of the Bretana oil field. We believe our approved 2021 capital budget is balanced and paced appropriately to fit our short and long-term targets. Ongoing operational success and financial discipline will allow the Company to be rewarded in a rising oil price environment. We intend for 2021 to be a year of operational excellence as we continue to demonstrate our repeatable organic growth story to the market. Having additional liquidity will also allow our highly experienced technical team to evaluate further opportunities to the benefit of our stakeholders.

2021 will be a defining year for the Company as we look to double production and realize scale and synergies that compete with the best oil plays in the world. I would like to sincerely thank the entire PetroTal team, the Board, our shareholders, and our new bondholders for their continued support in what is an exciting period for PetroTal.

News has been coming thick and fast from PTAL recently but this is perhaps the most important, putting the flesh on the bones of all the announcements and guiding the shareholders to what their company is planning to deliver this year. Historically I have been impressed by the way the company handles growth in its key functions and now is no time to doubt the high quality management as it sets about delivering the goods.

Scirocco Energy

A strategy update from SCIR this morning which includes board changes and notes an update from Helium One.

In March 2019, Scirocco Energy announced the launch of a new strategy to create long-term, sustainable value in European energy market. and in a further development in its strategic focus, the Company confirms that it has identified various near-term investment opportunities within the low-carbon space, including renewable energy, circular economy and energy storage and transfer.

Target acquisitions under review are consistent with the Companys goal of acquiring cash generative investments within the European energy market whilst broadening the target market and improving risk/reward. To support this increased focus within the low-carbon space, the Company announces the appointment of Mr. Muir Miller as an Independent Non-Executive Director, adding specialist experience to support this strategy development as Scirocco moves into the execution phase.

The additional areas of investment being screened represent a compelling market opportunity, with strategically consistent assets that complement Sciroccos ambitions to be part of the energy transition space, as the world looks to embrace a more sustainable energy future. In particular, Scirocco is presently focused on three core areas of investment.

 Energy  assets which generate energy for sale as gas/biogas or power;

 Circular  assets which recover a valuable component of an industrial, municipal or agricultural waste stream for re-use, generally reducing system carbon footprint; and

 Vector  assets involved in the storage, transmission or delivery of energy within a low carbon context.

With regards to this wish list the company is working hard to make a focused portfolio within this space. Crucial to this is the cash generative nature of the investments which are expected to deliver an appropriate return through dividends and capital growth.

In this respect the Company is in advanced dialogue regarding its first transaction in the sustainable energy space through the acquisition of an energy generation asset and is actively progressing with the due diligence process. Whilst there is no guarantee that the transaction will complete, the Board is reassured by the progress to date and will update shareholders and the market in due course.

Finally it is important to know that as the investment focus moves towards the low-carbon space the board is setting new targets based around total shareholder return on deployed equity within relevant assets rather than the previously set hydrocarbon production targets. Based on the pipeline of opportunities within its new area of focus, the Board is targeting an enterprise value invested asset base of 150 million, capable of generating cash flow of circa 20 million per annum, within five years.

After a long wait, investors have now some visibility to the deal that they nearly had a while ago. Whilst strategy has changed owing to market conditions the company are showing that they can be flexible and are determined to bring a deal to the market. With talks underway with regard to their existing portfolio the transformation from an energy company to a sustainable energy company is very much in process.

With regard to the board changes, the appointment of Muir Miller is clearly important, he has significant experience in the renewable energy sector with an enviable record of building a portfolio of assets which washed its face. With the appointment of Mr Miller comes the trade-off that given the size of the company, Jon Fitzpatrick is standing down from the board this year. It should not be forgotten that important steps at Scirocco have been taken due to the perspicacious nature of his investment in time and money and that he remains a substantial and supportive shareholder.

The company also note the Helium One RNS which is covered below and in which HE1 discusses the seismic campaign now under way, see below.

Helium One Group

HE1 has announced that it has started a 150km infill seismic campaign over identified drill targets involving mobilisation of surveying and line clearing crews. The results of the high-resolution seismic survey are the final technical input prior to commencement of Helium Ones maiden drilling campaign planned for 2nd quarter 2021.

David Minchin, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

We are delighted to be progressing our Rukwa Helium Project with this next phase of exploration. Its an exciting time for the team at Helium One and for all our stakeholders, as this will be our largest on site mobilisation for several years. Data gathered from infill seismic will prove invaluable in refining drill targets and improving our knowledge of potential trap structures, leading to what we hope will be a game changing drilling campaign in Q2 2021.

We look forward to continuing to work with local communities and government departments as we progress towards maiden exploration drilling. Our thanks go to the various Tanzanian ministerial departments, regional, district and ward officials for all the co-operation we have received. The broad range of support we have received from all levels of government and the local community bodes well for our planned drilling campaign later this year.

Our work programme on the ground In Tanzania is timely and coincides with a significant growth in the Helium pricing as demand grows in critical areas. The last six months has seen the average price of helium imported to China reach $375/Mcf as Chinese demand for helium in manufacturing of semi-conductors and fibre-optic cables grows at 6% CAGR and in MRI demand grows at 8% CAGR. There is a requirement for a new source of primary helium to support high value next-gen technological, medical and industrial applications which Helium One has the capacity to fulfil as we seek to develop our globally significant Rukwa deposit.

And finally

Last night in the Prem Burnley drew 1-1 v the Cottagers and the Noisy Neighbours sealed their position winning 1-3 at the Toffees.

Tonight in the Boropa Cup the Red Devils are at Real Sociedad, RZ Pellets WAC host Spurs, the Foxes go to Slavia Prague, the Gooners are at Benfica and Royal Antwerp host the Gers.
The state's tracker has data on vaccinations administered in hospitals and nursing homes  85% of nursing home residents and 89% of hospital workers in Cayuga County have been vaccinated. But it's unknown how many county residents have been vaccinated at pharmacies  and many of the pharmacies aren't disclosing that information.

Kinney Drugs has been administering COVID-19 vaccinations at its four Cayuga County locations (two in Auburn, one each in Moravia and Weedsport) since Jan. 14, according to the company. Each pharmacy receives 100 doses per week. Since the program began, the four pharmacies have administered 1,600 doses. Second doses are beginning this week.

Walgreens, which has two pharmacies in Auburn, did not confirm whether the Cayuga County stores are offering the vaccine. The company directed The Citizen to its website, where it lists that 10,700 doses have been allocated to 107 New York stores  an average of 100 per store.

Rite-Aid is also getting 100 doses for its participating stores, but like Walgreens, doesn't release a list of locations offering the vaccine and doesn't have store-level data. Rite-Aid on Grant Avenue in Auburn was one of the pharmacies Cuddy mentioned that has been offering the vaccine.

A highly-decorated police officer's appeal against her conviction for having a child abuse video on her phone has today been refused by the Court of Appeal.

Novlett Robyn Williams, 56, who was commended for her work after the Grenfell Tower disaster, was sentenced to 200 hours of community service for possession of an indecent image in November 2019.

Her trial at the Old Bailey heard that Williams received the video via WhatsApp from her older sister Jennifer Hodge, 57, who had originally been sent the clip by her long-term boyfriend, 63-year-old Dido Massivi.

Williams - who has since been sacked without notice by the Metropolitan Police for 'gross misconduct' - appealed against both her conviction and her sentence at a hearing today.

She attended the Royal Courts of Justice in London for her appeal, as did Hodge and Massivi who were also challenging their convictions.

Pictured: Former Metropolitan Police Superintendent Novlett Robyn Williams leaves the Court of Appeal at the High Court, London, after her appeal against her conviction for possessing a child abuse video

Williams - who has since been sacked without notice by the Metropolitan Police for 'gross misconduct' - appealed against both her conviction and her sentence at a hearing today

At the conclusion of the hearing, Dame Victoria Sharp, sitting with Mr Justice Sweeney and Mrs Justice Ellenbogen, refused all of the appeals.

The judge said: 'The applications made on behalf of all three appellants in this case are refused for reasons which will be handed down later.'

Williams' barrister Anesta Weekes QC earlier told the court there was 'not even a suggestion' that her client had watched the 54-second video and that she was 'the only one' of the recipients who had not watched it.

She said the case against Williams at trial was that 'there was a clear image and you were looking at a thumbnail for some 12 seconds, so you must have seen that indecent image'.

Ms Weekes told the court that expert evidence suggested that 'the image had been sufficiently downloaded and the experts said 'it is our view that the image would have been clear'.

But Ms Weekes said that the experts were not able to properly examine Williams' phone, adding: 'There is an element of unfairness here if you do not even have the very phone and you cannot demonstrate on the phone ... how clear it [the thumbnail] would be.'

Richard Wright QC, for the Crown, said: 'The experts were plainly not giving evidence about what Ms Williams did see.

'They were giving evidence about what was present on her phone to be seen and that was the central issue in the case and one which required expert evidence to reconstruct the thumbnail, its clarity, its size and how it would have appeared in the absence of the original thumbnail.'

Williams was sentenced to 200 hours community service for possessing an indecent image at the Old Bailey in November 2019.

The Met Police officer was 'disappointed and devastated' by the decision, according to the Police Superintendents Association, which had supported her through the trial and the disciplinary process.

Supt Novlett Robyn Williams pictured with Mayor of London Sadiq Khan in September 2016. Supt Williams is a founding member of the National Black Police Association

Superintendent Novlett Robyn Williams, pictured arriving at the Old Bailey for sentencing in November 2019

Speaking outside the Royal Courts of Justice today, Victor Marshall of the Police Superintendents Association said: 'We are clearly very disappointed, but very grateful to the court for considering the appeal.

'There are, of course, still outstanding other proceedings in the Police Appeals Tribunal, which will be Robyn's appeal against dismissal from the Metropolitan Police.

'There are and continue to be very strong concerns about this case and why it was brought in the first place.'

Janet Hills, chair of the Metropolitan Black Police Association, added: 'We are very grateful that they have heard this appeal.

'But, from our perspective, the fact that she was allowed to have this appeal, we feel that something has gone wrong along the way.

'Robyn will continue to have the support of the Black Police Association for all other matters that are outstanding in this case.'

The Met Police officer was called to the hearing over allegations she had breached standards of professional behaviour following an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).

Following her dismissal, the Met said in a statement: 'An independent investigation was carried out by the Independent Office for Police Conduct and the MPS agreed with the IOPC that Supt Williams should face a special case hearing following her conviction.

'Assistant Commissioner Helen Ball, professionalism, sitting with a legal adviser, conducted the hearing and found that Supt Williams' conviction was discreditable conduct and amounted to gross misconduct.

At the conclusion of the hearing, Dame Victoria Sharp, sitting with Mr Justice Sweeney and Mrs Justice Ellenbogen, refused all of the appeals. Pictured: Williams in November 2019

'The MPS is aware Supt Williams has lodged an application for leave to appeal her conviction with the Court of Appeal.

'However, the regulations under which this special case hearing was held require such hearings take place without delay.'

At the trial, the Old Bailey heard that Williams had an exemplary disciplinary record and was highly regarded for her work both in the aftermath of Grenfell and at successive Notting Hill Carnivals.

She was awarded the Queen's Police Medal for distinguished service in 2003.

Williams faced a second charge, of corrupt or improper exercise of police powers and privilege by failing to notify officers about the video, but was found not guilty of this charge.

Hodge was sentenced to 100 hours' unpaid work after being convicted of distributing an indecent image of a child.

She received the footage from her partner, bus driver Massivi, who was found guilty of the same count as well as possessing extreme pornography.

Massivi was handed an 18-month prison sentence, suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid work.
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Life Stories, Rob Vs Romesh, and Death In Paradise (ITV/Sky/BBC)

From the latest instalments of shows we cant get enough of to a hard-hitting and emotional new interview, theres a show for every mood on television tonight.

If youre a huge fan of drag then youre in luck as the professionals will do their thing in the most hotly-anticipated episode of Drag Race UK before two much-loved stand-up comedians do their best to emulate them over on Sky One.

Meanwhile, E4s latest romantic reality television offering comes to an end  but will any of the couples go the distance?

Read more: The best movies launching on Disney+ Star

See our top picks for what to watch tonight below

RuPauls Drag Race UK - BBC iPlayer, 7pm

Only one queen can be crowned the UK's next drag superstar. (BBC/World of Wonder/Ray Burmiston)

Thanks to the United King Dolls performance, *that* meltdown over H&M and the incredibly catchy Bing, Bang, Bong, last weeks Drag Race was an episode that will go down in Herstory.

Were not even sure if its possible for this series to get any better at this point but were about to find out as its time for Snatch Game.

A feature of every Drag Race series, Snatch Game is essentially Blankety Blank, but with each Queen impersonating a famous figure. The episode traditionally sorts the finalists from the bunch and while some hopefuls shine, theres usually at least one who crashes and burns. We cannot wait.

Watch: Celebrating Pride can be a matter of life and death

Celebs Go Dating: The Mansion - E4, 9pm

Tom Read Wilson, Anna Williamson and Paul C Brunson from Celebs Go Dating The Mansion (C4)

This much-hyped series of Celebs Go Dating has proven to be a little hit and miss  and been completely overshadowed by Married At First Sight Australia. Tonight though, the celebrities time in the mansion comes to an end.

Read more: The best record player under 200

The finale will include a commitment ceremony full of passionate speeches and one incredibly romantic revelation. Can any of the couples make it work in the real world though? Well have to wait and see.

Piers Morgans Life Stories - ITV, 9pm

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Chris Eubank is in the hot seat this week with the former boxer discussing his career, family life and money troubles with presenter Piers Morgan.

Story continues

Particular attention will be paid to his 1991 fight against Michael Watson. Eubank was victorious in the contest but after he dealt the finishing blow, Watson fell back, hit his head against the ropes and collapsed. The injuries ended his career and, now 55, he still requires medical treatment.

Read more: Gemma Collins reveals Life Stories death threats

Tonight, viewers will see Watson join Eubank and Morgan for part of the discussion and judging from teaser clips released by ITV, viewers are in for an emotional ride.

Death In Paradise - BBC One, 9pm

Death in Paradise - S10 - Ep8 - Marlon Pryce (TAHJ MILES), JP Hooper (TOBI BAKARE), DI Neville Parker (RALF LITTLE) - (Red Planet/Denis Guyenon)

Meanwhile over on BBC One, the tenth(!) series of Death In Paradise comes to an end. The case appears simple at first as a man confesses to the murder of his boss but DI Neville Parker (played by Ralf Little) soon realises it's not as straight-forward as it seems.

While this finale means Death In Paradise won't be on our screens again in the near future, the BBC has already delighted fans by confirming the eleventh and twelfth series are in the works.

Rob & Romesh Vs Drag - Sky One, 10pm

For the final show of the series, Rob and Romesh will become Drag Queens. (Sky)

Rob Beckett and Romesh Ranganathan will deliver the evenings second dose of drag, when they get to know their female alter-egos in the Rob & Romesh Vs finale.

The duo are tutored by Drag Race alumni The Vivienne and Baga Chipz, as well as judge Michelle Visage, before facing the daunting task of taking to the stage in front of a full crowd.

Speaking to Yahoo UK earlier this month, Beckett revealed that hes always admired under-appreciated drag performers. It's the closest thing to stand-up really, he said. The whole point is to come out and look like it's so effortless but the reality is, it's very difficult and there are about a million things going on.

Will the duos transformations win over the audience? Tune in to find out.

Watch: Denise Van Outen and Eddie Boxshall get couples counselling in their new six part podcast, Before We Say I Do...
COVID-19 isnt going away anytime soon. As new, more contagious variants of the coronavirus emerge and spread, the need for measures such as frequent hand-washing, social distancing and wearing masks in public continue to be paramount in order to help to slow the spread of the deadly virus.

As the pandemic rages on, both in Oregon and across the country, the N95 and KN95 medical masks that experts have said offer the best protection from the virus are finally being stocked and sold to the general public both in stores and online. The medical grade face coverings were previously restricted and reserved for health-care workers and first responders to help fight the virus during the early stages of the pandemic as demand for the masks outpaced worldwide supply.

Whats the difference between a N95 and KN95 face mask?

While both masks are considered very effective in protecting wearers from the transfer of aerosol particulates, filtering out up to 95% , KN95 masks are simply considered the Chinese equivalent of N95 masks. The difference between the two has to do with which regulating bodies oversee and test the effectiveness of these masks. N95 masks have been tested and approved by the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and because KN95 masks arent overseen and vetted by NIOSH, they arent considered as effective as the U.S.-certified N95 masks. KN95 masks feature a tent-like shape that creates a little pocket of air between your nose and the fabric, which makes them appealing to many people. The N95 masks sometimes looks similar to the KN95 masks, or can come in a more dome-like shape. Some N95 models, like 3Ms 8511 respirator masks for construction, also feature a valve to allow for more consistent breathability. However, while these masks protect the wearer from inhaling particulates, they DO NOT prevent transmission of the virus out of the mask by the wearer through the valve. It should be noted that most masks or respirators with valves are not recommended options for the general public unless they are certified by NIOSH and/or the FDA as a surgical grade mask. If you are wearing a mask with the valve like the 3M 8511 model respirator, you must cover the valve with tape or a secondary mask as shown here:

We did a video for our members when we started seeing these more and more on our patients. pic.twitter.com/J0s3J1kK3h  San Francisco Firefighters 798 (@SFFFLocal798) May 4, 2020

Another difference between N95 and KN95 masks comes at the price point. Because KN95 masks are not certified by NIOSH, they usually come at a cheaper price than their N95 counterparts. Now that many consumers are searching for packs of N95 and KN95 masks to provide more protection on trips to the store or elsewhere, here are some options for where you can find them in stock and available now.

 If you have a, Amazon Prime account already, this might be the best way to get masks quickly with free two-day shipping. Amazon has several different brands of KN95 and N95 masks in stock now, but availability can change quickly so keep that in mind as you shop around.

 Highlighting one of the better N95 mask options on Amazon right now, these Kimberly-Clark N95 pouch respirator masks are made in the United States and go for around $50 for a pack of 50 masks. While the strap construction leaves something to be desired, the pouch design allows for a large breathing chamber and improved comfort. The nose piece is bendable to customize the fit as well. The price is a bit steeper, but these Halyard Fluidshield N95 respirators are $82.58 for 35 masks and are very well-rated. The manufacturer claims they have been cleared by the FDA and are listed on the CDC website. These are also made in the USA.

 If youre looking for something a little more robust or reusable, this one isnt a disposable mask, but 3Ms plastic, 6000 series reusable half masks can also be purchased from Amazon for around $17 each. P100 filters for use in these masks are sold separately for under $10 for two.

 You can find KN95 masks in almost any big box store right now if you are willing to make a trip out there. Lowes has KN95 masks available in a 10-pack for under $10 and these ones come with a thin metal bracket to help better contour the mask around your nose for improved comfort. Home Depot has KN95 masks as well. Another option is Office Depot who are selling 10-packs of KN95 masks for $10 right now both in store and online.

If you cant find what youre looking for from some of these larger online retailers, you can try some smaller retailers that have some different style options at a variety of price points.

 Well Before has a mix of N95 masks available and most cost under $5 each. The Makrite Sekura respirator folding masks are on sale for $3.99 each. N95 Medical Supplies sells a 20-box of N95 masks for $79.99 and these are NIOSH-certified and USA-made.

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The decades-long political polarity between the Left and the Right has fomented a lack of trust so severe that what was once unthinkable (the Capitol breach on January 6th) is now a reality. The United States began to morally decline in the late 19th century when the Protestant Evangelical church started to abandon culture. Instead of engaging the earth, the Church began focusing on escaping it. They could not cope with the complexities present in society. These complexities included: the industrial revolution and its concomitant urban life, the horrific aftermath of the civil war, the challenge to biblical fidelity with the rise of higher criticism, mass immigration from non-protestant nations, and ideologies like Marxism and Darwinism (see more about this in my book, Understanding the Wineskin Of the Kingdom).

Before the civil war, much of the Churchs preaching focused on manifesting the Kingdom of God on earth, similar to the messages of John the Baptist, Jesus, and Paul (Matthew 3:2, Mark 1:15, Acts 28:31). By Kingdom of God, I am referring to the government of God that emanates from the throne of God. The Church is not the kingdom, but the primary agent of the kingdom. Scripture says that His Kingdom rules over all (Psalm 22:28, Psalm 24, Psalm 103:19, Daniel 4:17).

This was the impetus for much of the societal reform that transpired during the Second Great Awakening, resulting in the abolitionist movement, womens suffrage, child labor law reform, and more. (Evangelist Charles Finney continually preached about the Kingdom of God on earth, which inspired abolitionists like Theodore Weld, feminist evangelical leaders like Phoebe Palmer, and others involved in the womens suffrage movement.)

The horrors of the civil war, which saw approximately 750 thousand men killed in battle, was especially significant as it related to the shift away from propagating the present-day implications of the Kingdom. Consequently, the Church lost faith in its ability to transform the world. Unfortunately, it started focusing on the hyper-premillennial dispensational view propagated by J.N. Darby. This was made popular by the preaching of men like evangelist D.L. Moody and the Scofield Bible.

Thus, around the 1880s, Bible prophecy conferences started appearing everywhere. The Church became more and more insular, focusing more on the rapture than societal change. Hence, one generation later, in the 1920s, the Church lost societal influence in higher learning institutions. Educators like John Dewey re-framed a societal, educational view. This resulted in losing all of the culture one generation later during the sexual revolution of the 1960s. The evangelical abandonment of culture, which was primarily a response dictated by environmental challenges rather than theological exegesis, made the fundamentalist evangelical Church irrelevant to culture. (See more about this in my book, Understanding the Wineskin Of the Kingdom.)

How The Church Can Regain Cultural Influence

Since it took three generations to lose the culture, it will take at least one generation to turn it back to the Judeo/Christian worldview. Without the Church serving as the ground and pillar of societys truth, cultural ethics will rapidly decline to the default position of human depravity (I Timothy 3:15). (My book, Walk in Generational Blessing, unpacks the generational call of families and churches to influence society.)

The Limited Reaction of the Conservative Evangelical Church

Unfortunately, the evangelical Churchs primary focus has continued to be the proclamation of the gospel without the proclamation of the implications of the Kingdom. Many great leaders are praying for revival, but, as we have seen, revival is not enough to save a nation if it doesnt shift the worldview of the culture towards a biblical ethos.

For example, England was saved during the First Great awakening (through the preaching of Wesley and Whitfield) because their society already had a biblical foundation in their laws and culture. The Second Great Awakening affected all of American society for the same reason. However, none of the revivals in the 20th century moved the needle towards Christian influence in culture because the Gospel proclamation was disconnected from the Kingdom, thus failing to penetrate the larger culture (See my book, The Divided Gospel).

Revival may bring people into the Church, but true reformation only comes when Christ-followers are sent into their communities to serve and love their neighbor.

After prayer was removed from public schools in the early 1960s and abortion was legalized in the 1970s, conservative evangelicals started getting engaged again en-masse in politics and policy. The Reverend Jerry Falwell Sr. founded the Moral Majority in 1979 and numerous national leaders initiated the Washington For Jesus Rally in 1980. Some believed that this was the reason Ronald Reagan won the presidency.

However, the Church made the mistake of thinking that political engagement alone can shift the culture. A top-down approach of merely shifting and advocating for morality in law is not enough to change the heart and sentiments of a nation.

While the conservative Church was focusing on mere politics, the LGBTQ community had a comprehensive plan outlined in the book, After the Ball, published in 1989 by Marshall Kirk and Hunter Madsen. This small segment of the population has demonstrated how a minority of people can shift culture in just a few decades through the hard work of infiltrating Hollywood (to influence pop culture), getting engaged politically, spending money on lobbying, altering the meaning of keywords, and influencing school boards and education at every level.

The early Church became a sign to the powers in the first century that demonstrated the Lordship of Jesus over all because, unlike every other empire, they were the only entity able to bring cohesion to a diverse group of people (Ephesians 3:10).

The time of depending upon a president or politics as the primary means to bring peace and harmony to nations is over. May the true Church once again proclaim the gospel of the Kingdom of God and labor for His Kingdom to come and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Amen.
Radio personality Rush Limbaugh pumps his fist as he is acknowledged by President Donald Trump as he delivers the State of the Union address at the Capitol in Washington, on Feb. 4, 2020. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump Pays Tribute to Limbaugh as Defender of Liberty and A Guiding Light to America

Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday remembered conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh as a defender of Liberty and a guiding light to the United States.

The great Rush Limbaugh has passed away to a better place, free from physical pain and hostility, Trump said in a statement. His honor, courage, strength, and loyalty will never be replaced.

Trump described Limbaugh, who died at the age of 70, as a patriot, a defender of Liberty, and someone who believed in all of the greatness our Country stands for.

Limbaughs death was announced by his wife, Kathryn Adams Limbaugh, on Wednesday morning. She told listeners at the beginning of Limbaughs radio show that he had been battling stage 4 lung cancer while continuing to broadcast his radio show.

He passed away at his Palm Beach, Florida home, his wife said, hours after his death.

Limbaugh announced his cancer diagnosis in February last yeara day before he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom during then-President Trumps State of the Union address. He said he started experiencing shortness of breath on Jan. 12, 2020, before he was diagnosed by doctors.

Rush was a friend to myself and millions of Americansa guiding light with the ability to see the truth and paint vivid pictures over the airwaves, Trump said in his statement. Melania and I express our deepest condolences to his wonderful wife, Kathryn, his family, and all of his dedicated fans. He will be missed greatly.

The former president also broke his media silence following Limbaughs death, speaking to Fox News of the relationship the pair had and Limbaughs legacy.

He would just talk for two hours and three hours. Just talk, Trump told Fox News in his first media remarks since he left office on Jan. 20. And thats not an easy thing to do.

People, whether they loved him or not, they respected him, the former president added, describing Limbaugh as a very brave guy and a friend.

Trump said the former radio host was with me right from the beginning.

It was a great honor to do so when we gave the Medal of Freedom. It was something special. It was an incredible night. We gave it during the State of the Union address, and it was especiallyhalf the room, half the room went crazy, and the other half the room, they knew he should get it, but it was special, and he was special, Trump added.

Limbaugh was born in 1951 in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. After leaving college, he entered radio in 1971 before founding his own radio show.

Speaking of his diagnosis in October last year, Limbaugh said that he was grateful to have been able to continue his work despite the physical toll it took on him.
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Around half of South Africa's population may have already been infected by coronavirus, a figure far higher than the documented tally, a study and analysis of death figures suggest.

Samples taken from almost 5,000 blood donors across four South African provinces in January showed that between 32 and 63 percent had antibodies to the coronavirus.

The figure compares with clinically confirmed case rates of just two to three percent, according to South African research that was released online last week, but has not yet completed peer review.

The numbers could be understated, said lead investigator Marion Vermeulen of the South African National Blood Service.

People with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 are unable to donate blood for 14 days, and therefore less likely to be sampled, she explained.

Antibodies are a telltale of an individual's exposure to the virus, but not a confirmation that the person has fallen sick from it.

Most antibodies were detected in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces.

Both were epicentres of South Africa's second infection wave when it started in December.

Officially, South Africa has recorded close to 1.5 million coronavirus cases, of which just under 48,500 have been fatalthe highest toll in Africa.

But emerging data suggests this figure is under-estimated, a statistician says.

According to the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), more than 140,000 excess natural deaths have occurred since May last year.

The SAMRC does not give details as to the cause of these extra deaths.

But the chief statistician with leading private medical insurer Discovery said that, based on his observations, around 90 percent of those extra fatalities are attributable to COVID-19.

If so, the real death toll from coronavirus in South Africa would exceed 120,000, chief actuary Emile Steep told AFP.

Steep estimates that South Africa's COVID-19 mortality stands around 0.4 percenta figure derived from an Infection Fatality Rate published by London's Imperial College for modelling.

"COVID deaths are under-reported in almost every single country in the world," Steep said in a phone interview on Wednesday.

"Many people who are vulnerable to COVID have a lot of other conditions... so the cause is always hard to define."

It is also easy to misrecord deaths at the height of a pandemic, when "medical staff (are) running around trying to save lives", he added.

The South African variant of the coronavirus, which is more transmissible and more resistant to existing vaccines than its original form, accounts for some 90 percent of the country's second wave of cases, scientists say.

The country kicked off its long-awaited inoculation campaign on Wednesday with jabs developed by US pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson.

Explore further Follow the latest news on the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak

 2021 AFP
Facebooks ban on news sites in Australia, which also caught a number of government and community organisations off-guard, was an overreach by the social media giant, experts said.

In addition to the Facebook pages of many news organisations, government departments including Queensland Health and the Bureau of Meteorology were caught up in the news ban.

Experts say Facebooks move on Thursday was a negotiating tactic that may have backfired on the social media giant. Credit:Istock

A number of community organisations were also affected, including the Facebook page of Small Steps 4 Hannah, the domestic violence advocacy group set up in the wake of the murder of Hannah Clarke and her children.

That ban came on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Brisbane mothers death.
The Covid-19 death toll now stands at 440, with the deaths of 15 more people yesterday.

The Ministry of Health reported the deaths in its daily update yesterday evening.

One of the new deaths occurred in Tobago. The Tobago Division of Health, Wellness and Family Development disclosed that the patient was a 38-year-old male with co-morbidities.
Mumbai, Feb 18 : Thousands of farmers staged rail-blockade (rail-roko) agitation in different parts of Maharashtra although train services remained largely unaffected, as part of the four-hour all-India protest, officials said here on Thursday.

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) and other farmers' organisations led protest marches to railway stations and railway lines in various district like Thane, Palghar, Nashik, Aurangabad, Pune, Parbhani, Yavatmal, while reports were awaited from other districts, said a spokesperson for the organisers.

Led by state and local leaders, the farmers carried banners, flags and posters and raise vociferous slogans demanding the repeal of the 3 new farm laws as they attempted to storm rail premises or railway tracks.

However, heavy presence of the local and Railway Protection Forces ensured that services were not hit by the agitation, and there was no impact on the suburban train services in Mumbai city.

In Palghar, Nashik and Aurangabad, the police chased away the protesters as they attempted to squat on the railway tracks and cleared the lines for the train services to continue unhindered.

The police detained hundreds of protestors and later released them as the four-hour rail-roko agitation passed off without any untoward incidents.

The Opposition state Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson in Mumbai Ram Kadam alleged that the protesters were not farmers but activists of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Congress parties ruling the state.

-- The story has been published from a wire feed without any modifications to the text
New Delhi: Apple Inc is angling to participate in a new scheme to boost India's exports of computer products, part of what government and industry sources say are plans to bring iPad tablet manufacturing to the South Asian country.

India launched a $6.7 billion plan to boost smartphone exports last year, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi stepped up efforts to promote electronics manufacturing and create jobs.

Apple, which has steadily raised production of iPhones in India to lessen its dependence on Chinese manufacturing, took part in that scheme via its contract manufacturers.

Now the government is preparing to unveil another incentive to drive local manufacturing of IT products including tablets, laptops and servers, three sources closely involved in the drafting of the plan told Reuters.

The new performance-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, which offers cash-back to manufacturers for exports, will have a budget of up to 70 billion rupees ($964.5 million) over five years, the sources said. It's expected to be launched by the end of February.

Apple, along with others, is lobbying for a bigger budgetary outlay of 200 billion rupees before that plan is finalised, as India doesn't yet have the scale or the supply chain for making IT products and competes with duty-free imports of tech products, two of the sources said.

Apple's push comes at a time its iPhone supplier Wistron is just restarting operations at a southern Indian plant after angry workers went on a rampage last year. Apple is yet to take the Taiwan manufacturer off of probation.

Apple declined to comment for this story.

New Delhi is also planning another PLI, at a budget of roughly 50 billion rupees over five years, to boost domestic manufacturing of wearable devices such as smartwatches, the sources said, adding the plan could be announced within two months.

All the sources declined to be named as the plans are not public.

INDIA-MADE iPAD

Apple assembles a bulk of its iPads in China, but is fast diversifying production to markets such as India and Vietnam to minimise the impact of the U.S.-China trade war and the coronavirus crisis.

Its top supplier Foxconn is building assembly lines for iPads and MacBook laptops in Vietnam, Reuters reported late last year. Other iPad assemblers include Taiwan's Compal Electronics and China's BYD Electronic International.

In India, Apple will likely have iPad's assembled by one of its existing suppliers in the country as early as this year, two of the sources said, though its plans could get delayed as India makes the entry of BYD difficult amid its wariness to give new tech business to Chinese companies.

"The government is asking Apple to get iPads assembled by its contract manufacturers here, the non-Chinese companies" one of the sources, a government official said.

It was not immediately clear which of Apple's three contractors in India - Foxconn, Wistron and Pegatron - would assemble iPads.

Pegatron and Wistron did not respond to requests for comment while Foxconn said it does not comment on specific operations or work for a customer.

India's IT ministry also did not respond to a request for comment.

India last year banned more than 200 Chinese-origin mobile applications, saying they threatened the security of the country. It also announced new controls on telecoms gear purchases.

Cupertino, California-based Apple began the assembly of iPhones in India in 2017 and has since ramped up manufacturing operations via the local units of Foxconn and Wistron. Pegatron also set up a base in India last year.

Foxconn will invest up to $1 billion to expand a factory in southern India where the Taiwanese contract manufacturer assembles iPhones, Reuters reported previously.

The three Apple suppliers have also committed roughly $900 million over five years to make iPhones in India.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

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Tributes have been paid to an 82-year-old ambulance service worker with an impeccable work ethic, after his death with coronavirus.

Jamil Ahmed, often known by colleagues as Jim, was due to celebrate his 30th anniversary working for London Ambulance Service in September.

He was described as a very pleasant, well-liked and respected member of the team who wasnt afraid to get stuck in when the going was tough.

Mr Ahmed worked in several roles across the capital during his career, including as an emergency medical technician, before taking a job in the non-emergency transport service team in Bermondsey, south east London during the pandemic.

He died on February 8 after contracting Covid-19, the ambulance service said.

Jamil was respected by all at Bermondsey and by colleagues at New Malden  where he often worked to assist with staffing shortages, it said in a statement.

He would share his experiences with others and his work ethic was impeccable.

Our thoughts are with Jamils wife Neelofor, his children Adil, Shazia and Faisal as well as with all his friends and his colleagues across the Service.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LabCentral, the first-of-its-kind shared laboratory space designed as a launchpad for high-potential biotech startups, today announced a total of $22.4 million in sponsorship commitments for LabCentral 238, a fully functional life sciences laboratory with a focus on scale-up bio-manufacturing. Thermo Fisher Scientific and Waters Corporation join Astellas and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MSLC) as sponsors. Part of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) South of Main Street (SoMa) Development in the heart of Kendall Square's innovation hub, LabCentral 238 is currently under construction and is expected to open in November 2021.
Midleton ushers in new era for Irish whiskey with Very Rare 2021

Irish Distillers is beginning a new chapter in its history with the launch of the Midleton Very Rare 2021 vintage - the first from new master distiller Kevin O'Gorman.

Now on its 38th edition, the Midleton Very Rare series has seen master distillers set aside small amounts of exceptional whiskey for luxury, limited-edition offerings for four decades.

The 2021 release is a blend of rare and hand-selected single pot still and single grain Irish whiskeys, aged for between 15 and 36 years and matured in ex-Bourbon American oak barrels.

For his first Very Rare selection as master distiller, O'Gorman spent several months exploring the Midleton inventory. In his finished liquid, he has elevated the grain whiskey contribution and used a mix of first and second fill casks. Irish Distillers says the result is "a whiskey of great finesse, with a floral, perfumed character".

OGorman said: "It is a great honour to become the custodian of this extraordinary Irish whiskey family and to have my signature adorn our 2021 vintage.

"The journey to launching this vintage began almost 40 years ago. Continuing the work of my predecessors was both a daunting and extremely enjoyable process that allowed me to explore some of our rarest casks and create an exceptional blend that sits seamlessly within the family.

"I am particularly proud to have been able to include distillate that was laid down in 1984, the year the collection was first conceived by master distiller emeritus Barry Crockett, from whom I have learned so much.

"For me, this vintage adds a new dimension and elegance to the style and quality for which the range is renowned. I couldnt ask for a better way to begin my chapter as Irish Distillers master distiller."

The Midleton Very Rare 2021 vintage will be the first to be released at the start of the year, in response to consumer demand. As this new calendar is established, Irish Distillers will retain an allocation for a second sales period in late autumn for Ireland, online platforms and other select markets.

Bottled at 40% ABV, Midleton Very Rare 2021 is available online and in Ireland now. It will hit shelves in the UK, US, Australia, Germany, France and Canada, as well as global travel retail, in the coming months (RRP 180).

18 February 2021 - Bethany Whymark


Anatavario, Feb 18 (UNI) Ambassador Abhay Kumar today called on Prime Minister of Madagascar Christian Ntsay.

Both reviewed the progress in bilateral ties between India and Madagascar and discussed ways to further strengthen it.

Mr Kumar and Mr Ntsay explored the ways for further strengthening the ties between two countries. Attempt was made by them to explore new areas of cooperation.

Madagascar has a strong Indian diaspora from Gujarat who play a key role in the economy of this Indian Ocean Island. The Defence Minister of Madagascar had visited India earlier this month in the first week of February to attend the IOR Defence Ministers Conclave.

President Ramnath Kovind had visited Madagascar in March 2018 and a defence cooperation agreement was signed between the two countries.

UNI XC KKS
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One year ago, with the pandemic more of a distant rumor than an imminent threat, the Downtown Seattle Association was mostly concerned with crime. That was back when downtown streets were packed with office workers, shoppers, tourists  and, yes, the occasional gun-wielding criminal.

When we convened in-person at the Hyatt Regency last February, with the coronavirus lockdown a month away, memories were still seared by the fatal January shooting outside the former Macy's building  then full of Amazon workers. Now they're all working from home.





. . .
In late January and early February, a number of Palestinian leaders from different factions headed to Moscow to meet with officials from the Russian Foreign Ministry to discuss the upcoming Palestinian elections and internal reconciliation, in addition to bilateral relations. Yet despite the frequency of visits, results are still lacking.

On Feb. 4, a Hamas delegation led by the head of the movements international relations office, Mousa Abu Marzouk, visited Moscow and met with Mikhail Bogdanov, the Russian deputy foreign minister and special presidential envoy for the Middle East and Africa, and with Alexei Skoyerev, the deputy head of the Middle East Department in the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Hamas issued a statement the same day saying the discussions focused on restoring Palestinian unity and the preparations for the Palestinian elections, noting that the delegation is keeping the Russians in the loop of Palestinian developments and ensuring that Palestinian-Russian coordination remains ongoing.

On Feb. 2, Bogdanov met in Moscow with a delegation from the Islamic Jihad, led by Secretary-General Ziyad al-Nakhala, to discuss Palestinian political developments and the upcoming elections. The Islamic Jihad issued a statement Feb. 5 stressing the importance of the Russian role in the international and regional arenas and the need to stop hegemonic US policies.

Basem Naim, a former Palestinian health minister and a member of Hamas international relations office, told Al-Monitor, Hamas sees Russia as a central power at the international level and realizes its importance as a superpower. I believe Hamas visit to Russia is of great significance as it shows the international community that it is difficult to isolate the movement [Hamas] politically.

Naim added, During Hamas recent visit to Russia, the movements reconciliation with Syria was not discussed. Rather, the discussions were limited to the elections and ending the Palestinian division. The Russians want to see their Palestinian friends united, and they are not looking to compete with the Americans in the Palestinian arena. It would not be the same scenario as in Syria, where the Russians are in charge almost exclusively.

Hanna Issa, a former diplomat at the Palestinian Embassy in Moscow, told Al-Monitor, Palestinian visits to Russia are proof of the latters great role. Given its [relations] with both Palestinians and Israelis, Russia is able to mediate between them to resume negotiations. For its part, the Palestinian Authority (PA) is not [opposing] Russias reception of some factions, because this is an internal Russian affair. On the contrary, it is rather counting on Russia's success in bringing its [the PAs] views closer to Hamas.

On Jan. 28, Bogdanov met with a delegation from the Democratic Reform Current, led by dismissed Fatah leader Mohammed Dahlan. The delegation, headed by Samir al-Mashharawi, Dahlans right-hand man, discussed the restoration of Palestinian unity, preparations for the elections and Arab and international efforts aimed at unifying the Fatah movement.

On Jan. 19, Hussein al-Sheikh, a member of Fatahs Central Committee, visited Russia where he held meetings with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Bogdanov to discuss a range of issues, including the Russian leaderships positions vis-a-vis new developments involving Palestinians and the upcoming elections, in addition to US-Palestinian relations.

On the same day, Bogdanov met with a delegation from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine headed by Maher al-Taher, the movements political relations official, and discussed Palestinian, Arab and international political developments, their repercussions for the Palestinian path and Palestinian efforts to reach a unified, realistic political vision before the international community.

Ahmed al-Deek, the political adviser to the Palestinian Foreign Ministry, told Al-Monitor, The recent Palestinian visits to Moscow seek to resolve the Palestinian conflict with Israel based on international decisions and to bridge the internal Palestinian division in light of the good relations between the Russians and all the factions.

Imad Mohsen, a spokesman for Dahlan, told Al-Monitor, The Democratic Reform Current has a close relationship with Russia, and our delegation discussed with its officials improving bilateral relations and restoring the unity of Fatah. But the exclusion and exclusivity mentality of the PA leaders makes them [PA leaders] feel anxious after every foreign visit we make.

Yet while Russia has welcomed Palestinian delegations from various factions, the Palestinians have yet to notice a Russian strategic change toward them. Rather, the Russian performance appears to have been the same for years; mostly serving Russian interests, not helping the Palestinians.

Following Hamas victory in the 2006 parliamentary elections, Russia established formal ties with the movement. Khaled Meshaal, then head of Hamas political bureau, visited Moscow, marking a major breakthrough for Hamas in its international relations. Russia, meanwhile, rejected the US designation of the movement as a terror organization. Hamas delegations have since flocked to Moscow, while Hamas leaders met on several occasions with Russian officials in the Qatari capital, Doha, to discuss bilateral relations, the Palestinian cause and ways to confront the US peace plan for the Middle East. Yet these visits and meetings have not produced any Russian financial support to the Gaza Strip, which is ruled by Hamas.

Khalil Shaheen, director of the Palestinian Center for Policy Research and Strategic Studies, told Al-Monitor, Russian activity in the Palestinian arena may be linked to its competition with the new US administration, which will restore its role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Perhaps Russia seeks to build a unified Palestinian political system that allows Hamas to be integrated into the next Palestinian government after the elections.

Shaheen added, The PA supports Moscow in exercising its influence on Hamas to soften its positions, but its reception of Dahlans delegation disturbed the PA, which refuses to deal with him, even though the Russians seek internal Fatah reconciliation and are persuading Dahlan not to run for the elections before resolving his problems with President Mahmoud Abbas.

The Palestinians are constantly comparing the Russian role in their cause, which seems limited to pointless routine meetings and media rhetoric, to Russias performance in Syria and Libya, where Moscow employs its military and field influence to impose its will on the ground for its own interests.

Wissam Afifa, the director of the Al-Aqsa satellite channel in Gaza, told Al-Monitor, The recent Palestinian visits to Moscow are important, but they focused only on obtaining guarantees from the Russians that the elections will succeed. Palestinians feel that Russia is not encouraged to compete with the European and US roles in the Palestinian file, despite [the meetings] with Palestinian leaders. Russias influence is limited as the outcomes of their meetings [with Palestinians] do not reflect their efforts.

Afifa added, Hamas is interested in strengthening its relations with Moscow, because their allies are common, such as Hezbollah and Iran. But Russia is not encouraged to reconcile Hamas and the Syrian [regime], fearing this would complicate the Syrian scene and push Israel to increase its operations there in pursuit of Hamas cadres, as it is already targeting Iranian bases in Syria.

Moscow is one of the few capitals around the world that opens its doors to the Palestinian factions, but its recent behavior has come across as mere public relations work to the media to show the international community that Russia still has influence in the Palestinian scene  knowing that no agreement or propositions to end the Palestinian division are ever announced during the Russian-Palestinian meetings, several officials who visited Moscow recently told Al-Monitor.
Photographer Captures Rare Shot of the Moon Surrounded by a Perfect Rainbow Ring

We tend to think of rainbows as phenomena that appear in the light of day, when sunlight catches water particles still lingering in the air after a recent rainfall.

But an Italian photographer recently caught the surreal image of a rainbow at night, forming perfect circles of iridescent color around a spectacular shot of the Moon.

This rainbow is caused by the halo of light, luna corona, surrounding the lunar sphere, and the result of light passing through ice particles hanging in the air, causing refraction, which modulates the wavelengths that are emitted.

This rare effect, combined with the photographers skill, made the unique image possible.

I have seen this phenomenon several times, but I had never been able to photograph it, photographer Alberto Ghizzi Panizza, 45, told Daily Mail.

The Parma native is known for his unique, award-winning nature photographs. Among his famous photos are optical illusion and macro images that put a true artistic twist to nature photography.

Panizza has been featured by the Discovery Channel and National Geographic, and recently became an instructor on macro photography with Nikon.

So its no wonder that he was able to capture such a breathtaking image of the almost-full Moon.

The photographer revealed to Daily Mail that being home during the pandemic lockdowns gave him plenty of time to set the stage for the shot.

This time, he explained, seeing [the phenomenon] from home for the lockdown, I had with me all the necessary equipment to best capture this moment.

He added that it took two hours to take in the luminescent effect.

Between 10 PM and 12 AM I took a few hundred photos of the moon that created halos, iridescences and crowns among clouds and veils, the photographer wrote on Facebook on Jan. 24. This is the blending of a good portion of these shots to emphasize the colors of both the corona and the lunar minerals.

The result was well worth it; Panizza was finally able to capture the image hed dreamed of, a fantastic rainbow halo surrounding the nearly full Moon in a perfect circle.

The Moons surface is incredibly crisp in the image, and features purple craters and yellow peaks on the lunar landscape.

Surreally, clouds and stars transposed over the colorful halo create a gorgeous galaxy effect.

Fans were amazed by the photograph, leaving comments like Very beautiful, and Amazing! on his post.

Theres no question that Panizza has wowed the world with his most recent work.

Now, the world is waiting to see what he comes up with next.

This story was last updated in February 2021.

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Trillions in state-backed subsidies and inexpensive loans have kept businesses alive, while governments pay millions of furloughed workers to stay home. In much of Europe, layoffs or forced bankruptcies are banned.

In pursuing such policies, European leaders have bet that, once the pandemic subsides, they can defrost the regions $18 trillion economy, allowing businesses to fire up quickly and bring back workers. Its an intentional effort to slow an economic deep clean, dubbed by many economists creative destruction. This reflects a political choice: Europeans are generally less tolerant of the brutal adjustments required by the US model of capitalism.

But as the pandemic drags on and Europes vaccine rollout is expected to stretch through the year and beyond, some policy makers, economists and business executives worry that mothballing the economy for so long will leave it struggling to adapt to the seismic business and social changes the crisis is driving. That could stall an economic recovery.

Trying to freeze work where it was and how it was is in many cases a profound mistake, because it delays the corporate reorganizations, new investments and new hires that are necessary," said Carlo Bonomi, chairman of Confindustria, the Italian employers federation. While Europe keeps the economy in suspended animation, the US is already creating new jobs and businesses.

The contrasting policy responses feed a question likely to be debated for years: Which economic model better withstands the maelstrom unleashed by the pandemic?

The US approach is more brutal but also more flexible," said Nicholas Bloom, an economist at Stanford University.

Like Europe, the US has provided vast government support in the pandemic, through payments to businesses and workers and credit from the central bank to support struggling enterprises. The Federal Reserve established facilities to buy high-grade corporate debt, support lending to smaller businesses and enable the issuance of securities backed by small-business, student and-credit card loans, among others. These unprecedented programs helped to preserve jobs and keep alive distressed but solvent companies.

But while governments on both sides of the Atlantic strove to put a floor under the slump, the US did less to stop workers and capital from shifting toward new uses.

Europes labor markets were less flexible than that of the US before the pandemic. Europes governments have adopted broad social safety nets and job-protection laws, and its muscular trade unions generally wont tolerate large-scale layoffs. Those attitudes have hardened during the pandemic, a special kind of shock that, unlike most recessions, isnt the result of excesses or distortions in financial markets or the economy that need to be unwound.

The eurozone economy shrank more than twice as much as the US last year and will recover more slowly this year, according to the International Monetary Fund, largely because European governments adopted draconian social restrictions to contain the virus. The US jobless rate has boomeranged, first cratering close to 15% and then improving sharply, while the eurozones headline unemployment has barely budged during the crisis.

Europe registered far fewer business bankruptcies last year than in any of the previous five, while 2020 bankruptcies in the US remained within the pre-pandemic range, according to data from the Bank for International Settlements. Applications to start new businesses in the US rose 42% in the six months through September from a year earlier, but declined slightly in France and Germany, according to Oxford Economics.

Worker productivity also has risen in the US during the pandemic, but has been flat or down in Germany, France, Italy and Spain, according to Deutsche Bank. The US had already outpaced Europe in productivity growth since the 1990s, largely because European businesses were slower to adopt new information technologies. Eliminating unviable jobs and businesses generally is responsible for about half of long-run productivity growth, some economists say.

Meanwhile, the pandemic is accelerating a shift toward new digital business models and automation of processes. Some habits may stick, such as working and shopping from home, permanently reducing the demand for certain services in sectors such as retail or travel. If the shape of the economy looks very different in a couple of years, anything that delays the adjustment to that shock is going to be costly.

Europes enthusiasm for job-furlough programs is partly based on Germanys experience during the 2008-09 global financial crisis, when its program helped to hold down unemployment and quickly restart the economy once demand recovered.

This time, the support to workers and businesses is vastly larger, as governments sweetened or made it easier to access the programs. Almost eight million workers were in job-retention schemes in Germany, France, Italy and Spain in November, or roughly 7% of all workers in those countries, according to the European Central Bank. That was down from about 24 million in April, but still a larger share of Europes workforce than at the worst of the financial crisis in 2009.

Furloughed employees typically work reduced hours, or in some cases none, while receiving a portion of their salary. In Germany, such workers cannot undergo training unless it is designated by the labor office, or even be required to look at work emails. In Italy, they usually may not take part-time jobs because they might be called back to work from one day to the next.

At Germanys Recaro Aircraft Seating GmbH, which makes seats for European, US and Chinese airlines, sales fell 60% last year to about 300 million ($360 million). Chief Executive Mark Hiller doesnt expect sales to return to pre-crisis levels for five years. Some executives and airlines predict business travel wont ever return to previous volumes.

Recaro cut about 30% of jobs at its factories in the US and China last year, but in Germany it hasnt reduced its workforce of roughly 1,100. Instead, it has tapped the government program, which pays its workers up to 87% of their salary, to a maximum of almost 5,000 a month, to stay home. Almost the whole of Recaros workforce is on furlough, working on average 40% fewer hours than normal.

Recaro has agreed not to lay off employees until at least mid-2023. The high cost and legal complexities of doing so in Europe deter many companies from cutting staff.

But job-retention schemes can only bridge the gap until were back on a higher level," Mr. Hiller said. If we need to adapt to 300 million [sales] forever, it wont work."

Most of his competitors, including in the US, are cutting deeper. US defense group Raytheon Technologies Corp. cut a fifth of the workforce in its commercial aerospace division after sales at a unit that competes with Recaro fell 26% last year. Raytheon doesnt plan to hire all of the people back and will instead automate functions.

The hospitality sector has taken a big share of the furlough programs this time, a change from the 2008-09 recession, when they were tapped heavily by manufacturing companies.

The case for protecting jobs is weaker in less knowledge-intensive sectors such as hospitality, some economists say. Young people might be using these jobs as a steppingstone, so there could be less value in preserving the specific skills and relationships workers have built up, said Dan Andrews, a former Australian Treasury official now at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. He said some low-skilled jobs might eventually disappear for good, such as those serving business travelers, as the pandemic accelerates digitization.

Before Covid-19 struck, Orlando Gomess business was setting up tents in Portugal at about 30 events every weekend, from international fairs to weddings. Now his company, Multitendas, is lucky if it gets one event a weekend. Most of his roughly 150 employees have been on furlough for 10 months, paid most of their salaries by the government to stay home.

Mr. Gomes is waiting, hoping for business conditions to improve. He recently received a state-backed credit line for 1.5 million. Switching into new sectors seems impossible, he said, because his work is highly specialized.

I had planned to decide by year-end whether to shut down or stay in business, but with a vaccine on the horizon, I figure Ill wait a couple of extra months," Mr. Gomes said. Some of his workers have left for other sectors such as construction, but most are staying put.

Half of German companies have halted or delayed transformation and innovation projects as a result of furlough programs, according to a survey by Boston Consulting Group.

Job-retention schemes are a little bit too easy. You can delay decisions and remain in your comfort zone as a manager," said Karl Haeusgen, president of the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association, a lobby group for a sector that employs around 1.3 million people.

Economists and business executives also say business subsidies could increase the share of zombie" companies that struggle to earn enough over time to cover their debt-servicing costs, and that can undercut prices charged by healthier competitors. In Germany, the share of zombie companies could increase to 20% of all businesses this year from 7% before the pandemic, according to research by Creditreform, a German credit agency.

Alexander Alban, managing partner at German mechanical parts manufacturer Walter Schimmel GmbH, hustled last year to keep his business in the blackcutting staff, putting workers on furlough and canceling plans for a new factoryas he coped with a 25% decline in sales.

Though demand fell, a third of that revenue drop was due to a roughly 12% fall in market prices, Mr. Alban said, as struggling local competitors using government support offered low prices to stay afloat.

These zombie companies...run their business for a couple of months below costs," Mr. Alban said. They ruin the market. Afterwards, its very hard to get this business back. Usually its good if the market is cleaned."

In Italy, widespread use of job-retention schemes hurt labor productivity growth during the 2008-09 financial crisis, according to a 2018 paper by Giulia Giupponi of Bocconi University in Milan and Camille Landais, a professor at the London School of Economics. The least productive firms were three times more likely to tap the job-retention scheme than their stronger peers, the researchers found.

In Italy, through early December, 29% of all workers had been placed on furlough since the start of the pandemic, a total of about 6.7 million people.

The furloughs, the ban on layoffs and generous credit helped save about 400,000 jobs during the pandemic, according to an independent report by Bank of Italy researcher Eliana Viviano.

Antonio Gullo, who lives in Turin, the heart of Italys shrinking auto industry, has been in and out of furlough since 2001. He now works for Lear Corp., a Michigan-based maker of seats and electronics for the car industry. His last full month of work was in 2015, and in two decades he has never had more than 18 months in a row of full-time work, he said. He is currently working about six days a month.

We live in a state of constant uncertainty; its impossible to plan out your life," said Mr. Gullo, 43, who is on a production line making seats for Maseratis. Leaving the factory isnt an option because there arent any full-time jobs out there."

With so many on furlough, German business groups have warned recently of a shortage of skilled workers in a nation where the unemployment rate is just 4.5%, particularly in energy, mechanical and civil engineering and health.

Germanys sweetened job-furlough scheme has crazy consequences," said Friedrich Merz, a senior politician in Chancellor Angela Merkels Christian Democratic party. Employees are kept in businesses even though they are needed in other places."

Still, some businesses say the European model is better in the long run.

The US model weakens the bond between a company and its employees, reducing the incentive for businesses to invest in training, said Gerd Ohl, general manager of Limtronik GmbH, an electronics manufacturer based near Frankfurt. He said he had trained American employees in Germany to work for his US subsidiary, only to see them leave the company soon after they returned to the US.

At Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG , a maker of printing presses in southern Germany, revenue has fallen about 20% and is unlikely to return to its pre-crisis level for about five years, said Marcus A. Wassenberg, chief financial officer. He said around half of the companys staff are on furlough, down from 80% early in the pandemic, and the company claimed about 85 million via the job-retention program last year.

Mr. Wassenberg said the furlough program was part of a broad net of social protections that helps stabilize Germanys economy and share the fruits of growth between managers and workers, making its society better able to absorb global shocks.

Patricia Kowsmann contributed to this article.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

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5 Reasons Why People Prefer to Trade Options Over Stocks

As technical traders, we know the importance of following the price charts using proven trading strategies and implementing risk and position management. Here at TheTechnicalTraders.com we are stepping things up a notch by adding options to our trading.

By using options, a trader can leverage, hedge positions, and generate income via selling premiums. There are basic options, strategies, and complex, and everything in between. Because of that, I have brought options trading specialist Neil Szczepanski to join our team. I will let Neil introduce himself.

Hi everyone! Neil Szczepanski here. In case you are wondering it is pronounced Sus pan ski. Yes, I have roots in eastern European ancestry and Im first generation. I love options and have been trading them for many, many years. I like options because you have more ways to be profitable in your trading. I hate putting on a position and then waiting for the market to go your way. I want to be in control of my trades and options allows for that. Also, trading can equal freedom.

Think about this: imagine having a job that you can do from anywhere on the planet, work as much as you want, and make as much money as you want? Imagine having that same job that has no boss breathing down your neck and you call the shots. Well, that is what options trading can be like if you have the skills or access to someone who tells you what and when to buy and sell options contracts.

You control your own destiny and I have seen traders start with as little as $500. Options are especially attractive because they can cater to the small guy with smaller accounts via leverage, allowing them to take on big positions with little capital. On the flip side, the more wealthy sophisticated traders use options to protect and hedge positions and can do more complex strategies that provide even more consistent and lucrative returns with lower risk.

No matter what category of options trading you fall into, they work incredibly well, and I will teach you while providing professional trades to execute. Over my next few posts, I am going to explain some more about why trading options can be consistently profitable without having to take on huge risks. Today I am going to talk about why I love swing-trading options and the power of leverage that options provide us traders.

MAKE BIG MONEY WITH SMALL ACCOUNTS

As I alluded to above, options give the average trader ways to break into the trading world because of leverage. A little capital can go a long way, and if options trading is done properly you can have significantly less risk than buying the stock outright. You can start small, make smart bets that generate returns, and continue building your account through sound risk management techniques like position sizing, etc.

For example, when an underlying stock is super expensive, like Telsa for example, it can be prohibitive for the average person just starting out trading to own that stock let alone 100 shares! Options give you the ability to control those shares for a specific period of time at a fraction of the price. Each individual options contract lets you control 100 shares of Tesla without having to buy the stock.

Sign up now to receive information on the launch of the Technical Traders options trading courses and newsletter!

Let us take a look at a simple example where you want to buy TELSA with an expectation that it will go up at least 5% in value in the next month. If you wanted to buy and hold 100 shares of TESLA, then you would need to spend $80,482 to own those shares. Since all we want to do is to be able to sell the shares and lock in the profit when they go up by 5% or more. We dont need to own them but rather just have the right to control them within the options contract timeframe. When we hit our targets, we can sell the option contract and take profit (or take possession/delivery of the underlying shares on contract expiry). This is called option assignment.

Below is a sample of a Tesla options chain, where we can see that the price of the stock is $804.82. Lets say you could allocate $2,000 to this trade  you would be able to buy almost 2.5 shares of TSLA. But with $2,000, you could buy an option contract at the money that would let you have the right to buy 100 TSLA shares anytime in the next 30 days at a price of $800/share. With options, you have the ability to take your $2,000 trade and have the same controlling interest in an underlying stock as the person that just spent over $80,000 to buy the stock.

So to continue with the TSLA example, lets say on March 12th TSLA was trading for $844 (the 5% gain you were expecting). If you bought and sold the stock, you would have made a 5% return of $4,000. If you had bought the option, and then take on the assignment (let it expire) you would have the right to buy 100 TSLA shares at $800 and then turn around and sell them for $844. Your profit would be $4,400 (less the cost of the option contract), a little more profit than had you bought the shares outright. However, if you look at your return it is more than 225% using options!!!

Options enable the small players to trade stocks that would normally be outside of their price range, and this is one of the reasons we have seen an increase in options trading popularity over the last year. In fact, options trading volume has more than doubled since the start of the pandemic.

Of course, the above trade is a dream, but the reality can be quite scary. If you took the options trade and TSLA dropped below $800, then your liability starts mounting, however, the loss with owning the stock could be over $80,000 while the total loss with buying the options would be the price you paid for the option which is $1,950. A big reversal of the stock would be catastrophic in both cases but can be much worse for the stock owner. So it is important to make sure you trade with proper risk management and protections in place. While the adage with great power there comes great responsibility was popularized within a different context, I feel it applies to trading options.

I know at this point you are probably thinking what the heck is he talking about and options are WAY too complicated for me. Dont worry, Im going to teach and show you in a very simple and easy way how to trade options. I am also going to provide trades that limit the max loss per trade, and reduce risk so get ready for some excitement!

SWING TRADING OPTIONS IS THE PERFECT SIDE-HUSTLE

I love teaching, technology, and trading. I knew early on that these were the things that would drive my career path. At the same time, I had kids to feed so I needed to supplement my income to support my growing family. I was able to achieve this through swing trading options. This allowed me to focus on my career and family while making modest yet consistent income, without having to be glued to my screen every day since swing trades last a few days or weeks.

We have all seen the traders with 10 monitors looking at charts all day, making trades, and watching and waiting on every single turn in the market. I can tell you this is NOT my idea of trading. I prefer swing trading, where I can set up trades to enter and exit every couple of days or even weeks. Swing trades are meant to be short duration, and they are not intra-day, so you can set up your trades and manage them when you have time to yourself.

I once got advice from a great old friend that sometimes it is wise to look at the animal kingdom to learn how we can improve and live our lives. There is a lot we can learn from the animal kingdom. Some of the necessities we need as a human being is food shelter, social acceptance, and security. As such, we should always have back up plans. Going back to the animal kingdom, if we look at say prairie dogs, for example, we know that they always have two holes. One is for the main entry and exit and the other is for emergency exits. Side hustles are just that and swing trading can be a really useful back-up/extra income plan. It is your second hole!

Swing trading is also a great way to gain entry into the world of trading. It is like dipping your toe in the water to test it before you jump in head first. With swing trading, you can learn all about options and other financial instruments like futures, CFD, and currencies. The best part about swing trading is it can eventually turn into a full-time job, replacing your regular job. Now, instead of trading during your free time, you can trade when you dont have to be at work, leaving you with even more time to enjoy life and family. This is the ultimate freedom. That is what I have done using several strategies that generate consistent, low-risk gains for 20+ years.

One of my favorite strategies that I have developed is called the C-LEAP strategy. In this strategy, you enter and exit positions once every two weeks. It is one of the least risky strategies I have ever developed, and I use a simple checklist to follow it. I have had past students generate tens of thousands of dollars every month using this strategy, and I have found it to be easy to learn and very consistent.

As you may or may not know, I am preparing some options courses where I will teach basic options trading as well as more advanced strategies. Anyone can learn how options work but the most important thing is what strategy you use. You also need to know how and when to use the right strategy. I love teaching people how to trade options and live by two principles when doing so: Trading can be simple but it is not easy and I want EVERYONE to win not just me and in fact, I have no desire to win if everyone else loses.. I am really excited to get to know some of you soon when I launch my LIVE options courses and get you on the path to winning trades!

I will also be running The Technical Traders new service  Options Trading Signals  where I will share my knowledge, model portfolio, a weekly trade, and opportunities report, and trade alerts with subscribers. Look for the launch of my newsletter and courses at the end of February! Make sure you sign up now to keep informed of the launch of my newsletter and courses. You can sign up at www.thetechnicaltraders.com/options-trading.

In my next article I will keep giving you reasons to love trading options, including how you can trade options with less risk than stocks, how you can better react to volatility with options compared to stocks, and how you can attain consistent profits with lower drawdowns by trading options. So come along with me for the ride and change your life with a new skill trading options!

All my best,

Chris Vermeulen

www.TheTechnicalTraders.com

Chris Vermeulen has been involved in the markets since 1997 and is the founder of Technical Traders Ltd. He is an internationally recognized technical analyst, trader, and is the author of the book: 7 Steps to Win With Logic



Through years of research, trading and helping individual traders around the world. He learned that many traders have great trading ideas, but they lack one thing, they struggle to execute trades in a systematic way for consistent results. Chris helps educate traders with a three-hour video course that can change your trading results for the better.



His mission is to help his clients boost their trading performance while reducing market exposure and portfolio volatility.



He is a regular speaker on HoweStreet.com, and the FinancialSurvivorNetwork radio shows. Chris was also featured on the cover of AmalgaTrader Magazine, and contributes articles to several leading financial hubs like MarketOracle.co.uk

Disclaimer: Nothing in this report should be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any securities mentioned. Technical Traders Ltd., its owners and the author of this report are not registered broker-dealers or financial advisors. Before investing in any securities, you should consult with your financial advisor and a registered broker-dealer. Never make an investment based solely on what you read in an online or printed report, including this report, especially if the investment involves a small, thinly-traded company that isnt well known. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report has been paid by Cardiff Energy Corp. In addition, the author owns shares of Cardiff Energy Corp. and would also benefit from volume and price appreciation of its stock. The information provided here within should not be construed as a financial analysis but rather as an advertisement. The authors views and opinions regarding the companies featured in reports are his own views and are based on information that he has researched independently and has received, which the author assumes to be reliable. Technical Traders Ltd. and the author of this report do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any content of this report, nor its fitness for any particular purpose. Lastly, the author does not guarantee that any of the companies mentioned in the reports will perform as expected, and any comparisons made to other companies may not be valid or come into effect.

Chris Vermeulen Archive

 2005-2019 http://www.MarketOracle.co.uk - The Market Oracle is a FREE Daily Financial Markets Analysis & Forecasting online publication.




A worker at a McDonald's branch in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, has been arrested for illegally filming coworkers in a unisex changing room. Yonhap



By Lee Hyo-jin



A worker at a McDonald's branch in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, has been arrested for repeatedly filming his coworkers in a unisex changing room.



Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency said Thursday that the 25-year-old man, who had worked in the branch from June 2019 to December 2020, has been accused of secretly recording videos of his coworkers undressing in the changing room, using his phone.



The man had been hiding his phone in the room set to record video while his female colleagues changed clothes. Working seven hours per day, five days a week, he installed the camera before his shift and collected it after his shift.



The hidden phone was discovered by a female colleague on Dec. 12.



About 100 video clips of 20 female workers were found on the device. During the police investigation, the man reportedly stated that he took the videos "out of curiosity."



Through additional investigation, the police found thousands of photos and videos including child pornography downloaded from Telegram.



The police sent the case to the prosecution on Jan. 27, requesting that it indict him for violation of the special act on sex crimes and the act on the protection of children against sex offenses.



The female worker who had discovered the camera told a local news agency that the man usually got along well with their coworkers and was kind to everyone. She said that since the incident, she comes to work wearing her uniform to avoid using the changing room.



Following the incident, McDonald's Korea said they removed a shelf from the changing room so that no cameras can be installed. It explained that some 60 among 400 branches across the country are not equipped with separate changing rooms for male and female workers due to a lack of space.



The company said it would inspect the changing room on a daily basis and run sexual harassment prevention education programs for all employees at the branch every year.




 Flash

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Thursday refuted rumors about China on the situation in Myanmar, saying that Internet rumors are nothing but that, aiming at destroying and provoking China-Myanmar relations and friendship.

Spokesperson Hua Chunying made the remarks at a daily press briefing when answering a question on the situation in Myanmar.

"China is a friendly neighbor of Myanmar. We hope that all parties in Myanmar will put the aspiration and interests of the people first, handle differences through dialogue within the constitutional and legal framework, and safeguard political and social stability," Hua said.

Hua noted both the National League for Democracy and the Myanmar military have friendly relations with China. China does not want to see the current situation.

"As for the impact on Chinese citizens in Myanmar, we are also getting more information. Chinese enterprises and citizens have contributed to Myanmar's national development and China-Myanmar friendly cooperation. We hope that relevant parties in Myanmar will take concrete measures to ensure their safety," she said.


Texans shivering in the dark are facing many shortages right now  lights, heat, tap water, gasoline  but the most vexing deficit is a critical shortage of leadership in Austin.

Consider: As a massive cold front barreled down on the state Saturday, Gov. Greg Abbott was busy on Twitter mocking police reform in another state and sharing a photo of an improvised Whataburger cup. Here is how one Texan is protecting his outdoor faucet from the cold winter weather, he wrote. @Whataburger of course.

A day earlier, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo warned residents in the starkest terms to take the storm seriously: Were about to see an incident the likes of which we have not seen in 30 years, she said, telling residents to prepare for conditions similar to a category 5 hurricane.

Two leaders, two responses to the same crisis. One was singularly focused on keeping people safe. The other issued a routine disaster declaration and then went back to business as usual: folksy Texas bull and partisan politics.

Its an approach far too common among Texas governors. And once again, its costing lives. The death toll in this devastating storm that has left millions without power is climbing, with more than a dozen weather-related deaths reported in the Houston area alone.

Youd think the deep misery of millions of Texans  never mind the global embarrassment of seeing the nations energy capital on its knees  would have forced Abbott to face up to the reality of the state he leads. But instead, he chose to play more games  political games. On Tuesday, he was on Sean Hannitys Fox News show, blaming the energy grids collapse on frozen wind turbines.

This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America, he said. Our wind and our solar got shut down, and they were collectively more than 10 percent of our power grid, and that thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power on a statewide basis.

As deceptive as a deadly patch of black ice.

This disaster has nothing to do with the Green New Deal. Wind makes up a tiny fraction of the states energy grid this time of year. The vast majority of power sources knocked off line were natural gas and coal, largely because those facilities werent properly weatherized.

The real problem, as Abbott knows, has to do with Texas loosely regulated grid and a system of energy delivery that tries to maximize profits and keep consumer prices cheap by failing to insure against a crisis like this one.

Naturally, Abbott had plenty of company spreading his falsehoods, from U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw to former Gov. Rick Perry, who ludicrously suggested that the fatal power outages were a small price to pay for Texas not being subjected to federal regulations.

What Texans need right now is help in getting the lights back on, and the water flowing, and in making sure they and their families are safe. But they also are looking for leadership from those elected to provide it. They arent getting it  and its times like these, and before that, the coronavirus pandemic, when the familiar litany of failures on the part of Abbott and other officeholders turns deadly.

Failed to act

Abbott has made reforming the states power grid manager, a non-profit called ERCOT, a legislative priority and House Speaker Dade Phelan called on two key committees to meet jointly next week to understand what went wrong. These are important next steps  but only if the lawmakers and the governor demand real reform, and actually bother to find out what is really broken.

Another thing Abbott forgot to tell Hannity? Texas officials knew the grid was vulnerable to collapse and failed to act.

Ten years ago, the Legislature tried to reform ERCOT and didnt get far. A series of rolling blackouts following a freak ice storm in North Texas during Super Bowl week had lawmakers hopping mad over the grids operators to prepare for extreme weather. Lucky for them, 2011 was also the year ERCOT was undergoing review by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission for the first  and so far, only  time since it was created.

The commission urged a series of reforms, noting that ERCOT lacked legislative and financial oversight to ensure accountability and that its board and advisory committee structure did not provide needed objectivity.

The Senate passed a bill containing those reforms. Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, was a member of the commission and said he recalls Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, on the floor offering consumer-oriented amendments one after another  and all of them failed. When the surviving bill got to the House, it was left pending in a committee.

ERCOT is still largely controlled by the industry, Whitmire marveled Wednesday. Its a network of good ole boys. Youre not going to get people appointed there who are consumer advocates.

But this week, he added, its been a convenient whipping boy for politicians on the left and right. ERCOT needs reforms, he said, but one person is already responsible for its failures.

ERCOT answers to the Public Utility Commission, whose members are all appointed by the governor. The buck stops there  with the governor, Whitmire said.

Tragically missing

For real reform to happen, leaders like Abbott will have to recognize that the grand bargain Texas proudly offers to industries of all kinds  bring your companies here and well offer low taxes, low costs and scant regulation  is one that needs serious rethinking. The benefits Texas receives from all those new jobs are big, but they do not come without costs. Its just that those costs are usually harder to count  until something like this week happens.

Regulators in Texas are very pro-industry, Jim Krane, an energy fellow at Rice Universitys Baker Institute, told the board Wednesday. If the industry doesn't want to spend the money to do it, they seem to be pretty loath to force them to do something they don't want to do.

There are many things ERCOT and its state overseers should require the Texas energy industry to do. Chief among them are making pipelines and wind turbines able to withstand intense cold, just as they do in the many other parts of the world. If drivers are required to have liability insurance, why shouldnt energy generators be required to have a kind insurance of their own, against extreme weather or other foreseeable, if rare, crises.

"In Texas, if you have one overarching thing that seems to be across the board is that nothing is winterized, Krane said. All these technologies work fine, absolutely fine in cold places. It's just that not one of those precautions has been instituted in Texas.

Companies probably considered investing in protecting their infrastructure from extreme cold an imprudent expense. Now that those decisions have helped plunge millions of Texans into deadly misery, its time for the states leaders to decide that oughtnt be up to the companies.

But to do that, well need a kind of leadership from Abbott and top legislative leaders thats been tragically missing.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and an industry group backed by Amazon, Facebook and Google have sued Maryland over new its new online advertising tax aimed at funding education.

The legal complaint by the groups, including the Internet Association, was filed in a federal district court in Maryland after the state legislature passed the first-in-the-nation tax last week, overriding a veto by the governor.

They argue that the new tax on online ad revenue is unconstitutional and illegal under a federal internet tax moratorium.

As cash-starved states suffer declining tax revenues in the pandemic, many have begun to eye big tech as a potential source of revenue, after online companies boomed in the past year.

Maryland's statehouse is seen in a file photo. An industry group backed by Amazon, Facebook and Google has sued Maryland over new its new online advertising tax

Amazon was among the internet giants opposed to the new tax. States have begun to eye big tech as a potential source of revenue in the pandemic

The suit was also joined by NetChoice and the Computer and Communications Industry Association, industry groups that are also backed by Google, Amazon and Facebook.

The U.S. Chamber argues that by taxing revenue from online ads, Maryland would actually be hurting small business, not the tech giants that reap billions from the industry.

'In light of the current pandemic and economic uncertainty, increasing taxes on services used by small businesses to keep themselves running is a particularly poor and ill-timed policy,' Caroline Harris, the vice president for tax policy at the U.S. Chamber, said in a statement.

Last week, the digital ad tax bill received the required three-fifths vote by both chambers of the Maryland General Assembly to override a veto from Republican Governor Larry Hogan.

The suit was also joined by NetChoice and the Computer and Communications Industry Association, industry groups that are also backed by Google, Amazon and Facebook

The suit alleges the new tax violates the Internet Tax Freedom Act, a federal law that bars 'multiple and discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce'

Legislators who supported the bill argued that it would help boost the state's budget, and that big online companies had not been contributing enough to state coffers.

'At a time when Maryland's budget is being impacted in unforeseen and astronomical ways due to COVID-19, Maryland families and small businesses can foot the bill, or big tech can start paying their fair share,' Maryland Senate Democrats tweeted a few days ago.

The suit alleges the new tax violates the Internet Tax Freedom Act, a federal law that bars 'multiple and discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce.'

The suit also claims that Maryland's new statute will lead to an increase in 'junk' content and raise costs for consumers.
MILAN, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Berlin Packaging, the world's largest hybrid packaging supplier, announced the acquisition of Sodis-Uhart and Audoubert, two historic companies offering glass and metal packaging in France.

Sodis-Uhart was founded in 1979 in Biarritz as a family-run business and expanded in 2015 with the acquisition of Audoubert, based in Toulouse, creating a hub for glass and metal packaging in southern France. The two companies offer a wide range of glass and metal containers and packaging components and have more than 9,000 square meters of strategically located warehouse space to support their customers.

"Sodis-Uhart, together with Audoubert, will significantly expand Berlin Packaging's product portfolio, especially in the food sector," said Paolo Recrosio, CEO of Berlin Packaging Europe. "Moreover, both companies have strong customer and supplier relationships that will help us continue to expand, particularly in France and the neighbouring areas of Spain."

"Our combination with Berlin Packaging represents the culmination of a family adventure that began in 1979 with just one employee. We're proud of our accomplishments, and we believe strongly that this transaction is not an end but a new beginning, enabling us to bring our experience in southern France to the rest of Berlin Packaging, and to allow our customers and employees to benefit from the opportunities offered by a global company," said Dominique Uhart, Director of Sodis-Uhart, and Michel Uhart, Director of Audoubert.

The acquisition of Sodis-Uhart and Audoubert is Berlin Packaging's eleventh acquisition in Europe since 2016, confirming the company's strong commitment to offering packaging solutions in all segments of the European market.

"Expanding our presence in Europe remains a critical objective for us in 2021," said Bill Hayes, CEO and President of Berlin Packaging. "Targeted acquisitions, like the acquisition of Sodis-Uhart and its subsidiary, Audoubert, continue to be an important way for us to execute on our strategic growth plans for Europe."

Berlin Packaging

Berlin Packaging is the world's largest Hybrid Packaging Supplier of glass, plastic, and metal containers and closures. The company supplies billions of items annually along with package design, financing, consulting, warehousing, and logistics services for customers across all industries. Berlin Packaging brings together the best of manufacturing, distribution, and income-adding service providers. Its mission is to increase the net income of its customers through packaging products and services.

See BerlinPackaging.com for more information.

Elena Franzetti, [email protected] +39 02 48436611 +39 3401204145

Julie Saltzman, [email protected] +1 312 869 7554 for North America.

SOURCE Berlin Packaging

Related Links

https://www.berlinpackaging.com



New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated APJ Abdul Kalam's memorial in Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu on Thursday on the second death anniversary of the former president. Prime Minister will also attend other program.

Later, the PM would flag off 'Kalam Sandesh Vahini', an exhibition bus which would travel across various states of the country and reach Rashtrapati Bhavan on October 15, the birth anniversary of the former President, the statement said.

He will distribute sanction letters to the beneficiaries of long liner trawlers under 'Blue Revolution' scheme and also flag off a new express train from Ayodhya to Rameswaram (via video conference).

Here are the Live Updates:

# Dr. Kalam inspired the youth of India. I can see that today's youth wants to scale heights of progress and become job creators

# We have to bring a transformation in the ports and logistics sectors, which can contribute immensely to India's growth

# Missing Amma here, can feel the void. Her soul will continue to shower blessings

# If Amma was here today, in our midst, she would have been very happy and extended her good wishes. She is a leader we all remember

# Let us all give a standing ovation to all those laborers who worked with immense dedication in building APJ Abdul Kalam memorial

# The memorial for Dr. Kalam showcases his life and times in a remarkable manner

# Dr. Kalam always reflected the simplicity, depth and calmness of Rameswaram

# Rameswaram has a vital place in our history and it is also known as a place so closely associated with Dr. Kalam

# It is this sacred land that gave India one of its most famous sons Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam

# It is great honor for me to touch this sacred soil of Rameswaram, a center of deep spiritual knowledge

# PM Narendra Modi flags off new express train from Rameswaram to Ayodhya

# PM pays floral tributes to ex-prez APJ Abdul Kalam; NDA's V-P nominee Venkaiah Naidu, TN Guv, CM E Palaniswami present on the occasion

# He visits Dr APJ Abdul Kalam memorial at Pei Karumbu

# PM Narendra Modi met family members of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam

# PM Modi unveiled a statute of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and paid tribute to him at the memorial in Rameswaram

##WATCH PM Modi at inauguration of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam memorial at Pei Karumbu in Rameswaram https://t.co/GfOGOTkBHG

# Tamil Nadu: PM Modi at inauguration of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam memorial

# Tamil Nadu: PM Narendra Modi arrives in Madurai; PM Modi to inaugurate Dr APJ Abdul Kalam memorial in Rameshwaram shortly pic.twitter.com/mDxVnXNpPf

For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps.
CNN anchor Chris Cuomo has been mocked online for tweeting advice about leadership as his own brother, the governor of New York, is facing calls to resign for failing his state.

Chris Cuomo responded to the story of the mayor of Colorado City, Texas, who accused his snowed-in residents of being 'lazy'. The mayor told them to 'get off your a**' instead of seeking help from the local government.

The 50-year-old tweeted a link to the story, commenting: 'Resign or apologize and learn and become a better leader?'

Andrew Cuomo (left) is being investigated by the FBI while brother Chris tweets on leadership

At least 13,000 nursing home residents are now known to have died of COVID-19 in New York

His comments sparked hilarity and anger, in light of the scandal engulfing his own brother.

Andrew Cuomo, 63, is facing calls to resign and even be prosecuted for covering up the data surrounding the death toll from COVID-19, among nursing home patients.

Tim Boyd, mayor of Colorado City, went viral with his Facebook post on Tuesday that called out the citizens of his own town for being 'lazy.' Chris Cuomo called him out in a tweet this week.

Last week his senior aide, Melissa DeRosa, admitted that the administration 'froze' in August when asked for information from state politicians, amid fear that the Justice Department would use the data to prosecute them.

The governor insists that the data was provided, but agreed it could have been handed over sooner.

Last month the New York attorney general, Letitia James, found that 13,000 nursing patients had died of COVID-19 - an increase of almost 50 per cent in the official figure given by the Cuomo administration.

The FBI and the U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn are now investigating his handling of the pandemic.

The CNN host's tweet about leadership was immediately seized upon.

Andrew Cuomo, governor of New York, was in the Oval Office on Friday to discuss COVID relief

'Was this meant for your brother?' asked one.

Another joked: 'Can I introduce you to the governor of New York?'

'You don't need to subtweet your own brother,' another said.

One called Chris Cuomo a 'freaking hypocrite' while another posted a cartoon of Andrew Cuomo as the grim reaper, with blood on his hands.

'Now do your brother,' recommended one man.

Another simply said: 'Should we tell him?'
Colorado Springs, CO (80903)

Today

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%..

Tonight

Cloudy skies early, then off and on rain showers overnight. Low around 45F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Televisions high school-angst genre has always struggled to find an authentic voice. For every Heartbreak High, which managed to speak with great truth, there are dozens of shows like Beverly Hills 90210, which get lost in fashion labels and facile storytelling.

The film Love, Simon, released in 2018 and based on the book Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli, shattered the genre beautifully, telling the story of a gay school student whose closeted life was broken open. That story is shifting to the small screen, written by the films screen-writers Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger and produced by the films director Greg Berlanti.

Victor (Michael Cimino) in Love, Victor. Credit:Ali Goldstein / Hulu

Love, Victor returns to Creekwood High School after the graduation of Simon Spier, to tell the story of another gay student who is coming of age, Victor Salazar, played by Michael Cimino. His co-star George Sear plays Benji Campbell, an openly gay student whose confidence and natural charm attracts Victors attention. Nick Robinson, who played Simon in the film, is the series narrator and, in later episodes, his character makes a guest appearance.

As much as Love, Victor is a story of sexuality and social acceptance, it is also a story of ethnicity and economic inequality. Victor Salazar comes from a multi-racial family and economic disadvantage, which create different pressures on the life of a school student searching for acceptance.

What will the environmental destruction of Nature mean to the Veddas?

In Sri Lanka over millennia, we have maintained a careful and close distinction of preservation of natural habitats of Man and Nature.

by Victor Cherubim

I visited the Aboriginal land of Uhuru National Park near Alice Springs, Northern Territories during my short tour of Australia, some two decades ago and was taken aback by what I saw and how the native people gelled and greeted me because of my colour, not knowing that I was a citizen of Sri Lanka.

It was not a strange moment in my life, as my ancestors had drilled into my psyche that the Land called Lemuria was once linked and connected with our island nation many, many million years ago when Dinosaurs roamed the Earth. Fact or fiction, I never contemplated then, but it remained buried in my mind that perhaps, in my previous birth, I may have been an Aboriginal.

Today, we are drilled about Climate Change, about the deforestation of Vedda habitat around the Rambakou Oya. It may be presumed that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa may have read the controversy surrounding Climate Change.

Professor Chris A. Williams of Clarke University, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA has claimed that cutting of trees might have the opposite effect on global warming. He says, more trees dont make for a cooler planet. He argues, that instead of warming up the earth, deforestation can actively cool it down. He further maintains that this postulationis not automatic permission to continue deforestation, which it indeed, is not intended.

He continues that our existing forests are a vital carbon sink and reforestation areas already lost has become necessary.

He further stresses there are two significant criteria must be observed in relation to deforestation.

The first is the location of the forests and the so called, Albedo effect. In laymans language, the Albedo effect is the process in which forests retain heat, absorbing more sunlight and holding on to heat, thus contributing to global warming. This he states was observed in his study by satellite remote scrutiny.

The second factor is about putting or planting the trees, (de-forestation) in the right place where the potential for cooling is greatest.

Environmentalists the world over have been clamouring for planting trees over years as it does a lot of good for climate change as well as for the environment. But now we are told it would be counterproductive if placed in the wrong areas. Who among us can know which are the right and wrong areas to reforest?

What about the indigenous communities which call these forests home?

We know the tribes of the Amazon Rain Forest, including what we call our Veddas, or even Wanniars who have a pre-emptive claim to these forests as their native homeland.

I would here vouch more than a guess that protecting indigenous communities in our homeland as well as around the world is more than a trust of our ancient heritage. In my opinion, it is the safest way to make ALL climate change.

Research continues but now the verdict is awaited.

The natural habitats of Man and Nature have been displaced?

In Sri Lanka over millennia, we have maintained a careful and close distinction of preservation of natural habitats of Man and Nature. This is a natural widely acceptable recognition of the links between the destruction of Nature and destruction of Mans Health.

I need hardly state that recent scientific research has warned us that we may soon, in the years ahead,witness the next pandemic, thanks in large measure due to the trade and consumption of high-risk wildlife, our land use change, leading to deforestation and conversion, together with the expansion of agricultural land and unsustainable intensification and animal production.

As seen in COVID-19 pandemic, it is one of the key drivers behind the emergence of new zoonotic diseases.

Zoonotic diseases are caused according to scientists, by germs that spread between animals and humans.

Wuhan, China where many had assumed was the origination and spread of COVID-19, has been challenged by recent reports of the visiting experts from World Health Organisation, that there may have been earlier evidence of this virus reported from Italy. It is debatable whether the virus was spotted before in Italy or was that a mutation?

But one thing is certain to us today is that 70% of all new diseases that have emerged in humans in the past 30 years had zoonotic origin.

During this same period over 178 million hectares of forests have been cleared around the world and converted to food and/or livestock production, presumably to support the human species.

Land conversion for agriculture, research states, has caused 70% loss of planetary bio-diversity loss.

The Vedda of Sri Lanka have a place in our history, more so in our biodiversity.

In Sri Lanka today has less than 17% of true rainforests remaining. These forests were the home and the livelihood of our Veddah community. They also are the home of 7800 species of flora and over 15,000 species of fauna.

We have seen a claim from Rukshan Jayewardene, a Sri Lankan Environmentalist that the President of Sri Lanka is providing leadership for environmental destruction. This opinion is also echoed by Jayantha Wijesingha of the Rainforest Protection Trust.

Veddha Leader, UruwarigeWannil a Eth tho and the Centre for Environmental Justice have both sought a restraining Order from the Courts against a move to take over aboriginal Veddha lands for the cultivation of maize in Rambakeu Oya.

The Human-Elephant Conflict

Over recent years, many have noted the plight of villagers and the destruction of crops, perhaps livelihoods and even lives by wandering elephants in their villages.

It may be understandable that President Gothabaya Rajapaksa is in the horns of a dilemma, on the one hand seen to solve the human-elephant conflict ordering Dahaiyagala Wildlife Sanctuary, a 27 sq. metre Elephant Corridor, allowing the movement of wildlife out of Udawalawe National Park and sheltering the villagers from harms way.

The Environmentalists on the other hand are in force understandably so, to stop unrestricted minting by mining and transportation of sand and gravel by re- introducing the permit system.

Managing the danger posted to and by humans.

As a Sri Lankan Citizen without a British identity, my concern, is more than only environmental protection.

Living in UK, however, I am aware that UK has made a bold decision and banned products limited to illegal deforestation.

Having said that, I consider Our Country (The Sri Lanka State) has a moral obligation to protect. To protect Villagers from Wild Elephants as well as to protect Wild Elephants from extinction. If by default we lose either, we lose our identity as a State.Both species are an added attraction for our tourist industry. My other concern for agricultural land use is, the importation of fertiliser and the hidden enemy, bugs?

I am all for a space for all creatures great and small, both the Elephants and Humans to survive in each of their habitats, as they have over time. We need a balanced approach instead.

During my youth, I recall the Elephant Kraal in the Fifties which controlled the animal population in my opinion an ethical way. Now I hear in Namibia, South West Africa, some 170 high value wild elephants are due for auction due to the increasing conflict with humans and the long running drought in that part of the world. They will be solso to anyone, either in Namibia or abroad, who can meet the criteria which includes quarantine facilities and organise proof of fence certificate for the property they are held. Further, Wildlife Authorities also culled at least 10 elephants to protect farmers and their harvests.
[February 18, 2021]

Patrick J. McGovern Foundation awards $4.1 million to expand tech education and build an inclusive tech workforce

BOSTON, Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The full promise of a digitally enabled society can be achieved through educational opportunity for all students and potential tech workers. To advance this vision, the Patrick J. McGovern Foundation is announcing $4.1 million in new grants that strengthen the pipeline of technology education and workforce development, from K-12 through college and beyond.

The new grants aim to increase diversity in the tech workforce and promote ethical technology development.

"Right now, power and control of technology rests in too few hands. This round of grants aims to change that by closing the opportunity gap in education and skills development," said Patrick J. McGovern Foundation President Vilas Dhar. "Everyone should have access to the knowledge, skills and frameworks to shape our tech-enabled future."

The educational grants reflect the Foundation's commitment to advancing tech for good. In January, the Foundation announced it will double its 2021 data and AI grantmaking to $40 million, and introduce new initiatives to accelerate opportunity and innovation in the development of inclusive, ethical data and AI.

The new grants aim to increase diversity in the tech workforce beginning with computer science education in K-12 classrooms around the country and provide support through college graduation for under-represented and low-income students.

"In today's world, where technology touches every part of our livesfrom keeping us connected and informed to solving global issuescomputer science has become a foundational subject for any future path," said Hadi Partovi, Founder and CEO of Code.org, which expands access to computer science in K-12 schools and is one of 16 new grant recipients. "And every student should have the opportunity to study it and take part in creating the future they want to live in."

At the heart of these grants is a commitment to transforming the status quo of technology opportunity with new models that include entrepreneurship, upskilling for historically marginalized communities, and ensuring underrepresented students complete their college education.

"Diverse minds at the design table of technology will not only yield greater innovation, but will also create more equitable and representative technology solutions for a broader scope of challenges facing our communities and our planet," said Ruthe Farmer, Founder & CEO of the Last Mile Education Fund, which focuses on investing in student persistence and potential to get them over the last mile to graduation and into tech careers.

A key focus will be creating educational frameworks for social and ethical technology development. Through collaborations with leading academic institutions, the Foundation is supporting efforts at the forefront of building these frameworks for technology development and policy making.

"We need to develop responsible 'habits of mind and action' for those who create and deploy computing technologies and foster the creation of technologies in the public interest. Key to this effort is training the next generation of leaders who will undertake research that assesses broad challenges and opportunities associated with computing, and who will lead efforts to improve design, policy, implementation, and impacts," said Julie Shah, Associate Dean, Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Computing, MIT Schwarzman College of Computing Schwarzman College of Computing and Associate Professor in Aeronautics and Astronautics and head of the Interactive Robotics Group at Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab.

The new grants include:

Code.org to support the CodeBytes program, which provides short, interactive online computer science lessons for K-12 students. ($100,000)







Girls Inc. to support the organization's mission to inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold through direct service and advocacy and complete a tech infrastructure audit as a first step in accelerating a tech-centered strategic plan. ($250,000)

Girls Who Code to provide support for their mission to close the gender gap in technology. ($200,000)

Team4Tech to support expansion of their community of practice and launch regional hubs to create opportunities for learners around the world. ($100,000)

MIT Beaver Works to enhance diversity and inclusion efforts as well as to build and scale a model for public use as it develops its rigorous, hands-on student STEM program. ($250,000)

AI4ALL to increase representation of women and other historically excluded groups in AI and build a community of diverse interdisciplinary leaders to positively influence the future of AI. ($500,000)

Last Mile Education Fund to increase diversity in tech and engineering by addressing critical gaps in financial support for low-income, underrepresented students within four semesters of college graduation. ($250,000)

Partners in Development to support the Bridging the Digital Divide Program in Rural Mississippi, which currently has very limited educational resources and internet access. ($200,000)

First Star to provide support for the First Star National STEAM Academy. Led by technology and grounded in social justice, this series of culturally relevant online Tech Talks is aimed at increasing teenage foster youth engagement in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math) careers. ($50,000)

The Tech Interactive to support The Tech for Global Good program, including the selection of an annual laureate who is using technology to bring about needed change in their community, a virtual field trip, and the development of educational content for students. ($200,000)

The Hidden Genius Project for their mission to train and mentor Black male youth in technology creation, entrepreneurship, and leadership skills to transform their lives and communities. ($300,000)

AkiraChix provides tech training, upskilling, and mentorship to young women from Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda ($150,000).

AnnieCannons to transform the lives of survivors of human trafficking and gender-based violence with computer science training and job skills that lead to gainful employment and independent economic security. ($100,000)

Oxford's Institute for Ethics in AI to investigate and address the ethical challenges and opportunities that AI poses to the future of democracy. ($500,000)

The Social and Ethical Responsibilities of Computing , a cross-cutting area of the MIT Stephen A. Schwarzman College of Computing, to support the equipping of researchers and students from across engineering, computer science, the humanities, and social sciences to analyze and articulate societal and ethical considerations as well as pursue cross-disciplinary approaches to develop technologies that can foster positive impacts for individuals and society. ($500,000)

The Stanford University Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI) to support its work to implement rigorous education programs for policymakers, supplying them with critical knowledge needed to understand AI technologies, trends and coming advances preparing them to address policy opportunities and challenges. ($500,000)

The Patrick J. McGovern Foundation is a global philanthropy bridging the frontiers of artificial intelligence, data science, and social impact to create a thriving, equitable, and sustainable future for all. Learn more about our recent grants to support climate action, digital health , and vulnerable communities .

Media contact:

George Mastoras

george.mastoras@mcgovern.org

(914) 489-5282

View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/patrick-j-mcgovern-foundation-awards-4-1-million-to-expand-tech-education-and-build-an-inclusive-tech-workforce-301230861.html

SOURCE Patrick J. McGovern Foundation
Partnership follows a highly successful trial demonstrating the power of direct, 24/7 access to physicians.

TORONTO, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW/ - Following a highly successful pilot, Unilever Canada and Maple have extended their partnership to a full time ongoing program, providing direct access to Maple physicians for all Unilever employees and their eligible dependents, 24/7, from wherever they are.

Unilever implemented this pilot for their employees with the goals of increasing peace of mind and access to healthcare from the safety of home. The pilot program, which began as the COVID-19 pandemic spread across Canada, saw a 35% sign-up rate in its first months, with over 40% of consultations taking place outside of working hours. The program has also seen high utilization from family members and dependents, who represented 35% of visits in the program's first months. The strong utilization was complemented by an average wait time of under 4 minutes for all consults done during the pilot.

"My own family has had a wonderful experience using Maple's virtual physician services. We were so impressed at how easily and quicky we were able to talk to a doctor by video. I'm so pleased we were able to add this excellent and timely benefit for our employees and their families as part of our people-first and safety-first strategy during the pandemic." -Gary Wade, President, Unilever Canada

In cases of high-risk health concerns, Unilever employees are also able to directly access or be referred to Maple's specialty care providers for more tailored care. This includes Maple's Oncology Navigation service, which can be used by employees or their family seeking a second opinion on cancer treatments for themselves or their eligible dependents through the pandemic.

"As the pandemic wears on, integrated wellness programs like Unilever's have become essential to supporting employee wellness," says Christy Prada, VP of Business Development, Maple. "As we look to a future, where many of us return to the office, care models that allow direct access to healthcare around-the-clock, while coordinating with other benefit programs, will continue to show returns by supporting a healthy, productive workforce."

About Unilever

Unilever is one of the world's leading suppliers of Beauty & Personal Care, Home Care, and Foods & Refreshment products with sales in over 190 countries and reaching 2.5 billion consumers a day. In Canada, the portfolio includes brand icons such as: Axe, Ben & Jerry's, Breyers, Degree, Dove personal care products, Hellmann's, Klondike, Knorr, Lipton, Love Beauty and Planet, Magnum, Nexxus, Popsicle, Q-Tips, Schmidt's, SheaMoisture, Seventh Generation, Simple, St. Ives, TRESemme, Vaseline and Vim. All of the preceding brand names are owned or used under license by Unilever Canada Inc.

Unilever's Sustainable Living Plan underpins the company's strategy and commits to:

Helping more than a billion people take action to improve their health and well-being by 2020.

Halving the environmental impact of our products by 2030.

Enhancing the livelihoods of millions of people by 2020.

The USLP creates value by driving growth and trust, eliminating costs and reducing risks. The company's sustainable living brands delivered 78% of total growth and 75% of turnover in 2019. For more information about Unilever and its brands, please visit www.unilever.com. For more information on the USLP: www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/

About Maple

Maple is a technology platform that tackles some of the world's most meaningful issues in healthcare, starting with timely and convenient access to doctors and other healthcare providers including dermatologists, psychiatrists, and oncology navigation experts. It allows patients to connect directly with doctors and specialists for medical care in minutes from their smartphone or computer 24/7, and also provides custom technology solutions for, employers, insurers, hospitals and. Learn more at getmaple.ca .

SOURCE Maple.

For further information: Katharine Williams, Manager, Communications, Unilever Canada, [email protected]; Aliya Darvesh, Sr. Manager, Communications, Maple, [email protected]

Related Links

http://getmaple.ca


New Delhi: Days after the Indian Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane inducted the last of the 100 K-9 Vajra guns ordered, three of these howitzers have been deployed for trials in high altitude mountainous regions of Ladakh.

Three guns arrived in Leh on Wednesday and are being transported to a high altitude base to be tested if they can be used in high altitude areas against the enemy, top government sources were quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Based on the performance of the guns, the Indian Army would consider placing orders for two to three additional regiments of the self-propelled howitzers for mountain operations, sources said.

The Army Chief has been monitoring the induction and operations of the howitzers produced in the Larsen and Toubro facility in Hazira near Surat in Gujarat. The Indian Army placed orders for 100 of these guns from a South Korean firm and has been inducting them for the last two years in different regiments of the force.

The K-9 VAJRA is the indigenized version of the basic K9 Thunder from South Korea. The self-propelled guns have a range of 38 kilometres and are manufactured by Mumbai-based firm Larsen & Toubro in partnership with a South Korean firm. The Indian Army had not inducted any new heavy artillery since 1986 after the Bofors scandal rocked the nation.

With the induction of the K9 Vajras, Dhanush and M777 ultra-light Howitzers, the army is obtaining new inductions in its inventory.

The next made in India howitzer is likely to be inducted in large numbers would be the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)-developed the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS) system.

Live TV
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pledged his support for Libyas newly elected government during a meeting in Cairo Thursday with the interim prime minister, Abdulhamid Dbeibeh.

During UN-facilitated talks in Geneva, Switzerland, earlier this month, a group of Libyan delegates elected Dbeibeh as their next prime minister and named a three-member presidential council. Dbeibeh, a prominent Misrata-based businessman, will steer the war-battered country until general elections are held in December.

Egypt, along with the United Arab Emirates and Russia, has backed renegade commander Khalifa Hifter in Libyas civil war. Sisi views the fighting between Hifters forces and the internationally recognized Government of National Accord as a security threat to Egypt, which shares a 746-mile border with Libya.

In a statement, Sisi voiced Egypts full readiness to provide all its expertise and experience  in a way that contributes to putting Libya on the right track and preparing the country to move toward horizons of construction, development and stability.

Egyptian Prime Minister Mustafa Madbouly and Director of Egypts General Intelligence Service Abbas Kamel also attended the meeting, which marked Dbeibehs first foreign visit since his election.

The election of an interim government is the latest attempt at unifying the North African country after six years of civil war and an uprising that overthrew and killed longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Dbeibeh and the presidential council chosen in Geneva have pledged to hold nationwide elections on Dec. 24 and appoint women to 30% of all senior government positions.

As the UN seeks to unify Libyas rival administrations, an Egyptian delegation visited Tripoli earlier this week. The Egyptians and their Libyan counterparts reportedly discussed plans to reopen Egypts embassy in Tripoli, which it shuttered in 2014.
Some songbirds are not dissuaded by constant, loud noise emitted by natural gas pipeline compressors and will establish nests nearby. The number of eggs they lay is unaffected by the din, but their reproductive success ultimately is diminished.

That's the conclusion of a team of Penn State researchers who conducted an innovative, elaborate study that included unceasing playback of recorded compressor noise, 80 new, never-before-used nest boxes occupied by Eastern bluebirds and tree swallows, and behavioral observations with video cameras placed within boxes.

Importantly, the birds did not preferentially select quiet boxes over noisy boxes, suggesting they do not recognize the reduction in habitat quality resulting from the noise," said study co-author Margaret Brittingham, professor of wildlife resources, College of Agricultural Sciences. "But both bluebirds and tree swallows nesting in noisy boxes spent less time incubating their eggs, had fewer eggs hatch and produced fewer young than their neighbors nesting in quiet boxes."

Natural gas is one of the most rapidly growing global energy sources, with continued expansion expected in shale gas development in particular. Compressor stations needed to pressurize gas and push it through pipelines to consumers -- often located in interior forests used by breeding birds -- may be depressing birds' reproduction in isolated forested areas.

"The loud, low-frequency noise emitted by natural gas compressor stations travels hundreds of yards into undisturbed areas," said co-author Julian Avery, associate research professor of wildlife ecology and conservation. "Because shale gas development often occurs in relatively undisturbed natural areas that provide important habitat for breeding birds, it is imperative that we develop plans to manage and mitigate noise."

The experiment, believed to be the first of its kind, was conducted at Penn State's Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs, in central Pennsylvania. The study was unique because the researchers took extensive precautions to be sure they were assessing only the birds' reaction to the compressor noise and not other factors.

The design of the experiment allowed researchers to control for the confounding effects of both physical changes to the environment associated with compressor stations as well as the strong tendency for birds to return to the specific locations where they previously had bred.

Researchers established the 40 pairs of nest boxes to attract bluebirds and tree swallows to a site with no previous breeding population and immediately introduced shale gas compressor noise to half the boxes before birds returned to the region, while the other 40 boxes served as controls.

"We took a risk initiating the study -- we weren't sure these birds would find and occupy our boxes," Avery said. "We hoped that, 'if we build it, they will come.' Bluebirds likely had other nearby spots to nest, and the tree swallows were just returning from Central America. There was no guarantee they'd encounter our boxes."

The research was led by Danielle Williams, a master's degree student in wildlife and fisheries science, who currently is field coordinator for Purdue University's Hardwood Ecosystem Experiment.

Williams monitored video feeds from cameras placed within boxes to document changes in breeding behavior. She noted that there was no difference in clutch size -- eggs laid -- between noisy boxes and quiet boxes. Feeding behavior by the adults, known as provisioning, also was the same in both. However, in both species, she observed a reduction in incubation time, hatching success and fledging success -- the proportion of all eggs that fledged -- in noisy boxes compared to quiet boxes.

The findings, recently published in Ornithological Applications, demonstrate that compressor noise caused behavioral changes that led to reduced reproductive success for eastern bluebirds and tree swallows. The results indicate, the researchers said, that natural gas infrastructure can create an "equal-preference ecological trap," where birds do not distinguish between lower and higher quality territories, even when they incur reproductive costs.

Nest success -- the probability of fledging at least one young -- calculated from all nests that were initiated, was not affected by noise in either species studied, Brittingham pointed out.

"That suggests that noise did not increase rates of either depredation or abandonment but instead negatively impacted fitness through reduced hatching and fledging success," she said. "We never would have known that if we had not done this research."

###

Also involved in the research was acoustics expert Thomas Gabrielson, senior scientist, Penn State Applied Research Laboratory.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Penn State's Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence, the Association of Field Ornithologists and the NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant Consortium funded this research.
Frederick Douglasss American Identity Politics

Commentary

Mark Twain copied a friends remark into his notebook: I am not an American; I am the American. That is a claimto be the American, the exemplary or representative Americanthat very few Americans could plausibly make. Twain himself could. Benjamin Franklin could and did. Abraham Lincoln could but didnt, though admirers made the claim for him. Surely some number of others could, too. But among all Americans past or present, no one could make such a claim more compellingly than Frederick Douglass.

Like his country, Douglass rose from a low beginning to a great height. Like his country again, he won his freedom in a revolutionary struggle, by his own virtue and against great odds, and he matured into an exemplar of universal liberty, admired the world over. And like his country, finally, Douglass the individual was divided by race.

Unlike America, Douglass could hardly think of himself as conceived in liberty. But even in this respectespecially in this respecthe represents a larger American promise. The son of a white slaveholder and a black slave, Douglass became, along with Abraham Lincoln, post-Founding Americas most important exponent of the natural-rights argument summarized in the Declaration of Independence. Pursuant to the same principles, he became Americas most prominent representative of the aspiration toward racial integration, reconciliation, and uplift.

One must emphasize: he became that. It didnt come naturally to him. To become the great apostle of those aspirations, Douglass had to overcome a sentiment about and among black Americans that is recurrently present in U.S. history, powerful in his day and again in oursthe feeling or conviction that to be black is to bear an identity antagonistic to American identity.

This sentiment received its most memorable expression from W.E.B. Du Bois, now a larger presence in the minds of many educated Americans than Douglass. Du Bois wrote, in the most famous passage in his book The Souls of Black Folk, that as a black American, one ever feels his two-ness,an American, a Negro; two souls, two thoughts, two unreconciled strivings; two warring ideals in one dark body.

In his younger years, Frederick Douglass felt that psychic dividedness every bit as acutely and painfully as Du Bois did.

In an 1847 speech, Douglass asked a troubling question and provided a dispiriting answer. Speaking for black Americans as a class, he asked: What country have I? He answered: I have no patriotism. I have no country. Then 29 years old, for nearly his entire life recognized in American laws only as an article of property, Douglass here lamented that even as a legally free man, he had no country that honored and protected him, no country to which he belonged and none that belonged to him.

He made that speech at a meeting of the American Anti-Slavery Society, an association founded by Americas leading abolitionist, William Lloyd Garrison. In 1847, Douglass was a faithful Garrisonian. When he declared his profound alienation from the country of his birth, he was rendering a personalized expression of what was standard Garrisonian doctrine.

What alienated the Garrisonians from America, most of all, was their opinion that the U.S. Constitution was decisively pro-slavery. Garrison near the beginning of his career called the Constitution the most bloody and heaven-daring arrangement ever made by men for the continuance and protection of a system of the most atrocious villainy ever exhibited on earth. From that premise he drew what seemed to him the necessary inference. Henceforth, he announced in 1845, the watchword of abolitionists must be disunion: NO UNION WITH SLAVEHOLDERS!

According to William Lloyd Garrison, then, the destruction of slavery required the destruction of Americaof the American constitutional union. And in 1847, that was Douglasss position, too.

Given Douglasss life experience, there is nothing very surprising in this. What is surprising, though, is how quickly and decisively he came to reject the Garrisonian position. Douglass launched his own abolitionist newspaper in early 1848, and after spending a few years reading and rethinking, he announced that he had come to reject the Garrisonian doctrines of disunion and the pro-slavery Constitution.

His turnabout came partly for prudential reasons. First was the realization, as he put it in his speech on the U.S. Supreme Courts infamous Dred Scott ruling, that it would be difficult to hit upon any plan less likely to abolish slavery than the dissolution of the Union. The disunion strategy would strengthen, not weaken the forces of despotism in America. Again from the Dred Scott speech:

If I were on board of a pirate ship, with a company of men and women whose lives and liberties I had put in jeopardy, I would not clear my soul of their blood by jumping in the long boat, and singing out no union with pirates. My business would be to remain on board. Even among slaverys adversaries, the Garrisonians were not alone in wanting to jump ship.

The counterparts to Garrisonian advocates of disunion were black advocates of emigration, led in the 1850s by Douglasss sometime friend, colleague, and rival, Martin Delany. Emigrationists were never a majority of black Americans, but their arguments gained influence in those periods when the prospects for freedom and equal rights appeared especially bleak.

The decade of the 1850s was such a period. So Douglass felt the need to respond to the Garrisonians and the emigrationists, and an invitation from the Rochester Ladies Anti-Slavery Society provided the opportunity. The occasion was the commemoration of Independence Day in 1852. Douglasss Fourth of July oration, which has been called the greatest of all abolitionist speeches, presents his fullest reflections on the meaning of America and on the question Du Bois would pose a half-century laterthe question of black identity in relation to America.

Its a very complex speech. Douglass biographer David W. Blight aptly compares it to a symphony in three movements. One way Douglass divides the speech is temporally, as its sections move from past to present to future. Another way is by sentiment: he begins with a somewhat cautious, reserved expression of hope, then shifts to outrage mixed with something approaching despair, and concludes with a more confident expression of hope. A third mode of division appears in his adoption of three distinct perspectives: he considers the Fourth as it appears to white Americans, then as it appears to black Americans, and finally from a universal or fully integrated perspective.

For much of the speech, the reader could be forgiven for thinking that Douglass had joined Delany in the black-nationalist camp. First addressing the white members of the audience, he told them, in effect, this is how your national holiday appears to you. He addresses them in a chain of second-person pronouns: not our but your national independence; your political freedom; your fathers; your nation. The driving spirit seems little different from what animated his 1847 renunciation of patriotism. While admiring the revolutionary fathers, he yet declared: This Fourth [of] July is yours, not mine.

Coming to the present, he excoriated post-Founding America: There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices, more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these United States, at this very hour.

Perhaps the worst of the nations crimes, to that point, was the enactment of the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850that most foul and fiendish of all human decrees, Douglass called it, a law that stands alone in the annals of tyrannical legislation. For free black Americans, the effect was essentially to legalize kidnapping, leaving many to conclude that there was no protection by law for them anywhere in the United States. What followed were upsurges in pro-emigration sentiment and in actual emigration.

Douglass fully understood that sentiment, but he believed it to be self-destructive and rejected it repeatedly over the course of his career. He understood, too, however, that the case against emigration, like the case against disunion, had to be buttressed by a case for America. He concluded the July Fourth oration, as he concluded virtually all his speeches, with an expression of hopefulness.

This was not mere wishfulness. Douglass thought hopefulness in America was rationalgrounded in evidence and reasonin part because of Americas Founding. Americas revolutionary fathers were brave men, he remarked. They were great men; they dedicated the country to eternal principles. Against the Garrisonians, also against those debauched (as Lincoln put it) by John Calhoun, he maintained that the Founders Constitution was not pro-slavery; it was a GLORIOUS LIBERTY DOCUMENT.

The case for hopefulness required that and more. At the conclusion of the Fourth of July speech, Douglass said something particularly interesting about the further grounds of his hopefulness. A change has now come over the affairs of mankind, he said. Developments in the modern world, crucially enabled by modern philosophy, were making slavery increasingly impossible.

The arm of commerce, he continued, has borne away the gates of the strong city. Intelligence is penetrating the darkest corners of the globe. We are living in an age of commerce and enlightenment, he believed, and those developments were closely related.

So monstrous an injustice as slavery could only survive in a condition of seclusion, and in the modern world the seclusion it needed was becoming impossible. No abuse, said Douglass, no outrage  can now hide itself from the all-pervading light. Douglass believed what Thomas Jefferson and Thomas Paine believed: the principles of natural right held irresistible power for minds uncorrupted by interest, and freedom of speech, if properly protected, would propagate those principles throughout the world.

Douglass was a strong believer in the power of speech. This was a man who almost literally talked his way from the bottom to near the top of American society. But he didnt think speech was all-powerful, and he didnt think that the fostering of a healthy sense of American identity was merely a matter of persuading people, white or black, to believe in American principles.

To cultivate a genuine sense of American identity requires more than agreement with its principles. It requires a sense of belonging and affection. It requires a love of America as ones own. On this point and others, Douglass was a good American disciple of John Locke.

In Lockes well-known reasoning, we own our own labor, and we own what we make. This can apply, however, not only to material property but also to political and patriotic affiliation. What Douglass wanted to teach his fellow citizens, his black fellow citizens in particular, was that we can build America, and in building or rebuilding it, we can make it our own. We can improve it by our labor, he argued, culturally and morally no less than materially. And to do this, we need first to improve ourselves. We need to cultivate what he called the staying qualities, fostering a faith in ourselves and our country. This is why hopefulness is a moral imperative, for Douglass, and why a spirit of alienation is so dangerous.

We are now just over 200 years from Frederick Douglasss birth. In remembering him, we must certainly say today what he said in 1852: Our business is with the present. Republics, he liked to say, are proverbially forgetfulmost importantly, forgetful of their own first principles. We live, as Douglass lived, in a period when the first principles of American republicanism are increasingly neglected and even maligned.

We live in a time when many Americans have forgotten our principles, or never learned them, or learned to revile them; when many young people, young men especially, grow up in the belief that they have no grounds for hope for their future and no reason to identify with their country; when many of our educational institutions have become purveyors of alienation and disintegration, teaching that America is an evil, hateful society and that speech to the contrary must be vilified and suppressed.

At such a time, as we search for models of understanding and inspiration, it is a vital imperative for us to recover the moral and political vision of Frederick Douglass. In the long history of African-American political thought, there is no more forceful proponent of the cause of integration, and there is no more insightful analyst of the varieties and dangers of national and racial disintegration.

No people can prosper, Douglass reiterated late in life, unless they have a home, or the hope of a homeand to have a home, one must have a country. America, in Douglasss abiding vision, was black Americans proper home, their only realistic alternative and also the locus of their highest ideals. By its white and black citizens together, America must be cherished and perfected as a genuine home for all, not merely by the accident and force of necessity but as an object of rational and sentimental identification. For Douglass as for Abraham Lincoln, their common country was, through it all, the last best hope of earth.

From RealClearWire.

Peter C. Myers, Ph.D., is professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and visiting graduate faculty member at Ashland University. He is a former visiting fellow at the Heritage Foundations B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies. He is the author of Our Only Star and Compass: Locke and the Struggle for Political Rationality and Frederick Douglass: Race and the Rebirth of American Liberalism, along with essays and articles in political philosophy and American political thought.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
The Valley is a special place. The history is rich, the hills, rivers, ponds and forests are beautiful, and the people are salt of the earth and hold a deep sense of community. Were a big-hearted, resilient bunch  a middle and working-class community full of grit and grace. Were tough, and we look out for our neighbors.

In the past, we were the economic heartbeat of Connecticut. Today, the cities and towns along the Waterbury Rail Line are home to the first, second, fifth and 22nd most economically distressed municipalities in the state of Connecticut out of 169 cities and towns. Median incomes in Ansonia and Derby are far below the state average, and unemployment is too high. If you know our people, you know it is wise never to count the Valley out.

Starting my tenure representing Ansonia and Derby just two years ago, I quickly started pressing for advancement on Waterbury Rail Line improvements for increased service to our branch. At the Capitol, I often discuss the numbers: the pockets of poverty, the ALICE rates, the downtown developments that cant seem to get off the ground, and the rightful frustration of my neighbors who want what everyone else wants  economic stability, a thriving place to call home, good schools and amenities in their community, and meaningful investment from the state to help this become a reality.

It was a shock in 2019 to learn that I was the only legislator from the Naugatuck Valley to testify before the Transportation Committee calling for increased service for the Waterbury Rail Line.

So, I set to work building a coalition of support, advocating the chair of the Transportation Committee, then to the governor, and my colleagues in the region. We recently brought in Department of Economic and Community Development commissioner David Lehman to see firsthand the pending redevelopment projects in our downtown, hear of the developers who consistently ask, What about the trains? and join the effort in advocating for the Waterbury Rail Line.

I found proactive allies in folks like Rep. Geraldo Reyes of Waterbury and Mayor Pete Hess of Naugatuck. He organized Valley mayors for a day of action and spoke on their behalf while testifying to the Transportation Committee in 2020. Jim Gildea, chair of the Connecticut Commuter Rail Council, and Rick Dunne, executive director of the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments, also were strong partners in this effort. They lent their voices, expertise and networks to inform and advocate alongside us with state agency leaders.

I also took an active role in pushing the ongoing rail improvements forward by pressing the utility companies, the Department of Transportation and others to get the job done.

The facts have always been on our side: the last time the state increased service on our line, ridership went up 40 percent. The physical line improvements are nearly complete. When COVID-19 struck, ridership went down sharply across the state  but the Waterbury Rail Line held its own, seeing the smallest decrease in ridership in the state.

We deserve increased investment in our rail line. It will spur economic growth.

For residents of the Naugatuck Valley, whether you ride the rail or not, increased rail service will directly and positively affect your life. Increased and reliable rail service means increases in property values. It will attract potential commuters to envision our walkable city centers as their new home and developers to sites like the Ansonia Brass property and Derbys downtown. New development brings jobs and grand list growth and helps our cities to improve residents amenities and lower taxes.

While there are matters to pick apart in Gov. Ned Lamonts budget, one thing to indeed celebrate is the investment he proposes to make in the Waterbury Rail Line.

The governors budget document states: Beginning in FY 2023, $1,227,689 is recommended to increase the number of trains servicing the Waterbury line from 15 to 22 across weekday morning and evening peak as well as off-peak services. The governor proposes launching an expanded service to align with constituent demands, as the Department of Transportation is completing a $120 million capital project to allow for modern bidirectional rail service in the fast-growing Naugatuck Valley region. It is critically important to align transportation hubs with employment and economic opportunity for our state to thrive.

Rep. Roland Lemar, who serves as both the House chair of the Transportation Committee and the finance sub-committee chair on transportation bonding, stated: "The Waterbury Line has always carried the greatest potential for rapid utilization and for spurring economic growth. This commitment, coupled with the capital investments weve made to date, is exactly what we need for the city of Waterbury and the cities and towns throughout the Valley. This investment has my strongest support and I specifically want to credit Reps. Reyes and Rochelle for their tireless advocacy.

I hope this is the year we see this significant investment in local rail service increases pass in the final budget. You can count on me to continue leading the fight for it.

State Rep. Kara Rochelle, a Democrat, represents the 104th District, which includes Ansonia and Derby.

A research team including the geobiologist Dr. Helge Missbach from the University of Cologne has detected organic molecules and gases trapped in 3.5 billion-year-old rocks. A widely accepted hypothesis says that the earliest life forms used small organic molecules as building materials and energy sources. However, the existence of such components in early habitats on Earth was as yet unproven. The current study, published in the journal 'Nature Communications', now shows that solutions from archaic hydrothermal vents contained essential components that formed a basis for the earliest life on our planet.

Specifically, the scientists examined about 3.5 billion-year-old barites from the Dresser Formation in Western Australia. The barite thus dates from a time when early life developed on Earth. 'In the field, the barites are directly associated with fossilized microbial mats, and they smell like rotten eggs when freshly scratched. Thus, we suspected that they contained organic material that might have served as nutrients for early microbial life,' said Dr. Helge Missbach of the Institute of Geology and Mineralogy and lead author of the study.

In the fluid inclusions, the team identified organic compounds such as acetic acid and methanethiol, in addition to gases such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide. These compounds may have been important substrates for metabolic processes of early microbial life. Furthermore, they are discussed as putative key agents in the origin of life on Earth. 'The immediate connection between primordial molecules emerging from the subsurface and the microbial organisms - 3.5 billion years ago - somehow surprised us. This finding contributes decisively to our understanding of the still unclear earliest evolutionary history of life on Earth,' Missbach concluded.

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BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan -- Kyrgyzstan's State Committee for National Security (UKMK) has rearrested Raimbek Matraimov, the controversial former deputy chief of the Customs Service, days after demonstrators in Bishkek protested against what they saw as a lenient sentence handed to him on corruption charges.



UKMK officials told RFE/RL on February 18 that Matraimov was arrested due to an ongoing probe launched into money laundering, adding that the decision on Matraimov's pretrial restrictions will be made within 48 hours.



The UKMK move comes four days after hundreds rallied in the Kyrgyz capital, protesting a Bishkek court ruling last week that ordered a mitigated sentence and no jail time for Matraimov.

Matraimov, who was placed on the U.S. Magnitsky sanctions list for his involvement in the illegal funneling of hundreds of millions of dollars abroad, was fined just over $3,000 after pleading guilty to corruption charges.



The court said on February 11 that Matraimov had paid back around $24 million, which disappeared through corruption schemes that he oversaw.



In June 2019, an investigation by RFE/RL, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, and Kloop implicated Matraimov in a corruption scheme involving the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars out of Kyrgyzstan by Chinese-born Uyghur businessman Aierken Saimaiti, who was subsequently assassinated in Istanbul in November 2019.

SPECIAL REPORT: Plunder And Patronage In The Heart Of Central Asia

On February 15, a day after the protests, the UKMK said the criminal case against Matraimov would resume if allegations are confirmed that he has numerous properties in Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Ukraine, and Russia.

The estimated $700-million scheme involved a company controlled by Matraimov bribing officials to skirt customs fees and regulations, as well as engaging in money laundering, "allowing for maximum profits," the U.S. Treasury Department said.

Recent reports said that Matraimov, 49, had changed his last name to Ismailov, and that his wife, Uulkan Turgunova, had changed her family name to Sulaimanova in a move seen as an attempt to evade the U.S.- imposed sanctions.

Last month, Damira Azimbaeva, a spokesperson for Kyrgyzstan's state registration service, confirmed to RFE/RL that both Matraimov and his wife had changed their surnames.

There have been no official statements from lawyers for Matraimov's family to explain the name change.
Glasgow City Council is suing a bus company over the reference it gave an ex-driver who fell asleep at the wheel of a bin lorry before it mowed down and killed six people in 2014.

Lawyers for the Scottish council claim First Bus failed to tell them Harry Clarke had previously lost consciousness at the wheel of a stationary bus in April 2010.

Mr Clarke later collapsed while driving a bin lorry which ran out of control, crashed into pedestrians and killed six people days before Christmas in December 2014.

The former bus driver, who did not face charges over the deadly crash, had worked for First Bus before securing a role with Glasgow City Council.

During an initial hearing at the Court of Session in Edinburgh today, Roddy Dunlop QC, representing First Bus, told the court he would not focus heavily on the issue of automatism.

Harry Clarke collapsed while at the wheel of a bin lorry which ran out of control, crashed into pedestrians and killed six people days before Christmas in December 2014. Pictured: The scene

Glasgow City Council is suing First Bus, the former employers of Harry Clarke, over the job reference the firm provided before he took on a refuse collector role with the authority. Pictured: Harry Clarke

He added: 'My point is a simpler one and it's this - the pursuers must prove the reasonableness of the settlement and the defenders are entitled to test the evidence in that regard.

'So that is the sum and substance of the line and it will not be advanced further.'

Andrew Smith QC, representing the local authority, agreed with Mr Dunlop that no meeting of the two parties should take place before the full hearing as they had 'polarised positions' on the issue.

Judge Lord Ericht has set a six-day hearing for September 28.

The hearing, which will explore whether First Bus acted negligently by failing to provide a thorough reference for Mr Clarke, was postponed in January after Glasgow City Council tried to lodge a legal document at the last minute.

Judge Ericht had criticised Scotland's largest local authority over the delay, describing its conduct as 'extremely unsatisfactory,' the BBC reported.

He said: 'It appears from what I have just heard that a council employee has been aware of the full spreadsheet since July.

The hearing was previously postponed in January after Glasgow City Council tried to lodge a legal document at the last minute. Pictured: The scene

Jacqueline Morton, left, and Stephenie Tait, right, were killed in the collision

Gillian Ewing was one of the victims of the collision when the bin lorry driver lost control

'It is simply not acceptable not to prepare for a Court of Session proof properly on the basis of pressure of other work.'

The local authority is seeking a total of 446,012 from First Glasgow.

Mr Clarke had a history of health issues dating back to the 1970s - including the previous blackout - but had not disclosed his medical background to his employers or the DVLA.

Erin McQuade, 18, and her grandparents Jack Sweeney, 68, and Lorraine Sweeney, 69, from Dumbarton; Stephenie Tait, 29, and Jacqueline Morton, 51, both from Glasgow; and Gillian Ewing, 52, from Edinburgh, died in the crash in December 2014.

A further 15 people were injured when the Glasgow City Council truck veered out of control.

It travelled along the pavement in Queen Street before crashing into the side of the Millennium Hotel in George Square.

An inquiry into the incident held in 2015 heard the tragedy took just 19 seconds to unfold.

During the course of the incident, numerous members of the public saw Mr Clarke unconscious and slumped forward in the driver's seat.

Lorraine Sweeney, 69, and her granddaughter Erin McQuade, 19, were among the six killed

Grandfather Jack Sweeney, 68, was also killed when Mr Clarke's lorry ran out of control in 2014

Sheriff John Beckett QC, who chaired the inquiry, ruled the crash might have been avoided if Mr Clarke had told the truth about his medical history.

The court heard Mr Clarke also knew he had suffered a loss of consciousness or an episode of altered awareness while at the wheel of a stationary bus on April 7, 2010.

In a rare legal move, relatives of three crash victims had sought permission from senior judges to bring charges against him in a private prosecution.

However, judges at the Appeal Court in Edinburgh ruled in November 2018 the family could not launch a private prosecution.

Mr Clarke's licence was revoked by the DVLA on medical grounds in June 2015 after they became aware of the incident in 2010 in addition to the incident in December 2014.

His licence to drive cars was revoked for 12 months and his licence to drive buses and lorries for 10 years.

Mr Clarke was originally charged with three other road traffic offences relating to insurance and licence matters. However, his not guilty pleas were accepted by the Crown.

Speaking in December 2019, Mr Clarke described his 'devastation' over the tragedy and said 'not a day goes by' when he does not think about the crash and those who died.

He added: 'I am devastated at what happened. There's all these poor people that are not here and those who were injured.

'It has been made out that I don't care about what happened. There's not a day goes by I don't think about it.

'I'm sorry for the part I played in 2014. It was an accident. If I thought for a minute it was all my fault I'd jump off a bridge.'
Business excellence and quality are the main objectives at Cannalytics." - Javi Diaz, Business Development Manager, Cannalytics

A2LA is pleased to announce the accreditation of Cannalytics, LLC to ISO/IEC 17025:2017 for cannabis testing. Cannalytics, based in San Juan, Puerto, was accredited by A2LA in December 2020 and is the first cannabis testing laboratory accredited to the international standard in Puerto Rico. Cannalytics is led by professionals with extensive laboratory experience in related fields, giving them the skills required to excel in cannabis testing. Owner and Director Jorge H. Diaz, MT (ASCP) and his team pursued accreditation with A2LA to establish themselves as quality leaders in the fast-expanding cannabis industry and to support a safe and consistent medical cannabis supply in Puerto Rico.

Business excellence and quality are the main objectives at Cannalytics, said Javi Diaz, Business Development Manager. Our clients are served promptly and efficiently with our brand-new state-of-the-art equipment and team of experienced scientists. Being the first ISO/IEC 17025 accredited cannabis laboratory in Puerto Rico affirms our mission to provide continuous quality science to our clients while safeguarding the health of Puerto Ricos medical cannabis patients. Cannalytics greatly appreciates the accreditation experience and A2LAs commitment to excellence.

Cannalytics chose A2LA as their Accreditation Body after learning of A2LAs positive reputation within the cannabis industry. Accreditation Supervisor Anna Williams and her department are glad to have had the opportunity to support this laboratory on their accreditation journey. We congratulate Cannalytics on being the first laboratory accredited for cannabis testing in Puerto Rico, said Williams. We are glad to see the continued growth of our cannabis program in a new territory, which further promotes the value that accreditation adds in ensuring quality in this emerging industry. We look forward to our continued relationship with Cannalytics in serving their accreditation needs.

Achieving ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation by A2LA is the pinnacle in third-party laboratory accreditation, confirming that laboratories have management, quality, and technical systems in place to ensure accurate and reliable analyses, as well as proper administrative processes to ensure that all aspects related to the sample, the analysis, and the reporting are standardized, measured, and monitored.

About A2LA

A2LA is a non-profit, non-governmental, third-party accreditation body, offering internationally recognized accreditation services to testing and calibration laboratories, sampling organizations, inspection bodies, proficiency testing providers, reference material producers, biobanking facilities, and product certifiers. Founded in 1978, A2LA is one of the largest and most recognized accreditation bodies in the world.

About Cannalytics, LLC.

Cannalytics, LLC. is a full-service medical cannabis and hemp testing laboratory facility in Puerto Rico. We provide a full array of compliance and R&D Cannabis testing including potency, terpenes, pesticide screening, heavy metals, microbial detection, mycotoxin analysis, foreign matter, residual solvents, moisture content, water activity and genetic identification.
Press Release

February 18, 2021 STATEMENT OF SENATOR RISA HONTIVEROS ON THE COUNTRY'S TEEN PREGNANCY CRISIS Sampung taon nang patuloy na umaakyat ang mga kaso ng mga batang nabubuntis. Ito'y sampung taon na napapabayaan ang kababaihan at kabataan natin, at ang kinabukasan nila. Sampung taon gulang din ang edad ng iilan sa mga child mothers, na nalalagay sa peligro ng kamatayan dahil minsan hindi nakakaya ng mga katawan nila. As the Chair of the Senate Committee on Women, Children and Family Relations, I will see to it that the resolutions filed by Senators Nancy Binay, Sonny Angara, and Leila de Lima, which all seek an investigation into these alarming teen pregnancies, are heard at the Senate immediately. Ang nakataya dito sa pag-iimbestiga natin sa krisis na ito ay ang kapakanan, kinabukasan, mga pangarap at ang mismong buhay ng susunod na henerasyon ng mga Pilipino. The dramatic rise in teen pregnancies is a health emergency and a social injustice in and of itself. I support the Commission of Population (POPCOM) in their call for the government to declare this a social emergency. It is also of great consequence that the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Bill I authored be discussed again at the Senate. I am willing to accept amendments to the bill so we can finally move forward. The physical and mental health, the education, and the financial independence of these child moms and their children are gambled away. Every time a child gives birth there are more channels for the country to fall deeper into intergenerational poverty. NEDA in 2019 said we lose 24 to 42 billion pesos caused by early childbearing. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to devastate our country, the stakes and the consequences get higher and higher. This is not just about the kind of lives they live, but the fact that many of them will die while giving birth. According to the Social Weather Survey, most Filipinos believe teen pregnancy is the most important problem of women today. I agree with them. Our greatest failure as a society is when we cannot guide or protect our children who are our most vulnerable. We must stay committed to giving them healthy and good lives. We truly cannot waste a moment longer.
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Source: Xinhua| 2021-02-19 04:51:25|Editor: huaxia

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TEHRAN, Feb. 18 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif on Thursday urged Britain, France and Germany to adhere to their commitments regarding Iran's interests under the 2015 nuclear deal, commonly known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"Instead of sophistry & putting onus on Iran, E3/EU must abide by own commitments & demand an end to Trump's legacy of #EconomicTerrorism against Iran," Zarif tweeted, referring to Britain, France and Germany, the three European countries (E3) which signed the Iranian nuclear deal.

Zarif's remarks followed a Thursday statement by the foreign ministers of Britain, France, Germany and the United States, wherein they expressed their "shared fundamental security interest in upholding the nuclear non-proliferation regime" for Iran.

They also "expressed their shared concerns over Iran's recent actions to produce both uranium enriched up to 20 percent and uranium metal."

"Our remedial measures are a response to US/E3 violations," said Zarif, adding that "Remove the cause if you fear the effect."

In response to the U.S. withdrawal from the JCPOA in 2018 and re-imposition of sanctions, Iran has suspended implementing parts of its obligations under the deal.

Iran has been critical of the E3' inaction over the unilateral U.S. pullout from the nuclear deal and re-imposing sanctions on Iran by the previous U.S. administration under President Donald Trump. Enditem
[February 18, 2021] Sentar Formally Designated as CMMC Registered Provider Organization (RPO)

Sentar Inc. (Sentar), a women-owned business specializing in advanced cybersecurity and intelligence solutions and technology, announced today that Sentar has received an official designation as a Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Registered Provider Organization (RPO) from CMMC-AB. The CMMC RPO affiliation is given to organizations that act as credible providers for CMMC consulting services. Both RPs (Registered Providers) and RPOs act as consultants, but do not conduct Certified Assessments. Sentar has also applied and is waiting to be designated as a CMMC C3PAO, a third-party assessment organization that provides formal CMMC Maturity Level accreditations to DOD contractor organizations. In order to secure work with DoD, contractors must prepare for a CMMC assessment. Starting this year, contractors will require verification from an independent C3PAO who will be responsible for conducting CMMC assessments. To be listed as a RPO on the CMMC-AB Marketplace, Sentar signed an RPO agreement with the Accreditation Body and passed an Organizational Background Check. Additionally, RPs and RPOs have both agreed to the CMMC-AB Code of Professional Conduct to enure trust in service providers. The RPO affiliation gives contractors reassurance in who to hire when seeking CMMC consulting. "Sentar is excited to add RPO to our growing list of credentials," said Steve Pratt, Sr. Cyber Security Engineer. "As one of the leading cyber-intelligence companies providing DFARS 252.204-7012 support solutions to other defense contractors, this is a natural progression on Sentar's path to becoming a C3PAO."



Sentar's Governance, Regulation, and Compliance experts have helped dozens and dozens of federal contractors meet their compliance requirements. Every Sentar GRC client that has been assessed for their compliance has passed without exception. Contractors interested in receiving CMMC consulting services from Sentar can reference their page on the CMMC Marketplace for more information. About Sentar, Inc.

Sentar is a cyber-intelligence company, applying analytics and systems engineering expertise to protect our national security and way of life by innovating, building, and securing mission-critical assets. Established in 1990, we have a long history of innovation. Today, we are one of the fastest-growing cyber-intelligence companies serving the National Security sector. Sentar has offices in Huntsville, Alabama; Charleston, South Carolina; Columbia, Maryland; and San Antonio, Texas. Visit www.sentar.com for more information. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210218005741/en/

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VANCOUVER - Canada is home to significant scientific expertise and research tackling COVID-19,though one expert says long-standing hurdles make it difficult for the country to punch above its weight in the global fight against the virus.

A health-care worker prepares a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at a UHN COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Toronto on Thursday, January 7, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

VANCOUVER - Canada is home to significant scientific expertise and research tackling COVID-19,though one expert says long-standing hurdles make it difficult for the country to punch above its weight in the global fight against the virus.

Among the standout contributions is a Vancouver biotech company that's producing a key component of several vaccines, but a University of British Columbia professor says Canada could do more to support its experts.

Dr. Srinivas Murthy, who also co-chairs the World Health Organization's COVID-19 clinical characterization and management committee, said Canada needs greater integration between health care and research.

He said clinicians in the United States are better equipped to conduct "good quality research at the bed side," while in Canada, separate budgets, personnel and infrastructure make it difficult to get clinical research up and running quickly, especially in response to a crisis like the pandemic.

"When the rubber hits the road, it's patients and providers and hospitals that are doing the work," and that's where Canada lacks on-the-ground operational resources for research in clinical settings, he said.

"If you look at clinical trials or vaccines or diagnostics (and) the testing of each of those things, if we start something and build something and then get swept away by (research) that's gone faster in another part of the world," he said, it becomes harder to implement those home-grown ideas.

Murthy would like to see research centres established at local hospitals across Canada, an approach he said constitutes a "culture shift" that hasn't happened yet and requires money and research staff at each hospital.

While he said there's yet to be a defining contribution of COVID-19 global research that Canada may call only its own, Murthy acknowledges the contributions of experts across the country.

"We shouldn't look down on the fact that we are good at this," he said.

In Vancouver, for example, biotech company Acuitas Therapeutics is contributing a key component to several COVID-19 vaccines: lipid nanoparticles that help deliver the drug in the form of messenger ribonucleic acid or mRNA.

Acuitas CEO Thomas Madden said in recent years they've developed carrier systems that are uniquely effective at protecting fragile mRNA when it enters the body and delivering it inside cells, where it provides instructions.

In the case of COVID-19 vaccines, the mRNA is "delivering a message to our cells that allows them to express the spike protein that's on the outside of the virus," he explained. "When our cells make this protein, it's recognized by our immune system as being foreign, and so we develop a protective immune response against that protein."

Acuitas' lipid nanoparticles help deliver a larger portion inside the cells than other carrier systems, said Madden. That means vaccine developers can administer a lower dose of mRNA while reaching effective protection.

When Acuitas began working with Pfizer and BioNTech, CureVac and Imperial College London on mRNA vaccines to fight COVID-19, the company realized their contribution was an important Canadian story, said Madden.

"Canadians should be aware that a Canadian company and Canadian technology (are) playing a critical role" in vaccine development, he said.

Meanwhile, a team led by researchers at the University of Alberta in Edmonton caught Pfizer's attention as they develop an algorithm to predict COVID-19 cases and deaths up to 10 weeks into the future by using massive amounts of public data from Canada and the United States.

The pharmaceutical company has a partnership with the provincial Crown corporation Alberta Innovates and Pfizer signalled its interest in supporting work on the algorithm, said Mark Lewis, Canada research chair in mathematical biology and co-applicant for the $220,000 grant.

The company is "not dictating any of the research," he noted.

A key feature of the algorithm is it learns from the data, said Lewis, in contrast to mathematical modelling that relies on certain hypotheses about how the illness spreads and other factors, such as the impact of vaccines.

"We're not really hypothesizing how things are working," he said. "We're just saying, here's all the data we can find, learn from it and make a prediction. So, it's philosophically quite different."

Their results so far have been submitted to a peer-reviewed journal, said Lewis, who hesitated to share too much until that evaluation is complete.

But he said the algorithm appears to do a "good job" predicting cases and deaths up to 10 weeks in advance, offering insight for policymakers.

"It's a way to help reduce uncertainty."

Making predictions about the pandemic is a tough job, said Lewis, because factors affecting the pandemic are always in flux, from public health rules to the availability of vaccine to everyday human behaviour.

Pouria Ramazi, an assistant professor at Brock University in St. Catharines, Ont., said their algorithm uses data from at least 25 variables from several thousand counties across the U.S., such as ICU capacity, the ratio of smokers to non-smokers, age and income levels, the temperature outside and the public health policies in place at the time data was collected.

Data is "less transparent" in Canada, he said, but they've still gathered a range of information from across the country to feed into the algorithm, which they hope to make publicly accessible.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2021.

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

In a social disaster now entering its fourth day, as many as 4.5 million people have been hit by rolling blackouts or the complete shutoff of electricity in Texas. Millions have lost heat amidst winter storms that have sent temperatures plunging into single-digit Fahrenheit numbers (-13 C) as far south as Austin, the state capital. The blackout is the largest in US history caused by deliberate action of the power utilities.

Michelle Terrazas tosses a log of firewood as as people line up to load up Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

As of Wednesday, according to the misnamed Electricity Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the industry-dominated electricity distribution coordinator, 1.4 million people were without power in Houston, the states largest city, while one-fourth of residents in Dallas, the second-largest city, were similarly cut off. At least 21 deaths have been attributed to the combination of winter storms and power outages, with causes ranging from road accidents to house fires to people overcome by carbon monoxide.

The cause of the disaster is not any actual shortage in the production of electricity in the United States. On the contrary, the power supply is adequate and prices are comparatively stable. This social tragedy is the product of a series of decisions made by private corporations and public officials, all driven by a common concern: the maximization of capitalist profit.

Ten years ago, a mid-February deep freeze caused a power crisis in Texas. This prompted studies and multiple warnings of what might occur in the event of a similar or more far-reaching occurrence. The current crisis, occurring in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, is not a natural disaster, but the result of the deliberate and criminal refusal to heed those warnings.

A major factor is the decision of Texas state officials, adhering to Republican Party doctrine, to take no notice of climate change, despite a series of climate-induced disasters that have befallen the statetornadoes, floods, droughts, wildfires. Above all, there was Hurricane Harvey, which spawned floods that devastated the Houston area in 2017, killing more than 100 people and causing damage estimated at $125 billion.

Climate change is believed to be a major contributor to the more frequent eruptions of the polar vortex, which bring bursts of super-cold air into regions where subzero temperatures have historically been rare.

But there are other political and economic decisions that underlie the current crisis. Texas operates a state-wide power grid that is disconnected from the major national grids that cover the remaining 47 states of the contiguous US. The state government has chosen this policy in order to evade the authority of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which oversees power grids that cross state lines. The lack of a connection to neighboring states means that when the Texas system experiences a crisis, it cannot easily draw on external power supplies.

Such a crisis developed Sunday night as a savage midwinter cold front swept into the state. Sub-freezing temperatures knocked out nearly half of the states energy generating capacity.

While Texas politicians have focused on the fall in wind and solar generation, down about four gigawatts (million kilowatts), by far the biggest drop came in conventional gas-driven generation, which lost more than 30 gigawatts because the temperatures made it more difficult to pump natural gas out of underground storage tanks. Cooling water at some nuclear power plants froze. Even antiquated coal-fired plants were forced to close, as coal supplies froze to the ground.

The deep freeze drove up energy demand to nearly 70 gigawatts, as Texans sought to heat their homes. But the supply problems cut available electricity to less than 45 gigawatts. Prices on the spot market, the only means through which Texas utilities could draw additional power, rocketed from $22 a megawatt hour to $9,000 on Monday.

ERCOT instructed utilities not to pay the exorbitant short-term ratewhich would drastically cut into their profits since many customers are paying longer-term fixed ratesand to impose rolling blackouts instead.

The shutdown of power plants that caused the power shortage was itself the result of the drive for profit. There is no technical obstacle to weatherizing power plants, whether gas-driven, nuclear or based on renewable resources like the sun, wind and water. Such plants operate even in Siberia, Canada and Alaska.

But the deregulation of Texas utilities meant that it was entirely up to corporate executives to decide whether to make the investments required to protect their operations from cold snaps that have become increasingly common in the last two decades. They declined to make such deductions from profit.

Moreover, Texas officials decided in the mid-1990s that they would no longer require utilities to set aside a certain proportion of capacity as a reserve against surges in demand. Elsewhere in North America, such supply buffers are maintained at 15 percent or more. But Texas had no backup plants to activate when the crisis hit.

Once the shutdowns began, all the inequities and injustices of American capitalism in 2021 were spotlighted. Working class and minority Texans live in substandard housing, without insulation against unexpected cold and without adequate heating capacity.

Residents of Houston, the fourth largest US city, could see the lights still on in the citys downtown corporate headquarters while they were freezing in the dark. Poor people on ventilators and those dependent on feeding tubes had nowhere to go but hospital emergency rooms.

Few can match the Texas ruling elite and its political servants for blatant class prejudice. The mayor of Colorado City, a small town in west Texas, had to resign after a social media rant in which he denounced residents who expected local government do anything about the crisis. Im sick and tired of people looking for a damn handout, he declared. The City and County, along with power providers or any other service owes you NOTHING! He continued with a tirade against socialist government, adding that the strong will survive and the weak will [perish].

This is not just the opinion of a backwoods reactionary. Former Texas Governor Rick Perry, who just concluded a four-year term in Washington as Trumps secretary of energy, declared Wednesday, Texans would be without electricity for longer than three days to keep the federal government out of their business. This millionaire ignoramus is more than willing to fight to the last freezing child to keep Texas utilities unregulated.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott found time amidst the crisis to appear on the Sean Hannity program on Fox News and blame the crisis on solar and wind energy, although he admitted that these account for only 10 percent of the states output.

The truth is that Texas is the number one producer of electrical power in the United States, with nearly twice as much as any other state. Any shortfall is entirely due to the criminal mismanagement by the corporate elite and its political front-men like Abbott and Perry.

Texas subordination of government policy to the interests of corporate profit and neglect of planning and infrastructure are not, however, the exception. They are rather a particularly stark expression of the rule in capitalist America. The same basic indifference and incompetence, driven by the same economic interests, has characterized the catastrophic official response to the COVID-19 pandemic, at the cost to date of half a million lives.

Nor does the installation of the Biden-Harris administration in Washington make a difference. The Democratic Party, like the Republicans, defends the capitalist system, including the production and distribution of energy based on private profit, not rational planning. Alongside the Republicans, the Democrats have overseen deregulation in order to boost the profits and personal fortunes of the corporate elite.

Only a socialist system, in which energy resources are nationalized as part of a planned economy, and organized to produce heat and light for all as a public service, offers a way forward for working people.
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The last major electronics tradeshow in our industry that was held in person prior to the Covid-19 outbreak was CES 2020. MWC would have taken place in February 2020, but the tradeshow was totally cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mobile World Live reports that the CEO of the GSM Association that organizes the annual MWC tradeshows intends on holding in-person shows this year. John Hoffman, GSMA Limiteds CEO offers that holding these shows gives people a bit of hope, says lets move away from the effects of Covid-19 and return to something normal.

MWC has two shows  one in Barcelona that normally takes place in February and another in Shanghai that occurs in the summer. Last year, the GSMA announced that MWC Barcelona would be rescheduled for June/July. Meanwhile, MWC Shanghai will take place next week.

In China, extensive testing and vaccinations have helped the country return mostly back to normal. As Hoffman puts it, China has become a bubble thats protected from outbreaks due to restrictions in place. MWC Shanghai expects to welcome 20,000 attendees, restricted from the 60,000 that the show saw in 2019.

Barcelona will be a little bit different, it is the big stage. Covid requirements will decrease our capacity. Were not going to have 110,000 people, with travel restrictions, testing capacity and one-way traffic through the exhibition, theres no way.

Attendees for the Barcelona show will need to present a negative Covid-19 test within 72 hours of attendance. Testing will also be available at the venue. The GSMA will be implementing a touchless environment that would allow show goers to register without contact.

Instead of the usual 100k+ attendees that normally go to the Barcelona show, Hoffman is expecting to restrict in-person attendance to 50,000.

Even with restrictions in place, its still possible for the virus to spread. Only time will tell us how much more prepared the western hemisphere will be when it comes to vaccinations and restrictions. There are currently still travel restrictions all over Europe and the United States. The hope is that accessibility and administration of vaccines will have helped to reduce the spread of the virus.

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The Archdiocese of Chicago issued Lent and Holy Week guidelines for 2021. In addition to insisting all liturgical celebrations follow established protocols such as limited capacity, registrations and masks, ashes were to be distributed in one of two ways. Sprinkling ashes was the preferred option, but the archdiocese also allowed for nonplastic Q-Tips or cotton balls to administer ashes on the forehead, with a new one to be used for each person.
Millions of Houstonians awoke Wednesday to a notice from the city that their water was unsafe to drink unless boiled, an impossible task for many residents who continued to suffer power outages from the winter storm.

A large chunk of Houston households had already lost water pressure altogether or had seen their pipes freeze, preventing access to the citys water system. The crisis extended to key facilities, depriving hospitals and the Harris County Jail of running water. Houston Methodist canceled most non-urgent surgeries and procedures due to the water shortage and may do so again Thursday, a spokeswoman said.

Houston officials predicted water pressure will return to operational levels by the end of the day Thursday, though the boil water notice will extend longer, as state law requires cities to continue testing water samples for 24 hours before the notice can be lifted.

The plummeting water pressure was the result of bursting pipes across the city and equipment failures at water distribution facilities due to frigid weather conditions, said Carol Haddock, director of Houston Public Works. Under the boil water notice, residents are advised to use only boiled or bottled water for drinking, cooking and brushing teeth. City officials said residents can safely shower as long as they avoid ingesting any water.

The water shortages caught many Houstonians off guard, even those who had tried to prepare for the winter storm.

Caralena Morales took several precautions ahead of Wednesdays outages, finding candles and flashlights, stocking food, filling a bath tub with water for flushing toilets. The family, however, did not plan on losing running water. As a result, Morales and her 19-year-old son, Esteban, spent 45 minutes waiting in line Wednesday morning outside a Spring Branch H-E-B to buy four cases of water.

Morales, 35, said she mostly blamed herself for the oversight, though she questioned why her home lacked water when her pipes did not freeze.

We went from water to no water to a trickle to no water, Morales, 35, said, sighing when she learned the city issued a boil advisory Wednesday morning. How does that happen? We knew it was going to be this cold.

Virtually the entire Houston area came under some form of the water crisis, with surrounding municipalities also issuing boil water notices to residents who largely lacked water access. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said county residents should assume they need to boil water unless theyve heard otherwise.

Frigid temperatures prevented backup generators across Houstons water system from kicking on during the power outage, a crucial problem in a city that relies on pumps rather than water towers to generate pressure. Treatment plants also were running below capacity in part because the chemicals used to purify the water were not behaving normally, Haddock said.

Beginning around lunchtime Tuesday, pressure in much of the city dipped below 20 pounds per square inch, the threshold below which the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality requires that a boil notice be issued, as low pressure increases the risk that contaminants can force their way into the pipes.

By yesterday evening, it became apparent to us that we were not going to be able to recover those pressures, and that is why we issued the boil water notice this morning, Haddock said.

Temperatures rose above freezing Wednesday and Haddock said crews began returning to service some pumps that had been taken offline for maintenance scheduled during the typically low-demand winter months.

In Galveston, officials shut off the citys water supply and issued a boil water notice Wednesday morning after burst pipes and major water line breaks from the storm strained the citys water supply. The citys main water supplier, the Gulf Coast Water Authority, separately lost massive amounts of water due to bursting pipes, reducing flow to the island and causing demand to exceed supply.

Baytown officials brought the citys water plant back online and began filling its storage tanks Wednesday afternoon, the city announced in a news release. Some residents were expected to begin seeing a gradual increase in water pressure by early evening, but it will likely take a few days for the system to return to normal, according to the city.

Water issues also disrupted school districts around the Houston area, including Cy-Fair ISD, where officials said several schools have major water damage and about a dozen campuses lost all food in their buildings. Officials from Klein ISD, which joined Houston and Katy ISDs in announcing class cancellations through the end of the week, cited weather-related challenges including damages to school buildings.

Some hospitals, meanwhile, were dealing with low water pressure but had seen minimal interruptions to normal business. Facilities with water issues included Baylor St. Lukes Medical Center campus and Texas Childrens Hospitals campuses at the Medical Center and in west Houston.

A more dire situation unfolded as pipes burst at Houston Methodist hospitals across the area and two locations  Baytown and west Houston  were operating without water altogether. Those two hospitals still were managing to meet essential needs of the community, a spokeswoman said.

City officials were working to provide water to various hospitals across the area. The Houston Fire Department sent water to Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital, and the city dipped into its water supply for irrigating parks to provide water to other hospitals.

Mayor Sylvester Turner, who said a pipe had burst in his own home, also asked grocery store chains to send water to hospitals if they can.

Were all working together, just like weve done before, pulling resources from wherever they exist, and then sharing those resources, Turner said.

Anna Bauman, Dug Begley, Jacob Carpenter, Zach Despart, Samantha Ketterer, Mike Morris and Nick Powell contributed to this report.

jasper.scherer@chron.com
[February 18, 2021] Government of Canada now closer than ever to Montreal's information technology industry

Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions grants $700,000 in support to three businesses in the metropolis and helps create 95 jobs. MONTREAL, Feb. 18, 2021 /CNW Telbec/ - Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) The vitality and dynamism of communitiesfounded on strong, resilient, innovative SMEsensure sustainable economic growth for all and quality jobs for Canadians. Keen to understand clearly the particular realities of Quebec's regions and to support the businesses that make them strong, the Government of Canada, listening now more than ever, is investing in projects that will be promising for the economic recovery. In Montreal, the IT sector counts several dynamic businesses with innovative ideas whose work is boosting the region's reputation across the country. Tested by the challenges posed by COVID-19, these SMEs are now ready to rebound. And as Quebec's regional prosperity relies on strong local economic fabric, where businesses are able to innovate and lead promising projects, the Government of Canada is signalling its presence to support them as they pursue their activities and to foster their growth. Three businesses receive $700,000 in support for promising projects for the information technology industry With this in mind, Rachel Bendayan, Member of Parliament for Outremont and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, today announced financial support for Prodago Inc., Big Bang and Heyday Technologies Inc. The announcement was made on behalf of the Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages. Details on the repayable assistance are as follows: Prodago, $300,000 . CED's assistance will enable the business to participate in international conferences and events, develop promotional tools and cover marketing costs. This project, aimed at growing Prodago by implementing an international marketing strategy for its cloud computing platform focusing on sound data governance, will lead to the creation of 60 jobs.

. CED's assistance will enable the business to participate in international conferences and events, develop promotional tools and cover marketing costs. This project, aimed at growing Prodago by implementing an international marketing strategy for its cloud computing platform focusing on sound data governance, will lead to the creation of 60 jobs. Big Bang, $250,000 . CED's assistance will enable the business to cover the costs of implementing a marketing strategy, including participation in international conferences and events, travel costs, translation costs and the hiring of people dedicated to marketing abroad. This project, aimed at accelerating Big Bang's growth, will lead to the creation of 20 jobs.

. CED's assistance will enable the business to cover the costs of implementing a marketing strategy, including participation in international conferences and events, travel costs, translation costs and the hiring of people dedicated to marketing abroad. This project, aimed at accelerating Big Bang's growth, will lead to the creation of 20 jobs. Heyday Technologies, $150,000 . CED's assistance will enable the business to hire two market development resources, as well as cover the costs of digital marketing, exploratory visits and participation in trade fairs. This project, aimed at implementing a marketing strategy in Europe for Heyday's conversational artificial intelligence-based retail technology solution, will lead to the creation of 15 jobs. Initial results for this project have already enabled Heyday to sign contracts with major European clients such as Kaporal, Electro Depot and Lacoste.



Canada is proud to recognize and support businesses and organizations working in sectors of activity that are a source of pride in their communities. Quebec's future and economic recovery are founded on the flagship industries of regional economies. They contribute significantly to Quebec's economic growth and will be key assets to rebuild a stronger, more resilient and more just economy for all. Quotes

"Our government is present for our start-ups, and we are announcing today a total of $700,000 to support three technology SMEs. This assistance from CED for Heyday Technologies, a business located in my riding that helps retailers deliver superior client experience; Big Bang, which supports digital processing; and Prodago, which acts in data governance and analytics, will enable Montreal to position itself at an advantage to participate in the coming recovery." Rachel Bendayan, Member of Parliament for Outremont and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade "The Government of Canada has a mission to accompany the country's businesses and regions into tomorrow's economy and to help them seize the business opportunities that will arise. That is why we are providing our support to the specific assets of Quebec's different regions, such as here in Montreal; they will be essential elements in ensuring an inclusive recovery and in creating good jobs in all of our communities." The Honourable Melanie Joly, Member of Parliament for Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages and Minister responsible for CED Quick facts The Honourable Melanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages, is also the minister responsible for the six regional development agencies (RDAs), including CED.

CED is a key federal partner in Quebec's regional economic development. With its 12 regional business offices, CED accompanies businesses, supporting organizations and all regions across Quebec into tomorrow's economy.

regional economic development. With its 12 regional business offices, CED accompanies businesses, supporting organizations and all regions across into tomorrow's economy. The contributions given to these three SMEs have been granted under the Regional Economic Growth through Innovation program, which aims to support Quebec SMEs as they develop through innovation, among other things. Associated links Canada's COVID-19 Economic Response Plan

COVID-19 Economic Response Plan Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Stay connected Follow CED on social media

Consult CED's news SOURCE Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions

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Earlier this week, Microsoft (News - Alert) Corporations President Brad Smith said that the SolarWinds hacking campaign that used a U.S. tech company as a springboard to compromise a raft of U.S. government agencies is the largest and most sophisticated attack the world has ever seen.

According to Reuters, the operation, which was identified in December and that the U.S. government has said was likely orchestrated by Russia, breached software made by SolarWinds (News - Alert) Corp, giving hackers access to thousands of companies and government offices that used its products.

The hackers got access to emails at the U.S. Treasury, Justice and Commerce departments and other agencies.

Cybersecurity experts have said it could take months to identify the compromised systems and expel the hackers.

I think from a software engineering perspective, its probably fair to say that this is the largest and most sophisticated attack the world has ever seen, Smith said during an interview that aired on Sunday on the CBS program 60 Minutes.

The breach could have compromised up to 18,000 SolarWinds customers that used the companys Orion network monitoring software, and likely relied on hundreds of engineers.

SolarWindss investigation hasnt identified a specific vulnerability in Office 365 that would have allowed the hackers to enter the companys environment through Office 365, according to Microsoft O365 CEO Sudhakar Ramakrishna. Instead, by compromising the credentials of SolarWinds staff, the hackers were able to gain access to and exploit the SolarWinds development environment.

The US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) isnt aware of cloud software other than Microsofts targeted in the SolarWinds attack, Acting Director Brandon Wales told The Wall Street Journal Jan. 29.

While investigations are ongoing, and new information is being revealed on a near daily basis, we asked Internet and VoIP pioneer David Walsh (News - Alert) , currently CEO of XChangePoint Networks, and before that CEO and Chairman of Ribbon Communications, one of the largest security border control providers, and Co-Founder of Kandy (News - Alert) , a company recently acquired by AVCT which provides CPaaS, UCaaS and other Real Time Communications (RTC) offerings, if cloud-based collaboration applications are vulnerable to Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs).

The way enterprises work today is dramatically different than it was just a year ago, Walsh said. The COVID-19 health crisis accelerated digital transformation of real time collaboration, as organizations were forced to move to Cloud Communications to support Work From Home scenarios, supporting hundreds of millions of workers around the world. For many organizations, including healthcare providers, health insurance providers, banks, financial services companies, government agencies and more, this meant moving massive contact centers to the cloud, in many cases over a weekend.

Walsh explained that for organizations handling very sensitive information, the rush to take so many workers online from their homes, outside the typical physical security perimeters associated with offices, meant standing up solutions without the full suite of security capabilities built in.

For example, the US Government agreed to drop HIPAA compliance regulations associated with telemedicine, putting the private information of hundreds of millions of patients at risk. There simply was no choice, Walsh said.

Today we are seeing IT and security operations professionals investing in protecting interactions, data, and reputations with advanced cybersecurity solutions.

One of the areas often ignored is RTC, especially voice, as voice is growing, thanks to cloud-based platforms, and the transformation of contact centers who now use everything from live human voice to Natural Language Processing automated voice as part of modern Robotic Process Automation, which is tempting adversaries to hack into millions of conversations as valuable attack vectors, Walsh said.

With Remote Access in place, employees can tap resources in ways they may have been unable to do in a premise-based location with local networking controlling that access. Remote Access means a surge of uncontrolled endpoints, and SSL VPNs, subject to credential stuffing, password spraying, phishing and new malware threats (89% of which have been linked to COVID-19 according to Carbon Black).

Walsh, who is also Chairman of a browser and web threat isolation software company, Isoolate, continued, In the RTC cloud world, mobile applications lead to a wild, wild west and threw mobile device management and BYOD into a new realm, triggering massive security and compliance audits. The rise of collaboration platforms, from WebEx to Zoom, which allowed teams to continue to collaborate, lead to phenomenon like Zoom-bombing and the stealing and sharing of passwords.

Media coverage of attacks spanned issues in the infrastructures of some of the worlds largest and most respected companies, including AWS and Azure cloud server takeovers.

APIs are presenting another new challenge, according to Walsh. In our increasingly API-driven world, with so many great innovations, weve seen injection attacks and Authentication/Authorization weaknesses. Especially on mobile devices, extremely realistic malicious emails leading to fake websites are causing a tremendous amount of destruction. Mobile browsers are very attractive to bad actors, and because so much more is being done on smartphones, a trend that began long before the pandemic, this is an area of top priority for CISOs.

Walsh also pointed out a largely hidden trend with respect to the surge in SIP traffic, which served to highlight the dangers of unprotected SIP networks. A solid enterprise security posture today includes protection at the edge, in the network for data in motion, in the cloud for data at rest, and in the middle of Microsoft Teams or Zoom conferences, which these vendors are dealing with by investing in real time detection of the problem, on-demand mitigation to optimize fraud protection, and extremely important edge device security solutions like browser and web isolation which can prevent a huge amount of damage by not allowing employees to see anything more than a rendered web page when they are browsing, blocking the links that open the door to not only one employees device, but to the corporate resources they have access to. A pivot attack can bring down services and can be used to exfiltrate confidential data, including vaccine science which we saw in the second half of 2020.

Walsh say the good news is that RTC solutions are saving the economy, making it possible for people to work from home to keep businesses, essential systems and entire economies going. By understanding the entire threat landscape, including voice, video, and messaging vulnerabilities, and by putting the right security solutions place, we are contributing to the come-back, while also preparing for future threats with more real time intelligence built in. We have to accept how profoundly sophisticated cyber criminals and state actors are today, how much money they are investing to steal information or hold businesses and governments hostage and fight back before we lose the new lifeblood of getting work done, remotely and constantly connected.

Edited by Maurice Nagle
Puducherry CM convenes meeting of Congress MLAs after Lt Guv's trust vote direction

India

pti-Madhuri Adnal

Puducherry, Feb 18: A meeting of ruling Congress MLAs is underway here on Thursday night to decide the next course of action after Lt Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan directed Chief Minister V Narayanasamy to prove his majority in the assembly on February 22.

The MLAs are meeting at the residence of Narayanasamy, whose government is facing a crisis following the resignations of four MLAs, including two ministers since last month.

Earlier, Narayanasamy offered prayers at a Lord Shiva temple in the heart of the town and told reporters that the MLAs would meet at his residence to decide the next course of action.

Puducherry governor orders floor test in the legislative assembly on Feb 22

Soundararajan directed the summoning of the Assembly on February 22 for the "single agenda namely whether the government of the incumbent Chief Minister continues to enjoy the confidence of the House."

In the 33-member assembly with an effective strength of 28, the Congress has ten members, including Speaker, while its alliance partner DMK has three and lone independent from Mahe region also supports it. The opposition parties also have 14 members.
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State-owned on Thursday announced resuming mining operations at its Donimalai iron ore mine in

The operations have been resumed after receiving permission from the state government, said in a BSE filing.

In 2018, had suspended iron ore mining at the mine following a decision of the state government to impose 80 per cent premium on the iron ore sales from the mine.

"After obtaining the lease extension of Donimalai iron ore mine (ML-2396) for 20 years w.e.f (with effect from) March 11, 2018, from the Government of and completing the associated statutory requirements, (it) was restarted on February 18, 2021, forenoon," the filing said.

NMDC, under the Ministry of Steel, is the country's largest iron ore miner.

The company, which has been in the business of mining iron ore for over six decades, operates three iron ore complexes in the country.

While one is located at Donimalai in Karnataka, two are in the Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh, contributing 70 per cent to the company's total output.

The capacity of Donimalai mine is 7 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). The mine has reserves of about 90-100 million tonne (MT) which may last for the next 15-20 years.
Former US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump address guests at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on January 20, 2021. - President Trump and the First Lady travel to their Mar-a-Lago golf club residence in Palm Beach, Florida, and will not attend the inauguration for President-elect Joe Biden. (Photo by ALEX EDELMAN / AFP) (Photo by ALEX EDELMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Attempts to Erase Trump Will Cost GOP Elections 2022 and 2024: Rep. Jim Banks

Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), who is the chairman of the Republican Study Committee, said that attempts to purge the party of former President Donald Trump will cost the GOP all elections.

A Republican Party that seeks to erase President Trump and fails to understand his appeal to working-class voters is destined to lose elections in 2022, 2024, and beyond, tweeted Banks, the chair of the House Republican Study Committee.

As a conservative leader in the GOP Im determined to make sure that wont happen.

Trump has faced blowback from some GOP officials, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) as well as seven senators who voted to convict him during his impeachment trial. McConnell voted to acquit Trump, arguing that it would be unconstitutional to do so, but he went a step further and suggested the former president could face civil or criminal prosecution for his Jan. 6 speech to supporters.

In a strongly worded opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal this week, the Kentucky Republican suggested that it was Trumps post-election statements that cost Republicans the Senate majority.

But on Tuesday night, the former president excoriated McConnells leadership and called for a new Senate leader. Later, Trump said that he will support Republicans who endorse his agenda.

He will never do what needs to be done, or what is right for our Country. Where necessary and appropriate, I will back primary rivals who espouse Making America Great Again and our policy of America First. We want brilliant, strong, thoughtful, and compassionate leadership, Trump said via his Save America PAC.

In the lead-up to the Jan. 5 Georgia Senate runoff elections, Trump tweeted that Congress should pass a stimulus bill with $2,000 direct payments to Americans. Republicans in the Senate, including McConnell, however, balked at the prospectwhile Democratic leaders moved to endorse Trumps idea.

Prominent Democrats, including then-President-elect Joe Biden, went to Georgia and suggested that if Democrats get the Senate majority, the $2,000 checks will be passed.

Then came the Georgia disaster, where we should have won both U.S. Senate seats, but McConnell matched the Democrat offer of $2,000 stimulus checks with $600. How does that work? Trump asked in his statement. It became the Democrats principal advertisement, and a big winner for them it was.

Meanwhile, several polls conducted after Trump left office revealed that the former president is the most popular figure among Republicans. One recent poll found that about 70 percent of Republicans would consider joining a Trump-backed political party.
Major snowstorms and freezing temperatures have knocked out electricity, heat, and water services in Texas; at one point, nearly 3 million customers in the state had lost power, while as many as 7 million residents are currently being advised to boil their water because local authorities cant guarantee its not contaminated.

In the midst of this, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz flew from Houston to Cancun, Mexico:

Just confirmed @SenTedCruz and his family flew to Cancun tonight for a few days at a resort they've visited before. Cruz seems to believe there isn't much for him to do in Texas for the millions of fellow Texans who remain without electricity/water and are literally freezing. pic.twitter.com/6nPiVWtdxe  David Shuster (@DavidShuster) February 18, 2021

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The report made by David Shuster, a TV journalist, has since been confirmed elsewhere.

In response, some right-wing pundits have tried to argue that its actually good for public officials to abandon their constituents during a crisis:

What could @tedcruz do if he were here in Texas? Im hard-pressed to say. If hes in Cancun, that means hes not using up valuable resources of energy, food and water that can now be used by someone else. This is probably the best thing he could do for the state right now  Dinesh D'Souza (@DineshDSouza) February 18, 2021

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I'm sorry Ted Cruz is not there to emote with you people.  Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) February 18, 2021

The fact that people think Ted Cruz, a United States Senator, can do anything about a state power grid, even his own, is rather demonstrative of the ignorance of so many people who cover politics. Theyd rather performative drama than substance.  Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) February 18, 2021

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These are not great arguments. Cruz might not have a statutory role in on-the-ground disaster response, but he could make himself useful by communicating state-level needs to contacts in the federal government, guiding his staffs response to incoming requests from desperate constituents, publicizing volunteer efforts and charitable fundraising, and amplifying public safety messages. He could even set an example by, like, volunteering himself! A winter emergency is the perfect chance for a politician to demonstrate his belief that were all in this together. The fact that even other people who were leaving Texas to fly to Cancun felt compelled to circulate photos of Cruzs journey suggests how obvious an act of dereliction it was.

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On Thursday morning, publicly available flight information appeared to show that Cruz was headed back stateside (the first initial R. corresponds to his full name, Rafael Edward Cruz):

Heres the upgrade list for this afternoons flight from Cancun to Houston.



Looks like @tedcruz is on his way back, @danpfeiffer. Hes just narrowly missing the upgrade list



Thats assuming that cru, r is him. And I do. pic.twitter.com/CqfKa5rJfG  Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) February 18, 2021

At about 1 p.m. Thursday, Cruzs office finally released a statement attributed to the senator. According to Cruz, he went to Cancun in order to be a good dad to his daughters, who had asked to take a trip with friends after their school week was canceled. (Cruz has two daughters, of whom the oldest was born in 2008.) He confirmed that he will be returning to the U.S. on Thursday afternoon but did not comment on whether he has yet received an upgrade to business class.
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PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - Human rights groups decried Cambodia's establishment this week of a China-style internet gateway that would allow all online traffic to be controlled and monitored, saying it would be a new tool for longtime leader Hun Sen to repress any opposition

"Prime Minister Hun Sen struck a dangerous blow against internet freedom and e-commerce in Cambodia by expanding the government's control over the country's internet," Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said on Thursday.

"Cambodia's National Internet Gateway is the missing tool in the government's toolbox for online repression," he said in a statement.

An 11-page decree announced on Wednesday requires internet service providers to reroute their services through a National Internet Gateway within the next 12 months, before February 2022.

The gateway is similar to that of China, an important economic ally for Cambodia, which has seen its ties with the United States and European Union deteriorate recently.

It requires service providers to make users complete online forms with their correct identities and says failure to connect networks to the gateway would result in operating licenses being suspended and bank accounts frozen.

Government spokesman Phay Siphan on Wednesday said the decree was necessary because there was no order to the internet in Cambodia, adding it was less intrusive than regulations in the United States and Britain. The new gateway comes as Hun Sen's government faces international criticism over a crackdown that has decimated civil society and the political opposition, resulting in a power monopoly for his party, and criminal charges and jail terms for many of its rivals.

Emerlynne Gil, Amnesty International's deputy regional director for research, called the new gateway "a disaster for human rights".

"In the context of an escalating crackdown on human rights defenders, mass trials of opposition supporters, and rising numbers of prisons of conscience - this development is especially alarming," Gil added

(Reporting by Prak Chan Thul. Writing by Kay Johnson)



A group of 24 diplomats from foreign missions, including the European Union, who arrived in Srinagar yesterday, will visit Jammu on the second day of their tour on Thursday.

On Wednesday, the delegation had interacted with representatives of civil society and the government in Srinagar.

Foreign diplomats from Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Senegal, Malaysia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and the European Union are on a two-day visit to

The latest visit of foreign envoys comes in the backdrop of District Development Council polls, which saw huge participation and restoration of 4G mobile internet in the entire region after 18 months, which many see as a return of full normalcy in the Union Territory.This is the first visit by foreign diplomats to since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two batches of foreign diplomats had earlier visited in January and February last year after the abrogation of in August 2019.

In January last year, envoys of 15 countries including the then US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster and diplomats from Vietnam, South Korea, Brazil, Niger, Nigeria, Morocco, Guyana, Argentina, Philippines, Norway, Maldives, Fiji, Togo, Bangladesh and Peru visited Jammu and Kashmir to see first-hand the efforts being made by the government in the region.In February last year, 25 foreign diplomats, including those from Germany, Canada, France and Afghanistan, visited Jammu and Kashmir to witness the ground situation in the region.

(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.)
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An NYPD veteran and his serving cop son have been accused of being part of a cruel plot to swindle $15million from the estate of dying New York lawyer Burt Pugach, according to court filings obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com.

Pugach became infamous in the 1950s for hiring goons to blind his lover before marrying her when he got out of prison 14 years later.

The 93-year-old's death on Christmas Eve has sparked fresh intrigue amid claims he was conned into bequeathing his fortune to Shamin 'Sheila' Frawley, a caregiver and 'girlfriend' 41 years his junior, after he suffered a stroke.

A group of his former friends have filed a lawsuit in New York City Supreme Court arguing that Frawley, 52 - who is married - manipulated Pugach into changing his will then withdrew food until he starved to death.

Frawley has insisted her marriage to William (pictured together in 2011) was over by the time she became Pugach's girlfriend and that the pair were a 'monogamist' couple

Shamin 'Sheila' Frawley, 52, - who is married - claims she had been in an 'intimate relationship' with late New York lawyer Burt Pugach (pictured together in 2019) after meeting him in 2016. Frawley had served as his caregiver until his death

Pugach shot to infamy in the late 1950s when he hired goons to blind his young lover Linda Riss with lye for ending their affair, yet married her 14 years later (pictured together)

They say the notion that Pugach would leave his money to Frawley, rather than the charitable foundation for the blind that he set up with his late wife Linda, who died in 2013, is absurd.

In a slew of new court filings they are also pointing the finger at Frawley's husband William, 55, who was a cop for two decades, and her son, Nicholas Frawley, 26, an active member of the NYPD.

Their attorney Peter S. Thomas, writes that William was in on the scam and knew that his pretty brunette wife was engaging in sexual activity with the ailing millionaire.

When Pugach suffered a series of strokes last spring and went to live in the couple's Queens home, William even pretended to be his wife's father to keep the deception going, Thomas alleges.

He further accuses both William and Nicholas of using their expertise in 'surveillance technology' to secretly record all of Pugach's meetings and phone calls in violation of 'every basic privacy rights known to man.'

Mother-of-four Frawley has denied any wrongdoing, insisting her marriage was over by the time she started dating Pugach and that they were in a serious, loving relationship.

Pugach, who died on Christmas Eve, left his $15 million estate to Frawley (pictured right with her husband William) 52. The funds were frozen by a judge after friends and ex colleagues accused Frawley of coercing Pugach into changing his will after he suffered a stroke

The mother-of-four said she and William split in 2015 but the pair remained 'amicable' and didn't divorce because she couldn't afford health insurance and for 'other financial reasons'

Her attorney Jonathan Strauss insists the former pals are simply making 'baseless, despicable' allegations to 'obtain money that they are not entitled to'.

Pugach became a household name in 1959 when he hired thugs to attack Linda Riss, a 22-year-old secretary with whom the married attorney had been having an affair.

When Linda broke off the relationship and got engaged to another man Pugach warned her: 'If I can't have you, no one else will have you, and when I get through with you no one else will want you.'

True to his word he hired three thugs who splashed her with lye, though he later claimed in interviews that he merely asked them to beat her up.

The abrasive chemical, commonly used in alkaline drain cleaners, left Linda blind in one eye and nearly blind in the other, and she hid her injuries behind her trademark oversized sunglasses for the rest of her life.

Her decision 14 years later to marry Pugach when he finished his sentence - by then divorced from his first wife and disbarred because of his felony conviction - dumbfounded friends and family while gripping the media.

Against all odds, their second act lasted for 39 years and became the subject of numerous articles, a book and the smash hit 2007 documentary, Crazy Love.

Pugach was married to another woman when he first crossed paths with Linda Riss, a 22-year-old secretary from the Bronx who bore more than a passing resemblance to a young Elizabeth Taylor

Her decision 14 years later to marry Pugach when he finished his sentence  by then divorced and disbarred because of his felony conviction - dumbfounded friends and family while gripping the media. Pictured: The couple in 1974

Pugach revised his will at least five times after Linda succumbed to heart failure, gifting differing amounts to friends, but always leaving the bulk of the money to the Burton and Linda Pugach Charitable Foundation for the visually impaired.

The foundation was left with nothing, however, when the will was updated for the final time in October last year, months after Pugach suffered a stroke and went to live with Frawley, whom he met in 2016.

The elderly socialite is said to have become completely 'smitten' with Frawley, who demanded money and threatened to leave him unless he signed over control of his accounts, it's claimed.

'While still married, with her husband's participation in the scheme, she used the romantic and sexual leverage she had over Burt Pugach to get him to change the beneficiaries on all of his accounts and in his will,' Thomas says in a February 3 complaint.

As his health deteriorated last year Pugach became totally dependent on Frawley, even calling her 'mommy', Thomas alleges.

He suffered periods when he became so confused he thought Babe Ruth was still batting for the Yankees.

Thomas, who is representing five of Pugach's former friends and associates, says Frawley 'isolated him, mistreated him, manipulated him, and once she got what she wanted from him, she starved him to death.'

Despite their troubled history, the marriage lasted 39 years. Linda succumbed to heart failure in 2013

She 'did not just steal from the plaintiffs in this matter but also from the blind, taking every dollar intended for the charitable foundation.'

Thomas says William and Nicholas secretly installed surveillance equipment to eavesdrop on Pugach's conversations with his friends and associates.

'Sheila  told Mr Pugach that William Frawley was her father, not her husband, which Mr Pugach believed, despite how obviously far-fetched it was,' Thomas adds.

'When friends came over William Frawley would act as if he no longer lived there.'

Thomas says Frawley was so brazen she even persuaded Pugach to add her husband to the list of beneficiaries despite having previously pledged to divorce him.

He says the day Pugach died $150,000 of his money was transferred to an unknown savings account. The assets were frozen, however, after a judge granted the former friends a temporary restraining order.

Pugach's former attorney, Peter Gordon, his wife Maris, and friends Joel Jacobowitz, Tal Priel and Cindi Weiss have followed up with a lawsuit alleging undue influence, unjust enrichment and disgorgement.

Against all odds, their second act lasted for 39 years and became the subject of numerous articles, a book and the 2007 documentary, Crazy Love

Gordon and his wife say they were due to receive $1m from Pugach's estate before the revisions. Jacobowitz claims he was similarly written out of $5m. The foundation had been due to receive $10.5m, it's claimed.

Frawley's attorney Jonathan B. Strauss says the October will was drawn up without any undue influence and that Pugach's death certificate lists natural causes rather than anything nefarious.

He admits the Frawleys made video and audio recording but says these will provide evidence that Pugach was concerned that Gordon, rather than Frawley, was after his fortune.

'We possess multiple video tapes of Mr Pugach where he makes unsolicited remarks stating how lucky he is to be at Shamin's home and how well he is being cared for and how much he adores Shamin,' Strauss states in a filing.

'These baseless, despicable allegations demonstrate how money hungry these Plaintiffs are and that they will say anything in an attempt to obtain money that they are not entitled to.'

Nicholas Frawley said in a January 12 affidavit defending his mother, who has a second son, Bill, who is a cop and two young daughters: 'I was shocked and horrified to read that my mother was accused  of somehow being responsible for Burton's death.

'I know my mother loved him deeply and spent half a year caring for him in the most compassionate and loving way imaginable.'

William Frawley hung up when reached for comment and his wife has previously refused to speak with a reporter.

Strauss told DailyMail.com the Frawleys all deny any wrongdoing and that he will soon be filing a robust response and counterclaim for abuse of process.

'Burton Pugach knew exactly what he was doing with regard to these individuals. He took steps to ensure they wouldn't be able to do exactly what they are trying to do,' he added.
The value of Bahrains exports of national origin increased by 25% to BD200 million ($527.5 million) during January 2021, compared to BD160 million for the same month of the previous year, a report said.



The top 10 countries in terms of the value of exports of national origin purchased from Bahrain accounted for 82% of the total value, with the remaining countries accounting for 18%, according to the foreign trade report issued by the Information &eGovernment Authority (iGA).



Saudi Arabia ranked first among countries receiving Bahraini exports of national origin, importing BD41 million from Bahrain. Meanwhile, United Arab Emirates was second with BD32 million and Oman third with BD18 million.



Agglomerated iron ores and concentrates alloyed emerged as the top products exported duringJanuary2021 with BD30 million, semi-finished iron and steel was second with a value of BD25 million and Unwrought aluminium alloys third with BD20 million.



The total value of re-exports decreased by29%to reach BD53 million during January2021, compared to BD 74 million for the same month of the previous year. The top 10 countries accounted for 88% of the re-exported value, while the remaining countries accounted for the 12%.



Saudi Arabia ranked first with BD14 million, Oman second with BD10 million, and the United Arab Emirate third with BD9 million.



Four-wheel drive cars the top product re-exported from Bahrain with BD9.4 million, parts for gas turbines came in second place with BD9.2 million, and Apparatus for electrical controlthirdwithBD6 million.



The trade balance, difference between exports and imports, the value of the deficit of the trade balance reached BD154 million during January of 2021 versus BD211 million for the same month of the previous year with decrease of 27%.



The value of imports decreased by 9%, reaching BD406 million during January2021compared to BD445 million for the same month of the previous year. The top 10 countries accounted for 72% of the value of imports, with the remaining countries accounting for 28%.



According to the report, China ranked first when it came to imports to Bahrain, with a total ofBD49 million, Brazil was second with BD45 million; and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was third with BD31 million.



Non-agglomerated iron ores and concentrates emerged as the top product imported into Bahrain with a total value ofBD43 million, while aluminium oxide was second withBD28 million, and four-wheel drive carsthirdwithBD18 million.  TradeArabia News Service
New Delhi: Two days after Asaram Bapu was admitted to Mathuradas Mathur Hospital in Jodhpur, he has been shifted to the critical care unit (CCU) again after undergoing sonography. Once the report of sonography comes in, it will be decided by the doctors if an angiography needs to be performed.

Asaram is currently serving life imprisonment in Jodhpur jail on charges of sexually harassing a minor girl. He was taken to the hospital after he complained of chest pain and difficulty in breathing on Tuesday night.

The doctors said he was stable after monitoring his health on Wednesday morning.

Co-accused Shilpi stealthily reaches CCU

Shilpi, a co-accused in the Asaram case, managed to reach outside the CCU where Asaram was admitted despite police presence.

Talking to media, Shilpi said, "Asaram is of the age of our grandfather, he cannot do any such work (sexual harassment)."

"All the allegations against him are baseless. I wish him a speedy recovery," she added.

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Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko plans to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin "after February 20," as he himself said at a meeting with State Secretary of the Union State of Russia and Belarus Grigory Rapota.

"Indeed, Putin and I agreed a while ago to hold a meeting after February 20 in order to discuss certain cooperation aspects," Lukashenko said, as cited by the Belarusian presidential press service. "But I would like to make it clear from the very beginning that, though some in Russia may claim that Lukashenko is coming to ask for $3 billion, Im not going there [to Russia] to ask for anything," TASS cited the Belarusian president as saying.

Lukashenko also mentioned the possibility of meeting with Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev. "I think I will meet with Medvedev, too, we agreed to meet and discuss the most pressing issues," he noted, adding that one of those issues concerned ways "to ensure security of the state."

New Delhi: Having approved the use of AstraZeneca-Oxford and Bharat Biotech vaccines, Iran has requested COVID-19 vaccines from India. Iran has become one of more than 20 countries to have requested vaccines from India.

So far India has supplied more than 229.7 lakh COVID-19 vaccines doses to several countries around the world. The country has supplied over 64 lakh doses as grants and over 165 lakh doses commercially.

"We will continue to take forward the global vaccine supply initiative and cover more countries in a phased manner," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement last week.

India has gifted 1 lakh doses of vaccines to Bahrain and Oman, 50000 to Egypt, 2 lakh to Kuwait and 2 lakh to UAE on a commercial basis.

India has also supplied COVID-19 vaccines to neighbouring countries such as Bangladesh (20 Lakhs doses), Myanmar (17 Lakhs doses), Nepal (10 Lakhs ), Bhutan (1.5 Lakhs doses), Maldives (1 Lakh doses), Mauritius (1 Lakh doses), Seychelles (50000 doses), Sri Lanka ( 5 Lakhs doses), Afghanistan (5 Lakhs doses).

Meanwhile, United Nations chief Antonio Guterres expressed concern over lack of availability of vaccines in several countries around the world.

Calling the distribution of coronavirus vaccines "widely uneven and unfair", Guterres said that only 10 countries have administered 75 per cent of all vaccinations, He called for a global effort to get all people in every nation inoculated as soon as possible.

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CMU Launches Community Pandemic Safety Ambassador Program

February 16, 2021

Faculty and staff volunteers at Carnegie Mellon University are taking pandemic safety to the next level by expanding their Pandemic Safety Officer (PSO) roles in their departments or units to cover common areas on campus.

As Community Pandemic Safety Ambassadors (CPSA), these volunteers serve as a resource of information to the campus community and monitor the common area of their responsibility to identify any needs that arise. Their duties include performing cleaning spot-checks, assisting the campus community with implementing physical distancing protocols and submitting requests for assistance or supplies.

Marcia Gerwig says her role as a CPSA complements her primary function at the university.

As director of the Cohon University Center, I stay up-to-date on whats happening on campus regarding COVID-19 protocols, and so the more knowledge I can share as a CPSA will help keep our patrons safe and informed and make the Cohon Center operate that much more efficiently, Gerwig said.

Paul Minor is helping to monitor common areas in the Mellon Institute and the Facilities and Management Services building. As a hazardous waste management specialist for Environmental Health and Safety (EHS), his regular duties have him covering many areas across the university, so he helps out as needed wherever he happens to be. Like Gerwig, Minor says being a CPSA dovetails with his regular responsibilities on campus and encourages him to share his knowledge with the broader community.

As a member of EHS, I field a lot of questions from students, faculty, contractors and staff, so I want to make sure I am sharing the latest information, Minor said. I also manage various contractors that serve the university with chemical waste and hazardous materials. Its important I make sure they comply with our safety guidelines.

Prior to CMU, Minor worked for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, where he handled environmental compliance and inspections. It was his job to be on the lookout for public health, environmental and safety issues, so serving as a CPSA comes naturally to him.

Ive had a lot of experience dealing with the public in difficult situations. I find it easy to start a conversation about safety, he said. My biggest challenge is to remain vigilant. It's easy to become complacent after a year of dealing with the pandemic.

Walter Pitts is likewise up to the task of being a CPSA. As building and facilities manager of Mellon Institute, Pitts says the job corresponds well with his responsibilities for the Mellon College of Science. He also is involved in building and renovation projects that have been impacted during the pandemic.

Every task has challenges, and the CPSA role is no different, but it does require a balance of addressing individual circumstances while adhering consistently to dynamic protocols, Pitts said.

Pitts succeeds by maintaining a good balance of operational awareness and his enthusiasm for supporting the mission of the Mellon College of Science.

Carnegie Mellon University has a truly transformative impact on society. I love that I can support cutting-edge science with my practical focus and interact with those who are actually conducting the research, Pitts said. Acting as a CPSA helps me to better support the science by keeping the facilities and the people who work in them as safe as I can.

Visit the Pandemic Safety Initiative pages on the EHS website for more information, a list of the CPSAs on campus, or to register for training if youre interested in becoming a CPSA.
RTHK: US charges North Koreans over US$1.3bn theft

The US Justice Department charged three North Korean military intelligence officials on Wednesday in a campaign of cyberattacks to steal $1.3 billion in crypto and traditional currencies from banks and other targets.

The first action against Pyongyang by US President Joe Biden's administration took aim at what the department called "a global campaign of criminality" being waged by North Korea.

The department accused the three of a wide-ranging hacking and malware operation to obtain funds for their government while avoiding punishing UN sanctions that have cinched off its sources of income.

Over at least seven years, the officials created malicious cryptocurrency applications that opened back doors into targets' computers; hacked into companies marketing and trading digital currencies like bitcoin; and developed a blockchain platform to evade sanctions and secretly raise funds, the department said.

The case filed in federal court in Los Angeles builds on 2018 charges against one of the three, identified as Park Jin Hyok.

He was charged with the 2014 hack of Sony pictures, the creation of the notorious WannaCry ransomware, and the 2016 theft of US$81 million from the central bank of Bangladesh.

The new charges added two defendants, Jon Chang Hyok and Kim Il.

The allegations said the three worked together in the North Korean military intelligence's hacking-focused Reconnaissance General Bureau, better known within the cybersecurity community as the Lazarus Group, or APT 38.

The Justice Department did not specify exactly how much it believed the defendants have stolen altogether.

In addition, the charges said, Kim Il developed the blockchain-based digital currency-like "Marine Chain Token" which ostensibly was an instrument for investors to buy shares of shipping vessels.

He marketed opportunities to invest in the scheme in Singapore, without telling potential investors that it was mainly designed to hide ship ownership identities to help North Korea avoid sanctions, the charges said.

All of the actions, the Justice Department said, were to "further the strategic and financial interests of the (North Korean) government and its leader, Kim Jong Un."

The case announced on Wednesday was the first open action taken against North Korea by the Biden administration, amid ongoing tensions over Pyongyang's development of nuclear weapons and long-range missiles that threaten the United States and allies. (AFP)

This story has been published on: 2021-02-18. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article.
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US President Joe Biden called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday, almost four weeks after entering the White House. Netanyahu's office said that the conversation was very friendly and warm and lasted about an hour. The two leaders noted the longstanding personal connection between them and said they would work together to further strengthen the strong alliance between Israel and the United States."

Netanyahus office said they had discussed strengthening bilateral ties and building on the normalization agreements between Israel and several Arab and Muslim countries, brokered last year by the previous administration. They also spoke about the Iranian threat and challenges of the region, agreeing to continue talks between them, read the statement.

The White House did not comment immediately on the phone call. In a statement issued later in the day, Biden affirmed his personal history of steadfast commitment to Israels security and conveyed his intent to strengthen all aspects of the US-Israel partnership, including our strong defense cooperation. Biden himself confirmed to reporters at the White House that he had spoken on the phone with Netanyahu, saying they had a good conversation. He gave no other details.

Netanyahu had waited for this phone call for 27 days since Biden took office. Biden called several other world leaders over the past four weeks before the Israeli prime minister in what was perceived in Jerusalem as deliberate distancing and even humiliation of Netanyahu. Some analysts in Israel thought that by keeping silent, Biden was sending Netanyahu a message of discontent over his consistently siding with the Republicans under President Donald Trump and damaging the traditional American bipartisan support of Israel.

In another sign of American discontent Biden delivered his first foreign policy speech Feb. 4 and did not mention Israel. His advisers had said that the president intended to call Netanyahu, but gave no timeline and did not explain the reason for the delay. Netanyahu himself rejected speculation that the delay was intentional. In an interview with Army Radio before the call yesterday, Netanyahu called Biden my personal friend for 40 years, adding he believes the president will advance further peace agreements between Israel and Arab and Muslim states.

On Feb. 10, former Israeli envoy to the United Nations Danny Danon tweeted, President Joe Biden, you have called world leaders from Canada, Mexico, UK, India, France, Germany, Japan, Australia, South Korea and Russia. Might it now be the time to call the leader of Israel, the closest ally of the US? The PMs number is: 972-2-6705555.

Netanyahu had intended to hold a meeting on Iran this evening with Defense Minister Benny Gantz, Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi, Israel's ambassador to the United States Gilad Erdan and national security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat, but after the call with Biden, the meeting was postponed. When the meeting does take place, the small forum will discuss what Biden had said to Netanyahu as well as the videoconference earlier today between US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and his French, British and German counterparts on the Iranian file.
Foreign Secretary on Wednesday met Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov in Moscow and held political consultations on a wide range of issues pertaining to the bilateral ties, including the schedule of the upcoming political contacts.

During the meeting, the sides underlined their aspiration to increase the trade and economic turnover by expanding cooperation in traditional and high-tech spheres.

They also noted the similarity of approaches by and India to the pressing global and regional issues, as well as stressed the intention of the two countries to continue coordination of efforts at international and regional platforms, including the UN, G20, BRICS, SCO, RIC and EAEU.

Foreign Secretary also met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and discussed wide-ranging Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between the two countries and ways to further strengthen it.

Indian Embassy in Moscow said in a tweet that the Foreign Secretary conveyed greetings of External Affairs S Jaishankar to the Russian leader. "They discussed the wide-ranging Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and and ways to further strengthen it," the Embassy said.

Shringla later said the Russian Foreign Minister emphasised the importance he attaches to the special privileged strategic partnership between India and "We also spoke about the annual summit and he (Lavrov) said President Putin was looking forward to his visit to India at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi and that the visit would take place sometime on a date to be decided," the Foreign Secretary said.

"There are a number of other visits that we spoke about -- there is a visit of the Deputy Prime Minister for the Inter-Governmental Commission with our Minister for External Affairs. We are looking at the visits of our army and naval chiefs. There are a large number of exchanges that are on the cards for the India-Russia relationship," he said.

Shringla said they discussed some regional and international issues of interest including cooperation in the UN and UNSC where India is a non-permanent member now. "We also spoke about issues like Afghanistan which both countries have a direct interest in," he said.

The Foreign Secretary said they also discussed cooperation in the area of vaccines, global responses to COVID-19 and on how India and Russia can work together in partnership to deal with this issue. "There is a lot happening in the relationship. It is a very important relationship for both countries. I think we will see some developments reinforce the close and strategic partnership we both enjoy," he said.

Shringla extended Lavrov's invitation on behalf of Jaishankar to visit India and the Russian Minister said he is looking forward to doing so at the earliest.

Shringla paid an official visit to Moscow on February 17-18, 2021 at the invitation of the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.

(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.)
LAVELLE  The ways that Ash Wednesday is marked this year as the first day of the penitential season of Lent are carrying their own unique penances thanks to COVID-19.

The need to maintain social distancing but continue religious traditions as close as possible has had various Christian denominations adjusting, especially when it involves the imposition of ashes on the foreheads. Normally, the action of using the thumb of a priest or minister to place the ashes in the sign of the cross involves personal touching and is not permitted this year in any way.

The Flickinger family near Lavelle is adapting this year thanks to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Ashland, where the Rev. Dana Heckman-Beil, pastor, provided a way for families and individuals to place ashes on their heads in the convenience and safety of their own homes.

Good Shepherd held a drive-thru distribution in the parking lot at noon and 7 p.m., where a packet of ashes were given to each car that drove in or people who walked into the parking lot.

Beil said this is an opportune way to have a whole family get-together to experience the Lenten tradition together.

It is good to have family devotions. We sent material home through our Sunday school, Beil said. Were trying to make this as family oriented as possible.

Beil also provided Holy Communion to those who wanted it. Everyone was given a wooden hand cross with a reference to John 3:16.

Candy Flickinger stopped about 1 p.m. to pick up her packet of ashes for her family, which includes her husband, Norm, and children, Hope and Gage.

In light of such a global pandemic, it is wonderful to still be able to receive ashes, whether it be in the house of God or at home, Flickinger said. It is still an amazing thing. I am truly blessed to have the church we have that is going out of their way to make this happen.

Flickinger said being able to have everyone together for the ashes is wonderful considering it can be difficult due to busy schedules to participate as a family.

This is different, but at the same time we know that God is still with us, she said.

Ash Wednesday is observed by Western Christianity, including Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Anglicans/Episcopalians and other denominations. Catholics and some Protestant denominations impose ashes, while others hold prayer services without ashes. The 40 days of Lent will end with the celebration of Easter Sunday and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ on April 4.

Lent, or the Great Fast, began Monday for Eastern Rite Catholics. There is no Ash Wednesday for Eastern Christianity. Easter Sunday is also April 4. The first day of the Great Fast for Orthodox Christians is March 15, with Pascha (Easter Sunday) on May 2.

Christs United Lutheran Church near Gordon held its Ash Wednesday services in person, with a noon service without music and a 7 p.m. service with music. Both included the imposition of ashes on the forehead using a cotton swab by the Rev. Laura Csellak, pastor.

After the readings from the Bible, Csellak gave her sermon, which was followed by the congregation participating in the Confession of Sin followed by the imposition of ashes. The ashes and cotton swabs were on a small table. Csellak donned rubber gloves and called anyone who wanted ashes to walk down the center aisle.

Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return, Csellak said to each person as she placed a cross on their foreheads using a new cotton swab with each imposition.

Trinity Episcopal Church in Pottsville had a drive-thru imposition called Ashes in a Flash. The Rev. Dr. Kurt K. Kovalich, pastor, conducted the placing of the ashes at the Chapel of the Resurrection at Charles Baber Cemetery at 9 a.m. While people stayed in their vehicles, Kovalich distributed the ashes using a cotton swab.

Catholic churches also impose ashes with some changes that included not having a priest, deacon or layperson using their thumb to make the sign of the cross on the forehead.

The Diocese of Allentown explained that the Vatican has asked priests around the world to sprinkle ashes on the heads of the faithful rather than using the ashes to make the sign of the cross on foreheads. In addition, the celebrant will say Repent, and believe in the Gospel or Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return only once, before the distribution of ashes, and will not say it over each recipient.

There were two options for the priest on how to impose the ashes during Masses. In addition to sprinkling a very small amount of ashes on the head, ashes could also use a cotton swab or cotton ball to place the ashes on the forehead, which is the more traditional way.
Alex Wong/Getty ImagesBY: BEN GITTLESON, ABC NEWS

(WASHINGTON)  As vice president, Joe Biden oversaw an array of issues important to the Obama administration: implementing an economic recovery act, shaping foreign policy from Iraq to Ukraine, and strengthening cancer research.

But now that Biden is president, his vice president, Kamala Harris, asked in a recent Axios interview what her signature issue would be, replied she has one focus: "Making sure Joe Biden is a success.

Harris has spent her first month as vice president largely at Biden's side, ever present with him at signing events and speeches, watching and following his lead while only starting to whittle away at a separate portfolio for herself.

It is a delicate, new role for someone used to being in charge, as a senator from California and the state's attorney general -- one she has said she is basing off how Biden himself handled eight years in the office she now holds.

She has yet to take on a specific set of issues beyond promoting whatever Biden is focused on -- which so far, has largely consisted of the federal government's response to the coronavirus pandemic.

But Harris's engagements so far have, in fact, nodded to her historic role as the first woman, Black person and person of South Asian descent to serve as vice president, particularly by encouraging Black Americans to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

'The last voice in the room

Biden has made clear he wants Harris -- with whom he sparred during the Democratic presidential primary -- to model her approach after his own eight years as President Barack Obama's vice president.

When Biden appeared with Harris for the first time after selecting her as his running mate in August, he recounted how, when then-Sen. Barack Obama chose him as his vice presidential running mate, "I told him I wanted to be the last person in the room before he made the important decisions.

"That's what I asked Kamala," Biden said. "I asked Kamala to be the last voice in the room, to always tell me the truth, which she will. Challenge my assumptions if she disagrees. Ask the hard questions. Because that's the way we make the best decisions for the American people.

Asked for specific examples of when Harris had been the last person in the room with Biden during an important decision so far, a White House aide declined to say. The aide, though, noted that it was still the case she was often the first and last person in the room with him, noting they sometimes will have pull-aside conversations after meetings.

As vice president, Biden also sometimes broke with Obama -- such as in 2012, when he famously said he supported gay marriage well before Obama did, too. Harris, though, has yet to stray far off message.

A longtime friend and mentee of Harris's, Lateefah Simon, told ABC News that while Harris had significant respect for the role she held, "Kamala's not taking a back seat at all."

"Nothing about Kamala Harris is number two," said Simon, a civil rights advocate and elected official in the San Francisco area who first met Harris nearly two decades ago. "She's a leader in her own right.

Harris spends hours each day with Biden

Biden and Harris typically spend several hours together each day, according to a White House aide, often starting their time together by receiving the President's Daily Brief -- a top-secret national security update -- in the Oval Office each morning. Former President Donald Trump rarely received the briefing, which had been a staple of previous administrations.

Harris frequently appears by the president's side at policy announcements and when he signs executive actions, sometimes making short remarks in addition to Biden's, like during a visit to the Pentagon last week.

She has joined him for recent Oval Office meetings with members of Congress, governors, mayors and labor leaders, as well as with Cabinet officials including the secretaries of defense and treasury.

"She is in a majority of the meetings that the president has, and that's because he wants her there," Harris's deputy press secretary, Sabrina Singh, told ABC News.

With relatively less experience in international relations than Biden, Harris last week also started what she intends to be regular lunches with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, a longtime Biden confidant, according to a White House aide.

Harris has held calls with the leaders of Canada, France and the World Health Organization, and the aide said she plans to continue to engage with world leaders. As vice president, Biden had a wide-ranging foreign policy portfolio.

Combatting vaccine hesitancy among Black Americans

Her solo appearances have proved rarer and have heavily focused on COVID-19, such as when she held a virtual listening session with African American mayors last week to discuss the administrations' relief proposal.

She has also met virtually with members of Black chambers of commerce around the country, and according to her office, on Thursday she planned to convene a virtual discussion about COVID-19 relief with women members of Congress and a diverse group of women leaders of advocacy groups.

The first Black vice president, Harris has used her position to combat hesitancy among Black Americans to get vaccinated. During the presidential transition period, she received her first COVID-19 vaccination shot at a Washington hospital that serves a predominantly Black population.

"Black folks, people of color, women -- we are looking to her to change the face of the nation," Simon said.

In an interview with The 19th last week, Harris explained that she had played a role in the formation of a task force the White House had set up to address health inequities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic -- and that she felt "a great sense of responsibility" for helping Black Americans disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.

"When I took that oath on January 20th, there were a whole lot of people standing on that stage with me," she said. "And you may not have seen them, but they were in my heart, they were in my mind when I had my hand on the Bible and raised my hand to take that oath. And I feel the weight of the responsibility that comes with that."

Breaking ties -- and meeting resistance -- on COVID-19 relief

Like Biden, Harris came from the Senate, and an aide said she has been working her relationships with her former colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get the administration's COVID-19 relief package passed by Congress.

And unlike Biden, who over two terms as vice president never cast a tie-breaking vote in the Senate, Harris has already found herself needing to jump in; she did so on Feb. 5, to help Democrats force that legislation through the evenly divided body. She may have to do so again if no Republicans end up supporting the package, as is currently the case.

Not all of her outreach has met with success.

In her first interview with a national television network since taking office, with NBC's "Today" show, Harris on Wednesday repeatedly dodged questions about whether the White House endorsed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendation that, while teachers should be prioritized for vaccinations, it was not necessary for them to get vaccinated before returning to teach in person, a position some teachers' unions oppose.

Asked several times if it was OK for teachers to return without getting vaccinated -- as the CDC said it can be -- Harris repeatedly dodged the questions, answering several times that "teachers should be a priority" to get vaccinated.

Late last month, Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democratic senator from West Virginia whom the White House has been courting, expressed surprise to hear Harris give an interview to West Virginia television station WSAZ where she pushed the relief plan. "We need to work together," he later told the station. "That's not a way of working together."

The White House played cleanup, praising Manchin, who later said there were "no apologies needed." But the incident represented another rare slip-up for Harris.

Living across the street

She has benefited from a short commute to work: Since taking office, she has lived at Blair House, a property across the street from the White House managed by the State Department that usually hosts visiting foreign leaders.

The vice president's traditional residence on the grounds of the Naval Observatory in Washington was undergoing some much-needed maintenance and repairs, according to an aide who did not provide a timeline for when Harris would make the move with her husband, Doug Emhoff, the first second gentleman in U.S. history.

Former Vice President Mike Pence occupied that Naval Observatory home until he left office last month. Harris told Axios that Pence had left a note for her in the vice president's office, although she did not share details of what Pence had written. Aides to Harris and Pence declined to comment on its contents.

Copyright  2021, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

Harbor Freight Tools plans for new store location in Petoskey
A 10-year project to reduce the number of inpatient falls has saved the United Kingdom's National Health Service more than 13 million, thanks to a team of researchers including an academic from Kingston University, London and St George's, University of London.

The 'Becoming fall-safe: a framework for reducing impatient falls programme' was launched at Brighton and Sussex University Hospital (BSUH) NHS Trust in 2009, just months after a catastrophic fall on a ward led to the death of a patient.

The tragic circumstances of the death proved to be the catalyst for the initiative, which has seen a 46 per cent reduction in falls - equating to around 5,000 fewer inpatient falls - at the hospital since its launch. This has saved the NHS millions of pounds due to a reduction in imaging tests, shorter lengths of stay in hospital, fewer trips to theatre for surgery, and a more efficient use of nurse time.

Visiting professor at Kingston's School of Nursing Karen Norman joined forces with head of quality improvement at BSUH Mark Renshaw and deputy chief nurse at Surrey and Sussex NHS Trust Paula Tucker, former head of nursing at BSUH, to publish their findings in the British Journal of Nursing.

The initial pilot was based upon a series of interventions on eight wards, where falls were particularly high. Their approach was developed in consultation with staff and patients.

We wanted to create a no blame culture based upon using post-falls debriefs in which nurses reflected about why they were doing certain things with the premise being, unless you do that, behaviours don't change. I wanted staff to be open with me because, sometimes, the story I got from them and the one I got from the patients on what had happened were quite different." Ms. Paula Tucker, Former Head of Nursing, Brighton and Sussex University Hospital

The interventions included considering lower beds for patients, ensuring patients were wearing non-slip footwear, accompanying patients to and from the toilet, assessing the need for increased supervision of patients, and ensuring the call bell and their personal belongings were within easy reach.

The initial results proved quite remarkable, with the rate of falls in those eight wards falling by around a third within the first year - exceeding targets. This led to the project being rolled out across the Trust.

"We learnt that best practice is something that is constantly evolving. The last few years have all been about trying to figure out why we've been so successful - especially in an area that is generally accepted you can't improve," Mr Renshaw said. "One thing we quickly picked up on is how the power of interactions and the slightest change on the way you say things can make such a difference."

Professor Norman was working as chief nurse in Gibraltar when she was approached by her former colleague, Mr Renshaw, who asked her to help analyse what had made the project succeed. "We were having a similar issue with falls in Gibraltar, so Paula and Mark came to help us there. This gave us a chance to explore together what it was they were doing that made such a big difference. When I came back to the United Kingdom and joined Kingston University, we were fortunate to secure a small research grant from the School of Nursing to develop our work. I went down to Brighton and Sussex, where I used to be director of nursing, and saw they had created something very different and special - they were drilling down to each fall in context," Professor Norman said.

When evaluating some of the falls, the trio found nurses facing a conflict of values. "In certain scenarios, like a nurse debating on whether to go into the toilet with a patient, it's a really difficult decision. On one hand they value the patient's safety, and on the other, their dignity. If the patient then falls off the toilet, the nurse often feels blamed and that isn't right - so we wanted to address this. People are frightened of being excluded from their peer group or losing their job but it is a skilful practice to open up this reflective space so nurses can change or adapt practice." Professor Norman said.

Ms Tucker came up with an exercise where, following a fall, she would ask the nurses if they could hand on heart say they did everything to prevent that fall. They also used a Danish theatre company to act out scenarios so they could see what went well and what could have been done differently.

This highlighted the improvisational skills required when facing complex situations, in which there is no perfect solution and practical judgement about how best to keep patients safe is needed.

The coronavirus pandemic initially saw fall rates rise slightly but work is ongoing to reduce these. "Nurses were understandably fearful during the first Covid-19 wave, the wearing of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) meant communicating with patients was more difficult," Ms Tucker said. "During the pandemic we have also seen a change in patients who are often frailer, have delirium, or are malnourished but, thankfully, we know a lot more about the disease and staff are embedding routines and habits we created over the last 10 years," she added.

Following the success of their approach, Ms Tucker is interested in exploring whether using the same methodology for pressure ulcers would have similar results.

Professor Norman has been transferring some of the principles from the project into protecting patients during the pandemic. "I've been using their ideas in some of my other work, particularly around infection control with regards to Covid-19. When people are saying things like falls and pressure ulcers are inevitable, let us challenge that," she said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  Police have filed criminal charges against seven people who were arrested during an operation to rescue Lumad minors in Cebu City on February 15.

The Philippine National Police's Public Information Office on Thursday said the charges filed against the seven were kidnapping, child exploitation, and human trafficking.

The respondents were presented for inquest proceedings before the Provincial Prosecutor's Office of Davao del Norte at the Hall of Justice, Capitol Site, Mankilam, Tagum City. This was done via video teleconference from the Police Regional Office in Camp Osmena, Cebu City.

Among the respondents are two Datus, teachers, and Lumad students.

They were arrested in an operation in a top Cebu school on Monday, where police said 19 Lumad children from Davao del Norte were rescued from alleged kidnapping by a militant group.

The respondents were given 15 days to submit their counter affidavit.

Meanwhile, local authorities are also looking into possible violations by the police during the operation.

The Commission on Human Rights said an initial probe was conducted on February 15, while a follow-up investigation is ongoing regarding the police operation.
Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help
Thompson Egbo-Egbo is seen in his role as Oscar Peterson in a still frame taken from a new Heritage Minute video on the Canadian jazz pianist's life. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Historica Canada, *MANDATORY CREDIT*

Gov. Greg Abbott is ordering natural gas producers not to export any supply out of state until Sunday, diverting that gas to power Texas troubled electric grid.

I have, earlier today, issued an order  requiring those producers that have been shipping outside of Texas to instead sell that gas to Texas power generators, Abbott said, speaking from the Alternate State Operations Center in Austin. That will also increase the power thats going to be produced and sent to homes here in Texas.

Officials also touched on federal aid to the state, as the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced earlier Wednesday that it is sending generators, water and blankets to Texas and also plans to ship in diesel.

Millions of Texans have been left without electricity since early Monday morning, as the state saw a catastrophic failure of the power grid during this weeks severe winter weather and freezing temperatures. About 2.7 million customers were offline as of Wednesday morning, officials said.

Abbott said additional power is coming back online through the day, mostly from nuclear and coal sources. Electricity has already been restored to about 1.2 million households since midnight Wednesday, Abbott said.

In a broad press briefing on the crisis, Abbott warned that Texas likely wont come out of the ultra-cold conditions until Saturday, and transportation will remain challenging until then.

He also encouraged homeowners to start reaching out to plumbers and insurance providers to address potential pipe bursts that could flood houses. Abbott said he will loosen some licensing requirements for plumbers to meet the expected demand.

Abbott spoke little of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the agency responsible for maintaining the states power grid, a day after he railed against the organization for a lack of transparency and poor emergency response. On Tuesday, Abbott made ERCOT reform an emergency priority item in the current legislative session, and he called on the agencys leadership to resign for its response to the crisis.

During a news conference on Wednesday, ERCOT President and CEO Bill Magness did not directly address Abbotts calls to resign, saying an assessment of who is to blame will be completed after we get the power back on.

Both chambers of the Legislature plan to investigate the agency, with the state House scheduling hearings as soon as next Thursday.

ERCOT has declined to give an estimate on when power will be fully restored, saying the best-case scenario would be reducing rolling blackouts to an hour or less by Thursday. Officials have been conserving electricity in an effort to avoid a total grid meltdown that could wipe out power for weeks.

Meanwhile, a FEMA spokesperson said the agency had sent 60 very large generators to the state to help keep hospitals and other crucial infrastructure online.

The spokesperson could not say where the generators had been sent.

The agency also sent millions of liters of water and tens of thousands of blankets, she said.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said FEMA is also preparing to move diesel into the state to ensure the continued availability of backup power, which of course is a major issue on the ground to key critical infrastructure, including communications, hospitals and water.

More assistance may be sent as requested by the state, federal officials said.

President Joe Biden declared an emergency in Texas over the weekend, and Psaki said the White House remains in close contact with state leaders, including Abbott.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday issued a statement on the situation in Texas that touted $50 billion in FEMA funding that Democrats are pushing in their latest COVID relief package and calling for smart and urgent investments to reduce blackouts and brownouts.

All Americans are watching the situation in Texas and throughout the heartlands with great sadness, Pelosi said. Together, we must build back better an electric grid thats cheaper, cleaner and more reliable.

cayla.harris@hearst.com

ben.wermund@chron.com
Kids want to fish? You don't know how yourself? Here's a little help
The estranged wife of Premier League star Riyad Mahrez has joined OnlyFans - after she was caught flouting lockdown rules at a party in a London flat.

Mother-of-two Rita Johal, 28, claimed she was 'fined for being too hot' in a video last week after police raided the illegal gathering of around 10 people on Friday night.

Within hours model Rita - whose ex is Manchester City ace Riyad Mahrez - began capitalising on her newfound notoriety by promoting her OnlyFans account, where fans can pay 11.60 a month to access her 'exclusive music and content', reports The Sun.

In a video she shares a series of intimate selfies with her 510,000 Instagram followers before urging people to sign up, telling them: 'Swipe up right now to subscribe to my OnlyFans.

Rita Johal, 28, has joined OnlyFans - after she was caught flouting lockdown rules at a party in a London flat

Model Rita - whose ex is Manchester City ace Riyad Mahrez - claimed she was 'fined for being too hot' in a video last week after police raided the illegal gathering of around 10 people on Friday night

'I'll be posting exclusive content I won't be posing anywhere else - my music, pictures, videos, all of that exciting stuff.'

Rita's first OnlyFans post was on February 4, and she's since shared 14 more, notching up a total of 115 likes with captions such as 'Lil bit of me', 'Love to try it all and 'Wings are there to fly'.

Rita, who lives in a 2million mansion in Buckinghamshire, separated from Riyad Mahrez, with whom she has two children, in 2019.

Footage from the illegal party showed Rita surrounded by Metropolitan Police officers searching the flat before slapping her with a fine.

Rita's first OnlyFans post was on February 4, and she's since shared 14 more, notching up a total of 115 likes with captions such as 'Lil bit of me', 'Love to try it all and 'Wings are there to fly'

She captioned the clips: 'Fine for being too hot. Loool we all got fined don't worry about it sweetheart.'

As the officers continued to quiz the guests, Rita went on a bizarre rant and asked the police: 'Don't you guys like to party anymore?'

A female officer is heard telling her: 'Not during lockdown,' to which Rita responded: 'Guys, you can't be all depressed in this world, we have got to be happy.'

The model went on to claim 'the one per cent is controlling us' before shouting: 'We are all in this together!'

She was then asked for her name and given a fine of at least 200.

Rita captioned the clips: 'Fine for being too hot. Loool we all got fined don't worry about it sweetheart'

During the rant, the model claimed 'the one per cent is controlling us' before shouting: 'We are all in this together!'

Responding to footage of the incident, Rita refused to apologise and claimed the officers were 'heavy handed'.

She told The Sun on Sunday: 'Oh for God's sake. There wasn't a lot of people there, there was like five people.

'Why is this being run, what's its purpose? To try and make my name look bad? Is that your guys' plan?'

Government rules state that it is against the law to meet socially with friends or family members that are not in your household.

Police forces have the power to give out 200 fines for first-time rule-breakers, but this can double with every following incident for repeat offenders up to a maximum of 6,400.

Anyone found to be hosting an illegal gathering of more than 30 people can be given a separate 10,000 fine.
Herr Hitlers assurance

The German people no longer entertain the slightest ill-feeling about the war, and nothing remains but great respect for their former opponents, said Herr Hitler when addressing delegates to the servicemens conference, at which 13 countries were represented. He added: A new war would have catastrophic consequences for all nations. Herr Hitler received the delegates at his country home in Bavaria.

Gipsies fight

An argument between two women of rival gipsy factions led to fisticuffs, with six other members of each faction soon joining in at their camp near Lansdowne Bridge on the Liverpool Road. When some of the women picked up poles and bottles as weapons, someone telephoned the Parramatta police to come before someone was murdered. Four police hurried to the camp in a fast car, when they arrived the fight had ended without serious injury.

First luggers leave for pearling season
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 18)  The Philippine Postal Corporation is in the process of enhancing its current system with full computerization expected to be completed by April or May this year.

At Thursday's hearing of the Senate Committee on Electoral Reforms on the proposed mail-in voting system, Engr. Josel Zamudio, officer-in-charge of PHLPost, said the infrastructure needed for mail-in voting, including computerized mail processing, would be in place by May 2022 in time for the national elections.

"In terms of voting, we might require additional support from the government," he said. "We might hire additional personnel to support this mail-in voting."

Sen. Imee Marcos, chairperson of the committee, suggested conducting pilot testing in areas where the postal service is most efficient to see if mail-in voting can be done.

"Nabanggit na nila na pwede siguro kung i-pilot na lang," Marcos said. "Kasi first time natin sumubok. Is that something we can do? Yung postal service at Comelec have agreed there are areas where the postal service pinaka-efficient, pinaka-reliable, at matututukan, doon tayo magpa-pilot."

[Translation: They mentioned if a pilot test can be done. Because this will be our first time to try. Is that something we can do? The postal service and Comelec (Commission on Elections) have agreed there are areas where the postal service is very efficient, reliable and where it can be monitored, we can do the pilot test there.]

Comelec Commissioner Marlon Casquejo said the pilot testing can be done once a law is passed allowing for the conduct of mail-in voting.

"All we need is the assurance from the postal office that the ballot will arrive not later than the election, the return of the ballot kasi baka doon tayo magkakaroon ng problema, baka tapos na election tapos may darating pa na ballot," Casquejo pointed out. "But I think the postal office naman is very competent and well, because of their computerization kaya naman nila."

[Translation: All we need is the assurance from the postal office that the ballot will arrive not later than the election, we might have a problem with the ballot returns, it could be the elections are over and ballots might still be coming in. But I think our postal service is very competent and because of their computerization, they can do it.]

However, the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting expressed concern over the authentication of the identity of voters in a mail-in voting scenario.

"For example, they will be mailing their ballots, perhaps the identity of the voter at the onset, at the beginning, should be part of the guidelines. But if it will be pilot tested, I think that can be done," said Maria Isabel Buenaobra, executive director of PPCRV.

Zamudio said voters can present their postal ID or Comelec ID to validate their identity.

"We usually ask for that as a validation. May QR code na rin to verify using mobile devices, it can be verified kung siya talaga yun kung meron siyang voter's ID pwede rin po yun," Zamudio said.

[Translation: We usually ask for that as validation. There is also a QR code to verify using mobile devices. People's identities can be verified...if they have a voter's ID, it can also be used.]

Teopisto Elnas, director of Comelec's Project Management Office, admitted it would be difficult to validate one's identity in mail-in voting.

"Magiging template natin dito yung sa postal voting ng overseas wherein once ma-establish na doon siya nakatira, pinapadalahan na natin or per registration records ng botante, kung ano address, doon pinapadala," Elnas explained. "Yun lang ang mahirap sa postal voting, you don't have the process of identification unlike sa actual voting. Mahirap yung identity before the ballots will be received, medyo mahihirapan tayo."

[Translation: Our template here will be the postal voting done overseas wherein once it is established that they live abroad we can send them the ballot, or per their registration records, we can send it to their address. But the difficult thing with postal voting, you don't have the process of identification unlike in actual voting. It's difficult to verify the identity before the ballots will be received.]
RADNOR, Pa., Feb. 17, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The law firm of Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP alerts investors that a securities fraud class action lawsuit has been filed against Restaurant Brands International Inc. (NYSE: QSR) ("Restaurant Brands") on behalf of those who purchased or acquired Restaurant Brands common stock between April 29, 2019, and October 28, 2019, inclusive (the "Class Period").

Reminder: Investors who purchased or acquired Restaurant Brands common stock during the Class Period may, no later than February 19, 2021 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class. For additional information or to learn how to participate in this litigation please contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP: James Maro, Esq. (484) 270-1453 or Adrienne Bell, Esq. (484) 270-1435; toll free at (844) 887-9500; via e-mail at [email protected]; or click https://www.ktmc.com/restaurant-brands-international-inc-securities-class-action?utm_source=PR&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=restaurant_brands

Restaurant Brands is a Canadian corporation and headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the world's largest restaurant chains with over 27,000 Tim Hortons, Burger King, and Popeyes restaurants in more than 100 countries and U.S. territories. On April 24, 2018, Restaurant Brands announced a new strategy designed to improve performance within its Tim Hortons brand. Specifically, the "Winning Together Plan" would focus on three key pillars: restaurant experience; product excellence; and brand communications. Then, on March 20, 2019, Restaurant Brands announced "Tims Rewards"  a new loyalty program for Tim Hortons customers in Canada. Under the Tims Rewards program, customers would be eligible for a free hot brewed coffee, hot tea, or baked good after every seventh paid visit to a participating Tim Hortons restaurant. On April 10, 2019, Restaurant Brands announced that it was expanding the Tims Rewards program to include customers in the United States.

The Class Period commences on April 29, 2019, when Restaurant Brands filed its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2019 with the SEC. Among other things, Restaurant Brands reported 0.5% system-wide year-over-year sales growth for Tim Hortons on system-wide sales of $1.547 billion. The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, the defendants repeatedly touted the implementation and execution of Restaurant Brands' Winning Together Plan and Tims Rewards loyalty program. On the heels of Restaurant Brands touting the benefits of these initiatives, the company completed two stock offerings on or about August 12, 2019, and September 5, 2019, collectively resulting in proceeds of approximately $3 billion to insiders.

However, on October 29, 2019, the truth about Restaurant Brands' execution of its Winning Together Plan and Tims Rewards loyalty program was revealed when the company announced disappointing financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2019. Among other things, Restaurant Brands reported a 0.1% system-wide year-over-year sales decline for Tim Hortonsrepresenting a 1.4% same-store sales declineon system-wide sales of $1.774 billion. Following this news, the price of Restaurant Brands common stock declined $2.59 per share, or approximately 4%, from a close of $68.45 per share on October 25, 2019, to close at $64.86 per share on October 28, 2019.

The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, the defendants misrepresented and/or failed to disclose that: (1) Restaurant Brands' Winning Together Plan was failing to generate substantial, sustainable improvement within the Tim Hortons brand; (2) the Tims Rewards loyalty program was not generating sustainable revenue growth as increased customer traffic was not offsetting promotional discounting; and (3) as a result, the defendants' statements about Restaurant Brands' business, operations, and prospects lacked a reasonable basis.

Restaurant Brands investors may, no later than February 19, 2021 , seek to be appointed as a lead plaintiff representative of the class through Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP or other counsel, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member. A lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of all class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed as a lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will adequately represent the class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the decision of whether or not to serve as a lead plaintiff.

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP prosecutes class actions in state and federal courts throughout the country involving securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duties and other violations of state and federal law. Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has recovered billions of dollars on behalf of institutional and individual investors from the United States and around the world. The firm represents investors, consumers and whistleblowers (private citizens who report fraudulent practices against the government and share in the recovery of government dollars). For more information about Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP please visit www.ktmc.com.

CONTACT:

Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

James Maro, Jr., Esq.

Adrienne Bell, Esq.

280 King of Prussia Road

Radnor, PA 19087

(844) 887-9500 (toll free)

(610) 667-7706

[email protected]

SOURCE Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP

Related Links

http://www.ktmc.com





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My experience in an Oakland COVID ward last week highlighted the healing power of a medicine that has too often been missing from hospitals during the pandemic: family.

Ms. A was an 85-year-old woman who always clutched her rosary and prayed as I entered her room. Her oxygen level started out normal, at 95%, on just a little nasal oxygen. Ms. A kept telling me, over the roar of the air-purifying equipment that we use to lower the risk of spreading the virus, that she just wanted to go home.

Mr. D, an 81-year-old former Vietnamese refugee, had been in the hospital for a week. Though he didnt talk, even with the help of an interpreter, he ate well and looked comfortable on high-flow oxygen.

Ms. As oxygen needs rose each day, however, as did her anxiety, the plaintive tenor of her prayers and her inquiries about going home. I got a priest to visit her and offer some support, and I updated her family by phone.

The next day, she needed maximal oxygen, and I told her family that it seemed she was losing her battle with the virus. I said we could see how she did on maximal oxygen out of the hospital with the idea of getting her home with hospice care and honoring her wishes.

Two hours later, I told Ms. As family that she was up eating and looked comfortable despite her low oxygen levels, and they wondered whether I was sure she wouldnt recover if she stayed in the hospital. Sick with uncertainty, I said, I am sorry, but this is such a new disease, I cant say that for certain. Different family members had different opinions, but in the end, they were unable to give up hope, so we agreed to keep her in the hospital.

Down the hall, Mr. D had stopped eating, and his oxygen levels and blood pressure dropped. A nurse exited his room, and despite her mask and steamed-up glasses, I could read her body language. That poor man is dying, she said. I agreed and called the family to offer them a chance to visit and talk about home hospice.

Mr. Ds relatives said he had not seen any of them in 10 months and that they would love to visit and talk about bringing him home with hospice care. The next morning, his kids showed up with pastries for the staff and a quart of jook, or rice porridge, for him.

They came out of his room smiling an hour later. He ate all the jook and he smiled! They wanted to work on taking him home with hospice. That night, Mr. Ds blood pressure and oxygen improved.

The next day, Ms. A was less responsive though still exuding warmth and dignity. When I entered the room later, Spanish-language Catholic hymns were playing as her kids leaned over the bed. On an iPad, there was a chorus of tears from 20 family members all crying on a Zoom meeting, the most beautiful soundtrack to an end of life that I have ever heard. I tried hard not to join the chorus as we talked about turning off the oxygen to help limit her suffering.

We increased Ms. As morphine and removed the oxygen. She looked so much more beautiful and peaceful without it. Briefly, she closed her eyes and then opened them, breathing more calmly. With the hymns and the chorus of crying relatives, she lived another 20 minutes in the loving presence of her big family.

Down the hall, Mr. Ds family arrived in great spirits and with more food. When they saw him without oxygen, they said it was a miracle. He has beat COVID! We cant thank you enough.

Dont thank me, I said. He was cured by love and jook! Sometimes there is no better medicine than food from home and love. All bursting with joy, we bumped elbows and took pictures as he was wheeled home.

Back at the nurses station, there were tears. Sometimes life is so full of emotion that it is hard to give it a name. Joy? Grief? Our bodies almost pulsing, our minds searching for words, it is as if an ancient process is marking a time and place in our souls. This is what it is to be a human living with love and creating meaning.

We need to plan to let families back into hospitals now that infections are declining and vaccinations are accelerating. Collaboration between providers and families is critical to great health care. It can also give health care workers a greater sense of purpose  and leave us in awe of the mysterious depth of the human experience.

Leif Hass is a family medicine doctor who provides hospital care at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Oakland. He is also a clinical instructor at UCSF and an adviser to the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley.
Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.
Lenovo announced Smart Clock Essential in India, to extend its smart home solutions. The new and mainstream Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is a connected digital smart clock designed for every room in the home, at an accessible mainstream price point.

Building on the Lenovo Smart Clock for the bedroom, the Smart Clock Essential extends the same hands-free, time-saving convenience to the rest of the home. It offers full voice support with Google Assistant, and is Lenovos first smart device to support Hindi language commands.

This is an intelligent digital clock, designed to help users save time through the easy-to-read LED display which displays real-time information at a glance, the ambient light sensor that allows viewing from any angle or brightness, and Google Assistant which makes household chores much easier. The alarm clock supports using buttons to set the alarm, in addition to voice. Its also a useful night-time companion with a built-in light that helps people walk around without bumping into things and has an integrated USB port to charge the devices overnight. The screen also features smart alarm suggestions based on the next days calendar events, as well as sunrise alarms that gently wake people by gradually increasing color and brightness before ringing the alarm.

With Google Assistants full voice support, users can easily control their smart home, with more than 40,000 compatible smart home devices from over 5,000 brands. Its far-field microphones pick up questions from nearly anywhere in the room or play tunes with its 3W speaker that can be grouped with other compatible smart speakers to amplify the music. Users can just say, Hey Google, play my morning playlist. It also offers feature parity with other Google Assistant-enabled smart speakers and supports voice match for up to six users at a time. The device also supports Hindi language commands. This software feature is specific to India, and the Smart Clock Essential will be Lenovos first device to support Hindi language.

Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is available in Soft Touch Grey color at a starting price of INR 4,499. It will go on sale at midnight on 19th February 2021 across Lenovo.com, Flipkart, and will be later available in Lenovo offline retail channels.
Credit: University of Queensland

An "immuno-storm chip" developed by University of Queensland researchers could diagnose cancer and COVID-19 patients at risk of a potentially lethal reaction.

The device was invented at UQ's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) by Professor Matt Trau, Dr. Alain Wuethrich and Junrong Li.

Professor Trau said the chip is designed to determine which patients are at risk of a potentially lethal "cytokine storm," an uncontrolled immune response which damages the body's tissues.

"Having this early stage diagnostic could help healthcare workers triage and closely monitor high-risk patients and begin treatment much earlier," Professor Trau said.

"Whether in a cancer treatment setting or when monitoring infectious diseases such as acute COVID-19, long-haul COVID-19 and sepsis, the chip could provide critical medical information that guides important clinical decisions."

Cytokines are small proteins that act as messengers between cells in the immune system.

"Cytokines play a critical role in triggering inflammation by stimulating the movement of immune cells toward sites of injury or infection," Professor Trau said.

"When this becomes uncontrolled and causes damage, more cytokines are produced and it becomes a vicious cycle, called a 'cytokine storm.'"

"About 80 percent of cancer patients who undergo cutting-edge immune therapy are likely to have an adverse response, such as a cytokine storm.

"For reasons we don't totally understandwhether it's due to genetics or immune historyaround one percent of COVID-19 patients get a crazy cytokine storm."

"It now seems clear that many COVID-19 deaths are caused by this mechanism, but it is very difficult to predict who will develop this response."

"Such adverse immune events are now also becoming associated with COVID-19 long-haul symptoms."

The researchers said their chip detects a faint but distinctive pattern of cytokines on a nanoscale platform with a small blood sample several days before the full-blown 'storm."

They created a tiny array of gold pillars and attached antibodies that would stick to specific cytokines present in a blood sample as small as a single drop.

Gold-silver 'nanotag' particles emit bright light when they come into contact with single captured cytokine molecules, allowing minute levels to be detected by conventional and inexpensive optical imaging equipment.

The researchers were able to test the device via a collaboration with Dr. Andreas Behren at the Olivia Newton John Cancer Centre in Melbourne, who also provided clinical samples.

Professor Trau said the chip's small size meant it could eventually be made relatively portable.

"The immunostorm chip would allow hospitals to focus resources on patients at high-risk of a 'cytokine storm," while low-risk patients could potentially be monitored from home.

"Critically, it could inform doctors to begin or to ease treatments by accurately monitoring the patient's immune response, fine-tuning a patient's therapy to alleviate their specific excessive immune system response."

Professor Trau said the successful demonstration of the immune-storm chip technology opened up the possibility and partnering with other organizations to progress the chip further into the clinic.

The findings have been published in the journal Nature Communications.

Professor Trau is part of AIBN's Precision Nanomedicine research, which is revolutionizing the way we understand, diagnose and treat disease by designing technologies that interact with human cells and pathogens at the nanoscalethousands of times smaller than the width of a human hair.

More information: A digital single-molecule nanopillar SERS platform for predicting and monitoring immune toxicities in immunotherapy. Nat Commun 12, 1087 (2021). Journal information: Nature Communications A digital single-molecule nanopillar SERS platform for predicting and monitoring immune toxicities in immunotherapy.12, 1087 (2021). doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-21431-w

Pune, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Global AI in Banking Market 2021-2027:

The global AI in Banking Market 2021-2027 research report covers the market landscape and their growth prospect over the coming years, this report covers the industry structure and even landscape, the problems along with business strategies and industry effectiveness. The purpose of the AI in Banking Market report is to support beginner as well as existing players in gaining insightful AI in Banking and make appropriate decisions based on it.

Get a Sample PDF of report @ https://www.industryresearch.biz/enquiry/request-sample/17320037



This report focuses on the global AI in Banking status, future forecast, growth opportunity, key market, and key players. The study objectives are to present the AI in Banking development in North America, Europe, Japan, China, Southeast Asia, India, etc.

The AI in Banking Industry report is compiled with the use of the latest primary and secondary research methodologies and tools providing various analyses that have been comprehended in the report. The information available in the AI in Banking market summarized report provides customers with effective information that enables them to make effective decisions, which could lead to a significant expansion of the business in the future.

The report lists the major players in the regions and their respective market share on the basis of global revenue. It also explains their strategic moves in the past few years, investments in product innovation, and changes in leadership to stay ahead in the competition. This will give the reader an edge over others as a well-informed decision can be made looking at the holistic picture of the market.

The Major Players in the AI in Banking Market include:

Blue Frog Robotics

Bsh Hausgerate

Fanuc

Hanson Robotics

Harman International Industries

IBM

Intel

Cisco Systems

ABB

To Understand How Covid-19 Impact Is Covered in This Report - https://www.industryresearch.biz/enquiry/request-covid19/17320037

Global AI in Banking Market: Drivers and Restrains

The research report has incorporated the analysis of different factors that augment the markets growth. It constitutes trends, restraints, and drivers that transform the market in either a positive or negative manner. This section also provides the scope of different segments and applications that can potentially influence the market in the future. The detailed information is based on current trends and historic milestones. This section also provides an analysis of the volume of production about the global market and about each type.

A thorough evaluation of the restrains included in the report portrays the contrast to drivers and gives room for strategic planning. Factors that overshadow the market growth are pivotal as they can be understood to devise different bends for getting hold of the lucrative opportunities that are present in the ever-growing market. Additionally, insights into market experts opinions have been taken to understand the market better.

Get a sample copy of the AI in Banking Market report 2020-2027

On the basis of product , this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split into:

Hardware

Software

Services

On the basis of the end users/applications , this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate for each application, including:

Analytics

Chatbots

Robotic process automation (RPA)

Enquire before purchasing this report - https://www.industryresearch.biz/enquiry/pre-order-enquiry/17320037

Some of the key questions answered in this report:

What will the market growth rate, growth momentum or acceleration market carries during the forecast period?

Which are the key factors driving the AI in Banking market?

What was the size of the emerging AI in Banking market by value in 2020?

What will be the size of the emerging AI in Banking market in 2027?

Which region is expected to hold the highest market share in the AI in Banking market?

What trends, challenges and barriers will impact the development and sizing of the Global AI in Banking market?

What are the sales volume, revenue, and price analysis of top manufacturers of AI in Banking market?

Global AI in Banking Market providing information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials and instrumentation and downstream demand analysis is additionally dispensed. The Global AI in Banking market development trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally, the feasibility of the latest investment projects is assessed and overall analysis conclusions offered.

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Some Points from TOC:

1 Report Overview

2 Executive Summary

3 Key Players

4 Breakdown by Type and by Application

5 North America

6 Europe

7 Japan

8 Rest of World

9 International Player Profiles

10 Market Dynamics

11 Key Findings in This Report







Part 2:

Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech Market 2021-2027:

The global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech Market 2021-2027 study provides critical information related to the global, regional and top players including Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market share analysis, winning strategies, recent developments, and financials planning. Besides providing information regarding the key players in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market, the study also recalibrates, the impact of macroeconomic and microeconomic factors that has the potential to impact the growth of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market.

As FinTech applies data and technology to financial services in an effort to address industry challenges, artificial intelligence is essential to FinTechs existence and usage.

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Market Analysis and Insights: Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech Market

The research report studies the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market size using different methodologies and analyzes to supply accurate and in-depth information about the market. For a clearer understanding, it's divided into several parts to cover different aspects of the market. The researchers have used primary and secondary methodologies to collate the information within the report. This report is aimed toward guiding people towards an apprehensive, better, and clearer knowledge of the market. The worldwide Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market growth analysis is provided for the international markets including development trends, competitive landscape analysis, investment plan, business strategy, opportunity, and key regions development status.

The Major Players in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech Market include: Autodesk, IBM, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, Fanuc, Hanson Robotics

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Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech Market: Drivers and Restrains

The research report has incorporated the analysis of different factors that augment the markets growth. It constitutes trends, restraints, and drivers that transform the market in either a positive or negative manner. This section also provides the scope of different segments and applications that can potentially influence the market in the future. The detailed information is based on current trends and historic milestones. This section also provides an analysis of the volume of production about the global market and about each type.

A thorough evaluation of the restrains included in the report portrays the contrast to drivers and gives room for strategic planning. Factors that overshadow the market growth are pivotal as they can be understood to devise different bends for getting hold of the lucrative opportunities that are present in the ever-growing market. Additionally, insights into market experts opinions have been taken to understand the market better.

On the basis of product , this report displays the production, revenue, price, market share and growth rate of each type, primarily split into Hardware, Software, Services

On the basis of the end users/applications , this report focuses on the status and outlook for major applications/end users, consumption (sales), market share and growth rate for each application, including Customer Service, Credit Scores, Insurance Support, Financial Market Prediction

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Some of the key questions answered in this report:

What will the market growth rate, growth momentum or acceleration market carries during the forecast period?

Which are the key factors driving the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market?

What was the size of the emerging Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market by value in 2020?

What will be the size of the emerging Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market in 2027?

Which region is expected to hold the highest market share in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market?

What trends, challenges, and barriers will impact the development and sizing of the Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market?

What are the sales volume, revenue, and price analysis of top manufacturers of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market?

Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech Market providing information such as company profiles, product picture, and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials and instrumentation and downstream demand analysis is additionally dispensed. The Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market development trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally, the feasibility of the latest investment projects is assessed and overall analysis conclusions offered.

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With tables and figures helping analyze worldwide Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Fintech market trends, this research provides key statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market.

Some Points from TOC:

1 Report Overview

2 Executive Summary

3 Key Players

4 Breakdown by Type and by Application

5 North America

6 Europe

7 Japan

8 Rest of World

9 International Player Profiles

10 Market Dynamics

..Continued

About Us:

Market is changing rapidly with the ongoing expansion of the industry. Advancement in the technology has provided todays businesses with multifaceted advantages resulting in daily economic shifts. Thus, it is very important for a company to comprehend the patterns of the market movements in order to strategize better. An efficient strategy offers the companies with a head start in planning and an edge over the competitors. Industry Research is the credible source for gaining the market reports that will provide you with the lead your business needs.
Equity benchmark indices witnessed profit selling for third straight session after recent steep gains and closed lower on Thursday. Amid heavy selling in financial services, private banks and auto stocks, the S&P BSE Sensex ended 397 points, or 0.73 per cent, at 51,324, while Nifty 50 index fell 89 points or 0.59 per cent at 15,118.

Yesterday, Sensex ended 49 points lower at 52,104 and Nifty fell 1.25 points to 15,313. On Tuesday, Sensex hit a record high of 52,516 and Nifty hit a lifetime high of 15,431.

Here's a look at top losers that led the market fall on BSE and NSE today

1. Bajaj Finance

Bajaj Finance stock price was trading as the top loser on BSE and NSE. The stock, however, traded only 4.58 per cent away from 52-week high of Rs 5,820.5. Bajaj Finance stock fell 3.17 per cent intra-day and touched an intra-day low of Rs 5,523. The stock has fallen 3.2 per cent in the last 3 days. The share is trading higher than 20, 50, 100 and 200-day moving averages but lower than 5-day moving averages. The stock has fallen 0.02 per cent in one week. However, it has gained 18 per cent in one month and 5 per cent year-to-date. M-cap of the Bajaj Finance stock stood at Rs 3,35,366.97 crore as of today's session. Bajaj Finance stock closed 2.4 per cent lower at Rs 5,565.45 on BSE and at 2.5 per cent lower at Rs 5,562 on NSE today.

2. Kotak Mahindra Bank

Kotak Mahindra Bank share price closed 2.28 per cent lower on BSE at Rs 1,945.30 and 2.18 per cent lower on NSE at Rs 1,946. The stock fell 2.57 per cent to an intra-day low of Rs 1,938 today. Kotak Mahindra Bank stock has fallen 3.5 per cent in the last two days. Kotak Mahindra Bank is trading higher than 20, 50, 100 and 200-day moving averages but lower than 5-day moving averages. The stock has fallen 0.8 per cent in one week and 2.5 per cent year-to-date. However, the stock has gained 5.2 per cent in one month. Market-cap of the lender stood at Rs 3,85,361.86 crore today.

3. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M)

Mahindra & Mahindra's (M&M) share price fell 2.19 per cent lower to end at Rs 894.55 on BSE and by 2.21 per cent to Rs 894.75 on NSE today. The top loser on both bourses today fell to Rs 892, its intra-day low. The stock has fallen 2.14 per cent in one week. M&M stock trades higher than 20, 50, 100 and 200-day moving averages but lower than 5-day moving averages. The share has risen 10 per cent in a month. Year-to-date, the stock is up 24 per cent. The market capitalisation of Mahindra & Mahindra rose to Rs 1,11,209.79 crore.

4. Nestle

Nestle shares traded as the top losers on both BSE and NSE today. Nestle share price has fallen 6 per cent in one week and 7 per cent in a month. Year-to-date, the stock is down 10 per cent. The market capitalisation of the FMCG major stood at Rs 1,61,398.94 crore. Nestle stock price trades lower than 5, 20, 50, 100 and 200-day moving averages. Nestle stock ended 2.18 per cent lower at Rs 16,374 on BSE and 1.8 per cent lower at Rs 16,438 on NSE today.

5. HDFC

HDFC share price closed 2.13 per cent lower at Rs 2,744.75 on BSE today, after falling 2.65 per cent intra-day to day's low of Rs 2,730 in early session. The stock ended at Rs 2,747.10, down 2.08 per cent on NSE. The market capitalisation of the company stood at Rs 4,94,584.41 crore today. The stock price of HDFC has fallen 0.5 per cent in one week. The stock has, however, gained 6.5 per cent in one month, 7 per cent year to date and 18 per cent in one year. HDFC stock is trading higher than 20, 50, 100 and 200-day moving averages but lower than 5-day moving averages.

Other losers were Axis Bank, Bajaj Auto, HDFC Bank, HCL Tech, Airtel and L&T. On the other hand, ONGC, SBI, Power Grid, RIL, NTPC, ITC, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, RIL, TCS and IndusInd Bank were among the top gainers.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market was positive on the BSE, with 1,641 shares rising, 1,329 shares falling and a total of 155 unchanged shares.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, gained 0.17 per cent to end at 21.54. The BSE's market capitalisation stood flat at to Rs 205 lakh crore for the fourth straight session.

Stocks in news: GAIL, Jubilant FoodWorks, Jindal Stainless, Bharti Airtel, Shree Cement

Share Market Live: Sensex rises 70 points, Nifty at 15,215; ONGC, IndusInd Bank, SBI top gainers

Good morning, Bay Area. Its Thursday, Feb. 18, and its the time of year for Yosemites most fleeting attraction. Heres what you need to know to start your day.

Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders have agreed to a $9.6 billion coronavirus aid package that would provide $600 checks to millions of low-income Californians, as well as grants and tax deductions to small businesses struggling through the pandemic.

The plan is even larger than the stimulus spending that Newsom pitched last month as part of his state budget proposal, reflecting a tax base that has rebounded faster than anticipated. Legislatures could vote on the aid package as soon as next week. Alexei Koseff has more details.

 California's positivity rate drops sharply, a promising indicator for reopening. Data: California coronavirus case tracker.

 California is now the only state to ban indoor dining. Here's when it might resume in the Bay Area.

 S.F. homeless advocates, supervisors push city to acquire more hotels to house homeless.

 Priest at S.F.'s Saints Peter and Paul Church dies after contracting COVID-19.

 Medical cannabis workers, veterinarians included in states vaccine priority group along with health care officials.

Around the Bay

Scott Strazzante / The Chronicle

 You see the gun he carries? Oakland Chinatown turns to private, armed security in wake of assaults, robberies.

 Days with no heat amid freezing weather: Californians are being asked to conserve energy to help Texas and the Midwest.

 Anonymous but not homogeneous: Mill Valley job site Glassdoor wants to shed light on what women think of pay at their workplace, how Black people see company culture, and much more. More: S.F., San Jose plummet in annual ranking of U.S. cities with best economies.

 Oil and gas wells kept away from homes: State Sen. Scott Wiener introduces bill to ban California fracking by 2027.

 We trusted them too much: A newly released video has raised questions about the Antioch Police Departments handling of a mentally ill man who died in December, three days after officers handcuffed him and allegedly used controversial restraint tactics while the man begged for his life. Now his family is planning to sue.

California Outdoors

Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

The timing has to be perfect: It occurs when sunlight entering Yosemite Valley at dusk dips to just the right angle, refracting through the 1,575-foot Horsetail Fall and creating the effect of a burning flow of flame streaming into the granite valley.

This is Yosemites firefall, a fleeting phenomenon each February that requires a specific confluence of moisture, air clarity and sunlight at the national park. The firefall has become an obsession for photographers aiming to land the perfect shot.

Here's how they do it.

Bay Briefing is written by Taylor Kate Brown, Anna Buchmann and Kellie Hwang and sent to readers email inboxes on weekday mornings. Sign up for the newsletter here, and contact the writers at taylor.brown@sfchronicle.com, anna.buchmann@sfchronicle.com, and kellie.hwang@sfchronicle.com.
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Do you want to know what your city, county and school districts are up to?

As a responsible taxpayer and citizen of your community, of course you want to keep an eye on what these governments are undertaking.

Where do you go for that information?

Do you spend your day logging into the countys website to find what your county commissioners did about county roads at their last meeting, but cant find anything about it in their meeting minutes? Next you switch over to the towns website so you can read about changes in garbage pick-up days and rates, only to find it hasnt been posted...

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Uttarakhand government has decided to limit the this year for 30 days, Chief Secretary Om Prakash said on Thursday.

The government will issue the notice by the end of March stating that this time will be held from April 1 to April 30. The decision is taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection, he added.

The state government has also emphasised reducing the duration of as they fear becoming a hot spot of the virus.

Earlier, the Haridwar District Magistrate C Ravishankar said that pilgrims will need passes to attend Kumbh.

"Pilgrims will need passes for Kumbh and the passes will be issued only after submission of a negative RT-PCR test report, medical certificate, and identification proof. Those without passes will be denied entry," said Ravishankar.

He also informed that the district administration has demanded 70,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the personnel posted on duty to ensure their safety.

The Kumbh administration has also put cameras at the Ganga Ghats to monitor the crowd.

Haridwar has been turned into a hub of mythology-themed colourful wall graffiti to make devotees and tourists aware of its significance in the ongoing Maha Kumbh Mela, under the campaign called "Paint My City", run by the Haridwar-Roorkee Development Authority.

Describing Kumbh as a festival of colours, Mela Deputy Officer Harbir Singh said that graffiti depicting Hindu mythology and Uttarakhand culture has been installed across walls, bridges, Government buildings, and other spaces available in Haridwar.

The Maha Kumbh is celebrated in a cycle of 12 years at four river-bank pilgrimage sites across India. The fair will conclude in the last week of April.

(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.)
Michelle O'Neill casts her vote in the 2019 Westminster election. Picture by Jonathan Porter/PressEye

A claim by Sinn Fein that the UK Government is attempting to suppress voters rights through an electoral register canvass has been branded "fake news".

UUP MLA Robbie Butler said the party's claims were worthy of former US President Donald Trump.

In a video posted on the party's social media earlier this week, Sinn Fein accused the UK Government of planning a "mass purge of voters" in a "blatant attempt to suppress the voice of citizens in next years historic assembly election".

"The British Government are planning to suppress the democratic rights of citizens," the video said.

The British Govt is planning a mass purge of voters in the North.



This is a blatant attempt to suppress the voice of citizens in next yearas historic assembly election.



The right to vote was hard fought for & must be protected.



Sinn FAin will robustly challenge this proposal. pic.twitter.com/2ddyzztmDd  Sinn FAin (@sinnfeinireland) February 16, 2021

The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has rejected the claims, saying registering to vote is a fundamental part of the democratic process.

It comes after Northern Ireland's Electoral Office announced plans to carry out a review of the electoral register this summer.

Details will be sent to every house in Northern Ireland and people will be able to register online or via a paper form.

Anyone who does not return their form on time will be removed from the register.

Deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill said she would be seeking an urgent meeting with Secretary of State Brandon Lewis to discuss the issue.

She said the plans were "very concerning as it could lead to tens of thousands of people losing their vote."

The party's West Belfast MP Paul Maskey said the plan was a "purge of voters" and was particularly unacceptable given the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

This could result in votes being taken away from many thousands of people, with a disproportionate impact on those from working-class communities" Mr Maskey said.

Next years Assembly election will be defining for the future of our island, citizens should be encouraged to participate in this election and not removed from the register."

He also pointed out that the previous canvass in 2013 resulted in 60,000 people being removed from the electoral register.

The MP promised the party would continue to challenge the proposal and representatives have already met with Chief Electoral Officer Virginia McVea to express their concerns.

In response to the social media video the NIO dismissed Sinn Fein's claims, saying they were "not true".

"Canvass is not about removing people, but ensuring the register is as accurate as possible" a spokesperson said.

"Registering to vote is fundamental to the democratic process & people cannot remain on the NI register indefinitely without refreshing their registration."

The Electoral Office said the canvass was needed to ensure the "accuracy and completeness" of the register.

It is a legally required part of the electoral process, it had been due to take place last year but was delayed as a result of the pandemic.

Expand Close UUP MLA Robbie Butler / Facebook

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Mr Butler described the claims as a "classic example of fake news".

The most basic democratic principles are that elections are free and fair. Underpinning this is the notion that the electoral roll itself is as accurate and up to date as possible," the Lagan Valley MLA said.

"People die, they move house, they change their names, they leave Northern Ireland, other people arrive and over time the register will inevitably become less accurate and need to be updated.

Referencing President Trump he said, "Here we have Sinn Fein seeking to undermine our own democratic process with inflammatory language, and that is utterly shameful from a leading party of government".
There are so many different ways that you can hug a person. Obviously, each type of hug is going to have a little different meaning to it,...

Lawmakers on marijuana study committee plan out-of-state site visits

Lawmakers want a firsthand look at legal cannabis operations in response to South Dakotans voting to loosen their state's pot laws last fall.

Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism.

One 88-year-old woman who has lived on the same Gresham block for 45 years  25 of which she said she spent as a USPS employee herself  said the wait for mail has never been as bad as its been right now. Over the past three months, the woman, who asked to withhold her name from publication due to fear of retaliation, has checked her mailbox at least twice a day, but usually its empty.
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NASA's Perseverance rover has successfully landed on Mars following a 239 million-mile journey.

The rover survived the 'seven minutes of terror' when it endured tumultuous conditions that battered the craft as it entered the Martian atmosphere and approached the surface.

'Touchdown confirmed! Perseverance safely on the surface of Mars, ready to begin seeking signs of past life,' flight controller Swati Mohan announced to colleagues.

President Joe Biden watched the craft land from the White House and sent out a tweet of congratulations after the landing, calling it historic.

Perseverance shot like a speeding bullet through the atmosphere at 12,000mph and successfully deployed the sonic parachute which slowed it down to make a soft landing on the surface.

It descended on the parachute, the backshell separated and the sky crane maneuver carried Perseverance to the ground attached to long nylon cables.

Perseverance touched down at the base of an 820ft-deep (250m) crater called Jezero, a former lake which was home to water 3.5 billion years ago.

The Martian surface is littered with craters but what makes Jezero Crater so special is that it has an inflow and outflow channel, which suggests it was filled with water some 3.5 billion years ago.

Thomas Zurbuchen, of the NASA Science Mission directorate, said: 'It was an exciting day to think we're looking to bring samples of Mars back to Earth.'

'We're turning our rover into a robotic geologist and astrobiologist, collecting samples that we will be bringing back to Earth, that is what we're looking forward to.'

NASA's Perseverance rover has successfully landed on Mars following a 239 million-mile journey through space. Moments after touchdown, Perseverance beamed back its first black-and-white images from the Martian surface

The descent of the $2.2billion car-sized spacecraft was live streamed as it went through the 'seven minutes of terror' when it endured tumultuous conditions that battered the craft as it entered the Martian atmosphere and approached the surface

President Joe Biden watched the craft land on Mars and sent out a tweet calling it 'historic'

Moments after touchdown, Perseverance beamed back its first black-and-white images from the Martian surface.

Radio signals between Perseverance and NASA took 11 minutes to travel all the way to Mars and back again.

As a result, Perseverance's on-board computers and 19 cameras were entirely responsible for the descent.

The spacecraft carrying the rover separated ten minutes before atmosphere entry and Perseverance entered Mars' atmosphere at around 12,000 miles per hour.

This rapid speed generated a huge amount of air resistance and friction which warmed Perseverance up to an enormous temperature in excess of 2,000F.

The brunt of this thermal energy was absorbed by a heat shield, which sits between the rover itself and the outside.

Perseverance touched down at the base of an 820ft-deep (250m) crater called Jezero, a former lake which was home to water 3.5 billion years ago. Pictured is one of the first images the rover sent back after landing on the Martian soil

The NASA team was overjoyed after hearing the news that Perseverance had landed safely on Mars

During Perseverance's descent, NASA was unable to make contact with the rover. However, once signal was received the team erupted in applause

Members of NASA's Perseverance Mars rover team watch in mission control as the first images arrive moments after the spacecraft successfully touched down on Mars

A massive parachute deployed around four minutes into the descent, when the rover was still seven miles from the surface. NASA said this was a critical step and involved the biggest parachute ever sent to another planet.

Once the parachute deployed, the heat shield was discarded as it was now surplus to requirements.

This allowed the cameras of Perseverance to start studying the terrain below and scour for a potential landing spot.

Around 90 seconds later, the backshell  the back half of the entry capsule that is fastened to the parachute  was also jettisoned 1.7miles above the Martian surface.

Prior to the landing, NASA officials had cautioned that 'it is not guaranteed that we will be successful.

To increase the chance of success, Perseverance was the first mission to be fitted with 'Terrain Relative Navigation' which took images of the Martian surface during the descent. The information gathered from this were used to inform the rover's decision as to where it would land.

The spacecraft carrying the rover separated 10 minutes before atmosphere entry and Perseverance then entered Mars' atmosphere at around 12,000 miles per hour  quick enough to travel from London to New York in 15 minutes. This rapid speed generated a huge amount of air resistance and friction which warms Perseverance up to an enormous temperature in excess of 2,000F

A parachute deployed at around four minutes into the descent, when the rover was still seven miles from the surface. NASA said this was a critical step and involves the biggest parachute ever sent to another planet

A landing harness carrying Perseverance which is fitted with eight rocket thrusters took control of the descent after the parachute was jettisoned and slowed the craft down from 190 miles per hour to a mere 1.7 miles per hour while also steering the lander

The final stage of the landing saw the rocket-powered craft carry out the same maneuver as the Curiosity did in 2012 using the sky crane. Nylon cords lowered Perseverance 25 feet below and after it touched down on the Martian surface, the cords detached and the sky crane flew away

NASA has sent a number of orbiters to Mars, which allowed them to find Perseverance's target  the 28-mile Jezero Crater (pictured). The Jezero Crater is thought to be an extinct lake and is also close to curious rock formations, all of which are of great scientific interest back on Earth

The first act of Perseverance  which has been based on the blueprint of Curiosity and is the seven feet tall, nine feet wide and weighs 2,260 pounds  will be to release its accompanying Ingenuity helicopter (pictured). The copter will fly at an altitude that is similar to 100,000 feet on Earth, allowing it to gather geology data in areas the rover is unable to reach

NASA's Ingenuity helicopter preps for its 'Wright brothers moment' NASA is set to fly where no one has flown before  Mars' atmosphere. The American space agency is gearing up to launch its Perseverance rover along with the helicopter after it completes its landing later today. Named Ingenuity, the copter will fly at an altitude that is similar to 100,000 feet on Earth, allowing it to gather geology data in areas the rover is unable to travel. NASA is comparing this mission 'to the Wright brothers moment,' as it will be the first time in history an aerial vehicle has flown on another world. This will be the first time a terrestrial helicopter has not only flown at such altitudes, but also the first time it will take flight on another planet. 'Since the Wright brothers first took to the skies of Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, December 17, 1903, first flights have been important milestones in the life of any vehicle designed for air travel,' NASA said in a statement Advertisement

It completed the final approach with a 'jetpack' powered by eight rocket thrusters which slowed the craft down from 190 miles per hour to a mere 1.7 miles per hour while also steering the lander.

The craft then carried out the 'skycrane' maneuver which was first developed for Curiosity in 2012.

Nylon cords held Perseverance 25 feet below the jetpack and gently placed the rover down on the red soil.

At this point, the craft cut the nylon cords and flew away to ensure it did not damage Perseverance.

Astronomer Dr Daniel Brown, from Nottingham Trent University said the whole process was fraught with danger.

'You never know what Mars throws at you for surprises while the lander carries out these complex maneuvers by itself,' he said.

NASA established a radio connection with the rover before Perseverance did a series of checks and then started its experiments and investigations.

Unlike previous NASA rovers to Mars  Sojourner, Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity  Perseverance was purposely being sent to a more treacherous part of the red planet.

This is because the Jezero Crater is thought to be an extinct lake and is also close to curious rock formations, all of which are of great scientific interest back on Earth.

'NASA works. When we put our arms together and our hands together and our brains together, we can succeed. This is what NASA does,' says chief engineer and landing veteran Rob Manning.

Perseverance, the biggest, most advanced rover ever sent by NASA, became the ninth spacecraft to successfully land on Mars, every one of them from the U.S., beginning in the 1970s.

Deputy project scientist Ken Williford said: 'Are we alone in this sort of vast cosmic desert, just flying through space, or is life much more common?'

'Does it just emerge whenever and wherever the conditions are ripe?'

'Were really on the verge of being able to potentially answer these enormous questions.'

Radio signals between Perseverance and NASA took 11 minutes and 22 seconds to be sent due to the time it takes for the signals to travel all the way to Mars and back again. As a result, Perseverance's on-board computers and 19 cameras are entirely responsible for the descent

This NASA photo from 2019 shows the head of the Mars rover Perseverance's remote sensing mast which contains the SuperCam instrument in the large circular opening, two Mastcam-Z imagers in gray boxes, and next to those, the rover's two navigation cameras

Perseverance will make oxygen on Mars The primary task for Perseverance is to search for signs of microbial life and take soil samples, but it will also conduct a host of other jobs during its operational window of one Martian year one (687 Earth days). One of these, for example, involves investigating if Mars' natural resources can be turned into oxygen to make breathable air for astronauts and also to make rocket fuel for return missions. This task is called the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE). Future crewed missions to Mars will require oxygen for astronauts to breathe. Carrying oxygen from Earth to Mars is heavy and expensive. MOXIE is designed to see if it is possible to extract oxygen from Mars and turn it into breathable air. Mars atmosphere is more than 95 per cent of carbon dioxide and less than 0.15 per cent oxygen. Moxie will take Martian air, heat it to 800C, inject energy into a pair of electrodes and this then separates oxygen from the CO2. Oxygen is pumped out of one line and waste gase are spewed out of another. Advertisement

The first act of Perseverance  which has been based on the blueprint of Curiosity and is the seven feet tall, nine feet wide and weighs 2,260 pounds  will be to release its accompanying Ingenuity helicopter.

The copter will fly at an altitude of 15ft, which is similar to 100,000 feet on Earth, allowing it to gather geological data in areas the rover is unable to reach.

This exceptional height is made possible due to the thin atmosphere on Mars, which is just 1/1,000 as thick as Earth's. Its two levels of blades will rotate in opposite directions at up to 2,400 rpm.

This will be the first time a terrestrial helicopter has not only flown in such conditions, but also the first time it will take flight on another planet.

NASA is comparing this mission 'to the Wright brothers moment' and believes Ingenuity is going to transform how we think about exploring worlds in the future.

Perseverance's primary goal is to look for 'biosignatures'  signs of past or present microbial life  as well as gathering rock samples which will be picked up by another mission in 2026.

The rover will drill into the dusty surface and gather material into titanium, germ free tubes that will be placed in the vehicle's belly.

NASA aims to gather at least 20 samples with a variety of material that can be brought back to Earth for further analysis.

The successful landing of the rover was met with applause and loud cheers across eight rooms as the teams were split up in order to be Covid secure.

Steve Jurczyk, Nasa's acting administrator, said: 'It's amazing to have Perseverance join Curiosity on Mars and what a credit to the team.

'Just what an amazing team to work through all the adversity and all the challenges that go with landing a rover on Mars, plus the challenges of Covid.

'And just an amazing accomplishment.'

NASA has teamed up with the European Space Agency (ESA) for the follow up mission to retrieve the samples, with at least two crafts expected for the project.

'In 2026, we're going to launch a mission from Earth to Mars to go pick up those samples and bring them back to Earth,' NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine said previously.

'For the first time in history, we're doing a Mars sample return mission.'

Perseverance's primary goal is to look for 'biosignatures'  signs of past or present microbial life  as well as gathering rock samples which will be picked up by another mission in 2026. However, it is equipped with a host of tools which will perform a variety of tasks

UK scientists play key part in NASA mission to red planet More than 400,000 in funds from the UK Space Agency Have been provided for the development of Perseverance. Researchers at Imperial College London and the Natural History Museum will also be involved in deciding which Martian samples are sent to Earth. The research destination is Jezero crater, a 28-mile-wide depression containing sediments of an ancient river delta. At this location, evidence of past life could be preserved. The Perseverance rover will gather samples of Martian rocks and soil using its drill. The rover will then store the sample cores in tubes on the Martian surface ready for a return mission to bring around 30 samples to Earth in the early 2030s. Back on Earth, Professor Sanjeev Gupta from Imperial College London will help NASA oversee mission operations from a science and engineering point of view and Professor Mark Sephton, also from Imperial College London, will be helping to identify samples of Mars that could contain evidence of past life. Professor Caroline Smith, from the Natural History Museum, will be studying the mineralogy and geochemistry of the different rocks found in Jezero Crater. Dr Keyron Hickman-Lewis, also from the Natural History Museum, will be studying the environments reflected by sedimentary rocks exposed in Jezero Crater and the potential for the preservation of ancient microbial life within. Science Minister Amanda Solloway said: 'The Red Planet has been a source of fascination for centuries, and it is thrilling to be that little bit closer to finding out if there is life on Mars. 'I am incredibly grateful to the scientists, researchers and engineers involved in this effort from the UK and around the world, and trust that it will inspire a new generation of space scientists across the country.' Sue Horne, Head of Space Exploration at the UK Space Agency, adds: 'Over the next few years, our scientists will play a leading role in this international endeavour, from managing science operations to deciding which samples are to be returned to Earth. 'Perseverance will bring us one step closer to answering the question that's been on the lips of Bowie fans and scientists for the last forty years.' Advertisement

Lori Glaze from NASA's planetary science division, said scientists have wanted to bring samples of Mars back to Earth fro a 'very long time'.

'We have samples of Mars that have come to Earth as meteorites, but we don't know exactly where they came from on Mars and they had to travel through space which changes the rocks from what they were on Mars.

'Going to Mars and bringing samples back from Mars which we know we can keep pristine will help us answer questions about the history of Mars and how it evolved'

She added it will also help to answer questions about the geologic history of Mars, understanding how it evolved and answer important questions about whether life existed three and a half billion years ago and whether it has been preserved.

The sample tubes that Perseverance will be placing rock and soil samples into are the 'cleanest things ever created on Earth'.

This is because NASA wants to check whether those samples contain ancient Martian life and so it had to be created so they wouldn't be contaminated by Earth DNA.

The European Space Agency are providing a fetch rover that will pick up samples left by Perseverance and load them into a rocket.

The Mars Ascent Vehicle will be the first ever launch from another planet and it will rendezvous with a European spaceship that will return it back to Earth.

British researchers and the UK Space Agency are also involved in this process.

Academics at Imperial and the Natural History Museum will help decide which samples of Martian terrain should be saved and returned by the ESA mission.

The British Government provided almost half a million pounds towards the Perseverance project.

The rover itself is estimated to have cost $2.2billion (1.6billion) to build, according to the Planetary Society.

Its launch atop the Atlas V 541 rocket likely cost a further $243million (174.5million) and the two-year cost of operations is estimated to run up a bill of a further $300million (215million), taking the total estimated cost of Perseverance to $2.7billion (1.94billion).

All of Perseverance's missions on Mars will be orchestrated by its 19 cameras and powered by 10.6 pounds of plutonium carried in a custom container roughly the size of a bucket.

The plutonium provides 2,000 watts of thermal power and will last for around 14 years. NASA says.

Other work of Perseverance, which is scheduled to be operational for one Martian year (687 Earth days), involves investigating if materials found on Mars can be utilised to facilitate return missions.

This task is called the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) and is preparing for human exploration of Mars.

One goal of MOXIE is to convert elements of the carbon dioxide-rich Martian atmosphere into oxygen.

If successful, this will lay out the blueprint for how future crewed missions will turn the Martian atmosphere into rocket fuel and breathable air for astronauts.

Once the ESA mission collects and returns the samples of Mars to Earth in 2031, scientists will cut the slabs into thin sheets of rock in order to determine if individual microbial cells are hiding in the samples.

Perseverance is also fitted with other instruments, including advanced cameras, radar, and a laser.

The rover will use its high-powered laser, called SuperCam, at the top of its mast to shoot high-energy pulses capable of vaporizing rocks up to 20 feet away.

The laser beam heats the target to 18,000 degrees Fahrenheit, which is hot enough to transform the solid rock into plasma that can be imaged by a camera for further analysis.

Perseverance is a six-wheeled vehicle which is the same size as a large car and it will be accompanied by an autonomous four pound (1.8kg) helicopter called Ingenuity which will study Martian atmosphere

Perseverance launched on July 30 from Cape Canaveral Florida aboard a United Launch Alliances Atlas V rocket following probes also sent to Mars by the UAE and China

History of NASA landing on Mars The Red Planet's surface has been visited by eight NASA spacecraft and Perseverance  the ninth  will be the first that involves gathering samples to bring home. Viking 1 and Viking 2 landed in July and September of 1976, respectively. NASA's first Mars rover, Sojourner, landed in July 1997 aboard the Pathfinder lander. A rover called Spirit landed within the impact crater Gusev in January 2004. Opportunity, the twin of Spirit, landed three weeks later on the flat plains of Meridiani Planum in 2004. A robotic spacecraft called Phoenix touched down in May 2008 to research the history of water on Mars. The car-sized rover Curiosity landed in 2012 and is still active. NASA's lander InSight landed in November 2018. InSight is the only active lander and Curiosity the only currently working rover after Opportunity died in 2018. Advertisement

This instrument will help researchers identify minerals that are beyond the reach of the rover's robotic arm or in areas too steep for the rover to go.

Although the rover is very similar in design to Curiosity, it has a new array of sensors and equipment, including, for the first time, microphones.

Dr Brown said: 'Not only will we then be able to see a region of Mars in all its detail, but also handle material from there and hear what it would be like standing there.

'Indeed a striking achievement of rover technology when it all comes together this evening. I can't wait.'

Perseverance launched on July 30 from Cape Canaveral Florida aboard a United Launch Alliances Atlas V rocket following probes also sent to Mars by the UAE and China.

The recent spate of launches to Mars is because astronomers are keen to take advantage of a rare alignment in the orbits of Earth and Mars which makes the red planet relatively close and accessible for a period of a few weeks.

The United States has plans to send astronauts to Mars in the 2030s under a program that envisions using a return to the moon as a testing platform for human missions before making a more ambitious crewed journey to Mars.

Earlier this month, the United Arab Emirates become the first Arab nation and only the fifth nation overall to place a spaceship in orbit around Mars.

The country's space probe, called Hope, officially entered Mars orbit at around 16:15 GMT on February 9.

Hope will be the first probe to provide a complete picture of planet's atmosphere and its layers, according to the UAE.

China's orbiter and rover combo  named Tianwen-1  successfully reached Martian orbit on February 10.

Our 5,000-year obsession with the Red Planet: As NASA's Perseverance rover touches down today, we reflect on human's long journey to explore Mars since our ancestors first named their deities for the distant planet

By Stacy Liberatore for DailyMail.com

NASA's Perseverance rover landed on Mars Thursday to search for signs of life and although the mission has been years in the making, the red planet has been part of our culture for thousands of years.

The first record of the Martian world appeared around the third millennium BC, which described it as a God of War and it wasn't until the mid-1800s did Mars shed its reputation as a deity and become a planet - opening up a world of possibilities.

National Geographic's Mars issue focuses on 'Our Obsession With Mars,' in which it explores how the red planet is embedded in our past and what new discoveries Perseverance will uncover during its two-year mission.

'Kathryn Denning [a doctor of Anthropology at York University in Canada] told me, 'Mars doesn't push back all the hard against our imaginations',' Nadia Drake, science journalist and space enthusiasts, told DailyMail.com.

'I think about that and I think about the photos we have from the Martian surface that look so similar to Earth  it isn't that hard to think about walking across that surface.'

NASA's Perseverance rover landed on Mars today (concept image) to search for signs of life and although the mission has been years in the making, the red planet has been part of our culture for thousands of years

Perseverance will spend the next two years hunting for 'biosignatures' of past microbial life and collect rock core samples in slender, metal tools that will be cached on the Martian surface to be retrieved in 2026 for a return trip to Earth.

Although the rover is the brainchild of many intelligent and skilled scientists, it may have been the first skygazers who birthed the idea to first visit Mars.

The Babylonians first spotted a glittering object in the night sky around 400BC, but the ancient civilization never explained what it was, only naming it Nergal, the king of conflicts.

Ancient Greeks called the planet Areas, after their own God of War, while the Romans gave it the name that has lasted through the ages, Mars.

From there, Mars transformed into many other deities, and was later recorded as a 'fixed star' by ancient Egyptian astronomers.

Ancient Greeks called the planet Areas, after their god of war, while the Romans (pictured) gave it the name that has lasted through the ages - Mars

It wasn't until 1610 when Galileo Galilei conducted the first observation that determined the object to be a planet.

By the mid-1800s, telescopes allowed astronomers to take the first look at Mars' mysterious terrain, which revealed it had weather, dusty landscapes and ice caps like those on Earth.

'In the mid-1800s, you could start to see surface features and shifting terrain, and people were really into mapping Mars,' said Drake.

'At the time, people were mapping places on Earth to gain control and Mars got caught up in that as well.'

'They would just draw what they saw. I've tried to do it and it is very difficult.'

In 1887, Giovanni Schiaparelli, who was the director of the Brera Observatory in Milan, began mapping and naming areas on Mars.

He saw 'seas' and 'continents' across the mysterious world, along with channels he called 'canals.'

Schiaparelli colored areas he believed held water in blue and labeled features on planet after places in Mediterranean mythologies.

Maria Lane, a historical geographer the University of New Mexico, told Drake: 'That was a really massively bold statement to make.'

'It's basically him saying, I saw so much stuff that was so different from what anyone else had seen, I can't even use the same names.'

Schiaparelli's maps inspired an astronomer in Boston, Percival Lowel, to build his own private observatory.

Lowell concluded the canals were real after observing hundreds stretched across the Martian landscape and believed they had been created by an intelligent civilization skilled in engineering.

These theories led to the famous 'War of the World's novel by H.G. Wells in 1898, which paved the way for an entirely new genre of alien science fiction.

In 1887, Giovanni Schiaparelli, who was the director of the Brera Observatory in Milan, began mapping and naming areas on Mars. He saw 'seas' and 'continents' across the mysterious world, along with channels he called 'canals.' Schiaparelli colored areas he believed held water in blue and labeled features on planet after places in Mediterranean mythologies

But Lowell's theories and other fascinating stories about Mars fell apart in 1907, when astronomers took images using telescopes  'planetary photography eventually replaces cartography as truth,' Drake wrote.

And decades later, humans were finally able to see the Red Planet up-close.

NASA sent its Mariner 4 probe into space in 1965, which snapped the first images of the mystifying world.

The black and white images transformed the idea of a watery world home to skilled beings into a grainy, cratered landscape that seemed to without life.

'Once we sent the first craft in the 1960s we saw nothing of the sort,' Drake said.

'It was cratered and looked like the moon, which was very disappointing for people who thought they found signs of life.

'Then every time we got a sharper and sharper look at mars it looks less likely that it is inhabit.'

NASA followed up Mariner 4 with two Viking missions that landed on the northern hemisphere of Mars in 1967.

The landers sent back images that were disappointing - no signs of life, no footprints in the dust.

The pictures also revealed the planet's soil had hints of perchlorates, which are compounds that kill organic molecules and may have erased any signs of life that may have once called Mars home.

'We've always wanted to find life on Mars, but the harder we look the less likely we will find it,' Drake said.

The obsession with Mars has turned into a race among many nations, which all hope to be the first to discover life.
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As for the randy lecturers in Nigerias higher institutions, the earlier they know that the time when teachers see their female students as part of their perks of office is gone forever, the better for them. Any smart lecturer ought to know that this is not the time to play pranks with female students. In this age of new media, everyone has become a reporter, publisher and broadcaster.

A lecturer at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) has been in the news for the wrong reasons since the beginning of the week. Unlike some serious-minded dons in citadels of learning across the world who have been trying to find solutions to the diverse challenges of the world, Dr. Chigozie Odum of the Department of Archaeology and Tourism has reportedly chosen another vocation for himself. He has been allegedly busy with the task of sexually molesting and impregnating his own students. Unconfirmed reports claim he has so far impregnated four of his students, although only one has officially lodged a complaint to the university authorities. The UNN has also suspended him indefinitely on the basis of the complaint of the female student. The university has also promised to investigate any further claim of sexual harassment, provided there are evidences to back such claims.

Odums letter of suspension has been trending in the social media since February 15 when it was issued. The letter, signed by UNNs Deputy Registrar, Mrs. Achiuwa F.C, reads: Following the accusation of sexual harassment made against you by a female student in the Department of Archaeology and Tourism, the Vice-Chancellor has directed that you be suspended from duty immediately. You are hereby so suspended from duty with immediate effect. You should stay away from your duty post until the final determination of the allegation against you. You should hand over any University property in your custody to the Head of Department of Archaeology and Tourism. The Bursar is by a copy of this letter advised to place you on half salary pending final disposal action on your case.

According to media reports, Odum allegedly put a female student, Onah Chinyere, in the family way after coercing her into sexual intercourse. Consequently, the girls family petitioned the police, which led to his arrest by the men of the Crack Squad, Enugu State Police Command. There are insinuations that the university acted only because Odum was arrested but the institution has since denied this. Whatever the case is, it is gratifying that the UNN at least called a spade by its name. The letter was explicit enough on the alleged offence and the steps being taken were clearly stated. It is also good to realise that in this new media age, it is getting tougher for any institution to shield any erring staff member. UNN should therefore hasten its investigation and make its findings public. Nigerians need to know the outcome of this probe. The public deserves to know if this man is found guilty or not. If found innocent, Nigerians should also know why he was wrongly accused in the first instance and the punishment for the person that wrongly maligned his character. This is the least the university can do, especially now that this matter is already in the public domain. This is very important because reports of sexual assaults can take too long to investigate, even in sane climes.

Our higher institutions should start sending out a clear message to both lecturers and students that unwanted sexual behaviours will no longer be tolerated. They just have to start doing things differently. The truth is that anyone who has gone through sexual harassment in the past cant help but seek appropriate punishment for predators. The effect can be devastating. It is both psychologically and emotionally traumatising. You need to experience it to know how it feels. I was once there and the torture is still as if it happened yesterday. I suffered grade retaliation in the hands of a randy lecturer who wouldnt take no for an answer. Imagine a lecturer old enough to be my father putting me through such emotional stress simply because I refused to be slaughtered on his sexual slab. Its horrible. Anyway, as God would have it, this lecturer left the University of Lagos for a private university years after I had left the school. Since a leopard can hardly change its skin, he wanted to continue his sexual exploits there, but the students reported him and he was sacked. He died a miserable man. I had the privilege of editing the story of his passing. For me, it was a pure case of good riddance to bad rubbish!

Until Nigerian institutions begin to make a scapegoat of randy lecturers in their midst, the problem of sexual harassment will persist. Let me also make it clear that sexual harassment goes beyond sexual advancements towards the opposite sex. Some behaviours or words could pass for sexual harassment. For example, a university lecturer at University of New Hampshire once lost a years pay for using sex as an analogy in class. He said he used the sex analogy so that students would understand the subject better. But, some students complained; the administration investigated and suspended him without pay for one year. Another professor of English was fired for reliance on sex as a theme and of sexually-explicit vocabulary. Of course, both lecturers eventually won in court but they were not reinstated by their universities. This is the extent of seriousness attached to sexual harassment in some countries.

Nigerian institutions should encourage anonymous reports of sexual harassment cases. Such cases should be independently investigated to help students who may be too shy to come forward in the open. Investigations should be transparent and everybody should be made to account for their actions.

We know that there is nothing new under the sun. Sexual harassment is a global phenomenon and an ongoing issue across the globe. As a matter of fact, a report conducted by the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) notes that one in five (21 per cent) of students at Australian universities are sexually harassed, either on campus, at a universityrelated event off campus, or from someone associated with the university. In the UK, the BBC said that there were 1436 recorded allegations of sexual harassment against students from 2018-2019, which is an increase of 476 from 2016-2017. Similarly, a study into sexual harassment among universities in Norway shows that 15.2 per cent of women (compared with 4.4 per cent of men) reported unwanted touching, hugging, or kissing since they started their studies, just as a 2006 study published by the American Association of University Women concluded that sexual harassment remains a persistent problem for women on campus.

Of course, most of the cases listed above are not about lecturers harassing their students. They are cases of students being sexually harassed by one another, either on or off campus. A report by the AAUW says 80 per cent of the sexual harassment reported by college women and men was about a hostile work environment, harassment by other students and former students, and not the faculty and staff. For example, a student of Columbia University once spent an entire year carrying mattress across campus to protest being raped by a fellow student. So, one can imagine what would have happened if such student was raped or sexually harassed by a lecturer. Elsewhere, higher institutions try as much as much as possible to provide support services for victims of sexual harassment. But here, the lecturers and the staff are the ones harassing students sexually. By the way, why should a lecturer demand sexual services from a female student before doing the job he is paid to do? This is despicable. It is an abuse of trust, power and authority.

Moving forward, Nigerian institutions should encourage anonymous reports of sexual harassment cases. Such cases should be independently investigated to help students who may be too shy to come forward in the open. Investigations should be transparent and everybody should be made to account for their actions. In this particular case of the UNN, the lecturers arrest by the police is a welcome development. But beyond that, the university should be joined in a law suit, should a case be established against the lecturer. It is the universitys responsibility to keep students safe from all forms of sexual harassment.

its a share display of irresponsibility and an act of timidity for lecturers to be harassing female students that they are old enough to father simply because they think they exercise some powers over them. The same is the case with a boss trying to sexually molest a female worker at work.

As for the randy lecturers in Nigerias higher institutions, the earlier they know that the time when teachers see their female students as part of their perks of office is gone forever, the better for them. Any smart lecturer ought to know that this is not the time to play pranks with female students. In this age of new media, everyone has become a reporter, publisher and broadcaster. It is hard to keep such acts as secrets. So, it is in their best interest to keep that thing between their legs in check before it checks them out of their jobs.

Besides, its a share display of irresponsibility and an act of timidity for lecturers to be harassing female students that they are old enough to father simply because they think they exercise some powers over them. The same is the case with a boss trying to sexually molest a female worker at work. Such men are simply cowards. Otherwise, they would have been bold enough to approach women outside their spheres of power and influence, instead of intimidating and harassing weak and vulnerable ladies around them.

Olabisi Deji-Folutile is the Editor-in-Chief, Franktalknow.com and member, Nigerian Guild of Editors. Email: bisideji@yahoo.co.uk.

Press Release

February 18, 2021 On the Claims by Sec. Salvador Panelo on the PH-US VFA More at: https://pinglacson.net/2021/02/18/on-the-claims-by-sec-salvador-panelo-on-the-ph-us-vfa/ It is a no-brainer that my friend from way back, Salvador Panelo, being a member of the President's Cabinet, will defend him, right or wrong. Hence, I'm willing to give him enough leeway. That said, Art. VII, Sec. 21 of the 1987 Constitution is clear and unequivocal on the participation of each and every Senator in voting for or against the ratification of a treaty or international agreement, which the PH-US Visiting Forces Agreement is. In fact, official records of the Senate will tell us that the vote on May 27, 1999 was 18-5, without which the same would not have been valid and effective. More importantly: Whether or not an international agreement or a treaty has already been made valid and effective, it is still wrong to assert that a sitting senator and even an ordinary citizen of this country has no more freedom to express his opinion with something that concerns our national interest.
On Sunday in San Antonio, April Saenz, a medical worker, went to visit her mother. Because of the terrible road conditions brought on by the ongoing cold snap, she chose to stay the night. Together, they passed 36 hours in the shivering darkness. Food thawed in the freezer, and Ms. Saenz eyed her mothers insulin in the fridge, worried it would go bad. It was really upsetting. It was crazy, she told me. These were complete man-made failures.

A cold, sharp dagger has slashed through Texas, Americas largest and proudest producer of fossil fuels, while stranding millions without heat or light. The frigid disaster has also laid bare the fallacy, still prominent in the Lone Star State, that oil and gas are more important than impending climate catastrophe, embarrassing a political class that just weeks ago pledged to defend the oil and gas industry  its own Alamo  from the Biden administration.

The fallacy is hard to unwind even as people are dying. But some Texans are also furious about how their states ruinous laissez-faire governance led to a cascade of human-caused disasters of epic proportions. Indeed, this was no act of God.

Last week, 29 million Texans learned that the weather would turn unseasonably cold. It would be no ordinary blue norther: As the planet warms, so does the Arctic, disrupting the jet stream, which usually keeps the polar vortex of frigid air in place there. Now there is an emerging, if not unanimous, view among climatologists that the vortex is wobbling and dipping south, paralyzing Madrid, freezing the American Midwest and blanketing the Sierra Nevada, all since the start of this year.
Michael Brunelli has become a successful social media influencer since starring on the sixth season of Married At First Sight, which is now airing in the United Kingdom.

So when he received a barrage of messages from a troll criticising girlfriend Martha Kalifatidis and his former career as a primary school teacher on Instagram, the 29-year-old fired back with the perfect response as an educator.

The online fitness entrepreneur, who used to work as a P.E. teacher, graded the troll's messages - and issued the sender with a 'D-' for his efforts.

Burn! Michael Brunelli (pictured), 29, has fired back at an online troll with the perfect response as a former primary school teacher

'Good effort, you tried your best,' he captioned a screenshot of the message shared to his Instagram Stories, before signing off with 'Mr Brunelli' and two gold stars.

In the message, Michael was bad-mouthed for being 'a teacher on 20K a year'.

'Mate... give your head a wobble,' the message read. 'I'll smash your head in and your slag of a wife ain't a women she's a slag that needs slapping.

'From a women. Ahahahah. Your jokes. Post about me all you want.'

'Good effort, you tried your best,' Michael captioned a screenshot of the message shared to his Instagram Stories, before signing off with 'Mr Brunelli' and two gold stars

'I'll smash her bloody face in mate': The vile threat followed multiple other messages from the same sender, which labelled Michael and Martha as a 'pair of idiots'

The vile threat followed multiple other messages from the same sender, which labelled Michael and Martha as a 'pair of idiots' for their behaviour on the Channel Nine social experiment.

'Your wife is disgusting mate defending the wrong even when she knows it's wrong,' it read. 'I'll smash her bloody face in mate. And yours trust me if I was Mick I would have kicked the living crap out of you I front of anyone. Pair of idiots mate.'

The incident the troll was referring to was Martha defending co-star Jessika Power on the show for having an on-screen affair with Dan Webb, which left then respective on-screen partners Mick Gould and Tamara Joy weeping.

What's the troll talking about? The incident the troll was referring to was Martha (left) defending co-star Jessika Power (right) on the show for having an on-screen affair with Dan Webb, which left then respective on-screen partners Mick Gould and Tamara Joy weeping

Michael initially responded with a humorous selfie video to his Instagram Stories, where he labelled trolls from the United Kingdom as 'dumber' than those on home soil.

'I wanted to come on and say a big "Hi" and "I love you" to all my trolls in the UK, but honestly the support has been amazing from over there,' he explained.

'I honestly don't know how you guys deal with the trolls. They're just dumber than the trolls in Australia.'
Associated Press

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asked Sunday that flags at all federal buildings be flown at half-staff to honor more than 200 children whose remains have been found buried at what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school  one of the institutions that held children taken from families across the nation. The Peace Tower flag on Parliament Hill in the nation's capital of Ottawa was among those lowered to half-staff. To honor the 215 children whose lives were taken at the former Kamloops residential school and all Indigenous children who never made it home, the survivors, and their families, I have asked that the Peace Tower and all federal buildings be flown at half-mast, Trudeau tweeted.
ALBANY  The FBI and the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn have launched an investigation that is examining, at least in part, the actions of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's coronavirus task force in its handling of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities during the pandemic, the Times Union has learned.

The probe by the U.S. attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York is apparently in its early stages and is focusing on the work of some of the senior members of the governor's task force, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter who is not authorized to comment publicly.

NEW: Assembly Republicans push for impeachment commission to probe Cuomo

Last March, as the virus began spreading in New York, Cuomo issued a news release listing the 13 initial members of his coronavirus task force, which has been headed by Linda Lacewell, an attorney and former chief of staff for Cuomo. Lacewell is the superintendent of the state Department of Financial Services. Other task force members include state health Commissioner Howard Zucker, Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa and Beth Garvey, counsel to the governor.

"As we publicly said, DOJ (Department of Justice) has been looking into this for months," said Richard Azzopardi, a spokesman for the governor. "We have been cooperating with them and we will continue to."

Azzopardi did not disclose whether any members of the administration have been interviewed or if they have been served with any subpoenas.

John Marzulli, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn, on Wednesday afternoon said he could not "confirm or deny" whether the office has initiated an investigation.

Nearly three weeks after the governor's task force was announced last year, the state health department issued an order directing nursing homes and other long-term care facilities that they must accept residents who were being discharged from hospitals even if they were still testing positive for the infectious disease, as long as they were able to care for them properly.

That directive, which was rescinded less than two months later, has been the focus of a firestorm of criticism directed at Cuomo's administration, including allegations that the order  which the governor said was based on federal guidance  had contributed to the high number of fatalities of nursing home residents in New York. That assertion was largely dismissed in a report by the Department of Health that was released in July.

Last month, the office of Attorney General Letitia James issued a scathing report that concluded the practice may have increased the risk of COVID-19 infections at the congregate facilities and that Cuomo's administration had delayed reporting that thousands of additional nursing home residents died at hospitals after being infected in their residential facilities.

It's unclear whether the federal probe by the office of acting U.S. Attorney Seth D. DuCharme is tied to two letters that Cuomo's administration received from a civil division attorney at the Justice Department in Washington, D.C., last year seeking information on the state's nursing home policies and data.

The controversy boiled over again last week when DeRosa, in a closed-door meeting with key Democrats in the state Legislature with the authority to subpoena and investigate the governor's administration, told the group that the administration had withheld information lawmakers had requested on nursing homes for months due to the Justice Department's inquiry.

DeRosa, in the private meeting that was the subject of a subsequent leak, characterized the Justice Department official who sent the letter, Jeffrey Clark, an attorney who headed the department's civil division, as a "political hack" that she contended had pursued the probe at the urging of President Donald J. Trump.

"Basically, we froze because then we were in a position where we weren't sure if what we were going to give to the Department of Justice or what we give to you guys and what we start saying was going to be used against us and we weren't sure if there was going to be an investigation," DeRosa told the Democratic lawmakers.

In a formal statement a day after her remarks were leaked, DeRosa said the administration has cooperated fully with the Department of Justice.

The recent probe by the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn is not the first time that New York City-based federal prosecutors have launched investigations in New York's Northern District, which stretches from Kingston to the Canadian border with headquarters in Albany and Syracuse. A sprawling fraud and bribery case involving top Cuomo aides in Albany was prosecuted by the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan; the prosecution of NXIVM co-founder Keith Raniere and other top members of his organization was handled by the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, issued a statement Wednesday urging President Joe Biden to allow Antoinette Bacon, the acting U.S. attorney in New York's Northern District, to be assigned to investigate Cuomo's administration in connection with its reporting of nursing home fatalities.

Grassley noted that the U.S. attorney in New York's Manhattan-based Southern District, Audrey Strauss, is the mother-in-law of DeRosa and should not be involved in any probe.

Bacon, who was appointed acting U.S. attorney in Albany in September, is among dozens of U.S. attorneys who may be removed from their positions by the Biden administration. Bacon had recently been the Justice Department's national elder-justice coordinator and served as the national white collar crime coordinator at the executive office for U.S. attorneys.

She is a highly decorated prosecutor and has received special awards from the IRS, U.S. Postal Service and the Justice Department "for her prosecutions of fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption," according to her professional biography.

But the probe being conducted by the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn apparently does not involve the Northern District.

Earlier this week, Cuomo stopped short of apologizing for his administration's handling of nursing homes' fatality data, repeatedly noting they had created a "void" by not providing the information requested by state lawmakers.

"Apologize? Look, I have said repeatedly, we made a mistake in creating the void," he said. "When we didnt provide information it allowed press, people, cynics, politicians to fill the void. When you dont correct this information you allow it to continue and we created the void."

Republicans at all levels of New York's government spectrum, and many Democrats as well, have repeatedly called for independent investigations of the state's nursing home policies and directives during the ongoing pandemic. Some of those critics also have raised questions about whether there were any ties between policy decisions and hospitals or other special interests that either have business before the state or are subject to its regulating agencies.

State lawmakers also have pressed for the use of legislative subpoenas to compel answers from key officials, including Zucker.

The lawmakers who attended the briefing with DeRosa included Assemblyman John McDonald, D-Cohoes, chair of the Assembly's Oversight, Analysis and Investigations Committee, and Sen. James Skoufis, an Orange County Democrat who chairs the Senate's Investigations and Government Operations Committee. Skoufis and Aging Committee Chairwoman Rachel May, who were both in the meeting, have faced calls from Republicans for their chairmanships to be stripped by Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins because they did not alert their legislative colleagues to what had been said.

Skoufis had already come under fire by Republican lawmakers for not immediately issuing subpoenas for the information they had asked the health commissioner for last summer. Skoufis has said he would use the power if necessary, but would decide that issue after Zucker appears before the Legislature's joint budget hearing panel.

In a statement following last week's meeting with DeRosa, Skoufis did not mention her remarks about the administration's decision to withhold the data in the face of the Justice Department's civil division inquiry. He said it was "unacceptable that it took so long."

"To be clear, we will certainly have more questions as we review this information," Skoufis said of the data that was turned over to state lawmakers last week. "While some of our Republican colleagues in the Legislature continue to shamefully play politics with the tragedy that unfolded in our state's nursing homes, we are, instead, committed to getting answers, holding stakeholders accountable, and advancing legislative solutions in a sober, thoughtful manner."

Cuomo this week said he does not believe there should be an outside investigation of his administrations handling of nursing homes during the pandemic or its delay in reporting the number of fatalities.

The New York state (Department of Health) has always fully and publicly reported all COVID deaths in nursing homes and hospitals. They have always been fully reported, Cuomo said Monday. I dont think theres anything to clear here.  There is nothing to investigate.